#i have wolfs gravestone it is going to look so good on her.

[scolek]

cwof specifies that the pyro dmg bonus stack is on 'using' the elemental skill, not when it hits. problem for little miss dehya 20s cooldown flamemane. catch me at the temple of zhou formula. not inside it, ofc, nothing but trash in there, but hey the vibe is p cool

vermilion is basically xiao only, nobody else has hp drain on their burst.

and despite being her ascension stat, hp only accounts for a single modifier of her very complicated kit, so totm is. its viable if you were gonna use her as an offield support maybe??? but it doesnt seem like thats. hmm.

so. probably 2pc/2pc? glad/shime and then cwof or. perhaps totm depending on how that thing works.

how fuckin big is that fiery sanctum field man. jellyfish sized? benny burst sized? 👀 shrine of maya sized? educated guess says its probably about benny burst sized, maybe a little bigger. not like anyone needed more incredible bennett synergy, but hey if youre one of the poor chumps who c6'd him it'll be a decent boost for dehya. but with her losing hp a lot. hm. maybe it snapshots?

[riveramorylunar]

Who Were They?

Pairings: Dean Lady Lesso x Student Reader

Warnings ⚠️: past teacher x student relationship, height difference, age difference (legal age gap), blood magic, burn marking, forbidden love, mentions of death, blood & running away

Pet Names/Nicknames: Darling, Little Raven, Gorgeous, Handsome & Leo

Word Count: 3,315

A/N: Italics is the past

"Who were they" a student had asked as he looked at a statue with two women which was next to two gravestones. The Dean of Evil and the Dean of Good stopped and turned around to see their students looking up at the statue. "Leonora Lesso the former Dean of Evil and Y/N Y/L/N a student of the school of Evil" Dovey said as she looked up at the statue. "What happened to them" another student said. "They were executed for falling in love with each other which is Forbidden" The Dean of Evil said. Dovey looked away frowning because she knew something no one else did.

10 years ago

"Miss Y/L/N get your head out of the gutters and pay attention" someone shouted startling Y/N out of her daydreaming. She looked up to see Professor Bilious looking at her. "Why don't you mind your damn business old man" Y/N sneered back and the class ohh'd making the Professor angry. "To the Dean's office immediately" he shouted and Y/N rolled her eyes before standing up. She grabbed the bowl she was using and smashed it onto the ground causing the liquid to splash everywhere. As she walked out she heard Professor Bilious screaming causing her to smirk.

Y/N was walking down the halls when she bumped into one of the guards. "Oh hiya Wolfie" Y/N said causing the wolf to growl lowly. "I told you to stop calling me that" the wolf guard said causing Y/N to smirk. "Would you rather me call you pup or better yet puppy" she said causing the wolf to huff before walking away. "See you later Wolfie" Y/N shouted before giggling as she continued her way towards the Dean's office.

She knocked on the Dean's office and waited for a couple seconds until the door swung open. "You better have a good explanation on why you're disturbing me" the Dean said before looking down to see Y/N standing there smirking. "I don't think I need an explanation as to why I'm here" she said causing the Dean to roll her eyes before stepping aside. "Thank you" Y/N said before walking into the office.

"Your office is nice" Y/N said before she heard the door close behind her. "You say that every time you come here it's starting to get annoying" Lesso said causing Y/N to giggle. "Well it is" Y/N said turning around to see that Lesso was in front of her towering over her. Y/N just looked up at Lesso while smiling. Lesso grabbed Y/N by the jaw and walked her back until she was pinned against the desk. "Tell me why you're here this time. Did you set something on fire again" Lesso said humming causing Y/N to smirk. "I wasn't paying attention in Professor Bilious's class because I was thinking about you kissing me" Y/N admitted causing Lesso to smirk before leaning towards Y/N. "Oh darling you get distracted so easily" Lesso said before kissing Y/N on the lips. Lesso pulled away before going down to Y/N's neck and kissing it. "Can you blame me you're fucking hot I don't know how people can't be distracted by you" Y/N said causing Lesso to chuckle before pulling away. "Well we can't leave you unmarked darling or they'll start getting suspicious" Leonora said causing Y/N to roll her eyes. Leonora grabbed Y/N by the arm before dragging her towards the doom room.

When they got there Leonora shoved Y/N into the chair causing Y/N to grunt. "What was that for" Y/N huffed out causing Leonora to chuckle. Y/N watched as Leonora took off her trenchcoat before walking around.

"So what are you going to use on me this time Leo" Y/N said before smirking making Leonora turn around and smirk back. "Oh darling we are going to do something different this time" Leonora said causing Y/N to stiffen up a little as she watched Leonora walk up to her. Leonora grabbed Y/N's head and tilted it to the side before putting her pointer finger on Y/N's neck. She traced her pointer finger down Y/N's neck in a weird shape before pulling away. She watched as fire appeared on Y/N's neck tracing the shape causing Y/N to scream out. The scream echoed throughout the whole school causing all the students and teachers to stop what they were doing. Leonora covered Y/N's mouth and rested her forehead against Y/N's. Once the fire was done Y/N let go of Leonora's arm which now had crescent indents.

"I'm sorry Little Raven" Leonora said as she removed her hand from Y/N's mouth. Y/N sighed and smiled. "It's alright Leo I'm okay" Y/N said before pulling Leonora down into a kiss.

Y/N left the doom room as she felt Leonora's eyes on her. She went to her room and saw Hester sitting on her bed. "Hester what are you doing here" Y/N said causing Hester to stand up. "I heard you scream I think even the school for good did to" Hester said before smirking causing the both of them to laugh. "So what did she do this time" Hester said and Y/N showed Hester the mark. "That mark is sick I like it" Hester said before they high fived each other while smirking.

They arrived at the school for good because they were getting their glowing finger today. Y/N was at the back of the line with her hands shoved into her pockets. When it was her turn she held her pointer finger out towards Leonora while smirking causing Leonora to raise her eyebrow. She stabbed Y/N's finger quickly before winking making Y/N smirk again. Y/N walked away holding her finger up as she headed to the dining room. "Hello Wolfie" Y/N said and the wolf looked down before groaning. "What do you want now" the wolf said as Y/N and Hester looked at each other. "We want to scare the little royals if you're up for it" Y/N said causing the wolf's eyes to gleam before he smirked. "Alright I can get behind that, what do you want me to do" the wolf said and Y/N told the wolf the plan.

Y/N had made the wolf look like a zombie wolf with damaged armor. Hester and Y/N watched as the wolf walked towards the evers, dragging one of his feet behind him. They watched as the wolf slammed his hands against one of the tables causing the evers to jump and scream loudly causing all the Nevers to laugh. The wolf leaned forward towards Beatrix and she leaned back terrified. "Alright that's enough" Professor Dovey shouted getting everyone's attention. Leonora just smirked before looking at Y/N who was giggling with Hester. The wolf walked back over towards the two of them and High fived each other. "Alright I have to admit you're pretty fun" the wolf said before patting Y/N's head.

"MISS Y/L/N" Y/N heard Leonora shout and she looked over to the other side of the dining room. Y/N just smiled before waving causing Leonora to grip her cane. "You did this" Y/N heard Beatrix shout and she looked over to see her walking up to them. "Looks like little miss princess is mad" Hester said and Y/N snorted before covering her mouth causing Hester to laugh. "You did this" she hissed out and Y/N looked down to see food all over her clothes. Y/N just laughed and Beatrix clenched her jaw. "Uh oh princess is getting even more mad" Hester said and before Y/N knew it she was shoved backwards.

