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thequietmanno1 · 1 year ago

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Thelreads, MHA 276, Replies Part 1

1) “Bnha time, and just as the backup showed up to save the day. Aizawa has stepped in the fray and changed the rules of the game, and now it`s time to see his inevitable demise. It`s gonna be a tragic chapter once Shigaraki gets shigadone with his ass.”-Aizawa’s OP power being offset by his physical abilities being at best obove averge in a world of supermen is a neat balancer – and him being already badly wounded before facing shigaraki further compounds his limited effectiveness outside shutting down his Quirks to somewhat even the field, as Aizawa can’t even effectively protect himself or move without assistance.

2) “Oh yeah, you guys better not get any closer to the actual calamity taking place a few blocks down the road, otherwise you`ll see what happens to helicopters in action games…”- Still arguably safer for them than reporting live on the ground at this point.

3) “oh trust me, you`ll get to know it sooner rather than later. Alas, The End is here. The End will be known by all. No one can escape The End.”- The End has some serious Jumps on him. 4) “ALL MIGHT PLEASE DON`T LET ERI WATCH THIS BULLSHIT I KNOW YOU`RE THE COOL UNCLE BUT THAT`S A BIT TOO MUCH FOR HER

C`MON MAN!”- I think he’s kinda forgotten she’s sitting on his lap after getting the shocking news broadcast, since he wasn’t expecting the raid to go quite this pear-shaped so suddenly, especially with a Powerhouse like AFO locked in Tartarus. 5) “IT`S MOMDORIYA! SHE`S BACK AND SHE HAS NO IDEA WHAT`S GOING ON HALFWAY ACROSS THE COUNTRY, AND WITH HER OWN SON”- Soon, they’ll all know about it. This is the final hours of normality before MHA’s universe gets its 9/11, and that kind of big shocking event will forever alter the lives of those who live in the country. 6) “OH HEY, IT`S POTATO FUCKFACE AGAIN

HAVING FUN? ENJOYING THE MOMENTS BEFORE YOU GET OUTSIDE? I KNOW YOU WERE PLANNING THIS ALONG YOU BASTARD, YOU CAN`T TRICK ME, I SEE IT IN YOUR EYES…”- He doesn’t even have to get off his seat to destroy the country…though he’s still having more than a hand in its downfall…. 7) “Anyway: Alright Endeavor, you need to make sure you completely incinerate every single cell of his body, because i`m pretty sure if you leave a single one left, he`ll completely regenerate from it like Wolverine.”- I mean, he’ll certainly try, but it seems the modifications ramped every single cell of Tomura’s way up to 100 in terms of durability. That intense blast that would have burned off parts of Hood only singed his outer layer of skin, so it’s not just a matter of destroying all his cells, but somehow subjecting every part of him to the kind of intense temperature of a concentrated Prominence Burn all at once – if you can hold him down long enough for even that. 8) “Alright Shiggy, already planning how to murder Aizawa?”- Well, more like how he’ll effectively kill all the other heroes with his surviving Nomu squad whilst he personally finishes off those closest to him to recover his Quirks. It’s almost like he’s using the power of Friendship against them! 9) “…

oh no

oh fuck no”- Luckily, not a command to the big guy. Unluckily, the command is to a much more immediate problem. 10) “Oh, so that`s Mummyman`s quirk? Oh that`s cool, hey Shinzo, shame you don`t have a useful quirk like his, right?

Alright, I jest, his quirk is really powerful, both in offense as well as in utility, but c`mon man!”- Depending on how it works, he could even do something crazy like alter the trajectory of a punch to have an opponent literally smack themselves in the face with their own attacks 11) “Oh that`s really clever! but still, wouldn`t it be safer that now that Aizawa has activated his erasure, take him away from here so Shigaraki can`t aim any attacks at him?”- Well yes, but none of Aizawa’s supporters can fly, and he needs Manual keeping a delicate balance going on his eyes so he doesn’t blink, not too much or too little water, so the safest measure is to try and have him retreat as quickly as they can on foot, even with his broken leg hampering him, trying to keep his Erasure going as their top priority.

(Vigilantes ch 18.5)

12) “THERE GOES MANUAL. JUST AS USELESS NOW AS HE WAS BACK IN THE STAIN ARC… I’M WAITING FOR YOUR NEXT EARTH-SHATTERING APPEARANCE, ANOTHER 200 OR SO CHAPTERS FROM NOW.”- Manuel, 50 chapters later: Not so useless anymore, huh? No, but seriously, if he messes up, they’re all dead in 30 seconds, including the civilians still in the evacuation zone. (MHA ch 269)

13) “Tell me Aizawa, why don`t you get goggles that force your eyelids open and are capable of keeping them moist? I think that`s not a tall order to ask for, hell they gave Kaminari a goddamn yu-gi-oh battle bracelet for when he reunites with Seto Kaiba`s dad.”- Well, in the meantime, Manual’s on the case – and he doesn’t have to worry about water reserves running dry this way. (MHA ch 275)

14) “ALSO THERE`S A LOT OF DUST HERE, I DON`T THINK THIS IS THE BEST PLACE TO STAY CONSIDERING YOU CAN`T BLINK FOR THE NEXT FEW HOURS, LEAST YOU WANT EVERYONE TO DIE”- Manuel’s got you covered.

(MHA ch 275)

15) “But I don`t think he`ll be able to keep that quirk up for long, there`s way too much dust in there, Shigaraki is gonna circumvent it soon I imagine.

And when he does… oh boy, Aizawa better start running.”- Good news! The heroes thought of a solution to the dust! Bad news. They’ve got no answer for Aizawa’s busted leg and mobility issues yet.

16) “That`s what you have to say Shigaraki? Do you want to try another last words before you get treated like Pop?”-Tomura’s now got the confidence to start using his new bag of tricks in creative ways and joke around in a fight, even with access to the full arsenal on lockdown. 17) “Wait what the fuck- he managed to dodge that? What?

Did he changed his position midair like All Might did? Punching the air to move a certain direction?

Oh that`s worrisome, if he has enough physical strength that he can even emulate All Might without even using a quirk”- AFO and Garaki spared no expense when it came to upgrading Tomura into becoming ‘unstoppable’, period. They predicated a ton of scenarios that he might encounter and made sure to have him retrofitted so that all of his base specs would be sufficient to cover them even if one part of him was weakened or inoperable. They don’t want to make a fight with him fair, they want everything about Tomura to be overwhelming, beyond the reach of any natural abilities or counters. (MHA ch 261)

18) “Welp, the doctor is fucking off after all, he`s gonna wake shigaraki and tell him that nap time is over at last. Whatever. He`s going to be the first one to die in that case anyway.”- Shockingly enough, no, despite being basically at the epicentre of it all. With events being as they are, the heroes, despite their disgust of him, need to keep him alive, if only to try and pry whatever intel they can about AFO’s true goals out of him, now we know he’s basically the only person AFO was ever really honest with on any level, because of their shared depravity.

19) “Also, even if it`s not All Might-levels, it is still close enough that he can use his moves, which, by itself, is already pretty fucking concerning for the heroes.

Jesus fuck”- He’s less than All Might’s 100%, so probably about 80-90% strength, but given that Izuku can only use 45% himself safely, that’s still too big a hurdle for him to overcome in a fight right now…. which is precisely why Toura’s being induced to focus on attacking him today, before he has any chance at a counterattack.

20) “Oh yeah Aizawa, he is.

He`s the ultimate Nomu, the perfected model.

He`s The End of all things, and he`s going make sure to live up to his title.”- Sadly, he’s also not the only Nomu remaining on the Villain’s side. Any one of those High-ends is a threat that’d require one of the top 10 heroes to take out, though thankfully they’re not as dangerous as the high-ends that got dusted. 21) “Oh it isn`t Gran Torino, it definitely isn`t. No place is safe, no place is far enough. There is no escaping it.”- Especially since “it” has a GPS tracker on Izuku that’s impossible to shake off or destroy. 22) “Now you and your nemesis are one and the same. Now the clash shall actually be significant, both carrying the torch of the Titans that came before your time.”- Well, maybe Izuku would feel the weight of this clash, but for Toura, all he knows is that Izuku needs to be next on his kill list so the voice in the back of his head will stop nagging him, if he even realises that the voice isn’t his own. @thelreads

#bnha #my hero academia #thelreads #chapter replies #mha 276

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stuffromymind · 2 years ago

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Canada’s Top 20 Bands (Excludes Solo Acts)

I stumbled on this list but it pissed me off so much, I was gonna share it with some friends but the email got outta hand soooo...

This list is hurting, definitely in the wrong order, but it's TOTALLY invalidated by #20 and #8.

20: Simple Plan: F-. The plan is quite simple: "Let's SUCK!". Pedo Pop. They sang love songs to 10 to 14 year old girls at their gigs. I met Bob Rock, who produced one of their albums, at a bar once during a set break. I went up to his table, said hi and asked: “Can I buy you a drink Bob?”

“No thanks, I’m good.”

“Okay, I just thought you might be hard up for cash since you took a gig working on Simple Plan’s last album......”

The whole table burst out laughing, Paul Hyde, (his partner and lead singer in The Payollas/Rock&Hyde), burst out laughing, slapped me on the back and said: “OH HE GOT YOU BOB! Good one mate!”

Bob smiled at me and said: “Fuck you, man.”

He gave me a wave later that night as he walked out to his black Escalade, smiled and said, “Have a good night.”

He knew I was right.

I’d need money for lung transplants for an orphanage full of kids who grew up next to a trash incinerator before I’d help to unleash more Simple Plan on the world. Seriously.

19: Saga: C. The fashion says it all. Bar band who wrote mostly ok songs. I don’t remember any. They weren’t bad... just..... “eh?”

Nice Eddie VH, “No Bozos”, shirt for stoner dude, Mr. Zebra Pants. I think the guy beside him mighta been dealing with a chubby. The dude playing pocket pool, who came directly from his shift at the car wash? That’s rock.

I’m making this up as I write.....I’m going to bet that the guy in the white suit is the keyboard player. I’d bet on it. I’ve always been able to walk into any venue and spot the keyboard player immediately.

No lie. This just occurred to me.

In fact, I’m gonna go on a hunt and see if I’m right. brb............

HAHAHHAH!! I knew it! I don’t know how I always know, but I DO!

18: New Pornographers: ?. Respected by their peers. Not my kinda thang.I couldn’t even I.D. one of their songs if you played it to me. Def other bands that should bump them from this list.

17: Sum 41: B. Was better than a lotta pop punk, (damning with faint praise), but $$ and substances made them flail. Their first album and promo clips were catchy as Hell. Got pretty metal AF towards the end though, dammit. They were good enough to record with Iggy Pop so you can't say shit, really.

16: Metric: D+. Considering the bands that are missing here? Geddafuckatta here! Never failed to leave me vigoursly unimpressed.

15: April Wine: B-. Had some undeniably good songs. Worked a gig they played in the 90s. Mercer on drums may have been a reincarnated Viking. Hella nice guy. Good dudes. Unlike Trooper who were unrepentant, 'rawk star' pricks.

14: Triumph: B+. Def had some memorable melodies. Killer musicians. Not my cuppa tea ultimately. Rik Emmet could rip. Watched him play a solo album show in a university cafeteria, from 10 feet away, 5 years after their famous US Festival gig in front of 300,000. Crowd was smaller. A bit.

13: Cowboy Junkies: C. Nice. If you like whispering and don't belch too often or have a cat that likes to purr, (you'll miss hearing the songs if you do). If you like dynamics or being conscious? Best in small doses.

They tried to rock up their sound. Kinda like getting nuns to dress in lingerie and work the pole in church: Didn't take.

I did have a crush on Margot though. Quirky is cool...

12: Loverboy: 1st Album: A. After that D+. "Hey! Ballads make money! Cheese is tasty! Let's crank out soft fromage!” Large mistake. Almost as large as Mike’s bandana.

11: Barenaked Ladies: B. Yeah, talented. Yeah, apparently put on a good live show in the early days. Yeah their Bruce Cockburn cover that got them started is quite exswellent. But tried too hard to be "wacky!" and I could never stand Page. Just.....no.

Just one of those people that utterly rubs one the wrong way through no intent of their own.

10: Voivod: A-. A minus only cuz I just don't digg'em. Trailblazers, original, inimitable: Yup. Just not for me. Jason Newstead played with them for a while, (the nicest Metallicat), so that's says sumpin'.

9: BTO: A. I can play a snippet of 4 of their songs that I guarantee anyone with ears and a few ounces of skullmeat between those ears will recognize at least one of them. Not many bands can say that. Plus, one of their biggest songs was a joke song by Randy Bachman making fun of his brother's stutter, (which is honestly kind of a dick move but it works).

8: Nickelback: F- - - Times Infinity. Are you fukking kidding me?! Whoever* made this list eats a bowl of dirt with cheese for breakfast, a plate of shit with cheese for lunch, and a block of mouldy cheese garnished with melted cheese and seal vomit for supper. He has no taste.

Canada and Oilberta should apologize for this stain. If the logic is, “Popularity = Greatness”, then the author of the original list should be in the local dog park on his knees with a fork 'cuz 3 trillion flies say shit is good eating.

I mean, what kind of DICK kicks out a member of the band you all started in highschool and then sues him for his royalties? A dick like Chad, that’s who.

I saw them open for Big Wreck in a bar in 98 when all we knew is the ‘Guy who looks like Jesus is a hack and the band is 4th rate Nirvana.” That was our appraisal.

When they broke world wide and Big Wreck didn’t? I gave up on the music industry and any chance there’s a Sky Friend. Chad Croaker even made Ian Thornely’s songs sound generic as producer. That is some Hellspawned, evil “talent” right there.

7. Skinny Puppy: A. Never been a rabid fan but is one of those bands you might not be aware of, but that bands you love totally love them! Kinda like there's no Nirvana without Pixies sorta thing: No Ministry without S.P.

6: Blue Rodeo: C at outset. Don't much know 'bout last 30 years of output, honestly. They wrote a classic song called “Try". Every band would like to write one song that hits like that. #6 Though? Nahhhhh.

5. The Guess Who: C. I'm sorry. I just can’t stand their "hits". Burton, in the 60s before they made it big - was a rawk star twat to 2 members of my family and everyone else in the joint. I met him 3 decades later, introduced by a radio DJ who liked my band.

He was SO deep in his gambling addiction, plugging Twonies into a slot machine like it was the Titanic and he was trying to stop it sinking, that he didn't even look up. Just said, "Hey how's it going?", while staring at the screen and pulling coins from his plastic bowl like an automaton.

At least this lead to B.T.O. which should be WAYY higher than The Guess Who.

4. Arcade Fire: C-. Yeah, No. I've tried. If you needed a group you can sum up in the phrase, "Up their own arses”? This is your band.

3. Tragically Hip: A+. If you don't own Fully Completely, (recorded at Abbey Road)? You're a dick. Were they WAY overrated as a live band? Hell yeah! Except for Gord pushing his imaginary lawn mower around the stage, doing laundry and being generally odd -as I recall from the 1994 Another Roadside Attraction tour with Danny Lanois, Midnight Oil and The Pursuit Of Happiness- the band was Nyquil for the eyes. They rocked your ears but visually, they’d have been the ideal live band for Ray Charles or Helen Keller.

2. The Band: A. Another of those bands that if you erased them from existence, another 40 bands would vanish instantly. Don't own any of their music but you can't deny talent and influence.

1. Rush: A+. Well, duh. I will say that Ged's vocal style kept me away for the most part till their last 3 albums when his tone and timbre changed/dropped from the registers he resided in and he started projecting less from his schnoz.

They're each cool, down to earth blokes and most exswellent Hoser ambassadors. Would have liked to have met Neil.... wish I'd mailed the letter I wrote after I read his Ghostrider book. They don't deserve to be on the same list as Simple Plan and Nickelhack, speaking of which:

* "A Chicago native, Jeff Mezydlo has professionally written about sports, entertainment and pop culture for nearly 30 years....If he could do it again, he'd attend Degrassi Junior High"

That explains it! A meathead, jock himbo! Nickelhack's core fanbase.

Fuhk me running!

This list should have included:

Big Wreck, (Never put out a bad album in 2 1/2 decades). Ian Thornley has pipes for days and can flay the skin from your skull with his guitar playing.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE672AEDCFAD9B04B

Headstones, (You won't find many rock/punk bands with more pointed, well written lyrics delivered with more piss 'n venom). Hugh followed me when I was on Twitter. Like minded, nice guy’d who prefer people at a distance I guess. I especially enjoyed seeing him on the last tour deal with an iZombie staring at his device, front row:

“Okay! You got your picture? Put your goddamn phone away!”

iZombie just smiles at his screen while pointing his device/appendage at Hugh’s face. Hugh simply SWATS the phone away, sending it slamming to the floor. Show continued. Aces.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2NAU6h-pv4UbxUpNSAn5yKUeTrGH_vpZ

Red Rider/"Tom Cochrane & Red Rider", As Far As Siam....Neruda. Come on....

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA0256E754745F02C

and...

Danko -Fecking- Jones. Hello? Degrassi boy puts some of the stains he chose on this list and not Danko? Twat. Stood 4 feet away at a small club in a backwards part of the country many moons ago. I was spitting the words back as loud as the PA. caught Mr. J’s eye and a smirk a few times. Ripping live band. They’re Big in Europe.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL23C355E32E0D8BA9

Any and all of these just mentioned instead of #20 and #8, and a few others should be on any “Best Canadian Bands list. Seriously.

The author, like I said: Himbo, jock, Fuh. Kup.

If you wanna see the original commentary of the sports writer and teen drama fan?

https://www.yardbarker.com/entertainment/articles/the_best_canadian_rock_bands_of_all_time/s1__37691537#slide_1

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zuko-always-lies · 3 years ago

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“Yeah, you kinda burned down my village.”

“Oh...sorry about that. Nice to see you again.”

Going back to that scene in the Boiling Rock where Zuko and Suki meet (again), I see that line by him as telling of either a) how terribly ‘redeemed’ Zuko is written, b) how questionable his redemption arc is as a whole, or c) that he simply doesn’t grasp the moral gravity of his actions and how seriously he has hurt others in the past (and is capable of hurting them in the future).

The ‘apology’ is extremely insincere, almost like he thinks it’s some awkward encounter he’d rather just forget. Did he spill milk on her tablecloth? Accidentally leave her icebox open? Forget to water her plants?

No, he literally burned down her village.

And in case Zuko forgot, fire hurts people. Sometimes, when you—let’s say—set countless buildings on fire, it kills people.

What if we swapped Zuko and Suki in this situation? How would the fandom look at Suki’s apology? They’d rip her to shreds, and rightly so. It’s genuinely traumatic watching your home burn down, much less the homes of practically everyone in your community. The fandom would just add it to the list of reasons to woobify for Zuko and demonize Suki (and this would be warranted, frankly).

But Zuko doesn’t profess any real regret for causing all that harm to Suki and her community, and he certainly doesn’t ask for forgiveness or make promises of restitution—which are signs of true remorse. Also, if you go back and watch The Warriors of Kyoshi episode, you’ll see that Zuko uses his komodo-rhino’s tail to knock Suki to the ground, then he proceeds to launch a fire blast at her while she’s vulnerable (blocked in the nick of time by Sokka). There’s another apology in order there, too.

“Oh...sorry for trying to incinerate you.”

And I think you’re right when you said before that this is connected to an unwillingness (laziness, even?) by the writers in not giving Suki more depth and development. There’s no way she would jump on the ‘uwu Zuko’ train in the comics if they wrote her like a normal person.

I don't have much to add to what you say here. It's all accurate. It's interesting that "The Southern Raiders" is the very next episode, and involves Zuko condemning a man to death for doing more or less the very exact thing Zuko did in "The Warriors of Kyoshi."

This fandom is obsessed with having Suki hating Azula for fighting her and her warriors and capturing them and (by all appearances) treating them far better than they would have treated Azula if the circumstances had been reversed, even though it makes zero sense for Suki to be cool with Ty Lee and Mai while hating Azula with all her soul.

Meanwhile, Zuko burned down Suki's village and likely put her family in danger, but I've never almost never seen a fic where she holds any sort of grudge against him for that. And canon is even worse here.

