#gate 43
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a-d-nox · 3 months ago
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human design: the mind
the mind is considered the place where your thoughts come from. this is where heuristics are born - information is filtered, actions are rationalized, and understanding occurs. not everything is accurate based on what gates are conscious. this is where anxiety, obsessive thoughts, and overthinking begins. but also ideas, thoughts, and other ideas.
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defined mind: human computer, constantly reviewing and/or researching, information overload, professional worrier, nitpicking, looking from problems where none exist, can't turn off thoughts, etc.
undefined mind: lax, contemplative, forgetful, clarity amongst chaos, other people's problems become yours, wanting to help others before helping yourself, openminded, being able to read what others are likely thinking, etc.
gates
4 - problem solver: fixing, solutions for problems that don't exist, over-preparedness, needing to always be doing something, puzzle lovers, can't understand something and getting anxiety from not being able to understand, over fixation, needing to lighten up, cleverness, having an answer for everything, whats relevant, etc.
11 - harmonious: imaginative, social harmony, utopia, seeking peace, consideration of others, fresh ideas, constant evolution, responsibility to others, change for the better, etc.
17 - follower: agree v. disagree, flexible thoughts, diplomatic v. healthy debater, opinionated, logical mindedness, understanding, forcefulness, fairness, opinions about everything, dogmatic, fixed on your own views, balance, impartialness, quality over quantity, etc.
24 - returns: rationalizing, constantly playing back the tapes, screenshots/receipts, preoccupied, interest in forensics, finding missing clues, conceptualizing, theorizing, set in your ways, etc.
43 - breakthrough: deep thoughts, one step ahead, unable to express self clearly, profound, wise, shifting everyone's perspective, wrapped up in your own thoughts, stubborn, unconcerned with other people thoughts, etc.
47 - realizing: thinking constantly, love for puzzles, lots of lightbulb moments, problem solver, abstract thinking, etc.
no gates: openminded, overwhelmed by everyone else's thoughts and worries, constantly reflecting on the world around you, getting cluttered with other peoples mental chatter, etc.
channels that connect from the crown to the mind
channels that connect from the mind to the throat
11 -> 56 - curious: seeking the meaning in life, insatiable, wanting to share new information with everyone, speaking your mind, excessive interest in a lot of things, interest in multiple beliefs systems, seeking firsthand experience, etc.
17 -> 62 - organized: strategic, logically minded, absorbing the facts and details available, giving concrete opinions and recommendations, well informed, futuristically minded, methodical, opinionated, enjoying debating with others, etc.
43 -> 23 - structured: giving insight, breaking new ground, changing the views of others, open 3rd eye, empowering others, provoking the reactions of others, lightyears ahead of everyone else, tactful, genius, authentic, confident, blurting things out, etc.
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© a-d-nox 2024 all rights reserved
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lonestarbattleship · 10 months ago
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USS CALIFORNIA (BB-44) and USS TENNESSEE (BB-43) passing beneath the "Golden Gate Bridge" enter San Francisco Bay, California.
Photographed sometime between January and June 1937.
U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command: NH 73001, NH 73002
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blueberryspyder · 11 months ago
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Because I love lore and worldbuilding and want to incorporate the environment and history into my writing, I’ve been doing a lot of research on Waterdeep for my fanfic including, you guessed it, Gale x my Tav.
And honestly? I’m having a lot of fun. I’m looking into the founding, the rulers/leaders, their holidays and how they celebrate them, which districts are fancier and where Gale would potentially reside (I remember seeing screenshots of his tower being located on the harbor, so he’s likely in the lower tail of the Castle Ward, since I doubt he’d be living in the Lowercity in the Dock Ward, but it’s still possible!), as well as just areas of his city. I just really like how the small details of the City of Splendors add to Gale as a character.
(Also I am having the BEST time taking the piss out of Waterdhavians—my Tav Hylas says:
I can tell based on your accent that you’re Waterdhavian—though your extensive vocabulary and verbosity made that clear long before I noticed it.
And I just freaking love Hylas so much they’re so fucking funny okay bye)
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hell-dusk · 11 months ago
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god bless the slutty men mod
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earthenterran · 10 months ago
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i got...i giot..//// i got a new lae'zel scene in the beginning of act one
its... it-s-ff- its a nice scene
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microwavedautism · 1 year ago
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WYLL PLEASE STOP DANCING I CAN'T DO THIS AGAIN PLEASE
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eldritchqueerture · 1 year ago
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ok but the music that plays at the mountain pass and the rosymorn monastery is a masterpiece and its so fucked up its not included in the official soundtrack
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bcdwclves · 2 years ago
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anyways, i maybe did like, the hidden area in Vanaheim, called The Plains, the Jungle, and the Sinkhole at 90% for six hours last night and boy howdy, do i fuckin' HATE traversing Vanaheim.
the ability and gimmick of Vanaheim having different world states depending on the time of day is neat but man, it gets really grating to have to navigate back and forth between areas because there are gates blocking an area out during the day which makes you go back to change the day-state to nighttime.
good thing about Vanaheim and its hidden area of it is it gets you a LOT of material for upgrades.
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strangestcase · 5 months ago
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bugs need their own Tumblr i think
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🐝​ sillywasp Follow
This humans house smells like flowers!! 🌸​🌼​🌷 yum!
🐝​ sillywasp Follow
Update: there are no flowers 😭​ I feel so robbed
🐝 sillywasp Follow
Update: they put me in a plastic cup ☹️​
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🦗​ crashopper Follow
HELP NEEDED
my wife is mad at me :(
​🕷️ tinymeal Follow
Damn that's crazy. Have you tried talking to her.
🪰​​ d1ptteraaaaa Follow
Dude youre a black widow spider I dont think you're qualified to give love advice
🕷️ tinymeal Follow
Actually black widow females only eat the males in extremely stressful situations such as being kept in captivity, my wife and I live in a beautiful meadow and we're fine
🪲​ shiny-turd Follow
Then why is your blog full of vore
🕷️ tinymeal Follow
Can't a man have a fetish
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🐜​ cottagecore-gate Follow
Milking my beloved aphids! 💖​💓​💖​💓​💖​💓​
🐞​ godslittlecow Follow
:3c
🐜​ cottagecore-gate Follow
dont you FUCKIGN dare
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🕸️​ sneakyspidey Follow
*sees a mantis crawling overhead* Tsk... such a fool... *into the intercom* attack, mine simps
🦋​ bread-and-butter-fly Follow
Knowing OP is an ant mimic spider makes this a thousant times funnier
🦂​ pseudoabdomen Follow
why do you know so much about ants
🦋​ bread-and-butter-fly Follow
I tricked ants into raising me
🦟 bzz-bzz Follow
Isnt that a little exploitative?
🪳 thecrawlerrrrrr Follow
Ants love being exploited dont listen to the haters
🦟 bzz-bzz Follow
Youre a termite of course youd say that
🪳 thecrawlerrrrrr Follow
That's so fucking racist???
🐛 fluffyfellow Follow
lmao .You are both racist 🙄​
🦂​ pseudoabdomen Follow
IS THAT A LARVA??? ON BUGBLR???
🦋​ bread-and-butter-fly Follow
Relax it's my little brother. who's currently tricking ants into raising him
🕸️​ sneakyspidey Follow
​ What have you MANIACS done to my post
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nicotinemaiden · 2 months ago
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Chapters: 43/? Fandom: Baldur's Gate (Video Games) Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con Relationships: Astarion/Tav (Baldur's Gate), Gale/Tav (Baldur's Gate), Astarion (Baldur's Gate)/Original Female Character(s), Gale (Baldur's Gate)/Original Female Character(s) Characters: Astarion (Baldur's Gate), Gale (Baldur's Gate), Original Female Character(s), Shadowheart (Baldur's Gate), Lae'zel (Baldur's Gate), Minthara Baenre Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, more hurt than comfort if im being honest, plot with sex, Obsession, Possession, Possessive Sex, Jealousy, Hate Sex, dub con sex, Rape/Non-con Elements, Hate to Love, Love/Hate, Manipulation, Love Triangles, Falling In Love, Baldur's Gate 3, Baldur's Gate 3 Spoilers, Spoilers for Act 1 (Baldur's Gate 3), Spoilers for Act 2 (Baldur's Gate 3), Spoilers for Act 3 (Baldur's Gate 3), Tags Contain Spoilers, gale is not as much of a gentleman as he made us believe, Dark Astarion (Baldur's Gate), astarion has no problem sharing until he catches feelings, wyll and karlach are missing because evil (ish) path sorry, POV Multiple, POV Third Person Limited, character's pov written in thirs person, each pov only knows what the character knows and that kind of thing, english is not my first language im sorry for the gramatical and expression errors, no beta we die like karlach, Banter, It gets better before it gets worse, Angst, Fluff, Sex Magic, Anal Sex, Slow Burn, not for sex of that we have plenty, Self-Acceptance, Self-Discovery, Character Study, Vaginal Sex, Vaginal Fingering, Double Penetration, Threesome - F/M/M, Blood Drinking, Oral Sex, Enemies to Lovers, Ascended Astarion, Infidelity, Sexual Abuse, Rape, Forced Orgasm, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Smut, depiction is not endorsement Summary:
From the chaotic strands of red hair that evaded the cage of her up-do to the high-heeled platform shoes that complemented the side-opened nightgown perfectly, everything about her called to him, screamed to him, drove him crazy.