Y/N clenched her hands tightly and started breathing heavily. Beatrix's eyes widened as she started walking backwards as Y/N shifted into a melanistic tiger.

"What the hell" Beatrix said as she stared at the tiger who was Y/N. "Oh you messed up big time princess" Hester said before laughing. "LESSO CONTROL YOUR STUDENT" Dovey shouted at Lesso who was just watching in amusement. "Lesso" Dovey warned and Leonora sighed before walking towards the three. "Y/N stand down" Leonora said and the tiger looked up at Leonora. The tiger growled at Beatrix before turning back into Y/N. "You're no fun" Y/N said looking at Leonora who had a unreadable expression on her face. Y/N just rolled her eyes before walking over to an empty table and sitting down. Dovey walked over and looked between the two of them. "Lesso you need to get your girlfriend under control before she kills someone before graduation" Dovey whispered to Leonora who huffed. "Fine" Leonora said as she looked at Dovey who smiled. Lesso looked back at Y/N who was talking to Hester. "Maybe not right this minute" Leonora said causing Dovey to scoff before rolling her eyes. "You're impossible" she whispered before storming off.

Leonora looked back over at Y/N to see her making fun of Beatrix while some of the Nevers laughed. Leonora shook her head before walking towards the teachers table and sitting down next to Dovey.

"Wolfie" Y/N shouted and the wolf walked over looking down at Y/N. "Give this to Lady Lesso for me will you" Y/N said holding a small bag of something. The wolf nodded as Y/N dropped the black bag into the wolf's paw. Y/N watched as the wolf walked over handing the bag to Leonora before walking off. Y/N watched as Leonora opened it before smirking.

Leonora looked up to see Y/N smirking causing her to shake her head as she took a mouse that had something tied around its neck. She took the thing off the mouse's neck before setting the mouse down onto the table. Leonora unfolded the peace of paper and growled when she saw what was on it. Leonora balled it up before setting it a blaze in her hand. Leonora looked at Y/N angrily causing Y/N to giggle before looking away. On the paper it showed a middle finger. "She is so going to regret that" Leonora growled out getting Dovey's attention.

"So what did you send your girlfriend she looks angry" Y/N heard Hester say. Y/N picked her mouse up and set him on the table. "Just a middle finger is all" Y/N said making Hester start laughing causing Y/N to smirk. "Oh you're in big trouble" Hester said causing Y/N to giggle.

9 years ago

"LESSO" Y/N shouted as she stormed into the Dean's office but stopped. The girl that was running after her ran smack into her causing her to growl out. She looked between Dovey and Lesso before huffing. "What's the matter Y/N" Lesso said and Y/N narrowed her eyes before grabbing the girl that was behind her and shoving her in. "This pesky Never keeps following me around and it's getting annoying" Y/N growled out as the blonde haired girl fell onto the ground."I'll leave you to it" Dovey said as she smiled softly before leaving the room. The door shut behind Y/N as she folded her arms. "And what do you want me to do about it" Lesso said as she raised an eyebrow while she stood up from her chair. "Anything I just want this girl off my back" Y/N huffed out as Lesso walked up to the two of them. Lesso walked past the girl who was now sitting on the ground. Lesso stopped right in front of Y/N before grabbing Y/N's jaw. Y/N looked up at Lesso as her nails dug into her cheeks. "And why haven't you done anything about it" Lesso said and Y/N just smirked. "Because it's much more fun and hotter when you do it" Y/N whispered out causing a wicked smirk to form on the Dean's lips.

Lesso leaned in before whispering something into Y/N's ear causing her to shiver.Lesso pulled away before turning to the girl that was still on the floor. "Why are you following her around" Lesso said and the girl gulped before standing up. "Well uh I just find Y/N interesting and I'm new here so" the blonde haired girl said and Lesso looked back at Y/N who rolled her eyes. Lesso looked back at the girl to see her brushing off her clothes. "God she even acts like an Ever dirt's not gonna hurt you blondey" Y/N growled out and the girl glared at her. "Alright that's enough you stop following her around" Lesso said pointing to the blonde girl who rolled her eyes before huffing. "You can go now" she said and the girl's eyes widened in shock. "Aren't you going to say anything to this two eyed colored freak" the blonde spat out and Y/N froze in place. Lesso slammed the girl against the wall harshly before grabbing her by the jaw. She dug her nails painfully into the girl's cheek causing her to whimper. "Don't you ever say that again do you understand me" Lesso growled out and the girl nodded. "Y-yes I understand L-lady Lesso" she stuttered out. "Get out of here" Lesso spat out before letting go of the girl. She watched her leave as she slammed the door shut behind her.

Lesso looked over at Y/N to see her still frozen in place making her frown. She walked over and stood in front of Y/N before cupping her cheek's. "Little Raven don't let those girl's words get to you, you have the most beautiful and enchanting eyes I have ever seen" Lesso said and Y/N looked up at her with tear filled eyes. "R-really or are you just saying that because I'm your girlfriend" Y/N stuttered out and Lesso wrapped her arms around Y/N's head and pulled her in. "Yes and no, you're the most beautiful person I have ever laid my eyes on and I'm not saying that because you're my girlfriend I'm saying it because it's true" Lesso whispered against the top of Y/N's head. "And I guarantee other people think that two like your friends" Lesso continued and she felt arms wrap around her. "Thank you Leo" Y/N muttered out and Lesso kissed the top of Y/N's head.

Next Day

Lesso and Y/N were called to the Headmaster's office the next day. They both made their way towards the Headmaster's office but before they could reach the single tower they were both knocked out. When they woke up their heads were pounding. "Oh thank God you two are alive I thought I hit you too hard" someone exclaimed making the two look up to see Professor Dovey and Hester standing there with a couple wolf guards. "What's going on" Y/N was the first to speak before she looked around to see she was in the good castle. "This is gonna be hard to say but you're gonna be executed well your clones are" Hester said and the two immediately looked at her. "What, what the hell are you talking about" Lesso said as she stood up staggering a little bit before clutching the back of her head. "When I was on my way back to the evil castle I saw a blonde haired girl making her way towards the Headmaster's tower, so I followed her and I heard the headmaster and the girl talking" Hester said and Y/N slowly stood up as her fists balled up. "That bitch" Y/N growled out. "They talked about how it was forbidden for a Dean and Student to have a relationship and planned on executing both of you in front of everyone" Hester continued and Y/N felt uneasy. Lesso looked over at Y/N and frowned before pulling her close. "When is it happening" Lesso asked the two that were standing in front of them. "Right now" Clarissa said as she looked out the window. They were all up in the highest room in the good castle.

"We can't possibly run away this is our home" Y/N shouted after Clarissa said that they had to disappear. "Y/N you have to understand you're technically dead well your clones are and if the others saw you they would know what happened" Clarissa said as she took a step towards Y/N but she backed away. "N-no I can't leave this place means everything to me, it holds so many memories I can't just leave" she said as tears started falling down her face. "Y/N Professor Dovey is right you have to leave" Hester said as her voice cracked a bit. Y/N was about to collapse to the ground but Lesso caught her. Y/N started crying as the two sat down on the ground. "I hate to tell you this Darling but the two of them are right" Lesso muttered out and Y/N cried more. The three never ever saw Y/N cry no one did she was always the tough Never. "We'll go pack your things well the wolf guards will I'll show you where you'll be living for now on" Clarissa said after a couple minutes. Lesso silently stood up before helping Y/N up.

