#i hardly understand myself so how could i let someone else see all this. im a mess i cant let it show more than it already does!

[mainfaggot]

so many 2 note posts on the mainfaggot blog today.

Anyway, so earlier i was thinking about how i have never experienced the type of friendship where you can just sit next to each other in comfortable silence and do different tasks.. not like "oh I've never sat in a coffee shop with a close friend while we studied different subjects" but more like. "I have never had such a friendship in which we could just come to each other's houses and get comfortable on the floor/bed/desk chair in each other's bedrooms, while we each did something different and did not need to speak to fill the silence. I have never been close to someone in a way where I felt comfortable allowing them to be in a space as personal as my bedroom for hours on end, all while feeling at peace and not self conscious or on edge." Truly, i wonder how that feels.

[super-psycho-lov3]

hey halloween fuck you and your friend fear.

im parsing through these words like a corn maze someones trapped me in, but i just want to scream — not really fear, not really pain, not really anger, or maybe all of the above, but above all desperation. i shouldnt walk myself into this, shouldnt be happy with it anyway — not because this hurts now, but because the end of it will. whatever. im young and stupid and i want to keep being young and stupid, damn it all. how is it stupid to accept things and live anyway? being young and stupid involves a lot of not-talking-about-it but im so tired of that part in particular, could we maybe just skip it? maybe we can just be young, young and new to it all. tell me what these words mean — i hardly know what i love you mean besides do you want to play a game with me and will you watch a show with me and you need to eat and please sleep and ill be here tomorrow and dont do anything stupid and you arent a horrible person and you deserve better than this and is it supposed to mean anything else? is it really supposed to mean anything at all, is it not just whatever it needs to mean? christ, im tired of not understanding everyone else, i cant do this group project on my own, not again. work with me, work with me, work with me. i know, i see it when we talk, i know, i know. let me help. lets do this together.

id rather your tricks than anyone elses treats. xo.

[ghost-of-the-machine]

i used to be able to just like. yap for eternity like, it was my favorite thing ever!!

just go somewhere and TALK talk alone, talk for no one, talk til i had nothing to say anymore but recently ive noticed it makes me feel.. worse? like. i was supposed to just JERK OFF AND GO TO BED like . at 9 pm last night 💀 and i stayed up til like 3 am, ive just been talkin and i watched a movie, that was nice.. i miss it? something inside of me is really really sad right now and i cant quite figure out why. its like a weird puzzle, trying to navigate my brain cuz like i KNOW something wrong, but what? whats bothering me? idont understand. maybe im scared of annoying people again, but.. was i scared of that before too? i dont remember if i was or not. what do i even miss? i dont know, i miss? i dont know what i miss. i miss something, probably

maybe thats whats bothering me, i feel like ive lost something, do i feel like ive lost the ability to be comfortable just.. talking ? maybe a little.. some people followed me after i posted my spamton art and anytime that sort of thing happens, i always feel . i feel so horribly guilty!!! youve followed me for that, not to hear me chatter endlessly about whatever comes to my mind. i know i shouldnt care, but im just scared of annoying people, cuz i really do love to talk!!! i love talking about things i like, but.. something is holding me back? it feels like it, i dont know why. i think its just mental barriers. i was so up front and proud of how much i love spamton g spamton, how much i love A LOT of characters. then i made friends and i felt ashamed and embarrassed. is that all it takes? once you have a set of eyes on you that matters, you fold? i feel like that about a lot of things, maybe thats one of the reasons ive been quieter than im used to being

i think im scared, i think it scares me to imagine ever saying anything and having them be like. "eugh." like?? death id prefer death. without them even asking for it ive just kinda cut bits and pieces off to save myself from POTENTIAL rejection, the. i just want to be someone that is adored, as selfish as it is, of course ill change to get that

i think it sorta.. i . its hard to explain, but loving people when you have bpd feels like you will never ever be loved equally, because i have endless devotion and admiration, theres hardly a single thing i dont love about the people i care about, to the point where its a fault. ive let people get away with terrible things, just cuz i loved them so much i didnt care what happened to me. and sometimes it hurts real bad when i remember that the way i love isnt normal, no one could ever love me like that. its why im on edge, the fear of saying something wrong, the fear of cracking this image. they like me, dont they? what if i say something wrong and for even a small second they like me just a little bit less? it makes me chest hurt just thinking about it, its terrifying. if they like me less for a second, maybe.. the rose tinted glasses will shatter, maybe theyll realize im not all that great, maybe itll be over, gone, DONE. finished, ended . dead. i dont want that, its logical to do everything i can to avoid that right?

terrible fate, thats how i see it. the end of all things. worst possible thing to ever happen to me. id rather relive all my trauma over again than lose anyone, id rather anything else. the way i feel is extreme, but. im known for that i guess 💀 its fear, im scared. scared, what if im annoying? i get afraid of annoying STRANGERS, of course im terrified to annoy my best friends. annoying, maybe when im talking to myself about shit they dont care about, its just filler words. garbage, static , words from my mouth and it means nothing to them. isnt that thought so scary? it is to me, i hang on to every word, every stupid joke, every laugh and .

what do i feel now? im working myself up over something that hasnt even happened. ive upset myself over the IDEA of a problem, the thought that maybe something might be wrong. whatever. i think i have this intense loathing for myself, thats the thing?

with bpd, you split. yr thinking isnt clear, its black and white. painful, so painful, but.. im not some mindless monster that just lashes out. thats terrifying, id have no one if i did that right? so i split on myself instead, all that anger and pain is directed at me from inside, it rips me apart. suddenly i can see every flaw, every annoying thing ive ever done every awkward sentence, every joke that didnt land. every opportunity, every single thing that could take it all away from me. as innocent as they are it seems like genuinely theres these big ugly lacerations on my body every time i feel like im possibly maybe not being as charming as id hope to be, ugly scars that ward people off, my blood gets everywhere and it grosses them out, they scoot away an inch for every cut. i know its not true.. i make friends with good people!! the best people, it just.. its what im scared of, which in my eyes means that its true because if im scared of it, there msut be a reason why im scared ofit? it must be actively happening! every rejection of my being is a step closer to abandonment, i g

ive been doing really good, i think. im not so scared of being abandoned because ive been reassured over and over again and i dont have the heart to think past all that work thats been done for me. ive hardly thought about it, anytime i get scared i just remember the things that have been said to me, how secure my place is here. its true, surely.. but this fear is natural for me. its 2nd nature, this fear puts actions in motion to prevent abandonment. fear keeps me safe, keeps me in that little box i think people want me in. the little box that says im okay! im a good person, every aspect of me they can see in the box is enjoyable, who cares if i feel like i need to cut some pieces off to fit there?

i know in my heart its not what they want. im moving too fast, im bracing again. i just get scared, maybe im just needy. what, i need eyes on me? need to feel seen and appreciated with everything i do? if nothing else, at least THAT is 100% selfish, ive been doing better recently... but sometimes its hard not to fall back on those instincts

[gb-patch]

Ask Answers: August 8th

Well, doing big posts all together worked for a while but lately I’ve been putting it off because it takes a long time to get them done. I think I’m gonna try switching back to answering asks whenever I can fit it in and posting them one at a time instead of waiting until I’ve filled out one of these major collections.

But for now, here’s more ask answers! Thank you for the questions and for all the kind words along with them ^^.

Hello!! I'm here to ask if its possible to get  the game and its dlcs on steam and play it on android?

I’m afraid not. Steam doesn’t have Android builds on their own site and Steam is not cool with keys for other sites being given out for Steam purchases, so you don’t get the Itch version from buying on Steam.

Hello! Sorry to bother you but, I had a question, if we buy the Game on itchio do we get steam keys or would we need to purchase it twice? 

You would have to buy it twice if you want it in both places, I’m sorry. To repeat myself a little, Steam doesn’t like the key trading thing. Itch may support giving keys for another site, but the reverse isn’t doable with Steam and Steam doesn’t even really want you to get a Steam key for buying somewhere else either. So we just don’t mess around with that.

hey, sorry if this is frequently asked, but is step 4 free dlc or paid for? some of your sources are contradicting each other. 

It’s free! There’s a paid wedding DLC, but Step 4 itself is entirely unpaid.

Hello! I just had a quick question, for the Baxter and Derek DLC's will we be able to confess our feelings to them or let them confess to MC? or will it only be one way? (they confess to MC)

Both type of options will be available!

Hey there! I wanted to ask whether or not the Derek DLC is still on track to be released in August since on the steam discussion board it says it will be released mid 2021. I totally understand if it isn't, I'm just really looking forward to it! If you answer then ty! And keep up the amazing work :D 

It’s not, aha. Unfortunately, 2021 wasn’t easier than 2020 as we hoped so things are still slower than planned. It’ll come out late 2021 or early 2022.

Hi! Firstly I just want to say that I LOVE Our Life. I have played a bit of similar games but this one instantly wins for the best one! Everything about it is amazing! I just wanted to ask if Derek would ever lose feelings for MC, like if they make the deal and then MC gets with Cove would he move on? and even if you don't, after "losing contact" would his feeling fade or would he still like MC? 

If you don’t really keep in touch with him and clearly move on with your life, Derek will too and he’ll be over it. But if you are still close as best as you can be, he’ll still think the MC is special. Though, he’ll always support your relationship with someone else if that’s what’ll make you happy.

Hello! Sorry if you've answered this before but: 'How's Lee related to us? Though which momma? And does she share our player-chosen last names? Also, do you know if Noelani took Pam's last name or did it happen the other way round? 

She’s related to Pamela and Pamela’s last name is the one they use, so the MC has the same last name as Lee.

Will we be able to choose which (they or he) we tend to call Qiu by more often, or will it randomly change depending on the moment? 

Qiu knows which pronoun they’re comfortable with at a time and you’ll call them what they’re happy with. And it doesn’t change between lines, it takes multiple scenes or even full Steps for it to switch. So for extended periods Qiu will be totally a guy or fully agender.

Will Step 4 of OL2 have moments?

It’ll be an epilogue like it is in OL1, so it won’t have a bunch of different Moments.

Hello! Just a quick question, is Sunset bird from OL1 based on a real location? If so what's it called? I wanna visit it +_+

ps i love your games so much <3

It isn’t based on one specific town you can go to, but there are a lot of little coastal towns in Cali that have a similar vibe!

Heyaaa ( I hope you're all well ), umm… it might seem kinda stupid to ask but did Patreon members can have a key for the dlc's ( all the steps-released dlc ) even if they became a member this month or later ? (me? saying this cuz it's my case? maybe ;-;), and once again thanks for absolutely all the amazing works on all the games ! u-u 

You wouldn’t get the DLCs for backing there. The Patreon is for extra bonus content/early access, rather than being a storefront to purchase the normal DLCs. Rarely we give them out as a side gift, but it hardly happens and if what you want is the DLCs it’s best to ignore the Patreon and  buy keys for those directly from Itch or Steam. I’m sorry for the confusion.

Hey y'all, love what youre doing w/Terry. Trans rep outside of player customization is so rare and important to see more of so thank you so much. I do have a question and its that does he have a canon sexuality? I know Miranda was said to be straight ace but I dont believe anything was stated for Terry probably because he wasnt revealed to be a guy which changes things. Im also curious if well get answers on how long hes liked Miranda since he may have liked her in step 3 before she liked him 

Terry likes women and Randy likes men! And he did like Miranda back in Step 3.

Will the Wedding Dlc release at the same time as Step 4? 

They’ll come out separately with Step 4 releasing first.

I really love Our Life so much! I've spent over 20hours playing it even though I only got it a week ago! I was wondering if I could make a fangame for Our Life with a different love interest but same plot. Next-door neighbors romance, multiple steps, etc? I'll probably make it on Google Slides though- 

Sure! I hope you have fun with it and I’m glad you love the game.

How does Cove feel about poly relationships? 

He’s got nothing against them for the people they work for, but he’s 100% monogamous and would only be comfortable with a partner who was willing to be monogamous with him.

Idk if this has been answered before but will Step 4 include the option to advance your feelings towards Cove? 

Yep, you’ll be able to determine your feelings and what your relationship is.

In step 4 will there be a chosen to say we live with Cove even as just friends? 

Yeah, you can choose to live with Cove and that can be done when you’re friends.

I just played the game with the MC and Cove being best friends and omg it’s still so damn cute like the wholesomeness of it all is too much for my heart I swear ^.^  Now with that all said I was wondering can we still marry Cove? if we only love him as a friend like let’s say we’ve made deal with him similar to the one we can make with Derek because let’s real no one could compete with what the MC and Cove have even if they aren’t in love. 

It’s great to hear you enjoyed the friendship story! You can live with Cove, but you can’t marry him platonically. Cove has familial affection for the MC if they’re best-est friends. He wouldn’t think to marry someone he loves like family and even grew up with as though they truly were siblings.

Are you still going to be making a DLC for XOBD? :] 

Yes! We’re slowing adding voiced lines and fixing errors.

It makes me laugh that Shiloh's last name is Fields because that's what I put as my last name! So in Our Life when he talked about "Ms. Fields" picking him up I was extremely confused, lol. That dude mimics personalities so much that he stole my surname!

Oh, wow, that’s a very funny coincidence, haha.

hi !! i cant seem to be able to get the scene where mc is able to propose to cove despite being at the 'love' stage and telling him i'd want to get married, are there any other details that im missing out on? the options just dont appear at the end... 

Maybe you missed telling Cove you were in love with him even if you mentioned wanting to get married or you might’ve accidentally said earlier in the game that you don’t want to progress your relationship further with Cove. We haven’t removed them, so you can get the scene again. It’s just kind of easy to miss since there’s multiple requirements. You can read a little guide in the FAQ.

wait what di you need to do to be able to propose to cove? I've been trying but haven't had much luck 

You can check out the FAQ linked above!

does cove only develop a crush on the mc if the mc is also at crush/in love with him? 

Technically, yes. We treat the non-romantic relationship options as truly non-romantic since we don’t want to bait and switch people. But there’s nothing wrong with headcanoning that Cove does have feelings developing for the MC even before the MC has.

Is there a way to make/allow Lee and Baxter to date?

No, they just don’t have enough time together.

We also got a group of asks related to Tamarack in OL2, but I’m afraid the way they talked about people with larger bodies made me not want to post their words, even if the person didn’t say they’re trying to be hurtful. I will separate out the core question and answer it though, so people can know that info.

Does Tamarack lose weight in later Steps?

No, she doesn’t. As for the other questions included, to be honest, I don’t have to explain/defend having romance options of different sizes. I’m sorry if you’re dealing with unhappiness that’s connected to body image, if that’s where the negative emotions are coming from, but even so I can’t meet you on that level and pretend it’s a problem that needs an answer. A girl who simply isn’t thin being a main love interest is just not an unreasonable concept. Also, Tamarack isn’t a lesbian. Yes, she can date a female MC, but that doesn’t undo her actual sexuality, so I’m not sure where that one part at the end was coming from.

I wonder... can we "fight" with Qiu over leader status? 👀

Not really, haha. No matter how cool your MC is, they’re never gonna replace Qiu for the other kids around. So you can either partner up with him, follow him too, or not be a part of all that group politics stuff.

So when I play the game, sometimes I mentally call Cove “Covie/Covey” and that made me wonder, how does Cove feel about being nicknamed? Not like Romeo/Space Cadet/etc. but like pet names relating to his actual name

It’d depend on his age, personality, and your relationship with him! When he’s younger he’d probably be embarrassed, when he was grown he’d probably be more casual or happy about it.

will you be able to date baxter in step 3 while at crush with cove (but not dating him ofc) sorry if this has been asked already. i really love baxters step 4 design btw!! 

Yeah, you can be crushing on Cove and date Baxter if you weren’t already dating Cove. You just can’t be truly in love with Cove and then switch to Baxter.

I just got my friend into our life, and they adore shiloh and derek sooo will there be more of them in the second game? 

I’m afraid not. But you can see plenty more of Shiloh in XOXO Droplets/XOXO Blood Droplets, haha.

I see you haven't gotten any xoxo droplets asks recently but I'm still obsessed with these boys!! I was just wondering if Nate would curse under any circumstance? 

Yeah, Nate does use certain swear words (damn, hell, bastard) on very rare occasions.

Hi there! I have a question about the wedding dlc. Will we be able to plan a honeymoon during the planning stages of it or would it be something that Cove and the mc would rather plan later on? Thank you! Absolutly love the game by the way, definitely one of my favorite games! 

The focus will be on the wedding day itself. The topic of the honeymoon might come up a bit, but there won’t be any choosing of the exact location and such.

Hi! I have two questions and it's completely understandable if you only answer one/neither and I'm sorry if you've already answered either before! First, is there a set year in which OL:B&A takes place (ex: Step 1 being set in 2010 & Step 2 being set in 2016, etc.) or is it simply up to interpretation? Second, have you guys thought about doing a coming-of-age game where the MC has a tough home life or upbringing? (like one of their parents is an addict, a parent being transphobic whilst the player has the option to be trans, or having friends that are influencing them to do drugs, etc.) That's all! Thanks for making beautiful games. <3 

There is a set timeline!

Step 1: 2006 Step 2: 2011 Step 3: 2016 Step 4: 2021 

And we don’t currently plan on making a game like that. The Our Life series exists to be a safer environment for people to play around in and if we did do a brand new series that was harsher edged it’d be something more fantastical and/or plot-driven instead of a different type of modern day slice-of-life growing up story. I’m sorry.

i don’t know if you’ve already answered this, but do you have a guess on when phase 4 will come out? as well as ol2? i’m so excited for both of them, the inclusivity in this game is amazing, you guys should be really proud of it! 

Step 4 will be coming out very soon! OL2 is gonna take until 2023 to be anywhere near completion. But we might episodically release the Steps one at a time as they get done instead of waiting for three to be finished before launch like we did with the first game.

Hello, I was curious if there was an official or unofficial discord server for the game? 

We do have a discord! You can join by clicking this link HERE.

how long do you plan to keep ol's patreon running? 

Hopefully for at least a few more years.

Are you considering ever making merch? 

Yeah, but I don’t know when it’ll happen or what exactly we’ll make, aha. It’s something we want do, just nothing is set.

hi! i just found out about your game a couple of days ago on tiktok (so sorry if you’ve already answered this question) and i was wondering if y’all are ever planning to release it on iOS? 

I have no idea. It’s hard for a small group to get Apple approval and I honestly can’t say if it’ll ever happen or not. Maybe someday, though!

Hi, I love the art style of Our life and I would like to know if the artist has a Twitter? Also, could it be possible to fund more CGs for the game from him/her? So many times, I wish there was one like when the cutscene of the sunshower. 

That’s nice of you to offer. He doesn’t have a Twitter, at least not one that’s public enough to be shared with me. And I’m afraid not. The issue is that the CGs take huge amounts of time rather than there not being a budget for it. He’s gotta make CGs for Step 4, the DLCs, and new character sprites, too. There isn’t space in the schedule for even more. Sorry for that.

Hi, how are you?!

Are you planning on accepting new writers or is it always the same people who write your stories??

Thanks!!

Our Life: Beginnings & Always won’t be getting new writers, but we will be hiring a new team of writers for Our Life: Now & Forever eventually!

perhaps this counts as nsfw and I'm sure it has been answered before but what does Cove prefer, chests/boobs or butts? or perhaps both :3c thank you for this wonderful game (and the patreon bonus moment, it was worth all the waiting and more ♥) 

He’s a “chests of all shapes and sizes” kind of guy, haha.

i was wondering- did any of the writers actually grow up by the beach? as someone who's lived in a beach town all their life it really did feel nostalgic to play through our life 1 

I was born and raised in Cali! Though, not right by the beach. We still had to make trips out, but the setting is based on my own childhood memories of small beach towns we went through.

In Derek’s upcoming DLC, will we be able to reference the pact we made as teens? (love olba and xod/xobd so much btw you’re literally amazing) 

Yep, you will be able to talk about that!

Oh, sorry about the Cole being secretly L ask, then!

If you wanted context: Death Note is about this one guy who finds a notebook that kills anyone who you write the name of in there. The guy eventually develops a God Complex and starts mass killing criminals and stuff. L is the one trying to find out who is killing all these people.

Me and my sister first joked about it because I couldn't remember how to translate a word about the way Cove was sitting, so I just did the pose, and it looked a lot like how L himself sits! Then we just snowballed from there, with more and more nonsense connections.

That’s okay! Thanks for explaining. I’m sorry I didn’t know what you meant.

