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pandorafallz · 7 months ago

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Vampire AU | Shacks and whistles.

“You want eight shacks this run?” Jake double-checked as he and the group of humans sat at their respective radios. Today was not a Hometree day and he wasn’t training as Neytiri had to assist with a birth with Mo’at so the humans planned their next theft now that there were more people.

“Well, Nine, actually,” Xanthe spoke, looking at their list of chosen options. “Castro here wants the airlocks specifically. The ninth one we can cut up and bring down ourselves but the trip is a little tricky and will be slow but possible without air support.”

“Airlo-cks?” Zane asked, a little confused. His voice cut off a moment as the frequency changed on its typical cycle.

“We’re using air-tight, fabric-based airlocks at Homebase, not the best but the only feasible ones in both quantity and availability. No one could drag a solid airlock door on their back out. RDA would have noticed.”

Homebase, the main living cave of the miners. Jake knew from conversation the last few days of the general names of the main caves and their people. Wei Chang, Matthew Holster, and Sean Wallen were the only ones he hadn’t met yet. Jake remembered they had sealed their cave off and made it breathable for humans and he was curious to get a peek but it was still slow going for both the adjustments and for safe cave navigation. A week until they’d be able to go down, Alejandra had said.

Still, he could see how having an actual airlock would be better than a tent with a tiny air filter system in place.

“We could cut up the chosen shacks walls and fuse them together for a bigger space so they won’t need an airlock system between like the dual shacks sites have.” Nadine suggested, “We can use those, as long as there’s at least one airlock, as means of a storage house in the mountains. Protected from the air and elements, and we have means of still putting the shacks to use if we don’t at our campsites.”

“That’s a good idea.” Morgan praised, sitting at the far end of Jake’s desk to be part of the meeting. “Plus, we could do with one of your miners to check out our cave spot; maybe you could help set up some proper lighting so we can see? Bladder lanterns the Na’vi and we have don’t work as well since insects that are drawn to the lantern’s nectar don’t go that high up.”

“Maybe we send someone to stay and oversee the site? Wei could—” Moran spoke up but was interrupted

“No, he needs to be with people and have our support.” Xavier shot down immediately with a surprising amount of passion “We need him here.”

“Not a conversation for now.” Xanthe coughed, putting a stop before anyone could protest. “how feasible would eight be, is all I’m asking.”

There was a pause from all camps. Nadine was frowning but running the numbers no doubt on fuel consumption, distance and other variables.

“No,” Ming called after a minute. “At best, we can do six shack grabs in a single night. We can’t do it during the day. We’ll need to refuel once. If we try for eight, which can take up to eight hours’ worth of trips given where the last two marked ones you want are and our travel routes, there’s a chance Quaritch can let a scorpion run a patrol ship go at dawn if he suspects some activity.”

“But is it possible for other nights?”

“Yes, but our fuel refinery is very crude but it passes. It’s just slow at the moment.” Kendra said, “We’ll need you guys to start pitching in and getting us burnfibre for us to drain the resin to make the fuel. If more is provided, then we’ll be less limited on how much we can do. Also, we’ll need more spare parts for ship and refinery maintenance.”

“We’ve got a tent up pitched up in the mountains. I think more hands would be better to inventory shit once the drop-offs have happened and we need a better system to manage redistributions based on needs and projects.” Jake input after a moment. “There can be food within date and non-perishables. That also needs to be accounted for. We need people who have allergens to let us know what not to put in a food pile and not to risk cross-contamination. I personally can’t eat nuts, but I can be around them. Some people won’t have that tolerance.”

“Will do. We should also consider if Pandoran food, like their nuts, will carry the same allergen effects or not. Does your avatar have a nut allergy, Sully?”

“No, but I don’t know if that’s because Tommy didn’t. Kinda odd for twins but… well I lucked out on those cards.”

Nadine leant over Jake’s desk to speak. “Does anyone want to share any allergens we should be aware of? In case we do something that might trigger a reaction? I work with our food at Hometree and I really don’t wanna kill anyone. We’ve got earth food growing right now and I do plan to add those when they’re ready.”

“I’m allergic to Copper,” Xavier called, “it’s not strictly a food concern but I’d rather not come up in hives if you cook in a copper pot or something.”

Nadine leaned over the desk and grabbed her tablet to make a note. “Okay, no copper cooking. Any foods to avoid?”

“Shellfish,” Eliza called out. Alejandra echoed that as well before they chuckled.

“Any dairy or wheat concerns? We have pasta and I can make pasta now so that’ll be something I can serve.”

“Well, the Na’vi don’t have dairy tolerances, that’s a no-brainer but they do make plant-based milk.” Jake pointed out.

“Actually, Jake, it’s the Omatikaya that don’t have milk tolerances. Na’vi as a species can build a tolerance if exposed to milk long enough.” Maria said brightly, “I heard that there’s a clan in the west called the Zeswa that has milk and cheese as a stable in their diet. The Omatikaya don’t need to milk their animals for milk or protein.”

“Ooh.” Nadine perked up at that and Jake could see she was wondering if that milk was edible for humans.

“Neither me nor Bree can have a general anaesthetic. I don’t have it as severely as Bree so while I could be relatively fine, she will go into anaphylactic shock. Found out the hard way with her.” Kung called after a moment

“Oh god,” Eliza whispered but he hoped she too was taking notes.

“Also, doc for your notes, I’m allergic to penicillin and Wei’s allergic to latex, mangos and pears,” Xanthe called in. “That covers our group with allergens.”

“I can’t have nuts either” Ruby piped up. “But I do wanna try them in my avatar. Can we discuss this with Mo’at? I’m sure if my avatar has a reaction and we’re prepared, then we know for sure if our avatars have inherited those conditions or not.”

“I’ll add that to our discussion board.” Jake made his own notes.

“Do we even have a discussion board?” Zeke whispered but his voice still carried through the radios.

Jake smiled a little. “No, but it’s not a bad idea. You guys could keep a board for each of your camps and come to me with them. I could represent the camps to discuss anything or problems that may come up with Eytukan. He respects me to open discussions for smooth sailings between us and the clan. If not with him, Mo’at’s another good option.”

There were a few confirmations at that before they circled back to the shack theft again, going over when it would happen (tonight was most called for), who would be on the Samson’s aiding in the grabs and who would be at the mountain cave. One member of each camp would participate (Bree would once again camp at the mountains; even living in a metal shack now, Kung was too paranoid) to help and to inventory the stuff in the morning.

They were nearing the end of their discussions before there was a knock on the shack window and Neytiri’s face was peering in. Jake waved her in but didn’t interrupt Eliza’s discussion with medical aid, Morgan moved to shut the airlock door on the inside for Neytiri to enter safely.

“We have some of those herbs in our area that Mo’at showed me that I can get you to study more in-depth,” Jake said, as the airlock hissed and opened and Neytiri crouched in curiously but took the hint to not speak up. “I know people with allergies have Epipens but when they run out, we need to try alternatives that are just as effective. I’ll talk to Mo’at about that, I don’t think allergies are a topic you’ve spoken to the Tsahìk about yet,” he added to his list.

“I’ll speak to her when I can.” Eliza promised, “If anyone’s got any data banks on studies of the plants I was on about, compile them for me, please. That’d save me a lot of time. Medical research wasn’t my thing but I’m willing to do it.”

There were a few agreements made before Kendra’s camp hung up to get back to their camp’s duties and planning for their upcoming evening event, as did Ruby and Alejandra’s group. Kung however didn’t.

“Sully, Bree wants a word.”

“Shoot.”

“Yay,” Bree’s voice was quiet and distant before he heard something of wheels before she spoke, now at the radio. “Jake, do you think you can talk to some of the wood shapers for me? I need help with a few of my projects but… the woodguy is really hard to talk to without him brushing me off. It’s… he’s kinda scary. He looks like he’s three seconds from stabbing me with his wood shaping knife if a human looks at him wrong…”

“What do you need?”

“I don’t know… someone who’s willing to teach humans how to work with wood. I want to make books and… I need a book press and how to make small thin planks for book covers. That sort of thing.”

Jake huffed, running a hand through his locks of grown-out hair. Woodshapers. That was unpleasant still but… he could understand her fear.

“I’ll… talk to Eytukan about that. Ateyo shouldn’t make you feel scared. It’s unfair to chase anyone away from their interests.” Of course, it wouldn’t be just about Bree but all of them. They all should have that chance, he had just… it was easier to focus on what he was doing than focus on what he wasn’t wanting to do.

“Thank you. Also, I’m still working on making parchment since you gave me all that hide. It’s almost done if you’re interested.”

“Sure, let me know if you need any more hide. We still got a ton from recent hunts.” He didn’t know what he’d do with parchment but he was sure he’d think of something.

They made their goodbyes before Jake made his last new notes on his tablet and set it down.

“I’ll check through our cook pots, and make sure they’re not copper or at risk.” Nadine mused, sliding on her wheelchair to get her leg that was on charge and slipped that on. She passed her farewell to Neytiri as she clunked out.

“I’ll make plans for the shack reconstructions. I know my way around them a lot more than they do.” Morgan decided. “Still, moving airlocks aren’t gonna be easy.” Morgan rose to his feet as well. “I’ll give N’deh, Jer and Kim a heads-up on what we talked about.”

“Alright.” Jake ran a hand over the stubble on his chin, though smiled at Neytiri as Morgan left. “How'd it go? A healthy baby?”

Neytiri nodded, leaning forward with clear contentment. “Very, so far a little girl until told otherwise. Both parents must remain close until the child is mature to leave their Tsalnu pod. The mother is recovering well and is pleased to see her child healthy while their last part of development continues.”

“How long until….”

“Typically a week and a half. Sometimes longer. A month is often a concern so a Tsahìk must decide to wait or to remove the child if necessary. Sometimes a child may be too weak to initiate the pod’s softening.” Neytiri explained with warmth.

“Wow.” Jake let out a steady breath. “Here human babies come into the world, premature, kicking and screaming and covered in their mother’s blood.”

Neytiri's brow raised in some amusement. “Yes, my mother informed me of our birthing differences.”

Jake chuckled. “Sorry about not coming out. A meeting. We’re stealing another few link shacks tonight. A lot of organising and making sure people get what they need. The new group want a lot given they’re lacking what we have.” He gestured around to their beds and desks, wondering about the set-up but patient to wait and see.

“It sounded important, I’d like to help like last time but I heard medical concerns?”

“Nothing too concerning. Some humans can’t eat certain foodstuffs, contact with certain minerals or medical drugs without their bodies rejecting it. We were making sure no one accidentally winds up killing each other out of ignorance.”

Neytiri’s head tilted. “Nothing too concerning?” She quoted a little dryer in tone. “I don’t think toying with death is ‘not a concern’, Jake?”

Jake hummed a little. “As long as we’re all aware of possible threats, there’s no concerns.”

Neytiri didn’t look thrilled before she took a deep breath. “I need to leave, my head is getting light.”

“Of course, I’ll link up.” Time to continue on with the day after all.

Outside, when he descended down from his mauri, he could see Neytiri taking deep breaths contently though he watched as her head turned and her eyes seemed to linger on him with vivid interest.

“You’ve added a pouch?” she noted, coming to point at his waistband where he had two hide pouches attached. The first he had simply had basic sling ammo (his sling was also around his waist like a belt which sat at a slight angle) and the other was empty.

“Gifts from N’deh. He knew I was missing pockets.” He chuckled warmly, allowing her to poke the ammo pack curiously. “So, we training today?”

“Yes, your bow.” Neytiri nodded to his training bow. “Another hunt.”

“Alright.”

“We speak Na’vi when out. This will help your practice.”

“Yes…< I mean yes, teacher>” Jake corrected himself as her side-eye, giving a little salute.

Neytiri had been swift in getting him into action with his hunt and despite his best efforts of the afternoon training, a successful tracking but he didn’t manage a kill. Neytiri still seems pleased with his efforts on their journey back.

In some part, Jake knew it was him being self-conscious given his new attire. A proper hunt in new clothes. The loincloth, he was used to but it was still a little odd every so often to feel like he had a wedgie on an important outing.

Jake had painted up his avatar with the usual paints to cover his eyebrows and forehead with a few patterns here and there along his body but nothing too detailed; he wanted inspiration to hit him in the face. He too had a knife holster on and across his chest which was comfortable and was otherwise shirtless. He looked forward to earning a cummerbund after he got his Ikran. They hadn’t got their hand or feet covers made just yet but so far, it wasn’t quite needed.

It was a new physical change for him but he was glad that she was…understanding of his difficulties. Something as simple as a new attire shouldn’t have been such a massive deal and yet, it was.

“It’s not about the end result, as long as keep to what I have been teaching you. Hunters can come back empty-handed.” That was all Neytiri had said.

Still, he hoped to continue on with another hunt soon now he knew his flaws.

“<Thi-wait are we going to your resting space?>” Jake realised as he looked around and noticed it wasn’t familiar to the woods around his home. He knew this place enough to know what was here still.

Neytiri chuckled. “<Yes. I have something to show you. Sit up by the waterfall, I’ll join you in a moment.>”

Jake complied and sat at a small plateau of smooth rock close to the waterfall and waited. It was only a minute before Neytiri appeared from the cave underneath and this time, something small was in her hands.

“<Here,>” She sat down beside him with it. “<For you.>”

Curiously, he took the present and turned it about in his hands. It looked… mostly like leather straps with beaded latches, meant to hold something. The leather was strong and there looked to be sewn designs along two of the supportive straps that looked to be the ‘top’.

“<It’s beautiful but… what is this?>” Jake asked. He doubted it was bondage stuff, she didn’t know what it was and he wasn’t gonna tell her. Yet.

Neytiri giggled a little with fondness. “<I noticed that when we travel by wither Pa’li or Ikran, you cling onto your wheeled chair and you complained once that it aches your arms with your efforts to keep a hold of it. I made this to carry it for you. See here,>” She lent and touched another loop. “<This can be bound onto the harness of either mount. We can length the straps if you simply want to strap it to your back.>”

Jake’s breath paused fully as her words washed over him and he almost felt like crying. He felt… so damn touched that she had made not only the effort to think of that but to… make it too and with so much care and thought put into it; to be functional for his needs because he hated the difficulties of managing his wheelchair while trying to stay on the Pa’li. He never would ask the Na’vi to hold his chair for him on a ride if he could help it. A man had his pride and his chair was a major part of it.

It hadn’t even occurred to him that a carrier for his chair could have been an option.

Neytiri had gifted him the… wonderful and most thoughtful gift that he had… ever received.

Jake felt his eyes prickle with happiness pulling it to his chest like a child hugging a new favourite toy. He wanted to say thank you, to tell her how wonderful it was but… he couldn’t get his mouth to move. He felt…stunned. Happily stunned.

Neytiri’s face was soft, her hand coming to his shoulder with a soft touch and yet, she looked like she didn’t need his verbal response to simply know his gratitude.

In a way, he was glad.

Ongwi’s steps were silent as he stepped along the mossy branch of the tree. The dense shrubs in front on the decline made it hard to make an excellent shot from the floor so he needed to go higher to make his kill. Up ahead, feeding with unawareness of death so close was a yerik. Mature by the dark blue hide with red and white accent patterns. Stunning in a way that would certainly please the clan’s tanners for such a find.

It was facing towards him, it’s nasal cavity facing towards him and would be an easy shot. Ongwi lowered himself down to stabilise his balance, his tail flicking out to help as he brought his bow in front and lined up his arrow.

His breaths remained even as he pulled the sting back slowly towards his cheek and felt the soft tickle of his knuckle. The yerik’s head popped up from its grazing, its fans spreading out as it looked sharply to its left which gave him pause—

Then something from the undergrowth leapt out. A small mass of orange with black spots was the first thing he saw before the Yerik took off but it didn’t get far; the small creature seemed to easily outrace it and let with sharpened claws, a mouth of sharp teeth, four longer ones on its lower and upper jaw that clamped down into its hide leg. Claws broke the hide was ease and easily sliced the Yerik’s flesh. It wasn’t alone as a second creature seemed to appear to help.

In a pack of animals, like Nantang, they were typically more or less identical but even to his eye, the next creature was not the same; it’s body, while covered in fur was a grey, and white most predominantly but with dark spots and surprisingly large paws in comparison to the orange one and an extraordinary long fluffy tail.

The grey one dove and sunk its teeth into the Yerik’s throat and thankfully ended its suffering but the two quickly began to devour, pulling its hide open to access the flesh underneath and allowing Ongwi the chance to examine the two predators.

Unlike anything he had ever seen. The Orange was taller than the grey, but it was far slimmer and had longer legs, its tail shorter and less fluffy than the other; clearly a chasing creature. Its face, when not covered in blood had large dark amber eyes that were lined with dark lining that lined down from its tear duct down to its upper jaw. Short but rounded ears on top of its head. Its nose was triangular, similar to that of Na’vi.

The grey was smaller but its build was chunkier and had more weight to its paws, its ears had a slight of a point to the tips but otherwise remained rounded but what stood out was the large blue eyes the creature had, locked on with its meal.

The only thing he didn’t see on either of them was a Kuru. Severed from Eywa, a pitiful existence that often needed an arrow to end such pain of disconnection but neither of them seemed to act too aggressively like the few the Aranahe had seen of Severed Viperwolves. In fact, both didn’t seem to get into each other’s way or fuss as they consumed their prey. Focused on the hunt and feeding. No other emotion but to fill an empty stomach. No pain or anger in their eyes.

They were not of the Kinglor forest, which was clear by their fur colourings alone. It didn’t match the forest to hide. Had they migrated or been chased out of their natural habitats by the sky people?

Ongwi debated if escape was necessary; he shouldn’t be too concerned if both ate well, they’d not see him as prey but that would be if he was caught. Leaving was the sensible thought; most predators did not take well to another being so close. As most as he was curious, he had no wish to be perceived as a threat to creatures he knew little of. It would be a shame to kill them.

His debate didn’t last too long as the orange’s head lifted towards him, making him pause as it’s eyes narrowed, letting out a purred sound. The grey paused, looking at Orange and then towards him before they both grabbed a jawful of its prey (a hind leg) and easily tore it off and both booked it back into the undergrowth.

He stared after them, down to the mauled and half-eaten carcass then he began to follow; not at a running speed but enough to follow the paw-prints within the soil and broken trails. Their scent smelt foreign and easy to follow.

Ongwi followed them for five minutes the trail, stopping at a broken branch that provided a clump of stark white hairs which he took and folded them into a leaf for safekeeping. No orange fur but this white fur should provide Ka’nat with proof of evidence of these creatures. The scent disappeared over a stream and while he found the paw tracks, they ended at a clearing where… sky people's feet seemed to appear in the mud in inconsistent patterns as if they had run around first. Without those strange foot coverings, he had heard a lot about, the five tiny toes were easy to make out and seemed to vanish into the moss; clearly with careful intent to not leave a track.

As much as he tried to scope out the area, he had no other leads. Despite the frustration, he knew he had to return back to Hometree. Inform their hunters of these new creatures. If anything, to ensure they didn’t get hunted as a result but… if they could capture, they could learn more of them. Why did they not have a Kuru and still be at peace?

“Shit. Shit, shit shit!” Anqa hissed as she hurriedly washed her face free from blood first before her hands, doing what she could to get the blood out from under her nails as Priya hurriedly collected their clothes and masks from their hiding spot.

“That was too close.” Priya agreed, tossing her a towel as well. It was a simple set-up they had decided to put in a few days ago now. A crate held their things, dental caps, clothes, masks, shoes, cleaning supplies and a mirror. Simply it was put under a large tree, gaps too small for a Na’vi but something that they could slip in and out in either form.

Their first trip out and they almost fuck it up. Anqa had hoped this session would have led to them keeping that whole Hexapead but no. Still, a leg each and some for Jax was better than nothing. He had no other form so he had to eat with that they hunted for him. He had stayed to cover for their absence, probably for the better given the interruption. God only knew what the Na’vi would think if they saw a ‘sky person’ feasting like an ‘animal’.

Anqa knew the Aranahe knew about their presence in their forest courtesy of the Sarentu kids but no official contact had been made; only the kids came and went if they weren’t already staying at the Hometree.

“Wrap the legs. We can store the other one for later and give Jax his meal now. He’s probably salivating over a picture of a roast ham.” Anqa said, drying off and hurriedly pulled her clothes on. Maybe they should start forgoing shoes? Claim some good excuse back at Refuge? “This should last us a few days but we’ll need to hunt again. Pills ain't gonna cut it anymore.”

“I still have a Samson. I can fly out further out to hunt. Less likely for Aranahe hunters to find us.” Anqa suggested, slipping her mask back on and was glad to see Priya just about done as well. “Let’s go.”

Jake’s mood continued to be bright as the day went on and their training came to an end before, evening came yet Neytiri vanished once to let her parents know of their plans for stealing the shacks and returned when dawn was closing in.

In his avatar, and through the radio, they kept in touch as Nadine flew to their meet-up spot in the mountains for final checks and everyone volunteering with a Dreamwalker was following the same routine as last time; Dreamwalkers do a sweep, debug and let the humans run the internal check and start collecting up any external boxes. Fix the cabling and then off.

Despite not having done a twenty-four-hour watch of the chosen sites, there was doubt the chosen sites were occupied which made it all the quicker to get to task as night fell and Jake led Nad’s Samson with Ashely (in avatar form) Xanthe and Xavier, Zeke was piloting Ruby was with Zane (both in avatars), Kung and Alejandra. Ming was also piloting with Morgan but would take on Ruby once she had a shack. Remaining at the mountainside for their deliveries were Bree, Kendra and Marcus.

Given the extra shacks than last time and thus extra time, it was decided that everyone would sleep at the mountains, pilots, and ships for the night as well and they’d all get stuff moved to camps the following night once everything was split up and divided.

Neytiri however would have to return to Hometree for sleep.

Still, it made for an interesting journey as they set out as a three Samson squad in search of their target shacks under the starry night with an Ikran following behind.

It was just like last time, Jake and Ashely jumped off first, scaring away sleeping animals and worked together to locate and disable the tracker before locating the cables as Xanthe checked inside and Xavier helped Jake with the outside boxes and disconnected the second shack (they had chosen all with dual shacks for this). Ming took the shack with Ruby and took off back towards the mountains with Neytiri as her guide.

Jake took the second shack as Zeke followed as a guide and set it down in its designated spot.

After the second trip, they had to stop at the mountains for Nadine to refuel so Jake waited patiently but thankfully, Zeke and Ming would take the last trip as they had enough for the last two.

He could feel his Dreamwalker was tired and the temporary light the cave crew had put up into the cave was a better improvement to see everything. The tent was for the people to rest, although he had heard Bree was sleeping in a deactivated link bed because of its comfort levels (he didn’t blame her for that; they were really comfy).

The others were already snooping and moving some of the shit out of the new shacks and into the cave but due to their agreement, they had to wait for everyone and go through inventory checks before serious claims could be made.

Jake was debating on unlinking when a voice in the low light pulled his attention to see a small figure scurry out of the latest shack a few metres away and straight towards him

“Hey Jake, give this a blow!”

Jake’s attention turned to the…black, whistle that was handed to him by Kendra. It was small in his Dreamwalker’s hands; shaped like some fancy skull with a headdress on which…distantly reminded him of the décor he had seen at Halloween or Day of the Dead festivals (which was one time on a film Nadine had him watch back in the day). The whistle looked to be made of plastic of sorts and from the texture, 3D printed.

Curiously, Jake brought it to his lips and blew hard… only to be met with a horrific screech that went straight up his spine, his tail shooting up and he recoiled a little, pulling the whistle from his lips and the sound dropped instantly.

Kendra began to snigger happily. “Your ears went up!”

There was vivid movement as movement as a few tired and grumpy faces turned his way but he just grinned at them sheepishly until a few decided to go to the tent. Unfortunately, Neytiri also seemed to have returned; the distant sounds of the other engines echoing their near arrival.

“What was that screaming?!” Neytiri looked startled as she jumped off Seze’s back, her ears on high alert as she peered around them. “Was someone hurt?!”

“This!” Jake held up his new favourite toy. “Aztec Death Whistle.”

Neytiri’s shocked face morphed into being both unimpressed to done within a second. “Death whistle?”

“Aptly named, I think.” Jake chuckled. “I wonder if there’s any more”

“There are a ton,” Kendra grinned, producing another from her pocket “We can’t blow these at the moment with our masks but I wonder why there’s so many. It’s a Zoology shack. Study of animals, seems odd.”

“Maybe they were trying out new dog whistles?” Jake said, not entirely serious but when animals and whistles are in the same boat, often it’s related. He was sure once the data banks were searched tomorrow, they’d get a clear sign of what this was all about.

Kendra blinked. “Think they could scare Pandoran animals?”

“Maybe we should try it out?” Jake suggested. It seemed like a good idea to test the theory out. If they were right and it was an animal scare, then the humans could have these to help ward away unwanted wildlife quickly and without bloodshed or arrows. They could explore more freely without that fear.

Jake took another breath and blew hard and the demonic screeching once again graced all of their ears.

Neytiri flinched at the sound of the whistle, turning wide-eyed. “That is horrific! Sounds like so much pain!”

A few distant calls of complaints echoed before Kung radioed in despite being in the tent.

“No more demonic prayers, Sully. If you start crawling on the ceiling, I will let the others shoot you.”

“Do we have to wait for that?”

Jake felt an idea spring to mind, a smirk coming to cross his face as he eyed Neytiri. “Tiri, do you mind not mentioning these whistles to Tsu’tey or your parents?” He asked slyly, “I mean… I’d love to demonstrate this little thing more… personally tomorrow.”

Neytiri’s eyes turned, narrowed in confusion then she seemed to light up as she caught on to his implication. Her fingers plucked the whistle from his fingers, tilting it for a better view but the curl of her lips seemed to grow a little. “Perhaps. My father and Tsu’tey will be together tomorrow until noon for his training by the Olo'eyktan.” She suggested, handing it back slowly. “You can catch either one of them for…informing them of this sky people device.”

Jake's grin grew. “Then I shall certainly make sure they know all about it.” He tucked the whistle into his side pouch for safekeeping as Ming’s Samson came into view and he gently waved his arms to help signal her back into place.

Tomorrow was gonna be a good day indeed.

Masterlist

#avatar #avatar au #avatar james cameron #jake sully #neytiri #mo'at #tsu'tey #vampire au #avatar rda #nadine reza #neytiri te tskaha mo'at'ite #eytukan #priya chen #dhampyr priya chen #anqa #sarentu #grace augustine #vampire grace #vampire

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hellsbeenbettersincehesplit · 9 months ago

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*jazz hands* Guess who started a new WIP?

This is an expansion of this post. It'll go through every Hazbin episode and basically show what the show would've been if Loona was staying at the hotel for fun. This first chapter has the start, with her ending up at the hotel.

As always, it's archive-locked but cross-posted here under the readmore if you don't have an Ao3 account!

(@blitzmorningstar, since you left those eye emojis in the replies of that post i thought you might want to hear about this lol)

The Consequences of Believing Demons

Chapter 1: Overture

The plan was going well. Too well, considering Loona was only trying it as a joke.

Loona had been scrolling on Sinstagram while ignoring her job as a receptionist, as she so often did, when she’d seen a post advertising a hotel with a goal of rehabilitating sinners. She'd assumed it was a joke, given it a like, and kept scrolling. Oddly enough, a different ad for the same hotel soon reappeared in her feed. This time she'd noticed that the ads were from the verified account of Lucifer’s daughter. Once she saw a third ad, Loona had to admit that this commitment to the bit was impressive.