Present Time

After the kids had gone back to their schools and went to bed, Dovey used her magic to turn into a dove before flying off. After a while of flying she landed in the grass next to a lake house. "AUNT DOVEY" someone shouted and she looked up to see a girl running up to her. The girl jumped into Dovey's arms causing the woman to laugh. "Hello Annalise" Dovey said before smiling as she rested the 6 year old on her hip.

"ANNALISE DON'T RUN OFF LIKE THAT" someone shouted getting Dovey's attention. She saw Y/N running out of the lake house causing her to smile.

"Hello Y/N dear" Dovey said as Y/N stopped in front of her. "Hello Dovey" Y/N said before smiling. Leonora came out holding a 1 year old boy while holding a 3 year old girls hand. Following her were two twins at the age of 9 and they were both boys. "Oh good lord you two" Clarissa said causing Leonora to smirk while Y/N rolled her eyes. "Hello Auntie" Seymour one of the twins said. "Hello Seymour and Axel" Clarissa said putting Annalise down. "So who are these two" Clarissa said kneeling down to the girls level. The girl hid behind her mother. "This is Eleanore and the boy is Blade" Y/N said grabbing the one year old from Leonora's arm. Blade clung to Y/N tightly hiding his face. Annalise, Seymour and Axel had Y/N's hair while having a purple and green eye. Eleanore and Blade have Leonora's red hair and green eyes looking exactly like Leonora. "I'm hoping for one more" Leonora said before smirking causing Y/N to smack her arm. Clarissa just chuckled before standing back up.

They heard squawking making them all look up to see a raven flying down before transforming into Hester. "AUNT HESTER" Eleanore shouted running to the black haired girl. Hester picked Eleanore up before hugging her tightly. "How's my little never doing" Hester said causing Eleanore to squeal. "Evil as ever Aunt Hester" Eleanore giggled out causing Hester to smirk. "That's my girl" Hester said. Y/N and Lesso looked at each other before smiling. They truly loved their little family and they couldn't be any happier.

A/N: This has been in my drafts since November and I finally had motivation to finish it!!!!

I hope you guys like it 😊

[udretlnea]

This All Feels Surreal

100 Follower Event Prize for Winner #1: @otoritoritori​

“One day, our encounter at this moment shall shine like a star of reminiscence in our hearts.”

Word count: 2.3 k

You observed the characters on your screen as you all struggled to fight the difficult enemies.  Barbara, Nilou, and Yunjin were doing their best while you were playing Xinyan at level 90 with max talents and a Wolf’s Gravestone.

You press the button for your Elemental Burst and immediately see multiple orange-colored five digits. Then, the words “Domain Cleared” appeared. 

At this point you get the rewards, leave the domain, accept the lower AR players’ gratitude, and then leave. You realize that you’ve run out of resin and log out; no point in playing any more than you needed to. You stand up, briefly stretching, before heading out. Today was a practice day: and for a young musician like yourself that meant playing the guitar for two hours with breaks in between.

You unceremoniously enter the music room filled with instruments you were familiar with; the one you regularly practiced with was already next to the chair. With a pleased sigh, you pick up your guitar. You run a hand on the strings rather slowly, appreciating how they felt, and sit down. You position your fingers and prepare to strum a song you’ve been practicing.

Suddenly, you hear something loud crash somewhere inside your house. You immediately freeze. You listen carefully, and, to your confusion, it sounds like a person-no, multiple people. 

Oh great, you think to yourself.  Just what I needed today. An attempted break-in. 

You stand up and swing your guitar over your shoulder as if it were a club; if there was one thing these intruders were going to take, it was a mean clubbing to the head!

…I give that one-liner a 7.5/10. You creep slowly towards where you thought was the source. If you were correct it was coming from your office/bedroom. You waited beside the door with your ear pushed against the door. You could just make out snippets of a conversation:

“Strange…this is not my room in the church?” A female with a light, airy voice asked.

“This isn’t Zubayr Theater…! Huh, who are you two?” says another one.

“My head is spinning…where am I? Is that you Xinyan?” says someone else with a dainty and refined voice.

“Huh? Yunjin? What’re you doin’ here?” says a fourth with what sounded like a…cowgirl accent?

Judging from the way they spoke they were most likely confused and had no idea what they were doing. It sounded like the perfect opportunity to get the jump on them.

Okay. Here goes, on the count of three.

One… You put your hand on the doorknob.

Two… You bend your knees and get ready to sprint in.

Three! In one swift motion, you open the door and scream at the top of your lungs; you dash in and prepare to wack these intruders when it happens.

Everything seems to move in slow-motion; your movements become sluggish as you feast your eyes on your intruders. One of them wore an outfit that looked vaguely church-related and had blonde hair. The second had something one would find in a theater play, at least that’s what it felt like, and had long jet-black hair. The third had dark brown hair with red streaks done in pigtails. Finally, a redhead with horns dressed in vague dancer attire.

Your eyes scanned their forms in the span of half a second and you realized something: they look exactly like those four characters from Genshin Impact, as in the ones you last saw before logging out.

You freeze mid-swing, which you realized was a good thing when you saw the blade attached to the guitar Pigtails had in her hand. 

The four of you are unmoving as you observe each other. Then, as if an unspoken command passed between you two, slowly lowered your arms. You lick your lips and open your mouth to say something.

“What the heck?”

////

“So let me get this straight,” you start pouring tea into Yun Jin’s cup. “You guys started having dreams about my world and the next thing you know all four of you appear in my room with no rational explanation?”

“That’s…about it. I know how strange that must sound, but it’s true,” said Barbara. You held a hand up disarmingly.

“I’m not saying I don’t believe you. I’m just trying to wrap my head around this.” You pour tea into Barbara’s cup next. The Deaconess gives a thankful nod.

“This all feels surreal,” Nilou chimes in. She takes a sip 

“So, what did you say your name was again? I kinda forgot it after the part where you asked us to join you for tea,” Xinyan said abashedly. You merely look into Xinyan’s eyes and smile sweetly as you pour her tea.

“Y/N.” Xinyan blinked and quickly looked away. You moved onto your cup now, completely ignorant of how the Liyue guitarist was hiding the small blush on her face.

“Thank you for your hospitality Y/N. I believe I speak for all of us here when I say you have our sincerest gratitude,” Yunjin said sincerely.

“Yes, thank you,” said Barbara.

“Thank you for the tea Y/N. Where did you get it?” asked Nilou. 

“It’s just from my uncle’s collection. Nothing fancy I’m afraid. I’m not well-versed in tea so I’m not sure if it’s to your individual tastes.”

“It’s alright. Although I’m not familiar with this flavor, the scent of berries and apples is a general favorite in Liyue,” Yunjin says conversationally.

“I can’t help but agree. Even though I haven’t tried tea before, I find this really appealing. Thank you truly Y/N.”

“It’s…you’re welcome.” You figure it was a lucky shot that you picked something vanilla. Oh well, small mercies and all that. 

“Hey Y/N, do you play guitar?” Xinyan steers the conversation away from tea. 

“Yes, I do. It gives me something to do while I wait here by myself.”

