#honkai star rail series

[milksnake-tea]

✩ CHAPTER SUMMARY : Sunday spreads his wings for the first time in years.

✩ SERIES SYNOPSIS : Following the catastrophe of the Charmony Festival, rather than in one of Penacony's hospitals or prisons, Sunday awakens right in the base of one of the most notorious criminals in the galaxies. With nowhere else to go, he's left to follow you, the Stellaron Hunters' medic, in his attempts to become accustomed to his new life.

✩ WORD COUNT : 3.8k

✩ TAGLIST : @vynicity , @vxnuslogy, @https-mika, @greyrain23, @red-ninja15, @arienic , @immahuman , @sund4ykisser , @mysteriaqueen , @kiopanxp , @isa-l0v3r , @hesper-houkai-kat , @gamekillera , @nayukiyukihira , @randomidk-123 , @universetrash , @forevernyeong , @thedepartedcryptid , @heyhazelnut101 , @1000-leaves , @lowkeyren , @zhayur , @jellofishuu , @kascar-chronicle , @azaleaflowerr , @neigee , @fallintothechasm , @veritusratio , @astolary , @xphantasmagoriax , @semi-orangeapple , @ezra1yn , @xynthevoid , @apinu , @crysangria , @shenwi , @louchive , @mave-in , @mutiachan , @meerpea ( send me an ask off anon if you want to be added !! remember to specify that it is for this series )

✩ ADDITIONAL NOTES : sorry for the later update yall, i had to study for a math placement test and write scholarship essays 😭 more emotionally packed chapter this time because apparently i can't go on too long without sunday suffering. its not that bad tho. have fun, and thank you to @vxnuslogy for betareading this chapter for me !!

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Unnaturally-colored lights illuminate your face in an eerie glow. All that can be heard in your dark office are the small clicks of your digital keyboard as you type and the soft tunes of your computer.

Holding out your hand, you extract some of the stolen medicine from your inventory and throw them into your synthesizer with an effortless wave. Your fingers tap against the table in small, repetitive motions as you idly watch the drugs separating into their basic chemical compositions.

It’s been a few hours since you’ve returned from Euphrosyne.

Shortly after Sunday’s first robbery (with heavy quotation marks), he’d dragged you into a cosmetics store in order to ransack it of its skincare products. Now, you weren’t completely clueless, but some of the things he picked out you didn’t even know existed - and you stole drugs on the basis.

You wince at the memory. Your wallet is still recovering from that escapade - with so many people in a smaller store, it was inconvenient to just drug them all, so you ended up having to pay the old-fashioned way, much to your chagrin.

You raise your hand to type a few commands into the holographic keyboard that appears beside you. The synthesizer glows, rearranging and recombining the chemicals until a completely new drug is born.

Sunday’s probably in his room right now, putting away the gifts you’d bought him and no doubt eager to return Blade’s borrowed clothes. In a few minutes, he’ll come walking through your doorway for the examination of his wings.

His wings… The image of them at the clothing store resurfaces in your mind with a furrowing of your brow.

While you have a good feel for his personality, you can’t understand why he’d keep his wings like that. If you were a Halovian and had wings like that, you’d fly whenever possible. Wings like those are meant to be used.

After all, aren’t birds born to fly?

A high-pitched hum from the synthesizer snaps you from your thoughts. The new drugs float patiently in the synthesizer’s hold, awaiting your final input.

Ah, right. You almost forgot.

You walk over to your desk and down to open up a drawer next to it. Inside is your stash of sugar and various packets of artificial flavoring - ranging from typical fruity flavors to root beer or even coffee.

It isn’t like the Stellaron Hunters are made up of notoriously picky eaters (except for Silver Wolf, but she’s different), but you still like to add a little bit of flavoring as a final touch, just to make the otherwise bitter medicines bearable.

Returning to the synthesizer, you unzip a bag of sugar and scoop out a cup or two and dump it in, along with a few drops of random flavoring you grabbed. With another quick typing, you assign each medicinal candy a flavor and an appropriate amount of sugar, and then it’s done.

And then, as if on cue, the familiar sound of heavy boots comes from behind you.  

You squint as you look up from your synthesizer, the light from the hallway blinding you momentarily.

“Must you always do your work in darkness?” Blade mutters as he steps into the infirmary. 

His youthful face shows no signs of weariness, but you can tell from his slumped body language how many hours of sleep he’d gotten - which is to say, zero.

You shrug, taking the finished candies from the synthesizer. “It helps me concentrate.”

A ragged sigh emits from your senior. “If you wish to blind yourself so soon, my sword is a faster option.”

“I’m good, thanks,” you chuckle. “Besides, a little eye problem isn't anything I can't bounce back from.”

Blade’s gaze is piercing as he stares at you, the slightest narrowing of his eyes revealing his disapproval. “Your constitution does not warrant recklessness.”

Your smile doesn’t reach your eyes. “Don't act like you're worried about me.”

He scoffs. Turning his head, the conversation ends there, leaving empty space behind. The silence isn’t unbearable; with Blade, things have always been this way, but there's an unmistakable tension in the air that you don't care enough to dispel.

You drop half of the candies into a jar before sliding said jar towards Blade.

“That should be enough for a month or so,” you say, leaning your elbows against the counter. “But don’t overdose, okay? Only use them when the mara becomes too much.”

Blade takes the jar without so much as a second glance. “I am aware.”

The shadow he casts as he leaves feels taller and more imposing than it should be. It catches the tip of your shoe, and you subtly take a step back.

The second Blade’s silhouette leaves your sight, a heavy sigh sags your body. Massaging your temple idly, you stare blankly into the light of your synthesizer.

“Great Mercy…” you groan, burying your face in your hands. “You just had to make it awkward, didn’t you? And we were doing so well too.”

You lift your head. Your vision feels hazy, and you don’t truly see your hands in front of you. The synthesizer’s glow blurs with the light in the doorway and the skin of your palms. For a moment, you are no longer in your office, but somewhere far, far away - a place you left several Amber Eras ago.

Inhaling sharply, you shake your head, dragging a hand over your face. Physically, it’s impossible for you to feel tired, but your mind is absolutely exhausted.

“That’s enough,” you quietly scold yourself. You roll back your shoulders and straighten from the desk, wiping your mind of any troubling thoughts. Blade never holds any grudges, and so neither should you.

Yeah… You shouldn’t.

You rest a hand over your heart. It thuds under your touch, still as frenzied and frightened as it was all those eras ago. Briefly, you consider ripping it out and growing a new one altogether.

“Mx. [Name]?”

A new silhouette joins the hallway’s light. You turn to see Sunday standing in the doorway, his expression candid - although slightly apprehensive. You wonder how long he’d been there - and hope that he didn’t see your exchange with Blade.

“You know, you don’t have to call me that,” you say, allowing your hand to drop to your side. Sunday blinks.

“Ah… I see.” He rests a hand over his heart in apology. “Forgive me, it’s a habit I developed in my line of work.”

Always with the apologizing, you think in amusement. “Nothing I need to forgive you for. All I’m saying is that you can just call me by my name, or whatever nickname you decide to force upon me.”

“A nickname,” he repeats. “Like the ones you call Ms. Kafka, and the others?”

“Don’t forget yourself, princess,” you joke, drinking in the way Sunday’s upper wings twitch at the name.

He sighs with a smile. “I was doing my best to.”

You hum out a laugh. “Yeah, I’m not going to let you. Come on in, let’s take a look at those wings, shall we?”

Immediately the lighthearted mood is vanquished. The air thickens, becoming almost suffocating. Sunday’s smile falters, the glow in his eyes dulls, and he crosses his arms in a vain attempt to provide himself a semblance of comfort.

Fear flashes over his eyes, and then a steady, unwavering determination.

“Right.” He breathes in, the breath shaking in his chest as he prepares himself. “The wings.”

—

It hurts.

Sunday knows he should’ve expected this - he hadn’t fully extended his wings in who knows how long, but still, the pain that strikes through his body is like nothing he’s ever felt before. Even the fall of the Charmony Festival hadn’t hurt this bad.

His body screams at him to stop, but the stretch is as painful as it is necessary.

“Breathe, princess.”

Your hand is an anchor at the small of his back, your palm flat against him as you aid him in extending his wings. 

In the back of his mind, he wants to shove you away, for his larger pair of wings are surely a horrid sight - an image of grotesque, mangled limbs flashes in his mind. But the pain overrides his need to appear presentable.

Sunday’s breath rattles - it’s a deadweight in his chest, pressing down on his lungs and heart and comes out as a wheeze.

“Princess, listen to me-”

Your voice drowns in the sea of his thoughts.

His eyes squeeze shut. In a seizure of ill-willed panic, he forces his wings to open faster, biting back a scream as the tearing sensation returns in full force. His fingers dig into his palms in an attempt to ground himself, but adding pain to pain does little to console.

His mind becomes a storm-wrecked ocean, waves crashing and beating at him every time he tries to surface. Horrid thoughts howl above him with the harsh winds, screaming at him to open them faster, to get this over with, to not disappoint you.

Water fills his lungs and he chokes, hands scrambling for any sort of anchor but finding nothing in their grasp. 

He’ll drown - he is drowning, slammed deeper into the waves again and again until-

Something grabs his wrist and pulls him out.

“Sunday.”

A strangled gasp shudders him. His eyes fly open.

The storm is gone. Replacing its howls is the distant hum of your synthesizer, and the dark waves are washed away by a gentle shadow. He sits no longer in groundless water, but instead on one of the two beds in the infirmary.

Your hand runs over his spine in a soothing motion while the other squeezes his shoulder firmly. Subconsciously, Sunday leans into your palms to stabilize himself.

He allows himself a few moments to breathe, gulping down vital mouthfuls of air. Like statues, his wings rigidly stay in place, in the middle of ripping themselves open. After a few minutes of silence, he finally composes himself enough to speak.

“I-”

“Don’t apologize,” you cut him off. Shame burns Sunday regardless. “Just listen.”

It takes Sunday a moment, one part because of his still-buzzing mind, one part another predicament entirely.

Your fingers linger around where the base of his wings are, in the window of the thin, long-sleeved shirt he’s thrown on for the examination. All of his senses are zeroed in on that small sliver of skin, tingling at the mere prospect of another’s touch - although he can’t tell if it wants or fears it.

“Sunday?”

With a start, he realizes you’re awaiting his answer. Heat rushing to his cheeks, he nods tentatively, signaling for you to continue.

“Your wings aren’t used to being pried open like that,” you say calmly. Instinctively he tries to find any hint that you’re annoyed, or irritated, or any of the sort. But he finds nothing, only a strangely secure serenity. “You have to take it slow; otherwise you’ll hurt them even more.”

Relief floods him when your palm lies flat against him once more. 

Wait, relief? Why was he…

“Focus on my voice,” you interrupt his thoughts before he can get too embarrassed. “I’ll guide you through it. Now, may I?”

Sunday’s lips part to ask just what you mean by that, only for his voice to lodge in his throat as you ghost a hand over the base of his wing.

Granted, his second pair of wings isn’t as sensitive as the ones that lie behind his head - thank Ena for that - but they still are more sensitive than he’d like to admit. Allowing you, who he’s known for a little more than a day, to touch them… even if this is a medical necessity, he still finds himself a bit wary.

“May I ask what you’re planning to do, first?” he asks quietly, turning slightly so that he can glimpse at your face.

“Remember what I did back on Euphrosyne, with the clerk?” you reassuringly squeeze his shoulder one last time before hovering both of your hands over the base of his wings.

Sunday remembers the scene at the clinic. “Your lollipop, you mean?”

You chuckle. “That too. But no, I meant what happened after the lollipop - when the clerk hit their head.”

“Ah.” Sunday’s wings rustle. “That healing ability of yours. You intend to use it on my wings?”

“Bingo. You hurt them a bit in that frenzy just now, so I need to repair that. It’ll also make the stretch much easier.”

That makes sense, Sunday thinks. But there’s one thing he’s slightly worried about.

“Is touching my wings necessary for this procedure?”

You hum. “Not really, although it’d be more efficient if I did. If I handle your wings directly, I can further aid you in extending them and more accurately heal them when needed. Would you rather I didn’t?”

If it were any other person - save for perhaps Robin and his adoptive father, Sunday would’ve said yes right away. A Halovian’s wings were one of the most intimate parts of them, especially the ones that extend from their nape. Only close friends, family, and romantic partners were allowed to touch them.

But the more he thinks, the more he realizes that he doesn’t feel as inclined to those traditions with you. There’s something about you that puts him at ease, much to his chagrin.

For some bewildering reason, he trusts you.

It’s just a medicinal procedure, he tells himself.

“No, I don’t mind,” Sunday finally says, turning his back. “Do what you must, doctor.”

He hears an amused hum from behind. “Alright, princess. Follow my lead.”

Sunday lets his eyes flutter close. He feels your hands lay gentle on his wings, the touch sending tingles of static up and down. It’s almost ticklish, but it isn’t unpleasant.

Warmth blooms at the curve of his wings, ebbing away the pain and leaving him with an almost refreshed feeling, as if stepping out of a dark forest into a sunlit meadow. He realizes that it’s your ability at work. Slowly, his shoulders droop, and his muscles relax.

Then he feels your hands slide up his wings, applying pressure every so often like a massage, correcting the kinks in his bones and healing whenever needed.

His breath hitches at the feeling. A pleased hum begins to vibrate in his chest like static as he loses himself to the dream-like feeling.

Vaguely, he hears you instruct him to open and close his wings, and he listens, easing them open at a gradual pace. The hum in his chest increases in magnitude, his back arching slightly as his wings extend to their full length.

He sighs in satisfaction once the stretch is complete and the tips of his feathers brush against the ceiling in a veil of midnight blue.

“Someone looks happy,” you say. “Feels better, doesn’t it?”

Your voice comes from a higher place than before, making Sunday look up. You smile down at him, hand resting gently on the bend of his left wing.

His left wing…

His serene expression falters. Carefully, he folds that wing in front of him and takes the dark plumage in his hands. Running his fingers amongst the feathers, he stops with narrowed eyes at the feeling of a sudden edge in the sea of softness.

Just as before, his left wing’s flight feathers are still cut short, snipped so that he may never take to the skies.

This time, he had been the one to cut them - Gopher Wood needn’t be bothered with such trivial matters, especially after Sunday had become an adult. But he remembers his first cutting well - the sheen of the scissors, the iron grip on his wings, the fear he’d felt, all in the past but not truly left behind.

“They’ll grow back.”

Sunday glances up.

“I know.”

He doesn’t sound convinced, not even to himself. But what he wants to convince himself of, he doesn’t know.

Sunday lets go of his wing and lets it hang comfortably at his side. You slide off the bed behind him and pull up your office chair. Sitting on it with your chest against the back, you roll back in front of him.

“Try flapping them,” you say. “Slowly, just open and close until you get used to the feeling.”

Sunday obliges. The wings are larger and heavier than he expects, and it’s a bit of a struggle, but he manages. Winds spurs from every flap of his wings, rustling your hair each time.

“No pain?” you prompt, raising a hand to summon a screen and type some things onto it. Sunday shakes his head.

“No.” He flaps one more time just to make sure, but he feels nothing, only his wings’ new weight.

“Good.” You type a bit more before closing the window. “I wouldn’t try flying just yet - especially with those clipped feathers, but we can start out with a few exercises every day to strengthen them. Kind of like physical therapy.”

Something warm blooms in Sunday’s chest. His heart rate quickens, and for the first time in years, he feels excited, giddy, relieved. It’s almost overwhelming, all of it. 

He flicks his wing again, and again, and again. A gleeful laugh bubbles up in his chest. 

His feathers tickle against his cheek, as if his wings are trying to comfort him. He smiles at the thought, despite how silly it is.

But then he remembers where he is. Heat reddens his face as he meets your amused gaze, his upper wings instinctively covering his face as he coughs bashfully.

“Sorry, I’m afraid I got a little carried away.”

“Aw, don’t get embarrassed on me now,” you giggle, not helping his predicament at all. “It was cute, watching you get all giddy.”

He half-heartedly shoots you a glare, to which you only smile calmly in reply.

“Are we finished here?” he huffs, eager to change the subject. You hum.

“Yeah, basically. I don’t have anything to give you, unless you want some of those sleeping candies I mentioned earlier.”

Sunday blinks. For a moment, he contemplates the offer despite you probably having only mentioned it in passing.

The nightmare from last night still hangs fresh in his mind, and his inability to fall asleep still bears its consequences - the reminder brings back the dull ache at the back of his head which he’d tried to ignore. Sleeping still scares him - if naturally induced rest brings upon visions such as those, he’d rather not sleep at all. But he is still mortal, human, and as such, he cannot evade his body’s needs forever.

Yet at the same time, he doesn’t want you to think there’s anything wrong with him to warrant such medications. 

Then again, you’ve already seen his wings.

“Those medications of yours,” he says softly, “do they get rid of dreams?”

You prop your elbows up on the back of your chair. “They do. Are you suffering from nightmares?”

He’s unable to stop the smallest flinch that confirms your speculations. You stand up, pushing the chair back to your desk.

“I get it,” you offer as consolation, although it doesn’t assure him as much as it piques his curiosity. “When I first came here, I had a rough time sleeping too. I only slept when I couldn’t stand anymore, and even Kafka was concerned - or well, as concerned as a woman like her could be.”

The synthesizer opens, revealing pre-made candies floating in its hold. Sunday recognizes them as the same ones Blade had walked out holding.

“When I found out Blade had the same problem - okay, well, not the same problem,” you correct yourself, “I started making these. After seeing them work so well on Blade, I figured I should take some too.”

Sunday tilts his head. “Blade has nightmares?”

“You can see it like that,” you say, bagging a couple candies with a wave of your hand. Thankfully, your hand doesn’t come in contact with the candies; otherwise, Sunday would leave them untouched in the corner of his room for all eternity. “But his ailment is far worse and more complicated than just that.”

Sunday briefly remembers the stories he’d read of the Xianzhou, including that of the curse its locals bear.

His gaze drops to his hands. “I see.” 

Sympathy tugs at his heartstrings. For a second, he is the Bronze Melodia again, listening to the plight of the weak with a careful ear. Now, Blade is by no means what he’d call weak, but knowing he suffers from such a cruel fate…

He looks over at you, brows furrowed slightly. Your back is turned, meaning he can’t see your expression.

Even the strongest have their vulnerabilities - this he knows well.

Then what does that make of you, who suffered like he did?

“You have nightmares too, then?” he asks gently.

“Had,” you’re quick to correct. “After a few Amber Eras, I got over them. I don’t take these anymore.”

There’s a clear edge in your tone that is chilling despite your otherwise easygoing voice. The message is clear - don’t push it.

Sunday tenses, his feathers bristling instinctively.

Right. He’s forgotten who you were - what you were. You may be kind to him now, but the two of you aren’t close, nor are you someone who needs his comfort. He is no longer the Bronze Melodia, and you are not his kin.

You’re a Stellaron Hunter - a criminal and a murderer.

You don’t need nor want his pity.

Your footsteps snap him out of his momentary moment of fear. You don’t look mad, or, well, anything, for that matter - just the same as usual. He could almost convince himself that nothing had happened at all.

The small mesh bag of candies is soft as you plop it in his palm.

“Don’t get too used to them, okay?” you sit down on the bed next to him, the mattress creaking as you do. He shifts his wing away so that it doesn’t drape over you like a blanket. “You can overdose on these, and it’s not fun.”

Did you know from experience? Sunday wonders, but decides against asking. He doesn’t want to push his chances.

