#but I am a grown man crying publicly.. do you think I want this???

[dumbdiscodragon]

shoutout to the train employee who saw me balled up and crying and clutching my head from a migrane attack and insisted on finding out if I wanted the veggie option or not. Relentless.

[enduracarrotchips]

YouTuber AU

Hello welcome to Dating Scandal but with Twitter Involved (nightmare)

A little exposition here: 

Link, Zelda, Sidon, Revali, and Riju are the most popular group of youtubers on the internet and have a huge fanbase that likes to theorize, draw fanart, and write fanfiction about them. Disclaimer, I don’t actually interact with real-person fandoms myself lol there’s just too much potential for drama and misunderstandings & they’re always bound to end in a dumpster fire but that is sort of what this au is about so.

Impa, Mipha, Daruk, and Urbosa are family friends that appear in a lot of their videos/streams. 

(This is an art blog I swear)

enter vidcon 20XX

Link: 

blows stuff up/sets stuff on fire with a side of cooking vids and gaming

most are filmed outside, he does those challenges where you try to cook stuff with limited ingredients/materials

has the largest fanbase of all of them, but not the most…intimidating.

does a lot of collab videos, mostly with Impa, Daruk, and Riju because they have similar interests/channels, but Zelda appears in his videos and is seen filming and the stans read too far into it

simps. i’m pointing at you.

Most popular videos are “shield surfing on rock!—how I broke my leg” “can Daruk eat Impa’s motorcycle?” and “how to inhale ranch dressing.”

Twitter handle is @ arsonistslullabye because he’s a hozier fan

45m subs

Zelda:

theories, analyses, conspiracies, and the occasional e x p e r i m e n t

she once got link to eat a frog for 50 bucks.

most people argue that she’s better than more popular YouTubers because she actually has quality content to give to the world and she has a lot of defensive supporters

She used to get a lot of hate before Urbosa spoke up about it and scared the bejeezus out of everyone

has an actual posting schedule

“Happy Sunday everyone, it’s Zelda Hyrule and today we will be talking about cryptozoology and why blupees exist, you cowards.”

Twitter handle is @ zeldaofhyrule and she is pan. just so you know. One of those calm extroverts that mystify me to this day.

18m subs

Sidon:

fashion/life hacks. Like gourmet troom troom but if they were real people.

Has the 2nd largest fanbase

most of them are girls

Sidon has a boyfriend though, which he told everyone at VidCon a few years ago

cue the drama and shipping and the entire fandom trying to figure out who the boyfriend is. A well known reddit thread emerged that presented the common guesses being Link, Sidon, and Zelda.

“But it can’t be Zelda, Sidon’s gay.”

“I’m not in the fandom but I thought Zelda was a boy??”

“Did you just say Sidon? Is that a typo? Are you saying that Sidon’s dating himself?”

Sidon x Sidon became a fandom joke.

Don’t look at me I’m just setting up all the worldbuilding. every fandom has their weird dark sides and Sidon x Sidon is the Linkcest of the Sidon YT fandom.

Mystery BF is actually Bazz, a pretty inconspicuous guy who appeared in a few of his videos. This was confirmed a year ago, but everyone still ships him with other YouTubers because they’re convinced he was lying to throw them off his scent. He really can’t catch a break and this is why you should not ship real people.

Twitter handle is @ officialprincesidon

says “beguiling” a lot

21m subs ᕙ( ͡❛ ▿ ͡❛)ᕗ

Mipha:

Sidon’s sister, hasn’t posted a single video but just has the channel for show because she appears in so many of Sidon’s videos as a model for his makeup tutorials and whatnot

has 328k for that. Everyone loves her, she’s great. @ mimipha

Revali:

Link’s sworn rival

Link thinks they’re friends

He kept popping up in link’s Twitter threads and making snarky comments until zelda called him out for not even following link (so why was he stalking his acc) which kept the Twitter drama to a minimum

Revali was the catalyst of a few popular memes and that’s where most of his subs come from.

drags link into a few challenges that always get a ton of views because of how competitive they get

“ITS JUST ASININE” is a running joke that everyone tries to get him to say. His @ is itsjustasinine as well

Urbosa is the only person who can win an argument with him

5m subs and growing rapidly. newer to youtube than everyone else.

Impa:

Doesn’t have a channel she’s just a mutual friend of Mipha, Zelda, and Link

Rides a motorcycle, so she is used in a few of Link’s videos.

@ ihaveamotorcycle because she thinks having a motorcycle is a personality trait. the most unruly on Twitter when it comes to replying to fan’s stuff, leaking upcoming videos and generally causing chaos.

Mipha’s girlfriend. That’s how she met Zelda and Link.

Urbosa:

Is actually a model, but she has a ton of YouTuber friends because she’s known Zelda since birth.

when she entered the youtube community she didn’t realize she would be adopting like 15 children

5m subs. her videos are professional & related to her modelling career. @ urbosasfury

I feel like she would do unboxing vids. I’m not sure what she’s unboxing.

Daruk

Just a friend of Link’s, fun guy. yells a lot. once ate a rock and had no reaction.

people are scared of him for that reason

Riju:

yoga & gymnastics & “ha look at how flexible I am its eAsY” videos

you know the type

she also does reactions and is sponsored by save the sand seals charities which she is very enthusiastic about. She’s also Urbosa’s niece and the only minor in the gang (15). I like to think that the champions YT community is actually not creepy so everyone respects her a ton

doesn’t post frequently, she mostly appears in Link’s videos to jump out of airplanes or whatever. And sometimes Zelda’s if she’s interested in the topic. 500k subs, but she’s always really popular when she appears in Link’s videos.

VidCon:

In the months leading up to VidCon, some fans on the internet made a few discoveries: first of all, that the inside of Link’s house is painted green. This is a big deal because all of his videos are filmed outside either in his backyard or on trips that he and the brosquad go on to do…whatever bros do. explosions. idk. The point is he had some announcement about VidCon and filmed it inside. Only the wall and a potted plant were shown.

However, the colour was similar to the the shade of Zelda’s living room. Fans dug through years and years of old videos and found a clip of Zelda walking through a hallway, where there was an open door and a glimpse of a houseplant.

There were 2 types of responses to the theory:

“They could just be roommates guys calm down”

“and they were ROOMMATES?”

others pointed out that Link could just not have a house and had to crash in Zelda’s

Some guy on reddit claimed he had a botany degree and declared that the houseplants in the clips were not of the same genus. Normal people pointed out that the plant would have grown 4 years between the clips and would look considerably different.

#Zelink trended on twitter for a while and people posted other old clips from both of their channels and the frog video blew up again

Impa retweeted a post tagged as #zelink with “rofl” and later publicly apologized for causing confusion.

Fans noticed that in the “can a motorcycle drive over my arm” (it was clickbait he’s fine) episode 2 years ago, Link was eating out of a paper lunch bag with his name written on it in handwriting that a few people claimed to look like Zelda’s, leading people to believe that she had packed him a lunch.

However, this theory was shot down with the counterargument that Zelda can’t cook. although. i mean how much skill do you need to make a sandwich.

No one knows what tumblr is doing at this time

Zelda wore a scarf in her “Save the Sand Seals” video that matched identically to the scarf Link wore when he travelled to Hebra to film a shield surfing video, but it’s been debated wether it’s actually the same scarf or not.

Neither Zelda nor Link has spoken up about the theories, and besides Impa’s one slip on twitter, neither has any of their friends. Zelda received a lot of backlash for the assumption that she was dating Link because he has a lot of delusional fans that didn’t want her to “steal their man” or whatever the hell that type of fan would get mad about

Oh yea and bolson & karson run a zelink fanpage on twitter sorry I forgot about that

after that whole mess, everyone was even more anticipant of VidCon in the hopes that some of their questions would be answered.

The whole batch went to VidCon this year: Link, Impa, Daruk, and Riju are a gang while Sidon and Mipha go together and Zelda & Revali each go separately. Urbosa is there for supervision moral support

Zelda has always been much better at dodging questions that she doesn’t want to answer than anyone else, so her Q&A went without a hitch. When asked to confirm the rumours she said “which one?” and then moved on to the next question (without actually confirming any rumours).

Link is generally a more awkward person but eventually said that he had filmed the video in Zelda’s house because it was nicer and didn’t realize it would cause such an uproar. Fans were disappointed, but Bolson claimed he saw Link and Zelda exiting the hotel elevator on the same floor after Link’s Q&A session. No one believed him.

Fans went back to theorizing over who Link, Zelda, and Sidon were all dating, because apparently they can’t just be dating unknown people and have to be with other YouTubers

Sidon and Bazz got engaged about a week after VidCon, making at least 4 preteen girls cry

actually try 4 million

Sidon x Sidon made a brief comeback but Sidon spoke up about his fandom for the first time ever on twitter and told everyone that no, he was not dating himself. eventually, everyone settled down and accepted that none of them were in a relationship save for a few loud fans.

Link and Zelda still got the occasional “when will you tell us who you’re dating?” comment but most of them were joking and the people who still hardcore shipped them were generally frowned upon. Zelda’s popularity went up after VidCon and she regained the 200k subscribers she’d lost after the first theory dropped.

Two months after VidCon, Link posted a video titled “Zelda and I’s House Tour!” and gave around 45 million people a heart attack

as revealed in the video, they had actually been dating since they were 16 and everyone’s just a fool.

the potted plant is named Hestu.

[atopearth]

Court of Darkness Part 9 - Knight Route

I actually find it hilarious that Knight hides behind Toa when Fenn teases him or whatever loll. He's like a little cat🤣 I'm surprised that Knight can't use magic🧐 But it doesn't seem like Grayson's situation, and more like he can't use it right now? It's so cute how Knight is helping her out with her studies whilst she tells him what they learnt in class so he can improve on his magic studies. It was so cute how they went around town together and Knight even ended up buying the heroine a hair clip, what a nice memory for the future~ Man, bullies are disgusting, and them breaking the hair clip made me so mad!! I'm so heartbroken for the heroine, I wanted to cry with her. She was so happy and wanted to cherish it so much, I'm so sad for her😭😭 I hope she practises her magic well and fixes it😭

Um, okay? I didn't expect a grown up taller Knight, that was really weird lol! However, the bigger problem is that Knight looks so much better normally than he does tall like an "adult" lol. Can I have shorter him back? Lolll. I hope this isn't the final form because I didn't sign up for this. I mean, Oliver in Ikemen Revolution was okay, because that was obviously his child form and the heroine wasn't going to be doing things with him like that, but here, it seemed like Knight is an adult but just on the short side, so randomly making him tall isn't really... right? Loll, I guess we'll see how they plan to go with this... I'm glad the heroine told Knight the truth about the hair clip and then they studied magic together and then repaired it together, I found that really sweet. I am soooo glad Toa finally saw those "admirers" treating the heroine like crap and told them off because wow, they're crazy. I'm glad Knight was there to protect her because the fact that they're so publicly attacking the heroine in a physical way at the party just shows how much they've lost it tbh. They should really get a harsher punishment, especially since they don't think that they're wrong. Anyway, I love how cute and honest the heroine was saying she missed him because she didn't get to talk much to him at the party today, and Knight blushing hearing that is just so cuteee! Awww, Knight being shy and trying his best to invite the heroine to go out into town again is so adorable.

I'm so sad that it really is true that Knight's "real form" is the adult version of him😭 He's got something like the stone in the heroine's choker inside his chest and that basically stunted his physical and magical growth, and the reason he's been fluctuating from big to small etc was because of the heroine's amplification magic affecting him. Anyway, like, it's cool and I guess interesting, but I'm so used to smaller him and I like how he is in his smaller counterpart more😭 Okay, I am very interested in that Goblet Chess Fenn and Jasper were playing because it sounds so fun to have a drink when you lose a pawn hahahah. It's sad Knight had to find out in this way that Toa manipulated his memories. I can see why his world has shattered for him and he can't bear to talk or face anybody not knowing what exactly is true and what is "fake" when it comes to his memories. Knowing Toa's reasons, I understand why he did it, and I personally think his decision was for the best as well considering he wanted to protect Knight, but it doesn't change the fact that he did it and it hurt Knight, so hopefully Knight musters the courage to talk to him soon. In terms of prince and valet relationships, I definitely love theirs the most, so I want them both to be happy.

It was really cool when Knight came out to save the heroine from the thugs, and I'm really loving how the heroine knows for sure how important Knight is to her, and how much she wants to be by his side at this time. I was really happy to see Knight recover his memories and not look at Dewi with disgust and hatred anymore. Dewi was concerned for Knight and wanted to make sure he wasn't being taken advantage of by Toa, so I'm glad things worked out, just kinda sad that their paths do not cross and it was a really short "reunion", but seeing them so gently smile at each other was kindaa good enough. What I'm most happy about is Knight's feelings towards Toa remaining the same even after recovering his memories. He was always scared of that, so it's great to see that he recognised Toa's actions and feelings were genuine, and he properly talked and made up with him too! Omggg, I love how when the heroine was about to say she planned on staying in this world forever with Knight, he interrupted by saying that maybe they can hone their magic enough that they could freely go between this realm and her realm! I was so ingrained with the idea that she could only choose one because of all the other routes that I didn't even think of this possibility haha! I'm glad he said that, and I'm glad they shared their feelings with each other. Okay, I'm not sure if the mischief ending is better but the magic ending is so underwhelming!!! No kiss, no sex, nothing!! I mean, I love lap pillows but it just felt so inconclusive in terms of story and romance, I was so sad!!😭

Overall, even though I do feel like Knight gets the short end of the stick by getting no kiss etc at the end, I really did enjoy how he and the heroine developed their feelings. I thought it was really cute how she would share what she learnt in class with him and they would study together, and he would go around town with her and show her things she didn’t know about. I also really liked that we got to see their magic bearing fruit when they both worked together to fix the hairclip, I honestly thought that was a highlight in the route because it was so cool and meaningful to have them both fix something precious to them. I also really liked how they dealt with the dilemma with the lost memories because I think it really showed well how much Toa cared for Knight, but also how difficult it was for Knight to have his whole world turned upside down. Knight ran away a bit too much, but I’m glad he talked it out later on. I think the only thing I didn’t really like was the adult version of Knight lolll, like he’s still cute and stuff but he doesn’t feel like Knight, and I honestly prefer the normal short version because he’s so much cuter and I don’t think it was necessary to have him have an “adult form” so I’m sad that the adult form is the real one zzz, but otherwise I think Knight and the heroine is very cute and I like them.

[forsakenoathkeeper]

I Am Alive (chapter 19/?)

Chapter 19: The Missing Android

Deviant!Connor[RK800] x (fem!)Reader Rated M(18+) for canon-typical violence and gore, medical procedures, and graphic sexual content

Chapters: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • more coming soon

You can also read on AO3 & thank you for supporting me ♥

The Detroit Police Department had yet to make any substantial progress on the murder that occurred at AlphaBio a few weeks back, before another murder case hit their desks.

Connor stepped past the holographic caution tape into the building where their crime scene was located, immediately noticing the smell of blood was heavy in the air. In response, he turned his scent receptors down from standard to low. A body was sprawled out on the floor, cheek pressed into the pool of blood puddled beneath them.

"Nolin Greene," Officer Wilson stated when he saw Connor walk in. "M.E. estimated dead less than six hours."

Connor nodded at him before scanning Greene's body with his optical unit. He was 52 years old, had never been married, and was previously employed at Cyberlife as one of their esteemed programmers.

Even without scanning the man's corpse, it was obvious he had died from multiple gunshot wounds. One prominent bullet hole left a gaping wound in the back of his head, likely just to ensure he was dead, considering he had a few on his torso in addition.

Hank rounded the corner with a sigh. "All the security cameras were offline. Haven't been since pre-rev," he explained, approaching Connor.

He waited until Officer Wilson stepped away to lean into Connor with his arms crossed. "What did they make here?" Hank asked quietly.

"They used to generate code for androids operating systems and protocols," Connor explained smoothly, matching Hank's hushed tone. "All android manufacturing has been put to a halt. He had no reason to be here."

"Good point," Hank said lowly. "Would they have kept anything here?"

"Considering the audits Cyberlife financers are going through, I would imagine this place was-... scrubbed clean, so to speak," Connor replied, briefly glancing around the office space. Judging by the dust pileup and the damage to one of the windows, this place had likely sat abandoned for months.

"You think it's related to AlphaBio?" Hank asked the android. "Chips were stolen from that plant. This facility creates code. That's a dangerous combination," he observed.

Connor gave Hank an agreeing look before eyeing the room again. Officers had brought in crime scene lights to cast out the darkness, and a flashlight was on the floor, labeled as evidence. It was next to Greene's body and had his fingerprints on it, powered off likely due to dead batteries. It didn't require any detective skills to see the power was cut off completely to the building.

"Greene was likely here to meet someone," Connor observed. "Who made the 911 call?"

Officer Wilson walked back in, careful not to step in any of the evidence. "An android apparently," he answered. "The call is saved in the case file."

"I'll pull it up now," Connor stated, using his HUD to pull up the case files remotely. "Would you like to listen, Hank?" he offered, eyes staring blindly ahead as his focus was elsewhere.

"Go for it," Hank said gruffly.

Connor's lips didn't move, but the sounds came from his mouth. Hank had seen him use his vocal processor like a speaker before; but, he never quite got used to it, and still found it very bizarre to see Connor look dead in the face while making noises that weren't his voice.

"911. What's your emergency?" the dispatcher asked.

Officer Wilson, who had never seen Connor do that before, stopped dead in his tracks and stared at the android in shock.

"My friend has been shot. I'm at-" a feminine voice followed. Seeing as she was an android, making the call with her internal processor, no outside noises could be heard, and there was no way to identify what made her suddenly stop talking.

The recorded 911 call continued in silence for a few more seconds before the android disconnected, giving dispatchers just enough time to locate the GPS coordinates from the call.

Connor stopped the recording and turned to Hank, his expressionless face returning to normal. He ignored Officer Wilson's concerned look.

"The android didn't block her GPS coordinates; so, she definitely wanted to be found," he explained to the lieutenant.

"She could have been the killer? Guy used to work at Cyberlife," Hank suggested thoughtfully. "Pissed off android?"

"Possibility," Connor acknowledged, nodding at the older detective. "However, she did identify him as her friend..."

The android trailed off, using his HUD to run a background check on Nolin Greene. "He belongs to no clubs, publicly, anyway, and has been unemployed since Cyberlife closed down. His former boss still has a primary residence in Detroit."

"Think he's worth a visit?" Hank offered more so than asked. "Let's go."

"I can drive," Connor offered, following the older detective as he headed for the exit.

"Fuck no," Hank immediately declared.

"Are you sure you can afford another speeding ticket?" the android challenged, some tease in his tone.

"I'm not gonna get another speeding ticket," Hank retorted fiercely, climbing into the driver's seat. He eyed Connor as the android shimmied into the passenger seat.

"Keep it up and your ass is walking," he threatened in a tone that Connor had grown rather accustomed to. It sounded sincere, but the android could tell the difference.

"Whatever you say, detective," Connor uttered, knowing full well his relaxed tone and stoic expression would irritate the older detective further.

Hank only grumbled in response.

...

...

...

Arthur Torres lived in a nice house in the posh, suburban side of town. He didn't seem at all surprised to find detectives at his door; however, he couldn't seem to bring himself to stop staring at Connor with blatant distrust and fear.

"You were a head programmer at Cyberlife for years," Hank stated, reciting information Connor had filled him in during their ride over. They had decided to let Hank lead with the likelihood that the man would be untrusting of Connor.

That seemed to be a very accurate assumption.

"Yes," Torres acknowledged Hank's statement.

"One of your former subordinates, Colin Greene, was murdered last night."

Torres was a skittish looking individual, and completely failed to maintain composure at the news. His hands were digging into his lap and he was struggling to keep still, fidgeting in his seat. Both the detectives doubted it was concern over Greene's livelihood, or lack of.

"Was it an android?" he asked, confirming their suspicions of his intentions.

Hank decided to ignore that question. "Greene's body was found at one of Cyberlife's office spaces, where programmers worked on their operating systems," the older detective explained. "We were hoping you could tell us why he would be there."

Connor decided to wear a cold look while he stood there, next to the couch where Hank had parked himself. The android was standing with perfect posture, arms crossed elegantly behind his back. It was clear that Torres was afraid of him. If he was being honest, he was taking advantage of that.

"Must have been the office where we worked," Torres offered quietly, trying to avoid Connor's piercing gaze. "I can't imagine why. The place was cleared out months ago. Did you ask Maria?"

Hank's brow lowered slightly. "Who?"

"Maria. She was a KL900 placed at our office. Nolin had reconfigured her so that she could test our codes. After the-" Torres' eyes flickered to Connor with uncertainty. "-revolution, he took her in - let her live with him."

Before Hank could utter another word, Torres continued, suddenly eager to run his mouth. "She had a lot of our incomplete code saved. I warned him it was dangerous to keep her."

The older detective looked down at his cellphone, that had vibrated quietly while Torres yapped. It was a text from Connor, reading, "the voice on the 911 call matches that model."

Hank tucked his phone back into his coat pocket. "What was their relationship like?"

"Well-" Torres began. "I suppose-... She was unique. He had modded her greatly - well beyond her manufactured purpose. I think he saw her as his own creation, in a way."

Again, before Hank could inquire further, Torres started up again. "She's missing, isn't she?"

Connor spoke up this time. "Are you suggesting she is somehow responsible?" His tone was calm, collected, almost polite, even; however, that was likely even more frightening than if he spoke with anger.