Each post had a phone number attached, and frankly? Loona was really fucking bored. She decided to try the number and see if anyone would pick up. After typing the number into her phone, not expecting much, somehow the princess of Hell herself was the one on the other end of the line.

“Hi, I’m calling about your…” Loona double checked the name. “Happy Hotel?”

“Hazbin hotel now!” How did anyone sound this happy on a phone call? The tone of voice was like if someone was barfing rainbows into Loona's ears. “Are you a sinner looking for rehabilitation to avoid the extermination and get into Heaven?”

“Yes?” Ms. Morningstar- fuck, Loona needed to research titles- was so earnest that Loona actually felt a little bad. There was a small suspicion in her gut that this was an actual, serious attempt to save sinners.

“Alright!” How had the princess gotten even more excited? “Just stop by whenever you get the chance! We’re located at the Hazbin Hotel in Pentagram City! Do you need directions?”

“No, I’m good.” Loona paused. “Thanks.”

“Of course! I can’t wait to see you at the hotel!”

Loona felt like she needed a nap after the sheer energy in that phone call. She hadn’t intended to go anywhere, but if this was a bit, Loona wanted to see where this led. If this wasn’t, she was honestly a bit curious.

Over the next couple of days, Loona hadn’t stopped thinking about it. First off, there was no way that was actually Princess Charlie Morningstar. Logistically, why would someone that important be doing something like this? Whatever sinner it was, they could imitate voices with shocking precision. She wasn’t getting her hopes up about getting ahead by befriending royalty.

However, if this was legitimate, she’d come up with a few reasons that it was a good business decision. As intentionally shitty she was at her job, Loona still marginally cared about the business, and had realized that the sinners who'd believe they could leave were likely to be new sinners. New sinners were also the ones most likely to ask I.M.P. to murder a human for them, so getting to know more new sinners would be a great advertising opportunity.

Plus, no matter which it was- everyone in Hell knows that once you’re there, you’re there forever. She might be laughing with them, or she might be laughing at them, but it'd be the same to her either way.

Loona used the grimoire to transport herself directly to Pentagram City. She'd checked beforehand, and the directions on VoxMaps were easy to follow. There weren't any other similarly-named establishments, and she was confident as she navigated her way there.

Apparently there weren’t many businesses of hotels trying to rehabilitate sinners. How surprising.

When she knocked on the hotel door, some angel-looking chick opened it. Loona tried to hide her surprise. Most demons in pride were sinners, the same way most demons in Lust were succubi or most of Gluttony was hellhounds, but fallen angels weren't common anywhere. This could be a sinner, they had the greatest variety in appearances- but over the years and her travels, Loona had met a lot of demons and a few fallen angels in other rings. This sure as hell looked like an ex-angel. Especially with the spear.

“Are you sure you’re in the right place?” The potential-fallen-angel asked after taking in Loona's appearance.

“Pretty sure,” Loona responded.

“You know that this is for rehabilitating sinners, right? Not Hellborn.”

“Wow, I thought this establishment was above judging on appearance. I am a sinner.” Loona hoped this person would fall for that.

The person guarding the door simply raised an eyebrow.

“I was killed by an infected dog bite, ok? It’s a sensitive fucking subject. I didn’t ask to spawn here looking like a fucking hellhound,” Loona continued, trying to keep her tone harsh. She was a little surprised she’d thought of that on the spot- if she ever decided to actually try to do her job well, she’d deserve a raise.

The guard (maybe?) stepped aside to let Loona in. “Fine. Can you at least act? We’ll need you in the commercial we’re filming.”

Loona’s ears twitched backwards. “Not at all,” she answered. She hadn't heard anything about a commercial, and definitely didn't want to be in one.

“Then come back later and we’ll give you your room. We’re kind of…” she glanced backwards, “in the middle of that.”

Loona nodded. She'd been walking away, looking for a good place to create a portal back, when Blitz jumped out of a fucking bush at her.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” She demanded, the words leaving her mouth as soon as she comprehended what she was seeing.

“Tracking you down?” Blitz said, as if it was obvious. “You just fucking disappeared to who the fuck knows where without telling anyone! I had to use your phone tracker to find you.”

“Blitz! I’m an adult. I can leave when I want to.”

Blitz just shrugged. “What’re you doing in this dump in the first place?”

Loona glanced around the two of them and hissed, “That hotel claims to have Lucifer's daughter behind it. It probably doesn't, but just imagine how much it'd help us if it did. Also, it'll be full of new sinners. Some of them will want revenge.” That wasn't why she was doing this, but Blitz didn’t need to know that part.

He was looking at her with open shock. “That's actually a decent fucking point. This could fucking make us.” He looked genuinely proud for a moment, and as much as Loona denied caring about him, seeing it created a warm feeling in her chest. “But this better not interfere with I.M.P!”

Loona rolled her eyes. “Of course it won't.”

A few hours later, Loona had met the hotel staff. Princess Charlie Morningstar, who Loona had been shocked to find was somehow actually involved in this joke of a project, was more than enthusiastic to give Loona a room key. Besides the single other resident, a porn star who’d apparently filmed with hellhounds before, none of them noticed anything off about Loona. Even he only seemed mildly suspicious of the dog bite story.

One other resident. The hotel was completely fucking hopeless. This would be fun.

#helluva boss #hazbin #hazbin hotel #helluva #loona #helluva loona #blitzø #blitz #blitzo #vaggie #fanfic #crossover #vagasaurus #the consequences of believing demons

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moodymisty · 2 years ago

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Tree in Bloom - Ch 1

Chapter 2

Author's Note: Am I planning a full multichapter fic for a game that has been blueballing us on a sequel for years? Yes. Will I regret it? Perhaps. Hotel? Trivago.

Summary: Even after humanity has just been resurrected, Strife still finds himself using Jones. It's easier; Until you find him out of his façade. (Taking place days after Death revives humanity, you wade through a world still infested by demons, while Strife struggles with growing attached to someone.)

Relationships: Eventual Strife/Fem!Reader

Story Wide Warnings: Canon typical violence, Friends to lovers, Teratophilia, Strife being an emotionally stunted jokster and pouter, Eventual smut maybe, Strife is clingy, One or two OCs to fill things out at times, Shooting guns,

Ao3 Mirror

“Where do we even start?”

You can hear a few people talking somewhere out of view, and you find yourself looking upward curiously to see if you can spot anyone on the suspended platforms hanging above you. No one up high, so they’re probably somewhere on the same level as the forge.

“We’ll figure it out. I mean more and more people are coming to the tree, so we have way more manpower than before.”

The distant chatter is unimportant to your ears, leaving you to let it leave your focus as you continue to work on your little project. There isn’t really much interesting happening in the tree for once, as most of the Makers are off either repairing their own equipment, or attempting to wrangle some pesky, recently revived humans. You don’t envy what they’re feeling, not in the slightest after having been through it yourself. But beside those technically post-apocalyptic duties, Nothing of note.

Until you finally hear “Hey Jones.”, Somewhere off to the side, which makes your head suddenly jolt upwards.

It’s from an unfamiliar man who’s leaning against one of the chiseled pillars of the forge, minding his own business. One of the new people; You remember he was part of a group of three that managed to make their way to the tree. The Maker’s little nest up here is getting quite full. But it’s the name he said that made your body raise upward with acute interest, before you quickly settle back down.

Geez; Just act normal for once, will you?

That inner voice in your head is always trying to help you keep your cool, as you notice him walk finally into your view. He stops walking as you speak up, halfway in the process of getting up as you say:

“Oh, hey Jones!”

You’ve left your little puzzle box project to the side, instead walking over to him. Judging by the way he was walking however, you assume he’s on his way to leave the tree.

“Heading out?” Even though you pretty well know the answer you ask anyways, watching him nod.

“Need to make sure there ain’t any demons close by. Seen them circling around the base of the tree.” There’s a bit of dirt stuck against one of your nails that you nervously pick at as you respond.

“Don’t you think the Maker’s work is enough? It’s been working so far, at least.” Jones turns around and takes a look towards the direction of the Maker’s Forge, seeing one of them trying to shoo away a some humans that are far too curious for their own good.

“Call it peace of mind. And I want to help them out where I can.” You can’t fault him on that; The Makers have done so much for you all, you can’t help but feel an immense sense of gratitude for them.

“Well, be careful. It’s been getting dark earlier now,” You can’t help but crack a tiny smile. “I know I wouldn’t want to be stuck out there in the dark.”

You’re more than sure Jones can handle himself, but he hasn’t been the only one that’s noticed more demons circling around the tree lately. It wouldn’t be impossible that they’d overwhelm him if he wasn’t paying perfect attention.

He’s only human, after all.

“I’ll be sure to be. You still need someone to help fix that, uh-” He flounders for a moment, until you fish him up.

“The puzzle box?” He suddenly nods affirmatively, almost as if pretending he had known the whole time. “Yeah, the puzzle box.” You’d love if he would help you with it; If only so to have some quality time together.

The smile you had towards him slowly fades as he nods goodbye and moves to leave, passing by one of the Makers and out of the tree. They don’t bother trying to warn him like you did, as much as they might want to. The Makers have always been protective, however they’ve learned to loosen up with Jones; As it’s largely pointless to try and warn him anyways.

He seems to march by the beat of his own drum, and in a quiet way, seems to almost have a reckless disregard for his own life. Though he always come back in one piece.

You sigh.

Maybe working on the puzzle box you’d recently found some more will keep you occupied. Some of the parts still don’t move right, and the more you work on it the more you might think it’s a lost cause. The wood is chipped in some places and warped from water in others, but despite the damage it’s still in one piece.

It’s been something nice to occupy yourself, as well as a thing to touch that reminds you of a time before, everything.

Damaged, but still holding on.

Your sleeping spot is tucked away in a far corner of the tree, and beside it lays the small assortment of tools you’ve been using to try and pry pieces of the box away, without breaking it. You’ve gotten close a few times, especially when once a piece popped off and flung across the tree, leaving you to scramble to try and not lose it. It’s proven to be a nice little project, in your downtime. Even if there’s still more than a small list of things left to fix on it.

It’s harder to keep focus on it this time however; As you find yourself freezing and glancing upward every ten or so minutes, watching as the sky outside slowly becomes darker and darker with still no sign of Jones returning.

You don’t know why you’re so focused on him this time. He always seems to come back just fine. But he’s been a close friend and part of you just can’t help but worry, after so much time. Hell, he’s the one that taught you how to shoot, once he found you and brought you back to the tree. After, everything.

Thankfully, someone’s voice sounds in your ear before you have much of a chance to go down the path thinking about the apocalypse, and the now current state of the world. Or realm, as the Makers call it.

“Still working on that cube?” Looking up and seeing someone standing there, you smile and nod while still holding onto your pet project. You don’t quite remember her name yet, she’s one of the other two that came with the man that greeted Jones earlier.

“You know,” She gives a joking smirk. “I knew someone before the Apocalypse that was like, wicked good at solving those things. Never figured out how he did it.”

“Really?” You smile up at her, the tool still partly jammed in one of the seams. She nods, but turns her head away from you when someone yells her name. She ends up scurrying off to find them, leaving you alone again.

You attempt to get back to working on the cube once she’s gone, but this time you just, can’t. Any attempt to actually pull it apart is just stopped by, something. Like there’s an invisible force keeping you from doing it.

Sighing, you dump the cube aside along with the tools in a gesture of defeat, and look up.

It’s completely dark now; The stars and moon are the main source of light, other than a few small patches of light from fires lit along the tree. If Jones isn’t back yet, you find yourself worried about what might’ve happened.

It’s been, hours. Far longer than usual.

The tree is huge and winding, even someone like him could get lost or ambushed.

You decide after no small amount of deliberation that you can cast aside your better judgment, at least what little of it you have, and go take a look. Making sure the puzzle box is safe you get up and adjust your belt, double checking to make sure your pistol is still there. It’s more of a self soothing gesture, than anything.

As you walk through the tree you see multiple people asleep on their rolls, or at least preparing to. The tree is getting busy, with the Makers finding so many people. Though so many are still scattered across Haven, you have trouble thinking about just how long it’ll take. Any significant effort is impeded by demons and fallen angels as well, leaving many humans still stranded in abandoned buildings and sewers.

Ugh, I don’t even want to think about another sewer.

Not eager to relive any memories of trudging through wafts of waste in order to get away from swarms of demons, you stuff your hands in your pockets, and walk past the Maker’s forge.

Eyes straight forward, you look out the large entrance of the tree as you walk towards it. It’s so dark out there, you can only see because of the light of the stars and the glow of various torches lining the path down the tree.

If I just look like I belong and I know what I’m doing, they’ll never notice. Works every time.

Taking a deep breath and walking straight forward on a line, you attempt to ghost your way past the few still awake beings in the tree. You get almost enough of the way that you can begin to see just how high the tree is in comparison to the ground below, before-

“Aye. And where do you think yer goin?”

A loud voice makes you stop in your tracks, eyes set on the entrance of the tree. When you turn, you see the only Maker you’d dread seeing right about now; Eunan, standing with his arms crossed, and eyebrows raised.

“Ye ain’t going on out there.”

Turning on a single heel, you try and avoid letting your face wrinkle up in annoyance anymore than it already is.

“And if I want to?” The metal on various parts of Eunan’s outfit clank against each other as he moves closer, and you have to look up at him more. When he sighs, the longer parts of his braided beard move along with his mustache.

“And what do you wan’ out there in the black of night?”

He waits for you to speak for a moment, raising his eyebrows with an impatient expression when you don’t instantly speak up. You had a reason to dread him being the one that caught you trying to sneak out; It’s like trying to convince a brick wall of something.

“I was going to go check on Jones.”

Eunan sighs, his lips parting and showing off one of his fangs.

“Lass, I’m sure the bloke is fine. He can handle himself right. He’s done it before.”

Eunan isn’t wrong, but there’s something stewing in your gut that just feels, off. It’s been longer than usual, and you know you won’t be able to rest your head until he’s back.

“I know, I just want to be sure. It’s been awhile.” Your eyes look away, as you attempt not to roll them while he’s watching. “S’not like you can yell at me for being a little worried.” You’re notably not pleased with the way he’s looking at you like a disgruntled parent, as you refuse to budge on this. The Maker sighs, his mouth twitching as he tries to censor what he might actually want to say.

“Alright, we can go in-” “No it’s fine; I can go alone. I don’t need a babysitter.”

Eunan quickly attempts to fight back but after some sort of inner monologue, he finally acquiesces with a heavy sigh. After doing so he unfolds his arms and leans down, pointing a finger out until it almost presses against your chest.

“Be. Careful. Don’t do anything stupid, ye hear?”

He emphasizes each word with a point of your finger, until your much smaller hand pushes it away gently. He lets you do so, despite being legions stronger.

“I won’t, I won’t- I promise. I just want to make sure Jones is ok. I’ll come back as soon as I can.” While it does next to nothing to actually soothe the Maker, it’ll at least make him slightly less likely to cuss you out once you return and he’s had time to think about this interaction.

Hopefully.

Granted the Makers have cussed out many of the human residents for stupider things; Like climbing the outward branches of the tree for fun. You were one of said humans, of course.

Sticking your hands deep into your pockets you walk out of the large opening of the tree, stepping onto the large flat area of trunk that turns into a path beginning downward. The path down the tree is actually split into many different gargantuan branches, winding away from the main trunk through various buildings and down to the street below. It can be a maze if you don’t know how to navigate it properly, especially when you step off the tree and into one of the many buildings it weaves through.

But you don’t have a particular destination in mind, as you have zero idea where Jones could’ve gone in the first place after he’d left the tree.

There’s so many paths to take, he could be on the city streets, or anywhere in the buildings.

It’s that indecision that ends up making you aimlessly meander slowly down the tree, up until the branch you’re on begins to thin and weave through a large apartment building. Or at least what you think at one point was an apartment building.

Around this point there is no more torches providing light, so it is very quickly becoming darker with only the night sky to illuminate. A small part of you considers possibly turning around, and maybe getting some sort of light, until you hear a noise different from the rest.

As usual you can hear the howl of demons still in the ruins surrounding the base of the tree. But through them all you hear one yelp- a shaking, frightened call. For your own peace of mind you have to look, the sound getting closer before a sound of a gunshot, and the noise all suddenly goes silent.

That has to be Jones, you think; And quickly rush down what’s left of the decrepit hall and turn the corner.

The demon falls to the ground with a wet, lifeless flop- coagulating blood seeping from the gaping wound in it’s chest.

That one had gotten too close. Far too close.

Even with the Makers’ help, even with him patrolling around at night picking any demon he sees off, they still keep slipping closer and closer to the tree. Even through the magic, and the giant roots that wind themselves through years of human architecture, they know what’s up here. Knowing the apocalypse has been halted hasn’t dissuaded them in the slightest.

Like chickens in a hen house, circled by wolves.

Though the hen house already has a wolf inside of it; Even if they don’t quite know it.

A soft trail of smoke rises from the chamber of Mercy, freshly fired and ready to unleash however much more he asks of it.

But nothing else remains for him to do so; They all lay dead in the buildings and streets surrounding the tree. He’s got rid of them for now, but so many more will soon follow. To see glimmers of humanity returning is no doubt a good sign for the realms, but in a way, Death did little more than ring the dinner bell once again.

He never thought Death would actually do it; The rotting bastard.

They are called the endless legions of Hell for a reason. With the apocalypse over they still come, still throwing themselves at anything and everything, mostly to satiate their own mental or physical appetites. And thanks to Fury’s efforts, many of them lack a firm leader to guide them. It makes them easy, uncoordinated prey for Strife.

But even if it’s all over; He still finds himself using Jones.

It’s… Easier.

Humans aren’t scared of Jones, the same way they are of him. The real him.

You, aren’t scared of Jones.

From the first moment he had decided to help humanity all those years ago, Strife had sworn he would never get attached. He never does; Strife for an uncountable number of years has mastered the ability to separate his feelings from anything he does. It’s what made him so good at killing anything and everything; Put a bullet into the back of something’s head and walk away. Shove it down deeper with the rest of them.

But of course he ended up getting attached this time; Someone so much as gives him a hint of genuine kindness and he’s attached to them like glue.

Strife lets out a ‘tch’, bumping one of the demon corpses away from him with the toe of his boot.

He’s never given a shit about what people think of him. Not Death, not War or Fury; Or any other Nephilim when they were still alive. The Angels and Demons? Strife scoffs at the idea of taking any of the unmutterable things they’ve said to him to heart.

But he gives a shit about you. He knows how you look at all the demons swarming the realm, your realm, and in some way, he sees himself in them.

He is half demon after all. Angel as well, and what have the angels done but scorch the ground where they landed? Many of them now ended up fallen, stumbling around the realm with the same lack of regard as the demons they were originally killing.

Strife grits his teeth at the idea of you seeing him, edges and sharp fangs.

He gives his helmet a firm bonk with a single knuckle.

“Ugh.”

Every demon he’s come across so far lays dead- and for tonight, he thinks the tree is safe. With a giant hole in the building he’s in, it allows enough light in to illuminate the scene enough for him to easily see, while the wind blows heavy enough wind to make the tattered remains of his scarf wave. It’s the only think making noise in his ears, as the demon chatter has now been replaced with a permeable silence.

The wind keeps howling, until he hears something else. The wind almost carries it away because of how quiet it is, though he recognizes it enough that it stays with him.

A voice; A familiar one.

“Jones?”

Strife freezes.

Only after what feels like an eternity does he turn his head to look over his shoulder, and sees a distinctly human silhouette standing in the hall of the broken down building behind him.

No; No no no…

The dim moon only serves to shine more light onto the shocked expression on your face; Having followed Jones, but are now face to face with a monster. One that has blood splattered in small patches on his armor, droplets still sliding down the front of his boots.

His eyes glow like amber, shining against the metal of his inhuman mask. The gun he holds in his hand dwarfs the one that you have hidden in your belt, his shoulders casting a sharp shadow on most of the tiny hall. Given his height, he dwarfs almost the entire area around him.

Strife is frozen in time; Watching you with a shocked expression safely hidden behind his mask.

Why her! why did she have to see! Out of every human in that Creator-damned tree why’d it have to be-

He needs to speak. He has to say something before you really do think he’s a demon; One that’s killed Jones somewhere out of view and left his body cold.

“Hey… Why are y-”

The moment his body moves, going to put Mercy in it’s holster, you flinch; Stepping backwards.

Right; You won’t recognize this voice, his actual voice. The person you’ve been speaking to is Jones.

Not a Nephilim. Not a Horsemen, who’s brother is the very being who is part responsible for you falling into Strife’s life.

“Where’s, where is Jones.”

One sharp, gauntlet covered hand reaches outward, out of a fruitless attempt to soothe. You stand frozen in place, until he says your name. It gets a very noticeable reaction, head raising upward as your eyes widen.

But he can’t get any other words out, because the moment you see the barrel of his gun lower enough that he would have to raise it to shoot in your direction, you turn heel and run. He’s surprised it takes as long as it does for you to finally bolt, racing along down the tree branches like Hell itself is on your heels.

Leaving Strife standing in the ruins alone, a pool of fresh demon blood licking at the toe of his boot.

He can only watch as you run until you’re quickly out of view, tripping and stumbling down the wide but steeply declining branches. The way the talon tips of his gauntlets dig so hard into the metal palms it makes them creak, attempting to hold fast against his growing anger before he suddenly lets it all out with a resounding:

“DAMMIT!”

Strife kicks the closest thing to him, which turns out to be the remnants of a half erect wall. It crumbles, standing no chance against his strength in it’s shoddy state. And once the dust settles Strife is still furious; Furious that he messed up and now you’ve seen him.

You saw him like, this.

Strife has to let out a heavy, stiff sigh to avoid wanting to destroy something again, and harder. He has no idea what to do now and he hates it more than anything, not having the answer or the words to say. And even if he did, you aren’t here to say them to. You ran back to the Makers, all the way up the-

Strife suddenly jolts upright from his distracted slouch as if lightning had struck him.

You didn’t run up the tree, you ran down! Any demons that had hidden from him will surely come out at the sight of a lone human, no matter how well armed you might be. That gun of yours is meant to pick off Duskwings and scavengers, not packs of demons prowling around for anything to slice to ribbons. Strife was going to deal with them next, before you’d interrupted him.

Mercy still stays firmly gripped in his hand, as Strife begins to race down to street level.

He has a good idea where to start looking for you, and soon enough after finds the corpse of whatever demon you’d thrown enough shots into to kill it. Shortly thereafter, he sees you.

He spots you attempting to climb some sort of ladder against the side of a building, however it’s so rusted and ruined that it shakes as if about to fall. And it does, the metal peels away from the side of the building and you tumble a good meter or two, grunting with effort.

Strife in his attempt to make sure you’re not hurt forgets that you were running from him, and startles you to your feet once his boots come into view. In that split second, he tries to calm his tongue enough that he doesn’t say something phenomenally stupid.

Ok just- Lets, lets just not scare her off again.

#I hope a few people enjoy my little Darksiders pet project <3 #strife x reader #darksiders x reader #Strife/Reader #Darksiders #Strife #reader insert #mywriting #Darksiders/Reader

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sunnyrealist · 7 months ago

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Chapter 43: A Legacy of Love

The Sun, the Moon, and All Our Stars

Summary and Details…

Previous Chapter Recap/Context: Sebastian and Kate are on a trip in the Scottish Highlands, exploring the mysterious Blackfold Castle. Protective wards, set by a queen who took her own life, have kept curious treasure-hunters away for centuries. Somehow, Kate and Sebastian are able to enter the palace with very little effort. The great hall of the castle provides much information - a piece of parchment somehow interacts with them, asking them to view the memories of Queen Eilionoir through a Pensieve and promising a great reward for doing so. The memories tell the tragic story of Eilionoir Aitken and Neacal Brody, childhood friends turned lovers who planned to marry but were thwarted when a prince asked for her hand. Her family was destitute, and her father saw the marriage as economically and socially advantageous, agreeing to the match without a second thought. The night before her wedding, Neacal and Eilionoir met in secret and completed a magical ritual for reincarnation. Trapped in a joyless marriage, Eilionoir only found reprieve in writing letters back and forth with Neacal, but Prince Luthais eventually discovered their correspondence and deemed Neacal a traitor to the crown, executing him while Eilionoir watched. Shortly after becoming king, Luthais was assassinated. Still miserable, the queen dismissed the entire castle staff, placed protective wards over the castle, set up the great hall for her future visitors, and, presumably, ended her own life. Sebastian and Kate realize, finally, that they are Neacal and Eilionoir.

Pairing: 25-year-old, post-Azkaban Sebastian Sallow x 24-year-old Kate Mayflower (my OC), the Hogwarts assistant librarian

Content warnings: In general, this is rated 18+ - minors should not read or interact with this story. This chapter features discussion of sui/cide.

The full chapter is available below the cut; it can also be found on AO3 (link is posted below). Please leave some feedback if possible, especially if you like what you read! 🥰

Chapter 43: A Legacy of Love

Kate touches Sebastian’s arm to halt him. “Wait, Sebastian.”

He turns to face her, wide-eyed and determined.

“Sebastian… Before we write to Eilionoir, we should take a moment. That… that was a lot to process.” She pauses, then smiles. “My love… Do you understand…?”

He gazes upon her for a long moment, grinning brightly. He takes her hands in his. “It was us. Kate… that was us.”

Kate squeezes his hands. “I never knew it was possible. Never. I thought reincarnation was one of those fantastical things people like to believe in.” She moves in closer, looking up at him. “But we did it. You did it.” She chuckles. “Of course you did it! If anyone could, it would be you, Sebastian. Your mind… your passion for learning… creating a spell that endured centuries, that defied death.”

Sebastian speaks warmly. “Don’t discount yourself. Look around, my sun. You did all of this. Your magic was so powerful! You could create protective wards that stood the test of time. You planned and left this here… I think you left this here for us… only us.” He gestures at the table and the Pensieve.

Her mind spins, considering his idea. “No one could ever come into the castle except us…” She trails off, then contemplates it more. “Is it even possible to set wards to only allow specific people inside?”

“Yes,” he replies quickly. “It is possible. I don’t know how, but I know it’s possible. And I’ll find out how you did it. Just give me time - I will research.”

She smiles at him, breathless, then embraces him.

“Sebastian… It all makes sense now,” she whispers, pulling slightly away from him to look in his eyes. “It’s why we have always been so drawn to each other. It’s why I felt… complete… the first time we kissed…”

“You did?” he asks, quirking an eyebrow.

“Yes. Have I never told you that?”

“No,” Sebastian replies. “But I felt that way, too.” He pauses, suddenly realizing another clue. “And Kate - we met on the night of a full moon!”

“That’s right!” Kate gasps. “Good gods, it was all destined! We were meant to meet. To find each other.”

Sebastian presses his forehead to hers. “Kate, we were born for each other. This was always the plan.”

“It was. It really was,” she murmurs, her face filled with wonder.

Their lips press together in a long and serious kiss. When it ends, they spend a full minute in silence, simply searching each other’s eyes. Sebastian eventually pulls Kate back in, desperate to physically connect once more. Both smile and chuckle as their kiss ends. Neither can fathom that the first true case of reincarnation ever personally witnessed consists of each other.

Kate feels so light, as if her soul is being carried towards the sun by lacewing flies - the impossible is, in fact, possible, and achieved because of their love for each other. There is a great comfort in knowing that her gut feeling, the one that insisted that this man was exactly who she was meant to be with, was not just a hunch. It was real and fated - and now they would continue a legacy of love that was once cut short.

