#companion missions can be knocked out in 1 day

[a-la-campanella]

Spent the week so far grinding away at Swarm Disaster, trying to complete Trailblaze Secrets and wrap up the Trail of Pathstrider. I should've tried to think smarter about it instead of running headfirst into stages I'm not stat ready for yet, so this one is all me. Best case scenario, I'll be done within a few more hours of AFK farming and ready to shelf this part of SU for Gold and Gears. Worst case, I'll be grinding between both after the new version update and losing my mind.

I should get around to finishing the backlog of companion missions too, but I'm taking my time with those. It's the whole "as long as I enjoy the journey, who cares how long it takes to get to the destination" thing. Bless Star Rail for not being annoying about quests like Genshin is, this is saving my life out here.

[palaxy27]

Everything will be fine...

Penn Zero Part-Time Hero comic

Warning: Contains violent scenes, blood and angst.

(Note: English is not my first language so there may be grammatical errors).

Okay... so originally I had only planned to publish the first drawing, but while I was sketching two things came to my mind, what would happen if the heroes would face some enemies in His dimension? and what would happen... if sashi would be defeated in a fight? And that's how a fanart became a comic ;)

Now putting us in the context of the story, Phyllips came back 1 or 2 years after the end of the series and recruits again the dream team for phase 2 returning to his adventures but with a bigger responsibility and facing different villains in each mission in different dimensions (It wouldn't be like facing Rippen always) but nothing so different for our heroes... until now...

One normal day after completing a mission, the tired guys were leaving but Penn had to go back to the theater because he forgot his wallet (don't ask why it wasn't in his backpack, even he doesn't know 😑) only to find two guys taking a tube with blue energy out of the portal, one who seemed to be a person from earth and the other of a bigger, more atamorizing build... he didn't even seem to be human, but an alien (Not of the same species as Rippen). Before Penn could analyze the situation, one of them pushed him away, knocking him to the ground suffering a strong blow with one hand without much difficulty for the two to flee the place.

Boone and Sahi run back to the theater to see the guys running away seeing a confused and panicked Penn about what had just happened. They inform Phyllips about what happened and he informs them that the energy tube is actually the energy core of the portal, but the core was so unstable that it was contained by the portal itself, not much was known about the two guys, only that they were from this dimension, somehow they both knew about the existence of the multiverses and therefore the power of the core, They were able to somehow evade the security system, including Karen (they didn't even seem to care about her presence), so they must recover the core soon and Phyllips warns them that they shouldn't underestimate it since they are much more dangerous since they have knowledge of the multiverse and belong to the same dimension.

They manage to locate them not far from the theater, so they start going after them discreetly but the guys realize this, so they decide to separate them.

The corpulent one interposes himself between the heroes and his companion inciting them to confront him to "delay them", penn ole asks Sashi to confront him, since he hoped that she would come out victorious, preventing him from intervening in his plan to recover the nucleus; Boone had planned to confront him too but his appearance would make him go with Penn to get the nucleus, leaving Sashi alone (something he would regret).

Penn and Boone would find him but he would use the power of the core to his advantage during the confrontation, something that neither of them had in mind, hindering their plan to recover the core, even putting Boone's life at risk by throwing himself at the man in a desperate attempt to retrieve the core, receiving both he and the man a they received a charge from the nuclear force, but they barely managed to defeat it.

The two boys with some victorious scratches and blows would call Sashi to inform her about their victory, but she does not answer, so they return to the place where they had left her expecting to see the guy easily defeated by the assistant and affectionately that's how they found him, in an alley Remote and dark on the unconscious floor with some blood stains... but it wasn't his. Sashi was found against the wall seriously injured, destroyed, breathing heavily, with her tired eyes half open (Seeing the bandages you can get an idea of ​​the severity of the wounds) while her visor was on the destroyed floor. Both boys were shocked by the scene, seeing how their friend, girlfriend and companion, one of the strongest people they knew, were in a worse state than their opponent.

The two boys took her to the theater, being greeted not only by Phyllips, but also by Penn and Boone's parents. They were all shocked to see the girl's condition. Phyllips quickly attended to her requests while her parents calmly asked them what happened, something that did not help them at all. Once Phyllips finished with Sashi, she sent the three of them home, feeling sorry for them and that they only take the weekend off, feeling sympathy for the boys. However, Sashi's parents and brother were not in town so Penn asked her parents that she stay with them until they returned and tell them what happened (spoilers: they found out before and they did not take it very well, especially their brother), they accepted without hesitation, Boone also stayed with them with the permission of his parents, since he was worried about his friend's condition and felt guilty

And that's how we get to this scene, with Penn and Sashi alone changing Sashi's bandages, even giving her his shirt as spare clothes when he has his clothes stained with blood, feeling scared and guilty for leaving her alone and the decisions he makes that lead to her. led to them getting hurt, but she tries to comfort him by telling him that it was not his fault, since they were able to recover the core and find her in time, saving her life (since she even subdued her opponent), however she was also scared, not because of him. encounter in itself, if not by realizing that she was not strong enough and that luckily she was able to defeat him and come out alive, making her feel weak and useless, apart from if she had not faced him and it had been Penn or Boone. Did they even Would they be here? However, she keeps it to herself, she has to be strong, for her own good and don't worry about her.

I don't plan to "go deeper" into the two characters but I plan to do some comivs in the future exploring different points of view on the incident, their reactions, feelings and healings. But if anyone wants to go deeper into this, they are free to do so (I would like to see it)

[tabl3]

timeline of the beginning of the ef rewrite + book 1

for the peeps that either need a refresher or get overwhelmed by my 40+ book elite force rewrite (fair), I'm going to break down a rough tl of the events. we're starting with the pre-rewrite, and the first book of the series (which you can read on ao3 under tabs-alt :) )

March, 2016 Mission Creek, California - Tasha Davenport (44) announces to her family that she is expecting a baby girl

June, 2016 - across the country in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, supervillain Bridget Hunslet’s (38) reign of Terror is ended with the combined effort of dozens of superheroes

Mid-August, 2016 - Oliver Hunslet (16) and Skylar Diaz (near-17) leave their high school at the end of the school day, freshly in their junior year. They wave goodbye to their friends: Jordan (17),  Gus (16), and Stephanie (16), before Skylar attempts to reignite conversation with her unusually quiet companion. A black limousine pulls up in the drop-off zone, with a familiar face at the wheel. He rolls down the window and offers them a proposition. Twenty minutes later, Kazimieras Andris (16) hears a knock on his family home's door. He struggles forward to answer it, having a fussy baby in his arms and two toddlers clinging to his legs- the reason he was absent from school that day. Mr. Donald Davenport (47) stands in the doorway, flanked by Skylar and Oliver on either side. A new team, he offers. Use his technology to take down Mr. Terror's empire. A chance to be a hero

September 1st, 2016 - Leo Dooley-Davenport celebrates his 16th birthday in the lab with his older siblings: Adam Davenport (19), Bree Davenport (near-18), and Chase Davenport (17). After a few hours, they're scattered around, talking about their recent big victory. Their father, Donald, comes down and introduces a new mission that starts the next day. The siblings excitedly discuss preparations, before they're interrupted. Two for the new mission, and two to stay at the academy. They're going to be separated. As they're left to decide amongst themselves, Chase chooses to leave first. He sees the heartbreak on their faces, but understands that Leo has truly come into himself on the island, and this new mission needs a leader. There's silence for a beat. Bree volunteers next. She whacks Chase on the shoulder, proclaiming that she needs to keep him out of trouble. A long hug, many tears, and a sleepless night of packing followed. Adam doesn't say a word.

September 2, 2016 - Bree and Chase arrive at Davenport Towers, Centium City, Rhode Island. Donald leads them to the balcony. They reintroduce themselves to Skylar, Kaz, and Oliver, before Donald gives them all a brief tour of the penthouse. He leaves them be after. Once the two groups finish sizing each other up, Chase instructs them to follow him to Mission Command, their headquarters under the building with a network of tunnels under Centium City. He makes his distrust of Kaz and Oliver’s powers known, citing that they have no training and the idea of a “magic space rock” is ridiculous. He also points out that he’s the leader, because his father told them so, meaning they have to listen to him. This causes a minuscule amount of friction between him and Oliver and Skylar. Meanwhile, Bree and Kaz have a budding friendship, because she enjoys the fact that he annoys her brother. That night as they settle in, Oliver comments on how creepy Chase’s capsule is. Kaz only says it looks uncomfortable.

September 3rd, 2016 - Skylar comes downstairs early in the morning to work out. She’s surprised to find Chase already awake and ready for the day. He points to the donuts he picked up. Once the rest of the team comes down, Oliver begins pressing about their objective. Bree and Skylar both remind him that it will take time to achieve. This angers him, causing him to slam his hand down, breaking off a piece of the counter with his new strength. Kaz and Skylar are surprised to see him outburst like that. After he quietly sits down, Skylar begins suggesting routes to take. Chase immediately cuts her off, suggesting that her plans are ridiculous. Before they break out in a proper argument, Kaz and Bree divert it.

September 4th, 2016 - Kaz and Oliver are experiencing body pain, chalking it up to bad takeout. Skylar is using the boys’ bathroom to get ready, complaining about Bree hogging theirs. While they talk, Skylar points out how little Chase has in his portion of the room. She picks up a picture frame off the desk, one of his family. They identify Adam, Leo, and Donald, before figuring that the heavily pregnant woman who resembles Leo is his mother and Donald’s wife. There’s another man featured, one that looks strikingly similar to Adam, Bree, and Chase- one they’ve never seen before. Kaz decides to find out who he is, flipping open Chase’s laptop and hacking through his lock. Oliver is cautious about it, while Skylar is intrigued. The laptop shuts, and the frame flies away. Chase is standing in the doorway. He tells them they can ask instead of snooping. Kaz asks who “Raggedy Andy” is. Amused, Chase replies that it’s Douglas Davenport, Donald’s younger brother. He then informs them that it’s training time. When they complain about not eating breakfast yet, he counters by telling them they should spend less time breaking boundaries to have time to eat.

In the training room, Chase stands below with the other two boys. The girls watch from above as he begins instructing them. He tells Kaz to demonstrate his flying abilities. Kaz does so, and Oliver feels a pang of jealousy because he hasn’t been able to activate his powers on command. Chase then tells Kaz to demonstrate his pyrokinesis. Kaz does so. It keeps going after Chase tells him to stop, enveloping panicking Kaz and the bottom part of the room. Chase backs Oliver into a corner, putting up a shield around them. He yells at Kaz to stop. Kaz replies that he can’t. Skylar prepares to jump down to help. Bree is faster. She lands on the floor, siphoning the flames away with wind generated by her speed. Kaz is kneeling on the ground, shaken. Skylar makes it down, running to him. Bree begins yelling at Kaz for endangering Chase’s life, despite the fact that the siblings have barely spoken to each other since arriving at the tower. Skylar argues back that Kaz is new, and can’t control himself yet. Chase tells the two boys to follow him outside. Skylar stops them on their way out, telling them that she won’t tolerate it if Chase speaks badly to them. Her argument continues with Bree afterward, while Chase, juxtaposing what the boys thought, warmly assures them that he’s there to help them, and understands that it can be scary. 

September 5th, 2016 - Skylar finds Chase downstairs in the early morning again. He’s organizing colored blocks on a holo screen on their kitchen island. She inquires what it is. He replies that it’s to be the boys’ training regiment. Skylar vetoes it, saying it’s too much. Chase retorts that Kaz has too much power that he can’t control, and Oliver has nothing to control, making them a liability. This continues the friction between them. That afternoon, mostly Kaz and Bree’s doing, the team goes out to a sandwich shop. After that, they play laser tag, then go grocery shopping- where a gaggle of preteen girls show up for Chase and Bree’s autographs. While in the midst of this, an alert sounds off. An active robbery in the shopping plaza. The team runs to a small antique store, where a band of thieves are holding the owner at gunpoint. As Chase begins giving an order, Bree and Skylar run right past him, engaging with the criminals. Chase, annoyed, tells the other boys to not use their powers, as it's a cardinal rule to never use deadly force on humans, before joining the fight, leaving Kaz and Oliver completely unsure of what to do. The three heroes that can fight get in each other’s way, because they’re in a tiny space and not at all fighting together, which is added to by Kaz particularly being an obstacle. After a failing fight, Oliver trips, knocking everyone over into a pile. The thieves get away, the store is destroyed, and the young girls that followed them take a picture. 

Later that afternoon, Chase receives a phone call from Donald. He tries to assure him that they took care of the damages, but his father is furious about the terrible debut of his new team spreading across social media and news networks. Chase tries to explain, but only receives scathing words about how Donald never should have trusted him to lead, and that he’d better fix this mess. After he hangs up, Chase turns his anger on the team that’s gathered on the couch, pointing out everything they did wrong. Skylar laughs at him, telling him to do some reflection because he didn’t take any blame in his rant. Chase goes down to Mission Command, while Kaz tells Skylar to knock it off.

Oliver continues trying to activate his powers on command. Bree thinks about calling her family, before zipping off as she’s been doing to enjoy her new freedom. Skylar pores over ancient Calderan archives that her adoptive father Horace Diaz (3,045) transcribed from Hapax the Elder in a quest to retrieve her powers. 

Meanwhile, Kaz finds Chase working down in Mission Command. Chase tries to get him to leave. He thinks it works, until he hears crunches. Kaz is still there, staring intently while eating potato chips. Chase is purely confused as to why. Kaz says he finds whatever Chase is working on interesting. That perplexes Chase more, because even the more tech-savvy members of his family have never taken an interest. It’s the wormhole generator from Mighty Med that he’s trying to put into a more functional design. He teases Kaz that it’ll be another one to break. Kaz then threatens him that he’s going to touch his expensive equipment with his greasy fingers.

Hours go by, and Chase is surprised to look up and still see Kaz there. After a brief chat, Chase recalls the small crush he had developed on Kaz after waking up in Mighty Med and seeing who saved his life. This causes him to not pay attention, shocking himself on his machine. Kaz rushes over to help him, causing Chase to fumble away harder. They leave together after, with Chase tripping over the hyperlift’s threshold after Kaz compliments him. 

Once back upstairs, Chase makes eye contact with Skylar. He feels nauseous, saying that he’s going out to get air. He finds himself at a library/cafe, browsing the shelves. He collides with someone, knocking both of them over. A girl, a very pretty girl, accepts the hand to help her back up. They go back to themselves after, before their fingers brush on the spine of Frankenstein. They talk about this before exchanging names, with Chase heavily struggling to form the two words. She laughs anyway, and doesn’t care that he’s bionic or famous. That’s refreshing to Chase. She informs him that he’s taking her on a coffee date. Reese (16) takes his hand and leads him away.

[thiagowrites]

Don't know If you're taking request but could you do chatterboxe! Reader that loves putting stickers on her favorite stuff x Ghost.

Reader doesn't notice her walkie talkie is broken and Ghost is mad at her for not being careful. She puts stickers all over him as sorry but he still ignores her, so she goes to Soap and puts "I ♥️ DICKS" on his helmet as sorry, earning a smirk and a hug from Ghost.

Bonus points if Soap has no idea why people look at him funny

Wasn't quite sure if you wanted a romantic relationship between Ghost and reader but that's what i settled for . I didn't know how to end it so that's quite bad but yes i do take requests. Will do a post with guidelines etc. soon

Warnings: female!reader, chatterbox!reader(reader talks alot), pulling pranks, common cod violence, angst turning into fluff/comfort, pissed Ghost

"And so basically she slapped that old woman across her face like it's nothing. Infront of hundrets of people because of a goddamn tea package! Like can you imagine" was what the team heard. If there was something that (codename) was known for it was her love for gossiping. Especially with a scott and his british sergeant companion. Soap, Gaz and (codename) knew everything that happened on and off base probably having a groupchat of some sort just for gossip.it wasn't new to price and ghost that these three would talk and talk and talk on their way to missions.