"I-" Torres stammered, eyes briefly flickering up to meet Connor's before immediately shifting back to the older detective. It was bizarre to think that this spineless man was once a lead programmer for Cyberlife.

"You can't think of any reason Greene would turn up dead in your old office?" Hank asked, maintaining the good cop persona he had taken up during this discussion.

"I can't think of why he would be there at all," Torres insisted.

"I would advise you offer something substantial," Connor warned, his tone cold and unyielding. "As of right now, you are our number one suspect."

"W-what?" Torres stammered, his panicked eyes falling on the android. "I haven't spoken to him since we were shut down. What motive could I possibly have?"

Connor's brown eyes remained unreadable, cold and robotic. That seemed to make Torres more uncomfortable than expressing valid emotion. "You said it yourself: he had access to incomplete code. Perhaps he knew something you didn't want getting out. So, you shut him up."

Torres' eyes landed on Hank, his gaze silently pleading, as if he expected Hank to stop Connor. Instead, the older detective wore a faint smirk. "He's got a point."

"No! I would never!" Torres defended himself loudly. "Y-you need to leave. I'm calling my lawyer."

...

...

...

"God, I love when those rich assholes lawyer up," Hank groaned as he climbed into his car. "It's like crying to mommy and daddy."

Connor slid into the passenger seat, a sour look on his face. "I pushed too hard. We probably could have gotten more out of him," he said apologetically.

"Nah," Hank retorted gruffly, silencing Connor's regrets. "We got the only useful thing out of him."

Hank pulled out of the street with a little more force than was necessary, mainly because he wanted to cause a fuss in the posh neighborhood. He could see the neighbors poking their heads out, rich and bored with nothing better to do than gossip. Hank's vintage car screamed detective or organized crime, and no in between.

"Let's check Greene's place. Maybe you can find something to help you locate this android," Hank suggested.

Greene's neighborhood wasn't as posh as Torres'; but, it was still nice, a little noisier with families out and about enjoying the weather. The warrant request had already been received and an electronic key had been sent over to Connor. He used the interface on his hand to let them inside.

The detectives walked around carefully, taking turns examining rooms for clues. The place was nicely furnished and impeccably clean. An android definitely lived here. If there was anything Connor could stereotype androids for, it was cleanliness.

There were a few photos hung up on the wall in the living room. The KL900 in the photos was likely Maria. She was an ordinary looking KL900, everything factory issued. Most of the photos were likely her at the Cyberlife programming facility.

There was one photo of just her and Nolin Greene together. She was wearing civilian clothes and her LED was removed. Their smiles suggested the relationship was a good one.

One of the bedrooms could easily be identified as Maria's room. There was no bed, but a desk with a charging station and a computer with an android interfacing tool in place of a mouse and keyboard. A quick scan of the room showed almost no fingerprints, except for a few on the door handle and door frame, which Connor immediately scanned as Nolin Greene's.

Hank was looking over a study that was likely Nolin's. The dark, stained wood desk was enough of a giveaway without all the golf memorabilia decorating the wall behind it. There was a laptop plugged into the charger. He figured CSI would pick it up later.

"Still waiting on that warrant for phone records!?" Hank called out.

Connor called back, "affirmative!"

"Damn," he grumbled to himself. "What's the holdup?"

The two detectives rendezvoused in the kitchen, exchanging disgruntled looks.

"No signs of a struggle," Hank observed.

"It wasn't a robbery. There aren't any fingerprints in the house not belonging to Greene," Connor explained. "The perpetrator left Greene's wallet and keys on his body... It's almost as if Greene was just... in the way."

The android looked away for a moment, staring off blindly as he searched Greene's employee folder again from Cyberlife's records. There was nothing in there about Maria, unsurprisingly. There were thousands of KL900's in circulation; so, there was no point in searching registered android records.

"Ya' thinking Greene wasn't the target?" Hank suggested.

"Assuming Torres wasn't giving us the runaround," Connor added on, setting a pondering gaze on the lieutenant, "Maria could have been the target; but... who would know that an ordinary looking KL900 has Cyberlife codes?"

"Someone who used to work for Cyberlife," Hank answered.

"It leads us back to Torres," Connor said sourly.

"He wasn't the only one that got bit in the ass," the older detective corrected him. "Lot's'a people out'a work. Lot's'a people facing lawsuits... and lot's'a people losing money. Oldest reason in the book."

"We need those phone records," Connor stated fiercely.

"I'm gonna call CSI. Get them on these damn computers," Hank stated, pulling out his cell phone.

"I could-"

"No."

...

...

...

After a long day of field work, Hank, Officer Wilson, Officer Miller, and Detective Collins gathered around a food truck a few blocks from the police station. It was already dark out and the street lights were illuminating the cityscape.

Connor decided to join them.

"You wouldn't fucking believe-" Officer Miller explained, an excited look in his eyes. "I thought this son of a bitch was gonna clock me. Connor came jumping over the roadblock and slam-dunked that motherfucker to the ground like this was WWE."

Detective Collins nearly chocked on his drink, doubling over with laughter. Hank was grinning, having witnessed that, and plenty of other amazing feats from the android, firsthand.

Officer Wilson nudged the android's shoulder. "Damn. Where the fuck were you when that crackhead tried to hit me with a baseball bat?" he teased, shoulders trembling with laughter and a wild, bright smile on his face.

Connor looked bashful, a crooked smile forming on his face.

"That's how you fucked up your hand," Hank added on.

"Small price to pay," Connor replied sincerely.

"Wait - was that how you met your lady friend? That nurse?" Officer Wilson asked, eyeing Connor suspiciously. He shifted his eyes to Miller with a grin. "Maybe I should save your dumbass next time and land me a hot nurse."

"You just need to get hurt," Miller replied with a grin, popping his knuckles dramatically. "I can help."

"I'd like to see you try," Wilson retorted. "You get knocked out by little old grandmas."

"That was Lewis," Detective Collins corrected. "But, it was pretty fucking funny."

"She put up quite a fight," Hank jumped in. "Earned that 'resisting arrest' with honors."

The conversation continued for a while, the men talking in-between eating their meals. Connor was mostly quiet, observing, occasionally jumping in when the moment seemed right. He worked with these guys almost every day and had grown to know them well; still, he found himself struggling to adjust to this - to fitting in.

When it was nearing eight o'clock, the android decided to dismiss himself.

"I'm gonna call it a night," he proclaimed, removing his elbows from the table. He had taken to using more common phrases around his coworkers, and this in particular was one of his favorites.

"Already? You don't sleep," Miller protested casually.

"He needs to get home so he can rearrange his girlfriend's guts," Wilson teased.

Miller and Collins broke out in laughter and Hank rolled his eyes, despite his faint smirk.

Connor stood there staring at them blankly, sincerely confused for a moment. Surely, that sort of thing would kill you. At the very least, it would cause severe damage that would require a surgeon. Why would he want to do such a thing?

A quick internet search, however, showed him that it was slang for rough sex.

He couldn't quite tell, but Connor was certain a faint blush had appeared on his cheeks. He spent 1.61 seconds internally debating if he should deny it or tease back.

At one point in the past, he might have taken this behavior as negative; however, he had grown to recognize banter as common between humans. The impersonality of it was how bonds were formed. Besides, he could easily recognize their teasing was unharmful. If anything, they were treating him like just another human, and that was more preferable.

"Maybe," he said lowly, the corner of his lip curling up slightly.

Connor's eyes reflected a mischievous glance at them briefly before he retreated. As he walked away, he heard the officers hollering obnoxiously at him, an echoing "ooohhh" as if he had declared something profound.

Before he was out of earshot, he could hear Hank grumpily, albeit fondly, telling them to "shut the fuck up".

[maraudersandlily20]

ok dorcas and marlene as chaotic professors at the same university? could be an AU, could just be Hogwarts

As told in Text Conversations: 

Groupchat: Picasso is a Bitch 

Dorcas: New Teacher alert.

Lily: Department?

Dorcas: Engineering

Remus: Sounds hot

Dorcas: shut up immediately.

Remus: you’re not my mom

Lily: M or F

Dorcas: F

Remus: Dammit

Lily: seem nice?

Dorcas: idk. I didn’t get the chance to actually talk to her. It was more like a moment in passing. She was surrounded by guys, though

Remus: what a lesbian move

Lily: how… how is that even a thing?

Remus: Lils, are you dumb? If girls ONLY hang out with guys, chances are they’re butch. Or they know they aren’t attracted to guys and are wild as fuck and have nothing to lose. They have no one to impress, really. Those are the only two options.

Dorcas: Jesus

Remus: No, I’m sure he wasn’t there

Dorcas: I have to leave this conversation before I physically kill Remus Lupin. Talk to you both later.

Lily: Lunch in our usual spot?

Remus: Tell me if you see the Lesbian again.

Remus: Also, where the fuck is Alice?

---

Groupchat: The Walking Dead

Sirius: Well lads, I dropped off the love of our lives at school. Felt like a proud parent. Almost cried.

Marlene: You are aware that I know how to make explosives from scratch right? I’ve been aching to do it for a while, so you wanna keep doing this? Is this happening?

James: I need him, though. We’re gonna get married eventually. So no. You are not allowed to blow him up

Marlene: Fuck

Peter: How's the new campus? 

Marlene: Small. I mean, it’s a lot smaller of a university, harder to get into and all that. But still. For a place that boasts a great deal of wealth, they certainly don’t show it in building size. 

Sirius: That’s how you know they have money. They have nothing to prove. Classic rich people move.

Peter: You should know.

James: Did you get settled though, Mars? 

Marlene: Enough. I still have to set up the lecture hall to my liking, but it’s nice to have an office that will probably be permanent. And I saw your door just a few down from mine, Jamie boy! Sirius: I should have become a professor. I feel left out. I hate being left out.

Peter: You have the right degree, Paddy. You could be a professor if you wanted.

Sirius: Desk jobs are gross. No thank you. Also, children.

Marlene: It’s not a desk job. And, like, these children are basically full grown adults.

Sirius: Physically, maybe. But I remember what we were like at their age. Mentally, they belong in daycare. 

James: You’re just bitter because those college boys outdrank you the other night.

Sirius: THEY FUCKING CHEATED!

Peter: They didn’t though

James: Whatever you say, Pads.

Marlene: Also, I just saw a very beautiful woman. Will keep you updated if I see her again.

Sirius: WHY ARE YOU ONLY SAYING THIS NOW?!?!

---

Groupchat: Picasso Is a Bitch name changed to Hamlet, that’s fucking gay

Remus: Any sign of the lesbian?

Dorcas: No. 

Alice: What? What Lesbian?

Lily: Oh, while you were sick, Dorcas saw a very pretty girl. Remus thinks she’s a lesbian.

Alice: Ooh, that’s fun! 

Remus: I don’t THINK Lily, I know. 

Dorcas: You haven’t even seen her

Remus: Irrelevant. 

Lily: Do you guys know if Potter is back?

Alice: I saw him this morning. He was getting coffee.

Remus: I love that man so much. He’s so beautiful I could literally cry. With that hot caramel skin and that wild hair and how he always smells like some weird spice. I want him to be the father of my children.

Lily: Don’t encourage him.

Remus: He’s not even here.

Lily: He can sense your enthusiasm. So shhhhh

Alice: Do we still not like him?

Lily: No.

Dorcas: You know it was an accident, Lils. 

Lily: You don’t know that. And I don’t know that. And who in their RIGHT MIND asks someone out after they’ve pushed them into a fountain? Like, the audacity?!

Remus: At least he’s authentic

Lily: Yeah, an authentic bitch. 

Alice: Lol.

Alice: I’m honestly really interested in this Lesbian situation, though. Can we get back to that?

Remus: She’s in the engineering department. So if your cute little math loving butt just wanted to wander over there…

Alice: I’m on my way. 

Dorcas: Why are we friends? You’re joking, right? Please tell me you’re joking.

Dorcas: ALICE

Lily: They’re doing it out of love.

Dorcas: Well their idea of love is something I am not interested in. 

Alice: Blonde?

Dorcas: Fuck.

Remus: Is she blonde, Dorcs?

Remus: IS SHE?!

Dorcas: Yeah.

Alice: Marlene McKinnon. Blonde, blue eyed, I’d say 5”8, 5”9. Masters in Engineering. Very nice.

Remus: Alice, I fucking love you

---

Groupchat: The Walking Dead changed to Update, I’m still gay

Sirius: Why the name change?

Marlene: Needed to get your attention

James: But like… with that?

Marlene: It fucking worked, didn’t it?

Peter: What happened?

Marlene: I saw that beautiful woman again. And I was right. She was beautiful.

Sirius: Sounds riveting.

Marlene: I told you I’d keep you updated, and I am. Stop being ungrateful.

Sirius: Yes commander

James: Who was it?

Marlene: Don’t know. Short, black, curly hair?

James: Where did you see her?

Marlene: She was getting a plate of spaghetti in the Canteen.

James: Hm……….. 

Sirius: James doesn’t know anyone because he’s too busy mooning over Evans.

James: I am so much stronger than you. Do not come for me right now

Peter: Sirius, you have an appointment here, come down.

Sirius: Fuck. 

James: Peter, you know you can just text him personally, right?

Peter: I can’t shame him publicly if I only text him. 

Marlene: Facts.

James: Did you talk to her?

Marlene: Nah, she was with people. I wanted to though. She seems lovely. 

James: Lovely? Who are you and what have you done with Marlene McKinnon.

Marlene: She’s dead now. I’ve inhabited her body. 

Sirius: Thank god, she was a bitch.

Peter: SIRIUS

James: I’ll keep an eye out for her. Let me know if you want me to scout it out.

Marlene: Okay, James Bond

---

Groupchat: Hamlet, that’s fucking gay changed to Dorcas McKinnon has a nice ring to it

Dorcas: Remus, stop changing the group chat name. I know where you live.

Remus: We live with each other.

Dorcas: Exactly.

Lily: Are there lesbian updates????

Remus: I met her. She was wandering around, looking for a pop machine. 

Alice: Yay! I love Lesbian updates

Remus: Good news: she’s funny. Like, super funny.

Lily: Saying good news like that often means there is bad news to follow

Remus: She’s uh… friends with Potter.

Dorcas: Uh-oh.

Alice: Oh no.

Lily: I’m really sorry that you have to eternally break up with this woman, Dorky. Because NO. ABSOLUTELY NOT. ANYONE who is friends with James Potter is not worth knowing.

Alice: That’s pretty judgemental, lils.

Lily: .... And?

Remus: Luckily, you don’t have to date her.

Dorcas: No one is dating ANYONE. Jesus, you guys. Chill out about this whole thing

Remus: I don’t think that’s physically possible. 

Dorcas: Can we talk about anything else?

Alice: Frank is taking me out for sushi tonight. 

Remus: I would marry Frank in five seconds, if he’d let me

Alice: I’ll let him know. 

Remus: Thank you, I appreciate it.

---

Groupchat: Update, I’m still gay changed to Emotionally Unavailable Idiots

Sirius: I have met the love of my life.

Marlene: Stop being dramatic

Sirius: Excuse me? EXCUSE ME? He quoted the Princess Bride with me. Word for Word? Marlene, I must marry this man. WHO IS HE?

Peter: Why do I keep missing all of the fun stuff?

James: The fun stuff is watching Sirius gay panic over a stranger?

Peter: Yeah. Obvs.

Marlene: He’s the lit professor.

James: Lupin?

Marlene: I think so, yeah. 

Sirius: An english nerd. Perfect. He can read me poetry while I give people tattoos. We’ll make millions. 

Marlene: I think… he wants to be my friend. He’s come around a few times. He even brought me coffee once, with a croissant. I didn’t know people were so nice to strangers. Am I in a hallmark film?

Peter: It’s cause you're such a catch, Mars. 

Marlene: I will shove that “catch” up your ass, Pettigrew, if you don’t stop being stupid.

James: Impossible. Stupidity is Peter’s middle name. 

Sirius: Yeah Peter Marcus Stupidity Pettigrew.

Peter: My middle name isn’t Marcus.

Sirius: Wait really?

Peter: No?

Sirius: Why the fuck did I think it was Marcus?

James: I think Lupin is bi, Sirius. So…

Sirius: James, you are the other love of my life. I will kiss you when you get home. You provide me with the most valuable information and attention. I can never truly repay you.

James: Finally. Getting the recognition I deserve. Can’t wait.

Sirius: Marlene, please. Be his friend, I am begging you. I will give you our first born child.

Marlene: Pass.

---

Groupchat: Dorcas McKinnon has a nice ring to it changed to I won’t hesitate bitch

Alice: Marlene is so nice

Lily: You’re all traitors. She’s friends with the enEMY

Dorcas: I thought Remus was supposed to be the dramatic one

Remus: I’ll take that as a compliment

Dorcas: Whatever helps you sleep at night. 

Alice: Seriously though. She’s so nice. A lot of my students have her and they’ve been gushing. Apparently she’s one of the best professors some of them have ever had.

Remus: Damn. High praise. 

Lily: Still skeptical

Alice: She asked about you, Dori. 

Dorcas: wait, what?

Remus: ALICE SAY MORE RIGHT NOW?!?!

Alice: She said she had noticed that you and I are close and she wanted to know about you. What your name is, what you teach, how long you’ve been working here, if you were single.

Dorcas: She did not ask that.

Remus: Dorcas, shut up forever. Alice is talking. Alice, my love, please continue. 

Alice: I may have invited her to eat lunch with us.

Dorcas: Uh…

Lily: You did what?

Alice: She’s new, Lily. I’m trying to help her make friends.

Lily: You did it, didn’t you. 

Alice: ummm

Lily: YOU TOLD HER SHE COULD BRING JAMES POTTER, DIDN’T YOU

Alice: He’s her friend. I couldn’t exclude him.

Lily: I never thought this would happen to me. To be betrayed so thoroughly by my own friends. I don’t even have the words. 

Alice: Who knows, it might be fun?

Remus: I’m so excited I could burst

Dorcas: Is it legal to drink on campus in the middle of the day?

Remus: Unfortunately not. Trust me, I’ve tried.

---

Marlene McKinnon to Dorcas Meadowes

Marlene: It was nice of all of you to invite me to lunch. I know it was probably awkward for all of you to have to spend time with a stranger. But I really appreciated it. 

Dorcas: No problem. You’re always welcome.

Marlene: Maybe… we could go get something to eat off campus sometime?

Dorcas: Yeah, of course. We go to the bar on Wright all the time.

Marlene: Oh, I meant like… just you and me. Actually.

Dorcas: Oh.

Marlene: Yeah. Did I guess wrong?

Dorcas: Guess wrong?

Marlene: About you being into women?

Dorcas: Ohhhh…

Marlene: ??

Dorcas: What did you have in mind? For our date?

Marlene: Wait, is that a yes?

Dorcas: I expect like, first class treatment, because I’ve seen you in action now. Anyone who can wrangle James Potter like that is someone who deserves knowing. So yeah. It’s a yes.

Marlene: Yay! Okay, you won’t regret it!

Marlene: Also, my friend is in love with Lupin.

Dorcas: wait, James? 

Marlene: Lol. Nah, James is still hung up on Lily. She’s wonderful, by the way. Tell her I’m grateful she was so kind. I know about what James did last year, so I can understand her bitterness. Fucking funny, though, to see it in person.

Marlene: It’s my other friend, Sirius. He owns the tattoo parlor, Cannis Major, on Levi. 

Dorcas: Hmm. Well, let me know what I can do. I’m sure we can get them in the same room at some point.

Marlene: Are you offering to meddle in people’s lives?

Dorcas: Is that okay?

Marlene: Dorcas Meadowes, I’m pretty sure I’m already halfway in love with you. 

Dorcas: Thank god. 

--------------------

This has been in my ask box for literal months. I’m sorry @tonftyhw !! I had finals and stress and I don’t know how to write. I hope this makes you smile though.

Clarifier for who teaches what if anyone is interested:

Lily-History

Remus-Literature

Dorcas-Art (painting)

Alice-Math

James-Chemistry

Marlene-Engineering/Physics

Sirius owns a tattoo shop because I will die for that AU every time. And Peter works with him, kind of like the brains of the business.

Should I write more of this? It was so fun lol 

[queenof-literature]

Hiiiiiiii! Is it alright to have a fic of th LU boys in a modern setting?

Hi anon! Thank you for the request! I’m so sorry... this turned out SO LONG

Anyway

What’s this? Me doing a request after I have completely dropped the ball on everything? I’m so sorry as I stated if I haven’t directly/publicly announced I am not comfortable doing a request then I HAVE gotten all your requests and I am working on them. There’s just a lot going on right now. I love reading through all of your requests/messages, and I love writing them. Just a reminder: For now requests are closed until I can honor my commitment and catch up, but they’ll open back up eventually. 

Thank you for the request anon, I had a blast writing it! I hope it didn’t turn out too crack for your tastes.

Here’s the link for this story on Ao3

TW: Implied child abuse and themes of death. Not very explicit, but the warning is there

When Time laid eyes on his child for the first time, he knew he would do anything to protect him. Bundled in Malon’s arms, huge blue eyes looking up at him curiously, little fingers reached up to grab at him. Truthfully Time was worried that the one eye would scare his son. Malon told him that was ridiculous, he was the boy's father and the boy would know. It turns out she was right, the little boy looked at his father happily and reached up towards the man’s face, not bothered by the scars, marks, or lack of a right eye. Malon would later tease him for crying, but that was okay. 

