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mumms-the-word · 7 months ago

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Ascension, Return

Pairing: Gale x You (Reader POV) Summary: You watch as Gale restores the Crown of Karsus and temporarily becomes a god before disappearing to return the crown to Mystra. And you can only hope, now that he is a god, that he will return. ao3 link A/N: I was thinking the other day about how in the ending for an Origin run for Gale, regardless of how he plans to deal with the crown business, he always shows up as God!Gale in front of Mystra before agreeing to hand over the crown or deciding to stay a god. And it got me thinking...wouldn't a romanced Tav who is expecting him to give up the crown see him ascend? So anyway I wrote this to get those thoughts out there. As usual pic of my Tav Dani because I keep forgetting to ask to borrow people’s better pictures

It doesn’t take long for you and Gale to make plans to retrieve the crown from the depths of the Chionthar River. The sooner you get this over with, the better, you think, and yet something about this endeavor has you on edge. You secretly wish you can just leave the crown down below the waters…but then, anyone could get it down there, with the right spells or the right technology. You can’t risk that.

You don’t want it in Mystra’s hands either, but what choice do you have? She, at least, is a goddess interested in balance, neither evil like the Dead Three, nor entirely good and thus subject to extreme corruption. There’s no telling what she’ll do with the crown, but she has offered one thing in exchange—a cure for your lover’s affliction.

He’ll be free of the dark hungering orb at last.

It’s enough to convince you. You retrieve your worn bedrolls from the Elfsong and shoulder your pack, ready for your next little adventure—a small boat ride to the other side of the river, and a few days spent with Gale as he searches the murky waters.

You join him on the banks of the Chionthar, well away from the bustle of the city as it is trying to rebuild, watching over him as he sits, eyes glazed with concentration, guiding simulacrums to walk the riverbeds and floors of the river, combing through the mud for the crown. He could have let his simulacrums search without him guiding them, but he wants to be sure, to search closely. He doesn’t want to waste his time turning away simulacrums who bring back scraps of metal, shrapnel from the Iron Throne, or bits from the carnage of the fight against the Netherbrain. So he looks through their eyes, seeing nothing for hours but hazy water, mud, and river plants.

Though you long to lie back and watch the sails of fishing vessels drift by like clouds on the breeze, reveling in a hard-won moment of peace, you don’t want to miss a moment where he might need you. You do not want him to be caught unawares by some curious animal, or worse, a lingering enemy. So you sit and watch, your stomach twisting into knots as you face what you know will be inevitable—the moment when he finally finds the crown.

It takes all of two days of searching. After hours upon hours of looking, he stiffens, his physical body reacting to something beyond your sight, and you know at last that he has found it. You both stand as his simulacrum emerges, dripping water, with the cold bronze of the crown in its hands.

The Crown of Karsus.

It’s so much smaller than you remember. When you faced it on the top of the Netherbrain it had easily been the size of a large carriage. Here, on the banks of the Chionthar, it’s no bigger than a normal crown. It looks innocent. Harmless.

But you know better.

The power it releases…you are no stranger to it. You readily recall the metallic taste on your tongue as you drew near it atop the Netherbrain and the way its very aura tried to drive you to your knees. Its power is weaker now, pulsating from the bronze metal like a faint heartbeat, but you know that it won’t stay that way.

You glance at Gale, wondering what you’ll see in his face. Dark hunger, perhaps, or something bittersweet. Reluctance, dread, or tired resignation. But his expression is surprisingly neutral. He doesn’t step forward to take the crown just yet. Instead, he studies it with his eyes before taking a deep breath through his nose and turning to look at you.

“Do you trust me?” he asks.

You blink, a little taken aback. “Of course,” you say. “Always.”

“That’s gratifying to hear. It will take me some time to restore the crown and the Netherstones to their original state, fit enough to give to Mystra. The process will be necessarily delicate, given the orb I carry. I should ask you to keep a safe distance. A city’s worth of space, perhaps, just in case, but—”

You cross your arms. “I’m not leaving your side, Gale. I’m here with you, for good or ill.”

He smiles then, as much relieved as he is amused and resigned. “I know. I expected as much. But I thought it best to offer or warn you regardless.” He takes a deep breath. “Very well, then. We stay together. I just hope you’ll be patient with me.”

You reach out and take his hand, threading your fingers between his. “I will be. I’m here for you. Take all the time you need, my love.”

He gives you a grateful look, squeezing your hand affectionately before leaning in to brush a sweet, gentle kiss against your lips. You let him pull away, slipping out of reach, and watch with bated breath as he steps forward to accept the crown, the mark on his chest glowing brighter and brighter as he nears and finally takes the crown in his hands.

You don’t know what you expect. A light show, perhaps. A wave of dark, Netherese magic, or a black hole effect. You steel yourself to the fear that he will simply evaporate or fall to his knees in pain.

But nothing spectacular happens, aside from his mark glowing brightly. To your eyes, the crown acts as little more than a normal crown. To him…

You see his chest expand with a deep breath, the orb flaring brighter, watch him blow the air slowly through his lips, his face tense. But without the tadpole in your heads, you can’t guess at what he’s thinking or feeling. He closes his eyes, simply breathing, concentrating. Fighting, perhaps. Wrestling with some unseen force. The glow on his chest dims slowly until it is only a faint purple tint on his skin. Only then does he finally tighten his hold on the crown and turn back to you.

You get the sense that he has just won a silent, unseen battle within himself. It occurs to you too late that putting the crown and the orb in close proximity might actually hurt him. But it seems that the danger has passed...for now. If he’s in pain, he isn’t showing it.

“Come,” he says. “Let us make sure we’re a safe distance from the city. Just in case.”

His words don't inspire confidence, but you say nothing. You merely follow him back to your camp further up hillside. You know he has work to do.

———

You give him time. That’s all he asked for. Time to concentrate on the magic. Time to manipulate threads of the Weave. The Mystran Weave and the Karsite Weave. Sometimes you think you understand what he’s doing, but more often than not, you don’t. The magic he is performing is beyond your comprehension, guided by notes in the Annals of Karsus which lays open in front of him. You suspect some of it comes innately to him, an understanding born from carrying Netherese magic for so long. The rest must come from Karsus himself, written down as instructions or incantations. You give up trying to understand and simply make yourself useful. Or you try to, anyway.

All you can really do is linger nearby, keeping an eye out for anything that might interrupt his work. You barely interrupt him yourself, save to place some food and water near him with a soft reminder that he needs to eat to keep his energy up. He’s not a god yet, you tease, but the words taste sour on your tongue.

Yet. But soon.

You don’t feel ready for it. You know it’ll only be temporary. You hope so, anyway. But you’re still not ready.

The day passes by without you noticing. Gale sits with the crown, working, weaving, an illuminated aura around him filled with heavy magic. You leave him to his work as the sun moves slowly overhead toward the horizon, painting the sky in tones of orange, red, and purple. You lay down to watch the swirls of violet and indigo magic that gather around him as night falls, until in your exhaustion, you close your eyes for a moment to rest.

You don’t know when you drifted off to sleep, but you’re awoken in the early hours of the morning by his hand on your shoulder. You stir, blinking groggily up at him.

“It’s time,” he says softly. He helps you sit up, hands lingering on your arms, your hands. The crown isn’t with him, but sits on top of his pack several feet away. “I’ve done all I can. The stones and the crown are together again. Functionally the crown is complete, but…there is one last step I need to take.”

He kneels in front of you, dark eyes searching your face in the dim firelight. No, you realize. Memorizing. You feel a sudden knot in your throat and though you are seated safely on the ground, it feels as though a yawning void is opening up around you, threatening to swallow you whole should you tip too far to one side.

This feels like a goodbye.

“Once I put on the crown, the magic of the orb will finally combine with that of the crown. And I will…change,” he explains quietly, while you try to calm the surge of fear that grips your heart. “The magic of the crown and orb will become one and give me the power at last to meet with Mystra as an equal.”

An equal. He doesn’t say as a god. But you both know the truth.

You can scarcely breathe. You want to trust him. You want so desperately to believe in him. And he is looking at you so lovingly, but the very air seems tinged with sorrow. Nothing is certain. Nothing save his love for you, and even then, the tiniest doubt worms its way into your head and your heart.

Once he is a god…will he even remember to come back to you?

“And then?” you ask, your voice no more than a whisper.

“And then…I will hand the crown over to Mystra. And hope she keeps her word.”

You release a breath you didn’t realize you were holding. “I trust you, my love.” You use the words, saying them out loud, to dispel your doubts and fears. You do trust him. With your life, with your heart, with your all.

If only you could trust Mystra. Can she be trusted to cure him? Can she be trusted to let him return? And if he does return, can she be trusted to let him return unchanged? Chosen or not, will he still be Gale Dekarios, the man you love? You don’t know. But you hope so.

He smiles at you and brushes the backs of his fingers against your cheek, his fingertips trailing along the line of your jaw. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

He leans in for a kiss and you, selfishly, wrap your arms around him and hold him tightly to you as your lips move against his, wanting to never let go. You rise to your knees, following him as he tries to pull away, kissing him deeply, tangling your fingers in his hair, until at last you are both breathless and you have to hide your face in his shoulder. You cling to him, reluctant to let him go just yet.

“Just come back to me,” you whisper. “Whatever happens.”

His arms tighten around you and you feel the bob of his throat as he swallows with difficulty. He strokes your hair and your back, pressing little kisses to your shoulder, your neck, your head. You can feel it in every touch and breath he takes. He doesn’t want to let go yet either.

“I will, my love,” he whispers back. “I swear it.”

It’s enough for now. It has to be. You could delay this day for a thousand days and still never be ready to let him go. But you have to. If he wants to be whole again, free of the orb, perhaps even free of Mystra…he has to do this.

You reluctantly loosen your hold on him and sit back on your heels, meeting his dark-eyed gaze in the early hours of the morning. He takes your hands and lifts them to his lips, brushing kisses against your knuckles, turning your hands over to kiss the center of your palms. Each touch of his lips to your skin is a reverent confession of love and longing and it only makes your heart ache more.

Please don’t let this be goodbye.

“Wait for me,” he says.

You cradle his cheek in your hand, gazing earnestly at him, soaking in every detail of his handsome face, committing it all to memory. “I will, my love. I swear it.”

He smiles at you then, full of love and happiness. He steals one last kiss from your lips before finally pulling away and standing, taking several steps back.

You stand too, preparing yourself for what is about to happen, even though you scarcely have any idea. You expect some of what you expected before, with light shows and waves of magic at best, disintegration and death at the worst, but now it feels even more real. Even more likely. You don’t know what will happen, so you brace yourself for the worst, heart pounding in your throat, gut churning with dread, and hope, desperately hope, for the best, even though you don’t know what that will look like.

You hold your breath as he moves several paces away from you and bends to pick up the crown. This image, too, you commit to memory. The way he looks illuminated by the firelight, the lights of the city glimmering behind and below him, the stars glittering above him. The sight of him with the crown in his hands, contemplating it with an expression of deep gravity. The crown looks small and harmless, despite the sharp curls and the soft glow of the purple, orange, and pink Netherstones that are now set once more in the bronze. But he looks serious, regal even, with it cradled in his hands. Like a king mulling over the weight of his position and the choices that lay ahead. He is beautiful. Heart-achingly beautiful. You wish this moment could stretch on forever, if only because it means not losing him to the crown. To godhood.

He turns to give you one last lingering look, your eyes meeting over the distance between you, before he slowly raises the crown to his head and settles it over his brown and gray locks.

The effect is instantaneous. A blast of magic blows outward from him, kicking up wind and dust and flashing bright enough to rival the sun. You cover your eyes, shielding your face, the light blinding you. Suddenly the air feels electric, tasting of metal and ozone, as though you’re about to be struck by lightning at any second. Wind swirls around you, picking up speed, a cyclone of power and magic with you caught in the edges. You struggle to stay on your feet, your body resisting the pull into the vortex. What little you can see is naught but a haze of magic, purple, blue, and inky black, rushing around you and mixing with the wind. Threads of blue and silver lightning dance around you, passing close enough to make your hair stand on end, shocking you when you take an unsteady step backward. The vortex of wind, lightning, and magic threatens to suck the very air from your lungs until, with crack like thunder, everything around you stops.

The air grows still. It is as though you suspended in time. Held fast by magic. Your ears are ringing with the sudden silence.

You cautiously lower your hand. You have to blink a few times for your eyes to adjust, but once they do, the sight of Gale causes a flurry of emotions within you.

He stands before you as something…more. A god in all but name. He’s taller, you swear he must be, or else his very presence makes him seem bigger. His skin has turned a shade of hard silver, his hair ashen gray. The mark of the orb stands out in stark black on his chest and when he turns his head to examine his hands, his body, you see splintered blue lightning crackling at his temples and down the sides of his face. His brown eyes now glow blue-white with magic, any trace of his former warmth consumed by the light of the power within him. He’s striking, awe-inspiring…

And you can’t help but fear him, just a little.

On instinct you have the compulsion to kneel, but you don’t. You force yourself to stay on your feet and look at him, really look at him, and try to find the man you love behind this new godly veneer. He has to be in there somewhere. He has to be.

“Amazing,” he murmurs, and his voice is layered two or three times over with a strange echo, one that gives you unpleasant shivers. Even his voice carries tiny waves of power. You already miss the warm tones of his mortal voice with its Waterdhavian accent.

He flexes his hands, raising them before his face, his expression one of wonder and awe. With but a gesture, he summons threads of the Weave together in glyphs and effects you can barely make sense of, though you feel the thrum of magic deep in your chest and know, instinctively, that he is capable of snapping your mind with a thought or destroying you with a word. He smiles, and the effect is strange. He looks like himself but he doesn’t. Something about it seems wrong to you. Uncanny. Familiar and unfamiliar.

The pit of dread in your stomach grows.

But then he catches sight of you, waiting, watching breathlessly, nervously, hoping that he’ll remember his promise to you. His smile fades and for the briefest moment you catch a glimpse of the man you love. Even his blue-white eyes, shining eerily from his familiar face, can’t hide the love he has for you.

He lowers his hands to his sides. “It is done. The crown is fully restored once more.”

You nod. You haven’t the faintest clue what to say next. You’re still trying to make sense of the man-god before you.

He smiles again, and something about it is both patronizing, as though he pities you for not understanding, and sincere, an echo of his mortal kindness and patience. He presses a hand to his chest. “Well, I’d best be off then.”

“Wait—” You reach out as if to stop him and he pauses. Your hand hovers uncertainly in the air before you lower it to your side. "One last kiss, before you go. Please."

His smile softens. "I can deny you nothing, my love," he murmurs. He crosses the distance between you with a strange grace he didn't have before. Before he was elegant, but at times a little awkward. None of the awkwardness remains in him now.

You look up as he stops in front of you, his fingers curling beneath your chin the way he does when he wants to lift your face or guide your lips to his. You stare into his glowing eyes a moment before letting your eyes flutter closed. His lips touch yours...and it's different.

There's a magnetism there now that wasn't there before. You seem drawn in as if by gravity. He tastes of metal and magic, his skin cold but not unyielding. Your lips tingle with each kiss and the moment you seek to deepen the kiss—you gasp as a blue electric shock drives your mouths apart, your teeth practically rattling, your lips suddenly hot, almost burned. You press a hand to your mouth, looking up at him in shock, but he's just as surprised as you are. He seems unharmed, despite the tiny sparks of white-blue lightning still skittering over his lips.

"Ah...what an interesting side effect," he says, touching his hand to his mouth. The lightning calms. "Are you all right?"

You nod, rubbing your lips lightly as the numbness from the shock begins to subside and the tingling begins to fade. It wasn't pleasant, but it wasn't unpleasant either. Still, you're wary of trying it again.

He watches you, looking torn, before a new resolve settles his features. "Then I suppose that is my signal to go. The sooner I depart, the sooner I can return." He takes your hand carefully, moving it away from your face, and presses a cautious kiss to the back of your hand. His lips impart another, smaller shock to your skin, but this time you're ready for it. Your fingertips go a little numb, but you manage not to wince.

"Wait for me, my love," he says, finally letting go of your hand. "I won’t be long."

You step back, giving him room to do whatever he needs to do, and watch as he begins to glow, brighter than your eyes can stand. You keep your gaze on his until the very last second, when the light grows too bright to stare at. You blink—and then he’s gone, disappearing in a shower of starlight that fades too quickly.

You are left alone in the cool night, with naught but a dying fire for company.

———

You don’t sleep. You barely bring yourself to tend to the dying embers of your campfire and stoke it back into warm flames. After that, all you can do is sit.

And wait.

And wonder.

And pray.

“Come back to me, my love,” you whisper into the cool night air. "Please."

You half-wonder if he can hear you. If, on some level, you’re praying to him, the newest of the gods. You don’t know if that thought comforts you or worsens your dread. How does he think of you now, now that his mind is that of a god, capable of seeing beyond the constraints of a mortal’s limited view? If he hears your prayers, does he think less of you, or love you more? Will he remember his promise, or will the power he now holds tempt him to break it? You want to have faith in him—you do have faith in him—but doubt creeps in despite your best efforts.

Come back to me.

You recall what it was like to wait for him at Mystra’s shrine at the Stormshore Tabernacle. How he had explained that time runs differently in the Outer Planes. How he would only be gone for a moment. Each second that had ticked by during that time felt like a year.

Now, sitting on the hillside, every second that passes feels like an eternity.

The fire crackles. The lights of the city begin to dim. One by one the stars fade out, hiding from view as the black of night begins to lighten into the blue hues of pre-dawn. And still, he isn’t back.

Wait for me, he said. And you will. You’ll wait as long as you have to.

But what if…?

No. You can’t bring yourself to put your fears into words anymore. Doing so will only make them seem more real. More feasible. There could be a thousand explanations for why he isn’t back quickly. You just have to have faith in him.

You get up and begin to pace. You start breaking little sticks and twigs into tiny pieces to feed to the fire, piece by tiny piece, just for something to do with your hands. You pluck blades of grass one by one or count the stars you can see. And you wait.

And wait.

Your thoughts are your own worst enemy and you wish you had called an ally to come and sit with you. Even Scratch with his favorite ball would have been enough to quiet your heart and mind. But instead, you sit alone, the crackle of a fire the only sound to break the silence.

Your eyelids are heavy now and your body longs to drag you down into slumber, but you resist. You want to be there when he comes back. If he comes back. When he comes back.

You get up to pace again, rubbing warmth into your stiff fingers, amusing yourself with memories of him. His smile. His sly jests and silly puns. His hands on your body and his body against yours, yours against his. The smell of him, as much as you can remember. The way he looked during battles, magic crackling and swirling around him. The way he looked in your bed, fast asleep. Gale Dekarios in all his mortal glory, the man you fell in love with. The man you wish was at your side once more.

Gods, but you miss him. You press your hands to your chest, feeling your heart beat beneath your palms. What is taking so long?

The first hints of pink and orange appear on the horizon as you turn to pace away from the fire again, your steps wearing a noticeable path through the grass. At this rate, you fear the sun will arrive before your love does.

You contemplate how you’re supposed to face the whole of a new day alone when a flash of light illuminates the darkness behind you. You whirl, heart racing, to see a shower of starlight once more—and out of it steps Gale.

Mortal. Human. Alive.

“Gale!”

You fly into his arms, which he is already holding out wide for you, nearly toppling you both into the ground with the force of your embrace. You both stagger, but you don’t let go, and his arms around you are as fierce in their hold on you as yours are around him. He practically lifts you off your feet. You can’t put into words how much it means to you that he’s solid your arms—warm, breathing, alive in your arms.

“You’re back,” you gasp, the tears in your eyes and clogging your throat making it difficult to speak. You don’t want to sob and make it seem like you doubted him, but the emotions welling up inside you are hard to suppress. “You came back.”

“Of course, my love,” he says soothingly, not yet relinquishing his hold of you. “You are everything to me. I could do nothing else.”

You untangle yourself from him to wipe the tears from your face and look at him, looking for any changes wrought by his visit to the Outer Planes or from his brief time at godhood. He looks like himself again, his lightly tanned skin flush with warmth and love, his dark brown eyes as rich and deep as ever. You comb your fingers through his soft hair, once more brown and shot through with hints of gray, rather than all over ashen as it was a while ago. Your fingers linger on his cheek, noticing for the first time that the dark vein-like threads that trailed from his eye to his chest are no longer visible.

The mark of the orb is gone.

In its place are a series of faint scars in the same threads and shapes as the old mark, appearing just below his jaw and flowing down to form a circle over his chest. The tattoo-like color has faded away entirely and there is no dark bruise at the center of the circular marking. Any trace of Netherese magic is gone, leaving behind little more than scars faint enough to be missed by any who are not actively searching for them.

You trace the circular scar lightly with the tips of your fingers. “Does this mean…?”

“It does,” he says, pressing his hand over yours so that both of your hands are pressed flat to his chest. You feel his heart beating, his pulse perhaps a little elevated, but every beat strong and vibrant. “Mystra has cured me of the orb. Completely.”

You want to hate her, and perhaps you still do, and always will on some level. But in that moment you’re grateful and relieved too. You wrap your arms around him and squeeze him tight, overwhelmed with happiness and relief and joy. Your love is cured at last. The threat of losing him to Netherese magic is at last put to rest. He is whole again. Restored.

And he is yours. Not hers.

As dawn colors the sky overhead and spills pink-golden light over the both of you, you kiss him, reveling in the taste of him, in the warmth and weight of him, in his hands on you. Not a single spark of lightning threatens to drive you apart, so you deepen your kisses as much as you please. You simultaneously want to push him down into the grass and make love to him there and kiss him for an eternity you know you both don’t have and simply gaze at him in awe and wonder that even while he had godhood in grasp and a crown on his head, he gave it all up for you.

He gave up godhood for you.

You never realized you could love him more than you already did. But you do. Your every heartbeat sings love for him.

You lose track of time kissing him. It could be moments or hours. You don’t know nor do you care. But at last, when you finally pull away from him, it takes you a second to remember where you are, standing out on the hillside across the river from the city. The sun is rising over the horizon now, painting the world in gold and shifting the hue of the sky to a beautiful, cloudless blue. A new day is beginning.

A whole future awaits. And it is yours to shape with your love at your side.

“What’s next, my love?” you ask. “Now that we have everything we both want.”

“Next? For us?” He chuckles and takes your hand, bringing it up to press a tiny kiss on your empty ring finger. “If you still want me, I believe we have a wedding to plan.”

“I will always want you, Gale Dekarios. Now and forever.”

“Is that a yes to planning the wedding? Because I’ll have you know that Waterdhavian weddings are quite the large-scale affair.”

You laugh, his humor clearing the air like the sunlight warming away the fog of a morning and the dew on the grass. “Yes. Come on, let’s find some food to eat and get started. I can’t wait to begin a new life together with you.”

“My love, that new life starts now,” he says, bringing you in for another kiss. You smile against his lips and allow yourself to be corrected. He is right, of course.

Your new life with him begins now.