"Got eyes on the target yet?" Price asked the team.a bunch of "Negativ sir" or "not yet" were heard on the radio. Captain only missed one voice. The voice belonging to the female on the team. "(Codename) you copy?" Nothing. "Bravo 1-4 how copy?" He was met with silence. "Anyone know what happened with (codename)? Can't reach her trough comms" he now asked the team hoping they knew something. "Do we know her last position captain? I could go look for her" so there goes Ghost. Your last position wasn't far from Ghost. Maybe a good 200-300 metres away from him. He reached your spot, seeing you sitting behind a rock. He sighed as he realized you were holding your broken radio. His sigh cought your attention as you quickly turned around relaxing when you saw that it's ghost. "Got me scared there big guy." He didn't say anything to you just grabbed his radio and told the others he found you

Back at base you had a talk with price about how you should be more careful with your radio etc. You went to the mechanics and got your radio fixed. You decided to thank ghost for getting you so you searched for him. Strangely no one knew where he was. After half an hour you finally found him in the gym. Knocking on the door you walked in and started talking. " ok look i know i fucked up, i'm sorry for that, but i didn't it was broken. And thanks to you i'm not dead, which is what i'm here for. Thanks for getting me i probably wouldn't be here otherwise." You mumbled but got no answer. He didn't even acknowledge you. You decided to bug him. Get his attention by annoying the absolut shit out of him. But apparently that didn't work either. You took a minute. To stubborn to admit your defeat. Then suddenly you remembered the stickers in your pocket. You slowly took one out and made your way to the bigger man in the room. He was currently putting back weights. You took the sticker and put it on his arm. Ghost was taken aback. Not expecting you to put a hello kitty sticker on him. Another one to his torso and after that startled him enough you pulled him down and put one on his forehead. The only response you got was him grunting and walking to his room.

It was now a few days later and no matter what you did Ghost ignored you. So you made the perfect plan to get him to stop ignoring you. You walked to Soap with a lovely sticker in hand. "How is my absolute favorit teammate?" You exclaimed making some small talk inorder to distract soap from your evil plan. Slowly taking him in a hug and placin the sticker in your hand you the, that read "i ❤ dicks", on his back. Taking the little plastic foil and stuffing it in your pocket you gave him a smile and some lame excuse to go.

Half a day and some snickering from privates later. Soap went to ghost to ask if he looked wierd today. "Swear LT, these privates keep laughing at me" Ghost then sae the little paper on his back and had to hold back a laugh playing it off with a cough instead. A short "I'm sure it's nothing johnny" and off Ghost went. "Y/n?" He said rather loudly, knocking on your room door and waiting for you to open. "Hello" you answered a small smile planted on your face. He shoved you inside and bursted out laughing(i headcanon ghost to make little pig noises while laughing and getting flustered about it) not while closing the door though. "That sticker you put on johnny... it's hilarious" he said inbetween chuckles and hiccups. Suddenly you found yourself wrapped up in his arms. Faces pressed up against eachother. A slight blush visible on Simons face which thanks to his balaclava wasn't visible to you. Suddenly his mask was lifted to his nose ans his lips on yours.

[simpcityy]

Haunting Past PT.1 (Astarion X Fem!Reader)

Disclaimer: I know I was supposed to finish the last chapter of I'm Not Her but...I have terrible writers block trying to find a good ending for the series so it's still being written but I do hope you enjoy this little idea I have for ...Ahem...a Vampire Spawn. I wonder if you want it to become a Series too. Just to get it out of my head so I can fully concentrate to finish I'm Not Her Finale. Also please read the Author notes. I don't want to make the disclaimer longer. I DO NOT OWN BALDUR'S GATE OR ANY OF IT'S CHARACTER.

Word Count: 1.1k

Warning: Female Pronouns, mentions of blood, a hot vampire spawn, idk if spoilers count since this is act one but why not, for those who didn't get far in the game.

Summary: A gur was tasked to hunt down a certain spawn but they end up working together for their own benefit.

Chaos, that was the scene in front of you. There was a small war inside the Nautiloid ship; Which you were taken against your own will. While being on a hunt after a vampire spawn which soon turned this situation with a tadpole invading your mind. Hitting your fist up against the window of the pod as hard as you could until you broke free. Slipping out and falling down on your knees, you took this chance to curse out in the open of the ship “Hell with it all!” your eyes analyzed your surroundings either for your prey or any signs of freedom from this Nautiloid ship. “How do I get myself into these kinds of situations…I should’ve just taken the commission of hunting down a couple of Imps or even Kobold looters” you mutter slowly, rising up and looking for an exit or any opening to leave this ship. “Okay, let’s focus (Y/N), find a way out…I doubt that spawn even lived so I can call this mission accomplished.” You smiles trying your cheer yourself up before losing your balance as the ship jerks violently. ‘Better move it along or I won't make it either.’ You thought to yourself and quickly got up only for the ship to jerk roughly to the side, causing you to lose balance and hit the back of your head roughly against the wall. Knocked out right away. 

The feeling of the sun hits your face, causing you to stir. Slowly (E/C) eyes blink constantly till your eyes were used to the bright sky. You then heard whispers by your side, your body reacted instantly and stood up quickly “Back off and you won’t get hurt” You reached for a hidden dagger you always have strapped on you. “Let’s not resort to this, I wouldn’t want a blood bath especially after this situation, So I beg of you to change your thoughts Miss.” Looking over, you see a man speaking a rather pompous style and wearing a pompous style. “Judging the way, you speak and ...dress…” You sigh rubbing your head, feeling it throb. “You are no danger to me.” You conclude putting the dagger down. “Wonderful! Tav! Do you feel it?” He asked which you hypothesis is their little leader. You look at the odd group, their leader, that pompous man and a young woman which you can tell obviously has an Acolyte background. “Feel what exactly?” You questioned at Tav before grunting out in pain, feeling your head throb worse. It felt like someone was trying to probe into your memories before it stopped. “What the hell was that?! What did you do!” You back up looking at them. “It’s that tadpole, it connected us in a way.” The Tav responded. “Just my day.” You mutter looking at the crashed ship. “I suppose you …have information regarding this tadpole.” You slowly asked before putting your hand up “ On second thought…I rather be…unaware of its…dangers…” You look at them before putting a hand out to them “I’m (Y/N), I was…hunting...when I was taken. I suppose you all have a similar story regarding being a victim of the mind flayers.” 

You were helping them set up camp, joining their group for now. “so You say you have one more companion in the group?” You asked while setting down your bedroll by the fire looking at Shadowheart. After walking around and finding a place to call camp, you were able to get to know the group. There was the wizard Gale, the cleric Shadowheart and the Tav. “Yes, He went off, saying something about needing to recollect his thoughts.” Shadowheart sets her bedroll next to yours while Gale was cooking up a meal for the group with whatever was found near the crash site. “I see, well if he’s in the group then he’s deemed to be okay. I...just like to be careful around new people…sorry If I come out as rude.” You smile explaining to the three of them. Slowly opening yourself to them. “I come from a camp where we like to exclude ourselves from others.” You try your best to not offend them. Gale walks over handing you and Shadowheart a bowl with soup “It’s quite alright, I mean we all just met but we will get to know each other over time while we look for a healer.” He sits down on his bedroll, eating his soup. Tav nods, “We need to work together to find this healer and who knows, we will meet others like us.” You look down at your bowl, before slowly sipping the broth to warm yourself as the weather was getting colder. “Correct, we need a healer fast…hopefully one that is skilled enough to remove it, it’s not like every day…they get people with a tadpole parasite infected as a client.” you mutter to them before hearing rustling behind you. 

“There you are, we thought you were dead.” Gale calls out, waving over. You paid no mind, knowing it was their other companion of their group. You only continue drinking the broth before your eyes slightly widen hearing a familiar smooth voice. “What’s this, who’s this beauty with such gorgeous hair.” You quickly get up putting the bowl on the ground and turn around “ You!....but…how!?” You look at your target who caused you to get into this mess from the beginning, who was walking out in the sun. It was only dawn; he shouldn't be alive. ‘The bastard is alive and walking in the sun’ You thought seeing Astarion who also had a shocked look seeing you. “ I thought you were dead as well darling.” Astarion mutters as you decide against grabbing your dagger. Knowing if you did, there are more cons than pros. One, you were outnumbered and knowing this group, they would defend him. “Glad to know we share the same thoughts.” you cross your arms walking past him before stopping next to him. “Nothing has been said yet.” You then add, “As much as I want to kill you now and then, I weigh my options and I hate the choice I have to accept…letting you live and unfortunately working and traveling along with the likes of you.” You whisper out to him only as the group stares at you two with a worried look, wondering what might happen based on yours and Astarion's reaction. “Oh, please I was also weighing my options and unfortunately, I agree with you. You have no idea how badly I want to see how red your blood is.” He hums. “Oh, but do clarify why you didn’t just tell them, I’m quite curious. You know I love drama.” He smirks. You only roll your eyes, “It’s not my parade to ruin...Spawn” You whispered frowning before walking off to the river to cool yourself down. Astarion only frowns hearing your little nickname for him before looking over to the group. “I take it you two know each other?” Shadowheart asked. 

“Unfortunately, yes” He gasped dramatically.

During your sleep, you tossed and turn, screams echo in your mind, you were having another nightmare. The only thing that comes to your mind is flashes of images, blood, glowing red eyes and fangs. Opening your eyes quickly, you sat up and quickly took deep breaths to calm yourself. Sighing, you grabbed a rag and wiped off the sweat that accumulated on your forehead. 

“Nightmare Darling?” Astarion stood by the entrance of your tent, keeping himself occupied by looking at a book. “None of your concern, what do you want, I suppose you want to talk while others are asleep.” You glared at him “Try anything funny and you’ll face the consequences.” You slowly stood up from your bedroll reaching down to your thigh pulling out a wooden stake “I am always armed around your kind” You stretched your limbs, your nightmare is still lingering in your thoughts. “ As expected for someone of your kind…wandering cut-throats.” He mutters “But yes, I did come to talk.” He closes the book “Who sent you after me, by the looks of it, you didn’t have the intention to lose my tracks while I was running.” He sits down on the ground, keeping a good distance from you. You only think back to the chase you were having with him before being taken into the mind flayer ship. “Honestly” you began to think “I wasn’t given a name, I was just handed this task by my leader and off I was, on the hunt for you…odd…they wanted you alive.” You hummed thinking back how Ulma stressed out the importance of needing Astarion alive. “Now my turn, you really think this information is free, how the hell are you able to walk in the sun.” You glance at him, watching him feel the smooth cover of the book. “I have no clue either but I suspect it’s this little thing in our minds.” He places the book on the floor. “I don’t mind it…if it gives me this power, I am happy to give this little tadpole a home” He smirks while you only roll your eyes “I think you hit your head somewhere, we don’t want this. If I remember correctly…Ulma said something like it’s their way for Mind flayers to populate…meaning we have a certain amount of time before we become one of them” You look at the ground, using your finger to draw figures in the dirt.

 “Who knows how long we have left, god I am going to turn so ugly, we better find a healer fast.” Astarion groans “Why must everything be so complicated.” He sighs dramatically before looking over to you, “Right one more question, how do you know so much knowledge about vampire spawns, you knew where to find me right away. Only spawns know about our hideout.” His red ruby eyes look at you. You only stood up, walking to exit your tent, “I knew someone…who told me their secrets…shared their knowledge…he was different from any other spawn I have met and killed in my life. Even if your immortal…death creeps up…it creeped up on him…” You whisper, keeping your back on him before leaving your tent, needing some fresh air.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author Notes: I am so sorry I haven't finished the last chapter of I'm Not Her, I really am stuck trying to finish that. I promise I am not abandoning it, just trying to motivate myself to get ideas. So...I got myself hooked on to this...side of the fandom and I fucking love it! I hope you all had a wonderful New Years. I hope you guys like this, I don't know if I want to make this as a series too but depends how well it does. I also am writing a little one-shot of Rapheal having a devil daughter and how Haarlep looks after her in a very mutual! and friend way! Guys, if it's not obvious...I got...dad issues. That explains all the Miguel O'Hara dad writings. If you guys want to read that, I'll happily write it and maybe if you liked this one, I could write more on it, a series. Oh! Since I put a Tav there in the story, you guys are welcome to build them for me. Like comment the physical appearance, hair length, color, eyes color, male or female etc. I'll write them under the category and role a die to make our beloved Tav in this story. If you want. Remember to stay hydrated and to keep on simping. (Simp City Population: 465 THANK YOU ALL FOR THE FOLLOWS, REBLOGS, LIKES)

[bovethsmile]

Comprehensive Dental Care in Buffalo, MO: Your Smile's Best Companion

In the serene town of Buffalo, Missouri, amidst the rolling hills and picturesque landscapes, lies a beacon of oral health care excellence – the Buffalo Dental Clinic. For years, residents of Buffalo and its surrounding areas have entrusted their smiles to the skilled hands and compassionate care of our dedicated team of dental professionals. With a commitment to providing comprehensive dental services in a warm and welcoming environment, we strive to be your partner in achieving and maintaining optimal oral health for a lifetime.

Our Mission

At Dentist Buffalo MO, our mission is simple yet profound: to enhance the lives of our patients through exceptional dental care. We believe that everyone deserves access to high-quality dental services that not only address their immediate concerns but also empower them to make informed decisions about their oral health. With this guiding principle at the core of everything we do, we are dedicated to delivering personalized care that is tailored to each patient's unique needs and preferences.

Comprehensive Services

Whether you're due for a routine check-up or require specialized treatment, Buffalo Dental Clinic offers a comprehensive range of services to meet all your dental needs under one roof. Our skilled team is proficient in various aspects of dentistry, including:

1. Preventive Dentistry: Regular dental check-ups and cleanings are essential for maintaining optimal oral health. Our preventive services focus on early detection and intervention to prevent dental issues from progressing into more serious problems. From routine exams to fluoride treatments and dental sealants, we prioritize proactive measures to keep your smile healthy and vibrant.

2. Restorative Dentistry: If you're dealing with tooth decay, damage, or missing teeth, our restorative treatments can help restore both the function and aesthetics of your smile. From tooth-colored fillings and dental crowns to bridges and implants, we utilize advanced techniques and materials to repair and rebuild your teeth with precision and care.

3. Cosmetic Dentistry: A confident smile can work wonders for your self-esteem and overall well-being. Our cosmetic dentistry services are designed to enhance the appearance of your smile, addressing imperfections such as stains, chips, gaps, and misalignments. Whether you're interested in teeth whitening, porcelain veneers, or Invisalign clear aligners, we can help you achieve the smile of your dreams.

4. Periodontal Care: Healthy gums are the foundation of a healthy smile. Our periodontal care services focus on preventing, diagnosing, and treating gum disease, a common condition that can lead to tooth loss and systemic health issues if left untreated. Through thorough cleanings, scaling and root planing, and personalized home care instructions, we aim to keep your gums in optimal condition.

5. Oral Surgery: In some cases, oral surgery may be necessary to address complex dental issues or extract impacted wisdom teeth. Our experienced oral surgeon performs a wide range of procedures with precision and compassion, ensuring your comfort and safety throughout the process.

6. Emergency Dentistry: Dental emergencies can occur when you least expect them, causing pain and inconvenience. Whether you're experiencing severe tooth pain, a knocked-out tooth, or a broken restoration, our team is here to provide prompt care and relief when you need it most. With flexible scheduling and same-day appointments available, you can count on us to address your urgent dental needs with efficiency and expertise.

State-of-the-Art Technology

At Buffalo Dental Clinic, we believe in harnessing the power of technology to deliver superior dental care that is both effective and comfortable for our patients. Our modern facility is equipped with advanced diagnostic tools and treatment technologies, allowing us to achieve precise results while minimizing discomfort and downtime. From digital X-rays and intraoral cameras to laser dentistry and computer-guided implant placement, we leverage cutting-edge innovations to elevate the standard of care and enhance your overall experience in our office.

