#his performances in the game always stick with me in a way almost none of the others do

[floofballsammy]

Honestly massive shoutout to Shadow Milk Cookie's VA (CJ Pawlikowski) for doing such an amazing job. You really brought the character to life (ever since the first Beast Yeast apperance tbh). I don't think I'd nearly love Shadow Milk as much if he had a different voice. Can't wait to see what's in store for the next update.

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #605

Top Ten Videogame Intros

I had a bash on Gotham Knights this week via the medium of Xbox Game Pass (a great place to try out games you’re curious about but which you suspect are a bit pants – I’m looking at you, Marvel’s Avengers and Redfall). Anyway, one of the things that immediately struck me – because it’s, like, the very first thing that happens – is that the game has quite a long, protracted opening cut-scene with no interactivity. There’s a whacking great fight in the Batcave and then the aftermath of Batman’s death, and I swear it goes on for about ten minutes. It’s all in-engine, except it’s that sort of souped-up in-engine thing that looks a lot better than when you’re actually playing the game. And this kind of non-interactivity felt a bit incongruous; most game shy away from removing control for that length of time. Over the last twenty years, the most common form of introduction seems to be to allow you to actually play the game; even if the interactivity is pretty rote, the fashion is normally to present the story to you as gameplay. Think of Half-Life, arguably the great pioneer and also poster child for this method; a long, slow train ride through an expansive underground facility, hinting at the expanse of the game and the environments you’ll later have to battle your way out of armed with only a crowbar and a natty orange suit.

It wasn’t always this way, of course; Back In The Day, a game’s “intro” was often a mark of its quality. When the very notion of animation (and voices!) was a novelty worth talking about on the back of the box, intros were all the rage. Given the limited possibility for narrative in the days before performance capture and CD-quality speech, an intro might be the only way to tell you the game’s story, especially in a more action-focused title.

I say all this as a preamble because this week’s list is my favourite gaming intros. And, wouldn’t you know it, almost all of them are quite old. There’s only one that’s from this century and even that was fifteen years ago and – even back then – felt like a bit of a comedy throwback (which, of course, is part of its charm). I don’t know if it’s just because intros are shorter, more built into the actual gameplay, or because ever since in-game graphics and animation became sufficiently impressive as to actually tell a story, the very novelty of a bespoke animated film to kick off your game – whether sprite-based or live-action or rudimentary CG – has fallen by the wayside somewhat. Games like to thrust you into the action nowadays, explaining their backstory and how to play the game through gameplay mechanics themselves. I guess it’s probably a better, more immersive way to do it (the Gotham Knights intro does feel hella-long) but maybe something charming has kinda been lost along the way.

Back in the Amiga days, an intro might come on a disk all of its own. Just the intro disk. You stick it in, it plays a short film, then you insert disk 2 and the game actually begins. It was exciting! It felt like the future, like games becoming bigger and more artful, more able to express themselves using improving technology. And this list is a celebration of that; of game intros that are, well, just impressive in and of themselves, but also in how effective they are at setting up the game you’re gonna play. And I have made a distinction here between non-interactive intro “movies” – I think all of these are actual videos, so to speak, rather than in-engine, even Grim Fandango – so none of that Half-Life emergent stuff. That could be another list, I guess.

So what are we waiting for? Insert disk one.

Another World (1991): the grandaddy of all evocative intros, this was a masterpiece in subtle animation, world building, and suspense. With a limited colour palette, we see protagonist Lester Chaykin (a name I’ve somehow remembered perfectly over thirty years later) screech up in his Ferrari, descend an elevator, drink some Coke, and run an experiment that goes wrong and transports him to – you’ve guessed it – another world. Where you’re instantly dropped into the thick of it and have to start working out what to do and how to play immediately. The hard-edged polygonal look of the game makes the intro appear “in-game” just zoomed-in, from different angles; it’s a seamless and incredibly impressive feat. It serves perfectly to set everything up, and it just looks and sounds so damn cool.

Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 (2008): FMV intros really came into prominence in the mid-nineties with the ascendency of CD-ROMs, and all of the Command and Conquer games excel in this area (remember Einstein killing Hitler in the first game?). Here we have some actual movie stars properly hamming it up in extraordinary fashion – Andrew Divoff as a general, Peter Stormare as a mad scientist, and chief among them, Tim Curry as the new Russian Premiere, having the time of his life. The cast also includes Jonathan Pryce, George Takei, and J.K. Simmons.

Premiere (1992): maybe a bit more obscure than the others, this Hollywood-set platform game from Core Design has a sumptuous and incredibly impressive animated intro (which had its own disk!). They clearly tried to evoke the look and feel of a genuine animated movie as much as possible – the loose, floppy, cartoonish style carries over into the game proper – and the results speak for themselves. Also speaking for themselves are the main character (whose name I forgot, sorry; look, this isn’t Another World), a rare instance of digitised speech in an Amiga game. Also of note: the bit where the phone rings off the hook. Loved that.

Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (1997): another FMV affair at the height of the CD boom, this one had the added bonus of being about Star Wars. A bit of live-action Star Wars, including Jedi and lightsaber fights and all sorts, at a time when that hadn’t happened since 1983. It’s impossible to overstate, when a new Star War flops onto TV every other week, just how extraordinary that was, how exciting. Even putting aside that novelty, it’s still cracking, with some great cod-mythological dialogue, genuinely impressive action, and enough entertainment and intrigue to get you started. And, yes, it just feels so authentically Star Wars; this is probably the moment I became a die-hard fan of the franchise.

Cannon Fodder (1993)and Sensible World of Soccer (1994): when I first played these games on the Amiga they just had the songs – terrific songs though they were, hilarious and silly, with daft lyrics (“War, never been so much fun”). These intros, which I think first appeared on the Amiga CD32 and later PC releases, are basically daft music videos, and Cannon Fodder’s in particular is really funny. There’s a sense of a band larking about as the – young, male, white – developers shoot a video in a field where they get to drive a tank and dress up as soldiers. It's supremely silly and fantastic and so evocative of a time, a place, and Sensible Software in general.

Final Fight (1989): so far these have all been games I played at home, but here we have a great – possibly the greatest – example of a succinct arcade intro. These things had to be short – you don’t wanna put 20p in a machine and wait there all day to get started – but also had to set the tone and tell you why you were constantly pushing a joystick to the right while your dad waited patiently behind you with his hands in his pockets. The sheer eighties-action-movie directness of this – some mad gang threatening a city, kidnapping the mayor’s daughter, and the interaction of the identikit heroes, all in simple stills with hardly any animation – is a daft story simply told, and really sets the tone for what’s about to happen.

Syndicate Wars (1996): this one emerged when the concept of ��fully-rendered” intros was all the rage; looking back now, the animation, modelling, and overall quality of the video itself (I imagine the resolution and bitrate was, ah, low) makes it feel like a product of another era. But this, again, is great at setting the tone and the place and also offering a more ground-level view of a world we see from above; the depiction of the violent battles of the agents is great, but especially evocative is how the “persuaded” citizens view the world, and what happens when the digital scales fall from their eyes.

Grim Fandango (1998): I feel like even way back when, most adventure games began in media res, almost; think of Guybrush walking up to the lookout on Melee Island. Fandango is a bit different, in that we see a whole animation play out – and this may have been souped-up engine footage, but it was definitely a rendered animation, not just playing out in-game – which explains the backstory of lead character Manny Calavera (remembered his name too!) and the mechanics of the game world. It’s a terrific overview of what could be a strange concept (the bureaucracy of the afterlife, filtered through Mexican traditions and culture, but also a film noir?) and anything that gives us more of Tony Plana’s performance is gold.

Theme Hospital (1997): another great example of one of Bullfrog’s rendered intros: it's very funny, with its depiction of a doctor as a sort of superhero rushing to the rescue, but also quite pointed (as the game is in general with its humour) in the way the poor victim is dumped down a chute if they can’t afford treatment. The rudimentary animation has a dated sort of charm, and I also love the various little gags and in-jokes they cram into such a short intro.

Shadow of the Beast II (1990): another superb and evocative Amiga intro – I actually thought I’d have a lot more from the Amiga era on here, but I guess the mid-nineties PC stuff has stuck in my head more. Anyway, this goes full-bore fantasy lore, coming across like one of Arnie’s Conan movies more than Lord of the Rings; but we get the return of a dark lord, a lonely cabin on the edge of civilisation, and – through some rather simple but incredibly effective animation, and the very evocative thunder and lightning effects – an evil attack and a baby being carried off by a giant predatory bird. Yes, it’s rudimentary, but it’s very effective. This was also one of the first Amiga 500 games I ever saw – it used to run in demo machines in computer shops, along with Days of Thunder – and I used to play it all the time with my cousin, so this dark fantasy opening is seared into my brain. I don’t remember what the main character was called, by the way, but I remember the cheat code for invulnerability was “ten pints”.

Insert disk two.

[beels-burger-babe]

Please be The Flu

***So I was hesitant on this one for a while. It's my first gendered request, so I wasn't sure how I wanted to handle it and as a result this has been sitting in my inbox for MONTHS. I am going to stick with they/them pronouns. The MC would have been AFAB, though I never explicitly describe any feminine body parts. That being said, this was a lot of fun to write, and as a Beel Simp, I of course had to throw some fluffy Beel in there as well. This is a long one. I know it's a little slow to start, but I promise the end is worth it. Enjoy!***

Summary: MC hasn't been feeling too well, making Beel grow extremely concerned. After getting confirmation from Simeon that MC isn't sick at all, but rather pregnant, the two work together to keep it a secret from the baby's father.

CW: Vomiting, This fic does have some SUGGESTIVE content. It's not graphic by any means, but just a heads up.

Surprisingly, Beel was the first and only one to notice that something was wrong with you.

Though, in hindsight, it wasn't all that surprising. You hung around the friendly giant nearly as much as you hung around Mammon (as he was assigned to protect you) and Lucifer (whom Beel was suspecting there may be something going on between the two of you).

The two of you were the best of friends. You would almost always accompany Beel to the gym and lay on the bar of the weights he was lifting while you told him about your day. The two of you would raid the kitchen together and sit on the counters while you gossiped at two am. His entire fangol team knew you by name, and knew that you would always be at their games no matter what!

This is why Beel was the only one of the brothers who knew that something was terribly wrong when you failed to show up to one of his early morning games.

His team performed horribly. Beel was terribly distracted the entire game, and so were his teammates for that matter. His mind kept running through scenarios over what could've happened to you. When the game ended, his coach never even got a chance to scold him before Beel rushed out of the arena and back to the House of Lamentation.

His concern turned out to be valid, as when he got to your room, the sound of retching reached his ears. Beel quickly went to the open bathroom, where he saw you hunched over a toilet trembling as you spilled out insides.

Beel moved to support your head and rub your back while you finished puking. He whispered soothing words of support while you cried in exhaustion.

Mentally, Beel was freaking out. He had no idea what could be wrong with you. You looked perfectly fine yesterday; what could have possibly happened overnight to make you so sick?

"MC, what's wrong?" he asked as he handed you a glass of water.

You sniffled as you took a sip and gave relief to your raw throat. "I-I don't know," you whimpered. "I just woke up and I could smell someone cooking food downstairs and it just- it made me feel so nauseous that I could barely make it to the bathroom."

Beel frowned deeply at that. To his knowledge, none of his brothers made anything out of the ordinary; definitely, nothing that could've triggered such a reaction from you. The entire situation didn't sit right with Beelzebub.

Having made up his mind, the worried demon kissed the top of your head before heading to your room and grabbing a change of comfy clothes for you as well as some anti-nausea medicine.

"Here," Beel said as he handed you a hoodie and sweatpants. "Get changed. I'm going to take you to Purgatory Hall. Simeon will be able to tell us what's wrong."

You groaned in protest and pouted as you held onto the clothes. "Beel, it's fine. It's probably just the flu or something."

Beel shook his head, not budging on his statement. "Satan said a while ago that human diseases don't exist in the Devildom. You haven't gone to the human world recently. There's no way for you to have caught the flu. You're sick and neither of us knows why, so we're going to go to the person that can tell us why, and you're not going to fight me on this."

You blinked at Beel, shocked by the finality in his tone. You regularly heard Lucifer or even Satan talk to you but Beelzebub preferred to give you space to do what you want.

You gulped and nodded, signalling for Beel to turn around so you could change.

Within fifteen minutes, the two of you were pulling up in front of the Purgatory Hall. You held Beel's hand nervously as he knocked on the door with three steady, yet urgent knocks.

The door swung open to reveal a smiling Luke. "Hi MC! You usually call before you visit. Not that I'm complaining, but-" he suddenly cuts himself off as he notices your sickly complexion. His eyes widen in panic as he instantly takes your hand and helps lead you into the Hall. "Goodness! MC! Come in, come in! What's wrong? Are you sick? Are you going to be okay? Is that why you're here?"

You chuckled and let go of Beel to pat the small angel's head. "I'm fine, Luke, " Beel grunted in protest, causing you to glare at him. "I'm just feeling a little nauseous this morning. Beel wanted to have Simeon check me out just to be safe."

At the mention of Simeon's name, Luke turned towards the hall and cupped his hand's mouth. "Simeon!! Get over here!! MC needs help!"

You resisted the urge to facepalm. You understood that everyone was concerned, but this felt like a gross over-exaggeration in your opinion.

A distressed Simeon hurried into the room with his face scrunched in unease. Simeon went directly to your side, guiding you to the couch as his eyes scanned you for any sign of harm. "What's wrong? What happened?" he demanded, his eyebrows furrowing as he failed to find any wounds or injuries.

You groaned and swatted Simeon's hands away. "I'm fine. I was sick this morning, but it's fine. It was probably a fluke or something. I appreciate everyone looking out for me, but this is too much."

Luke pouted as he came up beside you, "But you don't know that MC! What if you're seriously sick?"

Simeon smiled softly at his charge before looking at you. "There's no harm in double-checking," he held up his hand as it began to emit a warm white light. "May I?"

You sighed heavily, running a hand through your hair. Part of you was tempted to say no, just to get everyone to leave you alone. But your eyes caught with Beel's, and you noted the genuine fear and distress that laid behind his amethyst gaze and quickly dismissed the thought.

You nodded at Simeon.

The room held its breath as Simeon placed his hand on your shoulder. He closed his eyes, as his hand glowed brighter. You felt comforting warmth spread from your shoulder to your throat before spreading across your chest. As the warmth reached down to your stomach, Simeon gasped and pulled his hand away.

"O-Oh," Simeon whispered, his cheeks flushed and eyes wide with surprise and something else that you couldn't quite decipher.

"What?!" Luke demanded, clutching his mentor by the shoulders, "What did you find?! Are they dying?!"

Beel's breath caught in his throat at the question and he reached forward to hold your hand. You gulped down the fear that had sparked inside you the moment Simeon pulled away and squeezed his hand. "I-I'm fine, Luke. Right?"

Simeon seemed to hesitate, before smiling softly at you. "Yes. You're healthy, it's just," he took a deep breath before meeting your eyes. "MC, you're pregnant."

The room went silent.

Then suddenly, Luke turned to Beel and started punching him. "Damned Demon! Look what you've done! You've tainted them!"

Beel frowned and gently pushed Luke away from him. "Calm down, Luke. It wasn't me. MC and I are just friends. But this..." he turned to Simeon, "This doesn't make sense. Are you sure?"

Simeon nodded. He wore a peaceful expression on his face, but there was something hard behind his eyes and a slight downward-twitch to his lips. "Yes. There is a living embryo in MC's womb," he looked at you smiled, "Congratulations."

Everyone turned to you, but you were barely aware.

You sat frozen, one hand on your stomach as you stared at the floor with distant eyes.

You couldn't believe it. You were pregnant. There was a baby growing inside you. You didn't even know how this could happen! It wasn't like you-

Silk sheets wrapped around your legs. Large, smooth hands holding down your wrists in a tight grasp. A low growl rasping in your ear between pillow-soft kisses to your neck. Obsidian eyes, nearly flooding with love and adoration, gazing down at you.

"Lucifer," you gasped in realization, causing everyone around you to tense. "I- We-," a sob forced its way past your lips as you put a hand over your mouth. "I-It was only one time. I didn't think...I-I-I hadn't thought..."

Beel pulled you into his chest as you found yourself consumed by tears. You could faintly hear Luke yelling something about tracking down Lucifer and fighting him, and Simeon attempting to calm him, but you were too lost in your thoughts to make it out.

You were pregnant with Lucifer, the Avatar of Pride, the Morningstar's child.

You trembled and clenched onto Beel's shirt. "I-I can't tell him," you whispered. Beel tightened his hold you and curled himself around you. "I d-don't know how he'd react. A-And I think I want to keep it a-and I don't want h-him to hate me, and-"

Beel softly shushed you as he rubbed your back. "Easy, MC. It's okay. You don't have to think about all of that right now. Just breathe. I'm going to take care of you. Both of you."

You whimpered and looked desperately up at the demon. "Y-You can't tell him. Promise me you won't tell him, o-or anyone for that matter. Please."

Beel held your gaze for a moment. He knew the promise was a bad idea. Everyone was bound to find out eventually, and the longer you kept this from them the worse it would make things. But this wasn't his choice to make; it was yours.

"I promise"

***

The next couple of months were strange for everyone.

You had become extremely distant from anyone who wasn't Beel, Simeon, or Luke. You knew better than to underestimate the intelligence of the resident demons, and now that you knew about your pregnancy, the symptoms were glaringly obvious.

It was only a matter of time before the others found out, but you were determined to keep this secret as long as possible.

Despite your efforts, the others were more than a little suspicious.

There were times when you would randomly bolt from the room, and Beel would either follow closely behind you, reassuring the others that he'd take care of it, or would look in your direction with concerned eyes.

You were a lot more irritable than usual and looked exhausted more often than not - something that Asmo in particular was extremely concerned about.

Then there was dinner. You still ate with them like usual, but you seemed to suddenly become pickier about what you put on your plate. Every meal, Beel would scoop a large portion of vegetables, or some other healthy food on your plate. While you would glare at him in protest, Beel would simply raise an eyebrow at you, before you'd sigh and start eating.

The others had tried confronting Beelzebub on your strange behaviour, but he remained firm in his promise to you. He kept his mouth shut and would say with a sigh, "it's not my place to tell," before walking off.

It annoyed them to no end; Lucifer especially.

Weeks passed into months, and the symptoms were getting harder and harder to hide by the day.

You were now twenty weeks into your pregnancy. You and Beel were sitting in your room, your smaller body carefully cradled in front of his while you snacked on your current craving of fried shadow bat sandwiches dipped in custard and watched Devildom telenovelas.

You were fully invested in the plot, watching as a demon sobbed in the rain about her dead lover, not seeing the very-much-alive lover standing somberly in the back, when you felt a sharp kick in your stomach. You gasped and leaned forward, quickly hugging your middle.

Beel was instantly on alert. "What happened? Is it the baby?"

"Stop talking and look," you squealed and grabbed Beel's hand and placed it over your small bump.

Beel looked at you with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by another small kick.

His eyes widened, as his other hand quickly came to gently cup your stomach. "I-Is that... Did they just..."

You let out a wet giggle slipped from your lips as you nodded. "They kicked!"

Beel's face split into a wide smile as you pulled you close and hugged you tightly. "MC, this is incredible!"

His focus turned back to your baby bump. You had never seen the demon look so soft or gentle, as he carefully caressed your stomach. "They're amazing. You're amazing! There's a little baby bean in there," he whispered. Beel's expression suddenly became serious as his hands fell away from you.

You frowned and crouched down to try and meet his gaze. "Beel? What's wrong?"

He sighed as he looked at you guiltily. "Lucifer should be here for this. Not me."

Your breath caught in your throat. You could faintly register yourself shaking your head as Beel took your hands into his own.

"MC, listen to me," his voice was gentle yet firm. His thumbs brushed slow circles into the tops of your shaking hand. "Why don't you want to tell Lucifer?"

"Tell Lucifer what?"

Beel quickly shoved you behind him, blocking your view of a suspicious Lucifer. The eldest stood in your doorway, a frown fixed on his face and arms crossed over his chest. His obsidian eyes scanned the room, taking in every small detail. They faltered at the sandwich and bowl of custard that laid forgotten on the floor. He raised his eyebrows and tried to look at you, but Beel stepped in his way.

"We're having a private conversation," Beel said sternly.

Lucifer scoffed at the excuse, "A private conversation about me?" his eye flickered over to where you were peeking out from behind Beelzebub. "I'm assuming this has to do with whatever reason you've been avoiding me and the others for the past three months?"

You and Beel both tensed at the question. Beel glanced over his shoulder and down at your belly before meeting your eyes.

The silent question was clear.

Your mind ran through a thousand situations. Despite what Beelzebub may think, there was a reason why you hadn't told Lucifer about your little...situation.

Lucifer was the eldest of the brothers. He had the best relationship with Diavolo. He had the most say in your position down in the Devildom. If he reacted badly, he had the power to make your life a living hell, and there was very little Beelzebub and the others could do about it.

There was the chance that he would act positively of course but...you had your doubts.

Lucifer is the Avatar of Pride. His reputation is everything to him. To make a child out of a one-night stand with some mortal? You could only imagine what the Devildom would say if and when they found out.

"MC," Beel's kind voice pulled you out of your thoughts. "We don't have to tell him if you really don't want to. But I promise you, no matter what you choose, I won't let anyone harm you."

Lucifer's frown deepened at the statement, concern barely seeping through the cracks of his cold expression.

Squeezing Beel's hand one more time for courage, you poked your head out to look at your lover. "O-Okay. I-I'll tell you, just...just please don't yell or freak out o-or anything?"

Lucifer flinched slightly at the question. Hurt dripped from him at the genuine fear in your voice. "I promise."

With a deep breath, you finally stepped out in front of him; your baby bump was on full display without the baggy hoodies that you had taken to wearing these past few months. "I-I'm pregnant."

You could hear Lucifer's breath hitch as he took a step back. His eyes fluttered between you and Beel as he gestured to the two of you, "Is it...Is Beelzebub the father?"

"What?" You squawked in your own shock. "No! It's yours! Of course, it's yours!"

The room fell silent as Lucifer stared at you. You didn't dare breathe, scared of what would happen if you broke whatever trance Lucifer seemed to be in.

"So," Lucifer whispered quietly, as though he was frightened that his voice would make all of this come to an end. "I-I'm the father. You're pregnant with our...our child?"

You shifted nervously in place as Beel cautiously moved closer to you. "Y-Yeah. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I was just...I was scared."

Lucifer slumped as he stumbled closer to the wall, running a hand through his hair. "You were scared. So you had Beel protect you and the baby," he mumbled as he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall. "That's what you two were talking about when I walked in, wasn't it?"

Beelzebub wearily eyed his brother, unused to seeing him so distraught. "Yes. While I respect and understand MC's choices to keep their pregnancy secret, I did want to tell you. The baby kicked for the first time tonight and I thought-"

"They can kick already?" Lucifer cut off, he eyeballed your stomach once more, his face all but crumpling as he choked. "Can..." He trailed off as he finally looked you in the eyes. Your heart broke as you noted the tears stubbornly lingering in his. "M-May I touch?"

Not trusting yourself to speak, you nodded; Lucifer was at your side in a heartbeat. With shaking hands, he very carefully cupped the curve of your baby, with the tenderness of a parent tucking their child into sleep.

A sob fell from his lips as he felt a tiny foot kick against his hands. Lucifer fell against you, resting his forehead on your stomach as he cried. "I am so sorry, MC. I'm sorry I made you fear me. I'm sorry you felt like you couldn't tell me. I'm sorry that I missed so much of our child's growth," he gathered himself with a trembling breath as he looked up at you. "If you would allow it, I would love to raise this child with you. I swear on my life that I would do all I could to protect them and keep them safe."