#Zuko #Azula #Suki #Mai #Ty Lee #Zuko isn't held accountable for his actions #And hardly ever suffers consequences for them

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isuckatreadinglol · 4 years ago

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Six of Crows Review

Alright, first book review on this blog...here we go: *spoiler warning, duh*

Book: Six of Crows Author: Leigh Bardugo

My Rating: 5/5

First off, this is the first YA fantasy I've ever read so I have no idea what I was expecting...and I fuckin loved it.

Second, I binge read this book in three days and it usually takes me a month to read anything ever so that's definitely saying something. I came for Kaz Brekker after watching Shadow & Bone on Netflix and stayed for the amazing plot, diverse and intricate characters, the incredible action and twists, and of course Kaz Brekker. The one thing that I loved was how fast paced this book went, and I genuinely could not stray far from the book because of how addicting it was. There was something in every chapter and you never got bored. The last part had taken the most time for me to complete because of how much action Leigh crammed in the last 60 pages, which made it a bit hard to follow along but it was still epic.

The Characters:

Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Nina, Matthias

"“What’s the easiest way to steal a man’s wallet?” “Knife to the throat?” asked Inej. “Gun to the back?” said Jesper. “Poison in his cup?” suggested Nina. “You’re all horrible,” said Matthias."

The most diverse set of characters I have ever met. There were 6 characters, and the POV's were constantly changing and at some point, while I read someone else's chapter I was worried about the other characters and anticipating the next chapters. This was honestly an amazing decision to tell this story and I never got sick of the characters (except maybe Matthias, sorry).

Not only does Leigh do an excellent job portraying trauma in her characters (especially Kaz), she also keeps the character's as diverse as possible, from Nina being a plus sized character with badass confidence to Wylan overcoming his dyslexia and even Inej being a brown character. Every character had their own stories and the flashbacks/backstories were always a pleasure to read through.

Kaz Brekker is a stone cold, morally grey, manipulative, and terrible criminal which of course...makes him an even better protagonist. He definitely rocks the Hot Boy Who Is Mean To Everyone Except That One Chick Because Of His Tragic Backstory trope.

"There was no part of him that was not broken, that had not healed wrong, and there was no part of him that was not stronger for having been broken."

He is an anti-hero with his own plans and goals, while also caring so much about his crew that he would do anything for them. I'm very excited to see his character develop with Inej in Crooked Kingdom as well as his relationship with her because I am too obsessed with the two of them. I also enjoyed how Leigh allowed Kaz to fuck up and make mistakes, showing that he wasn't just some perfect character that knew everything about everything, and reading his inner dialogue when he realized his fuck-ups felt refreshing. His backstory was very well written and very tragic (we get it he's emo). It felt so personal knowing why he was they way he was when he sealed himself off from the world. He's also drippy as fuck.

Inej Ghafa just radiates bad bitch energy and when Kaz called her "dangerous" I screamed "DAMN RIGHT". Her mental drive was beautifully written during her chapters, especially while she climbed the incinerator.

"The heat of the incinerator wrapped around Inej like a living thing, a desert dragon in his den, hiding from the ice, waiting for her. She knew her body's limits and knew she had no more to give. She'd made a bad wager. It was as simple as that. The autumn leaf might cling to its branch, but it was already dead. The only question was when it would fall...

Should she jump now or simply wait for her body to give?

Inej felt wetness on her cheeks. Was she crying? Now? After everything she'd done and had done to her?"

Most importantly, she was a raw character who pushed herself throughout the book not just for herself but for the rest of the crew. She was selfless but she was also incredibly strong, driven by her future. Inej is the most inspiring character in the book and I have fallen in love with her more times than I could count. (lowkey carried the team imma be honest)

JESPER FAHEY Y'ALL. My queer sharpshooter king. I think I related to him the most and I loved every chapter with him. Though, I felt like Jesper was treated more as a side character than a main one, especially since he was stuck with Wylan for the entirety of the heist but BOY WHEN I FOUND OUT HE WAS A FABRIKATOR...I might have also screamed. He was definitely the comedic relief and he always kept me laughing at his little comments. Excited to see him and Wylan get together and also hoping for more of Jesper's character.

"Well, we’ve managed to get ourselves locked into the most secure prison in the world. We’re either geniuses or the dumbest sons of bitches to ever breathe air."

“If any of you survive, make sure I have an open casket. The world deserves a few more moments with this face.”

Nina Zenik...bro. She is so powerful. The moment she took parem was *chefs kiss* and it was the most badass scene I had ever experienced. When I began reading her chapters I didn't really enjoy them but when the heist actually began her inner dialogue won me over completely. When she was with Jarl Brum I could not stop laughing at the things she was saying in her head, and even when things were intense she always had something to say which made her character come to life. Her personality is hilarious, and sarcastic and she's also so HOT like my gay ass was swooning. She is who I aspire to be, that is all.

Matthias Helvar. Personally, I didn't really like his character so much because of how stubborn and he was (and how many times I wanted to punch his stupid ass), however he was still a pretty cool character with some good moments in there. He demonstrated religious corruption well, and he definitely faced a lot of inner conflict due to the pressure of what he was taught when he was younger. His POVs were a little boring but I loved it when he called Kaz a demjin.

Wylan Van Eck was a super fun character to have around. I definitely enjoyed watching his character grow as he spent more time with the Dregs. I didn't love him as much as the big three (Kaz, Jesper, Inej) and don't have much to say on him except that I admired his strength throughout the last part, especially when confronting his father after hearing all the horrible things he said about his own son. Jesper defending him made me melt big time.

"He's smarter than most of us put together, and he deserves a better father than you."

I literally could not have asked for such a creative group of characters and to see them work together makes me feel like I'm part of a big, criminal family.

The Ships

The ships were a fun addition to the story and the best part was that they never overstepped the actual objective of the plot but rather worked with it to enhance the connections between each character.

Kaz and Inej: Let me just cry for a second.

"She'd laughed, and if he could have bottled the sound and gotten drunk on it every night, he would have. It terrified him."

"I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all."

"I'm going to get my money, Kaz vowed. And I'm going to get my girl."

This one hurt me. I am in love with these two and their relationship with each other makes it so much better. They are not meant to be together yet they are connected in so many ways. I did not think I would fall in love so easy, but here I am.

Matthias and Nina: I was not convinced by these two, especially with how weird their relationship was. They constantly seemed like they hated each other (valid) and some of their romantic scenes felt forced. In the end, I enjoyed seeing Nina grow on Matthias to wake his stubborn ass up. I swear that man refused to have feelings. Anyway, I still have mixed feelings on these two.

Wylan and Jesper: They are so cute. Like insanely cute. Like even I was blushing during their cute scenes. Their relationship isn't as developed yet so I am excited to see them in Crooked Kingdom.

Final Thoughts:

Representation? Check

Map? Check

Two maps?!? Fuck yeah

Amazing plot and worldbuilding? Check

Hilarious banter? Mhm

Great writing? Check

Well- written characters? 100%

Overall, this story will forever be my comfort book and I was impressed by the YA fantasy side of literature. It's hard to believe yet comforting that these characters are my age, makes me feel powerful. I loved every bit of this book and now I kinda wanna grab some friends and pull a heist.

#six of crows #grishaverse #the grisha series #crow club #shadow and bone #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #nina zenik #jesper fahey #wylan van eck #no mourners no funerals #the dregs #soc #sabspoilers #the crows #book review #booklr #ya fantasy #kanej

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paperpocalypse · 4 years ago

Text

red.

50 Wordless Ways to Say “I Love You”: 20. Washing their back/hair in the shower.

Pairing: Five Hargreeves x Reader

Word Count: 1,662 words

Warning: Implied/referenced murder

[A/N: No shower, just sticking Five’s head underneath a sink faucet. Also Villain!AU :)]

It really was too bad.

You had liked Elliott – honestly, you did, and you don’t like a lot of people. Sure, he was ridiculously paranoid, and his Jell-O molds boasted flavors that could alter the timeline all by themselves. But he had been a nice man, a harmless man, and you don’t like killing nice, harmless men unless you have to. Personally, anyway.

If only he had been cooperative for a few more hours …!

“What a shame,” you murmur, tucking the last corner of the blanket underneath his head. At least taking a bullet to the heart was almost as quick as being incinerated by a nuclear missile. Somewhat. In any case, you think to yourself as you stand up, he’s as good as gone; Diego and Luther will probably want to bury him once they get back. Societal convention, and all that.

“Anybody still here?”

(Speak of the devils and they will appear –)

“In here,” you call out, smoothing out your clothes and hurrying into the kitchen before the two brothers – mainly Diego – can make their own conclusions about the living room. As expected, they greet you with suspicious frowns as you come to a stop in front of them.

“What’s going on?” Diego demands.

“Hello to you, too,” you reply lightly. The man only narrows his eyes, and you scratch the back of your head, absently wondering if he does, in fact, like you enough not to turn you into a knife block. “So … things got a bit out of hand with Elliott while you guys were out.”

“What do you mean?” Luther asks.

You shrug. “I had no choice.”

“No choice?”

Diego’s jaw clenches, and he pushes past you towards the living room. “What did you do to him?”

“What he would’ve done to me if I hadn’t shot him first,” you reply evenly. You linger on the boundary between the kitchen and the living room, staying a respectful distance away as they stare down at the covered body. “If it makes it any better, it was quick. I didn’t torture him or anything like that. Not that I know how to.”

“Lucky for him,” Diego retorts. Nevertheless, his expression is calmer that you thought it’d be, and it puts you less on edge. It’s obvious that he’s still upset about it, however. “At least he didn’t suffer too much.”

“Yeah. He didn’t have much time left, anyway.”

The two brothers nod reluctantly, glancing at each other and then down at the body. You cross your arms, fingers brushing the hand-sized weapon just above your hip as Diego turns and bumps past you towards the door again. Probably to find a shovel. Luther, the big old softie, lifts Elliott from the red-leather sofa where you had wrapped him up.

He moves toward the front door as well but stops in front of you, uncertain. “You wanna …?” he starts, motioning the body towards you slightly.

You shake your head. “You two should do it. I already did my part.”

“Are you sure? I mean, I know you got along with him pretty well, and –”

You cut his rambling off with a pat to the back, ushering him along – if you look at the Elliott-shaped cargo in his arms any longer, you might actually start feeling guilty. “I’m one hundred percent positive. Just hurry up, yeah?”

He blinks down at you, then nods. “Okay. Just – come down if you change your mind.”

“Sure thing.”

With that, the hulk of a man wanders away with Elliott, and you walk over to the now vacant couch. Sitting down, you press your palms down into the leather. Is it still slightly warm? You resist the thought of standing back up and lean into the backrest instead. Jesus, you’re getting soft. He was expendable. There’s a thousand more Elliotts out there in a thousand more timelines, anyway.

Inhaling deeply, you take your pistol out. The barrel has, of course, cooled down by now, and you inspect it with careful fingers. But before you can take aim at one of the UFOs tacked onto the far wall, you hear a sound downstairs.

“Five?”

His footsteps are nimbler than usual as he climbs up the stairs. You put the pistol down and push yourself out of your seat, blinking in surprise as the teenage, bloodstained face of your partner comes into view. Everything about him is bloodstained, actually.

Save for the black suitcase gripped like a lifeline in his hand.

“So that’s where you disappeared to?” you exclaim, immediately taking the suitcase from Five and placing it on the coffee table as you shepherd him to the bathroom. “A killing spree without me? I had to settle for the conspiracy man.”

“You did it already?”

“It was in self-defense.”

Five scoffs lightly, shedding his jacket and leaving it on a chair as the two of you walk through the kitchen. “I’m sure it was.”

“It’s true! I mean –” pushing the bathroom door open, you consider, “fine, I got a little stir crazy while everyone was gone. But I didn’t think he’d pull the rifle on me.” You turn on the sink and feel the water run through your fingers, cold and then warm. Perfect. “But enough about me. Whose blood did you bathe in?”

Five loosens his tie. “The board’s,” he tells you.

He keeps his expression professional, but there’s no mistaking the pride just begging to surface in his tone. You raise an eyebrow and hum, tugging him closer to the sink by his tie.

“Impressive. But there’s more, isn’t there?” you guess, trying not to sound like an eager child. Your eyes rove over his profile. “Here, let me wash your hair. It’s getting crusty.”

He rolls his eyes but leans over the sink nevertheless, grunting a bit when you push his head underneath the faucet. Pink water streams down onto the white porcelain and into the drain. As you lather up a bar of soap and begin scrubbing his hair, he speaks, his voice somewhat muffled by the lip of the sink. “I offed the Handler, if that’s what you’re asking.”

A grin spreads across your face. You rinse the last of the bubbles from Five’s hair. “It was.”

“You sound happy.”

“I’m ecstatic.” Running your fingers over his hair one last time, you force your hand off to grab a towel. “Almost everything’s in place now, isn’t it?”

“All there’s left to do is reset the suitcase, have Vanya blow up something next to JFK, and then all of us can head to Commission headquarters.” Removing his head from underneath the faucet, Five holds out a hand and you place the towel in it. “Smooth sailing from there.”

“Well, I do love a good boat ride.”

He huffs out a chuckle as he finishes drying his hair, running the towel under the water again. Your heart turns soft and goopy when his eyes dart to meet yours knowingly, just for a split second, before he wrings the towel out to wipe the blood from his face.

It’s a moment you’d like to savor a little longer, but the image of the suitcase in the living room inevitably shakes you out of it.

“Alright, I’ll leave you to it while I work on resetting the suitcase,” you tell him. “Shouldn’t take too long – ten minutes or so. I hope all of your siblings are back by then.”

“Highly doubt it,” you hear him mutter as you head out the door, and you don’t bother to hide a snort. Each one of the Hargreeves – Five included, even though he often acts like he’s above it – has a fondness for wreaking their own special kind of havoc on each timeline. Might as well have some fun before pulling the plug on humanity, after all. Burn your name into the book before it closes.

You slip into Elliott’s bedroom to grab a hangar, then head over to the living room. The suitcase sits innocently where you had left it; you carefully undo the latches and open the case just enough to sneak the hook in. Each one of this particular model has a sweet spot – and you could find it in your sleep. You had helped design the damn thing, after all. Not that your contributions were ever appreciated.

No, Dr. Geraldine Tynnsdale had to be a “true kindred spirit with the vision of the Commission” for the past twenty-five years.

Taking credit for everything.

After some careful prodding, you feel a satisfying click.

“There we go,” you praise the suitcase, withdrawing the hangar and popping the lid open. A sense of adoration fills your chest, replacing your feelings of malice as you stare at the familiar array of knobs and buttons. Beautiful. “Let’s get to work, shall we?”

Just as you thought, it takes less than ten minutes to get everything in order. The bathroom door unlocks just as you finish inputting the coordinates for headquarters, and you look up at Five (who’s now sporting a freshly cleaned uniform, at least for the visible bloodstains) with a self-satisfied smile as he approaches the sofa. Overwhelming pride for a job well done fills your bones; you had missed your projects dearly these past two weeks.

“Ready?” He tilts his head contentedly, hands in his pockets.

“Ready,” you echo, standing up. “I suppose we’ll have to round up your siblings now.”

The flat look on Five’s face makes you snort again, and you pick up the suitcase while placing your other hand in the crook of his elbow, escorting the two of you towards the back door where Luther and Diego had gone.

Soon, you think, you’ll be free. Free to do whatever you like, make whatever you like, with Five at your side and no one to answer to but yourself.

A smile graces your face as you squeeze Five’s arm. Whoever said that happy endings don’t exist for people like you?

#wordless ways to say i love you #source: @50-item-writing-prompts #five hargreeves #five hargreeves x reader #five hargreeves imagine #the umbrella academy five #the umbrella academy #tua #five x reader #five imagine #tua fanfic #fanfic #reader insert #fluff #villain!tua #they jump from timeline to timeline to cause apocalypses as a family #on purpose this time lol #fun stuff :)

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anothertimdrakestan · 4 years ago

Text

Hot Stuff (Tim Drake x Reader)

Words: 3k

Req: “can you do a fic where the reader has to get protected and she doesn't want to and thinks it's dumb but like otherwise someone is gonna try to kill her so a batboy (of your choice) has to protect her and they like realize they like each other? i just think it would be really cute sorry haha you can ignore me.”

I’m not gonna ignore you!!! this is adorable! also i let ppl vote not knowing the prompt and they picked tim hehehe so this will be fun! you really left me a LOT of creative freedom lmao so i tried my best but had a lot of fun lolz hope you enjoy angel!

It had been at least 5 years since you had ever shivered. And the last time it happened you were like 20 seconds away from dying so the fact that it was becoming a common feeling was definitely a problem. But your near death every couple minutes was a pretty dumb excuse to get you holed up in the batcave being watched over by none other than Mr. Batman himself.

The whole problem arose when all the cold-powered super villains decided it was time for their equivalent of a crossover, deciding that if the world was frozen over they could... steal shit? Then unfreeze it or something? They were always a little slow (call it brain freeze if you will) but the beginnings of their plan worked and the temperature of the Earth was dropping steadily which didn’t bode well for a hero like you who’s powers revolved around heat and energy, the colder you got the weaker- making this the reason you were in a makeshift furnace set up discreetly in the Batcave.

“Morning y/n let’s see how you’re doing” Tim greeted you with a wave, grabbing a tablet that was tracking your internal body temperature and other boring statistics on whether or not you’d live. “Oh man, okay, lemme turn it up” Tim tapped at the tablet while you folded another paper airplane and threw it at the glass. “I feel fine man, like really, I’m just chilling” you shrugged, incinerating the paper airplane with a small flame in the center of your palm while Tim chuckled. “Well ya see, you ‘chilling’ is actually quite a bad thing, but yeah a couple minutes with extra heat and you can come to breakfast!” you rolled your eyes at his smothered laughter. “How long you been sitting on that one?” you teased him.

“Long enough Sparky, now warm up I’m hungry” Tim started you on a burst of energy while he moved on to the main BatComputer. “Whatcha solving today? Anything I can help with?” you squinted at the screen hoping for something interesting. “Bruce is going out to see if he can find the location of all the machines dropping the temp, and no, you’re definitely not going outside anytime soon” Tim chided you while you groaned and let sharp flames jutt from your clenched fists. “I’m not a child, I can regulate my temperature on my own, hell I can still make fire so clearly I’m fine” you said matter-of-factly holding up a flame and letting it dancing into a small burst.

“And I’d like to keep you that way y/n let’s not risk it, now c’mon I think you’ve taken in enough energy” Tim opened the door to your little glass room, his eyes widening at the heat that brushed over his face. “Dude you ever got hot in there?” Tim questioned, fanning his face from the exposure. “Nope, I’m kinda like that all the time” you explained, casually taking his hand to show him how your skin practically radiated heat. “Oh- wow, you’re really warm but it’s kinda cool.” Tim mumbled, pushing your palm flush up against his, the tops of his fingertips curling around yours while he grinned, “your hands are so small” you snorted, “whatever Drake, I could cook you like a bird if I wanted to,” you laughed, racing up the steps towards the kitchen ready to warm up some breakfast.

That afternoon you were helping Damian through homework hoping for any excitement in the pure boredom. “Alright, done. I’m going to take Titus out you can come- uh actually nevermind.” Damian shot you an apologetic look before grabbing Titus’ collar. “No actually I can go! I’m super warm and got the go ahead!” You quickly stood up, telling yourself a little getaway was necessary. “Really? I believe Drake said-” you cut Damian off, “Tim is like never right about anything yaknow? Let’s go!” You zipped up a couple of your jackets with a grin while Damian led you outside.

The air was crisp, like a fall day that was on the verge of shifting into winter. “You’re not going to die on me are you?” Damian glanced at you while you breathed in the fresh air peacefully. “No haha, this is just regulating my temperature using my powers for a little while, I get ill when I do it for too long, let’s go!” you raced down the street loving the freedom even though you could feel the cold creep in.

“Y/n? Y/n? Guys I think her eyelids are moving! Y/N! Can you hear me?” a familiar voice buzzed over the white noise while you began to regain your senses. Slowly you blinked your eyes open to see Damian, who looked pissed, Bruce, who also looked pissed, and Tim, who looked worse than ever. “WHAT WERE YOU THINKING YOU LIED TO DAMIAN TO GO OUTSIDE THEN ALMOST DIED!” Tim was waving his hands and showing you charts of your warmth-cold ratios being at all time lows and spouting off concerning facts about your health while Bruce just looked at the ceiling asking ‘why me’.

