#entire army and the series continues on like nothing happened

[swagging-back-to]

who tf is melenor

melenor and honerva doomed yuri rb if you agree

[m1ckeyb3rry]

── THE GLASS PRINCESS // SIXTEEN

Series Synopsis: You wake up in a strange room with no memories, broken glass at your bedside, and a prince named Zuko as your only chance at figuring out who you really are.

Chapter Synopsis: You wake up to a palace conquered.

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Zuko x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 7.2k

Content Warnings: complicated relationships (strangers to friends to lovers to enemies to strangers to lovers to enemies to lovers), amnesia, alternate universe, lots of secrets and lying and mystery

A/N: the last ba sing se arc chapter 😭😔😩 sorry if this wasn’t what you guys were hoping for but believe it or not this has been the plan from the start 😫

“Now, remember, Y/N,” Quynh said as you glared at the crystal you held in your palm. “Bending crystals is not entirely separate from bending normal rocks. The only difference is that crystals are slippery, slick-surfaced and unwilling to conform. Rocks, like the ones you’ve bent by accident, are malleable. They are agreeable to having their shapes changed. Stones can be bullied; crystals must be coaxed.”

“How am I supposed to coax an inanimate object?” you said, willing the crystal to change into something, anything. You were unsuccessful, though, as it stayed just out of your reach, stubbornly refusing to follow your directives.

“You must abide by the laws of this world,” she said. “Of which there are relatively few. But remember this, Y/N: it will always be more fitting for you to work with something than against it.”

You tried to implement her advice. Instead of envisioning a new crystal in your hand, you pictured each step that the current one would have to take to reach that next form. Then, without thinking of the final product, you bent the crystal to the form which immediately followed its current iteration, and then the form after that, continuing the pattern until you had turned the uncut gem into a glimmering, faceted diamond.

“I did it!” you said.

“Excellent job,” she said. “Do you see? Stones and rocks and dirt are the easy way out, the way which allows for taking shortcuts. With crystals and glass, you can never skip steps. You can speed up your moves until it seems like you are skipping steps, but you never actually can.”

“I do see,” you said. “No wonder most people avoid these more refined materials.”

“If you can become a master with even such delicate things, then nothing bar your own mental fortitude will stop you from true bending prowess,” Quynh said.

“Mental fortitude?” you said.

“Do you think of yourself as an Earthbender?” she said.

If you wanted Kuei to live, then there could only be one answer to this question. “No.”

“Then so it will be,” she said.

From that day onwards, you internalized it, internalized the thought that you could not bend anything but jewels and glass. Eventually, it became a truth of your existence, until your entire identity was built upon your Glassbending, until you could barely even be considered an Earthbender at all.

A week after Aang, Katara, Toph, and Sokka left, you awoke to the sound of screams in the hallway. You shot out of your bed, glancing out the window and affirming that it was still night; when you saw that it was, you wondered what could possibly be the cause of the commotion. It was only when you smelled burning did you realize that something terrible was happening.

Scattered through the kingdom as the army was, it had been impossible for you to consolidate a true force to defend the palace in time, and as most of the soldiers who typically served as your guards had been injured when Aang and his friends had stormed the palace, you had had no choice but to rely on the Dai Li for protection.

There was no doubting that the Dai Li were talented benders, of course, but their primary purpose was never to guard. They were meant to be stealthy enforcers, and entrusting them with the responsibility of protecting the palace had been foolish. A naive decision, based on Prince Zuko’s obsession with the Avatar, which you had so childishly thought meant you were safe from his attentions.

The acrid stench of smoke stung your nose and throat as you shoved on a pair of slippers, all the while cursing the luck which led to you only ever facing these kinds of threats in your nightclothes. The moon was high in the sky, watching you through your window as you rushed about the room, locking the door and then making your way towards your dressing room. If you could reach Quynh’s Den, then you could escape to Ba Sing Se, and from there…

No. If this was what you thought it was, then they would likely execute Kuei, so that they could take over the kingdom unchallenged. Escaping alone was not only the coward’s way, it was the route a fool would take; the best course of action was for you to meet with your brother and usher him to safety first. No matter what, the Earth King had to live. He had to survive. As long as he did, there was hope for the nation.

There was a knock on your door. You stopped moving immediately, waiting and listening, trying to discern who it might be.

“Princess, it’s us. The Dai Li,” said a gruff, masculine voice that you vaguely remembered to have heard before. Your shoulders sagged in relief. So they hadn’t been overwhelmed completely! There was still a chance. One ally was better than none, and for this agent to be knocking on your door so casually, he was likely not alone. Perhaps things were not as dire as they seemed from in your chambers. Relaxing, you ran over to unlock the door.

“Thank goodness,” you said. “I was so frightened that — that something had happened to you all. What’s the situation?”

“The situation?” the Dai Li agent said. Before you could move, he had Earthbent bindings around your wrists, forcing them behind your back. The rock cuffs were rough, digging into your skin and shredding it open, instead of smooth like they typically were, and he patted you on the shoulder when you yelped in surprise. “The situation is that you killed our Captain Chhay and threw our leader Long Feng into jail. Did you really think that you could still hold a claim to our loyalty after that?”

“I don’t understand,” you said. “You’re sworn to the Earth King!”

“We were,” another agent said, shoving you forwards. “And now, we’re not. The Earth King’s time is over, Princess Y/N, and so is yours.”

“You’re betraying the kingdom?” you said. “For what? For who?”

“The Fire Nation,” the agent who had cuffed you said. “They offered us something far more appealing than the short leash you wrapped around our necks — power. The power to run Ba Sing Se in the way we desire to. In the way it deserves to be.”

“The Fire Nation,” you breathed, stumbling as your head spun at the confirmation of your worst fears. The agent pushing on your back used a stone to prod at your spine for the brief slip. “They’re here?”

“That’s right,” the agent said. “And they’re most interested in meeting you. Aren’t you ever so flattered?”

“How could you do this?” you said instead of responding. “You’ve allied with the very nation trying to take over yours.”

“Didn’t you hear what we were saying? It’s more profitable for us to work with them than against them, and anyways, didn’t Long Feng warn you that you’d regret spurning him? This is that regret. Your final moments will be spent watching your kingdom crumble in the coup orchestrated by the man who once had nothing but your best interests in mind, and then you will be executed by the prince so that he can legitimize his claim on the throne,” he said with a shrug.

For some reason, though he had said so much, you could only focus on one particular detail: executed. The prince. Lee, or Prince Zuko, or whoever he was…he meant to execute you. He meant to kill you with his own hands. The person you had loved so much that you had allowed him entry to the palace was betraying you like this. He was going to execute you, and all for a throne, for the jurisdiction of a kingdom that would never accept him as their own.

You rounded the corner to a long hallway that housed the tapestries of your ancestors, the many faces which made up your bloodline. Your father’s likeness was there, hanging between your grandfather’s and Kuei’s, smiling down benevolently at his onlookers, his eyes sparkling even through the static image.

You had always loved staring at that tapestry in particular. Sometimes, looking up at it was enough for you to recall, dimly, memories of a man you had never met. Perhaps they were more aptly considered fantasies, ones of growing up while he was alive, sitting in his lap as he read you stories, wobbling after him as you learnt to walk and showing him the glass sculptures you made with your bending.

This time, too, you stared at him as you walked past, though the only thing you could think of was that you were going to face the same fate that he had. No matter that you had tried to escape it. No matter that you had run from the assassination attempts in Ba Sing Se. No matter that you had killed Captain Chhay in your chambers. No matter that you had exposed Long Feng’s treachery to Kuei. It was your destiny to be crossed. Just as your father had been murdered by someone who ought to have been loyal to him, you, too, would be destroyed by a person who you could not help but love.

Kuei was already in the throne room, kneeling on the ground, his head held down by the Dai Li agent who had replaced Chhay as the Captain. The new Captain grinned when he saw you, and then he jerked his head towards the spot beside Kuei.

The two agents escorting you pressed on your shoulders until you, too, knelt, though you did not bow your head, nor were you asked to. Subjugating a princess did not have the same gravitas as subjugating a king, after all.

“You,” you snarled when you saw who was positioned in front of the throne, in the same place that Long Feng used to always occupy. It was the same now. You could never stand up there with the rest of them. Regardless of who it was, you would always, always be below them.

“Y/N,” he said softly. “I — I know that you’re probably confused, but—”

“I’m not confused at all,” you said. “I know exactly who you are, Prince Zuko.”

His eyes widened, like he had not been expecting that, like he had expected a different reaction. “You do? How?”

“How does it matter? you said.

“Actually, I’d like to know, as well,” Kuei said from where his eyes were still trained on the carpet. “Are the two of you acquainted or something?”

“No,” you said.

“Yes,” Prince Zuko said at the same time.

“I don’t know you,” you said. “I knew a different person. A better one. He would never have done this to me.”

“You don’t understand,” Prince Zuko said. “I have to!”

“Says who?” you said.

“My father!” he said. “This is all I have left to do. I just have to hold the Earth Kingdom while my sister hunts down the Avatar, and then…and then I can go home.”

Your mind struggled to reconcile the two versions of him you were presented with. Was this the same boy you had argued about books with over tea? The same boy who had donned a mask and saved you from Captain Chhay’s attacks? The same boy who had always protected you without question? It could not be. That boy would never look down his nose at you the way Prince Zuko was now. That boy would never order your arrest the way Prince Zuko had. He would never make you kneel at his feet.

But he must’ve been the same person. There was only one reason you could say that with certainty: he was here, in the palace. He had found Quynh’s Door, which meant you loved him. That meant that Zuko and Lee and the Blue Spirit really were three aliases for one horrible, twisted being.

“Get on with it, then,” you said. “Kill me. Kill my brother.”

“Or don’t!” Kuei shrieked, shrinking away from the Captain’s touch.

“That’s your plan, isn’t it? You’re going to execute us so that nobody dares to dream of rebelling against the Fire Nation occupation. Without Kuei or his heir around, your coup will go uncontested. I know you know that already, so why are you procrastinating? You have us surrounded by Dai Li and Fire Nation soldiers alike, so get on with it,” you said.

You would get to see your parents. It was the only positive you could glean from the entire affair. If you were killed, then your mother, your father…you would get to see them.

“Do you want to do the honors yourself, your royal highness?” the Captain of the Dai Li said. You scowled. Your royal highness — he only ever should’ve called you that.

You had spent so long admiring the prince’s face that it was all but a habit at this point. Even now, you could not help yourself from slipping into it, gazing at him until your eyesight grew blurry from tears, your lip trembling from the strain of holding them back.

This was your fault. This was your fault. This was your fault. Your fault your fault your fault.

“You must think of me as a great fool,” you said. “To have fallen for your scheme so readily. I all but handed you the kingdom on a platter.”

“I don’t think that,” Prince Zuko said, swallowing, his expression softening for only a second before hardening immeasurably. “Look, can’t you just — just take her away? Put her in some jail cell or something! The king, too. We can deal with them later. For now, I don’t want to bother with them.”

“As you wish, sir,” the Captain said. “Do you want the Soldiers of Agni guarding her, or will it be alright if we use our own methods?”

“I don’t care,” Prince Zuko said. “Just as long as I don’t have to see her.”

Of course he didn’t. And why would he? He had never loved you. Everything had been a lie. He had been pretending. He just needed you to fall in love with him so that he could find Quynh’s Door. He just needed that foolproof method to enter the palace. Beyond that, what even were you to him? An irritation? A girl he despised? If you hadn’t told him that myth, would he ever have treated you as kindly as he had?

“We’ve been looking forward to this,” the Dai Li told you as you reached the royal crypt beneath the palace. “I don’t think the world’s ever hated a pair of royals as much as it hates the two of you.”

There was no point in fighting back, not when there were so many of them, so you could only shiver and squeeze your eyes shut as your back was pressed to Kuei’s. Stone rings encircled you two, tying you together to the point of near-asphyxiation.

“What are you doing?” Kuei wheezed. “What is the meaning of this?”

Please. Someone. Anyone. Father. Mother. Quynh. What is happening? Please help.

You were so cold, even though Kuei was so warm. You were freezing, in fact. You thought that you might die just from that.

Stone walls were erected around you, so close that it was as if you were standing in a coffin. There was the tiniest hole near the top to allow you to breathe, but other than that, there was nothing. You could not move even if you wanted to. You could barely see. For all intents and purposes, you had been buried alive.

“You wanted to be remembered as someone who loved his sister?” the Captain of the Dai Li said. “Let’s see how much you love her after this!”

“Let us go! I demand you let us go this instant!” Kuei screamed. “Hey! On my authority as the Earth King, I order you to free us! Free us, and you won’t be punished!”

“Good luck, Earth King,” another agent said. “I hope your meaningless title helps you in there.”

“No,” Kuei said. “No, get back here! Get back here, treasonous vermin!”

“Kuei,” you murmured once the Dai Li agents’ footsteps faded into the background and you were sure you were alone. “Calm down, brother. You are wasting your strength.”

“Calm down? What about this situation invites calm, sister? Do tell me!” he screeched.

“I’m sorry,” you said. “This is my fault. I know that, and I will do everything in my power to make it right.”

“Your fault? How can that be?” he said.

“I’m the one who let Prince Zuko into the palace,” you said, and then your silent tears turned into sniffles that grew into sobs. “Kuei, Kuei, it’s all my fault. Please hate me. Please abhor me, brother. It is my doing that has led to all of this.”

“How did you accomplish that?” he said, all annoyance vanished in favor of concern.

“Quynh’s Door,” you said. “Listen, I know you’ve never believed in her, but she’s real. She’s a spirit I’ve been visiting since my youth, and all of the stories about her are true, too.”

“But for him to have found Quynh’s Door means…” Kuei trailed off in horror.

“Yes,” you said. “I fell in love with him during the time I spent in Ba Sing Se. I am the world’s stupidest girl, and now the entire kingdom will pay for my error. You will pay for my error. It’s not fair. If anyone should be punished, it’s me.”

“There’s no point in assigning blame,” Kuei said. “We’re stuck here. They left us that hole so that we could breathe, but my guess is that it’s only to extend our suffering. They’ll wait until we’re weak and hungry and dehydrated, and then they’ll execute us.”

Was this the way things would end? Was there nothing left that you could do for your kingdom? Would you spend the rest of your life in this cage, leaving only at the moment you were to be executed by Prince Zuko?

“If only one of us was an Earthbender,” he groused. “Thanks a lot, mother! Father! Shan! What a load of good your bloodline did us!”

“What did you just say?” you said. He scoffed.

“What, religious piety wasn’t enough for you, so you’re taking up the filial sort now, too? Who cares if I’m being disrespectful? We’re going to die surrounded by our own element!” he said.

“Our own element…” you murmured. “Kuei. Stay very still.”

“There’s not much else I can do,” he said.

You remembered something Quynh had told you when you had first learnt to bend crystals. Stones can be bullied. Bullying was not in your nature, but what choice did you have? This was your own element. This was your birthright. You were not the princess of the Glass-and-Crystal Kingdom; you were Princess Y/N, of the Earth Kingdom.

Closing your eyes, you focused on the earthen walls around you, imploring them to recede, wheedling and cajoling them to back away so that you and Kuei could escape.

Nothing happened. You considered giving up, but if you gave up now, then it was as good as signing your own death order. Your own, and also Kuei’s. Taking a deep breath, you allowed only two sensations to wash over your body: the warmth of your brother’s back against yours, and the solidity of the ground under your feet.

You did not cajole or wheedle or implore anymore. There was no place for politeness or weakness. You had to command. You did not have to convince the stone — you had to demand it bow to your will.

There was the grating sound of rock-on-rock, and then the walls surrounding you and Kuei crumbled into nothingness. The stone restraints followed suit, and you heaved for breath, your muscles aching from the atypical exertion, though not unbearably.

“What just happened?” Kuei said. You slapped his arm.

“Keep it down. We have to escape,” you said.

“What just happened?” he repeated, though he was thankfully quieter this time.

“I’m an Earthbender,” you said casually, grabbing his hand and pulling him after you as you ran towards the exit of the crypt.

“You’re a what? Since when?” he said.

“Shh! Do you want to get caught or something?” you said. “And since birth, duh.”

“Forgive me for being confused,” he said sardonically. “It’s not as though you’ve appeared to be a nonbender for your entire life or anything! Oh, wait.”

You rolled your eyes. “Obviously, that was a lie. I kept it a secret from everyone.”

“Right, I picked up on that,” he said. “What I’m asking you is why? Why would you hide that? It would’ve been the kingdom’s greatest joy to finally have an Earthbender of Shan’s line again! It — it would’ve been my greatest joy, to know you could protect yourself!”

“They would’ve killed you!” you snapped, though you immediately swore when you realized you had been too loud. Looking around to make sure no one had heard you, you sighed in relief and continued to run. “Listen, I learned I could bend when I was a young girl. Around that time, I heard your advisors saying that, if I was proven to be an Earthbender, they’d kill you and instate me as a ruler instead. I couldn’t let it happen like that, okay?”

“Huh?” he said.

“You can’t die,” you said. “As long as I am there, as long as I have a say, you won’t die. It was within my power to hide my bending, so that’s what I did.”

