#don't make that face being dead has its advantages

[ozzgin]

Yandere! Yokai Harem x Reader (II)

The two yokai men reach an agreement and you begin your journey together, searching for clues regarding the mysterious case of your incomplete reincarnation. You learn about the third of the Legendary Yokai, a gargantuan monster worshipped in times of war.

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Character Guide]

The next swish of the mysterious man's sword is parred by Kiritsubo, who managed to make his way to you in time.

"Wait! It's not entirely him, Murasaki, I can explain!" He shouts frantically.

"So you let him live. This is why you've never been good for anything." The dark haired man snarls in a low voice, disgust seeping through his sharp teeth.

It becomes obvious rather quickly that he has the advantage in terms of battle experience. You can only stare in fear, stuffing your wound with your jacket sleeve. What else can you do? You're bleeding profusely and if a demon of Kiritsubo's stature cannot compete, you'd be even less helpful.

"Listen to him, man, I genuinely don't know anything about your master!" You beg as your limbs are flooded with a prickling sensation. They're slowly going numb. "Please. I just want to go home."

Damn it. You have no idea whether the bleeding will stop anytime soon. Is this how you die? You won't even get a proper burial. Even worse, your family will live on thinking you vanished without a trace, unaware you've been stabbed to death by a crazy jackass in feudal Japan. You wish you could make them stop.

You squeeze your eyes tightly, trying to think of a way to escape, when you hear both men groan in pain. You look ahead to see them on the ground, clinging tightly to their chests, faces twisted in a grimace. Huh? They couldn't have killed each other in the few seconds they were out of your view. What is going on?

After a few agonizing moments, the yokai seem to calm down. Kiritsubo is gasping for air, clumsily pulling himself back up. Murasaki remains on the grass, forcing himself to appear collected despite the cold sweat coating his forehead.

"That's...what...I...meant..." The silver haired demon groans between hitched breaths. "Whew. You see it now, don't you? She doesn't emanate enough power to pull this off. It's coming from somewhere else."

Murasaki clicks his tongue in visible annoyance.

"So then, what do you suggest?"

"I don't know. But something is stopping you from killing her and there's a chance she's connected to the source."

"What are you guys whispering about?" You inquire, crawling closer towards the horned men. "And why did you suddenly collapse? You scared the hell out of me!"

"You didn't feel anything?" Kiritsubo questions you with raised eyebrows.

"Besides the, I don't know, stab wound? No, thankfully." You respond sarcastically.

Without a word, Murasaki stands up and approaches you. He crouches down to your level and nonchalantly slaps your hand away from your shoulder.

"Hey!"

"Have you ever tended to a wound in your life? You're shit at it." He uses his sword to cut off your sleeve and folds it over your gash with calculated movements. You hiss at the pain and glare at him. "Bite down on a stick if you can't handle it. Better than being dead."

The white haired yokai flashes you an awkward but reassuring smile.

"He might be an ass about it, but he knows what he's doing."

"Why are you helping me, anyways?" you point out, somewhat wary. "You literally tried to kill me a moment ago."

"I changed my mind. You'll help us find the damned bastard or whatever it is he's using to control us."

"What, the priest? Hell no, I'm going back to my world. I've had enough action for the rest of my life."

Murasaki finishes bandaging you and gives you one final press, almost as if messing with you, and you wince. He stands up and slides his sword back in its sheath.

"If you focus a little, you will find there was no question or request in my words. I'm not negotiating with a weakling like you."

Kiritsubo squats down before you and claps his hand together, pleadingly.

"Please think about it, (Y/N). I know you don't owe us anything, but there's a chance we could finally break the seal and be free. If you'd consider helping us. You can walk away, but that won't change the fact you're part of Abe no Nakamaro. He will want his powers back at some point, and we can protect you when the time comes."

You cross your arms and frown thoughtfully, pondering the options. He did save you twice already. So in a way, you're indebted to him. And if he's right, and you will have to deal with more crazy encounters in the future, it's probably better to have two powerful demons by your side.

"Alright, alright. I'll help you." You exclaim with a confident nod.

Kiritsubo grins, satisfied, and Murasaki huffs and looks away. There's a prolonged silence as you wait for them to continue with further instructions, but the men remain quiet.

"So...what now?" you eventually speak up.

"Oh. I thought you knew where to go next." the silver haired man retorts, confused.

"Idiot. She's not a compass." Murasaki scolds him. "Can you stand?" He adds, turning to you. "There's a shrine a few kilometers away that belonged to him. If we leave now, we should make it before sunset. Maybe we can find something there."

You try to prop yourself up, but Kiritsubo promptly scoops you with his sinewy arm and throws you on his back again.

"I'll carry you. Just hold on."

A faint blush dusts your cheeks, but you don't have the energy to argue it. You clutch onto his broad shoulders and nod.

The walk is uneventful and both yokai seem to be distracted. The gentle swaying is causing you to be more comfortable than you'd like to admit and your eyelids become heavy with exhaustion. Before you know it, your head drops against the toned back and you fall asleep.

By the time you open your eyes again, you've already reached your destination. You yawn and stretch, lazily scanning the surroundings. A heavy shadow looms over you and you glance up. Still groggy from your nap, you scream before you can fully process the object towering above.

It's a statue. A colossal statue of some sort of monster. A demon with thick, wide bull horns sprawling out imposingly, almost eclipsing the ridiculously muscular build. The creature has four arms, flexed in a threatening manner, with one hand gripping a heavy spear and the other a skull. The crimson light of the sunset creeps through the windows and reflects against the chiseled clay, giving the statue a devilish glow. You feel insignificant.

"That's Suma."

"W-what?" your head tilts to Kiritsubo.

"He's one of us. You might meet him soon, if he's been alerted of your presence. This is a shrine built for him, to bring good fortune during times of war."

You cannot help but gawk at the structure.

"Is it, uh, life sized?"

"Heh, almost. He's a little taller than this." He chuckles, slightly nostalgic.

You swallow dryly. Just a moment ago you thought Kiritsubo was unusually big.

"I'd rather not meet him, to be honest." You shiver at the idea.

"Don't worry about it. Now that Murasaki has joined us, you're pretty much safe from anything. He's the strongest of us." The yokai remarks with a sad smile.

"Really?"

You peek at the dark haired man, currently flipping through dusty manuscripts, and briefly observe him. Compared to Kiritsubo, he's quite slender, with noble, elegant features. And he'd be able to defeat this enormous beast? Then again, the glimpse you've caught of his swordsmanship is enough of a convincing argument.

What a bizarre gathering of creatures beyond your understanding.

You remember to look away when Murasaki grunts and throws the remaining scroll of paper. His lips form a thin line as he rakes his mind for the next step.

"Nothing here. But I'm rather certain he has to be at one of his hideouts. We'll check each and one of them if we have to." 

"Wait, are you saying he's still alive? We saw his body before Sekiya and Sakaki took him for the embalming and burial."

Murasaki scoffs at his partner's gullible nature.

"And you believed it? That parasite spent his entire life searching for ways to prolong his reign. He's probably hiding somewhere, waiting for his renewed part of the soul to return to him." 

He rests against the wall and points a clawed finger at you. 

"This must've been his solution. Releasing his remaining energy until it found a proper vessel to grow stronger, and patiently awaiting the body swap. Then we go back to being whipped dogs fulfilling his whims."

It's your turn to be outraged, twisting your mouth downwards.

"No way, I'll pound that old man into sand!" You bark and throw a jab against the air, emphasizing your threat. "As if I'd just hand myself over."

"I'm not sure if it'll be that easy, (Y/N)..." Kiritsubo glances at you with a hurt expression. "He's a terrifying, vengeful bastard."

"Not if we find him first and take him out." Murasaki counters with a glint of determination in his eyes. "Humans need to rest, don't they? We'll spend the night here and tomorrow we head out. Kiritsubo, find me a map so we can keep track of the locations. I'll bring the wood for a fire."

And with this, he marches out. Kiritsubo scurries to his duty and you quietly follow his movements. He seems to be used to executing Murasaki's orders. You hadn't considered their group dynamic much, but it appears to have some rather complex hierarchies involved. You almost wish you could witness all of them together, wondering how they'd interact with each other. 

Who knows? If you stick around, it could happen eventually. Murasaki was surprisingly easy to convince, so the other yokai might as well agree to keep you alive until you find their source of misfortune. Heh. Almost like a harem, or something. You snicker to yourself.

Which reminds you...

The fire has been lit and Murasaki mumbles something about guarding the perimeter. This time you hurry outside after him. You reach out to the dark haired man and pull on his kimono sleeve.

He turns to you, mildly irked.

"What?"

"Teach me how to use a sword." You state with the assertiveness of an order.

"Why? I can assure you I'm more than enough. I've never been defeated." He stares at you, incredulous.

"I don't want to rely on you all the time. You're already this close to being unbearable", you explain, pinching your fingers together. "Besides, if I'm going to be stuck among beasts, I'd very much prefer being the one doing the cool stuff."

And with that, you pretend to slice through an invisible enemy, whistling the sound of your sword cutting through the air. You furrow your eyebrows, imitating the engrossed expression of a seasoned samurai in the middle of a battleground. Murasaki quickly lifts a hand to his mouth - did he chuckle just now? - and responds, the faintest amusement in his voice:

"As you wish. But I'm warning you now, I won't hold back."

"I've been injured twice in less than 24 hours, I'm sturdy enough." You answer, patting your chest proudly.

Next time one of the Legendary Yokai comes for you, you won't be as vulnerable. That's for sure.

[ghostgirl101]

Being In A Relationship With Feyd-Rautha Would Be Like This...

A/N: Yes yesss, I'm back from the deepest depths of the dead, finals kicked my ass earlier but now its almost october and I'll burn any exam paper I see from this moment onwards 😀 don't even question why I used this gif, it pretty much summarises the whole headcanon lmao🖤so enjoy it and lmk if you want to be added to the taglist thing at the end. Keep in mind that requests are not open currently, as I'm catching up with ones already in my inbox for Dune and other dark fandoms.

Warnings: Kind of dark themes, mid violence.. it's Feyd Rautha, idk what to tell you 😐

Next Week's Fanfic: Headcanons for a love triangle between you, Feyd-Rautha and Paul Atreides 😎😎

☠︎︎• You got yourself into some weird territory with this one 😵‍💫

☠︎︎• If you're expecting any semblance of stability and pure romance, then I'd turn and run for the Dunes to find Paul instead, because this Harkonnen doesn't have an ounce of level sanity in him, and the amount of spiking tension you'll have to cope with on a daily basis is enough to give anyone a literal heart attack 💀💀

☠︎︎• My guesses are that you were introduced to Feyd-Rautha as either a pretty young Bene Gesserit girl chosen to weave her way into his life to continue the bloodline, or he liked the look of you when he was off-world in one instance to look over Spice production with his uncle, and took you back as a trophy because he liked the look of you. So lucky you. 🙃

☠︎︎• This boy is an absolute sadist and an unpredictable unhinged mess, so there's a lot to get used to, and even when you do get used to things, it could all flip and spin just as quickly. It would take a hell of a time to truly understand Feyd-Rautha enough to predict him one hundred per cent and longer to have his trust that you won't run off or try betraying him.

☠︎︎• There's definitely a kind of dangerous allure to him that he uses to his advantage, a smug grin on his face when he enters the arenas, most likely to make kills in your name. It wouldn't be a massive surprise if you became some figure in Giedi Prime to sacrifice the dead to, like some kind of goddess of the kill (ik that sounds dramatic as hell, but i see it happening .-.)

☠︎︎• Feyd-Rautha is absolutely not used to the concept of looking out for anyone other than himself, or feeling anything close to respect and love for anyone other than himself. So the relationship he forces between you and him is a shaky and slow-burning bond that works in its own weird ways and quirks, and adapts to him and him only, so there are a lot of adjustments to be made on your end. Because even though Feyd isn't sensitive in the general sense, he's majorly unpredictable, and one wrong word could set him off. Just, tread carefully in the early days.

☠︎︎• If you want affection in any other way than corpses and bruising hickies, it may take a little while, because he has no idea how to pull that kind of gentleness off, and doesn't necessarily want to either. But if it's something that'll get you to submit to his hold over you more, then he'll come round to it, and when there's absolutely no one else in the area, you might get some actual, genuine passion, though there's always a part of it mixed in with some darker conflict in him.

☠︎︎• If you want attention from him, you've got it anyway. Feyd has his own form of attachment, pretty much an obsession, but it's always tangled in with his desire to dominate and possess. It's a suffocating relationship and tipped-scales dynamic, and the only way you can really get him to see your side of things is by wording it in ways that'll make it sound like it was his idea in the first place, and that the reason is because it'll feel better for him.

☠︎︎• Needless to say, if you're a little firmer and have a dark side to you (i'll make a safe bet that you do if you want this guy x_x) this Harkonnen is a thrill seeker to the extreme, someone always looking to feel something new and raw and insatiable, like the sharpest peaks of ecstasy and adrenaline, so will he try out new stuff with you even though it sounds mental and freaky and dangerous? That's a rhetorical question.