[animereaderinsertwriter]

Cupbearer (Eren/Reader)

Part III

Part I

Part II

Part IV (in progress)

Warnings: MINORS DO NOT INTERACT (im watching you, if you see this, begone!), vampire!eren, hunter!reader, fem!reader, smut, some amount of predator/prey dynamics but only kinda?? there is also a significant age difference but only cos eren is immortal and all that jazz. we're all adults here. there will eventually be smut.... and do i really need to say that there's gonna be blood in a vampire fic?

Description: A story of falling in love in 4 parts.

Eren is a bad man (well, a bad Creature) who has done bad things. When he meets the great-great-great granddaughter of one of his former friends in his favorite blood bar, however, he thinks it might not matter so much what happened in the past, so long as he can make the future something worth living to see.

Ao3 link here

After that night, it became increasingly hard for (Y/N) to leave, and for Eren to let her do so.

Something between them had changed. There were moments— when Eren would press feather-light kisses against her forehead, when he would casually leave a cup of her favorite tea where she would find it— where (Y/N) felt as though her heart might burst. It was all the little things that baffled her, all the ways in which he seemed to understand exactly how she felt; it was as though he knew her more than she knew herself. On the mornings that she would wake in his bed, sleepy and sticky and wholly content, (Y/N) wondered what it would be like to have this life forever.

Other days— on days like today— she was reminded exactly why that could never be, and it broke her heart.

Today, they had planned a romantic dinner in the park, an evening under the stars. It was supposed to be something special, a little getaway just for the two of them; they had wanted to leave as soon as (Y/N) was relieved from her patrol, so Eren had moved her things to his place, hoping that they could leave together from there for their evening alone.

In and of itself, that was fine… but when (Y/N) came in, covered head-to-toe in viscous Creature blood, Eren was furious.

“And you call me a monster,” he growled, looking her up and down with hate in his eyes. “I can’t believe you.”

He stood from his seat on the sofa, and (Y/N) began to back away, still wary from the fight she had narrowly escaped from unscathed. Her every instinct told her that she should run, fire a round of silver bullets into his chest, but she steeled herself, doing neither.

“It’s not my fault— they were attacking a civilian,” she told him as he stalked towards her, his face twisted into a horrific scowl. “I tried to stop them— tried to find out what was going on— but then they came at me with their claws, and I was left with no choice.”

“There is always a choice,” he snarled, and it was then that anger filled (Y/N) from the soles of her feet to the crown of her head. "They were probably terrified of you— how could you possibly blame them for lashing out?"

(Y/N) grit her teeth.

“This, from the man who thought genocide was his only option to the same problem?”

Eren made a low, warning sound in the back of his throat, but (Y/N) pressed on.

“You would rather me have died?” she demanded, stepping into his space. “Would it have pleased you more for my body to bleed out on the pavement, ripped to shreds by an aggressive werewolf? Would you even care, or would you just find the next blood bag and move on with your life?”

“Maybe so,” he shot back, “Then I wouldn’t have to deal with your insufferable mouth.”

That stung— but if there was one thing (Y/N) knew how to do, it was to strike back twice as hard as she had been struck.

“Fine then,” she said, turning on her heel. “I won’t bother you any longer. I’ll go out and find someone who actually wants my company, someone who’ll fuck me good and proper over the counter at some hole-in-the-wall bar over on Easy Street, someone younger, with a nicer cock and less fucking baggage— ”

She didn’t get to finish the sentence, or even walk a single step further— Eren grabbed her by the hair and pulled her to him, his fist painfully tight against her scalp.

“Wanna say that again, to my face?” he asked, tilting her head back.

“I’ll go find someone else to fuck me,” she spat, struggling in vain against him. “I’ll spread my legs for the next available schmuck in the closest bar I can find, so you can hear me scream his name and not yours.”

It was a low blow, to threaten a vampire’s claim on something they had previously assumed had belonged to them, but (Y/N) didn’t care. She had almost died today, and she’d be damned if she was going to take shit from anyone about what she had to do to survive. If Eren wanted a fight, she would damn sure give him one.

“Like hell you will,” he told her, pulling her head back so that she had to strain to remain standing. “You’re mine. Flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood— you are my Companion.”

"I belong to no one!"

Those words ripped from her throat and echoed throughout the empty house, and it was then that Eren stopped, looking at her with calculation in his gaze.

"You're right," he said, releasing her hair. "No mortal can serve two masters, lest they love one and despise the other; an archaic religious concept, but an accurate one nonetheless. You've made it abundantly clear where your loyalty lies. I was a fool for thinking otherwise."

(Y/N) began to tremble. "Eren, what are you saying?"

"I release you from our pact," he replied coldly, his eyes so dull and lifeless that it sent a chill down her spine. "No longer are you bound to be my wine-press— I free you from me."

"Eren—"

"Go," he commanded, and (Y/N) felt terribly, horribly empty.

Once, he would have told her to come freely, go safely, and leave something of the happiness she brought him; now, he gave her a cold dismissal, and it frightened her more than she was willing to admit. Still, she went, feeling hollow and used, and she didn't bother to shut the door behind her as she turned to walk home, weary from the day and sick from fighting.

***

Armin had lived for a very long time, but even so, he had yet to meet anyone so foul of temper as Eren when the Hunger was on him.

"Eren, you have to feed."

The vampire, as ill in health as in temper, glared weakly at him. "I'm not hungry."

"But you are Hungry, and don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about. Look, if this is about that girl—"

"I told you not to speak of her!"

Ah, so it was about her. By the looks of him, it had been two weeks since Eren had fed; Armin would bet that he hadn't seen her in the same amount of time.

"If I need to, I'll drag her here to make up with you myself," said Armin testily, "I refuse to watch my best friend starve himself because he refuses to feed on anyone else."

"You will not touch her."

Armin rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything further. He just patted Eren's arm in farewell and set about finding the little lady who was the root cause of his current consternation.

It took longer than Armin had anticipated to find the young woman who had, for all intents and purposes, completely unraveled Eren's composure; her scent, while thick and memorable in Eren's apartment, was hard to track otherwise. Armin spent two hours just wandering the city while trying to catch a breath of it here or there, and when he finally did manage to catch a whiff of her scent and follow it to her, he understood exactly why it had been so hard to track her down.

The girl was a Hunter, of all things.

When Armin found her, she was knee-deep in sewage, her knife embedded to the hilt in the skull of what appeared to be some species of winged reptile. Armin, having been a tad desperate and not actually having been expecting to find anything when he lifted the lid to the man-hole on 32nd and Main, was surprised to say the least— and when (Y/N) ripped her knife free and readjusted her stance into a defensive one directed at him, his surprise turned to intrigue.

“Er, hello there,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “I don’t suppose you’ll take my word for it that I just want to chat, will you?”

Curiously, the words gave the woman pause. She relaxed her stance ever-so-slightly, and then her eyes lit up with recognition.

“Armin Arlert?” she queried, craning her neck up to see him. “Is that you?”

This one grows curiouser and curiouser, he thought, but responded affirmatively.

“Can you give me a bit, then?” she asked, kicking the corpse of the Creature she’d just killed. “I’m not exactly fit for company. Perhaps we could meet later for a discussion over tea?”

“I’m afraid it’s urgent,” he said as she knelt to decapitate her prey— likely for proof of victory. “I think you know why I’m here, so you understand that time is of the essence.”

She didn’t look up at him as she replied.

“If this is about Eren, then I don’t have time to talk.”

Her tone was hard, bitter, and matter-of-fact, and it reminded Armin so much of Jean that it hurt… but just like Jean, Armin would bet that she could be won over by appealing to her inherent sense of human decency

“He’s suffering (Y/N),” he said, awkwardly crouching above the manhole so that she could better see the truth written in his eyes. “He won’t feed.”

“That’s hardly my problem.”

And oh, how well Armin knew that state of mind. If there was one thing Eren Jaeger knew how to do, it was push away the people who loved him most. Armin had dealt with that particularly lovely quirk of his for centuries, and it never got easier to deal with no matter how much time passed. If anything, it got more difficult the older they both got.

“When you’re the solution to a problem, you become a part of it whether you like it or not,” Armin replied, patient and understanding. “He cares for you.”

(Y/N) looked up at him then, fury in her eyes.

“He hurt me.”

Armin shrugged. “He hurts everyone he cares about. It’s just who he is. Nothing comes for free— least of all the love and loyalty of someone as old and as powerful as Eren.”

“Your heart may be toughened to his meanness,” she told him, the head of the creature she’d slain in her hands, “But mine is not, and I don’t like him well enough to willfully remain for him to use as an emotional punching bag.”

At that, Armin couldn’t help but let loose a wry grin.

“No,” he said, “I should think not; but I do think you love him well enough to make sure he doesn’t starve himself to death because he can’t have you.”

(Y/N) was silent for a long moment, then she crossed her arms.

“I won’t come crawling to him. He’s going to have to come to me.”

Armin grimaced. He wasn’t looking forward to that conversation.

“Is that at all negotiable?”

(Y/N) shook her head. “Absolutely not.”

Well, there was nothing for it.

“And you will let him feed if he comes to you?”

(Y/N) thought, then nodded. “If he proves himself deserving.”

Armin couldn't help himself; he laughed. Eren might have met his match in this one.

"Very well. I'll work my magic, and you work yours."

She nodded and bade him farewell, but before Armin left, he paused.

"Hey, (Y/N)?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

With that, he left her, ready to take Eren by the ear and throw him at her if he had to.

***

(Y/N)'s heart was racing as she opened the door, knowing good and well who would be behind it.

After her little talk with Armin— and the near heart attack he had given her in the process— she had called in to Zeke and told him she needed to go home to deal with an emergency. A replacement for her patrols had been sent, and she had come home to wash the grim from her skin, making herself as presentable as possible with the time she had. (Y/N) was worried, so worried, that the filth she had been wading in earlier would have left a lingering stench, or even that it had affected the taste of her; she had scrubbed and scrubbed until her skin was raw, hoping to erase every last remnant of her day from her skin…but as it turned out, she needn't have bothered.

Two, three, four hours later, and Eren hadn't shown— it was only now, right at the six hour mark, that he had decided to come to her.

Needless to say, (Y/N) was… less than pleased, but when she opened the door to find Eren pale and drawn, with dark circles beneath his eyes, her heart softened ever-so-slightly. It seemed that Armin was right; he had been suffering.

"You look like shit," she told him quietly, opening her door widely to let him in.

"I assure you, I feel worse," Eren grumbled, but stepped in as she closed the door behind him.

For a long, awkward moment, they just looked at each other, silent and unsure. It was unsettling how unlike himself Eren seemed; he was almost soft when he looked at her, and (Y/N) didn't know how to feel about it. Eventually, though, like two opposite ends of a magnet, they were drawn together, and Eren brushed a piece of hair back from her face.

"Hi," he said, his voice low and rough. (Y/N) caught his hand in hers before it could fall from her hair, and she pressed it against her chest, keeping it trapped there, touching the skin above her beating heart.

"Hey."

They watched each other a moment more before the dam broke between them, and they both spoke at once.

"I'm sorry."

A shared grin, a shy laugh— and then (Y/N) said what they both were thinking.

"You need to feed first, and talk later," she told him, her hand still clasped in his. "You're not off the hook, but I doubt we can have any real conversation with you like this."

Eren nodded gratefully, tugging at her wrist— his usual biting spot— but (Y/N) shook her head, indicating her neck. The thickest, richest blood, she knew, would come from there; and if there was ever a time to be generous with the placement of Eren's bite, she figured that it would be now.

The worst of it was over quickly. There was a brief sting at the intrusion of razor-sharp fangs, and then the vaguely uncomfortable feeling of having something poking down into places that decidedly should not be poked at all, but then (Y/N) quickly eased into the rhythm of the act, focusing wholly on the way Eren's lips felt against her skin. In a few moments, she would become pleasantly light-headed, and then Eren would pull away and look at her like she'd hung the stars. Oh, how she'd missed that look! (Y/N) found herself longing for it even before she quite realized it.

And then, without warning, a vision came, and (Y/N) was swept into another world entirely.

The evening sky rolled endlessly out towards the horizon; it seemed to go on forever, sparkling with more stars than (Y/N) had ever seen before. The full moon was so bright that it cast the whole world in what seemed like silver sunlight, and (Y/N) wondered how anyone could sleep on a night such as this. It was far too beautiful an experience to miss.

Alongside her— alongside Eren, through whose eyes she saw the world— strode Armin and two older-looking cadets who she recognized from previous memories as Reiner and Berthold. Eren was feeling anxious over something, and Reiner and Berthold were… well, they were kind. Reiner especially seemed to be like an older brother, and Eren admired him.

"You'll do just fine tomorrow," said Reiner, placing a large, warm hand on Eren's shoulder. "I'm certain of it."

The memory ended, and (Y/N) came back to herself as Eren's tongue laved over the wounds his fangs had left in her neck, sealing them.

"See anything?" he asked, his breath warm against her skin, and (Y/N) nodded.

"You loved them, too," she said softly, remembering the fondness Eren had felt as though it had been her own. "You loved the Hunters that tried to take everything from you, and— and I think they loved you, too."

Eren pulled away from her, and it was then that she saw the tears shining in his eyes.

"Yes," he replied, his voice broken. "We were children. How could we not love each other as God intended? Hate was never in our nature; it was an inheritance that we couldn't escape."

He paused for a moment, then spoke again.

"I'm sorry I hurt you," he told her, cupping her cheek in his hand. "I lost my temper. I forget— I forget that you're not them."

And (Y/N) understood. She understood that no matter how many centuries passed, there would be wounds that just wouldn't heal for Eren. He would lash out at things that wouldn't make sense to anyone who hadn't experienced the horrors of war as he had. Suddenly, she felt petty for having lashed out as she had, and guilt threatened to rise up and choke her.

"You're forgiven," she replied, leaning into his touch. "It takes two to tango— I shouldn't have baited you like I did. I knew how badly that would hurt you, and that's exactly why I said it."

At that, Eren cracked a grin.

"I expect nothing less from a Kirschtein. Your grandfather would have punched me square in the jaw— and as big as that bastard got when we were older, he probably would have put me on my ass."

(Y/N) couldn't help but laugh, and Eren joined her, their combined joy swelling until there was nothing else in the world but their happiness.

How they started kissing, neither one of them would be able to say afterwards, but in the grand scheme of things, it hardly mattered. Their love was too large to contain, too much to hold back— and it was love, (Y/N) realized, though she hadn't quite put words to it yet. She loved Eren Jaeger, a Creature, a monster, as much as her grandfather before her had and more. She loved him with a desperation that felt like being knocked over by an ocean wave and plunged into depths where her feet no longer touched the sand. She loved him more than she had ever loved anyone before.

And, as he placed her gently on her bed that was barely big enough for two, divesting himself of his shirt above her, (Y/N) thought that maybe she didn't mind it so much as long as he loved her in return.

"I missed you," said Eren, dropping kisses by her ear as he unhooked her bra. "I missed this."

"Me too," she gasped as his mouth wandered to her nipple, her hands fisting in his hair. "Oh, God, I missed you too."

The time for words was soon gone, however; Eren's sinful, sinful mouth traveled lower and lower until he was kissing at the insides of her thighs, parting them to access what lay between, and (Y/N) threw her head back as he spread her open with his hands and sucked brazenly at her clit.

How long he spent there, worshipping her sex, (Y/N) had no idea; all she knew was that she came once from his mouth on her and a second time from his fingers inside her, and when he finally, mercifully withdrew, she was broken down to the simplest parts of herself; there was nothing left but an affection so deep that it threatened to overtake her if she didn't let it out, and she did the only thing she knew to do to release the overwhelming pressure that was building in her chest as Eren pushed his big, veiny cock into her.

She told him what she should have said a long time ago.

"Oh, Eren," she gasped as his cockhead shoved deep inside her. "I love you."

As soon as the words came out of her mouth, Eren went unnaturally still. He looked at her with pupils blown wide inside emerald eyes, and his fangs slightly distended; in any other situation, (Y/N) might have laughed at how surprised he seemed, but it seemed as though she were frozen in time, unable to do anything but stare earnestly up at them, hoping he understood how much she cared for him.

"You… what?"

"I love you," she repeated, her body moving without her permission to roll her hips up into him, moving his cock even further inside her. "Please, Eren, I need—"

He cut her off with a forceful, bruising kiss, and his hips started making slow, deep thrusts inside her, her legs hiked up over his shoulders.

"Again," he said against her lips."Say it again."

"I love you."

Another thrust or two, a hand circling her wounded throat.

"Again."

"I love you, Eren."

"Again."

This time, it was only a whisper.

"I love you," she said, and Eren began fucking her in earnest.

"You are so fucking beautiful," he told her as he thrust hard and deep inside her. "You're every man's dream, a nirvana the damned such as myself were never meant to reach. (Y/N), you are everything, and I—"

He seemed to choke on the words, and (Y/N) kissed him as he tried to regain his composure.

"I don't deserve you," he said, shaking with the force of their passion. "I don't deserve your love."

It's not about deserving, she wanted to say, It never was, but then she was coming again, her climax contracting her walls around her lover, and it was all she could do to remain conscious as Eren fucked her relentlessly through it all, chasing his own high.

It was only later, after a shower and something to eat that they finally spoke again. They were back in bed, and Eren's arm was wrapped around her, as though he were afraid to let her go for even a moment; truthfully, (Y/N) thought he was asleep, but then his breath tickled her ear as he said,

"I love you, angel."

And that, (Y/N) thought, had been worth it all, in the end.

[csmeaner]

Bro you cannot sit there and tell you think ANY of the admins in Scarfoxes have the brain cells OR mental capacity to remember a single fucking image posted almost a year prior to their design being created and sold. That’s being way too generous with Staff’s capabilities. Those cunts can’t even remember shit from a day ago let alone almost an entire fucking YEAR. I don’t believe even for a second that Dragon-Eternal ripped off that design and that’s not me defending staff. They’re too fucking stupid to retain any memory of something that long.

Someone on the bulletin pointed out that Laneycore wasn’t even active in the discord, and I checked the post history and they were right. If that ripoff Mikufox was being posted constantly or they had more art of that fire form then I could see it being an inspiration or ripoff but with the current circumstances? Hell no. Staff isn’t that good and Laney’s accusations of Dragon saving the image when it was posted are ludicrous. Who the hell does Laney think they are that someone would be assed enough to right click and save one shitty piece of art from them? Oh, Dragon-Eternal reacted to it at the time? Uh oh! Guess staff isn’t allowed to react to any image posted ever because it means they’re STEALING IT.

How far up your own fucking ass does your head have to be to think like that? And claiming that their fox is that popular, well-known, and liked like it isn’t a fucking ripoff design? Because Chuchy apparently has no creativity and had to rip off other sources themself and then shits on others for potentially doing the same thing? I’ve never heard of OR seen Laneycore before this fiasco and tbh I blocked them after reading through the bulletin and their comments because they seem like an annoying egotistical cunt. I also didn’t see many people talking about their fox in the discord outside of Laneycore themself, and haven’t seen it talked about anywhere else I frequent either so really, how popular is it actually? Seems like Laney’s status as a popular artist (if they even are one?) has gone to their head.

I know the entire point of the vent/callout was the staff’s unprofessionalism but Laney has no solid proof in their case that Dragon ACTUALLY ripped off their art piece for that design. The accusations they came in with were fucking ridiculous for not having proof to back it up and even a good moderation team would struggle in that situation. And looking at the two designs myself I’m sorry to say that I don’t see the issue. Two designs using green fire is hardly enough grounds to call plagiarism or copying when the coloration and elements in both pieces don’t even match up. Nothing about the two designs is similar other than the appearance of the color of the fire, and even that’s different when you look at the hex codes. I also don’t understand why Laneycore waited over a month to complain and why they didn’t go to Dragon with their issue first since Dragon was the artist of the piece.

Both parties behaved poorly here. I will never side with SF staff, but I can’t side with Laneycore here either because they’re also in the wrong. Demanding an entire palette change or hue shift just because a piece has similar colors to your own art is WAY too entitled and nobody gets away with that shit when they try it. Nobody owns a palette or a theme or idea, and ragging on staff because they handled your proofless accusations poorly is stupid as fuck. Nobody was going to come out of this situation a winner.

Fuck SF staff, especially with Dragon’s vague ass counter journal and every other time the SF staff have done shit to piss people off (DARCI), but really fuck Laneycore too. All of them can eat shit.

post related (links to updated post even tho i think this one was made before it was edited)

what happens when an insufferable force meets a dismissive object. like you can't even root for anyone in this im just happy this is a huge blow to scarfox in general

[sorikkung]

23, 40, and 71 for the fanfic writer asks!! 🤍

hiii rain! <3 sorry i rambled a lot in these oml

23. how do you deal with writers block?

i dont.

that seems like a smartass answer but i literally just do not SDKFJHKSDF if i get writers block i simply do not write. i will go for months at a time without writing due to writers block it just be like that. its only within the past month or so that ive been tryna really get myself to write more often or at least more often than like, once a month, but ive been riding a motivation kick and havent really hit writers block since so i suppose i will deal with that as it comes? if i hit a block on one wip i just switch to another. sprinting on a writing discord server with some friends is another way to get me off my ass and writing!! (shoutout to the skz writing server im in, yall are incredible.)

