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katyawriteswhump · 4 months ago

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omega found, omega lost (final chapter)

Title: Omega found, Omega lost; Chapter: 7/7; WC: 3309; Rating: E; Tags: Steddie, Omega Steve, Alpha Eddie, angst, hurt/comfort. CW: knotting, marking, biting, sex!!!

Chapter 1 on tumblr Chapter 2 on tumblr Chapter 3 on tumblr Chapter 4 on tumblr Chapter 5.1 on tumblr Chapter 5.2 on tumblr Chapter 6 on tumblr

On AO3

Chapter 7: yours forever, soulmate

Steve snapped his teeth then hissed like a viper, setting Eddie recoiling. “If you don’t get on with it, Alpha mine, I’m gonna chew your fucking hand off.”

A startled laugh exploded from Eddie. He was kneeling between Steve’s spread legs, while Steve spawled on his front in the nest. “Talk about rogue Alpha. I got me one rogue Omega,” said Eddie.

“You’re a sheepie in wolf’s clothing, you know that, right? Eddie, pleeeease?”

Steve’s tone shifted from acidic to desperate, and he levered himself up onto his hands and knees to scrub his butt against Eddie’s thighs. He quivered with mad purrs. Tiny beads of perspiration quivered too, on his back and on his face, so recently milky pale but now a bright pinkish hue. His neatly groomed hair had gone feral already. His spine undulated toward a c-shape, as he peeped around one shoulder, around his squirming butt and hips, back at Eddie, and…

…damn, Eddie needed to taste that glossy mouth. He needed to mate Steve.

Now.

Nevertheless, a heart-to-heart chat festered in the back of his mind. Which was a miracle in itself, because most of his blood had rushed to his dick. He put granny’s salve aside. Could he really claim his soulmate—and not just any soulmate, but Steve Harrington—on Jim Hopper’s basement floor, which was grungy at best, and not in a badass way. The only source of heat was an ancient oil-filled radiator. Okay, and the rising steam of their lust.

Either way, it was hardly fitting. Could Steve, deep down, want it to happen like this? Reality check—Eddie needed a luxuriously fitted-out castle, with a moat, a drawbridge, and battlements primed with archers, pikemen, and vats of boiling oil to defend his princess from all comers.

On the other hand, all he saw in Steve’s eyes was a ravenous desire that mirrored his own.

A fresh gush of slick pooled around Eddie’s knees.

“Okay. I surrender, Stevie.” He sounded more strangled than bass-note Alpha. “We’re still taking this sloooow, all right?”

“Yeah… yeah… Sorry… Really sorry… didn’t mean to snap… just… desperate, Eddie… Alpha… Oh God, feels so good.”

Eddie had started nuzzling at Steve’s throat, dousing Steve’s mating gland, lathing it with his tongue. Drinking in that bananas-and-cream sweetness, blended with that smoky-marijuana twist that was uniquely and addictively Steve. He flattened Steve to the nest, cloaking the Omega’s body almost entirely with his own. The pressure seemed to settle Steve while Eddie supped.

“Sweetheart, listen,” murmured Eddie in Steve’s ear. “There’s a fuck load going on with our bodies right now, especially yours, that we’ve got very little control over, so don’t apologise and… Holy crap!” He licked Steve’s throat again, relishing the thrum of Steve’s irrepressible purrs against his tongue. “Wanna gobble you all up.”

Okay, maybe not the most loving choice of words, but… damn! His Alpha needed to feast. Steve was always delicious. Today, his flavor was off the charts, and his gland leaked almost as generously as his pussy. Eddie lapped and sucked, raising the already swollen gland into one helluva hickey. His own canine incisors quickened, and a red mist swirled up in his vision.

Fuck.

His body blatantly had its own agenda, equally potent as Steve’s, and he had to reel it in. He didn’t want to bite, let alone pop a knot, before he’d even got inside his Omega and he intended to do that the sultry, smoochy way. Heck, the romantic way.

Trouble was, Steve’s neck was beyond addictive. Steve, meanwhile, had fallen very still. As Eddie suckled Steve’s heated flesh, his suddenly vise-like grip gouged into Steve’s shoulders. Only when Steve whimpered with something that might’ve approached pain, could Eddie muster the willpower to release him.

He’d barely snatched a breath when Steve twisted his head around, chirruped convulsively, and all but inhaled Eddie in for a kiss.

The kiss lingered, as Eddie’s tongue swept out Steve’s mouth to its depths. Steve scrubbed his tongue against Eddie’s, slickly and sweetly, sending electricity buzzing through Eddie’s veins. Briefly, he let his inner Alpha unleash. He bit lightly into Steve’s lower lip, sensed a confused panic bubbling up in his Omega’s throat, then released.

“Neeeeed.” Steve fretted his swollen lip. His eyes were huge, hungry, as much predator as prey.

“Need you too, Stevie.”

He manoeuvred Steve back onto his hand and knees, piling pillows beneath Steve’s taut underbelly, pausing briefly to give him a tender rub there. Steve now kicked off purring like a maniac again. Eddie paused, briefly, to fight his way out of jeans sodden with his own precum and Steve’s slick.

Steve glanced back at Eddie’s dick, already swollen at the head. Though not even faintly as big as it was going to get:

“I… I… n…need… in me… n… need.”

“I get it, Baby. You need.” He smoothed slow circles on Steve’s back. “You’re gonna get. But I need to stretch you out, okay? And, you know, I got needs too… and I need to taste you. You’re too delicious, my darling.”

Eddie dragged his tongue over and up Steve’s slick-drenched thighs, and the next few minutes passed in a blissed-out blur. Steve pressed his ass toward Eddie’s mouth, inviting Eddie to explore both his holes. Fun though this was, Eddie’s inner Alpha was getting as impatient as the Omega. By the time he smothered his face between Steve’s wet pink folds, tongue dabbing and swirling around Steve’s soaking hole, his barbed Alpha fangs were beginning to protrude again.

As a result, Steve’s bucking and clenching was getting slightly dangerous. Realising Steve was openly sobbing now, Eddie’s heart panged. “Sorry, Babe.”

“No… no… love everything… felt… am-amazing… but please… need to be yours, Alpha.”

“You’re already mine, Omega.” The grin erupting from his core felt thrillingly savage. “Always mine.”

As he leaned over Steve, arms bracing around Steve’s middle for a brief, tight hug, his weighty dick slapped against his Omega’s thigh. With an effort, he once again restrained his inner beast from carelessly popping a knot.

He drew back, took a deep, calming breath, and breached Steve’s hole with his fingers.

…

Steve was coming apart at the seams, a quivering, boneless, liquidy mess.

Yeah, Eddie’s fingers felt awesome, stretching and scissoring inside him. He’d stopped purring, so far gone he was barely breathing. The mattress beneath him was in truth, kinda lumpy, yet he’d been floating on puffy cloud and now he was fucking flying. The basement, the rest of the world, had long since vanished. When Eddie got maybe a fourth digit in there, his toes curled: “Yes, yes, yes, yes, please, please, please.”

“Missed your gorgeous pussy,” cooed Eddie and Steve, despite everything, peeped back and kinda rolled his eyes. Eddie responded with a fiendish grin and another soothing rub of Steve’s belly, rubbing in synch with his slow finger fucking and all-out kneading of Steve’s vagina.

Eddie found that sweet spot. Steve’s impatience faded slightly, because—gnnng!—he was feeling kickass full now, the friction mind-blowing. His euphoria bubbled up in a sudden rush, and that crazy little bud inside him clamped super-tight.

Oh crap! They’d hit home too soon—his walls clenched, and what felt like rivers of slick rushed from him, and his cocklet squirted too. He started chirruping uncontrollably, sensed the sweet vibration of Eddie’s laugh, as he rode the wave, which crashed too soon, and then…

…oh God, it was already one of those ‘little death’ orgasms. Fun but not enough. His desperation for more seized him more strongly than ever.

“Please!” His voice was a wrecked squeak. “I don’t… can’t… Don’t wanna beg!”

With a rush, Eddie’s hand was gone, and Steve… kinda froze, save his g-spot and pussy still quailing in the aftermath.

“Gonna mate you now, Baby,” said Eddie. “You sure you’re ready?”

Words failed again. A trail of desperate chirrups escaped Steve’s tight throat and he managed a jerky nod.

“Steve? My Omega?”

“Yes… Yes, please… Alpha.”

“You’re doing so good, my darling.” Eddie stroked the length of Steve’s spine and Steve’s purrs returned with a vengeance. Eddie lowered his lips to Steve’s ear: “I need to take you the other way around. I have to see your pretty o-face.”

Desperate to obey, Steve rolled over. Eddie guided him with hot, sticky hands after tossing some of the cushions aside, then wedging one under Steve’s hips. Steve hugged his knees to his chest, offering his open pussy. Eddie loomed over him, and Steve’s vision swam so madly that Eddie’s skull tattoo leered, and the spider’s legs scuttled as if alive. Okay, slightly scary. He still longed to kiss them, to lick the glistening perspiration from every inch of Eddie’s pale skin.

All this passed in a flash. Then Steve’s scattered attention zeroed in on Eddie’s monumental Alpha sacs, his huge dick patterned with pulsing veins. Steve’s mouth dropped open, suddenly dry.

“You’re doing so well, my beautiful Omega,” cooed Eddie. “If I hurt you, if anything doesn’t feel good, tell me. If you need me to stop—"

Steve nodded his head, clenched his teeth, and his tunnel clenched madly. Christ, get in me!

At last, Eddie moved in to drag his cockhead along Steve’s cleft. It felt as it looked—impossibly hard and large as he spread Steve, setting Steve whimpering at the intimacy of the contact. Every nerve ending in his vulva set alight, relentless shivers wracking him. Eddie stroked Steve’s chest, drifted lovingly over Steve’s erect little cocklet.

“I love you, Steve,” he said.

“Just fuck me to oblivion!” Steve’s own scream shocked him back into breathlessness. Eddie grinned, wickedly, and lined his cock up at Steve’s entrance, slowly increasing the pressure until Steve’s body gave.

For a moment, Eddie lingered there, his cockhead wedged in Steve’s opening. Steve gulped air, adjusting to the scorching penetration—yup, as he faintly recalled, Eddie’s dick was much, MUCH bigger than those fingers. Then Eddie nudged forward, coaxing Steve’s body toward its unbroken limits. His senses overflowed, and even Eddie’s look of love was too much to take. He scrunched his eyes tightly.

Eddie… Eddie had got this, and Steve wanted more, his body wavering just about on the pleasurable side of pain. He remained slightly scared, because to seal the deal Eddie was going to bite, and even his fright intoxicated him. Even with his eyes closed, all he saw was Eddie… and, okay, laughing skulls and a smattering of fireworks. Eddie planted a soft kiss on his mouth, and Steve’s hips took on a life of their own, bucking forward, urging him on. Eddie started fucking him for real.

Which was cool, because Steve could feel his next orgasm already, building and building. He gasped and whined and threw his arms around Eddie’s neck, and his ankles around Eddie’s hips, causing the bandaged one to twinge slightly, though that was soon lost in the flood. He peeped again to see Eddie’s face, which was… Okay, kinda ferocious, the curl of his lip deliciously savage. Those gorgeous eyes remained relentlessly adoring, with maybe just a hint of bloodlust. Yeah, this was exactly what he needed. He’d never felt so… no, not only connected. So cherished.

And then the world flipped.

Eddie hoisted Steve up off the cushions and into his lap, impaling Steve completely on his dick. Woah! Talk about Alpha strength! The shift had taken any pressure off Steve’s ankle, though he felt impossibly full, and… Oh God, he still wanted more. Hugging Eddie ever tighter, he moved on reflex—tiny jerks seeking the barest of friction, though his every limb was jello, his parted lips gaping.

Eddie had stopped moving, however. Deep inside him, Eddie started to… Christ, it was like a mini earthquake in Steve’s guts.

Then Steve felt the knot.

It was swelling further up inside him than Steve would’ve believed possible, and a shocked chirrup escaped him. He braced for pain—and fucking son-of-a-bitch, yes! Steve’s head cracked back, as Eddie’s hot seed erupted inside him, setting Steve’s insides convulsing with white-hot pleasure.

“Fuck, yeah! Yes!”

Steve squeaked, and Eddie just kept coming, his hot seed coating Steve’s insides. Jesus Christ, was it gonna come gushing up through his eyeballs? He couldn’t fathom which one of them was shaking the harder. Steve’s every fibre pulled impossibly taut, and it really was almost too much. If Eddie didn’t stop quaking and, goddammit, growing inside him, he might be ripped into a thousand pieces...

…and then he was.

The best orgasm of Steve’s life went supernova. Bright stars shot into streaks of fire that tore up his spine and frazzled his brains. His face smacked to Eddie’s shoulder. Eddie clamped his fangs down onto Steve’s mating gland, piercing deep. Steve’s heart pumped wildly, and then Eddie was sucking and lapping at his blood, cooing softly between:

“Ssssh, shhh. You’re okay, Sweetheart. It’s done.”

Eddie cupped Steve’s neck, chafing the sweat-drenched hair at Steve’s nape with his thumb, holding him in place. Steve’s brain had gone woolly, a dull throb gathering pace in his throat. “Sore,” he murmured, and Eddie’s butter-soft lips nuzzled his gland, and Steve… Okay, he was not done orgasming after all. With Eddie’s knot buried up somewhere near his heart, a final bittersweet agony seized him, echoed by the purest sweep of bliss.

He was still riding the aftershocks, spasming contentedly around Eddie’s knot, when Eddie gently lowered him to the nest and sagged forward to wrap him in his arms.

“I do love you, Steve.”

“Love you too,” mumbled Steve, his feeling of fullness now a kickass honeyed glow.

Yours forever, soulmate.

…

Eddie wasn’t going to lie to himself.

The responsibility should be terrifying. He’d been reaching for that terror, even while lying in the nest with Steve in his arms. Even while coming down from far and away the best orgasm of his life. It’d taken a while for his knot to subside enough to gently drag himself out of Steve, and his dick still felt almost painfully hard.

But, nope, not scared. Eddie Munson had got this. Kind of.

He lay there cuddling Steve, who’d sunk into some strange stupor. He sure looked edible, debauched and pretty—a vivid pink flushed across his pale cheeks, his wet lashes sparkling, and his hair was a wild, fluffy halo. And his wet pussy dribbled Eddie’s come down his thighs, mingled with all that endless slick.

Steve’s neck was smeared with blood, too. The first thing Eddie did, after gently dabbing Steve’s thighs with a damp cloth, was… uh, yeah.

Follow his instinct to lick it.

Granny Munson and even modern science claimed saliva had some healing properties, so he took comfort in that. He licked away the drying blood, enjoying their mingled flavors on Steve’s skin. Also, because he couldn’t help himself, he savored the quiver of his Omega’s lifeblood, palpable through such a thin layer of skin.

Willpower, Munson. No more biting!

A renewed surge of guilt almost outweighed his pleasure. He was also concerned about getting Steve up and into Hopper’s bath, before the latter came back from work, or his pups home from school.

Not that Hopper could really object, mind. They had to use the washroom. Eddie still didn’t fancy running into the Chief with Steve smeared with slick, come, and blood and more-or-less unconscious. And if he ran into any of the Chief’s kids with Steve in this state…

Yeah, now he felt a faint ripple of apprehension. He would be dead meat and deservedly so.

“Huh, now that’s kooky.”

Eddie lifted Steve’s hair to shine the single buzzing bulb’s light beneath the Omega’s chin. The puncture wounds around Steve’s mating gland had almost totally healed, leaving only the two mild pink marks that showed Steve to be a claimed Omega, Eddie’s own.

“What’s kooky?” murmured Steve, rolling over, smiling sleepily, hooking an arm around Eddie’s neck. Then sucking a hissing inbreath. “Jesus!”

“Uuuuuh, sorry I bit you,” said Eddie, because it kinda had to be said. “Totally crazily it’s…”

“All healed, right?” Steve fingered his gland. “Feels a bit bruised.” He curled his lip, snarky. “Believe me, my insides are bitching way more right now.” Eddie grimaced and parted his lips to apologise again. Steve slid his fingers up over them: “Don’t you fucking, dare. I bit first, remember? I’m sorry for that, seriously. I’ll try to do better.”

“It’s fine, Babe. Just tell me what I can do to help.”

Eddie helped Steve up and then bundled the comforter about the two of them. This didn’t make getting up the basement stairs particularly easy, but they made it to the bathroom. Eddie sat Steve down on the toilet seat, while he revved Hopper’s old boiler to the max in running a warm and bubbly bath.

They settled down in the spacious tub, with Steve lying between Eddie’s legs, leaned on Eddie’s chest. Yeah, Eddie’s dick pepped right up again. That was inevitable. No way should he take the Omega again so soon, and he let the rising steam soothe his raging impulses.

“How did you know your throat was healed?” he asked, nosing Steve’s hair while remaining safely away from the bite zone.

“You’re the one who spouted that crazy stuff about us healing each other, dipshit.” Steve was lathering up a ton of bubbles around his crotch, which was… Screw it, a fun watch. “Seriously, I’m tempted to put that to the test. You know, smack you in the mouth just so I can kiss you better?”

“You are kidding, right?”

“Yeah. Unless you really piss me off.” Steve laughed and drew one of Eddie’s wet hands to his lips and kissed it. “Did you say that there was a Winnebago on offer? For when it stops being so cold?”

“Yeah, but—”

“Look, Eddie. You’re basically an open book.” Steve started scrambling over onto his front, sending bubbles and water spraying. “You’re fretting your lil’ Alpha brains that I need a palace or something.”

“I was picturing a castle,” admitted Eddie, as Steve settled on top of him again, nose-to-nose and dick-to-dick.

“Jesus, you’re an idiot. Can’t you see? My life before wasn’t exactly perfect. Okay, I had nice clothes and shit, but you’ve met my mom—she’s an ogre! I only want you. For the rest of my life, that’ll be enough.”

“But a Winnebago?”

Steve pecked Eddie’s lips. “I’m telling the truth, Eddie. You could keep me in a basement or a creepy cave, and I’d be all right. In fact, I have this dumb fantasy that…” His cheeks, already pink from the steamy heat, blushed cherry-red. Eddie was curious. However, Steve swerved back onto the business in hand. “I really like the idea of a Winnebago. Cozy, and it’ll be totally big enough for my nest. To begin with, at any rate. We can save up for a bigger one in the future, for the pups. I want at least six, by the way.”