The wine wasn’t exactly helping, either.
Gale of Waterdeep, wizard extraordinaire, was drowning in it — savouring every sip, every glass, every bottle, just in case it could make him forget the fact that he followed her after all. That, time after time, he had the option to leave yet he was still here. And he had no one to blame but himself.
TLDR: A possessive love triangle between Tav/Stengah, Gale and Astarion starting from the Goblin Party. Tags might update with time.
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dekariosclan · 9 months ago
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Larian Studios in 2029: As always we continue to improve the romance experience in Baldur’s Gate 3! See below for some of the changes coming with Patch #43:
— You now have the ability to argue about your tax returns with your spouse
— Fixed an issue where the game would freeze while you & your partner were shopping at the IKEA in Baldur’s Gate
— If you opted to have children, you must now pass a DC 30 check in order to have the energy to stay awake past 9:45 pm
— If partnered with Gale and living in Waterdeep, you can now discuss whose family you will be spending next Waukeentide with (*note, not an option with a Dark Urge character)
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redlittlefoxari · 5 months ago
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Reblog for chapter update!
To the Ends of Faerun Master List
Summary: The year is 1548; it’s fifty-six years after Tav and Astarion defeated the elder brain with their rag-tag group of friends. So much has changed since then Astarion changed careers and is now a tailor while Tav runs the counter. While their daughter attends Gale’s School of Wizardry. That's right, their daughter. Everything is going smoothly until something dark threatens to destroy all of Faerûn, and it's up to Astarion, Tav, and their Daughter to stop it from happening.
Warnings: Smut, Blood, Violence, NSFW 18+, Fluff, Angst, Pregnancy, Talks of Emotional trauma, Talks of Physical Trauma, Physical Abuse, Blood, Bodily harm, Death.
AO3 link here Redlittlefox
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Chapter One: Happy Little Family
Chapter Two: Steady *Smut*
Chapter Three: Worth
Chapter Four: Old Gods
Chapter Five: Pact
Chapter Six: Numb
Chapter Seven: Let it Out
Chapter Eight: Drunk
Chapter Nine: Hide and Seek *Smut*
Chapter Ten: Fair
Chapter Eleven: Wicked Goddess
Chapter Twelve: Binding
Chapter Thirteen: On Hold
Chapter Fourteen: Mother Knows Best
Chapter Fifteen: Shadow Purge
Chapter Sixteen: Something in the Air
Chapter Seventeen: Mind, Body and Soul *Smut*
Chapter Eighteen: Morning
Chapter Nineteen: Distracted
Chapter Twenty: Blood and Fear
Chapter Twenty-One: Scars
Chapter Twenty-Two: Friends Forever
Chapter Twenty-Three: Wants and Needs
Chapter Twenty-Four: Rest and Relaxation *Smut*
Chapter Twenty-Five: Trouble
Chapter Twenty-Six: Promise Me
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Almost There
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Evereska
Chapter Twenty-Nine: List of the Lost
Chapter Thirty: Rotten
Chapter Thirty-One: Get Out Alive
Chapter Thirty-Two: One Step Forward
Chapter Thirty-Three: Walking Dead
Chapter Thirty-Four: Bite Down
Chapter Thirty-Five: Servant of Corruption
Chapter Thirty-Six: Trapped
Chapter Thirty- Seven: Twisted
Chapter Thirty- Eight: Cracks
Chapter Thirty- Nine: Fill in the Blanks
Chapter Forty: Hesitation
Chapter Forty-One: Lovey Dovey
Chapter Forty- Two: Finally *Smut*
Chapter Forty-Three: What Ifs?
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guiltknight-gaming · 1 year ago
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Baldur's Gate 3 Episode 43: The Adamantium Forge
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doyouknowthisanime · 11 days ago
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Happy Halloween, everyone!
I've got some good news - I've finished tallying up the results of the favourite anime survey and can now, finally, reveal what Tumblr's favourite anime actually are. To start with, I'd like to thank everyone who responded - yes, all 1172 (wow!) of you - and to apologise for he delay in actually getting these results out. For anyone who needs a reminder, these results are based on how many points each anime received - a first place ranking was worth five points, a second or third place ranking was worth four, a fourth or fifth place ranking was worth three, a sixth-tenth place ranking was worth two, and a eleventh-twentieth place ranking was worth one. When multiple anime had the same number of points, the anime with the most first-place votes was placed higher. The results are below the read more right here - I hope you enjoy reading!
100. Yona of the Dawn - 82 points
99. Devilman Crybaby - 83 points
98. Monogatari Series - 83 points
97. Lucky Star - 84 points
96. Toradora - 84 points
95. Dr. Stone - 86 points
94. Princess Jellyfish - 86 points
93. ERASED - 87 points
92. Noragami - 87 points
91. Wolf's Rain - 88 points
90. Azumanga Daioh - 90 points
89. Paranoia Agent - 90 points
88. Odd Taxi - 91 points
87. Banana Fish - 93 points
86. Digimon Adventure - 95 points
85. Akira - 95 points
84. Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni - 95 points
83. Psycho-Pass - 96 points
82. Little Witch Academia - 96 points
81. Monster - 97 points
80. Mononoke - 98 points
79. Free! - 99 points
78. Kekkai Sensen - 99 points
77. Trigun Stampede - 102 points
76. Haibane Renmei - 103 points
75. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters - 104 points
74. Gintama - 105 points
73. Violet Evergarden - 107 points
72. Dorohedoro - 113 points
71. Made in Abyss - 113 points
70. Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury - 113 points
69. Eizouken ni wa Te o Dasu na! - 115 points
68. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind - 116 points
67. SK8 the Infinity - 117 points
66. Samurai Champloo - 117 points
65. Your Name - 118 points
64. Castle in the Sky - 119 points
63. Perfect Blue - 119 points
62. Promare - 120 points
61. One Punch Man - 122 points
60. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - 126 points
59. Kiki's Delivery Service - 129 points
58. Kaguya-sama: Love is War - 136 points
57. Inuyasha - 136 points
56. Assassination Classroom - 142 points
55. FLCL - 143 points
54. Pokémon - 144 points
53. Death Parade - 148 points
52. Dragon Ball - 150 points
51. Natsume Yuujinchou - 157 points
50. The Apothecary Diaries - 158 points
49. Revue Starlight - 159 points
48. Durarara!! - 160 points
47. Yu Yu Hakusho - 162 points
46. Naruto - 163 points
45. Black Butler - 165 points
44. Attack on Titan - 167 points
43. Houseki no Kuni - 168 points
42. Steins;Gate - 172 points
41. Cardcaptor Sakura - 186 points
40. Code Geass - 186 points.
39. Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-Kun - 187 points
38. The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. - 192 points
37. Kill la Kill - 194 points
36. Bungou Stray Dogs - 194 points
35. Baccano! - 198 points
34. Bocchi the Rock! - 201 points
33. Chainsaw Man - 208 points
32. Demon Slayer - 209 points
31. Serial Experiments Lain - 213 points
30. Jujutsu Kaisen - 227 points
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29. Spy x Family - 236 points
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28. Howl's Moving Castle - 238 points
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27. Princess Mononoke - 240 points
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26. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - 241 points
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25. Sailor Moon - 249 points
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24. Mushi-shi - 249 points
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23. Princess Tutu - 254 points
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22. Nichijou - 263 points
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21. Trigun - 265 points
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20. Spirited Away - 266 points
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19. My Hero Academia - 266 points
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18. Fruits Basket (2019) - 269 points
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17. Soul Eater - 292 points
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16. Sousou no Frieren - 300 points
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15. Yuri!!! on Ice - 333 points
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14. Fullmetal Alchemist - 364 points
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13. Ouran High School Host Club - 374 points
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12. Death Note - 437 points
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11. Cowboy Bebop - 450 points
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10. Haikyuu - 457 points
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9. Neon Genesis Evangelion - 496 points
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8. Jojo's Bizarre Adventure - 496 points
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7. Hunter x Hunter (2011) - 516 points
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6. Revolutionary Girl Utena - 537 points
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5. One Piece - 633 points
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4. Puella Magi Madoka Magica - 664 points
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3. Mob Psycho 100 - 943 points
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2. Dungeon Meshi - 985 points
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Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - 1106 points
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Congratulations to FMA Brotherhood for winning! For more detailed results, go to this spreadsheet. Once again, thank you all for participating, and waiting so patiently for the results!