☠︎︎• Despite all the bloodshed and his ruthless havoc in the arenas, taking lives and living for the pain of it, believe it or not, Feyd is actually vulnerable in the least suspecting way. He doesn't have an emotional connection with anyone, because he's an unhinged psycho amongst a crowd of pale unhinged psychos who expect nothing less (and.. have you watched the film?? It's confirmed that this dude has mummy issues, so... i'm just saying, look at this hc's front gif 😏)

☠︎︎• If we're talking romance and affection, just think intense. Intense intense intense, because that's the best way to describe it. His hugs are breathtakingly tight and forcefully smothering, and he doesn't kiss, he full-on makes out with you. Public or not doesn't matter, it's just an opportunity to mark you as his in front of an audience, and he'll gladly perform, so suck up your shyness.

☠︎︎• Thinking of pet names, I see Feyd-Rautha calling you either by just your true first name and having everyone else address you just by your general title, or using other typical nicknames he'd use with satisfied smirks and lingering looks. Maybe his dearest darling, because you're higher than the pets he feeds and used before you (apparently they're called harpies??!? idk what the heck lol) I don't see him saying my love or honey unless he's just being a jackass in an argument, because I'm betting my life savings this boy only eats bitter things, and he sure as hell can't define love like you can.

☠︎︎• Feyd comes across as pretty dominant in everything he does, which is right, and even if it's you questioning him, he'll throw a dangerous fit that escalates within a second no one sees, so, again you have to be clever with the way you word things. You physically and mentally cannot be independent with Feyd-Rautha, because he'll break that spirit right out of your soul. Would he physically hurt you? Not badly, no, but just don't push him, because he'll lash out without a second thought in the moment of impulse.

☠︎︎• Again with the independence, another thing that stops you from getting any is how absolutely suffocatingly obsessive he can get, which turns on his possessiveness. You're essentially an extension of himself, something that's peaceful and pure and perfect in so many ways he'll never understand and will always pull your mind apart to try to. So if any other skulking Harkonnen looking to impress you by challenging Feyd himself or devoting a kill in the arena to you, has immediately chosen the slowest, most humiliating death, that you'll probably be tied down to watch -_-

☠︎︎• And if he can tell in even the smallest way that you're drawn to someone aside from him, there's a chance you'll be kept locked up in his chambers for a month or two with no servants, nothing breathing at all permitted to trespass except him, until he's satisfied and you have him wrapped around your finger again. And that means you can get him to do practically anything if it benefits him and draws you closer, like a kill.. to maybe even destroying a whole planet, it's not impossible for him. Once he has his mind set on something, he's a hunter, he's found his target, and he'll go wild until he destroys it.

☠︎︎• He's protective in the way that he will not let you die, or get hurt in any way by any person other than him. If another Harkonnen draws your blood in the tiniest scratch, or hurts your feelings in some way, Feyd will use that as an excuse to wring their necks. You're his to look at and admire and dress up and be close to and make you feel things, so anyone else daring to step up beside you will get knocked down and fed to his darlings. The only time you'll actually see him being doting and surprisingly, cautiously gentle is when he's healing a wound without the audience of any nurses or outside help, an uncharacteristic and uncomfortable silence in the air as he concentrates and gets you back to rights.

☠︎︎• The moments where he'll allow himself to be truly close to you go unspoken, like in the cold hard nights of Geidi Prime, where he pulls you up from your bed and tugs you down the short dark corridor to dump you in his own instead, with nothing else but the need to feel smotheringly close to someone who understands how his mind works. You'll remind him of his mother, and that's all good, so long as you stay by him and with him always, because if you take the opportunity to turn and run, don't let him catch you in the act. There's a 50/50 chance he'll keep you in his rooms for the rest of the relationship, or just straight-up kill you and take in your memories and mind to possess you that way ._.

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Next Week's Fanfic: Headcanons for a love triangle between you, Feyd-Rautha and Paul Atreides 😎😎 ⊹˚₊‧───────────────────────────────────────────‧₊˚⊹

Taglist (lmk if you want to be added to this for my future Dune fanfics): @milaeth @ennycutie @nckcn @void21 @leighta @williamtt33 @deathsimp @tatumrileyslover @beebumbo @the-dark-dreamer25 @lilepad @skboo @keicdcat @1950schick @reggiesmoon @velosrantipole @yoonessa @anonymjuni @saturnhas82moons @xlxnq @frickyea-guacamole19 @meowmeeps @chalklate

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DUNE MASTERLIST ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾𖤓 ⋆⁺₊⋆ MAIN MASTERLIST

[gyuswhore]

Remembrance of Ice

"Fear does anything but land with precision."

PAIRING: ice king!xu minghao x fem spy!reader

SYNOPSIS: Xu Minghao rules over a land where the sun never rises and crops never grow, shunned by the world for their nature so ruthless it has them caged within their borders.

That is, until you land straight into the dragon's den to find the story untold.

CONTAINS: angst, fluff, enemies to lovers, kinda lore heavy, reader and minghao are in a perpetual spat, talks of military and political power, manipulation (not by minghao), ft. chan

WORD COUNT: 5.3k

masterlist

[AN]: MIKA DAY MIKA DAY MIKA DAY except im a day late bc I don't know how to time manage ANYWAY mika my love I hope you enjoy this you mentioned villain hao that one time and I stuck to it praying this is good ksjgnvrkjgn @toruro

id love to turn this into a longer, more detailed fic in the future, I really like this concept and theres loads more I could do with it. lmk if you'd like to see it hehe

edit: had to repost a couple times cuz it wasn't showing in the tags. it still isn't but idc anymore if this only reaches mika then so be it sgnkrtjg

The cold was the worst. 

Your iced pride had been swallowed down to accept the flimsy cloth the guards that pushed you into this stone dungeon had given you. Not that it was doing much to help you, the thin fabric acting as more of a permeable layer than your gear.

Huddling into yourself, you breathe out warm exhales in the hopes that it’d do something about the face you couldn’t feel anymore. With the sight of your discolouring fingernails, you hope the people in this wretched place would decide what they wanted to do with you before you succumbed to the cold. There’s a bad taste in your mouth at the thought of dying a death like this – that the cold would become your ultimate demise. 

The croning of the metal doors of your prison wrench open in what feels like a deafening sound, the screech having you throw the flimsy blanket off your body in haste. You would not be seen taking advantage of their supposed kindness. 

The two guards that trudge in are quick to tell you to stand. You nearly laugh at the prospect of doing anything they ask. 

“What do you want?” your voice has eroded to a brassy sound. 

“Stand up,” the guard repeats, his face covered in the black balaclava that wraps around everything but spares his eyes. Cold, dark, soulless. 

Your pride screamed to refute. But you were at a dead end, and perhaps it was time to accept it. Eyeing the weapons strapped to both their waists, moreso the lack thereof of your own, you make the first attempt to pull yourself up. It’s difficult, you find, needing a moment to regain your senses before pushing up completely. You tried not to show it, not wanting to look weak in front of the very people you need to show strength. 

“Hands,” the other guard gruffs out. 

You hesitate before bringing your shivering wrists forward, cursing yourself for not being able to control your own body. The cuffs they bind to your wrists are somehow even colder, and you have to consciously bite back a cursed wince. 

Your resolve begins to truly thin when you struggle to simply take a few steps forward, the muscles in your legs frozen like everything else in the room. You manage to not fall. A commendable feat when your goals went from overtaking a couple of (very armed) guards to simply not falling over like a newborn fawn. 

You feel them lightly shove you out the gates, something you should not have struggled to recover from from, but alas, you can only grit your already ground teeth as you try to not tip over entirely. The halls of the dungeons are made of the same gray concrete as your cell, the tight corridor leading you out into an only slightly larger hall with a single door at the seemingly dead end. 

The large brass handle with the distinct reptile circling its expanse stares at you. You are forced to consider the idea that these may be your final breaths. 

One of the guards squeezes out into the hall and approaches the door, three sharp knocks to the wood before you hear a muffled “come in.”

Your feet remain planted to the floor as you feel another push of the guard that remains behind you, urging you forward as the other one stands at the door, expecting you to walk inside. Perhaps some would classify this as a moment of weakness, especially when all you’ve been taught is to face death with anything but fear. But it seeps into your bones regardless. 

You wonder if all those stories you were told of fearless soldiers and sheilds of humans were as lionhearted in their final moments as the storytellers claimed, as brave as the legends that followed. 

You considered yourself one of the best in your field, most of your peers agreed. And yet, that moment of hesitancy in the face of potential death caged you in an unimaginable retaliance. What on Earth was wrong with you? 

And so you moved forward, one foot in front of the other with resilience fueled by pure outrage at your own feeble mind. You would do as you were taught, you would march into the mouth of the dragon because you were not allowed to fear death. You refused to meet your end as a coward. 

The cuffs that encase your wrists burn at the skin as you walk into the room. It’s small, small enough to force you and the two guards to shift closer to keep from the man that stands across the room. 

You almost don’t notice him, which alarms you immensely. Regardless of the stark black attire that matches the dark, gloomy atmosphere of the tiny room, the man seems to blend into the shadows, becoming part of the walls. His back faces you as he looks out the window, like he’s invigorated with the snow that drifts to the earth. 

It’s nighttime. It’s always night time here. 

“The prisoner, sire,” the one in your left gruffs out. 

The man at the window turns to face you, the sight of his face causing you to bite back a gasp. 

His skin is the same colour as the snowflakes that fall behind him, near glistening white. It seems to make every other feature of his face stand out in earnest; the black of his eyes, the crimson of his lips, the dark of his hair. 

He’s gorgeous, you decide, but you also decide that you may be about to die at his hands. 

There’s also the matter of how he was addressed by the goons that flank you. Unless sire means something else in this godforsaken land, you should have realized who this is by now. 

Xu Minghao’s expression remains unchanged, the mild disinterest evident as he barely glances at you before taking a seat at the makeshift office area in the middle of the room. He leans back against the plush, finally regarding the other people in the room with words. 

“You can leave.” 

You hear the guards begin to file out the room. 

“Ah—take off the restraints before you go. And shut the door.” 

You want to describe what his voice sounds like, and while indifferent to another, it’s like a million icicles plunging into your eardrums. It isn’t until the guard blocks your view to unlock you that you realize how strained your eyes were, like it was draining to simply look at him. 

When both guards have left the vicinity, doors closed with a deep thud, you set yourself in steel. Just because he was about to kill you didn't mean you were about to make it easy for him. 

You wonder why a king was meddling to discard a mere enemy officer, but if you knew anything of their bloodthirst, this was a form of amusement. 

“Well?” you say, your voice still bare-there. 

“Take a seat.” He means the lone chair that stands on your side of the table. 

“No,” 

His eyebrows shoot up, “No?”

You stare at him, and it's the first time he’s looked at you for more than three seconds. 

“No,” you reiterate. “If you’d like to eliminate me, I’d suggest we cut to the chase. I don’t want your bleak hospitality.”

“Are you offering your head?”

“I’m asking you to quit the niceties. We know what you are.”

He studies you for a moment before continuing quietly, “Who is we?”

Your jaw is set as you calm yourself down, “The people who keep coming into your barren lands, only to never return. My people.”

“Your people that keep invading this barren land, only to find out that actions have consequences?”

“The mere thought of us is a consequence for you vermin,” you spit.

“Your people, you had said?” There’s a strange hint of jest in his voice, and it only infuriates you even more. 

“Yes,” you breathe out. 

“Your people who have not once attempted to negotiate your release from us vermin, I thought your people were known for your camaraderie. Especially for such an important soldier, do they truly consider you that disposable? ”

The low fester of embers had now ignited into a full flame, the rage becoming near indescribable. Aside from how heinous, you had underestimated how infuriating his kind could be. 

“You know nothing of me!” your voice is loud, your own shade of venom that laces your tongue. 

And then he says your name. 

You falter. 

He shouldn’t know that. You don’t have a nametag, nothing to identify you on any record, anywhere. And yet, you know what you’ve heard is your name that fell from his lips, undeniably so. 

He continues with the faintest sneer, “Captain of the SUN team, first in line from your peers for a promotion, and of course, right hand of your idiotic General of the Army.” 

You can't be sure if you’re shivering from the cold or the rage that courses through every vein in your body. Perhaps it was the latter as you feel your mind shortcircuit at the sight of his smug face. 

And, of course, with the way you lunge. 

It takes barely a second for your numb fingers to reach his pristine throat, curling with the need to rupture his airways beyond measure. It also takes him barely a second to step out of the way, causing you to thud into the table, fingers faltering as they grasp onto nothing. 

The air is knocked out of your chest, and you don’t realize what’s happened. He’s quick, and you’re out of shape. He’s on the other side of the table, hands in his pockets as he stares at your weak attempts at regaining your bearings. 

“This is the problem with your people. Why must your first response to any confrontation be to fight to the death?”

Leaping over the table, you attempt to corner him against the wall, only to find him leap over to the other side of the table when you advance, switching your initial spots. It might have even been laughable if you weren’t so heated, like children running around in circles in a lethal game of tag. 

He takes advantage of yet another moment of weakness you’ve shown, pushing the separating table directly into you, forcing you back as you stumble to hit the window. The opening is just enough to fit your waist, with no room for your legs to leap back over, locked in at the sides of the table that effectively cages your body between wood and glass. 

Your first instinct is to push the wretched thing back, but you realize very quickly that you can’t. It shouldn’t explain how he was able to cage you in a place like this, especially with his scrawny build. Unless he’s locked it in place somehow, you wouldn’t put it past him.

“What the fuck?” you gasp out to mostly yourself. 

“You’ve weakened, little soldier. I heard you were better than this.” 