“Y/N…you gave up such a large piece of your identity for me?” he said.

“Yes,” you said. “I’d give up more, too. You’re the only one I have left, Kuei, or maybe it’s that you’re the only one I’ve ever had. Anyways, I learnt my own version of the art from Quynh, so I’ve really not given up as much as you think I have.”

He twisted his hand so that he was holding yours instead of the other way around, and then he squeezed tightly. You knew that what he really wanted was to embrace you, but there was no time for that. Still, turning your face away from his, you smiled slightly at the acknowledgement.

“Thank you, sister. Knowing this, I feel terrible for saying this, but — but I have to. We can’t escape,” he said.

“What? Why not?” you said.

“They locked Bosco away in my chambers,” he said. “The last I heard, the Fire Lord is going to — he’s going to — it’s so unthinkable, I can barely bring myself to say it, but he’s going to eat him!”

“Uh, sorry?” you said. “Fire Lord Ozai wants to eat Bosco?”

“Yes, and I can’t let that happen! Unless you agree to help me rescue Bosco, I won’t go,” he said.

You almost argued with him, but then you thought about what he was saying, really thought about it, and you found yourself agreeing with him, though for a different reason. It wasn’t that you were attached to Bosco; rather, you saw Fire Lord Ozai’s intentions for what they truly were.

Bosco was a creature made in Quynh’s image, and even if the people of Ba Sing Se resented him for how much money Kuei had wasted on his upkeep, it was undeniable what the symbolism would be if Fire Lord Ozai consumed him. It would represent the Fire Nation’s destruction of Quynh and Shan and everything they stood for, and even though it put you and your brother in more danger, you could not allow that.

“Alright,” you said. “We’ll get him first.”

“Seriously?” he said.

“We were heading to my chambers, anyways. It’s not that much of a detour,” you said, ducking behind a pillar as a pair of Dai Li agents walked past you. Hidden away in the shadows as you were, you escaped their notice, but it had been a close enough call that your heart did not stop racing for many minutes.

“Why your chambers? The window is too high. Even with your Earthbending, it’s a suicidal method of escape,” he said.

“We’re not escaping through the window,” you said, taking advantage of the relatively clear coast to dart through the hallway and round the corner into the wing of the palace where the royal rooms were located. “There’s a door to Quynh’s Den that’s usually present in my dressing room. From there, we can reach the city and then gather allies to help us retake the palace before too much damage is done.”

“Quynh’s Den — so that’s how you kept escaping!” he said.

“Er, yes, I thought you’d have put that together by now,” you said as you reached Kuei’s rooms. There were soldiers milling about in front of the polished wood doors, but that was not the route you chose to take. Instead, you placed your palm on the wall and gritted your teeth, straining until the earth parted in an archway large enough for you to enter.

Bosco was restrained in the center of the room, a gag forced in his mouth so that he posed no threat to his nonexistent keepers. When he noticed you and Kuei, his ears pricked up, and he nudged Kuei happily in greeting as you untied the gag. Kuei held his fingers to his lips, and to his credit, Bosco followed the directive and remained silent all of the way until you reached your dressing room.

Thankfully, the door was there. Kuei was the one to open it, the glow of the crystals reflecting on his glasses eerily, his eyes shining as he stared down the passage.

“I’ve seen this before,” he breathed. “Maybe in a dream, or maybe not. But I know I have.”

“Good, then you’ll know the way,” you said. “Let’s get moving before we’re caught.”

“Quynh’s Den,” Kuei murmured, stepping into the passageway. “I can’t believe it’s real. I can’t believe I’m finally going to see it.”

You grinned at him. Only he could find some positive in these dire circumstances, and though some might claim it to be immature, you admired him for it, admired his unflinching optimism and unwavering faith and unquenchable curiosity.

For all of these years, you had been unfair to him. Quynh was right — he wasn’t a bad king. He was a good king; his flaw was that he was also a premature one, but you had confidence that with time, he would become the person that the kingdom needed.

For the final time, you gazed out at your undisturbed room, which was as peaceful as it always was. Just in that instant, it didn’t feel like there was a coup, like you and Kuei were fleeing for your lives. Just in that instant, it instead felt like you were going to visit Lee and Mushi in the tea shop for the night, like you always used to.

Right before you were about to follow after your brother, a thought crossed your mind. Pausing and then drawing back, you frowned, unable to shake the dread clawing up your throat.

“Kuei,” you said. “They came for you earlier, right?”

“Hm? Yes, they did,” he said, pausing in the middle of the passage, stopping Bosco as well. “Why? What’s wrong, Y/N?”

“The servants,” you said.

“Huh?” he said.

“The servants, brother, what did they do to the servants?” you said insistently. The ones who had kept your bath filled. The ones who swept your floors. The ones who made your bed. The ones who cooked your meals and maintained your gardens…what about them? Not all of them stayed at the palace overnight, but some did. Enough did.

Kuei scowled. “They’ve all been tied up in the kitchens. I don’t know why.”

You knew why. Maybe not exactly, but there were only a few possibilities: they would either torture the servants for information about the kingdom, they’d send them to the Fire Nation as prisoners, or they’d kill them en masse.

There wasn’t even a decision to make. What was a princess without a kingdom to rule, without subjects to love her? As well, it was your fault that they were in this danger to begin with.

“I have to go save them,” you said.

“Eh?” he said. “I must’ve misheard you.”

“You didn’t,” you said. “You go ahead, Kuei. You’re the king, so you have to make it out of here. I’ll rescue the servants, and then I’ll come too, okay? No, don’t argue. You can’t change my mind.”

He knew better than to even try when you had made such a declaration, so he only sighed.

“Where should we meet?” he said. “In Quynh’s Den?”

“No,” you said. “There’s a place in the Lower Ring known as the Firelight Fountain. If I do not catch up with you before you leave, then go there and wait for me.”

Kuei swallowed and then nodded at you. “Alright. I will see you there.”

“Yes,” you said. “I wish you luck, brother.”

“And I, you.”

With that, you turned your backs on one another, the door slamming shut as you tore off towards the kitchens and he continued towards Quynh’s Den.

The closer you got to the kitchens, the more guards you barely avoided, but somehow, you managed, and then you were in the darkened kitchens themselves, where the servants had been detained. There were so many of them that you knew you would have to take multiple trips or risk discovery, so picking a section at random, you began to untie the ropes around them.

“It’s me, Princess Y/N,” you repeated as you worked. “I’ve come to save you. Do exactly as I say, and you will live. Make a sound, and you will die.”

It was the most exhausting work of your life, equally as tedious as it was thrilling. The palace employed nearly a thousand servants, but thankfully there was nowhere near that number in the kitchens. Still, you must’ve freed close to a hundred people, doing away with the ropes and then sneaking them back to your room and instructing them to use one of Quynh’s doors to escape back to Ba Sing Se.

Finally, you were down to the final ten people. One of the boys was younger than the rest — he must’ve been new, the poor thing, and you were gentler with him than the others, wiping away his tears and hushing him kindly, taking your time to undo the knots which had rubbed away the skin of his wrists.

It was a mistake. What time did you have for kindness? You should’ve known better, but it was a pattern. You would always be kind. It would always get you in trouble.

“Princess Y/N! Look out!” the boy said as soon as you had removed the cloth stuffed in his mouth. It was the only warning you got; your eyes widened at it, and without even thinking, you dug in your pocket and smashed a statue of a dragon against the ground, bending the fragments as you turned, using half of them to dispel the licking flames that barely missed singing your clothes and sending the other half into the necks and eyes of the intruders.

They were Fire Nation, not Dai Li, and judging by their fancy uniforms, they were none other than the Soldiers of Agni, the most elite Firebenders outside of the royal family. You had no idea how Prince Zuko had managed to get them into Ba Sing Se, but of course, that was how your fortune had been going as of late, so you did not question it.

“Run!” you urged the others, clasping the boy’s hand with your own and taking off, motioning for everyone to follow you. “To my chambers! It won’t be long before more of them come for us.”

“Princess Y/N, you — you killed those men?” one of the older servants, a woman who you thought did the laundry, said.

“If I had not, then they would’ve killed me,” you said, breaking another one of the statues you had brought with you, using the knife-like edges to slice the throats of the Dai Li agents that you knew were stationed around the corner. There was no sense in hiding, not anymore; now, the goal was to make it to your room as fast as possible. “This is just what we have to do.”

“I didn’t realize you were capable of it, your royal highness,” one of the cooks said. “Or that you were concerned about us all enough to come back.”

“By what decree is my life worth more than anyone else’s?” you said. “My strength is yours, as yours is mine. I could never leave my people behind, not when I had a way to save them.”

The servants had never cared much for you before, had likely never even seen you before, but in the process of saving their lives, you believed that you might’ve earned something resembling their respect, too.

“I know that my brother and I were never popular as rulers,” you said as you reached your chambers, the door locking behind you as you made your way to your dressing room. “But I promise that we will change things. I will change things. I will put an end to the hardships that you all have endured for far too long.”

“Thank you, Princess Y/N,” a maid said. “I — I’m really grateful to you, your royal highness.”

“It is my duty,” you said. “Do not hesitate any longer; go through the door and follow the passageway until you reach the bear spirit, Quynh. She will help you escape to Ba Sing Se.”

“Quynh is real?” the small boy said, pressing into your side and peering up at you.

“She is,” you said. “I know, it sounds like I’m making things up, but it’s truly the case. Not only is she real, but she’s our only chance at escaping, so we must make haste.”

The remaining servants filed into the passageway, and you exhaled as all but the boy faded from sight. It didn’t matter now. Nothing mattered now. You had done it. You were safe.

There was a bang against the door. Another, and another. Fear shot through your veins as you realized that they were trying to break in. They had caught on to the fact that you were running to your room, though you had no idea what they thought they’d find when they smashed through.

“Come on,” you said, ushering the boy in and stepping in yourself, about to close the door behind you when there was a splintering sound, accompanied by the smell of smoke lacing the air. The Soldiers of Agni had arrived, and it was only a matter of seconds before they entered and found the door you had been using to escape.

Time passed differently in Quynh’s realm. Slower. You knew that. You had always known that, but until now you had not understood what it actually meant: you were doomed, and you had been from the start. They would find the door, and they would follow you, and they would catch you, and from there, they would kill you. That was how it was always meant to be. You had not saved anyone; you had only prolonged their misery.

It was your fault. It was your fault. It was your fault. With this mantra echoing in your head, you made a split-second decision. Crouching so that you were eye-level with the boy, you ruffled his hair.

“Listen, dear boy,” you said. “When you reach Quynh’s Den, I want you to tell Quynh to close this door, alright?”

“Why won’t you tell her?” he said, the smell of smoke intensifying even as you spoke.

“I’m not going,” you said. This was your atonement. This was the only thing you could do for your country, your people, your brother. This was the way you right the wrongs you had inadvertently wrought.

“What? What do you mean?” he said.

“There isn’t much time,” you said. “After you tell Quynh that, go to the Firelight Fountain in the Lower Ring and tell King Kuei to find the Avatar. Make sure he knows the message is from me…and that he knows I love him.”

“I won’t go unless I know you’re safe, princess,” the boy said obstinately, tugging on your sleeve. “Let’s go together and you can tell your brother these things yourself.”

You held the boy’s face in your hands and leaned forwards, kissing his forehead before straightening.

“Thank you for your concern, but when did I say that I was not escaping at all? I have another route,” you said.

“What other route?” he said.

Turning, you exited the passageway, looking over your shoulder at him and mustering as bright of a smile as you could, praying it was convincing enough.

“I’ll leave through the window,” you said. He was too young to know what that meant, and you did not give him the chance to think about it, slamming the door shut before he could respond and then reentering your chambers proper, right as the Soldiers of Agni broke through.

“Princess Y/N,” one of them said.

“Yes,” you said. “I would give you a proper welcome, a good one, but seeing as you have broken into my palace, I am not so inclined to. I swear I am a better host to those who are better guests.”

“Where is the Earth King? What about the rest of the servants?” another Soldier said.

“I don’t know,” you said, lying with an effortless ease, like you were swallowing honey and oil, using it to coat your every word with a smooth reliability. “Where indeed? You should’ve been keeping a closer eye on the gates.”

They moved in perfect formation, every step according to some unheard rhythm, their advancement a musical dance as they encroached upon you. You matched them like the partner to their sum total, backing away, closer and closer to your dresser of glass sculptures.

“We’re not supposed to harm you too terribly unless we’re absolutely forced to,” a Soldier said. “So how about you surrender and make things nice and easy?”

“Who would command you to not hurt your enemy?” you said.

“For some reason, Prince Zuko says it’s imperative that you remain uninjured,” he said. “Princess Azula told us to follow his orders while she chases the Avatar, so we’ll do as he commands for the time being.”

“Interesting,” you said, lip curling with distaste at the thought of Prince Zuko. “Unfortunately, I have no such holdbacks.”

The glass sculptures broke into thousands of little daggers, flying at the Soldiers of Agni faster than they could react. Thus began your final stand, the last thing you could do for the Earth Kingdom.

Glancing to the side, you saw that the door in your dressing room had not yet vanished. All you had to do was survive until it did. After that, it didn’t matter, but until that point, you could not die.

The Soldiers of Agni moved as one, creating a wall of fire to melt the glass, though a few made it past and gouged into them anyways. You were not deterred by the liquified state of your weapons; purposefully slowing your rapid breathing, you made a wave of burning, glowing glass surge towards them, scorching wherever it spattered, searing through armor and fabric and flesh alike.

Still, the door had not disappeared. The Soldiers of Agni sent coordinated bursts of fire at you, and this time you pulled the wave towards you. It rose up just in time, absorbing the heat of the fire meant for you, and then you condensed it before shooting it back towards them.

It was a push and pull, but they had the advantage. Better training. Better weapons. Their fire blazed at a higher temperature than any you had ever encountered, and eventually, your glass could not handle it, melting beyond the point of control, dripping through the floors and steaming into the air.

You were backed into a corner, but when you looked over at your dressing room, you could not help but smirk. The door was gone. Kuei was safe. Though you had been rendered defenseless, you had done your job. The Earth King would live.

Yet, defenseless though you were, there was a resolve brewing deep within you, too. Even if you could not win, you did not want the Soldiers of Agni to attain victory, either. You did not want them to succeed, to think that they had gotten one over you. If the only path forward was for you to die, then you wanted them to die, too.

“What will you do now, princess?” a Soldier said. You reached out with your bending and shattered the window, using the glass to cut away at their already-damaged flesh, holding your hands in front of you as they retaliated. Some used Firebending; others simply kicked the glass back, like they found amusement in your feeble struggles.

At Captain Chhay’s hands. At their hands. At Prince Zuko’s hands. No, none of these were ways that you were willing to suffer defeat. It would be on your own terms. Maybe you had run out of glass, but there was something else you had come to comprehend over the course of the night: the entire palace was a weapon, and you were the only one left who could wield it.

“The only thing I can do,” you said. “I am the Glass Princess, am I not? So, I will shatter, and you will be caught in the aftermath.”

You knew even as you slapped your palms against the walls that you would not survive this. If by some miracle the impact did not kill you immediately, then you would surely sustain such terrible injuries that you would not survive without treatment — treatment which would not be forthcoming, because no one knew where you were. No one knew what you were doing. In your final moments, now that everything had been said and done, you were alone.

Would your father and mother be proud of you? Would Quynh and Shan? You hoped Quynh would not grieve for very long. Even if she did not know how it had happened, you hoped she would see that it had been the only way, that you had been afraid, but notwithstanding, had done it bravely.

Because what was your life in comparison to Kuei’s? To the lives of your people? It was so little. It was the smallest price to pay. And, if you could take out all of the Soldiers of Agni in one fell swoop, then it was no loss at all.

You did not bully the stones of the palace. You did not need to; this palace, which had been built by your ancestor and upon Quynh’s Den, was your home, your birthright, and so the magic imbued in its construction jumped alive at the chance to help you. You only needed to think one thing for it to oblige, the room shaking and rumbling with a sound like mourning as the entire wing you were in collapsed — on you, yes, but also on the Soldiers of Agni, in an implosion that was not so different from embossing a window after all.

Palace, I command you to fall.

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[porcelainseashore]

Ghosts from the Past (5)

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Agent! Leon Kennedy x Dancer! Informant! Fem! Reader

Summary: 7 years after leaving behind everything you’ve known, you’re suddenly thrust into facing a ghost from your past, Leon. Navigating where you stand with him brings up old memories, painful truths and countless questions. At the same time, you have to deal with a bunch of strange occurrences at your dance company. Set after Resident Evil 4 Remake.

Warnings: 18+ Swearing, Recreational Drug Use, Alcohol, Eventual Smut, No (Y/N), Canon-Typical Horror and Violence, Blood, Injury, Torture, Infection, Medical Experiments, Psychological Trauma, Nightmares

Content: Post-Resident Evil 4, Exes to Lovers, Partners to Lovers, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Lack of Communication, Romance, Fluff

Author's Note: Smut content warning applies in this chapter. Leon and Reader have been dancing around each other long enough!

