#foolishly still doing behind the scenes work
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me after using up two dozen spoons i don't even have
#the post preorder crash is here#additionally i had a fun but very physically exhausting day at scarborough yesterday#foolishly still doing behind the scenes work#so so tired#i will take a real break soon tho when i go visit vetiverfox in june#so at least there's that#áśť đ đ°(á´_á´ă)#shitpost#meme#meme posting
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CarouselâH.HJ SMAU
Eleven- Why is it always her?
(a/n: i was so excited about this part i had to post it as soon as i was done writing :D Enjoy!!)
TW: MENTIONS OF WEIGHT, ED AND SEXUAL ASSAULT.
wc: 4.7k(?).
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You have had a bad morning. If not the worst in a while. Your mom had gone a little crazy again. Thatâs how it always has been, your relationship with her was never stable. And deep down you know it will never be. but hope had always found its way into your heart. Blooming endlessly on the days where she is a little quieter, a little timid. So when you woke up this morning and saw her in the kitchen, a glass of red wine in her hand and a string of curses falling from her lips directed at one of the poor maids. The little garden of hope in your heart died as quickly as it grew.
Nonetheless you were still excited about today, the idea of finally watching the plan you have been thinking about come to life makes you all giddy.
âAll done?â You ask, arms crossed on your chest as you watch Wooyoung jog towards you. A bright smile on his face and hair a cute fluffy mess on top of his head âYes Queen.â You smile back at him as he takes his spot on the right, next to you. Leaning his head on your shoulder. Heâs panting, trying to catch his breath âGood boy.â You untangle your arms, bringing your palm and caressing his cheek lovingly. And just like a cute puppy thereâs a light pink tinting his cheek that he tries to hide, chuckling as he buries his head in your shoulder further.
âAre you a baby? Get off her.â Yeosang speaks from your left. Voice shamelessly dripping with venomous jealousy and a glare so dark if Wooyoung wasnât so familiar with Yeosang harmless bullets heâd be running away by now.
âYour jealousy is showing again. Yeo.â Wooyoung spits back however with a lot less venom and more a teasing edge in his voice. He pushes it further by squeezing your arm a little harder, buries his face in your neck and watches out of the corner of his eyes as Yeosang rolls his eyes grumbling a âwhateverâ under his breath. You end their bickering by linking your other free arm with Yeosang's âThanks for coming Yeo, I know you hate these things.â And itâs true. Yeosang never participated in any of the little pranks you and Wooyoung liked to pull sometimes. So you were honestly surprised when Wooyoung greeted you this morning by your car with a grumpy Yeosang following right behind him.
He relaxes next to you, the few words dripping with so little sweetness seem to do the trick. "Anything for you, kitty." He replies, The frown immediately melts off his face and is replaced by a soft smile that he tries so hard to hide as well. Ducking his head as if you didnât already catch it. Your heart canât help but swell with harmless affection for the two boys.
âAre you sure everything is sorted out?â You ask again, eyeing Wooyoung beside you âYeah we just wait for Yeji to appear, and the show shall begin.â He replies, eyes following the random students passing by and throwing glances at you. By now you were used to the attention, it wasnât anything out of the ordinary. A pair of eyes following wherever you went happens so much that it became the new norm for you. Although the attention does seem to be intensified simply because you and your friends are never seen around campus. Or at least not as much as people would like. Usually preferring to stay indoors and away from too many prying eyes. But just for todayâs show specifically you thought an audience wouldnât hurt.
You admit your last work was sloppy, leaving evidence behind and showing up at the crime scene so shamelessly. Itâs no wonder Hyunjin doubted you right away. Although he couldnât link it to you directly but no matter how many times you denied it, itâs not gonna change the fact that it was you after all and you had foolishly gotten caught by him.
You felt the need to redeem yourself today even though your little prank is still too childish for your liking for now childish pranks are the only thing you're capable of pulling. You knew if you wanted to pull anythingâŚ.hardcore. You will need Hyunjin to be somewhere far from her and that seems a little impossible now. Since for whatever reason they always seem to be stuck together.
Hyunjin is another problem, ultimately you donât care what he thinks and youâll keep denying everything he throws at you but that doesnât change the fact that having him on your back constantly is annoying. And knowing him and how stubborn he is he wonât let it go until he proves itâs been you all along.
Which is why for todayâs show you decided to step back, watching from afar and letting someone else do your dirty work. Nothing a little batting of your eyelashes and money couldnât get. Wooyoung flirting did help too, he can be quite charming when he's not acting like a dork.
However, your biggest advocate is definitely that gossip account. If anything happens to Yeji and Hyunjin doubts you, you can simply blame it on his crazy fangirls. Itâs not farfetched for Yeji to get targeted after being the rumored girlfriend of the prince of jyp himself.
âTheyâre here.â Wooyoung whispers, nudging you with his elbow. You follow where his eyes are looking and as he said there they are. Yeji and Hyunjin walking side by side.
You try not to focus on the way their hands are brushing, the way that Hyunjin looks so relaxed next to her. Blonde hair blown by the wind, he looks like a dream. A dream that you seem to have every single night and more than anything a dream that is always far away from your reach. Your heart twists painfully when Yeji laughs, throwing her head back she puts her hand on his shoulder, so casually. You canât help but be taken back to when this was you. When you were the one walking next him, when you were the one heâs smiling at.
You donât notice how hard your nails are digging into Yeosangâs arm until he moves it, instead taking your palm and intertwining your fingers together.
On your right, you watch Wooyoung signal to the girl he seduced earlier this morning to begin the show. She pulls up her hoodie, hiding her face behind big square glasses. Grabbing her tray that has a plate full of spaghetti sauce on and very little spaghetti on it. She makes a beeline towards Yeji. Keeping her head down and just like Wooyoung had instructed her to do she crashes right into Yeji. The contents of her plate ends up on Yeji from head to toe. Too obviously purposeful that it makes you cringe at the poor execution.
Both of the girls end up on the ground from how strong the impact of them colliding. Wooyoung starts chuckling from beside you and you canât blame him. Yeji has sauce all over hair, dripping down the side of her and her light beige shirt is now colored maroon, she looks pathetic. Embarrassed as the students around them stop whatever theyâre doing to look at them. A small crowd starts to form around them but not big enough to block your vision, wondering whispers of what's going being thrown around.
A short laugh escapes you at the sight, you have thought about it all night but seeing her in front of you like is so much more better than you could ever imagine. Wooyoung starts laughing harder and you nudge him âShh!â you attempt to shush him with a wide grin fighting its way on your face. He purses his lips, bringing his hand up to cover his mouth âIâm trying.â He chokes out between giggles.
From this distant you canât really hear what theyâre saying but from the shaking of Yejiâs head, waving her hand around in dismissive manner you assume that she was getting apologies thrown at her.
What a stupid girl.
And just like you predicted Hyunjin is there next to her, worry evident in the furrow of his brows and his habit of puckering his lips in a manner akin to a pout that itâs adorable. Itâs the same look he used to shoot your way whenever you got hurt back then. It hits you again how that could have been you. You had thought it all night, all the possible scenarios orf Hyunjin helping Yeji. The way he would react, what he would say and what kind of expression would he make.
You didnât know why but you knew you had to prepare yourself for it. You told yourself if you thought about it long enough you wonât feel anything when it really happens. Yet seeing him there, crouched next to her still felt like a dagger was plunged into your heart. And you can't understand the sinking feeling in your stomach.
Your smile falters when again just like you predicted Hyunjin helps her stand up, a hand on her shoulder. Heâs so much taller than her, so much wider that when he starts guiding her to what you assume to be the restroom. Itâs like heâs shielding her from the curious and shocked stares around them.
They pass by you and Hyunjin doesnât spare you a glance, doesnât even notice you standing there and you donât realize you were holding your breath until theyâre out of sight. Were you waiting for him to notice you? Is that why youâre feeling hurt? Is that why youâre so bothered by the fact that heâs so busy taking care of Yeji to even notice you? But you knew this was gonna happen it's only common sense so why are you feeling this way?
Yeji had looked so pathetic, so hilariously embarrassed reeking of food yet you didnât even feel an ounce of satisfaction because Hyunjin was next to her.
âIs your other bitch in place?â You ask Wooyoung who shoots you an offended look âSheâs not my bitch.â Seeming to notice your sour mood and your dark gaze, he sighs âyeah she is waiting for Yeji in one of the stalls.â
âGood.â You reply, untangling your hand from Yeosang and start walking the same direction where Hyunjin and Yeji went âWhere are you going?â Yeosang yells after you âTaking matters into my own hands. Donât follow me.â You reply looking back at both boys to show them how serious you were being before continuing your route.
You knew you had to get this dagger out of your chest somehow. Which is why you had to talk to Yeji yourself. You donât care if she rats you out to Hyunjin anymore. You just want this heavy feeling in your chest to be gone already. And if these childish pranks aren't doing the trick maybe talking to her directly would.
You thought youâd find Hyunjin waiting in front of the restroom for Yeji so when you get there youâre pleasantly surprised to find the halls empty. However when you twisted the doorknob open you didnât expect to find both of them inside. And you for sure did not expect Yeji to be topless with only a black bra on, her tomato sauce covered shirt is thrown on the floor and Hyunjinâs jacket is now over her shoulder leaving him only in his plain white shirt.
She turns to look at you and her eyes are red with tears and if this was in any other situation youâd be gleaming with happiness. Heck maybe you will start laughing in her face just to watch her cry more. But your heart only grows heavier at the sight of Hyunjin cleaning her hair for her, wiping it hopelessly with tissues that definitely will not get that sauce out of it. You only grow angrier, sadder at the fact that sheâs so casually topless and is surrounded with Hyunjinâs scent.
Your original plan was to come in here and unleash your anger at her, pull this stupid dagger out of your heart and plunged it into her instead, But you canât do that. Not when Hyunjin is right there. So you knew you had to improvise.
Your nails start digging into your palms hard enough to draw blood yet you widen your eyes in fake innocence, form your lips into a pout and walk towards them. Ignoring the way Hyunjinâs eyes sharpen, gaze turning into a glare in contrast to the way he was softly looking at Yeji two seconds ago.
âWhat do you want Y/N?â His tone is harsh, full of venom and itâs not like you expected anything else. You ignore him âAre you okay Yeji?â you ask, feigning concern. A single tear starts rolling down her cheek, eyes wide and cheeks flushed. She looks pathetically weak. The laughing Yeji from minutes ago is long gone. And in a sick way a sliver of satisfaction makes its way up your stomach.
You lean closer to her, your hand brushing her arm. She flinches and thatâs when Hyunjin pulls her towards him, his arm comes up between you as if it shield her from you âDonât touch her.â He spits through gritted teeth. The satisfaction you felt dies right away and the same anger only builds up more at the way heâs treating you as if you were some kind of wolf thatâs gonna eat his precious little pet.
But you control your composure âIâm just trying to help.â You tell him softly, looking up at him through your eyelashes but Hyunjin doesnât even falter. The ice in his eyes remain as cold as if he sees right through your act.
âItâs okay, jinnie.â Yeji speaks out weakly from behind him, hand on his arms and you try your hardest to keep your eyes from looking down at it.
Jinnie? Just who this girl thinks she is?
âAre you okay Yeji? Do you need any clothes? I have an extra sweater in my car.â You ask when Hyunjin steps back and away from both of you. He keeps his gaze on you watching your every move and trying to analyze if youâre being sincere or if this is just another stunt youâre pulling.
âIâm okay, thanks for asking Y/N.â She wipes her tears, sniffling and pulls at Hyunjinâs jacket to cover herself with pink cheeks.
So sheâs feeling shy around you but not around him? Just how much of her have he seen?
The questions roaming around your head are too suffocating.
âShould I go grab my sweater for you?â You tilt your head in an attempt to appear nicer, smiling at her and leaning down to her level since sheâs a little shorter than you. but she avoids your eyes. Focusing on something on the floor. She opens her mouth to speak but Hyunjin beats her to it âShe already has my jacket. She doesnât need your clothes.â You glare back at him and you guys stare at each other silently âyou expect her to walk around with your jacket only and nothing underneath?â he keeps quiet, keeps his expression blank and when you raise a challenging eyebrow at him, urging him to argue back. He tsks, looking away.
You straighten your posture. Pushing your hair back with your hand you let out a sigh âGod was that girl blind? How could she not see you?â You try to make conversation feeling the tension grow thicker the longer the silence stretches. You try to not think about the fact that this tension is only present whenever you and Hyunjin are in the same room.
But you canât help but wonder if he feels it too? Or was it one sided like everything youâve ever felt for him?
âItâs okay. It was an unfortunate accident.â Yeji says with the same dismissive waving hands she was doing earlier. An innocent smile starting to tug at her lips as she takes some of the tissues they have piled up on the sink and starts wiping the remaining sauce on her hair.
You stare at her blankly. An unfortunate accident? It was so obviously on purpose you could tell from a mile away. Was this girl really this innocent and stupid or was she just pretending? For the first time ever you couldnât tell.
You find yourself unable to say anything back. Your anger wavering and unstable. You look in the mirror only to find Hyunjin already staring at you. He doesnât look away when you lock gazes in the mirror, doesnât budge and instead youâre the one starting to feel overwhelmed by all the confusing emotions clashing inside of you. It's like overwhelming draining cycle of you getting angry only to end up sad and disappointed. It's like no matter how much you try to get your anger out, to feel better you end up feeling more miserable. Today was supposed to be fun, you were supposed to be out there with Wooyoung and Yeosang recalling the pathetic look Yeji had on her face and laughing about it.
But all these expectations die and burn into nothing as soon as you see them together and then you're left there to pick up the ash and wonder to yourself what any of this means.
You donât realize the blue expression that takes over your face and you donât realize how fast Hyunjin notices. How his eyes start to soften because in that small moment of vulnerability you subconsciously showed he saw flickers of the old you. The you that he had fallen for so effortlessly. His heart starts hammering in his chest and his own emotions battle against each other.
This is exactly why he hated seeing you, he hated how every time he saw you, you somehow were the same person he loved yet so different that it only built stupid hope inside of him. That maybe you werenât some vicious and a horrible person and maybe the sweet and loving you from high school is still there somewhere. It only built stupid hope that latched onto him and squeezed any logical thinking he had.
He lets out a sigh, looking away from you and your pretty innocent eyes that only seem to drag him deeper into your darkness. He refuses to be swept away by you.
âIâll wait for you outside okay, Ji?â he says patting on her shoulder, a friendly gesture that only turn your insides into knots twisting and twisting tighter when he passes by you. Shoulders brushing but he doesnât look at you. He doesnât even glare at you this time like you arenât even worth any attention from him. The negative emotions take over your entire body and they start eating you from the inside.
Silence settles between you as Yeji continues cleaning her self, the only noise filling the room is the sound of running water that she soon closes âIâm sorry about Jinnie,â she speaks first, her fingers fidgeting with a piece of tissue âI heard a little bit about what happened between you two.â She says weirdly nervous. Maybe because she knows how sensitive this subject or maybe itâs the undeniable intimidation she feels towards you.
âIs that so?â Your tone is no longer dripped with cheap honey, instead itâs lifeless. Cold and perhaps thatâs why Yeji finally looks at you, eyes wide and concerned. Is she scared she upset you?
âHyunjin is not a bad person. Heâs just a little hard to deal with.â She pathetically tries to explain as if you didnât know Hyunjin first. As if you werenât his first love, first kiss, first everything. You almost want to scoff at her. Something akin to disappointment and a lot like heartbreak pulls at every part of you when you realize none of it matters. You were first but you are nothing now.
âI know.â Is the only thing that manages to escape your mouth. You smile at her a smile that doesnât reach your eyes. The bubbling anger you felt is no loner evident in your bones and youâre no longer seeing red, Instead the only thing you feel is sadness clawing at you. Suddenly the sight of Yeji crying and looking pathetic is no longer satisfying the more you remember how through it all Hyunjin was next to her. Hyunjin is kind to her, he takes care of her. Speaks to her so softly and itâs the complete opposite to the way he treats you. And for reasons youâll never admit. It kills you.
Yeji smiles back at you awkwardly, seeming like she doesnât know what to say. Your eyes flit across the stalls, you see one of the doors slightly ajar. Guessing thatâs where Wooyoung's girl is. You decide not to interfere and let the rest of the play go as planned.
âMhm is there something there?â Yeji asks innocently, turning to look at where youâre looking and you shake your head âIâll let you be.â You tell her and she nods at you slowly with confusion written all over her face. You leave the restroom, closing the door you find Hyunjin waiting outside, leaning on the wall with his arms crossed. You share a short look before you start walking.
âwhatâs your deal?â He asks when you pass by him and you stop in front of him, turning to face him. Years of hardened tension seeps into the air around you immediately. Youâre sure if you breath it in itâll choke you.
âWhat?â you ask, tilting your head and looking up at him, and a strand of your dark hair falls over your face. And Hyunjin tries his hardest not to stare at you but youâre so pretty. So pretty it feels criminal. Fuck he was already fighting against the urge to stare at your thighs in that short little skirt but now that heâs face to face with you in so long. Itâs hard to stop his eyes from trailing over your features, lingering a second too long at your plush lips. It's not like he didn't know you were pretty, you always had been. Always had this magnetic aura around you. But god the first time he saw you again was magical, he recognized you right away and even then you still stole his breath but in a different way. You had flourished in such a pretty flower, grown more into your feminine side. He felt bitter like the universe wanted to rub it in his face how much more beautiful you had become.
âWhat was that with Yeji just now?â his tone is nothing like his softening eyes, mean and monotone âI was just trying to be niceâ you reply with faux pureness that the both of you know does not exist in you.
He straightens, keeps his eyes on you and you can tell he knows youâre lying. Itâs not like you were trying that hard to hide it. A playful smile starts tugging at your lips but it vanishes right as quick as it comes when Hyunjin is taking a step towards you, you step back a little nervous but he keeps going until your back hits the wall. His arm stretch out and his palm is flat against the wall. Caging you. Youâre breathless, startled and didnât expect him to be all up in your space all of sudden.
âI donât like these games youâre playing, Y/Nâ his eyes alight with pure hatred and another emotion mixed in there yet your heart hammers against your ribcage wildly, almost like itâs begging to be let out.
âI-Iâm not playing any games.â You argue weakly, almost cringe at yourself for stuttering and if anything you just want to disappear because Hyunjinâs lips tilt in a smirk, suddenly taking in the situation you guys are in. He does admit that his inflated ego only grows at the sight of the unattainable Y/N blushing and avoiding his gaze.
âYou seem a little nervous,â he comments sarcastically, tapping his index finger on your chin and you slap his hand away. Looking up at him with a glare that is not threatening one bit âYouâre all up in my space I canât breath.â You attempt to push him away with your hands on his chest, ignoring how hard it feels but Hyunjin doesnât budge, Doesnât move a single step and he keeps his eyes locked on you. Watching in amusement as you try to break from him. In that moment his mind runs wild and he can finally understand why Yeosang and Wooyoung call you kitty all the time. It suits you so well. You look just like cat fighting for their ownerâs attention.
At the silence you look up at Hyunjin with a glare again, a string of curses dies on your lips when you notice that heâs unfocused. Instead his eyes are fixated on your thighs, the dark hatred in his eyes is slowly melting into lust and the lines are blurring between you two. Youâre blushing, overwhelmed and confused by the way heâs acting but more than anything youâre confused by the flash of scalding heat that his stare sends through your body.
Your hands fall to your thighs, palms flat against them in a poor attempt to cover them up. Hyunjin notices, lets out a scoff and looks at you âDonât worry. Iâm not interested in you or your body.â His voice drips in mockery and your face burns in embarrassment and anger. You gather enough strength to push him again and this time he steps back, that same stupid smirk on his lips âFuck off.â You grumble, pressing the back of your hand on your lips. Another poor attempt to hide your red face. Hyunjin canât help but chuckle because he canât take you seriously not when you look so much like an angry kitten. He couldnât understand how he went from wanting to kill you to wanting to devour you in mere seconds. A part of him liked that though, he liked the fact that you always acted all high and mighty but was a blushing mess the moment he was a little too close to you.
If he knew how easy it was to break you heâd have tried this a long time ago.
Just then the door of the restroom busts open, slamming loudly against the wall and breaking whatever bubble the two of you were in. A girl runs out, almost tripping but picks herself right up and starts sprinting away. A disheveled Yeji follows, a panicked look on her face with Hyunjinâs now zipped jacket on her âH-hyunjin!â she starts crying and Hyunjin is by her side right away. Ignoring the fact that you were there again. Like he wasn't just staring at you like he wanted you moments ago âWhatâs wrong? Are you hurt?â he asks frantically, hands on her shoulders and eyes scanning her body âsomeone-â she chokes on her tears, a sob wrecking through her body âsomeone was trying to take pictures of me while I was undressingâ it all happens in a blur, Hyunjin yelling something in anger that you block out and then heâs running after the girl. While Yeji stands there crying. She looks at you and you donât know what kind of expression you have on. But sheâs terrified and for some reason in that moment you know she somehow figured out you were behind all of this.
You watch as she starts walking away, running after Hyunjin as well. You stand there and think about everything, in the end everything went perfectly according to plan. Everything happened exactly like how you imagined, just like how you and Wooyoung talked. You embarrassed Yeji in front of countless students, made her cry and if anything she seems scared of you now. It's exactly what you wanted yet you don't feel good at all. In fact your heart feels heavier than ever and there's tears threatening to fall the longer you stand there.
You canât help but feel like a piece of trash that has been tossed aside for something better, something nicer.
That night when youâre back home, you find your mom in the kitchen another glass of wine in her hand and a mess of papers on the kitchen island in front of her âWhatâs all this?â you ask, walking to stand next to her.
âDid a background check on your fatherâs littleâŚ.â She staring blankly at the wall, eyes empty âlittle side entertainment.â She finishes. Itâs specially moments like these that make you feel sorry for her. Sheâs just a woman who fell in love with a man who didnât love her back. How ironic. You think to yourself as you wrap your arms around her waist and hug her. Head resting on her shoulder. She doesnât really move nor hug you back. You didnât remember the last time she hugged you back.
âIâm sorry mommy.â You whisper softly, and she pats your hands in cold touches that are loveless âare you still following your diet, Y/N?â
You nod against her shoulder âYes mommy.â She sighs, untangling herself from your embraces and drinks the remaining last bits of her wine âHer daughter weighs 2.5 kgs less than you, so we need to work hard yeah?â she says cupping your cheeks and looks at you for the first time today, you force a smile on despite the feeling of your heart breaking for the second time today âYes mommy.â You reply like you always do and she never smiles back and her hands are always so cold but you donât flinch âGood girl.â She compliments emotionlessly and she leaves you there, alone to pick up the pieces of your broken heart. You bite your lips to stop your tears from falling, telling yourself not matter how shitty you felt today you will not cry but then you look down at all the papers laid in front of you and despite all the expectations you had for today you didnât expect a picture of Yeji to be smiling back at you.
Why is it always her?
ŕźśâ˘ââŕ¨âĄŕ§âââ˘ŕźśŕźśâ˘ââŕ¨âĄŕ§âââ˘ŕźśŕźśâ˘ââŕ¨âĄŕ§âââ˘ŕźś
Synopsis: It girl, Queen Bee the most popular girl around campus Song Y/N was envied by everyone. She has it all, money, the looks and brains. After making a bet with her bestfriend Yeosang her life takes a turn to the worse, seeming to lose everyone around her she doesn't expect the only person to stick by her side to be her Ex-first love and long time enemy - Hwang Hyunjin.