“I thought I’d be fine” you whispered, feeling your throat scream at it’s use. “It’s like freezing outside- freakin colder than winter- and you wanted to go outside???” Tim looked exasperated, he was in a loose tank top and shorts, it looked like he’d been sweating so he had probably been next to you for a while during your recovery. “I didn’t think I’d get so cold” you mumbled, flexing your hands while you tried to regain your strength.

Eventually Tim calmed down, he went back to working on cases but you noticed him frequently checking to confirm you hadn’t left your new room. Damian chastised you for lying and told you how you essentially fainted a couple blocks into the walk, it was just way too cold too for you to function outside. But the small taste of freedom was worth it.

“Hey hot stuff,” Tim gave you a little devilish smile at his new nickname for you. “Cute Drake, but what’s up?” you called back as he approached your makeshift oven-room. “Nothing much just thought I’d come hangout- warm up your cold dark heart for once” you shook your head at all his heat-centered puns. “Tough talk for a glorified shish-kebab” you said with a laugh, letting a little spark dance on your finger tips.

“What does it feel like? The powers and being cold?” Tim asked, his eyes still staring at your palm. “Mhm it’s a part of me yaknow? So when it’s cold its like a piece of my being is being stifled, like choked out of me. But normally, it just flows through me and I can channel it and what not but right now it feels... rigid, like every ounce of warmth is being used to circulate through my own body” you said with a sign, missing the freedom and immense warmth. “We’re gonna fix this y/n you know that right? This is only temporary, I promise.” Tim whispered, inching closer to the glass.

You felt a tear slip out, quickly you pushed it away feeling it evaporate in your hands you looked up at Tim who was inches from the glass, his cheeks were red from the heat radiating on him as he stood bundled in a sweater. Slowly he gave you a hopeful smile, putting his hand up against the glass. With a small smile you uncurled your hand up to meet his, for a second you just met his eyes and knew you were safe. Even when everything seemed so cold Tim was warm, and he was always there for you.

A couple days later you were stable, but constantly needing reheating. You’d spent a lot of time with Tim who had set up a little workspace outside your room. He’d work on cases and talk to you, sometimes he’d catch a few minutes of sleep, his cheek pressed adorably up to the warm glass while you stifle giggles as his sleepy breaths fog the glass. Your situation was bearable with Tim, and you were really starting to enjoy his company.

“Red Robin we’ve got something” you watched Tim shoot up from his work as Bruce descended into the Batcave. “Barry Allen and the rest of Star Labs have reason to believe the frost machines aren’t actually underground, but their above us. Think pumping out cold air like an AC machine for the Earth” Tim nodded, sitting down at the batcomputer as he began typing rapidly. You were straining your neck against the glass to try to see what he was doing.

“Got it, try here, here, and here” Tim was pointing wildly at a map while Bruce sent out the coords. “Suit up, if we’re right this’ll be a real fight” Bruce said as he left to go get the others. After Tim was in his suit he came up next to your room with a grin. You looked at him with hopeful eyes, “you think this is it?” you asked Tim while he flashed you a hopeful smile. “I hope so y/n, if we’re lucky this will be it” he answered, taking a deep breath and clenching his hands into fists. “Well you need extra luck” you told him, he nodded then stopped short when you burst out of the room, throwing your arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug. “My hugs are super lucky” you whispered into his chest while his hands wrapped around your back. “I’ll take all the luck I can get” he mumbled, lowering his head into the crook of your neck. The hug was easy and perfect- until you started to shiver. Quickly Tim deposited you back into your room, turning up the heat.

“Guess I’m not hot enough for you” Tim snorted while you rubbed your shoulders. “Shut up dork, now go fix the world so I can give you a proper hug” you placed your hand against the glass again. With a nod he placed his hand to yours, “will do” he said, dashing off towards Bruce and Damian who were also all suited up.

“Y/n I must inform you they have in fact found the base and will be going into battle shortly” Alfred called from the computers while he monitored the team’s location. “Yes!” you shouted, pumping a fist in the air while you paced around your room.

The plan was clear, there were 10 giant AC machines pumping out the frost across the world, some heroes had been separated into teams each tasked with taking out their respective machine then any hero strong enough to lift the machines were in charge of bringing them to an undisclosed location on one of Bruce’s private islands for inspection and dismantling. Alfred had Bruce, Dick, Tim, and Damian’s vitals displayed on the screen as their suits were consistently monitoring them and you’d been craning your neck to keep track of the little bars. “god Alfie how do you take it? You can see every hit they take, every injury, you’re basically looking at it all going wrong!” you felt like tearing your hair out, watching the screen light up with every hit each boy took.

“You get used to it Ms. Y/n you must have faith that they’ve seen worse and can survive anything” Alfred answered cooly but it didn’t stop you from wincing everytime Tim’s bar lowered or lit up meaning he took a hit.

Over the comms you heard Bruce and Damian confirm their machine was sufficiently broken, as well as 8 of the other machines. As it turned out, Tim, Dick, and one of those annoying speedsters had been sent to the head machine, a few members of the league were at the other. You watched Tim take hit after hit, clearly him and Dick were struggling. “Alf is it just me or are Tim and Dick’s bars not going up” you were pounding at the glass of your room. Slowly Alfred nodded, abruptly standing up. To your shock he began moving around the cave, setting up what looked like a makeshift hospital room. “There will almost assuredly be some injuries after this battle. But how are you feeling Ms. Y/n as over half of the machines have been taken down” Alfred drew you away from the flashing bars as you realized you were feeling better, still not top shape but better than you’d been in days. “Yeah you’re right I’m definitely feeling better-”

“Hey Alfie Tim just got buried in snow any recommendations?” you heard Dick’s voice come over the speakers. Your head whipped to his bar which was flashing wildly as you shrieked. Alfred replied quickly, “Master Dick you must remove him immediately and wrap him with something warm as his suit cannot regulate him in freezing temperatures.” as he made his way back to the batcomputer, talking Dick through his next actions.

“Will do, he’ll be okay but he’s kinda a popsicle right now” Dick’s voice came over the comms again while you let out the breath you’d been holding in as you saw Tim’s bar sliding back up. Shortly after they were aided by the rest of the league, promptly taking out the final machine and finding the villains hiding inside.

Dick, Tim, and Damian returned to the cave shorty, Bruce was busy with league business interrogating the villains. Damian came in first, declaring he now hated the cold after how freezing that mission was. Following him was Dick who was walking with a slight limp as he called to Alfred explaining that he just twisted it when he dug Tim out of the snow. And last, Tim made his way into the cave. His hair was wet, clearly melted from being buried under snow. He was wearing a Star Labs sweatshirt and sweatpants as he held his waterlogged suit in his slightly shaky hands, and a towel was draped over his shoulders. “Alf you want my suit? Pretty sure I fried half the tech” he called as he shook his head, little water droplets flying from his hair. “I’ll see to it’s repair Master Tim” Alfred nodded, gesturing for Tim to place it next to him. “Also, might I recommend you spend some time with Miss Y/n as she is quite capable of warming you up” Alfred gestured towards your room before going back to examining Dick’s ankle.

Tim nodded in agreement, giving you a little wave as he stumbled into the room with you. Letting the relief flood your head you quickly brought him into a warm hug, focusing on pushing some of your energy forwards to warm him up. “Mhm” Tim’s eyelashes fluttered shut against your neck while he melted into your embrace. “You’re so cold” you whispered with a giggle. “Yeah and you’re really hot” Tim groaned in reply, though you could feel his lips curl into a smile against your neck. “I think you meant warm” you tried to ignore the butterflies having a rager in your stomach. “Hm no I said it right” Tim whispered in your ear making your eyes widen at his upfront response. “Oh, I- uh, thanks? I think you’re pretty cool- no not cool cuz like that’s the opposite of hot- yeah you’re-” you were silenced as Tim pressed his lips to yours. Your eyes shot open at the feeling of his ice cold lips pressed to yours but they quickly fluttered closed when his hand wrapped around the back of your head, pulling you deeper into the kiss. His lips quickly warmed up against yours making your breath hitch when he slipped a cold hand around your waist pulling you flush against him. His fingers felt like ice as they grasped your back but you couldn’t but melt into his touch.

You pulled away first, taking in gasping breaths while you couldn’t help but grin. “You warm yet?” you teased, pulling his hand away from your back and placing your hand in his, giving it a warm squeeze. “Mhm one more kiss” he pouted, leaning down to place a smiling kiss onto your lips while you scrunched your nose. “I should seriously freeze to death more often if it means I get to kiss you” Tim said while you rolled your eyes. “Or you could just not die and I might give you a good-job kiss?” you offered with a grin. “Will do” Tim nodded, giving your hand a squeeze.

“Goodbye oven!” you shouted, practically kicking the door open as you finally got to leave the cramped room behind. Just a day later the Earth had returned to average temperature and you were free. “I am SO ready to go home, not that I didn’t like it here” you said, giving Tim a little smile as Bruce return all your belongings after a little over a week in Bat-Solitude. “Come back soon though?” Tim piped up with a hopeful looks. “Definitely, I won’t give you the cold shoulder” you snorted at your own joke while Damian groaned, saying something about being happy he’ll be free of your puns.

Tim walked you out, chatting your ear off about his next cases and all the time he had to come see you, over the course of the frozen-adventure you’d found a best friend and possibly something more, maybe the oven was worth it after all?

“Okay, so I’ll see you in a couple days?” you grinned as Tim nodded. “Yup! Now before you go, I need another good luck hug- they definitely work wonders seeing as last time I got buried in snow” Tim laughed, wrapping his arms around you as he chuckled into the hug. “Not my fault you turned into a snowman Drake” You gave him a squeeze before pulling away, locking eyes with him. His hand slipped to your chin again, but this time you wrapped your hands around his neck, pulling him in for a goodbye kiss, loving the way sparks danced on your lips. Pulling out of the kiss as the car arrived Tim opened the door for you like the gentleman he is, giving your hand a squeeze.

“See you later hot stuff” Tim winked at you, shutting the door and waving as you drove away, shaking your head at his never ending puns, you smiled to yourself as soon as he was out of view, loving the idea that you’d get to tease that cute dork for the rest of your life.

#tim drake #tim drake x reader #tim drake x y/n #tim drake x you #tim drake x fem!reader #damian wayne #batboys #dick grayson x reader #bruce wayne #tim drake fluff #tim drake fanfic #red robin #red robin x reader #batfam #batfam x reader #dc fluff #jason todd #dc fanfic #timothy jackson drake

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megashadowdragon · 3 years ago

Video

youtube

fgo theory is caster cu really odin

comments :

There is also the 10 bond CE for him being the Yggdrasil Tree, which is very Norse. (the fact he needs a bunch of Yggdrasil seeds may also be a bit of a hint.) Interestingly, the Wickerman festivals were held throughout Europe (Areas such as England and Scotland) and were regarded as a neo-pagan festivity. Chances are, if CasCu really is Odin, it is highly likely he will take action in the English Lostbelt second part. I think itd be really cool, but if that was the case itd be more likely Cu caster was a Cu-Odin fusion similar to Scathach-Skadi. We know its within Odin's ability to do a fusion like this due to how he did the same for Skadi. It also explains how caster cu retains the protection from arrows and disengage skills. It also makes more sense how he's kept his identity a secret, because it's not false that he is Cu.

www . reddit . com/r/grandorder/comments/lkw9xm/summary_of_the_caster_cu_chulainnodin_theory/

At absolutely no point does he ever give his name or makes any mention to it.

Other Servants who initially don't give their names say that they'll give it to you later. Caster does not even bring up the subject.

In the Garden of Sinners crossover event, he says "there's no Cú Chulainn here". It's treated as a gag, but...

In the Singularity F Memorial Quest, he's the only Servant referred to by his Class name instead of his True name.

In Lostbelt 6 he finally introduces himself... as Grimnir. This is an alias that Odin uses in the Grímnismál.

He's not supposed to be the Caster of the Fuyuki Grail War in the first place. In the original reality, it's Medea, while in FGO reality it's Solomon. Material states that Singularity F is the result of data colliding, and Caster resulted from that. However, in that case it should be either Solomon or Medea who appear in Singularity F, not Cú Chulainn.

One of his lines goes as following: "Isn't bit boring to play a game that never ends? For better or for worse, it's like you can't move the pieces forward, yeah?" Is he talking about Singularity F? At any rate, this sounds weird.

His Final Ascension art and animation update features two white wolves. Odin is stated to have two wolves named Geri and Freki.

His second Noble Phantasm, which he mentions in one of his My Room lines, is called "Ochd Deug Odin - Seal of the Great God". It's an exceedingly powerful Rank A Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm with potentially Game Breaking effects, but what's interesting is its description: it activates by chanting its True Name and using all 18 primordial runes granted by Scáthach at once (keep in mind she taught him the Norse ones) and it "temporarily unleashes the power of the rune possessed by the Great Odin". Aside from the weirdness of him even having that Noble Phantasm in the first place (he's not supposed to have Wickerman either, but at least we get an explanation for that), why can't he use it? (Potential Game-Breaker status not withstanding).

In the North America version of the game, his Bond Craft Essense is called "Yggdrasil Tree". That's taken from Norse Mythology, so why would a Celt have it?

In addition, the Yggdrasil tree has a particularly strong tie to Odin. The Ygg bit is another name for him, and according to legend at some point he hanged himself from one of its branches to gain wisdom.

For some reason, he's in the Nordic Fields during Boudica's 3rd Strengthening Quest.

During Valentine's Day in the return gift scene, he talks about the Human Order Incineration and the Human Order Reorganization - a.k.a. the Lostbelts. Somehow he knew about the Lostbelts before the game even got to that point.

In the 2019 Valentine's event, he's seen reading the book "Scandinavia's Beautiful Mountains".

In the FGO mats, Sigurd takes special notice of him and then has a Double Take. He also seems confused about him in his material profile. The fact that Sigurd noticed Caster is odd, but it should also be noted that Sigurd encountered Odin a number of times in his legend, thus making him one of the most likely people to recognize him.

Scáthach's Interlude brings up a LOT of questions. The regular Lancer Cú Chulainn says that his power is reduced because half his Saint Graph is missing. Mash suggests that the reduction in power may be because he was separated in numerous classes, but Lancer Cú is surprised that he can be summoned as a Caster. In addition, there are several Servants summonable in numerous classes, and none of them has this problem. There's a possibility that the other half of the Saint Graph went to Caster, and he's using an external source to stabilize it.

According to the Arcade version of FGO, it's impossible for any version of Cú Chulainn to be summoned without Gáe Bolg or the skill "Martial Arts Disciplining in the Shadow Country". Yet Caster has neither, thus making him an impossible summoning.

Not very noticeable in the English version, but he occasionally slips into using the "washi" pronoun during dialogue. For those who might not know, "washi" is actually pretty formal, and contrasts Cú Chulainn's much more casual "ore".

A lot of his official art has him looking subtly different that the other versions of Cú Chulainn.

He has lighter-coloured hair in all of his artwork, and Fate/Grand Carnival gives him wrinkles under the eyes. This trait is usually used in anime to show a character around 40-50 years old; an age that Cú Chulainn never reached.

In his card art and formal outfit card, his eyes are almost orange rather than red. In addition, one eye is always at least partially hidden.

In his April Fool's card, he has different facial features than the rest of the Cú Chulainns.

Tying to the above, Odin is known for disguising himself as an older man, usually a wizard, in a hood, and he's missing an eye. Missing eye aside, Caster fits most of that criteria, and as pointed out above, most his art hides his eye anyway. Odin gave said eye in exchange for wisdom, and there are a few remarks that Caster is getting smarter.

In the original Fate/stay night, Emiya draws a connection between Gáe Bolg and Odin's spear, Gungnir. Considering that he has picked up things like Rho Aias and Caladbolg, we can probably take him at his word. In his animation update, Caster throws his staff above the enemies heads, and then it changes tragectory to attack them from behind. While this could easily be a reference to Gáe Bolg's actual method of killing in the myth (it entered the victim through the asshole), it could also be a reference to how Odin would throw Gungnir above the heads of his enemies to declare a war.

Another detail from his animation upgrade is that his Instant Runes often take the form of a Valknut; this symbol according to some scholars is associated with Odin.

There are overall several indications that Caster will play a significant role later in the story: he's featured in the trailer of Lostbelt 6 and received his animation update during the Lostbelt 6 livestream, and Word of God has implied several times that we will be returning to Singularity F at some point.

Tying to the above, in one of My Room conversations, he say's he'll teach you how to use Runes later. Maybe it's not Blatant Lies after all.

Caster and Odin share several personality traits. Both of them are known as "the raging one", are strongly tied with the concept of war, magic, and wisdom, and both of them are The Gadfly - as Caster displays in Singularity F when he tries to get Mash to activate her Noble Phantasm. In addition, in various events Caster seems to have a gambling problem, which is also one of Odin's traits. Not to mention "summon me as a Lancer" works for Odin too.

The recent Lostbelt 6 update also adds fuel to the fire. In My Room dialogues, Scáthach tells him that his Rune magic is slightly different from what she taught him. He asks Sigurd not to look at him with the glasses, when he sees Brynhildr he muses that this must be fate/karma and specifically refers to Scáthach-Skadi as "Lostbelt Skadi."

His new battle lines from the same update are just as interesting.

"Witness the essence of the Rune magecraft taught by Scáthach... Sure, let's go with that." Along with Scáthach accusing him of his Rune magic being different, this could easily imply that he didn't learn them from her.

Another line is that "he doesn't have the noose of his neck anymore". As an above point states, this Odin did this to learn his runes. The noose bit also never happened to Cú Chulainn.

One of his victory lines references "wolves and crows" and that he has "no idea what they're talking about". The crows part could be a reference to the story of Cú Chulainn's death, which features a crow sitting on his corpse, but the whole quote seems to better reference Odin and his pets; the wolves Geri and Freki, and the crows Huginn and Muninn.

Lostbelt 6 also gives his a buff to his Disengage skill. More specifically, it's actually two buffs that activate back-to-back, with the first called "At the Fountain" and the second called "Sacrifice to the World Tree". Very specific, game.

In Lostbelt 2, it is outright stated that it was Odin who fused Skadi and Scáthach together. Who says he never did it before?

#fgo #fate grand order #fate/ grand order #fate/grand order #fgo theory #caster cu #fgo odin

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writtenjewels · 3 years ago

Text

Space heater part 3

Part One, Part Two

Shepard experienced some of the best sleep he'd ever had, and he felt guilty as hell about it. The worst part was he was getting used to it now so even on the nights when his cabin didn't feel so cold, he slept poorly without Kaidan there with him. No, the worst part was they went from just being in the same bed to gradually inching closer to each other to the point where they were now spooning in bed whenever Kaidan slept with him. And he really liked how Kaidan felt in his arms.

“I'm working on fixing the cooling system,” he told Kaidan as the biotic settled into bed, “so you won't have to... you know, be my space heater anymore.”

“Oh.” Kaidan sat staring at him for a moment. It was hard to read his expression. Was he relieved? Disappointed? “But you're cold tonight, aren't you?”

“Yeah, a little.”

“So I'll keep you warm.” Kaidan shrugged, as if that closed the matter. The arrangement was completely platonic. They didn't take off any clothes, didn't even really touch except for when they started spooning. And that Shepard could reason away as a habit carried over from all the times he spooned a pillow in order to sleep comfortably. Kaidan was just a very warm, solidly muscular pillow.

A few days later their mission led them to a frozen planet. Not quite like Noveria, but enough for Shepard to dream of a thousand sweaters bundling him in a giant ball. Kaidan took point as they surveyed the area. Suddenly Kaidan took a step and disappeared in the snow.

“Kaidan!” Shepard cried, hurrying to the spot. He ejected a thermal clip to warm up the snow as he shoveled more out of the way. The snow had been covering a frozen lake and Kaidan had cracked through the thin ice. Shepard could see him struggling in the water to reach the surface, which was already so cold it was threatening to freeze over again. Shepard used the butt of his rifle to break off more ice.

Once Kaidan was close enough Shepard grabbed him by the arm and hauled him out of the water. The biotic lay gasping for air, trembling from exhaustion and cold. Survival training kicked in and Shepard helped pull him away from the ice. The Mako was too far away to reach but there was a cave close by. Shepard guided Kaidan over there and used Incinerate to get a fire going.