#bg3 #gale dekarios #gale #baldur's gate 3 #my fic #gale x reader #gale x you #I’m not super happy with this one but if I keep staring at it I’ll hate it #bg3 fic #bg3 fanfic #bg3 fanfiction

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captain-n-crunchies · 5 months ago

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You need a retwist...

OPLA Ussop x Salon owner Reader

From braids to straightening and even retwist and reties you've done all types of hair on Cocoyasi pays a good amount ever since fish face and they came onto the island. Arlong always comes to get his hair cleaned leaving only a path of violence and no tips after every visit; Nami one of my old closest friends ending up visiting my shop when Arlong and he asked me how much I make lying didn't save me wen Nami was around telling him I was practically flourishing. After she told him how much I was making he destroyed everything... thousands of berries and years of hard work destroyed all because of his and Nami's greed, he raised the village toll, and I didn't get much business for years til we got stable.

Today was collection day, the people of Coco gathered and gave Nami their payment for "protection" it was also the day Nami came to tell me Arlong would be coming for a touch up, the coward dead in front of me asking how many berries I have today threating me to not lie pr it'll happen again; after giving her a 1,000 berries and free products she gives me a solemn glance and leaves my salon like she never came.

Cleaning the floors and sinks of the salon with music from radio wafted through the cool air as I hummed a tune and swayed with the beat. Refilling water to plants and sanitizing combs a clean smell lingered in the air, loving the vibe I sit down onto the decorative couch and aid in the silence when I hear I ring of the front door. Getting up I walked to the front of my hose to see four men: a dopey boy with a straw hat, a tall man in a suit? It's 95 degrees??, a green hair swordsman, and a man with curious eyes looking over everything. The straw hat boy says the salon smells like lemon and cleaning products as he walks around touching and tapping any shiny piece of metal

" Don't touch nothin if you can't afford to replace, now what can I do for you?" I asked uninterested grabbing a apron and standing by the salon chair placing products out. The boy talks about Nami asking if I seen her based off what he's saying her sister must've led him to me. " She came in to collect Arlong's 'business fee' and left, if that's all you head on out, I'm still cleaning"

" Well did you know where she's going? We can't leave without her! Shes our navigator"

" You picked someone whose already apart of a pirate crew to join yours? Thats pretty stupid" then the swordsman told me they didn't know till now. " Thats sad but that's how she rolls, betrays her friends and does it again. It's a kink to her I guess" as I spoke, I looked to the man with the durag who now looking through a lookbook of men styles, " You're looking for new style?"

The man in the suit named Sanji who been somewhat quiet besides from complementing my looks ask what could be done to his " luscious blond locks his " I sit him down and his hair pretty clean jokingly calling him pretty boy I trimmed his hair and slicked it how it was before, the straw hat boy excitedly wants his turn and his moves to sit down and I take off his hat to see a whole god dammed mess, his unruly locks aren't kept right not even moisturized and it's filled with sand and dirt; " You should be ashamed of this... I mean how long have you went without a wash?" he thinks with picking his nose? And says a about a few months probably a year, within a long hour I washed and detangled his curly hair and it looks very pretty with a few fruity scents he looks more... boyish in a sense?

Turing to the swordsmen who is just looking around I asked did he want anything done he says he doesn't need it but if do I have something to drink, walking to the fridge in the back of the hose I get him a nice glass of sake and walks over to the man named Ussop, asking him to get in the chair and what he wants done he takes off the rag over his hair and it not as bad the straw hat boy but he's veryyy over due for a retwist. " When the last time you had your hair done? you locs are almost matted?"

" Oh! I don't know what that is, my mom did them and... well, nobody else knew how to manage them"

" It's called a retwist your locs need to maintained and just washing them isn't doing you much good."

" Oh... well can you do that? It'll look nice right?"

" Absolutely, and don't worry about the cost all I ask is you get Nami safe." Sanji questions me even when knowing Nami isn't the best person why I would want her safe I truly didn't know, being friends with her and Nojiko the fond memories of her just can't leave my mind no matter what. Grabbing some clips and a comb with some gel I section and part each loc of his, he winces at every tug and I roll my eyes when he asks is it supposed to hurt, " Well you matted locs hun, it going to a bit painful regardless" I say stilling twisting and clipping his locs as the rest of the men lounge around or read a magazine.

With in a few hours I was done and he was looking good as new, with him looking in the mirror I looked outside and it's dark and I see Arlong and his goon walking towards my salon, turning frantic I tell the Straw hats to give any money to Arlong but they seemed unfazed, well except for Ussop who slowly hid behind the swordsman. Arlong bust through the door and looks eyes with the straw hat and laughs a bone chilling laugh.

" Hello, are you here for-"

" Selling out my location to pirate huh? After the good business I gave you y/n?" I looked confused and tries to explain I dint know they were pirates just new customers but, it gets a vase and smashes it and the memories of his first visit sets in, his crew his walking around touches anything int he room as my pleas for him to get them to stop smashing things are cut off when the swordsmen points a katana at the head of fishmen and threats them. The room grows silent as each of the strange men ae in a fighting stance, Sanji tells me to get out the house and I run out the back door taking any valuables and money with me as I ran, running hearing sounds of clashing and noises of a fights echos in my ear.

It's been two days since I seen those pirates and it hasn't been good for the town, Nami reason for helping Arlong was revealed and a battle between the Straw hats and the fishmen began. It's been quite so far and Nami came back after telling me she trying to buy the village freedom, I welcomed her back with open arms and now at Nojikos home I sit with her talking about old memories when Nami and the pirates come back with new Arlong has been defeated, with praises and thanks you I congratulate their victory.

" Well Nami you've became a pirate, a better one than I thought you would be" I comment and she smiles and apologizes for our earlier past and I forgive her when the Luffy the captain to be asks a funny question

" Your hair place got destroyed in the fight, hope you arent too mad though"

' Eh, it'll better if I just do hair occasionally plus it wasn't too big of space so it'll be alright" I think of ways to make back the money for new supplies when Nami hands me a bag opening it the bad filled with thousands of berries shines ad I almost cry, with this I could open up a new business and get better products even hire people! Hugging Nami, Luffy continues

" You should join us! It'll be nice to have a new crew member!"

The swordsman questioned him saying he just can't ask anyone to join the crew because he finds them nice or cool.

" Plus, I don't fight Luffy, nor do I know how to chart maps that's a nerd thing"

" You can do your hair stuff! Ussop can make a empty room like your salon and you can do our hair!" "And I can charge a fee too... " I mumble to Nojiko and she giggles.

" So, what do you say? It's free housing too!"

"With the chance of getting blown to smithereens?"

" It's the fun part!

Looking at a smiling Luffy I agree, and he tells me they leave tomorrow.

" Y/n Let me ask you something"

"Hm?"

" You did Ussop hair? He looks different..."

" Yes! girl he needed a retwist like 30 days ago!" Laughing that I wonder what new styles I could do being the Straw hat hairstylist, maybe I could twist up a new love in my heart?

#black fem reader #x black reader #black reader #x reader #cherizzx #one piece x reader #opla x reader #opla usopp #ussop one piece #ussop x reader #black!reader

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hargrove-brainrot · 11 months ago

Text

| Surf’s Up |

🌶️a smutty jj maybank x fem! reader🌶️

SUMMARY:

you and the pogues finally returned home after being presumed dead by the entire city of outerbanks. you might as well say you were on house arrest, but you wouldn’t be trapped for long. jj called you up and asked for some company, and from that point forward, many secrets were revealed…

⚠️‼️TRIGGER WARNINGS‼️⚠️:

detailed smut, cussing, teasing in public (on the beach), missionary and doggystyle sex, oral (male and female receiving), throat fucking, unprotected sex, pull out method (kinda unsuccessful), a small bit of trauma (mainly jj’s)

…………………………………………………………………………

it was another day back at the outer banks. you had just returned home from after being stranded on an island for months with the gang. everyone back at home thought you were dead. so you were basically held captive by your parents.

your phone buzzes suddenly. you pick it up. it’s a text from jj.

“are you busy?”

you feel a tingling sensation in your body. jj is so god damn attractive to you. everything about him. you reply;

“no… why?”

“you don’t think i’m feeling a bit lonely? i don’t have parents anymore. you don’t think i could use some company?”

you roll your eyes. he’s always been snappy towards you like this, and you never understood why…

you reply to him;

“fine, but there’s no promise that i won’t get caught. where are you?”

“at the same shit hole im always at”

you pick your head up and look around, making sure there’s no one to see you slip out your window. your feet plant on the ground as you land. you slip under the fence and sneak away, praying that your parents didn’t see you.

…………………………………………………………………………

you arrive at jj’s house. it’s small, beat up, and no one’s been in it in months. you hear jj working on his motor bike near the tall tree. he hears your footsteps in the grass and turns around.

“finally”

you scoff back at him.

“someone’s in a good mood”

jj chuckles.

“you know, at least you bite back. most other girls’ve just cried about it”.

you’re a little confused by that statement, but you don’t question it.

“so… what do you wanna do?”

“well i was thinking we could go hit the tide, and then get mad and break shit again, you know, the good stuff”

you chuckle under your breath.

“breaking shit and getting mad would probably do me some good, honestly”

jj stands up and steps closer to you, grinning a bit. you’re expression is one of skepticism.

“…what?”

jj pauses for a minute. his warm expression is replaced with his usual stern look.

“does it matter? now come on”

he slings himself over his bike and revs the engine loudly. knowing him, he does it all on purpose. you jump at the sudden noise and scoff again.

“stop it!!!”

you sling yourself behind him and giggle again. he can’t help but grin a little, but he’s to stubborn to let you see it.

…………………………………………………………………………

jj stops the bike abruptly as you arrive at another shore, not too far from his house. you hop off the bike with him.

the weather isn’t very welcoming, and neither is the ocean. the sky is gray, and the air is cold. the ocean is stirred up with aggressive waves slapping the shore.

“come on, get out there!”, jj nudges you.

“uhh, i don’t know man, it looks pretty dangerous”.

“fine, be a pussy, stay on the beach”.

jj pulls off his shirt and tosses it to the side. he then picks up his surf board and holds it over his shoulder. he jogs out to the water.

all the while, you can’t help but stare. he’s so attractive, and he knows it well by now. you wish his back was covered in your scratches, and your body was covered in his marks.

you manage to get your head out of the gutter for just a minute and warn him of the water.

“jayj! it’s pretty risky lookin’!”, you shout.

“ah come onnnnn, what do i have to lose? my house? my parents? cuz i already lost those!”.

he laughs loudly. you start laughing with him.

“i mean, you’re not wrong! we’re pogues!”

you trot out to the water with him with your surfboard resting over your shoulder. you continue to run past him into the waves.

“…you little shit”, jj mutters, grinning widely. he rolls his eyes and jogs slowly behind you. he suddenly turns the other way when he sees a swirl start to form.

you look behind you, wondering where jj went. you look over and see that he’s already caught a wave. and he’s smiling right at you while he glides through it.

“jj!!! you suck!!!”

he laughs down at you and then slips off the board and gets swallowed by the wave. you laugh hysterically.

“that’s what you get, asshole!”, you laugh.

however, jj hasn’t appeared yet. you start to get worried.

“jj…”. you mutter. “jj?!”. you start to shout now. “jayj!! please talk to me!!!”

you squeal suddenly as jj pops up behind you and shoves you in the water.

“JJ!!! I THOUGHT YOU WERE STUCK IN THE RIP CURRENT!!!!”

you slap him back playfully. he grabs your arm and pulls you back into him. you’re both so close to each other.

you look at jj deeply for a moment, and he does the same. he takes in your body, looking down every inch of it. your eyes remain locked on his. jj eventually looks back up at you.

“uh- um”. he clears his throat nervously. “i don’t know what that was, uh…”. his cheeks flush with redness.

“why are you so red…?”, you ask, smirking a bit. “don’t fuckin’ think about it”, jj murmurs, “it’s just sunburn”. “sunburn, huh?”, you smirk playfully.

jj sighs, “shut up”.

that was it. the moment you’ve been longing all this time. he pulls you in and kisses you hard. you’re shocked at the sudden movement, but you ease into it shortly. you pull away slowly with him.

“look who’s sunburnt now…”, jj said lowly.

you continue to look at him, more shyly this time. you shiver as you feel his hand run down your spine. his smirk grows wider.

“you’re so fuckin’ cute”.

he kisses you harder this time, holding your neck gently. he feels your throat vibrate in his hand as you kiss him. he pulls away and looks you in the eyes. he feels just as nervous but also… turned on.

you nibble your lip gently as he stares into your eyes. that’s all it took for jj to grow wild. he smacks your ass and kisses you even more intensely. he quickly pulls away and then picks you up out of the water.

“jj!! what are you- what are you doing?!”

he keeps walking with you in his arms.

“imma fuck the shit outta you when we get home. that’s what i’m doing”

you blush profusely, but you can’t help but love his roughness. you feel wetter already.

“wait- home? what home?” you ask, “cus we sure as hell can’t go to my place. and… you don’t have one…”

jj pauses for a minute.

“we’ll just… go to the chateau…”

“oh hell no!”. you shake your head.

“ahhh come onnnn, where else?”, jj whines.

“um, literally anywhere EXCEPT john b’s bed?”, you state.

“why not? ‘guess you’ve never heard him and sarah. they go at it like animals”.

he laughs hysterically as you smack his shoulder.

“EXACTLY!!! so we could be rolling in someone else’s… you know…”, you trail off.

“cum?”

you widen your eyes at him. “i don’t know where you get the nerve to say some of this shit out loud”

“cum see, cum sah”, jj mocks.

you sigh and facepalm yourself at his teasing.

“c’mon, sweetheart”.

jj pats the seat in front of him.

“you comin’ or not?”

a smirk grows on your face.

“well, yeah… i probably will”.

“well not if you stand there and gawk”, he adds. he reaches out and tugs your waist gently. “sit in front o’ me”.

you sit in front of him on the bike. your ass is pressed against his groin. you can feel how hard he is already. you smirk wider at the feeling.

“you feel how hard it is?”, jj murmurs in your ear, “let’s see how ready you are…”

he slides his hand slowly up your inner thigh. he squeezes it when he notices your body tense up under his touch.

“what’s the matter?”, jj murmurs, “it’s just me”.

you gasp quietly as jj’s hand slips under your bikini. his thumb rubs against your clit and teases your cunt as he feels your wetness. he groans in your ear.

“shit, we ‘otta get you home, you’re so fuckin ready”. jj revs the bikes engine and speeds to the chateau.

…………………………………………………………………………

jj parks his bike abruptly in front of john b’s house. you sling yourself off the bike and walk towards the house. jj runs up behind you and tosses you over his shoulder.

he hears you squeal as he lifts you off the ground and can’t help but tease you.

“someone’s horny…”

you realize what he said and squeal again.

“stop itttt!!!”. jj slaps your ass and then sets you down for a moment to open the front door. he picks you up again before you can run away.

he tosses you down on the bed and immediately kisses you hard, over and over. he hardly gives you time to breathe between his kisses. he grunts as he pulls away quickly, running his hands down your body as he stands up straight. he starts pulling off his shorts.

“wow… we’re going at it already?”, you purr.

“nope”, jj states as his shorts drop off his legs. he pumps his cock a couple times.

you’re curious as to what he means. at the same time, your mouth waters at how hard his cock already is.

“get on your knees, girl”, he uttered, “you know what this means…”

you bite your lip and glance back at him after he says that. you slide off the bed and lower yourself in front of his cock. he slowly grips your hair and tilts your head upwards, forcing you to look at him. you give him a little pouty look.

“what’s wrong?”, you ask, ”are you nervous?”

“nervous? no”, he shakes his head.

you raise an eyebrow. “…you sure?”.

“hell no- i mean, yes, i mean- i’m not nervous”. jj gulps and throws his head back. “i’ve done this before”, he adds.

you let out a soft chuckle. “okay… sure”. you scoot closer to jj’s cock until it hovers just in front of your lips. you look back up at him. he’s definitely blushing.

“c’mon, suck me dry”, jj says lowly.

you feel him pull you towards it. you slowly open your lips over it and take in his length. you whine as he suddenly pulls your hair and shoves his length down your throat the rest of the way. jj’s breath shudders.

“f-fu- fuck- ooooohhh…”, he breathes. his body is tense as he tries not to cum immediately. even though he’s a stubborn ass, he wants to savor this night with you.

after just moments of you bobbing your head back and forth on his cock, jj thrusts his hips forward. it throws you off guard, and you squeal around his hard.

“i’m gonna fuck your mouth, babe-“.

he makes hard thrusts into your mouth. it doesn’t go on for too long, but it’s enough to leave you out of breath. his balls slap against your chin, and you let out accidental slurping noises. he growls lowly as his head is thrown back, completely lost in lust.

jj pulls out of your mouth right afterwards and winces quietly at how sensitive it is. he was so close to cumming down your throat, but he wanted to wait until he was inside you.

“get on the bed, honey”, jj groaned, “i’m gonna fuck the shit outta you just like i said”.

you bite your lip while looking up at him and then slide yourself back on the bed. jj slaps your ass as half of your body is dangling off the mattress. he grips your waist kisses your back a few times and pauses.

“we should get this outta the way”, he murmured in your ear, as he pulled the strings loose on your bikini. he squeezes your ass as your crouched below him, completely naked now.

meanwhile, the coil of arousal in your core is tightening more and more. you look up at jj with a slight pout in your expression. he finds it adorable.

“turn on your back”, he orders.

you don’t even question it. you want him inside you as soon as possible. so you do exactly that.

his mouth waters as he glances down at your pussy, staring at it with a smirk. he makes eye contact with you again and then kneels down and licks up and down between your hole and your clit.

“mmmm… so fuckin’ good”, jj muffles against your folds, “your pussy’s so damn good”. your legs tense as his voice vibrates against your clit. he notices and stands back up, his cock bobbing in the air.

“fuck this”.

jj growls as he leans over you.

“i’m not waiting”.

he presses his cock between your folds. you whine as your pussy squelches with wetness. he grabs your hips and drives only the tip inside you. he feels you clench around it and slides one of his hands around your neck.

“be patient.”, he seethes. he bites your neck hard as he slides the rest of the way in.

“ohhhhh shit!”, you moan loudly as he abruptly drives his cock inside you. he mashes his body against your bare chest and keeps his face against your neck. he whispers naughty things in your ear as he thrusts away.

“be a good fuckin girl, take this cock… oh my goddd…”

jj starts to thrust a little faster and presses himself further against your tits. he smiles wickedly as he hears you squeal.

“jayj- oh my- fuck!”

your arms latch onto jj’s back and dig into his skin. he grunts as you do that and thrusts harder and faster.

“so god damn naughty”

jj sits up away from your face and starts jerking your hips more aggressively. he moans and grunts with each thrust, and so do you.

“your cock is so good, ohhhhh shitttt!”

you suddenly fall dangerously close to your high. jj feels you clench around him and pulls out immediately. you whine at the empty feeling.

“turn over”, jj growls, “stick that ass out”

you pout and lazily roll onto your hands and knees. you wiggle your ass towards him, your cunt still swollen and puffy. he teases his cock between your folds, and then shoves in his entire length. he doesn’t wait one breath to start thrusting.

“fuck i’m hitting you so deep”, he growls as his hands dig into your hips.

you fall dangerously close again, and so does he. his sounds become more labored and breathy, and he seems less controlled. your eyes roll back when his thrusts sound more like slaps against your clit.

“ohhhhh- fuck!”, you moan loudly, “you’re fuckin nailing it- ooooh!”

jj starts thrusting even faster, your body rocking back and forth with his movements. your head arches upwards and your mouth lolls open. jj notices and mashes your face into the pillows, smirking wickedly as he does so. he bends over you and skillfully rubs your clit, making you clench around him.

“you better fucking not”, he grunts, “don’t cum yet”

his voice becomes more breathy and uneven. you could tell he was close, and so were you.

you start intentionally squeezing around his cock, making him grunt loudly. it would only take a few more thrusts until you both reached your highs.

“fuck- fuck fuck fuck-“.

jj’s voice stalls for a second before he thrusts into you hard and grunts loudly. he pulls out quickly after some of his load accidentally sprayed inside you. you came right with him, squirting all over john b’s sheets.

“shiiiit…”, jj sighs as he slaps his cock on your ass a few times. you pick your head up from the sheets and look back at him as you continued to moan.

“c’mere”

jj turns you over gently and kisses you hard. your hands run through his hair as he gives you hardly any time to breathe. you pull away in unison and stare in each other’s eyes.

“finally got my dick wet”, he breathes, “your pussy’s so fuckin good”.

“gross”, you sighed, “so… is this why you’ve been grumpy towards me lately? you were just… sexually frustrated?”. you chuckle.

jj rolls his eyes. “fine, i’ll admit it, i wanted you for so damn long”.

“how long?”, you ask.

jj thinks for a minute, a warm smile on his face. “honestly… probably since the moment i met you, i just didn’t wanna admit it to myself”. his cheeks flush with a light pink hue.

“awww… are you blushing?”, you tease, “or is it just ‘sunburn’”.

“shut up”, he scoffs while smiling uncontrollably, “what about you? when were you shot with that arrow?”

“much longer than i’d like to admit”, you mutter “i don’t remember what did it though…”.

jj gives a cheeky grin and licks his lips. he gently combs your hair out of your face and kisses you again, more tenderly this time.

“well, i’m glad i pinned you down…”, he looks you up and down slowly as you lay beneath him. he kisses you slowly again, slipping his tongue in your mouth. you gently pull away in unison, jj looking into your eyes lovingly. his eyes are half lidded and sleepy looking yet full of sincerity. to be honest, no one’s probably ever seen this side of him.

you smile warmly at him, until you realize the massive puddle of wetness under you that soaked the sheets. you blush a little as you look back up at jj, embarrassed that he has to see you in a mess. however, he seems to have quite a liking for it.

“you want me to clean it up, babes?”, jj whispers, practically drooling at the sight of your glistening clit. you know exactly what he means by that and blush even harder.

“i- i mean- mmmm! mmmm…”

you squeal as jj immediately starts eating you out without a second thought. it doesn’t last long, but it’s one hell of a ride. he moans deeply as he sucks your clit gently. his tongue then starts licking up and down your folds, moving it faster as he licks more.

your legs start to shake and tense around jj’s shoulders. he notices and smacks your ass, nearly enough to send you over the edge. he then starts muttering dirty comments to further tempt you.

“you gonna cum again?”, jj muffles in your pussy, “you gonna think about my dick inside you while you squirt on my face?”

he suddenly sticks his two fingers in your cunt and starts curling them towards your g-spot as he continues to lick up and down your clit. you cum almost immediately, your mouth flying open and your eyes rolling back.

jj fucks his fingers into you a couple more times as you pulse around his fingers. he pulls his face away, his chin dripping with your juices. his fingers slip out of your sopping pussy as he stands up again. he leans back over you and kisses you hard, letting you taste your juices.