~

It’s interesting how children don’t always match up with your imagination. His son was shy, to the point where it was becoming worrying for Time and Malon. They took him to see a counselor, after another fight with the boy’s teacher at how he wouldn’t participate in class. Social Anxiety, a severe case according to the counselor. His son would only talk at home, becoming silent anywhere else. After multiple sessions, Time had a plethora of information to help his son through it. This is not what he expected for his son’s childhood, but that didn’t matter. Life was full of surprises and his son was one of the brightest lights Time had ever met, and he would love him no matter what. 

~

“Dad?” The six year old in his lap drawing Time’s attention away from his book.

“Yes?” Time brought his full attention to his son.

“Is your name really Time?”

“Why are you asking, little wolf?” Time asked in amusement.

“Your name sounds weird compared to other names.” His son told him matter of factly, feeling the vibrations of his dad’s laugh against his back. 

“No, pup. Time is a nickname that I got and it just kind of stuck.” Time told his son. He hadn’t even considered he would question his father’s name, it was just normal to Time at this point. 

“So it’s a nickname? Can I have one? Where’d you get it from?” Twilight bounced on his lap. Time paused. Had he really never shown his son his old game console?

“Well, I was absolutely obsessed with a game: Ocarina of Time.” Time waved his hands with flourish, causing his son to giggle.

“Ocarina? Like the instrument you play?”

“That’s the one.” Time confirmed, mind jumping back to the lullabies he would play to get his son to sleep. “These games helped me…” Time trailed off, not exactly wanting to talk about his not-so-great childhood to his six year old. “They helped me through some tough times.” Time said gently. “I could go on an adventure, be a hero, explore, anything.” Time was brought out of his musings by his son’s large and curious eyes.

“Can I play?” His son asked shyly, and Time couldn’t help but grin at his son wanting to share that with him. 

“Of course, pup! Although I have to warn you.” His son perked up at Time’s serious expression. “If you find one you like, there may be no going back from the nickname.” Time warned, thinking back to the point in his life where everyone simply called him ‘Time’ instead of his real name. “Are you sure you’re ready?” Time asked seriously, struggling to hold back his laugh when his son nodded back just as serious.

“I’m ready.” Twilight confirmed. 

The rest of the day was spent with Time teaching his son how to play his old games, until it eventually came time where his son wanted to pick one. His son stared ahead at his collection, eyes lighting up when he saw one in particular. Oh, Time should have known how this would go. 

“Wolf!” His son shouted excitedly as he looked at the cover of the game.

“That’s a good one!” Time smiled at the worn game, the gold letters ‘Twilight Princess’ stood out against the wolf of the cover. His son was obsessed with animals, wolves in particular. They spent some time playing in the basement, his son instantly fell in love with the game, spending most of his time shapeshifting in and out of wolf form and babbling excitedly about how cool it was. Him and Time were so immersed they didn’t even hear Malon come home. Twilight jumped up when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

“Mom! Mom!” Twilight yelled, running up to hug his mother’s legs. “I have a nickname just like Dad! Twilight! Look what I can do!” Twilight ran back to the controller and shapeshifted into a wolf, mesmerized as the character howled again. Time looked back with a sheepish look as Malon raised an amused eyebrow. Of course she couldn’t be mad when the now nicknamed Twilight dragged her over and showed her all the things he could do in the game. She hadn’t seen her son this outgoing and happy in a long time. Besides, Twilight certainly wasn’t a bad name to have.

~

Time sighed in relief as he made it to his son’s school just in time for pickup. His shift had run a little overtime and he had to take a shortcut just to make it. Time beamed as his seven year old ran up to him. He still struggled to talk in the classroom, but he was just as energetic as ever.

“Dad!” Time scooped up Twilight just as the boy launched at him. “Guess what!” Twilight said excitedly. “What?” Time asked. “I made a friend!” Twilight beamed. Now that surprised Time. His boy always had trouble making friends, everyone in class tended to avoid him as much as Time hated to even think about that. 

“That’s amazing, Twi! What’s their name?” Time asked, carrying Twilight to his car. Twilight got a little embarrassed, peaking Time’s interest.

“Well… it turns out he likes the same games we do!” Twilight said, surprising Time once again. “So we made up a nickname for him too. I’m sorry, I hope that’s okay.” Twilight looked up sadly at Time’s face.

“Of course that’s fine, bud.” Time reassured, and Twilight lit up once again. “Now, what’s his favorite game? His answer depends on if you can be friends with him or not.” Time joked, making Twilight giggle from the backseat. 

“He likes A Tale of Warriors.” Twilight said. “So Warrors.” Time was silent for a moment.

“That game was okay. Ocarina of Time is still the best.” Time smirked as Twilight once again went into his argument about how, no, Twilight Princess was the best.

~

The first time Warriors was over for dinner, he continued to surprise Time. He was the opposite of their son, not a shy bone in his body, but he was a sweet kid and was obviously raised with manners. Time was even more surprised he was friends with Twilight when he met the kid in person. According to what he heard from Twilight, Warriors was quite popular among his class, and kids tended to not have patience for those very far outside their social circle, and Twilight was as quiet as they came in class. But the two had become as thick as thieves, Warriors apparently didn’t care at all how quiet Twilight was, he tossed everything aside to befriend Time’s son no matter what was said behind their back, and Time couldn’t help but feel grateful that his son had such a loyal friend. 

Malon and Time were planning on using the boy’s given name, whatever it was, but Twilight proudly introduced his friend as ‘Warriors’ and said boy seemed very happy to have that nickname. So Warriors it was. 

Dinner was louder than usual with their son’s friend, but it didn’t seem to stress their son out at all. It was obvious the two boys were close despite their obvious differences, and both parents were happy their boy was smiling and laughing around another child. By the time Warriors’ mother came to pick him up, the family had grown close with Twilight’s friend. When Time met Warriors’ mother it was obvious where the little boy got his manners from. The woman was sweet and polite, but obviously protective of her son. Time saw her scan the environment and her son’s happiness the way Malon always did with Twilight.

Warriors raced into his mother’s arms and chatted away about his evening, and it was obvious how close their bond was. Time would find out later from the woman part of the reason why. It was only her and Warriors, with her becoming an expert at balancing her career, son, and making sure her ex husband kept away from them. The woman wouldn’t tell them what happened with Warriors’ father and why they split, but by the dark, protective look on her face it became obvious to Time what had happened.

That’s why the night Time and Malon had rushed to the hospital after a panicked call from Warriors, and they saw him sitting alone in the waiting room wrapped in his mother’s blue scarf and sobbing, Malon instantly swept the boy into her warm arms. Time knew from that moment on, he had another son. 

~

The next friend Twilight made was at eight years old. Both he and Warriors had accepted the new student into their circle as soon as they talked to him. It was an instant click, from what Time heard. The little boy was one of the sweetest kids Time had ever met, and also pretty quiet. Twilight knew the struggle of being quiet in a new and scary classroom, and had gone and tried to befriend him. Time couldn’t be more proud of him. 

“I’m proud of you.” Time told his son as they were on their way to pick up Warriors from fencing practice. Warriors was still in grief, of course he was, but fencing had really struck a chord with the boy. According to him, feeling the sabre in his hand was one of the best feelings in the world. Time could tell that having something he was passionate about was helping him heal, no matter how slow the process was. Plus, according to his teacher, Warriors was a natural. 

“It was just talking to him.” Twilight replied, a little confused.

“But most won’t do that. It’s hard being a new student. I’m proud of you for reaching out, I know how scary that is.” Especially for you. Time didn’t say the thought out loud. Twilight had been getting better at coping with his social anxiety, and Time and Malon did everything they could to give him the tools he needed, but the boy still struggled immensely. 

“...do you know about any parents missing a child?” Twilight asked hesitantly. Time almost slammed on the brakes in shock.

“Do I what?” Time asked. 

“Well… the new kid said that he lives home to home and he doesn’t know where his parents are. I just thought since you help find people you might know. I want to help him.” Twilight told his dad nervously. Time went cold. That sounded a lot like foster care to him. 

“I’m sorry, pup, I don’t know of anything.” Time confirmed sadly, not knowing what else to say. It was painfully obvious the parents weren’t missing, but most likely left their child to the system. Time tried so hard not to be mad, he knew not every parent had the opportunities to provide for a child. He just hoped that child had better experiences than he did.

~

The boys had been in the basement for a while, Time figured he should go and check on the troublesome trio and make sure they didn’t find any trouble. He walked down the stairs, only to hear the sound of a battle. 

“Which one are you boys playing now?” Time asked in amusement, only to be completely ignored. “Twilight, Warriors-” before Time could say the third boy's name, Warriors interrupted him. “It’s Sky now!” Warriors hit the third boy, now deemed Sky, playfully on the shoulder. 

“Awe, Skyward Sword. Good choice.” Time laughed at the fact that now both of his sons, and their friend, all had nicknames from the same game series. 

~

Later that night, Sky got his backpack and was prepared to open the door.

“Oh! Is your guardian here dear?” Malon asked, looking out the window.

“No Ms. Malon.” Sky said shyly. “I’m walking home.”

“Just Malon is fine sweetie. It’s getting awfully late to walk…” Malon frowned in concern. “I’ll drive you home.” Malon offered brightly. 

“Oh that’s okay Ms- Malon.” Sky stammered nervously. “I don’t want to cause any trouble.

“No trouble at all, dear.” Malon smiled, grabbing her keys.

“Thank you.” Sky smiled at her gratefully, and she could melt just looking at the small boy’s smile. Sky was quiet the entire ride over, only answering small questions when Malon asked. She didn’t put too much pressure on the boy, him and her son seemed very similar in how they handled social situations.

“Is this it?” Malon double checked, approaching a suburban looking house. 

“Yes.” Sky chipped. “Thank you again!” Sky said. 

“Anytime sweetheart! Here, I’ll walk you up.” Malon turned off her car, glancing at Sky’s nervous expression as they approached the door. She would have to pay close attention to what awaited them at the top of the porch. Sure, Sky could just be a nervous kid, but Malon felt something else was going on, and her instincts were rarely wrong. She knocked politely on the door, noticing how Sky shied away from the door ever so slightly. 

“Oh hello.” A tall man answered the door. Everything in the home just seemed normal, perhaps a little too neat. The man who she assumed was the foster father had brown hair and hazel eyes, in the background he saw a woman playing with children that looked exactly like them. Everything seemed to be fine, but Malon knew better than to write off Sky’s behavior. Many awful things could happen behind closed doors. “Oh! There you are.” The man looked at Sky, but didn’t seem particularly happy to see him, nor was he angry. Simply neutral. “I hope he wasn’t too much trouble.” The man said to Malon, making Sky shrink down even more, as he slowly walked past the man and into the house. The woman playing with her children didn’t even acknowledge him, all of her attention on the kids in front of her. 

“Not at all, he was a delight.” Malon smiled despite the disturbing implications in front of her. “He’s such a sweetheart, you’re very lucky to have a kid like him.” There, she had dropped the bait, now to see how he responded. “Oh. He’s not ours. We have kids of our own.” The man said casually, and Malon felt her blood boil at the tone of voice the man had. As if blood was everything, as if she didn’t already have a son at home that wasn’t her blood. It changed nothing, she loved both her boys more than anything. “Anyway, it’s been a pleasure, have a good night.” An insincere tone spoke up before there was a door in her face. She understood now what was going on, she understood perfectly. 

Malon marched to her car, fuming as she drove home. How dare they! How dare they! There wasn’t a mark on Sky, not physically, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t ignored and neglected in that home. Why would those people even volunteer to foster if that’s how they felt? For the pats on the back? For the praises?

By the time she got home, her husband and the boys were all in bed. She quickly hid her anger enough to wish each of her boys a goodnight and make sure they were settled in their rooms, before gently shutting their doors and marching to her and her husband’s room. 

“Hey, love. How we-” Time trailed off as he saw the thunderous look his wife held. Oh no. 

“How would you feel about getting a foster license?”

~

Malon and Time, of course always asked their current children if adopting and fostering was alright with them. Twilight was very eager when he found out Warriors and him were going to be brothers, even if the situation itself was tragic. And both him and Warriors were ecstatic at the implication that Sky might be their brother too. 

“Don’t get too excited.” Time chided when he saw the looks on his boys’ faces. “This doesn’t mean we can adopt him. It may not be what he wants, and he’s been in the foster system for some time now so it’s different than it was with Warriors.” Time explained.

“Is it because my mom…” Warriors trailed off. Warriors’ child psychologist told them that Warriors had a hard time saying the word ‘death’, which was not out of the ordinary for children who were grieving.  

“We were your mother’s emergency contact, love.” Malon explained gently. “So it was easier for us to adopt you. Sky has been in the foster care system for a while now, and they have a lot of precautions to make sure he’s safe. I know this all is very confusing. Do you understand, at least a little bit?” Malon checked, and Warriors nodded slowly. 

“I think so. Well, I hope Sky says yes!” Warriors exclaimed.

“Me too, sweetheart. But don’t push him.” Malon reminded. Overall she was very pleased with how the boys seemed to understand the situation. Then Twilight piped up.

“So… are we going to adopt every friend I make?” Okay maybe Malon would need to explain this one more time. 

~

A week into fostering and Sky was still quiet, but Warriors and Twilight had a habit of making him laugh and bringing him out of his shell. He seemed fascinated whenever Time and Malon gave him even an ounce of attention, and that made their hearts twist painfully. Time, who had similar experiences, had gently explained to Sky that ignoring a child is absolutely not normal, and that he deserved better. The child had not seemed to believe Time completely, but he was slowly getting used to their home life. He enjoyed helping Malon in the garden, asking Time about his job, and playing games with Warriors and Twilight. After two months, Malon and Time thought it was finally the right moment to ask. 

“Sky… would you like to be a permanent member of the family? The option is up to you, but we would love to adopt you if you’ll be happy here.” Through many tears, all Sky could do was nod.

~

Time sighed and cracked his back. A week of desk work made his back make all sorts of fun pops. He wanted to be out in the field again, but life as a detective had been slow so far. Well, he should have been careful what he wished for.

“Detective! I need you to go with Officer Watson.” His captain called out urgently.

“What happened?” Time got up, already grabbing his jacket.

“Two kids. They found them on the streets. They need you to talk to them and calm them down, the EMTs can’t get close without them lashing out.” Well… that wasn’t exactly what Time was expecting. 

“Wait what?” Time halted. “Why me? I’m a detective not an officer.”

“We have no available social services to go into the field, they’re refusing to come with the patrol officers, you have three kids, and a background in negotiation. Now go!” His captain ordered. Time resisted rolling his eyes at the captain’s demanding tone and walked briskly with Officer Watson to a patrol car. What did he mean by kids? If this was the streets of around here, that most likely meant late teens who had run away from home.

~

They were absolutely not in their late teens. By kids, they meant children. They looked younger than his boys, sitting in a dingy alley with torn and dirty clothes. The cops around them were obviously giving them space, but surrounded them loosely to ensure they didn’t run off and get themselves hurt. Well, more hurt. 

The one that looked older was curled protectively around the younger, who had an obviously broken leg with a very worrying amount of blood. It looked like the EMTs couldn’t get close with the older ordering them to get away and shoving the younger’s head deeper into his collarbone.

“Hey, give them a little more space.” Time ordered the officers, who complied once they saw who had spoken. Time kneeled down, giving the boys plenty of space. The oldest looked no older than eight, and had stark, icy blue eyes that peered at Time with distrust and harshness. He had bright blonde hair with an odd pink streak, and Time wondered if the boy had gotten a hold of some hair dye. The younger was in the older boy’s lap, and some of the biggest brown eyes Time had ever seen peered out from behind brunette fringe. 

“Hi. My name is Time.” Time introduced himself, still kneeling a bit away. “What are your names?”

“Like we’d tell you that.” The older one snapped.

“I understand this is scary, but you two aren’t in trouble. We just want to get you two looked over. That leg looks really bad.” Time reassured, looking at the younger’s mangled leg in concern. Time didn’t have long before the EMTs would have no choice but to rush in and Time really didn’t want to get to that point. 

“You don’t understand! You’ll separate us!” The older spoke fiercely, but Time heard the way his voice wavered underneath. 

“Are you two brothers?” Time questioned. 

“W-we don’t have the same parents.” The younger’s timid and pained voice spoke up.

“That doesn’t matter. Not really.” Time assured. “You two seem close.” The younger nodded shyly from against the older’s chest.

“If we go with you, they’ll separate us.” It seemed the older had knowledge and bad experiences with social workers.

“I have an Emergency Foster License.” Time breathed out, suddenly remembering his decision. After him and Malon were powerless to help Sky until after a multitude of paperwork and negotiations were made, Time and Malon got both a normal license and an EFC, so that if a similar situation happened a child could be placed with them and hopefully stay with them for longer than a few days.

“What does that mean?” The younger asked, apparently having heard Time’s whisper of realization.

“If you come with us, you can stay with me until we figure something out. Both of you.” Time offered. These boys were obviously close, Time assumed they met after they had been exiled to the streets. He didn’t want to see them separated either. The older boy looked like he was about to protest, but in drawing the younger boy closer, he agitated his leg, causing the younger boy to cry out in pain. The older snapped his head to look at him, his face softening as he tried to sooth him. 

“I know you want to protect him.” Time addressed the blonde haired one. “I’m sure you’ve done a great job so far. But he needs medical attention. That leg will only get worse, and it’s already not healing properly.” Time didn’t want to scare them, but they needed to know how serious the younger’s leg was. Time could tell it had been a problem for some time, and any longer would mean infection. The older one bit his lip, Time could tell the older was thinking hard about this and he felt his heart squeeze. Someone this young shouldn’t have to make such a huge decision. 

“We’ll stay together?” The older asked.

“I’ll make sure of it.” And Time meant that. He wouldn’t let these two be permanently separated. 

“Will you come with us?” The older asked. Time agreed instantly, although he was a little surprised that the blonde haired boy trusted him enough to ask that. Although, perhaps he was the only one who had shown any interest in keeping the two together, and both boys seemed determined to make sure that happened. 

“I’ll stay with you the entire time if that’s what you want.” Time confirmed, and he kept his promise, even as the younger was loaded into the ambulance.

~

“Let me go!” The blonde haired boy yelled, thrashing in Time’s hold. The younger boy was being taken away into surgery, and the older boy was not happy. In fact, he was absolutely furious. 

“You can’t go into the operating room with him, little one.” Time patiently tried to explain. 

“You promised we’d be together!” The older one protested, not ceasing his struggle.

“We’ll see him as soon as he’s awake.” Time reassured. “But you can’t go with him for now.”

“Why?” The child demanded. Time considered how to explain this, Whenever one of his son’s asked a question about the world, Malon or Time tried to explain it in ways that would make sense to a young mind, instead of getting annoyed at all their questions. 

“Well… when someone is in surgery, they need to be in a very clean environment. Doctors take a lot of special steps to make sure the room is clean, or else germs can get in during the surgery and hurt the person more. Does that make sense?” Time tried his best to explain. The little boy bit his lip, before nodding slowly and relaxing slightly in Time’s grip. 

“How about we sit down, and as soon as it's okay we can see him. Okay?” Time coaxed.

“Okay.” The boy agreed quietly, ceasing his struggle and pulling away from Time. Together they sat, while Time texted Malon to let her know the situation and the promise he had made. He didn’t want to leave the child beside him to make the call, but he needed to let his wife know that he was going to be late… with two extra children along with him. He apologized as many times as he could in his text, but Malon assured him that she knew what she was getting into when they got their licenses.

‘I’ll fill out the paperwork and fax it.’ Malon offered. Bless that woman. 

~

Three hours later, Time sat in a small hospital room as two boys slept in the bed. One with a few bandages here and there, and one with a casted leg. The nurses had tried to scold the blonde boy for crowding the younger, but the icy blue glare could apparently scare off even full grown adults. Just then, a nurse entered the room. 

“Are you the one who filled out the EFC paperwork?” The young woman asked.

“My wife did. Please, call me Time. A nickname.” Time got up to shake the brunette woman’s hand. 

“Nice to meet you! I’m Lydia. I just wanted to inform you that we’re keeping them overnight for observation, especially for the leg.” She explained, gesturing to the smaller boy’s green casted leg. Since the younger wasn’t conscious for choosing the color, they asked the older child if the younger had a favorite color. Apparently it was grass green. “It’s good that we took care of it when we did, but he should be fine with a few weeks of bedrest and the medicine we prescribed. I’ll make sure he has crutches by tomorrow but I recommend at least a week of very minimal movement. He’ll most likely need physical therapy. The other boy’s injuries were mostly superficial.” Time nodded, bringing out his phone.

“Excuse me, I need to text my wife.” he began telling Malon that he would be here overnight, and what to expect. There was no way he was breaking his promise, He would stay until they both got released.

“Of course, no problem at all. Um… I noticed you left their names blank on the paperwork...” The nurse started. 

“They didn’t even give me fake names.” Time replied. “Will that be a problem?”

“It’s certainly not ideal, but it's not the first time that’s happened.” The nurse replied sadly. “Since it’s an EFC, I can submit it and explain the situation. But if you could find out their names eventually, that would be a big help.”

“Thank you so much.” Time was grateful the nurse was being so helpful. This could have gone a lot worse. 

“Of course. Please let me know if you need anything.” The young lady smiled and left to give them some privacy. Time settled in and checked the clock, seeing it was only 11 pm, and countless questions raced through his head. If they were put in the foster system, would anyone want them both? Would anyone be willing to keep up with the younger’s physical therapy? There were good people in the world, but everyone had their limitations. This was going to be a long night. 

~

Both boys seemed genuinely surprised Time was still there in the morning. 

“How are you boys feeling?” Time asked gently. 

“I’m okay.” The older replied, looking down at the small brunette curled up next to him.