“Kaidan. Kaidan, shit.” He touched the man's face. “You're freezing.” The biotic shivered in answer and reached feebly to unclasp his armor. “You want it off?” Shepard guessed, working to help. Underneath he saw that Kaidan's clothing had soaked through. That needed to come off before it stole body heat. “Kaidan... Kaidan, I have to...”

“Shepard,” Kaidan called out, shivering hard. “I need... my space heater.”

“Me?” Shepard's lip twitched a bit. “I'm the one who's always cold.” But he took that as permission to strip off the soaked clothing. It was fine; it was a matter of survival. There were no blankets to wrap Kaidan in, which left... “Shit,” Shepard cursed, taking off his own armor and pulling Kaidan into his arms. “You feel like ice. This is weird, I'm used to you being the warm one.”

“Warm,” Kaidan agreed with a sigh. “You're so warm.” Shepard had no idea how it happened, but his lips were suddenly pressed up against Kaidan's. They felt cold, too, so he traced his tongue over them to warm them. He felt Kaidan's mouth welcome him, his tongue pressing back.

“Wait, wait.” Shepard pulled out of the embrace. “You're delirious from the cold.”

“Hm. And what was I every time I held you in bed?” Kaidan challenged. “Or do you only like it when I'm the space heater?”

“What? No, I mean, of course I don't mind being the space heater. But this is survival, Kaidan.”

“What about later?” Kaidan asked. “Will you warm me then?”

“Sure.”

“With your mouth?” Kaidan went on in a low voice. “I'm not delirious. I want to kiss you. Wanted to for... a while.” As if to prove it, his lips found Shepard's again, kissing him with slow patience, warming him on the inside.

“Kaidan,” he sighed. “I need you to stay warm. We'll talk about this later. For now, let me... let me be your space heater.”

Kaidan grunted and wrapped his arms around Shepard. The two lay like that long after it became necessary for survival.

#kaidan x shepard #kaidan alenko #mshenko #mshepard

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caffiend-queen · 4 years ago

Text

In Flight

An A/B/O Bucky for the MCU Dark Marvel Library Kink Challenge

Chapter Three: Up on the Roof

Chapter Two here

In which you fight your fears and your stubborn belief that you are a beta, and Bucky better get used to that. Also, excessively attractive panthers and uncontrolled bouts of flame.

...His big, warm hands were on your hips and Bucky drew you closer. “Did you miss me, Aerouant?” Oh, he smelled so good. Even under the ugly smear of blood and antiseptic, his fresh-cut grass smell was there, and that spicy note of something herbal was back. It was all you could do to not bury your nose in his neck.

“Is that a trick question?”

His answer was halted by a pounding on your door. “Bird girl! You got the Manchurian Candidate in there?” Tony, of course, didn’t wait for your answer and strolled into your living room. He was followed by Steve with an apologetic smile and Natasha, who looked between you and Bucky with a poorly smothered smirk.

“What am I confirming or denying with the national press tomorrow?” you said resignedly. "You know CNN is going to be all over this.”

"Well, the bit with the fire is going to be everywhere," Tony said casually. "But the only casualties were Hydra, and they don't count."

"And damages?" you asked, picking up your tablet to make notes.

"Don't you want to know about the fire?" Tony was practically vibrating with eagerness. You ignored him and looked at Steve, who is always the saner of the two.

"It was pretty amazing," Steve admitted. “Bucky-”

“Is leaving,” said the man in question, and he headed out the door before you could finish the Steri-Strips holding together the gash on his forehead.

"What was that?" You looked between the three suspiciously.

Surprisingly, it was Natasha who broke first. “We got into the third phase of their attack and it was an ambush," she said. "It wasn't looking good for us, and Bucky, he..." she looked at the other two as if getting their agreement.

“Bucky went full dragon!" Tony interrupted, "it was this epic act of arson that incinerated half the Hydra unit in one bellow! Damn, what I wouldn't give for lungs like those!”

Your jaw dropped and you looked at Steve again. “I'm guessing that doesn't happen often?" you asked, "Or, like, not at all on missions?”

"Yeah, that was unusual." Steve scratched the back of his head. "So in case there's any reports of giant flying flamethrowers you can just mention that Hydra had this poison-”

“The poison gas excuse?” you said crossly, “Again? Never mind. I'll go review the mission notes. Why don't you all get cleaned up and get some dinner? I ordered from Mr. Ling’s again, Tony. So you’ve got 47 boxes of wontons waiting for you in the kitchen.”

Bucky, however, was right where you’d hoped he’d be- by the eagles. You handed him a heavy box of takeout, steam redolent of the luscious dim sum that only Mr. Ling could create. “Thanks, doll.” He opened the box, an honest smile of pleasure on his face as he inhaled the fragrant smell of lemongrass and sesame seeds.

“You must be starving,” you handed him a set of chopsticks and even shivered as his fingers brushed yours. He looked down at the takeout, but you caught his smile. “It’s just dumplings,” you stumbled, trying to play it cool.

Brushing your arm, he said, “From you. Thank you for thinking of me.” You ate together for a while, silently as you watched the eagles settle for the night.

“Mama looks tired,” you observed.

“Mama?” Bucky was trying to conceal a smile.

“Um, yeah.” You poked at your noodles for a while, “You know, sitting on those big-ass eggs. I bet she’s exhausted. Imagine, trying to hatch a gigantic clutch of eggs like that? I mean, god, who could do that?”

Your beautiful alpha was looking at you with a combination of confusion and kindness. “I’m … eagles, I guess? Is this going somewhere, Aerouant?”

Stuffing another bundle of noodles in your mouth, you tried to shut up. It didn’t work. “Do dragons lay eggs?” It just burst out of you, and you closed your eyes in embarrassment.

Bucky actually stopped chewing. “I … do you mean shapeshifters?”

“Uh…” You swallowed with some effort. “Is there a difference?”

He hid his grin by looking down at his wontons. “It’s not the way you’re thinking, doll. There’s no eggs.”

“Oh, thank god,” you blurted. Reaching into your pocket, you pulled out the shiny black disc, stroking your thumb over the surface. “Recognize this?”

Bucky scooted closer, but didn’t touch it. “Where did you find one of my scales?”

“I knew it!” You awkwardly hopped up and down in your sitting position, wanting to bounce excitedly and also not spill your takeout. “It IS a dragon scale! It was almost woven into the eagle nest. It’s so beautiful.”

He was still looking at the part shed from him in dragon form. “I’ve never known…”

You waited, but he was silent, gazing at the scale. “Known what?” you prompted gently.

“The armor plating on the underside…” his finger hovered over but didn’t touch the surface. “I’ve searched through all the Irish legends, but there’s nothing about a dragon with this form. Is this part of me because of my arm, or?”

It was odd to be in the other position, watching Bucky be unsure about something relating to his heritage. And maybe, to yours. “There is one, a dragon,” you offered, clearing your throat. “Uilepheist. Legend has it that he sank to the bottom of the ocean for a thousand years, resting on his massive bed of treasure. When the call of the other dragons invading his turf came to him, he rose out of the water, roaring loud enough to cause massive waves that swamped the invaders. He destroyed the other dragons because none of them could penetrate his hide. His entire lower half was covered in precious metals and coins from his treasure.” He was looking at you with something like awe, and the thought that this awe-inspiring man could feel that way about you made you light up inside, like you were glowing.

Putting down his dim sum, Bucky took your face in his two big hands, cradling it, holding you delicately like something precious. “Beautiful Omega,” he said, kissing you, full lips sweeping over yours. “Omega mine.”

And just like that, the glow was gone.

“I’m a beta,” you said tiredly. It was all you ever seemed to fucking say these days, “I’m a beta, I’m a beta, I’m a BETA!”

“This isn’t about a beta designation being a bad thing,” Bucky said patiently, “This is about you being afraid of who you really are.”

You were instantly on the defensive. “I’m not afraid! I think you just don’t want a plain ol’ beta! We all can’t be amazing dragon shifters who- who-“ you were waving your arms around and put them back on your hips. “I know what I am, Bucky. I’m not going to throw myself off the top of Stark Towers and end up as paste on Madison Avenue, just to prove it. And if that isn’t enough-“ you bit hard on the inside of your cheek, fighting back those stupid tears trying to derail your determination, “I… I understand.”

He didn’t look angry, or even particularly sad. Touching your cheek softly, Bucky said, “I can wait.”

Unfortunately, “waiting for you” apparently meant sex was off the table. There were multiple missions to clean up the loose ends from the Hydra strike, which meant you didn’t even get to spend time with him. You worried about his dragon self popping out when it wasn’t supposed to, but there were no more reports for you to re-frame as “poison gas attacks.” So you focused on Steve’s big Fourth of July birthday bash, which you knew was as about as desirable to him as becoming Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. But Tony was insistent, so you re-framed it to Steve as a charity fundraiser for the city’s homeless and he reluctantly agreed.

But you kept Bucky’s dragon scale in your pocket or your organizer wherever you went, absently rubbing your thumb over it, stroking the smooth, glassy surface. You’d open your notebook and it would be there, reminding you of the man you’d made love to in midair over the Atlantic Ocean, which was beginning to sound more and more unbelievable as you thought about it.

Until you fell asleep, and the dreams began. You and Bucky in a giant cave deep in the mountains with the wind howling outside, on a pile of furs as he slid into from behind, that lovely, thick cock stroking along all those secret places inside you, lighting up nerve endings like a match and making you moan and howl like the wild creature he said you were, nails digging and scraping against the rock. You woke from those nights tired and extremely turned on. When Bucky managed to reach you from wherever he was, you blurted, “I’ve been dreaming about you.”

Silence, then a low chuckle that made your toes curl in your new Louboutins. “And what happened in the dream, Aerouant?”

“We were, um, we were doing it.”

“Doing what?” You were writhing, his beautiful, deep voice was simmering through your girl parts.

“You know perfectly well, we- okay, we were having sex, you were behind me and gripping my hips and slamming into me.”

Now it was Bucky’s turn to groan a little, which made you spitefully pleased. “What else?”

You were in your big office chair, and you curled your legs up, rubbing your thighs together. “We were in a cave, this crazy huge one and the wind-“

“It was blowing like a hurricane?” he interrupted.

“Yeah, crazy gale-force winds. But you’d wrapped me up in all these furs, so…”

Bucky gave out a low, crooning noise that made you curl into yourself like a potato bug. “You were with me last night. We’re in the mountains near Kathmandu, we wiped out a Hydra nest here. We had to take shelter in a cave when the windstorm came up.”

“How could I have been with you?” You were hit with a longing for this man that was almost painful.

“Your dragon was here. I dreamt of you, too.”

“Bucky, I…” You tried desperately not to cry,

“Shhh, Omega,” he murmured, “it’s all right. I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Yeah, okay,” you sniffled, “be safe.” When you hung up, you stared at the window for an hour, fingers stroking over his dragon scale.

Throwing yourself back into the plans for Steve’s deeply undesired Fourth of July birthday party helped a bit the next day, but the dreams when you tried to rest were not at all helpful.

They’d found them, the evil fucks who’d killed and hurt so many people, including your Bucky. You felt his savage exaltation as he pursued them - seeing the chase from above, from his view as he swept down, cavernous mouth open wide as a monstrous burst of flame flared forth and incinerated them. Even deeply asleep, it was all you could do to not laugh as Tony wailed, “We were supposed to bring them in alive!” Knowing all the while that not one Avenger agreed with him. Not even him, in fact.

But they’d had help this time, another group of alphas and omegas - who knew there were panther shapeshifters? And they were so very helpful, especially the alpha, a female. She’d hunted alongside your people, along with her pack. In the end, when there was nothing left but skeletons and ash, she’d shifted into a stunningly (of fucking course, you bitterly observed) female who’d stood very close to Bucky, smiling up at him in approval.

You’d taken to standing on (well, near) the edge of the roof again. It was during one of these sessions of tormenting yourself with the “what ifs” when the eagle eggs began to hatch. “Oh, Bucky!” you groaned, “I wish you were here!” With shaking hands, you yanked out your phone and Facetimed him, and miracle of miracles, he picked up.

“Hello? Oh, my-”

“Bucky! Look! It’s the eggs! They’re hatching!” You knew there were others in the room because he didn’t respond with the excitement you expected.

“Just a second.” As he was walking out of the room, you could see the discontented expression of the gorgeous female panther behind him.

Deflated, you started backtracking. “It’s okay, I just thought you’d want to know, I’ll just send you a picture, and-”

“Aerouant,” he soothed, “I want to see.” So, you scooted up as close as you dared to the nest, watching as the first, then the second egg were pecked open from the inside, the determined eaglets wedging their wet, grey heads out of the battered shell.

“They’re terrible looking,” you said happily, “all whitish-grey with their big, oversized beaks.” The majestic, perfect looking parents looked sternly down at their hatchlings that were attempting to waddle around the nest.

You tilted the phone screen enough to see that Bucky was smiling fondly, like a proud uncle. "What about the third egg?"

“Not yet,” you said, chewing your lip slightly, wondering why this was so important to you, that third egg. Noticing that Bucky picked up on your concern.

“Don’t worry, it can take another day or two,” he began, but he was interrupted by Sam.

“Buckster! Pack business! We need to talk! Say goodnight and hang up!”

As Bucky started walking back into the room, you saw all the Avengers, anointed with their designations and so secure. Natasha was talking with the hot-looking panther bitch, and you tried to force your resentment down that she was more animated and friendly with this shifter than she’d been with you in years of working together. Forcing a smile, you said, “Goodnight … Alph- uh, Bucky.” His eyes were so kind, you mourned silently.

“Goodnight, sweet Omega. Thank you for sharing the eagles with me.”

You went to bed, even more in love with this incredible man for his kindness, but with a cold misery every time you remembered Sam’s tone, “This is pack business.” Somewhere you’d never be welcome. Not really.

Waking up the next morning, you took a run around the roof track as you tried to keep your eyes out on the horizon and not on the unspeakable drop from Stark Tower. Checking on the eaglets, you were happy to see the two adorably ugly, fuzzy little dudes getting comfortable. But egg number three was still stubbornly unhatched.

“You’re in a good mood,” Kari, your assistant greeted you with a smile when you handed over her favorite soy-latte blend.

Shrugging, you said, “Eh. The party plans are almost set, thank god.”

“Uh, huh…” Kari gave you a leering grin. “And I’m sure that the fact that the whole team - including one super-hot soldier - are coming home today isn’t factoring in at all?”

“Did you get an answer back about the fireworks yet?” You crisply moved the conversation away from the confusing mix of need and resentment you felt toward the people you worked for.

But Kari was wrong, the team didn’t come home that afternoon. “It’s a full moon,” Tony was fiddling with something loose on one of his gloves on your video feed, and it was driving you mad. “It’s easier to fly from here to our meeting place upstate.”

“But I have three pages of questions for you, Tony,” you protested, “I promised Steve we’d make this a huge fundraiser and so far I need your approval on-”

He never looked up from his glove. “I trust you. Just handle it. We’ve got pack business so I’m going to have to hang up now, so… yeah.” The screen went dark and you said a very bad word about your boss.

“FRIDAY, if I’m needed, I’ll be-”

“Up on the roof?” the AI cut in politely. “I’ll alert anyone who might try to reach you.”

“So you think this wouldn’t piss me off, right?” You were pacing back and forth, drinking a split of champagne right from the bottle that you’d found stashed in your little office fridge. “But it does. And do you know why?”

The eagle family was staring at you, but you had at least greeted them politely first, inquiring after the eaglet’s health and asking if the third egg would be hatching soon. But then Tony and this whole … fucking pack business just infuriated you.

“Oh, believe me. It’s not the first time I’ve heard that bullshit. My mom and dad - they’re alphas. From a long line of alphas. I was the golden daughter. Right until I turned eighteen and didn’t present like most of my friends. ‘Just a beta?’ You should have seen my dad’s face. That scholarship offer to Columbia University disappeared. My parents pretty much left me alone after that.” You walked back and forth along the roofline, carefully looking out, not down. “‘Pack business’, they’d say. Make yourself some dinner. We won’t be back tonight.” Taking another swallow of champagne. This stuff was terrible. You didn’t order this brand for the party, did you? You’d better check. “Anyway, I still got into Columbia, not everyone despises betas. But I had to move, find some scary place in the city because my parents thought it would be good for me to ‘develop some independence.’ I’ve seen them maybe three times since then.” Your feet were getting sore, so you pulled off your pumps. “So yeah. I’ve been dealing with entitled, privileged alphas and omegas my whole life. Why would I want to be like them?” You took another swig of champagne and peeked just slightly over the edge of the tower. “Oh, god,” you groaned. “And I’m supposed to throw myself off this building to prove I’m worthy? I’m worthy, goddamnit!” You pointed the bottle at the eagles, who were still watching you. “I’m perfectly happy as a beta." You nodded decisively.

"Perfectly happy."

When the team came back from their full moon partying, everyone was exhausted, and a couple were actually singed. You shifted uneasily, wondering if Bucky went full dragon again. To make matters worse, they’d brought guests. Shifter guests, actually, and specifically, the one alpha panther you were not looking forward to meeting. And when you tried to suggest a meeting to recap the mission so you’d know what to confirm or deny to the press, you were brushed off.

“Tony? Steve? Really, I know you need a quick nap and uh, maybe a shower-” you rushed through that last bit, stepping away from them. “But I need to get some information, the mission notes?”

Steve looked at you resentfully. “I’m heading down to medical to check on Clint and Sam. Those burns don’t heal overnight.”

“Wait-” you were confused, why were they mad at you? “This was from the mission? How did they manage the full moon festivities, then?”

Taking you by the arm, Steve not-quite dragged you into a nearby meeting room. “No, they happened during the full moon run. Bucky changed, and he- well, it’s mainly their fault because they ran right into his path, but he couldn’t stop it! I don’t think I’ll get him out of his room for the next week!”

Absently rubbing the spot he’d grabbed, you asked, “What does that mean, he couldn’t control it?”

You’d worked with Captain America, the First Avenger and Genuinely Nice Guy for years. But you’d never seen him stare at you with contempt before. “You really don’t know anything about shifters, do you? Bucky’s losing control because he’s found his mate, and she refuses to bond with him.”

“Excuse me?” Your eyes narrowed, “Sorry I don’t know all the rules of your secret club because I don’t have the special decoder ring, Packmaster Rogers! But I do care about Bucky. He hasn’t told me about any of this!”

Steve ran a hand through his perfect blond hair. “When an alpha finds his omega, they bond immediately. An omega, a mate, is there to stabilize a shifter, to keep them in balance. The longer the two stay apart, the harder it gets to regulate shifting, or staying in control once you have. Why won’t you shift so you two can bond? I know you care about Bucky as much as he does for you.”

“I- I of course I care for James, deeply!” you protested, “But there’s no shifting here, Steve. I’m a beta, did you forget that? And I’m not throwing myself off the top of Stark Tower to prove it to your special shifter club!”

You’d not realized just how large Steve was until he leaned into you. “I don’t know who made you so bitter about your designation, but you’d better come to terms with it before Bucky has to suffer without the bond he needs again.” Before you could snarl back at him, he was gone, striding angrily down the corridor.

“Don’t forget to take a shower before your party, birthday boy!” you shouted after him, ignoring the stares from everyone else in the corridor. Heading up two floors to where most of the team was housed, you wondered what to say to Bucky. Was he sick? What did ‘not controlling’ mean? Like, he could turn full dragon in the middle of the street? On the dance floor tonight? Could he set the DJ on fire? You knocked for some time before leaning your cheek against his door, “James? Will you let me in?” Groaning inwardly, you looked up and down the empty hall. “Alpha,” you called, “please, please open the door for your omega?”

It was clear he was fresh from the shower when he opened the door, skin still wet and running a towel through his hair. Without thinking, you leaned in, pressing your nose against his broad chest and taking a blissful little sniff. Bucky smelled like summer, fresh-cut grass, or maybe a chilled, ripe watermelon split open. The ground after a rain shower. A tang of something foreign this time, a spice, maybe? Or a certain panther? ...your bitchiest voice asked.

There was an amused little chuckle rumbling through the chest your face was currently pressed against, and you backed up, horrified at your behavior. “Oh, god I’m sorry Bucky! Like that wasn’t weird.”

