#i have never played a fighting game seriously but i am intrigued.

[dogencool]

Should I get into Guilty Gear

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Wednesday Fandom :) We got a trailer! Some bits in is for our couple not a ton but I am intrigued what S6 will bring. This episode has me grinning the entire time. Just fluffy cuteness the entire time and I was so here for it. Kid talks and amazing moments. Good one. This ep Is comedy gold.

5x17 The Enemy Within.

That theme I talked about last ep is how we start off. How adorable they are when they find each other at the station. Lucy speed walking to catch up to him. Tim with the biggest smile on his face. Like he didn’t just see her in roll call earlier. *heart clutch* Just happy to see his wifey at work. I love the effect this woman has on him. (Another theme in this ep). I just love S5 Tim in general. Happy and light seeing her come up to him. Making his day with her presence. Damnit I love them so much. Lucy starting off with him not hating her LMAO His smile dropping off asking what she’s done? Haha

Be more married you too my goodness. I do love how quickly they fall into step with each other as they speak. Seriously never had a couple with such good physical chemistry without even touching. The flirting here is amazing. We watch Tim not really be mad and fighting back a smile in the second gif. Once again the effect this woman has on him is incredible. She is beyond adorable with her retort of how he should reply. We all know Tim could never hate her. Angry, exasperated or annoyed. Yes ha But never hate.

We find out Lucy was playing the long game for getting back at Tim for something. Clearly before they were together since it was for a Tim Test few months back. He wants to know which one? She can't remember...It was bad enough to make her do this but not enough to remember which test. Oh Lucy. lol Angered her enough to do this then forget she'd done it ha Tim asks once again 'What did she do?' Lucy lets him know she signed him up to be a mentor... For make a dream.... Tim is exasperated af asking when she planned this? Lucy dreads the answer but tells him today….

Lucy goes on that a 12 year old cancer patient named Jordy is on his way. Tim walks away from her and I LOVE her grabbing his arm. Making him stay put. Tries to put a good spin on it. Saying he would be lifting up a sick kid. What could be more important than that? Tim commends her for her answer. Telling her nice job boxing him in. Except he’s not going to let her get away with this. Did she really expect him to do this solo? LOL Sassy Tim has arrived and is throwing back her own words at her. Lucy doesn't have a leg to stand on. Just concedes and joins him. Fantastic start to a hilarious episode for them.

Jordy arrives and Tim and Lucy couldn’t be cuter. The way they look at each other is precious. Also hello height difference I always welcome you to our screen. The way Lucy is looking at Tim while he talks to Jordy. Like she needed another reason to be in love with him. Getting glimpses into Tim as a dad. That instant ovary explosion. Don’t blame her one bit.

Tim couldn’t be cuter saying he heard he wants to be a cop. Jordy doesn’t seem as enthused as Tim and Lucy. Nonetheless Tim looks super cute saying they’re going to take him to processing. Lucy’s fully bodied shimmy is so adorable I cannot. She is very excited to play parents with Tim.

They’re in processing and Lucy is trying to get Jordy to engage. Tim isn’t short on sarcasm in this episode. I’m dying it’s so funny. Telling him to look miserable LMFAO. Lucy’s face. Chiding her husband a little bit. But also realizing how unhappy this kid is. Love her walking up to him and sharing her worries as well. Tim noting he looks like he hates them. Lol Lucy doesn’t disagree….Saying maybe he hates his picture being taken? Or he’s miserable cause he’s tired from being sick?

Tim says they should just move onto the next thing then. They turn around and Jordy is gone. Had this kid for all of 20 minutes and they lost him already LOL This episode is so great. Had me rolling the entire time. I remember seeing a hilarious post after this premiered. Celina dealing with her sisters murder, Angela/Harper/Grey dealing with Elijah. And Tim and Lucy keep losing the same kid LMAO They are the comedic relief in this one for sure.

Lucy is in a legit panic. It’s so funny. Saying she doesn’t know what she’s going to tell the foundation. Full on sarcasm saying she can’t wait to tell them they lost him. LOL Tim is so calm and chill. Saying they didn’t lose him... he’s just misplaced LMFAO. Oh my lord Timothy I’m crying I’m laughing so much. She is being the worried sick parent and he’s being the calm one.

I love them looking for Jordy whilst also talking about their future kids. Getting me all in my damn feels. Tim being so friggin chill about them finding him. Lucy saying when it’s ’OUR’ kids OUR. They’re so casual about it. I’m losing my damn mind. That when it is their kids he better take it seriously. Tim defending their future kids also making me feel things. Saying ‘Our’ kids would never pull a stunt like this.

Look at Lucy’s face when he makes that remark though. She is beaming watching him talk about their future kids. They’re trying to murder me in this ep and I’m very ok with it. I may need to go lie down but I’m ok haha Lucy gets caught up in the thought of them having kids. And is pulled back to the present with Tim’s sassy departure LOL Saying they’re doing great so far. Sarcasm king in this one and I love it so very much. Lucy's face when he leaves too funny.

They run into Aaron and he has Jordy. Lucy looks so relieved. She asks what they talked about? Aaron says he kept asking him what his childhood pet was. Lucy looking confused as hell asks why? We see this kid stumble and get nervous for first time. Saying it’s for a report…Tim's face smelling BS but he isn't sure why. They’re trying figure what to do next. Tim suggests the war room? He doesn’t seem excited…Lucy mentions K-9 unit. Ask if he likes dogs?

Tim is over this kid. Saying what kid doesn’t like dogs? (I mean he’s not wrong…) Lucy scolding him like only she can. Such a wifey scolding too it’s so funny. Tim makes the kid sit while they figure this out. Lucy says maybe the impound lot? This is where Uncle Tim comes in and I love it so much. Talking about his nephews and what they’re into right now. My heart. He seems very confused on what it actually is they like and it’s hysterical. Pop culture never been his strong suit and I love him for it. I'll be honest idk what ghosts on the toilet is either. LOL

Lucy is enjoying his explaining this stuff. Amused really. You can tell she’s cracking up as he goes on. Picturing him with his nephews and loving that mental image. They're so busy flirty they don’t see Jordy take off on them again. They turn around and he’s gone….They lost the kid again LMAO Back to being worried parents. They ask the most clueless guy in the building if he’s seen Jordy? Ha Of course he hasn’t…Nolan is lucky he knows what's going on in his own SL.

They’re in Sally Port looking for Jordy. Legit looking under shops. Don’t hate the shot of Tim in this scene. Hello booty shot. His phone starts going off and he groans as he comes back up and says it’s a Grey. Lucy voices her irrational fear about Grey knowing they lost him twice. I’m rolling. Why would he know that Lucy? LOL Tim’s face is everything to this comment of hers. Loves his panicked wife and her ridiculousness.

Lucy is legit pacing back and forth while Tim is on the phone. Grey is asking him to run an OP for him. The last thing Tim needs on his plate right now. It is sexy how he coordinates it and says he’ll fold in later. Mmm. Then asks Lucy if she’s enjoying her revenge for his Tim Test? Lucy says she isn’t... Does a cute little love tap on his arm and has him follow. I love it.

They find Jordy at a computer. Tim scares him and asks what the hell he’s doing? I love the in-sync head tilts. They see he is googling how to delete traffic tickets. Lucy goes off on a nerd rant about how those are processed in a different office. She catches herself and looks at Tim. He’s so used to her nerdy ways at this point doesn't phase him in the least.

Just backs what she’s saying. That even if he could do that here it’s a crime to do so. Poor kid folds. Says his dad told him to because they couldn’t afford the fines. Tim asks if he really has cancer? Lucy scolds him once again. I love this. He tells them yes that part is true. Lucy asks if he wants to be a cop? He says no they’re wack. Lmao The way the look at each other I cannot. The kid wanted a football game not this. HA

Tim mentions if he’s googling this no way he’s a a hacker. Asks how he gained access to the computer? Jordy hands him the sticky note. Tim is so damn incensed I’m dying. Lucy asking did Smitty really need a sticky note? He couldn’t just remember this? I love the way Tim snatches the note and takes off. He is so very done with this day and this kid. Smitty's incompetence being the icing on the cake of his day. This episode is comedy gold I love it sfm.

They bring Jordy’s father in. Telling him they could charge Jordy with a crime. That he had illegal access to a police computer. The dad starts to panic and says they can’t do that. He’s just a kid. He has cancer. Lucy says no one wants to charge Jordy. Him on the other hand… Mr. Yates starts to freak out more. Saying it was just couple tickets. Lucy mentions it’s 37....

Holy crap dude that’s a lot of tickets. That him using his son. A minor no less to help out makes it a felony. One that could send him to jail. The dad pleads with them. Saying his medical costs are crushing them. That if he doesn’t pay for the tickets he’ll lose his license and car. Saying he knows he messed up. He can’t go to jail his family needs him.

Then we hit one of my favorite portions of this episode. Their silent communication has always been a glorious wonder. It hits new heights in this scene. Because the minute he looks at his girl he knows what that look means. It’s why he answers with a ‘Lucy really?’ He goes from you can’t be serious. To how am I supposed to say no to that? Lucy doesn’t have to say a damn word.

That’s the beauty of their connection. Says everything she needs to in that puppy dog look. Man is whipped and we all love it. Her empathy shining through and getting to Tim in this moment. I said it couple times in this episode. The effect this woman has on him is immense. It was continuously through out this one. In the best way possible.

That man has zero defense against that look she gives him. Absolutely zero. Can you imagine a little version of Lucy doing this to him? If they end up having a daughter. She’s gonna have this man wrapped around her finger. Just like his wife does. God help him haha All Lucy had to do was give him that glance and he was in shambles. As we all know Tim would do anything for that woman standing next to him.

He came into this conversation ready to put that man in jail. But then the love of his life looks his way and it’s over. I’ll never be over how amazing their silent communication is. We are so lucky to have a couple this amazing without even saying a word. There’s that country song ‘You say it best. When you say nothing at all.’ If that ain’t them. Tim folds and says he’s not sending Mr. Yates to jail. I love how he looks at Lucy before he tells him that. Knowing she is the reason behind him is doing this.

It’s so good. Man is so soft for his girl and this scene is proof of that. Ugh I love it. Melissa’s and Eric crushing it per usual. Tim says he can go to Daddy and me Traffic school. There’s an arcade that Jordy will love it. As if Lucy needed another reason to love this man next to her. Mr. Yates asks how he can make it up to them? ‘Be a better father to your son’. Hot damn you tell him Tim.*fans self* Mmm. Yum. Got to be soft but still little authoritative at the end. I’ll take it.

We rejoin them in the station. Tim done with his OP for Grey. Lucy coming over mentioning his how Daddy and me traffic school sounds fun. Tim replying 'Yeah Jordy will get 5 dollars in tokens too.' Lucy letting him know it was a really nice gesture. I love her coming up to him and letting him know this. Making sure he knows what a wonderful thing he did for them. That it was so sweet. This scene makes me squee for so many reasons.

Tim letting her know he wanted to throw that guy in jail. You could tell when he entered that room he was ready to throw down. It wasn't sitting well with him Yates putting his son in a position like that. Lucy replying ‘But?’ Tim bestowing the best compliment he could on her. Touching on the theme of this episode I think. The fact she’s a good influence on him. I mean it exudes out of him now a days. She already was before they got together. Now it’s increased ten fold the effect Lucy has on him.

Lucy and her view of the world. A thing that used to drive him absolutely bonkers. So much so he tried to show her the underbelly of L.A. to dampen it. That same light and view has now rubbed off on this man. Soaking him in that sunshine she gives off. I can’t with how many feels this is giving me. And he’s telling her as such. He’s known for a long long time what a good influence she is. But he’s telling her in person. With heart eyes galore to boot. Such love and admiration on his face for her. *internally screaming*

Naturally he complimented her so she needs to do one right back. Telling him with just as much adoration and affection might I add. That he’s going to be a great dad someday. We know that’s true. Also we know Lucy is already picturing him as that great father to their kiddos. I just love how causally they talk about their future kids. It’s a thing that’s just an eventuality. The level of comfortability around the topic just shows us where they're at. How serious they both are.

Tim needing to tease her now that they’ve been soft. It’s so damn funny. Look at his pleased smile when he does it. Look at that man in the final gif. Could power a city with that smile. He so loves to tease her. Lucy is exasperated with him but still smiling regardless. She loves this infuriating man in front of her so much.