“Let me go so I can prove it to you then,” you spit, still fruitlessly struggling against your prison. 

“Had your chance,” he states, hands in his pockets, an eyebrow cocked. “Of course, fear does anything but land with precision. I wouldn’t hold it against you.”

“What makes you think I’m scared of you?” 

“Oh, you are such a simpleton,” he narrows his eyes. 

“You haven’t been talking about anything of substance for someone who doesn’t claim to be scared. What’s holding you?” you gruff. 

He stares for a moment like he’s studying you. For some reason, your struggling falters, his piercing gaze leaving you wondering what he had up his sleeve. 

“You know you are weak. Your strength isn’t nearly where it had been when you arrived. I’ve also been told you’ve been starving yourself.”

“I said I don’t want your hospitality!”

“You were supposedly indifferent to everyone in the room, including the guards, but you kept your eyes on me like a hawk. The first mention out your mouth was of death.”

“Was I supposed to expect compassion?” you mock, but the desperation lingers in your voice. 

“Can’t be helping knowing nobody is looking for you,” he finishes. 

“Because you would’ve sent me on my way home if they were? Don’t make me laugh.” 

“Quite right, yes.”

“Like you did with the other soldiers that seemingly disappear in your lands?”

“Nobody asked, so we did not deliver.” 

“Lies!” It comes out as a near scream.

You think of all the stretched months that turned into inevitable years trying to retrieve your lost manpower. Of course, your higher-ups asked for hostage negotiations, did everything in their power to bring them home. 

Fitting for the man in front of you to deny it, but infuriating nonetheless. 

“And you’re wildly defensive,” he sighs. “You’re scared. Of being in enemy territory, of dying, of being alone. One or the other, that’s for you to decide.”

You want to scream again. 

“They lied to you, soldier. And I may be a villain in your self-written history books, but you will come to know of the harsh truth, from me or anybody else. You should know what exactly it is that you’re fighting for.” 

“What are you yapping about?”

He turns back around, moving to the door before rapping a knock. The guards re-enter the room.

“Take her to base.”

“Chan?” 

He stands at the entrance of the tent, speaking to somebody in armor with a solemn expression. He turns around at the sound of his name, catching sight of you walking up. 

He breaks out into a smile at the sight of you, eyes going wide as he excuses himself to sprint over. You’re not quite sure if the fatigue is causing you to hallucinate, but with the way his face becomes clearer with every step he takes, you have to convince yourself that you’re not. 

As appropriate as it is to slam into him in a hug, considering you thought he was dead mere seconds ago, you can’t see yourself caring. 

“They told me it was you that arrived,” he says. 

“Oh my god, I thought you were dead. Everybody thought you were dead. How are you here?” you breathe into his ear.��

He pulls away slowly, and you note how he doesn’t meet your eyes. 

“Chan?” 

“There’s a lot to unpack here. Let’s get you cleaned up first.” 

A lot to unpack there was, you realize, as the guards leave you with Chan when said to. The questions doubled when you entered the significantly warmer tent to find it swarming with familiar faces, busy working on tables littered with charts and papers, military symbols drifting overhead. 

Chan is quick to let you know that none of the ‘fallen’ soldiers were missing at all. In fact, were stationed here at this military base. 

Your gaping mouth renders no response as he fishes you both through the hustle and bustle of the industrial canopies, destination unknown. As much as you’d kick yourself for your lack of vigilance, you find yourself trusting him to take you wherever, your mind preoccupied with trying to absorb every detail of your environment.

If this was what sensory overload was, you’re not sure you like it blocking your thinking capabilities this much.

He lets you into another tent, littered with trunks and equipment, lit with a couple hardworking oil lamps. He goes to rummaging in random trunks as you watch. 

“What is this place?”

“Inventory. Clothes and a bunch of other stuff,” he says as he throws you a pile of fabric. “Here, change into this, it’s warmer.”

He leaves you alone in the tent to change, which you do quickly to meet him again outside. Moving the flap of the tent away, you find him out in the snow waiting.

It isn’t until you’ve adequately cornered him that you can ask. “Chan, are being held here against your will? Is everybody here—”

“Wait, hold,” he holds a hand up to silence you. “Just—let me explain.”

You’re rendered silent in a corner of this base camp, albeit a little warmer than when you came in with the effective coat you’re now shrouded in. Other than being lost in a mine of confusion, you notice the calculated expression on Chan’s face when you bring it up. Like he didn’t know how you’d react.

“There’s been a lot of lies our entire life. One’s that we didn’t realize till we landed here,” he starts, facing the endless plane of snow to the East.

“What on Earth are you talking about?” you ask, keeping your eyes steady on him.

“These people aren’t cruel, nor are they the animals we’ve been told they are,”

“Chan, what is wrong with you?” you take a step back in mild exasperation. 

“Listen, this sounds insane, but it’s only because we’ve been brought up to believe anything the government told us, anything our superiors drilled into our heads. I’d started having doubts while we were still home—”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Nobody wanted to tell you anything. You were more loyal to the General than you were to yourself!”

“I—because…” you falter. He was right. 

“They’ve taken advantage of the way this land refuses to retaliate. We’ve been in the wrong this whole time.”

“I don’t know what it is that they’ve been feeding you for so long, but this isn’t the Chan that left home all those months ago.”

“You’re right,” you hear, but it’s not Chan. 

Whipping your head around, you find the overlord himself walking to where you were. 

“Apologies for interrupting, but I think you’re needed back there, Chan,” Minghao informs him as he regards him.

You whip back around to Chan, “Wait, you can’t just—”

“Listen, it’s going to take you a little bit, but I promise you’ll see what I mean,” he reiterates. 

“This is absurd—” you start again but are cut off by him again. He lurches forward, grasping both your wrists in his, forcing you to pay attention to him. 

“Do you trust me?”

“W-what?” 

“Answer the question. Do you trust me?”

You stare at him, stumped for a moment. Did you trust him? Five months ago, before he left, you would’ve said yes in a heartbeat. Yet, now you find yourself hesitating. 

“Yes. I trust you,” you decide out loud. 

“Then give it time. You’re shaken, you’re exhausted, you’re confused. You’ll make your decision yourself when you see for yourself.”

He watches your shoulders droop ever so slightly, a clear sign of your surrender. “Fine.”

“Good.”

You turn back to find the other man long gone, the vast expanse of snow and darkness engulfing the plane that leads to the congregation of tents. Chan begins to lead you back, mumbling about how he needs to get back inside. 

It’s during your trudge that you realize there’s something that still bugs you, supposing you’d get your answer if you asked him. 

“What’s the king doing meddling in military bases and war prisoners?” you begrudgingly ask.

“He’s very… hands-on, I guess. He cares about what happens around here, his land, his people.” 

“Like a normal ruler?” you mumble in annoyance.

“When was the last time you saw the General leave his office?” 

You haven’t. 

A month. That’s how long you’ve been at this base camp. 

Enlightenment may be an understatement to what this place is giving you, absurdities that they call the truth. Absurdities, as you may have called them a moon ago. 

This barren country did not have a military, you were told. These makeshift headquarters were made to keep up with the endless external aggressions from the other side. 

“They’re all people given the choice to stay. We needed the manpower. Military precision was never our forte,” Minghao explains. 

You hate how he has an answer to every critical question of yours, how you’ve gone past thinking this was some elaborate, well-thought-out story to put your guard down, to put everyone’s guard down. 

Sitting at this wooden table with maps and charts littering the surface, he looks you down from the other end. Chan remains silent next to you, knowing that if you asked, he would’ve given you the same response. 

“So you’re trying to build an army? To what, retaliate?” Your arms remain crossed over your middle.

“We cannot retaliate,” Chan says. 

“The difference in military power is too much, anyway. We can’t fight something that fights us in different ways,” Minghao finishes. He looks stressed, pinching the bridge of his nose. You watch him drag a chair to sit down. 

The majority of camp was resting for the day, leaving the base relatively empty save for the three of you. 

“Different ways?” you question.

You watch him close his eyes, running a hand over his face. “Chan, you told me she was smart.” 

“She’s having a harder time adjusting than I thought she would,” he chuckles humourlessly in response. 

“Are you gonna tell me, or do I have to take another month to figure it out on my own?” you snap. 

“What have you been told about our borders? Why is this land the way that it is,” Minghao starts. 

You don’t have an answer because you’ve never been told. The general was forever adamant that a land and its people were interconnected, that Minghao’s nation was as ruthless as the land itself was. 

“What about what you thought?” he tries again. 

“Nature’s weird, I don’t know,” you huff. 

“You were so loyal to a man that had no rhyme to his reason. How blind did you have to be—”

“Keep to the question,” you monotone.

He exhales before continuing. “This land is the incarnation of balance. It might not look like it, but we play the most important role in making sure your nations remain stable.” 

“Regular communities cannot survive in this weather, the livestock perishes, and crops cannot grow. Everything that makes humanity thrive remains absent here.” Minghao places his elbows on the table, hands clasped together. “But it remains like this here so the rest of the world can foster humanity; that’s the purpose of this land.” 

“A sacrifice of sorts,” Chan adds quietly. 

“My land remains lifeless so others may thrive,” Minghao finishes. 

“Why…why this land?” you question after a few beats. 

He leans back against his chair, “I don’t know. Perhaps my ancestors were cursed. Perhaps this is just what this land was made to do. All I know is that my mother and father left me the job of ensuring this place is protected, as their mother and father taught them. All for the sake of keeping balance.” 

It was wildly ironic that a place that was the definition of extreme was seemingly also harboring the balance to this world, but you found no jest in his words. You had also learned that it was the more unbelievable things here that would turn out to be most true, so you let yourself believe in whatever lore you had just unlocked. 

“So you can’t retaliate,” you echo. 

“Not if we wish to keep the peace, no.”

Chan chimes in this time, “This is all really just a misunderstanding that’s fallen into the wrong hands. The General’s a bloodthirsty fuck; this is just an excuse for him to retain power and satisfy all his sick fantasies.”

“How do we fix this then?” you dare to ask.

“We can’t,” Minghao says. “Not right now, at least. If we want to make a move, we have to grow as an entity. What your General doesn’t understand is how he’s feeding his own enemy whenever he sends some poor soldier our way.” 

“That’s what everyone’s been working on. The SUN team is nearly complete with you here. We need to equip everyone here with skills more than anything,” Chan says. 

“And then?” 

“And then we let the General know who’s side we’re really on.”

Xu Minghao had a very peculiar way as King. 

Other than remaining in the same bunkers as the rest of the population, you don’t think you’ve ever seen anyone besides the guards address him as sovereign. He sat with everyone during mealtimes, spoke to everyone like a friend, yet remained the one in charge. 

Over the months, you remained the last newcomer of the bunch, learning slowly but surely of your new truth. That was, until your sixth month. 

It happened during breakfast, walking out into the dark sky to greet the person Minghao had told you was the newest aggravated prisoner. You knew her from headquarters, having seen her multiple times as she trained, but never learned her name. Her brows unfurrow slightly at the sight of you, recognizing you immediately. 

You try to stay as others who remain familiar to the newcomer speak to her, adding where your credibility was due. You underestimated how difficult it would be, not because she was being frustrating, but because she was frustrated. 

With every surge of exasperation she showed, every snarky remark to words of reason, you saw yourself. A strange, heavy feeling sets itself in your chest, making it difficult to speak, difficult to simply stand there as you watch her ideologies rendered as lies. 

So you excuse yourself, moving out of the way into the snow you’d learned to make a confidant instead of an irritation. It wasn’t strange to find somebody contemplating alone in the snow, the constant darkness ready to keep everyone company. 

You aren’t sure what it is that you want to contemplate, but simply sitting in the snow helps, allowing you to remain unstimulated. The weird feeling remained, but what also remained was your brain's inability to distinguish one from the other. 

You don’t know how long you had been sitting there, but are aware of the lighter sheen of blue that the sky has turned into when you hear trudging behind you. You turn to find Minghao approaching, halting a foot away. 

“Did you see the newcomer?” he asks.

“Yeah. They’re handling it, she’ll be fine.”

It falls silent once more. You’d be lying if you said you hadn’t warmed up to the man in the past months, perhaps even enough to call yourself friends. Chan had quite the role to play in that. 

He invites himself to sit next to you in the snow, letting out a deep exhale that fogs the air. “I wanted to ask if you were okay.” 

You’re stumped. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well…” he chortles. “You’ve been sitting here for a good three hours, so I only thought it was natural to assume.”

“It’s not good to assume.”

“And that you can’t be doing too well seeing the newcomer.”

“...Got me,” you whisper, still gazing into the far-off mountains. 

“You can talk about it if you want,” he offers. 

“There’s nothing to talk about,” you sigh.

“Or is there too much to talk about?” he raises a brow. 

You’ve turned to look at him at this point, making out his facial features with the low light of the lamps that burn in the distance. 

“How do you do that?”

“What?”

“Know what I’m thinking about.”

“You’re easier to read than you think,” he chuckles. “Why? D’you think I’m reading your mind?”

“Seems like it sometimes.”

“Do you miss home?” he asks, albeit a little cautiously. 

“I do. I miss what it meant to me. I don’t think I could go back and feel the same way, though,” you answer. If he was trying to get you to open up, he was succeeding. 

“Why’s that?” 

You snort, “Obvious, isn’t it? Can’t call a place full of lies home. I can’t believe I let them manipulate me to that extent.” 

