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megu-meow · 1 year ago

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missin' you crazy - Gojo Satoru

gojo satoru x fem.reader

Summary: moments when Gojo misses you and tries to cope with you being away.

Satoru always did everything so that he wouldn't depend on anybody but himself. Growing up, he was given everything, he didn't have to do anything on his own - that shows when he moves into the Jujutsu Tech dorms and he's the only one incapable of doing his own laundry, however, he always preferred being alone for his emotional well-being. He was conditioned into thinking that friends, family, and lovers were only sources of weakness, and the Strongest must not have weaknesses. But people change in high school and that most certainly applies to the prodigy of the Gojo clan as well. Firstly, he befriends his classmate, a dark-haired kid with the ability of Curse Manipulation, Geto Suguru. The two of them click instantly, despite their different upbringings and their clashing personalities. They wreak havoc around campus together, making every teacher and student aware of their immense power and the dominance they have over the entire Jujutsu World. So when you get admitted to the Tokyo branch of the two existing sorcery schools, you are already aware of the potential your upperclassmen have. However, you're not the type to settle, so you challenge yourself to work hard enough to get to their level, and for the first time, Gojo Satoru meets someone he finds to be intimidating. Not only are you determined and hot-headed, but you're also kind-hearted and gentle. Satoru cannot help but blush every single time you ask him about his well-being or every time you bring him souvenirs from your missions from around the world. Gojo finds himself slowly falling in love with you, a big no-no for him, based on the teaching of his clan members. However, he wouldn't be the Strongest if he let anyone but him influence his decisions in life, so he asks you out anyway and is thrilled when you agree, because no matter how arrogant, spoiled, and insufferable you think he is, he also has a big heart and he's sweet, considerate and gentle towards you.

Over time, Satoru learns that you're sent away abroad a lot, given how your cursed technique consists of you being able to speak any language, imbedded with cursed energy that can manipulate humans, curses, sorcerers, and curse users alike. It's a unique and powerful technique that Gojo admires, one that is considered extremely useful around the globe. And with you, his favorite person on the entire planet, being away comes an unbearable amount of suffering - so he says.

The first time you take on a longer mission overseas, it's around three or four months into your relationship. Satoru is being driven back to campus by an auxiliary manager from the airport, where they dropped you off approximately ten minutes ago. His eyes are glued to the display of his overly expensive flip phone, an obnoxious message from you opened, one full of emotes he would usually consider silly, but his heart aches from knowing that this is the last point of contact he would have with you for the next two weeks. The year is 2006 and cell phones are not developed enough to maintain stable connection across the globe, so he knows he won't hear your voice or see your face until you come back to Tokyo. As soon as he arrives back on campus he looks for Shoko and Suguru, maybe they could distract him enough so that he forgets how much he misses you. It's a new feeling for him, it somewhat pisses him off, not one person was important enough for him before that he would experience how missing someone would feel like, but here he is. Miserable.

"You look rough, champ." Shoko teases from the top of the girls' dorm building, where she and Suguru are sharing a cigarette.

"What happened, Satoru? Did they run out of strawberry mochi at the convenience store?" Geto asks curiously. It's not every day that Gojo's smile is wiped from his face or the bounce is missing from his step.

"No, I don't want mochi right now." the white-haired sorcerer sighs dramatically, as he teleports to the roof and sits down beside his friends.

"Oh, something's definitely wrong. You always want mochi..." Shoko exclaims.

"I KNOW WHY HE'S SULKING!" Geto states with a wide smile, trying to contain his laughter "Didn't our beloved kohai, Y/N leave for a long mission today?"

"You're right, Geto, she did!" says Shoko, while Satoru stays quiet, his eyes focused on the ground under him, his long fingers fiddling with a loose thread on his school uniform. "Do you miss her already, Gojo?"

"I guess so... We didn't spend much time apart since we started dating."

"You're smitten, Satoru!" Geto says matter-of-factly and flicks his best friend in the head to annoy him even more.

"Yeah..." the wielder of the Six Eyes agrees and disappears in an instant, teleporting into his dorm room. He hopes that waking up early and running around helping you pack all day tired him out enough so that he could go to sleep straight away, but he's totally wrong: he's been tossing and turning for hours now, unable to sleep, thinking about how you're so far away, possibly still on a flight to get to your exotic destination. He's huffing, dramatically flailing his limbs around as he turns into his back, eyeing the blank, perfectly white ceiling of his dorm. He remembers the fluorescent stars decorating your room, he thinks about how calming they are when it's pitch black outside and there's no other source of light when he wakes up beside you in your bed in the middle of the night. He turns again and suddenly gets a whiff of your sweet perfume and he shoots up, looking around the darkness surrounding him. He spots one of your plushies that he gave to you on your second date, that time you went to an arcade and he promised he would get you any stuffed toy you wanted. His plan miserably failed, but then he used his technique at ring toss, wielding the air around so that he could succeed and got you the stuffed penguin you were eyeing the whole evening. He picks up the toy, bringing it close to his chest as he buries his nose into the soft fur in between his fingers. It smells exactly like you, a mixture of your perfume, your shampoo, and body wash as calmness takes over his tense muscles. Sleep comes easy after that and the next 13 days fly by just like that, he keeps the toy close to his person the whole time, having it around gives him a sense of security, one that he didn't realize existed while he was around you before.

After 14 days you're finally back in his arms, he's at the airport waiting for you, of course, with a bouquet of flowers and an explosive amount of energy. He swoons a bit when he spots you, in one of his expensive, black sweatshirts and he teases you for wearing it, however, you don't mind, you tell him without hesitation that it was the only item that could provide you the comfort to go through your mission without him. He smiles widely, pressing a loving kiss to your forehead, but he doesn't mention his newfound attachment to your stuffed penguin.

The second time you leave for nearly a month, Satoru is dealing with a lot. His best friend just recently left Jujutsu High to become a curse user, a murderer (Gojo hates referring to him as one, but it's the truth). You don't want to leave either, it's evident from the endless tears that are running down your face. You want to assure him, that you love him and you'll always come back to him, but the "L word" is not something you've said to each other before and you know talking about feelings is not the Strogest's forte, so you stay silent, trying to express your strong emotions towards him with long embraces, soft, loving kisses and mindful squeezes to his hands. He understands, more than ever, that you're just as committed to this relationship as he is, he knows you're not going to leave him like Suguru and you will never develop insane beliefs that would turn the entire Jujutsu World against you. You're more level-headed than that. So he decides, he's gonna confess to you, he's gonna admit he's irreversibly in love with you, but no words leave his mouth. He doesn't know why, he thinks it's because he recently lost one of the few people he allowed to get close to his heart and he doesn't want to admit something that would make him vulnerable. The real reason though, is that those words have never been spoken by the Strongest for anyone besides his mother. So he spends the whole time you're away contemplating his decision to let you leave without telling you how he really feels, his brain drifts towards the scene at the airport even while fighting a Special Grade curse he would consider amusingly weak on any other day. He doesn't sleep, he overworks himself, but that doesn't affect him as he conditioned his brain into healing itself constantly. However, at one point the tiredness takes over him and he shuffles instinctively towards your dorm room where he falls asleep instantly in between your familiar sheets. That night he dreams of you, he cannot quite recall the details, but he knows he wakes up with a smile on his face and that's the point where he decides he would tell you he loves you the moment he picks you up at the airport. He does exactly that and you say the words back in between tears because you're an emotional mess every time you two get reunited.

The third time, he's already a teacher at Jujutsu Tech and the two of you have your own house inside the school barriers. Satoru spends a lot of time on missions as well and he doesn't like leaving you completely alone, so knowing that you're safe inside Tengen-sama's protection gives him a level of calmness but he never stops worrying for you. However, it's the first time you're leaving him since you moved into your shared home and he suddenly realizes that home does not necessarily mean a place, but a person. The first time he truly felt at home somewhere was in this exact house when the two of you moved in, but without your music softly playing, the smell of your cooking lingering around and your soft hums/giggles it's not the same. When he gets home late from a mission he notices your absence from the couch, your curled up form waiting for him with tired, but happy eyes. The heater setting is the same as he put it on a few days ago, not slightly higher, because you're not around to complain about being cold. He walks towards your shared bedroom with his head hanging low and he looks around the usually comforting space with a lonely sigh. He walks up to your vanity, your jewelry box open, displaying all the beautiful pieces he gifted you over the years. Images of you wearing them run through his mind, the domestic scenario of you asking him to put on your favorite necklace for you in the morning. He always complies, leaving kisses on your neck and collarbones, inhaling your scent that never changed since high school. His eyes drift towards the slim band around his ring finger and he smiles, because you made an oath to return to him every time you leave.

A few days later you're back, as you get older your missions shorten because you finish them in a smaller time frame than expected. You're cool and talented like that. The house fills with your music and the smell of your cooking again, the giggles can be heard as well after Satoru starts tickling your sides while he admires the smile plastered on your face lovingly.

The fourth time, Itadori walks around campus, looking for his teacher. He's late for class and after an intense battle between the three first-year students, it has been decided that Yuji had to be the one to look for Gojo. However, he's caught by Principal Yaga, whose blood instantly boils upon hearing about Satoru's slacking out.

"Follow me, Itadori. I know exactly where that idiot is." the intimidating adult starts walking down the corridor, towards the staff offices. He guides the kid to your office and he opens the door widely. Yuji steps in and he instantly notices his teacher, fast asleep on your couch with a fluffy, pink blanket around him as he embraces your stuffed penguin close to his chest. This has become routine of Satorus over the years, as he slowly learned how to cope with your absence. He knows you spray both the blanket and the stuffie with your perfume before you leave because you know what he's doing every time. You've received numerous pictures of him in this exact state from Shoko over the years and your heart swells with love every time.

"Whoa, whose office is this?" Yuji asks looking around. He admires all the different memorabilia you’ve collected from your travels around the world.

"It belongs to Y/n-san. Gojo loves sleeping in here when she's away." the principal explains, as he tries to shake Gojo awake, but fails miserably because of his infinity.

"That's a bit creepy, isn't it?" the boy asks, not quite understanding the situation.

"Not when she's your wife and you're the clingiest person to ever walk on this earth."

"GOJO-SENSEI HAS A WIFE?" Itadori exclaims in shock, fishing out his phone from his pocket to text Nobara.

"Yeah, the prettiest one as well." they hear from the couch as Gojo gets up and stretches. "I'm sorry for being late to class, I don't get much sleep when..."

"...your pretty girl is out of town, we know Satoru! Now get back to teaching!" Yaga exclaims and Gojo mutters an obnoxious 'scary' into Yuji's ear.

The boy giggles and they both leave towards the classroom they're supposed to be in. As soon as they get there, Nobara bombards them with millions of questions, demanding to see pictures of the 'idiot that tolerates Gojo' and is surprised when Megumi scoffs at her, warning her not to refer to you as an idiot. However, Satoru is glad to show them all his favorite pictures and he tells the kids stories about you, ones that are new to Megumi as well. Gojo Satoru is not alone anymore, on the contrary, he hates being alone. However, over the years he learned how to cope. At least he knows you will always come back to him, no matter what. As long as he's surrounded by your scent, your belongings, Megumi, his other students, and the stuffed penguin is close by, waiting for you to come back is not as hard as he first imagined.

#jjk x reader #gojo imagine #gojo fluff #gojo satoru #satoru gojo #jjk x you #jujutsu kaisen #jjk imagines #gojo saturo #jjk imagine #jjk gojo

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thewhitewitch-bitch · 5 days ago

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In Astris Supra (Chapter 5: Circulus Insutus Fato, Portas Abditas Resera)

Agatha Harkness x F!OC

Read it on AO3

October 1710

There is no amount or combination of words sufficient enough to capture the true horror of war. Even those who avoid the front face of conflict are subject to the cruelty and tragedy that befalls men at arms. There is heartbreak, sorrow, and a pain so immense that it blankets the battlefield and all that surrounds it like a straitjacket, constricting everything until it chokes both sides of the conflict and creates suffering.

I had not truly known suffering like that. Not even when I left Salem behind in pursuit of a nobler calling, one that would hopefully allow me to one day return to Agatha Harkness and offer her a solution. At the time, I could only assume that she had remained in Salem, carving out her own place in the town and wreaking havoc on those who dared to get in her way. From what I could gather, based on the cries of newsboys from Boston to Philadelphia, the Witch Trials had come to an end, the town nearly destroyed by their own paranoia. It made me wonder just how much influence Agatha had gained in just a few short months, made me try to recall if I could have had the opportunity to see the signs of her inevitable descent into power mongering.

But I couldn't. No matter how hard I tried, I could not bring myself to think that she had done so willingly. The love that I had for her remained, despite my best efforts to suppress it. At night, I dreamed of the days we spent together, when there was no barrier between us, no coven driving a wedge between her and her potential for good. Those memories would bring on what ifs that were as blissful as the feeling of her touch on my skin. What if we had left Salem before her mother had found us out? What if I had told her of my love for her before it was too late? What if we could have been happy simply being together, with no magic to get in the way?

"Lots on your mind this morning, eh, Ms. Stuart?"

My thoughts were abruptly cut off by the voice of the man I was traveling with. Looking over at him from the back of my horse, I smiled wistfully and nodded. Dr. Rupert Kingsley was a rather handsome and kind young man, who came straight off the boat from London proper, with wide, dark eyes and light brown hair the shade of molten bronze. Had my interests been aligned with his, I likely would have married him as soon as the opportunity presented itself, but he was well aware that our paths were parallel to each other, never meant to cross but rather to guide each other to the right destination. So, as a talented young physician, with no ward or servant, he accepted me as an unofficial student and permitted me to travel with him as he moved from Boston northward along the coast of the colonies and into the wilds of French-controlled Acadia.

"There's always a lot on my mind, Dr. Kingsley. Today though, the thoughts are just a tad bit louder than usual." I replied, tightening the grip on my reins. My gaze fell from the doctor to my hands, buried in the black mane of my mare.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Rupert said solemnly, "But I'm afraid you're going to have to silence them. There's no place for loud thoughts on the battlefield. If you want to be a doctor, and I know you do, you have to calm your mind and senses. Leave no room for distractions, they only lead to mistakes, and mistakes lead to death."

"Of course."

We did not speak again after that, instead allowing the silence to be filled by the beat of our horses' hooves beneath us as we urged them forward to a lively trot and continued on the path northward. It had been a week since we had crossed into Acadia, and with Lieutenant-General Nelson on the move with nearly 2,000 men intent on laying siege to the French at Port Royal, we had little time for dawdling.

The troops were meant to make landfall at their destination any day now, a cohort of doctors and their associates not far behind. From there, it was simply the task of removing the French, an objective that had proven surprisingly difficult for the British forces as of late. But the British were unwilling to cave, which was why Dr. Kingsley thought it the perfect opportunity to 'break me in' to the world of mortal medicine. I was thankful that he remained blissfully unaware of my magic, the late nights spent practicing healing spells on wounded animals or patients that had come into his Boston office seeking extended treatment.

In combination with his medical prowess, I found that my magic was sufficient enough to reduce treatment time by nearly half, even with the most basic of spells. And while my power continued to fluctuate with the phases of the moon, I came to the discovery that at different phases, my spells reacted differently with the wounds and diseases they came into contact with. During a dark moon, I might be able to stop a person's vomiting with a simple digestive potion, but the same potion would have no effect on a patient with the same symptom if the moon was waning or it might make matters worse if administered during the full moon. Trial and error, as crude as it may sound, was the only way I was able to make any headway. The results of said experiments were all jotted down in a small black leather book that was tucked in the belt around my waist, a protective rune hidden just under the cover, making it impossible for anyone but myself to read its contents.

Kingsley thought nothing of it, mostly because he didn't know that I had anything to do with sudden improvement or worsening of conditions amongst his patients. I intended to keep it that way for as long as I could, or at the very least until the end of this war that Queen Anne was so insistent upon waging.

We trotted onward, surrounded on either side by pine trees and fog, dense and chilling in the early autumn air. The sun was hidden behind a heavy layer of gray clouds, the smell of petrichor hung over us warning of the impending autumnal rains that were sure to hit the shore at any time. The encampment for doctors and their associates was just past the bend in the road ahead, supposedly nestled amongst the pines beside the sheer cliffs of the Acadian shoreline. The not-so-distant sound of crashing waves roared and receded in its powerful, natural rhythm as we trotted on.

As we moved to the right of the road to take the bend, I felt a sudden presence, ancient and dark, reaching out to me from within the darkness beneath the trees. I tugged on the reins, bringing my mount to a halt as I scanned my surroundings. Under my breath, I muttered, "Mater divina me defendat hodie."

A seductive chuckle echoed in my ear, though I couldn't tell what direction it came from. My head began to swivel back and forth, trying to find the source, only stopping when I came face-to-face with a woman dressed in hues of black and green. The cloak she wore seemed to fade into wisps of smoke as she stood not but five feet from me, a crown that appeared to crafted from fossilized thorns and obsidian resting atop the hood she wore. She had an entertained half-smirk upon her darkly painted lips, her eyes deep brown as the earth as they met my hazel gaze.

"Prayers aren't going to get you anywhere, princess. Not here, at least." she said with a bit of a laugh. My horse snorted and began to spook, shuffling away from the woman with a frightened snort. Not wanting to agitate her further, I slid from her back and let my boots land softly on the grass, keeping the reins in one hand as I tilted my head at the woman before me.

"You seem... familiar to me, and yet I know I've never seen you before in my life."

"I get that a lot."

There was a change of the light for only a moment, but in that brief time, I saw that the attractive face of the woman in front of me had changed. The lower half of her skull was exposed, no sinew or flesh to cover it, no blood or muscle to keep it living and the exposure spread down to her throat, where her esophagus sat nestled between two walls of cartilage. Just as quickly as the change appeared, it reverted back, and recognition hit me like a wall of stone.

"Lady Death." I whispered.

She smirked again, "In the flesh."

I should have been terrified, scared to... well, death. But there was something about her that told me there was no need for fear. She wasn't here for me. So why was she standing in front me now?

"Why reveal yourself to me?"

She shrugged and began to circle me and my horse slowly, "There's something about you... you're important. And as much as I hate having Lunar witches walking around, you need to stick around for a while."

"That’s not an answer."

"Are you sure?"

I glared at her. She continued to smile back. When I wouldn’t relent, her grin dropped and she rolled her eyes.

"You do know that most Lunar witches don’t live longer than a century, right?"

"I’m aware I’m on a doomed path.” I replied, trying to mask the slight tremble of my voice with a sharp edge, “A Lunar witch comes around maybe once every three hundred years. They never live long enough to teach the next one. Though I know you’re well aware of that."

"And yet, here I am, telling you that you’re the odd woman out."

"Why? What do you have to gain from my survival?"

Death scoffed at me, as if the whole concept of existence was amusing to her, "Nothing, actually. I'll lose more than I gain with you in the picture. But greater forces in this universe seem insistent on keeping you alive, so alive you’ll stay for now. But I must say, I'm looking forward to checking in on you over the next few centuries."

I paled, there was no way to hide it, "What do mean?"

"You're going into war, Aislin!" she exclaimed, as if it weren't obvious, "My favorite stomping grounds! We'll be seeing a lot of each other, I wager. Though I'm sure you'll be sick of me soon enough."

She stopped her circling and looked to me full on, the intensity of her earthy eyes feeling as though they could bury me beneath the soil with just a hard enough glance. The around me seemed to shift, the petrichor smell growing steadily stronger. With a final smile, she offered me a sultry wave and said, "Te veo."

And suddenly, I was alone in the clearing.

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

The doctors that had been summoned to serve did not take kindly to women in their presence. Of course, they had to tolerate the caretakers who sacrificed their white linens to the spatters of blood and fragments of flesh, but to have a woman stand among them as a student of the art, was far less palatable. After all, women had no place amongst the respectable ranks of surgeons and physicians, nor did the Iroquois healers who offered their services as their own warriors joined the British forces gathering on the coast, though given the choice, I'd have taken care from the Cayuga over Charles Cromwell any day.

Kingsley found me as I led my horse on foot through camp aimlessly with my saddle pack and bedroll tucked under my free arm. He had taken no notice of my sudden absence, nor had he been subject to a surprise meeting with Death herself, but simply kept on riding to camp, claiming his large-framed tent and a much smaller one beside it.

"Ah, did you get lost, Miss Stuart?" he asked me with a charming grin, "Or were you simply taking in the scenery?"

"A bit of both I suppose." I answered honestly. I took my horse to the hitching post and tied her there, allowing her access to the trough and a bale of fresh hay before turning back to the young doctor. "Have I missed anything?"

He shook his head, "Nothing at all. Lieutenant-General Nelson won't make landfall 'til midday on the 'morrow, at which time we'll board a smaller vessel and cross the channel to wait for incoming wounded and dead. I should warn you though, this siege may take weeks, months even. You still have time to return to Boston-"

I held up a hand to silence him, sending a sharp glare his way, "As much as I respect your offer, Rupert, I simply must decline. Despite the maliciously loud whispers I've heard about this camp already, I am most certainly needed here, so here I will stay. I do not shy away from the sword when it is flashed in my face."

Kingsley's grin softened in understanding, a small nod rocked his head back and forth, "Spoken like a true fellow of medical academia, Miss Stuart. I suggest you take the evening to study, and if you're so inclined, I'd write to your family. Simply because we bear the caduceus, it does not mean we are immune from cannon and gun fire. You'll find all you need for the night in your tent."

Overhead, the skies finally broke, the satisfying drip of rainfall pattering against the trees and the waxed canvas tents. A few of the horses snorted in discontent but continued to eat away at the hay in front of them. As the heavy drops landed on our shoulders and heads, chilling us to the bone, we gave each other a silent farewell and retreated beneath the cover of our tents for the night. While I had no doubt that Kingsley's tent boasted all the necessary equipment he would need for operations and examinations, not to mention cigars and cheap liquor to numb his mind to the horrors incoming, mine was much reserved, containing only a camp bed with several woolen blankets, a pair of white cover aprons, and a small bedside table with a pair of lit candles.

Rupert must have placed the small stack of parchment on the table, along with an inkwell and quill. There was no way the other doctors would have extended such kindness to me, not when they didn't even want me there. Heaving a loud sigh, I dropped my bedroll and saddle pack onto the ground at my feet. I slumped onto the camp bed and let my head fall into my hands, my interaction with Death replaying over and over again in my mind.

She had told me that I was important, though at the moment, I couldn't possibly see how. And the way she had looked at me, as though I were a fresh piece of bloodied meat and she was a ravenous wolf... it was unsettling, though I suppose she always intended to be.

"Oh, Divine Mother, what have you gotten me into?" I whispered, so softly that even I could barely hear myself. I dropped my hands and let my eyes wander back to the parchment on the small wooden table. I don't know how long I sat there staring at it, but by the time I had come to the conclusion to write, the gentle shower outside had increased to a torrential downpour, the weight of the water pounding against the roof of the tent as I dipped the quill into the murky black ink. As I took hold of the topmost sheet, I paused, wondering if sending a letter would make any difference. But then I thought of her, and the doubt melted away. I put the quill to the parchment and began to write in my most elegant script.