“good girl, babe…”, jj sighs as he pats your thigh a couple times, “i’ll get a towel now…”

you continue to moan quietly as you catch your breath while your orgasm fades. jj rummages around in john b’s junk to find something relatively clean for you to wipe yourself.

jj comes back minutes later with a random rag that you probably don’t wanna know what it was used for previously. he’s also holding a random throw blanket to put beneath you until you can muster up enough energy to clean the sheets. he helps you out of bed as you shake while you stand near him, watching him toss the blanket over the wet puddle. you take the washcloth and realize how dirty it is. you look back and forth between jj and the cloth in slight disgust.

“you know what… i think i’ll just dry it out”, you yawn.

“dry it out? with me around?”, jj tsks, “i’ll make her cry even harder”.

you giggle as he talks about your pussy like it’s another person. he has a snarky grin on his face as you laugh. he reaches down and playfully slaps your ass, squeezing it gently. you jump a little and then nudge him gently.

“come onnn… i’m tired…”

jj rolls his eyes jokingly.

“after that? we only did so much?”

you scoff and flop down on the bed, laying on your side with one of your legs hiked up further out across the bed. it was going to be a sleepless night…

…………………………………………………………………………

GUESS WHO’S BACK, BACK AGAIN ‼️‼️‼️

do y’all even remember me 😭

this smut has been rotting in my notes for god knows how long. the last time i touched it before today was in september 🥶 so if the writing is god awful don’t judge 😭

ALSO, i’ve entered another hyper fixation outside of stranger things, which is honestly fkn insane to think about. i’ve been fixated lately on the witcher (the netflix series with henry cavil specifically), so i might write some geralt smut in the future if i can even remember.

ciao for now~

…………………………………………………………………………

135 notes · View notes

banannabethchase · 8 months ago

Note

"Which one of you came up with this bullshit? It had to be one of you." 🤠🐶👸

The Eye of the Beholder - also on AO3

Adam comes home to see one of his two boyfriends has put up some new art on the wall.

Adam blinks as he walks into the living room. Then he pinches himself. Then he walks out, counts to ten, and comes back in.

“What the fuck is happening?” There’s no sound, almost like Matt and Mox are elsewhere. But both cars were in the driveway, and there’s a glass of water leaving rings on Matt’s favorite coaster, and Mox’s boots are chucked under their shelf in the foyer. His eyes flicker back up to make sure he’s not hallucinating. He’s not. It’s up there.

When he’s sure he can keep his shit together, he yells out in the hallway, “Which one of you came up with this bullshit?” He waits, possibly hears a little giggle from somewhere. “It had to be one of you. Come on.”

Mox walks out of the kitchen calmly, a glass of water in his hand. Adam notes that part of his sleeve is wet. “What’s wrong?”

“This,” Adam says, gesturing up at the painting on the way. “This is what’s wrong. Who did this?”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Mox says, taking a sip.

“The giant print of us fucking on the wall?” Adam says. “That doesn’t give you a fuckin’ clue?”

Mox looks up and tilts his head. “Hasn’t that always been there?”

“Wha – no! Don’t fucking gaslight me about our sex photo on the wall.”

Mox shrugs. “Looks good with the room. Matches the couch.”

“How are you not reacting to this?” Adam asks. “This is – my mom is coming for dinner Saturday night!”

“It’s art!” Matt says, walking in. “I mean, what?”

“So it was you,” Adam says. “This is weird, Matt.”

“It’s art,” Matt repeats, like Adam’s the one out of his mind here. “It was a gorgeous photo from that camera we set up last month.”

“Did you just, like, bring this to Wal-Mart and ask for a four by five foot printing?” Adam pictures it, the worker trying to do their damned job only to have a photo of three wrestlers having a threesome show up on their daily to do list.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Matt says. He yanks at the sleeves of his hoodie. It doesn’t take long for Adam to realize it’s one of his. Little thief. “I put in a special order, accompanied by an NDA. They’re a small business owner, no ties to the wrestling business.”

“Yeah, I don’t want people we don’t know seeing that,” Mox says, pointing to the monstrosity on the wall. “I love it, don’t get me wrong, but don’t let it go out to others.”

“That’s your problem with it?” Adam asks. “Seriously?” His eyes go up to it to see himself, naked as the day he was born, balls deep in a very happy Matt. “This is – we can’t have guests.”

“Oh, like this is the weirdest thing we have on our walls,” Matt scoffs.

“What else is as bad as a photo of the three of us fucking?”

“Not bad,” Mox adds, unhelpfully, mouth full of water. “This rocks.”

“Hmm, I don’t know,” and Adam hates this tone from Matt. “Maybe the dead animal carcass hanging up in the entrance to our kitchen?” He points above his head.

“It’s a decorative piece!” Adam says, stepping under it and folding his arms.

“It’s a carcass,” Matt repeats. His hands plant on his hips.

“It’s a statement,” Adam says. “Mox, back me up here?”

Mox steps back, hands up in front of him. “Look, you don’t want my opinion on this one, dude.”

“What?” Adam feels the cold wave of betrayal wash over him. He’s not used to Mox being on Matt’s side. Especially since Matt is always the wrong one. “You said it was cool!”

“I said it was cool for you to hang up,” Mox says, and god it’s infuriating how hot he looks when he’s smug. “Not that the stupid skull bones are cool.”

Adam groans. “You can’t be serious.”

“I just think if we’re going to have the weird stuff you consider art on our walls, we can have the weird stuff I consider art on our walls.” Matt goes back to boo boo eyes, and Adam knows this is a con. The problem is it’s working.

He looks between Matt and Mox, trying to find the weak link. And he realizes, with sudden horror, it’s him. “Okay, god, fine!” Adam yells. “We’ll take down the decorative skull. Fuck, I get it.”

Mox remains stoic, but Matt gets the smuggest grin on his face. “I knew I could get you to listen to me,” he says, folding his arms over his chest. “Only a matter of time.”

“Shut up,” Adam says. He flicks Matt’s nose. “You could have just asked.”

“We did,” Mox says, and Adam hates how he’s the most level headed in the room. It’s wrong. “You were stupid about it.”

Adam rolls his eyes and bitches the whole damned time he takes down the skull. It’s not that weird, he knows. Other people have similar decorations – it’s not unheard of. But, as he puts it away in his office for later relocation, it’s worth it to see Matt take down the giant blown up photo. He holds it in his hands, outstretched, studying it like an art critic.

“What the fuck are you looking at now?” Adam sighs.

“Just thinking,” Matt says, “it would be a shame to let this go to waste.” He looks up, boo boo eyes all over the place. “What about the bedroom?”

“The bedroom is covered in your sneakers and his belt buckles,” Mox says before Adam can answer.

“Oh, says the man who leaves a different pair of beat to shit leather boots all over the house,” Adam scoffs. “But, with the sneakers, yeah.”

“I don’t accept you agreeing with him,” Matt says primly. “And this could be fun above the bed.”

“Above – I have to sleep at night, Matt!” Adam exclaims.

Mox, meanwhile has stopped with his cup halfway to his lips. “I think I just had a waking nightmare of waking up to stare at a printed version of my ass.”

“See?” Adam says. “Not gonna happen.”

“Gym?” Matt asks.

“Oh,” Mox says, and Adam doesn’t like the look on his face. “Wait, that’s a good idea.”

“It is?” Adam asks. “How?”

“Think of it this way,” and Mox has got a tempting kind of grin on his lips. He walks toward Adam until he’s leaning against the counter, Mox so close it’s hard not to kiss him. “I see that picture of us on the wall while you’re doing that arm thing with the weights that makes you look all huge.” He leans in, stepping between Adam’s spread legs. “And you get to bend me over the bench again.”

“I do that, like, weekly, “Adam says, but he hauls Mox in by the waist so he’s pressed against him. “But I see where you’re going with this.” He’s leaning in to kiss Mox when Matt says, “Hey! It was my idea, not his?”

“Nah,” Adam says. “Your idea was putting it in the gym, not wild sex in the gym after we put the stupid picture in there.”

“Whatever, fine,” Matt says, gently leaning the photo against the dish washer. “So, like, are we gonna go into the bedroom now? Because you two are doing the thing again and I really want to be in the middle of it.”

“See that’s an idea of yours I can get behind,” Adam says. He reaches out and pulls Matt in.

Mox snickers. “Hopefully not the only thing you’re getting behind tonight.”

Mini Playlist: Trouble - Twice Nxde - (G)I-DLE Angel to You (Devil to Me) - The Click Five Feed the Beast - ARIZONA

#HangMoxMatt #I will take any opportunity to HangMoxMatt #wtf i like wrestling now???#in which sara writes #anxious millennial dreamboat #Matt Attrackson #madly in love with leather daddy jon moxley

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lamentingocean · 27 days ago

Text

MONGRANG X JAHA

- Return of The Crazy Demon-

-Dystopian Apocalyptic Wasteland Edition-

Part 2- Ending of Darken Abyssal.

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

Warning: murders, call of duty ass battles, survival, and genuine tension of one's safety, and slight relationship break, clashes against one's forces, delicious angst, sacrificial devotion, just pure shitty despair.

Unfortunately, I had to make another one because of issues. I literally can't edit the first one. I apologize+

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

-continuation of the last one-

pure evil, straight pure and malicious evil to be seeing your subordinates in despair all because the conflict of your brother has jeopardized the lives of others, including his units. wars are won by those, willing to sacrifice everything but the fact that our bosses. the men in authority of our very lives, hopes, dreams, unrealistic scenarios of a dream are two blood related humans with a very different undiscovered past of their hateful tension.

I prep myself up for the mission, storing food, water, and blankets in my duffel bag. I left multiple times at the sword demon's blacksmith, I started to see the idealistic approach to their conflict, two of them were stuck in a standard to be better than one another or be at conflict with everybody who deems your skills with criticism, expressing their own opinionated minds to their higher ups of this corrupted driven money worshipping society. I wonder if jaha had ever known about their truth of our companies just being a pawn to unhealed truama/ sibling rivalry by damage of something or someone, he probably doesn't care and is his main priority to live for himself along with me instead of others as our plan to decimate our companies by the greatest act of betrayal in favor of despair will put us at the pure concept of free will. But isn't this world the opposite of free will. corporations and businesses, running our lives and food by money are seen as the new god and savior.

"The gods will protect us." They say.

it sickens my heart and stomach to the core to think we're such a divided society enough to put us at the risk of self-destruction either by ego or money. And this is supposed to be the image of God? makes me even more happy to know I'll live for myself, agreeing with jaha's next life plan.

I pack a notebook for Intel just in case.

plant life is hard to grow in an apocalyptic world. especially when food is harder to ponder for, stores are barely getting by, every time we pass by a grocery store growing black mold all over its cement walls, or a insufferable stench either by moldy food or decomposed corpses laying around. they were probably still seeping in a pool of their own metallic blood during the events of doomsday, now is just skeletons and dissipating limbs. how saddening.

I ventured out, breathing in and out like darth Vader by the gas mask. northwest is usually how we go outside of the city ruins. I take one step to another, repeating it until it's a broken record, my mind kept darting back to the mysterious relationship between the boss and our main enemy boss of the company we're fought for so long, both of them use their strongest weapons as a pawn, both of them sacrifice their even most loyal of warriors and assassins die by their hands and they won't bat an eye to the damage they've done to get a winning advantage. I wonder if billionaires and any type of person holding so much cash in their cards to get anything they want consider their actions as morbidly horrible, even governmental leaders and ceos capable of harming society with one word. One single word can cost everything.

Like a god. what a coincidence.

I step to the crunchy sound of grass. a forest seen directly outside the freeway street.

I step out of the freeway to see dead birds, cows with their guts out attracting flies, and poisonous berries, flowers, and ivy surfacing in the mulky, brownish grass. each step felt like a small splash of dirty water onto my shoes. from my remaining intel is absolutely no fresh materials in the forest, same as oranges, tomatoes, and strawberries, dirty grass and dying trees, but I have to keep searching just in case.

I take some wood out of a tree and lit up a small blaze of fire.

taking a pack of ziplocked hot water, I lift up my ramen to pour it into the noodles. letting it heat while I check for my surroundings, seeing nobody but only sounds of rustling out the bushes. I squint to see jaha stabbing a fresh starved pig, sheathing his blade out of its red flesh, creating a trail of animal blood beyond the green depths of the bushy leaves.

I watched as he took slices of its meat and put it into a reused plastic bag. His resourceful skills will always be admirable, reusing the same clothes and lingering manly scent I'll never be able to whiff again. The pig's blood stained his fingers and palms disgustingly, metallic subtance of further proof that humans and animals are the same species but in a different format while humans are intelligent and has the physical development to grow, generate, and populate while animals do the same thing. is just a difference between mentality. jaha looked to the side of his eye, pig's blood splattering across his cheeks and lips to slash more meat to store as he saw him in a slight surprise but unimpressive reaction to my scavenging for intel.

"What are you doing here?"

"Sent on another mission to gain intel what are you doing?"

"Lydia's children had been eating up the food you gave her. which means she ran out. so before I go into the forest to look for some meat, she doesn't know how to cook meals at all when this society relies on nourishment of your well-being. so I plan to teach her if I have time."

"Time?"

I lift up the hot cup of noodles, pouring in the seasoning package and vegetable package before stirring it. He approached me, slamming down the large sacks of pork meat from that deceased pig, almost like he offered some of its meat to me instead of eating processed ramen in the middle of a apocalypse.

"Lydia...how she's doing right now?"

"I do daily checkups on her and her children every day at the abandoned parking lot, she's holding up well, teaching herself how to shoot and locking up the doors to the building above her so it's marked at her home, giving herself melee combat instead of relying on a gun to kill people. Impressive..she's able to hold well for a single mother of children."

"I see. But I don't want to talk about her anymore. I want to talk about you. Are there any updates on your daughter?"

a smile slowly grew on his face at her condition.

"yoran. she's in a different city led by an open orphanage. My assumption of the orphanage in this apocalypse is to bring homeless, filled with despair, alone children to a home where they can actually feel peace. but..he never told me the location of the city. but I'm glad she's alright. mentally and physically."

" I promised I would take care of her along with you, right?"

he put a slice of dripping pork meat on the blazing flames as his voice is both either toned with regret or hectic, skepticism.

Yeah. as the sex demon. I wouldn't want you watching adult TV shows and 50 shades of gray while she's walking around hanging out with you, wondering what you're watching and instead... accidentally truamatized her by sexual content."

"I'm not that type of person anymore."

"You are. unless your addiction to spicy shows before the apocalypse started dimmed down a lot. since.. technology is barely a thing to us anymore. all I want to do is protect her. if you can support and abid by those rules to never watch PORN. then yeah. I'll let you take care of her along with me. remember, one time, I broke into your house to assassinate you, and the first thing I heard was: "EVER HEARD OF JERKMATE??" I left. instantly."

my voice softened, understanding his worry for his daughter's safety and content in the internet.

"since when did you-..ok I've changed. and I wouldn't deliberately watch that type of shit around your adopted daughter. if it's boundaries and rules I have to follow to take care of her as my own then you'll have my full consent, soul, and devotion to leading her life to a much more better path than being stuck in this apocalypse for far too long. you and me. as fathers. a deal? Since our relationship will continue to grow."

"Fine. It was when you were finished with your greatest prize a mafia assassin could ever ask for, being sent to a stripper club, in a private club just so you can explore the things you desire most about woman. disgusting to me. while I had a mission in siberia I just accomplished. I had to do some more work assassinating the current country's most powerful mafia bosses and crime cartels. My last mission was to kill you."

"And you didn't."

"Shut your mouth."

he took his slices of cooked pork off the stick, letting its scorching sizzle to resonate. he looked at it before taking a bite of its soft yet hardening flesh.

" could use some seasonings. But aye. Thanks for a knowledging boundaries when it comes to taking care of her. I don't want an incontinent degenerate like you to take away her innocence as a young girl living in an apocalyptic dystopia world. it's up to us to take care of her. instead of exposing that shit to her unprovoked."

"This incontinent degenerate is in love with a insane mass murderer like yourself so I guess we're both fucked up at our own way. especially when both of us are just devils born into a world run by demonic entities, using intelligence for evil. didn't you mention your family is dead?"

"yeah."

a droplet of rain fell onto my hand, pummeling onto the surface of the greenery before it fell harder, taking the fire out in an instant. I grab jaha's hand and put him next to me in a large tree, sheltering us a bit from its frigid precipitation. small drops of rain still scattered across our skin.

"Anyways.. what happened to them..?"

"Don't exactly remember. But it was when I was an errand boy. working and getting paid 13 bucks an hour before something happened in my hometown. Apparently, a civil war broke out, and my parents didn't have enough time to evacuate the vicinity before they were set to kill everybody on the battlefield. Or ones that didn't have time to get away from danger. and then they...my grandparents didn't give enough details.. but they're gone. they can't come back. It is what it is."

the rain sprinkling across his cheeks to his eyes makes it look like he's crying.

"really..? is that what truly happened?"

"Yeah. if I was just...stronger as I am now, I could've called them and helped them evacuate, then none of that would've happened. I wasn't filled with genuine insanity as I was when I was an errand boy, multiple women trying to get my number, disgusting customers, disrespect, childish.. I don't miss it at all. when I was weaker.. when I was more vulnerable, obedient, kinder..this world hates the joy of others, so they try to fill them with despair and misery as much as others."

"I see. did they ever capture your parent's bodies? since it's a warzone?" I ask with curiousity and a hope I didn't cross boundaries with him.

"No. they never did. The only report I got from any survivors who knew my parents is: just a couple of limbs under a bunch of debris. not being able to successfully mourn their loss. I feel a bit indifferent about it. almost nothing..hallow soul."

"No, you dont." I mutter in disbelief.

"What?"

"I believe you feel something other than indifference. The individuals giving you life have lost theirs. it's impossible to feel indifferent for that."

"ahh fuck..it's been years since it happened. and during those years, it was also my grandparent's demise. was selfish enough to care more about my martial arts training than visit their funerals to mourn their losses. so hellbent on becoming stronger to disregard the tragedy and fallen heritage of the "Lee family." I don't forgive myself for that. when I used to be so angry."

"You don't have to feel these emotions all the time."

I grazed his soaked jacket.

"I'm here for you if you need me. even if you see me as just an incontinent degenerate, you know me as.~, but this degenerate cares more about you than I do about my life. remember that as you will. I may be an asshole at times, but I reassure you."

"You insult yourself a lot."

"You do it more than me."

he chuckled.

"factually accurate. But..thank you. never expected you to be so open-minded to anybody else other than the sword demon."

"I'm not stupid."

jaha reached his hand upon the rain, coating his palm with its satisfying drippings.

"It's raining pretty hard. should we seek shelter?"

"No. I'm pretty content with the relaxation of the falling rain, and also, being here with you than loneliness is better than anything I experienced in my life. the rain, your aura, your presence, all of it fills me with an emotion I can't describe."

"and yet I find your efforts to claim me more than attractive woman is supremely maddening but intriguing at best. you've changed. and I don't hate it. I'm just trying to adjust to the new change of yours. from a perverted dumb ass to a person with thoughts and feelings who knows his actions are taken accountable for."

"Are you aware that i'm unforgiving of my past self. not forgive and not forget?" I said with a sharp exhale.

"Very aware. Can respect you for that no matter how much you're an idiotic sperm spreading cunt at times. we're both equals. and nothing can change that. two ying and yangs. but two of us are enveloped in the dawn of darkness with just a small radiant light. insanity is at one with me while lust is at one with you."

"I feel lust when I want to feel lust. including you."

his face lingered against mine, like he's pampering me to test that lust. the rain leaking down the bangs of both of our hair.

"we can take off our gas masks in this weather. I don't care if we'll get sick due to the mist, but all I want is to do you."

" Isn't that unsafe?"

I looked down to jaha's mask, slipping off to his mere upper lips, his lips circling in a smirk as he spoke: "I don't care."

"Geez, calm down.."

once the last drips of rain have landed onto the grass,I set up the fire to warm us up.

"Don't pamper me with lust. pamper me out of your own antics in trickery. I love it when you're unpredictable.~"

"...have a question."

" What is it?" I light crackles onto the fire to blaze at it more.

"What was it like being in the mong family? the most powerful family in china?"

"they had their expectations as their most beautiful, intelligent, sly, and physically strong son by forcing me to take martial arts while I was seven to five years old, having me take china's most prestigious schools. that includes schools relying on intelligence to get grades, schools taking college level calculus and algebra, literature, after-school activities, and school councils.

like they didn't care for the state of their child's wellbeing. They only care about who will lead their heritage for generations. If I have children or not, if I find the one that I love, then I'm forced to have children... if it was a woman. instead of a man. after the apocalypse. my parents lost so much of their wealth, ended up homeless, and eventually got killed by a bunch of wastelanders knowing their occupation and appearance by first glance."

"i see..didn't they have strong protection? Like bodyguards?"

"No."

I scrap more of the flashing fire bits to the small inferno.

"they didn't have any. they were brainwashed to think they're invincible, thinking their organic souls were omnipotent and unscathed. but.. no. this damn apocalypse had ruined both of our lives. same goes for the dystopian corruption running this world to a path of control and self-destruction..it makes my stomach churn."

"The best option is to live for yourself instead of living in the past. It slowly destroys you if the past is still looming around your mind constantly with no end. even if the days of this world are in a painful loop. You don't have to suffer the expectations of your parents, nor suffering the way of the world is now, you became a changed man, changed from a moron to a true fighter. you...have me."

"W-what..?" I glanced right back at him, pausing my aggressive handiwork to surge the flames to warm us up.

"I said you have me. you can talk endlessly to me, you can cry to me, you can rage at me. let out emotions kept closed off, breaking you until instability claims your brain, worry to me, ponder to me, all of the above. even if we're destined to kill each other, then I'm here. people hurting usually bottle it up, sharing it with nobody but to let them feel more of the pain than expressing. It's like just.. slitting your arm open. or just fishing out bullets out the collarbone."

that.. had my heart thump intentionally, out of an action I didn't control,I hugged him down to the waist and neck. his breath hitched at this sudden comfort, but slowly hugged me back in a stern but calm embrace.

"Thank you. Jaha. thank you so much.. we're supposed to be enemies. But.. I can't help but think you're the one for me. a person I can understand.. a person I can talk to without any disregard or negligence."

"The one? That's too fast."

" I know. but still..when this is all over. when our destinies to kill each other had been revoked, tie been broken, fate had been demolished. I still want you. still want you to be by my side even as we grow older, even as society rebuilds."

"Too fast, you idiot."

he ruffled my hair, as my body relaxes slightly to his touch.

"aware. I'm being genuine here. You could at least acknowledge how much I've fallen for you."

"Sheesh.."

he looked up to the misty, blackish, greenish sky.

turning nightfall at the two of them.

"we had enough..aren't you going back to your company?"

"No. I want to stay here with you. if we have to go to sleep in the woods, then so be it."

"we'll get sick you twat."

I stood up, grabbed my weapons sprawled around the grass, and took out the fire by a handful of dirty rainwater before looking back at jaha, adjusting his sniper latching on his backpack handle.

