#excuse you but if you're not going to be at least a bit objective when making a comparison you can keep your opinion to yourself

[grandlinedreams]

|| in the same reader setting as [this]

|| warnings: lil bit of angst/self-deprecation, reader has spine, some drama for the sake of it, had Bryce's starlight power in mind w reader

Some days, you wonder why you're here. Objectively, you know why ㅡ but beyond the obvious circumstances, you can't puzzle it out.

Especially as you watch your sisters seemingly click into place. Feyre, of course, has always had a spot ㅡ as High Lady, mate to Rhysand. Nesta has come into her own as well, finding her strength with the Valkyries and Cassian. And even Elain seems more and more comfortable here.

You still aren't sure where you fit in. It's an echo of how it'd once been back home, before all of it ㅡ a careful balance to not take too much, need too much ㅡ to do what you could to help. Unremarkable in all aspects, you suppose, for being Nesta's twin.

Feyre has often likened you to the two sides of the moon ㅡ cut from the same cloth, but so very different.

And the longer that you go in living here, the more it unsettles you ㅡ until it eventually comes to a breaking point of needing to do something.

And you begin watching training sessions. The Valkyries, Nesta, Cassian and Azriel ㅡ it doesn't matter who it is, you watch ㅡ a book in your lap as an excuse. You don't know why you don't want them knowing what you're truly up to, as there's no shame to be had in wanting to defend yourself.

All the same, you don't breathe a word of it to anyone. Your own sessions are self-made, mimicry clumsy and often times uncoordinated ㅡ but you're trying, and that's enough. Illyrian warrior you are not ㅡ but at least it's something.

ㅡ

"Thank-you for coming with me today," Elain tells you as you walk beside her, pace sedate as she glances at the shops to the right, your own attention on the Sidra to the left.

"Of course," you answer, and you can't help but glance back. Several paces away, Azriel trails behind, looking for all the world relaxed ㅡ though you know he misses nothing. Though Elain had asked you to accompany her, part of you wonders if Azriel had been hoping to be alone with her ㅡ you've caught the quiet looks that he's shot her every now and then today.

Sun warming your shoulders, you find your attention back on the Sidra, the gleam of light refracting off the surface. Velaris is beautiful, and you can understand why Rhys worked so hard to keep this place a secret from Amarantha.

"Elain," you begin, "do you thinkㅡ" You cut yourself off, abruptly aware that your sister is no longer at your side ㅡ nor is Azriel behind you. In your absent mindedness, you must have kept walking when Elain hadn't ㅡ and your stomach tightens at the realization that you have no idea where you are.

Stay calm, you think, pushing down the tendrils of instinctive alarm as you try to orient yourself, though none of the buildings are even vaguely familiar. Just how far had you gone?

"Lost?" The voice that speaks from behind you is wholly unfamiliar as you whirl, eyes locking with the deep green of a fae male who approaches you.

"No," you answer coolly, pushing down how the steady rove of his gaze over you makes your skin crawl. "I'm on my way to meet with my sister, actually."

"Oh." He takes another step to you. "Allow me to escort you?"

"No. That won't be necessary," you answer. There's an edge to your tone that you can hear, razor sharp ㅡ and you move to skirt around him. "If you'll excuse meㅡ"

Fingers snap around your wrist, squeezing with enough force to hurt as you're yanked to a halt. Something stirs in your chest. "Let go of me."

"Not until you apologize," comes the rough reply. "I'm trying to be kind, and you're veing rude."

You can feel your skin bruising under his grip, the ache of your wrist ㅡ and your other hand is curling into a fist and snapping up before you truly think about it.

The punch lands against his jaw and he grunts, letting up on your wrist enough for you to wrench it free with a venomous hiss that'd make Nesta proud as warmth bubbles in your veins, licking up your spine as it buzzes beneath your skin. "Get your hands off me."

The male's eyes blaze before he's lunging for you, hand fisting into your hair to yank you back ㅡ and the world splinters into bright, dazzling light. It blazes, burns brighter than faelight with all the warmth of a summer day as you hear the male yelp ㅡ and then you're on your knees, hands aching as you press your palms to the rough stone and struggle to even your breathing.

The sharp cry of your name and the rapid approach of footsteps is the only warning you get before arms are around you, pulling you close ㅡ Elain.

"Are you okay? One minute you were beside me and then you weren't, we were looking everywhere for you and ㅡ oh, look at your handsㅡ" Her fussing is going in one ear and out the other as she coaxes you to your feet. "Come on, let's get you to Madja, okay?"

You don't remember much of the trek back, lost in a mute daze that has Elain shooting Azriel a worried look and asking for him to escort you to Madja so she can go tell Feyre what happened.

You're quiet even as the healer looks over your hands, the raw skin of your knuckles and knees where you hit the ground ㅡ and still not a word leaves your lips until Feyre is calling your name, hands on your shoulders.

"Elain told me what happened, but she said there was a burst of light right before they found youㅡ"

"Me," you mumble, cutting her off. "That was me. I think." Feyre stares at you, but you're studying your hands. "It...it came from me."

"Oh," Feyre breathes, then glances at Rhysand, who's watching you.

"It's possible she's yielded her powers," he says. "We'll have to see what the extent of it is, and go from there."

It feels a little weird, being discussed as though you aren't there ㅡ and you're more than grateful when the only one left is Azriel, who watches you as you keep studying your hands.

"...the male who grabbed me," you mumble. "I punched him."

"Good." Azriel's shadows had been the ones to report where you were and what was happening ㅡ and the fury he'd felt had been interrupted by that burst of light. "Don't feel bad for defending yourself."

"That's the thing," you answer. "I don't." Your brow furrows. "I'm not...like Nesta or Feyre, or Elain." You pause. "I don't know what I am."

He knows you mean more than just today, that this has been haunting you for a while ㅡ ever since the events that'd landed you here. He can sympathize, truly ㅡ and then he's approaching to ease your hands apart from where you'd been picking at the gauze over your knuckles.

"You don't need to be anything like them," he tells you, then tenses as you study his hands ㅡ broader than yours and scarred ㅡ and then you slot your fingers between his and squeeze gently.

"I have a question," you murmur, letting your other hand rise to trace a fingertip over his knuckles, seemingly unaware of what the simple touch is doing to him. "I...I've been watching all of you train, but I'd like to actually be taught properly."

Azriel hums. "Cassianㅡ"

"No," you counter, fingers tightening around his. "I want you."

Azriel stills for several long moments where he swears thst his heart stutters, stops, then resumes before he answers. "Okay."

[darling-zain]

✮ ↳ All Eyes On Me ↰

♡ yandere! actor x gn reader pt 2♡

tw/cw: obsessive love, murder, mentions of blood, slight emotional manipulation

authors notes: this took me forever i'm sorryyyy editing is a bitch :( but I'm really proud of this one!! hope you'll like it too <3

"Why weren't you watching?" His voice is cold and filled with contempt as he glares at you, his nails digging into the skin of his palm.

"I-I was! Why wouldn't I watch, I've been backstage this whole ti-" Your voice is soft, trying to quell the fury in his gaze.

"Liar!" He steps closer to you, causing you to back away. He takes a deep breath before speaking again. "You weren't watching. When I was offstage, I looked for you behind the curtains. But you were never there." He's now right in front of you, grabbing the door handle and slamming it shut. "All those training sessions, all those late nights memorizing my lines till it felt like my head was going to burst, all the blood, sweat and tears- It was all for you!" His breathing is heavy and his voice is a low growl, his light tan skin flushed with anger.

"Aurelius, I...I had no idea..." Your voice trails off, eyes gazing into his with regret. "But, I did watch! It's just that near the end I got a phone call, so I had to leave the theatre to pick it up and I got distracted!"

"I don't need your excuses." He spat, glaring down at you. "I understand. I get that I'm just another actor you have to work with; you're just here for the paycheck. And that's fine!" He backs up, a deranged smile on his face. "But could you at least pretend that you care? Just a bit?"

"I do care! why wouldn't I care, I've been working with you on this for months! Please, no need to get so upset." Your words cut through him like a knife, and his eyes widen with disbelief.

"'No need to get so upset'?! How can you even say that right now?! I've put so many hours into this, spent so much time on this all for your approval, and when the day finally comes you don't even stay to watch?! I'm not just upset, I'm-" he takes a deep breath, shaking slightly. "Heartbroken."

"Aurelius, please, listen to me. The reason why I couldn't stay is because I got a call from my best friend, and they sounded really upset, so I needed to go help them... I'm sorry."

He turns towards you, a look of cold, pure, disbelief on his face. His eyes widen as he mutters something under his breath. The room is so quiet that even though he whispered, you could hear every word clearly.

"You missed my show...for someone else?" He takes a step back. "You missed my show...because someone told you to?" The silence is thick between the two of you, the same deranged smile appearing on his face. He chuckles, his laughter becoming louder and more insane. "Are you serious?! After all that time we spent working, you left me for your friend?!" Tears roll down his face, smearing his makeup. He stumbles back into the sound table and clutches onto it while trying to regain his composure.

"Auri, you have to understand! It was an emergency, I had no other choice!" The desperation in your voice is evident, you need him to realize the severity of the situation. You walk up to him and hesitantly place a hand on his shoulder. Your breath hitches in your throat when he smacks your hand away, looking up at you through the gaps in his fingers over his eyes.

"Don't," His voice is shaky, yet still cold and unforgiving. "Don't touch me. You don't deserve to after what you've done. I know how much I mean to you now, I don't need your lame explanations." He straightens up before walking out the door, standing in the frame for a second. "Bandaids don't fix bullet holes." He departs with a swish of his hair, leaving you standing alone in the now deathly quiet sound booth.

He grabs his stuff, slipping a small object into his bag as he hurriedly exits the theatre, wiping off his smudged makeup. He doesn't even take the time to change out of his costume, his brain is too panicked to even think about anything except what you said.

"Excuse me, you work with y/n right?" A person with a panicked expression walks up to him, biting their nails worriedly. His angry expression immediately changes to one of calmness.

"Yes, I do. why do you ask?" He puts on his signature winning smile as he bends down to their height.

"Well, I was with them earlier when they said they had to leave, and they didn't even tell me where before they just left! I know they work here, so I was wondering if you've seen them?" Your friend seems really troubled at your sudden disappearance, but Aurelius had other things on his mind.

"Actually, I think I have an idea of where they might be. Follow me!" His charming disposition and comfortable aura would make anyone follow him without question, including your friend. They started to walk together, the silence between them tense because of the worry that accompanied it. He lead them up and down roads, into busy lanes and quiet walkways. Eventually, they landed in front of a large forest.

"Wait... this is their favourite forest! You're a genius, I don't know why I didn't think to come here sooner!" Aurelius looked at your friend with exquisitely veiled contempt, their eyes shining with hope disgusting him.

"Oh, really?" He feigns surprise, not wanting to give away his true intentions just yet. "I didn't know! I just remember seeing them come here one time after work, I didn't know it was their favourite." He was lying. He knew everything about you. Your coffee order, the route you took home after work every day, the position in which you slept, everything. "Shall we head in?" He asked politely, extending a hand toward them. They nodded, walking into the dimly lit forest.

"I don't think I got your name, sorry."

He scoffs inwardly, berating them in his mind. "How do you not know my name? Me, the Aurelius Yavuz? You should be able to tell from one glance alone!" He thought, but he responded kindly regardless. "It's Aurelius. Aurelius Yavuz. And you?"

"Carmen! It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Yavus!" The way your friend sounds so cheerful disgusts him.

"Likewise," he mumbles, his voice sounding slightly pompous from their ignorance of his status. He brings their attention elsewhere, just wanting to get this whole ordeal over and done with as soon as possible. "I think I heard a noise over that way, would you like to check it out?" He points towards a dark corner of the forest with a small clearing in the middle.

"That looks like their hiding spot...yes, I think they might be there! quick!" Carmen starts to run into the thicket of trees, leaving Aurelius behind. In the dim light of the evening sun peeking through the trees, his eyes glow with a menacing aura. A confident smirk makes its way onto his face as he follows behind them. He pulls a small knife out of his bag, the shining metal glinting in the light.

"Aurelius...they're...not here..." Carmen's disappointed voice emanates through the forest. He slowly walks toward them, the satisfied look on his face making him seem even more insane than before.

"Aww, now isn't that a shame~?" He steps even closer, now almost nose-to-nose with them. "Don't worry," He brings his arm behind their shoulder, placing his hand right behind their neck. "You won't have to even think about them anymore." In a flash, Carmen collapses to the ground, the once pristine silver knife now tainted with potent red sin.

He dusts off his hand, wiping the blood on the knife onto the backside of his costume. He scoffs as he looks down onto the now still body of your beloved friend, kicking their body into the bushes beside him. He walks away and out of the forest, taking the same path you always take to your residence. He stops in front of your house, knocking on the door. He takes a deep breath and forcefully makes his eyes look teary, needing every tactic he knows to make you believe him. You open the door, stepping back when you see him.

"Aurelius, why are you-"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to lash out at you like that. I just...was so upset, I thought this show meant something to you! But, I understand that you have your priorities, so I'm not mad anymore. Forgive me?" He gazes into your eyes, false tears now pooling at the corners of his eyes.

"Oh, Auri..." You embrace him tightly, crying into his chest. "I'm so sorry! I should've stayed, I should've watched, I didn't mean to hurt you that bad, I'm sorry!" You can't see his face as you're sobbing into his shirt, not able to see the knowing smirk on his lips. He pats your head kindly, cooing at you to help you calm down.

"Hey, hey, don't cry... it's okay now. Everything's been taken care of, now it's just you," he kisses the top of your head, rubbing soothing circles into his back as a sharp glint flashes through his eyes.

"and me."

taglist!! @lasagna-goob @izizzl @skylark144 @cyphertryagain

[romancefranaticstay]

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･Ship on sea ⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Captain!Hyunjin x Siren!fem!reader

Category: angst, fluff, smut

'Hoist the sails, loose the nets.'

"Root everyone."

"Let go of the nets."

"Ah, we've got one, Captain!"

That's all you can remember. You got captured by pirates, the worst kind of people. You were unconscious in the net, you had human legs again, you were naked. Your long wet hair covered your body, luckily too.

You woke up in one room. How can you describe the room? It was average, wooden walls, there were some candles on a desk. You saw a few cards and some goods. Lots of papers, two doors that lead to other rooms apparently.

You were sitting in a bathtub, with cold water that felt good. You looked around in a bit of surprise. You could still hear the sailors' words in your ears.

You saw a man come in. His eyes were dark, it scared you. You panicked and tried to crawl out of the bathtub, but unfortunately you couldn't.

"Ahh, you're finally awake again, hmm."

he came to you and he lifted you chin with his index finger.

"Looks healthy enough to sell."

'Excuse me? To sell?! I am not an object.'

'In my opinion, yes. A strange kind of quick-witted person.'

"I have legs too."

“I've seen that before, little girl. I have eyes here.'

he pointed his finger at his eyes.

"Can I get out of the bathtub?"

"So you can run away, back into the water?"

"I'm not going to do that."

"As if I trust a being like you."

'I'm a person too.'

"Not in my eyes." so he left.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ You were still in the bathtub, quietly playing with the water. Suddenly the door opened again. He had a plate in his hands with some delicious food. He went to his desk and started eating.

'That looks delicious.'

you said.

'Could I have a piece too?'

'No.'

"You can't let me starve, who would want to buy me."

'You think I didn't think of that? You won't get food until tomorrow.'

"Why not today?"

"Because I said so, little girl."

"Stop calling me a little girl."

He paused and continued eating. You couldn't look at it, so you dived under the water. You observed your tail. It was beautiful, to be honest.

'What is your name?'

he didn't answer.

"Can I at least know your name?"

'Why.'

"Because it's strange to be in the same room with someone, without any information."

“Hyunjin.

“Hyunjin…nice name.”

he nodded. He stood up from his chair. You leaned against the bathtub.

"Where are you going?"