Darling Agatha,

I hope that this letter finds you in suitable spirits after we departed on such egregious terms. Not that I fear for your well-being; I know you are certainly capable of taking care of yourself. I write to inform you that I have undertaken a task most unbecoming for women of our talents and station, serving as the student and assistant of one Doctor Rupert Kingsley of Boston. We, in response to the request made by the British Crown, have joined a cohort of other physicians and surgeons at a posting in Acadia, not thirty miles from the French stronghold of Port Royal, and are awaiting the order to cross the channel to provide medical assistance during the attempted siege of the fort.

Having not heard from you in well over a decade, I am certain that you did not intend to seek me out again, and in truth, I was hesitant to write. But I am told that we, like the soldiers who will march onto the shore, will be subject to the shock and awe of war, and at the risk of walking into the next world without having settled the grievances between us, I found the courage to pen this letter.

You may no long care for me, you may no longer wish to think of me, but I think of you often. And I shall be thinking of you on the 'morrow, when cannons roar overhead and the blood of dying men coats my hands. I shall be thinking of the days we spent in the peaceful solitude of the forest, relishing in the quiet hours that we spent together. I shall be thinking of you not as someone I once knew, but as someone I know and care for. For a witch should never abandon her coven and I, in my own anger and fear, have abandoned you.

It is my hope that upon my, with any luck inevitable, survival, that we may cross paths again, and I will once again be able to relish in peace with you as we once did. Until then, I shall think of you, darling, and hope that you think of me.

With all my love,

Aislin Stuart

I set the quill down and folded the parchment carefully once the ink had dried. Muttering a simple sending incantation, I lifted the letter to the candle on the left and let one corner light, before repeating the gesture with the candle on the right. I gripped the parchment tight between my fingers as the flames inched closer to my hand until I could no longer hold it. As I released my grip, I whispered, "Agatha Harkness."

The ashes scattered in an invisible wind, drifting beneath the canvas walls of the tent and carrying my message to wherever she was. I lay back on my bed, and started at the roof in the eerie quiet, only drifting off to sleep when thunder finally began to roll in.

#agatha all along #agatha harkness #agatha harkness x oc #agatha harkness x reader #marvel cinematic universe #rio vidal

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studentinpursuitofclouds · 3 months ago

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Mousey, I'm sure you've done the reaction of the vanilla and expanded spouses to the farmer's curse from Mr. Qi, but how about the rsv spouses? I'd be curious to see what they'd do about it ~~especially you know who *wink wink nudge nudge*~~ Also ngl I've been trying to come up with more silly ships with the vanilla and mod characters and having a blast in my mind. I've been throwing in Isaac, Jadu, Camilla, and Alesia there too for good measure because I think Isaac especially would suffer with certain characters 😂 istg it's like I'm a dog and he's my chewing toy

Hehee, I wouldn't mind hearing what other funny ships you have in mind 👀👀👀

Sorry for a long reply, it turned out WAY more than I had planned. Anyway, enjoy some headcanon, Lotus! And have a great day! 💕

RSV spouses react to the Qi fruit:

_________________________________________

Ian had been standing still for about two minutes now, keeping his eyes on the strange blue fruit that was ripening in the Farmer's seedbed. Because he could have sworn that the fruit winked at him.... with 'glasses'! And the handyman thought he'd seen it again. But at the third minute, Ian gave up and reckoned he was just wasting time. "I really don't understand anything about farming," Ian told Farmer, kissed them, and went to work.

Daia isn't the type to be surprised by strange magical fruits, flowers and berries. The Ridge Forest alone is filled with interesting plants with unusual properties. But this 'Qi' fruit... Hmph, even she hadn't seen anything like it. Being around this smirking blue fruit makes the ninja feel a tingling sensation on her skin - a sure sign that magic is involved. Oh, she can't wait to ask her dear Farmer to give her the fruit to examine, because she's so curious about it! She wondered if it would interest her Lady too...

"Wow... I knew you are a true professional at farming, hon, but to do something like this..." Honestly, Jeric was delighted at what his partner had grown and horrified at what his partner had grown. Because on the one hand - fruit with a face and sunglasses, that's awesome! And on the other hand.... why? He certainly wouldn't have imagined something like this on his own little farm in Ridgeside Village. And it's unlikely he had the knowledge to grow something like this. "....So, what does it taste like?"

Bryle was ashamed to admit it, but the first thing he did when he stepped onto the farmhouse porch was reflexively draw his service weapon and prepare to defend himself. Because the Governor's slightly sleepy bodyguard mistook the blue-faced crops in sunglasses for invaders or even dark spirits. Having already recovered from his shock and seeing the calm Farmer watering this very crop, Bryle felt that by asking what it was, he would get more questions than answers. So he was like: "Nope, not today" and went back to the farmhouse.

When some time ago Irene had only seen the sprouts with the not yet formed blue fruit, she was even intrigued to see what kind of 'unusual fruit' Farmer had planted and what the crop would taste like. Sweet, or maybe with sour notes? Only when she got the ripe fruit on the kitchen table, the Amethyne's personal chef was no longer so enthusiastic. This... fruits looks like a head and was looking at her. Irene's afraid to even touch the 'Qi' fruit, much less taste it. Her Madame would definitely not want such an.... exotic crop for dinner.

Sean decided it would be a hilarious to wreak havoc in the local social media groups with this fruit. So, with Farmer's permission, he took a picture of the ripened 'Qi fruit', posted the picture to social media without any description, and waited. An hour and a half in and Sean and Farmer were dying of laughter reading people's reactions, all sorts of conspiracy about the harvest and even memes (lol). He was also hoping someone would leave a comment about what the fruit was, because Farmer's explanation of "blue fruit from blue seeds from a blue man" wasn't a very clear answer.

"Alissa, my dear. What is this?" Alissa can't give a clear answer to her mother when she shows her the unusual fruit. It seems to Alissa that her dear spouse Farmer themself does not know the answer to this question. The girl was utterly perplexed, and neither her own knowledge of farming, nor a single book from the library about crops, helped her to find the answer. She hoped that Farmer had not used something harmful to grow this fruit...

"What's this abomination growing in your garden? Why is there foreign magic coming from that thing?" Jio is in full earnest preparing for a defensive pose with his katana, because that 'Qi' fruit looks like it's about to pounce on him and Farmer. Elf doesn't trust this crop, whatever it is in the first place. And when asked how Farmer grew this stuff in the first place, the answer struck Jio like lightning. "You... took strange seeds from a suspicious man and thought it would be a great idea to plant them?" Yeah, It's going to be a long conversation...

Not even strength and persuasion from Farmer will be enough to keep their spouse Maddie from her determination to get into the Water Research Facility & Laboratory with this strange fruit. Because the ginger girl has to find out what it is in the first place! After all, the lab assistant was also watching the process of the Qi fruit's growth, for she was curious about what Farmer was growing. And when the already ripe fruit showed its face with sunglasses, Maddie wants to show it to Aguar to see how to even classify it. Sigh, not Aguar, if he found out there was magic involved...

"Whoa... So creepy... It's like some kind of comic book villain." Phillip kept twisting and twisting the "Qi" fruit in his hands, looking at the "face" of the crop, and even tried to take off the "glasses". It didn't work, however, because it was like they were super glued on. Oh, well. And although the physical therapist is eager to find out what this miracle fruit tastes like, he still wants to take precautions and find some information about the Qi fruit, because maybe it's poisonous???

Blair nearly died laughing when she saw the face of the ripe blue fruit. "Yoba, what a bogeyman!" And how on earth did her partner Farmer manage to grow a fruit with a face like that? Oh, she wants to take a few if Farmer agrees. To taste it? No, the young fisherwoman had thought of a more fun use for this crop.... Such an ugly fruit would definitely be a good way to prank Keahi for the last prank, hee hee hee... Just a harmless joke, Blair promises!

...Anton thought at first that he hadn't fully woken up in the morning, and that he had just imagined a blue face on the kitchen table. Except that when the architect came back from the bathroom already fresh and invigorated from a cold shower, the face had not disappeared from the kitchen table. ...Ok, and then what? How should he even react? And should he even be reacting to this? Because Farmer is not perplexed by the strange fruit in any way, they treat it like a normal apple or banana. ...Alright, then. Anton silently hopes he doesn't get "sunglasses" from this fruit in his portion of salad.

Well done, Farmer, just great! Making Flor nearly faint because they decided to put some ripe Qi fruit on the dinner table before going to bed, without warning the red-haired spouse for doing so. The poor, sleepy girl wanted to drink a glass of water at midnight, but she ended up throwing it all on the floor and screaming, mistaking the fruit for human heads. Now Farmer is ashamed now... And rightly so - they shouldn't scare Flor like that!

Kiarra's face twisted at what she saw. "Honey, you didn't use any fertiliser or seeds from Joja, right? You didn't take anything from them?" Her first guess as to the origin of this strange fruit was immediately the much disliked greedy company with the blue logo. Joja always like to spoil pump vegetables and fruits with all sorts of harmful substances of unknown origin to make them bigger, and as a consequence - to sell them for more money. Even when Farmer explained to her that it wasn't Joja, the girl still remained sceptical. Because it's... not natural. Something is wrong.

Zayne thought that it would be at least tactless and rude of him to voice his first thought out loud when Farmer presented them with the 'fruit of their labours'. Especially since he loved his spouse and knew what a wonderful farmer they are, unrivalled in the entire Republic. But... What is it? The Amethyne family heir has seen some rather unusual and sometimes even strange delicacies on his own dinner table and on the tables of other noble families. But a fruit with a face... Someone, who apparently ordered Farmer to grow the fruit just so, has... a very specific flavour.

"Ew," was Ysabelle's only reaction, and to be honest - many would have agreed with her conclusion about the blue fruit with the snickering face and sunglasses. Even Farmer didn't argue with their partner's opinion about it. Really, ew (no offence, Mr. Qi). The girl simultaneously wants to ask what this fruit is and doesn't want to know anything about it, figuring it will be further questions than answers. People in the hotel have demanded stranger foods and delicacies, so the blue face fruit isn't too much of a shock to her. But still - ew.

"Hmm, why the face?" How does Farmer know, Paula? When they took the assignment from a, ahem, familiar person, they had no idea that the 'Qi fruit' would turn out to be exactly like this - a bit creepy, with a human face (but cool glasses!). The military medic wasn't too surprised by this weird crop (she'd seen much stranger food), and if the fruit wasn't poisonous and wasn't an allergy sufferer's worst nightmare, why not give it a try. "Heh, I wonder if anyone would dare to try this food on a dare"

"No, thank you, my soul. I'm good with an apple," June politely declined as Farmer, having harvested a ripe crop from the greenhouse, brought June a whole basket of different fruits and berries from all seasons to the farmhouse. His favourite apples, strawberries, oranges, pomegranate, a blue fruit with a face- Wait, what? Did he see that right? Yeah, the pianist's eyesight was not deceiving him. Later, he'll be asking Farmer questions about the blue weird fruit. In the meantime, he just wants to enjoy the apple.

When Faye thought of fresh fruit salad, she imagined cutting up a juicy and sweet mango, a ripe, with the sour notes pineapple, a delicious banana, and fill it up it with fresh orange juice. And at the sight of the Qi fruit, the waitress honestly lost her appetite. Is it... really a fruit? Why does it look so scary? It's also smiling... Oh, yuck! Farmer, that fruit winked at her! Brrr! No weird blue fruits on the dinning table, they're scary!

Shiro jumped up sharply, almost scalding hot, when he saw a field of a hundred blue smiling heads from the porch. Everywhere he turned his head, there they were: smiling, the light bouncing off their... Glasses? What the hell is that, anyway? "People want to buy fruit like that? With a scary face?" No, he's not going to try it, and the Farmer isn't advised to either. It doesn't look good, and it probably doesn't taste good anyway- No, Farmer, making this 'Qi' fruit into a smoothie isn't a good idea either... Just don't, please.

Corine never thought people could come up with something like this with crop. Well, she'd seen square watermelons, heart-shaped pears, and even star-shaped peaches on TV. But a melon-sized blue fruit that also had a human face..... Even she didn't expect that. Really, she doesn't understand why the Farmer glued it on. "Oh, I didn't glue the glasses on, dear, they grew with the fruit!" Sorry, the glasses did what?

"No offence, dear, but I'll probably pass." Oh, Farmer didn't grow this fruit for food, but for someone personally? Whew, what a relief... Um, Kenneth didn't mean to be rude or offend Farmer in any way, but the mere thought of that Qi fruit that very much resembled a head being cut with a knife made him cringe and disgusted. The inventor doesn't understand who needs fruit grown in this way, but he's not good at farming, so Kenneth will leave the matter to his spouse.

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vanilla-lip-stick · 4 days ago

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Silco's Last Words

In light if the second season, especially what we see of Jinx, I have thought again about Silco’s “You’re perfect.” I haven’t stumbled upon someone talking about it, though most reactors I’ve seen took Silco’s last words as a clear statement of his love for Jinx. That may be true but is not what I want to focus on.

The thing is: the writers of Arcane did a fantastic job of making each line of dialogue count. So what else could “You’re perfect” mean? Well, words were always Silco’s sharpest sword. And that’s exactly what I think they are here as well: a weapon. He uses words to forcefully embed his will onto the world, and in this case, he directs them at Jinx and no one else. To me, his sentence is not tender but cruel.

Let me explain. Look at the word “perfect.” If you take it seriously and attach it to something, it means you can’t imagine any way this something could be better. This, I assume, usually goes hand in hand with you wanting this something to stay the same. So his message to Jinx is: you are the way I want you to be. Don’t change. Don’t apologise. Go on like this.

But Jinx doesn’t think of herself as perfect. She’s torn. I’ve read somewhere: “Powder killed Silco, so Jinx killed Powder,” and in season two’s third episode, Vi explicitly blames Jinx for killing Powder. I think, however, that Powder is still in there. The ghosts of her family are still in there. To overcome her failures and the guilt of her repeatedly killing her family, Jinx leans into the chaos, into doing “evil” things. It is what Silco would have wanted were he still alive.

That’s the power of “perfect.” Jinx can’t heal, can’t repent, can’t regret. She can’t change. The only path is forward. That much, I believe, was already visible in the first season, and the second season’s first act reinforces me in this regard. In episode two, she says:

“Yep, that’s me. You ever need to curse a sibling or a family or a society: my card.”

She says that as an introduction, but also, in my opinion, as a self-affirmation. She is this “monster” that, in her eyes, Vi created (which I think is wrong, but that’s not the point here), the monster Silco came to love, the monster she chooses to keep alive because it’s the only thing left that ties her to the only person who embraced this side of her.

I believe she hates this side of her because it took Vander and the others from her. It is also the most influential side of her, offers her the most potent tools to make the world bend to her will instead of the other way round. This powerlessness was the overarching experience of her childhood until everything fell apart, and why would she want to repeat that? Before Silco, she received love despite what she was. With and from Silco, she received love because of what she was. After Silco, she receives maybe not love but affection from Sevika and Isha.

Sevika is a little lost, like Jinx, after Silco’s death, and Jinx means familiarity (maybe even family). Jinx is also a tool for her, though, useful because of her havoc-wreaking traits and abilities. Isha is grateful to Jinx for rescuing her by virtue of, again, her havoc-wreaking traits and abilities. Of course Jinx leans further into the monster side.

But Jinx wants to die. She could hardly be any clearer when she tells Vi, “Then stop me. ‘Cause no matter what I do, I just can’t seem to die.” She wants Vi to kill her, to end her suffering, to – that’s how I read it – restore some balance, some justice, wants Vi to finally punish her for killing her family which she knew was wrong since the very moment it dawned on her what she did in first season’s third episode. She can’t do it herself because Silco told her she was perfect.

When Jinx taunts Vi with the barely veiled innuendo about Vi wanting to have sex with Caitlyn, it shows, in my opinion, that Jinx is jealous and that she approves. She wants Vi to go on. Because she still loves Vi. That shows when she aims a pistol at an unsuspecting Vi in episode two and cries. But Jinx also cries because she can’t give Silco what he wants, because neither Silco nor Vi will love her back ever again. She cries because she knows the monster is just a patch to her broken self.

This single tear made me think about why she cried when she fired at the council at the very end of season one. I have no definite answer to that question, but perhaps she already knew back then that she could never fully become Jinx. After all, nothing but herself prevented her from killing Vi and Caitlyn right then, right there.

Perhaps she cried for Silco, too, out of grief, out of wrath. Perhaps she knew this action would put her on a path where, eventually, someone would end her suffering and let her rest, and she cried for herself, for the unfortunate girl that couldn’t safe herself, for the girl she could have been.

In the state Jinx is now – at the time of writing after season two’s second act – she reminds me of a golem: a lifeless tool, animated by magic. If we opened her head, we’d find a slip of paper inside that bears the magical words:

“You’re perfect.”

How cruel.

#arcane #arcane season 2 #silco #silco's last words #jinx #arcane spoilers

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patrophthia · 2 years ago

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fallin’ for ya | james potter

pairing: james potter x reader

genre: fluff, pining (kinda mutual pining), humor, crack, more fluff omg so fluffy

words count: 1.7k

original posted on wattpad

"you know [l/name], we were just talking about you before you came over."

before she could even retort about how they went back to last name basis and playfully reprimand him for it, he added, "james wanted to know if you'd like to go out with him this weekend."

“you twat!" he shouted, grabbing sirius in chokehold which only resulted in peter helping sirius fight for his life. "you dickhead, why didn't you let me ask her that myself?"

"because, you'd end up postponing it like you always do. it's been months prongs! get it over with!" screamed sirius between breaths, "honestly, you were putting gryffindor's name to shame."

it wasn't a rare occurrence for the quidditch teams to wreak havoc as they pass by the hallways. so really, it was the same old ordinary story for her to discuss her classes with her friends as a group of loud boys walked by.

now, there's one thing you should know. [name] has always prided herself to not be the type who falls for a guy who flashes her a smile (her friendship with the notorious sirius black which started from his failed attempts of trying woo her as evidence). she didn't swoon when sirius called her petnames, nothing. no matter how cool for school he may seem to be.

but there was something, something so unexplainable, a feeling that had her in a fit off smiley giggles —no matter how unlike her it was to do so— that had her scolding herself internally when james potter cruised by, grinning at her the second he spotted her.

she knew right then and there that she was in deep shit. they knew each other, of course they did, sirius would never stop talking about one to other and vice versa which meant that they're sort of acquaintances.

but merlin, something about that smile, the way his hazel eyes crinkled behind his round glasses, the slight dimples on his cheeks and the perfectly straight teeth that he had, had her in a fit. she was certain he'd still be the boy that she'd pick in a line of thirty hot guys.

"oh fuck."

"oh fuck's right," her friend, lucien retorted after having caught her staring at james, demanding a confession of sort. "i mean out of all the boys in hogwarts, you chose potter?"

"i didn't choose to!" she argued with a defensiveness that she didn't expect from herself. "i just fell for him!"

"good lord, you might as well prance around singing to him 'i've fallen for you! i know i shouldn't but i just can't stop myself' maybe he'll sing it back to you," lucien said teasingly, creating a tune as she went with her words. "perhaps you won't be lonely for the first time in -what, six years?"

"you're the worst friend ever," she groaned. the pair of them turning the corner so they could enter the transfiguration classroom. "you're supposed to help me get over him, this isn't good new for either of us-"

"good afternoon, [l/name]."

"er- good afternoon, potter," she greeted in return in a more questioning manner, he only smiled; turning back to his conversation with his friend. the feeling of blood rushing to her cheeks not missed by herself.

"er- good morning, potter," lucien said mockingly, a smirk on her thin lips. "i never pegged the great [f/name] as the type to fall for a guy just 'cause he says hi."

"it was 'good afternoon' not 'hi' and those are big words for someone who choked on pumpkin juice just 'cause they made eye contact with evans."

•••

she knew it was a mistake to introduce lucien to sirius. merlin, lucien alone was too much for one to handle when it comes to teasing, but put the two drama queens together? that was just a disaster waiting to happen. so when sirius approached her, tearing away from his herbology partner to annoy the life out of her, she was more than prepare to suffer for the next hour.

"so..." sirius drawled out, snatching her attention away from the plants she was maintaining. "a little birdie told me you fancy a certain friend of mine."

"yeah, lupin is one good looking lad," she quipped, praying that her body wouldn't betray her collapse right then and there from embarrassment. goddamn it lucien.

sirius rolled his eyes exaggeratedly; trying to get her to understand just how 'annoyed' she made him feel. "honestly [name], i'm pretty sure james fancy you too you know."

the way he spoke so nonchalantly put her on edge, but that didn't stop her from perking up to try to get more information from him. "we were talking the other day and he said you looked really pretty when he spotted you during one of his practices, that's a crush if i saw one."

"something about you catching his gaze as he was preparing to race," he muttered with a mischievous smile, "truly poetic."

"would you stop?" she grumbled, going back to attending her plants. "it's honestly not that big of a deal."

"not that big of a deal?" sirius gasp dramatically, pressing a hand on his chest for good measure. "this is the love of your life and it's not that big of a deal?"

she rolled her eyes, a remark ready at the tip of the tongue when professor sprout loudly clear her throat cutting off the pair's conversation.

"mister potter could you please focus on your partner rather than miss [l/name]?" she questioned, for the briefest moment she thought she saw a small smile on the edge of the professor's lip but she was quick to change her expression to a stern one. "or did you want to switch partners? if that's the case, you'll need to discuss it with miss [l/name]."

"no professor," he said quickly; rubbing the back of his neck as his ears flushed pink, "i-i was just a bit distracted."

the professor hummed, taking his excuse without further questions, letting him continue on his work. from her side she could feel sirius physically vibrating with excitement, slowly she turned; facing him once more to see —exactly what she expected to see when it comes to sirius— the human embodiment of an enthusiastic puppy.

"seeeeeeeee?" he dragged out, smiling from ear to ear, "sirius black is never wrong miss [l/name]."

•••

christmas was approaching, fast. and like any other rational 'high school student' sirius had the bright idea to throw a christmas party just before the break started. which led to her to where she was now; in the middle of a crowded common room trying to find her raven-haired friend yet all her effort was to no avail.

the room was packed, loud music that she could faintly recognize the track of blaring from every corner of the place, the air was humid; hot from all the bodies dancing and grinding against one another.

lucien had (for once in her life time) sat out from this party, having land herself a date with a redhead she'd been pining over since the start of this school year. so really, [name] was as alone as one could be and she was really regretting her decision to have even gotten dressed up to come in the first place.

remus was tall, she knew that, almost everyone in their year knew that, but she never stopped to think for second about how much of life safer his height was. merlin, knows the relief she felt the second she spotted his mousy head of hair bopping to the beat of the song a mere feet away from her.

it was an unspoken rule she had ingrained into her mind: wherever one marauder was, there would be the other three.

her feet moved before her mind even process it's movement, pushing pass people in pursuit of the prefect who really should be stopping the party but was instead joining in the fun.

sirius was quick to cheer her name when his eyes met her, bringing her to his side and handing her a brand new bottle of butterbeer. "i thought you'd ditched on me."

"and have you bother me about how i betrayed you for the rest of the break?" she retorted, twisting the cap open and taking a sip, "no thanks."

"and here i thought that you'd come to see me." he pouted, making sure that he was giving her his best puppy eyes so he could play victim. "turns out you just find me annoying."

