#i did not know they could appear before their first encounter. guess you learn something every day

[thelvadams]

'it's fine, the alien can't show up this early'

[kurokawaia]

❛ UM, WHAT? ❜

Yandere! Illumi Zoldyck X Fem!Reader

| YANDERE CONTENT |

WC; 1.5k+ | !MDNI! | TW/CW :: in the pre timeskip, i imagine it to be younger illumi there (so when he's around 18-19 and has the short hair), reader is aslo 17-18 before the timeskip. after the timeskip illumi is 26 and you are 25, stalking!!! death

⋆·˚ ༘ * 𝑅𝐸𝒬𝒰𝐸𝒮𝒯 :: (filled request) Could you pls write yandere illumi who has been stalking reader for years now, he finally decides to make his move, bumps into you, casually invites you for a date. But as you start talking to him, he's so in love and obsessed he lets creepy things slip during casual conversation eg. Reader: yeah I go to dance classes, though recently I haven't been enjoying them as much because our teacher keeps complaing about his life problems! Can you believe it! And Illumi replies "Yes, that idiot should've left his cheating wife months ago haha" and Reader's like, how did you know that *sweats* Anyway just creepy illumi pls:3 - ANON

m.list | hxh m.list

You were just a high school student when you first noticed him, but only just briefly.

It was one of those ordinary days, but if only you had paid more attention to how this man looked, maybe your life would have turned out different. The man you noticed had quite noticeable features: tall, solemn, a young man who watched you across the street with a curious expression you quickly ignored.

He was dressed in a simple jacket and slack pants, though, his eyes were pericing into your back. You were scared, more or less, the way he was observing you.

With just a headshake, you pretty much forgot the man in your mind, manipulating yourself that he isn't looking at me.

Illumi took an interest in you, for what reason, he did not know. You were just some average girl, not an assassin, and more than likely didn't even know how to use Nen. But you caught his eye.

Your simple life and usual happenings were so different to his own so much that his curiosity was piqued. You looked so innocent that he wanted to taint you to something darker. 

It wasn't very long before curiosity did turn darker and into something more obsessive. 

He started following you more often, always remaining out of your field of sight, and never once approaching you directly. He learned your schedule, your favorite spots, and your friends. He watched over one like a ghost through every mundane task, every joyful moment, and every sorrowful sigh.

Years passed, and that addiction only grew bigger and bigger. The feel of watching you, the satisfaction of knowing everything that happened in your life, made him feel good.

You were his secret obsession, his hidden treasure that no one else could touch.

Then, it happened. You walked down that street, busy with your thoughts, when he decided the time was right. Casually, as if he had suddenly bumped into you, he came towards you. His heart racing from the thrill not of the encounter but of just revealing himself a little.

"Pardon me," he said, his tone silky. You looked up with a jerk since his sudden appearance had startled you. There was something unsettling in the way that he stared at you, yet it was cloaked by a polite smile. "I couldn't help but notice you. We've crossed paths before, haven't we?"

You felt a shiver run down your spine, but you made yourself smile. "I don't think so," you said, trying to keep the subject light.

You had this feeling that you had met this man before but couldn't place with who he was and where you had seen him.

"Perhaps not," he replied lightly, shrugging. "I guess I was mistaken. My name is Illumi. I'd like to get to know you better. Would you be interested in going out sometime?"

"Um, sure," you said hesitantly, unable to shake off the feeling that something was deeply wrong but unable to refuse the polite request. "When would you like to. go out?"

"Would now be okay?" he asks with a tilt of his head, his height was towering over you, you noticed.

"Um, sure," you replied, unable to say no.

You both set off toward a small café in town. You arrived a few minutes early, trying to rid yourself of that strange feeling from earlier. Illumi showed up a little afterwards, his presence still had that air of dread hanging about him which made you uncomfortable, but his smile was warm and inviting.

As you guys settled into your corner booth, you tried to focus on the pleasant atmosphere. Illumi made small talk, his voice smooth and nice. You found yourself slowly opening up, talking about your daily life.

"So, what have you been up to lately?" Illumi asked, never his eyes leaving your face.

Not that he knew of, anyway.

"Well, I've been going to dance classes," you said.

He already knew that.

"Though lately, I haven't really been enjoying them as much. Our teacher just keeps bitching about all his life problems. Can you believe it?"

Illumi's eyes gleamed, "Yes, that idiot really ought to have left his cheating wife months ago. It's pathetic how he drags his personal drama into his classes. Haha."

You felt your heart skip a beat and you froze in shock from his response. "How-how did you know about that?" you stuttered. "I've never told anyone."

Illumi's smile picked up. "Oh, I have my ways," he said smoothly. "I pay attention to the details, you know. It's just a shame he's so miserable. I suppose that's why he hasn't been able to focus on teaching properly."

You tried to compose yourself, forcing a nervous laugh. "Well, I guess you're right. It's just frustrating sometimes."

Illumi nodded, still with that unnerving stare. "I understand. Must be hard on you, dealing with his problems besides your own. I'm sure you are doing your best."

You tried to smile, though the unease in your chest was growing. "Thanks. I guess it just feels like everything's piling up lately."

Illumi's eyes flashed, nay flared, with an eerie serious intent. "Is there anything else bothering you? Perhaps something outside of dance class?"

You felt a little cornered by the intensity of his gaze and hesitated before continuing, "Well, there's this guy at work who's been bothering me. He keeps making these inappropriate comments, trying to corner me whenever I'm alone. It's really unsettling."

Illumi's face clouded for a moment, his frown deepening as he registered your words. "I see," he said slowly. "I didn't realize this. nuisance," he grumbled to himself, cursing himself on how he could have missed something like that in your daily life.

He thought you didn't hear what he said, but you did. A chill ran down your spine at the way he said it.

You hastily tried to change the subject with the urge to get away from the intensity in his gaze. "But enough about that. I'm glad we could meet today. It has been nice talking to you."

Illumi's smile picked up once more, but didn't quite reach his eyes. "Yes, it has been. I enjoyed our time together."

You got to your feet, collecting your things and moving to leave. Illumi followed suit, escorting you to the door of the café. Outside, both of you stepped into the cool evening air, you noticed him freeze for a moment, his eyes set on something far off.

Almost as if he was gauging what move to take next.

"Well, it's time to say goodbye for now, I suppose," you said, forcing cheerfulness into your voice.

Illumi smiled reassuringly but there was something beneath that made you scared. "Indeed. I look forward to the next time we meet."

And so you went off in opposite directions, you homeward. You had walked a way when you couldn't rid the feeling that Illumi had looked at you just one beat longer than he needed to.

Later that night, Illumi sat with reflections upon his mind, bothered by the new information about the man that's been bothering you. How could he have missed this-one nuisance? 

He prides himself on how well he watches over you and has always been fully aware of your every move.

This guy slipped under his watchful eye, and that irked him.

Illumi's face darkened as he made his way to the place where you worked. He found the man who had been harassing you. Getting ready to leave for the night, the man didn't notice Illumi approach him.

The man was turning around, startled by the sudden appearance of the tall stranger. Before he could even utter another word, Illumi's hand had closed tightly around his throat. His eyes widened into a fearful expression as Illumi's voice, in low tone.

"You have caused my precious one unnecessary distress," Illumi said softly, his tone chilling. "For which you shall pay the price."

Illumi made sure the man would never utter another word ever again, his movements calculated and cold. 

The threat to you was gone, and your world would never be disrupted by anyone else other than him. 

No one was ever to come between him and the object of his obsession.

Do not copy, steal, modify, etc. Relogs and like are appreciated.

m.list | hxh m.list

[the-daiz]

Flashy flash, falling inlove?

Genre; fluff, hcs

Pairing; Flashy flash x reader

side note; My brain does not shut up save me please save me from my suffering. Also I should make this a series, no?

long

not proofread cuz its 2:40 am

I can only think of 2 types of people he’d fall for: someone who is strong, close to his strength or even stronger, or a normal civilian who completely gives 0 shits about him.

Because the other scenario is funnier, I’m gonna do that one. But if you want the first scenario too, just lmk 😋

Your first encounter with this guy was when you were heading home late, after an exhausting, long shift. You had a taser on you, if you live in a world full of Monsters and chaos you’ll have to learn to protect yourself, no?

also, you just so happened to always attract monsters where ever you go.

Unfortunately for you, however, the monster that you encountered that day was immune to the electrical voltage of your stun gun.

When you had jammed your taser into its body, and it gave no reaction, you attempted to run but the feind yanked you by your arm, and started taunting you.

but before anything else could happen, a small gust of wind wizzed past you, and the monster was left in clean-cut pieces on the ground. It took you a moment to process what just happened before flashy flash suddenly appeared, standing over the orge’s dismantled being.

first thing you did when your mind gears started shifting again was glance down at your body, and make sure all your limbs and belongings were intact. All while flashy flash stood, rather awkwardly, before you. Probably waiting for some kind of reaction.

When you finally felt his intense gaze, you offered him a flat ‘thank you’.

then started walking away.

he was taken aback by your reaction.

He stopped you from leaving, and started almost lecturing you about walking alone at such a late hour. You just stared at him, trying to hide your annoyance. You just wanted to get home.

When you still gave him a monotoned response he said. “I’m flashy flash...”

You stared at him with unamusement.

”…the S-class hero.”

”oh, that’s nice…?” -You

”you do know who I am, no??” -flash

”ahaha,, oh yeah! Definitely!” You, obviously lying.

His ego was wounded.

How could you have not heard of him before? Him! The fastest hero alive!

there was definitely something wrong with you, no normal person would react the way you did. So he decided he needed to get to the bottom of this.

He starts following you around. And takes note of everything you do.

there isn’t much to you, though.

He concludes that: You’re just average, and overworked. And you look quite nice too, your outfit choices are perfect. They really compliment you. Also the way you handle yourself is rather refreshing, not to mention your resilience and…

But also, you attract trouble a lot. And since he’s always following you, he ends up taking care of a few himself, but he does like to watch you take down the monsters yourself too, he enjoys seeing how you catch them off guard with your taser, and how you rarely ever look the slightest bit shaken before them, no matter how grotesque they look.

After 5 times of him saving you from yet another problem, you start to grow suspicious and confront him… he plays it off well, and starts to pursue a small conversation with you….

then finds out you don’t even remember his name.

”what are you talking about, I definitely know your name… uh, flashy dash, right?” -you.

Yeah, he needed to stop being around you for the sake of his own mental health.

To help himself cope with your nonchalant attitude and the fact you didn’t even bother looking him up once after the countless times he saved you. He just stops stalking you.

I mean, why would he? He already crossed out any suspicions he had of you.

When he stopped, though, he started missing you??

he didn’t even understand what he was feeling. I mean, yeah, sure, your face was nice, and I guess you were a little cool. You’re strong in a way he didn’t even know someone could be. And I guess you’re a pleasant person. And he likes your hobbies, and what you do, and watching you do it. Maybe. But so what??

He starts growing irritable. You’re always consuming his mind.

It must be because he was around you for so long, his brain is simply not used to the switch of routine. Yes! That’s definitely it!

A month passes. With him going out of his way to avoid even the mere sight of you.

AND HIS EMOTIONS ARE GETTING WORSE!

worse as in stronger, more roudy, and more overbearing.

He starts to resent you in a way, and he feels frustrated with himself.

How could he be so allured by someone so incredibly normal, someone who doesn’t even remember his name, while he knows every single detail about them!?

When the feelings get too intense, to the point they’re interfering with his hero work. He decides to go and confront you.

Maybe if he speaks with you, he could find something to hate about you. Something he doesn’t like about your personality, or about your face, just anything that could trick his mind into being revolted by you.

”oh, hey flashy flash.” -You

His heart leaps. His breathing stops for a moment and his mind goes blank.

you remembered his name, you greeted him first!

He sucked in a deep breath and masked the ghostly joy on his features.

He was going to insult you, or make a backhanded comment, just anything to tick you off and make you feel the slightest bit frustrated, like he’s been frustrated for the past month.

But when his lips parted to spew out the harsh sentences he had been practicing in his head on the way here… nothing would come out.

He couldn’t do it. Not with the way your gorgeous hues were peering at him with genuine curiosity.

He just asked about your day instead. His voice was low and a bit awkward, but his face was firm with his usual stern expression.

He tried to ignore the racing beat of his heart when you smiled at him, or when you asked about his day, or cracked a light-hearted joke every now and then

He tried to calm his breathing through his nose, but he didn’t think he could keep his composure for long.

He quickly wraps up the discussion, and felt his heart ache slightly when you didn’t seem the slightest bit bothered by his urgency to leave.

Either way. He couldn’t stop thinking about that interaction. His mind kept wondering back to the way you looked at him, to the gravitating way your lips moved, to your words, to your voice-

He definitely couldn’t avoid you after this. Maybe he’ll just enjoy having these feelings for you, for a little bit…

He starts going up to you more often. A lot of the times when your heading back from work, and there aren’t much people on the streets.

You question his intentions, and he simply states that you attract too many monsters, and it’s his job to take care of them. You didn’t really buy it but didn’t bother probing much.

He was wrong about something. You weren’t normal. You didn’t care about what other people thought. You carried yourself so definitely from everyone else. You knew what to prioritize.

You didn’t treat him like a hero. You treated him more like a good friend. He didn’t know how good that felt until you had entered his life. (actually he’s the one that entered your life but anyhow)

and you were simply enchanting.

Still, he didn’t like that you barely knew anything about his very flashy, and amazing, career and talent.

How he confesses… One day, on your usual walk with flashy flash after work, you ask him about his hero work. He gets slightly excited at that and straightens his back a little.

He tries to keep everything he says low-key, like “Yeah, I do this and that. I mostly work alone. i neutralize the enemy quickly. I’m very busy mhm.”

You just nod attentively and continue to ask more questions, and to say that he was elated would be an understatement.

It was when you ask. “What rank are you in again? B, right? Or A?” (you forgot S class even existed) that everything goes south.

He stops walking and tries to hide the disheveled look on his face.

He hated the constriction in his chest.