They couldn’t be happier or more adorable. It blows my mind still we get to have them together. Not only that but this level of ship goodness. Straight flirting, complimenting and teasing. They’re so in love I might pass out from all my feelings haha Such a good ep for them.

~~~

Side notes-non Chenford

I do love Angela getting to be the one to take Elijah out. So fitting. Also that scene with Charlie and Wes holy hell.

Thank you to all you amazing readers. For all the likes, comments and reblogs. We only have 5 left episodes in this season. Unreal. Shall see you all in 5x18 :)

[glittergear]

Un-horny BG2 mods

Ok, so I often hear that BG2 mods are very horny--not denying that, but here are some horny-free BG2 mods that I enjoy. I'm only including Quest and NPC mods here. I'm also only including mods that I have entirely played through myself.

The White Queen, by Lava: a quest mod that allows player to visit brand new place - Silent Swamps - where something happened some time ago. Curious? Let yourself discover what lies under the layers of the mud, meet the White Queen and her servants. Also, the music is bangin'

I Shall Never Forget, by Lava: This Baldur's Gate 2 mod allows you to work with Orion - a mage who has lost the sense of his life. Either help him regain what he lost or let him die without the faintest ray of hope.

Southern Edge, by Lava: Southern Edge is a new district for Athkatla available from the very start, once you talk to Gaelan and hear his offer. You can get a Book of Intelligence as a reward for one of the quests, and there's a scribe who will buy your unneeded quest documents (like The Tome of Amaunator, the Noontime Ritual, the Book of Kaza, etc. It's a nice lore-friendly way to get rid of some items)

Ooze's Lounge, by Lava: The mod introduces a brand new part of Athkatlan sewers. You may now use the originally inactive grate in Slums to enter a locked part of the sewers and discover its dark corners. The mod offers three new areas as well as a couple of mini-quests, new items and graphics.

Yoshimo Romance, by Lava: Mod includes 16 timered talks with Yoshimo (pre-Brynnlaw) plus those fired by circumstances - including talk in Brynnlaw and at entrance of Spellhold. Those who love reading may also install additional portion of text - dialogues for both male and female players fired by in-game events. There's no horniness here; the most you can do is kiss his cheek once, IIRC

Everything else, by Lava: seriously, all of his mods are great, and none of the ones on his site are horny

Trials of the Luremaster, by Argent77: This mod makes the Icewind Dale expansion "Trials of the Luremaster" available to BG2:EE (v2.0 or later), Siege of Dragonspear and EET (Enhanced Edition Trilogy).

✨Adrian✨, by Rhealla: Adrian has lived an interesting life, for lack of a better term, though he's hoping to finally put his past behind him. Aside from his magic, he has a background in espionage and a decadent -- some might say romantic -- streak that has gotten him into trouble in the past. He once pursued (and ultimately wrecked) a political career with one of the most notorious organizations in the Realms, and may very much enjoy the opportunities for intrigue the Shadow Thieves have to offer... if you can drag him away from fighting with the Harper and the Red Wizard long enough to notice, that is. Don't let his alignment scare you off. He's the least evil Evil character in the game, and his alignment can seamlessly shift to LN. He does fine in my good-aligned playthroughs. His romance isn't particularly horny--he offers once, but you can turn him down just fine (and there are multiple ways to tell him no). He's by far my favorite romance and favorite NPC in the game; I am not normal about him at all; and I could probably write an entire essay about his character arc. Please do try him out

Sir Ajantis by jastey: With this modification Ajantis can be acquired as a member of the PC's group after the fight in the Windspear Hills (which was not changed by the mod principally). The player must first solve a quest to free Ajantis from Firkraag's ransom. You have the option to continue his romance from BG1 or start a new romance with him--I've done the new romance route, and I didn't notice any horniness.

[swallowtailed]

palisade 44

it’s so fun to watch the finale get built out. we’re back to the mirage!!!!! we’re in it!!!!!!!!!!!

solid arc to this episode. lots to chew on.

really liked the final beat of righteousness and mourning’s conversation—paraphrasing, but, “you came to me because you knew i’d agree.” “perhaps i did.” “i’ll back it if you give me command.” “done.” “done.” it’s especially good in the context of those same two people later being so reluctant to trust gucci to use clem. something about… being willing to make deals yourself that you think are too risky for others. individuals playing private power games in service of utopia.

keith raised a great point re what the principality even means to the bilats inside the mirage. the thing i’ve been turning over since last week is what this is like for members of the cause who just got slurped into the mirage. like, when you get to see the utopia (“utopia”) you’ve been protecting sight unseen for a year, and now you have the choice between living there for the rest of your life or spending years leaving, what… do you do? how do you value the fight outside? how do you value the chance to stay when you were never supposed to get to see the mirage in the first place? fuck.

hey speaking of mirage folks HOW ABOUT DRE’S NEW PC

levitation “levi” cascabel-gardner. wow i love this kid. i can’t wait for him and cori to meet. (like, has he heard of cori?? does he just know of the devotees as that weird religious cult??)

he is absolutely extremely mirage

there is a certain kind of suspension of disbelief required when a new character is joining the party and it just doesn’t play that well when taken seriously. with that said, clem was always gonna be a tough sell. like, a really tough sell.

i am not really interested in clem coming back in, tbh. we know her problems pretty well by now—doesn’t feel like there’s much more to say. she’s been defeated several times over. beat her to death with hammers already.

what does intrigue me is the blue channel interpersonal drama aspect. the reflexive kesh noble infighting is excellent, as is clem and gucci having weird tension and brnine finding out about the deal and getting upset. also very much looking forward to whatever conflict cori and clem are gonna have.

and also the drama in the way of… sometimes clementine kesh survives and your friends don’t, and you have to deal with that. grief has become really essential to this season.

so we’ll see, i guess! i feel like i say that a lot in these posts. but actual play is such a fluid way to build a narrative. hard to say what’s gonna be interesting in another two episodes.

other things i enjoyed in this episode: mustard red sidebar, brnine and gucci’s texts, levi’s feather covered poncho, jesset immediately vibing with levi, mourning’s comprehensive gossip intel, “a broken clock kills the right person twice a day”

kept hearing “mourning” and thinking “morning’s”. miss that guy

[hypnotisedfireflies]

hi. I’m obsessed with you 💓 you’re incredible. Just dropping in to remind you.

My birthday is on March 4th and I have a Drabble request/prompt/please ramble on about this idea in the lovely way you do with all them bullet points and angst that’s so romantic.

Tess as a Black Widow. Killer of men. Lures them in… murders them *during*.

Can you imagine?! The one guy she can’t bring herself to kill because they ✨see each other✨ AHHHHHHH

love u bye

You are so unhinged and ilu for this.

No seriously, ilu.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY, my dear friend! I hope you have a wonderful birthday and are spoiled rotten by your beautiful loved ones (and avoid bites, haha). 

I am not organized enough to write anything for this but I can freestyle some ideas so – birthday hats on everybody, streamers and cake:  let’s go with some Killer of Men Widowisms.  Um, proceed with caution I guess, but it’s probably pretty tame.

Okay so who is Tess in this scenario and why is she doing it?  A contract killer or out for her own kicks?  I like the sound of the latter to differentiate from anything else I’ve done.

So let’s go full serial killer with this one.  She’s organised, in control of her desires and travels for work, so she never chooses marks in her own backyard.  She aborts more kills than she follows through with because she’s so meticulous that her marks meet very specific criteria and things can’t be traced back to her.

She likes to drug them before they get started as  physical advantage but changes up the method of actual murder to try and eliminate falling into traceable patterns.

Sometimes she goes years between kills and as a result, when she picks Joel up in a bar she’s feeling particularly itchy.  This guy seems kind of nice.  She might ordinarily let this fish go, nice men don’t deserve messy ends.

But as their time together progresses she starts to get another vibe off him, and thinks maybe he’s not quite so nice as she thought.

So just as she’s about to unhook him she decides to go through with it, even though her instincts are undecided about what is actually going on.

They go back to her motel room, she drugs his drink but she’s still not sure, something’s off.  They get it on and he doesn’t really seem to respond to the effects of the drug she gave him, but she’s so intrigued by being unable to figure him out that she doesn’t pay it the attention she should. 

He’s rougher with her than she’d normally tolerate but she likes it – it’s exciting not really knowing if she’s in control or not, she’s always in control, and this uncertainty really thrills her.

They have ~amazing chemistry ofc

She doesn’t try to kill him when she normally would at point of climax.  She tells herself she’ll give it a few hours and maybe try again.

While Joel’s in the bathroom she examines his drink and the bottle of pills in her bag.  Counts them, she definitely gave it to him but … what’s that?  These pills aren’t hers.  These are not her drugs.

Joel opens the door and he’s like, “You think I didn’t see that comin’ a mile away?”

Tess:  “Did you go through my purse?  Those are my motion sickness pills,” blah blah lie lie.

And Joel tosses the pills on the bed.  “Those are cheatin’, sweetheart.  Where’s the fun if you don’t have to fight for it?”

Serial Killer Tess, meet Serial Killer Joel.

For his part, Joel was preying on her in turn and cottoned on when he caught her spiking his drink, which he then dealt with with some slick sleight of hand and swapped the rest of the pills while she was distracted on a phone call or something (idk)

Joel considered playing along and pretending to be drugged - he thought she was just going to rob him and liked the idea of turning the tables on her at some critical moment (surprise!serial killer, baby!)

But as it went on he realised she had no interest in robbing him, and he started recognising himself in her, and realised what was ACTUALLY her game

And yeah he liked that

Quite a lot

Very much actually thanks

So he let it all evolve but while she was courting the idea of killing him, as was he with her

So when he announced himself she finally got it and she was like, "Who the fuck are you?"

And he's all, "who the fuck are YOU?"

Sick professional meet and greet, each very impressed they've never even heard of each other

But they're successful because nobody knows their secret ... so only one person can leave in the morning, right?

... right?

ILU HAPPY BIRTHDAY. <3

[captainsspnanon]

C3E58 - reaction

I am very entertained that they are fighting a creature with many mouths who causes psychic damage from the sounds, considering I'm in the gibbering mouther section of my C2 rewatch and about to get to the laughing hand, so it's all just fucked up mouths for me XD

LOL the fact that FCG has started consistently fucking with who doesn't get bonded and it's an issue each time. I love it! Though I'm worried about their stress points, I'm also kinda looking forwards to a little blow up.

I saw a few spoilers about the episode before I watched so I WASN'T terrified when Fearne went down and got swallowed, but holy fuck if I hadn't known she lived for a threesome, that would have been so stressful!

I'm so glad we got to see at least a tiny glimpse of the wolf-king! I want Matt to post a picture of it on twitter please! Please please just for me!

Huzzah for bag of holding! Great with the notes and harness and rod for plot development, good for funds for refilling some pockets, especially because ...well, I don't even know what the funds status is of this group. VM was rich AF, M9 was poor AF, I have no clue where BH falls. Especially because a lot of it is based on RP (I think M9 probably had as much as BH, but rped as much poorer - nope I lied, counting today's haul, BH has like double the amount that M9 had by the same episode)

Wish we could have gotten more from the FRIDA moment, interesting that Matt has Christian be much more active in the rolls and directions, whereas with Ashton and Fearne's dad (not Birdie, I can't remember his name) they were much more passive while Imogen and FCG/Laura and Sam really took the lead. Confirmation of Aeor though! Sounds like they got smited by the gods though I don't think we had any idea previously that some Aeorians were against using the malleus factorum. Not surprising once I think about it for like, two seconds, but never considered it before.

THREESOME!!!!! Oh I SO hope that Fearne holds to her early game comment and does 'work her way through all of them'. PLS PLS PLS. Anyhow, a touching and mostly hilarious moment, I loved every second of it. I'm also pleased that the first kiss and first sex scenes were from PCs that it seemed like the fans went out of their way to desexualize, I love it.

All the gifts! Hoodies were adorable, and then two wooden gifts from Chet! With how frequently the table gave each other game related gifts out of game previously, I do enjoy how much it's a lot of in-game gifts now.

Oh fuck those scenes with the Changebringer and Dawnfather were INTENSE. HOLY SHIT. I am very hyped, for the gods to just force visions and make demands (at varying levels of demandingness)!!! I wonder how many non-PCs are also receiving these visions? Did Caduceus get one? Fjord? Pike and Vex and Scanlan? Random other clerics and paladins of the world?

Seriously, I am so hype. C3 took me a bit to settle it, but it is a very easy second place for me out of the three campaigns! Still won't beat C2 for me, but I'm pretty sure that's because 1) it was my first campaign and 2) it's when I really hit hyperfocus on CR and could watch two and a half to three episodes a day. ...yeah, I binged HARD on C2. Started late January 21 and finished in time to watch the finale live.

I'm also intrigued to see how all this is going to go. They physically CAN'T have Aabria and Christian playing once everyone is back together, there's just no room at the table. What is going to be the thing that splits them up? I wonder if it'll end up coming down to an NPC having to be 'group regulars go to this location, group guests go to this location' to have a natural and realistic separation.

[aeterna-auroral-avenger]

Okay, so I'm very new to this blog and don't know your story about Ant-Man. AKA, how did you "find him" (ex: by following MCU movies or randomly hearing the movie from somewhere else)? What made you like him so much? Why is he important to you? Do you relate in many ways? Tell me everything. (That sounds so pushy lmao but I really am curious!)

😂 You’re fine, Anon. You’re fine I promise. First of all, welcome to my mess of a blog! Glad you’re here. I think you’re actually the first person in a long time if not ever to ask me these questions, but I’m very happy to share.

So I’ve been a big fan of Marvel ever since the first Iron Man came out. Once I watched that one, well I was hooked. Little did I know just how vast the MCU would become and how deeply involved I would be over time.

But honestly, Ant-Man slipped under my radar until I went to watch Civil War in theaters. Scott Lang made his debut into my life, and I was like *points at screen* “That’s Paul Rudd since when was he in the MCU?” I mean, I’m a fan of his, but not enough to follow everything he’s in. I watched the fight scene and watched what Scott could do. And I was intrigued.

But what really got me if I’m being honest was this.

Like this is legit how I would react too. I’d be nervous and excited and I’d get my words mixed up which happens often and I’d just be so star struck and like “Wow this is awesome!” That was so relatable that I was like “I wanna know who this guy is.”

As soon as I got home, I rented Ant-Man on my laptop, and it was hook line and sinker. I didn’t have a chance.

Scott is more like the Everyman. He’s just a regular guy trying to do what’s right, and he makes mistakes and tries to fix them and this whole superhero gig just kinda fell into his lap. He’s intelligent and kind and funny and loyal and protective over his family, especially his daughter. He doesn’t take himself seriously, but he’s such a good asset to any group and often overlooked. Much like how I overlooked him until Civil War. But I’ve looked for him ever since.

And honestly, I just see a lot of me in him. I’ve had Marvel fans I’m friends with confirm it lol. We played a game once of who are you in the MCU where the closest match in personality wins. I said I was Scott Lang, and I won the game. I have other favorites, sure, but, you know, no one else just resonates with me more. In this fandom or in any other I’m in. It’s hard to explain, but I’ve never fit more with a character before, and it’s really nice for me to have Scott.

So there’s the story. I don’t know if that’s what you were looking for or hoping for, but yeah, there it is. In my head, Scott and I are like 🤞🏻 and thick as thieves, I mean burglars lol.

[the-real-bruce-banner]

The group was preparing to embark on a dangerous journey in the next couple of hours. Everybody was collecting and packing the supplies they would need for the next day. It had been hectic earlier, but it was night now and the nerves and jitters of hanging with unfamiliar strangers was retreating.

Dieter had a Hawaiian bread roll halfway in his mouth, engaged with the schematics of the plan. He had been staring at the blue sheet so long it was starting to make his head throb, his brain fighting an unseen cage match. Dieter scratched his head and swayed a little. As he munched on his roll, he swore he could feel eyes watching him so he did a quick sweep around the room.

Scott and Maria were at one of the tables, eating some sandwiches together and laughing about something. He noticed how happy they always seemed together, they always made him feel welcomed. Then there were Mikey and Chambers, they were playing cards together while Marianne smoked on something, watching silently behind them.

Then there was Vanderohe who was sitting by himself, shut away from the rest of the group. He had his headphones over his ears and his head against the back of the wall, eyes closed. He looked so peaceful, but he was the only one facing Dieter, which means he had to be the one he had felt watching. That or he was just losing his sense of perception.

Dieter made his way over to the man sitting on a lonesome bench, in his own little world. Something always drew Dieter to the man and he didn’t know what it was, but it was a strong feeling. Dieter knew he didn’t have many friends and he didn’t always know how to have conversations with other people but with Van, it’s like they were picking up where they left off.

“What are you listening to?”

Dieter tilted his head slightly in concentration and when he realized he could not be heard, he gently tapped Vanderohe on the shoulder. Vander pulled one of his headphones off his ear and clicked his phone, glaring daggers up at the man.

“What,” Vanderohe huffed. Dieter pushed past the glares and smiled.

“I asked what you were listening to.” The pair locked eyes for a moment and Vander could tell this wasn’t a fight he was going to win.

“What do you think I’m listening to,” Vanderohe asked, his straight face not budging.

“Probably...,” Dieter hummed, pondering seriously.

This was obviously a set-up question, meant to uncover the one truth Vander saw coming. Someone who was black and had his body built like his could only “stereotypically” listen to one thing. He knew how the world perceived him and Dieter wasn’t going to be any different, but the blue-eyed man was so intrigued by this new game he didn’t even notice the trap.

“Adele,” Dieter remarked. Vanderohe stared and Dieter clenched his teeth, waiting for his response, like he was expecting a prize to fall out of the air.

Vanderohe smiled and then started chuckling to himself. “Adele?”

“Yeah, Adele...do you not listen to Adele,” Dieter stared questioningly.

“Of course I listen to Adele! Who in their right mind doesn’t? I just assumed-,” Vanderohe started but stopped himself before he could finish.

“Assumed what?”

Vander thought maybe he should left it go but Dieter looked genuinely confused. “I assumed you would say rap or hip hop. I’m sure that’s what most people think I’m listening to when they watch me.”

“Do you not like rap music,” Dieter questioned, sitting down next to him.

“No, I do. It’s just I know people look at me. I know they see someone scary and unapproachable.”

“I don’t think you’re either one of those things,” Dieter added trying to be optimistic.

“Trust me, I noticed,” Vanderohe muttered. The two paused in silence before Dieter cleared his throat.

“So did I win?” Dieter grinned.

“Win what?”

“The song game we were just playing. Is that what you’re listening to?” Dieter leaned a little closer, a wide grin on his face.

“First of all, that wasn’t a game and second, no that’s not what I’m listening to.”

“So what are you listening-,” Dieter got cut off by Vanderohe taking his headphones from around his neck and gently put them over his ears.

“Now before I turn the music on, I want you to listen. Like really listen, ok?” Dieter nodded and put his hands over the headphones, nodding a little so that Vander could understand how serious he was about this.