'I'm going to sleep.' '

'Goodnight then.'

So he left again without saying a word.

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

You pretended to be sleeping, but actually you couldn't close your eyes for 2 hours. You heard a door creak and some footsteps. You felt eyes on you. You used your senses to maybe know who it was. You smelled a certain scent and felt a certain atmosphere... it felt like... Hyunjin.

You opened your eyes and looked straight into his eyes. He stood there leaning against the door frame. Just staring you up and down. He didn't say anything, nothing came out of his mouth. His pyjama was a long fleece blouse with a long fleece pants. After three minutes he just went back into his bedroom.

You thought he was scary, even though he looked very attractive. His look gave you chills. You wanted to flee, to leave.

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

The next morning, you woke up on a bed. You were laying under a blanket. You don't know how you came here, but it was at least better now when you had legs. You looked under the blanket and saw you had a dark blue dress on. It was beautifull. You stood up from the bed and looked around in the bedroom.

The bed you were in was not too small, but not too big either. It was in the corner of the room. This definitely wasn't the captain's room, or at least you hoped so... You started walking around the room. You had to get used to your legs. You hopped around a bit so your muscles could move a bit. It had been a long time since you used your legs. You were surprised that you still knew how to stand up.

The door opened again and the captain named Hyunjin entered. There was a table in the room where you sat. He had a plate of food in his hands.

'Here.'

you cautiously approached. It was hardtack and salt beef. It looked quite tasty.

'Thank you.'

you muttered. You sat at the table and began to eat quietly, not daring to look up at the captain. He just stood leaning against the door. He watched you eat everything. He also looked at your legs, it was strange that you first had a tail and now two beautiful shiny legs. It was fantastically impressive.

You looked to your right where he was standing. You looked him up and down. You had never really looked at him properly. He didn't look too unfriendly, he had long black hair, thick lips, he was also tall and muscular, but that's probably normal.

"What's your name, little girl."

You looked at your plate and didn't answer. He came closer and grabbed your chin.

"Answer the captain."

“Y/N…”

you said softly.

“Y/N, okay.”

He sat across from you at the table. His hands were together and he looked at you. His eyes seemed darker than ever. You kept looking at your plate.

"You're a strange creature."

'You too.'

He clicked with his tongue his inner jaw. The silence was a bit awkward.

He got up again and left again. You thought he was finally leaving for a while, but he came back in with his plate of food. He sat across from you again and started to eat. You watched his actions. It was quiet, you could hear the sounds of the sea. The ship moved a little, but the sea was quiet this time of year.

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

The two of you grew a little closer together, you always ate lunch together. You two talked sometimes. It was very quiet. You'll be sold in just 1 day. The captain had forgotten that, and he still didn't know. The captain became close to you. He came and sat with you, you talked about the ocean. He asked many things, all of which you had seen. It was nice to finally have someone with the same passion. He couldn't stay away from you, until today...

The ship sailed on the shore. The captain was still asleep. You were sleeping in the room next door, suddenly some sailors came to get you out of bed. They put a cloth over your mouth.

'Healthy enough to sell.'

You tried to stop them, you moved and tried to escape from their grasp. You pushed things over but they finally got you out of the ship. They grabbed your arms and dragged you away. Your anger swirled, you had sharp teeth, you bit the cloth from your mouth. They didn't notice yet because you were pretty quiet.

Before they know it you bit their hands, blood pouring from their bodies. You were still wearing the dark blue dress. The captain heard shouting and immediately went to your room, you weren't there. He ran outside to the deck and looked where the shouting was coming from. He saw the bloody hands of his crew members.

He saw you running to the beach, clutching the dress tightly to you. You ran deep into the water and finally dived into the water itself. No no no no, you couldn't leave, you couldn't leave him. Hyunjin took off some of his clothes and jumped into the water.

You no longer swim that fast because you were already used to your legs. You heard some water splashing. You turned around and saw Hyunjin swimming towards you. It was too dangerous here in the Ocean for a human like him. You swam far out into the sea, but you still saw the ship.

“Y/N.”

he tried to shout.

“Y/N, wait, please.”

you stopped and turned around. He tried to keep his head above water, but he was so tired. You saw him sink a little underwater. You immediately swam over to him and grabbed him in an embrace. You kept his head above water as you swam to a nearby shore. This one was a little further than the normal one, it was not really accessible.

You laid him down and started knocking water out of his body. You started mouth to mouth breathing. You made sure you scooped up enough air. His eyes opened again and he gasped. You were still giving him life support. He straightened his back and started coughing. You looked at his chest, which was heaving.

“Y/N.”

he said softly. His fingers slid over your cheeks.

"Don't leave me alone, please."

"You wanted to sell me."

'They came in without my permission. I would never sell you after the time I had with you.'

'The time?'

“I feel alive with you Y/N.”

You grabbed his face and pressed your lips against his. Your tongue slid through his mouth. Your hands interwined.

"Let's go back, okay?"

he put a piece of hair behind your ears.

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

Hyunjin carried you to his bed and laid you down. He trampled the members who took you. They were given community service for the coming months. They also came to you personally. Of course you forgave them, also because you bit them.

You lay on the bed and waited for Hyunjin to come back. He came in and locked the door. He sat on the bed next to you. He played with your hair. He started kissing your face softly. You took his hand and brought it under your dress. His fingers started rubbing your clit. He watched you react.

He lifted your dress and he attached his mouth to your clit. He devoured it, like a hungry man. Your back arched and you grabbed the sheet. He pinned your thighs on the bed, because they were a bit shaking. You came without a warning and he licked everything up.

You pulled his pants a little down so you could get his member out. You stroked it softly and brought it against your lips. You started licking the tip, your tongue slid over his length. Twirling around. You heard his whimpers above you. You saw some precum coming out.

Hyunjin positioned himself by your entrance. His face was already sweaty. He slid in with ease. He tore the dress loose so he could have access to your boobs. He nibbled on your nipples, with one hand he kneaded one of your breasts. You grabbed his chin and brought him back in for a kiss. You tasted each other.

His rhythm started to speed up. He pushed into you. He wanted you now, he wanted to feel everything about you. He grabbed your ankles with both hands and spread your legs wide. He pumped into you fast. He sucked your neck and licked everything he could reach. You threw your head back on the pillow.

'You are so Beautiful.'

he whispered in your ear. He started biting your earlobe. He let go of your ankles, but your legs remained open. He took one of your hands and placed it on the lower part of your stomach. You felt him pumping into you. You felt him all the way in it.

Hyunjin could already feel his orgasm coming. You felt drops of sweat falling on your body. He started to push into you more.

"Hyunjin, I am about to cum."

you said softly with your eyes closed. Hyunjin grabbed your chin so you looked at him as you came. You came moaning out his name, because of that he also came. You stared at each other for a while, just admiring each other.

Your hands went around his neck and you pulled him to you. Your arms surrounded his stomach. You were so small compared to him. You clung to him. His arms went to your waist. You fell asleep in this position with him.

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

It was night and you opened your eyes. You looked to your right and saw Hyunjin sleeping. You stood up and put your dark blue dress back on. You went outside to the deck. You walked around there a bit. You went to the edge and leaned your arms. You looked at the waves of the sea. You missed that cold water. You missed your hair being wet. You heard some creaking of planks.

“Y/N.”

you heard someone whisper in your ears.

“I miss the water Hyunjin.”

his hands surrounded your waist.

'I know.'

he whispered in your ears.

“But I can’t leave my ship Y/N.”

you looked at each other. Your look changed.

"We'll find a way."

you said

. "Let's go back inside, okay?"

“Okay, babe.”

You kissed his cheek. You were back in bed with him. His warmth felt good, maybe even better than the cold water.

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

Days passed and you felt homesick. You wanted to jump into the water, you couldn't help it. It was your siren instinct. You tried life on board, but it didn't work out. Every day you saw the beautiful waves, you saw fish and sea animals swimming. You wanted to swim with them, you wanted to go back to your family, to your friends,... You were on deck at night again. This looked like you were standing on the edge.

“Y/N, what are you doing?”

“I can't hold on anymore, I want to get in the water, Hyunjin.”

"We have a bathtub?"

"That's not the same."

“What do you want to say,Y/N.”

"I'm a Siren, I live in water, Hyunjin."

There was a silence between you.

'I understand.'

“I'll never forget you Hyunjin. I love you so much, I don't know if I can leave you. I want you to come with me, but you can't.'

He came closer to you and kissed you softly.

“I love you Y/N, I'm never going to find love again. I will never make love to anyone else but you again.'

He had a chain around his neck, he took it off. He brought the chain to your neck and put it on for you.

"So you don't forget me."

"We'll see each other again, I promise."

"I'm not going to let you go if I see you one more time."

You kissed him on the cheeks and turned around. You looked back again and then jumped into the water. Hyunjin watched as your legs turned back into a tail. You disappeared into the water. Tears rolled down his cheeks. His tears dripped into the water.

“I love you Y/N.”

[atinyslittleworld]

Beneath the Western Sky

cowboy!san x f!reader

Summary: Choi San, a charming cowboy, frequents a saloon in the small town of Red River, where he falls for Y/N, the younger daughter of the stern saloon owner. Despite San's persistent efforts to win Y/N's heart, her father disapproves and warns him to stay away.

Genre: a little angst, mainly fluff

Warnings: mention of guns

The sun was beginning to set over the dusty plains, casting a warm, golden hue over the small frontier town of Red River. Choi San, a rugged cowboy with a reputation for being both charming and reckless, sauntered down the main street, spurs jingling with every step. He adjusted his hat and glanced around, his eyes inevitably drawn to the bustling saloon at the end of the street – the place where he spent many nights with his mates, and more importantly, where the object of his affections worked.

The younger daughter of the saloon owner, Y/N, was a vision of beauty and grace. She had a laugh that could light up the darkest of rooms and a smile that made San's heart race every time he saw her. Despite his best efforts to woo her, Y/N remained elusive, always managing to slip away just when he thought he was getting close.

San pushed open the swinging doors of the saloon and made his way to the bar, where Y/N was busy serving drinks to the rowdy patrons. She glanced up and caught his eye, a small, knowing smile playing on her lips.

"Evening, San," she said, her voice like a melody to his ears.

"Evening, Y/N," he replied, leaning against the bar. "How's the night treating you?"

"Busy as always," she said, pouring a drink for a nearby customer. "What brings you here tonight?"

"Same as always," San said, his tone teasing. "A drink and some good company."

Y/N raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Is that so? Well, you'll have to work for it."

Before San could respond, the saloon doors swung open again, and the burly figure of Y/N's father, Mr. Cruz, strode in. His stern expression and imposing presence were enough to make even the toughest of cowboys think twice about crossing him. He caught sight of San at the bar and his eyes narrowed.

"San," Mr. Cruz said, his voice gruff. "What are you doing here?"

San straightened up, trying to appear casual. "Just enjoying a drink, Mr. Cruz. No harm in that, is there?"

Mr. Cruz’s gaze shifted to Y/N, who was watching the exchange with a hint of amusement. "As long as you're not bothering my daughter, I suppose it's fine."

San held up his hands in mock surrender. "Wouldn't dream of it, sir."

With a final, suspicious glance, Mr. Cruz turned and headed to the back of the saloon. San let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding and looked back at Y/N, who was stifling a laugh.

"Your father's a hard man to impress," San said, shaking his head.

Y/N shrugged, still smiling. "He means well. Just looking out for me, I suppose."

"Can't blame him for that," San admitted. "But it does make things a bit difficult."

"Maybe that's the point," Y/N said, leaning a little closer. "Keeps the wrong kind of men away."

San's eyes sparkled with determination. "And what about the right kind of men?"

Y/N's smile widened, but she said nothing, turning back to her work. San watched her for a moment before deciding it was time to up his game. He couldn't let her slip through his fingers again.

Over the next few weeks, San made a point to visit the saloon more often, always finding an excuse to talk to Y/N. He helped around the place, offered to fix things that were broken, and even took on some of the rowdier patrons to keep the peace. His efforts did not go unnoticed, least of all by Y/N.

One evening, as the saloon was closing up, San found Y/N sweeping the floor. He approached her, tipping his hat with a grin.

"Need any help?" he asked.

Y/N looked up, surprised but not displeased. "Sure, if you don't mind."

San grabbed a broom and started sweeping, working alongside her in companionable silence. After a while, he cleared his throat, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"You know, Y/N, I've been thinking..."

"About what?" she asked, not looking up from her task.

"About you," he said simply. "And how much I'd like to get to know you better."

Y/N paused, leaning on her broom as she studied him. "And what makes you think I want to get to know you better, San?"

San shrugged, his smile never wavering. "A man can hope, can't he?"

Y/N shook her head, though there was a hint of a smile on her lips. "You're persistent, I'll give you that."

"I'll take that as a compliment," San said, stepping closer. "So, what do you say? Give me a chance?"

Before Y/N could respond, the door to the back room opened, and Mr. Cruz stepped out. He took one look at San standing so close to his daughter and his expression darkened.

"San, I thought I told you to stay away from my daughter," Mr. Cruz said, his voice low and dangerous.

San straightened, meeting Mr. Cruz’s gaze without flinching. "I mean no disrespect, sir. I just want a chance to prove myself."

Mr. Cruz crossed his arms, his eyes cold. "And why should I give you that chance?"

"Because I care about her," San said earnestly. "And I think she cares about me too."

Mr. Cruz looked at Y/N, who was watching the exchange with a mixture of surprise and hope. Before she could say anything, a loud crash came from outside the saloon, followed by shouting and the sound of galloping hooves. All three of them turned toward the noise.

"What's going on out there?" Y/N asked, worry etched on her face.

San quickly moved toward the door, peeking outside. "Looks like a gang of outlaws," he said grimly. "Causing trouble again."

Mr. Cruz's face hardened. "We need to keep everyone inside safe."

San nodded, his mind racing. "Y/N, get the women and children to the back. Mr. Cruz, you and I will hold the front."

Y/N didn't need to be told twice. She quickly ushered the few remaining patrons to the back rooms while San and Mr. Cruz readied themselves. The outlaws were getting closer, their shouts growing louder.

The door burst open, and a group of rough-looking men stormed in, guns drawn. San and Mr. Cruz sprang into action, their own weapons at the ready. A tense standoff ensued, the saloon filled with the sounds of shouting and gunfire.

San moved with the grace and precision of a seasoned cowboy, taking down several outlaws while protecting the saloon and its occupants. Mr. Cruz fought alongside him, his fierce determination matching San's. The two men, despite their differences, worked together seamlessly.

In the midst of the chaos, San caught sight of Y/N peeking out from the back room. Her eyes widened with fear and concern as she watched him. He knew he had to end this quickly to keep her safe.

With a final burst of energy, San disarmed the remaining outlaws, sending them fleeing from the saloon. The noise died down, and the dust settled. San and Mr. Cruz stood in the now-quiet saloon, breathing heavily but victorious.

Y/N rushed out from the back room, her eyes searching for San. When she saw him standing there, unharmed, she ran to him, throwing her arms around him.

"Thank you," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Thank you for keeping us safe."

San held her close, his heart pounding. "I'd do anything for you, Y/N."

Mr. Cruz approached them, his stern expression softening as he looked at San. "You proved yourself tonight, San. Maybe I was wrong about you."

San nodded, grateful for the older man's words. "Thank you, sir."

Mr. Cruz glanced at Y/N, then back at San. "You take care of her, you hear me?"

San tightened his hold on Y/N. "I will. I promise."

With the danger passed and the saloon slowly returning to normal, Y/N looked up at San, her eyes filled with a mixture of relief and admiration.

"You really are something, San," she said softly.

San smiled, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "Does that mean you'll give me a chance?"

Y/N pretended to consider it for a moment before nodding. "Alright, cowboy. You've got yourself a chance."

San's grin widened, and he leaned in, capturing her lips in a tender kiss. As they stood there, surrounded by the remnants of the night's chaos, they knew that whatever challenges lay ahead, they would face them together.