AO3 Link

Chapter 5: Unravel

You led Ada through the back entrance, where the staff and stage crew usually entered. It was locked as there was no performance today, but she had acquired the key, thanks to you. The door creaked open as you shuffled inside, welcomed only by the stagnant air and the warm rays of early afternoon light pouring into the musty rooms.

It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Weird. Even though it was an unofficial rest day, there would usually be a cleaner roaming the hallways or a dancer rehearsing in the studio.

As you followed the route you had memorized by heart, you noticed that Ada also seemed to know her way around the place. You felt her steps matching yours, anticipating right and left turns before they happened. At the first false wall, she surprised you by pulling on the lever hidden behind an ornamental vase.

“If you already know where to go, why am I even here?” You questioned suspiciously, as you continued down the secret passageway.

“Let’s say I like to cover all bases.” She gave you a cryptic smile. “To get what I really want.”

“Great,” you grumbled. “Another evasive one.”

She huffed, finding humor in your complaint. “Pity Silje doesn't know her favorite protégé is working against her.”

Was that a veiled threat? You swallowed hard as guilt seeped into your chest. This wasn’t how it was meant to be. You weren’t supposed to face Silje like this; you wouldn’t know how to look her in the eye after what you had done.

Ada noticed your hesitance. “Or are you having second thoughts?”

Your simmering anger had become palpable, but you held your tongue and looked away. She was just trying to get you to crack, you inwardly rationalized.

As you went from room to room, the labyrinthine pathways blended seamlessly into one another, as if you were going through the same sections again and again in circles. The only change was that the time it took to pass through the distance between them seemed to increase each round. It was like the space was growing from within, even though it was physically impossible. You assumed it was an illusory effect. Whichever architect who had designed this was a genius.

It was at this point where you witnessed a subtle change in Ada’s behavior. Her eyes darted around more frequently than usual, and every now and then, her lips pursed lightly, as if she were becoming agitated by the maze, and this wasn't what she had expected. Despite her poker face, perhaps she didn’t know her way around entirely after all.

When she paused to examine some markings on a wall, you seized the opportunity presented by her distraction to jam your hands into your back pocket. The zip ties cut into your wrists, but you finally managed to reach for the Swiss Army knife, flicking it open. 

However, nothing could escape her watch, not to mention her lightning reflexes. Just as you were about to use it to break free, she knocked the knife out of your hands with ease. It clattered onto the ground, as you looked on defeatedly. You braced yourself for some sort of punishment to be dished out, but it never came.

“Bold,” she smirked. “Quite the rebel, aren’t you?”

It almost came across like she was impressed. Or was she mocking your feeble attempt at escaping?

“You know, we are more alike than you think,” she suggested. “Maybe that’s why he saw something in you.”

You glared at her in repugnance. There was no way in hell the two of you were even remotely similar, and that was not why Leon had loved you in the first place. At least that’s what you told yourself. 

“I would never be like you,” you seethed.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” she responded nonchalantly. “Especially when given the right motivations.”

Your exchange was cut short, however, when from a distance, you heard hurried footsteps and heavy breathing. Ada quickly yanked you aside to hide behind a wall, covering your mouth with her gloved hand. As the footsteps drew closer, they slowed down. From the sound of delicate metal scraping against the floor, it seemed someone had discovered the knife you had left there. Shit, would you be caught now?

A split second later, you heard your name being called. Leon! He had come for you like he had said. Your cries in response were muffled by Ada’s grip tightening around your mouth, as she pulled you further away into the labyrinth, but her movements were slowed by your resistance. It was only a matter of time until Leon caught up.

“Give it up, Ada.”

He had his handgun aimed at her as she whipped around to face him. Although she no longer tried to dampen your voice, she still kept you in an ironclad hold, with no intention of letting go any time soon. Her words were coated with frustration. “You just don’t know when to quit, do you?”

“That’s not exactly in my dictionary.” He leaned in, focusing his laser sight to improve accuracy.

“You wouldn’t shoot me,” she asserted unwaveringly.

His expression faltered briefly, as if he were experiencing a strong case of déja vù, but he steeled himself again. “Test my patience and I just might.”

You felt Ada’s grasp on you shift. Oh, she was getting unnerved alright, and it felt like you had just entered unwittingly into an ex-lovers’ spat. 

As you took in the sight of the room you were in, that’s when you recognized something from your memory: a trapdoor. You were coincidentally standing right above it on the carpeted floor, though you weren’t sure where it led to. In your quick assessment, it was a choice between this never-ending standoff and taking a chance by using the trapdoor as a distraction. You knew where the switch was. You just had to time it correctly.

During a pause in their heated discussion, you established eye contact with Leon. Synchronously, you inched your foot out, pressing it against the camouflaged wooden piece lying at the side, while yelling at him to take notice. In that instant, you and Ada whooshed through the opened door, tumbling into an obsidian pit, past a bunch of rocks with a faint, iridescent glow. You heard Ada’s gasp as she fiddled with her grapple gun, but the surfaces were too slippery to hook onto. It was a miracle that you managed to catch her by surprise.

You couldn’t tell how far down you were going. However, your fall soon ended with a thud on what resembled soft, black mud. Your body felt bruised and battered, but at least nothing was broken. From a shrill shriek that was emitted, you realized Ada hadn’t fared so well.

As your eyes adjusted to the dimness of your surroundings, you saw her lying on the ground, clutching at a sharp rock that had embedded itself within her leg. A loud yelp ripped through the air, as she pried out the object, causing streams of blood to ooze down the open gash. At that moment, another figure landed in, grunting as he broke his fall with cat-like grace.

A bright beam from his flashlight illuminated the area as Leon got up, dusting himself off. The key card, having come loose from Ada’s possession in the fall, lay between the two of you. Without a second thought, he nabbed it, barely casting a quick glance over his shoulder at her before heading towards you.

“You ok?” He asked, his voice laced with worry, as he cut off the zip tie. Wrapping an arm under your shoulders and around your waist, he lifted you to your feet.

“Yeah, just dazed,” you coughed out, rubbing the sore abrasions on your wrists while looking around. 

“What about-” You stopped yourself as you observed the empty space behind him, where Ada had been just a minute ago. “She’s gone.”

He spun around in the direction you were staring at. “It’s what she does, I guess.” He shrugged, as if the same scene had repeated itself one too many times before.

However, his tone changed when he turned back to you, grabbing the lapel of your coat with a severe look in his eyes. “Don’t ever do that again!”

“What, you had a better idea than squabbling with your ex?” Your defensiveness kicked in at his scolding, and you pushed him off roughly.

“She’s not my- ugh!” He groaned, smacking his palm against his forehead. “Let’s just get out of here. I need to keep you safe.”

You bowed your head in agreement, deciding it was best not to go any further down the rabbit hole. Walking along beside him, both of you searched for a way to escape this uncanny underground place. The walls were covered in jagged rocks caked in a dark, greasy substance that glistened in the light, and the air was damp, causing drops of moisture to drip down from above. Occasionally, you heard small creatures scurrying around, but otherwise, everything else was as still as a dormouse.

“Do you think they’re growing something here?” You pointed at the wet matter leaking from the surfaces.

“I hope not,” Leon sighed. “Because this would be a lot more than we bargained for.”

He scraped a sample of it into a compact container, which came with a mini spatula similar to those found in laboratories, before placing it back into a pocket of his tactical pants.

Then, you heard a series of clunks coming from the corner, causing you to jump in fright. “What was that?” 

He shone his flashlight towards the source and you saw a lone rope ladder swaying in the darkness. Its wooden cross beams were hitting the side of the wall, but there was no one on it.

“Hm.” He cracked a weak smile, shaking his head, like someone had eluded him in a game of hide-and-seek. “Our way out.”

Just as you neared the ladder, you felt a dull, throbbing ache spread throughout your head, causing you to come to a halt and clasp the wall to steady yourself. A child’s voice called your name from a distance, reverberating within your skull. As it faded away, you found Leon holding you with a distressed look on his face. “What’s going on? Are you ok?”

“I’m fine…” You shuddered, trying to get rid of that bizarre sensation you had felt earlier. “This place just gives me the creeps,” you reasoned.

Breathing a sigh of relief, he gave you another once-over before continuing. He helped you onto the ladder first, so that he could support you from behind in case anything happened. You began your ascent and noticed that the air became drier the higher you climbed. 

Shortly after, you pulled yourself up into a dead-end tunnel with a hatch on its low ceiling. Leon lifted it open, looking around before giving you the all-clear. You were now in an unassuming storage room in the upper levels of the labyrinth. Just beyond that was the theater space.

“Huh. Guess this needs to be added to the blueprint,” you muttered.

There was some commotion going on outside of the room you were in. Looks like the people were back. Leon brought a finger to his lips to hush you, as he crouched and withdrew his gun from his holster. Opening the door quietly, he peeked through the narrow slit and waited until the noise subsided, before beckoning you to follow him. You assumed a similar stealthy position and sneaked out of the building.

When you were finally back out on the streets, the evening sky and crisp, wintry air greeted you. He led you to a stylish black motorcycle parked a few blocks away. Since when had he learnt how to ride one of these things?

“Courtesy of Hunnigan,” he explained, when he spotted your raised eyebrow. “Took a while. Red tape and all that.” 

Bergmann, of course.

“Here’s the plan,” he began. “We’ll grab your stuff and then head to my place. I’ll watch over you until we can get you back to HQ tomorrow.”

“HQ?” You asked out of confusion.

“DC.”

“I know… but why?”

You weren’t told about any of this in advance and once again, you had more questions than answers. 

“Trust me, it’ll be safer there while I finish this. I don’t want things to blow up, but you never know,” he clarified.

“Did Bergmann greenlight this?”

“No, we did.”

How did he manage to bypass your handler’s authority? You imagined her hitting the roof when she found out.

“And after what we saw down there, we need to get you screened. It’s part of the protocol,” he continued, before adding softly, “I’ll make sure they treat you well.”

“I-” You paused, trying to formulate an appropriate response to the information you had just been overloaded with. “You’re expecting me to leave everything behind?”

“Just temporarily, until the dust settles,” he reassured you. “Unless…” He trailed off, interrupting himself before he could complete the sentence.

“Unless?” You questioned.

“Never mind.” He handed you a spare helmet, gesturing for you to take the back seat. “Let’s go.”

As the engine revved to life, he turned to face you, and you swore you could make out his shit-eating grin behind the tinted visor of his helmet. “Hang on tight.”

Gingerly, you wrapped your arms around his waist, as he drove off into the night.

━━━━━━━━━━━

It didn't take long for you to pack your belongings, or rather, the bare essentials. You had never really accumulated much over the years. Nevertheless, there was a strange, almost surreal feeling in bidding farewell to your apartment for an indefinite period of time.

Upon reaching his place, Leon conducted a perimeter check and adjusted the security settings before allowing you to settle in.

“What if Ada comes back for the card?” You asked in passing.

“Doubt it,” he stated rather matter-of-factly. “She’ll need time to lick her wounds.”

“Right.” 

After all the muck you had been dragged through, you decided to busy yourself by cleaning up in the bathroom. As you showered, it began to dawn on you that the grazes you had on your wrists from the zip tie was gone, and even though you were pretty certain that your ribs had been bruised from the fall, they were nowhere to be seen. Everything looked as immaculate as ever. Were you going crazy and imagining things? You chalked it up to the exceptional amount of stress you had been through in the last 24 hours.

Changing into your night slip, you made your way towards the living room while towel drying your hair. That’s when you caught sight of Leon holding the framed photo of the two of you during your college graduation, staring at it, seemingly oblivious that you were standing at the entrance in the hallway. He must have seen it when your backpack was left open while you were in the bathroom, but that didn’t give him the right to touch your stuff, especially when it started to stir up unwanted emotions within you.

“You still kept it, after all these years…”

Looks like he had been aware of your presence after all.

You didn’t respond, striding purposefully into the room, as you snatched the frame from him and chucked it back into your bag. “I should have just left it to rot,” you muttered out of spite.

“You don’t mean that.” Moving towards you, he curled his fingers under your chin, and tilted it to face him. “Here, you dropped something.” He took the Swiss Army knife out from his pocket and offered it to you.

But you remained motionless. “Keep it,” your voice quivered. 

It’s just better this way. His remark from the bar about a week ago resounded in your ears.

Upon your rejection, his visage crumbled and gradually, you witnessed his cool, confident facade peel away to reveal something broken underneath. He appeared extremely worn down, as though he had been through a war zone. Blood and grime stained his shirt, and a purplish bruise was blooming on the side of his cheek.

“I’m tired. Just so tired…” he admitted under his breath, placing the knife on the table beside him. “I can’t do this anymore.”

“Do what?” You wondered out loud.

“Push you away,” he whispered.

You didn’t know what to make of his response. It was an answer, yet not exactly one. And that was driving you insane. So, you argued back with the only piece of information you had, even though you knew it was a low blow. “Yeah, well, maybe you should’ve thought about that before you brought Ada into the picture.”

Furrowing his brows in agitation, he let out a heavy sigh and exclaimed, “It’s not about Ada! It’s about you!”

This was the first time you had seen him so riled up, but his rage was infectious, and you used the energy to fight fire with fire. “Fuck you, Leon! Stop bullshitting me!” You shouted back. “I’m sick of you hiding things!”

“Ok, fine. No more secrets,” he conceded, understanding that you weren’t going to let him off this time. Not unless he wanted to lose you again for real. With this in mind, he decided to tell you what you wanted to know, despite the pain it would cause you.

“Ada and I… it happened in Raccoon City.”

Raccoon City? A searing fury took hold over you, as you realized what that meant.

“You moved on to her the day you left,” you mouthed in disbelief. “And I was the idiot who waited and grieved for you.”

Pointing at him accusingly, you sneered, “The best part about it is you weren’t even dead! You just didn’t care!”

At this, he slammed his fist on the table, raising his voice over yours. “That’s a goddamn lie and you know that!”

His face was red with indignation as he insisted, “I care… I’ve always cared.”

You scoffed and turned away from him, your eyes burning and watery, even though deep down you knew he was telling the truth. “Then, explain it to me!”

He was shaking. You couldn’t tell if it was due to fear or anger. “After you and I broke up, I just wanted someone who would understand what I had been through.”

A lump formed in his throat as he continued. “She saved my life a couple of times. And we… uh, we kissed.”

He looked at you with regret, simultaneously attempting to gauge your reaction to what he had divulged. But you stonewalled him.

“Yeah, I liked her. And in a way, I still do care for her, I guess,” he confessed. “But she wasn’t the person I thought she was. I don’t think she’ll ever be that person.”

“You can’t get over her, can you?” You stated bitterly.

“Already have,” he declared. “For a while now.”

“I don’t know how to trust you.” You wanted to, so badly. But after the emotional rollercoaster he had put you through, you were at a loss.

His eyes filled up in despair. It was as if your words had winded him and stabbed him in the gut.

“What I said after the club… it was out of guilt, and I didn’t want to get too close.” He paused for a moment to recollect himself. “I just- I… needed to protect you.”

“From what?” You quizzed. Is that why he didn’t come back? 

He sucked in a deep breath, like what he was about to relay was something he would rather forget. “Raccoon City - it was hell.” He twisted his mouth in distaste. “Like Terragrigia… and the government covered it all up.”

You watched as his eyes glazed over, replaying the trauma he had suffered as if it were an old film loop. “Everyone died around me. I-I couldn’t do shit.” 

A cynical laugh escaped him. “Some fucking cop I was.”

You began to understand why he had been so quiet about his past. The torment he had been putting himself through, the survivor’s guilt, the ravaged city, and the injustice of it all haunted him incessantly.

Instinctively, you took a couple of steps towards him, wanting to close the distance somehow, even though you were afraid of getting burnt again.

His features softened as he saw you draw nearer, though it transformed into a frown when he relived through another set of memories. “They made me work for them, because I knew too much, and-”

He paused, biting his tongue in an effort to restrain his anger. “In exchange for the life of a little girl.”

But his temper soon flared up again. “Those bastards dangled her like a fucking carrot in front of my face! What was I supposed to do?”

You flinched at his outburst and he eyed you apologetically, dropping his head in shame. “I didn’t know who I could turn to. I-I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…”

“Leon…” You reached out, ghosting your fingers along the side of his arm.

He didn’t pull away this time, but he couldn’t bear to look at you, afraid of what you might think of him. “Not a day goes by where I don’t feel like it should’ve been me who died down there.”

“I thought about ending it,” he continued. “But you wanted me to remember I am a good person. That I would do the right thing. And I knew it was to keep going.”

You didn’t judge him. You accepted him as how he was, including all the pain and flaws. In front of you was the boy you had left behind 7 years ago - scared, helpless and alone. And so, you took the plunge, gathering him into your arms as you comforted him.

“Leon, it’s ok.” He leaned into your embrace like he had been starved of contact for a long time. “I’m here. You’re ok,” you reassured him.

“I didn’t want to drag you into this, but they got to you anyway,” he sighed into your hair, cradling your waist firmly against him, as though he was unwilling to let you go.

“Every night, I dream of you… dying,” he choked. “And I can’t- I… can’t save you.”