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most-datable-datable-bracket · 10 months ago
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ROUND 2 MATCH 43
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Claude propaganda:
"To say Claude has trust issues is an understatement—you have to spend half the game earning his. (Claude isn't even his real name!) Once you have it, though, he's absolutely ride or die for you until the stars go out. He is so full of heart and ambition: He wants both sides of his heritage to get along, he wants to open borders and eliminate xenophobia and promote equality between commonfolk, and deep down, I think he craves a partner to stand with him at that new dawn, or an equal who sees his vision for the future and will fight for it just as hard. Nobody believed in him when he was a kid, but if you put your faith in him, he'll return it tenfold. Some people don't like that he's calculating, or has to leave the player character at the end of the game to go back to his homeland, but both are necessary elements for his goals to change things. He will always come back, and everyone who bets against him and his love for his companions is wrong with a big fat W. #KhalidForMostDatablePrez"
Astarion propaganda:
“he’s the bitchiest vampire. extremely cunty. also he deserves love you just have to deal with some bullshit first”
“Vampire elf with trauma who’s also a brat”
“he baldur on my gate till i 3”
“canonically pansexual vampire AND a giant bitch. what more can you ask for?”
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revehae · 9 months ago
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indulgence
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pairing ↠ killer!johnny × (f) detective reader
genre .. warnings ↠ smut, graphic depictions of murder, graphic depictions of violence, noncon, mentions of pregnancy, johnny is 43
summary ↠ you're an accomplished detective in the detroit area and johnny suh is a prolific serial killer. when your department sends you on its behalf to pull back his layers, you attempt to convince johnny to recount his experiences and unravel the mystery once and for all.
wc ↠ 10.3k
a/n ↠ this is a repost. it is connected to do you like it, dr. lee? but can be read as a standalone story. this fic is somewhat darker than my usual fics and i encourage readers to proceed with caution and heed the warnings; you have been advised.
don’t like it, don’t read.
the deepest prick of unease settled through you and you shuddered from its nipping cold. 
killers were your forte, but none like this. never in your life had you ever met a killer who’d been at their craft for over a decade. they typically got sloppy after the first half, which insinuated that this johnny suh guy, whoever he was, was far from an amateur. 
“gate twelve,” came the guard’s voice, speaking into a transmitter. he was to escort you to johnny’s holding room.
the gate lifted. behind it, you clocked the riveting face of detroit’s worst nightmare, hands cuffed at his back as he sat facing you. there was a sort of twisted grin on his face, not as if he was excited to have a visitor, but excited his visitor had been you.
“good luck with this guy. officers tried to get him to budge. he didn’t take the fifth, but the bastard’s damn good at talking in circles,” the guard whispered in your ear.
“duly noted,” you replied quietly, stepping further and taking the seat across from johnny. 
the guard left you to your devices, shutting the door behind you and leaving through the passage that led to the gate. complete and total privacy was the only way johnny agreed to talk. your department initially refused, insisting there should at least be one or two other officers monitoring the interview, but you let him have his way.
if you wanted to get this man to talk, that was your only option.
“hello, johnny. i’m detective ___ from the detroit police department,” you introduced yourself coolly, cloaking your nerves with confidence. never would you show a guy like this any fear.
johnny hadn’t stopped grinning since he made eye contact with you. you’d seen pictures at most and he was devilishly handsome, even more so in person, but it didn’t compensate for his unsettling aura. “that’s a beautiful name, detective.”
“flattery will get you nowhere, suh.”
“it’s gotten me here,” johnny quipped. 
“yes, it has. and i suppose you already know why i’m here.”
“yes, i do,” johnny said, pleasant thus far. “you want me to tell you about the murders.”
you bobbed your head. “i do. you see, you’re an enigma to me, johnny. you turn yourself in, get fingerprinted, and all of the sudden our database’s going off because your prints are connected to three other crimes over the past twenty-five years.”
johnny feigned surprise. “wow, it’s been that long?”
“it has,” you replied, in spite of knowing he couldn’t have not been aware. “martina mortes in 1998, sabrina lee in 2005, christine dalton in 2013, and the college professor this year.”
johnny leaned back in his chair. “i’m familiar with those names.”
“you should be. you sexually assaulted and murdered these women,” you spat, none too tender. “except for martina mortes. you only strangled her. do you want to tell me why that it is?”
“what’s the weather like today? i haven’t been outside, but summer has been kind to detroit.”
ignoring him, you persisted, “let me guess. she was your first victim and that kill, unlike the others, was spontaneous. her being dead defeated the purpose of the sex act, didn’t it?”
“well, do you like your partners warm or cold, detective?” johnny asked, deflecting. 
you were heeding the guard’s warning. it seemed this guy liked to answer questions with questions, your least favorite type of offender. “that’s why when you subsequently added the sex act to part of your crimes, you kept your victims much longer, because you like to see them suffer. until you got bored. then, you killed them and dumped their bodies like trash.”
as if he was disinterested, johnny glanced to the side and yawned. 
the audacity on this guy was astounding. “am i boring you, suh?”
johnny replied with total indifference, “if you think you know everything, then why are we here?”
you answered without hesitation, “because i think you’ve wanted to tell someone about what you’ve done for a long time, johnny. but you realize that you’re not like other people. i’m giving you the opportunity to get it all off of your chest.”
johnny cocked his head to the side, as if he was contemplating your offer. his face was borderline inscrutable. it was difficult, if not impossible, to decipher what he was thinking.
you restrained from heaving a breath. there was a crushing weight on your shoulders, the expectation to get this guy to crack. if you couldn’t do it, nobody would - ever. “how many victims do you have?”
“four.” johnny’s answer was quick, automatic. like he didn’t even have to think about it for a second.
folding your arms on the table, you shook your head. “no, i just don’t think that’s true. see, we’re pretty sure martina mortes, your high school girlfriend, was your first victim, and the college professor was your last.”
johnny cocked a brow. “but?”
“but there’s no way someone like you could’ve resisted your urges between four kills over the past two decades and then some.”
there was no point in denying the four victims, because you already had substantial proof. nor did johnny deny that martina was his first victim, because given the decomposition of the bodies, she died long before the other three. admitting that she wasn’t would be admitting that there were unfound others.
and johnny had no intention of implicating himself more than he already had. the only reason he turned himself in was because he didn’t want to prolong the inevitable, for whatever reason. he pulled his lips into a mock frown. “your assumptions about my self-restraint are hurtful,” he replied.
whatever, moron, you thought irritability. “i think they’re more than just assumptions.”
johnny teased, “then, let me know when you know something.”
you narrowed your eyes, groaning, “oh, come on. i know and you know that you can’t ignore your desires for a month, let alone over ten years. you have a compulsion. killing makes you feel powerful, it makes you feel in control, and you can’t live without the high it gives you.”
“you make me sound like an addict,” johnny remarked, pretending to be offended.
“it wouldn’t be so far from the truth,” you said, glancing over the file at your end of the table. “the first two kills were seven years apart. the second two kills were ten. full offense, i don’t see how you could control yourself for so long.”
“you can believe what you want, detective. i didn’t kill anyone else,” johnny lied, not that you ever needed to know. 
of course, he couldn’t control himself. the second he took someone’s life, it became a part of him, and his purpose in this world became clear to him. for the first time in his life, he felt as if he had something that made living worthwhile.
you surrendered. it was obvious johnny was intelligent and he wouldn’t be easily tricked into confessing. “okay, fine. let’s talk about the victims we know of. tell me about martina mortes.”
“what is there to tell?” johnny asked, brow cocked. “we met in junior high. then, in eleventh grade, we got together.”