“Then we’re definitely gonna need a goddamn castle.”

Eddie beamed anyhow. Nope. Not scared anymore. How could he be, drowning in Steve’s amused gaze at point-blank range? His inner Alpha had got this. Or maybe they’d got this?

Or maybe he was simply totally, insanely in love with his soulmate.

“Okay, and for future reference, dude,” said Steve, “if I’m feeling snappy, like earlier, banana flavored ice-cream helps. I mean, it doesn’t always fix it, but I find it’s worth a shot, if I’m struggling to rein it in. Oh, and sex, of course. You got that one covered. Took your sweet time, tho’.”

Eddie grinned like an idiot. The last remnants of his tension seemed to sigh away, and he couldn’t wait to get his Omega clean and dry and straight back into their warm nest.

The End

(although there might be some more short ficlets in this universe... it's been fun to write.)

tags: @wheneverfeasible @mugloversonly @ellietheasexylibrarian

@strawberryyyenthusiast @stripey82

My Steve whump fic on AO3

#steddie #steddie omegaverse #omega steve harrington #alpha eddie munson #steddie smut #steve x eddie #steve harrington #bottom steve harrington #top eddie munson #katya's omega whump #omegaverse steddie

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ridiculously-over-obsessed · 5 months ago

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TRUST ME WITH YOUR HEART (I CAN FIX IT TOO)

Rating: T Chapter 29/? - And Now I Could Swear You're The Air In My Lungs Pairings: Bechloe Chapter Summary: Bonds, new and old, are solidified as Barden ED prepares itself for the summer ahead

Holy CRAP it's been way too long since I posted an update omg, sorry gang!! It's been a difficult couple of months, not least because my old laptop died and that made writing pretty much impossible and I've only just gotten a new one, but also just because life sucks and it's been a little rough here honestly. But I'm determined to keep writing, especially now I have a laptop again, for as long I have the inspiration/you'll put up with me kdljgdflkgjdf so hi, hello, I'm very much alive and while updates may not be super frequent, they will hopefully be coming more often than they have been doing lately

#pitch perfect #pitch perfect fanfic #pitch perfect edit #bechloe #bechloe fics #bechloe fanfic #beca mitchell #chloe beale #fanfiction #moodboard: bechloe #my fic #wip: tmwyh(icfit)

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sockcanvas · 1 year ago

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Apricity¹

(n.) the warmth of the sun in the winter¹

⚘. A oneshot [559 words]

⟣ ──┈⇢˚⋆ Pairing : Kim Joon Goo + G/N.Reader

⟣ ──┈⇢˚⋆ c/w : Hurt Comfort | Established Relationship

⟣ ──┈⇢˚⋆ a/n : 😛i feel like finishing my bsd drafts later, rn i want Goo content. Holy fuck im putting a lot of brain power and effort to write this crap, ugh let me know if this writing style is dookie caca or not cause i spend like half my time going through dictionary and thesaurus for synonyms LOL. timeline after CHAPTER 477 without the upload of chapter 478 cuz idk what happens after. Honestly first writing a fic after 3 years of not💪

synopsis . ₊˚. You were the sun to his cold winter days.

Erratic.

That’s one way to describe Goo. He was unpredictable by nature. Facetious² by choice. Kim Joon Goo is an enigma. You couldn’t understand his eccentric personality at first, how his lips always curved upwards into a large smile, or whenever his eyes wrinkle when he forcefully closes them to express himself. He was the most fervid³ person you knew.

But what was that crease between his eyebrows? the slight droop in his eyes, the downward curve from the corner of his mouth. There was a subtle tension, a stiffness, a moment of silence, one that contradicted his exuberance⁴.

His head pulled away from your touch, expression shrouded in an evasive look. Unbeknownst to you, your hands had been gently caressing his cheeks. The unusual glimpse of melancholy crossing his features along with the slightest of recoil brought you back into reality. Just earlier in the morning he had boasted loquaciously⁵ about the suit and sunglasses that he borrowed begged from his colleague, yet that suit was long gone from him, you’ve seen it draped over a chair earlier. It’s fabric stained a suspicious red, bearing large scars on its back—a silent witness to an untold story.

Your brows knitted in reaction to his unexpected withdrawal, a rare occurrence. Goo, who would typically lean into the warmth of your affection touches, now, altered from his usual demeanor. He turned away, back facing you, a deliberate motion that casted a shadow over your attempt to share a moment of intimacy.

“Goo.. is everything okay?” breaking the silence, your words slipped out with hesitation. Seeking a reply to an already obvious answer. There was a long pause, the seconds stretching into an eternity. Amidst the quiet, there was subtle murmur of dubiety⁶. Then, finally, a sound that cuts through the hush— a soft shift, the slightest of movement that spoke loudly in the muted space. The room itself held its breath, ambiance caught in a delicate flash.

“You don’t have to talk, it's okay,” you reassured, words laced with gentle understanding. In the stillness, your voice offered a comfort to bridge the tense gap. Once more, you guessed the role of your silent companion, seeking to provide solace⁷ in the face of unexpressed turmoil. You scoot close to him, navigating the emotional distance as you close the gap physically. Even though he was still turned away, your hands delicately snake over his face, fingers gently securing into a hug. Head pressed against the borrowed collared shirt that carried a faint smell of metallic blood and the overwhelming stench of debris and sweat.

As your hands intertwined one another, you could almost feel the tension dissolve. His once stiff body melted into your touch, a shared vulnerability that bounded you both. The room, suspended in a graceful balance between the unspoken and the understood. The final vestiges⁸ of unease lifted like a veil, as his soft breath matches yours.

You were radiant to him. Your patience, a beacon to contradict his sea of antics, served as a guiding light to his jungle of unpredictability. No matter the circumstances that painted the canvas of your existence, the relationship you have with Goo never wavered, You were like a dock he could come home to, an steadfast anchor, a haven that weathered the storms of his nature, the sun to his cold winter days.

(adj.) facetious² | treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor; flippant.

(adj.) fervid³ | intensely enthusiastic or passionate, especially to an excessive degree.

(n.) exuberance⁴ | the quality of being full of energy, excitement, and cheerfulness; ebullience.

(advv.) loquaciously⁵ | a tendency to talk a lot

(n.) dubiety⁶ | the state or quality of being doubtful; uncertainty.

(n.) solace⁷ | comfort or consolation in a time of distress or sadness.

(n.) vestiges⁸ | a trace of something that is disappearing or no longer exists.

#goo kim x reader #goo kim #kim joongoo x reader #kim joongoo #lookism #lookism x reader #idk what im doing #me after not writing for 3 years and coming back to write this?#goo is little spoon lol

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cadybear420 · 11 months ago

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Cadybear's Reviews- Surrender

Ohhh yeah, bitches. It's time for a JUICY review. My first review of a PooPoo Tier book. Just a heads up, this one is gonna get VERY salty.

Welcome to the thirty-fourth official Cadybear's Reviews! Today I'll be talking about Surrender, which I have ranked on the "PooPoo Tier" at 1 star out of a possible 10. My last and only playthrough of this was around February-June 2022 (for the first book) and October 2023 (for the second book).

Holy crap, this series is awful. Like, actually the worst of the whole app, in my opinion.

It shot itself in the foot from the very start– you can’t have MC be trying to escape a toxic marriage, but have her new endgame love interest be just as bad if not worse than the ex spouse. Reagan literally talks to her as if she’s already their sub from day fucking one. And even worse, MC wants to be Reagan’s sub barely even a few chapters later, so it can almost be read as if Reagan coerced her into BDSM.

And there was literally no reason to default MC to being a sub here. Okay, I guess it technically does set up the plot for Book 2 where Reagan is refusing to give up control, but saying it doesn’t make sense for the MC to not wanna dom at first is kinda bullshit. The writers say in their blog post about Surrender 1 that “It wouldn’t make sense for her to dom right away”, yet they’re okay with making her sub right away? Other than Reagan basically coercing her into the sub role, there’s nothing given about MC’s character that suggests she couldn’t have had interest in the dom role (or both, as a switch role) at first.

Truth be told, I’d have much preferred if they let MC have options to try either of the roles and let the player build up her role as sub, dom, switch, sub-leaning, dom-leaning, etc. Especially since MC is supposed to be A) new to BDSM and B) freshly divorced after seeing her toxic spouse cheat on her. So let her take the time to explore and try out what she likes. That would be far more believable for the story and a far more immersive experience for the players. I get that said options wouldn’t have allowed for the arc of Reagan learning to give up some control, but surely they still could have done something creative for a more choice-based system.

Book 2 does have us start to try a more dominant role, but it’s honestly meaningless. Because all that book does is, it doubles down on how toxic of a partner Reagan is.

Yes, I know they do give some context for Reagan having control issues with their parents’ own abusive relationship, but as someone who has been in a fairly similar situation, it’s handled horribly. Their behaviors feel like they’re treated more as just an inconvenience or a minor hiccup, rather than genuinely toxic and abusive behaviors.

Like, here’s all the shit Reagan does in Book 2. They go behind MC’s back to pull strings for her to get that job but then deliberately convinces her that she got it all on her own, constantly acts incredibly infantilizing to her, tries to enforce BDSM-style rules outside of the bedroom to the point where they straight up forbid her from doing a part of her own job, and– probably the worst of them all– literally tells MC “when a woman agrees to be my sub, she agrees to obey”. Honest to God, just that line right there was enough to put this series on my permanent Choices shitlist.

And funnily enough, the series just almost got a chance to avoid it! After that awful line, MC finally gets some self-respect and dumps Reagan over their controlling behavior, and for a few chapters she has a big girls’ getaway trip with Malorie and (optionally) Reese (funnily enough the next book to be released after Surrender 2 is Getaway Girls). And let me tell you they’re the best chapters of this series and I enjoyed it to the max. It was the only part of the book I was willing to spend diamonds on.

Now, had MC left Reagan for good– or at least had a proper talk with Reagan– then I might move this series up a view tiers. Unfortunately, it’s all downhill from there.

Reagan refuses to take accountability for MC leaving them, and then proceeds to make Anderson track MC down on her trip when they learn she might be taking a job in Seattle. Holy fuck PB, Reagan is literally just Pat Ransic 2.0. In fact, I think they’re much worse actually.

And what makes it all tragic is that the ending, in theory, could have worked. Reagan does apologize, they do talk things out, Reagan does become more willing to give up control, and we are allowed to choose if we want to be dom, sub, or switch.

It seems all well and good, except for one little problem: it doesn’t feel earned in the slightest, especially not when the two become engaged at the end of the book (the one time MC is the one who proposes to LI, and it’s in the shittiest Choices book that ever smelled like shit), barely even a chapter after their conversation. Which, by the way, only happened because Reagan tracked MC down on her getaway trip to Vegas. It’s rushed as all hell, and that’s putting it lightly.

Not only that, but even though Reagan’s behaviors are addressed (or rather, lampshaded), it’s only part of the problem. Grant and Ray’s relationship, the relationship that the writers try to parallel with Reagan and MC’s relationship and that Reagan used to justify going back to MC, was a seemingly healthy relationship where they had struggles making things work, but they weren’t toxic.

Reagan and MC’s relationship is straight up toxic from the start– again, they acted incredibly predatory towards MC on the very day they met, and their relationship has been filled with nothing but toxicity. And MC fails to realize this, even when calling out Reagan– which is why I don’t think the story really treats the full situation with enough seriousness. The story doesn’t just shoot itself in the foot– it shoots itself in both of its legs AND its free arm, so many times that it’s too late to even amputate them because it’s already died from bleeding out so goddamn much (I know that sounds pretty extreme, but you get the idea).

Also, to add acid to all of the many wounds, this series was the perfect opportunity to let us have a pegging scene. But outside of one scene in Book 2 where you can mention MC wanting to use a strap-on, we don’t seem to get that. Oh, but they’re perfectly fine with writing Reagan blowing on MC’s cooch despite that that’s a huge risk for an air embolism which is potentially lethal. (Granted someone did say MC can use anal beads on Reagan in the finale scene if you choose MC to be a dom; but I played that scene, after having chosen MC to be dom, and uh… there was no option).

You know what though, this series isn’t good enough to have pegging anyways. The only pegging Reagan deserves is a pegging in the face with a fucking hammer.

Fuck this series. What a waste of potential.

#choices stories you play #choices #choices game #choices stories we play fandom #choices stories we play #surrender 2 #surrender #choices surrender #anti surrender #fuck surrender #choices sr 2 #choices sr #sr #cadybear's reviews

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roxannarambles · 1 year ago

Text

Title: Wings of a Butterfly, Eye of the Tiger (Part 4)

Ship: Nemona x Juliana (Julinemo/Terajules)

Summary: Nemona and Juliana just can’t resist returning to Area Zero once more. They find new places to explore, new pokemon to discover, and a new things to learn … about pokemon battling, but also about each other. (Sequel to Picnic in Paradise)

Chapters: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Tags: Slowburn, Romance, Friendship, Crushes, Action/Adventure, Pokemon Battles, Fakemon

“What the heck kind of Tera type is that?!” Nemona yelled, eyes wide.

“Umm, I have no idea!”

“So we’re seeing a brand-new type?! Holy crap! Jules, this– this is incredible!”

Nemona’s eyes were gleaming nearly as bright as the Terastallized pokemon.

“Y-yeah, but–”

The dragon opened its mouth and expelled a cloud of flames. You yelped and backed away, grabbing Nemona’s hand and dragging her with you. You were able to escape the reach of the flames, although you could feel the wall of heat they put out. Hellcat snarled, agitated by the attack. Nemona said,

“Aw geez. I’m sorry Hellcat, this has been a real trial by fire for you, hasn’t it?”

Hellcat clearly wanted to fight back, but the Roaring Moon was still out of reach, floating above the pit of blackness.

“Jules, what secondary type did this thing have?”

“Dark! I think.”

“Ok. Hmm, if it’s gonna keep us at arm’s length like this, we’re gonna have to send something out to meet it!”

You looked at your assortment of pokeballs, exclaiming,

“But what? We have no idea what Tera type it is!”

“That’s true, but it’s okay, we’re just gonna have to improvise!” She selected one of her pokeballs and looked to you, asking,

“You ready?”

“I-I, um . . .” You struggled to make your selection, flustered over having to deal with so many unknowns.

From the sky, Roaring Moon began to fly in several looping circles, its body glowing in a purple light. Nemona’s confident expression slipped.

“Crap, it’s Dragon Dancing! Juliana, we gotta hurry!”

“Right, right, sorry, ready!”

You both tossed a ball, Nemona releasing her Flutter Mane, you sending out the new Screech Tails.

“Moonblast!”

“Dazzling Gleam!”

The pair of fairies floated out to meet the dragon, one on either side of it. Roaring Moon shrieked, lunging forward and swinging one of its mighty forearms, its glittering talons shredding into Flutter Mane like it was tissue paper. It fainted instantly.

“Dangit!”

Nemona’s pokemon may have been cut short before it could get an attack off, but your Screech Tails took advantage of the momentary distraction, firing off a Dazzling Gleam before Roaring Moon could do anything more.

You could hear a loud crash like shattering glass, and the air was filled with shards of crystal spraying in all directions. You and Nemona watched in shock as Roaring Moon returned to its usual form, looking momentarily stunned as it drifted there in the air. You said,

“Already? Whoa, that didn’t last long.”

“Guess Roaring Moon doesn’t have much stamina. Try to lure it over here with the next attack so we can catch it!”

You nodded.

“Okay. Uh, I don’t think it can take another Dazzling Gleam, though, and Psychic won’t work. Uhmm . . . Screech Tails! This way, come back over here!”

You waved a berry at it, trying to draw it over. You’d literally just captured this pokemon, after all, and hadn’t had much time to train it yet. Fortunately, Screech Tails slowly drifted back towards you, drooling.

Unfortunately, Roaring Moon had finished shaking itself from its daze. Its yellow eyes narrowed, locked onto the puffy pink fairy.

“Uh-oh. Screech Tails, use . . . umm, something else!”

You hadn’t actually had the chance to see its full moveset yet. Screech Tails’ eyes began to glow pink, its tails drifting upwards.

“No, no, not Psychic–”

The ferocious dragon swooped at your pokemon, roaring as it closed in, but its body phased clean through Screech Tails as if it wasn’t even there. The dragon slammed into the cave wall, the ground trembling with the force, causing you and Nemona to jump. Screech Tails unleashed its energy at its foe, but it was a futile effort.

“Try again Screech Tails, use something else, quick!”

Roaring Moon righted itself and turned about, apparently too bent on revenge to bother with anyone else for the moment. It slashed its long claws into Screech Tails, doing some heavy damage. In return, Screech Tails fearlessly bit down on the dragon’s arm, latching on with its fangs. This only seemed to tick the dragon off, though, and it bit and slashed at Screech Tails with its other arm, wrestling in the air above you and Nemona. Your friend called,

“Now’s probably our best chance, start throwing balls!”

Your Screech Tails fainted soon after she’d shouted it anyway; she chucked a pokeball and it drew the dragon inside. It released immediately and you started throwing balls as well. Eventually, one of your Dusk Balls captured it successfully. You picked up the ball, then turned to Nemona. With a little smile, you said,

“Well . . . looks like you got your Roaring Moon.”

Nemona grabbed you and answered gleefully,

“Not just a Roaring Moon, but a new Tera type too?! Let it out, we gotta see it in action!!”

You laughed,

“Okay, okay. I guess since we can’t explore further anyway, we might as well . . . um . . . uh . . . N-nemona?”

“What?”

You pointed wordlessly behind her. She turned to face the tunnel that had been previously blocked by the large, dense cluster of crystals.

There was now no trace of the crystals.

“What??” She turned to you. “How–”

“I don’t know.”

She went to stand in the tunnel, looking around.

“We’re not crazy, right? They were just here!”

You went to stand beside her.

“Yeah, they were. I dunno what to say.”

It wasn’t like they had broken up during the course of the battle, either; there would have been shards all over if they had. It was like they’d just . . . vanished. You both scratched your heads a bit puzzling over it. Nemona guessed,

“Maybe it had to do with the Roaring Moon we fought? That’s the only thing I can think of. It did have that weird Tera type, so maybe it’s connected somehow?”

You shrugged.