Patient-Centered Care

What sets Buffalo Dental Clinic apart is our unwavering commitment to patient-centered care. From the moment you step through our doors, you'll be greeted with warmth and respect by our friendly staff, who are dedicated to making your visit as pleasant and stress-free as possible. We take the time to listen to your concerns, answer your questions, and involve you in the decision-making process every step of the way. Your comfort, satisfaction, and well-being are our top priorities, and we go above and beyond to ensure that you feel valued and cared for throughout your dental journey with us.

Community Engagement

As proud members of the Buffalo community, we believe in giving back and making a positive impact beyond the walls of our practice. Whether through educational outreach initiatives, charitable events, or volunteer work, we are actively involved in supporting local organizations and causes that promote oral health awareness and overall wellness. By fostering meaningful connections and contributing to the health and vitality of our community, we strive to create a brighter future for generations to come.

Schedule Your Appointment Today

If you're in need of quality dental care in Buffalo, Missouri, look no further than Buffalo Dental Clinic. With our comprehensive services, state-of-the-art technology, and patient-centered approach, we are your trusted partner in achieving a healthier, happier smile. Contact us today to schedule your appointment and experience the difference firsthand. Your smile deserves nothing less than the best, and we're here to help you shine with confidence every step of the way.

[memo14g]

UMC Shadowing Day 1 (7/3) || Jeffrey Nguyen (UCSD)

We arrive at the entrance of the first 14G mission trip designation in Việt Nam, the University Medical Center (Bệnh Viện Đại Học Y Dược)— The burning weather plows on the commonly cramped and congested hospital. The surplus is surreal to even us, the members of MEMO, well-conditioned and familiar with serving the underserved population through medical and educational needs.

14G shuffles through and squeezes up a hard-working escalator. “It’s like 10x more packed than an airport!!”— the noise of a MEMOber perishing, drowning in all of the commotion crowding the entire floor– Probably Sarthak. He has good humor.

We eventually enter a conference room where Dr. Bui and Co-Executives Directors, Sam and Jenny, present a speech introducing MEMO and 14G. The organizations joined here today consist of CardiacLife Foundation, University Medical Center, VinaCapital Foundation, Heartbeat Vietnam, and of course, your friendly locally and abroad MEMO. We meet Khuê from CardiacLife Foundation. (Khuê becomes our close-knit companion who decides to embark along 14G as a newly cherished, iconic MEMOber. Tune in future blogs for more about Khuê!).

Bouncing through the doorway enter the ever-sweet, precious, and unimaginably cute children we sponsored heart surgeries via the Open Our Hearts Gala in May. My jaw DROPS meeting them in person. Their heart surgeries. We funded that.

One of the baby boys repeats and repeats in awe, “Mom, it’s so crowded! Mom it’s so crowded!,” occasionally sneaking in between also the phrase, “Mom, I need pee.”-- Truly precious and worth cheek-pinching. For a moment, everyone in the room could not stop smiling and laughing at the peak of their hearts.

One of the mothers can ever so slowly, barely make out words and hold her tears as she expresses her deepest gratitudes for her baby son’s treatment. Her family relies on just one scarce source of income from picking rubble from the streets. Each and every single one of us are throats and chests just as tight-knotted, lips wringed, and of eye-water welled from the hearts’ very bottom.

This moment. I know— it will stick with me forever. A once-in-a-lifetime miracle that MEMObers vow as a mission to revive again many times, for many families. After a heartwarming, blissful, and eventful picture, the shadowing begins.

In the cardiovascular surgery department, my group is observing Dr. Dinh. Dr. Tran from MEMO accompanies us. Ready to check out the operating room, alongside me in nifty blue scrubs are Jenny, Megan, Jules, Sarthak, and Michelle. Dr. Dinh casually asks, “Who wants to scrub in? Haha”. What's scrubbing in… I think to myself. I have a feeling. And it’s that he’s asking one of us to partake in the surgery— OH, Sarthakkk you’re raising your hand, ya ya you go my guy.

Sarthak follows instructions to “scrub in”, sterilizing his hands and arms, then donning the surgical scrubs. The surgeons and the room are sterile to avoid introducing unfamiliar bacteria to the open patient. Wash up, hands UP, and glove up. When walking in the operating room, have your hips and head facing the patient’s body. You preferably want to avoid knocking the patient over mid-surgery.

Today is an open heart surgery case. It contrasts the much less-invasive “stent” procedure for certain cases where only a small incision is needed on the chest— But here, with open heart surgery the skin is “cauterized” or laser-ed open vertically down the chest’s center and then the sternum chest bone is sawed open.

Sarthak suctions with a tube the smoke from the cauterizing, One of the surgeons pulls out a saw (omg) tool and starts sawing open the sternum down the middle into two like a Bánh Mì. The sternum chest bone is then CRANKED apart via metal tools. I did not know bone could bend so much without breaking. The left and right chests were miles apart with a deep valley in the center, perhaps with also a small lake of red.

We were getting to the heart, but then suddenly— Lunch time. We exit the operating room door and re-dress while the surgeons continue. Remember to “scrub out”

[cheapbodyshots]

A Courting Process

Moving to a small costal town was the best decision you've ever made. However, once you get caught up with something you thought was an old wive's tale, two men seem determined to claim you as their own. Mermaid!Bakugou and Mermaid!Midoriya

Hi! this is my first time writing for MHA, and my first time posting fics on tumblr. Id you have any recommendations for me (formatting, style, etc) please let me know! I also post on AO3. Hope you enjoy! ❤️❤️

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Chapter 1

Sitting down in the hot sand you sighed to yourself. Moving from your landlocked hometown to the outskirts of a small beachtown for your first major job was probably the best decision you had ever made. The job was boring, but it pays great (more money than you ever thought you could make!) and the added bonus of working from home sold you on the job. Things had been working great in terms of work-hell, you finished early pretty much every day. However, working from home also meant different types of problems showing up. No coworkers to chat with, few neighbors, and moving to a new town happened to spell out one major problem.

You are easily on your way to becoming a hermit in your 20’s. Fantastic.

As you sift the sand through your hands, you sigh. How hard can it be to make friends? Granted, the town itself is small, but you could see people around your age walking around in groups on occasion. You knew they existed, obviously; integrating yourself was another matter. Living outside of the town wasn’t helping either-but if you wanted beachfront property, you had to make some sacrifices. The sun begins to touch the horizon, gentle rays hitting you as you stare into the sea. The waves give you a little light show to watch, flashing here and there as the sun makes its way into the water. You swore you could see the flames of the sun running through the waves, but it was just the sun saying goodbye before finally laying down for the night. Once your butt has gone numb from sitting, you make your way along the waves, taking your time walking back to your little beach house.

When the day comes again, it’s finally Friday, so you get off of work a bit early, and are finally able to move around when the afternoon hits. After putting on clothes plus your usual bikini, you decide to take a long stroll down the beach to look for a good spot to camp out with your towel and book. After walking maybe a mile and climbing over some rocks, the sound of car doors closing and people talking reaches your ears. Up over the embankment, you can see some people walking around a pickup, pulling surf gear from the trunk and making their way to the beach. You only have a moment before one of them catches your eyes with a surprised look. Oh shit, you were not prepared for this when you left the house today.

“Hey!” the guy calls out, tapping his friend’s shoulder before walking towards you. As he approaches the top of the dune, you can finally get a good look at him without sun and grass getting in the way. This man is huge, jacked like a bodybuilder, with bright red hair half tied to keep it out of his face. His face is absolutely stunning, especially with the 10,000 mega-watt smile he’s pointing your way.

“Hi! Haven’t seen you around here before-do you live around here?” He looks at you expectantly, but before you can push a sentence out of your gaping mouth, his companion manages to knock him in the head with a surfboard as he scrambles down to approach you.

This one is blond, more of a lean muscular, and clearly on a mission as he makes his way to your shrinking form.

“Heya! My name is Denki Kaminari, I’m a gemini, I work in IT, I don’t chew with my mouth open, and I give great massages,” He takes a huge breath, as he plants his surfboard in the sand and leans in your direction, “So you taken? Or can I take you out tonight?” he finishes eagerly, flashing you his biggest grin.

You hold it in for a second before bursting into laughter, trying to reign in your giggles before responding, but his friend beats you to it.

“Jesus Denki, try not to kill me the next time you see a pretty girl” he chuckles, rubbing the back of his head.

“Sorry man, I gotta shoot my shot before somebody else does” He calls behind him before swinging his head back around to address you, beaming, “So? Can I take you out? Or you gotta boyfrie-”

Still trying to contain your giggling, you hold up a hand to stop him.

“No I don’t have a boyfriend,” you explain, “but I also don’t go out with strangers”

“Strangers? But you know everything about me now babes” He whines

“That’s everything about you? Just that?” 

“Well, I’d prefer to show you how good I am at giving head but I wanna take you out to dinner first-” 

His friend manages to clap a hand over Denki’s mouth before shooting you a sheepish grin.

“Sorry about him, he’s…. Uhh…a romantic? My name’s Kirishima, by the way”

You give an amused smile in return. “I’m Y/N”

Denki shakes him off before a girl appears over the sand dune with a surfboard to give her greetings.

“Hey! I’m Mina!” She waves excitedly before coming down to smack Denki. “This is why I’m the only female friend you guys have!” She scolds him.

Kirishima turns back to you. “We’ve been coming here to surf since forever, but we’ve never seen people here before. Where you from?” “Oh, I just moved into a house a little ways down the beach. I think it was empty before, since its a bit of a fixer upper” you shrug.

“Cool! Well, if you’re not doing anything, would you like to hang out with us today? We’re just planning on surfing for a while and having a bonfire once the sun goes down”

You hesitate, and he shyly rambles on.

“You know, we never really meet new people-and it’s just a coincidence that-it would be nice to talk a bit and no pressure! But we could always use-and I promise I’ll keep Denki off of you and-”

“Yeah, I’ll hang out” You smile. Why not? It was an unexpected opportunity for friends. If things got weird, you could always fake a stomach ache and leave. 

“Great!” Denki chimes in from behind, “You think you could help me with my sunscreen? My skin is dainty, so I need the extra-” Thankfully, Mina doesn’t let him finish.

The day goes surprisingly well, as someone is always taking a break to chat with you. Watching them surf is entertaining beyond belief-it’s a mixture of talent as well as comedy when they try to hijack eachother’s boards. As the late afternoon drags by, Kirishima even manages to convince you to try surfing on his board. After some gawking from Denki, you make it into the water to try unsuccessfully a few times to stand up. All in good fun, you splash around for an hour or so until something extra slimy touches your foot, and you decide you’ve had enough.

Once the sun sets, they get a fire going and break out a cooler full of hot dogs and beer as they settle comfortably into the sand.

“You know, I’m having a party tomorrow night” Kirishima smiles at you, “Would you like to come? We’ll all be there as well as some locals, and I can introduce you to everyone!”

You think about it for a second while Mina and Denki give you their best puppy eyes from the other side of the fire.

“Alright! Alright! I’ll go- it sounds like fun!” 

You trade contact info and hang around for an extra half hour before getting up to make your way home. You’re extremely happy that things worked out so well today, and you can’t help but grin as you turn back to wave as you cross over the rocks dividing the beach. Once you’re out of sight, you skip a little with excitement before settling into your walk, roaming among the waves gently hugging the shore. 

As you make your way up the beach and back into your house, you give the ocean one last look before shutting the door and getting ready for bed. Little did you know, something within those waves had also set its gaze upon you.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Right now, Half of your focus was on doing your makeup nicely, the other half was focused on not throwing up. Why does meeting new people have to be so nerve wracking? Hell, they’re just people, it's not like they were all going to point and laugh when you walked in the room. Finishing your makeup, you go to pull out an open back crop top with decent cleavage, and a pair of jean shorts-the vibe you’re aiming for is “flirty casual” as you don’t want to overdo it. You pair it up with some platform sandals, and before you can second guess yourself, you’re already in the car and on the way to the houseparty. 

When you pull up, you can hear the music thumping from all the way down the street. The houseparty seems to be closer to a block party at this point, with the sheer number of people crammed on the property. Once you eventually get through the door, you push towards the kitchen and thankfully spot Kirishima and Denki taking shots together.

“Hey! You came!” Kirishima grins, happy to see you.

“Of course! Why wouldn’t I?” You flash him a grin before downing the shot that Denki passes you and grimacing.

“YEAH BABE! I love it when you make that face at me~” Denki blows you a kiss from across the table.

“Hey Denki and I are gonna teach beer pong to the new guy from my job, and we could use another player,” Kirishima leans on the table, “You want in?”

“Absolutely I do”

After grabbing drinks, they lead you out a sliding glass door into the backyard, which is a little less crowded. There’s a pool to your left and on the right, a little patio area where the beer pong table is set up, where you can see Mina sitting with another darker haired girl on her lap, and two guys.

Once Mina catches sight of you, she’s excitedly waving at you, hard enough that the girl on her lap almost falls off. You laugh and wave back and say hello once you get close enough. She introduces the girl on her lap as her girlfriend, Jiro and you chat for a minute before turning back to greet the other two. The second you turn around, you realize that both of the new guys are watching you as you were chatting. And holy shit, these are some of the best looking men you’ve ever seen.

The taller one has spiky blond hair, and clearly well defined muscles which are visible as he only wears a black tank top and some dark khaki shorts. However, the most distracting thing are his intense red eyes, along with the smirk that’s adorning his face. Wait, did he catch you just checking him out? You can feel your face burning as you try to keep your expression neutral and turn to his companion.

This guy has the sweetest face you’ve ever seen, soft green eyes framed by unruly curly green hair. He smiles at you and you only have a second to notice that this man is an absolute beefcake before he’s holding out his hand to you.

“Hi! I’m-m-Midoriya! Izuku Midorya!” He shakes your hand a little bit longer than necessary, before letting go with flushed cheeks. He’s got a bit of an accent, but you can’t quite place where it’s from. He quickly turns to his friend, who’s staring you down like he’s ready to eat you. “This is my…cousin! He’s not that great at English but he understands a lot!”

The blond shoots Midoriya a glare before folding his arms and giving you a look. In a heavily accented voice he introduces himself.

“Katsuki Bakugou” He nods at you.

His gravelly voice caresses your ears (and some other places) a bit more than you would like, but you manage to keep your face neutral despite the fact that you're blushing quite a bit.

You nod back, “Nice to meet you”

“Well!” Denki chimes in, “As hard as that was to watch, everyone knows everyone now so buddy up bitches!” He beams at you before adding, “Sweetheart, if you’d like to be on the winning team, it’s best to partner up with me” He winks. The bastard!

“That’s sweet Denki but I don’t count second place as ‘winning’” You tease with a smirk.

Turning, you loop your arm through Midoriya’s and pat his bicep-WOW is that firm- and give Denki a pout. “You'll just have to try your best to keep up with us” Looking innocently up at your partner, “Isn’t that right Midoriya?” Midoriya seems to be struggling to form a sentence and Denki’s jaw drops open as Kirishima, Mina, and Jiro laugh. Glancing at Bakugou, you can practically see the competitiveness flare up in his eyes as he gives you a predatory grin. That look makes you falter-even with Kirishima as the referee, all of a sudden you’re not as confident as you were ten seconds ago. It’s just a game though-how bad could it get, right?

[ground-zero-idiocies]

I've got a funny Fallout 4 prompt/request, so after getting caught doing a prank on the Diamond City Mayor, the Sole Survivor shouts "You'll never catch me alive!" before running off, they immediately trip over and knock themselves out on a pole.

perfect prompt. Thank you.

Fallout 4 Companions React to April Fools

Let’s set the scene:

April 1, 2288. It’s a beautiful spring day in the commonwealth, leaves finally starting to bloom on the few remaining living trees.

Diamond City is bustling today after a massive caravan arrived from the north, carrying goods from Maine, Vermont, and other (almost) all white people places.