He was an S-class hero, one of the strongest, the fastest. Defeated the most viscous monsters to walk this earth

And, yet he was still another hero name, still another rank you could barely remember.

How weak does he seem to you?

”S-class.” He muttered, his voice cooler than it had been before.

”oh? What does that stand for, special-class?” You let out an awkward chuckle, trying to lighten the mood.

“I have to go.”

You’re about to protest and ask him what’s wrong, but he’s already gone in a blink.

He couldn’t stand it anymore. You, a weak civilian, looking down on him?? You didn’t deserve him. (or at least that’s what he was telling himself)

Even though he couldn’t deny the yearning in his heart, he started avoiding you like the plague. Going out of his way to patrol areas that he knew you had no way of being in.

a few days after the incident, when flashy flash is no where to be found, you knew you had done something to hurt him, and that he was avoiding you.

So you start looking for him,

it takes you weeks to finally catch him.

you’re at a minor incident site and wait patiently behind a wall, hiding away from the monsters, for flashy flash to hopefully appear.

And appear he does.

your face lights up at the sight of him, and after he takes care of the few weak monsters, you rush iut of your hiding spot and yell out for him, grasping his arm so he couldn’t leave.

He doesn’t look at you and stays quiet, trying to contain the turmoil in his mind.

You start apologizing for everything wrong you think you could’ve done. And admit that you missed him.

He’s a bit taken aback by this, his eyes visibly widening at the confession.

He explains how he was hurt by the fact that you didn’t acknowledge his strength or rank. He didn’t mean for his thought to spill like that.

You two have a bit of an awkward back and forth, and when silence settles between you two, that’s when he confesses.

His words are elegant and romantic, even if his voice is a bit strained, and his features are slightly distressed, it still doesn’t fail to leave you awe-stricken. (Shhwhahhawgwahahah)

He’s not surprised when you reciprocate his feelings. (cuz his ego is still high asf)

How he is in a relationship,,,

He’s a very busy man, so he doesn’t spend much time with you, but when he does, he makes sure to shower you with compliments and love. He’s very skilled when it comes to verbal affection and doesn’t shy away from showing off his talent.

Speaking of showing off, he always tries to show off to you. If youre watching him fight, he’ll use unnecessary, extra-flashy moves, and glances at you every once in awhile to make sure you’re watching.

When you’re on a date, he makes sure there are zero distractions for him, and rarely ever has to excuse himself because of his hero duties. He wants everything he does for you to be perfect.

his love language is gift giving and quality time.

he SHOWERS you with expensive gifts, and anything you want. If your eye lingers on something, he’s already at the checkout with every colour option of that thing.

He has the money, so of course he’ll spoil you rotten.

Your outings too are also very lavish.

Even though he does spend a lot of time fighting monsters and saving the city, he values the time he spends with you more than anything. He doesn’t care what you are doing as long as you’re beside him.

Honestly, I don’t see him being big on physical touch, he loves it from you though. Adores it when you lovingly caress his face, embrace him or nuzzle closer to him.

PDA is a no-no, BUT, if he gets jealous of someone who is getting a little too close to you. His hands are magnets and you’re the metal. He’s pulling you close by your hips, pressing you close to his chest as he makes passive-aggressive remarks or simply glares at the individual he’s jealous of. (How cliche)

When he’s having a bad day, he’ll collapse into your arms and asks you to massage his scalp while he complains about it, his arms wrapped around your waist.

His kisses are very passionate and lingering. He’ll often have his hands softly holding the side of your face while the other cradles the back of your head. He loves planting kisses all over you.

[captain-mj]

WEREBEAR KÖNIG, WEREBEAR KÖNIG, WEREBEAR KÖNIG

First of all thank you for indulging my König x Ghost brainworms. SECOND, I loved it. The implication that König has been heavily collared and probably controlled in the past. *Mwah* good shit. Ghost going feral when he shifts? I need to know more! König and Ghost fully shifted encounter when? I think their dynamic here has a lot of potential.

If you are up for another part I will stay away from your teeth for now, but they are on thin ice.

I’ve thought about this more and I’m prepared!!

Part 1

König was cautious for a while. Being stripped of his mask by Ghost had caught him off guard. He felt weird about it. Not quite as angry as he should be honestly. More just... flustered and embarrassed. Ghost had immediately looked at his scars.

König had at one point started to consider himself handsome. It took him ages honestly, he had just joined the army and bulked up a little instead of being as skinny as a twig. Finally eating properly probably helped.

Then the scars happened. The ones across his face at the very least came from the battlefield. While he definitely thought they were ugly, hideous, nothing like Horangi's or Stilleto's, he didn't hate them quite as much as the ones around his throat. Shame filled him.

He honestly wanted to head back to KorTac. This was only temporary after all, but he needed to stay a bit longer. They were partnering with SpecGru for the time being which means he had to be here... With the angry, scary.... kinda hot lieutenant.

König blushed, wondering where that came. Yes, Ghost was tall. Not König height, but tall enough that he didn't feel like he had to back up and look down to speak to him. Ghost was also so commanding. Broad shouldered and willing to put whoever and whatever in their place. It was admirable. König wished he had that confidence.

One thing they had in common though was the unearthly silence they both had. With Ghost, it felt right. He was The Ghost. A Specter more than a Man. When König snuck up on his teammates or appeared out of nowhere, it was creepy. Off-putting. Where Ghost could lean in that, his whole persona hinging on it, König couldn't. Instead he just freaked people out and got called out for sneaking up on them.

König did not like training very much, Yes, he was well aware he needed to and he did regularly, but he didn't like it. And today, something in the air felt wrong.

He told himself it was just his anxiety again, but it didn't feel like he was being stared at. The air itself had a charge to it. König hesitated and considered just leaving. If anyone asked him why he was leaving before touching a single machine, he'd claim he suddenly remembered a meeting he had to go to. Yeah. That made sense. He could...

Ghost moved to spar. The hoodie he wore over his clothing fell to the floor with a thump, leaving him in an short sleeved shirt. König didn't recognize the other person, so not 141 and not KorTac. Maybe some recruit? Or another person like him from a different group? He didn't know.

They sized each other up. The other person looked very, very determined, but that was how most people looked when sparring with Ghost. König wasn't sure why because Ghost was willing to spar anyone if asked. Just no one was brave enough to ask half the time.

"Need me to go easy on you? Don't really learn if its just me tossing you around." Anyone else and König would've rolled his eyes and chalked it up to him being cocky. But with Ghost, it was just true. He was extremely adept at fighting and sparring was pointless if it was just getting your ass handed to you.

König decided to watch. As did half the room.

"For the first round. Need to warm up." Their voice was deep. König tried to guess his accent, but nothing really came to mind.

They were off. The stranger mostly went with quick jabs and tried their best to avoid Ghost. It wasn't the worst strategy, but Ghost had an impressive amount of stamina for his size, so it wasn't the most effective either.

König noticed someone recording and he thought that was odd. Some people recorded their workouts but this was sparring and it didn’t seem like Ghost to allow it. He shrugged it off. What was the saying? Not my circus, not my monkeys?

Ghost took the person down and they bounced right back up. “How did you do that exactly?”

König crossed his arms. Were they… flirting? Gross. Ghost didn’t pick up on it, instead actually instructing them on exactly how.

König noticed seconds before Ghost did.

The recruit grabbed the back of his mask and yanked.

There was a list of reasons this was bad. Besides the fact that Ghost had broken someone’s arm for touching him before (he insisted it was an accident but didn’t apologize) and could be downright evil in his cruelty with people he interrogated, it was also just mean. Why would someone want to do that? Ghost could be a hardass but never without reason. He was never mean without reason. He was cold and distant but König had a feeling that had little to do with his actual personality.

Of course every one was curious about his face. No one got to see it.

Before the cloth had moved an inch, Ghost shredded his clothing with his shift. People started screaming and fleeing, most of them having intimate knowledge of the fact that Wolf Ghost and Human Ghost were very different creatures.

König decided to stop this before there was a casualty. If he took a second to walk forward, he’d blame it on surprise.

The stranger currently had one of the ropes of the arena in front of them as Ghost frantically tried to get to them through it. Ghost hadn’t had time to think, to busy trying to go right for the throat.

König slammed into his side, sending him skidding across the floor. He stood up and quickly realized his mistake.

Ghost was big. It made sense. Big human equals big animal. But he looked more like the direwolves his omi would tell him than the wolves he had seen on missions.

Ghost had intense black fur and he stalked around König, snarling. But König didn’t think he looked angry. No, he looked scared. It made sense. Wolves were not supposed to be alone and not only did Ghost probably feel alone, this person had just cruelly tricked him.

“Simon.” König tried to reason. Someone was yelling about tranquilizers and he immediately grimaced. “No, just all of you leave.”

Ghost threw himself at König, teeth bared. König quickly tried to dodge, watching those giant dripping fangs almost graze him. He panted softly, backing up.

Ghost stalked forward, standing defensively when König simply stepped forward as well. He knew if he shifted, he could more easily pin Ghost down BUT an equal amount of pettiness for getting yelled at and worry they’d both end up tranqued and with giant headaches later kept him from doing so.

König snapped his fingers and Ghost’s attention fell on his hand. He spoke calmly to the stranger. “Go. Quietly. But keep close by. I’m sure Captain Price will be happy to hear of this.” The confidence he usually got on missions kept him steady.

Ghost glared at him. Bright brown eyes That struck fear into people’s hearts. That appeared from the shadows and dragged the soul to the ferryman personally.

Right now, he looked like a nervous puppy.

König softened a tad, now that everyone was gone he took off his hood slowly and then his jacket, glad he went with a zip up one. They had the room and no one else would come in until one of them gave the all clear. Its why they paired them up.

“You’re not feral.” He spoke softly. “Just spooked. Like a horse. Shifting has never been pleasant for you, has it?”

If Ghost could understand him was still up for debate. But clearly something agitated him because he was trying to get to König’s throat again. Killing bite, fast and efficient.

König finally shifted and they wrestled with each other. He knew normally, Ghost could beat his ass. Hell, if he was a bit more sound, he probably could with both of them shifted. But as is, Ghost couldn’t strategize and König could. Its how he ended up with Ghost on his back, König’s teeth around his throat, careful not to sink in, and his paw on Ghost’s surprisingly soft feeling tummy.

They sat there a while. König able to feel the pulse through his teeth.

It slowed once he realized König wasn’t killing him. He tried to wiggle away but König applied more pressure to his paw and he stilled.

Ghost melted back to a person. It was… shockingly graceful considering how he had acted. König suddenly dwarfed him. He pulled back slowly, ignoring the copious amounts of drool on Ghost’s throat.

Oh.

Ghost was pretty.

He had a strong nose, soft lips and a lot more hair than König had been expecting. It looked bleached and slightly curly, maybe wavy was better. Like König, he had scars. Glasgows along with a few on his cheek that connected to a slice on his ear. König wondered if he had been able to pay attention, if he would’ve seen the chunk from his ear in wolf form too.

Ghost stared at him. Both of them were half naked, bodies aching from unexpected shifts. Ghost also looked lost. Something soft in his eyes. König was careful not to look down, both of them remaining eye contact as is making sure neither broke that rule.

His eyes seemed to freeze over as he came back to himself. “Fucking bastard. Ill eat him alive, shifted or not.” He grimaced as he moved and König wanted to ask how long it had been. Ghost kept himself under wraps pretty well but tons of people snuck out too shift occasionally. Let out steam.

Ghost’s mask had been torn to shreds in the shift. “Fucking hell.”

König didn’t let himself think. He dropped the sniper hood over Ghost. “I had been wearing a neck gaiter in case the hood got too hot. Ill wear that.”

Ghost looked up at him and the word pitiful came to mind. König didn’t like it. “Thank you, König.” He pulled on the hoodie he had dropped before going into the ring. His pants were half shredded but he pulled those on anyway. It would have to do until they got to their room.

König also pulled on his half shredded clothing to follow him.

He wondered if Ghost would join him on a night out if he asked.

[badbatchposts]

Quiet Corners of the Galaxy, Chapter 4

While on a routine mission for Cid, the Bad Batch encounter a woman fleeing from the Empire. Crosshair suspects her seemingly free-spirited, nomadic existence is actually a cover for something else, but struggles to keep his attraction toward her in check as their personalities and ideals clash.

Relevant tags: Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Smut (not for a few chapters still), Canon-Typical Violence

Chapters posted 1-2x weekly!

Read the full fic so far on AO3

Read previous chapters on Tumblr: Ch. 1 l Ch. 2 l Ch. 3

Chapter 4 summary: The Batch are so bad at being under the radar. They learn more about the mysterious woman; Crosshair doesn't trust her.

“Don’t go to sleep, burk’yc.” Crosshair could see the woman nodding off any time he left her with a few moments of silence. She blinked her eyes open again and refilled her mug with more hot water.

“You’re not exactly the most fascinating conversationalist,” she remarked. She eyed his rifle, which he was methodically cleaning and breaking down, his post-mission ritual. “You’re not a bad shot. I saw the trooper helmets when you were done with them. Guess that’s where you get the name. Bullseye, was it?”

“It’s Crosshair. And I’m better than not bad,” he scoffed testily.

“I suppose that’s why you waited until after I was shot to step in. Or maybe you’re just scared of the Empire.” Her voice was neutral, but she had played her hand too obviously; she was goading him, probing for information just like he was.

He reined himself in and went on the offensive. “I wonder,” he purred, “if your hair’s that color everywhere.”

Crosshair expected steel, fury, maybe a flush coming over her cheeks. Instead, she ran her fingers through her locks disinterestedly, picking out the leaves he had noticed before. Both ears, he observed as her hair was smoothed out of the way, were pierced from top to bottom with a series of small silver rings. “It didn’t used to be. Last few years haven’t been the gentlest for the galaxy, have they?” She nodded at the closely cropped gray hairs that coated his own head, growing back patchily around the burn scar at his temple. “What’s your excuse, grandpa?”

“Genetic enhancement,” he replied cryptically.

“Guess that explains the big guy.” She gestured to Wrecker, who was dead-lifting Gonky at the other end of the ship, before offering her beverage to Crosshair. “It’s supposed to be a communal practice,” she explained in response to his raised eyebrow. He made no motion to take it, eliciting a shrug from her. “That’s alright. I always drink it alone anyway.”