“Honestly, in the absence of any other information, that seems as good an explanation as any. It’s the only thing that really changed since I last saw the crystals . . .”

Nemona hummed, nodding. Then she turned to you and said brightly,

“Well, let’s not look a gift Mudsdale in the mouth, we can keep going now!”

“You sure? I thought you wanted to check out our Roaring Moon.”

“I do! I’m so excited I could puke, but I also wanna keep exploring just as much. I mean, we don’t have endless time down here and we’re already this far in, right? It might be now or never.”

She had a good point; you weren’t even sure if you two could return again after today, if your transgressions were discovered somehow.

You nodded.

“Ok. No getting side-tracked, let’s keep going until we no longer can.”

“All right! Let’s go, Hellcat.”

The tunnel took you down to another room that was more confined, with a much lower ceiling. The good news was there were several directions with additional tunnels in here. The bad news was they all seemed to be blocked by the same dense crystal formations. You and Nemona looked around for a while, frustrated to be met with more roadblocks so soon. There weren’t any wild pokemon lurking about, but you did eventually notice a small gap much higher up, towards the ceiling.

“Hey what about up there?” you asked. Nemona looked to the corner you were pointing towards.

“Oh, hey, nice eye! Maybe there’s a way through.”

It took some climbing to scramble up there, but it was only the work of a few minutes. Well, for you and Nemona, anyway. Hellcat bounded up there in just a few clean leaps, taking mere seconds. You were jealous.

“Man, you ever wish you were a pokemon?” you asked, watching Hellcat venturing ahead of you.

“Oh my god yes, like all the time!” Nemona answered immediately,

“Can you imagine battling as a pokemon?! That would be SO much fun.”

You chuckled. Of course that was the first thing she’d think of. The pair of you followed after Hellcat into the small gap, going deeper into the cave.

“What pokemon would you be if you could choose?” you asked her.

“I dunno, there’s too many to pick from! That’s like trying to decide my favorite type, I’ve never really been able to. Mmm, it’d be so cool to be a giant dragon with all that raw power, but what about something small and super agile that can shoot lightning? Or something that breathes fire? Or can punch a hole through a mountain! And that’s not even touching on all the cool abilities . . .”

“I think I’d wanna be something that can fly.”

“Flying, yeah!! Oh man, there’s just too many choices.”

The small tunnel you were following kept narrowing and snaking around.

“Well maybe they’ll make a machine one day that lets us be a pokemon for a while.”

“Haha, if they do, I’ll be the first in line, I can promise you that!”

The tunnel finally fed into a room: as you entered, you found it was a cramped space with a low ceiling coated in a ton of tera crystal. The crystals occurred in big lumpy sections, covering the floors, walls and ceiling in seemingly random places.

The most eye-catching thing about the room, however, was that the ground was absolutely covered in tera shards.

Normally, whenever a Terastallized pokemon battles and their tera form is broken, it sheds a bunch of tiny pieces in the process. Usually those pieces are tiny and brittle, though, and people call those tera fragments. Tera shards, however, were the much rarer, higher-quality pieces that sometimes were dropped by pokemon. These pieces were of such high quality that if you collected enough of them, a Pokemon’s Tera typing could be changed with their power. That made them incredibly valuable. Finding them was very uncommon, though– normally it takes a lot of battling, although if you were lucky you’d occasionally just find them laying around.

This was most assuredly not a normal number of tera shards to just happen across, though. There had to be hundreds of pieces packed into the small space you were now standing in. What’s more, they were shards of almost every type; dragon, fire, psychic, bug, rock, poison, ice . . . the floor covered in an assortment of colors, shimmering like stardust.

“Uhhmmm . . .” you said, staring in disbelief at the cache. Hellcat was sniffing around curiously at the ground. Nemona’s eyes were as wide as saucers.

“Is this for real? Juliana, there’s . . . this . . . there’s hundreds of them . . .”

You reached down and picked up a handful of the precious gems as easy as grabbing a handful of sand. Something suddenly sprung into your memory from your classes from months back, when you’d first arrived. “Remember the rumors that there was treasure hidden in Area Zero?”

Nemona laughed. She still sounded in shock.

“I never imagined they were true. We could change the Tera type of any of our pokemon with all this! Multiple times over!”

That sounded pretty good to you; there were a few ideas you wanted to experiment with in terms of the tera typings on your team. You pulled the bag off your back and zipped it open.

“Guess we better start collecting, then!”

You both started to stuff tera shards into your backpacks like hungry Sableye grabbing fistfuls of treasure. Before long your bags were laden heavy with them.

“I’m actually starting to feel kinda bad about this. I don’t think we should take them all . . .” Nemona said, looking down into her backpack. Your backpack was much larger than hers, but even yours would soon reach its limit.

“I don’t think we can take it all, anyway. But I don’t see a reason to feel bad, I mean, it’ll just sit down here in the dark if we don’t take them, right? Might as well put them to use.”

“I guess . . .”

You headed over to another part of the small room that had an especially large pile of Steel shards and began to shovel them into your bag.

“I can’t help wondering if there’s a reason they’re here, though. It’s almost like they were put here on purpose? There’s so many of them,” Nemona said, still sounding reluctant. You answered,

“Maybe. But if somebody put them down here, it was probably a really long time ago. Area Zero’s been off-limits to most people for ages now.”

You were digging deep into the pile of steel shards, and were uncovering what looked like some shimmery rainbow shards beneath it. Ooh, you’d never seen shards like that before? From behind you, Nemona said,

“Yeah . . . but it’s also possible whoever put these here weren’t human . . .”

When you tried to grab the rainbow tera shards, you realized the shape didn’t feel right– and then they moved in a sudden jerk, and there were a pair of eyes staring back at you. You yelped, falling backwards as a brilliant flash filled the room. Nemona commanded,

“Hellcat, in front, quick!”

The large tiger leapt in front of you, snarling as the bright rays of light struck it in the chest, the air sparkling with tera energy from the attack. Nemona was at your side a second later, helping to pull you to your feet.

“Jules, are you okay?!”

You nodded quickly, looking back at what attacked you.

“What was that?”

Beneath the pile of tera shards, the glittering figure of a Terastallized pokemon appeared, pieces of shards falling aside as it stood on all fours and shook itself off. Its body was small and slender and very catlike: it seemed to be short-haired, but it had jagged, star-shaped tufts of fur on the tips of its large ears, by each of its paws, the tip of its tail, on its cheeks and at a small ruff of fur around its neck. Its almond-shaped eyes were bright like polished opal, and it had a small spiral horn at the center of its forehead. It was crowned with the same Tera Jewel as the Roaring Moon had been, decorated in a rainbow of colors.

Hellcat looked eager to attack, growling at the pokemon and bearing its long fangs, but Nemona held up a hand, saying,

“Just a second, Hellcat, let’s take a look at it first. Whoa . . .”

The wild pokemon blinked its eyes, a soft, ethereal light glowing gently around it. You didn’t recognize the move, but at least it seemed to be fairly passive.

“Nemona, am I crazy or does this pokemon look like–”

“--an Eeveelution?” “Y-yeah!”

“Yeah, no, you’re not crazy, it looks exactly like one.”

“Oh my god.”

She nodded, grinning.

“My thoughts exactly. Okay, Hellcat–”

You touched her wrist, saying,

“Wait!”

“Hm? What?”

You looked back at the pokemon, which was simply standing there, its piercing gaze watching the three of you closely as its tail swished back and forth.

“It seems pretty peaceful. I think I just startled it, when I thought its ear was a tera shard and I tried to grab it.”

Nemona turned to you and answered,

“Well yeah but you still wanna catch it, don’t you??”

You nodded,

“Yeah, of course, I just. I dunno, for some reason I feel kinda bad. We came into its home and robbed it, woke it up and now we’re gonna battle it?”

Nemona blinked at you for a few moments and you felt silly for even saying it until she answered,

“Well when you put it like that, I feel a little bad too . . .”

You looked at your backpack, slumped on the ground and spilling out treasure.

“I guess we could try to leave it be . . . give it back its tera shards?”

The thought clearly seemed to pain Nemona– mostly the idea of not catching the new pokemon, you imagined– but after a few moments she smiled a little and nodded.

“Okay.”

She turned and called out to the pokemon.

“Sorry for disturbing you. We, um, we didn’t know this was your home. We’ll go if you want us to . . .”

The pokemon stared at her, motionless. You went to cautiously pick up your bag, backing away.

“Yeah, and we’ll give you the shards back if you–”

The pokemon jerked, turning to you and giving a cry. It sounded very high-pitched and rhythmic, like glass wind-chimes, but it didn’t sound happy. You looked down at the bag in your hands and stammered,

“N-no, wait, I’m going to give them back, I was just–”

“Jules, look out!”

Colored little balls of light began to fill the air above the wild pokemon. They looked quite beautiful, actually, but you knew better than to be fooled. You scrambled to get out of the way as fast as possible. Nemona yelled,

“Hellcat, quick, Dire Claw!”

Hellcat sprung forward, raking its claws across the mysterious Eeveelution. The colored balls of light started to rain down on Hellcat in quick streaks, like shooting stars, each strike sparkling with tera energy as it landed. The accumulated damage was incredible, the tiger swaying weakly on its paws by the end of the onslaught.

“Holy crap. This thing’s no joke!” Nemona said, eyes wide.

The Eeveelution cried out again, a vengeful little melody. It looked at you and Nemona, its eyes shining like diamonds, power gathering around its body from all around in a big, glittering swirl.

It looked like it was preparing to Tera Blast.

“Oh my god. Hellcat, I need you to Thorn Fang! Now!”

Hellcat was weary but still obeyed immediately, leaping forward and biting down. The wild pokemon screamed and staggered back and there was a loud crash, fragments of tera crystal exploding in the little room as its Terastallization was broken. It seemed the wild pokemon had been stunned, interrupting its attack. You breathed,

“Geez, that was close.”

“Great job, Hellcat!” Nemona quickly turned to you, asking,

“You still want to leave it be, or should we go ahead and catch it?”

You looked back to the pokemon briefly. It looked very weak and vulnerable, and you could see poison seeping out from the wounds marring its shimmering rainbow fur. It was clear that at this point, it was much better to take it with you than to leave.

“Catch it,” you answered. You didn’t need to tell Nemona twice; she whipped out her pokeballs and immediately started throwing. After around six attempts, the ball clicked shut, and the little room you were in fell eerily silent.

You both stared for a few beats. Then Nemona went and retrieved the ball before turning to you. She held a hand over her mouth and made a muffled, excited little squeal.

“Did that really just happen? This is getting so unreal, I swear.”

“Penny’s gonna be so jealous.”

“I know! Man, I’m glad we interrupted that Tera Blast though, that probably would have been very bad in this confined space.”

You choked on a laugh.

“Yeah, we might not have been around to enjoy this.”

Nemona carried on blithely,

“And that move it used, with the colorful lights! I had no idea what it was, but wow it packed a punch. Whatever pokemon this is, it’s tough.”

You looked down at the pokeball in her hands.

“What do you think it is? An ancient version of Espeon, maybe? Or maybe Sylveon . . .”

Nemona shook her head.

“I really don’t know, it’s hard to say since it was Terastallized into that mysterious type! And it’s not like the moves it used can help us to figure it out. I saw it use Swift, Cosmic Power, and that unknown move of course. And then Tera Blast! Which . . . honestly, I thought no wild pokemon could know. I thought Sada developed the move herself.”

You gave a thoughtful hum.

“That’s a good point . . . that is weird. But I guess maybe tera energy came from a long time ago, and so these ancient pokemon know how to wield its power? She might have developed the move from them.”

“True, that would make sense! Although it doesn’t help us narrow down what this Eeveelution is.”

“Mmm, yeah. Well, I guess it doesn’t have to be an ancient version of something we already know. It could be a brand-new evolution, too. Like a Rock-type Eeveelution, maybe!”

Nemona’s eyes widened as idea struck her and she said,

“Or, or! What if it’s an evolution of whatever this new mysterious type is?? So its actual type matches its tera typing. This new tera type is all rainbow colored and stuff, right? That matches this pokemon pretty well . . .”

Your eyes widened too.

“Oh my god, yeah, that might actually be it, Nemona!”

“Heheh, right? Wouldn’t that be cool?”

You gestured at the space around you, saying,

“Well let it back out, maybe we can figure out more–”

She held up a hand, interrupting.

“Ah-ah, Juliana! Remember what we said earlier?”

You blinked, thrown off for a moment before recalling.

“. . . oh, yeah. Um, no more getting side-tracked?”

“Yeah, c’mon Jules, you know you’re like 85% of my impulse control, you can’t tempt me like that–”

You laughed,

“Okay, okay. You’re right, we shouldn’t get distracted now or we’ll never get any further.”

Nemona nodded.

“Right, and things just keep getting cooler and cooler. I wanna see how deep this rabbit hole goes.”

You grinned.

“Let’s back out of this part of the cave, then. If our theories are right about those weird crystal roadblocks, maybe a new way’s opened up out there.”

“Okay! Hellcat–”

She turned and saw Hellcat was laying on the floor, looking completely exhausted. The tiger gave a pitiful little chirp when Nemona said its name. Nemona’s eyes widened and she held a hand to her mouth.

“Ohmygosh, I’m so sorry Hellcat! I completely forgot– ugh, here, let’s get you fixed up!”

She pulled a potion from her bag and went to tend to the tiger’s wounds. Hellcat clearly wasn’t a fan of being potioned since it apparently stung.

“Come on, now, I know it’s smarts, but if you hold still it won’t take me very long . . .”

She sprayed again and the tiger snarled, bearing its huge fangs at her in a threat.

“Don’t you take that tone with me, buster! Sit down. Now.”

Hellcat backed away and sat, making a miserable grumble. She continued to gently spritz potion on the pokemon.

“Easy now, okay. We’re almost done, I promise.”

When Nemona finished, she gave Hellcat plenty of berries and praised it.

“There you go, that’s such a good kitty! These are your favorite kind, right? You like the bitter ones. You did such a good job, thank you for all your help.”

After the treats and the praise– and the potion working its magic– Hellcat seemed much happier, perking right up.

“Oh here, let’s get you a couple Leppa berries too, okay? Guess if we keep coming down here to battle and we’re keeping you a secret, we’ll be needing a lot more Leppa berries, hah. Here you go.”

Hellcat snapped the berries out of midair when Nemona tossed them.

“Sorry again for forgetting you for a minute there. I, um, I kinda get distracted sometimes.”

You spoke up,

“To be fair, so did I. I think most people would be, this is some pretty exciting stuff.”

She glanced to you.

“Mmm, still. . .”

Hellcat bumped its head against Nemona’s leg and rubbed against it, making a small rumble, before walking off and wandering back out into the connecting tunnel. Nemona stared wide-eyed after the tiger.

“Did they just . . .”

You giggled.

“I think they forgive you.”

Nemona bounded up to you and cheered,

“They like me!! They actually like me!!”

“Of course they like you, you’re amazing.”

She laughed, looking a bit shy at how readily you praised her. She glanced away and said,

“Um, let’s finish getting these tera shards, we might as well since we have the pokemon now!”

So the two of you finished filling your bags with tera shards, to the point where you had plenty but weren’t weighed down an excessive amount. Then you headed out of the secret little treasure cache room. Once you’d climbed back down to the main portion of cave where Hellcat awaited, you found that one of the paths was indeed now unblocked.

“We were right! Yessss, let’s go!”

Nemona grabbed your hand and rushed ahead with you. You laughed, Hellcat chasing after you both. When you entered the new tunnel, you found it sloped gently downwards as you traveled. There was the sound of rushing water from somewhere, and the air felt noticeably damper.

Your voice echoing in the damp, cold space, you said,

“Oh, hey, I can hear water?”

You both slowed your steps so you wouldn’t trip on the slightly wet ground.

“Yeah, it’s been a long time since we have. Guess all that water’s gotta go somewhere though, right?”

You nodded. After walking for a while, you commented,

“We really just keep going deeper, don’t we? All these tunnels have been going steadily downward.”

“Mmhmm. They keep getting more and more crystally, too, I noticed.”

You glanced around, noting just how much of the walls and ceiling were coated in tera crystal now.

“Yeah, you’re right. Plus, I dunno if this is just my imagination, but I feel like even the air is . . . more shimmery down here?”

It was the same sort of gleam that the air on the surface of Area Zero had, but it seemed thicker here, like a dense cloud of dust motes suspended in a sunbeam. Nemona agreed,

“Yeah . . . I wonder where all this stuff comes from, anyway.”

You both fell quiet for a bit, pondering the mysterious origins of the tera crystals and energy. But before your idle thoughts could formulate into anything particularly solid, the tunnel had led you to a space that opened up again to a huge ceiling and a large drop. The path led into a continuous curve heading downwards, like a massive spiral staircase. From somewhere above you, water leaked out from the ceiling, forming a waterfall that dropped down the center of the room.

“Whoa,” you said, peeking over the edge of the path. You could see the waterfall crashing into a pool of water far below. The glow of all the tera crystals reflected in the water, bouncing and shimmering, casting all kinds of mesmerizing little rainbow flecks on the cave walls.

“Forget the Ten Sights of Paldea, they don’t even come close to this,” Nemona mused.

You both began to descend the spiral path, but the floor was uneven and slippery from the damp air and so you had to be very careful. There was a portion where the stone had fallen away entirely, but a big chunk of tera crystal had fallen across the gap, acting as a precarious bridge. This was by far the most unnerving section, especially since it was too narrow to comfortably walk side-by-side holding hands. There was a pool of water below you, of course, but you couldn’t actually tell how deep it was, so there was no way knowing if it was safe to fall into. Hellcat took the bridge first, and then Nemona, and finally you, each step careful and measured on the slippery crystal. After that point, the path was comparatively easy, and you worked your way down until finally reaching the bottom.

From down here, you could see the waterfall was crashing into an elevated portion of ground, and the water was relatively shallow and rocky. In fact, you could walk along some parts of the ground until you were practically right beneath the waterfall. The elevated ground continued on for some ways like this, but you could see the water was running off into a deeper pool a bit further ahead. You both worked your way over to stand as close to the waterfall as possible, looking upwards into the room you just descended from.

“Too bad we can’t dive from the top up there,” Nemona joked. You snorted.

“I’m okay with not jumping that.”

Nemona reached her hand out and through the waterfall.