You felt tears burn behind your own eyes as you wiped the tears from Lucifer's cheeks. "O-Of course you can! Lucifer, I love you. I want nothing more than to have with me for all of this. I-"

Your words were lost as Lucifer rose to his feet and crashed his lips against yours. The kiss was far from soft, or sweet, or perfect. It was messy, with tears running harshly down both of your cheeks as you clung desperately onto one another.

Beel cleared his throat, reminding the two of you of his presence. He smiled at you and pointed to the door. "Seeing how everything is going fine in here, I'm going to go. MC, remember to take your vitamins tonight," he looked over at Lucifer. His violet gaze assessing him, scanning for any signs of malintent, before nodding and leaving the two of you alone.

Lucifer hummed, relishing at the feeling of having you alone to himself once more, and pressed a kiss to the top of your head. "Tell me everything," he mumbled into your hair. "I want to know all that there is to know about our child and your pregnancy thus far. I want to be the best father and partner that I can be for the two of you."

Your heart melted at his words. Seeing him so parental and doting, you almost felt silly for being so concerned. You knew that whatever the future held for your little family, you would make it out okay. You'd have Lucifer by your side, the world's most protective squad of uncles behind you.

Everything was going to be okay.

***It's finally done! If you're still here, thank you so much for reading this. I sincerely hope that you enjoyed it! So sorry for the anon that requested it, and for how long it took to fill this out!***

TAGLIST:

@thegrimgrinningghost @henry-and-the-seven-lords @satans-beloved-riv @cosmixbun @sufzku @tallyscottage @obey-mes-treasure @kissed-by-a-dementor @yukihaie @justtiarra @mammoneybb @poly-bi-mf @burrixino @rulaien @pumpkins-mainside-blog @acousticpen @sucker-for-angst-and-fluff @itskrispy @10paradox10

[thefanficmonster]

Faux Innocence

Corpse Husband x Reader (Female)

Warnings: None

Genre: FLUFF, Humor, RPF (Real Person Fic)

Summary: Having the reputation of the innocent angel in the group, one could never imagine Y/N being such a badass impostor and expert liar but here they have found themselves fooled by the angel who wears that halo just for show.

Requested by @kpopgirlbtssvt Hello hun! Here’s the other request you sent me, I’m really sorry it’s been so long and you’ve had to endure such a long wait until it’s posted but here it finally is and I hope you enjoy the read! Love, Vy ❤

“They’ll be done for in no time! Right, babe?“ I stick my foot out to the side, nudging Corpse’s leg.

There most certainly are pros and cons when it comes to sharing a gaming/streaming/recording room with me, and the whether the constant pestering is a good or a bad thing is still up in the air. I mean, yeah Corpse rolls his eyes every now when I do it, but I’ve also caught him smiling about it out of the corner of my eye. Bottom line, I do it to invite that almost childishly mischievous smirk on his face. That’s the ultimate reward.

And ok, yes, I’m also the one trying to peek over the barrier separating out computers to peek at his screen to see if he’s impostor or not, but he tolerates that bad habit of mine. Well, he sprays water my way or gently whacks me with a pillow, but I consider that toleration. It’s a playful little dynamic we have going on, one we don’t have to perform today since we’re impostors together.

I cannot recall a time that has happened before. In fact, I can say I’ve been paired up as impostors with everyone but Corpse. I personally think it’s a practical joke the game’s algorithm is pulling on us, seeing as how we’ve been dating for quite some time now. I mean, that’s the only way to explain this coincidence of never being impostors together.

Looking at the subject now, it may be hella beneficial for us considering no one would suspect us both to be impostors together. Everyone is in on this ‘misfortune’ of ours and it’s honestly hilarious but Corpse and I are about to rip them a new one, I just know it.

“Oh, definitely! I’m the risky half, but they’ll never suspect you so we’re 100% winning this.“ He replies, sending a wink my way. He’s vaguely surprised when I return it with a narrow-eyed look.

“What’s that supposed to mean ‘they’ll never suspect you‘? I’m a great impostor! Is that you questioning my skills I’m hearing?“ I raise an eyebrow, turning my attention back to the screen which displays Corpse and I alone in Electrical, pretending to be doing tasks and waiting on our first victims.

“No! No, not at all. Far from it. It’s just that you are...well, you know...you are you. No one would think you’re the one dishing out all these tactical kills. You always seem relatively interested in the game only to have fun and not to win and....“

“Look sweet and innocent.“ I cut him off, finishing his sentence, “Yeah, yeah, I get your theory.“ Suddenly, I hear Rae’s chipper voice approaching, talking to her chat, I’m assuming. This gives me a rather...interesting idea. With that in mind, I give Corpse a side-glance and a devilish smirk that’s promising trouble, “Let’s test it out, shall we?“

“Wha-?!“ Before Corpse can even say his question fully, Rae wanders into the room, cutting him off with a question of her own.

“Test what out?“ She asks, coming to stand between us, doing her own task.

I’m so sorry, Rae

Before anyone could fathom it, I swiftly kill Rae and report her body, all seemingly in the blink of an eye. Corpse hasn’t even fathomed half of this insanity when he hears an accusation being thrown right at him.

“Corpse, how could you?!“ I cry out, and damn - not to toot my own horn or anything - but I’m pulling off the ‘distressed friend-witness‘ act quite well. I bet Corpse would give me an impressed look or mouth ‘minx’ at me if he wasn’t staring at his screen with his mouth agape. “You were planning to blame it on me weren’t you?!“

“Wait...no! That’s not-It wasn’t me! I swear it wasn’t me!“ He finally finds his voice, croaking out desperate defenses, each cut off by a wheeze of something alike shocked laughter that almost gets me to break out in a fit of my own.

“Very convincing, buddy. He’s definitely innocent, you guys...“ Toast comments just as the ‘VOTED‘ sticker pops up above the icon of his avatar in the meeting.

“Right? How could you even think otherwise?“ Leslie backs him up, the sticker appearing on her icon as well.

“Guys! No, for real, it’s Y/N! I swear on Bingus it’s Y/N!“ He probably should’ve used something more convincing, not that it would’ve worked either way. I’m a ‘trustworthy‘, ‘innocent‘ and ‘honest‘ person, just like Corpse said. Aren’t I?

Mere seconds later, he’s shot off the ship, the screen confirming he indeed was an impostor, automatically getting the blame off me cause no impostor would be dumb enough to out their partner like that, lowering their chances at victory. I don’t consider that a dumb move though - I think it’s rather genius, actually. 

“Don’t worry, Corpsie.“ I give him a wink in return to his death glare, his arms crossed over his chest, looking quite unamused. “I’m winning this one for you.“

We both know I can and I will. Of course I can when I’m given the advantage of faux innocence everyone falls for - in more ways than one, if you know what I’m saying *wink* *wink*

@maat-the-prescriptive  @simonsbluee  @save-the-sky  @itsminniekat  @hacker-ghost  @bi-andready-tocry  @imtiredaffff  @jazzkaurtheglorious  @hereforbeebo  @fandomgirl17  @chrysanthykios  @maehemscorpyus  @loraleiix  @letsloveimagines  @annshit  @i-cant-choose-a-username-help  @enigmaticmaze  @divine-artemis  @waterlilypat  @idontknowwhatthisisfam  @evi-ka  @classyandfabulous00  @redperson58  @lilysdaydreams @solowheein  @mythicalamphitrite  @axen-gers  @luckygirl144  @nj01  @buddyemily   @the-albino-lioness  @stardream14  @gdhdkfnn  @nomadicgypsyy  @preciousskye  @fluffysuicideunicornsworld  @o-kaelin  @manacharlotte  @awkward-youtube-trash  @lolalee24  @bonky-beerns  @meme-lord-and-savior-sebastian  @strawbrinkofdeath  @teenloves  @tams0527  @browneyespinkhair  @starstruckllamapuppy  @daisychains012  @y0ulooked  @tinytacosuitcaseflap @supernatural-is-my-only-life  @jula-pauline  @melodykitty  @just-that-bi-girl  @crazybutconfidentaf  @lowellshade @alphakees  @bellero  @weallneednamjesus  @starryhanji  @boiled-onionrings  @husherstan  @fockingwhore  @melaningoddessthings  @prettypastelpetals  @haleypearce  @godwhyamiawkward  @y-napotat  @daisychainyoonmin  @little-miss-rebel3  @free-wheelin-bi-sexual  @redmoon261 @darkacademic2  @wiseflamingoqueen  @into-the-end  @namikhai-i  @nastiablr  @thelittleplantlover  @mirktuan  @dont-hyuck @jjk-bunny  @vintagegothlover  @easygoingtheatre  @itsrandombooklover  @miiaivi  @emmybaybee  @befourgolden  @jjk-is-my-shit  @eternalteaaars  @spacebadgerx  @princesslunalight  @acequinn14  @samm48  @misselsbells06 @simp-lykawa  @fo-love  @marishimomura-blog  @therealglenncoco  @cinnamonbun332  @killtherandomness  @sanshinexxxsan  @fee-btheweeb  @press-lay  @cathleenpotgieter16  @jazzydoesstuff  @moonlxghtbay  @forestrain2000  @hyunjinhugs  @blood-of-fandoms  @lovellylies  @ukiyolixx  @simpforhpcharacters  @chrisdylan17  @parkerjisung  @pedernille  @theodonyous  @wineandionysus  @malfoystilinskii05  @morbid-x  @coryisagee  @jessewa26  @scoobydooluver97 @mindintheskies365  @raeanneinwonderland  @indecisive-empanada  @gluttonypalace  @loriane2503  @btsiguess-kpop  @khaoticbunny  @lucidlycactus  @smiithys  @rottenroyalebooks  @kpopgirlbtssvt  @fangirl-tc27  @fr0z3n-1  @notmesimpingfortechno  @shotarosleftpinky  @kunoi-chan  @idk-whats-wrong-with-me  @yikeroonie  @goldenstarofthunderclan  @poetry-and-tea  @ama-do-writing-stuff  @wishbonewolf  @emeraldxhope  @t0xick1tty  @kusuinko  @speakyourselfloveyourself  @sophia902103  @lo-manburg  @classsykittykat  @dmgama  @depressedpuppythatneedscoffee  @btsiguess-kpop  @akaashi-baby  @gun-jong-simp  @geschichtenfee  @yerapotato-wp  @browneyedgirl365  @thysagclub  @sparklycloudnight  @helloatomicshadow  @queentorresstuff @vtte @val-gal  @lucy-bunny17  @aaliyahh0  @katluckybear  @boyleanti  @straybids  @franchesca-791  @cosmicstorm19  @averyisbackinthetrashcan  @aomi-nabi  @xlanawriter  @allensimpsforcorpse

[runeseaks]

Alcander snippet #1

Short snippet from later in my WIP, Playing with Fire (working title), when Alcander has moved past being a 'young adult' and settled into life with Setan's lot.

Content Warning: Violence & blood, though not particularly graphic in detail.

My eyes worked their way up the blade of the knife pointed towards me as if it was a mere stick. Its holder radiated incompetence; and, frankly, the knife would have been better off in my hands. No doubt it wanted to be put to use, not be used as some pathetic threat. Sharp, shining, waiting for it’s chance to finally fulfill its purpose. It was a paintbrush, waiting to finally meet paint. Unfortunate, really…. 

“Leave now, or—” Their voice cracked.

“Or what?” I smirked, moving my eyes from the knife to its novice handler. Maybe I could be so kind, as to grant the knife’s wish, at least once. “A bit inconvenient… but maybe…” I said out loud, more to myself than them, but a look of confusion crossed their face. 

“How much are they paying you? I could pay you more—”

I laughed. “You think I do this for money?” 

“Anything! I—I can get you whatever you want. Name your price.” 

I looked them in the eyes. “You’d have been better off running and hiding. I’d have still tracked you down, but the effort would’ve been nice.” 

Their knife stayed honed on me even when they flinched at the drop of a leaf. The wheels were turning in their head… What to do next? Frankly, I was thinking the same thing. Too many options. I always preferred they narrow them down for me. It was a game of patience sometimes. Almost always entertaining, though.

“Please, I have a family…” they pleaded.

“Would you like them to join you?” I asked.

They clenched their jaw. “Y—you’re a fucking monster!”

I opened my arms and stepped closer. “Flattery might get you somewhere,” I smiled.

They stepped back.

The sudden distinct feeling that someone was breathing down my neck startled me ever so slightly, until the grumpy voice of a demon, who had gone without any alcohol for a whole thirty minutes, invaded my mind, “Hurry up, stop playing with your food,” Setan said. I hadn’t even noticed him jump into my shadow. I’d figured he was busy elsewhere.

I sighed. Ruining my fun. To be fair, things weren’t really progressing as is, at least, not in any desirable way. I jumped forward in a flash, grabbed the knife’s handler, and teleported us to a nearby area before throwing them to the ground. 

They managed to keep the knife in hand, didn’t drop it or land on it, surprisingly. Upon glancing down at the wet, sticky mess they landed in, they scrambled to their feet with a string of curses. If fight or flight hadn’t kicked in already, it certain had now. Having the blood of your friends and close business associates under your feet has a way of doing that to you.

“You… You won’t get away with this. One day, you’ll pay for this. YOU will get paid back tenfold for what you’ve done! Fuck you! F—”

I freed the knife from their grasp, and let brush meet paint. After a while, silence. 

I turned to find Setan, arms crossed, leaning on a tree. You almost couldn’t distinguish him from the surrounding carnage. His skin matched so perfectly.

“Almost didn’t see you there, Seti. Mistook you for a blood splatter,” I teased, leaving the knife with its previous handler. I didn’t need it any more than they did.

“Hilarious. Meanwhile, you stand out like bird shit on a window.” 

“Rude.”

He uncrossed his arms and walked towards me. We stood and looked around—checked our work, in a way. 

Setan none-too-gently clamped his hand on my shoulder. “Well, that was fun. You were a bit slow though.”

I scoffed. “Pardon me, I was unaware I was being graded on my performance.” 

“Hm.” He breathed. “Drinks are in order.”

“Careful, you’re getting predictable, Seti.” 

We left the carnage behind.

[junko-and-riri-domain]

❦ home | ni-ki

↬ ᴘᴀɪʀɪɴɢ:  nishimura riki / ni-ki x reader ↬ ɢᴇɴʀᴇ: fluff | friends to lovers | requested ↬ ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢs: none ↬ ᴡᴏʀᴅ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛ: 2.9k oops ↬ ʀᴇQᴜᴇꜱᴛᴇᴅ ʙʏ: @onionhaseyeo  ↬ ɴᴏᴛᴇ: 

request was ni-ki fluff with a best friends to lovers storyline

i sorta wrote this in the car while I was out lol not sure if this is what you wanted but I hope you like it 💞(sorry if some parts are cringy 😭)

for those who read the tatts & cupcakes series the next chapter will (probably) come either later this week or early next week! since spring break is coming up next week i'm hoping to be able to spend more time writing :)

Entering what was now your 1st grade class, slight fear settled in the pit of your stomach since you were now the new kid at a new school. As your eyes landed on a certain brown-haired boy in the corner of the room, your fear disappeared slightly. He sat alone focused on his Nintendo Switch. Letting go of your mom’s hand, she called out your name but you practically ran to the boy. Merely looking at him gave you a sort of happiness that you’ve only felt whenever your favorite food was made for dinner.

Annoyance settled within Ni-ki as a face popped into his line of sight, distracting him from his game. Everyone in class knew better than to bother him. His eyes settled on you with a gaze that made you squeak and jump back slightly. He didn’t expect to see someone so… he wasn’t quite sure what the word was yet. Why did looking at you make him feel similar to the happiness he felt dancing? Instead of ignoring you, he took out the blue controller of his Nintendo Switch, silently handing it to you. You took the controller, fingers brushing against each other but too young to realize what the sparks meant.

“I don’t know how to play,” you said.

“I’ll teach you,” he answered. Going home that same day, you found out that you lived next door to each other.

In 4th grade, Ni-ki discovered that when he climbed the tree in his backyard, he was able to get to your room window without having to leave the house through the front door. It became a sort of “thing” between you. Your window was always unlocked, an invitation for him to come inside whenever he wanted. At 2 am one Saturday morning, you woke up from your sleep because of the sounds from your window opening. Sleepily, you lifted up your head to be met with Ni-ki. The moonlight shining on him with his hair all ruffled made you feel giddy inside.

“Did I wake you up?” he asked. With a slight roll of your eyes,

“No, you weren’t being loud at all.”

“I can’t sleep.”

“So you decided to make me not sleep?”

“It’s cold in my room.”

“It’s cold in my room too?”

“Let’s sleep together.”

It could’ve been that you were too tired to tell Ni-ki to get out.

Or it was because you were too cold and Ni-ki was shivering.

Whatever it is that it was, you moved to the other side of your bed, making space for him. He settled in, slight heat rushing to his cheeks as his head laid on one of your pillows. While the two of you have hugged and held hands, this was something different and both of your hearts were pounding in your ears. You fell asleep first, Ni-ki looking at you, breath slightly caught in his throat. Once again, there was the same feeling from when he first met you. Yet still, he didn’t know what it was nor the proper words to label it. Sharing the same bed because a source of comfort between you as Ni-ki realized that the feelings he couldn’t express in words, he could express through the sparks.

Towards the beginning of middle school, you started going to Ni-ki’s dance studio almost every day. You would watch him perform dances before any of his covers were uploaded online, your eyes were the first to witness Nishimura Riki in his element. He couldn’t deny how he loved the way your eyes lit up whenever he performed or how you’d clap and shout his name in support.

“Y/n-ah,” you heard as he sat next to you, taking a swig of water.

“Huh?” You looked at him, noting how his hair stuck to his forehead. Knowing that he didn’t like that feeling, you brought your hand up to his hair, fixing it for him.

Maybe it was because he was out of breath and his heart was already racing.

Maybe it was because your face was so close to his that the only thing he was able to focus on was you.

Maybe it was because your legs were touching since he always liked sitting as close to you as possible.

Whatever it was, there was that feeling again. And still, he couldn’t label it.

“What is it?” you asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. He cleared his throat,

“I’m gonna be an idol one day. When I become one, I want you to be in the front row of my concert.”

“You think we’re still gonna be besties when that happens?” you teased. He rolled his eyes,

“Obviously.”

Throughout middle school, Ni-ki unsurprisingly became popular with everyone. Most of the girls were captivated by how well he danced while the guys wanted to be him. He didn’t care, only sticking with you for the most part. You would eat lunch together at a hidden spot behind the back of the school that only you knew. In 7th grade,

“Ni-ki,” you said as you looked up at the sky, the blue color filling your view. It was nearing spring, the flowers were in bloom, and you found yourself wondering something.

“Yeah?” he replied, stealing one of your potstickers as if you didn’t save it for him.

“Jisoo-unnie told me she kissed Sean-oppa, and she said she didn’t like it. They’re gonna break up soon,” you said, referring to some kids in your class. The two were a “thing” together and while you knew what dating entailed, you’ve never experienced it yourself.

“And I care why?” You were nervous at what you were about to say but you weren’t going to back out now. Looking at him, slightly tilting your head,

“Do you wanna kiss me?” you asked. He choked on the potsticker, causing you to pat his back and give him water.

“Yah, is kissing me that bad?” you muttered to yourself.

“W-why?” he asked, unable to help himself from stuttering. With a shrug,

“I think I’d like it… if my first kiss was you.” You expected Ni-ki to tell you off. Or just flat-out leave. But instead, he leaned forward and as if it were instinct, your eyes fluttered shut. It lasted for a second, perhaps even less, but in that short time the sparks you felt whenever you were around Ni-ki intensified.

“There, we did it.” Your eyes widened as you looked at him, heat rushing to your cheeks despite the seemingly insignificant action. There it was again, that feeling that he just couldn’t name.

Ni-ki came into your room through the window at 3 in the morning to be met with the sound of your muffled sniffles and hated that he was the reason for it. He settled into bed with you,

“Get out you traitor,” you muttered. He sighed,

“I’m sorry, y/n-ah.”

“You’re really gonna leave tomorrow?”

“Technically, it’s later but-” interrupted by you throwing a pillow at him he let out a slight groan,

“Really?” he asked with a sigh.

“I’m gonna miss you.”

“I’m going to Korea, not dying.” You knew that he was doing it to fulfill his dreams of becoming an idol and you wanted him to. But last week, after seeing him with Lisa as his dance partner for the talent show, a fit of jealousy you’ve never known before settled within you. You didn’t tell him, how could you when you had no reason to be jealous? Instead, you smiled when his eyes met yours as you sat in the audience and clapped when he and Lisa got 1st place.

“Promise me we’ll video call? And that you won’t forget me.” He wiped your tears away with his sleeve,

“Promise me that you won’t go out with Sean?” he asked. Sean had asked you out after the talent show and you told him that you needed to think about it. Ni-ki was furious when he found out using the excuse that “Sean is a jerk” despite knowing damn well that he was jealous. But this wasn’t the time to be jealous because he was going to Korea. You brought up your hand, holding out a pinky. He did the same, both of your pinkies connected,

“I promise,” you said simultaneously.

While Ni-ki was in Korea and you were at home, you’d video chat and send text messages as often as you could. Over time, you started to realize that Ni-ki was starting to want one thing.

“I wanna go home, y/n,” he said one 4 am call.

“Ni-ki, you’ve sacrificed so much, you’re almost there. We believe in you.”

“I won’t be able to talk to you for a while.”

“Why not?”

“I’m going on a survival show called i-land. If I make it to the top 7, I’ll get to debut.”

“YAH, NISHIMURA RIKI WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME EARLIER?” you yelled, causing him to bring move his face away from his phone.

“It just never came up.”

“That’s great! Do your parents know?”

“You’re the first one I told.” That feeling that only Ni-ki seemed to give you whenever he did or said stuff like this made itself known. In the time that Ni-ki was gone, you realized that you missed him more than you should despite being best friends. It wasn’t until you had a talk with his sister that you realized, you had a crush on him.

“I miss you, Ni-ki. And I’ll be rooting for you the whole time.”

As cheers of joy filled your ears, the sound of your heart pounding was the only thing you could hear while what was on the tv screen registered in your head.

Ni-ki. Got. Fourth. Place.

Which meant that he was debuting.

Which meant that he was going to become an idol.

Which meant that his dreams were coming true.

You couldn’t stop the immense pride you felt and the shouts of joy that escaped you. Your best friend was debuting and you had the right to be proud of him.

During enhypen’s first concert, Ni-ki knew that he should’ve been happy. This was him living out his dreams, the same dreams that he spent countless hours up till the am talking to you about. Yet, unlike all those years ago, you weren’t here at his 1st concert. You couldn’t just hop on a plane to Korea due to current restrictions and your own schoolwork.

“What’s wrong?” Jay asked as he placed his hand on the maknae’s shoulder. Ni-ki looked at Jay,

“Y/n’s not here.” Though you weren’t aware of it, the other members knew you. Well, of you since Ni-ki talked about you often.

“Why don’t you call her?” Jay offered as a solution hoping to help in some way.

“Yeah, I will,” Ni-ki said.

Your phone rang and upon seeing the contact name, you answered it.

“You’re supposed to be performing, why haven’t you started yet?” you asked.

“How’d you know?” you smiled then changed the camera view to show your laptop,

“I’m streaming, dummy.”

“Illegally?” he asked.

“No comment.”

“Yah, you’ll get in trouble!”

“Good thing you’re on my side, yeah?”

“I wish you were here.”

“I am, just look at the camera and pretend it’s me.”

“It’s not the same.”

“I know, I miss you too,” you said with a sigh. Ni-ki heard his name being called,

“I gotta go.”

“Good luck and have fun!” you managed to say before the call ended.

At your high school graduation, you walked around looking for your family frantically texting Ni-ki’s sister asking where she was. It wasn’t until you crashed into what felt like a wall that you looked up, your hand rubbing your forehead. As your eyes met the man in front of you,

“Ni-ki?” He smiled, that feeling that he still couldn’t pinpoint after all these years infecting him once again.