“We will do what they never could,” Kate muses. “We will get married. We will grow old together. Spend our entire lives in each other’s arms.”

“Oh, Kate,” Sebastian whispers, clinging to her. “If it’s even possible, I love you even more now. There’s no question, no doubt left for us.”

“No,” she replies, still grinning. “None at all.”

After some more kissing, giggling, and giddiness, they finally make their way to the table, hand in hand, breathless with excitement, their faces filled with pure joy. Sebastian cannot stop looking at Kate - his one true love, his soulmate.

Sebastian immediately dips the quill into the pot of ink, then writes in Scottish Gaelic, translating it all for Kate.

Queen Eilionoir, we have finished viewing your memories.

She replies quickly. I am glad to hear it.

May I ask how it is possible that you are communicating with us?

Ever the curious one. This parchment is enchanted to contain my conscious memory from the day I departed this world. Now, may I ask a question? Do you both know now why you are here?

Sebastian chuckles a little. “That’s kind of a loaded question.”

We, Kate and Sebastian, are Eilionoir Aitken and Neacal Brody, reincarnated. And we were meant to come here to make this discovery.

Yes. You would never have made it into the castle otherwise.

So, it is true. You set up the wards in such a way that only you and Neacal could enter.

Yes. I knew it was risky to do such a thing, but I was certain that Neacal’s soul would carry his adventurous nature and that someday it would lead him here. I trusted Neacal more than anything in the entire world. If he believed his spell for rebirth would work, I would never doubt it.

How did you set up wards this way?

There is so much to tell that I believe it a poor use of time to discuss enchantments at the moment. Besides, you will learn on your own. I know it. Now, ask a more important question while I still have time.

Kate glances and grins at Sebastian. He really must be so much like Neacal.

Why? Why did you do such a thing?

It takes a moment for her next message to appear on the parchment, as though she is thinking and choosing her words carefully. I must tell you first that there was no sadness in my decision. I was overjoyed to shed this body and meet Neacal once more in the great beyond, and for us to have our next chance. I did it all for us. For love. I desired to give our future selves the best chance possible to succeed and to not suffer like we did.

How is that? By giving us this information?

Yes, but there is more. I promised a reward. You will find it as soon as we end this communication. I did not wish for either of you to have your lives - and love - determined by money. I have thought long and hard about this, and, indeed, your reward will ensure that your economic status shall have no role in your relationship. I hope that this reward will allow you to reach your dreams - to live life without worry.

Sebastian and Kate look up at each other, wide-eyed.

“I wonder what she means,” Kate whispers.

You have our attention.

I cannot communicate much longer. You will understand. Just wait and you shall have a surprise. And do not forget to look at this table before you leave.

We have so many more questions for you. May we take this parchment with us so that we may speak to you anytime?

No. I do not have enough strength left to enchant it any further. My time with you is running out.

Neither of them seem to know what to say. How many more messages could Eilionoir last?

“Sebastian, we should end this discussion positively. I would hate to be in the middle of a conversation with her only for the magic to run out,” Kate suggests.

Queen Eilionoir, thank you for all that you have shared. We are sorry that you and Neacal did not have a happy end.

Ah, but we do have a happy end. It is both of you.

Kate and Sebastian smile at this. Before they can begin writing another message, Eilionoir continues.

This shall be my final message. Blackfold Castle stands only for you. Once you have read this message, time shall move quickly - twenty minutes will be the extent of your time here. Then, Blackfold will crumble forever. Sebastian and Kate, know this: You carry all of our hopes and dreams. Remember us. Honor our memory by living well, standing together, and loving each other with everything you have. Truly, the most powerful magic in the entire world is love.

Farewell, Queen Eilionoir. We wish you a peaceful rest. Thank you for all you did. We promise to live a life filled with love.

Sebastian and Kate are silent for several moments, contemplating all they have learned. When Kate sighs, Sebastian stands up straight and brings his girlfriend into his arms for a long embrace. She melts into him, closing her eyes in satisfaction. He kisses the top of her head.

When they pull apart, they immediately see three things.

Queen Eilionoir’s correspondence is on fire, burning up.

The table now holds two rings and a much smaller piece of parchment.

Behind the pensieve, items materialize out of thin air, as if they had always been there, just invisible. A chest filled with coins. Emeralds, rubies, sapphires, pearls. Crowns set on pillows. Necklaces, earrings, and rings. A bronze handheld mirror, along with a golden comb. A scepter. Large shields. Several ornate swords. Breathtakingly bejeweled wand holders. A pair of golden slippers. Gorgeous pieces of fabric - silks and furs. An embroidered purple cloak. Dresses fit for royalty. Dragonhide boots. A large stack of old tomes. An antique lute. A huge banner bearing a coat of arms. A bronze compass. A marble bust of a woman wearing a tiara. Incredibly rare and exotic ingredients for potions.

Kate blinks several times, then rubs her eyes. How could this be? She turns to Sebastian, who wears a similar dumbfounded expression as he faces her.

“Is this really all for us?” Kate says in a hushed voice.

Sebastian nods. “I think so. Eilionoir said… she didn’t want us to worry about money. She didn’t want it to determine our future, like it did hers.”

Kate imagines what must have taken place. The queen must have gathered as many valuables as she could before exiting the castle for the last time, leaving the artifacts for the future Eilionoir and Neacal to discover. She must have carefully thought it all through. The trust she had in Neacal and his spell for reincarnation must have been positively limitless. Kate smiles, realizing it is a trait she carried on - absolute and unconditional faith in the man she loves.

“Kate,” Sebastian says, interrupting her thoughts. “Eilionoir said we would only have about twenty minutes until the castle is destroyed. I know there’s a lot to process and discuss, but we must hurry if we are to take this all with us.”

She nods in response, coming to her senses. “You’re right. Yes.”

The two of them easily work in tandem. Inside her extendable bag, Kate waits for Sebastian to levitate the items and direct them to her, where she waits at the bottom of the ladder. She then works to organize and stack the items as carefully as she can. The small space, really, not much bigger than a walk-in closet, is quickly filled. She hurries up the ladder when they have finished packing, closing the enchanted bag. Then, she shrinks it and places it inside a pocket in her trousers.

Sebastian and Kate are about to exit the castle when she suddenly remembers what they saw on the table. She takes his hand and rushes to it. Unfolding the small piece of parchment, she shows it to him, since she cannot understand Scottish Gaelic.

He breathes out, smiling. “It’s the spell. The reincarnation spell.” He carefully slips it into a pocket within his cloak.

Then, there is nothing left on the table but two beautiful rings. One is dainty - the band is gold and twisted, leading to a gold setting that surrounds an oval moonstone. The other is weighty and masculine. A square moonstone sits in the center of the wide, green ring, bordered by golden leaves.

To put these rings on would be momentous. Kate’s breath hitches, uncertain of what might happen. Sebastian weighs it in his mind. They are undoubtedly bound to each other, but placing the ring on her finger would feel like an engagement or marriage. Kate once told him that she wanted him to propose purposefully, after meeting her family. As he looks into his girlfriend’s bright blue eyes, there is no doubt in his mind that these are special items - beyond special - that will forever symbolize their connection and infinite loyalty to the other. As much as he wants to place the gorgeous ring on her finger, to impatiently propose here and now, he has learned his lesson. He knows this isn’t the right time.

“My love, we should save these for each other. They are so precious,” Sebastian murmurs, opening her hand and placing the green and gold ring in her palm. Speaking so quietly, he is barely audible when he asks, “My sun, will you keep this ring safe for me?”

Kate closes her hand around it, nodding slowly. She does the same with the other ring, gently leaving it in Sebastian’s hand. She speaks softly as well. “And will you keep this safe for me, my moon?”

“Always,” he replies, touching his forehead to hers, “As long as is necessary.”

#hogwarts legacy fanfic #hogwarts legacy sebastian #sebastian sallow #sebastian sallow x oc #post azkaban sebastian #aged up sebastian sallow #hufflepuff x slytherin #hogwarts legacy oc #hl oc #hogwarts legacy original character

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defensivelee · 1 year ago

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Six Lives Won't Make You Happy: If All the Devils Shall Submit

At last here it is.....the first chapter! James gets his six lives after his brother's death, William survives a couple assassination attempts, and M&W meet because how could you separate them. They are in love. Welcome to the beautiful and noble city of New Amsterdam <3

Here is the reference/guide post for anyone who needs to know What's Going On

CW: violence, light descriptions of gore, murder, addiction, mentioned overdose, drinking, smoking, drug use, explicit sex scene, implied child abuse.

The sword wasn’t meant to be used for another fifty years, at least. It had been in the family long enough for it to have been touched by a devil at one point, centuries ago when those noble creatures still roamed the Earth. That was what saved it; there was no rusting visible upon the silver that reflected the flames from above.

No, it was a different kind of red that dyed it, the kind of red that dripped and made puddles on the ground. Mary watched her father lift it high above his head, the blood falling to his fingers before he sheathed the sword at last. It wouldn’t come out again for what would hopefully be more than fifty years. Maybe two hundred, if James was smart.

“The final task is finished,” James announced. “Come out, you devil. Give me what you owe me.”

All around the dark room, the flames on the torches seemed to burn brighter all at once, and a voice spoke over them. “You do not tell a devil to come out,” it said.

The carved images of ancient devils on the walls were as stationary as ever, but Mary knew they were all here, watching them. Mocking them, perhaps. She narrowed her eyes.

Do you think we owe you any reverence?

“I may now,” James retorted. “For though your life is long, you still only have one. And my soul will outlive yours, once my body decays. I have six lives to change the world around me. All of your kind fled this world and left it for the Overlifers to inherit.”

“We never did specify it was for you.” The devil went silent for a moment, then went on. “Nevermind. James Stewart. You have received your six lives after finishing the tasks we set out for you. The power of the devils runs through your blood. Harness it wisely. And...remember that we have always been watching you.”

“If you are implying what I think you are, then just know that I don’t care what you’ve seen.” James flicked his tail impatiently. “Are we done here?”

“Your brother wasn’t like this when he received his lives.”

“My brother,” James said through gritted teeth, “is dead.” He turned around, jerking his head at Mary. “Come on. They’re just wasting our time now.”

“I hope to see you here soon, Mary,” the devil called out after them as Mary opened the heavy doors.

“Ew, he knows my name,” Mary huffed once they were outside of the room, the halls around them being lit up by only a few fading light bulbs. “They didn’t seem to like you very much.”

“They’re not supposed to like me,” James said. “I expect their full submission when our project is finished. It shouldn’t take very long. All Charles did was play around with the idea.” He looked up at one of the bulbs, the curious markings around his eyes and cheeks seeming to glow as if they had been flashed with a black light. “Well, Mary? Are they still there?”

“The marks of an Overlifer?” Mary nodded. “Yes, sir, still there.”

“Ah, perfect.” James put his head back down, lifting a hand to run a finger along one of his horns. Charles’ had been bigger, and curved differently, but Mary remembered that she preferred playing with her father’s horns when she was younger. “Well, then. Six lives, Mary. The potential! What can I do with them?” He laughed to himself, and Mary smiled to see him so pleased.

“Surviving assassination attempts, for one,” she said. “I think as long as you’re careful, you can live for a very long time. Didn’t the oldest Overlifer live on for four hundred years or something?”

“I plan to go past that,” James said. “One thousand, if possible. Aging won’t be a hell anymore, as long as I’m not on the last life.” He laughed again, walking past her towards the stairs. “The Disciples of Restoration are mine now. I have six lives to change theirs. Six lives to change the world.” His eyes flashed as he looked back at her. “And you, Mary?”

“I’ll be beside you forever, sir,” she said, bowing her head. “Where you go, I follow. If changing the world is what you want to do, then I will do so as well.”

“What a relief to hear it,” James sighed. “After the amount of treachery I’ve seen in this world, at least I have you.”

🝰🝰🝰

“It says right here, Hans, that historically there have been Allies that were able to shift their sight to miles away from where they were standing!” William tapped a finger on the phone screen. “Do you know how useful that would be?”

“I’d feel worse about it if you never brought it up,” Bentinck said. He leaned into the mirror and adjusted the choker around his neck. He wasn’t one to obsess over his appearance, but lately he had wanted to look better whenever he took visitors and worshippers. “You know I couldn’t choose my powers. Besides, I have the fangs already.” He jerked a finger towards his mouth.

“How can those possibly be useful?” William muttered.

“Uh...to kidnap people?”

“Ugh, yeah, maybe.” William shook his head. “Still, you’re a man, not a snake. If the devils wanted to give you a majestic wildlife superpower, they should have chosen another animal.” He smiled as he spoke his next words. “You were already some kind of snake, weren’t you?”

“I don’t like the implications of that,” Bentinck said, eyes widening briefly. “Why are you bitching about it now, though? It’s been a while.”

“Because now would be a great time to check up on what the Disciples are doing,” William said, getting up from the sofa. “They’ve been silent for days.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“Well, yes, if I knew why,” William said. “I just feel like they’re planning something. An assassination attempt, it feels like. Charles said he would call me back, but it’s been so long. I’ve lost count of how many times I tried calling him.”

“How very mysterious of them,” Bentinck said. He was now looking through one of his boxes that stored all of the jewelry and rather indecent clothing he chose to wear when he received visitors as an Ally. But it wasn’t as if he had any choice; this was what Allies had worn for centuries. “Ah, but you’ll be fine! It’s not like they could kill you if they tried.”

“I would like to preserve all of my lives, though,” William said, glancing thoughtfully to the side. “You know how stupid I was last year. Never get high on your own supply, told and retold for centuries and what did I do?” He snorted, the tip of his tail twitching. “Fool that I was.”

“At least a heroin overdose is easy to pretend to recover from,” Bentinck said. “A gunshot through the head? Not so much. But cheer up, maybe they’re just really busy with...whatever they happen to be doing.”

“That’s just it, they’re never busy. The higher-ups aren’t, anyway.” It had always annoyed William, to see that the leadership of the Disciples only used its fortunes for stupid, frivolous things, rather than focusing on their goal to bring about the rule of the Overlifers throughout all of the world. In a way, he supposed it was lucky, since an Overlifer like Charles could be a dangerous rival if he wanted to be. Maybe he had been, here and there, but mostly it was his single-lifed brother that William worried about.

“Well, while they’re distracted, you could attempt to restart their war,” Bentinck said, “and this time, you would have an advantage. You could even try assassinating James or Marly again.”

“That’s a fair point...”

“See? There’s a silver lining to everything.” At last, Bentinck stepped away from the vanity desk and nudged William’s shoulder, lifting sunglasses up to his Over-marked eyes. “Come on, it’s almost seven.”

Today’s outfit somehow seemed more scandalous to William than it usually did, though that was possibly because Bentinck wasn’t wearing anything to cover his chest this time. He merely wore his favorite harness over his upper body, the one with the white straps and ribbons. But the reason Bentinck liked it so much was because there were fake flowers sprouting from it in select places, mostly near his shoulders and thighs. It made him look somewhat like one of those devils from back in the day that brought plants to Earth to please its own eyes, but ended up gifting something to the humans instead.

William didn’t like it. He didn’t like anything about the Allies; not their ridiculous sense of fashion to please the eyes of their worshippers, not their lack of devil features except for their dark eyes, and not the incredible amounts of power they could wield, depending on the individual. This was why the world needed the rule of the Overlifers. Such creatures didn’t deserve the attention that was showered upon them by the public. And no, the rule of the Disciples wouldn’t do. It would all be the same with them; oh, debauched, amoral them— what the world needed was the rule of the Overlifers like William and the Devils of Orange-Nassau.

But, of course, it was in William’s best interests to keep a powerful Ally at his side, and what better choice was there than his friend Bentinck? He would have become one himself, but the rituals required that the Ally not have any devil ancestry behind them, and William quite literally wore his on his head. And besides, he wasn’t sure he could have handled listening to all the problems and prayers of every ordinary, boring worshipper that loved him so much, and he certainly couldn’t handle whatever that imaginary dress code was.

No, Bentinck was perfect. He was loyal, and honest, genuinely out to help, nothing like those scheming Allies who had only fought the devils for the money and worship it brought them. Sure, William had wanted the power as well, but he told himself it was for more practical reasons.

“Fix your face, you look like someone just beheaded themselves in front of you,” Bentinck muttered into his ear as they stepped out of the elevator. Bentinck usually took visitors here, on the lowest floor of one of William’s hotels. This one was called Mycenae, and it was the largest, and most successful, one that he owned, standing right in the middle of New Amsterdam.

“Why are there so many of you tonight?” William blurted upon seeing the line in front of the room that Bentinck sat in. Luckily, nobody heard him, with how much they were chattering, but Bentinck elbowed him in the ribs, anyway.

“Someone’s popular,” he said with a knowing grin.

“Look who’s talking!” William huffed. He stepped beside the doors that were painted in Bentinck’s image, showcasing him covered in jewels and gold. “Let the Ally pass!” he called over the voices. “Come on, show some respect!”

“Yes, be patient,” Bentinck said as he walked towards the doors. The crowd fell silent almost instantly, watching his every move with awe. “I am pleased to see you all again. Ah, but some faces are new, I see.” He looked up, his eyes darting from one person to the next.

Is he looking for someone? William pushed the thought away. It was absurd; he couldn’t imagine Bentinck remembering everyone who came to see him.

“I await your prayers inside,” Bentinck said. “Remember to tip!” He bowed his head and ducked inside the room, William having to shut the door with his tail.

And so it was the same thing as always, with William standing outside the room and making sure everyone dropped a bit of money into the slot right beside the doors. He had no idea what Bentinck did in there, but he suspected it was a lot of very boring listening. And talking. While Bentinck was half-naked and surrounded by drooling fans.

This part of his day always made him feel a little nervous. Bentinck typically sat here for four hours, and William would stand outside for at least an hour before he got bored and wandered off to do something else. Perhaps it made people less willing to tip without his stare enforcing it, but it wasn’t as if he needed the extra money.

But the main reason he was always eager to leave was because it was so easy for someone to assassinate him like this. He had always been somewhat aware of the possibility; everywhere he went, his tail would lash up instinctively near his head to take the worst of a bullet should one ever be fired at him. He felt infinitely more secure with an Ally beside him, but everyday, Bentinck would leave him alone for four hours and he was in danger. He was such an easy target, standing here in front of these doors. And like Bentinck said, it wasn’t easy to fake a recovery from a bullet to the head.

You died, they’d all say. You were dead on arrival. How did you heal this way?

And then they’d see the markings on his eyes and cheeks and realize what he was. He’d be executed, over and over again until they were sure he was dead. The Overlifers were not easily forgiven.

He had played it all out in his head before. He couldn’t afford to lose another life, not so soon after he had lost the first one.

When the hour had passed, he couldn’t have been more relieved. Of course, no one was enforcing that he had to stay until the hour was over, but it had sort of been a countdown that he had created. He owed that much to Bentinck, at least.

He walked past the line of people, ignoring the eyes that wished to catch a glimpse of one of the richest people in New Amsterdam and indeed, the world. He wondered which one hid the R on their neck behind a scarf, or a necklace, perhaps, and which one would have shoved a knife through his throat had he stayed.

🝰🝰🝰

It was almost a work of art. Charles’ body was pinned to the wall with knives buried into each of his limbs, dried blood starting to crust over his clothes. One particular detail that Mary noticed the artist left behind was that one of Charles’ horns had been sawed off and stabbed into his neck, forcing his head up towards the ceiling. It was sort of clever, in Mary’s opinion.

His cheeks had also been split open, giving him a kind of perpetual, bloody smile. She knew everyone who had seen the body had been rather unsettled by the state that it had been left in; even James, who had almost certainly killed more people than she had, had made a face upon seeing the body.

She blinked up at Charles’ empty gaze and looked back at James.

“I suppose we must get this cleaned up.” He sighed, looking around the walls now spattered with blood. “What’s it been, three days?”

“You haven’t announced his death yet, have you?” Mary asked.

“No, that’d bring the cops in, and you know we have enough trouble with them as it is.” James stepped forward and began to tug the horn out of Charles’ throat. It was huge; it could almost be a dagger in its own right. “By the devils, it cut deep.”

“Do you intend to keep it?”

“The horn?” James chuckled. “Yes. Do we not owe him that, at least? He was a fine leader.”

“I thought you didn’t like his strategy,” Mary said.

“Well, when it worked, it worked.” He shrugged and finally tore the horn out, lifting it to his lips to taste the blood there. “Oh, yes. I will definitely be keeping this.”

Mary let her gaze fall back on Charles. She could handle a lot of things, but seeing her father drink blood was not one of them. She thought it may have something to do with his devil ancestry, though it wasn’t very common for devil descendants to have kept the powers and desires of their forefathers.

“Come on, Mary, they’re waiting for us,” James called, and she realized he was now walking out of the room.

“Yes, sir.”

The room where the highest authorities of the Disciples of Restoration met was already full when James and Mary entered. They fell silent as James sat down, Mary taking a seat by Anne.

“You’re stepping on my tail,” Anne hissed through gritted teeth, and Mary shifted her feet.

“You know not to keep it in that position already,” she said.

“I can keep my tail where I like-”

“Mary. Anne.” James flicked his tail behind him in a warning. “I thought you were well past the point of childish arguments. This is important. Pay attention.”

“Yes, sir,” Mary said, jerking her head away from Anne. Her face flushed at having to be scolded in front of her father’s vassals, most of which she hardly liked, anyway. She knew they respected her only because she was her father’s daughter, and now stood to inherit whatever bloody mess he left behind when he died. And a future Overlifer was not to be trifled with.

“I suspect there is treason in our midst,” James began. “The manor of the Disciples is one of the most heavily guarded structures in all of New Amsterdam. There is no way an assassin should have gotten all the way into Charles’ room, unless our guards were paid off...or it was one of us.”

“Mary isn’t the best assassin in the world,” Anne spoke up. “She’s pulled off similar jobs. If she can do it, I’m sure the Devils of Orange-Nassau can do it as well.”

“Is that supposed to be an insult?” Mary curled her lip back in the beginnings of a snarl.

“No, a compliment, of course,” Anne said, rolling her eyes. “You’re just the best at ending lives, aren’t you?”

“I like to think she is,” James interrupted coolly. “As I was saying, it could be any one of us, or it could be that some kind of bribery is going on. None of us had a reason to want Charles dead.”

Is he being serious right now? Mary tilted her head to the side. She had plenty of evidence that that wasn’t true.

“He led us well, and when the Disciples inherit the Earth, he’ll be remembered as one of the greatest leaders we’ve ever had,” James went on. “But now it is my turn to lead you all into the paradise we’ve all been waiting for. And that begins by avenging the death of my brother.” He slammed his fist onto the table, and nearly everyone sitting at it flinched. “I have every reason to believe that it was those Devils!”

There were the ancestors, and then there were the Devils of Orange-Nassau. Mary didn’t need their full name to know which one James was talking about.

“Only an Ally could be so brutal as to take away every remaining life that belongs to an Overlifer,” he spat. “It could only be William himself or his pet Ally that he sent to finish the job.”

William. Mary watched in grim satisfaction as every gaze around the table seemed to darken at the mention of the leader of their rivals. It didn’t look like anyone here could possibly have wanted to help him, but then, she knew firsthand how deceptive one had to be to survive here.

“So he is to be eliminated first,” James said. “If we could capture his irritating Ally, that would also be a great help. But for now, killing William is the way to start, especially when he hasn’t received his six lives yet.” He turned his head to Mary, who felt her heart drop at what she knew he was about to say.

Here it comes. My mission from birth.

“You, Mary, will be in charge of getting rid of him,” he said. “I want him to suffer. Bring his body here when you’re done with it. I want to make an example of it to the Devils of Orange-Nassau. Let them know that the Disciples are no longer playing their games.”

“Of course, sir.” She had always hated being reminded of her most important mission, ever since she was a child.You’ll end the Devils for us, girl. Now, she’d get it over with.

“He’ll hopefully be here this Saturday, after I announce Charles’ death. We are hosting a private Celebration of the Six Lives, and no one but our kind and the Devils of Orange-Nassau are to be allowed in. Is that clear?” He waited for a second while everyone nodded. “Very good. That’s when you can strike, Mary. I expect he’ll have his Ally with him, but you’ve always found a way around bodyguards, so I don’t think this should be any harder for you.”

“I’ll finish the job before you even realize he’s gone,” Mary promised.

“But—!”

She winced. It was Maria Beatrice who had spoken; of course, it had to be her, the only person who ever found something to pick apart in James’ plans, which was curious in Mary’s eyes considering the two were married. Sometimes James valued her insight, but it was more often than not that he’d reprimand her right there, in front of everyone.

“What?” James’ gaze snapped over to her.

“Do we...know for sure that it’s William?” Maria said. “I know we can’t go to the police, but shouldn’t we at least run our own private investigation? Do we not owe that much to your brother, after all he’s done for us?”

“Are you defending William?” James narrowed his eyes.

“No, but it would be a waste of Mary’s time —and clothes— if she had to kill someone who may have actually had nothing to do with the murder,” Maria said. “Why would she want to get her hands dirty at your Celebration of the Six Lives?”

“Surely it’s no problem,” the Ally Marly spoke up on the other end of the table. “Mary likes killing people, doesn’t she?”

“Why are you discussing my opinions on my plan without me?” Mary growled. “You know that my mission from birth was to eliminate all our rivals, and this is currently our biggest one. It doesn’t matter why or how.”

“You just assassinated a CEO last week, Mary, I think you deserve a break,” Maria said, reaching over to pat her arm.

“That was last week,” Mary said. “Seriously, I appreciate all your worries for me—” She shot a glare at Marly across the table. “—but it’s fine. I can kill William and get back to stream the party in the same night.”

“You are not streaming my Celebration,” James said sternly.

“Oh, please, my followers love it when I’m at a party,” Mary said, waving a hand in the air. “Just a reminder that their girl has a real life too, you know?”

“Fine, but thirty minutes only,” James said. “As for you, Maria, William was always destined to die by our hand at some point. He just brought it upon himself by killing Charles.”

“What she was saying was that we can’t know that it was for sure William,” Anne said. “Could’ve been anyone else not connected to the Devils of Orange-Nassau. We all liked Uncle Charles, yes, but I can think of plenty of normie fuckers who’d want a multi-millionaire dead. And it’d look strange if we didn’t put an effort into finding out who killed him. Almost as if we were the ones who did it.”

“Ugh.” James ran a hand over his face and then pointed it at Anne. “Very well. You find the killer.”

“What?” Anne jumped in her seat. “Why me? I mean- if you really think it’s William, then-”

“Because it was Maria’s idea and you ran with it,” James snarled, standing so quickly that the chair he sat on nearly fell over. “Because I don’t have the time to do it myself. And because I don’t want to hear another objection that comes out of your mouth about this, do I make myself clear?” His tail lashed threateningly behind him.

Mary shut her eyes. Here was another thing she didn’t like seeing from her father.

There was a moment of silence before Anne spoke again. “Yes, sir.”

“Thank you. Now, all we have is the Celebration of the Six Lives to worry about.” James motioned at Maria with his tail to follow him out the door. “Mary will kill William. Anne will find out if it really was William, but does it matter?” He turned around to briefly grin at them all. “He’ll be dead by Sunday.”

🝰🝰🝰

“I thought you didn’t like parties. Especially ones where everybody is for sure going to be smoking.”

“Smoking or smoking hot?” William glanced at his reflection in the dark window of the limousine and adjusted his sunglasses around his eyes.