"Hopefully, you'll be safe ok?"

"Yeah. I'll be at home. or rather your home to be exact-"

"Aye, don't say that. I give you the fullest permission to live and relax in the comforting depths of my home grounds instead of living in danger throughout these abandoned streets, roads, freeways, and ruins. you're no longer at the influence of your company. your freed."

"Figured as much since you let me use your shower. you use a towel and a small bar of leftover flower scented soap? Really?"

"Gotta use what you can get. But can i get a kiss before we separate again?" I said, slightly pleading.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes. we haven't shown much affection until the day our desires for one another burst into a rain of sparkles, my little pony ass. plus, I still need to make preparations and pre determined plans to further our paths for ourselves instead of serving to companies seeing us as disposable value than a real human being with emotions. I still latch into that determination to destroy our respective companies, find the location, orphanage, direction, and city yoran is. love her and you. that's all that matters. Doesn't it?"

"That's my child."

"officially. It's mine too.~" he sighed at my cocky tone of voice, a sigh of both resignation, trust, and irritation.

"Save it when you get back. we'll have to restock on food. any grocery stores around the city. we need no fresh foods that'll grow moldy in the spam of 4 days later. but..I trust you. more than I trust my subordinates and companions in battle, trust you more than this narcissistic god controlling every aspect of our pathetic human lives. so hopefully your head isn't at the shit depths of your anal once everything goes out of order in the midst of our plan to live for ourselves than living for others."

"I promise I won't."

We both stepped back from each other, and our steps plattering the wetness of the greenery as a sense of longing started to grow into the atmosphere. My fists clench as me and him turn back on each other in unison. every new information jaha had told me had been circling my mind once we went farther away. I almost...want to protect him, take care of him, and treat him like a true loyal man in a healthy relationship. I love him like I always did.

I am so perfectly aware he's independent and capable of taking care of his own wellbeing, but I want to be there for him. his life in general had always been extremely and eerily mysterious. so..the mere fact that he's opened up to his family history is a boost of our trust, our companionship, everything. do I need to go back to HQ or go grocery shopping? HQ first. and then grocery shopping.

each step took a mile, and the city ruins were in full visibility but slightly misty from the radioactive mist, I tried to prioritize my thought process when it comes to shit I don't understand or if I do understand then it's directly towards jaha or his daughter in a another city. I can't figure it out, I'm a grown fucking man. I am not a autistic child whose thought process is completely disproportionate. I see something in the distance. is it...the sword demon? why is he here? what does he need? and third of all: why the hell does he have his most legendary blade?

"Master?"

"mongrang. I have something to tell you." his voice full of challenge.

"You came all the way out here just to tell me something?"

"It's important. I couldn't stay at HQ just because of your next mission standards and conditions. even as your master. it..."

"seriously what's going on?"

his eyes dimmed down in an unexpected worry in those black eyes.

"You were assigned a mission to go to another city and retrieve someone from an orphanage. The reason why I'm so worried about this and about you is because of the civil war in that city. and supposedly.. some living government officials who had controlled the civil war planned to initiate a nuclear nuke. I don't know if it's an assassination mission, stealth mission, and throwing you into the bombs of a governmental civil war..but you can't go."

My blood just ran cold.

"Someone from an orphanage..? But how.. every city controlled by governmental authorities had either approved of the idea of doomsday or control by using the grim reaper as their pawn."

"Our boss said his decision is ultimately final. the city's name is "Juniper" northwest of the outskirt forest of the city ruins. I expected you to survive. I know the relationship between you and jaha. If your feelings get in the way of your mission, then it isn't going to end well for everybody. Even for you. this civil war on their side is a battleground of death. incapable and devoid of survival or even living as a human being. I won't test your abilities since I've taught you more than enough how to become formidable. But..this starts tomorrow."

"But who am I targeting in a orphanage..? you haven't explained a thing about that."

he stepped back from me before turning his back to the misty, empty, despairful horizon.

"All will be explained in due time. Until then. go home. grocery shop. do whatever while you're at it. this mission is a definite example of why a human soul is exchangeable and conductive. I don't want to come back to HQ 2 days later to see your body in a grave. go ahead and leave. consider sparring with jaha. You need it for tomorrow's unfortunate pre determined outcome of your own saddening human life."

everything swirled in my meaty brain. is it...yoran? jaha's daughter? I had my suspicions of the boss capturing a young child for either blackmail or just for unknown context. But seriously? a civil war? humanity is so fucking divided than even aliens will see us as just childish peices of entitled, inner superiority complex cunts. jaha's reaction to my involvement in a civil war is unknown, but I'm not scared. I'm just hoping he'll come with me. I seem to grow an attachment to him. hungry dog.

I walk as this information is a lot to take in.

I started to see a small convenience store the size of a Costco, appearing as withered, peppered with broken windows and pieces of...limbs on the shards of the windows. The boarded up doors were slightly broken but held good. just enough for my strength to pull them out. I lift my hands to the wood.

Easily breaking them off and entering the store, only to be met with even more dismemberment in the side of my eye huddled in a corner. It smells horrible. I'm pretty sure 2 hours after the horrific fate of humanity as called "doomsday," the men who mass murdered many of the city's civilizations had fiddled with the bodies for fun. I don't even want to talk about what shit they did to the bodies of dead woman.. God, why are we so insufferable.

I walk to each aisle, and most stocks of food are taken. but I see a lot of vegetable soup cans at the bottom of the shelf, same as a package of mixed spicy chips and muffins on the side. the expiration date of the muffins is..3/11/20. next month. I tried to pack it all in a big bag so I wouldn't have a problem carrying it back to my home. someone came into the store unannounced.

the sounds of those deep grunts, I watched his fingers close his nose to the pile of dismemberment in the entrance to the store. It's jaha. what's he doing here? I flinched back to see his eyes look directly at me. I can't face him due to the mission tomorrow as I'm conflicted about telling him or leaving him confused as to why I leave to charge through a civil war to retrieve his daughter. for whatever reason.

"I came to look for you.."

"Why?"

"...my boss came by eariler to blackmail me. he said: "come back into my company in time before our war begin and I won't share any data of yoran's personal information to human traffickers still alive in the city, better yet..to assassination companies not even giving a fuck about murdering a child. come back and your daughter is safe...for the time being."

of course, I declined to come back. I know he isn't bluffing. by the tone of his voice. he also showed me the personal documents and informative files of yoran's history. considering your plan.. I need them dead. Right now. if we have the chance to kill him and your boss while I'm currently a lone wolf."

I chuckled nervously, trying to peice together this cryptic puzzle in my mind.

"blackmail..? damn. he's really trying so hard to get you to come back since none of his forces can fight better than you. even during the past battles of our companies. you fight like a..whoo..~"

"..."

his face knows that I'm lying to him.

"I-.. both companies...are targeting yoran just as a lead for more destruction. I been...sent to a mission just to retrieve yoran out of her orphanage. right as two divided companies or forces like ours are having a civil war. exactly like what we've been trying to do. so it's either a gamble with my life or an intentional thing to just throw their most powerful in a situation they have no business in. I have no information about what my boss is trying to do with her. but it's probably never good intentions at best. please believe me. The point of the mission is all written in unintelligible scramblings."

"..."

"I had to tell you the truth. I couldn't just pack every single weapon I have and leave you behind with unanswered questions, swirling your mind as I didn't say anything as to why or what I'm doing tomorrow. but I couldn't just hide it from you. if my mission was about your daughter. after I promised my devotion to treat her like a father along with you, then it's in my debt if I ever hurt her. I'm sorry..as smart as our company bosses are. they might use an innocent child for blackmail or worse."

his fist clenched and unclenched at the thought of using his daughter for horrible stuff, including criminal activities. he said slowly in a husky voice, holding back his burst of rage:

"Did they have any intention of killing her? or..harming her?"

"I don't know.. all I need to do as long as I'm still alive is retrieve her before anything else happens in their violent civil war. I don't want to hurt her, she's yours and yours alone, she's a child, she has no need going through the shittiest of this sickening world supposedly made to be the image of "God."

No criminal/ terrorist should use the live of a child to blackmail others. if the sword demon gives me more intel about why yoran's capture is relative at all." I said with disgust.

"He probably got the information from my boss since he has the most intel onto yoran's history and life by sneaking some of his stealth unit assassins into the archives in the back of my headquarters smart son of a bitch..he's using her against me. My own daughter to be used as a pawn to these rich fucks, thinking they have the authority of the innocence of human lives who had no involvement to wars or destruction whatsoever.." he sputtered in exasperation and concern.

"jaha. I have made a new promise. if yoran's capture has something to do with torture or murder then I'll do everything in my power to make sure her safety is determined from the start of this journey. this promise remains in my heart from the time I step out in the forest outside of the city. her life is deserving of the peace this world can offer. like limited stocks of a popular food or product everybody in the world hungers to get, no matter what."

"...thanks."

jaha ruffles his hair, taking in my words forcefully as his worry continues to push it back.

"Despite my inability to change as a person due to our past in constantly loathing each other's existence. from the first time you tried castration onto me during a double date, or that time I couldn't go back to the sword demon's private mansion, so I had to bathe in the nearby river, you were there. disgusted at my nudity, you were there. all of it. when my mind was consumed with either embarrassing you, killing you, or insulting you out of every word I speak out of my mouth. we were both different then. this is now. loving each other for who we are."

"Funny how you used to be so cocky."

"...exactly."

with an action i couldn't control, I hugged jaha in a tight, warm embrace, wrapping my arms around him.

"The hell?"

"I love you. too much. it's unfathomable. the way you just.. I can't explain it, but the way you just have me smitten from just anything you do. from a thousand moons to the anarchy of heaven and hell. I'll give up god and the entire religious system of the gods for you. I'll do anything.. This is abnormal. even for me but..honesty is always key in a relationship. whether if it's a web of lies with a fly full of honesty trapped in between. That didn't make sense but I don't give a living damn."

"Oddly compassionate for a pervert but..I love you too."

his hands held my skin as we relaxed in the glory of our scent. jaha smells slightly musky with a small tang of manly perfume with a drop of human blood. ahh..the casual scent of the mad demon himself, can't admit that It got me addicted.

"Since you're basically at home while I depart for this mission. I'll stock up on food so you can feed yourself and make yourself at home the best you can. you don't have to feel like you're forced to be around me and my home. remember that I love you, and I won't set boundaries and commands for your stay. Do you want to grocery shop with me? I can get you all the things you like."

"Sure."

each of our eyes gazed at the various variety of items, going from moldy vegetables, the disgusting odor of rotten meat that haven't been taken out of the refrigerator ever since the climax of doomsday. jaha pounced around the store, pondering on his options to choose what he could get. I held multiple baskets in my arms. one for me. And one for jaha. he put a lot into the basket, including energy drinks and condiments for protein such as packets for flavored water and bars. I wonder about jaha's cycle of protein and dedication of health at times. usually, I see him order a salad while we're both off work at the same time or work out constantly in a gym as I was previously plotting to always kill him at some point.

the last can of soup landed on my basket.

his own item landed on his own.

"Are you done?"

"Yeah I got everything I need. but I have to say something."

"Hm?"

jaha took a dirty backpack off the side of the aisle and gave it to me, resting his strong fingers onto mine for a moment.

"Do you need to pack up everything for your journey? you shouldn't just go ahead and walk directly to your suicide mission without supplements of food or water. I..care about you. so grab some extra cans of soup and drinks despite our big stacks of food for the sake for me instead of your well being. Go ahead."

"Are you serious..? jaha. I don't have to pack for it. I'm only packing my weapons. humans are meant to go days without foo-"

"Just fucking do it. don't want you to starve or be dehydrated as soon as the fifth hour hits after you're gone to the city yoran resides at."

his eyes look to the aisle and back at me 3 times. no debates required. I groaned in response to his concern, grabbing an extra basket.

"Don't groan like that. just looking out for your health and safety. I'll worry about you every second of the night and day as soon as you leave to embark on a quest to get my daughter to be used as a fucking blackmail tool." He snarled in anger.

"I understand your concern. but you're basically homeless. The reason why I offered you grocery shopping with me is to give you a lot of food and water while you're residing in my home for the duration of this mission. I'll worry about you too. I know your independence and strength as the highlight of your character as a human, but what happens to you if your boss ever tried to inact violence to get you to join back into HQ?? like breaking into my home and committing arson just for fear propaganda and blackmail just to retrieve his strongest assassin back?"

I raise my voice in worry, slamming multiple cans of soup, sardines, rations, and bars of chocolate.

"The boss doesn't know about your journey to the city as well as the civil war, from what I assume. so if he knows no intel about your wearabouts then it shouldn't be a issue for me to remain unprotected since all that son of a bitch has done is try stupid trickery to pull me back to my company. I'll be ok. Trust me. all he can do is be unintelligent and incompetent at his work since I'm his pawn. My martial prowess is used for his own benefit. I'm no longer his pawn. he'll have nothing to do with me if I continue to decline going back into the company."

"I see.." I mumbled, resting my head down, mind bursting with thoughts of his wellbeing.

"Aye. I trust you just like you trust me. I trust you just because you've earned it throughout our relationship from being hateful loathsome killers to lovers. I trust you enough to come back from the journey, not expecting you to be at one piece, but I do expect you to be alive so I can take care of you. if I can. I still need to study medication by Dr. moyong back at the company, but..I'll be ok. I promise."

"Thanks for that.." I raise my head back up, mumbling in a soft voice.

"You're welcome. just try not to think too much about things that are potentially going to throw off your focus in the middle of battle. for example: thinking about me in the comfort of your home. wonder whether my boss is going to come or not. If this journey requires focus for your main objective, it is to get through the horrors of war and get my daughter, then just..don't think too much, ok?"

"...alright...alright uhm..do I need to carry all of this or?"

jaha slapped my hands off the handle of the 3 baskets in my left hand, picking it up with ease.

"...this is why I fucking love you."

"Let's go. you need time to pack and prepare yourself."

He and him stepped out of the store, running back home. I noticed he matches the pace of my speed, considering our inhuman abilities as still human to begin with, we arrived back home.

lifting ourselves up in the broken elevator.

jaha set the baskets down onto the storage room/ food pantry, grabbing my backpack just to have me stuff food, weaponry, rations, wood, clothes, soap, and a flashlight.

"What's first?"

"Soup, cans of ravioli or chicken soup, flavored sardines such as olive oil, garlic and herb, mexican tortilla flavor, and butter. same as canned tuna out of mexican packages. I looked through your pantry earlier before I came to find you in the grocery store. you have a whole bunch of different foods. so i decided to use that chance to help you pack for this mission."

"Intelligence is sexy." I meowed seductively as I took the three cans of different flavors of tuna and sardines. All of them can fit into a small bag of some sort. I shoved it in the bottom of my bag, watching as jaha scrolls through my pantry.

"Here." his hands had three cans of chef boyardee. I take each of them to pack it up.

"You already have your weaponry such as assault rifles, snipers, pump, and a whole bunch of deadly assortments. Do you need any clothes for it? Or are you going to use the same clothes for the mission?"

"...I'll stick with the same clothes."

the bag started to get heavy as jaha soon started to put a lot.

"Wait chill. I don't need this much."

"Fine. but I want you to be safe while you do this. I don't want you to frantically find some food after running out in the middle of a fucking civil war. I...want you to come back to me. It's not like I'm caring about you more than my daughter. I still want you to survive.-"

I turn his face back to me and press my soft lips against his chapped ones before pulling back seconds later with a genuine, firm smile, reassuring him before he could worry even more. I wonder why he doesn't worry much about yoran than to me? That's his daughter so why?

"I wonder why you worry much more about my safety more than yoran while she's potentially going to be a weapon or a tool for pre determined blackmail and murder. all of this, and yet you didn't say anything about her once. Why is that?" I said in curiosity.

"While my worry for yoran's safety consumes my mind as you embark onto your mission to capture her back to your company after surviving the middle of a civil war in a different city. I see you as her protecter. I see you as someone who can shield her from all possible dangers of that civil war or the dangers of the apocalypse itself. that's why I'm not so worried about her safety that much because I put my trust in your protection for her safety."

"...thank you.." I softly mumbled, flattered at the knowledge of knowing jaha trust me.

"At least. She'll be alive in your hands. I depend on it for the most part."

I fumble my hands in joy, blushing, for a maddening asshole who stabbed me and beat me down like a Olympic warrior towards a wild animal while no weapon is at hand in the middle of a darkened nightclub is surprisingly compassionate to me. to be honest. I'm happy he's slowly opening up to me.

"Thank you..thank you." I softly mumbled once again as I laid my head onto his shoulder, wrapping my trembling fingers onto his waist. as I did this. he slowly sat down onto the bed, spreading his legs to make more room for me to cuddle him, as we're both in the wall.

his hand rose up to carress the light chocolate locks of my hair, soothing me even more to the brink of ultimate relaxation.

"No need to thank me. you've gotten me enough to trust you."

"got?~ so..does that mean you admit you're also in love with me? Don't let your title as the "mad demon" prevent your admittance to say you're also in love?"

"fuck you. We're a couple. I admit that the most." His hand clamped onto my head more to push it more to his bare skin of his neck. causing me to shiver in desire.

"Fine fine.~ Once I'm back. I'll come back for you and take extra priority to yoran's safety. if all of this chaos is over.. once we get back to our normal days of survival in this post-apocalyptic dawn of hell once our companies self-destruct. yoran is my daughter while you're my husband. as an example. Not considering real marriage, but it's true."

" You have a long day tomorrow. rest."

his hand slithered across my chocolate locks, soothing me to the mysterious darkening depths of the dreamworld. I felt content within jaha's energy and presence, holding me tightly as if he were to protect me. I slumped down onto the warmth of his neck, snoring in a sleepy embrace.

-Next Day-

I woke up to see jaha also in slumber, grasping me into his arms, his head slumped into the wall.

It pains me to leave him alone despite the damage and the danger to this corrupted world.

I stand up to put on my most powerfully defense and shield purposed suit, gas mask, boots, every gun weapon, and melee weapon I could possibly stuff in my bag full of clothes and food. I sheathed my sniper to my back along with my back while checking to see if I had everything, including a map that pointed me directly back to this city.

jaha wakes up to the sounds, he stands up along with me, speaking groggy.

"Leaving right now?"

"... yeah. I won't be gone for long. I promise to come back."

he ruffled his scruffy, messy jet black hair.

"You better."

"Temporary goodbye kiss?"

in such speed, he held my cheeks and pressed his lips onto mine, deepening it further and further before pulling back, he handed me a large map circling the locations and data of every city near ours or far away from ours to my chest.

"You better be safe. And I better not see a scrap of yoran's skin being scraped off. Understand?"

"I will.." I mumbled, wiping my mouth before slowly stepping back into the hallway.

"I love you. I'll see you very soon."

"...love you too."

-TO BE CONTINUED-

HAPPY HALLOWEEN GIFT♡

#return of the mad demon #return of the crazy demon #jaha lee #광마회귀 #webtoon #yi zaha #lee jaha

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tobiasdrake · 10 months ago

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As long as we have all this downtime, we might as well go visit old friends.

We used to eat bits of it together.

...that's not as gross as it sounds.

Right. That. Sorry, I don't words good when I'm grieving.

This is a sacred place to the villagers here. And now it's a sacred place for us too.

Zale and I made Moraine babysit our Flasky Boy while we attend to the business of pounding on TIA's door. We would have left the hollow puppet there too but he doesn't take orders; He just follows us around mechanically. It's eerie and I'm half-convinced Resh'an did that as a practical joke.

B'st doesn't get hit by things, so much as he is given the conscious suggestion that he should behave as though he was hit by a thing. Which he ignores.

I would too.

I think he should seek out Yoyo first, personally, since she's the one who delivered the prophecy of his creation. There may be more to that prophecy.

Are they....

Is Cael going to use Kickball to rip out the Immortal Children's souls and put them in robot bodies that can leave the castle?

Because that's an awesome idea and as long as they're doing it consensually, I'm 100% onboard with it!

I don't see Watchmaker around so they might not have told her. But. Like. Who gives a shit. She wants to be imprisoned here for eternity with nothing but her work keeping her company.

They're going to make a new body for Kickball too. Might need a new name to go with it.

Everything's better here in Mirth. The air's cleaner. Water doesn't taste like rot. Food doesn't come from a wall. Also, we have a functioning ecosystem. Gotta be honest, I'm not even sure what we're breathing in the other world since the plants are all dead and the climate regulator isn't regulating climate.

We might just be. Like. Ever-so-slowly using up a large but finite supply of breathable air distributed among the few remaining organic lifeforms on the planet. That's horrifying. I'm gonna stop thinking about that now.

OH OKAY THEY'RE GOING TO BECOME A HIVEMIND AMALGAM.

You know what? That's on me. I should have known better than to leave them unsupervised. They're children.

I've got the juice if we need to Moon Shiv it again.

FROGGY. ROBOT.

...

PINK froggy robot.

I'm sorry I can't pay attention to your big prepared speech because OH MY GOD YOU'RE ADORABLE.

Does that pink gem on your chest work like a mobile eclipse cannon or is that just there for aesthetic. I love it either way.

FROGGY

Okay fine, Artificer. Legal Team says we can't call you Froggy for trademark reasons, seeing as you're very obviously a composite of two distinctly identifiable characters. Gotta keep the branding as lawyer-friendly as possible.

No, I get it. I'm happy for you. For all of you. Please don't be offended when Serai and I aggressively destroy this machine with extreme prejudice. Your froggy body is fine but this thing isn't allowed to exist.

So that's a no on the eclipse cannon functionality. You should look into upgrading. The fatal flaw that defeated the cannon before was that it was stationary.

In any case, welcome aboard, Arty. It was nice to see home again, for what time we had here. Even if I may have made a small miscalculation in my plan for how to deal with TIA.

BUT THEN WHERE THE FUCK IS HE!?!?

I'LL START BURNING THINGS, I SWEAR

Fortunately, I kept a cool head and calmly, civilly allowed myself to be dragged from the room. And now our time here is done. We return to Serai's world, armed with the greatest technology the Clockwork Castle can build.

HAHAHAHA SEVEN GREEN GEMS ASSHOLE, kneel before my Gold Engineer!

#sea of stars #drake plays sea of stars

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definitelynotapossum · 1 year ago

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Felicity

Chapter 2 of All the Shades of Black: A Stardew Valley fanfic! You can find the full, in-progress fic here!

___________________

Springtime in the valley had its ups and downs for the townsfolk. There were plenty of fish to be caught in the rivers, and the weather was warm enough for walking outdoors, but sudden cold snaps tended to hit the valley, freezing crops and stunning the local wildlife.

Stardew's newest addition to the town, the farmer girl, was recovering from one such snap, planting rows of parsnips and potatoes out by her house while her four hens watched, intrigued. She was toiling with the garden hoe, frantically tossing up dirt and clumps of dead plants in preparation for the next harvest. There was only a little over a week of spring left, and she wasn't even sure if half of them would be fully grown by then.