You should have seen this coming: him not wanting you to get involved, pushing you away, and his whole savior complex - just to protect you from the inevitable. As for Ada, you would never be able to change how he felt about her. Yet, in a way, you understood why he chose you in the end. And maybe, for now, that was enough.

“You don’t have to bear this burden on your own, you know,” you mentioned, caressing the back of his head tenderly.

“I’m a fucking mess, you deserve-”

God, he could be so stubborn sometimes. “Leon,” you interrupted. 

Cupping the sides of his face in your hands, you looked him straight in the eye. “I chose this life, ok? And I’m choosing right here, right now, that I want to be with you. To hell and back.”

His gaze widened as he took in what you said. “Like you promised.”

A wave of nostalgia washed over you, as a distant memory from your teenage years flooded your mind, transporting you back to the bleachers of your high school football field. Both of you had sat there together in the dead of winter, and you told him that you would be there for him. To hell and back.

You smiled wistfully. “Yeah, like I promised, dumbass.”

With that, he pressed his lips against yours fervently, devouring your mouth in a stream of torrid kisses, wet and sloppy, like he was trying to make up for lost time. Pushing you up against the nearest wall, he teased your lips with his tongue and you parted them, allowing him easy entrance as you let out a soft, heady moan. He deepened the kiss, swirling his tongue against yours fiercely, unable to get enough of you.

“Fuck, baby, I missed you,” he murmured breathlessly when he came up for air amid the waves of kisses. 

Baby. You shivered in pleasure, hearing his pet name for you for the first time after years of being apart. “I missed you too.”

“Please, let me take care of you,” he pleaded, securing a hand on your hip, as he slowly reached the other under your night slip, trailing it up your inner thigh, between your legs.

As you felt his fingertips brush against your clit through your underwear, you ground your hips forward subconsciously, desperate for his touch. Both of you were diving in headfirst even though things were still raw, but something about this felt right and you didn’t want to wait anymore. You claimed his lips again briefly, before encouraging him to go further.

Dragging his wet tongue along your neck and down across your body, he knelt in front of you, bunching up the hem of your slip and hooking his fingers into the side of your underwear to strip it off. You closed your eyes as you felt his hot breath against your pussy, gasping as he ran his tongue through your glistening folds, lapping and sucking it eagerly.

“Mm… I could never get tired of how you taste,” he groaned huskily, before tracing circles with his tongue on your clit.

You chewed on your bottom lip, a smile breaking out at his compliment, as you recalled how vocal he - and you - could be during sex. He spread your legs wider and hiked one of them over his shoulder for better access, dipping his tongue into your slit, as your juices and his saliva trickled down your thighs. Tangling your hands in his hair, you gave in to the tingling sensations that rippled through your body.

He continued thrusting his tongue into you relentlessly, while stroking your clit with his thumb. “Shit, oh god-” you whined, grasping frantically at the wall behind you. “That feels so good.”

Burying his face further into your mound, he tried to bring you closer to the edge, as you felt a familiar knot in your belly tightening with every lick, suck and kiss. You bucked your hips, riding his face feverishly as you chased after your orgasm. Soon, it came crashing down, and you arched your back off the wall, wailing in rapture, while your thighs clenched around his head. 

The high melded into a feeling of warm, viscous honey, as he caught you in an embrace when you slumped over, dizzy and panting.

“I got you, baby,” he cooed, rubbing your back soothingly, as he held you up. “That’s it.”

His pillowy lips, moist with your arousal, captured yours in a tender kiss. When he broke away, you nuzzled his neck gratefully, part of you still contemplating if this was real.

“I don’t want to let you go,” your voice came out muffled, as you burrowed yourself deeper into his neck, inhaling the scent of his cologne and sweat. Despite the blood and dirt, he smelled as you remembered him, of fresh citrus and musk, with a hint of cedar.

“You have me,” he promised, planting another delicate kiss on your cheek, soft like raindrops on a rose petal in the morning. “Always.”

You locked eyes with him, drowning in the pool of his blue irises, which were burning with desire for more. Scooping you up into his strong arms, he carried you out, past the hallway to the bedroom and placed you down on the mattress. He tugged off his clothes before helping you out of your slip, casually discarding it onto the floor.

His breath hitched as he admired the way you lay there, naked and wanting, completely vulnerable for him. Crawling on top of you, he bent down, leaving a string of open mouthed kisses from your neck to your breast. 

“So beautiful,” he hummed, flicking his tongue against your nipple, before taking it into his mouth and suckling it. Letting it go with a pop, he claimed, “You haven’t changed one bit.”

“Mm, neither have you.”

His huff turned into a low moan as you wrapped your fingers around his fully erect cock, the tip red with need and leaking of precum. You pumped its shaft languidly as he rutted into your fist, growing impatient to feel more of you.

“Fuck- I want to be inside of you,” he hissed through gritted teeth.

You nodded, grazing your fingers against his lips as he slipped them into his mouth, sucking on them hard. The next instant, he flipped you over, sitting on his knees behind you as he splayed your legs on either side of him, pulling your back flush against his chest. He held your hip in one hand while using his other to guide his cock towards your entrance. You whimpered as you sank down onto him, a raw burst of pleasure flooding your brain as he filled you up. Nestled in his lap, you fit him perfectly like a glove.

He gave you a moment to adjust to the intrusion before setting a slow, sensual pace, stretching you out deeply with each thrust. You rocked your hips back into him, like a bitch in heat, unable to control the lewd sounds that came from your throat.

Squeezing your breasts, he rose to his knees, lifting you up along with him, as he picked up the speed. He nipped at your neck, licking and sucking on it to mark you as his. You could already feel a red welt forming on its surface.

“You like that?” He asked.

“Ah- yes! Please, Leon,” you gasped, trembling as you moved in sync to his rhythm more vigorously.

He chuckled at your reaction, “Only I can make you feel this good, huh?”

“Yes,” you professed, surrendering yourself entirely. “Only you.”

Upon hearing your admission, he growled with lust and fucked up into you harder. “Look at you,” he whispered in your ear, turning you in the direction of the wardrobe mirror that faced the bed. “Taking me so well.”

Through half-lidded eyes, you saw yourself, almost unrecognizable, in the reflection. Your face was flushed, body slick with sweat, and your nipples were hard and swollen from his teasing. A rosy hue had spread across your ass from his thrusting. 

He was amping up the dirty talk. But it only served to turn you on even more. 

In the heat of the moment, you rasped, “Ruin me.” 

You felt his cock twitch inside of you as soon as you uttered it. Craning your neck to meet his gaze, you asserted, “Make me so no one else will ever want me.”

God, where was all that filth coming from? You even surprised yourself.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” he cursed loudly. His eyes reflected a voracious look of hunger that seemed to consume the very space between you. “You’re gonna make me cum like this, baby.”

He brought a hand up to your throat, straightening you out against him even further as he slammed his cock roughly into your pussy. Wet slaps filled the room, his balls hitting against your clit repeatedly, while you clung tightly to his grip. You tilted your head backwards, resting it against his shoulder as you cried, “Yes, yes, oh fuck- Leon!”

Suddenly, he pulled out of you and threw you onto your back, causing you to whine from the loss of contact. He hoisted your ankles over his shoulders, giving them a quick kiss before leaning his weight onto you and folding your knees to your chest.

You let out a strangled cry as he penetrated you from this new angle, stimulating the sensitive spot along the walls of your aching cunt. “God, you’re so fucking good for me,” he grunted through labored breaths, already feeling himself coming close.

“Don’t stop,” you begged, clawing at his wrists which caged you in beside your head.

He railed you mercilessly into the mattress, causing the headboard to bang against the bedroom wall with each sharp thrust. It felt as if he was releasing all his pent-up emotion and compensating for every moment he had spent without you in the past.

As you reached your climax, your walls tightened around his cock and your eyes rolled back, while you screamed his name in ecstasy. All you could see was a blinding white light, with every muscle in your body tensing and your toes curling in response, as he rode you through it.

The sight of you tipped him over the edge and his pace stuttered. His face twisted in pleasure as he called out your name over and over, spurting thick ropes of his hot seed into your cunt. He continued to roll his hips forward gently in waves, taking a while to come down from his high. 

Caressing your cheek affectionately, he placed a lingering kiss on your lips, before pulling out of you and dropping to your side. A mixture of both of your fluids stained his pelvis and your thighs as proof of what had transpired. It dripped onto the sheets like a bleeding sign.

As you listened to each other’s heartbeats and breathing in the calm silence, Leon took your hand in his, interlacing your fingers together.

“Stay with me,” he proposed again, wiping the slate clean of your rejection 7 years ago.

Propping yourself up on your elbows, you turned towards him, watching the steady rise and fall of his chest. It was at that moment you observed a distinct, indented scar adorning his left shoulder, serving as a ragged reminder of a past ordeal. You traced the outline of it with your fingers, while he held your hand close and kissed the white of your knuckles.

“I still love you,” he affirmed.

You knew that tonight wasn't the sole solution to all the problems you still had to work through together. But it was a start, and you were willing to give it another shot.

This time, it can be different. You covered his hands in yours, bringing them to your lips, as you spoke, “I’ll stay.”

[velvet-vox]

The complete and utter alienation of Tai Lung: Part 1

First thing first: I am not a Tai Lung defender so consider this an unbiased post.

So, Kung Fu Panda color theory is pretty much well known across all of the fandom, and it's obvious even from an outside perspective.

Po and the heroes are yellow/gold

Then Lord Shen's red

Kai's and Oogway's green

And finally Tai Lung colour is blue

(Also Chameleon is also yellow but this ain't about her).

And this is the one I want to touch upon in this post.

You see this graphic?

These are the three primary colours /yellow, cyan and magenta/ that come together to form the main secondary colours /blue, red, green/.

If you are in the fandom, or you just simply pay attention, you'll also know that:

Tai Lung's backstory has ties with Shifu.

Lord Shen's backstory has ties with Po.

General Kai's backstory has ties with Oogway.

But Kai backstory doesn't just simply have ties to Oogway like we were simply led to believe at large, but it also has ties with Po, because of his ties with the panda village and its effect on Oogway's reformation.

And with that, as you might have noticed, both Kai and Shen have, according to the chart, the colour yellow as a part of their secondary colour scheme.

With Shen in particular it goes a step further in that Po has red as a complimentary colour to yellow in some scenes.

Shen is also the least isolated of the villains (mental state doesn't count); always surrounded by his goons who he's going to use to conquer China and the Soothsayer, Shen is only truly alone at the end of the movie on the boat scene where he's just been defeated.

And Kai, despite the fact that he doesn't have goons that can bounce off his dialogue, is also never truly alone whenever we see him; he was a warlord leader of a huge army, he now has a jade zombie army and he often speaks to the Oogway amulet and narrates him whatever is happening, and, like Shen, he only becomes alone during his death scene.

They do tend to isolate themselves from others of their own volition...... but Tai Lung?

He has absolutely nothing. Nobody. Never had.

Returning to the colour wheel, his main colour is blue and he has ties with Shifu's backstory who, after the first movie, loses relevance for the rest of the movies. And blue itself is a pretty alien colour in the entire series (extended material included), it doesn't have any ties with yellow, much like Tai Lung doesn't have any personal ties with Po despite being in opposition, and Tai Lung itself doesn't interact much with the setting besides being a looming threat.

And it all ties back to his isolation and how it probably tied back to his turn to the dark side.

From the glimpses that we see of his childhood, Tai Lung doesn't interact with anyone else aside from Shifu and possibly Oogway, and I'm pretty confident in saying that he probably lived a sheltered life in the Jade palace. A childhood like that can inflict serious damage on a person's mental health in the long run as you don't have anyone who you can confront your experiences with, and it clearly carried on into adulthood, better explaining his fit of rage after being denied the dragon scroll.

Sadly, his loneliness carried on for the 20 years that he spent in jail. And after he escapes, he tries to claim back the dragon scroll by himself since he doesn't have an army or ways to gain allies, so he just carries on with nobody to support him and then he dies of a lonely, gruesome death that reflects on the way he lived.

The franchise itself then continues to portray Tai Lung less as a character and more as a figure of power in Po's journey, completely and utterly dehumanising him in every possible and conceivable way.

Ok, I must admit, maybe I gained a brand new appreciation for Tai Lung while writing this.

Next Part>>>>

[everlasting-rainfall]

Hi I was wondering are you still active on this blog ? I really like you au and I was wondering how would Yandere Sabo work in your pages au ? Would he meet the reader by her inviting him into her home so he can hide from the marines ? Or would he just happen to grow an obsession with her book serious that came his comfort object only to break when the reader decided she finished the book serious ? Love to hear your thoughts💗🌺

I’m not entirely sure how Sabo would really work in the Pages AU exactly but I’m going to give it my best shot

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT FOR ANY REASON

-Potential Trigger Warnings-

Delusions, Murder, Forced Pregnancy, Noncon, Stalking

-Potential Trigger Warnings-

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT FOR ANY REASON

In all honesty, I can imagine that Sabo was already a fan of your stories like he used them to pass the time when he had nothing else to do like if he was waiting for the order to do something or he was just relaxing

It’s probably going to take Sabo a while to really get into your stories, I feel like he does use them as a time passer but he could easily put the book down in favor of something else

Eventually though, there would be something that would catch his eye in the story like let’s say you introduced some kind of plot line about the MC getting separated from the Pirate and Marine for a while like there was a storm at sea and the MC was knocked overboard only to wind up on an island with a conflict that’s caused people to form a Revolution

Cue his interest being peaked especially if you’ve written a relationship between one of the rebels and the MC because lord knows that that’s who he’s going to identify with

Eventually that plot line ends though and he’s a little disappointed hoping the rebels will show up again but they don’t and soon he reaches the last book in the series like not the last one that you intend on writing but the last one released currently

All there’s left for him to do is wait for you to release the last book in the series and during that time, the book never leaves his mind as he even starts to dream about it.

He dreams about himself as the rebel from the story but things are different as in the dreams, he’s saving the MC from the horrible people that he’s rebelling against so they can be together

These dreams continue for a good long while until he starts to identify with the rebel character from the story but it never goes beyond that

At least until he’s on an island doing some mission for the revolutionary army only to wind up spotted and in a bad situation when the Marines show up getting the drop on him in the process

He runs and manages to get out of sight but there’s no ship that he can stowaway on as they have his method of transport completely locked down so as much as he doesn’t want to, he sees you going into your house and rushes the both of you inside

You panic, of course but he gets you to be quiet and listen to him. He requests to stay with you just until he can safely escape and return to the Revolutionary Army, you’re hesitant but agree as you don’t want anything bad to happen to this guy

The two of you live together for a few days, you hide him and he does repay your kindness for letting him stay with you by taking care of some housework while you’re out doing things and feigning ignorance with the Marines

On the first day that he was there, he learned your name and realized that you were the creator of the books that he read. He was pretty happy to meet you in a way that almost seemed a bit too happy in your personal opinion

What you didn’t realize is that Sabo also realized that on top of being the author of the books, you also looked exactly like the way that he had been dreaming the MC from the books to look like

It was fate! He dreamed himself as the rebel that saved you from a horrible situation plus he dreamed you as the MC that needed saving

He was absolutely sure that you knew this too

As time went on, the alertness of the Marines started to go down as they believed that Sabo might be gone so he could probably leave and go back to the Revolutionary Army soon but he wanted to stay for a few more days just to give you time to tell him about any dreams you may be having

During that time, he started to get a lot closer to you as he would sit closer to you whenever you were on the couch and he even started to hug you and touch you like you would be up making breakfast for the both of you when he would come and hug you from behind

He would even watch you from one of the upstairs windows whenever you were outside taking care of something whether it be in the backyard or the front yard, you could always feel him watching you too

It was starting to get rather unnerving especially when you woke up to him one night watching you from the doorway, he claimed that he was just trying to make sure you were ok but you didn’t believe it

The final straw was him trying to kiss you one day as you held him back by his shoulders and hold him that he needed to go now as the Marines had finally calmed down enough for him to sneak away with little issue

You gave him until the end of the day to leave before leaving the house yourself to not be in the same house as him for the rest of the day, Sabo didn’t go after you

He did wander the house though and imagined all sorts of things but eventually he wound up in your room and found something of interest, it was your last book that was all finished and about to be sent out

Knowing that he still had time before the end of the day, he sat down and started to read becoming lost in the story and wanting so badly to see the rebel reappear. He kept hoping and hoping but nothing besides a cameo at the end where you described what he was up to

That was nice and all but it was completely overshadowed by the rage that he felt when he saw what had happened, you had gotten with the Marine and that would have been one thing but he had to read that you got married to the Marine and not only that but you wound up pregnant by the fucker

He couldn’t believe it, this was absolutely awful…

You had been knocked up by a world government boot licking Marine who had been allowed to marry you… This couldn’t be the case, it just couldn’t! You would never do something like this especially not when he could treat you so much better!