“That’s all you have to say?” your arms wrapped around the now much taller boy instantly, practically jumping onto him which caused him to have to carry you like a baby koala.

“It’s been a year since we’ve last seen each other in person!” you muttered, your face resting in the crook of his neck, missing his scent.

“I literally FaceTimed you last night, you’re being so extra.”

“As if you’re not?” you countered.

“Only for you,” he said with a light chuckle.

“Wait, I’m heading to Korea in a few days, why are you here?”

“I couldn’t miss your graduation. I’m only here for a few hours before I have to head back.” He set you down though his arms stayed lingering on your waist.

“You spent money on a ticket just to be here for a few hours then to head back tonight?” your heart warmed at Ni-ki’s actions and you couldn’t hold back your smile.

“I know, I’m extra.” Just then,

“Babe!” you heard. You turned your head to be met with Sean, having forgotten him with Ni-ki here. You told Ni-ki of your current 2 month relationship and he was all for it, wanting you to be happy. At least, you thought so. Well, he did want you to be happy. He just preferred it if you were happier with him.

You landed in Korea a few days after graduation. Timing seemed to work out for you and Ni-ki since enhypen’s dorm was getting renovated, he needed a place to move to. Despite being offered to share a temporary apartment with Sunoo, he opted to get one with you instead. You were thankful for it, happy to be back with Ni-ki, and excited for the 2 of you to hangout like you used to. One particular night, Ni-ki’s practice was running late and you were having a bad day.

“What?” you answered annoyed at Sean’s call. Lately, you were starting to have a strong dislike towards him with how much of a jerk he was like whenever Ni-ki was around.

“Is Ni-ki there?” Sean asked, annoyed.

“Why does that matter?” You didn’t hear the door opening or Ni-ki coming inside.

“Because he’s stuck onto you like a leech.” Ni-ki froze at those words, unsure what to do. Sean wasn’t exactly wrong but you were best friends so it was natural for you to be close, right?

“What the hell do you know?”

“He’s been gone for so long and the first chance you get, you move to where he is. Does that make sense to you? Part of an idol group and can’t even-”

“Like hell, I’m gonna let you say stuff like that about Ni-ki.”

“I can’t even say my opinion?”

“Not when it’s wrong.” Sean scoffed,

“I’m your boyfriend.” The next 2 words that came out of your mouth came as a shock to you, Sean, and Ni-ki.

“Not anymore.” Ending the call and tossing your phone on the bed, you laid in bed looking up at the ceiling. Surprisingly, you didn’t cry. Ni-ki came into your room and laid on the bed with you,

“I heard,” he said.

“You were right all those years ago, Sean is a jerk.”

“What are you gonna do now?”

“What should I do now?”

“Go out with me.”

“On a date?”

“Mhm.”

“Why?”

“Because I asked you out.”

“You’re serious?”

“Mhm.” You weren’t quite sure how to respond since deep down you knew that your crush on Ni-ki never truly faded away. Things were different now and you were no longer kids in grade school who were unaware of what it meant for things like dating to happen.

“This could hurt us.”

“It could.”

“This isn’t funny.”

“I wasn’t joking.”

“Where would we go?”

“Wherever you want.”

“This isn’t how I’ve imagined you asking me out.”

“So, you’ve imagined me asking you out?”

“Shut up, you’re an idol there’s a ton of imagines about you.”

“The only imagines I care about are yours.”

“Fine, I’ll go out with you.”

It was a day just like any other day when Ni-ki realized what exactly the feeling was that made itself known from the first time he saw you up until now. You just reached 10 months of dating, still living together in Korea. You were on the couch trying to do some work when Ni-ki showed up all of a sudden, clearly wanting some cuddles and physical affections. So you put on a movie, grabbed some blankets, and settled in. You were mindlessly running your hand through his hair,

“It’s been so long since I’ve felt like I’m home,” Ni-ki whispered as he looked up at you. His hair was soft, like cotton candy that melted in your mouth at an amusement park.

“With all the cameras surrounding you and being in Korea without your parents so young, it’s only natural for you to be homesick.” He realized that the feeling that appeared from time to time was something that he could now name. Home.

“I’m home with you, y/n,” he whispered.

❦ written by riri | blog masterlist

requests are open! rules can be found here

[soldmysoultootomeboys]

Demon MC with Human Obey Me Brothers Reverse AU

Okay but what if the brothers were all ‘normal’ humans who ended up summoning a demon, who is MC.

I’m in love with this idea. Lowkey might write a fic about this  jk...unless? Levi’s was surprisingly the most fun to write. Also I guess tw for normal demon things??? Nothing too graphic tho

Part 2

Lucifer

As a human he was a high ranking businessman. While still a formal person on the outside he had a perverse interest in the occult that he hid from the rest of his coworkers.

Due to his important position and large pay he manages to get his hands on some rare books on demon summoning. After a lot of research he tries them out.

When he summons you he doesn't look surprised or afraid and is quite clinical about it at first. The first thing he does is bind your powers so they can never be used against him. After he informs the rules you must follow if you're to be living with him.

Even as a human he is quite prideful and controlling and he wants to remind you who's really in charge.

At first he only sees you as a demon. He lets you do your own thing when he isn't ordering you around and when the two of you do go out in public he only introduces you as an acquaintance of his. People are rather surprised at this as he's not the type to walk around with others and rumors quickly fly off about you two.

It's not until you two are walking home from a shopping trip that you really start to bond. It was a late night and no one was around so the two of you take your time, enjoying the cool air and stars.

All too late that you hear the click of a gun. From the shadows steps a man, weapon pointed straight at you. Seeing your nonthreatening human form as well as Lucifer who practically reeks of wealth he thought the two of you easy targets. Wrong.

With inhuman speed you lunge forward shifting into your demon form. The gun clatters to the floor as you rip him to shreds with no remorse. It's only when Lucifer finally calls you away that you realize he's dead.

Once you manage to get home he is immediately lecturing you about how risky the actions you just did were. Someone could have seen you or more importantly seen him. What would you have done if the cops got involved? Eat them?

Once he's done though he thanks you and a few days later a gift ends up in your room. He never claims it, even though you can smell his cologne all over it.

After that night Lucifer treats you different. Not better, but not worse either. If anything he's a bit kinder but in a cold sort of way and he keeps his distance when anything gets too serious. At first you think its because he's scared of you. It isn't till he finally approaches you, a stern look on his face and orders you to transform that you realize he was working up the courage to see what you really looked like.

The pact urges you to turn, so you do and you let him examine you, circling several times. He's most interested in your wings, asking if he could touch them and when you consent he gently runs his hands over them. Despite you being a demon he treats you delicately shifting aside feathers with a careful hand and running a light fingertip over leathery skin.

It's a strange feeling at first, but not bad and you're practically purring by the end

After that he asks to see your true form more and more

Mammon

He didn't mean to summon you.

He just wanted to make a quick buck. It was getting close to Halloween people were starting to be interested in demons and spooks once again. That's why he thought it would be a great idea to start a seance business.

Twenty dollars for him to pretend to summon a demon, maybe shake a table once or twice, have some scary sounds playing in the background, nothing too big. Who would have known that the book he stole as his main prop would really work.

When he first sees you he screams.

He immediately tries to shove you back into the book to no avail. As he has no clue how to get rid of you he ends up stuck with you, a terrifying demon.

At first its very easy (and amusing) to scare him. Bear your teeth, mumble in a made up language, threaten to rip him to shreds.

You can actually see his soul leave his body when he faints.

However in typical Mammon fashion he gets used to you surprisingly quick, especially when you don't come through on your promise to eat him.

After that he figures that together the two of you could start scamming people for even more money. After all, he does own a real live demon now.

You two make bank stealing and tricking people. With his knack for creating schemes and your powers the two of you are rolling in money in no time, although it always seems to be lost pretty quickly thanks to his terrible gambling habits.

It's in the middle of a heist that something goes wrong. Someone, you don't know who you can only hear the click of a revolver, pulls out a gun. With lightning fast reflexes you’re tackling Mammon shielding him with the tip of your wing and just in time as something is shot into it tearing through muscle and sinew.

The urge to rip them to shreds overtakes you, growing with every second that your human is in danger. But there was so many of them and you couldn't protect Mammon and yourself at the same time. The need to get somewhere safe is much more important so you leave.

It's only your quick reflexes that get the two of you out alive.

When you finally get home Mammon laments over all of the money he lost on the deal. acts like it doesn't affect him. His complaints last exactly till he sees the blood staining your form.

He almost faints right there.

Once he recovers he's immediately running to get ice packs and gauze, fussing over your injured wing. It's obvious he’s worried even though he tries to hide it under his tsundere act. When you’re finally bandaged up he thanks you glancing at your wound the entire time.

It's hard not to appreciate the gesture.

You just don't know how to tell him that your going to be perfectly fine in like two days (thank Diavolo for demon healing)

After this you two are a lot closer. Even before you were friends, but now the relationship has morphed into something different.

The two of you do less dangerous scams and while Mammon doesn't act too different he gets super weird when you're too close. Blushing a terrible crimson and freaking out when you touch.

Even for a demon its not hard to see that he has a crush.

Levi

Also summoned you on accident.

He was actually trying to summon Ruri-chan. You have to admit when it comes to her he does his research. Drew a full pentagram and everything and as a final touch placed a little plushy in the middle.

He absolutely panics when you arrive here instead.

Used to humans being afraid you, you ignore him at first. You fall to one knee eager to pledge your loyalty in exchange for his soul when you land on something squishy.

Pulling it out from under you see a plushy??? Of some anime character??? TF???

This pulls him from his stupor and he snatches it from you and begins to lecture you on the importance of Ruri-chan and anime on human culture.

You have no clue whats going on at this point.

When he finally stops talking he actually gets kind of excited. He summoned a hot demon??? Woah! This is just like his anime 'I accidentally summoned a demon from Hell who became my roommate and now I might be falling for them.' 

At your confused look he immediately turns it on and has you watch it. You two end up having an entire movie night together.

After that the two of you mostly act like roommates.

He often compares you to his favorite series TSL where 7 humans summon a demon named Henry and go on crazy adventures with him. The first time he accidentally calls you Henry he blushes like crazy.

At first he acted like you were annoying him most of the time but it was pretty easy to catch on to his tsundere act. He actually loves having you around and will whine when you have to leave. He says its because he can't play two player games without you but you know the truth.

On the rare occasions the two of you go out he gets jealous of anyone with even the slightest interest in you. Your HIS demon why are you giving someone else your attention?

Its pretty easy to distract him though. Just the slightest touch and hes flushing and stuttering. You can do whatever he won't get the hint that you like him the most.

'There's no way you meant to do this. This must be some weird demon norm I don't know about. Yup that's it.'

Satan

Summoned a demon on purpose. And not just that summoned you on purpose.

With his extensive library he had more than enough information to figure out how to summon a demon. After that it was just a matter of choosing which one. He finally settled on you.

You don't need to worry about explaining how a pact works to him. He already knows everything on it. Maybe even more than you. Nerd.

Don't express this opinion out loud. He will be furious.

Even so he'll still make you tell him about summoning a million times just to see if you know anything different.  

Mostly you’re an over glorified assistant/labrat to him. MC grab that book. MC draw this summoning circle. MC stick your hand in this flame.

Of any of the brothers he is the one who sees your demon form the most and the one who asks the most questions about it. You have very sharp claws what are those used for? Four sets of wings? I wonder why you have so many. Slitted eyes? Do you have any idea why they are like this?

He is very interested in the differences between humans and demons so you end up performing a lot of tests.

He would also be curious about the celestial war and your part in it. Its up to you to choose to answer him or not.

If you ignore any of his questions he will get annoyed and be snippy. But just tell him an interesting tidbit about hell and he'll be back to normal in no time.

As for his actual job he works as a researcher at a big lab. You go there often to help him with his work. He used to have a lot of assistants but none could handle his terrible rage.

Its one of the reasons you work so well with him. An angry human? That's no big deal. Now if he was a demon that would be something to talk about

His tantrums are actually kind of cute. Like a fussy kitten.

Telling him this has a 50/50 chance of either making him blush or rampage.

If its possible he uses you to annoy his colleagues

Janice talked shit about his theories on planetary alignment? Poison her

Jk not really but maybe just, like, make her day a hundred times worse?

Thanks MC you're great

A power team at its best. His need to get back at people he hates works well with your general need to cause mischief 

Asmodeus

An orgy summons you obvious reasons. Although technically not the one who summoned you, you end up making a pact with Asmodeus before the nights over.

It was inevitable really, of all the humans there how could you not choose him? His overblown confidence and cocky insistence that he was perfect was practically adorable. I mean here you are, a demon of all things, and yet this little human is here insisting that he was perfection himself. You just wanted to eat his soul right up he was so cute.

To him its obvious why. After all, he was so beautiful that even demons fell in love with him, he couldn't blame you.

Even if you tell him the real reason he won't believe it.

Immediately starts bragging about how he could seduce demons

If you leave a pact mark on him though he will complain

As for actual duties you don't have a lot

At parties you work as his wingman but at home the two of you have more of a domestic role. He treats you more like a best friend than a demon.

He has a lot of spa days, something he immediately insisted that you take part in too.

One day you bring him a bottle of demon moisturizer. Big mistake

When he finds out about all the different demon beauty products he immediately orders you to get him some.

Your poor wallet.

He's always ordering new things. He really wants to go down to Devildom so he could look himself instead of having to order off Akuzon. One day you'll figure out a way to show him the eternal night.

He's also very flirty towards you, something your not surprised about. Hes always on your lap or petting your head or asking for affection, and he constantly alludes to the things the two of you could do. As time goes on he begins to get even more needy, sometimes ignoring others at parties just to flirt with you. He wants all of your attention all of the time.

Beelzebub

Did not mean to summon you but now that your here hes pretty okay with it

Of all the brothers he the one to treat you the most like another human.  

However you have one duty that you take very seriously

You must protect his brother, no matter what.

Other than that you two are like roommates. He doesn't really ask you of much except to keep the fridge stocked (which is a bigger job than expected this guy eats a lot) and he'll take care of the rent and everything else.

Sometimes he'll ask if you want to head to the gym with him. You thank your demon metabolism since every time you end up going he always stops for burgers and shakes at his favorite place on the way home.

He lifts a lot for a human, no surprise since you've seen how sculpted his body is. Seriously he's like a Greek statue. You spot him while doing reps and help correct his form while necessary. It's a bit of a switch from dealing with demon biology to human biology though so you have to make sure that you don't accidentally hurt your new friend.

Sometimes the two of you have movie nights, although its more of an excuse for him to buy a bunch of human food and you to buy a bunch of demon food and pig out. He still manages to out eat you somehow.

Occasionally the two of you will go out with his brother Belphie although it usually ends up with either you or Beel carrying him when he falls asleep. But it gives you time to chat with Beel on your own which you don't mind

The two of you end up with a good bromance, sometimes minus the b.

He treats you like an old friend and even ends up telling you about Lilith, his dear sister who died when a car hit her. He had only managed to pull his brother out of the way at the time and he still remembers it well. You can practically smell the guilt that hangs off him when he tells you that. It's hard not to feel touched after that story even for a demon.

He confesses a lot of things to you, things he has a hard time saying to other people. He never calls upon his pact to swear you to secrecy. He trusts you.

Belphie

Also summons you on purpose

When you first meet Belphie he's angry, uncontrollably angry. It's at the point where it almost surprises you. After all a human filled with so much wrath is no small feat.

His first order is a tough one but one you have no choice but to accept. 

Kill the man that murdered his sister

The two of you work hard to hunt him down, spending many days brainstorming late into the night. Although it always ends up with just you working, as Belphie has the strangest tendency to fall asleep while talking. (Narcoleptic maybe? Or just lazy?) Whatever the case you don't terribly mind.

Even just his presence helps, in some strange way.

When you finally track him down Belphie insists on going too. He wants to see the man die with his own two eyes.

It's not a hard fight but it is an emotional one. Through the bond you two share you can feel Belphies anger, his pain, his desire for revenge, and then finally an emptiness.

When its over the two of you go home, still covered in whatever bits of him were left. Belphegor shows no emotions and you wonder if hes in shock from seeing someone die so suddenly, but all you feel is a tired yet content thrum through your bond.

When you finally get home Belphegor immediately tries to go to sleep and its only through a little nagging and a lot of manhandling that your able to convince him to shower first. By now the bloods beginning to dry into a nasty goop and once he's done you jump in too, soothed by the steam and clouds of soap drifting around you.

To no ones surprise Belphie is asleep when you get out. It's then when you realize that you have nothing left to do. 

With that one action your purpose here is done, and yet your pact remains. Your thoughts begin to rise Belphie who clings stubbornly to sleep. It's no use though. The two of you are too connected for it to stop. 

You hear the sheets rustle and he raises one hand patting at the covers. A universal sign to come here.

"You're so loud" He mutters even though you haven't said a word. "Just sleep already."

A useless answer but a comforting one. You curl up at his side, feeling the tiniest bit like an obedient dog, but his arm settles over your shoulder and he drapes himself over your chest erasing the thoughts from your mind.

You eyes flutter close, at least for the moment. You can decide what you should do when you wake up.

[girl-in-the-tower]

WHY I LOVE THE SCARABIA CM AND YOU SHOULD TOO

Listen, I don’t even know why you’d actually need to look for a reason to love and cherish this beautiful piece of animation, but to each their own. Regardless, you’re in the right place, because I’m about to gush and cry over this CM just to convince you to show it the same level of love that I feel for it. It’ll be difficult, but don’t worry, I’ll be there with you the entire time. So, let’s start with the beginning. 

What makes this CM different from the others? Well, let’s look at the most obvious aspect: it’s narrated by two people, instead of just the Overblot victim like in the case of the Heartslaybyul, Savanaclaw and Octavinelle. There we had only Riddle, Leona and Azul speak because, obviously, as the Prefects and shadows of the villains they would be the most important characters. You could call that antagonist privileges if you want, but there’s a reason a show with a big cast doesn’t go in depth with every single one of their characters. Not only would it be infeasible, but also useless. Narratives need a point of focus, otherwise they end up disjointed and incomprehensible. 

So why didn’t this CM just have Jamil narrate? He’s the antagonist of chapter 4, after all. Shouldn’t he get his own moment in the spotlight, separate from Kalim? Well, yes and no. For you see, the thing about Scarabia is that unlike other dorms the relationship between the Prefect and vice dorm leader is much more complicated. By which I mean that no other vice dorm leader is an indentured servant to the family of their dorm’s Prefect. Trey is Riddle’s childhood friend, Ruggie sticks with Leona because it gives him a better chance for survival, the Leech twins stay with Azul out of curiosity, Rook admires Vil, Ortho is Idia’s little brother (?) and Lilia has served as Malleus’ parental figure.

(Also, yes, I’m counting Ruggie and Ortho as vice dorm leaders since that’s basically their role anyways.)

None of them are bound to their Prefect. Trey has a life outside of Riddle, Ruggie will drop Leona like a sack of potatoes if the latter gets too much to deal with, the Leech twins EXPLICITLY say that they will turn on Azul if they get bored, Rook actually points out Vil’s flaws to his face, Ortho doesn’t let his brother get away with everything and Lilia’s position is more of a trusted family friend, than an actual guard/babysitter. The point I’m trying to make is that all these people have choices when it comes to their relationships with their respective Prefects. They stay by their side out of their own will and not because someone is forcing them to be there. 

The same doesn’t apply to Jamil. He can’t just decide to leave Kalim’s side one day, because he was getting sick of looking after him. And that’s because he didn’t have a choice in being by his side in the first place. That decision was made for him by his parents. Because that’s how indentured servitude works: when you’re in the service of a lord, especially if you’re a poor peasant, your period of time decided upon entering the contract tends to extend to future generations as well since you’re not given any money to save. Most peasants that found themselves in such positions often would marry and start a family while still in the service of their lord and should they die, their family, unable to provide for themselves because their whole life was spent doing unpaid labour, will also enter the same contract. This process would go on until either slavery, which this most certainly is, was banned or the lord decided to set you free. The former was much preferable to the latter, because in a feudal system to be set free by your lord often marked you as an undesirable servant. You would be hard pressed to find a lord that would ‘hire’ you after finding out your former ‘employee’ decided to ‘fire’ you. So it would be very rare for indentured servants to actually manage to free themselves from that position. 

This is precisely where Jamil’s frustration arises from as well. As a capable individual, he’s acutely aware of the limitations his status imposes on him. He’s a servant of the Asim family from birth, much like his parents and grandparents were before him. This is not something he chose for himself, but rather something that was imposed upon him. Herein lies the central issue that defines Jamil’s character: lack of choice. Much more than any character, Jamil’s life is governed by the limitations that arise due to his social position. We see that ever since his childhood he was forced to always take into consideration Kalim’s abilities and model his performance as not to eclipse him in any way. If Kalim placed second place in a dancing competition, Jamil must not be among the top three. If Kalim’s grades slipped, his own grades must as well. If Kalim lost two times in a row at mancala, Jamil must make sure he loses the next three games. Yet, paradoxically enough he mustn’t fall behind too much either, for that would make him a useless servant. And as I pointed out before, inept servants are not considered desirable by those in power. 

It is in essence a balancing act that Jamil must make sure he adheres to strictly, as not to bring shame to the Asim family to whom he is, in theory, loyal. In relation to Kalim, Jamil must make sure he performs poorly, but in relation to others he must make sure he performs well. It’s that precise position between exceptional and ordinary that he must achieve, and according to Azul, Jamil is excelling at that.

Azul: You usually never make yourself stand out—A wallflower, so to speak.

You make sure not to stand out academically, too. Whether it’s with class standing, or with practical training. But, at the same time…

You never get failing scores. (4-37)

Yet the question we must ask is why? Why must Jamil follow these demands? 

Well, for one it’s the issue of the indentured servant that we have discussed before. Jamil is bound to the Asims and going against them will bring repercussions not only on himself, but on his family as well. In the modern age in which Twisted Wonderland seems to be set in, this would not be much of an issue, we would guess. However, while that might be true, we must consider it not only from a logical perspective, but a psychological one as well. The human brain is fascinating in the sense in which it is able to transform information into patterns. And nowhere is this most apparent than in the impregnation of cultural norms into the mind. We tend to think of some things as innately ‘normal’ and ‘ordinary’ and everything that goes against those beliefs as ‘perverse’ and ‘immoral’. For example, up until a few decades ago, the idea of women as second-class citizens was seen as a perfectly reasonable notion. Those that did not agree with it were considered troublemakers and agitators, and if there’s anything the human individual loves more conformity, it’s ensuring that it’s enacted upon the population at large. The nail that sticks out gets the hammer, as the saying goes. 

But what does this have to do with Jamil? Well, the fact is that his role, as Kalim’s servant, comes with certain social expectations. 

Jamil: Kalim’s parents were always better than my parents. That’s why… Kalim should be better than me, too. That’s why, I could never surpass Kalim when it comes to studying, exercise, and even playing— (4-36)

The role of a servant is that of support. The Master leads while they provide the conditions and the means to do that. That is precisely the position that the Viper family is supposed to take in relation to the Asim family. For a servant to surpass his master, it leads to a deeply problematic realization: that one’s status is divorced from one’s capacity. Medieval rule was often characterized by monarchs assigning themselves as God’s anointed on Earth. Their right to the throne was not ensured by their capacity or disposition or ideals, but simply by their nature. They were meant to rule, because of the social class and family they were born into. Nothing less, nothing more. It was instinctively understood that there was a great differentiation between them and the common people and that was translated in their position as those to be considered ‘elevated’. They did not mingle with the common folk, because that was beneath them. 