ŕźśâ˘ââŕ¨âĄŕ§âââ˘ŕźśŕźśâ˘ââŕ¨âĄŕ§âââ˘ŕźśŕźśâ˘ââŕ¨âĄŕ§âââ˘ŕźś
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For the request, can I please have yandere Black Swan x fem or gn reader x yandere Sparkle headcanon as the poly relationship? Basically Sparkle and Black Swan are working together to get their darling.
Yeah of course! Sorry for the late response! I also started this before current quest came out (2.1 I think, the one that focuses on Aventurine) so sorry if I missed anything that came out recently!
CW: Yandere themes (it isn't super heavy I think), Memory manipulation, kidnapping that isn't viewed as kidnapping by the kidnappee
To start with is always the question of how Black Swan and Sparkle become interested in you, such a strange duo both with different goals and aspirations yet absolutely threatening while working together.
You were a very simple person but also infinitely complex, like most people. But rather than keep the complexities of your life close to yourself and the ones you cared for, you wore your life on your sleeve. One moment you'd be distracted by ooo-- pretty fish nice bright and orange and--. Oh right the drink in front of you is also pretty nice but the moment you drink it, it'll be gone forever. It won't matter, and will be forgotten in your own mind, and the mind of the world. In the grand scheme of things it doesn't matter in the slightest, just like your life. Unless if it's a super good drink.
And look there's a pretty lady following the pretty fish! Actually it looks like the fish are swimming around her, maybe in the dream scape you're permanently under the sea. You don't really like the sea though, actually it's okay. You've just been a thousand meters deep before and at that point the pressure kills, you didn't die but it wasn't pleasant. Thankfully, gear was upgraded pretty well, which is expected for a city under water. There were also many beautiful creatures down there that you were lucky to see and lots of rocks, there weren't fish like the fish around the pretty lady though-- and she's gone.
What a shame, you would've loved to introduce yourself to her. Now, your drink demanded your attention and you had to oblige.
And that was the first time you met Sparkle.
You were someone that could admire Sparkle and not only indulge but enjoy her games and give her the attention she wanted. And after you ended up accidentally joining a scene you weren't supposed to be in and participating in her murder mystery game, she realized how good the attention felt.
Black Swan was someone who would observe a puzzle from the outside and would play along with the puzzle but truly be trying to deconstruct the person behind the puzzle.
You, on the other hand, were someone who would know it's a puzzle yet, devote your all to something you knew wasn't real. How silly, but how... cute? Sparkle's thoughts surprised even her, she had always been into toppling over more composed people. But you were composed in a different way. You were passionate but controlled, excited but not often upset, like a river flowing rapidly leaving waves in the air but not leaving it's boundaries unnecessarily.
Your unexpected participation in the murder mystery was exactly what drew Black Swan's interest as well. Your attention was changing from detail to detail each minute and when the time came to guess who Sparkle was. You foolishly guessed Sparkle's body-- and you were right. Black Swan should've figured out the fool would've pulled something like this, Sampo was too obvious of an answer.
Your excitement at the truth was genuine from the way your entire face brightened up to the way you began to hop excitedly in place. "See? Sampo's too nice to kill someone!" She thought your reasoning was still wrong though.
Sampo was pretty cool, he seemed like a scum bag but that didn't mean he'd kill someone he was still too nice to do that. Also he didn't act interested enough in the murder to be Sparkle. If you killed someone you'd be really interested in how the detective solved the murder, it'd be like a fun little game! But you wouldn't do that, most people didn't deserve to die and the ones that did probably wouldn't die by your hand-- and what if you were wrong you'd be better off sending them to jail and hoping they'd reform instead and someone just said something to you that you missed oh shit, hopefully you won't get yelled at.
Oh wait that wasn't directed at you that's just Sparkle trying to get Black Swan to-- wait Black Swan's a memokeeper?! That's sick! Your eyes shined as you looked at the elegant woman with new found respect. A shame Sparkle got rejected, you'd invite her to dance but she probably wouldn't want to dance with you.
"Miss Black Swan," You piped up looking at the veiled woman excitedly and she turned to you with a slight smile. Perhaps, she'd erase your memory, memokeepers were rather secretive right?
None the less you'd rather say what you wanted to say, "Thank you for your work. No memories deserve to be lost, even though one day they will all be lost as we all inevitably die... but that's a while from now! There's so much beauty that needs to be preserved but will inevitably be forgotten. If only we could all share in it, but I understand you likely have your reasons."
If only memokeepers could share all they knew, wouldn't the knowledge of that help humanity immensely? But the weight of memories isn't to be taken lightly, you reminded yourself. All of the pain everyone experienced had to be remembered as well. Because to forget is to repeat.
Her honey eyes took the shape of crescents, "Thank you, dear," her voice sounded like honey too, enough so that you felt your ears grow red at the term of endearment, "Fear not, cherished memories will be preserved from true oblivion."
You blinked, once, twice, "But at some point doesn't there have to be nothing? That's why it's important not just to protect such memories but also make them. Because all we really have is tomorrow. Well, I suppose the only guaranteed thing I have is tomorrow-- actually I could die in the next second so all I have is right now. But memories, at some point wouldn't they have to become nothing as well?"
You paused for a moment before continuing, walking away from Black Swan, "I guess there's no way to know until the end. So when you know whether or not even they become nothing, I'll be waiting, curious, to hear your answer."
That was a fun time. You solved a fake murder, met two pretty ladies, and- oh you won't be alive to hear Black Swan's answer what a shame-- OH! You wondered if they had the once in millennium memory of the ten moon solar eclipse where you could see them all because the smallest moons were the closest to the planet. What a beautiful sight, shame that planet was pretty much deserted. You'd just been lucky to get to see it, you had a research grant or something. Righttt to get samples of that one man eating flower, the cool part was that its flowers contained traces of metal, particularly gold.
Huh, how'd that work? Not like it mattered you were just suppose to get a sample. You wondered if the Garden of Recollection how memories of that plant. You wondered if they had memories of a world slowly dying out, of its last flower crumpling to stony surface.
And with that Black Swan was left looking at your back as you walked away. You were an interesting person. She'd keep an eye out for you but in the meantime the Astral Express seemed to be having some troubles she'd have to prioritize first.
Then, you ran into Sparkle again. This time you were able to strike up a conversation with her. She seemed like a friendly person, albeit she did almost get you killed but such is the way with pranks! All's fair in love and games! And what was life if not a game? Plus you got to see her pretty fish. You wanted one. You didn't think you'd be able to take good care of a fish though, you were already struggling to take care of yourself.
You had a few more run ins with Sparkle and played her games much to her delight! Each time she felt herself growing more excited, would you die if the game required it? You put such care into each moment but even when it resulted in nothing you laughed it off. It was annoying at times, as if anything she planned didn't matter. But when your eyes lit up at solving a puzzle those thoughts were dissuaded.
And even better was how your eyes lit up when they saw her.
How Sparkle preened under your praise. She was sure her games were getting even better with such encouragement and an eager participant! She almost forgot why she came to Penacony in the first place but, she unfortunately had a job. At least the job was fun! Once she was done she'd come and pick you up, she was certain you'd love to come along with her!
Coincidentally when Sparkle had to get more focused on her work you met the beautiful memokeeper again. You greeted her gracefully, your face obviously excited to see her again, and she invited you to a dance..? Sure! Hadn't Sparkle wanted to dance with Black Swan earlier though? Black Swan must've just been busy then, you weren't sure you knew there was something bigger going on behind the scenes but you didn't care much. This was your vacation! Complete freedom to go around and have fun and embrace all the beautiful sights.
Her hand rested snugly on your waist and you didn't resist from leaning into it. You enjoyed the occasional comforts of life, everything is temporary after all. Even if you'd never see Sparkle or Black Swan after this it wouldn't hurt to indulge in the companionship they offered you. "I thought you were too busy to dance," You commented offhandedly, eyes glancing down to her feet every few moments.
Black Swan hummed, appearing a bit confused at first before her vision cleared, "I had another partner but it appears that I got ahead of myself."
"That's always a shame," You replied with a comforting nod. You weren't sure what happened but it can be disappointing when things don't work out, "Still, unexpected results lead to new potential options and that's always fun." You smiled at Black Swan trying to console her as you squeezed her hand gently.
"I suppose you're right," She hummed voice low, eyes rested on you as if always examining you-- oh that's right! You wouldn't forget this time!
You averted your eyes from hers, "I don't mean to be presumptuous but..." Wasn't it arrogant to offer a memory to her? You were sure she'd seen of all kinds of memories, but... you still wanted to offer. "I've traveled a bit and been lucky enough to see some rare sights. I know you've seen a lot but if there's anything particular you want to see, I may have seen it."
That didn't come off as too arrogant right? Honestly, you'd be honored to have a memokeeper keep any of your memories and preserve them but having one look at them was an honor as well.
To your surprise Black Swan didn't reject your idea, at first her eyes widened a bit before relaxing as a sort of fondness entered them, "I've been quite curious myself. I won't intrude, dear." Your bodies remained in motion as she gazed into your eyes and the dance didn't stop.
After Black Swan's experience with Acheron she planned knew not to enter past memories lightly. But, you'd offered up so sweetly and with such hope in your eyes how couldn't she agree? She was curious as well, albeit she wasn't drawn to you like a moth to flame but there was always those lingering thoughts. You were transparent but your words open as they were seemed to lack a clear motive. She wouldn't dig too deeply into your memories just to be safe.
Your memories were clear they were orderly, each having their own place but always moving like an orderly line. Every few moments one would fall out of place and breeze by before finding a new place and the rest would adjust to accommodate it. Black Swan entered one, and immediately felt content. A sunset reached out and covered the landscape in a golden glow, many different kinds of flowers built up human shaped statues, and a soft blanket rested under her palms.
How pleasant, and new... She hadn't been here before, it had a sunset something you could see nearly everywhere but each individual detail added a sense of freshness. She entered another memory, and another. Was there nothing but joy and content in your life?
Each memory was a pleasant feeling that washed over her and kept her warm. She didn't want to leave. In a sense it was more dangerous than Acheron's memories which had tried to devour her bite by bite. But this was a lure, a sweet world with nothing but beauty as if it wanted to trap Black Swan forever. She entered another memory, which had been moving along pleasantly.
Peace washed over Black Swan and she felt her shoulders slump down, as she saw a sun take up half the space of the sky. A single flower to the left crumple onto stone. The death of a world. What had you been doing here?
Why... despite the lack of life and everything was it still so peaceful and warm. As if the act of death was one of beauty. As of with you everything was worthy of joy. Your memories were deceiving, Black Swan noted. She wanted to find a painful one, there had to be at least one, right?
And there were several, far out numbered by the golden soft ones that immersed her in feelings of ecstasy. But after being pampered with such rich memories, and after having almost been devoured by some (Acheron's) Black Swan couldn't bring herself to enter the pain. She would later, but for now she'd be safe, she wouldn't intrude.
At some point during the dance you began to feel cold. You kept an appropriate distance from Black Swan and was sure she didn't notice the way you leaned into her body slightly more. But after a few minutes of the non-stop dancing you felt her hand let go of yours and move around your back to hold you close.
"Thank you," Her voice held warmth in it that you hadn't heard from her before.
"It's beautiful right?" You weren't sure what memory she'd seen but you had many that were pleasing, although you were sure a memokeeper's expectations were higher than yours. Honestly, you could drink a good drink and that would be enough of a pleasing memory for you. Speaking of which you had a wonderful drink the first time you saw Sparkle, you should go get that again.
Black Swan looked into your eyes, a gentle smile on her face, "It is." And for once you felt slightly uncomfortable, as if you didn't understand what she was saying completely. But you brushed it off, you didn't understand after all you didn't know what memories she saw.
Black Swan truly thought you were a sight to behold. A gem, she'd almost missed out. And as she saw you dancing with Sparkle, Black Swan recognized you were a beauty she'd almost lost.
Somehow Sparkle had found out about you dancing with Black Swan and had demanded a dance. Of course she hadn't said it outright instead it was a part of a game. In order to sneak into some "evil castle" the two of you attended a ball in which you pretended to be normal guests but would likely later sneak off to what Sparkle proclaimed as "behind the stage." Coincidentally Penacony also had a dance right now, making the atmosphere perfect.
Of course, there was no evil castle, or grand scheme but it was a fun game. Sparkle dragged you between couples, keeping your bodies forever in a sway. She'd twirl into your arms and rest her head on your chest, tilting her head up with a foxish grin on her face. How precious. You'd let out a laugh, and then bring her into a dip.
Then she'd wring her hands around your neck, keeping it still, but not hurting you in the slightest, and a warm feeling would touch your lips. That... That wasn't right. But you might as well indulge in the moment, your time here was coming to a close. Every dream eventually had to end.
You leaned forward, eyes closed, and mind completely focused on the lips on yours. They were warm and soft, and although at first they'd been rather tentative at your reciprocation they pressed closer and Sparkle leaned closer to you as well.
Black Swan hadn't been expecting to see that. Of all of the things she was expecting today, this was the one she expected the least. Her fingers rested on her thigh as she gazed at the pair which was now dancing again. As much as she wanted to approach she remained stagnant, this event was just about to begin after all.
Even if Black Swan did interrupt even she wasn't sure of what she would say or do. Was she upset that the little lady had kissed her dear? Or was Black Swan upset that you had danced with her little lady. Perhaps, she was just feeling a bit excluded, but she hadn't felt this way since before she was a memokeeper.
Black Swan didn't have time to dwell on her feelings because the next moment your body had been impaled. You lurched forward, pushing Sparkle away as you for some reason tasted water rather than blood in your mouth. You let out a choked cough and crumpled to your knees, barely able to feel the pain. You wanted to run but-- it was all over now wasn't it? You'd never died before.
This hadn't gone to plan, was the first thing Sparkle realized. She might've gotten too distracted by you, and now she paid the price. Your dying face was new and beautiful but, she had a sinking realization she didn't want to see this again. Since this was a dream it'd be fine and her smile came quite easy to her, the laugh came out even easier.
How fun. But if you were dead then the fun would end wouldn't it? It seemed like Sparkle would have to take the stage after all and it seemed like her dear memokeeper was inclined to too.
You woke up, clothes sticking to your body, and jolted out of the water pod. You were alive. That was good, you still hadn't gotten that drink you liked here again. You got up from the pod, pulling your damps clothes off and replacing them with dry ones. What a bad end to a dream, you only had a few days left here too. You eyed the pod nervously, you didn't exactly want to revisit it now either. Maybe you'd leave Penacony a bit early.
Your hand drifted down to your stomach, there was no hole in it. What had stabbed you anyway? It's not like it mattered now. You walked out of your room, face more uneasy than normal. It was a shame you'd be leaving without bidding those beautiful women goodbye.
Before setting off for your next adventure you sat down at the bar and ordered a drink similar to the one you had in the dream world. It tasted slightly sweeter. How nice, even nicer were the lights on the ceiling. Intricately decorated. And the individual next to you was beautiful as well, with long lilac hair.
"It's pleasant to see you again Dear." Her voice was soft and adoring, eyes as sweet as honey.
You blinked in surprise, "Black Swan!" A smile grew on your face, you didn't think she would bother to make herself visible in the real world to you.
"Boo!" A smaller hand rested on your shoulder as a lighter voice whispered in your ear suddenly. You jolted upward, and felt warmth flood across your face.
"Sparkle!" You greeted her with as much enthusiasm as you hid Black Swan, her hands glided across your chest and onto your opposite shoulders holding you in a hug.
Black Swan examined the two of you, a smile remaining on her face affectionately. It felt strange. Like you were intruding on a scene, like you weren't meant to be here. "Little lady, don't go overboard. I'm sure our dear is already feeling overwhelmed after all that's happened." Her glove hand brushed against your cheek.
Okay. You didn't know how to deal with this. When two women out of your league were so physically close. It wasn't that you weren't a catch yourself just, a memokeeper and Sparkle was beyond gorgeous herself. Maybe if you just stayed still they'd go away.
Sparkle poked your cheek and you remained perfectly still. And who could blame you? This was a bit overwhelming. You had just died what felt to be a few moments ago anyway and that... that wasn't pleasant. It was new but for once you wanted to go in your room and just sleep it off, or adventure until you forgot about it or distorted it into a memory of beauty.
"...Hey, you're not broken yet, right? There's so much fun to be had!" Sparkle's voice sounded worried at first before turning into her usual enthusiastic tone. You could feel her breath against your ear, the warmth of her arms around you, and the sudden loss of Black Swan's hand against your cheek.
Black Swan let out a gentle sigh, "I suppose it'd be too much to hope for you to be immediately the same after that." Her gaze was pitying to which you lifted an eyebrow.
"Well having experienced death does that," You muttered, "It'll disappear with time." Your words were nonchalant despite the severity of what had happened, and you shrugged Sparkle's arms off or at least you tried to.
Instead the smaller girl linked her hands around your waist and pressed her face against your back, "Now, that's the spirit!" She cheered, "What should we do next?" She paused, "Oh! Let's get into the Genius Society! I wanna impersonate a genius! And you, can have Black Swan whisper you the answers!"
Ooo that actually sounded pretty fun, the Genius Society even you had never been able to seen behind their walls. Wait-- you had work to do though, work which would thankfully let you see rare sights. Although you were pretty sure your next job was one of the less savory ones, the planet you were heading to was torn apart by war. War was such a disgusting thing, leaving behind only murder in its path. But from all the dead bodies one day would spring flowers.
You could've been one of those bodies. Although you doubted any flowers would be able to grow in the dream pod you'd been sleeping in. Your body wouldn't have even been beautiful in the end. That's what will happen if you get complacent, like you were on vacation.
"That does sound fun," You admitted gazing over your shoulder to Sparkle, "But, my break is over! Things to do, people to meet, you know how it is." Sparkle's arms froze around you and you lightly brushed them off, getting up from the bar stool.
When you went to leave it was Black Swan who stopped you, arm resting on your shoulder, and pulling you close as if to embrace you, "Remember Dear, you have to rest. It's been a lot hasn't it? Would you like me to walk you back to your room?" She offered politely, and you smiled graciously in response.
"Thanks! But, I didn't really pack much. I was planning to just head out, actually. I'm happy I got to see the both of you again though!" You rested one hand on Black Swan's bicep, squeezing it affectionately, and the other on Sparkle's head, gently patting her hair and then running your hand down to her neck.
This had been a fun journey, despite... your death. It wasn't really a death it was in the dream world but maybe whether or not it was real didn't matter. But how it effected you did. So as long as you changed the effect it would be okay. Your dream world death was a new and wonderful experience-- yeah that just didn't sit right with you. The lighting seemed off in the room for a moment as Sparkle jumped up from her chair and walked over to you, presumably for a hug.
You'd been hugged out but it was likely the last time you'd see her, and a bit of indulgence in the warmth she offered wouldn't hurt you. But her knocking you out did.
Black Swan let out an aggrieved sigh, "Did you have to do that?" For once some annoyance seeped into her voice. "I thought you would like the chase," She then mentioned offhandedly.
"It's the most fun part," Sparkle remarked looking at your body on the floor a smile on her face, "But how are you supposed to chase someone's that's dead? ...That ends the game. It'd be great if the fun could last forever! So why can't it?" She let out a laugh, that was less out of amusement and more out of clinging onto the little sanity she had left.
"You're worried," Black Swan kneeled down, and put one arm around her shoulder as your other arm was placed around Sparkle's.
Sparkle turned to Black Swan, still smiling, "Of course! I don't want to miss out on all of the fun!"
You couldn't help but laugh even if it was at your own detriment. It seemed like Sparkle had finally found you, "Took you long enough!" You teased her, the sun remained low in the sky. You forced your shoulders to relax, they were oddly tense.
A bird fluttered above the two of you, resting on a tree branch. "All I hear is a sore loser, I still caught you!" Sparkle's voice was filled with glee as she linked your arms together, "You're mine now, okay!"
"I always have been," You responded to your lover staring at the sun that would forever remain in its Golden Hour, "...You know, I've always wanted to leave home..." You admitted, you wondered when Black Swan would be back. It wasn't quite the same without her.
Thankfully you didn't have to wonder for long as you saw the beautiful woman stepped out of the house. You began to tremble when you saw her. You wondered why... Perhaps out of excitement? If it was anyone else you would've guessed that your trembling was out of fear.
Black Swan walked over to the two of you, practically gliding, "Are you ready to leave now?" She asked you gently, to which your face became alit with excitement, "I suppose Sparkle and I do have to leave soon anyway," Black Swan let out a mellow sigh, "Would you like to join us?"
You didn't think even for a second, "Of course!" You ran to embrace Black Swan, feeling her chest move against yours with every breath.
You'd always wanted to leave the Golden Hour, and to be able to leave with your two new lovers seemed like the best thing that could happen! Perhaps you'd be able to see some fish at the bottom of the sea, or a world die, or some of Sparkle's fun pranks! But you were happiest to stay by their side. That was all that mattered, after all they were the ones who brought light into your life.
Keeping you safe had come at a cost, but all good things require a little sacrifice. You'd still be the same person just without the same parts, well memories. It didn't matter anyway you'd have plenty of memories to replace the ones which had been altered and lost.
Black Swan would fill you with more honeyed memories and Sparkle would bring color to them all.
A free bird sings better than a caged one. And even though the singing was exactly what attracted them in the first place, it'd be better to keep you safe, right where they can see you. But if that bird stops to sing then maybe they'll have to let out. Or make it believe that it was let out by keeping it in a dream. So that even once it wakes up from the dream it'll still believe it's free.
ANYWAY WHILE I WAS IN THE PROCESS OF WRITING THIS I SENT IT TO MY FRIEND ALL PEEPOSHY HEY U WANNA READ IT (first fanfic of mine they would have read that isn't about our friends). AND DISCORD DID THE DUMBASS THING OF SENDING IT IN A .TXT SO I WAS LIKE: aw man don't worry about it
anyway this mf reads it anyway scrolling right and left and down bcus the .txt format is SO bad I straight up just copy pasted it idk why discord was being so bitchy. And like-- they read it so fucking kind and nice :) im blessed with good friends
Per usual I am realizing how infinitely shitty I am at writing head canons (everything just turns into a fic) if this wasn't to your liking send a request and I can try to amend it to more just ideas but generally by the time I get started on the first question (what makes them interested in you) it's already a story and I forgot I was answering a request.
My big idea for this one were strongly inspired by how Black Swan remarks that Sparkle is like a child, as she always seems to be craving affection/approval, and that makes her easy to please. Also Sparkle is so hard to write like her dialogue is chaotic but it's like held within a line idk it's weird I was trying to mimic it but I don't think it came out too well. Also I wanted to add more Black Swan x Sparkle but it just didn't work out that way when I was writing it, don't blame me I can't control what I write (you can blame me).