You think of the mental turmoil on the girl's face. 

“It wasn’t your fault. You were doing what you taught.”

“Other people found holes in the story, though. They saw the beginnings of what was really happening. I was so blind, they couldn’t even try to talk me out of it.”

“You can’t keep blaming yourself. It was the General’s job to be conniving. What use if his right hand could see through it. With how long it took you to come around, it only shows how dangerous he is.”

You remain silent as you absorb his words. There was truth to them, but you find it hard to dissolve it into your mindset. 

“What matters is you're here now, that you chose the truth despite what you’d grown to learn.” He’s staring right at you when he says it, something you find as you look up to do the same. 

There’s a lurch in your stomach, one that has your cheeks burning despite the temperature. 

“How do you not hate any of these people? How do you not hate me? We’re the reason your people are so detested,” your voice comes out shaky, yet thick with a weird mix of emotions. 

“I hate the ones that choose to be like this despite knowing what the truth is.”

“Like the General?”

“Like the General.” 

It’s silent as you watch him gaze into your soul, an uncomfortable feeling yet one that stops you from looking away. 

You want to kiss him. 

The thought alone has you jumping in place, shaking off the way your body seems to have seized up. You move your knees away in blatant ignorance, looking at anything but his face. 

“What?” he asks at your sudden change in behavior.

“Nothing!” you say, a little too loud to be considered casual. 

“Why’d you move away?” 

“I didn’t!” Of course, you realize how stupid you sound. You huff as you continue, “Just—I don’t know!”

“You don’t know what?” 

“Goodness, you need to learn to drop things.”

“Not when it involves me,” he says.

“Who says it involves you?”

“Do we need to go over this again?” 

You look at him in question, only to realize he could read you just as well as he could at any other instance. 

“You’re not gonna like it,” you finally say. 

“Try me.”

“Would you hate me if I said I wanted to kiss you?”

He pauses for an agonizing few moments, ones that make you feel like erupting into a ball of fire that could melt all the snow in the land. Your numb fingers fidget with each other, hating yourself as soon as the words come out of your mouth. 

Minghao uses his mouth in ways other than words when you feel it against your lips. It takes you a moment to realize what’s happening and another to let your body take control.

He’s kissing you so painfully slow it has you wondering if you’re imagining it, the feeling of his surprisingly warm lips on your frozen ones. You pull away for a moment, a question ringing in your mind. 

“I’m not making a mistake, am I?” you breathe into his mouth. 

“Absolutely not,” he says, diving back in with a force not present before. 

You throw your arms around him in instinct to keep yourself from falling back onto the snow in his newfound enthusiasm. Not that you can find yourself complaining, especially not when his tongue prods against your bottom lip, urging you to open up for him. 

You let him pull you closer, let him explore your mouth, let him hold you as you give yourself up to the feelings that now, after so long, have finally boiled over.

You’re both breathless when you pull away, remaining in each other’s arms as you gain your bearings. 

“Figured it out, did you?” he asks with the slightest smirk. 

Of course, with every passing instance that he’s reminded you of the mental walls you don’t seem to have with him, this was perhaps his end goal. You want to ask when he figured out you liked him before, wondering if he had known before you had in the first place. 

He doesn’t let you, though, as his smiling lips meet yours again, chasing the feeling that's come forth after months of waiting. 

You’ll find out the run down soon enough. For now, you give into him, believing in your ice-cold heart that Xu Minghao would never lie to you. 

Taglist: @weird-bookworm @rubyreduji @vampirexlotita @simqly-yunjin @tomodachiii

[nuhuhwinniethepooh]

Pt.2 to Prodigy! Gojo Satoru (Readers pov : From the beginning)

___________________________________________________

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who was raised by your grandparents your whole life after a tragic accident that took away both your parents, making you an orphan in just a day.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who excels in all your classes with the bare minimum, hiding your true talents for years on end just so that you don't have to leave your grandparents behind. You know that they'll force you to move away for further studies if they find out afterall, they love you and want only the best for you.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who adores helping out in the bakery, why waste money in hiring workers when you're right there? You're eager and young; your grandparents pleads with you to study and enjoy your last year of middle-school life instead but no, you don't need to. Having a photogenic memory has its advantages, add your problem-solving skills and easily adapting body with it and you're unstoppable so no, you're not gonna let them work alone.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who notices that your grandmother is coughing a lot more than usual and your grandfather is clearly hiding something from the two of you. You saw him shred a piece of paper almost furiously which was very unlike him, he was usually the calm one. You catch sight of a shredded piece of paper on the floor with the letters 'ojo' on it .

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who panics when you find your grandmother lying on the floor, breathing shallowly. Anyone would think she's dead, you hurriedly rush her to the hospital.

"It's old age. It's finally catching up to her, nothing we can do about it," they say. Holding her frail, unconscious hands upto your lips, you kiss it gently.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who breaks the news about your grandmother collapsing to your grandfather and watch his heart shatter, your own heart quickly following after his. He finally breaks down and tells you the news that had him stressing for weeks on end, the bakery had to be sold. You can't believe your ears, the bakery had to be sold?!

"What do you mean, grandpa? You're selling the bakery?!" You whisper-yell, your mind unable to process the information as you watch your grandfather tearfully nod his head.

"But why?! Is it because of grandma?! We have enough money to pay for her hospital fees! Besides, we've been running this bakery for so long! We can't just sell it," you say softly, tears springing up in your eyes.

"I don't wanna do this but I have no either choice. Either we sell it or we get evicted with nothing to our name," he answers tearfully, his trembling hands holding onto your hands.

"But why?" Your voice cracks, feeling pathetic for the first time in your life. "Something about a construction, sweet pea. This foolish grandfather of yours destroyed the paper before reading it and now you have to face the consequences, I'm sorry," he whispers. You reassure him tearfully that it wasn't his fault, hugging him tight.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who finds out that the whole neighborhood was being bought one by one and the bakery was the last man standing. Unwilling to part with the land, you have a firm hold on it despite being so young; it wasn't a particularly hard concept to understand, for you at least.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who's closing the bakery up for the night but gets an unwanted visitor instead; you watch a black sedan pulling up, a white set of hair popping out of the back seat and gazing at the bakery sineage.

"He's weird," you think, creeped out by the fact that he was wearing tinted sunglasses at night. Who even does that? You clear your throat as you watch him enter, " we're closed for the night."

"Is it though?"

"It is," you answer, biting back a remark at his smug smile.

"Well, it's open now," he says, pulling down one of the up-turned chair and sitting on it, "manspreading of course, I'm not surprised," you sigh to yourself.

"I want a hot chocolate, lots of marshmallows with it," he orders, flicking his wrist at you as he looks around the bakery with a satisfied hum. You roll your eyes," coming right up," you mumble, opting to get it done and over with.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who's surprised by his eyes as you put the mug down in front of him, catching a look of the bright cerulean blues from above, hidden beneath the glasses.

"Shame that I didn't find this place sooner, the hot chocolate's good," he says between sips, looking at you...well at least you think he is, his glasses makes it difficult to know where he's looking. "Well now that you know you're welcome to come again," you answer with a small smile at the compliment, the bakery's hot chocolate was good. A skill your grandparents made sure to drill in you, the art of making hot chocolate.

He shakes his head," that won't be possible since this place is getting sold anyways, a shame really," he says, making you freeze. "It's not going anywhere," you say firmly, confused at the amused glance you're getting. Gulping his drink down, he slams the mug on the table with a smile," We'll see about that," he hums, pulling out his wallet and putting down an exorbitant amount of money on the table. You clear your throat, staring at him with surprise," that's too mu-"

"For your troubles," he cuts you off, you catch a quick sight of his ID before he snaps it shut and walks off. 'Gojo Satoru'. 'Gojo'.....you think back on the letters you saw before- 'ojo' and suddenly it all clicks; the white hair, the visit, the attitude.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who researches up on him and finds out that he's only two years older than you. Graduating middle school after two months, you cheerfully rush to the hospital to visit your grandma to tell her about your day, only to find out she died an hour ago. Your find your grandpa collapsed besides her bed unable to bear with the grief.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who is forced to sell the bakery to take care of your bedridden grandfather and continue your schooling simultaneously, rage running through high-school. Applying in the same university built upon the land that you grew up on, your fond memories and life all erased with no hint of it ever being there.

Baker's granddaughter!Reader who blames the Gojo clan for your misfortune, you were perfectly happy before they came and ruined your life. Your childhood home, gone. Your loving grandmother, gone. Your grandfather, bedridden and in a comatose state. "It's all their fault," you think.

"Only if they never interfered," you say bitterly, voice soft as you hold your grandfather's hand in yours. The beeping machine besides him the only proof that he's still breathing, still living. "I'll get our revenge for all the things they put us through, I promise," you continue, letting go of his hand and kissing his forehead softly.

"I'll give them what they gave us ten-fold, grandpa. You just wait and watch, I'll be back."

Vengeful! Reader who gets in the university with a whopping never seen before percentage and an ever-growing conviction; you were gonna burn this university and the Gojo clan to the ground, slowly but surely.

__________________________________________________

Series? I don't know what we call it but yea. Part.2, a small outlook on your life.

Pt.1 Prodigy Gojo Satoru

Should I write a spin-off where Reader is just a normal student without the tragic backstory?

Tags : @ritsatoru @virtuapicklequirkreader @sharkluver

Masterlist

[bratphilia]

OMG OMG. i’d die for anything that has william feeling bad amd disgusting, a percert, but not being able to contain himself around the reader ++++ some stress relieving from her if you know what i mean ;))

note ✧.*‎ i never thought i'd ever write william as a sub but i kinda dig it??? like i've said multiple times, his big no is if you're domming him and making him call you mommy, but fuck does he love it when you're on top.

pairing ✧.*‎ steve raglan / william afton x reader

cw ✧.*‎ handjob, blowjob, dom!reader, sub!william

taglist ✧.*‎ @dilfity

synopsis ✧.*‎ your next door neighbor is stalking you, and you dig it.

creep (w. afton x reader)

william afton, or steve raglan, is stalking you. he's always been a stalker, to be honest. stalking his victims is natural; he wants to learn their routine, snuff out their patterns, their habits, so he knows when the right time is to strike. however, you're different. he's not watching you like he did the others — you're not one of his targets (well, not yet anyway) — you intrigue him.

in your backyard is a hot tub and it just so happens that your fences are built so low that he can see over yours with ease at his towering height. even more convenient, it's the summertime, meaning that hot tub gets more use around this time of year than any other season.

he spends most of his afternoons outside, mowing the lawn, tending to his garden, or barbecuing in the evening, just so that he can conveniently be outside the same time you utilize your hot tub. he wishes there was a silent way he could snap photos, but he already feels disgusting enough watching you all the time.

and that's the other thing, the guilt of it all. with his victims, he shamelessly watched them from afar, not having a care in the world — the only thing he was worried about then was getting caught. but with you, it's obviously different. she feels ashamed deep down inside. it rears its ugly head in the form of burning waves that wash over him that eventually translate into a pool of desire in his stomach. he could come in his pants just thinking about you catching him.

one evening, he hears you go outside, open the lid of the hot tub, and the ripples of water of you getting inside. lucky for him, he was watering the plants in his respective backyard before you got there, leaving him breathing room to just—

he can't help it! his height gives him the advantage of seeing over the fence. he greatly appreciates the view of you bathing, allowing him a side angle of your face and the tops of your breasts. god, he wish he thought to bring his camera with him, but this will do for now. he wants to burn this image inside his head so he can stroke himself to it later but—

you're getting out. already? already. he frowns, disappointed. he ducks his head as you walk over close to the fence to grab your towel that was laying on a bench and slip it over yourself. he pokes his head back up, hoping for a glimpse of your ass. you do something funny, though. you stop dead in your tracks and frankly, so does his heart. fuck. "mr. raglan," you say, back still turned to the fence. "why don't you come over?"

that's how it starts. he's laying on top of your bed with you laying on you sitting on your knees straddling him, his cock is in your hands. "how many times did you think about this?"

"s-so many times," he shivers at your touch. you're completely naked, having answered the door in your towel, then dropping it casually when he entered and closed the door behind him.

your thumb rubs over his tip. "you'd think any normal person would have just started with a 'hi, how's it going?' but you're not a normal person, are you, mr. raglan?"

he bites his lip to stifle a groan, but it only works about halfway. "n-not at all."

he doesn't know what he's saying and you grin at that. too easy. you pump him up and down and his hips buck at your touch. poor thing, you think. he's trying to muffle his noises but you stopm your movements and tell him, "i wanna hear all your pretty noises. want to hear how good it feels, 'kay?"

steve nods, eyes still fluttering open and closed. as you stroke him his groaning becomes more apparent. louder. and it's absolutely delicious. you move your hand faster just to elicit more noises from him and he gives them to you easily.

before he comes, and you can tell he's close because he's practically mewling, you put your mouth his cock and lick. immediately a hand snakes down to grasp desperately at your hair and you welcome it, but don't let it guide your movements. you suction his dick in your mouth and hollow out your cheeks, looking up at him with doe eyes and only encourages his impending orgasm and—

hot spurts of his ejaculate shoot into your mouth. you keep sucking him until he's done shooting into your mouth, but prolong your mouth's stay there to slowly tease his tip with your tongue, making him grunt at the overstimulation, before pulling off. "my turn."