“I’m good.” The brunette replied groggily, flinching at the gentle pull of his ear by the older. “I’m tired and I feel numb and dizzy.” The brunette corrected. It seemed the older was used to the younger lying about how he felt. 

“That’s normal.” Time assured. “You’re on a lot of medicine, but it will help you, I promise. And you can rest plenty when we get home. Are you boys okay with staying on the couch? It’s plenty big for both of you. I have three sons at home, but they’re all very nice.” There weren't many options in their home, their last guest room had been converted into Sky’s room months ago. But if their guests weren’t comfortable with that, then he and Malon would figure it out. The littlest one gasped and tugged on the older’s shirt. 

“I’ve never been on a couch before.” The brunette whispered excitedly. Time’s heart stopped completely. Based on the boy’s level of excitement, it seemed that any comfort at all eluded him. Had he ever even had a family? A bed? A room? Anything at all? Based on what he had heard from their conversations, he guessed that the older had run away from a home he was placed in, and the younger seemed to have been on the streets for as long as he could remember. Time had no idea how he had survived on his own so young, but he wasn’t going to question what he was grateful for.

The oldest seemed to notice the look on Time’s face, and quickly replied, trying to take the attention off of the two boys’ situation.

“That’s fine.” He stopped, before whispering “Thank you.” With so much sincerity that Time didn’t even realize it came from the older boy at first.

“It’s no problem.” Time smiled. 

~

After a lot of paperwork, a few calls home, and one wheelchair ride, Time was on his way home with two very tired boys in his backseat. He couldn’t lie, he was nervous bringing the boys home when he knew almost nothing about them. The doctors had told him they estimated their ages to be 7 and 8, so he hoped they would get along with his 8 and 9 year olds. 

“Can I ask for your names?” Time asked, looking in his rearview mirror. The youngest opened his mouth, but the older stopped him.

“No.” The blonde snapped. Time sighed.

“Okay, fair enough. But we need to figure out what to call you boys.” Time hummed thoughtfully, before an idea struck him. “My family has a tradition, we choose our nicknames based on our favorite video game series. Mine is Time, my sons’ are Twilight, Warriors and Sky. If you boys are interested we can do the same for you.” Time offered. The older one looked like he was going to reject the offer, but the younger excitedly tugged on his sleeve. 

“Okay.” The older conceded.

~

Their two guests sat on their upstairs couch, as Time set up the old game console. His sons were doing their best to keep their distance, as Malon had warned them to do, but Time could tell they were excited to see which games the two would pick. After several hours of fascinated playing, the younger had decided he enjoyed ‘Hero of Hyrule’ the most, while the oldest couldn’t decide which one he liked the most. 

“Why don’t you just combine them? The ones you seem to like most were part of the Legend of Oracle series. How about Oracle?” Warriors offered. Over the course of playing, his sons had eased their way to sitting in front of the couch, all excitedly calling out moves with their two guests. Time was grateful they all seemed to get along. Warriors and the older child had taken on a rivalry, but it seemed mostly playful as far as Time could tell. The child wrinkled his nose at Warriors’ ‘Oracle’ suggestion. “Okay… Legend?” Warriors offered, and the boy’s eyes seemed to light up, before he quickly tried to hide his excitement. “Legend is fine. Hyrule fine with you, kid?” The older asked the younger, and the brunette beamed and nodded. 

“Legend and Hyrule it is.” Time confirmed, At this point he should make a knighting ceremony.

One month later, their foster time was up, and Malon and Time knew they couldn’t give those two up so easily. After talking to their boys, who agreed full heartedly that they didn't want Legend and Hyrule to go, they arranged their bedroom so Twilight and Warriors would share, since Sky thrived on having his own space sometimes, and Hyrule and Legend could share Sky’s old room. Malon and Time felt guilty their children had to share, and they didn’t want them to feel jealous two more boys were moving in. But their boys made it very adamant that they wanted Hyrule and Legend to be a part of their family if that’s what the two boys wanted.

A few days, one question, many joyous tears, and one surprise bedroom later, Time had two more sons.

~

Word got around quickly that Time had five children. Twilight and Warriors had turned ten, their birthdays only two months apart. Sky was almost ten, and Legend had just recently turned nine according to his old birth certificate they managed to scrounge up. They had no idea when Hyrule’s birthday was, so they went off of the guess that the boy was seven, and they let Hyrule choose his new birthday. Legally that was very rare, but nop one had any idea what to do with a little boy that hadn’t officially existed in official records until his first trip to the hospital. The little boy had chosen the day he first went home with Time as his birthday, which Time absolutely did not find adorable. Nope, not at all.

But word of his five children quickly got around his job, and he was called in for many cases where interviewing children was involved. 

“Time!” His captain yelled across the precinct. Time instantly stood at attention and walked to the captain’s office. 

“Yes, sir?” Time replied dutifully. As much as his bossy tone annoyed Time sometimes, the man was a good captain, and he had a good heart.

“I need you in Interrogation Room 2. Four kids were caught stealing from the convenience store on 34th.” The captain passed Time a case folder.

“Children as in…”

“We think they’re about eight, they appear to be quadruplets, all identical.” The captain replied, and Time almost dropped the case file.

“They’re eight?” Time asked incredulously. “Why the hell are they in an interrogation room?” Time’s voice was on the verge of yelling. 

“We don’t know what else to do!” His captain snapped. “Quadruplets are rre, and yet we can’t find any recent records of any, so we don’t think they have parents. They won’t even tell us their first names.” The captain sighed, obviously having his fill with the mysterious case. 

“Okay. But I’m not interrogating them.” Time said firmly. 

“We don’t want you too. They’re not under arrest, they’re children. But we can’t just let them go without a parent or guardian.”

“Okay… I’ll see if I can find out anything from them.” Time stood and began walking out.

“Oh, and Time?” His captain called out, making Time pause in the doorway.

“Yes?” Time asked, not liking his captain’s smirk.

“Try to restrain from adopting these ones.”

“Ha ha.”

~

When his captain said identical, he really meant identical. The main difference was they each had a different colored shirt on, but each was dirty and torn. And when looking closely, Time could see a few slight differences in their faces. Time sat down in front of them quietly. 

“Hi there. My name is Time. Could you tell me your names?” Time asked, and unsurprisingly, he was met with silence. “I know this room looks a little scary,” Time began, and the one in purple scoffed,”but”, Time continued,”You guys aren’t under arrest or anything. We just can’t let you go without a parent or guardian.”

“But… we don’t have one.” The one in red said hesitantly, going quiet again when the one in blue nudged him under the table.

“There’s no one talking care of you?” Time asked gently. “Is that why you needed to steal from the store?”

“We’re just trying to survive.” The one in green spoke up for his brothers. He was obviously protective over them. 

“I know it doesn’t seem like it, but I understand.” Time began. “I wasn’t always in the best living situations when I was little-”

“Don’t try that.” The one in blue piped up, his brown eyes identical to his brothers’. “Don’t try to relate to us. No one can, no one can even tell us apart. If we switch clothes right now you wouldn’t know who was who. Just let us leave.” Time raised an eyebrow. These boys were all certainly intelligent. 

“The one in red has two freckles to the left of his left eye. The one in green has a sharper jawline. The one in blue has a light freckle on his chin, and the one in purple has a thinner nose.” Time rambled off perfectly, only to be met with stunned silence. 

“No one’s ever…” The one one started before trailing off. All four brother’s looked stunned that Time had even bothered to tell them apart. 

“I can help you more if you tell me your names?” Time asked once again. 

“We don’t have any.” The one in green finally answered in a hushed voice.

“What?” Time asked, surely he hadn’t heard correctly.

“We don’t have any.” The one in violet said again. “Everyone just calls us Four. We’re just one person to them… no one bothered to name us.” Time felt his world shatter. No names… their entire identity reliant on the fact that they were four. 

“We don;t have anywhere to go.” The one in red whispered. “Please, just let us go.” Oh no. Not again. He was never going to live this down…

“You could come with me.”

~

After a sheepish call to his wife, and uproarious laughter from his captain and fellow officers, Time had a car loaded with identical children. Three in back and one in front.

“Um…” Time filled the awkward silence. “Just so you boys know, my wife and five kids are waiting for us, but they won’t bombard you or anything. I just thought you ought to know.” Time warned.

“I’m sorry, did you say five?” The blue one asked, stunned. Honestly all the boys seemed stunned the entire way home, like they couldn’t believe this was happening. Time had similar feelings. Bless his wife for being so understanding and loving, and his sons for being so accepting. 

“Yeah.” Time rubbed his neck sheepishly, keeping on hand on the wheel. “They’re around your age actually.” 

“Oh! Are they… twins or anything?” The one in violet asked, a slight hope to his voice, and Time felt guilty about shooting that hope down.

“Oh, no I’m sorry. Four of them are technically adopted.” Time corrected. It sometimes took the stunned looks to remind him that having five kids around the same age wasn’t ‘normal’. They were his sons and that was all that mattered.

“Oh… wow.” The one in violet said, not knowing what to say. Time didn’t either.

“Will we… finally get names?” The one in red asked with a quiet hope. 

“Hmm. Funny you should mention that. You see, my family has a tradition…”

~

The newly dubbed Red, Green, Blue and Vio, were all having a blast playing Four Swords. The boys were amazing at working together to solve puzzles, which made sense when Time reviewed the security footage of the theft they pulled off before they were caught. Vio and Blue had a hard time getting along with his sons at first, but they all eventually settled in and got closer. His sons were watching the four work in perfect harmony in awe, while Malon and Time were in the kitchen talking in hushed voices.

“Malon, I’m so sorry. But they were all alone and-” Time panicked, and Malon quietly shushed him. 

“Time, they’re wonderful.” Malon assured, that bright and sincere smile he fell in love with on her gentle face. “But they get along with our kids so well. I think you and I both know where this is going.” Time leaned down and buried his head in her shoulder. 

“I love them already. So much, and I barely even know them. But Malon… four? We don't have the space. Sure I’m in for a promotion, but we don’t have the room. And what about our sons? What will they think?” Malon stroked his back and shushed him, and Time felt bad she had to comfort him like this.

“I’m worried about our sons too.” Malon sighed. “I think we should talk to them one by one, ask them truthfully and make sure they don’t think we’re replacing them. Twilight especially.” Time nodded into Malon’s shoulder.

“As for moving…” Malon started mischievously. He should have already known she had a plan. 

“Well, you’ve always wanted to raise horses, and my father is moving away, he wants to travel and be on the road again. And he really wants that ranch to stay in the family…”

~

After talking to each of their boys individually, Malon and Time were reassured that no, no one thought they were being replaced, and yes, everyone wanted Red, Blue Green, and Vio in the family. In fact, the more the family grew the more excited each boy got. And when they received the news of the potential move to a ranch that was big, near town, and had the potential to have animals, the boys absolutely lost their minds in excitement, Twilight especially. Now all that was left was to ask the quadruplets if they wanted this.

“Boys…” Malon started. They had sat Red, Green, Blue and Red on their bed within time and Malon’s bedroom, the door sealed shut to give them some privacy. All of the boys looked nervous, fidgeting and holding onto each other.

“I know this is a big decision, and just know that there is no pressure either way.” After three conversations similar to this one, Malon and Time were pros at this.

“We would love for you to be permanent members of the family. We would love to adopt you all if you want.” Time finished to stunned silence. Red promptly burst into tears.

“We thought you were getting rid of us!” Red cried out. 

“Oh sweetie, no.” Malon cooed. “I’m so sorry for scaring you all.” She pulled red into a hug and opened her arms for the rest to join in. Time surrounded them all in his arms.

“I think I can speak for us all.” Green joked, ever mature for his age. “We would love that, if you’ll have us.” The rest of his brothers nodded. Time heard a voice outside their door that sounded suspiciously like Warriors calling out ‘yes!’ behind the thick wood, followed by a frantic hush that sounded like Legend. Time put a finger to his lips, before sneaking over to the door. The boys on the bed covered their mouths to hush their laughter. Time yanked the door open quickly, five boys comically tumbling over into the bedroom.

“Boys!” Time scolded over the groaning pile of limbs. Hyrule had thankfully landed on top, his leg was healing but it was still quite weak. Time tried to be mad, he really did, but hearing the giggling of his wife and new sons made it extremely hard to be angry. Five pairs of eyes all peered up at him, and Time simply sighed. “Go on, then.” Time jerked his head towards the bed, and five boys rushed over (Hyrule being helped by Sky), and tackled their new brothers in hugs.

“Four!” Twilight called excitedly. “That’s a new record!”

~

Hectic months had passed by. It turns out Lon Lon Ranch was the perfect home for their family. Time had never seen Malon so happy, to have all this room to farm once again. Time himself wasn’t half bad, he was finally able to move Epona out of the stables he paid to keep her in and could spend far more time with her, spoiling her with apples and attention. Twilight was certainly happy to spend more time with the sweet horse as well. Each boy had their own job on the ranch, so work was done quickly and often within an hour. Twilight, now eleven, absolutely adored the goats Malon’s father left behind, and took extra good care of them. Warriors, on the cusp of eleven, liked painting making sure everything looked nice. Sky, now ten, took care of the cuccos because, for some reason, he got along with the little devil spawn extremely well. Legend, now 9 on the cusp of 10, would fill in wherever he was needed. He didn’t like or dislike any chores on the farm, but Malon and Time could tell he was happy here. Hyrule, who just turned 8, loved taking care of the animals with Twilight, and his leg had been getting much stronger with months of physical therapy. Red, Green, Blue, and Vio, who had, like Hyrule, chosen their own birthday and believed themselves to be about 9, loved crafting anything they could get their hands on. Malon had to teach them extra safety measures since they were so young, but they made anything from horseshoes, to little inventions around the farm. Overall, even though his life was hectic, Time was happier than he had ever been. 

That’s why, on a rainy day, a little boy crashing onto his doorstep was the last thing he expected. But really, Time should expect the unexpected at this point. 

“What was that?” Little Warriors called once he was down the stairs. 

“Warriors, you’re supposed to be in bed.” Time scolded half heartedly as he too went to see what caused the crash on his porch. Time wandered out, his heart stopping as he realized it was a tiny boy with bleach blonde hair. Warriors gasped and ran over. “Warriors, careful.” Time chided and he went to check the boy. He was absolutely soaked, and had seemed to succumb to exhaustion. Time checked him over, and picked the tiny boy up upon seeing no injuries.

“War, go tell your mom to grab towels and bring them up to the guest room, and grab his bag.” Warriors did as he was told without complaint. Time brought the little boy up to their guest room, waiting to set him down so as to not soak the blankets. With how many children they had, Time was surprised they even had a guest room. But the ranch was much larger than their old home, and the quadruplets refused to even consider not sharing a room. Legend and Hyrule also wanted to share a room, and so did Twilight and Warriors. Sky was the only one who had his own room. Time checked, as usual, with a counselor and she told him it was normal that after what his sons had been through, they would want to share spaces. She did say that as they got older they would most likely want their own spaces, so Time and Malon had been saving up for an extension to the ranch. But for now, they had a spare room. 

Malon rushed in with multiple towels, not asking any questions as she began to dry the boy off. Time appreciated that, since he had no answers. They got the boy settled. It was frustrating that all they could do was wait, but the boy wouldn’t wake up. So they waited.

An hour later, the boy finally began to stir. Both Time and Malon had waited so the child wouldn’t panic at waking alone in a strange room. Warriors had also refused to go to bed, and had stayed with them. Something about the smaller boy had struck a chord with him. Deep blue eyes opened, saw the three sitting near him, and panicked.

“Dear, it’s alright.” Malon shushed. “We found you on our porch and we dried you off. We’re not going to hurt you.” The boy calmed slightly, but still curled into himself.

“I’m sorry.” The boy mumbled, looking down in shame.

“Sweetheart it’s alright.” Malon reassured. “It’s no problem.”

“I stole.” The boy whispered, ashamed. “I stole some food and Grandma said never to steal but I was so hungry.” The little boy rambled on, pointing to his bag. Time gently picked up the sea themed bag and peeked inside. 

“These don’t look like our crops.” Time showed Malon. It didn’t matter if they were his or not, a hungry little boy had taken some food and Time didn’t care if some of his crops got lost if it meant this boy was fed. 

“The scary man at the other house chased me and I ran. I’m sorry I stole, I was just so hungry.” The boy sobbed, and Warriors had apparently deemed that enough. The older boy got up and pulled the younger into a hug, gentle enough that the little boy could escape if he wanted, but he burrowed into Warriors’ chest. The scary man next door… oh, probably Ingo. Time didn’t really interact with the man that much, but he did seem quite rude. 

“It’s okay.” Time reassured once the boy’s sobs had calmed down. “How about we make you some stew.” Time offered, and the boy peered up hopefully. “How old are you?” Time asked. He had to know, but he knew the answer would crush him.

“Six.” The boy replied, unknowing of Time’s heart rate increasing. Hell… six years old.

“I’ll go make the stew.” Malon stated gently, but her message was clear. I’ll go make the food, you get information. 

“What’s your name, little one?” Time asked. The younger just shook his head, and Time resisted a sigh. What was it with him and running into little boys who didn’t like giving away their names?

“Do you have any parents?” Time asked his next question, but he had already guessed the answer. The little boy shook his head, still clinging onto Warriors, his little hand gripping the older boy’s scarf he always wore.

“I had my grandma but…” The boy's lip quivered. “She got sick. And Aryll and I got taken away.” The boy finished, fresh tears leaking out. 

“Aryll?” Warriors questioned. 

“My little sister.” Wind answered. “They took us away. I found out she was ‘dopted.” The little boy bit his lip, thinking of the word. “But they said I wouldn’t be. I’m too old and she was young. They told me she was happy. I just want her to be happy, but they told me I wouldn’t be ‘dopted because I was too old.” Wind cried out. “So I ran away.” Wind finished, and Time was stunned. He didn’t even think he could relay that awful story to Malon.

“You can stay with us for as long as you want.” Time offered. “And we can try and find your sister.” The little boy whispered a quiet ‘thank you’, before succumbing to sleep once again in Warriors arms. Time offered to tuck the boy in. 

“No… I’m okay here.” Warriors rejected, shuffling to lean against the pillows with the small boy in his arms. Time smiled sadly at how close they seemed already. 

“Okay, I’ll be right back kiddo.” Time told Warriors. He really needed to talk to Malon.

~

“Sweetheart?” Malon prodded gently at the boy sleeping in Warriors’ arms. “We have some stew for you.” Thankfully the little boy woke up this time. As much as Malon wanted to spoil the boy with food, she knew that anything heavier than stew could do more harm than good. The boy’s groggy eyes opened and lit up at the smell of food. 

“Really?” The boy asked shyly.

“Really.” Malon handed the boy his bowl while Warriors ensured he didn’t spill any.

“Thank you.” The boy smiled, and Malon felt her heart melt. 

“Anytime. Now my husband said you had a little sister.” Malon brought up gently. To her surprise the boy lit up once more. “Mhm! Her name is Aryll. I’m a big brother!” The boy said excitedly, before becoming sad once more. “She got ‘dopted. But she’s happy.” The boy had a bittersweet smile that Malon never wanted to see on such a young face. 

“So… you know where she is?” Malon pressed gently. The boy hesitated, then nodded. 

“I snuck up and looked in the window. I don’t remember where though.” The boy murmured, voice filled with guilt. “She was giggling and laughing. The mean lady told me that ‘dopted meant she had new parents.” Malon wondered who ‘the mean lady was’, but it sounded like whoever it was had no tact whatsoever.

“Do they know she has a big brother?” Time questioned, watching the child shake his head. 

“She got taken away from me.” The little boy teared up again. Time doubted that Aryll simply forgot about her brother, even if she was younger. Perhaps her new family simply didn’t know where to look since the boy had run away. 

“If you want, you can stay here and we can help figure it all out.” Time offered after sharing a look with his wife. Warriors’ eyes grew in excitement as he looked at the little boy in his arms. 

“...Thank you.” The boy peered up at them shyly.

“Do you want to tell us your name?” Malon prodded, but the boy bit his lip. His name didn’t feel the same without Aryll to call out for him excitedly. 

“Family Tradition?” Warriors asked his parents, eyes full of mischief. 

“Is there any other way at this point?” Time asked in a dry voice. Warriors laughed and explained the tradition to the little boy still tucked in his arms. After some contemplation, the little boy spoke up. 

“Do you have one about pirates?”

~

Warriors and his new friend played Wind Waker until dawn. The newly named ‘Wind’ was too immersed to sleep, and Warriors claimed he wasn’t tired. Time and Malon decided to let them have their fun for tonight. 

In the morning, Time and Malon went into each of their son’s rooms a little early and explained the situation. Most were excited, but they knew not to bombard their guest. It turned out, however, that Wind was an absolute chatterbox once he was comfortable in his environment. He talked Warriors’ ear off about pirates all night, and greeted all of the other boys in the house when they awoke.

Time went to the next door plot of land and paid Ingo back for the crops WInd had taken so the man wouldn’t see the boy and do anything like call the police. The man wasn’t happy, but Time didn’t exactly care.

~

Soon a month had passed having a happy six year old on the ranch, before they managed to track down Wind’s sister. Time and Malon were planning to go over the next afternoon and explain the situation to the little girl’s new parents. Wind was excited, of course he was, but everyone could tell something was eating at him. 

“Wind, honey.” Malon kneeled down in the kitchen as her sons busied themselves elsewhere. “What’s wrong?”