Once he had read the words The End, he put the papers down and rushed outside to go spy on you to see if it was really true and I pray to god that you weren’t talking to a Marine when he found you as now nothing will convince this man otherwise

You are in a forced marriage to a shitty marine and you’re pregnant with their baby as well, he needs to do something

So as soon as you leave, he starts tailing the Marine waiting for them to be alone so he can properly kill them. It takes a while but he soon leaves their body burnt on the ground in a place where no one will find it for days

Now that that’s done, he goes back to your home to see you as it is nearing the end of the day. He finds that you’re home although the door is locked but no problem as he has no issue getting in undetected

When he finds you, he can’t help but watch you from behind a bit and take in your appearance. You aren’t showing yet but he knows that you will be soon

As soon as you notice him is when he strikes, he rushes you and holds you close to him in a tight embrace even as you struggle and try to get him away but it’s all for nothing as his hold is unbreakable

You aren’t going anywhere if he has anything to say about it

While he’s holding you, he tells you that he took care of the problem and not to worry about anything as he’ll be the father to the baby currently inside of you

You have no clue what he’s talking about but he doesn’t care as he pulls back and kisses you deeply, you can’t do anything to fight even as he starts to take you to the nearest surface and slip his hands underneath your clothing

Cue a night of him aggressively taking you against every single surface in the house, all for the purpose of making the Marines touch go away in favor of his

I think it’s safe enough to say that if you weren’t pregnant before then you absolutely are now as Sabo didn’t bother to use any form of protection unless he was pulling out and cumming on you

By the end of it, he finally takes you in your bed and cums one last time deep inside of you before he collapses next to you

He plants kisses and bites on the side of your neck as the two of you lay there, he’s whispering promises against your skin to always take care of you and the baby inside of you

He also makes a promise to take you with him when he leaves to go back to the Revolutionary Army tomorrow, the two of you will stay together forever as a family in the world that the Revolutionary Army will create

You are never going to get away from him and months later when you’re sitting swollen with a rather large belly as you lean up against Sabo’s chest with his hands rubbing at the stretched skin of your belly

You regret ever making that story in the first place

[mychlapci]

Okay so im not actually sure on who ive sent this too, and im sobbing rn trying to remember. If i have sent this to you already i am sooo sorry i forgot to mark it as ‘sent’ in my notes </3

We need the list of baby-bearing decepticons, like..for me personally its gotta be tfp /G1 megatron for the win yet basically Every Megatron should be put in this position, yet i cannot get over his thick thighs and just- ufh he’s perfect and couldve been carrying babies for an entire series and we wouldnt have known any better because its just him but his waist makes me want to see him no hesitation stood infront of an army with a bunch of bitties demanding to be fed and he just hushes them with a growl before continuing to let Soundwave speak, then multitask feeding said bitties because they were getting on his nerves and carrier coding was fuddling his brain up and he couldnt get his words right, so now he’s feeding them and speaking with soundwave to the army about some sort of crazy, probably-isnt-going-to-work plan to raid the sun or something and like…Aint nobody gonna say nufin about it, because everyone’s staring, not paying attention because its just… Megatiddies.

And then when it actually comes to the time of the raid it goes horribly wrong because NOBODY paid attention to him nor Soundwave and the communications head just needs a break because even he got distracted and everyone’s too scared / aroused to tell Megatron to STOP feeding his children infront of the army because the raids go nowhere and they end up with more casualties.

But everyone got to see Megatiddies so nobody really cares if theyre missing a limb.

i like the implication that you’re sending this to multiple people and then like, comparing the answers.  don’t correct me on that, i love that.

also, your mind is so big. The thought of Megatron feeding his bitlets in the middle of command meetings and army pep-talks scratches every single itch I have. He’s trying to do his job and the little ones are constantly clawing at his legs and trying to climb up and he keeps getting distracted by growling them off of him, which only ever works for half a minute, and they’re back to annoying him. Obviously he can’t stand to leave them like that and after a while he ends up lifting the bitlets, wordlessly and without warning opening his chest plating to reveal his milk-heavy tits. The babies immediately latch onto his nozzles and start drinking greedily, with the entire decepticon army just looking in shock as Soundwave keeps on explaining the battle plans. Which are now going unlistened to. Everyone's too focused on Megatron’s boobs.

mhmmm, Megatron interrogating a captured autobot, but his bitlets need to be fed now, so when the prisoner is brought to him, Megatron has his titties out again. There’s something so hot and strangely intimidating about the brutish, cruel leader of the Decepticons sitting on his throne, cradling little sparklings as they suckle on his nozzles. He’s still got that hard look on his face-plate, talking like there’s nothing strange happening in the room, and the poor autobot captive has no idea what to do. Or better said, where to look.

[bangtaninborderland]

JHS- Twisted Feelings (5)

Summary: After working at an award show for 2 years everything had become normal, idols were no longer exciting to see, performances became dull and every day blended together, that was until an unexpected man asked for your help.

Genre: idol!jhope × fem!reader, angst, fluff, strangers to lovers, ongoing series

Warning: none for this chapter!

A/N: I have another chapter nearly done, im going to miss hobi sm. I hope you’re all still ready to enjoy this story. Also, fun fact - I got accepted to 4 universities :)

Ch.04 < Series Masterlist > Ch.06

You shuffled around one another for a few minuets, your earlier excitement bubbling down to a mere nervousness as you watch him take a seat him not quite opposite but not quite beside you.

You glance over him quickly, you weren’t up to date on all the luxury brands but you could tell his shoes alone probably cost your entire rent for a month.

“Is everything okay?” When he laughs it’s light, soft as though not to startle you from wherever he believed your thoughts had escaped too.

You wave your hand dismissively. “I’m fine, where do you want to start?”

“Wherever you think, you’re the teacher after all.”

Oh yeah, I’m the teacher.

“How about we try to have a simple conversation with the English you know? That was I could grasp what stage you’re at and where we need to focus to help you improve.” You suggest, leaning against the backrest of your chair.

He nods enthusiastically, you weren’t sure wether it was done to help quell your own worries, that you were sure you’d put on display within the past few minuets, or because unlike the majority of the population he was genuinely excited to learn.

Either way you were grateful.

Being bilingual you had always been asked what it was like to switch between languages, people never understood it was something that could just happen. You’d definitely made mistakes before, integrating Korean and English into a conversation without meaning too.

Switching to English was easy. “Can you introduce yourself?”

He took a breath clearing his throat. “I am jhope of BTS.”

“Can you tell me your favourite colour?”

“Colour?” You nod and he Humms. “I like green.”

“Great, now ask me something.”

He thinks for a moment before responding, stumbling a few times before successfully asking. “What is your favourite food?”

“Samgyeopsal, what do you like about being an artist?” You decide to make the question a little different, something more difficult.

“I like connecting with our army, producing too. I like my art and to dance.” He finished with a smile and for a moment it felt as if you were almost one of those ghastly English interviewers.

You make a few notes on the words he takes longer to respond with before continuing an array of questions for the next hour, most of which are simple enough for him to understand and respond too even if it takes him a second to think or act the word out, something you were sure he had done to help you understand more. He had a basic grasp on English and that was an amazing place to start, much easier than it would have been had he have known nothing.

You make a small list of things he had told you he finds useful in terms of studying, flash cards and bright colours being two of them.

It made you laugh just how similar your study patterns were, he was someone who likes organisation, a different colour for a different thing. You were the same.

You agreed to end the lesson, having all the information you needed for the day to construct a much better plan for the future.

He fiddles with his hands as you clean the room, his voice almost insecure when he asks. “So how did I do?”

You turned on your heel to face him, sending him a reassuring smile before telling him he had done well.

He waited at the door for you, holding it open.

Such a gentleman.

Due to the company being mid move renovations weren’t complete, tools had been left around in various locations so you had been keeping an eye out, you’d done so well throughout the day to not create any issues.

Until now at least.

By the time you noticed you had knocked the open pot of paint over it was already too late, the grey staining the expensive material on Hoseoks shoes.

Shoes you couldn’t even afford.

You scrambled around to grab a packet of wipes that had been left beside the door frame, pulling out more than necessary before you drop to your knees in a rush to try and salvage the footwear “Fuck I am so sorry, god I didn’t see.” Your hands are already scrubbing and scooping as much paint as possible, you weren’t sure if it was helping at all but you couldn’t give up. “Who leaves a pot of paint in the open, actually who leaves an open pot in the open. I’m so sorry, I-“ you pause for a second, humility befalling you as your head drops to face the floor, your hands resting in your lap, paint soaked clothes still clutched between them. “I can’t afford to replace these, I could pay you back out of my pay check every month until you have enough for a new pair. I’m so sorry.” You bargained with a pay check you weren’t even sure you’d still be receiving after this mess.

You felt your heart die inside of you when he began to speak. “They were expensive shoes, that’s all. Nothing worth stressing over. Besides I got them for free when we were at a photo shoot. Don’t worry about it. Besides you didn’t put the paint there, you aren’t responsible.”

Oh.

“I really can pay you from my pay check, I should have been more careful. It’s principle.” You look up, an action you regret instantly when you realise the compromising position you’re in.

You on your knees, in front of him, your face almost equal with his crotch. Great.

He extends a hand to you which you take, using him to pull yourself up.

“Let me take these.” He slips the soaked clothes from your hands before walking across the hall, throwing them in the trash.

You don’t know what else to do, wrecked with humiliation and guilt you give him a small bow whispering a meek. “Thank you.”

“Don’t be so formal with me, I said it’s okay. You, however, are not. Your shirt is covered I should have a spare one in my studio if you’d like it?” He offers, pointing down the hall at one of the doors decorated in bright colours.

You nod, you hadn’t even noticed the state you were in. “If it’s not too much of a bother that would be great, I can wash it and return it then next time I come.”

“That’s fine don’t rush.” He guides you down the hall, meeting in the code to his studio before stepping aside and letting you in.

You were unsure how but this room seemed to captivate the very being you had understood Hoseok to be in the limited time you had with him.

You looked around careful not to touch anything, if the shoes weren’t meaningful you were sure the kaws bears definitely were.

“Here.” He shouts, throwing the shirt in your direction.

You grab it before it can fall, it’s orange, bright orange. “You like bright colours?

“Is that even a question?” He retorts playfully, signalling a hand around his studio.

You laugh. “I guess not, thank you again and I’m really sorry.”

“Don’t be, I’d let you ruin my shoes every day as long as you keep teaching me English. It really helped.” He says with a deepened sincerity.

It was nice to know you’d done something right, you still couldn’t beat the guilt and humiliation though. “I should probably get going, our class was supposed to finish thirty minuets ago. I’d hate to make you late for something.”

“You wouldn’t be a bother, I could show you the rest of the building if you’d like?” He offers.

You nod in agreement, it’s not like you had anything else to do. “Sure, that would be nice.”

“Let me just change my shoes and then I’ll show you where you can change your shirt.” He explains, heading towards a small shelving unit in the corner.

You shuffle awkwardly for a few seconds, with nothing to do it’s easy for your gaze to linger on him as he moves around. He slips his shoes off shoving them in a plastic bad before replacing them with some slippers.

He jumps up, landing softly on his feet. “All done, let’s go.”

You laugh, mumbling a thanks as he holds the door open for you. He guides you to the restrooms, where you promptly switch your shirt for his. You’re thankful there’s no cameras so the image of you smelling his shirt will never resurface, besides so what if you sniffed it, it smelt nice.

You didn’t rush per se but you did move quicker than you would have had Hoseok not been waiting.

It was rude to make others wait, nothing else.

You throw your ruined shirt in the trash before washing your hands, you didn’t look too bad considering you tossed and turned for half of the night.

You were greeted with a warm smile as you opened the door.. “Is Samgyeopsal really your favourite food?”

“Yes it is, my eomma makes it all the time.” You follow behind him a few steps, not wanting to get lost.

He holds a door open to you, leading to a staircase. “My eomma cooks a lot too, she always tells me to bring the members so they can put on weight.”

“Thank you, do you get to go home a lot?” You ask.

There’s a sullen look across his eyes as he shakes his head. “No, I try to but work is busy.”

“Forgive me if this is too forward, don’t answer it if it bothers you but what is it actually like to be an idol?”

He leads you upstairs, once again allowing you to go first. “It has its ups and downs, I enjoy it for the most part but when fans become too intrusive it can become hurtful. It makes it harder to have moments where it’s safe for me to see my family. That’s the downfall. Stress comes with every job, so does exhaustion not to mention overtime.”

“Tell me about it.” You scoff, remembering all the nights you’d been held back due to some internal issue.

He laughs, opening another door for you. “Bad experience?”

You cross through it quickly, this hall much different to the last. “My last job wasn’t great, a lot of things and people depended on me.”

“I hope it’s better here, I’ll try to be a good student. Scouts honour.” He holds up three fingers, a very American thing to do.

“You weren’t a scout.” You laugh.

He raised an eyebrow. “And how do you know?”

“I don’t know much about you behind the screen but I did once see a compilation of you screaming at bugs.” You admit, gouging him a pointed look.

He side eyes you. “You watch bts compilation videos?”

“My cousin does, she’s 9.” You explain, not wanting him to get the wrong idea.

“I could sign something for her if you’d like?”

It was safe to say you were touched by the gesture. “Oh, no that’s okay. I couldn’t afford it and I wouldn’t want you to put yourself out.”

He laughs, pulling a pen from his pocket. “It’s my signature, not an appearance at a birthday party.”

“Unless you want to sign my hand…I don’t have anything for you to sign.”

“I do, come in here”. He tilts his head to the door behind you, his key card having full clearance to enter.

You didn’t know much about collecting Kpop albums, let alone BTS albums but you knew that the items in the room were worth a pretty penny. The walls had inbuilt shelves, albums, DVDs and other various merchandise all displayed on it. Multiple copies of each seemingly dating back to the day bangtan debuted.

“Wow.” You breathed, genuinely taken back.

He laughs, grabbing an album off the shelf before signing the front page. “It’s something the company did for us as a surprise when we changed buildings. There’s stuff in here I had no knowledge of even existing.” He hands you the album. “This is for your cousin. I left a little note inside.”

You take it slowly, afraid to somehow damage it. “She’s going to cry.”

“Adorable.” He chuckles. Pulling some things from the shelves. “Give her these too.”

“Thats too much.” You decline, eyeing the two DVDS and 3 BT21 plushies he shoves into a Hybe bag.

He shakes his head. “Nonsense, we get it all for free.”

“You really do want to see her cry don’t you?” You laugh, you truly meant that he had already given you so much.

You were slightly worried about everyone getting the wrong idea, you didn’t want anyone to think you were using him.

Before you could voice your objection once again he was already opening the door, bag in hand. “Let’s take all this back to my studio, there’s a few more things I think you’d enjoy.”

He’d already done so much, the least you could do was accompany him.

So you did.

You spent another hour exploring the Hybe building before he announced that he had in fact ordered food, insisting you eat with him.

The conversation between you both was easy, floating from one topic to another. The conversation never becoming too serious or invasive but personal enough for you to both understand each other a little better. He shared things about his time as a trainee as you did about studying abroad and your childhood.

By the time dinner was over it was already 6pm, 4 hours past the time you were supposed to wrap up the day.

Still he didn’t complain as he walked you to the private exit, waving to you as you were driven off.

It may have been a messy first day, but it was a first day you were sure you would remember forever.

[taraljc]

So if you ever feel like 'ah but the window for this opportunity closed a long time ago and there's no point in continuing', here is my list of works and progress from the last 20 years that still need to be finished and posted:

Jem & The Holograms post series novella where the Blue Bloods coming to town to meet with A&R representatives from various labels is the catalyst for every single band to implode. or the one where Stormer and Riot attempt to date.

Before the events of The Unkindest Tide, Toby and Tybalt go on vacation in the Pacific Northwest and while they do actually sit down and watch Slings & Arrows nothing else goes to plan. Not even a little bit.

The story of Loki's birth, and every name Sylvie wore before she found her own.

Every key on Flo Bones's ring of keys has a story.

The flight from Seoul to New York where Steve Rogers realises he and Wanda Maximoff are more alike than either of them could have imagined. Also known as two government experiments compare notes and backstories and Steve finally recognises that he really really does not know Tony Stark the way he thinks he knows Tony Stark.

The one where Brooklyn's Boon involves Rowan taking him to Avalon smack dab in the middle of a coup where Oberon is stripped of his powers and banished to New York, and Fox decides that Fortress 2 counts as a 'boat'.

Maleficent sex pollen fic. Literally does what it says on the tin.

How Number One and Pike got married on a shuttle that was about to be shot down by an Enterprise controlled by a very possessed Spock, 20 years after Spock, Pike, and Francis Drake Reed became incubators for escaped non-corporeal energy beings on an away mission.

The one where Goose and Niko get married in order to date because Goose's DNA is classified and Niko is not a member of the League of Planets member worlds. This one starts off with paperwork and may finish off with the General cloning Goose and Niko as part of his plan to create a Super Trooper army.

Loki discovers that he can time jump from the center of the multiverse to the passenger seat of Sylvie's truck, almost causing a three-car collision and definitely causing an argument about whether or not his new outfit counts as pyjamas.

Norrie wakes up after being ghost-locked for over a year, and while Lucy is up North, George and Lockwood hire an assistant.

Sergeant Wade approaches Lucy and Kipps about a haunting in her hometown, completely off the books and without Barnes' knowledge.

What happened the following year at Sky High, including how Layla attempted to take on the entire establishment in the form of Will's grandfather, and Warren deals with his mother joining the faculty. Meanwhile someone has breached security and stolen data on every living hero and villain's post-graduation placement and civilian identity.