“Why are you asking that?” Bentinck snorted. “You know I just meant smoking.”

“No, I didn’t. Knowing you, it could be anything.”

“You need to work on your comprehension of figurative language.”

“Maybe you just need to work on your clarity,” William said, batting his tail at Bentinck’s nose. It always felt awfully cramped to have his tail inside a car. He didn’t know how or where to curl it, especially with the way it bent awkwardly near the top.

“Well, anyway, I just didn’t expect you to want to attend the Celebration of the Six Lives,” Bentinck said. “Especially since it’ll just be us there, no? Could be dangerous.”

Maybe. But William didn’t say that, only turned around and rolled his eyes. “They wouldn’t attempt anything at such a big event. Charles dead, and then me? It’d look very suspicious for them.”

“On the other hand, they might think it’s the best time to strike,” Bentinck said. “You’re a big man, you know, with corporations under your wing just the same as Charles. With both of you assassinated in such rapid succession, it'd look as if some wayward anarchist was just trying to get their way rather than the restarting of any ancient wars between terrorists.”

“Terrorist is such a boring term,” William said with a flick of his tail. “Besides, Hanni, we’re not terrorists. We’re the future of this planet. I prefer the term saviors.”

Bentinck made a face. “Somehow I don’t think the government is going to look at it that way.”

“They don’t need a way to look at it, because they’ll all be dead,” William said pleasantly. “Now. Stop complaining.”

Bentinck paused, then bowed his head. “Yes, sir.”

They didn’t speak again as William spent the rest of his ride fiddling with the glasses on his face. He couldn’t get them in a proper position that wouldn’t bother him, and he wondered if it would look strange if he arrived with them on, especially now that it was night.

Definitely strange. He sighed. There was no easy way to go about it, though. They didn’t know he was an Overlifer yet, and he had to hide his eyes.

“Well, Hanni, try to act normal when we’re inside,” William said as he hopped out of the limo when they arrived, twitching his tail as a thank you to the chauffeur that held the door open. “Don’t start a fight with James’ Ally.”

“He’s the one who’s always trying to kill you.”

“And you know that he couldn’t,” William said. He looked Bentinck up and down at the doors of the manor. “I’m just glad you’re not wearing your hooker clothes again. You look good in a tuxedo.”

“Why, I’ll have you know that the so-called hooker clothes are traditional,” Bentinck said with a huff. “But thank you, William. You are the very portrait of regal dignity, if I do say so myself.”

“Oh, my, flattery? What are you up to now?” William grinned at him, and with that the two turned around and entered the manor.

The first thing William noticed was the stench. There weren’t any cigarettes in sight in the hall they had entered through, but he could smell the smoke all the way over here.

Ugh. He shook his head. Just another way these Disciples failed at their cause.

“Forgetting something?” A handsome face dangled upside down from the high ceiling, shadowy ribbons holding the lithe body up. William jumped back, his tail held up defensively before he realized that he knew this creature.

The ancient dwaallicht spirit Monmouth. He was said to have been a duke at one point, or something else, hence the many names, and his whole thing, besides the impressive shapeshifting, was the fact that he’d only attack you if you had forgotten something on your way in or out of a doorway. Somehow he always knew. William would have found it irritating had he not thought it was mildly creepy.

“Um...no.” At least, he hoped he hadn’t.

“Correct! You may pass!” Monmouth pulled himself back up, sweeping a cape over himself and shifting into a crow in the blink of an eye. “Right this way, little humans.”

“Little!” William rolled his eyes and looked at Bentinck as the two followed Monmouth down the hall. “We’re not so little, are we?”

“Don’t make me answer that,” Bentinck said. “What I’m wondering is why they’re still keeping that pest around. I thought they only tolerated him because of Charles.”

“Maybe James will surprise us.” William shrugged. “Besides, you two are by all technicalities related.”

“The Allies and the dwaallicht remnants have very different origins,” Bentinck said with a growl. “Do not compare us.”

The crow led them into the same room where William recalled having attended Charles’ Celebration of the Six Lives once, when he was much younger. Still, it was strange that Charles was dead already. William could’ve sworn he had a few lives left, at least.

This particular room had paintings and sculptures of the ancient devils all over the walls, some wearing chains on their wrists and ankles as accessories, showcasing the utter contempt that the Disciples viewed the devils and Allies with. He supposed it made sense, he didn’t care much for those beings either, but it felt rather on the nose for him.

And by all the stars, it was unbearable here. Half of every person William could see held a cigarette in their hand, including the newest Overlifer himself, sitting at a decorated table and talking through the smoke coming from his mouth like some kind of smug dragon. He caught sight of William across the room and raised an eyebrow, waving at him once.

“Are you going to speak to him?” Bentinck asked.

“N-Not now,” William said, clearing his throat. “By the devils, if they knew I was going to be here- they couldn’t have, I don’t know-” He tried to clear his throat again and shook his head. “Dirty Disciples—!” He covered his mouth so his coughs wouldn’t be so loud, and he felt Bentinck’s hand on his shoulder.

“Do you want your inhaler?” he whispered.

“Not yet—!” William attempted to smile. “I think we just- we ought to sit down.”

“Right this way, sir.” Bentinck nudged him forward and the two began searching for any table that might have been reserved for them.

“Thank you,” William murmured. He was glad he at least had Bentinck with him; he hadn’t bothered with slippery bodyguards ever since his friend had become an Ally.

They sat down, and William looked around warily. There was never anything to do at the Celebrations, except talk and wait for the new Overlifer to speak. And then everyone got drunk and declared that it was the best party they’ve ever been to, except that if they told anyone who wasn’t an associate of the Disciples, they’d be killed.

It was pretty risky, attending these parties.

“Does James just want to rub it in my face?” He looked back at James, who wore his most familiar smile, and possibly his most threatening. It was the kind of smile that looked vaguely arrogant and pleasantly annoyed. William had seen it covered in blood.

Is he planning something?

“Oh, absolutely,” Bentinck said, and for a moment William thought he had read his mind. “He wants to show you that he’ll not be so easy to kill now. I think we should kill him anyway, though. Ugh, look at his smirk. SO suspicious. He’s probably planning to kill you first.”

“But you would protect me, right?” William let out in an exaggerated drawl.

“Hmm…”

“Why are you thinking about it?!” William cried, and Bentinck started laughing so hard he almost knocked over his empty wine glass.

“I would think about it too, sir,” a gentle voice announced behind them both, “as someone like you is not easy to follow.”

Who dares? William turned around abruptly, only to be faced by a woman he had never seen before. She was a bit taller than even Bentinck, and despite the darkness of her eyes, he could see the fire that blazed behind the glasses she wore. She was some kind of threat, he knew immediately.

But she had no features that marked her as an ancestor of the devils; no tail lashing under her short skirt, no horns over her dark hair, nails painted black rather than claws.

Like an angel...

“Oh, tell me about it,” Bentinck cut in, interrupting William’s train of thought. “He’s always going somewhere. And like, you know, I understand he’s got places to be, but I stop to look at something for two seconds and he’s already miles away.”

“Not literally miles,” William said quickly. Under the table, he reached his foot out to step on Bentinck’s. “Why are you here?”

“Oh, that’s kind of rude, isn’t it?” the woman said. “What are parties for, sir?”

“Drugs,” William blurted.

“Socialization,” Bentinck corrected with a dirty look.

“You, Ally Bentinck, are correct,” the woman beamed. “Thank you for blessing us with your divine presence tonight.”

“Ha! And don’t you forget it,” Bentinck said, flashing a grin at William.

“And who’s your friend here?” she asked, leaning in close enough to William that he could feel her breath on his horn. “I adore your hair.”

“You don’t know me?” William could nearly growl. “I am the handler of this here Ally—”

“Oh, skies above,” the woman said, “handler is such an outdated term. Bentinck’s your friend, is he not?”

“Who are you to assume what our relationship is?” William snapped, getting to his feet.

“You may call me Mary,” she answered. The only hint that she was a little intimidated was the way she stepped back, William noted with satisfaction. “And what do I call you?”

“William...Henry,” William said, unsure of whether or not to give her his full name. Surely she was connected to the Disciples in some way, if she was here. “Nobody in particular.”

“Now that doesn’t add up, you were just complaining about me not knowing you,” Mary said, but she raised her eyebrows as if she had just figured out an impossible equation. “As if you were somebody important.”

“Will you quit bothering us?” William said, turning around to sit back down. He began to cough again as he did so, and he covered his mouth with his tail. Oh, not now!

“William, don’t be so rude,” Bentinck scolded.

“Oh, I don’t mind, my lord,” she said. “Why don’t you pour yourself some wine? I don’t believe the Overlifer will speak for a good while yet.”

“Maybe I will,” he said. “You want some, William?”

“N-No—” William’s shoulders were practically shaking now with the effort it took to try to silence his coughs. Need to be alert!

“Oh, please, maybe it’ll make you loosen up a little!” Mary said.

That’s what he wants. William glared up at her, but Bentinck was already pouring him a glass.

“Do you want your inhaler now?” he asked.

“Absolutely not,” William managed to wheeze out. It seemed to have subsided, for now. And besides, he didn’t want anyone here to see him have to use it. Especially not Mary.

“Wonderful,” Mary said, sitting right by William. “So, I’ve never had the chance to speak to another Ally besides Ally Churchill! May I ask a few things, my lord?”

“Go right ahead,” Bentinck said.

William watched them talk for a moment, then looked back down at his phone, checking if he had been sent anything important. He saw that he had another meeting to attend tomorrow, and this one was no thrilling council where he laid out his plans for the future of the Overlifer kingdom.

Just more thrilling...business...ack.

I’m sorry I’m SO successful and destined to rule the WORLD it’s not MY fault, he was tempted to send in the group chat, but closed it out before he let the thought progress. Apparently everyone agreed that shareholders sort of ruled the world, but they weren’t supposed to act like they did.

He looked up at the glass of wine that Bentinck had poured him and lifted it to his lips. Maybe drinking something would help soothe him.

🝰🝰🝰

Mary was fascinating. In a sense, she seemed a perfect mixture of somebody who told every stranger she found on the streets about her entire life story thus far and also somebody who purposely wanted to keep themselves as mysterious as possible.

I wish William would pay more attention to her, though, Bentinck thought. His friend was currently sipping on what might have been his fourth or fifth glass of wine, scrolling through his phone and occasionally hacking and wheezing at the screen. He was usually pretty awkward at parties, but he seemed more withdrawn than usual today.

Something might be wrong.

“I have a friend who’s crazy obsessed with you,” Mary said. “She has a shrine for you.”

“Oh, quite a few people do,” Bentinck said, looking back at her. “It’s almost half a million now. I obviously can’t keep track of them all, but I try.”

“I see,” she said. “I think my friend’s shrine puts all those to shame, though. She goes to see you every week.”

“Well, I have even more weekly patrons…” He wondered if they were thinking of the same person, but he wasn’t about to out his most devoted follower, just in case.

“Of course, I don’t expect you to remember her,” Mary said quickly. “Just thought you might want to know.”

“I think people might be equally obsessed with you,” he teased her. “Seven million followers? What do you even stream?”

“Oh, it depends on what I’m in the mood for,” she said with a wave of her hand. “I streamed a bit of the Celebration, actually, before you guys arrived.”

“Ah, that’s—”

Something glinted in the corner of Bentinck’s vision, something he knew no one else could see at this distance but him. He turned abruptly to the side and saw that across the room, the Ally Marly was bending over to speak into James’ ear and fiddling with something in his hand.

No...not fiddling. He’s loading a gun. Before Bentinck could look away, Marly glanced up, shoving the gun into the holster on his golden belt. His eyes like embers didn’t shift away from Bentinck.

He knows I saw. He clenched his fists on his lap. I was right.

They want to kill William.

“Something wrong?” Mary said, tilting her head to the side.

“I just...I remembered I needed to ask something.” He stood up and bowed his head at Mary. “For William. Give me a moment.”

Marly was already walking away, now and then stopping to greet a few guests before he left the room with one final glance at Bentinck.

Oh. He wants me to follow him.

He didn’t want to leave William alone here...but then, Mary was sitting right next to him, now bent down to speak into his ear. She seemed pretty trustworthy to leave behind with William; at least, for someone present at a party hosted by the Disciples. If anything, Marly was the threat here. He was an Ally, and he always seemed the Disciple most likely to kill William.

Fine. I’ll play your games. He ran his tongue over his fangs and began to walk across the room, towards the door. Nothing could go wrong, he was sure. He had stopped Marly many times before.

My power is greater than yours.

🝰🝰🝰

Stupid, bumbling mess of a devil-poisoned subject. Mary had to hide her smile as Bentinck left the table. How many times had her father told her that the Allies were the easiest to manipulate?

“Where’s Hanni going?” William slurred beside her. “He’s so handsome under these lights here...do you think maybe...I could borrow James’ chains? You know, to put them on him...when he receives visitors.”

“By all the stars, what kind of visitors does he receive?” Mary laughed.

“Mmm...hopeless, pathetic lot of people. Hanni doesn’t care about them...like he cares about me.”

“Do you really believe that?” she said.

“What, aren’t you one of...you know, them?” William lifted a finger to point vaguely at his horns. “Disciples.”

“No, what are they?” Mary said innocently.

“Oh...oh, by every remnant...you’re not one of them!” William leaned back on his chair and hacked out a cough. “Good, good, very good.”

He was infinitely more talkative now, Mary realized. It seemed the wine had worked.

“I don’t know what I did,” she said, “but I’m glad you like it.”

“I like it very much,” William said. “It’d be a shame if you were associated with them...awful, awful people...scourges on this Earth. So much bloodshed...so unnecessary, I’ll be the only one—!”

Unnecessary bloodshed. Mary looked down at her painted nails, more than a little offended on her father’s behalf (and perhaps her own). It was not unnecessary. She did what had to be done. The Overlifers were better leaders for this planet than any arrogant Ally.

Maybe she thought the torture part was a little unnecessary, since all it did was make people afraid of the Disciples. Were they not supposed to be loved?

No. No, we need the information.

Besides, it always pleases James. It pleases me.

“Only one of what?” she asked, her voice quieter now.

“No matter,” William said, lifting a finger up towards her lips. “You hate violence.”

“I do,” Mary said immediately. It was a lie and she knew it— but he seemed so sure of the fact, he hadn’t even phrased it as a question.

“Then never return here again!” William let out in what sounded to her like a delusional wheeze. “Not to someone like James. A dazzling soul should never fall here.”

“That’s a strange thing to say about someone’s soul. It’s not like you can see it.”

“Oh...” William smiled at her. “But I can see yours!”

“Y-You can?”

“Yes.” He brought a hand up to his heart. “I can see...everybody’s. Because you will all belong to me, except you, because you’re too bright...to ever submit to anybody.”

Did he really believe that? She had submitted to the will of the Disciples, and that of her father, long ago. She had submitted to the mission that was given to her from birth. What context did William have to believe that she wasn’t that kind of person?

Do I want to be that kind of person?

“How do you know that?” she prodded. William wasn’t an Overlifer, as far as she knew. He’d have no special powers, and even so, an Overlifer didn’t have an ability like the one he was describing.

“Guessing. I’m guessing.” He lifted a hand to his horns and began to tap one. “Mm.”

“Does that mean I can choose my own life?” she blurted, leaning forward. “Like, if someone says I’ve been destined to do something since birth, then do you think they’re lying to me?”

“Your life is your own,” William said with a twisted, yet definitive nod. “Until it’s mine. But also, yours will never be mine. So make your own destiny, I don’t, like...care.”

“So our destinies weren’t ever meant to intertwine, right?” Mary leaned even closer.

“Nooo. Good heavens, absolutely not.”

“So you’re telling me that I can do whatever I want and it doesn’t have to include you or anybody else?”

“It can include whoever you want, Mary.”

I want to be that person.

“What if I want you in my destiny, though?” She took his hand in hers and pulled him towards her. “What if you’re exactly what I’ve been waiting for? Can I keep you in my life, even if it’s full of a bunch of things you might not like? Can you be my one constant?”

Somebody who saw her as all she was now. Not a murderer, not a weapon, not an angel. This was all she needed.

“I suppose...having a constant factor in life is nice,” William murmured, not bothering to pull his hand away. “Hanni’s mine. I’ve never...been someone else’s constant, though. I might do it all...wrong.”

“We can learn to be each other’s,” she said, her voice breaking. By the stars, why were her eyes suddenly so moist? “I didn’t know you’d be like this.”

“Have you...heard of me, after all?”

“Yes,” Mary said. “But I don’t believe it at all. I want to know who you really are. I don’t want any secrets between us.”

“This sounds...awfully like a blood pact,” William said, sounding faintly alarmed.

“Is that something soulmates do?” Mary cried. “Wait, wait, wait—” She reached her hand out and slid her palm across the tip of William’s horn. The pain was sudden, flashing over and over again, it seemed, but she knew it was something that was needed. “I pledge my soul to you, William.”

“Bloody stars—!” William shuffled back in his seat. “Mary, what the-”

“Did I do something wrong?” she said anxiously.

“You might have. Why are you asking me?”

“Well, I don’t know. Have you ever met someone who’s changed your life so drastically with a few sentences and now you have to live with the reality of their words forever?”

“Eh...not really. Is there a way to do that correctly?”

“To have your life changed?” Mary hesitated. “I don’t know. I guess you make it up as you go, no?”

“Right. What do we do now?” He made a face. “I mean, I didn’t intend to change any lives tonight. That’s something I was planning to do five years into the future.”

“And I’ll still be there, right?” Mary reached out to cup his cheek, staining it with her blood. “Just you and me?”

“Just...you and me,” William promised, leaning into her touch.

“I think I love you.”

“Oh, that’s fucking perfect. I’ll need some heirs later, you know?”

“We’re having a family?!” Mary gasped.

“Yes!”

“We’re getting married?”

“If that is what you want!”

“You’re the most beautiful man in the world, you know that?” She gripped his face even tighter than before. “And your mind...”

“No one’s ever called me beautiful…” His eyes widened behind his glasses.

“Because everyone’s stupid,” Mary declared. “Except you, and me. We were always meant to find each other.”

“That’s love?” William asked.

“I think so? Maybe?”

“I don’t have a very good definition of it, I’ll admit…”

“We can just make it up! Who cares! The world is ours!” She brought him even closer and kissed him, and he tried his best to return it, which ended up making it rather messy. But she didn’t care. It was their definition of a kiss.

He began to shake in her arms, and she leaned back, realizing he was coughing again. But it didn’t seem to stop this time, and just then she saw her father stand and make his way toward a podium. He was about to make his speech!

And I still haven’t gotten rid of William!

Oh. Right.

She still had to kill William. Even though he had just told her that her life was hers to choose and that they would get married. Even though he had rather violently just ripped her away from the trajectory of her life’s work.

It didn’t seem fair to kill him, now. Did she even want to ever kill someone again? She thought she liked her work.

Don’t I? She looked back at James, and their gazes met. He smiled at her, almost encouragingly so. He was counting on her.

I can’t do this to him. She sighed, slouching in defeat.

There was thrilling, freeing William...and then there was reassuring, steady James.

What had she even been talking about to William? Was she insane? She did have a constant in life— it was fucking James! Him and all of the Disciples!

I can’t leave! I have to kill him! She turned to look at William. This was her enemy. Their love— it was practically treason. No, she had to get rid of him before things progressed further.

But she realized she was terrified. Would she ever meet someone like this again?

She had to believe she would. She swallowed, standing up and nudging William to his feet.

“Come on...this is the worst part of the whole Celebration,” she said. “And you’re gonna die if you stay here, just look at yourself!”

“I- I am not—!” he barely managed through his wheezes. “Where’s Hanni? I need that- that inhaler!”

“We can go find him,” she said, taking his hand with her uninjured one and leading him through the room. “Deep breaths, William.” She cursed herself at that; if he had an asthma attack now, that would just make her job easier.

But it’s such a boring way to go. She looked back at his face, examining it under the lights.

She knew she didn’t like the way her heart jumped at seeing him like this.

“Over here, come on,” she said once they were out. She looked around for Bentinck, but of course, James’ plan had worked too well— he was nowhere in sight. “Alright, I’ll take you to my room. Wait there, and I’ll try to find Bentinck, okay?”

“You live here?”

“Um. Just a bit.”

William gave her an incredulous look before turning away to stop himself from coughing on her. His tail twitched fiercely as he did so.

Oh, dear. She just hoped Bentinck was already dead so she could take the inhaler from his body without anyone noticing.

🝰🝰🝰

Bentinck followed the tracks of light that only he could see glittering on the floor. Every Ally had their own aura, seen only by their own kind. Marly’s was a sparkling ruby, with a few flashes of gold here and there. It disappeared rather quickly, though, so Bentinck had to find him fast.

And he did. He found him in a small room decorated with jewels everywhere, the kind that were given to Allies as offerings. There was some kind of throne in the middle of the room, chains of gold resting at the bottom of it. But the most shining object of all was the Ally Marly himself sitting upon it. He was dressed in a way that left little to Bentinck’s imagination and had lifted his leg over the armrest rather precariously, showcasing the detailed tattoo on his thigh. In his hand he held a cigarette, and he lifted it to his lips when he saw Bentinck.

“Pay your respects,” he said.

“We’re both Allies,” Bentinck said. “I owe you none of those rituals. And tell your Disciple freaks to quit smoking when my master is around.”

“In this beautiful and noble city,” Marly said, “there is always some kind of toxicity in the air. He should go somewhere else if it so bothers him.”

“Are you asking to be strangled right now?” Bentinck said, stepping forward. “You know, I could kill you if I—”

A gunshot seemed almost to shatter the air around Bentinck, and he jerked his head forward with a snap of his jaw. The bullet he caught in his teeth seemed to rattle in his skull, and he shut his eyes, briefly dazed.

Ah.

“Pathetic.” He spat the bullet out on the ground and glared up at Marly, whose expression had not changed.

He shrugged. “It was worth a try. I didn’t want to go about this traditionally, though…” He sighed and brought his hand up to his eyes. “You are so exhausting to deal with.”

“Imagine how I feel.” Bentinck lifted his head and grinned with all his teeth, letting the light shine on his fangs. “But I did go see your newest movie last weekend. Toutetsu, was it? I just loved seeing you covered in blood for the thousandth time when you were murdered.”

“It seems they all do.”

“An actor should always strive to portray the perils of his character realistically,” Bentinck went on, starting to circle the throne. “Do you want to know what dying is like?”

“Not particularly.” Marly stood and put out his cigarette on the ashtray that lay on the other armrest. “I suppose it’ll be worth it, though, if you tear these clothes to shreds. I do hate how they look on me.”

“What?” Bentinck snorted. “I thought you liked dressing like a goddamn prostitute. Or is that just your way of soliciting your services?”

“Crazy bitch!” Marly lifted his gun again and began to shoot wildly at Bentinck, who just barely managed to catch the bullets in his fingers. One, however, found its way past him, and he felt the heavy, startling pain dig deep into his shoulder

He let out a hiss of pain and stumbled back, just as Marly jumped forward, lifting a spear made purely of his aura high above his head. Bentinck yelped, shifting to the side as another gunshot rang out. He bit the bullet from the air again and this time spat it right back with full force at Marly, who merely flicked it out of the way with a finger.

“This whole thing is so stupid,” he said, spinning the spear around in his hand. “I could think of ten different situations that would work to kill you that would work way better than this one.”

“Then why?” Bentinck leaned forward. “Why do you want to kill him now?”

“Him?” Marly’s eyes widened briefly. “Oh, of course. Him. Your handler. Well...” He laughed. “I don’t know. It’s sort of a game now, isn’t it? We do it whenever we please. I expect you to try to kill James next week.”

“I’m not having any fun,” Bentinck said. “This is a matter of humanity’s future and who inherits it.”

“Humanity’s future!” Marly spat out contemptuously. “Do you think you’ll be included in your master’s plans?” He slashed the spear across Bentinck’s chest, and Bentinck cried out, his legs buckling under him with the fiery pain it sent through all his body. He knew how Marly’s weapons worked by now— if they drew enough blood, they could paralyze him, much like the own effect his venom had. Already he could feel his movement slowing.

“Is that how you see it?” he asked, catching every swing of the spear in his hand. He knew what would happen soon; he knew how it always ended. “Allies command the world.”

But I can kill him this time! If I just hurry.

“You are hopeless!” Marly barked, shrinking the spear into a dagger and surging forward to shove it right through Bentinck’s shoulder. But Bentinck was faster; he dove to the side and pinned Marly to the wall, biting deep into his neck with his fangs.

Marly gasped, dropping the gun at his feet and the dagger flickering back into its state of nonexistence. Bentinck pulled back and smiled.

“Now. Relax.”

Marly slowly sank to the ground, reaching a hand out weakly towards the gun before Bentinck kicked it away. He leaned on the wall for support, but it seemed his head came down rather heavily as Bentinck heard a thump from it.

“Damned...Devil,” he said in an odd kind of slurred, but rushed manner. “You’re just being...used.”

“And what about you?”

“I know...why I make my choices...don’t you dare compare us.”

“Right back at you.” Bentinck took the gun from the floor and knelt down to hold it to Marly’s head. “Your best role got shot, didn’t he? Marly.”

“Don’t shoot.”

“I should,” Bentinck said calmly. “You’re at my mercy, you know that? I can say the words and you wouldn’t know if you’d ever wake up again.”

“Quit being smug...about it and kill me...if you will,” Marly hissed.

“Rest easy.”

Marly looked up at him with wide eyes, before those same eyes seemed to roll back and his whole body fell still. It was as if he had been shot through with euthanasia, but Bentinck could see his chest still rising and falling.

Finally. Bentinck pulled the trigger, except—

He didn’t move. He couldn’t move. His whole body had frozen in place. He couldn’t even shift his eyes from the position they had locked in.

Fuck. Fuck. He felt his heart begin to race. This was the worst position, and place, to be paralyzed in. If one of the Disciples walked in...he’d be incredibly easy to capture. Sure, it wore off in an hour, and maybe James would talk long enough, but he had to go back to protect William. And he didn’t know how long Marly would stay asleep for. His venom tended to be rather unpredictable in its potency.

“Hans William Bentinck.” A familiar voice sounded from the doorway, but there was nothing familiar in its coldness. His heart leaped to his throat.

He felt Mary walk up to him and kneel down beside him with a laugh. “You fell for it after all. Idiot. You two are so fucking easy.” She dug her fingers into his hair and pulled with all her might, bringing tears to Bentinck’s eyes. “You might be wondering why I haven’t stabbed you through your throat yet.”

She’s one of them.

“Unfortunately, it seems that William really cares about you,” she said. “So, I’ll let you live. But if you dare interfere with anything I try to do?” She leaned in to talk into his ear as she pried the gun from his fingers, leaving what looked like her own blood, dripping from her palm, stained on them. “I’ll hunt you down and you’ll live to regret it forever.”

Hunt me down all you like. No one will hurt William.

“I just need this for now, though,” she said, reaching into his pockets and pulling out William’s inhaler. “Thank you!” She patted his head and left the two Allies alone, examining the gun as if it were a curious new pet she had found.

🝰🝰🝰

“Feeling better?” Mary asked, patting William on the back. They sat on what looked like her bed in what she called her room. William rather didn’t like the implications of that, and frankly, couldn’t be bothered to untangle them now.

“Very,” he sighed. “Thank you. Is...Hanni back at the party?”

“I assume so,” Mary said. “I mean, that’s where he appeared to be going.”

“Ugh. Then I suppose we ought to go back...”