“S’okay,” he soothed, “but I’d rather have this…” and then his lush mouth was on yours and you went boneless, sagging against him. The feel of his arms around you, enclosing you in his bulk was unbelievably good, bits of his wet hair sticking to your cheeks and oh- god, that tongue of his, sliding between your lips and toying with yours. When he finally pulled away, giving your lower lip a little nip, you were speechless. “Why don’t you come sit down, Omega,” Bucky said kindly.

When you were settled on the couch together, you absently ran your hands over his, and his arms, his neck and shoulders. “Are you all right? That was a rough mission.”

“I’m fine,” he said, hands running over you, too. You closed your eyes when the rasp of his calloused fingertips traced over your face. “Why are you upset? I can feel it.”

Drawing away with a sigh, you said, “I spoke with Steve. He told me about what’s been happening. Because of the bonding … thing.”

“He shouldn’t have done that,” Bucky frowned, “he had no right to try to push you into a decision.”

Your heart sank. “So, it’s true? Your ability to regulate your shifting will get worse unless you’re bonded?”

He lifted you as lightly as if you were a cat or something, perching you on his lap, your pencil skirt riding up. “It’s not about being bonded. It’s about being bonded to you. To my mate. But until you’re ready…”

“Bucky, I…” you were blinking back tears, frustrated and heartsick, worried about this beautiful, kind man. So ferocious with others and so gentle with you. “We can’t bond like that. Not if I’m a beta. Maybe…” now you really were crying, “maybe you should go be with one of your designation, someone…”

“Someone else?” he finished flatly. “No. You are my Omega. Only you.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Oh, Bucky was beautiful when he smiled, open-mouthed, even white teeth gleaming and those ‘sky over the cornfield’ blue eyes alight. “I knew the moment I saw you. When I scented you in the elevator. You just have to believe it.” He looked down, where your phone had been buzzing angrily. “It looks like everyone’s trying to reach you about tonight. Go take care of the party. I’ll see you there. I’ll make the punk at least pretend to look like he’s having fun.”

You nodded and smiled, kissing him again - damn, you would dump the whole party just to keep kissing this man! - and went back to the ballroom to tackle the caterer freaking out because he needed more refrigeration and the fire marshall demanding to see the plan for the fireworks again. By the time you managed to squeeze yourself into a pretty white sundress and apply some lipstick, the guests were already arriving. You were on autopilot, greeting everyone and tactfully reminding Tony that the woman he was flirting with was married to the new President of Brazil. But your focus was on Bucky, standing with the other members of the team and their “guests” from Eastern Europe. He was smiling, but he looked exhausted, dark circles you’d not seen under his eyes earlier. You felt ill. Could your lack of belief really be hurting him? But … shit, you were really supposed to prove your love by throwing yourself off the top of the 135 floors of Stark Tower to prove it? You weren’t a fucking dragon! Absently nodding and smiling, your eyes pulled back to Bucky again.

“Just a beta.” Your parent’s voice was your inner voice, your mean voice when you felt small, or insignificant. But you’d made yourself happy with who you were. Betas were as smart or worthy as any alpha or omega. But… What if you were …?

The cavernous room was hot, you were sweating and it was so goddamn noisy. You’d just get a breath of fresh air, you’d just- You were hurtling out of the roof elevator and heading toward the edge without even thinking about it, focused only on the space beyond it. The eagles’ stately white heads turned to follow you as you strode past them. And then you were kicking your high heels off and sprinting before you could let yourself think about it.

And then, you just … leaped.

It felt like a giant hand had just reached down your throat to pull your stomach out. You couldn’t even scream. You could feel the force of the air tearing at your dress and your hair in your fall. And instead of looking down, you looked out.

If you’d ever let yourself think about it, you would have assumed nothing in the world could possibly hurt worse than a human body changing into a dragon’s- snapping bones and tearing muscles, painful elongation of skin into scale. But there was none of that, instead, a feeling of something forming around you, a comforting bulk, a power. You still felt like you. When you raised your hand, it was still your hand and not claws, but… you were more. You realized you were soaring now, not spiraling down, and cautiously stretching, you felt your wings widen.

“Omega Mine,” his voice had never been more beautiful, full of love and pride and your eyes were watering like crazy because, yeah. You were a fucking dragon. Bucky laughed as he flew beside you, eagerly watching you stretch and preen.

"Oh, my god, Alpha! Look! Oh, my god!!" The sound of his laughter rolled over you, making your wings flare wider as if his joy was a physical thing that filled you like helium, made you lighter than air. You swooped away from a stretch of sky already alight with fireworks and headed over the dark surface of the ocean. "How does this ... I still feel like me, Alpha. Am I really a dragon? I look at you and I see how beautiful you are, I see your wings and your scales and eyes..."

"Come, Omega," he invited and you followed as he soared gracefully over the surface of the water, skimming lazily back and forth. "Look down," Bucky said, and when you did, the light of the waning moon illuminated the ocean and you saw them - the ebony dragon with his glittering silver and golden underscales. And with him, another dragon, pale, like moonlight but when she stretched her wings wide, they shimmered crimson over the snowy white surface. "You are beautiful, Omega Mine, just as I knew you'd be." You impulsively moved closer to him, angling your neck to put your mouth against his.

You were still bulleting across the Atlantic, but heading north, past New York state, and then over the trees and mountains and finally, into Canada, circling over a placid-looking bay. “Um…” you started, still trying to find the right words, as if your dragon tongue and teeth were somehow blocking your ability to speak. And then it was the easiest thing in the world to think into the perfect silence of your connection. “So, how do dragons, you know, how do we do it?”

There it was again, that huge grin your Alpha had that gave him back the innocence of his youth. “Do you remember our discussion about bald eagles and their mating habits?”

Your human eyes were cartoonishly wide, so you could only imagine what your dragon orbs looked like. “Really? Like that?” His hands reached out to grip your wrists, and you felt it then, your talons lock with his, and your legs spread so easily. Both of you still flying, wings creating a whirlwind around you but inside the noise there was calm, where suddenly Bucky’s mouth was against your center and you felt the long, rough, glorious length of his tongue swipe up the slim furrow between your legs. It made you shriek, your lower lips feel plump and hot. He swiped you with that tongue again and again, lashing your cunt with rasping heat and then as you screamed, up inside you, twirling and rubbing impossibly high and making you half insane with pleasure. And then you felt it, a long, sharp fang that so delicately scraped your clitoris, and you were gone, screaming with pleasure and dimly wondering what it sounded like from your dragon throat.

Spinning you, Bucky held your back against his metaled chest. “Do you remember, Omega, when I told you I’d mount you from behind?”

“I can’t fly like this-”

“I’ve got you, sweetest girl, now arch your back…” oh, his voice was sin, full of promise and making your nipples hard and your wet center positively weep with need. One thick arm crossed over your chest, holding your shoulder as the other roughly pulled your thigh aside as his hugely muscled one slid between yours. “Present, Omega.”

Your back snapped into an impossibly deep arch, your head dropped against his shoulder and you sighed. It all made sense. It was right and it was perfect and oh, god but this man - dragon - was fucking huge. You’d thought you’d remembered the size of Bucky’s cock very fondly but no, it was painfully, arousingly, enticingly massive. And he pushed it up inside of you with a roar that shook the trees. You instinctively tried to snap your legs together, but the thick muscle of your mate’s leg kept you wide, and his hips drew back slowly, teasingly, and then pushed forward again. You knew that in human form, you’d never survive a sensual assault like this but as your Alpha’s mate- you could handle anything, even the savage back and forth thrust of his cock inside you. He was whispering words to you, snatches of Celtic poetry, phrases of love and praising your beauty, things in a language you shouldn’t understand that told you he would love you forever. So when you felt the base of his shaft swell widely, his heaving, armored abdomen pushing against your ass, you took a deep breath and pushed back. His groan was guttural as he locked inside you, knotted firmly and he bit into your neck. You could feel the blood spurt, you knew it should hurt but it didn’t. It was perfect, his fangs in your neck were meant to be there and you let loose with an orgasm that blinded you.

When you opened your eyes again with some semblance of consciousness, you were lying on your side, Bucky curled behind you, pelvis nestled snugly against your ass and still buried inside you. His wing was under you, sheltering you from the rocky ground and the pine trees hovering over. He was licking the wound on your neck, a deep rumble of approval tickling pleasantly up your spine. “Hey…” you said sleepily.

“Omega.” It was said with such love that you started tearing up again. He brushed some hair off your face. “How do you feel?”

“I, um,” you started giggling. “I have no idea, honestly.” His deep voice joined you and you laughed together, the sound all the sweeter because you knew it had been a long time since he’d laughed like this. The laughter ended in a mutual groan when he pulled out of you, feeling the rush of slick and heat against your thighs. When he stood, stretching his back, you watched as Bucky’s wings folded in somehow and he was just a man again, walking toward you like that first night on the roof.

Cradling your face between his hands, he kissed you again, murmuring against your mouth. “Will you claim me, too?”

“Yeah, okay,” you whispered, and his huge arms slid under your thighs again, lifting you easily and spreading you wide, dropping you on his cock as you shrieked, half in delight, but also really alarmed because you didn’t think he could go any deeper without coming right out of your mouth. You bounced up and down on his cock, clutching his shoulders, sweat making your human hands slip as you admired this man’s strength, able to move you like this as he stood, powerful legs planted on the hillside. And this time as you were coming and you felt the telltale swell at the base of him, your Alpha tilted his neck invitingly, exposing the strong, corded surface and your teeth greedily sunk into his skin. Your teeth inside him, his cock inside you, and you were connected everywhere- in thought, the blood shared between your bodies, his arms and yours entwined. “Oh, I love you,” you whispered, overcome that this was you. And him. And together.

When you finally made it back to Stark Tower, you were both loose-limbed and giddy, and Bucky held your arm as you stumbled a bit, shrinking back down to your human form.

Looking over at the eagles, you gasped. “Look, Bucky! The third egg hatched!” The last scraggly-looking eaglet was currently being nudged by his mother. Looking back at your mate, you rolled your eyes. “Please, no obvious parallels need to be made here, right?”

“Absolutely not,” he agreed. “You never looked that scruffy.”

“You know the rest of the team is going to be insufferable,” you snarled as the elevator headed down. Bucky stifled a chuckle into your sore neck.

This is best read while listening to the song that inspired it- “Feel Good” from Illenium, Gryffin and Daya.

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#MCU dark library abo challenge #abo bucky barnes #abo bucky barnes and reader #Alpha/omega dynamics #Dark MCU challenge #dragon abo #alpha bucky barnes #bald eagles #sex in flight #you're a beta goddamnit #tony stark #james buchanan barnes #bucky knows what he wants #steve rogers #Avengers fandom

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ralfstrashcan · 4 years ago

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Malec in late 2B

It's been *checks watch* three years and I've finally calmed down enough to try and untangle my feelings about the end of 2B in a coherent way.

1) Alec's decision not to tell Magnus about the Soul Sword. I've worked through my thoughts regarding that in this fic already where I go into Alec's reasoning for it. The tldr of which is that a) Alec consciously made the decision not to tell Magnus instead of running out of time to decide, b) he actually had good reasons for that and made that decision with Magnus's and the Downworld's best interests at heart and c) ultimately his love for Magnus was the very reason he didn't tell him because if he had cared about sparing Magnus's feelings a little less he would have told Magnus about the Soul Sword on condition that Magnus can't tell his people, damn the guilt Magnus will feel when warlocks die because they weren't forewarned.

2) Magnus's reaction to finding out. Magnus flips his shit, basically, lashes out, is deliberately hurtful and doesn't really listen to Alec's reasons for his decision. This is both an understandable and an ic reaction because Magnus is a very emotion-driven character and what he just learned is drastic. Could there have been a more graceful way to handle this revelation? Certainly. But it's nothing I would just expect from any given character. You'd have to be exceptionally level-headed to keep your cool in such a situation and I don't fault Magnus for not being that. His reaction was very human.

Alec gets points deduction for his line “Let's not make this personal” because dude, do you know your boyfriend at all? Have you realized that emotional compartmentalization isn't his strong forte? This line just angers Magnus more. (Alec also gets points deduction, with extreme prejudice, for trying to shush Magnus because what is wrong with you, man. I mean, this might just be a personal hang-up of mine but isn't that gesture patronizing as hell? Anyway.) On the other hand Alec gets some points for not going after Magnus. When I first watched that I thought it was very strange and kinda weird but in hindsight it is obviously the right choice. Magnus needed time and space to deal and Alec realized that trying to go after him and talk it out then was pointless and would have only angered Magnus more.

3) Magnus's reaction to Alec seeking him out because of Max. Admirable. Magnus puts all his (very understandable) anger aside to rush to the Lighwood family's aid. It doesn't matter that he can't help in the end, he is there as emotional support despite the frosty atmosphere between him and Alec. It is the decent thing to do but not everybody would have shown such kindness in his shoes. 10/10.

4) Magnus contemplating if he should take the Seelie Queen's offer aka sappy Malec flashbacks. I'm gonna place half the blame on show writers and half the blame on Magnus himself because, bro, this is not how you make a strategical decision for your people. Not even once is Magnus shown contemplating the repercussions of his decision for the warlocks or Valentine or the future of the Downworld. He only mopes about his boyfriend betraying his trust, basically. And I mean! I understand he's hurting a lot! And I understand people can't just turn off their emotions! But a good leader should be able to put his own emotions aside at least for a short time when an integral decision about his people has to be made, and quickly! And in that regard Magnus, uh, fails, apparently.

Again, I think half the blame lies with the show writers who wanted cute Malec flashbacks and generally fail at portraying inner Downworlder affairs if they don't serve the shadowhunter-centric plot. But I can't just yell “ooc behavior!!” and shrug it off because this isn't exactly ooc behavior for Magnus. Magnus is a very emotion-driven character who fails at separating personal and political matters. That's a theme. I point no further than the whole Camille-thing where he turned a blind eye to her bleeder dens because he felt personally indebted to her, and only stopped her when Raphael's life was at stake. So yeah... 0/10.

Full disclosure, I think there is a different way to read these scenes. Maybe Magnus wasn't just nursing his broken heart and missing the point. Maybe what he was actually contemplating was what he'd been fighting about with Luke before, namely if Alec can even be trusted as a person or if he's too much a shadowhunter to ever deserve their faith and cooperation because he will always treat Downworlders as lesser, because he's as racist as the Clave. In that case it would make sense for him to remember their private 1:1 interactions, to reassess Alec's character as a whole. But it would also mean that the conclusion he reached is that Alec is as corrupt as the rest of the Clave, and that would make them getting back together without ever talking about this... even more messed up than it already is! But I'm getting ahead of myself. Anyway, needless to say that I don't interpret it this way.

5) Magnus breaking up with Alec. To me personally (and to Alec) the breakup makes no sense. Magnus and Alec have different stances on, like, the implications of their relationship (and I'm emotionally wired like Alec is, at least in that regard). What I mean is this: Why does Magnus feel the need to break up with Alec? He's not an idiot, he knows that just because he breaks up with Alec his feelings for Alec will not miraculously evaporate as well. He'll be as emotionally compromised as he was before. And yet he says, “The only thing holding me back from [making difficult decisions to ensure the survival of my people] is you.”

Here's the thing. When Alec decides not to tell Magnus about the Soul Sword he does so in his capacity as the Head of the Institute, taking (almost) no account of his role as Magnus's lover. He is able to do that because he can compartmentalize between these two roles in an extreme way and therefor his relationship status has no influence on his decision. (Sure, not being with Magnus wouldn't have provided extra incentive to tell him, but work with me here. What I mean is that if Alec had rationally decided to tell Magnus about the Soul Sword, he would have made that same decision whether he was with Magnus at that point or not.) What did influence his decision making process were his feelings for Magnus, and these remain unchanged regardless of their relationship status.

Magnus has an entirely different stance. To him being in a relationship implies a certain kind of loyalty that must be maintained at all times. If their roles had been reversed I don't doubt that Magnus would have told Alec about the Soul Sword immediately because of said loyalty, and he would have thought it through for exactly zero seconds beforehand. He expected the same thing from Alec and that's why he feels so betrayed when he realizes that Alec kept it from him. This is why Magnus feels the need to break up with Alec: to disengage from this loyalty that keeps him from making decisions with only the warlocks in mind. Magnus's decision making hinges on their relationship status and the loyalty it demands, not his feelings for Alec.

Alec doesn't understand this. That's why he tells Magnus that he can have both: Alec, and the freedom to make the best choices for the warlocks, to act like the High Warlock of Brooklyn. Alec wouldn't hold it against him if he made the best decisions for his people while they are together because Alec, too, did have Magnus and made decisions as the Head of the Institute. But Magnus works differently. He'd feel like he's betraying Alec if he makes High Warlock of Brooklyn decisions while still being with Alec. And that's why he breaks up with Alec, and that's why it makes sense for Magnus to break up with him.

6) Magnus's behavior afterwards. Oh my god where do I even start.

--- Magnus being a petty bitch? Hell yeah.

--- Magnus hiding behind the Seelie Queen and running after her like he's her lap dog? Hell no. Wtf did I just watch!! Even better, he leaves Raphael behind? And Raphael then tells Izzy that Magnus was his ride and he's effectively trapped at the Institute because the sun is shining brightly outside?? I'm sorry, what. The Downworld just divorced the shadowhunters with a side of “hmm maybe we'll stop caring about the Accords as well in the near future” and Magnus leaves his Raphael behind? This is unacceptable!! I don't even know what to say to that!!

--- This has surely been discussed before but it needs to be said. Magnus implementing an anti-portal ward around New York that incinerates any angel-blooded creature that tries to pass it and not telling Alec about it. They hear about it from Luke instead and since Jace's reaction is immediately telling the shadowhunter extra next to him to stop shadowhunter movement in and out of the city immediately it is heavily implied that some shadowhunters already died thanks to this ward – since there are apparently troop movements in and out of the city that need to be stopped. (Which was to be expected! Sure, they know Valentine won't leave the city before he's got his hands on what he believes to be the mortal mirror locked away at the Institute, but he could surely be regrouping outside the city. Sending patrols into the near vicinity is the sensible thing to do.) Shadowhunter casualties due to the ward are further implied by Jace then leaning heavily on the desk and half-whispering to himself “No more shadowhunters die today.” Which makes sense. The patrols in question would have just vanished with no chance to report back what happened to them so they were probably assumed dead by Valentine's hand.

The point: Wtf Magnus. He must have been aware this could and would happen. The way I see it there are only two possible explanations: Magnus deliberately did not tell the NY Institute shadowhunters a) because he thought word might get around to Valentine or b) out of pettiness. And considering that knowing about the ward doesn't magically un-trap you and only means you will not cross it and therefore remain alive but contained, a) doesn't really make sense. The ward wasn't designed to lure Valentine to his death. It was designed to keep Valentine in the city so the other Downworld factions could hunt him down, and the ward will continue to do so even after Valentine learns of its existence. There s no harm in him knowing about it while there is a lot of harm in the NY shadowhunters not knowing about it because they will just die, for nothing, while trying to find Valentine. Magnus willingly risking that on the off-chance that Valentine walks into the ward at random is not his style at all. This leaves pettiness as motivation and sure, Magnus is petty, but not at the cost of so many casualties. This is so painfully ooc that I just can't!!

7) Their “reconciliation.” As you might have already guessed from those quotation marks: Thanks, I hate it. That adequately sums up my feelings on the matter. Don't get me wrong, the scene itself is lovely, I guess. But, content! They have this huge issue and they just don't talk about it! Magnus never learns of Alec's (legit) reasons for not telling him about the Soul Sword. Alec apologizes for.. what exactly? Doing something he was convinced was the right thing? And they never realize their differences in decision making which is even worse! This whole drama stemmed from the fact that they view the obligations that come with being in a relationship differently where their responsibilities as leaders are concerned. This is bound to become a problem again in the future!! And they just! dont! talk about it! aaaahhhhhhhh!!!! how!!!!!! are you adults or what!!!!!!! *sigh* just... –ꝏ /10

8) Aftermath. Oh right, this will of course not become a problem again in the future because Magnus loses his job. How neat.