#hsr#reader insert#gn reader#yandere#yandere x reader#double yandere#sparkle x reader#sparkle hsr#black swan x reader#black swan hsr#hsr x reader#women are really hot in my opinion but i'm not used to writing them as love interests#so this is a very amateurish when it comes to stuff like hugs and stuff but i'm happy with it
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you, forever â⌠luke hemmings
pairing: luke hemmings x ex! reader
description: y/n seems to be finally over luke, but what does she do when he shows up declaring his love for her in the pouring rain? this was requested with the prompts #4 "Please don't cry. I can't stand to see you cryâ & #2 âDonât do this to meâ from my prompt list.
warnings: luke being a shitty boyfriend, a break up. angst. slight mentions of insomnia and disordered eating. cursing. a happy ending.
word count: 3,5k.
a/n: now that i am happy with this fic, it's time to publish it! the beginning of this story was heavily inspired by the song âmoment i knewâ by taylor swift. i hope you like this one! â¤ď¸âđŠš
The broken promises, the events unattended. His lame excuses. They grew a dagger in your heart, which stung time and time again. Your 23rd birthday was no exception.Â
You hosted a party to celebrate your birthday. You never threw any parties, they werenât really your scene. Luke was supposed to be there with you, his hands around your waist, wishing you a happy birthday. Against your wishes and his promises, he wasnât there. Not on time, anyway. Somehow you thought itâd be different this time. Did he even love you like he claimed he did? Did he even care about you? Hell, you even wondered if he was sleeping with someone behind your back.Â
You tried to have fun, you really did. But as the night dragged on and you chugged down way too many tequilas, you bursted into tears in your bathroom. How could someone, your sorry excuse of a boyfriend, make you feel like this on your god-damn birthday?
It was 4am when Luke showed up behind your front door, and you foolishly opened the door for him. The party was over, and you couldnât even bear to look him in the eye. It was the same old story, I am so sorry baby, we had to work around a few things in the studio. I love you, let me make it up to you. I promise Iâll do better next time.Â
You didnât say a single thing to him as you let him in. Luke went to the bathroom, and as soon as he was out of your sight, tears began streaming down your face. You stood in your kitchen, and looked around. The alcohol-stained balloons, empty beer cans and the remains of confetti reminded you of your relationship with Luke. Sad, broken, bruised.
You sobbed and sobbed, hard enough not to notice Luke walking next to you.
"Please don't cry. I can't stand to see you cryâ, he offered you his embrace, which you swore once was warm. And which was something you once wanted more than anything in the world.Â
You sobbed against his chest. This was the last straw, you promised yourself. You didnât want to hear his excuses anymore. You had turned a blind eye to his mistakes, always holding onto some tiny glimmer of hope he would change. You defended him time and time again to your friends and family. You loved him more than you loved yourself, and that seemed to be your greatest mistake.Â
âDonât do this to meâ, you whimpered under his touch, still feeling the endless rivers building up in your eyes. âDo what?â, he proposed the question as if he didnât have a clue what was going on. His eyebrows frowned, and he bit his bottom lip. You couldnât believe it really had come to this. You receded from his embrace, breaking the skin contact.Â
âPretend everythingâs fine. Pretend weâll be okayâ, you swept your tears away, and saw the mascara stains on your hands. You swept them away with the helm of your dress, and wondered what was going through Lukeâs mind. Did he even feel bad for missing your birthday party? Did he even understand how terribly he treated you?
âY/NâŚâ., he enunciated your name as if it was a warning, if there was some line you couldnât cross.
âYou knew this was doomed from the start. You played me along, Luke. I mean, fuck! I thought everything would change. I thought you loved me enough not to miss my own fuckinâ birthday!â.
âIâm sorry I didnât make itâ.
âIâm sorry tooâ, you avoided direct eye contact with him, and left the kitchen with nothing but disappointment and anger. He didnât even bother to come after you.Â
And that was the moment you knew.Â
ââŚ
The morning approached, and you executed your usual morning routines, only this time with a quicker pace. You could do this, you told yourself. Youâll be okay.
Luke was still sleeping, and you gathered his things from your apartment. The spare t-shirts and underwear. His toothbrush, his Vespa mug. Everything. You wanted to make this as smooth as possible. Not necessarily for him, but for you. You didnât want him to stay around any longer than necessary. Sleeping with him last night was a mistake, even if you took all the anger into bed with you. You hated and loved him at the same time.
So, when you heard him shuffling in bed, you entered the room and leant against the door with a coffee mug in your hand.Â
âHey darlingâ, he smirked. The man had no idea. You forced a smile, and waited until he was decent and in his Pink Floyd t-shirt and black sweatpants.Â
âLuke?â.
âHmmm?â.
âI packed up your things, they are waitinâ for you in the hallway. I want you gone. Out of my lifeâ.
ââŚÂ
The beginning was the hardest. The silent screams in the pillow, the loss of appetite. Your sobs echoed through every room in your apartment. There was no escaping him. His eyes, the prettiest blue eyes you had ever witnessed, haunted you wherever you went. Even the god-damn Rainbow Krispies yelled out his name.Â
You carried his silent optimism with you, his voice reminding you everything would work out just fine. You begged the voice to stop time and time again, but it persisted, clung onto you tightly.Â
For the first three months you couldnât even say his name out loud, yet alone hear it coming from someone elseâs mouth. It sounded wrong, the way they said it. Luke was supposed to come from your mouth, with your accent, with your tone of voice.
Slowly but surely, you started to see the world through realism-infused glasses. You didnât think about him the first thing in the morning and the last thing before going to bed. You were okay. You didnât need his love. Instead, you needed your own. A glimpse of hope was staring at you, you just hadnât seen it before.Â
ââŚÂ
The past few years had treated you well, and you had gotten the job of your dreams. Everything was moving smoothly, and you were excited for what the future held for you. You were still living in the same apartment, but you had renovated it to look more like you. The white living room walls were now replaced with the beautiful shade of juniper, and your decor had shifted from a Scandinavian style to a more earthly and antique-appreciating English countryside.
You had stayed out of relationships. Sure, you had gone to a few dates, but you never wanted to build anything serious with them. You considered them more like irregular hook-ups, not official dates. You decided to be on your own. You had everything you needed; friends, family and a job you enjoyed.
You were returning from work, and it was pouring rain. You held an umbrella over your head whilst Bon Iver was blasting through your AirPods. Thankfully it was a short walk to your apartment from the metro station.
A figure of a man, supposedly, sat in front of your apartment complex. Maybe he was lost. Maybe he forgot his keys inside. Maybe he was a creep. Shit. You grabbed your umbrella tighter as you reached him.Â
And then you understood. Dark pants. A worn out leather jacket. Converse. Light, curly hair. A beautiful face, sculpted by the gods, was staring at you. It couldnât be him. It couldnât be.
Luke.
It really was him.
You glared at him, and took your earphones off in shock, placing them in their case. Luke got up from the staircase, and you both stared at each other for a while.Â
The rain was pouring down, and the man hadn't even bothered to bring an umbrella with him. He pulled his soaking wet hair back with his hands and you couldn't understand why your ex-boyfriend was voluntarily hanging out in front of your apartment complex, in a weather like this.
âWhat are you doing here?â, you quivered and held your bag tightly against your body.
âIâm here to get my girl backâ, he shoved his hands into his leather jacket pockets, and studied your face with a somewhat melancholic smile on his face.
âWhat are you talkinâ about?â, you asked, your tone nonchalant.
âIâm here to get you back. Or attempt it, I donât know. I fucked up, Y/N, big time. And many times. And-â
Didn't he think it was a bit too late for that? âLuke, stopâ, you interrupted him. You didnât want to hear it, he had smashed your heart into pieces. He didnât get to apologize to you. You didnât want him to have any power over you. And it wasnât fair how he showed up and reminded of his existence, just now when you were finally ready to open your heart to someone new.Â
âY/N, please? Hear me outâ.
âFuck youâ, you cursed at him, and pondered walking away from him. But you stood in your place, hoping he could see the hurt on your face.Â
âOkay, I deserved that. Is there more?â, he tilted his head slightly, and his eyes bored into yours.
âWhat do you mean?â, you gritted your teeth.
âJust fuckinâ yell at me, get it out of your system. Curse at me, tell me the things you hate about meâ.
âIf you came here for this, leaveâŚpleaseâ, you begged.Â
âNo, no, no, I didnât. Iâm sorry. Shit. UhâŚjust give me a second, hear me outâ.
âOkayâ. Youâd hear what he had to say, and then youâd leave him in the pouring rain. And you wouldnât see him ever again. That was the plan.
âI, I know this might not mean anything to you, after I treated you, but it has always been you, Y/N. After all these years, you are the only one I have ever truly loved. Hell, I still love you. I still remember your favorite songs and the way you like your tea. How you like your eggs in the morning, and how you hate almond milkâŚAnd shit, I just, I need to get this off my chest. I am, still, so foolishly in love with you itâs unbearable. I want you, I want us backâ.
You looked at him with sorrow in your eyes. When you tried to say something, the words escaped your lips, leaving you powerless.
As tumultuous your and Lukeâs relationship was and despite the times you convinced yourself you hated him, you still caught yourself missing him and the relationship sometimes. But thisâŚthis felt a bit too much for you to handle right now.
âSay something, pleaseâŚ.Anythingâ.
âI donât know Luke. I mean, you hurt me. Time and time again. I donât know if I want to go through that pain againâ.
âI knowâ, he sighed. âDo you still love me?â.
âDespite everything, yesâ, you sighed.
âSo isnât it obvious? If you love me, and I love you? Doesnât that mean we should give it another go?â.
âBut sometimes love isnât enough, Luke. Love doesnât fix everything, I thought you knew thatâ.
âI know you are cautious, and I donât blame you. I put you through hell, I know. And if this makes me sound like a broken record, so be it⌠I fuckinâ love you, Y/N. I have always loved you. Just you. Nothing will change that. Not even the years in between that I havenât seen you. Not even the fact that I am not the same person who I was those years ago, when I treated you like shit. When I made you cry every night. I remember it well, Y/N, I havenât forgotten. It seems you are impossible to forgetâ.
âI think you are impossible to forget too, Lukeâ, you sighed again. âI justâŚ.I donât really know what to say to you. I donât even know whatâs going inside my head right now. IâŚI need a moment to figure everything outâ.
âIâll wait for youâ, he promised.
You took quick glances at each other in the rain, and a small smile crept upon Lukeâs lips. You were soaking wet, and wanted to go inside. Against all your instincts, you invited him into your apartment.
âAre you sure?â.
âYeahâ.
âReally?â.
âCome on in before I change my mindâ.
ââŚ
Luke hadn't been in your apartment in three years, and his sudden presence in your own space felt a bit nerve-wracking. Only if he saw that you had kept the mugs he once bought you. And his Blink-182 shirt that you never bothered to give him back. And the necklace hanging on the bathroom shelf that he had bought you on your 2nd anniversary.
You had changed to a dry set of clothes, and offered Luke a towel to dry himself up.
Luke sat next to you on your living room couch, as far as he could on the limited space of the two-seater. The silence was unbearable, it was eating you up. You had rehearsed every little thing you would say to him when youâd see him, but now it felt like the thoughts you once had escaped you the very moment you tried to reach them.Â
You had offered him tea, and were drinking some chamomile tea yourself. A few candles were burning on the top of your coffee table, next to a pile of books and the coffee mug you had left there this morning.Â
Would you really go through this with him again? Was it worth the try? Was it foolish that a small part of you thought it could work out this time? Did he really mean everything he said? Could he support his words with his actions?
âWhen you said you arenât the same person you were before, did you mean it?â, you asked, and blew the tea slightly before drinking it.Â
âI didâ.
âWhat did you mean by it?â, you placed the tea mug at the top of the coffee table. You looked at the candle burning beside it whilst Luke talked.
âThat Iâve grown. I am not a stupid 24 year old anymore, Y/N. I know whatâs important in life. I know what kind of man I want to be, and I am trying to reach that everydayâ, he explained with a certain softness in his voice. This Luke was patient, calm; not like the passive-aggressive Luke you once knew.
âSo growing up has changed you, huh?â, you frowned your eyebrows, and studied his hair, which had been bleached. You liked this look on him, he looked refreshed. And more mature.
âAnd losing youâ.
Your lips parted slightly at the comment and you noticed how he was fiddling with his ring that adorned his left index finger. He still did that.Â
âLukeâŚâ, he looked up to you as he heard his name, and you continued, âwhy didnât you fight for me?â.
The narrative in your head that you had created through the years was that he didnât love or care about you enough. That he had lied to you every time you went to bed, when he whispered those three little words to you.Â
âBecause I knew you deserved something better. It was the right thing for me to do'', he offered you a sad smile.
You swallowed loudly, his words getting a hold of you. You were fighting off the tears, not wanting to show Luke how much it was still hurting.Â
âBut now, I know, or fuckinâ desperately hope I am the man you deserveâ.
âDo you really think it could work out this time? Us?â.
âYes.â
âHow can you be so sure?â.
ââCause I am a stupidly huge hopeless romantic, I supposeâ, he let out a small chuckle. Your lips curved into a smile, âAnd let me guess, youâre stupidly, hopelessly in love with me?â.
âYou took the words out of my mouthâ, he chuckled as you chuckled along with him. You had missed this. Hearing his adorable laughter. And laughing with him, hearing the sounds of your laughter blending in together like it was the most natural thing in the world.Â
âIf we do this, hypothetically, of course, we should take it slow. Like extra slow?â.
âYeah, of course. We wouldnât want to rush a good thing, would we?â.
You smiled at his words, pleased with the fact he was on the same page as you. You would have never guessed, not even in a million years, that youâd discuss rekindling your old flame with the man that once tore up your heart. And that something inside you told you to trust him this time around.Â
âLuke?â.
âTell meâ.
âIâve missed youâ, you confessed as if it was a sin, something you shouldnât say out loud. Something that you could be punished for.Â
âIâve missed you too, Y/Nâ.
Something in you, some unimaginable force, wanted to throw yourself into his arms, and kiss him like you had never been apart.Â
You could feel the tears forming in your eyes, and as you looked how soft and angelic Luke looked next to you, the tears began to stream down your face.
âHey, hey⌠whatâs going on, sweetheart?â, he inched towards you, and like a magnetic pull, you closed the gap between you. The proximity didnât make you nervous, it felt like something that was bound to happen.
âI just..uh, fuck⌠I donât knowâ, you managed to answer through the tears, âCan you⌠hold me?â. He nodded, opened his arms and you placed your head against his beating chest. He wrapped his arms around you and your sobs grew more silent. He fondled your arm with his other hand, and you felt his face squished against your shoulder.
âFeeling better?â.
âYeah. Iâm sorry, I was just a bit overwhelmed, I guessâ.
âDonât worry about it. I get itâ, he still stroked your arm gently, comforting you just the way you needed.
It all started to make sense. His light stubble against your bare shoulder, your black tank top perfectly matching with his, your steadily beating heart.Â
You backed away from his embrace, the sides of your legs still touching one another. You sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, your fingers playing along with his, until Luke cleared his throat.Â
âMy mom asked about you the other day, by the way. Well, she didnât really ask, I suppose, but she wished you were doing good. She loves you, yâknow. You always knew how to make her laugh. And she loved how you used to watch The Bachelor with her, now no one wants to do it. And gosh, she never stops complaining about that, I mean -â
You pressed your tear-infused lips on Lukeâs, and it took him a while to figure out what hell was going on, and when did, he brushed his lips softly against yours. His hands moved to hold your face and you placed your own behind the back of his neck. You started to grin into the kiss, you couldnât help it, and soon realized Luke was doing the same as your teeth clashed along with his. A few giggles escaped both of your mouths, and you could practically feel the blood rushing through your veins. Luke closed the small gap between your lips, and for a while, you sat there in each otherâs proximity.
âI want to try again, Lukeâ, you looked deeply into his baby blue eyes and found a sense of comfort in them.
âI want to do that too.. not like it was obvious or somethingâ, he giggled. You loved his sudden nervousness, it was adorable. A large grin spread across your face, and faded as soon as you remembered the reality of your and Lukeâs situation. Like you said it yourself, love doesnât fix anything, not on its own. Did you and Luke have what it takes to make your relationship work again?
âHow do we do⌠this?â.
âI donât think thereâs a manual for this, but weâll figure it out togetherâ, he kissed your temple.
So you promised each other youâd do everything in your power to make your relationship work again. That night you made up for the lost time, and talked about everything that had been going on in each otherâs lives. You babbled about your work, and he listened to you like your voice was his favorite sound. He showed you his tattoos which he had gotten, and the lotus quickly became your favorite. You shared your traveling stories, and he told you what it was like to be on tour. And when you got emotional about missing him for so long, he got emotional too. And suddenly you were sobbing against each other, your legs entangled with his and his lips brushing over yours.
And when you woke up the next morning, with Lukeâs arm hanging around your torso, you knew you had made the right choice.
Š 2023 bloodhoundluke.
#luke hemmings fanfic#luke hemmings imagine#luke hemmings x y/n#luke hemmings x reader#luke hemmings fluff#luke hemmings x you#5sos fanfiction#5sos imagine#5sos fanfic#luke hemmings angst
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That Familiar Feeling of Family (or how Hob Gadling ended up as an uncle to his stranger's oftentimes feral children): Chapter 1
It's a pretty universally known thing that families are just strange. As Hob is quickly figuring out, however, this little fact is magnified by AT LEAST a billion when the family in question is Endless.
(A lighthearted story in which Hob Gadling finds out his stranger has married, makes friends with a homicidal maniac/ruler, and manages to become an exemplary uncle to a pack of magically mischievous children. Really, now all he has to do is convince everyone to stop calling his and Dream's weekly meetups "playdates", and then his life would be practically perfect.)
AO3 here, Masterlist here
Hob is running.Â
Now, that isn't an unusual occurrence in and of itself. After all, the immortal has been forced to flee many many times in his centuries of existence, and he can say without a speck of arrogance that he's become rather adept at it. But this running is dramatically different for one very large reason.Â
A literally large reason.Â
In that it's the first occasion, at least as far as he's aware, that he's ever had to try and outsprint a gargantuan bloody dragon.Â
Try being the operative term here, because while he is indeed foolishly attempting it, he's also failing miserably if the puff of steamed breath that's tickling his neck is any indication. Which he guesses makes an inordinate amount of sense. Really, has he mentioned already how massive his pursuer is?Â
The beast behind him lets out a loud, guttural roar, its feet causing the ground to shake as it chases after him like it's just a giant dog and he's got a half opened packet of hot dogs in his coat pocket.Â
Hob idly wonders whether he'll actually die if (probably better to say when) that thing finally catches and devours him. He's never had the misfortune of being consumed before, so he's not quite sure how that will work out for him. What if there's just an arm left? Will it still be him? Will he spend his eternity as nothing more than a single discarded body part that has sentience but no way to speak?Â
"Archibald! No! Bad!"
The voice, when it calls out this rather ludicrous admonishment, is definitely that of a child. A little girl if he had to guess, and when he does a quick glance around to see where she might be at (so he can hopefully save her from being eaten) he's shocked to spot her standing near his would-be killer. For a minute, Hob can't make sense of what he's seeing. The girl is in front of the reptilian monster, uncomfortably close to one of its frankly enormous nostrils, and she's pointing a finger at it, wearing the sternest expression on her youthful features that he's ever seen in his life.
The dragon crouches down, hanging its head as if in shame while the child, his possible savior, roundly chastises it. "Archie! You know better. What would Dadda say?"
She softens her scolding, though, by running one of her tiny hands along the leathery snout over its mouth, the same mouth that Hob is completely certain is filled with rows and rows of razor sharp teeth, and he isn't quite sure how to handle this. Whatâs the protocol here? He feels frozen as he watches the scene unfold before him, not knowing whether he should intervene and usher the girl out of harm's way or whether sheâs really in any danger at all, since she seems almost as ifâŚ. as if she commands this thing? Like a young Daenerys Targaryen, except for the facts that she looks to be about five and she's clothed in a ridiculously frilly pink dress paired with shiny, immaculately black combat boots.
He's honestly⌠so confused. But he finds himself moving closer anyway, driven by that curiosity heâs never lost in all of his hundreds of years of living.
The girl seems to gentle towards her⌠pet? Can a dragon even be called a pet? He's having difficulty thinking of this nightmarish creature as anything so mundane, but even he has to admit that itâs exactly what the hellbeast appears to be regardless.Â
"He won't let you⌠won't let you be a dragon if he⌠finds out about this."
The dragon, that he's just starting to process must be named Archibald or Archie, since he's heard her say it a couple times, lowers its massive head to nuzzle against the child, a puff of steam unfurling from its nostrils to ruffle her hair as it huffs like it's pouting. She soothes it then, stroking her fingers along its dark scales, the ones that seem shot through with a little sapphire when the brilliant sun from above hits them at just the right angle.Â
"I know," she goes on. "I won't tell him, Archie, but no chasing the dreamers. Dadda was ad⌠adaâŚ" She frowns at this as if she's struggling over the word.Â
And Hob, having once had a precious son of his own who sometimes got caught up on pronouncing things, can't help but to offer a quiet, "Adamant?"
The little girl's face lights up, her ocean blue eyes widening at him in something like grateful glee. "Adamant," she repeats slowly. "That's⌠it."
He takes a minute to study her then, this too young dragon tamer. She's a small child, lovely in that same ethereal, unnatural way that he's always associated with his stranger. Her hair is a mess of riotous raven curls that seem to be coming loose from a single braid plaited at the back of her head, and her complexion is almost translucently pale save for the bright rosy flush on her cheeks.Â
"I'm⌠Hob," he supplies with only a mite of hesitation.
Her smile is almost overwhelming in its joy. "Hi, Hob! I'm Aurora!"
And he opens his mouth then to ask after her parents and where they might be, to question her about the ferocious looking mythological beast that she seems to be in control of, but he isn't afforded the opportunity to do any of those things. Another voice joins them before he can, a melodic, otherworldly one that Hob knows all too well.Â
It's his⌠stranger.Â
His coat is longer here, draping down to the ground like something Hob would have worn in his goth punk days back in the eighties, but other than that he seems to have on the same black shirt, black pants, and black boots combo that Hob last saw him in.Â
Hob takes a minute to gawk. He isn't ashamed to admit that his stranger is beautiful, all marble skin and high cut cheekbones, his hair a wild disarray of windblown black that sticks up at odd angles, almost as if it's the one part of his appearance that his magic can't seem to render as tame.Â
"Aurora, what have I relayed to you concerning Archibald? I was told that he was in dragon form and terrorizing the wolves yet again."
"Dadda," the girl in question starts, sounding very contrite. "He won't do it⌠anymore."
His stranger's face tightens in what Hob thinks is supposed to be a severe expression, though it's clear he's not quite getting there in his daughter's bubbly presence.Â
Wait.
Waaaaaait a minute.
What?
What did....
His⌠daughter? She'd said Dadda, hadn't she? Hadnât sheâŚ. referred to his stranger by that title? His stranger? His stubborn, broody, took-a-century-to-admit-that-Hob-was-even-his-friend stranger? For a moment, Hob feels like he needs to sit, like he might pass out between the running for his life not ten minutes prior and the revelation that this child could belongâŚ. toâŚ. to Dream.Â
Not that Hob ever really calls him that. Heâd only gotten the name a few years ago when they'd last met, and while it had been a nice piece of information to have (and long overdue in his humble and frustrated opinion) heâd spent over six hundred years referring to his stranger as just that. And he honestly doesnât see this habit of his changing anytime soon.
"I believe that is what I was promised when last he engaged in such unruliness," Dream goes on, seemingly oblivious to the panic attack that Hob is having. Truthfully, that shocks Hob not at all.
"He's still a⌠a baby, Dadda."
And yeah. Hobâs not wrong. She'd assuredly called him Dadda, had just said it again even.Â
"Be that as it may, he is not permitted to wreak havoc on the realm or its inhabitants. No matter his age, starshine."
At last, Hob seems to find his voice, and he uses it to let out a small, barely there, "Dadda?"