“I’ll try,” he assures, folding his wings behind him.

“Looks like you’re already getting used to them,” you comment, leaning back onto your hands to look at his wings one last time. Sunday hums as you hold a hand out and run it along his plumage. “By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask. Do Halovians purr?”

Sunday’s mind malfunctions as he tries to process your words. “Excuse me?”

You drop your hand to look at him innocently. “Back when I was helping your wings out, you were making this purring sound, like a cat. I don’t know if you noticed but I wanted to ask-”

His wing smacks you over the head in embarrassment.

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reblogs w comments are appreciated !!

[felibrary]

╭──╯PAIRING: aventurine x fem!reader

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS:  Out of everyone this could’ve happened to, of course, it struck you. As a barista, you meet new customers every day but a fateful encounter with a stupid(ly handsome) stranger, turns into two and three and to the point of no return, and somewhere along the way catching yourself faltering for his persistent charms annoyance.

WORDCOUNT: 4.2k

CONTENT & GENERAL WARNINGS: fem!reader, barista!reader, cursing, light angst if you squint, fluff, march is the n1 shipper, vague mentions of ratio, banter and bickering (more from readers side), no beta-read we die like baiheng

AUTHOR'S NOTE: the last chapter was posted like 2 weeks ago? i think not sure. sorry guys i just had no motivation in the previous few weeks at all 😭😭 but here it is, enjoy! also just cause this took super long to write doesn't equal it being super good 😓

ART CREDITS: none of the characters or art belong to me all art credits go to @/kkuekkue on x!

TAGLIST: @azullumi,@sunananaa, @milksnake-tea, @iceunhie, @nayukiyukihira, @jjzlisu, @raideneiari (if you want to be added to the tag list write a comment or send me an off anon ask! ^^)

PREVIOUS || MASTERLIST || NEXT

“Order for uh.” you abruptly stop your sentence. Furrowing your brow in confusion you look at the questionable name that is written on the paper cup that you’re currently holding in your hand. Your gaze drifts over to the barista behind you. “March..” you whisper through gritted teeth, trying to maintain a smile while pausing for a brief moment to study the face of the girl with the cotton candy-like hair. 

The short girl hums quietly, “What is it?” she tilts her head to the side, a milk-frothing pitcher in her right hand, almost empty. “And why are we whispering?” admittedly you’re not even sure yourself, after all, people come up with silly names all the time, so why are you refraining from saying this name out loud?

“Well, I'm whispering because I don't want the other customers to listen into our conversation, but, are you sure that you wrote the right name here?” you ask the girl behind you doubtfully before directing your view towards the letters that were written in cursive and were adorned by little stars and flowers drawn by none other than March. 

The '*•.¸♡𝓐𝓿𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓾𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓮 ♡¸.•*' which she wrote in cursive (and if you may add, kind of crooked) made you raise your eyebrows as you held the cup in front of her face for her to see.

She always had a habit of drawing cute smiley faces or hearts onto the cups, reasoning it by saying that it’d sweeten the customers' day. Although you’re not sure if that’s really necessary, their day probably already gets sweetened enough from the amount of sugar and sweetener March puts into the drinks.

She huffs, feigning hurt and acting offended by your question “If you want to suspect someone, blame her!” March’s eyes drift over to the silver-haired girl who is currently sitting next to the trash can near the staff rooms, playing video games and thus blocking the way: Stelle. 

The girl in question quickly lifts her head and just smiles sheepishly as if not knowing what’s going on right now. “She’s the one who gave me the receipts and told me the names before you took over, I just added the condiments and started creating cute latte art!.” you sigh at that. Well, whoever gave Stelle their name will probably be able to recognize it sooner or later anyway. 

The worst case scenario that could probably happen is the customer putting their hands on the counter and starting to scream and yell at you to the point where their spit lands in your eyes. Urging to talk to your manager: Pompom. If the customer would see them the customer would probably start scolding you for bringing out the mascot instead of the manager, leaving the shop and giving you zero stars on Maps. (definitely not talking from any former experiences.) Yeah, hopefully, that won’t happen.

You let out a throaty cough before loudly shouting once again “Order for Aventurine!” you really wonder whose mom named their kid after a quartzite stone now — hell, if you let your guard down, the next person who you’d have to call up is someone named Ashleigh or Jonaslian. 

What’s up with women who are only maybe one or two decades older than, and their obsession with horrible baby names?

“Hellooo” the o of the greeting gets dragged out by the owner of the sing-song voice. “Earth to the cashier.” The next thing you know is a hand that is covered in a black leather glove,  waving at your face, moving in a repetitive up-and-down motion. The gesture makes you snap out of the haze which you were in, and slightly shake your head, before looking up at the customer and getting a good glance at them.  

In front of you stood possibly the hottest man you’ve ever seen. Blond silky hair and was dressed in a crisp black waistcoat that was draped around his slim torso, wearing a turquoise button-up underneath it that was adorned with gold decorations around his collar. His tie that matched his waistcoat was adjusted perfectly so that it sat in the right place. Black leather gloves envelop his slender fingers. 

The last time you were enamored by someone was when you were 9 reaching 10, and seeing Asami Sato bumping into Mako with her motorcycle on TV for the first time made you fall head over heels in love with her. That woman had younger you in a chokehold.

You feel your body tensing and heating up slightly. Fuck, has it always been this warm here? Your eyes sway over to the air conditioner behind you. No, that can't possibly be it, you made sure that the A/C was on the highest level before opening the cafe. 

The blond in front of you raises his eyebrow and looks at you expectantly, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as his eyes shift over your face as if studying your expression. There’s amusement that settles onto his face — smugness would be the best word to describe it.

 Shit, there was no way he found out that you were fawning over him.

“Take a picture. It lasts longer sweetheart.” he shoots you a small wink and you’re not sure whether to feel impressed or horrified at the fact that he was able to read you as easily as an open book where the most important words are already highlighted in a bold colour. 

So you remain silent — speechless, to be precise. There’s a familiar feeling bubbling up in your chest, one that makes you all giddy and nervous. How can someone whom you never met enarmour you so much? It’s weird, but it’s weirder that it feels all too familiar. Suspicion arises within you.

“Hmm?” Aventurine — or whatever his name may be, tilts his head to the side, a questioning and innocent expression manifesting on his face that it almost makes him look like a young boy who still has to grasp the concepts of the many fundamentals of the world.

“Spacing out already? Am I that handsome?” Yeah, keyword: almost.

It takes a second to compose yourself again before speaking up again. “Yeah.” Your eyes form into crescent moons as you give him a small faux smile (how March likes to call it: your customer service smile) before your face contorts into an expression of unpleasantness “No, in your dreams Mister. Also please hurry up, you’re holding up the line.” You point behind him and he angles his head backwards to see..no one?

“There’s no one there.” This time it’s him who looks unimpressed, a deadpan expression gracing over his features and you do have to admit that he looks kind of cute with that expression. Oh god, what were you thinking? “You know you’ll have to do better than try to tri-”

Before he can even finish his sentence you quickly cut him off. “With cash or with card?” Your customer service smile from before finds its way onto your face once more. “Miss, you’re so cruel! You didn’t even let me fini-” “I repeat. With cash or with card?” 

Your patience was running thin. Lucky for him he’s somewhat respectful and cute while bothering you and not going on your nerves. If he were some weirdo, you would’ve scurried away already. People like him (unfortunately) remind you that pretty privilege does exist. 

His gloved hand dives into the depths of the pockets of his slacks before pulling out a leather wallet and revealing a black card. Oh great, a rich guy. “With card.” he sighs dramatically. Do all rich people behave like this? “Sir, this is a café not an acting audition for some teenage romance drama.” You’re not sure what to think of this guy, on one hand, his attempts are cute on the other it’s kind of weird that he’s flirting with a cashier whom he met 5 minutes ago. “Just.” You hesitate before speaking up again. “Just type your PIN in here and you’re done.” He nods and continues to do so which the small sound the machine makes confirms. 

At that, you give him a small nod as a gesture of thankfulness, before attempting to kick him out again. “Great, thank you. Now please go and I wish you a good day.” 

“But how am I supposed to have a good day without yo-”

“You’ll live.” you wave him goodbye and that leaves him with no other choice but to step back and leave. 

Maybe you’re hallucinating and maybe you’re just imagining it but before he leaves he gives you a small smile. The soft and charming glow that emanates from his eyes resonates well with the dusking sun as if they were reflecting the last golden rays of sunshine before they were to be engulfed by the warm hues of the sky and later on painted black like the night. An inexplicable feeling rises in your chest as he bids you goodbye, wishing you a nice day.

“Oh he so has a massive crush on you.” you shudder upon hearing March’s voice. Her words ring in your ears like Christmas bells chiming during the holiday season. Loud and obnoxious. You try to drain the thoughts away but how can you when the source who started it all is right behind you? Continuously gushing about how that handsome stranger must have an enormous crush on you.

“The group chat has to know about this!” March enthusiastically squeals and quickly fishes her phone out of her pockets. Before you’re even able to realize what is bound to happen let alone prevent her from aggressively typing on her phone, she’s already sent the first message. 

At that you can only bury your face into the palms of your hand, face sinking into your hands in embarrassment. As much as you love March, it sometimes feels like she’s the oldest of the group and not Mr. Yang. Not in terms of matureness and wiseness, no more like in the sense of the kind of mom who has to share each and every one of her baby’s accomplishments online, but not as bad though, of course. Still.

“I hate you,” you complain, words muffled by the palms of your hands.

“I love you too.” she quips cheerfully, a smirk on her lips.

Safe to say March was in charge of cleaning and tidying up the café for the whole shift.

“Aww the handsome guy from yesterday isn’t here today.” March coos into your ear, a frown is displayed on her lips. She frowns, but you can see the hints of playfulness that linger in her expression. “Put on such a nice show yesterday only to chicken out. Booo, lameeee.” March rolls her eyes in amusement, giggling while doing so. 

Although you didn’t want to agree with what March had to say, she’s somewhat right. You full-heartedly believed that he’d visit again today after the move he pulled off yesterday or perhaps you wanted him to visit him again. 

You quickly shook your head at that thought, brushing the idea of someone paying you a visit at work off to humor you a bit. There was absolutely no way you wanted to see him again. 

“It’s early in the morning and you’re trying to shake the dandruff out of your hair already?” “Not funny Mar-” There was no fucking way.

If this wasn’t a deja vu, you don’t know either. It’s almost as if the interaction of yesterday was replaying right in front of your eyes and once again catching you off guard.

“You know it’s not polite to blatantly stare at people right?” he spoke with a chuckle as he observed your irritated face. “Frowning like that will make you gain wrinkles.” The twitching on your right eye doesn’t go unnoticed by him and he can only chuckle at that, seemingly amused by your morning misery. 

“What are you doing here.” you can only mutter a single question out, dumbfounded by him appearing in front of you once again. “Hm, am I not allowed to come by? I mean, everything’s quite affordable in here and this place isn’t far away from my workplace either sooo.” 

Well, you can’t judge him for that. “Then, what do you want?” with a sigh you pluck one of the sticky notes of the block of colorful sticky notes, ready to write his order and name down. “Someone’s in a bad mood.” he chirps. A blank stare is the only thing you provide him as an answer and at that, he can only chuckle, it’s obvious that he’s enjoying this. “An Iced Americano would be nice. Thanks.” 

“Mhmm, noted.” you quickly scribbled his order down onto the quadratic paper before shouting March’s name over your shoulder. “Can you come here to keep our dear customer company? I’ll prepare his drink in the meantime.” you shoot Aventurine a heavy side-eye before darting your gaze back to March. The girl only giggles in response before happily skipping over to the counter. 

“Aww, do you want to extra prepare my drink?” upon hearing his remark you turn around. Meeting a pair of pink eyes which were covered behind long blond lashes, scanning your figure from a close distance. 

Nervosity crawls at your skin as you feel yourself getting watched by him. It’s weird — screw that, he’s weird. 

“Close!” a giggle accompanies your words. “Actually, I just really wanna get away from you. Have fun with him March.” scoffing, you turn around again.

It didn’t take you long to prepare his order, filling a cup with ice cubes and pouring some shots of espresso over them was a piece of cake. “Here” You hand him his drink and he nods in contentment before handing you a few coins, a cheeky grin appears on his face and you can see the amusement glimmering in his pink eyes. “See you tomorrow” he chuckles and upon that March nudges your side, which in response you can only give her an exasperated groan. 

“Yep. Head over heels in love.” she quips as soon as Aventurine is out of sight, and you have to fight the urge to slam your forehead against the counter.

Your third encounter with Aventurine occurred on a fairly rainy day. With sluggish movements and wet clothes, soaked from head to toe he slumped over to the counter and grinning as soon as he saw you. 

“Hey.” it takes you a moment to process the situation and reluctantly you reply. “Hey.” Your eyes scan over his figure, his white dress shirt is completely translucent now and you can’t help but let your eyes drift to the tattoo on his neck, down to his collarbone which is visibly poking out, and his slim waist, ribs only covered by a thin layer of pale skin.   

Aventurine seems to catch on pretty quickly and wraps himself into his blazer, seemingly uncomfortable by the way you’re looking at him.

You quickly gather your words, and voice an apology. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shamelessly stare, that was rude again, I’m so sor-” “It’s fine.” Aventurine interrupts, cutting your apology curt while huffing out a tired sigh. The exasperation that resides in his voice implies that he obviously doesn’t want to dwell on this topic any further.  

A meek nod is the only response you’re able to give. “Can I just get the same thing I’ve had last time? Thanks.” he pulls out his card, ready to pay for his order. 

“Really? An Iced Americano during this weather?” you let out a small chuckle with which you’re trying to lighten up the tense atmosphere that built up between the two of you. 

At the sound of your light laughter, Aventurine’s eyes flicker over your face. “You remember my order?” he asks dumbfounded.

“Well yeah, no one besides teenage girls order an Iced Americano.” you joke, the usual sarcasm back in your voice. It quenches his former uneasiness, your light-hearted words soothing him like a cool steam dripping into his parched heart.

The corners of his lips twitch and he can’t help but smile. “Oh, shut up.” His signature smirk graces his lips and upon catching sight of it you can’t help but also let out a fond smile. 

“Will.. a freshly black brewed coffee do?” you’re careful when asking him. Nervousness crawls at your skin in anticipation. 

“Black coffee?” he hums. “Yeah, that should work. Thanks.” the reassuring smile he gives you makes your tense shoulder drop in relief, easing the worry that previously swam in your stomach.

You disappear into the kitchen, searching for the container that stores the coffee beans to prepare his drink, in the meantime, Aventurine quickly types into his phone before erasing the words as fast as he wrote them.

The fresh scent of coffee beans engulfs your nose and you can’t help but smile. Freshly brewed coffee always reminds you of home; someone in whose arms you can bury yourself in, nudging your nose into their chest as they cage you with their arms, softly embracing you. The rattling of a coffee machine in the background rings in your ears, but the only thing you can focus on is a voice that softly caresses the shell of your ear. 

Domesticity washes over you — it’s all too familiar. 

Aventurine’s drink is prepared in no time and you set it on the counter which makes him look up from his phone, giving you a weak smile before wrapping his hand around the drink. It’s still hot to touch, the warmth spreading over his hand in an instant like wildfire, it’s nice — the feeling of warmth enveloping his cold hand is nice. 

“Well, I’ll get going now.” his announcement catches you off guard, and impulsively you reach out to tug on his sleeve to prevent him from leaving. The action leaves both you and Aventurine surprised. Curious, the blond raises an eyebrow and grins (oh how much you want to wipe that stupid grin off his face), expectantly awaiting your next move.

“Sorry.” you cough apologetically before quickly letting go of his semi-dried sleeve. “But I don’t think it’s a good idea to go out again when it’s still raining. If I were you I’d just wait until the rain stops.” Upon hearing your sincere suggestion, Aventurine’s grin falters and instead slowly molds into a fond smile that makes you inexplicably warm.  

“Aww, don’t tell me you're worried that I might catch a cold?” You counter his playful remark with one of your own. “Well, yeah. Who else is supposed to give me a generous tip?” At that Aventurine can only laugh and the smile you’ve been trying to hold back escapes. 

“Touché.”

From there on visits from Aventurine became frequent, always coming during your shift or during your break to chatter with you about mindless topics. You got used to his visits, and even when you gave off the impression of showing no interest in his ramblings, you always lent him an ear, carefully listening to what he had to say about his pets or his grumpy friend. 

(He told you that the both of you resemble each other in some way, aloof on the outside but caring on the inside. In response, you shot him a big side eye, cause what does he mean by aloof?)

The small conversations exchanged between the two of you, ranged between topics of the latest spots that have just opened, to operas and musicals and eventually work. 

His work to be specific.

Curiosity got the better of you and you couldn’t help but ask: “Aventurine.” upon hearing his name sliding off your tongue, he hums in acknowledgment. “What is it?” you scan his attire, the material of his black blazer is slightly crumpled and the turquoise button-up he’s wearing underneath seems to be the same one as the one when you first met him.

“What the hell do you even work as? I mean what kind of job requires you to wear a new suit every day?” befuddlement manifests on your face. “Ah, well.” Aventurine hesitates for a moment, mouth slightly agape before closing it once again as if searching for the right words to say. “I’ve told you that I work here right down the street right? I’m a teaching assistant at St. Freya University for my friend.” he gives you a small and coy smile. 

“Oh, that prestigious university for rich kids?” at that Aventurine slightly raises his eyebrows as if surprised by your remark before quietly laughing. “Mhm, I suppose you could say so.” “I should’ve known that you taught there, I bet you also went there for university.” It’s only a joking remark you made upon impulse but the amusement on Aventurine’s face slightly dissipates, replaced with a sheepish expression.  

“I didn’t go to university.”

“What?”

“What?”

“What do you mean you didn’t go to university? I mean as teaching a-” “I-i started working from a very early age on and not as a teaching assistant it’s only a job for me to help my friend with.” he quickly corrects himself. “Oh.” “Yeah.” he hums, looking away. 

The silence is unbearable. It’s weird and unusual for you to not hear Aventurine chatter into your ear. “So uhm.. what do you teach or help with?” the embarrassment quickly rises to your cheeks and you turn your head downwards to avoid any eye contact. God, why’s initiating a conversation so hard and always fucking awkward.

“Interested in joining? Want me to sign you up?” you’re relieved upon hearing Aventurine immediately responding, lifting your head only to be met with soft pink eyes that are already earnestly admiring you. 

Your deadpan expression tells him more than enough and he chuckles more to himself than to you. “Well, my friend, he has high expectations for his students. To some people, he might appear strict, but really, it’s for their own well-being — not his. He cares about his students a lot. Sharing his knowledge about certain topics and seeing the potential in all of them, for them to pick the information up and be able to use it. So the things he does in his classes differ, from practical to theoretical classes and I’m just there to assist with my knowledge.” the small smile that quirks at his lips doesn’t go unnoticed by you.

“Okay, okay, well enough about me, what about you? Any plans for the weekend?” Aventurine smoothly changes the topic. 

Upon being asked what your plans are your eyes immediately light up with excitement. “I’ve been meaning to visit the fair for a while now. Trying out the new rides and stuff you know?” Aventurine momentarily pauses. “Ah, I’ve actually never been to a fair.” his admission comes over as surprising to you. 

“Wait what? You’ve never been to a fair? You’re lying!” 

“I’m not! Or maybe I am.” he laughs. “Well, I might have gone to some but I can’t recall anything like that. Perhaps I was too short, too young, or too much of a pussy to try out one of the rides.” 