Leaving the salt aside though I have to admit that I.. actually think the warlocks weren't entirely in the wrong in sacking Magnus. And before you kill me, hear me out. The first thing to note is that neither Raphael nor Luke get sacked for their decision to side with the Seelie Queen. Why is that? Because vampires and werewolves are fundamentally differently organized than warlocks. Warlocks have an international infrastructure. There's the Council, the Spiral Labyrinth, and stuff. Vampires and werewolves have their local clans and packs, and nothing more. Magnus has superiors. Raphael and Luke do not. After the Seelie Queen makes that deal with Valentine she condemns every Downworlder, except those located in New York, to death. Raziel's wish will kill every Downworlder on earth and only those in the Seelie Realm are safe. And as Magnus says in early 2x19

If Valentine had succeeded then literally all the other warlocks in the world would have died! Yes, the fact that the Seelie Queen threw them all under the bus isn't Magnus's fault, but

it was to be expected. Luke and Raphael both warn Magnus not to trust the Seelie Queen, that she has her own agenda and it's to rule over the Downworld, and that's why both Luke and Raphael were hesitant to accept her deal.

So I think it's pretty understandable why the other warlocks kicked Magnus out on his ass. In their eyes he would have been semi-complicit in their collective demise if Valentine had succeeded, having sided with the one who betrayed the Downworld. It doesn't matter that Magnus's choice means the warlocks at least wouldn't have gone entirely extinct if Valentine had won. It doesn't matter that the Seelie Queen would have made that deal with Valentine whether the other Downworlder factions had sided with her or not. (She had Simon in her Realm who could create new vampires, she probably would have kept Maia for new werewolves, and warlocks can be made by uuhh unethical means. What better Downworld than one that's never known anything but the Seelie Queen's uncontested reign? Yes, she absolutely would have let them all die.) None of that matters to the warlocks. They feel like Magnus betrayed them as a community and that's why they sack him.

Okay, so now we know why it made (in-universe) sense for the warlocks to fire Magnus. Make no mistake though – I don't approve of this reasoning. It's short-sighted and not very practical, and also unfair. Better save some of your species than none, right? Fine, Magnus should have informed the Council and stuff about what was going on so they could make their own deals with the Seelie Queen if they want to.. but then, do we even know if he did or didn't inform them? No. Any further discussion on this point is just poking in the dark so let's move on.

I did say that I think the warlocks weren't entirely in the wrong in dismissing Magnus from his job, though. Let me explain.

a) Magnus's decision to side with the Seelie Queen or remain sided with the Institute would have not made a difference regarding the whole Valentine-thing, right? Things would have played out exactly the same: Warlocks create anti-portal ward, Val makes a deal with the Seelie Queen and gets to Alicante anyway. The survival of the Downworld depended on Clary stabbing Valentine to death before he made the wish, and that remains unchanged no matter Magnus's decision. What Magnus's decision would have influenced (if this goddamn show knew what continuity is, lol) is what came after. Where does siding with the trigger-happy Seelie Queen, who made no secret of gunning for war with the Clave, leave the warlocks? On the Clave's bad side, that's for sure. Especially if things had escalated between the seelies and the shadowhunters (which they do in the books!!). In the show.. things just go back to how they were before the Downworld's little fail-rebellion. Either because the Downworld and the Clave mutually decide to just pretend none of it ever happened (since the Consul was exposed as a Circle Member, which, awkward) or, which I believe is more likely, because 3A focuses on The Owl Mystery and not on foreign policy and this show just sucks when it comes to including anything not strictly-plot-relevant. In any case!! Magnus's decision to side with the Seelie Queen should have had severe repercussions for the warlocks and their standing with the Clave aka dramatically worsened it, and for nothing (since nothing came of the “rebellion” and it's honestly doubtful how many warlocks would have wanted a full-on war with the shadowhunters anyway. They seem pretty good at laying low and doing their own thing). So in the long term siding with the Seelie Queen wasn't / wouldn't have been a strategically good decision (if it wasn’t followed up by a war of independence, which it wasn’t) and a legit reason to get fired.

b) More importantly, in 3x09 Lorenzo says to Magnus, “I took this position because you couldn't handle it. You let your heart dictate your actions and that will be your downfall,” which I always took to mean – since Lorenzo was god knows where when all of 2B happened – that the gossip in the warlock community is strong, and has it that Magnus only sided with the Seelie Queen as revenge for Alec not telling him about the Soul Sword / something relating to their breakup. No matter how this opinion formed in the community... *glances at 4)* they're not wrong? And this is definitely a legit reason to get fired.

So where does this leave us? I don't approve of the Council firing Magnus for the reason they did because it was a dumb reason. When I look at Lorenzo – lazy, self-centered, unwilling to actually do anything when push comes to shove – I don't think Magnus should be fired because he's obviously the much better choice as High Warlock. And I don't even think that siding with the Seelie Queen was, per se, a wrong choice. But the way Magnus made that choice left much to be desired and was a clear lapse in leadership, one where a dismissal would have been justified. And this should have been addressed in a constructive way so he can learn from his mistake.

#shadowhunters #alec lightwood #magnus bane #valentine morgenstern #the seelie queen #malec #i rewatched the 2b season finale and this happened #is this a controversial opinion? lol

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shadow-assassin-blix · 4 years ago

Text

A Picture is a Poem Without Words

Chapter 9

A/N: Okay. Some slight drama. Canon typical violence. Slightly nsfw-ish in that there's some fingering.

(Noticed far too late that half of it didnt transfer over, fixed that)

Diego and Blix do some much needed bonding.

Everything tag: @mikeisthricedeceased

Pacho tag: @yungkvte

They laid there a few minutes more, simply enjoying one another’s presence, before with a small groan, Blix sat up.

She quietly stretched, turning her neck side to side, grunting at the small pops and cracks her neck made. Pacho straightened up next to her pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

“Gilberto said he found you in my office last night? Doing homework as he claims,” Pacho teased as he brushed her back behind her hair.

“Just… trying to understand your world. Gotta say… it’s far more complicated than I thought it was,” Blix lightly noted as she turned to look at him.

“It’s not all crazy parties and getting high. It’s a lot of work to be one of the best cartels in the world,” Pacho said with a smirk.

Blix hummed in response, pushing off the covers, as both of them got up. Blix quietly got dressed, throwing on some shorts and a tank top. She finished getting ready, as Pacho waited, looking at all the things she had unboxed the day before. He stared at the items curiously.

“Your mother had very strange tastes,” He muttered quietly as he picked up the mace.

“Indeed, she did,” Blix stated as she walked up to him, ready for the day.

Pacho turned to look at her, “Not planning on using any of these on me, are you?”

“Hmm. Don’t know. Depends on whether you’re a good boy or not. Don’t test my wrath,” She said with a teasing smile as she walked past him, toward the hallway.

Pacho shook his head with a smile, before following after her.

They made their way downstairs, joining the others for lunch.

She got about halfway through her meal before she remembered she had to make some phone calls. She got up and called Theo to see where he had gotten on the warehouse that they believed was König’s.

“Hey, so there is a lot of activity going on in a warehouse that’s allegedly abandoned. We’ve been monitoring it from a safe distance, and we’ve seen a lot of armed guards patrolling. We’ve seen König wandering the property, but we have yet to see anything damning,” Theo reported, a small yawn escaping him as he finished.

“Good to know. Keep watch for now, we’ll catch him soon enough. Has there been any other robberies I should be made aware of?” She questioned as she paced around the living room.

“None so far. Not sure if that’s good or bad. But I’ll keep you posted,” Theo answered.

“Yeah. Hm. He’ll mess up soon enough and we will be there when it happens. Talk to you later,” Blix ended the call with a small sigh.

She ran her hand over chin, in contemplation. She had slowly wandered down a hallway away from everyone and was near a door that was slightly ajar. She looked inside and saw something that made her smile. She pushed the door further open and saw books lining several shelves and cases.

As she examined the books, she realized they were the books that her sisters sent her from their mother’s home. She ran her fingertip down the spines of several, quietly remembering each story. Several were antiques of the classics and others were miscellaneous. She walked further in and noticed there was an area full of throw pillows and soft cushions surrounding a window nook.

The window, she noted, looked out over the grounds, and it was slightly breathtaking.

She sat on the seat, gazing out.

“See you found your library. Pacho will be sad that you found this before he could show you,” Diego’s voice came from behind her.

“I’ll act surprised when he shows me. He set this all up just for me? Why?” She asked looking around from her seat.

“Isn’t it obvious by now? He cares for you. Loves you even. Just like he does me,” Diego responded as he joined her.

“Are you okay with that though? Sharing him? I know we never actually really sat down and talked this out,” She mentioned as she made room for him to join her.

“I’ll admit in the beginning, I wasn’t thrilled by you,” Diego began.

“’Wasn’t thrilled?’ You tormented me for days!” Blix exclaimed shoving him lightly.

“Okay. I was an ass. The point is, I see now, you are not just some fling of his. You make him happy in ways that I cannot. Just like I make him happy in ways you can’t. He wants both of us. We are not fighting for his attention. He wants us, we want him. That’s that. Plus, he’s allowing you to see the inner workings of the cartel; information that is usually pretty heavily guarded. If he trusts you with that, then I can trust you with him,” Diego explained, taking her hands into his.

Blix nodded once in response, with a small smile.

“So… is he going to be busy with the brothers today?” She inquired after a moment.

“Probably, why?” Diego asked looking at her curiously.

“Well. One, I promised Phobos I would take him out for a ride today. Two, I just thought me, and you can hang out. Get to know one another. If you ‘re cool with it,” She proposed.

“How about tomorrow? I have somethings I need to do this afternoon, but tomorrow I am pretty much free. We could run around town if you’d like?” Diego countered.

“Sounds good to me. Now, gotta harass someone in to taking me to the ranch,” Blix muttered thinking of who to choose.

“Or… I’ll drop you off on my way out. Gotta head out anyway,” Diego offered.

“Ooh. Yes. Lemme go put on boots,” Blix said excitedly, getting up.

She rushed upstairs to get her socks and some boots. She hopped on one foot each, as she threw them on. She ran downstairs, meeting up with Diego; they hopped into his car, driving off.

In no time, he had dropped her off. She walked over to Phobos’ stall, grabbing a brush on her way to him. She pulled him out of his stall, taking him to a small post to tie him to. She began to give him a thorough brushing, quietly talking to him.

Once he was brushed, she saddled him up and began to trot around with him. She walked around with him, letting him get used to her. They spent a good 2 hours wandering the grounds before returning to the stables.

Navegante was waiting for her when she got back with Phobos. She got him settled back into his stall and stretched for a moment before joining Navegante. He took her back to Pacho’s home, dropping her off before disappearing himself.

She walked inside and was told by some guards that Pacho and the brothers had left; Pacho should be back by tonight though.

She decided to just continue her reading upstairs in his office. She spent a few hours doing that, when a guard informed her dinner was ready if she was. She got up and made her way downstairs, after securing the files she had pulled out. She took the plate of food, eating at the table, somewhat watching the soccer game that was playing on the television.

She had just finished eating, when there was a knock at the door.

“What the hell?” She whispered as she got up.

She grabbed a gun that was hidden in a drawer, walking toward the door. She opened it cautiously, gun tucked behind her back.

She stared at the man before her. She had never seen him before, but noticed he looked somewhat familiar.

“Hello? Can I help you?” She questioned him.

“So, you’re the woman my boy is in love with? Seems he’s finally becoming a man,” Came a deep, gravelly voice.

It was then she realized why he looked familiar. He looked a bit like an older Pacho, but with Alvaro’s curls.

“Mr. Herrera. What brings you here?” She asked him dully, immediately annoyed by his presence.

“Wanted to speak to him. Found you instead. You’re much prettier to look at then he is,” He announced pushing his way inside.

“Yes. Please come in,” She muttered annoyed.

She quietly grabbed her phone, discreetly calling Pacho, hoping he picked up. She set the phone down on the counter, watching her intruder look around the living room.

She took a breath of relief when she saw that the phone had connected.

“Mr. Herrera. I don’t know why you are here, but you need to go. Pacho is not here, nor is Alvaro. You are not welcomed. So, either get out, or I’ll make you leave,” She warned him loudly, trying to gain his attention.

“Please. You’re not going to do anything. So, what is it about you that you turned my son back to a normal man?” He asked with a snarl as he turned to her.

“Normal? Oh no. He is still very much gay. He just enjoys my company. Get. Out.” She replied coldly, as she pulled the gun out.

He chuckled, somewhat darkly, “Are you really going to shoot me? I don’t think you have it in you, wench.”

She narrowed her eyes in response, aiming the gun to a spot near his head. She took one shot, the bullet grazing his ear at it embedded itself in the wall behind him. He groaned loudly, touching his ear gingerly.

“Next one, will go between your eyes. Now get out. Leave me alone. Leave Pacho and Alvaro alone. Neither of them wants anything to do you with. You come near them again, and I will bury you so deep into the ground that the Earth’s core will incinerate your corpse,” She promised him, motioning with the gun for him to walk out the door.

“Such loyalty to a man who will only break your heart. Tell me, whatever did he promise you to receive such protectiveness?” He asked as he slowly moved to the door, his eyes fixated on the gun.

“Heh. He’s not the first man to ever break my heart, doubt he’ll be the last. Why does everyone think he bought me? Bought my loyalty? It’s truly starting to vex me. I’m a simple woman Mr. Herrera. Offering simple human decency is enough. Now get out of my home. I truly hate cleaning up blood,” She growled as she stepped forward.

She watched as he ran out, to his car, and made sure he drove off before closing and locking the door. She moved over to the phone, picking it up.

“Pacho. You there?” She asked her voice cracking slightly.

“Yes. I’m here. I’m almost home honey. Is he still there?” He inquired, his own voice shaking.

“No. He’s gone. Ya know… I expected your dad to be a piece of work, but I never thought that I would want to immediately strangle him once he started talking,” She tried to joke, but in all honesty, she was a bit freaked out.

She hears him snort before replying, “Yeah. He’s… something.”

“How… how far away are you?” She asked in a whisper.

“5 minutes. Tops. Salcedo has already… detained… my father who we passed by on our way in. He won’t be bothering you anymore,” Pacho firmly stated.

“I’ll see you in a few then?” She confirmed as she took a seat on the couch.

“Yes. I’ll see you in a moment,” Pacho tells her.

She slowly hung up, waiting on the couch for him. In a minute, the room was filled with guards and Pacho.

Pacho walked over to her, his eyes roaming over her, as he checked her.

“He didn’t hurt you, did he?” Pacho questioned as he looked her over.

“No. I’m okay. He just… unnerved me a bit,” She answered him.

Diego popped up next to them, whispering something in Pacho’s ear. Pacho simply nodded in response, his eyes never leaving hers.

The whole house was buzzing about with tension; several people were trying to figure out where the hell the guards were that was supposed to be there. Why was he able to come on the grounds?

Blix was tired of everyone fussing over her, 10 minutes had passed and everyone and their mom it felt, had come to ask her if she was okay. She stood up, and made her way upstairs, away from everyone and their concern.

She hid in her room, keeping the door locked. She went to bed, but it was a fitful sleep. When she finally woke up the next day, she felt exhausted as she sat up. She quietly got ready for the day, hoping a shower would wake her up, and wash away the funk she felt. She walked into her closet trying to decide what to wear, when she heard a rumble of thunder, followed by the sound of rain.

“Guess that answers that,” She mumbled to herself as she grabbed jeans, a shirt, and some boots.

She quietly got ready, unlocking her door, as soon as she was dressed. She strolled downstairs, smiling smally at the sight of Diego, who was leaning against the back of the couch, waiting.

“Hey. Ready to get out of here for a bit?” Diego asked her when he sees her.

She nodded, looking around. She spied Pacho in the kitchen, she slowly walked over to him. He was finishing up a phone call, when he spotted her. Once he hung up, he made his way to her.

“I’m sorry for just… leaving the room last night. Not used to that many people fussing over me. It was a bit overwhelming,” She whispered as he stood before her.

“It’s okay beautiful. I’m just glad you are okay. My father… he won’t be bothering us ever again. I’m sorry you had to deal with him by yourself. He should have never been able to get to the house,” Pacho said pulling her into his arms.

She hugged him back with a sigh.

“I hear you and Diego are spending the day together?” Pacho mentioned with a curious look.

“Yeah. I mean… we both care about you. May as well get along right? So, we are going to go get to know another,” Blix explained scratching the back of her neck.

“I like that you two are spending time together. Though now you two will conspire against me I feel. But I’ll deal with that later,” Pacho teased as he walked her back into the living room.

She chuckled at that, grabbing a jacket and an umbrella that was offered to her, as her and Diego made their way out to his car.

“Alright. Where we going first?” Blix asked as they started to drive.

“Figured we could go grab a bite to eat to go, followed by either some shopping or we could go to a museum?” Diego listed out as he fiddled with the radio for a moment.

“Food yes. Shopping maybe. Museum. Hmm. I’d be down for that. Be nice to go to museum that I don’t have to investigate,” Blix replied nodding her head to the music that was now blasting from the radio.

Livin on a Prayer by Bon Jovi was playing, and she began to rock out to it. Diego laughed for a moment before joining her.

When they got into downtown Cali, they picked up some muffins and hot teas to drink. They ate as they drove to a nearby museum. They parked, dashing inside the museum trying to avoid the rain as much as possible. They strolled around the museum, talking about each piece that caught their interests. Diego was apparently quite a history buff.

Blix looked at him with a soft smile.

“What? What’s with that look?” Diego questioned as they were finishing up their walk around.

“Nothing. It’s… it’s nice talking to someone who knows what I’m talking about without… having to explain 30 other events and situations. It’s honestly nice, having someone else explain new facts to me,” She explained with a shrug.

“Clearly, you haven’t dated the right men. Pacho especially loves art, ask him to take you to an auction sometime. He’d loved that,” Diego joked, throwing an arm around her shoulders.

“Hm. Loves art eh? Is that why he bought a Caravaggio without verifying it was real?” Blix snorted as they walked into the gift shop.

Diego choked on a laugh, “Oof. Well. First off, Miguel bought that and gifted it to Pacho. Pacho only kept it up because it was a gift. He hated it otherwise.”

“Good to know. So, where should we go after this?” Blix asked staring at some trinkets.

“Don’t know. Where do you like to shop?” Diego asked picking up a glass figurine, staring at it before putting it back down.

She bit her lip at the thought that came to mind.

“Ever been thrift store shopping?” She inquired, with a raised eyebrow.

Diego looked at her surprised, “Noo. You… you like thrift stores?”

“Yeah? Duh. Do I look like the kind of person who likes to shop at fancy-schmancy places?” Blix countered gesturing to her outfit.

“Soulmate. That’s what you are. Let’s go!” He excitedly said dragging her out to the car.

The two of them spent the next several hours, going to various thrift shops, trying on outfits and being goofy. The two of them both bought several things from each shop, items varying from outfits to accessories.

When they had their fill of shopping, they grabbed a bite to eat, parked on the side of the road, munching away happily.

“I don’t ask this to annoy you, but are you okay after last night? I’ve had the displeasure of meeting their father as well. It’s…” He trailed off making a face.

“Yeah. I’m okay. It was just unnerving how much he and Pacho looked a like,” Blix noted with a small shudder.

“Same. Took me a while to separate that what he said, did not come from Pacho himself. This is the third time he’s appeared out of nowhere and it’ll be the last. You can always talk to me about it. Pacho… he knows how terrible his father is but doesn’t quite understand why it’s hard to get over the things his father says,” Diego commented.

Blix nodded with a grateful smile, “Thanks.”

The two of them finished their meal, tossing the remains into a nearby public trashcan. As they made their way back to Pacho’s house they talked about their pasts. He knew a great deal about hers so, he was telling her mostly about himself.

“Parents abandoned me when I was a kid. Bounced around in the foster system for a long while. When I was 17, I ran off, decided I wanted to make my own way through the world. Ran into Pacho, quite literally, and my life changed from that day forward,” Diego began.

“How did you ‘quite literally’ run into Pacho? Explain that good sir,” Blix wondered with a teasing smile.

“Was running from a cop, stole food cause I was hungry, and ran right into Pacho. Cop was fortunately on the Cali’s payroll, so Pacho just waved him off. Took me in, 2 months later we were together, and have been since,” Diego told her with a laugh.

Blix laughed softly at that, listening to him tell more stories about himself.

Soon enough they had pulled up to the house, and after grabbing as many bags as they could, they hurried inside. It took a few minutes to sort out what went to who, but soon enough they had parted to go placed their stuff in their rooms.