He flushes a little with embarrassment as soon as the word is out of his mouth, because it sounds⌠not great. It's definitely not what he imagined himself saying at his next meeting with his oldest friend. But his stranger only goes stock still, his shoulders tensing as he glances towards Hob, his eyes narrowing in something that Hob thinks might actually be confusion.
Which⌠is all too completely understandable. Although, Hob will confess that he's never thought that his mopey stranger would ever be capable of looking as thoroughly perplexed as he does right this moment.
"Hob Gadling?" Dream questions.
"Is that⌠Is that your daughter?"
"It is," he allows slowly. "This is Aurora."
And while he introduces them, albeit awkwardly, Hob thinks he detects a fair amount of fatherly pride in the way that Dream puts one elegant, long fingered hand on the girl's shoulder to pull her against his side, in the way that his rather harsh, angular features soften as he smiles down at her. Seeing this, he supposes, might make him happy in any other situation, and it's a nice thing that his rather⌠er, reserved (i.e. cold, distant, and emotionally repressed, though Hob would never say it aloud) stranger is obviously comfortable enough with him to show it.Â
But⌠this isn't any other situation. This is a rather⌠big piece of news that Hob's just been walloped over the head with.
âYou have a child?â Hob blurts out, his brain processing this revelation so sporadically that itâs almost humiliating.Â
Dream's brow furrows. âI believe that I only just conveyed as much to you. Are youâŚ. quite well?â
âIâm sorry. A daughter? I canâtâŚ." Hob struggles to articulate his thoughts, an utterly unsurprising complication given that he's relatively certain that this has to all be some strange fever dream. "Why didnât you tell me about her the last time we met?â
Dream narrows his eyes again before glancing down at the girl. âStarshine, go and assist Archibald in returning to his dog form.â
Dog form? Dog form? That fire-breathing beast becomes a dog? For some reason, he's picturing Cerberus, with its three terrifying heads and the blood of those unlucky dead who try to escape the Underworld dripping from each of their corresponding fang-toothed maws. Hob wonders idly if the aneurysm he's sure to have soon is going to kill him.
âBut DaddaâŚ.â
âNo. He is forbidden from being a dragon for at least a week. Especially since I now see that he has been chasing the dreamers despite my explicit directive not to do so.â
Pointedly, he looks towards Hob, who in turn swings his gaze to his young, temporarily forgotten, savior. Her eyes have gone wide and pleading, and Hob feels his stomach lurch in guilt.Â
"I was⌠just walking about, old friend."
And that wanker, that enigmatic tosspot (who hadn't even bothered to tell him he had a child) only raises an eyebrow in an expression of such incredulity that Hob knows he's trying to call bullshit without actually speaking the words. "Walking?"Â
"Yes. Briskly."
That eyebrow goes somehow higher up on Dream's forehead. "By which you mean you were running."
Hob shakes his head. He's done some shady things in his very long life, but even he's not heartless enough to separate a girl from her⌠er, pet. "No. Not at all. Just⌠strolling. Vigorously."
And for some reason, Dream seems amused by this, as if he is aware that Hob is lying and it's humorous to him. âVery well. Three days then, Aurora.â
She claps gleefully (like she's just won something grand) before wandering out of earshot to presumably tend to her dragon/dog, and Morpheus grants Hob a small smile when she's gone. "You need not have lied on that vile monstrosity's behalf, Hob Gadling."
"I didn't-"
"You indeed did. This is my realm. I know all that transpires within its borders."
There's a loud pop from where the girl and the dragon are, and when Hob swings his gaze over towards them, he sees a great quantity of smoke clearing rapidly away.Â
"Obviously not, or else you'd know it was on your daughter's behalf that I stretched the truth a bit," Hob snarks back.
Aurora steps out of the cloud before plopping down on the ground, followed immediately by a small, fluffy⌠thing that comes running out from behind her, yapping loudly. Hob winces, thinking that he almost prefers that menacing roar from earlier to the high-pitched noise it's making now. Â
"You utterly discarded the truth in this case, friend."
Hob crosses his arms over his chest in a defensive gesture. He can admit to feeling a little⌠well, hurt that Dream obviously hadn't bothered to inform him of his child, and despite that being referred to as a friend by this brooding pillock does make him slightly less upset, he's still angry.Â
"Pets are important to children. I didn't want to see her lose one to your temper."
Little Aurora pulls a sketchbook and a container of pencils from the bag that Hob is absolutely positive she hadn't had with her before. Humming, she munches happily on something that Hob thinks might be crackers, and he is suddenly aware of the fact that someone must have taken the time to pack these for her. Hob, to preserve what little bit of his sanity he has remaining, is going to assume that it was this child's mother who'd done so since he can't for the life of him imagine this eternal god-like entity before him puttering around a kitchen and preparing snacks like a normal bloke. That might be more unbelievable than the dragon as far as Hob's concerned.
"Ah. I see," Dream tells him, and it sounds almost as if he's trying to be⌠kind? "Let me set your mind at ease then, Hob Gadling. Even were I willing to hurt my daughter and do away with that ghastly creature, my wife would never allow such a thing. So, you need not worry over the matter."
Hob feels himself go rigid. Did he just sayâŚ.. "Wait a minute? Wife?"
"You are soon to wake, Hob."
"Oh, no, no, no," Hob protests, putting his hands up, palm out, towards Dream. "You need to explain to me what you mean by wife."
It's no use, though. Between one blink and the next, Hob is lurching from his sleep, the image of his stranger smirking at him still fresh in his mind. His breathing is heavy, and he's soaked through with sweat, enough so that he knows he's going to have to change the sheets today. Wearily, he scrubs a tired hand over his face, and he tells himself that all of that must have been some strange fever dream, after all.Â
Reaching out for the bottle of water he keeps by his bed, Hob is alarmed to see a piece of paper folded and tucked there. He snatches it up, opening the thick parchment to reveal an array of hearts drawn and colored in what he thinks might be twenty different shades of crayon. The message at the bottom is done in a messy, childish scrawl, and it reads:
Deer Mr. Hob. It wuz nise to sea u. Visit agin turmeric, pleeze.Â
And Hob Gadling, who'd once won immortality just with the questionable skill of being able to run his mouth, finds that in this case, he can only stare blankly at the invitation in complete silence.
NEXT CHAPTER
#hob gadling#sandman fic#morpheus x original character#dad!morpheus#morpheus as a father#morpheus fic#sandman fanfiction#morpheus fanfiction#morpheus x oc#sandman oc#dragons as cute fluffy dogs#dream of the endless#morpheus hob gadling bromance#hob gadling as a reluctant life coach to an ornery endless#morpheus x reader
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Rewatching ep.31 of Love Between Fairy and Devil and blogging my reaction
Here it is. The much dreaded episode 31. Spoilers ahead.
Nooooo. Not the grass bracelet. She made it with so much love and care for you, DFQC :(
And then DFQC orders Xunfeng â who is overjoyed when he sees people suffering â to keep an eye on her. Good choice, DFQC, what could possibly go wrong?
Perhaps itâs my idea â I tend to be biased when it comes to Xunfeng â but does he enjoy this more than he should?
Ronghao is alone with Xiao Lanhua. What could go wrong?
So he tries to kill her. But if she dies, then DFQC dies too
Oh DFQC felt her suffering and he tries to find her
Changheng! I have never been so happy to see you! (still a part of me foolishly believes that somehow she will be saved)
Poor Xiao Lanhua. Sheâs crawling to the sword in order to kill herself. Itâs not fair :(
Everyone died during the battle. THE END
Yes, Changheng show him!
Ok, now Ronghao takes off his mask. Oh come on, Ronghao why do you have to be so handsome? I want to hate you, but I canât. I mean you expect an evil monster behind the mask and you get one of the most handsome men in the world, all wrapped up in sadness and blurry eyes
I get anxiety by watching Xiao Lanhua slowly trying to reach for the sword, while DFQC musters all his remaining strength to reach her. And the music. Ufffff
Omg she took the sword, she took the sword. Nooooooooo :(
Yeah, show us her happy moments with Si Ming, now, break our heart even more
âEverything in this world is fate, but love.â So Xiao Lanhua, chooses to love him, chooses to kill herself to save him. I am sad, world. I am sad
She stabbed herself :( and now he found her but it was too late
The scene where she soars into the sky, goosebumps
All the dead persons in the battlefield are revived and the statues come to life. Ronghao of course only cares about Chi Di
The mark of the curse is erased on DFQCâs forehead. This is so sad
And the first thing she says is âThis is great. You are fine.â All she cares about is him. :( I canât, I seriously canât.
He takes her to see the sun. Like he used to take her, back when they were living in Arbiter Hall. Back then he did so to make her feel better, so that he could use her power. Now because she is dying.
âSmile.â This is heartbreaking
And itâs not only that she died, her body was gone too. Poor DFQC
DFQC has recently regained his emotions and he had to feel and understand all of them in such a short time. How can one handle all this pain and grief? Especially a person who has been devoid of feelings for almost all his life?
The 100.000 soldiers were released, there is also truce now for 100 years
Jieli lies to Shangque making him believe she was working for the Lord of Haishi from the beginning and no one threatened her. Poor Jieli and poor Shangque
Baby dragon is so pure :(
âHow long did I sleep?â asks ChiDi. About 30000 years
Oh no no no no no no no, the dream scene. Noooooo this hurts more than the death scene
âI think I had a nightmare. Let me hug you.â *taking deep breaths to calm myself*
They deserved to have these moments in reality. Ugh. I get upset because we were robbed.
I canât help thinking that the director was like âDylan, Esther, just be yourselves.â These scenes look so much like their bts
âWe have been married for 500 years.â My baby boy lives his fantasy dream life
Aaaand he is dreaming
All I have to say is that this was painful.
#i know ep.32 is going to be harder to watch#that dream scene#i don't know why i care so much about two fictional characters#but i do#i can understand why Dylan couldn't stop crying after the stopped shooting the death scene#i mean it's heartbreaking#i am rambling now#struggling with so many feelings#but#i love rewatching it nonetheless#love between fairy and devil#lbfad#mine#ep.31#my reactions
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S2: The Bad Batch (1)
Chapter One: Spoils of War
Gif by @sergeantbandana
Hunter x femaleJedi!reader
Series Summary: Some time has passed since everything that happened at Kamino and you and the Batch are trying to figure out your place in the rapidly changing Imperial galaxy. And youâre having to do all this whilst figuring out where your relationship with Hunter fits into it.
Chapter Summary: Still tied and working with Cid, you and the Batch undertake a risky heist.
Masterlist for S1
Genre: Friends (idiots) to Lovers (weâre in the lovers stage now)
Chapter Warnings: Use of (Y/N) (will limit as much as I can), canon-deviation (with regards to certain dialogue aspects, timelines and who does what etc), the Force and Force communication working how I say it can, canon-typical violence, light angst and fluff
Word Count: 4.2K
Authorâs notes:Â And now weâre onto S2! Please see this post for more details on it :) Very excited to be sharing this with you all and I donât think I will ever be able to fully put into words just how much the support has meant! Warnings in italics are warnings that are going to be consistent in every chapter and so wonât be included from now on, only chapter specific warnings will be. Any new readers, please let me know if you want to be tagged! Enjoy!
When Cid had sent you all on this mission and you had seen that it involved a tropical beach location, you rather foolishly thought it would be a relatively simple task. Now, as the four of you ran from the screeching pod of crab-like creatures, you realised you had to stop thinking any mission from Cid would be straightforward. You came out onto the beach clearing and helped Echo up as he stumbled headfirst into the waterâs edge before you kept sprinting.
âWe went over the plan five times.â Â Echo said irritably to Wrecker.
âI got the package, didnât I?â Wrecker replied indignantly.
âJust keep moving.â Hunter ordered.
You glanced behind you and saw more creatures emerging from the beach trees and they were closing in fast. You fired some shots behind you, but the impact was minimal, it merely forced them to go in their shells for a couple of seconds.
âTech, weâve got the cargo, but we could use some firepower.â Hunter called into his comm.
âWrecker woke the pod, didnât he?â Tech replied as he powered up the ship.
âYeah, and theyâre not happy. We need a pick-up.â Hunter requested as he too fired behind him.
--
âCopy that. Weâre on our way.â Omega chimed in as she and Tech entered the ship. It was then that the tug on the fishing line grabbed her attention. âTech, we caught something. And I think itâs big.â
âRelease the line. We do not have time to reel-â He broke off as more of the creatures climbed on the shipâs windshield and the alarm started blaring. He tried to get the ship off the rock but one of the crabs had grabbed the line and wasnât letting it go. The ship shuddered and he heard Omega cry out from outside. âOmega!â
Omega managed to grab hold of the line and stop herself from falling further. âIâm okay.â She called up.
âHang on.â Tech said as he attempted to get the Marauder air bound. However, the presence of these animals was making it a very difficult task.
âTheyâre wrecking the ship!â
âI cannot shake them.â
Omega slid down further and the creature below her pulled on the line once more. She studied the scene below her and she knew Tech couldnât get the ones on the ship off if she didnât help so, instead of trying to climb back up, she slid down and used the momentum to jump over the creatures, tucking and rolling as she landed. She drew her bow quickly and fired on the animals destroying the ship, allowing Tech to get away.
The victory was short-lived as she heard more rustling and shrilling behind her and she saw that more were coming her way. She ran across the beach in parallel to where the ship was.
âGrab the line.â Tech said through comms.
As more creatures came to cut her path off, she fired onto one and used the way it huddled back into its shell as a means to jump and reach the line before the others could grab her. Clipping the line onto her belt, she continued to fire down on the creatures as Tech flew the ship to where the rest of you were.
--
âTech, where are you?â You asked as you all stopped running upon seeing your path being quickly shut off by even more of the crabs. However, that swiftly became the least important question as the Marauder rounded the corner but with a distinct addition hanging below it.
âWhy is Omega hanging off the ship?â Hunter asked, a hint of horror behind the question as he watched.
âIt is an unscheduled study break.â Tech responded.
Omega had been pulled back up to the entry way of the ship and sent it back down whilst she continued to shoot at the rapidly encroaching creatures.
You all ran over to where the ship had stopped and let Wrecker secure the package before you all stepped on it and let it take you up to the safety of the ship.
--
Hunter sat down and took of his helmet whilst you stood beside him and removed your hood and mask. All of you were breathing heavily.
âI thought the beach was going to be relaxing.â Wrecker grunted as he collapsed over the container.
âAppreciate the backup, but try staying inside the ship next time.â Hunter said to Omega.
âIâll try.â Â Omega took her hat off. âBut it was still pretty fun.â She added with a smile on her face.
--
Ord Mantell.
âGreetings. It is I, AZ-345211-â
âYeah, yeah, we know.â Wrecker interrupted as he made his way past.
âYou are all quite late. Mistress Cid has been extremely vocal about her displeasure.â
âWell, thereâs a surprise.â You and Echo muttered to each other as you followed the others to her office.
--
âWell, well, well. The space lugs decided to finally show up.â Cid said drily upon seeing you all walk through the door.
âBetter late than dead, I always say.â
You didnât recognise the woman sitting rather comfortably in Cidâs chair, drink in hand, with her legs up and feet on the table. âAnd who are you?â
âWouldnât you like to know?â She replied with a smirk before she got up moved around the desk. âSo, this is the top team youâve been talking about? The rogue squad on the run from the Empire, huh? How juicy.â
âYou told her?â Hunter said to Cid, his guard automatically going up.
âDonât get twitchy.â Cid said dismissively. âPheeâs a friend. Sheâs the most trustworthy pirate I know.â
âTwo things that donât belong in the same sentence.â You grumbled, keeping your gaze on Phee.
Phee met your eye contact. âYouâre exactly as Cid described you.â She said with a smirk. Â
You glared at her but said nothing.
âArenât clones supposed to look alike? So much for quality control.â She turned her eyes to each of them. âThis oneâs too big. This oneâs too small. This oneâs got a face tattoo.â She let out a short laugh. âYeah, real subtle.â Then her eyes caught the one with the data pad standing at the end. âOh. Hey now. Got a name, brown eyes?â She flirted.
Your jaw dropped and you eagerly awaited to see how Tech was going to respond.
Tech merely adjusted his goggles. âTech. However, the phenotypic eye colour for all clones is brown. Iris pigmentation was not affected by our muta-â
Yeah, that feels about right. You thought to yourself.
âWell, as fascinating as this has been. I have places to be.â Phee interrupted before she handed Cid her drink. âYou, letâs see those muscles in action. Grab that and follow me.â
Wrecker looked at Hunter for direction and when he nodded, he bent down and picked up the package. âUh, y-yes maâam.â
âAnd, Cid, that intel is not free. I expect a cut if your âtop teamâ comes through.â Phee said before she left the room.
âWhat is she talking about?â Hunter asked.
âAnd how much does she actually know?â You asked.
âRelax, she doesnât know about your âsituationâ.â Cid replied. âNow, can we get into this? Itâs your next mission. You lot are heading to the Outer Rim.â Cid pulled up a hologram of the exact place she was sending you.
You looked upon the image with utter disgust.
âThat is Castle Serenno, the former home of Count Dooku.â Tech provided.
âWhoâs that?â Omega asked.
âA Jedi who betrayed the Republic and led the Separatists in a war.â You spat. âYou canât seriously be expecting-â
âLeave whatever personal issue you have out of it and look at the facts. With him being dead, Dookuâs entire war chest is up for grabs. The Empire has already started pillaging his palace, but there is still time to strike before itâs all gone.â
You shook your head at her.
âToo much of a risk.â Hunter said. âYou want that war chest? You go after it.â With that, he left the room and the rest of you followed.
--
You, Hunter, and Omega were by the bar counter and Omega was studying the data pad in front of her.
âWhat class of shuttle? Lambda or Delta?â Hunter quizzed.
âLambda-class.â Omega answered instantly.
âVery good.â Hunter said proudly.
You watched them both with a fond smile. In the time since Kamino, Hunter had really embraced the role he had in Omegaâs life, in fact you all had. The relationship you each had with her was slightly different but that was what made it work. Despite everything that had happened, the bonds between all of you had only grown stronger. Same went with Omega too. You had watched her grow from a young girl who didnât know what dirt was to someone that was memorising every Imperial ship and who was more than capable of taking care of herself.
Wreckerâs voice grabbed both of your attention. âIâm in too.â The two of you looked over to see the others in a huddle with Cid.
âGood. Then weâre all in agreement. Now, all we gotta do is the other two.â
âConvince us about what?â Hunter asked as you both approached the group.
âUh, well, we took a vote, and we wanna go after the war chest.â Wrecker said awkwardly.
âItâs unanimous. Even killjoy over here agreed.â Cid revealed, gesturing towards Echo.
Despite the situation, the edges of your mouth lifted slightly as you saw the affronted expression on Echoâs face.
âSerenno is Imperial occupied. Weâve stayed off the Empireâs radar since Kamino. Why chance it now?â Hunter said.
âYou canât let your little girlfriendâs social standing stop you from going anywhere with an Imperial presence.â Cid said bluntly.
âWeâve talked about that before and thatâs not why, Cid.â You snapped. Itâs not, right? You glanced at him, relieved that he shook his head. âThereâs a bigger picture.â
âExactly. Just cause you donât like the guy that this stuff used to belong to shouldnât mean you donât go. If anything, thatâs more reason to go. But more than that, the contents of just one of those containers would be worth more than all the jobs you pulled for me combined. You can buy your freedom.â
âWeâre already free.â Hunter argued.
âItâs cute you think that.â Cid replied. âClearly, youâre not paying attention to whatâs happening out there, but I am. Itâs only a matter of time before the Empire comes here. And then my little operation is over which means no more jobs for you.â
âShe⌠does have a valid point.â Tech agreed.
âYou wanna really be free? Then pull off this heist and youâll have the means to disappear. No more risky missions. No more living hand to mouth. You can have a future. Isnât that what youâre after?â Cid asked, her eyes shifting to you.
You want (y/n) to be craving a life you canât give her? Crosshairâs words about you from Kamino still haunted his mind and he looked at you beside him, but you werenât looking at him. You were looking over at Omega and then he too looked at the young girl. Living amongst fugitives where sheâs constant danger? Again, the words of his brother came flooding back.
You sighed and turned to face him. For her?
And you, he mentally added before he nodded and addressed the group. âOkay, letâs go.â
--
The ship flew through hyperspace. Things on the ship were peaceful. Omega was in her room; Wrecker was napping in the co-pilots chair, and Hunter was watching the navigation console, with you in your bunk just behind it grabbing some rest too.
Echo approached Hunter from the cockpit and glanced up at Omegaâs room and he looked over at you. The curtain in the gun turret was closed and your back was turned, and your shoulders moved in steady rise and fall so he figured it was safe. âI know why you agreed to this mission. But we can do better things with Dookuâs fortune than hide, Hunter. With what weâre up against, we have to be prepared to fight. That means numbers and weapons.â
âThatâs not the kind of life this kid deserves.â Hunter replied.
âAnd youâre just thinking about the kid?â
Hunter shot him a look of warning.
Not to be dissuaded, Echo pushed forward. âLook, our lives are like this because of both of them.â
Hunter got up swiftly and pushed Echo back towards the hallway by the cockpit, his head turning back to see if either you or Omega had made any indication that you had heard that.
âTaking Omega off Kamino and sticking with her.â Echo indicated back over to you. âWas the right thing to do. But there are others out there who need our help. Weâve seen what the Empire is doing throughout the galaxy. We should be doing more.â Echo walked back to the cockpit.
Hunter sat back down by the console, unaware of the young girl peeking from behind the curtain and the fact that your eyes were wide open.
--
Serreno.
You departed the ship and donned your hood and masked before checking that your vibroblade and blaster were secure. You were trying to shake the guilt you were feeling but with little success. Now, you just felt a bit awkward.
Hunter sensed something off in your demeanour and he squeezed your hand. âEverything okay?â
âYup.â You replied quickly. âJust want to get this over and done with.â
âSo, where is this palace?â Wrecker asked.
Tech studied his datapad. âThe city is on the opposite side of this mountain range.â
Hunter noticed Omega hanging back as you all began the walk. âAre you coming?â He put on his helmet as she started walking too but he couldnât quite shake the feeling that something was off with both of you, and he found himself hoping neither of you had heard what Echo had said.
--
You all peered over the edge of the mountain path to see the city completed decimated.
âThatâs the city? What happened to it?â Omega asked.
âImperial orbital bombardment. Same as on Kamino.â Echo answered.
You continued to walk for a short time before you came upon the castle.
Tech pulled out his macrobinoculars and studied the scenes below. âIt appears that they are beginning to transport the war chest off-world. Our window of opportunity is quickly closing.â He passed the binoculars over to Echo.
âThereâs over 40 troopers down there.â Echo said after he stopped looking and stood up.
Wrecker merely grunted and pounded his fists together. âThatâs nothing.â
âStealth, Wrecker. Remember?â Omega reminded him.
The sound of engineâs powering up grabbed your attention, and you groaned as you saw the ships that served as a painful reminder of the incident on Daro. âI hate those ships.â You mumbled as you watched a couple take off and fly alongside the cargo freighter. The light weight of Hunterâs hand on your back provided you some reassurance.
âImperial escort ships.â Tech stated. âThe standard protocol for when high-level cargo is being transported.â
âGet to the nearest container and grab what you can.â Hunter directed. âWeâll be the eyes on the ground.â Hunter said, nodding towards you. âIf things go sideways, weâll divert their forces and buy you some time.â
You split up into your two groups and made your way down the mountainside.
--
You were uncharacteristically quiet as the two of you walked.
âAre you sure everything is alright?â Hunter broached carefully.