Before you can even think of how to respond to that, you blurt out a: “Go with me then!” You’re not even sure how you had the courage to ask that, especially to someone whom you’ve only met a month or hell a few weeks ago, you’re even less sure where that question even came from.

From what you can read off Aventurine’s face, he seems to be as equally surprised as you, mouth slightly agape and lips forming a smile as he stares at you with expectant eyes. 

“Really?” Disbelief settles onto his face.

“Thinking about it now, nope.” The light in Aventurine’s eyes immediately dies down, suddenly looking like a kicked puppy who didn’t get any belly rubs. It somehow makes you feel bad — somehow you sympathize with him. “..Fine.” you mumble. You can’t believe yourself. “Though there’s one condition: You’ll have to pay for everything.”

“Sure, no problem.” Aventurine agrees without any hesitation and that makes you skittish. “I was joking!” He gives you a boyish grin “Well, I know but it’s not like it’s a big deal either. Also, can this be considered a date?” he props his elbow up and places his cheek onto his balled fist, smirking while doing so.

“Aventurine,” you say in a stern voice. “Don’t make me change my mind.”

Your irritated eyes meet his fond ones. “I’m glad.” he expresses and you’re caught off guard by his sincere tone. There’s no teasing or playfulness behind it, just pure gratefulness. 

“Is it alright if I have your number? It’s easier to reach you then.” the smirk plastered on his face is enough to tell you what the actual intention behind his words is. 

“Admit it. You just want my number, don’t you?” you deadpan him.

“Hmm, who knows?” the grin on his face only grew wider, amused by the fact that you caught on so quickly.

Swiftly you fish out your phone from your pockets, unlocking it before showing him your phone number, and before you can even ask how he’s saved your number; which contact name he typed in for you, he pulls his phone away. Smiling in triumph upon seeing your irritated face.

He gets up from the chair he’s been sitting on for the past few minutes. “Well, your break is about to end soon, so I’ll take my leave.” your eyes follow him as he checks if he’s got everything. “See you tomorrow then:” he says in a playful tone before leaving. 

Yeah, you’re going to meet your demise, you just know it.

END NOTE: this is just idk man we're gonna progress more in the future chaps okay 😔

© VYNICITY 2024. stealing, copying, translating, reposting my works on other platforms or feeding them to ai is not permitted.

[echoingspectrum]

𝐷𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑠 𝑁𝑖𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑛𝑎 ‣ 𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑟

"𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑛 𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝑏𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝑠𝑜 𝑡𝑜𝑜 𝑑𝑖𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐸𝑚𝑝𝑖𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐻𝑢𝑛𝑡 𝑏𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡'𝑠 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑤."

𝐈.

"You are utterly worthless." A venomous voice hissed through the light, piercing the silence of the day. The words echoed with a chilling intensity, revealing the depths of disdain and cruelty that resided within her heart. 

"And you proudly call yourself an Eliades. Pathetic," she sneered, her eyes filled with contempt. 

"I don't want to be alone in this world," she uttered breathlessly as she set her gaze upon the celestial atlas. She longed for a connection—a sense of belonging that seemed to elude her in the vastness of the universe.

"Will I…be able to find my place among the stars?" 

𝐈𝐈.

The radiant light embraced the land with its warmth and prosperity, showering the never-ending flora and fauna with life and vitality. 

The colors of the flowers bloomed brighter, and the songs of the birds echoed through the air with a newfound joy. Nature thrived under the benevolent touch of the radiant light, creating a harmonious symphony of existence that seemed to dance in perfect synchrony. 

"Welcome." A gentleman with a gentle smile approached her, his eyes twinkling with kindness. "To the High Temple of Abundance."

"I would like to know my savior," she said, her voice filled with gratitude and curiosity. 

Her eyes captured the features of her savior as she studied his face, taking in the cold and reserved energy that radiated from him.

The man in a black coat coughed lightly, his eyes flickering with a hint of vigilancy. 

"I am known as the Cloud Piercer."

𝐈𝐈𝐈.

"This could serve you well." Gesturing behind him. You felt yourself bewilderment as you followed his gaze to see a magnificent amount of golden treasure, glittering in the dimly lit room.

"I can't take this! It's too much!" you exclaimed, overwhelmed by the sight before you. 

"No matter," he said, approaching you with a gentle stride. He tucked a strand of hair behind your ear. "What's mine is yours."

His touch is cold yet warm, sending a shiver down your spine. As you looked into his piercing eyes, you couldn't help but feel a strange sense of trust at his touch. His gloved hands soothe your back.

"The consequences are mine to bear," he whispered under his breath. Embracing you with much fervor. "But I couldn't bear the sight of your lifeless body. I would rather face any repercussions than lose you."

[ceeejus]

🚀🗺️

[baeshijima]

thoughts on being engaged to duke!sunday, the head of the oak family, an incredibly influential figurehead within society, the close subordinate of emperor gopher wood who brought him and his sister in and raised him like his own, and the villain who faces a tragic ending in a novel you recently finished — the very same one you just so happen to find yourself transmigrated into. he is as cunning as he is blinded, a trait which brought ruin to many in the empire, and one which ultimately brought ruin to himself at the hands of the protagonists.

as luck would have it, you became a barely mentioned side character from a marquis family, whose role was to be the villain's wife stuck in a one-sided love who, too, would get caught up in the tragedy alongside him. however, now that it's you who is stuck in this position, you're determined to try any means necessary to deter him from going down that path, all in an effort to escape your predestined doomed fate!

of course, you didn't expect it to be easy. the day of your arrival in this world was already the night before your wedding, so you had little time to prepare yourself for the nonchalance of your supposed family, how they viewed you as but a means — a tool — to boost their influence and prosperity, the dismissive mannerisms of the household servants, and the absolute beauty of a man you will be married to.

(seriously. the novel descriptions did not do him justice. he was like... like... like he was handcrafted by god himself! and not to mention his sister, robin, was the very epitome of an angel! perhaps you're destined to perish by the god-tier visuals instead...)

to say the least, the wedding ceremony went by quickly. safe to say you didn't spend the night; he was cordial and gentlemanly upon letting you know that he won't do anything until you're ready, that you can take this relationship slow, but somehow you ended up feeling a tad insulted. like, who leaves their newly wedded alone in a big cold bed as they walk out on their own? a sick bastard that's who!

well, whatever. it's not like you need nor want to consummate with him! besides, you have bigger things to worry about — things such as your impending death. and, of course, the only way to stop sunday that you can imagine working is by chipping away at his resolve bit by bit, and opening his eyes to reality.

he is a tragic character, one who cares more about the well-being of penacony and its people than anyone else, but was manipulated into getting his hands dirty in the emperor's stead. you knew this. you sobbed over his story, cursed out the protagonists, and even fought internet randos on novel forums about sunday's motivation and how,

no, he is not just a stupid villain. he is a complex character with flaws and humanity and was cruelly taken advantage of by someone he considered family. he was deceived through the suffering the emperor wanted him to see to make him easily manipulated, creating a rift between him and robin to have that prominent separation. you know what? maybe you're just a !%#@ who can't even #@?"% read properly!

and yet you still find yourself at a loss when faced with the walls he has in place. your initial efforts went as well as it possibly could have; you trying to earnestly help him, while he "kindly" dismisses your offers! well, "kindly" being more condescending since you could read between the lines of his mannerisms and amiable demeanour, but that's fine! you expected this! that just means you have to double down on your sincerity, get through to his heart (somehow), and help him realise humanity isn't as weak as he's led to believe!

you have three years until the novel's plot officially starts, and another year after that until your demise. that's plenty of time to get him to warm up to you!

it was easier said than done, but after your valiant effort and abundance of time put into this relationship, which admittedly you could do with some of that lost time back, you could give yourself a pat on the back with the progress you made! while you definitely could have done without a lot of the headaches, it's safe to say sunday has significantly warmed up to you in comparison to your wedding day. he now willingly eats all his meals with you with some real conversation, takes garden strolls with you in the early evenings, invites you out for dinner at a restaurant at least four times a week, hell he's even joked and laughed with you more frequently! but most importantly, he has begun asking for your opinion before finalising any decisions he is required to make. and he actually listens and considers your side! now, that certainly is the best outcome you could hope for after all this time, and it most definitely will help in your endeavour to save you both from the protagonists!

however, you've noticed he's been more... affectionate? well, at the very least he now willingly holds your hand when in private (not just in moments when you're in the public eye and he has to make sure the family's reputation is spotless), sometimes he will hug you out of the blue ("i just need to... recharge. you have a way of calming me down. i hope you don't mind." ...how could you say no to his supreme god-tier face card? that's just a losing battle you won't even bother fighting against.), oftentimes he opts to just gaze wordlessly at you (robin had mentioned over one of your tea times how it almost appears as though there is no one but you in the world when sunday gazes at you with, in her words, "the eyes of a man so deeply in love!" ...whatever that's supposed to mean...), but a more recent development has been his sudden interest in kissing you; well, more specifically giving you a kiss to the back of your hand or on your forehead — certainly not anywhere near the lips! (besides, he's probably just gotten comfortable with you, enough where he can freely act without judgement. nothing more, nothing less.)

well, either way, development is development! soon enough, the time for the main plot to start has arrived. it of course follows what you remember, from the organised balls to the protagonists meeting to the political aspects of it all. the only difference is sunday's less active involvement in all the schemes and the emperor's ploy. rather, he seems more focused on you and the future of your marriage and even displayed a sudden interest in your practically non-existent relationship with one of the foreign diplomats, aventurine— wait...

"[name]," he calls your name out so sweetly you nearly disregarded it as someone else he was talking to. well, perhaps you would have done had he not suddenly appeared before you, a tight-lipped smile tugging the corners of his lips as he steadily approaches you.

oh. he doesn't seem very happy, if his tense figure is anything to go by. you wonder if one of the nobles grated his nerves a little too much this time?

sunday comes to a halt a step away from you. "i don't like that... gambler being so close to you. it... it brings me a rather unpleasant feeling." there's a slight, trembling pause. not a moment later does he close the gap between you, one knee on the ground as he matches your seated height on the fountain rim, your hands gently enclosed in both of his.

you idly wonder if this is what robin meant by the so-called "eyes of a man so deeply in love" she constantly gushed about, for the way in which he gazes up at you is enough to render you breathless.

"tell me, [name]," he begins once more. there is an underlying desperation woven within his tone, one which has your head spinning and heart thumping wildly as his trembling gaze holds you in place. "tell me, what am i to do with this fervent love and overwhelming adoration i hold for you?"

oh.

...oh.

perhaps your impending doom should be the least of your concerns when you now find yourself in the arms of a clingy husband...

(though, it's safe to say you did, in fact, manage to prevent him from succumbing to his tragic fate! you just gained a loving, yet slight slightly emotionally challenged husband along the way.

well, you can help him work through it; you have the rest of your lives now to figure it out, after all.)

[shroomdreams]

needs of the flesh

the doctor finds himself extremely aroused by your casual nudity

cw: afab!reader, fingering, pussyjob, spooning -> prone bone, creampie, slight overstimulation, bro is jealous of a game, usage of ratio's first name

ratio just cant help himself.

how do you expect him to act, when you kick your legs in the air while laying down on your stomach, swaying your hips as you played on that infernal console of yours?

why werent you dressed yet, anyway? shouldnt you be in your pajamas by now? either way, ratio lets out a dreadful sigh as he begins disrobing himself. you dont look up from your game as you called to him. "hey hun, rough day?"

"yes," ratio replies, joining you in bed and pulling you close to him, scowling when you adjusted your body so his chest meets your back, effectively making him spoon you.

you and that stupid game- dont you see that he wants your attention as well? "must you play so late in the night?" he muttered, nibbling your neck as his hands began to roam your body. he gripped your hips, palmed your legs- and yet you continued to play.

"i just got to the final level, veri." you replied, seemingly unaffected by his touches. ratio huffed. the hands on your hips began to move again, this time towards the intimate space between your legs. your breath hitches as ratio cups your pussy, squirming when he keeps his hand there.

"veritas-" your grip on the console nearly falters when ratio's middle finger began rubbing your clit, legs trembling from the sudden pleasure. ratio groans into your ear, grinding his hips to your plush ass, a hard pressure poking you. it isnt all that often ratio initiated intimacy with you- whatever happened must have really pushed him over the edge.

"ill give you a challenge," ratio whispered, his breath tickling your ear. "if you can finish that game despite my actions, i'll let you continue in peace. but-" you whimper as he dipped his finger inside your folds, feeling your warmth flutter around the digit and wetting it with your juices. "if you lose, you'll have to answer to me the whole night. are we clear?"

you won't lie, it turns you on to feel the neediness emanating from your boyfriend. you nod. it wouldnt hurt to play along.

the next minutes or so went smoothly at first. despite ratio's fingers pushing in and out of your cunt, you managed to play up until a decent chunk of the level. however, ratio starts getting a bit impatient. you let out an 'eep' when he suddenly removes his fingers and lifts up your leg, sliding his hard length over the lips of your pussy. ratio sighs and groans, feeling the warmth and wetness of your cunny coating his cock in slick. the console in your hands nearly slip at the newfound sensation, body trembling as ratio deliberately teases himself. he wont stick himself inside just yet, theres still a challenge to win.

its not like you can concentrate that well at the moment, however. feeling ratio's length rub against your cunt, the tip just barely grazing your clit-

"v-veritas!" you cry out, your console slipping out of your grasp and falling onto the mattress. ratio wastes no time, slapping the tip against your clit a few times before aligning the head to your entrance. ratio lets out a loud groan as he immediately plunges deep inside, one hand nearly crushing your hip while the grabs at your neck. the walls of your cunt quickly get stimulated by the rough pace set by ratio, his cock barely leaving your warmth as he groans all sorts of filth into your ear, making you gush around his cock. your moans are drawn out of you as you near your climax, ratio's length consistently hitting that one spot over and over again.

ratio groans when he feels your walls constrict him, a creamy ring forming at the base of his dick as you moan and cry out his name. "see what you do me?" he growled, stuffing himself deep inside and rolling his hips. you gasped in short breaths, barely having time to relax when ratio pushes you back on your stomach and starts pounding into you again, his hips smacking against your ass in a lewd cacophony of noise. you grip the sheets as you wail into the pillows.

"mine, all mine- hnngh~" ratio gritted out, gripping your hips tight as he watches his cock disappear into the gooey warmth of your pussy. "you'll come apart for me over and over again," a sharp thrust into your pleasure spot has you seeing stars. "ill make sure of it- ugh~"

"veritas, i'm gonna-! i-i'm!"

"together-" he gasped out, leaning his whole body over you, hips a bruising pace as he chases both of your highs. a loud groan spills from ratio as his release coats yours walls, nudging his cock deep inside your pulsing warmth, your own orgasm covering his lower abdomen with an abundance of slick. ratio flips your positions so you end up laying on top of him, his cock still nestled deep inside. though your lungs burn for air, you cant help but messily kiss his flustered face. going all shy after fucking your brains out... thats just like your silly boyfriend.

"why were you naked, anyway?" ratio asks after you both catch your breath. you shrug.

"i dunno, i just felt like it. but if youre going to do this everytime i decide to be nude for whatever reason, then maybe i might just do it more." you giggled, tracing a heart on his chest.

ratio doesnt answer, instead holding you close and thrusting his hardening cock into your sensitive pussy.

you didnt get to finish your game after all.

[keyotos]

face-to-face

summary ↯

aventurine has a bit of a staring problem while shopping

tags ⎯ unestablished relationship. like we are in the baby stages of their relationship. minor jealousy. lots of banter. lowk dialogue heavy.

word count ⎯ 3.3k

tana's thoughts ⎯ aventurine has taken over my brain so here's a snippet of the series i'm writing

over the years, it's become easier for you to notice when someone stares at you. before, it was an uncomfortable feeling. you felt eyes peering over your shoulder as if you were a pest–it made your skin churn and shoulders twitch up self-consciously. now though, gazes move past you like air. you don't care as much about the opinions of other people–it's not like you'll be seeing them for long anyway.

except, today is different.

you can feel aventurine's colorful eyes trail your every move. from the moment you chose the necklace, to the moment you took it up to the cashier. he wasn't being as inconspicuous as he assumed to be: that died after the fifth glance that he shot your way while you were inspecting said necklace.

even through his glasses, aventurine's stare was burning and heavy. you never thought that such light-colored eyes could install such a hefty weight on your back, but aventurine proves you wrong.

while the cashier rings up your necklace, you look back at aventurine. coincidentally, he was already eyeing you before you even turned around. so when you catch him, he thinks that the other pieces of jewelry in the store are far more interesting than your face could ever be.

you scrunch your eyebrows and shake it off. by now, you're quite used to his unusual antics, so you brush him off. the cashier engages in light conversation with you, and then you feel it again. the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and everything feels like it's weighted down.

you bid the cashier goodbye, and aventurine follows you outside. his hands are in his pockets while he whistles, almost like he wants you to start talking. you shoot him a confused look back, your eyebrow raised and nose crinkled.

when he only whistles louder, you decide to poke the bear.

"okay, what is it?" you stop and turn to face him.

"what? you don't like my whistling?" aventurine responds with an innocent tone; he even shrugs his shoulders like he has no idea what's going on.

you huff, "not just the whistling. what's up with your staring?" you raise a hand up to his eyes, "we're supposed to be acting normal. i don't think gawking at the person you're shopping with is exactly normal."

aventurine's jolts back, like he was accused of murder instead of ogling. "i wasn't gawking."

you nod, "yeah, you were staring."

"those mean the same thing."

"i think you've been hanging out with the doctor too much," you roll your eyes and continue walking. aventurine quickly marches up to you, matching your pace sooner than you thought.

"are you trying to compare me to him? we're completely different people, you know that, right? i don't act like him at all," aventurine rambles on. his head is turned to you so that his mouth is directly next to your ear, meaning you hear all of his words. you can't tune him out like usual.

"first of all," it's your turn to look at him, "i just said you hang out with him a lot. and you do, don't you?" aventurine's lips fall into a flat as you say that.

"and second of all, stop changing the subject. why were you staring at me back there?"

the man next to you huffs, and it sounds nearly childlike, "i'm not changing the subject. i'm just trying to tell you that i'm nothing like the doctor," he says with disdain.

"you are changing the subject, otherwise you wouldn't be talking about dr. ratio as much as you are now," you glance around at the various stores surround the two of you, and for a second, you swear that you see aventurine's eyes linger on you once more.

"you did it again!" you fully stop, pointing a finger at his eyes.

aventurine has to catch himself before he falls over at your sudden stop. "what? what are you talking about?"

"you keep glancing over at me! do i have something in my face? my teeth?" a large smile blossoms across your face as you beam at aventurine. for a moment, his annoyed facade falters, and his face relaxes.

"no, and if you did, i'd tell you," he swats a hand in your face, "i don't know what you're talking about."

you roll your eyes. it's obvious that he's hiding something, because usually his lies are more believable. but when you're catching him in the act, denial is not a good way to refute false claims.

"yeah, whatever," you look around the plaza the two of you are currently in when another store catches your eye. your face instantly brightens, and you wander towards the doors.

it's another clothing store, similar to all the other ones on the planet. except, something specific drew you here, and it was the display of hats they had near the window. you walk up to it, spinning the shelf around a few times to grasp onto all the options. your eyes are wide and your mouth is slightly parted as you examine each hat with awe.

unbeknownst to you, aventurine catches up to you and finds you fumbling around with each hat on the rack.

he sneaks up behind you, mumbling, "now, that's what you call gawking."

you jump up in surprise, hitting your head on something more soft than the hard shelf. aventurine quickly redacts his hand from the top of your head.