"everyone does," remus snorted, joining in the conversation.

sirius tutted, annoyance playing on his features when he suddenly had a bright idea. "you know [l/name], we were just talking about you before you came over."

before she could even retort about how they went back to last name basis and playfully reprimand him for it, he added, "james wanted to know if you'd like to go out with him this weekend."

james quickly protested, hazel eyes going wide with shock as his cheeks flushed up, ears tinted red out of embarrassment. "you twat!" he shouted, grabbing sirius in chokehold which only resulted in peter helping sirius fight for his life. "you dickhead, why didn't you let me ask her that myself?"

"because, you'd end up postponing it like you always do. it's been months prongs! get it over with!" screamed sirius between breaths, "honestly, you were putting gryffindor's name to shame."

remus with enough sensibility, and a final snort, pulled the three boys apart; freeing sirius from james grip along with peter and pulled themselves away, giving james and [name] time to converse between themself.

"so.." she trailed off, looking straight at him, "would you still like to go out this weekend?" james blinked, staring at her like a deer in headlights. his mouth opening and shutting. "because, i'd like to."

fuck, she was digging herself into a deeper hole with every second that passes by, "only if you want to, of course. if not it's completely fine, i-"

"yeah." he cut her off, staring at her. "i'd love to," he added after clearing his throat, "i'll see you then?"

"yeah, i'll see you then," she agreed, feeling giddy the longer they maintain eye contact. after a second she turned; deciding that it was best to leave it as it is only to be stopped by a hand grasping her wrist. she looked over her shoulder, meeting his eyes once more.

"do you want to dance?"

—from bee: i love james potter ‼️

#james potter x reader #james potter x you #james potter x yn #james potter fluff #james potter fanfiction #james potter crack #james potter humor #james is a cutie #i love james potter #Spotify #🧳: my writing

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oneshotnewbie · 2 years ago

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Deal with the devil

Pairing: Emily Prentiss x Reader

Authors note: That wasn't a request and it´s short but has been living in my head for a while so I had to write it out to make room and figured I'd post it ♥

Summary: When you make a deal with a dangerous gentleman, you capture the last moments of your life on video for your team and confess your feelings to someone special.

---

"I am afraid!" those were the first words your team heard when they played the video, which was brought into the BAU by a courier, a young boy who was paid extra to do it. "I am going to die.."

You had been swallowed up by the face of the earth for two weeks, your trail got lost in the sand and nobody knew by whom you were taken. But your team did not give up and ransacked every stone of your last place of residence several times.

Without a trace.

"Where is this video coming from? Garcia, can you filter anything out of the background?" Emily's words did not even begin to reach her. Shocked, with her mouth wide open and tears filling in her eyes at how exhausted and devastated you were, she was oblivious to the outside world.

Tears streamed down your thin face and you pressed your lips together to suppress a sob. Your face was sunken, deep-seated circles under your eyes showed the lack of sleep you had to endure.

"I made a deal with the devil to protect you, Em. And now he is come to kill me," you hastily wipe away a few droplets of salty water that have started to flow down your bloodied cheeks. "By the time you got this video, you will already be too late to save me and I know you are looking for me. No matter how hard you try, you will be too late."

The crew felt frozen in place, especially the hands and feet of the person addressed seemed to carry only a remnant of body heat. Her whole body felt like it was being pierced with needles. It did not hurt, but she could feel an uncomfortable and completely paralyzing burning sensation through every pore of her body.

"I am so afraid," you coughed quietly and looked around in the dark room, which was only surrounded by dim candlelight. The cold was gradually tearing your body into a deep tiredness, but with a remnant of your strength, you kept your eyes open with difficulty. From exhaustion, you slowly lowered your head to the side. Trembling fingers stroked your eyelids, which had briefly closed. "I wish you could set me free like you always do"

Emily could not move her arms or legs, they rested still at the sides of her body. Panic flickered in her fawn glassy eyes, her nose flushed from suppressing her feelings. After the first second of the video, she knew who had you.

Ian Doyle; he lured you in with lies and threats and had you in his power now.

Aggression mixed with deep anger, fear and sadness flowed in her head, leaving no room for clear thoughts. She narrowed her eyes and bit her lip frustrated, leaving a small mark on them that spread an iron taste in her mouth.

Doyle would pay for it. She would seek justice for you and wreak vengeance. When the one thing that kept her grounded gets yanked away so ruthlessly by someone she once loved, it was only in her nature to strike him down. That was something she was taught, something she has comforted herself with.

"I am sorry for causing you worry and suffering. But I will gladly give up my life if you keep breathing for it. There is not a day I regret with you, Emily. The only thing I regret is not telling you sooner how much I love you,"

You had to stop, a sea of tears welled up in your eyes. Only slowly did you realized how fleeting life and how powerful a human was. Especially in the hands of a psychopath.

It took a long time before you could pull yourself together and feel ready to continue talking. "You are the love of my life and every day I had to spend without you when you faked your death hurt so much. I love you more than my life, so much that I will sacrifice mine for it."

Frowning with concern, Jennifer stood next to her best friend, slowly leaning towards her and taking her hand firmly but tenderly in hers. Emily´s heart began to soar, dropping into the pit of her stomach while her eyes continued to fix on the screen as she tried to digest the latest information about your avowed love for her.

The black-haired woman leaned trustingly against the blonde and took a deep breath. She became dizzy and extremely nauseous while trying to hold back the tears that were coming. "I will find you, Y/n.." she muttered under her breath and JJ nodded carefully, understanding her sentence perfectly.

"I do not want the last of you to see me like this, but I am having a really hard time pulling myself together, uh.." your voice trembled as you smiled wryly, pulling yourself together as best you could. But no matter how hard you tried to smile for her, it just did not make it into your eyes. You stroked your long, brittle and tousled hair, that was plastered on your forehead and bare shoulders quickly, trying to put away the nervousness.

"Do not mourn for me too long, but briefly and intensely to live on afterwards. All I every wanted is for you to be happy. Even after my death. I will choose a cloud near you and always watch over you. And I hope that I will always live on in your heart."

You could hear footsteps getting closer to your position. Sobbing, you looked back at the camera with a lost and terrified look. A single tear, which was particularly noticeable because of it´s size and the light shining on it, ran down your cheek and wet the shirt that fell loosely from your body. "I love you, Em. I always did,"

You tried to position a sincere and wholeheartedly smile on your lips before you blew the camera a hand kiss and the video cut off, leaving the team without air in their lungs to breathe, collapsing in an emotional chaos they had never experienced before.

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celestiall0tus · 1 year ago

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Abuse is Abuse. Stop blaming the victims and glorifying the abusers!

This needs to be said for such a long time. All across media we see abuse glorified, its victims blamed, and the abusers getting a slap on the wrist more often than not. Especially in recent times. Buckle up because we're in for a ride.

Right off the bat, I have an inkling of what I'm talking about. I suffered from mental and emotional abuse for my entire childhood and teen years. My early 20s were full of strife as I tried to cope with that realized trauma and the fucking shit storm that became our world. So, from an abuse victim and an individual who suffers terrible anxiety and depression, I want to touch on these characters and our perceptions of them.

Pink Diamond

The biggest one I want to address is Pink Diamond. Yes, Pink Diamond/ Rose Quartz. This will always be my personal sore sport because Pink was a victim. She was a child in mindset and actions among the other Diamonds. She was raised by them and thus absorbed all their ways. She was treated more like a jester to entertain the other diamonds and locked away when she wreaked havoc, possibly even bubbled for times. She wasn't treated like the other Diamonds, like what she was supposed to be. She was less than that and powerless to be herself. She had to go through with what they said and didn't have her own autonomy in that degree. She had to fit into a mold that she wasn't meant to fit into.

And honestly, Pink is the strongest of all the victims I'll be touching on. The hardest thing isn't acknowledging the abuse or seeking help, it's breaking free. I haven't even done that part, not fully. But Pink did. She rebelled. She fought against the other Diamonds for what she wanted and believed in. She saw the truth and took a stand. She grew. She changed. She moved on. Despite being a gem, she was the most human of all the cast. And yet we ignore everything because of the decisions she made that impacted everyone around her.

All her followers were corrupted. Pearl was sworn to silence because of a simple order. Steven had to deal with her baggage. And, I'll be fair, it's ass, but not entirely her fault. In life, we can't say what will happen. We often need to roll with the punches and work with what we know at the time. Pink didn't know how the Diamonds would react to her "shattering" because while they claimed to "love" her, what reason would she have to believe it? For Pearl and Steven for that matter, Rose thought the Diamonds were done with Earth. She thought she was free. She never intended Steven to have to deal with her baggage since she thought it was all done and over with. In all of FIVE THOUSAND YEARS, the Diamonds never came for them. She likely thought they were all safe and could live peacefully. They'd never have to look back. She'd never have to look back. Her past wouldn't hold her back. She could finally be free to be herself.

I truly find it appalling that she is damned for this. She broke free. She made mistakes but took a stand. She fought for her own freedom. She didn't have to have her past hold her back anymore, but she's the villain. It's her fault for everything. She should have just been a good little Diamond and stayed fucking put, right? Who cares what she did as Rose Quartz was for the good when Pink Diamond was the incarnate of evil, right? The one thing that I will give a little flack on is Spinel. That was upsetting and she did act rashly telling Spinel to stay when she could have brought Spinel with her, but I understand why she didn't since she wanted to be taken seriously at the time.

Pink deserved so much more than what she got. Pink was a victim, but in the end, they made her out to be the monster.

Miraculous

I want to cover Miraculous as a whole as there are many different types of abuse that go on within this show that are typically swept under the rug unless it comes to truly "irredeemable" characters. So, let's start this:

The Bourgeois Family: This is such a messy ass family. Chloe is outright blamed for the abuse that she suffers from having shitty ass fucking parents. Audrey we know is no saint. She is literally the girlboss businesswoman that ain't got time for her family. Andre is slightly better, but still instilled negative morals in Chloe and while recognizing it in himself, failed to see what he did to Chloe as his fault. Instead, Chloe is seen as the problem to everything. That she just picked up on those habits and sought to make people miserable as a result. Chloe is a victim, but also an abuser. She projects how she's treated onto others as a coping mechanism and a catharsis. Zoe might be a victim because who knows exactly what Audrey did, but she does seem rather well adjusted, so I don't know. Clarity on Zoe: I don't think she's an abuser, I moreso touched on her being abused having lived with Audrey, but it throws me off as she's very well adjusted, so it makes me think that her father was a good one or, just as likely, Audrey had very little involvement in Zoe's upbringing.

The Fathom Family: This is... interesting. So, we see how Felix saw Colt and that yes, Colt abused Felix. That was addressed, though Amelie does enable Felix a little and was a little blind to the horrible acts that Felix had committed. So, no big thing on the Fathoms, but it's still there, but was acknowledged.

The Agreste Family: Holy fuck, someone call CPS, because this boy needs to get out of there. Gabriel very obviously hits every single key points of an abuser. Nathalie does enable the abuse a little in the start, but at the same time, she kinda needs a job. And the money must be good enough and add to boot she can live there too. I also don't appreciate how there are times where Adrien reacts in a way you'd expect a victim of abuse to react, but gets damned for it. Like in the New York special when he fucks up and Ladybug yells at him, he would give up his Miraculous because he feels like absolute shit and horrible for failing. Or agreeing with his father that he should have never gone there? These are all symptoms of abuse and yet he's damned for those moments. He is a fucking victim like Chloe.

The Tsurugi Family: Can someone say, helicopter parent? Now, this in of itself is a kinda thing? I believe? I know it's something of stereotype that Asian parents can be overbearing and overprotective. Kinda like Ming from Turning Red, which was pulled from the director's own experiences growing up. So, this is a little hard to judge. It is still abuse no matter how you paint it, but again, I don't feel like I'm the best person to talk about it. So, I'm going to leave this one here.

Marinette: I hate to add fuel to the fire, but here we go. Marinette is a stalking. Stalking. Is. Abuse! I don't care how much the show paints it as a joke, it isn't. A lot of us know this, but I want to stress that stalking is a form of abuse. And it's honestly terrifying that Adrien falls in love with his Yandere (she is, fight me) stalker. I get that she was a victim of bullying, but like, we get one episode on this trauma because of Kim (more thanks to Chloe) but how is the result stalking? I get wanting to know everything about a person before really considering them as a partner, but how does that equal stalking? It's just deeply unsettling and I cannot personally justify shipping Adrienette due to this.

Chloe: I have to fair, Chloe, despite being a victim, is also an abuser. Bullying is never right. And in that same episode we see Marinette's trauma, we see the hell that Chloe put Marinette through. I don't fucking care what baggage you carry, that shit ain't right in any sense. I was honestly appalled by how far Chloe went to isolate, alienate, and torture Marinette. Like, holy fuck, how is Marinette not more of a mess? Like Marinette, a victim can become an abuser.

The only one in Miraculous that gets something of a punishment is Chloe, which is upsetting. Marinette gets the boy she's been stalking. Felix and Andre get a half-assed redemption. Audrey and Tomoe don't change. Zoe exists. Gabriel gets his wish and rewrites reality. Nathalie is Nathalie.

Elsa

Say what you want, but Elsa was a victim of abuse. She locked away, told to hide her powers, to constantly: conceal, don't feel, don't let it show. She suffered from terrible anxiety and depression due to her powers and the danger they possessed. I mean, she did almost accidentally kill her sister when they were kids.

Say what you will about material made outside the movie, but I did read the Dangerous Secrets book that goes into Elsa's parents backstory. We do get to see them struggle to keep her powers a secret from the town since tensions were still high and the people didn't trust magic. And having the heir to the throne born with magic is very dangerous. It touches on their struggle to raise Elsa, keep her secret, and how it nearly tore the family apart. They searched for years for answers to help their daughter while Agnarr raised her how he was.

This I can find a little excusable. There is no manual to raise children. We kinda have to pull from our own experiences of what to do and not do. Agnarr lost his father at a young age and was king at a young age. He carried his father's mantra of "conceal, don't feel, don't let it show" with him and it genuinely helped him where it damned Elsa.

To that degree, I can forgive Agnarr and Iduna seeing their side of things. They genuinely tried, had no fucking clue what they were doing, and were put between a rock and a hard place. However, the means don't justify the ends and Elsa was damned for the type of abuse she suffered.

So, it really is no wonder why Elsa's first instinct is to run. It's to hide away. To isolate herself as she always had been. She's safer, and everyone else for that matter, if she's kept far away from them. It's why Let it Go is such a cathartic song. She is free (though still chained). She doesn't have to worry about them (not knowing what she did.) She is queen of her own kingdom (even if she abandoned her old one). She was free, but to a point. Her arc doesn't come to some completion until the second movie with Show Yourself. The line "You're the one you've been waiting for," is absolutely true and heartbreaking. That was the moment that Elsa was finally free.

Cinderella

Last one and one of the biggest ones. This irks me a lot. Especially the Disney one. Cinderella was abused for years, humiliated, and isolated. Forced to be a maid in her own household. And yet she's to blame? I'm sorry, how?

How was any of that her fault? She was trapped in a terrible situation with no where to go. Don't forget, she was a child when that happened so there are years of conditioning and abuse. Even through it all, Cinderella was kind, loving, and bold. She never gave up until the moment she could have a dream come true, to go to the ball, only to have it destroyed by her stepfamily.

And, what? We blame her for not saving herself and neededing a man to do it? First of all, you're giving that bitch boy too much credit. He provided an escape, but he didn't save her. In all honesty, you should be giving credit to the mice and birds. They really saved Cinderella, who then saved herself when she presented her other slipper. And so what if she needed help? Breaking free from an abuser is the hardest thing to do and I've met only a handful of people that freed themselves. A lot of people usually need help. So, fuck off she should have saved herself. Fuck off she should have been strong enough to break free. Abuse is abuse. And when you suffer that shit from fucking childhood, that is deeply ingrained in your subconscious. You are fucked for life. And if you weren't, here's a cookie.

Abuse is abuse. We offer redemption to the abusers, but condemn the abused in the process. We need to break this cycle and it starts with us. Writers and artists, it's our job to break these cycles. To create pieces that are true expressions of our experiences and the truths behind them. Adding a touch of reality that the older generation are trying to blind us and gaslight us for. It starts with all of us.

This has been a L0tus talk. Have a lovely day.

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bingo6776 · 2 years ago

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Confrontation 2/2

wednesday addams x reader

3.8k

sorry there is so little dialogue! i have no idea how i want to write wednesday yet. also, this is definitely not proof read, but we move

feel free to give me tips on how to improve, or ideas for more x reader or maybe wenclair fics!

twitter: @mozzarella_ball

ao3: :Im_Just_Gay

Wednesday was well aware that she was difficult, stubborn, and obsessive. They were traits she had spent years cultivating to perfection.

She never thought that she would one day be wishing she perhaps hadn’t gotten locking her emotions away down to such an art that she was no longer sure how she could express, or even feel them really. In a healthy way, that is.

That’s why she had warned you against dating her a year prior, oh how you should have listened.

Yet when your mind flicked back to the moment when you had confessed your undying adoration for the dark-haired girl, you didn’t think of the warnings that fell from her lips, only how there seemed to be no real bite to words, and how delicate and cold her lips would feel against your own. It was safe to say that from day one, Wednesday had avoided committing herself to you in a multitude of ways, to protect your untainted heart.

She had sworn to herself that when you finally saw her for who she was, she would let you go, reasoning that if she kept a modicum of distance between the two of you, she wouldn’t grow overly attached.

But now Wednesday had had a taste of what it was like to be wholly yours, and for you to be hers.

It was euphoric.

The bliss that usually filled her, therefore, being suddenly ripped from her because of her own faults made her feel like she had been dropped headfirst into a vat of acid, her skin melting off of her body, the fatal liquid slowly forcing its way to the traitorous organ that was her heart. Wednesday knew she would much prefer for this to be her reality compared to the path her life was taking now, without you.

Perhaps she was meant to be alone, to continue her bleak existence in solitude, not only for her own sake but to protect those she loved from the destruction she wreaked onto their lives.

She was a Raven, after all.

And then she was pulled from herself destructive monologue when her embodiment-of-a-rainbow roommate all but smashed through the door.

“Okay, Addams, brutal honesty time. You’re in pain, and don’t deny it, its obvious. But you need to get your shit together. I’m sorry you’re suffering, but that does not mean you get to force every student who slightly bugs you to suffer with you,” the blonde huffed, her fists clenched by her side as she stood by Wednesdays bed.

The furious werewolf only amused the girl, because she could make them suffer, and she would continue to do so, quite happily actually.

Wednesday only smirked in response, turning back to the novel in her lap – she hadn’t been able to properly read without getting distracted since you had left, yet it was still a good prop for getting people to leave her alone. If you hadt wormed your way into her black heart, she would have had grandmama unleash thousands of curses upon you and your family for being the only thing she could think of.

However, the book was failing her, if Enid’s consistent rant was any indication. Damn, the werewolf could talk.

“- you cannot sit in the quad shooting arrows at people chewing too loudly,” that was a reasonable response to Wednesday, maybe Xavier would finally learn some table manners, “and now Yoko is too scared to get any blood bags after you threatened to poison her for calling you ‘Nessy’,” again, beyond reasonable. A bit too lenient perhaps, she’d have to work on her threats. “You need to fix what happened between you and Y/n.”

“There is nothing to fix,” she gripped her book harder, the hardback slightly bending under the grip, “the relationship wasn’t working. She could not handle me, she left. The end.”

At that, Enid slowly exhaled through her nose, closing her eyes for a moment as she did so. “You’re my best friend, I’m worried. Y/n’s been avoiding us like the black plague when you’re around, and when she does talk to us, they aren’t the same. You’ve been well, you know, more Wednesday Addamsy, and whilst you might like to think it’s a compliment, its not. A second year almost had a break down when she bumped into you earlier, Wednesday, for gods sake.”

And for the first time in her life, Wednesday avoided eye contact so actively she wasn’t sure shed eve be able to drag her eyes up from the floor. Not for the second year, no, that was quite amusing to hear, but hearing that you had stopped spending time with your friends because of her hit a nerve she hadn’t expected it to. She hadn’t known you were making sacrifices to your social life to stay away from her.

“Suck up your pride and apologise, its for the best. You’ll both be happier for it.” And with that Enid went back to her own side of the room, whether from fear Wednesday’s next war path would be in her direction, or simply being over the levels of angst the goth had been showing for the last week, Wednesday did not know.

Wednesday hoped it was as easy as Enid made it seem.

Wednesday craved you. She craved your presence, your laugh, your touch. She missed the way you would laugh at whatever soulless pit of media you had fallen down during her writing time, she missed the feeling of you leaning against her as you painted Thing’s nails.

The never halting force of time meant that one week without you, had turned into a pitiful two weeks.

Why hadn’t you come back to her, declaring your love for each other as a stronger force than this fight?

She thought herself pathetic at the way her eyes would follow you wherever you went, latching onto you as if she were memorising every part of you until you walked away from her, again.

Once, when passing each other in the hallway, she had tried to make your eyes fall on her, to overwhelm her with your gaze.

You didn’t spare her a glance.

You had so desperately wanted to fall into the never-ending darkness that were her eyes, to let her swallow you whole, to consume you. But if she truly wanted you, would she have not made some sort of indication already? She hadn’t so much as breathed in your direction for all you knew. The key words being ‘for all you knew’, being so caught up in your own internal turmoil, you missed her seeking gaze, not seeing the way the tall Stoner girl that was walking by your side shrunk as you ex-girlfriend’s murderous eyes settled on her. She was in Wednesday’s place, by your side. Unacceptable, how dare she.

A metallic taste filled the sadists mouth as she chewed veraciously on her own cheek to stop herself from calling your name, forcing herself to believe that you are incompatible. She was too morbid and dark, you were too soft, too innocent.

She missed the way you turned around to catch a glimpse of her retreating figure.

-----

one week, to two, to three.

You didn’t know how much longer you could take of not having Wednesday, in any capacity. You had thought she would have cared for you enough to at least attempt to be friendly, as friendly as Wednesday can be anyway. God, you just wanted her to threaten your life, to say she’ll pour silver down your throat in your sleep if you laugh too loudly again, only to smirk in such a small way that only you would ever be able to catch on to it.

In your eyes, you were made from each other. Soulmates, made from the same stare, destined to live out your lives together. Apparently, she did not, over time you just hoped you could come to terms with feeling as if a limb had been sliced from your body, leaving a gaping wound and an unbearable pain in its place.

And this is the very reason why in every class the two of you shared, you practically begged one of your friends to switch with you.

“C’mon, I’ll owe you big time! I’ll do whatever you want for a week,” you all but whined at Yoko, you almost cringed at how desperate you looked when you saw your reflection in her tinted glasses.

“And how many times do I have to tell you that I do not, in any capacity, have a death wish. I’ve grown rather comfortable in my immortality, thank you very much,” the vampire quipped, adding a quick ‘I learned my lesson last time.’ She still hadn’t drank a meal that she wasn’t scared was tainted with Garlic, she’d run to the infirmary not once, but twice thinking she had been poisoned – the first time she had drank too quickly, so no it was not her stomach pains being the first sign of her death, the second was just pure terror of the Addams’ unwavering eyes staring at her in the quad as she ate, making Yoko certain Wednesday just didn’t want to miss a second of her future torment.

You looked up at the clock, there was only a few minutes until the class began, you knew the girl you were avoiding with everything in you would be here soon.

Sighing, you pulled out the best weapon in your arsenal. You would have felt guilty if gothic vampire hadn’t looked so smug as you begged for her to switch places with you.