40. best piece of feedback you’ve ever gotten.

oh man i treasure all feedback i get but i will never not be thinking about a friend of mine (hiiii elizabeth <3) saying she found a home in my story. the story in question is my series what goes on in neverland and it is a story that is just so, so personal to me bc its blatant wish fulfillment and that in itself is so exposing? because by writing an mc thats a blatant self-insert rather than a one-size-fits-all reader insert its like... i am baring myself and all my dreams for everyone to see. and its so different from other fics in so many ways from the transmasc rowdy and obnoxious mc to the complex relationship w all the characters from multiple fandoms so its like... its so niche and tailored specifically for Me that i was surprised anyone else would enjoy it let alone enjoy it so much that they could find a home in it, something so personal like the safety and understanding that comes with finding home in something, it was just so moving and i think abt it a lot. being able to make a home for someone through writing is just so special and im gonna keep writing and hope that more people can find something like that in it too.

71. how do you balance writing and life? do you ever feel overwhelmed by the amount of writing you have to do?

i do not. SDFKJHSDFKHKs once again i am just.. hardly a functioning person my dude i write when i write and i life when i life but those two things do not often work cohesively with each other. im not overwhelmed by the amount of writing i Have to do bc i dont Have to write shit i just Want to write so much that yeah, it can get a little overwhelming but its less the writing itself thats overwhelming and more just my adhd making every small task overwhelming like writing 3000 words in one sitting is easier than doing all the dishes in my sink rn. i havent showered in days and havent done my washing in weeks so im wearing dirty clothes to work and my acne And eczema are horrendous because i keep forgetting or not having time to apply creams and i sometimes get so intimidated by something as simple as making instant pasta that i simply do not eat. i aint balancing SHIT my dude i am just rolling with the punches and trying not to die with varying degrees of success.

writer ask game!

[musicallisto]

Hi, congrats on 800 followers! Can I please get a Six of Crows ship? I’m have short brown hair (I dyed red last week) and green eyes. I don't mind if im shipped with a girl or a boy. I like reading (no romantic novels), music and photography. I'm Aquarius. I’m very curious. I'm a little shy and even cold at first. I’m not good with feelings, I mostly keep them to myself if I can, but I care deeply for my loved ones and would do anything to help them, even if I'm not very good at giving advice. ☆

hi! here’s your vanilla milkshake, I hope you like it! I ship you with jesper fahey!

You don’t imagine the extent of my joy to be able to add a gif of an actual real person for Jesper... however shall I survive until Aprid 23rd?

For the longest time, you thought the world started and ended at your corner of Fjerda, in your frozen estate by the True Sea.

You were descented from minor Fjerdan nobility, and your father, jaded by Court Life and its political intrigues - and, unofficially, penniless after giving his all for the sempiternal wars on Ravka -, had decided to leave the capital and retire to his family’s estate by the sea a few years after you were born.

All you had ever known were the large, marbled corridors you’d spend entire afternoons wandering, daydreaming about adventures in the confines of the country - or living the lavish life of a true Fjerdan princess, in an outrageously enormous bed of satin sheets...

The house was spacious and beautiful, with a marvelous view over the sea, gently carrying its boats to and fro before you - and you’d stay there on the balcony in your flowy white dress, admiring the ocean until you couldn’t fight the chills of the night creeping up your spine anymore; but as tranquil and languid as your existence was, it was also terribly lonely.

All you longed for was a sibling, a friend, a partner in crime, someone you could explore the world and go on quests with...

... until a lighting bolt tore the silence, one night.

You couldn’t sleep, so you had gone on a walk by the shore as you often did - your father was never worried about it, since you knew the rocks and their cracks like the back of your hand, and would know the way back home even with your eyes closed.

But you were so absorbed by the distant twinkling of stars that you didn’t notice the shadows creeping up behind you until it was too late.

Screams in a language you can’t understand; an arm around your neck in a chokehold, another slipping under your knees; you thrash around, slice all you can, bite and claw at all you can grasp...

Your abductors know better than to let Fjerdan nobility get away from their grasp. They don’t know exactly who you are - but they’ve guessed from the distinguished aspect of your house that there’s a fine sum to gain from whoever will be willing to pay for you - your father for a ransom, or anyone else, in Kerch, who’ll make good use of your services.

Those brothels in Ketterdam pay good money for young girls, they hear - even more so for a Fjerdan pearl.

When they throw you on an overloaded carriage like a potato sack, you’re still yelling at the top of your lungs, pleading for your father, for one of your maids, for anyone to help you.

But no one hears.

You shed all the tears you have in the first night, tossed around in a dark chariot, off to somewhere unknown. Your father hasn’t prepared you for this - nothing, not even your books nor your fantastical imaginary adventures...

But you don’t intend on being sold off that easily. So you devise a plan to get away.

The first opportunity to break free presents itself when your kidnappers force you to board a ship; but they manage to catch you before you’ve run very far.

But second time’s the charm; with nothing better to do during the voyage than to bide your time and gnaw at your bonds, you’re able to slip from your captor’s watch, and blindly run through the harbor - just to get as far as possible from the stench of this floating carcass.

The first thing that strikes you is the odor. You’ve known the sea forever - it’s clear and bright as ice, and smells of fresh mornings and cold salt; never of this green rot that festers everywhere in these streets... and all those chimneys, all those people, who stare you down as you run down these grimy streets, barefoot in your off-white dress...

You understand that you’re farther from home than you’ve ever been, and it’s not a thrilling adventure, it’s terrifying and overwhelming, and you want nothing more than to burst into tears.

But you don’t, because a pair of strangers flag you down in a language you don’t understand.

A tall and lanky dark-skinned boy, wearing vibrant fabric and a self-assured grin; and possibly the most beautiful girl you’ve ever seen in your life, all bright eyes and genuine frown.

Paralyzed, you open your mouth, once, twice, incapable of making the slightest sound; until the girl notices your visible discomfort, and, eyeing your pale eyes, asks in the slightest of Ravkan accents;

“Are you Fjerdan?”

You nod with all your soul. You’re ready to cling onto them both for dear life.

“What happened to you?”

Your voice fails you - you can’t explain it - you haven’t even comprehended it all. You were curled up in front of the fireplace just the night before...

“Do you have anywhere to go?”

You shake your head with despair, trying to blink back the tears.

“Come with us. We know someone who’ll help you.”

You don’t mull it over very long. Maybe it’s your sheltered uprbinging that has made you naive; maybe it’s the curiously comforting warmth you see in the Ravkan girl’s eyes; but you simply have no better option, and you can’t understand a word of Kerch, or wherever it is that this barbarian folk speak.

Although your two saviors start arguing, probably about whether or not they can reasonably take you in, your tear-stained cheeks and desperate vulnerability are enough to convince them - so you follow them.

Into the lair of the Dregs, of whom you’ve never heard - and of Kaz Brekker, who you know very well.

After all, he’s the infamous gangster who invaded your homeland, broke into the Ice Court, and stole the Shu boy - or so you saw your father read in the papers. To know that you are under the same roof as that lowlife would be enough to give your father a heart attack...

You’re half convinced that he’ll throw you back to the streets, but Nina and, surprisingly, Jesper as well, plead in your favor with a greatly convincing fervor. You learn that it’s probably because Kaz has much greater worries on his mind - the criminal group is planning on retrieving one of their own from the clutches of a treacherous business partner, or so you’ve gathered.

Either way, you’re more than happy that the terrifying and redoubtable Kaz Brekker is leaving you alone, and that you can enjoy Jesper’s company.

You two become unexpectedly good friends overtime. He comes to visit you at the Crow Club, where you’re staying, almost every day. Yet communication is not your strong suit, especially in a language you don’t understand at all, and you don’t fancy yourself a particularly enthralling girl to be around.

Not when one has lived the life of a criminal, a sharpshooter, a wanderer, a playboy... well, all those things that Jesper prises himself on being, and all those words he’s taught you in Kerch.

(That and the curse words, of course, that you’re a bit intimidated to use at first, until they slip out of your mouth one evening when you drop your plate at dinner with the Dregs, and the entire canteen falls dead silent.)

“Did she just say ‘fuck’?”

“I think she just said fuck.”

“See, Matthias, she wasn’t immediately struck by lighting by Djel’s hand. You won’t die if you say it.”

Speaking of Matthias, he’s also a good friend of yours - it’s comforting and refreshing to have a familiar face around, one of Fjerdan roots and mores.

Although the rest of the group says you’re not that Fjerdan.

“You’re one of the feisty ones, at least.”

“I’m not ‘feisty’. Shut up, Jesper.”

“Ah, I see you’ve been working on the vocabulary I taught you!”

Matthias and you both have a lot of soul-searching and unlearning to do about the outside world - you were raised in particularly bigoted environments, you somewhat less than him. The hatred for the Grisha he’s been taught by the Drüskelle is fear in your case; you’ve been brought up on bedtime stories of bloodthirsty Grisha who devour unruly kids, and war and devastation caused by their unstability and blasphemous magic.

It’s even more of a shock to you when you learn Jesper is a Grisha.

Unbeknownst to you, you’ve started to fall a little for him - how could you not? He’s funny, charming, sarcastic and witty; always has the best stories to tell, and despite it all, sincerely cares for you amidst the chaos of their heist and revenge plans.

But to learn he was the kind of monster - no, the kind of creature - no, the kind of person, you force yourself to correct mentally - that you had been taught to fear for your entire life...

“I’m so sorry. You should never have been there.”

He’s pacing back and forth in your room after a shootout has gone awry and you were caught in the crossifre; it’s the first time he’s ever had to use his Durast powers to get you of the mess - and normally he wouldn’t have, because it’s a secret he wishes he could carry to the grave, but the fear of losing you was too strong...

“Thank god that I was there, though. What would you do without me?”

He’s fidgety and restless, nervously playing with his pistols, and his nervous laugh is all but genuine; and you’re huddled up on your bed, staring him down with wide eyes.

“Jesper, you...”

“Yeah, maybe not the best moment.”

“Jesper...”

“It’s like they have a knack for knowing exactly where we’re gonna be and when...”

“Jesper!”

He abruptly turns to look at you, and his eyes widen. He’s starting to understand, almost, but refuses to believe it. Your voice is a murmur, and you can hardly hold his gaze.

“Jesper, are you... going to hurt me?”

His words die in his throat. He remembers where you’re from... the garbage that they must have filled your ears and head with from the day you were born... how feverish Matthias was with Nina... he looks at his hands, and his Materialki magic rumbles like a dark curse.

“Y/N, you’re scared of me?”

The sheer hurt in his voice breaks your heart. Even though you’re trembling, you let him step closer to you, slowly. It’s Jesper in front of you, not some ungodly monster from legends... Jesper, your Jesper...

“I’m... I’m sorry...”

He cups your face in his hands, warm and just a bit moist, and stares into your eyes with a vulnerability you have never seen in him.

“I’d never do anything to hurt you, Y/N, I swear on my life. All I want is you to be safe...”

Safe from me, if that’s what you wish, he thinks for a split second, but you don’t give him time to doubt; you’ve captured his lips in a frenzied kiss, and hold on for dear life onto his lean shoulders.

Fjerda and its blind hatred is very far from you, now. You're locked in Jesper's embrace, and you won't have to hear their lies anymore.

You know you have nothing to fear from him; not now, and not ever.

800 follower sleepover CLOSED!

[descendantofthesparrow]

Shuffle Playlist - Rewrite - Part of Your World - Part 8 - Fights and Sisters

=

Mal lifted her foot into the air as she leaned to her right to get the perfect curve of Evie's hair, biting her lip in concentration as she listened to the calming sounds of a spray-paint can fill the room. she clicked her heel as she leaned back onto the box she was standing on and nodded to herself, the mural for her friends was almost done, the last thing she had to do was add detail and she would be done.

“At least I don’t see myself with horns and a pitchfork” Mal spun around with a gasp, holding up her can defensively as she looked onto the sheepish Ben who stood before her.

He waited for her to lower the can, but Mal didn’t budge, keeping her finger on the spray mechanic. “Mal-“ Ben took a step forward, stopping as Mal shook the can threateningly, her eyes staring into Bens with a warning to back off.

“How’d you get here” Mal whispered, she had thought it would take just a bit longer for her friends to get here, she wasn’t ready to face them again.

“I- Mal I’m so sorry about the fight, it was all my fault” Mal shook her head defiantly, no, it wasn’t Ben's fault, not completely, it was hers too.

“How.did.you.get.here” Mal stressed, shaking the can again as if it was a weapon.

“The limo, Jay drove us-“ us. That meant Evie was here, Carlos too, god she hoped Cruella and EQ didn’t know they were here.

“Of course,” she muttered, chucking her can to the floor, seeing Ben flinch out of the corner of her eye, but she ignored it, kicking her old makeshift stool over and growling.

They were her family, why did she think they would take a week to come get her, of course it would only be hours before they found her.  But she just needed to escape for a bit, she didn’t want to stay on the isle, not after she crossed the barrier again, but once inside there was no way out, not without the remote.

She was happy that they came to get her because that meant they cared enough to do so, but she wasn’t ready to go back to the craziness of Auradon just yet.

“Mal” Ben started again, attempting to walk up to her but stopping as she held up her hands. “please come home” he held out his class ring, the one Mal hadn't taken off since his coronation.

She stared at him for a moment, trying to figure how to word what she wanted to say ‘(y/n) did always say I had a habit of saying things the wrong way’ she scoffed at herself, shaking her head. “Ben….I-“ she shook her hands in frustration “im-not gah!” Ben blinked in surprise as she suddenly yelled and shook her head and arms “words! Ben!” he jumped as she yelled out his name, she calmed herself with a deep breath "I am home….you’ve said before that home is where you feel like you can be yourself well”

she held her arms out, gesturing to the hideout “this is it; this is where I feel most comfortable, in leather, with purple hair, with my knife in my sleeve, baring my teeth when someone looks at me funny, swearing to my heart's content because fuck it!” she let her arms go limp and felt them smack against her thighs. She sniffed, feeling her nose burn “Ben, I love Auradon, I love the skies, I love the food, I love the school but….but it's just-”

she lifted her hands up again, her frustration showing in her face and hands as they clenched “I couldn’t even blink without someone in my face asking me about my mother!!” Ben glanced to his left, seeing a large tank with the tiny black and purple dragon sitting on a mini cloth couch, small puffs of green smoke exiting through its muzzle, her toxic green eyes locked onto his form.

 “ or bugging me about me being the lady of the fucking court!! Ben, I don’t know what you expected from me but HOW did you expect me to be able to just flip a switch and turn into this perfect pink princess who always smiles and-“

“I never asked you to change!” Ben yelled, finally shutting Mal up “I didn’t want you to become a perfect Auradon girl Mal! I wanted you! I wanted the girl that told Chad fuck off, I wanted the girl that was adorably possessive of her strawberries, I wanted the girl that growled at people when they stepped to close to Evie or Carlos, I wanted the girl that fought Jay for six hours about the logics of lightsabers, I wanted the girl that jumped off the dorm building because Carlos dared her, I wanted the girl that chewed on her hair because it smelled like grape juice!” Ben panted, giving a small smile to Mal as she stared at him in shock “I wanted you Mal, I didn’t want you to change.”

Mal was silent for a few moments, eyes drifted from Bens once more outstretched hand to his eyes. She took a deep breath, trying to keep calm. “Then why didn’t you say anything” she muttered in a wavering voice. Ben's heart dropped, his body slumping as he looked into Mals watering eyes. “Not once did you ask ‘Hey what happened to my hair’ ‘hey, why that dress’ ‘hey, what happened to your leather’. Not once did you ever SAY you liked my purple hair better, or my leather clothes, or anything like that, you just stood by and smiled, because you are always in this happy glitter world where everything is good. 

Well, it's not Ben! I was stressed out of my mind about everything. I could hardly eat because I was always reading those damn etiquette books, I was up every night till four am studying because I was so tired from learning fucking which spoon to use for soup that I couldn’t keep up my grades anymore, I failed art class did you know that?! no! because you didn’t ask!” Mal panted as she tried to catch her breath, Ben shook his head and stomped his food slightly.

“I shouldn’t need to ask! You should tell me about this kinda stuff I’m your boyfriend! I’m not psychic Mal! I don’t know what's going on in your brain, that’s not my job!!” Mal shook her hands in frustration, her headache returning as her eyes glowed slightly.

“that is-GAH! I’m not saying it's your job! Do you think I know what's going in my fucked-up brain Ben?! It’s a fucking labyrinth that I only just started to navigate! I’m fucked up Ben! And I’m sorry if you can't handle it because I can't either! I’m trying to be better but if you don’t help then I’m never GOING to be better! And before you say anything, I don’t mean help me be the perfect Auradon girl I mean help to be a better me!”

She harshly patted her chest to accentuate her words “call me out on my bullshit, call me out when I say the wrong thing, call me out when I hurt your feelings! I've needed help since I turned against my mother, I don’t know what I’m doing Ben, I needed someone to guide me to be a better person yet all I've gotten is (y/n) being the only person in the universe to notice that I’m imploding!” Mal covered her face with her hands and sighed “Ben, you make me so happy, but-but….you don’t notice anything about me, not really”

Ben tilted his head in confusion, shrugging as he did so “what the hell does that mean? I always pay attention to you!”

“Not really” Mal sobbed, making Ben stop…Mal never cried “Ben I’m was so fucking confused and stressed about…everything, and not one time did you ask ‘are you okay’, and-and I know I lied to you about using my magic but-what harm did it do? I didn’t spell you to think I was perfect, or anybody else! Just items to help myself because I’m not a superhuman who can do everything at once with no-fault! So what I used a speed-reading spell, or a blonde hair spell, or a food spell?! I understand why you are mad about it, because yes! I lied to you about what I was doing and how I was doing it, but even if I never told you, would you have found out?!” Ben sighed, holding his hands up.

“let me calm down, I don’t want this to turn into a screaming match, because if it does (y/n)’s gonna come up here and hurt us” Mal let out a breath like laugh, taking a step back and hugging herself.

After a few moments of silence, Ben finally spoke again “I’m sorry Mal” she looked up at him, a single tear trailing down her cheek “you’re right, I should have noticed you weren’t okay, because….it is my job as your boyfriend to take care of you, and I didn’t do that…I had the same problem with Audrey, sometimes she would come back from her grandparents place a wreck, but put up a front to not worry me, and while everyone else noticed, I just looked away as if her problems didn’t exist. I did the same to you, I’m sorry…” Ben looked down at the floor, playing with his fingers nervously. Mal sighed, stepping closer to Ben and rubbing his arm. “I’m sorry too, if I had asked for help months ago all this would have never happened.” Ben looked back up at Mal, holding out the ring.

“Please come back with us” Mal stared at the ring, slowly reaching out to grab it, smiling as she felt the cool metal of the ring. Then she shook her head, placing it back in his hand.

“…we don’t work right now Ben” Ben gaped at her, trying to speak but she held up her hand “listen to me, we don’t work right now, I’m too mentally closed off, and most of the time can’t look past my own nose. I-I need to fix myself before I can be with you in a way that’s not…toxic. Because that’s what this is, it's toxic, we don’t communicate at all and never look past the surface of each other…I need to take myself out of the picture because its what's best for you and myself…if we kept going like we are now it's only going to hurt us in the end…I’m sorry” she closed Bens fingers around the ring and pushed it back towards him. “But I can't do this right now”

“But I love you” Ben whispered, making Mal stop as she turned to the wall “Don’t you love me?”

She was silent for a few moments before she looked back at Ben. “I know that I’m always happy when I see you or even think of you. I know I love my friends; I love Auradon, and I love the idea of us together but….I don’t know if I’m in love with you Ben, I know I love you but….I’m not sure I’m in love yet…I’m sorry”

She turned and walked back to the mural of her friends, sighing as Ben tried to follow her, she turned, shaking her head “Ben you should go…Tell them that I’ll be ready to come back to Auradon in a week okay?” she looked back to the wall, closing her eyes as once again Ben stepped closer “Ben please go, please leave” she stared into Ben’s sad eyes, feeling another tear drop down her cheek and off her jaw.

Ben slowly nodded, stumbling back towards the stairs and leaving the hideout. Mal let out a low sob, leaning against the wall and covering her mouth.