"Fuckin' weather around here. Won't stay put for two god damn days…" she was mumbling curses to herself as she buried the seeds in the ground and watered them. "Another cold front and I'll be out a couple thousand. Pierre sold me those seeds at a markup too. God fucking shitty cold weather-"

Several hours and a symphony of profanity later, the garden was finally complete. In a few days, hopefully, the plants would be ready for the spring harvest. The farmer wiped some sweat off her forehead with her sleeve, and stood back, hands on her hips, admiring her hard work. She nodded, content, before heaving the copper hoe over her shoulder and trotting over to the chicken coop.

The four of them, Cinnamon, Peachy, Angel, and Tiny, were huddled around the coop's little entrance door in a small, feathery pile. Thinking that they were just hungry, The Farmer didn't question anything until she heard their low growls and chitters, eyeing something in the coop.

"What is it, girls? Your feathers are all standing on end." She threw open the door, brandishing her garden hoe, ready to lash out and yell at either a fox or raccoon. Instead, she came face to face with absolutely nothing, and she sighed. "There's nothing even in here. What are y'all scared-" Then she saw it. "-of."

Sat in the middle of the coop, in a little thatch of golden hay, was the oddest-looking chicken egg she had ever seen. A little soot-black thing with red, glistening spots. None of her chickens laid that , and she bent down to examine it. "What on earth...?"

Meanwhile, while the Farmer was busy examining the strange egg that had appeared overnight, Shane and Marnie were having their own complications with their unruly barn animals.

It had started when Marnie had called Shane over to wrangle up some stray sheep that wouldn't cooperate for their shearing, butting them with blunt horns and knocking them over. While they were busy, one of their goats had, once again, managed to escape the pasture, enticed by fresh berries on the opposite side of the fence.

Covered in mud and dirt, Marnie sighed, continuing to shear the ewe she had caught. "Shane?" When he walked over, Marnie handed him a few cave carrots. "Could you call Sweetpea back to the barn, please? She got out again." She pointed over his shoulder where a young, black and brown goat was munching on the leaves of a blackberry bush out in the yard. "I don't know how the little devil keeps getting out, but it's driving me crazy!" The sheep squirmed and tried to butt her again, and she pinned it back to the ground, taking the shears to the wool.

Shane sighed and reluctantly took the cold, hard carrots from her hand. "You know, I don't really think she likes me very much."

"Oh, she's an old goat. She doesn't like anyone. Go on now." She said, now done shearing her sheep, and she darted off to catch the next one. He laughed as he watched her fail a tackle and went face down into the dirt, then bolted upright, red-faced, and went to chase after the ewe.

Sweetpea, despite her name, was an ornery thing who did what she pleased, which Shane thought was funny when he wasn't on the receiving end of her indifference. He bent down next to her, watching her snag some more berries off the bush, chewing loudly before she turned to look at him with an unimpressed expression.

"Don't give me that look. You know you're not supposed to be out here." When he pulled the carrots out from behind him, he watched her eyes go wide. "Yeah, you like this stuff, don't ya'? Only if you come back to the barn, though." He waved a carrot in front of her face, her head moving to follow it, and she took a step forward. "Yeah, come on now, let's get you back-" She suddenly jumped forward, snatching the carrot from his hand, and chewing it up in his face. "You little shit." He hissed, and she snorted at him smugly.

While she was busy eating, the bush shook slightly, and the two of them turned to look at it, intrigued. Shane thought that maybe there was a bird's nest in its center, and they had disturbed it. Suddenly, the bush rattled violently, and a noise that sounded suspiciously like a whine had both Shane and the goat jumping back, wide-eyed. Sweetpea, startled by the bush shaking, bolted past Shane, running back towards the barn without looking back, and Shane felt himself shake a little. "Did that bush just… yelp?" Shane bent down towards the bush, the squeaky sound and trembling leaves drawing him in. Slowly, he bent down onto his knees, reaching out to push up some low-hanging twigs at its base, peering into the sticks. "Hello?"

He jumped slightly as a small, wet snout poked out from between the leaves, sniffing at his hand before a little tongue darted out and licked at his fingers, and Shane's mouth fell open. "No way…"

From the bush emerged a small, black and white, sheepdog puppy, no more than a month old, at least, with sticks tangled in his fur, and a tear in his left ear. He yapped at Shane happily, tail swishing back and forth. "Where on earth did you come from, little guy? You look like you've been through hell and back." He said, plucking a burr from his matted fur.

The dog then began running at his feet, lowering its head to the ground, and eyeing him while doing so. It was only a puppy and it was trying to herd him! He stumbled backward, away from its sharp puppy teeth that just barely grazed the leg of his pants. "H-hey Marnie. Aunt Marnie!" Shane called out to his Aunt, who was working in the barn. "Marnie! Hey, I need your help with something!"

She stumbled outside a few seconds later, clutching a basket of eggs. She was still covered in wool fibers and dirt. "Gracious, Shane, what are you yelling fo-" Hearing her voice, the puppy lost interest in Shane, and bounded over to greet the older woman, yapping excitedly, and running in circles around her feet. Marnie put a hand over her mouth. "Oh, my goodness."

"Think he got dumped like the last one?"

"Oh, I'm afraid so. Look at him, he's all dirty and matted. He's lucky he's alive. Aww… Aren't you a good boy?" She patted him on the head.

Scratching the back of his neck nervously, Shane looked down at the puppy, a question bubbling in his mouth. "Can we keep-"

"No."

"Ah, worth a shot." He muttered. He had always wanted a dog, but Jas had a small fear of them, especially larger dogs. Marnie, holding the egg basket up where the pup couldn't bite at it, placed a hand on her cheek, and a pensive look spread across her face. "What 'chya thinking, Marnie?" Shane questioned.

She stayed silent for a moment, before snapping her fingers when an idea popped into her head, and she patted her leg, signaling the puppy to follow her. "I'm thinking that he needs a good home. C'mon, Shane. I do know who might be able to care for him!"

"Huh? Who?" His heart dropped when he saw the direction she was walking in: towards the Granger's farmstead. "Oh no…"

"C'mon now, you can't avoid her forever."

"Yes, I can."

"Shane-"

Oops, that was her serious tone. "Alright! Alright! I'm coming." He reluctantly trotted over to Marnie's side, twitching his feet as the puppy nipped at the ankles of his shoes. "I'm not gonna talk to her though." Marnie just shook her head.

Back at the farm, The Farmer had taken to a tank top and shorts as the sun began to crest in the sky above, bringing the daily temperature to its peak. Though it was cooler in the mornings now, the temperature had a habit of shifting a good twenty to thirty degrees in the afternoons, before dipping again when the sun went down. This meant long sleeves and pants during the mornings, and the bare minimum of clothing in the afternoons when sweat began to trickle down her face and neck.

She was inside, with the house door and windows wide open, letting in a breeze from outside since her years-old air conditioning unit left much to be desired. "If I don't fix that before summer gets here I'm gonna roast." She had been moving boxes of stuff that came from her old apartment: books, trinkets, silverware, stationary, and the like, she was almost completely done with setting up and furnishing her entire house. Soon enough, she would be able to bring Robin the materials needed for a couple of rooms to be added on. She could hardly wait.

She heard a knock on the doorframe, and turned to the sound of Marnie calling into the house. "Granger? Mrs. Granger! You home, dear? Your doors wide open!"

"Right here, Marnie!" She popped up from behind the veritable mountain of boxes and furniture, trotting over to the door. "Just letting a breeze in. Smells stale in this old farmhouse, ya' know?" She set a small box of photo frames on the counter, all of them being pictures of her and her family. "So, what's brought ya' here?"

"Well, about that." She smiled, a bit forcefully. "We had something, er, someone show up at our house, and we don't exactly know where to take him-"

The farmer gave her a questioning look. "Him?" Now, what did she mean by, "him?"

"I know you just got your chickens and all, and your hands have been full with the cold snap, but we thought maybe you'd-"

There was a sound of a bucket and tools being knocked over, as the muffled sound of someone talking around the corner from the corner of the house made them both look over. Shane hopped out from behind, kicking a metal pail off his foot, while eyeing something in the grass. "Uh… Marnie. Marnie! He's herding me again! Marnie!"

The Farmer watched confused about what had him stumbling. "What the-" Only when a little puppy, no more than a foot tall, bounded after him, did she smile wide. "Well, I'll be damned." Snapping at his pants, teeth digging into the fabric, the canine did his best to drag Shane towards Marnie. He stepped towards them to make the puppy think he had won so he could pry his sharp teeth off of him.

Seeing the farmer, the puppy immediately lost interest in terrorizing Shane and went to greet the young girl, trying his best to jump up the steps, which might as well have been walls for the pup. When he finally got to her, the Farmer bent down and scooped him up, bringing him up to her face. "Well hi there, little one." The puppy licked her nose. "What's your name?"

"He… doesn't have one. Yet." Shane locked eyes with the farmer, and rather than a scrunched-up face of disgust as he had expected, he was instead met with a gaze he couldn't quite decipher. She almost looked… a bit sad? Worried? He figured maybe fretted was the word, though he couldn't imagine why. "What?" He snapped when he felt like she had looked long enough, and Marnie scowled at him.

"Nothin'! Nothin'." She continued talking to Marnie like nothing had even happened. "No name then. Yoba… he's a stray. Where did you find this little one?" She said, bending down and stretching out her hand for him to sniff. "He's all matted and dirty!"

"Shane found him outside in a bush. We don't have any idea where he came from. No collar or anything, and there hasn't been word of a lost dog around town either." Marnie sighed. "I think he might have been dumped."

Shane dusted some puppy prints off his pants and shirt. "Yeah, besides the only dog I know around here is that mutt of Alex's." Shane added. "We've had people throw their dogs in the water upriver before, from Zuzu City."

Her face suddenly dropped, and she looked at the two of them solemnly. "Before?" She muttered, looking down at the dog, who was now chewing on her finger, his little paws wrapped around her wrist. "Sweet Yoba…"

"We understand if you can't take him." Marnie sighed. "We just thought it would be worth a shot, you know? He's clearly a farm dog and all-"

The farmer raised a hand, holding the pup in her other arm. "You won't have to worry. I'll take him. I have more than enough room, and I've always wanted a dog."

"It's not too much trouble?"

"Not at all, Marnie. So, sheepdog, huh?" The little puppy licked her nose, and she giggled. "We'll call ya' Shepherd, eh? How's that sound?"

"Shepherd! Oh, that's a lovely name! Right, Shane?"

"Whatever."

"This sweet thing's gonna have a nice home here, I know it." Marnie scratched Shepherd on the head, and the farmer set him back down on the porch, looking over at the chicken coop, where the hens were scratching and pecking at the dirt.

Shepherd hadn't seen them yet, so she gently picked him up, and turned him in their direction, watching his eyes go wide at the sight of the birds. His tail began to wag excitedly. "Go get 'em, Shep! Go get 'em! Go on!"

With a high-pitched bark, he vaulted down the steps, landing face first in the earth, making everyone chuckle, before scurrying off towards the coop. The three of them watched as the little dog began to run in circles around the chickens, who couldn't be less bothered by the sight but were curious about the new face. Shepherd lowered his head to the ground, stalking around the birds, who began to back up at the sight. He then bolted in the opposite direction, rounding up Tiny and Peachy from the other side. The chickens were now packed together, and the dog zigzagged towards them, backing them up to the coop door.

The Farmer whistled, a cue to stop, and the puppy lifted his head, and bolted back to the steps, immediately flopping over onto his back, allowing The Farmer to scratch his belly. "He's a natural. That'll make getting them into the coop at night a lot easier. He'll fit right in, Marnie."

"Wonderful! I was worried he wouldn't find a home here." She bent down to the puppy, scratching him behind his ear, making him shake his leg. "Be good to Miss Granger, little Shepherd. She's a hard worker." Behind her, Shane rolled his eyes. "I'll let Mayor Lewis know of the new addition. I'm sure he has some blank adoption certificates somewhere. Oh, and a collar! I wonder if Pierre has a blue one."

Shane was already walking down the steps, eager to get back home. Seeing The Farmer with her new pet made him miss his own. That and just seeing the girl drained his social battery. Getting the hint, Marnie followed close behind, waving goodbye to the Granger girl and Shepherd. "Good luck! Having a dog is a life-changing thing!"

"Thanks again, Marnie! Thanks, Shane!"

He had no clue why she was thanking him. Bringing the dog there was all Marnie's idea. "Hey." She bumped him in the side. "She said, "Thank you."

Sighing, he mumbled, "You're welcome," and Marnie nodded in approval. He could feel the girl staring at his back. He just knew and, sure enough, when he turned she was looking at him with that same expression from before and just like last time, he couldn't quite place the look. He simply shrugged, turning back towards the path and keeping his eyes forward. " Weird girl. At least she took the dog ."

"Hey! Hey, Shane! Wait up!"

" Oh no… " She was back, and running towards him. "What the hell does she want with me?" He tried to ask Marnie to take care of her problem but, before he could even ask, she turned and began swiftly walking towards the trail back to the barn. "Marnie! Don't-!" Too late, she started walking at a faster pace, leaving Shane to deal with the farmer, and he swore she was smiling. "Goddamn it-!"

"Shane!" The Farmer screeched to a halt in front of him, throwing up a dust cloud that he fanned out of his face. She bent over, placing her hands on her knees, and huffed, out of breath. "Before… you say anythin'… I don't wanna talk to you either."

"Then why are you?"

Straightening up, she took in a lungful of air before continuing. "Because… I have a problem-"

"Then get someone else's help."

"Look. It's somethin' with the hens. You're the only person knowledgeable enough about chickens to help me. I don't think even Marnie tops it."

His eyes suddenly had a glint to them. "A… chicken problem?" He didn't want to admit it to himself, but he was flattered. " Most knowledgeable! Hey… I've made something of myself! " He cleared his throat. "Yes. Well… I've raised them for years. I know a lot."

"Yeah. Yeah. Look, there's something in the coop I really want you to look at. I've never seen anything like it, and I have no idea where it came from, and I'm not getting close enough to it until I have some idea of what it is."

"Is this, "thing," gonna try to eat me or something? He grimaced. "What the hell is it?"

"Well… that's the thing."

Back at the coop, the egg remained untouched by both The Farmer and the other hens, who were now piled up in the corner, still eyeing the strange little egg with uncertainty. She and Shane were hunched down, both staring at the egg on the floor, perplexed, and even he had to admit that this was a new one. "What the fuck?"

"I know, right? It just… showed up. Scared the girls half to death. They won't go near it." She gestured to the pile of trembling feathers in the corner. "What d'ya think it is?"

"An egg, obviously, but it looks… burnt?" He reached out a tentative hand, brushing his finger along the hardened shell, before he gasped and abruptly pulled his hand back, startling her.

"What? What?! What is it?!"

"It's warm!"

"I mean, it was laid this morning, but-"

"No! no! I mean-" He picked up the egg, cupping it in his hands and pushing it towards her. "Feel it!"

She jumped back. "Are you crazy!? I ain't touchin' that thing!"

"I'm serious!"

"Ok. Ok… fine." She cupped her hands, and Shane slid the egg in, and her eyes widened at the feeling. "What the shit?! It feels like it's been microwaved or somthin'!"

"Exactly! How could a chicken even lay this?"

"Wasn't one of mine. I swear. They're terrified of the thing." The Farmer handed the egg back to Shane, who gently turned it in his hands, inspecting the way the red flakes glistened in the light. "It almost looks fake, but it feels so real. I really don't know what to tell you. Look, Gunther has some books on chicken breeds and stuff. You should try and get your hands on one and see if you can find a match in there. Maybe it's just… I don't know, an unusual breed."

They both went quiet, deep in thought as to what to do. It certainly wasn't normal, that was for certain. "What kind of chicken do ya' think would come outta it if it hatched?" They both gave each other a look of mutual agreement and trotted over to the incubator. Shane gingerly placed the little egg in the hay, watching as the little red speckles seemed to glisten slightly.

"I don't think I'll be able to look into it with a flashlight. That black shell won't allow it so I guess just wait and see what happens." He shrugged, not speaking any further than that. He seemed genuinely interested in the strange little egg. Hell, he seemed interested in anything that had to do with chickens, or farm livestock in general. Even though their first meeting was a bit rough, The Farmer smiled, happy that she had someone knowledgeable about animals as her neighbor. She might be a bit lost otherwise.

He glanced at her, just barely catching her staring, and she turned her head, pretending to be interested in a little feather on the floor. Shane cleared his throat, the quiet moment growing to be unbearable. "Well… um-" He shook his head, walking towards the coop door. "Just… let me know what becomes of it."

The Farmer raised an eyebrow. "You don't want to meet the other hens?"

He stopped momentarily in his tracks, a piqued expression on his face, but he ultimately ignored the feeling. "I've gotta get back to Marnie. She needs help shearing the sheep today."

"Ok… alright."

Shane closed the door behind him, not once looking back, and The Farmer sighed. "Well, better than nothing." She felt something soft brush against her leg, and she looked down to see Tiny huddled up against her leg. The other hens had moved from their pile and were now strutting around the incubator, purring at it quizzically. Angel, the smallest of the group, hopped up on its edge, cocking her head at the sight and trilled. "What? Is that your egg or somthin'?" Sure enough, little Angel hopped into the hay, and strutted a couple of circles around the egg, before plopping down on top of it, puffing up her feathers and clucking in contentment. "Well, I'll be damned. How on earth did you- ya' know what? I don't wanna know. You just keep doing your thing, Angel." She scratched the little hen on the head. "Let's see what happens, eh?'

Angel was undaunted by the sight of the little egg, that The Farmer learned quickly, as she refused to get off of it no matter what, and the little hen vowed to stay there no matter how long it took, even after spring began to draw to a close, making way for the summer season. The flower dance came and went like every year, hailing at the end of spring. While dancing with Emily, Shane watched out of the corner of his eye as Jas demonstrated a, quite wobbly, but pretty accurate flower dance that The Farmer watched intently, and tried to copy, which she ended up putting her own spin on some of the moves. "You made your own special dance!" Jas squealed, before tugging on her pant leg. "Can you be my dance partner for today, Mrs. Granger? I really want to try it before it ends!"

She was a little surprised but shook her head and laughed. "Of course, but I can't say I'll be perfect at it. I've never done this before."

"Neither have I!" She grabbed her hand and impatiently dragged her into the lines of dancers, pushing her to Sebastian, who was dancing with Abigail. "C'mon, C'mon! It's halfway done already!'

They both chuckled at the sight. "Aww. You got yourself a dance partner after all!" Abigail mused, and The Farmer got bashful, her dancing not exactly like everyone else's. Though he wasn't exactly fond of her, Shane was admittedly happy that Jas liked the girl, and the two seemed more alike than he had previously realized.

"It's good to see Jas finally join in." Emily said. "She never could get Vincent to dance with her. He always stepped on her toes."

Summer hit the valley at full force, blasting the town with record heat and turbulent rainstorms. Her spring crops died back, and the days grew more hot and humid. The Farmer had invested in hot peppers and melons, planting rows upon rows of them in front of the farmstead. Around the land, she grew beautiful golden sunflowers that made the farm look so much more delightful, and she would give them out to some of the townsfolk, Haley being the main beneficiary, as they were her most beloved flower.

At the Luau, The Farmer showed up with an enormous basket of giant, shiny, red habanero peppers, and Shane had to fight not to drool at the sight. " When did she start growing peppers?! Those ones are huge !"

Sebastian, Sam, and Abigail were at her side, observing her unusually large crops, and congratulating her on the harvest. Sam swiped one of the peppers from the basket and popped it into his mouth as a joke, but the farmer simply smiled knowingly as she watched his face form beads of sweat, and go bright red. He quickly excused himself to nearly drain the punch bowl. The three of them cackled at him the whole time, while Mayor Lewis shook his head at his antics. "At least he didn't bring-"

"Anchovies?" The governor laughed. "Yes, indeed."

Ascending the ladder up to the pot, she waved hello to Marnie, who was stirring the batch with a comically large wooden spoon ."You made it, and you brought those delicious peppers."

"Sure did! They're the best I've ever grown! The soil here is really somethin'." She looked at the governor, the basket tilted over the potluck. "This won't make it too spicy, will it?"

"No such thing!" He bellowed, and she dumped the basket full of peppers into the potluck. Later, the governor declared that year's potluck was one of the best he had ever attended.

Now, at the end of summer, word of the Moonlight Jellies' arrival swept through town as it did every year, and Jas, just like every year before, begged Shane repeatedly to take her to the docks, which he agreed to every single time. "I take you every year, you know. You don't have to beg."

At the farmstead, the Granger granddaughter got a letter in the mail alerting her to the event. " Join us at the docks around 10 pm for a rare and beautiful event! The moonlight jellies will be passing by Pelican Town on their long journey south for the winter ."

"Moonlight Jellies… I've never heard of such a thing." Curious, and wanting to see such a rare event for herself, she made it towards the docks at sundown, wanting to claim the best spot on the docks for herself. She was glad to see that everyone in town was already there, eagerly waiting for the lantern boat to launch. Mayor Lewis greeted her. "Glad you could make it! You definitely won't regret it. The moonlight jellies are a spectacle you shouldn't miss."

She had also spoken to Miss Evelyn and George. "We've never missed a single year. I've been coming to see the moonlight jellies ever since I was a little girl. I'm glad you get to see it all for yourself."

"Hmph. What's so special about these slimy little balls of goo anyway?" George huffed.

Soon, the sun had finally rested below the horizon, leaving the people of Pelican Town in near complete darkness, only illuminated by the one, small lantern, and the millions of stars in the sky, untouched by the blinding lights of the nearby Zuzu City. "Wow… you can see almost every single star out here. I could hardly see just the planets back home."

Mayor Lewis had untied the rope to the lantern boat, waiting for the signal to let it loose. "You think it's time to launch it, Miss Granger?"

"Absolutely!"

With that, he let the boat slowly drift out to the open water, and the docks were shrouded in opaque darkness. It was oddly quiet, the only thing being the murmurs of excitement in waiting for the migrating jellies to arrive. The minutes passed, yet there were still no signs of their arrival. "Does it usually take this long?"

Suddenly, Vincent grabbed onto his mother's sleeve, jumping up and down on the pier. "Look! Out there! Out there!" The still, clear water began to glow an eerie, white color, and the people on the docks began to "ooh," and "ahh," at the sight. One by one, little round jellyfish began to appear from the distant water, the glow becoming ever more bright the closer they got until the entirety of the beach was lit up like the fourth of July. They looked like stars in the ocean, glowing vividly against the deep backdrop of the sea, or snowflakes on a clear winter's night.

The Farmer stared in awe. "All my life I've never seen anything like this. It's beautiful." Nothing back home or nearby could compare to that moment of seeing the Moonlight Jellies, or Lunaloos, as the Wizard called them. She felt like he was right when he said they possess a magic aura stronger than other sea creatures. It could be felt just from watching them.