“This is incredible, though, Jules, it’s like some kind of fairy tale down here or something.”

“I know. I wonder if Sada’s ever been down this far. Or anyone, for that matter.”

Hellcat was not as impressed with the splendor laid out before you. The tiger was sitting on the highest portion of the damp rocks, looking displeased with all of the water and licking its paw. It made a little ‘hrrumph’ sound.

Nemona shook her head.

“You’re gonna have to face your fears sooner or later, Hellcat.”

The tiger glanced at her briefly, then returned to licking its paw, ignoring her. Nemona shrugged.

“Have it your way. You can hang out here while Jules and I check ahead.”

The pair of you walked as far as you could on the raised ground, sometimes hopping over rocks as stepping stones where the water was deeper, until you came across another tunnel. It led into a portion of cave with a very low ceiling and tera crystal formations that were growing wildly out of control, incredibly thick layers built up on the walls and ceiling– way more than you’d seen anywhere else. At its center seemed to be another tunnel entrance, but it was blocked by another one of the crystal roadblocks.

“Wow. The crystals are getting a little intense here, aren’t they?” Nemona said, touching the walls covered in the dense layers of pearlescent sheen.

“I’ll say. I wish it wasn’t blocked off, though. I feel like it must look really cool in there.”

“Well, maybe we can find another one of those weird Terastallized pokemon! I bet there’s one around here somewhere.”

You chuckled,

“Your hunches have all turned out correct so far, so I have no reason to doubt it. Let’s keep looking.”

Nemona seemed to love the prospect of finding yet another new pokemon.

“All right, sounds like a plan! Ooh, plus we can learn more about this mysterious new type at the same time. Hm, we need to give it a name, we can’t just keep calling it ‘the weird type,’ huh?”

You suggested,

“Maybe ‘Rainbow Type?’”

She beamed,

“Oh yeah, I love that! Or maybe ‘Light’? Since rainbows are made of light. I mean, we have Dark types, it would be so cool if there were Light types too, maybe Light would be supereffective on Dark? Oh, but that reminds me–”

She stopped walking and turned to you, excited by her new train of thought.

“The Terastallized pokemon have been confusing me. That Roaring Moon used a move that used tera energy– you can always tell when a move does ‘cause you can see the air swirling with the tera energy, you know?– I wasn’t sure what move it was though, so I thought it must be this new type, Light or Rainbow or whatever, right?”

You nodded. Nemona continued,

“But I swear when it used the move a second time, it wasn’t powered up anymore. And then that Eeveelution used Swift and it looked like the move used tera energy, too, which is like, what the heck?! Then it used that mysterious move of course, which also used tera energy. So now I don’t get it! Does it get something similar to Pixilate? Or maybe I was just seeing things, I dunno. Did it look to you like that Swift was powered up with tera energy?”

You scratched your neck and answered sheepishly.

“Well, uhm, I was kinda busy panicking at the time, so I’m not sure . . .”

“Oh, right. Pshh, sorry, of course you wouldn’t have noticed. Well it’s fine, I’m sure we’ll find out more soon. Honestly I’m so excited to face an unknown type, part of me doesn’t wanna figure it out too fast.” She laughed and added, “Is that weird?”

You thought about it and shook your head.

“Not at all. When I was exploring Paldea, every time I came across a new pokemon I loved trying to figure out what it was all about.”

You’d been ambling along the tunnel at a leisurely pace while chatting, not really in any hurry. Nemona clasped your shoulder and grinned, saying,

“Exactly, it’s like that! You don’t really want it to end, do you? I was thinking, before we battle later with our new pokemon, we should make sure to train far away from each other. That way we’ll know as little as possible about each other’s teams and there’s more surprises.”

“Sure. I like surprises.”

Her shoes splashing through the shallow water, Nemona enthused at you,

“Yeah, me too! I can’t wait to–”

A sudden, sharp cry caused the both of you to stop in your tracks and look up. Just ahead of you was a Terastallized pokemon, its colors and jewel immediately demarking it as the new Rainbow type. It stood on two legs and appeared to be some sort of raptorial dinosaur, although its slender body was covered in feathers, which included a feathery crest on its head, furls of feathers on its arms, and a long train of feathers on its tail. The pokemon stood quite tall, looking down at you and Nemona over a narrow snout with its pinched eyes and an expression that left you feeling as though it was regarding you with disdain.

You and Nemona exchanged a brief look.

“Speaking of surprises,” you said quietly. Nemona turned back to the pokemon and gushed,

“This is so cool, we’ve had the best luck with finding awesome stuff down here!”

The pokemon lowered its head a little, lips curling back to reveal sharp, needle-like teeth. A cry vibrated in its throat, rhythmic and strange-sounding, almost like a sound an exotic bird might make. Nemona was standing a little closer to the pokemon than you were, and you didn’t like the way it was looking at her at all. You muttered,

“Nemona, careful.”

“Of course. Hmm, what should I use . . . oh, I know–”

She reached to her belt to select a pokeball, but the raptor’s eyes followed the sudden movement and it reacted instantly by unfurling its massive tail.

The sight was breathtaking, dozens and dozens of long, elegant feathers creating a collective shape like a huge blooming flower or a setting sun, each feather tipped in round spots that shimmered with a brilliant, ever-shifting light; the effect was only heightened by its rainbow Terastallization. The pokemon’s tail shivered, causing the feathers to sway and bob in a very hypnotic way. In fact, the more you stared, the stranger you felt; your head grew heavy and you started to feel a sense of vertigo creeping in.

Uh-oh.

“Nemona!”

Nemona was staring at the pokemon’s tail as well, transfixed, her hand still frozen in place from when she’d been reaching for her pokeballs.

“Nemona, don’t look at it, I think it’s–”

“–too late, I, nghhh– I can’t– move,” she said through grit teeth, her body quivering with the effort, her fingers unable to even curl around her pokeball. You also tried to move and gasped, your limbs suddenly feeling as though they were as heavy as lead.

“No, no! Fight it, Nemona, one of us has to send a pokemon out!”

She grunted,

“I’m trying!”

You were trying too, but the mere act of lifting your arm was overwhelmingly difficult. You could flex your fingers but that just wasn’t enough, because you had your pokeballs all in your pockets. You slid your hands up a few inches and couldn’t get any further– it was like your body just refused to listen. It was terrifying, and you wondered if this was how pokemon felt whenever they got paralyzed.

The raptor pokemon took a few slow steps forward, its tail swaying as it moved, its eyes locked on Nemona. Power began to gather around the pokemon’s body, its tail glowing with a warm pink light. From the color you guessed it was charging a Psychic move.

“Stay away from her!” you screamed, your voice high-pitched in your panic. The pokemon didn’t listen, its tail glowing brighter and brighter, its power rapidly reaching its peak. Nemona was staring at the oncoming move with the expression of someone who realized they’d really screwed up.

You battled hopelessly against your numbed body, your head spinning as you cried,

“Nemona!”

Just as the air began to ripple with the strange energy of a psychic move, there was a shrill, furious scream and the advancing pokemon crumpled under the weight of the tiger from hell leaping onto its back. The pair crashed to the ground, Hellcat clinging to the raptor with its claws and trying to bite it, but ended up getting a mouthful of tail feathers instead. The two grappled desperately for a few moments and somehow the lithe dinosaur was able to slip away from Hellcat’s grasp, although bunches of feathers were left behind in the tiger’s claws. The raptor righted itself and turned to face its foe, flashing its mesmerizing tail feathers in Hellcat’s face.

Nemona shouted,

“Hellcat, be careful, don’t look!”

Hellcat was crouched, ready to leap and pounce, but its pupils widened and it snarled, struggling to move.

“Damnit,” Nemona cursed quietly. The raptor opened its slender mouth and let loose an enormous blast of water right into Hellcat, the force of the hit pushing the tiger back and crashing it into the wall. The air whirled with mist and glittering tera energy in the wake of the move. Nemona yelled,

“Hellcat! What the heck, now Hydro Pump gets powered up too?! This makes no sense!”

In your efforts to better see the pair of battling pokemon, you realized you were starting to get movement back in your limbs– they prickled with a painful pins-and-needles sensation but you could actually drag them along slowly.

“Nemo, I think I can move again, sort of!”

Nemona answered quickly.

“Perfect! See if you can get into my bag, the side-pouch on the left side.”

You were confused why that was a priority but you trusted her, so you inched along the ground until you reached Nemona’s back.

“Left side?”

“Yeah, there should be a yellow bottle!”

You lifted your arms slowly. A bit further ahead in the tunnel, you could see the raptor was skulking its way back up to Hellcat. Hellcat hissed. You grasped the zip of Nemona’s pack and dragged it open, fumbling about for a bit before pulling the bottle from her bag.

“That’s it, that’s it! It’s a Paralyze Heal, squirt it on yourself! Then you’ll be able to use some on me.”

“Right, okay!”

You pointed the nozzle at yourself and struggled with squeezing the handle, which they made way more difficult to use than they needed to. You could hear another blast of highly pressurized water and glanced up, seeing Hellcat snarling in pain.

“Hurry, Jules!” Finally, the dumb bottle released its contents, dribbling the medicine on your hands, which immediately made it easier to use. You were able to douse yourself quickly after that, and it felt like magic, the numbness and pins-and-needles melting away, your muscles loosening up again.

“I got it, I’ll do you now!”

You came around and used the rest of the bottle to spray Nemona all over.

“Great, perfect! More on my legs, they’re still rubbery!” You heard a vicious cry and briefly turned to see Hellcat lashing out, raking the raptor across the face with its toxic claws– then you turned back to finish dousing Nemona with the potion.

“Okay, great job Jules! Let’s go help Hellcat!”

You both approached the pair of pokemon further down the tunnel. The raptor had recovered from Hellcat’s attack and was glowing hot-pink again, preparing another move. Nemona fished around in her bag and pulled out another Paralyze Heal.

“Crap, we’re kind of on the wrong side of the battlefield here,” she realized. The raptor’s back was turned to you both, Hellcat on the other side.

You reached for your pokeballs.

“We can double team this jerk,” you suggested. The raptor finally released a ball of energy, but instead of hitting Hellcat, the energy drifted upwards into the air before simply vanishing away. It was very odd, but you didn’t have time to ponder it, because the next thing you knew, Hellcat sprang forward, sinking its fangs into the dinosaur’s neck.

The Terastallization shattered, coating the ground in little rainbow fragments. The wild pokemon staggered backwards, groaning.

“Or, um, nevermind, looks like Hellcat has it covered,” you laughed.

“Great work, Hellcat! We’ll take it from here,” Nemona shouted, chucking a pokeball at the raptor. The ball missed, bouncing off a rock instead. Nemona’s eyes widened and she looked embarrassed.

“Uh, hm, whoops– I haven’t bungled a throw like that for a while . . .”

You looked at how she was holding her braced arm and said,

“I don’t think I potioned you enough, it might be the lingering effects of paralysis. Don’t worry, I’ll get this one.”

She nodded,

“Right, thanks Jules!”

A few Dusk Balls later, and the raptor was safely contained in your pocket. Nemona quickly went to Hellcat once the coast was clear. The tiger was limping from the paralysis and drenched from the Hydro Pumps, looking quite pathetic, but it still allowed Nemona to crouch down and douse it with a Paralyze Heal.

“There you go, this should help. You did so good, Hellcat! You really saved my skin, thank you so much!”

When she’d finished with the potion, Hellcat could move freely again. It shook water from its body vigorously, then butted its head affectionately against Nemona’s. The tiger wasn’t quite aware of its own strength and had bonked Nemona hard enough for her to land on her butt with an “oof,” but she didn’t seem to mind in the least; in fact, she seemed over the moon.

“You’re such a good kitty, you faced all that water and battled through the paralysis just for us,” she said, petting the oversized cat behind the ears. You could hear a deep rumble and at first you worried Hellcat was growling, but then you realized it was purring.

“Jules, do you hear that?” Nemona whispered, eyes wide with wonder and joy. You nodded.

“I guess it took almost dying for them to realize they like you,” you teased.

“Oh pssh, we didn’t almost die, it was just–”

She paused when there was a strange crackling noise. You both looked up to see a sphere of pink energy materializing out of nowhere in the air above your heads. Nemona’s eyes widened.

“Crap– Hellcat, MOVE!”

You didn’t know what was going on, but Nemona was sitting on the ground and there was clearly very little time, so you lurched forward and helped yank her to her feet and scramble out of the path of the oncoming orb of energy. Hellcat leapt aside as well, and the orb smashed into the ground, a wave of pink tera energy swirling and sizzling before dissipating, leaving behind a sizable impact crater.

You just stared at the crater for a few seconds, blinking. Nemona let out a sigh. At your confused look, she said,

“Future Sight. Forgot about that, haha . . .”

“Oh,” you said, once it had sunk in,

“Isn’t that a base 120 power move?”

Nemona nodded. You added,

“And uhm, it seemed powered up with tera energy . . .”

She laughed weakly.

“Apparently.”

You looked at Nemona again, your expression one of great dismay.

“Nemona, I think that maybe counts as almost dying!”

“Well it does now. Maybe she should, um, take a quick breather.”

You nodded.

“Yeah, good idea.”

The pair of you walked back to the chamber with the really intense crystal growth to check and see if the way was now clear for travel. However, oddly enough, the crystal roadblock had not budged. It didn’t make much sense, since you’d captured the Rainbow Tera pokemon in the area. You both took the opportunity to rest for a bit, though, sitting on a crystal and snacking on trail mix. You helped apply more Paralyze Heal to Nemona and Hellcat groomed itself so that its fur was all fixed up from its last encounter.

After your rest, you walked back to the section of cave with the big waterfall, searching for any more pokemon along the way. There were a few Carbink and Glimmora drifting around, but no other Rainbow Teras in sight.

“I’m not sure where else to look. It’s so weird that the one we captured didn’t do it,” you mused, sitting by the waterfall and watching the Carbink floating around. Nemona peered further into the cave and suggested,

“Well, how about we explore this river? It looks like it goes for quite a ways back there, we might find something.”

You stood and came beside her, looking into the water.

“Worth a try. Looks like it goes pretty deep, I’ll get us some help.”

You pulled a pokeball from your pocket, sending Koraidon out. The big lizard looked excited to be let loose again, trilling happily and stomping through puddles, sniffing around.

“Okay, Scarlet, you ready to go for a swim?”

He immediately turned and ran up to you, eager. You patted him and then hopped aboard, followed by Nemona, who settled onto Koraidon’s flat back right behind you.

“I doubt Hellcat’s as excited for a swim as Scarlet is, so I think it’s time they rested in their ball for a bit,” Nemona said, pulling out a pokeball and recalling the tiger.

“Probably a good idea. You all set, then?” you asked.

“Yup!”

“Okay then, let’s go, Scarlet!”

Koraidon waded out into the still waters. The water got deeper very quickly, so the pokemon switched to a dog paddle. It was impossible to tell exactly how far the underground river continued on; when you gazed ahead through the narrow channel, the view was eventually obscured in the dimness of the cavern. You felt a little thrill over venturing into the unknown, despite the fact you’d been doing it for a while now; maybe it was the sort of thing that just never got old. As Scarlet carried you both onward through the waterlogged tunnel, the ceiling grew lower and lower, until it was barely higher than your heads. The number of crystals in the cave walls and ceiling also decreased, so there were far fewer gems to throw out their light– as a result, it became much darker. Most of the light came from the tera crystals growing under water, casting a soft, ethereal glow to the cave around you that was more diffused and mysterious than the usual glow from the rest of the cave. You told Koraidon to slow down, moving through the narrow, dark tunnel at a leisurely pace. For a while, there was only the sound of water dripping from the ceiling and the gentle, soothing paddle of Koraidon’s feet through the water.

“It’s so pretty here,” you said softly, gazing around at how the water cast rippling shades of green and blue onto the walls. It reminded you a little of photographs you’d seen of the aurora borealis. Nemona agreed,

“I know. It feels so magical and secluded through this part, doesn’t it?”

“Mm-hmm, exactly.”

You breathed the damp air deeply, just enjoying how peaceful it felt to drift through the tunnel. The slowly shifting colors of the water were almost hypnotic to watch. You relaxed in your seat, letting yourself lean back a little against Nemona. She didn’t seem to mind at all, wrapping her arms around you in response, in a way she sometimes did when you were both racing on Koriadon’s back together. You secretly reveled in the feeling whenever she did it, probably far more than she realized.

Nemona giggled,

“I just thought of what this reminds me of, it’s kinda like one of those Tunnel of Love rides, right? Like the ones at the fairs.”

You froze perfectly still, the heat rising to your cheeks. Why’d she say that at this exact moment?

“U-uh . . . y-yeah,” you said, trying to fake a laugh, but it came out sounding more like a squawk. Nemona seemed to sense your unease.

“Oh, sorry if that was weird, it just popped into my head . . .”

You forced your voice to sound more normal and quickly answered,

“N-no, it’s not weird, I-I mean you’re right, they are kinda similar!”

It came out a little more forcefully than normal. Damnit, over-compensated. Lucky for you, Nemona didn’t pick up on it. Instead she just said,

“Yeah! Although I’d say this place is way prettier. Feels more special, too.”

You cleared your throat and agreed,

“Definitely.”

Koraidon slowly followed the bend in the tunnel, curving around a large crystal growing out of the water that had managed to reach the surface and grow beyond it. There was something brighter you could see up ahead, and you both subconsciously leaned forward, curious. Koraidon carried you until the narrow tunnel fed you into a room that opened up wide, your view suddenly expanding to a dazzling underground lake filled with long, sloping tera crystals framing the cave walls. At the center of the lake was a small island, dominated by a single, lonely oak tree.

The tree was completely encased in tera crystal, everything from its trunk to its branches to every one of its leaves– all of it translucent-blue, a rainbow of colors reflecting along all of its smooth surfaces. It looked frozen in time, a silent witness to bygone eras.

“Oh my gosh,” Nemona murmured from behind you. Koraidon paddled slowly out to the center of the lake, affording you a great view of the entire area. It was almost impossible to tell which crystals were growing beneath the perfectly clear, still waters and which were reflected from the ones growing on the ceiling above. It was an incredible feeling, just being in this place and taking it all in, perhaps the first living creatures to be here in eons. Your skin prickled in goosebumps at the thought.

You felt Nemona’s arms squeeze gently around you, and her voice came in a gentle hush in your ears.