[agentisclickbait]

uhh i didn't post this on my ask blog by accident what r u talking abt

scream of terror time

excluding zooble bc i haven't thought of a design yet...their name is freakshow in this au

personalities/backstories below !!

DOLOR (aka gangle): gangle but a little bit more jaded (anya from mouthwashing core). she carries a chainsaw as a weapon (duh) and is usually very reluctant to do so,,,the more compassionate and sympathetic of the group, and (even though everyone wants everyone dead) believes there's good in them all. lives in the abandoned carnival on the map. also she's hispanic (specifically dominican) i don't make the rules

DOLL-FACE (aka ragatha): unlike her canon counterpart, she is not caring (mostly). most of the other players have taken advantage of her kindness, n the gal has completely snapped. welding an axe, she's not afraid to swing it. lives in a cottage/shack on the outskirts of the map. she only really tolerates vile (pomni x ragatha propaganda)

JACK RABBIT (aka jax): after an unfortunate experience with another long-gone player, he's a tad unhinged. off his rocker, jack rabbit is a pest of the person to be around. he probably has some sort of good in him, but its buried deep down. steals and scavenges. doesn't exactly live anywhere on the map.

VILE (aka pomni): the newest victim of this mod- but unlike her canon counterpart, she's much more chaotic. being so short compared to the others gives her an advantage, not to mention, makes her much more gremlin like. she snuck into doll-face's home one day and has stuck around ever since, acting as pest (and intruder) control. uses a bat to attack (no duh).

THE MONARCH (aka kinger): kinger in the dark, basically (,,,the map in constantly in a state of dusk or even night so,,,). essentially, a weeping angel + graveyard statue. he can move, but in a very limited way (as he's stone). stone cold on the outside, tender and caring on the inside. he lives at the local graveyard, where other dead players lie, their souls forever haunting the land and Monarch. as a statue, hes oversees Queen's grave, occasionally haunted by her spirit, who tries to comfort his grieving soul. a lot of angst potential there

uhhh that's all 4 today,,,,mabye i'll make zooble one day

[niki-phoria]

⋆｡°✩ chishiya's different types of kisses

warnings: ooc chishiya, mentions of blood/injuries, 'i need you right now' is a little angsty 'are you sure about this?' gets kinda suggestive but no smut (they make out)

a/n: i want more aib requests pls i miss writing for them but i have no ideas

additional note: i made a post about this a while ago please reblog fics from creators and/or leave feedback on them. it means a lot to us. i've barely been getting interaction on my work at all lately and it's really hurting my motivation. it genuinely means a lot to hear that you enjoy the work writers/artists create

based on this post !! i didn't do all of them bc i don't write smut or angst lol

ARISU VERSION / KUINA VERSION

gn reader (no pronouns used)

requests open !! read my rules first

my fav chishiya gif returns

first kiss

(word count 270)

there’s an odd sense of tension in the air as you look at chishiya. his dark eyes are alluring - almost daring you to finally take the dive and fall deep into them. you can barely feel the warmth of his breath from how close you are. you scan the birthmarks and freckles on his face. you picture them creating a constellation across his skin that matches your own, as if the fates are pulling you together. 

“chishiya,” you whisper. your voice is low. your heartbeat pounds in your ears. the world around you slowly begins to fade. the only thing that matters is the man standing in front of you, looking into your eyes as if he’ll be able to read your mind if he searches deep enough. 

“y/n,” he breathes. you hesitantly reach a hand up to push his bangs behind his ear, exposing more of his face. your hand hovers before his face before you rest it against the skin. chishiya doesn’t move away. instead, he leans into your touch. he tilts his head a little closer to you. “can i kiss you?” 

your breath hitches in your throat. you haven’t been sure of anything since you entered the borderland until now. now, you’re sure. you want to kiss him. 

you lean in to press your lips against chishiya’s in a sweet kiss. his lips quirk upwards as he reaches out to hold your hips, coaxing your body even closer. the world could have ended - the beach fallen, vegetation taken over the land, lasers killed everyone - but none of it would matter. because you were kissing chishiya.

"i'm here now"

(word count 342)

it’s late. too late. the sun has set by now. the stars have begun to twinkle in the sky above chishiya. he sighs, leaning back against the wall. you should be back by now. where are you? 

an unfamiliar feeling of anxiety settles into chishiya’s stomach. he’s not used to caring about people. not like this. his mind is running like it always is, though it’s never felt so much like a burden before. chishiya had always prided himself on his ability to analyze situations. he could tell how someone was feeling, pick holes into any theories or ideas presented, find the most rational solution and use it to his advantage.

but right now, chishiya doesn’t want to be rational. all of the signs point to you being dead. why else would you be so late coming back? you’ve been missing for hours. it’s far past the evening now. even if you do come back now you’ll have to find the beach in the darkness. 

he’s broken out of his thoughts by something moving. he only notices it in the corner of his eye, but it’s something - someone. he steps closer, squinting into the darkness. it’s you.

you’re limping along the asphalt of the road towards the beach’s hotel. chishiya simply stares at you for a few seconds. before he realizes what he’s doing, his body begins moving on its own. he’s running towards you, wrapping his arms around your waist, supporting your body weight against his own as you lean against him. dried blood stains your clothes and is splattered on your face. 

“chishiya,” you sigh, clutching onto him. his mind is racing. instead of asking all of the questions that linger on the tip of his tongue, he pulls you closer. chishiya presses his lips against yours in a desperate kiss - as if you’ll disappear if he stops touching you. 

his hands linger on your cheeks when he pulls away, wiping away the tears and blood from your face. “it’s okay,” he whispers. “you’re gonna be okay. i’m here now.”

"come back to bed"

(word count 291)

you groan as chishiya gently coaxes your body to the side, maneuvering your body so you’re laying on the bed instead of his chest. you reach out to grab him, pushing him back down onto the bed. chishiya sighs in defeat as you nuzzle your face against him, effectively holding him down with your own body weight. “did i wake you?” he whispers. 

“you’re so warm,” your voice is muffled against his skin. “i always notice when you leave.” 

chishiya hums, raising a hand to rub against your back. he gently scratches his nails against your bare skin. it feels so intimate to lay like this. your chest pressed against his own, blankets only pulled halfway over your bodies, sunlight streaming through the windows. 

“we have things to do today.” 

“we always have things to do,” you whine, shifting to sleepily blink up at him. chishiya lets a small smile spread across his face. “we won a game last night. let’s just stay like this for a while.” 

you know you’ve won the debate when chishiya’s smile grows. he throws his head back to lean against the pillows. you smile yourself, moving upwards to press a kiss against his jawline before laying back down on his body again, this time with your head against his shoulder. “i hate it when you do this.” 

“do what? cuddle with you? kiss you? force you to get a good night’s sleep?” 

chishiya huffs, wrapping his arms around your waist. “you’re too cute to argue with.” 

you can’t help being flustered, shoving your face back into the crook of his neck. “you love it.” 

“i love you.” 

you press a kiss against his neck, smiling when goosebumps raise along his skin. “i love you too.” 

"are you sure about this?"

(word count 274)

“chishiya?” said man doesn’t even spare a glance at you as he continues working on yet another invention. his shoulders are hunched from how close he’s leaning in to see exactly what he’s doing. you can almost feel how stressed he is, even from across the room. 

you lock the door behind you before stepping closer. you slowly reach out to press a hand against his shoulder, leaning down to see exactly what he’s doing. he’s holding an empty soda can, fiddling with a mess of wires in his hands. a bottle sits on the desk - something he stole from the mechanics. kerosene. 

“you’re making another bomb?” this time he finally acknowledges you, albeit only with a small hum. unfazed by his dismissive behavior you reach over, slowly forcing him to set the wires down. chishiya looks up at you now, silently questioning what you’re doing. instead of answering you push his chair back. 

chishiya’s hands ghost against your hips as you throw your leg over his to straddle his hips. big brown eyes blink up at you as you lean in, finally pressing your lips to his. it starts off innocent enough. sitting in chishiya’s lap isn’t an uncommon experience in your relationship. though things quickly become more heated when he leans up to press his lips against yours into a deeper kiss this time. 

you’re nearly gasping for air when you finally pull away. his face has a light flush, disheveled blonde hair messily pulled into a ponytail. “are you sure about this?” you whisper. 

chishiya leans up, pulling you into yet another kiss. “i’ve never been more sure about anything else.”

"i could stay like this forever"

(word count 338)

chishiya sighs as he enters your shared room. what was supposed a free day was quickly turned into an incredibly long bore when hatter called him and the other executives into meetings for everything he could think of. though pointless, not showing up would risk damaging his position of authority, small as it may be, so he reluctantly dragged himself to the room and sat around at a table for hours. 

you’re sitting on the bed, already waiting for him. he raises an eyebrow at you, kicking his sandals off and stripping from his jacket. the beach’s air conditioning does little to cool him down after spending so long sitting around in a room. “i thought you were supposed to hang out with kuina tonight.” 

“i was,” you sigh. “but that was when i thought i would be spending the day with you. besides, she’s hanging out with arisu and usagi tonight. something about wanting to get to know them better.” 

chishiya hums, sitting down on the bed. you pat the spot next to you, gesturing for him to lay down. despite his questions he obeys, moving so he’s face down on the bed. you shift so you’re hovering over him, pressing your hands against his back. he groans, letting you massage the tension out of his muscles and shoulders. 

after a while, chishiya sighs. you take the cue to move off of him, rolling to lay next to him. he shifts onto his side to look at you, reaching over to pull you into a kiss. it’s gentle. sweet. your lips quirk upwards into a smile when he pulls away. you take the opportunity to hold him down, pressing little kisses all over his face. chishiya laughs at the ticklish feeling. it’s a beautiful sound - one you don’t hear far often enough. when you pull away both of you look at each other with small, loving smiles. an unspoken agreement passes between the both of you. despite it all, you wouldn’t give this up for the world.

[evewasheretoday]

Accidents Happen: Prologue

Your mother was a hardworking woman with high hopes and your father was an honest man.

The love that your parents had for each other was unconditional and strong, it shouldn't have been a surprise that with such a love — they'd been blessed with twelve children, six boys and six girls.

While being the youngest in your family certainly had its advantages and disadvantages, this was certainly not one of them.

“I can't believe the lot of you are kicking me out!” You screamed at the top of your lungs, your voice hoarse from all the yelling. ��And after everything I've done for all of you?”

“This was not our decision to make” Your oldest sister—Camelia—replied, crossing her arms to her chest.

“I told you being a slob was bound to get you into trouble someday” Your second oldest brother—Daniel—sighed.

The rest of your siblings were inside the house, smiling happily at the sight of you leaving home and being sent away to Castle Dimitrescu from the windows. 

Lady Dimitrescu's home — where most women would come to work as a maid.

You gulped. “This is not a fun experience” You told them. “You are sending me to my own death!”

Camelia and Daniel shared a look.

“You're exaggerating” Camelia responded to you. “If anything — we're doing you a favour” She grinned cheekily to you.

“Besides” Daniel added, walking toward you and ruffling your hair. “It will be good for you”

“If I don't come back, I must be dead” You mumbled.

Daniel laughed while Camelia just smiled.

“Oh, don't be ridiculous!” Camelia rolled her eyes at you. “You will survive” She said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Counting the days since you first stepped into Castle Dimitrescu and started your work, you've been under Lady Dimitrescu's employment for two years.

Yet you still cannot get used to the screams of pain that come from the castle's dungeons nor the fear of any day being your last.

You've rarely ever seen any of the women living there. I mean, you see the other servants every now and then but the daughters?

Yeah, no. You did your best to avoid them as much as possible. Emphasis on the word did because no matter how much you tried — it just wasn't possible to avoid them entirely.

“I feel terribly sorry for that girl,” One of your coworkers spoke up.

You never believed it to be true but Lady Dimitrescu certainly did not employ any man into the castle.

All the faces you've seen and all the voices you've heard during your time here were all women.

“She has a name, Lucille” Looking around the dinner table, everyone's attention was settled on one person.

“Had,” Lucille corrected. “After her little incident with Lady Daniela, I doubt anyone will be calling her other than a fool or a slattern.” She chuckled softly. “And you know that all too well, Gabriela”

Everyone's eyes were still fixated on one person. And that was Gabriela.

“I would watch my words If I were you, Lucille” The ginger-haired woman warned. Her lips pursed into a thin line as she stared directly at Lucille, the dark brown-haired woman who glared back at her.

Dinner was usually quiet for every single woman who worked at Castle Dimitrescu under Lady Dimitrescu's employment. But today seemed like a bad day to say the least. 

Lucille and Gabriela were one of the oldest employees in Castle Dimitrescu. 

They were both already here before your own family had decided you would be better working at a place that paid so well rather than at home where you only did the bare minimum at best.

“I am but stating a fact, Gabriela” Lucille rolled her eyes. “Had she been more careful with her work, she would not have ended in the dungeons” She sneered.

Gabriela slammed her fist against the table, every other maid flinched at the sudden noise. “If you'll excuse me,” She gritted out through clenched teeth. “I shall eat in my room” She said before storming out of the dining hall.