Vanderohe hit play and Dieter instantly locked eyes with him, holding his gaze. Dieter stood for a moment trying to hear everything and then he felt it, the rhythm. He closed his eyes and started to nod his head along, a small smile on his face. “I think I feel it.” Van stood up as well and watched the man reach his plane of existence.

They stood together for a minute just enjoying the moment. Vanderohe pulled the headphones off of Dieter and pulled him out his trance. “What was that,” Dieter inquired.

“That my friend, is soul music. You can feel it, in here,” Van said placing his hand on Dieter’s heart. Dieter looked down at the man’s hand and Vander pulled away quickly.

“I know soul, Stevie Wonder! Aretha Franklin! I like them,” Dieter proclaimed, then he started to belt, “R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me!” Vander stared at him with a straight face before giving a small grin.

“Yeah, just like that.” Vander put the headphones back around his neck. “So did you like the song I played? Easy by the Commodores? It’s actually one of my favorite songs.”

“I actually quite like it now too, even though it’s very graphic song,” Dieter grinned and that made Vander grin for a second before realizing everything he said.

“How is it graphic? It’s about leaving someone you love.”

“The song you played me was about other things,” Dieter side eyed, eye brows raised. He was trying his best to conceal a blush. “You know...like sex. It specifically said ‘Let’s get it on’. Unless, I am mistaken in some manner.”

Vanderohe looked at his phone and looked at the title. “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye was headlining his screen. “I played the wrong song!” He started to tap his gadget, scrolling through his playlist. “I must’ve hit shuffle, by mistake.”

Vander tried his best to contain his slight embarrassment. “Out of the songs in the world, why that one,” he thought to himself.

“It is okay, it is a great song. I am sure this ‘Easy’ song you speak of is amazing as well. Maybe sometime later we can try to find it again, I’d love to hear it.” Dieter gave his classic smile and Vander felt the tension leave his body.

“Yeah okay.” Vander soothed. Van sat back down and Dieter gently sat beside him. The two sat together for a bit, the silence being slightly comforting. Vander felt eyes on him and he looked over, he had caught Dieter staring before turning towards another direction.

“I noticed you have you’re own headphones too, what do you listen to,” Vander chimed, which made Dieter turn to him with a big smile.

“I’m actually quite a fan of Micheal Jackson and Selena Gomez.”

“That’s a range,” Vanderohe added.

“Not really if you think about it, he is the king of pop right? And she is a pop star, so they fall under the same genre. I’m also a fan of the song ‘Hey, Soul Sister’. You know that one?”

“Hey, soul sister ain’t that mr. Mister on radio, stereo. The way you move ain’t fair you know,” Dieter sang.

“Hey, soul sister, I don’t wanna miss a single thing you do,” Vanderohe muttered.

“Tonight,” they said together. Dieter laughed and hit his knee in excitement.

“Yeah,” Dieter exclaimed. Vander smirked for a second before turning back the other direction.

“You should probably get some sleep, we have a busy schedule tomorrow. And by ‘busy’ I mean life or death.” Vander put his head back up against the wall, eyes closed again.

Dieter understood the hint and cleared his throat, standing back up. “Oh yeah, of course. I should probably head back over to the schematics, give another once over. You can never be too prepared with a Götterdämmerung.” Dieter strolled away, trying his best to act normal.

Vanderohe turned his head and admired the man as he sauntered away. He couldn’t help but watch the man struggle to keep his excitement to a minimum about the vault. Van looked down at his phone and scrolled through the playlist and found “Rock with me” by Micheal Jackson. He turned the volume up and put his head against the wall, closing his eyes.

Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

[rev3rb]

Hi!! It’s me again asking about the new chapter. Literally every other page had me like 😳 from either the gayness or just the plot points like wtf. I complained last time about being confused from lack of info and now I’m confused from too much info but very excited to see where this goes lmaoo

I think the illusion part was a fun lil twist. Sometimes it can be annoying when a high stakes situation turns out to be fake all along, but the way it was done sorta short kept things interesting and added to Rigr’s sly behavior. Also just Rigr bantering with Urd by being oddly sweet and saying how he was planning to come back and work together was such an intriguing 180 flip. Urd already considering the offer & being on the same page with the hostages was kinda gold. I feel like he’s already sorta accepting his fate, I’d honestly be surprised if he doesn’t decide to team up with Rigr next chp.

And then on top of all ~that~ the stuff about all versions of Yu being made for Mika?! We get it, they’ve been destined to each other for thousands of years, they’re soulmates, it’s gay 🙄 I haven’t been super onboard with Mika becoming Yu’s demon bc I want him to stay himself & have a role on his own, but now I’m more excited for how that works/messes with the First’s plan.

Oh, and I enjoyed seeing Byakkomaru + Raimeiki despite being worried for Shinya + Kureto. I feel like all the demons/progenitors relationships to the First get more complicated each chapter and I would really like a better breakdown on where loyalties lie at this point lol

Hello once again anon! I was wondering if you'd crop up!

Ho boy. This chapter. A lot happened. I can see why you're confused. While this chapter did give us quite a bit of information, we can still only speculate as to how everything fits together. There's really no right or wrong right now. I have a feeling that starting next chapter, we'll finally be able to start fitting things together. If not then we'll at least be getting back into some action I imagine. It'll be nice after the last handful of chapters.

In that same vein, I agree with what you said about the illusion. It was fun to get some action even if it did end up being fake, but not only did this serve as some fun, it developed Ky Luc and Lest Karr as well as what you said about Rigr. While we've seen Ky Luc fight before, we didn't really see him with his back against the wall. As Guren and Shinya put it:

(They tied as Guren said shortly before this but this is funnier)

It was nice to see how Ky Luc fights in a tough situation. It speaks to his character quite a bit. On top of that, there's Rigr's comment about Ky Luc being strong enough to kill a 3rd Progenitor. I'm sure that will be relevant later, possibly even explained, but likely not for a while. Not only that, but, and correct me if I'm wrong, we haven't seen Lest Karr fight before. This was a cool insight into what his battle presence is like. I imagine that both of these things will come into play sometime later. Plus! It's like Rigr said:

At the very least it tells us Ky and Lest will side with whoever Urd does.

I ish made a post addressing Urd and Rigr, but god, yeah. These bitches gay, Rigr especially. Good for them. It makes me think that Rigr always intended to return to Urd's side (in a gay way or not). After all, as he said, this is all according to plan apparently.

It's interesting to think about, but I think Urd is as much a pawn in this game as the likes of Guren. He has his own view/side to things, but he's going to get swept up in other people's messes/plans whether he wants to or not. Given his history with Rigr and it being unlikely (at the moment) that Rigr will betray him again, I imagine Urd and Rigr will be on the same side going forward? Allegiances change like the weather though so who knows. This is just the feeling I get at this point in time, and you alluded to it too.

I'm left a little unsure about how to feel about the whole Yu and Mika situation. None of what was shown really comes as a surprise. The eye being a doorway to the past was something I didn't expect, neither was The First being able to affect that vision, but pretty much everything else was. We'd already been basically told that Yus were somehow grown/created, so now we just finally get to see what the exact method is. Can't say I understand how that works, but there you go. It wasn't much of an explanation, but it's something I guess.

Mika becoming Yu's demon/weapon also doesn't come as a large surprise. Ever since he "died" back in chapter 90 (91?), this is pretty much what I expected. I'm not even that surprised that it was something that Mika ultimately chose. It's not quite something I would have speculated back when Mika first died, but after we started getting chapters that showed off demon Mika, it was something I suspected might happen. And maybe it's just me, but I don't think Mika will become any less important now that he's Yu's weapon. I wouldn't be surprised if he took a role similar to Mahiru going forward. Mahiru is one of Guren's demons, but she's still her own character and can sorta do her own thing. I don't see why Mika couldn't be the same, even if their situations are a bit different.

SHINYA!!! I, like many others, have been waiting for this moment. Never would have guessed that he ended up getting captured, but what surprises me more is that Kureto was also captured. Last we saw he was directing troops. It seemed like things were going well for him. I wonder what happened that resulted in both of them getting captured. Is the rest of Guren squad okay? Who's running the Imperial Demon army now? I hope it's not Seishiro. Hey, maybe that's what happened to Narumi. He's running the army now :) In all seriousness though, if Guren squad is okay, I could actually see them running the army, but again I digress.

I made a post talking about what I think will happen to Shinya and Kureto (and by extension, Byakkomaru and Reimeiki) here. While I too am worried about them, I think that they'll be okay. If Rigr or Urd wanted to kill them, they probably would have done it by now. That's not to say that they couldn't be harmed though. I'm just hopeful that being hostages means that they'll stay alive.

Maybe it's a weird thing to say, but because of Guren's attachment to Shinya, I'd actually say that it's likely that Shinya has some thick plot armor in this instance. I'm confident that Shinya will remain alive at least until Guren is around him again. As for Kureto... well. I don't think there's as much plot armor for him. Again I think he'll be okay? He's the representative of normal humanity in all this and there's no good replacement for him (there's lit no other character that cares about humanity as a whole), so I think he'll stay alive for at least a little while longer.

And that pretty much sums up my thoughts! Sorry this got long, but as I said at the start, a lot happened. There was a lot to analyze and process. Thanks again for the ask! I hope you enjoyed hearing my thoughts.

[caguaydreams]

A thorough analysis on why Vah Medoh’s dungeon theme makes me want to cry

Yep, that’s an accurate title. Hi there! do you have a moment to hear about Breath of The Wild soundtrack? posting for yet a third time in hopes that tumblr won't hide it. I'm so tired

What started as a quick and harmless post, pretending to simply point out a couple of things, rolled downhill, out of my grasp and turned into a massive snowball of a short essay. How and why did this happen? Well, I assume a lot of people know about this song, and know what I’m talking about when I say that it makes me tear up and sob uncontrollably with every change in key as the seconds tick by and I spiral down into a dwell of misery from where I struggle to find the exit and to later recover.

……No?…..At the VERY LEAST it makes you a little uncomfortable. And I state this with much certainty, because after reading hundreds of comments everywhere online where this song is present, I picked up on a vast majority of people who expressed to feel the same way I did when it came down to our current music subject. See, statistics don’t lie… normally. So, naturally, my intrigue got the best of me. I wanted to find out exactly why this soundtrack was mercilessly stirring up everyone’s emotions, so I caved in and we ended up with this.

Buckle in, fellas.

Out of all Divine Beasts’ dungeon themes, Vah Medoh’s is the one that I can’t sit through. Not without growing antsy and wanting to turn it off as soon as possible. I find it genuinely difficult to listen to, and it’s not only because Revali is my favorite character and the song is just, plainly put, depressing, mind you.

We’ll start from 0 terminals activated.

It opens up similar to the other three dungeon themes; the pace is slow but eerie, gives off the impression that it sounds broken somehow. Something is off here, and it’s easy to figure out what that is from the get go: you’re basically entering a majestic, ancient, mechanical mausoleum, where everything went terribly wrong a century ago. Someone is gone, someone you knew, someone who was probably close to you, but it’s impossible to be sure. You don’t remember a thing, and this entire ordeal is confusing at best, and terrifying at worst. It’s your duty to make things right again.

It’s the same for all four Divine Beasts upon entering, save for the obvious little differences that separates them from each other and make them unique. Ruta’s is played on a major key, adhering to a sense of hopefulness. Naboris’s begins with a startling smashing of the piano keys, much like thunder of a sudden lighting strike. And Rudania’s theme starts threatening, dangerous, like scalding lava.

But now, back to Vah Medoh. The tone here is… alienating. The dissonant chords are all over the place, and feel disconnected, cold. It’s almost as if someone doesn’t want us to be here, or just like the elusive key, our presence is unexpected. Fitting, for a Divine Beast that’s high above the land, impossible for most to reach, yet we somehow made it. Apart from the piano, we have the occasional hint to rito culture, in the shape of a short, synthetic version of the rolled chords at the very beginning of Rito Village. A quiet reminder of where we come from. There is also, of course, the morse code distress signal, but we’ll talk more about that later.

As soon as this formal introduction is over, we finally get to the more, say, intimate stuff. Oh, and wouldn’t you know, it’s just tragic.

One terminal activated.

There’s no better short way I can describe this passage, other than anxiety-inducing. Especially when the strings come into play, and there’s two reasons I can think of why I feel this is an important thing to point out:

1- Characters and Symbolism.

I tend to associate stringed instruments, all of those which compose the violin family, with rito culture. And Revali, most specifically. In Creating a Champion we can see the early concept art and designs for all or most major characters in the game, and Revali’s highlighted rough design might be the one that changed the most throughout proper development of the character, out of all champions. He looks quite different from our usual depiction of him, it’s fascinating. What truly catches my eye, however, is the design of his bow.

You thought bird puns were bad? Oh boy, how do you feel about Revali having a bow that looks like a violin/cello/viola??? And do you need a bow to play it also??? Like, is it even an instrument or it’s nothing more than a mere fashion statement?-

Anyway. I believe this was originally going to be a not-so-subtle wink to rito culture, being heavily musically inclined as we can see and conclude for ourselves. Perhaps Revali was going to be a musician as well, now how cool it that!

Needless to say, the idea was eventually scrapped. But one detail I am CERTAIN carried over to the character we know and love today(okay not all of us love him but seriously if you dislike him why are you still here lol): strings. The association between bows(weapon) and stringed instruments, aside from being a quite clever and creative one, goes beyond the concept art and remains strong as part of Revali’s character, settling for having a presence via score. After all, Revali is a master of archery, so in that way it makes sense to keep strings as symbolism to reinforce the idea and drive it home.

But can you guess what other thing Revali excels at? That’s right: flying. He’s the only rito we know of who successfully managed to take advantage of wind currents and bend them to his will. And do you know what musical instruments are often used to evoke the feeling of flight and gale? If you thought of bowed strings, you’re correct! Unfortunately, I couldn’t find much support on this topic online, so you’ll have to take my word for it. I am most certain that this is fact, although not something worth discussing on the Internet, by the looks of it.

Anyhow, violins/cellos/etc are ever-present whenever we’re close to Rito Village or dealing with a rito related mission. Attack on Vah Medoh, for example, features a sequence of strings that is meant to evoke the strong winds we’re fighting against in that particular moment(*). Another great example is The Final Trial, the song that plays at the shrine of resurrection nearing the end of the Champions’ Ballad. Preceding the activation of each terminal, you’ll notice that a new instrumental element joins the crowd: the first one corresponds to the tambourines, related to the zora and Mipha; the second one are strings, referencing the rito and Revali, etc. I tell you, the moment I heard this during the trial I almost started crying like a baby. And, although strings have a lot to do with Rito culture in general, they tie most strongly to Revali, since he was the champion of his people, and his legacy carried over throughout the years. His accomplishments became material of folk tale, a legend, a source of pride and inspiration for the village. And let’s not forget that, at the end of the day, Revali is the crucial and foremost connection Link has to this place. Other than appeasing Vah Medoh, Link’s responsibility here is to free his past fellow champion’s spirit from Ganon’s malice. The soundtrack is referencing Revali first, and by extension his devotion to his home.

With all that in mind, let’s move on to our next point:

2- Nowhere to Go.

You shoot the canons, land on top of the Divine Beast, do what you gotta do, activate the first terminal and the soundtrack goes off unannounced. Like some sort of surprise anxiety bomb. The rhythm turns fast, the melody erratic, incredibly desperate in its execution. There’s this sheer despair, fear, this feeling of suffocation almost, which are so well achieved in this particular piece.

And that is, partially, because a quite familiar resource is used here as well; one that we’ve heard before in songs such as Rito Village or Revali’s theme. You could even think of it as a motif: two notes are played in an semitone interval, repeatedly and in quick succession. For the sake of later convenience, we’ll call this the Flight Motif, now let me explain why. In Breath of The Wild, this semitone loop is often followed up by some form of resolution. In Rito Village, formerly known as Dragon Roost Island(**), that resolution consists of a graceful descent of the melody, from a high that was built up previously during the motif. On the other hand, if you listen to Revali’s theme, you’ll notice that the interval repeats itself for a couple of times as thought charging up, to then rise fast and determined into a triumphal reprise of Revali’s distinctive assigned melody. This juxtaposition supposes the difference that lays between common rito flight and Revali’s trademark ability; both musical sequences are speaking of flight, albeit in two different languages depending on the way to achieve it. While the rito traditionally use their wings to glide and let themselves get swayed by the air currents Buzz Lightyear style, Revali takes full advantage of his flying capabilities to somehow create an updraft of his own, rising meters above the ground whenever he likes or needs to.

So, now that I layed out my base of thought when focusing on the strings, this’ll be much easier to explain. We’ve settled what the instruments themselves are a symbolic representation of Revali, in this scenario specifically. He was the only one inside Vah Medoh, and the score is, in a way, a retelling of what we can vaguely assume went down here during the Great Calamity, as much as it is what sets the tone and ambience for Link’s mission. But what are we hearing exactly? What we talked about, the Flight Motif, is being repeated nonstop. And that’s the thing, remember how I mentioned that this sequence usually finds resolution at the end? Well. Inside Vah Medoh,… it never does. The melody picks up in numerous occasions, but it’s not nearly as graceful, or calculated, as we’ve grown used to by now. It gets tangled and lost, and then inevitably falls to the ground in disarray. The pattern repeats itself, reaching higher after a handful of failed attempts, but no matter how much it tries, the cycle never ends. What used to tell us about flying and freedom in the skies, has morphed into an almost sinister musical incarnation of a tornado, and there is no way out of this trap. What do you think it must feel like to mindlessly flap your wings against wind currents so strong and violent, that it is impossible to get anywhere nearby, let alone take off every time you lose your balance. Or every time you’re shot down. On top of that, trying to aim and fight back in whatever short breaks and opportunities you get, at an enemy that’s much more powerful and relentless, who’s using your own element as a weapon to destroy you… it’s a risk Revali surely had to take in order to put up a fight. Even knowing full well that the odds were not in his favour, that he was most likely going to lose this battle, that he was going to die. Let that sink in. I’ll skip the activation of the second terminal, since there’s barely any change registered in the theme in general. So-

Three terminals activated.