âYeah. Just donât want to be here any longer than we have to.â You deflected. âCome on, we should focus. Weâre nearly at the shipyard.â You added, nodding ahead before you sped up.
Hunter paused for a moment and just watched you go. He really hoped you hadnât heard Echo, but he knew you were right. There would be time afterwards to talk about whatever was going on. He got his head back in the game and matched your pace.
--
âIn position. And the second transportâs launching.â Echo commed through as he watched with the others from the treeline.
You studied the group of soldiers ahead of you from behind the trees.
âWeâve got roving patrols. Stay alert.â Hunter advised back.
You waited a few moments to allow more ships to depart before you both covertly made your way down. You followed Hunterâs signal and the two of you split to sabotage as many of the ships as you could.
Running at a crouch, and keeping a look out as you did so, you planted your first explosive before moving onto the next ship.
--
The others had managed to successfully infiltrate the final transport, but they were needing to hustle since Wreckerâs action of stunning an Imperial soldier meant they were on more of a time crunch.
--
You attached your last explosive and got ready to leave but your eyes caught sight of a trooper checking out the ship you knew Hunter was just at, but you huffed out a relieved sigh when you saw that he was able to get clear before they spotted him. You used their distraction to swiftly leave and hop over the small wall and join Hunter back behind the trees. Now, you just had to wait for word from the others.
--
âCT-8808 report.â
The order chiming through the unconscious soldierâs helmet was the moment Echo knew their time was running out. âHunter, I think weâre about to have some company.â
âAre you clear?â Hunter asked.
âNegative. We could use that diversion about now.â
âOn it.â Hunter nodded at you, and you brought out the detonator and activated the charges, sending a series of ships up on flames and thankfully it worked like Hunter had intended. A rush of soldiers headed over to the sight of the destruction.
The two of you began to run back in the direction of the rest of your squad.
âWeâre heading your way. Be ready.â Hunter said.
--
âWhere are the others?â You asked urgently as you saw Wrecker was the only one to have appeared.
âStill in the container.â He replied, angling back to look.
The sight of the locked doors and smoke leaving the transport got your heart beating faster. You activated your comm. âTech, the shipâs taking off. Get out of there.â You pressed urgently.
--
âHurry, Echo.â Omega said anxiously as he struggled with the door mechanism.
âItâs externally sealed. I canât open it.â Echo replied.
âHunter, weâre trapped in the container.â Omega said fretfully. âWe canât get out.â
--
Those words had both you and Hunter turn to each other, and you were sure the panic behind your eyes would be in his own behind his helmet.
âOn our way.â Hunter replied quickly.
âUh, Boss? I think they know somethingâs up.â Wrecker stated.
The two of you followed his line of sight and saw that a series of troopers had now surrounded the container.
Hunter sighed. This wasnât at all how things were supposed to go. He drew his blaster and set it to stun. âWeâre done hiding anyway.â
You followed his actions and the three of you ran towards the cargo ship, firing a series of blasts as you did so.
The three of you climbed the ladder on the side of the ship as it took off, with you going first, then Hunter, then Wrecker. The troopers didnât let that put them off and you flattened yourself against the railings as much as you could to avoid their fire whilst still sending back shots of your own.
You took a moment to see how the others were and panic clawed at your throat as you saw a round of shots being fired in Hunterâs direction, their aim focused on where his grip on the ladder was. One particular shot had him losing his hold and all that went through your mind was the terror you had felt on Daro as you once again had to watch him fall. âHunter!â You cried out.
You dropped your head in relief when you saw he was able to grab hold of the last rung and hang over the edge. It wasnât ideal but the alternative was far worse.
You were soon high enough to be out of blaster fire range, something Wrecker wasnât overly fond of as he peered down. âOh, Iâm starting to regret this.â He said uneasily.
âWe gotta go.â You said as you saw the ship getting closer to leaving the atmosphere.
âGo where?â Wrecker argued.
Hunter saw the castle approaching beneath him. âSheâs right. Jump!â
The three of you let go of the ladder and slid down the cylindrical structure of Dookuâs castle. You and Hunter used your vibroblades to slow your descent and Hunter helped Wrecker as he held on to the edge of the platform you had landed on.
âThis isnât any better.â Wrecker groaned as he stood up.
Hunter watched the ship continue to fly away as he sheathed his blade. Already his anxieties were coming to life before his eyes. Something only made worse when he heard Omegaâs voice through the comms.
âHunter, where are you?â
âSorry, kid. We got a little sidetracked. You need to get off that ship before it jumps to hyperspace.â
âIf we gain access to the shipâs main hold, we could commandeer an escape pod.â Tech theorised.
âDo it.â Hunter ordered. âWeâll get to the Marauder and recover you.â
âItâs going to take a while.â You pointed out as you stared at the crowd of clones heading towards the castle as the fired up at you.
âQuick! Inside.â Hunter directed.
The three of you made your way inside the castle.
--
You all entered the decrepit and run-down main room of Dookuâs castle through a side door, and a shudder ran down your spine. His absence clearly didnât equal the absence of the dark forces that surrounded the room. It was affecting you more than you anticipated. It wasnât just discomfort you felt, you were physically cold too.
âThis place gives me the creeps.â Wrecker said uneasily as he walked in further.
Hunter noticed the way you paused before fully entering the room and the way the hand on your blaster shook slightly. He signalled to Wrecker to move on ahead and he hung back. âYou with us?â He asked gently as he allowed himself a moment to just be your Hunter and not your sergeant.
You exhaled deeply and rolled your neck. âYeah. Sorry, Iâm good.â
Hunter nodded at you before you both continued down the stairs further into the room.
The quiet was short lived, it wasnât long before the main door opened, and the troopers began to fire on you once more.
The three of you fired back with stun blasts of your own and took cover behind the desk. The floor buckled slightly as you all landed on it, but you couldnât pay it much thought, your focus was making sure those troopers couldnât get closer to you.
âAny idea how weâre getting out of here?â You asked over the din of blaster fire.
Hunter looked around and noticed the cracked window and looked down at the floor and stroked along the edges. âWeâre not going out. Weâre going down. Thereâs a lift below us. Cover me.â He began to get to work on the console.
You and Wrecker focused your fire, giving Hunter as much time as he needed but they had reinforcements, and that time was rapidly running out.
âWhat is taking you so long?â Wrecker complained.
âIâm trying. Tech usually does this.â Hunter answered as he started multitasking between firing on the soldiers and activating the lift. He was finally able to get it moving but one blast meant the panel short circuited, halting the lift in in tracks. âItâs jammed.â He said irritably before he gave up and helped out with thinning out Imperial numbers.
âThey wonât see meâŚâ You said hesitantly as you stunned a couple more troopers before you took cover.
âNo.â Hunter said firmly as he continued to fire.
âI can fix it.â Wrecker offered instead.
The two of you took a step back as he threw a smoke bomb which gave you and Hunter the opening you needed to gain the upper hand and it gave Wrecker the chance to begin jumping.
Realising what his plan was, your stomach dropped to the level you sure you all would be free falling to very shortly. âWait! Donât!â Your plea was short lived since the three of you tumbled down the lift shaft, Wreckerâs screams echoing around you.
--
With Plan A of the rest of you coming to their aid failing, and Plan B of commandeering an escape pod also failing, Echo, Tech and Omega found themselves back in a cargo container, hoping that by releasing all the containers, the re-entry boosters would slow their landing. The main flaw in this plan being not being able to control where they land.
âWhen are the re-entry boosters supposed to fire?â Echo asked as he let Omega through the netting of one of the containers before he followed suit.
âI think they should have by now.â Omega replied, nervous that they hadnât activated yet.
âThat is going to be a problem.â Tech stated as he struggled to keep hold of the netting on the outside of the container as it continued to plummet towards the ground.
Next Chapter>
Tagging: @noeasyisnoisy, @tpwkcalli, @fuckoffthanos, @arctrooper69, @graciexmarvel, @flyingkangaroo, @nightmonkeysstuff, @brujaporfavor, @a-streakofazure, @ladytano420, @dragonrider9905, @keep-calm-and-drink-caf, @yyourmotherrâ, @xxeiraxxâ
#the bad batch#the bad batch s2#the bad batch season 2#hunter x reader#hunter x fem!reader#hunter x femaleJedi!reader#hunter x female!reader#sergeant hunter x reader#sergeant hunter#hunter tbb#hunter the bad batch#the bad batch hunter x you#hunter x y/n#tbb hunter x reader#the bad batch fanfiction#star wars#friends to lovers#fluff#angst
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A Task for Heroes
Troy 2004 Oneshot
Introduction scene for this request coming soon
Characters: Patroclus, Odysseus, Achilles.
Summary: Odysseus finds out of Menelaus' plans to make peace with Troy while Achilles discusses with him his preparations for the war Agamemnon intends to push in Thesaly. Decided to take part in both fronts to figure out the goal behind the strategy of the powerfull kings, they organize to join forces. As this leaves the ithacan to participate of the diplomatic work in Sparta, his planning for fitting excuses gets constantly interrumpted by the young relative of his friend.
Having heard the rumours on the expected arrival of trojan princes, Patroclus wants to meet Hector out of curiosity for the incredible tales about him circulating among greeks. His wish stumbles with the mocking negatory of Achilles, but Odysseus crafts a plan to make it converge with his needs.
Tags: @allisxnnn
Convoluted times in Greece were supposed to end once the House of Atreus would consolidate its supremacy among all the other local powers, or at least that was what the brothers leading it proclaimed. Through the combinated actions of war and diplomacy they intended to submit the last significant forces of resistance to them that were still standing. In on front, Agamemnon hoped to unleash Achilles against the kingdom of Triopas and easily win the final militar victory. In the meantime, Menelaus awaited for the sons of Priam to arrive as guest for his palace to accept a peace treaty.
As fast as news reached him, Odysseus sensed a extremely secretive intentions that were suspicious enough to awake his perceptiveness for scheming. If the strongest warrior of the country was being expected by the mycenaean king to do the fighting for him ⌠Why wasn't the most successfull diplomat being called by the spartan king in order to secure the triumph of his negociations? Menelaus had to be hidding something, or was perhaps following the bad advice of his eldest brother wanting the mission to fail in order to conquer the trojans.
If it wouldn't have been for a casual visit to Achilles at the right moment, he would have found out of the political move through the news of its consecuencies. Simply unaceptable, and he wasn't going to let it go easily. Once his clever mind was awakened, nothing would have made him prefer to stay out of the business.
His friend tried to help his case commenting together possible strategies for a calculated counter-offensive on the plans of the evil kings. Since he would have to leave for Thesaly on the requirements of Agamemnon, Odysseus had to find a way to visit Sparta without being solicited for the mission. Each one from their position, both friends expected to unveil the obscurantism surrounding the conected facts.
However, their planning was being constantly interrumpted by the intromissions of Patroclus, young cousin of the myrmidon hero. Although enthusiastic, the topics of his curiosity were completely unrelated and that caused a mild annoyance on the urgent mindset of Odysseus. Apparently, Achilles had ignored to comment him that the mycenaean heralds bringing the messages for him had foolishly spoke about the visit of the trojan princes to Sparta. Careless as he was for that, he remembered to reveal it on the context of the conversation with his friend and Patroclus couldn't stop insisting about it.
That omision had upsetted him, but Achilles dismissed his guilt on that with friendly teasing.
" Since when do you care so much for people living across the sea? The trojans will come to feed the pride of a bastard king so they won't be the next ones getting attacked once I will humilliate the warriors of Triopas. That isn't our concern. "
Patroclus looked at both of them with frustration, as if the answer was obvious, and the chuckles he caused him made Odysseus forget of the annoyance.
" Prince Hector of Troy will be stepping greek territory for the first time! " The lad corrected. " Isn't that huge? He is the only warrior in the world worthy of being measured with you. Tales say he is such an impressive fighter that the amazons became allies of Troy admiring his feats in war. He commands the finest army in the East, force so magnificent that has contained on its own the greed of Agamemnon for many years. Hector is the reason why Menelaus wants peace! He is clearly afraid of him. "
The passion of his exposition awakened tenderness on the ithacan king because it reminded him of the child-like amazement of his son while hearing him tell stories. Patroclus was too invested on epic tales of heroes, price to pay for growing up alongside a living legend like the son of Peleus.
Effects of excesive praise through that brief mention of the rumours about the trojan prince managed to upset the infamous pride of Achilles.
" I'm scarier than anything in this world, so I don't need to check if those stories hold any amount of true. "
The posibility of having to share his spot of privilege in the pantheon of heroes admired by Patroclus was the source of that annoyance. Odysseus was shocked by that discovery and decided to play with it a bit further.
" But you do want that. Am I right, Patroclus? Some say Hector is better than all the greeks, I bet you want to see if that fame is justified. "
Achilles got wary, used as he was to his manipulative tactics.
Stepping in between them as an unbreakable barrier, he directed a serious warning glance to his friend.
" What do you expect to achieve sweet talking my cousin? He is a great student for the skills i teach, not a liar of your kind."
Odysseus' smiled with the brightfull mischievousness that usually indicated an insane idea had just occured to him.
" If not invited to Sparta, I will present there anyways against the expectations of Menelaus. The surprise element will make him reveal himself to me, but I can't get there alone. Since you are teaching this lad to fight, allow me to give him a lesson on how to deal with kings. It is an important life skill for heroes in training to learn and your behavior fighting for Agamemnon shows you can't provide any training for it. "
Such small glimpse of hope made Patroclus' face transform reflecting the growing excitement, but his guardian intended to stop the madness.
" I won't let you take my cousin to lick the sand out of Hector's sandals and have Agamemnon's brother watching it. "
Odysseus had a comeback already planned for his pride Ănduced fears.
" How do you expect him to act normal arround important people while meeting none? Only once he will see the man behind the legends he will obtain a more grounded perspective. His world is yet too small, let him expand it. "
Walking a few temptative steps closer to the target of his persuasion, he presented one last motive he knew that won't fail.
" Besides, if he stays under my care you won't have to worry for him while fighting the thesalonians. "
It hitted on the rĂght spot, weaponizing his genuine love for his young relative and protective tendencies regarding him.
" If I say yes, what would you expect him to do for you there? And no more tricks, I want a clear answer. "
It was fair, so the king didn't refuse.
" A family visit is the best excuse to masquerade my intentions, since his wife is cousin of my Penelope. I have to be there with my entire family and that raises a concern for me that is very similar to yours, my friend. "
Shifting his attention on Patroclus, he continued the exposition as an exhortation for him.
" I will be direct in this, lad. I have a daughter of your age and because of the quiet, free life she is used to have on our small island she is not very found of being followed by guards. I have two nations of men to protect her from during our stay, but I know she will reject a royal escort. She will despise being surveiled by one of my men, but would gladly take a friendly travel companion. It would save me a lot of trouble if you could keep an eye on her during the negociations. "
The joy of the boy knew no limit.
" Apart from joining the trip, am I being trusted to protect a princess? Your majesty, that would be an honor! My payment for the intromission is a task for heroes! "
" A work for slave nurses, I would believe. " Achilles interrumpted, ironically. " I won't do that sort of thing unless her beauty justified the waste of time."
That was a kind of joke expected in him, but being aware of that didn't stop the embarassment of Patroclus.
" Achilles, don't be disgusting! I could never attempt such affront to honor and it's not my fault that you would gladly bed a lady entrusted to your protection."
The drastically repulsed reaction to the suggestion pleased the father.
" Don't worry, no king would be fool enough to leave him alone with a princess. You, in the other hand? Perfect for the task, that strong sense of duty and will to prove yourself have convinced me. You have integrity, Patroclus, and that's exactly what I am looking for. "
Patroclus looked sweetly at Achilles awaiting for the so needed permission. Realizing that a negatory would have crushed the heart of the lad, he responded to Odysseus the only way he could.
" If you want so badly to nurse for me, take him."
The young boy rushed to hug him and the stoich position of the hero faded to his most heartfelt sayings in between his thankfull gibberish.
" I will make you proud, cousin. I promise. Give me this chance and you won't regret it. "
Achilles kissed his forehead tenderly and surprisingly careless for the presence of his friend observing that moment of sweetness.
" ⌠Just watch yourself from that liar."
Odysseus chuckled, admitting his guilt.
" No more tricks, that's what I can promise."
Being a guest of the spartan king as a friend of ithacan royals was the greatest honor Patroclus was offered in his young life. Meeting Hector in such rewarding context promised to be amazing for him and in the same visit he would be meeting Queen Helen, said to be the most beautifull woman in the world. And so, he left his homeland unable to think in anything else. Nothing could have disrupted him from his goal of adquiring a modest fame different from his cousin's while meeting remarkable people that were matter of equally greater legends.
He was sure of that, untill reaching the first part of the trip with the arrival at Odysseus' palace. As he awaited at its entrance to be introduced by the king, a young girl of splendid beauty came from the inside running towards them.
She didn't stop untill hugging Odysseus, but once the warm welcome was over her attention got focused in the misterious newcomer.
With just a curious smile she made his heart race.
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Last Line/Excerpt Share/Proud of Tag~
I was tagged by @gabeorelse! Thank you for the tag! I have been meaning to post more story writing and this gives me an excuse to do so. Hereâs an excerpt Iâm very proud of. Introducing Aluraâs honorary dad figure, Aalvor.
Excerpt that I am immensely proud of: (fair warning, it is a bit long because this is one scene from an entire chapter. But the whole scene is too good to not share)
Smoke and fire were visible from Minos, even a hundred miles away on the coast in Hellske. With a weary sigh, Alura took a swig from the bottle of red wine in her hand and rested her head against the window frame she was sitting in. Part of her wondered if the soldiers left behind were still fighting futilely. That she had to leave anyone behind at all left a bitter taste in her mouth. She knew full well that they couldnât have stayed another day with the daily bombings and raids going on. But that didnât make it any easier to wrestle the guilt down. Perhaps if sheâd done something different, been more aggressive in establishing a perimeter for the men to fall back to, more of them might have been able to get out. With a tired sigh, she downed the last of the bottle and rose to her feet to fetch another from the rack on the wall by the dresser. Just as she pulled the cork free, there was a knock at the door. Hoping that the intruder might take the hint and leave, Alura ignored it and returned to the window seat. It was well after midnight. If she couldnât fall asleep on her own, she wanted to enjoy drinking herself into oblivion undisturbed.
The door opened without her approval, much to her annoyance. Alura could just see Aalvor out of the corner of her eye, standing in the doorway with his arms crossed. She took a long, slow drink from the bottle, maintaining her silence as he shut the door behind him. No words were necessary to know exactly what the cause of his displeasure was.
âIs now a good time, Your Grace?â He asked quietly.
âWell, youâre already in here. I donât think I have a choice,â Alura replied, keeping her gaze on the smoke in the distance. He never had approved of her drinking, but it was a vice she couldnât quite bring herself to give up. Life gave her a lot to drink about. âIs there a problem, Captain?â
Aalvor took a seat beside her and slid the leather dossier sheâd brought with her from Eredahl into her lap. âWhy didnât you tell me the emperor planned to let Minos fall?âÂ
âI take it you didnât just stumble upon this out in the wild?â Alura took another swig of wine and tossed the dossier across the room to her bed, where it promptly slid across the silk sheets and onto the floor with a loud thud. Foolishly, while she was working her way through her first bottle of wine, sheâd left it on her bedside table to walk about the battlements of the keep. Hellske wasnât as cold as Eredahl or Minos at night. In vain, sheâd hoped the fresh air would clear her head. Aalvor must have come looking for her earlier and taken it while she was out. Its disappearance led her to open a second bottle, and then a third.
âYou should be more careful with information that sensitive,â He said. âSo, why didnât you tell me anything?â
âYou didnât need to know. It was a delicate situation, and I couldnât risk anyone else finding out,â Alura replied. That wasnât a lie, but she refused to even think about the subject. Avoiding another spiral into despair was exactly why sheâd started drinking in the first place.Â
âWas it because of Her Eminence?â He asked.Â
âIt doesnât concern you.â Alura frowned at the mere mentioning of her. Magistrate Serbyris had been kind enough to offer herâand her aloneâboard in his castle while Matilde stayed in the Temple of Gora. The split up triggered another colorful outburst, just as Alura knew it would. It all seemed worthless now. Even with the physical distance between them, Alura couldnât get away from her.
âDid you know we were going into a stirred up hornetâs nest back there?â
âYou read the dossier, didnât you? Itâs all in there.â
âI wanted to hear it from you.âÂ
âItâs not like I had a say in anything. Iâm just a dog following orders, same as you.â
âItâs a simple question, Your Grace.âÂ
âWhy do you want to know so desperately?â Alura raised the bottle to her lips again, but Aalvor snatched it away.Â
âMotherâs Mercy, Alura; get a grip.â He tossed the bottle out the open window before she could take it back. âYouâve been quiet ever since we left Eredahl, even more-so since Minos. How many times will you let her break your heart?â
âYouâre assuming I had anything left of it to break in the first place.â Alura rose to her feet, cursing the pins and needles in her leg as she hobbled back to the wine rack and browsed what the magistrate had brought in for her. Spotting a familiar bottle of port wineâsomething thick, sweet, and most importantly, fortified with hard liquorâshe opened the bottle and turned to face him, shamelessly downing half of it in one go while he scowled at her. Now, after two full bottles of red wine, part of a third, and a fresh brandy infusion settling in, she was beginning to feel a bit better about it all. Maybe Matilde was right. Perhaps the emperor really had sent them east to die. But what did she care? An end to the madness didnât sound so bad. It took a lot of effort to try and keep a crumbling empire afloat on her own, and it brought her a dark sense of satisfaction to know just how violently the place would go down in flames without her.Â
âYouâre drunk,â Aalvor said flatly, crossing his arms in a very fatherly fashion.
âAnd youâre not my father,â She replied, leaning against the dresser for support as the room began to tilt steeply to one side. He never liked seeing her in this sort of state. The subtle look of disappointment, much like the one gleaming in his eyes now, never failed to make her crumble. As of late, sheâd seen that look frequently from him.Â
âIâm as good as. No one else cares to tell you when youâre embarrassing yourself.â Aalvor gestured for the bottle. âGive it here.â
âAre you going to throw this one out the window too?â
âNo. If Iâm to put up with your theatrics at this hour, I may as well join you in your drinking,âÂ
Suspiciously, Alura took a step forward and handed him the bottle. In true soldierâs fashion, the remaining contents disappeared down his throat in a matter of seconds. He made a face as the last of it went down and patted the seat next to him. With a heavy sigh, she sat down beside him. She had to slouch to rest her head on his shoulder, but the discomfort was worth the warm arm he wrapped around her.Â
âDid you really read the dossier?â She asked. There were a great many plans and plots crammed and condensed within its pages. Most of it she didnât even read, just glanced over apathetically. All of the words bled together into one overarching theme:
Garmoraâs fate rested completely in her hands.
âYes. You know how horribly nosy I am when it comes to the schemes and plots you get mixed up in.â He squeezed her shoulder tightly. âAre you scared?â
âTerrified.â Alura buried her head into his neck. Most of the orders she had been given were unclear, incoherent, or talked of battles and enemies long past, some before Alura had even been born. This wasnât the first time sheâd had to navigate such dilemmas. Deviating from her orders was a guaranteed whipping or branding, even if her refusal to follow orders resulted in victory. âI donât think I can do this anymore.â
âYou can and you will, for you are the next Hariiv; sent by the heavenly father to lead our people through the storm of war to paradise. We have known this for decades.â
âThe Hariiv is always male. The priests say it is so,â Alura snorted in amusement. Maybe if she had been lucky enough to be born a man, she wouldnât have the same struggles that bore down on her at every waking moment of the day.Â
âYou are named after one of the greatest Hariiv of all time, and she is the reason Garmora lived to become the empire it is today. Let the priests say what they will--being a woman has nothing to do with your ability to lead and protect."