“You live here alone?” Barbara asks curiously, but not out of insensitivity.

“No, I live here with my uncle. He’s currently out at work. He’s nice, though. He mentors me when he has the time and we watch corny movies together.”

“Oh, are…your parents not around?” Nilou asks delicately.

“Mother and father are running their company overseas,” you say with a hint of bitterness in your voice. “Anyway, it’s nothing I can’t handle. I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

“So they just left you here with your uncle? Are you alright? Ah! I’m sorry if that offended you, I was just curious, really!” 

You put on an easy smile and shrug, trying to put on an air of nonchalance. Internally you cringed at the mention of them. “It’s alright Nilou. My parents…did not wish for me to suffer from moving around so much. At least, that’s what they told me. I’ve stopped thinking about it. They always make it back for my birthday if there's a silver lining. They try to be there, and I appreciate them for that.” 

The air isn’t as filled with as much tension from such an intimate topic. You drink your tea. 

“Hey Y/N, could I ask more about your guitar?” Xinyan leans forward and rests a hand on her cheek. 

“Hm? Oh, sure. What do you want to know?”

“Well, do you like rock & roll?” You take a moment to ponder the question. 

“It’s fun, I think. It’s not something I usually play on my guitar, but I do listen to it sometimes on the-er…I listen to it sometimes. Yeah.” You feel your gut twist up. Having to explain your “modern” devices to them would be difficult since their world hasn’t invented them. Best to avoid that conversation for as long as possible.

“Alright then. In that case, could I maybe share a song with you? If you’d like to hear one, I mean.”

“Maybe later. I need to keep up with my practice for my recital.”

“You…there are recitals for guitars? I didn’t know your music world was so inclusive for different instruments.” Yunjin puts a finger to her chin.

“Then…is there anything we can do in the meantime?” Nilou rubbed the rim of her teacup thoughtfully. “I don’t mean to intrude on your life Y/N, but I just feel so energized I can’t imagine myself sitting still.”

“I know what you mean, Miss Nilou. The idea of going out and exploring this world is exciting, to say the least,” Yunjin says.

“I’m not sure if that’s ideal. It would be safer if you all were eased into how things are. Hm, let me think.” In reality, your mind already presented a solution. You try to imagine anything else, but nothing comes to mind. Ugh. Fine. I may as well rip the figurative band-aid off. “Come to think of it, I believe that I have a solution that may satisfy the four of you.”

You felt four pairs of eyes stare at you inquisitively.

///

“You mean to tell me that there are musicians in your world that play each of our nations’ music?” Barbara asks incredulously. All of you were in the living room sitting on the couch; the three young ladies had a separate device in their hands playing their respective music genres.

“To think that opera here would be as similar to how the troupe performs is astounding! I guess there are some things that remain constant even in other worlds,” said Yunjin.

“Oh my, looking at these movements…suddenly I feel inspired to practice with these techniques! They’re like [insert simile here]”

“Looking at these idols perform is…enlightening? I could learn so much just from observing them.”

“So, er, why don’t I have one of your fancy gadgets?” Xinyan asked you. 

“Well, forgive me for being so sudden, but could I ask that you teach me what you know in playing  guitar?”

The spiky guitarist blinked. Then she let out a dry chuckle. “Su-sure!”

“I look forward to it,” you say. You turn and gesture for her to follow you. “We’ll be in the room nearby, so if any of you three need anything just holler!”

You were back inside the music room. Your guitar was resting on the chair next to it. You sling it over your head, opting to stand up. “I guess we’ll get started. Do you think you can watch me and try to point out any potential flaws?”

“Sure can.” You play a short melody. It was a basic one that even amateurs could do. You deftly switch your fingers every time you play another chord. Once you’ve finished, you look up and see Xinyan thoughtfully staring at the ground.

“Hmm, so far so good. I couldn’t help but notice that your hands are distanced an awful way from each other. Also, when you shift your fingers you kind of…well, inefficiently?”

“How so?” She scratches her head and arrives at an answer, judging by how her eyes widen in earnest. 

“Do you mind if I showed it to you?” You nod. She walks behind you. Xinyan takes your hands in hers and readjusts them, positioning them until they comfortably hug the guitar neck and body. She continued monologuing.

“Usually with my guitar I have to make sure I’m lifting it so that I won’t accidentally drop it. But with that guitar strap on you can just focus on switching chords. I noticed you’re raising the guitar neck higher than usual,” she explains as she leans in closer. “Done! What do you think, is it better?”

Your eyes couldn’t help but meet each other when they were this close. You stare into her amber eyes; she stares into yours. The moment passes one second too long. You felt your face heat up and quickly look away. 

“Yep. Better.”

Behind you, Xinyan makes a noise. You hear her mutter something, but you can only make out, ‘Boundaries Xinyan!’. She clears her throat. “Right. Shall we continue?”

You push down the embarrassment. “Yes. Let’s.”

You both continue practicing the guitar. A couple hours pass, and despite your fingers hurting like hell after it’s over, you can’t say you didn’t enjoy it. A glance at the window reveals that it was currently noon; at that moment your stomach grumbled. 

You look at Xinyan. “Huh, wanna take a break?” 

“Yeah, I’m starvin’! I guess this practice took a lot out of us huh?”

So, you two went and gathered the rest of the group; Barbara offered to help cook when you mentioned the idea of lunch.

“If we’re going to eat, then how about I pitch in and help? Consider it as my way of showing thanks for not kicking me out,” said Yunjin with a wink. 

“You’ve introduced me to this amazing new world. It feels like I’m a newly-born Anemo Slime, being carried by the wind to parts unknown. You’ve done a lot for me already, so the least I can do is make you something tasty,” Nilou said sincerely. 

I…guess when they put it like that, I have no choice but to accept right? You casually put your hands in your pockets. “So long as I get to help, then I’m alright with it.”

Soon, the kitchen was filled with various wonderful scents. Barbara and Xinyan occupied the stove while Yunjin and Nilou occupied the countertop; you helped where you could by bringing in ingredients or cooking utensils, but the four of them knew what they were doing. At last, the table was filled with delectable dishes. Food from Mondstadt, Liyue, and Sumeru made you salivate. After setting the table up you all dig in. 

While observing the people around you and listening to the four of them share experiences as performers, you feel a strange warmth envelop you. You can’t help but feel just a little more complete.

[secretkittywolf]

Stuff that everyone wants in Genshin, that I don't care about:

More resin. Not really bothered with it. Don't go artifact farming often and 160 is okay for me. Maybe cap Condensed Resin to 10 instead of 5, but other than that, not bothered.

Artifact loadouts. I don't use one artifact set for multiple characters. Would it be useful? Yes. I just don't need it.

Triple banners. You guys badly want this and the remarks that it'll come out soon since 3.0 is getting old now. If Hoyoverse outright says it, then I'll believe you.

Stuff that I would like in the game:

Weapon list. Basically, similar to the recommended artifact list, have one for weapons but it has 4 sections. The first is for the characters signature 5 star weapon, the second is for the 5 star alternative, the third is for the best 4 star & and final one is the best f2p weapon.