[babyleostuff]

If you asks are still open can I please request a reaction to something big breaking around the house and you fix it like it's nothing?

i think i kind of changed your request a bit, sorry about that

seventeen when you fix stuff around your house | ot13

CHOI SEUNGCHEOL 

𓆩♡𓆪 Will get sulky and pouty if you don't ask for his help. It's not that he doesn't want you to be independent or anything, but he loves doing stuff for you *heart eyes*. But if it's remotely dangerous or includes any sharper objects, you're out of the room in a second. He knows you could have probably fixed that, he's just scared you'll get hurt.

YOON JEONGHAN 

𓆩♡𓆪 Oh my god, did my baby just fix that??? They're amazing, now I have to shower them in kisses and affection. Is so proud of you. Even if you just fix the smallest thing, he doesn't care. In his eyes everything you do is praiseworthy and he has to let you know. 

HONG JOSHUA 

𓆩♡𓆪 He doesn't stop you from fixing stuff, but always asks whether you need his help. Always hangs around you if it includes any heights, in case you trip or fall. He has one hand on the chair and the other on your back. Afterwards tells you how good of a job you do and that neither he or the house would survive without you. 

WEN JUNHUI 

𓆩♡𓆪 Looks at you with the most awestruck expression. What do you mean you did it all by yourself and didn't need his help??? Always scolds you that you should have waited for him to do it, but it's only because he doesn't want you to hurt yourself. 

KWON SOONYOUNG 

𓆩♡𓆪 Will tell everyone around that yes, my partner just fixed that and that they're perfect and beautiful and the smartest and everyone are like OKAY WE GET IT!!! As much as he wants to help, he is just so amazed with what you can do and the fact that you do it all by yourself *chefs kiss*.

JEON WONWOO

𓆩♡𓆪 Because you usually fix stuff by yourself, it's not often that you ask for his help, which makes him (would never admit it) a little bit sad. He always gets this warm and fuzzy feeling whenever you ask for his help :(((( He'll try to help you anyways, even if you push him away. He mutters something about it being too dangerous (even if it's just a photo that needs to be hung).

LEE JIHOON

𓆩♡𓆪 "That's my girl", he thinks every time he sees anything that you had fixed. As much as he doesn't mind changing light bulbs or putting together the furniture, every time he sees you doing it all by yourself makes him so so proud and happy that you can take good care of yourself. 

XU MINGHAO 

𓆩♡𓆪 Could not be prouder of you. Buys you your favourite snacks and tells you how amazing you are. It's basically an excuse for him to gush about how incredible you are. But he also reminds you that you can always ask for his help, because there is nothing wrong with that and it doesn't make you any weaker. 

KIM MINGYU  

𓆩♡𓆪 Sad, sulky, angry (not really), disappointed (just because he really wanted to fix that for you). Just let him fix stuff for you or at least ask for his help. No matter how good you are at fixing stuff at your apartment, just please, let Mingyu do it. He gives you lectures about what could happen if you are not careful enough. Every. single. time. So please, for Mingyu's peace of mind, ask for his help next time. 

LEE SEOKMIN 

𓆩♡𓆪 Could go two ways: "oh my god, you're the best, amazing,  I love you, what would I do without you honey" or "no no no, are you hurt? you should have waited for me, I told you to wait for me." No matter how proud he is of you and how much he trusts you with fixing dangerous stuff, there is always this thought at the back of his head that you could possibly get hurt. 

BOO SEUNGKWAN 

𓆩♡𓆪 Heart attack. "Why did you do it by yourself?" Side eye. "You could have gotten hurt." Sad puppy eyes. "Ask me for help next time." An angry stare. He goes through at least ten different emotions in a span of twenty seconds. He just doesn't know whether he's supposed to be proud, worried because you could have gotten hurt or angry that you didn't ask for his help. 

CHWE VERNON

𓆩♡𓆪 So cool. He thinks you're so cool. You're absolutely the best, because like come on??? You just did that. All by yourself. He's not even sure what goes with what and you fix such complicated stuff like it's nothing. He swears the house would be all in despair if it wasn't for you.

LEE CHAN 

𓆩♡𓆪 No no no. Please let him fix things. He has been treated like a baby his whole life and now he wants to do something for you. No matter how much you try explaining that he doesn't need to prove that he is strong and capable of fixing stuff (because you know that he is more that capable), he just wants you to be proud of him and find a source of safety and comfort in him :(((

[originalaccountname]

Sorry to bother you but I’ve been getting into BSD and Chuuya’s my fave, but I’ve been seeing some contradictory things in fanfic so…

Does Chuuya actually have a god sealed inside him? I thought it was just like his power without limitations and was dubious of those takes, but since eldritch beings can apparently be a thing (and not an ability), I think it could be plausible either way.

Though even if it’s not I can see why people would use that route for some good angst.

This is not a bother at all! This is something I very much like to talk about

if you're really new I do recommend you go read both "Dazai, Chuuya, Fifteen Years Old" and "STORM BRINGER" light novels (but SB especially), not only are they great books with Chuuya as the focal point but they will help answer your question in depth (you can buy the English translations but I can help you find the translation online if that's what you need, just message me again)

The short version is that Arahabaki being an actual god, a separate entity from Chuuya that has a personality/a voice/desires, is a common fanon trope, but not a canon fact. The truth is more complex and much more fun, lore-wise, in my opinion

And now the long version, because I'm passionate about this and this is my excuse to deep dive into it (spoilers for Fifteen)

In Fifteen, Chuuya says this:

Chuuya himself presents "Arahabaki" as nothing more than pure power. No thoughts, no personality, but powerful for sure.

That phrasing in Fifteen created a lot of confusion I think, talking about gods as real but also not:

But I think it's more of a symbolic reference, talking about immense power that seem out of this world. Because in practice, as Chuuya said before, "Arahabaki" is simply raw power, not an entity. You can't pray to it, it can't understand you, it can't perform miracles (which is why he knew the Old Boss couldn't have been brought back by Arahabaki and it was all nonsense from the start)

I'm also putting part of the blame on the anime, where they decided (while not being exactly wrong either, out of context it's weird) to illustrate Chuuya "floating in a bluish-black darkness, surrounded by a transparent seal" and being pulled out by a hand:

like this:

When, if you actually reread that part in the novel with knowledge about Storm Bringer, it's actually this moment that was being referred to:

Which brings us to Storm Bringer! (heavy spoilers I'm serious)

"Project Arahabaki" was the Japanese government's attempt to create an ability weapon from an individual. They wanted to craft a singularity that could be used multiple times, thus granting them access to power that should not be accessible normally. They based their research on what France had discovered through Verlaine. The objective is to create a massive energy output through a self-contradicting ability, for which you need a vessel:

Chuuya is the device. "Arahabaki" is the massive energy. That massive energy can control gravity to the point of being able to create localized black holes! N implied that part of the lab's work for the Arahabaki Project was to modify Chuuya's body to be able to withstand the constant gravity effects on it so he doesn't just die. Chuuya's normal use of his ability doesn't seem to have any drastic effects on him, and his physical resilience (to getting hit, stabbed, poisoned, shot, electrocuted, to going through a black hole) does seem to imply they did succeed at least in part.

And this bit here explains why "Arahabaki" was the chosen name for the project; unexplained phenomena across History that can be linked to an ability going haywire, but were attributed to god-like interventions at the time. So you're a funny little mad scientist, you read research papers from another mad scientist that named their own creation after a mythological monster, and you decide to do the same with your own local folklore.

But!

There's still something to be said about how "Arahabaki" is a singularity, and therefore, has its own set of rules. Chuuya does loose control, Chuuya does regress to a sort of destructive instinct while under Corruption. But "Arahabaki" is still no more than an ability singularity. Here's what is said about Guivre and Arahabaki:

They are both singularity life-forms. They exist because they are singularities; outside of it, they are nothing. The inner workings of abilities are still mysterious, but most of them have a link to their wielder's desires. For example, Atsushi's Tiger is there to protect him, a mirror to his will to live no matter what. Verlaine's Guivre is similar:

Guivre was a beast born out of Verlaine's loneliness and resulting hatred. He felt deeply alone in not feeling/being human, and through Pan's (his "creator") special "programming" of Verlaine's ability, N was able to trigger the true form of his singularity with that flare gun and metal powder, which took the form of Guivre. It's what the hat was supposed to prevent, but Verlaine had already lost it by then.

Chuuya's Arahabaki is probably similar. Its first apparition was when Rimbaud tried to absorb him and use his ability for himself, and any subsequent use is linked to grief and survival. Basically, if they're their own entities, they are still born in a specific context and deeply linked to the original ability user's character. And Arahabaki? Only exists if Chuuya uses his activation phrase to get rid of the limitations put into place to prevent him from exploding:

More about about Corruption: SB is kind enough to give us an explanation on how the nullification process works, right here:

Chuuya's self-contradicting ability makes him able to control gravity through the sheer amount of energy it creates by permanently interacting with itself. It is kept under control through the use of an activation phrase, O grantors of dark disgrace, do not wake me again, which, after being either said or thought by Chuuya, will open his "Gate" (which I'm interpreting as a blocker put in place by the lab so the singularity doesn't just kill him, like those poor people they mentioned existed through History), and by opening it, "free Arahabaki's true power" (aka Corruption). When Dazai uses his ability on him, the base self-contradicting ability is nullified, which cancels out the singularity taking place, which stops Corruption and allows that "Gate" to close again. The red markings are there because they're cool and fun.

To conclude, I'll let Dazai do the honors:

bonus: what does that mean for Chuuya's ability?

bons 2: Perceived timeline of Chuuya's past and what happened to to create confusion around his humanity

[xaphrin]

At Midnight, My Heart Drops

Fuck.

Raven stared into Damian's calm face, desperately trying to think of something to say - an excuse, a flippant comment - anything. But, no. She stood there, frozen on the spot watching the muscle in his jaw twitch as he waited for an answer for the most unnerving question he could have asked her. 

“I'm… sorry?” She feigned ignorance, trying to buy enough time to get her brain to process his request again. Her heart was pounding in her throat and he had to have heard it. “Can you ask me that one more time?”

“Be my date for the Wayne New Year's Eve party.” 

When he repeated it, it sounded less of a request and more of a demand. As though the inconvenience of repeating himself should have been repaid with a ‘yes’ answer regardless of what the question was. Cocky bastard. Raven fought the automatic urge to open a portal to anywhere and shove him in it. Taking a deep breath, she calmed her pounding heart and stared at him, keeping her face expressionless. Just because she was adept at controlling her emotions, it didn’t mean she didn’t have any.  

“What the fuck for? You’re the son of Bruce Wayne. You wake up and trip over people trying to get dates with you. You have a wellspring of viable candidates to choose from for a New Year’s Eve party.” She fought to keep her panic under control, and continued to stare at him, hoping she looked calmer than she felt. “Please don't ask the girl who doesn't know the difference between an oyster fork and an olive fork.”

“Or a dessert fork.” He smirked as he reminded her of the celebratory dinner party the Mayor had in their honor last year, and the horror of some societal elites as Raven ate her salad with a dessert fork. The scandal.

Raven's face fell and she gave him a deadpan stare, but Damian was unaffected. Finally, he sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “The truth is that I need someone I trust to run interference.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and lifted an eyebrow, motioning for him to elaborate. 

“There are… girls. Women.” He shrugged. “Some men.”

“Yes. That's usually who make up populations of people. Your point?”

“I'm a rich, educated, eligible bachelor.” He groaned and stared up at the ceiling, as if he was ashamed to be direct. “Of marrying age.”

“You forgot good looking.”

Why in the fuck had she admitted that out loud? Raven bit the inside of her cheek to keep from looking embarrassed, but Damian stared at her, and she swore she saw his face flush at least a little. She shrugged, trying to be as objective as possible. “I'm not blind, Damian.” She managed to keep herself from blurting out the rest of that statement: you're drop dead gorgeous and totally stacked - of course people are going to try and at least bang you.

“So what… you want me to lurk in the shadows and scare off anyone you don't approve of? Is there someone specific you're trying to… date? Court?” She rubbed her thumb along her jaw, thinking. “What do rich people from the Hamptons call it? Woo?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. “Is there a reason you're being so blithe about this?”

“You just asked me to be your pretend girlfriend so that you can avoid talking to people who might want to date you.” She shoved at her hair and crossed her arms over her chest, needing to do something with her hands. “That’s a setup for a bad romance movie.”

He sighed again, obviously frustrated that Raven wasn’t taking his request seriously. Raven couldn’t take his request seriously. The minute she stopped trying to treat his request like a joke, her heart would break into a hundred pieces. She had been harboring feelings for Damian for years, practically since they had been pulled onto the Titans team together. She could keep her feelings under control as long as she kept a heavy barrier of friendship and distance between them. 

But knowingly putting herself into a situation where she had to be a girlfriend - even a pretend one - would force all of those feelings front and center. It would leave an opening for her to confess those feelings, and she would admit to him (and probably all of his family too) that she loved him. If Raven was being honest with herself, she didn’t want to be hurt when Damian ultimately rejected her confession.

She could see the whole scene play out over and over in her mind, and the risk felt far too great. 

“You’re the only one I want to be my date for the party.”

Raven felt like the floor underneath her had just disappeared. Her heart fell into her stomach before leaping back into her chest to pound frantically against her ribs. Damian’s face was unreadable, and he stared at her, his eyes searching her face for something he could read. 

Raven panicked again, trying to find something she could say that would keep her in control. “Is it because you trust me to not fall in love with you?” Because too late, she added within her own thoughts. 

“Because you’re my friend and I trust you. Full stop.” 

The excitement of his words mingled with the pain of the word friend, leaving Raven to feel both elated and disappointed at the same time. But, that was what she wanted, wasn’t it? She would rather be safe behind her barrier of friendship, then put herself at risk of a broken heart. But still… if he only considered her a friend, then there was nothing she needed to worry about. She could do this for him, as a friend.  

Rubbing her forehead, she turned and stepped back from him, knowing that her next words were going to be her downfall. 

“Just tell me when I have to meet you, and what the hell I should wear.”

[eldritch-spouse]

Hi Pinnie! Chopping block anon here again! Could we fill this prompt with Santi or Ludwig? I'm banging my head on the nearest wall, I can't choose. Honestly, I know I'll love whatever you end up writing. 😍

How would any of the TCE gang react to finding the object of their obsession (that they'd been actively trying to keep away from the Clergy) on Morrel's chopping block? :o

[Ludwig isn't really a current part of TCE, so I'm going with good old Santi. Also, I feel that this isn't where you wanted it to go, but I got a few thoughts along the way. Fem reader.]

TW: Nonconsensual hypnotism; Implied nonconsensual sharing.

He knew something was up when you didn't so much as answer a morning text.

You need time alone. All humans do. He thought he would too when he would occasionally -Very rarely- Humor the thought of a relationship. But something didn't sit right with Santi when hours passed and you gave him nothing, absolute radio silence- When you're usually so talkative, even in your moodiest days, you'll at least bother to call him a pervert.

The incubus supposes he ought to keep himself busy for a bit before persisting again. He knows he's... A little too eager for contact, and that can naturally irk you. Maybe one day of relative silence might make you trust him more.

The demon has been making the rounds through most of The Clergy's floor for the entire night, restless in his pursuit of clientele, in a desperate effort to get his mind off you. Really, Santi has made more than enough money to honestly call it a day- The crowds are well-entertained and buzzing with a healthy amount of titillation, all is well.

Except he's not quite satisfied. He's in a foul mood honestly. Sometimes it would show on his sculped features as he pleasured those keening beneath him, nothing he couldn't wave aside or fluster out of their minds if they did notice.

He can't quite tell what brings him to the restaurant. Sure, he loves the dirty little thrill of sliding his hand down the table cloth and making someone loll their tongue out with pleasure while they pretend to eat, but most people here don't really have their minds on sex. They're harder catches, essentially.