“I’m so glad we slowed down to enjoy this, tesoro.”

Your goosebumps spread further, but now for different reasons.

“Me too,” you answered her softly. Nemona’s chin came to rest against the top of your head, her body pressed entirely against your back, and as you floated together in that sparkling cavern, you thought perhaps this was the best moment you’ve had in life for a while now.

Neither of you saw the triangular dorsal fin sticking up out of the surface of the water, silently slicing through the smooth, still waters. Even Koraidon didn’t notice, not until it was too late.When the calm waters were torn asunder with an ear-splitting roar, you and Nemona tossed violently from Koraidon’s back, the only thing you could think was Are you kidding me, NOT AGAIN–!

#pokemon #pokemon s/v #pokemon scarlet/violet #2nd person Juliana POV #julinemo #terajules #juliana x nemona #nemona x juliana #julinemo fanfic #fakemon

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sanvirtheobserver · 3 months ago

Text

Taking Flight, Chapter 59: They Are Here, Part 4

Just outside the house, the others patiently wait for an update from the away team. Melony is tending to an anxious Shroomy while FM, Mario, and Meggy play a game of Cards.

FM: Got any threes?

Meggy: Go Fish. How about you, Red?

Mario: *mental windows startup noises*

Their game is interrupted when what can best be described as the LIGHT OF GOD erupts out of the second floor wall. The beam streaks across the sky, clips an airliner by the wing, passes over the Showgrounds, and lands directly onto Bowser's new Airship.

Bowser: Oh for God's sake, I JUST PAID THAT OFF!

The light fades and reveals a smoldering hole in the top floor. Inside, we see the smoldering remnants of the monster sizzle away into dust, leaving Tari and the Anti Spook Squad victorious. Tari falls onto her knees as she tries to get her bearings. Channeling all that energy into the gun has left her rather winded. She feels a large hand pull her back up to her feet.

Heavy: Little girl is credit to team!

Tari: Oh, um, thanks. It was nothing really.

Soldier pulls himself back up and dusts off some ascendant ash from his coat. He peers out of the blast hole and down to the rest of the group below, all of which are still rather shocked apart from Mario who holds up a random three of clubs.

Mario: UNO!

Bob's head peaks out of the stairwell.

Bob: Hey guys, did you find anything- holy s*** what the hell happened up here?

He comes up to see the massive hole, Tari being all wobbly, and Engi square dancing because why not.

Bob: Well, call everybody inside and get downstairs. Crabcakes found something in the basement. Something BIG.

The whole crew makes their way down the damp and chilly stairway. Shroomy is still shaking as he keeps his shotgun at the ready. At the bottom they see Lykoa waiting for them in what appears to be an underwater garage, complete with a small submarine docked above a moon pool.

FM: *whistles* Joe seriously spared no expense on this place, did he?

Lykoa: Here, friends.

Tari and Melony follow him into a room on the north side, with the Squad following closely behind. The sight was........ a sight, tp be sure. The room itself was made of polished black stone, and at its center was a large apparatus of rings within rings holding crystaline lenses. Bob is the next to arrive on the scene.

Bob: So, any ideas as to what all this is?

To the side of the room was a mass of green crystal cubes radiating with an emerald glow. Melony notices a note stuck to the pile.

Melony: Hm........ "Remember to say hi to your uncle for me. Safe travels...... Dad." Mr. Boopkins built this place?

Tari approaches the green mass. She could feel the immense energy radiating from its interconnecting facets.

Tari: What is this stuff?

Lykoa plucks a cube from the mass with the upmost care.

Lykoa: Ionic Crystals. It is said that a single one of these cubes contains enough energy to power a large Ketch........ and reduce a small moon to ash.

Tari: But why would Boopkins need...... ANY of this?

Boopkins: And how the hell did Joe even afford this crap?

Tari approaches the mechanism at the room's center. Whatever it was, there didn't seem to be any way of controlling this thing as far as she could tell. There did seem to be a point of power here, though. She pulls the Compass from her pocket. It began to hum and glow as she fiddled with the dials and pearls, until the lever on its side flicks out with an audible click. She takes a few steps back before facing the Compass forward....... and clicks the lever. A spectrum of light appears before her as an interweaving lattice of beams forms into a solid disc with an incandescent sheen. She looks back to see the others gathering behind her.

Tari: Only one way to find out.

Tari is the first to emerge on the other side of the portal. The rest follow suit as they all find themselves on a long black stone bridge. A monolithic triangular fortress stood before them, indescribably ancient and disturbingly titanic. Infernal patterns dotted its surface, seeming to almost glow beneath the two black suns hanging above in a caustic yellow sky.

Mario: Oooooooh nooooooo.

Spy: MY *sips wine* GOD.

Soldier: Sweet land of liberty.

Heavy: Heavy cannot believe eyes! Oh, this is bad!

Engi: ..........Cute.

The sense of dread was as pure and potent as sunshine soaking through your skin. Every instinct told Tari to run and not look back for the sake of her sanity, yet she finds herself petrified by the malefic sight before her. It's only when she notices Bob marching towards the citadel that she snaps out of her daze.

Tari: Bob!? What the hell are you doing!?

He looks back to the others. His gaze was as cold as steel.

Bob: I didn't come all this way just to s*** my pants and run.

Mario: You must be coo coo crazy!

Bob: Nobody asked for your opinion, Mario! If you're all too pissy to go forward, the door is right there.

He racks back the charging handle on his SMG.

Bob: My best friend is in there, and I'll turn this whole place inside out to get him back. Either help me or stay out of my way. I don't care.

His words rang true to Tari. This isn't just about fighting aliens and saving the world. It's about helping a friend in need. The oppressive atmosphere of this place suddenly had no sway over.

Tari: Bob is right. We didn't come all this way just to give up, now. These invaders made a big mistake coming into our home and taking our friends!

The sense of dread slowly receded from the crowd, giving way to a collective sense of determination as everybody readies their weapons and Engi brings out the Sniper from earlier. Again, we don't question it.

Sniper: Apples.

Tari looks back to Bob, and they both share a nod as she draws her glaive.

Tari: Let's get in there, and teach these freaks you don't mess with Earth!

The crowd roars into a frenzy as Tari charges forth.

Tari: LET'S DO THIS!!!!

And so the whole group charges across the monolithic bridge and towards the fortress. A chorus of valiant battle cries echo through the air like am anthem of war and determination as they charge forwards!

Tari: HANG ON BOOPKINS, WE'RE COMING!!!!

FM: OOH RAH!

Bob: LET'S POP SOME CAPS!

Melony: HYLIA IS WITH US!

Kaizo: YOSSHA IKU ZO!

Meggy: SPLETZER GOES FOR THE KNOCKOUT!

Jub Jub: JUB JUB!

Shroomy: RIP AND TEAR!

Mario: LET'S A F***ING GO!!!!

Lykoa: THE LIGHT PROVIDES!

Soldier: SCREAMING EAGLES!

Heavy: RAAAAAAAAH!!!!

Spy: FOR FRANCE!

Engi: YEEEEEEEEY!!!!

Sniper: Apples.

They come charging into the fortress, ready to fight whatever invaders may come their way. They storm through the monolithic halls until they come to a cavernous throne room. Atop the throne sat a titanic being clad in golden cloths, a pallid visage tilting down to see the defiant army that stood before the throne. Tari raises her Glaive to the figure with a defiant smirk and a fire in her eyes.

Tari: Listen here, creep! Either give us back our friend and leave our world alone, or face the might of humanity!

Lykoa: And Eliksni!

Shroomy: Don't forget the Mushrooms

Kaizo: And demons!

Bob: Yeah! Kiss my black Garo ass!

The figure examined the crowd before him. His voice echoed through the halls as he spoke.

??????: F I S H Y.

A door slides open on the side, and a friendly face comes into the room.

??????: Y O U R F R I E N D S A R E H E R E T O S E E Y O U.

Bob: BOOPKINS!

He immediately rushes to his little green friend.

Bob: THANK GOD YOU'RE OKAY!

Boopkins: What are you guys talking about? And who are those guys?

He points to the Anti Spook Squad.

Soldier: We are here to crap ass!

Engi: Yeah!

Tari: We're here to save you from the aliens!

Bob: Did the aliens hurt you!? Did they probe you!? I swear to God, if they probed my best friend!

Boopkins: Aliens?.........

Meggy: Yeah! We told their leader to either give you back or get their ass kicked.

She points to the figure on the throne. That's when it clicked for Boopkins.

Boopkins: You mean my Uncle Hastur?

Hastur: S U P?

A wave of confusion washes over the crowd.

Tari: That's.......your UNCLE?

Boopkins: Yeah! Come on, I'll introduce you to the other relatives! The family reunion is just getting started!

The surprise revelation hit everybody like a truck.

Everyone: RELATIVES!?

Sniper: Apples.

#smg4 #smg4 au #smg4 fanfic #smg4 tari #tadc #murder drones #team fortress 2 #fanfic #au #taking flight

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emmy-dekarios-bg3 · 4 months ago

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Heart of the Weave - chapter 35

Gale and I step into the building of the Inn after a fresh stroll through Waterdeep, which smells of freshly baked sourdough bread and blueberry muffins. Quite the pleasure to the senses, I must say. It reminds me of innocent days where my mother would bake me a delicious homemade breakfast twice a week before going to the temple to pray to Sȇlune. As we enter the Inn, I notice a couple high elves and a dwarf playing some morning tunes on the lute and flutes to set the mood for those morning people. Rolan is sitting down at a table alone with his cup of coffee. Rolan’s face lights up as he notices us approach him.

“Ah! My friends, come sit!” Gale and I accompany him at the table and immediately a waitress hands us our menus. “It’s good to see you both. And how nice it is to get away for a little while.”

“How has it been at the tower?” Gale asks with a welcoming tone. “Are you practicing becoming a master wizard? I wouldn’t doubt it if you’re there already.”

“Ah, you’re too kind. Unfortunately, I’m not where I want to be just yet. I’m only improving every day. I’m having to partake in my studies more frequently, as well as teaching Cal and Lia the wonders of magic. Just in case anything happens to me. Enough about my life story.” He studies our baby, smiling but looking rather perplexed. “Say, you’ve had your baby for a while now, right? Or am I going mad as a hatter?” Crap! We never told him our situation and that Jenevelle won’t ever age.

“Whew, it’s a very long story, but here it goes,” I mentioned, mentally preparing myself for his reaction. I go into detail with him about what happened with Jenevelle and how the devils needed her soul to destroy Raphael. How we were promised immortality and that the outcome would have been torture if we didn’t do what we did. As I explain, he looks rather astonished and I can’t exactly tell if he’s judging me.

“Oh Gods, I’m… I’m so sorry. That could not have been an easy predicament to be in. I’m glad it all worked out in the end, at least.” Abruptly, as Gale begins speaking to Rolan, the sounds around me become muffled and my vision fades to darkness, but like a cloud of smoke. This has happened to me before, ages ago…right after I had Jenevelle. Images of Gortash, Orin, and even Ketheric appear right in front of my very eyes, and it’s as if they’re actually here. Holy shit.

“Hello Emmy.” Gortash’s voice still sounds the same, though I can tell hatred is being spat right at me. I swallow the fear and horror as his haunting voice speaks to me. Tell me I’m fucking dreaming and this isn’t happening. I guess if mind flayers can change forms and hags can curse people, anything is possible.

“Well, are you going to say anything, or just sit there silently, mentally squirming at our words as we claw our way into your soul? You’re wasting every second that could be used to slaughter every breathing piece of flesh left standing,” Orin teases, flashing her bloody teeth as she smiles.

“Quiet, Orin. Emmy, dear, we’ve been watching you. My, you are quite the impressive specimen, killing not only all three of us, but the netherbrain itself. You even destroyed countless assassins of Bhaal. I’m impressed. It’s a shame you didn’t put that talent to use and dominate the brain like I instructed before. So inconsiderate and stupid.”

I try to speak, but I’m interrupted by Ketheric’s haunting voice.

“If you make a single sound, your husband, your friend, and everyone else in this building will hear you. Choose wisely,” he growls, smirking at me. I clench my fists, feeling rage flush through me as I fight off the urge to speak.

“Now, as I was saying,” Gortash retorts, cracking his knuckles. “Imagine all of the lives you could have saved by dominating the brain. You could have controlled all the Bhaal cultists –”

“No, no, no, no, NO! You tyrant, are you listening to yourself?!”

“Unlike you, Orin, I crave control. Power. Not the deaths and flesh of millions of people. Not the screams of the innocent begging for mercy.” This is absolute chaos. Why do they feel the need to harass me, even after their deaths? How is this even happening? They must have been the unsettling presence I felt last night; what else could it be? So many questions are rummaging through my head, gnawing at my brain like animals.

“You will pay for what you did. On the contrary…we are able to summon another elder brain,” Gortash adds. How I want to respond to his pathetic words, how I want to pin him against a wall and kill him again.

“If our gods are willing to provide the means of this happening,” Ketheric chimes in, his eyes practically staring Gortash down as a means of dominance, which is a foolish idea. They must not realize I’m immortal. If they do, they’re really good at pretending to be completely unaware. What I do know is that they know something I don’t; at least Gortash does. His disturbing and ominous smirk is hinting that he’s hiding some sort of secret from me.

“Oh, poor little baby, too afraid to speak. To cry. To do our bidding or ask questions.” Orin laughs as she speaks, licking her bloody fingers as she gazes hauntingly into my soul with her pale eyes. Gortash closes his eyes.

“We’ll speak again soon.” Those words alone were the most disturbing out of everything he said; what does he mean by that? I know damn well Gortash is keeping something from me, and it’s making me uncomfortable on every level.

My vision is back to normal and I can hear every sound around me now; was time somehow frozen? It appears Gale and Rolan are completely unaware of my temporary absence from reality. The waitress comes back again to take our order, just shortly after I zone back in, but I’m too stunned to speak.

“What would you like to eat, my love?” Gale asks with a kind smile on his face. I order the strawberry cream pancakes, which honestly sounds beyond incredible right now. I look down at Jenevelle, who is lying comfortably in my baby-wearing wrap. She reaches up at me, gazing at me with her sweet, angelic brown eyes as if she’s saying, ‘It will be okay mommy.’

I hate that I saw those three again. I hate that Gortash tried to guilt trip me for not dominating the brain. Why can’t they just stay dead like everyone else who passes away? I want to tell Gale about this, but will he believe me? It all sounds ridiculous when I think it through.

As we finish our breakfast, I hear the door open and, surprise, here comes Karlach and Wyll, who we seem to bump into a lot considering Waterdeep is a relatively large city.

“Rolan? Emmy? GALE?!”

“Karlach, why are you the most surprised to see me?” Gale questions with bewilderment. I stand up and bolt toward them. Karlach greets me with open arms, ready to embrace me with one of her famous hugs, but all I can think about is how anxious I am.

“Karlach! Listen, I need to talk to you. Could you and Wyll drop by later?”

“Sure thing, Em! Wait, what did you do?” I playfully roll my eyes and sit back down at the table. I let everyone chat to catch up, but Gale notices I’m not acting myself; he’s good at that. Damn it.

What pisses me off is that I had so many questions I needed to ask, but I couldn’t and those dead chosen bastards knew it. I’m not going to be playing their preposterous games. I need to let it go, maybe I’m overthinking the entire situation.

#bg3 #baldurs gate 3 #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #gale x tav #ao3 #archive of our own #wizard of waterdeep

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wanderingcas · 7 months ago

Note

Sam!!! I am once again in your asks to ramble about your incredible story telling abilities! (Please tell me if this ever gets old, I will not be hurt, and will absolutely stop) First, can I just say that I am so excited that you'll be posting on Sundays again! I rather missed my Sam Sundays, as I called them! Haha

Now for the story itself.... I'll start by saying that it is so incredible, holy crap! When I read the first little bit, I thought to myself, this reads so familiar, but I don't know why. Then I saw it was Frank and holy crap, that was his exact voice! I could hear him saying that with all the inflections, etc. Loved it! Nice touch!!

The way you build tension will never not amaze me. I felt the stress, and my heart was racing as Dean was in trouble, and ugh! Love the interactions so far! I'm very excited for next chapter. I'm a sucker for a good wound patching scene! Haha. Anyway, I'll stop rambling as this is getting long, but thank you so much for writing this and for sharing! -Jade

HI OMG i think i blue screened after getting this ask because it was SO WONDERFUL TO RECEIVE and i couldn't even reply. i'm glad i'm doing it on sundays too tbh, it felt too weird not to do it that way?? Sam Sundays live on hahaha

i'm so happy you're enjoying the fic, too. since it's not something i usually write (apocalypse, action, etc) i was worried about it not landing or something but the fact that you're enjoying it is good enough for me!! thanks so much for reading it as a wip (literally when people do it keeps me going on posting the fic) and for telling me what you think!! this made my week <3

#halevetica #answered ask #paradigm fic

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karama9 · 1 year ago

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Happy Birthday to two great games

Especially since they share my own, so I got wonderful games released on my b-day twice. Not to mention the ones that were released just a few days before.

Ocarina of Time and A Link to the Past are pretty much my favorite Zelda games. I played both without the benefit of extensive walkthroughs and stuff on the internet and the challenge of having to figure everything out was really good for that time in my life (I HAD time back then).

ALTTP was my first true Zelda game, I only sort of dabbled with the original two because I never owned them, and basically I've been obsessed with Zelda ever since the little pink haired dude got woken up by Zelda's voice in his head, on a stormy night in Hyrule. I finished it so many times, and I'm working on a novelization! I know, I know, SUPER original idea. But Holy Crap Two Cakes right?

Ocarina of Time is also one of my favorites because it expanded the universe and the lore so much, and it was just such an awesome game to play. The story, the gameplay, the exploration, the ability to muck about with nothing to stop you except Navi's constant pleas to get back on track... and I didn't even mind the Water Temple that much. Ironically, the one that kind of stops me when I play through again is the Shadow Temple, I just plain don't like it.

ANYWAY!

I have no art. Here are some stories instead:

For Ocarina of Time:

For A Link to the Past:

And I'll just paste this here too... it's part of Moving On, but this scene is just the Hero of Legends making his wish.

Moving On, extract from Chapter 1: A Link to the Past

Link clutched the Triforce to his chest, eyes closed tightly.