As an example- 5 star Yelan weapons:

Signature: Aqua Simulacra

Alternative 5 star: Polar Star

Best 4 star: The Stringless

Best f2p: Favonius Bow

4 star Beidou:

Signature: Wolf's Gravestone

Alternative 5 star: Beacon of the Reef Sea

Best 4 star: Serpent Spine

Best f2p: Katsuragikiri Nagamasa

Example:

Having something like this would be very handy for f2ps and newcomers. And if the best 4 star is a Battle Pass, having a section for craftable weapons or a 4 star banner weapon would be great for those who can't get Battle Pass weapons. Maybe even a 3 star in the f2p section since some, like Thrilling Tales, is great for catalyst users. It would never much better having this in game instead of looking up sites for information.

Reduce cooldowns:

Please please PLEASE reduce the cooldown on the recovery foods! It doesn't need to be 160 seconds. 60 seconds max! It's so infuriating when one character does and I have to wait ages until I can use the recovery food, especially when more than one character dies at the same time. Same with the oculi finder (not calling it a oculus resonance stone because it's too long) it's so painfully slow and waiting 200 seconds is ridiculous. Reduce to also 60. Same with some character cooldowns, reduce them too! Some people, including me, don't want to wait 20 seconds to use a skill or burst, make it 10!

Talent list:

Like the weapon list but it shows what is the best talent level for characters. I know that the best one you can get is 8, 8, 8 but for someone like Nilou, is triple 8 good or is 5, 6, 6 good too? And having some characters talent list be for 10, 10, 10 (or 10, 13, 13 if C6 is unlocked) to show you if triple crowning is worth it. Again, this would save time from looking up if it was in game.

Example:

Or for longer descriptions:

Finally, Constellation recommendations:

Say you just got your first 5 star character and everyone tells you "get its C2! The C2 is the best!" But wouldn't it be nice if it told you what C number is the best for that character in game?

It would be so useful because I didn't know that a C4 Yanfei was the best constellation until after I C6 her.

These are something that I'd love to see in the game!

[themerriweathermage]

Wrath and Ruin: Chapter Four

Chapter Four: Silvanus

Morning came too early, and Lydia was up before I ever stirred. “I thought it best to let you sleep.” I shook out the kinks from sleeping on the ground. As much as I hated to say it, sleeping in the dragon form was almost preferable to sleeping in this wolf form, phasing up to stretch out protesting muscles. “Breakfast?” I shook my head. At this point, with what loomed in front of me, I wasn’t particularly hungry. I would need to eat again before I took my dragon form, but that could wait a little bit longer. My path to what I was looking for would have to be made on foot.

“I’m going to head out.” I murmured. “No sense in waiting any longer.” She didn’t press me not eating, even though for a moment I could sense the concern. Instead she followed me out. This unfortunately wasn’t the time for small talk. I needed to concentrate and we needed to make fast tracks across unknown terrain. The countryside was overgrown. The highway that had once been here was still visible in splotches here and there beneath moss and dirt. Even the solar farm across the road had been swallowed by nature, although that was something to consider. I might see if anything could be harvested and taken back to the Badlands.

Another brick walled church marked the path I turned down. From here it was just a matter of time. I couldn’t say that I was really prepared for what awaited me, if there was anything left. And if I had to look, look and see what had happened, I wasn’t sure that I could take it. My pace slowed the more we came into view of the graveyard. I remembered the last time I was here. It wasn’t a good memory or a bad memory; it was just a memory. I had gone to say goodbye.

I don’t know if Lydia sensed it, but something told my senses that the air here was off. As if to prove our conversation last night about other magic users existing in this world right, I realized that the graveyard was warded. The magic was... stale, as if someone had set it a long time ago and it had simply never been pressed against. I wondered... who would have cared so deeply enough to respect this final resting place? Was it someone’s act of compassion or did they have loved ones who were buried here?

“It’s untouched.” Lydia murmured quietly, walking the rows of gravestones. Time stood still here, unaware of the world that had continued to spin on without it.

“It’s magic.” I replied. “A ward.”

“Yours?”

“No.” She glanced at me sharply. “But it is old.”

“I thought you said wards would unmake themselves on the death of the person who made it.”

“My wards will.” I murmured. “But this isn’t my vein of magic. This is not druidcraft.” I searched the names, pausing down a row. Pausing because my family name was written on the headstone. No one in the Badlands knew me by that name; few people even knew or called me by my full first name either. I let my eyes wander down one, down two, and in the third spot was my dad. I studied the marker. The year of death wouldn’t have been terribly long after I had disappeared. And it came as no surprise that my mother’s grave was beside his. Even in sickness, she never wanted to leave his side. Truly a ‘til death do us part’ couple.

And then my eyes fell down to the plaque between the two gravestones, a memorial marker no less. The one thing that I’d been hoping wouldn’t be there was there, with a name that no longer reflected who I was carved into the ornate stone. I knelt, my fingers tracing over the letters.

Here lies the memory of a beloved daughter and sister, who disappeared without trace. May the angels guide her path back home.

I scoffed then. My touch against the stone had revealed all. The arguments that followed their choice to put this here. The words that had been said and the way they had hurt the one person who loved me most. They knew. They had known, and yet they buried the memory of me in a religious rite. 

In a split second, I saw red, letting the rage take over, lifting the stone from the ground without effort and hurling it against a tree. “I wasn’t your daughter!” Lydia started out of the corner of my eye. “You buried a false memory of me! You had a son! A son to carry on your family name! But you buried a daughter; well, let me tell you that that person died a long time ago!” I seethed, feeling the change come over me, taking the stone and breaking it in half with my bare hands, not that they were particularly hands anymore. “He told you the truth! And you spat in his face. You couldn’t accept me for who I was.” My shoulders slumped, tears brimming in my eyes.

“You were my mother. My mother! How could you not?!” The tears came then. “How could you not love me for who I was?!” I folded myself in, sinking to my knees. “How could you hurt the one person who loved me most?” I whispered. I didn’t even want to think about how much he had been hurt by their words, or how much anguish it must have been to see my memory so willingly be tarnished.

“I didn’t mean to go.” I started. “I didn’t have a choice. I did not leave; I was taken.” I didn’t know if they could hear me. Some part of me hoped they could. Some part of me hoped that they could see me broken, to see what their words had done. “If only you could see the man I turned out to be, but even if you could, would you call me your son? Would you call me who I am? Would you call me by the name that fits me most? Would you call me Brenior, the enduring one?” I asked, wanting to fight and run and just... My chest heaved and my stomach was turning and I couldn’t bear the anguish that felt like it was tearing me apart inside.

Everything that had happened since we’d been thrown here all came pouring out in one agonized yell, like a bottle with too much pressure that had finally exploded, and I couldn’t even begin to describe the feeling. It was almost as if there was a power within me, bursting at the seams to be let out. A power begging to be released that wasn’t my Wrath, that didn’t belong to my anger or my temper, and I couldn’t carry it anymore.

Within the span of a minute, it felt-- and looked-- like a hurricane had ravaged the area, as power exploded out of me. I didn’t even know that I had that kind of power inside of me, but it had taken with it some of the aches and pains. Breathing came a little easier as I laid back in the wet grass, sapped of my strength. The only consolation I had was that Lydia had been protected during the affair. Even in the midst of everything, she remained shielded, protected by a thin ward that was quickly fading in the aftermath.