I know this post is supposed to be a breakdown of the song purely, but that doesn’t mean there’s no place for a little theorising, and the following scrutiny is also quite relevant for our discussion. Bear with me for a bit. I’ve read almost everywhere about people’s most common interpretations on the Divine Beasts SOS signals, and how everyone thinks that Revali’s coming in last (a few seconds later than the other champions) has to do with him holding on for longer. Or, also, overconfident as he was, it means that the idea of calling out for additional support didn’t cross his mind until it was too late, and that’s why the beeping sounds more frantic and panicked than the others’ when it does appear. After giving it some thought myself, I’m betting on the latter option holding more ground, and that’s not all. I want to touch upon a detail of the piece that I never acknowledged was there until very recently(after seeing myself obliged to listen to this song fully and a handful of times, suffering every minute of it for the sole purpose of this analysis. It’s okay I didn’t need my heart anyway). Soon after activating the third terminal, the SOS signal disappears, or grows distant and faint enough that we can’t make it out from the background anymore. In its place, we’re confronted by this… shrill, piercing and painfully slow tune. It sounds synthetic, artificial, devoid of life. And it’s funny, because you know what it reminds me of? I’ll tell you:

A heartbeat flatline sound.

And I want to highlight that this doesn’t happen in any of the other Divine Beasts themes. All their SOS signals carry on, but Medoh’s is no more. This abrupt stop, followed by this bone-chilling tune…. makes me believe that Revali was the first of the champions to fall. A few days ago I came across SuperZeldaGirl’s video on a similar topic, theorising that this could very much be the case. There is not much evidence to support this claim other than some visual cues that could be suggesting to it, but after I found this in the soundtrack, and if we’re to rely on it for anything, I believe Revali was either the first champion to be ambushed by Ganon, or well…. the first to be killed. It is plausible, because short after Calamity Ganon unleashes his power, Revali parts from the group and flies directly to Vah Medoh, and he very well could’ve been the first pilot to arrive.

On this note…. we’ll have to wait and see for ourselves, when Age of Calamity provides long-awaited answers to many of our questions.

Four terminals activated.

An interesting melody is being played on what, for me, would qualify as a glockenspiel or a celesta, which are keyboard based instruments that produce a sound similar to that of a music box(***). If you want to pay more attention to it, I suggest listening to Vetrom’s Instrumental Mix Cover of the theme, where they practically zoom in on this part of the song (keep in mind that it uses the All Terminals’ time signature so it’s being played faster). For some reason, this particular addition makes me feel profound empathy. The sound of this instrument could be described as cute or childlike, magical, even. It is more often than not used to represent innocence, but I highly doubt that’s specifically the intention here. Much like the leading strings’ melody, the melodic contour of this one is trapped in a loop of going up and down constantly, but the difference is that this time around it sounds more under control. And much more uniform too. It doesn’t lose focus or takes risky, fruitless leaps, but rather chooses to stay on a path of waves that consistently rises and falls without taking detours. Like a determined battle strategy, giving it your all. You fall, but get back up again, and try again, and again. It reminds me of Revali’s approach to training, being persistent to the point of overworking himself. He had discipline nailed down to a tee, which I also think served him well in combat. It’s not just about being hard on yourself, either, but being confident and having complete faith in your abilities; believing that you’ll make it.  For this to appear now, that the SOS signal is almost completely gone, is significant because it means that by this point, being so close to success on Link’s behalf, the music is sparing genuine encouragement for once, in spite of the tragic outcome of the past and the danger of the current situation. But, in all honesty, this is probably just me reading too much into it. Perhaps the composer just thought this addition sounded pretty bitching and there’s not much else to it, which is completely fine. Although, intentional or not, sometimes coincidences do happen, and at the end of the day, interpretations like this are a form of appreciation for an artist’s work and for what they can unknowingly accomplish.

All terminals activated.

This is the moment when the song finally lightens up. Notice how the strings abandon the wave pattern for a more even contour. The beat quickens, the melody stabilizes. At first I thought, coming from our flight analogy, that this meant a cease in movement entirely, and it was partly one of the reasons why the song in general makes me anxious. But thinking about it now, …there is something different going on here. The strings are playing on a steady rhythm. It resembles a march, it’s like a pounding heart. It’s a lively, hopeful statement. And what’s interesting is that, up until this point, there was so much fear and helplessness present in the score, even going as far as to reach a dead end when we activate the third terminal. But that’s it, isn’t it? the music just keeps going further. 

It’s saying: this isn’t over yet. Even after complete and utter defeat, there’s still hope and an underlying wish to overcome this predicament, and we started to hear this as soon as a fourth terminal is activated. The melody we previously talked about? it’s here as well, and its beat is much more daring and confident.

And I just want to say… this is so powerful. Because this sentiment is deeply tied to the game’s story and Revali’s character arc. You see, he is introduced as someone who resents Link for being the manifestation of his failure, in a way, because Revali has trained arduously his whole life to be where he is, to be recognised. And yet… this hylian gets chosen by a magic sword and some tale of divine destiny and, apparently, that’s all it takes for him to be deemed the hero that will save the land. In Revali’s eyes, Link has done nothing to prove his worth before him, so it is easy to see why he despises the silent knight so much; he is yet another individual that was born into their destiny. Meanwhile, Revali has had to build his reputation from the ground up, earning him a place among the greatest warriors of Hyrule, and even then he finds himself surrounded by people who grew up praised for being born gifted.  We can see how Revali is the odd one out, and can map out the reason for him acting so antagonistic towards Link.

But once we’re on Medoh, things start to change. When Link enters the Divine Beast, Revali greets him with disdain, as per usual. Of course, Link has no recollection of whatever happened a hundred years ago, other than a small glimpse of the rito champion talking down to him, a memory that came and went in a flash. So as Link, we more than expect Revali to act cold and mocking, which he does. He provides us with as little help as needed in order to free Medoh, reluctantly, shielding his wounded pride over having to wait for Link, of all people, to come to their rescue. But you can hear him starting to open up bit by bit(I wish I could translate his dialogue directly from Japanese but I’ll make do with a couple of dubs and other numerous sources from translators online). With each little step Link takes towards success, activating the terminals, the perception Revali has of him shifts from one of resentment to one of genuine admiration and respect. By the end of it all, he is willing to not only cheer on Link during the boss battle, but to trust him with his life’s worth achievement. And once left alone, he admits defeat and lets go of his bitterness, realising that he was wrong to underestimate Link, and later wishes he could’ve had a chance to measured up to him. To take all of this into consideration and work with it in the soundtrack I think it’s genuinely splendid. And for once, I am grateful that it ends in somewhat of a positive note that puts my soul to rest. I still have a hard time listening to the first two thirds of the entire thing, but now I can look forward to a hopeful and earnestly heartening conclusion for all the pain that this composition puts me in. I must admit that it’s beautifully and brilliantly crafted, and that I am enamoured of it regardless.

That is why I wrote roughly 4k words about it! I hate myself!

If you’re as crazy as me about the soundtrack of this game, I recommend you read the published cd interview with the composers themselves! if you haven’t already. I just found it yesterday(unbelievable but it’s true) and… after writing all of this and checking it out, I felt validated. It sure is a one of a kind feeling. 

Alright folks, we’ve made it to the end. Congratulations for sticking around and thanks being interested in my nonsensical rambling! 

I also hope that you, like me, will now be unable to listen to bowed strings without being reminded of Revali. Good luck!

————– Annotations/Sidenotes/Whatever

(*)The Flight Motif(in point number 2) is also present in this track. We can hear it in the background right after the Rito leitmotif, as per usual. It starts with a clarinet, I think, before the strings take the lead. (**) Note that the Flight Motif only comes into play in the Breath of The Wild rendition of the song. (***)I strongly associate this instrument with Mipha, given that it is used in her theme, in every “response” to the initial melody. It can be heard in Attack On Vah Ruta, as well, it enters the scene when the notes Mi(E) and Fa(F) are played. The initial tune, Si and Do(B and C) are played on a clarinet or oboe, wind instruments just like the flute that leads Sidon’s respective theme. The celesta can also be heard inside Vah Ruta, activating the first terminal…. when the song really takes a turn just like Medoh’s. Mipha has nothing to do with the song of this analysis, however. We must understand that instruments, although they are attached to characters/various story elements in some cases, can always be used outside of that context, for that is the nature of an orchestral soundtrack. If you have this many tools at your disposal, you will make good use of them.

[jenomark]

Part 1

➔Pairing: Camboy!Jeno x Reader (Female) ➔Other Members/ Characters: -.- ➔Genre: Smut  ➔Warnings: Masturbation (M) ➔Word count: 4,446

➔Summary: You’ve been out of the dating game for awhile, but your best friend thinks a push in the right direction is all you need. She sets you up for the cam boy experience, complete with the cute boy and a discovery. 

>>Part 2<<

“You’re lonely.”

“I’m not lonely.”

  She was always in your business. She had been married for years, so what did she know about loneliness? You looked at the sparkling diamond ring on her finger before you paid attention to her accusatory expression. When you were teens, she always talked to you like an insufferable know-it-all, the girl who was never fully living unless she had one foot in the lives of everyone around her. When it came to your life, she always made you feel like she was stepping in a pile of dog shit.

“I’m. not. lonely.” you reiterated, making sure every word was felt.

 “Then, what is this?” she asked.

  The plants on your windowsill sat in her shadow. She gestured to the new ones you had bought, that diamond ring stealing all the sunlight. It’s true that in your single life, you had found yourself buying more and more plants to decorate your space, plants which gave you something to care for, and something to talk to when you were feeling…...

“ I’m not lonely,” you said. “I like plants, and there is nothing wrong with that.”

 She sighed. “You’re filling a void.”

“I’m happy.”

“You’re full of shit.”

  You could feel yourself growing hotter from her interrogation. “Since when is buying plants a sin?” you asked. 

  She moved away from the plants and looked at your open bedroom door. At the same time, both of you ran towards it, your bodies getting stuck in the doorway. You screamed like a warrior ready to protect her space.

“Stop,” you yelled. “Leave me alone!” 

  You were holding onto her, your hands pulling her jacket back. You did everything short of using your fingernails to scratch her skin. She was stronger than you, and she played even dirtier. She pulled your hair to make you let go of her, breaking through the doorway first and bolting for the drawer beside your bed. With one swift motion, she swung it open to reveal multiple sex toys. 

“And what about these?” she asked. 

  You kicked the drawer shut when you reached it and sat on the edge of the table so she couldn’t open it again. Standing with arms folded, she looked down at you. You felt like a child being scolded by an adult, their assessment of your pathetic-ness making you shrink back inside of yourself.

“I don’t use them. I didn’t get the chance to,” you said. “Stop bullying me.”

“I’m not bullying you,” she said. “But you need to look at things from my side. Your last relationship was awful. He beat you down until you were nothing. “

“I know,” you said, sourly, “I lived it.”

 Your ex was someone you were trying to forget. It had been almost a year since you broke up, and yet, he still had you in his clutches. Like a ghost, he moved through your life, making sure you never forgot his presence. 

“You deserve happiness,” she said. “Which is why I think you should go on a date. I know I pester you all the time but-”

“-I don’t want to date,” you said. “I’m perfectly fine on my own.”

  She sat on the edge of your bed. She looked ashamed to be pushing you, her facial expression momentarily apologetic, and her hands playing with a loose thread on your blanket.

“I know you don’t talk about him,” she said. “And as your best friend, I have accepted that. I only want what is best for you. You sit here every day, and I know you’re only saying you’re okay because it’s easier than being honest.  I just want you to be happy.”

 You thought about telling her again that you were happy, but you knew you didn’t feel it inside. After breaking up, you vowed to take a break from men. For a while, it worked out well. You worked on your self-esteem, worked on building yourself back up from the bottom. You bought the sex toys to get back into the swing of things but never used them because you couldn’t stand the thought of facing your body alone. The solitude, in a way, was good for your mental health. But as someone who found themselves coupled more than not, you could admit you missed having someone there. Buying plants did fill the void. You didn’t have to face any of your fears navigating the dating world, and it made you feel safe.

“I know,” you said. “I’m trying.”

 You sat in silence for a moment, contemplating her words. Deep down, your best friend cared for you a lot. She reached over and placed a hand on your knee.

“I know it’s not easy.”

“ I don’t think I’m ready to date just yet.”

“What about sex?” she asked. “No strings attached passionate sex, the kind of sex that makes you blush.”

 Truthfully, you hadn’t thought seriously about intimacy with another person. You thought about the treasure trove beneath your ass. Occasionally, you took them out to feel them against your hand but put them back in the drawer when you felt dread in the pit of your stomach. You missed the feeling of having a human mouth on you, of looking into someone's eyes and knowing all they wanted most in the world was to make you feel good.

“No strings attached?” you asked. “Do people actually do that?”

She nodded. “All the time. I was talking last week with a work friend about these men who do video sex for money.”

“Like porn?”

“Not quite,” she said. “Most do solo work. Masturbation. Ordinary things like working out in their underwear. Men and women watch them, paying by the minute.”

“I am not paying for sex.” you said, shaking your head.

“It doesn't-” she sighed. “It doesn’t have to be sex. You can watch them. It’s a start, you know? Watch someone on the internet who is in touch with their sexuality and..I don’t know..get inspired.”

“No,” you said. “I’m not doing that. I understand you’re just trying to help, but I don’t think that’s what I want to be doing with my extra time.”

“More plants, then?” she asked, smiling briskly.

“Guess so.”

  She got up from your bed and walked out of your bedroom. You followed behind her like a dog at her feet, your eyes hoping for a treat from her hand. You wanted her to fix you, to give you the magic cure, even though you didn’t ask for it or believe in it.

“What are you doing?” you asked.

  She sat down at your desktop computer. Your work assignments were on top of it, so she pushed them out of the way to take hold of your computer mouse. She looked comfortable in your place, her eyes scanning your browser. You watched her type a few words into the search bar and pull up a website. Inviting herself, she opened your desk drawer and took out your wallet, opening up to your credit card and plugging in the information. You wanted to reach out and stop her, but you were too intrigued. 

“You’re being surprisingly chill about this.” she said.

“I don’t want to fight,” you murmured. “I know you’ll win.”

  She pressed ENTER. After searching a few minutes, a video of an empty bedroom came up. The bedroom was minimal, with a tall green plant in the left corner and a bed with white blankets and pillows to the right.

“This is what I mean,” she said. “Look, it’s a cam boy, or rather, a cam man. You see, on the side of the screen is a chat room. You and others can chat together, and you can chat to him.”

“To whom?” you asked. “There is no one there.”

  On cue, a man came into the camera view. He laughed softly, bending over the camera to adjust something you couldn’t see. He leaned down to look into the camera and smile before sitting in his own computer chair.

“Oh, he’s handsome.” she said.

 She was right. He had the prettiest smile you had ever seen. You scaled back as if he could see you. You didn’t like how he looked right into the camera, his eyes peering through your soul. Of course, he was paid to do so, and it meant nothing.

“How much am I paying for this?” you asked her.

“Don’t worry about it, “ she said. “Just watch and enjoy.” 

“This feels dirty.” you said, but you pulled up a chair next to her.

 The man smiled again, reading someone’s text in the chat. “Is everyone well today?” he asked.

  Both of you looked where the chat was. The room was full of you and a few other people, most of them women with various screen names.  You watched him type, the “Jen_Yes” screen name highlighted in blue. You looked to where your chat bar remained empty, the little “Plantful00” highlighted in the color red. 

“You couldn’t come up with a better name?” you asked her. 

She shrugged. “It’s cute. It’s very you.”

“For those who don’t know,” he said, his voice making you jump. “My name is Jeno. I see a new person here. Welcome. I hope you like what you see.”

 Jeno waved cutely to the camera. You started to say something about how he smiled a lot but Jeno leaning back in his chair and slowly cracking his neck made you stop in your tracks. You were so aware of him and his body, the delicate bones on his neck and how soft his skin looked in HD.

“He can’t video chat with us?” you asked. “Can he? I don’t want him to see me.”

  She leaned forward in her chair and started typing. Before you could stop her, she sent it.

Plantful00: Sexy!

  Horrified, you covered your face. Jeno read what she had written, his face wreathed in smiles. Reading that he had started typing in the chat room made you want to vomit. You didn’t see the point of him typing if he could just say it out loud to the camera, but it also made you feel less exposed. 

Jen_Yes: Thank you.

Jen_Yes: You’re new. I have a rule that anyone new gets to choose what they want from me. No extra charge. Anything you want.

“What does that mean?” you asked. “Anything I want? Like what?”

“I don’t know, “ she said. “My work friend mentioned that some of these people do sexual favors over cam. Should we ask?”

“No!” you shouted as she reached for the keyboard. “Don’t. We should log out. I have seen enough.”

  Both of you stared at the screen but made no move to log out. Jeno was focused on your reply his eyes unblinking. A bunch of other people were throwing out suggestions, some of them egging you on to choose something good. When Jeno realized you wouldn’t reply, he looked into the camera and bit his lip.

“It’s okay,” he said. “You don’t have to choose right away. You can take a rain check.”

 You made eye contact with his warm brown eyes. Your mind was racing, your body reacting to how sexy he was. You felt like he was looking only at you, like he knew exactly where and who you were. Without thinking about it, you leaned down and pulled the plug to your computer, erasing Jeno from your screen.

  After your best friend left, you sat with your legs folded on your couch, your eyes burning holes into your desktop. You had done nothing but think of Jeno since you dramatically turned the computer off, your friend looking at you like you were a lost case. 

“It wouldn’t kill you to have a little fun.” she said before she left.

 Your idea of fun was sitting watching dramas and perusing the internet in search of cheesy quizzes. None of those things occupied your mind quite like the boy behind the camera, his mannerisms very down-to-earth. You just sat and stared, your body willing you to get up and finish what you had started. 

“No.” you said, getting up and going in a different direction. 

  You went into your bathroom, deciding that you would get ready for bed. You washed your face and brushed your teeth, taking extra care to avoid your reflection. On your way to the bedroom, you started removing your clothes and getting into your pajamas. You crawled into bed and pulled the covers up to your chin. After turning off your lamp, you could see the orange light from the laptop blinking furiously. You rolled over so you wouldn’t have to see it anymore, closing your eyes tightly and hoping that your mind would stop thinking about him.