Nora and friends are in the city too, looking for something do to other then shoot at roaches. The gang is in the mayor’s office, talking to Geneva, when the Mayor’s door swings open. McDonough himself walks out, only to be drenched by a red paint can from above. All eyes turn to Nora, currently riding down the lift at an excruciatingly slow pace.

“You’ll never take me alive!”

McDonough only rolls his eyes. Nora, while pointing and laughing upwards, slips of the side of the lift, catching herself at the last minute and pulling herself up. As the lift touches down, she starts running: quickly sprinting across the old stadium to be exit, where she promptly runs into a world boundary fence. She scurries away, a goofy look on her face the whole time. McDonough turns to the companions, all stunned by the prank.

Cait: “If she was gonna prank a Diamond City bigwig like yourself, why wouldn’t she go bigger? Get some axes on chains and decent actors involved, come on!”

Codsworth: “Oh good heavens! Mr. Mayor, please let me aid you in cleaning up this red mess before it al dries out. You must admit, though, that that was a dastardly prank!”

Curie: “Oh no! Zat paint may contain harmful chemicals and metals! Please, I must help!” Curie takes out a stethoscope and entire medical kit from thin air.

Danse: “I’m sorry Mr. Mayor, Paladins of the Brotherhood of Steel are not supposed to act in that manner. I’ll make sure Brotherhood command hears of this and properly disciplines Paladin Nora.

Deacon: “Now she’s getting it! Still, I think it would have been better to use latex. Then, we could have an awesome mission impossible mask of his face and use it to pull of all sorts of crazy shit.”

Gage: “As far as pranks go, that was pretty toothless. Mr. Mayor, if you can’t handle a little red paint, I recommend you skip the trip up to Nuka World. I get the feeling you wouldn’t take too kindly to the people ‘round there.

Hancock: “You got what was coming to you, ‘Mr. Mayor’. At least a part of it. Maybe looking all red will get you in a ghoul-y mood. I got it: you should exile yourself!”

Longfellow: “HAHAHAHA! Now that’s what I call the voice of the people! Man, y’think the Mariner would approve if I did this next year? God, this is brilliant! So, Mayor McRed, how’s it feel?”

MacCready: “Oh, it’s so good! It’s so perfect! In your face, McDouchebag! Good one Nora, you really got ‘em. Happy April, Mr. Mayor.”

Nick Valentine: “When that starts to peel, maybe you’ll figure out what it’s like to have such cracked skin. Man, do I wish Avon was still around! (author’s note: this is not an endorsement of avon)”

Piper: “We both know I haven’t got much journalistic integrity, but I think I’ll just leave this one out of April’s paper. Keep this absolutely perfect moment in our minds.”

Preston: “Look everyone! The Mayor’s dressed up for Fourth of July! Although I will say, that is a fair bit away. Oh, and you’re missing white and blue! That was a pretty good one, right Mayor McDonough?”

Strong: “HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Little man looks like cover in blood! HAHA! Little man drop fake blood from can! Strong like seeing little man bleed!”

X6-88: X6 doesn’t say anything, but has a towel and cleaning supplies teleported into his hand instantly, He immediately sets to work, drying and scrubbing the mayor’s face with extreme force.

[oneisallallisone]

All I Know, All I Know Greedling x Reader fic Chapter 1

In a land ruled by alchemy, there are some who would call you a sorcerer. You intend to understand what this means. Along your journey you end up getting mixed up with two strange brothers, a military conspiracy, a potentially world-ending event, and the avarice of something more than human.

I wanted to see more Greedling x reader stories in the tag. This one’s going to be a SLOW burn, but we’ll get there. I have plans. 

Read on AO3

_______________________________________________________________________

All I Know, All I Know

Chapter 1: Koldun

There are ancient legends: tales that tell of a city disappearing within a single night, stones that hold the power of god, of immortality itself, just to name a few. Myths such as these have been passed down through generations by word of mouth, pen to paper, and are woven into the fabric of everything that fascinates humankind. 

There is no name for the legend that you are, however. 

Alchemy is the science of understanding, reconstructing, and deconstructing matter. Alkahestry is the art of reading the Dragon’s Pulse, of sensing the flow of energy within yourself and the world around you, and then manipulating it. Both rely on a give and a take. A desire, an exchange, and a result. But you, with your will and your breath and the force that plays at your fingertips, are something else entirely. 

No, there is no name in Amestris for you. But there is an ancient Drachman word for what you might be. A word so old and feared that it is uttered in barely a whisper. “Koldun,” they call you. “Sorcerer.” It is the only word that seems to fit what you are, and the way it is spoken is just as cold as the air that bites your ears and the tip of your nose. Drachman winters are harsh. The resentment of Drachman people who don’t understand your nature is harsher.

But enough about the cold. Now you found yourself in the warmer weather of the south, regretting the bearskin cloak you have draped around your shoulders. It might not be fit for a sunny day in Central City, but its weight provides a calming sense of familiarity. A small piece of home that was actually yours to keep. 

The journey to Amestris hadn’t been hard, but it had been long. The mountain pass was no longer safe to use, as both Drachman and Amestrian soldiers were posted nearby at all hours of the day. The peace was holding out, for now, although it seemed like things could take a turn for the worse at any moment. So instead of taking the mountain pass, you traveled the road through the forest with a group of merchants who were on their way to Aerugo. They needed to pass through Amestris first. You’d parted ways with them in Central, and they wished you luck despite not knowing the full details of your mission.

How could you have told them, though? They would have left you for dead with nothing but the snow as a blanket for your final rest had you told them what you were. Koldun. The word still didn’t feel right in your mind, but it was the only lead you had to cling to.

So there you were, walking through the streets of Central in your too-hot bearskin cloak and worn leather boots, trying to find the greatest wellspring of information the West had to offer in order to gain some insight into the nature of your existence.

Only when you got to the First Branch of the National Central Library, you found a pile of rubble instead.

“What?” you gasped, barely audible. “No, no!”

You ran up what was left of the charred stairs and into the wreckage. 

All around you were mountains of debris and ash. Wooden shelves reduced to nothing, charred husks of books no longer readable and scattered about. You stumbled around every turn, through every crumbling passage that looked once like it might have been a hallway, searching the skeleton of each room for anything that might look like a single page intact, but there was nothing. It was a ruin. You sank to your knees. 

“Dammit!”

An involuntary surge of your power shook the room with your cry—violet waves that knocked loose a few pieces of stone that had not yet fallen. You buried your head in your hands and willed yourself not to sob. There had to be another place to find answers about your abilities. There had to be. You couldn’t have come all this way for nothing. 

You were muttering this softly to yourself when another voice interrupted you. 

“Um, hello?” 

You turned sharply to an unexpected sight. A boy with blonde hair and a long red jacket, and…a massive armored fellow? The voice from before, coming from the blonde boy, spoke again. “Are you alright?” 

You quickly rubbed your dampening eyes. “Yes. Yes, I’m just fine.” 

“We heard a crash,” the armored fellow said in a voice that sounded far more childish than you expected. “Are you sure you’re not injured?”

“Yeah, yeah I was just…throwing some things around. I’m fine. Just frustrated.” 

“Did you happen to see who did this?” the blonde boy asked.

You shook your head. “No.” 

He narrowed his eyes a little then. “How do we know you didn’t do this?” 

“What?” you hissed. “Look, when I got here the place was already a wreck. I didn’t see who or what did this. I swear.” 

For a moment it looked as if the boy was going to continue interrogating you, but then his eyes softened. He dropped his shoulders. “Alright, Al.” He turned to the suit of armor. “I guess we’re going to have to figure something else out.” 

There was a clanking as the suit of armor, Al, hung his head. “I guess so.” 

“Wait,” you said just as the boys were turning to leave. “Do you know if there’s anywhere else in the city that would store knowledge similar to what was in this branch?” 

The blonde boy crossed his arms. “What kind of information are you looking for?” 

You hesitated for a moment. How were you supposed to explain your predicament to these strangers? “Well…I’m looking for any sort of historical records or myths of people with beyond-human abilities.” 

“So you mean like alchemists?”

“Honestly, not quite,” you said hesitantly. “But that wouldn’t be a bad place to start.”  

The blonde boy huffed. “Well believe me, when it comes to people with ‘beyond-human abilities,’ alchemists are the only thing you’re going to find. Alchemy isn’t anything supernatural, but it’s the closest thing humans will ever have to augmented abilities.” 

“You sound very sure of yourself.” 

“Yup. Anything else is just made up.” 

The corners of your mouth twitched. Was it pride? Was it spite? The only thing you knew is that you wanted to wipe this guy’s smug smirk right off his face, and you could already feel the power surging to your fingertips. 

You hadn’t even called upon it. It knew you. 

Raising your hand, you allowed your energy to manifest at your fingertips. Small flickers of purple danced across your skin as you curled and flexed your fingers. It was like passing a coin between your knuckles. 

The blonde boy’s mouth flew open, first in shock, then as if he was going to say something, and then settled into shock again. The armored fellow next to him startled. 

“Brother…” the metallic voice rang. 

“How…how are you doing that?” the blonde asked you. 

“They didn’t perform a transmutation or anything!” the armored boy said, partially to his brother but mostly to himself, it seemed.  

“I’ve never seen alchemy like that,” the blonde started, “Not even Teacher’s is like that. Seriously, how are you doing that?” 

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours,” you responded.

“What?” 

You pointed at the suit of armor. “What’s his story? I haven’t been in this country for long, but I know that citizens casually going around in full armor isn’t the standard.” 

The metal boy shifted uncomfortably. “Oh, I, well…uh…” 

A resolute look fell onto the blonde boy’s face. He placed a hand on the armored torso of his companion. “Al, it’s okay. We can think of this as just another equivalent exchange, information for information. And besides,” he lowered his voice, “Whatever their power is, it’s not something we’ve seen before. We’d be idiots not to learn more about it. Maybe they can help us.” 

You raised an eyebrow, but neither of the boys saw it. 

The armored fellow raised his head to catch your gaze again. “Please just don’t freak out.” He brought his hands up to his helmet and pulled. There was nothing underneath. 

At first you thought that the boy inside the armor must have been too short to stand within it. But then you took a few steps closer and realized there was no boy in the armor at all.

“Oh,” you said. “Well that’s not something you see every day.” 

“And neither are you,” the blonde said. “We told you ours, now you tell us yours.” 

You frowned. “Unfortunately there’s not much to tell. It’s why I came here, actually. I’m trying to learn more about the nature of my abilities, because they are definitely not…what you call alchemy.” 

“Well, where do you come from?” he asked. “Maybe it has a different name in your country?” 

You shook your head. “Alchemy exists in my country. It is something that is taught. I, however, was not taught any of this.” You lowered your gaze to the floor, preparing to say the words that you had only said to so few. “I am from Drachma. The only word they have for me is Koldun. It translates to sorcerer.” 

[lastxviolet]

Madripoor is for Lovers - Ch. 1

Summary: Y/N is a SWORD agent recruited to help Sam and Bucky track down Karli and the super-soldiers. When Helmut Zemo joins the team, he takes a special interest in her. The friendly union is wrought for disaster, but then things take a turn for the worst when Y/N is taken as collateral. Will Zemo keep her forever? Does she even want to escape? And what happened in Madripoor that made the whole thing so complicated?

Warnings: 18+ / eventual smut / kidnapping

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32878015/chapters/81589774

“Don’t scream,” a voice whispered in your ear, low and slow. “I do not wish to harm you.”

His hand wrapped around your mouth and the other snaked around your waist. The cool metal of a gun pressed into your ribs. He pulled you tight and fast against his body with ease.

You knew who it was, of course. It was the only person in the room not fighting in the pit of madness. The duel between a super soldier, the new Captain America, and the Dora Milaje hadn't been tempting. But it’d been him to grab your arm to pull you away from the fighting when Sam had yelled for help and now you knew why.

“Don’t do this,” you hissed against his hand.

Zemo pulled you backward, inch by agonizing inch.

You clicked your heels against the floor hoping to knock something over along the way. Anything to get Sam and Bucky’s attention. No one even glanced your way.

“None of that, Liebling,” he whispered, lips brushing your ear. His grip on your waist tightened as you passed through the bathroom threshold. What was worse, you wondered. Seeing your team; your friends disappear behind the closed double doors. Or the goosebumps from Zemo’s breath hot on your neck.

With his gun aimed at you, he knelt near the bathtub and pushed it aside to reveal an escape hatch in the floor. You watched him unlatch it and then smirk, surprised that his plan was going so well. That smirk made your blood boil.

“I’m more hassle than I’m worth,” you warned, casting a hesitant glance down the manhole.

He motioned for you to jump down first. “But you are excellent collateral.”

The noise of battle continued beyond the doors, much to your disappointment. They weren’t going to notice in time. Sam and Bucky had looked out for you but their alliance superseded any with you. Sam had only known you for a few months, and Bucky even less. You shot a prayer into the ether that they'd think of you if only this one time.

“You overestimate my importance to them,” you hissed.

Zemo looked up with dark and serious eyes. Usually, when aimed at you, they were less so. You wouldn't have considered him a friend, by any means. But in the last few weeks, he'd become a quiet, witty companion, who infuriated you less than most. Especially when Sam and Bucky spent most of the mission bickering about the plans you had made.

“Perhaps you underestimate yourself,” he cooed, shaking his head.

Sewage stink hit your senses immediately. This would not be pleasant. The drop was too short to give you the time to make a run for it. A second after your feet hit the ground, Zemo returned his gun to your head, with a smile.

“This way.”

Fighting was pointless, that much you knew. You hadn’t been recruited by Sam for your fighting abilities, as Zemo hadn’t been recruited for his. You were handy with a gun but tracking and strategy were your specialties. They’d taken you far in the military, and then as an anomaly investigator and agent with SWORD. And now, they’d brought you here, kidnapped, with a gun to your head in the back of Zemo’s car.

The driver was off towards the airstrip without any further commotion. You watched the road behind you, hopeful to see Sam or Bucky run up on the car. You could've even settled for a Dora Milaje with murder in their eyes and Zemo’s name on their tongue but it was empty.

Once on the plane, you sat in the furthest seat towards the back. Angry, hurt, and nervous, because despite all the warning bells, you’d trusted him. There was clear hatred between your teammates and Zemo but it was different between the two of you. You had no past or grudges against one another. It was silly now to think that that made you believe that there was an understanding.

“I hope you don’t think me indecent,” he murmured, gesturing to an opaque scarf in his hands. He avoided your gaze before wrapping it around your face. “But it would be unwise for me to trust you with my location. You are too intelligent for your own good.”

“Is it normal for wardens to flatter their prisoners,” you hissed, hoping to land a blow.

You heard him sit in the seat across from you and felt his foot brush yours as he crossed his legs.

“Prisoner,” he chuckled. “You are my guest Y/N and I hope that in time, you will find that I can be an excellent host.”

“In time,” you repeated, weighing the consequences of not putting up a fight when you could. How long did he plan to keep you?

He was quiet then, and so were you. The choice of words lingering between you. It wasn't until after takeoff that he spoke again. A glimpse of his face would've given you the clues you desired but the tone of his words was enough. His exhaustion from relentless thought weighed his voice to a deep baritone. Sluggish and soft.

“I have no intention of living the rest of my days in a cell,” he whispered finally.

You couldn't feel bad for him, especially when his freedom came at the cost of your own. It was clear then that confidence and swagger were a disguise, for survival. You’d seen glimmers of the real pain lurking beneath the smirks and fur coat but you hadn’t thought that he’d let it win. It wasn't a disappointment but somewhat a relief to go toe to toe with the real man.

“You can’t run forever,” you reminded him in a soft tone, trying to coax the shadow of humanity left in him out further.

“Ah,” he sighed. “It feels nice to know that you can be wrong, Y/N. For a moment, I doubted that you were human.”

The words lit an angry fire inside you. You couldn’t see him but almost heard the cavalier shrug he threw in for effect. The fabric over your eyes covered the tops of your cheeks hiding the angry flush. You hated him for making this complicated. You hated yourself even more, for not screaming when you had the chance.