And unfortunately, that is a cultural inheritance that is not easily done away with. For though we might claim we left behind the days of feudalism and vassals, there is still a great divide between social classes. It merely took a different form. Lords of the castle turned into politicians, celebrities and glamorous multimillionaires. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, as Shakespeare would put it. Call it what you will, but the end result is that social divide still exists. And we can see that is the case in Twisted Wonderland as well.

Though the game tends to gloss over it in certain aspects, by having Leona’s reception by the main student body be as that of a lazy Prefect, and Malleus’s position is often eclipsed by his elusive attitude, it is constantly made clear that Kalim is someone with an important social background. We might have to be reminded that Leona is the second prince of the Afterglow Savannah, or that Malleus is the next king of the Valley of Thorns, but we aren’t offered the same discretion with Kalim’s character. He is almost always introduced as Kalim, the heir of a multimillionaire family. It is thus impossible to separate him from this title, and by extension, Jamil as well. Whether he likes it or not, as the servant of the Asims, Jamil is tethered to Kalim by being a part of his social image. No true Master can exist without servants, and no servants can be had without a Master. The two are reliant on each other, much like Kalim and Jamil are reliant on the other to define their position in life. 

Kalim is the son of a wealthy family because he has Jamil to prove his special status. Jamil is a servant of the Asim family because he has someone to serve. But whether he wants to be part of this system and have his identity be defined by this connection is out of his hands. And that’s the truly unbearable notion that Jamil has to deal with in his chapter: no matter what he does he is never in control of his own life. It’s always something that is decided for him.

This, in itself, is not coincidental I would say. You see, besides being interesting social commentary, it is also an unexpected look into the underlying themes of Disney’s Aladdin. If we were asked to describe what the movie is about, I think it’s safe to say most of us would cite “poor street-rat learns a valuable lesson about not pretending to be someone else and marries the princess” as the answer. And we would not be wrong. It’s obvious that “Be Yourself” is one of the most important lessons Disney wanted to teach to young children and this in itself is not a bad thing. But while these might be understood as genuine life advice at a young age, as adults we often tend to look more closely into the themes and motifs of the movies that shaped our childhoods. And thus I would argue that Aladdin is more than just a story about interclass romance, but rather a look into how the social class system functions as a whole. Aladdin, the main hero, is a street urchin with no money to his name. Jasmine, the heroine, is the daughter of one of the most powerful men in the land. Their romance and subsequent marriage is interpreted as a victory over a flawed and classist system, because they managed to surpass the limitations imposed upon them by society and ‘be themselves’. And though this is a heartwarming message to see performed on screen, it’s important to remember that there are more than just the protagonists in the story. Alongside them we have three more characters we must pay close attention to: the Sultan, Jafar and the Genie. 

To do a short summary:

The Sultan: Jasmine’s father and the most powerful man in the country, but rather bumbling and childishly naive. As is typical with Disney parents who are still alive by the start of the movie, he is a figure that possesses authority merely in name. Though kind and generally well disposed, he lacks any real power when it comes to the plot of the movie being tricked by both Jafar and Aladdin, as Prince Ali, and ultimately having to rely on the latter to be saved from the former. The Sultan is the quintessential look at a spoiled monarch whose rule is being facilitated by someone more competent than him, and this informs most of his character as a result. He himself might be a doting and benevolent figure, yet his reign is a prosperous one by accident not by his own making.

The Genie: The spirit who resides in the lamp that Aladdin finds in the Cave of Wonders and who becomes his ally in his quest to marry Jasmine. Perhaps one of the most memorable characters in the movie, thanks to the late William Robbins’ performance, Genie's entire quest in the movie is to achieve freedom by helping out his Master. The parallels between him and the indentured servant position are made abundantly clear by the fact that he is bound to Aladdin until the latter agrees to set him free. Genie’s role in the story is one that is important, but his position is one that mirrors Jafar: they are in the service of someone who is less than them, whether it be competence or magical ability. However, while Jafar detests his position and the Sultan, Genie becomes a father figure to the protagonist. The fact that the two exchange places (Jafar is turned into a Genie and imprisoned, Genie being set free and retaining all his powers) stems directly from how they relate to their social class. Jafar is self-serving and ambitious and Genie is altruistic and self-sacrificial. Genie thinks of the happiness of his Master, though he is still displeased by the concept itself, and for that he is rewarded, proving that putting the well-being of others above your interests is the way to happiness after all. That is, if you’re a Disney hero.

Jafar: The Grand Vizier and the second most powerful man in the land, but is a scheming backstabber that plans to take the throne for himself. As one of the most easily recognizable Disney villains, Jafar makes a strong impression through not only his design, but through his philosophy as well. He’s in spite of his high rank, still pretty much a servant, having to ensure that the rule of the Sultan is enacted accordingly. Yet, as an antagonist he makes certain that whatever he does is in his own interest as well. To say that he is ambitious would be an understatement, but what is it that he wants exactly? There is no clear answer, but the closest we can get to is that Jafar wants power. 

But wait, you might say. Didn’t Aladdin also want that? Why is only Jafar the villain, if they were both after the same thing?

That is a good question! And the answer to it is yes and no. Though indeed, both Jafar and Aladdin wanted power it was for different purposes. Aladdin wanted it for the sake of overcoming his social limitations and thus becoming a worthy candidate for Jasmine, while Jafar wanted power for power’s sake. The lesson that Aladdin learns is that he shouldn’t have attempted to do that, because it would have never worked out in the way he intended it to. Though Jasmine can bring herself down to his level, he cannot bring himself up to hers since it would disrupt the social system. One cannot rise up to a higher social standing through power alone, they need recognition as well. Which is why marrying Jasmine becomes an important plot point. Jafar, who achieved power through his scheming, still lacks the recognition, which can only be granted through marriage to a royal or someone of higher social standing. He fails to achieve it, because his rise in social ranks did not have a ‘noble’ purpose like Aladdin’s but it merely satisfied his own agenda and needs.

Jafar’s status as a villain is thus due to the fact that in Western media ‘Ambition Is Evil’ is one of the most prevalent tropes. Think of the Becky Sharps, the Slytherins, the Lucifers, the Littlefingers that populate our literature, their evil nature is more often than not tied to their necessity to rise above others. 

To reign is worth ambition though in hell; 

Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven. (Paradise Lost)

Power corrupts, and ambition corrupts absolutely. Disney characters thus often learn that it is better not to be swayed by power from their role in society for the sake of power, or they will pay the heavy price for doing so. That is why Jafar fails and Genie succeeds, because they related differently to their role in their Master’s lives. 

And that is a theme that Twisted Wonderland also touches upon in Jamil’s story. Twisted from Jafar itself it was inevitable that his story would deal with such a topic. However, what deeply impressed me was how self-aware the narrative had been in regards to it. 

Ruggie: I feel bad for you. By helping out Kalim you have burned your hands considerably. (R Card School Uniform)

Jamil: I want to avoid standing out. I can’t be satisfied with this. I cannot be too good, nor fall behind, and neither should I get satisfactory grades or fail. This is the best shortcut to success. (SR Card Lab Coat)

Jamil: I am a sworn servant to the house of Asim and thus have a duty to protect the master. (SR Card Ceremony Robes)

Azul: You are always welcome in Octavinelle should you find yourself freed from Kalim. (5-10)

The matter of Jamil’s role as Kalim’s caretaker is one that has been brought up at several points throughout the game. This is usually done with the express purpose of reinforcing his status as his servant, but also to affirm that it is indeed this very position that is preventing him from achieving his full potential. 

Azul: If you look at your grades, there are no visible gaps in your classroom lectures, practical skills and physical training. Even I have a weak point when it comes to flying… For you to not even have such an instability is frankly amazing. It is like you can tailor yourself to suit your needs. (SR Card Lab Coat)

Just as Azul remarks Jamil holds himself back on account of his need to perfectly perform a certain persona: the reliable valet. It is a character we often see in media disguised as the Hypercompetent Sidekick or Servile Snarker, who is by his very nature much more accomplished than the master, but must out of financial necessity submit himself to someone else. Or in Jamil’s case, out of filial obligation. And this is where the comparison with Jafar becomes important because while Jamil does embody Jafar’s ambition, it is not treated in the same manner as in the movie. Jamil’s motives for betraying Kamil are similar to the villain: he wants to impose himself upon others and overcome his social position. Having been raised in servitude since young he has been forced to ‘tailor himself’ to the demands and expectations placed upon him. However, because this position has been imposed upon him and it wasn’t of his own volition, Jamil comes to resemble the genie much more than he does Jafar. Which is completely intentional, I believe. But we’ll get to that soon enough. 

Taking this into consideration it is interesting to note how the resolution of Jamil’s arc differs from Jafar’s in terms of narrative. The end of Aladdin has us witness the defeat of Jafar at the hands of Aladdin, his imprisonment in the lamp and the release of the genie from his bonds of servitude. It is, of course, a typical Disney happy ending: the villain was defeated by his own hubris, while the heroes prevailed through self-sacrifice and cleverness. The main character has learned the necessary moral lesson (cynically phrased as: do not aspire to overcome your social class through hard work, but wait for recognition from your superiors) and all the characters that aided them during their journey get rewarded as well. It’s the culmination of the Disney formula that selflessness and altruism are the values that separate the heroes from villains, and by extension good from evil. Evil only seeks its own interests, while good works in the interests of others. So what about Jamil?

The end of the Scarabia arc is quite ‘Disney’ to a certain degree: the villain has been exposed, the heroes send to the other end of the ‘world’, they get their second wind, defeat him and live happily ever after. Well, not really. You see, what happens before the heroes go to defeat the antagonist is that Kalim breaks down crying due to Jamil’s betrayal and Azul remarks the following thing:

Azul: Kalim’s gentle disposition towards others is completely different from Jamil and I… No… Taking into account everything, he probably built a grudge over the years. You have been causing trouble for Jamil since you were little, after all. However, you are not in the wrong. You were born a cut above the others. You were loved by everyone around you and we were raised under such a good environment.

You were simply unaware of the greed you’ve been showing. (4-34)   

Jamil’s actions aren’t excused, because they are indeed those of a villain: plotting, backstabbing and double-crossing the heroes for his own gains. Yet, they are not simply attributed to his ‘evil’ nature, but rather explained by the environment in which he was raised and the morals that were instilled in him. Jamil is not evil, but rather merely desperate enough to resort to evil means. And that is a profusely important distinction. Though we might commit malicious acts that does not mean that we are malicious by nature, much as committing benevolent acts does not make one irreproachable. And Twisted Wonderland understands this notion: not in the sense that Jamil was right in what he did, but rather than we can understand why he felt like he was pushed to such extremes. 

Jamil’s story is one of the more complex ones, in my opinion. It speaks about an issue much deeper and much more insidious than any that have been explored so far in the game. The result is that unlike the other three previous Overblot victims, Jamil has no clear-cut solution to his problem. Even after the incident he is still in the service of the Asim family. Even if Kalim asserts that they are equals at school, he still will remain a servant everywhere else. No matter what he does he is bound to the Asim’s and more specifically to Kalim. 

I feel like this would be the note on which I should safely conclude this very long introduction, as we move further and into the real meat of this post: the analysis itself. Thus, without further ado, let’s see why this CM is such a treat from a symbolical and storytelling perspective.

The opening of Aladdin (1992) is perhaps one of my favorites due to the fact that it seeks out to reference its source material: One Thousand and One Nights. By that I mean that it utilizes a technique known as the ‘frame story’: a story which contains within it another story. In the novel the framing device is Scheherezade, the vizier’s daughter who upon learning that she will marry Sultan Shahryar and be promptly killed at dawn, devised a plan to subvert her fate. She would each night begin a tale that would leave the Sultan so enchanted that he postponed her beheading until the next day so she might finish her tale. However, upon finishing the previous story Scheherezade would continue with another one and so on and so on until she eventually managed to avoid death for one thousand and one nights. Hence the name of the collection. 

Aladdin uses a similar device in the character of the Merchant who appears at the start of the movie and introduces us, the viewers, to the world of Agrabah which is a place “where they cut off your ear if they don’t like your face” according to the original lyrics of the song. But it also includes a shot at the end of the movie which has the Genie lift up the ‘wallpaper’ and speak directly to the audience. These scenes, though easy to disregard, do reinforce the fact that the movie we’re about to see is not taking place as it happens, but rather a second-hand account of it. Much like Scheherezade attempts to avoid her decapitation, so does the Merchant at the start of the movie attempt to convince us to give the story a try, become immersed and then abruptly reminded of the fictionality of what we have just witnessed. And I don’t mean in the sense that it is a movie, but rather in the sense that even within the logic of the movie, this whole set of events has a certain fictionality to it. The fact that initial plans had the Genie and the Merchant be the same character only strengthens this notion. 

But the Scarabia CM doesn’t start with the Merchant now, does it? No, it does not. But rather it starts with the very first image of the movie itself: purple smoke against a red flaming background. Except that there is no red flaming background this time, but a calming blue shot of the dunes with what appears to be the Scarabia dorm building in the background, or even Agrabah itself. There is no smoke either but sparkling dust that emanates from a lamp half-buried into the sand. The images are clearly meant to evoke the general aesthetic of Aladdin (1992), but they can also be interpreted symbolically. 

The imagery of smoke is often one of ascension, of leaving the earthly shackles and rising higher towards the spiritual world. But it is also a rather solemn symbol as well, given that it can also be associated with the burning of corpses. Its presence in the movie is explained by the fact that this is after all a story about liberation: most obviously the Genie’s, but also the other characters. Everybody wants to be free in some form or another. The colour symbolism is also interesting to remark upon as according to Richard Vander Wende, the production designer of the original film, certain colours have different meanings within the movie. Red symbolizes heat and evil, while blue is a calm colour associated with water. The red background thus carries negative connotations, but it is eclipsed by the presence of the smoke in the foreground, that is a combination of red and blue. If we were to interpret this visual choice we could claim that the movie is trying to let us know that the story we are about to watch is one in which morally-grey protagonists overcome the forces of evil. For, even though Aladdin is our main character, he is not a pure hero by Disney standards as he is after all a thief and the lesson he has to learn is that he should not attempt to scam his way into a better social position. 

But the Scarabia CM uses a blue background instead, so this is certainly not the same message it might try to send. Rather, due to the positioning of Scarabia/Agrabah in the background, I believe that it is indeed a story about rising above, but not above the forces of evil as much as above social norms accepted as standards. The Scarabia storyline is very much centered around the notion of social positions and how they function within a system of indentured servitude, as is obvious through the way in which Jamil attempts to overcome the position of servant through schemes and planning. We most certainly encounter the thread of evil within his character, but though his methods are unsavory, his end is, I would say, understandable: freedom. 

Jamil: For me, and my family... I'll do anything for our sake!!! (4-31)

Jamil: I’m done playing servant!! I WILL BE FREE—!! (4-32)

The choice of a blue background might thus allude not necessarily to goodness as in the moral concept itself, but rather to the comfort of social norms. There is a certain stability to be had in a system that declares that all those born into wealthy families shall remain wealthy, and all those born into servant families should remain servants. To quote Aladdin: “It’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home.” (Arabian Nights) In such a system that relies on absolute conventions regarding social classes, someone like Jamil is a threat, because he questions and subverts the limitations imposed upon him. He is smarter and more capable than Kalim, yes, but because he must ensure that he does not draw negative attention upon himself, he is forced to adhere to a lifestyle that is not representative to whom he truly is. The similar shape of Scarabia and Agrabah only serves to highlight that regardless of his environment, as long as he remains a servant through his bond to the Asims, he shall never be able to change his destiny.

The lamp is the most important object in Aladdin (1992) as it is the MacGuffin that is coveted by Jafar and the prison of the all powerful entity that is Genie. The lamp in the movie has thus two connotations: power and imprisonment. The juxtaposition between the two creates an interesting image of how power changes according to one’s position in society. Though Genie’s powers are indeed great it seems that he is incapable of wishing himself free, which is I think a good analogy to the position of indentured servitude in which only a lord’s permission would be capable of restoring an individual’s freedom, even though they would be in theory capable of physically leaving their place of servitude. Their choice not to is not only a reflection of the possible corporal punishment they would endure if captured, but also due to the social contract that forced them to remain in that position. As servants they would remain branded forever as second-class citizens at best or dangerous felons at worst. Not a fate one would ever wish upon themselves in those days. 

It is clear that besides Jafar, Jamil also bears quite a lot of similarities to Genie.

It’s like being the genie of the lamp, calling me anytime and anywhere. (Jamil Chat 1)

As I mentioned above, Disney draws an interesting parallel between Jafar and Genie when it comes to relating towards their ‘superiors’: Jafar despises the Sultan and wishes to disposes of him, while Genie forms a parental bond with Aladdin and even reluctantly agrees to remaining bound to the lamp if it means his ward’s happiness. The fact that they exchange positions at the end (Jafar being imprisoned in the lamp, Genie being freed) is the result of the moral choices they make. Genie’s altruism is what allows him to be freed, while Jafar’s ambition is what traps him as thus is the rule of Western philosophy: the needs of the others are superior to our own. 

But ignoring Jamil’s OB for now, we realize that he does not truly commit to either one of those positions. He is resentful of his enslavement at the hands of the Asims, but I believe he does not genuinely wish harm upon Kalim himself, but rather towards the system as a whole, which is represented by him. This is an idea we’ll return to eventually, but it is important to mention it in advance, because it paints a better picture of what Jamil’s true intentions were during his attempt to take over Scarabia. It was not power for power’s sake as in the case of Jafar, but rather him trying to assert control over an aspect of his life, which in this case would be his position within the dorm. Jamil isn’t truly interested in the position of Prefect as is, but in what it symbolizes: freedom. As Aladdin shows power is not synonymous to freedom, but rather something adjacent to it. Even a most powerful creature like Genie is bound to the whims and wishes of a mere mortal, much like Jamil is bound to those of Kalim. To overthrow him as Prefect would mean to assert himself as independent of social bonds by having no one be superior to him anymore. Yet, because he does it through immoral means he fails and thus keeps in line with the moral of the movie: you cannot advance socially without the approval of your superiors.

The moon is one of the most referenced symbols in literature due to the fact that it innately appeals to writers and poets alike. It is fundamentally female in nature, due to its connection to the Roman Diana and the Greek Artemis, and associated as a result either with the concept lunacy, to which it lent its name, as well as with witchcraft, solitude, power and change. The moon’s circular shape as observed from Earth is also associated with the notion of eternity and cyclicity, which is perhaps the symbol that is of most interest to us when it comes to Western interpretation, as in Japanese culture the moon can represent a person’s core, unaffected by others. It is more succinctly put a representation of the Self, that which is considered quintessential to one’s identity. And it is this imagery which the CM tends to gravitate towards I would argue.

The moon is a particularly prominent symbol in Aladdin (1992) as it symbolizes the notion of change and new beginnings. Aladdin and Jasmine’s flight during the song sequence “A Whole New World” uses the moon as a backdrop and confers upon it a romantic aura of serenity and calmness, which is referenced towards the end of the movie wherein they fly towards it upon their success at convincing Jasmine’s father to allow their marriage. The moon in this regard is symbolic of unity and fortune, synonymous with true love’s conquest over everything else. But there is also a comedic twist to it as seen in the very last scene of the movie wherein Genie’s face is projected upon it. It is thus primarily a positive symbol associated with goodness.

The CM however is closer in meaning to the notion of the moon as the human core observed in solitude. Unlike the moon in Aladdin, whose shadows are barely perceptible and thus looks more natural, the moon here is overtly engulfed by darkness, with the sole space of light providing a sharp contrast in tone. It is not a symbol of unity, but rather of division creating barriers and boundaries between the characters who are positioned at opposite ends of the circle. Kalim, as a superior in terms of social and financial power, is situated upon the side that shines brighter to symbolize his role as the face of the dorm. He is the Prefect, the one that represents his dorm and the ideals that it is founded upon. Yet, upon further inspection we notice that the word ‘Scarabia’ appears on Jamil’s side, which is not only the dark part, but also takes more space. It is an unequal division but so is much of their life: Jamil remains in Kalim’s shadow, though it is only due to the former’s help that the latter manages to shine as a Prefect. This is confirmed by the positioning of their dorm’s name on Jamil’s side, as he is in fact the one that more overtly exhibits the ideals of careful planning that the Sorcerer of the Hot Lands is known for.  

Kalim’s face change is interesting if we consider the notion of the moon representing the human core on which one’s identity is formed, because it confirms that he is indeed as cheerful as he appears to be. His cheerful disposition though likened to the image of the sun, lacks the usual masculine and aggressive features associated with it in Western culture, as he tends towards more feminine ideals of pacifism and serenity, which are associated with the moon. Moreover, as it has been pointed out to me, if one is to consider the Japanese cultural context we would be able to observe that the feminine characteristics of the sun are in perfect accordance with the female interpretation of the star in the form of Amaterasu. His body language is relaxed and openly friendly and there’s nothing about him that truly stands out in terms of contradictions. 

Jamil on the other hand presents an entirely different picture. His stance is guarded, that much is certain, and his expression is to be considered at best wooden. Unlike Kalim’s dynamic movement, he remains static and unchanging, sporting merely a look of resigned indulgence towards Kalim, and it seems to a certain extent as if he asserts control over his own reaction towards it. In other words, it is not in the slightest bit natural. Moreover, what does attract our attention is not his expression as in the case of Kalim, but rather the shine of the metal of his choker. 

Unlike Kalim which is bathed in light in warmth, Jamil is surrounded by dark and shadows, with the sole point of light being the metal around his neck. This is different from Kalim whose accessories do not stand out in the same vein. The reason is that on a fundamental level they represent entirely different notions. In Kalim’s case it is a representation of his wealth and power, with the lack of focus on them hinting perhaps to the fact that he is at ease with his position as the heir of a multimillionaire family. It does not stand out because that is his right by birth and thus just a natural part of himself. Jamil’s core, on the other hand, reveals that his identity is very much forged by the Viper’s bond to the Asims. 

Jamil: I’ve been looking after Kalim ever since we were kids. That’s the Viper family’s duty. (Jamil R School Uniform Lines)

In Kalim’s case the accessories are just that: accessories. But in Jamil’s case they are a mark of servitude. They stand out among the darkness because this is how he perceives his own persona: dominated by the image of the loyal servant who is socially inferior to his master. Even the metal itself seems to have a silver tint, rather than gold, symbolizing that even though he and Kalim should be equal (both sporting gold chokers) reality is very much different, since he is forced to be subservient even though it goes against his instincts.

It is interesting to note that in Aladdin (1992) the notion of space and how it relates to characters plays a significant part. Agrabah, the setting of the movie, is a place of social division in which those of lower status live in poverty, financial distress and crowded spaces, whereas those of a higher status enjoy the luxury and the vast space provided by the palace. Compare the streets of Agrabah during “One Jump Ahead” which are constantly filled with people, objects and animals and project an image of recurring chaos, to the quiet serenity of the palace where the Sultan and Jasmine live. The contrast is staggering. But more than that it is indicative how much social class can make a difference. 

It is also interesting to note that with the exception of the Sultan, all characters have at some point transversed these two spaces: Jafar and Aladdin move between the city, the palace and the desert, Jasmine sneaks into the city in order to experience real life and the Genie has access to a fourth space in the form of the lamp. However, the Sultan always remains within the palace walls. The reason for that is rather obvious: it is the seat of power and to leave it would be to admit to inferiority in regards to his position. Unlike the other characters that long for something more, the Sultan is content in his role as representative of financial and social power. He does not need to switch locations, because his static nature is what allows the other characters to progress in their journey. 