"i'm just doing what any normal shopper would do," you rub the top of your head before going back to the hats. aventurine's long sigh rings in your ear as you browse.

"yeah, okay," he looks at the selection of hats beside you, "i doubt anything you do is normal, but–" aventurine doesn't get to finish his sentence. he hears your boisterous gasp, and his eyes are on you once more.

"do you see this!!" you lift a fedora up to his eyes, "we could match," you whisper it like a secret, as if matching would be your thing. like matching would only be a tangible thought between the two of you, and no one else.

"yeah, no," aventurine lifts the hat down and places it back on the shelf, "sorry sweetheart, but the hat is my thing."

you grimace at the pet name, "mkay. so, you're gatekeeping fedoras now?"

aventurine sputters, "what? what is gatekeeping?"

you heavily sigh, and aventurine is pretty sure you're putting on an act right now. "are you serious? how do you not know what gatekeeping is?" you shake your head as you grab the hat from the shelf, "anyway, i think i know the real reason you don't want to match."

"because it's childish? and totally not my style?"

you turn around and flick your partner on the shoulder, "no. and you really have been hanging around the doctor too much." you shudder and place the hat on your head, "i think it's because you know i would show you up in it."

aventurine muffles a chortle when he sees you put on the fedora, "keep in mind that we're in the land of dreams."

your lips curl up in the way that they always do when you're annoyed. you are not very amused by his bits today. "you suck," you take the fedora off and continue browsing for different options.

you hear aventurine's footsteps gradually get softer and softer as you keep browsing. that's fine, you think, this is his shopping trip too–he's allowed to find things for himself.

one hat after another: that's your current predicament at the moment. you're glad aventurine is off doing his own shopping, but you also wish that you glued him to the ground so he could give you a second opinion. unfortunately, he is nowhere to be seen, and you are having trouble deciding between two caps.

"do you need any help finding anything?" a voice perks up from behind you, making your shoulders jolt up. it's not the voice you want to hear, instead it belongs to a lovely retail worker.

"ah, no thank you," you smile politely and turn back to the two hats in your hand.

"okay, let me know if you need anything!" sometimes, you wonder how retail employees are able to maintain such a chipper tone of voice for hours on end. do they really want to help you or are they just saying that because they have to?

and that's when the thought hits you: either way, they're still offering themselves up. your eyes widen and you rush towards the employee.

"actually, wait!" he turns around when you touch his shoulder, "i do need help. and this is gonna sound super random–and possibly weird–but what do you think of these two hats?"

you put one hat on–a red one that seems to flop on your head, "this one is nice, right?" the employee in front of you just nods. he's a bit tense and stiff; it seems like he's trying not to offend you.

"yeah, i think it's nice too. only thing is that it's kinda flopping on my head, and caps aren't really supposed to flop," you take it off and hold it in your hand.

you're surprised the employee hasn't made his break yet, because he's still standing in front of you when you grab the other cap.

"and this one," you hold your free hand up to the new, black hat, "is the one that belongs to my favorite team. well, i guess the other one also belonged to another one of my–"

"what are you doing?" you can recognize that voice anywhere. that voice that carries a slightly whiny tone. that voice that always seems to have some judgement sprinkled throughout it.

you and the worker both seem surprised. well, the employee seems to be more intimidated than surprised, but either way, his entire face had gone pale.

"um, trying on hats?" you take off the cap and hold it up.

"i can see that," he looks over towards the employee in front of you, "but is it seriously a two-person job?"

you scrunch your eyebrows together, "i needed a second opinion."

"you could've asked me," aventurine whispered, though it sounded more like a hiss.

"i think someone else needs help," the employee takes a few steps back from the both of you, "i hope you find everything!" there it is. he tries his best to sound cheerful, but his voice quivered as he moved away from the two of you.

"he was such a nice guy," you said as you waved goodbye. aventurine did not look as pleased as you did.

"we're supposed to be laying low. you know that, right?" the blond emphasizes.

you shake him off, "yeah, and tell me how a regular retail worker is gonna rat us out? what about us possibly screams 'sleuth'?"

"we're buying hats." aventurine isn't very proud of his answer, and he can tell that you thought it was weak as well.

"so everyone that buys hats are suspicious?" you retort, putting on the cap you previously took off. "do i look like a murderer to you?"

aventurine sighs. his fingers go to his temples and you're sure that you've brought him to his last nerve.

"this hat is better than the other one," he puts the red one back onto the shelf. "the other one practically fell on your face. i doubt you could even see with that one."

you look at the red hat and then look back at aventurine, furrowing your eyebrows together. "that was a specific answer. i never even showed you what the red hat looked like."

aventurine cleared his throat, and the ceiling must look extra nice, "i overheard the other guy talking. you're loud, y'know that?"

your face immediately breaks out in a huge grin, so wide and bright that aventurine looks back at you for a mere second, before turning back to the ceiling.

"you were doing it again!! the staring! goodness, i thought you were good at lying," you laugh, slapping him on the shoulder to garner his attention, "admit it. i've caught you."

"i'm being serious. you're a little loud," aventurine crosses his arms, biting on the inside of his cheek.

"la-la-la-la. can't hear you. guess i'm speaking too loudly to notice," you put the black cap on again–the brim sticking the opposite direction–and look in the mirror. "hey, since you're here, can you give me another opinion."

aventurine nods for you to continue, and you smile, "perfect. does this make me look like a cool galactic baseball player?"

this is what takes him aback, "huh? why would you want to look like that?"

"well, i'm going to a game soon, and i didn't want to look like a fake fan," you shrug and look in the mirror again. "but now that i'm really looking at myself, i think i’d be an amazing galactic baseballer. what do you think?”

you pretend to hold a baseball bat in your hands, getting into a hitter stance. you make sound effects as you swing your pretend-bat into aventurine's chest, aiming for the open hole in the middle.

aventurine reaches over your head, "well first of all, i'm pretty sure baseball players wear their caps the right way." he grabs your hat and places it on the right way, but not without making sure the brim covered your eyes.

"are you serious right now?!" you yelp, quickly pulling up the hat so you can regain your vision.

and there aventurine is, staring at you again.

you briefly gulp before broadcasting, "you're staring!" you march closer to him. "i caught you!" you're only inches apart now. "and it was obvious!" your finger is pointed at his eyes, but unlike earlier, your finger is much closer.

if you had gotten only an inch closer, you would be able to feel aventurine's heartbeat, despite not even being chest-to-chest.

"okay, okay," aventurine is the first one to step back, and you feel something sinking, "but that was only once."

"yeah, whatever. 'once.' not like i haven't caught you a million other times," you shook your head and regained your baseball posture, "you can't hide from these sharp eyes. told you i'd be a great galactic baseballer."

the blond chuckles, and your eyebrows raise up at the sound, "keep dreaming."

"well, a really weird guy did tell me earlier that we are in the land of dreams. so, if i dreamt that i could be a galactic baseballer, it'd actually happen."

aventurine tilts your hat down once more, dismissing your cries while he does it.

"remember what i said about acting normal?"

"this is actually pretty normal for me," you take the hat off.

"can't argue with that," aventurine looks towards the cashier and then back at you. you raise an eyebrow, as if to raise the question, "is there something wrong with my hair?"

if there is, aventurine doesn't do something about it. surprising, since he's practically been doing something this whole trip. "are you ready to go up?" he asks you.

"you're not gonna get anything?" you look around the store, "we can look at stuff for you. there's tons of things here."

aventurine shakes his head and gives you a wink, "i've got everything i need." you suck in a sharp breath, and you try to focus on anything else other than how fast your heart begins to beat. when aventurine turns his back away from you, then you gulp.

when the two of you get to the cash register, you stand next to aventurine, preparing to pay. you're well aware of how costly things on penacony are–after all, this whole planet is like a tourist attraction. that's why you're paying with card instead of the usual credits.

"did you find everything?" the cashier asks you. you smile at the woman and nod, making idle chatter with her while aventurine idly stands next to you.

the woman turns over to aventurine, "i'm guessing you also want to pay for your item too?"

it's aventurine's turn to plaster a smile on his face. from what you've gathered from being with him so often, his smiles are often sly. some would compare it to the cheshire cat, but you thought he rather resembled an evil cartoon villain.

"yes ma'am," his saccharine voice masked his villain grin, "do you still have it?"

"that i do," she responds, grabbing something from underneath the counter. your eyes fly from the woman to aventurine. you simply couldn't believe what you were looking at.

"you're buying the freaking feodora?" your posture straightens and you beam up at him, "i knew you wanted to match!"

"slow your roll," aventurine puts a hand up to you, "who said i was buying this for you?"

your smile drops and you shove his shoulder, "are you serious? i thought you didn't like that hat."

"i didn't not like the hat. i just didn't like the thought of us matching," he tilts his head to smirk at you.

the cashier's eye's bounce between you two, not knowing whose side to take. eventually, she settles for ringing your cap and aventurine's feodora up, not even wanting to say a word.

"alright, who's paying?" she looks up at the both of you.

"i am," you and aventurine say in unison. your face contorts while aventurine displays a confused expression.

"um," you whisper, stepping closer to the blond next to you, "i'm paying."

"um," aventurine mocks you, "you're broke."

"not broke!" you kick his shin, and aventurine grips onto the counter in order to keep his balance, "just budgeting."

"yeah, and you know who don't have to budget? people that aren't broke."

"so he's paying?" the cashier interrupts. you step away from aventurine out of shame. he can have this.

when aventurine sees you put away your wallet, he proudly hands his card up to the woman in front of you. when she looks down to scan his card, he shoots you a sly look and a wink. your mouth rests in a flat line and your eyes show no signs of hilarity.

the moment the two of you step out of the store, you immediately go for aventurine's bag. before he could even catch you, the hat is already in your hands.

"we can switch!" you try to reason with him, "you would be a great baseball player. just, y'know, not as great as me."

"and..." you sing, "we wouldn't match. wouldn't that suit both of our goals?"

aventurine looks over at you, and his gaze is softer. this time, you don't get onto him for gawking. how could you, when he's looking at you like that? you don't think you've ever seen him like that... ever.

you squint your eyes, trying to decipher his real expression. but there's nothing for you to investigate.

"what?" you ask.

"you can keep it."

immediately you take a step back, nearly bumping into a bystander walking behind you. you shout a quick apology before returning back to aventurine, "didn't you buy this for yourself though? what's the point of me keeping it?"

"i just realized that it didn't go with any of the outfits i have," he sighed, looking into the distance, "what a waste of money. so, it's yours."

"what kind of bullshit is that?" you scold the blond, "you always have to think about whether or not you'd actually wear the item before you buy it. that's like... number one rule of shopping."

"i don't shop that much," aventurine shrugs, glancing at you one last time before focusing on the street ahead. he bites the inside of his cheek and tries his hardest not to look to the side. you'd give him hell for it.

but you're not focused on that. everything's slow, and it feels like the street is empty.

"well, then we're gonna have to go more often."

[haemr-exe]

Doc teaches a thing abt etiquette

[kintsugikalliope]

he's everything to me you guys don't understand look at him

[the-astral-express-archive]

Honkai: Star Rail Astral Glamor Express Clips Collection

Astral Glamor Express YouTube Playlist

The Google Drive folder will be updated when new clips are released. Video previews have reduced quality while the original files' are unaffected.

[milksnake-tea]

✩ CHAPTER SUMMARY : Sunday (unwillingly) engages in his first acts of crime on the Planet of Indulgence.

✩ SERIES SYNOPSIS : Following the catastrophe of the Charmony Festival, rather than in one of Penacony's hospitals or prisons, Sunday awakens right in the base of one of the most notorious criminals in the galaxies. With nowhere else to go, he's left to follow you, the Stellaron Hunters' medic, in his attempts to become accustomed to his new life.

✩ WORD COUNT : 5.76k

✩ TAGLIST : @vynicity , @vxnuslogy , @https-mika @greyrain23 , @red-ninja15, @arienic , @immahuman , @sund4ykisser , @mysteriaqueen , @kiopanxp , @isa-l0v3r , @hesper-houkai-kat , @gamekillera , @nayukiyukihira , @randomidk-123 , @universetrash , @forevernyeong , @thedepartedcryptid , @heyhazelnut101 , @1000-leaves , @lowkeyren , @zhayur , @jellofishuu , @kascar-chronicle , @azaleaflowerr , @neigee , @fallintothechasm , @veritusratio , @astolary , @xphantasmagoriax , @semi-orangeapple , @ezra1yn , @xynthevoid , @apinu , @crysangria , @shenwi (send me an ask off anon if you want to be added !! please specify that it’s for this series)

✩ ADDITIONAL NOTES : do you know how long i wanted to use this chapter title. it was supposed to be for chapter two but GRGGRRGGR anyways it's here now !!! this is definitely my favorite chapter to write so far, it is JUICY so have fun guys !!!

<< previous || series masterlist || next chapter >>

Euphrosyne is a planet bathed in violet. 

The second you step into one of the many overcrowded streets, the color invades your vision. Just about everything is bathed in this vivid purple-pinkish haze like a filter. Conversation flows almost as quickly as money does, and the sky and the stars are replaced with billboards and advertisements displaying the next big thing.

What you like about economic metropolises like these is that no one bats you an eye. They’re all too busy running to snatch the latest trending product before anyone else does. Here, it’s everyone for themselves, and being a second too late could be the difference between life and death.

“Keep up, princess,” you call over your shoulder. “Would be a shame to lose you so soon.”

You adjust your baseball cap onto your head to make sure it doesn’t get swept away by the crowd. Behind you, you hear Sunday maneuvering his way through dozens before he’s able to break free and catch up to you. He shakes his head, his wing feathers ruffled in irritation.

“I never thought I’d see a planet worse than Penacony,” Sunday mutters distastefully. He swiftly pats down his shoulder where someone had bumped into him. “No one here seems to know what basic manners are.”

“That’s high-end capitalism for you,” you laughed. “Everyone thinks they’re the center of the universe.”

You keep your eyes on the sky; looking forward will get you nowhere. But up there, that’s where you can find direction. There, there are the neon lights, the flashing signs of luxury cars, the skyscrapers that are only accompanied by the monorail that stretches throughout the planet.

It doesn’t take long before you find your target. Among the neon buildings and flashing billboards, an ivory tower shines like a diamond in the rough, a refined royal in the midst of puffed-up nobles. Its crown is made up of large, golden letters with a glow that can rival suns.

Many, many years ago, when you’d first joined the Hunters, Kafka had taken you to a similar store - same company, different branch, different star system. You weren’t like Sunday, who was starting anew, but she had insisted you at least get a new coat. That new coat ended up turning into three, with an add-on of five pairs of shoes and the entire sunglasses section.

A small smile slips onto your face at the memory. It’s been a while since you’d last hung out with Kafka. You should invite her out again sometime.

You’re snapped out of your thoughts by Sunday’s sharp intake of breath. His eye twitches as he’s once again pushed by some upper-class passerby.

Smiling sympathetically, you offer your wrist to him. “Here, hold onto me.”

He contemplates your offer for a total of five seconds before someone barrels past him again. Irritation flashes over his face like lightning and his halo begins to glow threateningly.

Before Sunday can commit his first murder in broad daylight, you reach out and grab his wrist so you can tug him behind you.

“Why isn’t anyone bumping against you?” Sunday complains, although relief from no longer being tossed around like a ragdoll bleeds through.

“No idea,” you reply, checking to make sure his halo has cooled down, which it has. “Maybe they just know their place.”

“Of course.” 

You feel Sunday’s hand flex under your hold on him, but he makes no move to shove you off him. Apparently, he finds you to be more bearable than the crowd - although that isn’t exactly a difficult feat.

“Don’t worry, you’ll only have to bear with this for a little longer. We’re almost there.” As you finish speaking, you pick up the pace, skillfully slipping through the sea of people with Sunday following close behind.

Windows upon windows of mannequins adorned in designer clothing greet you when you finally arrive at the twelve-floor mall. Despite the brand’s renown, there’s no line to get in; instead, there are bouncers who scan you up and down to make sure you’re a customer, not a thief.

They scrutinize you and Sunday as you stroll in, but one look at your attire and Sunday’s perfect posture and they nod approvingly, stepping aside. You smirk a little at how easily they let you pass - prejudice’s a bitch, but when it works in your favor, you certainly don’t complain.

The doors open like gates to heaven with a whoosh. Workers dressed in suits and ties bow and greet you as you enter. Their smiles are almost as fake as Sunday’s; it’s actually impressive.

“Welcome,” they speak in one, pleasant chorus that oozes with customer service training. “How may we help you today?”

You speed past them, heading straight for the elevators. The workers’ smiles didn’t move at your behavior, in fact, you’d wager they were relieved you didn’t start yapping away at them. You hear the chorus bid you farewell as you tug Sunday into one of the many glass elevators, joining other well-dressed clients.

In some planets, the wealthy were as powerful as gods, and the tower made sure to emphasize that. Ascending the floors, watching the workers shrink and shrink until they were nothing more than insignificant ants, you wonder if this is how the Aeons felt upon ascending. 

But then you remember that Aeons were unfeeling, neutral entities who probably regarded mortal lives as having even less value than insects.

“Say,” Sunday says suddenly. You shuffle closer to him in order to hear him over the other patrons. “Weren’t you supposed to be getting breakfast?”

You blink. Oh, right. That completely slipped your mind.

“I’ll get it later,” you shrug it off.

“It isn’t good to work on an empty stomach,” Sunday chides you exasperatingly. A grin slides onto your face.

“Aw, are you worried about me?” you coo, batting your eyelashes teasingly. “Don’t worry, I don’t plan on drinking anytime soon.”

“That’s not-” Sunday sighs and shakes his head, pointedly turning away from you. You chuckle, sneaking a peek at the displayed floor number at the top of the elevator. Two more floors to go.

When you finally leave the elevator, you’re greeted with what is essentially a palace. Much like its exterior, the interior is layered with marble floors, chandeliers, and reeks of wealth. 

Suits and tuxedos of various colors line one side of the room, ranging from a distinguished black to a bold neon pink for those who like to stand out. The other side presents more casual wear, with comfortable shirts and pants that look simple but cost more than an average IPC member’s salary.

But what made all of them special, other than their superior quality and outrageous prices, were the open backs and windows that allowed for wings, claws, or any other limbs that may need freedom to move.

“You asked about your wings,” you explained to a befuddled Sunday, “and like I said, it’ll be tough to get them back to how they used to be. But it isn’t impossible.”

You stride over to the fancier side of the floor and pluck out a backless high-collared blouse.

“First step is letting them breathe.”

You hold the blouse out in front of Sunday in order to picture how it’d look on him. The darker colors highlight his feather-like hair and golden eyes, and the style fits. Nodding in approval, you turn it around to show Sunday.

“What do you think?”

Sunday’s ichor-filled eyes take on a more calculating gleam as he takes the blouse in his hands. 

“It isn’t terrible,” he admits begrudgingly. “Although the color is different to what I’m used to wearing.”

You stare at the navy dress shirt he has on. “Is that right?”

Sunday rolls his eyes, his wings flapping a few times in annoyance. “Blade’s color palette doesn’t exactly match my personal preferences, I’ll have you know.”

You chuckle. “Alright, alright. Well, we have an entire floor to choose from. Pick out what you like, and I’ll go see if I can find anything for you.”

You move to put the blouse back, only to stop when Sunday drapes the blouse over his arm. He raises a brow at you as if daring you to question him. Raising your hands in surrender, you head off to find him an oversized hoodie because everyone needs an oversized hoodie - and you were not about to let Sunday be the exception.