“I… I need to be a good big brother. But…” Wind trailed off. “I really like it here.” The boy sniffled. Malon hadn’t even thought of that…

“Wind, maybe you could stay with us. You and Aryll could see each other whenever possible. I’m sorry honey, I know it's such a big choice to make, but no one will be mad no matter what you want to do. We just want you to be happy.” The little boy’s looked up at Malon with big eyes. 

“Can… Can I talk to Wars?” Malon nodded and called Warriors from outside. The boys loved playing flashlight tag all around the ranch, and WInd would usually join them with a beaming smile. Tonight however, he just sat solemnly in the kitchen. Warriors came in from the backdoor, and Malon left to go talk to her husband in their bedroom. 

“Wind? What’s wrong?” Warriors took Wind’s small hand and led them to the living room, sitting them both down on the couch.

“What if they don’t want me?” Wind asked with another sniffle, and Wars figured he meant Aryll’s parents. 

“Then they’re stupid.” Wars stated. 

“What if… what if I don’t want them. Wars, I don’t want to go.” Wind cried out, burying his head in his hands. Warriors pulled him into a hug. “Malon said I could stay, and I could see Aryll, but what if she hates me? What if Grandma would hate me for replacing her? What if-” Warriors shushed Wind gently. 

“When I was seven…” Warriors started, taking a big breath. “When I was seven my mom and I got into a really bad crash.” Wind peered up at Warriors. “I was okay, but my mom- my mom didn’t make it out.” Wars whispered, trying to keep his tears at bay. “Malon and Time took me in without a second thought. And at first, I had a hard time being around Malon. She… reminded me too much of my mom. But then I realized that Malon would never replace my mom, just like she won’t replace your grandma. She would never try to, and neither would Time. They’re my mom and my dad, but that doesn’t change the fact that I still love my mom.” Warriors finished, and Wind just looked up at him with big eyes. “I don’t know your sister, but I think we all just want you to be happy, little pirate.” Wind threw himself at Warriors’ chest once again. A few minutes later, Time and Malon emerged from upstairs. 

“Can I… Can I really stay?” Wind asked hopefully.

“Of course.” Time confirmed without hesitation. 

“And I can still see Aryll?”

“Anytime you want.” Malon promised. “She is always welcome here, and she doesn’t live that far away from what we’ve seen.

Wind spent the rest of the night playing flashlight tag with his brothers, and chattering excitedly about how he would get to see his sister the next day.

~

Time truly thought he was done adopting children. What a fool he was. 

Except this round, it wasn’t even his fault! It was his oldest son’s fault!

Time stared at his sheepish 12 year old from the doorway of his and Warriors’ room. More specifically, he was staring at the small body hiding behind his 12 year old son. 

“Son…” Time started, already exasperated by the situation. 

“...Yes Dad?” twilight asked with an innocent smile, as if he wasn’t very obviously hiding an entire child behind his back. 

“Who’s behind you?” Time raised an eyebrow. 

“Uhhh…” Twilight trailed off, looking behind him. “You can come out, cub. He won’t hurt you.” Twilight assured the body behind him.

“Cub?” Time questioned.

“I found him in an abandoned fox den!” Twilight defended. Time pinched the bridge of his nose. This entire situation was ridiculous.

“And why, pray tell, did you hide him in your room?” Time asked his eldest. Did Warriors even know there was a child hidden in his room?

“Well.” Twilight began, as if Time was the one who was being ridiculous. “I was going to hide him in here for a bit until you and Mom got home and sneak him some food. I was going to tell you, but you got home early. Dad…” Time perked up at his son’s serious tone. “He’s terrified of people. From what I can tell he has no one, and I worked for an hour to build up enough trust for him to come with me. He doesn’t talk and he was all alone! I couldn’t just leave him there!” Twilight defended, gently coaxing out the little boy behind him. The first thing Time noticed was the scars. Burn marks all over the boy’s face and exposed torso, down to his legs. The boy was only wearing a pair of shorts, and Time wondered how he hadn’t frozen out there. He had to be only seven or eight. Time sighed once again.

“Twi… I’m not mad, I’m not. But where will he stay?” Twilight perked up with a hope in his eyes.

“He can stay with me!” Twilight gestured to where the little one was practically attached to the older boy’s leg. It seemed once the little boy trusted someone, he absolutely was not going to let go. Time kneeled down to be more level with the little boy, who buried his face further into Twilight’s leg. 

“Hello there.” Time said gently. “My name is Time. I’m Twilight’s dad. Do you want some food?” The little one’s eyes lit up in excitement, peering up to look at Twilight, as if asking permission. 

“Does food sound good, Cub?” The little boy nodded slightly, and it was the most Time knew he would get out of the little boy. 

“I’ll go make some stew and warn the others. You’re telling your mother this time.”

~

By the time Malon had arrived back to the ranch from her trip to the city, the Cub had been washed and fed, and Twilight had managed to wiggle the boy into some old clothes. The little boy looked quite happy about all of these, and Twilight even heard a little giggle. Malon had managed to introduce herself gently without the little boy panicking, but he was still attached to Twilight. The older boy didn’t seem to mind very much.

Time decided the best approach to introducing the little boy to the family would be to take it one member at a time, except for the quadruplets who would all be introduced at the same time to avoid later confusion at their similar appearances. Twilight took to the normal naming ceremony, the little boy excitedly picked out the cover with a vast field of wildlife, including a fox. 

Wild spent the rest of the evening on Twilight’s lap being taught how to work the controller and gasping in delight at all the things he could do. Specifically all the things he could light on fire. Time would worry about that another day. 

In between playing, Wild was introduced to the rest of the family. There were some bumps, such as confused sobbing when he saw four identical boys, but other than that it went as well as expected. The introduction with Hyrule probably went the best, since the boys had similar backstories. Time saw those two becoming partners in crime. Twilight promised he would figure out if Wild could talk or not, and if he couldn’t, Twilight promised he would find another way to communicate. 

Overall, Wild was the most fast and unexpected acquisition of a child, but Time couldn’t say he was overly upset.

“So, another one then.” Malon teased after all their boys were tucked in.

“It appears so.” Time replied gruffly. 

“Hm. Like father, like son.” 

Time promptly banged his head on the table.

Idk I might upload an epilogue if y’all are interested.

Is this fic accurate to how the real world works? Nah. But this is an AU based on fiction, I did my best.

I’m going to specify that the video games the boys are named after aren’t the Legend of Zelda, they’re just random old games. This isn’t insanely meta or anything I just thought it would be a funny little easter egg haha.

Have an amazing week everyone!

[flowesona]

foul and fair - yandere! jimin x reader

happy (late) birthday to my wonderful mutual @jooniescupcakes​! i hope ur day was blessed and i hope you enjoy this :)

Jeering and the feeling of rocks hitting his back were Jimin’s last memories of the village that he’d once called his home. Then, why was someone outside his door?

He’d been called a warlock, a demon and a foul spirit. Every crop he’d attended to wilted and every cattle he touched had collapsed within a matter of days. Girls would hear of these rumours and escalate into claiming he’d bewitched them too. Jimin was only ten at the time, but even his own parents had been sold into the mob mentality and cast him out of their home without a second thought to his wellbeing. The jeers of his former friends, the booming voice of the preacher declaring him to be wicked, the cries on young girls when they so much made eye contact with him - the sounds still rattled in his ears if he let himself gaze upon the town in the distance.

That had been fourteen years ago, and over that time he’d grown used to his own company.

Yet, despite this the woman stood outside his abode with an innocent expression intrigued him. 

Thus he reluctantly opened the door a sliver, half of his face visible.

“Hi! I am new to Royal Gebolwl, my name is (Y/N). It is nice to meet you, what is your name?” She gave him an eager smile, offering him her hand as she spoke a million words at once. Jimin blinked, trying to process it and figure out how to respond when he hadn’t held a conversation in over a decade. 

When he was unable to think of a response, he decided instead to get a proper look at her. Neatly dressed in clothes that seemed to show eloquence but also modesty and clutching a woven basket to her chest.

She caught him staring at the basket intensely and blushed, before dipping her hand inside and pulling out a small paper package.

“I know it is not much, but I wanted to bring you some bread that I baked. I have been working on my recipe so I hope that it tastes nice!” (Y/N) smiled, holding it out to him. His hand snaked out to take the package, their fingers brushing slightly.

The young woman watched him anxiously as he inspected the package with some suspicion.

Finally, when he decided it was safe he finally spoke.

“Thank you.” 

She gave him a gracious nod and turned to walk away, before he spoke again.

“My name is Jimin.” He shut the door immediately afterwards, taking a few seconds to breathe and take in the situation.

“It is nice to meet you.” The words felt strange on his tongue. They lacked the honey-like sweetness of her voice, that was for sure.

The young man sat down at his makeshift kitchen table, unwrapping the brown paper to see a neat brown roll. He tore off a piece and held it to his lips. Paranoia flashed through his body. What if she was sent to kill him? What if the gift she gave him was in fact to euthanize him?

Even so, he put the gift in his mouth and chewed. Instantly he was on the verge of tears. He hadn’t tasted such a delicious treat in years, and suddenly the bread was in his hands and he was eating it as if he was starving.

Once it was all gone, he could only stare at his empty hands and wonder how he’d been so happy with his own company when he was missing out on people like her. And following that realisation, he was more hungry than ever.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

Jimin had practiced many times in anticipation for their next meeting. He’d practiced talking in the mirror to rid himself of any hesitation, and even started to grow special, rare flowers in his garden so that he could make her an arrangement. 

The weeks on end without seeing her were starting to wear on him. He’d wondered about wandering into the village to find her, but the thought of her seeing him be shooed away again was enough to stop him dead in his tracks. 

(Y/N) had left him to stew for too long. Almost three weeks after their first meeting did she return, the same woven basket clutched to her chest as if it were glued there.

“Jimin, I do not mean to be an inconvenience but I saw that you have some onions in your garden and was wondering if you could spare a few?”

The young man wasn’t as composed as he’d thought himself to be. The euphoria of (Y/N) remembering his name and showing an interest in his horticultural products made his carefully composed words fall out of his mouth.

“Are you okay?” The young woman was immediately concerned by his pale face and lack of speech. 

“Y-yes. Would you like to come in for some tea?” Jimin managed to choke out, heart pounding.

“Apologises but I am short on time, my daughter is sick and hungry. I need to feed her. Tomorrow, perhaps?” He nodded, heat flushing his face in humiliation as her words set in.

“Wonderful. Help yourself.” He said shortly before closing the door in her face and rushing to his bed. He collapsed immediately, face screwing up in frustration as he lashed out at whatever he could lay his hands on. Chairs were knocked over, bowls clattered to the floor, feathers fluttered out of his pillow.

How could she deceive him like this? Having a child, and most likely a husband? Jimin had been certain they were soulmates, that she’d reserved herself for him this whole time. Yet, here she was talking about her family, prioritising them over Jimin. Couldn’t she see that he’d dedicated all his time to her, but she couldn’t even give him a few minutes?

Enough is enough, he concluded. She couldn’t play with his feelings and drive him insane any longer. If her mind had wandered astray, he would set it back.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

Jimin spent most of his time the next day in the chicken coop. They made excellent company: for one, they never judged him for being born wicked. But the added advantage was a near perfect view of the path to his cottage - as soon as she would approach he was ready. 

He waited, and waited. Until it grew late and the sun retired from the sky, Jimin sat outside with his eyes dead set on the path and only his small array of feathery friends for company.

It was only when they too left him that Jimin realised she wasn’t coming.

A shiver ran down his spine at the thought of what was happening to her. What if the villagers that had once persecuted him had now set her as their next target? The idea of (Y/N) being maltreated felt like Jimin’s heart was being ripped out.

Love. That was the word for it. Jimin loves her, to the point of no return, and he was ready to fight for her to be in his arms. He hadn’t experienced the warm touch of another in years, but his yearning for her was much more than that. 

Before he knew it, his feet were carrying him out of the chicken enclosure, into his house to put on a cloak and pack a small satchel and he was journeying far beyond his home before he was even aware of what he was doing.

The fear of being recognised, of being punished for stepping inside the village boundaries as he was forbidden from doing and worst of all being painted as a monster in front of (Y/N) was jarring. But he felt like there was some kind of string pulling him along, as he skulked through the night inspecting each house to deduct which one was hers. 

Suddenly, from inside the house he’d stopped outside of he heard the faint sound of her angelic voice once again. With cautious steps he approached the building it was coming from, glancing in through a small gap in the wall that had not been filled in with stone..

He saw (Y/N) gently stroking the forehead of a young girl who looked almost identical to her mother, save for the stressed lines that creased (Y/N)’s forehead. (Y/N) was singing a sweet lullaby as she comforted her daughter, accompanied by some washed out ghost of a man who seemed to be her husband. The angel pressed a final kiss to her daughter’s forehead before rising from the young girl’s side and nearly collapsing into the man’s arms. Through the thin walls, Jimin could make out a conversation.

“They turned you away?” 

“It’s far too expensive. More than a year’s wages. There’s nothing we can do.”

(Y/N) let out a loud sob.

Jimin’s heart throbbed hearing the beautiful (Y/N)’s wails of anguish, although he didn’t quite know the cause. But he did know that he had to save her from what was making her upset, and fast.

He continued to quietly observe as the family settled themselves down to sleep for the night. The fear was starting to set in that he’d get caught peeking. What if someone recognised him, what if he was publicly humiliated in front of (Y/N), what if she learnt that he did not love as an outcast voluntarily? Jimin could not bear to see hatred in those beautiful eyes, not towards him.

In his satchel, he’d brought a knife. Nestled in with some bread he’d tried to bake. He’d hoped she would enjoy his bread as he did hers, but evidently there was a more pressing issue at hand.

Using his knife, he’d broken open the simple wooden latch on their door and entered. Whilst he’d expected the heavy smell of hops, as many men of the village drank far too much, there was instead the pleasant smell of leftover broth. Whilst Jimin’s stomach was begging him to indulge in some of the homemade food, his heart was begging for some other relief.

When he entered the other room, his heart fell to his shoes. He saw (Y/N) cuddled up to her “husband”, her eyes still sore but her breathing slow and steady. 

Jimin’s stomach churned, thinking about what he was going to do. What if he was caught in the act by (Y/N)?

But he had to do it, to save her and become the man that she needed in her life. The second her husband was gone, she’d turn to cry on his shoulder. Oh, how wonderful it would be to have a companion in his lonely world. She could love him for who he truly was, no matter how freakish, and surely her daughter would be delighted to have a new father?

With one final seed of doubt destroyed Jimin set to work. He gently turned the man on his back, separating his parasitic limbs from (Y/N). And, pressing a hand to his victim’s mouth, Jimin quickly slit his throat.

The man’s eyes shot open as a response to the pain, but all he could do was gargle blood pathetically, his strength being sapped away by the second. And within a minute it was all over. 

He climbed off the dreaded man, not wanting contact with him to last a second longer. His eyes trailed lovingly to see (Y/N), still fast asleep only with a small bit of blood wetting her hair. He longed to take her back with him, but it would not be right. She had to realise herself that Jimin was the man she needed, not some corpse.

Then he saw the child. The poor, wretched child that had been the product of (Y/N)’s mistaken marriage. What was he to do with the child, if it would only remind her of her past pain?

There was only one thing to do. Jimin knelt next to the child, feeling her pulse. It was racing high, and her forehead was drenched in sweat.

The child had done nothing wrong. She deserved mercy, and Jimin felt at peace with himself as he resolved to give it to her. Placing a hand on her chest, muttering an incantation, and watching her quick breaths slow to a stop.

Jimin finally left the house, breathing in the fresh autumn breeze. And finally, for the first time in fourteen years, he smiled.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

That afternoon, as he attended to his crops, Jimin spied the sight he’d been dreaming off. (Y/N).

She was clutching a black shawl around herself. As she got closer, he noticed her eyes were bloodshot and her face was caked with mud.

However, she didn’t even spare him a glance. Moreover, she walked straight past him.

“(Y/N)?” He called out, to get no response. Growing more scared, he vaulted over the fence to catch up to her. “(Y/N)?”

“Why do you want to talk to me?” She finally said, her voice hoarse. “I am a monster.”

Jimin didn’t respond. He stood with his mouth open, trying to articulate the words to tell she was wrong, she was an angel!

“You will not ever have to see me again.” She said, turning away. “You do not deserve to be in the presence of a murderer.”

Suddenly it clicked. And suddenly, Jimin felt like they were closer than ever.

“You have been exiled?”

“They say I am a witch. That I killed my husband and cursed my own child! One of the elders took pity but if not for that I would be burnt at the stake!” (Y/N)’s body started to shake.

“You did not do it.” Jimin replied firmly, proud of how his voice didn’t shake as it used to.

“I did not. But they did not believe me. They took my daughter away and I have nothing left in life but the clothes on my body.”

“And me.”

(Y/N) finally looked him in the eye.

“You can stay with me. Outside the village boundaries.” He recited his rehearsed lines, resisting the urge to smile in acknowledgement of (Y/N)’s somber demeanor. They’d believed it all, fell into the trap he’d concocted 

“You are kind Jimin. Alas, that would be too much a burden.” She replied quietly.

“Never. Stay with me, and I will give you your life.” Jimin repeated.

She looked hesitant, but as her need for survival took over her pride she nodded. He held out his hand, which she took in her own blood caked one as he led her back to his dwelling. 

She seemed blissfully unaware of his own status, or perhaps she no longer cared to hold the hand of a freak, an outcast, a foul spirit. But, with the power granted to him, Jimin wouldn’t have it any other way.

[midwestmess94]

Queer Mental Health: A June Discussion

It is Day 2 of PRIDE month. Major corporations have already changed their logos to the rainbow flag, the circuit gays are out on the beaches in their speedos, posting thirst traps on Instagram, the Ru Girls are teasing their wigs and stoning their body suits for the plethora of gigs they have coming up, PRIDE celebration planning is underway if the event has not already happened. It is the gayest time of the year. 

I feel that, while we are drinking our vodka sprites with a splash of cran (and PBR ((yes, I am a gay who drinks cheap beer. Who gonna check me boo?))), we need to talk about queer mental health. 

I feel that this is a topic we shyly talk about. After years of being viewed as outcasts and weirdos, I feel that we sometimes get scared to talk about the thoughts in our head. We’ve been told being ourselves was such a problem that the stigmatism behind mental health bogs us down. We don’t really talk about going to see therapists, or crying for reasons we don’t understand, or the on-going battle of what our bodies look like.  

Every morning I wake up at 2am to go to work. I work until 12:30 p.m. Then, I come  home and sit on my couch and just aimlessly watch Netflix until I have to repeat the process. I do that Friday-Tuesday. On Wednesdays and Thursdays, I just sit around my house and watch more tv. 

I love my job. I’ve had amazing opportunities in my career and I’m thankful for the great people I’ve met, who’ve helped me. I’ve truly grown from those experiences. 

I hate leaving work. It’s the most socialization that I get outside of my house. I sit and battle my anxiety and depression at home by myself. Because of my weird schedule, I don’t get to see people much. My friends try to come out but they work normal hours so they can’t really do anything on my days off. On Wednesdays, I go to the local gay bar and play bingo by myself. It’s quite sad but I made friends with the bartender, who has had to save me from a couple rough days. 

---- PRO TIP: Never have your bartender drive you home. You then will live with a bunch of regret of making a pseudo-stranger see you in your worst----

Everyday, I wake up before dawn and get in the shower. My first thought when I wake up is “what will I fuck up today?” Then, I think about what I have to do for the day. Through that, I debate going to the gym after work and I usually let my inner saboteur win the argument. I always convince myself: what is the point? I never have the motivation to stick with it. It would just be a waste of time and all I want to do is lay on the couch.  At some point in the day, my anxiety kicks in. It is usually around the time I check my bank account. This is where my anxiety convinces me that I am a fuck up.  Then, I look up the number to my therapist because I feel like that might help. Well, my anxiety, who I’ve named Chad, tells me that it won’t help because it never does. I just feel like I want to escape my anxiety and that it will go away. Unfortunately, it never does. You can’t escape your brain and your feelings.  Then, I realize I’m spiraling. I think about texting my friends about my issues but I haven’t known them that long since I’ve known them for under a year. I can’t really talk to them about my issues because it’s also robbing them of their time. It’s not fair to constantly seek help when you are probably just dealing with the same repetitive shit. I get afraid that I’ll just scare them away because of the issues I’ve dealt with since I was 16. My anxiety drives me to feel like I’m just a thorn in everyone’s side. It’s bad to the point that I repetitively apologize to everyone for basically existing.  There are days where I just lay in bed and scroll through social media, wishing I was someone else because I let myself believe I can’t change to be the person I want to be. I look in the mirror and really hate the social decisions I’ve been making in the last year. I’ve been getting super anxious about the things I’ve said to people when I’m drunk. I get anxious about DMing people I’ve met because I think they’ll think I have feelings for them when in reality I just want to be sociable.  My depression comes in waves on top of this. I constantly think about how I’ve made awful financial decisions in my early 20s and now I’m paying for it in my late 20s. I’m living with family at the age of 27 and I didn’t plan on that for myself.  I see what people are doing on social media. I know people never post their worst but it makes me feel like I’m doing my absolute worst. It’s not fair of me to do that to myself but also I’d like to formally introduce everyone to Chad, my anxiety and Darryl, my depression. 

I then think that my friends, the very few I have in Florida, think that I’m just too much and only deal with me because we end up in the same social situations. Want to know why? Because I’m everything that would annoy me as a person. I wish I wasn’t but I am. I know it is that whole conversation of working on yourself but this is happening to me right now. Not the end goal of working on yourself. Stop fucking telling people they need to work on themselves. Someone going through something probably knows that but this is happening in the now. Dismissing their shit and saying it’ll be better down the road is the fucking worst thing ever. 