While Cole and Cassie are spending the night in the auction house storage facility, Deacon and Jennifer watch Ghostbusters back at the Emerson.

[bearmemesreviews]

Skylanders Review: Gill Grunt

Now that we got the golden boy out of the way, we can get into the things that aren't Spyro! And believe it or not, that has more meaning in regard to this series than you'd think - but no spoilers! Let's start with the second Skylander ever introduced, if you bought the base game anyways, Gill Grunt!

[Image: Gill Grunt is a bipedal, humanoid creature with fish-like features similar to the Creature from the Black Lagoon aka Gillman! He has webbed feet and hands, and rounded scales on his limbs. He has blue skin and wears clothing that's a darker, Royal Blue color. Alongside some belts around his wrists, ankles, and waist, he wears something akin to a janitor's jumpsuit with the legs and sleeves cut off. He has wide fishy eyes with yellow sclera and orange irises, alongside fins on his head resembling ears and a mohawk. He lacks teeth, but his bottom jaw has two tusk-like jutting points coming from the bottom lip giving him a pseudo-underbite. He lacks a nose, only having nostril holes in the middle of his face.]

I genuinely cannot tell what this funny fish man is wearing, but I think I've seen anime schoolgirls wear the same thing to battle so he's clearly prepared for anything.

Gill Grunt here actually enlisted in the "gillmen army," but met a mermaid on one of his travels and fell in love. He promised to reunite with her after completing his service but found out that she was kidnapped by pirates after he left. He continues to search for her to this day, and works as a Skylander to combat pirates to prevent this from happening again to others.

Sources vary on whether or not he'll ever find her, or if he did after his many rendezvous with Spyro and his clique. Maybe she doesn't want to be found because she heard about his gillman war crimes.

As a fishman, Gill Grunt is our first Water Elemental Skylander, armed with both a hose gun and some sort of weirdly shaped trident launcher. He's a cute little guy, and he's definitely a good example of the other Water elementals. His story is especially interesting, though unfortunately we never get a fully fish-tailed mermaid as a core figure in the franchise despite how obvious I feel that should've been.

Heck, his story actually lends well to his girlfriend becoming a Skylander if he ever finds her while on Spyro's adventure, but I guess a few upcoming Skylanders fill the niche of singing Ningyo for the franchise. And as a retired war vet, he has enough seniority that he can actually recruit other Skylanders (specifically other Water elementals) on Eon and Spyro's behalf.

Alternates: Gill Grunt gets a slight redesign for Superchargers, now wearing golden armor with a helmet and water tanks on his back. He actually wields a real trident this time.

It's said that Gill Grunt loves singing, which is also what his girlfriend does, but his entire species is tone deaf. The book says it sounds like a jellyfish gargling on seaweed, so imagine that, because I sure can't.

Motto: "Fear the Fish!" - Yeah, a lot of these are just vague and absurd threats but sure Gill Grunt. The ocean is scary, so sound advice. 4/5

Nothing to write home about, but a solid little gill man. Three Chompies out of Five.

[rise-my-angel]

The last few seasons make no sense because she already pledges her forces. So why did Jon still bend the knee? Unless he didn’t believe she would without him bending the knee?

I'm gonna be honest, the series of events leading to Jon bending the knee makes my head hurt. Because, as it is framed, Jon had no intention on bending the knee at all before the events of Beyond the Wall.

Then, naturally, the worst episode of all time airs, and he goes beyond the Wall in the dumbest quest known to mankind. He then gets trapped by Mr. Fan Nickname, and tells Gendry to get a raven all the way to fucking Dragonstone.

First of all, how did you chuckle fucks get yourselves into this situation. How were all of these men this unprepared for if the army of the dead showed up at this stage. Second, GENDRY DOESN'T KNOW WHERE HE IS. EVEN IF HE GETS TO EASTWATCH WHATS HE SUPPOSED TO WRITE "dysentery help us were trapped on a lake surrounded by snow." What is she supposed to do with that information? (also yes auto correct changed her name to dysentery and no I am not changing that).

Also it would take weeks for a raven that far north to get to DRAGONSTONE but whatever.

Third of all, DRAGONS CANNOT GO BEYOND THE WALL.

So, she saves them, but not Jon, because he needed to get ex machina saved by Cold Hands Benjen. Then he is picked up by the ship bringing them back to Dragonstone. Then for saving them he bends the knee.

He bends the knee after a situation that had nothing to do with the reasons he refused to bend the knee. Like they never discussed what this will mean when he does it.

Jon bends the knee, because the script said he was supposed to bend the knee now. Not because of literally anything that they discussed leading him to trust his entire army and people in her hands. She flew on a dragon and gave them a ride.

ITS EVEN FUNNIER BECAUSE DANY DOING THIS, IS WHAT CAUSES THE WHITE WALKERS TO GET BEYOND THE WALL, AND THEN DANYS FORCES LITERALLY DO NOT ACTUALLY DO ANYTHING EFFECTIVE TO END "THE LONG NIGHT". GETTING HER HELP LITERALLY DID NOTHING BUT MAKE THE SITUATION EVEN WORSE.

Like Jon clearly did not need Danys help, because her forces did nothing and her dragons did not actually do anything effective beyond burn a few more wights at once. Dany sends the Dothraki of all people as their first line of defence and they all get slaughtered.

Literally nothing Dany did, helped Jon. Nothing. He bends the knee because the script told him too. Because Jon has been given no reason to believe that she will actually be helpful or is even trustworthy with his people.

Also lmao cus that scene has Jon making a season 1 reference, making the romance thing super weird coded. He jokes he'd actually bend the knee if he could stand, and thats literally a joke Ned makes when he wakes up after the street fight with Jaime Lannister, telling Robert "I would rise, but..."

He also tells her at one point "I wish you good fortune in the wars to come." Which is what Mance Rayder says to Stannis before he's executed.

LIKE WHAT DO THESE REFERENCES EVEN IMPLY????

The only way it makes sense, is if Jon was worried that now he's seen dragons in action, what Dany would do to his people should he continue to say no, so he bends the knee just like Tohrren Stark before him to spare them. But we never actually get a real reason why he does it because Jon doesn't have a reason. He's just Danys story pawn at this point of the show.

Jon bending the knee is a fucking incomprehensible mess that never should have happened.

[wildandsmile]

𝑴𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝑪𝒖𝒕𝒆 ☆ 𝑰𝒈𝒈𝒚 𝒙 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓!

🗯️ HIIII LOVIESSS it’s val! i posted this on my personal account originally but i figured i would bring it over here for you guys to have while i continue working on the spencer reid fic. sorry it’s taking so long, i’ve redone the entire thing like three times now! this is kind of an underground fandom and character, but i love him too much not to write for him! begging on my knees that you read and enjoy this because im so proud of it. i intended to turn this into a series so let me know what you think!!

>> fluff, maximum ride fanfic, i just love iggster so much. he needs some representation too. you’re a mutant, a reptile mix specifically. part crocodile and part leopard gecko. warning, this is like a mile long. enjoy!

Imagine you’re fifteen years old. Now imagine that all you’ve ever known is scalpels, white walls, tile floors, the smell of antiseptics and bleach, and the feeling of rough hands grabbing at you. The feeling of needles pressing into your skin and veins, filling your body with steroids and god knows what else. Imagine not knowing whether or not anything else is real and only seeing things about the outside world and social culture through newspaper clippings. Imagine your brain being electrocuted as you’re forced to run until your feet bleed. Imagine you’re only given twenty ounces of room temperature water and a package of stale crackers and some old ham to keep you alive most days. Got the picture?

That was the life (Y/N) lived. She couldn’t remember anything before the age of nine. All she could remember was needles, bright lights, constant nausea, and unbearable physical torture. Being cold most nights, because of course she wasn’t provided with a heat lamp. She told other experiments that she was just anemic.

It wasn’t a lie necessarily, she was severely malnourished, but it wasn’t because she was anemic that she was always cold. It was because she was a reptile. Well, kind of. She was ninety five percent human, three percent leopard gecko and two percent crocodile. She got the cool spots which looked more like vitiligo if anything, and she could go thirty minutes without blinking. She was medium height, around five six and maybe one hundred thirty pounds soaking wet. She was fast, and she had the potentially to be a malicious predator. However, it was hard to be predatory when you were used to being nothing but prey to weirdo scientists with god complexes and fucked up world views.

That takes us to present time. (Y/N) cramming herself into the furthest corner of her crate (where all the experiments were kept), hissing and baring her pointed teeth at the white-coat trying to grab at her. “Do not resist.” He growled at her, getting more erratic and rough with his movements. She kicked at him whenever he got close, and she packed one hell of a kick. Even after fifteen years, she’d never stop fighting. Which is why she was kept in a separate room all by herself, albeit still in a crate. She had been caught trying to plan an escape with the others one to many times. That tends to happen when you go without food or warmth or nourishment or education or normal socialization. “Die!” She yelled at the scientist. He sneered and slammed the door of her crate shut, hitting her toes as he did. She yelped and tucked them under her body, growling and frowning like a feral animal. She rocked back and forth, feeling frantic and sticky. She wasn’t dirty, but she felt like her skin was covered in glue. She scratched at her melanin splotched arms, her pupils widening and shrinking every once in a while.

She heard the heavy metal door slam open, and her head jerked up, expecting to see an army of white-coats storming in to grab her. But no. It was a blonde girl in ratty civilian clothes who looked like she hadn’t showered in weeks and had no clue what a hairbrush was. The girl ran over to her crate and began fiddling with the latch. “Can you walk?” She asked urgently. (Y/N) stared at her, wrapping her arms around her body tight and going on fight or flight mode. She looked feral, which she practically was. “Can you walk?” The girl repeated, louder. (Y/N) nodded hesitantly, glaring wearily at her. “Good.” The lock popped open and the door swung to the side, leaving the exit wide open for her. (Y/N) stayed, unsure if this was another simulation, another trick to lure her out so she could be tortured and chased again.

The blonde girl kneeled in front of her, trying to be kind, but failing. She was far too tough and in a hurry to have a motherly heart to heart right now. “Listen. We’re here to help you, okay?” She said, something extending from her back. (Y/N) peeked and saw that they were wings. An experiment. Just like her. (Y/N) slowly crawled out from the cage and stood, on edge and ready to pounce if anyone tried anything. “Hurry, this way.” The girl said, grabbing her by the wrist and rushing her through the door. (Y/N) could hear all kinds of commotion. Animal noises, yelling, metal slamming around, and now a loud alarm. Red lights flared up and illuminated the halls, causing adrenaline to pump harder through her body.

“Hurry, hurry! Up here!” The blonde girl ordered. They turned a corner and she saw all the experiments running up a ladder, lead by another blonde girl with wings. But she was in a lab gown. She was one of the experiments too, one that (Y/N) had tried to ally with. But she didn’t understand English as well as (Y/N) did. She saw more bird kids, overturned crates and surgical tables, and a look over her shoulder allowed her to see a rush of white-coats running straight for them. This was the one chance she had. She turned and took two steps before she slammed into someone. Her pupils immediately shrank into slits and she hissed, baring her teeth before scampering up the ladder, faster than most of the other experiments could. She was powered purely on adrenaline and now fear, fear of being caught.

She felt a gust of wind against her face and looked up to see three bird kids fly by her, through the narrow tunnel. She kicked off the last prong of the ladder and broke out into a sprint, following the other mutant kids like her instincts told her to. “Forward, forward! Don’t stop!” Someone yelled, she didn’t know who. Her legs pumped faster and harder, through the sludge of the tunnel. Had they been underground? Come to think of it, she’d never seen natural sunlight. She didn’t even know if it was real. She’d only seen it in books and scraps of newspaper left on the lab counters.

They broke out into an open area after what felt like hours, but was probably only a few minutes. She leaned against a wall as her vision faded in and out, her head starting to spin from exerting so much energy on such an empty stomach. She looked around, and she realized she wasn’t hearing. The blonde bird kid who broke her out was giving a small speech, but (Y/N) could barely register it. Everything felt muffled and far away. The last thing she saw was the experiment kids who stayed to listen to the speech scampering off, and a questioning, accusatory look from someone that looked like a living shadow.

When she woke up, she wasn’t in a tunnel anymore. She was.. where was she? She sat up abruptly, flailing her legs and moving to stand on her own two feet, getting into a fighting stance. She looked around frantically, meeting the eyes of six confused and equally as beat up kids. “No need to have a riot. It’s just us. Just me.” The blonde girl from earlier said. She put her hands up in sarcastic surrender, and (Y/N) managed a frowned. Her heart was pounding against her ribcage so hard she thought it would burst out of her chest and fall onto the floor.

She swallowed dryly and looked around. A table, a rug, a TV, a couch.. she was in someone’s house. Surrounded by a bunch of strangers. Who, to be fair, had just helped her escape from the lab. “What is this?” She managed weakly, her voice shaky and breathy. “Who are you?”

The kids shared a look, all varying in different reactions, then one stepped up. She was young, barely looked more than seven or eight years old. She had big blue eyes and curly blonde hair. She was kinda cute for being so grubby. “We’re.. the flock. I’m Angel.” She pointed at herself. “This is Nudge, Gazzy, Fang, Iggy, and Max.” She pointed at everyone individually. The one she had seen before she fainted was Fang. She hadn’t seen Nudge or Gazzy until that moment. She hadn’t seen Iggy either. She blinked, her pupils very slowly returning back to a normal size.

She didn’t speak, only breathed heavily, her chest rising and falling evenly. Out of all of them, Iggy caught her attention. He looked hopeful but vacant, standing stiff and weird. “What happened?”

She asked, returning her attention to the little girl. Max stepped up now. “We broke you out of the school.”

She said, and (Y/N) nearly rolled her eyes. She would’ve if she wasn’t still in shock. “I remember that. I mean.. where am I?” They all looked at each other again. She felt alienated. Covered in a cold sweat and in a ratty hospital gown covered in her blood and ashes and dirt, her feet crusted with sludge from the tunnel, her hair tangled. “Uhm.. Michigan-ish.” The little blonde boy, Gazzy said.

“Mich.. igan?” (Y/N) hadn’t heard of that. She knew they were in the United States, or at least she thought they were, because that’s what most of the newspaper clippings were talking about. She had the education of an average fourth grader, she only knew basic language and math skills, but nothing else. She knew nothing of history or science, only that science was bad. Scientists were bad. “It’s a state. A big hunk of land in a bigger hunk of land.” The kid explained. She nodded. He dumbed that down enough.

“You fainted when we were in the tunnels. We.. didn’t want to leave you there, so we took turns carrying you. Iggy said. She looked over at him. He was looking slightly to the left of where she was standing. Her eyebrows scrunched in the way they always did when something didn’t make sense to her. She walked over to him and saw him visibly stiffen along with the rest of the flock, who got into subtle defensive poses. She stopped and gazed up at his pale face, into his eyes. They were milky, cloudy. It clicked. “You’re blind.” She stated.

He huffed. “Nooo. Really? I hadn’t noticed.” The corners of her lips quirked up in a little lopsided smirk and she turned away from him, wrapping her arms around herself. She was malnourished, cold, and really tired. She faced Max. “Are there any blankets?” She asked. “Dunno. Is Cabin-ah-la-Michigan not good enough for you?” Max said. (Y/N)’s eyes narrowed. Max was.. joking. Being sarcastic. In a very flat, hard to tell way. (Y/N) liked it. She huffed out of her nose. “I’m a reptile. It’s cold. A blanket would be delightful.” She said, Max being visibly taken aback.

A slight smirk built on her lips and she turned to hide it. “Iggy, find her a blanket.” “Oh sure, send the blind guy to do it.” He grumbled. (Y/N) huffed a laugh again. That seemed to be the trend around here. Dry humor and sarcasm. It was refreshing. Better than listening to white-coats discuss what horrors they wanted to put her through that day. (Y/N) was on edge and shaking for more reasons than one. She didn’t know what to think of them, but they had saved her. She took a breath and told herself to just be cool.

“Thanks for saving me or whatever.” She said, crossing her arms. She saw Gazzy smile and try to stifle a laugh. She didn’t understand what was funny. “What?” She asked. “You’re acting like Fang.” He grinned. She glanced over to Fang, who was visibly offended and standing with his arms crossed. He probably had trust issues. Who wouldn’t in their case?

She looked away and down the hall to see Iggy returning with a blanket. “Found this in one of the bedrooms.” He said. She nodded and took it from him, immediately throwing it over her shoulders and sitting down on the floor, tucking her feet under her body and huddling down to preserve heat. They watched her like she was the only mutant kid in the room. “What?” She snapped. They looked away guiltily. “Nothing. You’re like, really pretty! Have you ever had your hair cut? Do-“ Nudge began, to be cut off by Iggy. “She’s a lab lizard. Do you think she’s ever been anything other than in a cage?” He wasn’t wrong, but the words hurt for some reason. Her face hardened and she angled it towards the ground. If she tried hard enough, she could glare a hole through it. Nudge’s face fell and she pouted sadly. She hadn’t considered that. She just wanted to give her a compliment.