And yet, when Santi passes by the main kitchen doors, a sound makes him halt. Not just any sound, a squeal. That by itself is no motive to stall, the incubus is well aware Morell loves his job, loves butchering, that he often takes the time to play with his food

-Like the dirty little fuck he is, sticking his fingers everywhere and bending helpless humans onto his cock, like toys, like fuckmeat. A depraved lunatic, pleasant company in Santi's opinion-

But, for some reason, the incubus is sure he recognizes that squeal from somewhere. It could be mere witless paranoia, but the echo of it in his mind doesn't let his feet unroot from their spot, so he figures he might as well check for himself. A dark hand knocks playfully on the heavy kitchen doors, receiving no immediate reply.

" Morell? " He tries.

There's some shuffling, then an eventual. " ... 'M busy! "

Yeah, "busy". Maybe balls deep in one of them already.

" Oh I'll be quick, dear- Just one peek, yes? "

More shifting and another stressed noise he could swear sounds a little too familiar, rubs him the wrong way, before something that sounds a lot like "piss off" gets mumbled back to him.

Typical.

That's why Santi only sighs before parting said doors and quietly weaseling inside.

The bobbles racing around only wave at him before buzzing around in their tasks, giving the demon a decent berth and easily circumventing him. As usual, they're completely unbothered by what their boss is up to.

The salacious, mischievous expression the incubus used in preparation to excuse himself to the chef dies as soon as his eyes scroll up to the chopping table.

Now is the time to pat himself in the back for listening to his gut, because none other than you, his darling minx, lie sprawled on that metal rectangle, like no more than a slab of meat. Your top has been torn off, pieces of it messily fashioned into a blindfold and gag. Morell stands with one hand on your thigh and the other tight around the handle of his cleaver.

Something inside him boils hotter than the rifts of Wrath. By the way you struggle in your binds, it's more than clear you're not enjoying a second of it, and Santi almost wants to believe Morell didn't intentionally seek you out. He's never been that nefarious, that putrid. To provoke the demon he works with.

He couldn't. Not when Santi never even introduced you to his coworkers. They only know your first name and vague descriptions of your face, your hair... That's not enough for someone he works with to miraculously hunt you down.

" Tha Hell did ah say?! Ya- "

" Where did you get that one? "

Santi almost doesn't recognize his own tone, and apparently, it gives the shroom monster pause too. Morell notices something's amiss, he's clever enough to notice the tense state the concubus is in, eyes glowing brighter at each passing second, deceptively still, one wrong answer away from perhaps impulsively starting a fight.

Morell looks at the human woman on his table, then back to Santi. " ... Tha fuck are ya on 'bout? "

" Where. Did you get that one? "

The chef's hand moves to your bare stomach, keeping you from squirming off the cold surface easily while he shifts to face his coworker better.

" Tha usual, Santi. I ain't been havin' time ta hunt 'em on mah own. " He shrugs. " Suppliers. "

The demon continues to glare at the blue monster for a long pause, finding no hint of a lie on those odd eyes. Only confusion and the remnants of exhilaration from what he was previously up to. This calms Santi a great deal. It was just a freak accident, yes? He let his favorite fox run a little too close to home, and she got snatched up... The incubus doesn't even want to think about what would happen if he hadn't come here in this exact nick of time.

Was it a silent nudge from Krulu? No. No, of course not, that's laughable- The lord of this pit spares no empathy for frivolities like their workers' love lives. Still, some unknowable force capable of penetrating the fog of this Clergy steered him well tonight.

Had this been no one of interest, the incubus would have still mauled the perpetrator to a pulp, if only just to prove a point. Or to thrill himself a little. But this is different. Very different. He can make the most out of it if he plays his cards right.

Santi shakes his head, then advances on the pair, unbothered by Morell's defensive puffing.

" You ought to start checking your stock more thoroughly. And not just their orifices. " He teases.

There's an eye roll. " Oh, tha's real fuckin' rich comin' from ya. "

He knows.

Nevertheless, Santi only smiles a little before hooking his claws into the waistband of your pants, grabbing your panties as well, before quickly pulling the fabric down. The newly revealed skin bares a jet black mark that is, by now, unmistakable to anyone who works with Santi. A concubus mark. His mark, elegantly claiming your most intimate parts for himself.

His claws tap idly on the meat of your hips as he watches the chef's face freeze, eyes widening.

" This one belongs to me. "

Silence. You wriggle and sob behind the gag.

" Shit. "

" Yeah. "

" I thought ah... Checked that one. "

The cook looks torn. There's some manner of guilt and cringing written on that darkened complexion, he clearly doesn't intend to continue this, but there's also some selfish sort of turmoil in his body language. As if he's upset he started the process and is now going to have a "pig" taken from his hands.

Santi's smile turns into a disgusting grin when a lightbulb casts complete depravity into his mind's eye. Your mark starts glowing, heating, and your struggling is rapidly paused. Morell squints.

" Hm, but what were you up to just now? "

The shroom hesitates, making some manner of motion with his dominant hand, which clutches his favored piece of sharp equipment.

Santi clicks this tongue. " Nice try. Before that. "

You start wriggling beneath the bigger monster's palm. It's no longer the jerking of a panicked figure trying desperately to escape, but a restless sort of agony. Morell's fuse lights up under the perceived scrutiny.

" Where tha fuck are ya goin' with this?! "

Santi arches a brow.

A quick glance flickers over your form. Today has been exceedingly traumatizing for you, the demon doesn't need to be in your shoes to know that. No one makes it out of Morell's kitchen, and if they do, they'll never be the same. You don't belong in The Clergy, not yet at least, and Santi knows that even with your currently arousal-fried brain, you're going to remember the events of today for the rest of your life- Something he can't allow to happen.

Fortunately, he knows someone who can just... Eat this unfortunate day out of your long term memory.

And, since you're not going to recall a lick of it, why not make this interesting?

What you don't know can't hurt you.

The incubus hums a wordless tune, pulling your remaining clothes down your legs, an easy task, your overheated body yearns to bare itself, he barely has to do anything. Once you're bare, Santi moves to the other side of the table, where your head rests, and starts undoing your blindfold.

Morell grumbles something incomprehensible and he snorts.

" Relax. Why would I stop you from pleasuring my minx? " Santi all but purrs.

" Yer real fuckin' weird. " Morell offers after an incredulous pause. " This ain't rubbin' ya tha wrong way? "

" Oh this is rubbing me all sorts of ways, Mori. "

" Gross- "

" You're hard. " The chef's protests are swiftly silenced. " I can't blame you. She's irresistible, isn't she? "

Morell crosses spotted arms over his chest and casts his eyes away. " She's uh... She's real purtty. "

That's one way to put it.

Santi chuckles when the torn cloth comes off, revealing a flustered, disoriented face. Your eyes glaze deliciously, pupils dilated in want as they surf between him and the blue monster, the mark's hunger going full throttle on your poor organism. The magic of a high-ranker is one Hell of a drug, isn't it? You make a desperate, muffled noise.

" There there, I'm here. You'll be taken care of soon. " He lulls, voice dipping in pitch just to make you shiver. Your head is lovingly raised so you can properly view the other. " That there is my friend. You wouldn't mind playing with him a bit, would you, love? "

Predictably, you nod enthusiastically, going as far as to part your legs in your stupor. Slick gathers excessively on your already stimulated pussy.

" Go on, Morell. "

Said monster gulps behind his thick scarf, drool clinging to his teeth at the lurid encouragement of his fiendish coworker, his fingers already itching to reach out and do as he pleases.

" Show us what you do with your piggies. "

[therowdymagpie]

M6 vs. Escape Room

A/N: Don't ask me where this came from, I was just in the mood to write sth silly and fun XD.

Asra:

They find some way to sneak Faust in so she can take part in the fun(and maybe slither behind certain objects for clues)

Is the type of person who will find creative ways to escape without them having anything to do with how you're actually supposed to solve things

Has very good intuition when it comes to where or what the next clue could be but he doesn't care much for the time limit

Finds the expression on your face every time you manage to figure out a clue on your own absolutely adorable, so much so that they're letting you make most of the progress wanting to see it again

Could make any themed room romantic somehow and just finds excuses to cling to you any chance he gets

*Holds your hand in the dark*

*Sidles up to you and cuddles during a particularly rough puzzle*

*Whispers a hint in your ear*

Even in scary escape rooms, their chill attitude is enough to make you feel infinetely more relaxed

Very likely to steal some decor from the room to keep as a souvenir or because they found it interesting

Julian:

Surprisingly not as good at this as you'd expect

Now, has he had close calls and predicaments he's managed to find unique and out-of-the-box ways of escaping from? Yes, half his stories are like that

Has he been in a situation where he is trapped in a room and has to follow a hyperspecific line of instructions to escape? No, not really

Julian is more the kind of person that can get himself out of situations easier by talking his way out of things and being generally charming or unbelievable things just transpire around him and he takes advantage of them to somehow escape

Also the problem he faces in these types of places is: 1.He has too many ideas and 2.He thinks every item is suspicious

It also doesn't help him focus that you two are in close quarters for an extended period of time...

He is very capable with ciphers and word puzzles though

Pulls the "leave me behind" move at least once during changing rooms where an actor is chasing you for the dramatic effect: "Go without me my love! I will stall them as you escape!",

"...Julian I literally just unlocked the door, come in already."

Definetely gets jumpscared by the actors every.single.time but also applauds them for the great performance afterwards

Nadia:

Goes from extremely curious to immediately intrigued as soon as the door closes

This really appeals to Nadia's tinkering and problem solving skills and you can tell

There's a good chance that she's managed to solve 75% of the room in the first 15 minutes you are there but will she actually tell you? Of course not

She is just going to hold back a little bit so that the two of you can solve the riddles together and have fun

Unless any of her sisters are there with you....then it's personal and she finishes the room in 30 minutes tops

If there's a case that you two get stuck on trying to solve something, there's no way she'll ask for, much less actually look at the clues the people on the outside give you

The scary ones leave her with a startled "oh!" at best

(I mean she was engaged to Lucio, her married life was basically an escape room at one point)

Very much appreciates the follow up explainations of how everything in the rooms works and asks so many questions in awe, because she feels very inspired by some of the ideas and would like to implement them to her own projects

Muriel:

This man cannot understand the concept of an escape room

When you first come up and suggest it as a date idea he is genuinely baffled by it as you explain

So you're supposed to be stuck?

in a quite small room/s?

and try to figure your way out using stuff from around said room under a time limit?

"….......Why would you want to do that?"

To him this is basically what an anxiety attack looks like

He reluctantly agrees to try it after you say that it could be fun and that there won't be any other people but you two

Just please, DON'T get him into one of those horror themed ones, it won't end well for anyone involved

His height definetely gives you perspective on some clues though and he can be very perceptive when you get stuck on progressing through puzzles

Overall he doesn't do a lot because these types of spaces are pretty crampted

Isn't willing to do this again which is probably fair

Portia:

Say it with me now: PARTNERS.IN.CRIME.

Portia seems like the kind of person who'd really like escape rooms, the thrill of them is just very reminicent of exploring the abandoned wings and secret rooms in the Palace

So when you'd suggest one to her she'd be SO down for it

Loves any chance to spend time together but the feel of being in one of her mystery novels with you makes her especially giddy with excitement

Takes this as an opportunity to see how well you two work together and when you figure out stuff together is the best part for her

Cheek kisses or hugs every time you manage to progress further

She'd be very invested in the story attached to the room you chose

Honestly the employees are able to see how intrigued she is and how much fun she's having that they'll let you two go through everything regardless of time

She might have a slight weakness with not sassing the actors or taking them seriously enough but it's always in good fun and she always apologises

She'll certainly want to do this again

Lucio:

Let's be honest here, he's not the best person for this

The only reason he was so willing to go is because you mentioned it's timed, he's competitive and convinced you two can do it faster than anyone else

....Well. This is more complicated than he thought

He let's you handle the mental aspect of the game while he tackles the physical challenges

He opens doors for you right after you've unlocked them and carries the heavy stuff basically

Is the one guy from that video that gets jumpscared and instead of grabbing you and running away he grabs the actor

Most likely to break something thinking it leads to a secret room/ the exit

Don't worry he can pay for it later

You know this trick certain escape room places pull where they push back the clock a bit so you get to finish it time?

Yeah, they definetely do that to you and he is SO proud holding up the sign that says you escaped with exactly one minute left

[armpirate]

Anti-romantic || JJk | Ch. 27

Pairings: Boxer!Jungkook x fem!reader || Enemies to lovers, neighbors

Genre: smut, angst, fluff, curse, illegal boxing, violence

Warnings: fuckboy!Jungkook x reader, smut, dirty talk, curse, mention of tarot and fate

Summary: Jungkook had always been carefree when it came to love. He always believed he was worth sharing himself with everyone, and thought it was selfish of him to ever think of keeping himself exclusive to just one person.

And maybe that was exactly what got him into the big problem he was in.

A curse that kept him away from love didn't seem an issue for him. The fact that his ex-girlfriend thought he'd be affected by the idea of the girls he slept with running away from him after sex was ridiculous. She actually did him a favor, and took a burden away from him.

At least that was what he thought at first.

He had never found himself thinking of the possibility of repeating with neither of his hook ups, because they disappeared before he was able to even think about it. But when he makes the mistake of sleeping with the sexy neighbor that lives in front of him, he finds himself hoping to get the chance for a second round every time their paths cross.

Y/n hated him the second he set foot inside the building by the way he started making her life a miserable mess for no reason. Sleeping with him was a big mistake she wasn't thinking of repeating. At least not until he came up with the excuse that she rejected him for a curse. Not only she thought he was annoying, but she was also convinced he was crazy. 

There was no way she could take him seriously.

Aprox. time of reading: 14 minutes

Previous || Next

MASTERLIST

The incense smell only had him shaking his legs even faster, while he tried to avoid lying his eyes on any of the mystical objects that were spread all over the room.

Sageous was written on one of the plates hanging next to the bohemian rags hanging next to the window, which was covered with a dark lilac curtain. Was that her name? After so many months visiting her, it was the first time he was aware of the name she used to advertise herself to her public.

—Let me guess —the old lady started, taking the seat in front of him while dragging the cards over the small rounded table—: another round to confirm you're free like a bird in a cage?

—Actually... —he opposed, shyly looking down— My questions are a bit different this time. There's this girl... and I think I messed things up with her.

For the first time since he started those weekly visits, Jungkook was asking about someone else that wasn't himself, looking for an answer that gave out he was indeed leaving that curse behind because of Y/n.

—Shuffle —the lady signaled him to do, changing her tired expression from a serious one just by hearing the way that session started—. Do not cross legs, do not cross arms, and focus your energy on what worries you.

His fingers moved skillfully over the table, picking up every card spread to pile them up on his right hand while he mixed them with his other hand.

—What I have with her is illogical. She isn't even my type —he started—. She's a freak who always needs to get things done her way. She's impulsive and irrational, and determined and confident. She knows what she wants, and she gets so excited when she succeeds —he realized he started smiling a bit too wide when the cold breeze hit his lower teeth, going back to serious—. We are incompatible. I'm sure.

—What are you here for, then? —Sageous tried to get him to explain.

With a playful grin, she motioned him to give her back the cards. Her thin fingers started shuffling those same cards at the same time her eyes closed, shuffling skillfully while she took in all the energy he allowed to share.

—I sense she has a really powerful aura, doesn't she? That woman ain't no joke —she chuckled—. The type of person that doesn't bow down to anyone, especially you —one of her eyes opened, giving Jungkook a funny look—. That's what got you so hooked, huh? She doesn't come to you when you want to, and she doesn't stay when you're begging her. Must be odd for you.

—I never begged her anything —he scoffed, looking away.

—And maybe that's the reason why you're here asking about her and your non-existent relationship —she mocked him, closing her eye back again—. The fool —she dramatically announced when she flipped over the first card.

—I'm starting to think you're trying to tell me something...

—Not me, your guides —she corrected him—. Either way, The Fool represents new beginnings and taking a leap of faith. Very fitting for your situation, no?