Except for the occasional page turn, the rest of the ride was silent, which was unusual for the two of you. There’d been an instant dialogue since the very first time you’d met a few weeks ago. Since then, quiet moments had been rare.

________

The Baron’s private plane had landed an hour ago, but no one was on the tarmac yet. It’d taken you, Sam, and Bucky that long to come to terms with the uniforms chosen for the night.

“You know you don’t have to Y/N.”

You rolled your eyes and glared at Sam through the small airplane mirror.

“I’m fine,” you reassured him before going back to gawking at the dress. Tight but not too short, seeing as you were posing as a baroness tonight in the mission to Madripoor. Sheer black fabric slung over one shoulder, sewn onto a bustier underneath. Simple. Elegant. You’d never worn anything like it.

Sam shook his head, mumbling something about this being a bad idea.

“It’s better than the Air Force uniform,” you smiled, knowing full well that that’d get at least a chuckle out of him. It did, earning the both of you a glare from Bucky who was the worst off tonight.

“No time like the present,” Zemo called from the front of the plane. The men left you, bickering about whose outfit was worse. You tried to follow but the only piece of jewelry, a silver charm necklace, put up a fight.

“Allow me?”

Zemo’s voice made you jump. He leaned against the door, with a hand outstretched towards you. Now that half the audience to entertain was gone, he looked more forlorn; less self-assured.

You nodded, moving your hair out of the way before handing the necklace to him. He smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes.

He did that a lot you had realized. After the fireworks at the beginning of the ride, he’d turned his attention to you. Smile bright, but the eye’s dead. One would think small talk was his forte but you knew better. It is an easy distraction; a way to put your opposition at ease. Regardless, you couldn't blame him for seeking to charm the only one on the flight that did not hate him.

“I don’t think that we met,” he’d stated, settling into the seat across from you. “Last time.”

“Don’t talk to her,” Bucky hissed. You knew he was trying to help but you waved him off, giving him a look that said ‘someone has to talk to him.’

“No, I’m new,” you’d told him, squinting at the artificial grin that didn’t leave his face. You guessed that conversation was difficult to come by in prison. It was a pity that he was an evil mastermind. His ability to fake friendliness rivaled the most talented US agents.

“How new?”

“A few weeks before you.”

His eyes twinkled at your commonality. They bore into yours, trying to decipher what you know of what he'd done. This look was how you knew the stories of his genius, were true. They scanned and shifted, guessing that you knew it all with one look. He was right, of course, and you thought that would be the end of it. Then, he surprised you. He asked about your family, schooling, job, passions, and interests. He spoke about the books he’d had in prison, and you teased him for even reading The Prince.

He smiled wider and wider as you spoke until Sam shot you a glare and you gave the Baron some excuse about sleep. But even when you closed your eyes, and curled up into the seat, you’d felt his eyes remain on your face.

Warm hands against your neck brought you out of the trance and back to the man who you should hate.

“It’s beautiful,” you whispered, watching his somber expression in the reflection.

“The sigil is — was, my family’s,” he stated, coming around to face you and fiddle with the charm. “You are playing the part of a baroness, after all. We need to make it believable.”

His lips curled into a soft smile at the royal word. A chill ran down your spine. Even though your conversation had been short, you hadn’t meant to enjoy it so much. Conversation was like pulling teeth with most of the people you knew, especially Sam and Bucky. And even when it came, it didn’t flow like this.

“There are worse roles,” you mused, shooting him a soft smile in return. “I could have to play the part of the mind-controlled assassin, or worse, the evil baron.”

He smirked. “Strenuous, yes. I have found that there is nothing more difficult to be, than yourself.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“You find it easy, to be yourself?”

“No, I don’t think that you are what you want us to believe.”

The words seemed to catch him off guard and you wondered the last person to show him any kindness was. Not that your words were kind.

Sam yelled some threat from the cabin about Zemo keeping his hands off of you, and you knew that your time was up. You ignored the pang of disappointment and looked up at the Baron's stone eyes.

“I am afraid that I will prove you wrong Y/N.”

You nodded and followed him out into the cold evening.

Low town was the target and as the four of you walked, the air was tense.

You nudged Bucky. “You ok?”

“Never better,” he sighed through gritted teeth.

A car appeared on the fluorescent bridge you were crossing as Zemo took his position next to you. Bucky stood on the other side of him, silent since you’d all marched out of the plane. You couldn't tell if it was memory that hardened his eyes or tonight’s assignment.

“You’re Bucky Barnes, born 1917,” you reminded the sullen soldier. “No more, no less.”

Zemo’s eyes squinted at your words, no doubt in disagreement but you avoided his gaze.

Bucky nodded and gave you a half-smile. It was as much as he could muster, especially when he had to become something he was trying so hard to forget. People have a way of finding their way back to themselves in time and you wondered how long he had left to go. The man who fought in WW2 was different from the man who fought against the Avengers. Both versions of him were different still from the man who'd turned silent in recent years.

“No matter what happens, we have to stay in character,” Zemo instructed as a car appeared on the bridge. “Our lives depend on it. There is no margin for error.”

You prepared yourself for the night ahead where you would look at the Baron with lust. It would feel strange to see him as something other than interesting and distrustful. Attraction to him was not far-fetched. He had a strong face and a sultry accent, but you stood on opposite sides of the moral spectrum in the end. Unfortunately, your realism in love hadn’t left you very open to romantic connections. From the little experience you had, it was clear that couples didn’t work if they didn't have a common goal. Yours was not the destruction of your friends and his was not to make the world a better place.

An arm snaked around your waist, cutting off the train of thought. You jumped and looked wide-eyed at Zemo.

“We are newlyweds, yes?”

His words sounded more like a question but a smile played on his lips. You nodded, unfamiliar with the feel of a confident man at your side.

“Right,” you confirmed, being the first one to break eye contact.

The car doors opened and you knew the driver was the first person to judge the performance. You let Zemo pull you towards the car and then hesitated as he walked to the passenger side. You glanced to the middle seat between Bucky and Sam in the back. Sensing your hesitation, Zemo pulled you close.

“Your performance has begun, Baroness Zemo.”

You smiled like he’d whispered a sweet nothing in your ear and drew close to return the favor.

“I’d keep my last name,” you breathed, earning a soft chuckle.

Despite the nerves, you let him pull you into his lap and tried your best to look lovesick. It wasn’t as difficult as you thought as his large hands held your waist, and one of your legs. He looked ahead, with a smug smile and ran small circles on your bare leg. The rush of goosebumps and the hitch of your breath gave you away within seconds. His smug smile turned devious in the reflection on the window.

“Das hast wunderschöne Augen.”

He whispered into the side of your head. You didn’t speak German, and even if you did, you doubted you'd want to hear something mundane or rude. Yet you could feel the hammering of your heart in each fingertip as he spoke in his native language.

A performance you reminded yourself. Two could play at whatever he was doing. You turned to glare at him before bringing a hand up to caress his cheek. The light scruff tickled your knuckles and you wondered what he’d look like with a beard. His brand of handsome wasn't rugged, even when he'd escaped the prison, he looked neat and clean. You rested your head against his shoulder and continued stroking his rounded cheeks. Being a few inches away from his face gave you a chance to study his features. It’d be good practice if you ever had to pick him out of a fleeing crowd, or a Madripoor police lineup.

Other powerful engines surrounded the car. Motorcycles with nosy drivers appeared in each window. He gripped your thigh harder, warning that the stakes were high, even here and it had to look real. A heat manifested between your legs, followed by a throbbing that you hoped he wouldn’t notice. It didn’t feel so much like an act anymore and in truth when ran your fingers through his hair, you did it out of desire. He sucked in a breath and gripped your waist like iron. The stern man didn't seem so impenetrable anymore, as your lips brushed his ear, following a sloppy pattern along his jaw. You ran your fingers through his hair roughly again and felt a slight gasp leave him. His eyes left the windows and found yours. Serious and challenging. His hand moved up towards the hem of your dress. The fabric put up less of a fight than you as he gripped your bare ass. He felt the heat then, releasing a noise from the back of his throat. His Adam’s apple bobbed and your kissing became frantic. Your lips buzzed from the pressure and his five o’clock shadow. His lips parted in anticipation but before you could make it, the car stopped.

Zemo released you immediately, nodding an apology to the driver. Pity, you thought, it felt like you were finally making him a little nervous.

Sam and Bucky averted their eyes as the group walked through the streets, trying to look normal. Again, Zemo slung an arm around your waist. You took this as your cue to drape yourself on his shoulder. He stared ahead like this was a death march and that a guillotine stood on the other side of the door with his name on it. He’d been here before, you remembered. The memories couldn’t have been pleasant judging by the way his mouth pressed into a tense line. Empathy came over you and you reached out to slip a hand under his coat to rest on his chest.

This broke the trance and he stared at you for a moment before a smug smile crept across his stone-cold expression. It would've annoyed you but not a second later, he reached up to hold your fingers against him. He pressed you into his sweater, rubbing each finger in an anxious pattern, the only sign of nerves at all. Even the heartbeat beneath his sweater was still steady and calm.

Zemo led you all through a packed crowd to a dim bar. The agent part of you wanted to stray from your role and look around to assess the situation. But your mind went blank as his hand dropped to your hip and guided you up against the bar. You faced a mirrored wall holding more extravagant bottles than you’d ever seen in your life.

Through the reflection, you watched Zemo claim ownership of his Baroness. Each of his hands gripped the railing on either side of you, pressing his chest into your exposed back. His large stature towered over you, but your eyes couldn't tear away from his hands. Their grip around the rounded corners was mesmerizing. In a flash, your brain conjured the image of him holding your legs apart with the same strength. You let out a shaking breath. The fur from his coat tickled your back, and you couldn't focus on his words to Sam as his breath hit your neck.

Disgruntled with the lack of vantage point, you turned in his arms, bringing your face a few inches from his. Intent on taking in the room, you rested your chin on his shoulder. People had noticed your group right away and hadn't stopped looking. You kept eye contact with some, all while kissing the Baron's neck. Only then, did you feel his heart rate quicken.

Zemo spoke to the bartender behind you, but you didn’t hear them. Again, he tested your boundaries by caressing your thigh underneath your short dress.

Newlyweds, you reminded yourself. Very horny, newlyweds.

Mesmerized by the raunchy crowd behind you, and the soft caress of his hand, you gave in again. You peppered wet kisses of longing against his jaw as he spoke to a man who’d come up on the other side of him. He swallowed hard but somehow, you doubted it was out of fear of the man that Bucky had in a chokehold a few moments later.

That was the last moment you remembered feeling calm that night. The moments after put your mission and lives in jeopardy. When the violence and fleeing had played out you'd realized that his hands had never left you. The safety of his grasp was far more dangerous than Madripoor. The feeling of relief when he’d found your waist again at Sharon’s party, had you kicking yourself.

“A very believable performance, Agent Y/N” he purred. “Well done.”

You smiled and glanced down at the few inches between the two of you. Drinking was not the best option tonight but it was too late. Vodka was already coursing through your veins.

“I’d call it compelling,” you smirked. “Not believable.”

He cocked his head to the side, eyeing you with curiosity and something else. Something ferocious that made you wonder why he didn’t have an army of devotees or a cult following. It was that look that made you question your willpower, for the first time ever.

“Why’s that?”

Exactly the question you’d been hoping for. He’d had the upper hand all night but that was going to change.

“Who would believe that I would actually fall for you,” you teased, tossing back the last of your drink.

That would’ve been the end of it for a lesser man but Zemo smiled, showing all his teeth. He was always intrigued by a challenge.

“Tell me, Y/N, who would you fall for?”

Your mouth went dry and although a smirk was still plastered to your lips, nerves rushed back in.

“As if I have time,” you laughed.

He returned the smile. “Gun to your head, then.”

The alcohol in your system whispered different answers. Irresponsible answers. Bringing them to fruition would give you more than you bargained for but you fought against them.

“I like nice men,” you whispered, watching his reaction. “Who don’t use animals for fashion.”

He chuckled and then a dark look passed over his face before he closed the gap between you. A step backward and you found yourself against a wall with nowhere to go. Zemo brought a hand to your neck, caressing the exposed skin and the chain resting there.

“Who says I am not a nice man?”

Now it was your turn to chuckle. “Your body count, history, profession…reputation.”

He nodded. “Ah, you mistake ambition and purpose for — cruelty.”

“I never said you were cruel. I know you don’t crave suffering. I know there was a reason…for what you did.”

He cocked his head again and pursed his lips, looking at you like a puzzle; something not yet solved.

The techno beat dissolved into a slower, bass-heavy, R&B song. The hand on your neck made its way down to your waist once again, pulling you in. You complied without a fight, letting the Baron lead you through a slow dance.

“Even I can be gentle,” he said after a while. “For you — I would even consider being sweet.”

The words sent shockwaves through your body, igniting every inch. He was a master of manipulation and a conniving son of a bitch who wanted your colleagues — friends, dead. And yet, your mind and body betrayed you. You squeezed him a little tighter and pulled in a little closer.

“And what about the fur coat,” you whispered, playing with the fuzzy material against his neck.

He surprised you with his laughter. He threw his head back in a genuine laugh and leaned into your neck to stifle the giggles.

“I have been in a prison jumpsuit for the last eight years, forgive me for my outdated fashion,” he cooed. You could feel the smirk against your skin.

“Is it real,” you asked, holding up the stupid furry flap.

“Of course. I am a Baron,” he responded, pulling you closer, staring at your lips.

[lost-in-yujikiri]

Blue Rose King Eugeo story summary part 2

Read Part 1 first

See the whole part here on youtube.

The team broke the Blue Rose Castle's jail, Tiese is the one who knocked the guard out when he brought food to them, much to others' surprise.

When the team reached Eugeo, he screamed "Kirito... my guards are innocent men." Kirito told him to wake up because this dream world is not real but Eugeo rejected to come back to the previous world strongly. To Eugeo this world is the only fine one for him here because the other world keeps rejecting him, if Kirito doesn't understand that then he's not his friend.

(Eugeo, you do realize that what you said would push a Kirito's berserk button nobody else would dare to push right?)

So the solution came down to be a fight between Kirito & Eugeo.

Eugeo: Just be a "good boy", Kirito! Obey me!

Kirito: If you won't listen to my words, then maybe you'll listen to my "sword". Let's dance, Eugeo! I'll remind you who your true "master" is!

(somebody in TL team is clearly having fun with this)

Kirito defeated Eugeo, and he wanted Eugeo to take his words back, to not say Kirito's not his friend, even though Eugeo can be obstinate he never gave up on Eugeo.

Tw: depression, suicidal thought

In his depression, Eugeo still couldn't stop thinking that Kirito doesn't care about him. Eugeo knows he can't live like this, he can't bear his self-hatred anymore, he wanted Kirito to just end his suffering & kill him.

Kirito would do anything for Eugeo, but... not this request, so he went to hug Eugeo.

"I'll told you to kill me, not embrace me"

"I'll do anything you want, OK?"

Kirito said he'd do anything to change the world that Eugeo hates so much, as long as he can have Eugeo back 🥲

Eugeo thinks he's unwanted in the reality he used to live in, that's why he was given this lonely world, unlike him, Kirito already has many companions and a lover. But to Kirito, Eugeo is the best friend he'd never give up. Kirito said all his fear about what Eugeo's death would bring, there are days he woke up crying about it, he fears what would happen if he broke or died (We all know that timeline too well...)

"I'm doing all this so I can be strong. So I never have to lose you! I... Eugeo!"

"I need you, Eugeo! Ever since I came here! I've always needed you! We all do!"

"Don't just pretend that everything we've been through didn't mean anything!"

"It meant a lot... You meant a lot..."

😭

So when Eugeo calmed down, his black king armor disappeared, the magical field disappeared and everyone woke up from the dream. Eugeo said he forgot what he dreamed of, they found the beast that cause the nightmares in the castle and defeated it. The whole team is mad at the tapir beast and they're so ready to tear it apart for causing Eugeo distress. Eugeo is a bit shocked at everyone's mad spirit, especially Kirito.