You find said hoodie in no time - it’s relatively plain, as all fancy clothes tend to be, but the material lives up to its price. After picking out a few more items, your arms are pretty much covered in what will soon be Sunday’s wardrobe. Hopefully. If they pass the test, that is.

Taking a step back, you scan the shop for Sunday. There aren’t a lot of other customers outside of the two of you, although that’s to be expected, considering the target audience of this floor. 

Your search proves unsuccessful, leaving you to assume that the Halovian had set off to the changing rooms.

“Princess, you in there?” you call out once you arrive, earning a few weird looks from nearby staff. Sure enough, a tired sigh responds from one of the stalls, giving away Sunday’s location. You don’t have to see him to know that he’s rolling his eyes.

“Yes, I’ll be out in a moment,” he replies. You hear the shuffling of cloth before he opens the door.

A low whistle leaves you at the sight of his new outfit. A black turtleneck sweater snugly hugs his body from under a chestnut wool coat that reaches just below his knees, with dress pants that match his sweater outlining his long legs.

“I’m starting to think you could wear a trash bag and still look good,” you joke. Like a baby bird, Sunday tilts his head at the compliment.

“Thank you?” he says, the tilt in his voice making it sound more like a question. His gaze falls onto the bundle of clothes that hang off your arm.

“I’m being serious!” You step into the rather spacious fitting room (perks of being in a high-end store) and set the clothes you’d picked out down. “If I’m ever in a situation where I need pretty privilege, I’m stealing you.”

Sunday closes the door behind you, taking great care not to accidentally shut it on his coat. His collection of clothes are fewer, which made sense considering that he was on the formal side and the fact that he was pickier than you when it came to fashion.

“I thought you didn’t like darker colors,” you comment, reaching into your back pocket and bringing out a pocket knife.

Before Sunday can question why you’re bringing out a knife in the middle of a clothing store, you sit down on a nearby stool and begin cutting off tags from the clothes you picked out for him. Alarmed, Sunday’s wings flare up.

“What-” Thankfully, he has the sense to lower his voice to a startled whisper. “What are you doing?”

Your fingers are fast as you rid each article of clothing from its tag. It’s evident that you’ve been doing this for years - and you have. Out of all of the Stellaron Hunters, you hate spending money the most, and stealing is fun.

“You didn’t think we were actually paying for all of this, did you?” you tease. “This place is crazy expensive.”

“...Somehow, I’m no longer surprised,” Sunday mutters, a layer of resignation and defeat in his tone. “But there are employees everywhere here. How do you plan to deal with them?”

“That,” you sing, “is a secret.”

Sunday furrows his brows, but doesn’t push. Cutting through the last of the tags, you stand up and motion for Sunday to give you the tags on the clothes he’s currently wearing.

The coat is easy; all Sunday has to do is slide it off and give it to you. It’s the turtleneck and the pants that are a bit tougher to work with.

You hear Sunday’s throat constrict as you reach behind him, your finger hooking at the high collar to find the tag. His wings bristle, and his muscles tense. You can practically hear the thump of his heart with how close you are.

“Relax,” you murmur, Sunday flinching at how close you are to his ear. “I’m not going to cut you.”

“I’m aware,” he replies, despite the nervousness wavering in his voice. You don’t miss the way his wings stiffen as the blade of your knife ghosts his neck.

Unable to help a glance down, you catch sight of his larger set of wings protruding from the back window in the sweater. Just like when Kafka had brought him in, they’re cramped and stiff, leaving you to wonder how long it had been since he’d last fully extended them. But the feathers seem to be doing better, at least.

“Mx. [Name]?” Sunday breathes out. You blink out of your thoughts.

“Ah, sorry,” you apologize. “I was just thinking.”

Deciding to take pity on the poor thing, you quickly find the tag and pull it up. A swift pull of your knife, a small snap, and it’s over. The tag joins the soon-to-be-burned pile in the corner of the stall, and Sunday heaves a sigh of relief as you step away.

“May I-” he winces at the warble in his voice- “I can do the last one.”

“You sure?” you question, handing it over anyway. “Do you even know how to use a knife?”

“I am not as sheltered as you think,” Sunday says defensively and unconvincingly. You raise your hands in surrender.

“Alright, alright. Just don’t cut yourself.” You stretch, glancing at the stall’s door. “When you’re done with that, take a look at the stuff I got you. Pick out what you like, what you don’t like I’ll either keep or give to Elio.”

Scooping up the fallen tags in your hands, you contemplate setting them on fire right then and there, but decide against it. If you were going to set off the fire alarm, it’d be better to do it after you’d already left the building.

“I’ll be heading out now,” you inform Sunday, crumpling the tags and shoving them away into your inventory. “When you hear the signal, meet me at the elevator and we’ll get out of here.”

Hesitantly, Sunday nods as he hands you back your knife. “And… what is this signal I’m supposed to look out for?”

A mischievous grin creeps onto your face.

“You’ll know.”

—

“I can’t believe you.”

You wave cheerfully to the staff as you leave, and they bow to you, none the wiser that twelve floors above lie their unconscious colleagues. Surprisingly, Sunday keeps up the farce flawlessly as he bids them farewell with a gentle smile before returning to you with an exasperated expression.

“Yes, as you’ve said about five times now,” you say casually, stepping back into the busy streets. Silently, the doors of the store slide closed behind you, the bouncers not sparing you another glance.

“When people say ‘wait for a signal’,” Sunday begins his lecture again, “they usually mean a light or a sound.”

“There was a sound, though?” you point out. Sunday deadpanned.

“The sound of twelve innocent employees knocking their heads on the floor doesn’t count.” He rubs his temple, still trying to process what just happened. “Just what did you do to them anyway?”

“Gas bomb,” you say, eyeing a man who comes dangerously close to hitting you. “Smelled nice, didn’t it?”

“Vanilla, if I recall,” Sunday affirms. “Although I do wonder why I wasn’t affected.”

You hum. “Did you cover your nose in time? The bomb I used was one of the weaker ones.”

Only the roar of the street replies to you. At Sunday’s abrupt silence, you halt in your tracks.

“Princess?” you start, only to falter once your sight falls in line with his.

Displayed proudly on an electronic billboard, snuggled amongst the various advertisements, is a picture of Sunday before the fall. There, his smile is still bright and joyful as he advertises the release of his little sister’s album to the world. He is still the Oak Family Head, still Robin’s beloved older brother, still beloved by the universe.

But all of that is crushed by the big, bold words that underline his photo.

WANTED

DEAD OR ALIVE

2,540,000,000

“Well, I’ll be damned,” you whistle appreciatively. “You’re just a few billion under Silver Wolf, and you haven’t even made your official debut yet. She is not going to be happy when she finds out.”

Sunday still doesn’t respond. When you look to check on him, you expect horror or maybe even despair, but instead, he gazes at the wanted poster with some sort of detachment, and even a little pride.

“Of all the pictures to use, they choose that…” he comments offhandedly, almost offended. You lean over his shoulder to get a better look.

“It’s cute.” You’re already fishing out your phone to take a picture. “The others are gonna love this - come on come on, we have to take a picture.”

A bemused smile slips onto Sunday’s face at your excitement. Playing along, he indulges you and poses beside his wanted poster with a peace sign. Like a mother at her child’s highschool graduation, you snap photos from all angles with the skill of a professional photographer.

“They grow up so fast,” you fake-sob, snorting when Sunday rolls his eyes despite his smile. Once you’ve finished with your impromptu photoshoot, he comes to your side to look over your shoulder as you swiftly text the group chat.

“The Stellaron Hunter… Family?” Sunday raises a brow as he reads aloud the name of your group chat.

“Yeah,” you chuckle fondly. “Silver Wolf found out that the Express’s group chat is called the Astral Express Family, so we’re parodying them.”

“Is that so?” muses Sunday, intrigued. The corners of his eyes crinkle at your antics in the chat. “For the longest time, I’ve thought of the Express and the Hunters as natural enemies, but you’re much closer than I expected. Even on Penacony, you joined forces in order to defeat me.”

“Well, Sparky has always said that we’re like two sides of the same coin,” you recall. 

“Sparky?” Sunday repeats.

“Firefly,” you clarify. “Or Sam, if that’s more familiar.”

“Do you give nicknames to everyone you meet?” Sunday asks, the question more curious rather than demeaning.

You smile. “Only to people I like.”

Your phone pings again before Sunday can fully process the meaning of your words. Checking it, you see Blade - well, it was actually Kafka, since Blade would apparently rather drown than use his phone - sending a photo in the group chat.

Clicking on the attachment reveals a design for presumably Sunday’s official uniform. Midnight black fabric flows in a striking coat with blazing azure and gold accents. Put together, elegant, yet hinting at danger, the outfit bears both a resemblance to Sunday’s previous one and a bold nod to his new life.

“Hey, look,” you beckon, eager to escape Silver Wolf’s vengeful clutches. “Kafka sent over blueprints for your uniform.”

Passing your phone to him, you look back to the billboard. Other than Sunday’s wanted poster, there’s a number of other advertisements and newspapers plastered on it. One such newspaper - or rather, a holographic video of a news reporting - catches your eye.

A Halovian girl sings on the glitchy screen, a swirling glass in one hand and the other raised to the crowd. City lines border on the night sky in a gorgeous horizon behind her, her emerald eyes reflecting the fireworks that burst in little burning lights around her.

You’d be a fool if you didn’t know who this girl was.

“Your sister is beautiful,” you say, watching as she is bathed in the limelight and adoration of the people.

Sunday glances up from your phone, his eyes softening once he catches sight of the advertisement.

“She is, isn’t she?” he says, his voice gentler than you’d ever heard it. Wistfulness and pure adoration fills him, melting the gems in his eyes and relaxing the stiffness in his shoulders. His gloved hand raises, almost hesitantly, before he lays his fingers on the billboard. “She doesn’t look hurt from the fall… Thank goodness.”

A heavy breath of relief leaves him, shouldering the burden of worry that must’ve plagued him since he’d left Penacony. Suddenly, a memory of when he’d been brought in by Kafka flashes in your mind.

His back had been bruised badly, the backs of his wings nearly crushed from the fall. He’d probably hit his head, considering how long it took for him to wake up, and you had no doubt the pain he was in when he did awaken - it had taken one of your stronger medicines to fix him back up.

“You took the brunt of the fall for your sister,” you realize. “No wonder you were in such bad shape when you came in.”

Sunday chuckles hollowly. “Of course I did. It wasn’t her who nearly imprisoned the entirety of Asdana. What older brother would I be if I allowed my kid sister to get hurt from my mistakes?”

“I’m not condemning you,” you say gently. “I would’ve done the same.”

Sunday nods, although he appears unconvinced. Eager to change the subject, he glanced back at your phone screen and the chat.

“Firefly is taking my presence much better than I anticipated,” he notes. You hum.

“Well, she doesn’t have much of a choice, does she?” You lean over to see the conversation - currently, it’s just Sunday and Kafka trading ideas for his new outfit. Surprisingly, he hasn’t made any comment about the black theme. 

“We all have pasts we want to leave behind. Being able to start anew and become more than what you were before - that’s what being a Stellaron Hunter is all about. In that sense, we’re no different from the Express.”

You elbow Sunday playfully, making sure not to hit his wings. The Halovian grunts in response, clearly not used to such gestures.

“Sparky was once in your shoes - we all were,” you say, chuckling as Sunday rubs his side (you didn’t even hit him that hard). “So there’s not too many hard feelings… Unless you stabbed her. Did you stab her? She doesn’t like getting stabbed.”

“I’m fairly certain I did not stab Firefly,” Sunday replies, a hint of amusement in his voice.

“Then you have nothing to worry about.” Snatching back your phone from Sunday, you begin to move away from the billboard, having caught sight of something far more interesting - a pharmacy. “Come on, let’s go. I just remembered, I have to pick up some groceries.”

“Groceries?” Sunday scans the surrounding streets for any sign of a grocery store or marketplace, which given Euphrosyne’s nature, obviously aren’t there.

“Uh… not those kinds of groceries.” 

—

“Why are we here."

“Why do you keep questioning me.”

“Have you perhaps considered that you do a lot of questionable things?”

“Not at all. Now be quiet, the adult is speaking.”

“You-” You kick him in the shin, a traditional method of shutting people up. The employee at the pharmacy’s desk eyes the two of you tiredly - given how late it is, you’re sure they’re nearing the end of their tortuously long shift.

“Sorry about him,” you step in front of Sunday to talk friendly with the clerk. “Long day today?”

They snorted. “You can tell?”

“Yeah,” you laugh softly, already rummaging around in your pocket. Feeling a light, paper stick, you quickly close your fingers around it. “I’d know that look anywhere. Used to see it every time I looked in the mirror.”

That brought a smile to the clerk’s face - a cynical one, yes, but a smile nevertheless. “You don’t have to tell me that.”

“Tell you what,” you snap your fingers. “I was saving this for later, but you look like you need it a lot more than I do.”

From your pocket you withdraw a small lollipop, wrapped in colorful paper with some company name plastered all over it. At the sight of the small treat, a small light shines in their eyes.

“Oh, you don’t have to-”

“No no no,” you shush them and push the lollipop into their hands. “It’s my treat. Don’t worry about it.”

“Thank you so much,” the clerk sighs gratefully, unaware of your snake-like eyes watching their every move.

“Of course,” you coo sympathetically (Sunday shudders, evidently disturbed. His face almost makes you break character). “I know just how grueling work is for you all.”

The clerk nods, unwrapping the lollipop and popping it into their mouth. “I can’t thank you enou-”

Their eyes roll, and they collapse unceremoniously onto the register with an unappealing thunk (both you and Sunday wince. That must’ve hurt). Muffled snores soon begin to roll from their lips. A few seconds pass before you prod them with your finger, but they continue to sleep unbothered.

You step back and turn to Sunday with a blank expression. “I did not know that would happen.”

Sunday crosses his arms disapprovingly. Clearly he is not convinced by your impeccable acting.

“You drugged an innocent worker.” He enunciates every word clearly, sharply, and without a shred of emotion. “Again.”

“I didn’t use gas this time though?” you point out, as if that will make it better.

Sunday sighs as you leap over the counter and start stocking up. “You could just pay like a normal, law abiding citizen.”

You pause, raising a brow pointedly. Sunday blinks, before inevitably realizing the irony of telling a Stellaron Hunter with a considerable bounty on their head to follow the law. 

“I stand corrected.”

You grin toothily. “Now you’re getting it.” 

As you grab bottles of painkillers, allergy medicines, and a plethora of other medications, you hear shuffling behind you. When you glance back, you catch a glimpse of Sunday, taking one of the jackets that you’d stolen from the bag and folding it neatly into a makeshift pillow for the clerk.

“I think they’re bruising,” Sunday mutters, barely concealing panic as he slides the pillow under the clerk’s head.

“What?” You shove the last of the medication into your inventory before turning around to check on the employee. 

You may be a criminal, but you aren’t a monster. If you could do anything about it, you’d prefer not to hurt anyone who didn’t deserve it. That’s why the concoctions you use with civilians are gentler, only instilling a small nap and short-term memory loss to whoever came in contact with them.

Lightly, you tilt the clerk’s head up to make sure the lollipop was still in their mouth. Thankfully, it was, and predictably, it was almost entirely disintegrated. 

“It should kick in in a sec.”

“Sorry?” Worry overtakes Sunday’s voice for a moment.

“Hold on…” you narrow your eyes, closely monitoring the clerk’s state. If you’d made a miscalculation, you’d have to heal them the normal way.

But it seems that the Aeons are looking down on you, for a pale-colored light soon begins to flutter from the clerk. A relieved smile breaks out, and you gently let the clerk’s head rest back on the jacket.

“There we go.”

The light glows briefly, centering around the clerk’s head, and the bruise begins to fade - slowly but surely ebbing away until it’s completely gone. Hopping back over the counter, you pat Sunday on the shoulder.

“They’ll be fine,” you reassure him. “Let’s get out of here before they wake up.”

Wordlessly, he follows, glimpsing back at the clerk one last time before following you out of the pharmacy. For a moment, pure, yet serene silence hangs between the two of you as you walk down the crowded streets.

After what seems like a tranquil eternity, Sunday finally breaks the silence.

“What was that?”

You shift the clothes bags from one hand to the other. “Didn’t you see it back at the clothing store?”

He shakes his head wordlessly, which you can only tell he did because of the slight rustle of feathers against hair.

“When it comes to civilians, my creations are laced with a tiny bit of my power.” Euphrosyne has three moons, and all of them in the violet sky, you notice. “That way, there’s no lasting damage. I mean, it’s not their fault that their company is a good robbery target.”

Sunday ignores the last sentence. “You fed me something similar when we met, if I recall. One second I was in excruciating pain, and the next there was no pain at all. Was that candy also imbued with your abilities?”

“Yep,” you confirm. “Although you got the variant that’s for allies.”

“I figured, considering I didn’t immediately pass out,” Sunday hums out a laugh. “Although… I will say it puts me at ease, knowing that none of those workers were hurt during our escapades.”

You smile teasingly. “Aw, were you having a guilty conscience?”

“Of course,” he huffs.

“Well, you don’t have to anymore,” you say lightheartedly. “Rest assured knowing that out of all the crimes I’ve committed, assaulting someone who didn’t start the fight isn’t one of them.”

“You certainly have a way with words,” sighs Sunday, but he’s smiling. “But thank you, I suppose.”

“You’re very welcome, princess.”

For once, Sunday doesn’t give you a dirty or unimpressed look at the nickname. Rather, he keeps walking by your side. In the dim light of Euphrosyne’s moons, you can barely make out his face, and so you miss the bemused smile that slips onto his face.

“You know,” he says, “you still haven’t eaten yet.”

You stare at him. “Oh. Right.”

Sunday snorts knowingly. “Of course. There’s a food cart near that building over there. You don’t plan on drugging the chef now, do you?”

“Nah,” you wave your hand dismissively. “I respect food cart workers.”

“So you do have morals.”

“How could you say that after I healed someone?”

“You mean, after you did the bare minimum?”

You punch him in the arm. “I’m not liking your attitude, young man.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sunday says cheekily. You roll your eyes, opening your mouth to respond.

But then something wet hits your cheek, and then another joins it. Panicked screams and stomps erupt around you as people rush for shelter. You gingerly touch your cheek. The drop on your cheek doesn’t sting, thankfully.

“These people… quite like to overact, don’t they,” Sunday observes, as everyone stampedes for cover. “It isn’t even raining that much.”

“Eh, you know how rich people are,” you giggle, wiping your cheek. “But this is a surprise. Rain rarely appears on Euphrosyne, at least from what I’ve heard.”

“Agreed-” A man crashes into Sunday, the Halovian barely able to hold the two of them from falling on the pavement. 

The man’s things clatter to the floor, one of which being an umbrella that he… apparently didn’t know how to use. Curses spew from the man’s lips, his face turning red as he glares daggers at Sunday. The Halovian’s smile is tight as he straightens the man.

“Please be careful, sir,” he says passive-aggressively, customer service mode activated in full force to hold him back from committing murder. “You could’ve gotten hurt.”

The man doesn’t bother to listen. He shakes an angry finger in Sunday’s face, grabbing what he can off the floor before running off. You stare awkwardly at his trail of dust before turning back to Sunday.

“You handled that better than I would’ve,” you say after a few minutes. Sunday exhales heavily, massaging his temple.