Abigail watched her smile wide as a trio of baby jellies came to the edge, along with one giant, basketball-sized parent. She placed a hand on her shoulder. "So… what do you think of your first Moonlight Jelly Festival?

"I know I 'aven't seen the other festivals yet but… I think this one is gonna be my favorite." She said, gazing out onto the water with a look of pure wonder and curiosity that reminded Abigail of a little kid. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes, and Abigail pretended not to see when she ducked away to wipe them. "You know… it makes me kinda homesick. The ocean."

"You grew up near it, did you?"

"I did. Everything here reminds me of it, but this is so much better in every way." Bending down, she just barely stuck her fingers into the water, giving one of the jellies a gentle pat on the head, and the gelatinous animal seemed to glow brighter for a moment.

Sebastian stepped over to the two of them, watching some of the jellies gravitate towards The Farmer curiously. "They like you."

"Who wouldn't." Sam trotted over and ruffled up the hair on her head, making her smile as she swatted him away with her free hand. "Call it animal magnetism." Sebastian swatted him on the shoulder while she giggled. "What?" He whined.

Soon, the water was filled with jellyfish in every direction, spanning the entirety of the beach. Vincent was running up and down the waterline maddeningly, hoping to spot his elusive green jellyfish, Willy took a moment to cast a non-lethal line out into the bay for Dimitrius, who wanted to observe and tag a specimen to track its migration patterns, and though Linus kept his distance, The Farmer smiled as he waved hello to the jellies that came close enough for him to see.

Dimitrius and Robin were now curled up on the bench, hand in hand, watching the beautiful moment together with Maru leaning up against them. Alex had pushed George's wheelchair out to the edge of the dock, to which he kept responding "If you dump me in I'm gonna haunt you for sure," but he ever so slightly smiled at the sight of the jellies. Even he had to admit it was a breathtaking sight. Evelyn nodded a thank you to Alex and placed a kiss on his forehead. "Nana…" he groaned.

Elliot had rushed into his home to grab a journal, hoping to scribble down the memorable moment for a story one day, and even Pierre had abandoned his pop-up shop to sit with Caroline on the pier, to which Abigail beamed at.

Jas and Vincent both crowded around the edge of the pier, while Shane gripped the back of both their shirts, afraid that one of them would fall into the drink. "Easy you two. I'm not gonna be the one to fish you out."

"But I wanna see the babies!"

"You can see them close enough from here."

Only Sam could rival the kids' enthusiasm, grabbing the other's shoulders and pointing whenever a jellyfish came close, to which they would nod their heads and say "I see them too."

A faint, green light began to glow below the dock as a stranger-looking jellyfish swam out from underneath it. "Look! Look! Right there! Hey, Vincent! Come here! There's a green one! There's-" Before Sebastian could tell him to back up, Sam's foot slipped off the dock, and he let out a high-pitched yelp as he went face-first into the sea, sending up a giant spray of water, and Shane rolled his eyes as the jellies in the water swam away from the disturbance.

"Nice goin' Sam." Abigail shook her head.

The Farmer gasped, and jumped upright at the sight, shucking her jacket onto the ground. It was clear that she knew nothing of the moonlight jellies other than the fact that they were jellyfish and, jellyfish being jellyfish, that they probably sting. "No, wait! They don't-" Before they could tell her not to do it, she bolted forward and jumped into the water, sending up another spray of water that Sebastian shielded himself and Abigail from. "You've got to be kidding me." He mumbled.

"Why on earth did she jump?" Shane questioned.

Some of the people around the dock started howling with laughter while they were under the waves, and Leah piped up from the other distant dock. "So who's gonna tell her that Moonlight Jellies don't sting?!

"I have to admire her bravery."

"Did no one tell her?"

"Oh c'mon guys! Cut her some slack!"

"Hey! Here they come!"

Both Sam and The Farmer burst out of the water, Sam clinging onto her for dear life with a bewildered look on his face, his usually spiky hair now a blonde mop covering half his face, and The Farmer's clothes were now ruined with seawater. What caught everyone's eye, of course, was the moonlight jelly that sat atop her head like some sort of weird hat, its glow bouncing off the water's surface. She was confused as to why everyone was laughing at her. "What?! What is it?!"

Dimitrius huffed a breath of laughter and bent down on the dock to look at her, amused. "Moonlight Jellies can't sting you, Mrs. Granger. Sam was in no danger."

Shane and Jas giggled, while the others roared with laughter, as The Farmer's face went bright red, and she covered her face with her hand. "Oh, mon dieu…"

"Mon dew?" Sam questioned, only to find himself plunked back into the water as The Farmer swam over to where Jas was watching, and Sam doggy-paddled back to Sebastian and Abigail. "You could have carried me back!" He called to her.

"Your legs work! You can swim."

Sebastian was bent down at the edge of the dock, stretching a hand out to Sam for him to grab onto. "You know, it's a toss-up between this and the potluck, Sammy. We're not gonna let you forget about this either."

"Like I need any other embarrassments to my name." Sebastian was ready to hoist him out of the water but Sam had other ideas. With a swift yank, he pulled Sebastian into the water with him, the cigarette he had between his teeth being left behind mid-air, only to be extinguished by the water that splashed up afterward. The Farmer and Abigail cackled.

When they breached, Sam sported a dorkish smile at the sight of Sebastian absolutely drenched, clinging to his shoulders. His hair was plastered to his face like some sort of shaggy dog, unable to see anything except his mouth, which was pulled down into a frown. "You know I hate swimming."

"But we're swimming with glowing jellyfish!"

"That's even worse."

On the other side, Jas was bouncing up and down, while Shane kept a death grip on her hand so she wouldn't meet Sam's same fate. "Did you see any baby jellies under the water, Miss Granger?"

"Jellyfish were all I could see, Jas." She saw Shane doing his best not to crack up with laughter, and she glared at him with a displeased look on her face. "What are you gawkin' at?" She barked.

"I like the hat. Suits ya'" he said, gesturing to her head, and snickering, flashing a sharp-toothed grin.

She placed a hand on her head and felt the squishy jellyfish jiggle at the touch, making her grimace, and Shane laughed even harder, while Jas hid her giggles behind her hand. The Farmer about had enough, and she placed the poor jelly in her hand, leaning back and grinning. "Hey Jas, watch this."

When Shane opened his eyes, his fit of laughter almost finished, the wet, gelatinous creature was hurled right at his face, hitting its mark with a wet, sopping splat. The entirety of the docks burst into laughter, Jas probably laughing the loudest of all, as she doubled over at the sight of Shane with a jellyfish plastered onto his face. Behind them, Marnie shook her head. "Not again."

"Serves ya' right." The Farmer smirked.

Shane peeled the slimy blob off his unamused face and plopped the disoriented critter back into the water to join its family. " Good thing these guys are tougher than most jellies ." He strode up to the edge of the dock, eyeing The Farmer. "Right, you son of a-" Right before he could snatch her up out of the water to throttle her, she used one of the docks wooden beams to push herself backward, barely avoiding the swipe of his hands, and Shane panicked, flailing his arms about as he lost balance. "Oh no- no-! Ah! ope-!" With a giant splash, Shane was the next to go into the drink. The Farmer pointed and cackled at the sight, still swimming backward, hoping to not get strangled because of her little stunt. Shane emerged from the water, coughing and sputtering, his hair no longer spiked up in certain places, and droplets of water clung to the stubble of his face. "Holy shit! It's freezing! I should drown you!"

"What? You should thank me. You're swimming with Moonlight Jellies. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience."

"I could have gone several lifetimes without this."

"Speak for yourself." She splashed a spray of water in his direction. "You're smiling ." With that, she ducked back under the water, swimming away with a speed that impressed him.

It took a moment for her comment to register, but she was right. " I… I am smiling ." The water caressed his body, he only had to move his legs slightly to stay afloat, and though the jellies had scattered when he fell in, they now returned, wandering up to him and curiously floating around his legs and arms, glowing brightly. He reached his hand out to a little baby and allowed it to settle in the palm of his hand, and it felt like a little blob of jello. "Woah…"

On the dock, Jas unclipped the bow from her hair and gingerly set it down. "Me next! Me next! I wanna swim with the jellies!" Before Marnie could tell her not to, especially in her good dress, Jas jumped in next, nearly landing right on top of Shane.

The Farmer screeched, "Jas!" but calmed down after she appeared out of the water in front of her immediately after, her hair now loose from the twin buns, cascading into the water. The Farmer sighed in relief. "Oh… you can swim."

"Really well!"

"I see that."

Another loud splash came from behind them, and they turned to see that Abigail had also abandoned her jacket, and shoes, as she too had jumped into the water with a perfect swan dive, and a few onlookers clapped. She waved to Alex and his grandparents on the dock, since he seemed just as eager to do the same. "C'mon, Alex!" The boy tore his shirt off, tossing it to Haley, who just looked at him, disbelieving, and he sprinted down the dock, cannonballing into the water, nearly soaking poor Dimitrius and Robin.

"I didn't know this year's theme was "swimming with jellyfish." Lewis grumbled, rubbing his forehead.

"Oh, let them have their fun." Marnie giggled. Looking around before doing so, she threaded an arm around Lewis', watching Jas and Shane in the water with a warm smile. "It's been a moment since I've seen Shane and Jas having this much fun anyway."

Looking around the bay, the overall tone seemed to change from serene and quiet, to a magical, otherworldly feel as people laughed and splashed water at each other, being joined by the jellyfish who were all too curious to check out the new company. Shane had never seen them as anything remarkable, but the night had completely changed his way of thinking. He would be looking forward to next year's celebration. "Now look at what you've done." He said to The Farmer, gesturing at all the people in the water.

"I'd say I've made it better." A jellyfish swam up against her back, and she jumped, laughing away the fear. "Hey Jas, how long can you hold your breath for?

"Thirty seconds! That's half a minute!"

"Sure is." The Farmer ducked under the water, and popped up a few seconds later next to Jas, splashing some water in her direction. "Climb on my back!"

Doing as she said, Jas clung to her soaked shirt and puffed up her cheeks with a deep breath. The Farmer nodded in question, to which Jas held a thumbs-up, and with that, they both disappeared under the waves and into the cloud of jellyfish.

When she opened her eyes, she almost opened her mouth in wonder too. In every direction, left, right, up, and down, there was nothing except glowing white jellies. Unable to speak, Jas tugged at The Farmer's jacket, pointing excitedly at the babies that swam past them, little bubbles floating upwards from her nose. From their left, something bright green danced near the corals, and the two of them caught sight of the green jellyfish that started the entire journey.

It all ended too soon. She signaled her inability to hold her breath any longer with another tug to her shirt, and they both rocketed up out of the water, taking in lungfuls of air. "That was amazing! There were so many jellyfish! Shane, we saw a green jellyfish under the water!" Jas shook her hair, droplets of water flying in all directions. "You swim like an otter, Miss Granger! Where did you learn that?"

"I grew up 'round the water. Natural habit of mine. Though the jellyfish back home stung. Badly. Me and my friends used to do this when we were little."

Sam and Sebastian swam up to the two of them, absentmindedly chatting with them while observing the jellyfish, and Shane smiled at the sight of Jas grinning from ear to ear, enamored with the jellies. Abigail paddled up next to him. "Thinking of strangling her for pelting you with a jellyfish? You're lucky they don't sting."

He chuckled. "No. Jas thought it was funny. I guess it's alright." He huffed a breath, allowing himself to lean back into the water. "You know something? She's not so bad after all."

The Moonlight Jelly festival ended around midnight, when the water became too frigid to continue swimming, and everyone who had jumped in bolted home to change into warm clothes and huddle up around a cozy fire. The next day, the leaves began to change, sporting varying shades of amber, burnt orange, crimson, and gold. Geese could be seen in the sky, flying southward along with the jellyfish, in search of warmer waters.

It was The Farmer's favorite season. Free from the scorching grip that summer had on her, she was free to tend to her fall crops without working up such a sweat and doing so without Harvey constantly worrying about heat exhaustion. Pumpkins were her main crop, as she hoped to grow only the biggest and best for Abigail to use as a jack-o'-lantern, and for Evelyn as an ingredient in her Spirit's Eve pumpkin pies.

Flower-wise, she had taken to growing beautiful fairy roses for Jas. They came in shades ranging from baby blues to deep, violet shades, and light pinks. They were by far, the most beautiful flowers she had ever seen so, of course, she bought some seed packets from Pierre and began to grow them herself. When she heard that Jas had a special place in her heart for them, she planted an extra patch just for her.

Along with the seasonal changes, The Farmer found herself taking long walks at night with Shepherd, autumn's magical night air having called her into Cindersap Forest, where amber and hazel leaves coated the ground in a blanket of fall colors. Blackberries were growing in abundance now, and she had no shortage of them when she ventured out into the woods, snacking on them the whole way through. Once, a fox darted out onto the trail in front of them, and they got a moment to admire its beautiful red coat and plush, bushy tail before it darted back into the bushes. " Oh, if only I had a camera ."

Tonight, they were alone with the stars and crickets. She had wanted to sit out on the pond dock for a while and stargaze, hoping to see some meteorites that The Wizard had talked about earlier that week. " I feel an arcane power radiating from them ." He had mentioned.

A sharp click snapped her out of her thoughts, and she looked up at the pond ahead of them. It was Shane sitting alone at the water's edge with a beer can in hand. Seems the dock was already occupied. " I should go ." Rather than leave she found herself taking a couple of steps forward. Shepherd whined, looking up at The Farmer as she stared out at the dock, eyes trained on the familiar figure. Unsure of what she was thinking, but following her gut instinct, she tentatively stepped forward, walking out onto the dock. Shepherd paced in a circle before lying down, not exactly fond of being above the water.

She found herself taking more careful steps out onto the dock, unsure if he was in need of company or not. Whatever the true reason, it felt like something was pulling her out there, begging her to stay, like someone was tugging her by a leash and, for some insane reason, she was obeying. When her foot hit a creaky plank, making him perk up, she froze. He looked back over his shoulder and, for a moment, she could have sworn she saw a slight smile, but he ducked back before she could confirm. She inhaled sharply and walked up behind him, fixing her gaze on the lake, not wanting to know of the look on his face.

"Up late, huh?" He questioned, and she finally stepped up beside him, looking out onto the water.

The final fireflies of fall had just begun to emerge, the nights nearly cool enough for them to disappear. They blinked their mesmerizing, glowing patterns in the night in search of other fireflies, painting the forest with little, golden flickers of light. Joining them was the chorus of crickets, vocalizing in unison with the whooperwhills to create nature's nighttime symphony. It was all so very beautiful.

A sharp click snapped her out of her thoughts and made the crickets go momentarily silent. Shane had opened another beer, but pushed this one in her direction, the earthy smell of wheat and rye making her mouth water. "Here. Have a cold one."

"Oh, bless." She said, taking the can from his hand. "Thank you."

"No problem."

She regarded the fish in the water below, taking an acorn that had fallen onto the pier, and tossing it into the water, watching as the fish swam up to it expectantly, and even a small turtle joined in. She giggled when the two would chase each other around.

Shane sighed, watching a bass snap at one fish that was much smaller. "Buh… life." That she could agree with. Life never showed her any mercy, that was for sure. "You ever feel like no matter what you do, you're gonna fail?" He sighed. "Like you're stuck in some miserable abyss and you're so deep you can't even see the light of day?" Her heart ached at the thought. It was a feeling she used to know all too well, and sometimes that same feeling would rear its ugly head in her most vulnerable moments. She nodded solemnly, looking over at him. He kept his eyes forward, not wanting to see the look on her face. " She probably thinks I'm mental… " Either way, he kept on. "I just feel like no matter how hard I try… I'm not strong enough to climb out of that hole."

Memories began to trickle into her mind, eating away at her hardened exterior as she remembered how she felt the same way before moving to Stardew Valley: the smell of alcohol and cigarettes, not showering or brushing her teeth for days, her messy, smelly room, pushing herself to work until she fainted, spiraling deeper and deeper into that pitch black abyss until everything collapsed in one big clusterfuck.

She shook her head and tilted back with the beer can, chugging its contents so fast she hardly tasted it. When she finished it, she let out a small, undignified burp. It was impressive, but it also worried Shane. "Fast drinker, huh? Woman after my own heart."

Her ears perked, and if the alcohol hadn't already done so, she definitely would have blushed from that. " Ain't I the same woman that tried to beat the shit outta you ?" She held her tongue on that one.

"Just don't make it a habit. You've got a future ahead of you still."

"Still?" She questioned. "Shane, you're as young as me."

He didn't reply, and instead took another sip out of his can, finishing it off. "Well… my liver is begging me to stop. Better call it a night." He turned to The Farmer, meeting her gaze for the first time that night. Partially illuminated by the light of the fireflies, he saw the look in her eyes: that same look she had when he stepped onto her porch weeks ago, in the spring. He couldn't decipher it, whether it was pity, fear, or anything of the sort, it didn't matter. For once he was just glad she wasn't looking at him with that face of hatred that she gave him on day one. Standing up, he dusted off his pants, extending his hand to take her empty beer can, when his fingers brushed her own ever so slightly, he could almost feel the warmth the alcohol was causing coursing through her blood. " Why did I give her that? What if she's like me ?" She caught his gaze right before he turned, sensing a faint air of guilt. "I'll see ya' around." With that, he took wobbly steps off the dock, patting Shepherd's head before heading back to the barn, leaving The Farmer all alone on the dock with her thoughts eating her alive. She never thought she'd see the day, but she found herself wishing he had stayed. Even if it did stress her, it was better than her own solitary company.

A wet nose pressed into her hand, and she stiffened, until she realized it was just her loyal dog, who had braved the terrifying dock just to be with her. Shepherd laid his head down on her lap, whining until she placed a hand on his head, scratching behind his ears, and a little smile appeared on his face. She sighed, tilting back to look up at the stars blazing bright above her.

Old memories bubbled up in her mind. Memories from long ago, when she thought all was lost. Now, she was seeing distressing similarities with Shane and his bad habits. He was going down that same, dark path that she had trekked herself, and unless someone tried to pull him off of it, there was no telling how he might end up. " Though I have a pretty good idea ." She thought, gazing out at the cliffs in the distance. A beer can still sat out in the grass from the months before, on that dreary night.

He might end up just like her. " Just like me …" A breeze blew through the forest, sending a chill down her spine, and that's when she decided to call it a night. "C'mon, Shep." Leaving the docs, she took one last look at Marnie's ranch, watching the last light go out as Shane headed to bed. From then on, she would be hoping, every single day, that he would wake up the next.

"There's more to ya' than what meets the eye, isn't there, Shane?"

____________

Full in-progress fic here!

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supereffectivemoonblast · 1 year ago

Text

Call of the Netherdeep

Chapter 2: They shot first

This session began with the main party taking an easy morning, as they've already earned all their freshly baked medals. They have some back and forth with the rivals, and after a while, the rivals leave, and the main party find they're missing a few items with cryptic clues in their place. The party quickly decided it was probably their rivals who did this.

Cherchael, who lost her shield, decides it's probably not worth it to find her old one and goes to buy a new one. While at the caravan, she finds Ziku's thief tools on top of a building.

Ziku, Cherchael, Quierk, and Earl split up to find the remaining items. Cherchael spotted something shiny near the top of the Luxon temple and found this is a spear, but not Earl's specific glaive. They also talk to an Earth Genasi Trickery Cleric at the temple doing pranks, who confesses he buried something near the temple last night. It's Cherchael's shield. Ziku went to the swimming race and found Earl's glaive there. Having exhausted themselves from a busy day, they chill out until the ending ceremony in the evening.

The elders of the Jigow chose our party and their rivals for the final challenge, welcoming them into the Emerald Grotto. It will be a race to find the "Emerald Eye" in the depths of the temple.

When in the temple, the main party has initiative priority and takes one path within the temple, the rivals take the other. The temple is mostly underwater, but they're all given water breathing potions.

The main party's path takes them past carnivorous plants, a rock fall, and a swarm of fantasy piranhas. The rival party fights a giant octopus, presses a button that undoes a current, and finds the secret of a dead end. Both parties reach the final room at the same time and have to fight a giant shark with a magic spear stuck in it and the prize (an Emerald pendent) tied around its body.

Most people start by attacking the shark, but Earl decides to try removing the spear, which takes away some of the sharks' abilities. Ziku tries to cut the rope tying the pendent, but Brucey (the penguin druid) sicks his summon on Ziku so that they don't get any upper hand.

The shark is slain after like 3 or 4 (very long) turns and thrashes around before dying to reveal one more secret room. The rivals quickly snatch the Emerald Eye from the shark's corpse and then decide to leave, having claimed the winning ticket. The other party investigated this secret room and found a sparkly gold pendent. They get a vision from a tortured man named Alyxian, telling them he's trapped in a dark and scary place by scary red magic, and that YOU the PLAYER, can help by bringing this pendent to the places where Alyxian originally awoke power in it. Praying to certain gods on the way.

They get back to the entrance of the Grotto to find the rivals have already claimed their prize money and gone back to the inn. Quierk quickly shows Elder Ushru the pendent. He tells them it is a relic of a time when gods fought, a vestige of divergence called the "Jewel of Three Prayers", and that the best place to find more info on it is Bazzoxan, a military outpost town built on top a place badly scared by the time the gods fought. He offers the party free rooms for a couple of nights while they decide where they wanna go.

#art #drawing #digital art #d&d #d&d oc #d&d campaign #d&d art #dungeons and dragons #dungeons and doodles #call of the netherdeep #original characters

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ancientcraftnoccultism · 1 year ago

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Challenge 2 - Goal Getter

Hello again ♡ I'm back today with the daily challenge! I've managed to come up with a pretty decent list of goals for myself. This is a combination of things within my mundane life and my spiritual practice. I've decided to lay it out as a 5 year plan, not for any specific reason other than my own leisure and dead lines. Let's get to it, shall we?

1. To Live A Self-Sustained Life Off Grid

This is my absolutely most important goal. I plan to find a nice piece of land somewhere in Tennessee. I'll have a well for water, a cast iron oven to heat my house and cook with. I'll have an outdoor bathroom that's cascaded in its own room constructed of Vines. Heat with firewood under for a tub. We'll have 3 horses, a little hen house with enough hens to keep eggs around, and a few goats for milk. I'll spend my days tending to the animals and the garden and creating whatever my heart desires. It's incredibly important to me to learn how to live off of the land. Society is falling apart and humans were never meant to live this way.

2. To Have My Own Business Website/Blog

As it's clear to tell, I've been working hard towards building an online platform for myself. Ideally, I'd have an online Grimoire/Book of Shadows/Mirrors with all of my information organized and easily accessible. I'd also have a professional platform for my divination workings, and eventually a place to sell handmade candles, incense, incense boards, handmade and personalized tarot/oracle cards, runes, bone sets crystals and stones that were harvested by me and so much more! It's become a huge passion of mine to be able to teach people factual information along with provide them with the proper metaphysical equipment that is usually capitalized on.