She was hanging stuff up when she heard Pacho’s voice, “Did you two have fun?”

She looked toward him, before skipping over to him, “Yes. We did. It was a good bonding experience.”

Pacho shook his head at that, pressing a kiss to her lips softly.

“Would you like to come swim with us? I think Diego may be a bit in love with you. Something about history and thrift shopping?” He ribbed lightly.

She kissed him back, walking over to her closet to grab a bathing suit. She grabbed a two piece, changing into it quickly. It was times like this she was glad his pool was indoors. She grabbed a towel, following Pacho to his room, where he changed as well.

Pacho after getting dressed, stopped and stared at her for a moment. He was checking her out, a smirk growing on his face as he examined her.

She noticed his staring, “What?”

“Just admiring you,” He stated simply as he walked forward.

She looked down and away, a slight warmth to her cheeks.

“Snake charmer. That’s all you are,” She muttered as she turned and led the way to the pool.

Pacho’s smirk only grew, especially as he was treated to her backside.

“Stop staring at my ass,” She called over shoulder.

Pacho slowly caught up to her as they entered the pool house. Diego was already doing some laps when they joined him. The water was warm, as she stepped in, dunking herself when she got in deep enough. She floated calmly as she heard the guys goofing around and splashing each other.

She felt one of them swim up to her, and she turned her head to see who appeared.

“May I ask where all of these scars came from?” Diego politely requested as he looked at her.

She straightened up, to stand, wadded over to the edge, pulling herself up to sit on it.

“Ask away,” She granted, ringing water out of her hair.

He came up to her and would point at a scar. Her answers tended to be brief as she explained them, many were from work and others were from her childhood.

Pacho had at some point joined them, listening quietly. Once she was done, Pacho slowly pulled her back into the pool. As she rejoined them in the water, Pacho kissed the side of her neck, gently. She turned her head to him, kissing his cheek. She moved forward, wanting to do some laps before she got too tired.

When she was done, she got out, wrapping her towel around her, watching Pacho & Diego for a moment. While they were distracted, she made her way inside the house, briefly stopping to get a drink. It was while she was taking a sip of her Pepsi that she heard a strange noise. Setting her drink down, she moved toward the sound, which led to the basement door.

She knew she should let it go and ignore it, but she couldn’t help herself. She opened the door, walking down the dimly stairs. As she reached the bottom there was a lone light shining onto a man, tied down to a chair.

She realized as she got closer that it was Mr. Herrera, who had been badly beaten. His head lulled up to look at her, hearing her footsteps.

“Well, well, well. My son’s whore. What brings you here? Want to take a few hits too?” He taunted, spitting out blood.

“No. Heard a noise. Making sure the house wasn’t haunted. Now that I see that it’s just you… well. I think I’ll let you die alone and miserable,” She responded disgusted.

She turned away from him, planning to just go back to her room.

“Wait. Don’t you turn your back on me. Come back here,” He demanded, with a groan and a cough.

“No. Don’t think I will. Enjoy the rest of your life. However short it may be,” She stated not turning around.

She could hear him yelling more profanities at her as she closed the basement door, grabbing her drink, and going upstairs.

Unaware that Pacho had seen her emerge from that room, he listened to his father’s shouts for a minute before ordering Navegante to get rid of him. He found Blix in her room, grabbing clothes to change into for bed, after her shower.

“You should join me in my room, once you are done,” He told her, causing her to jump slightly as she wasn’t expecting him.

“Christ! Clearly need to throw a bell on you, so I have a warning system,” Blix startled, pressing a hand to her chest.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” Pacho apologized before requesting. “I know that…sometimes curiosity can get the best of us. Do me a favor, please don’t go down to the basement anymore. For your own safety.”

“I promise. I’m going to go clean up, and then I’ll join you in your room,” She promised him.

About 20 minutes later, she was strolling into Pacho’s room. She had finished her drink beforehand and joined him on the bed.

“Diego joining us?” She wondered.

“Not tonight, he has other plans,” He whispered to her.

“Your dad… was he always like that? Or was he just good at hiding his hate before he found out about you?” She asked him, shaking her head.

“Hm. Let’s just say… my mother left him for a good reason. She was trying to gain full custody of us when he kicked me out. I didn’t care much. I was moreso worried about Alvaro. I was able to help my mother gain custody of him at least,” Pacho explained, as he wrapped his arms around her.

She returned his embrace, “That’s good….” She paused for a second. “I assume Navegante took care of him.”

Pacho nodded in response, and Blix simply said, “Good.”

She burrowed herself into his arms, growing tired.

“I did want to thank you though. For defending my honor. Not many people would be willing to shoot at their partner’s parent. In fact…” Pacho trailed off, as his hand slowly slid down her curves.

His hand languidly found its way into her sleep shorts, moving past her underwear. His fingers ran themselves up and down her slit, toying with her folds lightly. She took in a shuddering breath as his thumb brushed against her clit.

He gently slid a finger inside her, making a come-hither motion, before a second finger joined. The palm of his hand brushed against her clit teasingly, slowly working her up. Her body was growing warm, and breath short as his movements became more deliberate.

Soon his fingers found a spot that made her gasp loudly, her hands trying to find purchase wherever. His fingers moved over that spot several times, leading her to a swift orgasm. She rode out her orgasm for a moment or two before he pulled his hand away.

“Well. I was tired, but now I don’t really want to sleep,” She moaned softly.

“I was hoping you’d say that,” Pacho groaned as he rolled them over slightly, laying on top of her.

They spent the rest of the night trying to wear each other out.

#pacho herrera #narcos #pacho herrera x oc

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makeste · 5 years ago

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BnHA Chapter 267: My Name Is

Previously on BnHA: Hawks stabbed Twice in the back of the head. Twice stabbed another guy in the back of the head. Everyone’s just running around stabbing or being stabbed. I should probably clarify that Twice actually died, because this is a shounen manga, so sometimes you have to clarify that this particular stabbing was actually fatal. Not just one of those flesh wound stabbings. Anyway so it was super sad, and now Dabi’s gonna face off with the sexy scarred murderous Hawks, and Toga and Compress are also going to be feeling a bit stabby after all this probably, and so that’s the general mood here I guess. I kind of need a break now so I’m wondering if we’re gonna cut to any of the kids. Because if we stick around Horikoshi may actually have to give us Dabi flashbacks. God forbid.

Today on BnHA: Tokoyami has a flashback to when Hawks told him he’s weak to being set on fire. This terrible thought weighs on his mind as he and the other lads and lasses of U.A.’s child soldier vanguard are escorted away from the battle via Fatgum and his absolute goat of a quirk. Dabi is all “:D you killed Twice, I’m gonna set you on fire repeatedly now” and Hawks is all “ffff no that’s my weakness also WHO ARE YOU” and WE GET SOME HAWKS FLASHBACKS?! and then Dabi is all “:DDDDDD [CENSORED]” and it’s literally fucking censored fuck my life. but also !!! because he actually fucking said it, though?? He really went and revealed it just like that?? And now Hawks knows, and he’s all shocked, and Dabi goes to kill him afterwards but TOKOYAMI IS ALL “ON YOUR LEFT!!!!” and OH SHIT. Also Endeavor saves Miruko so DOUBLE OH SHIT. Oh my god. I’m sorry this summary is all over the place but I can barely type a coherent sentence now so just TAKE THESE EXCLAMATION POINTS AND GO!!! SPREAD THE WORD. BE FREE.

everyone before we begin I would just like to tell you about my discovery this week. I learned that when I type the word “Dabi” on my phone the next word that the keyboard predicts is “flashbacks.” google keyboard is on to me. so now the FBI and the CIA and whoever else google is selling all my data to all know. I can only imagine. “she seems to spend an inordinate amount of time talking about ‘Dabi flashbacks.’ what’s a Dabi.” I’ll tell you what a Dabi is. it’s a guy whose fucking flashbacks we never fucking get that’s what

anyway so let’s read this chapter whose spoiler tags have already been filling up my dashboard, which is always a good sign. who will die this week? Horikoshi please have mercy on us in light of recent real life global events. maybe you can just have everyone abruptly decide that they are all done fighting and want to go home

-- GOD BLESS US EVERYONE

who could have known, years ago when the very first mangaka was drawing the very first color page, that this medium would one day soar to such great heights. who could have imagined that we would one day be witness to this masterwork, this magnificent fucking triumph of a colored manga page. holy shit. I will cherish this always

for real you all think I’m joking but I genuinely don’t want to scroll down lol. let’s just stay with Miruko forever. where it is safe. and sexy. goddammit

OH SURE, THEY GIVE US HAWKS FLASHBACKS

anyways but lol

guys. we’ve been over this. fire is everyone’s weakness. just. I’m not quite sure people like Hawks and Kamui Woods actually grasp that. do they think normal people catch on fire and they’re just “oh, this is actually all right.” also, side note kids, please don’t use this answer if this ever comes up during a job interview

wow

what a gamechanging plan of action. don’t catch on fire. Toko write that down

WOW

you guys. YOU GUYS. IT GOT BETTER

who could have known, years ago when the very first mangaka was drawing the very first gag panel, that this format would one day ascend to such lofty summits. who could have envisaged that we would one day behold such a showpiece, such a grand fucking slam of a joke panel in a shounen manga

anyway Horikoshi sure does love his English portmanteaus. I’m kind of stunned by how great this is you guys. but getting back to more serious observations, all I can say is thank fucking god somebody is actually thinking of the children! nothing terrible had better happen to them or I swear!!

so Fatgum is explaining that the plan was to have them use their respective quirks to help take out a bunch of bad guys at once, and that the grown-ups will now proceed to rope them all in and capture them. and dammit, I was trying to avoid having to post the panel because it takes forever if I post a lot of them, but I just noticed Mt. Lady over there stomping fools in the background and so now I have no choice

A+ chapter so far you guys. 5 stars. keep it up

one-and-a-half year-old Kaminari Denki has already fallen asleep. he wishes he could live there. I wish I had the words to adequately convey how utterly delighted I have been by this entire “everyone rides around in Fatgum’s belly” mini-arc, which is now my favorite part of the entire series (as always with the exception of “Dear Midoriya I’m really sorry”)

and I also just really love the timing of it?? right after the “here’s that angst you ordered” emotional sobfest of the last chapter, we’re taking a quick break to cut back to the Fatgum Express (excuse me, Fataxi) just to keep things from getting too heavy. this is such an important balance to strike. please don’t let this arc get too dark, Horikoshi

oh shit

right, Dabi?? but I’ve had an entire week to process my feelings about it and I’m more or less good now! how are you

not particularly great, then

and also, fuck. so Horikoshi was gracious enough not to show Twice’s murdered body even though he confirmed he was indeed killed (so apologies to anyone who was still holding out hope. it sucks but at least we’ve got closure). first he cuts off the bottom of the panel, and then he has Dabi literally cremate him on the fucking spot. there’s really going to be nothing left at all of him or any of the clones. I’m just gonna sit here and try not to think about that or else I’ll get sad all over again

anyway, so also Hawks’s wings have been totally incinerated now it looks like, and he’s just barely yeeting himself out of the way with whatever he’s got left

boy this is getting rough

love how Horikoshi is avoiding showing Dabi’s face!! that was sarcasm by the way because I don’t love it! he pulls this shit all the time with Bakugou too! show us their emotions dammit!

anyway. how kind of Dabi to stomp out Hawks’s flames for him like that. you see. they’re still friends

HOLY SHIT

APPARENTLY IT IS??? I GUESS WE ALL GRIEVE DIFFERENTLY LMAO. SOME PEOPLE GET SAD AND CRY AND OTHERS JUST GET REALLY SCARY AND CRAZY

like. not to nitpick or anything, but your tear glands are actually located above your eyes. maybe he means his tear ducts. also I’m not a doctor or anything and I can barely name like three bones actually so maybe I should just shut up!

anyways though, out of courtesy let’s just take Dabi at his word that grinning like a deranged lunatic is a perfectly normal response to watching your friend get murdered by your sexy archenemy. who is to say

and what exactly is your dream again? to make Stain’s will a reality or something like that? so purging the world of false heroes I guess?

DAMMIT DABI FIRE IS HIS WEAKNESS

most people would at least scream, wouldn’t they? Hawks??? does that not hurt??!

DSFKJSL:DKGHLSDKGHL

no!! I won’t be fooled!! Horikoshi and Dabi flashbacks is like Wile E. Coyote and painting a fake tunnel onto a cliffside! don’t be conned by his deceitful forced perspective!

LOL YOU SEE

apparently this man really will do anything to keep us from getting a Dabi flashback, even if that means giving us Hawks flashbacks instead lmao. WELL SHOOT. OH DARN. POOR US. WE’LL JUST HAVE TO SETTLE try not to look too happy guys he can sense satisfaction

anyway so here’s baby Hawks

okay, so -- does fandom still hate Hawks. like, I haven’t checked the bnha tag much since this weekend so I don’t know if the general consensus is still “yeah he’s cancelled” or if we’re cooling down at all yet? anyway so I apologize if liking Hawks is still A Wrong Thing To Do, but just fyi he’s still adopted and I haven’t unadopted him and I love him unconditionally even though he’s in timeout. and so now that Baby Hawks has appeared to rival all other Baby Characters (BABY YODA WATCH YOUR SIX!!) with his lil wings and his Endeavor plush and his quiet lil nodding head, I just need you all to know that I would die for him without hesitation and that’s just how it is friends

(ETA: also, jesus christ. “Keigo-kun, you can say goodbye to your name from now on!" I’m surprised they didn’t assign him a fucking number. what the fuck. time for some grueling training, lab rat #184. better get ready. jesus. he’s like 7.)

sdlkfjLSDGHOSIDFOIOOIIO

THE MAN THAT -- WHAT. WELL HOT DAMN, TAKAMI THEORISTS! GO ON AND GIVE YOURSELVES A BIG PAT ON THE BACK. YOU EARNED IT.

snap. gotta calm down. too much hype all of a sudden. easy does it

OH ARE YOU KIDDING ME THAT’S IT??

noooo go back. fuck

and how the hell do you still have eyebrows, Hawks. how are you still even alive, let alone sexy. is fire your weakness?? is it really??! WELCOME TO BNHA THE MANGA WHERE ANYONE CAN SURVIVE ANYTHING. EXCEPT FOR BEING KILLED OFF-SCREEN AFTER WEEKS AND WEEKS OF BUILDUP

WHAT THE MONUMENTAL FUCK

HORIKOSHI WHERE ARE YOU I’M READY AND WILLING TO VIOLATE SOCIAL DISTANCING RIGHT NOW TO PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE SO COME ON

what the fuck. is this a Tarantino movie. or an Eminem song. anyway but we all know what he actually said though so let’s just scroll down and see how Hawks is going to take the news

oh my. I suddenly understand Dabi’s “grinning like a lunatic” reaction to witnessing a tragedy now. ohhhhhh that’s the good angst right there

so now Dabi says that if he wasn’t Hawks’s target in the beginning, then Hawks “would’ve been done for from the start”? ...what. lol what. am I just too tired to understand this you guys. I’m so confused

okay well I still have no fucking clue what that all meant but on the next panel he’s saying that Hawks shouldn’t have been focusing on Tomura or the League

is he suggesting that he has the power to bring down the hero system by revealing that he, the son of Endeavor, was made into a villain? am I reading into this right?

holy moses. I can’t believe this is really happening. this plotline is finally on the move oh my god I can’t even I’m getting way too excited I can’t??

HEY WHAT

well it matters to me you big melodramatic jerk!! don’t even pretend like you’re really gonna do it. I have zero fear of Hawks actually dying right now, not after that. there is way too much plot attached to him, gtfo with this fakeout shit

but more importantly, why the fuck are we cutting to Gigantomachia now oh shit. don’t tell me Fatgum got the babies out of there just in time

FUCK ME I NEARLY SCREAMED OUT LOUD

HE CAN BE ACTIVATED BY THE RECORDING OF AFO!! SOMEONE HAS THE FUCKING ON SWITCH IN THEIR HANDS OH SHIT, THERE’S THE DISASTER WE WERE ALL FUCKING WAITING FOR RIGHT THERE

WE’RE CUTTING BACK TO MIRUKO NOW??? CAN THIS CHAPTER GET ANY MORE HYPE MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS

let the bodies hit the floor let the bodies hit the floor let the bodies hit the floor let the bodies hit the [deep breath] FLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO --

OH NO!?

okay like any reasonable person I am very concerned by the implications of this. and yet a part of me just wants to focus entirely on the “AM I GETTING TIRED AFTER LOSING AN ARM AND A SHITLOAD OF BLOOD AND FIGHTING FIVE NOUMUS ALL BY MYSELF FOR LIKE AN HOUR? ...NAH.” you’re absolutely right Miruko that would be ridiculous

ARE YOU SERIOUS

either she’s about to die and she knows it, or SHE WAS JUST TOYING WITH THEM WHAAAAT. I genuinely don’t even know which it is?? but it better not be the former and it absolutely is the latter though

GOSH DARN THAT MIRUKO

THERE SHE GOES. MY CZARINA

excuse me did this guy just fucking impale her

SHE ONLY HAS THE ONE GOOD HAND LEFT LIKE CAN YOU PLEASE. can you fucking not, though?! and also I forgot that being impaled through the torso is another thing in this series that’s actually fatal. well fuck

(ETA: also he ripped out her hair!! look here you piece of shit I’m gonna --)

lmao but yeah, somehow

Horikoshi. if you kill off your one cool strong top ten female hero character. just so you know. I will. ...you know what, just don’t do it, how about that. just don’t

ohhhhhh I might be about to get really mad you guys. we’ll see. we’lllllll see

SON OF A BITCH

GODDAMMIT, OBVIOUSLY TOMURA CAN’T FUCKING DIE SO WHY DON’T YOU FUCK OFF WITH THIS ENTIRE SCENARIO YOU’RE PRESENTING TO US RIGHT NOW HORIKOSHI, HOW ABOUT THAT. fuck everything I can’t believe chapter 267 page 16 was the last page of the entire manga you guys. tell me I’m reading way too much into this

ffffff

you literally had the perfect chapter. Fataxi!! Baby Hawks!! censored Touya reveals!! why would you go and. ...

I knew it was a mistake reading past that amazing color page you guys

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH MY GOD I DIDN’T SCREAM BUT I SAID “HA HA!” OUT LOUD?!

-- AND AGAIN!!!!!

YOU WANT SOME??? YOU WANT SOME?!?!

FUCK YES. EXCUSE ME WHILE I CRACK OPEN THE WINDOW AND SHOUT SOME EARNEST “WOOOOOOO!!”S DOWN UNTO THE CONFUSED STREETS BELOW

y’all. I was this close to cancelling every damn thing. you don’t even know. my god I think I was grinding my teeth there

“you know what this manga has had quite enough of as of last week? tragic deaths! you know what it has not had nearly enough of? dramatic last minute saves! you know what it hasn’t had any of? TOKOYAMI VERSUS DABI, A.K.A. YOUR NEW FAVORITE MATCH-UP OF ALL TIME, YOU’RE FUCKING WELCOME.” geez. calm down Horikoshi. be cool man be cool

you guys. it was almost perfect, and then it wasn’t, and then it very much was. my god. how did I not see that Tokoyami save coming with all that buildup in hindsight. clearly he saw the fire on page four and was all “oh no! his weakness”

only thing is. it’s yours too, bud. :/ don’t think I’ve forgotten how this all played out during the forest arc. and meanwhile on top of that we’ve got Gigantomachia about to have the rudest of awakenings. goddammit. why is everything so dangerous and so awesome thanks I love it but geez

#bnha 267 #dabi #hawks #tokoyami fumikage #miruko #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #makeste spoiler recap #makeste reads bnha #plot twist he wasn't actually revealing his name in that panel #he was just unleashing a tirade of vicious cursing #that's why hawks looks so shocked afterwards #really touya #this is a kid's manga

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fluffypeachwriting · 4 years ago

Text

Welcome to the first installment of my Hypmic Burlesque AU (definitely inspired by the 2010 film)! This is only an introductory chapter but it won’t be the last so I hope people stick around for more installments! It won’t be like a full fic with a coherent plot, just little snippets of the AU, so updates won’t be as regular or in chronological order.

Edit: I’ve uploaded it to Ao3 (in case anyone prefers reading there) with the title Show Me How You Burlesque! I’ll include links in future updates too!