“What? No one likes sharing with you?”

“My life seems like it’s a lot less…communal…than yours.” She glanced vaguely around the ship, which was littered with evidence of their co-habitation. “I suppose mercenaries run in packs.”

“We’re not mercenaries,” Hunter interrupted, rejoining them. He had always taken issue with that term. “We’re clone troopers.”

Crosshair prickled a little. He would never understand why the others had been so difficult to track down during his time with the Empire. Hunter didn’t seem to get the finer points of staying off the radar, since he took the opportunity to expose who they were to the first pretty face they came across.

“Haven’t seen a lot of clone troopers that look like you all.” The woman offered Hunter the mug; sniffing curiously, he took a sip.

“It’s good. Thank you,” he said. Crosshair could tell what Hunter was doing. Where the sniper was rigid, aloof, difficult, the sergeant could be considerate, relatable, diplomatic. He thinks he can break you down this way. But he’ll only get a more amenable version of you, the marksman thought. The woman’s face did appear to soften as his brother continued. “We’re a bit different from the rest of them. But with the Republic gone, none of us are soldiers anymore. Gotta find ways to make ends meet.”

The woman seemed to be opening up. Crosshair didn’t trust a minute of it. “Yeah, I know all about that. It’s hard to get by these days.” She turned to Hunter with a small smile. “I’m Dara.”

“Dara.” He smiled back at her. “Any reason we should be worried that the Empire might come looking for you, Dara?”

She shook her head. “The shuttle really was… well, not exactly a misunderstanding. I just panicked. I’ve been traveling. I was staying in a village on Takodana when the Empire began rounding up all the villagers—I have no idea why. I hid and tried to make a break for my ship, but some troopers spotted me. The shuttle was closest. I managed to take off but it took a hit before I entered hyperspace, and that was just where I ended up when my systems started failing.”

Hunter looked thoughtful. “Well, they probably won’t come after you. But I wouldn’t risk going back to Takodana. You likely won’t be getting your ship back.”

He was already heading back to his bunk when Dara spoke up again. “Thank you. I mean it. All of you.” She shot grateful looks at Tech and Crosshair in particular. “I’m lucky you found me when you did.” She was treated with another smile from Hunter as he left. Tech looked rather pleased with himself.

Crosshair leaned toward her, drinking in her beatific expression as he looked into her eyes. “Liar,” he hissed. Even as her expression remained largely impassive, her eyes glinted and nostrils flared ever-so-slightly, hinting at the snarl she was just barely containing. There, he though, leaning back satisfactorily. The knife’s edge of her self-control. That was a start.

Next chapter

[marshmallowprotection]

Hii, could you please clarify the timeline for the whole v and rika twin meeting and such? Like their age differences.. and specifics of how it all came together bc if there’s anything that confuses me more than certain dramatizations for this games story, it’s definitely the details of the timeline😭. Like at first Rikas official age was 23.. then it was changed to like I think 28 was calculated in the wiki..? Uhmmm… plus V’s age gap with Saeyoung isn’t even THAT big.. it’s like 5 years, no?? When did these people meet… Ive been a player since 2016, so a lot of dlc’s or secret endings I played have left my memories super fuzzy as I replay this game but omg. It’s so confusing to me ab Rika and V’s ages when they met, how long they’d been together as they ‘rescued’ or attempted to bring salvation to the twins by becoming their guardians without a legal procedure (which was understandable for their case bc of prime minister… i guess?). They’re made out to be these parent figures to saeyoung and saeran but idk kinda hard when they aren’t that much older.. or maybe it’s more than that and I just can’t really come to terms w how they’re portrayed cuz it’s such an icky feeling knowing how it plays out in the end for them when they entrust these people with their safety and full trust only to later have it crushed 💔💔 UGHH. sorry I kinda made this too long. I read a lot of rants before writing this, haha…. The twins story makes my heart ache a lot.

Rika's age is all the place. Do not try to gauge Rika's age or you will cry yourself to sleep. Her official age in the RFA Package was listed down as twenty-three at the time of her death.

However, there are many factors that lead people to believe she's older and it has everything to do with Rika Behind Story and as most people don't bother to read it, they're not aware of why things appear to make her seem older than what she was officially stated to be at debut.

tldr; CHERITZ RETCONS A LOT.

Rika fights her church and family over Sally when she is sixteen years old. Two years pass and she sees V's debut photography on display in a gallery. He is about seventeen at the time as mentioned. Another year passes and she meets Saeyoung Choi, which means she meets him when she's about nineteen years old and he is twelve years old.

Saeyoung comes to the church at an irregular rate, but she spends her time talking to him and helping him learn about math and other such subjects during this time. We can assume that since Saeyoung left his brother at around the age of fourteen or fifteen, that he had a few years with Rika before she encountered Jihyun Kim in the flesh. She also met with Yoosung for the first time during those years.

Her adoptive mother mentions during this time period that she will throw Rika and Sally out in two years since she won't be obligated to do so after that. The legal age in the Republic of Korea is nineteen, so I'm not quite sure why they would let Rika stay with them behind that since she would've already been an adult here, but hey, as far as I am aware of, she had a kick-out date of twenty-one.

She took Saeyoung to an exhibition that held multiple different works, he ran off to a science showing and Rika ran into Jihyun. That's the start of their partnership since it begins as an artist and model before it becomes romantic.

He takes her in as a model at first, but then their relationship builds into something more than that. She was kicked out after two months of doing work for V, so I can only assume she's turned twenty-one at this point.

He comes to her church to find her after her adoptive mother told him that she'd run off. Rika reveals a lot to him after that, talking to him about her demons, her fears, and more. They grow closer, and during that time, while the details we already know about the two of them dating, they were also trying to help Saeyoung and his brother.

So, if Rika was nineteen when she met Saeyoung and he was twelve, that means there is a seven year age-gap between those two. If V is meant to be seventeen when Rika is eighteen, that means he's about one year younger than she is. Which means, when Rika and V come together to help the twins, she's about twenty-one years old, give or take, and Jihyun is twenty, give or take. Which means that Saeyoung is fourteen.

He goes into the Agency at around the age of fourteen or fifteen. We know that he does some jobs on the side before he's pulled into that damn agency, so I work with the assumption that he's fifteen by the time they yank him overseas to study computer science.

Jihyun mentions in a phone call during Saeran's After Ending that he met someone who worked for the agency who convinced him that it would be safe for Saeyoung in the agency... and he believed it. That's tough to think about, you know? As someone who started this game back in 2016 when I was younger than Yoosung by a year, I just can't imagine being in Rika or V's position.

Yes, you're an adult at twenty and twenty-one but my God, there are so many experiences you've got ahead of you in your early twenties that by the time you get to the other end, you see that time as being a tall child. The me at those ages would not know how to help those twins, much less myself.

If Saeyoung is 21 in Casual and Deep Story, that means Rika would've been 28.

Where this can get perplexing is the fact that Jihyun is supposed to 26, which is two years younger than Rika, while some of this math is implied to state that there should only be a year between the two of them.

[nightsandreala]

short reala and jackle thing, i had this as an alternate idea for the last fic i posted but i still wanted to finish this and also i needed to practice how they interact lol

“I take it you aren’t worried?”

Watching his sibling carefully, the answer wasn’t difficult for Reala to guess, though the circumstances would suggest otherwise. Nightmare’s landscape had changed drastically in the space of only a number of days, shifting from wild celebration to an eerie, chilling silence that rarely enveloped any space where Nightmarens were normally present— NiGHTS had finally been captured, and at Reala’s hands, no less, only to be freed under the truly unthinkable circumstances of encountering two dreamers with red Ideya, one after the other. Reala had cursed the sheer ridiculousness of the situation— of course it would turn out this way— and then wasted no more time dispatching the other Nightmaren in the hope that at least one of them could bring NIGHTS’ latest venture to a quick end.

Perhaps Reala should have known, though, from the second he’d learned that Gillwing had been defeated, that no second-level could ever hope to stand against the overwhelming power held in a red Ideya. One by one, his underlings had been defeated with quickness and relative ease, leading up to the present, where now only Jackle and himself stood between NiGHTS, Master Wizeman, and the fate of Nightmare as any of them knew it, and what NiGHTS’ plan was— as well as whothey would come for next was quite clear. Reala could only hope that, at last, Jackle’s despised not-quite-second, not-quite-first standing would come to be of some use for the both of them.

As Reala paced about his sibling’s lair, though, Jackle’s attention was fixed on the lone, unpainted card laid out in front of him.

His space was unsettlingly familiar, even now. All of the others had rearranged their lairs in expectation; made them darker, colder, more hostile, anything that they suspected might give them even the slightest edge in a fight against a first-level. Little had changed here, though Reala figured Jackle should have known before anyone else that NiGHTS— and the two dreamers they had acquired— would be coming. Still, though, the guillotine’s blade remained dull and unpolished; the jack-in-the-boxes had sprung up already, one flopped over, partially tucked behind the thick curtains that covered the walls. Jackle himself seemed in no hurry to prepare for a fight, either, lying on the floor on his stomach, cape sprawled out around him, a fine-tipped paint brush gripped between two fingers. Quiet, the way he always was while in the midst of painting.

Reala tried to take all the normalcy as a good sign. 

“Well? Do you think you can win against them now that I won't be there to stop you?” Reala paused his pacing, hovering over the card, as if it would gain him any more of Jackle’s attention. “You were the only Nightmaren they ever truly feared, you know.”

Jackle didn’t quite answer, but the flattery at least earned Reala a hushed tch-ch-ch-ch! and the slightest appearance of his sibling’s familiar grin before he resumed his work. It didn’t appear to be a tarot card— it didn’t really appear to be anything; thin, horizontal lines of light-gray paint, made in slow strokes from one edge to the other. Just something created to pass time. Nothing left to discuss, little else to do than wait. 

With a resigned sigh, Reala, again, stilled himself and took a seat beside his sibling, unphased even as the mantle’s edges, alive once again, crept around him, soft and comforting like an old, worn, blanket. He had  become used to the cape’s odd ways just as he had become used to Jackle’s over the years since NiGHTS’ leaving.

“You’ve read the cards today, haven’t you? Did they say—” 

“Death. Death is all the cards have shown for days.”

The response was distant, uninvolved. Still deeply focused, Reala assumed.

Reala had come to know this well, too, how Death was change, an end to one and a beginning to another. 

The meaning was clear in his mind, then: NiGHTS’ rebellion would be brought to an end— if not by Jackle, then certainly by Reala himself, as he had always known it would be. He would ensure that his sibling’s efforts would not be in vain, that his own victory over NiGHTS might outweigh the failure of Master’s other Nightmaren. Death to the pain and suffering that NiGHTS’ absence had caused to those left behind.

And then, with Nightmare’s order restored at last, things would begin anew.

[fallout4-reacts]

Forgive me Father for I have sinned but the Kellogg one inspired some bad thoughts in me.

Would you feel comfortable doing companions react to Sole romancing Kellogg -because of reasons idk- ?

I'm sorry for the delay… let's just say that sometimes life throws us hardships that are beyond our ability to convey

But, in any case, here it is! I hope you enjoy my interpretation of the companions reactions!

Kellogg: Because the world is a nasty place, I do horrible things. My mother's first true present to me was a gun, and the first lesson I learned in life was that the world would not take care of me if I couldn't take care of myself. There was truth in what she said. But I believe she secretly hoped I would kill my father. No, I didn't. It was the first time I had to confront guilt, and it took a long time for me to sort it out. I felt guilty that I couldn't shield her from my father. Then I was unable to protect my wife and child. I guess I reached a point where I couldn't go back, so I just moved on. I have no justification other than having made my way with what I knew.

Sole: But now... What if we could provide you a new home, a place in the sun, an ideal environment where you could make a difference, where you could protect people who deserve it rather than killing them? Which one would you choose?

Kellogg: Do you know that you're really something special?

Sole: One thing is certain: I believe that everyone deserves a second chances. I believe that if you agree to follow me, we might be able to change the world. You can do it. If you really want to, you can undo all the horrors you've caused.

[… ]

Kellogg: Another great day in the glorious land of sun and sugar of Sole Survivor.

Sole: It was an exciting adventure. When I think of how stupid these folks felt they could get away with murdering so many people.

Kellogg: No mention of a chance to shine in the world for them, huh?

Sole: No. They weren't paying attention. But you paid attention to me. You did it.

Kellogg: How can I say no when such an awesome person is bringing the message?

Sole: Enough to desire to spend your life with?

Kellogg: Beg your pardon?

Sole: You took away my better half; I believe it is past time for you to make things right.

Kellogg: Is that your proposal?

Cait : "NO! It's bad enough that you're dragging your husband's killer along with us; you're not actually asking him to be your love?"

"He proved his worth; he proved his determination to make amends. He saw no other solution than the one he learned about, but when one was provided to him, he accepted it and became a better man. Much good."

"You are completely sick!"

"Perhaps, but I love this man, and you're not going to change whatsoever."

"Maybe I can't change it, but I don't have to stay to see it!"

Codsworth : "Mum/Sir, I understand your desire to see the world in its brightest light, but wouldn't it be healthier to think a little bit before uniting your life with his?"

"Cods, I know it may appear twisted when viewed coldly, but let me explain how I see things; whether good or evil, people are easily blinded. They create tales to excuse their behaviour. Kellogg never lied, never concealed the monster he was, and never hid his face. Despite having done bad things in the past, he is the most honest person I've ever encountered. I'll never be fearful of him deceiving me, hiding facts from me, or acting behind my back. When he does evil, he just confesses it, but since he's been travelling with me, he's been doing good, which is nice... and I love him."

"God. If that's what you desire, who am I to tell you how to live your life? Is he drinking his coffee at the same temperature as you?"

Curie : "It's fascinating to see people interact. This man murdered your spouse, and you want to replace your loss with the same man within a few months."

"He is a man of integrity and honesty, Curie. Yes, he committed evil, but he did not disguise it. That, I believe, is what melted my heart."