“If you don’t give your seat up right now, Tanaka, I’m telling Divina that it was you who lost her favourite book, and not Ajax.” Just to ensure you were getting your point across, you looked towards the siren through the classroom window. Divina, the usually calm and collected girl, had literally hunted the gorgon boy until she tired herself out.

“You- you wouldn’t do that; you know she’d literally banish me from our dorm.”

“Yoko, I am so far from kidding.”

After a beat of silence, the vampire gathered her books as quickly as she could, muttering a “I’m going to shove a stick of wolfsbane up your ass.”

Smiling in response at what you hoped was a joke, offering a dramatic sigh and “I wish it hadn’t come to this, maybe we can be friends again someday,” earning a snort from the now moody immortal.

You were just glad that Enid had taken pity on you and sat next to she-who-shall-not-be-named in the classes where the rest of the students were too scared to even glance n her direction, for the first week you had just decided not to turn up to lessons. But alas, you were smart, but not smart enough to keep your grades up with no classes, no matter how badly you wanted to never have to lay eyes on the girl who still held your heart in her hands.

Yet, despite the distance between you and the girl who tore your heart from your chest and thew it to the ground as if it was nothing more than an inconvenience to her oh so important mystery, you missed having her cool thigh against your own, missing the way the smell of ink, and dusty parchment encompassed you.

Day by day your hopes that she would pull her head out of her ass dwindled.

Yoko was astounded by how oblivious you were to Wednesday’s dark eyes were burning a hole in the back of your head, as if she could command your eyes to be on her.

Unsurprisingly, you were both oblivious to the way Yoko was absolutely shitting herself convinced that if she breathed too loudly, or her if her pen was too loud against her paper, the Addams’ eyes would turn to her, killing her on the spot like the most powerful Gorgons used to be able to do, until they became no more than domesticated pet owners.

That class you had taken no notes, too busy trying not to see fi Wednesday was looking at your, Wednesday not having taken any being too busy to do everything to get you to notice her longing filled gaze.

Of course, Wednesday was also drawing up more plans on how to torture the vampire as she sat beside her, thrumming with barely contained rage and debilitating melancholy.

It was only when your separation from Wednesday was nearing the one-month mark that she felt she was going to go insane if she didn’t talk to you.

She couldn’t function without you by her side.

When she played the cello, the notes sounded dull and lifeless, a shadow of the swooping and haunting tones she used to be able to pull from the instrument when you had sat on the balcony with her, awe glimmering in your eyes, enjoying the comfortable silence that engulfed you once she had finished.

Her writing had also taken a blow. She may have loved silence, but now she couldn’t handle it unless it was disrupted by your breathing, knowing you were merely feet away from her. One night, she had become so frustrated with the way she couldn’t move Viper’s story forward, she had taken to relentlessly hammering at the keys of her typewriter, no longer gracing them with her usual precise and delicate touch.

Enid was lucky she still had her life after her threats of throwing the piece of equipment out of the window if there was even another tap on the keys, let alone another god forsaken ‘schwing’ as the werewolf referred to it.

She hadn’t been able to sleep, her nightmares usually filled with the screams of the boys she’d allowed her piranhas to feast on, or the countless other poor souls who crossed her path, had been replaced with soft dreams of your voice, your hands combing through her hair, whispering sweet nothings whilst she was in your embrace.

She woke up missing the feeling of drowning in everything that was you.

She had spent the day watching you from afar in the quad, poking at your food, you would smile brightly at your friends who never noticed the dim look in your eyes.

Her night consisted of sleeplessness – the only happiness Wednesday pulled from the agony she found in sleep was the dark circles that had grown under her eyes, she thought she looked more and more like a walking corpse each day. It was quite the ego boost.

Perhaps it was the lack of sleep that made her take the walk across campus to be standing in front of your dorm.

She had been able to walk to the dorm.

Now all she had to do, was actually get into said dorm.

The Addams would never have thought she would be scared of a door. The psychic knew you were awake, like her you were a night owl and a morning person all rolled into one. That and the soft glow that was seeping from the bottom of the door.

Gritting her teeth, she opened the door.

Now was no time for manners.

At the sudden intrusion, you sat up in your bed, phone clattering to the floor, your eyes were wide and alert, claws having ripped through the blanket that was previously covering your body.

“You can’t fuck do that, Wednesday,” you panted out. “I thought I was going to be murdered, Jesus.” The brief shot of adrenaline that ran through your body at the surprise visit stopping you from immediately telling the shorter girl where she could shove her probably half-baked apology.

‘I swear to everything good and holy under the moon, if she’s here to ask for my help on the murders, there’s going to be another body added to the list’ is what ran through your head as you stared at Wednesday.

Completely ignoring your comment, Wednesday made strong and purposeful strides – her façade of confidence completely different to the anxiety bubbling in her stomach as if a thousand scorpions had made their nest there – towards your bed, looking down at you as she left a respectable distance despite how desperately she wanted to launch her body onto yours, wind her arms around your waist as tight as she could and never let go.

You could slash your claws across every part of her skin, reduce her to nothing but bleeding ribbons of flesh, and she would only hold tighter.

“I am going to talk, I would greatly appreciate if you would listen until I have finished,” neither of you mentioned the slight waver in her voice.

“Okay,” was the only word you could think to say, your brain filled with how beautiful she looked shrouded n the shadows of your bedroom. Stupid fucking brain.

“I am sorry for I have been behaving, before the … event a month ago, and after. It was in no way acceptable for me to place my own obsessions above our relationship as often as I did, it was cruel and unfair,” her eyes bore into yours, searching for any desire you may have for her to leave her.

“Wednesday, this isn’t going to fixed with a quick and easy apology, I appreciate it, but this wasn’t just a one time thing, it was so many I lost count, there was more than just the ignoring me. You lied about where you were when you put your life in danger, you had neglected every aspect of our relationship until you thought it was an acceptable time for you to remember me, and even then, it was more than likely just so you had a werewolf on your side as protection in the wood,” you looked away from her eyes briefly, before locking with them again. “God, that stupid ass fucking normie, Galpin, probably saw you more in the last week of our relationship than I did in the last month of it. Can you understand how shitty that made me feel, can you grasp that at all?” your chest was heaving from the lack of oxygen you’d had as you forced every piece of pain you had felt over the past month into your words.

You had only realised you were crying when the salty liquid hit your lips, a headache already forming from the amount of tears you’d spilled over the ethereal girl in front of you.

“Y/n, I-“ she felt tears welling in her eyes, fighting against the urge to push them back down to the dark corners of her mind,. “I love you more than what I know what to do with. My love for you burns brighter than any star in the sky, my heart beats for you and you only”

Wednesday felt a singular tear roll down her cheek, you both knew that to the usually emotionless girl it was an astounding portrayal of trust and vulnerability. You were so entranced by the path the tear carved out in her skin, falling from her eyes, and trailing down her cheeks. So entranced that you realised you hadn’t said anything in reply, as you were opening your mouth, Wednesday spoke again, with in a much softer tone than you had ever heard from the girl.

Wednesday had already walked further into the mess that were her emotions, she decided to let it all go, to let it all burst from her body in such a disgraceful cloud of colour. “I know what I am, I have never denied the parts of myself that make it hard for others to stay with me. They have never bothered me until I finally saw how it was hurting you, tearing you apart, and I noticed too late. I had tried to tell myself it was the best choice for us, we were not meant to be, your love for me misplaced and vice versa. But my love for you could never be misplaced. It has always been you, Y/n, it will always only be you.”

“Wedne-“

“If you no longer see our relationship as a possibility, I will understand. I will love you from afar like the moon loves the sun, I will be by your side even if you cannot see me, my adoration unwavering. But.. please. Y/n, please take me back. I will be better for you, i only ask that you be patient and help me become a better person for you. I need you.”

You stared up at Wednesday, you mouth open as you gaped at not only the words that are filled with the emotion but the way the features on her face had morphed from their impassive stare to utter heartbreak, a desperation to have you be hers again. She could no longer stand the bitter taste that filled her mouth, the sour smells the invaded her nose, that were nothing like the way you taste, the way you smelt. Like a forest ablaze in the most glorious spectacle of destruction.

No words that you could conjure up would be bale to beat the novelists, so instead you grabbed her hands, pulling her down onto your bed. Your lips found her own as you kissed her as deeply as you could, attempting to pour every ounce of love and passion you held for Wednesday Addams. You skin tingled with a thrumming electricity when her hands held onto your waist, trying to pull you closer as if she wanted your bodies to meld into one.

You knew dating Wednesday Addams would come with its challenges, Wednesday was Wednesday. she was difficult, stubborn and obsessive. But she was also kind, and loving.

You both fell asleep entwined in the other arms; you had spent the weeks after working on your relationship. Wednesday had learned how to have, you know, emotions and not combust, you had both learned how to communicate better. The only serious argument that had caused Wednesday to give you the silent treatment is when you had told her she would “absolutely adore” the “masterpiece” you would grace her with if she just put on your headphones. ‘Dance Monkey.’ You had made her listen to Dance Monkey, you best believe it’s still used against you in your relationship

The natural sadist had even finally promised to stop saying she had poisoned Yoko’s blood bags. Although, that didn’t stop her from holding a wooden stake to the vampires back when she had tried to sit beside her in class before you had arrived. And if anyone ever said the vampire would find garlic cloves left outside her dorm every now and then, there would be no way anyone could conjure up any evidence to say it was Wednesday. Her hands were clean.

Thing still can’t get the smell of garlic from his skin.

#wednesday addams x reader #wednesday addams #wednesday #jenna ortega x reader #jenna ortega #wednesday addams netflix #its so bad but we move #yoko tanaka #enid sinclair

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danganronpasurvivoraskblog · 8 months ago

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Mikan Tsumiki VS Fluttershy [Danganronpa Survivor VS My Little Pony]

Hifumi: Mikan Tsumiki, the not-so eloquent Ultimate Nurse...

Leona: And Fluttershy, the not-so submissive Element of Kindness.

Hifumi: Kindness is compassion and love in perfect harmony. It is loving yourself enough to love those around you.

Leona: But despite their power, it seems these two clumsy, skittish, yet sweethearted companions are gonna need a little help with that...He's Hifumi, and I'm Leona!

Hifumi: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, talents and skills, to see who will win a DEATH BATTLE!

Leona: Back to standard procedure folks!

Hifumi: As we're already all familiar with by this point, Hope's Peak Academy is a school committed to assisting in the training of high school students who are at the top of their fields.

Leona: And as we mentioned before, when everyone at the academy thought their lives were set in stone, Tragedy struck! Literally

Hifumi: That of course, being the arrival of Junko Enoshima. Alongside her manipulation, scheming and casual feats of murder that she did for a bit of fun, her most notable feat of the Hope's Peak Tragedy was the brainwashing of Class 77, turning them into the Ultimate Despair, who then proceeded to wreak havoc on the world as we knew it.

Leona: Yeah, we've been over this...Though it is pretty sad. All of these guys were living such fruitful and happy lives before she came along...

Hifumi: Well, I wouldn't say ALL of them...Truth be told, aside from the likes of Izuru Kamukura and Nagito Komaeda, there is one member of the Ultimate Despair who stands out more than others...That would of course, be Mrs Mikan Tsumiki.

Leona: Huh...She seems pretty meek...

Hifumi: Well, that would be...HALF right. Mrs Tsumiki's early years were difficult, and that's putting it VERY lightly! She suffered from emotional and physical abuse at the hands of both family members and people she knew outside of that. She has talked about getting burned by cigarettes, getting smeared with mud, and getting splashed with water, among other things. The bullies would make her pay for their debts, make her eat bugs and make her act like animals, beat her up, cut her hair, draw on her, and use her as a dart target. At times, she was even told to undress.

Leona: Jesus fucking Christ! Those people are MONSTERS!

Hifumi: It's actually a lot worse than you may think. Because of the things she was subjected to, Mrs Tsumiki became so twisted, she began to see abuse as AFFECTION. Consequently, she turned into a very shy individual who believed that receiving negative treatment was preferable to receiving none at all.

Leona: What the FUCK man! Jesus, how can humanity be so fucking cruel! What did SHE do!?

Hifumi: So, it's no wonder that she ended up falling to Despair first. She was the first victim of the brainwashing, serving as Junko's guinie pig, and she took to it VERY well...Better than Junko could have dreamed.

Leona: I'm afraid to ask what you mean by that...

Hifumi: It's unclear what happened or why, but Mrs Tsumiki became sickeningly obsessed with Junko Enoshima. Like Harley Quinn with the Joker, she subjected her body and soul for the sake of Junko, and to causing as much despair as possible in her name. Her obsession was so strong, it broke through the memory suppression of the Neo World Program when she and her classmates were trapped in it, and following Junko's death, not only did she try to copulate with her corpse, but she cut out her own uterus and replaced it with the corpse's

Leona: I'm gonna be sick...!

Leona does indeed go a shade of green and turn around to vomit in the corner.

Hifumi: I had figured you already knew this...I apologize.

Leona: Can we like...maybe take a step back? We're moving through this a bit too fast...

Hifumi: Right, right, of course...Mikan Tsumiki learned how to take care of herself at a very young age because no one was there to tend to her wounds. As her proficiency in this area increased, she developed an interest in nursing and was eventually brought on as the Ultimate Nurse by Hope's Peak Academy.

Leona: Because of this, she's very intellectual about medicine and healthcare, and on multiple occasions, she's been able to save her allies even when they're basically as good as dead. She also knows exactly how much anesthetic and painkillers to exhibit to a person to knock them out without killing them.

Hifumi: Which is extremely important to her own unique way of fighting and taking down her opponents, because believe it or not, past all the emotional damage and timid nature, this skittish nurse lady is...kind of a badass!

Leona: Mikan seems to give this idea that she's a harmless, good-for-nothing girl who couldn't hurt a fly, but NONE of this is true. If you let your guard down around her or find yourself at the end of her anger, you might find yourself being thoroughly PENATRATED by her MASSIVE...! GIRTHY...! Syringe!

Hifumi: You had me for a minute.

Leona: Given the shit this chick does, I think the dirty jokes are appropriate here.

Hifumi: In all seriousness, Mrs Tsumiki has used this syringe a few times, most notably during her confrontations with Future Foundation's Ultimate Elite Task Force, specifically the Ultimate Nail Artist, as well as Nagito Komaeda.

Leona: Why does EVERYONE want to fight Nagito Komaeda!?

Hifumi: It's not like we want to, it's just that he's VERY punchable. But the difference between her and the others whom have fought him is...believe it or not, she was able to take him out.

Leona: SHE DID!?

Hifumi: Well...KIND of...She was able to run circles around him and trap him, applying her skills with stealth and smarts to get the victory, but ultimately knocked him out by distributing repeated shots of sleeping drugs to him. This only took effect AFTER his fight with Izuru Kamukura though, so it's more like she came and got the last hit in when he was already on low health. Doesn't take away from her other achievements though.

Leona: The syringe can be used to scratch and stab a bitch with it's needle, but it also holds what is basically a tub of anesthetic medicine. If she impales someone with it and gets all up inside them, she can let her juices flow through them, and this she-devil's juices are DEADLY, even more than usual.

Hifumi: You need to stop.

Leona: If I didn't say it, you would!

Hifumi: Dirty jokes aside, anesthesia and sleeping drugs are a powerful weapon when used right, especially in the hands of someone experienced giving shots to people. Distributing enough of this can have some heavy side effects. Agitation, disorientation, lightheadedness, somnolence, dysphoria, changes in hearing, tinnitus, perioral numbness, metallic taste, and dysarthria can all result from an overdose. These warning signs and symptoms can develop into seizures, respiratory arrest, coma, and ultimately death if they are not properly identified and treated quickly.

Leona: But that thing sure looks big dumb and heavy. Wielding it can't be easy. How much does it weigh exactly?

Hifumi: Oh, about 150 lbs.

Leona: Oh, ok-WHAT!?

Hifumi: Not only is the syringe pretty hefty on it's own, but Mrs Tsumiki has stated that the syringe can hold up to 18 gallons of sedative liquid inside it. The density of the anesthetic is obviously much thicker than water, but that would at least put it to at least 150 lbs, which for reference, is about the weight of a dirt bike.

Leona: And she's just lugging that thing around no problem?

Hifumi: Obviously, Mrs Tsumiki isn't something like Mr Nidai, who could probably wield the heavy thing like a spear if he wanted, so her attacks using her trademark weapon are usually a little sluggish, so assuming you can outspeed her, it won't be much of a problem. However, if a hit DOES land, kiss your ass and your consciousness goodbye!

Leona: And even if it doesn't, Mikan's got ways around this problem...In the form of OTHER weapons! MORE NEEDLES!

Hifumi: She is indeed a Trypanophobists nightmare, as well as a nightmare for everyone else. On top of having a giant syringe as her main weapon, Mrs Tsumiki has also been known to employ smaller syringes as weapons, which she uses kind of like throwing knives. The syringes have a unique property in that the moment they pierce flesh, they apply whatever liquid is inside them, which again, is usually sedative anesthetic, albeit on a much smaller level than her main weapon.

Leona: They also sometimes contain painkillers or other sorts of medicines, usually created with Seiko Kimura's help, that Mikan can use on herself and her allies to pep them up. And she's got killer accuracy too. Plus, she has a surgical scalpel on hand for an emergency. It's honestly kinda weird...I wouldn't expect such feats from someone this emotionally unstable and...honestly, clumsy.

Hifumi: Yes, it's a well known fact that Mrs Tsumiki has a tendency to accidentally fall over in compromising positions, however, though she doesn't always outright admit it, it's implied that this was all an act. Due to her diseased mind, Mrs Tsumiki didn't become a nurse mainly out of her desire to help people, but actually upon recognizing the likelihood that she could feel in control of sick and injured people. After all, people who are sick are, by default, weaker, and they would have to rely entirely on her since they were the weaker party, and she would be in charge of their lives.

Leona: That's...kinda fucked up actually, but hey, I get it. She's seen some shit.

Hifumi: Fortunately or unfortunately, this endless abuse didn't stop even as an Ultimate Despair. Though she gave her life and everything else to Junko's cause, and claimed COUNTLESS victims, possessing one of the highest kill counts among the remnants, she was eventually captured and placed into the Neo World Program by the Future Foundation, which was then taken over by Junko's AI, and she was subsequently forced into the second killing game.

Leona: During which, her abilities and own physical capabilities really shone through. As we said already, Mikan was the only one who was able to remember her life as a Remnant of Despair, likely because her love for Junko was so insanely strong. Shortly after Monokuma hit the group with the Despair Disease, Mikan concocted and pulled off a plan of her own, which resulted in the deaths of BOTH Ibuki Mioda and Hiyoko Saionji. Speaking of which, let's talk about that quickly!

Hifumi: Nobody looks upon this moment favorably, let's be honest, but to be frank, this plan was BEYOND impressive in terms of how it's pulled off! Namely because of the amount of speed and timing that would be needed to pull it off.

Leona: We don't really need to go into specifics, but to summarize, during her plan, Mikan ran from the hospital to the music venue, smashed a bunch of electronics, changed the temperature of the room, tore off the wallpaper hiding Hiyoko's body, glued the door shut and runs all the way to the motel just as Hajime is meeting up with his friends. Based on the relative amount of time it takes for Hajime to meet up with the others, Mikan's window of opportunity was a minute at least and 2 minutes at most.

Hifumi: Which is frankly an almost impossible feat of strength and power coming from someone like her, but we can talk more about that in a minute. Following the conclusion of the Killing Game, Mrs Tsumiki was one of the first people to be brought back to life in the other side, but unfortunately...the influence of the disease remained.

Leona: Perhaps it's because Mikan technically got two doses of the brainwashing, or because she remembered during the Killing Game; but either way, Mikan came back still as a remnant self, and caused a lot of trouble, especially since the object of her affection didn't remain in the world any longer, with both her real and AI self having been wiped out. Fortunately, Hajime and the others weren't about to give up on her, even after everything she did.

Hifumi: Ironically, Ibuki Mioda, a fellow Remnant, was the primary defender of Mikan's second chance, despite being one of her victims in the Killing Game. She assisted Mikan in recovering from the trauma and returning to a generally stable state of mind. And there was a lot of trauma to work through, in case we didn't convey that already.

Leona: I guess in the end, all she ever needed to get over her damaged body and mind was a healthy relationship. And she got MORE than that when it came to Ibuki! Turns out our loveable nurse isn't TOTALLY terrible with women! Then again, as simple as I am, I wouldn't be quick to enter a loving relationship with a girl who murdered me once before...

Hifumi: Mrs Tsumiki went on to rebuild her classmates' faith and trust in her, helping the Future Foundation with medical needs and healing people this time for the right reasons. Even though she is still emotionally hesitant and timid most of the time, she makes an effort to apply herself in the fight for good and works on growing rather than letting her past or her flaws define her. With all that being said...there WERE some problems.

Leona: Yeah, it turns out that even after restoring her honor, she still felt an itch...a craving for Despair...But she tried her best to suppress it for the sake of her classmates around her. She would never have dreamed of hurting her friends anymore, but she continued to relish the thoughts, and hated herself for it. However, she eventually learned to follow the old saying "If you can't lose it? USE it!"

Hifumi: I think you're misremembering "If you can't beat them, join them," but I suppose that works better here. Whenever things are at their bleakest, Mikan Tsumiki learned to instead of giving in to her lingering psychopathic tendencies, she would WEAPONIZE them.

Leona: We in the analysis business give this idea a neat little name of "DESPAIR RAGE!" You know that meme of the doctor with the gun? "I'm a healer, but..." that one? Yeah, that's Mikan when she's in this state.

Hifumi: Not only does she become inherently more violent and destructive in this state, throwing most of her morality and conscious decisions to the wind, but Mrs Tsumiki also becomes more sociopathic, sometimes outright toying with her enemies, like she did to Nagito Komaeda when she had him at her mercy. While the state doesn't necessarily make her STRONGER, it does stop her from holding back in any way, shape or regard.

Leona: On that note, to close out this segment, why don't we quickly go over some statistical feats? We've already established that she's really strong and fast, but despite her surprising strength, Mikan has a hard time applying that to fights. She IS a medic after all, not really a soldier, and applies most of her skills to healing wounds instead of causing them, unless it's as a last resort.

Hifumi: Which is why when Mrs Tsumiki is faced with combat, she chooses to less rely on strength and durability, and opts more for speed and smarts. Like hiding in the shadows to land a sneak attack, or setting and luring her opponents into traps. It helps that she seems to have an innate stealth ability and keen strategical prowess.

Leona: I guess when you're not capable of setting off nukes by taking a shit, this is the best you can do. Speaking of traps and durability though, I'd have to say her most impressive feat is the fact that she fought Nagito Komaeda in such a confined environment! And when he was an Ultimate Hope too!

Hifumi: I'm inclined to agree. Do you remember how we mentioned in our first matchup that Makoto Naegi was able to survive being thrown through a solid ceiling and walls? Well, during her fight against Komaeda, Mrs Tsumiki did the same thing! SEVERAL MORE TIMES IN QUICK SUCCESSION in fact!