Jungkook held back from making the smallest move, thinking it was better to react once everything was set and done.

—The Lovers —she hummed, flipping another card.

As if he wasn't an expert on all the meanings behind those cards, Jungkook smirked, fooling himself with relief at the thought of that meaning being something positive.

—Hold your horses, lover boy —she teased him, bursting every sight of hope—. In your context, it means your relationship with this girl will become a turning point in your life. Hmm... tough decisions to be made, and difficult risks to be taken. It'll be scary, but you'll grow a lot if you follow your intuition. Your real one, that one deep inside your brain being held hostage by that little evil one —she let out two other cards to clarify that first one—. With the magician and the knight of pentacles, something you're looking forward to will be coming your way.

His smile immediately infected her, making her smile shortly while shaking her head, going for another card that could clear up all those assumptions that had Jungkook almost jumping on his seat.

Until the tower showed up.

That hum she let out when the fourth card fell over the deck had Jungkook looking over at the table with panic.

—What?

—I see there will be a good connection with this girl. I'm feeling there are more connections to her other than just that attraction.

—Like what? Is it about the curse?

—It could be —she frowned—. I don't know. I see something dark and upsetting, so it could be —Sageous went back to her explanation—. You like her, and she likes you, but there are decisions to be made for it to work out. You'll need to sacrifice some things and proof you aren't playing when it comes to her. Oh, boy, she really knows what she wants —she scoffed—. You said you argued, right?

—I just said that I messed things up.

—Uh-hum. I see there will be a bridge that will bring you closer again. But there's an event, there's something here —she pointed at the Tower card—. It's destructive. I don't know how serious it'll be, but it'll make the two of you rethink a lot of things.

—Can you pull another card?

Although he regretted that question when the Death card covered the ones that had him smiling like a fool.

—Something will need to end for something new to begin —she shrugged—. It could mean you'll have to cut some habits, or change some manners.

—Or it could mean things with Y/n will end before they even start... Could this also be related to the curse?

—It could be. Your energy must be chaotic for the cards to be mixing things about the curse and your relationship with this girl though.

It was indeed chaotic.

—Fate isn't set in stone —she said, dropping her cards back on the table—. This is your path with the decisions you've made until now, but any small change from now till the moment it happens can change a lot of things —her words tried to sound optimistic—. Not because you've been avoiding love until now, it means you will keep doing it. Take this as a reality check, and start working on yourself so next time you come you receive nothing but good news.

—So should I try to reach out to her? Yeah?

—An apology is always a good start —she shrugged.

Jungkook stood, with a breaded smile that hid how upset he actually felt over those news, heading to the door with mixed feelings.

—And don't forget to pay on your way out! —she warned him as he crossed the corridor—Mystical advice doesn't come free, you know!

While giggling, he dropped the money of the session inside the payment jar next to her door, exiting her house with a subtle bow and a dimpled smile.

It was obvious he needed to do something to get Y/n back -it wasn't like she was ever with him, but it was his way of explaining a difficult situation he didn't quite understand himself. He needed something that would excite her so much that she'd be willing to listen to him -not apologize, because he knew Y/n was way too hard to reach to earn her with just a random thing.

He needed something, but what?

And while he played with the chain on his neck, he saw it crystal clear. The silver necklace fell over his black t-shirt while he stopped on his tracks, lips parting in surprise at how fast his brain worked whenever it came to Y/n.

He was sure he wouldn't have found a solution to his problems that quickly if they hadn't been encouraged by just the image of her.

His solution was simple: a necklace that could make her feel closer to her brother, and which she was upset to see go back again as he dragged her out of the warehouse to protect her. He just needed to make some calls, pay a few visits that morning, and probably that chain would be inside an envelope on its way to its real owner.

And he knew exactly how to get it.

He didn't bother to go to the gym, he didn't bother to go back to his place, because he knew where to find the person he needed.

—Jungkook —Hashim sighed, answering his call straight away—. Hey, I know I owe you money, but...

Jungkook didn't hear any of his excuses. He had been done trying to get any cent from him after he kept coming up with one excuse after the other, indifferent towards every warning he was told. He tried to walk on his shoes, forgiving every payment in his gym until he couldn't take it any more -mainly because the rest of the trainees started getting some hints about it.

—Forget the money —he cut him off—. I need something better from you.

He was convinced he had seen that man before around his gym, and one of the few last times he was seen randomly talking to Hashim before he started his training, or later when he was about to leave.

It took him less than twenty minutes to show up to the location he was sent, chuckling while he thought there was nothing more desperate than a person that owed big money, while also being threatened with Elijah's name and the two gorillas that always did the dirty work.

The hardware store was empty when he stepped inside after parking the motorbike next to the door, eyeing over the short corridors that reached his eyes from the door.

The same man showed up, cleaning his hands with a rag while looking up at the tall man that had just stepped inside his establishment. His customer service smile dropped as soon as he squinted his eyes, recognizing Jungkook's tattoos.

—The Doberman of Busan —he greeted, dropping the old rag over the counter—. What brings you here?

—I was looking for something —he casually said, picking one of the mallets hanging on the metallic wall—. And I thought that you'd help me.

—More like you're the one who owes me an apology after your girlfriend punched me on the face —he threatened back with a calm tone.

—I bet the police would love to know about the scheme you do with the drugs under this counter.

—Hope you have proof of that.

Jungkook chuckled, holding the mallet to hit it against the wooden counter, denting through the material and causing some superficial fractures. If Hashim was useful for something, it was to get that type of information.

He was planning on breaking his teeth, one by one, until he finally gave up, but he didn't want to waste any energy and well-being on someone like Tyjon.

Two, three, four... and the proofs he was asking for were shown all over the extreme Jungkook was standing against.

—I wouldn't be acting so smartass when I know what you do, too.

—As far as I know, you have no proof of me being anywhere. While I have it as easy as making a quick call to the police and waiting here until I see your ass taken to prison —he tilted his head—. Not to mention... how would you know I'm in those fights if you didn't frequent those places either? —with a grimace, he spoke again— 'Didn't think things through, I see.

—What do you want?

—The necklace she asked you to give her yesterday. That's what I want.

Tyjon mumbled some incomprehensible words while he just handed out the necklace in his pocket, resting his hands on the edge of the counter while he felt his blood boiling with Jungkook's satisfied smirk.

Five dollars flew over the counter a few seconds later, following the mallet.

—I broke the mallet a little, and the model didn't really convince me —he twisted his lips—. Have a good day.

He only needed to send Y/n a text, and convince her to speak to clear things up, and things would be done between them.

Her pen was hysterically hitting the desk, on the spot right next to her keyboard, letting out the anxiety that rushed her brain with the unwanted thoughts that kept going through her head. The words from the previous night kept replaying, ringing in her ears as if she were just hearing them all over again while in the office.

She was angry at Jungkook, but she was even angrier at herself for letting her guard down with someone she knew she couldn't show any sign of weakness to. She was smarter than that, or so she thought. She assured herself she was able to see that man coming from miles away, reading through all his signs to get ahead of his actions before they could even cross his mind.

Yet there she was, thinking about that big mistake that man was, when she kept reiterating she'd focus on work only, while trying to find out more about those fights and their relation to her brother and his death.

After she arrived at the hotel room the previous night, she kept insisting she wouldn't let that little problem affect her. She assured herself it wouldn't be a burden to her. She was even convinced it was the excuse she needed to stick her head in her work and the investigation, yet it seemed like it was something that only worked with words that got lost in the air.

She had bigger problems to worry about, way bigger than a simple love story that she knew would take her nowhere.

Jungkook was everything that was wrong with the male species. He was childish, irresponsible, annoying, impulsive, egocentric, and a player. He was the reddest of the flags, with a huge sign that warned her to stay away.

Hell, she should've seen that outcome coming with the little she had known from him.

A huff left her lips, trying to calm herself down from the pile of negative thoughts that were making her blood boil and her body move nervously on her seat. She clicked her tongue with pain when an electric shock ran through her wrist to the tip of the fingers of her right hand, reminding her of what a bad idea it was to punch someone in the face when she had no protection in her hand.

The previous night was awful: that fight with Jungkook, she hurt her hand, she lost her brother's necklace again...

Her head moved up as if something had lit up with that thought, remembering the situation that had Jungkook getting in between and pulling her away so the problem wouldn't get any bigger.

That conversation...

—Y/n? —Jason answered, confused.

—Hey, sorry to be bothering you.

—Don't be stupid. You never bother me —he chuckled—. What's up?

—Can I ask you a question?

—Sure.

—The other day I was checking on some of Noah's old documents —she started her lie, covering up herself from everything she had been doing the past few months—, and something got my attention —after hearing his best friend's name, Jason prolonged his silence—. Did Noah have heart problems?

—Y/n...

—Did he?

—Yeah —he finally sighed—. His heart kept going weaker after each fight, and he was determined to give up that life after he paid all the bills.

—But?

—But his heart was so weak and fucked up that he needed a heart transplant. So he went back to the fights when he was offered half of what he needed to pay for all those bills, and his girlfriend...

—Wait, girlfriend?

Jason stayed a few seconds in silence again, sighing after he realized how deep he messed up when giving up information he shouldn't have.

—Y/n.

—My brother had a girlfriend no one knew about, he had a heart disease no one knew about, don't come up with that shitty tone now —she stopped him, looking around to lower her voice when she noticed a few eyes on her.

—Noah wanted to introduce her to you when he got better. He barely spent any time with you himself the last months of life because he hated what boxing did to him —he admitted—. He wanted to wait for the surgery to let you all know everything. But he didn't make it out of his last fight.

—And what about her?

—She personally asked me not to tell anyone about her, because she didn't want to make things harder for you and your mother.

—And you seriously didn't think of telling me after all this time? I don't know.

—Y/n, understand, Noah didn't want to make things difficult. And Elia knew it was going to be hard for you to accept all those secrets from Noah, so it was just better for her to go on with life.

—I'm... this is nuts... Are you justifying it?

—I'm saying I understand them, and I understand you —he quickly shut down.

The thick silence floated through their mics, when neither of them knew how to go on with the bit of information that was exposed that day.

—I need to go —Y/n finally spoke.

She didn't get to hear Jason say goodbye, because her finger hung up the call before he could even say a word.

Of course his brother was hiding more than what she thought. She should've known when she and her mother knew about the illegal fights only after they rushed to the hospital because Noah was suffering a cardiac arrest. Only for all of that to be followed with it heading the news. As usual: displaying the victim, over mentioning the cause, but never going too deep into details on who were the real responsibilities of that.

Two of her fingers pinched the bridge of her nose when she heard the notification from her phone, thinking that it was Jason insisting on speaking with her deeper into the situation when they got time.

Jungkook.

Just seeing his name made her roll her eyes, but she still clicked on the notification to read the whole thing and, who knows, maybe distract her from everything she had found out.

Jungkook: I didn't mean what I said yesterday. I know I'm an asshole, and I wouldn't speak to me if I were you. But since you're a better person than me... can we meet up?

Jungkook: Tell me where you are and I'll pick you up.

She let out a tired scoff as she read that message. That was exactly what she was thinking of not doing.

Jungkook: I have something for you. Please, let me know if you want to talk.

She was indeed going somewhere else after work. She needed to free her mind from all the worries and the overload of thoughts she was going through, but it wasn't going to be Jungkook the one helping her with that.

Nope.

The only things that'd help her were four Gintonics, three shots of Tequila, and seeing Donna losing it after she showed up at Alma's bachelorette party after she told them she wouldn't attend.

That was the way she'd cope with all of her problems that night. 

Taglist: @jk97bam @ttanniett

[houdinicorbini]

Hi! Can I request monty x fem!reader where she is a night guard and finds monty (after Gregory defeats him) crawling around and she helps him and fixes him up? Thanks!

Sure! This is actually good timing because I wanted to get myself out there with security breach!

So thanks!

Also, I will say for this that when the animatronics get destroyed by Gregory, whatever mind control thing they are under leaves

Trigger warnings: Monty getting destroyed, mind control, slight cursing

"Hey! Little guy!" Monty yelled as he once more caught sight of the lost child roaming the pizzaplex.

He's been chasing him all night, along with Chica and Roxy, but something about this didn't seem right.

Nothing about what he was doing,, seemed right. But he can't remember much right now. Like his memories had been taken overnight.

There are bits and pieces that Monty does remember, are memories confirming that he'd never go as far as to harm a child, though, it feels as if he has no more control of his body.

That he's merely a puppet. Someone who's having to watch from the outside, as he's forced to hunt down this poor kid.

He wonders if the others feel this way, or if he is alone on this.

But of course, none of that matters right now, only the objective at hand. Catch Gregory.

Multiple times Monty had come close to completing him mission, but Gregory keeps getting away, time after time again.

And suspiciously, Freddy will sometimes be there as well. But he's helping the others track down this kid, he's not helping him, no, that would be insane.

Vanessa has informed all of the animatronics to find and apprehend him, but why does it feel like their is some ulterior motive? Like catching is not just what you need to do.

Even if Monty wanted out of this, it seems as if something else, or someone else, is forcing him to stay in line.

So there's nothing that can be done here, the only goal is the find and kill Gregory, whether they want to, or not.

And because of this constant chasing and nearly dying, it's forced Gregory to stand up and fight back. Chica was the first one to experience that.

And unfortunately, Monty is about to as well.

~~~~~~~~

You've been working as a nightguard here at the pizzaplex for some time now. Maybe a few months already.

The plan was to actually apply for a mechanical job, but due to the company using high tech machinery to fix the animatronics, you decided to take the job they offered.

Which was nightguard.

It did bum you out a little that you couldn't work on the animatronics because this was something you've been striving to achieve since you were a kid.

But you took security guard becuase you'll at least be able to get close and see these fascinating robots.

Montgomery Gator was the one who had caught your interest the most.

You thought his design was absolutely amazing, how they were able to make something as heavy as an animatronic swim which the fact of that alone would make anyone want to discover how he operates.

He's also you're favorite due to the fact that you got this job while you were in an incredibly low point in your life. And seeing him give his all on stage cheered you up.

Made you even stay and watch the concerts he was in when it was your day off.

He was the main reason you kept doing this odd job. All night you swear you've heard talking, like a kid, but when you investigate, there is no one!

It feels like you are going insane.

And for some reason the animatronics were just out and about??

You tried to ask why, but they just seemed rather spaced out or tried to come up with an excuse.

You believe one of them said something about Vanessa letting them out, which is already causing your mind to run fifty miles an hour.

"I just need to find Vanessa and see what's going on."

~~~~~~~~

Monty had just jumped down onto the catwalks right above gator golf.

He could hear the robotic gators down below breaching the water here and there.

What he couldn't hear was Gregory, he saw the kid on the catwalks, but where was he?

And then he heard what sounded like the toy guns going off, hitting the target right above the giant bucket of golf balls.

Now he knew exactly where the brat was.

But why did he think Gregory was a brat? He never thought this way before. Sure there was the occasional kid, but this felt different.

Everything just felt hazy.

And this hazy feeling is starting to wear Monty down, like he's trapped. None of this feels right.

"There you are!" Monty screamed, chasing after Gregory at full speed, the flooring shaking with each hard stomp he made.

These catwalks were never up to date, and that is about to be Monty's downfall, quite literally.

This annoying little game of cat and mouse continued on for the next several minutes.

Probably the most stressful several minutes Gregory has ever had. Not everyday you go toe to toe with an animatronic alligator.

But all of that was about to change as Gregory was so close to filling up the damn bucket. Maybe five more golf balls and he's good to go.

Multiple times Monty has nearly achieved his goal, but he's always a second short and the shaking of the catwalk isn't exactly helping him out here.

He couldn't exactly understand why Gregory wanted up here, but Monty's not exactly in the right now to ask questions right now, not that he could anyways.

'Almost there' Gregory thought to himself, trying desperately to not get caught by this oversized attraction.

He was somehow able to get three balls in before he was chased away from the shooter, but no worries, he's got this!