“tell me about why you killed her,” you insisted, painfully curious. “it happened in chicago, before you moved to detroit over the summer. you killed her in the heat of the moment.”
johnny gave the impression that he would take a minute to crack, so you were surprised when he said in response to your prodding, “we got into a wrangle, if you will.”
that much was obvious. “what kind of wrangle?”
the garage was hot and the air was stuffy, making it difficult to breathe. to say nothing of the frustration scorching johnny’s skin, his face tensed into an irritated glower.
there was something about women he never liked, the seemingly inherent ability to blow almost anything out of proportion, as exhibited now as his girlfriend screamed in his face. his stepmother was the same, never not coming up with a reason to fuss at him. he was always walking on eggshells around that woman. 
martina was bristling. “you always fucking do this, johnny.”
johnny heaved a breath, sighing, “what - what do i always do, martina?”
“you trivialize everything i go through. you make me feel like i’m overreacting when i’m not, you just refuse to hold yourself accountable,” she spat. 
“martina, we’re about to go to college, for fuck’s sake! you can’t focus on your academics and a goddamn child. i don’t get why you won’t just have an abortion and call it a day,” johnny roared, heating up a thousand degrees.
“god, do you listen to a word that comes out of my mouth? my parents will kill me, johnny. if not for being pregnant at eighteen, then for killing it.”
johnny sighed. “i don’t see the part where that’s my problem.”
tears blurred martina’s eyes. she came up to him, shattered by his careless and embraced by isolation, and bellowed, “you want to know what your problem is? your problem is that you’re an incompetent bastard with no regard for other people!”
johnny’s body was engulfed in flames but his shoulders were cold, and he lost control of his emotions, grabbing martina by the throat. he effortlessly lifted her with a single hand and smashed her against the closest wall none too gently, watching her eyes wince closed.
“you wanna say that again?” johnny asked, nothing short of belligerent.
ache spread out through the back of martina’s head, a ceaseless throbbing worse than any hungover. her feet dangled off of the ground, waving and kicking, fingers weakly prying at the ones pressing down on her windpipe. until she was completely still, legs dropping, hands going limp at her sides.
“i didn’t even realize how long i spent standing there, until she felt… empty, and i knew she was gone,” johnny confessed, but his tone was far from sympathetic. “she scratched me. you know, when she was trying to pry my hands off. i didn’t know until hours later.”
you shook your head, disdainful. “you killed your pregnant girlfriend?”
johnny groaned, “oh, please. i was eighteen. i would’ve been a terrible father.”
“i would be slightly more inclined to accept that as an excuse if it weren’t for the fact that you had a son by sabrina lee only two years later,” you said viciously.
“a lot can change in two years.”
“i’m sure it did.” your eyes flickered over the file again, but nothing would allow you to familiarize yourself with this killer more than talking to him yourself. “for example, you realized just how much you liked killing.”
if johnny could’ve raised his hands, he would’ve. “your words, not mine.”
you leaned over the table, unrelenting. “tell me about it, johnny. how did it feel when you strangled her with your bare hands? what was it like?”
johnny chuckled. “is that what you wanna hear?”
you nodded. 
johnny leaned in too, getting closer to you, and whispered in your ear, “i squeezed every last breath out of her, one by one, until there was nothing left for her brain and she went slack in my arms. and when i was done, i felt elated. i felt free. it woke up this dormant sensation inside of me that i swore to never repress again, because it made me feel alive.”
your lungs started to feel shallower, like no breath could reach the bottom, and you sensed your heart come to a halt for a minute. johnny pulled back, grinning from ear to ear, as if he was proud of himself. 
“detective, did i startle you?” johnny asked, tilting his head ever so slightly. 
your face hardened. “why would you ever think that?”
“you’re not as good at feigning indifference as you think you are, detective. full offense,” he mimicked, mocking.
he’s just a fragile man that kills women to make him feel better about himself, because he needs to be in control. don’t give him power over you. that’s what he wants, you said to yourself, shutting any and all other thoughts. “so, you killed martina, nobody could connect her disappearance to you, and by the time they discovered her body you were already studying for college two states over.”
johnny ignored you, at least for a little. he was taking a liking to making you feel uneasy around him. “has anyone ever told you how gorgeous you are?” he asked out of nowhere.
“you aren’t my type. i don’t fool around with serial killers,” you replied sharply.
johnny didn’t seem to be offended, but you didn’t expect him to. “really now? it feels like we’re on a date right now. after all, we are getting to know each other.”
you asked, “have you always had such a distorted perception of normal human interaction?”
johnny shot with no hesitation, “have you always had such a sharp mouth?”
you pulled yourself together. the only way you would get anywhere with this guy was by establishing that you were the one in control. “okay, enough. this is my interview, suh. you answer my questions, not vice versa.”
“that’s not any fair,” johnny told you, that unnerving smile still on his lips. “i don’t have to tell you anything, you know. and without me, you lose the only key to those answers you want so badly.”
“you shutting up doesn’t make much of a difference, considering you’re already dodging my questions,” you replied.
“let’s play a game,” johnny suggested.
you weren’t in the mood for any games, but that was johnny’s method of operation. “i don’t like games.”
“you’ll like this one,” johnny insisted, laughing. “twenty questions.”
your shoulders dropped. “am i supposed to be guessing something?”
johnny shook his head, something sinister about him. “no, it’s much easier than that. we take turns asking each other questions until i’ve answered ten and you’ve answered ten.”
you stared into his eyes, willing yourself not to break contact. he was just as relentless, silently cocking a brow at you, as if to challenge. and you weren’t an idiot. that’s exactly what it was. you asserted, “i go first, you can only ask me yes or no questions, and if i don’t like your final answer i get to press you for another.”
johnny slightly lifted his shoulders in a nonchalant shrug. “yes, ma’am.”
“okay,” you started. “what made you move from illinois to michigan?”
“i was kicked out of the house. didn’t have anywhere else to go. but i had a buddy here whose family took me in,” johnny answered frankly.
you pondered those words, wondering if his aforementioned buddy knew about his secret indulgences. or if he asked why johnny’s parents kicked him out of their home. it would’ve been the question scratching at your mind, itching to be answered.
johnny’s lips parted. “what kind of perfume are you wearing - honey lavender?”
“yes,” you said, focusing your attention on anything but the possibilities of how he could’ve known that. he’d been with so many people to the point where he just knew. “why did you get kicked out of the house?”
“my dad always thought there was something different about me, ever since i was a child. he was a nasty piece of work. he found my journal, read a couple of things i wrote, and decided there was no hope for me in the house,” johnny ranted.
that piqued your curiosity. “what did you write about?”
“wait your turn,” johnny sang. “your hair smells just as lovely as the rest of you. do you match scents all the time?”
you were mildly uncomfortable, but given the type of dude he was, you stifled it. “yes. you don’t have to be such a pervert all the time, you know?”
again, johnny rolled his shoulders, chirping, “you call it perverse. i call it amusing.”
you almost cursed under your breath when you realize you’d asked him a question. “wait, i didn’t mean to ask…”
johnny cut you off, “that’s too bad. it’s my turn again. do you like necklaces?”
“not ones made out of fingers,” you retorted. it was meant to be a joke to hide how unsettled you were, hyper aware of the necklace dangling around your neck. you could feel invisible pressure on your throat.
johnny snickered. “i’ll admit that was funny.”
you pressed, “what did you write about in the journal?”
“my dreams,” he admitted vaguely, though in reality, he wrote endlessly about his corrupt fantasies of abusing women. some pages were about his stepsister, and there was a few about what he’d done to martina, though not explicitly. “you have the most beautiful eyes. they’re the perfect shade.”
you were certain he had told many other girls those same words and were not flattered in the slightest. the glare you were giving him was ferocious. “i’m not sure if there’s a question in there somewhere.”
“do you think your eyes are pretty?”
“i haven’t really thought about it,” you told him, quick to change the topic. you’d encountered your fair share of stranglers and it was no secret why he was so interested in your eyes. “was your relationship with your father estranged?”
“nothing was enough for that man. i had the top grades in my class and the highest gpa, and he took my door off its hinges and seized my privacy,” johnny told you, words harsh, but his tone plain. “he was obsessed with being the perfect family, something that was ruined the second my mother destroyed everything, and rather than embrace me, he turned me away.”
your eyes flickered. there was something about his language that stood out to you. courtesy of the research you’d done on him beforehand, you were aware that his father was divorced then remarried his stepmother, who already had a daughter johnny’s age. but rather than describe his parent’s separation as a divorce, he said his mother destroyed everything.
what a hostile view towards women, you mused, repulsed. but given the nature of his crimes, it adds up. and it might’ve been the origin of his hatred.
his family was twisted. you couldn’t fathom how his father, aware of just how unwell his son was, clocked his abusive fantasies towards women, and instead of getting him the help he needed, he left him to his own devices to slaughter them as he pleased.
you blinked when johnny leaned, craning his face towards yours, and snapped out of your reverie when you jolted back. 