But he found he really didn’t want to. She was the best part of this whole, boring Celebration, her and the way she spoke to him as if they were truly equals in the grand scheme of the things, in the eyes of the universe. She had declared her love for him, when William had always believed that he was incapable of that kind of love— and yet, he had found it, in the span of five minutes! She truly was an angel.

Though it always seemed to take a while to fall in love in all the movies he watched, in the stories he heard. He wondered if he was doing it right, but then, Mary had said that they could make up their own definition of it, hadn’t she? Or had she been referring to something else?

It feels like ages ago...have I spent my whole life with her? Do I want to?

“I don’t want to go back, it’s boring,” Mary said, echoing his thoughts and leaning on his shoulder, which was sort of comical now that he noticed their full height difference. “You’re the most fun I’ve had in forever. I mean, I guess I’ve had fun, but...you’re less superficial, I guess.”

“Really? I don’t...get that often.” No one had ever called him fun. She just kept on surprising him, apparently the same way he did her.

He really hadn’t thought about any of this before. It didn’t seem like romance would have any important part to play in his great plans for the world.

“Well, you should,” she said. She stood abruptly and began to look through the drawers by her bed. Her whole room was rather a mess, and through his blurred vision he thought he saw letters scratched out on the wall across from him. But he couldn’t read them, especially with the darkness of his glasses, and his head seemed almost to pound at the attempts he made to do so. He leaned back and lay on the bed with a sigh.

“Do you have any water?” he asked.

“Just finished the last bottle in here, sorry,” she said. He looked up and realized she was holding a rather startling amount of small tablets in her hand, lifting them to her mouth and using the last of the water bottle she held in her other hand to swallow them.

“Should you...be taking that much?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah! It’s a prescription.”

“Oh...alright, then. What for?”

“You ask too many questions, William,” she teased, lying down beside him. “So. Have you ever dated someone?”

“Don’t ask me to remember anything now.” He rolled over, looking up at a faded poster on her wall of some feline character he couldn’t recognize. “I just want to be here with you.”

“You’re so sweet, you know,” she said as she tossed an arm over him. “To think we were at each other’s throats just a little while ago.”

“Were we?”

“Oh, you’re a comedian, too,” she laughed. She leaned over him and began to kiss all over his face, her lips meeting his features without fear.

“Um...” William leaned back, wincing against the kisses. He supposed they didn’t feel so bad, but there were rather a lot of them and they came far too quickly. “Just keep the- the sunglasses on.” “Why? It’s so dark in here.”

“It is NOT.” It was actually so dark that it was kind of making him dizzy, though he couldn’t tell if it was the wine or not.

“Fine, fine.” She sat up and pulled him towards her, letting him rest on her soft body. It reminded him a bit of how Bentinck used to hold him. “You’re so pointy.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” William jerked his head up to glare at her.

“Oh, I don’t really have a reference for how pointy people are supposed to be,” she said. “So you might be normal. I’m not sure, but also, I don’t think you’re capable of being normal. Oh, dear, I’m leaving blood on you...” She started to pull her hand away, but he grabbed it and put it back on his shoulder. She laughed and left it as it was.

“Do you want to kiss again, William?”

Actually, he never wanted to kiss anyone ever again after this. It felt strange, especially when in the back of his mind he knew that he’d only just met this woman. But...it wasn’t so bad, he told himself, and she looked so beautiful and hopeful.

He nodded and sat up, letting her take him by the horns and kiss him. His tail twitched when he felt her tongue through his teeth, and he tried his best to return her movements. He had kissed before, but it’d been so long ago that he couldn’t remember what girls considered “good.”

Most of it wasn’t with a girl, though...

Oh, well. Kissing standards should be universal.

He felt her laugh against him, and then with her bloody hand she lifted one of his own to her face. And then to her neck. Right to her chest, where he felt her heartbeat.

By all the stars, how improper. He started pulling away, and Mary blinked down at him in confusion.

“What? You don’t want to do this?”

“Do what?” He already knew what she was going to say, but he hoped he was wrong.

“You don’t want to touch me, William?” she asked. “You’ve had sex, right?”

“Well, yes, but it’s...not something I do very often,” he said. “Why would I?”

“You’re so funny,” she giggled. “My father likes to say I’ve got bitches hanging off my arm at every moment. And I think you’ve just become one of them.”

“Surely I’m more important than that.”

“I’ll need to judge your performance to decide,” she said, lying back on the bed. “What good would my soulmate be if he can’t please me?”

Of course. William swallowed. He could do this, then. He wasn’t as inexperienced as he could have been. Oh, Hanni’s going to be awfully pleased when he hears about this.

This is fine. It’ll feel fine when we get it over with.

He looked up and saw that she was lifting her sweater (that was rather too big for her, William noticed) over her head. As she sat up to begin unbuttoning her blouse, he caught sight of an odd marking on her neck. All over her shoulders and chest, actually; he realized once it was fully off. He shifted forward to see them better.

Not markings. Tattoos much like the ones he had seen on captured Disciples. He could have dismissed it had it not been for the letter just a bit under her neck. An R.

“You are...you’re-”

“What?” She smiled as she lay back down again, William having to shuffle back to give her room.

“The...R of the Disciples,” he let out. “You said...you didn’t know what they were...”

“Does it change anything? Do you hate me now?” She tugged at his horn, bringing their faces close again, close enough so that William’s glasses nearly slipped from his nose. He adjusted them quickly, and it seemed to remind Mary that she was still wearing hers, for she slid them off and set them to the side.

“Who are you?” He felt her leg slipping over his back, as if to hold him down.

“James’ daughter. And I know you very well, William.” She began to pull his jacket down, her hands oddly shaking, but William clutched it frantically before remembering why she was doing it.

Fine...it’s fine. She’s fine. She hasn’t tried to kill me yet.

“You aren’t supposed to be doing this, then,” he breathed out. It still felt awkward to let her undress him; he was a grown man and he could do it himself, for the Allies’ sake!

“Neither are you,” she cooed, tapping his nose with a finger. It wasn’t just her hands shaking now; he felt her body shivering underneath him, as if she were cold. But she didn’t remark on it, and so he didn’t either. “Come on, William!”

“Fine...fine.” He couldn’t be bothered to think of all the reasons this was worse than wrong anymore. They were here now, weren’t they?

🝰🝰🝰

Bentinck only realized he could move again when he blinked, and he collapsed beside Marly with a relieved sigh. His legs ached from being stuck in that position, as well as his eyes, and he shut them as he lay there to think.

The Celebration would surely be over soon. And Mary was still there, with William...

“Siren!” he cursed her out loud. He opened his eyes and sat up, glaring down at Marly. He supposed he could just strangle him right here, but there was no fun, much less honor, in killing someone who couldn’t fight back.

He stood up and stretched. No, his target right now was Mary. He left Marly as he was and walked out to peek into the room where they had all been in previously. It seemed everyone had only gotten louder since he had left, but William and Mary surely weren’t part of the noise.

They’re not here. The table where they had been sitting was empty, and they weren’t hovering around other people, either.

He stepped back and looked behind him, towards the stairs. There was only one way Mary could have taken William from here, and it was up there. William wasn’t one to fall for girls easily, if at all. It would have been hard to get him to follow Mary, unless he had enough to drink.

You’d have to drag him kicking and screaming. He narrowed his eyes and began to go up the stairs. And if you did that, Mary, well...there’s a special fate I’m saving for you.

“Forgetting something?”

Monmouth! He grimaced and glared back at the dwaallicht spirit hanging off the ceiling. “No. And I’m not leaving.”

“So you say.” Monmouth grinned with all his teeth and called the ribbons back to his mouth, dropping himself onto the ground. “Well. Go on. Don’t fall.”

Don’t fall. Don’t fall. Bentinck knew very well what that meant, and there was nothing he could do about it. He turned around and began to walk up the stairs again, keeping his eyes on the floor. He didn’t have to go so slowly, just as long as he knew where he was stepping, as long as he got it over with and he got to William—

His foot slipped suddenly, catching on a loose nail on the stairs, and he let out a cry as he fell nearly on his face. He was briefly relieved when he stood up, as he was unharmed, until he saw the shadowy spirit smiling in front of him. It jumped at him, throwing him down the stairs and biting into his wounded shoulder.

“Ah—!” He rolled over, trying to pry Monmouth off of him. “Worthless spirit—! Get off of me, you nuisance, you submit to me!” He tossed his head back with a hiss of pain when Monmouth wrenched his own head to the side, and he felt his blood spurt into the pest’s mouth.

“I get to kill you now!” Monmouth exclaimed triumphantly, taking Bentinck’s head by his hair and slamming it back down onto a step. “Big, strong Ally Bentinck, bested by a little dog spirit!” His dark ribbons began pouring out of his mouth again as he laughed, as he dug his claws into Bentinck’s shoulder and elicited a sharp grunt from the Ally.

“You don’t get to kill me,” Bentinck snarled. “By the ancient order of the dwaallichten who created our Earth and the devils who ruled it, I command you to—” He didn’t get to finish his sentence as Monmouth leaned in as if to kiss him, but instead let the ribbons falling from his mouth wrap around Bentinck’s head and mouth.

My fangs! He tossed his head forward, trying to bite through the ribbons and taste flesh. But Monmouth hopped up abruptly, pulling Bentinck with him to the ceiling. The ribbons wrapped around him, tying his arms behind his back and forcing his legs up to his chest.

“Ah, there we go,” Monmouth said, hanging expertly from his own strands. “I suppose even the worst of Allies look tamer when they’re restrained.”

Insolent dwaallicht! Bentinck tried to kick his feet out, pulling fiercely at the ribbons behind him. He knew he could slice through these; the powers of these minor devils were nothing compared to his. He just had to get his hands free in the first place...

“Right, well, I’ve had my fun,” Monmouth said. “But I respect you Allies; at least, more than my uncle does. So I’ll just leave you here, how about that?”

More waiting! Bentinck bit into the ribbons at his mouth again and again, glaring at Monmouth all the while. William needs me.

“You best hope Uncle James doesn’t find you here,” Monmouth said. “Now there’s a creature without mercy.” He morphed into a bat and waved a wing at him. “Good luck, Ally Bentinck!” He flew off, leaving Bentinck to hang there alone.

“These Disciples—!” he managed out through the gag of ribbons, biting viciously into it and spitting it back out. I’ll kill them all! He reached forward as far as he could and began to bite at the ribbons at his knees next. It would hurt when he landed on the ground, but he could only imagine what kinds of pain William must be going through at the moment.

🝰🝰🝰

“Oh, William!” Mary shakily held William’s head down by the horns, so their lips were nearly touching. “You are a fucking beast, you know that?” She reached out behind him and gripped his tail, smiling almost manically up at him.

“Ah- ah, well, aren’t we all?” he huffed out, shoving his glasses up his nose again. He seemed oddly adamant on keeping them on, but Mary wasn’t about to insist he take off something else. It had taken him enough time to take off her bra, and even more time for him to fully strip down. He had kept his shirt on, even, when they had first started a while ago.

“No, William,” she whispered. “I don’t have any horns like you, do I?” She bucked her hips up, returning his movements. “Say it!”

“Like an angel.” William leaned onto her shoulder, wheezing into her ear. “More divine than an Ally. Than any Overlifer. You shall inherit the world.”

“Yes, William!” She leaned back on the pillow and clenched her teeth, her vision shifting and swimming before her. Of course, there was ecstasy and then there was ecstasy. The kind that made her want to cry out to the skies; curse all those Allies, they could never bring her pleasure like this—

She felt him start to move away, but she brought him back down with his horns. “What are you doing? You’re not done yet, are you?”

“I- I- not in you- not again-”

“Who cares, William?”

“Are you trying to get knocked up?!” William suddenly looked frightened by the notion.

“Obviously!” She brought him down to kiss him again, and his chest heaved over hers as he came for...what time was this? She didn’t know. But she knew that he was enjoying himself, a final celebration before his inevitable death.

“Alright...alright,” he sighed, finally sitting up and stretching. “That’s...enough. By the stars, what a mess.” He rolled over, trying to catch his breath and covering his face. “Arghhh. Mary, if- if you get pregnant, I swear to the devils-”

“Aw, that’s no big deal,” she said. Another tremor overtook her, and she turned to bury her head in the pillow. If this kept up, she wouldn’t be able to kill anyone. “I mean- you said you need heirs, right? Why not get- get started early?”

“SO improper,” he grunted. “We’re not even married. Devils married first.”

“Not all of them,” she said. “Some just ravished some poor woman and then let her deal with the fierce little hybrid.”

“I couldn’t do that.” William glanced at her, then looked back towards the window. He had been doing that a lot, she noticed, as if he was somehow still embarrassed of looking at her. “Look, if it happens, just...come find me. I can give you my number, if you want. Right now, though...” He sat up, covering his mouth with his tail to stifle a cough. “I really have to get back to Bentinck.”

No! Mary took his hand, and he looked at her curiously.

“What?”

“Y-You can’t go yet!” she insisted, and she found she genuinely meant it. She didn’t want her father, or anyone else associated with the darkness of the Disciples, to lay eyes on William ever again. She knew they would, when she hung his body up for all to see, but for now, he was all hers, and still gorgeous and still alive.

“We’ll see each other again, okay? It’s fine,” he reassured her.

No, we WON’T. You are about to die. She couldn’t stare at him anymore, not like this.

“I just- I don’t-” She started searching in the drawer for her favorite knife, the serrated one decorated with reassurances from her father.

“Are you alright?” He reached out towards her, and she turned around, shoving him back onto the bed and digging the knife into his thigh.

He snapped his jaws shut, letting only a vicious, agonized growl escape through his teeth. He shuddered for a moment before speaking again. “Damned Disciple—!”

“You got that right.” She dug the knife in deeper before pulling it out again, and this time William cried out, his blood splashing out on her. She always did like killing someone after sleeping with them; no blood would get on her clothes. “I’m sorry, William.”

“Are you?” William panted out, trying awkwardly to cover himself before Mary tore the knife across his chest, forcing another cry out of him. “James...James, was it?”

“I can’t go against him,” she said. “If you had children, you’d know, William.”

“If I had children,” William sneered, “then I’d never want this for them. You’re a murderer, aren’t you? An assassin?”

I’d never want this for them. The words echoed in her head, and she paused, her grip shaking on the knife.

“I’m sure James loves seeing his daughter covered in blood, hm?” William’s tail twitched furiously. “Reprehensible.”

“Will you shut up?” She pinned him back down, forcing his head back and exposing his throat. “I like doing this, I’ll have you know.”

“I thought you...and I...could choose our paths.” He shook his head, as best as he could while she had a grasp on it. “Isn’t that why you want me?”

“It was a fine night, William,” she said. “I’m glad I met you.” She nudged his sunglasses off with her knife, and he gasped, stiffening underneath her. Her own mouth dropped open upon the sight of his eyes.

They were terrified, but also fierce, and in them she saw all her love for him reflected back at her, and she knew she couldn’t kill him. At least, not again, should the time ever come, because the markings that surrounded those valiant eyes told her that it wouldn’t be easy.

“You’re an Overlifer.”

“Tell anyone and I’ll cut your tongue out,” William spat. “Kill me, Mary. I’ll just come back again and I’ll kill you too.” His eyes were frantic, wild now, staring into her soul like he had promised her he could. “And you won’t come back. We’re not going to the same afterlife, you know that? I’ll live forever, and you’ll be dead, soulmates destined to never meet again—”

Mary shoved the knife into his throat, slicing it to the side and covering her eyes so the blood that spurted out wouldn’t land on them. He let out an awful, gurgling hiss, shaking violently under her until his brilliant eyes dulled.

She tossed the knife to the side. I did it. The great rival of the Disciples of Restoration was dead. James would be so happy with her.

But he’d just come back, like he said, and he would make her life a living hell. She knew that he would. So all this was for nothing, unless she waited for him to wake up five times and she’d kill him all over again.

Some part of her wanted to do that. But realistically, she knew it would take her a very long time, longer than she had promised James. And yet a deeper part of her wanted to keep this man who spoke so many lies to her that felt so true.

She lay beside him and held him close, the blood dripping from his wounds staining her body. But she reveled in it, wanting to feel every part of him, inside and out, upon her. She wanted to know everything about him before he inevitably hated her; before he died either at her own or some other Disciple’s hand.

She’d never been so attached to a target before! James had always warned her of it, and she had always felt a little embarrassed when she did rather like a target...but it was her job, and she knew what would happen if she didn’t do it.

I guess there was that one time, though...

Well, staring at the body would only sting more, she knew by experience. She looked down at herself, then back at her bed. There was blood everywhere. Not her best work, if she was being honest.

I’ve done worse. She began to get dressed again, then turned to do the same to William, which was a little awkward with how deceased-ly uncooperative he was.

Next she took him by the horn and examined his face. She was used to the dead stare of her victims by now, but she couldn’t look at William’s for longer than two seconds. Instead, she focused on the markings spiraling throughout his cheeks and eyes. James would see them and know immediately that William was an Overlifer...and then he’d ask Mary why she didn’t finish the job properly. The only thing worse than a long assassination was a failed one.

Her heart seemed to leap to her throat at the thought of another failure. She lifted her knife and used it to scratch patterns into William’s face, right through his eyes and down his cheeks. By the time she was done, the markings were impossible to see.

Okay. There. Safe. He won’t know that I knew. She sighed and laughed to herself. Was she really going to deceive her father now, after everything that he’d told her? After everything that he’d done for her?

Yes. Yes, for this Overlifer, it’s worth it.

Maybe she should stop killing people when she was on ecstasy; she always felt a little worse about it every time. She’d been on worse things before, though, and the jobs were messier. And she couldn’t stand to remember the disinterest she had looked at the bloody faces of her victims with.

“Alright, let’s go, William,” she said, pulling him off the bed by his tail. She peeked out of the room before beginning to drag him down the corridor, all the way up another flight of stairs and into her father’s room.

He had always liked receiving her work in his room, but she had no idea what he did with the bodies. She didn’t like to imagine it, and she didn’t like to imagine what he would do with William. But it was the greatest gift she could offer him right now, and perhaps seeing the body before it woke up again would make him less likely to yell at her.

She positioned William so he was sitting up against the wall, his head slumping to the side and dripping blood onto the floor already stained with the blood of countless victims; some of them still alive, she knew. Some of them still here, living with the Disciples. And it always made her want to look away, run away, if she never had to see those faces who smiled at her when once she had assisted in inflicting pain on them.

Doesn’t he care? She always asked herself that, about her father. She knew he was cold, she knew he was ruthless...but he could be so impossibly kind sometimes, there had to be some part in him that knew he was hurting people.

But so am I...damnit, William, you’ve ruined everything.

She stood and left his body there, eager to get away from it. It would be fine. Once William hated her, she’d have even more reason to want the whole world dead. It’d all go back to normal.

She walked back into her room, with only one intention on her mind, but there was already someone in there. She jolted, just as the Ally Bentinck looked up and saw her at the door.

Oh, and he was furious. Loose ribbons that she recognized as belonging to her cousin were tied around one of his wrists, as well as his legs. His shoulder also didn’t look very pretty, the blood glinting in the moonlight that shone into her room.

“Mary.” His already crazed eyes widened upon seeing her. “This is William’s?” He motioned to the bloody bed.

“Um.” What was the correct answer? He looked like he’d rip her to shreds if she said yes. “Well. Yeah. But,” she added hastily, “he’ll be fine, no? He’s an Overlifer.”

“You know.” Bentinck took one step forward. “No one was supposed to know that.”

“But I do. Suppose that means I have to die, right?”

“Correct.” He glanced to the side, then calmly picked up the knife she had killed William with. “No one kills him, not even just once.”

“Look, Ally,” she said, “I have a plan. He’ll make it out safely.”

“He’s dead, isn’t he? How safe can he be?”

“I won’t tell anyone he’s an Overlifer,” she said. “He’ll wake up in the middle of the night, and he can walk out, and no one will stop him. I’ll make sure of it.”

“The easier solution is to just kill you now and take him with me,” Bentinck said coolly. “Why would I leave him alone here with his enemies? Especially after you threatened me. Me, a devil of the highest order.”

“You don’t understand,” Mary said, frantic now. “Ally Bentinck, I need him to stay. I promised my father I would kill him tonight, and if you leave with him, I- I don’t know what I’ll do—!” Her shaking had gotten worse, and she clenched her teeth, trying to keep herself on her feet. “This is my most important mission yet. If I fail it, do you- do you realize what will happen to me?”

“I don’t care what happens to you.” The voice was too sharp, pounding in her ears.

“I- I beg you, my lord!” She fell to her knees before him, falling forward so her nose was nearly touching the ground. She knew she owed no respect to the Allies, but it was all she could think of. “Please- please, my father— I’m already deceiving him by telling you this, by keeping William alive! If I don’t turn up with a body at all, I will- he’s going to-”

“You are hardly in my good graces to be begging me for that kind of favor right now,” Bentinck said. “That’s my fucking boss. My friend. Maybe I should just kill you if you’re so afraid of what your father will do to you.”

“I don’t want to die,” she gasped. “Not- not now. Now that I know him.”

Bentinck blinked down at her, raising an eyebrow. “What?”

“I- I love him, my lord.”

“Oh, is that what you told him?” Bentinck sneered. “You make me sick. He has enough trouble with that as it is, and here you are, twirling him around your finger like a vine. But it won’t work on me.”

“I’m telling the truth—!”

The Ally twisted the knife in his hands, looking down at it, then back at her. “You can’t fall in love in one evening. That’s not possible.”

“Is it not?” She lifted her head, only for him to bring his shoe back down on it to keep her down.

Insolent Allies. She’d make him pay for that, when the Disciples finally ruled the world. Or even sooner than that, as she had promised him.

“It is not. Don’t you know that? I know he doesn’t.” She heard him laugh bitterly. “Is that why it was so easy for you to take him?”

“I think it’s possible, my lord,” she said. “Do you know how one can die in less than a second, before you’ve even realized it? Do you realize how easy it is to have your life changed in a movement like a flick of a finger? Doesn’t the same apply to love?” She thought it was rather logical, if you asked her.

He was silent for a moment. “Maybe. In a sense.” He paused again. “But are you serious? Are you that terrified of your father? Do you really believe you love William? What could he have shown you that he hasn’t shown me, in all the years I’ve known him?”

“I don’t know how much he showed me of himself. But have you ever managed to get him into bed with you, with all the time you’ve supposedly known him?” She smiled to herself. That would hit a nerve.

He stepped back abruptly, clearing his throat. “I could, just as easily as you did. But that’s only if I wanted to. Which I don’t.” He sighed as she stood up again. “Do you promise it, then? Will he return safely?”

“Yes.” She bowed her head. “I promised my soul to him, see?” She lifted her hand, showing him the wound on it.

“Oh. Oh, by every remnant...” Bentinck appeared to swallow, then turned around, dropping the knife back on her bed. “You terrify me.”

“I’ve heard that one often.”

“Yes, you have.” He cleared his throat and smiled. “I’ll be back for him later, then. Please...make sure he’s alright.”

“I’ll do my best,” Mary swore.

“Good. And now I really need to get out of here.” He walked past her, muttering to himself, and she watched him go with a mixture of triumph and regret.

These Allies. She fell back on the bed, too exhausted to take anything else right now and too exhausted to care about the blood she rested on. There were a lot of ways to make herself forget of the pain she inflicted, but sleep was, even after everything, still her favorite.

🝰🝰🝰

James recognized the smell first before he entered the room. Beside him, Maria swallowed, gasping when he turned on the lights.

“This girl—!” She looked away, placing a hand on her head. “Oh, dear, I’m going to be sick...she’s always leaving a mess in here, James.”

“You know I have no problem with it.” He knelt down to lift William’s head by the chin, staring into the bloody eyes. They looked as if Mary had been attempting to gouge them out, but had stopped halfway through. Good, then; he had suffered either way.

“This is disgusting.”

“I think it’s quite beautiful, Maria. See how the blood runs down his face like tears.”

“No, I don’t think I will,” she said, covering her mouth with a hand. “It stinks.”

“I wasn’t asking,” he snapped, standing up to glower at her. “Excuse me, I need to go see her.” He stepped past Maria, making his way to his daughter’s room.

She was already asleep when he got there, apparently not minding the blood she was lying in. He sat beside her, running his fingers through her hair, and she seemed to lean into his touch.

“You did so well, Mary,” he whispered. “I’m so proud of you.” He laughed to himself when she saw that she was clutching her knife next to her. “Assassin even in your sleep, hm?” He gently pried it out of her fingers and opened her hand, only to see that there was a deep cut running through her palm.

He put up a bit of a fight, I see. He set the knife on the floor beside the bed and stood. No matter, the beast was dead now.

He lifted her hand to his mouth and licked the blood off, and she pulled it away with a soft whimper. She didn’t move again, so he could only assume it was instinctive.

“Sleep well, my angel.” He brushed her hair out of her face with his tail as he left.

🝰🝰🝰

“Mary! Oh, for the stars’ sake— MARY!”

She awoke with a start, blinking and looking around frantically. James! She hardly had time to check her appearance when James stormed in, and she knew immediately why. The memories of last night were blurred now, but she knew they were very real, considering the amount of blood she was covered in.

“He’s gone.” James looked wild, the specific appearance of a man who had been searching for something for a very long time and just could not find it. “William- his body-”

“What do you mean?” Mary asked, her voice shaking. She knew how to lie to him, it was no problem. “Did someone take it?”

“It’s gone.” He shook his head, pacing around her room and twitching his tail. “No one saw him. No one else has him.” She watched as he opened her closet, looking around in there before ducking under her bed. When he emerged again, a small trickle of blood had started from his nose. “Mary. You saw his eyes.”

Oh, no. Here it comes.

“Was he- was he Over-marked?” He leaned in, so close that she could feel the blood dripping from his nose falling onto her lap.

“I...I don’t know.” It was her best excuse, the one that would make him less mad at her. “I just took off his glasses and slashed through his face, I- I wasn’t looking.”

“What do you mean, you weren’t looking?” he spat. “He was right in front of you.”

“I’m sorry, sir, he was moving a lot-”

“It’s not that hard to see some fucking markings on a face as pale as his!” he yelled, grabbing her before she flinched away. “Now look at what you’ve done! If he truly is an Overlifer, if his fatass of an Ally didn’t come for him first— he’s not dead. Not anymore. And he’ll know what we tried to do. He’ll try to kill you!”

“I know, sir,” she said. “But I can handle it, you know-”

“Can you handle it, Mary?” He shoved her back, standing up and smacking her on the head with his tail. “You’re blind without those fucking glasses, aren’t you?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Here’s a tip for you, my dear,” he said. “Keep your victims and your bitches separate. Do you think I don’t know why you had to remove your glasses?”

“It’s not what you think-”

“Stop talking. Now.”

She bowed her head and nodded. This could have turned out way worse, she told herself. It’s fine.

“He’s gonna keep being your fucking target until he’s dead,” he said. “I don’t care how many times you have to kill him. But bring his truly lifeless body to me when you’re done.” With a lash of his tail, he walked out, slamming the door behind him.

She stared at the blood he had left on her.

And began to wonder what kind of world she wanted to live in when all the devils had surrendered.