‘This was the right thing to do’ she reminded herself, breaking up with Ben was the best thing for both of them. At least until she got ahold of her own mind.

=

You looked up as Ben finally descended the stairs again, Mal, like in the movie, not behind him. Evie perked up, walking over to him and looking up towards the hideout “So…Where’s Mal?” Ben shook his head dejected.

“She's not coming back.” Ben muttered, pushing past Evie and Carlos and walking down the alley to get some alone time. You narrowed your eyes, should you follow him? There could be a chance that Uma wouldn’t send anyone to kidnap him…without Harry, you didn’t even know if Uma had a crew, let alone the lost revenge, since Harry's old wharf rats from before were Uma’s crew. You shared a look with Gil and made to start following Ben, but noticed he was already out of your sight.

“How does a scrawny boi like that move so fast?” you muttered, smiling a bit as Gil shrugged and turned back towards the other vks.

“GO AWAY” the makeshift comm system was closed off, leaving Evie staring at the speaker with sad eyes.

You turned back to the alley, seeing a tall figure beginning to walk toward you…that wasn’t Harry, you knew that…who was it then? “guys” you interrupted Jay and Evie's conversation, they turned to you with wide-eyes and raised brows “Ben’s gone”

Evie rushed to your side and called out for Ben “Ben?” no response, but the tall figure continued to move closer “Ben?!” once more no response, but Evie seemed to think the figure was Ben, which you knew it wasn’t….but it also wasn't Harry. Evie sighed in relief and placed her hands on her hips “Ben don’t scare us like that!”

“don’t scare you?!” a teen stepped out of the shadows, his fiery red hair stark against the grunge of the isle walls “but that takes all the fun outta it!”

Yeah, you immediately hated him, you glared at the teen, watching carefully as a monkey chatted away on his shoulder…Jack…that must mean…

Who knew Barbossa could have such a distasteful son?

“Davy” Gil growled, clenching his fists and taking a threatening step towards the smaller teen. Davy glanced at him, his eyes widening for a moment as he looked at Gil's now even larger form.

“What did you do with Ben?!” Jay yelled, Davy pursed his lips in thought before he “miraculously” remembered what had happened only moments before. He turned and pointed down the alley, grinning as Jay grit his teeth at him.

“Oh um, we took him, yeah, and if you want to see him again, have Mal come to the chip shop tonight” he looked at Evie, Carlos, and Jay  “Alone” he turned to you, a flirty grin spreading across his face. “Well well, hello beauti-AHHH” as he reached out with his left hand to grab your hand, you grabbed his finger and pushed it back till you heard it crack.

“touch me again and it's your neck next” you growled, smirking as Davy whimpered in pain. Gil let out a laugh, giving a little wave to Davy as he looked at him with wide eyes.

“you should know Davy” Gil snickered “if your names not Harry Hook, you don’t touch (y/n) without a few bones being broken~” Davy paled at the way Gil said it so cheerfully, looking back up at you and squeaking as you gave him a sharp grin, almost reminiscent of Harrys.

Your other hand drew to your waist and you un-did Harry’s hook from your belt and held the pointy end up to Davy's neck “and I don’t mind spilling some blood~” you released Davy's hand and he scrambled back, giving the five of you a scared look before bolting down the alley.

“he’s gonna lie and say he scared us half to death, isn’t he?” you muttered, slipping the hook back on your belt and crossing your arms.

“yep, that’s what he does” Gil sighed, watching as Jay started to climb up the side of the stairs to go tell Mal about Ben.

=

Smee cursed himself for being old and slow, he had finally made it to Harriet's ship after thirty minutes of walking, and she wasn’t here! His oldest son, Sammy, didn’t know where she was either, only that CJ had told her something and she had left as soon as she was done with work.

His younger sons, the twins, walked up to him and made him sit down, noticing his heavy breathing from overexerting himself “dad please just sit for a while, I’m sure Harriet will be back soon” Smee slowly nodded. But he didn’t want to wait, Harrys freedom and life were at stake.

“my boy, please go out and look for her, I need to speak with her as soon as possible, it's urgent” Sammy furrowed his brows but nodded, turning to the crew and putting Xiaohui, Shan Yu’s daughter, in charge. The girl nodded, turning to the crew and barking orders.

“I'll be back soon dad, Skipper-Sterling, stay with him okay” the twins nodded and turned back to their father mostly distracting him from his worries as they told him about their day.

Smee smiled but the thought of Harry rested in the back of his mind. Oh, how he hoped there was enough time to save him before one of James ‘clients’ decided to take their ‘payment’

=

“This wouldn't have happened if you didn’t bring him along, what were you thinking?!” Mal yelled, leaning on the wall next to her as she glared at her friends.

You and Gil sat on the couch, watching as the four vks as they argued. “He was going to come with or without us we were just trying to protect him!” Evie reasoned, Carlos shook his head and looked to Evie.

“yeah, and great job we did there huh?!” Evie opened her mouth to argue with Carlos when Jay held his hands up and spoke over them.

“OKAY!...okay” you all turned to Jay “what do we do now?” Mal huffed and stepped down from the archway she was under.

“We” she gestured to the other vks and you “Are not doing anything, this is between Uma and me, and Uma’s a punk, and guess what! Now I have to go fix your mistake!” she grabbed her bag and swung it over her shoulder, gritting her teeth as Carlos stopped her again. “Hey hey, you’re still gonna have to go through whatever crew Uma’s got” Jay nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, you’re gonna need us” Mal shrugged.

“Uma said to come alone” Evie sighed and stepped forward.

“Mal come on” she just gave Evie a look and Carlos sighed.

“Uma said to come alone…I don’t know about you guys but I’m not going anywhere” he flopped down on the couch between you and Gil. Mal sighed, looking at her friends. “I know you didn’t mean to get Ben kidnapped” she muttered, finally calming down from her earlier frustration “but that was the stupidest thing any of you have ever done…” Mal glanced at you, sighing “ (y/n), Harry said he’d be at his apartment and Jay could take you there, see you guys later” Mal left the hideout with that. you jumped up and beamed at Jay, who sighed and nodded, gesturing towards the stairs.

“I’m coming with you” Gil muttered, standing up from the couch and following after you and Jay “never bad to have extra muscle” Jay nodded at that and followed you down the stairs, laughing a bit as you skipped some three at a time.

“come on!” you yelled up at them, passing Mal and jumping off the last flight bouncing on your heels as you waited for them

“We’re coming!” Jay yelled, he and Mal making it to the bottom at the same time. “come on” Gil caught up a moment later and you followed Jay down the alley as Mal headed towards the wharf.

“don’t do anything stupid Mal” you called back, smirking as she lifted her arm up and gave you the middle finger.

“Okay, so” Jay stared, keeping a brisk pace as he leads you to Harry's apartment “Harry's place is about ten minutes to and from here, so let's get a move on” you and Gil nodded, easily keeping up with Jay as he took several turns and backways towards Harry's apartment.

=

Mal took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment to hype herself up. She couldn't afford any mistakes; Bens life was on the line. She pushed open the doors, smirking as the whole restaurant went silent. She dropped it as she made eye contact with Uma “Looser party of one” Uma droned, gesturing to a free table with two seats around it “Right this way please”

Mal rolled her eyes, walking over to her, stopping and catching the chair that Uma slid towards her. Uma chuckled and rose her brow in challenge. Mal twisted the chair around and sat backward on it, setting her arms on the backrest and sighing. She glanced around, eyeing the rest of the pirates that were resting her then finally looking at Uma, whose dark-now almost black- eyes were glaring into hers.

Mal was silent for a moment, contemplating her words as Uma stared into her soul. Mal smirked, leaning on her palm as she attempting to look as if she wasn’t there on business “How's life~?”

Uma chuckled, tilting her head “Oh pretty good, ya know, considering the food shortage and contaminated water” Mal felt her eye twitch at that. How could she have forgotten all the bad stuff on the isle?

Why did she ever ask her friends if they ever wanted to be back on the isle? Of course Evie and Carlos wouldn’t want to come back this place sucked. Mal forced herself to roll her eyes and lean back on her chair a bit “Where is he” Uma ripped off her apron and let it flop on the floor, giving Mal another smirk.

“you know I’ve dreamed of this?” she laughed again, walking over to another table and leaning on it “You wanting something from me, and me watching you squirm like a worm on a hook~” Mal rolled her eyes again.

“I’m flattered, but I’m done trash-talking, where’s Ben” Uma furrowed her brows, Mal was usually the one to keep talking until the sun went down, it was odd for her to get straight to the point. But she shrugged it off and took a seat across from Mal.

“here's the deal” Mal raised her brow.

“there's always a deal with sea witches” Mal muttered, smirking as Uma gave her a look. Uma lifted her arm on the table, her elbow resting on the surface as her hand arched into the air.

“If you win, Bens free to go!” Mal stared at her for a moment, really? An arm-wrestling match?...she should have brought (y/n), Uma had always been a bit physically stronger than her. “Hmm?” Uma taunted, smiling as Mal finally hiked her arm on the table and started to line up their hands. Uma pulled back for a moment, pouting at Mal “Don’t you want to know what I get if I win?”

Mal stopped…then nodded, letting her hand lay flat on the table. Uma blinked in surprise, Mal never waited to hear the other end, always assuming she would win so she never bothered to learn what the other person wanted. She brushed it off, her teasing smirk slipping into a sharp grin. “If I win…you get me the wand” Mal took a sharp breath, cursing herself as Uma chuckled at it.

Mal closed her eyes and nodded, lifting her hand again to start the match “Fine, If I win; you give me Ben, If you win; I get the wand and bring it to you” Uma smiled, clasping her hand with Mal’s and nodding.

“On three” Uma ordered, Mal sighed and rolled her eyes, starting the countdown.

“One”

“Two~”

“three!” Mal pushed her hand to the left, gritting her teeth slightly as she felt heavy resistance from Uma’s side. Uma let out a small chuckle, smiling at Mal as she started to taunt her.

“You know, that whole princess act. Ugh.” She rolled her eyes, a sharp grin growing on her face “Never bought it for a second. You can stick a tiara on your head but you’re still a villain” Mal smirked, wow she actually thought that was an insult~ how cute.

“Thank you~” Mal purred, enjoying the look of confusion in Uma’s eyes. She jerked her arm heavily to the left, turning the match more to her side, Uma grunted in exertion. Mal hummed to herself, maybe she was stronger than the last time she had “fought” Uma. “and you can slap a pirate hat on and call yourself captain; but you can’t even hold out for your ‘boys’?”

Uma’s eyes flashed and a weight settled in her chest. “I mean come on” Mal cackled, feeling her headache return as her eyes glowed “it's only been five months~ you really gave up on them so quickly?” Uma’s hand was inches away from the table, her teeth gritting in exertion as her mind ran a thousand miles a minute. “How would Harry feel if he knew you already replaced him with Davy?”

Uma looked back up at Mal, glaring at the purple-haired fae “when you see them” she growled, her eyes flashing turquoise “tell them they're dead to me” Mal gasped, what?! No! that wasn’t how Uma was supposed to react!! In her moment of confusion, Uma took the chance of Mal’s now loose grip and slammed her hand down on the other side.

Uma stood from her seat and yelled in victory, pumping her hands in the air as the pirates around them cheered. Uma slammed her hands on the table, smirking as she stared at Mal's shocked and defeated form “Now, if you want beasty boy back” Mal raised her brow at the nickname she thought only (y/n) and Harry called Ben “Bring me fairy godmothers wand. To my ship tomorrow at the wharf docks next to the old garage near the pair at twelve noon.” She stood straight and flipped her hair back “Sharp, got it?”  Mal finally looked away from her hand to Uma, glaring at the sea witch.

Uma cackled turning and walking back towards the kitchens when she stopped, turning back to Mal and smiling at her “Oh and if you blab? You can kiss your baby goodbye~” she blew a kiss to Mal and walked off.

Mal sat at the table for a moment, before rushing to stand and get back to the hideout. If Uma told her to go tell Harry he was dead to her, that meant Harry had never talked to Uma.

And they had gotten to the isle at six pm, it was now almost nine pm. Something was wrong.

=

You huffed a bit as you climbed the rickety metal stairs up towards Harry's apartment. Jay stopped In front of a black door with silver and red spray paint all over it. Harry's name scratched into the door. “Here it is” Jay muttered, opening the unlocked door and stepping inside. “ Harry?!” Jay yelled, furrowing his brows as no response followed.

“Harry!?” you yelled, pushing past Jay and stepping into the apartment, your chest tightening as you heard nothing back. Mal said he would be here, why wasn’t he here! “Harry!?” you ran towards the back end of the apartment, going through the red curtain door and looking around.

All you saw was an old queen-sized bed with red and black sheets, a painted red dresser in the corner, a cracked wall mirror, and some clothes thrown about the floor. “He’s not in his room!” you called, stepping further into the room and glancing about, you saw a connected room showing rusty bathroom, pretty nicely kept but unused for a while.

“It looks like he hasn't even touched the kitchen” Gil yelled back, you heard some doors slam closed and Gil walking around the main area.

“…” you pressed your lips together, walking back out of his room and into the living room/entrance area “do you think he went to talk to his sisters? Or Uma” Gil shook his head.

“No, if he talked to Uma, she wouldn’t have sent someone after Ben…or Harry would have been the one to take Ben” Gil sighed, holding his hands on his hips and shaking his head “It hardly looks like he even stepped foot in here” he muttered, glancing at the dark brown couch to his left and the old TV to his right.

“But someone has obviously been in here” Jay pointed out, gesturing to booted footprints on the floorboards “Not Harry but someone else” Gil crouched down, trailing his fingers on the print.

“…CJ’s” Gil confirmed, standing and whipping his hands on his pants “those are CJ’s footprints” you and Jay looked at him with wide eyes.

“How do you know?” Jay asked, rubbing the back of his head as he stared at the footprints. Gil shrugged.

“Dad taught me how to tell people apart just from their boot size and stride length, this is CJ’s, see how they don’t show the full boot and they aren’t far apart? She skips as she walks so she wouldn’t touch the ground completely or take full strides” you let out a low whistle.

“Impressive….and those are?” you pointed at another set of much bigger prints that were opposite of CJs. Gil took one look and beamed.

“Harry’s! so Harry was here! But probably not for long if nothing else here is touched” you sighed in relief, so Harry was at his apartment like he said he would be…but if he wasn’t here, and he wasn't at the chip shop…where was he?

“Okay, so…how do we find out where he is?” Gil shrugged, crossing his arms.

“Best bet? Harriet or CJ’s place, he probably hasn’t talked to Uma yet considering she sent Davy to do her dirty work” Gil shivered at the mention of the red-haired “pirate”

“Then we go to Harriet or CJ’s place” you decided, turning to exit the apartment,  only to be stopped by a cutlass blade at your throat "oh... it's you" the girl in front of you growled. Your shoulders dropped in realization as you looked upon the girl's face. Dark curly hair, bright ocean blue eyes lined with black eyeshadow, red coat, hook earrings, and a hook patch on her sleeve

"Harriet?" you whispered "Harriet Hook?" The girl, Harriet, raised her sculpted brow and tilted her head "that would be me, and you are the Auradon brat that stole my brother" you shook your head "we can talk about that later, Harry’s not here and he hasn't talked to Uma" Harriet's eyes widened and the sword drew away from your neck "what? But CJ said he went to talk to Uma two hours ago” you and Harriet stared at each other, horror blooming on your faces as Jay and Gil looked at each other with wide eyes as they came to the same realization you and Harriet did.

"Harry’s missing”

-end of part 8-

and there we go~ Ben and Mal have officially broken up! hopefully that fight made sense and didn't sound like a therapist was talking through either of them lol. also ive decided to fix the timeline of D2 a bit since its just all over the place (it starts on Thursday, when Ben and Mal go on their picnic date, and cotillion is said to be three days from that point (for me that means Thursday (1) Friday (2), Saturday (3rd day/cotillion day)) Mal goes to the isle on Thursday, Uma and Mal arm wrestle on Thursday night/early Friday morning, and the wand for ben fight happens noon the day after the arm wrestle( which is friday i think?) and then suddenly cotillion is the same night as the wand fight? even though its really only been a day and a half) so now im my timeline, the first quarter of d1 happens ALLL on Thursday, up until Carlos n Jay head back to Auradon for the phoney wand, then the big fight happens on Friday, then cotillion on Saturday to give Evie time to fix up Mals cotillion dress

also dont blame Uma for saying Harry n Gil are dead to her, she don't know they love her with all their heart and are still her boys 

anyway permtaglist

@queer-cosette​ @sephiralorange​

@lunanight2012​ @daughter-of-the-stars11​

@musicarose​ @random-thoughts-003​

@remembered-license​ @rintheemolion​

@verboetoperee​ @imtryingthisout​ @thecaptainsgingersnap​

taglist

@thesailbells​ @beccad10x​

[eivorsjawline]

tw: the usual blood and cuts visuals

Chapter 7: Turn Back Time

Reader’s POV

A crescent moon lit up the night sky and the grass remained damp from the recent storm, crickets and frogs sang nearby. The wet, muddy terrain on the hill worked my calves as well as ruined my shoes. My escort finally dropped me off at the stones. Though I know it's odd dropping a strange woman off at a landmark in the middle of the night, he never asked any questions. The atmosphere was dark and cold, part of me felt scared to go back. There is always the chance that the stones could send me to the wrong time period, or even further back. I found love here, and even friends of my own. At least what I thought was love, even if the feelings were not mutual. How could someone so sweet and loving towards me flip within an instant. I questioned if I truly knew Eivor at all in the time I spent here.

Everything changed through the years, but the stones remained the same. Unchanged by any shape or form of mankind. People have come and have gone as they have sat and watched patiently. I wonder whether people have even noticed my absence and how I would explain where I was. It's difficult bearing the truth but having no one to tell it to otherwise I’d be deemed insane. I was back where my journey started, in the same spot engulfed by the tall rocks around me. The standing stone I had touched previously stood directly in front of me. However, I couldn’t bring myself to touch it as if a magnetic force was pulling me away. My name echoed in the distance from a voice I could recognize no matter how far.

Eivor stepped down from her horse with caution and let out a groan. Her knees appeared weak as she stumbled towards me and her voice dry and tired. I still felt anger towards her and wondered why she didn't just apologize earlier.

“Y/n, wait!”

“Why, Eivor?” 

“Im sorry, I’m drunk and I can't think right now. Please, forgive my harsh words… You deserve more than what I can offer you. So I…”

She paused and placed her hand on her stomach before dropping to her knees. I quickly moved her hand and lifted her undershirt to reveal she had been wounded. Though I’m not an expert, It was clear to see the wound was deadly. Eivor reached her hand outwards towards me for support. I screamed out her name whilst the anger in my body was now replaced with fear.

“Eivor, get up!”

She could hardly keep her eyes open and her body refused to stand up. For once, I had no time to think of what to do next. Running on pure adrenaline, I reached behind her and grabbed underneath her arms in an attempt to drag her but she was too heavy. My panicking only worsened from that point forward.

“Eivor, I need you to help me please… Just for a moment.”

Her eyes flickered with what little fight she had left in her body. I placed her arms around my neck, holding her wrist. This allowed her to place less of her body weight on me as I led her to the stone. She groaned in pain and could barely support herself. I quickly pulled her free hand onto the stone alone with mine.

This is the only way… 

Eivor’s POV

Consciousness started to return to me as a bright light shined in my eye, I could make out the voices of other  people around me. Everything was colorless, only white. For a moment, I truly thought I had died. I looked up to strange sounds coming from a machine that had cords hooked up to various parts of my body. Men and women wearing white coats surrounded me and they seemed to somehow know my name. I sat up to get a better view of my surroundings and my jaw dropped, unable to fix the frown on my face. I began to tug and pull out the lines connected to me and a woman advised me to stop.

“Where am I? Who are you people?”

“This is a hospital and we’re trying to help you. I need you to lay back down.”

The lights around me were so bright and everything so foreign, I felt genuine fear forming in my body. They mumbled towards one another, words I could not make any sense of. The woman in front of me started to fidget with a set of tools near my bed until I grabbed onto her wrist and she flinched. She squirmed and tried to pull my hand off before I finally released her.

“Tell me where y/n is… Please.”

“She's waiting for you outside… Doctor, she's moving too much she needs to be put back to sleep.”

What does she mean put back to sleep?

Before any further thoughts could form I felt a pinch in my arm and my eyes started to grow heavy. I could not fight my drowsiness so I succumbed to it.