"The harm he cause?"

"His sincerity, but more importantly, his integrity. They are not common in the world."

"I understand now. And I understand how you feel. Indeed, being an honest ex-murderer is preferable to being an adorable guy who hides his worst face."

"Exactly."

Danse (Post-BB) : "I am aware that you have a twisted tolerance for the actions and natures of others, but this is even beyond my comprehension, even from you."

"You don't get it, Danse. Kellogg is a complete, honest individual who does not hide anything. He has never lied about his true nature. Concerning his activities, it's not like the Maxsons and Fathers of the world, who pretend to be doing good by committing atrocities."

"Unfortunately, I suppose I grasp your point. But to the extent that you've fallen in love with it?"

"The heart is unpredictable. I have a strong preference towards honesty. That's one of the reasons I admire you as a companion."

"All right, let's be straightforward: please do not send me a wedding invitation. Now I'll tend to my armor, and you should take care not to get yourself killed."

"With Kellogg watching my back, I'm confident it won't happen."

"I guess."

Deacon : "I've seen some bizarre things, but this one..."

"I understand that the presence of the Institute's finest assassin circling us may make you anxious, but— 

"No, I saw and understood. I'm not a moron. Neither do I have any reason to disbelieve you, or him. No, what bothers me is that you fell in love with the man who murdered your spouse."

"It's just that I'm trying to put everything behind me. Things aren't as they used to be, and the odds were stacked against us. Kellogg made the correct decision. He seized the opportunity to rebuild the world with me. And I want to reshape the world alongside him."

"You're the boss. Was I supposed to bring cyanide or rat poison as a wedding gift?"

"I'd like some cyanide. More radical."

Dogmeat : Kellogg has a special knack to find the best dog food cans. He also makes Sole happy. Dogmeat adores Kellogg.

Elder Maxson : "From a strategic standpoint, it was a brilliant benefactor tactic to recruit the assassin working for your worst enemy to your cause, but falling in love with him?"

"He is the most truthful and honest man who walks this earth."

"He's no longer a real man. He belongs to the abomination kin rather than the human species."

"It's a good thing it's not your call."

"As far as I'm concerned, if you're able to integrate the Institute and defeat that foe, you're free to sleep with whomever you want... except a ghoul. Never sleep with a ghoul."

Hancock is gradually retreating.

Hancock : Well, ditching the past is like second nature to me. I ain't saying I can dig it, but I can dig it. Nah, I can't dig it. I would never have snitched to my bae's killer. Is he a good lay?"

"Hancock…"

Nah, but what I'm sayin' is, if this is really the fuckin' century's fuck... I mean, ya know, as partners, we gotta share everything. Even chillin'. Together. He bangs good?"

"Hancock!"

"Sister/Brother, does he make you scream his name so loud that everyone in Sanctuary knows he's hitting hard?"

"Does that mean you accept my alliance with Kellogg?"

"Honey, I'm gonna be your bro of honour. Does he bang good?"

Gage : "A man like that as the tender half of the Overboss? Gangs will never dare strike against you. Everything else is out of my hands. If the job is done well, you can fuck molerats; that's none of my business."

MacCready : "…"

"Say something!"

"…"

"Mac!"

The mercenary examines Sole meticulously.

"I felt like I had my boss in front of me, but this person who dresses the same as them has just told me that they are going to marry the murderer of their spouse."

Sole sighs deeply, rubbing their temples to ward off the impending headache.

"Kellogg is so much more than my husband's killer, and you know it."

"But, above all, he is the murderer of your husband."

"If I decide to go over it, who are you to oppose?"

"I make no objection! I doubt your sanity, but I'm not going to argue. So long as he doesn't mess with my pay..."

"No one will be touching your caps."

"Then you can marry whoever you want!"

Nick : "I'm done"

Sole can argue, debate, and explain, but Nick continues to walk towards Diamond City unconcerned

"Niiiiiiiiiick!"

"You have your assassin to lead you to the Institute and find your son; you no longer need me."

"Nick! You're not simply helpful; you're also my friend!"

The synth abruptly spins on his heels and stares at Sole.

"And your friend has one last warning for you: smother your husband's murderer in your sheets, or you'll wake up with that man's dagger in your throat one day. You can come and find me if you live to this day and slice his throat back."

Sole sighs despondently.

"You're going to tell me that everyone you help, all the clients you've reached out to, all the things you've done, you've only done for the holiest of human beings?"

Nick pauses for a bit before sighing.

"Listen, I'm not claiming to be a moral angel, but he murdered your spouse. This is the man who stole your life!"

"And he's helping me in bringing her back! He never pretended to be anything other than himself; he never lied; and he never attempted to abuse anyone. Okay, he didn't have a decent policy! Okay, he had a nasty boss who asked him to do horrible things in a horrible world! But he leaped at the chance to try anew. Is he less valuable than Strong, Cait, or Danse?"

"Don't bring the Brotherhoods back to the mat, or else I'll leave even faster."

"He's been doing really good for months!"

"He has been doing evil for years! Where has the justice gone?"

Sole pauses, then crosses their arms and stares at Nick.

"Is it a question of justice? Is it justice of the old or new world?"

Nick pauses, rubbing his neck in discomfort. Then, after a long pause in which Sole tries to let him consider everything, he appears to submit to the arguments.

"I… I guess I'm starting to get it. I mean, I'll never understand why you fell in love with him, but I see where you're going. Okay. After all, it's not my job to tell you who you can or cannot sleep with."

Piper : (sorry for the cliché) "WOW! I mean... WOW! Wow, wow, wow. You're the only one who can tell me such twisted, twisting stories! I saw the following headlines: The husband of the Sole Survivor is the man who murdered their spouse."

"Do you realise that not everything in life is an article?"

"Let me get the shock as best I can!"

"All right, so what time is the interview?"

Preston : Preston stands there staring at Sole for a long while without saying anything. Sole can't help but feel a little uneasy. They begin to waddle from one foot to the other, hanging their heads in shame they did not expect to feel. They showed up to inform Preston as a fact: "We eat mirelurk for dinner; there is no more ammunition in the Zimonja outpost; this hat fits you very well, I'll marry Kellogg." But Preston is now stuck in a long-lasting silence. He merely stares at Sole, not showing any emotion.

"Look, I… I need to get back in a moment, so if you could—

"Kellogg. Is that the man who murdered your spouse?"

It's a reaction. Sole didn't believe they'd get any more. They're overjoyed.

"I know it sounds strange—

"What's even more strange is that I am compelled to accept your judgement. You've done well thus far, and I can't deny that Kellogg has been a huge help to us. How can you possibly fall in love with him? I'm not sure. But I was already missing it when you brought him along. At this point, what is one more or less step on the verge of insanity."

The Minutemen's Colonel shrugs his shoulders.

"I will kill him if he betrays us or poses a threat to us. And I shall kill you."

He moved away without adding anything, taking a quiet step towards his guard station while whistling. Sole let out a sigh. Surely, that's the best reaction they could expect from Preston.

Strong : “Human strong, human good warrior. Human take you spouse. Human became spouse. I get it.”

X6-88 : "I am unable to adequately describe how much I agree with your pragmatic decision and how impressed I am with your order of precedence. This individual is a tremendous asset to the organisation, and I have no doubt that he will never compromise you. Sincerely, I admire your commitment to the Institute and confidence in one of its greatest components. Your denial of his past actions demonstrates your elegance, and it will be a privilege to be associated with you indefinitely."

[teaenthusiast65]

Tolya Yul Bataar Fanfic

The Beginning...

Novyi Zem had been both a traitor and a safe haven for my family.

There was no testing or mandatory service to the First Army in Novyi Zem; they were free to choose how they lived their lives. Or, they should have been.

My parents were stolen as children by slavers from Weddle, who then sold them to the Little Palace and they were forced to live the life of a Ravkan Grisha, instead of a free Zowa in Novyi Zem.

It had taken my Mother falling pregnant with me for the two of them to cross the Shadow Fold and flee; they wanted to make sure I had the choice they never had.

They had settled in Shiftport and hid their powers. After I was born however, they dreaded the day that I might be both blessed and cursed with the gift of small science.

I had been barely eight years old when I had been playing in the jurda fields, loving the smell and sight of the orange flowers. It was winter and the flowers were not in bloom; as an impatient child, I had touched a frozen stem, and sparked life back into it, to see the beautiful orange flower once again.

Unlike in Weddle, the people of Shiftport had protected and hidden me away when any slavers, Grisha hunters or pirates came calling. In exchange, I kept the jurda flowers, the villages main export, blooming all year round. As well as other crops that were required.

I had always wanted to go to the Little Palace, to learn about my ability; what I was or wasn’t capable of. My parents never told me what type of Grisha I was, or what they were either.

I guessed they thought if they kept me ignorant of the world, I would not be so eager to join it; which backfired spectacularly on them as I began to resent the secrets they kept from me. 

When the fold had been torn down by the Sun Summoner and the Shadow Summoner had been killed, meaning there was no more mandatory service to the First Army, there was no longer any reason for me not to follow where my heart led me.

It did not take me long to find a collection of ships in Eames Harbour that would offer me cheapest and safest passage to Ravka.

The Volkyolny was the third ship I visited; I could see the crew loading the ship with supplies; two of whom I noticed, a man and a woman, happened to be Shu.

I had not encountered many descendants from Shu Han. In fact I could only recall one, who had been a merchant collecting a shipment of jurda. I had been very young and had stared too openly, with bright green eyes that the merchant noticed and taken offence too.

Now that I was older, my intrigue had not diminished, though my manners had evolved enough that no longer stared so openly.

They had short jet black hair that shone with streaks of white in the sunlight. Unlike other members of the crew that had been tanned by the sun, the two of them still appeared quite pale.

There was something about their slanted eyes that intrigued me, they reminded me of a sunflower seed. A comparison that seemed even more fitting as the brown of their eyes reminded me of the center of a sunflower.

Spying a man standing at the end of a ramp that bridged the gap between the dock and ship, supervising as the crew of the ship carried supplies up and down the ramp. I surmised that he was the captain. 

“Excuse me,” I greeted as I approached.

He stared at me with a scowl that seemed permanently settled on his face, “Yes?”

“How much to book passage from here to Ravka?” I asked.

“Fifty kruger.” he told me promptly.

“What time do you leave?” I asked, wanting to know how long I had to search for a cheaper option before I had to make a decision.

“Dawn.” he replied, just as the male Shu descended the ramp, clearly hearing the last word his captain had said, prompted him to speak.

“Long may the night carry our souls, Until the dawn renews us.” he quoted, smiling happily.

“Urgh, enough with the poetry.” said the female Shu as she clomped down the ramp with heavy feet.

“That was from Rabinov.” he explained, “Canto Sixteen.”

“Canto Seventeen, actually.” I corrected as I weight my pouch of money in my hand, more concerned with how light it felt and not the people around me.  

When I looked up however, I saw three pairs of very stunned eyes looking at me intensely. I didn’t think my words would provoke such a strong reaction and looked around, thinking there must be some other explanation but all of their eyes stayed trained on me.

“Did she just correct your poetry?” the Shu woman asked in disbelief.

“I believe she did.” said the Shu man, his voice sounding dazed as he stared at me; his eyes practically burrowing into my skin, his gaze was so intense.

Both the woman and the captain cackled with loud laughter.

Feeling as if I had somehow offended someone, probably the Shu man, I turned on my heel and fled the awkward situation as fast as I could. But I felt a pair of eyes watching every step I took before I turned the corner and was out of sight.

I visited another three ships, the price going higher with each ship. That left me with only one option; the Volkyolny.

Unfortunately, that left me with not enough to money to pay for a bed to sleep for the night. Instead, I simply wandered the streets of Eames Chin with nothing but my thoughts for company.

I couldn’t help think back to the last words I had said to my parents, the weight of them laying heavily upon my shoulders; “You're taking my choices away. Just as the slavers took yours.”

The words hung so heavily on my mind that I felt my shoulders slump with the effort. My words had been harsh, but I didn't regret saying them.

That was what bothered me; that I did not feel guilty about the pain I saw in their eyes. I was too concerned with my own.

As I walked by a small window box, I saw the plants within it were droopy and brown, bent over like they too, had the weight of the world on top of their own tiny stems.

I may not have been able to relieve my own burdens, but I could help with theirs; I ran my hand over the top of them and watched as the stems turned green once again and slowly straightened up, standing tall once more before a small white flower began to bloomed.

Smiling to myself, I felt my heart feel lighter for just a moment, before the weight returned. Taking a deep breath, I shifted the strap of my pack a little more securely on my shoulder and continued on my way.

As the first rays of light began to peak over the horizon, I made my way back down to the docks and quickly found the ‘Volkyolny’.

I saw a few passengers boarding the ship, stumbling slightly over the lip of the ramp and side of the ship whilst the crew scurried about the deck, preparing to leave.

The captain was once again standing at the foot of the ramp between the dock and the ship. Marching over to him, his eyes sparked in recognition as he saw me, “Decided to join us did you?”

My answer was to hand him my bag of gold.

He weighed it in his hand for a moment, testing the weight to see if it was the correct, before he offered me a small nod, “Captain Sturmond.” he introduced himself.

“Flora.” I told him as I gripped my bag firmly in my hand.

Each step I took up the ramp felt important; as if I was walking away from who I was, everything that I had known.

Novyi Zem, Shiftpoint, my family, my friends, the jurda fields; they made my bag weigh heavily in my hand, as if it was some sort of anchor, desperately pulling against me to stay put… but I was stronger.

As I reached the top of the ramp I was surprised to see a hand outstretched in front of me, towards the hand that held my bag. Following up the muscled arm to its owner, I saw the Shu man looking down at me.

I frowned in confusion for a moment before I realized he was offering to take my bag for me. I looked up at him bemusedly as I handed him my bag.

His curious eyes met mine with a small, yet kind smile as he offered his other hand to me, palm up, silently offering to help me over the awkward transition from the ramp to the deck of the ship.

Placing my hand in palm, his thumb pressed down across the length of my fingers in order to help me up.