The CM builts on this premise as well, by showing us the very different worldviews that Kalim and Jamil experience. Fulfilling the role of Sultan, Kalim is surrounded by luxury and comfort, as he rests in his room at the dorm. The colours are warm and calming, as the light very gently illuminates the room in order to cause an impression of coziness, which fits perfectly with his own character. Kalim’s personality is at its core a ‘refreshing’ one, orientated towards creating harmony and a content attitude. All his life was spent among servants that catered to his every whim and desire, so his sense of independence was greatly stifled. If we may put in blunt terms, he’s sleeping through life, relying entirely on his social position due not necessarily to laziness, but rather naivety. Because he never had to leave the palace walls, he never had to develop any sense of autonomy and thus has managed to remain faithful to his social role. He does not experience a sensation of contradiction between who he is and who he is regarded as because he lives in accordance to the characteristics deemed appropriate for him as a member of the elite.

The same cannot be said for Jamil. Juxtaposed with Kalim’s scene we see Jamil walking through the desert as the harsh light shines upon him. There is no comfort to be found in this particular shot. Whereas Kalim is sleeping peacefully and at ease, unaware of the difficulties of life, Jamil is wide awake. Unlike the former, the latter’s life is dictated by restrictions and hardships, all which he has to endure without showing displeasure as befitting his social role. He does not have the privilege of laying around not only due to the demands that are made of him, but also due to his innate desire for change. The desert can thus very easily symbolize the unfairness which he has to endure as a servant, but it can also symbolize his ambition and the effort he is willing to spend on making sure he can change his social status. Unlike Kalim, who rests in the palace, Jamil seeks to escape its confines even if it means enduring hardship. For you see, though the palace is indeed a place of stability, it is also a prison.

The similarities between Agrabah’s palace and the Scarabia dorm building are most certainly intentional. They’re places of unimaginable wealth that function as status symbols for the people that control them. Agrabah is, as we mentioned before, heavily divided, but it is paradoxically the slums that offer more freedom than the palace itself. Looking back at the movie we notice that the biggest symbol we can associate with Jasmine is the bird in the cage yearning to be free. The notion, moreover, is also supported by imagery such as setting the birds free after a talk with her father and, as it had also been pointed out by other critics, that the canopy of her bed is designed to resemble a birdcage. As a princess Jasmine is bound by social roles and conventions to adhere to the expectations placed upon her, and her journey in the movie is to assert herself as an autonomous person before her father by insisting that she be allowed to make her own choices. The problem however lies with the word ‘allow’ itself which once again contradicts her ideals. The notion of allowing someone to do what they want situates the power in the hands of the person who is recognized as the social superior. In the case of Jasmine, it is her father, the Sultan. In the case of Jamil, it is the Asims. 

The Scarabia dorm as a symbol of the prison is an obvious one due to the fact that it served as such for Grim and Yuu during episode 4. But that is what we might refer to as physical confinement, which at its core is not compatible with the message of the CM and even of the movie. Because the CM does not focus on Grim and Yuu, but on Jamil and Kalim, so this is not a case of a physical prison, but rather a mental one I would argue.

In several respects, the prison must be an exhaustive disciplinary apparatus: it must assume responsibility for all aspects of the everyday individual, his physical training, his aptitude to work, his conduct, his moral attitude, his state of mind; the prison, much more a than the school, the or the army, which always involved workshop certain specialization, is 'omni-disciplinary'. Moreover, the prison has neither exterior nor gap; it cannot be interrupted, except when its task is totally completed; its action on the individual must be uninterrupted: an unceasing discipline. Lastly, it gives almost total power over the prisoners; it has its internal mechanisms of repression and punishment: a despotic discipline. It carries to their greatest intensity all the procedures to be found in the other disciplinary mechanisms. (Foucault 235-236)

Foucault’s Discipline and Punishment: The Birth of the Prison is an interesting look into the social and theoretical mechanisms employed by prisons in order to ‘reform’ convicts. The end goal of these institutions is to reintegrate the individual into society and to achieve such a thing it is not necessary just to punish and torment them, but to discipline them. By this Foucault understood as allowing one’s life to be entirely dictated by “a disciplinary apparatus” decided by those within power. It’s main aim was to restructure one into a “docile body” beneficial for the economical and political necessities of that specific age, which in many cases referred to the idea of one being content to pursue the interests of the state and those that governed it. 

I bring this up because I can see the same ideas reflected in Jamil’s character arc as well. Foucault mentions that the prison is a space in which discipline is uninterrupted and unceasing. In other words it is a space which constantly reinforces the ideals that are considered desirable, and we can see that Scarabia unintentionally functions the same way. It is a space in which Jamil is cast as inferior to Kalim once again, trapped into the position of Vice Prefect, despite the fact that he embodies the ideals of the dorm more than he does. Though this is a different place, his routine has remained unchanged: he must still cater to Kalim’s wishes and perform the role of the servant, despite the fact that in theory the two of them should be equal now.

Scarabia Student B: Our family standing and status shouldn’t matter inside the school! We’re all equal here, right? (4-18)

Under normal circumstances, Night Raven College is supposed to be a neutral space in terms of social standing. Leona and Malleus are recognized as princes, but are not given any particular attention in terms of political and social superiority, and rather scrutinized due to their peculiar attitudes and personalities. They are, in theory, equal to the other students at the academy and the same should apply to the relationship between Kalim and Jamil as well. But things are not so.

During episode 4 we find an interesting detail about Scarabia: it seems that the building had been renovated once Kalim was accepted into the dorm. This is not usually a detail that would require any particular attention, but it reveals something about the environment in which Jamil resides: it is representative of the Asims. The ostentatiousness and extravagance are the result of their direct influence and thus molded by their own desires. By remodeling the building they have reforged it into an image of their social position and installed a member of its own family as leader. Its neutrality has been compromised and so has Jamil’s attempted escape. Attending Night Raven College is not merely a case of attending one of the best magic schools in the world, but also one of asserting one’s independence. Jamil was given the chance to finally break free from the system that has had him ensnared for all his life, only to have his hopes be dashed by being reminded that in the end the influence of his masters is much greater than he could have anticipated. Thus, Scarabia was turned into a space of imprisonment which perfectly replicates the dynamics of the Asim household and thus denies Jamil any possible form of freedom. Much like Genie and Jafar at the end of the movie, he is unable to escape his prison without the approval of his superiors.

Jamil is aware, however, that he is not and will most likely not ever be able to receive such freedom from the Asims. And consciously he knows he cannot attempt to break free on his own either. 

Jamil: My family, the Viper Household, has been serving the Asim Family since olden times. A retainer drawing his sword against his master is unforgivable. Even more so, if Kalim’s father found out about it, my family will end up being punished. I’m sorry, but I cannot put my family in danger just because of a selfish request. (4-18)

Jamil’s sense of filial duty is one of the driving forces behind his character. It’s not only that he himself wants to be free, but wants his family to be released from their bonds as well. Because the system in which he has been raised permits a master to punish an entire family for the disobedience of one member it becomes understandable why Jamil is such a guarded person. It is not merely his own person that is at stake, but the lives of those he cares about also. It is a thought that has weighed heavily upon his head since young childhood most likely, once he became aware of how exactly the social system set in place works. To go against it would not be an act of brave rebellion, but that of sentencing others to punishment to fulfill his own ambitions. Which for a character twisted from Jafar seems contradictory. Yet we must remember that he has certain traits of Genie as well. Unlike him whose loyalty lies to his Master, Aladdin, Jamil’s loyalty lies to his family. He’s only willing to endure things as they are now due to the fact that rebelling would mean having them suffer the consequences. And Jamil is aware of that.

Yet, it is also necessary to ask the following question: Why does he end up rebelling in the end?

The most obvious answer: accumulated frustration. 

As I stated before, Jamil does not hate Kalim. However, it is also obvious that his Overblot had very much to do with the fact that he had become increasingly irked by the latter’s attitude to life. His critique of Kalim’s character, though harsh, was entirely accurate. Kalim is indeed spoiled and naive to an almost ridiculous degree, even though it is not entirely due to his own fault. Moreover, it is not necessarily these particular traits that Jamil takes issue with, but rather his predilection towards inaction. To briefly reference a previously discussed shot: though Kalim is content in his passivity, Jamil cannot abide by the current system. He desires change, but he knows he is in no position to enact it and is thus frustrated that the one who would be able to perform this task is oblivious to the struggles of those around him. Jamil does not hate Kalim as a person, but rather that which he represents: the power of the system itself. As the CM shows Kalim is able to move forwards, uncaring of limits and boundaries, but uninterested in change (initially) while Jamil, though he desires to advance, is stuck in one spot. 

The brief image of Kalim reflected in the surface of running water captures this concept perfectly. Jamil is not looking at Kalim as he is, but rather as perceives him to be: an unclear image. Water has the same reflective properties of mirrors, but due to their unstable state they cannot portray accurate images. Jamil attributes maliciousness to Kalim’s denseness as not only a means of explaining his actions, but as a way to excuse his own eventual betrayal of him. If Jamil considers Kalim as a representative of the system, he feels justified in his actions and thus more willing to go through with them, since he can project his frustrations upon a material, solid person rather than an abstract entity. Kalim is in a sense a scapegoat for Jamil’s anger.

The snake is laden with multiple meanings being both a manifestation of evil (Satan taking the form of a serpent to trick Eve into sinning) as well as a symbol of rebirth and transformation. In keeping with the colour motif of the movie the serpent staff that Jafar carries with him has eyes which glow red when he’s using it to hypnotize the Sultan to indicate his evil influence upon him. In the CM we have the image of a red snake coiling around Jamil’s feet which is the physical manifestation of all his feelings of dissatisfaction regarding his position as a servant finally bursting apart. But before he is overtaken by those negative feelings we notice interestingly enough that the snake takes the form of an ouroboros: a snake which eats its own tail. A symbol of eternity.

Jamil: I’ve been raised as a retainer to serve his family, so I really can’t understand. A master is a master and a servant will be a servant. Most probably for as long as we’re alive. (4-26)

When discussing Jamil’s character we must admit to a certain cyclicity. Not one he engages in, but rather one in which he is stuck. He is the son of a family that has served the Asims for generations, creating a chain of servants and masters that is currently supposed to be replicated by him and Kalim. His sense of autonomy is constantly denied due to the intervention of forces beyond his control. Moreover, in chapter 4 itself his plans get constantly ruined by either Grim or the Octavinelle Trio, creating a sense that the universe itself has aligned itself in opposition to him. 

But there is more to it still. Jamil is a highly ambitious person, who desires to establish himself through his talent and skill, thus giving him the perfect reason to despise a system that requires some individuals to be subservient to others for arbitrary reasons. However, by his own admission he cannot envision a life outside the system either. This is in essence the insidiousness of such phenomena: they entrap not only the person physically but psychologically as well. Once one’s identity is dependent upon a certain ideology and philosophy of life it is extremely difficult to extract themselves from that mindset. Much like Foucault said, once the mind is disciplined and the individual turns into a ‘docile body’ they become reliant on that particular system in order to form a coherent identity. 

Though Kalim can step outside the bounds and limits imposed upon him, by virtue of his social position, Jamil is only allowed to operate within those boundaries. It is precisely why he stops advancing further once he reaches the end of the round court. Though physically he should be able to overcome such obstacles, mentally he is unable to not. Not as long as he remains under the governance of the Asim family, at the very least. It is obvious however that he cannot simply rise against them, and this realization is what causes him to hit the limit in terms of patience. He finally realizes that he has been robbed of his independence even before he was born.

Jamil: But if I have, it’s better you don’t know what I really think of you. If everything goes to plan… I’ll finally be free. (Scarabia CM)

Sight is an important theme to Jamil’s character as he, much more than any other character perhaps, actively attempts to manipulate the perception of others about him. He is not what he appears as Azul remarks in many of their interactions, and that is because to Jamil allowing himself to be genuine would come with a price: revealing his true feelings regarding his social position. And that, as previously stated, is not something he can afford.

Eyes are often called the ‘windows of the soul’ in the sense that they reflect a person’s true intentions and thoughts. Moreover, the notion of sight is one that literary authors often like to explore in their works. Out of all the senses, sight seems to be considered the most unreliable, since it often fails to discern that which exists in obscurity. The notion is explored in Aladdin (1992) too to a certain degree. Everybody sees only what they desire to see, and because the images they form are so contradictory that it creates misunderstandings and unnecessary conflict. Jafar’s power of hypnotism is even more interesting in this context since by definition it allows him to influence a person’s perception of reality and thus a part of their identity and how they relate to their environment. 

The end of the CM hints towards this notion as well, as we see that the Overblot first manifests itself is his eyes, obscuring his sight from the reality around him. He’s chosen to throw himself into the negative emotions that have finally overtaken him, and as a result given him the power to recreate reality to his discretion. We see the parallel with Genie and Jafar in his Unique Magic as well, since though he possesses one of the most potent powers, he’s still considered an inferior. Jamil’s Overblot is thus one formed by the depressing realization that for as long as he exists within the system, he’ll be forced to endure the continuous cycle of subservience forced upon him since before his birth. His transformation moreover is the result of a desperate yearning for freedom which has driven him to extreme actions. The appearance of the red eyes behind him symbolize more than the eyes of the serpent staff. They are a stark reminder that he is consumed entirely by the realization of his own powerlessness and over-dependence upon the Asims, even if it’s against his desire. 

To note is also the fact that out of all the Overblot victims, Jamil’s expression is the only one that is peaceful. If we take a look at the Heartslaybyul, Savanaclaw and Octavinelle CMs all of the Prefects display either rage or shock during their transformations. It is clear that this process is a horrific one, which explains their reactions, yet strangely enough Jamil seems serene and accepting as if he has come to terms with this course of action. Unlike the Overblot victims before him, his transformation is liberating to a certain degree, because it allows him to finally achieve his goal: get rid of Kalim and instate himself as leader of the dorm. Not because he covets the position itself, but rather because through it he manages to finally become free and unburdened by his social position. In a way, the dark appeal of Overbloting is just that: unlimited power, and for a character like Jamil, who very much lacks this, it is especially hypnotic. 

Out of all the Overblots so far, I consider Jamil’s the most tragic because in the end there seems to be no obvious escape for him, perhaps except in the case of Kalim setting him free. But this is still an event that will happen in a few years at best. It does not answer his current need for autonomy. Yet, despite this we see in chapter 5 that there is indeed some improvement. Though he has refused Kalim’s offer of being friends, he nevertheless has begun acting more like his equal within school grounds and their relationship overall seems less hostile on his end. The fact that much of the action of chapter 5 takes place in Ramshackle Dorm is also an important thing to note as it manages to create a neutral space, untainted by the Asim’s interference. In Vil’s system of meritocracy Jamil is finally able to act as himself and stop performing a role for others, thus he is finally able to assert a degree of autonomy over his own person, which he was not capable of doing before.

Coming now to the ends of this post I think it goes without saying that in terms of narrative cinematography the Scarabia CM is currently unmatched. Though short it manages to give a perfect summary of the themes explored in episode 4, the relationship between Kalim and Jamil and a brief but insightful look into the latter’s psychology and reasons for Overbloting. 

So, there’s really nothing else to do but thank Yana for giving us such a wonderful CM for what I consider the best dorm and best boys in the whole game.  

Additional Links

Indentured Servitude: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt--B1Y-u6Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ti7Kbd6gSIo

Twisted Wonderland, Episode 4: https://kanadesmusingsblog.wordpress.com/2020/06/01/masterpost-twisted-wonderland-episode-4-translations/

Jamil Chats, Personal Stories: https://twisted-wonderland.fandom.com/wiki/Jamil_Viper/Personal_Story

https://twisted-wonderland.fandom.com/wiki/Jamil_Viper/Chat

Scarabia CM: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVSx_BvTlmQ

Aladdin (1992) commentary: https://filmschoolrejects.com/38-things-we-learned-from-the-aladdin-commentary-fd9f1d8573b3/

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

The peeps over in the Twisted Writings discord know this has been brewing for a while, but I’ve finally managed to sit down, write and edit this monster. It bears witness to the fact that I adore Scarabia more it is healthy (lol). 

Also wanted to thank fellow Scarabia stan buddy @chillableu​ for proofreading and brainroting with me about these boys. You’ve been such a great help and I’m so thankful to you!  ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

All the translation sources have been linked in the last section of the commentary.

[mariesocuniverse]

Relationships: NCT DREAM

Look for Mark and Haechan: here

RenMae

Okay RenMae is one of the top if not the #1 among NCT

fans are like almost 100% sure they’re soulmates

Like there was no awkward small talk when they first met they just talked and ended up each other’s best friend

You would think they’d be childhood friends or at least friends before they became trainees with the way they interact even though they met at SM

she did confess to him before debut that she had a crush on him but he thought she was joking and now none of them talk about of that

Whenever she has a hard time sleeping and wants to sleep with someone, the first option is renjun

she also steals his clothes a lot and renjun’s pretty sure half the clothes in Mae’s closet belong to him

he just stopped fighting her about it because of how stubborn she was and let her do what she wanted

there was this one time he ran out of shirts to wear so he just walked to Mae’s closet and took one out

there was also this one time Renjun was in China and Jaemin posted a pic of Mae taking a nap with Renjun’s sweater on saying that she missed him so much so she wore his sweater

yeaaaaah nct twt broke that day and Renjun’s phone was blowing up with notifications

they dressed as peter pan and tinkerbell for halloween and have each other as that for each other’s contact name uwu

okay enough with the corny stuff

just because they’re close doesnt mean they’ll hold back on each other when it comes to teasing each other

like you wouldnt want to get in their crossfire unless you want them to turn their attention on you instead

MaeNo

you would think he’s older than her because of how protective he is of her

He has eyes like a damn hawk when they’re going somewhere

whenever they’re doing schedules you can see Jeno holding her hand as they make their way through all the crowd and glancing around to see if anyone has any bad intentions towards her

If it weren’t for his status as an idol you would think he was a bodyguard and he would beat up someone for Mae’s sake

whenever they record Jeno always waits for her to finish so they can go home together no matter how late at night it is

there was this one time sasaengs kept calling her phone during a live so he just grabbed her phone and turned it off and threw it too the side without saying a word

Second person Mae goes to when she has nightmares

they’re also have a really playful relationship

like there was this one time she wasn’t paying attention to him so he just lifted her and put her over his shoulder like a potato sack even though there was staff watching them Mae has tried and failed to do the same to jeno

You know how jeno says he likes being called no jam bc of how it makes him feel less burdened? Yeah she always throws him under the bus when it comes to variety shows

she has a samoyed plush on her bed when she bought when she went shopping with him bc it reminded her of jeno

Sometimes she hugs the plush instead of jeno just to annoy him lol

“I’m right here you know” “well the plushie is more huggable for you information”

Yes he did tackle her after that comment

MaeMin

okay this man right here

you know how he melts at everything jisung does? yeah the same goes for Mae

only that she openly accepts his affection and lets him cling to her whenever he wants like his personal teddy bear

you know how at fansigns idols sometimes get gifted cute headbands and plushies? he openly yelled “i love you!” to her when he saw her with a cat ear headband surrounded by plushies

she’s also like really impressed by him

she never thought she’d meet someone who would do aegyo so willingly and so shamelessly

like that one episode of weekly idol where they did the ottoke song and jaemin did a duet with everyone? yeah she couldn’t believe someone like him existed

he basically acts as her parent if none of the 127 members aren’t near them

Whenever they’re on reality shows and the prize is food he always put someone on her plate regardless of whether she lost or not

third person mae goes to when she has nightmares

would not leave his side for a week when he was put on hiatus and couldnt perform with the rest of the dreamies

she didnt want him to feel lonely while everyone else went to promote without him :(

All in all, they’re very affectionate and if they’re together you’ll have to pry jaemin’s hands off her

ChenMae

Mae’s child #1

he got lost in the company building and was too shy to ask the staff so mae approached him and brought him to wear he needed to be

accidentally called her hyung once when he was still learning korean but it ended up sticking so now he and jisung call her hyung instead of noona

When he first joined she helped him adjust with her broken Chinese and now they help each other with the language

one time she visited his house for dinner and his mom made her eat a lot of food because of how skinny she was chenle didnt stop her bc she needs sustenance >:(

wants to give her a personal tour of Shanghai when they’re given enough time for vacation

you know how chenle gave 00line watches when they became adults? he had to fight mae to get her to keep it bc she didnt want him spending money on her

legit he tried to buy her stuff but the only thing she accepted was the watch and this cute charm bracelet that says NCT on it

he put one of his photocards in her phone case (the WGU one with him by the water) and she hasn’t removed it since

he’s really smug abt it and brags to the others about it jisung retaliated by putting his photocard too so now she as to make both of them visible

fights jisung for favorite child position and he wins 50% of the time even though she says she doesnt have one

MaeSung

Mae’s child #2

took one look at him and decided to protect him

she’s used to other people taking care of her so it was nice to take care of someone else for once

i said he also calls Mae hyung but it’s also because he forgets that she’s a girl?

sometimes he hears someone call Mae ‘noona’ and he just gets whiplash because he got reminded that his “hyung” is really a girl put in a boy group

they were honestly really awkward when they first met because Jisung didn’t know how to react to a girl joining the group and kinda avoided her until she cornered him

calls him a tree whenever he teases her about her height

mae when jisung tease/pranks her: i’ve fed and raised you and this is the treatment i get?!?

jisung: you’re only two years older than me….

he gets pouty when Mae doesn’t pay attention to him

theres this one video of Mae talking to another member during Resonance filming and you just see him pouting in the background before walking to her and giving her a back hug

definitely uses his status as a maknae to his advantage

she’s not even subtle about it she’ll buy or cook food for him or yield whenever he loses a game

whenever she’s not around he always brags that he’s her favorite nct member haechan and renjun get so salty abt it lmao

[scandeniall]

falling in love

Pairing: sakusa x reader

Warnings: none for once ??? Usual college/aged up

A/n: Yeah it’s almost 3am and I just soewed this out. Idk if it even makes sense but I wanna be in luv with him lol. Also; the references to no limit to you (bc even months later it’s still top 3 one of my fav things I’ve ever written)

Falling in love with sakusa is slow and steady. Its weeks of being an acquaintance and friend of a friend. You were friendly enough, considerate of his space and that he wasn’t the most outgoing guy in the world. Paying attention when he made his way into the conversation as you all sat at a group dinner. It’s the not shoving your social media in his face unlike other people trying to get a highly sought after athlete to follow them.

It’s months of getting to know one another as friends ignoring the tiniest spark whenever you two would meet up for lunch. So tiny, it could’ve been a hallucination. Getting his number one night as the two of you found yourselves outside of a party (one he’d been forced to go to and wanted nothing more than to leave), the rest of your friends having the time of their lives on the dance floor. At that point he’d watched you and got aquatinted enough to know that you were relatively genuine. He’d detected no ulterior motive. Late night texts were his thing. After a busy day of classes and practice, where he’d remembered you’d texted a joke the day before. He’d shoot a quick apology for his poor conversation and offer his own meme as consolidation.

It was just over a year of knowing one another that it’s the first time as friends he felt nervous to hang out with you and couldn’t exactly pinpoint why. It wasn’t a date by any means, just a mutual friend’s birthday dinner. He’d offered to pick you up as an apology for his horrible texting one week in particular citing that it was on the way. It was the first time you’d ridden in a car just the two of you and the way you offered a breathless greeting and apology for taking so long to come out (thus putting you two behind schedule, something that had garnered the tiniest bit of annoyance) had his own breath caught in his throat. He’s not even sure he uttered any real words when you’d complimented him.

It was at the end of the night, seeing you delirious with exhaustion yet as happy as ever, finally having a break from the reality of classes that his crush might’ve started. Your insistence that he texted you when he made it back home safe and the fact that you even stayed up to make sure he did stirred something inside of him.

It was something he’d pushed down. ‘It was only because of the atmosphere’ is what he tried telling himself. Yet he couldn’t shake the way he actually enjoyed hanging out with you in a way that was different from hanging out with Komori or his teammates out of obligation. At some point the two of you began studying together and that unveiled a new layer of yourselves to one another.