“Fuck.” you said. 

 You practically threw yourself out of bed and swiped your laptop off the table. You turned on your lamp and sat on the bed, opening up the machine and looking down at the search bar. You found the site from memory and plugged in your username and the horrible password she set for you: inneedofdick00

“Fuck,” you said. “He’s on. Fuck. Fuck.”

  A little green dot next to Jeno’s name beckoned you forth. You could see that his cam room was empty except for you. His camera wasn’t on, but his chat was open. You looked down at the chat box far too long before losing your courage. 

Jen_Yes: You’re back.

  Another user entered the room, their username a collection of numbers. They didn’t type, but it said they were there watching and waiting.

Plantful00: My friend made this account without me knowing about. I’m sorry for wasting your time. 

Jen_Yes: That’s okay. We all have friends like that.

93489348398394: Can we see you?

  In a flash, Jeno’s webcam came on. He was wearing brown plaid pajamas and a pair of prescription glasses. His hair was messy and wet. He waved so innocently at the camera that you couldn’t imagine him doing sexual things for money. In your eyes, there was nothing wrong with anyone doing so, but Jeno wasn’t the type of guy you thought would do it.

“I guess everyone is sleeping,” he said. “Is something keeping you up?”

You typed “YOU!!!!” into the chat box and quickly erased it. The truth never came easily to you.

Plantful00: Nope, just trying to delete this site from my history. 

Jen_Yes: And leave without getting what you paid for?

93489348398394: If she doesn’t use it, can I? 

Jen_Yes: Baby, you know that isn’t the rule.

93489348398394: I like when you call me baby.

“Baby.” Jeno said, his voice going deeper.

93489348398394: I will never get tired of hearing you say it.

   Jeno got up from his chair and disappeared. You looked at his minimalist bedroom once again. On his bed was now an open book spread face down on the sheets. He had been reading before you entered the room, your curious ping! no doubt causing him to check you out. While he was away, you were messing with a few of the features to figure out how to get your credit card off the site. You weren’t made out of money and couldn’t afford to keep paying a man to chat with you by the minute.

“I’m paying three dollars a minute?” you said. “What the fuck? What a con man.”

“It pays the bills.” Jeno said into his microphone.

“Yeah, well, I have bills to pay, too.”

 You clicked another button before you realized that Jeno had heard you and that he had replied. You clicked back to the main screen to see a split screen cam of yourself and him, your kitty pajamas in full view. You screeched and moved the laptop away from you.

Jeno laughed. “I can still see you.”

 You got down on your bedroom floor and looked at him from the side. He was so amused by you. He put his hand on his chin and smiled.

“You’re very pretty.” he said. “Do you have a name?”

  You stayed silent for a minute until you realized he could probably hear you breathing. All you had to do was click out of the site and you’d never have to see him again. You could forget all about the embarrassment of the night and keep collecting plants and being blissfully ignorant that men existed at all.

“I’m not telling you my real name.” you said

93489348398394: Scared bitch

“Hey!” you said. “That’s not nice.”

“I agree,” Jeno said. “I think you’ve had enough for the night.” 

  With that, your third party member vanished from the room. Jeno quietly coaxed you to come back to cam since you were both alone. You got up from the floor and placed yourself in front of the laptop, slouching down a little.

“I get a lot of people coming through,” he said “A lot of regulars that don’t take too well to new people. “

“I can imagine.”

“Did your friend really make your account?” he asked, his tone slightly disbelieving.

  Jeno’s forthrightness caught you off guard. You took a deep breath and told him the full story, complete with the bad ex-boyfriend. You didn’t know why you had told him so much about your personal life, but it kept spilling out of your mouth the moment you opened it.

“Ouch,” he said. “He sounds like an asshole...and she sounds…”

“Invasive?”

“I was gonna say lucky,” he said. “She led you to me.”

“You have to say that,” you said. “I’m paying you.” 

“Mmmm,” he said. “True. I guess I should keep you on here for a little longer. My car insurance bill is coming up.”

 When he winked, you nearly buried your head into your pillow. The log out sign had never looked so enticing. A few people joined the chat but didn’t write in the chat box.

“Are you nervous knowing that people are watching us?” he asked.

“Not really,” you said and meant it. “It sort of feels like they don’t exist. Is that what it’s like for you?”

“No,” he said. “They exist to me. That’s the part I like most. They can tell me to do anything. The intimacy we share is exhilarating. The friendship, too.”

“Friendship?”

“Genuinely,” Jeno said. “We’re all friends here. Do you want to be my friend?”

  You looked at your own video, your eyes trying to see what he saw. You looked terrified, wary, and a little tired. When you looked at him, he was leaning so close into the camera that you could see into his pajama shirt. Seeing his skin made you feel like time was speeding up. His collarbone was really so pretty, and you could tell that underneath his pajamas, he was built nicely.

“Do I still get one thing?” you asked. “One wish.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Anything you want from me.”

“Take your shirt off.”

Zone5: is she serious?

Cloverz: Nooooo!! Please have him masturbate!! He cums so much!!

5050: This is underwhelming

“Give her credit, ” Jeno said. “She’s never done this before.” 

  You read the first three responses before stopping. You tried to keep your face as passive as possible, but the chat turning on you made you feel terrified. You looked at the log out button and closed your eyes. When you opened them back up, Jeno was removing his shirt starting from the top button. Every time he released a button, he opened the shirt a little wider to reveal parts of his chest. When he got down to the last button, he stood up so that you could see his abs.

5050: I take that back. 

Cloverz: Jeno, how do you look so good all of the time? Give me a break!!

Zone5: o_o

 Jeno didn’t flex, didn’t touch his body. You thought someone who made a living showing themselves off on a camera would whore himself out a little more. He simply sat back in his chair and ran his fingers through his hair. He leaned up and adjusted his camera so that you could see the top of his head, to his crotch area.

Jen_Yes: It’s late. I should be sleeping.

Cloverz: Sleep with me!?

Zone5: Can you let us watch you sleep like you did a few weeks ago? Worth every penny.

5050: Hey, Plantful00, do you like what you see?

  Jeno read the responses and made eye contact with the camera. Though he had to entertain a room full of people, it still felt like it was only you and him. You swallowed hard and began typing. 

“Please speak,” Jeno said. “I like the sound of your voice.” 

  You looked down at his body and looked back into your camera. You nodded frantically and said something that resembled a yes. Jeno licked his lips and went back to typing.

Jen_Yes: If our beautiful plantful00 says yes, how would you all like a little show?

5050: Jeno, I would gnaw my own arm off for a show

Zone5: Don’t tease us king.

Cloverz: Girl, I will fuck your shit up if you don’t say yes.

Plantful00:.....this is very new for me.

5050: get a grip!!!

Zone5: say yes..please...please you have no idea how much i need this right now

5050: Jeno can I say yes in her place

  You could see the money virtually slipping out of your wallet and into his. So far, it wasn’t worth it. You put your fingers on the keyboards and played with the Y, E, and S buttons.

Jen_Yes: Only if you are comfortable, plantful00. I know how it feels. You can leave at any time and end our relationship. This is only fun if you want it.

5050: this is fun no one is ever brave enough to get on cam with him

Zone5: I almost did once but im ugly

5050: lmao mood

Jen_Yes: I need an answer. I’m feeling tired.

Cloverz: babe..please

Plantful00: Yes.

“I want you to stay on the webcam for me, ” Jeno said, smiling. “Okay?”

  He rolled his computer chair across the room. You watched how his arm muscles tightened as they held onto the chair. In the light shining across his body, his abs were so well defined you wondered what it would be like to have your tongue run across them. 

“Okay.” you said.

 When Jeno came back into view, he stood up to adjust the webcam once more. When he sat back down, he rotated his shoulders back and placed his hand over his crotch. His pajama pants were so loose that you couldn’t make anything out. He rubbed himself and licked his lips, his eyes looking directly into his lens.

“It’s been awhile since I’ve come,” he said. “I might be a little backed up.”

 You leaned back a little on your bed when Jeno took his cock out of his pants. He didn’t seem shy about showing a bunch of strangers his body. It was like he was jerking off in a room by himself, his only goal to release his load as fast as possible. You knew people liked it that way. The more real it was, the sexier. For you, things were moving so fast you got whiplash.

“It's so hard,” he said. “This is a new experience for me, too. Watching you watching me makes this even hotter.”

 You didn’t know how to act on camera. You tried not to think about any of the strangers looking at your reaction, tried not to think about Jeno masturbating to a video of your face. You wanted to breathe heavily, to drool a little bit every time he stroked himself, but you didn’t want anyone to know that you liked what you saw. Instinctively, you palmed your hand against your pussy and started moving your fingers. It wasn’t enough pressure against your clit. You felt frustrated by not being able to orgasm. It was the first time you had genuinely felt horny since you broke up with your ex-boyfriend. Knowing that no one could see you made you feel dirty, but there was something so addictive about that feeling. You wondered if Jeno got the same feeling by being so open on camera. You wanted Jeno to press his pretty cock head against the lens so that you could see him up close. It had been too long since you’d seen a penis that you almost forgot what they looked like. 

Cloverz: She looks dead. Show him how appreciative you are.

5050: hahaha Jeno your so sexy!!

Zone5: This must be so hot for you having her watch you like that..you’re coming quicker than you normally do.

  Just like that, Jeno had reached for a tissue and held it in front of his cock. He moaned and clenched his jaw, leaning his head back a little bit in his chair. He ejaculated, missing the shot a little bit, his semen glistening against his fingertips. It was over not too long after it had begun, but it felt like it had lasted forever. You felt worn out, even though you didn’t come, and no one had touched you. You watched Jeno wipe his finger against his bare chest.

Cloverz: There is so much cum. I want to clean it off jeno

Zone5: get in line

5050: idk how she’s still sitting after this i would be dry humping everything in sight

Plantful00: ..is typing..

Plantful00:

5050: just say it

  You didn’t know what you should say. Jeno was hanging onto your every word, his eyes watching the chat box for your response. He was leaning forward so you couldn’t see his cock, but you could see his arm moving. He was stroking himself slowly. 

Plantful00: 

Jen_Yes: Tell me what else you want. I want more.

  You were getting ready to tell him what you wanted when the fire alarm to your apartment building went off. You covered your ears and looked at Jeno to see that he was also covering his ears. The confusion hit both of you at once. You thought he might have just heard your alarm on his end, but the sound was also clearly coming from where he lived, too. 

5050: Is that an echo? Why can I hear the fire alarm coming from both of you? what is going on?

Cloverz: what are the chances of both their fire alarms going off? at the same time? hello??

Zone5: Holy shit!! Do you two live in the same building??

  You read the chat and looked back at the video to see Jeno’s reaction. He had already cut the feed and removed himself from the chat room.

[taetaespeaches]

“Who says I don’t still get a rush from you?”

hoseok x reader (or oc) genre: fluff word count: 2.2K

a/n: Hobi time!!!!! This takes place the night the members all meet Joon’s new girl in “Do you mind if we dim the lights down, baby?” There’s hardly any plot, it just shows Hobi and Petal winding down at home after a night with the bangtan gang. I hope you all enjoy and thanks for reading! :)) 

WATCHING yourself in the mirror as you brushed your teeth, you actively ignored the man sat on the counter next to you as he observed you while you conducted your personal hygiene routine. He had already finished his routine and was rather impatiently urging you to finish yours by staring you down because, “I have something to show you.”

As Hoseok continued to shift closer to the sink, craning his neck so his head was invading your reflection in the mirror further and further, you rolled your eyes, the man letting out that same laugh you’d been in love with for over a year.

“You know,” you mumbled through your foamy mouth, Hoseok’s eyes widening at your sudden words. “Jin and Joon might be onto something.” Finally, you looked at your boyfriend to see him shooting a playful glare at you.

“I dare you to finish that thought,” he warned with a small smile toying on is lips.

“Oh you dare me?” You teased the man, watching as his smile broke through. “I’m just saying, there’s a resemblance,” you continued before spitting the toothpaste into the sink, Hoseok scoffing at your comment as he shook his head. “I didn’t say it’s a bad thing,” you defended, smiling at the man. “Brushing your teeth is also very refreshing.”

“You are not comparing mint chocolate ice cream to toothpaste right now, this is not happening,” he protested, giving you a feigned look of disappointment as he shook his head.

Earlier that night, the members and some of the girls had a debate over whether mintcho was an acceptable ice cream or not. Despite not really having an opinion on the ice cream, you happily took your boyfriend’s side, ensuring he won the debate. And then you proceeded to eat vanilla ice cream in front of everyone as they judged you for your loyalty to the man. 

Smirking, you simply shrugged as you rinsed your mouth, Hoseok staring at you for a moment before quickly reaching for you, grabbing you by the waist and pulling you between the v of his legs, you giggling as you placed your hands against his chest, fighting his affections.

The man planted a series of kisses on your cheek, you groaning through a smile. “Take it back,” he muttered against your face.

“Why would I do that?” You asked as you slowly draped your arms around Hoseok’s shoulders.

“You’re so mean,” he told you affectionately, you giggling as he pulled his face from yours to look at you.

“And you’re so obnoxious,” you replied, just before pressing a quick peck to his lips. “Oh,” you suddenly spoke, your boyfriend’s eyes widening in anticipation. “Joon’s new friend,” you said simply, Hoseok letting out a knowing laugh. “How long do you think they’ll keep that act up?” You asked with a grin, Hobi chuckling as he dipped his face to your neck, kissing the spot lightly.

“I guess it can be fun to sneak around,” he whispered against your neck as his hands gripped your waist.  

“Oh yeah?” You asked, running a hand through your boyfriend’s hair tenderly. “Do you wish we had snuck around?” You questioned with a quirk of your eyebrow, a playful glint appearing in Hoseok’s orbs.

“I wouldn’t change anything about how we started,” he grinned, you looking at him skeptically. “I loved you hating me,” he joked, you laughing at the comment as you gently shoved him away from you, the man dramatically falling back against the counter, supporting himself on his forearms as you took a step back from him.

“I never hated you,” you clarified through a wide grin. “I just thought you were annoying.”

“Oof, tell me more,” he joked and flirted as he stood up from the counter and reached for your hand, you playfully scoffing.

“We may not have snuck around but going from disliking you the tiniest bit,” you emphasized, Hoseok laughing giddily with his sunshine smile on display, “to not being able to resist you was pretty fun.”

“It was a lot of fun,” he agreed, shooting you a smirk. “I can say I thoroughly enjoyed it,” he added, you giggling at the flirty tone. His close-mouthed smile made his little dimples pop out, tempting you to poke your finger into one of the divots. His smile widened as he attempted to playfully bite your finger, you moving it quickly to boop his nose.

“Ok, come on, I still have something to show you,” he reminded you as he began leading you out of the bathroom. You expected him to turn into the bedroom but he walked past it, guiding you to the… front door?

“Uh, Hobi?” You questioned, the man looking back at you innocently as he opened the door. “Where are we going, Sunshine?”

“Just trust me,” he smiled, you looking at him skeptically.

“Trust you? That’s a high ask,” you teased, Hoseok chuckling as he dragged you out of your apartment, both of you standing in the hallway in your sleeping clothes, the oversized t-shirt, one of Hoseok’s extra baggy ones, that adorned your body landing so far down your thighs that you couldn’t even see your shorts.

Despite not knowing what your boyfriend was up to, you followed him easily, having complete trust in him. Trusting Hoseok was easy. It came naturally to you.

Dragging you down the flight of stairs, your slippers barely hanging onto your feet, you giggled as Hoseok smiled widely. It didn’t take long to get from your apartment to the front doors of the building, you looking at your boyfriend quizzically as he turned back, looking as excited and happy as ever.

“Are you ready?” He asked, you shrugging in question. Stepping behind you, he placed his hands over your eyes, temporarily blocking your vision as you let out a breathy laugh.

“Hobi, what are you doing?” You asked, receiving no answer as he guided you slowly out onto the front steps of the building, the cool air sending chills across your skin.

“Ready, Petal?” He whispered next to your ear, you smiling as you nodded. Removing his hands, he pointed to the sky above you, your eyes falling on the bright full moon that greeted your vision. “There’s a full moon tonight.”

A pout immediately formed on your lips as tears threatened to gather in your eyes. A couple people walked by on the sidewalk alone, looking at you both in intrigue. The duo probably wondered what was so special about a full moon. It happens once a month, what’s the big deal? But it was one of the first things you ever revealed about yourself to Hoseok.

“I love the moon,” you had told Hoseok on your first date as you both looked up at the full moon, the carnival noise surrounding you but you both feeling like you were in your own world. “I try to track it’s phases but I usually end up forgetting the day of the full moon. My fatal flaw.”

“I’ll try to remind you,” he replied hopeful.

Turns out both of you were pretty damn good at forgetting, but his intentions were pure. And whenever Hoseok was away on tour, he’d always text you to let you know there would be a full moon.

“You are the sweetest, cutest man alive, do you know that?” You cooed, Hoseok smiling as he pressed a kiss to your temple.

As you watched the moon shine above you, your boyfriend holding you in a back hug, you found yourself thinking back to the start of your relationship. Namjoon and his new friend had you feeling nostalgic in a sense.

Turning in your boyfriend’s grasp, you wrapped your arms around the back of his neck, cocking your head curiously.

“Do you ever wish you could go back to the start of us? Live it again?” You questioned, the man instantly shaking his head.

“As fun as it was, no,” he told you, the moonlight illuminating his soft smile, your heart fluttering at his expression and the sweet tone he spoke the words in.

“No? You wouldn’t want to feel that rush again?” You continued your questioning, the man again shaking his head before dipping down to place a kiss to the tip of your nose.

“Nope,” he said cheerfully. “Our start was amazing but I wouldn’t change a single thing about us and our timeline,” he assured you. “I wouldn’t even want to change your first impression of me,” he added, a smile spreading across your face. “I like where we are,” he said more seriously, his eyes scanning your features as you stared into his observant almond shape eyes.  

“Yeah, me too,” you agreed, Hobi’s lips curving up into a small smile. You didn’t elaborate, not one for many words of affection, but the man knew that. And he could see the sincerity in your features.

“Also,” he started, looking at you with a playful glare. “Who says I don’t still get a rush from you?”

Smiling at him, you bit your bottom lip, watching as the man’s pretty orbs curved into crescents at the adorable smile he flashed you.

“Did I say that?” You asked, playing dumb, the man giggling at you.

“You alluded,” he corrected, you humming in response.

“Well,” you smirked. “Maybe you need to prove it to me,” you teased, the man letting out an amused sigh, his arms wrapping a little tighter around your waist as your fingers brushed through the hair at the back of his head.

“Are you not feeling the rush right now? Am I the only one feeling the rush?” He asked in pretend offense, you holding back a giggle as you simply shrugged at him. Shaking his head at you, you scrunched your nose in response.

“You’re cute,” you cooed. The compliment, however, only made Hoseok step up his cute game as he made a silly sound effect, removing an arm from you to bring a hand to his face, framing his eye with a peace sign.