He didn't know what to wish for: Ganon had done too much harm, and Link suspected some of it couldn't be fixed, even by the Triforce: his uncle was dead, and so was the King; the maidens' souls had been freed, but their lives remained lost, even the Princess's.

What was there left to wish for? Ganon had already taken everything. Even the mystical Golden Realm was gone, the reflection of Hyrule's hopes and dreams turned into a nightmare by the demon.

There were many things Link wanted and could have wished for, but they were all so selfish he couldn't bring himself to do it. He wanted his uncle back, he wanted the maidens back. He wanted all the guards Aghanim had made him kill to be alive and themselves again, and to forgive him. Above all, he wanted the Princess back. He wanted her to look at him like that again, like she had when he had saved her, as if he was the sun itself. [...] He'd happily settle for her just to be alive again, even if she never again so much as stood in his presence.

If he were to wish for any one of those things, however, wouldn't it mean giving up on the others and on everything else Ganon had soiled or destroyed? He couldn't pick one wrong to right, he wanted it all: he wanted ALL the harm Ganon had done to be undone; he wanted everything back just like it was before Ganon had gotten his paws on the Triforce.

As soon as the thought formed in Link's mind and before he even realized he had effectively made his wish or dared to hope such an all encompassing wish could be valid, the Triforce started shining, so brightly as to hurt Link's eyes right through his closed eyelids. It shone brighter and brighter, and Link had to fight back the urge to let go of it to cover his eyes with his hands. He turned his head sideway as far back as it could go instead, but it didn't help: the glow of the Triforce was filling the whole room.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, the glow was gone. Link opened his eyes warily, afraid the Triforce may start shining again. It was still in his arms, but it was back to normal and thankfully stayed that way. Link looked around instinctively for any visible effect from his wish, and gasped: through the door to the room where they had fought, Ganon was scrambling up, whole and seemingly unhurt. Link's eyes went from the Demon to the Triforce and widened.

The Triforce had granted his wish, all right: everything was back, just like before Ganon had claimed the Goddesses' artefact… including Ganon.

Link's eyes went back to the pig and met the beast's own. He stuffed the Triforce into his tunic and took out his bow and arrow, expecting Ganon to charge at him. The Demon did no such thing, however; he hissed, and before Link had even had a chance to shoot a single arrow at him, he vanished with a puff of smoke.

Link's breathing accelerated. Just like that, Ganon had escaped and it was anyone's guess where he'd resurface and what he'd do - and whatever it was, Link felt it would be his fault. He clenched his teeth, re-sheathed his sword and took out the mirror that had the power to bring him back to the Real World; the first thing to do was to let the King know Ganon was loose. After that, assuming he didn't get thrown in the dungeon, Link would happily do whatever was asked of him to fix things.

As Link looked into the mirror, the room around him faded and was replaced by the castle's inner court and the sound of deafening cheers.

Link had never felt LESS deserving of cheers. He ignored them and looked around frantically, looking for the Princess; he found her standing next to her father, beaming at him. Link's heart skipped and for one glorious second, he was happier than he would ever have thought possible.

Then, reality came crashing back.

"Your Majesties," he said, addressing both of them, "he…"

"Come inside," the King cut him off, setting off towards the entrance to the throne room. "Close the door behind you," he added without turning around.

Zelda and Link followed him.

"He doesn't want a panic on his hands," Zelda explained in a whisper as they walked, "and since you obviously have bad news…"

Link nodded without meeting her eyes.

Zelda closed the door behind them once they were inside, shooing the few who had followed away with an apologetic smile.

"Firstly," the King said as he sat on his throne, "Link, I must express my gratitude, and I hope to do so properly once you have told me your news and we have dealt with it. You need to know that nothing you might tell us will change the fact you have single-handedly saved not only my daughter and myself, but the whole of Hyrule."

"He's back," Link blurted out, barely hearing him. "Ganon. And he ran off… I messed up, I really messed up. I'm so sorry… I didn't realize, I was just thinking, and the Triforce did it…"

He collapsed to his knees, shaking. He could still hear the cheering outside and it was making him feel worse. Here was everyone, so happy that all was well…

"Young man, are you saying Ganon is still alive?" the King asked.

Link nodded without raising his eyes. He felt a hand on his shoulder and the next moment, Princess Zelda's face was inches away from his own, looking serious but thankfully not angry. His heart automatically started hammering in his chest.

"Is he in the Dark World?" the Princess asked.

Link nodded again.

"Light World," he corrected. "I think. I didn't look outside, but…"

"What about the Triforce?" she interrupted him.

"I got it," Link said, pulling it out of his tunic. "But Ganon ran away, he could be…"

Link didn't finish his sentence, having suddenly lost his train of thoughts: the Princess was smiling at him. He swallowed and made a valiant – if doomed - effort at reassembling his thoughts. Zelda got up from her crouch and pulled him along so that they were both standing again.

"The only place Ganon can possibly be is the Light World," Zelda said gently, still smiling. "Remember, even with his power increased by the Triforce, he could not escape from there – that is why he needed the maidens: he wanted to use them to break the seals and thus escape his prison. Now that he has lost the maidens and that the seals are back to the level they were before Aghanim captured them, Ganon will not be able to escape the Light World, at least for a while."

Link sighed in relief and nodded to signify he understood.

#The Legend of Zelda #long post #Ocarina of Time #A Link to the Past #Happy Birthday to both #my writing

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saiyan98 · 2 years ago

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Estelle and The Mark of Arachnid: The Trident of Poseidon (Chapter 9 + Filler about Sam's new powers)

[First Chapter] - [Previous Chapter] - [Next Chapter]

Chapter 9: I Gotten Myself in a Sticky Situation

Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit, fanbase series. Percy Jackson and the Olympians; Heroes of Olympus; Trials of Apollo; Kane Chronicles and Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard are owned by Rick Riordan. Spiderman or any concept of him are owned by Marvel Comics and Sony Entertainment. Please support the official releases.

Okay, so the first thing that came to my head was not something like, ‘Sam! You’re on fire!’ Or ‘Such devastation…’ (If anyone understands THIS reference, you will be an honorary friend for life); instead, my first reaction was literally, “HOLY CRAP! SAM, YOU LEARNED ULTRA INSTINCT!”

Ugh, I got to take a break from anime, Sam as well. Anyways, Mitch got back on his feet and asked, “The hell is Ultra Instinct?”

Before I could answer, Daniel replied, “It’s a technique in Dragon Ball that even gods struggle to master! It’s one of the most powerful techniques that Goku was able to master after Dragon Ball Super!”

“Hold up!” I yelled. “You watch Dragon Ball?”

Daniel looks at me with confusion, as if it’s common sense.

“Who doesn’t know Dragon Ball?”

“Can you guys shut up about cartoons and deal with this first?!” Mitch yelled.

At that moment, a murder was about to be committed.

“How am I friends with you?” Daniel replied.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind was blown at us from Sam’s position.

“I don’t care how strong she is, I beat her before, I can do it again!”

Mitch charges at her, but she dodges all of his attacks. The way she moves though was smooth and effortlessly; as if she’s just water itself. I’ve seen enough martial arts movies to tell… kind of.

“Why won’t you stay still?!”

Daniel answered, “If it’s like Ultra Instinct… okay, not a lot of time to explain but basically she’s just really good at-”

“DODGE!” I yelled as that strong tingling sense intensified.

Before Mitch could attack, he heard what I said and ducked down, a gust of wind flew past him and hit a tree, cutting it in half. Mitch saw the tree and shuddered at the immense power she demonstrated.

“Okay, nerds… let’s, uh, say I believe you now. Where do we go from here?”

Don’t quote Cell. Don’t quote TeamFourStar. Don’t quote TeamFourStar Cell.

“We just need to hold out long enough until she wears out. Though, I don’t know how long that’ll be,” Daniel explained. He’s not wrong, whatever Sam is going through, eventually she’ll have to get tired. Right? I mean that usually works in anime so I presume it should work in real life, right?

“ESTELLE!”

I look behind me and see Percy, Annabeth and Chiron heading toward us. I guess Jessie told the three about my note. Eh, it’s fine. I knew it was bound to happen, I just hoped that I would’ve finished the game before I got caught. Though right now, we have bigger problems.

“Hey Percy,” I said. “I know you're mad, but we have bigger problems right now. Sam is going berserk for some reason, and she has an immense aura surrounding her.”

Percy ran forward and picked up a shield that was on the ground. He uncapped his pen and it transformed into a sword. Sam reacted as Percy charged and sent another powerful gust of wind toward him. He blocked it with the shield, but he was pushed back a bit but still standing.

“Damn! What power!” Percy yelled.

Chiron was shocked and said, “It can’t be…”

“Estelle, get back! Mitch, Daniel, You’re with me. We’ll try to wear her down and knock her out.”

“Percy! Wait!” I yelled but the three already charged at Sam. I bet you’re thinking, ‘three boys against one girl? That’s cruel. Well, it would be if it weren’t for the fact that Sam has gotten an OVERPOWERED ABILITY AND IS DODGING LIKE A BOSS.

Piccolo would be proud.

“Estelle!” Annabeth ran toward me and asked, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, Annabeth. But, what’s wrong with Sam? She’s… different.”

“That… is Aura,” Chiron replied.

“Aura?” I asked. “What’s that?”

“… Aura is-”

[PAUSE]

You’re probably thinking, ‘Isn’t this supposed to be about Estelle Blofis becoming a hero? Basically, a Marvel Story?’

Well, yes but you see… Sam awoke something that was deemed to be considered impossible to achieve and it’s a really complex thing to talk about. Most likey, it’d take a while to explain what this Aura is. So for now, we’ll put a pin to that and focus more on the fight. But trust me when I say this, Samantha Stacy has become a Shonen Anime Main Character, no joke. After this fight, I’ll explain what Aura is, I promise. For now we’ll talk about the basics.

[FAST FORWARD]

“-a strong energy source that dwells within all living creatures, especially the gods. What Samantha Stacy is doing is unlocking the full potential of Aura, which only gods themselves can do.”

“Woah… so she’s something special herself, isn’t she?” I commented.

Annabeth nodded, “Indeed, but it was only a theory. We never were able to confirm the existence of it. But seeing it now… It’s astonishing.”

“Okay, but… you know what, we’ll talk about it later. For now, we need to stop Sam from hurting anyone,” I said.

The three boys tried to knock out Sam, but she was too fast and kept dodging every attack. She hasn’t even moved out of her spot, like Percy and the others weren’t much of a challenge. Suddenly, a strong wave of energy burst out of Sam and pushed everyone back.

“Such power!” I yelled. “Just where is she getting all this power?!”

Percy was down on one knee but Mitch and Daniel are down. Percy kept on the offensive, but Sam was just too fast for him. As Percy tried to make her trip, she did a backflip and jumped on top of a branch of a tree nearby.

Percy cursed quietly as the rest of the campers arrived at the scene. Chiron informs everyone to stay back as Percy tries to calm down Sam. I got up and ran toward Sam.

“Estelle! Get back!” Percy yelled but I ignored him. If fighting won’t calm her down, maybe I can. At least, I hope so.

“Sam! It’s me, Estelle! Can you hear me?” I said.

Sam jumps down on the ground and faces me. The aura that surrounds her is immense but it’s starting to cool down a bit.

“That’s right, Sam. It’s me, no one is going to hurt you. I promise.”

I kept talking as I walked closer to her. Percy was trying to tell me to stay back but I looked at him with an expression that says I can handle it. Annabeth does it all the time and he listens. I may be over my head, but Sam is my best friend, and now technically my sister, so I gotta do whatever it takes to help her.

“Come on, Sam. You don’t have to be scared. I’ll always be there to help you out, remember? We’re sisters… well, technically we are now since you’re a daughter of Athena and Annabeth is one as well so- I’m getting off track. Look, just listen to my voice and be calm. I got you.”

Talking to her is working. The aura is dimming and she’s starting to wobble a bit. As I got closer, I heard Mitch and Daniel slowly getting up. Percy tells them to stay away from us as I try to calm Estelle down. Unfortunately, Daniel accidentally hit a small twig and it snapped, making a noise that startled Sam. She reacted quickly and was just about to fire another gust of powerful wind towards him.

“SAM! NO!” I yelled as I tried to reach her hand. Then, something crazy happened. There was this green magic circle that appeared on my sleeve. As I try to reach Sam's arm to avoid Daniel getting hurt…

THWIP

I suddenly shot out a ball of web fluid toward her hand, which made her miss and shoot upwards. Of all the things that happened in just a week, that was the most bizarre thing to ever occur. Monsters attacking us in a museum? Classic start of an adventure. Learning about the existence of monsters and gods? Seen enough Supernatural so I’m used to it. My family being demigods themselves (excluding my parents)? It explains everything about them.

But the fact that I just shot out a small threadball of web out of nowhere was the strangest thing to ever happen. And to add to that, that tingling sensation keeps happening whenever I’m in combat or about to get attacked. That can’t be just a coincidence, right?

Sam’s energy skyrocketed and burned off the web in her hand and faced me.

“Sam! Calm down! It’s me! Listen to my voice!”

But she wasn’t listening as she now aimed her hand at me. The tingling grew and then I ducked and tried to make her trip by instinct. But Sam jumped, but it’s what I want her to do. As she jumps, I grab her by the legs and she falls down. We landed near a puddle that was nearby so we got a bit wet, but the energy around her just vaporized it completely.

Oh man, I feel bad for the dude (or girl) that’ll break her heart.

“SAM! STOP!” I yelled.

Suddenly, I heard her mutter something.

“What? Talk to me, Sam!”

“...Dad… don’t… go…”

At that moment, I understood what was happening. Sam is still unconscious and is having a nightmare. Another burst of energy emerged and pushed me off of her. Sam got back up and charged at me. Percy was about to intervene, but I told him to stop. As Sam was about to punch, I dodged thanks to that tingling sensation. I kept dodging all of her attacks as I noticed that as time passes, her attacks are getting weaker. I can tell because of the heat, it was cooling down. If I can just get her to wake up, she’ll go back to normal. As I kept dodging, I tried to wake her up by talking. Seems like she’s still having nightmares about what happened to her father. I wouldn’t blame her, watching the only blood family you have die in front of you can be traumatizing. But I won’t abandon her.

I noticed that those magic circles that appeared on sleeves are still there. I don’t know how I did it, but I tried to use them again at Sam’s feet.

THWIP

It worked, though I figured that since it was just web fluid I thought, ‘What if it’s like Spiderman and I gotta do a certain hand signal?’ So I did the Spiderman web shot gesture and it worked. It made Sam imobile and unable to escape. Though normally, she’d just burn off the web fluid but she’s losing more and more of her immense strength.

I just gotta hold out a little longer. Sam was starting to yell out of nowhere, it seems like her nightmare is getting worse.

“Sam! Wake up! It’s only a nightmare!” I yelled.

“Don’t… Leave me! Dad!” Sam yelled.

The Aura grew hotter and stronger. Out of pure instinct (not the tingling one, but mine), I rushed toward her and hugged her.

“Sam… it’s okay. I’m here for you,” I said. “Remember what you told me, back in kindergarten? You said that you want to be as strong as me. Well you are, but you need to wake up and control that power. It’s yours and yours alone. You dream of having an adventure ever since you read those books. And remember Final Fantasy? Sword Art Online? Danmachi? You dreamed of having adventures like that, right? Well guess what; your dream will become a reality. And you’ll make more friends along the way.”

Sam's eyes were starting to close and the aura that surrounded is fading. Next thing I knew, she collapsed in my arms.

“I got you, Sam. I got you.”

She groans as she opens her eyes.

“Stella? Wha-,” Sam jolted up. “What happened?! Did we lose? I blacked out for a moment and…” Sam notices the crowd that surrounds them. “Did something happen?”

I chuckled, “Yeah, I’ll explain later. Let’s get you up.”

I got up and gave Sam a hand.

“Estelle!” Percy yelled.

“It’s fine, bro. She’s okay, no one got hurt… mostly.”

Percy just stood there with a shocking expression. In fact, everyone was.

“What?” I asked. I heard people muttering and whispering about something. “Don’t worry, Sam’s awake now. She won’t cause any troubles as soon as we figure out what the heck her powers are and-”

“Estelle Blofis,” Chiron interrupted. “It’s not Samantha that concerns us right now.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Stella?”

I looked back at Sam and saw her with the same reaction as everyone else, except she was looking above me.

“What is it Sam?”

She gestured for me to look up and I did. I saw a big symbol floating above me but I couldn’t tell what it was. Plus, how could I be claimed in the first place? I’m 100% mortal.

“Sam? What god or goddess is it claiming me for?”

“None…”

“Then what’s the symbol?” I asked.

She replied.

“...A Spider…”

Oh…

Suddenly, everything that was happening around me was making sense now. The Spider that bit me and disappeared; the tingling sensation on my body; the magic circles and web shooting and the crazy dream I have been having lately. And my first reaction?

“Ah… Crapbasket. Percy, do we have an Uncle Ben?! Cause I’d be very concerned about his safety right now.”

[Filler Explanation on next part. Not necessary to read unless you're curious about Sam's powers]

So… that happened.

Well… I have some time before we can start the next scene so…

I guess I can talk about what was happening to Sam earlier. Just to clarify, this is a theory Annabeth made with the help of Chiron and the Kane Family in the past. To start, it’s called Aura, it’s an energy source that dwells within all living creatures; like the Force in Star Wars. The gods themselves have better control of it because they are the living embodiment of Aura. It’s like this, for every prayer or thoughts related to the gods, Aura energy manifests those thoughts and creates the gods. How that even happened in the first place is still a mystery, but that explains how the gods and monsters exist and why they keep coming back. The stronger the beliefs, the more powerful the being becomes.

However, even Gods themselves cannot master Aura. It has three category types:

Mind: Basically, Aura can increase the ability your mind can handle. For example, you can be quick to adapt and can use any weapons available. Telepathy, Telekinesis, flying and other types of mind powers. IQ’s are also considered to be related to Aura as well. Annabeth theorized that Aura: Mind can increase or decrease IQ levels of a person, making them more intelligent in certain types of fields.

Body: This type affects more on body types abilities such as superhuman strength; speed; instinct and more. It also involves powers such as transformations and breathing underwater. Annabeth theorized that the more powerful Body is, the weaker Mind will be as well. But, the person using this type will become very powerful, and may even rival gods.