#at last it is out eeeee #story under the cut btw #heed the warnings!!#six lives won't make you happy #yes it is so Fucking Long and it will only get longer

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aroace-poly-show · 2 years ago

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tell me everything about your ocs. please

YES OMG

so we have a few choices here!!! some are more developed than others simply bc i thought about them more but theres at least a little bit of lore for everyone here!! ill add an asterisk* besides those who arent fully fleshed out :]

ill be adding a summary of them beside them :]

notes: its a fantasy world (bc i find them more fun to do since i can just go apeshit with designs and loreand shit) so very few of these guys are just human, most are some kind of species which ill specify beside them so just ask for more details if you’re curious!!

these are also not *full* summaries im leaving out some stuff so ask if you want anything specific elaborated on!! (please ask im so so happy to explain ive had this in my head for months and ive told exactly one person so im more than happy to keep ranting)

—————

vesper: one of the first ones i actually thought up, pretty traumatized older brother to rumi!! has issues with dealing with grief and guilt over his dead bf. tree/plant person (i never gave any official names, but just think of those “[insert thing] as a person” designs!!), specifically based off a cherry blossom tree!! (im planning to draw his quick ref sheet next :D), has a big big sword!!

rumi: vesper’s younger sister!! also traumatized lol, main event that caused it was the same thing as vesper (it was this big deal i can go more into detail on later, its their motivations for like 90% of what they do), dealing with issues after essentially being left to cope and (try to, it didn’t exactly work out the best;;) all by herself/growing up too fast after mentioned event. even though shes younger shes taller than vesper and will never not make fun of him for it. very playful with her brother!! has a big big battle axe that i had so much fun drawing. also tree person, shes based off a willow tree :D, but shes missing her branch/antler thingies.

unma*: dead bf. liiiiitle bit of a femboy. he was really kind to vesper and loved him a lot and FEELS SO BAD about what happened. literally all he wants in his afterlife is for vesper to MOVE THE FUCK ON. desperately just wants vesper to be happy again even though hes dead and gone. honestly same goes for rumi, even though they werent as close as vesper and unma had been, rumi still really cared for him and looked up to him and feels awful about his death, and unma here just wants them both to stop holding on so tight to what happened, move on as best they can, and be happy again. (they’re both getting there eventually tho <3)

dorian: friends with ebony!! also vespers new very very loving bf (although where i left off in my lil imagined storyline theyre not OFFICIAL just yet bc technically in the storyline i havent gotten to that point, but i do already have many interactions imagined already lol), also in turns becomes friends w/ rumi :D. really nice guy, a wandering medic/healer who generally prefers to not kill anyone or attack unprovoked (but he will make exceptions,,,), has some guilt associated with those he couldn’t save, but handles it MUCH better than vesper… (but to be fair its not a very high bar to cross), carries around an umbrella that doubles as a fighting staff. really devoted to helping as many people as he can. as shown in the ref sheet, while i, again, dont have like any official name for his kind hes got those horns and a tail!! (mostly bc i enjoy drawing them hehe)

ebony*: very shy and really really sweet spider girl who lives in a library with a ghost boy!! shes actually trans :D. honestly a little bit of an anxious mess, similar personality to sucrose (genshin) and kohane (project sekai). aside from the ghost kid she lives with, she doesnt talk to many people, and doesnt have much contact with her family since they didnt have a great reaction to her coming out. theyre also kind of overbearing. for her design, honestly shes incredibly similar to muffet from undertale.

ghost kid*: sorry i have like,,, so little on him. i swear i had a name for him but ive COMPLETELY forgotten. if you have name suggestions give me them pls. i do remember how he died though, feel free to ask about that since it technically involves the town ebony lives in too. i do know he has a cute lil paper crown though <3

weiss: mature lesbian gal. shes pretty smart and serious and especially enjoys working with mechanical stuff. literally made herself a fucking gun. what a girlboss. she used to work as a doctor bc she really wanted to help her partner who has a pretty serious illness, but the place she worked for ended up doing pretty fucked up stuff “in the name of research” and she unwittingly helped in those projects. feels really guilty for it but shes still determined to find someway to save her partner. technically on the run with said partner, and they do lil shows together!!

jex: weiss’s partner!!! originally they were inspired by that specific kind of childish character where theyre like “lets play a game heehee!!!” *tries to fucking murder you* “what a fun game :D” (i love these kinds of characters), but theyre not exactly that extreme. however they do really enjoy doing incredibly risky things acting like its a game. just straight up gambles with death constantly bc they find it exciting. their illness really held them back when they were younger, pretty much never allowed to do anything by their parents since they were trying to extend their lifespan by as much as possible, and they felt like they missed out a lot on just enjoying the life they did have, so thats their goal for the rest of their life. they’ve mostly accepted their inevitable death (which pisses weiss the fuck off) and they really just want to enjoy the time they do have with their loved ones doing what they find fun. they also have a big fucking double scythe. because i was gonna give somebody here a synth and rumi already had the battle axe.

—————

those are all the characters that i can remember so far, if im missing one ill do an update lol

THIS IS SO MUCH MORE THAN I THOUGHT ITD BE HELP

again, feel free to ask any questions id love to answer them

#my ocs #oc stuff #tw death #tw illness #kinda #my lil guys #<3 #marlo’s stuff

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kageyamaana · 1 year ago

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Mark's Husband

When Vee and Mark started dating once more, Vee had them sit and talk seriously about their relationship, what they expected of it, their fears, what they planned for their future and how to try and resolve any issues that might come in the future.

It wasn't a decision he made because of his friends but he had planned to do it after he officially broke things with Ploy but then she suddenly kissed him which shocked him and all that shit happened.

And they really needed that talk because of how their relationship started, while Vee acted the way he did he wasn't really proud of his actions, and both were really thankful for having said talk.

"I will be taking over my father's company once I finish my studies since I already work there during vacations" Mark says as they reach their last topic, what they plan for their future individually "And you?" he asks

"Hmmm, probably work in the garage with my dad" Vee answers without any enthusiasm because while he did enjoy the classes he had, he didn't really want to work in the garage but had no choice in that

"You don't wanna do that?" Mark asks noticing that he wasn't happy about it

"Never did, while I do enjoy it I don't want it to be my future" Vee answers honestly

"Then, what did you always dream to be?" Mark asks curious

"Promise not to laugh?" Vee asks since he planned to answer Mark with the truth

"Sure" Mark says a bit confused

"I always wanted to be like my mom" Vee answers a bit embarrassed "I know boys never dream of being a 'housewife' but she is the strongest person I know and it was her to dealt with everything at home and mostly raised me and my brother" he decides to explain

Vee didn't look at Mark as he answered and waited for his boyfriend's reaction, hoping he wouldn't make fun of him.

"I don't see why you can't be it" Mark finally says after a few minutes of silence and Vee looks at him surprised "You could work some mornings at your father's garage to appease him and my dad but the rest of the time you could be my househusband and even trophy husband whenever I need to go to a party or something like that" he explains and Vee can't see anything he would hate about that plan

"You sure?" Vee asks because he didn't want to do something that would make Mark discomfortable or that he hated

"Yes, I kinda like the idea to be able to arrive home to you waiting for me" Mark says truthfully and Vee grins at that "But to make sure we can have a test trial" he adds

"A test trial?"

"Yes, you can move to my dorm and we can see how we would feel having something similar to that"

"I like that plan but won't your parents disagree with me moving to your dorm?"

"I will tell them that it will be just for a month and that is for us to resolve all the issues we have already talked about"

"Thanks, Mark"

"No need to thank me, as you said at the beginning in a relationship it is needed for the two people to work together not only one or against each other"

"True, when do you plan to tell your parents that so I can bring some of my things here?"

"Next weekend, so you could move on Sunday"

"Hmm, I think I have to work on a project that day but I will probably be able to move everything necessary in the morning"

"Okay, then our plans are decided!"

"Yes"

Years had passed since that day, Vee and Mark continue together and their relationship is much stronger than what anyone expected(it hurt Vee when they found out that some of their friends had bets about when they would break up but a talk with Mark helped him calm down since the other didn't plan on breaking up with him unless there was cheating or abuse involved).

Today a party would happen where most of their friends, some who they hadn't seen or been in contact with in a long time, would be since their company's were working on a big project together and it had been a successful one and this çarty was to celebrate it.

"Vee, I'm home!" Vee Mark says as he enters the house to find his beautiful husband watering the flowers he had brought to him yesterday

"Mark!" Vee says grinning and making his way to him "Welcome home, love" he says and kisses Mark who obviously kisses jim back

"How was your day?" Mark asks as Vee grabs his bag and he takes his jacket off

"It was good, I helped father in the garage this morning and made sure the house and our outfits were clean this evening" Vee says and grabs Mark's hand once they both had put the jacket and the bag in their respective places "And yours?"

"Just a normal day except I have already met some of our friends and didn't answer them when they asked about you" Mark hums and Vee laughs because he knew that the friends Mark mentioned were the ones who made bets about when they would break up and they wouldn't be ready for what they would see that night

"And people say I am the one who likes to mess with people" Vee comments as he makes Mark sit in the couch

"Oh, you are especially if they dare to flirt with me" Mark says bringing Vee to his lap before th either could go get him some water

"Well, you always mark me whenever someone flirts with me and since I can't do the same because of your parents then I have to do it in another ways" Vee hums as he lays his head between Mark's neck and shoulder

"And I would be making sure you are all marked if we didn't have the party tonight" Mark says agreeing with what his husband said

The two stayed talking and teasing each other for a bit more before they went to eat something light that Vee had prepared before and changed into the clothes they would wear at the party

The party was at full swing and while not something out of their university parties, it was like it was a formal ball.

"Hey, guys!" Gun says as he drags Bar to were Yihwa, Fuse, Nuea and the others are

"Gun, Bar" Yiwaa says excited to see her friends "How have you been?" she asks

"Good" Bar answers as he looks around "The stars of the party haven't arrived yet?" he ask receiving confused stares from some of their friends

"Not yet" Ana answers

"Really? I'm so happy, I really can't wait to see the reaction of some of these girls" Gun says grinning, knowing that most girls were expecting to have a chance with Mark not knowing he had a owner

"What are you guys talking about?" Pear, an old high school friend of Mark, asks confused

"You will see" Tonkla says as he takes a sip of his drink

"If you say so" Game, a friend of Vee, says not sure

Soon the whole group of friends of Vee and Mark are mingling between each other but said two friends still didn't appear.

"Hey, do you guys know if Mark will take much longer to come?" Hen, another old friend of Mark, asks looking at the time

"Yeah, will Vee also take much longer?" Minty, another old friend of Vee, also asks

"They will probably come in a few minutes" Nuea answers them as he feeds some food to his fiance

Before anyone could ask how many minutes were those few minutes, the room's entry door was opened to reveal no one else but the two the group was waiting for.

"...Is that Vee in a dress?" Yiwaa als in disbelief since she had been in America for some time and could rarely visit her friends

"Oh, you don't follow his social media?" Fuse asks "He has really great tips on finding good clothes for you and take care of the house"

"Unless you are able to burn water" Ana adds to tease his boyfriend a bit which of course gains him a pout from Fuse

"Why are he and Mark together? I thought they would have broke up already" Pear says confused because she was never able to see how those two would last

"They are married, of course they would come together" Ploy says as she fights with Tonkla so he wouldn't drink more until the dinner part of the party officially started

"I can't believe they actually lasted this long" Hen mumbles in disbelief

"Me neither and they have a very healthy relationship now" Gun offers since sometimes he was also in disbelief on how Vee and Mark were still together and going as strong as before or even more

"Healthy? There was no other problems?" Game asks not believing them because he knew Vee and couldn't see him not fighting at least once with the person he was with

"There are some small ones but they already planned how to deal with those things to the point that their fights rarely last more than a day" Praram explains since he had asked Mark for some tips for his relationship with Nuea and the boy had told him about the ways he and Vee found on how to deal with any fights that might come in the future which was very helpful

"Wow, that is unexpected" Minty comments

"Yeah but they are happier than they ever were" Kamphan says as he holds Yoo close to him

Soon the married couples had reached their friends.

"Sorry for being late" Mark apologies "My father wanted to talk to me before we came in" he explains

"What did he want? Was he asking again how long you plan to have Vee as your husband?" Nuea asks teasing them

"More like when we plan to give him grandchildren" Vee corrects his friend as he rolls his eyes

"Oh? Already?" Yoo asks and the couple nods

"Yes, but we had already decided that we will wait until Tonkla takes over the garage so Vee can be a full time house husband to take care of the kids" Mark explains and Tonkla sighs at that

"Then you can tell him that in about 50 years I will do it" Tonkla says making most of the group laugh

"I will let you tell him that yourself" Vee says as he hits his brother in the head

"No thanks!" Tonkla shivers in only thinking of talking to Mark's father which brings another round of laughs to the group

"Full time househusband?" Hen asks confused

"Oh, right! You wouldn't know" Ana says "After they got married and maybe even before that, Vee became his house husband with only working some mornings at his father's garage" he explains

"Oh, I see" Hen mumbles still not believing that any of this was real

"And you don't fear getting cheated on, Vee?" Minty asks her friend

"No, at the end of the day he always comes back to me" Vee says smiling at Marl who gives him quick peck

"And Vee is the only person I love and want" Mark add and Minty nods at that

The group continues talking as the friends that hadn't been in contact with them learn how much Vee and Mark had changed but that their love was stronger than ever.

#thai bl #thai boys love #thai drama #love mechanics #en of love #mark #vee #markvee #veemark #mark x vee #vee x mark #yin anan wong #war wanarat #yinwar #waryin

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randomkposts · 10 months ago

Text

jeh517 left the following comment on No easy way from the earth:

I was wondering if you would like to write a Magic Tree House fic request for me.

---

Well, you deleated this, but it still shows up in my emails.

And I kind of want to talk about requests.

To start with, I'm usually not great at compleating things in a timley manor.

People reading my ask responses have probably realised this, lol. I have so many partially written things bouncing around in my google doc's, and when I will finish them is usually based on many things such as current fixation, enthusiasm for writing, time, ideas of things I can do with them, the cooperation of the muse, procrastination, ect.

Asks, are in a lot of ways easier, as I bounce them with Eclipse, usually. Or idea bouncing in general, is fun, as we have done for other fandoms that haven't gotten as much attention on here as the death note ones.

Such as, for instance, the fun we had with the twilight ones. Or yansim, or KHR.

Or the persona (5 mostly) X Death note fusion that we haven't actually talked about on this blog, but have a bunch of notes and converstions between each other about it stored in the google docs. We call it PDN. Or sometimes P5DN. Mostly the first. It's set in P5 time, but other characters from the older games are planned to appear in it from time to time.

Secondly, I am flattered that you think highly enough of the fic to hope to ask a fic write request based on it, but also I have no idea who you are or what you liked about my writing. Which is important if you want to convince me to write something for you. I want to know where to focus. Also yes, butter me up a bit (or a lot) , it will help me feel enthusiastic about working on the project, which is a good motivator for probably having it done sooner rather then later. Writing is easier when you feel excited about it. Editing is not, but I hope that after the work I put into it, I will get a response to it. I think most writers share these sentiments.

I do not have a beta. My spelling might not always be amazing, (Sayu or Syau?), but I'm not good at being on time generally, and would not want anyone else to be waiting on that too.

So yah, if you have sent me an ask, or a request, sorry for the wait, and thank you for your patience. It will be ready when its ready.

Oh yah, while I'm talking about random people making fic requests of me, I should probably tackle this one (again)

"Hi. My question is, would you be able to write the story of Midoriya Izuku x Alice according to my idea. You don't need to know the whole bnha universe except for a few things (what is quirk, Midoriya Izuku character, Midoriya Inko character) from Wiki and that's it. The plot would have been set in Alice's time so the bnha canon is rejected so you have freedom then"

Very random request to find as a review to a "we know the devil" fanfiction, Guest. Thats a game with 3 named characters, none of them named Alice. In fact, I'm not sure which Alice you are refering to, as it's not exactly an uncomon name, with many characters across different fandoms sharing it with me.

So maybe that's something to go idea bounce with me in PMs on FFnet, if you are interested. I'm aware I'm kind of a lot, but you did ask, stranger, and I'm curious to see where it goes.

So long as we stay fairly polite, and you don't come in with an army of harassing sock puppets (the pokemon fandom was bad for this for awile. Hope its clamed down since) or go for suicide bait (a very rude guest, so I was able to delete them), or something else mean that I haven't thought of.

And some might make an argument for growing thicker skin ir whateves, but this is a hobby, it shouldn't make you miserable. That's just not productive to progress, or fun to take part in.

Overall I guess I feel really mixed, about getting fic requests. I'm intrigued and flattered, but also "I'll write it when I write it, if I write it. It might take years. " So I find myself hesitent to agree or commit, knowing that.

Asks, on the other hand, should not take a year. Can take months maybe depending on busyness and what the brain is focused on, but it will come.

#random k #fic requests #asks #writing #procrastination #personal

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multifandomfanfic · 3 years ago

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Hi can I request a Theseus Scamander one shot set in SOD where the reader is Theseus lover and in a fake marriage with one of Grindelwald followers and they meet when fighting for the cases after not seeing each other for a long time and like angst but ends in fluff? Please and thank you if you’ll do it❤️

The Spy

Pairing: Theseus Scamander x fem! Reader

Warnings: angst, mild language

Summary: You’re a spy who is busy faking an engagement with one of Grindelwald’s henchman. Thankfully, this is the day where things come to a close.

Word Count: 2.3k

I despised pretending.

I despised pretending to be in love with some dullard while my true love was out fighting for the good guys.

“Darling?”

He was there, the man I hated despite wearing his grandmother's ring on my left hand.

I put on a huge fake smile, trying to hide the fact that I was hating his existence just moments before he walked into the room.

“Yes?”

I inquired, leaping to my feet and pretending to be excited to see him.

“You're awfully spry today…”

He inquired, running his hands through his unkempt black hair. I'm not sure when I last saw this man bathe. That's probably why he always appears to have awoken from a thousand-year slumber.

“I’m just excited to see you, honey.”

I had to project the image of a completely lovestruck, helpless young girl who was completely reliant on him. In reality, that was the polar opposite of how I normally behaved.

I dashed over to him, tightly wrapping my arms around his neck.

I'm curious how much force would be required to strangle him right now.

Oh, he stank of death and decay and everything bad in the world.

Unlike my true love, who always smelled like expensive cologne and fine wine.

“I’m always excited to see you Y/N.”

I despised the way he pronounced my name. His voice sounded like nails on a chalkboard. As he mercilessly butchered every syllable, it felt like a knife was being repeatedly thrust through my heart.

Except for the one man who my heart undoubtedly belongs to, I can’t bear hearing anyone say my name in such a sensual way… Especially him… the man who I am simply pretending to be head over heels in love with.

“Alaric… Let’s move! We’ve almost arrived at the station!”

His companion entered the small train cab, signaling us to prepare for our arrival.

“Yes yes I know I know… can’t you see I’m busy with my lovely fiancee?”

I was lovely... but not as his fiancee. Someone else had stolen my heart.

Nonetheless, I needed to keep the jig going, so I smiled even wider at the equally sloppy henchman who had just disrupted my fake moment of happiness.

He rolled his piercing blue eyes and flipped his tailcoat as he slammed the cab door shut, rattling the entire train around us as it slammed into place with a loud crash.

“Well darling… I suppose we should prepare ourselves for the next part of our mission.”

I flashed him a big smile, displaying all of my teeth to demonstrate how excited I was for their plan to come to fruition.

“I suppose we should…”

I agreed cheerfully, holding his hand in mine as we made our way to the train's exit door and stepped out onto the new land.

I didn't know where we were. I hadn't known in a very long time. That was not my responsibility. My job was to spy on them while pretending to be one of Grindelwald's henchmen in order to figure out what they were up to behind closed doors.

I simply jumped on the train whenever they needed me and traveled with them all over the world with alert eyes and open ears.

“We’re here darling! Bhutan!”

Ah. So that was where we were. Bhutan. The sight of the approaching election. That was obvious from the talk of dominating the wizarding world. All the snippets of conversation I'd overheard through closed doors were finally coming into place.

If all of my predictions about the upcoming election are correct, we should brace ourselves for rough seas.

“Darling?”

As my fake fiance dragged me along the train station, I asked, my hand still firmly gripping his.

“Yes my love?”

He came to an abrupt halt, colliding with several people, who gave us both dirty looks as they pushed past the man who had disrupted their peaceful afternoon.

“May I leave you for a moment to explore?! I have never been to Bhutan before and it looks simply spectacular! I shouldn’t miss this opportunity to explore new places!”

He appeared hesitant. He obviously wanted me to be by his side every step of the way. Fortunately, I had gained enough of his trust over the previous few months to be able to leave on my own without raising any suspicions as to whether or not my loyalty was completely devoted to Grindelwald and his henchmen.

“Please! I promise I won’t miss anything important!”

My fiance placed two fingers onto his face, cupping his chin as he pondered whether or not to allow me to leave his side.

“Please?!”

I pleaded, giving him the infamous puppy dog eyes I knew he couldn't resist. Thankfully, he caved; otherwise, this mission would have ended in disaster.

“Ah! Alright! Why not?! The land is beautiful, is it not?”

He extended his arm to show off the rugged mountains that surrounded the lush green landscape.

“Go explore… but be back soon.”

“Of course I will, darling!”

I exclaimed, rising to my tiptoes to place a gentle kiss on his cheek before breaking free from his embrace and making my way towards town as slowly as possible so my fiance wouldn't suspect anything of my desire to "explore."

Once I was out of his line of sight, I checked my watch.

“Ugh! Ten minutes late!”

I murmured to myself, trying not to rush through the crowds in case one of Grindelwald's henchmen was nearby and saw me behaving suspiciously. When it was my job to remain completely unnoticed, I could never be too cautious with my actions when I presumed no one was looking.

Ok. Here I was. The street to the right of the lamppost with the green ribbon.

Wait… did he say to the right or to the left?

Right. He most definitely said right… right?

Shit.

I shouldn’t stress. He’ll find me. I know he will.

I walked down the crowded street, stopping at every single tent to inspect whatever was being sold by various vendors.

As the minutes passed, I became increasingly concerned that I wasn't where I was supposed to be and he would never find me.

I had to keep my cool. Panicking would only make matters worse.

I took a deep breath and lifted a fine china piece to inspect it thoroughly.

People came from all over the world to watch the election. It was the ideal time for people to sell anything they could craft with their own two hands.

Stay calm.

He’ll be here. He’ll be here any second. I shouldn’t worry.

“How are you on this fine morning darling?”

Ah. He was right there.

Theseus approached the table, picking up a piece of china and making friendly conversation in an attempt to assuage suspicions.

“I’m just fine… how are you today?”

I kept my gaze fixed on the cup in my hands, avoiding eye contact with him.

I had never met him. He was simply engaging in friendly conversation.

“I’m fantastic… What are your predictions for this election?”

I shrugged, carefully resetting the cup on the table and picking up a second piece of china. This time, a teapot with ornate golden shapes dancing on white china.

“Who knows… anything can happen. I’m really just here for the scenery. Politics have never really been of interest to me.”

“Ah yes… Bhutan does have lovely mountains, doesn’t it?”

“It most certainly does. I’ve never been here before. So far, I am thoroughly impressed.”

Theseus took a step to the side, our shoulders now almost touching. I was still not looking at him. I kept my gaze fixed on the china.

He reduced his voice to a whisper so low that I would not have heard him speak if I hadn't been standing right next to him.

“I’m going to leave this tent in thirty seconds. I want you to follow behind me, but not too closely, don’t draw attention to us as a pair. We have a very narrow window of time in which you can tell me everything you know… So let’s make it count.”

I gulped. I had almost forgotten that this was truly a serious predicament.

“Yes! That sounds lovely! I’m sure your mother will enjoy them!”

Theseus paid for two teacups, implying that he came to this tent for a reason. He handed the vendor two shining gold coins, carefully placed the china in his pockets, and stepped away from the tent.

I waited a split second, long enough for him to get a good head start but not long enough for me to completely lose him.

I followed him down the winding roads, pushing past people because I knew this was my only chance to converse privately with him. If I lose him now, the entire plan will fall apart, and Grindelwald will triumph. All of this effort would be futile.

As I tried to keep up with Theseus, I could feel the tension in the air. Everyone was waiting, anxiously anticipating the start of a new chapter right in front of their eyes. This was not a situation that would be taken lightly. The decision being made today would forever alter the wizarding world, for good or for bad.

I followed Theseus until he fortunately pulled into a deserted alley. Overhead canopies completely blocked the view. Someone on the roofs of nearby buildings couldn't glare down and listen in on our private conversation. Theseus took a sharp right and vanished behind a stack of wooden crates.

“Huh?”

Was there a door? How did he just disappear?

“Theseus?”

I spoke up as I approached the crate stack, craning my neck to peer around the corner.

He grabbed my bicep and yanked me behind the crate stack, into a small storage room directly connected to the alley.

He slammed the door shut behind us, plunging both of us into complete darkness and quickly connecting his lips to mine.

I groaned involuntarily into the kiss, having been caught by total surprise.

He pressed his body flush to mine, gripping my hips firmly to keep me pressed into him.

I wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders, tightening my grasp so he could never leave me again.

I couldn’t go back. Not to my pretend fiancé.

I had gotten a taste of Theseus lips, and now I was hooked once more.

“The Qilian.”

I mumbled as our teeth clashed in a messy frenzy.

“Oh hush baby…”

He murmured against my lips.

“Let’s not talk business now…”

Oh my God. He knew how to drive a woman insane. When he was speaking words of love to me, his typically casual British accent was transformed into a sophisticated tone that was enough to make me weak in the knees with desire.

“Tell me I’m the only one for you, Y/N.”

“You’re the only one for me, Theseus.”

I said it without hesitation, because there was no hesitation in this situation. I only spoke the truth when I say he is the only one for me.

He is my other half.

He is my soulmate.

“Tell me you want me to fuck you right now.”

Theseus hiked my leg up to his waist. His rough leather belt was pushing against the soft skin of my thighs.

I moaned against his mouth, and he swallowed my noises.

“God I can’t stop myself… you drive me wild.”

He ground into me, brushing his semi hard cock against my clothed core, eliciting a low moan from the back of my throat.

“Theseus…”

I placed my open palms on his chest, pushing him away from me.

“As much as I would love for you to fuck me in this…”

I looked around, only to be reminded that I could see nothing.

“Room…”

I finished my sentence.

“We really do have to talk business.”

Although I couldn’t see him, I knew he was rolling his eyes in fake annoyance.

“Fine. So, what’s going on with the election? What’s Grindelwald planning?…”

He released my leg, letting it fall shakily to the floor.

“The Qilian is dead… he cursed it so no matter what it will pick him.”

Theseus sighed in frustration.

“I’ll have to tell Newt… he’s the animal man.”

“Sounds like the biggest problem will be convincing the people that your Qilian is the good one.”

“Yeah… we’ll figure it out… Thank God my brother knows creatures or we’d be done.”

“Theseus?”

“Yes?”

“Can we go outside?… it’s pitch black in here…”

“Oh, yes, we can.”

He threw the door open, my retinas immediately burning as they adjusted to the bright light.

“Oh my God… is that the ring he got you?”

I scoffed, examining the completely hideous green gemstone that I was now forced to wear on my finger.

“Yes… it’s hideous… isn’t it?”

“Oh my goodness it’s completely hideous.”

We both chuckled in unison.

It felt good to laugh. I hadn’t genuinely laughed in a long, long time. It was predominantly fake chuckles as I pretended to enjoy my fiancés horrible jokes.

Theseus tenderly cupped my face in his gentle hands, placing a kiss on the top of my forehead with his soft lips.

“It’s almost over Y/N… then I’ll get you a real engagement ring.”

My cheeks flushed pink.

“Really?”