“there you are,” johnny said, chuckling at your surprise. it was all over your face. “i’ve been talking to myself all this time. you must’ve been thinking about me.”
“no, not really. i was wondering if i forgot to feed my dog last night.” it was an obvious lie, but you would never encourage this guy to feel more important than he was.
amusement gleamed in johnny’s eyes. he was having a wonderful time, truth be told. had you not been so pretty, he would’ve clamped up like a crab, but you were so pleasing to the eye that he didn’t mind confessing a couple of truths. “a dog. that’s interesting. i myself have always wanted a pet - a snake. the constricting kind are my favorite.”
“you don’t say,” you droned, voice dripping with crisp irony.
your sarcasm was chucklesome to johnny, but his words were the truth. he remembered, all those years ago, asking his father for a pet snake. and when he refused, johnny, in turn, killed the family dog. he added, “they don’t just suffocate their prey. they coil around them, almost like a straitjacket, and cut off its blood supply.”
you replied, “yeah, but animals hunt to survive. you hunted because you had nothing better to do with your life.”
“in my humble opinion, we’re all animals of nature, and creatures of sin,” johnny told you in a whisper, as if he were telling you a secret of some kind. “anyways, it’s my turn now.”
you resisted a disgruntled exhale. 
like his questions couldn’t get any more absurd and strangely perverse, johnny asked, “when you shower, what do you use - a washcloth or a loofah?”
“that’s not a yes or no question,” you replied with total disinterest. 
“it’s hardly any less simple.”
“a washcloth,” you replied, though only because you needed to ask him your questions and resisting an answer would only waste valuable time. “why did you wait so long before killing sabrina lee?”
johnny smiled at the mention of his son’s mother, but the grin on his lips was distinguishable from the others. like he didn’t even realize he was smiling. “she was special. i loved her.”
“no, you didn’t. you don’t hurt people that you love.”
“maybe that’s true for you, but you’ve called me everything but a child of god and it’s clear you don’t think you and i are alike,” johnny said. “i don’t miss her, though, because she left a better print on this world. a world that was never made for her in the first place.”
a better print on this world. your brows furrowed, until you remembered the child they shared together. “you know what i think? i think whatever you felt for your son’s mother was the closest thing to love you’ll ever be able to pull from your ugly black heart.”
“you’re very strongly opinionated,” johnny responded, ever so unbothered. maybe some decades ago, it would’ve irked him to the point of breaking, but he was much more in charge of his impulses now.
you lifted your shoulders, gazing at him with the most discerning of eyes. all he could think about was how nice it would’ve been to seize you by the throat and watch the light dull from them.
to your surprise, johnny’s next question was not as a deviant as you assumed it would be, asking, “what made you decide you wanted to become a detective?”
“because of the people i used to know that aren’t around to tell you why,” you answered distantly, before pressing, “how was sabrina different, johnny?”
johnny perched over the table again, an uncomfortable distance close to you, made worse by his whispers. “because unlike the others, she didn’t beg me to stop - she begged me to finish. for it to be over. and when i wouldn’t, she begged me to kill her.”
the mental picture you got was cruel. your heart hurt for these women that had no idea what hit them until it was too late. 
“i put these women out of their misery,” johnny continued. 
you spat in a heartbeat, “the misery that you forced them to endure.”
johnny winced. “no, these women were miserable long before they met me. they were just ignorant of it. impressionability is a weakness.”
“either you have one hell of a god complex or you are working overtime to justify your sick actions.”
johnny merely shrugged, vicious and ominous and everything in between. there was something so dark about his spirit. you could feel it just from sitting within a couple of feet of him. 
johnny’s memories were triggered. he was reminiscing about the times he shared with his son’s mother, how perfect she was. there were no other women like her. she was his favorite victim, someone he took his sweet time with, while the others were disposed of in a few months time. 
midnight loomed, riding on the tail of dusk. johnny was counting down the minutes until the clock struck twelve, a self-imposed rule to gauge his willpower. the second the hour came, he bolted from the crackling sound of the cabin’s fireplace to a bedroom, anticipation like a stimulant.
the wooden floorboards creaked the closer johnny crept to the door. save for himself and the woman chained to the bedpost, the cabin was void of life. it belonged to the parents of a close friend who ensured it was vacant whenever johnny needed a place to indulge his twisted fantasies.
which was basically all of the time.
he meandered inside with a crisp bottle of water in hand, droplets condensing at its sides. sabrina laid right where he left her, just as broken, dreading her next breath. tape adhered to the flesh over her mouth, muffling her whimpers. there was nobody around for miles, the cabin was totally isolated, but it was a safety measure.
the chains were used likewise. when johnny was not there, the restraints kept her prisoner. johnny, reckless as he could be back then, was many things and stupid was not one of them. the chains stretched long enough to reach the bathroom but no further and he had his loyal friend help him test it after each victim.
“can you go further?” johnny called out.
jaehyun’s lower limbs were shackled, ceasing his footsteps just shy of the hallway as he came to a total standstill. “not if i want my legs to follow me,” he’d retorted.
johnny had snickered. “good.”
had johnny been there, though, he would take the chains off. none of this was fair, even johnny didn’t believe that, but not giving them the chance to fight was too unfair. he needed not to chain them when he had the gift of his big, burly arms.
johnny waltzed over with a lighthearted and carefree gait, as if this was just another wednesday afternoon to him. and in some sick, despicable way, that wasn’t too far from the truth. he ripped the tape from sabrina’s lips, watching her face tense with pain.
“johnny,” sabrina rasped, voice croaking. he could tell from her flushed face and misty eyes that she’d been crying. “i’m thirsty.”
johnny cocked a brow, glancing to his hand. he had an irritating knack for playing dumb. it used to be endearing. now, with everything she knew to be true torn from her bare hands, sabrina didn’t know what to think. “what - you want this?”
sabrina nodded.
“yeah?” he popped off the top, throwing back a few gulps just before releasing a satisfied, “ah.”
sabrina’s lips trembled. “please.”
had she been anybody else, johnny probably would’ve dangled the water in her face just to snatch it away, but there was something about sabrina that made him gravitate towards her. in a rare moment of benevolence, johnny handed her the water, letting her drink.
she didn’t drink in short sips, but in giant gulps as if she’d known for some time that they’d be her last. when her thirst was satiated, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, handing the bottle back, and whispered, “thank you.”
johnny set the drink aside before returning to her, unshackling her limbs. sabrina’s breath quickened the moment the chains clacked harshly against the floor and nearly stilled when he brought his hand to her flushed face, tracing her chapped lips with a calloused thumb.
his thoughts rushed with unbridled exhilaration, ablaze with suspense, but he slowed for a moment to marvel at her loveliness. johnny’s hand touched her hair, touch tender in ways it would never be again, because he would never again know a woman as great as her.
he brought his lips to her ear, nibbling at the shell before asking, “do you know what i want you to do?”
sabrina bobbed her head, starting to halfheartedly peel off her clothes without needing to be told. with so many days held prisoner in this hell hole, it became routine. like she’d already resigned herself to her fate and knew johnny getting his way was inevitable. he always got what he wanted.
to be frank, it came out of nowhere. she never saw this twisted side of him coming. all she knew was that she became suspicious of his lack of family presence and it was too late when she saw him for the monster that he was, and then she woke here.
it had to have been months ago, although sabrina couldn’t have been sure how many. everyday started to bleed into the static hopelessness of another. sometimes johnny wouldn’t show for days, leaving her to live antsily, dreading his unavoidable return. other times, he would spend a day or two in the cabin, fucking her into kingdom come. 
as if she couldn’t be any more faultless. johnny smirked. “smart girl,” he purred. he would never deny her wit, given that she’d caught onto him, but her lack of strength was her only vice.
johnny restlessly tossed his own shirt over his naked shoulder and came to step out of his boxers. there was mischief on his plush lips. he knew something sabrina only knew from the unkind churn of her gut.
the end was more than near. it loomed over her, relentless and remorseless, and all she could like it to was dark and leaden clouds in a somber sky. even then, there was almost nothing she wouldn’t give to see the world again, but she’d long kissed that hope goodbye.