Rolling your eyes, he burst into giggles as a few more people walked by, though they didn’t deter him at all. Pulling another pose, he framed one side of his face and gave you a close-eyed ‘sweet’ expression. “Ugh,” you feigned disgust, the man opening his eyes to beam at you in amusement. “Again,” you said in a monotone, the man raising his eyebrows at you, appearing to be holding out to make you beg. “Again,” you repeated with a slight whine.

Removing his hands from you briefly, Hoseok framed his face in the classic flower pose, you pulling an expression of contrived dislike.

“Oh, you like that one?” He teased.

“I hate it,” you smiled.

“How about,” he started as he pretended to reach inside the pocket of his shorts before pulling his hand back out in a finger heart, “this?” He questioned you, holding his fingers toward your face.

Giggling, you shook your head. “Put it back,” you joked, shoving his hand away from you.

“You like it,” he noted, his hands gripping your hips. Pulling a face of scrutiny, you shook your head. “No?” Shaking your head again, his smile widened. “I think you like it a little bit,” he added.

“Only a little,” you replied, Hoseok giggling as you smiled at him. “Because it’s you.”

Squeezing your hips in his hands, he smirked at you. “That’s good enough for me.”

Scrunching your nose at him once more, you leaned toward him to kiss his lips softly, the man eagerly accepting the kiss and deepening the action instantly.  

Resting his hands at the bottom of your back, he slowly worked his cold hands under your baggy shirt, the touch of his icy fingers causing you to shiver against him, giggling into the kiss. “Sorry,” he mumbled through his amusement, you placing a hand to his face.

Just a little over a year was all you’d been seeing Hoseok, but with the deep understanding and acceptance you had for each other, it easy to lose sense of time. Every day felt familiar but new, exciting but comfortable. The days had blurred into one incredible experience with Hoseok, complete with mostly highs and fewer lows, and so much love that only grew stronger and more sincere as time went on.

Pulling away from each other, you slowly dragged your eyes from your boyfriend’s face and looked up at the sky to appreciate the moon once again, Hoseok’s eyes staying on you. The two of you seemed to be opposites in a lot of ways. Much like the sun he embodied and the moon whose light was shining on your features beautifully in that moment. But much like the sun and moon, when they met, the whole world stopped and admired them. Luckily though, you and Hoseok didn’t have to wait over a hundred years to collide for a mere few minutes.

Your lips slowly curved up as you thought of the man in front of you, and how thoughtful he was to surprise you with something as simple and perfect as the moon. Looking from the sky back to the man, you appreciated him and felt so thankful that you knew him. That you got to love him. That you were loved by him.

“What are you smiling about, Petal?” He whispered before pressing a kiss to the corner of your mouth.

“Nothing,” you let out a breathy giggle. “I just feel the rush.”

The man smiled happily at you, rubbing his nose against yours cutely before crashing his lips against yours passionately. Lacing your fingers into the hair at the back of his head, you kissed him back with the kind of passion only Hoseok could pull from you. Because he was Hoseok.

[ladyloveandjustice]

Fall 2020 Anime Overview

I started out watching the a ton of anime for the Fall 2020 season, but then ended up not being caught up with most of them by the the time the end rolled around. I still pretty much intend to catch up with Yashahime Princess Half Demon someday (I do like the three leads, it just the plot’s been dull as dirt and the fights aren’t very inspired either) and though I dropped Wandering Witch after bad press started rolling in (I CANNOT deal with pointless tragedy in my current state of mind) I might check out a few more episodes someday just to from my own opinion. For now, let’s just quickly review the anime I DID manage to finish on time this season.

Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle

Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle is exactly what it says on the tin: Princess Syalis isn’t too bothered about being captured by demons and locked in their castle, but she does value a good night’s sleep, and she is absolutely ruthless when it comes to getting it- so ruthless, in fact, that the demons realized it might not be that she’s trapped in here with them, but that they’re trapped in here with her.

Sleepy Princess is top tier comedy comfort food. It rarely got a huge belly laugh, but it always but a smile on my face and was a great thing to watch before going to bed. Syalis’s single-minded search for some shut eye is a joke that could have gotten old very quickly, but the show consistently found creative ways to expand on the gags and build it’s world and a fun cast of characters along the way. 

Though Syalis is downright brutal to the demons when it comes to getting what she wants (and has a knack for getting herself killed at well), thanks to a demon cleric that offers easy resurrections, you never feel too bad for anyone involved. In fact, the demons and Syalis form a strangely heartwarming bond over the course of the show , and it’s clear by the end that Syalis definitely has the ability to come and go if she damn well pleases and just finds this castle a fun place where she can find respite from her princessly responsibilities. 

A nice bonus for those of us who like a little subversion is that the show has a lot of fun playing with standard adventure tropes- the demons often lament that Syalis is not at all what they expected from a captive princess, for one, but my favorite fun little twist is how Syalis feels about the hero currently on a (seemingly endless) quest to rescue her- she manages to both hold him in contempt AND consistently fail to remember his name. That level of disregard takes some impressive effort.

The show has the same director as the Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun anime and as such has a similarly nice comic and visual flourishes throughout. It definitely gets two sleepy thumbs up for me.

Jujutsu Kaisen

Jujutsu Kaisen follows a young man named Yuuji Itadori who, after tangling with a demon, ends up with one inside him. With a death sentence hanging over his head, he’s inducted into a school for “jujutsu sorcerers”, and begins training to use his newfound powers to defeat demons and curses.

Jujutsu Kaisen quickly tells you on no uncertain terms it is Action Shonen, introducing a huge cast of a characters and powers and super high stakes and hey there’s even gonna be a tournament arc soon. It is really, really pretty to look at, with a killer opening and ending, some seriously great animation and cool visuals for the fights especially. But is it particularly memorable otherwise? Noooooot really, so far. The sea of technobabble it tends to descend into when trying to explain how the various powers work often has me zoning out and wishing they’d just let me watch the pretty punches. The villains and the general plot isn’t particularly compelling. The characters are nice enough, but haven’t given me much to be attached to so far. Though I do appreciate this one dude who is the embodiment of millennial ennui:

I’ll keep watching though, because it is a visually stunning, action-y thing to my turn your brain off to and god knows I want to turn my brain off all the time lately. 

And the characters do have potential- the One Girl of the main group, Nobara, has a really fun personality in that she’s a total shitlord doofus brawler who can thus doof around with our equally dumbass protagonist, which is an pretty fun, unusual personality for the One Girl to have! Her interactions with Maki, the weapons expert senpai girl, are promising too. I’m just waiting for her to actually, you know, DO something that really shows off her skills- I’m told she DOES eventually get to (gasp) win fights on her own and do cool stuff, but so far show has kind at that of failed miserably and underused her like most action shonen underuse their girls. Plus, taking Yuuji out of the group for such a long stretch seems like a weird choice, we’ve been deprived really seeing him for relationships with his peers. The pacing seems off. But maybe the upcoming tournament arc will make up for that and actually be worthwhile!

Talentless Nana

In a world where kids with superpowers are sent to island schools to fight mysterious “enemies of humanity”, one class of such kids is thrown into chaos when they find themselves targeted by a deadly force.

It’s pretty much impossible to talk about Talentless Nana without discussing how it deviates dramatically from what its premise appears to be in episode one, so I’ll just say if you like stories with superpowers and intrigue, you should definitely sit through that first episode and see if the plot that’s eventually revealed is something that you’re here for. But if you want to avoid spoilers, DON’T GO BELOW THE CUT, because I’m about to get very spoilery.

Basically, Talentless Nana pulls a bait and switch, starting it’s first episode posing as generic superhero anime where the protagonist appears to be your standard meek-but-powerful anime boy (Nanao) who just needs some support and encouragement from a pink haired mind reading manic pixie dream girl (Nana) to unlock his self-confidence and ~true power~ (ugh)...only to take SHARP swerve when  Nana ruthlessly murders Nanao and reveals she’s been sent by the government to take out the superpowered kids one by one because THEY are the considered the true enemies of humanity. Oh, and she doesn’t have any superpowers, or “talents”- she was just able to sus out everything Nanao was thinking through basic deductive reasoning because he was so flippin’ obvious and basic.

As my love for a certain character in a certain game may have clued people into, I am ALWAYS delighted when what appears to be a generic, underwritten girlfriend character is then revealed to be an interesting, ruthless mastermind. And having an anime appear to be about a bland boy with a Dream Girlfriend but then actually turn into a show about a deeply cynical, morally dubious girl who’s clearly holding down a lot of messy feelings as she considers everyone her enemy...well, it may be a cheap trick to some, but it also feels a little bit like justice for all the underwritten female characters sacrificed to bland male leads. It’s still rare enough that I dig it when it happens. And the metatext of Nana zeroing in on this kid as the most standard of main character boys, assessing him as the biggest threat because of it and knowing the perfect way to take him out, is pretty inherently funny to me.

But if the show JUST banked on that twist and was about Nana brutally and cynically slaughtering these kids, it would get boring quickly and Nana would be a bland character herself. Fortunately, it doesn’t go that route. Nana struggles and grows a lot over the course of the show. She finds opposition in transfer student Kyoya, a stoic (and socially awkward) young man who pretty quickly becomes suspicious of her. A lot of the tension from the early episodes comes from her sweating as she tries to outmaneuver him and she makes plenty of mistakes along the way. She also slowly but surely starts to question her mission, and we get an idea of her backstory and how the government specifically has groomed her into believing people with powers to be evil. That belief is one that’s challenged by her friendship with another girl, and it’s pretty rewarding to watch Nana’s feelings and world expand little by little.

The show is definitely a little schlocky-some of the plots (as well as the general premise of the government thinking this is the optimal way to get rid of their superpowered kids problem) fall apart if you think too much about them, and some of the kids Nana goes up against are sleazy and unlikeable in over the top ways (which makes it easy for her to stick to her convictions all these kids deserve to die at first). In particular, I have to give a heads up for some sleazy guys doing and saying sleazy things, though the show never gets too overbearing or graphic with it (and the gore is generally PG-13 level as well). 

Basically. There are some truly ridiculous happenings in this show. But how ridiculous and pulpy and over the top it is can be part of the appeal, and it’s fun to just sit back and watch the spectacle of Nana and her peers head-scratching machinations. 

So, while certainly not an anime with airtight construction or flawless quality and depth, I found Nana an overall entertaining watch, especially as a fan of cat-and-mouse murder-y shenanigans, and thought it has a very compelling main character and managed to end on a heartwrenching (but earned) note. I definitely wouldn’t say no to a second season and would be interested to see where things go from here.

[cloudninetonine]

Follow the light

Chapter 1

Synopsis: A Genshin impact/Avatar x fem!reader

A/N: INSTANT SECOND CHAPTER. Also, some stuff from my previous post about this crossover is probs gonna change

I do not own the Genshin Impact or Avatar franchise

Warnings

“Let’s try it again”

Nodding, you took a deep breath, focusing yourself on your actions as you began to move. 

Light on your feet, just like the leaf, if you meet resistance, you must be able to spiral away at a moment’s notice, move like the wind, move like you’re free.

Tsering had practically drilled that into you when you began to learn airbending. ‘It was a must’, she had told you, sending a blast of wind into the the spinning death trap- I mean, into the spinning gates, ‘if you are to be the Avatar you must know how to air bend, even if your power is just that of an average bender as of now’

She was right, of course, but the thought of helping restore Raava’s power and find your brother itched at your mind constantly, kept you awake at night as you practiced your moves, occupied your thoughts when you ate, never had you been so desperate to leave the temple.

Despite that, the thought of leaving these people caused your chest to burn, like you had been stabbed right in the heart with the intent to kill. These people had become family to you, on level with your brother, they cared for you and you cared for them, so you knew when it finally came time to leave, which if you were correct, would be a few days from now, you would shed tears.

You would be alone and it scared you.

“Much better” Tsering clapped, as did the other four nuns, the leading nuns, when you finally ceased, bright smile on your face “You’re improving every day, I’d say you could become a master in just a few more years”

You placed your hands behind you back, rocking on your heels “Would I be able to get my tattoos if I did?”

She smiled back “Of course, you’re considered a nomad after all”

A familiar squeaky voice piped up from your left “Paimon thinks you could improve in your stance”

You sent Paimon the stink eye “You can’t even bend, elf”

“Excuse you! Paimon doesn’t need to bend to know you’re stance stinks-”

“Alright you two, no need to fight” Another nun, Nun Palmo laughed, “(Name), you are dismissed, remember to keep training and if you need help, you only need to ask”

With a ‘thank you!’ and quick bow, you headed off with Paimon for your daily walk around the temple.

“Paimon was only joking earlier, you’ve really improved, your bending was pretty flawless! Though, Paimon noticed that you looked a bit distracted, is everything okay?”

Paimon, the ever so observant, when food wasn’t involved, or when she wasn’t talking, or when she was just...herself. The spirit seemed to know you well enough to notice the shift in your attitude as you bent, mind fogged up over other matters that you didn’t need to think about at that moment.

“Yes, Pai, I’m fine, it’s just…” You searched for the words “I’m starting my journey in a few days and I know Raava is here with me but...I’m going to be alone when I travel so I’m nervous. I’ve never travelled by myself before, my brother’s always been with me so….”

A sigh fell from your lips. “It’s stupid-”

“No it isn’t!” Paimon leaned in close, shaking her fists in exaggeration “Being alone is a big deal! Paimon knows from experience that it sucks being by yourself, so, Paimon’s decided to accompany you on your journey! She am a spirit of guidance after all!”

Your head snapped towards her “Wait...seriously?”

“Seriously!”

The grin that spread across your face was contagious, the spirit mirroring your expression as you hugged her tightly, both of you laughing. “Thank you, Paimon, thank you!”

“No need for thanks!....Actually, keep it coming”

Your heart filled with warmth.

You wouldn’t be alone.

The day came faster than you had expected. As cheesy as it sounded, it had only felt like yesterday when Raava had first spoken with you and the two of you had merged, but it had been just over four months with air bending training being a subject for every single day. A mix of grueling and fun, because learning how to fly using a glider brought you back to earlier days with your wings, but getting your arse kicked by spinning gates, falling from far heights when you mess up your bending- not as fun.

A sort of leaving party had been held the night before, a great buffet for you hard work and just fun games to play with your newly aquired airbending skills. (Tsering had beaten you 5 against 1 in Airball and even then, you were sure she had given you the last one out of pity)

You were changed in your older clothes this time, pulling on your gloves and boots, looking yourself in the mirror in your room the last time. It was weird, seeing yourself in your travelling attire when for the past few years you had been dressed in the familiar orange, yellow and reds of air culture, it only further settled as a reminder that you were leaving today.

You had successfully held back the tears till this point.

“(Name)” Glancing towards your door, Tsering stood with her hands clasped together, a small smile on her beautiful features “Are you ready?”

“Uh, yes!” Fumbling for your bag, you made your way over “I’m- I’m ready”

“Good, but before that” Pulling something from behind her back, she presented it to you “You earned this”

Sat within her palms was an airbending staff, accompanied by your familiar red sash that you supported on your clothes previous. You stood in awe as the elder airbender tied the sash around you, tightening it gently before grasping your cheek, stroking it softly with her thumb. “I will miss you, (Name)”

Tears finally pushed through, eyes glazing over as you engulfed the woman in a tight hug, face shoved into her chest. “I’ll miss you too, Tsering”

Ten minutes later, you were heading towards the bison, specifically your bison, one you had befriended by accident and now considered one of your lifelong pals. You hadn’t meant to bond with him, only airbenders received bison, but you had stumbled upon the ordeal when exploring and he just didn’t seem to care about anyone else. Tsering had let you have him without much argument and smiled when you named him Viator, something she didn’t quite understand back then but now was a completely different story.

“Food has been packed for you, along with water, spare clothes and other necessities” Paimon was already sitting upon Viator’s back, munching on what you guessed was something from breakfast, when you jumped onto the bison’s head, stroking through his fur with love. “Be safe, (Name) and please know, you may return whenever you wish”

“Thank you, Tsering. Thank you everyone, you showed me kindness for all these years and treated me as one of your own. I’ll miss you all so much but I promise I will come back” With a commanding ‘Yip, yip’ Viator had pushed himself off the ground “Farewell everyone!”

The younger airbender girls screamed their goodbyes, waving their hands wildly while the older nuns bowed, sending waves once you began to disappear West, towards the mainland of Teyvat.

Finally, your journey began.

-----

“Look, there it is!”

It had taken an entire day, much faster than you had originally expected and you couldn’t have been more grateful for the existence of sky bison. 

From your point, you could see giant cliffs, a small, sandy bay sat beneath them with a path that led deeper into the mainland, your bison following it when you finally hit the shoreline.

“Did Raava say anything about the statues, like, how to even get the power in the first place?”

You shook your head “No, so I’ll just have to see once we find one- woah”

It had taken only five minute to reach a clearing and boy, was it a sight to behold. Cliffs surrounded the area in a crescent shape, the valley holding a plethora of beautiful trees ranging from the famous forest green to autumn time orange. Beyond it stood a city of stone, laid within a sparkling blue lake, Mondstadt you believed. Dead center sat a small isle within the valley, containing just the thing you were looking for.

“That was quick”

Viator grew closer, groaning when you called ‘Yip, yip!’ to drop the lot of you onto the tiny piece of land, Paimon clapping her hands excitedly.

“Oh!” She cried in delight “That’s the statue of the Anemo Archon, Barbatos! He’s the spirit of Air!”

Floating down, you jogged up the statue with your companion following behind, eyeing the tall structure with intrigued eyes when you finally stood before it, glancing around it briefly before Paimon spoke up.

“What now?”

You shrugged “I...touch it?”

“Paimon..agrees?”

Delicate hands reached out, brushing against the golden plaque molded into the botton of the monument when a beautiful glow was produced from the carved diamond patterns, both you and Paimon gasping in surprise as a heavenly sounded resonated through the area, the glow winding up the statue and forming into a beautiful light orb within the hands of the figure head. Slowly, the ball floated down towards you, like a leaf in the wind, then flew into your chest, a feeling of weightlessness flowing through your entire being.

You glanced over yourself.

“Was...that it?”

Paimon huffed “You know, that’s kind of rude to say about the power the Archon just gave you!”

“I didn’t mean it like that-”

A brilliant light flashed before your eyes, blinding you, the whole surrounding scene blurring away. You threw your hands over your face, protecting yourself from the harsh brightness when it faded as soon as it came, the sound of nature that once encircled you now replaced with a deafening silence.