“Naturally. I worked with buffoons like that on the daily,” he mutters. “But it seems experience doesn’t make it any more bearable.”

You pat his shoulder. “Well, it’s over now.”

“Yes,” Sunday hums, bending down to pick something up. When he straightens, you see the man’s umbrella in Sunday’s hands. “I suppose it is.”

You blink. “When did you get that?”

“Just now,” he says sarcastically. “But I did kick it out of the way while he was cursing me out, if that clarifies things.”

You stare dumbfoundedly as he opens up the umbrella, acting as if he hasn’t done anything wrong in his life. Holding it above both of your heads, he offers it to you with a smug smirk you aren’t sure you like.

“Well? Shall we?”

You break out of your daze. Pride swells in your chest and you join him, snickering.

“They really do grow fast, huh?”

—

Somewhere near, in Penacony, Firefly stares at her phone nervously. Her body still singes from the burst of fireworks in which she’d experienced her third and final death on the Planet of Festivities, but it’s the least of her worries right now.

She rereads the chat just to confirm her suspicions. She’d already been skeptical when you suddenly asked Silver Wolf to get Sunday’s things, but this just outright confirms it.

Sunday, the man she’d just helped run over with a train at least eight times, the convicted criminal by both the Family and the IPC, the former Oak Family Head who’d tried to imprison her in an eternal dream, is now her coworker.

It isn’t like she wishes anything bad upon him; in essence, she understands that what he did was out of noble intentions and a wish to help the weak. But it had only been a few days at most since she’d last seen the Halovian, and here he was again.

She glances up at the fake sky of the dreamscape. The Radiant Feldspar soars overhead, and on board is Robin, Sunday’s sister who never stopped looking for him.

Firefly’s feet shift uncomfortably. It’s getting hard to breathe. With the Order’s protection lifted, the effects of her Entropy Loss Syndrome return, although not as bad as in reality.

Should she tell Robin? The songstress has been going mad with worry over her missing brother, and it probably hasn’t helped that the Family Heads’ lips are sealed regarding his fate. But Robin is singing right now, and Firefly doesn’t want to ruin that.

She shakes her head. No, she can’t say that. This is Robin’s brother, for Aeons’ sake. And she knows that Robin must be suffering right now, despite the smile she wears for the crowd.

Firefly exhales deeply. She pulls out her phone.

Here goes nothing.

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reblogs w comments are appreciated !!

[felibrary]

╭──╯PAIRING: aventurine x fem!reader

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS: luck is nothing but a myth. aventurine understood that from a very young age. only ever experiencing misfortune — loss, to be precise. whether it was the forgetting of his mother tongue, the passing of his family, or the loss of you who slipped out of his grasp too quickly. he can only hope to make it up to you another time, in another universe; “everyone wants him, that was my crime. the wrong place at the right time.”

WORDCOUNT: 7.7k

CONTENT & GENERAL WARNINGS: fem!reader, cursing, death, suicide, mention of aventurine's past, vvv brief mention of alcohol, possibly ooc jade none of the characters belong to me - this is a work of fiction. tell me if i missed smth cause this chapter has heavy topics and sensitive themes so lmk !! + the other chapters won't be as heavy (only here and there..) can be read as standalone, no beta-read we die like baiheng

AUTHOR'S NOTE: this yeah, phew, im, so, anyway. am i scared to post this? yes. did i post this? yes. have fun reading!! also this got long TOO LONG I didn't mean for the fucking prologue to get this long 😭

ART CREDITS: none of the characters or art belong to me all art credits go to @/kkuekkue on x!

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“Mother, father, sister. I’ve come to visit you.” again. 

He nods at each tombstone as he greets his family. The air is chilly as a gust of wind blows through his blond hair, it’s nice he thinks. It reminds him of the times when he comfortably sets his head down your lap, nuzzling the back of his head into the soft fabric of your pants while listening to you mindlessly ramble about your day as you card your fingers through his unruly hair. 

Aventurine carefully places the bouquets of flowers on the floor, one for each of his family members. “My birthday is coming up soon, I wish I could it spend it with you — all of you.” His gaze traces over the names of his family members before letting out a small chuckle, a wry smile quirks at the corners of his lips as if mocking himself. 

It’s a foolish wish, he knows that. 

“I’ve thought about bringing her here on my birthday. I think I’m ready for her to meet you.” 

There’s a wistful smile that graces his lips. It’d be a lie if he said he wasn’t scared of you meeting them, he’s always avoided the topic of family and his past. He wasn’t used to letting another person into his heart, not having to keep them at an arm's length away to shield himself.

But you’ve always been understanding towards him and his feelings, never pushing any topic further when you sensed his uncomfortableness. It’s normal human decency — he knows that, but perhaps it’s because he’s rarely ever experienced it or maybe it’s just you. 

Aventurine tends to associate you with cold showers. Not because you’re uncomfortable and cold to him, no, rather it’s quite the contrary. You're refreshing and different from the people he’s met. 

He often shudders under your touch, soft fingers tracing over his skin. From his abdomen up his jawline, only stopping for a mere second at his neck; at the branding. You lean down and leave a small kiss on it before caressing his cheek and giving him a reassuring smile.

He’s used to all the stares he receives, it doesn’t bother him (at least it shouldn’t bother him), but with you it’s different — you’re different. 

“I’ll introduce her to you soon.”

“I’m back.” Aventurine loudly shouts into the safe space of your shared home. Knowing that there is someone who’’’s waiting for him at home, is nice. It’s something he had to get used to but he wasn’t against the idea, no, he welcomed it with open arms.

He easily slips out of his shoes to put the pair of leather shoes next to yours. Followed by his coat which he shrugs off his shoulders and his hat which he hangs onto the clothing rack before sliding his pair of glasses off his nosebridge and setting it atop the drawer.

The surface is messy and is covered with all kinds of objects. Trinkets from his travels on other planets, keys, varying from car keys to garden keys, little sticky note reminders, cosmetic products, polaroids, and so on. But he doesn’t bother to clean it up and neither do you, the both of you enjoying the little chaos on top of your drawer. 

In general, ever since you moved in with him his whole apartment has been filled with more objects, ranging from things like plants, instruments, cooking utensils, and a bunch more. It’s as if you’ve made it more lively, making it look like a family home.

A sense of domesticity washes over him, it’s a feeling he’s long forgotten — until you stepped into his life and decorated it.

Aventurine spots your silhouette as it moves towards him. Rushing forward to greet him and snaking your arms around his nape, before mumbling an incoherent “Welcome home.” into his neck. 

He pats his hand over your back and slowly rubs circles over your shoulder blades; the bare skin that isn’t covered by your shirt, finding comfort in the closeness.  

You pull away a bit too quickly for his liking and Aventurine would be lying if he said he didn’t miss your body pressed against his but decides to ignore the feeling. 

“I missed you.” you admit as you take a step back from him and belatedly add “How was work?” Aventurine notices your absent gaze as if your mind is somewhere completely different, buried in thoughts that are stored elsewhere; away from him.

“Just the usual. Talking to some clients, office work, and not much more so I got work off pretty early today.” He hums before reaching out his hand to cup your cheek but you slip away before he can touch you.  

The action isn’t playful, not a single glint of teasing behind your eyes. And in an instant, he can feel that something’s off — he knows that something’s wrong.

“Then why didn’t you come back earlier home? You know I don’t have to take over the afternoon shift today, so we could’ve spent more time. It’s almost like you avoided it.” You drawl out the words as your eyes dart over his face, flickering from his eyes over to his lips. Aventurine can’t exactly tell the expression that paints your face but he doesn’t like it, it makes him want to swallow his words and never speak again. Sealing his mouth with hot dripping wax to prevent him from ever talking again, in fear of saying something wrong.

“Pff, what are you saying? I was not! I’m hurt that you accuse me of such!” Aventurine tries to play it off, thinking (hoping) that this is some prank of yours which he has to play along with. 

“Mhm, then where were you?” you press. 

“Secret.” A joke. A terrible one at that, its execution poor and he immediately regrets his words as he sees you lowering your head, your gaze averting downwards and meeting the floor, refusing to look at him again. Aventurine parts his lips to speak up, to apologize to make it up to you, to reassure you. Anything — he’d do anything for you. 

"Is there something you're hiding from me?" you mumble. 

At that his eyebrows furrow and Aventurine blinks several times to prove that this isn’t just a dream; a bad dream — a nightmare but reality. (Although aren’t reality and nightmares close relatives? The other doesn’t differ much from the other.)  "How'd you think of that now?" he lets out an awkward breathy laugh that almost sounds kind of strained. 

“It's just that..in the past weeks if not months you've been going out without telling me where to and it's just.” You pick your gaze off the floor and avert your eyes back to Aventurine’s face to talk to him. “I brushed it off at first because I didn't want to come off as the overprotective and obsessive girlfriend that always needs to know her boyfriend's whereabouts, but I'm worried, you know?” you utter, voice tense as you speak. “Perhaps we should take a break. I mean with all the times you not being here it almost feels like a break.” 

Fear. Aventurine reads the expression out of your eyes, the look he wasn’t able to distinguish before. You were scared of being alone, you thought he was going to abandon you, fearing being left behind and thrown aside. How did he not notice?

“Are you implying a breakup?” Aventurine searches for something in your eyes that tells him that you’re not serious but he doesn’t even need to examine your gaze for a long time a lot to conclude that you are indeed being serious.  

“What? No! I’m sorry, I just need some time to think about this, okay? The last weeks have been shit and this is something I’ve been meaning to say for a while now; it's been on my chest for a long time already but I just didn't voice it out because I trust you a lot. I know that you need your own time and have your own pace to do and say things, but her words echoed in my mind and ugh forget it. I just need some alone time to think about all of this. I’m sorry."

You quickly walk past him, head facing the floor and in that moment Aventurine can feel a cold shiver run down his spine. “Who is “her?” And we can talk about it, please?” He tries to grab your wrist but you brush him off, already in your shoes and grabbing your car keys from the drawer. 

Everything happens in such a rush, he just came home, how’d it lead to this? Aventurine can’t even fully comprehend the situation that is happening right in front of him.

With swift movements, you pull on your jacket, hand already on the doorknob as you turn your head around. “I’ve told you, I just need some alone time to process this. We can talk about it later, okay?”  

Aventurine can only watch as you leave and slam the door shut.

Maybe, just maybe you were overreacting and maybe all of this isn’t as deep. 

You let out an exasperated groan into the comfort of your own (Aventurine’s) car. Foot pressing harder down the gas pedal to increase the acceleration. 

The rain droplets outside softly press kisses against the windows, and the sound of water pattering against the glass is enough to ease your mind. 

Aventurine’s always been secretive, you’ve known that ever since you met him. You knew what kind of relationship you were getting yourself in with, but still, now you’re the one who’s behaving like a complete dumbass now. 

But in the past weeks you’ve been nothing but worried when he only came home sometime before dinner or before midnight. It was odd. Even for someone like Aventurine. He’s disappearing for one moment and in the next he’s right next to you.

You’ve never asked anything that went beyond his boundaries, thus trying to avoid the past and his family. And as much as you’d like to not think about it, you want to know more about him — you should know more about him, he’s literally your boyfriend.

“Oh? He’s never told you about his family? You have to know that your beloved Aventurine is the last surviving person of his people. All the others have died. Including his family.

“So you want me to stay with him? I mean of course, because one day the two of us are plan-”

“Stay? No, quite the opposite. I’m requesting you to break up with him, it’s for the better — for both yours and his sake.”

“What!- No! If I were to break up with him he’d have no one!”

“Are you saying the IPC counts as “No one?”

“We know more about him than you do, if Aventurine never even told you about his family then why do you think he would do so in the future?”

“Aventurine may not have many people he considers as friends, but there are enough people who hold a grudge against Aventurine.”

“They're going to use you against him, if you’re near him they’d target you too and that would put Aventurine in danger. You wouldn't want that would you?” 

“Break up, part ways. It's for the better. For the sake of both of you.” She reaches forward to caress your cheek. “Think about it okay?”

You still feel conflicted about this whole situation. Of course, it’s bad when he keeps secrets from you, but he reassures you with sweet promising words, is at your side when you're feeling down, showers and basks you in gifts and affection. He takes care of all of your needs.

Aventurine always looks out for you. Always putting you above himself and setting you as your number one priority to treat you right. 

You’re lost in your thoughts, not noticing that the traffic light has already been red to prevent cars and passengers from passing or even getting hit by the car but you notice it too late. Before you can stop in front of the traffic light, you continue to drive forward, the other car of course notices and tries to dodge you, the weather conditions; and the slippery floor make it hard to do so. 

There’s a loud splash sound made by all the water that covers the street as your car hits the one in front of you.

You can feel your vision going unfocused, everything appearing blurry in front of you and overall your head hurts hellish as if you’ve hit it against something. Everything feels numb. The only thing that you’re somehow still able to notice regardless of your blurred vision is the crimson blood that is dripping down your head. You spot it from the corner of your eye as it continuously drips more and more from one and the same spot — it’s a fatal head wound.

Death was always one step ahead.

Perhaps dying isn’t as scary as you used to think.

You’re barely able to keep your eyes open, only seeing blurry silhouettes that rush to you only to leave once again. Right, you’re in a hospital. Outside of your room, you can hear the rustling and bustling of the busy environment, staff rushing over to patients who need immediate help. It’s overstimulating and you can’t help but close your eyes shut again. Welcoming the darkness as it embraces you.

The only thing you can really remember before passing out is someone, most likely a medical assistant, grazing their hand over your cheek to check your condition. 

Similar to now.

You can feel a soft gloved hand pressing down on your cheek, rubbing slow circles along it as if it were a mother lovingly caressing her child’s cheek. The soft motion reminds you of the times when Aventurine used to do that, how he tried to do that before you left. 

It’s similar to Aventurine’s touch, but you don’t even have to open your eyes to know that it isn’t him. Still, you can’t help but yearn for him now; in your last moments, on the verge of death. 

You don’t know what you’re doing, perhaps it’s because you know that this is the last time you’ll ever feel someone else's touch again, or maybe it’s because even though plenty of other people embrace you, you’ll always seek for Aventurine’s touch. 

In everything and everyone.

Slowly and clumsily you reach your hand out to the person who holds your cheek, vision blurry as you guide them to your heart, making their hand rest on your chest as you put your hand atop theirs. 

The monitor at your bed shows that your heart rate is going down, decreasing as every second passes by, you can tell by the sounds of it, followed by the slam of your door as doctors rush over to your side.

It’s too late. It’s too late to apologize to him. It’s too late to say “I love you.” to him again. It’s too late to save you. 

You’ve feared death and its concept of what could and what would happen after your death ever since a young age. Always anxious that death is right around the corner to tear your life apart and into shreds.

But now, you don’t think it’s too bad. It’s somewhat nice. 

You press more tightly around the hand that still lies on your chest. To say that you were dying without regrets, wouldn’t actually be a bad description of your life. But there’s one regret that is still anchored within you, namely never saying goodbye to Aventurine. 

“..Goodbye Aventurine.” Your breath heaves upon saying these words. “Miss! Please don’t talk it’ll only make it worse! Please trust us.” One of the workers notices your words and hears your small farewell before scolding you.

I hope you are happy in a distant universe. I hope we don’t have to cross paths so that I won't fall for you once again. I hope you’ll be able to find peace without me. 

Aventurine immediately rushes to the hospital upon receiving the news of your car crash. He’s out of breath as he runs to the reception and slams both of his hands onto the counter. His breath is uneven as if he’s ran all the way over here, almost out of breath as he asks the receptionist in which room you’re currently being treated. He didn’t care how messy he looked right now, he just needed to see you — just needed to see you doing well to hold in his arms again. 

“Ah, there she is.” The receptionist whose eyes were tracing over the list of occupied hospital rooms, stops at one. “She’s currently being treated in room 231. Second story and on the left side at the end of the floor.” She notes. 

“But are you sure you want to visit her?” She asks, worry flickering in her eyes. (Or perhaps it’s his own, he can’t tell as he stares into the reflection of her glasses.)

“Of course I do! Why wouldn’t I?” 

“Ah, it’s just that she already has a visitor.” A sheepish smile appeared on the receptionist's face. 

Aventurine can’t help but raise his eyebrow in confusion “Who? Who came to visit her?” Your friends? No, they were currently traveling to another planet. Your family? No, their home planet is far away from this hospital and they wouldn’t be able to get here in such a small amount of time.

“If I recall correctly, she had pink silky hair. She’s a very attractive woman who looks like she’s respected by many — at least that’s the impression that I’ve got after I saw how her subordinates were following her words without protest. They were literally mumbling and complaining about how they didn’t see why they should be here, that it’s none of their business but she shut them up with one glance! Can you imagine that?” 

Could it be? No. That’s absurd. 

Why would she be here? Except she is the “her” that you were referring to. 

Once again the young receptionist's eyes glide over the screen, searching for the person who visited you. “Oh god, how could I forget! Her name is Jade — Miss Jade to be precise!”

Aventurine feels like purging, he’s not feeling well. He has a bad feeling about this.   

“I-I’ll get going now. Thank you.” Aventurine stumbles over his words. When was the last time that has ever happened? He can’t remember. The only thing on his mind right now is rushing to your side and being with you. 

Aventurine walks over to the elevator and he hopes that no one notices the shaking and trembling in his knees as he advances forward. Nervously tapping his leather shoe against the freshly cleaned floor as he waits for the elevator to move downward. Fucking elevator, hurry up. He knows that the continuous tapping against the button with his fingers won’t do shit, but he’s impatient — he has to see you. 

He needs to see that you’re alright.

The ride to the second floor is unbearably long (the number #1 trending chart songs among teenagers that are being played, certainly don’t make it better.) and it feels like an eternity until he finally reaches your story. He immediately trails the long hallway before turning left, not even bothering to knock as he pushes the door open.

But he’s not greeted with the sight that he expected — the sight he wished to see, where you were sitting up, back pressed against the hospital bed, and smiling as you see him looking at you. 

No, instead he sees how the doctors and nurses are already packing up and cleaning up, deathly silence in the air as if none of them dare to speak before turning their gazes over to him, looking confused on why he just intrudes and barges into a patient's room. And “her”, relaxing in the chair next to your bed, right leg crossed over her left one as she flips through one of the hospital's magazines, not even bothering to even look up, only a small smirk flickering on her lips.

One of the nurses speaks up to question his reasoning. “Sir, you do know that it’s not allow-” “Why aren’t you doing anything? Go and help her!” Aventurine cuts her off and complains before he strides over to your bed, seating himself on the chair opposite to Jade’s, his gaze only focusing on you; gifting his sole attention to you.

Aventurine shivers as he takes your cold hand in his, trying to interlace your fingers together — futile, utterly futile. You don’t return the action, instead, your hand drops down onto the hard mattress again, and Aventurine once again feels like purging. 

There’s a disgusting sensation that bubbles inside his stomach, one that makes his stomach ache and which he so desperately tries to get rid of (by purging.) He’s not sure if the disgust that lingers in his throat and is threatening to spill is because of the situation he finds himself in or if it’s because of the woman who intently watches him from the other side of the bed. 

“It’s hopeless. You can’t save her anymore, she’s gone — has been for the past twenty minutes. It’s a pity you didn’t get to hear her last words, her last dying breath was an utter of your name, although what’s more pitying is the fact that it wasn’t even your real name.” She hums. Although Jade shows no sign of amusement, her eyes deceive her. They always do.

Aventurine can feel the prying eyes of the staff behind him and he bites back the things he wants to say, scared that if he does the only thing that’ll come out is blood from all the times he’s already bitten down on his tongue to prevent any words from spilling. “What are the details of her death? How’d she die?”