“Well.” A new voice sounded and my head immediately snapped up, eyes on alert. “That was quite the show.” The man stepped out from beneath the branches of the oak tree that had sprawled across the yard, undisturbed in these last years, and my mind immediately recognized that there was a part to him that wasn’t entirely human. My first instinct was to tuck Lydia behind me, and this action didn’t go unnoticed. “Is she your mother?” He asked. It took everything I had not to bare my teeth and raise my hackles at this intruder, the animal instinct in me ready to fight. “Your bonds burn so brightly.” I narrowed my eyes. There was something familiar about that statement and only I would know why. So who was this stranger who would recite my own words back to me? “You would die for her. You would kill for her.”

“Who are you?” I asked. He tilted his head to the side slightly. “Who are you to recite my own words back to me?” 

“I wondered if you would notice.” He stepped more into the light, taking the form, almost as if he were shapeshifting, of a man but a man adorned in twisting vines and stag antlers, life seeming to swarm around him in an aura. “But seeing how you two are like, I don’t find it surprising. Kin calls to kin.” When he took a step forward, life sprang forward to meet him, flowers and clover sprouting underfoot. It probably would have been in my best interest to step back at his approach but I held my ground regardless. “Tenacity. Most wouldn’t stand to greet me.”

“Who. Are. You?” I asked again. 

“In the common tongue, I am known as Silvanus.”

“The Oak Father. The god of druids.” I realized. That would certainly explain the phenomenon happening around him.

“Yes.” He replied. 

“Did you ward this place?” 

“Perhaps.”

“Why?”

“You were called to it, were you not?” Silvanus asked. “Not a place warded with a different magic than your own, but a place warded with a much more powerful magic, strong enough that not even you would recognize it on first glance.”

“You... wanted me to come here.”

“I wanted you to come to me a long time ago.” Silvanus started. “But it seems your duty as baron has outweighed that call.” He didn’t come any closer and yet I could feel as if he was right next to me. “And you’ve paid a high price for it.” I knew he was watching me, trying to gauge me, trying to gauge my reactions. My eyes flicked to the side, because I knew he had to be talking about the bruises, but I hadn’t entirely told Lydia the truth about why we had been leaving the Badlands.

“I think I’ve spent enough time chasing after things that aren’t important to my barony.” Silvanus offered me a wry smile, and I wondered if he knew, but he seemed to know things about me that only I would ever know, so my questions were probably answered already.

“But this is, is it not?” Silvanus asked. “As important if not more.” His eyes flicked over my shoulder to Lydia behind me and then back down. “I assume you feel a little bit better after your outburst, now that the power inside of you isn’t trying to eat its way out of you?” He asked.

“A fluke.” I replied. “A gift that’s cost me double its worth.” Silvanus let out an incredulous laugh, shaking his head at me.

“This isn’t the magic of the mountains that brought you and your sister those gifts. This is the magic of nature and all her glory, of Gaia and the nymphs, of thicketed forests and those who would wander in them, of rushing rivers and rhythmic tides. You kept it in, when it was begging to be let out. And it damn near killed you.” I blinked. Sure, Nix had reminded me that often magic came at a price, that overusing my gift could be causing my own pain, that it didn’t come without sacrifice. But what Silvanus was telling me... was the complete opposite.

“You weave it in ways only you know how, but even experienced druids would have a hard time containing the magic you have. You warded a man’s entire crop, did you not?”

“And it cost me.”

“Not in the manner you think it did.” Silvanus replied. “You were betrayed. Your magic knows you were betrayed. Your ward was built from hope. It’s hard to protect something when you’re being pulled in two opposite directions.”

“But...”

“You have a gift, Brenior Ithilion. Don’t you think it’s about time you started using it?” Silvanus steamrolled my protests.

“A gift. A directionless gift. That comes with no instructions.” He chuckled.

“Get lost in the wilds of your barony. A place will find you where you can learn more.”

“A grove.” I realized. He was telling me to find a grove. For us to meet? I had so many questions.

“If that is what you wish to call it.” And just as he seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, he disappeared into the mists that still remained after my outburst. I let out a soft sigh, sinking back into the grass with a million thoughts running through my head.

“Bren.” Lydia’s voice sounded so far away to me. “Brenior.” I glanced to the side to see her standing there, her hand reached for my shoulder but not touching, uncertain. The look in her eyes read what she wasn’t saying. She coaxed me to the tree, offering herself for a hug and it took everything I had not to launch myself at her. I didn’t want to hurt her, not like this especially, but the need for comfort overpowered that. I all but threw myself to her lap, burying my face against her and just crying until there was nothing left but dry sobs and shuddering hiccups.

Her touch seemed hesitant but considering the form I was in, I didn’t blame her. Careful fingers traced across the matte metallic scales, across my head and down my back in soothing motions. I knew the half shift was tied to strong emotions, anger, fear, sadness, pain. She didn’t say anything; she didn’t need to. The fact that she was there was enough. The fact that she had stayed was enough. Long after the tears had stopped, she stayed, she kept her hands on me, as if to make sure that I was okay.

“Are you alright?” She finally asked, her voice low and measured. I had turned into hellfire and wrath personified and destroyed what had been left of a life I no longer had. Now the only memories were the memories that rested with the dead. I leaned back against her, staring off into the distance, eyes unseeing.

“I... I want to hurt myself.” I admitted lowly. Her sharp intake of breath told me she was concerned. “I don’t want to kill myself; I just want to hurt myself. I want to make the pain I feel on the inside show on the outside. Not for sympathy or for pity, but to know that it’s real, to see it be real, to see the blood as if someone’s twisted a knife in my heart because it certainly feels that way.” I replied.

“Is... that why you’ve stayed like...” Like this? With an armor that’s impenetrable by normal human standards? 

“It’s tied to strong emotion. Most shifts I can do without thinking; they come almost second nature. But this one? But wrath? Wrath has a short fuse and a long cool down.” I admitted. “I’ll come out of it eventually, when the feeling passes.” When I don’t have the urge to destroy everything I’ve worked so hard to keep. Even in a half dragon form, I could still see the scars. And I knew it was the subconscious reason that I kept myself so mostly modest to my barony, even though I didn’t have to be anymore.

I couldn’t put the hurt into words. It was strangely reminiscent of loving someone so much it hurts only to have that love be dashed against the rocks, which was also strangely reminiscent of what had happened with Quinn, but worse. Worse because they had been my family and because they hadn’t seen me for who I was or wouldn’t see me for who I was, even after I had been lost. Worse because I would have brought down the moon and stars for my mother and yet still I’d been laid to rest with rites I didn’t believe in, blessed even, in rites I didn’t believe in.

“When I realized that it probably wasn’t safe to come out to my folks, I... tested out a last name. Something that didn’t tie me to anyone in this world. Ithilion, I called myself, in the same language that Brenior comes from.”

“What does it mean?”

“Son of the moon.” I sighed softly. “I was born in the morning hours. Too small and too weak for this world.”

“And yet you endured.” A small smile edged to my lips, the shift beginning to fade. And yet, I endured. She got it.

“Through hell and high water.” I murmured. Silence fell over the area, even more than normal it felt like.

“Bren?” I made a low sound. “I know it’s not my place, but... if you want me to call you my son...”

“I couldn’t impede.” I murmured. “I... Ryder...”

“Was an adult who made his own decisions. I do not hold you responsible for his death. Nor would you be replacing him. But if you want me to call you my son...”

“I’d like that.” I whispered. “Mom.”