“Well,” You mumbled, wiping your mouth clean. “That was something”

~~~~~~~~~~~

If you could kill someone with your bare hands without a thought, you'd have done it by now.

“You!” Beatrice, the head maid, called out. “Clean the library” She ordered, pointing at you with the broomstick in her hand. “And don't come back unless it is spotless”

Beatrice was quite a lovely woman.

Only if you weren't the one she was yelling at and making orders to.

“Yes, ma'am” You sighed exasperatedly before hurrying to the library.

Today just couldn't have been worse, you thought.

A shadow following you from afar, quiet like a mouse, unbeknownst to you.

[perexcri]

fic recs!!

i woke up to being on a couple of fic rec lists and really appreciated it, so i wanted to capitalize on the nice energy and make a list of some of my own favs that i've read recently that i didn't necessarily see on the other lists :D check these out because they have some of the best prose/plots/characterization that i've read in the fandom :] 💜

one soft infested summer (M, 18k+, 3/7 ongoing) by @wheelersboy - this one is perfect for all the highler fans out there! it's got stoner byler of course, a music festival, lots out camping, and some really amazing writing! i started it just for the fun stoner vibes because Why Not, but i'm staying for the beautiful writing and the really complex and delicate relationship mike and will have in this one

Light Sleepers (T, 15k+, 2/6 ongoing) by @helioleti - WillEl-centric fic set during the time gap between the end of s3 and the beginning of s4 that explores their dynamic and their respective problems with mike, all while trying to cope with moving across the country from everything they know. each chapter is meant to reflect a certain stage of grief, which fits so well with all the complicated emotions everyone is going through!

drank my poison all alone (T, 4k, one-shot) by silverluminoqity - mike gets vecna'd and has to face his past self who's ashamed of who he's grown up to be, and my dudes the writing goes SO HARD. by far one of the best mike gets vecna'd fics i've read with such a good take on his character

star eater (T, >1k, one-shot) by @lowlightt - another fic where the writing does not play. honestly if you have a few minutes, READ THIS FIC. it's mostly just a confrontation between will and vecna, but it's so so powerful and impactful. and again, i cannot state it enough: the writing is AMAZING

tell me again (you said yes) (M, 32k, 3/3 complete) by @willow-lark - hey remember when cleradin was like a Thing for a brief second a few months ago? well if you miss those vibes, or if you just like great writing and some of the best weaving of canon into a fantasy au i've ever read, please look no further than this fic (and it's first part, fireball him! (cast protection)). i love this one dearly and enjoyed the wonderful ways Lark wove canon (specifically s1) into such a different setting, plus it was nice to see many of the other characters play a role in the events. beautiful, astounding, heart-wrenching - and did i mention there's an elopement 👀

In Undertow (M, 17k+, 3/6 on-going) by @souverian-are-we - this and one soft infested summer have become my summer byler reads~ when i say i love this fic, i mean you will have to pry it from my cold, dead hands 🥰 we've got estranged byler, jancy engagement with some stoncy going on in the background, and most of the characters still reeling from the consequences of their final battle with the upside down. it's all set at a lake house, which provides some breathtaking/atmospheric writing that this author uses to their advantage. it has some of my favorite scenes i've ever read in fic too, ones that have literally taken my breath away

california show your teeth (T, 77k+, 10/19 on-going) by @fireflywitch - what if the Byers and Hopper families were from Lenora and moved to Hawkins? this fic takes this one simple premise and turns it into one of my favorite fics i've ever had the pleasure of following along with. it essentially functions as a retelling of s1 and s2, gives almost every main character that's been featured in the show thus far a lot of time and space for their own plots, all while culminating into one larger story underneath. i don't think i've read a fic quite like this one in terms of its scope, plotting, and characterization, because there are a lot of moving parts, but this author goes above and beyond. i cannot recommend it enough

all i know is pouring rain (and everything has changed) (T, 3k, one-shot) by @willelfanpage - i think i read this one at the beginning of my workday while i was running some report on my computer and had to go about the rest of my day as if everything was fine ahah :'D seriously though, it's 3k words that pack an emotional punch all while examining will's relationship to rain. the writing is just gorgeous, and it's a character study that i haven't really seen done before, which was quite enjoyable~

Chasing Heartlines by (T, 7k+, 1/2 on-going) @cherryisgone - if you liked Tip-Toeing on Lilypads then may i direct you to its sequel, which features so much pining mike that he might as well be a tree? again, if you like cleradin/fantasy aus, then Cherry my beloved has you covered 💜 it fits so neatly with Lilypads and provides some fun contrast between will and mike~

Touch Me Like You Know Me (M, 15k, 4/4 complete) by @starsarefire824 - this exists in the rare pantheon of fics that actually made me cry. imagine an estranged byler reunion with all the emotions turned up to an eleven, and lots of lingering on lost time and how life sometimes takes us places we never thought we'd go. it's absolutely beautiful and is a classic to me :]

come back to me and forgive everything (T, 78k, 18/18 complete) by @howtobecomeadragon - i saw a lot about this one when it was on-going but am only just now getting around to reading it, and all i can say is why did it take me so long to get to it :') this author does such a good job of writing will and mike's relationship with a lot of nuance and complexity while still managing to make them feel like the teenagers they are. basically, will has to spend every july at lonnie's house in indianapolis, and for this summer in particular, the event is a lot more emotionally impactful for both mike and will. there's lots of emotional depth, the complexities of coming out and/or realizing you're queer, and, at the heart of it, how two friends try to mend things between each other. it's so soft and sweet

that's all i've got for now!! i'm quickly running out of time on my lunch break :'D also haven't been writing as much, but it's been fun to read more and relax a bit. hope you guys enjoy these because they're genuinely some of the best stuff i've had the pleasure to read in a while 💜💜💜

[doctorofmagic]

BLOOD HUNT PREDICTIONS (and spoilers!)

Okay, I see everyone is struggling to keep it cool because of what just happened today in Blood Hunt #1. But honestly I'm very excited to put the pieces together (also very HYPED!!!). So here are my thoughts (and my friend Red's, thank you, my darling) on what we gathered so far through clues, covers and solicitations.

Obviously, spoilers.

Well, first thing I'd like to establish is that people will probably feel lost if they haven't read the last Blade volume. Thankfully, yours truly did! Which means I can provide some context:

Just recently, Blade released an ancient evil called the Adana by accident. To make it up for this mistake (which would lead to the end of the world, basically), he had to embrace his full vampiric powers by drinking Dracula's blood (they're in a kinda complicated relationship right now, not friends nor enemies but necessary allies). That also meant that he was corrupted by its evil.

Plus, as I said it many times, Blade has a deep respect for Stephen because of the Montesi Formula, which resulted in the extinction of all vampires. Yes, Stephen did it once, and I'll get back to it because I think it's REALLY important.

Since we established that Blade might be corrupted, let's move on to the next topic.

Is Stephen dead?

My best guess is "not really".

In Blood Hunt, we see that T'Challa sacrificed himself to protect Cap America Sam and the rest of the Avengers who survived the first strike. But is T'Challa gone? Luckily, I follow Farid Karami on twitter and he posted a few inks he did for Black Panther: Blood Hunt. And guess what? That's right, we'll about to have vampire!T'Challa!

Besides, we all know that the next Doctor Strange issue will feature Wong and vampire!Stephen. What we didn't know was how Stephen would fit in the plot, but thanks to the variant cover I posted last week, we do now: he'll be guiding his allies via his astral form.

Now, how can the Sorcerer Supreme deal with the vampiric threat? It was shown that Stephen and Clea are looking for the Montesi Formula again.

For those who don't know, the Montesi Formula is a spell from the Darkhold that can wipe every single vampire off the face of the Earth. Stephen already used this spell once when he fought Dracula (and Blade was there, hence the respect he holds for Stephen). Unfortunately for them, Wanda has just recently absorbed the Darkhold within her body as a way to gain autonomy from Chthon (as seen in Darkhold: Alpha and Omega). Besides, Wanda was captured by the Bloodcoven, which means she can't do much right now. In addition, as hinted by Blade himself, she won't use the Montesi Formula, mostly because the character can't be involved in another kind of genocide (thanks, Bendis). And that leads us to the next topic.

Who could do it? The very one character who would overcome morals on behalf of his people, the same one who already appeared in the first issue: Doctor Doom. And if we think about it, he has two advantages already: 1) he's second in line to be the Sorcerer Supreme, and 2) as already established, he'd do anything to protect his planet and, most importantly, Latverians.

It's also important to reiterate that an astral form is not as powerful as the body+soul. With Stephen's strength limited, it's not that crazy to imagine that he could pass the mantle to Victor for a limited period while they find the spell. "Why not Clea?" I don't know. It's already established that managing the power of two sorcerers supreme is extremely hard and draining. Could be another reason as well. I'm just trying to find a coherent train of thought through this variant cover here:

Still, we're left with a very important dilemma. We have nice vampire allies in current comics: Brielle (Blade's daughter) and Soldier and Reese from the Midnight Mission (Moon Knight), the three of them being characters to be featured in the tie-ins. Well, not to mention Stephen and T'Challa, and maybe some more to be turned in the next issues. This is why I don't think the Montesi Formula will happen. Jed won't kill THE Black Panther, let's be real. So what's next?

We're expecting a plot twist at some point, and Blade will have an important role here. He's set to have another solo title this year, probably following the consequences of his actions. But there's a high chance someone else is involved. Let's check this panel once more:

Atlantean rituals.... Where did we hear about it before? That's right, Sorcerer Supreme #11!

During the old age, Varnae become ruler of the vampires and was brought back by Marie Laveau in modern age, fighting Doctors Strange and Voodoo. His last appearance traces back to Blade when he and his friends confronted him. Frank Drake sacrificed himself in an explosion to kill Varnae, and that's the last time we hear about him.

But see how the pieces come together? Blade, Stephen and Varnae. It makes sense that things would center around these three. And this is why I'm very excited. It's not a surprise that I love Blade and Stephen's relationship, and all these elements would make a wonderful drama, one that I'm really looking forward to!

Overall, I'm not worried about status quo or anything like that. I know things will work out in time, and seeing so many of my favorite characters involved in an event written by McKay only makes it better!

And that's it! Feel free to add your thoughts on this post! And see you all next week with Doctor Strange #15! 👀

[atopvisenyashill]

thoughts on the grand northern conspiracy theory?

it makes some points but i think most of it is deeply silly and relies on far too many leaps in logic and characters acting in a way they would never act all to push a “jon will be king” theory, which as i’m sure everyone knows, i am a big hater of.

The basis of the theory is that the Northern lords are purposefully playing Stannis & the Bolton/Freys against each other so they can take each other out, and free the North up for a Stark King & Northern Independence. That, on its face, I fully believe. It’s the details in the theory that I don’t fully buy into.

It’s basically canon that the Northern lords & ladies are really taking advantage of the chaotic politics & lack of a real centralized leader at the moment to make their own political moves. Some examples here include:

Arnolf & Cregan Karstark are explicitly doing this, something Alys comments on and something several other lords point out: "My uncle declared for Stannis, in hopes it might provoke the Lannisters to take poor Harry's head. Should my brother die, Karhold should pass to me, but my uncles want my birthright for their own." They don't really care about Stannis, they want Harry dead so they can have Karhold.

Alysane Mormont is potentially working off orders from her mother, when she says here, "Five, we were. All girls. Lyanna is back on Bear Island. Lyra and Jory are with our mother. Dacey was murdered." Even though as far as we know before that, all of Maege's girls were at Bear Island (except Dacey, who was with Maege in Robb's campaign).

There's the Umbers refusing to fight each other while picking two different sides, and this theory here that it was likely a plan between Mors and Hother to keep the Greatjon alive.

The Manderly Of It All re: very obviously using his granddaughter's anger as a cover for his own brutal plans for revenge and a Stark restoration.

The North is all clearly playing the game & attempting to oust the Boltons & Freys from power. I also don’t think the grumbling for Northern Independence would have died down since Robb died - if anything, after their King is brutally, viciously murdered, his mother’s corpse made a mockery of, his little Queen now a prisoner, and his sisters married off to enemies & humiliated, I imagine the calls for Northern Independence have gotten louder. This is a people that has suffered not just death and violence, but a lot of humiliation on top of that, and all of that is the perfect recipe for some sort of nationalist call for independence.

But the theory has. Some points that I just cannot co-sign because they make absolutely zero sense to me.

The idea that the only thing stopping Jon from being king is Jeyne being pregnant or the witnesses of Robb’s will being dead is just silly. He isn’t Ned Stark’s son, he is Lyanna’s! That puts Robb’s entire will in question, and you can bet your ass that there will be some grumbling or discussion about whether Winterfell should bypass Ned‘a line despite him having TWO true born sons and TWO true born daughters still alive, or whether it goes to Lyanna and therefore to Jon. The succession question is just NOT as simple as the meta makes it out to be because it completely ignores that Jon is, I cannot stress this enough, NOT actually Ned Stark’s son.

The meta is right that it’s likely Maege & Gallbart got a message to Howland because Theon notes that there’s been attacks by craggoman. But. Howland is one of - possible thee only - person left alive that knows Jon is Lyanna’s son. There is just no way he doesn’t have a strong opinion on whether Jon should inherit winterfell without knowing the truth.