They found a book of a deceased man caused by the original resource of the Beast. Kirito remarked on Eugeo's depression "No matter how much he might laugh... Eugeo carries a lot of loneliness inside."

The whole team got back outside and cried so hard Eugeo was taken aback, even Ronye said she want them all to wrap around Eugeo to keep him safe. Even Medina cried tsundere tears as she resonates with his loneliness, while Kirito said Eugeo has to say everything he feels to him next time, that he doesn't have to be alone.

The specific mission ended there, they brought the Resource from the Beast to Cardinal and she chanted a spell to turn it into Divine Weapon, it turned into a bow itself, it's not the sword Kirito wants so they embarked on the next mission.

End of my recap.

[gusu-emilu]

raven sun: Ch 1/3, 4.6k

for @mdzsbingo prompts “rarepair, mission, hostile, paranoia”

Ship: Jiang Cheng / Wen Ning

Summary: Wen Ning becomes possessed by a vengeful spirit. Unfortunately, Jiang Cheng is the closest target.

Rated M, contains nonsexual but dubconny dom/sub elements in later chapters

Post-Canon

Angst and Eventual Hurt/Comfort

Antagonistic Uncles to Less Antagonistic Uncles

Dom Wen Ning

for those who saw the golden core reveal and said “needs more degradation”

Swordplay with Suibian (and all its implications)

Jiang Cheng’s plans for this night hunt did not include this much physical contact with the Ghost General.

His plans hadn't involved any physical contact with the Ghost General. Nor did they involve his right leg being immobilized by a blast of resentful energy from a tiny figurine, or limping out of a crumbling farmhouse with Wen Ning supporting him, arm around his waist. But most things don’t go the way Jiang Cheng wants them to.

As he and Wen Ning hobble out of the farmhouse, each step sending a jolt of pain up Jiang Cheng’s leg, the figurine releases a fiercer storm of resentful energy. As if angered by their attempt to escape, it kicks up dust and shards of wood that fly around them as the house collapses.

A beam crashes to the floor.

Wen Ning grabs Jiang Cheng by the shoulders and leaps forward. His jump is so powerful that it propels them through the doorway and into the forest a few dozen paces away. Jiang Cheng lands on his stomach, the wind knocked out of him, Wen Ning on top of him. They slide across the forest floor, turning up earth, until they crash sideways into a tree trunk.

Ears ringing, Jiang Cheng draws on his spiritual energy to restore his breath. He tries to stand, impatient to check how the juniors fared the attack, but he can only push up against Wen Ning without going anywhere.

Wen Ning seems to be shielding him with his body, a gesture which is thoroughly insulting.

“Get off me!” Jiang Cheng growls.

He lets his anger grow, feeds on the frustration of being trapped. He ignores the disturbing sliver of comfort that the weight of Wen Ning's body brings.

“Get off!”

The weight lifts.

Jiang Cheng sits up. “Where’s Jin Ling?”

“I’m not sure. Jin-zongzhu and the others escaped the house before us.”

“At least they got out,” Jiang Cheng says tersely.

At least one part of this night hunt is going according to plan: Jin Ling is safe.

And, he must admit, he’s been almost as concerned with keeping the other juniors safe, too. He’d taken the blow of resentful energy for Lan Sizhui, managed to shield him just in time. He’d be injured for nothing if the Lan boy doesn’t make it out of the night hunt alive.

He would’ve thought that perfect Hanguang-Jun’s perfect little child—the “most promising disciple of his generation”—would’ve been able to hold his own on a night hunt. But if Jiang Cheng must run around saving the boy…fine. He’ll do just that.

Jiang Cheng’s right leg is still locked, completely immobile. He makes it to his feet with difficulty, but quickly enough that Wen Ning doesn’t have the chance to help him. Thankfully. A few more overly attentive, patronizing gestures from the Ghost General, and Jiang Cheng might let Zidian demonstrate why Wen Ning ought to keep an appropriate distance.

Calling for his nephew, Jiang Cheng starts to make his way back toward the farmhouse, which is likely little more than ruins by now. He wonders if he’ll ever make it there to find out. He can barely manage to limp, dragging his leg behind him.

“Jiang-zongzhu, let me help—”

“Forget it. Just go ahead of me. See how the juniors are doing.”

Wen Ning just stares at him. When he isn’t ducking his head and looking at his feet, his black eyes have a soul-searching steadiness that is both chilling and disarmingly gentle. It makes Jiang Cheng want to crawl inside of himself.

“…Thank you,” Wen Ning says. “For…A-Yuan—”

“I didn’t do anything for ‘A-Yuan,’” Jiang Cheng snaps, refusing to look at Wen Ning any longer.

Wen Ning remains in place for a few moments. Then he turns and runs away, chains clinking behind him.

Last month, Jiang Cheng had to help him put those chains back on after they got knocked out of place by a demonic boar. A lovely experience for everyone.

By now, Jiang Cheng has figured out that Wen Ning keeps those chains on not just to use a weapon, but also as some strange form of comfort. Jiang Cheng doesn’t understand it. But for some reason, he just knows it’s true.

After so many night hunts, he’s developed a disturbing level of familiarity with Wen Ning’s habits and expressions. It crept up on him slowly, a few threads woven in at a time. Yet another thing that was not part of his plans.

Unfortunately, spending time in each other’s company seems unavoidable. They are both committed to protecting their nephews. If A-Ling must be friends with the Ghost General’s only living relative, Jiang Cheng will just have to grit his teeth and endure it.

At least it’s somewhat useful to know how Wen Ning fights, as it allows them to coordinate their protection of the juniors more easily. But it’s still unnerving to know the finer details, like the exact way Wen Ning likes his chains arranged, as if Jiang Cheng ever wanted to have so much knowledge about the man.

He doesn’t even care about Wen Ning.

And if he owes a debt to Wen Ning—owes a debt to protect what remains of Wen Ning’s family, too—that doesn’t affect his feelings at all.

Doesn’t even enter his thoughts…

* *  *

As willing as Wen Ning usually is to defer to others’ judgment, admitting when Jiang Wanyin is right pricks a nerve. Still, they do need to look after the juniors first, and Wen Ning can do that fastest on his own.

Wen Ning also feels a bit guilty leaving Jiang Wanyin behind while he’s wounded—especially when he’d taken that injury for A-Yuan. But there will be time to heal him later.

Maybe it's because he doesn’t have Jiejie anymore, maybe it's because he has A-Yuan to look after, but Wen Ning has become preoccupied with caretaking. Perhaps it’s for good reason. He has the ability to protect others, and he knows the lost medical techniques of the Dafan Wen. What better use for his unnatural existence than to help others? What better way to atone for the past?

He arrives back at the wreckage of the farmhouse, but it’s deserted. He returns to the forest to continue searching for the juniors.

“Wen-qianbei!” he hears from bushes in the forest near the wreckage.

“A-Yuan?”

The juniors nearly leap out of the forest.

“Wen-qianbei!” Jin Ling and Lan Jingyi excitedly call at the same time. They shoot somewhat surprised glares at each other, then hurry over along with A-Yuan and Ouyang Zizhen.

“We’ve been looking for you!” Lan Jingyi says.

“Yeah, we were really worried!” says Ouyang Zizhen.

A-Yuan puts a hand on Wen Ning’s shoulder. Fondness warms him as soon he meets A-Yuan’s gaze.

“Are you alright?” A-Yuan asks.

“Of course,” Wen Ning says, almost wanting to laugh with the relief that washes over him at seeing that everyone seems unharmed. “I’m always alright. I should be asking you.” 

The juniors all seem so happy to see him. Even Jin Ling is smiling. He still isn’t quite used to affection from them, especially not from Jin Ling.

“Is everyone okay? Any injuries?” Wen Ning asks.

He’s met with a cheerful chorus of various variations of “We’re fine.”

Except from Jin Ling, whose smile is fading. “Where’s my jiujiu?”

Wen Ning nods over his shoulder. “Close behind. But he needs help getting here.”

Jin Ling flies off to find him.

After Wen Ning has checked the other three juniors for injuries, they start inspecting the ruins of the farmhouse to search for the figurine. But Wen Ning hangs back, a feeling of dread churning inside his chest, clawing at him.

He’d already felt unusually anxious for this night hunt before embarking on it. Still, he’d been able to face it.

But he hadn’t expected the figurine’s spirit to be this powerful.

The rumors about the figurine had all been similar, and had seemed typical for a mid-level vengeful spirit. Recently, a new footpath was created to connect two villages that lay a two-day traveling distance apart, with the abandoned farmhouse as the midpoint. If a lone traveler spent the night in the farmhouse, nothing happened.

But if a group of travelers slept inside, one of them would become possessed. The possessed traveler would accuse their companions of horrible deeds and attempt to murder them all in the name of retribution.

After some research, it was discovered that the family that used to live in the farmhouse had always gotten into fierce arguments—and one day, they all killed each other inside the house. The sole witness was a small figurine of an immortal. The figurine soaked up all the family’s hatred and bloodlust until it developed its own spirit.

And developed an aptitude for possession.

It’s possible that the figurine had destroyed itself when the house collapsed, but unlikely. The juniors will have to dig it up and figure out how to pacify it.

Wen Ning watches from a distance while the juniors search through the ruins. Anxiety continues to churn inside him. It’s different from the nervous excitement he usually feels about night hunts, having never gone on a proper night hunt before his death. And it’s different from his typical parentlike worry for the juniors.

The juniors should be relatively safe confronting the spirit. They have high cultivation levels for their age, and they underwent spirit-calming rituals as infants. Their risk of possession is low.

But Wen Ning is the perfect conduit for possession. To approach a spirit this strong would be like holding a metal rod in a lightning storm.

The memory of fighting against Baxia’s saber spirit still hangs heavy over him. Almost as heavy as what happened in Qiongqi Path. Despite Wei Wuxian having taught him how to maintain some autonomy while in the clutches of resentful energy and spirits, he still has so little control over himself.

He can’t get near this spirit. He could put everyone at danger if he does.

“They’re back!” Ouyang Zizhen calls. The juniors run over to the edge of the forest.

Jiang Wanyin and Jin Ling emerge from the forest. Jiang Wanyin’s leg doesn’t look any better. He’s still dragging it along behind him, with Jin Ling supporting him the way Wen Ning had a few minutes ago.

“Jiang-zongzhu,” A-Yuan says with a small bow. “Thank you for—”

“What are you talking about? I did nothing. Get back to work,” Jiang Wanyin says before he can finish. “The spirit is in that wreckage somewhere. We should deal with it fast before something else happens.”

A-Yuan glances back at Wen Ning, looking a bit disappointed. Wen Ning just shakes his head.

“That means all of you,” Jiang Wanyin says to Jin Ling when his nephew doesn’t move from his side.

With a mix of concern and displeasure, Jin Ling helps Jiang Wanyin over to a tree he can hold for support, then joins the others. The four juniors make to leave, then stop and look over expectantly at Wen Ning when he doesn’t follow.

Wen Ning should help them search for the figurine. Should help them pacify such a dangerous spirit. But anxiety freezes him in place.

A-Yuan seems to notice his discomfort. He smiles and gives Wen Ning a tiny nod, making gratitude swell inside Wen Ning for how perceptive his nephew is.

A-Yuan steps forward. “Wen-qianbei, Jiang-zongzhu, we can complete the rest of the night hunt. Facing the spirit on our own would be valuable experience.”

“We are an ideal team,” Ouyang Zizhen adds.

“Yeah, we can hold our own!” Lan Jingyi chimes in. “The four of us even escaped the spirit’s attack way faster than you guys.”

Jiang Wanyin frowns. A-Yuan shoots a chastising glance at Jingyi.

“You’re right,” Wen Ning says, feeling a bit more relaxed. “You’re all capable enough to handle this. I’ll stay behind to heal Jiang-zongzhu. The two of us will be close by if you need help.”

The juniors head back toward the wreckage.

Jiang Wanyin side-eyes Wen Ning. “Why so eager to let them run off without you? Is the Ghost General scared of a doll?”

His words wouldn’t bother Wen Ning so much if they weren’t absolutely true. “They’re all capable cultivators, and Jin Ling is a sect leader. They’ll be fine without us. But you need to be healed.”

“Worry about them first. I’ll last until the spirit is dealt with—and that’ll happen a lot faster if you put yourself to work.”

“They’ll be safer if both of us are on our feet and ready to help if they call.”

Jiang Wanyin sighs. “Fine.”

He winces as Wen Ning helps him to the ground, his back propped against the tree. Wen Ning kneels beside his injured leg. He lifts Jiang Wanyin’s violet robes and trousers up to his mid-thigh, revealing a black wound traveling from his ankle up to just below his knee.

“It’s a curse mark,” Wen Ning says in disbelief.

The skin hit by the curse is blackened and swollen, the muscle tissue immobilized. Currents of resentful energy snake along the wound’s surface like a second set of veins outside the skin.

It looks just like the curse mark Wei Wuxian transferred to himself from Jin Ling, but worse. Now both Wei Wuxian and Jiang Wanyin have received curse marks to protect a boy that the other cares about.

Wen Ning can’t decide whether he finds that surprising or not. He knows that Jiang Wanyin cares fiercely about his family, but he also knows that he isn’t the best at following through on it. And he definitely didn’t know that Jiang Wanyin might care about any member of the Dafan Wen.

He looks up at Jiang Wanyin. “This curse mark won’t disappear until—"

“I know how curse marks work,” Jiang Wanyin snaps.

Wen Ning takes a deep breath and reminds himself that Jiang Wanyin received this wound while protecting A-Yuan. “The curse won’t disappear until the spirit’s grievances are resolved, but I can apply a charmed tourniquet to keep it from spreading up your leg.

“…Alright.”

Reaching into his qiankun sleeve of medical supplies, Wen Ning pulls out the tourniquet and begins tying it around Jiang Wanyin’s leg, just below his knee.

Jiang Wanyin tenses as he continues tying. He isn’t sure if it’s because Jiang Wanyin is in pain, or if he just feels uncomfortable with Wen Ning touching him. Probably both.

“Don’t you need a windlass to tie a tourniquet?” Jiang Wanyin asks. Remarkably, it sounds like a genuine question, not criticism.

“The purpose of this tourniquet isn’t to stop blood flow, and the charm is very effective, so it doesn’t need to be so tight. It actually needs to be a little loose so your qi can flow to the wound and suppress the curse mark.”

“Hm.”

Wen Ning could explain more. Could explain how the charm was cast, how the material of the tourniquet was chosen, how it’s designed to last for hours. He enjoyed learning details like this from Jiejie when he was young, and now he enjoys teaching them to A-Yuan. He rarely has the opportunity to share his knowledge with anyone else.

But the topic of medical operations hangs between him and Jiang Wanyin with an uncomfortable weight.

He tries to fill the silence anyway. “Even if the tourniquet did need to be tight, my arm strength is probably good enough to tie it without a windlass. Not that…not that that’s good medical practice—it’s really bad medical practice, actually—so I wouldn’t do that anyway—”

Jiang Wanyin scoffs and turns away. “Just hurry up.”

Wen Ning finishes tying the tourniquet. “Done. Wait—”

Jiang Wanyin tries to stand up. Wen Ning presses down on his shoulder to keep him in place, which earns him a perplexed glare.

Wen Ning doesn’t want to return to the wreckage just yet. Not when he doesn’t know what to do about his dangerous susceptibility to possession. And Jiang Wanyin is the last person he wants to explain that to.

Thankfully, he has a good reason to stall: Jiang Wanyin still needs more treatment.

“I have some herbs that might be able to weaken the curse,” Wen Ning suggests.

“Fine. After that, you’re coming with me to go solve whatever that doll’s grievances are.”

Wen Ning pulls out a satchel of herbs that, at one time, would've smelled sweet to him. He begins rubbing them on the curse mark as delicately as his clumsy hands can manage, while Jiang Wanyin quite obviously tries not to flinch from pain.