Leona: As a reminder, we calculated in the third episode with Akane that the amount of energy required to send someone crashing through a solid stone wall 31.572 grams of TNT, since Akane herself did it with Nagito earlier in the same arc. Mikan's feat is significantly less impressive since the number of walls she was thrown through were thinner and fewer, but it's still an unbelievable feat for someone to survive, and that's not even mentioning what happened afterwards!

Hifumi: Mrs Tsumiki's penultimate plan was to keep Mr Komaeda distracted until the Future Foundation had enough time to blow up the building with the both of them inside it. This ultimately didn't do much in terms of stopping Komaeda, but the entire buildings collapse didn't kill HER either! She escaped with several wounds and a completely mangled foot, but with her life.

Leona: So all in all, just remember that if you ever tick this seemingly timid and sweet caretaker off, you may find yourself in a state worse than death. An apple a day keeps the doctor at bay!

Leona: We're about to get into some serious shit with this one, and no, I'm not kidding, so hold your horses.

Hifumi: Was that a pun, or did you say that on accident?

Leona: Welcome to the land of Equestria, a magical kingdom full of rolling plains, beautiful mountain ranges, and rainbows! A place where you just can't help but be happy! One of the places you'll find in this magical realm is Cloudsdale! Home of the Pegasuses...or Pegasi...or...Pegacivilians...Take your pick.

Hifumi: While Unicorns are known for their magic, and Earth Ponies are known for their connection to nature, their ability to fly, walk on clouds, and manipulate the weather are what makes the Pegasi unique.

Leona: Here's some juicy lore for you folks out there who stupidly thought that this was a simple toy franchise for little girls - The Pegasi are portrayed as a militaristic, organized tribe with a well-established fighting force and a cloud home filled with war-themed monuments. Members of the original Pegasus Tribe were in charge of weather control in exchange for food harvested by Earth ponies. To sum it up, the Pegasissies in the world of My Little Pony are kind of like Saiyan's in Dragon Ball, or at least a similar premise. Yes, really.

Hifumi: And just like it was with the Saiyan's and Son Goku, there's one Pony in particular who doesn't quite fit in line with the legacy of their bloodline. We can certainly see the warrior influence in Rainbow Dash, a previous DB competitor, but far from it in her best friend...The peace-loving, hug-mongering Fluttershy.

Leona: As someone who, to probably no one's surprised, is obsessed with MLP, allow me to take over most of the historical analysis here. As Hifumi just mentioned, Fluttershy, even as a filly, was not like the other Pegasusans in Cloudsdale. In fact, she was quite a notorious outcast who didn't fit in, nor get along with many of the others around her.

Hifumi: Mainly due to how she had a taller, ganglier body and larger wings, but also wasn't a very good flier, despite that basically being the Pegasi's thing. It would kind of be like if someone made fun of you for not being able to walk properly because you have a bonky leg, which...Yeah, that's...

Leona: Yeah, kinda fucked up, right!? My Little Pony addresses ABLEISM, and very early on in fact! She was given the rather disgraceful nickname of "Klutzershy" from the colts because of her clumsy nature, but a young Rainbow Dash stood up for her. She challenged Fluttershy's bullies to a race, but then...things went a LITTLE wrong...

Hifumi: During the race, Rainbow Dash and the bullies accidentally knocked Fluttershy off the clouds and down to the ground below, but she was conveniently saved by landing on a group of butterflies. However, this was the first time she had ever been outside of Cloudsdale and was unfamiliar with the world around her, and Fluttershy was overwhelmed by seeing the beauty of the animals and the greenery for the first time.

Leona: So much so that she started to sing a merry tune. You know, as you do. But a few moments later, Rainbow Dash, who had been frightened by Fluttershy's fall, burst in so fast to find her, she created a sonic rainboom that startled the animals and scared them into hiding.

Hifumi: Fortunately, it was here that Fluttershy discovered her true calling in life. She might not have been as fast, or as brave as the rest of her people, but learned that she had a gift for talking to animals, after managing to quiet the critters down after the scare. Moments later, she earned her Cutie Mark.

Leona: And no, that's not a euphemism for something. The cutie marks are obtained when Ponies discover a unique characteristic that sets themselves apart from others. Effectively, if she existed in our universe, this would the the symbol of Fluttershy's Ultimate Talent.

Hifumi: With time, Fluttershy established herself as one of the members of the Guardians of Friendship, or as the community calls them, the Mane 6, alongside Rainbow Dash, as well as Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Unfortunately, even once she was a fully grown adult pony, her timidness and shyness didn't go away. I mean, it's in her name obviously, but she's typically very pacifistic and somewhat cowardly, possesses severe stage fright, and she was so shy in the first half of the series that she could hardly speak in front of strangers and that she was unable to say "no" when asked to do something that she didn't want to do.

Leona: But again, that's what makes it so weird and baffling, because just like her opponent, this "crouching moron" is a "hidden badass!"

Hifumi: Even early on in the series when it's most sold that Fluttershy is weaker than most Pegasi around her, it's also proven to NOT be the case. It may mainly be because of her lack of confidence in herself, but at her peak when she throws this to the wayside, usually out of fear or anger, she has the potential to be stronger AND faster than even Rainbow Dash.

Leona: She WAS able to outfly Rainbow Dash while towing two other ponies in a hot-air balloon, and kept up with her when creating a tornado. Something that the Pegasussusamongus do as part of their rituals in Equastria, and even though she's noted to not be as good at base level as the rest of her people, she SHOULD realistically be capable of this feat at her full potential.

Hifumi: You did that one on purpose...

Leona: Maybe I did, maybe I didn't?

Hifumi: You DEFINITELY did!

Leona: She's also ran the entire Running of the Leaves, a very intense running race, without showing a notable decrease in stamina, and her ability to empathize and communicate with animals has helped both herself and her allies in tight jams before. However, on top of all these wacky powers and abilities, there's one that really stands out that only she possesses...THE STARE! DUN DUN DUUUUUN!

Hifumi: The Stare is, in short, Fluttershy glaring at you angrily like a disappointed mother, and she usually uses this look on misbehaving animals. While this doesn't sound THAT intimidating coming from a soft-spoken pony like her, it's proven to ACTUALLY be quite powerful, so much so that Fluttershy openly says she only employs it in life or death situations, or to maintain order. It's so effective, she was able to use it to tame a cockatrice!

Leona: Kind of like Medusa, staring a cockatrice in the eyes turns you to stone, which it did once to Twilight Sparkle. However, Fluttershy employed the stare on it, looking it dead in the eyes, and actually got it to RELENT, causing her own petrification to be reversed, as well as Twilight's.

Hifumi: However, despite how powerful this "Stare" really is, it has it's limitations. Namely, it's shown not working on powerful and/or chaotic and unrelenting creatures like the infamous Discord, who merely laughed in Fluttershy's face when she tried to use it on him. It also seems to have absolutely no effect on more aggressive creatures like Flash Bees.

Leona: But even amongst the incredible feats of the Pegusfring's, and her own powers like the stare, Fluttershy's main source of power comes from her own special magic. The Mane 6 are capable of wielding these special artifacts called the Elements of Harmony.

Hifumi: In the My Little Pony universe, the Elements of Harmony are commonly described as "the most powerful magic known to Ponydom." Thousands of years ago, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna discovered them and removed them from the Tree of Harmony. Every artifact symbolizes a facet of friendship and becomes active only when the wielder possesses the matching trait and when all six are used together.

Leona: That being said, Twilight Sparkle was able to use the Element of Magic by herself in Equestria Girls, so the latter part isn't exactly true. In the case of Fluttershy though, she wields the Element of Kindness!

Hifumi: The Kindness Element is represented by a pink butterfly-shaped gem set in a gold necklace, resembling the butterflies in Fluttershy's Cutie Mark. Though it's only really ever used as a last resort, using the Element of Kindness, Fluttershy can restore peace and balance in moments of complete and total anarchy. Aside from granting Fluttershy special magical powers like generating forcefields, the Element can be used to banish different villains to different planes of existence, like the moon, Tartarus, or limbo, or it can be used to imprison something, like when it was used to imprison Discord in stone.

Leona: Yeah, Tartarus is a thing in My Little Pony. I told you, the lore fucks! And if you didn't think THAT was crazy, the Element can also summon a rainbow tornado that no matter what, completely engulfs its target! If they are evil or opposed to harmony, this tornado will completely change their morality and they will show remorse for their actions!

Hifumi: A very fitting power for someone like Fluttershy, who even without the Element's power is already kindness and sympathy incarnate? Do you remember how we brought up Discord? He's a Draconequus who is LITERALLY the physical embodiment of disharmony and chaos, and was originally one of the ponies most terrifying foes.

Leona: Emphasis on "originally," because thanks to Fluttershy's kindness and her willingness to see the good in people; even after he went on to cause even more trouble for her and her friends, she was not only able to REFORM Discord of his evil ways, but became his best buddy! And potential love interest as a lot of the fandom will tell you, but that's a discussion for another time. So yeah, if anyone's gonna wield the Element of Kindness, it's Fluttershy!

Hifumi: To make things even worse for any enemy that might have the gall to underestimate her, Fluttershy is also capable of boosting her power through the last means you might expect from MLP, but then again, that seems to be a running theme...Transformation!

Leona: We could be here all day talking about this but to sum it up, there's basically this tree that has a chest, and unlocking this chest unleashes this ancient power inside it that allows the Mane 6, including Fluttershy, to take on the POWER OF THE RAINBOWS! Or...Rainbow Power as it's called.

Hifumi: The Rainbow Power is only briefly seen, but following the opening of the chest, Fluttershy and her companions all gained more magic and underwent physical transformations. The Mane 6 used this power to defeat Lord Tirek, after he stole Twilight's powers, along with the magic of the entire population of Equestria! And that includes, Celestia, Luna and Discord's power!

Leona: The Rainbow Power and transformation bestows Fluttershy with all the same powers as the Element of Kindness tenfold! When she and her friends used it following the overpowered Tirek's rampage, she returned the stolen flight, strength, and magic back to the ponies of Equestria, even the Alicorns, and it also gives her powers like unlimited flight, powerful forcefield creation, summoning a gigantic spiritual Alicorn to aid in battle, and even increased Banishment powers like when she sent Tiren back to Tartarus with it.

Hifumi: And to top it all off, that's not the only transformation that Fluttershy possesses. She's also capable of taking on her own unique, and honestly rather deadly form...the Flutterbat!

Leona: So not only is Fluttershy at her peak a weather controller, multiversal goddess and the living embodiment of the concept of Kindness, she's also a FUCKING VAMPIRE! MY LITTLE PONY EVERYBODY!

Hifumi: To be more specific, Fluttershy became a vampire fruit bat-pony hybrid when Twilight unintentionally transferred the vampire fruit bats' desires to her. Her cutie mark transforms into three pink bats, and she gets fangs, bat wings, red eyes, and bat-like ears. She was able to outmaneuver the other ponies in the air with ease while squeezing the juice from apples and spitting out their seeds in this form.

Leona: So think a vampire that sucks on apple juice instead of blood. Twilight eventually managed to restore her back to normal, but at the end of the episode, Fluttershy retained a small fang, and later took the form of Flutterbat again to help Princess Luna defeat the Tantabus.

Hifumi: All in all, there's a LOT to Fluttershy than meets the eye, and thinking she's an easy target is a recipe for one's downfall. She has so forcefully bucked the back ends of two garbage wagonloads that they have flipped over to the vertical position and back again, skillfully wrestled a bear while trying to give it a massage, and withstood an attack from Sunset Shimmer when she herself was using the Element of Magic.

Leona: In one episode, she and Bulk Biceps, a very muscular Pegasoo, collided into a mountainside with such force that an indent was formed, and Fluttershy was crushed beneath Bulk's larger body. She is stuck on him when he flies off, but she appears surprised rather than pained, and in the following scenes, she is perfectly fine! She's also successfully defended herself against Iron Will, a really buff minotaur dude, fought and overpowered Cozy Glow for a time, stood up to a giant dragon despite her innate fear of them, and fought an army of Changelings, insect-like beings who feed off the love of others to gain power for their own.

Hifumi: Fluttershy may easily lose her cool when she's angered, and she may be cripplingly afraid of many things, but there's one indisputable fact about her. She's a VALID and DESERVING member of the Mane 6, and will pull her weight when she needs to, no matter what comes her way.

Hifumi: Alright, the combatants are set! We've run the data through all possibilities!

Leona: IT'S TIME FOR A DEEAAATH BAAATTLLLLLLEEE!

WARNING:The following battle contains actions of extreme violence committed on a character from My Little Pony. We understand this sort of graphic content and description can perturb some readers, so while we don't normally give this warning, we will here. Should you wish to skip straight to the results, by all means do so.You have been warned.

The scene opens to into a peaceful setting within the middle of a quiet orchard on a sunny day in Equestria. The birds are singing, the animals are casually playing around.

This peace however, is interrupted by a terrified scream, as Mikan Tsumiki comes bursting into the clearing, crying and panicked, literally pulling her hair out.

Mikan: Where am I!? What's going on!? WHERE AM I!? WHAT'S GOING ON!?

Freaked out and scared at having randomly ended up in this strange and unfamiliar location, Mikan's mental state is rapidly crumbling, and the animals around her run for safety, feeling threatened by her frankly overwhelming presence.

Meanwhile, not too far away, several more animals gather around a yellow and pink pony, tending to them and singing to them while doing so.

Fluttershy: ♪ I like the quiet, I like the calm...To turn it up, to sing along...I'm not just shy...Look close, and you will see...There's so much more to♪ -HUH!?

Fluttershy's soothing melody is swiftly interrupted as the animals cries from beyond the shrubbery grow closer. She lifts her head and sees several critters scurry from the bushes, followed by a clumsy, stumbling, purple-haired nurse, who trips over the branches and lands on her face. She quickly lifts her head to see Fluttershy staring back at her with astonishment.

Fluttershy: A human...!?

Mikan: KYAGH!? A-A t-t-talking horse!?

Fluttershy: How did you get here!? A-And why are you scaring the precious little animals away!?

Mikan: Wh-What!? No, no, no! Th-That's not what I

*CRUNCH!*

Fluttershy: HEEE!?

Mikan: EEEP!

Fluttershy, the animals and even Mikan herself gasp in horror, as Mikan gets to her feet and accidentally steps forward on top of a small mouse. The mouse squeaks in pain as it's crushed beneath her foot.

Fluttershy: Oh no! H-Hold on! I can help-!

*WHOOOSH!*

Mikan: AAGGGGH I'm SORRRYYYYY!

*SMACK!*

Fluttershy: GUGH!

Mikan: Agh...TCH!

Mistaking her approach for her trying to avenge the creature, Mikan fends Fluttershy off by grabbing her syringe from behind her back and swatting her away with it when she flies in to supposedly attack. Mikan looks back and forth between her weapon and her now opponent, her expression darkening as she realizes it's far too late for peaceful negotiations.

Though Fluttershy seems hesitant, she agrees to the duel regardless. With the exception of one deer who quickly grabs the poor mouse's body first, the rest of the animals quickly scarper, leaving the area open, as the fight begins!

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Though initially trying to go in for the first blow, Fluttershy starts the fight by staying on the defensive. Mikan hoists her giant syringe up and takes some hefty swings. Though even in a panicked and confused state, Fluttershy easily avoids them.

*SHUNK!*

Fluttershy: KUGH!

Mikan: HUAGH!

*POW!*

Fluttershy: Haah...! U-Uwagh...Ngh...CHAGH!

Mikan: OOF!

When Mikan eventually gets a hit in while Fluttershy is at her most vulnerable, he punches the plunger to inject Fluttershy with the viscous anesthetic fluid inside. Fluttershy manages to break free just in time, and despite feeling lightheaded due to the anesthetic's effects, she counterattacks by using her front hooves to kick Mikan.

Fluttershy takes a moment while she has breathing room to check her wound. Seeing that she's slightly bleeding, she quickly wipes the wound with her hoof as Mikan recovers from her previous attack.

Mikan: What is going on...!? A-Am I hallucinating!? Is this some kind of dream...!?

Fluttershy notices that Mikan is panicking and in this moment, takes some sympathy on her.

Fluttershy: Hey, um...It occurs to me that we...may have jumped to conclusions before...You don't have to be so scared-

Mikan: N-No! GET AWAY FROM ME!

Mikan pulls out a bunch of smaller throwing syringes from her apron. Crying her eyes out in fear, she throws a barrage of them at Fluttershy, trying to turn the Pegasus into a pincushion.

Fluttershy: EEK!

Fluttershy's eyes widen as she sees these needles incoming, and she quickly rolls to the side and dashes out of the way. She flies forward, but looks back, worried that the needles might hit any of the animals.

Fortunately, they collide with the trunk of a thick tree and get stuck. Unfortunately, Fluttershy, not looking where she's going, bumps into Mikan. The two clatter to the floor, the latter in a rather compromising position that she quickly covers up.

Mikan: KYAAGH!

Fluttershy: Oh, sorry! I'm so sorry!

Mikan: No, that was my-Ugh...It's ok...Hold on, let me-

Fluttershy: N-No, let me get this for-OOF! My, this is REALLY heavy!

Mikan: No, no, I've got it! Thank you though...

Fluttershy: Sorry, I wasn't looking!

Mikan: No, seriously, thank you!

Fluttershy: Anytime!

Mikan & Fluttershy: Huh? Wait...Oh, DANGIT!

After a brief distraction, in which Fluttershy helps Mikan to her feet and tries to hand her back her primary weapon, the two forget that they're supposed to be fighting and cuss themselves out for it. Mikan takes the first strike, almost pinning Fluttershy to the ground with her heavy weapon before the Pegasus shoves her backwards.

*WHOOSH!*

Mikan: Huh!? WAH-!?

*CRACK!*

Mikan: GUAAAGGH!

*SLAM!*

Mikan: OHOUGH!

Fluttershy: HEEEH!

In quick succession, Fluttershy darts between Mikan's legs, kicks her square in the back from behind, grabs her legs and pins her to the ground, similarly to how she does when she's massaging bears, though this is done with the intention of holding Mikan still on the ground.

Fluttershy: Please, just listen to me! I'm sorry I scared you! We don't have to be fighting like this!

Mikan: Haah...! Haaah...! Haaaah...! NRGH!

Fluttershy: YOWCH!

Fluttershy's wishes for peace aren't granted. Mikan gets Fluttershy off of her by grabbing another small needle and stabbing her in the ankle, injecting more of the fluid. Mikan throws Fluttershy off of her, grabs her big weapon, and dives into the trees.

Fluttershy: Wait...! C-Come back...!

Fluttershy calls after her, but the anesthetic makes her even more dizzy, and she's unable to see straight for a moment. Mikan on the other hand, hides behind a rather thick tree trunk in a darker part of the orchard, cradling her body and starting to hyperventilate.

Mikan: What do I do...!? What do I do...!? I don't even know where I am and I...I...!

You hurt them...

Mikan: Geh!?

It never ends...You hurt everybody...

Mikan: Stop...!

She'll kill you...

Mikan: No, no...!

She should...

Mikan: Grrgh...!

Die, you piece of shit...!

Mikan: Forgive me...! Please...forgive me...! I...

She slowly rises to her feet. She then slowly lifts her head, her expression having changed dramatically. The tears stop flowing, her lips stop quivering, she holds her syringe with a tight grip, and her eyes become swirled with layers and layers of anguish and darkness.

Mikan: I won't stop...until you FORGIVE ME!

Fluttershy: Please, c-come out...! I can help you...!

Fluttershy stirs as she suddenly hears the sound of something fast through the leaves behind her. She quickly turns around, but only sees traces of something that was there. She hears the same sound again and turns again, seeing the same thing.

Fluttershy: Human...? Wh-Where are you...!?

Mikan: Here...!

Fluttershy: HUH!?

*SHUUNK!*

Fluttershy: GHAAAAGH!

Fluttershy screams in agony as without a word of warning, besides Mikan's sadistic teasing, she feels the incredibly sharp pang of the giant needle in the back of her body! Though being restrained, Fluttershy turns her head enough to see that Mikan's timid demeanor has gone, and now the look in her eyes bares naught but a despairful rage.

Mikan: Heeheheheheheh! KYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAGH!

Fluttershy: OOPH! RRGGGH!

Mikan: Heeeehehh...Hehehehhehehhheeegh...!

Mikan grabs Fluttershy by her jaw with one hand, holding onto the pony tightly as she uses her other to pump her full of the drugs in her weapon. Fluttershy's vision slowly begins to go dark, and the more the anesthetic enters her system, the weaker she gradually becomes, allowing Mikan to dominate her; baring a sadistic and perverse smile all the while.

Mikan then, to add insult to the very painful injury, kicks Fluttershy onto the ground and bounces off her into the air. While airborne, she once again reaches into her apron and produces several more syringes, which she holds between her fingers. She smiles down at Fluttershy, sticking out her tongue, sweating, and with a face-wide blush of ecstacy.

Mikan: Here's your PRESCRIPTION!

*SHUNK!* *SHUNK!* *SHUNK SHUNK* *SHUNNKKK!*

Fluttershy: KYAAAAAAAAAAAGGH!

The pain is agonizing! Fluttershy is injected with multiple sharp objects all over her body, pumping her full of drugs and rendering her nearly incapacitated and in immense pain, despite the needles causing little bleeding. She begins to lose sensation in her legs and her vision begins to warp. Mikan lands, picks up her enormous syringe, and moves slowly toward the Pegasus, raising the needle above her head for the final blow. All Fluttershy can do is crawl forward helplessly.

Fluttershy: No...Please...d-don't...! Huh?

Though her vision is still shaky, Fluttershy looks forward and meets eyes with a lone fruit bat, which is passing through, unaware of what's really going on with the situation and just looking for apples to eat in the orchard.

The bat glares into her eyes, and despite her agony, something stirs within Fluttershy, and her eyes widen, only to morph into an enraged and deranged frown as she feels her body begin to change...! Meanwhile, Mikan finally lets her chunky syringe fall down towards her head!

Mikan: DIE!

However, much to Mikan's surprise, as soon as she brings the needle down on Fluttershy, the pony disappears. This time, it's HER turn to be surprised when she senses a presence behind her...!

Flutterbat: *HIISSSS*

Mikan: GUAGH! GAGH! *SPLUTTER!*

Fluttershy, now FlutterBAT, smacks Mikan with her now hefty tail, sending her crashing into another tree trunk. Mikan lazily crawls to her feet and glares back at her attacker, who menacingly hangs upside down from a tree branch sucking on an apple.

Mikan: Filthy fucking rabies infested CREATURE!

Flutterbat: *SCREEEECCH!*

Mikan yells these enraged words out while hoisting her syringe over her shoulder before sprinting back into the fray. Similarly, Flutterbat drops from her perch and flies toward the Ultimate Nurse like small plane.

The sheer force of Flutterbat's wings almost knocks Mikan over, but she manages to stand and stabs Fluttershy with her syringe once more. This time, though, she sees that it does much less to slow Fluttershy down.

Mikan: What in the hell ARE you, freak!?

Flutterbat: *SCREEEECCH!*

Flutterbat, naturally, has nothing to say in response, and Mikan's frustration at not being able to gain the upper hand over her opponent grows. But Flutterbat also has trouble dealing Mikan any significant damage. She attempts to bite Mikan in retaliation, but the nurse dodges it and kicks her out of the way, only to have a gust of wind throw her back in turn.

Flutterbat: *HIISSSS*

Mikan: KYRRAAAAAGGH!