Then, I’m gay on top of all of this.  Being gay is great but unconventionally hard. People want to tokenize you. They want to put you in a box and say you should be this and not that. I have gotten, specifically from my fraternity brothers in college, “you are cool but just like tone it down dude.” The first time I heard that was in reference to me posting a picture kissing a boy’s cheek on Instagram. Some of my fraternity brothers didn’t think it would look good for the chapter’s image. But, they publicly cheat on their girlfriends and do whatever they want.  Oh, lets talk about how they’d ask me to wing man them with my girlfriends so they could get laid.  Or, my favorite, is when women say I should act a certain way. My close girlfriends are not like this. One of them says “yes queen” but that’s about it. She has never tokenized me and she’s let me be whatever version of myself I am that day.  But straight women love to say we should love shopping. If we’re femme presenting or there is an ounce of feminity in our presence, then we get asked if we like mani-pedis or assume we have style. Not all of us do. I don’t even identify with a feminine or masculine identity. I didn’t know I needed a label to be myself. 

Then there are the boxes gay guys put other gays in.  First thing is first, if you are slightly overweight, not fit and not stylish... You can go fuck yourself.  Gay dating is like having a Ruth Chris budget but you can only afford the McDonald’s $3 McDouble Meal. Every gay man, thanks to porn and the American media’s take on what gay men look like, thinks they need to date the hottest guy in the room. The minute that they realize that guy will never go for them, well that is cataclysmic. You may call that once in a blue moon but I call that a Saturday night at a gay bar. 

Then, there is the judgment in how you dress, who you hang out with, what you do and what you drink (I am the only person at my local gay bar that drinks PBR and the amount of comments about calories and bloating I’ve received is way too much).  It’s rough. 

I know this was a long journey and most of you probably didn’t read all of this but I wrote this to get things off my mind. This is what I deal with every day of the year. I never know what my mood of the day will be when I wake up. Will I win my battle against my anxiety and depression or will I lose it and let it run everything? I feel no matter what we look like, what do we do or who we hang out with, this is something every queer person deals with. I think we need to have more of an open conversation about it amongst ourselves. I think there is some comfort there. We all present and hold face in different ways. If you ever saw me in person, you could tell how I am doing by how I present myself. I never really hide anything. It’s dumb. Just be yourself. 

I know I wrote this for me but I hope it starts a conversation amongst the queer community. I hope it helps someone reach out to seek help or I hope you just related.  Anyways, thats it. 

[lightninghikari]

Proud

Pairing: Steven Stone/Wallace.

Rating: general audiences.

Summary: Steven Stone, heir of Devon, who had expectations put on him since the very day he was born… decides to come out to his father.

Author’s notes: This is a lil fic I’ve been saving all this time for Pride Month. Enjoy it!

Read in AO3

He took a deep breath, sighing afterward.

"You know, Steven?" His father stretched his arms, then allowing his hands to fall by his sides, over the bench, carelessly. "I can't remember the last time I relaxed on the beach like this."

"Yeah, here in Mossdeep is nice to..." then again, he sighed. "Chill a little."

"You should take me out of work more often," at the very least the man was enjoying himself. "Seriously. I can't remember the last time we hung out like this, it even feels like it had been years now."

Because it indeed had been years, Steven replied mentally.

In the middle of his restless thoughts, Steven paid attention to the fact that Joseph was right and they didn’t spend much time together anymore; which was crazy, considering that they were the only close family each other had. And for a moment, Steven got distracted by the realization that, taking his father for granted like that was no good, and that he should be taking every chance he had to spend the time with him and talk and reach out to him while he could.

Chances like… this one.

And once more, Steven felt the pit in his stomach, reminding him of why they were there to talk in the very first place. So, he let the first conversation topic to die down while trying to find the words to express what he needed to.

He sighed again.

"So, Steven," Joseph called his name with a patient tone. "What do you want to talk about? You said it was important and actually I've been aching to know what this matter is all about."

The anguish grew on his chest, as he shifted uncomfortably in his place. Steven had genuinely believed that he was ready to confront his dad already, yet there he was, stopping right on his tracks when he was explicitly requested to talk.

Ah… Steven had not a single clue of why he was so scared. He was a grown man already, independent, this shouldn’t even come out as a big deal. Besides, his dad was a good man, all of his own politeness he learned it from him. Yet, Steven believed somewhat there was a possibility to disappoint his father, to make him mad. After all, he was his only child, and his confession would mean a burden to all of the plans Mr. Stone had for him.

Nonetheless, he had postponed the whole matter a lot already. It was the moment to talk. Wallace was worth the shot.

"Well... it's just that..." He could barely elaborate. "Um, I mean, like..."

"Yes?"

"It’s… Like..." His head was already dizzy in shame. "Ah!"

Joseph chuckled, not quite amused, instead, very puzzled.

"Just go ahead.”

"It's something... um... hard to say, to put it down in some way," Steven spoke lowly, as if words would come easier that way.

“Okay, maybe try giving me a hint?”

Steven took a deep breath, “you could say, I…”

Was he going to say it so simply, just like that?

“Yes, Steven?”

This was terrible.

“Steven-”

And he growled, pulling his hair back with his hands in a clear sign of desperation, "Dad, please, don't get angry at me," he pleaded, finally giving in to his worries.

"You did something I should be mad about?"

"Kind of? I'm not sure..."

"Let's see," the older man said softly, getting a little more serious. "What happened?"

The pressure on his chest grew unbearable as his mind got foggier and foggier. For a moment Steven believed his mouth wouldn’t be able to keep producing words anymore and that he would have to run away from the scene.

"I..." point of no return, it was now or never. Steven shook his head and clenched his fists. "I'm... I'm dating someone".

The incredulous expression on Joseph's face was priceless. He remained quiet for a few seconds, then, he began to laugh in a lighthearted way, placing a hand in his chest rather relieved; which only thrilled Steven further, because what he was going to say wouldn’t be relieving at all.

"For Arceus' sake!" Joseph shook his head. "Is that what this whole tension is about? That my son’s got a new partner?"

Now his heart was pounding so desperately against his ribs that Steven truly believed he’d had an arrest.

"I know it sounds like something stupid and trivial!" He replied loudly, even furiously, unable to put up with the shame anymore. "But this is a serious matter and I'm sure that when I give you the details you're going to be at the very least a bit disappointed, to not say upset, and-”

"Why would I be upset?" Joseph answered, simply yet incredulous. "Wallace is a good man, I like him very much actually, you should already know that."

Oh?

Oh.

Steven felt his jaw dropping off its place as he gasped in surprise and his cheeks began to turn bright red.

How was it even possible that his father knew altogether that his new partner was in fact a male, and not any male, but Wallace?

Joseph laughed again, however, that time a little more nervously.

"W-What?" Steven started to stammer now, not even being able to keep visual contact. "H-How d-did you know?"

"I'm your father, I know you from the very day you were born, how I wasn't supposed to notice something like this?"

Ditching the whole parent intuition thing, Steven hurried to ask, "was I that obvious?"

"Sort of," he even gestured it with the hand. "When you first introduced us I didn’t really think it could be more than a friendship. But, one day, it only took me to watch how you looked at him as mesmerized as if he was a precious gem, and see how you giggled at every small thing he said, and how you couldn’t keep your hands off him, to know that you were completely and absolutely lovestruck. And Wallace… well. He wasn’t being quite subtle there, either; he’d say something very flirtatious to you for it to fly right over your head.”

Steven growled, covering his face, “how ludicrous…”

“I can’t blame him though. You are such a handsome man, no wonder why everyone throws themselves at you, a contest idol like him included.”

“D-Dad!” Steven whined. “This is so embarrassing!”

Shrugging, he chuckled, “to be fair, I didn't imagine you were dating now, but I was instead anticipating this talk to happen. I knew it was a matter of time for you both to get together."

Steven shook his head, "don't you think I was trying to keep this as a secret to you. In fact, we started dating just a few weeks ago, but if I didn't tell you immediately after that happened was because-".

"It's fine," Joseph seemed to completely understand his reasons, that being why he allowed himself to cut off Steven’s furious rambling. "I imagine you were still trying to come to terms with that. Don’t worry, I get you.”

Steven felt shame again. This time for not being able to do this sooner.

"So, aren’t you mad?"

"Why should I be?"

Once more, he sighed, now straightening in his place to add more seriousness to his words, "well, because I think I like men after all. And if I’m gay for real, this will mean I won’t get a future Devon heir, and I’ll be putting us in trouble and-”

Joseph smiled indulgently, then, tilted his head, giving his son a loving look.

"Steven..." he sighed, "life's too short and unpredictable to even worry about those sorts of things in advance. I mean, you can have your life all planned, and all of a sudden, it takes an unexpected turn and everything changes".

Steven nodded.

"When I was around your age, I was achieving everything I'd ever planned; I was this successful CEO both my father and grandfather raised me to be, I was happily and publicly married and you were about to born. I had everything."

Ah, he knew where this was heading to.

"I had planned my life to be exactly like that, like my father and grandfather wanted it to be and how I thought it would always be.”

This time, Joseph snickered lightly at himself

“Then, I had to face the fact that the woman I thought was the right for me didn’t want to be my wife anymore, then realized that my success wasn’t enough to keep a family happily together, and I had to raise you all on my own," Joseph clasped his hands together next. "What I’m trying to say is that you can’t be sure of what’s going to happen in the future. So, don't get so worked out about something that hasn't happened yet. When your time comes, you, and perhaps even Wallace, would decide what to do. And I do trust you will decide wisely, I have no doubt of that."

Suddenly, he became aware of the way his heart was exaggeratedly pounding hard against his chest, a lump in his throat holding back any kind of response; for that, Steven felt his eyes getting wet as an overwhelming sense of relief and happiness took over him.

He was, in fact, deeply moved by his father's words of acceptance. And trying hard to not cry, Steven remained silent, and almost two minutes went by like that until the older Stone decided to speak again.

“Besides… I’m happy for you.”

“You are?”

“Yes. All these years I watched you getting in relationships almost out of obligation. At first, of course, I thought that it was because of how the divorce had affected you, and that you still hadn’t found the right woman to love.”

Looking back at it, it sounded so ludicrous now.

“I’ve always seen people throwing themselves at you, and you resignedly settling with someone. But it was such a nice change when I noticed you were actually chasing after Wallace, with your heart all on your sleeve…”

How did his dad even manage to make it sound so embarrassing? Or was it just that Steven was that awkward in general?

"So..." Joseph cleared his throat. "How Wallace is doing?".

Steven chuckled, starting to move his tense body just a little. "He's fine. Happy. And so I am."

His father hummed.

"Wallace is a nice man,” he concluded. “I mean, he is very strong, capable, caring, funny, talented-"

"Beautiful," Steven uttered solemnly, adding to his dad's former statement. And when he realized what he just said and noticed the amused look on the older man's face, he felt his cheeks blushing, flustered.

"Oh, god. I'm still not prepared for diabetes, Steven," Joseph joked, gaining a gasp from his now again restless son.

"D-Dad!" He was sure he would die from the embarrassment since it never was his intention to sound so cheesy about Wallace in front of this father of his who loved to make jokes whenever it was possible.

Once he stopped laughing, Joseph stated, "well, I would like to meet him one of these days."

"Dad, you already know him."

"Indeed I do, however, you hadn't introduced him as your boyfriend yet, but only as your best friend instead."

Discreetly, Steven rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," he replied, "He'll be very glad to meet up with you. I'll be sure to tell you when we are free to hang out together."

His father nodded.

"Great," assuming the talk was already done, and to break any tension possibly remaining after that somehow awkward yet sweet conversation they shared, the man felt safe to bring up another topic. "Now, if my memory isn’t failing me, you told me that you've found a rare stone you wanted to show me."

Steven smiled for once.

"Yes. It's at my place".

"Shall we go then?"

He agreed, and once the both of them were standing, they remained quiet until the younger Stone broke the distance between them, wrapping his father in his arms, fervently, and of course, the embrace was immediately reciprocated.

"Thanks, Dad," Steven spoke softly, pure emotion in his voice.

"You are very welcome."

"This really means a lot to me. Just... thank you so, so much. I love you."

"You have nothing to thank me, Steven," At that moment, he sounded as moved as his son. Maybe that was the reason why he lightly kissed the top of Steven's forehead, the way he would when Steven was a kid. "You are my son, and for that, I will always love you, not only until you are old enough to make your own decisions and stop following my expectations. I love you the way you are and no matter what, it will always be like that."

“Dad…” was he about to cry? Yes, he was about to cry.

“I’m so proud of you, my boy. If it had been me going through this, damn, be sure I wouldn’t have been brave enough to go against the expectations put on me.”

“I can because I have an awesome dad like you.”

And of course, both laughed foolishly, Joseph running out of words too, unable to come up with one of his usual puns. This moment felt even holy, just a proof of the unconditional love going on between them, even if they didn’t spend much time with each other now.

And no word was spoken after that. Then, some seconds afterward they parted, only a little, however: all the way back home, Joseph wrapped an arm around Steven, holding him and patting his back and shoulder while they were walking all the way back home.

They spent the rest of the evening together, so casually, yet, it meaning the whole world to Steven; at first, he truly believed his father wasn't going to react well at him coming out so suddenly. Now, he was so thankful that, instead of falling apart, they grew even closer to each other. And so, silently, Steven made this promise that, he would try to reach out for his father more often. Growing up rather lonely didn’t mean he had to keep doing that way, that was one thing Wallace had taught him and that his dad was now reassuring him on.

Ah… How loved and accepted Steven felt. How great was to be truly in love with someone and be able to share that happiness with his loved ones.

And how much he admired his father. Hopefully, one day, he could truly aim to be half the wise and caring man Joseph was.

[strawberrylove099]

Number One (MewGulf one shot)

Gulf is supposed to be preparing now for the event later. It's their reunion for all the casts of TharnType the Series and everyone's excited for the event. Fans are spazzing on twitter for the said event and making trend no.1 worldwide. It's an exciting event, after 7 years it was released, they will now see each other again.

What are you doing, Gulf?

He was laying on his bed. He's been working nonstop since last week. A lot of promotions, pictorials and fan events. He wanted to make sure that he's doing his best to fulfill his reponsibilities so after the hectic week, it's time for his rest time. Today is supposed to be day one of his rest day. His manager talked to him that the reunion for TTTS is not on his schedule and he has the freedom to attend or not to but knowing himself, he will do it anyway. He missed the team. He missed his first family. He missed everything about that very series. His first and the most memorable series he had for his whole career. That series made him what he is now.

*Ring*

Gulf answered his phone without seeing the caller because he knew that it will be Mild.

"GULF!"

Mild it is.

"Yes phi?"

"What yes phi? where are you? I'm preparing now. I'll fetch you later. Be sure that you'll be done once I'm there. Bye."

Not given a chance to answer, Gulf knew that he needs to prepare. Get up and do it, Gulf.

He is alone and wants to play his music. He wants music in the background to distract him. He is not really ready for this reunion. He missed his first fam but he knew in his heart that the his first love is also there. The thought made him cry. He knew that deep in his heart that there are regrets. There are longing. After 5 years and the pain is still there. He's tiring himself all the time so that once he will go back to his condo, he will just sleep and forget it the next day and the cycle continues.

I'm jealous of the rain That falls upon your skin It's closer than my hands have been

"Love, come on. It's raining."

"I want to dance under the rain, Mew. I'm serious."

"But Love, we might get sick. I don't want you go to work feeling heavy and sick."

"But Mew.. please..."

Mew looked at Gulf and just smiled. He will always let him win. It's his magic. Gulf's magic to him.

"Okay, let's dance.."

Gulf softly giggle and hug mew and slowly, they sway in the song that only them can hear. Gulf put his face on Mew's and smiles.

"This is my number two, Love. Dancing in the rain."

"So what's your number one?" Mew asked him while giving soft kisses on Gulf's face.

"Wait, stop kissing me first." Gulf giggles softly.

"I won't stop. Tell me your number one.." Mew said while continue kissing Gulf.

Gulf holds Mew and looked at him straight in the eyes. He smiled.

And he kissed him which Mew responded happily.

I'm jealous of the wind That ripples through your clothes It's closer than your shadow

Gulf didn't know that he was stucked on his position. Standing near his music player and holding his phone while the first music is playing. He wants to cry now. He wants to just stay. He doen't want to go anywhere.

He must do it anyway. He will faced him after 3 years. He will do it with his first family. How tragic it is, that the magical love started with the whole cast too and now, the will to let go, will be with his first family also.

He really wants to cry now but he stops himself. Turn off the player and start preparing. Mild will get mad for sure and if he wanted to finish on time, he should start it now.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Gulf, we're late. What are you doing?" Mild said while looking at Gulf fixing his clothes in front of the mirror.

"Phi, stop nagging me. We're not late and I don't want to be early too. Let's spend few minutes more."

"What's wrong with you? Really? You're not like that. Gulf, it's been three years!"

"Phi..." Gulf stops fixing his dress and bow down. He promised to himself not to think about it. But his anxiousness is winning today. He's been like this since morning and eveything is so chaotic inside of him. What will he do when he sees him in the event? What will he say? How will he react? All these questions. He just want to stay home and rest.

"Gulf, I know what you're thinking. I'm here. I'm just here. I know that it's hard. You have to forgive yourself. It's been 3 years, I know it's not enough but let your self rest. You decided to do it because it will make you happy. I know. You will make him happy too. Don't beat yourself up too much. You will be okay. Soon. For now, think that it will happen. You both are in the same industry. Sooner or later, you will see him. So let's do it today. No media or anything. You will do okay. Trust me?" Mild said as he hug Gulf. This little brother of him who he considered as his real baby bro is not being himself and he will not let it happen. He needs to do it now or else, it will be chaotic the next chance they will get to see each other again.

"Okay Phi. I'll be fine. I will be fine. I promise. First and last tonight. I will be fine." As Mild heard that reply, his heart is breaking but he will not let Gulf know about this. He wanted the man to be strong and he wanted it now. He can do it.

---------------------------------------------

The place of the event is so light. Everyone's hugging, laughing, crying and talking to each other. Gulf entered the place and the whole cast cheer and hug him. Everyone missed this man and Gulf is so happy seeing them again. When he saw P'Mame, he hugs her tightly.

"P, thank you. I love you." P'Mame just hug him and congratulate him.

"You've grown so much, Gulf. Look at you now, so successful. I heard from your directors and teams from the movie you made that you did so well. Everyone's so proud of you. I am so proud of you and I missed you." P'Mame said as he looks at Gulf. They both have a teary eyes and hug one last time before P'Mame said that he needs to see the other cast which he did.

Gulf saw Mild talking to the other cast and he went to talk to them also. He forget all the tension around him and just talk to others without worrying. If he will face him which he knows that it will come, he will worry about it later. For now, let him enjoy.

After several talks, the staffs cheering again. Mild looks at Gulf while they're sitting and eating their food, Gulf just nodded and he knew at that moment that Mew is there already.

"How's everyone? Ohmy, I miss you P'mame! I miss all of you guys. It's good to be back." Gulf can hear Mew's voice nearing their place and he ready himself.

Gulf looks up and saw Mew right there, standing and smiling at him. His heart stops. His breathing stops and as if Mew can sense it, he touches Gulf's forehead playfully and laughs softly.

"Hi, Gulf! How are you?" Mew asks him while smiling.

Gulf cannot answer back not because he lost all the words to say but because the moment Mew looks at him with that eyes and touch his forehead like it's the most natural thing to do, he lost the battle. How can I let go of this person?

"Hi mew! I miss you!" Mild interrupted their interaction because he knew that Gulf cannot answer. He saw it in his eyes, the longing in Gulf's eyes and the sadness that immediately fade away once he interrupted them. Gulf bow down and looks up again to Mew but this time, he just listens to their conversation.

"Miss you too Mild. What's up now? How's your new series going?" Mew said while smiling at Mild.

"It's fine. Everyone's doing their best. Hopefully it will be a hit once it's released. You? How's your movie? I heard that you guys are almost done filming it?"

"Yeah, I'm so excited for it. It's my first time doing an action movie and I hope you guys can support it once it's released. I'm very--"

"Mew! sorry! I need to check my things before leaving the car. Hello everyone!"

"Oh! Guys! I want you to meet my fiance, Tin. I want to introduce to you guys first before we go publicly soon to announce our wedding." Mew excitedly introduce her to the whole fam as he holds her waist.

"Hello everyone! Mew is so excited to see you guys. He even left me while checking my things because he cannot wait anymore. But I'm glad that I finally met you guys, his favorite family." Tin said while smiling to everyone. She's a very simple girl from a simple family. They heard about her before from Mew and she is one of the daughter of their family's friend. They grew up together and once Tin was back in thailand, they went to see each other and finally decided to be together after a year. Now they decided to get married after talking to their family and settling it once and for all.

At first, Mew's family talked to him about it. Mew said that he is not getting any younger. It's time for him to settle down and knowing Tin, he knew that he made the right choice. He assured his family that he is happy and loved and he cannot ask for more when he's with Tin. He's so happy to finally see his own family in the future and that convinced his family that he'll be fine and he's happy. Because that's what matters the most, Mew being happy. His happiness.

Gulf stood up from his seat and offer a handshake to Tin.

"Hello Tin, nice meeting you! and congrats!" Gulf said while smiling at Mew and Tin.

"Yah, Nong Gulf greeted my finace but not me. What's wrong huh?" Mew jokingly said to Gulf and smiling at him.

Nong.