Spirit: Now this one is not in Annabeth’s expertise, it’s more of a friend of hers, Carter and Sadie Kane. Spirit does not involve body or mind but rather having some control on Aura on the area around the person. A great example of this is pretty much that it’s magic itself. The Green Mist? Symbols and Names? Sorcery and Curses? These are all types of abilities that Spirit users can use. Carter and Sadie believe that the stronger the will of a person, the more control they have on Spirit. They even theorized that these abilities can manifest as beings if such will is powerful enough.

If you want a more simpler analogy of each type its like this:

Aura: Mind = Charles Xavier/NewTypes in the Gundam Series (bunch of whiny telepathic kids committing war crimes).

Aura: Body = Shapeshifters/Inhumans or Metahumans/Transformations similar to Dragon Ball (From Super Saiyan to Ultra Instinct).

Aura: Spirit = Magicians or Sorcerers/ Stand or Spirit Users.

It’s kind of similar to Nen abilities from Hunter X Hunter. But what Sam did was almost impossible for a mortal to achieve, not even gods can master it easily. Sam used the full potential of Aura: Body which shuts down her mind and her body just reacted by pure instinct. It was basically the Autonomous Ultra Instinct from Dragon Ball Super. It was shocking for Chiron because Demigods can only use a fraction of Aura due to us being part-mortals. A demigod can use a fraction of two types of Aura while regular mortals can only use one.

For example, a child of Athena mostly uses Body and Mind types of Aura. A psychic mortal has some power related to Mind and a bodybuilder has endurance thanks to Body. Spirit-Types are more difficult to locate since they're mostly magic wielders or Spirit users. Gods can activate Aura at ease while mortals can not.

So… yeah… Sam basically just became a classic Anime Main Character in a modern society with monsters and gods in the shadows. Like a mixture of Supernatural, Demon Slayer, Hunter X Hunter, etc. Unfortunately, you won’t hear about her progress or adventures in my stories. She’s just starting her journey and when she’s ready, she’ll tell you all about it afterwards. Which sucks because what she told me was mind blowing! There’s not enough time to comprehend what she went through! I guess we’ll see in the future. For now, back to the story.

Author’s Note:

Sorry for the short chapter. I couldn’t think of a good way to prolong the fight and I don’t want to start the next scene until the next chapter. But I hope you enjoyed it. I also would like to make an announcement, coming soon in a future chapter in Wattpad and Archive of Our Own, I will also include a commissioned art piece of Estelle Blofis made by the same person who made the cover art for this story [@erabu-san]. I wish I could post it here as well, but it seems the website does not allow it. You can find it once I publish it (I publish each chapter in all three websites simultaneously) in AO3 or Wattpad. Same title and my author name too. I will announce it once it’s finished.

Again, I hope you enjoyed it. Next chapter will also be posted soon this month.

here's the cover art for the story (Also made by @erabu-san):

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knightsistersblog · 4 months ago

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THREE CHAPTER UPDATES!!

HOLY CRAP, y'all!! I realized I had forgotten to link updates on the Tumblr feed!!

Ch.10-you keep a head full of steam and your skin stays tough

Now there's something in the water where we grew up You keep a head full of steam and your skin stays tough We don't talk about our feelings, we just add 'em up No, you don't wanna cross that line

The amount of time Tyler was unconscious for was minimal. He came to, slowly, blinking away the fog that wrapped over his eyes, much like the ‘rain-wrapped tornado’ that had completely overtaken them. He should have been paying more attention; he knew that now. As he lay there, head against the back rest, his situation began to settle in. His truck sat upright still, but its window on the right passenger side had blown out. The air felt heavy with the scent of rain and earth, mingling with the metallic tang of gasoline. Slowly, Tyler assessed his condition. His body ached, the pain pulsing with every heartbeat, but he was grateful for it--it meant he was alive. His fingers lifted to touch his scalp, finding a small, sticky patch of blood. He mentally cataloged his other limbs, wiggling toes, and fingers to ensure they obeyed his commands--but his left wrist burned with fire.

Ch.11-if I had a magic word that could take away the hurt

If I had a magic word That could take away the hurt I would give you what you deserve While giving me peace of mind

Tyler barely registered the overhead page; he was far too busy pacing the tile floor, and wondering how long, exactly, he’d have to walk to put a hole through it; he figured it’d be a long time. The sterile scent of antiseptic filled his nostrils. Nurses scurried past, pushing carts loaded with supplies. The hospital was a world unto itself, a frantic ecosystem operating at all hours, and Tyler might be lying to himself if he wasn’t familiar with the sights of an ER--having been in one more times than having fingers to count on. His mind raced with thoughts he’d rather not entertain. He couldn’t shake the image of flashing sirens, the sound of crunching metal. Every detail replayed in his mind; a relentless loop that refused to let him rest.

Ch.12-if I had a half a nerve, I'd build a bridge instead of burn

If I had a half a nerve I'd build a bridge instead of burn If I could just make a sorry work I guess everything would be just fine But it's a little too late to turn back time

Tyler smiled, weakly, through the tears, “How do you do it, Cathy -- ? How do you constantly stay so put together?” “Do you wanna know a secret?” He nodded, “Yes, please -- cause I feel like I’m losing it right now. Impart your motherly wisdom onto me, Oh Jedi Master.” “I don’t,” she answered him; he seemed surprised by this, “I’m just as scared as Kate is, and it’s a struggle to keep from breaking down, but I keep myself pulled together for her, and for Javi, because they need me right now. And because you do.”

THERE WE GO!! So sorry I didn't get a chance to post them before!! Please forgive me

And hey -- you should come check out this TWISTERS DISCORD we got going on :) We'd love to have you <3

#ao3feed #twisters 2024 #tyler owens #kate carter #ao3 fanfic #twisters fanfic #kate carter x tyler owens #unplanned pregnancy

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checkoutmybookshelf · 11 months ago

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Ok, so I'm through chapter 38 of ACOWAR, and uhhh...we need to talk about Tarquin, Tamlin, and what the fuck the Inner Circle thought they were doing communicatively.

Let's look at the quote first:

First and foremost: Tarquin, honey. There is ZERO call to be this much of a dick to the women who single-handedly cleared your palace of hostile invaders. This is literally the aftermath, and a "Thank You for Saving Our Bacon" would be appropriate here. I get that he's salty about the lies and the book theft and probably the mindfuckery that Feyre did on him, but they literally just pulled your tail out of the fire. A little gratitude is warranted, on behalf of your people if you can't personally be grateful. Rhys and Feyre didn't HAVE to show up, and you apparently had no reason to think they would.

Which in itself is kind of a problem. I realize that the Night Court has a brand and it has been keeping up said brand, but...they're NOT Hybern. And if they're trying to pull together allies to defeat Hybern, then uh...MAYBE IT'S TIME FOR A GODDAMN REBRAND? Or even if you want to hang onto the je ne sais quois of the Hewn City, you might consider better communication. Obviously you're not going to tell anyone while Feyre's IN the Spring Court that the goal is to take it down because Tamlin sided with the genocidal maniac just to possess Feyre, but once she's clear and the Court is falling, you cannot tell me it would be off-brand to put out the word that Tamlin sided with Hybern and Feyre--now High Lady of the Night Court--took down the Spring Court because not even the Night Court is cool with Hybern running the show. I'm just saying, if they'd had ANY forethought or a good PR person in the Inner Circle, then they could have had it both ways, could have kept the Night Court brand but also made it clear that they are in OPPOSITION to Hybern.

The fact that everyone sees the Night Court as just as bad as Hybern is a PROBLEM, and there was an opportunity there to fix that that went entirely overlooked. It actually seems like NOBODY knows that the Spring Court threw in with Hybern, which...WHY??? Why on god's little green earth are we protecting Tamlin from siding with Hybern? His personal and family trauma and youth are real and valid, but they do NOT excuse literally siding with cauldron Satan because his girlfriend fucked off to the Night Court. That's literally peak incel right there. SO WHY IS THE INNER CIRCLE SHEILDING THAT CHOICE FROM THE REST OF THE HIGH LORDS??? That's helping literally no one and it is actively kneecapping the Inner Circle, as this moment with Tarquin pretty clearly demonstrates.

Tarquin literally saw the incoming Illyrians and assumed they were out to finish him. That's a PROBLEM for Rhys and the Night Court in general, but it's a problem they could have managed with better PR. And again, they can keep the edgelord bullshit Night Court brand, they just have to make it clear that they don't like the King of Hybern's face and look what they'll do if you side with him. That then lets Tarquin see the Illyrian legion and think "holy crap, are they helping???" instead of "Fuck, we are fucking DOOMED." That also softens the metaphorical border of the Night Court, because they might be aloof and isolationist, but apparently they hate Hybern enough to show up unasked when it attacks. That's a diplomatic opening, which Rhys keeps saying he wants.

The TLDR here? Rhys needs a goddamn PR person, because he is getting in his own goddamn way trying to manage it himself.

#acowar spoilers #acowar #tarquin #books #acotar #books and reading #books and novels

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emmy-dekarios-bg3 · 10 months ago

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Heart of the Weave - A Baldurs Gate fanfiction - part 3

Chapter 3 - The Chosen Three…Again?

“How has it been at the tower?” Gale asks with a welcoming tone. “Are you practicing becoming a master wizard? I wouldn’t doubt it if you’re there already.”

“Whew, it’s a very long story, but here it goes,” I mention, mentally preparing myself for his reaction. I go into detail with him about what happened with Jenevelle and how the devils needed her soul to destroy Raphael. How we were promised immortality and that the outcome would have been torture if we didn’t do what we did. As I explain, he looks rather astonished and I can’t exactly tell if he’s judging me.

“Now, as I was saying,” Gortash retorts, cracking his knuckles. “Imagine all of the lives you could have saved by dominating the brain. You could have controlled all the Bhaal cultists –”

“No, no, no, no, NO! You tyrant, are you listening to yourself?!”

“Unlike you, Orin, I crave control. Power. Not the deaths and flesh of millions of people. Not the screams of the innocent begging for mercy.” This is absolute chaos – no pun intended. Why do they feel the need to harass me, even after their deaths? How is this even happening? They must have been the unsettling presence I felt last night; what else could it be? So many questions are rummaging through my head, gnawing at my brain like animals.

“You will pay for what you did. On the contrary…we are able to create another elder brain,” Gortash adds. How I want to respond to his pathetic words, how I want to pin him against a wall and kill him again.

As we finish our breakfast, I hear the door open and, surprise, here comes Karlach and Wyll, who we seem to bump into a lot considering Waterdeep is a relatively large city.

“Rolan? Emmy? GALE?!”

“Karlach! Listen, I need to talk to you. Could you and Wyll drop by later?”

#bg3 #baldurs gate 3 #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #karlach #dnd #gale x tav #astarion #dungeons and dragons #shadowheart #Orin #ketheric #gortash #halsin #ao3 #archive of our own #bg3 fanfic #fanfiction #chosen three

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brummiereader · 1 year ago

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Ohh Nina...❤️.

I really felt for her at the start of this chapter where she internally ponders and worries not only about what happened the previous night with Tommy but also the fear she has of being treated and becoming her mother. I love how complex her personality is, and the deep seated fear she has of becoming what's expected of her. Some people want to be housewives, and there's absolutely nothing wrong in that, it's a noble job. But Nina is destined for more, her curious mind needing to be challenged in a different way of life. I honestly felt like I was sat at the table with her, just watching her observe her mum as she mulled over everything, and myself internally telling her that she'll get to where she wants to be. Kinda just wanna give her a reassuring hug. As for Stefano...I'm hoping Tommy sorts that bastard out 😠.

"But in that endless vortex, one thought emerged above all others. How was she?"...Gosh, at this point I wouldn't say he's falling for her anymore but he HAS fallen for her. Imagining him having a sleepless night, worrying about her is bloody adorable (even though he's the one man on this planet who could really do with some shut eye lol). "He snapped the box shut and placed it in the inside pocket of his jacket, telling himself there was no point in dwelling on things that had no chance to exist" Arghh no!! Gasped a little at this part because their mutual pining for one another and hidden feelings is literally killing me at this point lol. Time to take big boy steps and not baby ones Tommy, tell her how you really feel and put us all out of our misery 😩.

“He hasn’t proposed.” Maria Ferrante" Another gasp, but a rather big one! Phew, I was honestly so relieved to read that Tommy hadn't gone through with it. I do feel for Agnese though, poor girl doesn't know If she's coming or going. But let's be honest, Tommy can't go through with this, can he?? I really loved this challenging interaction between mother and daughter though, and the small expression her mum let slip. I one hundred percent believe she knows more than her husband thinks she does. She may be the caretaker of the home but she's also the eyes and ears, and I bet nothing goes on without her eventual knowledge. “He does what he does for us" these words remind me of Polly's when she praying for Tommy before he takes Billy Kimber out 👌.

"her mind was so adamant on trying to unravel the mystery that was Tommy Shelby" I love how they're both trying to understand and unravel the mystery of eachother. Anyone would think that they're in...love 😏🤭. The seas between them would erase the invisible string that seemed to bind them together, and she would forget how he had made her laugh, how she had made him smile. And it would be as if her soul had never met his. This was such a beautiful poetic line Red ❤️. I love the continued theme of them being joing by and invisible string, pulling them to eachother.

Holy crap! They finally gave in to their desire for one another! About bloody time ❤️! The moment itself was undoubtedly extremely passionate and sensual. I mean, Tommy kissing her like a man starved 👌. And then you left us with this superb line from the man himself With great gentleness, Tommy grabbed her chin, raising her face so that she would look at him. “I’m not.” 😍. Right I'm putting a petition in for these two to not start peddling backwards again after this delirious, intense kiss! Argh I'm so excited to see what will happen now they know where the other stands when it comes to their feelings. I worry they've brought holy hell down on themselves though 😬. Incredible Red, I adore this this series so much ❤️.

Heart, Body and Soul || Tommy Shelby x OC

PART VI

Summary: After the events of the previous day, Tommy and Nina are forced to come to terms with a truth they have refused to acknowledge for far too long.

Warnings: mentions of arranged marriage, slow-burn, small age-gap (Tommy’s 30, Nina is in her early 20s), time-typical misogyny, mentions of attempted assault, no proofreading, English is not my first language. This is set between season 1 and 2.

A/N: like in the last chapter, there are some dialogues which are supposed to be in Italian, which I chose to write in English for the sake of the readers (and mine, ‘cause otherwise I should’ve translated lots of stuff). In this case, it is the second dialogue between Nina and her mother. I’m sorry for the long wait, and thank you for bearing with me!

PREVIOUS PART

SERIES MASTERLIST

Gif credit

Dividers credit

The first light of the morning filtered through the lace curtains of the kitchen window, bathing the room in a warm glow. Holding a cup of coffee in her hands, Nina stared into space, the events of the night before repeatedly playing in her mind. Tommy’s touch still lingered against her cheek, hesitant and tender as he touched her with a gentleness she had never known before. A gentleness that made her lean even closer, eager to feel more of the bare brushing of their lips, that made her wonder what it would feel like if she allowed herself to melt into him. His strong body seemed like a safe space, like something steady and reliable. But that warm, unfamiliar feeling was soon replaced by the blast of cold that suddenly hit her when he moved away.

How could she have been so stupid?

She had let her emotions get the best of her, and humiliated herself for nothing. It wasn’t him that she wanted. What she wanted was to get rid of the skin-crawling feeling that Stefano’s hands had left on her, so she had clung to the first person who had offered her a hint of safety and comfort. What a fool she had been, for forgetting that the only person who could ever bring her safety and comfort was herself. For letting Stefano mess her up once again. It was all a game of power to him, he had played her like a pawn, and she had fell for it. Because Stefano did what he did to let her know that he could do everything he wanted to her, if he just decided to. With the blood boiling in her veins, she promised to herself she wouldn’t let him hold that much power over her, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of making her cave. She’d go on as if nothing happened, but without forgetting what he did. And when the right time came, she’d make him regret ever daring to lay his filthy hands on her. He had tormented her for years, tried to force her into a marriage, scared and threatened her in her own home, a place where she was supposed to be safe. He would pay for that.

“Sei già sveglia?” (You’re up already?)

Her mother’s voice pulled Nina out of her thoughts, and only then did she realise how tight her hold around the cup’s handle had become. She loosened her grip, a sigh escaping her lips as the pain of her own nails digging in her palm eased. Sinking lower in her seat, she fixed her gaze upon a crack in the wooden table, well aware that she couldn’t escape Maria Ferrante’s ever-observant eye. “Sono andata a letto presto, ieri.” (I went to bed early, yesterday.)

The older woman walked further into the kitchen, squinting her eyes as if she had spotted something. Still carefully avoiding her gaze, Nina watched her get closer from under her lashes, until she stopped right in front of her. She let out a groan as her mother took ahold of her chin to get a better look at her face. “Che hai in faccia?” (What’s that?)

Nina gulped, her mind trying to find an excuse for the scratch that Stefano had left when he had dug his fingernails in her cheek. “È stato Winston,” she professed, turning her head to free herself from her mother’s grip. (It was Winston.)

The woman mumbled some curses towards the poor animal that, for once, was actually innocent.

“È stata colpa mia,” Nina quickly added. “L’ho fatto arrabbiare.” (It was my fault, I made him angry.)

Maria Ferrante pursed her lips in disapproval, and a frown appeared on those once beautiful features, which had started to wither way too soon under the weight of the years and of a life devoted to caring for others and never herself.

Nina had to restrain herself from breathing a sigh of relief when her mother walked over to the cupboard, letting the matter drop. But as she watched her bustling about to make breakfast for everyone, she was overwhelmed by a mounting sense of unease. It was a familiar feeling, one that had been accompanying her for as long as she could remember, yet she had never been able to figure it out. It usually rose without warning, making her head spin, sending her into a state of distress that made her feel physically sick, and she got the impression there was something deeply wrong with her life. After years of dealing with it, she had found a pattern, and she had realised that most of the times - although not always - it was connected to her mother.

All her life, Nina had feared to become like her. Always silent, always compliant as she let her husband and sons treat her like a slave, pretending not to notice the way they unconsciously looked down on her - because she was not clever, she was ignorant, she wasn’t even able to read or write. She was a wife and a mother before being a person. They loved her, but they loved her like something that belonged to them. And deep down, Nina knew she was loved the same way.