âI donât stand a chance if it comes to an election by the College. Taking the empire by force will cause widespread chaos.â
âWho could challenge you when the entire imperial army stands behind you?â
âSheâs currently sleeping in that temple down there by the docks,â Alura replied. Soldiers wouldnât help her convince the masses that she was their divine guardian. Matilde held the reluctant favor of the temples, and many at court preferred her over Alura. At least Matilde was human. âHe wants her dead. Soon. I worry what will happen when it happens. If it even happens.â
âI have told you many times since you first accepted the task that I would happily take that burden from your shoulders. Stain my hands instead of your own with this deed.âÂ
âSheâs never struck me before. How stupid I was to think I would ever get through this unscathed.â It took all of Aluraâs might to keep her lower lip from trembling at the thought. It was childish of her to weep over something so insignificant, but the throbbing ache in her chest was unbearable. âCan everything sheâs done ever justify taking such actions? What sort of monster have I become to even consider doing such a thing?â
âMatilde is not just a harmless victim of circumstance,â He said, gently squeezing her shoulder again. âThe woman has committed evil atrocities, and transgressed against you without remorse. We should have left her in Minos.â
âThe final order hasnât been given yet. Unless I catch her in the act of something treasonous, I have to stay my hand until He says otherwise.âÂ
âWill you tell me when the time comes?â
âIf you insist.â
âIs my help so distasteful?â Aalvor chuckled. âYouâve never wanted it, even when you were a little girl learning how to hold a blade.â
âDonât get sentimental on me now,â Alura groaned, but couldnât fight off the smile that twitched at her lips. He had been the only constant in her life. The only good one, anyway. Sheâd never admit it to his face, but he was the closest thing to a father she had. No one else showed her such devotion, or kindness.
âIâm an old man. Itâs what we do.â He gave her another squeeze. âCan you promise me something?â
âYou know Iâm terrible at keeping your promises.â
âYet I keep asking anyway.â
âWhat am I promising?â
âThat youâll let me kill her the next time she causes you harmâdirectly or indirectly. I have watched you suffer enough at her hands.â
âWhat a bloodthirsty thing to say. Iâm surprised at you.â Alura nudged him and sat up to spare her back that was now beginning to ache. âIâll entertain the thought.â
âYou should get some rest, Your Grace,â Aalvor said as he rose to his feet. He shook the empty bottle in his hand at her. âYouâve had enough of this. Thatâs an order.â
âYes, Sir,â Alura saluted him with a flourish and a smile. âGoodnight, Captainâ
âGood night, Your Grace.â
Tagging: (feel free to engage or decline!)
@theink-stainedfolk @sidebyside-withafriend @jonquilandlace @maggieharlan
#writeblr#writeblr community#creative writing#original writing#lgbtq fantasy#dark fantasy#lgbt fiction#lgbt writers#writers of tumblr#writerscommunity#writing community#writer stuff#writer tag game#tag game#theliestheytellwip#aalvor is such a dad#we stan#my betas for draft 1 were so obsessed with him from chapter 1#that he became a huge part of the story#which was never my intention in the beginning#Alura is lucky to have him
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Love me again
pairing: ex-boyfriend!lucas x female!reader
summary:Â when you encounter your ex-boyfriend after four years after your break up and he asks for another chance
for the Red collab by @jeonronwooâ
word count: 3,401
warnings: strong language, mentions of alcohol, domestic violence and mental illnesses, exes to lovers!au
a/n: I donât how people are still feeling about Lucas but I already had this on the plans so I wanted to finish it and what a better time to post than when he makes a comeback to social media? hope SM gives us closure on the whole situation but in the mean time enjoy this poorly written story đ
hope yaâll enjoy it! â¤
â˝ ăťăťăťăťăť âž
âThank you very much, you can wait at the end of the counter.â You smile at the costumer as you finish writing his name on the cup for his drink.
Getting ready on the system, you go ahead and great the next client.
âWelcome to âThe Visionâ, what can I get you today?â
âA venti iced coffee.â You stop recognising a voice you thought youâd never hear again. âAnd another chance?â
âL-Lucas?â Finally looking up, you freeze at a face you thought youâd never see again.
-
You met him in highschool. Typical bad boy, often spotted skipping class to go smoke behind the gym, his rudeness to colleagues and teachers constantly getting him detention but somehow managed to have good enough grades to get him through. Needless to say his popularity was not that great and he was definitely someone you wouldnât like to be associated with. That was until you got pared with him for a school project.
You were the typical good girl. Not the best of your class but your grades were good. Never skipped or got detention, but you were classified as borderline nerdy so your popularity wasnât through the roof. Honestly you didnât care, you were just focused on finishing highschool and getting the hell out of this boring town. But for that you needed to keep your good grades and that was being threatened by getting pared with him.
At first you thought maybe you could do the whole project alone, that way youâd ensure you got a good grade and wouldnât have to deal with him, but your conscience convinced you to give him a chance. That was error number one.
Almost an hour late, but Lucas eventually showed up at the library. It took some time to get him to do something but right before the deadline you two managed to get the project finished and delivered on time and you were actually surprised the under his careless atitude he actually did a good job that resulted in one of the best works on your class. After that you thought you could finally breathe and not have to hang out with him anymore but he had different plans. He sat next to you in class, even if it wasnât in his typical seat in the back of the classroom, and you two started casually talking. As you got to know him better you realised that under that bad boy mask there was actually a nice guy so you let him in your life. That was error number two.
With time you grew closer and closer. The way he looked at you, talked with you, was different than with other people and you started feeling things. It all happened so naturally that when he leaned forward you gladly welcomed his lips on yours. That was error number three.
As the relationship grew, he opened up to you. You sat silently as he told you how his dad had problems with alcohol and used to hit his mom almost everyday, right in front of him, until he fled the scene. At the time Lucas was relieved but his mom just went into dark road into depression leaving him, an only child, to figure things out on his own. At that moment you understood the rebellion inside of him, it was not his fault. Foolishly in love you decided to help him, a typical case of âI can change himâ syndrome. That was error number four.
It took a while but you convinced him to let you help him study, so he can improve his grades and apply to college. It was hard work but your mission was successful and you even changed your plans to go to uni closer to him. That was error number five.
Moving into an apartment together, your relationship was better than ever and you couldnât be happier. Lucas barely had any money so the house expenses pretty much fell over your parents pockets. Obviously they were not very happy with that but you defended him at all costs telling them how much he has changed. That was error number six.
A few months in something started to feel off. And then you found out he was failing most of his classes. You confronted him about it and, even though he seemed sorry about it, he told you he was quitting college. You argued about all the hard work you two had done to get him there but in the end you couldnât force him to keep going. The following month he just either stayed in the house all day or just went out and spent money. Your parents money. Once they knew about this, they threatened to cut you off so you had a serious talk with Lucas that agreed to find himself a job and get some income. You trusted him and that was error number seven.
As you busted your ass with school and even getting a part-time job at a local cafe, you trusted he was doing what he promised, but it was a mess. He found a job at a bar but was fired about a week after, you donât really understand why. He told you he was looking again but soon he started to come home drunk. The first time you pretended not to notice, after the second time you started to make up reasons in your head to excuse his behaviour, but then it started to get more frequent and it was starting to get on your nerves. A few weeks later, you were at home trying to relax after a dreadful day and there he came crumbling. But this time you had enough.
âLucas?â You called out from the living room.
âWho else would it fucking be?â He mumbled, struggling to take off his jacket.
âGreatâŚâ Rolling your eyes, you leaned back on the couch.
âWhat now?â Finally he was able to take the jacket off and roughly throw it on the ground.
âItâs just great to see my boyfriend drunk in the middle of the day again.â You shook your head in disbelief of the words coming out of your mouth.
âMind your fucking business.â His body tumbled to the other end of the couch.
âWell I am, when youâre out there spending my money on booze!â You got up, massaging your temples as you looked away from him.
âOh, shut the fuck up.â He groaned, like he was doing nothing wrong.
âNo, you shut the fuck up, Lucas! Iâm tired of the same thing every day!â You turned back around almost screaming in rage.
âWhateverâŚâ He huffed.
âNot whatever!â You finally let go.âIâm tired of busting my ass in school and work for you to just go ahead and have fun at my expense! You said youâre different but youâre just like your father-â
âWhat the fuck did you just say?â He suddenly got up preventing you for saying anything further.
âI-Iâm sorry,â you quickly apologised as you shouldnât have brought that up, âI didnât mean to say that-â
âBut you said it!â He rushed to you pushing you against the wall.âIâm not like that fucking coward you hear me?â
Your eyes widened as you noticed his hand pushed all the way back, tight in a fist and about to come down on you, before he stopped.
âShitâŚâ His flaming eyes came back to reality when he noticed what he was about to do.
âWere you going to hit me?â Your voice sounded stern but your whole body was shaking on the inside.
âBabe, Iâm sorry-â Dropping his hands on his side, he gulped.
âGo ahead then. Hit me. Show me how different you are from your father by doing exactly what he did to your mom.â You challenged him.
âIâŚâ He started to back away as he looked at his hands.
âIâm done Lucas.â You sighed. âI tried to help you, but I canât. Iâm not strong enough for this. You need professional help.â
You went into your shared bedroom and grabbed a bag you had prepared because deep down you knew this day would come.
âIâm going to spend the night at Ahreumâs and when I come back I donât want to see you or any of your shit here. Itâs over.â
Lucas stood in the middle of the room, speechless as he watched you leave.
That was the last time you saw him. Until today.
The next day you came back and he was gone. Part of you felt sad he didnât even try to fight for you, for what you two had built together. But another part of you was just knew thatâs exactly what would happen and you felt relieved and free of the drama that came with Lucas.
-
âHi.â His smile is soft and full of hope but leaves a mess inside your head.
âKun, can you cover for me? Iâm gonna take my break now.â You suddenly abandon your place behind the counter.
âS-sure.â Confused, your friend moves to the register as you disappear into the back. âYou said venti iced coffee?â
âIâll be right back.â Lucas flees out the front door leaving the other even more confused.
You open the backdoor that leads to an alley next to the coffee place you work in, panting as your heart is beating so fast you swear it will burst at anytime. You squat down, body shaking as a million thoughts go through your head. What is he doing here after all this time? How can he just walk up to you so casually after the way things went down? What does he expect to get out of this?
âY/NâŚâ You look up and there he is again, standing right in front of you.
Quickly you get back up and move towards the door to get back in, but he stops you.
âWait! I just wanna talk!â He pleas and that makes your blood boil.
âWhat could you possibly have to say after all this time, Lucas?â The name that once gave you butterflies, rolls out of your tongue like razors cutting their way out. âYou know what, I donât even care, I donât want to talk to you!â
âI know I have no right to do this but please just hear me out. You donât have to say anything, just give me 2 minutes, pleaseâŚâ You can hear the desperation on his voice, even though he doesnât raise his voice.
âTimeâs counting.â Sighing you decide to let him speak.
âOk ok, hm⌠I swear I had a speech prepared but it all vanished from my head now.â He scratches the back of his but then you give him a look that he knows heâd better not waste his time. âI know I screwed up. We had something great and I ruined it. You were so good to me and I just took you for granted so I ended up losing you.â
Taking a deep breath, you fight the tears that threaten to fall. He takes a step forward before continuing.
âLook, the day you sent me away finally opened my eyes. Youâre the best thing that happened to me and I gave it all up. And for what? Nothing. So I left and I decided be a better person. For you. For us. I spent 2 years in a rehab center taking care of myself and 2 more getting myself together. I got a job, a small apartment and it really feels like Iâm in the right path. Iâm just missing one thing. You. Let me show Iâve changed. Please.â
âWhat makes you think thereâs space in my life for you anymore?â You donât know how you managed to get those words out of your mouth without cracking.
âI donât know. I justâŚâ He sighs. âI donât want to believe our story is over. Just give me one more chance. If at any moment I even say the wrong thing just say it and Iâll disappear. For good this time. Please.â
âYou donât get to break my heart anymore, Lucas.â You gulp, trying to keep yourself together. âI promised myself Iâd never let that happen again.â
âI wonât.â He looks straight into your eyes making you want to believe him so bad. âI promised myself I wouldnât do that again.â
âI canât believe Iâm doing thisâŚâ You mumble to yourself.
âWhat?â
âYou have a week.â Turning around you reach for the door.
âReally?â Good thing you canât see how his eyes sparkle with hope.
âDonât make me regret this.â You turn around and glare at him. âI mean it.â
âI wonât, I promise!â You hear him cheer outside as you get back to work, pulling a silly giggle out of you.
All you did for the past 4 years was trying to forget him. And you thought you did, until he showed up in front of you and brought all those feelings back. Maybe a few years are not enough to get over the one you thought you were going to spend the rest of your life with and that makes you look forward to giving him another chance. But unfortunately you canât just erase the bad times from your memory. You sent him away for a reason. He says heâs changed but you have your motives for doubting it.
The next day he takes you for a walk by the river. It starts off with awkward silence, none of you knowing how to talk to each other anymore. But as you take a seat in a bench facing the water you start to catch up. The way he talks is different but in a good way, like heâs not trying to put that bad boy facade anymore, heâs just the sweet guy you once knew. It really seems like heâs getting his life back together and you could almost see yourself fit in it.
The next date is a dinner downtown. Not a fancy restaurant, but he knows youâre not a fan of those anyways, just a cozy little place with great food. As you ordered you decided to test him and order yourself some wine. He didnât seem affected by it, happily drinking his sparkling water as you eat and talk. Perhaps your tricky move triggered some instant karma because the wine glasses keep coming and in no time youâre seeing double. Lucas, takes you home, trying hard to follow your blurred instructions. He gets you inside, but just like a movie scene you trip and fall on your bed, pulling him on top of you. Your faces are inches apart and you canât even think straight, but all you want is to feel those lips back on yours. However when you get closer he pulls away. The next moments fade from your memory as you pass out and when you wake up thereâs a cute little note with water and a pill, just what you need for the pounding in your head.
Later that day he knocks on your door. Embarrassment takes over you but he doesnât for one minute mention the previous night. He brings food, thinking you might not be in the mood to cook, and then he heads to the door but you ask him to stay. You two eat and then watch a movie, sneaking glances at each other not really caring about the plot.
The following date is a quick coffee at âThe Visionâ as you have to work two shifts. You talk about college and how itâs been hard for you to get a job in your field after graduating, leading you to work here to pay the bills. Your heart skips a beat when he takes your hand over the table and tells you how he truly believes youâll be able to achieve all your hopes and dreams. It seems like such a clichĂŠ thing to say but coming from him just hits differently. Luckily itâs time to get back to work because you donât know how to deal with the desperate will to give it all up and get back with him.
With almost a week of dates with Lucas, you hate how easily you were brought right back into his spell. But at the same time it just felt so right. He really seems to have changed. During these days there were numerous occasions that, a few years ago, wouldâve made him flip off just because. But now he seems more collected. Maybe things could really work out this time. Just maybe.
And there comes the end of the week. He picks you up late at night after your shift and takes you to a viewpoint facing the whole city. A beautiful scenario that looked quite familiar. Lucas pulls out some snacks and sodas before you sit and watch the lights below you.
âCheeto sticks and Mango Monster?â You chuckle checking what he brought.
âIt was a long shot but I hope you still like those.â He smiles.
âI canât believe you rememberedâŚâ Shaking your head with a grin, you take a sip from your drink.
âHow could I forget? Us driving around the empty streets late at night and ending up in places like this, talking about the futureâŚâ His voice trails off recalling all the broken promises made on those nights.
âLittle did we know how things would turn out.â You sigh.
âThereâs still time to turn things around.â Turning his gaze to you, Lucas examines your face trying to read it. âWe can bring back those nights. And all the other moments we shared.â
âEven the ones you were out spending my money on booze and I had to carry you to bed because you were so wasted?â You scoff, closing your eyes.
âThatâs not gonna happen again.â He promises.
âBut how do I know, Lucas?â You finally turn to him. âYouâve made promises but that you didnât keep! You said youâd get a job and instead you went out and got drunk everyday. You said youâd never hurt me but somehow I was still left heartbroken. You said youâd be by my side and then you left.â
âYou were the one who told me to go!â He tries to fight back. âI didnât want to but I knew it was the best for us! I needed to get better to keep all those promises. I donât think you understand how hard it was for me to be away from you all this time.â
âIf it was that hard to be apart what took you so long to reach out?â You get up and take some steps forward. âDidnât you get out of rehab two years ago?â
âBecause I needed to make sure I was good enough to come back!â Getting up too, he stands right behind you. âI needed to make sure I wouldnât make the same mistakes again. I wanted to get a job and make sure I was done drowning my sorrow with alcohol. Iâve been doing therapy, going deep into my problems, and it has really been helping me. But somethingâs missing. Youâre missing.â
With the ends of your sweater, you wipe the tears off your cheeks, thinking about how hard it was for you too and how you kept waiting for him to reach out, even if you wouldnât admit it.
âAnd I was scared.â He takes a deep breath. âWhat if I came back and you had moved on with someone else? Someone who treats you better. Someone who gives you all their time and support. Someone who loves you like I do. And worst, someone who youâd love more than you ever did me.â
Slowly you turn around and watch the moonlight shine on his wet cheeks, shoulders shaking and chest heaving.
âI know I have no right barging back into your life like this, but I had to try, one last time.â He shrugs, smiling through the tears. âI know I hurt you but I just wanted you to love me again.â
âHow could I love you again, if I never stopped?â You catch a glimpse of his eyes widening as you run into his arms, connecting your lips after what seemed like an eternity.
Youâve made a lot of errors when it comes to Lucas, but for the first time if feels like youâre doing the right thing.
â˝ ăťăťăťăťăť âž
a/n 2:Â not gonna tag anyone on this one as I donât know how you feel about Lucas and also no networks, but I promise more works are coming!
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There is Nothing We Can Do
WARNING: Major spoilers for High Cloud Quintet Lore+Jing Liu story quest, Angst
You knew the day would come. Standing out at a singular tree, orange leaves standing cheerfully among the solitude.
Your memories were fuzzy amongst the smell of blood, and the pain. You were far away from it, burdened to only look on. Baiheng had sacrificed herself, still smiling in the wake of her destruction leaving nothing but a tuft of fur behind. Dan Feng and Yingxing struck with despair made quick work to try and bring her back. Then it happened, you'd never seen mara take a hold of someone so suddenly before. The pain it could bring out in a person's expressions.
Jing Liu had struck down Dan Feng by stabbing the top of his head yet Yingxing was struck over and over again. Jing Yuan had been at the front lines, had he even known what was happening? And you laid motionless, aside from the slow blink of your eyes, in a pool of your blood.
The three were dealt punishments. You didn't have it as bad as any of them. You'd only known Jing Liu as she'd taught you the sword, you'd followed along foolishly. You weren't even as talented as the few other students she'd taken, you truly were a fool. And now Jing Yuan, the last member and youngest of the High Cloud Quintet, stood next to you motionless.
"I knew something like this would happen. I should've said something," He spoke with more emotion then you'd ever heard him speak with. Normally he was more stoic, but now he was forcibly ripped open exposed to the horrors of the world.
"It's not your responsibility," Even you were older than him, but he didn't seem to like that answer only scowling further so you continued hoping you'd be able to say something to help, "It's in the past there is nothing we can do, other than move forward" You smiled at Jing Yuan feeling tears brim along your eyes as your throat began to ache from holding in its cries.
Jing Yuan cried first.
Now, how many hundreds of years later you stood before the tree you used as a makeshift burial site for everyone lost. Not just the High Cloud Quintet, but everyone. Not just those who'd died but those who'd lost themselves beyond repair.
Blade had appeared on the Xianzhou Luofu recently, and had escaped capture. At the news you'd rushed to Jing Yuan partially out of hope. You weren't sure why you cared so much for someone you'd never met, perhaps because you'd been witness to the darkest moments in their life?
You and Jing Yuan became close after the incident, not talking much but simply staying by each other's side, watching as they slowly changed. You watched as Jing Yuan put on more of an easy going, and enthusiastic mask. And he watched as you became more withdrawn and meticulous, refusing to mess up a single detail for the worries it would lead to unspeakable loss.
That lead you to where you were now, gazing from far away at the ongoing battle between Jing Liu and Blade. You didn't want to meet Jing Liu again, you knew the reunion would only be full of pain. Jing Yuan onlooking the battle and behind him, the reincarnation of Dan Feng looking away.
You waited, hating the finesse and perfection in every move Jing Liu made. A killing machine, and a person unable to be killed. A tragedy every time the story repeated itself, whether it be 700 years ago or now.
When it was over Jing Yuan approached you, the two of you held eye contact, and with no words spoken Jing Yuan closed his eyes. He had a bad habit of sleeping in any position. Something some would find funny but you found miserable. If the nightmares in your dreams are less scary than the nightmares in real life, than surely there is a problem. You'd talk to him about it if there were a solution.
You lifted Jing Yuan up onto your shoulders, and left, walking away from the scene where you'd seen people torn apart.
Now, there were only two of you.
One day only one of you would be left, holding with them the memories of these events.
But until then, and even after then, the battle would rage onward. There was nothing else you could but continue on.
Wonderful line from Jing Yuan's stories that hits hard: "Only the truly wise can stand proud in front of the undefeated enemy called time."
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Ninja Daily: AIC 30
She came awake, murderous and blind. Aiko flashed chakra to her eyes and the world lit up. A little. It was definitely still dark, but more importantly her security had suddenly become alarmed and that wouldn't do at all.
The chuunin was confronting another one of her shinobi at her bedroom door- at least, the spectral figure looked like one of hers, in special operation whites. They must have come through the hallway window checkpoint- there were no entries directly to her room from the outside. So either the outside security had chosen to let them in, or that person was dead.
'I think I would have noticed a fight. But not if the security personnel had no chance to fight back.'
"Speak," Aiko said in a hard voice.
Her personal security didn't relax at all.
The special operations officer ducked their head. "Mizukage-sama," they murmured. It was difficult to describe the voice as anything other than soft. It wasn't particularly high or low, no rasp, or other identifying qualities. Possibly it was some kind of audible genjutsu, or possibly just disguising voices was in the curriculum. "We have apprehended a person who we believe to be a foreign agent. A patrol officer sensed someone in city hall and investigated. The intruder subdued the officer, but was taken into custody soon after."
She threw off the futon cover and slid out of bed. "I see. Identification code, please."
They rattled off a 10 digit series of numbers ending with the personal id number '892'. The first three matched a department she knew, the next four belonged to a subgroup that affiliated withâŚ. She strained to remember Kiri's system. Ah, this person worked with Counter-Intelligence and rendezvoused with patrol teams. They probably had more information, then. She nodded and didn't take her attention fully away while she pushed open the closet door and found a long-sleeved shirt to pull over her head. "Wait a moment. Gaara?"
He shifted on his feet, the first sound he had made since materializing behind the intruder. "Yes, Aiko-sama?"
The Special Operations officer gave the smallest start.
Aiko did not smile. She did not. "Wake your sister, please, and stay with her."
He hesitated for a moment. Which was loyal, but- "Entertain yourself with one of your own projects," she urged, thinking of his library books. "This is something that I need to take care of. Thank you."