You learned that he needed nearly complete silence to study and he had to force himself to not focus on the tiniest muffle coming from your earbuds. He learned that when you began to stress to got extremely fidgety and would have to shoot you a look whenever you clicked your pen one too many times. Sometimes you’d have to break from the libraries harsh fluorescent lighting because he worked best there on the quiet floor. The compromises you made as friends in even school were because there was something oddly comforting about the presence of one another when studying. For you, it was how studying with him actually forced you to be productive and not get distracted like you’d do with your own friends. For him, it was the sheer comfort of having someone there, someone who didn’t try and talk with him and ultimately let him be.

It was early into your third year of college when he finally asked you out. At this point you’d been friends for nearly two years and sitting on feelings for at least a year. It was a simple date, takeout from a place the two of you mutually agreed on and a movie at his place. A clean spot for his first date with you. The date had been nothing special but you’d gotten to truly witness first hand just how meticulous his cleaning habits were in his own personal space.

Of course in the time you’d known him, you’d seen his cleanly nature in action. It’d manifested itself in the the mask he frequently wore and the hand sanitizer he carried often. You’d always noticed the way he glanced at public tables and admired the fact that he was never too shy to ask for a different one at a restaurant when it was obvious that it had hardly been cleaned in between guests.

His desire to immediately wash his dishes, and wipe down the table post dinner caused him to offer you an apology yet you didn’t care. The way you just wordlessly helped him confirmed that his crush was indeed real. When it got chilly, you didn’t feel obligated to cuddle up for warmth and even gratefully accepted the blanket he offered you, separate from his own.

In the nearly two years you’d known Sakusa, neither of you had ever initiated any sort of physical contact. Yes there was the occasional glance of one another’s shoulders to show the other something, but it’d always been platonic. That first date ended with the first of many hugs and a cautious look asking for permission to kiss his cheek.

That first date quickly turned into a second and third and fourth and fifth, the two of you sharing your first kiss sometime between the third and fourth. Itd been after one of his games, one your school had won. You’d waited up for him, the promise of boba on you if he won. Not that he really wanted it, but more so felt drawn to hang out with you. “We’re gonna win”

The kiss was quick and what others would have attributed to being “a moment.” It wasn’t unusual for silence to envelop the two of you. You’d been privy to many comfortable ones after learning to gauge when sakusa needed a moment to cool off from conversation. As the two of you just walked from the shop, drinks in hand and back toward campus he’d paused and asked to try something. Neither of you knew it, but inside both of your nerves were going crazy. The slightest shaking lasted the remainder of your time together unsure if the kiss really happened or if you’d just imagined it.

It’d been two months of dating exclusively before you two became an official couple. The kisses from there became more frequent but for some reason there was the hesitation to jump into anything official. So instead, the two of you spent that time getting to know one another in purely a romantic context.

At some point you’d joked asking when he was going to officially become your boyfriend.

“Do you really want me to?” Itd been a thought that had been at the front of his mind lately. He’d been trying to find the right time to ask as well, getting annoyed at the questions his teammates would ask about you in the locker room. He watched you intently analyzing your reaction to his words as your amused look turned serious than softened before you indicated that you really did. And so he asked and it became official.

It was the way that even after the honeymoon stage had ended that he still felt drawn to you. Even when you bickered about your room not being clean [enough] when he came over or about your annoying own clicking habit, neither of you wanted to bicker with anyone else. Even during your first serious argument that resulted in you admitting that you loved him his heart both dropped and swelled. He’d been the one to fuck up that time, the argument being quite heavy. That night he left with a kiss on your temple and a promise of seeing you soon.

It was the way that the days the two of you didn’t speak felt like hell to him. He was more irritable towards others and found himself stress cleaning whenever he could (something his teammates witnessed as he wiped down his locker for the 50th time in a span of 5 minutes). The usually cautious player may not have performed differently to outsiders, but when he didn’t see you in the crowd during the home game he was off.

Making up felt like a weight had lifted off his heart. He’d swallowed his pride and reached out first. Returning those 3 words for the first time had him feeling like he was on cloud nine.

From then the love between you and Kiyoomi continued to grow. It was never perfect, with the two of you always having something something to work on. But, it was you.

The day he’d revealed to you that he’d signed to MSBY post college was one of his favorite moments. The two of you had been at his hanging out when he’d given you the unmarked envelope. He’d watched your face go from confused to realization to excitement as you read aloud “we welcome your commitment to MSBY Black Jackals-.” It was one of those times he didn’t mind the camera you’d shoved in his face insisting that you were filming a once in a lifetime moment. He’d found himself smiling at the kisses your scattered over his face, ignoring what usually would’ve made him grimace in disgust for the love that overpowered it.

He’d considered the next step in your relationship for a while the question of asking you to move in with him ultimately flowing out of him at graduation. It was the start of a new journey and he wanted you by his side.

Moving in was no easy feat. Learning to live with another person and their habits got to the two of you at times but you were determined to stick it out. Once the initial struggles faded, and you’d gotten into the swing of things he was met with a different kind of love. The love of a domestic life with you. Love was never easy, and potentially being harder when you were young. Yet you’d waited it through. Slowly built a friendship and the foundation of something great. Sakusa has no intentions in proposing anytime soon, yet knew for a fact that he wanted you and you want him.

a/n: i honestly coulve kept going but uh i gotta go to bed and this shit is long nough

[ghstandpucks]

Toe Pick ~ Jeff Skinner

Hello! Sorry I have kinda been MIA, I’ve had a lot going on personally lately. This idea came to my head though and I could not pass up writing it! I just love the fact that Jeff was a figure skater lol I hope you are all doing well and staying safe and healthy! Enjoy!

Summary: Being partnered with Jeff as a pairs team caused you both to rely on each other at an early age. When life’s ‘toe picks’ come along though, your friendship was tested. And when a toe pick later on throws you back into each others lives, will it be the same?

Warnings: None, just fluff!

Master List 

The toe pick at the front of a figure skater’s blade can either create phenomenal moments in a routine, or can bring a skater down. The sharp points can do some damage, but also give the ability to fly when tapped correctly into the ice. You can often hear figure skaters talk about toe picks, and for two kids in particular, saying “toe pick” when they stumbled became a game. On and off the ice, the two were inseparable. That was, until a ‘toe pick’ in life took them away from one another.

Past ~ 2000

           Eight-year-old Jeff Skinner was working on his flying camel, waiting for his coach to get on the ice and start his lesson. It wasn’t just any lesson today though. He was scheduled to meet a new girl who just joined the skating club, one that his coach thought would pair with him perfectly for a pair skating event. Jeff wasn’t so sure about skating with a partner at first, but then after watching a senior skating pair perform, he changed his mind. The throws and different spins that could be done with a skating partner interested him, so he let his coach talk him into it.

He had been told that the new girl had just moved to the area. You were also a single skater with promising talent and a year younger than Jeff. His coach had watched you try out for their skating club, and asked if you would be interested in pairs skating as your showman-like style was almost uncannily the same as Jeff’s. You smiled and nodded, just excited to be accepted into the prestigious club.

           As Jeff stopped what he was doing to look at the clock on the wall, he felt someone run into his back. “Sorry! Toe pick,” a giggle came from behind him. He turned and saw a girl about his age, grinning with a missing tooth off to the side. Jeff laughed to himself.

           “It’s fine. Are you okay?” he asked. He had never seen you before, and started to think you may be who he was being partnered up with.

           “I’m fine! I’m Y/N. I just moved here,” you introduced yourself. Jeff smiled, a toothy grin that matched yours.

           “I’m Jeff. Are you skating pairs?” he asked, and you nodded.

           “I was singles, but they asked me to switch when I tried out. I don’t know who I’m partnered with though,” you admitted.

           “I think you might be my new partner…” was all Jeff was able to say before his coach skated over to the two of you.

           “Jeff, I see you’ve already met Y/N. I think you two will get along great. If you’re both warmed up, why don’t we get started with the basics,” Ms. Seale said, and the two young skaters nodded. The next hour was spent learning how to stand and skate in perfect unison, the two kids fitting each other’s speed and style flawlessly, almost as if they were meant to be paired up.

           Three years later, you and Jeff were still skating pairs and about to enter your first junior’s national competition. After taking the ice for your groups warm up, the two of you waited off to the side with your coach running back and forth to see where the order of skaters was at. “Don’t drop me,” you leaned into Jeff as you always did before a performance.

           “You trust me?” he grinned at you, holding out his pinky.

           “Always,” you smiled back, wrapping your pinky around his. Pinky promises became a thing for the two of you when you first started learning lifts. You were nervous, and Jeff promised that he would never drop you. He had always kept that promise, even going as far as breaking your fall with his own body just to keep your trust. Your coach came to get you a few minutes later, and grabbing your hand Jeff led you out onto the ice. You took silver at that competition, the names Jeff Skinner and Y/N Y/L/N becoming known in the competition circuit.

           Two years after that, when Jeff was 13 and you were 12, Jeff hurt himself while doing a double axel. The two of you had just won junior nationals and were working on senior level moves. His injury caused you to pull out of an upcoming competition, the both of you devastated. “I’m really sorry Y/N,” Jeff said one evening as the two of you were doing homework together. Being skating partners had drawn the two of you close together on and off the ice. You trusted Jeff with your life, and may have formed a small crush on him over the years.

           “It’s okay J. It’s just a toe pick in the plan. You’ll heal and we’ll be back out there before you know it,” you tried to reassure him.

           “What if I don’t though?” he asked, worried this injury could be more serious than either of you were thinking.

           “Hey, do you trust me?” you asked, holding your pinky out toward him. He grinned and this time wrapped his pinky around yours.

           “Always.”

           Unfortunately, the injury Jeff sustained took a while to heal. It also caused him to choose between hockey and figure skating. Jeff didn’t want to give up on you, but he also wanted to pursue hockey. You smiled when he told you and supported him the best you could, even though you went home that day and cried your eyes out. How were you supposed to find a new partner? You and Jeff had been skating together for five years at that point, you didn’t want to start over with someone else. You tried though, and eventually found a partner that was compatible enough to compete with. Jeff would ask you how things were going when you saw each other, and you would always lie, saying things were great when really you couldn’t stand your new partner.

           Though the two of you stayed friends for a while, you always going to Jeff’s hockey games and him coming to open skate and competitions for you, you eventually drifted apart when Jeff graduated high school. You couldn’t help but feel like when Jeff traded in his toe picks for hockey skates, he traded you in as well. A few years later you closed the door on your skating career after a particularly bad injury, and the memories were all that was left of the toothless grinning boy you had first met on the ice that one day way back when.

Present Day­

           Take the job in Buffalo they said, you muttered to yourself as once again your socks were all wet from not wearing the proper foot wear and stepping in a puddle on the way to the rink. It had been years since you skated competitively, now being 27. When you graduated high school, you went to college and earned a degree in media, sticking with sports. You mainly stuck around the figure skating circuit, also finding a job as a coach to put yourself through college. A month ago, a job was offered to you at a local news station in Buffalo as their sports reporter, and you jumped at the opportunity.

           When you arrived at the rink, you changed into your tights and leggings. Skating always destressed you, and after settling in to your new place and trying to learn the ropes of the station, you needed some time to unwind. Only a few people were skating, the rink being otherwise deserted as the weather outside wasn’t the kindest at the moment.

           Stepping out onto the ice, a relaxed smile spread across your face. You mindlessly curved on your edges, letting muscle memory take over. Ever so briefly did you let your eyes close, basking in the chill of the air and the sounds of your blades carving through the ice. A moment later though, you were pulled out of your head as your blade caught a particularly deep rivet in the ice, causing you to trip forward on your toe pick. With a squeak you were almost ashamed of leaving your mouth, you fell into the back of a stranger. “Oh my God, I am so so sorry! I caught my toe pick and…” you trailed off as the stranger turned around.

           “Toe picks can be nasty, no worries,” he smiled at you, then stopped himself. It would have been the perfect romcom meet-cute, if the two of you hadn’t recognized each other in an instant. “Y/N?” Jeff asked, not entirely believing you were this beautiful woman who just collided with him.

           “J,” you whispered, shocked as well. “What are you doing here?”

           “I play for Buffalo?” he said, smiling but unsure at the moment. You were honestly the last person he expected to see that morning. Your face went red out of embarrassment. Of course you had followed his career; you knew he was in Buffalo but in the haste of your move you forgot.

           “I knew that,” you mumbled out, and blushed at his chuckle. Why was it after all these years, you could feel your crush resurfacing the second he smiled at you?

           “I’m more curious as to why you’re here?” he asked, leaning on his hockey stick.

           “Just moved actually. I’m a sports reporter now for the local Buffalo news,” you smiled at him and Jeff grinned.

           “No shit!” he exclaimed, pulling you into a hug. You gladly wrapped your arms around him, feeling at home for once in this new city.

           A week had passed and you had talked to Jeff every day of it. What started out as a “How are you settling in?” text, turned into constant messages, a quick phone call, and even a facetime when he was on the road that weekend, with plans made for coffee the following week when he was back.

           That coffee turned into lunch, which turned into Jeff taking you around to a few places and now the two of you were at dinner, having spent the whole day together. The two of you were catching up, and easily fell into your younger selves where physical contact wasn’t a big deal because you were constantly holding hands on the ice. It was as if the years had never passed, and you realized your feelings for Jeff had never truly gone away. He would smile at you, and just like that you were seven years old again running into him your first day at the rink. “Are you working Friday night?” Jeff asked as he drove you home that evening.

           “No, I’m off actually. Why?” you asked. Jeff cleared his throat, seeming a little nervous about what he was going to say next.

           “Would you want to come to my game? I can get you a ticket,” he said, glancing at you quickly. You smiled and nodded.

           “I would love to!” you said, a little too enthusiastically but it made Jeff visibly relax. “You don’t have to get me a ticket though. I can buy one.”

           “No. It’s the first pro game of mine that you’ll be at, I’m getting you a ticket,” he stated, then added, “Don’t argue with me,” as you opened your mouth to do so.

           “Thank you,” was all you said with a giggle. Jeff smiled as you both fell back into an easy conversation.

~ ~ ~

           Friday came and you were being shown to your seat at the arena by an attendant. You thanked him and sat down, waiting for the Sabres to take the ice. Looking around, you twiddled your thumbs at being right up against the glass. What did Jeff do to get you this seat? Before you could second guess coming though, the team took the ice and you immediately found your old skating partner. A few minutes later he locked eyes with you and skated over with a big grin. He tugged on his jersey and pointed at you as you smiled back at him. You had bought a Sabres’ jersey for the occasion, Jeff spotting the 53. Nodding, you turned around slightly to show him the “Skinner” across the back. If Jeff’s grin could get any larger, it would have split his face. Seeing you there at his game, in his jersey, after all these years brought back all the feelings of being young with you; leaning on you; putting his whole trust in you. The Sabres may be his current teammates, but you would always be his first teammate; his first crush; his first love.

           The game was a tough one, the Sabres barely pulling out a win. You were so relieved when the final buzzard sounded. Jeff had asked you to meet him outside the locker room earlier that day, so you made your way there. Standing off to the side, you watched some of the guys spill out to their loved ones, smiling at how familiar it all felt. You remembered in high school when you used to wait for Jeff after his games with his parents.

           A couple minutes later you spotted the slightly curly hair of the man you had grown up with. He grinned as he spotted you, and lifted you into a big bear hug once he got to you. “Congrats J! Good game,” you said into his neck before he set you down.

           “I’m so glad you came,” he said softly, and you blushed under his gaze. “I’m glad you moved here,” he whispered.

           “Me too,” you said under your breath. Jeff was about to say something when your moment was interrupted.

           “You must be the old figure skating partner Jeff won’t shut up about,” the Sabres’ captain Jack Eichel patted Jeff’s shoulder and extended his hand to you.

           “That would be me. Hope it was positive,” you tried to hide your nerves with a joke. Jeff rolled his eyes.

           “Trust me?” he held out his pinky to you like he would when you were younger.

           “Always,” you responded automatically as Jack looked on amused.

~ ~ ~

           After that evening, you went to all of Jeff’s home games that you could. The two of you were also together all the time, practically spending every free moment with each other. Two months later you were curled up into Jeff as you watched a movie at his apartment. You weren’t together, but it was obvious to everyone around you that the feelings were there. Since you were used to being physically close to him, many thought you were already together. The both of you would awkwardly laugh those comments off.

           As the movie credits rolled, you sat up and looked at the time, realizing you should probably get home as it was almost midnight. You started to unwrap yourself from the blanket on top of you when Jeff spoke up. “Don’t go,” he whispered.

           “It’s late J,” you laughed lowly.

           “Exactly. Stay,” he smiled softly, but had a serious look in his eyes. “I hate saying goodbye to you.”

           “I’ll see you tomorrow,” you smiled, slightly confused by what he said. Jeff shook his head and sat up.

           “That’s not entirely what I meant,” he rubbed the back of his neck with one hand as you took his other hand in yours.

           “Then how did you mean it?” you asked, keeping your eyes on his. Jeff sucked in his lips, looking at you thoughtfully.

           “I’ve always felt bad for choosing hockey over you; over being your partner. I felt terrible when you got hurt and I wasn’t around to stop it from happening. When we lost touch, there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t think of reaching out to you, but didn’t cause I was worried it was too late. And now you’re here, and back in my life and I don’t want to make those same mistakes all over again,” he said. You squeezed his hand.

           “I hope you know I don’t blame you for any of that Jeff. You had to do what was best for you, and I’m so proud of you. Life just dealt us some…”

           “Toe picks?” he interjected causing you to laugh.

           “Yeah, some toe picks,” you said softly. The two of you sat in comfortable silence, letting his words sink in. “I don’t want to lose you again either,” you whispered, and Jeff sent you a smile that made your heart flutter. Slowly, you both leaned in closer to each other, your lips finally meeting. It was everything you ever thought kissing Jeff would be like, and so much more. As you separated, you both had the largest smiles on your faces. Slowly, Jeff stood up and pulled you along with him.

           “Do you trust me?” he asked, sweeping a piece of hair behind your ear. This time you knew Jeff wasn’t teasing when he said those words, he wasn’t just asking because you were worried about him dropping you, but asking because your relationship was about to dive into uncharted territory, and he knew that it would change everything. Though, then maybe it wouldn’t. Being “together” was simple because you had skated together for so long.

           Taking his hand, you nodded. “Always,” you said, meaning it with every fiber of your being. Jeff smiled that brilliant, infectious smile at you, and led you to down the hall to his room. That night you both fell asleep tangle up with each other, and completely in love with this figure skating boy turned hockey player that you had known for what felt like eternity.

[timextoxhajima]

Grounded: Level 4

Level 3 | Level 5

Member: Minho (Lee Know)

Genre: idol minho x idol trainee reader

Taglist: @jaehyvnsvalentine​​ @licorice526 @lolwhatameme @felixn-recs​​

[A P R I L 2 0 1 9]

The date was the 4th of April, 2019. It’s almost like Yeonjun knew, and that was exactly the reason why he had invited you to go watch TXT’s Inkigayo stage. 

They were used to it, being nominated for top two but never winning, even after two years. It sucks to watch them wait nervously for the results to come out, the thought ‘it won’t be us’ floating about in their heads despite those stage smiles and those strong fronts. 

You were finally pulled to your feet with your hands over your mouth when the results were finally broadcasted, and Jisung’s face gave it all away. Then, there was your ex-classmate, whose lips were hung agape, and Chan’s eyes that were filled, not with surprise but with the sheer amount of gratitude he had for the job he was finally doing after 7 years of training. 

You were here for TXT, but Yeonjun knew you were rooting for Stray Kids. 

A frown comes over your face when the desire to just break out into ugly sobs overwhelms your entire respiratory system. The camera pans, and all you see is Seungmin jumping with joy with his arms around Changbin and Minho.

The smile on his face was irreplaceable. The same way Earth’s moon could never be replaced. Not by Jupiter’s Moons, not by Saturn’s moons, nothing. It’s like the stars aligned based off their hard work and God finally said, you all deserve to reap the rewards of your efforts. 

The tears tumble over your lower lids when you see Chan cry, then Jisung cannot regain his composure, with Seungmin and Changbin following suit. But your eyes cannot leave Minho. 

He is happy. 

He is proud.

He is standing where he was born to be. 

Each scene plays out like life was running in split seconds, and you could absorb every moment of it, and yet before you know it, TXT comes back to their dressing room where you were waiting. 

It is written all across Yeonjun’s face that he’s just satisfied with himself that he didn’t invite you for nothing. But something surprising surges through you, and it motivates you to throw your arms around Yeonjun in a bid to express your gratitude.

“Whoa!” Your weight shoves him back a few steps, and his arms come around your shoulders. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Shaking your head, you can hear his racing heart beat from the adrenaline of being on stage. The other members are packing up, so you aren’t really bothered when your tears start to stain his shirt. “Just... thank you, for inviting me today.”

“Aw, come on. It’s nothing. I just had a gut feeling they’d win today, thought you would like to witness that for yourself.” 

The panic starts dripping into the warmth he’s providing you. It’s the same feeling you got when Minho had encouraged you to persist on for your performances. 

You pull away, eyes tilting upwards to meet his. 

It takes you exactly two seconds to realise that you’re more comfortable looking into his eyes than Minho’s, which is alarming. 

“But anyway,” He releases you, and the lack of physical contact sucks some disappointment out from you. “It’s time to go, unless you want to wait for Stray Kids.”

“I...” Minho has his career now. I can’t make him choose, right? It’s time to let go. It’s time to move on. It’s time to forget about him. “No, it’s fine. I can text Hyunjin later.”

“What?” There’s a gentle frown on his forehead; you already know what’s running through his head. “What about Lee-”

“I can ask Hyunjin to forward the congratulations to the whole group, it’ll be fine.”

It’s not fine. Because I know how much Hyunjin is going to hate it. 

Back in the comfort of your bed (though you would very much prefer the one you have at home), you scroll through your chats, searching for Hyunjin, and unironically noticing that your chat with Minho was almost non-existent anymore. 

You stare at the screen for so long, it blacks out, now feeding you with your own dark reflection. The light from the corridor that’s the only thing illuminating your room was a speck white in your irises, even in the reflection. 

Shutting your eyes, you let the content of the texts sink in - who was Hyunjin kidding? Who were you kidding?

Had there anything between Minho and I, it would’ve happened, right?

Now that he’s an idol, there’s nothing that could happen between the two of you. 

What’s JYP going to do if one of his newly debuted idols get into-

No. 

It’s not going to happen. Because Minho doesn’t have feelings for me the same way I had feelings for him.

I don’t need Minho anymore.

You put your phone on airplane mode and await the next day. Training, training, and more training. 

It’s not like he ever needed me anyway, right?

[J U L Y 2 0 1 9]

What the fuck am I even looking at?

Just what the fu-

What the fucking-

“y/n,” Soobin wraps his fingers around his phone despite it still being in your hold. “Can I- Can I have my phone back- Please-”

Just who does he think he is? Prancing around in that stupid white top to some deep jazz music-

He finally snatches his phone away from you, and you’re left with the rigidity of your knuckles folded and crumpled like you were still holding it. 

[Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER] Lee Know "DAWN(새벽)"

“What, cat got your tongue?” Beomgyu snickers, just missing a harsh swipe of your hand from you. 

“Cut it out,” Yeonjun comes from behind and shoves his head forward playfully into a head lock, ruffling his hair. The sight of both Yeonjun and Minho stirs the lazy, but very difficult-to-put-to-sleep creature in your heart. Though one of them was just dancing in a space in a video on the screen, it feels like both are yearning for your attention. 

Of course, you’d never admit it to anybody. Not even yourself. 

“No, I’m just... Surprised.”

Taehyun’s in a game with Kai, but he still manages that sneaky look at you above his phone. “Surprised that he’s got individual content or surprised that you still get affected by what he does?”

Kai sucks his lips between his teeth, the attempt to hide his cheeky grin futile. Soobin watches you roll your eyes and shake your head to yourself, empathising with you. 