3. Build Closer Relationships within my Pantheon

I do daily devotion to my deities along and always make sure to honor them throughout my day, but I'd like to become closer to them and learn more about their history. It's another big goal of mine to completely understand and be able to know by heart every inch of the mythology and reasoning behind everything I'm worshiping. Not only what it means to me, but the historical context and how these deities were once revered by entire cities is definitely a big thing to not overlook. I take my relationship with the gods very seriously and intend to devote a lot of my time to studying them as a collective within the pantheon.

4. Maintain My Altar More

I slack on keeping things tidy, especially on my altar. I'd like to set up a few different altars to keep all the things I practice seperate, but for now, I move things around as needed. That gets messy at times, and there are points where I stack things on top of each other, close the shutter, and forget about it until I come back next time. Sometimes I go months at a time without touching my altar. It just is what it is, but it's a big goal of mine to keep things up on it more. And to get seperate ones to space my things out.

5. Learn Local Folklore & Native Plants

I live in the foothills of the Appalachia, and for how long I've lived here, I know very little of the Lore and history of the land I walk every day. I want to learn more about native species and correspondences, as well as local folklore that once were everyday stories. I feel it would help me feel more connected to the land I already hold so close to my heart. It's also important to me to plant and regenerate native species, as it would save our land.

I'm excited to see all of your goals as well. Thanks for reading. Fair Winds ♡

#baby witch #elder witch #beginner witch #witchblr #dark witchcraft #witchcraft #astrology #tarot #aesthetic #divination #tarotblr

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punkpillywiggin · 2 years ago

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Info Dump: Neat Facts (It gets weird)

Dragon flys are the most effective hunters on the planet catching 95% of the prey they go after

In relation to their size, dung beetles are the strongest animal

Gorillas have the smallest dick to body ratio

A lot of zoo animals are on antidepressants because their habitats do not have enough enrichment

Only 1 quarter of the Sahara desert is sandy

In Massachusetts it’s illegal to eat more than 3 sandwiches at a funeral

Historically, vampires started more like zombies. Creatures with unfinished business who turned away from the Christian god. Eventually it turned into a xenophobic nightmare when, if you look at some depictions (nosferatu is a good example) they are clearly antisemitic caricatures, also at times just non Christian. So Christian objects are used to compel these types of creatures because they are seen as specifically unholy. It also goes into the belief that god can conquer all and these types of things are distinctly against god because they are not Christian or against it.

In 1774 Frederick The Great ordered Prussians to grow potato fields as protection against famine but the populace was disgusted by them and refused. In response, the king planted “The Royal Potato Field” but allowed peasants to steal from it which re-marketed the potato into a major food crop. He had guards surround the field and encouraged them to be lax in their jobs as to make the people feel as though they were easy pickings. He also ordered the guards to accept all bribes along with letting people go if they were actually caught stealing them. People put potato’s on his memorial grave plate near Berlin

Freddie Mercury’s last words were “Pee, pee.” as he needed help getting to the toilet

We have a dominant hand because the first homo sapien females would hold their babies on the left side because their heartbeat would calm the child. So the right hand was used for everything else. This became such a normal occurrence that it passed down generations into most of the populace having a right hand dominance

it was annual tradition for the pharaoh of Egypt to masturbate into the Nile with an audience

A Jewish doctor treated hilters mother, the only person he truly loved, while she was dying of cancer. He promised he eternal gratitude to the doctor and even after becoming a pathological anti-Semite, and later the fuhrer, he was true to his word and was adamant the doctor and his family be under protection from the purge

In scientific literature a conclusion on Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases in general is that the diseases start decades before the first obvious symptoms and that we need to treat them in this stage. When you exhibit obvious symptoms it’s already too late. If you get diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at 65, you had the disease since your early 40s at least. And you experienced very mild, unnoticeable symptoms. And your brain fight like hell to compensate the deficit. When you get a diagnoses your brain is already severely damaged and will never recover

In 1958 a 7600 lb bomb was lost off the coast of Georgia near savannah. It was never found

When spring comes lake water will warm up and make any dead bodies float to the surface due to bacteria. Except for Lake Superior, the water doesn’t get warm enough to build bacteria in the body.

Hearing is one of the last senses to fade upon death based on EEG or brain wave recordings

People dying often smell sweet, not in a sugary way, but more like flowery. This is because of the decompositions of the body already starting. It can also smell vaguely like alcohol, especially their breath. Furthermore, at the beginning of decomposition, a dead body will smell like wet hay

If you skin a person alive and they somehow don’t die of shock, they will actually die from hyperthermia as without skin, they’ll be unable to regulate their core body temperature

If you’re a cannibal, never eat the brain. Eating the brain is how you catch a disease called kuru. It’s 100% lethal. Also, the best way to remove frozen brain matter off the sidewalk is with a flamethrower

If you die alone and become a “bloater” they will pop you like a zit before removal

Most arsonists are found within a few blocks of their fires masturbating

A lot of truck stops are hubs for human trafficking

kreston-kreature i am holding both your hands and staring soulfully into your eyes. thank you so much for this i really enjoyed reading all these fun facts.

if anyone else wants to infodump in my ask box about (a) subject(s) of your choosing pls feel free i love this shit

#kreston-kreature #answered #this made my day #storm makes thunder

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huntereambrose · 1 year ago

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The Vixen Queen (1.1)

CW/TW: references to abuse and r*pe.

Part One: Lost Causes

They called it peace, but there never was such a thing.

Not for all.

Not for me.

There were those who their peace didn’t benefit,

Those they used their peace to exploit.

I could see it in their eyes: predation, indulgence, arrogance.

It was a farce, that peace.

It was never theirs, given to them by better men,

And ruined by them, the lesser.

Aurora’s Journal (c. 4A Y394)

The 392nd Year of The Nordur Imperium

The 17th Year of The Reign of King Sigurd V

4A Y392

MINNEHIL

THE OLD KINGDOM OF THE HINTRIA

Ganzig stared wearily at the banks of The Jadar River. Its dark blue waters flowed calmly, albeit powerfully, down towards the southern mouth of The Oduba Channel a hundred and twenty leagues away. For all his magic, securing a restful night’s sleep was a cat and mouse game, fought over centuries of long nights in lands not his own. Memories ever haunted him, memories of suffering, memories of drifting, memories of guilt. Lately, what plagued him was uncertainty. Uncertainty…and inevitability. Something waited for him, circling him like a buzzard, ready to pounce on his battered, beleaguered soul the very moment it was ready to give up its fight.

No. Not a buzzard. An owl. Circling.

He looked up, hearing the owl’s eerie call. “Hoo…” Its brown and white wings fluttered in the wind as it glided. Circling. Who? Me. Is she returning? Gods…I hope not.

More memories had come in the night, from nearly fifty years in the past when he assisted House Colt in keeping Baedsten’s throne from falling into Jadar hands — -he very same Jadar he lived amongst now. Hintrians, in fact, the oldest line of the Jadar race.

He watched from the east banks of The Jadar, peering across the river with enhanced vision, puffing on his pipe. Their gray-white skin was muted in the easy pastels of the morning light as they went about their business, fluffing out rugs, walking leisurely down The Eastern Highway, opening shops, and watering plants. Such a docile appearance characterized these people, but beneath it was a rage unparalleled, a scary adeptness for war, for magic, for believing in and acting upon their own supremacy. They had little sense of the capabilities hidden behind his amber eyes and copper skin, so radically different from the others. There was no genuine respect for the legends of their actual superiors: The Nordur, The Karhai, The Fel Aurelians. The Spirit of The Four Brothers was strong within them. Eyn Sof’s infinite potential had found a home in their hearts, along with a fear of inferiority that drove them mad.

It was that delusional self-belief that drove a man by the name of Asher Miskin to claim Baedsten as his own upon King Agnar’s death. His heralds spread his message like street preachers, moonlighting as terrorists when words failed to gain their desired levels of support. Four thousand troops from The Rockanies and Avelon burned in The Rissard Sea for the arrogance of their leaders. Four thousand men and women, burned to a crisp by Ganzig’s alchemical weapons. A further two thousand were slain in their attempted landing, many at his hand, still more by his sword. Baedsten held strong, with Thaeweth and Iyentis at their backs, and him, the legendary Rogue Warlock, tipping the scales of what would otherwise have been a lopsided fight in The Jadar’s favor. Five words rang in his head as they fought, repeating like a chant: I need you to win.

Six thousand dead. Ganzig had barely hesitated in ending every single one of them. Something had overcome him, pressing him onward to victory even if it meant the very end of The Jadar race itself, however extreme, unrealistic, and unnecessary that conviction was. The Jadar force surrendered following negotiations with The Hintria and Triseke. Asher was slain in the fight. The Ealanites were victorious. Baedsten, secured. But Ganzig was left with a hole.

The battle had left him the same as he was before. He was sad, though he wanted to be happy. Fulfilled. Of service. To know that all his additional years of existence weren’t undeserved, that someone besides him benefited from his survival.

Had Baedsten benefitted, in truth? Possibly. But The Jadar surely didn’t. That’s why he was here now. Guilt. Its powerful pangs drive me ever onward, seeking resolution to an ancient quest for survival, a justification for the fact that I am not bound by the same curse as my brethren, wasting away beneath the desert sun, staring out at the wasteland that was once our home as our gods retreat into anonymity. Uncertainty…that’s what guilt perpetuates. Uncertainty of self. Uncertainty of dissolution, of completion, of justice. Tiresome. It’s all so tiresome…it’s circling, ever circling, and I am close to giving in. Blessed Mitra — as they say in these parts — I am in a world of trouble. Ha…I never learn, do I?

The owl crested down on the breeze, hovering over the river’s waters as it flew to the north, then east. Ganzig had lived long enough to know an omen when he saw it, and this one stared him right in the face. He watched carefully, his eyes moving out of focus as the owl rose again. A glint of violet reflected behind it as it flew past the spires of Minnehil Palace. Violet. A familiar color. The owl, a familiar animal. But they remain unplaceable. Their significance, yet out of reach. Only their associations remain, but she is far off, I think.

He sat with the omen for a moment, considering all other possibilities, and coming up strangely empty. Shaking his head, he emptied the pipe into the grass, stamping the still smoldering leaves of tobacco under foot before tucking the pipe into a pocket in his robes. He turned back towards East End, towards Minnehil Palace itself, and walked.

Despite Ganzig’s general distaste for The Jadar, there were few castles in all of Teleria that could rival Minnehil Palace in its regality. Large, black chains extended diagonally, back towards the castle’s chunky basalt stones from their off-center anchor on the drawbridge. The heavy oak ramp creaked defiantly beneath his feet as he walked across it — a foreigner of high regard. He walked beneath the gate and into the large lower courtyard, suddenly dwarfed by the countless towers, pinnacles, and swirling spires that rose towards the sky. A few paces ahead was the one portion of the palace which was older than him: The Stone Keep. Two thousand, one hundred and seventeen years of sun left it a shade lighter than the newer additions, even though the spirit inside was dark and brooding.

Ganzig passed through the barbican next. Two of The King’s Knights were posted on either side of the gatehouse, exactly eleven paces between them, crossbows strung over their shoulders. A glint of the autumn sunlight caught his eye as it reflected off their great helms. Not soldiers worth testing. The Hintrians were second only to their Trisekian neighbors in warrior spirit. The King’s Knights were deadly weapons, bested by few, especially with a crossbow.

He entered a large foyer, designed specifically for those archers to wreak havoc on the enemy should they somehow get past the moat, drawbridge, the thick, reinforced walls, and through both sets of the giant wrought iron doors. Two levels of shielded catwalks littered with murder holes ran all along the inside perimeter, some twenty arm spans above the stone floor. The two staircases leading up to the second and third level halls were concealed by thick, encasing stone and another set of smaller iron doors. A brutal kill zone. The perfect ambush. There was only one official way into Minnehil Palace: The Stone Keep. Several others existed, deep beneath the earth. But they were designed to be easily flooded by damned, subterranean tributary streams of The Jadar River, drowning whatever soldiers were unlucky enough to be in them. Here, at least, the armies would stand some minute chance, should they make it through the sea of arrows streaming down towards them.

The Old Keep’s interior had a beauty within its brutal welcome, though. What it protected was a masterpiece of homely warmth and architectural bewilderment. A place where an old, storied people’s most auspicious leaders sat secure. Only one chamber was left open to all who entered: the dining hall. Its doors were wide open as usual, spreading faint rays of lazy sun out into the foyer. A long, oak table was placed in the middle of the room, exactly in the path he walked. At the head, seated below the high arched windows, was King Rikard. A proud king, Rikard made a habit of holding court within The Lesser Hall, as it was now called, giving the appearance of openness to visitors. Upon entering the main doors, one could look ahead and see the king himself, many paces ahead…waiting just for them.

But there was more to the layout than what you saw. The image of the welcoming king was nothing more than an optical illusion.

There were archers in the murder holes, eighty in all, and knights at each of the four corners in the foyer and beside the other set of doors — on both sides. They were at the corners of The Lesser Hall, with two more in the middle, and another two at the king’s side. All of them had their eyes peeled every moment they spent on duty. More than an optical illusion — a trap, ready to be sprung should the visitor have less than amicable intentions. It was also a slight. You couldn’t approach the king or sit at his table unless you side stepped, leaving yourself vulnerable to The Knights and agreeing to approach on Rikard’s terms, not your own.

Abiding by the custom, Ganzig walked along the table’s length, towards the highback seat on Rikard’s right which sat empty, waiting for him.

The king noticed his approach, put down his newspaper, and smiled. “Ganzig. Good morning, ever to you, oh, ancient warlock.”

Ganzig bowed. “Good morning, Your Majesty.” Rikard motioned with his hand towards the chair. Ganzig pulled it out and sat.

A small breakfast selection was arranged on square silver platters on the table in front of them. It brought a smile to Ganzig’s face. One of his favorite things about vagabondry was the diversity of foods he had the pleasure of tasting. The Hintria’s typical menu, though limited, was a wonderful companion to the cooling weather of autumn. Small slices of kidney pie. Warm meat cakes with sour cream. Leftover goulya. Hintrian cuisine was hearty and simple, perfect for gradually settling into the winter months — and letting go of looming omens.

Ganzig reached out for two meat cakes and a small bowl of goulya as Rikard began the conversation. A servant poured him hot herbal tea into a little white teacup.

“Ganzig, tell me,” The King started. “You’ve been following this Dalaï et Saneid, yes?”

“I have, Your Grace,” he lied. Ganzig chewed and swallowed a piece of meat cake, took a sip of his tea. The sour cream mellowed and smoothed the earthy, fresh flavor, an oddly delicious pairing. Hintrian cuisine was also sorely understated. “I take it The Alanis Tribune is continuing their exposé?”

“Indeed they are.” Rikard folded the newspaper, so that only the aforementioned story was highlighted.

Ganzig feigned a look at it, knowing full well that Rikard’s inevitable commentary would be enough material to humor the king with conversation. Rikard never had more than a fleeting interest in anything, and The Dalaï were nothing more than a temporary coup, a fad the likes of which he’d seen many times before. Ganzig cared little for the hype surrounding them, giving into it offered him nothing. All Rikard needed to be satisfied was for someone to oblige his intellectual musings, and nothing more.

“This writer is damned something, I’ll say,” Rikard continued. “Embedding himself in that culture, risking punishment from The Shar should he be discovered, all to tell us readers everything we could possibly want to know about a strange land, and an even stranger crop of people. Did you know The Shar has pet lions? He keeps them in a den!”

“What was this piece on?” Ganzig prodded him, prompting him to get to the point. Lots of people have kept exotic pets, Rikard. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re jealous.

“The Quinian. It’s their legal code, apparently,” Rikard explained. “Very strict and lengthy, took three whole issues just to cover it all. Apparently, it’s more than just the laws, but a code as a religion. They say they are a new iteration of The Creed: The Synod of The Dalaï. I say that’s dangerously close to blasphemy.”

Ganzig’s eyes flashed with surprise as he stuffed another bite of meat cake in his mouth. “A new iteration? That’s a bold claim.”

“Physical, mental, and spiritual development. That’s their framework. They even have their own form of magic, apparently.”

“Not a bad framework. All depends on how they use it, I guess.”

Rikard lifted the fork from his plate, a small piece of kidney pie skewered on its prongs. He paused, the fork suspended in mid-air, before he let it back down with a clink.

“That’s the troubling part, and the part that makes me most curious.” The king sat back in his chair, whose back was more than twice the height of the others. His legs crossed, fingers tapping the underside of his chin. Deep contemplation was evident on his face, giving Ganzig a few moments for more meat cakes and spoonfuls of hot goulya.

“It seems so sacrilegious to claim yourself a conduit of the infinite divine,” Rikard mused. “So…presumptuous and prideful. Based simply off the writer’s recollection, The Shar and his men are militant, almost aggressive, like there’s an undercurrent of anger in their belief that they — of all people — are chosen to do something special…I quite like that belief.”

“Mmm,” Ganzig grunted. Everyone wants to be special. Few really are. But, of course, you’d like think you’re one of them, wouldn’t you?

Another person approached the table on the opposite side. Rikard turned to see his son, Prince Elek. The young man seemed reminiscent of the alternative attitude, that someone could be entitled to extraordinary privilege at the moment of their birth. Between the sharp features of his face and a taut, slender form, Elek was a handsome prize, backed by the two thousand year old coffers of The Old Kingdom and House Gilles. Only Prince Erik of The Imperium and Vasilica of Triseke were more desired among royal and aristocratic courts.

Hah. It probably eats him alive every day that he and Erik’s names are nearly identical to each other, and yet he’s the understudy to both him and damned Vasilia. Always number three. Gods, I’d love to listen inside that head of his whenever those two are brought up. I bet that’s just…classic stuff.

The Prince took his place across from Ganzig, who found himself accepting a grain of truth to Elek’s superiority complex. His light blue eyes twinkled as the two made eye contact. A mighty energy emanated from him, however unproven it was. There was more to it though, just like the entrance to The Lesser Hall. Underneath his pleasant exterior was a harshness, an abusive cruelty. One Rikard had always, strangely, overlooked, and Ganzig was just beginning to pick up on.

“My boy.” Rikard smiled. “So good of you to join us. We were discussing The Dalaï. One of your favorite subjects, currently.”

Elek plopped several meat cakes onto his plate. “Mmm. Love those guys. I think we should implement something similar here in Mystara. We, The Jadar, should be stronger than we are now.”

“You really think we’re not?” Rikard asked. His question was intellectually driven, though, whereas Elek’s answers were based on youthful impulse.

“Gods, no,” Elek scoffed. “Just fifty years ago we lost the chance to begin staking a claim over Ealan because of this ancient warlock with dying gods. Uh, no offense.” He waved his hands towards Ganzig as if that was enough to assuage the sting of the insult.

Ganzig shrugged. It’s actually a funny thought, though my gods aren’t dying anymore. Haven’t been for some time. Not that Elek cared.

“None taken, Your Highness.”

“That’s exactly why I insisted Gemini assign him to our court. We need mages like him on our side, not as our enemies,” Rikard added.

“You consider the Ealanites an enemy, Your Majesty?” Ganzig pressed him.

“A figure of speech, mostly,” Rikard waved it off. “Although their obsession with The Fel Aurelians and their Orev borders on idolatry, and they are very reluctant to work as closely with The Order as we do.”

“The Dalaï refuse to work with them altogether. They proclaim to be a new revelation of your faith. Are they an enemy, too, then?”

Rikard grinned. It became the laugh of a man who’d been bested in a bout of armchair philosophy. He pointed a single finger at the warlock in a manner that suggested to all it was not something that happened often. Everyone at the table already knew it didn’t — all three of them.

“This is why I like you,” he said quietly. “See!” he shouted delightfully. “I love this. No, warlock. I do not consider them an enemy. Not yet, anyway.”

“I certainly don’t,” Elek butted in, mouth full of meat cakes. “They should be some of our closest friends. We could bring them around to The Order. Their goals align.”

Rikard regarded the comment, nodding. Ganzig pressed the young man, testing his mettle. “What do you admire most about them, Your Highness? Besides their strength?”

“Their caste system,” Elek replied confidently, almost immediately. “Might makes right, both of body and mind. A true meritocracy. Women placed on their own, separate from it all. Jadar women look to the old legends still, far too much, and The Nordur’s matriarchy doesn’t help things, either.”

“What’s your honest take of them, Ganzig?” Rikard asked. “Mind not my fascination with the religious code or Elek’s…crush on The Shar.”

“Honestly…I feel it will be short lived. They’re concentrated in their control of their people, but it all hinges on The Shar himself. It’s a cult of personality. They die out as soon as the leader does in most cases.”

Rikard nodded, thinking.

“A cult…” he trailed off, then came back. “I was beginning to think we had seen the last of those for some time. I mean, plenty exist, even in Mystara, but they’re usually not as out in the open as this one.”

“Some cults are good, father,” Elek interjected, as if it was a reminder. Ganzig squinted and cocked his head, surprised and taken back. It was a bold admission, even for Elek. This guy really is a prick.

“Perhaps,” Rikard conceded. “We don’t need cults in Mystara, though. That can turn sour very quickly, indeed.”

“I doubt The Dalaï et Saneid will gain any traction outside their land,” Ganzig assured him. “Foreigners might travel there to join them still but that’s it. Something tells me their movement might fizzle out faster than many believe.”

“Not if Shar Ali has anything to say about it.”

“He’s young and disaffected. His men, even more so. Before him, The Dalaï were a footnote on most maps. The fanfare makes sense, but it has no substance.”

Rikard chuckled, and picked up his fork again to tease the same slice of kidney pie. “Young and disaffected. I’ll have to mull over that one.” The fork was suspended in the air again as another thought came to the king. His head pivoted back to the Prince. “Speaking of, where is your sister?”

Elek shrugged. Fork still in hand, Rikard called one of the servants that was standing off to the side. “Ester. Come here.”

The young woman approached and offered a courtise. “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Fetch Aurora at once,” he ordered, a sense of bitter frustration seeping into his voice. “We’re supposed to eat as a family and saints know she’s up there baring it all before that damned window again.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The servant departed. Elek shook his head, evidently sharing his father’s disappointment of Aurora’s choice of morning activity as he continued shoving meat cakes into his mouth. The king finally took his bite.

Easy gusts of breeze from the Lower Jadar Valley blew through the tall springline windows as they sat partially opened. Aurora gazed meditatively over the sprawling city of Minnehil with its quaint basalt buildings and drab stone roads. At the center, towering above it all was The Grand Cathedral of Eyn Sof. The massive structure with pointed towers, large stained glass windows, ribbed vaults and numerous exterior buttresses, dwarfed its surroundings in the same way Eyn Sof itself dwarfed its constituent parts. One could never comprehend it. The building, the faith, or any of its practitioners, for that matter. And so it had become misunderstood and corrupted, just the same as everything else humans touched — The Jadar chief among them.

Minnehil was the faith’s hub, home to The Patriarch and his Magisterium, those corrupted, perverted old men, clutching their riches and power as if it could blow away like chaff in the wind. Irony of ironies, it was. Minnehil was a hub only for their vanity, and the vanity of all The Jadar.