The song sequence Ramuda performs, Guy What Takes His Time, is this one, and Tough Lover, mentioned near the end is here!

Rating: Mature/No Warnings Apply

Words: 1740

A guy what takes his time, I'll go for any time I'm a fast movin' gal who likes them slow Got no use for fancy drivin', want to see a guy arrivin' in low. I'd be satisfied, electrified to know a guy what takes his time

Backup dancers let Ramuda take the spotlight as it turned on, and he revelled in it, puffing out his chest with the swell of music. This was by far not his first performance of this particular song but the first chords of the song resonated in him like he had never heard them before. The pink feather fans parted to reveal him perched on the piano, like a clam opening to reveal the treasure inside. It was planned to be this way, with the pearl costume and its subdued colours bringing out the natural beauty that was contained within.

Natural, though nothing close to pure.

His nickname would suggest that. His fans called him the ‘lamb’ of the burlesque stage. It wasn’t just a small play on his name, as he was frequently seen adorned with his favourite fluffy white coat when he wasn’t dancing, usually holding onto the arm of a rich hotshot that took his fancy at a party that night. But he was anything but a weak animal, as he was just as deceptive as he was cute. His dainty little body was seen at every big party and club in town, buttering up everyone who caught his eye, never seen hanging around alone. He lived fast and hard.

He wasn’t past stepping on the spines of his rivals in stiletto heels to reach for the crown.

Ooh. Maybe I should make a king themed costume. Yeah, something super lavish and shiny.

A real wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Not only that; the manager had threatened to ‘cook and serve him with mint garnish’ when he got on her nerves, along with other more colourful insults. He knew she loved the club really, so pushing her buttons from time to time wouldn’t do too much harm.

In his heart Ramuda loved the club as well, and everyone else too. The other dancers and their strange banter was kind of endearing to him, the band was reliable as always, the bar and tech staff taking care of the behind the scenes stuff, and… he did love the manager too. In an odd way. There was nothing remotely intimate about their relationship (save for a very drunken night soon after Ramuda’s employment but bringing that up would have him incinerated on the spot) as they spat all kinds of insults at each other daily while knowing that if worst came to the worst, they would have each other’s backs.

I really do mean, the worst.

And they would be together to see it, like a weird package deal. They went back too far for him to get fired on the spot, if ever. Though that wasn’t to say that he never caused any trouble in the club. Always teetering on the line, laughing whatever predicament he caused off while applying his make-up while the other dancers dealt with the fallout. They had no idea why the manager put up with him for so long at first, until they saw him dance. She had scooped up his talent and put him to work early on as the club’s first full-time dancer. And he was showing no signs of stopping soon.

You could speculate that he was built for doing this, even from one glance at him. It was almost uncanny. His hips swerved through the air as smooth as whipped cream and his shoulders shook with laser precision, every movement constructed to entice the viewer and pry more money out them night after night after night.

Lustful intensity oozed from his body language while he mimed as if he was singing; he’d asked the manager if he could sing during the performance, pouting when he was met with a firm ‘not yet’. Ramuda was known behind the scenes for being notoriously bratty when he wanted to get his way, and with the amount of money he brought into the establishment it wouldn’t be a surprise if the costume was actually composed of real pearls.

As if anyone could ever refuse his demands in the first place.

His look was finished off with dramatic pin-up style make-up and pearl jewellery to match the costume. He was undoubtedly radiant. Every inch of flawless skin was shimmering with the powder puff he’d meticulously applied just a few minutes ago before rushing onto stage and claiming it as his.

This was his speciality, commanding every head in the room with a sultry but oh so deliciously unattainable aura. It was the fact that he was always out of reach that made him such a tempting treat for the eyes.

As he gracefully lounged upon the piano the audience was being scoured by his all-seeing gaze, and you wouldn’t be able to tell if he was just acting or if he was searching for someone. It was a total cinch for him, maintaining a watchful eye over everyone while executing a perfect performance. Either way, he was the predator and they were the prey, being devoured by the small man. When he flashed his teeth in-between lines, there was a glint of malice that sparkled with a twisted form of integrity.

He sold undeniable perfection without letting it slip out of his possession.

Right now his mouth was curved into a cheeky smile as he mimed singing. He couldn’t be more content with the crowd wrapped tight around his finger, like how one hand was wrapped around the neck of the champagne bottle and tap tap tapping in time to the song. You could say that they were in a strong chokehold, but he wouldn’t be that mean.

Usually.

He tipped his head back just as he tipped the bottle towards the glass, spilling the alcohol everywhere except the glass (intentionally) and setting it down with a satisfied smile. The words he mimed were asking for a slow lover, not a tidy one.

Ramuda himself had yet to find a lover that suited his needs and wants. For now he was happy with a life of self-indulgence and luxury, holding onto the arms off all kinds of people. The kinds that had lots of money to throw around.

That led his mind to wander and remember another man who wished to dance at the establishment, a man who didn’t look a day over 20, who’d seen Ramuda perform a few times and stopped him to ask for his advice. The young man was in for a rude awakening when Ramuda told him the harsh, bitchy truth of the job. That was a few weeks ago now, but he could remember him and the young man standing in the cold rain just outside the building like it was yesterday. The man didn’t look completely deterred after that, despite the rain soaking through to his skin.

Perhaps he would be coming back soon, Ramuda hoped. He would be a fun one to mess with.

He hopped off the piano giggling to himself, then ran one hand up his neck and through his hair, relishing in the small moment before the next section of the song.

His strikingly icy blue eyes blew wide open in fake shock as the upper half of his costume was tugged off by a string, flying off-stage. He snatched one of the giant feather fans from a backup dancer and held it close to his chest (as if he wouldn’t be happy to bare it all, but burlesque was all about the foreplay and nothing more, and Ramuda was a tease at heart) and continued to strut his stuff.

His hair, pin-curled just for today, bounced around his face as he tottered around the band members, the pearls on his lower half shimmying over his soft skin with each perky little step. The stage lights were close to being unbearably warm but he walked with a cool aura that would send a hot chill down your spine if you approached the stage. It was a wonder how anyone kept up with him.

The two other dancers accompanying him tonight were considerably bigger in stature and build than him yet they were completely outshone. This specific fact was something Ramuda thought was hilarious. A duet had recently been choreographed to Tough Lover for them after being in such high demand from the audience, some even mentioning it directly to the manager, but they had yet to agree to it. Ramuda knew they would crack soon enough, it was only matter of neither man wanting to say yes first at the risk of their bad-boy exteriors wearing off. The two men were so alike in dignity and enthusiasm yet they fought in a typical cat-and-dog fashion at every opportunity. This, Ramuda thought, could be the reason they clashed so often. Whenever Ramuda (as cute as he thought they were) silenced them because they got too annoying, they were practically at his knees without question or thought.

He didn’t know exactly why. Maybe it was because Ramuda had had others fired before for less.

This certainly wasn’t an admired quality. On the few occasions during the songs that he made eye contact with either of them Ramuda could sense their envy of being the man to rake in the most money and attention.

What Ramuda couldn’t sense, surprisingly, was the man sitting in the shadows near the back of the hall. A past dancer of the club who was let go a few months back.

He was sitting there out of envy.

Staring Ramuda down with a deep-seated contempt that he hadn’t felt quite to this degree before.

Hate watching, you might call it.

Ramuda settled into the finishing pose of the song, his costume pulled completely off now with some miscellaneous musical equipment covering the goods. A quick wink earned him a long whistle. Each hoot and holler from the crowd was fuel to the fire.

Hate watching?

No… he was studying.

The lamb disappeared from view as the lights dimmed and the other man left the building just as fast. He didn’t want to think of it as cowering, but he did nonetheless.

He was a real sheep in wolf’s clothing.

Things were about to get interesting around here.

#hypmic #hypmic burlesque au #Ramuda Amemura

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okageshadowkingfannovel · 4 years ago

Text

Book 1: Chapter 10

When Ari wakes up, the very first thing he sees is his bedroom ceiling, and for just the briefest moment, he’s tempted to believe again that the whole thing - the Pig Latin curse, the strange bottle, weird butler, Evil King Stan, fighting a ghost in the Church basement - was just a dream. But then the redundancy of it hits him and he pushes away the temptation.

“About time you woke up, slave.”

Ari hears the crabby grumblings as he slips out of bed. As Stan pops out from under his feet, he notices that he’s been changed into pajamas.

“What happened?” he asks, rubbing at the sleep in his eyes.

“In shock of my fury and rage, you promptly passed out. I disappear when you fall unconscious - which is a surprisingly frequent event it seems - but I saw idiots from the village come down a couple hours later to find you pathetically curled up on the basement floor. They noticed the low level ghost had been vanquished, praised my name, and quickly whisked you home to your family. You’ve been asleep for two days.”

“Two days?!”

“Pathetic, isn’t it? But then, I suppose my powers are considerably overwhelming. So, don’t be too hard on yourself.”

Ari sits down on the bed, memories of a burning white glow and the phrase ‘overdrive’ drifting through his mind. He pulls up the pant leg of his pajamas and finds a neat bandage hiding away the teeth marks. A twinge of tenderness aches his skin when he gently pokes it.

“I guess it was all the fighting. I-I’ve never done anything like that before.”

“Speaking of, slave,” Stan starts in an offended huff, “what was all that? I wasn’t aware you had any sort of actual ability.”

“Neither was I,” Ari admits, “there was a moment in the middle of it, where everything sort of froze, and … there was this gear …”

“A gear?”

“Yeah, it was just floating in front of me. D-Does that mean you didn’t see it?”

King Stan places a thoughtful claw to his bright yellow mouth.

“Maybe you’ve been blessed with power simply due to your proximity to me. Leech-like you utilize the great amounts of power, boiling over from my being.”

Ari takes this as a ‘no,’ and sighs in resignation that he won’t find answers here.

“Technically, you’re the leech here,” he says, but then suddenly notices the glass tube sitting on his desk. “The village treasure?”

“Treasure?! Pah! Never mind that garbage! I’ve been stuck in this room for two days. Get dressed and make yourself useful!”

Before Ari can respond or even comply, there’s a soft knock at the door and his mother’s voice.

“Ari? Are you awake?”

He can hear an eagerness mixed with relief in his mother’s tone. “Y-yeah, I just woke up.”

“Oh, Ari! You must come see! Get dressed! Everyone is out front, waiting for you!”

“Everyone?”

Ari listens to his mother’s footsteps disappear down the hall.

“Well, don’t sit there like a slug! Get going!”

Stan sinks back down into the floorboards. Ari is grateful for a multitude of reasons, but the silence to be able to think stands at a solid number 2 on that list. As he dresses, the strange, floating gear still ticks away in his thoughts, and the word ‘overdrive’ echoes back.

Why ‘overdrive’ anyway? Did I make it up? I mean, if I did, it’s not a very cool name for an attack. I mean, even Stan had ‘Burning Devil.’ Even for him, that’s sort of cool. And how did I even get an attack? It couldn’t have been the weapon … unless that was a magic stick. Dammit! The one cool, magic item to fall into my hands and it’s a stick!

Ari doesn’t actually believe it was a magic stick.

Once dressed, Ari grabs the glass tube and turns it over in his hands. He’s not sure if the village meant for him to take it or if they didn’t recognize it as Tenel’s most prized possession and thought it was just some trash. Either way, he sticks it in his pocket and plans on asking the Village Office or the Village Elder or someone what he’s supposed to do with it.

Leaving his room, Ari makes his way down the hall and down the grand staircase that leads to the front door. Despite living with five other people - six if he includes the evil butler - the house is surprisingly quiet and empty feeling. He imagines that everyone is already getting on with their daily business. When he steps out the front door and into the sunlight, he is immediately deafened by waves of cheering.

The entire town of Tenel seems to be standing in his family’s courtyard. Some of Ari’s friends balance on the wall of the water fountain, waving at him. A few late villagers stand in the back of the crowd, carefully shifting away from the ancient graves so as not to step on the haunted ground. But in the front are a cornucopia of familiar faces, all pressing closer to give their enthusiastic support and ask their burning questions. He even sees Julia there, looking up at him with a uniquely feminine look of worry and concern.

“Hey! Hey, Ari!”

“Good work, Ari! Way to go!”

“Thanks! That was great!”

“How did you get rid of the ghosts? Let’s hear it, Ari!”

“Yeah! Tell us, Ari!”

Ari stands there speechless. He’s never been so noticed by so many people all at once. An embarrassing blush rushes to his cheeks.

“Grrr, they’ve got it all wrong,” Stan growls from somewhere, “It was all my doing! Evil King Stan is the proper target of your affection! Oh well, this is good timing. They are all assembled to receive the wisdom I shall bestow upon them!”

Before Ari can react, he hears the familiar whistle and feels Evil King Stan loom up behind him. He looks over his shoulder to find the shadow towering over him, quaking with an evil laugh as he looks out over the villagers. Ari tries to read the faces of the crowd. They look surprised to say the least.

“Listen here, villagers! I am the reincarnation of the Evil King Gohma, the Evil King of Darkness! I am Stan!”

“Wh-what’s going on?”

“Say, isn’t that …”

Ari hears the confused whispers and murmurs bubbling up from the crowd.

“Now that I’ve returned to this world, all that walks, flies, or crawls shall be my subjects! As a reward for your willing subjugation, I shall grant you insects a long, delightful purgatory!” Stan punctuates with a hearty laugh and then adds, “hear this! My official declaration! I will saturate this land with a black cloud of astounding malevolence!”

Ari feels a breeze hit the back of his neck as Stan whips about in his fervor.

“My plague of evil will infect every corner of this world! Bow before your lord and master, Evil King Stan!!!”

The ominous echo of ‘Stan’ bounces about the courtyard, over the heads of the bewildered audience. It seems like even the birds and squirrels in the trees have stopped twittering and chirping. Ari swallows nervously, his throat suddenly feeling dry.

“Aha! They’re speechless!” King Stan hisses in delight.

The quiet is heavily unnerving.

Ari waits.

And then, waits a moment more.

Another moment.

“… Ha ha …”

“… Pffft, ha ha ha ha ha!!!”

“Ha ha ha ha! This is too much!”

One laugh unleashes another and then another in a chain reaction of hilarity.

“Ari! I didn’t know you were such a riot!”

“Oh wow, this is good! I’m gonna die laughing!”

“That shadow trick of yours is pretty slick!”

“What?!”

“Hey! You should perform at the next Tenel Festival!”

“Evil King Stan, did you say? That’s priceless! Ha ha ha!”

“YOU PEASANTS! What are you laughing at?! My great decree is to be taken seriously! You! That one there! Stop laughing!”

“He just keeps going! Ha ha!”

All of a sudden, Ari feels a strange heat radiating off of the clearly angered shadow and it occurs to him that it’s been quite a while since he last used that ‘burning devil’ trick.

“Ah-um, OK, everyone,” Ari calls out, waving his arms to get their attention, “thanks for stopping by! Um, n-no trouble at all about the … the whole ghost thing … I gotta get back to studying. I-I’ll see you around town!”

Ari whips around and darts back inside the house before Stan can incinerate the entire town with black fire. He sighs as he leans against the front door.

“Why? Aghh! I don’t understand! Why?!” King Stan laments, shaking with rage. “I am the Evil King! A harbinger of impending doom! Yet the humans mock me … They even laugh at me! I’m so humiliated!”

Awkwardly rubbing at the back of his neck, Ari wracks his brain for something to say in response to King Stan’s tantrum of self-doubt.

“Well, I-”

“What am I … What am I supposed to do?! Am I a failure as Evil King? Am I a hopeless Evil King?”

“Uhhh …”

“So, it’s true?!”

“Wait, I didn’t-”

“Do I have to hear from this lousy slave that I am a lousy hopeless Evil King? I can’t take this anymore! I’m tired. I must rest for a while.”

And like a 2-dimensional teenager, Stan disappears to sulk in private. Ari waits a moment, frozen temporarily by the emotional whiplash. He’s not even sure how that conversation even happened.

“St-Stan?” he calls meekly.

Nothing happens.

“King Stan?”

“Silence! Don’t talk to me now! Curses!”

Ari supposes the shadow is well and truly upset.

“Oh, Ari!”

He looks up and finds his mother emerging from the kitchen, a huge sweet smile plastered across her face. She rushes up to him and catches him in a hug, squeezing him too tightly.

“Did you see them, Ari? The entire village came to see you! Oh, I’m so proud of you! My popular little man!”

“Mom,” he whines in a teenagerly way.

“You should go out into town,” she says excitedly as she finally pulls away, “I’m sure everyone wants to talk to you. Oh! And Stan too!”

A low growl rumbles up from the floor.

“Stan isn’t feeling too talkative right now.”

“Well, anyway, I heard even the village elder wants to speak with you! Apparently, there’s some rumor going around town.”

“What kind of rumor?” Ari asks, knowing full well that a rumor in Tenel is nothing new and usually nothing much to be excited about.

“I don’t know too much about it myself. Some kind of trouble happening in other towns. Go ask your father about it while your out. Go on!”

His mother practically pushes Ari out of the house. Once clear of the entryway, the front door slams shut behind him.

“Love you!” comes his mother’s muffled voice.

The courtyard now sits empty, its crowd of visitors having dissipated to carry on with normal, everyday Tenel business.

“I guess I’ll see what the elder wants,” Ari mumbles to himself … or to Stan, in case the shadow was still listening.

Before Ari sets off towards the gate, a strange noise pricks at his ears. It’s not the usual noises of nature - not chirping or twittering or snapping twigs - but it’s a sharp, mechanical clicking. It’s rhythmic and consistent. Instead of carrying on down the stone steps, he follows the noise along a small dirt path connecting the front to the back. Two balconies look down at him from the side of the house. Briefly, Ari wonders if the noise is leaking from one of those rooms. But no, it sounds much too close. Carrying on, he passes by a pile of firewood and a stump bearing the ax that made it. No, not from there.

Finally, Ari finds himself at the base of a tall, spindly steel tower. It’s an awkward marker for where the family property ends and the land suddenly drops off in a fair cliff, overlooking miles and miles of untamed, monster ridden wilderness. The tower is made up of lattice girders, spaced out at the base and joining together as the reach the top. The whole thing seems oddly squashed - as if a giant had grabbed it and squeezed - and it leans in a way that doesn’t seem safe.

“I found the source of the ticking,” he says to no one in particular, for no particular reason.

With an eye on the tower should it decide this is the opportune moment to finally keel over, Ari pokes around the tall grasses and tangled wild flowers. He swears the ticking is buried here at the tower’s feet. Finally, as he pulls aside a clump of weeds, a tiny gear comes into view. Nestled among the plant stalks, it fidgets in place, emitting that steady tick.

“Stan?” Ari excitedly whispers - though a beat later, he’s not sure why he felt the need to whisper since no one is around.

There is no response from the evil king. Feeling as if it might stop or disappear in a blink, Ari reaches out and gently plucks up the gear from its weedy nest. He lays it out in the palm of his hand. Overall, it seems completely ordinary. It fits neatly in his hand. It’s a dark, well-worn iron and has bits of dirt stuck in its crevices. If it wasn’t clicking on its own, Ari would have assumed it just fell off the tower. Naturally, he wonders if this gear bears any relation to that which he found (and broke) in the church basement.

Before he can think about it for too long, the ticking suddenly stops and the gear sits still.

I broke another one?

Ari wiggles hand in hopes of jiggling the gear back to ticking, clicking life, but the thing sits motionless, tickless, clickless.

I broke another one.

And of course, Ari’s now not sure if there was ever any noise at all. Perhaps it was all in his head. He wonders if hallucinations and mental breakdowns are typical symptoms of having one’s shadow possessed by a reincarnated evil king.

Anyway, Ari decides to pocket the little gear for now, just in case it start up again. If Stan will ever decide to talk to him again, maybe he can ask about it. But helpful answers don’t seem to be the evil king’s forte.

Chapter 1 • Chapter 2 • Chapter 3 • Chapter 4 • Chapter 5 • Chapter 6 • Chapter 7 • Chapter 8 • Chapter 9 • Chapter 10 • Chapter 11 • Chapter 12 • Chapter 13 • Chapter 14 • Chapter 15 • Chapter 16 - Finale

NOTE: Okage Shadow King is owned by Sony Computer Entertainment and Zener Works. This novelization is purely a fan-work and the writer claims no ownership over the characters, general plot line(s), etc.

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