Readers POV

I waited outside Eivor’s room anxiously. Thankfully, I had been placed in the exact same time period I had left. Nothing changed and I knew no questions would be plastered onto me by anyone I know. The door to Eivor’s room opened and a doctor greeted me, papers in his hands of x-rays and tests. He was a tall freckled man with thick brown hair and his glasses kept falling from the bridge of his nose. I stood up to shake his hand and waited for him to tell me any news of her.

“So, the wound has been disinfected and is ready for proper healing. We’ve done a few tests on her brain activity and everything is functioning normal. However, she has multiple scars all over her body. They look to be battle scars, oddly enough. I understand you tell me she’s a new friend of yours but do you know anything else about her life?”

“All I know is that her life has been a rough one… Now, when can she be released?”

“Soon. She’s very confused right now, unaware of her surroundings. Perhaps, once she's awake you can help jog her memory.”

“Could I at least see her now?”

“I’m assuming you’re not family therefore, I can't allow that. Leave your number and we’ll let you know when she’s ready to be brought home.”

I jotted down my number with the black-ink pen the doctor gave me. He told me she needs to be aware of her surroundings before any further stimulation. Even if the doctor seemed suspicious, they know only so little. I felt bad on the walk to my car, I didn’t wanna leave her all alone there but there was nothing I could do about It. I feared she would be angry with me once I picked her up. I started up my car and pulled out of the driveway, the rain trickled onto the front of my window and I turned on my windshield wipers. The drive back home was somewhat rejuvenating, being back relaxed me, I didn’t have to witness war and blood every second of the day.

I neared the driveway of my parking lot and pulled in. On the passenger seat my keys laid, I grabbed them and shut the car door. When I unlocked the front door to my apartment everything remained just as It was before, like nothing changed. My cat greeted me with a meow and I replied back with a scratch on her neck before making sure her food bowl was filled. I missed my life entirely, though I hadn’t been gone terribly long, a feeling of deja vu still resonated within me. The night would be long as I waited for my phone to go off. I turned the television on in my living room and kicked back, my cat laying next to me.

Just like old times...

Traveling through time seems to tire me, so I laid back and let my mind drift away. 

Eivor’s POV

I awoke from my practically forced sleep. I knew my journey to her would bring me here, to her strange world. Some more clothes would have brought me more comfort rather than this sheet they have me in. My wound was healing nicely, the pain of it wearing away though still sore. Some good ale would help me endure this. The nurses treated me well, making me regret how aggressive I had been in the beginning. My knowledge of the world around me made them suspicious but they knew I was fully responsive. We discussed my release, and they gave me news that I should get ready to go home. One of the nurses placed a bag on the chair next to my bed.

“Your friend left some clothes for you to change into when she left.”

A simple shirt and pants, strange material though. Surely, for such an advanced time I would have thought the clothing would be more complex instead, It was rather minimalist. The shirt fit rather snug but the pants were fine and felt comfortable. No one bared any weapons or armor, I felt nude without anything to defend myself with. Everyone seemed content and relaxed, I envied the people around me and the sheltered lives they had always lived. They walked around completely oblivious, and so did I. The concept was foreign but trying to fit in with the people around me was easy, just act like everything is okay. I heard a knock on the door once I finished dressing and the doctor came in to consult with me. He shook my hand and smiled.

“Hello, Eivor. Your wound is healing wonderfully. How are you feeling?”

“Better than I was.”

“The severity of your wound was extreme, even I’m surprised you made it… Your scars, how did you get them? If you don't mind me asking.”

I threw my hands up in the air trying to spare some time, my voice became soft.

“Oh, you know. Used to be a troublemaker, got into some bad fights.”

“I assume you're still troublemaking since that wound is fresh.”

“This one was an.... accident.”

Reader’s POV

The familiar sound of my phone started to ring. I knocked out so hard, I’m not even sure what time it is. I wiped the corners of my mouth before clearing my throat, the hospital was calling me. Anxiously, I answered the call and It was the doctor I had spoken to prior. Finally, I can pick her up from the hospital. I never got up quicker, throwing on some clean clothes and grabbing my keys on the way out the door. I whipped out of the driveway and headed towards Eivor, I think I may have even been speeding. Upon arrival I made my way to the desk to check into Eivor’s room. I took the elevator and pressed the floor number I needed to go to. Ugh, I hate the smell of hospitals. Disinfectants and chemicals everywhere, yet the taste of nothingness in the air at the same time. I found myself at her room door, and knocked to make sure she was ready for my entrance. The door handle twisted and opened swiftly, my heart began to beat faster when I saw the way she looked at me. I wrapped my arms around her neck and gave her a warm embrace.

“I’m so sorry It happened this way. We’ll get you back, I promise.”

“There’s no need for apologies, you saved my life. These people saved my life, there would be no going back home if it wasn’t for your quick thinking. I will admit for the first time there is true fear in my body for what lies out there.”

I chuckled, sure enough she had the look of fear in her eyes.

“Eivor, there’s nothing to be scared of. Come on, let me show you my home. Oh, I just picked the shirt and pants out real quick, sorry if the fit is wrong. We’re going shopping as soon as possible...”

Eivor looked overwhelmed, perhaps the bright lighting and a bustling hospital was a lot to handle for her. We stepped in the elevator and made our way down, the buttons and how we dropped seemed to fascinate her. When we got outside to the parking lot she was surprised to see all the cars moving fast, faster than any horse could go. When we got to my car I made a short, “ta-da!” movement with my hands.

“This is my humble stallion, she takes me wherever I like.”

Behold, my silver car. A few years dated but in almost pristine condition, I seemed quite proud of myself somehow. I opened the door for her and had to remind her to tilt her head down when entering.

“More of those…”

She pointed at the numbers in my car.

“They're called buttons, love.”

I turned the volume dial on my car and played some tunes. The surprised expression on her face when she heard what we consider music, we shared a look before smiling and laughing at each other. The moment was short when she ran her fingers over the functions, the radio station changing repeatedly and the heater kicking on and off… Like a child in a candy shop, touching everything in sight. Though I was trying to contain my laughter, her face remained serious and extremely focused. I got on the road to go back home, making sure to play some of my favorite songs for her entertainment.

[thr-333]

Mismatch- Part 22

Bio Dad Bruce Wayne Month

Hating LIla is apparently a family trait

First< Previous > Next

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

“Uh I hate this,” Chloe picks at her uniform like it's a disgusting growth.

“I think you look as nice as you always do,” Marion says cheerfully, turning around on his seat to look back at her and Kagami.

“Marion that is by far the worst you have ever insulted me,”

“It was a complement-” Marion doges her whack.

“Marinette! Hit your brother for me,” Chloe demands, standing up to try and reach him.

“It’s more gratifying if you do it yourself, trust me,” Marinette flicks through her phone, not bothering to look up, “I can pin your uniform to look more flattering if you like,”

“Nette you are the best!” Chloe hugs her from behind, awkward to be sure with the seat and all, yep that's the only reason, not Kagami's death glare that can be felt through the seat.

“Oh Marinette you can also pin mine,” Lila asks, as sweetly as acid, “Or weren't you going to offer the rest of the class?”

“No actually Lila she wasn't,” Marion sneers, ignoring Marinette trying to pull him back into the seat, “As I’ve made it quite clear none of you are our friends, so she isn’t obligated to do anything for you,”

“That’s so mean,” Lila sniffles, everyone is too busy feeling guilty to comfort her.

“Weren't you friends with MDC Lila?” Marion asks as sweetly as acid, “Why not try asking them?"

With that Marion turns back to his seat and starts scrolling through his phone, ignoring Lila's attempts at guilting. He gets a notification from Marinette.

I can speak for myself  

U can nicely tell them no- I  can tell them to fck off

That wasn't very nice

Im done with nice

Whats wrong?

Marion looks up seeing Marinette looking over him concerned, he sighs and texts back.

Nervous

Dont worry Bruce hasn't told them yet

Its going to be awkward

We’ll get through it- Pound it?

Marion looks back up, Marinette is smiling at him holding out her hand.

“Pound it,”

They pull up to the school, the grandiose of Wayne academy is nothing to sneeze at. Brick buildings, iron work, Marion has to force Marinette to put her sketchbook away. They are escorted around the campus by a student. They’ll be split up and put into a range of different classes to make the best out of their week there.

“3 o’clock,” Marinette bumps into him, Marion lets his gaze slide over, spotting Damian.

“Wasn't Lila saying on the way over here that she was great friends with him?”

“Mari don't,” Marinette hisses, tugging at his sleeve, “It’s weird enough without pulling him in to our grudge match,”

“Nothing bonds siblings more than a mutual hatred of Lila, exhibit A,” He points back and forth between them, “I’m going to do it,”

“Don't you dare-”

“Hey Damian!” Marion shouts, waving his hand for the entire hallway to turn and stare.

Damian turns around with a scowl, hardly lessening when he spots them.

“Marion, just what do you think you’re doing,” Kagami scolds, as Damian stalks over.

“Lila,” Marion smirks back, looking over to the girl who pales at an actual Wayne walking over, apparently she had actually decided to look up what they look like.

“Oh this is going to be good,” Chloe steps back, content to watch the show.

“Hey Dami,” Marion goes to sling an arm around his shoulder.

“Don’t call me Dami,” Damian sidesteps his attempt, preferring to stand closer to Marinette.

“How’s Cat-fred?” Marion smiles, getting Damian’s scowl to lessen slightly, so he smiles brighter.

“He’s doing well,”

“Good good…” Marion shuffles, no longer able to look directly at him, “How’s the family?”

Marinette gives him a sideways look that clearly says ‘you did this to yourself’.

“Why are you asking?” Damian narrows his eyes, and Marion knows he fucked up.

Nette help please!

“I wanted to know when I can come over next for a rematch,” Marinette gracefully lets him off the hook.

“Evidently sparring at the manor is at risk of interruption,” Damian notes, deep in thought, “We should plan an alternative meeting space,”

“That sounds great,” Marinette smiles, catching Damian in between their grins.

Damian just nods and walks away, Marion smiles and waves.

“You’re an idiot,” Marinette punches him in the shoulder, getting him to lower his arm.

“We’ve established that, thanks,” Marion rubs his shoulder with a pout, “However look over there,”

Lila having an aneurysm, surrounded by the class berating her with questions.

“Worth it,” Marion grins, going for a subtle fist bump.

“Agreed,” Marinette returns the gesture.

“Lila why didn’t you say hi?”

“Why didn’t he say hi?”

“He must not have seen me,” Lila’s lip quivers in a practiced motion, “Marinette was standing in front of me,”

“Or were you hiding behind Marinette?” Marion calls over, actually voluntarily walking towards the beast.

“What?! Of course I wasn't!” Lila shouts, her glare sending him a clear warning, one he was fully prepared to ignore.

“Then why didn’t you just move?” Marion asks oh so innocently.

“I didn’t want to be rude,” Lila sounds shy but her face screams murder, as people hang around to eavesdrop on their conversation.

“Then you were doing it to be polite and complaining about Marinette is quite rude,” Marion has to hold back a smirk as he hears an ‘oh snap’ from his audience.

“I- you!-”

“That’s nice Lila,” Marinette interrupts, walking away like the badass she is, “How about we get to class,”

Marion goes to class, having the fortune to be lumped in with Lila. And yes he does mean fortune because while Lila is trying to brag and get the students under her thumb they are happily ignoring her, focusing instead on Marion’s tips for learning French. When Lila switches tactics saying she can speak Italian Marion switches over to fluent Italian, something he had learned from his Nona. He then breaks out his Mandarin, daring Lila to try and fake knowing a language.

Lila goes quite, just kidding you know that's not true. She starts to pull students aside whispering to them. Marion isn't sure if she is intentionally loud enough that he can hear her or if it’s just his enhanced hearing.

“He’s a bully, I know he’s just trying to act nice to get something out of you,” Lila warns a student who looks disgruntled to have basically been pulled into the corner away from the group.

“He’s a Wayne?” Ah so he’s heard the not-so rumour, “What could I possibly have that he doesn't?”

“He’s not a Wayne!” Lila snaps, before regaining her composure, “I actually know the Waynes,”

“... because they’re in your class?”

“No!” She stops her foot, “They made up that rumour! I know because I’m personal friends with all the Waynes,”

“Alright show a picture,” The guy shrugs, stuffing his hands in his pockets, Marion reminds himself to give them the award of ‘you’re smarter than everyone in my class, it's not much but it’s something!’.

“ What? ” Lila seethes, looking ready to tear his eyeballs out to have an excuse not to show him.

“All I’m saying is I’ve seen multiple pictures of them with the Waynes plus, I heard that they actually talked to Damian Wayne this morning!” He actually looks in awe at this fact.

“I would hardly call that a conversation,” Lila crosses her arms, looking to the side like a child.

“No you don't understand!” He employers making a wild hand gesture as if trying to show how amazing it is, “He’s the ice prince, if someone else calls his name or even tried to talk to him he would just ignore them, but he actually walked over and talked to them,”

“He saw me-”

“Look I don’t really care, this argument isn't worth having,” The guy puts up placating hands, the gesture having the exact opposite effect on Lila, “Marion seems cool, Wayne or not, so yeah,”

Marion tries not to smile as one by one Lila is shot down. Her anger rising so high Marion is sure she would have been akumatized three times over by now.

“Hey what's with Lila, she seems to have it out for you?” The first guy to talk to her whispers, turns out his name is James and was very confused when Marion gifted him a small paper trophy.

“Oh she does,” Marion shrugs, filling out the worksheet idly.

“Ok… why?” James presses, the small paper trophy sitting on his desk.

“Hmmm…” Marion leans back, tipping his seat, “It’s a paradox,”

“What is?”

“If I tell you the truth, you’ll probably think I’m lying and her accusations will seem more believable,” Marion reasons, looking up at the ceiling, “If I fake ignorance, you’ll probably just take her word for it, seems like a trap,”

“You’re taking this way too seriously,” James shakes his head, and Marion cracks a grin.

“Sorry, just happy to have some new friends,” His smile lessens, becoming melancholy, “It’s been awhile,”

“What? But you’re so,” James makes another one of his wild hand gestures,  “ Nice ,”

Marion just shrugs, but some people notice how he quickly glances over at Lila talking with someone else. Any further questions are cut off by the bell.

“Well, seems that's our cue to leave, now tell me are American school lunches really as bad as I’m led to believe?”

“You poor little french boy,” James shake his head,  “You have no idea the horrors you will face,”

“This is so much worse than I thought it would be,” Marion looks down at his tray in disgust, “This is a private school?”

“I told you so,” James shrugs, walking through the cafeteria to find a seat.

“Hold up a sec,” Marion says, spotting Damian, not talking but rather trying to ignore someone talking to him, “Dami!”

“Don’t call me Dami,” Damian pushes Marion off him this time, the person who was talking to him looks shocked that his arms aren’t broken.

He puts his tray on the table and grabs Damian's shoulders.

“I have an urgent problem,”

“Cheng-Dupain, from what I know of you that is a massive exaggeration,” Damian brushes him off again and Marion’s scared the other kid is having a heart attack, “Now stop bothering me, it can wait for later,”

“I didn’t take any pictures of Cat-fred!” Marion cries, flopping onto Damian, who doesn't bother pushing him off a third time.

“... Understandable,” Damian snatches Marion’s phone, letting Marion input the code over his shoulder, “This is an oversight on your part,”

“So you’ll send some to me?” Marion grins, using Damian’s head as an armrest as he watches him enter his number.

“Yes,” Damian passes Marion’s phone back and Marion grabs his food.

“Great, see you later!” Marion stands up, ruffling Damian's hair before leaving.

“What was that!?” He hears the other person shout as he walks away.

“What was that?!” James yells, and whoops the entire cafeteria is staring between him and Damian.

“Do you ever learn from your mistakes?” Marinette asks, materialising beside him.

“No?” Marion scoffs, putting his and on his hip, “Why would I?”

“Are you actually siblings?” James still looks in shock but at least he isn’t gaping and gasping for air anymore.

“Yes?” Of course they were siblings, they are twins? Is that not clear?

“God-fucken dammit Mari!” Marinette hisses, “That’s not what they meant!”

“Oh,” Marion says softly, totally not jumping as Damian materialises next to him.

“Cheng-Dupain, it was this absentminded nature that caused this rumour to get out of hand in the first place,”

“Yeah… you are going to have to be way more specific,” Marion looks around the whole cafeteria is still staring at them, trading whispers.

“No we are not related, that is a baseless rumour,” Damian glares at James, making him recoil.

“Right… baseless,” Marion mumbles, getting kicked in the shin by Marinette.

“Adopted then?” James foolishly asks.

“ No ,” and yep now James looks afraid for his life.

“Haha, you know you don’t have to seem so offended by that?” Marion slings his arm around Damian’s shoulder, silently rejoicing that he only gets a withered glare this time.

“Like I said,” Lila’s voice carries over the still quite cafeteria, “The Waynes were telling me how they hate that rumour, the meer idea they are connected to the twins is-”

“ Excuse me ,” Damian slams his hand down on the table, right next to Lila making her jump out of her skin,  “But who are you, and why do you think you know anything about my family and what we think,”

“I just-”

“You presume you’re of enough importance to understand my feelings towards the matter?” Damian stands tall and looks down his nose at her, “You aren’t,”

“Lila,” Alya whispers to her as Damian walks away, “I think you should just let them sort it out, it’s a family matter,”

“Who is that?” Damian demands when he gets back to them, “And how do I destroy her?”

“Don’t worry about it Damian, she's just doing it to get attention,” Marinette explains calmly.

“Lila Rossi,” Marion has other plans, “She’s a Liar, provide proof she doesn't know your family or anyone for that matter and she will be destroyed,”

Damian gives a curt nod and walks away, back to his friend who is still gaping like the rest of the room.

“ Mari ,” Marinette smacks him.

“I merely shared my wisdom,” Marion stroke his invisible beard, “What he chooses to do with it is up to him,”

“Ugh, that was a long day,” Plagg groans, curling up in the middle of his pillow.

“Plagg you slept in my bag the whole time,” Marion flops onto his bed, and it wasn't over they had to go on patrol soon.

“Which is far more disruptive than a bed,” Plagg complains, letting Marion curl up next to him, “Not comfortable at all,”

“Speaking of not being comfortable…” Marinette trails off, sitting on the edge of his bed.

“Our brother insisting we aren’t related?” Marion curls around to look over at her.

“Very strange feeling,” Marinette nods, absentmindedly pulling her feet onto the bed.

“He yelled at Lila,” Marion smiles up at the ceiling.

“Does that make him an honorary Dupain-slash-Cheng?” Marinette smiles over at him.

“Yeah…” Marion’s grin drops, “... Or Dupain/Cheng/Wayne,”

“... You want to tell them?” Marinette asks in her horrible tone that reminds him of being back in Paris and trying to stifle emotions.

“I mean, yeah,” He sits up, crossing his legs, “They’re family right? I want to know them, do you?”

“He seemed upset when they called us siblings,” Marinette turns to face him, the Kwamis watching their little meeting from the outside.

“He seemed more upset with Lila, said he was insulted by it,” Marion reasons, he feels like they’re back in Paris dressed as Ladybug and Chat Noir having three in the morning conversations on rooftops.

“It’s Lila, anything she says can piss someone off,” Marinette sighs, flopping back on the bed, destroying the illusion, “Tikki what do you think?”

“This is a decision you have to make on your own Marinette,” Tikki advises sagely.

“Tiiikkkiiiiii,” Marinette whines like a three year old

“Alright, I never had a family but I have the other Kwamis,” Tikki concedes, explaining to the twins giving her all their attention, “I am separated from Nooro and Dussu, and if family feels like them I do not want you to be separated,”

“What if they get mad?” Marinette asks, fidgeting.

“Then you’ll find a way to work through it,” Tikki smiles at them, “You’re Ladybug and Chat Noir, there isn’t anything you can’t do,”

“Just do it kid!” Plagg shouts, giving up on pretending to nap, “If it turns out bad at least you know!”

“Plagg!”

“What is it Sugar Cube?” Plagg asks sweetly, getting chased out the room moments later.

“So, we doing this?” Marion asks, after all their Kwamis have left.

“I guess so,” Marinette shugs, bringing out her phone, Marion holds her hand for comfort as they wait for the phone to ring.

“Hello?” Bruce picks up on the third ring.

“Hey Bruce,” Marion says, sounding strained even to himself.

“Marinette, Marion,” Bruce answers, pleasantly surprised, “Is everything alright?”

“How do you feel about telling everyone else?” Marion cuts straight to the chase, he can’t be bothered to run.

“... are you sure?” Marion can feel Marinette tension grow at the question, “I want to but they’ll all be surprised, it might ruin your trip,”

“We got sent to the hospital the first week being here,” Marion reasons, he should technically still be on bed rest.