Apparently, she had reassured him enough. He nodded and disappeared into the house.
"Are you making certain that your small red friend does not gain information of value to Orochimaru-san?" Sanbi confirmed.
'Ah, you know me well.'Â She flipped her hair over her shoulders and gestured for the visitor to start walking first. The chuunin kept an uneasy position between Aiko and the masked officer, which was dutiful and not at all safe if they really were a threat. "When did this happen?"
"The intruder was observed about half an hour ago," came the muffled answer. "Stealthy pursuit and observation lasted about 12 minutes, the fight about five, and then reinforcements arrived on the scene. I was on the second team of reinforcements and came to contact you as the suspect was taken to interrogations. I left as he was escorted away."
Five minutes? That was a long time for a fight to go without one party ending up dead. Under most circumstances, that sounded to her like one party had been trying to do something other than kill- delay, capture, something. Had her agent been trying to capture alive and overextended their reach, or had the intruder been foolishly playing around and then lost their advantage?
Aiko felt her mind waking up, wondering at the possibilities. She usually liked her mysteries to start later in the day, but this did seem like a good one. "I would like to personally see them in custody. Anyone who has made it this far into Kirigakure is formidable, in preparation and intelligence if not ability."
"Of course." The officer gave a little bow, which looked a little strange since Aiko had forced them to walk ahead of her.
"This could be a trap," Sanbi said thoughtfully. "Perhaps this person is a spy. Or perhaps this is intended to walk you into an ambush."
'Mei has waited longer than I thought she would to try to kill me,' Aiko acknowledged. She grabbed a sword off the top of a dresser and buckled it on over her sleeping shorts as she walked. 'But at least for now, I will take this at face value. I will be careful, though. If you see anything that reads as unusualâŚ'
"Of course."
Tactical Team Turtle remained on alert, but there wasn't even a half-hearted murder attempt. She met with the head of her Torture and Interrogations department while her escort faded away into the wall. Kiri's T&I was surprisingly small, by Konoha's standards. Kiri took less living prisoners. The head was a hard-faced man of about 60. She could only assume that Abe-san was simply too angry to retire.
"Jounin, or upper level chuunin." He paced like a cat, hardly giving his Mizukage a second glance. "No indication of affinity or bloodline limit. Clothes and weapons are all from Kirigakure, but she's definitely mainland."
Aiko bit her lower lip and turned to look at the kunoichi on the other side of the bars. It was hard to tell with her face all bloodied up, but it seemed like the infiltrator was a teenager. Maybe 15, 16. Slight build, healthy looking skin, a bit more muscled than you'd expect throughout her upper back and shoulders. She either liked building muscle or did something a little unusual, maybe used some kind of large weapon, or did a lot of free climbing? Judging by her apparent good health, she'd either come from one of the wealthier villages, or was from a privileged social strata in one of the smaller ones. A clan member, or daughter of someone wealthy.
"Fighting style?" Aiko asked. The prisoner looked up to give her a little sneer and then tossed her head.
Abe grunted. "She used poisons, but she's either mediocre or wants us to think she is."
There was a flash of irritation on the girl's face, and she turned away.
"Weapons?" Aiko asked.
Abe shrugged. "Had wire, shuriken, and a short blade on her. Only used wire in the fight, trying to garotte. Hoping to end it quietly and continue the mission, probably. Not strong enough to finish things that way, turned to hand-to-hand, delivered a poison carried under her fingernails."
She felt a tinge of doubt at his words, but Aiko gave an appreciative nod. "Thank you." She tilted her head, taking the infiltrator in one more time.
If she had been kitted-out with local goods, it meant her operation was either well-funded or done with inside help. She might have been impersonating one of their operatives, possibly for some time. At a glance, the girl fit in well enough. She had one of the broader faces so common in the older families around the western islands, a suntan, and a proud tilt to her chin.
Actually, long-term infiltration really might have been the angle. There were a lot of faces going in and out of Kiri lately, and a younger operative was likely to have a lower rank and attract less suspicion.
Well. Time would tell. Aiko took a step back and nodded to Abe. "You're authorized." But she also gestured for him to follow her. His second stepped up to the cell as they passed. She led him silently down the hall until they were far enough for her to pose a question.
"She's downplaying her strength," Abe said, before she could ask. He cracked an unpleasant smile. "Fujiwara actually cut through the wire, this girl nearly overpowered him. I think she decided mid-fight that she was going to get captured, and decided to look weak in order to leave herself wiggle room to get out. I want to give her a chance to try whatever it is she thinks she can do."
Aiko nodded, feeling reassured in his judgment. It really wasn't that hard to garotte someone, and this girl looked like she could do it. "Is it possible that the initial goal was to be captured?" she asked. "Failing to kill with poison in this situation is odd, since she can't have been hoping to take a hostage. It could be just that she doesn't know what she's doing, but that's hard to reconcile with a person who chose to deliver it via her hands. An inexperienced agent could easily make a mistake and poison themselves that way. I think that she didn't want to kill, because that would make it much more likely that we would execute her."
Abe nodded agreement. He seemed pleased by the analysis. "It's a possibility. It truly could be that a mistake was made when selecting Kiri-based weaponry, or that it was due to lack of options. But it is more interesting to wonder if this was a competent operation to get an operative in custody." He tapped the concrete wall of the prison, underneath one of the administrative buildings. "Which begs a few questions."
Aiko smiled at her agent, because it was nice to be around people who thought of puzzles the way that she did. "Well, let's ask them. Thank you, Abe-san."
He gave her a grim smile in return, with warmness in his brown eyes. "The write-up from the encounter is preliminary, I'll have more information to you as I have it." He dug within his flak jacket for twice-folded piece of paper that Aiko took. No, it was two pieces of paper, with narrow handwriting.
They exchanged nods and then went their separate ways.
Aiko took her thoughts to her office. Her first instinct was to point a finger at Orochimaru, because he had already installed one agent in her home and had a personal grudge against her. He might have assumed she had a weakness for kids, especially if he realized that she still had Gaara. And it was possible that this girl could have hoped to make contact with Karin, might still manage it. Or her mission could have been separate.
But Orochimaru wasn't the only village out there interfering in Kiri. Someone had tried to poison her people, or done it in order to sour the alliance with Nadeshiko. It could be Nadeshiko, one of Nadeshiko's enemies, one of Kiri's enemies, a neutral party who stood to lose something if they joined forcesâŚ.
Could be Konoha. They had their spymaster in the country already. If he was going to go around starting conversations with people who looked like Kiri shinobi, sending a young woman would be a good method to disguise the communication.
Suna. They had responded to her message to say that they would send a delegation, but they had to be cautious. It was probably half to placate her, being that they were so weakened at the moment. Could be Suna loyalists looking to protect Temari's team, could be a rival group looking to delegitimize it to prevent her from taking power in the vacuum.
Or, hell, it could be Kumo, because those guys were just really hard to read and uncomfortably close. Close enough for all sorts of shenanigans, and a likely place to produce a kunoichi who seemed young and strong enough to pull this kind of thing off. Aiko sighed and put away the prelim report when she was done with it.
She waited an hour to hear back, at which point her body was starting to complain more vigorously about her already stressful schedule being taxed by a lack of sleep. When she got the initial report- disappointing- Aiko sighed. She considered how good Obito had been at convincing people that they wanted to tell him things. She flicked her eyes absentmindedly between Rinnegan and Sharingan, wondering at how exactly he had done that. She should have asked before, probably.
Well. She'd start looking out for opportunities to practice that kind of thing, then. It seemed wasteful to try it on this girl, though. If her first attempt went sour, she would have lost out on any chance to gain intelligence on the situation.
Irritable and exhausted, she went back home as soon as the full security sweep had come back clear. It was about 4 in the morning when the last team signed off and she crept through her house. It was dark and quiet, so she went back to her room without trying to talk to the kids. It was better that someone had gotten some damn rest.
She was back in bed for 23 glorious minutes before she had the sudden feeling of imminent doom.
"Aiko-sama." Gaara stood at the foot of her bed, arms crossed over his chest.
She sat up blearily. "Good morning," Aiko said. She tugged at a pillow that had migrated halfway down the bed at some point. "What time is it?" It was still dark in her room- the only light was coming from down the hallway. Fuck. Really? Really?
Gaara just looked at her, as though the question was completely incomprehensible.
"The boy does not sleep,"Â Sanbi reminded.
Ugh. As soon as Konoha knew she had been lying to them about the Ichibi, she was going to pay Jiraiya to fix Gaara's seal. That wasn't the kind of thing she felt comfortable experimenting with, but the boy deserved some peace.
"What did you want to talk about?", she went with. Aiko rubbed the sleep away from her eyes and half-wished that Mei would kill her already so this bullshit would be someone else's problem.
Sanbi made a deeply unhappy noise.
"You need to arrest two of your shinobi," Gaara said promptly.
She eyed Gaara over her wrist. "For amusement value, or..." She trailed off as she remembered one of Gaara's assignments. "Oh, the poisoning?" She threw off the bedcovers and grimaced at the cold. Aiko resigned herself to it. This was clearly going to be the worst kind of day. "Who is it?"
Gaara stepped to the side slightly as she put her feet on the floor and rose into a stretch. "One of the chuunin recently interviewed," he said. He watched her run fingers through her hair and pull on thick leggings to ward off the cold night air. "They were an accomplice."
"Oh, shit," Aiko said with feeling. She wrinkled her face into a scowl. "I really would have guessed that the twins were either both innocent or both guilty."
Her apprentice gave her a doleful look.
Mei or Utakata would have taken that as a chance to say something witty. Aiko sighed and snagged more clothes off of hangers. She tossed the undershirt and sweater on the bed and began unfastening the slacks. "And?" she prompted.
"One of the former political dissidents who returned when you allowed it." Gaara did not seem particularly approving. "I found them by researching who returned to the village around the time of the shipment."
Aiko paused, one leg in her pants. "Are you saying that you assumed that one of my chuunin was guilty, and then looked for connections?" she asked. She felt vaguely insulted by it as she zipped up and pulled a long-sleeved undershirt over her head.
"Yes," said Gaara, who did not have much faith in her shinobi. "Many of your shinobi who never left the village had ties to shinobi who returned. This causes them to be compromised, if they wish to protect their friends."
"Everyone wants to protect their friends," Aiko said dryly, the instant that her head was out of the neck on her sweater. She pushed the sleeves of her coziest sweater up to her elbows and glanced around for socks.
"Not everyone's friends have previously expressed their hatred for the citizenry of the village," Gaara pointed out.
She stopped in her tracks, mismatched socks in hand. Then she gave her apprentice a wounded look, as though it was his fault that he was right. "Some of them are nice people," Aiko pointed out. "There were good reasons to leave."
"I do understand your policy," Gaara said. He looked bored beyond belief at the concept. "The former political dissident is Yama Shuu. He left as a jounin and was reinstated as a chuunin, pending mental health assessments before returning to rank."
Aiko let out a gusty sigh. "I don't think he's going to pass them." What a pain in the ass. They could have used another jounin.
Gaara's eyes tracked over to her and then away. He didn't respond.
Ah, well. He was here on business after all. "Motivation?" Aiko asked.
"Yama-san blames Kirigakure as a whole for the toxic culture that resulted in the bloodline purge," he said, more comfortable on topic. "He was not associated with any clan, but fled when the order to purge was given."
She sighed. "So either just because he disagreed with it, he thought more killing would come, or that he possibly had some bloodline connection that might have gotten dug up," Aiko summarized. She felt tired. All she had energy for was pulling her hair back in a way that hopefully disguised any bedhead. "Evidence against him?"
"He has one of the missing containers," Gaara said, sounding offended at this sloppy work. "Possibly he intended to use the tainted food in another location."
"Ugh," Aiko said, disgusted. That was fairly damning. "When did you discover this?"
Gaara shifted his weight slightly, the first chink in his armor that she had seen today. "Recently," he hedged.
She folded her arms and looked down at him. "You just came here from wherever he lives, didn't you?"
He looked away.
"And he didn't see you at all? We do need to move fast. If he's a jounin, he might well notice someone was in his space." She started for the door and stalked down the hallway.
"He awoke," Gaara said, sounding stiff and defensive.
Oh, no.
She stopped in her tracks.
"I have restrained him."
Well, that boded well. Didn't sound fatal or anything. Considering Gaara's track record of problem solving, not murdering was a definite plus.
...It was factually true, but she just didn't feel that reassured.
"I have broken his arms and legs. As a precaution."
Ah. She turned around to look at her apprentice, unamused. "Was that necessary?"
Gaara didn't meet her eyes. "Yes. He would flee on his legs, would he not? And make handsigns for a shunshin or other such techniques."
Aiko inhaled, closed her eyes for a moment, and considered how it actually sounded like Gaara must have broken all the man's fingers in order to be certain that he would not be able to perform any jutsu. There was a certain brutal practicality to it. As a solution for a person with few, if any, resources to fall back on, she could understand it. She would do it, in the right circumstances.
But being the student of the Mizukage, a person who knew many powerful and resourceful people- those were not the circumstances of harsh desperation.
"Are you going to give a lecture about bringing proper supplies?"Â Sanbi asked.
'And a team,'Â Aiko answered, annoyed that she had to spell this out. That was the more important part. Gaara was not a lone wolf. He could have asked her, or pretty much anybody to go along with him. Two people could have much more easily handled the unpleasant surprise of disturbing their target. And one of them could have stayed to watch the prisoner, instead of breaking half their bones to be sure he wouldn't escape.
She felt a sudden pang of sympathy for Tsunade- her Tsunade, the one who had had to beat the same lesson into Aiko's head again and again. Shit. She totally deserved this student, didn't she.
"Half his bones? Not nearly. Humans have many bones," Sanbi said carelessly. "Do not exaggerate."
That was totally not the point, not even a little.
She did not deserve Sanbi, probably, but she had him. So she sighed and did what she had to. Yama-san's poor broken body was taken into custody, and a messenger was sent to divert Oda Aoi onto a mission roster that was leaving at first light, in response to new information that would require more firepower. The poor woman would have to hustle, given that she'd get the message 20 minutes before she was required to be at the gates, but it was still better. There was no sense in risking Aoi getting involved when her brother was taken into custody. He would be there when she got back, one way or another. Innocent and free, or guilty and awaiting judgment.
Kai did not actually have a chance to escape- his residence was surrounded by agents who moved in once his sister was off of the premises- but it was still surprising that he reportedly made his bed, ate half a bowl of rice and some miso soup from a packet, and then ambled out onto the street to surrender.
Guilt? Aiko wondered. Or just a desire to retain a bit of dignity?
Still, it did seem to put the nail in Gaara's theory. Just for that, she considered tossing her water at Oda Kai when she heard her people bring him into the secured interrogation area that Yama-san had only recently left. She had had faith in him, damnit, completely unwarranted faith based on her relationship with her twin.
"Ah. After all, you are so close," Sanbi said dryly. "You have a twin?"
Aiko told him to shove his attitude someplace rude.
She dealt with the poisoner first. He cut a pathetic figure, even after some medical treatment. Gaara had indeed broken his hands, and that was delicate work to reverse. They were swollen purple lumps under white bandage. His legs were better- splinted professionally, and slightly raised. They'd be better within a week, with continued treatment.
So her terrorist suspect was balancing on the very edge of his ass with both legs in the air and arms resting gingerly on a plastic table when she came in.
It was not a sight to strike fear.
"Good afternoon." She let her voice come out just as unimpressed as she felt, not bothering to reach for the manners she'd apply to any random person on the street. He'd been rude first, what with the murder and all. "I apologize for my apprentice's enthusiasm, but you have bigger problems, don't you?" Aiko pulled out the lone seat and settled on it like a queen.
Yama-san still hadn't looked at her, though he had flinched at the sound of her voice.
She sighed. "You present an irritating counterargument to my initiative to reintegrate political dissidents," Aiko said. She let her real annoyance come out. "Selfish, don't you think? Good men and women left their country reluctantly, because it was in the fist of a madman. And now you've given my political rivals a good, solid justification to say that they should all be hunted down because they left, even though the culture has changed to prove that many of those who left were in the right. Is that what you wanted?"
Not that she had many political rivals. At least, not many who had revealed themselves. There was someone waiting around, she had no doubt. There always was.
Yama-san seemed to draw further into himself. Good. Perhaps he was ashamed. It seemed like his profile was accurate, at least.
"Do you deny it?" Aiko demanded, just to be clear. He had already confessed, but she wanted to hear it.
"No." He said it sullenly. "I wanted to hurt as many people as possible. They're weak. They cowered when that bastard ruled. They deserved it."
"You were really bad at it," Aiko pointed out. Her tone slipped into a little bit of mockery. "I was served some- did you know that? I and my apprentice. I suppose you wish we'd eaten that. But it was not terribly subtle- how foolish was it not to stick around to ensure that the damaged foods went to people who would not know?"
Yama let out a bitter laugh and shook his head. That could mean a couple of things.
"You have two options."
The prisoner looked up, but there wasn't much hope on his face.
Aiko didn't smile at him, because there was mocking someone for failing to kill you, and then there was being a real dick. She wasn't interested in further torturing this man. He'd already lost. "The punishment for treason is death," she said. "No matter how sympathetic I find your reasoning for leaving Kirigakure, what you have done is inexcusable."
"Why are there two options, then," he asked dully. "Is it a matter of if I want to be beheaded or poisoned?"
She snorted. That was a dumb question. "State executions need to be uniform," Aiko dismissed. "No, your options are to walk to your execution, or to go under an experimental genjutsu. If it is successful, you will have no recollection of the last months, and will therefore receive no punishment such as demotion or prison time."
His eyebrows floated up in disbelief. "No consequences?" he said, skeptical. He huffed through his nose. "You're weak."
"There's a pretty good chance that the genjutsu will have side effects, assuming it doesn't drive you entirely mad," Aiko admitted. She shrugged. She did not have a great record with this. "Perfecting it would be very useful for me, but I'm afraid that I don't often find a good chance to practice on someone who could be watched after to track symptoms that would allow me to refine the genjutsu. If it goes well, you will lose several months of memory, but you'll wake up a loyal citizen of Kirigakure."
That, at least, she knew she could do for a fact. She'd done that a dozen times, at least. She could already change what a person believed. It was subtracting information that she was interested to try out.
He was silent and pale. "Ah," he finally managed. A shudder wracked his body.
"The only reason that the punishment for treason is death is as a deterrent. I admit that I'm not certain it is effective," Aiko readily admitted. It didn't matter what she told him, he wouldn't be talking about it later either way. "But as you indicated earlier, we cannot have a state where citizens believe they can harm our people without consequence. Key here is belief. Either your status as a citizen, or your belief can be ended. Your only collaborator has been secured, so there is no concern that someone will walk away from this with the lesson that violence will go unpunished."
"And we are more useful to you alive," he said bitterly.
"For information and as employees, yes." Aiko nodded. And as though it was an after thought, she added, "Although we could make use of fertilizer, of course. You may have heard about our push to produce more of our foods locally, it's very exciting."
She watched him flinch.
"Aiko," Sanbi said, sounding disgusted.
'I want him to think about the consequences,' she thought back, unrepentant. 'Not decide in a moment of stubborn, misplaced nobility that he'll die for his ideals of struggle against Kirigakure. Dead is dead, life has possibility.'
"You can decide now, or anytime within a week." Aiko unfolded her arms and straightened away from the wall. She looked down at him without tilting her head. "You can convey your decision to your jailors at any point, or wait until I return to ask you in 7 days. Unless you have an answer for me now?"
He was breathing heavily, the whites of his eyes showing. He let out a wild laugh. "It's not much choice, is it?" he choked out.
"People who poison food supplies get less choices than other people," Aiko said coldly. "It'd be one thing if you had tried to get revenge, or struck out at people who you thought were going to cause harm. I could understand that. It could even be patriotic, assuming you were successful. But you don't get the moral high ground here. You just wanted to hurt as many people as possible. Obviously, an antisocial mindset like that cannot be tolerated."
He ducked his head to look down at the plastic table his hands were on. It could have been shame, repentance. It could also be stubborn deception.
Aiko waited a long moment, giving him a chance to give an answer. When none came, she turned and swept out.
"Would you actually use him for fertilizer?"Â Sanbi asked, sounding amused but genuinely curious.
She wrinkled her nose. 'Not for anything that we might eat. I'm fairly certain that's a health risk. Maybe some trees, though?'
"Ah. That is reasonable. I do like trees."
"Everyone likes trees," she responded, feeling a bit cheered at the thought. Nice, calming trees. No one had ever tried to murder her with a tree, no tree had ever attacked her, trees were useful and pretty-
"You have low standards," Sanbi said thoughtfully.
Eh. Anyway.
Mokuton. That would be a nice thing to do today. She would steal away some time to work on that after the workday was done. It would be a lot better for her nerves than trying out her sharingan.
But for now, the work day had to begin in earnest. Coffee was made, mail was received, and she summoned Gaara in for a performance review right before she was going to talk to her advisers about the incident's conclusion.
"Overall, you've been doing well." She leaned back in her chair and hooked a foot around the bar under her desk. Gaara met her eyes with a total lack of concern. "Before he left for Wave country, Tazuna-san gave me a positive report on your intelligence and diligence through your work with him, and I am also very encouraged that you have, overall, been very gentle," she said. It came out a little wry, because of the incident this morning. "Your stability lately bodes very well for your future leadership roles. I'm also proud that you resolved the largest problem that I have given you so far. Successfully investigating an incident of sabotage speaks well to your deductive capabilities." She cocked her head at him. "What, do you think, you could have done better?"
Gaara shifted his weight very slightly towards the back. Another boy might have looked down at his feet.
She raised her eyebrow and waited.
"I could have broken less bones," he said, sullen. It was hard to hear him.
Aiko gave an encouraging nod. "That's true," she said, in a tone of light praise. "You did perfectly in the context of a one-man mission. However-"
She stopped. Her tired brain had belatedly made a connection between the story and just how diligent Gaara was at obeying orders.
Gaara looked guilty.
Aiko gritted her teeth, sucked in a deep breath, and resisted the urge to run her fingers through her hair. "You didn't go alone. Did you."
It was not really a question. Gaara looked shifty, but he nodded.
She looked at him for a long moment. "I did tell you to keep your sister with you," Aiko started, because she really should have expected this. She stopped. She took a deep breath and actually did run her fingers through her hair. "I meant for you to keep her out of trouble, not that you were authorized to take her out on a mission."
Gaara tilted his chin up. "That is what she said," he ground out. His tone went flat. "After we had first subdued Yama-san. With a rope," he added, as if it was important for her to know that he had initially intended to do things the way that she would prefer.
Aiko closed her eyes and took a minute. She let out a long sigh. "Well, in that case. It was a good idea to bring back up. In the future, please bring backup who does not need to conceal their presence on the mission, if plausible."
Her apprentice nodded.
She eyed him a long moment and thought it over. She leaned forward. "How did it go? Did you work well together?"
Gaara took a moment to answer, but then gave an uncertain nod. "It was- acceptable," he said.
Ah. Aiko pursed her lips, imagining how those two would be as a team. Scary, that's how. She liked it. "Cool." She tapped her fingers against her chin. "I might have you two do some other missions together. But do not do that again." She made sure she was holding eye contact when she emphasized, "Ever. Never ever. Do you understand me?"
He grunted. "I understand." Gaara cleared his throat. "When we report the encounter to Terumi-san and Utakata-san, shall I disclose Karin-san's presence?"