She knew the opinion they had of her was not that distant from the one they had of her mother. It didn’t matter that she had finished school, it didn’t matter how much she kept on studying and learning on her own, it didn’t matter how much she tried to prove that she was capable. She was always a woman. That limitation was the wall the stood between her and the world, and the more she tried to climb over it or walk around it, the taller and wider it grew.

To some extent, in her family, Nina was already her mother.

Standing in front of the mirror in the room that had become his in the last couple of weeks, Tommy straightened his tie, his gaze scanning his whole figure to make sure nothing was out of place. His face was freshly shaved, his suit neatly pressed, his shoes polished. The only jarring note were the purple shadows under his eyes, proof of a sleepless night. Ever since he had left Nina’s room, he had been tormented by a strange feeling of restlessness. He had hardly closed his eyes, his mind relentlessly circling around everything that had been happening in the last month, and everything that was to come. But in that endless vortex, one thought emerged above all others. How was she?

The question nagged at him, making it impossible for him to shift his attention on any other subject. From the moment he had met her, Nina had seemed to him an unbreakable force. She was fierce, and untamable, with a fire in her eyes mighty enough to burn whole cities to the ground. That was why, when he witnessed her vulnerability, he was almost surprised to see that she, too, could be fragile. But with that fragility came a whole different wilfulness, a stubborn refusal to bend that made her even more ardent. More beautiful. And he wondered how many more sides of herself she kept hidden.

Almost a month had passed since his arrival in Sicily, and during time, she had slowly made her way into his head, clouding his judgment. Because he knew he shouldn’t be thinking about her, not when he was courting her cousin. Not when the decision had been made. But the events of that day had put him in front of a truth he had refused to acknowledge, a truth that made him feel something too close to fear.

Last last night more than ever, he couldn’t take his mind off her, off her scent, off the feeling of her soft hair brushing against his skin. Did she have any idea how hard it had been for him to pull away? That he had only left her room because otherwise he wouldn’t have been able to restrain himself any longer? That, had she been in a less vulnerable position, he wouldn’t have hesitated to do what every cell in his body was begging him to do?

Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to compose himself. There was no need to make things more difficult than they already were. He opened the drawer of his bedside table, revealing the velvety box that had been closed there for far too long. He reached for it and opened it to take a look at the ring he had bought along the necklace he had gifted Agnese a few weeks earlier, when he had declared his intention to marry her. The big diamond ring seemed to stare back at him, and his stomach clenched at the thought that it was time to do what he was expected to do. He snapped the box shut and placed it in the inside pocket of his jacket, telling himself there was no point in dwelling on things that had no chance to exist.

As he headed downstairs, the sound of Nina’s voice came to his ears, and his nerves started tingling with anticipation. How would she act, now? How was he supposed to act? Should he ask her how she was, or should he pretend nothing had happened, just like she told him?

He could tell there was a whole story behind what had happened with Stefano the previous day, one that he wasn’t aware of, and part of him wanted to ask her. The other part, however, feared that she might close off again, and that all the steps forward that they had taken would be erased, taking them back where they started.

Before Tommy could cross the living room, Nina came out of the kitchen, too lost in thought to notice him, at first. But once she did, she stopped in her tracks, and an unreadable expression spread over her features. For the next few seconds, they just looked at each other in complete silence, waiting for the other to say something. The small scratch on her face caught his eye, suddenly taking him back to last night, when he had ran his knuckle over it with a softness he didn’t know he possessed, when he had got the impression that her cheek had been made just to fit perfectly in the palm of his rough hand. How close she had been…

“Good morning.” Nina’s voice harshly brought him back to reality, and it was like a bucket of cold water had been poured over him.

Tommy cleared his voice, struck by an odd feeling of guilt for indulging further in those thoughts. “Morning,” he murmured, recollecting himself. He had to remember where he was, and where his priorities stood. But it was so hard when the warmth of her body so close to his was imprinted on him, and when he could still feel the way her lips had barely brushed against his.

“I’m having lunch at Agnese’s house today,” he blurted out before he could think about what he was saying. And maybe his words had some kind of effect on her, but she was so quick to hide it that he figured he had probably imagined it.

Nina nodded, hoping that whatever she was feeling in that moment wasn’t written all over her face. She wasn’t even sure what it was that she was feeling, she just knew that she didn’t like it. And that it wasn’t right.

Tommy was going to propose.

That awareness knocked the air out of her lungs, and she cursed herself for feeling like that. It was wrong. And she had no right. She had to get a grip and take control of those emotions, before they irreversibly took control of her. Tommy’s icy stare seemed to be piercing right through her, making it impossible for her to focus and formulate some coherent sentence. Fucking blue eyes.

“Good,” it was all she could manage to utter.

Another heavy silence fell down upon them, and the words they really wanted to say - the words they didn’t even have the courage to tell themselves - were left hanging in the air, where they would vanish, sooner or later. Because the things left unsaid would never be real.

In the late afternoon, sitting at the kitchen table, Nina tried to keep herself busy by reading a book, but the words seemed to vanish right in front of her eyes one by one. She was too agitated to read. According to what her brothers had told her before leaving the house earlier that day, the men of the family were currently holding a meeting Tommy Shelby at Agnese’s house. They had mentioned something about Sabini and the next moves, but she had only half-listened to them, her mind occupied by something else entirely. Looking out the window, she glanced at the house on the opposite side of the shared garden, the urge to know what was happening inside it growing with each moment that passed.

“He hasn’t proposed.” Maria Ferrante stormed into the kitchen, carrying a basket full of freshly-picked figs.

Nina blinked, her train of thoughts interrupted by her mother for the second time that day. “What?”

“Mr Shelby hasn’t proposed to Agnese,” she clarified, placing the basket on the table with a thud. Under her daughter’s disconcerted stare, she took some of the figs and walked over to the sink to wash them with hasty, agitated movements. “The poor girl’s desperate, she thinks she has done something wrong.”

It took Nina more than a moment to process her mother’s words, but once she did, it took her way less to realise what that might mean. For her, for Agnese, for the future of her family. As her mind began to race in an all too familiar way, her eyes quickly scanned the room in search for something to focus on in order not to slip into the whirlpool of scattered thoughts, but the clatter caused by the older woman’s fumbling with the cutlery only added to the frenzied state of her brain. Her heart pounded in her chest, drumming in her ears, and she found herself jiggling her leg up and down to ease the tension. Finally, her attention was grabbed by the clock hanging on the wall, and in the second hand her restless gaze found something to hold on to. With each second that passed, her heart decreased its speed and the noise in her mind quietened, bringing her some relief. Closing her eyes, she exhaled a breath, glad to be back in control of herself. “This whole thing was a mistake,” she mumbled, shaking her head.

Even though she was facing away from her mother, Nina could tell she had halted, because the fuss suddenly stopped. “What do you mean?” She asked, but before her daughter had the chance to answer, she placed a plate with some figs cut in half in front of her. “Eat.”

At first, Nina scrunched her nose, sure that the mere sight of food would be enough make her stomach turn. Ever since the events of the previous day, it had been too knotted up for her to feel hungry. However, as soon as the delicious smell of the fruits filled her nostrils her appetite awoke, and she was quick to take a bite. The sweet pulp melted on her tongue, and the sensation almost made her forget what she was about to say. “I mean,” she spoke again after eating the first piece. “That it isn’t the Shelbys we should’ve tried to form an alliance with.”

Her mother’s eyebrows shot upwards, and a disapproving expression made its way on her face. “These things are not our concern,” she reproachfully pointed a finger at her daughter, sitting on a chair in front of her. “Your father and your uncles are doing-”

“They’re doing all the wrong things.” Nina interrupted her, slightly raising her voice. “And it is our concern. It’s our life, we should have a say in it.”

“Your father knows what’s best for this family.”

“Does he?”

Maria Ferrante crossed her arms over her chest, averting her eyes from her daughter’s, and the silence that followed gave Nina the chance to go on. “This was a mistake, you know it too,” she added, lowering her voice again. “You might fool dad by pretending you know nothing about this business, but you can’t fool me.”

A strange glimpse crossed her mother’s eyes at her words, but it didn’t last more than an instant. Her features hardened again, and it was like that subtle, ephemeral emotion had never been there. “What I think is not important.”

This time, it was Nina who chose not to reply. It was useless, after all. Her mother had spent her whole life convinced that all she was born to do was to take care of someone else, without ever being able to make a single decision for herself, or voice her thoughts, and that conviction was too deeply rooted inside her to be eradicated.

“You’re a lucky girl, Nina. You shouldn’t forget that.” Maria leaned over the table, looking her daughter right in the eyes. “Take a look around you. You have a big, nice house with a big, nice garden, and a room you can call your own. You have never known misery, nor hunger,” she paused, her gaze becoming absent, as if getting lost in some old memory. She then leaned back in her chair, staring at a point in front of her. “It feels like bites. Hunger, I mean.”

Nina shifted uncomfortably in her seat, letting those words sink in. Although her mother’s stark expression gave nothing away, she sensed that some old, unforgotten pain was begging to be acknowledged, and she could almost feel that pain as if it were her own.

Coming back to her senses, Maria fixed her eyes on her daughter again, her gaze displaying a fierceness that appeared almost odd on her face. “You don’t know it. You haven’t even known it during the war. That’s all thanks to your father, and what he does.”

Nina watched quietly as mother got up from her chair, starting to busy herself with what needed tidying up. “He does what he does for us. Be grateful, and don’t question his decisions.” Her voice took on a stern tone, one that brooked no arguments, indicating that the discussion was over. “And eat,” she ordered, nodding toward the plate.

Pouring the tea she had just made in a cup, Nina glanced at the clock. Midnight had passed a long time ago, but once again her brain was keeping her up, preventing her from getting some much needed sleep. She’d had lots of time to think, though, and the long, relaxing bath she had taken had helped her free her mind for a while. She could see things more clearly, now.

Her first fear had been that Tommy might decide to go on with the war, but after pondering the subject, she had come to the conclusion that it wasn’t an option. He had proposed an alliance because he knew he had no chance of winning that war, the attacks to his pubs and his men were the proof. Not to mention that if he were to decide to call everything off he would be killed on the spot. The Peaky Blinder Devil was surrounded by potential enemies, with not a single man by his side, and he had willingly put himself in that position.

Because he was not afraid to die.

That was the answer to all of her questions, the missing piece that had prevented her from fully understanding why her family feared him so much, to the point of not even considering to form an alliance with Sabini instead. Tommy Shelby was not afraid to die, therefore, he had no limitations.

But the more she seemed to be close to figuring him out, the more questions rose, and Nina couldn’t explain why - despite all her efforts not to think about him - her mind was so adamant on trying to unravel the mystery that was Tommy Shelby. She had started because she didn’t trust him, because she wanted to know what his true intentions were, because she wanted to try and anticipate his moves - something that the men of her family seemed to fail at. Now she just couldn’t stop, for what she had found was so far from what she had expected.

She couldn’t explain the deep connection she felt to him, a connection that perhaps had always been there, since the very beginning, when all she seemed to feel for him was spite. Even then, there was something drawing them towards one another, forcing them to keep on bickering and bantering, to look for those apparently insignificant quarrels and challenges. Then there were their secret meetings, those nights where time seemed to stand still, where he wasn’t Tommy Shelby, and she wasn’t Nina Ferrante, and they were almost normal people, and they were allowed to let their masks fall. She remembered every laugh he had drawn from of her with the stories of his childhood, every smile she had managed to coax out of him with her witty retorts. And she had learned he was not a Devil, like everybody called him. Behind his steely glare and the layers of ice that protected him like an armour, he was very much human.

There must’ve been a reason why every night since the first casual encounter they had left their rooms in the hope of just enjoying each other’s company. There must’ve been a reason why their eyes begged to meet every time they were in the same room, and their hands longed for the slightest touch. There must’ve been a reason why she was standing there, hoping he would walk through that door.

But that reason didn’t matter. Because in the light of the day, he was Tommy Shelby, she was Nina Ferrante, and he would marry her cousin. Soon he would go back to Birmingham, and she would stay there, going back to the life she had grown to despise. The seas between them would erase the invisible string that seemed to bind them together, and she would forget how he had made her laugh, how she had made him smile. And it would be as if her soul had never met his.

Nina’s heart increased its speed when she heard the footsteps that had become now familiar to her, and she had to remind herself that night wouldn’t be like the others. She had to push him away, restore the distance between them before it was too late. If they crossed that line, there would be no going back.

Silently, Tommy entered the kitchen. All the spontaneity their relationship had acquired over the weeks was gone, and he was unsure how to behave. He didn’t even know what had brought him there again, after he had told himself he had to stop thinking about her. Maybe the same thing that had kept him from proposing to Agnese.

Nina was standing near the table, pouring her usual awful amount of honey in her steaming cup of tea. Leaning against the doorframe, Tommy allowed himself a moment to admire the way the white cotton of her nightgown brought out her tan skin and dark hair. She seemed off guard, but he knew she was aware of his presence. Once she was done, she gazed at him, and her fiery eyes shone in the dim light, pinning him right where he stood.

“I was thirsty,” he explained after a moment of hesitation, walking further into the room.

Without saying a word, Nina took a glass from one of the cabinets and poured water in it. When she handed it to him, her fingers brushed against his, and shivers of electricity raced across his skin. With the proximity, he was engulfed by the scent of lavender and honey that had been plaguing him in his sleep, making him long for something he could never have.

He would never feel anything like that with Agnese.

Nina took a few steps back, breaking the bubble that formed every time they were close to each other. Tommy tightened his grip around the glass for a second, then placed it on the table. He didn’t need to pretend it hadn’t been just an excuse to see her. He searched for something to say, but Nina beat him to it, and what she said next felt like a stab through his chest.

“You should propose to Agnese.”

She wasn’t even looking at him. She was cold, distant, almost like the day they had met. Taken aback by her sudden statement, Tommy blinked, hoping he had misheard. “What?”

“You’ve been courting her long enough,” she said bitterly.

Nina’s words aroused a certain anger in Tommy, the same anger he felt every time he sensed that his hand was being forced. But it wasn’t just anger, there was something else with that. “It’s not your place to decide-”

“It is my fucking place,” she snapped, finally turning to look at him. “This is my family. And the more we wait, the more we give Sabini the time to act against us.”

Tommy’s expression changed, and all the annoyance she had read moments before on his face gave way to something else. He raised his eyebrows in a mocking way, taking a look around before shifting his gaze on her again. “So you’ve finally admitted it,” he he said, and the shadow of a smug smirk appeared on his face.

“Admitted what?” She seethed.

“That your family needs my family.”

Nina snorted, fighting the urge to slap the smugness out of his face. Even in a serious situation, he couldn’t resist looking for a way to get under her skin.

“That’s not the point,” she argued, averting her eyes from his. “The point is - it’s time to get this over with.” The more she spoke, the harder it became to keep her voice steady, but she did it nonetheless, attempting to sound as convincing as she could. Maybe she’d end up convincing herself as well. “And this…thing that we’re doing,” she paused, the words burning in her throat as she uttered them. “It has to stop.”

Something flashed across Tommy’s features, and Nina instantly regretted addressing the topic. A strange tension fell into the room as his face became serious again.

“This thing,” he emphasised, as if pondering her words. The way his deep voice echoed in the silence of the room awakened something inside her, and heat crept up cheeks. “Tell me,” he squinted his eyes, starting to walk in her direction with slow, measured steps. “What is it that we’re doing?”

The breath hitched in her throat, but Nina stood still in her place, forcing herself to bear his gaze. “Nothing.”

“Nothing,” he repeated, nodding to himself. He took another step forward, looking down at her with a hint of challenge in his eyes, almost daring her to deny what was right in front of them one more time. She was now trapped between his body and the table, and the closeness alone was enough to make his nerves tingle.

“Tommy, please,” she whispered.

God, had she ever called him by his name before? The way it rolled off her lips, along with her intoxicating scent and the feeling of her warm body - too close to ignore it but still too far away to feel it completely - threatened to destroy the last shred of his self-control. It was hanging by a thread, a thread that was about to snap at any given moment.

He tucked an unruly strand of hair that had fallen in front of her face behind her ear, then his large hand travelled down the side of her neck, his thumb gently rubbing against the delicate skin of her throat. She quivered almost imperceptibly, and her eyes lit up in a way that ignited his whole being. And the thread did snap. His hand went to grab the nape of her neck, and he crashed his lips against hers in a desperate, almost harsh kiss.

But it didn’t take Tommy more than a few seconds to regain control of his instincts. He pulled away, sucking in a sharp breath as he was hit by the realisation of what he had just done. His jaw twitched when his gaze met Nina’s wide eyes, and an overwhelming sense of guilt - way more powerful than the one he had felt that morning - started to weigh on his conscience. Then, as if the contact of their skin had burned him, he let his hand fall and took a step back. He tried to utter an apology, but no sound came out of his mouth. For an amount of time that seemed to stretch into eternity, neither of them did anything, and the possibility of having scared her only added to Tommy’s feeling of guilt. But a second glance was enough to realise it wasn’t fear that was painted on Nina’s face. Before he had the chance to say something, she closed the distance between them, grabbing his face to pull him in for another kiss. After the initial surprise, he was quick to wrap his arms around her, bringing her closer, eager to feel every inch of her body pressing against him. Her soft mouth moved against his tenderly, with a bit of hesitation that made his head spin. Their tongues danced together as he took control of the kiss, and he felt like he could melt right there in her arms. And as much as he wanted to restrain himself, to handle her more delicately, he couldn’t. He had waited far too long.

Tommy’s scent invaded Nina’s nostrils, clouding her senses, and she feared her knees might give out as he kissed her like a man starved. It was passionate, sensual, and lit a fire inside her she had never felt before. And despite everything, it felt right. Nothing had ever felt so right like the feeling of his strong frame against her.

But it wasn’t right. In a moment of clarity, Nina reluctantly broke their kiss, her lips still brushing against Tommy’s. Catching her breath, she closed her eyes for a moment, trying to quieten the turmoil inside for her. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

With great gentleness, Tommy grabbed her chin, raising her face so that she would look at him. “I’m not.”

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#about bloody time ❤️!#our darling Nina 🤗#tommy shelby #thomas shelby #tommy shelby fic #tommy shelby imagine #tommy shelby x oc #peaky blinders #peaky blinder fanfic #peaky blinder imagine

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