The same nurse from before tries to interfere, trying to explain the situation but before she can even voice her thoughts out loud Jade closes the magazine. The “clap” sound echoes through the small room and Jade hums contently.  

After closing the magazine, she sets it aside, placing it on top of the small drawer next to your bed. “To put it simply: A car crash. But you probably know that already. Well, the car she drove with was yours, and thus technically also the property of the IPC, so we also got a notification of one of our cars crashing. You also got one, didn’t you? I assume you didn’t see it or else you would’ve rushed to the scene earlier than us.” She lets out a small laugh. 

Aventurine doesn’t understand why she’s laughing. What’s so funny about it? Why’s she making fun of your death in front of you?

“When we first got there we had to take our time to find out who she is. She wasn’t registered as one of the IPC’s workers, so we had a hard time.” There’s a tilt to her voice and Aventurine can’t help the hatred that bubbles in his chest for the woman in front of him.

“In the meantime, we called one of our ambulances but it had some trouble getting here due to the weather conditions so it took some time. On the way here she was hardly breathing but we were able to examine her body and tried to save her, but as you can see..it seemed like luck wasn’t on our side.” 

The anger that boils inside of him is noncurable. “You could've saved her! Instead of burying your nose into the list of people who work at the IPC, put a person's life over your morals and work policies would you?” He snaps at her frustratedly. 

“Hm? She’s not a part of the IPC thus I don’t see any reason to save someone unbeknownst to me, someone who is a complete stranger to me. And who knows maybe she was a thief.” She simply shrugs her shoulders. 

Her intonation is clear and unhurried, her voice elegant as the words smoothly slide off her tongue. Elegant but cold. Her tone is flat as she watches Aventurine’s lips parting to speak, his mouth opening and closing to find the right words to convey his emotions, to say something — anything.  

Jade considers herself a patient person, always willing to listen to what the other party has to say that might even pique her interest, she’s always willing to wait on what unpredictable thing the person she converses with has to say. 

But, her patience runs thin for those who have nothing to offer, those who aren’t willing to do something, and those who aren’t remarkable gems that try to stand out from others. 

“I’ll say it as nicely as possible — I’m not interested in keeping this useless conversation going.” She lets out an exasperated sigh. “After all, I already have you all to myself. Thus I see no need to put up with meaningless topics on which I won’t change my answer. At first, I was fine with her as long as you kept her entertained but it seemed like our little Aventurine had found a new interesting plaything to keep around.”

She pushes the chair back as she stands up, going over to the door where her subordinates suddenly stand. Always following her and her every command like fucking dogs. She leans against the doorframe and continues to keep her gaze on Aventurine.

Aventurine detests the way the words roll off so easily on Jade's tongue. She’s talking about you like some toy that brings him temporary joy only to be thrown away later. Once again his hand finds yours and he holds onto it tightly, as if scared of losing you once again. (He already has.)

“So you did know her! Looking through the IPC’s list my ass! You- So you were the one who coerced her into breaking up with me?” Aventurine’s breath gets caught in his throat.

Jade looks at him through half-lidded eyes as if bored by his question. “Hm? Ah. I wouldn’t exactly say coerce, I just told her some things here and there and told her to take her precious time to think about it. I’ve felt like she was a clever girl so I was sure she wouldn’t worry her pretty little head off too much, but as it seems I’ve miscalculated.” 

Jade’s eyes pivot over to where your lifeless body is, her gaze tracing over your limbs as she notices Aventurine’s tight grip on your hand. At that Jade can’t help but let out a small sigh “It’s no use. She’s dead.” Shaking her head so that the feathers ruffle against each other.

“Let’s go home okay? You belong to the IPC, it’s your home. Remember Kakavasha, we picked you up when you had no friends, no family, no one, and nowhere to turn to. You were alone. We gave you a place to belong to and a sense of belonging.” 

Jade’s eyes form into crescent moons as she reaches out her index finger, waving it in her direction as if commanding a dog running back to their owner. 

At that, Aventurine can’t help but stare at her in disgust.

The faint sound of a church bell chiming in the distance reaches his ears, the hollow sound resembles his body — the empty shell he houses in. 

It serves as a cocoon to nuzzle himself in, hiding the ugly thing that is kept safe beneath layers and layers of skin, until it is ready to unfold, as it rises and flaps its wings revealing something novel — someone novel to the beholder's eye. 

Truly a magnificent sight for sore eyes that have never seen beauty.

But if you were to pick him apart, ripping wing after wing, stealing each and every part of him, stripping him bare — making him remain naked under your watchful gaze, you’d see he’s still the same. No matter if a change of appearance occurred. 

His past haunts him. 

Aventurine sees himself in rain puddles, all dirtied with mud and hands soaked in fresh crimson blood, eyes so pure — so innocent, as he tries to rinse off his small trembling fingers with the muddy water. 

He sees his family in fields of blooming flowers, ready to unfold in the warm sun only to be extinguished by the rain. 

He sees you in the sky. The sunrise that greets him as tendrils of sunshine peek through his curtains and meets his face, the touch tickling him. The sunset that bids him farewell as he gets off work. The moon and the stars that light up his way and guide him through the dark voidless night. 

Aventurine sees you in everything that accompanies him through his day. 

You were in your shared bedroom petting the critters, eyes lighting up as you spotted him while he was watching you from afar, draping his body against the doorframe and smiling as you treated the pets with loving care. Inviting him over on the bed with a wave of your hand before petting the empty spot next to you.

You visited him at one of his casinos to watch him play, watching him in awe as he won, looking at him through lovestruck eyes as if he hung up all the stars in the night sky. 

You were in the living room, peeking over his shoulders as he read a new report, his faint scent lingering in your nose due to the close proximity, a blush creeping onto your face whenever he turned around, his breath tickling your face due to the brief distance between the two of you and being a mere inches away from one another — you were always at Aventurine’s side. 

There hasn’t ever been a time when you were not with him.

Except that you aren’t today, because you’re gone — you’re dead.

You’re really gone this time. 

Being reminded of that — your death, Aventurine can’t help but tap against the bartop with his fingers, movements uneasy and out of sync as he thinks of what he could’ve done. The restless feeling that swells up in his chest, like water filling up a glass, is swept back — the same feeling he had when he had grabbed your cold hand as you laid still in the hospital bed, hoping that all of this was a foul joke.

He must’ve looked pathetic to the people surrounding him, the hospital staff who looked down at him with pity in their eyes, the IPC workers who forced themselves to not take a peek, and Jade who just idly stood there. 

Was his luck ever luck to begin with, if it meant losing you? 

Oh, how cruel the world can be, how wretched and vicious.

The sound of the bell is continuously ringing in his ears, it harmonizes with Aventurine’s uneasy tapping against the bartop. There’s a distant but somewhat melancholic expression that fogs his face, it’s almost comical - almost ironic the painful look that clouds Aventurine’s eyes. A shadow is cast upon his vision as he drinks the last remaining droplets of his aged whiskey. The bell keeps ringing in his ears, serving as a signal that dusk has arrived - it’s time to leave.

Aventurine rises to his feet, and the backside of his legs meets the barstool as he pushes it backward. Upon the noise of old wood screeching against the floor tiles, Topaz can’t help but slightly turn her head around to cast a glance at the blond, not enough to properly face him, but more than enough to see the uneasiness and distraught that lingers in his eyes.

“Hm? Already leaving?” She leans back in her chair, legs crossed as she tells her colleagues to pay no mind to her and Aventurine conversing and that they should just continue to chatter. They don’t question her, instead, they nod and then begin to laugh before starting to mindlessly talk shit about some other colleagues again. 

God, do they have nothing better to do than to badmouth other people? Sticking their noses in where they don’t belong.

With swift moments Topaz swivels around in the leather cushion of her wooden stool, setting her drink on the counter, followed by her elbow as she props it on the surface before resting her head in her hand. 

There’s a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lip  —  a weak and half-hearted one. “You never change, do you? Always curious to find out what others are up to.” he chuckles quietly. “Well, I’ll have to save your ass if you keep getting into trouble.” she deadpans. “You don’t want to disappoint Ms. Jade, do you?” 

In the blink of an eye, Topaz turns around to face Aventurine fully. Her eyebrows are furrowed and in her eyes, there’s a questioning gaze. 

Jade.

Hearing her name being said in such a nice way, almost like it’s a sacred name to be worshiped, Aventurine couldn’t help but bite the insides of his mouth in frustration, teeth gnawing at his lips, on the verge of spilling blood. 

He lets out a shaky exhale, that woman. The charismatic, enticing, and ever so fucking cunning Jade. As it seems Topaz still looks up to her, admiration going far beyond than just a junior worshiping her senior. 

But he supposes he can’t blame her, the woman has saved Topaz in more than one way, simply because Jade has always had a way with her words, wrapping people about her little finger with mere words - truly a silver-tongued woman.  

Her persuasion methods can be pressuring. Coercing people and making them give in by finding a fitting compromise that is beneficial to both parties.

Nevertheless, that doesn't change the fact that she's a bitch - a despicable one at that.

Her words are glazed in honey, saccharine, and almost too sweet to be true, but her eyes deceive her — they’re full of greed. By telling you something along the lines of that you don’t belong together with Aventurine because of your statuses; the two of you are worlds apart, you can’t be in a relationship because the two of you aren’t compatible and that you should break up with him for his and your sake, can’t be together due to your different natures, is probably what she did to lure and coax you in.

As much as he hates to admit it, Jade is right. You’re everything that Aventurine isn’t.

Being kind-hearted and soft-spoken lies in your nature. You’re as gentle as the summer breeze that passes by him, the one that makes him think that maybe things won’t forever be so bad. 

Unlike Aventurine you’re carefree and selfless (perhaps sometimes a bit too much for your own good), always opting to help other people before helping yourself — looking out for them. Hence why you gave in to Jade, thinking that it’d be better for him if you weren’t around. 

He wants someone to take the blame, someone is at fault for this predicament. It only led to this mess because you decided to break up with him —  you take the blame because of that. But he knows that’s far from the truth because then again Jade urged you to do so. So she’s at fault..right? 

It’s Jade’s fault. 

That’s what he tries to think, he tries to convince himself of that, that Jade is the one to take fault for your death, without her you’d still be here — here with him, comfortably nuzzled in the crook of his neck, preserved like a million dollar gem within a display, caged by his arms to shield you from any harm. But Aventurine knows that that’s a lie.

He is the one that causes you harm.

 Neither is it yours or Jade’s fault — it’s solely his fault — his burden to carry.

“You belong to the IPC, it’s your home. Remember Kakavasha, we picked you up when you had no friends, no family, no one, and nowhere to turn to. You were alone. We gave you a place to belong to and a sense of belonging.” 

Her words echo in his mind, playing over and over like a broken record player that still has to deliver its last messages. 

Jade doesn’t make deals that don’t pay off for her, she doesn’t indulge in a wager in which the other party has nothing valuable to offer. He knows that. After all, he was once in the same position, stuck in the same pair of shoes as his knees were all wobbly underneath her intent watch, feeling like a lowly insect with no worth to its name.

That’s why she didn’t save you. You had no worth to her, you’ve had nothing in possession that Jade deemed as valuable — you were worthless to Jade. No shiny price tag attached to your neck like a dog's collar which already has their owner's name engraved on it and thus can no longer be taught any discipline.   

Upon that realization Aventurine can only seethe his teeth in anger, the tip of his tongue gets welcomed by a metal-like taste, enveloping the front part of his tongue as a whole. The bitter taste of iron seeping into the corners of his mouth is none other than blood, an all too familiar taste, sight, smell — and feeling.

No matter how many times he attempts to clean his dirty hands, carefully rinsing and washing the bloodstained hands until they’re clean to him, in his eyes the essence remains — it’ll always be there, and he’ll always be the one who’ll be at fault for the bloodbath.  

Pale skin which is blemished and tarnished with a vermillion red colour is no new sight for him. It greeted him for the first time when he was a just child, eyes widening in shock as he saw a massacre happening right in front of him, blood shedding in all directions. 

The second time was when Kakavasha stood in front of his former master's corpse, freshly killed and still warm to touch as one would approach him. Kakavasha was sure he’d die of blood loss in a few hours if not minutes. 

At least he hoped so because Kakavasha still couldn’t comprehend that he had killed someone — he was scared to acknowledge the fact that there was a death on his hands thus carrying the title of “murderer” like a sticker glued onto a container of pills — once it’s there, it’ll never be ripped off so people are aware of its risks and what they’re getting in touch with. 

Kakavasha couldn’t believe that he was no better than the people who had killed the people he adored the most. He didn’t want to believe it. He didn’t want to be put into the same category as them.

Aventurine had already offered everything he had in possession when he entered the IPC, back then he had nothing but his body, his mind — himself to offer. Today he has you — he had you. 

Now they even ripped you away from him. Anything he’ll never want to lose will eventually be lost, no matter how much and how many times he tries, it’ll always slip out of his grasp. 

The IPC took everything that was priceless to him, it started with his childhood self and ended with his adult self. The adult self that you made complete, you were a part of his adolescence - you made him feel like he had a place to belong to. (Not the IPC.)

Now it’s gone, you’re gone, everything is gone. 

He knew that it was too good to be true — you were too good to be true. Like an item one wouldn’t even dare to get because of the absurd amount of zeros at the end, nevertheless, one’s parents scraped their money together and worked hard to gift them this precious item.

(Who is he even kidding? His parents weren’t even there on his birthday and to consider the loss of his sister a gift is bullshit.)

“We never did get along, did we?” Aventurine speaks up, murmuring more to himself than to Topaz. There’s an unfocused look that fills his eyes as he sways his gaze over to meet Topaz’s eyes. Her pupils were as wide as back then, glowing with excitement as she introduced herself to him with a childlike giggle. Some people never change. 

He smiles as he reminisces about the times when he and Topaz were young children who suffered and could bond over their past. Now they’re two adults who await a different future. 

His future that’ll end today.

Topaz raises her eyebrow. “Aventurine, I’m kind of getting worried over here. Did the alcohol get to your head? What’s up with you? Should I call her?” 

Right. Topaz doesn’t know you’re dead — have been for the past two weeks. Only the Gods know how many secrets Jade has kept from Topaz and how many are still yet to be revealed. (If she ever even decides to do so.)

He chooses to stay silent, ignoring her question as a quiet puny laugh escapes his throat, it’s meek but it’s the only thing that Aventurine can utter at this moment. “But I do have to admit that there were moments when I felt at ease with you; moments in which I felt like I had a sister again. “

“Goodbye Jelena.”

He gives her a small but fond smile — this time a genuine one, before turning around, raising his right hand into the air, and bidding his goodbye as he steps towards the exit. She makes no move to follow him which Aventurine is thankful for. 

“Hey! Wait!” Topaz’s shouts get drowned out by the other customers. “At least tell me where you’re going, you bastard. So I don't have to worry my ass off.” This time she yells a bit louder, making Aventurine halt for a mere second before leaving once and for all. 

He tilts his head around and Topaz isn’t sure if that’s acceptance or wistfulness that gleams in Aventurine’s eyes. Topaz can only watch attentively as lament clouds over Aventurine’s vivid irises, making them look almost unrecognizably lifeless. He opens and closes his mouth as if not knowing what to answer and gathering the right words to say. 

His words are no louder than a whisper as he utters them, almost not reaching her ears.

“I’m meeting someone.” 

The sun dives beneath the orange clouds, disappearing behind the horizon. Aventurine always wondered why you preferred the sunset over the sunrise — he simply never understood it.

The sunrise signifies a new day; a new start to begin all over. 

The sunset on the other hand meant a day coming to an end; not having had enough time to fulfill what you would’ve liked to do before time ran out. 

He hopes that if the two of you were ever able to meet again, you’ll tell him.

Yellow and orange hues paint the sky in vivid warm colours, the sun slowly proceeds to dip beneath the midst of the cirrus clouds as if challenging him to take a step forward until he can’t feel the floor beneath his feet. 

He stands at the edge of the building, toes already hanging over the edge of the roof. With closed eyes he lifts his face into the air, relishing in the cool wind that hits his face. 

The chilly wind ripples through his blond locks with force and Aventurine swears that amidst the wind he feels your warm touch once more, a soft hand caressing his cheek and brushing the strands of unruly hair that fly away, behind his ears.

It’s as if you’ve come to him one last time to accompany him to his death. Or perhaps you’re mocking him and his mind is playing tricks on him again which shouldn’t surprise him. Everyone in his past finds him again. 

Though Aventurine wishes it to be the former.

Once again the wind touches his skin, this time a soft breeze brushing over his lips. The touch is cold and short, almost ghostly. Aventurine likes to think that it’s you, he likes to think that you’ve come to grant him one last kiss. 

Still with his eyes closed Aventurine voices an apology — he hopes the winds will carry it to you.

“Forgive me, that I wasn’t there to save you. I wish things would've turned out differently, I wish we could’ve had the time to watch the sunset once more.”

Those are the last words he utters before opening his shut eyes again. The sun has almost disappeared and Aventurine takes one more — one last moment to admire the sunset again, this time alone, without you.

Please be there when I search for you. It’s a desperate wish but what else can he do? Luck wasn’t on his side.

He strides forward, taking a step closer to the edge of the roof; to you. The wind rips the air out of his lungs just like you always did, never failing to leave him stunned and breathless. His eyelids feel heavy and he has the desire to close them again but he wants to see you as you embrace him with open arms. 

The wind whistles and howls in his ears, creating some sort of unbearable white noise but Aventurine can’t help but smile, it’s weak but it’s sincere. This is the first time he’s felt at ease since your death. 

This is what it must feel like to be free. 

Aventurine likes to believe, perhaps a bit naïvely, that there might be a universe out there where the two of you can live happily together and maybe if his luck doesn’t run out he hopes that you’ll be able to meet his family. 

That you’ll be able to spend time with them as you prepare something in the kitchen with him and his mother. He hopes his family has embarrassing childhood photos of him plastered along the walls in the halls, so as you pass them you can’t help but giggle and take a picture. He hopes that you’ll be able to bond and connect with his sister over the stupidest stuff. 

But most importantly, he hopes that he’ll get to be with you and this time he’ll treat you right.

I’ll make it up to you.

I promise.

END NOTE: were you able to tell that I was only really enjoying writing the second last scene LOL cause admittedly i found the other scenes kind of corny.. like corny how i wrote them but yeah....

© VYNICITY 2024. stealing, copying, translating, reposting my works on other platforms or feeding them to ai is not permitted.

[slothyx]

[fruit-sy]

Stelle looked at the exchange between Hook and Fersman. She can't help but feel light seeing them smiling happily. Perhaps monetary gains drove her to help most of the Belobog citizens, but she can't help but make an exception for little Hook.

Seeing them had made for an interesting observation.

'A father, huh.' She wondered, 'Is this family love? Something that can drive you to go above and beyond for the other person? Even though it was all for naught in the end?'

Although Stelle had only begun to exist, she had enough knowledge to get by the world around her. Even so, she has yet to experience a lot of things a human would go through.

After lingering on the thought for a while, she came to a simple conclusion, 'I don't think I'll ever know what having a parental figure feels like.'

Perhaps Kafka counted in some respect, since she is the one who pushed the stellaron inside Stelle. But perhaps all she is to her is just a variable. Towards whatever unfathomable future "Destiny's Slave" has foreseen.

Her thoughts drifted to Kafka's words, "... You'll meet companions who treat you like family, and embark on surreal adventures with them. This is your future that Elio has foreseen."