"Oh. God, no." Aiko leaned away from that suggestion. "I would never hear the end of it. You both keep your mouths shut. If anyone asks you why you didn't bring assistance, tell them that I had authorized it."
"And if they ask why there are so many broken bones?" Gaara asked, sounding just a little bit guilty.
Aiko shrugged, telegraphing the movement to banish his sad little mood. "Tell them that you saw he was the kind of monster who puts the toilet paper on backwards," she said flippantly. "You don't have to justify yourself to anyone but me. And a kiri-nin might not think to ask, anyway."
"Yes." Gaara nodded decisively. "I will remember it." He lifted his chin just that little bit higher.
Nishikawa-san knocked on the door and peered inside. He looked tired. "Mizukage-sama," he murmered. "Terumi-san and Utakata-san are here to see you."
Aiko exchanged a look with Gaara, willing him to be cool. "Send them in."
Her assistant drew back. Mei breezed in, a smile playing at her lips. Utakata was at her heels looking annoyed. The combination told a familiar story.
"So." Mei seated herself on the softest chair and crossed her legs. "I went down to see our newest guest." Her eyes sparkled. "Gaara, dear, why did you do that?"
Aiko felt her muscles seize up, but not one was looking at her.
Gaara sneered. "He put his toilet paper on the wrong way. He deserves to die."
Utakata gave Aiko a quizzical look, safely out of Mei's sight. She tried not to give anything away in her face. Stern. Solemn. Yes, this was a reasonable thing that her young man had just said. She gave a firm nod.
Mei faltered. She looked between Gaara and Aiko. Her mouth opened for the obvious question- which is the wrong way?- and then she clearly thought better of it. Her smile turned strained. She tossed her head and suddenly seemed more interested in talking to Aiko. "Has our lady guest from this morning said anything?"
#vapors#uzumaki aiko#electrasev5n#ninja daily#fanfiction#naruto fanfiction#clarity#AIC#Aiko in Canon
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S4E8 Predictions
Again, I can not stress this enough! I have a shovel! It is a very BIG shovel! I use it to go digging for things on the internet about Snowpiercer! Sometimes I find fun things, some times I find things I do not want to find, and sometimes I find things that strongly hint on what is to come by simple logical thought. Therefore: If you do not want to know what is coming, it is STRONGLY suggested you not read this. Does it contain SPOILERS? Not directly. But it does contain, again, extremely well thought out logical conclusions from previews. Am I always right? No. But sometimes better safe than sorry, hey?
So, lets get into the next episode. In the previews, several things are shown. One that makes me happy is that poor little Javi, though appearing unconscious, is still in one piece. Now this is not all good as that ONE, he is unconscious, meaning he was still close enough to the bomb when it went off to catch some of the discharge, and TWO; he is not laying on tracks. It looks more like solid ground, suggesting he may have been thrown off the train trestle by the force of the explosion. Lets face this down, folks. We have already lost two engineers. Without engineers, the people left on earth, especially our intrepid little group, stand a zero chance of survival. (Remember this when your children are considering a career. Earth needs engineers!) Now, with it clearly pointed out engineers are the most endangered species currently on the show, allow me to put a theory out there that flies in the face of everything I have read on this subject. Is Javi yet another casualty of the insane writers vendetta against engineers? (Goes searching for a coin to flip.) Is Wilford really gone? My theory is âNoâ. Why? Because Sean Bean is well past the âI am sick of not being invited to the wrap party because my character died halfway through the showâ stage. Also, the blunt he smoked was laced with a Headwood concoction. As fanatically dedicated as that lunatic was to Wilford, I do not see her providing him with a way to end his life. More likely I would suggest that blunt was laced with something that gave the appearance of shucking the mortal coil, and the person would revive later. Why do I think this? If I remember things right, Wilford was in the last cars with Layton and Josie that got disconnected. Now those two, while good fighters, are no electronic wizards. And yet, Layton was able to find (or MAKE) a radio device to call for help as shown in the preview. My theory for this goes like this: Wilford, in the second car left behind, wakes up, comes forward, and tells Layton and Josie if they want to survive they will not kill him again, and he manages to either contact Snowpiercer (which honestly at this point I have lost track of exactly where which train is) to rescue them, or somehow manages to make those two train cars move on their own. And quite frankly, having FINALLY been allowed to see âWilford the engineerâ at work, I firmly believe this man could make an engine out of three bobby pins and some bellybutton lint.
Do I think Layton et all are dead? No. Why? First off, you do NOT kill babies on shows. That is just a solid no-no. Next, previews of episodes going forward clearly show Layton in New Eden when the Rat Squad arrives. How do I think he survived?
(The author stopped here because she foolishly found a recap of episode 8 and even more foolishly watched it. She is now going off to sit in a corner for while to contemplate just how wrong her predictions in this installment are and keep telling herself that Wilford is not dead.)
If by chance you do want to check out the episode 8 recap by Weeping Cross Breakdown, I highly recommend it. He makes some excellent points about what happens in E8 and the inconsistencies in other characters exits from the show that just donât make sense.
Also, Iâm not saying anything about the attack on New Eden because A) I have prior knowledge about that scene, B) I think what they do is a loving head nod to the original movie, and C) it makes no sense.
And did I NOT tell you we needed to kill little weasel Nima? DIDNâT I!?!
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I've loved you since I was 15, from far away of course, and I never realised how much I liked you until now. I put the pin here (qtm) because you talk a lot about liking it here, hopefully one day you find what I have wrote for you. There are so many things that are similar about us, perhaps in the ways we grew up, but a lot more that are different, maybe I cling to the parts that are similar to make me feel like I have a friend even though we are nowhere near each other and I doubt we will ever meet. A big sister to take care of me, or I can take care of you. Whatever works.
I guess, as I've said before, I don't really know you and I don't really know if you still date girls, let a lone girls like me. I'm dark under my eyes and also in them, ever tired and I haven't been pretty since I was in school.
If we were to have a story of our own, I think you would have to be Victor Hugo, whose death caused so much sadness amongst Paris that the brothels he frequently visited had to close on the day of his funeral. But you were always the smartest to me, so I have no idea why I am explaining a historical simile to you.Â
You seem the type to leave a mark wherever you go, sad or not, a mare with flowers in her hair that I let run loose through the moors because I would rather watch you live your life happy entirely and then return to me when it all gets too hard, even if it makes my heart ache. I want to be the one who stays next to you in your final days, like Forrest by Jenny.
I discovered you through your writing back then, everything I read on that site was terrible - your first drew me in but your second is what captured me. I know you have grown from that type of writing, and I have grown from reading it, but I find myself thinking back to how much you have developed as an author sometimes, and it makes me think I can too, foolishly. The last thing I ever read of yours ended with a poignant scene between two people staring at each other from across a kitchen, with the resounding idea shared between them and the audience that they had gone through a lot and whatever was to happen next would happen behind closed pages. I think it made me cry, weirdly.Â
I told you you left marks. In first year they taught me about Knudson's two hit hypothesis, this relates to genetically heritable conditions, but I think I was born to end up a sad, angry bitch who will end up in hell or the other side of firing squad and that in itself might be a condition, but it only came to fruition because of the childhood I've had and the second hit, your writing. For better or worse, your writing has somewhat pushed me to be the woman that I am.
My brain does this thing where it brings up people I liked, or people who were nice to me even from long ago to remind me that I have people in my life who could love me, and I push that potential to its limits to keep me alive, live in my imagination where I get better and get married and have family and never want for anything again. That's what I might be doing with you.
Is it selfish to hope you never settle down? That we wear 80s wedding dresses, even though we did not marry each other, and run away to a sea side cliff, one of us dying from tuberculosis? It probably is. I hope you find happiness though, the truest form of it anyway. It won't be with me, but I imagine it like that to keep me alive most days.
Either way, I hope we meet one day, as friends. Or sisters, whatever.
Uhh okay so I wasn't going to post this at first because I kind of felt bad and didn't want to say something accidentally callous in response. I also kind of thought you might have sent it to the wrong inbox, because I genuinely couldn't place anything from this that suggested we've ever interacted (if you have actually followed me here from another fandom). I think it's touching my writing seems to have made such an impact on you, but I'm a little at a loss for words on how to respond to the rest. If we have interacted before via DMs, then I don't think there was any need to hide behind anon. I would have answered if you reached out. In this format, it's just a little...overwhelming. It's a lot, and I don't know what else to say except I hope you find peace in your life and I wish you the best.
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Lori Foster Interview
âThe McKenzie Seriesâ by Lori Foster are great reads. The stories are intense thrillers with characters that are relatable and identifiable. There is plenty of action, some humor, and family bonds. Each book has the serious subjects of human trafficking and abuse embedded in the emotional stories.
The first book in the series, No Holding Back, has the eldest son Cade McKenzie as the hero and Sterling as the heroine. All the family work behind the scenes to take down human traffickers along with Sterling. This is personal for her since the trafficker has ties to her past.Â
The second book in the series is Stronger Than You Know with Reyes McKenzie as the hero and Kennedy as the heroine along with her friend, Jodi. The story delves much more into the background of why the family seeks justice. Both Kennedy and Jodi are still being pursued by the traffickers who kidnapped them and need Reyes and his family to help.
The third book in the series is Watching Over You with Madison McKenzie as the heroine and Crosby as the hero. Parrish, the matriarch of the McKenzie family hires Crosby to find out who is threatening their family. He and Madison must work together, which is where the attraction between them begins.
Elise Cooper: Would you ever consider writing a YEARLY series where you would have adventures of the TASK FORCE that include all the McKenzies and Jodi with Hunter?Â
Lori Foster: Iâd certainly love to, but my publisher would have to be behind the series, or Iâd need to do them as an indie author. Iâm not sure if either of those things will happen so I canât commit to anything too far in the future.Â
Writing action and âconquer all the evilâ type heroes and heroines, is my absolute favorite writing endeavors. The world needs more heroes...of all kinds.Â
EC: Why the topics of human trafficking and abuse:Â what did you want the readers to understand?
LF: What I attempt to do in every book is to entertain readers. I would never presume to judge someone elseâs mistakes because Iâve made plenty of my own. We all have different backgrounds, different perspectives formed from our upbringings. We have our good and bad influences and experience. What seems easy for me could be horribly difficult for someone else, and vice versa. That said, when I write, I like for my characters to tackle really big, believable problems.Â
Human trafficking is such a large, looming, and growing real life problem thatâs literally everywhere. Far, far too often we look past situations â even if we think something looks off, most people donât want to get involved â so when I write it in a book, I have an opportunity to show how important those alpha people are. Alphas â male and female â will step up when others shy away. While some of us would worry about wrongly accusing someone, possibly giving an insult where none is intended, others step up and do what they can to help.Â
Real life heroes exist, though the news so rarely focuses on them â so *I* focus on them... in my books.Â
EC: In the second book of the McKenzie series, you introduce Jodi, which was the heroine in the book, The Dangerous One. How has Jodi changed from book 2 to the latest book?
LF: Before: She was vulnerable, needed purpose, did not have direction, floundering in fear and hatred, feels alone, unhinged, wounded, and suspicious, had a fight or flight attitude.
Jodi changed because 1) she was given a chance for a different life, 2) she was shown a better way, and 3) she met people who cared. Itâs a sad truth that far too many people are left to fend for themselves in the world. We all need love, positive feedback, emotional support, and good advice. Of course, we also must be willing to work for a better life, and to listen to those positive influences. Â
LF: Now: She has a stand-in family with Parrish like a father, and Kennedy like a sister. All the McKenzies made her realize there are people out there who care. She can be disagreeable when worried, foolishly brave, sharply dangerous, yet realizes with Hunter she can trust again, and he realizes she has good instincts, as she tries to be independent. In the book, she also changes because she realizes she can never be âthe everyday woman,â not after what sheâs survived. And itâs okay that sheâs different â especially since she finds her special someone who is also apart from âthe everydayâ type. Together, Hunter and Jodi are able to be themselves, with their sharpened senses, dangerous edges, and fine-honed instincts.
EC:Â What do you see are the similarities and differences between the other females abused: Sterling, Kennedy, and Silver?
a. Please describe each personality and how they react to danger
LF: Sterling, the heroine in No Holding Back, is driven largely by guilt and the need to make a difference. She escaped while others didnât, and she knows if she doesnât make the effort to help, her life will feel meaningless. It takes a person just as strong as her to match her determined personality, assist her in her efforts, and also allow her to be herself, to stand back and admit when she needs help. Cade is the person she finally trusts to see her vulnerability. Like Jodi, Sterling is full-steam-ahead, but unlike Jodi, Sterling is bigger and physically better equipped. LF: Kennedy is the heroine in Stronger Than You Know, which also introduces Jodi. She is the thoughtful one. For her, survival is all about understanding the situation and educating others so they understand as well. Through her published novels and public speaking, she hopes to better equip others to recognize danger and react accordingly. Kennedy is small like Jodi, but her soul isnât as wounded. She doesnât mind admitting when she needs help, which is something Jodi would find abhorrent. Kennedy is good at seeing people â their strengths and weaknesses â and what she sees in Reyes is someone who jokes about life rather than show his true feelings, but heâs serious when he needs to be, and he has a protective streak as big as his heart. Jodi, on the other hand, tends to view everyone as victims, abusers, or those who feel sorry for her. It took a lot for her to realize her own perspectives were skewed, that family, either blood ties or emotional bonds, was something altogether different. LF: Silver, a secondary character in Madisonâs book, Watching Over You, wasnât trafficked so much as she was in an abusive relationship. Her big thing is gratitude and, thanks to the assistance she received, moving forward in a steady, comfortable life... without any disruptions like romantic love. Unlike Jodi, she immediately embraces being part of a family, and she accepts and nourishes the familiar love sheâs given, returning it with a lot of loyalty. Like Jodi, sheâs a little suspicious of anything that rocks the boat. It takes the coaxing of a really good guy friend (the one who helped her out of her situation) for her to give love another shot â but Iâm glad she did!
EC: Describe each member of the McKenzie clan.
a. Parrish: Can be Bossy and controlling but is very caring. Heâs also motivated by his love for the woman he lost. Parrish is like a suave, super-polished wrecking ball determined to take out evil so no one else will suffer as his love did. He has the wealth, clout, and determination to go up against the devil himself â and while he knows he hasnât been a perfect father, he loves his children fiercely.
b. Cade: Protective, former military, proficient, with quiet authority. Cade is also rebellious and enjoys butting heads with his father on nearly every issue. In many ways heâs a loner. Heâll protect his family â and all innocents â but he isnât big on group think, and he definitely bristles at edicts from his father, while at the same time he likes order and discipline. Letâs call the man a contradiction, because he is!Â
c. Reyes: Confidant, cocky, likes to irritate people, a teaser, and brash. Heâs very much a lover, too, and doesnât mind who knows it. A super physical guy. Though heâs also smart and motivated, with a bent for home design: heâs good with his hands. Although, he doesnât particularly want anyone to know about those assets. He prefers the illusion of the super-sexy, cocky, annoying guy.Â
d. Madison: She is a tech guru, must deal with over-protective brothers, pushy, competitive, optimistic, and stubborn. To counter the take-charge tendencies of her brothers, Madison has worked extra hard for equal footing. Sheâs forthright to a painful degree, and usually only realizes that sheâs overstepped after the fact. She loves her alpha family, likes herself as is, understands her own ability and sheâs smart enough to realize itâd take one heck of a guy to really gain her interest. Once she finds him, thereâs no holding her back. Sheâs a winner, and never gives up easily.
e. Bernard: Comic relief, gentle version of Parrish, advisor, like Alfred in Batman. Bernard is all heart! He knew Parrish and the âkidsâ needed him, so he readily stepped in to fill an impossible role â and excelled at it. Heâs territorial, wise, and when he lets loose, itâs hilarious.Â
EC: Crosby is Madisonâs love interest. There is a book quote that talks about Crosbyâs profession as a police officer: âthey are witnesses to the pain, hunger, neglect, abuse, and violent crime in society.â Please explain!
LF: I have massive, MASSIVE respect for law enforcement. Are they perfect? No. Who is? Do I think the vast majority have the best of intentions? Yup. I canât even imagine the amount of stress theyâre under, or the heartbreaking things they see.Â
I did a ride-along with a police office and he pointed out prostitutes everywhere. I had NEVER seen them. I had no idea. He showed me drug dealers. Once, in an evening ride-along in California (I was visiting the area) a cop flipped on his lights and people scattered in the most remarkable ways. Groups leaping over walls. Drug deals breaking up. Sex acts breaking up. Again, Iâd had no idea! It really proved to me what a sheltered life Iâd lead â and that so, so many were not as fortunate.Â
EC: What is the relationship like between Cade and Sterling?
LF: Adversarial at first, because Sterling has a hard time trusting. But Cade immediately knew that she was different, and how she affected him was different, so he couldnât give up. Their relationship is based on mutual respect of abilities â and so much more.Â
EC: What is the relationship like between Reyes and Kennedy?
LF: She sees him as no one else does, and heâs immediately intrigued by her. Few women tell Reyes to get lost, so that hooked him, and his protective tendencies finished him off. That she would rely on him, and need him, not as part of his family but as an individual, meant a lot to Reyes. For Kennedy, being able to trust him without exception is important. To many, they might seem like opposites attract, but really they have more in common than outsiders realize.Â
EC: What is the relationship like between Madison and Crosby?
LF: Crosby measures up! With examples like her brothers, she couldnât get too excited over most guys. Plus Madison is really tall with lethal skills, and for her, the idea of being able to best a guy wasnât that appealing. Crosby isnât that easy â but at the same time, he respects and admires her ability. Beyond that, he sees her softer side, and he loves how she loves his family. Crosby fought it at first, but it was meant to be.
EC: Can you describe the task force? If not, it would surely be nice to have that-Is this your wishful thinking?
LF: It helps victims get counseling, legal representation, financial assistance, guidance, gives physical and emotional support. Their goal is to bust sex traffickers, abusers, and punish them.
This is mostly a Lori Fosterâs dream world, where good guys win and bad guys perish, and the world becomes a better, safer place. Individuals need to be more proactive, so I like to imagine those characters and create their stories.Â
I did base the task force off a real task force, but without the legal ties. My characters are a little more freewheeling with the law. Back when I wrote my first rescue from traffickingâ stories: âThe Men Who Walk The Edge of Honor series,â the law hadnât quite caught up with the idea of human traffickers actively operating in rural and suburban settings here in the U.S. Now, if you go to a truck stop or a rest area off the highway, there are almost always posters in the bathrooms advising people what to do if theyâre in a situation, or suspect theyâre witnessing a situation, that could be abusive. There are dedicated phone numbers to call. Resources. Advisors. Law Enforcement and our military are educated on what to look for, how to recognize the signs.Â
More and more women, children, and often men, are abused in trafficking situations for sex or forced labor. Look up the statistics â itâs absolutely staggering. I wonât spout statistics to anyone, but if you take 5 minutes to google the number of missing children, and those whoâve been trafficked, itâll shatter your heart.
Politicians give lip service to solving problems, but on both sides of the aisle, theyâre mostly concerned with maintaining their power and giving âtheir sideâ the win. We, the people, are never âtheir side.âÂ
EC: Next books?
LF: May 9th is The Little Flower Shop, set in a fun, small community of quirky people, featuring a 40 something florist and an almost 40 restaurant owner... plus the town full of characters, family ties, and pets galore. I laughed â and cried â while writing it.Â
June 1st is Bray, one of my benefit books, which means all advance and all royalties for the life of the book go to the no-kill animal shelter, The Animal Adoption Foundation. Iâve done a benefit book every year for 19 years now. https://lorifoster.com/meet/#benefitÂ
December 26th is The Fearless One, featuring the second Osborn brother, related to The Dangerous One. Memphis is like his brother, Hunter, in many ways, but heâs also different. More laidback, quick with a laugh, and when he falls in love, he doesnât bother denying it or fighting it. All his focus is on keeping her safe â against any and all threats, and there are many.Â
THANK YOU!!
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Hello, I love your writing and am happy to find someone who actively writes for VNC!
If itâs okay may I request something where female reader has been teasing Vanitas relentlessly to get a rise out of him (and attention from him,) and he finally snaps, deciding to get back at her for it? Thank you so much! đ
Vanitas scoured over his book. Sure there most be something in this stupid thing that could help them stop the Naenia and the Malnomen in itâs tracks. He was tired of always doing triage at the scene. Coming up to those afflicted and hoping that he had gotten there in time. He wanted something more stable. He was tired of feeling like he was always losing.
A cool gust of air brushed against Vanitasâs neck, and the man shivered deep before immediately stiffening up straight and clasping his hand over the back of his foolishly exposed neck. â[Y/N]!!â
The girl in question just smiled behind him. Arms behind her back. Posture innocent, but seeming all the more malicious with that wicked smirk on her face. âWhat? I was just trying to get your attention.â
âYou didnât think saying something would have worked as well?â He clipped. But [Y/N] just spun around and helped herself to a seat on his couch.
âYou never hear me when your nose is in that thing. The rest of the world might be burning away, and youâd only ever look up to ask for someone to turn up the air.â
Vanitas tsked his teeth and looked away. Not prepared to argue about her assessment; because he knew she was right. âWhat do you want anyway?â
âI havenât seen you all day.â She told him. âI missed you.â
âIâm busy.â He replied. Turning back to his book.
âThe answer isnât in there you know.â It was an obvious remark that shouldnât need to be said, as Vanitas knew this but refused to believe. âYou know where it probably is.â He doesnât want to hear that either.
Knowing that Mikhail had his own book, meant that he probably had information that Vanitas didnât. It never occurred to him when he saw him to ask (too focused on not dying), and he probably wouldnât give it to him. His new goal was to try and bring their âFatherâ back, and he would need to book to do it. Thereâs not way heâd lend it to him to clean up the mess he made.
âSo you propose I do nothing. Just sit here and be useless.â
âWellâŚ.not there.â Vanitas turned around again to see [Y/N] on the couch, and patting the spot on her lap. âCome have a rest weary traveler.â
The blue eyed doctor turned about 6 shades of pink and span back around. âD-Donât be ridiculous! I have to work! I canât justâŚ.l-lay on your lap like a child for the afternoon!â
âWhy not? Maybe you would be less cranky if you took a nap.â Vanitas growled at her.
[Y/N] swung her legs a bit, and kept pressuring him on. âCome onâŚ.you know you want to. Itâs super comfy.â The continued pats at her lap were making Vanitas twitch. As if each soft sound was literally chipping away at his pride. âRest is an important part of health.â
A dirty trick from his sweet [Y/N]. Using medicine to win an argument.
Vanitas got up, still pink in the face, and shuffled over. âOnlyâŚIâm only doing it for a minute ok!â He sat down on the couch. Ridged as a stone next to her. Then awkwardly laid down with his head prone on her lap. Seeming to make great effort to not touch her while touching her.
[Y/N] didnât seem to mind, and relaxed for him. âThere. Isnât this nice.â Her hand came up and stroked through his soft, raven locks. Vanitas tensing again at first, then he relaxed.
âItâsâŚ.itâs only for a minuteâŚ.â He insisted again. But the next moment later he was already asleep in [Y/N]âs lap. At ease for the first time in month. Feelings, for the first time in god knows when, like he wasnât losing anything by not doing anything.
#;ask and ye shall receive (request answers)#vanitas of the blue moon#vanitas#vanitas no carte imagine#vanitas no carte scenarios#vanitas no carte#the case study of vanitas#vanitas x reader#vanitas no carte x reader#imagine#scenarios#female reader
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