“I’ve got an idea-” 

“I don’t think I want to hear it, Gyu-” Aggressively shaking your head, you throw him the meanest glare you can conjure from your eyeballs. 

“How about you go to JYP and surprise him? Congratulate him on his individual content?”

It piques the members’ interest. Now, even Yeonjun was giving you those eyes that said “hey, that’s not such a bad i--”

“No,” The leather sofa creaks a little when you push yourself off it, removing yourself from the dressing room where they were having rehearsals for KCON 2019. 

“Aw, come on,” Yeonjun’s groan sounds like a puppy begging to go on a walk. Ironic that it’s coming from an older boy that much taller than you, that much more respectable than you. “It’ll be fun. They’re going for KCON in LA in August and I’ll be back by then. We can bring them a basket of fruit or something.”

“I might just go with ‘or something’-”

“Let me rephrase that,” Yeonjun points to you with that mischief in his eyes, coming between you and the door of the dressing room. “We can bring them a basket of fruit, you can have a chat with Lee Know, wish them good luck on their trip to LA and we’ll be on our way. All you gotta do is order that basket and by the time we come back from KCON New York, we’ll be good to go.”

You squint at Yeonjun, slightly suspicious of how hard he’s selling you the idea, until you remember that he’s got a heart of gold, the kind that’s making you feel confused and at an absolute loss of words. 

“I’ll go with you,” He leans forward a little, hands on your shoulders and slightly shaking your frame. “I’ll ask Changbin for this favour, tell him we’ll be dropping by and keep it a surprise for Lee Know, how does that sound?”

No. I don’t want to be in the same room as you and Minho, God damn it.

Your lungs deflate and your shoulders slump, gaze avoiding his for a split second before they resign and turn back to him. 

“Yes!” Yeonjun clenches his fist and holds them before his chest, his head thrown back in triumph. “You’ve all seen it!” Suddenly acting like he was in a play, he wraps an arm around you and gestures out into the air, not engaging any of his members who were all occupied with their own phones. “On the road to redeeming your friendship with Lee Know!”

Finally releasing you, he runs his hand through his hair and struts across the room. The words reach you, despite him walking away and they still somehow sink into your bones, but you can no longer contain the whirlpool of emotions swirling around like a tornado in your gut. 

“Man, y’know how frustrating it is to watch that conversation between you and Lee Know go down? Time to set this right...”

And his voice fades out slowly, only because you can’t help but compare the likes of Minho and Yeonjun. Both boys have your heart, but one doesn’t need you, and the other’s trying to push you to the latter. 

What a fucking mess. 

After TXT leaves for the stage again, you are left to return to BigHit to continue training - you scored an A for dancing the last evaluation round, but a B for rapping and a C for vocals. 

Not a great start.

The trainee manager comes to pick you up, updates you on the progress your fellow trainees have made, but none of it gets into your head. 

Your phone’s just given you a reminder of your private Instagram’s memories, and all you can process are Minho’s face appearing over and over and over again back when you were both back-up dancers for BTS. 

First, the only thing that’s running through your mind was how precious memories are. Grains of sand that fly away in the wind or get washed away by the ocean when it comes by the shore - always existing but never always around. His little bunny teeth that shone under the light of the back-up dancer’s dressing room, and his habit of sticking a napkin to his forehead so his facial oil wouldn’t glisten with the sweat. He’s taking his time to munch on his burrito while scrolling through his Instagram, completely unaware of your mindless zooming in on his face - it’s something his members like to do now too. 

When you see a picture of yourself on his back on the last day of being BTS’ backup dancer though, that’s when the tears start to gradually covet the surface of your eyeballs. The pinches in your chest present themselves as deeper breaths when you try to control and maintain your composure. The trainees’ manager probably going to look at you weird when he sees you crying at your phone silently. 

But how can you not, when all the memories with Minho seems so far away, they feel unreal? They feel like dreams you had that were forgotten over time; they feel like cotton candy when they melt in your mouth. Sweet, then nothing. 

Maybe he’s just another chapter in your life that’s ended. He was just here to show you what you could do, and not stick around to watch you succeed at it. 

Maybe this was it. 

[A U G U S T 2 0 1 9]

“Is that the one and only Choi Yeonjun standing in JYP territory?!” Changbin’s loud voice echoes down the hallway before your sunbae can complete his request to the lady at the lobby of the building. 

“Having fun training for KCON?” Yeonjun pulls back from the counter, previously leaning on it.

“They’re with me, thanks,” Changbin leans over one of the barricades and informs the lady, who presses a button and the barricades whir open. “Tell me about it. It’s been such a busy year. How have you been? You just came back from...”

“New York.”

“Right, right. Ours is in LA so,” Changbin trails off as he presses the lift button before turning to you. “You are... Hyunjin’s classmate, right?”

“The one and only,” You extend your palm to Changbin, who takes it with some slight surprise. 

“Do your members know we’re here?” Yeonjun’s innocent question was short of being interrupted by the lift arriving. 

“Nah, you wanted it to be a surprise right?” Changbin grins at the both of you through the reflection of the lift doors. The plastic wrap of the gift basket in your hands crinkle under the pressure of your grip. 

“Man, isn’t this fun? You get to show up, unannounced, give everybody something and then make up with Lee Know!”

“Lee Know?” The name draws a frown upon Changbin’s face. He looks lost for some moments before you can imagine the lightbulb that brightens above his head. “Ah- You’re that trainee that got casted by BigHit who was in the back-up dancer’s dance crew for BTS.”

A weak smile helps you ease his guess.

“Right, right, right, right,” He nods, eyes slowly gravitating to the ground, then the words are so low, you don’t think you were supposed to hear it. “Ah... so you’re her.”

The lift doors open to a floor where you can hear the booming - though muffled - music from inside a studio, and you can hear the makings of a group of boys trapped in four walls. Changbin had barely gotten the door open when you hear Jisung yelling at someone for pinching Jeongin’s cheeks. 

“Oh!” The maknae was the first to see you coming through the door behind Changbin, and before Yeonjun. “Noona-”

“Surprise!” Yeonjun yells from behind you, raising both his arms into the air. “I hope we aren’t interrupting anything important. Changbin said today was just a more chill training day for you guys.”

Chan is the first one to greet Yeonjun. “No worries, we were just having a break.”

“This is y/n, in case you didn’t already know her. We brought something for you,” Yeonjun nods to the gift basket you almost forgot you were holding. 

“Oh! Yes, right. This- This is for you to share,” Awkwardly handing the leader the gift basket, Felix and Seungmin come by to help with the gift, thanking both you and Yeonjun at the same time. 

“You didn’t have to,” Chan watches his younger members scramble to the pot of gold. “I’m surprised you even have time to come here.”

Yeonjun grins and rubs the back of his neck with some slight exasperation. “No, we had time. It’s fine. Also, do you happen to know where-”

“Yah! I leave for 10 minutes and you guys just sto-” 

The entire’s room attention is drawn towards the second door on the far left of the studio, and Minho enters with some bottles of water with Hyunjin trailing behind him. There is a heavy, awkward silence in the air when everybody watches you lock eye contact with Minho, whose feet are slowly but surely inching forward to the crowd. 

“Hyung!” Changbin is the first to break the tension, dashing over and throwing an arm around him. “y/n and Yeonjun just dropped by to hand us a gift basket to wish us luck on our LA KCON trip.”

“You,” Hyunjin leaves the bottles of water on the floor and heads for you, pulling you into a head lock and ruffling your hair. “When were you planning on visiting?” He whispers into your head, only loud enough for you to hear. 

“I didn’t know I was expected, dipshit,” You struggle a little before you feel his grip around your neck loosen, standing straight up again to comb down your hair. 

Hyunjin crosses his arms across his chest and glances at Changbin introducing Yeonjun to Minho whilst Chan was busy handling the younger members. 

“Well, for one thing, I know nobody was expecting Yeonjun. I can’t say the same for you.”

Your hair slaps your face when you whip your head to look at Hyunjin, whose attention is now smugly stuck on Minho. 

The man did not look happy for some reason. 

[therealrosebuddies]

Slow dancing can be dangerous too

Warnings: none!

Pairings: The Mandalorian x Reader

Other drabbles: 1, 2

Description: Maybe part of a series I’ll write? I was just feeling like writing a little bit of fluff- that’s really all this is! 

The Mandalorian woke to the sound of soft music. 

It was a slow way to come out of sleep, slow and comforting. Those feelings were almost alien at this point, a peculiar sensation- but not one that he minded. The melody created a warm haze, projecting the allusion of relaxation and safety- almost like he didn’t live the life he did. Like he didn’t have to keep a constant vigil or keep his guard up. It felt perfect.

But soon, the music grew a bit too out of the ordinary for him to ignore it.

The bounty hunter groaned softly, pulling himself out of the pilot's seat. As he did so, his helm clanged against the low hanging ceiling and sent him stumbling back against the chair. Mando shook his head as he leaned away from the seat, stopping for a moment to listen.

The music was still there- it hadn’t been a dream.

In fact, the music was coming from below. If anyone knew what these sounds were, it was you. 

The Mandalorian made his way down to the cabin of the ship, pausing by the ladder to glance downward. He… He didn’t see you.

Brows furrowing under his visor, the Mandalorian took the ladder two steps at a time, leaping to the ground before he had reached the last rung. With one sweep of the cabin, he saw you weren’t anywhere to be found.

And neither was the child.

A sudden spike of pain shot through the bounty hunter’s chest and propelled him towards the door, the momentary sense of comfort forgotten. His gloved hand punched the keypad, while his other arm lay ready at his side, blaster a fingertip away. If anything had happened to either of you-

The Mandalorian stopped, almost flinching in surprise.

Framed in the soft glow of the town below and swaying with the music, stood you and the child. Well, you were bent over and hobbling, trying to stay low enough so the child could grip your fingers and still dance. It looked uncomfortable, but your open-lipped smile said otherwise.

Your bounty hunter let out an inaudible sigh of relief, leaning against the door frame. Leave it to you to look like you were suddenly missing, only to be messing around outside the ship. Sooner or later, you were going to kill him.

He watched as you swayed in your crouch, careful to not let your fingers slip out of the green fists that held them. The child’s eyes and mouth were wide, a gaping smile that let out random noises of delight, especially when you swung them. It was the way a child should have ought to have spent their time, but the Mando hadn’t been able to give that to them.

Luckily he had you. 

The Mandalorian knew he was cold at times and unable to play as much with the child as a normal parent would have. He tried his best, but sometimes his best wasn’t good enough. Especially when he had no idea what species the child was. But now that you were here, his burden felt lighter. Through your combined efforts, there was a chance that the kid would end up all right… and Mando was grateful for it. For you.

You spun the child in a circle, holding onto its tiny arms as you lifted it close, now again swaying to the music. As you turned, your eyes landed on the Mandalorian. The corners of your eyes crinkled with the force of your recognizing smile, making the bounty hunter’s palms go sweaty. 

You were beautiful.

Of course, he had known that from the moment he had met you, even when covered in sweat, dirt and little bit of blood. It had always been a fact- an unimportant one that never really seemed to register. Before, it hadn’t been important. You had hired him- you had been his client.

But now he realized that had changed. He didn’t know how or when- but it had.

His breath caught as your smile turned to a smirk, swaying closer to the ramp of the ship.

“Finally awake?” You asked, though not expecting an answer.

You leaned in time with the music, glancing down at the child as you teetered comically far, the child letting loose a scattered peal of laughter.

“Why are you out here? I didn’t know where you were.” The Mandalorian reported, trying to keep his tone cool as he walked down the ramp to meet you.

You cocked an eyebrow, unfooled by his tone. Pressing closer, you narrowed your eyes, still swaying.

“Was somebody worried?”

The Mandalorian stayed his ground on the grass, trying to maintain his impassive demeanor. Unfortunately, you had been his only crewmate for too long- you knew him too well. You smiled again, breaking eye contact and twirling in a circle around him, the kid in tow.

“Dance with me.”

“No.”

“Dance with us?” You asked again, holding the child close to your face, sticking out your lower lip.

The Mandolorian stayed silent and watched you sway backward, now standing in front of him. Your teasing expression ebbed, falling into a soft affection that felt like a punch in the gut. For a moment you stayed like that, giving him a once over that made Mando’s armor feel useless. You seemed to see straight through his stiff words, to the real feelings he was hiding.

But then the child began to squirm, arms, legs, and body wriggling. They no longer wanted to be held. You let out a betrayed breath, shoulders sagging as you realized your ally was abandoning you. Shooting a glare up at the Mandalorian, you lowered the baby to the ground.

“You did that. He’s copying you.” You bemoaned, smile gone, “You’re a horrible fun-sucker.”

The bounty hunter cocked his head at your word choice, watching as you turned your back to him. You had offered those last few words as a joke, something that had meant to feel light-hearted. He knew you hadn’t meant for him to take them seriously. But he had seen your expression as you turned around. You were honestly bothered by no longer dancing. Mando had felt the laidback air rush out of you as soon as you realized you were outnumbered. Your rare carefree attitude was gone, replaced by a cut-off, embarrassed silence. And it was his fault.

So before he could stop himself, the Mandalorian was walking towards you. 

You twitched as you heard him coming closer, obviously surprised. He watched you look over your shoulder, hair framing your jawline. Your frown wasn’t guarded anymore… it was confused. For a moment, Mando almost stopped there. Your obvious perplexion to his simply walking closer was almost enough to send him back towards the ship, safe from your knowing gaze. But he knew how you would end up if he did.

“You weren’t dancing right.”

“What?” You blurted as your eyes widened in disbelief, looking like a eopie in the headlights.

The Mandalorian steeled his nerves, taking the last few steps till he was practically toe to metal boot with you. He reached up slowly, taking your bent forearms in his hands. He wasn’t looking at your face. He couldn’t.

The music from the town below still swelled up to the small hill where you stood, just loud enough for the beat to be followed. Mando tilted his head slightly, finding the rhythm of the slow tune.

Then he stepped backward, pulling you stumbling along with him. He felt your hands scrambling against the plating of his arms, recovering from the surprise. As much as you had professed wanting to dance, you didn’t seem very prepared for it. Ironic. The thought would have made him crack a smile, if his heart hadn’t been hammering so hard.

Your dance partner guided you across the grass, steps slow and controlled, much more thought out than the twirling movements you had been performing earlier. The bounty hunter felt your hands relax against his elbows, falling into the gap in his armor. It was then that he finally risked a look at you. Though instead of a comforting smile, he found something much, much worse.

You were staring up at his helmet, eyes still uncommonly wide. The rosy complexion on your face failed to be hidden by the low lighting, drawing attention to your flushed cheeks and parted lips. His gaze lingered on your lips much longer than he should have, taking in their soft shape and curve. When he realized what he was doing, his gaze snapped back to your eyes, which were only slightly less disarming.

But then you were smiling, arms twining cautiously around the Mandalorian’s shoulders. He let you do so, a warm pit growing in his stomach as you grew closer. 

“I didn’t know you were a dancer.” You murmured, voice soft and heavy, almost fading in with the music.

“I’m not,” Mando answered, hands tentatively ghosting across your hips before finding their place.

The warmth of your body seemed to seep through the gloves, which usually would have made him nervous. But now the sensation just felt familiar. The rhythm of your breathing, the glow of your smile, and the basic form of your company was enough to put the Mandalorian at ease. The two of you swayed in tandem with the music, letting a comfortable silence fall between your steps. As you moved about the grass, the child watched, following the languid movements of your legs. It was hypnotic enough to put a baby to sleep. Which it eventually did.

“Do you think we should take him inside?” You whispered, arms shifting against his neck.

“Soon. But he might stay asleep there.” The Mandalorian offered, hating the way his stomach dropped when he thought of letting you go.

You turned back to him hazily, all surprise and guard gone. The expression you wore was almost identical to the one he had found you with before he had unwillingly ruined your fun. It was the type of gaze that would have disarmed him before, prompting him to run away. But something was different now. The Mandalorian was slipping, and at the moment- he didn’t care. The same feelings that used to send him running were now doing the opposite, tethering him tight to the spot next to you. It was a dangerous game to be skirting the edge of... but the lull of the music and your proximity made it hard to think. 

But for tonight, he decided that it would be fine- letting his guard down.

[waywardimpalawriter]

Man out of time (Marcus Moreno x Female Reader)

Man out of time

Pairing:  Marcus Moreno x Female Reader

Characters: Marcus Moreno, Missy Moreno, Anita Moreno, mentions of Miracle Guy,  

Setting: few months after the end of We can be heroes 

Rating: PG-13 for now

Warnings: few curse words, angst mostly,

 Word count: 1,610

Summary: Simple, two syllable word Dictionary.com say’s it means easy to understand, deal with, use, etc. Marcus Moreno curses its existence, wishing his katana’s could cut through with a neat slice and bring back what he’s lost.   

Notes: Written for Writer Wednesday held by the marvelous @autumnleaves1991-blog​. I’ll admit I battled with this one for a good while and with the help of @icanbeyourjedi​ decided this would be my first Marcus Moreno fic. I do hope you all enjoy and as always much love to all my doves. 

“You promised remember?” Stubborn set to her small statue, arms across with a deep glare in those normally sweet brown eyes. “What happened to that promise dad?”

Looking to his mom for help but coming up empty as she just lifts her hands and shrugs with a small roll of her eyes before turning away to head back towards the kitchen. “Thanks mom,” slight sarcastic twist to the tone. Hand resting on popped out hip studying his daughter while searching for the right words to explain. “True it’s no emergency like two months ago Missy but the mission is simple enough I’ll be back home before the weekend.”

“Take me with you then,” brow lifting in challenge remind Marcus so much of her mother the memory picking his heart.

Pushing those thoughts aside, “I can’t you have school and training,” seeing her fixing to protest he holds up a hand to stall the flow of words. “Besides it’s too dangerous, this isn’t a typical mission the Heroics would go on.”

“So they push it on you, why?” Voice rising slightly with worry and a dash of fear for her father’s safety.

Running a hand through his hair tugging the dark strands lightly in frustration. “Things are…” always searching for the right words to explain, without giving too much away and keeping Missy in the dark to protect her. “Complicated Missy I have to lead by example you know that sweetheart. Please trust me when I say this isn’t something I want to do.”

“Then why…”

Sighing Marcus steps towards his daughter crouching down so their eye level, “Because I’m the only one qualified to take the mission.” Resting a fingerless gloved hand on her slim shoulder, “Simple in and out, take out the bad guy done,” offering her, his patented half smile. “Besides you’ve got your friends now and training you’ll never notice I’m gone.”

Expressive chocolate eyes roll but the smirk is all Moreno when they lock back with her father’s. Flinging herself into his arms, wrapping her own around his neck and hugging the life’s breath from his lungs. “You’re wrong dad I’ll miss you,” trying to keep the trembling from her voice. Tears pricking the back of her eyes, nose rubbing along the leather jacket he’s wearing. “Four day’s right? No longer?”

“No longer just four days sweetheart,” pulling back to smile at his daughter catching the fear in her glassy eyes. “I promise to be safe.”

“And come home right?” She adds still clinging to her father’s shoulders. Memories of watching the alien’s wrap their mechanical arms around and pull him into the ship still very fresh in her mind. Never wanting a repeat performance of those horrible three hours.

Nodding, “Yes ma’am and I expect you to mind your abuela, do your homework and train.” Ticking off each one while giving her a smile.

“Always dad,” eyes rolling again as she lets him go, standing to his full height now. “When do you leave?”

Smiling slipping to a frown, “Once I’m packed. Intel came in this afternoon and I’ve been briefed.”

“Ah so that’s why your wear this ridiculous get up and rode in on that obnoxious two wheeled death machine,” putting her own words into the conversation, Anita Moreno rejoined her son and granddaughter leaning heavily on her cain. “Don’t you dare roll your eyes at me Marcus Moreno you aren’t too old for me to whip,” banishing her walking stick towards him affectionately.

“Mom,” wanting too but doesn’t roll his eyes at her words, heart warmed by the undercurrent of worry he picks up despite her admonishment. Knowing much like Missy, she worried about his well being and the dangers lurking around each corner for the leader of the Heroics. “Neither of you need to worry, it’s a simple mission nothing I haven’t faced before.”

Boy had he been wrong about those last few words, cursing that two syllable word with every fiber in his being while trying to adjust to these strange surroundings. Floating car honking, racing pass Marcus standing stock still in the middles of what didn’t appear be to a street.

“Hey asshole move before you get flown over,” half hanging out the window with a middle finger salute aimed his way.

Itching to use his powers on the punk Marcus shakes his head stepping back and almost tripping over the cement curb.  Mesmerized by the sheer sights surrounding him. Blinking several times thinking he’s seeing things or at the very least Miracle Guy is playing some seriously messed up trick on him.

“Lost?” Soft feminine voice questions from behind him.

Turning slowly, weary of who’s standing at his back, “You could say that.”

“Marcus Moreno?” Gasp issues from her parted lips eyes shocked wide almost like seeing a ghost. “But… but your…”

Frowning unsure of this woman with how she’s acting at seeing him. “I’m what?”

“Dead…” her words echo around him like a thick fog.

Head shaking, reaching into his jeans pocket to pull the cell phone out cursing upon finding it’s out of juice. “The rumors of my demise are greatly exaggerated.” Trying to make light even as a stone starts to sink in his stomach. “Miracle Guy put you up to this? Has to be some kind of simulation testing me right?”

“No… no it’s,” bitting her lip, she takes a step forward pulling a thin clear plastic looking object from her pocket. “What year is it?”

“Why?” Looking between her face and the light up piece of tech in her hand, Marcus takes a step back. Only to be honked at by another flying car. “Tech guys stepped up their game this time around.”

“Because,” swallowing harshly, “your not in Kansas anymore Toto.” Trying and failing to give a half smile. Only to have it fall with he scowl Marcus sends her. “Answer the question first then I’ll explain.”

Sighing, running a shaky hand through his hair, dread filling his veins, “2021, March if I remember.”

“I”m sorry Dorothy but you’re wrong,” glancing down eyes focused on the thin piece of plastic in her grasp. Pulling up the calendar to show him the date. “It’s March 14, 2041 and you good sir have come back from the dead.”

Gapping like a fish out of water, Marcus can’t seem to string two words together till a bubble of laughter leaves his chest. Morphing into chuckles and finally a great big belly laugh which has him doubling over holding his stomach and slapping his knee. “It’s a joke right? Miracle Guy, Tech-No he’d be able to pull something like this off.”

Glancing up at her, seeing the weariness even a touch of fear painted in those deep eyes. Turning her phone back around to pull up the news report. Male voice echoing around the two of them only slightly drowned out by the busy city still churning.

“The search has been called off for Heroic’s leader Marcus Moreno as it entered the third week with no sign. Our hearts go out to the Moreno family hit by this tragedy. Leaving so many to wonder what exactly happened and how did his last mission go so wrong.”

Shaking his head, eyes blinking several times to clear the imagines of Missy and Anita crying in each others arms. Surrounded by the children of the Heroics and the hero’s themselves, each taking the news differently. Vision filled with Missy’s red rimmed, tear streaked face breaking his heart, legs giving out from under him and crumbing to his knees.

“I don’t… I just left… it’s been two hours,” words stuttering from his mouth trying to grasp exactly what happened.

Debating with herself whether to step forward for comfort or turn to leave. The former winning as she drops beside him, returning the phone to its pocket and carefully gathering this broken semi stranger into her arms. “I’m sorry, this wasn’t the intension we had. There’s,” swallowing hard when she feels him stiffen beside her. “A plan, we had a plan but it’s changed and now you’re stuck.”

Wide with anger and shock, Marcus’s deep chocolate eyes raise to look at her. “You did this?”

Gulping for air and words, “Not me solely no, I apologize truly this wasn’t… I mean,” fidgeting under the intense stare, bottom lip caught by her tongue and drug between pearly whites. “I’m sorry Marcus so sorry,” short sob leaving a dry throat.