Irrelevant but it’s really mean to Jeyne Westerling. Whatever role she may have - even if it’s to die in the prologue of TWOW - her life and her death are important regardless of whether she’s pregnant! She is the widow of a King, and if she dies by LSH’s hand, it’s going to be a huge point in showing us the violence in the Riverlands. Maybe the continued breakdown in the Riverlands, Lady Stoneheart’s anger, and Jeyne’s defiance of her family is not relevant to the King Jon pushers, but it IS thematically relevant to the plot thank you very fucking much. THE GIRL IS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE BOY.

More relevant to this point is there’s just no way in fuck that Lady Stoneheart is trying to crown Jon. “oh she has bigger problems” she is going to crown one of her children if she crowns anyone, likely Arya, not her husband’s bastard who she fucking hated & asked to be banished to a glorified penal colony. Look at Brynden’s comments about Jon:

The Blackfish narrowed his eyes. "Did your father arrange for that as well? Catelyn never trusted the boy, as I recall, no more than she ever trusted Theon Greyjoy. It would seem she was right about them both.

Cat hates that kid so much she wrote letters to her uncle talking shit about him but we are supposed to believe this is proof she wants to crown him? When she's so far gone she's willing to kill Podrick and Brienne off a perceived slight against her? When she's heard several rumors that her daughters may still be alive and well? No. Don't buy it even a little.

Also, Brynden is flying Robb’s banner bc Robb was his family, because he loved Catelyn, and because what else is he supposed to do when he’s in the middle of a siege?? This point is silly and nonsensical.

Harwin as the Hooded Man - i mean. there’s nothing for or against this really, but also the Theon Durden theory aka Theon is the hooded man and doesn’t realize bc he’s having a psychotic episode, is much more believable to me & much more in line with everything that’s happening in theon’s chapter.

So like. Yes, the basic premise of “the northern lords are desperately looking for a stark, any stark, to make king/queen in the north, bc they are tired of All This Bullshit” is something i completely agree with. I do think it’s likely Maege has been in contact with her daughters, & that she and Gallbart made contact with Howland, who is about to enter the scene in a big way. But all that ish about LSH, the BWB, and Blackfish? Absolutely not. LSH is about Arya’s story (and Brienne & Jaime’s), not Jon. Stoneheart doesn’t care about the politics in Westeros; she cares that she followed all the rules and it got her family killed, so now she will break every rule there is to get revenge for her slaughtered children. she is Alyssa Arryn except she has the power to cause a lot of suffering before her tears drown her. she is not wasting her second life crowning jon snow!

[kozumaguchi]

Jujutsu Kaisen Smells

Navi

Ft. Most of JJK, sorry if I missed one of your favs (💜)

Warnings - Unintentional slander of some of your favs, I swear I love JJK.

Yuuji - Yuuji doesn't smell bad per say, he just sweats a lot since he's very active. He doesn't smell strong ever, the only thing that do are his feet... But those are usually covered.

Megumi - He owns cologne, body wash, face wash, and many packs of gum. He's always minty fresh, not overbearing but instead like a mint flavored chapstick.

Nobara - She's overly analytical of herself, so she would be petrified if she smelled bad in public, you won't catch her slipping she's always smelling like tutti fruity jelly beans.

Gojo - He's good at everything he does, so to top it all off he doesn't even try to smell good he just does. He smells like strawberries and cream, and some hate how he doesn't seem to have a flaw.

Nanami - Pencils and fresh books, he just does don't fight me on it because I will win. He may dabble in some light cologne if it's a special occasion however.

Maki - She doesn't really care how she smells, she doesn't think about it. That's why she doesn't have much of a scent at all, she washes her face, wears deodorant, and calls it a day. The only noticeable smell is her citrus scented shampoos that she uses.

Yuta - During JJK 0 he 100% smelled like axe spray... But got called out by Maki and fixed his mistakes. He know smells like cinnamon and firewood.

Inumaki (My husband) - I love him... But he is definetly not a flower and the books confirmed this. He most likely smells like gas stations and soup at best, it's not disgusting but not something people get candles of.

Panda - Smells like fresh grass and summer days or a wet dog if he's caught in the rain. Sometimes he will smell like soup thanks to Inumaki feeding him whatever is for dinner.

Sukuna - Blood, a bit of dead body, but mostly a strong blood scent... Kinda smells like period blood but nobody asks.

Mahito - Smells like hand sanitizer and really overbearing soap, he smells too clean, too the point it's a bit much. Oddly enough his hair smells really bad because he doesn't take care of it.

Geto - Geto smells like dark chocolate with a hint of red wine, he smells expensive which he uses to his advantage if need be. It for some reason lures people in easily.

Todo - Todo smells like protein shakes, Sweat, axe, and orange juice all at the same time. It's a lot but it's not terrible, the dominant smell truly depends on the scenario.

Mai - She uses beautiful perfumes (sometimes over uses), and her hair smells like pineapple even if she is using shampoo that smells nothing like it.

Noaya - Shit he smells like shit because he is a peice of shi- (He actually smells like freshly vacuumed carpet but I hate him so...)

Toji - cum Toji smells like cheap cologne, gasoline, dirt, and rainy days. He smells like a sugar daddy without actually being one because he's broke... So I guess he's just a daddy (He failed at being that too tho... Just saying).

Shoko - She smells like whiskey and cigarettes, mostly cigarettes but that should be assumed.

Ijichi - depression Ijichi smells like a new car, and a fresh basement. He smells like nice cars because he takes care of his very often too make sure its perfect.

Junpei - He used to smell like apple pie and popcorn, thanks to visiting theatres so often. His smell was comforting and captured his sweet nature perfectly.

Miwa - Miwa smells like fresh cookies and wooden stoves, she smells really good and has been complimented on it before. (She blushed for quite a few days after it.)

Rika - Rika smelled like fresh daisies and the first days of winter, her smell was pure just like her soul and heart.

Yoshinobu - He definetly smells like an old man, take that as either moth balls and drug stores, or beef and farts. Either one could suit him.

[pomegranateboba]

Hi! This is my first time requesting so sorry if I did anything wrong. Can I request the boys with an MC who has bad experience with gun noises? Like if they even here a chip bag pop open they hit a dead sprint out of the room. If it makes you uncomfy you can just ignore. Have a good day/evening/night!

Hello anon :)

Summoner who dislikes gun/gun-like noises

Arcturus

He was carrying a stack of books, and just so happens that the heavy dictionary at the top of the pile fell onto the ground with a loud thud

He set the rest of the books on a table to pick them up, and was going to ask you for help when he saw you backed up against a pillar a good distance away from him

He noticed how you stared in the book in slight fear and shock, and he immediately went over to ask if you were okay

He didn't know you had this condition, he's really sorry

Gave you a hug as an apology

Made sure that he didn't accidentally trigger this again, and he would always be there for you if you ever need his comfort

Spica

He was holding a heavy stack of papers and he may or may not have put the papers down way too loudly

He saw the way you flinched violently and turned pale

Immediately apologised, pouring you a glass of your preferred drink while rubbing circles on your back to calm you down

Promised he would be more careful next time

He is worried about what had caused this fear of gun-like noises

You are always welcome to come to him if you need anything

Alpheratz

He was opening this bag of chips Pollux gave him, and it accidentally exploded

You struggled to move away from the sudden noise, moving 10 kilometres away from him

He felt bad, he didn't mean to scare you like that

Invited you back to his side, where he hugged you while you both shared whatever was left of the exploded chips

He says its the bag's fault for being so troublesome, he secretly he feels bad

He himself had been startled by the way the stupid bag exploded too

Pollux

He was just showing how he could shoot things from a far distance, so he shot an apple on Alpheratz's head

He turned around and suddenly you were 10 metres away hiding behind a tree

When he realised he wasn't sure how to feel

Why didn't you tell him about this sooner? But he also felt bad for not asking

Apologised over and over again, giving you this half-melted chocolate bar as an apology

Was really clingy for the rest of the day because he felt bad for making you scared

He never apologised to Alpheratz for putting an apple on his head and then shooting it, giving Alpheratz the heart attack of the century. His summoner is obviously more improtant

Vega

Vega already knows about your condition, so he would literally never

And if he ever did, he would feel so bad. Like "I don't deserve you" feel bad

May distance himself from you and everyone to question his whole purpose in life

How could he be your protector if he is the one making you scared?

You have to go to him yourself and tell him its okay, otherwise you will never be able to talk to him ever again

You 2 will get yourselves some jelly (mostly for Vega to calm him down)

He is very careful with what he does, and if anyone scares you again whether on accident or not, make sure you tell them to lock their doors

Sirius

He likely found this out on his own somehow, so he also would be careful about what he does

And if he ever did, he will also fall into depression, except its all internal and he rainbows the pain of hurting you away

He avoids using his gun around you, due to obvious reasons

Will probably tease you about it, but when its serious, he's actually doing his best to comfort you

Anyone who dares take advantage of this fact will face his wrath

Gets you earmuffs for fun

Remember to hydrate yourselves and get enough sleep :)

[the-sprog]

I think if Danny existed in the same universe as Ash Ketchum, he'd be a fan.

This got really long so I'm just gonna

I'm a believer in "Ash is God[1]'s favorite idiot (positive...?) and so is eternally 10" and also anti the level reset propaganda. I think tales of the kid who went head-to-head with several legendaries[2] and won would probably get around. Maybe they wouldn't know his name, but a general description would make the rounds. A black-haired, dark-eyed kid who is always, always accompanied by a Pikachu. Often seen with some kind of red hat.

I think Danny "God's favorite idiot (Time God[3] edition)" would start looking for this elusive child who seems to be under a similar predicament to him (Hisuian Zorua[4]!Danny anyone? C'mon, this is the Pokédex entry "A once-departed soul, returned to life in Hisui. Derives power from resentment, which rises as energy atop its head and takes on the forms of foes. In this way, Zorua vents lingering malice[5]". He would be the specialest one, though. Because he'd be a green shiny instead of blue. Maybe that would be because he's half dead, not completely so? Or maybe because he'd be artificial, kinda like Type: Null[6]? (I know it isn't the first artificial Pokémon, but he's the first I thought of because of the design being like it's a Frankenstein of other Pokémon). Imagine though. Hisuian Zorua is extinct, right? Because it's from before Sinnoh was called Sinnoh[7]. So he's already a rare Pokémon, but he's not even shiny. He's truly a one of a kind.), though Ash, contrary to popular belief, isn't a Pokémon. Just un-aging.

Here, Danny's parents would be science-y people -maybe even some lower importance Pokémon professors- who don't believe in psychics even though the Pokémon world has people that can do telekinesis, and don't believe that Ghost types were once human, as most of them are said to be, anyway. They therefore believe that all Ghost types are malicious because they prey on people's grief and loss. They'd be the people to find out that Dark types are supereffective against Ghost types[8]. They'd have mostly Dark types with some Normal types as well.

Jazz would be a scholar probably, researching the myths and history around all the legendaries, but especially around Ghost types. She'd become an expert in behaviors from Pokémon like Litwick[9].

Sam would be on the front line, protecting the Ghost types from them. Hiding, harboring, etc all that she can think of. For her own Pokémon that she catches or at least takes care of (maybe she'd be more of an N type of trainer) she'd go more for the aesthetic or for rescued Pokémon (like Ash does quite often) more than their type or their abilities, but I also think she'd vibe with Fighting types a lot. I can see her wanting to be a Pokémon Ranger[10].

Tucker would be your classic inventor wannabe Electric type gym leader, but he'd be one of those hardcore competitive trainers. He'd be excellent at type advantages and IVs grinding, but I also think he'd struggle like Ash did with Charizard and some others. He would sometimes over level them and they'd stop listening to him, get an attitude when they evolve. Stuff like that. He's gotta learn that there's more to Pokémon battles than statistics and the theoretical. I think Ash is gonna end up being the one to teach him this. Also imagining his mom as a Nurse Joy.

However, when the Fentons find a... shiny? Zorua? In their house, posing as their son? They freak out a bit. They know it's not their son because the eyes are the wrong color, even if it speaks with Danny's voice and makes expressions with Danny's face. But they're in Unova. They recognize the Pokémon once it transforms.

Zoruas are known to play tricks on parents. They're Dark types with a mischievous side. They just gotta look for its mama and hope that it has taken Danny by mistake. They decide to take care of it in the meantime, even consider keeping it in case it doesn't have a mama and was using Danny's disappearance to keep itself safe.

Danny doesn't know what to do. At first he thinks about coming clean, but he knows. He knows that whatever invention of theirs blew up in his face didn't just turn him into a Zorua. People don't just turn into any kind of Pokémon. So he doesn't say anything, and plays along. He practices his illusions to try and get his looks as close as he can to before the accident, but it doesn't work for his eyes. No matter what he does, they're green, just like his fur markings when he's tranformed.

But then... Then they realize that it's not an Unovan Zorua.

This Zorus is a Ghost type.

A Ghost type taking Danny's form.

Their baby is dead. It killed him and this… this monster had the audacity to try and, what, replace him?

They start calling him Phantom.

Danny has to run.

It's easier to fake being a kid on a Pokémon journey than a rare version of a rare version of an extinct Pokémon. The only problem is that he's lacking the documents for it. Sam helps out with funding and supplies for the journey, enough to get to Professor Juniper and get a Pokédex, and with that a trainer license. At least until she and Tucker can join him.