Mikan and Flutterbat trade violent blows, with Mikan using her syringe to hit Flutterbat and the former using her tail, sending each other flying back into the trees.

Flutterbat: Agh...Ngh...Hm?

Mikan: Haah...Hagh...HRGH! Huuh! Huuh! Huuh!

The blow into the tree has an interesting effect on Flutterbat as the transformation and continued fighting frees her of the initial effects of Mikan's drug-induced lunacy, making her vaguely come to her senses. When the pony sees the Nurse hyperventilating, clearly in a state of a panic attack, her reason comes back to her.

With it, Flutterbat drops out of her transformation and becomes Fluttershy again. Mikan's panic attack leaves her open to another blow, but Fluttershy refrains.

Before she can do or say anything, the animals from earlier slowly poke their heads out from the bushes, sensing a break in the fighting. Among them, Fluttershy sees the mouse Mikan stepped on earlier, now feeling a lot better, as it squeaks happily, but then squeaks in concern as it looks back towards Mikan.

Fluttershy also looks back at Mikan, who is still on the ground, breathing heavily. She smiles and nods towards her animal companions, as they prepare a plan.

Fluttershy: I...think I understand it now...! Everyone was so afraid of you...but you've been afraid this whole time, right? You must have end

Mikan: Grrgh...Hngh...

Fluttershy: I guess it's true, huh? It's so sad. I'm so sorry...But still...

Fluttershy stamps her hoof on the ground, drawing the panicked and crazed Mikan's attention. Fluttershy then employs her most deadly technique - THE STARE!

Fluttershy: That's NO excuse for your behavior! You need to calm down!

Mikan: ...

Fluttershy: ...

Mikan: Are you making fun of me...! Please! DON'T PICK ON ME!

*SHWOOSH!*

*CLINK!*

Mikan: Huh!?

Fluttershy: Yeah, I somehow knew that wouldn't work...!

Fluttershy giggles, embarrassed that her trick didn't work, but also clearly not having expected it to. But to Mikan's shock and surprise, as she throws another array of needles towards Fluttershy, they seem to bounce off her. In reality, they collide with a forcefield the Pegasus puts around herself.

While distracting Mikan with The Stare, Fluttershy's animal companions hang the golden necklace that is the Element of Kindness around her neck, and Fluttershy does not hesitate to use it's power to protect herself.

Mikan panics and throws more needles, but they also bounce off. Fluttershy bears an expression of sympathy, but also determination as she and her animal friends stride slowly towards the Ultimate Nurse.

Fluttershy: I meant it when I said I don't want to hurt you...But without my friends here...I need to do this...!

*SHIIIIIINE!*

Mikan: KRRGH! H-HUH!?

Mikan is nearly blinded by a light that erupts from Fluttershy's body, and once it dissipates, she looks up in horror to see Fluttershy in her Rainbow Power form.

Fluttershy: I think you should be careful...

Mikan: Wha-!? WAAAGHAAAGH! WHAT IS THIIIIS!?

Fluttershy: It's the most powerful magic in all of Equestria...Friendship!

Mikan: KYRAGH! KYAAAHAGH!

Die...Kill...No...NOOOOO...! STOP! NOOOOOOOO!

Mikan: H-Huh!?

Mikan's eyes shut tight as she's suddenly swept off her feet by a tornado made of rainbows that completely envelops her. However, they shoot open again, not in fear, not in shock or horror...but in clarity.

The voices in her head that drive her into despair...the foundation of her despairing rage...she feels them being washed away, and for the first time in her entire life...she feels free.

However, despite this, her nightmare doesn't appear to be over, as she stares back up at Fluttershy, who's body glows with a white light, and her eyes white out as she's filled with power.

Fluttershy: Heehee...!

*POYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!*

Mikan: K-KYEAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGH!

Fluttershy, with a warm and cheerful smile, and with the animals of the orchard hovering around her in bliss and tranquility, fires a golden beam of light down onto her opponent, and Mikan screams in fear as she sees her body slowly but surely begin to turn into stone! Starting with her feet and working it's way up into her head, the broken Ultimate Nurse becomes a solid frozen ornament.

Fluttershy slowly descends to the ground with her animal friends, and returns to her base form. She's completely healed of every wound she suffered during the fight and her vitality is restored to normal. She and the animals approach the statue and carefully watch it.

Fluttershy: Once my friends arrive, we'll let you go free, and I'll gladly let you join my tea party! ...But for now, I'm sorry, but I have to sit you in time out...

Leona: Ah, poor poor Mikan. First a victim of batshit Danganronpa lore, now a victim of even more batshit My Little Pony lore. But hey, at least she didn't "DIE" die...

Hifumi: Unsurprisingly, this match was pretty clear cut. Though despite the one-sidedness in terms of how each combatants abilities stack up to each others, Mikan Tsumiki DID possess her own fair share of advantages.

Leona: To start with, Mikan's primary way of taking out enemies is using her needles to either rip them to shreds, or inject them with enough anesthetic to send them into comatose. Despite it still being pretty high when scaled to other characters in My Little Pony, Fluttershy's defense is easily her weakest stat, and she's evidently not immune to drugs...and I genuinely can't believe I just said that.

Hifumi: Tsumiki's best shot at winning this fight would be to catch Fluttershy off guard, and inject her with enough sleeping drugs that she falls unconscious and deliver an easy killing blow that way, assuming Fluttershy doesn't somehow die from the overdose. And with her evidently unmatched stealth and speed skills, as well as the fact that she's undoubtedly far more strategic than her Pegasus opponent, it was entirely possible she could get the jump on Fluttershy, who all things considered is very gullible and easily duped, and achieve exactly that!

Leona: That being said, while not IMPOSSIBLE, it was still very unlikely. It took SEVERAL shots, and even Mikan having to distribute basically all of the drugs contained in her claymore needle to render Nagito Komaeda unconscious. This is most likely because Nagito's Ultimate Hope abilities gave him an exponential increase in stamina that allowed him to resist the drugs for a long time, only taking effect with one final shot following several battles in succession.

Hifumi: And based on the calculations of her feats, as well as scaling her to Rainbow Dash in particular, it's likely that Fluttershy's max stamina was MUCH HIGHER than even that.

Leona: As were MOST of Fluttershy's stats at that. Mikan was fast, being able to outpace Nagito Komaeda, who possesses above superhuman speed and reactions, but Fluttershy was DEFINITELY faster, so much so that it's hard to even lock down her maximum speed. Scaling it to Rainbow Dash though, who she was able to keep up with when creating the tornado, we know she's at least faster than light.

Hifumi: In terms of physical strength, in both their base form and Despair and Flutterbat forms respectively, they might have been equal in terms of attack potency, but to reiterate, Mikan Tsumiki's primary weapon is a 150 lbs syringe, and though she IS able to wield it, she does so sluggishly, in a way that Fluttershy just can't NOT dodge easily.

Leona: Another advantage Mikan held was that based on the way the ability works, it's most likely that in her Despair Rage state, she would be immune to Fluttershy's stare, just like Discord and the Flash Bees were, since Mikan is also a very aggressive creature in this state that honestly relishes on fear more than it perturbs her.

Hifumi: However, what Mikan would NOT have been immune to was the Elements of Harmony, and there was no way in hell she was EVER going to beat Fluttershy in her Rainbow Power form. In fact, Fluttershy's power of the Element of Kindness basically countered every ability she had left.

Leona: Her powers could easily allow her to generate a barrier that blocks all of Mikan's weapons and projectiles, and would cleanse of her any lingering effects of the drugs if there were any. And to top it all off, Fluttershy's rainbow tornado would wipe every trace of evil and Despair away from Mikan, effectively taking away her Despair Rage state and every ability and bloodlust along with it. She could also just as easily use the Element of Harmony to turn Mikan to stone like with Discord and the other villains in MLP. You know, if Mikan really is struggling to cope with her past and the Despair still inside her, she should probably ask Fluttershy for therapy. Pretty sure it would do her wonders!

Hifumi: Let's be honest, if these two ACTUALLY met, there's NO WAY they would fight. They have a lot in common, with both of them being pretty wimpy, timid and sweet in their base forms, and not being able to fight at full potential unless angered or despaired. Despite their far from intimidating appearances, both Mrs. Tsumiki and Fluttershy have shown feats of strength and ability far beyond the average human or pony.

Leona: But that is the exact reason why Mikan falls so far of the victory here. One is a human, and the other is a pony. Mikan possesses no form of special combat abilities or powers, but Fluttershy has used her unique abilities alongside her friends to take down opponents like Discord and Tirek; both godly beings far beyond anything Mikan could ever HOPE to take down.

Hifumi: Mikan Tsumiki was a terrifying foe, but Fluttershy's total dominance and undefeatable power of Kindness and Friendship put the Ultimate Nurse in her stone-cold place.

Leona: Though she was Flutter-SHY of victory, fortunately for Mikan, forgiveness is the NEEDLE that knows how to mend!

THE WINNER IS FLUTTERSHY!

Next Time:

The world is under attack and the robot invaders are taking over! But don't worry! These two unlikely teenage heroes are going to step up, fight for and with their families, and take back humanities world! But when the odds collide, which one of these average teenage girls is gonna come out on top?

#Youtube #danganronpa survivor #danganronpa #mikan tsumiki #death battle #warriors of other worlds arc

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whitepeachrum · 3 months ago

Text

Kiss

Fandom: Hetalia (personified) Pairing: Arthur x Kat (EngUkr/UkrEng) Content Length: Chapter (~1500 words)

“You ready yet, my love?” Arthur looked at Kat through the hallway mirror as he fidgeted with his tie. He’d been wearing his ties to work all week and absolutely hated how suffocating he’d felt in them. He would’ve loved to rip the stupid fabric off his neck but decided to hold out for the night. He just knew that Kat would get a big kick out of taking it off his neck later tonight and, honestly, so would he. For that, he was willing to endure his suffering a bit longer.

“Almost.” Her earrings dangled as her head swiveled to look at him. "Need some help with your tie there?"

“No, it’s fine. I can do it myself. Just keep working on your makeup.” He waved his hand and worked on evening out his askew tie. It was always something that had to be imperfect.

“Alright, I'll do just that,” Kat spoke softly. She returned to gingerly apply her makeup in front of the mirror. Kat looked to confirm that her eyeliner was more or less even on both eyes and carried on to layer her lip products as Arthur continued to play with his tie. He must’ve been nervous about their upcoming date. She smirked to herself, finding it charming that he still got nervous before their dates.

Arthur’s eyes darted to her mirrored image, admiring the way she looked so effortless when she applied her lip balm. It looked so much easier than tying a tie. Just one or two swipes and she was done. He loved the simplicity of it all. He especially loved it when she dispersed the product over her lips and gently smacked them together. It was mesmerizing to watch her lips squish and plump out to their natural elasticity. As she started removing some stray product with the tip of her nails, Arthur snapped out of his sudden trance and looked back at himself.

“Ah, goddamn it,” he muttered. He had been mindlessly undoing his tedious work. Kat glanced at his reflection and turned around to help him with the tie. He sighed and let her take care of the mess he's made for himself. Screw this tie.

“Are your fingers tying themselves into a knot?” Kat chuckled.

“Yeah, seems like it.” Arthur nodded, asserting that his flustered state was wreaking havoc on his digits. Something about the idea of getting dressed and slicking your hair back once in a blue moon made him anxious.

“You smell nice, honey. Did you get a new cologne?”

“I did. I thought I’d switch things up a bit for tonight.”

She brought her nose to his neck and took a whiff of his cologne. It seemed to smell like bergamot and... lemon? No. Kat checked again. Orange? Grapefruit? Well, whatever it was, she just couldn't get enough of it.

“Oh, it’s so good. Wow..”

Arthur looked into her sparkly eyes as she leaned back, noticing how big her pupils had become when she looked back at him. He adjusted her bangs so that they weren’t in her eyes when she did. It was like looking into an ocean that beautifully glistened from the setting sun: peaceful and stunning.

“Good. I’ll be sure to wear it more often.” Kat hummed contently in response. She gently pulled him close by the ends of his tie, kissed his lips, and smiled. She was so excited to spend date night with him. Arthur, on the other hand, couldn’t wait to get back home to get more of her kisses.

“You look so handsome tonight,” Kat commented on his attire, patting down his lapels after finishing with his tie. He slid his hands around her waist and kissed her neck. It's a good thing she didn't put any of her makeup there. He just didn't have the heart to ruin her diligent work.

“And you, my dear, look absolutely ravishing.” She gently pushed off of his chest. Kat hoped to get away from his warm hug quickly before either one of them decided to cancel date night altogether, but her actions only made him bring her closer to him. He gave her a firm squeeze and kissed her neck again.

“Arthur,” Kat chuckled at his reaction, “We’re going to be late for dinner!”

“I think they could wait for a few more minutes.”

“Mm. Tempting,” she pecked him back on the lips, “but no. If we want to make it to dinner, I have to finish getting ready.” He looked at his watch to see how much time they had left.

“You’re lucky I love you enough to let you go…” Arthur sighed and gave her butt a gentle, loving pat. She slipped out of his embrace and returned to the mirror to finish up her makeup. After taking a moment to gawk over his wife, he looked at himself in the mirror one last time and groaned.

“Great.” Off-center again. You know what? If Kat couldn’t fix it, chances are this tie was doomed from the start. He moved the tie side to side, gently loosening it. He was fed up with the damn thing.

Kat noted his irritation and decided to distract him from his festering thoughts by including him in her makeup process. She quickly swatched two colors on the back of her hand and turned to face him.

“Which should I go with? Glossy or matte?” Kat showed him two red-colored options. Arthur inspected the swatches and was intrigued that she was going with such a bold color for the evening. The two didn’t vary much in color, but the sheen for one was the polar opposite of the other. He debated which one of these he’d want to be branded with later. Gloss was sticky, but matte was harder to remove… Mm.

“This is a tough decision, Kat.”

“Well, yeah. That’s why I asked you.”

“Hmm.” He brought her hand up to her lips so he could compare the colors better. The gloss would glide on smoothly, but the matte lipstick would look sharper… “I’m thinking the gloss will be good for tonight. Easier to fix if anything.”

“Gloss it is.” She applied the product generously without looking in the mirror to save some time.

“Maybe I should’ve said matte,” Arthur said to himself, second-guessing things.

“How is it? Is it even?” Arthur glanced at the application and nodded.

“Almost perfect.” He picked up a clean tissue and carefully cleaned up anything that stood out. The more he stared at the color, the more he noticed all the different little specks of gold and silver glitter that made her lips look even juicer than before. If they weren’t late, he would’ve loved to take a bite or two.

Arthur subconsciously smacked his lips together in thought and Kat grinned at the little mannerism he picked up from her. It was refreshing to see him put this much care and effort into her new rouge.

“Does it look better now?” She rubbed her lips together to tease him some more.

“Ah. Yeah, it looks great,” he pulled away from her, wiping the lip balm she left on his lips earlier with the napkin, and tossing the used tissue into the bin by the mirror. Arthur put his hands on his waist and re-assessed the makeup combination with her strappy black dress and shiny jewelry. “You look great. Really great, actually.” The matte lipstick probably would’ve looked even better. Damn it.

“I wonder how it would look on you.”

"On me? I don't wear lip gloss like you do."

Kat swiftly planted a kiss on his cheek and took a step back to admire her artwork. Her smile grew wider as she watched Arthur’s face flush from the accessory he sported on his cheek.

“You’re right, darling. It does look great. Reaaally great.” Kat beamed, extremely proud of ruffling some of his feathers. His eyes darted to the mirror behind her and he caught a glimpse of his pink face. He had completely forgotten about the tie by now. He was much more focused on stopping himself from blushing further.

Arthur wanted to hate it for how cheesy it was of her to brand him like that, but he loved that she made him feel like his teenage self. Specifically, the teenage self that showed up to their first date looking like a trainwreck. His flush deepened as he realized how ridiculous he would look in the public eye. But hell, he loved the affectionate stamp. He never thought his date would proudly leave kiss marks on his face like that. It felt like something out of a movie or a dream.

“Should we head out now?” Kat asked, grabbing her little purse and checking for the car keys. Arthur didn’t know what to say or do. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings by ruining her masterpiece, but he didn’t want to leave the ruby residue on his face for the world to see.

“Uh..”

“..What?” she asked innocently, looking over her shoulder. He shyly pointed to his cheek, then returned his hand to his waist, and mumbled something. She raised an eyebrow and smirked. Did he call it a beauty mark? He cleared his throat and looked back at her, waiting for her to do something about it.

“Oh? Did I leave a mark?”

“…Yeah.. Mark..”

“Oh, sorry about that. Let me fix it for you.” She gave his other cheek a matching stain. Arthur’s hand flew over his nose and mouth as he tried to contain his flustered self. He felt his heart working hard to quickly pump the blood to his face as she toyed with his emotions. It didn’t help that she looked so adorable when she played him like that, cocky smile and all. Why did it have to be a bright crimson?! He would've been fine with a peachy gloss!

“I’ll drive tonight, so you can look at the menu in the meantime. We don’t want to waste any more time, do we?” Kat cutely lifted her shoulders and walked out to go to the car. Arthur’s gaze lingered on her, his heart swelling with affection as he watched her leave.

When Kat noticed he wasn’t following, she turned with a huff and made her way back to him. Grabbing him by his tie, she playfully tugged him along.

“Come on. Don't make me help you with this tie again. I only know how to untie it.”

Arthur’s teenage self would’ve combusted if he knew how his love life was going to turn out.

#hetalia #aph england #aph ukraine #engukr #ukreng #whitepeachrum #wpr snippets #*bo burnham voice* how are we feeling about engukr?#should i continue posting more of these snippets here??#do we want less of these snippets??

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midorishinji · 9 months ago

Text

Necroromance

The man seemed happy… No, more than that: he seemed genuinely in love with his wife. Adoration filled his eyes anytime they danced, and she recognized this familiar look. She recognized it now, as she and Johan danced. It had always been there, hidden when he was alive, but so much clearer now. Unmistakable.

Johan x Phanora Kristoffel ｜Oneshot｜Based on this Tumblr post｜Also published in Portuguese and on AO3

There are few known rules to necromancy, as Phanora Kristoffel well knows. Do not raise a person back from the dead without their — or a first-degree family member’s — consent. Do not resurrect an incomplete or otherwise subpar corpse. Do not forget to maintain the undead, unless you want them to lose consciousness and wreak havoc. Everything else is sort of up to debate: some necromancers do not resurrect an undead that has not expressed the desire to be brought back, regardless of family’s wishes; some do not bring back those who have lived a long, fulfilling life, and others will not resurrect victims of suicide. She always had her own personal code of honor to follow.

Johan was her first undead to be resurrected. He was also her first (and only) exception to many of those rules.

When he first came back, he was quiet. Always observing, always attentive, but never daring to speak: a round of dissection later revealed his vocal cords were as they should have been, and he was by all physical means capable of speaking. Still, he did not mutter a word for long, silent weeks of being encouraged to say something, anything . Phanora thought he might have suffered some kind of brain damage, and considered another dissection, and this is when he finally spoke.

— Ouch, again? That kind of hurts.

Wasn’t he under anesthesia back then? Oh, right . It doesn’t work that well on the undead. The books mentioned a 50 to 60% chance of propofol not properly sedating them, so she mixed it with opioids for additional pain relief and sedation… Apparently, it didn’t work, and she did not know that. Maybe benzodiazepines would have been better, as they induce anterograde amnesia. Maybe she should recalculate the dosage. That information would be useful for future purposes.

— So you can speak. — she said, surprised.

He seemed embarrassed. — Just got nothing to say, that’s all.

— Then answer when talked to. It’s impolite to ignore me.

No more dissections. Johan grew confident enough to talk, maybe even a little too confident, sometimes talking for hours on end with no particular subject in mind, and even addressing her informally. Deep down, Phanora knew this was not the sort of relationship undead and master should have: there is a power imbalance for a good reason — she brought him back, and he should have been nothing more than a servant. But before being an undead, he was no such thing, and old habits die hard. He could still call her by her first name, no honorifics as he used to, she didn’t mind. He could still touch her, and hold her close, and complain of how cold her skin felt. It didn’t matter what other people would think.

But one day, Johan said words that should have been forbidden. — You know, I think I’m in love with you. Just a little bit, though.

— You’re not. — Phanora simply answered, without looking away from her cup of tea — It’s just part of the spell, I assume. You’re probably confused because one way or another, our souls are connected.

She did not look up not because she thought the matter wasn’t important: she didn’t do so because she wasn’t brave enough to face the truth presented to her, or the truth inside herself. No books ever mentioned love being a side effect of necromancy.

Still, he did not give in. — What, you think I’m confused? That all undeads end up in love with their masters? I’ll prove you wrong.

— Be my guest.

— How many people have you revived, anyway?

That was a low blow, and he knew that. Resurrecting people left and right was against Phanora’s code of honor and at that time, he had been the first and only to be given that grace. Others had perished while begging for her gift. He should consider himself lucky to even stay by her side, for whatever contrived reason she had, that’s what everyone always said.

But the immovable obstacle that was Phanora’s will did not bulge. She did not raise her voice, nor did she dismiss him. She didn’t even offer him a change in facial expressions to indicate anything, neither displeasure nor amusement. — If I revive someone else, we can put that theory to the test.

Then came the war. During and after it, the casualties piled up high, corpse mountains that reached the sky in ungodly defiance. People begged her to bring back their loved ones: widows who grieved their soldier husbands, fathers and mothers who went crazy with the loss of their children, governments desperate for their heroes back, armies who needed an infinite supply of soldiers to die on a battlefield. Phanora turned down the vast majority of them: some could not afford the price of necromancy, and others were not worthy of it. One such exception was the widow of a war hero, who died trying to save a group of children from an airstrike.

Phanora brought him back, and Johan waited for the worse, that he was actually wrong and the hero brought back would sweep the witch off her feet and take her away from him. And, secretly, Phanora waited to be wrong. She had been wrong before, many times, even: necromancy was a forgotten craft and most of the books had only captured the early dawn of the forbidden art, but not the current knowledge; most of what was known was passed around in whispers, and the voices who used to speak were long gone. She could be wrong — Hell, she should be , it would be a welcome surprise, even if both possibilities were frightening. Days passed. Weeks. Long months of absolutely boring silence, until a letter from the ex-widow arrived: the witch had been invited to their tenth marriage anniversary, at which the couple was expected to renew their vows.

— You were wrong. Ha. Told you so.

The incomparable satisfaction in Johan’s voice would have been grating in any other circumstances, she thought, but not right now. — It’s a small sample. If you want to conduct a valid experiment, you need a bigger pool sample to reduce the risk of bias, that’s how science works.

— Sounds like a load of bullshit to me. Doesn’t change the fact that I’m in love with you.

— He probably would never fall for me, considering he was resurrected for someone else, someone who already had his heart long before he died. That could be different if I had resurrected him for my own personal use.

A sly smile went through his lips. — So you did resurrect me for you, huh… Fine. Enlarge your sample, or whatever. Bring back more people. Actually, we could use a gardener. Maybe a cook, too, you’re always so picky about food…

She did not humor his half-serious comments, nor did she argue about her work ethic. Maybe Johan was right, and she was running away from facing it. Either possibility was thoroughly frightening.