“(Name)”

You turned towards the voice, smiling “Raava”

The spirit flew towards you, you once again lending your hand out only to notice the slight difference within the being.

“You’re bigger” You noted in excitement, watching her wind up your arm “Have I already restored some of your power that fast? If so, this’ll be easy-peasy”

“You mustn't underestimate this journey, (Name)” She spoke with a wisdom that you hadn’t experienced for what felt like lifetimes, your body straightening up in response to her tone “We have only just begun and the road will only grow more treacherous as we push forward. Not everyone will be so supporting in our quest”

A sigh escaped you “Yeah, you’re right, nothing is ever that easy. I wish we had more help though”

“You are not alone in this, (Name)”

“I know, I’ve got you, Pai, Viator-”

“That is not what I meant”

The noise of confusion you made was cut short at the sound of….wind? It grew louder with it second, until the whisper because a magnificent howl, collecting around the two of you before bursting outwards, forms of multiple figures appearing from the darkness.

“Air nomads?” You glanced around at them all “Wait, not just air nomads”

“No, each is an air nomad in their own right” The multiple air nomads eyes snapped opening, revealing a familiar white glow “Not every nomad is in touch with their culture, some fade away, whether that be from their own choice or anothers, while others stick with air custom”

It hit you.

“Past air nation Avatars….” There were so many, you couldn’t keep count! They even faded into the far distance of this mind space! You had known there had been plenty of Avatars but seeing this much was just...wow “But, I don’t get it, the Avatar cycle was destroyed. Wouldn’t the Avatars have vanished? Like in that Water tribe….Korra, like in Korra’s era”

But then again, Tsering had told you that the following Avatar, an Earth Kingdom boy named Genji you believed, had somehow restored the previous Avatars despite the new cycle. No one ever found out how, but no one really cared, they were just grateful for the Avatar.

“I, as well, am not sure why they are returning” The spirit glanced around before facing you once again, sliding further up to reach eye level “Perhaps it is our connection? Your own spirit? Or maybe it is just luck that they return, but they will help you in your journey, they will be your guides alongside me”

You grinned “Good to know I have more backup”

“(Name)!!!!”

The voice of Paimon echoed around you, concern evident in her voice and you glanced around, trying to find her.

“It is time for you to return, but you can always find us again”

The world around you began to fade, the past avatars disappearing within the darkness along with the spirit.

Paimon sighed in relief when the glow finally dissipated from your eyes, you blinking a few times then glanced towards her with an apologetic smile.

“You can’t just go all Avatar on Paimon like that!” She chided like a mother, waggling her finger at you “Paimon wasn’t sure if what happened was worrying or not!”

“Sorry, Pai, didn’t mean to worry you”

She huffed, floating back to Viator “Let’s just continue on, Paimon thinks we should head over into Mondstadt!”

You hopped onto your bison, patting his head “Why, Mondstadt?”

“It’s the city of Wind of course! Poetry and language flow like the wind, so there must be someone who knows about your brother! At least that what’s Paimon thinks”

“Sounds like a good start, yip- huh?!”

A large shadow cast over you, a bellious roar sounding through the valley, deep, thunderous and strong. Glancing upwards, you both watched as a giant creature, with beautiful blue fathers flew overhead, aimed towards the heart of the forest that laid ahead.

“What was that?!” You cried as Viator groaned in alarm, Paimon looking as spooked as you felt “Paimon!?”

“A dragon! We’ve gotta be careful!”

Dragon? What a weird dragon indeed. You had seen quite a few in your lifetime, exploring different worlds with your brother meant you got to experience a whole lot of different things, dragons were no exception. They differed in different worlds, some violent, some passive, some young and naive some old and wise, but one thing that tended to stay the same was that their appetite was a meaty one and when you glanced down at Viator, you decided to take a cautious step for your furry companion.

“Paimon, stay here with Viator” Opening up your staff, you hopped off your animal and flew in the direction of the forest. Your friend called after you, voice high with panic as she begged you to come back, but you weren’t listening, no, you were focused on keeping the people close to you safe, even if that meant fighting a dragon, which you knew for certain you weren’t ready for.

The forest was practically silent compared to the valley. The sound of life that played within the sun had dimmed with the looming trees of oak, muffling the wind that blew through the perfect path that had been carved through the nature with perfect precision, it’s goal on leading to Mondstadt clear with each tentative step you took that lead to where you had seen the great beast land.

‘I wish I had my sword’ Such words shouldn’t come to a nomad, you knew that to be true, but you had lived through battle after battle with your brother for so long, the weight of the blade, the leather of it’s handle, it had been burned into the skin of your hand many times ago. Guilt boiled within you during your years with the nuns, how could you think of fighting while surrounded by such peaceful people? But then again, you could take a warrior from war, but not war from a warrior.

“Don’t be afraid. It’s alright now, I’m back”

You pushed your back against the nearest tree, glancing around it’s wide trunk at the scene.

The dragon was great, indeed. Coloured in an array of blues, from aquatic to deep ocean, feathers and furs adorned it’s body, tipping the tail, decorating it’s wings, lining it’s belly but ended at it’s claws, replaced with silvery scales that reflected the light of the day. From it’s back, however, protruded two tainted purple crystals, that you could sense, all the way from your hidden spot, held nothing but a dark energy that made your skin crawl. The creature’s sheer size was intimidating enough, especially compared to the boy who stood before it, but those crystals- wait.

Only then did you finally notice, too focused on the dragon to see the small male who held his hands out towards it. Sure, you had heard the voice earlier, but the blue beast’s appearance had overshadowed it, though now, you saw him, clear as day and your thoughts screamed about how such a small, fragile looking human could stand tall before such an intimidating animal-

A shout echoed through the forest, a familiar high shout that made you groan inwardly when the dragon let out an ear piercing shriek, swiping towards the boy only for him to jump back to your relief, snapping his head towards you direction, then disappear in a flashing light, the dragon leaving along with him into the sky with a final roar for extra effect.

You glared back at Paimon, panicked stricken face frozen in terror atop Viator’s head, who had tucked into himself at the appearance of the other animal.

“Really, Paimon?!” Running over, you soothed your bison softly “I told you to stay put! What if that dragon attacked?!”

“Paimon- uh- Paimon….” The spirit stumbled over her words for a few moments, when she noticed something within the short distance of where the dragon had been perched “What’s that?”

On closer inspection, it appeared to be a floating crystal, shaped eerily similar to a teardrop which glowed a crimson red, screaming an aura of negativity and…

“Sorrow” You hesitated when you reached out, but ultimately grasped it between your fingers gently “You can feel it right? That sorrow from it?”

“Yeah, almost like spiritual energy but just...sad, really sad” Frowning, Paimon turned towards you “Paimon feels kinda sad now too”

“Yeah, me too”

A cloth emerged from your pocket with a tug, the crimson glow disappearing under the raggedy brown of the material as you wrapped it carefully before stuffing it a bag on Viator’s back.

“Take care of this, will you bud?”

The animal groaned.

“Thanks”

Hopping down, you grasped Viator’s reins and continued down the dirt path.

“So, Mondstadt?”

It didn’t take long to reach the end of the woodland’s winding path. The once dense forestry parting way to a clear road to that great city that stood proud a few acres away, towering cliffs decorating your left for quite a way while to your right laid the beautiful crystal blue waves of what Paimon called Lake Cider.

A strange name, you had to admit, but your spirit friend’s explanation of the city’s famous winery industry only seemed to make it fit.

“-If we ask around, we’ll find some information! Oh, this city is famous for bards! So we can definitely-”

“Hey, you! Stop right there!”

Another threat?

Caution was thrown into the wind and you raced into action, pulling forth your staff in a defensive stance and ready to protect your companions with every last inch of you. Viator seemed to feel the same, as his large frame grew closer to you, towering in size with a guttural growl that even shook you slightly, bearing giant teeth.

Paimon merely fell behind, cowering away nervously.

‘Wow, thanks a lot Pai-’

A figure flew overhead, leaping off one of the shorter cliff sides and descending down to the dirt before you, rolling for safety then bouncing back up on their feet.

Long, dark brown hair, lively golden eyes, fair skin and covered head to toe in red.

Fire nation perhaps? Nun Tsering did say that descendants were fond of the colour.

“May the Anemo archon protect your stanger-...” She started, face kind but guarded until she fell upon your sash and bison “Ah! You’re an Air nomad! I am so sorry!”

Then she bowed, deep and apologetic and you sent Paimon a side eyed glance when she floated back to your side.

“Mondstadt is the city of wind and considered air nation territory” She whispered, “Monks and Nuns are highly respected, well, everywhere, but much higher here. You’re basically considered royalty”

You nodded in understanding before approaching the girl “Hey, it’s okay! It was an honest mistake! What’s your name? Mine’s (Name). This is my spirit guide, Paimon and my bison, Viator”

The younger woman bounced back up, narrowingly missing your head with her own while she stumbled over herself, finally findinger her words as she saluted (?) towards you all, forming a fist on her chest then being thrown outside, hand flattening by her side “Yes, of course! I am Amber, Outrider for the Knights of Favonius. I would like to personally welcome you to Mondstadt, dear Nun and once again apologise for my rude approach”

“Like I said, it was just a mistake!” Laughing, you bowed “It’s nice to meet you, Amber”

Amber paused for a moment, eyes wide then bowed in return “Likewise, Nun (Name)”

“You don’t need to call me that! I’m only a...nun-in-training, really, so, (Name) is just fine”

“Are you sure? It seems impolite to call you that, even if you’re only in training!”

From the sidelines, Paimon smiled.

The spirit had been informed by Nun Tsering of your inner conflict when you had first stumbled into this world. How hard it had been to open up, how you had struggled to interact with the others nuns, always so closed off and scared, the festering feeling of abandonment brewing a deep rooted fear of interaction, lest any person you may come across would be the next to leave you in the dust, by their own will or not.

When Paimon had first arrived, you had still struggled with that fear, even now if was still visible, if you looked close enough, but she knew she didn’t have to worry as much now, you were doing so much better and seeing you grow more confident made pride bloom in her chest, where her heart would be if she were human.

“Please-” Amber gestured over to Mondstadt, “Allow me to escort you to our city”

“Are you sure? If you’re a knight, you’re probably out here for a reason and I don’t want to get in the way of that”

“Not to worry, my duties have been fulfilled for today, so taking you to Mondstadt wouldn’t be much trouble”

With a smile, you nodded and off your little group ventured.

The walk to the city wasn’t long, no, only 5 minutes at least, filled with friendly chit chatter between you, Amber and Paimon, your bison huffing for your attention like he usually loved to do when your focus shifted. The knight looked ecstatic when you offered her a ride some time, bouncing up and down excitedly then engulfing the beast in a hug.

You liked her attitude, her excitement. It reminded you of simpler times and on a more somber note, of Aether. He always was kinda like the sun, even when you two bickered like normal siblings did, he kept on that lightened aura that just kept you from staying mad at him, a smile surfacing on your face while he cheered in accomplishment, a small tease of ‘You know you love me!’ before you smacked him right around the head and your famous fist fights ensued, the ones you always won.

You missed your squabbles, you his light, you missed him, but you had to remind yourself that this was the start of your journey to finding your brother and you would be reunited one day.

The guards bowed when you finally entered the city, as did the seemingly grumpy blacksmith you passed, the flower girl, the adventure guild receptionist, the jeweller- everyone and you did the polite thing of bowing back.

“You’re attracting quite the crowd already!” Amber laughed, the many citizens watching your group with wide gazes “It’s only natural though, I’m sure Paimon’s already told you that Nun and Monks are regarded highly in the city of wind!”

“Yup! Paimon made sure it was the first thing she knew!” You were positive the spirit ignored your stink eye, “So, who do we speak with about missing person posters?”

“Well, it’s best to speak with Master Jean, if you come with me I’ll show you the way! Here, I’ll give you a little tour around too!”

“That sounds great!” You glanced back to Viator, who stood patiently beyond the gates and watched you with soft eyes. “Stay here, bud! I’ll come back soon- and with some hay!”

The great beast groaned, waddling off somewhere beyond the gate and leaving the three of you to wander deeper into the city.

With each step you took, you felt as though you were being watched with the familiar sensation of eyes pinpointed onto you, though, it seemed... unwelcoming, their stare burning holes into your form. For a moment you glanced around, Amber and Paimon too distracted with talking to notice your focus shift. It didn’t take long to find the perpetrator, a man with long red locks, a few yards away, glaring at you with arms crossed.

You noted to yourself to look for the man later.

“Hey, isn’t that Barbatos?” Gaze shifting once again, your look upon the grande statue before Mondstadt’s church, a figure akin to an angel with long robes, wings and hands out, cupped towards the sky “You know, Paimon remembers him wearing less clothes”

The knight shared a disturbed look with you.

You didn’t really need that mental image.

“The headquarters is right over here-”

There was an instant shift in the air. 

The sky darkened with malicious grey clouds, hiding away the bright summer’s sun and replacing it with only a layer of doom, the wind picking up harsher undertones.

“The sky…”

There it was again. 

The dragon from the Whispering Woods.

It raced towards the city, circling it’s borders ominously while growling a thunderous and threatening growl before erupting into a blood curdling screech, the noise bringing forth a miniature cyclone along with powerful tornadoes. 

The people of the city screamed in fear, rushing around to escape the attack, parents crying for children, knights ordering for citizens to take cover, animals yowling out their own grievances, utter chaos reigned and you felt panic at the thought of Viator alone, waiting for you patiently where you left him.

“I have to go get Viator!” You were already sprinting back to the gates “I can’t leave him alone like this!”

Amber raced after you.

How had this happened so fast? And why when you had just arrived? What was going!? Only moments ago you were touring the city towards the Knights of Favonius headquarters and now this!

“Paimon thinks that the tornado is getting too close!” She was right, it was practically on your heels! “Hurry! Or we’ll get caught up!”

If only it had been that easy.

Amber had tried, you had seen her panic as you felt the pull of the powerful wind current begin to drag you closer, she had reached out, grabbing your staff with strength only adrenaline could cause, trying hard to keep you grounded but you could see it was for naught, as her feet slipped against the stone and the fear she would also get sucked in plagued you.

You made a rash, last minute decision.

“Get Viator!” Her eyes met yours “And take care of my staff!”

You let go and watched her horrified face as you were sucked into the winding wind.

It was terrifying, you had no idea what way was up and what way was down, left was right and right was left. Paimon was screaming, something you couldn’t hear in your throat crushing fear, curled into a ball and eyes shut tightly, hoping for it to end soon. If only you had your wings, if only Aether was here, if only...

“Ravaa” Your own whimpering could not be heard beyond the screaming of the wind, but you begged that the spirit still heard you. “Please, I’m scared”

A beat passed.

The wind still roared.

Another beat passed.

The screams of citizens still echoed through Mondstadt.

Then another.

And your eyes snapped open, glowing a brilliant white.

[everyhowlmarksthedead]

“A GOD’S GIFT”.

HAPPY LOWMAN X READER

Prompt 54 requested by @HOOOLI13 and an anon. “She’s my girl”. “I’m what?”

WORD COUNT: 3.1k

Thanks to my lovely beta reader @chibsytelford 💘

WARNINGS: Smutt and fluffy Happy.

AUTHOR COMMENTS: I hope you all enjoy. English isn’t my first language, I’m sorry if I have some mistakes with grammar. The gif isn’t mine.

Tag list: @STARRYNITE7114 @CHIBSYTELFORD @DAZZLEDAMAZON @MARA-MPOU @SAMMSKELLINGTON 💥 (if you wanna be tagged, send me a message!)

** Flaco = skinny man.

The first yawn appears near to twelve in the morning. You've been working for the last six hours with the motorbikes of the crew, after deciding that it was a good time to go over the bodies. Covering your mouth with a hand, making a bad move, you cut the back of the other. A slight scream goes out of your lips. Seeing how the blood begins to sprout, you jump from the floor to take a cloth to wrap it. It's not a deep one, but goes all over the back of your hand and it stings too much. You're not the kind of girl who has a low pain threshold, but you've been feeling weak these last few days and sounds like someone has cursed you.

Walking through the yard, with the work jumpsuit knotted to your waist, you notice that your shirt is stained with your own blood and seems more exaggerated than it really is, just because you shook your hand as a reflex act.

“AYE! The bloody hell, kid?!” Chibs is the first one who practically jumps off of his chair, leaving the cards on the table, to take your arm between his fingers. You release the cloth to show him with a smile forced on your lips.

“You ok?” Happy is worried too, placing his body behind yours, looking over your shoulder. He's not surprised, not as Juice, who has a look of horror in his face. Unbelievable he's a Son' and all the thing he has done.

“Not sure if I should gotta' the hospital. It's not... deep, not even painful, but the body of the bike was covered in grass and oil”. You raise your gaze to the president with a soft shrug.

“Ya' shoul', kid”. He nods after some seconds looking thoughtful.

“Got you, love”. A tattooed arm surrounds your abdomen, pushing you to follow him in his way to the parking on the front yard. “How you did it, uh? What were you thinking about that distracted you?”

Happy looks at you intrigued. He knows you well, he knows how concentrated you are when you're taking care of their motorbikes, but you don't have a correct answer for him. The man clicks his tongue, leaving some hidden caresses on your belly now that you two are so close. And with the hand you placed before on his shoulder, you give him some tickles, with one of your nails trailing the skin of his neck. He pulls himself away abruptly from you, with a shy smile on his face, rubbing the area where your finger was.

It happened seven months ago. You were drunk and you lost a bet against him. One thing led to another, and you began to be friends with benefits, with the difference that you don't fuck with other people. You never talked about it, but seemed like Happy was satisfied with you, and you with him. Even if Chibs told you it was fine, you're not the kind who mixes business and pleasure; but sometimes, you like play soft games like this one. Happy is not someone dearly, and you're sure that you are the closest thing to having a girlfriend for him, but he tries to make you feel comfortable all the time.

┅┅ ┅ ┅ ┅┅

You don't know what's going on, but the emergencies are almost collapsed, so seems like you're gonna have to wait. Another yawn forces your mouth, shaking your head hoping this helps you to stay awake. Happy has an arm on the back of your seat, turning slightly with a raised eyebrow. Now he knows what happened, making him snort looking away. Last night you were talking until very late with Tig and probably you didn't sleep much longer than three hours.

He's not jealous. But he is. But he's not gonna tell you. But you feel it. Sometimes it's funny, sometimes it's annoying. You come closer with the intention of giving him a kiss on his cheek, next to his lips, before he pushes his face away under a deathly silence that is going to give you some problems today. You try again, and again, till you notice how he's hiding a smile.

“I could do it all the fuckin' day, until you kiss me”. You say proudly, and he already knows it. “Kiss me”. You demand in a whisper with pursed lips, and his eyes challenging you. Your fist goes straight to his shoulder, making him rub it with a mock wince on his face. “Kiss me, you fuckin' jerk!”