“You aren’t here to heal me,” Jiang Wanyin says suddenly.

Wen Ning looks up, expecting to see Jiang Wanyin scowling. What he sees instead is a surprisingly calm gaze of careful scrutiny.

“You’re scared of something.” Jiang Wanyin continues. He speaks slowly, like it’s a question he isn’t sure he should ask.

Somehow, over the course of these night hunts, Jiang Wanyin has learned to read him a bit too well.

* * *

“Well?” Jiang Cheng says. “Is there some other factor in this night hunt that I don’t know about?”

Wen Ning looks unnerved by the question, but he just continues applying the herbs, swirling them in small, gentle circles—almost caresses—with his fingers. It creates a steady stream of pain that makes Jiang Cheng grind his teeth, but Wen Ning’s touch is light enough that it doesn’t hurt more than necessary.

That alone is enough to eat at Jiang Cheng. That Wen Ning is this careful not to inflict undue pain on him—that Wen Ning is helping him at all—when the man has no reason to care about him. Has no reason to be gentle with him other than out of condescension.

But Wen Ning has let down the mask before. Let his thoughts flow freely. Although Jiang Cheng hates to admit it, Wen Ning has hurt him before.

Since then, Jiang Cheng has tried to drop the mask a second time, to get Wen Ning to reveal the spite he knows lies beneath it, but he can only catch mere glimpses.

He knows he’s hurt Wen Ning, too. Knows he deserves nothing.

Knows Wen Ning despises him.

It would just be nice if Wen Ning acted like it.

“If there’s a reason for you to be scared of something,” Jiang Cheng says, “I think I should be informed of it. Unless you’re implying that I’d be of no use even if I did know.”

Wen Ning's jaw tightens. “I’m scared of being possessed,” he says coldly, without looking up. “I’ve lost control in the past, and I don’t want to lose it again.”

The honest answer catches Jiang Cheng off guard.

Visions of how the Ghost General might have looked like at Qiongqi Path flash through his mind—visions of how he might have looked as he slaughtered dozens of cultivators, as he drenched his hands in Jin Zixuan's blood.

Anger seethes through his veins. But something else rises in him, too.

Something almost like…pity.

Wen Ning lifts Jiang Cheng’s leg slightly to rub the herbs on the underside of his calf. His touch is still agonizingly gentle.

“You seemed fine on every other night hunt,” Jiang Cheng says, unsure how to respond.

“This spirit is especially skilled at possession.”

“If you’re so worried about it, what would you do if the juniors called for us right now? Ignore them and keep hiding?”

Wen Ning pauses, resting his hand on Jiang Cheng’s knee. He stares at the ground, his shoulders hunched. “…I’d go help them.”

“And if you get possessed?”

“A-Yuan knows what to do if that happens.”

“And if ‘A-Yuan’ can’t do anything?”

Wen Ning looks up at him.

“Then you can strike me with Zidian.”

A chill runs down his spine.

He’s struck Wen Ning with Zidian three times before—all in the same night, the night Wen Ning struck him with truth in the form of a sword’s blade.

He would strike Wen Ning with Zidian again if he had to. He wouldn’t hesitate. He knows he wouldn’t.

The only problem is that—

“Zidian can only exorcise spirits from the living,” he says.

The spiritual weapon can’t easily incapacitate Wen Ning either. Normal fierce corpses can be taken out in one blow, but Wei Wuxian, in his infinite brilliance, made Wen Ning several times stronger. Zidian would have to nearly destroy Wen Ning to incapacitate him.

Not that Jiang Cheng would have…hesitations about that. Not if it came to protecting A-Ling.

At least, he tells himself he wouldn’t.

Wen Ning is silent for an uncomfortably long time.

“You’re skilled enough of a cultivator to stop me,” he finally replies.

Jiang Cheng ignores how that makes the tiniest bit of heat rise to his cheeks. Silence envelops them again, and Wen Ning resumes rubbing the herbs into the curse mark.

Jiang Cheng has seen Wen Ning heal the juniors on night hunts before, but he’s never needed to be treated by Wen Ning. It feels strange to depend on him.

The thought gives him an inexplicable urge to kick something. Maybe Wen Ning. Maybe himself. He holds himself back for the sake of sparing himself another leg injury.

“What’s Lan Sizhui’s method to stop you?”

“…It’s not necessary for you to know.”

“If there’s a risk of you losing control and harming my family again, I deserve to know how to prevent it.”

Wen Ning’s expression hardens.

That came out more accusatory than he intended.

As if he cares. As if he was ever able to meet gentleness with anything but a daggered tongue.

“Unless you don’t truly believe I’m capable enough to manage it? Unless that was a lie?” Jiang Cheng continues, his tone biting.

He’s already dug himself a ditch. Might as well look like he intended it. At least dealing with an angry Ghost General is less sickening than receiving his kindness.

Jiang Cheng narrows his eyes. “Or maybe you don’t believe I’m reliable enough?”

“I do believe in your capability,” Wen Ning says sharply. It sounds like an insult. “But this has nothing to do with you, Jiang Wanyin.”

Jiang Wanyin, not Jiang-zongzhu. He’s losing Wen Ning’s respect. Good to know. As if he ever had it.

“Nothing to do with me?”

“No. This is personal, and I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Personal?” Jiang Cheng leans forward, already regretting the words he’s about to say. “Do you think the death of my sister’s husband isn’t personal for me, too?”

Wen Ning rises to his feet. At this angle, he towers over Jiang Cheng. The smallest bit of fear flares up inside Jiang Cheng’s chest, making him angry at himself for feeling any fear at all.

“I’m sorry,” Wen Ning says, raising his voice. “I’ve been sorry for sixteen years.” He gestures down at Jiang Cheng’s leg. “I’ve done all I can for your wound.”

He walks off, sinking into the forest. Rage and guilt erupt inside Jiang Cheng, biting at him like wolves.

“Wen Ning!”

Feeling every last bit of dignity leave his body, he manages to stand up and limp after him, using his sword like a cane and dragging his cursed leg behind himself. A pit grows in his stomach as he continues calling for Wen Ning.

Wen Ning—the one to apologize and walk away from an argument, something Jiang Cheng could never do. Just like how Wen Ning was the one to save Jin Ling in Guanyin Temple, the one to protect Wei Wuxian until the end. Of course Wen Ning is everything Jiang Cheng couldn’t be. Can’t be.

“The juniors are still at the wreckage!” he yells once he’s deeper in the forest. “Are you such a coward that you’re just going to abandon them?

“They’d be in more danger if I’m nearby,” says a quiet voice overhead.

Wen Ning is sitting in a tree, not bothering to look down.

Jiang Cheng sighs. He’s found Wen Ning, and now what is he going to do? Say he was wrong? Grovel at the base of the tree?

Having spent most of his life picking up broken pieces, always cleaning up Wei Wuxian’s messes, he should be better at putting back together the things he breaks himself. Instead he always cuts himself on the shards.

He thinks of how Wen Ning saved his life once. Thinks of how much A-Jie liked Wen Ning. The pit in his stomach deepens.

“Back then, maybe you weren't able to stop it from happening. I don't know,” he says, painfully aware of how much he’s stumbling through this already.

No response.

“But you need to snap out of it. You fought against Baxia’s possession in Guanyin Temple."

Still no answer. He'd rather just shake Wen Ning out of the tree at this rate. He grits his teeth, shoves down his impatience, and forces himself to keep talking.

"Look, you could’ve killed Jin Ling. But you didn’t. This figurine spirit can’t be any stronger than Baxia. You can fight it.”

Wen Ning shifts slightly.

“If you give up on this night hunt and the juniors…if you give up on Lan Sizhui—”

That gets Wen Ning to look down at him. He resists the way his body wants to shrivel up under that critical gaze.

“You’ve gotten control back before.” Jiang Cheng swallows and turns his face away. “You could do it again.”

You’ve saved A-Ling plenty of times. I trust you with him, gets stuck in his throat.

Wen Ning still doesn’t speak. The restless silence of the forest is too uncomfortable for Jiang Cheng to keep his mouth shut.

“What you can’t be doing is giving up on protecting the juniors! If you’re not an ally on these night hunts, then I’ll have to consider you a—”

“If it came to it, I would still face the spirit.” Wen Ning’s voice is quiet. Tranquil.

Jiang Cheng scoffs. "Good."

Wen Ning leaps down from the tree, landing with a loud thud. It’s a wonder his legs don’t break with the way he always throws himself around, as if he doesn’t care about looking after his body. Jiang Cheng finds himself startled that he wants to tell Wen Ning to stop doing that.

“I should still keep my distance from the wreckage if I can,” Wen Ning says. “Thank you for…I’m…I’m surprised that you—"

“Well, then don’t be so damn surprised,” Jiang Cheng hurries to interrupt before he has to hear more of Wen Ning’s deadly honesty. “We’re going back to the edge of the forest now.”

Wen Ning doesn’t try to support Jiang Cheng while they walk back. He isn’t sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but he’s grateful for the space either way.

Just before they reach the last line of trees, a loud boom comes from the direction of the wreckage, followed by shouts from the juniors.

Jiang Cheng tries not to panic.

Even if things get messy, the juniors can handle themselves.

He forces himself to limp faster—

“Wen-qianbei!”

“Jiujiu!”

Fuck!

“Jin Ling!” Jiang Cheng calls.

He tries to run toward them, but he can only limp so fast. He unsheathes Sandu to fly instead.

Can’t fly.

The damn curse wound must be distorting his spiritual power—

He turns to Wen Ning. “Come on!—”

His stomach sinks.

Wen Ning is frozen in place, staring blankly ahead.

Jiang Cheng grabs him by the arm. It trembles beneath his hand. “Wen Ning! We need to move!”

“I...I…”

“Now!”

Wen Ning sinks to his knees.

The juniors' cries grow louder.

Fuck.

[alyss01]

|[It's a family business]|

Comfy cartel x F!reader

Part 1

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[part 1] [part 2] [part 3] [part 4]

Genre: Mafia AU/ action

Word count: 1.7K

Requested: no

To request: it is possible to request a comfy cartel fanfic, requests are open!

Synopsis: Corpse joins the cartel, and soon you accompany him, together with Rae, Lily, Sykunno and Toast to a new opening casino to deal with some unpaid debt.

Warnings: talk about murder, crimes, blood

A/n: I really wanted to make this and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out! It started as a one shot and then quickly progressed to what will most likely be 4 parts. I could've posted them as one but this was easier with writing it and managing to space out things. It will update weekly most likely, and it's possible to request one shots for the comfy cartel!

Masterlist

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You sat across from Toast on the table, his dark glasses covering his eyes as he patiently waited, a map in front of him. He pulled an identical map from underneath the wooden table you sat at and replaced the one that had previously laid on the table.

His face was neutral, he didn't fight the silence that hung in the air. He looked at you as you leant back in your chair, fingers impatiently tapping the table in front of you.

"You don't have to be here you know." He spoke up, his voice carrying practiced authority that could silence an entire meeting full of arguing. Yet as he spoke to you, it had a tone of kindness to it. After all the time you spent together and the situations you had been in with one another he saw you more as his younger sister than anything else. It was a position you had acquired for most of the cartel.

As the sister of Scarra you had a lot of authority in the cartel, although it wasn't as if you needed it. Everyone, no matter how recently the cartel had taken them under it's wing, viewed you as their little sister in the hierarchy of the family.

"Don't worry about it. I want to see the new blood." Toast nodded his head a few times as if to ponder.

Today the new person Toast had scouted out would be arriving at the cartel for his first job, he'd be monitored by Sykunno.

"Are you sure Sykunno would be the best fit?" You had seen his information, they seemed far from compatible.

Toast offered you a small smile, brushing his hair back as he repositioned his glasses. His voice was confident as he spoke, a small hint of his smile could be heard in his voice, "I'm sure."

The male in front of you had always had a scarily good intuition about people, which was how he had recruited most in the cartel.

You nodded in return, but before you had the chance to even consider getting bored again, a stern knock on the door pulled your attention to it.

Toast gave a signal for the person on the other side to come in. You locked eyes with him, he was largely build, carefully dressed in a white blouse with a black vest, tie and dress pants, with white gloves covering his hands. A purple mask covered most of his face, but black curly hair framed the small piece of exposed skin he showed.

His eyes were sharp as he locked them with yours. Your eyebrow raised curiously as he returned his attention back to the male in front of him, "Corpse."

"Disguised Toast." He spoke back, his voice deep and serious as you looked him over. If you hadn't known better you probably wouldn't have been aware of the true nature of the man, despite the intimidating aura that hung around him.

"It's a bad habit to be late." You spoke up as you calmly leant back in your chair, usually when you accompanied Toast to these kinds of things you stayed silent in the background as you observed.

Toast gave you a curious look for that, it was largely hidden by the glasses on his face but it was obvious for you after all the years.

Corpse stayed silent to your remark as you narrowed your eyes, "you'd do good to change the habit before doing something you'll regret." The message in your words was clear, don't pull this again if you want to keep your spot in the cartel.

He gave you a silent nod as Toast returned to the topic, "to start off, you'll be disposing of someone. Sykunno will accompany you as your guardian." He pushed the document to the end of the table where Corpse grabbed it and opened it briefly.

"You'll be reporting back to me, in three days. I want it done before then." Once more Corpse nodded his head as Toast dismissed him.

He walked out of the room, being met by a calm face with a gentle smile displayed. He offered his hand to Corpse, "I'm Sykunno, happy to meet you."

"That was unlike you." Toast remarked as he turned to you, you simple leant back in your chair as you met his eyes, "he needs to know his place."

Toast nodded as he grabbed the document from underneath the table that displayed Corpse's information. He stood up as he walked to the door, closing it behind him as he left you alone in the room.

•••••••••

Sykunno was crouching in front of the body, turning to his companion with a small smile on his face, "jesus, you actually killed him." His voice was calm as he grabbed the dead man's cheek with his gloved hand.

Corpse still held the gun in his hand, he had considered pointing it at the male in front of him but something about it made him unable to actually commit to the deed.

Sykunno tilted the corpse's head around, before releasing and sliding his gloves fingers through the blood that had formed a puddle on the ground and spreading it between his finger tips.

His clean hand grabbed his phone as Corpse stood silently against the wall watching the scene in front of him. Not a single drop of blood had reached him.

"Yvonne? Yes, I'll text you the address." He stayed silent as Corpse could hear a female voice on the other side of the call, "hmh, yes that should be fine. Take it to my garden, it'll make for fine fertilizer."

Corpse curiously listened along, he had known there was more to Sykunno than the sly, calm, gentle and happy mask he wore.

Sykunno stepped away, turning back to Corpse with a gentle smile on his face as he clicked the call away and returned his phone to the pocket it originated from.

"Let's go, Toast will be happy to hear the results."

They calmly walked out of the building as a small van stopped in front of it. Corpse's hand automatically moved to the gun in it's holster at his side.

The movement from Sykunno's hand made him stop as the back doors of the van opened, he started walking past it as a female with blonde hair and pink ends carried out a small trolley with cleaning supplies displayed.

Sykunno offered her a small nod of his head which she returned. Corpse could distantly hear her speak to the front door man, "I'm the cleaning service that was ordered for today."

"There was no such thing."

"I've been send here by Y/n, ask the front desk, they'll know." The man left his position for a second as he leant inside, his voice muffled, before turning back "please, come in."

He followed Sykunno as they fled the scene.

•••••••••••

Lily granted you a smile as you entered the room, beside her sat Toast and at the head of the table sat your brother, Don Scarra.

"Brother." You greeted him first as you moved to the table. A fond smile formed on his face, "sister, how have you been?"

You returned the genuine smile as you sat down, "The days have been interesting with our newest member." Scarra nodded his head thoughtfully.

It had been a few weeks since Corpse had accomplished his first task. Sykunno still watched over him but they were more akin to companions than a guardian. They had gone of a few other tasks, and for now Corpse had the trust of the cartel.