“Welcome aboard.” he said, those his words were simple enough, I felt as if there was more meaning behind him; like a promise of things to come.

Perhaps that was why I felt an excited flap of butterflies in my stomach and my heart skip as my eyes locked with his. I was certainly afraid, I’d be foolish not to be, but that didn’t stop me from stepping closer to him and onto the ship.

That sent a strange thrill through me, being fearful of something, and doing it anyway. Once my feet were firmly planted on the deck of the ship, I looked around excitedly, pulling my hand from his as I took in the strange surroundings of the ships, its cargo and crew.

I wasn’t so distracted however that I missed the small, secretive smile he had as he looked after me.

Clearly this story has more to give; I just don't know what it is. 

I would like prompts, suggestion and feedback as to where you think this story could go next because... well... I have nothing. 

Any help, whether that be suggestions, prompts, problems or observations would be greatly appreciated. 

DM’s or comments, all are welcome. 

--Tea Enthusiast

[jadekitty777]

The Emotionalist: Chapter 2

Will I write anything else but this this week? Maybe. Probably not.

Prompt for Day 3: Sunset

Rating: T

Word Count: 1K

Summary: Clover Ebi was a huntsman who, like most Atlesian soldiers, hid most of his emotions behind a mask of calm professionalism. That is, unless, one knew where to look. And Qrow looked a lot.

Or, 5 times Qrow learned to read Clover’s mood not from his face, but from his ears. [An adjacent story to Hunting Season Hunting Season; events from Qrow’s POV]

Ao3 Link: Dragging Like the Tide

~

Clover’s office had a very nice couch in it. 

The soldier had admitted he didn’t know where it had come from, just that it had shown up when he had asked for the arrangement years ago. But of course Atlesians wouldn’t just send him any old thing. It was one of those luxury pieces that was probably made by some famous artisan using the finest wood, material and stuffing available, with a plush, deep, forest green exterior and oak accenting along the arm trim and legs. 

Not that Qrow had room to complain as he was currently the one lounging along it like a lazy cat, scroll held aloft as he virtually duked it out with Ruby in Ninja Wars V. Between matches, he would glance back at Clover, somehow finding him buried in more paperwork than when he’d looked last. Not that he needed the visual to know he was still working. With the game music muted, the clack-clack-clack of keyboard keys was the only soundtrack he had.

When he’d first dropped in, Clover had agreed to go for some evening tea with him in the mess hall. Something soothing to wind down with. Maybe they’d even watch the stars from the windows, like they had been from the rooftops for the past few days.

“Just give me five minutes to finish these reports.” Clover had promised.

That had been a half hour ago.

Qrow tapped insistently on his controller for another combo and struck the final blow. The victory screen flashed with ‘Soaring Ninja Wins!’ for the twelve time that night.

He swiped out of the game and pinged his niece, Ready to call it quits?

Just because I am sleepy does not mean I am defeated old man!

But yeah, Weiss is complaining about the noise.

See you tomorrow!

Night kiddo.

His arms dropped, resting his scroll along his stomach as he tipped his head back.

Immediately, he noticed that Clover’s demeanor had changed. Not in his expression - that was still set in deep concentration - but in his ears. They were slanted downwards, tips pointing towards his shoulders.

The last time he’d seen something like that had been shortly after their encounter with Robyn, wherein Clover and Blake started debating the state of Faunus socionomics. In the end, Clover had backed down, ears falling in resigned defeat.

Much like they were now.

Not that Qrow was… keeping a catalog or anything.

“You okay Clubs?” He called.

Clover glanced away from his computer, the unnatural glow of the screen making his skin appear ghastly pale. “Huh? Oh yeah.” He ran a hand down his face, eyes rolling back towards the screen. “Sorry, these reports are taking a lot longer than I thought.”

“Is there something troubling in them?”

“No more than usual, why?”

Why indeed. Qrow knew ‘because you seem upset’ could be taken wrong in too many ways; especially, if that then led to him admitting he was trying to read Clover by the positioning of his ears. 

Qrow was proud to say he wasn’t that stupid.

“No reason. Just figured that was what the hold up was.” He said instead.

There was a distant hum, then Clover shook his head. “No I think I’m just-” He trailed off, raising a hand to his mouth as he yawned widely. As he did, his ears stretched backwards before falling back down where they’d been.

If being cute was illegal, Qrow was pretty sure the other man would have been convicted for unintentional murder twice over by now.

“Mm, well I was gonna say tired, but I guess that’s obvious now.” Clover joked, shooting him a sleepy smile.

Thrice over, his seizing heart corrected.

He rose from the dead just enough to manage, “Maybe it’s time to call it a night?”

“No, no. I’m almost done. I just need-”

“Five more minutes?” Qrow guessed flatly. 

Clover flushed, averting his gaze to the pens lined along his desk. “…Sorry. I didn’t mean to take so long. You can turn in for the night if you want.”

Well now, that just wouldn’t do.

Abandoning all hope on their original plans, he gave a loud, dramatic sigh, before hopping to his feet. “Chamomile or ginger?”

“Huh?”

“Your tea.” He explained patiently, arching a brow. “Which one do you want me to bring back?”

Slowly, realization dawned.

Then Clover gifted him with the sweetest smile, as he replied, “Ginger, please.”

“You got it. I’ll be back before you can miss me.” He accented the words with a wink, purposely sashaying his hips as he headed out of the office.

The second the door swung shut behind him, Qrow lent heavily against it, hand on his chest as he tried to calm his sudden cardiac arrest.

War crimes. He decided on finally. Clover’s cuteness was guilty of actual war crimes on his heart.

Unbeknownst to the metaphorically dying huntsman, on the other side of the door, seen only by his own reflection in the monitor, Clover had buried his blushing face in his hands, squealing quietly to himself.

[memes-in-a-half-shell]

Just the Two of Us - Chapter 1

Wahoo! First chapter of that new story of mine! I wanted to try something different for this first chapter. Less exposition and more straight to the point. We'll get to learn more about Vee and other stuff in future chapters, but for now I wanted to lay out the first meeting.

Events are after the 2nd movie. Dunno exactly how long after, but it's been some time for sure. Please note that all characters are depicted as adults. Mature subjects may come in later chapters (nsfw, of course language 'cause I have the mouth of a fucking sailor, deep emotional stuff, most probably some intense action and blood - 'cause this mama loves to be intense). There's gonna be some humor too, don't worry~

I've started this fic first for myself, but I was liking the various drafts I did and I wanted to share 💜

Title is inspired by the song "Just the Two of Us" by Grover Washington.

[First Chapter - you're here!] // [Next Chapter - incoming]

And in an instant my soul trembled Meeting your eyes didn't feel like the first time Deep within me I knew - I simply knew That forever I'd be entranced by you

There was something about this late August's night that felt different.

Maybe it was this warmth that had some moisture lingering in the air. Or this surreal feeling that was now creeping under Vee's skin as her friend April was leading her into a dark alley. Who knows, really.

"You have to promise me, Vee. You must keep this encounter a secret. Never tell anyone about what you're going to see."

When the reporter had asked for help regarding friends that needed a hand with translation issues, of course Vee accepted. But now the woman was slowly starting to second-guess her choice. She knew April had no mean bone in her however, trusting her then feeling like the right thing to do...

"I dunno why it's getting so serious all of a sudden, but I promise you, April."

"And I know you'll keep that promise," added the brunette with a soft smile.

Their heels' clicking came to a stop against the pavement, the reporter taking some seconds to check her surroundings before bringing a watch to her left wrist up, pressing a button and saying: "It's alright, we're ready." Vee slightly frowned at that action until she heard movement from above, some things now falling and moving in the shadows of the alley.

"Now, Vee, please don't freak out," instantly tried to reassure April, placing herself before her friend and trying to keep Vee's focus on her. "I assure you, they're friends."

Now the intrigue was killing Vee's curiosity, her gaze moving from April's, now finally noticing new forms appearing in the dim lights of the alley. The first shape was already impressive in size, piercing blue eyes going straight across her soul. She noticed green scales, a blue bandana, a shell?! Vee's eyes were wide open as her mouth simply opened and closed like a fish out of water, unable to form words. She shyly pointed out at the creature, grabbing her friend's arm out of pure instinct.

"It's alright, Vee," added April.

Other forms came forward, their looks different, yet all sharing those reptilian features. Orange, red, and purple bandanas added to the blue. All were staring at Vee, silent, trying to judge her reaction - afraid she'd be scared, most probably. Vee finally found back her voice, slight gasps of air exhaling from her lungs. She couldn't help her smile, slightly shaking her friend's arm she was still holding, blurting out in exclamation:

"Holy shit!!"

She moved away from April and now forward to the newcomers. She did keep her distance, not wanting to provoke any harsh reactions. Her eyes could barely stay in place, noticing new details on each individual she'd look at.

"April, what the fuck!" she added, turning to the brunette. "Your friends look awesome!"

"Told ya April has hot friends and this one looks cool," piped one of the creatures - the orange one - towards the red one, which resulted in some tsks and a playful slap on his shoulder.

"You're not scared?" asked April, moving to stand close to her friend again.

"Well, I mean..." Vee took another glance at the four, vaguely gesturing them. "I guess I'm more... surprised?! It's not everyday you see- … see, uh.." she paused, frowning a little, hands on her hips. "What are you guys, anyway?"

That brought some smiles on their faces, tension finally easing. The blue one spoke first:

"We are mutant ninja turtles, ma'am," he answered with one polite nod.

"Oh sure, that makes sense," acknowledged Vee, still frowning.

Her brain was running a hundred miles per second, trying to assess everything. They were giant speaking turtles, for crying out loud! Most people would've ran away at the sight of them, but Vee felt nothing else than pure fascination at the moment. And knowing they were friends with April, that did facilitate the encounter.

"So, April, that's the friend you spoke about?" brought up another mutant, the one wearing a red do-rag.

"Oh, yes, right, let me do the presentations," started the reporter, finally getting in motion. She first gestured around Vee's frame: "Guys, this is Vee!" She next started from left to right, the first one being the turtle wearing an orange bandana: "So this is Michelangelo-"

"Call me Mikey, sweetface," he quickly added, winking.

"Don't cut me, Mikey, that's rude," playfully bantered April, then moving to the red one. "This one's Raphael. Don't worry, he looks like a brute but he's really sweet."

"Depends on who yer askin'," smirked the large one.

"Now that's Leonardo, their leader, and finally over here we've got Donatello. You'll mostly be working with him for the task at hand."

Vee's eyes followed suit and landed on the tall terrapin adorning a purple bandana. Compared to the others he was slimmer in frame, wore glasses and presented various tech on his person. Vee paid no mind as she moved towards him, extending her hand as a greeting, out of pure formality and habit.

"Hi! I look forward to getting started."

The other paused for a second, his gaze glued to her hand. He only got in motion once April gently elbowed him, finally holding Vee's hand to return the greeting.

"Likewise."

A strong shiver went through Vee, seeing how her hand looked so small in his. Her green eyes crossed his golden ones, the exchange quickly over.

"So," started Leonardo. "April told us you can help us translate things from French to English. That's correct?"

"Yes," answered Vee with a smile. "It's my first language, I won't have any issues with that."

"You don't sound French at all," added Michelangelo. "Where's your accent?"

"Oh, sorry I don't sound like a movie stereotype," added the woman with slight annoyance, although playful. "I've been learning and speaking English from a very young age, since in Canada both English and French are the two offical languages."

"Wait, they speak French in Canada? I thought you'd be from France or somethin'!" continued the orange one.

"Welp, we all learn something new everyday!" pointed Vee.

And boy was she learning something completely new today.

***

Of all the places she thought she'd go to tonight, Vee didn't think it'd be in the sewers. The group was making its way through large undisturbed canals, April in front and discussing with Leo and Raph. As Vee was behind with Mikey and Donnie, she did start a conversation with the latter in order to be up to speed with the project.

"So, what am I going to work with? Should I wait until we get to the place before I get more details, or-?"

"You're totally gonna do some super secret spy stuff," said Mikey right away, playfully.

"Well, not totally," objected Donatello with a soft sigh, his attention now on Vee. "If I may brief you a little; we've intercepted communications from an enemy-"

"The Foot clan!"

"-Yes the Foot, thanks Mikey. And they seem to have developped an alliance with someone overseas, speaking French. All conversations are in audio form. I've tried to learn the language, but we're in a rush and I must admit that it's been kind of hard."

"Understandable, French is one hell of a language to learn," softly smiled Vee.

"And I didn't want to put those files through online translation services, as the information's nature is still unknown and I wouldn't want to risk any leaks of it. … Then April suggested you, and here we are."

"Here we are, indeed," added the woman. "It shouldn't be too difficult. My only concern would be regarding terms or keywords that are unknown to me; anything that may not be too familiar to me regarding this whole situation. But given the time, I could probably get through anything."

"Hey, by the way," said Mikey, diverting the subject a little. "Is your name really Vee? Sounds more like a nickname to me."

"Well aren't you the rude one tonight," slightly frowned Donnie.

"What?! I'm genuinely curious!"

Vee was still smiling: "No worries, it's not rude to ask! Indeed it's a nickname, since my full name can be quite a mouthful for English speakers at times. It's Véronique."

"Say what now?" added Mikey.

The woman couldn't hide her small laugh: "See! That's the kind of reaction I get everytime. That's why I tell people to call me Vee. Short and sweet!"

"Your name sounds beautiful though, what a shame," commented Donnie.

"Eyo, stop flirtin' back there," piped in Raph.

Mikey's chuckle echoed in the tunnel while Donnie's eyes rolled. They finally arrived to their destination; the Lair. Vee was instantly amazed as she witnessed the size of the place, all filled with interesting objects here and there.

"No way!" she breathed out with a large smile. "This place's amazing!"

That did boost the turtles' mood, enjoying to see such reaction from the woman. It was refreshing to meet someone new and see their fascination regarding their world.

"Where's Splinter?" asked April.

"He's out for the night to salvage some stuff for himself," answered Leonardo. "Plus he wanted to give us space for the newcomer."

"Didn't want to recreate a Casey situation?" added the brunette, amused.

"Oh I wish," chuckled Raph.