“You're so aggressive. You should work on that”. He finally says, making you frown.

“‘YOU’ are calling me aggressive? Seriously?”

Lying his back on the chair, he nods very sure about his words. Fortunately or unfortunately, when he's about to kiss you, with his lips so desperately close to yours, your name sounds through the megaphone. It's been thirty minutes since you came and probably your hand is gonna fall into pieces, if they don't clean it quickly.

Crossing the hallway, you go to the indicated query, having a seat on the hospital gurney unwrapping your hand to show the wound. The nurse moves a small side table, having a look before healing you.

“What happened?” Shanon asks wetting a cotton with alcohol.

“I was working in the workshop, with the bikes”. You say, while your friend shakes his head starting to clean it. “It was with one of the bodies”.

“You're coming to the dinner, tonight?” She inquiries, while Happy is on the opposite corner against the wall.

“Yea'course!”

Wednesday is for girls, because Thursday is your free day. You and your crew meet at Shannon house to have some dinner together, before go to drink some beers in Charming. Usually, you end at Happy's house.

Five minutes later, your hand is covered by a bandage. The nurse gives you a prescription for some analgesics in case you continue feeling pain on it. With a kiss on her cheek, you head out having a look at your hand, moving your fingers for a second. Happy walks by your side, opening you every door on your way, to avoid you have to do unnecessary efforts.

“You wanna me 'ride you home?” He asks, helping you with the helmet.

“Club, please. I've to talk with Chibs”.

He nods. Man of few words. Sometimes it's maddening. But you take advantage of a traffic light a red, tightening your arms a little more on his waist, to kiss his nape dearly. He tries to avoid it pulling away as he can, making you laugh.

“Stop, I'm pissed off”.

“Why? 'Cause I was talking with Tig? He called me, why didn't you?”

He doesn't answers, rolling your eyes with a heavy snort. Dealing with Happy is fucking hard sometimes. He's not the kind of man that talks a lot, mostly in silence listening and judging. And you like it, but just sometimes. And of course, not in a moment like this one.

┅┅ ┅ ┅ ┅┅

“Ya' good, kid?” Chibs walks towards you, hitting softly your forehead with the palm of his hand. “What 'da docta' said?”

“That I should rest the hand today and tomorrow. But I finished your motorbikes, so it's practically like I'm enjoying my free days”.

“If Friday ya' don' feel rai', stay at home. Or come to see us. Three days without ya' is pretty much”. He nods, putting an arm on your shoulders in a warm hug. 

“Wanna whisky, ah?”

“Sure, why not?”

“Hey, what happened”. Tig goes out of the main hallway, walking next to you to take your hand carefully.

“Just a cut”. You shrugs, even if he looks worried.

“Yea', if she had slept more hours, she wouldn' have been distracted”. Happy says, 'cause of course he can't keep his mouth closed as always.

“I'm not talking to you”. He replies with a frown.

“But she's my girl and it's your fault, shithead”.

“What?” You're not sure if your asking for the first thing that he just said, or about the second one.

“And why it's my fault, genius?”

“'Cause she couldn' sleep enough, listening your cocky problems about which legs you should open, 'cause hers are closed”. Happy is sitting calm on a chair, raising his feet and supporting them on the table.

“Ya' know? I'm gonna fuck you up, man!” Tig is angry, looking that the poisoned dart of the other has hit him right where he wanted.

“C'mon! 'Am fuckin' wishing kick your ass!”

Two deer fighting, horns against horns, in a time of constant mating. This is what it looks like, when you have to push them away from the other.

“You're not gonna fuck her! Put those words in your fuckin' damaged brain!” Happy is truly screwed, pointing him with a finger.

“Gentlemen, stop!” Chibs yells sharply, before taking a deep breath. “(Y/N), have Happy and get him the fuc' outta my clubhouse”.

You obey, with your hands on his chest to pull him out. But you know he's not gonna talk to you. Not after you didn't say anything to Tig, feeling like you're defending him. He's walking fast to his motorbike, but so are you, grabbing his forearm to make him stop his footsteps.

“Hey! What has come?”

Happy is staring at you with an impassive grimace on his face.

“What was that I'm your girl?”

“Aren' you?” He asks curious waiting for an answer.

“No, 'cause you didn't tag me”.

“And I'm not gonna do it. It's not necessary. Everyone knows what's between us”.

“Tig does, the bitches around the Sons' don't”. You weren't going to say it, but you couldn't help, spitting it out at last.

The man rolls his eyes taking the helmet of the top of his motorbike. You push his shoulder, calling his attention again.

“Say it!” You shout at him, really upset with the situation, hoping that he finally makes it real.

But there are no words coming out of his mouth, starting the bike before leaving you there alone. You bit your cheek inside, assuming it's over. And hurts. It hurts a lot actually.

┅┅ ┅ ┅ ┅┅

For the first time in years, you're missing the girls night. You're not in a good mood for drink with them, preferring to lie down on the sofa with some tv show that you aren't paying attention to and a big bowl of ice cream resting on your belly.

It's not that difficult, and you don't know why the hell he doesn't say ‘yes, you're my girlfriend’. You feel jealous too, with all these women walking towards the club almost naked, but you have never said anything, drowning your feelings until you couldn't help it anymore. Is he afraid of something? Or, does it mean he only says what you wanna listen to take you to bed?

Some knocks on the front door have your attention, leaving a sigh hoping that it's not a workshop emergency. Leaving the bowl on the table, you go barefoot to the entry, opening it. Happy is there, staring at you.

“Not today, Satan”. You roll your eyes, with the intention of closing the door on his nose, 'cause you're not going to listen the bullshit he has to say.

“I gotta go some days”. He says hoarsely. “Stockton need us. I came to say goodbye”.

Yes, he always does. He drives to your house, gives you a kiss and asks you if you're gonna wait for him, even if he knows that you're going to.

“Enjoy the ride”.

“You're fuckin' annoying, you know?”

“Yes, it's a god's gift”.

“Why is so important to you that I tag you as my ‘girlfriend’?

“If you have to ask, then you don' get it, Happy. And the only reason why are you so jealous of Tig, is because you're fuckin' possessive. Not because of you care about me”.

“You know what I feel for you, don' play fool”.

“No, I'm not. And I'm tired of being your ‘maybe yes, maybe not’, flaco. So it's over. Enjoy your ride”.

You close the door without giving him the chance to reply, holding your tears inside your eyes until you hear the roar of his motorbike.

━━━━━━ ﹅ ━━━━━━

One week has passed. He called you and texted you every day, but you didn't reply. So, when you find him at six am at the door of the workshop, it doesn't surprise you. Keeping the headphones in your pocket and throwing away the cigar, you unlocked the big door of the garage, pressing the button of the remote control. And yes, you're ignoring him, but he's waiting to go in the workshop to talk.

Leaving your bag on the main desk, giving him your back, you hear how the metal shutter goes down again. You snort shaking your head for a second, turning on the laptop to check what's on your day.

“You're gonna give me the treatment silent?”

“I have work to attend, Happy. If your bike doesn't need anything, leave”.

“You don' have nothing to do till seven. I asked Matt”. He catches your lie. “We need to talk”.

“No, we don't”. Turning at him, you rest your waist against the desk cross-armed. “I told you what was tormenting me, and you shit in”.

“You wanna hear it? Fine. You're my girlfriend”.

“No, I'm not, Happy. I was”. You sentence. “In past”.

“You are. In present. And you will. In future”. He adds walking towards you. And, even if he looks calmed, he's fucking pissed off. “And I care 'bout you, not only 'bout your pussy”.

“And when did you realize that? After one week practically ignoring your bullshit?” You join to shorten the distance between both, facing him.

He doesn't say anything keeping your gaze.

“You're like a fuckin' mime five years old”. You joke on him in a bad mood. “When you get bored of a toy, you pull it away. And when someone takes the toy, you get furious 'cause you don' have the balls to fight for it”.

“I'm here”. He says, pretending that it's enough for you, pointing his chest with both hands.

“Yea' like a fuckin' statue”.

Losing his mind, he takes off the heavy gold ring out of his finger, putting it in your forefinger 'cause is the only one where fits in without falling off.

“Everybody knows that it's mine. You got it. 'See what it means?”

“I see what it means for the world, but not for me”. You're pushing him into the limits of his patience, till you got what you really want. “Who hurt you so bad that you're not capable of saying ‘I love you’ when you love someone? I'm not asking you to say it all the fucking time, I'm good making it real by just one damn time”.

“These are only words. And I think I've shown you in the last few months”.

“Fuck off, Happy”. You say tired of the talk that is not going to anywhere, taking off the ring and pressing it against his chest.

But before you can continue with your task, he puts his hands around your body pushing you against him. His furious mouth finds yours in a kiss full of anger, guiding you to the nearest table. And even if you want to pull him away, you can't. You missed Happy and you're fucking weak. The ring falls on the floor when you place your hands on his head.

“You're like a fuckin' nightmare”. He groans turning you, to stick your back to his chest, before pull down your jeans as he does with his. “But I fuckin' love you”.

Those words sounds like a sweet melody dancing in your ears, being interrupted when he thrusts his cock inside you making you moan needy. One of his hands travel to your hair, getting tangled in it to tie you arching your back, while he uses the other to stimulate your clit. You don't have much time, but the enough one for an angry quickly to mark his territory again, in case you forgot it.

“Shit, love... You're so fuckin' wet and so fuckin' hot”. He gasps hoarsely in your ear, with your hands clinging on his nape. “'You missed me, uh? 'You missed your flaco?”

“Fuck... 'course I did”. You say with your eyes closed.

With his free hand, he pushes your back on the table making you lie on. Pounding you hard, listening the dry sound that his abdomen produces against your buttocks, he clings his fingers on your hips. You're so close and he knows it when your legs start to tremble.

Happy holds your throat with a hand, getting you up putting your back against his chest, moving faster and deeper, with the free arm around your body.

“Fuck... don' stop... don' stop”. You beg as he loves hearing you.

“Cum for me, love”. He demands you, biting your shoulder and leaving a slight trail of saliva in the mark he's making.

And he doesn't need to ask twice. Crying out his name, without mattering if someone hears you, the orgasm shakes every inch of your body making it burn. But Happy doesn't stop till he fills you completely with a growl full of desire drowned in your neck.

You rest your arms on the edge of the table, with his forehead against your nape and his warm breath bristling your skin, taking a break in which you both recover. He pulls himself away of you, making you moan one last time, to take a rag and clean all the mess. But you're gonna take a shower anyway. Getting dressed again, Happy picks up the ring from the ground, putting it back in your forefinger.

“You're fuckin' beautiful after bein' fucked by me”. He says proudly, leaving a kiss on your cheek with one of his hands in the other. You hold it, closing your eyes for a second, drawing a smile on your face. “Only ‘your flaco’, love”.

You lick your lips nodding, seeing how he presses the button to raise the metal shutter again.

“Good luck working with those shaky legs”.

“You fuckin' disgrace...” You chuckle crossing your arms on your chest.

“Yea', but you love me”. He shrugs with no gesture on his face, as always like a statue, walking away from the workshop.

[jiejie-eonni-onee-sama]

You targeted my heart...

For the beloved @empress-writes​

Hope you will enjoy the story!

"Q, get me out of here!"

**"This is what I am currently doing, 007!"**

Running down the building, James Bond dodged bullets as he tried to find the exit.

Seriously, he thought this mission in Uzbekistan would be a simple one: all he had to do was to find a file about a Dutch press magnate, retrieve it, and bring it back to England. In short, a piece of cake.

But concretely, nothing went as planned, and he gets caught by two Russian agents who were also after this file.

Once he was outside the building, James ran into the streets, trying to leave his pursuers behind. As he passed near an alley, a hand grabbed him by the collar.

"Come here, you idiot!"

Pinned against a wall, James looked at the main street as his pursuers passed close without noticing him.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice saying:

"My, my... Everywhere I go, there is always trouble. And when there is trouble, it means that you're in the area, dear James!"

The British spy turned his head and nearly choked when he recognized his savior:

"(Y/N)?"

"Herself, Mister Bond!" smirked the woman.

007 growled:

"I should have known that you will be here, too!"

"Is that how you thank me? How ungrateful! What happens to the good manners that make British men's reputation?"

James rolled his eyes at the ironic remark: nothing from (Y/N) (L/N) could surprise him anymore. 

Indeed, the American spy was the only person on Earth that could cross swords with the best English spy without a scratch. 

Both played cat and mouse since their first meeting in Paris. 

A game that they would never grow tired to play, even if it implies getting on each other's nerves.

"What are you doing here, (Y/N)?"

"Guess what?"

James sighed.

"You're here for the same reasons, I suppose?"

"Bang on, Mister Bond! And judging by your attempt to beat Usain Bolt's record, I assume that you have found this file?"

"How could you be so sure?"

"Let's just say that I've learned my lesson from Tokyo..."

The blonde man grinned.

"I hope you're still not mad at me..."

The woman has a disdainful air.

"Who do you take me for, uh? A little girl?"

"No, for a very resentful woman."

She shrugged.

"Anyway! I have no time to lose with you: I have unfinished business waiting for me..."

"I thought I was the unfinished business..."

She grinned.

"You wish you were, Mister Bond."

(Y/N) turned around and walked away.

"Have a safe journey home, 007!"

Her attitude puzzled James: usually, she would have fought for taking the file. Now, she did not even mention the coveted object. Something was wrong...

Tired, James decided to go back to England and took the first plane for London. 

Once he sat on his seat, he discreetly opened the file behind a newspaper. The British spy was shocked to discover that the file was empty.

Well, almost empty, as he noticed a small note.

"To win a race, the swiftness of a dart

Availeth not without a timely start."

Think about those words of wisdom from La Fontaine.

Sincerely yours.

(Y/N)

Defeated, James growled of frustration: she outsmarted him, once again.

He did not why, but imagining (Y/N) triumphally smiling at him while saying "Gotcha!" did not annoy him that much. Honestly, he found her pretty cute when she acted sassily. 

Yes, this girl will be the death of him, but no woman can compete with (Y/N) (L/N).

Meanwhile, in another plane, (Y/N) checked the file, grinning. She can picture James's face when he would realize that she beat him to this mission. 

The American spy dreamily smiled as she thought about his icy blue eyes. They perfectly matched his chiseled face... Uh, Lord: why her best frenemy has to be so handsome?

(Y/N) smirked: they will meet again and would resume their little game. She just needed to be patient.

A few months later, in a forest in Colombia.

"Speak, you bitch!"

The contact of the calloused hand with her cheek made (Y/N) hissing with pain. She turned her head and glanced furiously at her jailers.

The American operative cursed herself for being so reckless. She was so eager to catch this gang red-handed that she forgot to be discreet.

And now, she was in a life-threatening situation. This time, she probably won't escape... 

"For the last time, I ask you: Who send you here?" snarled the gangster.

"Your mother!" she snickered.

The gunman grimaced.

"So, you want to play this game? As you wish..."

He took a blowtorch and turned it on.

"Maybe this would help you recovering your memory..."

Trying to untie her ropes, (Y/N) started to panic as she saw the flame coming closer to her face...

"How rude of you to treat a lady this way!"

All stopped on their tracks as they heard a voice coming from nowhere.

As for (Y/N), she recognized this familiar voice: it meant that a charming British spy was not far...

"Show yourself, bastard!" screamed the mobster as his henchmen and he drew their guns.

"If you ask politely..." replied James as he gunned down a gangster.

Taking advantage of the element of surprise, (Y/N) untied her feet and kicked two of the men in the legs, making them fall. 

Then, she broke the ropes that bound her hands and joined the fight. 

While he got rid of two opponents, James glanced at (Y/N) as she furiously knocked out her adversaries. The British spy must admit that the American spy was sexy when she was angry. A real lioness!

"James! Stop checking me out and fight!"

"At your orders!" 

They kept fighting when suddenly, a mobster caught the woman by surprise and pinned her down, strangling her.

Struggling to breathe, (Y/N) kicked the air with her feet, trying to get rid of his iron grip. But she failed, and her vision started to blur.

Luckily for her, James shot the man in the head, saving her from certain death. 

As (Y/N) gasped for air, James rushed to her side.

"You're right?"

"I knew worse..." she grimaced.

The blonde man noticed the bruises on her face. His blood boiled with rage: he should have intervened sooner! How dare they hurt her?

But the priority was to take (Y/N) to a safer place. He carried her in his arms and rushed to his car before driving down to his hotel. Once they arrived, they managed to reach his room without being noticed by the staff.

Then, James gently laid the woman on the mattress before picking his first aid kit and starting to heal her wounds.

"I suppose that I should thank you for saving me..." she whispered.

"Don't bother... Besides, I only return you the favor."

(Y/N) glanced at him with a questioning look.

"The favor?"

"Do you remember when you saved me in Uzbekistan?"

The American woman nodded.

"This time when I save you from the Russian agents?"

"Indeed."

She smirked.

"You bet I remember it... I thought you would be mad at me after my little trick!"

He laughed.

"Not even the slightest. You played well, and I consider it as my retribution for Tokyo!"

They went silent for minutes before (Y/N) dared to ask:

"Why did you save me?"

James slightly bit his lip before answering:

"Well... I could not let you die. Because I would never find someone equal to you."

"I'm flattered."

He came closer to her, their faces apart from inches.

"I meant it, (Y/N). I would find life tedious if you were not here."

"Because I'm just a playmate to you?"

He gave her a small peck on the corner of her lips.

"We can be more than that if you want..."

"Maybe one day..." she replied with a tired smile.

James nodded: duty will come first, no matter what would happen.

"We have all the time in the world..." 

"Will you waiting for me?" the woman whispered as she drifted into sleep.

She barely heard James's answer:

"I will wait, (Y/N)."

A year later, in London.

Walking down the snowy streets, James looked at the peaceful surrounding with a small smile. After several missions around the world, M granted him some days off. 

007 did not complain about it: saying that he was tired would be an understatement.

However, he could not stop thinking about (Y/N): he did not see the American spy since their last encounter in Colombia, and he missed their flirtatious game. James hoped she was doing well...

"Do you miss me, Mister Bond?"

The British spy turned around and smiled when he spotted the young woman sitting next to him, elegantly dressed in a crimson winter coat. She gave him a charming and warm smile.

"I return you the question, Miss (L/N)."

She laughed.

"If it wasn't the case, I would not be here."

The British man chuckled.

"You got the point."

They stayed silent for a few minutes before he muttered:

"I missed you, (Y/N)."

"I missed you too, James." 

(Y/N) questioned:

"If you're still ready... Then, will you be more than a playmate to me?"

A genuine smile came across James's face:

"I am always ready. Especially for you!"

He got up and offered his hand:

"I know a place where we can talk about it... Will you come with me?"

She got up and put her arm around his and replied:

"Let's go, then."

The pair walked to their destination, arm in arm. Suddenly, James heard a small sound coming from his phone. Looking at the screen, he saw a message from Q:

Should I order an engagement ring?

Smirking, Bond texted back before giving all his attention back to (Y/N). They both have all the time to think about it... 

Meanwhile, in his lab, Q worked on his computer when his phone buzzed. Intrigued, he picked his phone and laughed when he saw the reply of 007:

Later, Q. Promise, you will be the first to know...

The quartermaster smirked: (Y/N) and Bond aimed at each other's heart and hit it right on the mark.

Let's see what would happen in the future, even if he hoped the best for the two secret agents...

Thanks for the reading!

I hope you enjoy the story: please let me know!

Don’t hesitate to send me requests: it will be a pleasure!

See you later and take care! 😘🥰😍😷