“down,” johnny told her, tone dark and stern.
she pliantly did as told, bare back meeting the mattress. johnny crept over her, hard cock twitching at the sight of her so meek. typically, he liked when they put up a fight, but sabrina knew better.
johnny could tell she was fighting back tears, willing herself not to cry with a stabilized breath, but her endeavors were in vain the second he started to force his way inside her. they escaped her eyes and dampened her cheeks, unable to overlook the agony of the stretch. 
“shh, baby,” johnny crooned in her ear, the weight of his body bearing down onto hers. “what’s the matter? you used to beg me to fuck you.”
sabrina shook her head, silently pleading for a mercy she knew deep down that johnny wasn’t capable of. “please make it quick.”
johnny’s tone was almost sweet. “but baby, you told me you wanted to spend the rest of your life with me, remember?” 
johnny knew that his words weren’t reassuring and he didn’t intend for them to be. there was a reason why he loved how she tried to hold herself together. he got to push her limits, find her breaking point. in the end, she would get her wish, and in a way, johnny thought that that was love.
her walls were just as tight and vice-like as they’d been all those times he’d taken her before. if johnny got close enough to her, let his hands wander and tease as they never not had done, sabrina would still involuntarily gush around his cock. like her body knew she was forever a slave to his touch. 
just looking at her face as she wept sent shock waves of pleasure rippling through his dick and chest. sabrina didn’t cry in noisy, gasping sobs. her tears dripped from her thick lashes quietly, mouth parting in the most silent of whimpers.
and she orgasmed the same way, johnny remembered. back when things were normal between them, when she begged for him to fuck her, as he called it, her release was marked by a volatile shudder, but a silent cry of ecstasy.
johnny pushed sabrina’s lips into an upward curling with his thumb and index finger. “smile for the camera, sabrina,” he whispered.
sabrina’s brows furrowed, painfully oblivious to the camera tracking her every emote. johnny couldn’t not document his deeds. there was something about being able to play them over, immersing himself back in that moment over and over, even when the life itself could not be so easily brought back.
but for johnny, they could be. when he rewatched these videos again and again, it was like he could feel their pulses thump in their neck, resuscitating.
johnny’s hands were everywhere, fingertips traipsing towards sabrina’s neck where marks lingered from all the times he’d strangled her, only to slacken his grip when she was just shy of passing out. the bruises were different colors, indicative of different healing stages. sabrina tensed, startled, and wondered when it would all be over.
“johnny.” sabrina was overcome with defeat. her voice cracked as she asked, “johnny, please just cum.”
johnny’s face tensed with pleasure. “fuck, babe, when you say it like that…”
he stood at the brink of climax, threatening to teeter over, and there was only one thing that could knock him over quicker than anything else. it wouldn’t be anything she said, anything she did, but only a weakness johnny had the power to wield against himself.
“you want me to finish?”
sabrina nodded. 
johnny chuckled darkly. “then, in that case, it’s time for you to get your wish, baby.”
he watched her shoulders slump, releasing all hope of ever knowing anything different again and accepting that this was where things ended. thinking about the feeling he remembered none too distantly, one that almost seemed to keep his blood pumping through him, in a way, johnny’s fingers itched.
johnny lifted his hands, bringing them to sabrina’s face, but before he could touch her, she exclaimed, “wait, johnny!”
his brow cocked. 
sabrina’s lips trembled. “can you tell me what today is? please?”
“wednesday,” johnny replied, holding his hands around her neck, but keeping his grip slack. for now.
“wednesday,” sabrina said, pulling her lips into the faintest of smiles as tears blurred her vision. “will you tell haechan that i hope he has an amazing thursday?”
“that can be arranged,” johnny said, grinning.
sabrina nodded, setting her mind at ease. she’d already made peace with this day some months ago. she never knew when it come, but she saw it as something bound to happen. “thank you,” she whispered. 
those were her last words. because when johnny tightened his grip at her throat, almost like tightening a noose, he couldn’t bring himself to stop in spite of the agonized gleam in her stare. and then her stare was empty, and johnny had already emptied his load inside of her.
to describe the sensation he got from killing in a way that captured its essence would be impossible. it was more than feeling the life leave her. it was more than watching her eyes become soulless. it was a release, a way of relinquishing all of the vacantness he harbored, and knowing that his heart was still there.
it would always return, sometimes as soon as the next day, but for a minute, johnny was whole and no drug could replicate that kind of contentedness.
johnny did tell haechan what sabrina said. he wasn’t all too sure why, maybe it was because she was his mother and haechan was her son that they’d created together, and johnny would never have it any other way. for her to be the one to give him a child, he couldn’t imagine any other woman in her place.
it was almost unfortunate that she had to go so soon. even johnny thought that her demise was premature. had she not grown so suspicious of him, johnny could imagine making her his wife, maybe even spending the rest of his life with her.
their marriage wouldn’t have been without his secret dark life, but sabrina wouldn’t’ve been a victim. alas, loose ends needed to be tied. johnny couldn’t trust that she would’ve kept quiet, and even then, she was in a much more fitting place for an angel like herself.
there was much of this memory that would be abridged. never would johnny reveal anything about the cabin or the dear friend that helped him commit his indulgences, or even the existence of the tapes. if they found those videos, that was proof of murder with a grand total of 106 women.
the air around you was heavy and the words you’d just been fed weren’t easily take in. “what you’ve just told me is really sad.”
but johnny didn’t look sad. whether or not he ever truly cared for sabrina would perpetually be a mystery. “maybe,” he started. “but tell me that you wouldn’t hurt the person you loved most if it was what was best for them.”
“i did. but what i had to do is different from what you were.”
johnny’s interest was piqued. “how come?”
“it was my responsibility to decide whether or not to take my sister off of the ventilator. there was no hope for her,” you confessed, though brushed over it quickly. “what happened to your ex-wife?”
“not that interesting of a story,” johnny said. “she wasn’t sabrina, i got tired of her, here we are.”
“and yet she wasn’t a one-off like martina mortes.”
“had she been a one-off, my body count would be one number higher. that was a favor,” johnny told you, grinning as if you actually had something to be grateful for.
you didn’t waste a second to accuse, “because you need to keep your victims to extract all the relief that you can from them, right?”
“i’m afraid it’s not your turn to ask questions,” johnny replied tauntingly. “what was your sister like - did she have long hair? what color were her eyes? how long were her lashes?”
sick son of a bitch, bellowed the voice in your head, though you willed yourself to remain composed. it was plain on his face that johnny didn’t want an answer - he wanted a reaction. and as furious as that made you, you couldn’t let him provoke you. “that’s none of your business,” you said, but there was a loophole. “but she was beloved.”
that qualified as an answer. johnny glanced at you in a way that made you feel see-through, as if he knew that you were threatening to come apart at the seams and didn’t buy your nonchalance for a minute. 
sated, he went on to feed you bullshit about his ex-wife’s death, though there were only four people who knew what truly happened to her and one of them was dead.
johnny remembered that day like it happened yesterday. it was a thursday evening when he’d come home from work. christine had picked haechan up from school hours ago and johnny wholly expected to come home to her in the kitchen.
it was dark outside. the moon was a mere sliver and the stars were duller than they typically were, almost like they had witnessed something that drained their spirits. johnny remembered struggling to identify his house key, trying each of them until the door clicked open.
“i’m home,” johnny’s voice thundered as he turned to lock the door. 
there were quick footsteps from upstairs. haechan, johnny thought, more than familiarized with the sound. but there was none of christine’s usual voice.
“dad, i’m hungry,” came haechan’s voice from the stairs, coming down them one by one.
that in itself should’ve been suspicious, but instead, all johnny could think about was how sabrina would’ve already fed her son. “hasn’t christine made dinner by now?” johnny asked, irritated.
haechan shook his head, though johnny couldn’t see. he was hanging his coat on the rack, like he always did after he locked the door. “she can’t right now.”
“why not?”
“because i think she’s dead,” haechan replied, nonchalant as ever.
that was the very second that johnny turned around and noticed that haechan was stained with blood. it was all over his face and the spots would probably never come out of his clothes, not that they would be kept.
for half a minute, johnny was genuinely stunned.
haechan didn’t say what happened, and there was no need to. “the blood won’t come off,” was all he said, showing his father the pair of hands that he’d washed with vigor.
johnny heaved a breath. he should’ve seen this coming. haechan took after his father and he never liked christine. to say the least, johnny couldn’t blame him. “where is she?”