Theseus smiled, bright and wide, showing off his gorgeous teeth.

“Honey… if we pull this off I’ll find a way to buy you the whole damn country.”

I gave him a hug, a long, big hug as I relished in his musky scent that I missed so much.

“I missed you Theseus.”

“I missed you too darling…”

We stayed in silence, embracing as the world around us moved at the speed of light.

It was nice.

It was comforting to be able to have moments of silence with someone without it seeming awkward.

“I love you Theseus.”

“I love you too Y/N.”

I gave him one final peck, making sure to draw it out so he knew I loved him.

“Alright!”

He said, clapping his hands together as an indication that it was time for the next part of the plan to begin.

“Are you ready for my big finale my darling?”

I smiled wide.

Of course I was ready. I had been ready from the moment I was assigned this job.

“Of course I’m ready.”

Theseus pursed his lips into a thin smile.

“Alright… then let's do this!”

#fanfic #imagine #x reader #x y/n #fanfiction #x yn #angst #theseus scamander x y/n #theseus x reader #theseus scamander x reader #theseus scamander x you #theseus scamander #secrets of dumbledore #crimes of grindelwald #fantastic beasts sod #fantastic beasts fic #fantastic beasts imagine #fantastic beasts 3 #fantastic beasts

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teamironmanforever · 4 years ago

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HIGHLIGHT TRANSLATION OF THE SPANISH DUB ACTOR GUILLERMO ROJAS

Guillermo Rojas - Spanish Dubbing actor for Dean since season 12 until 15x18 (he contracted Covid and was unable to record 15x19 or 15x20 - he has yet to record those)

INTERVIEWER: “Memo (nickname for Guillermo), I am not sure if you knew, but you broke the internet”

MEMO: “Yes, a lot of people sought me out when this happened. I am so sorry I wasn’t able to answer at length all of your questions, but I was right in the middle of dealing with Covid. I couldn’t speak without feeling like I was drowning. Right now I am going to (voice) therapy. While it is not too dreary, there are 2 continued effects, so I couldn’t answer everyone who contacted me through various ways - through FB, instagram and an old youtube channel that I haven’t used in years - with respect to the situation that occurred between Dean and his friend (Cas).

MEMO: “We try to follow (our lines) in what we see of the acting. Remember that dubbing is something where we must make a parallel alignment in our own language. Under the guidelines given to us by the client, we try to expand on all possibilities and all the alignments and - as actors - they permit us to give 100% of ourselves. So there isn’t a limit per se, so long as you don’t go off track (from what was requested from the client)”

INTERVIEWER: “What were the guidelines for the line that broke the internet”

MEMO: “It’s curious because neither the director nor us the actors knew much about the tendency that existed. Because we didn’t have much previous information that suggested that something like this would happen. To be honest when we recorded it, we were asking wait what’s happening? I mean we did it, but no one knew this was coming neither in the production studio nor amongst the actors.”

INTERVIEWER “I need to ask for a clarification here. I mean we are talking about the love declaration Cas made to Dean after 12 years of intense eye-contact. But the big question is Dean’s answer. Because EVERYONE heard in your voice that clear “And I you, Cas”

MEMO “And I you, yes.”

INTERVIEWER “Where does that “And I you” come from? Was it you? What happened there?”

“The adaptation came entirely from my director (Adrian Fogarty). He adapted it and gave us our acting guidelines, and I performed accordingly - I gave what he asked of me. We all loved it. We never saw it coming so overtly.... If you remember across all seasons, we rarely see Dean get involved with any women. It just didn’t happen, unlike his brother. He just never got involved. It wasn’t his thing, especially because we have his brother to compare him to. We saw (Sam) in a relationship in the past 2 seasons with Eileen which was a very intense relationship, and very painful in the end. Dean never had to suffer through that. They tied Dean’s pain to the loss of his mother since he lost her more than once.”

FB question: “So It wasn’t a rogue translator, it was a rogue director”

MEMO: “Look, Fogarty has some really intense abilities and one of them is to adapt the dialogue. When you see him translate a script, when he has the time to do it - even when he is not the one directing - and he leaves it in Spanish. The dialogue said, if I remember correctly, “me too” or something like that and then we switched it to “and I you” due to effects of lip movement, rhythm, etc... We don’t all have the ability that Fogarty has, that speed which he has, to think and translate immediately. We are a team and we work together, and pool our collective abilities, and of course Fogarty does his part. You need a Fogarty in every company.”

(The interviewer mentioned that her cat hates Sam Winchester and loves dubbed Dean’s voice).

INTERVIEWER “Do you know what Dean said in the original script before Fogarty got his hands on it?”

“Yes, of course. It made allusions to that. (Fogarty) made the right translation. It said and so do I or me too or something like that. It said it in the (original) script.”

INTERVIEWER: “When you heard the english version while you recorded yours, did you hear Dean say I love you too?”

MEMO: “No. If I would have, I would have taken the earphone out and gone what the fuck? *laughs*”

INTERVIEWER: “What was your favorite episode to film?”

MEMO: “With my short-term memory, I would say this last one (15x18), because it says so much. In one scene, it says it all. It was impressive, and so beautiful. I never saw it coming.”

Interviewer “Well you have broken tumblr again.”

MEMO: “Okay *Laughs*. Well, that’s good. Thank you very much.”

MEMO: “I think it’s clear to everyone that the fact that he (fogarty?) broke the internet, with this information was a surprise for everyone. Absolutely everyone. Because we all say that if someone wants to be a “real man” we have to be like Dean. In fact it’s something very beautiful for me because it has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with feelings. It was a play by the writers that was marvelous. You didn’t see it coming, but damn do you like it.”

MEMO: “Nothing was left out of the translation... No I was not called to re-record the “and I you”. I have not been asked to remake the dubbing. My director perfectly understood the texture of the text.”

INTERVIEWER “Do you know if Supernatural has a quality review for the dubbing through Warner Bros?”

MEMO: “I would be lying to you if I said yes, but I have been working for WB (LatAM) for many years as both an actor and director. And there is some specific material where they do have “filters”, but with something like supernatural I doubt it. I would assume the one left in charge of all decisions was our director (Fogarty).”

INTERVIEWER “Have you been interpreting Dean as in love with Castiel this entire time or was it a surprise for you?”

MEMO: “No, never, it was a surprise. In fact, to be entirely honest, to my closest friends - of the same gender - I do use the phrase “te amo”. I don’t have any issues with that. So I actually thought it went that way - but then I found out it was romantic.”

INTERVIEWER: “Guillermo, what is your opinion, of destiel now that you know the nature of their relationship.”

“Well it was a revelation for everyone - including me. I love how they handled it because we didn’t see it coming. And I think, of our understanding of the character’s traits and psychology, we know that if someone knows how to repress their feelings, it’s Dean Winchester. *laughs*”

INTERVIEWER: “What would you say to Cas if he came back from the empty?”

MEMO: “He came back?! (he hasn’t seen 15x19 or x20)

INTERVIEWER: “No I am saying what would he say IF he did”

MEMO: “Oh, okay. I was under the assumption that I said I loved him so long as he wasn’t planning on coming back! *laughs* Well if he returns I guess I would say “Hello, Cas”.

INTERVIEWER: *Tells MEMO about the not for nothing cas but the last person who looked at me like that I got laid”

MEMO: OKAAAAY *laughs* That was too much. *laughs*

INTERVIEWER: Would you be this fandom’s Godfather?

MEMO: But of course *smiles* This was a big thing, from what I see.

INTERVIEWER: “What message would you give to the fans who are descovering the spanish dub?”

“first, thanks a lot of being part of the mexican dubbing. We do this job with all the heart and all the passion that we have. And I think I speak for all involved in this industry. We are glad to note that there are so many people from other countries that are watching these new projects in another language. So I have no words but thanks a lot.”

INTERVIWER: “What would be your ideal ending for Dean Winchester”

MEMO “I think, for all of them, they have sacrificed their lives and that of their loved ones for the safety and well being of everyone else. I think if anyone deserves to be well, happy, and calm, at least it’s those three (Sam, Cas, and Dean).”

INTERVIEWER: “What about jack?”

MEMO “Jack did attach himself to them, but I think he could find happiness in another nest.” *laughs*

#destiel #spanish dub #guillermo rojas #supernatural #there we go feast my people FEAST

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streetlight11 · 3 years ago

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Till I Met You Again

Summary: Everyone is born with a life already planned out for them. Including their soulmates. Except, every person walking this earth has been given a specific soulmate marking that was similar to a tattoo to match their soulmate’s. The ink is invisible when one is born. To activate the soulmate marking, one has to be at least in a 20 feet radius to their designated soulmate. But of course, they wouldn’t know it until they start to notice the ink slowly appearing on their skin.

Theme: soulmate au, university au, enemies to lovers

Genre: angst, fluff

Warning: mild cursing

WC: 10k

Pairing: Soulmate!Yoongi x Fem!Reader

a/n: Hello! I kinda got too carried away in writing this one the other day, hence the word count for this is... woah. Hehe. But anyways, here's a soulmate au for you Min Yoongi lovers <3

Every person who was born into this earth has their life journey already written out for them in which it unfortunately remains a secret from them. And these living souls have been entitled to a soulmate that would potentially cross their path in the near future. Everyone is made for someone and the tattoo on their skin otherwise known as a ‘soulmate marking’ determines it for them.

The soulmate marking is nothing far from a tattoo as it imprints on your skin for eternity.

However, these markings will already be on you the minute you were born. Except, the ink will be invisible to the human eye.

But it’s definitely there. The only way to activate the marking is when one happens to be of 20 foot radius with their designated soulmate. This will cause the ink to start slowly appearing on one’s skin. Even so, these markings will start only when one has reached the age of 14. Only then will the ink start to be visible to one’s eye.

Unfortunately, until now when you’re already past 20 years of age, not a single tinge of ink was displayed on your skin. You’ve checked everywhere on your body. From your fingertips to your toes.

Nothing.

You weren’t really one who purely believed in this whole soulmate thing simply because you felt that there’s no such thing as a fixed soulmate. You should be free to choose who you want as your partner purely through interactions and chemistry you shared with the other, not by some marking on your skin. Your parents had a matching mark on their right wrists which was a simple rose in a glass jar.

No doubt you admired their love story and how they met, but you couldn’t see it for yourself. You really don’t want to fully depend on this supposed marking. Even when you went off to college, you’ve made it a point to try and go on dates no matter what their soulmate markings would be.

But it all turned out with the same ending. Either the guy dumps you for not having the same mark or they ghost you after the first date, saying you’re too good for them. All these never led to a heartbreak on your end because you were never in love to begin with.

You were simply trying your luck, trying to see if you’d find a single soul who was just as sceptical as you on this whole soulmate thing.

And so far, you’ve met none.

It was the start of university life for you as you’ve managed to enrol yourself for a Computer Science major in Hangang University. You took the same course during college, having interest in web design and computer technologies. You could only hope that the study load this time would give you a mental break every once in a while despite knowing the content is definitely heavier than college content.

But you still told yourself to persevere and never leave your knowledge hanging while you’re still young. With this mentality, you brought yourself to campus today for day one of university classes.

Taking a deep breath, you pushed the door to the specific lecture room for the first lesson.

Immediately, you were greeted by a room that had the majority of the students’ gender being males. But it wasn’t a surprise to you because CS majors tend to lean more towards males instead of females. This doesn’t bother you since you were here solely to study and perhaps make friends along the way.

You found an empty seat in the top last few rows. With careful steps, you climbed the stairs to make your way to the spot you had your eyes locked on. After you’ve settled down, you noted how the room was fairly quiet.

Probably because it was the first day of classes and nobody really knows each other yet. That was all pushed to the back of your mind when you heard chatting coming from the front door and you saw 2 friends walk in. It was pretty obvious they knew each other considering how they were laughing and talking freely to one another.

As you kept your curious gaze on them discreetly, you could only realise how good looking they were.

The taller one sported beautiful dark brown locks that were long enough to cover his eyes, his smile so charming you were sure anyone who crossed his path would fall for his smile in less than a second. And then there was the other one who sported a more edgy look with his shorter dark purple, undercut hair that was parted near the centre to show his forehead, a right eyebrow piercing to compliment his face.

You quickly diverted your gaze to your laptop screen, not wanting them to think you’re a creep. You were busy searching for the e-books for this lesson in your online school portal when you heard a gentle voice calling to you from your right.

“Hey, are these seats taken?”

You looked up to see the one with the eyebrow piercing staring at you with the softest smile on his face.

In response to his question, you simply mimicked his facial expression and shook your head at him. He thanked you quietly before the 2 of them settled down beside you down the row. They resumed their conversation for the next 3 minutes before the lecturer walked in to start the class.

Two hours later, you don’t even know how you managed to absorb the things your lecturer said but you did. You were typing out the notes he shared on the projector screen when you heard his voice through the speakers.

“I will let you go for your lunch break. Be back by 1pm, here. You can leave your bags behind since I will be locking the room once everyone leaves.”

With that, your classmates replied with a series of yes before they got up one by one ready to head for lunch. You were just typing out the last of your notes when the boy beside you spoke up. At first you thought he was talking to his friend. You completely missed the way he was turned to you.

Until he gently taps onto your forearm to tell you that his question was directed to you. With a turn of your head, you locked eyes with him for the second time that day. “H-Huh?” You stuttered, earning a stifled chuckle from him.

“I was saying, do you wanna join me and my friends for lunch? We’re already sharing classes, might as well get to know each other to prepare for future projects or assignments.” He kindly repeated himself for you, making you whisper a soft ‘oh’ under your breath.

It wasn’t like you to approach someone first when it comes to striking a conversation with a complete stranger. So when he did it for you, it surprised you that he even thought of letting you tag along with them to lunch. For this alone, you decided to accept his offer knowing he does have a point for that last statement.

With that being said, the three of you left the lecture room after bringing your wallets with you. You quietly followed beside the brown haired one as they immediately opened a topic for their conversation.

You were just checking your phone for the texts sent from your mom in your family group chat when a voice spoke up, addressing you directly.

“What’s your name?” You glance up to catch the one who asked the question was the brown haired one, as the purple haired one was already looking at you but it wasn’t intimidating in any way. So you found it easy to reply to them.

“Y/N.” You said as they all nodded only for the boy beside you to speak up. “Nice to meet you Y/N. I’m Taehyung. This is Jungkook.”

And so you know.

After almost 10 minutes of walking, you finally arrived at the cafeteria located on the other side of campus from where you originally were. The cafeteria was filled with hungry students and occupied tables. This wasn’t something new but at times like these, you’d rather bring your own food and sit somewhere that’s less crowded and bustling.

Just when you were about to excuse yourself and get a take out instead, Taehyung’s voice sounded from beside you, “Hyung said he found a table for us. They’re at the side near the drink stall.” He addressed it to the Jungkook in particular.

Hyung? Found a table? Did their other friends go to this same campus too?

You thought to yourself as Taehyung soon led the three of you around the cafeteria with you following behind them like a lost puppy.

You were busy looking at the available food stalls around when you were stopped by the voices that called out to the 2 boys’ names. Curious eyes wandered over their figures to see just who their other friends were and you were met with a table filled with relatively handsome guys.

There were 3 guys seated at that table, happily welcoming Taehyung and Jungkook. Just when you thought they had forgotten you, Jungkook turns around to show you to his friends.

“If you guys don’t mind, we made a new friend this morning and we invited her to join us for lunch. Her name is Y/N.” Jungkook announced as the three boys smiled at you warmly.

“Hey Y/N. I’m Namjoon, this is Seokjin and Hoseok. It’s nice to meet you.” Namjoon said as he stretched his hand out for you to shake in which you obliged. You definitely didn’t miss the intricate design of a floral arrow lining his inner forearm. That must’ve been his soulmate marking. You soon found yourself seated next to Hoseok and Jungkook after buying your meal.

You were chewing your noodles when Taehyung spoke up to catch everyone at that table’s attention, “Where are they? Shouldn’t their class be over already?”

“Apparently they just ended 5 minutes ago. Minie told me they’re on their way now.” Seokjin replied.

Who were the ‘they’ Taehyung was referring to?

Were there more of their friends?

Oh great.

You refocused on your food, taking a bite out of the chicken meat as you listened to their ‘first day of university’ story. You found out that Namjoon was a Psychology major, Hoseok was a Dance major and Seokjin was a Culinary major.

You were currently staring at the pile of vegetables that Taehyung so kindly transfers into your bowl, after he asked around on who wants the boiled carrots and broccoli to which you said yes.

Taehyung was passing you every last bit of vegetable to your bowl when a sweet voice spoke up from the end of the table nearest to Namjoon and Seokjin.

“Finally! I thought you’d never make it for lunch.” Namjoon laughed as you heard a much raspier voice speak up from the same spot.

“I wouldn’t miss lunch for the world.” You heard the others laugh when Taehyung finally finished clearing his plate off the vegetables before turning to the newcomers to say his hellos.

“Oh, by the way, we have a new addition to our circle. She’s in Taehyung and Jungkook’s class so they tagged her along for lunch.” Seokjin announced as he reached his arm behind Taehyung to place a soft hand on the top of your right shoulder. You finally looked up from your bowl to see who the newcomers were.

The first guy you locked eyes with had cute puffy cheeks, sporting a pretty dark blue hair colour as his bangs framed his face nicely.

“Oh hello. I’m Jimin.”

You smiled shyly at him before your eyes naturally travelled to the other individual standing right beside Jimin and that’s when you frowned.

Unsurprisingly, the male did too.

His hair was an ash grey colour that parted at the side to show his forehead instead of letting it cover his eyebrows like Hoseok’s did. He had a few piercings on each ear. If his physique was unrecognizable to you, at least his face was. You knew exactly who he was without having to ask him for confirmation.

“Yoongi?” His name rolled off your tongue effortlessly in a whisper, stirring reactions from the rest of them.

“Wait, you know each other?” Jimin asked in confusion as his eyes travelled back and forth between you and Yoongi. That’s when you heard the other scoff before locking his eyes with you.

“Never thought I’d see you again after all these years.” His expression was dry and almost unwelcoming unlike the smiles his other friends gave you upon your first meeting. “Never wished for this day to come either but here we are…” You said sarcastically.

The tension was so thick, you were sure you would have to cut it with a knife instead of a scissors.

You broke the gaze by standing up, claiming you’ve lost your appetite.

“I’ll see you guys in class.” You said, directing your words to your classmates before you snatched your phone and wallet off the table top along with your tray of food to return. With a quick glance to Yoongi, you ignored his burning glare as you shoved past him by the shoulders causing him to stumble back a little.

The table fell quiet as Seokjin was the first to break the awkward silence, “Well, that was unexpected.” Yoongi scoffed as he left the table to go buy his food, not bothering to wait for Jimin as his mind was clouded with the thought of you being in his circle of friends.

The history of you two goes way back when you were in both pre and high school. Your first ever dispute with him was in preschool, all because you were both fighting over the crayon box. And then gradually, more fights would happen over silly little things. It came to a point where your teacher would have to separate you from each other.

Your disputes continued after you found out that he just so happened to join the same high school as you, let alone the same class. It only made things worse. You two would bicker and fight almost everyday like a married couple.

Your friends teased you often with him for the amount of fights you got into with him. They’ve even grown accustomed to the harsh comments you had thrown to each other on a daily basis.

Not a day goes by without either him stepping on your tail or you having a payback for all the pranks he did on you to get you worked up. And yet, just when you thought you were free from seeing the devil himself again, life has its way with you and it bothers you to the core at this very instant.

Your lecturer arrived back at the lecture room 15 minutes before 1pm and it seemed like everyone else was still having lunch. All except you. “You’re here early? Have you had your lunch?” He asked as he proceeded to unlock the room while you lingered behind him, standing up after you saw him approaching from afar.

“Yeah, I did.” You smiled, stepping back into the room after he pushed the door open. You climbed the stairs again to where your belongings were, taking out your air pods to bury yourself in music.

Shutting out the world around as you rested your head in your arms on the table. You didn’t notice the people strolling into the lecture room, too busy drowning yourself in your own little bubble. All of it soon came crumbling when you felt a soft tap on your shoulder.

That’s when you look up to see the 2 of them back in their seats.

You glanced ahead to see that the lecturer had already flashed the new slides onto the projector screen which indicates the start of class again. So you took out your air pods and kept them in its case before tossing it into your bag.

Class resumed and your messy thoughts were shoved to the back of your mind, far away from your main focus right now which was your class.

After a dreadful 4 hours of lessons, your lecturer finally calls it a day. He reminded all of you to be punctual for class tomorrow, saying that he has some group discussions for the topic he would be teaching. Once everyone was dismissed, you kept your stuff back into your bag quietly.

You could tell the two boys were waiting for you since they hadn't moved a muscle from beside you despite already standing up and were just leaning against the table while they chatted. The minute you stood up, they pushed themselves off the table and only then did they start walking down the steps.

The three of you made it to ground level thanks to the operating lift, making your way to the parking lot that was right beside the campus entrance.

You were just talking to Jungkook about your hobbies when you noticed a group of 5 guys gathered at the steps of the campus grounds through your peripheral vision. You could only guess it was their friends due to the voice that calls out to those walking with you. They led you towards the bunch as you glanced over to everyone but him.

“Hey Y/N, how did you come here this morning?” Namjoon asked, his voice nothing but sincere.

“Public transport.” You said simply with a smile directed towards him, only for Seokjin to speak up, “Do you need a ride home? I can drive you?”

With that being said, you kindly shook your head with a smile, not wanting to offend him in any way for turning his offer down. “It’s fine, I can manage on my own. Thanks for the offer though. Maybe next time.” You said as you bid the rest of them goodbye, not bothering to look at the very person you’ve held your grudge on for years.

They watched as you turned in your heels and left, deadpanning your way to the front gates. Jimin sighed lightly before turning to Yoongi and asked for answers on why you and him weren’t on good terms.

But the latter only brushed Jimin off, saying he would explain some other time.

The rest of them soon dispersed to their own vehicles to head home after a long and tiring first day of university.

As more days began to pass, you were sometimes dragged by either one of your 2 classmates to hang out with their friends and girlfriends. If you weren’t mistaken, half of them already found their soulmates and were currently in a relationship with them. While the remaining half were still finding for theirs because it was either their soulmate markings had appeared on their skin but very faintly, or there was none at all.

But the amount of times you’ve recalled hanging out with them during the past three months were countable with your fingers. You avoided having lunch with them often ever since you found out Yoongi was in their circle. You didn’t want to seem petty but it seems like he too hated having you around.

Which means that the feelings were mutual on both ends.

It was a pretty warm day so right after you arrived back at your apartment, you headed straight for the showers. Slipping into the shower stream the minute your clothes were discarded.

The cold stream coating your shoulder down with it’s nice, cooling temperature to ease out the warmth in your body.

After you finished your shower, you took your towel from the rack and proceeded to wipe yourself dry. Stepping out of the cubicle, you walked over to the sink counter where your large mirror was glued onto the wall. As you were ruffling your hair with the towel to rid the excess water, you noticed something on your left rib through the reflection.

Is that…?

You glanced down at your skin to see a very faint outline of something on your skin. You blinked twice, not believing this.

When did it start showing?

Your mind was going feral at the thought of seeing your soulmate marking finally make its appearance onto your skin. Who was the cause of this? Why did it only appear now after all these years? If that’s the case then it means that your soulmate is someone from school.

“What am I thinking? This is all a load of crap. I can date whoever I want no matter what marking they have.” You said to no one in particular as you changed into your home attire.

A few days later, you were just in class alone in the morning. Taehyung and Jungkook had yet to arrive when a sudden voice from beside you made you jump. A soft curse emitted from your throat as you clutched to your chest from the minor heart attack. You turned to find one of your classmates whom you recalled his name to be Hanbin, towering over you to your left.

“Hey, I’m Hanbin.” He smiled at you, feeling your stomach get warm upon seeing him up close for the first time.

“Hey… I’m Y/N.”

“I don’t mean to be creepy or weird, but I’ve kind of noticed you going for lunch alone these days instead of with your friends?” He asked as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. You somehow knew where this was going.

“Right… Well, that is true I suppose.” You chuckled awkwardly, looking away from him briefly before turning your attention back to him.

“I see. Well, if you’re looking for company, you can go for lunch with me?” He said it more like a statement instead of a question and that in itself made you smile. You had just accepted his kind offer when you heard familiar voices approaching to where you were seated.

Hanbin’s eyes glanced past your shoulder only to flicker back to you, setting a reminder before he left.

“Lunch with me later, yeah?”

You gave him a soft nod as a smile crept onto your lips. At the same time, you felt the soft nudge to your right elbow. You already knew who’s the culprit. “Wasn’t that Hanbin? What did he say to you?” Taehyung asked as he took a seat beside you.

“He asked me to go for lunch with him.”

“So you agreed?”

“Mhm.”

“You wanna go for lunch with him but not us?” Taehyung asked with a pout, only for Jungkook to lean over and ask what was going on. You could only roll your eyes at them, not actually annoyed or anything. Just a reflex whenever someone tried to get your sympathy over something stupid.

“Give me a break. I’m not sharing a table with ‘you know who’. Wouldn’t wanna accidentally break the table with our arguments.” You flashed him a sarcastic smile that made him click his tongue at you in disbelief.

It has been two months since you first went to lunch with Hanbin and you have been doing that ever since. You noticed that his demeanour was starting to change too around you, maybe there was a mutual feeling settling in between the two of you after all.

It was a Saturday afternoon and you already made plans with Hanbin a week prior. He wanted to bring you out on a date to the amusement park and then maybe grab some supper before heading home. He picked you up at your apartment that evening in his jeep, looking quite handsome if you say so yourself.

The two of you spent the evening together, adrenaline rushing through you thanks to the rides you took. After enjoying yourselves at the amusement park, you were both tired from having fun so he offered to stop by and grab supper with you before sending you home.

You ended up getting fast food at the diner downtown. You were happy. You were grateful that he was nothing but sweet to you. But for some reason, deep down there was that voice in you that was screaming, “He’s not the one” and you hated it. You didn’t want to rely on the marking to determine your happiness.

What if you belonged to someone who has a different marking than you?

That’s possible right?

So when he finally parked right outside your apartment complex, he turned off the engine leaving his key in the ignition. The car fell silent for a moment before you decided to be brave and spoke up.

“Do you… wanna come up for a bit? We can talk for a while longer?”

With that, Hanbin frowned as he wondered if he should. He didn’t want to ruin a first date and he most definitely did not want you to have a bad impression on him.

“Are… Are you sure?” He asked quietly, to which you nodded.

When you didn’t get a proper response, you simply let out a soft giggle followed by, “come on” before you opened his jeep door to board off the vehicle. You left him no choice but to follow after you. Once you’ve made it to your apartment, you unlocked your front door and stepped inside allowing him to enter.

It took him a while as his eyes travelled all over your cosy apartment, admiring the minimalist interior. You told him to take a seat while you went to get him a drink.

A few minutes passed and you were both just talking freely on your couch when you noticed how his eyes always flickered down to your lips constantly as you spoke. This made you stifle a giggle and he caught on. He apologized for it but you brushed it off.

Just then, the room felt quiet all of a sudden as it was your turn to glance down to his lips.

Hanbin softly smiled as he began to lean closer.

Your heart was pounding in your chest as you could feel his warmth radiating off his body from how close he was to you.

Right when you felt your head get dizzy from the close proximity, you unconsciously whispered against his lips something that you would never normally do.

“Kiss me.”

With that being said, he pressed his plump lips on yours.