They convince their parents to let them go on a journey, somehow. Sam's parents aren't thrilled by their daughter wanting to take part in the fights, they'd much prefer it if she joined Pokémon Contests, but perhaps her grannie Ida used to be a Gym leader of some kind and manages to turn them in Sam's favor. Meanwhile, Tucker's parents knew he wanted to become a Gym leader, so they were prepared and aware he'd one day go and leave the nest, but they'd always assumed Danny would be the one accompanying him, not Sam. They aren't surprised, however, that the kids want to get out after what -supposedly- happened to their friend.

The first few months are absolutely miserable all around. Danny is all alone, he has no Pokémon to defend himself, and he's still figuring out how his own powers work. What's his move set? His ability? And Sam and Tucker aren't fairing much better. They're like Misty and Ash at the very start, or even Iris and Ash. They're making good progress in terms of getting to Danny quickly, but they're not doing good on the Pokémon training part of their Pokémon journey.

Professor Juniper sends the Starters in the mail in the first Gen V game, while in the second Belle is the one to give them to you. I still think Prof. Juniper just. Shipped the Pokéballs over, and I imagine Sam wouldn't be too happy about it. I think she'd choose Tepig (as I said, I think Fighting types and her would vibe), and Tucker for Snivy (his first struggle. Snivys are snarky and a little self centered. if it doesn't want to listen to Tucker, it won't. Tucker gotta earn its respect). They leave Oshawott with Jazz, who promises to help them derail her parents whenver possible and uses Oshawott to sabotage them.

They end up in a kind of "Ash and Team Rocket"-like situation, where Team Phantom gets chased through Unova -and then Alola or whichever other region they decide to escape to- while the Fentons try to catch the Pokémon they're convinced killed their son.

Danny-as-Phantom would get a reputation because of his looks and the general mayhem his parents cause with their chase. Some people would get very curious about this Pokémon, especially Team Rocket. so maybe that's how meeting Ash happens.

Phantom gets separated from Sam and Tucker, maybe they got captured, or are busy distracting the Fentons. Ash ends up trying to console a scared little Zorua, one he's never seen anything like before, before Team Rocket shows up. He puts the little Zorua down behind him and goes:

"When are you going to give up?! I won't let you have Pikachu!"

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No, twerp. We're not here for Pikachu this time. We're here for that little Zorua behind you."

"Oh. Well, we're not letting you get it, either!"

Cue Pokémon battle.

At this point I imagine Team Phantom got to Alola, so we can also have a Tucker+Sophocles meeting. I'm still not over that kid's name btw.

Ash would be starry-eyed at Tucker. Boy liked tech. Maybe Tuck gets himself a particularly stubborn Pichu during their travels and causes Ash to get flashbacks.

He'd be Phantom's rights n1 protector. Starts batting away all the pokeballs people try to throw at him, like physically getting in the way.

Ooh what if the Thermos is a Ghost type specific MasterBall? It has a 100% catch rate but only with Ghost types. It didn't used to work, but then Danny charged it with one of his moves and -since Ghost moves are supereffective on Ghost types- it charged it perfectly. Danny uses it to catch rowdy Ghost types, of whom he's slowly becoming the King without realizing. Arceus started this whole thing that he couldn't stand Danny, but Dialga really liked the guy so he let him meet Ash to see how it would go and damn. Ash likes him. I mean, it's hard for Ash to hate truly hate someone, so it's not that surprising, but now Arceus finds Itself incapable of taking Danny away from Dialga. Sure! It can keep the kid! Whatever! They all want to be like It nowadays >:( copycats.

Danny is close to becoming a mystical pokémon due to all he does and the myths he's causing during his journey, but Arceus isn't convinced it's a good idea for him to have that status. First of all, because Darkrai might riot, second of all because it hasn't been that long and Danny is still, at the very least partially, a human child.

Shut up, It's not being hypocritical >:( it's fine when It does it.

But also Danny can now communicate with all pokémon with ease. He's not a Ditto, so he still can't fully comprehend some specific pokémon languages, like Electric types communicating via electric currents, but he gets around.

He doesn't like playing translator, though, and Pikachu learns that pretty quickly when pi starts to try and pester him to convince him to tell pi's trainer all about their journey from the beginning from pi's perspective. Danny makes it to the bike stealing before he uses an illusion to vanish.

Pikachu just has a lot of feelings about it all, ok? Pi loves Ash so much and pi wants him to know! Wants to talk about Ash-Greninja, about the Kalos Crisis, about Latias, about Delia, about N, about all the pokémon they left behind, about the pokeballs, about evolution.

Pi also wants more ketchup, but it's low on pi's list of priorities.

Danny isn't up for playing mediator, however. Though he might mention the ketchup stuff. Just to piss pi off.

@jadenoryuu hope you don't mind the tag, I thought you might have ideas or just like this one lol no pressure.

Husuian Zorua can learn some Ice type moves, I'm imagining Lillie's Alola Vulpix learning with him.

[merakiui]

I love sk!Jade so much its like my meds to make me stay put and all that. I LOVE to always imagine and wonder what it'd be like in this situation with sk!Jade and while im always reading it and something inconvenient happens with Darling im always quick to say "Oh hell nah" Or cuss out at Jade because WTF?!?!!?! But in reality if it were me in there i'd be cowering in fear and already dead😭😭 I'd have the tongue and wittiness that Ace has but the moment he points that blade against my throat im suddenly mute and submissive to his will. Or sometimes i would think Darling would find themself thinking "Okay so what if hes hot and has nice damn muscled arms when hes rolling his sleeves to dismember another victim- wait what am I talking about IM LITERALLY HELD CAPTIVE AS WELL. dude is literally going to kill someone and is holding me captive, now is NOT the time to ogle at his arms (if it isnt obvious enough i am SO DOWN BAD for strong leech arms even in such treacherous situations and conditions ><)"

I also like to think that sometimes for fun Sk!Jade likes to dress Darling in his clothes (Bloodied or not) and let his big collard shirt drape over them without anything under as they give him a pathetic and mortified look. That pathetic and submissive look on their face is absolutely adorable to him that he could just kiss their cheek! (And bite it off a few for a taste hehe)

Fear play is definitely his kink, but he can be so genuine and soft despite that and it has you melting in his big and firm arms (That could literally kill you with one bone crushing squeeze to the throat if he so desired; Its kinda cute if it was a puppy love Floyd though who just loves you so much but accidentally kills you because of his strength 😭poor Darling;;;)

I HAVE SO MUCH IDEAS STEMMING FROM MY BRAIN RN AHHHHHHHHH SK!JADE LITERALLY DOES A NUMBER TO ME IT HAS ME SHAKINGNNGNGNGNGN (I am so sorry for the long ramble😭🙏 Please take care! And also could I be Honey Anon??)

:D hello hello, Honey anon!!!!! Please don't apologize for the ramble. I love reading it hehe. <3 I'm happy to know sk!Jade has all of us in a vicious chokehold. He's just so frustrating. T_T and he knows he's attractive, too, so he uses it to his advantage if he wants you to lower your guard. Omg dressing you in his clothes... he's terrible!!! >:( I imagine he just loves seeing how visibly unsettled you get when he drapes his bloody apron over your shoulders.

Aaaaaa maybe if your ears aren't pierced he offers to do it for you so you can wear the earrings of one of his victims. ;;;;; or if they are pierced, he goes through the collection he has and picks a pair out for you. You can try to be confident, but then you're always reminded of how strong he looks and how brutal he can be and so you'll sit still while he dresses you up.

It's definitely a whiplash when he has his soft and sweet moments, but these aren't nearly enough to fool you. You know what he's like beneath his gentle demeanor. orz although sometimes you can't stop yourself from admiring his body, whether out of fear or appreciation. As scary as he is, at least he makes for pleasant eye candy when you need a distraction from the daily horrors of confinement.

And Jade just has fun being a menace and adding more fuel to your nightmares. <3 it would be arguably worse if he had a puppy crush on you like Floyd might because then his self-restraint would be even more tested than it already is.

[paradoxcase]

Chapter 24 of Nona the Ninth

The return of the Gideon skull!

For the record, that's when I figured out what they had done

Good news: you finally get to talk face-to-face with your necromancer who you a weirdly intense codependent relationship with and haven't been able to talk to in ages. Bad news: he looks and sounds exactly like Naberius Tern. Do you press the button?

The whole thing where Corona had to pretend to be a necromancer with Ianthe's help must have really contributed to their relationship being this weird sort of incestuous thing. From the last book I sort of got the impression that Ianthe felt like she was Corona's protector, and from what she said last chapter about still planning some way to be with Corona and the fact that she's been actively searching multiple planets for her, it sounds like she had plans to continue that relationship even after she became a Lyctor. I'm not sure if it was made clear at any point if their parents were in on this whole thing or not, but based on their relationship, I feel like they probably weren't? And maybe if they had discovered that Corona wasn't actually a necromancer, something like the Harrow Nova AU would have happened with her. I bet Corona is now glad to have escaped that situation and she's definitely unhappy with how Ianthe treated/is treating Babs, but she still has this weird and twisted up relationship with her

I'm not sure what Pyrrha was pretending here? It sounded like she'd told Ianthe what had happened. Or did Ianthe think she still had Lyctor powers, even when she was Pyrrha and not G1deon?

I'm dying to know what Pyrrha was going to say about Nona's yelling

I never really stopped and thought about the fact that Mercy must have been the one to make the entropy field. Palamedes calculated that it would result in permanent brain damage for Camilla if he did it, and Gideon probably only survived because she's Gideon, but Mercy and Cristabel must have tested this out at some point, right? Was Cristabel just extra thalergenic or something, or did she suffer permanent brain damage? Or did Mercy not run through the whole test herself? Or does the Eighth House have a natural advantage here as was suggested in Gideon the Ninth?

If blood wards age, and get weaker with age, doesn't that mean that John's blood ward on the Tomb should be pretty worn out now after 10,000 years?

It did seem clear to me that Nona's regeneration was much better than Harrow's was in Harrow the Ninth, but I figured that meant it was just like, regular Lyctor-level regeneration. It's interesting that it's actually faster than Lyctor-level regeneration, which maybe also supports her being Alecto, since John's powers came from Alecto and he seems to be the only person more powerful than the Lyctors. But if I understand correctly, I think Lyctors can survive headshots like the one Nona got, or at least BOE thinks they can, and I can't imagine that they didn't try to headshot a Lyctor at least once, since that seems to be their basic MO for killing necromancers

I hope this is not foreshadowing for something, but it probably is

We're 2.75 books into this story and this is the Griddlehark first kiss we get, where Harrow's body is being occupied by someone who definitely isn't Harrow and Gideon is kinda sorta dead and has huge open wounds all down her front

Also, I feel like Nona should be more frightened when a body that she identified as definitely being dead suddenly opens its eyes

That means that Gideon didn't only uh, wake up, I guess, because Nona arrived and has been mobile and able to brush her teeth for a while, because the only other option is that Ianthe manually brushes her teeth for her, and that seems unlikely

I really cannot think of a single time when Mercy would have seen Gideon's body. She saw Gideon's eyes at the end of Harrow the Ninth, and recognized them immediately, but I don't think she ever saw Gideon's body at any point? Unless BOE showed it to her that time when she sent Harrow to kill the planet that just happened to be right next to where We Suffer and Co. were and was like, hey, have fun, I'll be back in 4 hours? I guess she showed up at some point during As Yet Unsent to heal Judith, too, which must have been before that point, so maybe she saw it then?

You punched her out of an airlock, and then she tried to kill you in the incinerator, and then you shot her in the head. This is just how tales of epic romance go in this universe

This is what it means to love in this story isn't it? To own, to squeeze, to cosset, and to destroy

Just a guess, but I think John did not in fact allow her to bring Gideon with her and Ianthe just did it anyway

Is this why people have been saying that Pyrrha must remember the world from before she was resurrected, because she still remembers disco?

So far necromancer/cavalier relationships have been entirely a social construct, there are different rules for them and different ideas about what they mean and how they work across all nine Houses, and we've had cavaliers that switched necromancers, like Protesilaus, like this isn't a soulmate AU. I don't think there should be anything necromantically binding any particular necromancer to their cavalier unless they've actually Lyctorfied. So I can believe that Ianthe has some special necromantic connection to Babs but I don't think there's any reason for Palamedes to have a special necromantic connection to Camilla? Unless the like one step they took towards Lyctorhood counts? But Harrow was able to use necromancy through Gideon when they did the construct challenge back at Canaan House, and they hadn't taken any steps towards Lyctorhood at that point. Even if the phrase "one flesh, one end" somehow has necromantic power, Harrow and Gideon hadn't said that to each other yet at that point

Ianthe put a ward of some kind on her a while back, I wonder if that is protecting her from Number Seven somewhat?

I hope that's like, Nona describing ribs, and not actual teeth in her chest, because why would they be there? It can't have been a modification that John made, because Palamedes claims that her wounds are the same as they were earlier

That does confirm that the only reason Corona came to the barracks was to get Ianthe to put that ward on Judith

Ok, I have a prediction now, which is that since Nona is probably Alecto, or at least mostly Alecto, with maybe some Gideon and/or Harrow residue, when they go to open the Tomb the thing that Pyrrha was afraid of earlier where Nona's soul gets vacuumed out of her body into Gideon is actually going to happen for real with Alecto, and then they will have to try to figure out how to get Harrow's soul back into her body before it dies, and probably also have to deal with Alecto waking up as herself, whatever that turns out to mean

Which is probably why the next book is called Alecto the Ninth

I like how the one thing that breaks her out of pretending to be dead is the thought of getting poked with a needle, haha

So now I have to wonder though, what kind of partly-dead state is she actually in now? And why has she been pretending to be dead? I doubt she would be on Ianthe's side of things and she considers all of these people friends, except for Judith probably