“where they all go,” haechan replied, as if it was the most normal and natural thing in the world to him. 
johnny headed for the basement with quick footsteps, haechan following behind. if somebody were to come down there, they wouldn’t suspect a thing. not only was it decorated to look like one, but it was used as a man cave. behind a soundproof wall, though, was a dungeon for his prisoners. 
in this case, there was a trail of blood leading to the wall, proof that haechan had somehow brought christine there after he hurt her. johnny entered the cell and saw her there behind the bars, coming to her side to check her pulse. 
pressing his thumb to her wrist and neck, johnny sensed a pulse, though it was weakening. “she’s not dead,” he said, wresting his phone out of his pocket.
haechan didn’t look so relieved, but he didn’t voice his dissatisfaction. “are you mad?”
johnny glanced down at christine. haechan had used a kitchen knife, attacking her in the heat of the moment. she was butchered and blood-splattered, on the verge of slaughter, and yet johnny couldn’t find it in him to offer any compassion. “that you hurt her? no. that you made a mess? a little.”
now that was a relief. to haechan, at least back then, his dad was the coolest guy that he knew.
there was quite the scene in front of him and johnny didn’t have a thing for blood. he shook his head in reproach, chastising, “i’m going to teach you the right way to get rid of a woman when you’re sick of her.”
that piqued haechan’s curiosity. 
johnny was quick to dial jaehyun’s number. he had medical experience and that was what he needed right now. when the call connected, he said, “i’m in calling in a favor.”
jaehyun patched her up again. at least for a few months, johnny still needed her breathing. they scrubbed the floors free of blood, burned haechan’s bloodied clothes, and it was as if nothing ever happened.
what johnny had told you was only a fraction of the truth, but still enough to make you want to grimace. it bemused you how he got away with murdering his ex-wife and nobody thought to suspect her husband with a track record of disappearing partners.
“you want to know what’s really amazing?” you started, though it was more like disgusting. “how three of the women you’ve killed were your significant others, and somehow, you’ve only now been incriminated.”
johnny looked proud of himself. had it not been for haechan, he probably would’ve never been caught. “sabrina never told anyone that we dated, or that she had a baby by me. her parents wanted her to focus on her education. if they knew she’d gotten pregnant, she would’ve been the black sheep.”
“and you took advantage of that,” you hissed. 
“so what if i did?” johnny asked, careless. “not to mention that dozens of teenage girls in chicago were going missing at the time. they added martina to that number and called it a day. is that sad? maybe. but that’s how it works.”
“and as for your co-worker?” you asked sharply. the boldness of his crimes astounded you. “her husband grieves her. were you having an affair?”
the thought of her made johnny chuckle. oh, were we, he reminisced. it was a misfortune that he didn’t get the chance to have his way with her the way that he wanted. and for that reason, he couldn’t regale you in a truthful account of her death.
what happened that day, the day his co-worker died, challenged his fate and was the reason that he only now knew the imprisonment he thrusted upon others.
johnny knew when he spotted her that he would revel in her vulnerability. married, but she hardly wore her ring. her kind was the most naive - the kind that believed ecstasy was without costly sin. one way or another, she had to reap what she sowed.
he worked his way inside her pants, but it was hardly any work; she was on a desperate pursuit for pleasure and when johnny promised it to her, offering content on a silver platter, she thought less with her brain and more with the throbbing between her legs.
for months, johnny slept with her, which was far from typical. if she were anybody else, johnny would have pursued her for a couple of weeks time, then banished her to the underground prison. though considering he already had a victim down there at the time, he had some time to spare.
it was no secret that she had grown fond of johnny in ways she hadn’t been of her husband in a very long time, and though johnny found her to be special, in a way, he could not reciprocate her feelings. when johnny saw her, all he felt was the overwhelming urge to use her without a lick of remorse, and squeeze those panting breaths out of her.
it was a shame that he never got the opportunity. johnny already tested the bounds of his self-restraint when it came to her, each of their encounters consensual with her oblivious to his deepest, darkest desires. sometimes, his fingers would wander to her neck, but even that was wanted.
what was not wanted was the tyranny over her body that preceded her death. it bemused johnny to learn that his son, along with two of his friends that he thought of like brothers and johnny thought of like sons, ravaged her to the brink of being unrecognizable.
had johnny held control over the situation, he wouldn’t have cared what happened to her and would have even permitted them to go to town. but what happened was somehow darker. when he got a call from the professor late that day, hearing her broken sobs over the phone, he told her to meet him at his house.
that was his first mistake. 
it wasn’t that she didn’t come. she made it there, hopeful to confide in johnny about the nightmare that tore her apart, but it was haechan that opened the front door. and when she entered, there was no hope out of her coming out breathing.
haechan had been a downward spiral ever since a month ago when he stumbled upon the tape of his mother. ever since he was a boy, haechan watched every tape he could find of his father’s dark life, even sharing them with his friends as if they were movies and not snuff.
but this was not like those. this was his mother. and watching her suffer, listening to her final request before her untimely death, broke haechan in ways which he would never recover.
haechan had known since he was little that his mother was dead and his father was to blame, but his understanding of what happened to her was skewed. if he’d known eighteen years ago what he knew today, when johnny had his own son aid him in his mother’s demise, none of it would have ever happened.
to say nothing of the fact that what johnny had haechan do was only a mere fraction of his mother’s suffering. haechan would fetch things from the other side of the cabin he vaguely remembered visiting every now and then for three months. when he was not there, which was often, he would lie to his neighbors about her whereabouts.
even though when she died he was only a kid being taken advantage of, haechan hated himself for letting it happen right under his nose. he wished he would’ve told his neighbors the truth. maybe if he had, his mother would still be alive and kicking, and he would know the only woman he ever cared for.
that was why he went after his professor that he knew his father had also been eyeing closely and having an affair with. her fate was obvious. johnny would entertain her for a while, somehow charm and woo his way into her pants like he did every other woman, kidnap her and keep her downstairs for three months, then kill her and identify the next victim.
but johnny’s liking of her was also hopelessly discernable. she was living too long. and that was a telltale sign that johnny took a special interest in his son’s professor, something that haechan feared would rival the affection (if it existed) for his mother.
haechan was not keen on having his mother replaced. the last time it happened, he snapped and maimed his stepmother. and he was not afraid of doing so again.
when haechan exacted revenge, it felt like nothing he had ever done before. vengeance tasted like heaven. his professor tasted elysian. and he had never felt so good about himself, but then the high wore off, comparable to the fading release johnny got after strangling his victims, and familiar pain seared through him once further. 
vindictiveness was a lethal venom, festering quickly upon injection. after haechan got what he wanted, there was a greed to replicate that feeling, in spite of the fact that nothing would compare to that first blow. in his own way, unlike his father’s but similar nonetheless, he was pivoting towards release.
haechan was on the brink of something like psychosis when he heard those knocks on his front door. and when he peered outside, spotting the professor, his recklessness got the better of him.
she was dead before she even stepped inside the house. haechan yanked her inside, brought her downstairs, and forced himself onto her for a second time that day. when she wept for johnny, wishing he would come home, haechan almost pitied her naïveté.
if haechan hadn’t killed her, wrapping his hands around her throat the way that he knew his father had been yearning to, johnny would have.
the look on his professor’s face was pitiful. “sorry,” haechan said, though he clasped his hands around her throat harder. “but i have to make a statement.”
it was not particularly a difficult thing to do, at least not to stomach, but killing her was merely just a means to an end. he didn’t get off to it like his father would’ve. haechan’s interest lay in inflicting psychological damage, but he did it because he knew how much it pleasured johnny to squeeze the life out of his victims.
and if haechan couldn’t have what he wanted, then as long as he lived, neither would his dad for tearing it away.
johnny came home moments too late. haechan left his professor in the cellar for his father to find, eyes wide and face pale.
johnny glanced around. he saw her car parked outside, but no sign of her. when haechan came from his bedroom on the upper floor, a creeping feeling of deja vu flooded johnny’s chest, but he asked, “where is she?”
haechan’s face was expressionless. “she’s dead,” he replied, confident. “i mean it this time.”
johnny shook his head. “you killed her?”
“wasn’t it you that said you were going to teach me the proper way to dispose of a woman when i’m sick of her?” haechan asked, approaching his father as he crept down the stairs.
though johnny wasn’t pleased, he willed himself to calm down. “did you strangle her?”
“yes.”
johnny figured, from the lack of blood staining his house this time around. “will you tell me about it?”
that caught haechan off-guard. he expected his father to be angry, to let loose. he had to have been dreaming of choking her since the day he laid eyes on her. “you sick fuck,” haechan sneered.
johnny snickered, unbothered. that’s rich. “who do you think you got it from?”
obviously, from the face haechan was making, he didn’t like that. his nonchalant attitude dissipated. “i’m not like you!”