Immediately intoxicating you with how sweet he tasted. The kiss slowly got heated as he carefully guided your body back to lay on the couch while he hovered over you. His hands slid past the hem of your shirt, resting on your waist as he caressed your skin.

You slide your hands up his chest, wrapping them around his neck. He slowly pushed your shirt up using his wrists. Right when he’d just pulled away for a breather, his eyes travelled down to your bare torso beneath him.

His gaze seemed stuck on whatever he was looking at. When you realized he stopped and was staring at something on your body, you knew exactly what he saw.

“Is that…?” His voice was soft, almost sounding as though he was upset.

“Yeap…”

With this confession, he slowly pulled away from you, tugging your shirt back down and bringing you to a sitting position.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t…” He began but you were quick to hush him.

“It’s okay… Besides, I should be the one saying sorry. I already saw your marking the other day when you wore a tank top to class. I just thought you’d be okay with dating someone who doesn’t share the same mark as you. I guess I was being selfish…” You said.

Hanbin remained quiet as he listened to your reasoning. Suddenly feeling bad for stopping whatever you two were sharing, so abruptly like that. With that, he reached out to hold your hand, telling him that he was still sorry for reacting that way and for hurting your feelings by doing so.

But he told you he didn’t regret taking you out on a date today, that he genuinely had a good time with you and that he would love to still be friends with you if you allowed him.

You smiled at him before turning your attention to the flower pot sitting on your coffee table only for him to continue, “I just hope that you’ll find someone who will love you for who you are, doesn’t matter the mark.” For that, you smiled again. Thanking him for being sweet and thoughtful.

After he left, you couldn’t help but sigh. This was already the umpteenth time this happened to you.

But you couldn’t stay mad at Hanbin for turning you down simply because he didn’t reject you the way your other ex dates did. That was the reason why you let him go without holding a grudge.

The next few weeks, you’ve gone to lunch on an alternate basis between Hanbin and the guys. And every time you went with the guys, you could only prepare yourself for the constant bickering with the one and only, Min Yoongi and today was no different.

You were sitting next to Namjoon at the end of the table with the only space left empty being beside you. And it was as though luck wasn’t on your side, the only human left to arrive for lunch was none other than Yoongi himself.

You were just sipping your green tea when you heard his voice approaching towards your side of the table.

“Sorry hyung, that’s the only seat left.” Jungkook smiled sympathetically to the elder as you made it a point to not spare a glance over to him. You could hear his grunt of disapproval but nonetheless plopped his bag down on the chair before disappearing to buy his food.

When he did come back, you had just gotten a whole chunk of chocolate fudge cake shoved into your mouth by Taehyung who was seated opposite you.

You were unable to pull the dangling piece of cake into your mouth so you tilted your head back. But instead of the cake entering your mouth, it ended up falling into your hands when you felt your head crash into something behind you.

And the hiss just told you who it was.

“Watch it before I spill hot soup on you.” Yoongi said as he placed the bowl of steaming noodle soup on the table top beside your tray.

“Don’t worry because I’ll make sure it spills on you too.” You challenged him back, earning a glare from him.

You heard a few sighs coming from some of the guys but you couldn’t care less. You busied yourself by scrolling through your social media in hopes that the time would just pass by quicker so that you can be away from him after lunch ends.

A few days later, you had just finished your shower when you noticed your mark slowly growing more and more opaque. To which you could finally see the design of it.

It was a dream catcher.

A pretty one at that. You softly traced your finger over the outline of the detail, keeping your eye on the reflection. Just then, a soft sigh left your lips.

This means that your designated soulmate has supposedly crossed your path more than once. But seeing how the ink is getting darker with each passing day, could only mean that if not often, this person is near you at least more than 3 times a week.

A week went by and Jungkook had invited you to his birthday slash pool party that weekend. He invited only the guys and some of their girlfriends. You’ve met the girlfriends a few times and they’ve all been pretty sweet to you so far. All of them are so down to earth. You told Jungkook you’ll be there, earning a happy soft clap from him when you said so.

On the day of the party, you had just finished your shower when you noticed the water droplets underneath you weren’t clear. You looked harder only to realize those weren’t water.

It was blood.

“Great… Thanks mother nature…” You huffed as you went to get your feminine item from your cupboard. After successfully changing into the attire you chose for the day, you tied your hair into a messy ponytail before leaving your bathroom.

You wore simple denim shorts and a loose shirt tucked into your jeans.

When you actually made it to Jungkook’s house, you were surprised to know that he was living in a one story house with a built-in pool ready when he moved in.

Apparently his parents were pretty wealthy people so they bought this house for him, saying it would give him the opportunity to take responsibility in keeping the house clean and tidy rather than his mother having to do it for him all the time.

You called Jungkook’s phone only for him to pick up on the second ring. You told him you were at his front gate so he hung up the call and rushed over to you.

Once you were inside his beautiful compound, he brought you towards the back through his side garden. Distinct voices gradually get louder the nearer you get to them. The minute you turned round the corner, you instantly saw more than half of them in the pool including the ladies.

Seokjin and Taehyung were over at the barbeque grill, cooking the meat for everyone. There was a table filled with all kinds of snacks and sweet drinks. It was a full on pool party.

Just then, a familiar voice rings in your ear already knowing it belonged to Hoseok.

“Y/N! You made it! Come join us!”

You stopped at one of the chairs only to put your sling bag down and apologized to him, “Sorry to burn the mood, but I can’t. Monthly calls.” You could hear some whines and sad pouts forming on some of their faces right after.

“Aww man, that’s a total bummer.” Jimin said, making you shrug.

However, you noticed a figure leaning against the wall on the other side of the pool just blankly staring at you. That’s when you glanced over to see Yoongi. You held your stare for a moment before you turned away. Missing the way he was still staring at you even when you were making your way to Seokjin and Taehyung.

A few minutes later, you were just talking to Jiyeon who was taking a break from being in the pool. You sat facing each other but from where you were seated, your back was facing the grilling pit.

Jiyeon was just talking to you about baking when you noticed someone swimming to the side that was aligned with where you were sitting.

Only to realize it was Yoongi.

He placed his hands on the edge of the pool and soon pushed himself upwards. You watched as water flowed down his body effortlessly. Cursing yourself for even staring at his shirtless form. He pushed his wet hair out of his face, resulting in him having sort of a slick back hairstyle.

He was too busy talking to Hoseok and Jungkook who were still in the pool, his head completely turned away from you.

Right when you were about to look away, your eyes caught sight of the imprinted ink on his left rib. You didn’t think much of it as you turned away from him. But then something in your brain ticked you off like a time bomb. So you carefully turned back to him just a few feet away from you.

That’s when you saw it.

The dream catcher on his left rib is so prominent and bold against his milky skin. Not to mention his toned abs. A soft gasp left your lips as he walked past you without sparing a single glance at you.

But you didn’t mind it. You were glad he didn’t see how shocked you were because if it did, he would have said something about it.

So instead, you just got up and left, entering Jungkook’s home through the glass doors frantically. You rushed in and went straight to the said destination. Once inside, you took a moment to steady your breathing as you brought your gaze up to the long mirror that laid upon you on the wall landscape.

You carefully pulled your shirt up to expose the ink on your own skin. You could only stare at it through the reflection before looking down at your own torso and gently tracing your finger over the outer rim of the dream catcher’s hoop.

You didn’t know how long you were gone for. It wasn’t until a voice broke your train of thoughts.

“Was it really necessary to rush into someone’s house like-”

However, his speech got stuck in his throat when his eyes flickered over to the reflection in the mirror. No it wasn’t your face he was staring at. It wasn’t the soap bottles lining Jungkook’s sink.

It was your mark on your left rib.

You swiftly pulled your shirt down to hide it from him from seeing any more details of it. With quick hasty steps, you turned to leave the bathroom and had barely taken a step out into the hallway when he grabbed your wrist and pulled you back to face him.

“Show me.” He said firmly.

“Show you what?”

“Don’t play dumb, you know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“I- I don’t know what you mean-”

Without warning, Yoongi used his free hand to lift your shirt up to stop right below your bra line as his hands naturally cupped your sides to keep your shirt there. He finally caught a clear look of the inked design on you, seeing how familiar it looked to him.

You could’ve sworn you saw his eyes flicked wider for just a millisecond before it went back to its original state.

For some reason, your lung felt restricted and your heart dropped upon seeing the same mark on his skin at the same exact spot as yourself. You wanted to run away. All you wanted to do now was to be as far away from him as you can.

So you slapped his hands away, making him lose his grip on you before you turned around to leave.

He grabbed your wrist again but this time, you mustered whatever strength you had left to yank your arm from him. Tears stinging your eyes as it threatens to fall, yet you don’t fully understand why.

“Don’t! J-Just… leave me alone… please.” Your voice falls into a whisper as you rush to the backyard, ignoring their worried calls as you simply told them you weren’t feeling well because of your monthly calls. When Yoongi did come back to the backyard, he was questioned as to what happened back in the house and why you looked like you were about to cry.

Yoongi couldn’t help but stare at your descending back just in time before you turned the corner and disappeared fully from sight. Only for him to lie to them despite knowing exactly why you left.

“She wasn’t feeling well.”

The week went by and you have been avoiding coming relatively close to the rest other than the 2 who were obviously unavoidable. But it’s not like you had anything against them. You just wanted to avoid Yoongi at all costs for now. It was a Friday and you had just finished your classes for the day when the two boys exchanged glances to each another before Jungkook spoke up.

“Hey, do you wanna grab something to eat with us after this?” You knew he was being nice. You knew he wasn’t to blame for Yoongi having the same exact soulmate mark as you. So for that, you chose not to lash out at him.

“It’s fine. I’ll pass.” You smiled half heartedly and they could tell. But thankfully, they chose not to question further.

The three of you were walking towards the main entrance as usual when you saw the rest of the group seeming to wait for you three. You glanced up to Jungkook beside you who gestured a small wave to the others, only for you to accidentally look over.

And the first thing you saw was Yoongi already looking at you.

Great.

Before you could get to close, you bid your goodbyes to your friends as you separated from them to head towards the gates. Nobody has yet to know why you were acting this way other than Yoongi himself. You were just halfway through the parking lot when a firm grip on your wrist made you turn after being tugged back gently.

You nearly crashed into the figure whom you weren’t surprised when you saw it was him.

“Stop acting like a child.” He said, his tone held something much more than just firmness. He sounded like he’s… hurt almost.

“So what? This marking thing is a load of bullshit. Why does it determine who we should be with? That’s unfair! I’ve seen couples who have different marks and yet they’re still happy together?!” You said, clearly letting your emotions take over your mind.

“If you think it’s bullshit then why are you ignoring me like I’ve just killed your pet?!” He asked, his voice now a tad louder than it was before.

“Because all the guys I’ve tried dating care too much about these marks! Every single one of them ditched me when they found out I didn’t have the same mark! And what are the odds that the one person who has the same exact mark as me, happens to be the one person that has been nothing but a daily source of fight with me?” You paused as his grip on you loosened, his glare suddenly softened.

“Of course I couldn’t believe it… I didn’t want to believe that of all people, it’s you… That’s why I ignore you.” Your voice grew soft as you saw the way his eyes flickered back and forth on your own brown pupils.

“So you’re saying you hate me? Is that it?” His question was simple but it held a thousand meanings and you knew it.

“I don’t even know anymore, Yoongi…” You whispered as you slowly pulled your hand out of his grip and quickly left before he could say anything else. Yoongi stood there trying to process everything. Still not entirely sure of what just happened. Just then, a gentle hand on his shoulder made him return back to reality.

“Hey man, you okay?” Namjoon’s calm voice spoke from beside Yoongi as the latter could only nod.

“We heard your conversation… Well, we didn’t intend to anyways… But, is it true? That you both have the same mark?” Namjoon continued.

He could hear the soft, quiet curse leaving Yoongi’s lips during his exhale before he spoke up, “Yeah… That was actually the reason why she abruptly left during Jungkook’s pool party.” Yoongi explained and it all began to fall into place for Namjoon. The younger could only nod as he finally put the pieces together.

“Mmm, and so I’m guessing she’s too overwhelmed with the fact that you have the mark out of a billion people to walk this planet?” Namjoon said.

“Bingo.” Yoongi sighed as the two began to walk back to their friends who were still gathered at the entrance despite hearing the commotion earlier. If space is what you need, then space is what he shall give. But of course, you can’t run from him forever.

It has been two weeks since your outburst with Yoongi and you have been keeping your distance from him again. The guys also didn’t try to tag you along knowing fully well that you needed space from Yoongi. For that, you silently thanked them. It was a Saturday night and you had made it a point to go for a quick grocery run to stock up your refrigerator with edible food.

After getting all the items you needed, you went to the queue. The lady at the counter scanned every item on the conveyor belt and went ahead to put it in the plastic bag before telling you the total cost.

You were about to reach into your jeans pocket when you noticed them being flat.

You felt around the pockets of your jeans and it was in fact empty. With that being said, you mentally cursed yourself for not bringing your wallet with you. Not only that, this store was the only one nearest to your apartment and it was closing in 10 minutes.

You wouldn’t make it back in time if you went home now to retrieve your wallet.

So you apologized to the lady who looked equally done with her job as you left the store empty handed. You were just walking down the partially empty street when you felt something drop onto your cheek. You stopped walking to feel what it was. Before you could touch your cheek, another drop hits the top of your head. And then another. And another.

“Fuck my life…”

You whispered to yourself as the sky suddenly began to downpour on you. Watching as some people ran across the road for shelter, some whips out their umbrella to shield them from the rain, some simply stayed indoors to avoid being caught in the rain.

However, you were too tired to even care about seeking shelter. Feeling as if today was the worst day of your life.

You continued to stroll down the street completely soaked under the rain.

You wrapped your arms around yourself in attempts to keep yourself warm but it clearly did no shit for you. Absent minded to notice your surroundings, you didn’t hear the calls for your name until the vehicle came to a gradual slow speed beside you on the street.

“Y/N!”

It was Yoongi.

“Leave me alone…”

“Y/N, why in the world are you walking in the heavy rain? You might fall sick, you dummy.”

“Who c-cares?” Your lips were starting to quiver from the cold.

“I do.”

You could’ve sworn your heart just skipped a beat at that response.

“Look, let me take you to my place and get you dry clothes while waiting for the rain to stop. I’ll send you home after.” He said.

“I d-don’t need your… h-help, Yoongi.”

He let out a soft groan in annoyance with your stubbornness, only to drive a little further down before bringing the car to a complete stop. You were about to carry on walking but your feet just came to a halt when you saw him running out of his car and coming to you.

“Come on and stop whining like a little kid.” Yoongi said as he grabbed your wrist and began jogging back to his car, pulling you into the passenger side before going back to the driver seat.

Once safely inside, he drove off into the night and made a left turn at the junction while your apartment building was to the right and probably about a 20 minutes walk. The car ride was quiet as neither of you said anything. You simply let him do what he said he would. When he finally brought the car to a park, he turned off the engine and soon climbed out of the vehicle.

You followed suit as he had already come over to your side to hold the door for you. After he’d locked the car, he led you to his apartment complex as you followed behind him. You took in the interior of his apartment complex, it looked slightly older than yours but still well maintained.

Apparently, he lived on the 14th floor unlike you who lived on the 5th floor.

He soon pulls out his house key and proceeds to unlock his front door. He opens the door for you, letting you step inside first. Once he had closed the door behind him, he told you to wait there as he excused himself to go get you a clean towel and new dry clothes for you to change into.

You took in the minimalist setting of his apartment, quite similar to yours except your walls are white and his is grey.

Yoongi came back with a handful, telling you where the bathroom was.

You followed his directions and soon closed the bathroom door once you’ve stepped inside. In the meantime, Yoongi had gone to change out of his own wet clothes into a clean pair of his sweatpants and a hoodie. He was boiling hot water to make hot chocolate for the two of you when you cleared your throat behind him.

He turned around at the sound, only for him to scheme through your outfit in which he had so specifically chosen for you. He had lent you one of his sleeping shorts and an oversized black hoodie that looked a little too big on you.

But for some reason, you looked good in them.

He almost had to pinch himself for staring too long before he finally spoke up, “Uhh, my dryer’s in the laundry room. Second door to the left.”

You nodded as you disappeared back down the hall, only for him to mentally curse himself for losing his composure. After 2 minutes or so, you came back having managed to turn the dryer on.

He handed you the cup of hot chocolate, not forgetting to thank him for it.

There was a short moment of peaceful silence before he gestured over to his living room. The both of you went over to the couch as you sat on either ends of the furniture. He turned his tv on and was busying himself with searching through Netflix when you mustered up the courage to ask him what was on your mind for the past half an hour.

“Why did you help me?”

Yoongi turned to you briefly, unsure if he should answer the question truthfully.

“As much as we fight, I’m not entirely heartless.”

Your eyes bore into him as you soon found yourself looking down at your hands when he turned to look at you. If it wasn’t for the tv, you knew for a fact that he could’ve heard the thumping of your heart. Silence fell over you two again but he broke it as soon as it started.

“Why were you walking in the rain?”

“I was on a grocery run.”

“But I don’t recall seeing you carry any bags of groceries?”

“That’s because I couldn’t pay for it without my wallet…”

He raised his eyebrows at you in disbelief, finding it ridiculous that you only realized it when you were checking out of the store.

“Shut up. This kind of stuff happens okay…” You scoffed, earning a quiet chuckle coming from him followed by an, “Okay, okay.” The room fell silent again and you were just playing with the strings of your hoodie.

Silently wishing for time to pass quicker but it seems like the rain only got heavier.

“Look, I think we should just forget about the whole marking thing and just… start over?” He said, causing you to look at him but he seemed like he was diligently avoiding your gaze.

“Start… over?” You dragged your words to show that you wanted a slightly more detailed explanation.

“What I mean is… let’s stop ignoring each other and stop fighting over the smallest little issues like we did when we were young. Back then we were still young and immature. But we’re not anymore, are we?” He ended with a question, making you huff.

You know he has a point but your ego is still higher than ever.

“Are you only saying this because I’m your soulmate?”

“No. I really am tired of fighting with you.”

“Why now? Why only want to call truce after you’ve seen my mark? Doesn’t that say a lot?” You were stubborn and he knows it. And yet, he still answers you to clear all your doubts.

Surprisingly patient with you.

“I know it might look like what you think, but it’s really not. I don’t care about the marking much like you. But after thinking about it, I feel like it’s actually childish to hold a grudge on each other for the things we’ve done years ago, don’t you think?” He explained, hoping it’ll get past that rock solid head of yours.

Your heart knows he’s right but your mind forces you to say otherwise.

With that, you huffed as you got up and excused yourself to go check on your clothes. Before you could make it past the first door on the left, he grabbed your wrist and tugged you back.

He pressed you against the wall with his other hand beside your head to trap you.

Your free hand hovered in between both yours and his chest as he was less than 4 inches away. Your faces were so close you could feel his breath hitting your lips. You would’ve slapped him if he did this years ago.

But now?

“Why are you so stubborn?”

He asked, his voice low as you kept your heated gaze on his eyes even though you saw the way his eyes flickered back and forth between your eyes and lips.

Rising heat from both anger and his body temperature radiated off him, engulfing you like a cocoon. You could’ve sworn you saw his pupils dilate a few times now that he was this close to you. It was quiet in the hallway as he frowned, still waiting for an answer from you. But instead, you gently pressed your hand on his warm chest that was in between your bodies.

This was enough to make him flinch slightly. His crammed face relaxed for a moment when he looked down at your hand on his chest before looking back at you.

Even more confusion struck him.

Your heart was racing rapidly in your chest, and you were so sure he could hear it. You couldn’t bear to look at him any longer so you looked down at your hand as you slid it up towards the necklace he was wearing. Playing with the pendant in between your fingers.

You didn’t realise this but his grip on your wrist was long gone and was now slowly snaking that arm around your waist.

Yoongi leaned in very subtly to let his lips brush against yours just to see your reaction. He closed his eyes, taking in the feeling of having you this close for the first time. You did the same as your other hand rested on his left bicep. Before you knew it, he closed whatever remaining gaps in between only to kiss you.

Your heart exploded in your chest as he used the hand beside your head to cup your cheek. You leaned into his touch while you reciprocated the kiss. Yoongi’s grip on your waist tightened as he pulled you against him.

He felt both your hands now just holding onto his biceps for support, his lips tugging upwards against your mouth.

You could feel his muscles flexing under your fingertips as he pulled away from your mouth and was now trailing soft kisses down your neck. A soft sigh left your lips, feeling him give some love to the part that joins your neck and shoulder blade together.

“Yoongi…” Your voice came out as a mere whisper.

Just when you wanted to say something, your breath hitched in your throat when you felt his hands slip past your shirt only to rest them on your sides when your mark was.

His touch was gentle but it definitely did something to your poor heart.

“Answer me truthfully… Are you okay with… this?” Yoongi asked, gesturing between you and him. “With us? Because you can say no if you’re really against this. I would never force you.”

You stared at him for a while, rethinking your answer. You’ve been so firm about not caring who has the same soulmate mark as you because you thought it was all bullshit. But now, standing in front of him and knowing that he has the mark, not only that but he seemed like he really genuinely likes you is making it twice harder for you to say no.

But your silence was too long for him as he counted to 3 in his mind. When you didn’t respond, he slowly nodded. Pulling himself away to leave a space between you.

“It’s okay, I understand… I think your clothes are dry. Go change, I’ll wait outside.” His voice was quiet as if he’s too upset, he can’t even look you in the eye. You felt bad. You never wanted him to feel this way. So when he turned in his heels to walk away, you yearned for him to come back.

Yoongi was halfway down his living room when he felt a smaller hand slide into his right one. His step came to a halt as he kept his back to you.

He was about to ask if there's something wrong but all he got was a soft apology.

“I’m sorry…”

You watched as he remained still, his back still facing you. Doing nothing to turn and look at you. Yoongi wasn’t sure what he wanted to do at the moment so he kept quiet.

Just then, you used your other hand to cup his that you were already holding. He would be lying if he said he didn’t like this. But he definitely wasn’t prepared for what you were about to do next. You weren’t sure if you trust your voice so instead, you took a few steps closer before wrapping your arms around his waist.

Pressing your cheek against his back. You stayed like that for a few seconds, basking in the sweet vanilla scent of his.

You could feel him tense up when you first hugged him but he soon relaxed in your arms.

You didn’t dare to do anything else, all until you felt him softly caress your arms only to lock his fingers with yours over top of your hands. You only nuzzled your face deeper into his back, afraid to look at him.

But when you feel him slowly move around in your arms, that’s when you let him face you.

The minute he sees your face, he immediately cups your cheeks and wasted no time in kissing you ever so sweetly. The butterflies in your stomach erupted as you snaked your arms around his shoulders, feeling him pull you closer to him by your waist.

He held you securely against him all the while never leaving your lips. You were the first to pull away, keeping the distance small between you and him.

Your eyes were still closed so you depended on your senses.

That wasn’t until you felt him cup your face again, caressing your cheek with his thumbs. The room fell silent as he brushed his soft lips against yours and whispered to you quietly, “Can we start over?”

You opted for just a nod, unsure if you could trust your voice. You opened your eyes to see him staring at you so softly with his doe round eyes.

Yoongi smiled, whispering an ‘okay’ before he kissed you again. He wrapped his arms around your waist as you melted against his lips. He took his time with you, making sure you were comfortable and that you really wanted this. He never wanted to hurt you in any way. He kept asking for your permission before he did anything and you appreciated it.

You woke up the next morning to a warm feeling engulfing you from behind. You stirred in your sleep, trying to see what it was. But the squeeze around your waist made you look down to see the familiar arm draped over your waist, tucking his hands underneath you. The silver bracelet around his right wrist could never be mistaken for someone else.

Just when you were about to snuggle deeper into the warmth of his body, you felt him kiss the back of your head. Your heart pounded in your chest, stomach flipped in your belly.

“Mmm, good morning.” He whispered, his morning voice low and raspy.

You sighed in content as you turned around to face him, only to find that he still had his eyes closed but there was a smile that crept on his lips.

With that, you smiled as you planted a soft kiss on his lips. You could feel him smirk against your lips, earning a soft giggle from you. His arm that was supporting your head, bent at the elbows as he began to play with your soft hair.

The next day, you came to school feeling a little down in the weather. Maybe it was a late reaction to when you got drenched in the rain. You were sniffling in your seat when Taehyung and Jungkook immediately caught the sight of your red nose.

“Hey, are you sick? Your nose is red.” Jungkook said, his voice laced with full concern. You simply shook him off saying it was just light flu.

The other two weren’t buying it, they said they would go get medicine for you after class and you all but rejected them. The last thing you’d wanna do was to burden them.

So after your morning class has ended and you have been dismissed for lunch, the three of you made it to the cafeteria only to find the rest of the guys already seated. But you and Yoongi still haven’t told them about your resolve yet. So they thought you two were still ignoring each other.

“Hey guys! Y/N? Are you okay? You look kind of pale…” Namjoon asked, making you smile.

“It’s just a little flu, that’s all.” You said, completely missing the way Yoongi was staring at you with pure concern.

“Do you wanna go home and rest?” Hoseok asked in which you shook your head, before a squeaky sneeze left your lips not forgetting to cover your mouth while you did. “Sorry…” You whispered an apology, earning a few laughs from them. Just then, Yoongi got up without a word, leaving the table.

You watched as he disappeared down the aisle towards the drink stall. You wondered what he was doing but nevertheless shrugged, going to the empty seats beside him and Jimin.

You took a seat beside Yoongi’s empty chair, not really having the appetite to eat.

You were just rejecting Jimin’s offer to feed you some of his food when Yoongi came back with a glass of hot tea, a bottle of water and a strip of two panadol flu tablets. The rest of them watched quietly as he sat down beside you and handed you the drinks.

“Here, take this.” He said softly, pulling your hand up to push the two tablets out of the strip onto your open palms.

“Oh? Since when are you guys on good terms?” Taehyung asked in utter confusion.

“We’re not. We’re just acting.” Yoongi replied sarcastically before twisting the bottle cap open for you. He waited for you to throw your head back and let the tablets fall into your mouth before gulping down the water.

After you were done, you thanked him quietly. You didn’t miss the little smirk on his face.

“Okay…” Seokjin said as he gently slammed his hands onto the table top, making some of you flinch.

“What’s going on? Last week you were both ignoring each other and now you’re taking care of her like she means the world to you?” He asked as you turned to Yoongi for help.

“Don’t you know the saying ‘People change’?” Yoongi said.

“Of course, but it’s almost too drastic. Just over the weekend too.” Seokjin said in disbelief.

“Well, I guess it happens.” Yoongi shrugged as Jungkook directed his question to you.

“So I’m guessing you too?”

“No. I still hate him.” You lied.

“Is that so? Then why are you holding his pinkie?” Hoseok smirked, pointing to your intertwined pinkie on the table. With that, you quickly removed your hands from Yoongi.

“Hey... Why did you let go? I was about to play with your fingers.”

Yoongi said with a small pout, making you blush. Just then, Yoongi reached back over to lace his fingers with yours, resting your hands on his lap only to steal a quick kiss to your cheek.

This stirred a few dramatic gasps from your other friends. “Did you guys see that?! That was- omg!” Seokjin’s voice was too loud, making Jimin cover his mouth with his hands.

“Oh hush your pie hole dust. Just let me be happy for once.” Yoongi smirked as you felt him caress the back of your hand. He’s definitely going to be a handful but you’re more than happy to entertain his crap.

~~~

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