As the group was still moving forward, Vee leaned in to April, asking:

"Who's Splinter?"

"Their father and sensei. He's a rat."

"Oh! Of course...," added Vee as if it was normal, although intrigued.

They arrived to a workstation, many screens assembled to create a sort of digital alcove. Vee was instantly charmed, getting past her friend so she could get closer to the setup and admire it.

"Holy shit! Now that's a nice setup," she recognized, hands on her hips and looking up the screens.

"Finally, someone recognizes my creation," added Donnie, amused.

She turned to him.

"… Did you build all that by yourself? I mean … that's impressive! Is it only one computer? Or the machine must be a beast in order to support all those screens! And it must be quite the challenge to organize the desktop to spread on such a dome-like setup. What OS are you using? Windows? Linux? I hope it's not Apple, that stuff is a nightmare.-"

She stopped herself, a light blush appearing on her cheeks.

"Oh, uhm, sorry I'm asking a lot of questions."

Man, Donnie's heart was suddenly beating fast...

"Please, don't apologize, you're probably the first person ever to be curious about my stuff!"

"Nerds alert," poked in Mikey.

That brought some laughs from the others, Donnie and Vee shyly smiling. The tall terrapin then moved to his computer, trying to shake away the feeling as he brought the files up.

"Do you want to give it a first listen and see what's up?" he asked the woman, trying to ignore the others behind.

"Yes, please," answered Vee, coming closer and wanting to get on the task at hand.

As the terrapin started the recording, the group was then silent, Vee frowning as she focused. The voices were surprisingly clear and the recording of a good quality. As a first listen, she did grasp that some arrangements were being made regarding a certain formula and two animals?

"Un loup et une tortue alligator?" she voiced outloud, puzzled.

"What's that, you got something?" asked April.

Vee's brows were still furrowed, pondering for a moment as she paused the recording. She looked back at Donatello.

"There's a lot of information being given in this. Can I borrow some stuff to help me out; headphones, and uh-" she glanced at his keyboard. "A smaller keyboard so I can type it out and make better sense of it."

"Of course," he answered, already on the move to gather the equipment.

Vee turned to the others, sighing.

"This might take a little while," she announced. "If I caught things correctly, they're talking about a formula – something to be injected, and two specific animals. I'll need to relisten a couple of times to better pinpoint what's going on."

"Why do I have the feeling it might be about that damn purple ooze," added Leo, looking at his brothers.

"If that's true," said Donnie, the requested items in his hands as he was back. "That would mean we'd probably have a lead about Stockman's whereabouts."

"Let's not jump to conclusions yet," said April.

As the terrapin finished setting the items up, he handed the headphones to Vee, then moving his chair around in order to offer it to her. Vee thanked him, taking place. She gave one last glance to the group before holding the headphones close to her ears.

"No need to wait for me, I'll call you guys when I'll be done with this. Hopefully it won't take too long."

***

Donnie had decided to stay closeby, in case she'd ever request for some assistance or any other item. He was standing and leaning against the desk opposite of the one Vee was sitting at, absent-mindedly browsing his phone. To be frank, he spent more time observing her, somehow entranced by the way she was working. She was a fast typer. She barely had to look at the keyboard as her fingers flew across the keys. At some points she'd be mumbling in French to herself, continuing to type. The terrapin did not notice his younger brother, Mikey, sliding in next to him, smiling as he said in a low, cheerful tone: ""Diiiiibs~"

"Oh for crying out loud," complained Donnie in a similar hushed tone.

"What? She looks cute and seems like a complete badass! Look at her being a freakin' pro hacker level typer."

"Sure, 'cause you know about hacking," half-smiled the purple banded one.

"All I'm saying, we rarely get any other ladies in here. Let me have a chance!"

"Whatever, man, I didn't say a thing," sighed Donnie, going back to his phone.

His brother slipped away, smirking. Finally alone again, the turtle's eyes did wander back to Vee's form. She was quite nice looking indeed. Her dark teal green hair were an uncommon choice, yet did communicate her carefree nature. Her overall look was more of a classic chic nature, yet dressing comfortably. Plus her large black frame glasses seemed to compliment her pale eyes perfectly – were they green? Also he had noticed her tattoos, especially the ones at her right hand, at her inner left forearm, and some hidden ones at her upper left chest and her wrists. She seemed like quite the interesting character, indeed... His attention snapped as he noticed the woman removing the headphones, a slight sigh of relief leaving her. Donnie brought a stool and installed it next to her, sitting by her side.

"So, what's the verdict?" he asked.

"I finished writing up the whole dialogue down, in French," she answered, vaguely gesturing the screen. "It allowed me to get a better grasp of what was going on. Seems like my first observations were right; there were talks of a formula, an injection. They're planning on grabbing a wolf and an alligator snapping turtle for some sort of tests. They mentionned mutations along the way, something about what would be the results for an injection in animal subjects, rather than humans?"

"Leo was right then, it's related to the purple ooze..."

"What's that?"

"That's quite the long subject, but to summarize; it's a substance that has mutation properties. For humans, it turns them into part animal, part humanoid beings. The first incidence of that was Bebop and Rocksteady, two criminals that respectively got turned into a warthog and a rhinoceros."

"Damn, okay," commented Vee, surprised. "So what would be the results on animal subjects? Any thoughts?"

Donnie shrugged.

"Either they become fully human, or they go through different mutations – that is if the original formula is not altered. … Were there any talks about that?"

"Not really," answered the woman. "The discussion was pretty much centered around those animals. Were you able to record more of those conversations?"

"Actually, yes," said the turtle, grabbing the mouse and opening a folder on his computer. "I was able to get three more recently. But there's no need to go over them tonight... My brothers and I first wanted to know if things would go well tonight, and frankly I think it has been a success!"

"If you guys want me to come back to continue the work, I wouldn't mind."

"That'd be great!" smiled the terrapin, looking at the woman.

Yeah, she has green eyes. Vee was smiling softly as well, her chin resting on raised closed knuckles.

"… I still can't believe it somehow," she started, pensive. "This whole evening is just so weird right now, yet I know it's real. … I'm just so amazed."

"Amazed by my good looks?" suddenly came in Mikey as he got closer to Vee's position, taking support at the top back of her chair.

Vee chuckled while Donnie let out a quiet sigh.

"Amazed by all your looks," answered Vee. "I feel like I could ask so many questions right now, but I'll keep that for another time."

"We could definitely arrange a night of 20 questions," added the orange one with a playful look and a wink.

"Sure, why not!" laughed the woman.

((TO BE CONTINUED))

[allthingslinguistic]

One of the first things I remember using the internet for, because of the very specific kind of nerd I am, was for looking up information about how french grammar worked, because I'd been learning french in school for several years and it was a "learn by doing" curriculum that literally didn't even tell me that "je suis" and "tu es" and "nous sommes" are all different forms of the SAME VERB, yeah it's "to be" and it's super irregular and guess what I did not figure this out from mere exposure I needed to have a chart with all of them in it!

But the idea that I could just supplement a class I was taking with information external to the class that presented it differently or filled in the gaps, that I could even perceive that there were gaps, this took a while to click even for something like a language where I knew that it had to be possible to know it better because, hey, at least I had a sense of what I could do in English already. (+1 to trying to look up the literal meaning of "fuck" in several dictionaries and just not finding it though.)

And I was fortunate that I had enough of the right keywords and was looking for an uncontroversial topic that was already widely explained, even at the time. ("French grammar" was probably what I started searching, I do remember ending up on ask.com which may or may not have still been called Ask Jeeves at the time, a forerunner to Google that provided some its own information in a structured format).

By comparison, when I was trying to find more information about linguistics as a teenage linguistics enthusiast, I did look online and found a few things (shoutout to omniglot, which has been around since 1998), but there also was just...so much less internet then. Wikipedia didn't exist yet! And for its first few years it didn't have that much on it! I had more success with libraries and with pestering the staff at used bookstores in case something else had come in that might be relevant to me. One of them would set things aside for me, it was great! Of course, the information in them was sometimes decades out of date and I also ended up with some academic monographs that were FAR too advanced for me, but the idea of getting a bookstore to special order a book for me? I had never even heard of the idea. We also don't appreciate how hard it was to find out a) which books on a topic you wanted existed and b) where to get them, before you could search for and order books on the internet. Those lists of other books by the same author that appear inside books sometimes? I used the heck out of those.

People these days tell me they found All Things Linguistic or Lingthusiasm by just searching for "linguistics blog" or "linguistics podcast" and on the one hand I'm like oh great good I'm super happy for you and on the other hand it is so extremely far from my experience that you could just...do a search and get hours and hours of free posts or audio material at a beginner level. I remember when wikipedia and blogs and podcasts were invented and I'm not even that old. Like the idea that ordinary people who know a thing are just putting information about that thing online for other people to learn and they don't have to go through a publishing system that approves just a handful of ling books a year so I'm searching used bookstores for ones that came out decades ago because I've read all the current ones!

And that's still people who've somehow encountered the word linguistics already, right? Knowing which concepts exist at all is also a huge part. So on the one hand, you can get exposed to keywords by coming across a post on your feed (hi, this post about info literacy has now exposed you to "linguistics" if you hadn't seen it already) but also, if you want to look something up and you don't already know what it's called, or you've only been exposed to the set of keywords that people are using for intolerant versions or conspiracy theories or whatever, then "go look it up" or "educate yourself" can end up sending you further down the rabbit hole of misinformation. Like, algorithms and automated content policies very much have their downsides but before that we had a handful of humans making decisions about what kind of content they thought was suitable for the mass market.

I remember wanting to listen to music in other languages so I went to the CD shop and bought one of the four (4) French CDs in the "other languages" section. Like, that's what my options were. And French was comparatively many relative to any other languages because Canada. Whereas last month one of my random playlists happened to populate with a very catchy pop song in Polish, a language I've never particularly even sought out, and I was able to just casually look up the artist and google translate the lyrics. Do you have any idea how much time I spent with French CD case lyric booklets and my French-English dictionary and generally a word or two per song would not be in my dictionary because it was pretty small so I would just not know what it meant for years!

What I'm saying is even if you were trying really hard to educate yourself on a topic that wasn't even controversial or especially obscure, it used to be really challenging to even just nerd out about a special interest before the internet. When the barriers were higher? Welp.

Gen Z is awesome and generational fighting is bad, but I do sometimes talk to Gen Z folks and I’m like… oh… you cannot comprehend before the internet.

Like activists have been screaming variations on “educate yourself!” for as long as I’ve been alive and probably longer, but like… actually doing so? Used to be harder?

And anger at previous generations for not being good enough is nothing new. I remember being a kid and being horrified to learn how recent desegregation had been and that my parents and grandparents had been alive for it. Asking if they protested or anything and my mom being like “I was a child” and my grandma being like “well, no, I wasn’t into politics” but I was a child when I asked so that didn’t feel like much of an excuse from my mother at the time and my grandmother’s excuse certainly didn’t hold water and I remember vowing not to be like that.

So kids today looking at adults and our constant past failures and being like “How could you not have known better? Why didn’t you DO better?” are part of a long tradition of kids being horrified by their history, nothing new, and also completely justified and correct. That moral outrage is good.

But I was talking to a kid recently about the military and he was talking about how he’d never be so stupid to join that imperialist oppressive terrorist organization and I was like, “Wait, do you think everyone who has ever joined the military was stupid or evil?” and he was like, well maybe not in World War 2, but otherwise? Yeah.

And I was like, what about a lack of education? A lack of money? The exploitation of the lower classes? And he was like, well, yeah, but that’s not an excuse, because you can always educate yourself before making those choices.

And I was like, how? Are you supposed to educate yourself?

And he was like, well, duh, research? Look it up!

And I was like, and how do you do that?

And he was like, start with google! It’s not that hard!

And I was like, my friend. My kid. Google wasn’t around when my father joined the military.

Then go to the library! The library in the small rural military town my father grew up in? Yeah, uh, it wasn’t exactly going to be overflowing with anti-military resources.

Well then he should have searched harder!

How? How was he supposed to know to do that? Even if he, entirely independently figured out he should do that, how was he supposed to find that information?

He was a kid. He was poor. He was the first person in his family to aspire to college. And then by the time he knew what he signed up for it was literally a criminal offense for him to try to leave. Because that’s the contract you sign.

(Now, listen, my father is also not my favorite person and we agree on very little, so this example may be a bit tarnished by those facts, but the material reality of the exploitative nature of military recruitment remains the same.)

And this is one of a few examples I’ve come across recently of members of Gen Z just not understanding how hard it was to learn new ideas before the internet. I’m not blaming anyone or even claiming it’s disproportionate or bad. But the same kids that ten years ago I was marveling at on vacation because they didn’t understand the TV in the hotel room couldn’t just play more Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on demand - because they’d never encountered linear prescheduled TV, are growing into kids who cannot comprehend the difficulty of forming a new worldview or making life choices when you cannot google it. When you have maybe one secondhand source or you have to guess based on lived experience and what you’ve heard. Information, media, they have always been instant.

Society should’ve been better, people should’ve known better, it shouldn’t have taken so long, and we should be better now. That’s all true.

But controlling information is vital to controlling people, and information used to be a lot more controlled. By physical law and necessity! No conspiracy required! There’s limited space on a newspaper page! There’s limited room in a library! If you tried to print Wikipedia it would take 2920 bound volumes. That’s just Wikipedia. You could not keep the internet’s equivalent of resources in any small town in any physical form. It wasn’t there. We did not have it. When we had a question? We could not just look it up.

Kids today are fortunate to have dozens of firsthand accounts of virtually everything important happening at all times. In their pockets.

(They are also cursed by this, as we all are, because it’s overwhelming and can be incredibly bleak.)

If anything, today the opposite problem occurs - too much information and not enough time or context to organize it in a way that makes sense. Learning to filter out the garbage without filtering so much you insulate yourself from diverse ideas, figuring out who’s reliable, that’s where the real problem is now.

But I do think it has created, through no fault of anyone, this incapacity among the young to truly understand a life when you cannot access the relevant information. At all. Where you just have to guess and hope and do your best. Where educating yourself was not an option.