"Enough of this game of hide and seek!" Monty growled in frustration, looking around eagerly to see if Gregory was anywhere near.

Monty can only deal with this damn child getting away for so long before it gets real annoying. And we have gotten well past that point.

"There you are!" Monty yelled, finally catching sight of Gregory once more, not realizing that the bucket has been successfully filled.

Rushing past the bucket and to the button, Gregory anxiously waited for Monty to get in close enough range.

"No where left to run." Monty said in a menacing tone, getting closer and closer.

Once he was right under the bucket, Gregory slammed his hand on the button, causing the bucket to begin falling on Monty.

Which Monty was able to catch it but he was struggling and was able to stop it for a second.

That absolutely terrified Gregory for a second, until the floors finally gave away and broke underneath the gator.

He watched as Monty hit each and individual beam on his way down until he hit the stage.

Finally, now he can rest a tad bit easier. ~~~~~~~~

You could have sworn that there was a loud crash that had come from inside the building somewhere!

What on earth is going on tonight!

You've heard about odd things happening sometimes, but after working here for months and haven't seen anything weird, you assumed it was all rumors.

But tonight is forcing you to wonder if there is some truth behind those rumors.

Getting a tad bit anxious and frustrated from the odd events of tonight, you decide to go investigate what exactly is going on.

"I new I shouldn't have come in tonight." You say in a tired tone.

"And on my day off too."

Going through the building, you see no signs of Chica or Monty. Which is weird because you saw them actively moving around earlier, even Freddy was no where to be seen.

"Vanessa is gone too, of course." You said with a sigh, getting rather fed up.

You jumped out of your skin when you heard what sounded like metal scraping against the floor.

You quickly grab your flashlight before turning it on in the direction of the godawful scraping sounds.

What you saw both surprised and disturbed you. It was Monty, and he looked so lost and broken.

He had no legs and his exoskeleton on his arms looked like they had been taken off.

"Monty?" You say, worried about how this happened and what did this to him. This is some really bad damage.

"What happened?" You ask, each step of your boots causing them to echo throughout the place as you got closer to him.

The animatronic looked around, wanting to know the same thing. He couldn't remember much, just bits and pieces of what happened.

Though, he didn't want to believe that to be the truth.

"I'm,,, not sure." His voice came out rather gravelly. And it's not like it was a complete lie, he didn't truly know what happened, only parts of the truth.

"Let's get you down to parts and service, we can talk more then." You say while effortlessly picking him up. Monty laid limp as he let it happen, he was very surprised by the raw strength you had.

He would've find it humorous, if it was not under these circumstances.

Monty didn’t want to see you under these conditions, you were always his favorite employee.

You actually treated the animatronics with love and respect, not like they were some inconvenience or abomination.

It was a nice change having you around, knowing he wouldn’t get treated badly for just being different.

“There should be some spare parts to work with down in parts and services.” You said, cutting the silence.

Monty stayed quiet, still trying to piece together what happened and why he felt like he wasn’t in control.

Maybe a deadly virus had hacked into his programming. Yeah, that has to be it.

After a few minutes, you had gotten down to parts and services through Monty’s door.

After sitting him down in the chair, you went to work, preferring to due this by hand. That machine is just a horrible shortcut, and who knows when it might malfunction.

“I’ve read through all of the Glamrocks manuals, including the daycare attendants!” You said proudly.

Monty slowly looked up at you, puzzled by how you got your hands on it.

Reading his confusion, you answered.

“I stole them.”

And then continued to work on him like nothing happened.

He couldn’t help but let out a loud laugh at the fact that you had the guts to do something like that.

“I made sure to put them back exactly where I found them.” You added.

“I think it’s good that you did take them.” Monty admitted, kind of happy that it’s you working on him and not the automated machine.

But he couldn’t explain why. Is it because he thinks of you as a friend?

You kept going back and forth from him to the back where all of his parts were being kept. You even made sure to grab his manual, just to be safe.

You don’t want to mess up just because you got overconfident. It would be him who mainly gets punished.

Well, maybe you too, you could lose your job.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you get all fixed up!” You said with a smile, already working on getting his legs fixed up.

“May take a bit.” You said, noticing that you’d have to get a new exo skeleton, may need to replace some of his endo too.

You have a lot of work to do, and not enough time to do it since the doors would be opening in just a few hours.

What felt like a while but was actually maybe 10-15 minutes, Monty decided to speak up to break this silence.

Though it’s not like he minded it, your presence was just enough. But he couldn’t understand why.

“You’re too good at this to be a night guard.” He said, noticing how well you were doing.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” You laughed before continuing your sentence.

“I had originally tried to get a job here as a mechanic, but they told me I wasn’t needed in that department. I took what I could get, so when they offered me the night guard job, I snatched it.”

“I think they should reconsider, I’d still be crawling if it weren’t for you.” Monty said with what sounded like sincerity.