"Because you did not let me talk and Mild was talking with you so I did not have any chance."

"It's my fault now huh Gulf?" Mild said

and the whole fam laughed, same with Mew and Gulf. The party continues and everyone enjoy it as well.

-----------------------------------------------------

"I'm sorry I need to go first. Please take care of Mew for me." Tin said and hugs everyone. Now she knows why Mew is so fond of this family. His family. They are very approachable and lovely.

"Hey, I'm not a kid!" Mew said defensively. "Let's go! I'll take her to the car first then I'll go back."

"Bye Tin! Take care! Thank you!" One of the crew said and waves at her. She bows and left with Mew.

"Mild, have you seen Gulf?" P'Mame asked Mild.

"He told me that he needs to go out first. Get some air. I let him. You know, Gulf is like that."

P'Mame looked at Mild worriedly and told him to just look for Gulf andf Mild said that she don't need to be worried. Gulf will be fine.

-------------------------------------------------------

Gulf is outside and sitting at the little garden that the event place had. He feels like he needs to get some air. He can't figure out what he should feel while they are in the party. He's mind is blank but he knew once he review what happened inside, it will get messy.

Come on, Gulf. Don't be like this. He's okay now. He's fine. Now it's time for you too. Be fine, please. Not now later, just wait a little more. Gulf keeps repeating this to himself. Until he saw a figure coming to his place.

From afar, he can figure out who it is. It's Mew. Calm down, just few more. Wait a little more, self.

As he saw Mew walking near to him another flashback came..

"If you can choose a place to get married, where is it?"

"I want an intimate wedding. I don't want a lot of people in our venue. Only those people who witnessed our love can be invited." Gulf answered while laughing so hard while looking at Mew's reaction. "What? why? you asked me and I answered!" Gulf said and continue laughing at Mew.

"baby, you're weird. We're artists and of course, our fans, I want them to witness it too!" Mew said while hugging Gulf from behind. Today is their rest day and they want to spent it while lazying at home, watch movies.

"I want it intimate for the first time."

"So there is-"

"Yes there is, Mew. There is a second time for the public. I want the first to be intimate."

"Is that your number one?"

"No." Gulf looks at Mew lovingly.

"What is your first?" Mew said as he touches Gulf's nose.  

-----------

"Gulf! you're here!"

Gulf looks at Mew and smiles. "Yes I'm here. Get some air."

"Are you drunk?" Mew sits beside him and join him in the garden.

"No I'm not. You?"

"Nope. Your eyes looks sleepy I remember-" Mew stops and smiles. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I'm not drunk. So how are you?"

"I'm fine. I actually wanted to ask you that first." Gulf giggles at him and look at the garden.

"I'm glad you're finally settling down. I can't wait to see you in Tux!"

"Gulf, I always wear Tux, are you kidding me?"

"No. It's different when you know that it's your special day." Gulf looks at him lovingly. But being with Gulf for years, you will know what's real. It's in his eyes.

"Gulf.."

"What?"

Mew wanted to ask him something but stops himself and just look around.

"Congratulations Mew. I'm happy that you're happy." Gulf looks at him with those eyes again and Mew cannot hold back anymore.

"Why?"

"Why did I leave you?"

"Yes. Why? I deserve to know it, Gulf, Why?"

"Because it's for the best. We're depending on each other too much. We're too focus about us that we forgot we need to have to our own also."

"Gulf.. you know that what makes me happy is you."

"that's the very reason why, Mew."

Mew looks at him with his teary eyes. He is happy for sure but seeing Gulf now, he just let go of that thought. He knows that this man in front of him will always have that special part in him. Gulf is that someone you cannot forget easily. He is that special. He knew deep inside of him that no one will replace this man. Gulf was once his life.

"I'm sorry." Gulf said while looking at Mew. His teary eyes. He slowly lifts his hand and touch Mew's face. "I'm sorry Mew. I just have to do that to think things thoroughly. Our five years was a lifetime for me.  It's magical. I will never forget that."

"Gulf.." Mew is crying now. Holding Gulf's hands tightly.

"I want you to be happy. It's enough for me. Our love, Mew it is special but what you have with Tin is more special. The way she looks at you Mew, you are her whole world. I can see that because I had the same look with you before."

"You still have that look, Gulf." Mew continues to cry and looks at Gulf. They are both crying. Gulf nodded at him as he agree with what Mew said that made Mew cry even more.

"Why did you let me go?"

"I'm sorry Mew... I'm so sorry." Gulf said and hugs Mew tightly while repeating his apologies.

It was that moment he knew the longing. They both longed for each other for so long. Gulf is crying in his arms. His arms which Gulf considered as his home. He felt home but he knew in his heart that it will never be the same again. They can't do it. They missed their chance and maybe that's enough reason to let go. But Mew is hugging him tightly.

"How can I let go now, Gulf?"

"I don't want you to, but you have to."

They're still hugging each other. They wanted time to stop but it will never happen.

"Mew, make her happy. I told you, you are her world. Her life. Now I want to ask you one more question."

"Gulf..."

"Are you happy? If you are, promise me to be happy, after this. Be happy."

"Gulf you know-"

"Answer me."

"Yes. I'm happy with Tin. I will not lie to you. She had seen me at my worst and love me for my whole being. I promise to be happy. I promise, Gulf." Mew said while looking at Gulf and smiling sadly at him as they let go of the hug.

Gulf hugs him again. He needs to tell something to Mew and he cannot bare to look at his face while saying it to him.

"Good. Thank you, Mew. I remember you always asked me what's my number one. Sorry I did not take the chance to tell it to you but I will tell you now."

Gulf let go of the hug and hold Mew's face. He looks at him while smiling sadly.

"You being happy. That's my number one."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

[sternerstufftoys]

He Got Touchy

(inhales)

Oh man, I don't want to do this. Why am I doing this? No-one's making me do this. I'm still doing this. I said I was doing highlights from each year of G1 one week at a time, and you can't talk about 1984 without Optimus Prime. I already did Megatron, now it's time to get the big red bugger out of the way.

Because here's the thing. I don't much like Optimus Prime. No, that's not quite right, I like him well enough I suppose. I like him fine. But I don't care about him. Yes, that's more like it. I don't really care about Optimus Prime. He's not my space-dad, he's not the hero I ever admired as a toddler, he's a relic, a symbol of everything that came before.

Like I said in the Jazz review, I was born in 1984, so by the time I came to Transformers a few years later, Optimus was already dead. Rodimus Prime was in, and any sightings of Optimus felt more like flashbacks than anything else. Optimus was part of the generation that your older cousins might have owned, that the big kids that had grown out of Transformers would recognise. We didn't need them any more. We had Chromedome. And, uh, Wheelie.

Still, I remember being excited by the anticipation of watching The Return of Optimus Prime again. The second coming was a big deal, even if you don't remember the first coming. And then it came and went without leaving an impression, because the nicest thing you can say about it is that it's kind of a dull episode. But returning to it later...

Listen. Rodimus Prime earned his place as leader. It took most of a season, but he bloody well earned it. He doubted himself, he questioned the idea of leadership, he self-reflected until his arse was a highly-polished sheen. But. He. Earned. It. It's the closest that the G1 cartoon ever got to a story arc, with Rodimus finally overcoming his doubts by the penultimate story, The Burden Hardest To Bear. And then before the series could die a merciful death, along comes Optimus to undo everything because he's Optimus Prime and he made some kids cry in 1986 when he went all grey and stopped moving. In doing so Hasbro made it clear that they weren't going to ever commit to any real changes in the franchise, and that sooner or later everything will just reset back to normal. Back to boring.

And yet. When I opened up the packaging for this here KuBianBao MP10-V Convoy, a downscaled knockoff of Takara's own MP10 from a few years back, I have to admit to feeling a thrill of excitement on seeing it for the first time. Specifically, the luscious deep blue of his legs jostled a memory I didn't realise I had, of being round a friend's house as a child and jealously seeing their G1 Optimus Prime in person, with that same navy blue hue that somehow signified a certain level of quality well above anything I had at home.

Damn. I like it.

I'm not going to bang on about how good MP10 was or is. It's still to my mind the best version of the character that exists, and that's including the more recent cartoon-accurate MP44. MP10 looks like a truck, not a hastily-animated drawing of a truck. Here though it is scaled down to better exist next to main line transformers, with the loose scale guide that means that cars are deluxes, trucks voyagers, etc. Plus he doesn't tower over his mates in robot mode either.

There's only a few changes to the original MP10 tooling going on, most notably a metallic waist instead of the plastic one that the original had. You also get a bunch of extra accessories as well - some spare heads I could never get on, a jetpack in case you want him to recreate that time he had a jetpack, and a sword in case you want to... well, swords are cool I guess. God knows where the sword originally came from, but in solid die-cast metal it could double as a handy letter opener if you want to resume your correspondence from your fellow 19th century fops. Whatever its origins, KBB didn't think to give it the wrapping around the handle which it was clearly designed for, so it rattles around unconvincingly in old Optimus's hand. Still, taking the rubber grip off a cheap biro and gluing it on seems to have done the trick.

The trailer, and the rest of the accessories such as roller and a slightly sunburned Spike, were sold separately some time later, meaning that the eventual cost was not altogether far off what an actual MP10 would be. Still, you can't not have a trailer. The vestigial part of my brain that was programmed as a pre-toddler to enjoy putting things inside of other things still gets a tickle out of stashing deluxe cars inside. I'm a simple soul.

That'd all be fine, but let's stop ignoring that elephant in the room. This is a knockoff, and that troubles me. Not, I should add, that I'm especially troubled by the infringement of copyright, even the outright theft of physical moulding equipment owned by Takara. Okay, that's pretty low, but Takara and Hasbro are big enough, old enough and wealthy enough to take that hit. What bothers me more is that, being a knockoff, there's no way to tell how, where, or in what conditions it was manufactured.

It's a high-grade knockoff, using high grade materials, so skilled and trained workers had to have been used to put it together. But even so, while Hasbro and Takara would be publicly raked across the coals if they were ever to be exposed as using exploitative working practices in their factories (and risk their stock values) KBB have no such concerns. Were the workers paid adequately? Were their working hours reasonable? It's not like we'll ever be able to tell, as they'd never advertise their situation, having flagrantly broken the law to even produce something like this. And it'd be a mistake to assume that just because the product is good that the company's moral compass is equally good.

And it's not perfect either. Partly due to the downscaling process that makes certain parts small and fragile, and partly due to the use of materials which aren't quiteup to Hasbro / Takara's standards, there are flaws in MP10-V's makeup. One of the flaps that cover up the wheels on his legs broke off a while ago, and was far too fiddly to repair. The other one is hanging on there - just. Over time the parts don't seem to fit together as well as they did when it came out of the box, and some joints are getting looser with age, while others seem to seize up. So... do I regret it?

Sort of. I regret having supported sketchy knockoff merchants in China. But I don't regret the toy itself. Honestly, if Hasbro or Takara had just made this themselves they'd have had my money, but they didn't. Well, they sort of did with Earthrise Optimus Prime, and the similarities at a glance make it very likely that the existence of MP10-V was a consideration in its creation. And owning MP10-V makes it impossible to ignore the scrunched-up torso proportions that ER Prime has, as well as the disappointingly small trailer that can't fit a deluxe car inside properly. So no, I'll keep my sketchy knockoff for a good long while yet. It's only Optimus Prime after all. I was never that much of a fan.

[monsieurmatthews]

Over the last few days, I’ve been writing…whatever this is. What started out as a cathartic way for me to process my feelings for me, and me alone, has grown to almost a diary where I can expel word vomit and try to arraign it into something more coherent. I don’t know if I’ll share this publicly, privately to a small group, or maybe to no one at all. I know that these events in my life below have been on my mind and in my heart for longer than these past few days, but this week has pushed them all to the front. It’s been an overload of information and this is the only way I can process and deal with this information in a way that is coherent to me. So yes, this is for me, but if I’m sharing it with you, I hope that you can get something out of it.

I don’t know how to begin this, I don’t even really even know what this is, so I guess the only thing to do is to jump right in at the beginning. The first time I vividly remember racism was in 6th grade. I’m actually not positive if it was 6th or 7th grade, but I’m pretty sure it was 6th. What I am sure of is that it was a terrifying experience that I will never forget. It was a Friday night in September, and if you went to Strath Haven, Friday night football was the only place to be. At this age I had much more interest in playing football under and around the bleachers than watching the high school players on the field, that’s where most of the 6th grade boys were. Now I stood out from most of the 6th grade boys. At this point in life, I had not yet hit my growth spurt, so I was around the same size as everyone else, but I was decidedly…darker than the vast majority of my school friends. I knew it mattered because my mom always instructed us on how to be careful, something I always felt was ridiculously annoying back then. I didn’t fully grasp HOW it matter just yet, but the first wakeup call was coming. On this forgettable night for most in attendance, I was running through the crowded concourse looking for whoever had the ball and needed to be tagged. Weaving through the grownups as if they weren’t there, mind only on finding the football. What I did not see, was the police officer chasing me. I never saw him until I was in the air, feet dangling as I was slammed against the wall. I don’t remember it hurting. I don’t remember anyone else being there. I don’t remember anything happening around me. I only remembered his face screaming at me about drugs. Did I hide them under the bleachers? Is that why I kept running there? Who was I giving them to? He must not have held me against the wall for long, because the next thing I remember is bawling crying, sitting on the bench by the concession stand, as he holds my wrist and an older individual tried to give me something to drink and calm me down. I had some friends there, yelling at the officer to let me go, and that I was only playing football, something I don’t think I was able to articulate in that state. There was one girl in particular who stood out, and she told me over and over that her mom was a judge or a politician and that she would get the cop fired. That seemed to calm me down. I remember the older lady talking to me and asking me where my mom was and I don’t think I was very helpful with that information either. Eventually the cop let me go and left. I don’t know if the world around me, outside of the four or five individuals who were my allies, even knew what was going on. I don’t remember what happened next. I’m sure I told my mom, and I’m sure she rose hell at the precinct, because that’s what Shandog does. But life moved on. I remembered it, but I pushed it down.

Throughout middle school and high school, my brothers and I had numerous run ins with the Swarthmore police department. Mainly for walking, or running through alleys getting to and from Renatos Pizza, sneaking in to the Swarthmore College gym to play basketball, and that ever so memorable game of manhunt. Nothing major ever happened between myself and the SPD. My brothers and I were known by name to most of the officers, and always given a hard second glance, but nothing more. On the surface, I’ve lived a pretty cupcake life when it came to having to handle outright prejudice. I’ve been called a nigger, multiple times, but what black man hasn’t? My brothers and I were told that we were going to be hanged in someone’s back yard because my little brother and I spilled honey mustard on someone’s shirt while at Renatos. My older brother and I laugh about that still today. Maybe our laughter is some type of coping mechanism, or maybe it didn’t matter so much to us that it IS actually funny now? I’m not smart enough to dissect that and give you all an answer. Overt racism is something I haven’t had to deal with nearly as much as some of my other black brothers and sisters. My curse has been the subtle things.

Growing up, I attended a predominantly white school from 4th grade through college. I was used to being one of the few black students in my classes. My friend groups, then and now, are comprised of mainly white people. I’ve considered myself a chameleon for years, master of code switching based off of who I’m with. It was a great way to fit in, but it sometimes made it hard to actually be me. Too black for some of the white stuff, too white for some of the black stuff. To me, growing up, I always thought that it wasn’t about black or white, I just loved having friends! While that thought has some merit, it clearly was not the truth of the world for me. If it wasn’t about black and white, I wouldn’t have felt the need to alter my speech patterns to fit one group, then flip the switch to fit the next. I would have been comfortable enough in my own skin to be whoever I was. But I wasn’t. I wanted to fit in. I didn’t want to disrupt the harmony that was my social life. If I’m too aggressive or loud or rapping along to a non-mainstream rapper, I was scary black. The last thing I wanted to be was the scary black guy.

What I always thought was that me being that way is what would make people afraid of me. I never considered that the thoughts and feelings in people’s hearts towards me were the problem. I of course knew racism existed, and I knew it was around me, but I never considered that me altering my appearance and attitude was feeding directly into the subtle covert racism that has been plaguing this world. I was a child. I wanted to fit in. I’m embarrassed at the things I let slip. Pretended not to hear. Pretended not to see. Smiled and laughed my way through. I’m embarrassed of what I was in college. I remember there being a guy dressed in full on black face at a party. I saw him, and I just left. I didn’t say a word. He was popular and I wanted to just be normal. I didn’t want to be the token black guy who couldn’t take a joke. I didn’t want to point out the clear and unchangeable differences between myself and everyone else. No one ever spoke to me about that, but I know everyone saw it. I couldn’t tell you how many confederate flags I had to sit and look at everywhere. The explanations of what it really meant and how it wasn’t abhorrently racist, which it is. The amount of times I’ve trotted out as the “hey look at this, we have us a black guy from Chester and he can make words sound good”. I remember the night that Obama was elected. I sat in my dorm room, terrified of what might happen on this campus if they elected him to the office of president. I called family members and got the same advice, be careful, stay home, you don’t know who might be pissed about this. Happy fun Christian was reduced to cowering in his dorm room Christian.

The thing about all of this is I felt this pain and I felt this anger. I knew it was wrong and I did nothing. I know what I wanted to do. I wanted to fight, and not only by using my words. I’ve never been afraid to fight anyone, I’ve always been afraid of what that would paint me as. Another angry black guy. I refused to be put in that stereotype, because I thought it would unravel all of the “work” I had put in to get myself accepted into this crowd. I bit my tongue and I let it boil. I’m ashamed of how I let everything slide.

There were lighter things as well, if I had a dollar for every time I was called well spoken, I could probably buy a minority stake in the Sixers. If I could take all of the time spent with people explaining to me what hip hop really is and put it to something useful, I’d have had enough time to become a doctor. I’m sure you loved Obama’s leadership, but every conversation doesn’t have to end there. These subtle topics or phrases, I honestly believe they MEAN absolutely no harm. But they are harmful. They’re the token olive branch that everyone is allowed to extend to justify your small biases. They happen to this day, and I still have a hard time dealing with them. I smile and I’m polite, but I’m checked out inside. Don’t get me wrong, there are real and organic ways to get to these conversations, but mostly it’s a ploy to point out your “allegiance” to the black community.

I say this all to come to this point, I have never been ashamed of being black, but I am ashamed of myself for feeling the need to conform my blackness to appease to the masses. It took me leaving this country to become comfortable in my own unique level of blackness. I’m no longer conforming to make you feel better. The last four years of my life have felt the most authentic and freeing, I can be who I am and that can mean whatever I want it to mean. I’ve grown to check people, a little more frequently for saying that dumb shit. I’m making choices and saying things that let you know that I see you for who you are, and I don’t care what you think. 2020 has been a shit show, but from this, a change seems to be on the way. I’m a pessimist when it comes to people as a whole and when it comes for my country as a whole, I didn’t believe that any change would ever come. But I’m here to say that I don’t believe that to be true anymore. I think that something is different. I think that change is coming. I feel it. I see it. I yearn for it. I’m going to donate my dollars. I’m signing the petitions. I will continue to march in the streets and say loudly that Black Lives Matter. I’m not here for half-truths, I’m here for full change. If you’re not on my side, if you continue to shield your eyes and make excuses, stay the fuck away from me. I’ve spent my entire life trying to fit into a world that didn’t view me as equal, didn’t want me to be part of their groups. All of that is over. This is who I am.

Unapologetically Black

[sassyscientia]

An Aera Mirus Fleuret and Ardyn Lucis Caelum angsty scenario (a thought)

A scenario that popped into my mind a month ago: Aera survived the clash between the two brothers but she realized, during the slow and painful recovery, that the Gods turned their back to her.

She has been stripped of her role as an Oracle because she revealed divine choices to Somnus, because she tried to protect the Adagium.

This last thing ruined her even at the eyes of the people, nobles in particular.

They accused her to know about Ardyn’s demonic infection, she would let a deamon sits the throne just because he was her fiancé. A woman whose judgement is clouded by love cannot be a pious guide for the people.

In all this she has to deal with the loss of Ardyn, mourning him, victim of a fate that could not be changed. She tried to save him, and now he was dead.

Things were awful, but guess what?

They got worse.

Attempting to reabilitate Aera’s name the Fleuret family promised her to Somnus. After all she’s still part of a noble and rich household, one of her relatives is the new Oracle now...

Marrying Somnus to become queen and wipe away all the gossips and malignity sounded like a good plan. For them at least.

But for the party directly involved?

Aera nearly had a breakdown: she preferred to die rather than marry the man who betrayed both her and Ardyn. She refused, going in a screaming match with half of her family.

For Somnus wasn’t an ideal situation either.

What he has done that day was neccesary. Ardyn could not rule infected as he was, nor he could save the majority of his people. Still, he was his brother, a brother he loved and respected. He was jealous of him, yes, but seeing him on a bloodied floor with a sword in his chest didn’t bring Somnus any happiness.

He brought away everything from his brother... Taking Aera crossed a line Somnus wasn’t sure he wanted to cross. She was Ardyn’s spouse, he loved her more than life. In his mind, a wedding with Aera would have been kinda of... incestuous? He felt it that way.

These sentiments were soon overthrown by others more selfish and bitter: he was king, not a beggar who gathers someone’s leftovers. He didn’t want to be a sloppy second collecting what his brother has left behind (the guilt was still there, even because he hurted her. How could they made this work? It’s an announced disaster).

Personally I think Somnus wouldn’t be bothered to marry someone he doesn’t love. He is a man who cherished duty and responsability, love it’s just a thing that can be pleasant at his eyes but cannot be a distraction or, worse, an influence on important matters. Men in his position hadn’t such luxury, if a marriage is useful in terms of political leverage so be it.