[ohanahoku-ao3]

Whumptober 2023 Day 25

Still working on getting these out, so enjoy some Stiles whump! :D

Teen & Up - Gen, F/M (Minor) - Teen Wolf

Grave Danger

     Beacon Hills had gotten too weird for Stiles. Werewolves were one thing, and he dealt just fine with the kanima. But he drew the line at zombies. Zombies were a step too far for Stiles, and as far as he was concerned, Beacon Hills could go to hell if it wasn’t there already. Of course, abandoning his hometown would be a lot easier when he wasn’t being marched toward the cemetery by said zombies.

     Stiles glanced around at them, shivering at the cold emanating from their pale corpses. He didn’t know why he was still alive. From what they’d seen, these zombies weren’t like the ones in the movies. They couldn’t transform others with a bite, but that didn’t mean they weren’t dangerous. Undead people who could keep moving even after being shot or mutilated could do a lot of damage with their blunt teeth and long nails. Stiles shuddered at the memory of what those poor people in town had looked like after the first attack. Humans could do such horrible things when their humanity and souls were taken from them.

     Which begs the question: Why is he alive and not in pieces?

     The only answer he could come up with could have been a better one. Because if they weren’t hurting him, that meant they had to be controlled by someone. And that meant that whoever was controlling them wanted Stiles alive. That thought was as relieving as it was terrifying for what it could mean.

     The grass was damp from the night air as Stiles was marched into the cemetery, the dew seeping into his sneakers. The smell of freshly overturned dirt soon reached him as they rounded a few sculpted bushes, and Stiles’ stomach dropped as he saw the slender pit in front of him. It was a newly dug grave, and in the low lighting of the cemetery, Stiles could see a name emblazoned on the headstone above it. ’Mieczyslaw Stlinski.’

     His feet felt rooted to the spot as he stopped short, a zombie bumping into him and grunting before it stilled.

     Beside the grave, a man stood half-turned away from him, his face obscured by shadows. “So nice of you to join me, Miecyzslaw.” The man said, and Stiles started at the sound of his given name being perfectly pronounced.

     “Who are you?” Stiles asked, a slight waver in his voice as his eyes helplessly trailed back to the gravestone and read the rest of the inscription. ‘Born April 8th, 1995, Died September 17th, 2011.’  

     A match flared, catching the stretch of the man’s grin as he lit a cigarette, taking a puff before releasing smoke into the air. “Let’s just say I’m an old friend of your father.”

     “Yeah, I’m not buying that,” Stiles said, glancing at the zombies that flanked him. Their cold hands were gripping his arms, the touch sending shivers up and down his spine from more than just the cool temperature of their fingertips. He didn’t want to think about the rot and mold that composed a significant amount of their bodies.

     The man laughed, shaking his head as he lifted his cigarette to his lips once more, the tip flaring red as he turned to face Stiles, pale light catching on his face.

     Stiles’ eyes slowly widened in recognition of the man, the killer in front of him. “I remember your face. My dad busted you.”

     “Heh, good memory, kid. Yeah, he got me dead to rights, put me behind bars.” Vince Davies, a local known for killing his girlfriend and her brother some nine years previous when Stiles was only six years old, said. “Good old, gold-hearted Deputy Stilinski,” He sneered. “Guess he’s the sheriff now, though, ain’t he?”

     “He is. Busting your sorry mug definitely helped push him up the ladder to that promotion.” Stiles said, never one to play the meek and mild in such situations.

     The man’s eye twitched, and he scowled at the mocking tone. “Yeah, well, while he was profiting from my misfortune, I spent nine years rotting in a stinking cell.” Vince snarled, tossing his cigarette away. “Do you know what maximum security is like, kid? It’s like living in your grave, unable to do anything but sit there and rot.”

     “It’s what you deserve for what you did,” Stiles told him, clenching his fists angrily as he recalled the old police file about the case. He’d only gotten a glimpse of it before his mom found him, but the graphic pictures of mutilated bodies would linger in his mind for years to come, perhaps forever.

     “Don’t preach to me about things that people deserve! They deserved to die!” The murderer shouted, striding forward a few steps and getting right into Stiles’ face. “Just like your father’s going to.”

     Stiles pulled his head back a bit, grimacing at the nicotine-filled breath that blew across his face. “If you want him dead, then where do I fit in on all of this? Answer me that. If you just wanted to kill me for revenge, shouldn’t he be here?”

     Vince grinned, a glint in his eyes that dripped terror down Stiles’ spine. The man pulled back, stepping to the side of the grave, his hands clasped behind his back as he stared into the pit. “I had a cellmate in jail. Crazy guy, he was. Most thought he wasn’t all there mentally, but he taught me things. I learned things about the outside world, this world that’s so much more than the idiot populace thinks it is. You’ve seen it. This world has werewolves and creatures that defy logic. It has mystical and magical elements that most can’t begin to fathom. Few ever learn of these things, but I did. Before he died, my cellmate taught me everything I needed to know about bringing the dead back to life.”

     Necromancy, the word sounded in Stiles’ mind, and he shuddered at the name of the unethical practice.

     “Now that I'm out, I'm going to get my revenge, and you're going to help me, Miecyzslaw. At first, I planned to use your dead mother for this.”

     Stiles’ anger flared at the thought of the man resurrecting his mother as one of the mindless zombies, and he struggled against the cold grip on his arms.

     “Too bad she was cremated.” Vince lamented. “It would have been brilliant to have your father killed by the woman he loved. But I suppose he'll be just as devastated when he sees your corpse come to kill him.”

     With a flick of his fingers, the deranged man called his zombie puppets into action. Stiles cried out as they started shoving him toward his grave. “Hey, wait, hold on! Come on, you don't want to deliver a perfect body like mine to the grave!”

     The undead paid him no mind, and as Vince laughed, Stiles was thrown into the hole. He landed on his stomach, getting a mouthful of dirt as the wind was knocked out of him. Something heavy dropped onto his legs, and as Stiles desperately started pushing himself up, another weight landed on his back, knocking him back down as he shouted in pain.

     His hands scrambled in the loose dirt, searching for purchase, for something to grab for leverage. But the ground was too soft, and the objects on top of him were too heavy, leaving him trapped in the bottom of the grave.

     “Sleep well, Miecyzslaw Stilinski. I’ll be seeing you soon.” Vince intoned above him, and Stiles screamed as dirt started to rain down on top of him.

     The dirt built up swiftly as multiple zombies worked to fill the grave, and soon, Stiles’ screams turned to gasps of air as he struggled to lift his head above the silt, hands trying to push the dirt away from his head. Eventually, he stopped making noise at all as he tilted his head forward and tried with his hands to block the dirt from reaching his mouth, holding his breath as he attempted to form a pocket of air around his face.

     Panic seized his chest, though, making it hard to think clearly and hold his breath for very long. There was no way out of this. No one knew Stiles had been taken, so no one was coming after him.

     He had no idea how long he’d been buried when his meager air supply ran out, and Stiles held his breath like he was drowning, heart pounding in his ears and his head feeling ready to explode. In the utter darkness of his grave, Stiles lost consciousness, surrendering against his will to the inevitable.

*************************

     Air forced its way into Stiles’ lungs, and he woke with a gasp of pain, rolling over and curling on his side as he coughed roughly before greedily inhaling oxygen-rich breaths. Beside him, someone let out a sound of relief, and when Stiles calmed slightly, he rolled back onto his back to blink up at Lydia and Peter kneeling next to him.