The other two greeted you as well as Toast slid a file over the table towards you. "What do you think?"

You had started in the cartel innocently enough, despite your older brothers desperate attempts to keep you out. Your contacts were simply unparalleled.

Besides that you were an important person, both in and out of the cartel, and eventually Scarra had decided it was safest for you to become part of the cartel, seeing as there was no safer place for you to be.

Your eyes scanned the pages, nodding your head as you read. A large celebration party for the opening of a new casino, the owner however refused to repay the cartel according to Ludwig who was in charge of the cartels money flow. He was divine in covering up the hardest of situations to the government and cheating the system.

The price had apparently build up to the amount where only his life would suffice, although as you looked at the mans information you doubted if even that was enough.

"I'll be able to get some people in, but for that I will have to attend myself as well." You shot a glance at Scarra, who had always been seriously opposed to you working in the field.

"Then we'll find another moment." Scarra spoke up as you had expected him to do, this wasn't the first time and you had a hunch it wouldn't be the last either.

Toast spoke up, "with all due respect, Don Scarra, but the target has been in hiding for months. This may be the only shot we have until he disappears again."

Lily repositioned her hat, the white flower on it changing position with the movement as she turned to the Don, "this would be a low risk mission, the guest list has been screened by Micheal, so the only obstacle will be the security. I've made him download the building plans and he'll be on comms to guide us through."

Scarra however still didn't seem convinced as Toast continued on Lily's reasoning, "beside that, we can send enough people to accompany her. We'll need her reputations to get into the VIP areas where he'll most likely stay hidden. Y/n will be kept out of danger at all costs."

Scarra seemed convinced as you turned to him, knowing you wouldn't have a say in the matter, "so who will accompany me?"

[therealmrsobi-wankenobi]

Beskar and Glass

[Not my gif]

Tech x Original Character

Summary: Tech and Kaieba have been close since she came to stay with Clone Force 99 as their medic. Both starting to feel more than just the friendship kind of love. When Eba, as she told the clones to call her, stays after Order 66 is executed both the Mandalorian and Clone's feelings start to grow.

Warnings: fluff, fluff, and more fluff, blushy!Tech, flirty!Kaieba, kissing, idk what else lol

Enjoy!!

[Part 1 of ?]

One more mission. One more success. That was the routine. Or at least the routine Tech had fallen into. None of his brothers even realized it but he did. He was the only one to notice, that was until she showed up. Kaieba Dara. The most inquisitive and beautiful and educated woman he'd ever met. She was different from his brothers that was for sure. Eba, as she'd told his brothers and him to call her for short, somehow caught on to what Tech was saying automatically which made it very easy for the two to get close. But Tech felt more even though he didn't show it, he never really could show emotions that well. But Maker, anytime there was a flirty remark made from her, his face would be bright red and there would be stuttering. She made him feel just....right. But he wouldn't admit that to anyone, not one of them. A regular day in between missions was upon them. Floating through space, Dara huddled into the co-pilot's seat, a blanket over her shoulders. Tech noticed the way her eyes got lost in the stars and how her face softened once she relaxed. That look was more extraordinary than anything he had seen in his life. Prettier than the galaxy itself. He had popped out from under the control panel to take a quick look. Eba could feel someone staring, she glanced over and raised an eyebrow. "Need something Techie?" She smirked being able to tell he was flushed, even under the helmet, and quickly wedge himself back underneath. "N-No..I mean no! I am perfectly fine!" He said, she could hear the fluster in his voice even through the modulator. She grinned and hugged her legs. "If I knew I could make you blush this easy by sitting in here while you worked I'd have done this week's ago." An audible thud came from under the panel and he popped back up, pulling his helmet off and giving her a dirty look. He attempted to argue but the look he was getting wasn't helping. "Face's getting redder Techie," She said tapping the tip of his nose with her finger. He could've melted right there thanks to the nickname. She giggled and stood up going to her quarters "If you need me you know where I'll be." She smiled with a little wave. Tech stayed back watching, noting her movements. He sighed and laid back down, helmet back on, and going to work. When he finished up he walked to her room contemplating knocking, asking if he could come in. As soon as he went to knock the door came flying open. "Tech! I was just coming to find you love!" She said practically bouncing. His face tinged pink at the use of the word 'love' especially since it was being used towards him by the girl of his dreams. "O-oh..what did you require me for?" She drug him into her room. "You remember that little droid I picked up at the junkyard?" He nodded as she picked up the ID10 seeker droid, "I got her fixed! I just need your help programming her." Tech's eyes wandered back to her face again. Her eyes bright, almost glittering, she seemed overjoyed that he was willing to help he assumed. She started to explain what she wanted done with the droid and what programming she'd need. "I want her to be a companion droid. For when you guys are gone and I dont go to help. When it's just Omega and I, so we'll have someone else around." He nodded and looked back to the droid, "That will be fairly simple. I can have it done by tomorrow, Cyar'ika." Kaieba looked at him smile even bigger. "I could kiss you Tech!" she said throwing her arms around him. 'I wish you would,' he thought looking back at the droid. He gently picked it up and flashed a smile before she kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Techie. You have no clue how much this means to me." She could see the goofy look he got and her smile grew, "Someone like the kisses, hm?" He flushed redder and looked away. She sat down into her desk chair, still smiling but a thinking look on her face. Tech knew that look, contemplating something. She sighed and looked at him blushing a touch. "Tech, do you have a crush on me?" She grinned at the thought. His face went crimson as he

attempted to sputter out a response, she laughed. "I mean it's perfectly fine if you do, darling," her face turned a little redder "I like you too ya know." He quickly made eye contact. He squeaked out a questioning 'You do?' She gave him a quick nod, "I thought I made it a touch obvious how much I flirt with you." His yellow tinted eyes kept traveling from her face to the floor. Now he was contemplating things, when he finally looked up he said "But you flirt with my brothers." She looked down with a slight laugh. "I flirt with everyone Techie," he looked at her, the crimson getting darker. She stood up and gently put a hand to his cheek, "Face has stayed red," a slight grin creeping over her lips. He leaned into her touch, cold hands felt nice against the heat of his skin. 'Cold hands, warm heart..' He told himself, closing his eyes leaning further into her. He had heard her say that to Omega and Wrecker once when they had asked why her hands were always so cold. Always her reason. It was what he'd hung on to, one of the memorable quotes and his favorite. Tech finally came back to the moment, realizing how close they were. He could've exploded with happiness. He was so in love, his actions took hold and before he could stop himself he turned his head, pressing a gentle kiss to the inside of her palm. His mind wandered, not wanting to leave that moment. Wishing he was in a time loop. A gloved hand came up to rest on her's. Even through the armor he could still feel her press closer, tracking her grey eyes, seeing them flick from his almost honey colored ones to his lips. Back and forth. "Oh kark it." She said seemingly to herself before her lips slammed into his, holding him in a kiss that was worth the wait. His hand tightened around the bands tattooed on her bicep, holding her close. When they both pulled away, huffing trying to catch their breath a smile crept along both their faces. She kept him close not wanting to let go just yet, giving him another quick kiss and leaning further into him. She mumbled "I've been waiting to do that for a while," as she wrapped arms around his neck. Eba's fingers found the little ringlets at the nape of his neck and gently toyed with them, she smiled "Hair's getting long too," Strong arms went around her waist, as he mumbled sweet nothings. They stayed like that for Maker knows how long. She chuckled and kissed his forehead, "Techie, babe, you're gonna have to let go sometime soon, I gotta get my armor cleaned up." He huffed "Very well," he gently let go, gave her another kiss and took the droid from her desk. Tech flashed a smile and slipped out of her quarters. Kaieba's heart melted as she leaned against her bed frame with a goofy grin. She picked up her helmet and hugged it to her chest, humming a tune all of her own.

(Hiiii!! I hope yall liked this! Will be another part soon! Love yall <3)

[adaodinson]

Wrong place, wrong time

Finally, here’s the second part, it’s a bit short but I think it’s not so terrible. I hope you guys enjoy it. I’m sorry it took a while for me to post it but I wasn’t getting any inspiration. I honestly hope this is good.

Here’s Part 1

Summary: You needed to get in, seal the deal and get out. That would have been easy if a certain group of three men hadn´t been making business with Selby at the same time as you were.

Relationships: (different endings, you’ll choose) Bucky x reader, Sam x reader, Zemo x reader.

Warnings: Mentions of death and past trauma.

Part 2

You rolled and twisted all night. You didn´t get one hour of sleep and Sharon was already hurrying everybody into leaving.

You would go with the guys after visiting the man that had recreated the serum, so you staying in Sharon´s apartment wasn´t an option. You wanted to argue, knowing you would only be a load, but Sam and Bucky guaranteed you would be fine, that they would protect you, so to not cause any more trouble, you agreed.

You walked as a group between the containers until Sharon found the one you were headed to. It was empty, but your love for movies and secret doors forced you to look for an entrance, and just as you were about to give up, you found it. You pushed the wall reveling a hidden door and walked through it. You were too intrigued to look behind you and catch the surprised faces Sam, Bucky and Zemo had.

-And she thought she was gonna be a load- Zemo laughed, and as much as Bucky and Sam wanted to roll their eyes at Zemo, they found themselves nodding and even chuckling in agreement.

You shortly remembered you had no way of defending yourself, so you quickly turned around and Bucky seemed to catch your thought, because he placed his hand on your back, gave you a reassuring nod and sent you to walk behind him, covering you protectively.

It was hard not to admire the metal-armed guy. Just by his actions it was pretty clear he had been through a lot, and that he wanted nothing more than to help. You knew a bit about the Avengers, only what you had seen in the news occasionally, but you didn´t know much about any of your traveling companions, only what they had told you so far.

Zemo and Sam were following closely behind you, and they too couldn´t help but admire the view they found in front of them. Sam, since Selby died, refused to let you get involved in more issues, which is why he didn´t immediately react and helped you when you were escaping, but now that you were practically stuck with them, he couldn´t help but thank Zemo for helping you, not out loud, of course. Zemo, on the other hand, had many mixed feelings. He had felt the need to protect you since he saw you, he almost laughed at how out of place you seemed when in Selby´s office. He couldn´t deny the growing feeling of wanting to know everything about you, but it was hard; he knew his wife would have wanted him to be happy and move on, but he was sure that, giving the circumstances, he had no chance with you.

As you got closer to your target, you heard the guy singing along a song you knew. It was hard to fight the impulse of singing as well, but you weren´t going to compromise the whole mission just to get a few seconds of one of the things you enjoyed doing the most.

Before they called the scientist out, Sam led you to a corner and asked you to stay there, he didn´t want to put you at risk. You silently obeyed.

The following events happened way too fast. Sharon warned the guys that the bounty hunters were outside; the guys got information from the scientist but lost whatever other thing he could say because Zemo shot him as Sharon arrived. You were in shock. You had never seen anyone die before, not like that, and it hurt Zemo deeply. Knowing he had to do that with you there, he hated himself for causing such hurt in you, but it had been necessary. You didn´t want to understand, you didn´t want to think about it, or talk about it. You were sure Zemo had his reasons, you didn´t justify him, at all, but you didn´t want to ask.

An explosion followed the events, and if Sam hadn´t gone back for you, you wouldn´t have heard Bucky calling your name because of the high pulsating sound that you had in your ears as a result from the explosion. Sam threw his arm around your waist and guided you out. The warm feeling of his body helped a little bit, you were more focused and the sounds returned to you.

Bucky and Sam were arguing about god knows what when you saw him. Zemo was wearing a purple mask (that you would have found insanely hot if he hadn´t just shot a guy). He was racing on top of the containers, and in agile and fast movements he knocked three guys and caused an explosion (you didn´t see how) that got rid of the other ones.

It was Bucky´s turn to grab your hand and lead you to a container, where Sam, Sharon, Bucky and you hid until you heard a roar and wheels squealing. You walked outside with a puzzled gaze, and you couldn´t help the laughter that came out from you as you saw Zemo in a beautiful, shining car.

-Fully charged- he said with a huge smirk as he winked at you. You giggled like a schoolgirl and hoped no one had noticed the redness in your cheeks. You headed for the front seat, and from the inside Zemo opened the door for you. Sharon said goodbye and walked away.

-I apologize, it wasn´t my intention for you to see that- Zemo said softly and with a truthfully regretful face. He was talking about him shooting the doctor.

-Look, I won´t say I understand, but again, I know nothing about what´s going on so I´m not gonna judge you. I might be a complete pacifist, but I can understand we all have our reasons to do what we do, and, well, you are consistent in your words and actions-.

Sam and Bucky were fighting about who would take which place, but as they heard the conversation going on between you and the Baron, they both stopped to listen. Zemo looked at you, waiting for you to elaborate.

-What I mean is, you said you believe the serum needs to be destroyed, so ending the person that knew how to recreate it seems like a step for that- Zemo was left speechless. You made it clear you didn´t agree or approve of what he did, but you were still saying you tried to understand, and you recognized you weren´t one to judge him. Each time you opened your mouth, the three were stunned. For a moment, Bucky told himself you would be an ideal person to talk to about everything he had gone through, if you tried to understand Zemo, maybe you would be able to help him to stop seeing himself as a monster, but he quickly scolded himself for having that thought, remembering he knew you from less than two days.

You were now inside Zemo´s jet. To say you were impressed was a complete understatement. You had never seen such luxury, and your three new friends find it insanely cute how you got excited over a fancy glass of champagne, and how much you praised Oeznik for the wine he offered.

Shortly after, you were all at Riga. Bucky excused himself and went for a walk, and Zemo showed the safehouse you would be staying at. It was small, but still managed to be fancier than all the houses you had ever lived in. It was cozy and you had a room of your own, thing that you appreciated. You wouldn´t have been able to keep your composure if having to sleep next to any of the guys.

-Here, I sent Oeznik to buy some clothes for you- Zemo handed you three huge bags filled with what seemed to be comfortable and fashionable clothes.

-Wait, what? Oh you didn´t have to, here I´ll pay you for them and please, where´s Oeznik? I need to thank him as well…-Zemo didn´t let you continue.

-Hey, these are on me, and you can thank Oeznik tomorrow, he´s staying somewhere else, for his safety-. You would have argued and even tried to force Zemo to grab the money you were offering, but something on his eyes said he needed to do this for you, so instead, you hugged him.

His body felt still and hard at first, but he slowly dropped the bags he was carrying and complied. You quickly separated and headed for your room in order to change.

Once you had a fresh set of clothes, Sam and you decided to make something to eat. Pasta pesto was what you decided to make. While the pasta was cooking and after the sauce was done, you couldn´t help put cover your finger in oil and splatter it in Sam´s face. He looked at you in shock and you immediately regretted the action, feeling completely embarrassed, but before you knew, he acted.

-Oh, hell no!- he said as he smashed an egg against your head. You laughed out loud and continued looking for things to throw at him. This escalated to the point in which Zemo, that was siting calmly across the room, ended covered in flour (no, he didn´t participate in the food fight), and when Bucky arrived he could only see two children playing behind the counter.

-Guys- Bucky announced, calling you and Sam´s attention and stopping your giggles.

-The Dora Milaje are after Zemo, I managed to get you some more hours, but they aren´t happy-.

-Thank you for defending me, James- Zemo said with a smirk and Bucky just responded with a gruff.

-Wait, who are those? What will they do to Zemo?- You asked as you cleaned the cinnamon that covered your arm.

-They are Wakandan warriors, implacable ones, and they want to take Zemo back to prison- Your heart sank at the idea of not seeing him again. You looked at him with obvious sadness in your face.

-But you can stop them right? They won´t take him?- Your heartbroken voice shattered all three man, but they weren´t gonna lie to you.

-I can´t do anything, they have the right to imprison him, and nothing I do or say will change that- Bucky finished. Zemo turned to you and gave you a reassuring smile. You read his lips saying I´ll be fine, but you didin´t want to say goodbye, to any of them, why did you have to?

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@bry-97