The months went by and the number of undead raised by the Profound Witch grew. Some of them were bound to someone else already, like the war hero; some were for her own personal use, like moles to spy on enemies, and a cook. Johan appreciated the help, as he disliked preparing meals, even if she would not admit she did this to make his life easier: tea was prepared by him still, always, and he was urged to accompany the witch in this silly little play pretend of a meal (as neither of them needed to eat), a wish he took pleasure in granting her. No matter the number of undead, who they were bound to, or their gender, age and preferences, none of them ever loved Phanora Kristoffel. Day by day, it grew harder to deny the truth.

Phanora should have turned down the invitation to the anniversary ball of her second resurrected, the war hero. That would have been a sensible response: witches were not welcome everywhere, and necromancy is largely taboo. Yet, she confirmed her presence, out of curiosity. She didn’t care about the opulent ballroom they rented, nor the expensive food, nor the exotic drinks. The man seemed happy… No, more than that: he seemed genuinely in love with his wife. Adoration filled his eyes anytime they danced, and she recognized this familiar look. She recognized it now, as she and Johan danced. It had always been there, hidden when he was alive, but so much clearer now. Unmistakable.

— How do you know you’re in love? — she asked him.

— I just do.

— Then why?

— I wouldn’t be able to explain it when I was alive. But now I just know you would go to the deepest parts of Hell for me as I would for you, and that’s enough.

He was right: it was enough to know that. Enough to stop denying, to stop trying to disprove it scientifically, to stop beating around the bush. Necroromance magic was sort of stupid, anyway. Phanora pulled him closer, and this time he did not complain of her coldness.

#fanfiction #fanfic #writing #ao3 #majo to yajuu #phanora kristoffel #johan #the witch and the beast

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thedemoninmywalls · 6 months ago

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Sick

Aro gets her period. CW: Graphic period sex acts, vomit

Aro groaned when she saw the bloodstain on her bedsheets in the morning.

She was already exhausted from the endless nights with Rire, and getting her period certainly did not help. Her stomach ached and her legs felt heavy and swollen.

Technically she could take a sick day, but it was better to suffer at work than stay at home with Rire. Anything was better than staying at home with Rire, especially when she already felt sick.

Aro swallowed some pain medicine and went to work. The pain slowly faded but the changes in her body wreaked havoc on her emotions, worsening her mood as the day went on. When the dreaded hour finally came to go home, she felt even more sour than usual.

She entered her apartment to find Rire sitting in the living room, calmly sipping some tea. He looked up from his book when she walked in.

“How was work today?”

Without answering, Aro walked straight past him towards the kitchen. He followed her, watching as she looked for something to eat.

“Trying to ignore me, pet?” Rire frowned, leaning against the doorway. “You know that won't work.”

“Leave me alone,” Aro snapped, turning towards him. “I'm not in the mood to deal with your bullshit.”

“Nor am I to deal with yours. And when I demand your attention, I expect you to give it immediately.”

He moved forward suddenly and shoved her, bending her backwards over the kitchen table. She yelped in surprise as thick tentacles shot out of his back and pinned her hands to the table.

“Now take your punishment like a good little toy,” Rire purred in her ear.

“W-Wait!” Aro shrieked.

Too late. He yanked down her skirt and underwear so that both fell around her ankles. His eyes widened when he saw the blood between her thighs, matting her pubic hair.

“I thought I smelled it,” he muttered, almost to himself. “You humans are so disgusting, did you know that?”

Before Aro could retort, Rire thrust two of his fingers inside her. She cried out and leaned her head back, shutting her eyes against the unwelcome intrusion.

Grinning wildly, Rire scratched her insides until tears streamed down Aro's cheeks.

“Please please stop–!!”

She sobbed helplessly, despite knowing full well that her tears only motivated him further. Her body always betrayed her.

When he finally pulled out his fingers, they were bright red with menstrual blood. He looked at them disdainfully, as though he had touched something gross by accident.

“Open wide,” he ordered, roughly forcing her jaws apart. His bloody fingers went into her mouth.

Aro choked and gagged as Rire’s fingers invaded her throat. The taste of her own menstrual blood was more than she could handle.

Sensing that she had reached her limit, Rire released her hands and stepped back. Aro immediately turned over and vomited all over the kitchen floor.

She leaned against the kitchen table, heaving long after her stomach had nothing left to throw up. Blood streamed down her legs in a heavy flow.

The kitchen was covered in vomit and blood and other bodily fluids.

When her breathing had calmed down a little, Rire spoke up.

“Go. You need to take a shower.”

“But…the mess,” Aro protested weakly. “I need to cle–”

“I’ll clean it up,” he decided firmly. “You should go clean yourself up.”

Feeling numb, Aro obediently stumbled towards the bathroom. Her legs were unsteady and aching.

Internally she was grateful that Rire was cleaning up - with his tentacles, he would get it done much faster than she ever could. There were too many times when she had been left to clean up the mess by herself.

Thankfully, it felt good to peel off her bloody clothes and step into the hot streams of water. Watching her blood wash away down the drain, Aro almost felt like a person again.

When she was done, she stepped out of the shower - and directly into Rire’s arms.

“Mm, you smell nice and clean now,” he buried his nose in her wet hair, sniffing it. “Get dressed and come eat. I made dinner.”

He walked away, leaving Aro puzzled. Rire never made dinner. She didn't think he knew how to cook. She had never even seen him eat food.

And yet when she got dressed and stepped into the sparkling clean kitchen, a delicious smell beckoned her forward.

There was meat and pasta with a side of veggies on a plate set for her, all of it slick with oil and fragrant with spices. It was rich and creamy, comfort food at its finest.

Aro sat down at the table, glancing warily between Rire and the food. She thought she had lost her appetite, but now her stomach grumbled hungrily.

“Did you poison it?” she asked finally.

“Of course not,” Rire pretended to look offended. “Why would I do that?”

Cautiously, Aro took a bite. It tasted amazing. She ate everything on her plate. Rire sat across from her and watched as she devoured the whole pot like she was starving. He had made just enough so that she felt satisfied but not uncomfortably full.

“Did you poison it?” she asked again when she had finished.

“No,” Rire smiled. “But I did slip in some crushed sleeping pills.”

“Why?”

“Because you need to sleep, little human. No one else is looking out for you. Just me.”

Suddenly Aro found that she didn't have the strength to retort. Her eyelids drooped and her head felt heavy. Whatever sleeping pills he had used sure acted fast.

She barely struggled when he picked her up, bridal style, and carried her to her bed. She didn't protest when he laid down beside her, his hands slipping over her body and rubbing her sensitive parts.

As sleep forcibly took her mind, Aro realized that this was Rire’s way of taking care of her when she was sick.

#the demon in my walls #self ship #boyfriend to death #canon x self insert #btd rire #lucien rire #btd fanfic

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repelomuggletum · 1 year ago

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Listen, I’ve always been fascinated by Grindeldore...

First of all: yes, I'm aware that it's not exactly the least problematic ship. It canonically suffers from the "kill your gays" trope, and it's only canon because JKR retconed it and didn't care enough to actually write queer characters in her series (though, quite frankly, I wouldn't trust her to write queer characters at all, considering her incredibly harmful ideology).

However, I love the potential.

We don't see enough of Grindelwald (in the original HP series, because I am consciously ignoring the fact that the Fantastic Beasts movies exist) to know much about his personality or how he would interact with Dumbledore, but he's canonically very powerful and, because he evidently had a large following, it's likely that he was also charismatic. Dumbledore is also both of these things, wielding enough power to not only defeat Grindelwald but also terrify Voldemort, and being charismatic enough to be a politician and essentially a war leader. Watching two people like that interact would be fascinating, especially in a context where they care for each other without agreeing with each other. The tension would be palpable.

Still, my favorite thing about the ship isn't really the dynamics -- it's the tragedy. Dumbledore may have been misguided in his youth but he eventually grew to recognize that conquering and subjugating muggles would be bad, actually, and he acted accordingly: he began to dedicate a decent portion of his life to advocating not only for muggles and muggleborns but also other marginalized members of society (eg: letting Remus attend Hogwarts and employing Dobby). Now, I'm not saying that he does it well but, considering the state and prejudices of most of wizarding Britain, his actions seem almost radical. This, combined with him actively working against dark lords and being instrumental in their defeats, paints a pretty clear picture of him, morally speaking.

Grindelwald, on the other hand, was obsessed with power and did horrific things for it, never seeming to learn his lesson. Because of his relegation to the status of a minor character, we don't know that much about him other than the fact that, due to the very nature of the time he was active and what war his conflicts were running parallel to (and the fact that his name seems German, or at least Germanic), the narrative is implying that he's wizard H*tler. Naturally, that doesn't frame him in a good light, morally speaking. He never gets a redemption, either -- I've seen it suggested that Grindelwald intentionally lost his final battle against Dumbledore out of love but there's no actual evidence for that in HP, especially considering how it's mentioned that their final duel was legendary, implying that neither of them held back (and, in any case, losing a fight is not really deserving of redemption) -- though an argument can be made in regards to his final moments. The problem is, we’ll never know for certain whether Grindelwald’s refusal to admit that Dumbledore had the Elder Wand was him honoring what was most definitely Dumbledore’s wishes for the knowledge to be kept secret or if he was still upset that he’d lost ownership of it and he didn’t want anyone else, including Voldemort, to get it.

The bottom line is: Grindelwald and Dumbledore are moral opposites. Any reasonably healthy relationship between them would require a massive shift in personal/moral values (and this is not me saying that people with different values can’t have a happy relationship, but Grindelwald and Dumbledore are two extremes that simply aren’t compatible).

And that’s the tragedy of the whole thing.

Dumbledore is forever haunted by the specter of his relationship with Grindelwald. When Rita Skeeter publishes her biography about him, she talks at length about the summer of 1899, when the two had been lovers and co-conspirators. She mentions how he’d been the one to coin the very phrase that Grindelwald would later use to wreak mass havoc across Europe. There’s no way that someone like Albus Dumbledore, who seemed to prize moral virtue, would ever truly cope with what he’d had a hand in creating.

Grindelwald, on the other hand, was defeated by the very man he’d used to care for and is left imprisoned for fifty years with nothing to do but ponder his actions. Again, we don’t know enough about him to know his thoughts, but -- in the case of someone as ruthless and charismatic as a dark lord -- there was probably rage and betrayal, a sense that someone that used to be his had done this to him.

To me, Grindeldore is not about how they’d be together but rather how they’re affected by the aftermath. Even separated by several countries and fifty years, they will never be rid of each other. Grindelwald was the one to open Dumbledore’s eyes to the injustices of the world and Dumbledore was the one who ultimately foiled all of Grindelwald’s plans.

Grindeldore, in its purest form, is a tragedy, and I find it absolutely fascinating.

#harry potter #hp #meta #harry potter meta #grindeldore #dumbledore x grindelwald #gellert grindelwald #grindelwald #dumbledore #albus dumbledore #also: fuck jkr #terfs dni <3

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hungryistrying · 2 years ago

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it would be a hundred times easier (if we were young again)

summary:

"How about," he swallows, and Jinx's eyes are drawn to the bobbing of his throat, "we call a truce?"

Her eyes snap back up to his face, and she mockingly grins. "Oh? You don't wanna kill me?"

"Haven't decided yet," he shoots back. "Let's make it out of here alive first and raincheck that."

And Jinx's grin widens at his response. She's always loved playing with Ekko because he's so good at playing with her too.

Jinx loves picking a fight wherever she goes. Ekko just so happened to be along for the ride.

rating: mature

word count: 4796

crossposted to ao3

Most days are a blur to Jinx. Her awareness and lucidity dulled by violent snippets of a past she doesn't want to remember. They occupy her mind like a kaleidoscope of bad memories. Flashes of Vi slapping her and confirming her worst fears; of Vander’s corpse lying there and it being her fault; of Mylo and Claggor dying because of her mistakes. On the days when her head was so loud, and it was just too much to bear, Silco would help keep her from spiraling out of control.

But today is not most days, and Silco…Silco isn't around anymore to help her either. So Jinx does what a jinx does best. From her outpost on one of the bridge's towers, she gleefully watches as the enforcers' precinct she set alight goes up in smoke and flames.

She had waited with bated breath for those slowpoke enforcers to spot her looking down on them from her post on a rooftop nearby. She made a quick scan of their faces as they began to point at her and take their guns out. When she didn't spot a familiar mob of pink hair in the crowd, her grin fell, and her excitement momentarily dimmed.

With a frustrated sigh, she stands up from her post, reaching for the bombs holstered to her side and pulling their pins before tossing them down into the crowd. Jinx cackles as she hears more screams of panic erupt from the crowd below. Oh, they're so cute when they freak out.

Their bullets shoot right past her through the blaze of smoke and the erratic way in which she makes her grand escape. She hops from one rooftop to the other with practiced ease as her bombs explode in the distance.

"Vi wasn't there," Mylo's treacherous voice taunts. "You know she doesn't care about you anymore, right?"

Jinx grits her teeth and snaps, "Shut up. You don't know anything."

She ignores him as she continues to run, looking over her shoulder and watching the few unscathed enforcers struggle to give chase. The sight makes her cackle as she continues to run.

Vi might not have been there, but she was still able to wreak havoc, and Jinx has no doubt this'll reach her sister and that dumb girlfriend of hers one way or another.

The moment plays over and over in her mind. Silco and Vi yelling– Mylo and Claggor terrorizing her…And worst of all Vander, with his quiet, disappointed expression– Then Jinx picks up the sound of a gun being reloaded and her body moves on auto-pilot, shooting rounds of bullets–

And then she realizes she killed her own father.

Another family member dead because of her; because she's a jinx.

And Vi…Vi didn't get it. Vi didn't care. She just wanted Powder…but already Powder died, right along with their brothers and Vander.

So Jinx decided she didn't want Vi anymore– didn't need her anymore. And she did what she does best and blew up the council's building. One final fuck you for all the ways in which they've ruined her life; for all the ways they practically led her down this destructive path.

When she pulled the trigger it had been in rage, agony, bitterness, and spite. Yet as she watched her rocket hit the council room – watched it explode in a flurry of fire and smoke – she felt nothing at all.

Jinx had done it. Had destroyed the source of all her misery. Those disgusting, high and mighty councilmen who drowned in luxury while everyone in the undercity suffered. She'd avenged Silco; the father who’d cared for her and accepted her unlike anyone else; the father who she killed with her own gun.

And she felt nothing. Her head was quiet for once, and instead, everything else was so loud. Screams of terror. Rocks crumbling. sirens. Panic– The chaos around her allowed her to drown out the hisses, prickles, and whispers in her head for once.

And Jinx started laughing. Hysterically. She laughed until tears filled her eyes– and then she was bawling. Everything was always so, so loud, but for a moment in time, it was finally quiet—a moment's reprieve from her mind's self-inflicted torture.

But the bliss didn't last long. The voices– the hallucinations, they reared their ugly heads back around, haunting her day and night. And so, Jinx realized she needed more; more chaos; more pretty explosions; more destruction. It's what she's best at and it was the only thing keeping the ghosts of her past at bay.

And well, if the added benefit was further riling up Vi– Vi, who was a traitor; Vi who had become an enforcer, everything she said she would stand against– and her newly-appointed sheriff of a girlfriend, then how was Jinx possibly supposed to resist?

When Jinx at last makes it back to the undercity, she weaves through its nooks and crannies unnoticed. She knows these streets better than the back of her hand, silently slipping into the parts only occupied by shimmer-addled addicts who are too far gone to even register her presence.

"Stay in formation! She'll pluck us off one by one if we spread out." Jinx halts her step at the enforcer's booming voice, peaking out of the back alley and spotting two dozen or so enforcers from her position.

Oh, they managed to track her down here? Not too shabby. Jinx grinned, playing with Pow-Pow at her side. She'll have fun figuring out how she's going to take them all out.

Before she can get to the fun, however, she'll have to figure out what exactly she's up against. Grasping onto a vent pipe for leverage, she quietly lifts herself up and climbs to the roof of the shabby building, making sure to stay out of sight as she raises herself onto the vantage point.

"Let's have a look now," Jinx mutters under her breath, reaching for her spyglass and looking through it.

She spots dozens of enforcers down below, all clad in full gear and walking in a boring, neat formation as they scan the slums for any sight of her. Twenty-seven enforcers. That's totally doable. Jinx hums as she snaps shut her spyglass, climbing down the roof.

She quietly lands in the back alley again. Let's see, what would be the best way to sneak up on–

"Where'd that bastard go?!"

What the hell?

Jinx presses herself against the wall. That voice is too close for comfort when she's very much still in hiding. She swerves her head in the direction of the booming voice, making sure to stay low so she doesn't get spotted from her position.

A group of mercenaries carrying chemtech makes their way through the streets, checking all nooks and crannies while kicking down everything in their way.

The chembarons' goons? Jinx frowns in confusion. Who the hell are they looking for? She hasn't done anything to piss them off lately…As far as she remembers, at least.

The enforcers and those thugs spot each other, but neither bothers acknowledging the other, simply going about their own way. Jinx clicks her tongue. Well shucks, this makes things a teeny bit harder. Just because she hasn't done anything to those dumb barons as of late doesn't mean they like her either.

Great, now she gets to fight them too. Whoever they're really after better write her a thank-you note after she's done here.

She cranes her head as far as she can without getting spotted. Their numbers combined make…forty-six people for Jinx to fight. She can make that work, it'll be a challenge but that just makes it all the more fun when she's killed them all.

Jinx excitedly weaves her way deeper and deeper through one of the undercity's many alleys. Oh, how she can't wait to ambush those dumb oafs and take them all down.

Abruptly, she stops dead in her tracks. A faint rustling can be heard from around the corner. Now, what the hell is that sound?

Jinx unstraps her gun, placing her finger on the trigger and turning the corner with the gun aimed at the source of the noise–

The clockhand stops mere inches in front of her face, just as Jinx's finger precariously hovers over the trigger. She's greeted by a familiar owl mask and can't help the grin that spreads on her face. "Well, what do you know? It's the boy savior again."

For a moment, he doesn't answer and they both remain frozen in place. Waiting to see what the other will do before making their next move. Then Ekko uses one hand to remove his mask, letting it rest around his neck and pushing his hood back.

A scowl is plastered onto his face as he says, his voice impassive, "So you’re still alive."

"Could say the same to you." They circle around each other, weapons still pointed at one another as they assess the situation.

"Fuck, where's that stupid little bird?!" they hear one of the men yell again.

Ekko frowns at the sound before returning his attention back to her. He presses the cold metal bar against the column of her throat, making her step backward until her back is pressed against the wall. And Jinx lets him because she's always loved playing games with him. Her finger is still on the trigger of her gun, pointed at Ekko.

And he's close now. Very close. The cold metal is at odds with the heat radiating from his body. And maybe the timing is terrible, but it excites Jinx how she can count his individual lashes from here, how he's nearly pressed up right against her.

"How about," he swallows, and Jinx's eyes are drawn to the bobbing of his throat, "we call a truce?"

Her eyes snap back up to his face, and she mockingly grins. "Oh? You don't wanna kill me?"

"Haven't decided yet," he shoots back. "Let's make it out of here alive first and raincheck that."

And Jinx's grin widens at his response. She's always loved playing with Ekko because he's so good at playing with her too.

He steps away from her, and even though he cautiously lowers his weapon, he still grips it tight as he waits on her response.

Ignoring the disappointing coldness she feels now that he's no longer in her personal space, Jinx puts her gun back in its holster and asks, "I'm guessing you're the reason the chembarons' oafs are running around?"

"Are you the reason a bunch of enforcers are on alert right now?" Ekko shoots back.

Jinx rolls her eyes, "Okay, smartass. What are they even after you for?"

"That's my business," he shuts her down, rounding near the corner of the alley with a frown as he observes their soon-to-be enemies.

"Already counted, there's forty-six of them," she supplies, slinking up beside him and leaning against the wall. "Come on, don't be so boring. Tell me yours and I'll tell you mine?"

Ekko studies her for a moment and then just shakes his head, amusement dancing in his eyes and his tone light as he asks, "No need. You blew up one of their buildings again, didn't you?"

Jinx scowls. Sheesh, was she getting that predictable? She should do something to switch it up. Maybe she could plan a heist…The Ecliptic Vaults sounds like a good place.

"Whatever," she scoffs. "We gonna kick their asses or what?"

He nods, putting his mask and hood back on before he asks, his voice now distorted, "What's the plan?"

"The plan is," she takes her gun back out, ensuring every chamber is loaded, before taking out a smoke grenade, "we get 'em before they know what hit them."

Jinx feels like she can see his unimpressed expression through his mask, and she just grins when he shakes his head and reaches for his hoverboard. "Fine, just don't get in my way."

"Me?" She spins to him in disbelief. "Worry about yourself, boy savior."

He shakes his head in disbelief, turning his hoverboard on and stepping on it with one foot. "I'm never worried." With that, he flies off.

Jinx rolls her eyes but readies her own position, pulling the pin on the smoke grenade and tossing it down in the middle. She grins at the collective panic it awakens, her enemies startling and aiming to bat the grenade away with their weapons. It's just a smokescreen, but that’s exactly what she needs.

Taking advantage of their panic and now-reduced vision, she quietly sneaks behind the two enforcers furthest in the back and unpins two flame chompers, hooking each to their back.

"Surprise!" she gleefully yells, giving away her position, before pushing both enforcers deeper into the crowd and backing away herself as her bombs explode.

Jinx cackles at the smell of smoke and panic, at the sound of fear and chaos. This is what she lives for. Noise so loud and sights so violently vivid that they drown out any terrorizing vision her mind might conjure.

They try to shoot at her, but by the time those slowpokes finally come to their wits she's already on the move, gunning down as many as she can before evading. Three, four, five, six, seven, eight– she counts before she's on the move again.

Another smoke grenade hits the ground, further obscuring everyone's vision before they realize where exactly Jinx is – who has already taken momentary shelter to reload her gun. She realizes it must've been Ekko, who effortlessly glides in and out of the cloud of smoke, as she hears the familiar whirl of that hoverboard and screams of panic and curses erupt from the crowd of mercenaries.

She grins as rolls her gun's cylinder back into place and jumps back into the chaos. They both focus on their own sides as they fight, not meddling with the other but further perpetuating the air of chaos and panic that makes it hard for their enemies to catch them.

Suddenly Ekko shouts "On your left!" Jinx startles but doesn't hesitate to immediately spin to her left, knocking out the enforcer who nearly caught her off-guard.

The shimmer in her veins makes the hit lethal, and she catches Ekko staring at her in the aftermath. She simply smiles at him as the glow fades from her eyes, “Surprise!” He shakes his head but brings his focus back to the fight, dodging a hit from one of the mercenaries in front of him.

Jinx hates working with people. She's used to being told that she's a liability because they don't see the method behind her madness, to people getting in her way. But Ekko doesn't, seamlessly adjusting to her fighting style while staying focused on the fight in front of him.

As she shoots wildly and throws bombs left and right, he keeps on the move on his hoverboard, making sure to never get hit by any of them (the mercenaries he's fighting are not as fortunate). Every once in a while, when she's too caught up reveling in the violence, he shoots another warning, making sure no one catches her off-guard.

Jinx remains aware of Ekko in her periphery, who keeps on the move as he takes down their opponents one by one. She notices a mercenary with a chemtech arm waiting on Ekko, waiting for him to be unable to change his trajectory so she can knock him off the hoverboard.