Where the first time you heard the word lesbian, it was from another third grader, and she learned it from a church pastor, and it wasn’t in the school library’s dictionary so you just had to trust her on what it meant.

I am not joking, I did not know the actual definition of the word “fuck” until I was in high school. Not for lack of trying! I was a word nerd, and I loved research! It literally was not in our dictionaries, and I knew I’d get in trouble if I asked. All I knew was it was a “bad word”, but what it meant or why it was bad? No clue.

If history felt incomprehensibly cruel and stupid while I was a kid who knew full well the feeling of not being able to get the whole story, I cannot imagine how cartoonishly evil it must look from the perspective of someone who’s always been able to get a solid answer to any question in seconds for as long as they’ve been alive. To Gen Z, we must all look like monsters.

I’m glad they know the things we did not. I hope one day they are able to realize how it was possible for us not to know. How it would not have been possible for them to know either, if they had lived in those times. I do not need their forgiveness. But I hope they at least understand. Information is so powerful. Understanding that is so important to building the future. Underestimating that is dangerous.

We were peasants in a world before the printing press. We didn’t know. I’m so sorry. For so many of us we couldn’t have known. I cannot offer any other solace other than this - my sixty year old mother is reading books on anti-racism and posting about them to Facebook, where she’s sharing what’s she’s learning with her friends. Ignorance doesn’t have to last forever.

[rottenbrainstuff]

Bg3 playthrough - House of Grief (it all comes together for my tav)

Spoilers!

Some notes first: I’ve been noticing lately that I’ve got some annoying bugs happening after patch 6… I can’t say they 100% for sure never happened before the patch, but I know they’re happening a lot now - quite often, the incidental companion dialogue as we walk around won’t load the audio - words will appear above their head, but there’s no spoken lines with it. More annoying - sometimes my character gets stuck in conversations. I’ll go to talk to an NPC, it seems like the conversation is going to start, but nothing happens: we all just stand there with the game frozen and no way to back out or go forward.

I thought it was so neat that Jaheira and Minsc had dialogue with Sarevok, and I never bothered to check what the conversation was like if you don’t bring them along - it’s much longer, if you’re a durge, and I probably should have done that instead. Oops!

It ALSO looks like I was supposed to have a cutscene with Jaheira after my bhaalspawn reveal dream at the beginning of act 3, but it only triggers if Jaheira is actually in your traveling party - simply being at camp isn’t enough.

Act 3 NPC names are the worst. It’s like they got tired of naming people and just picked random jokes or food related names. In a way it’s funny I guess, but mostly I don’t really like it. You guys are the ones who chose to fill the city to the brim with NPCs, name them properly if you’re going to do that.

You used to be able to pray every day at the tabernacle to get your buff. It seems that with patch 6, it’s now a one-time deal. I guess that’s less annoying for most players, but I actually liked doing my daily prayers. Every single time, Bhaal got mad at me, and I liked having my daily little “fuck you dad, you’re not the boss of me” moment.

Ok now the main event - I finally did the House of Grief. Yet another little callback to the older games, yet another pain in the ass act 3 fight. I really rely on summons now to help me pad out the fights, I don’t think I’d be able to win any of these otherwise. It was super neat meeting Nocturne and the little memories she had to share, but I wish I could see what the encounter is like if Shadowheart had the noblestalk. I was never able to get her to take it. She won’t just consume it directly, and I never had any options pop up in dialogue if the mushroom was in my inventory or hers or whatever. No matter what I did it never worked. Oh well!

Hey what do most people decide to do with Shadowheart’s parents? I don’t see a lot of discussion about it because I’m not usually hanging out in those corners of the internet.

I played through the encounter once. The parents were requesting, specifically, over and over again, that they wanted Shadowheart to free herself from the curse.*** You have the option to let Shadowheart decide what she wants to do, and I’m always interested to see what the characters are set to do by default, so I took that route, and Shadowheart chose to kill her parents like they were asking. It’s a very very touching and emotional scene, her parents say they will always be with her, you can choose to give her a hug during her cut scene, very satisfying tie-up. It felt like I made the right choice.

But then I went back and ran it again just to see what would happen if I made different choices, and it made me change my mind. I know her parents are able to articulate clearly and unambiguously that they want her to free herself from her curse, and I know, being a parent, I 100% understood where they are coming from. For sure. But just because you think you want something, that doesn’t mean it’s actually the best thing to do. And you know what… I think… my poor tav’s really been at a loss for most of act 3, and all the backstory he’s learned about himself. He kind of feels disposable. It’s the reason he agreed to Raphael’s deal: his soul is void to begin with, so it doesn’t even matter.

But I think it was the conversation with Sarevok that really cemented a positive course of action for him. Sarevok told him a little more about his position in the bhaal cult, and kept repeating over and over how I was made for murder, how I was perfect murder. And I think… the whole point of the game clicked in my brain. You know, it’s in that song, “I Want to Live”. That’s the whole entire point. For EVERYONE. All the companions. Each one has to find the reason to fight for their life, their own life, sometimes figuratively and sometimes literally. Each one is learning to want to LIVE. That’s the whole entire point. No noble but pointless self-sacrifice. No throwing yourself away, no fear, no hiding, let’s fucking LIVE. And I think it has all clicked especially for my resisting durge, who now wants every single one of his actions to be a big “fuck you” to daddy. My tav was made to murder: now he’s going to save everything, aggressively, passionately.

So Shadowheart’s parents want to give up now - I don’t think my tav is going to let that happen.

***plus I mean… I think another issue is that the curse is a bit vague. What exactly is the drawback? Shadowheart gets pains in her hand occasionally? I feel like that’s not a huge deal. Maybe if the curse had been described more, had more awful things attached to it, it would be a harder choice.

If you tell Shadowheart not to do it, you can talk about how - sure there will be some pain to figure out how to live with - but that’s life, life involves pain sometimes. Shadowheart will say that she doesn’t want to just give up now that she’s come this far, and laughs that it’s her parents that she gets her rebelliousness from anyways! They’ll figure it out together.

No one expresses any regret if you make this decision. Her parents come to your camp and stay there and talk about how happy they are. Shadowheart has someone who can actually tell her about her childhood and fill her in on her old memories. She still has a cutscene where she cries, but this time she cries about feeling like she doesn’t deserve to be anyone’s daughter. You don’t even get a CHOICE to hug her this time, you just do, and then her parents appear to comfort her as well and you get a great big family hug. Amazing. I’m so happy with this choice. My camp is very very fully now, with all my companions, and also Mizora, and Yenna, and Volo, and now Shadowheart’s parents as well. I like it. Wish a certain old Hellrider was here too, bet he’d have fun helping Yenna with her soup. Sigh.

So again I haven’t seen much discussion, but I wonder if there’s any discourse about what to do with Shadowheart’s parents. I don’t even want to look and see - I’m afraid I’m going to see ableist discussion about how Shadowheart’s mom is better off dead and should be put out of her misery and I don’t want to risk putting that in my eyeballs.

Hey. I saw some interesting discussion about Dammon and how his character is a bit more morally complicated than he appears. Dammon is a lovely guy of course, but he also very conspicuously is the only tiefling who misses something about living in the hells: he enjoyed working with all the infernal machinery - but don’t forget - it all runs on souls. In Baldur’s Gate, I don’t think it’s a coincidence at all that his forge is RIGHT next door to the Devil’s Fee. Honestly I kind of like this aspect of his character, makes him more interesting, to me.

Feeling good, feeling JOYOUS, my poor old tav feels like he’s finally got a clear direction. Next up is taking care of Orin!

[dorefasolsido]

15.

How old were you when...

you had your first crush?

Back in kindergarten. It was a boy from my group that always played the prince in every play we did lol

you had your first kiss?

I saw a photo of myself kissing some boy at my birthday when I was really really young, so I guess that's it lol

you had your first boyfriend or girlfriend?

I had my first whatever-that-was when I was 22/23. It's hard to say it was a real relationship, but it wasn't just a normal friendship either.

you made your first best friend?

I think when I was 4/5. It was in kindergarten, but then we fell out and stopped being friends. That girl was then in the same class with me in high school, and we still weren't friends, but not because of the fight lol. Neither of us could remember what the fight was even about.

you had your first break-up with a significant other?

Well, I guess you could say when I was 24.

you started your period (if you're a girl)?

I was around 12.

you got engaged?

Never.

you got married?

Same, and not planning to.

you lost your virginity?

Haven't lost it yet. And I hate that term too.

you had your first child?

No kids.

you first moved out of your house?

I was 19 when I moved to our capital city to go to university.

you graduated high school?

I was 18, turning 19 that year.

you started college?

19.

you moved out of your house permanently?

I mean, I didn't. I moved out at 19, yes, but I still spend half my time in the flat and half with my parents. Well, now it may be more like 2/3 here and 1/3 with my parents, but still.

you first cut yourself?

I never did.

you first thought about suicide?

Oh I don't know. I feel like, even though high school was rough, I never really thought about it then. I kept thinking I just need to push through and it will be better. And it was better, uni was amazing. But yeah, it's definitely been on my mind a lot more now. I don't know when it started.

you learned your first swear word?

Lol I don't know.

you started swearing?

I don't know that either, but I don't normally swear very much.

you had your first sleepover?

Hmmm, not counting the cousin sleepovers, since I did those since I was a literal toddler, I think when I was around 12 or 13.

you were first baptized?

I was around 4, right after my sister was born.

you were baptized and it meant something?

Uhhh, I was baptized only once and it didn't mean anything.

you made you first huge regret?

I'm not sure. I don't tend to view things in such a way, usually.

you felt mature?

Lol I don't. I don't know if I ever did or ever will.

you first were in love with someone?

I don't think I've ever been in love. I thought I was, here and there, but I don't think any of that was more than just a crush.

you first experienced love at first sight?

Never, and I don't believe in it either.

you first encountered God?

I don't know, I remember reading Bible for kids when I was little, so that's probably when. But my family's not religious, so it was just a story to me.

you started going to church?

I've never really gone to church like that.

you got drunk for the first time?

Drunk drunk? Never. My emetophobia says hiii. But the closest I've been was actually a few months ago, after seeing Barbie. I drank two cocktails a little too fast and almost crossed the just tipsy line. It freaked me out a little though, so I gave myself a break from alcohol.

you first tried drugs?

I just turned 26 when I tried weed.

you started to think about your appearance?

I have no clue.

you first joined facebook?

I was around 13/14. But I didn't really want it, so I kept it deactivated until the last year of high school.

you got a cell phone?

My own cell phone, when I was 11.

you got your own laptop?

I was 19 when I got my own laptop, just before I moved out. Then two years ago, I bought a new one with my own money, and I was very proud of myself lol

you got your own digital camera?

Never had one.

you got your own car?

Not yet.

you got your driver's license?

I was 17.

you first got pregnant?

God forbid.

you felt alive for the first time?

I have no clue when that was.

felt loved for the first time?

Also no idea when this was.

[myfeetkeepdancing]

"I suppose this is going to make us enemies with benefits." | Peter Parker x Male!Reader

"I suppose this is going make us enemies with benefits." You playfully tease as your lips twist into a devious little smirk. You got what you came for. But this game was far too much fun to pass up. You take in his suit. His stance. His curves. Slowly continuing your stroll across the moonlit rooftop. The white lenses set in his mask contrast stark against the red spandex of his suit. Especially amidst the grey and dark tints of the night. Much more than you. You were little more than a black outline against the dark-grey canvas of the night. A long brown leather coat concealed your figure. It's sleek, tailored to every inch, billowing gently in the wind. Revealing the purplish-colored chest piece. Arms and legs encased in armor like Iron Man. The matt finish reflects little light, just like the mask you wear. Only your hair sticks out. "Or… am I two steps ahead of you…?"

"What?! N-No…! Stop this!" His voice echoed. At least he tried while striking this heroic Spider-Man pose. Bolstering his resolve as much as he could. But his voice cracked. Tone wavering, as his heart spoke, making himself fluster. You could see him flinch as he heard himself. "Y-You got the best of me last time. But n-not this time!" His first shot missed you by several feet. Another shot of webbing flew past you. You needn't move a muscle as it disappeared into the darkness. "I will stop you this time!"

"I do remember last time." You chuckle, slowly tilting your head to one side, as another shot of webbing sheared past your head. Reconciling the fun you had in the last encounter. His body language said it all. "You seem a bit more desperate now. How'd you find me?" Shooting him a second glance as you vault up and over a ventilation unit in front of you, closing the distance between you and Spider-Man, dodging a volley of six to seven shots, all in rapid succession of one another. "Did you follow your Spidey sense, or something else?"

"I knew it! It could only be you!" He called out. "It's that... that... smell! It's… It's… everywhere!" His hands clamped to his head, shakingly frustrated and angry at himself. "It gets stronger the closer I get to you. It... does things to me. And... I… I just... -I… I can't get it out of my head! "

"What can't you get out of your head, Peter...?"

"Stop it! WHAT are you? WHO are you?!" He snapped. With angry flicks off his wrist, he shot his strings and webbings. He became reckless. His aim faltered, and his finesse slipped. Like before, you dodged every shot with ease. Ending up on the high ground. You stare at each other. Waiting for the other's next move. You could leave in an instant. But this was fun. Too much fun. For you, at least. "AND HOW DO YOU KNOW MY NAME?!" He cried out, growing frustrated at his own failure.

"Oh, Peter… Everyone has his secrets." You shake your head in laughter. The way you overly use his name makes him even angrier—the balled fists and shaking posture. "As for what I am... That's a matter of perspective. I like to think of 'me' as the hero of the story. I haven't really thought of a name. So, please do chime in if anything pops into your head." Although this felt like a game. A playground almost. Spider-Man wasn't having any of it. You had the cargo to worry about. If it arrived damaged, your reputation would be the same. You had to think about an escape sooner or later. "What do you think I am? Where do you stand?"

"You're a criminal. A thief. A villain." He bellowed across the rooftop. He seemed more in control this time. "And you're messing with the wrong hero." He reinforced his epic speech with a quick burst of his webs. Only a slight twist of your torso was enough to dodge it.