“Maybe I’ll try to request it again if the opportunity ever comes up.”

~~~~~~~~

You were able to get what you could done before the doors open. What was left would have to be fixed by whoever operates the machine.

After that night, you and Monty had grown so much closer.

You found yourself at his concerts when you were off or just available.

And Monty found himself leaving his room at night just so he could see you. He’d even walk with you through your shift.

Luckily the odd things from that night had finally stopped so you didn’t have to worry about anything weird like that happening again.

But the weirdest thing to you is that you might be falling for an animatronic alligator.

And he might be falling back.

I finally got it done! I apologize if there’s not enough Monty x reader in it, by the time I realized there was too much down to go back

But I hope you enjoy!

[yandere-fics]

♡ How They Act With A Darling With Separation Anxiety ♡

♡ Theanna will use this to push the marriage along, afterall she can only take you with her everywhere, including under the garden once the two of you get married so if you want to not be separated from her for even a second then you have to marry her right away, it's for the best. If you're that anxious being away from her, it only makes it so much easier for her to manage every aspect of your schedule, if you want to go somewhere she disapproves of then she can just decide not to go with you and you won't go. ♡

♡ This one is a bit of a toss up on how good of a scenario this will be for you, on one hand she's taking you basically everywhere with you on her travels, on the other hand since you're going everywhere with her it means the anxiety around being separated from her will get worse because if you are separated even worse things could happen. She'll do her best to always be at your side, she also gets a small bit of separation anxiety if she even has to leave you while you sleep at the inn for some minor investigations but she keeps you very close to her side whenever she's able to. ♡

♡ Pauline definitely has separation anxiety, I've written a lot of scenarios too where she is separated from you for an extended period of time and can no longer be apart from you for any period of time, she might tease you about it but she's really glad she can use this as an excuse to have you with her literally everywhere. It's a pretty good set up for you I would say and if anyone has objections to you always being there then she'll kill them, after all they gave her dumbass anxiety, the least she can do is punish them. ♡

♡ Raphael sadly has things besides you she must focus on like council and while she would like to bring you with her, the other advisors would complain if you could hear the secrets, Theanna doesn't care but it would be obnoxious hearing the other advisors complain so what does she do? Obviously gets something from Ainsley so you don't hear anything at the meetings and are instead just hearing soothing music thee entire time you sit on her lap, it's a good solution, you're relaxed and happy on her lap and she can satisfy your desire to always have her with you. Yes if this was the modern world she would absolutely ipad kid you. ♡

♡ Abigail will get you set up with your own squad of knights so even if she has to be away you'll still feel her presence and will be less anxious and if that doesn't work she'll try to station one of her family members with you at all times she can't be, of course she would try to be at your side as much as possible however seeing as that isn't always possible you'll have to put up with this for the time being. If that still doesn't help then she will instantly quit her job in the capital, claim her title as duke and have you by her side constantly in her manor back home. ♡

♡ Veronia only really leaves to collect treasure for you so if you would prefer her stay home instead of getting the treasure then that's what she'll do, she'll still hunt for you though so you'll have to watch her skin some animals, you could also just come with her when she goes to steal if you're okay being carried in one of her giant dragon claws while the others and her mouth are filled with gold and trinkets. Pretty sweet set up for the person with separation anxiety though, I would say. ♡

♡ Bibi is honestly not the best for this, sure she can take you everywhere with her but she's liable to wander a bit and then make a little joke about it when you get anxious, would not recommend cause although you're technically always in the same room with her, when she's on stage for executions you can't be on stage with her really so there's so distance. ♡

♡ Would recommend, she's perfect for the person with separation anxiety, you never have to leave her tower and she's constantly putting a lot of focus on you with her experiments, you might get a little bit lonely when she's doing hr immortality research but if you want you can always just sit on her lap and the problem is solved, everything she's doing to for you, not that the other's aren't doing the same thing but for her it's extra clear everything she does is about you. ♡

[yuu-kumeii]

"What do you think you'll get for White day, [Y/N]?"

"Oh, probably a box of chocolates or something heart themed"

You don't actually know and for good reason too. For as long as you've been married, you can never exactly pin down your husband's train of thought when it comes to his love language. Love language being the term that he uses to justify the ungodly amount of things he buys you on any available occasion. It's not wrong call it his love language but you think there would be a word to describe the sheer amount of excuses he has compiled in that mind of his for every gift he brings home for you.

Unfortunately, as much as you want to use the word spoil to describe it. No word can encapsulate the excuses ~and~ the frequency of these presents. They're like objects that suddenly appear in your house like they've been there this whole time, but you know they haven't. Everytime one appears, you ask your husband and get the confirmation that "Yes, they are for you and no I will not take no for answer" before the culprit skips off to work like he didn't just buy you completely cute but unnecessary.

So that's why you can earnestly say you don't actually know. Because White day day? You know, the holiday where it's customary to give something back to the one you love? The one holiday that reciprocates care for the bond you have with another, that White Day? Trying to guess would be like trying to guess how you die, other than the most obvious option, you can't just guess and know whether or not you're right. But now that you think about it, maybe this Valentine's day will be the one where you get a nice, regular sized box of chocolates and maybe even a bouquet of your favourite flowers. Though you hope that this time, he'll let the store clerk help him with arranging it. Whatever you're getting on this Valentine's day might be completely ordinary and similar to the ones your coworkers get from their significant others....

Oh who are you kidding? It's probably going to be extra.

But you have no time to think about that because it's right back to work after all the Valentine's talk around the office. Well at least you try to ignore it but with the obvious flower decor and suprise partners visiting to see their significant other hard at work, it's hard not to let your mind spiral once again to dwell on just what your unpredictable husband might get you. Yet you persist in your work and tune out everything around you for the time being. Hopefully until the end of your shift which may or may not be earlier than usual given the chipper yet intimidatingly efficient work ethic of your coworkers today. If only they were like this every other day.... Oh well, you'll take what you can get.

The workload vanished as fast as it came, everyone was ready to pack up and leave to celebrate what was left of Valentine's day with their partners. Some already left once they've finished their share while the rest opted to stay for a bit of chit chat, more discussion on what their partners would get them and all the more reason you feel lost in your answer to the various questions thrown your way. It's no secret to anyone that your husband would sell his kidney if it meant getting you something special, the thought came up so frequently that it became a running joke at your expense. Not that you really minded since the jokes were more than true to reality itself, you can't count the amount of times your husband burst in your office in a panic just because you accidentally left your lunch at home. He'd pout while telling you to be more careful as if he hasn't left his fair share of packed lunches, though you do think he might be doing it on purpose just to see and brag about you to his friends.

You've really been drifting in your thoughts the whole work day because the second you take in your surroundings, there were only a handful of people left. Gone were the endless conversations and the bright office light, replaced with a sunset glow signalling for your departure. Absentmindedly bidding the rest goodbye, you walk into the elevator and descend. Alone with your thoughts once more but not for long, as the doors open to reveal an empty reception desk. Man, you really have lost track of time. The sun starts to bid its farewell yet it doesn't stop the sound of people getting pulled into pastry shops for a last minute White day gift. Well it might not be last minute but it does look like it considering the greatly reduced amounts of people. You remember just how crowded the shopping mall was, partners and students alike rushing to find something for their significant other. How funny it reminded you of yourself in high school, who would've thought the amount of stress it took just to find the perfect Valentine's Day chocolates for your then school crush. The same crush who ended up spoiling you for White Day, telling you to wait for his graduation because White Day wasn't the only day he wanted to spoil you. Such a cheesy line, how did you ever see him as anything but a dork? You know the answer to that yet remembering it would be too embarrassing.

In the midst of all your reminiscing, you didn't realize you were already home until you almost tripped on the first step. But not to worry, you've done that at least 2 times eversince you both moved in so you're probably almost immune to the pain.

Yeah, keep telling yourself that.

With nothing else to stall with, you finally make your way inside the desolate house. The lights still off and nothing out of place, just how you left it this morning. To be honest, you feel like it looks a bit sad. But that's probably because it's White Day and your husband is probably just on his way home now, the empty house makes you feel like a single woman but not to worry because that will change at one point of the evening. In the meantime, you settled for a shower to get your mind off the White Day everything. Even though your house has nothing even relating to it, the anticipation of your husband showing up to finally answer the question that's been nagging at the back of your head is killing you. Once changed, you make your way to the kitchen to get yourself something to eat while waiting for—

Knock

Knock

Knock

Oh no.

He's here.... and doesn't choose to just walk inside? He wants you to open the door for him and what? See for yourself what he has planned? Does he want you to open the door to surprise you? To tackle you inside? What if he doesn't have a gift and he just gives you a hug? Nothing wrong with that but all that stress for a hug? Well, it might not be but what if—

KNOCK

KNOCK

KNOCK

Oh right he's still there, still waiting for you to open the door. Well, here goes nothing—

"Welcome ho— eh—"

This was not what you were expecting, this was far from it actually. You knew your husband wouldn't dare forget something like White Day but neither did you think his surprise would be this well surprising. Now you don't actually know what this is supposed to be but what you can say is that it's a lot, very overwhelming because if it weren't for the doorframe you're sure it would tower over you no matter what height you are. The thing that surprised you the most was the fluffy teddy bear face that greeted you instead of your husband, the teddy bear had a good enough face but you'd rather kiss the love of your life than the ominous blank face of a stuffed bear that clearly is one size too large for your door. Not only the bear, but there was an ocean of red, pink, and white around it. Bouquets themed after one color each and chocolates of different shapes and flavors with their boxes to match, there were boxes of what you assume are pastries from the shopping district coupled with enough cards to last till your 25th anniversary yet even all that probably doesn't scrape the surface of this White Day gift supreme package or whatever it is. But behind it all was the sheepish expression of your husband who politely asks to be let inside so none of what he's carrying would bury you, as someone who values their life you step aside to let him in. Though you should've seen it coming, nothing could prepare you for the look of absolute disarray once your husband found out he couldn't just waltz in and have the gifts phase through the wall. He looks so confused now that he has to actually think of how he's going to get him and the pile inside the house, you can see it behind his eyes. The desolate mind behind it too tired to find an answer, to the point he felt the need to look at you with a helpless face just begging you to help him.

And being the helpful lover you are, you laugh at his dismay before giving him an amused expression. It isn't until he starts pouting outside in the night breeze unwilling to step inside until the pile gets in first that you roll your eyes playfully before telling him to put the pile down so you both can take it in more manageable bundles. Your husband puts the pile down and watches as you take the top of his haul into your hands to place it on your kitchen counter, still watching as you go back to get more. It's ok though, because you can see the gears turning in his head for a second which finally prompts him to start mirroring your actions. Not long after, the mass is successfully moved inside. Now that you have a proper look at it, most of these things look like they've been kept in good condition. Not that you think the quality would be in shambles but you expected at least a little bit of wear and tear considering the time it took for these to get here, assuming he bought them during the prime time for White Day sales that is.

Oh how wrong you are, but you'll find that out soon. Right when your thoughts start to spiral, your husband walks downstairs clean and ready to explain himself. Well maybe you'll be the one to make him but that's besides the point.

"Ok... Care to explain why this pile of chocolates, flowers and cards is about three times your size?" The calm smoothness of your voice cannot mask the entirety of your awe but it's enough to have your husband stop in his place like a deer caught in headlights, you're not even looking at him at this point. Turned towards the pile of chocolate that definitely should be in the fridge by now and yet not making a move to do so. A moment of silence ensues before your husband answers.

"They said that if I got you all this it'll make you love me more..."

Huh.

"Wait, who are 'they'?"

"The people at the shopping district, I didn't have time to get you a gift in the morning so I went there on the way home and then the people there came up to me saying how they have 'the perfect White Day surprise for your partner' and about how you'd expect something big from me today.... So I bought everything they recommended...."

This guy. This pure, dumb, cute, whatever thing you can call him—! You can't believe he got ganged up like that! How dare those shopkeepers take advantage of your poor defenseless husband on White Day! You can imagine the smirks on those guys, probably proud of themselves about the last minute sale they managed to get. All because your husband was manipulated into thinking you'd love him any less if he came home empty handed, the audacity of some people! You'll give them a piece of your mind when you get the chance—

"Are you mad?"

You must've let it show on your face that you're planning to probably beat up some poor store clerk right after White Day, but it's fine because he will never know the thoughts behind the face. And honestly, you aren't mad. Far from it actually, you feel so loved. Because what kind of person would willingly follow the suggestions of multiple shopkeepers from different shops on gifts for their wife? Well, your husband unsurprisingly but it's in the name of love so everything should be fine. Though you will make sure to tell him that just one White Day package is enough of a surprise already, not to mention the fact that you might have to share the chocolates with friends and family if you don't want them to be wasted.

"No of course not, c'mere... "

With light footsteps you stop right in front of him, gazing into his eyes with a loving look. You smile and take his face into your hands, his breath hitches at the distance between you. Funny how you do this on almost every 'special occasion' and yet he still acts as if it's the first time you've done anything this intimate. Besides that, you continue to close the distance before giving him a kiss. One that prompts him to put his hands on your hips out of reflex to pull you closer, a light hue spread across his face making him look extra cute. But before he could reciprocate, you pull away causing him to chase your lips. A giggle was pulled from you at the sight of your big strong husband all pouty and flush, looking at you with eyes that screamed for you to continue kissing him. Unfortunately for him, it seems you have other plans because not only did you pull away from the kiss, you pulled yourself away from him entirely. Your husband looks so lost, even more so when you turn away from him to pick up a box of chocolates. Opening it and popping one into your mouth before looking back at him innocently.

"What? We have all this chocolate now, can't let it go to waste"

Your smile dropping into an amused grin as you kept eating the chocolates, leaving your husband to once again take a few seconds to process what you just said. Finally gathering his bearings, your husband huffs at you. Pout still present yet his demeanor now turned playful, you know what he's going to do.

"Why you—! Get over here and gimme that kiss!"

This was better than what you could ever expect.

ATSUMU <3333, BOKUTO <333, HINATA, Kita, Osamu, LEV <33, Kageyama, Oikawa (probably so proud of himself), Kuroo (Definitely proud too), Iwaizumi, All hq boys probably did this at some point let's be real

[factorialsotherfandoms]

I am apparently just really really soft on the inherent eroticism of caring for even baby and silly wounds. Also this is established Fit/Pac and ex-fuckbuddies-now-bffs Fit&Philza, with Fit being very supportive of Pac getting himself more sexy men The actual ship forming most of this fic is Pac/Philza.

Err I guess... Pre-Pac/Philza, with pre-Fit/Pac/Philza, established Fit/Pac and ex-Fit/Philza? For the slash ships. For those wanting to know before poking. Set after the eggs are back! (But still no Mike...)

"So, all you need to do is ask him to help you with weapons practice," Fit slowly explains. "He's a bit of a dumbass, but he loves helping people."

Pac nods, "okay, got it."

"And don't worry about Richarlyson - I'm taking all the kids to the gym for a 'yoga session' that might end up a pillow fight."

"I trust you," Pac replies.

"Yeah that still confuses me," Fit shrugs, his face quirking a bit.

Pac hops up onto his toes, leaning forward and kissing Fit's bald head. It earns a laugh and banishes the frown at least.

"I get it, I get it; your place or mine tonight?" Fit squeezes his hands in return - Pac knows he loves him, now, just that Fit sometimes struggles with the more obvious affections. It's enough, though, its more than enough to be trusted to spend the night together.

Night's a long way off, but Pac knows its Fit's way of reassuring him he supports his endeavor and doesn't mind at all.

"I was thinking... The other place? You know?"

Fit nods, "alright. So. We head up the wall, you approach Philza, I'll drop some hints and steal the kids - then it's all on you."

"You make it sound worse than it is," Pac giggles, nerves winning for a moment.

"Go get that ass, Pac, you deserve it."

Fit's already warped away before Pac can process the words, let alone recover from the blush and the stuttering.

---

By the time Pac gets atop the wall, Philza is sat waiting on the trampoline, a slightly confused look on his face. Fit and the children are already gone, and Pac mentally curses his roommate for the lack of support he's been left with.

"Hi Phil," he waves a little awkwardly instead.

"Hey Pac," the confusion is morphed into a smile. "Fit said you have something to ask me?"

"Yes, um," Pac tries desperately to remember what Fit said, how to get close to Philza in a way they're both comfortable with. Ask for help with weapons, was it? "You are good with sword, right?"

"I get by - Etoiles is better," Philza shrugs - and oh, how Pac knows how Philza does more than just get by. "Why? Axes are better here anyway, less risk of hitting an egg."

"Ah, I know, I know," Pac swishes his hand a bit as he thinks. "I just want to be better, you know? So - So I can protect Richarlyson!"

"You really don't want a sword then, king," Philza laughs a bit. "And you're good with an axe! You don't really need help with that."

Pac wants to object, he even starts going to; it's not just about helping Richarlyson, its about learning, about protecting himself and all his loved ones, its about finding an excuse to spend time with a man who never thinks to ask others for company.

"How do you feel about archery?" Philza follows it up with. "Much easier to keep the eggs safe when nothing can get close, you know?"

"Like... a bow?" Pac queries, and thinks. Remembers Philza shooting him from his boat, and that was terrifying - terrifying, horrifying, but also kinda hot. "I do some. I'm not good, though."

"So long as you can see shit, you can learn," Philza shrugs. "We could set some targets up along the potato farm, if you want a go?"

Shooting arrows through the potato farm sounds like a waste of food, but Pac also knows just quite how much the man on the wall has. He's not rich like many of the islanders, but his family are always the last which will go hungry.

Nobody Philza cares about ever goes hungry, love written in baked potatoes and avocado toast.

He nods to the suggestion, and something in Philza's face softens a little.

"I'll meet you up there, king; I've got some shit bows we can use, rather than waste our good ones."

"Alright," Pac nods. "I'll wait here?"

"You got top of the potato farm? I know some of them have enchantments, and I'd rather not set the house on fire."

Pac checks, and responds in the affirmative as he finds the waystone listed there.

"Great. If I just give you these..." Philza pulls out a stack of targets from his backpack, and passes them over. Their fingers brush, and Pac's heart does an awkward flip. "You start getting set up; I'll be there in a just a tick."

"See you soon!" Pac waves as Philza warps away; Philza laughs and waves back, even as he is taken in purple light.

Brushing over his hands, Pac gathers up the targets. Warping to the far end of the wall is easy enough, which only leaves finding where to put the targets. Unsure he places them along the side of the wall, sat on the raised lip for a little height.

He's put ten out when the waystone sounds and Philza appears, a bundle of half-broken bows in his arms.

"Sorry to use you to clear out my trash," he grins. "No idea why there's so many in the sea, but its good to get a feel for different ones anyway."

Pac just nods, finding it easy to agree. He knows Philza has not had a life like his, but still the man scrapes together every resource and uses every scrap - a near broken bow is good for practice, thousands of pounds of andesite mined from the wall can be used to bridge and to fight, rotten food goes back to the land and makes soil to grow life again on a dead, stone wall.

"Can I see your bow? I want to make sure I get you something similar to practice."

"Okay," Pac finds it in his inventory, passing it over.

Philza looks at it, turning the weapon over in his hands.

"Nice," he says. "It's well made, working with the wood. Let me see..."

Pac's bow is handed back, and his insides squirm happily at even the slight compliment. Philza's focus is entirely on the bows, allowing Pac a moment to squee out some feelings.

A couple of the bows are tossed into another of Philza's backpacks, before he makes a neat pile and grabs one for himself.

"Pick one to start with, and we'll see how long before it breaks," he says. "You got arrows?"

"Sim."

"Alright. Show me what you do, first - can you hit that target for me?"

Philza places a warm hand on Pac's shoulder, leaning in close as he points to one of the targets. Pac knows why - there's no good way to describe them, and getting close means more reliable pointing - but it still brings a blush to his ears.

"I'll try."

He shrugs Philza's hands away, and the man steps back. Pac raises the bow, aims, and shoots. It's not an exact bullseye, but it's close enough a monster would have taken serious damage.

"Nice work," Philza praises as easily as water flows. "Just a thought, though - in combat you don't get to stand still and aim. Try doing it moving."

"Moving?"

"Yeah moving," Philza grins a bit, twirling up his bow. "Like in a fight, you know? Gotta still dodge their arrows, else you aren't doing much good."

Philza doesn't wait for more answer, just starts moving. His turns are sharp like dodging imaginary arrows, as he backs and forths. After a few seconds he crouches, shoots a single arrow, then immediately starts running again.

The arrow lands about as close to the centre as Pac's did, and he knows this is really where it makes the difference. Pac's alright on a target and in calm conditions, but as soon as something is moving or a monster scares him? It gets trickier then.

"Your turn," Philza says. "Don't worry about which target, just try hit something - this sort of shit is worst when you get mobbed, anyway."

Pac tries to copy what Philza was doing, but cannot quite make the same patterns it seemed Philza made in his mind. So, instead, he settles just for running backwards. It's hard to take aim on the move, but he tries, drawing his bow as he runs and twisting to fire it behind himself.

He thought his aim was good - the arrow hits the ground a good way before the target.