Jinx attempts to yell out a warning, but before she can so much as blink, a light flashes from the device on Ekko’s back–

In a flash, he’s gone. The mercenary nearly loses her balance as she punches nothing but thin air. And Ekko – who has somehow, inexplicably teleported back to where he was only a few seconds ago – takes advantage of the mercenary’s stupor and hits her in the head with his clock hand as he flies by again.

Startled, Jinx can only dumbly blink. As if sensing her eyes on him, Ekko turns back to her, and with that distorted voice, he says, “You’re not the only one with surprises.”

Jinx can’t hold back the bewildered laughter that bubbles in her throat, even as she just barely dodges a hit from an enforcer in front of her, who she shoots in the head as retaliation.

When the remaining enforcers and mercenaries finally decide to use their little brains, they group together to take both of them down. Jinx and Ekko are faster and more agile than them all, but they’re also getting tired, worn down by the duration of the fight and the scrapes and bruises they’ve collected. And so their enemies– a dozen or two left if she had to eyeball it– are becoming hard to manage.

They need to reduce their numbers and Jinx has a brilliant idea. Reaching for her minigun, she yells, “Hey, boy savior, give me a ride!” as she turns the gun on. Ekko doesn’t hesitate, catching onto her plan and flying in her direction. He grabs onto her waist and uses the momentum to lift her up on his hoverboard.

Both the enforcers and mercenaries look like blurry flashes this way. Jinx cackles as the wind blows past her face, recklessly shooting at them all as Ekko soars through the air too quickly for their opponents to accurately shoot either of them.

“I can’t hold on much longer,” Ekko yells over the wind, his hoverboard momentarily sputtering at their weight. “Tell me when to drop you.”

Jinx turns off her minigun, unhooking one of her flaming chompers and tossing it in the middle of the crowd. They disperse with panicked screams as it explodes, a grin spreading across her face at the sight. “Now!”

At her signal, he doesn’t waste time dropping her into the crowd. Jinx doesn't hesitate as soon as she hits the ground, invigorated by the smell of smoke and blood that hangs in the air.

They're onto her like coyotes, but she's faster and more vicious. For every bruise they give her, she punches one of them in the throat; for every scratch they get on her, she shoots one in the chest.

They call for someone to get reinforcements, and she thinks good, more. Even as she runs out of bullets, even as her arsenal of explosives starts feeling lighter.

Jinx thinks she may hear someone yelling her name, but she's not sure if it's real or just in her head. She doesn't really care either, taking advantage of the shimmer in her veins to become faster and lighter and stronger until she feels like she might explode with it.

Someone manages to hit her back with a baton – she grunts at the impact, her skin and bones screaming with pain – before turning around to hit the enforcer in the head with the back of her gun. She's long run out of ammunition.

"Jinx!"

Ekko? Why is he–

Her head explodes with pain.

And then her vision goes black.

Everything is dark. Dark, cold, and quiet. All Jinx hears is a steady drip of water as she slowly regains her awareness.

What the hell? Wasn't she in the middle of a fight? Jinx groans as she feels a dull ache all throughout her sore body. Yep, she was definitely in a fight.

"Jinx?" her eyes flutter open at the quiet sound of Ekko's voice.

She realizes her head is resting on his thigh when she looks up at him. Jinx attempts to sit upright and hisses when she feels a sharp pain in the back of her head.

"Easy now," Ekko says, gently lowering her head on his thigh, "you got hit pretty bad." He holds a hand in front of her face and asks, "Can you tell me how many fingers I'm holding up?"

"Four, I'm not that out of it." Jinx groans, glaring at him.

He lets out an amused hum and lowers his hand again. "Well, at least you don't have a concussion."

Jinx attempts to sit up again, much more slowly this time. Something slides off her shoulder and into her lap, and she realizes Ekko covered her with his jacket. Ignoring the pull she feels in her chest at that, she asks, "So where are we?"

She hears him take a deep, sharp breath beside her before he answers, "Benzo's old shop…"

At his response, her body tenses. Her eyes flicker around the room, recognizing the layout of the now desecrated backroom. Dust and cobwebs cloud the old place, and rust decorates whatever machinery still remains there.

When they weren’t in the old hideout, Ekko and Jinx spent a lot of time tinkering here as kids. This brings back memories. And there’s nothing Jinx hates more than her old memories.

She mercifully gets snapped out of her thoughts when she hears shouts from the streets down below. “Where did they go?! Don’t let those little rats escape!”

“Damn reinforcements,” Ekko curses under his breath, peaking out of the dust-covered window to no doubt observe the mercenaries now searching for the both of them.

"What the fuck happened?" she grunts, eyebrows furrowing as the full extent of her headache hits her. The shimmer in her veins took care of the brunt of it, but shit, that still hurt.

"Someone knocked you out, genius," he says. "I kept trying to warn you, but you wouldn't listen and then one of them hit you in the head. So I grabbed you and got us both out of there to hide."

Jinx clicks her tongue, disappointed, “We totally could've won."

“Yeah,” he agrees, his lips quirking up, “we were handing them their asses.”

Despite the unfortunate ending, she can’t help but grin as she thinks back on the fight. “Guess we make a pretty good team.”

At her words, Ekko’s smile falters. He looks at her thoughtfully, brushing some dirt off her forehead. His voice is quiet as says, “I guess we do…”

The air between them feels too vulnerable, too tentative. Jinx can’t stand being looked at like that by him. So she turns away from him, leaning out of his touch and clearing her throat. Ekko doesn’t say anything, but it still unsettles her.

So she scowls at him, and abruptly complains, "But why did you run? We almost had them all.”

"Me?" Ekko scoffs, taking the bait. "If you'd just listened to me and backed off when I told you to, you wouldn't have gotten your head bashed in."

"You're the one that dropped me into that crowd," she hisses, tossing his jacket in his lap, "remember?"

"I dropped you into that crowd," he twists his body to face her, his face contorting in irritation, "after you told me to. Or did you conveniently forget about that?"

And perhaps none of this really matters in the aftermath, but Jinx has always loved getting a rise out of Ekko. He’s still trying to keep his temper in check. But Jinx knows how to read his little tells. The furrow between his brow, the way he clenches his jaw, and his shoulders tense. It’s all so easy to read now that he’s this close to her.

“And what a good listener you are,” she sardonically laughs. “Since I was caught up in the middle isn’t obvious that you were supposed to back me up, little man?” She wields the old nickname against him like a weapon.

He bristles for a moment, and she thinks he might finally snap at her so she can have a little fun.

Instead, he takes a deep breath and with a collected sort of rage says, “I was too busy fighting off their backup to play support, Pow.” Her entire body tenses at the sound of her old nickname. “Maybe you would’ve noticed that if you’d listened to me.”

She grabs him by his scarf, pulling him closer and crumpling the material in her fist. Her voice is tight as she practically spits out, “Don’t fucking call me that.”

For a moment he remains quiet, his gaze piercing as he glares at her. She only realizes how close they are when their noses brush as he taunts, “Or what?”

“Or,” she moves her hand to the back of his head, the corners of her lips rising when she feels him shiver after she teases his skin with her nails, “I’ll make you.”

“Bet you won’t.” His smirk is a challenge and Jinx has never liked to lose, so she doesn’t hesitate to tilt her head and close the space between them.

Ekko doesn't miss a beat, angling his head to deepen the kiss as he moves his lips against hers. And Jinx feels like she’s on fire as she kisses him, capturing his lower lip between her teeth and pulling back before leaning in to connect their mouths again. And again. And again.

She just wants more; more as Ekko groans when her nails dig into the skin below his collar; more as his own hand finds its way to her waist and digs into the flesh; more when he breaks the kiss to catch his breath before he’s on her again, his tongue teasing hers.

Jinx can’t take it anymore. It’s just not enough. She feels dizzy with every brush of his lips against hers. Dizzier as he grows bold and slides his hand down to her thigh, squeezing the flesh.

She breaks the kiss for a moment, catching her breath. Ekko looks disheveled in front of her, his lips swollen and his scarf fallen to the floor beside them. Fuck, she still needs more, needs him closer before she grows insane.

“Are you okay?” he asks, his voice hoarse and his throat bobbing as he swallows.

“Shut up,” she whines, leaning in to kiss him again and maneuvering her body to straddle his lap. Ekko groans when she settles down on his thighs, firmly wrapping his arm around her waist to pull their bodies flush together.

He then wraps his other hand around her hair and tugs. Jinx can’t help but gasp at the mix of pleasure-pain, heat simmering in her stomach as he separates their mouths to press kisses against her jaw, working his way down to the column of her neck.

Her head is spinning as he sucks on her skin, his teeth scraping against the sensitive flesh. But she wants his mouth on hers again, so she cups his face between her hands and presses their lips together again.

Jinx sighs into the kiss, letting one of her hands wander down his chest and working her way down and down–

“Wait.” He abruptly grabs her hand, halting its trajectory.

Jinx stills above him. Everything feels frozen as she apprehensively waits to see what Ekko will do now. What he will say.

Then he opens his mouth, and pulls his hands back as he says, “I…I think the coast is clear.”

It feels as if he threw a bucket of ice water all over her. Her voice is more fragile than she’d like it to be when she asks, “You don’t want me?”

He doesn’t say anything, simply remains tense below her, conflict contorting his face as he looks up at her. He frowns up at her, sadness in his eyes as he shakes his and says, “Not like this.”

Jinx recoils from him as if burned, stiffly nodding and looking anywhere but him as she wraps her arms around herself. “See you around then, boy savior.”

Silence settles over them, and Jinx holds her breath, thinking maybe he’ll change his mind. Instead, she realizes, he’s just gathering his things before he replies, “Yeah…see you around.”

And it’s a blow to her chest when Jinx realizes she had fun with Ekko. Fighting with him, kissing him, arguing with him. Everything. And now he’s leaving and taking that all with him.

Then again, maybe she was the one who took it all from him first. All those years ago, when they were just two naive kids whose entire lives had just fallen apart. When he’d come for her, asked her to put him first and she couldn’t. Maybe, in some odd, twisted way, this is just him settling an old score.

As she hears him retreat, she wants to get up and fight him, yell at him, goad him– Whatever it takes to make him stay just a little longer.

But she doesn’t.

And so, instead, he just leaves.

Ekko's departure is followed by quiet. Both in her head and out of it. Rather than the relief she usually feels, however, she just feels hollow.

Jinx realizes she may not enjoy the silence as much as she thought she did.

#timebomb #ekkojinx #ekko #jinx #arcane #writing #fanfiction #hungry posts

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waltwhitmansbeard · 1 year ago

Text

go on, claim my heart: chapter forty

see my masterpost for what came before this.

Keyleth is grateful that Percy brought her back to the cottage instead of to Pike's chambers. The cottage was farther, but she is much more comfortable here, on the little sofa in front of the fire, with her baby girl in her arms and the castle far from view. Pike sits just next to her, her palm on Keyleth's shoulder, glowing golden yellow as Pike keeps up a seemingly limitless font of healing.

And she does feel better, except in all the ways in which she feels worse. The sickening sludge has left her body, and she no longer feels as if she is teetering on the edge of death, but as she watches her daughter, who gnaws on a polished ring of wood, blissfully unaware of how close she came to losing her mother and grandfather in the same week she nearly lost her own life, she still feels sick to her stomach.

There has been so much death. Her mother. A ballroom of innocents in Syngorn. Four members of the Vesran noble family. Percy, for a moment. Her father. At this point, likely the Archduchess as well. All for one man to ascend to the throne that Keyleth spent her whole life wishing were someone else's. She would understand if Vallen had been motivated by love, or fear, or even revenge, but power? Only a fool who had never had any would go to such lengths to seek it out.

Pike's hand slips from her shoulder. "I'm tapped out, I'm afraid." Her little arms come to squeeze around Keyleth's waist. "I'm so, so sorry, Keyleth."

"As am I, Pike." She's sorry that this is the world that has been built for them. She's sorry that Vallen believed he could slaughter his way to power, and she's sorry that he came extremely close to being correct. She's sorry that the people of her nation were robbed of so much—her mother's heart, her father's wisdom, whatever gifts Duchess Uvenda's rightful heirs might have brought Vesrah.

Vilya drops the teething ring onto her chest and reaches up toward her mother. Keyleth lets her grab onto her finger. What terrors will await this next sovereign of the Ashari Nation? What bids for power will wreak chaos and suffering on this tiny child, one whose laughter is bright like sunshine and whose smile could bring an army to its knees? How is Keyleth meant to balance her fidelity to her people with her near-feral devotion to her child? She'd told her father, right here in this room, that she would let her nation rot if it meant protecting her daughter, and she hadn't been lying—but what can she do to protect them both?

What she must.

The door to the cottage swings open, and Vax is there, eyes wild until they land on Keyleth and Vilya. She watches the tension seep from his shoulders as he comes in toward them. Keyleth turns to Pike. "Will you do me a favor?"

"Of course." Pike slips off of the sofa.

"Will you gather the rest of the Council? And bring them here?"

Pike's brows knit in confusion, but she nods all the same. "I'll be back as fast as I can." She leaves just as Vax comes to take her seat beside Keyleth. He bends down to kiss Vilya's forehead first, then Keyleth's lips, his hands on either side of her face. He tastes like sweat and blood, and Keyleth wishes more than anything to freeze this very moment, to live in it until the whole world falls to ash around them.

But something must be done.

Vax keeps Keyleth's face in his hands, inspects her eyes, her cheeks, her neck, whatever bits of her he can see. "Are you alright? What did Pike have to say?"

Her smile is soft, indulgent, but it doesn't reach her eyes. "I'm fine. Tired, but then, what else is new?"

There's something about her, something off, but considering he found her mere heartbeats away from death, it's not like he can be that surprised. He gathers her in his arms, pulls her and Vilya closer in. "He confessed to everything," he says quietly. "The entire scheme. Son of a bitch wouldn't even let me torture it out of him."

Because he wanted to, wants to, even still. Vax's fingers itch to slide his blade beneath Vallen's skin, peel back his layers inch by inch to the score of his screams. Vax has killed before, for survival, for money, for duty, but this one he'd do for the pleasure of it.

But Vex had to show up, descending into the same dungeons where Vax had interrogated Finefirn, with that look on her face, the one their mother used to give Vax when he was a boy. And though Vax's hands were already slick with Vallen's blood, he could not exact his revenge, not with his sister's sharp call of his name echoing through the crooked stone halls.

Were he a better man, Vax would be able to admit that his sister's admonishment was well-earned, because Vallen had not merely confessed, but begged for mercy as well. And though Vax would enjoy nothing more than coming up with new, inventive ways to make this insect of a man suffer, he knows that any denial of mercy must come from the one most wronged.

So he says to his wife, "He has asked for clemency. Specifically, he has asked to speak to you about the matter personally, though I hope you can understand when I say I would rather burn the castle to the ground with him trapped beneath than let you within half a mile of him." She doesn't say anything, so he presses on. "It should be your decision, the fate he now faces. I...know that you are more compassionate than most, and if you wish to merely keep him locked away for his crimes, well. As I said, it should be your decision."

Still, Keyleth says nothing, staring down into their daughter's curious face. Vax finds himself in the familiar position of wishing he could hear all of the private thoughts swirling in her head. He knows better than to push, knows that she needs the space and the time to come to decisions on her own, and the gods know that Vallen isn't going anywhere; he is currently hanging by chains imbued with an anti-magic enchantment with a gag bound tightly in his mouth, his cell watched by no fewer than a dozen of Vex's best men and women. He'd be lying if he said that he wasn't hoping Keyleth would ask him to make Vallen suffer, but even as ruthless and unforgiving as he saw her be in Whitestone, he doesn't know if she has that kind of cruelty in her, that thirst for violence.

"Please forgive me."

Her words are so quiet, for a moment, Vax thinks he's imagined them. When he does realize what she's said, he thinks she must be speaking in reference to her decision regarding Vallen. He is disappointed—his thirst for vengeance only grows stronger with each passing minute—but of course he would forgive whatever choice she made in this regard.

Except...she isn't speaking to him. She's still looking down at Vilya, whose eyelids now droop heavily as she begins to drift off in her mother's arms. Now he's confused; what on earth would she need Vilya's forgiveness for?

She pulls herself from his embrace then, turns to face him with shining eyes. She takes a deep breath, and he braces himself for whatever it is she is about to say.

"I am abrogating the Ashari Nation."

Once the words are said, a wave of calm washes over Keyleth. For the first time since Vilya was taken, she feels as if she can breathe. She looks down at her sleeping daughter, the fluttering eyelashes, the slightly parted lips. It seems so simple, now that she's made the decision. She can feel the consternation radiating off of Vax—he must start and abandon at least two dozen questions in rapid succession—but she sits in silence, waiting for the others to arrive.

It takes Pike about half an hour to gather the entire Ashari Council, and in that time Keyleth lays Vilya to sleep in her cradle, which has been moved into their bedroom for the time being—she doubts she'll ever be able to sleep in a separate room from her again—and sets a kettle over the fire to boil some water for tea. The whole time, Vax watches her as he might a rabid animal, as if her every move is erratic and unpredictable.

There is little room in the cottage for the five councilmembers, Keyleth, and Vax, but they make do. Keyleth remains standing, giving the seats to the others. Vax dithers, unsure of where he should be, and Keyleth holds out her hand to him. It has always fit into hers so nicely, like it was the only place it was meant to be.

"Thank you for joining me here," she begins. She sees Master Gilmore open his mouth, but she raises a hand to stop him. "I am sure you all offer your many condolences for my loss and congratulations for the rescue of our daughter, and believe me, your support, your kindness is appreciated now more than ever. In fact, it is that very support that I require for the future of the Ashari people."

She takes a deep breath. The decision was easy. This part is hard. "Until Vax, until Vilya, my greatest love—my only love—was for the people of this great nation. My father raised me to understand that to be a sovereign was to be a caretaker, to assume responsibility for the well-being and livelihoods of thousands, people I would never meet all across the continent. He raised me to love those people, to want to do the most good for the most people with every decision I make. I have always known that that mission would involve making difficult choices, choices that some people might not like, choices that might make my own life harder.

"And I have made one such choice." She's squeezing Vax's hand so hard, she cannot believe she hasn't broken his fingers. Since the Council's arrival, she's been avoiding Percy's gaze. She meets it now. "I believe that the best thing for the Ashari people is to dissolve the Ashari Nation."

Lady Kima, who had just taken a sip of her tea, spits it out in what would, in another circumstance, be a truly comical display of shock. Lady Allura starts to splutter out something unintelligible, but it's Percy's reaction Keyleth can't look away from. Her normally stoic, reserved friend is rapidly tripping through a myriad of emotions, each flashing so fast and bright across his face she has no hope of telling them apart.

Master Gilmore is the first one to find the words. "Your Majesty, please...elaborate."

She nods. "The current system we employ for governance and security is not working. We should all be astounded that it took this long for a member of the Ashari nobility to realize that all that stands in the way of our nation's capital's moving to their city is the callous murder a few people who are essentially strangers. Of course Vallen was motivated to erase my family's line here in Zephrah; it was the key to bringing his own family line to power, to bringing him to power.

"Our constituent cities, as connected and beloved as they are, are too far apart to be truly considered one nation. I believe it is in the best interests for Vesrah, Terrah, Pyrah, and Zephrah to each become independent city-states, self-governing as they see fit, in an alliance or confederation with each other. We form our own governments, our own laws, our own economies, and we rely on each other in times of war or strife."

Her eyes bounce between the council members, trying to gauge their thoughts on the matter. She's mostly seeing shades of bewilderment, so she continues, "And to start, I would like to declare that from this day forward, Zephrah will be a republic governed by a democratically-elected council." She sweeps a hand out. "Starting with you all."

Everyone starts talking at once. It is a cacophony of objections and questions and exclamations of surprise, and Keyleth smiles placidly at all of it. Vax's hand squeezes hers once, and she turns to see him mouth, Are you sure?

She's never been more sure in her life.

Allura's voice cuts through the noise. "Your Majesty—"

"I am begging you, please just call me Keyleth."

She watches contention twist in Allura's eyes, but the Mistress of Arcana presses on. "I don't wish to question your wisdom, but...I worry that you are making this...rather grand decision from a place of pain, of hurt."

She isn't wrong. Keyleth is in such exquisite pain, a turmoil as unwieldy and overwhelming as roiling seas. But in the center of the storm is a respite, a space of calm from which she has come to realize the best course of action for both her family and her people.

"My pain has forced me to see what pain our nation has been in for some time now. And my pain has shown me what may very well await my daughter should we continue down this same path. I...have thought a great deal about fate, these past few years." A romance fated for tragedy, a treaty to rewrite the fates of nations, the goddess of fate restoring her life in exchange for her husband's fealty. "I am not one to care much for the gods, powerful though I know them to be, but...what could they have given us these fragile lives for if not to choose our own fates? What is the purpose of us, of them, if we are not meant to build something new, something beautiful?"

Percy, who had been leaning back against a kitchen counter, pushes off and crosses over to stand just in front of Keyleth. He takes her free hand. "And what of you?"

She looks into his eyes. He arrived in Zephrah already so grown up, all buttoned and polished and quiet. She devoted much of their shared childhood to cracking open his shell, to finding what secrets and chaos lie beneath, but all she found was the piece of her family she never knew was missing. "I have everything I need right here."

He smiles at that, and the idea strikes her like a lightning bolt to a tree. "Percy?" He hums. "If you would be amenable...I would very much like a fifth city-state to join this alliance."

He's confused for a moment, and then the realization dawns across his face. "Whitestone?"

"With its rightful lord at the helm."

Percy is silent for a long moment, his eyes darting around in shock, but then he throws his arms around her neck. She catches him with a smile. "You're not getting rid of me, Percival de Rolo. The Ashari Nation may be no more but you will always be my family."

From the sofa, Pike clears her throat. "We have much to discuss. Much to discuss. This...this is big."

Keyleth lets go of Percy. "Of course, we will need to discuss this with the Archdukes and Archduchess—which reminds me, when we are done here, Allura, please take Pike to check in on Duchess Uvenda. With any luck, we will be able to prevent Vallen's final murder from being completed." The two women nod. "I suppose what I must ask now is...do I have your support in this?"

She holds her breath as the council members look to each other, having brief, silent conversations with one another as they consider the rather large proclamation she's just made. Finally, one by one, they begin to nod, and Keyleth lets out the breath as they start to confer amongst themselves, their brilliant minds already whirring as they commence the construction of a new government.

Keyleth turns to Vax, who is watching her with bright, awed eyes. "And you?" she murmurs, bringing his hand, still entwined with hers, to her lips. "Do I have your support?"

Vax brings his free hand up to cup her cheek, and she pushes her face into it, eyes sliding closed. She feels his lips brush her forehead, and then he murmurs low, "In everything you do, my love."

Her eyes open, and she smiles slyly. "You won't be married to royalty anymore."

He shrugs. "I was thinking about leading a revolution anyway. Storm the castle, topple the monarchy, that old song. You saved me a bunch of trouble, actually."

And for the first time in a long time, Keyleth laughs, sharp and bright, as she folds herself into Vax's arms.

#critcal role #critical role fic #cr fic #vaxleth #vaxleth fic #vaxleth au #vox machina #vox machina fic #vox machina au #tlovm #tlovm fic #my fair lady #go on claim my heart #my fic

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