"That a line you learned from Tony?"

"Stop playing me!"

"It's a shame you see it this way. But I guess you can use a bit of motivation to catch me. Right, Peter?" With a flick of your fingers, two playing cards appeared like magic. Spider-Man's lenses grew big and white as the cards charged bright pink in an instant. "Two of Hearts." You announced, showing the images on the cards. With a snap of your fingers and lighting quick reflexes, you launch the cards in his direction. With unnatural speed, they cut through the air, arcing in ways impossible to the laws of gravity.

Spider-Man has little time to hesitate. He turns his attention to the incoming cards. Readying his fighting pose. His first shots go wide. Disappearing into the dark. Panic starts to take over as the cards close distance fast. He chooses to unleash a barrage of webbings on both. A crackle and a boom turn into flashes of pink and purple. Followed by a fiery explosion, burning the webs and cards to a cinder. Illuminating the space between the two of you.

"Nice little warm-up." You chuckled as he tried to gather himself. Snapping your fingers, you get his attention again as you summon another card. "You see, I was trying to set the alarm off." Flinging another card towards an electrical fuse box beside him. "You could use some help."

His webbings now struck true. He intercepted it in mid-air. Making it explode in a small puff of smoke of pink and purple. "I don't need help." He stated, slowly starting to walk towards you. "I'll take you on myself."

"A little bit overconfident." You snort and shake your head. As you outstretch your hand towards him, he stops his heroic walk. Keeping your fingers spread apart. A flick of the wrist summons another row of cards, one between each finger—the pink hue shining across your extended arm. "Let's play… Spider-Man." You pull back and hurdle the collection of charged cards towards him. You knew each card would explode with the force of a hand grenade. It wouldn't kill him, at least harm him a bit. Not to mention the collateral damage to the building.

"Enough!" He burst out in a sprint. Closing the distance between you quickly. "You won't kill me!" He shouted and used a ledge to propel himself airborne. He dodged the entire throw with a backward jump and shot out a massive web to blow the group up. It happened in a matter of split seconds. The only image that stuck with you was Spider-Man emerging from a ball of fire and smoke—backlit by pink and purple.

He lands mere meters away from you. It's dangerously close. But you weren't backing off. You won't give him an inch. Not even a flinch. Only your long leather coat bellowed in the wind from his spectacular landing. A real hero landing. "You can't keep doing this." He said as his lenses narrowed.

"Neither can you." Nothing would distract him now. You were fully in his focus. You thought about arcing a card up and over him, hitting him from behind. You've seen him fight. Studied him. You know he's fast. But you reckon you're faster. But was this time to test that theory? No, you got him where you wanted him.

"You have to stop." Spider-Man said, taking a step forward. "Everything you're doing is wrong."

"Don't lecture me on right or wrong." You chuckle as you rest your hand on your belt. "I got what I came for." Showing the strapped velvet bag across your waist. "I merely redistribute the wealth the way it's meant to be."

"Keep repeating the lie to yourself, and you'll believe it." He said, taking a step closer. "I have to stop you now. Right here. Right now."

"The truth is rarely that simple. You see, the rich and the government are almost one and the same. Priding themselves over the backs of others. Using us to their advantage. I merely right the wrong." Silence takes over. Staring at one another. Even though you both wear a mask, you're both locked on one another. The tension is tangible. You swear you can hear each other's heartbeat and tensioned breathing. "I haven't killed anyone? Have I?"

"That doesn't make your crimes justifiable."

"I beg to differ." Studying his body language. His breathing. His shaking knees. Spider-Man was nervous. You could tell. Both fists balled. Breathing rapidly. "But you talk that through with Mister Stark. I'd love to hear how he talks his way out of that one." His lenses focus on you. On edge by even the slightest movement of your long coat swaying in the wind. "Do remind me to visit him sometime. I'm sure he has plenty to share in one of his... fifteen lofts? Perhaps the Stark tower?"

"I'll take you to him myself." Straightening his posture, desperately trying to contain his nerves. "This has to stop. You've fooled me long enough. You used my name too many times now. You've gone too far."

"I thought you'd never mention it. So, you know, I left one just down there." The thought alone made you chuckle to yourself. The countless headlines in the papers after a robbery you committed. It filled you with utmost joy. "Ink is probably still wet." You continue to mock him. "Go ahead. I didn't trip the alarm." The fun was when the owners found out about their item missing; a playing card was left in place. Always a playing card. And of all the possible cards, it was always one with a heart. With handwritten letters reading: 'Love, Spider-Man.' The media and many detectives on the case were baffled. Just as Spider-Man himself. "I loved your last interview, by the way. How you stuttered and stammered through all of it. You were thinking of me? Weren't you? That glimpse..."

"S-Stop...! Stop hiding behind that mask!" He cried out, trying to connect his webbing with your leg. Even this close-up personal, you see it coming from miles and miles away, reacting with inhuman speed. The webbing hits the floor. "I saw something. You're young. You're like me. You don't have to do this. Why did you choose to hide your face this time? Who's behind the mask? What kind of spell did you put on me?!"

"Look at that…" You tease, tilting your head ever so slightly to the side. "Curiosity finally got the better of you? That glimpse really caught you, didn't it?"

"Fine! If you wanna play this game." He pulled on his mask, the red fabric stretched over the lines of his face. Revealing a twenty-ish-year-old boy. Or man. You knew how he looked. You'd seen the pictures. But seeing him in the flesh, for real this time. He looked young. Handsome. Strong jawlines and beautiful eyes. The suit did very little to hide his muscled physique. Even up close. "You know who I am! Now show me, who are you?!"

"You really wanna find out what happens when you look into my eyes? Then go ahead, Peter." You open your arms as a way to open up your defenses. "I know you want to."

Peter doesn't need to think twice. He flicks his wrist forward and connects a line of webbing to your mask. Your vision is whitened for a moment. Feeling the pressure and strength behind the webbing, you directly detach the metal face mask on command. At the same time, your reflexes shoot into action. Your hand darts forward and closes around the string of webbing. Peter is too focused on the reveal that he notices a second too late. "Come see up close." And pull him from his feet towards you. He's thrown off balance and stumbles forwards on his feet.

You take the opportunity to lunge forward. Making him land face-first into your chest plate. A soft metallic bang sounded across the rooftops as the side of his face connected first. You look down as he tries to gather himself. While you stand firm on your two feet. You pull him up as two big eyes connect with yours. They stare. Deep brown eyes. Chocolate like. They soften. Filled with emotion. "I'm (Y/N)..." You tell him with a soft charming ring to your voice. "Tell me, Peter."

"W… Y-Yea?" He mumbled, losing himself in your eyes. Struggling to get his footing again. "I… eh..." Blushes color his cheek. His lips part, trying to utter a word. But only air escapes. An innocent smile curls the corners of his lips.

"Is it really magic?" You grin and reach down to connect your lips with his. They are soft and thin. He doesn't tense or fight back. He surrenders to you. Wantingly almost. You lead the first few seconds. Find the rhythm. His fingers clung to your body armor. Desperately trying to hold on to you. Or was he trying to peel it off? A weakness spread through his system. Trying to find his footing. Peter looked dreamily at you. Intoxicated by your kiss. "You tripped the alarm, by the way." As your lips separated with a sigh of contentment. The distant sound of a helicopter closed in fast. Peter looked dazed and too bewildered to register it. Relieved and happy, perhaps? You'll find out another day. You lean in and break the news to him. "Your webbing struck a vent. The sensor for air in- and outtake." Pressing a final kiss to his forehead. "Tripping the alarm exactly one-hundred and thirteen seconds ago."

From your sleeve, you drop pellets to the floor. A flash and bang envelop the both of you. The space quickly fills with smoke around you. "Keep the mask as a memento." In your vision, you see the searchlight beam hitting the rooftops. Scanning for anything suspicious. It would be mere moments before they would catch on. Peter drops onto his knees, overwhelmed. Hands trembling against the concrete. You grab his mask and pull it over his head, putting your lips to his ear. "Be seeing you, Peter." Before disappearing into the darkness of the night.

[brittleskyblue]

I had most of this written up before but it somehow posted before I could finish it, so I guess I'm starting from scratch. OP if you somehow saw the post I somehow posted from my drafts already, I apologize.

But anyway, I'm gonna lay down the whole thing as best I can. I'm still working out all the details. Most of the details I have down right now mostly focus on Nelan (bc that's the character I just did the campaign with) *pulls out outline for TFS fic*

Under the cut due to spoilers for The Final Shape.

So, Nelan is already in the Pale Heart at this point. They had taken Crow's place and went through the portal instead, intentionally leaving their Ghost Ivo behind. Their plan follows a similar logic to why Crow went through the portal in canon, and is tied to this post that I made back just before season of the Deep (and I thought at the time with what Osiris was saying things were going to go in a slightly different direction). Anyway, Nelan goes through, wakes up in the Pale Heart and wanders around for a while, not really sure where to begin, when they encounter Cayde.

Eventually, after catching up, Nelan informs him of the plan to open the gate and he agrees to help because he knows there's something bad happening here. Along the way, Nelan encounters an energy source (aka Prismatic) that sends her abilities into overdrive. Being a Duality, she uses Light and Dark powers, but could never do so simultaneously until now. She uses this to aid her in opening the gateway.

Meanwhile, back in Sol. Lucy and Ison, who have been looking after Ivo while Nelan is in the Pale Heart, are fresh off of dealing with an anomaly in the Black Garden when Ivo figures out how to help Nelan. Again, working out the details, but long story short this involves a trip back to the Shard in the EDZ. Lucy and Ison take him there, and through communing with their connection, the Shard, and from the Heart, Nelan and Ivo are able to open the way forward. But those on the Sol side know they need to act fast before a certain entity takes notice.

The first couple of groups who go forward are a fireteam of Hunters to scout (Crow, Tyrell-3, and Mori), and a group of four to establish a foothold (Temperance, Valis, Murph-9, and Nulalyn-El). Lucy, Ison, and Ivo head through the portal around the same time as Zavala and Ikora, but once they're in, things start to go wrong. The group (along with Ghosts Zora and Neo of course) loses contact with Zavala and Ikora and then end up stuck in the Threshold. They have to traverse the Threshold on foot and will later learn the way is closed behind them (for now). Finally arriving inside the Pale Heart, they begin to look for any of the others that came through. Ivo, being able to more strongly sense Nelan's Light in this place, sort of acts as a compass for them because at least this way they're getting somewhere.

Neither other group finds the Hunters, but one does find Ikora and one does find Zavala (and I think when I write this I'm going to have bits incorporated from the 3rd and 4th missions here, but they will come up again later on too)

The hunters are the first to find Nelan and Cayde, because that one cutscene with Crow and Cayde still happens. After some brief confusion, others start to show up, having treked in from different points where they appeared in the Heart but converged on the Lost City Tower, as if drawn to it. Ivo finally reunites with Nelan, relieved that she's safe.

With everyone together, knowing there's no going back, they start to make a plan. Ultimately, they all split up into groups and start a journey across the Pale Heart. For my Guardians, this will be based on their respective fireteams- Voyager, Foxtail, and Penumbra- and their paths will be shaped by their experiences due to the nature of the Heart and how it reforms and reacts based on who is there. Also some of them get to play around with Prismatic (especially Dualities like Lucy, Valis, and Mori). Penumbra I'm going to have fun with in particular bc their group is made up of a risen Hive Wizard and two Guardians who have trauma from the Glykon. Also they get to fight a non-euclidian horror.

Unfortunately for Nelan, since they are the YW of the group (though they don't get involved in as much as canon YW), they also get all the pain and angst about what happens with their Ghost, Ivo. Before the groups set out, Nelan has to go looking for Crow who was investigating something but hasn't come back. Eventually they are drawn to a cave and *that* little exchange of dialog happens. It isn't until after Nelan finds Crow do they even see what sort of damage Ivo took from blocking the Witness from his mind. They're concerned, obviously, but Ivo insists he's okay (spoiler: he's not). So yeah, that's going on too. (and I have more thoughts on that later)

So the journey begins, fights are fought, stuff from the 3rd and 4th missions happen along the way too. I actually have a fun thought about the 5th mission that involves Nelan because they were revied in Old Russia, but almost died permanently during an expedition on Europa (prior to Beyond Light), so that's going to be a mash up of both those things :)

Eventually it all leads up to the discovery of the Dissenters and the whole thing with Targe still happens (I have thoughts on one of the last things Targe said to Ghost before his death, but that is for another post). Both Lucy and Temperance try to convince Zavala not to seek the voices from the statues out, but obviously he doesn't listen and Lucy and Temperance have to go after him. They do find him, but... yeah.

Nelan will actually be the one that makes it to the Witness first and engages in combat with it. At some point, realizing what they are doing by "giving themself to darkness" it attempts to take over Ivo again as a way of leverage. Nelan manages to free Ivo this time on their own (and this involves Strand but, again, still working this out), and they manage to land a blow against the Witness, though both Nelan and Ivo are seriously wounded in the process. Others arrive on the scene and help them escape, but they get separated from them toward the end. And there I have a scene where Nelan does die and Ivo thinks she's gone for good... but he still brings them back around, at the expense of himself. He's barely holding on after all that.

Nelan and Ivo have to rest after that before making any more moves, so the others in the group take care of some miscellaneous things around the Pale Heart in the meantime and help make the final preparations. Wild Card quest still happens, some side stuff happens, and then comes the raid.

I haven't actually done the raid in full (the first encounter is suffering), but for this, Salvation's Edge and Excision will sort of be tied together, with a group of 9 taking on the Witness and opening the floodgates for the final fight.

And as for the finale- well, that will be focused mainly on Nelan because this journey started with her, it ends with her. Still kinda working that out bc it might go a little bit differently than the cutscene that eviscerated my heart and left it in tatters on the floor :')

Sorry for the long, long post OP, but I hope these ramblings please you.

i want to hear about ppl's guardians's experiences going through the last shape's events

everyone is so diverse and rich in history and character, everyone has a different path and emotional journey they took and i think that's always been the best part of destiny

(feel free to add in rbs and tags if you want i just wanna share in everyone's joy a bit)