(Y/N) heard Max elbow Iggy, and she assumed Max was scowling. (Y/N) rose from the floor, keeping the blanket wrapped tight around her body. She probably weighed the most out of all of them, having atleast some meat on her bones from her crocodile genes. “Do.. I stay?” She asked. It was silent. Six pairs of eyes stared at her. Well, five. Iggy was looking slightly near her again. Her face softened a bit and she immediately started burning with embarrassment. She angled her face towards the floor again.

“Sorry.” She uttered. “I’m sorry.” She said again. Nudge walked over to her with a friendly, understanding smile and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. (Y/N) pursed her lips and looked up at Nudge. “Let’s.. get you cleaned up.” Nudge said, trying to be polite, but her face told a different story. (Y/N) knew she looked like roadkill. It wasn’t her fault. She let Nudge lead her to the bathroom, which, miraculously, had running water. She informed the rest of the flock of that happily before helping (Y/N) undress and chattering her ear off.

“Your skin is awesome! And your eyes are so cool, the little black parts go so thin. How do you do that? What kind of reptile are you?” “Crocodile. And leopard gecko.” She answered, on edge. But.. Nudge was a girl, a mutant girl who seemed nice enough, so she accepted her help. “Have you ever even seen yourself?” Nudge asked, and she meant it as a joke. But.. (Y/N) hadn’t. Ever. Not in a mirror. Sometimes she’d catch very faint, ghostlike glimpses of herself on glass and the floors, but she’d never really seen what she looked like. Her prolonged silence made Nudge gasp. “Come, come look!” She insisted, pushing her in front of the sink mirror.

(Y/N) gazed at herself and gasped, running her fingertips across her face. Smooth but textured at the same time, like some sort of tattered silk. “That’s me?” She asked, mesmerized by her reflection. She was pretty. Splotches of tan skin were flung across her body like some sort of abstract art piece, her eyes were wide and curious, her pupils large for now. She shrank them and smiled, excited to watch it happen. She turned and turned, looking at her face, her neck, her chest, her hair, her shoulders, everything. Her hair was tangled and in desperate need of a comb, but it was fine. She was free and with people similar to her and she felt wonderful for the first time.. ever.

“Wow.” She muttered again, a smile on her face. Her teeth were sharp, her canines longer and pointier than Nudge’s. Her back molars were a bit more shaped for eating flesh, but her front teeth were relatively normal aside from the canines and such. “I know! Cmon, let’s get you in the shower before the water runs out.” (Y/N) nodded and stepped into the shower, gasping. She’d never had a shower. A real one. She’d had water thrown at her through the bars of her cage, but that’s it. She twirled around and around, letting the water penetrate her hair and slide down her body, down her legs, onto her feet. It felt great.

There was a lump of something in the corner. “Nudge? What’s that?” She asked. Nudge peaked into the shower and looked to where (Y/N) was pointing. “Oh, it’s soap! You rub it on your body and it makes you super clean and smell good.” She explained happily. She nodded. She knew what soap was, she’d just never been given any. She picked it up and did as Nudge said, rubbing it onto her arms and legs and stomach and hips and under her arms, all around. It made her feel slimy and weird. She scrubbed at her body for a while before letting the soap run off of her, opting to stand under the water stream for a while. As she ran her hands over her hair, there was a hard knock at the door.

“Hurry up in there! I have to pee!” She recognized the voice to be Gazzy’s. Nudge yelled back, “Go outside or something!” And it made (Y/N) giggle. She reluctantly switched the water off and reached for a towel, drying herself off with the help of Nudge, who wrapped her soaked hair in a towel for her. She sat inside of the sink as Nudge got through her hair, working out the snares and knots as gently as she could. (Y/N) felt like a brand new person by the time they were done. She barely recognized herself. Well, the version of herself she had seen before she showered. She felt even prettier. More alive.

She exited the bathroom with Nudge and let her lead her into the living room, where the bird kids had popped open multiple canned food items and some sodas they had found. They all, well, most of them, with the exception of Fang and Iggy looked up upon their arrival, and Gazzy’s mouth fell open. “Wow! You look like an actual girl now!” Max elbowed him, and (Y/N) stood awkwardly, unsure of what to do. She was in a huge button up and basketball shorts they had found in one of the bedrooms, her hair was still damp, she was still cold, and she felt soggy and out of place. “So uhm.. what now?” The flock shared a look. Fang shrugged. “We don’t actually know.”

(Y/N) pursed her lips. She didn’t want to be left on her own. She didn’t know how to survive in the real world. “We can’t leave her on her own.” Iggy said, reading her thoughts. Maybe he actually could. Who knew what powers they all possessed? (Y/N) looked down. She didn’t want them to leave, but she didn’t want to be a burden. She couldn’t fly. She weighed more than all of them, which meant they’d have a hard time carrying her long distances. Nudge put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

“I’m with Iggy. She doesn’t know anything about the outside world! We have to help her. Can we keep her Max, please?” Max frowned and opened her mouth to protest when she caught Fang’s eye. They seemed to talk telepathically, Max getting gradually more irritated and Fang smirking when they broke their eye contact. He had won their silent argument. “Fine. But you have to pull your own weight, am I understood?” Max said, sternly. (Y/N) nodded eagerly and smiled, baring her teeth. Gazzy’s face immediately lit up.

“Woah! Those are awesome! What kind of reptile ARE you?”

He asked, genuinely curious. He walked up to her, inspecting her face. She opened her mouth wider for him, proud and happy that someone had a genuine interest in her and not in what would happen if they shoved enough metal prongs into her body. “Crocodile!” She said with her mouth open, so it came out sounding more like ‘crocadiiah’. “Cooool! I wish I was a crocodile!” He said. She smiled. “It’s cool I guess. But I’m always cold. I’m part leopard gecko too.” “What’s a leopard gecko?” He asked, gradually growing more and more interested. Nudge and Angel had gathered around her, and she saw Max from the corner of her eye. She looked on edge. Jealous? Maybe.

(Y/N) looked back to the three in front of her as a fourth kid rose and walked over, standing behind Gazzy. It was Iggy. “Uhm.. it’s a gecko with banana type spots on its body, and it can.. do this.” She turned and scaled the wall, climbing up to the ceiling. She could climb any flat surface, but she couldn’t hang upside down for too long. She would weigh herself down. “What? What did she do?” Iggy asked over the ‘ooo’s’ and ‘ahh’s’ of the other children. “She just climbed up the wall!” Gazzy exclaimed. Iggy nodded. “I can do this!” Gazzy said. He opened his wings and flapped them hard, propelling himself backwards. She smiled and hopped down from the wall, dusting her hands off. “Nice.”

She gave another polite smile as the three smiled at her, clearly wanting to ask a million and one questions. She opened her mouth to say something when Max’s voice chimed in. “I think it’s time to go to sleep. We have to head out tomorrow.” She said in a very stern, motherly tone. There were lots of whines and complaints, but a hard look had them shuffling off, albeit still complaining. She heard their scattered chatter, Nudge and Angel bidding her goodnight, and Iggy and Gazzy arguing over which bedroom they were gonna get. There were three bedrooms, which meant two pairs could share one each. That left (Y/N) with the couch.

She felt awkward suddenly, starting to fiddle with her thumbs. “I’ll just.. uhm.” She walked past Max with her head down and saw herself to the couch, sitting on it experimentally. She bounced on it a little, deeming it way more comfortable than the cold, hard floor of a dog crate. “Goodnight.” She said. Max paused in the opening of the hallway. She mumbled something before walking off, Fang following casually behind her. (Y/N) assumed, for the sake of her own peace, that Max had said goodnight back. She laid onto her side and stretched out, something she’d never really been able to do until then. She smiled as she tucked her arms under her head, making herself cozy.

That lasted about an hour before she was getting up, trudging down the hallway to find the blanket she had discarded. She grabbed it from behind the bathroom door where she’d left it and wrapped it snugly around her body before she began towards the couch. She sat upon it and stared at the floor for a little while, allowing her body to warm up. It wasn’t long before she began getting restless. Her body was tired, her brain wouldn’t go to sleep. She turned her head and peered down the hallway, imagining the flock fast asleep.

On a whim, she stood and went to the front door, tossing it open before gently shutting it behind her. She stuck the corners of the blanket between her teeth and scaled the side of the cabin, climbing up onto the roof. Once on top, she scooted onto the middle of it and lied down, keeping her blanket around her. She gazed up at the sky, the sky she’d never been able to see.

She saw the stars. Saw that they were real. Felt the real wind on her real, clean face, felt the wood of the cabin roof pressing against her exposed legs. She felt her brushed, clean hair around her, lighter than she could ever remember it being. She felt the soft fabric of the real blanket against her skin, and she smiled. She was free. Fifteen years of nonstop torture and mistreatment, less than basic human rights, and now she was free. In the real, open, fresh air. She closed her eyes and exhaled, feeling as if she wouldn’t mind if she died in that moment.

She opened her eyes and gazed upwards, beginning to count the stars. Despite being deprived of an education, she knew how to count. How could she not? That was all she was able to do. Count the steps, the lashings, the breaths, the floor tiles, the ceiling tiles. Four hundred twenty nine. That’s how many floor tiles there were in her confinement room. Three hundred fifteen ceiling tiles. Twenty lashings for failure to complete a task. One thousand two breaths in a mile. She knew numbers, understood them, better than anything. There was some rustling and she sat up immediately, bracing herself. Animals? White coats? Security? She looked around and turned to see broad wings and a skinny kid between them landing on the roof. The kid tucked his wings in and walked towards her, plopping down unceremoniously.

“Couldn’t sleep?” He asked. Iggy. She shook her head no. Then she remembered. A smile broke out on her face and she started giggling. He turned his head towards her, confused. “What?” He asked, she giggled. “Sorry. I just.. I just shook my head. And you’re blind.” He huffed a stale laugh and it made her giggle more. She couldn’t believe she forgot that about him. “Sorry. Yeah, no, I couldn’t sleep.” She said, tucking her knees close to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, her blanket hanging loosely over her shoulders. “Neither can I.” He laid back, tucking his hands under his head. She didn’t respond. She looked back up to the stars and exhaled, loving the feeling of fresh air in her lungs and hair and against her face. “Want some.. whatever this is?” He asked. She looked over to him to see that he was holding a can of.. whatever that was. She was skeptical, it could be poison. Even if he wasn’t the one that poisoned it. It didn’t look very edible.

“Uhm.. what does it taste like?” She asked as she accepted the can from him, inspecting it. She looked at the contents and sniffed it. It didn’t smell that bad. “It kinda tastes like beef jerky and peas.” She nodded. She poured a bit of it into her mouth. It was too chunky to be soup, but that’s basically what it was. She chewed up the mystery meat cubes and nodded. It wasn’t great, but it was way better than the stale bread, undercooked chicken, and frozen pea diet they had her on at the school. Just enough of each essential food group to keep her from dying. She passed the can back to him with one hand and wiped her lips with the other, muttering a thank you.

“So.. what’s your story?” She asked. He was quiet for a moment. “I was raised in the school. They experimented on my eyes to try and give me night vision or something and.. clearly they fucked it up.” He said, motioning to his unseeing eyes. She nodded. “A scientist named Jeb Bacheldor helped us escape. He raised us in a mountain home and taught us how to read and stuff. Then he disappeared. We think he’s dead. These mutant werewolf things called erasers burned our house to the ground after me and Gaz blew one of their cruisers up.” (Y/N) turned her head towards him, intrigued, a smile playing on her lips.

“You blew up a cruiser? Like, made it explode?” She asked. Iggy smiled proudly, flaring his feathers as they spread out behind him comfortably. “Hell yeah I did. It was a gorgeous sound. Hit ‘em right on.” He was so happy about that accomplishment she couldn’t help but smile. “That’s awesome.” He smiled, getting a little bashful at the comment. She turned away and looked back towards the sky. “What about you?” Iggy asked, his voice softer than before. Almost whispering. He assumed it was a sensitive topic. (Y/N) shrugged even though he couldn’t see it, tucking her legs closer to her body. She was quiet. “You don’t have to tell me.” He said. She shook her head. “No, it’s fine. I just.. I don’t have one. I’ve been there ever since I can remember. The.. the white coats say I’m fifteen years old and that.. they don’t expect me to live much longer.” She said, resting her chin on top of her knees sadly. Iggy was quiet. It was quiet between them for a while, only the sound of the wind rustling the leaves to be heard.

“I’m sorry.” He said. She shrugged again. “I just shrugged, Iggy.” He chuckled. “Thanks, got it.” It was quiet again until Iggy broke the silence. “You never told us your name.” He said. “Oh.” She hadn’t realized. “My name is (Y/N).” Iggy nodded, closing his eyes. “That’s a nice name.” “Thank you.” “I’ve never seen the stars before.” She said abruptly. Iggy opened his eyes and peered over in her direction. Why? I couldn’t tell you. “Really? Neither have I.” He joked. She laughed, genuinely, for the first time in.. ever, basically. “I’m sorry. I keep forgetting.” She giggled, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth. She looked over to see him smiling, seemingly proud of his jokes. “You’re fine. I do that to everyone.” “Yeah.” She looked at the stars again, she just couldn’t stop. They were so clear and felt so close. Like if she reached for one, she could grab it right out of the sky and hold it in the palms of her hands.

“They’re pretty.” She said, voice hardly above a whisper. There was a pause. “Will you describe them to me?” He asked. She looked over at him, surprised. “Has nobody ever described them to you before?” “No.” She found that hard to believe, and a bit sad. “Yeah. Yeah I’ll.. describe it.” She looked away from him. “It’s like.. the black spots on the ceiling tiles. The sky is so dark, it’s black, but there’s millions of specks of shiny white all over it. They’re bright and some are closer together than others. They’re little circles, not pointy like in drawings. They’re.. gorgeous. They kind of look like your freckles. Just white, and brighter.”

“I have freckles?” He asked. “Have you never seen yourself either?” He shook his head. “Only a few times. I don’t remember. I don’t know what I look like now.” There was a pause. That seemed to be their thing. Pauses of silence. “Do you want me to tell you?” She asked. He nodded. She turned her body towards him, gathering up all the details of him. His face, his body, his wings, his hair. Wanting to make sure she could describe him to him in perfect detail. “You’re tall. I’m sure you know that. You have blonde-ish red-ish hair.. freckles on your face and down your arms, a lot of them. Milky green-ish eyes, pale pink lips. They dip in the middle on your top lip like a bow.”

She assessed him again. “Your feathers are light brown and have white accents. Your eyebrows are neat and arched softly. You have a straight, small nose and it arches a little bit near the bottom. A Long, slender neck, a nice smile. Wide shoulders but a lean build..”

She didn’t mean to, but she started to get more and more flustered. The moment felt so intimate, she hadn’t expected it to you. She quickly turned away and cleared her throat, a blush rising on her cheeks. “Uh, yeah. That’s it.” She saw Iggy nod from the corner of her eye. “Nice. So I’m pretty hot, huh?” She chuckled, shaking her head. “If that’s what you want to believe.” She teased.

They sat in silence for what felt like hours, (Y/N) staring at the stars and Iggy just enjoying the fresh air, fluttering his wings every once in a while to shake out his feathers. The hour of the night started to weigh in on her and she laid back, tucking the blanket under her feet and chin. She didn’t plan on going to sleep on the roof of a cabin, but it’s what happened. She dozed off for a while, waking up due to being cold. It was in the earliest hours of early morning, maybe two or three. She sat up and looked to her side. Iggy was still there. She stared at him, at his chest rising and falling evenly. She weighed her idea, and the potential consequences. It was either freeze to death, go inside and possibly be interrogated by one of the flock members, or.. She crawled over to him carefully, making as little noise as she could.

Slowly, she lowered herself next to him. Not slow enough. He jolted awake and hit her in the mouth as he sat up, making her recoil. “Ow!” She yelped, holding a hand over her lips. She couldn’t be mad at him, but it frickin hurt. “What were you doing?” Iggy asked, a tinge of anger and suspicion in his voice. “I’m sorry. I was just cold.. I.. was just gonna lay with you.” She mumbled, running her fingertips over her lips as they started to swell. For being so skinny he packed one hell of a swing. She saw his shoulders untense slowly, but not entirely. “Okay. Don’t sneak up on me. Or any of the others. Sorry for hitting you.” He said. He lied down again, this time extending an arm for her to lay on. She scooted back over to him and lied down, tucking into the side of his body and using his bicep as a pillow. It wasn’t the most comfortable thing, but again, it beat her crate by a bunch.

“Goodnight.” She mumbled. With her blanket and the heat he gave off, she could rest. At least a little bit. So she did. She let her body succumb to the overwhelming rush of melatonin her brain gave off, slipping into a heavy sleep. And maybe, just maybe, she could roll with these kids.

[goblins-riddles-or-frocks]

Anyway! So season two predictions:

- They’re just going to entirely cut the segment where the Darkling kidnaps Alina and drags them all on a mad dash after the sea whip. (RIP my favorite scenes). In season one, there was a lot of superficial attention paid to making her more active and I think this choice would be in line with that.