The fact Aera didn’t love him (and he didn’t love her) wasn’t the first thing that came up in his mind. Ardyn was the reason of his reluctance.

Eventually, thanks to the court’s machinations, Somnus and Aera got married. That day Somnus was extremly cold (to hide his uneasiness and guilt) and Aera refused to look at him the whole function, thinking about how Somnus deprived both her and Ardyn even of this little joy. After they are pronounced man and wife Somnus asked her not too gently to kneel. Aera felt a pang of pure hatred, because Somnus wanted her to recognize his right as a king in front of everybody (since she was tied by Ardyn’s name and loyalty in being his finacée). In reality, Somnus wanted to clear her name publicly with a dimostration. He didn’t want to humiliate her, just make it sure nobody could bother her because of a connection to Ardyn. Being queen without suspects, with a recognized authority.

Maybe it was more for him than her, but it had the same effects.

Eventually Aera bent the knee and Somnus crowned her.

I don’t have precise thoughts about their married life: surely they would avoid each other since the first night. Somnus would bid her goodnight and left her in her room and he returns to his chambers. Aera would probably wreck into crying once Somnus leaves.

Aera would probably loath him to dead in the beginning: avoiding him in any way, being cold and curt in answering him when they have to stay together in public. I think in private she would refuse every attempt to hold a conversation or, sometimes, she would be so passive agressive Somnus loses all the will to talk further. When he has thought about it as an announced distaster he was right.

He would not justify his actions to Aera, because he knew she wouldn’t listen or belive him. She was caught in her own resentment, and he had no time for that. He had a reign, people who needed his guidance. If she wanted to help him okay, if not the same. Not everyone can live in the past.

All of Aera’s provocations would have fallen into a void, Somnus would never  have answered to them. He gave her space, he rarely saw her outside the meetings of the council or during official events. Aera was fine with it.

She tried to fit her new role, discovering difficulties and backstabber along the way, but surprisingly she was good at it. She became more cagey and secretive, difficult to read but still benevolent. Beign able to help others in such a different way slowly awakened her from the numbness.

However with Somnus things weren’t easy. The fact they had to generate an heir filled Aera with dread. Probably Somnus would have had lovers at this point, but he needed a child from his queen to ensure a lineage. The thought of sleeping with Somnus revolted her, it would probably takes a couple of years for her to accept. Somnus wouldn’t force her.

I firmly belive that even if they grown to respect and care for each other they’ll never develope romantic feelings. For both of them Ardyn will forever be a persistent regret with different motivations: Aera loses the love of her life, unable to stop his destiny, Somnus betrayed him and he stole the woman his brother wanted to marry, lying to her about the fact Ardyn was still alive in Angelgard. Aera suspected it, and it was confirmed by Gentiana that only the Chosen King will release him from the curse.

Aera was pregnant when she received this response, now knowing that her children, grandchildren and descendants will have live a life of sufference, slaves of the Gods and the ring of the Lucii until one day the line will end in the blood because of Ardyn.

Ardyn whose pain will continue long after her death.

I think Aera would survived not only Somnus, but even their children. Unable to suffer other losses, she would retire after the coronation of her grandchildren and died of old age.

Fast Forward in the future

After being freed Ardyn discovered, thanks to Verstael, that Aera survived to marry Somnus and becoming queen. The current royal line of Lucis their descendants.

I think ‘devastated’ would still be a weak word to describe Ardyn after the big revealing. The thought of Aera forgetting him to run into his brother’s arms hurts him beyond every comprehension. In the beginning he would probably convinced himslef that Aera has been forced in some way, that she was  forever unhappy after he was chained away.

She had to be unhappy, he couldn’t even think she smiled or laughed again.

It was all Somnus’s fault, HE was the monster, HE forced her... Aera has done nothing wrong... she didn’t know I was suffering... she didn’t know I was locked in the darkness.

During his allucinations he would saw his brother doing awful things to her, and part of him was horrified in finding relief in the convinction that Aera was nothing but miserable with Somnus.

Despite Verstael showed him evidences that after a rocky start the two lived peacefully and in some way happy, Ardyn turned a blind eye to facts until his meeting with Bahamut in Insomnia.

Then he realized how much he has fooled himself: these two traitors plotted behind his back, Aera knew about him and do nothing. They both take the throne and cast him aside.

I imagined the wheat filed scene going similar to the end of Episode Ardyn: he sees them under the tree, talking. Somnus smiling and touching the head of the newborn in Aera’s arms. She is beaming, a dress too colorful and rich for an Oracle, her hair much longer and pinned gracefully on the head. Ardyn approaches, smirking.

They both fall under his eyes. Under Aera the baby starts to cry. Ardyn moves her with his boot, staring at the bundle and its red little face. The screaming are annoying.

“You are innocent, nay?”

The baby won’t stop weeping.

Ardyn raises his foot. “ I’ll tell you something.”

Black miasma oozes from his pores. “ No one in this world is.”

He stomps the foot down with all his force.

Writing things at 3.00 Am it’s not good for me. I’ll probably fix this tomorrow, but now... bed. Sorry it’s messy...

[missouris-googlehistory]

A change of hearts | chapter VIII

A/N: I am so sorry I haven't updated this story in so long, I've been dealing with school and depression honestly. Sorry if everything isn't super politically correct I am not European so I am a bit stupid on their political happenings. This isn't meant to be offensive to anyone.

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For a long time things had been going well between Ludwig and Francis. Their relationship blossomed and Germany eventually proposed, with France happily accepting the offer. However they knew there were challenges ahead. The first obstacle was their fellow nations.   

"ABSOLUTELY NOT! FRANCE HOW COULD YOU!?" Was the first response exclaimed after Germany formally made the announcement at a world meeting. The other nations were equally as confused and disgruntled with the match. England marched right up to the German, "YOU BRAINWASHED HIM OR SOMETHING DIDN'T YOU!?". Ludwig, offended by such a notion retorted. 

"Of course not." In a polite yet stern tone, 

"Angleterre that's rude of you to suggest! Even for a connard like you!" Francis stood up to defend his partner. 

"OH I'M BEING RUDE FOR TERRORIZING YOU!? THE MAN THAT HELD YOU PRISONER? THE ONE WHO DESTROYED NOT ONLY YOUR COUNTRY BUT COUNTLESS OTHERS!?" Germany immediately left the room, sensing that he wasn't wanted. A fist fight broke out as perusal between the two nations while the others pondered and discussed the proposal. 

Italy and Japan had followed Germany to make sure he was ok, the waves of guilt hit him all over again. "Maybe Britain's right, maybe France just pities me...maybe I never deserve a second chance or love at all..." He put his head in his hand. 

Italy rubbed his back, "That's not true at all! Everyone deserves love and kindness! Japan and I love you!" Japan nodded in agreement. Prussia who was peering a nearby window saw Germany's sad face. 

He banged on the glass. "Who made you cry like a little baby!? That's totally unawesome!" 

"Just go away Prussia, I want to be left alone." As he muttered the phrase America popped out of the doorway. 

"Yo Germany dude we need a little help in here!" 

"Huh?" The Axis trio went back inside to see France and England on the floor while America tried to separate them. 

"FRANCE DUDE LET GO YOU'LL KILL THE OLD MAN!" 

"YOU DID IT! YOU KILLED HER! I COULD FORGIVE GERMANY A THOUSAND TIMES OVER BUT I WILL NEVER FORGET WHAT YOU DID YOU BASTARD!" England was turning blue in the face, 

"That was six hundred years ago you crazy frog!" 

"Frankreich! Ludwig wrapped his arms around the Frenchman's waste and pried him off. Arthur finally stood up and recovered, the others starring at the scene. Ludwig was holding Francis and whispering "it's ok" to help calm him. 

"Let's go back to the hotel so we can all calm down." The German suggested. 

"Why?" England snapped back, "You two can leave the rest of us will continue the meeting."

Ludwig was not one for bragging but Arthur was getting on his nerves, he growled and snapped back, "How are you going to hold a meeting without the two most powerful European nations? You can't talk about the European Union issues anymore since you backed out like eine Muschi!" The room fell silent, Ludwig was not to curse in a formal setting. Arthur stepped back a bit. 

"Well at least let us discuss this 'engagement' of yours." 

"There's nothing to discuss!" 

"We're nations we can't just marry whoever we please!" 

"Oh for Gott's sake do you watch T.V? Or do you not own one because you're so old. I've never seen two world leaders have more sexual tension unless you count Churchill and Roosevelt." 

To which Arthur and Alfred yelled. "HEY!" 

Francis sniffled and looked up at Ludwig. "Allemange it's fine don't worry. Can we just go back? The two of us?" 

Ludwig sighed in defeat, "Fine." The two men gathered their things and left the world to decide their fate.



Back at the hotel they tried to relax, Ludwig poured himself a drink. "Why do you always attack England?"

Francis chuckled and laid on the bed. "Because Mon cher, he is a dick."

"And I'm not?"

"Oui but a cute one."

"Ja but why am I more deserving of forgiveness than him?"

"He killed the love of my life. My very soul was crushed. Not to mention all the other dickish things he did. I know he gave me the plague."

"The plague spread everywhere Liebling."

"Oui but he started it."

"Whatever you say." Ludwig took another swig of his drink



Back at the world meeting it seemed more like a riot than anything else.

"I don't see the big deal dudes, being gay is gay. Who cares? I don't."

"It's not a matter of gay or not, at least not in most countries; it's a matter of alliances." England tried to school the American in politics.

"Oh yea cuz you and France are best friends. Who would marry Germany for the sake of an alliance anyway?" Again the room fell silent. Italy almost raised his hand however his brother smacked it down.

"I don't think it's really fair to pick on the guy eh?" Spain retorted. "Germany mentioned it himself, their bosses get along really well. They old the European Union together Si?" On this most everyone could agree. "Heck I was married to Austria for awhile, it wasn't that bad!" To this the Austrian flushed in embarrassment; Hungary twitched ever so slightly. However the room filled with laughter.

"He is still a person and should be treated as such." Belgium spoke up, which was a surprise to many of the nations. "The world needed justice for what he had done and it was served. Most of our people have moved on and don't even remember the war. His punishment was paid. Even if we don't like to think about it he suffers too."

"Belgium...can you really forgive him?" England asked with concern and shock. Poland was still very angry and made it very clear to the rest of the world. Many other countries had done the same. Yet Belgium and France were different.

"At first I really didn't want to. During one of my visits to France's house we shared what had happened to each other...He told me about how he forgave Germany because you should not live with that kind of hatred towards another human in your heart." 

"Well France is Catholic, you don't have to share his beliefs Belgium, you're lucky he didn't get you pregnant. You have every right not to forgive him, just like Poland." England tried to rationalize her anger, Poland agreed with him as well as a few other nations.  

"Joat but living the rest of my life being angry at my neighbor who I have to see a lot isn't helpful to anyone. Especially me, we aren't humans. We make sacrifices. You and France don't get along well but you still work with each other. Germany still works with Russia after all he's done." Suddenly the energy in the room shifted; It became dark and ominous as everyone turned to the innocent looking nation. "And America."  She quickly added and began to retell the story of the Berlin wall and all that Germany and his people had suffered. "We need to lay this to rest; Maybe their marriage is the best answer. Maybe we can all find some kind of happiness in this. We shouldn't deny him happiness when he's grown so much as a person." 

"Ja, I agree for once." The focus shifted to Austria. "He isn't the only one to blame, and it isn't like we haven't done bad things to each other before. The Napoleon wars were a mess. England killed Joan of arc, and conquered a lot more of the world than he ever did. Belgium had issues with the Congo, Hungary and I had issues with the Serbians," Though he would never publicly admit he was the cause of the first world war. 

"Will their marriage be like most peoples or is it like ours?" Lithuania piped up. "Because they're two guys and we've had arranged negations with two guys before but this isn't for legal reasons, so like...what about the countries who still...don't recognize that stuff?" The focus was again negatively drawn back to Russia and many of the eastern European countries, the Asian nations watched in silence.  

"WELL THEN FUCK THEM DUDE AM I RIGHT!?"  America very loudly interjected the awkward silence. "We basically said their bosses want some kind of weird alliance thingy so whatever! I say we let them be happy! If Francy-pants likes sausage dude why do we have to tell him what's wrong or right?  Like Emma said we're not mortal and unfortunately we all gotta get along whether we like it or not. Yea to us it might feel like it was just yesterday but to the rest of the world it's history, and our pain eventually goes away. I'm not mad at Britain dude for being a giant douche. I got a cool holiday to celebrate! I get to piss him off!" 

"WHY YOU-" England was cut off by laughter. No one really dare to go up against the loud mouthed American, at this point not even Russia cared anymore about the German-Franco union. The meeting was quickly adjourned afterwards and everyone went back to the hotel. 

Luckily the two were met with love and support, everyone decided to go out and party a little since Germany did announce they were now formally engaged. It was cause for celebration, to forgiveness, happiness and a new beginning for everyone. 

Translations: 

1. Frankreich: France - German 

2. Eine Muschi: A female body part - German 

3. Allemagne: Germany - French

4. Mon Cher: My love - French

5. Leibling: Love - German 

5. Joat: Yes - Western Flemish 

[kendrixtermina]

Once in a while I remember how ridiculously homophobic my father used to be.

I mean you always try to be of your own biases and that you’re not just saying things because you don’t like a person or are angry at them  and I mean in the last five years that I haven’t spoken to him I’ve been actively TRYING to forget all about him and think of him as little as possible just for my own sanity and blood pressure. But once in a while I stumble across some memory of how terrible he actually was. 

He was singing the praises of Putin, describing gay people as being the same as pedophiles or marrying horses, and having “broken brains”, shooing us away whenever he thought to have spotted any remotely gay-looking couple, supporting anti-gay politics - he even tried to forbid my grown-ass mother from watching a TV show that had a lesbian comedian in it. The show had nothing to do with lesbianism, that woman was just existing there, cracking jokes. My mom mostly ignored him when he wasn’t at home because the show was funny and she wanted to watch it. 

He once publicly humiliated me at a party because he thought two of my ten-year-old classmates might be evil lesbians who would necessarily molest my baby sisters. Like in hindsight I also think he just wanted some excuse to keep me from having parties and/or friends, period, cause that’s the sort of abusive controlling dipshit he was. He was fuming and trying to come up with some excuse to end it the whole evening but mom wouldn’t let him throw a tantrum over not liking the music. That was pretty much the last time I tried to invite anyone over or to have a social life anywhere other than the internet, where he couldn’t ruin it for me. 

He thought ten-year old changing into swimsuits into the same room must be gay and told me to turn around or wait till the others were gone because of the evil lesbians. 

Like as a child I already saw it as him being evil and backward, but like, toward innocent strangers, because after all I still liked boys. I felt morally angry but not personally slighted.

But like no. He meant ME. He was calling ME a pedophile. And worse, my BABY SISTER whose name he frequently threw around like it was the dirtiest insult. He was saying  people like ME and HER should get murdered in the streets like it happens in russia. That didn’t fully hit me until much, much later. 

I actually lived in a house with someone who thought THAT about me. 

I guess the thought didn’t come up for a while because i thought I’d be with my ex forever and he just happened to be a dude so i didnt think id have to worry about experiencing that sort of crap

When I let it slip I was lucky enough to get the “its just a phase / it doesn’t exist / youre just an edgy teen but actually hetero” kind of biphobia but that’s because I didn’t exactly go around telling everyone about my crushes on girls. I mean it still stung like his general insistence that my whole personality including every independent thought I’ve ever had is just a temporary fluke until I turn back into his ideal stepford daughter but after spending years expecting to be terrorized it was kind of anticlimatic.   I mean it took me a while to figure out the label heaven knows what would have happened if I had said “I am a lesbian” instead. 

This is a man who has thrown me against walls, pressed his hand over my mouth and nose so I couldn’t breathe, grabbed me by the head/hair to throw me against a cupboard, tried to have me institutionalized to get rid of me and made lots of lewd, inappropriate comments about my body pretty much constantly from ages 10 to 20. (the latter being when I stopped speaking to him) 

He’s so utterly coocoo bananas I once asked him to translate me that song that was constantly on the radio (I believe it was “Last Christmas”) and he told me it was evil and satanic because it describes a man had more than one single girlfriend in his whole life. 

If perchance anything adverse had ever happened to my mother I would be DEAD MEAT now and I used to live in terror that they would one day snap and murder each other, like there were instances where objects were thrown in an argument, or where he broke things that belonged to us to “teach her a lesson”, including once my favorite toy. It was my favorite thing ever (I was like nine), it was in pieces, he’d thrown it down the stairs and it was clearly understood that this violence and rage was directed at me and mom. Even if he didn’t choose to direct it at us physically, it was there and I could never forget it.’

I lost like 20 kilos in the years right after moving out without making any deliberate effort, like I believe that was all stress hormones and stress eating and eating whatever at night to avoid him during the daytime.  It was a messy and ugly recovery process especially the first months,  but I remember being so utterly relieved that i could go fetch food or toilet paper without having to go downstairs and risk encountering him and be yelled at and degraded just for existing. 

I just haven’t thought about it in years which I suppose is a good thing it just sorta came up in my train of thought like I was so used to being frightened and angry all the time I don’t know how I survived it, like im a sensisitive emo softie i was useless for months because of some stupid boyfriend and i was the one who dumped him (though he made it very necessary), ill get my day derailed super easily because of some minor shit, how did i ever get out of bed in that mans house? how the hell did i do any of the many things i clearly recall doing in my childhood and adolescence? how wasnt i just screaming or crying the whole twenty years?

I no longer comprehend. 

like am i just starting to get old or what? 

i mean i do think lots of ppl (particularly relatives whom I didn’t see that often) did say that i looked much happier since i moved out but mostly attributed that to my boyfriend, its not like i can really tell i wasnt staring myself in the face the whole time

sigh. 

I just wanna be an useful member of society someday

[minxyone93]

I posted 2,233 times in 2021

118 posts created (5%)

2115 posts reblogged (95%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 17.9 posts.

I added 2,265 tags in 2021

#spn - 365 posts

#supernatural - 336 posts

#destiel - 324 posts

#castiel - 320 posts

#dean winchester - 270 posts

#cas - 221 posts

#always reblog excellent art - 126 posts

#deancas - 119 posts

#dean - 103 posts

#misha collins - 81 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#i wanted to donate 43.00 but i could only do 15 but dean deserves it and like op said jensen's grown a lot deserves big wholesome bday vibes

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

The Dummies Guide to Hand-Holding for Buddies

Based off the anon tumblr prompt: "i was wondering if you could write cas being touch-starved (as human or angel, your choice) and dean realizing? if it doesn't make you uncomfortable could you have cas cry as well when dean touches him? idk just looking for super fluffy stuff."

Summary:

Cas gasped, “Please-,” and tightened his grip on Dean’s hands. He immediately silenced his thought and released his grip on the hunter.

“Sorry,” he muttered.

“Nah. Don’t be sorry. I get it,” Dean whispered as he looked down at their hands and licked his lips. A strange weight lifted off Castiel’s shoulders when Dean grabbed his hands more firmly and held them tight. They let their hands rest on the mattress between them. “I get it. Contact - touching - it’s important for humans. Sounds dumb. But it’s true. People need… like a herd or clan or whatever. We’re not meant to be alone.”

Cas looked blankly at him. “That seems like interesting advice for you of all people to give me.”

Dean chuckled, nodding. “Yeah. But I do have some friends and I have Sammy. Still, you have a point. I mean, how do you think I know? Why do you think I am the way I am? Like I said. I get it.”

(PSA this is not in the "How Long?" universe. It's a separate, unrelated one-shot.

I'm thinking of creating a tag list as suggested by one of my darling readers- please let me know if you'd like to be added to my taglist for writing updates! I started a teeny one below the cut <3

Edit: 🙄 it helps to include the link

@destielficbasket @doctorprofessorsong

54 notes • Posted 2021-04-17 14:13:06 GMT

#4

I think the idea of "bisexual subtext" not being enough to make Dean canon bi is so funny because like... fuck dude, I'm bi and I dont usually begin and end every interaction with

"...and by the way, I'd like to overtly state I sleep with men and women for the record. Please, jot that down, it's key to your interactions with me regardless of whether I intend to sleep with you or not."

Like, subtext is all you get with me in 90% of my interactions because I don't wear my pride pin every fucking day and I don't feel the need to scream that I'm bisexual every waking hour. I'm not closeted, but most people could easily construe my expression of being bi in most of the interactions I'm not flirting in as IRL subtext.

Subtext IS canon.

75 notes • Posted 2021-02-19 03:41:39 GMT

#3

78 notes • Posted 2021-03-19 03:48:09 GMT

#2

Regarding the upcoming CE virtual con, I think if the fans can just remember that the actors re under NDAs and that they're going to be heavily moderated [read: CENSORED] by Creation and the nutwork, so to just focus on the fun of it instead of demanding resolution the actors alone cannot (and should not be expected to) provide, we can have a good time.

I mean, not me personally, Creation ain't getting a cent from me, but I know people are gonna post videos and I'm here for that.

79 notes • Posted 2021-02-19 20:47:37 GMT

#1

Misha motherfucking Collins forcing official Amazon to have to choose whether to answer a tweet about *ncest shipping is so chaotic. This man is wild. I love him 😂

(P.S. he publicly called w*ncest disgusting at a con. Misha doesn't ship w*ncest, don't worry)

213 notes • Posted 2021-03-13 18:12:05 GMT

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