“keep telling yourself that. maybe one day you’ll delude yourself into believing it,” johnny replied, hanging his coat on the rack in spite of knowing he would be leaving again soon.
“i’m not like you - i mean that.”
johnny, miffed, rolled his eyes and said, “come on, son. you think i don’t know you and your friends have been watching my tapes for the past decade and then some like they’re cartoons?”
“but not mom’s,” haechan spat, loathing fizzing in his stare. 
johnny froze, then spun around. “is that what this is all about?”
haechan nodded, pleased his father was finally getting the picture. “i found it in your study. you hid it more carefully than the others, because she was special or you didn’t want me to find it, i don’t know.”
johnny heaved a breath. “you were never supposed to see that.”
“but i did,” haechan replied. “and i’ve suffered every day for the past month because of that.”
johnny shot without hesitation, “a suffering you brought upon yourself. nobody asked you to go snooping around in my things.”
haechan’s lips were twisted into the meanest snarl johnny had ever seen. emotion wrecked through him in its totality. “is that what’s important to you? i shouldn’t be surprised. you couldn’t even spare your own son’s mother from your heartlessness.”
johnny massaged his temple, summoning all of his willpower. “please,” he groaned, sensing an incoming headache. “women are weak, cheating whores. just look at your professor. maybe your mother wasn’t, but she was a liability.”
if that was supposed to console haechan, it had the complete opposite effect. “are you saying she deserved it?”
“i’m saying that you’ve always been too soft,” johnny said, not bothering to sugarcoat his chastising. “just like your mother. even when you were a child. that’s why i had you help me, i hoped you would harden up a little.”
haechan scoffed. “unbelievable.”
“your mother went quietly. she didn’t even fight it, haechan. so, why are you?”
“because of that,” haechan told him, vitriol in his voice. “she didn’t ask you to stop one time. she just asked you to get it over with.”
johnny tipped his head back. “ah, yes. she really was perfect, wasn’t she?”
that was all it took to kindle an unforgiving rage within haechan and in a moment of fury, flickering through him in a flash, haechan lifted his hand to smack his father.
johnny caught his wrist, as if this weren’t the first time this had happened and it was wholeheartedly expected. his voice lowered to a mere hiss, “i’ve never laid a hand on you. ever in your life. don’t make today be the day i start.”
haechan glared, but wrested his way out of his father’s grip and backed away.
johnny smoothed down his shirt and headed for the kitchen, knowing haechan would follow. this conversation was far from over. “now, if you excuse me, i have to clean up your mess,” he said, pulling a burner phone out of a drawer. “if you don’t mind.”
“i can clean up my own mess,” haechan replied, scowling. 
setting the phone on the counter, johnny reached for a glass. “no, you can’t. not without digging your own grave. unless you want to go to prison, pack your shit, ask one of your buddies if you can stay with them for a few days, and take the tapes with you. hide them.”
haechan made a face. “what are you talking about?”
johnny sighed. “we can’t get away with this one, son. her car’s parked outside. there’s too many loose ends.”
“we can get rid of the car. you don’t have to go to jail!” haechan shouted.
“it’s either you or me. frankly, i’m doing you a favor. you wouldn’t last two seconds behind bars,” johnny hissed. he grabbed another glass, sliding it across the counter, then said, “now, wine? you know, to celebrate your old man going away? i believe that’s what you want.”
haechan shook his head. never in his life had he been so conflicted. his father that he’d been so bent on despising until the day he died was voluntarily confessing to a crime he didn’t commit, just so that his son wouldn’t have to suffer in prison.
“why are you doing this?” haechan asked, bristling with emotion. 
johnny sighed. “because i love you, son. even if you don’t think so. and because your mother would be turning in her grave if she knew you were in prison.”
haechan blew out a breath. then, after a moment of reluctance, he grabbed the glass on the counter and reached for the wine bottle. 
johnny snickered. “atta boy.”
“i wonder how your son reacted when he learned you were going to prison for murder,” you said, pondering. “you live in the same house. i wonder how he didn’t know.”
johnny lied, “he was at a friend’s house when i killed her. doesn’t like that it was his favorite professor.”
you nodded along, buying his lies. “that is a lot to take in. i mean, imagine your dad was having an affair with your favorite science professor. then, he kills her, like how he killed your mom.”
johnny shrugged his shoulders. “have you never heard the phrase ‘the heart wants what it wants?’”
“i have,” you replied. “and i guess your heart wanted to stop the function of others.”
johnny laughed at his own expense. “oh, please. you give me too much credit. you shouldn’t make me out to be more romantic than i am.”
you shook your head in disappointment. “you make these women want you, and then you undo everything. that has to be part of the amusement to you.”
“it gets a chuckle or two out of me.”
your lips were tempted to curl into a frown for the umpteenth time that day alone. “why?”
johnny leaned up in his chair, exclaiming, “because it’s fun!”
you were going to say something, but he didn’t give you the chance. 
johnny continued, “everyday, as adults, we do the same job for hours and come home. people want excitement in their lives. women get exhausted of coming home to their husbands or nobody at all.”
your stare was blank. “and your point is?”
“i didn’t just make those women want me, baby. i made them need me,” johnny told you smugly. “i brought a spark to their lives, and i took it away just as fast. and i do it… because i can.”
“because you could,” you corrected, confident he would never be free of this place for as long as he lived. “you’re going to be in here a very, very long time.”
johnny grinned. “i wouldn’t be so sure.”
you cocked your brow. “what’s that supposed to mean?”
“wouldn’t you like to know?” johnny teased. you hated the smugness in his tone. like he knew something that you didn’t.
the door opened, and the guard from earlier returned. “i hate to interrupt, but it’s time for the count,” he said, coming behind johnny to undo his cuffs.
it all happened in a blink. johnny’s weight was pressed flush against yours, roughly thrusting you into the table. your body screamed, agony spreading through your side, but your gun was in a lockbox outside the room.
johnny knew from your conversations alone that you weren’t the type to go quietly. your first instinct was to fight back. naturally, you struggled against his hold, refusing to bend to his will even as panic shot through your chest. your whole body was on guard, aiming for survival.
but to your misfortune, your might was no match for johnny’s. you glanced to the guard for assistance, but when he only stood there as if he was waiting for it to end, the most unsettling feeling of realization washed over you.
“don’t fight him,” the guard said, arms crossed. “you won’t win.”
johnny snickered when he noticed your eyes widen in shock. you hadn’t seen that coming. though you tried to resist, it was over once his slender fingers came to your throat, and you genuinely feared for your life. 
you didn’t realize how good you had it just being able to breathe until you couldn’t anymore. your breaths wouldn’t come. it felt as if your bones were being crushed. your whole body was on fight mode, but it was like johnny had the reins, shutting down your senses one by one.
“you put up a good fight, detective,” johnny whispered darkly in your ear, admiring your struggle.
your lips parted, but you couldn’t speak no matter how hard you tried. your self-preservation instincts were no match against him. all you could do was meet johnny’s stare. the pressure on your neck was too much to handle, and in seconds, you were out.
“lights out,” johnny said. he released your throat, having no intention of killing you and leading you for dead, but knowing that you would likely regain consciousness in a matter of seconds, he grabbed you by the hair, smashing your head flat against the table to subdue you.
jaehyun winced, but he did nothing to step in. “poor girl,” he mumbled under his breath, pitying you. “had enough?”
“for now,” johnny replied. “let’s go.”
jaehyun gave johnny a uniform to wear so that he would blend in amongst the uniforms like jaehyun had and when he was ready, the two of them fled before they could be deterred.
when they had successfully gotten away, jaehyun asked with his hand on a steering wheel, “you know that i don’t agree with this, right?”
johnny snickered. it had absolutely been said. “you haven’t agreed with my lifestyle for the past twenty-five years, yet you still help me. why?”
jaehyun frowned. sometimes, he asked himself the same question, but deep down inside, he knew the answer. “because we may not share blood, but we’re brothers,” jaehyun replied. “and for my brother, i’ll do anything you need.”
johnny quipped, “like smuggle me across the border?”
“like smuggle you across the border,” jaehyun said, chuckling. “when we get there, there’s gonna be this dude named mark. he’s gonna help you out. i’ll be in touch.”
johnny nodded. “i can’t thank you enough, man.”
“just lay low and stay out of trouble,” jaehyun said, shaking his head. 
johnny grinned with mischief. he was already thinking about all of the beautiful women he couldn’t wait to get his hands on. “no promises,” he answered, sighing contentedly.
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