“... That's true,”

“So?” He prompts after a too long pause.

“When do you want to tell them?”

“Tomorrow,” Marinette speaks up for the first time.

Well I guess that's that

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

Taglist:

@technicallyburninggarden @fusser90  @misslenamooney @superbwhispersconnoisseur @biodad-bruce-month @nalu-ismyjam @the-one-woman-army @rosesandsailboats @blackmagicforever @zeneralla @ivymala07 @tired-butterfly @tired-butterfly @Ranger-gothamite @A-star-with-a-human-name @enchanted-nerd

[lizzieehearts]

i know it's late, but here's the discord angst fic myself and @calypsothenerd wrote a while back for daring day. enjoy!

"Daring, you need to look presentable" his father would say

"You are the face of this family Daring, straighten your tie" his mother would say

It was always the same. He was the future face of the charming dynasty, and needed to look like it. He was destined to be apple's prince, after all

But he was sick of this, he was sick of being told to ‘walk upright’ to ‘always smile’ to ‘fix his hair’ why couldn’t he be a normal teenager without worrying about how to look and how to act on every waking minute? He just wanted a normal life, but he knew that shouldn’t happen

He wanted a break. He wanted to be free. He wanted to rebel, though he knew if he did his family would disown him. That was scarier than all this, the fact that if he didn't keep up this charade, his family would leave him. Without this charade, he was worthless, to them at least

So he decided, one thing: he would go for the person that cared the most to try and get himself out of this situation, he just couldn’t take this anymore, so he finally got the courage and knocked on her door, Rosabella came out and immediately frowned because of the sad look on his face

"Daring, what's wrong?" she asked

"Everything" he answered, sliding past her into the empty dorm

She sat down on her bed, tapping the space beside her, telling him to sit. He lay down, his head in her lap

"Show me your demons and ill show you mine" she murmured, nodding at him to begin talking

“It’s my family, I’m supposed to be the perfect child, to be the image of the family, and it sucks, I can’t do normal teenager things, I can’t choose how I want to dress or style my hear, I feel like I’m in cage in a hexing zoo, Bella, I don’t know what to do anymore” he looked up at her, tears almost spilling over the surface

"What about you? What's your deal?" he asked, gulping quickly

"My mom's gone and my dad blames me for it. Treated me like shit because of it. still does. That's why I love it here so much. It's freedom for me, the one place he can't control me" now it was the princess blinking back tears, as she shared her story

“That’s terrible Rosa, I have no idea, but I wish I had your bravery to stand up against my parents”

she couldn't help but scoff.

"When I go home, I'm terrified. Of everything, Everyone. Because all it takes is one mistake and im done for. That isn't bravery, I can assure you that"

"What about when we saved Ever After from the Snow King? What about you sticking by my side when no one else would, after dragon games? What about all that?" Daring could handle negativity directed at himself, but Rosabella? Unacceptable

"All of that we did together, Dare"

At her words, the two of them looked at each other having the same idea

what if we stand up to our parents together?

“Yes Daring, I see you’re finally using that big head of yours for something” she jokes as she playfully nudges him

"But when? When are we both gonna see our parents again, at the same time?" he asked

"Winter break is coming up, you could come over to mine for the holidays?" she offered, implying that she wouldn't be able to go to his

“Sure, I guess, but why can’t you come to mine?”

Rosa took a deep breath

"Before coming to this school, I had never left my castle. Ever. Not even to see family. I hadn't met Briar, and I still haven't met her brothers or parents. The furthest I had gone was midway through the woods behind the castle, that was it. I'd hardly be able to spend the holidays at your's, even with him coming too" she sighed

“But do you think he’d let me go to yours?”

"I'm not sure, but it's more likely"

                       -  -  -

After two weeks, many a night spent yelling down a phone, and nights plagued with terrors refusing to subside, winter break and it was official: Daring, the twins and their parents would be spending the holidays at the Beauty's

- - -

The final day before the winter break Rosabella and Daring were hanging out “You still sure about this?” The beauty princess asks

"As sure as I'll ever be" was her prince's response,"after all, we've come this far"

“Let’s do this” she kisses his cheek and goes back to her room to pack

Once the four of them had gotten packed, Rosabella drove herself and the three Charmings to her childhood home, Beauty Castle, as the siblings' parents wouldn't be there until the day after. It was really something, walls of ivory, turrets wrapped in ivy, flowers at every turn. To the girl who had spent her entire childhood here, however, just the sight of it was enough to get her heart pounding and blood boiling. Daring, sensing her tension, immediately grabbed her hand, as the four of them walked through the gates

Darling, being oblivious of what was happening inside her friend’s mind commented “Wow Rosie, your house is amazing”

"Thanks. Your's probably is too" the princess responded, trying to breathe at a normal rate

"Yeah, but it's nothing compared to this" Dexter said, just as oblivious to the princess' discomfort as his sister, "I don't think I'd want to leave"

Daring, noticing the distress on the princess’s face, decided to change the subject “So, Darls, where did mom say we were going this time?”

"I think she said the dining hall" Darling responded

"Great. Let's go!" Rosabella said, a little too enthusiastically, as she led them through her childhood home

They then proceeded to follow Rosabella to the dining hall, where everything was ready for them

"Dad likes to sit at the head of the table, and to have me in his sight, so I'll sit at the opposite end, Dare, you and Dar can sit opposite each other nearest to me, and Dex you can sit beside Dare" Rosabella immediately said as they entered, knowing that if Daring was to get in a fight with his parents, having them beside him was not a good idea

“Yeah, Bell, you’re right” he then sits beside her, right next to the head of the table

Rosabella gave him a smile as his siblings sat down, but that went away as an inescapable presence entered the room

"Dad"

“Hello Sir” The oldest prince said, trying to be kind, despite already having seen the wounds he put on his daughter’s body

"Get away from my daughter. You sit there" he pointed to the same place at the other end of the table, beside where Rosa said he would be sitting.

Daring begrudgingly obliged, not wanting to cause any trouble, but still wanting to protect his princess.

“Pardon me sir, but I think this sitting arrangement is for the best” the prince said in the most educated way possible.

"Stop trying to be smart with me. Either you move or I make you" the stare given to the prince by the beast could've frozen over the room, as it did Daring, before he squeezed his girlfriend's hand and moved.

"Good" the Beast said, nodding and moving to his seat.

The princess glared at her boyfriend like ‘what was that’

"Rosabella! Stop staring like that" the beast snapped, making the princess jump and quietly apologise.

it was then that there was a knock on the door, one that could only be the Charming parents.

“It’s open!” The beast yelled aggressively, clearly already regretting allowing visitors.

Mr and Mrs Charming entered the dining room, and sat beside the twins without a word, sensing the tension in the room.

Mrs Charming coughed and spoke up “Thank you for inviting us” Her husband nodded along.

"It was my daughter's idea, actually" the beast replied, staring down Rosabella in the process, "so you can thank her"

“Then thank you, young lady” the queen turned to The Beauty.

"y- you're welcome, Mrs. Charming" Rosabella spluttered, right before the cook arrived with their meal. Desperate to get away from conversing with the guests, the beast automatically tucked in, prompting the rest to do the same.

And for the rest of the meal neither Rosabella nor her father said a word, for different reasons, she was anxious about standing up against him and him hating having guests over.

It was Daring that piped up first.

"Mom, Dad, there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about"

Both his parents barely gave him a glance, his dad giving a weary "Yes, son?"

“I can’t take it anymore, I’m losing myself to please both of you, the fancy clothes, the expensive hair products, everything, I never wanted any of this, I just wanted to be a normal teenager”

"Daring, don't be silly. You're a Charming, no Charming is normal" his mother's tone was cold as ice.

"well, maybe- maybe i don't want to be a Charming"

Then his father stood up and slammed the table “Daring Charming, whoever put those ideas in your head is not your friend, now sit down and stop with this madness”

"NO, DAD!" Daring yelled, exasperated, "If that's all being a Charming is I don't want it! And how can you? It's not a life I want to live, being this plastic, stylised version of myself. I wanna be me, Dad"

“If that’s what you think, don’t bother coming back home after this” his father spat back.

“C’mon Dexter, Darling, let’s go home, enough of this stupidity”

"Don't go!" Rosabella quickly blurted out, for a reason only her and her friends knew.

"Don't be silly, Rosabella. they may leave if they wish" her father mumbled.

“No actually, I think I’m staying” Darling protested.

"Thank Grimm. Someone with a brain" Mrs Charming breathed.

"I'm not siding with you" Darling huffed, "We got invited here. It would be rude to leave"

Dexter nodded in agreement.

“If any of you stay, you’ll be removed from the family together with your savage brother”

"That's not fair! You did this to him, and if you can't take responsibility for that you're just going to kick him out? What would the rest of the family say?!" Dexter stood, breaking his silence, "And don't say that they would agree, because all five of us know they wouldn't"

“We are just trying to maintain the Charming family name, if you little savage children don’t understand that then you will no longer be a part of this family”

"At least you want to be a part of your family!" Rosa yelled before she could stop herself.

“And what is that supposed to mean, young lady?!” the beast yelled out.

"You ruined my childhood, left me battered and bruised, kept me stuck here with no escape, made me think that I didn't have relatives though really I did and you just never told me about them, didn't raise me right and left it up to the staff and your own son, barely let me eat or sleep, punished me for even the smallest things and for what? To make me feel guilty for coming out of the womb? What do you want me to do? Put on a brave face and say that I love you? When all you did for the first sixteen years of my life was make it a living hell?" rant over, the princess took a deep breath and awaited her father's response.

“GET OUT OF HERE, ALL SIX OF YOU, NOW” The beast roared out, then left the dinning room, slamming the door.

as the slam reverberated through the room, a deep silence echoed with it.

Daring sitting restless, his parents giving him the cold shoulder, his siblings getting the same, Rosabella across from him on the verge of tears, barely holding herself together.

The Charming went back to his original seat at the sight of her, wrapping her up in his arms.

[kumoriyami-xiuzhen]

Hakuoki Shinkai Hana no Shou Drama CD - What I Believe In

Special thanks to @nollatooru for volunteering as tribute and extracting the text for this drama since there's no way I would written out the text for this anytime soon... or translated this otherwise. this will be only hakuoki drama i translate this month (currently subtitling dramas).

as always, final edits will be done when I get to the video.

Also, i’m sooooo happy right now!!!!

Feeeling supeeeerrrrrrrrrrr excited for the next Dragon Age and Mass Effect games!!!!!! Saw the new teasers from the Game Awards and i still feel over the moon about them! when those games get released, I’m definitely going to be doing nothing aside from playing them... sorry but not sorry? 

lol. i suppose that brings the count of games i’ll put aside all my free time for to four.... tho that would have been 5 (also I would be gaming right now) if I had access to a ps4 right now since Im still waiting to play Cyberpunk 2077. i can’t play that since im lending both the console and my game to my bro right now... and probably won’t get to play it until post-pandemic. ah well.

And I can’t believe Suzuki Shogo is going back to playing Kazama in hakumyu souma-hen! he’s honestly my fave actor from hakumyu!!

anyway, enjoy!

bold text used to indicate something being spoken in the background.

Hakuoki Shinkai Hana no Shou Store Bonus Drama CD: What I believe in

Translation by KumoriYami

Saito: Nn. This is quite good. Such an excellent blade is hardly ever/rarely seen. There are few blades that have been polished to this brightness [reword later. can't figure out how right now]. I'd really like to have/get a closer look at it.

Sakamoto: Oh...? That's a familiar face/a face I recognize/seen before.

Saito: ...! You are.... Sakamoto Ryouma.

Sakamoto: Oh, you remember me!

Saito: People everywhere want your life/There are people after your life everywhere. What are you doing in a place like this?

Sakamoto: well, I'm basically on a walk. Why don't you focus on what you were looking at?

Saito: I was the one who first asked a question.

Sakamoto: Calm down, don't put on such a scary expression/make such a terrible expression. Were you looking at this katana just now?

Saito: Ah, yes.

Sakamoto: Ah! It really is a good katana.... it's understandable why you were fascinated by it.

Saito: Do you know what a katana is/anything about swords?

Sakamoto: Don't look down on me/underestimate me. I was a disciple of Hokushin Ittō-ryū.

Saito: I see. So that's how you're not lacking in this [So that's why you know about the subject/this].

Sakamoto: Well, it doesn't matter.

The future will be for these guys/From now on will the time/age of this guy.

Saito: Guns/A gun.

Sakamoto: Oh. These weapons are the best.

Saito:...Do you mean to say that it's better than a katana/than the sword [check audio later]?

Sakamoto: That's for sure.

No matter how famous the sword, it's like a baby [might change to 'child'] in face of a gun.

So/That's to say that guns are really quite powerful.

Saito: Indeed/It's true that Western guns are outstanding/excellent [check audio for pacing]. Even if that's the case though, that's not to say that swords cannot be compared with guns/ it's not appropriate to assume that a sword is no match for a gun

Sakamoto: Don't get so upset. I also appreciate/value swords, but the era of guns is imminent. That's an indisputable fact.

Saito: No one has ever decided that is fact.

Sakamoto: Eh. It will be difficult for samurai to accept this, but in order to establish a new Japan, guns will be essential. This is guy is my best trusted partner [reword later].

Saito: Is that all you want/have to say?

Sakamoto: That expression looks like you're going to cut someone down [You look you're going to cut someone down/something?]. Nn, in that case, tell me why swords are better than guns.

Saito: Fine. The katana is the soul of a warrior, only by wearing it at the waist---

Sakamoto: Hold it/Wait

Saito: Why are you telling me to stop?

Sakamoto: The spiritual aspects don't matter. Tell me how it's better than a gun

Saito: It doesn't/won't matter what is said/you say.

Sakamoto: Aaah, I also agree with that. But even if I agree, I'll put that aside for now. Right now, I want to ask you to compare the usefulness between swords and guns. 

Saito: Nn. In that case... First of all, swords are better. Regardless of what is said, they can be used in a variety of/many ways. 

Sakamoto: Oh.

Saito: Swords aren't like guns in how they don't rely on bullets to be used. In contrast to how guns can only be used in one way, swords can be used to slash, stab, and so on, [with] different combat techniques that can be adopted to different situations.

Sakamoto: Nn.

Saito: During a fight unexpected things may happen, but even if something unexpected happens, they can be quickly dealt with. 

Sakamoto: Nnnnn. There will be situations where you have no bullets too. But when you're dealing with multiple enemies, don't you think that guns would hold the advantage in wiping them out? 

Saito: uh.

Sakamoto: Furthermore, unlike swords, they can be used to fire from a distance. [check spacing]

Saito: Then don't fight on unfavourable terrain.

Sakamoto: Really, what a stubborn guy. Is there anything else?

Saito: There is how lethal a sword is.

Sakamoto: hey hey [check audio], [you're] saying such a terrible thing so suddenly.

Saito: It's difficult for a bullet to hit a moving enemy. Even if it hits, it is difficult to actually kill or incapacitate them. However, a sword can be used to take another person's life with only a single blow. The importance of this advantage cannot be compared.

Sakamoto: If you're going to say that, then a bullet to the chest, the abdomen or head, will certainly kill. Not only that, there's still a secret I haven't told you yet.

Saito: don't beat around the bush and and tell me.

Sakamoto: hey, you seem interested/looks like you're interested.

Saito: [That's only] Because you're so roundabout.

Sakamoto: Don't worry, I'll tell you. The best thing about this gun, is that it is capable of firing six times. 

Saito: So what about that?

Sakamoto: That firing six times in a row/six rounds/bullets! Don't you think that's great/that'll be hard to deal with?

Saito: That's no different than holding six guns.

Sakamoto: That being said, it's actually impossible to walk around carrying six guns. But this single gun is able to be carried around on one's person. You don't think that's great [check audio for sakamoto earlier sentence]

Nagakura: Saito.... and Sakamoto? Why are you with a guy like this?

Saito: Shinpachi. I met him by chance before leaving.

Nagakura: Incidentally, well, it doesn't look like you're casually talking anyway/just chatting. 

Sakamoto: Oh, you're also in the Shinsengumi. We're actually talking about what weapon is better between swords and guns. What do you think?

Nagakura: So that's it/I see. The Saito is supporting the sword while Sakamoto is in favour of the gun? Although I have a rough idea about what's going on, you're [plural so may change to guys. check audio] too naïve.

Sakamoto: What do you mean by that?

Saito: How are we naïve?

Nagakura: Regardless if you use a sword or a gun, there's something even more important than both of those.

Saito + Sakamoto: What?

Nagakura: Hm.. don't you get it?

Sakamoto: That's to say... 

Nagakura: Exercise to have a body like steel. Look at this remarkable body [check pacing]

Saito: Shinpachi, this the street. [we're on a street outside right now]

Nagakura: This was the fastest way to show you the benefits of exercising.

Sakamoto: Hrm. It's true that your body is pretty amazing, yes, but firing a gun doesn't rely on this sort of thing. 

Saito: Swords too, they shouldn't be randomly waved around with brute force.

Nagakura: Oi, why are you agreeing on such a thing.

Sakamoto: Even if you say that, well....

Nagakura: Hold it/Wait a sec. I also don't think that just having a body and weapon [check audio for "ken" or "juu"] is enough to confront the enemy/I also don't think you could fight against a sword or gun with only a physical body. But, regardless of what you do, it's necessary to train one's body/exercise.

Sakamoto: I see. That's something you'd know/understand.

Nagakura: Of course/That's for sure. Furthermore if studying/practising swordsmanship, you'll also exercise your body, right?

Sakamoto: Indeed, that is exercising a bit.

Saito: Practising swordsmanship can also be considered exercise.

Nagakura: Nn, right. Exercise for the/your body is the foundation of everything

Sakamoto: Hey, has this guy always ben like this? Nagakura: Speaking of which/By the way, training your body/exercising...

Saito: Ah Shinpachi will not stop talking about subject for a while Nagakura: The key is to eat well and getting enough sleep, and all that's left is to believe in your body

Sakamoto: That is troublesome/inconvenient. We're only halfway through our argument. Nagakura: Don't think that's the entire secret to how I train myself.

Saito: It doesn't matter if you continue arguing about it./I don't care if you want to continue arguing this. Nagakura: To tell you the truth, the secret to how I train my body/exercise is....

Sakamoto: No, not today. But even if we don't argue, the imminent age will demand an answer. Then I'll be going [check audio]. I had a good time talking with you.

Saito: a reckless guy as always. [check audio for spacing]

Nagakura: Nn, where's sakamoto/where did sakamoto go?

Saito: he already left/he left earlier/left a while ago.

Nagakura: what? i was going to talk about the highlights next/I was going to talk about the best parts next [ check audio].

Saito: Will the coming era provide an answer? even so, I still believe in this/it.

Nagakura: Nn, did you say something just now?

Saito: It's nothing/No. Shinpachi, let's go.

Nagakura: Oh, alright.

Saito Hajime, Toriumi Kōsuke Nagakura Shinpachi, Tsuboi Tomohiro Sakamoto Ryouma, Ono Daisuke

-----------

image from suruga-ya

For the record, the games I’m waiting for are: Dragon Age 4, the Mass Effect Legendary Edition, Horizon Forbidden West, and whatever new Mass Effect title that is being worked on.

(i think i had to much good news in the last few hours. been smiling like an idiot for three hours now as i subtitle something lol.)

[dysfunctionalnerd]

I was wondering ... how would Randall react to Evil! Layton? or Monocle! Layton(by the way your drawings are amazing!)

ahhh thank u so much!! that means so much to me ;u; oh my GOSH MONACLE LAYTON!!! i havent thought about him organically in too long sksksks

well so ok if i had to make layton evil at any point in time, the way id do it would be after unwound future. it would be about 2 years after he found randall, but in this scenario he never worked up the courage to call randall or go back and visit after he left Monte D'or so abrubtly, which means losing that friendship was already weighing on his heart. so then after UF, losing claire and luke in the span of the same week... its too much for him. Crying in his room one night, he says "so this is it then? am i destined to always lose the people i love? i will simply never love again." and he snaps. he gets cold and distant, doesnt allow the kindness of others to reach him. all he wants now is vengance, and this man has been wronged by soooooo many people.