- Alina will probably just be in hiding, and somehow hear word of the Darkling’s fuck off evil shadow army (possibly through Nikolai hiring the Crows to go find her and tell her? we have confirmation that he hires them but lmao for what????) and be like “fuck I need to go back” So she runs to find Baghra, who in turn tells her that Morozova’s amplifiers are like pokemon. Gotta catch ‘em all.

- Show!Darkling continues to be a huge woobie. He’s going to spend all his screen time fighting back tears and probably does not ever mutilate Baghra.

- I almost think, especially if the series isn’t going to continue for long, that maybe he doesn’t even do the thing to Genya either.

- The tether scenes (replaced by “Mind Palace” scenes???) aren’t going to be anywhere near as sinister. He’s not trying to slowly drive her insane. He’s going to be crying at her to take him back. Look. He even embroidered his kefta with gold :C etc etc

- SOMETHING is going to happen with that antler bone scar on his hand. We saw it glowing briefly in a shot. Maybe they’re going to introduce Darklina having scraps of each other’s powers way earlier. Or maybe his scar’s just going to start rotting idk 🤷‍♀️ They seem to like body horror in this

- We have confirmation that there will be no Ice Court heist, so maybe Wylan’s there to help blow up the chapel?? Or otherwise do something with explosives for the attack on the palace scene. (We def saw some variation of the chapel scene at all and the Crows are there)

- SO I do think it would be very funny if they combined the entirety of S&S and R&R into a single season but I kind of feel like they probably… won’t be? I think they’ll leave us on a cliffhanger instead and then get canceled lol. But I’m not sure I agree with the theories that we literally see them destroying the Shadow Fold/where the Darkling’s grave is going to be in the fucking trailer. I think they’ll maybe just have her clear up a segment of the Shadow Fold? If that’s what we saw? Just to showcase her greater power, but I doubt it’s all going away at once. Or that he’s legit dying.

- I do however think wrapping up the story in a single season would be hilarious. I would LOVE to see Shadow and Bone speedrun, nightcore edition.

- They’re just going to forget about the Apparat. He’s going to be there but otherwise do nothing.

- Def some Zoyalai teasing to court KoS fans.

- I… have no clue what they could possibly do with the Matthias storyline. We know he can’t be freed. But also he and Nina got a bunch of trailer screen time?? So??? Best I got is that maybe we see the trial going down. And Nina going to visit him a bunch before maybe we get some sort of late season Ice Court heist teasing and indication that they might break him out?

- Kaz backstory for sure!! Literally why else give us a shot of him submerged in water like that. We also have confirmation that they cast an actor as Jordie iirc.

- Baghra is going to continue to be a plot device without much of a personality. She’s clearly super pro amplifier in this and probs is just going to slot into the space of info giving mentor. And then probably die.

- Another useless Mal scene(s) à la the fistfight where he’s centered as an action hero protagonist. As opposed to the book placement with him more as Alina’s damsel in distress. Maybe we even get “I am become a blade” lol

[lord-squiggletits]

I think I've explained this before on my blog, but for everyone who's new here, I have a massive hate boner for supplementary material and extra lore books/comics/etc that are paired alongside Transformers continuities specifically because of my bad experiences being into Star Wars and Warcraft as my previous fandoms lol.

World of Warcraft was a fucking nightmare because once the franchise got big enough, they started releasing stories in the forms of comics and novels and stuff. And the lore in these supplementary materials would be necessary to understand a lot of plot lines that happened in the video games themselves, so it was really annoying because if you liked Warcraft for the lore (as I did) then you had to either buy all of these novels and comics or go on Youtube and read summaries from people who had. And then ON TOP OF THAT the Warcraft writers regularly did retcons and rewrites to the lore, sometimes multiple times for the same characters/plot points/etc (I'm looking at you, Wrathgate), to the point that they basically released new lore bibles every expansion or every other expansion. And it was just really fucking annoying because while I would have loved the chance to have more lore about WoW that didn't fit within the storytelling medium of a video game, in practice it felt more as if Blizzard was just trying to get WoW lore enthusiasts to shill out more money for supplementary materials, but since their writing was so inconsistent that they made constant retcons anyways, it basically felt like a waste of money because why bother buying the lore bibles and caring about continuity when it would probably get retconned in an expansion or two anyways? And then this practice of publishing vital lore in supplementary materials made it so that if you did nothing but play the video game, you would miss out on a lot of lore that ranged from fun tidbits about fan favorite minor characters to entire fucking plotlines informing the entire premise of the new expansion. So basically you had to shell out money to be able to see the new lore that should've been in the actual game but instead was in some random novel that you probably don't care about reading because you're a WoW fan to play a video game not to read a bunch of random novels. And then the Blizzard writers would probably retcon things later so why bother?

And then Star Wars was infuriating because I became a fan during the Sequel Trilogy, which as we all know is a fucking travesty of shitty writing and lack of continuity. The ST is absolutely RIFE with vital information being contained entirely in supplementary materials with little to no way of inferring it just from watching the movies, which were supposed to be self-contained narratives in themselves. Do you want to know how and why Ben Solo destroyed the Jedi temple and became a Knight of Ren? You have to read a comic. Do you want to know how the fuck the Resistance recovered from being a single spaceship full of people to a functioning army by the start of TROS? Read a novelization. Do you want to know what Kylo Ren's motivations were as the new Supreme Ruler of the bad guys and what he's been up to between movies? Read some comics and novelizations. Do you want to know why there's a random fucking army of dudes keeping Palpatine alive on some planet in the middle of nowhere? Read a tweet from the LucasFilm twitter account explaining it. Like, the writing of the movies made no sense and there are HUGE gaps in the narrative that aren't explained in the movies. Instead of just planning out the storyline of the movies and hiring competent writers/directors who would make tight, well-written movies that explain everything to a casual watcher, they decided to spread out vital lore information in comics, novels, novelizations, and other random bullshit.

Do you see now why I hate supplementary material so much lmao? In my experience, when companies have a main story (be it a cartoon, a movie/movie series, etc) and split up lore into supplementary material, such moves are nothing more than a cash grab attempt at swindling fans of the franchise into shelling out money for story details that would have been shown in the actual main story if handled by competent writers.

It's why I hate stuff like TFA's Allspark Almanac and other supplementary materials so much. Sure, there's some stuff in there that lines up neatly with stuff that was shown in the actual TFA cartoon (I'm thinking of the Autobot prison camps that drove Waspinator insane and the way that the Jettwins were created by experimentation), but a lot of the fan favorite details that fans like to incorporate into TFA fanon don't show up in the cartoon literally at all???? Like how supposedly, the Decepticons used to be warbuilds and the Autobots were workers, and the Decepticons rebelled because they didn't want to be used as fodder for wars. You would have literally no way of knowing that just from watching TFA alone and that's why it feels like such horseshit to me; it doesn't show up in the actual TFA cartoon, so if you went through the trouble of buying/finding this Almanac then the extra knowledge you get from it wouldn't be reflected in the cartoon, so it's basically as if the lore doesn't exist and all you got was a bunch of random trivia to put in your headcanons.

I know some fans really enjoy getting extra material exactly BECAUSE it's headcanon material, but to me it feels more like a compensation for rushed/lazy writing at best and an outright money-grab at worst.

[percontaion-points]

VOEN chapters 31 & 32

Click to see the rest of the snark & image descriptions

Click here for the rest of the series!

Chapter 31

Did the Rinche have keys? If he was the one in charge of releasing the vampires, his keys would unlock all of their collars, would they not?

[Nena shoots the man with Nestor’s gun]

She, who wanted to become like Abuela, someone who healed wounds and did not cause them. She caused him this pain.

The dude came with an army of vampires, which were set upon your home, Nena. They set fire to the other houses. The guy pointed his fucking gun at you. 

And you’re sorry that you shot him?

Then she reached for the pouch of salt at her hip, tied next to her holster. 

She seized a fistful and flung it in his eyes. 

He released her hair, screaming anew as he pawed at his face. 

Salt worked against all monsters, it seemed. 

You take some salt to the eyes and tell me how YOU feel!

The heavens spun around her. Breath cracked out of her lungs as she struck the ground.

Chapter 31 summary: Nena runs out to where they’d told her the “men in chains” were. As she goes, she comes across Nestor. The cowboy lassoes a vampire and quickly chops the head off with his machete like it was nothing. 

Nena hurries on until she finds the line of still-chained vampires. The white-man who is controlling them comes over and points his gun at Nena. She shoots him first, but then feels bad since she feels like she broke some sort of healer’s code. He’s still alive though, which I think is both good and bad. 

She takes the keys from him before turning to the line of six vampires. She tells them that in exchange for her freeing them, that she wants them to leave and not return. She cuts the rope, unlocks the shackle, and then undoes the muzzle around the first one. It bounds off into the night. 

She then works to free the remaining five. It’s only when she does the last one that the thing attacks her. 

Chapter 32

“Come back to me, Nena,” he whispered. “Come back.”

Chapter 32 summary: We jump over to Nestor, as he continues to fight both vampires and yankees. (How many fucking vampires did they have? How did they get so many! Continue reading to not find out!) However, he looks over and sees white skirts that he knows can only be Nena. 

He obviously rides for her, and gets closer in time to see the last vampire attack her. Nena goes flying, where she lands in a heap and doesn’t move. However, instead of going to drain her, the vampire instead drains the white man that Nena shot earlier. After it finishes its meal, the vampire bounds off into the darkness, after the others. 

Nestor gathers Nena up in his arms and he rides back to the main house. The entire thing is a cheap copy of what happened nine years earlier. The problem is, as I’ve said before, not once in over 300 pages, have I been made to believe that Nena and Nestor are actually in love. Lust, yes. But not love. 

Anyway, Granny tells Nestor to call out to Nena, in the hopes that it’ll bring her spirit back to her body. So he does. 

[wintervsuns]

who: @adam-stark what: continuation of this post bc tumblr is awful and we continue on this bs

there was no reaction that came from the sun of winter at the sound of another entering the chambers that were allocated to the karstark household, the series of apartments that were allocated specifically to house the hand of the king of winter. it were incredibly unlike brandon karstark to hardly look up from whatever it was he were doing upon hearing the presence of another cross the threshold of his door, and even more peculiar to not even look up despite the individual's identity being clear and obvious to him. the prince of winter, the duke of moat cailin and the lord commander of the kingsguard was before him.

the man who had been by his side to slay a giant against the wildling army, and together they had watched as the world went crashing following it's demise.

that, felt like an entire lifetime ago: a time where the sun of winter felt strong, and the illuminations of green danced across the lands that spoke the sun tongue. it were a lesson his fathered had taught him so many years; to continue to live, to avoid becoming afraid of the complexity of life. and thus, despite his towering figure and his hardened hands as a result of years of warfare, brandon of house karstark had always been more sun than winter. a steady, everpresent hand in a time of great change: the world changing from beneath the very feet of those who lived and breathed the north. that change had happened too quickly, and had allowed for certain spiders that had laid certain eggs to fester and continue to spin directly out of their control.

only, that was what he kept telling himself as he prepared to escort his wife's body back to the tombs of karhold, praying the ointments and embalment would be enough to ensure she did not rot away. that was the benefit of the cold, was it not? this was all beyond their control, and there was nothing any of them could do. it was beyond the responsibility of any, but those who had committed such heinous acts; that was what he kept trying to tell himself. that was not what he genuinely believed - not anymore.

"no." brandon spoke, and there was the unfurling of a cloak, of furs of black he once prayed to wear as a ranger, of skin. there was ringing finality in his voice, and in it, came the thundering sound of the karstarks of karhold: those who had made the harsh conditions of the freezing winter their home, along the shivering sea.

it were times like this where brandon was entirely northern; there was no hint of sarcasm, and yet no sense of diplomacy even in his voice. it were blunt, it were crass, and it were harsh; the accent of those lands of the sun wrapping hard around his words as they came out. and he thought not of them. he would think of them. "no, your highness. join you i will not."

he looked upon adam, noting something entirely different about his features. something distant in the expression of his eyes, despite the fact his pupils were entirely wide and focused. grief had once again come knocking at the door of house stark, and whilst his heart bled for the north, it bled more for the wife that had been snatched from him. the life he were ready to make, the life he deserved to make."

prince adam's hand remained outstretched. and the hand of the king did not shake it. he merely looked upon him, with dark grey orbs; that looked no darker than they normally did. "i have a wife to put in the same tombs my sister also rests in." and there, came the rearing ugly head of something that was long since wrapped up under layers. "the one you took beyond the wall." his voice remained rough, harsh.

[fixfoxnox]

Wanted to add to this and talk about the Alex thing from my perspective as someone who played the game and learned pretty quickly after that Alex was still alive:

I suspected that Alex was going to "die" literally my entire playthrough of the first MW game. From the moment he was introduced I was almost 100% that Alex was meant to be a parallel to Paul Jackson from the original MW series, to the point that even before Griggs showed up I was like "oh Griggs might show up during one of these missions" because of how similar they were to me.

Now, with his actual "death" I thought it was very well done. His "sacrifice" for Farah being the end of his arc throughlut the game was an excellent choice to me. Having a character who voices his own disagreement with the people he works for, where they send him, and the fact that so much bad is happening in Urzikstan and nothing is being done to help. His arc, through the game, seemed to me like it was about realizing that he can't really do good in the way that he wants while working under the people he works for.

Thats why he chooses to leave with Farah when her people are declared terrorists. Its because he feels like he's been able to actually do good while working with Farah, versus the constant of being sent to new places and not really doing much good with the military. So for his arc to end with his death, in the name of helping Farah's people and her army, its a very good ending for his character.

Not only does it show him making the choice for himself (asking Farah to take her place) but it shows him making the conscious choice to do it so that Farah can continue doing the good that she has been doing. Which works because Alex is, in essence, a side character in Farah's story!

Farah and her battle with Barkov and trying to save her people is the focus of the first game more than anything else. So I along with Alex's death being a decent end to his arc, it also would have been an excellent addition to Farah's arc. ESPECIALLY with the current Raid storyline bringing back her issues with Hadir.

For her to have lost someone (Alex) and then have her brother working with the very people that she's been fighting against and who the sacrifice that Alex made was done to partially help stop? Its a big fucking deal and it would make her anger during the raids that much deeper.

Instead, we now have Alex who is...back working under the CIA I guess?? And just...kinda fine with that?? Like what happened to all of his characters discoveries and choices in the first game? You're telling me after all of that he just...goes back to work like nothing happened? It just isn't very satisfying to me, idk.

the older MW games really seem like a 'Bad Ending' style whereas the new one seems like 'Have a good ending'

Very much agree with this!

You learn like extremely quickly when playing the original trilogy that the characters you play as, are not safe. They make it clear from literally the second (third if FNG counts as a mission I can't remember) mission in the game that they are not afraid to kill any characters.

Two playable character die in the first game (to be fair one of them you "play" as for one mission and you really don't do much but still). Outside of that, they introduce you to several side characters who you grow to like only to watch them be killed as well. Griggs and Gaz's deaths happen moments apart from one another as well and there is nothing you can do about it as the player.

And the games are very harsh with the characters that they kill. They don't shy away from showing you how just like that, a character is dead. Gaz, Griggs, and Ghost all die within a few seconds. Their deaths are quick.

I believe the only two playable characters in the entire game who we know for sure live are Ramirez and Frost (I assume Price lived, but its left pretty vague considering all of his injuries).

At the end of Modern Warfare 2, we as the player had witnessed at least 6 main character deaths with 3 of those being characters we played as. Compare to the current MW2 where we've lost no main characters.

Its actually one of the reasons that I've been so surprised with how nervous people seem to be about MW3?? Like so many people are like "they're gonna kill Ghost and Gaz and Soap again!!" And like, while I do think its possible a character will die (though if what was said about mw3 supposed to be a dlc thats just getting extended then I actually think we're probably pretty safe. Idk I just feel its unlikely that they would have killed a character off in what was meant to be a dlc) I seriously doubt it will be several of them at once.

I actually think the newer games have a problem of NOT killing characters. In my opinion, the older games killed too many people (after Roach died in MW2 I feel like most of the deaths were expected), versus the newer games that seem afraid to kill anyone. As much as I hate to say it, Alex should be dead right now (please don't hate me guys I hate to say it but come on).

They've backed themselves into a corner where they've backtracked on a death already and not killed anyone, so when it comes time for a character to actually die (my bets on Soap, soz) a lot of people are going to struggle with believing if its true or not.

I think that with what they've done so far, it wouldn't hurt them to just not kill anyone off. Their fans wouldn't be mad so long as the story is satisfying. That being said, the two new games have (in my opinion) not been as good at building a story as the og trilogy. Like we're just now getting introduced to Makarov, and I do not trust that they won't try to rush the entire Makarov storyline into just one game. Like the OG games, the Makarov story should span two games in my opinion. He is THE villain of the COD MW games with his claws going all the way back into even the first game. So the fact that they didn't even really seem to start setting him up until MW2 concerns me a bit.

Now I could be wrong, they could surprise me. This was very ranty, and I apologize for that but yeah, I fully agree the newer games definitely seem to be more geared toward a "happy ending" style versus the older games which I would describe as a "bitter ending" (because while we won, we lost everyone along the way so was it really a victory?).