“Sorry for what? For taking me away from my life, from my time period or from the little girl who needs her father? Because as I see it right now this is all manner of fucked up and your gonna do something about it. Fix this shit so I can get back to my daughter.” Seething with rage Marcus stands to his full impressive height. Reaching behind to pull both katana’s from there sheathes.

Staying on her knees head bowed, “I can’t that’s the trouble Marcus.” Looking up into his pain streaked furious chocolate eyes, flinching at the sneer that contorts his beloved features. “I’m mysorry darling truly,” words whispered and barely meeting his ears as she vanishes into the thin air.

Speechless, arms hanging at his sides, stuck by the realization of her words, the video, combine with the knowledge he’s lost twenty some years with Missy watching her grow-up. Emotions swirl like a thick fog in his mind consuming thoughts and making reactions none existence to the world around him. A world that’s left him behind, while he’s stuck in the past and facing an uncertain future as a man out of time.

[hqmoonsun]

𝙨𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙙𝙮 ♡

genre: fluff

pairing: oikawa x fem!reader

word count: 1.5k

“when you’re lonely, do you stare outside the window like i do?” the music from your earphones loudly booms against your ears as you quietly hum to yourself. the bus has stopped in front of tokyo’s volleyball gymnasium. the boy’s volleyball team are already running down the bus as they excitedly yell to power up the team.

you stand up from your seat, hands warm inside the pockets of your varsity jacket.

“are you excited for today, fellow captain?” kuroo says from behind you while nudging your shoulders a bit. you turn around to face him. “sure, i can’t help but feel nervous though since we’ve never played against seijoh,” you reply shrugging your shoulders, a way to show your cool and hide the anxiety. “well, goodluck!” he says, patting your back a few times before going ahead of you to catch up to kenma.

as expected, there are less spectators for the girl’s volleyball team. it always bothered you that the boy’s are the popular one when both teams have gone to nationals. the only advantage of having less people watching is that there’s less pressure.

“is everyone warmed up?” you ask, raising your voice for the whole team to hear. a loud reply of ‘yes’ echoes throughout the gym and the cheering team for your school took that as a sign to chant.

“nekoma is serving,” the referee announces between the team. you nod your head, your heart beating faster than it did once you’ve stepped inside the gym.

“nice serve!” the team cheers you on as you take a deep breath with the volleyball between your hands. like with every game, you’re nervous again. it’s your third year, yet nothing’s changed. you’re able to perform well during games, but perhaps it’s human nature to feel anxiety.

“now that i’ve changed i know that i’ll be better, better, this round,” you sing softly and in the quietest voice you could let out. this is the best way you could calm your nerves and every time, it’s proven itself useful.

the referee whistles, signaling you must serve now. you open your eyes and take another deep breath before tossing the ball upwards before hitting it with enough strength while jumping, a perfect way to earn the momentum to the benefit of your team.

25 - 18

the board score reads after the first set, which your team has taken. the chants from your school sounds more energized and pumped up for the next set.

‘i was so steady, on my feet but now i’m up in the air,’ a sweet, calm voice from your head pops up, startling you a little.

“you okay?” tsubaki, the team’s libero, pokes your shoulder.

“oh yea, just my soulmate singing,” you answer, giving her a reassuring smile.

“thats cool, i dont think my soulmate sings,” she jokes, playfully rolling her eyes.

“agh, well mine sings the same song over and over again,” you jokingly complain.

the referee whistles again, signaling that break is over. the second set starts.

you sigh, finding out you’re the first to serve again. you love serving, yes, and you’re known to have one of the best serves in the prefecture, but serving first never fails to be nerve-wracking. the fate of a good game depends on your hands, literally and figuratively.

just like before every serve you do, you close your again, focusing on taking deep breaths.

“we thought we were invincible,” you quietly sing for the thousandth time to yourself today.

the referee whistles once again, another signal for you to serve.

“nice serve!” aiko, one of the team’s wing spiker, cheers you on. the whole team and the cheerers from the bleachers follow.

you open your eyes, deeply inhaling and exhaling before doing a jump serve with your maximum strength, aim and control.

the other team couldn’t receive it, first point is yours. once again, you’ve gained the momentum.

27-25

the score board displays as you gaze at it, the team behind you celebrating. the team did it again, you won.

“we did it again!” tsubaki excitedly says, patting your back.

“gather up!” you announce to the team and they do so.

“good job, guys! we did it again, and let’s do it again!” you encourage, happiness overflowing through you.

after the match, everyone quickly rushes to the locker rooms to change as they fill the hallways with squeals of excitement.

apparently, the boys are playing a good, yet tough game at the other side of the gym, so what’s better than to check it out?

as soon as you stepped into the nekoma vs. seijoh match, the mood immediately shifted from a solemn to an intense one.

25-26 on the 2nd set. match point.

“who won the first set?” you ask tsubaki, who is already immersed into the game.

“us,” she quickly answers, her eyes not leaving the volleyball being played.

“good,” you huff. “we can take the win,” you confidently say to no one before plugging in your headphones.

“baby, you’re my kryptonite, im falling from the sky,” you sing quietly in your seat, paying little attention to the game before you.

you could hear the referee’s whistle through your headphones as tsubaki slumps down her seat, her face showing disappointment.

“did seijoh take this set?” you ask surprised, quickly getting up from your seat to examine the match closer. seijoh did take it. “who scored the winning point?” you turn to tsubaki, incredibly amazed at seijoh’s comeback.

“that guy, right there,” she points to an averaged height guy, his fluffy brown hair almost poking his eye. “the last point was his serve,” she continues, her tone matching that of admiration.

“a serve?” you shockingly ask, amazed and curious to what his serve is like.

“yes, it’s like he has full control over his body and strength,” she finishes, her tone of admiration not faltering even once.

you sink back into your chair. you plug your earphones out. the game definitely now has your attention.

26-24

the boys lost, yet none of their faces show anger, but instead astonishment. seijoh was amazing and that was one hell of a game.

‘i can’t deny, i’m falling for you,’ the same song you were listening to earlier plays in your head. your soulmate has just continued singing for you. they have great taste, after all.

“hey! you guys were amazing, i know you did your best,” the team catches up to the boys outside the gym.

“thank you, but really, we’re still surprised at how seijoh did that,” yamamoto wonders as he looks around for any seijoh members.

“their #1 is one hell of a server,” kenma comments, his eyes already glued at his ps4.

as the boys head for the lockers to change, the girls decide to make their way inside the bus. your earphones are plugged in again, your voice occasionally singing some of the words.

“what did you just sing?” a familiar voice from behind gasps.

you turn around, confused. seijoh’s #1 is looking at you, his eyes shaking in confusion.

“a song?” you reply, furrowing an eyebrow.

“we drive around town, you’re holding me now,” he randomly sings as he steps closer to you.

you’re about to tell him off to stop singing so loud when it hit you. he’s your soulmate. no one seems to be bothered by his loud singing, except for you. because not only can you hear him in front of you, but his voice also echoes inside your head.

you keep stepping back as he inches closer, until you’ve hit a wall. he finally stops walking, leaving a feet of distance between you.

your heart is pounding fast and you can’t seem to look at him in the eye, so you stare at the plain grey flooring you’re standing on.

your soulmate, you just found your friggin soulmate.

“i can’t deny, i’m falling for you,” he keeps going as he crouches down to connect his eyes with yours. “hi,” he cutely greets, followed by a soft smile.

“h-hi,” you mumble flustered.

“thank you, by the way,” he starts, earning a confused look from you. “you calmed me during the second set,” he adds, his smile gradually growing.

“how?” you ask, oblivious to the answer.

“your songs, duh,” he answers cheekily. “i’m oikawa, by the way,” he sticks out his hands, his pretty setter hands for you to shake.

“i’m y/n,” is all you could let out from surprise. you slowly take his hand, it’s soft and warm. you could hold it forever.

oikawa tilts his head to the side, his gaze still on you. “question,” he starts, his hands not letting go of yours.

“um, sure?” you reply. deep down, you’re glad he hasn’t let go of your hands.

“why’d you stop singing?” he asks, his lips forming a pout. your heart beats a little faster.

“um,” your words fall short. “i wanted to see you play,” you finally admit, your cheeks heating up and displaying a red, crimson hue.

“you’re cute,” oikawa giggles as he changes the positions of your hands to intertwine them.

‘i just found my soulmate,’ you think to yourself, feeling a rush of joy you’ve never felt before.

[frustratedpoetwrites]

Breathless

Fem!jily February.

I think it was @blitheringmcgonagall who gave me the prompt. “What are your intentions towards my friend?” And as this week is Hogwarts and canon-verse it is now time for me to share this with you all.

read on AO3 where my love of italics can be properly appreciated.

When Jamie ran in from the cold outside—her face shining brightly from the joy of running with her friends—she spotted Lily straight away. There weren’t many redheads in Gryffindor, and none with quite the same shade of hair as her. It always drew Jamie’s attention, like a flickering candle seen out of the corner of your eye. Without waiting to see what her friends were about to do, she kicked off her shoes and shucked out of her cloak before joining Lily on the window seat, taking full advantage of the chance to catch her alone. Sitting down, she noticed absently the view below this window was where she had been playing with the boys just moments earlier.   

“Alright, Evans?” she greeted warmly, tucking her toes under the blanket and hoping that Lily wouldn’t call her out for intruding on her space, wishing this new not-quite-sure-what-they-were thing meant she could join her without asking. To Jamie’s surprise, Lily moved to rest her very warm feet on top of her own chilled ones without a word. This sudden warmth made her realise just how cold the rest of her was, causing goosebumps to erupt on her arms. She had no idea what they spoke about, she was trying so hard not to obsess about the way Lily’s feet were so much neater than hers, how they were resting gently on top without pressing down, and how this unexpected closeness was making her heart thunder in her eardrums.

Lily had asked her a question, she was certain. Some part of Jamie’s brain that was not overwhelmed by Lily Evans perfect toes came up with an answer. Just when she thought this moment couldn’t get any better, or worse depending on how one felt about the imminent chance of self combustion. Lily reached for her hands, capturing them in hers, delicate fingers cupping her much more ungainly digits, pulling them to her face almost in slow motion, Jamie gulped and hoped to Merlin she wasn’t looking as panicked as she was feeling. Lily’s breath on her numb fingers warmed her insides and made her abdomen do a funny little swoop. She swallowed hard. This was fine, she was fine! Lily was just looking out for her. This was what girl friends did right? When she did it again, Lily’s eyes locked with her own, the tiniest hint of a smirk on her soft lips no doubt picking up on the rapid pulse hammering against Lily’s fingertips, she realised she just couldn’t handle it at all and she bolted.

 As soon as she left the window seat and Lily’s touch she felt rather foolish for panicking, but it had seemed the safest thing to do at that moment. Going on instinct had not always served her well when it came to her red headed roommate so the more time she spent around her the more she held herself back from doing something rash. She had rushed away from Lily when the urge to kiss her had become so strong she had not known what to do with herself. She’d lied, saying that she needed to get her wand from the dorm room when it was safely stowed in the pocket of her cloak lying at her feet. She didn’t even go near the girl’s stairs like she said she was, instead she rushed straight up to the boy’s dorm, where she felt most comfortable being herself. They were all there... warm, clean, dry and not in a complete Lily related crisis. Free from frozen fingers and a heart beating out of their chests like she was.

She slumped onto Sirius’ bed throwing an arm over her eyes, yelling out in frustration, as the adrenaline of the situation finally started to eb. 

“Remus, I can’t be too sure but I think something is bothering our dear friend?” Sirius’ voice carried over to her from his place by the log burner that was crackling merrily in the centre of their room. She sat up and looked at him pleadingly.

“I can’t handle this, that woman is torturing me on purpose. You should have seen her just now!” She pointed to the door to emphasise her point, but nobody was looking at her. 

“I find that hard to believe,” Remus retorted emerging from his trunk with a pair of socks in his hand. “If you are talking about who I think you are?”

“Of course I bloody am, nobody else is out to get me like she is,” she whined, falling back on the bed once more and looking at the ceiling through a suspiciously large hole in the drapes above. Jamie smirked at it despite the way she was feeling, remembering the day that had happened.

“Who’s she talking about?” Pete asked. “Whatever their problem is I’m sure we can sort them out. You always come up with something, Prongs.”

“Thanks for your confidence in me Pete, but I really don’t think my skills for managing mischief are going to help me out here. Even if they could, I just turn into a babbling idiot around her. I just can’t handle it, what am I supposed to do with these feelings? She can’t have any idea what she does to me, or if she does she enjoys watching me suffer.”

“Sirius, help our friend out,” Remus ordered, throwing the balled up socks at him. He turned and the sound of his name and caught them deftly in one hand, before throwing them at Peter who yelped in surprise, then giggled, before throwing them at Jamie who caught them easily, still prone on the bed.

“Alas, I fear poor Prongs is beyond any form of help, completely lost in the depths of those...how did you describe them earlier? Enchanting green eyes?”

“I know, I’m fucked!” Jamie yelled again as she looked at her fingers, still haunted by the touch of those dainty hands. The room went quiet for a time, Jamie didn’t see the silent exchange happening between Remus and Sirius as she spiralled in a dilemma of her own making. Somehow at some point, the fun banter and the sharp comments back and forth had softened, Lily had stopped storming off when she lost an argument, she had started going more thoughtful instead. Around the same time as this Jamie had noticed how many shades of green there could be in a person’s eyes, how Lily’s soft laugh was the most magical thing ever, made all the more special when it was Jamie herself who had caused it to happen. Jamie had never felt any kind of way about anybody before Lily, and she doubted she ever would again. The silence had gone on for far too long, Jamie watched Remus out of the corner of her eye as he was blatantly pointing to her.

“Why?” Sirius yelled out suddenly Jamie lifted her head to see Remus throw up his hands in exasperation. “She seems to be doing a perfectly good job of messing it up on her own, without my help. I mean what the fuck do I know? I don’t understand why she can’t just ask her straight out.” Jamie sat up hopefully an idea forming in her head as if she’d just been hit with a brain-boosting charm. She jumped off Sirius’ bed and hugged his shoulders, leaning against his back, he returned her affection half-heartedly patting her arms,  when she let go and spun him around holding him at arm's length grinning like an idiot, his eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Why do I have the feeling you are going to ask me to do something I don’t want to do?”

*

Lily Evans was just sitting in a window seat reading her book occasionally being distracted by the goings-on of the group of people in the misty grounds below her. She didn’t mean to watch, but somehow lately her eyes were constantly drawn to those four, and one in particular. She bit her lip thoughtfully as she looked down on them, marvelling at the way they were all just so comfortable and happy together.

They were playing a game (they often were) to which nobody apart from them could ever understand. It seemed to involve a stick and a ball. A ball that was enchanted to move on its own and produced puffs of different coloured smoke whenever it was hit with the stick. Lily wondered if this was their interpretation of one of the Muggle sports they had asked her endless questions about. 

Eventually, they grew tired of their game and disappeared from her view and Lily went back to her book. 

“Alright, Evans?” a familiar voice called out before joining her on the window seat, sitting at the opposite side to her. They smelled strongly of the outside freshness, their face flushed from the cold, with droplets of water beading on the flyaways in their hair. She had already kicked off her shoes and removed her cloak, once sitting carelessly dumping it on the floor beside them. They swung their feet up to join hers in the no-man's-land between them. Toes wiggling themselves under the blanket that was covering her legs.

“Hi, Potter,” she replied, feeling the chill from her feet as they touched her leg. Without thinking she slid her socked feet over the top to try and warm them up a bit. Jamie watched her do it with a funny half-smile on her lips. “Did you have fun with the boys? Did you win your game?” She didn’t mean it to sound like she was talking to a child but sometimes she found herself just wanting to look after the raven-haired girl.

Jamie rubbed her hands together as she thought of a response, not noticing or not minding Lily’s tone, “Yeah, I had fun. You should’ve joined us, you would’ve liked it. I did win one game but the game’s never about winning, it’s about not losing.” She responded, continuing to rub her hands trying to get the heat back into them.

“Where’s your wand?” Lily asked when she saw Jamie still hadn’t performed her usual rapid warming and drying spells. Lily gestured for Jamie’s hands and she complied slowly as if she was expecting a trick.  Lily shuffled herself forward so she was leaning over her bent knees, and admired her friends hands, she had such nimble fingers, so adept at Quidditch and intricate transfiguration spells, large enough that she did not struggle to open jars in potions like Lily did. Smiling to herself she wrapped her hands around Jamie’s chilled fingers and blew on them gently. Lily could feel the other girl’s pulse quicken as the tips of her fingers rested on her wrist. She blew on her hands again this time a much longer and more deliberate breath, then looked up at Jamie through her eyelashes. Jamie swallowed hard, her glasses beginning to fog around the edges despite the anti misting charm she usually had on them. 

“I left it in my room, I better go get it and dry off my clothes,” and she grabbed her cloak and shoes and darted away from Lily towards the dorm rooms as if she was expecting McGonagall herself to swoop down and berate her for leaving her wet cloak on the common room floor. Lily leaned back against the wall and tried not to sigh. It was the same every time she tried to get close lately, Jamie would spook and run. 

“Oi, Evans?” came a strong male voice a while later, she turned her gaze slowly upon Sirius Black waiting for him to say more. “Can I have a word?”

“You can have several, Black,” she replied, arching an eyebrow trying to look stern. But her face cracked as he approached and she realised he wasn’t in the mood for their usual banter. She gestured to the empty space in her window seat and he joined her. Lounging with one leg off the edge as if he needed to make a quick escape, elbow resting on his bent knee. “So what’s up?” She asked expecting some homework question or a favour, but nothing was forthcoming. Sirius Black just sat there as if he wasn’t sure exactly what to say. 

“I’ve been thinking,” he eventually said.

“Don’t strain yourself,” she replied almost on instinct, she pressed her lips together in an apology when he looked at her flatly. 

“Something’s happening between you and my friend? — Don’t start denying it,” he added when she opened her mouth to speak. “You’ve both had doe-eyes for each other for ages. Have you two finally put aside whatever it was holding you back?”

“I don’t think I’m the person you should be having this chat with, Black.” She responded quietly not sure exactly herself what was going on so why should she need to share with him of all people? He didn’t know girls, didn’t seem to care much for them at all apart from one particular girl. Sirius didn’t take any notice of the simpering admirers who seemed to be constantly gazing at him, drawing sketches of him on their notebooks and giggling when he would flick his hair or announce to the whole common room something he thought was impressive. He was the perfect friend for someone like Jamie, another lost soul not sure of their place in this world. If she thought about it Lily was equally out of her place, having to find her own way as she went alone, separated from her muggle family. Even now after seven years at Hogwarts still occasionally uncertain of the most basic things wizard children grew up on. 

“I already know Jamie’s feelings about this. I want to know your intentions towards my friend?”

“My intentions?” She snorted, her battered copy of Sense and Sensibility still sitting beside her. “Are you her father or something because last I checked we weren’t living in a Jane Austin novel?” Sirius did not look too pleased by her response, she wondered if he even knew who Jane Austin was, if he didn’t he wasn’t likely to admit it. Instead of replying to her directly he crossed his arms and looked at her expectantly. “She’s amazing, okay? Is that what you wanted me to say? She is funny and kind to her friends, she doesn’t care about what others think of her. She is so confident.”

“All these things are true, but you still haven’t answered my question.” His arms were still crossed but his eyes had softened and there was a hint of a smile on the edge of his lips.

“Well every time I try to get close she runs away and I’m beginning to think she isn’t interested and is running away so she doesn’t hurt my feelings. I thought she liked me. I thought, maybe, she would want to be my girlfriend.  Now I think perhaps she was messing with me this whole time.” Sirius looked at her shrewdly.

“So you aren’t just playing games to get her to blush?”

“Why would I do that?”

“I have no idea, you don’t seem the type to do anything like that at all. I’ve been telling Jamie for weeks now she’s an idiot for thinking that way, but you see, she can’t think logically or objectively around you.”

“Oh,” Lily replied to this, touching her hand to her lip. “So she does want to be my girlfriend?”

“It sounds to me like you both need to have a proper chat and leave me out of this,” Sirius declared in a strange voice as if he wasn’t talking to Lily at all.

“Do you know where she went?” He stayed quiet for a time as if he was considering what to say to her, or he was listening to some sort of silent cue.

“She mentioned something about getting a hot drink from the kitchens,” she grinned at him as she stood up.

“You are a good man Sirius, I hope you know that. Jamie is lucky to have you as her friend.” He tried to shrug off her compliment but his pleased grin shone through.

“Don’t let everyone know that Evans, I have a reputation to upkeep.” Without thinking about it she kissed the top of his head and patted him on the shoulder before running off in the direction of the kitchens.

*

“She’s on her way, don’t fuck this up, Prongs.” Jamie smiled at Sirius before his image faded and she tucked the mirror back in her pocket and smoothed her hair nervously. Her heart was beating fast and she just wasn’t sure how to sit. She had managed to conjure up the convenient little bench on the way to the kitchens herself. It was a handy little spell to know. It had gotten her out of a few detentions because teachers found students sitting on benches reading, far less suspicious than students leaning on walls whistling. She sipped her tea again as she tried to settle the butterflies in her stomach, and cast a quick warming spell while she was waiting. She’d felt a little bad listening in to Lily and Sirius talking but it was her plan to tell Lily that she had done so at the right time. She heard the footsteps running in this direction and she looked up hopefully.

Lily came around the corner looking flushed. When she spotted Jamie her feet stopped and a smirk appeared on her face. 

“Why do I get the feeling that whole little conversation I just had with Sirius was set up by you? And you heard every word of it.” Jamie tried to keep her lopsided grin firmly on her face but she could feel her confidence at this moment wavering greatly, especially as Lily approached looking more determined than happy. Jamie gulped her reasons for doing what she had done trying to form on her lips, but her brain was not cooperating at this moment.

“Lily, I’m sorry I --” Her words were cut short abruptly by Lily holding her checks and tilting her face up to meet hers, she managed a moment to blink in shock before lips were being pressed against hers and she forgot about anything else but the feel of Lily’s hands holding her face, her hot breath as she smiled into those kisses, her giggle as Jamie reached out for her pulling her onto the bench. The tea set already taking up that space completely forgotten until the sound of it crashing on the floor made them leap apart as if it had scalded them.

“Are you okay? Sorry I should have moved it before I made you sit, you caught me off guard and I forgot it was there.” Jamie asked her breathless and panting slightly. Being close to Lily Evans always did strange things to her but now being this close, to actually having Lily’s hands in her hair. Being surrounded by the fresh apple scent of her shampoo, these feelings were erupting stronger and deeper and more intense than ever. They both looked down at the teapot now lying in a smashed mess on the stone floor and laughed at it. 

“It didn’t hurt me,” Lily replied softly, sounding like she had run further than the short corridor. Jamie didn’t know when they had started holding hands but she noticed their interlaced fingers and smiled, not quite believing this was actually happening. Lily’s hands had always looked so delicate, so feminine, compared to her own too big, too blunt, calloused hands.

“Are you sure? I’m sorry I should go get some more.” Lily stayed silent as she repaired the china and effortlessly floated it over to sit on the silver tray. 

“Jamie, I’m fine and I really don’t care about the tea.” She took a breath and looked up at her with a light in her eyes as a small smile appeared. “I care about you. Now can we go somewhere less public than this corridor? I want to…” She bit her lip before she went on, making Jamie momentarily forget her own name, “continue this chat somewhere more private.” Lily stood still holding onto her hand and pulled her up to join her. She grabbed her other hand, lifted the palm of it up to her face and pressed her lips to it so gently. Jamie was finding it hard to breathe again. Jamie watched her lips hungrily desperately wanting to capture them with her own once more, to make Lily as breathless as she was making her.