Did she consider the Astral Express her family? She isn't sure. While they are kind and understanding, it feels like they still have walls put up around them. It probably doesn’t help that her… tendencies tend to repulse the people around her, she thought sheepishly.

‘I am good at my job, and I’m fairly certain the Astral Express won’t kick me out, at least.’

… Maybe Pompom would kick her out, on second thought. They were appalled when she had come covered in sweat and grime and tracked dirt all over the parlor car. That day still made her shiver.

Shaking her head, she looked back at the duo who were beginning to call her over.

The future certainly seems unfathomable.

Extra :

[baeshijima]

— the weight of a sinner

to bear a sin is a result of consequence, but to bear a sin with no relation to you is an inescapable burden — a means to have a scapegoat and someone to hold accountable. unfortunately, you're one of the very few who seem to think as such.

CONTAINS : gn!reader, 3k wc, angst(y-ish), bittersweet, some lightheartedness in there... somewhere, shackling prison/pre-banishment dan heng, mentions of high-cloud quintet, relationship w/ dan feng left ambiguous (but implied dan feng x reader)

A/N : dan heng and reader face inner turmoil just as i do when facing any minor or major inconvenience. (the dan f/heng animated short was looped while i was writing this...)

Your time within the lifeless prison is limited. Lest you want to be caught red-handed by the stationed prison guards or, worse yet, Jing Yuan for trespassing, you ought to hurry. (You have an inkling he is well-aware of your routinely visits, but you choose to ignore the thought. It makes pretending to be none the wiser a little easier when you’re with him.)

Well, that much is easier said than done. 

Shooing away unnecessary thoughts, you continue your way down towards the depths of The Shackling Prison. Blending into the surrounding darkness, you wait as patrolling guards pass by, watching their receding figures with calm eyes. As always, the security towards the bottom of this dreary place is tighter. It’s understandable, really, when taking into consideration who they have held captive.

Eventually, you come to a stop. You take in the familiarity of the surroundings, of the damp smell, of the hollow drips echoing within the walls, of the eerie isolation which encroaches on you.

Several guards hover in front of the cell. A quiet sigh escapes you, though it doesn’t come as a surprise. With the fluidity it takes for you to knock out the guards in one swift movement, one would think the act to be like that of muscle memory. It’s not all that far off when considering just how many times you have done this, on top of your past merits as a Cloud Knight. Now left without any potential risks, you step out from the dreary shadows and make your way through the bars and into the chamber.

Laboured breaths; beads of sweat; a harsh crease between his brows; clothing torn and sullied. No matter how many times you see him in such a state, your heart lurches for him all the same.

With quick, light steps you draw closer. Features you are all too familiar with become clearer in spite of the dingy lighting, but your attention is more focused on the dark, murky wisp festering his soul.

“Those blasted Elders,” you mutter to yourself as you take in the young man’s haggard appearance. “Just what poison have they deceived him with this time…”

His body hangs limp against the metal restraints, ragged breaths wracking his worn body as his expression contorts into one of pain. Dark spots flicker ominously when your eyes skim his body. The burden wrought as a result of the Preceptors’ influence must weigh heavily on his mind if his soul is this contaminated to such an extent. (You dread to think of the lies they’ve been spewing to him about Dan Feng for him to be in this state of conflict.)

Your gaze stops at one particular point, its shadow more concentrated compared to the rest. “They made his soul murkier than it was just a few days ago!” And he’s sustained more bruises than before…

Immediately, your hands hover over his chest. A dim glow distorts the matted appearance of his skin, its shallow light allowing for you to get a closer look at the injuries he has sustained since your last visit. Eyes narrowed at a particularly concerning spot, you’re loath to believe the Elders have even a smidge of humanity left within them — assuming they even had any to begin with, that is.

Amidst your hushed curses towards the Vidyadhara Preceptors, a low groan resounds from in front. The once slack figure writhes against the chains, hissing at the uncomfortable friction the metal must no doubt be causing to his raw skin. You are about to move your attention to his wrists to help alleviate the pain until a flash of colour appears in your peripherals. You blink once, twice. Tilting your head up, you find yourself gazing into an unmistakably striking pair of teal eyes akin to that of the viridescent horns atop his head, the crimson which rests under his eyes and woven into a portion of his hair standing out despite the gloomy environment.

The faint clanging of metal brings you out of your daze. Oh. Right. He regained consciousness.

…Oops.

“You… What did you do?” His voice is hoarse — raspy. There is a slight edge in the gaze he regards you with, a precautionary means of defence. You can’t say you’re all that surprised. Rather, it makes you glad he remains on guard even though he has seen you a fair share of times.

Pausing the usage of your abilities, you cast your full attention onto him as you engage in this rare conversation. “I’m simply here to tend to your injuries and alleviate some of the burden weighing you down.”

(You’re not lying, per se, but you opt to omit the part wherein this selfishness within you merely wishes to save what you failed to before; an unnecessary burden you carry on behalf of someone long gone.)

“Thank you, but why go out of your way to help a sinner? You receive no benefit from this.”

A bitter smile stretches your lips at his words. A striking familiarity seeps within his tone, yet you’re no fool to mistake the man in front of you for someone who no longer walks the path of the living. You’re not like the rest of them who are stuck in the past.

“No one deserves to be shackled by past burdens. I hope that, one day, you can break free from the shadows of the past and live the way you desire. This is your life. No one has the right to dictate what you can and cannot do…” Your fists clench, eyes narrowing into a glare towards the ground. The next words leave a bitter taste in your mouth. “Not even those Elders have the right to do so.”

Silence follows your words. You take that as your cue to resume tending to him; he lets you.

Thinking back, he seems far more relaxed compared to when he was awake during your first couple of visits. He would shrink in on himself when you tried to cross a certain distance, his tail flicking anxiously in response as he regarded you with trembling yet hostile eyes. It’s a stark difference to how he is now. For one, his tail isn’t even out, having retreated when he came to realise you weren’t a threat nor were you going to harm him. He isn’t tense in your presence either, merely watching you do what you came here for with calm, slow blinks.

“Alright, all done here!” Leaning back with a huff, you bring a tentative hand to wipe away at the beads of sweat accumulating atop your forehead. There seemed to be more work than your previous cleanses, but you find the extra effort to be worth it when not even a speck of that murky contamination is left within him. Pride swells within you at your handy work. Haven’t lost my touch just yet!

Now with no reason to stay, you make a move to stand when a quiet murmur halts your movements.

“...You’re not calling me by that name.” When you give him an inquisitive look, he elaborates, “Dan Feng. You don’t call me by that name.”

That name roots you in place. Your mouth runs dry when his name is uttered in that voice, breathed out by that unnervingly similar face, senses growing dull as an all too familiar ache weighs down on your heart.

Your gaze drops momentarily before meeting with his own one — one riddled with confusion and a hunger for answers. “Because you’re not him. You are not Dan Feng, you are you.”

In spite of what all those Preceptors keep trying to hammer on about, how the Vidyadhara High Elder Dan Feng still lives and must face the consequences of his sins, how they have not diminished in power and influence, you find yourself to be one of the few who abstain from such beliefs. How could you not when you were someone privy to his private life, to his wants and hopes, his fears and worries, his dreams for a better future when all was said and done amidst your roles in history.

As such, you can hold your beliefs with confidence.

Dan Feng is gone. Dan Feng is dead. Dan Feng, despite the haunting similarities which stand before you, is not the one you’ve been looking out for within this seclusion. The incarnation in front of you is not the same man you have spent countless years by the side of, nor is he the one privy to the deepest, most intimate parts of yourself only few know of, just as you were with him.

“And…” You pause for a brief second before standing. His eyes follow your movements in caution, though you can tell your words resonate within him (the previous uncertainty which clung onto him is nowhere to be seen, for one). “I hope this is the last time we meet. For both our sakes.”

You lingering around him like some shadow will do the both of you no good, and you would be no different than all the others who hover around him for his status and power. It’s a decision you have long since come to terms with, one you knew would take place the moment you left your house to come here today.

It’s for the better, you tell yourself as you walk away. With this, perhaps you can finally allow yourself to let go of him and the past—

“Wait…!” There’s a shuffle behind you, the faint clinking of metal, a soft curse and grunt following soon after. Upon turning your head to gaze over your shoulder, you find yourself staring into glowing teal. “Every time I— ugh!” A pained gasp escapes him when he struggles too much against the restraints. Before you can reach out and alleviate his pain he merely shakes his head, signifying he has no need for your power. Not a second later, he continues. “Unlike the other blurred or vivid dreams I have of the previous life, every time I see or think of you my mind is calm. I know little-to-nothing of you, and yet, instinctively, I feel safe in your presence. Who are you?”

His words cause your eyes to widen and your stomach to drop. You weren’t expecting him to have some awareness of Dan Feng’s life and your identity, nor for his eyes to shine so brightly despite there being no light. Your teeth clench; your lips wobble. Someone must have tampered with his rebirth, or else he wouldn’t be able to recall even a single thing. You’ve heard some of the ways in which Dan Feng has been described by the Elders — how he is a criminal, a sinner, a monster, one who brought shame to the Vidyadhara name as the High Elder, and how he as his incarnation is no different.

He won’t be able to live this life as his own without being shadowed by the past. He won’t be able to escape the sins and burdens not meant to be carried by his shoulders. He will forever have the name and consequences wrought by his predecessor follow him instead of his valour and achievements, and the mere thought of it weighs heavy on your heart.

A wince involuntarily makes its way onto your features at the recollection; you don’t dare think about the cruelties they could have sneered into the young man’s ears when he was at his weakest and most susceptible to the brainwashing.

When you gather the courage to face him once more, you remember he asked you a question: “Who are you?” Looking into his eyes, there’s a hidden desperation in his gaze which causes your lips to naturally form the beginning phonemes of your name. But you stop, instead deciding it would be best to omit anything that could potentially implicate you with his previous incarnation. After all, for him to forge a path of his own, the past must remain as just that.

And so, with a light smile, you answer, “I’m just someone who doesn’t wish to see an innocent person bear the sins of their predecessor.”

He doesn’t have the chance to respond. You’re long gone from the confines of his chamber, as though you were never there to begin with, and he is left to stare into the abyssal darkness which has accompanied him throughout the entirety of his life. 

The only tell-tale sign of your presence being real is the warmth which spreads through his chest, warding off the dulled pain administered by the Preceptors.

In spite of your earlier words, the shackled Vidyadhara cannot help but to hope your paths cross once more. Whether that be within the tethers of a sinner, or perhaps in the distant future when he’s strong enough to leave his past burdens behind and start anew, he hopes he can talk to you as himself; as Dan Heng.

Maybe then you won’t have that pained look in your eyes when you gaze at him.

--

There’s a slight trickle of rain when you step foot outside into the Exalting Sanctum. It’s a stark contrast to the suffocating air of a cell, though the resulting chill which follows seems to be a worse trade-off.

You ought to have a word with whoever’s in charge of controlling the weather. Or at least get Jing Yuan to have a word with them. They certainly could have timed this better. What’s done is done, however, as chains of the past already begin to entrap you within its cold tethers.

“Forgive me,” you murmur, gaze upturned and blank as your body steadily becomes drenched in artificial rain. “Even your reincarnation will only know you as an emotionless sinner by word of those Elders.”

You must look terrible like this, soaked to the bone with nothing to cover you. You can picture him reprimanding your carelessness with that worried tone of his, laughing off his nags before he ultimately covers you with an umbrella and brings you back to his abode where a pot of hot tea and spare dry clothing awaits you.

But he’s not here to do all those things once more; nor is there anyone in the vicinity, for that matter. It is simply you, your grief, and your lonesome.

“You’re gone. Baiheng’s gone. Yingxing isn’t here. Neither is Jingliu. There’s only so much more Jing Yuan can try to carry by himself before he cracks. Or maybe he already has but remained stubborn as ever, hiding his burdens like always. And I… I’m just a coward who cannot do anything other than wish for the happier days to come back. I just want us to be happy again...” Warmth trickles down your cheeks, a stinging sensation blooming from within your senses. Abruptly, your voice quietens, barely a whisper. “Is that too much to ask?”

Had it not been for that prophecy of depravity and betrayal… would things be different now? Would everyone still be here drinking under the moonlight, telling stories of one-another (both the embarrassing and the emotional), sharing tears and laughter, sparring and honing one’s skills until muscles cried for rest and reprieve?

If you weren’t a coward back then — if you had just said or even just did something — would this all have been a mere nightmare they would tease you in good nature for?

You laugh, humourless. “Hah. What am I doing? It’s not like you can hear me if I talk to the rain. You would’ve given me an answer years ago if that were the case.”

A bitter taste lingers then, ceasing the rest of your words and instead causing you to choke up.

Inhale, exhale. Through the nose, out the mouth.

Having calmed down, your eyes stray towards the outside of the ship, taking in the bleeding hues of purple and blue distorted by the rain. Motionless, you remain in a trance for a few moments.

“...Remember that plan we talked about before?” you begin once more, voice steady unlike a few moments prior. “The one of all of us travelling planet to planet and exploring life beyond missions and the Luofu? Well, I think it’s about time one of us keeps to our word. I guess I should prepare to say goodbye to Jing Yuan soon.” A half-hearted chuckle escapes you at that. Your eyes close and drop with a sigh, a wry smile stretching the line of your lips. “Do you think he’ll resent me for leaving him as well?”

Silence is your only response, and you come to realise the rain has stopped. When you lift your gaze, the moon shines bright through the lingering mist. It’s almost reminiscent of happier days, when you were young and free, only having to worry about preventing a scuffle between Yingxing and Jing Yuan from breaking out, sometimes sharing a drink with Jingliu as Baiheng chattered away about her day. But most often were nights such as this spent together with Dan Feng, wiling away the nights stargazing and reminiscing missions and basking in one another’s quiet company.

It’s about time I move on, too.

With a swift turn you begin the trek home. For the first time in a long while, you have a goal — a hope and a dream to your name. Your mind recollects the young man’s gaze, how his eyes burned brighter than the sun itself in that one instance. Despite your prior words, a part of you hopes you meet once more when he truly discovers himself; for who he really is as opposed to the ghost which clings to his being.

For someone who can still create such an expression despite those conditions, his future is limitless.

(That night, after having packed your essentials in preparation of heading out the following day and penned a letter for Jing Yuan to read in your disappearance, you had a dream. Through your fragmented recollection, you recalled a woman with a comforting smile; a man wise beyond his years; a familiar, yet unfamiliar, young man who wields a calm aura; a cute girl with boundless energy; a stoic-looking girl with unexpected charm; a rabbit-like creature dressed akin to a conductor; and you… you were happy. Happy in a way you never thought you would be again.

It was a lovely dream.)

if you enjoyed this, then reblogs with/or comments are greatly appreciated !! <33

[erikatsu]

LIGHT MY FIRE LIKE A CIGARETTE — YINGXING

ᥫ᭡ SUMMARY: a surprise visit to yingxing’s shop on his lunch break leaves you full, but not in the way you imagined.

ᥫ᭡ PAIRING: yingxing/blade x fem!reader

ᥫ᭡ WARNINGS: [n]sfw. fingering. brief oral (fem! receiving). quickie. semi-public + clothed sex. multiple orgasms. implied established relationship. reader’s in a dress. yingxing is a little shit. creampie. technically baby trapping but reader’s a vidyadhara so there’s that. super self indulgent. mdni.

ᥫ᭡ SERIES MASTERLIST.

a soft sigh leaves your mouth, eyes falling shut when yingxing’s lips met your neck. the back of his shop was disgustingly hot, but it was the only place the two of you could find privacy. it wasn’t like you even came here to be put in the position you were in, but he couldn’t help himself when he saw you wearing his favorite sundress of yours. now here you were, propped up on his work bench with your dress hiked up and one of his hands exploring underneath the fabric of your panties.

weapons and curios had been tossed aside or to the floor, giving him plenty of room to fit himself between your thighs. if you ever had any doubts before about how good he was with his hands, you did now. the dexterity in his fingers alone was enough to have you on the edge almost as soon as he pushed two of them inside you. he was a master craftsman after all, leaving him able to quickly learn about what he was working with and your body was no exception. it took him no time to learn what made you tick, and it came in handy when he was short on time like he was now.

it wouldn’t be long before the apprentices came in to inform him of their breaks, and how fair would it be to you if you didn’t get off just so he could satiate his own needs?

he moved quickly, his fingers finding that sweet spot with ease. you couldn’t help the gasp the rolled off your lips, trying to keep quiet since you knew the others were still working. his breath was hot against you skin as he chuckled, “they’ll never let you live it down if they hear you, sweetheart.”

you knew that, but you couldn’t help it. no matter how hard you tried, you always seemed to be putty in his hands and you knew he loved to hear it. it was clear in the way he was nipping at your skin, and curling his fingers against your tight walls– antagonizing you to the point where you couldn’t keep yourself composed. you bit down on your lip, wrapping you arms around his shoulders before you were coming undone in his hand.

he placed a sloppy kiss against your mouth before pulling away and licking you off his fingers. you had no time to prepare before he dove down, running his tongue over your wet folds. you whimpered, thighs trying to squeeze together when lips found your clit– sucking and swirling his tongue around your sensitive bud. it was almost as if he were trying to get you to be loud, showing his apprentices you were the greatest curio he ever had the pleasure of handling.

but it wasn’t as if you weren’t enjoying yourself. you were aching, nearly gushing as he teased you with his mouth. your hand had wound itself into his silky white hair, pushing his head down even though he couldn’t go any further.

all too soon he was moving back, glancing up at you with desire flooding his lilac eyes. your juices were running down his chin, which he didn’t even bother to wipe away as he undid the button of his pants. he gripped your thighs, pulling you closer to the edge of the work bench. a yelp of surprise left you, and you glared at him knowing he did that on purpose. but, he didn’t quite seem to care. he was too busy working his cock free from his boxers to be phased by your mad look. it didn’t take much to get it to go away either– running his leaky tip over your entrance before pushing himself into you.

you inhaled sharply, hands flying up to brace yourself against his shoulders. you stared at him wide eyed, moving your hands up to cup his cheeks. you pulled him closer, wrapping your legs around his waist and pressing your lips against his. he sank further in as you used your legs to guide him and you moaned against his mouth as if it would help muffle the sound.

one of his hands kept a firm hold on your waist, the other coming down to rub his thumb over your clit. you whimpered in response, still sensitive from his actions just minutes ago. you almost couldn’t take it when he finally started to move his hips, steadily building up his rhythm and rutting into you until he couldn’t reach any further.

you lied back, bringing him with you. you wound your arms around his shoulders again, breaking the kiss to bury your face in the crook of his neck to quiet the choked whine that left you. he was grinding against you, grunting lowly when he felt you tighten around his cock. he swore under his breath, losing control of his hips as you sighed out his name.

your breathing quickened, evolving into airy gasps as you came for a second time. you shuddered under him, toes curling and back arching before your hold on him loosened altogether and you laid your head back. you sucked in a deep breath which was followed by panting and a dizzy feeling clouding your mind. you barely registered the sloppy kiss he placed on your lips, along with the way he whispered, “m’gonna cum,” into it.

he didn’t stop, cock twitching as he filled your cunt with his cum. he pulled out, his fingers quick to catch what began to drip out. he pushed it back inside, curling his fingers a few times for good measure. he pulled your panties back in place before helping you sit up and straightening himself up.

“dinner, tonight,” he wrapped his arms around you and placed a gentle kiss to your lips. “and after, i’ll be sure to take my time with you.”