An inner voice somewhere in Aurora’s young and impressionable head told her that the building, along with the faith it represented, were the perfect icon of The Hintria: outdated and oppressive. The Old Kingdom of The Hintria, as her father so proudly let no one forget. Over two thousand years guarding Mystara’s most precious heart, he would boast, looking up to the famous portrait of The Old Father, King Balint, that hung behind The Stone Seat.

The first in a long line of men that professed The Creed of Eyn Sof and laid prostrate before The Vrilic Order, her inner voice lamented. It couldn’t have been The Nordur? The Nordur at least listen to their women…

And ah, yes. The creed, with its three laws, six precepts, and nine sacraments.

As above, so below. Yet somehow, it never was.

Everything flows, all is infinite. And yet, The Orthodox had boxed it in. They had taken control of The Magisterium decades ago, poisoning their supposedly valuable doctrine with their beliefs that humanity’s ascendance meant something very different than that which the old saints preached. Mitra and her son be damned, humanity was ever limited.

You reap what you sow, nothing escapes cause and effect — all is connected and one. But fields full of the sixfold sins were sowed every day and nothing was reaped.

The White Path meant nothing. The faith had lost its way in Mystara, just like everyone that followed it. There were sects that still preached pure doctrine, but they were too few and far between.

Aurora, seated in the big resting chair and clothed in nothing but the thin white sheet from her mangled bedding, bobbed her head back and forth to produce two different visions of The Cathedral. It stood just as tall on both sides, but the Trisekian blue glass of her windows gave it a darker, more accurate lens than the light morning sun.

Arrogance. Grandeur. Baseless superiority.

She heard the voice of The Court Disciple ringing in her ears, Eyn Sof means infinity in Old Jadar. It is everything we are, and everything we are not. Her body shuddered from the memories of how he touched her. Those spiny, shriveled fingers still haunted her skin.

“Hoo…”

A brown and white spotted owl perched on the stone ledge just outside. It had visited her several times throughout the last few months, usually on the lonely mornings she spent groaning about the world she found herself in, visualizing a different future. “Hoo…” it cawed again. Its call was always so cryptic, like it contained a hidden meaning, an omen or message to the land which its inhabitants would be wise to heed.

The wind changed directions as Aurora gave the owl a smirk. “If you keep visiting, I’m gonna have to give you a name.” She reached forward and poked it on the nose. “We’ll have to keep it a secret, though. You know how people around here get about owls.” It fluttered its wings out before turning to view The Cathedral with her.

“Hoo…”

Aurora grabbed her journal from the windowsill and sat back into the chair, letting the sheet slip to her navel. She opened the crispy waraq pages, twirling the thin charcoal pencil between her fingers as she observed the blank white paper. Then, she began to write.

If I was Queen. Her neat, cursive writing read across the top of the page. Things would be different…

The chamber doors creaked open behind her. A servant timidly stepped in. She could hear the footsteps getting softer as they approached. Her eyes rolled as she groaned to herself. Ugh. Just one moment of peace. That’s all I ask of these people.

“Um…Your Grace,” the servant started timidly.

Aurora sighed. “Yes?”

“You’re being summoned for breakfast…by your father.” The servant stumbled through her words.

Aurora turned the upper half of her body towards the foot of the bed where the woman stood, dressed in her drab, faded brown and white uniform. For all the fear about owls in Mystara, it’s funny that the servants are dressed exactly like them. Her hands were crossed in front of her groin, her eyes uneasy, and a weak energy radiating from her equally weak request. It was Ester, her father’s maidservant — the one who had taken over her mother’s chamber duties in the last year.

The disaffected princess sighed and looked away.

“Your Grace…”

“I know,” Aurora grunted her annoyance. She knew the words that were coming, having heard them every morning since she came of age.

“The King…your father…requests — insists — that you sleep in your nightgown.”

“I know, Ester. I know. It’s unbecoming of a young woman, pledged to marry from the time of her birth to sleep and walk about in the nude,” she mocked. “I know. And I don’t care. My father’s fucked enough whores to know damn well I’m not one.”

“Your Grace!” Ester gasped in alarm.

“Again, I know. Foul language. Frowned upon in the great faith we serve. I know, Ester. Once again.”

“No bother,” Ester dismissed her ramblings. Her hands twisted into knots as they remained clasped in front of herself. “You must get dressed and come to The Lesser Hall. Your father’s request.”

“Tell him I will come down to the dining room when I’m finished writing,” Aurora said plainly, sensing the nervousness seeping into the air behind her. Rella had come into the room now as well from her small chambers near the bathroom. Her pen glided across the page, painting more words onto the paper: Raping chamber maids would be punishable by death.

“Um. He would like you now,” Ester insisted, causing Aurora to sigh loudly as The Muses left her. The owl outside gave her a sympathetic look.

Aurora sighed angrily. “Fine.”

Aurora closed the journal, took it in her hand and stood, sharing that same look with Ester and Rella as they stood by, waiting. The linen sheet was left to pool on the chair’s cushion.

Ester averted her eyes as the naked Aurora strutted to her large wood armoire, locked the journal in an interior drawer with a key that was attached to a silver chain. Rella came forward to grab a dress from inside. She noticed the woman staring into the floorboards as she draped it around her neck.

“Is there something wrong with the way I look?” Aurora probed her modesty.

“No, your Grace.”

“Then look at me,” Aurora insisted, barring herself before the chamber maid in nothing but her key necklace. Ester’s eyes picked up from their lowly state and traveled up to meet Aurora’s. “I’m not ashamed of myself. You shouldn’t be either.”

Ester nodded shyly. Aurora nodded back, bestowing confidence to the beleaguered young woman. The brief exchange closed with heartwarming smiles as Rella took a floor length lavender dress from the armoire. She held it up for Aurora’s approval, which she got instantly. The princess nodded eagerly and held her arms above her head.

“Undergarments, Your Grace?” Rella asked, confused.

“No.”

It seemed a funny hill to take a stand, nudity, but hills on which a fair fight could be had were hard to come by in Minnehil Palace. For her, at least. The Court Disciple had abused her. Her father was no better. He zealously guarded her too, sheltering her for fear that she might be corrupted, and her engagement fail. The Hintria’s reputation was not one to be played with, after all. They were small victories, personal liberations. Nuisances. A thorn in the sides of men like The Magisterium and her father, who still lived under the insane belief that men dominated The Jadar race.

But she had broken into the secret collections of The Bard’s Library many times, and read the ancient scrolls by candlelight. The Great Awakening of The Jadar, as it was called, was initiated and guided by women — Mejfa — ancient witches who perfected a ritual known as P’et Our Eurot. They were powerful, crafty women, the spiritual guides for the men who leveraged that awakening, aware of their might, to become tyrants, leaving the descendants of The Mejfa to play a long, tired game of chess as they jockeyed for control. Women were in the shadows now, moving pieces on the board to keep the men from collapsing under the weight of their own egos. Her late mother had been one of the most prominent among them. Aurora watched her deft moves in the court from a young age. She listened to her mother’s inspiring, empowering words as she was tucked in at night. Her death had left a vacuum within Minnehil, and the Jadar as a whole, along with a hole in her fathers heart.

Here, women like Ester and Rella had no such agency, forced to serve, no matter what that meant. There was no Queen to protect them anymore. Aurora did what she could to fill the gap, but always felt unworthy, unprepared. But it was there, she knew — the power of the Mefjas — seared into the consciousness of every Jadar woman.

Her arms slipped into the sleeves of the dress and Rella let the rest fall to her bare feet. Aurora held the Ester’s attention, looking into her dreary, light blue eyes.

“Tell me, Ester, what would you change if you were Queen?” Aurora asked as Rella began tying up the back.

“I’m sorry, Your Grace?”

“If you could be Queen. What would you change about this place?”

“I’m not sure. It would be something to have a Queen again, though,” Ester gushed before quickly regathering her composure. Rella returned to the front to straighten out the cotton fabric on Aurora’s arms, chest, and stomach.

Aurora giggled, the first spark of joy she had felt on these sleepy Hintrian mornings. “A powerful Queen.” Her eyes bulged at the words, causing a little slip in Ester’s mask. “A strong Queen.”

Ester nodded slightly, pursing her lips into a straight line.

“Maybe one day soon, we’ll finally have one.”

“Maybe, Princess.”

“Tell my father I’ll be there in a moment.” Aurora gave Ester one final nod, and the chamber maid exited the room, closing the clunky wood door behind her.

Aurora gazed into the mirror that was hung on the back of one of the armoire doors, and pondered her reflection. She had the appearance of a powerful woman brought to low station by the entrenched, seemingly uncontrollable forces of time and tradition. There was both darkness and light in her eyes, a reflection of the soul within that simply wanted change. No, not a change. A restoration. Justice. Perhaps…a bit of vengeance.

The sight of the lavender dress brightened her mood slightly, more so because of the way the colored fabric hugged her figure. Immodesty and impurity were common in The Hintria, she just didn’t bother to hide hers like the others did.

If you were Queen… The inner voice whispered to her. You’d be powerful and strong, and The Hintria would finally be its truest self. There could be restoration. There could be Justice. There could be vengeance.

Her hands brushed across the neckline of the dress, lower cut than her father would probably approve of. They made their way across her chest, giving way due to the lack of support for the soft flesh of her breasts underneath, and swept down the sides of her abdomen. She saw a clear image of a crown on her head, one full of rubies and diamonds — and pure gold. The thought alone made her physically excited. Her pink lips curved into a sinister smile and her icy blue eyes glowed like the sun shining behind a giant glacier.

There would be no more silly traditions of an old and small kingdom clinging to an image of what it wished it was.

If I was Queen…

If I was Queen..

You will be Queen, my dear. Soon. And you will make me proud.

The owl watched as she paraded off towards the hall, her dress showcasing her grace and confidence as it swished in the still air.

The latch thundered. The wooden door creaked as it had a few minutes ago and the princess disappeared.

“Hoo.” Came the call again, with those beady black eyes staring into the chambers, its top-heavy body bouncing about on its sharp talons.

“A Queen..?” The sultry voice of a woman escaped its beak now, the very same one that had been feeding Aurora’s thoughts all morning. “Yes. But who? Who?”

The eyes of the owl seemed to glint. A dark satisfaction dawned. “You.”

#fantasy #dark fantasy #epic fantasy #high fantasy #fantasy fiction

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dailyaudiobible · 1 year ago

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07/03/2023 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 22:3-23:30, Acts 21:37-22:16, Psalms 1:1-6, Proverbs 18:11-12

Today is the 3rd day of July welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian. It is wonderful to be here with you today thrilled that we have a place to gather peer around the global campfire and thrilled to take the next step forward together and that next step leads us back into the book of second Kings and to the precise place that we left off yesterday were actually rounding the corner here on second Kings. We will complete this book in tomorrow's reading, but today second Kings chapter 22 verse three through 23 verse 30.

Commentary:

Okay. So, just a quick little look back at what we read today in second Kings. We have mats and are learning about the great reforming King Josiah and it comes kind of at the end of the story were getting to the end of second Kings because were running out of Kings and that should tell us something were running out of Kings. Some things can happen that there are no more Kings and we will get to that soon enough each year we get here to Josiah and find out just how completely devoted to God that he was so I'll often read to the story of just such Josiah, wishing and wish you were more chapters on this particular King because when they discovered the book of the law and it was read before the king. The king you the status of the people the way that they had fallen. The ways in which they had fallen away from God and he went about the business of doing things that none of the other kings had done. He restored the land to God, destroying the idolatry in the land. Then we get into the book of acts and we see that what the Holy Spirit had spoken to Paul about what kind of reception he would receive in Jerusalem is actually coming to pass. And so Paul is in a lot of hot water. In fact he he would be dead if it weren't for the Roman soldiers protecting and rescuing him from the mob and in today's reading. He finally gets to the barracks step like he's protected and is trying to get everybody's attention so he can speak to the crowd at all because they're just mobbing him trying to assassinate him trying to kill him. And so Paul does finally get permission and gets the crowd quieted down in the in the and he begins to speak to them in Hebrew and so they're paying very very close attention in these simply beginning to tell the story of how he got from where he was to where he is now and so he begins to share the story of how it is that he came to meet Jesus and we will certainly continue with that story as we continue forward in the days ahead. We began today. Our second journey through the book of Psalms and is like a reset and what encouragement, if we will meditate upon the word of God and honor God. We will be like trees planted next to streams of water, we won't wither will be fruitful and this is what we see and then lastly in the book of Proverbs's we were told before destruction happens. A man's heart is proud, but humility comes before honor, we should probably not ignore that because this is the kind of pride that presents itself as arrogance and we are told over and over repeatedly in the Scriptures that pride will lead to a downfall lead to destruction. Honor is achieved not by demanding it or being arrogant or condescending or superior comes through ability and cultivating a humble posture in our lives will change our lives. In fact, we could just practice this today and see. Let's go through the day with a humble posture and treat everybody with respect then later on, few hours from now. Later on, as were going to bed we can take an inventory and just see what our intentionality brought our way kind of interactions were possible because we were humble set of proud.

Prayer:

Jesus, we invite you into that you have given us an example, we have the Gospels we have read through the gospel. This year we watched you model exactly this for us so we know what this looks like so were asking Holy Spirit is that you would common help us act like Jesus. Today it will be the wisest thing we could do and will change what this day. Looks like people to do it in our own strength we need you and so we become aware of your presence in our lives and ask you to help us, may we have the posture of humility, and not the posture of arrogant pride we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen

Community Prayer and Praise:

Coming soon…

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its-my-whump · 1 year ago

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Whumpmas in July Day 15: Buried

All these knuckleheads buried in their books. Andy thought, when he stepped foot into the public library. Maybe, he should have done that too, when he was their age. Maybe, he should have made a better graduation and then haven't have to live in a spare room under the watchful eye of his little sister and her partner. Maybe then, he didn't need to get his hands dirty, washing cars and scrubbing god knows what from car seats every other day.

That was a thought he could hunt down, when he got depressed. Today was a good day. He was on an errand for said sister. She sprained her ankle and asked Adam, if he could go down to the library to return her borrowed books and get some new ones. She was writing some kind of paper, he hadn't giving it much attention. Biology, genetics or something. She constantly joked about that topic though, explaining how it was even possible, that they could be so differently equipped dispite having the same genes. While she was the clever one, he was often refereed to as 2 sandwiches short of a picnic. Their parents lovingly called them “brain” and “muscle”.

Today Adam was happy to run that errand for Sandy giving him the chance to give something back, while she mostly was the one to help him out.

Yeah, all of these busy kids spending their Saturday morning absorbed in specialised books were actually the opposite of knuckleheads, what made Adam feel even more out of place by every minute passing. The librarian already gave him a look, like she doubted he wasn't going to hold a book upside down. Actually he was even a bit fond of reading, but he was working since school, to keep his head above water and be independent from their parents wallet. So most days he fell into bed dead tired. When he found a few minutes to spare, he would rather touch a novel, that some deep shit reading.

For normally being a silent and kind person to be around, he loved to dive into stories, where the hero and villain beat the shit out of each other.

“Ok honey, that's row 26, shelf 4, Gbrq, green book, as thick as a beer bottle.” A blink from the woman behind the counter. The librarian must surely think him bloody stupid. Probably because he wasn't wearing glasses and a turtle-neck during the warmest days of summer.

Adam approached said shelf, when a young, pretty nervous guy stepped beside him. He looked to the side, as if making sure no one else was there. But his attempt was more than conspicuous.

“Didn't you say to meet in the section of medical plants?” The kids voice was shaking, he made the impression, as if he had touched an electric fence shortly. Adam didn't understand. “What?”

On the other side of the shelf there were standing, someone whispered. “Over here, idiot.”

The nervous wrack looked through the books. There was some movement on the other side. He threw Adam an apologising look. “Ah, never mind. Sorry.” And circled the shelf in long strides.

Maybe Adam would have been puzzled, if he had cared at all. But he was back counting letters. Gbm. Gbo. Gbr... Gbrb.

Even being in thought about the searched book, he couldn't ignore the conversation on the other side. That nerd definitely was an idiot, that was for sure. If someone else would have been near by, the whole library would be informed about the drug deal, that was taking place at this very moment. “Keep your pie hole shut, dammit.” An angry voice came through from the other side.

Gbrq, ah green book. Ok, it was as thick as a beer bottle. Adam smiled for a second. He extracted the book from its lawful place and suddenly made direct eye contact with the owner of that deep and angry voice. Dark and vicious eyes fixated on him.

As little as he could see through that tiny window, he had just created, that guy didn't look like he belonged into the library either. He looked like someone you see on a mugshot for a homicide. He knew that face, but couldn't place it at the moment. But his subconscious knew more, than it was about the share and his heart started racing. Instantly fear crept up his spin. That face mend trouble, that was for sure.

Adam made an unconscious step backwarts. His instincts screamed at him, to get his feet under him and run, but he was paralysed at the same time. Why wouldn't his muscles obey?

The shelf between them was no obstacle. The guy had circled it in a matter of seconds. He hadn't only had a mug like a murderer, he was big like a bodybuilder too. Where did he know him from? And what had he done to piss him off? Adam couldn't make heads or tails of it.

Finally his feet obeyed his desperate plea to move, but the impulse came a second too late. A blood curling gut punch almost swept him of his feet. All air left his lungs spontaneously and agonising pain exploded in his abdomen, running from every nerve ending right into his head. He doubled over, but kept standing, while the aftermath of that punch throbbed through his whole body. The pain was so overwhelming, he couldn't suck in an all so needed breath for a moment. White dots danced over his vision.

With the next heartbeat adrenaline kicked in. It seemed every pain receptor was blocked and Adams survival instincts took the upper hand. If he had tried to think about it, he hadn't known what to do, but his body just reacted.

Everything happened in a matter of milliseconds. That guy was still there, his hand had hardly separated from his body, when Adams arms went up. The green book, thick as a beer bottle, connected with the bodybuilders face with a cracking noise. He stumbled back, while Adam was swept of his feet by his own swift motion. The book flipped out of his hands and ended up on the floor. While Adam broke his fall, trying to get the now empty hands in front of him, he caught a glimps of red stains on the green cover.

He was still riding on his adrenaline rush and hardly noticed the stab of pain, that ran through his belly, when his arms took most of his weight to prevent him from falling down completely. Adam was back on his feet a moment later. Blood rushing through his ears, he couldn't hear anything other than his own frantic heartbeat hammering inside his scull. His stomach felt hot from that punch and pulsed in unison with every beat of his heart.

Satisfied he saw, red dripping down his opponents face. It seemed heavy science didn't connect too well with the fork in that guys face. Adam felt on top of the world, all the overwhelming reactions of his body were suppressed from the highly concentrated adrenaline, making him high like a kite.

Unfortunately Adams intervention hadn't any other effect on the man, than that bleeding nose. A big paw lunged at him, but Adam easily dogged it and got the opportunity to return the favour of a gut punch. The big guy hardly moved.

Despite his body on high alert, it suddenly felt like someone had opened a drain. Adam could feel the adrenaline subsiding with every second. It felt like the big one had punched him into his gut again. The feeling was so overwhelming, that he almost lost his footing. But Adam could see both of those big paws. That guy couldn't have just punched him again. One hand had gone over the man's bleeding nose and the other one was suddenly rushing in on him from the left.

Ah shit. Was Adam's last thought before it connected with his temple. First came an explosion of pain from his left, darkness swept over him, his body was yanked in the same direction as the fist was going. His head connected with something unyielding on the other side. A dull thud was the result of his scull making painful contact with a metal part of the bookshelf. Another explosion on the right side of his head, then the darkness pulled him under completely.

He couldn't have blacked out too long, when someone shook him awake. He was sitting, his upper body slumped against the bookshelf. First indicator for a short time span was the feeling of adrenaline still leaving his body. He could still feel its remains, it wasn't gone completely by now. The second and even more distinct indicator was, that the big guy, was the one shaking him.

Adams hand started to search for any kind of weapon automatically, while a blurry face was talking to him. He couldn't make out any words, everything was too much all of a sudden. Energy leaving his body, pain resurfacing out of nowhere. His head hurt so much, his belly hurt so much. A hand was on his collar, diminishing his air support. He couldn't think. He didn't understand, what that guy wanted from him.

“...that's for making out with my sister, dumb-ass.” A firm slap to his cheek. Words making no sense. All he could hold onto now, was that book in his hand. He needed to summon all his strength to get a good grip on it. It was the biggest book in the lower shelf, he could get his hands on, his arm bend in an uncomfortable angle.

“You ever so much as lay eyes on her. I'm going to kill you for sure.” Adam had no idea, what he was talking about. He pulled the book from its place and rearranged his hand, to get a better grip on it. The hand by his neck was still pressing down slightly, breathing was hard, but manageable. His stomach hurt, he felt warm and the overwhelming feeling that he needed to release its contents was getting worse. But first he needed to get rid of his counterpart. He needed to get out of this situation.

His grip around that book tightened. Suddenly a new wave of pain exploded in his belly. The guy had his hand, where he punched him at first. “Need that back, though.” He growled.

There was an override of Adams rational thinking, his mind shut down and his reflexes took over. With all the strength he could summon, he leaned forward, that book went up and connected with his opponents head. The stabbing pain in his belly was cut in half, when the guy fell back and they were separated. Adam fell back against the shelf unconscious.

Pain was the first thing showing him, that he must have blacked out again, because it wasn't there for a blissful moment. He was still or again sitting slumped against that bookshelf. Breathing was hard and his back hurt. His head hurt, his knuckles, his stomach, everything hurt. He tried to move a bit, trying to take some strain from his body, but the tiny motion shot stabbing pain through his belly. A low groan escaped his lips, he wasn't able to stop.

A soothing voice was trying to talk to him, it seemed. “Don't move! Medics are on their way.” The next moment his eyes reluctantly opened, the librarian was next to him, but she was just a blurry motion of colors. The guy was gone.

Adam hadn't noticed his hands had gone up to the stabbing pain in his gut. And it was only now, that the sensation of something warm and sticky between his finger actually made its way to his brain.

His head was spinning, dots dancing and his vision was getting in and out of focus on it own account.

“You nee..st... awake.” He felt so tired, his lids wanted to close again. So many voices. He couldn't make out any words any more. But the tone was frighting and the atmosphere around kind of stressed.

“Plea... sta..a...ke.” It was no use, he hadn't had the strength to keep the unconsciousness pulling at him at bay. His head lolled forward, his neck suddenly made out of jelly.

He managed to keep his eyes open just a tiny bit longer. The last thing he saw, were his own hands, subconsciously pressed to his belly. They were covered in blood, that was still freely running through his fingers, which were curled around an object, that didn't belong there.

There was a knife sticking in his lower abdomen, buried up to its hilt in his flesh.

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#whumpmas in july 2023 #whumpmas in july #wij #wij23day15 #buried #whumpmasinjuly2023

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