The only person still living with him is flora at this point. at first she lets things slide. things like seeing hersh withdraw into his study for too long, or drink too late into the night. but then she notices he stays in his room for days at a time, clearly working on something, but he gets so rude when asked about what. shes always met with answers like "its none of your concern" or "dont ask questions you're not prepared to hear the answer to", until one day she really puts her foot down. Demands to know whats going on. Shes so worried. But hershel screams at her to go away. an ugly, terrible yelling nobody deserves. and its so cold she just,, runs away crying. she cant think of anybody to reach out for help. she doesnt know anybody, she was never allowed to go out and make friends.

until she remembers the stories luke told her about the man they saved in Monte D'or, and she remembers how softly hershel would smile the precious few times he mentioned he name randall.

so she pulls up a phone book and looks up a Randall Ascot. Its not hard considering he owns an entire fucking town. shes crying and scared and alone, and when randall picks up the phone, he is of course concerned. hes never met this girl, but nobody should by crying this much, and then his heart breaks when he realizes its hershel who did this. He was always hurt by how hershel never said goodbye, and never called again to rekindle their friendship. at first he doesn't want to come over, but flora begs him.

"please, randall, you have to help. I know i hardly know you but... nobody else can reach him, i just know it".

so he grabs the nearest train. tells flora take take it easy at a bougie hotel for a night while he makes the trip over, pays for everything ofc. the two meet up. randall falls in love with this girl in .5 seconds (yknow in that "ive only met this girl for 10 minutes but if anything were to happen to her id kill everyone in this room and then myself" kind of way). They decide to just go to hershels flat and knock. he doesnt answer. they knock again. nothing. randall gets worried. he breaks down the door, shouts for hershel. Nobodys there. the place is empty. they enter hershels study to make sure, but what they find horrifies them. a GIANT charlie kelly style board with a bunch of pictures of different people, mostly people connected to bill hawks, and red lines connecting them stand before the two, and they both know in their gut its a hit list of some kind.

so they run to parliment or whatever building it is those goverment people all stay in, hoping its not too late, hope maybe their suspicions arent true. Theyre horrified when they reach the front steps and theres no guards or anything. sirens are blaring. they run down the halls. injured soldier's and police are telling them to turn back, its not worth it, this man is unstoppable.

"please dont let it be hershel, please dont let it be hershel."

flora stops when they reach the big door. she looks up at randall, crying. "im sorry... but i cant go in. i dont want to face him like this."

randall hugs her, reassures her. tells her its ok to wait by the entrance, that everything will be ok.

Flora rushes off, and randall takes a deep breath. He opens the door where bill hawks office is supposed to be. Randalls heart sinks. in the big chair is hershel, a sword covered in red, and tied to chains too close to the fire place is a beat up bill hawks.

hershel greets him coldly, like strangers.

"ah hello there. im sorry, but the prime minister cannot assist you today. please come back later."

"hershel, what are you doing??? that sword.... have you??"

"killed someone? no..." he hops off his chair and points his sword to bill hawks, far too close to the neck. "no not yet. but if youd like, you can join me for the first one."

Randall picks up a pipe or something close to him. "i cant let you do this hershel... i know youre better than this."

"ah, but you see, thats the thing." his blade lightly touches bills neck. "i could be, but then... whats the point?" then he scoffs, and pulls his sword away, pointing it towards randall in a battle stance. "never mind, you could never understand."

and he charges. AND THE EPIC SWORD FIGHT BETWEEN HERSHEL AND RANDALL THAT WE WERE ROBBED OF COMENCES! Randall, between parrys, is in total disbelief. "Hershel, stop it! i know how youre feeling, but this isnt the solution! youre tired, and scared, and unbelievably hurt. youre in so much pain... this isn't going to end that pain!"

clink, parry

"you couldnt possibly know what im feeling. ive lost everyone. but its no matter."

for a moment it looks like hershel is about to pin randall down, but he swoops away at the last minute.

"No, please hershel, you cant think like that!! youre not alone!! not anymore!! You didnt give up on the masked gentleman... let me return the favor!"

hershel gasps at this, and hesitates. its enough for randall to knock hershels sword out of his hands, and pin him to the ground. Hershel is afraid, his eyes are wide.

"r-randall, stop it!! leave me alone!"

"no!" randall throws the pipe he fought with aside. "not until you make things right!" he starts crying, his tears spill on hershels shirt. "not until i get my best friend back..."

hershel can't take it anymore. He screams, and starts crying uncontrollably. that ugly crying you reserve for your worst moments, and randall softens his grip on hersh, changes it so hes hugging his friend. And hershel just cries and cries and cries.

"i... i just dont want to live like this anymore..." he sobs.

"hershel.... oh hershel, im so, so sorry."

and they continue to cry. eventually randall asks what happened, how it got to this. hershel explains the events of the last few years. how luke left. how bill hawks sent men to beat him to an inch of his life 8 years ago, so really this is just him returning the favor. they talk it out.

"hershel... you owe flora an apology"

and hershel starts crying even more. "oh no, how could i do this to her?? im a monster..."

"nonsense! shes just worried about you, we all just want you to be ok. give her time, you two will be ok."

so slowly, randall convinces hershel to take his hand and walk out before some real irreverasble damage is done. they dont untie bill tho :) hershel comes face to face with flora at the entrance. starts stuttering some words, but jever gets around to saying anything bc flora hugs hershel so tightly, and cries into his chest. "professor i was so worried..."

"i.... im so sorry...."

and thats it!! the police dont do anything bc i dont believe in them, hawks eventually gets voted out. they all go home and randall decides to stay with hershel until he find a therapist. then decides to stay with him until he starts smiling again, then because i mean whos gonna help out with flora?? and then bc honestly hershel, this place is a mess! and then,,,,, well,,,,,, yknow,, 👀👀

[fandom-trash-xl]

One-Shot: The Small and the Shiny

Timeline Placement: Age 784 (The 28th World Martial Arts Tournament!)

______

"Now, don't get into too much trouble, you two."

Today was the day of the twenty-eighth World Martial Arts Tournament and the two Saiyans, Goku and Vegeta, weren't the only ones who were ecstatic. 

Five-year-old Pan, granddaughter of Goku, was finally ready to participate in her first tournament. Due to her Saiyan genetics, she was a combat prodigy, allowing her to easily hold her own amongst adults. She had even flown around the planet in the span of minutes just that morning.

However, it would be a while before the main event would begin and Pan was dead set on perusing the various activities around the area with her grandpa.

"We won't, dad!" Pan assured her father.

"Hey, don't sweat it, Gohan! She's in good hands." Goku gave a reassuring smile.

"With you, that's debatable." Chi-Chi sighed.

“Ah, come on, Chi-Chi...” The Saiyan looked back at his wife almost pleadingly. “You’re always saying how I should bond with her, and I promise we’ll only buy a few sweets...”

She only sighed, a small smile forming across her lips, still ever amused by her husband after all of the years of worry. “Just go.”    

On that note, Goku and Pan soon took to the heart of the lanes of vendors, looking to find at least something to occupy the time before they were called back for their matches.

"Where do you want to go first, Pan?"

"Ice cream!" Pan cheered, pointing to a nearby stand.

"Great choice! I was thinking that too." Goku entered a running stance. "I'll race you!"

"You're on, grandpa!"

After a brief count of three, the pair began to rush towards the ice cream vendor. However, it didn't take long for Pan to lose her pace.

She saw something. A tail from around a corner, lazily batting about in curlicues.

"Hey, why'd you slow down, Pan?"

"Look over there!"

Pan pointed to the tail around the corner. It was rather small, a dusty rose color and striped. Dangling from it was what appeared to be a small pendant keychain with a circular charm.

"It's a puppy tail, grandpa! There's a puppy over there!"

"Well, I think that's kind of a weird color for a puppy..." Goku tried to explain, but Pan had already bolted.

"PUPPY!" She squealed as she ran towards the tail. 

"Pan, wait!" Goku tried to chase after his granddaughter, but she was already prepared to pounce on the tail. When Goku could finally see around the corner and realize that the tail's owner was in fact not a dog, Pan had already jumped and grabbed on.

"Gotcha!"

The tailed creature appeared to be a bipedal reptilian. The jewel that made up his skull was a brownish maroon shade and resembled a chestnut. The creature's species was familiar to Goku, but he couldn't place it in this rushed instance. He was clearly upset that his tail was grabbed and tears were forming.

The reptilian stumbled back as he freed his tail from Pan's eager grasp, not noticing the pendant dropping from it.  He started to bolt in the other direction, mumbling something panicked and incoherent. He didn't get very far before tripping. He picked himself up and continued to run, this time holding his tail to stop it from dragging on the ground. He finally managed to cry out a word that was understandable: a wailing cry of "Papa!"

"Pan, that wasn't very nice of you to pull on that little lizard boy's tail." Goku looked at his granddaughter with disappointment. 

"But, grandpa, I didn't know!" Pan whined.

Goku sighed. "Well, we should try to find him, so you can apologize." Noticing the fallen keychain, he retrieved it from the ground. “And we should probably return this to him too.” He grabbed Pan's hand and led her through the crowd. "Come on." 

______

Several minutes had passed and the two had no luck with finding the lizard boy. It was rather unusual. How hard was it to find a boy with a tail in a place like this?

Pan was scanning among the legs of passing people to try to spot the boy with no luck. 

Goku turned to look in the direction that Pan was searching while continuing to walk. “You see ‘im yet, Pan?” He inquired.

“No, not yet, grandpa, but...”

“What is it?”

“I think you should be paying more attention to the path!”

“Pan, it’s fine.” Goku assured his granddaughter. “I’ll be fine, I’m not going to bump into anyone!”

Just at that moment, as if jinxed by his words, Goku immediately bumped into someone. He jolted back, almost letting Pan’s hand slip out of his.

“Woah, sorry, sir. Didn’t see you there!” He apologized.

“You’d better be sorry, monkey.” A snarky and sarcastic voice responded.

The sound of the voice resonated with Goku. Only one person he knew had that certain flourish to his voice and that same person was the only one who called him by that name.

Goku’s eyes turned downward to see a familiar reptilian figure with white scales and violet jewels. Unlike the lizard’s usual attire choice, he wore a loose-fitting button-up shirt, dark enough violet to pass for black, and Force-standard spandex shorts, as well as a pair of sunglasses- somewhat feminine in design, likely not something he picked out himself- that his ruby red eyes peeked over, giving the Saiyan his signature glare of condescension. This clothing was probably to help him blend in with the surrounding crowds and avoid suspicion, but Goku felt that his tail was somewhat of a dead giveaway. 

“Frieza?” Goku looked in confusion. “I didn’t expect you to be at the tournament!”

“Well, I didn’t expect myself to be here either.” The Arcosian removed his sunglasses and folded them. “But, Vegeta’s woman insisted since it’s been almost five years since I helped you save the universe, or whatever sappy excuse she used.” He rolled his eyes. “And apparently there are no admission returns, so...”

“Yeah, Bulma’s quite the master of persuasion, isn’t she?”

“I wouldn’t call it persuasion. More like coercion.”

Meanwhile, Pan slowly glanced around her grandfather’s leg to get a better look at the figure before her. Frieza’s tail swished back and forth, almost pattern-like, but the young girl noticed something else. Flicking almost in sync with the white tail was another tail of a familiar dusty rose color. Could it be that lizard boy?

Pan eagerly tugged on the leg of Goku’s gi. “Grandpa, grandpa!”

“What is it, Pan?” Goku asked.

“This guy’s got a tail!”

“Yes, he does, Pan.” The Saiyan explained. “Mr. Frieza’s from space, so he has some body parts that humans don’t have.”

"Oh?" Frieza seemed curious about the small girl. "Who is this? Another one of your hellspawn I presume?"

"Actually, Pan's my granddaughter. She was at that post-tournament party we had, remember? She was just a baby then."

"You do remember I left before all of these festivities, right?" Frieza's eyes narrowed. "I could barely stand being on your team for forty-eight minutes, so I definitely couldn't stomach a full-out party."

“Oh, right!” Goku remembered and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. “Almost forgot you’re not a party person.”

Frieza gave a displeased sigh at the Saiyan’s ignorance. His tail flicked about faster and the second tail behind him seemed to be having difficulty matching the speed. This attracted Pan’s attention yet again, prompting her to give another tug.

"Grandpa, grandpa!"

"I'm afraid you'll have to advise her that this is hardly the time or place for me to explain my entire anatomy..." The Arcosian rolled his eyes.

"Pan, Mr. Frieza's right. Maybe another time-"

Pan interjected. "But, he's got two tails!"

Goku looked shocked. "He has what?!"

Frieza's eyes practically flew open. "I-I can explain, don't get too over-excited now-"

But, Goku had already started rambling. "I didn't know you could grow another tail! Can you grow three tails? Do you think Saiyans can do it too? Can-"

"Silence!" Frieza barked, ending the rant. His own tail stiffened and the second one seemed to fidget, uncertain of how to mirror the other. He sighed. "The second tail isn't mine."

"So, you ripped it off another guy and surgically attached it to yourself?"

The Arcosian was starting to lose patience more rapidly. "No, I mean that there's someone behind me, you imbecile!" He pinned his folded sunglasses to his shirt collar. "Just give me a second." Frieza turned around and bent down. His voice seemed to mellow as he near silently spoke to the small being behind him. “Come on, Kuri. Don’t be scared...”  After a brief hesitation, the pint-sized figure flinched forward into Frieza's embrace, allowing him to scoop up the tailed creature. "There we go..."

When he faced them again, he was holding a smaller lizard being. Their form seemed to be similar to Frieza's first form, but it was missing horns. Their jewel skull resembled a maroon chestnut. They donned Frieza Force-regulated battle gear. The armor seemed to be of a model similar to Vegeta's, as it lacked the shoulder pads present on Frieza's usual armor. A black silk scarf, somewhat large on them, was tied at their collar and draping along their shoulders.

"It seems that some introductions are in order." Frieza finally managed a smile for once. "This is my son, Kuriza. Born two years after my revival." 

Kuriza, clearly bewildered, briefly glanced over to Goku, then to Pan. After his analysis, he quickly averted his gaze and attempted to retreat back behind his father, who quickly stopped him. He must have been rather shy.

"Wow, never thought you had it in you, Frieza!"

Frieza hesitated for a moment. "What are you implying here, Goku...?” His eye twitched angrily. 

“Well, um... It’s just... You’re Frieza and all, and I didn’t really think you were interested in-”

Pan interjected with her own question to spare her grandfather from Frieza’s wrath. “Who’s the mum, then?”

Frieza stammered as a red color spread across his face. He refused to look either of them in the eye. “That is... none of your concern, child...”

Goku laughed a little. “Same stubborn Frieza! But, anyways, it’s nice to meet you, little guy!” He held out his hand for Kuriza to shake or, at least, grab onto. To the Saiyan’s surprise, the young lizard’s already frightened expression seemed to further sour, shortly afterward attempting to snap his small fangs at Goku’s hand.

“Kuri! Manners!” The older Arcosian scolded him through gritted teeth.  

“Woah! What the heck was that for? Did you set this up?”

Frieza seemed shocked as well. “I swear, I didn’t. I know that vengeance has been in the cards for quite some time now, but I’ve never trained him to attack you specifically.” He let out a small chuckle. “I guess it’s only natural for him to attack what he considers a threat. Just my luck that you automatically fit the bill~” 

Emerging from the brief silence, Kuriza suddenly started to mumble something. It was hard to decipher at first, but even Goku was able to deduce what he said. “He’s... with... her.” He seemed to be referring to Pan and was clearing speaking about her with fear in his tone.

“This is because of Pan?” Goku looked surprised before the emotion was quickly overshadowed by fear. Frieza was glaring at him. 

“Alright, monkey,” The Arcosian growled. “I don’t know what your little spawn did that traumatized my son, but you’d better explain... now.” 

Goku started to sweat as he tried to once again hide Pan behind his leg. “I-I honestly... don’t know what happened...”

“Sh-she...” The young lizard stuttered. He eventually gave up on trying to work out the words and grabbed the end of his dusty rose tail. He made a tugging motion lightly enough to not cause himself discomfort. Goku’s eyes widened with realization. Kuriza was the lizard boy from before!

Frieza looked to his son with a gaze of concern. “Kuri, did that girl pull your tail?” Kuriza simply nodded. “She did?” His eyes turned back to Goku and his concerned look turned to an infuriated scowl.

“Um, Frieza, I can explain!”

“What is there to explain here? This little mutt pulled on my son’s tail because she doesn’t know how to keep her paws to herself...”

“She didn’t really pull though, she was only grabbing on for a few seconds-”

“Well, the tail is very sensitive! She could have hurt him!”

“Frieza, I’m honestly very sorry for all of thi-”

Goku’s defense of his granddaughter was cut off by Pan herself stepping up, her voice reduced to whimpering. “I didn’t wanna hurt him! I thought it was a puppy tail because I like to grab puppy tails, I didn’t know. I won’t do it again, don’t hurt me, Mr. Frieza!” She was almost diminished to an emotional puddle faced with the angered emperor. 

Thankfully for the trembling quarter-Saiyan, Frieza’s temper cooled with a sigh. “I guess if you promise never to do it again, I can let it slide. Fortunately for you both, Vegeta’s woman also forced me into a ‘no violence’ agreement, so I, unfortunately, can not destroy you if the mood strikes me.”

Despite the positive news, Goku’s shoulders seemed to slump in disappointment. “Aww... So, does that mean you won’t be fightin’ in the tournament today?”

“Violence clauses or no, I am much too powerful to safely fight the normal Earthling combatants. I could quite literally tear up the competition while holding back.” The Arcosian’s expression turned into a cocky smirk. “Besides, I can’t trust any of your questionable companions to watch my darling Kuri.” At mention of his son, his scarlet eyes darted over to Kuriza, who was further attempting to bury his face by snuggling into his father's embrace, the gesture met by a brief cheek nuzzle.

"Speaking of watching over and such," Goku added with mild confusion. "How come the little guy was out and about without you? I figured you'd be watching him like a hawk with how protective you are."

Frieza sighed. “I try to stop him from wandering off, but he keeps trying to scavenge anyway. The boy has a mind of his own some days.”

“Scavenge?”

“Yes, for coins- and, before you try to give me any money, we’re fine on that front. He simply adores shiny objects like that... I even had to buy him a shiny little trinket in the hopes it would keep him occupied for a spell, but it seemed it didn’t work that well. It’s this little medallion charm from a little vendor back there.” He turned to Kuriza, who finally peeked back out of his reserved hiding. “Show them your little charm, Kuri.”

The smaller lizard looked back to his tail, only to find no such object dangling from it, letting out a small gasp. Frieza’s eyes narrowed. “Where did your charm go, Kuriza?” He was met with a mumbling response that Goku couldn’t make out but Frieza somehow could. “I told you not to put it on your tail, you know that’s how things get lost.”

“What’s the matter?” Goku inquired.

The lizard emperor sighed yet again. “It seems that Kuriza lost his little trinket while he was out scavenging. It must have slipped off his tail while he was up and about, it could be anywhere in this place. Such a shame that-”

"Shiny..." A small sad whimper came from Kuriza. He depressedly tried to slide down out of his father's arm, only for him to be scooped back up.

"Aww... Poor guy... Are you going to go look for it now?" Pan asked from behind Goku's leg.

"I'm afraid that will not be an easy thing to accomplish, little- Gkk!" Frieza was cut off by a sudden pain: a small kick from Kuriza, right in the upper ribs. The little lizard's mood had greatly soured and he was now resorting to kicking to fuel his agenda.

"Goku!" Frieza interjected, still being given small jabs in the ribs from his son's silent tantrum.

"Yes?" Goku perked up. Frieza had no snarky nickname for him, so he knew he was serious.

"By any chance, do you know someplace private I could go for a minute or so?" He spoke through pained grunts. "Preferably one nearby?"

"Wait, why?"

"Well, you know how he likes shiny things? Seeing my Golden Form helps calm him down and I don't want to attract any undue attention. So, if you would-" A single harder kick made Frieza's eyes widen mid-explanation to near the size of saucers. "Please..." He turned Kuriza around in his carrying, getting his legs to face outward and redirecting his frustrated kicks, unfortunately trying to find ways to swing backward.

"Ahh... Gotcha..." The Saiyan nodded understandingly before briefly shooting him a casual finger gun. "I think there should be bathrooms off around the outskirts- Maybe around the konpeito booth?"

"Much appreciated..." Frieza grunted through his teeth as he turned in his tracks off towards the other direction, redirecting his attention and softening his tone towards his son. "It's okay, Kuri... Papa will do the pretty shiny thing for you soon..."

However, before he could get too far, Pan suddenly chipped in, her voice still somewhat stuttering in fear of potentially upsetting the short fused emperor. "Wait... Umm, Mister Frieza?"

One iris darted back to look at the petite partial Saiyan, Frieza's default look appearing like a glare. "Yes? What do you need, little mutt?"

"Well, umm..." She hesitated. "If you tell us what it looks like, we could try to find the little charm for him..." After her initial nerves, she perked up, confidently cocky like her grandpa. "I'm good at finding things!"