"Right," Philza's word is stretched out a bit. "Okay, I see - good tactic, shooting while running, that'll save your ass. You would have hamstringed anything close to you with that shot and that's a great method to survive by. Honestly, getting out alive is more my thing so I'd say you're fine, but... Come back over here?"

Not feeling in the slightest bit deserving of the praise, Pac still returns. He wasn't aiming to hamstring a nearby enemy - he was aiming to hit a target! Philza's point sort of makes sense, and he has to agree surviving is more important than winning, but it still feels bad.

"Okay, just let me," Philza squints at Pac, then at another of the targets. "Draw the bow for me? But hold it - don't fire."

"Okay," Pac does as he's told, pulling it up and pointing it down the wall.

"Let me see..." Philza squints at him, circling him - even if he crouches out of the arrow's direct path. "Your posture is fine for short distances and stationary, but with the twist you're not getting all the power in your arms. Can I touch you?"

"Um, okay?" the question completely blanks Pac's mind; before he even realises he agreed warms hands are on him, adjusting his elbow and his arms.

Philza's head his close to him as he helps adjust Pac's posture; he can feel the breath on his neck, and a strong chest at his back. The tugging is insistent but gentle, even as Pac's limbs object somewhat to the postures.

Pac wants nothing more than to curl into the touch, to become one of Philza's people - warm and protected and fed and /loved/.

"Here you go," Philza smiles. "You should be able to get power into it easier with your arms like this, and keeping your balance should be a bit less shit. I'd fix your legs but we're talking about doing it running, so not much point right now."

Pac thinks of Philza's hands between his legs and, yeah, he might need a bit more warning before facing something like that. He tries to concentrate on how everything feels, before letting the bow down and stretching his arms.

"Thank you," he says.

There's laughter in reply, "that's not nearly enough time to have remembered it, but okay if you're done we're done."

"We could have a contest?" Pac suggests, already knowing he'll loose. "Speed shooting - just hit the target, not points?"

"You wanna?" Philza leans down and picks up one of the bows in the pile. "I can take left, you take right, we go until we break all these crap bows?"

There's a decent sized pile - Philza loves to fish - but Pac grins anyway. It's not a fight, not the adrenaline in that way, but he still loves competition. Maybe he and Richars could make some sort of archery range, possibly with moving targets in quirky colours or on a minecart rail! A rail shooter, like a theme park! It would be good practice, and fun, and someone can surely automate fixing the bows and making more arrows.

"Maybe half of the pile?" is what he says, mind already thinking and wondering if he should invite Philza to join in the building, if Richars likes the idea - Fit doesn't really build as much, but Forever speaks the world of Philza's abilities. Given Mike is still sick...

Philza must see Pac's face fall, because he says, "yeah sure, but are you okay?"

"Just thought of something Mike would like," he knows his smile is thin.

"Write it down," Philza suggests. "He'll be back soon enough, and you can just give him the book of funny crap he's missed. Might kill him, though, this island has so much weird shit being said and going on."

"I'll ask Richars," he replies, not entirely thinking about the book idea.

Philza looks confused, but shrugs and picks up a bow, "'right. You want to count us down?"

Pac takes a bow as well, and checks his arrows are easy to reach. As he counts Philza draws his bow back, and Pac copies the motion - it's only the first shot they get to aim, just like an ambush.

"Go!" he calls, and they do.

Five minutes and an inventory full of shattered bows later, Pac is exhausted and Philza is bent double, laughing - he lost, of course Philza was going to win, but Pac did better than he expected to.

His fingers, however, are starting to bleed, and maybe he should not have pushed so far.

He holds them up to the sky, watching the burst blisters now drip blood onto his face.

"Alright, alright," Philza finally gathers himself. "No more shaft jokes, though, I don't think-" the pause and drop in his voice is almost instant when he looks up. "Pac? You good?"

"Ah, sim, sim," Pac pushes himself to sit up again, fingers catching on the floor. "Just did too much, yes?"

"Yeah the stamina takes years to train," Philza comes and sits on the floor beside Pac, fishing about in a backpack as he does. "Ask Fit if your back hurts - he gives amazing massages, if you haven't had already - but for now..."

A potion bottle is held towards him.

"It's okay," Pac smiles. "Just blisters."

"On your fingers, which are fucking shit. Give me your hands."

Pac hesitates, but under the glare he does.

(Philza looks after what is his, does this make Pac his? At least by association?)

Philza takes Pac's right hand first, scowling at the blisters on it with an "aw, mate, you could have just asked to stop early". The potion is poured onto a cloth, and then gently dabbed against each blister - bleeding or not in turn. Then there's a box of children's plaster's in Philza's lap, and he picks out all of the green and blue ones. He alternates finger to finger - green and blue, green and blue - and... and...

And each time he presses a plaster down, he presses a tiny kiss to the padding over each wound.

By the time all ten fingers are tended to, Pac is sure he resembles a strawberry.

"All better," Philza promises, refusing to make eye contact as he tidies the waxed-paper packaging into his inventory. "With the potion, they should be all healed up by morning."

"Ah, um," Pac isn't sure how words work any more, but he wrangles them in the end. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," a grin, and Philza does look up this time.

Just as their eyes catch Fit returns, all four eggs in tow. Pac waves - Fit's eyes narrow on the plasters before relaxing at the sight of all the broken bows - and the kids run over.

"Fit!" Philza calls, instead of a greeting. "Pac here needs a massage, and I've told him of your amazing skills!"

"Oh did you now," Fit wriggles an eyebrow at Philza, before softening as he looks at Pac. "Come down to the gym, then; I'm sure Phil can manage the kids."

There's a mock protest, but it's only play pretend; as they walk away Philza blows them a kiss each, only to squawk in protest at something one of the eggs says.

Pac goes to look; Fit cups his hand behind his back and continues leading him away.

"He's Philza Minecraft," Fit says. "He can manage some kids; let's go have some fun."

"I really do need an actual massage," Pac quirks half a smile. "Not sure I'll be up to much."

"You say as if seeing your face isn't enough for me."

Pac is going to die. These two men are going to kill him, and he's going to die.

It might even be a death Mike only teases him over, not disapproves of, when he finally finds out.

[cleake]

Comfort Game

Some Narrator comfort, I tried my best to write him in character but you never know

Warning: English is not my first language, please excuse any mistakes

Everything was not out of the ordinary at the beginning. You were playing the game with no interruptions and the Narrator had to just sit back and watch you do all the stuff that he didn't ask you to. You were ignoring his narration, you were doing your own thing, you were the player of the game after all. And that irritated him, his art was not being appreciated enough in the way he wanted it to be appreciated. Maybe you were just doing it against him, he didn't know, but now he was too frustrated by your disobedience that he just let you do the stuff you wanted to, who he was to tell you otherwise? Just a voice in a game. He kept silent against his own will. The Narrator watched you walking through the halls of the office, walking through the door he said was incorrect, stopping to look at the objects that were completely irrelevant in the story. Why were you behaving so stupidly? So irresponsibly? He was angered. The Narrator noticed you were walking in circles, with no purpose, no intention, no meaning. Like a blind rat. So stupid. When he saw you walk into the employee lounge AGAIN he had to say something, he had to express his frustration with you.

"Excuse me, but what. Are. You. Doing?" he started with a very monotone and harsh tone with a quiet growl behind his deep voice "'I've been here for..." his voice trembled at his last words as he tried to gather all the hours he has spent here with you "A very long time and you're not listening to me AT. ALL. What are you even doing? I suppose you not listening to me is nothing new but at least you tend to have a REASON to not listen to me. Now you're just wandering around, doing nothing, not interacting with my story, not giving anything from yourself to add something to this story. That is very impolite of you. I'm trying my best to make something here, to make a piece of art to be seen and played through PROPERLY. You're not giving me anything here. Who do you think you are to disobey my narration? You're just a player, you're just playing a game. A game that I HAVE made. You should be grateful, you know. I'm being very generous for you and you're treating me and my art like THAT. I'm very offended by your behavior, in fact, I think I won't be talking to you anymore, since you know my game better than I DO." He's very insulted, his voice sounds a little bit childish from the frustration, and he speaks through his teeth. He then does as he said, stays silent. Not speaking to you, just watching you play with frustration in his heart. How dare you be so ignorant of his efforts to make your experience of the game nice and interesting? Don't you want to know what he prepared for you? What kind of wonderful and powerful stories he has put you in? Based on your behavior you don't care. So he won't care too, he decided.

Your mindless wandering through the game stopped while the Narrator was speaking and the screen stood still with the image of the employee lounge, just existing, noting moving or making any sounds. If someone else was playing the game they would think that it has crushed, but both of you, You and the Narrator, knew that it wasn't. Both of you refused to do anything, you both stayed silent. How boring. You should do something. Why are you standing still? Only you know.

The Narrator wasn't going to break his promise of not talking, he was determined to let you know that he was offended and didn't care about your playthrough anymore. But he was curious about your disobedience. He wanted to ask you about it but he was offended after all, he won't be talking to you.

The silence continued to reign, the game went nowhere, you did nothing.

Suddenly the Narrator heard a sniff. A very weak sniff but it held a lot of sorrow. Oh. Wait, are you...

Another one rang out and the Narrator started to feel less offended and more concerned and slightly scared. Are you crying? What? Why? Since when? What has made you cry? Was it the Narrator's frustration? It isn't real, it shouldn't hurt you! He wasn't trying to make you cry, just make you realize your strange behavior. Now he felt bad and he broke his promise.

"Hey... Are you... Crying?" he sounded much gentler, caring, and concerned, his voice lowered and the growl in it was no longer there. A small silence fell again until the screen moved up and down, as in a nod.

"Oh." he stammered out, clearly ashamed now. He didn't know what to do, how could he do anything to help you while being just a voice? He thought for a while, not knowing what to do but he couldn't just leave you like this.

"Well... Why are you crying? Is it because of me?" He asked with hesitation, a little bit scared by that idea. Another silence filled the moment and the screen moved to the sides, swinging in protest at the Narrator's words. He sighed with relief, that's good to know "Ah, right. I was just asking to make sure to not speak of the truth any longer." he snapped a little bit, trying to get away from his concern about you but he was just pretending, keeping the image of the great and powerful Narrator. Another silence, now he feels sheepishly from his words, he shouldn't have said that. What if he hurt you?

"I-I'm sorry, I regret saying that." he started with a weaker voice, sounding gentle once more. He sighs and gives in to his concern about you "Why are you crying- Wait. Why are you playing the game while crying? What's up with that?" he asked with some confusion, genuinely curious as to why you were here while feeling unwell. Of course, you didn't answer, why should you talk to a voice from a video game? The Narrator took a moment to think of possible reasons why you were still playing. "Are you... Playing the game because it gives you some kind of comfort..?" he said sheepishly, not feeling confident in his question. What if that's not the answer?

To his relief and small shock, the screen moved up and down, confirming his question.

"Really?" he was clearly not expecting that, speaking a little bit slower from his surprise. You enjoyed his game so much that you would open it while feeling sad? It gave you comfort? Even when the Narrator was screaming and insulting you and your playing skills? How's that possible? What kind of a person you are to enjoy that? He felt both confused and kind of touched, you liked his game this much? He grunted, slightly awkward from this situation, he wasn't used to having such interactions with players.

"I see, right... Well, I'm flattered to know that but... I don't know what could possibly give you comfort here. I mean this is a plain office building, there are no pretty things to rave over. Maybe in some endings, there's some nice scenography I suppose. But what else can comfort you here? You die in this game, you are trapped in your own office, you have to suffer multiple times, you don't really get a happy ending. And you never get an ending, that's the purpose of this game. Does that comfort you? The idea of endless possibilities? Something that life cannot offer?"

The screen shook to the sides once more, denying the Narrator's words to which he let out a quiet hum in thought.

"That's strange. Is it the music? Does it comfort you? I do have to say that it is impressive but I never thought it would comfort someone while feeling upset."

The screen moved to the sides again.

"WHAT? Then what could possibly calm you here- the humor! You like the humor of it, don't you? Well, that flatters me, I do have a great sense of humor after all." the Narrator chuckled, getting a little bit ahead before your answer, clearly feeling confident and proud of himself. But that's not a correct answer either, you shake the screen to the sides once more and the Narrator's laughter fades away "Then I have no idea. Does the bucket give you comfort? I wouldn't be so surprised if it did, you looove it so much anyway." his voice turned slightly harsher as if he was frustrated with the idea of the bucket being a source of your comfort. But maybe it was, he never knew.

The screen shakes to the sides once more.

"I'm running out of ideas here, I don't know what else could-" his voice broke off for a moment, a sudden realization coming into his mind. He couldn't believe it, he didn't want to believe it but maybe it was true? He felt a little bit of hope in his heart "Could it be... That I give you comfort?" he asked with even more hesitation, maybe it was true.

The screen finally bopped up and down and the Narrator let out a small gasp, feeling even more shocked than before.

"Wait, really? Me? I'm the one who gives you comfort? After all, I shout at you, I insult you and you feel I'm comforting?! I'm starting to worry about your sense of self-worth."

A silence fell again, a longer one as the Narrator was thinking of your answer, not knowing what to do with it. He started to feel bad for his earlier insults toward you, even through that you thought he was... Comforting. He couldn't wrap his head around this, how's that possible? Maybe you're lying or need help since you enjoy listening to him throw insults at you. But somehow that made him feel a little bit nice, you enjoyed his presence, at least he thought you did so.

"Eghem... May I ask you something?"

The screen moved up and down at the Narrator's question.

"Do you... Like listening to me? Do you... Tolerate my presence?" he asked with a bit of sudden insecurity, not believing that you truly liked being with him in the game. But your answer stunned him again, you've confirmed it "Oh. That's... Hard to believe." he sighed and kept silent for a moment more "Thank you." he added with a lot of unexpected warmth in his voice, he sounded very touched. It was a very important answer for him, he felt that it meant a lot to him.

"Hey, uh... I know this might not help you feel better but I'd like to try either way. Maybe you'd like to see some of my unreleased work? I feel that I'd like to share it with you. If that's okay with you." He wanted to comfort you more, be kinder to you, you're the player of the game after all. You could make mistakes, go against him or do your own thing and he had to accept that, and he felt that he might be willing to.

The screen jumped up and down, a lot more enthusiastically, with more energy and vigor than before which made the Narrator feel a little bit happier.

"Great! Alright, let's see what I can show you..." he mumbled, and a sound of paper ruffling together rang out "Ah, yes. This seems interesting enough. Allow me to show you an idea of mine that I've saved for you, I'm sure you're going to enjoy it." the Narrator said with a joyful undertone in his voice, almost giggling from the excitement. Then the screen went black.

𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴

[sha-n-dowbannedlol]

Zhongli — You're the only one he will ever love. Even if it hurts. Even if it makes him feel like he wants to rip his heart out every time.

CW: angst, major character death, reincarnation

"Excuse me for being rude, but I feel inclined to ask; Do you know me?"

You didn't know what you were doing, disturbing this fine gentleman who only wished to go about his day. You thought of backing out, already about to step back when his eyes met yours. Much to your surprise, the man didn't even seem the least bit upset at the disturbance. His look was gentle—fond, even—a start of a smile turning the edges of his lips upward.

"Mayhaps," His deep voice rang, and though his words are unsure, the familiarity in his bright amber eyes says otherwise. "May I have the pleasure of confirming your name?"

Just like that, you gave the man your name. You watch as he repeatedly says it, the soft smile etched on his lips still not leaving his face as he allows your name to roll off his tongue.

"Yes, I do know you," he said, an amused lilt in his voice making you cringe inwardly—he's not taking you seriously at all. Maybe he just found the prospect of a stranger suddenly approaching him and asking such a strange question amusing which is why he went along with it.

You were about to apologize and allow him to go on his merry way once again but suddenly spoke the moment you opened your mouth.

"But you may not remember me anymore. In that case, allow me to reintroduce myself." He bring his hand in front of you, clad in black gloves, palms open as if waiting for you to put yours in his—inviting you to a handshake, perhaps?

His fingers immediately wrapped around your hand that moment your hand came in contact with his, the warmth of his hand contrasting the cold of the ring on his thumb. His thumb caresses your skin, before his lips met your bare hand.

"I go by Zhongli these days,"

Just like that, this man—Zhongli—suddenly became a constant in your everyday life, and spending every day with the man lead you to the conclusion that he is strange.

Yes, strange in the normal sense of he seems to act like he's the creator of mora, buying so many things without looking at the price tag that a single day of strolling through the markets of Liyue with him is enough to make you go bankrupt, but also strange for you in a sense that he feels so familiar, yet so different.

You've never met someone with the same exact physical features as his, and yet, his bright amber eyes have always felt so familiar.

You've never heard of the name Zhongli before, and yet, you already knew that he hates seafood and that he likes Osmanthus Wine.

Similarly, you were certain that you've never divulged much information to the man but he somehow knew what your favorite dish was, remembered your allergies, and always has a favorite item of yours in hand whenever you meet him every morning.

It was strange, but it never really bothered you even though the rational part of you knew you should be bothered about it. You thought of confronting him about this strangeness time and time again, but the moment his amber eyes meet yours, the moment you see the smile on his lips as he fondly greets you a good morning, his warmth immediately envelops your doubts, your emotional heart taking over your rational mind as you return his smile with a greeting of your own.

The moment your rationality vanishes as soon as the name Zhongli pops into your mind is the moment you realized you had fallen for the strange gentleman.

Deep in your heart, you knew there was no other way out of this. He had to know of your affections, else, your shared friendship may continue to be awkward as you space out more and more often as he goes on his rambles. If he rejects you, then you can start the process of moving on, but if the Gods in Celestia have blessed you and the object of your affections return your feelings, then maybe your relationship can become something more.

And there, where you first met, you shakingly conveyed your feelings to the man who stood there, confused at both your words and nervousness.

"You seem nervous and unsure..." the consultant spoke, a frown tugging at his lips, "Why?"

"I..." you start, clenching your fists at your sides to will yourself to speak, "I don't know how you'll respond, so-"

He's even more confused now.

"Of course, I feel the same." he confirms, "I was under the impression that I was already courting you, was I not?"

"You... were?" now you're the one who's confused.

"Yes. I've been courting you for quite a while,"

"Since when?"

"Since the day we met."

Tears of relief started flooding your face, and before he could even ask if yo were alright, you had already wrapped your arms around his neck to pull him to yourself. In the same place where you first stood as you asked if he knew you, in the sweltering afternoon, the suns rays hitting you and the heat becoming bearable because of the slight breeze as the busy people continue to mind their own business in the ever busy Liyue harbor; you shared your first kiss with Zhongli.

Everyday was like a dream after that, everything felt so natural, felt so right. It was like being with Zhongli—looking after him, sharing your day with one another, walking around Liyue with his hand on your lower back, dates where he actually remembers to bring his wallet to—has been something you have been doing your whole life. Everything just falls into place, as if he was a missing puzzle you have been searching for your whole life.

He just fits.

If you didn't believe in the prospect of soulmates before, then you definitely do now.

If this were a dream, you never wanted to wake up.

Unfortunately, everything comes to an end; Zhongli—or rather, Morax, himself, already knew that.

He feels his body trembling, his heart dropping to his stomach, body frozen in place. His amber eyes glued to the sight that welcomed him in the adventurer's guild, one that lead him to close eyes for a while, picturing the warmth of your smile that you gave him this afternoon, the sun' rays hitting you just right that made you look ethereal in his eyes, the soothing sound of your voice reassuring him that you won't be long, your words echoing in his head.

"I'll be back before you even finished blinking!"

A blink, you said? A blink.. So, once he opens his eyes again, you'll be there, safe and sound, correct?

He opens his eyes again, and harsh reality hit him. It was cruel, absolutely cruel, which made him question whatever he did for the Celestia to hate him this much. It was too soon, too soon that even he hadn't expected it...

From your past lives, you usually had at least half a century to live, he usually had a few decades to spend with you. He had a few decades to spend in your arms, decades that he always makes the most out of before you were taken from him once again in various ways; at times they were cruel, but most times where it was your old age that makes you wither—and those Morax prefers than most.

But this lifetime was cruel.

He was only given only a year before the Celestia ripped you away from his arms.

His steps were slow and hesitant, unlike his usual confident strides, his hands reaching out to touch yours, bringing your palm to his lips like he always does. The crimson liquid stains his face, but he couldn't bring it in himself to care. Your skin against his lips is now devoid of the warmth you usually radiate, the warmth that brings him comfort, the warmth that was enough to soften even his heart made of solid rock.

Time and time again you were taken away from him, and he would have thought he would be used to it by now, but the pain feels just like the first time he had to hold your lifeless body in his arms. He knew how it will end, he always knew, but the moment you find your way to him once again, he always finds himself not caring about the pain it will bring him.

He'll let you break his heart over and over and over again.

"Mr. Zhongli...." the familiar voice of his boss rings out, even her voice was trembling.

Memories of you joking around with Hu Tao in the funeral parlor suddenly flooded his thoughts that caused him to speak to Hu Tao unknowingly.

"I will have an employee and a friend discount, will I not?"

He'll wait for you again, no matter how long it takes.

Because you're his beloved. The only one he will ever love. Even if it hurts, even if it makes him feel like he wants to rip his heart out every time.

Before he knew it, another millennia had passed...

"Excuse me for being rude, but I feel inclined to ask," A familiar voice rang, making the former Lord of Geo turn to face a familiar face bearing the same set of familiar irises. "Do you know me?"

The former God watches as they cringe, suddenly turning pale as they thought of backing out, they opened their mouth to speak but he was quick to beat them before a sound could come from their mouth.

"Mayhaps," The current vessel of Morax responds, a smile tugging at the edges of his lips as this scene plays out again the same way it always had for the past thousands of years every time he meets the reincarnation of his beloved.

"May I have the pleasure of confirming your name?"