The emperor was resistant to accept the offer, especially one from a five year old, but he eventually let out a begrudging sigh. "Very well, but don't get your hopes up about finding it. It's a small circle shaped pendant- Two sides to it. One has a picture of the sun, the other has a crescent of your planet's moon- and it's very shiny as you could presume." He rolled his eyes as he turned back around. "Now, if you don't mind..." He trailed off, grumbling.

Not long after Frieza had only taken a few steps ahead, all while trying to reign in the silently fussing little lizard in his arms, a thought caused Goku's shoulders to lurch up, like a jolt coursed through him to turn on the metaphorical lightbulb. He turned to Pan, fetching something from his belt as he did- the small keychain that had been dropped from earlier. Of course, it appeared a touch less shiny than hoped due to the dirt on it. "Hey... Pan, do you think this might be it?"

"Yeah!" The young quarter-Saiyan piped up. "After all, we did find it when the little guy ran off."

"Well, Mister Frieza's not too far, so do you think you could-"

Goku was barely allowed a chance to finish before his granddaughter yelped out to cross the few feet gap between her and the father-son pair of lizards. "Hey! Mister Frieza! We have it!"

The lizard emperor flinched in his tracks from the volume of her voice, pivoting back around on a dime and returning back to the two Saiyans. "What?! How the hell did you find that so fast?"

Pan briefly flinched as well, sensing hostility in his tone, but quickly recomposing herself. "Well, we think he lost it when I pulled his tail. It was on the ground where he was, so..." She held out the keychain, Frieza's eyes nearly lighting up in relief, only for his expression to remain the same typical disgruntled.

"It's all dirty, monkey..." His glare shot up to Goku, who quickly understood what Frieza meant by it, letting out a brief "oh!" before taking the keychain from Pan, hastily wiping it clean with the edge of his top, then handing it back. "That's better."

Upon seeing its glimmering beauty reflecting the light of the sunshine, the once stubborn little Kuriza's expression seemed to melt into stunned wonder, a matching glitter in his eyes. "Shiny..." He let out an awestruck whisper, his tiny hand now attempting to reach out toward it, only to be limited by the length of his arm and the hold his father, who was smiling for once, kept on him.

"Yes, yes, I see it, my little chestnut." The emperor sighed. He knelt down to a shorter level, closer to Pan's, as he set Kuriza back onto his two feet and quickly snatched the charm from the Saiyan child's hands. "Now, so you don't lose this again..." He untied the knot of the boy's scarf before quickly retying it again, this time making the knot around the looped end of the keychain. "We'll tie it here."

Kuriza almost immediately looked back down to admire it, fumbling with it in his tiny hands and flipping it between sun and moon, continuing to do so even as his father scooped him back up and rose to his feet. The smile remained on the older lizard's face even as he shot a glaring look with his eyes at Pan. "Don't expect any sort of 'thank you', mutt. You were part of the problem, after all."

"Well, she was part of the solution, to be fair."

Frieza simply scoffed. "Water under the bridge, monkey..." He shifted his son in his arms, transferring him to his backside and, no sooner after the small being had securely latched himself into his new position, his eyes progressively lowered, already tired. It was interesting to see how Frieza seemed to mellow around his son- was it parental hormones or did he actually have a sweet side?- yet his characteristic cold nature seemed to remain beneath.

"Now, if you have nothing further to contribute... I'll continue perusing this overly sappy human carnival until the main event starts." As the lizard turned around, precious cargo slumbering on his back, it wasn't long before his route forward was cut short by another voice calling out toward him, this one feminine, but not belonging to Pan.

"Hey! There you are, Frieza!" He looked with a cold glare to find that the approaching voice was tied to the woman who had roped him into this mess herself- Bulma, waving towards the group ahead on the path. Of course, she was not alone, having her clearly disgruntled Saiyan husband dragged along with her, as well as an unfamiliar pint-size presence, her hair distinctly matching Bulma's in color.

"Great... The woman..."

Alerted by this commotion, Kuriza's attempted nap was instantly halted with an alarmed squeak. His panic amplified upon seeing the approaching Briefs family and, not wishing to confront even more people, released his hold on Frieza's back, dropping to the ground and preparing to bolt away in the opposite direction. However, a stark white tail pushed him back. "No running off again!" Having no other escape option, he defensively kept a firm hug-like grip around his father's legs.

While Frieza remained aloofly looking away, Goku was all smiles to see the group approaching, waving towards Vegeta in particular. "Hey, 'Geets!" His greeting was met by the other Saiyan letting out a small grunt and simply addressing him as "Kakarot".

The emperor only rolled his eyes at this overly sappy "buddy-buddy" display, not finding any interest in whatever sort of bonding ritual the two Saiyans had to share, nor any of the human ones Bulma would force onto him. However, before he could make his discreet exit from the situation, the woman's eyes locked with him. "I thought I saw you around. Thankfully nothing in utter chaos." The smile on her lips was hesitant, even though dragging him here was her idea, and Vegeta held her back with a defensive arm, as if he were a zoo exhibit.

"Your lack of faith in me to 'behave', as you put it, is insulting, Bulma." Frieza scoffed, half-humoring her. "Anyway, thank you for the... human disguise you loaned me." He motioned to the collar of the button-up shirt, speaking of it like it was a burden forced upon him. "And, if you don't mind, I was just about to continue my rounds until you appeared." As he turned around, he unpinned the sunglasses from his shirt and covered his glaring red eyes back up with them. "Without further interruption, I must bid you ta-ta, woman~"

The lizard dismissed the group that had formed around him with a flick of a wave, but, when he tried to continue his trail through the grounds, he was halted, as his legs didn't seem to want to move. Looking down to see what was the matter, he noticed that Kuriza was still stubbornly grabbing him by the legs in defensive attachment, his grip keeping the two legs squeezed together. "Gkk! Kuri- please-"

Of course, it didn't take Bulma long to notice. "Aww... Who's that little fella you've got there?" Once the woman drew attention to the little lizard, his father let out a disgruntled sigh, his shades slightly falling and once again revealing a peek of unamused red irises.

"Oh, didn't you guys know?" Goku started answering on Frieza's behalf. "Frieza had a kiddo of his own the whole time!"

"Ah, that explains why you were asking about child admission when I got in touch with you! I just thought you were trying to pass one of your short minions off as one to get a discount or something."

Vegeta added a begrudging "Him procreating? Tch..."

The emperor continued through gritted teeth. "Yes, his name is Kuriza and he doesn't like new people, so could we just move on-"

Before he could finish, Bulma's curiosity had already overtaken her, passing Vegeta's arm barrier to her husband's dismay. She had already made her way uncomfortably close to the lizard, kneeling down to reach the further fearful Kuriza, his grip tightening and his face becoming more obscured. "That's okay. He just hasn't come out of his shell yet." Her voice became a coo. "It's okay, little guy... Miss Bulma won't hurt you!"

"Woman, please back off. He doesn't want your company." Frieza, raising his sunglasses up to his forehead, urged her, not being heard.

"Aww... Poor guy... Don't be scared!" She reached forward, further triggering the boy's fight or flight, and carefully examined the little charm tied to his scarf, flipping the token in her fingertips. "That's a cute little charm you have there, Kuriza~ Did your dad get that for you?"

"You may not want to touch that-"

"I'm not going to take it away from him, I'm just looking at it."

"Bulma!" Frieza, at the end of his rope, finally used her real name. "I really wouldn't. He-!"

He looked back down too late as the human woman let out a panicked yelp. "Oww! He bit me!" Sure enough, little Kuriza's fangs were clamped onto Bulma's finger, the other four fearfully releasing his pendant. The small creature, frightenedly unsure of how to react, was between moods, letting out a soft growl and tearing up at the same time.

"As I was trying to explain..." Frieza grumbled. "He bites when he feels threatened- and you were being quite threatening in his mind." He reached down and planted a reassuring hand on top of his son's head. "It's okay, Kuri~ Let her go now." While the younger lizard hesitated briefly, he acquiesced and allowed Bulma to withdraw her hand, shortly after transferring his hug hold by springing up onto his father's arm.

"Well, that's a lesson for later... Heh..." With a forced smile, Bulma tried to brush off the incident, rubbing at her sore finger. "I guess I'll leave you two to your business! We'll see you later at the main event!"

While both lizards were relieved in their own ways that the Briefs group was leaving, another voice, finally piping up, was not quite enthused. "Aww... But, I wanted to play with the lizard boy!" The tiny source was the small girl by Vegeta's legs, the color of her hair, tied up in a ponytail, a mix of purple and robin's egg strands.

"I know you did, Bulla, honey, but little Kuriza's not quite in the mood to play right now." While Bulma rationally explained the situation, Vegeta was taking the more protective route, trying to prod Bulla away. Perhaps it was fear of her being bitten too, or of her being 'contaminated' by an evil emperor's son.

"Okay..." Bulla disappointedly whimpered. As she was urged ahead on her way by her stubborn Saiyan father, she raised her hand to wave goodbye. "Bye-bye, then!" Her hand waving overenthusiastically at the same time rattled a small bracelet around her wrist, a few gemstone-like beads making it up- hopefully play-pretend plastic, unless they trusted a four-year-old that much. However, no matter what material it was, what mattered was its surfaces caught glimmers of light in their motions-

As well as Kuriza's attention.

The Saiyans, partial and full, and Bulma parted to one direction, while the solitary emperor and his boy went to the other. However, Kuriza, now reclaiming his prior position playing piggyback, couldn't help but look behind him as the others headed off- though the people themselves were of less interest to him than the real treasure. The bracelet continued to jangle around on its little girl owner's wrist, further tempting him with its glittering allure. "Shiny..." He near silently whispered. His movements were quiet and stealthy, taking some time before Frieza even noticed him dropping down from his back.

Bulla, past her initial disappointment of not having a new playmate, was now busily chatting with Pan, walking to the side of her. Her braceleted hand was held behind her back while her father protectively held the other one. The surrounding footsteps that formed the ambience of the tournament ground made her miss the tiny and quickly approaching patters- that was until she felt the wrist behind her being suddenly grabbed.

"Oh!" She turned around to see Kuriza attempting to take a hold on her bracelet and suddenly frozen in his tracks, realizing he had to deal with the person attached. "Hey, it's you! Hi!" The lizard wanted to draw back, but also refused to leave his prize.

Kuriza hesitated. "...Hi...?"

"It's okay. You like my bracelet, don't you?" He nodded daintily in response, just as his father worriedly approached.

"Kuri, what did I tell you about scampering off again?! That shiny thing already has a home..." The young Arcosian's attention was still diverted, continuing to be subjected to Bulla's small talk.

"My mum got me this for my birthday. It's my favorite, but I really like your little shiny thing too!" Surprisingly, Kuriza did not grow defensive of his trinket when she pointed at it, his more important goal being the new object before him. "Oh! I just remembered! You don't know my name. My name's Bulla, nice to meet'cha!"

Since the lizard's hand was already joined to her, Bulla simply grabbed his wrist in exchange to complete the handshake, causing him to slightly flinch. He knew he couldn't run away now- especially since the treasure was in close range.

Stammering, he suddenly spoke up again, his murmur making him harder to understand. "I- 'm... K-Ku-reeza... Nice to... mmm..." He mumbled, failing on the last word and looking up at his father for guidance, who simply sighed.

"Don't hurt yourself... It's an earth thing... Just say 'meet you'."

"Oh... Meet you! Nice to meet you..." He finished, suddenly triumphant but still hushed.

"Very good, Kuriza. Now come along please. This little one has other places to be- as do we." Frieza bent down to his knees to reach the young boy's level again, attempting to gently disconnect his hand from the girl's wrist. Though he was resistant to do so, Kuriza submitted to his father's grab and returned to his embrace.

"Aww, so soon...?" It wasn't the young girl who was whining, but rather her mother. "The little fella was just coming out of his shell. Didn't you see it, Frieza?"

"I did." Frieza glared. "And it was probably only because of her bracelet, so don't read too deep into it." He rose to his feet, Kuriza in tow, preparing to continue turning the other way- a simple task that he would have completed minutes ago but, with more pestering from Bulma, it became increasingly difficult.

"That's because you're not giving it a chance! Why don't you just come with us then? You'll still be able to see the grounds and the little guys can have their time together. Sounds like a win-win!"

The older lizard looked back with skepticism. "I'm not sure if he'd be... comfortable..." His vision then turned to the boy, who was trying to return to burying his face.

"It's okay!" Bulla responded with her mother's chipper and boundless enthusiasm, the arm with her bracelet raising at the same time and jangling the beads. "I'm lots of fun! I'll be his friend!"

Once shy Kuriza almost instantly popped out of his reclusion upon hearing the little beads clatter and, again captivated like a magpie to its shininess, leaned forward to get a closer look, dropping himself out of Frieza's arms in the process. He skittered over to Bulla and latched onto her braceleted wrist yet again like a magnet. "I see someone agrees!" Bulma, noticing the action, smiled.

This further hardened Frieza's glare, the action proving his argument in favor of this being the bracelet's fault and nothing else. Kuriza appeared happy, probably only because he was faced with a new shiny trinket to eye up. As he was about to make his rebuttal, surprisingly, someone else had an objection.

"Bulma, what are you trying to do?!" Vegeta's brow furrowed, trying to tug Bulla back to his side by her other hand. "Why are you setting up my-" He corrected himself. "Our princess with this little... tyrant?!"

"Vegeta, you're being ridiculous." Bulma's look equally soured. "I know he's Frieza's kid, you had some bad blood, but he's three at most." She looked down to where the children were standing, Bulla figuring out that her bracelet was like a laser pointer and moving her arm around to see if Kuriza's eyes followed- sure enough they did and his tail waggled gently. "He's not going to blow her up or anything."

"No, all I'm saying is-" The Saiyan attempted to protest further, only to be silenced by a quick peck to the cheek by Bulma, the love behind it covered by frustration.

"Just trust me, okay...?" She muttered under her breath before readopting her excitement. "Now that that's settled, shall we be on our way?" Bulma shot Frieza another sickeningly sweet smile, the lizard only folding his arms and sighing disgruntled as he followed them- skepticism in ever step.

Young Bulla seemed to be leading Kuriza along by her bracelet, making her own side of the conversation, all rather earthen topics, some of her favorite things and where to find the best snacks in the city, while he, probably not understanding most of it and playing along to remain tied to the shiny thing, let out occasional nods and mumbles of agreement. His father continued to watch the two closely to make sure they didn't get into any mischief, glaring at the girl with an air of distrust whenever she looked back up at him.

Hopefully, he wouldn't have to keep up this act for long. Soon enough, this charade would end with the passing of the tournament and he wouldn't need to set foot on this dirtball again, unless he made plans to claim its Dragon Balls- and that was a note he could relax a bit on.

Unfortunately, for him, what he didn't realize was that unfolding before him was the beginning of a long friendship that would persist for years to come.

So much for that idea...

[brokenxvalentine]

D,

it’s been over 6 years and i still think about you almost every day. sometimes i feel like i could forget you or like i’m over it. and maybe i am over it. but it still hurts. to know i had you and lost you. to not even be friends with you when you were the first person who showed me love other than familial love.

how could you have had such an impact on my life after only knowing each other for less than a month?why does my heart still hurt?

i’ve fallen in love after you. or so i thought. but it was never as pure. it was never as innocent or genuine.

there have been months where i don’t think about you at all. and then it all comes crashing down onto me again as if my heart was just broken yesterday.

i’ll never forget that pain. my first heartbreak. it felt like i was dying.

i had an ache in my chest for months. it felt like a had a gaping hole where my heart once was. there was constant pressure on my lungs like a couldn’t breathe. and there was nothing i could do to heal it.

i wonder if it was the same for you.

i don’t know why this happens to me still. i don’t know why i can’t forget you no matter how hard i work on loving myself and becoming a better person... you’re somehow always on my mind.

maybe it’s because i had something amazing and i lost it because of my immaturity. because i wasn’t ready to let myself be loved. because i was afraid you would see me how i saw myself and then leave me.

what a self-fulfilling prophecy right?

i lost you.

because i was so broken and confused. and the little girl inside me still had wounds that were never treated. that i refused to acknowledge.

we found each other when i wasn’t healed or ready or mature enough to understand the magnitude of what i felt for you and what it meant if i lost you. and before we knew it you were being ripped away from me. even though it wasn’t your choice.

so i sabotaged what was left because i felt like i didn’t deserve you and because i didn’t want you to hurt me first.

i was hurt and i wanted to hurt you for leaving me. even though you couldn’t help it. even though you didn’t want to. even though you were hurting too.

and then i got mad at you for being hurt even though you handled it so well. i blamed you for circumstances neither of us could have controlled. and i’m sorry.

you were so mature beyond your years. while i acted out like a child. like the broken brat that i was. you did not deserve that, D.

i said so many things i regret and that i can never take back.

i remember telling you i cursed God for giving me you and then taking you away from me. i regret those words so much. i’m so sorry i ever said them to you. you didn’t deserve to read those words from me.

i think it is still you seeing me at my worst, for who i really was at that time, that still upsets me. that that is your memory of me.

sometimes i wonder what it would have been like if i didn’t act out. if i didn’t hurt you. if i wasn’t childish. would be still be friends? maybe we would have found each other again?

to lose you completely and not even have you as a friend is my biggest regret.

i know you’re with someone now. and you have been for almsot 2 years. and while it hurts to know you’re happy with someone else, i’m also happy you found someone worth giving your love to. who appreciates you, and treats you well. someone who is good for you and hopefully helps you grow.

you and her will probably get married and settle down and have a family. something i’m probably too broken to ever be able to do.

i wonder if she’s your first real love. i wonder if you found her and realized i wasn’t your first love and that we were just too young and stupid to know what love really was. that your feelings for me weren’t what you thought they were.

i wonder if you forgot all about me. and if i was easy to forget.

it was only a few weeks after all...

why do i still care? why does it still hurt? why, after all these years, do i still think about you like this? why aren’t there more guys like you in the world?

you’re the only person who has ever treated me with love and tenderness that was romantic, genuine, and pure.

you saw through my cold exterior and my firm walls and still wanted to be with me. you saw something in me i didn’t see in myself. and you loved me. or at least you said that you did. you made me want to be a better person. you inspired me.

you know, you were first person that ever made my heart so content? so calm and full, but also gave me butterflies. and not the anxious kind, but the kind that made me feel like i was floating in the clouds. you’re the first and only person who’s first kiss made me feel like electricity was literally flowing through my veins. i rememebr sitting on that bench in the town of vienna and it felt like the entire world slowed down and stopped for a full 10 seconds. i felt your heartbeat and mine. everything else was blurred except for you and me. and it was only a kiss. it felt like our souls knew each other. it was something deeper than i had ever experienced. something i couldn’t explain. before you i had done everything, and nothing had ever made me feel that way. it felt like a fairytale. like the novels i loved to read. you swept me off of my feet with your kindness and compassion. i wasn’t ever worried about how you felt about me. i never had to ask you. you always told me what you felt without hesitation and you treated me with respect. you showed me something that to this day no one has ever been able to show me again. i didn’t have to ask you to treat me right or to buy me flowers. you still to this day the most genuine and kind person i have ever met. no one has ever compared.

since you, i’ve had soul connections again. but not the same. maybe i’m just delusional and what we had wasn’t even that strong. sometimes i don’t know if i made half of this up in my head or if you really felt the same way about me. if you were even ever as devastated and heartbroken as a i was.

i stay up and night wondering if someone will ever show me love like you did. if im even capable of being loved. if you even loved me or if it was just the infatuation of 2 teenagers who had never felt such strong feelings before. sometimes i doubt it was even real. like it was too good to be true.

but it was wasn’t it? too good to be true.

i feel so stupid for crying over puppy love from when i was 17. but i’m maybe i’m just crying over the fact that i’m scared i’ll never feel something so pure and genuine again. like maybe i don’t deserve it. i mean it’s been 6 years.

i came close once. to feeling the same as i did with you. but that ended up being a lie. only to leave me wondering again... will i ever find someone that could even come close to you?

every time something goes wrong i’m my life i cry over you and i don’t know why. i miss you but i also hardly know you. how is that even possible?

sometimes if i’m really sad, i’ll read the letter you wrote me. the goodbye letter where you told me you loved me. and you told me i was perfect. and it makes me cry all over again because you saw the good in me i didn’t see in myself.

i don’t know if i’ll lever stop with the “what if’s”, or if i’ll ever forgive myself.

i wish more than anything that we could even just be friends. i feel like we’d get along. i really do. i think we’d be good friends honestly.

anyways. you will always have a place in my heart, D. forever. even if you don’t know it. i’ll literally never forget you.

love,

S