     “I felt you die,” Lydia whispered, staring at him with wide eyes. “I felt you die, Stiles.”

     “You brought me back.” Stiles rasped, staring up at her in shock, remembering the brief feel of soft lips against his right as he woke up. His chest ached as he breathed in, and his eyes drifted over to Peter and narrowed. “And you broke my ribs.”

     “Cracked, you'll live,” Peter said, extending his hand.

     Stiles grabbed the proffered hand and grunted as he was slowly pulled to his feet. He took in the sight around him as he stood, and his eyes widened. The cemetery was littered with corpses, most of them sans heads, and their puppeteer lay on the ground next to Stiles’ grave with deep slashes across his throat.

     As Stiles’ eyes wandered away from the body, they lit on his grave, noticing the shovels beside a mound of dirt and the tracks formed in the soil where shovels were exchanged for bare hands. He looked back at Peter and Lydia as the former helped the latter to her feet, eyes flicking down to their dirt-stained hands, the former's also stained with blood. “You really saved my life. You killed them and dug me back up, knowing I was already dead. And you brought me back.”

     Lydia straightened her skirt with shaky hands and exhaled before squaring her delicate shoulders. “Well, if there's one thing I know, it's that not all dead people stay dead.” She said, looking back at Peter.

     Peter looked away, huffing a slight laugh. “We got to you before Davies could start the ritual, so you won’t turn into a zombie.”

     Stiles nodded, some residual panic melting away at the reassurance. He gestured to the zombies on the ground. “What happened to them?” He asked, indicating their lack of heads and claw marks.

     “I screamed,” Lydia said, her lips pressing together. A haunted look lingered in her eyes as they met Stiles’ gaze. “I screamed, and their heads exploded.”

     Stiles blinked, glancing between her and Peter, his mouth opening and closing like a fish for a moment before his hands gently gripped her arms. “Oh my God, are you okay?”

     “I don't know.” She admitted, pressing her lips together and shaking her head slowly.

     “She'll be fine,” Peter told them, glancing toward the road. “Police are on their way. We shouldn't be here when they arrive.”

     The two teens nodded and fell into step behind him as he led them out of the cemetery, Stiles’ arm around Lydia.

     “I'm gonna have to tell my dad,” Stiles said as they left in Peter's car. “I'm not keeping this from him anymore.”

     Peter looked back at him but said nothing, and in the silence that followed Stiles’ statement, sirens filled the night air.

[bonky-n-steeb]

this probably isn’t a good idea but this has been bobbing in my head for awhile…what if bucky had killed one of y/n’s close family members like their sibling or parent(s) or anything like that while he was winter soldier and they’re one of the people on bucky’s list in tfatws to make amends and he’s like taking them on dates and stuff to show them he’s sorry and he remembers their family member and bucky ends up catching feelings for them??

this is probably a TERRIBLE idea and i’m probably making myself look DUMB MAYBE U COULD MAKE IT A LOT BETTER IDKXKENDDN I ADORE YOU AND YOUR BLOG EEEE

Thank you!!!! You made me blush. 🥰 This is an AMAZING idea and I’ll come there and bonk you if you ever again say it’s terrible. Ily 😘 I hope you like it!

the sun and the shadow

𝙗𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙮 𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙭 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 || angst with a happy ending

this is not proofread :/

This reminds of that post I’d seen where it was like you go on a date with Bucky and he tells you he killed your grandma 😂

Bucky wanted to tell you. He really did. But how could he? How could he tell you about his heinous crimes when you were all he had.

Bucky still remembered your first meeting. He had cancelled the names above you on the list and now it was your turn. It was simple, he was going to confess and apologise and walk away towards a new day.

His therapist had said it would help him. He still didn’t know how removing the scabs on his wounds would ever be good for him; but he did it nonetheless.

And it was probably helpful. He could sleep much better at night knowing that there wasn’t anything to hide anymore. But he would never say this out loud; he had a grumpy reputation to maintain after all.

But then he’d met you. You were waiting for some blind date at a restaurant when he had approached you. He was about to introduce himself but before that, you’d considered him to be your blind date.

You couldn’t believe that the white wolf was your blind date. The one and only Bucky Barnes. Like were the avengers on tinder too?

Bucky thought maybe it was for the better and had started talking with you. I’ll tell her at the end of the night, he told himself. But just like your actual date, the end of the night never came.

And one date, extended to two; and two became three, and it went on. Bucky hadn’t told you he wasn’t your actual date and neither did he tell you that he had killed your only brother.

He had been on a mission where along with a few others, he had killed your brother. Back then, the soldier didn’t feel any remorse. He wasn’t programmed to feel. But now the guilt ate him every moment of his life.

He knew that the day the truth would spill out, was the day you’d leave him. And just the thought of losing you brought upon immeasurable pain.

You were filled with life and your eyes twinkled with hope as you spoke and he couldn’t blame himself for wanting to have a share of your light. You were the sun and he was the shadow.

There wouldn’t be a shadow without the sun just like there wouldn’t be darkness without light. And he too would cease to exist without you.

Hydra had sucked out his memories and emotions. And even after his memories were back, he never thought he’d ever feel again. But then you made him feel.

He felt proud when you laughed at his jokes and he felt happy when you baked cookies. He felt jealous when someone looked at you the wrong way and he felt sad when you cried. Most importantly, he felt love every time he saw you.

But today was going to be the most difficult day he was yet to live. Today was your brother’s death anniversary and you had trusted him enough to ask him to be with you when you visited your brother’s grave.

He couldn’t deny you that. But he couldn’t keep this secret any longer either. He was finally going to tell you. Even if you slapped him and walked away, he would take the pain you gave willingly.

Bucky patiently waited for you in his car. When you came out of your house and sat besides Bucky, your eyes were red rimmed and he was pretty sure you had cried the previous night.

He asked you if you were fine and only when you nodded did he start his car. The entire ride you both were silent. You were lost in the memories of your brother while he was debating when to tell you.

When you reached the graveyard, you walked towards your brother’s grave while Bucky stood at a distance. He knew you needed some alone time with him.

You placed the flowers you had brought near the gravestone and quietly leaned against it. You wanted to tell him so much, but at the same time you couldn’t quite speak a word.

Never in your life had you thought he’d leave you so soon. But fate was cruel and death always took the best people. You just hoped he was happy and at peace wherever he was.

Every year after his passing, you’d come here and tell him the highlights of your year. This time was no different; you him about your promotion, your new car and most importantly Bucky.

Bucky was nothing like you’d expected him to be. He was caring, resourceful and loyal. He was a gentleman through and through. You were sure your brother and Bucky would be friends if he were alive.

Once you were done, you walked towards Bucky with a smile. He on the other hand looked tense and worried. “I want to tell you something.”

You nodded him to go ahead. “I… I killed your brother.” There was no point sugar coating it. Now that it was out of his system, he felt much better; though he knew what was to come.

“What?” You couldn’t digest words that fell on your ear. “When I was the winter soldier.. I, uh… I murdered him.”

He saw how your face crumbled, how your nose scrunched up and how the tears rushed to your eyes. You opened your mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

You walked behind until your back hit a tree and sagged against it. “Go away. Please.” Your voice was hoarse from all the crying and there was an underlying pain in it.

Bucky wanted to hold you and tell you how much he loved you. But the he was cause of your misery, wasn’t he? He had been selfish; if he had told you on the first day itself you wouldn’t feel this heartbreak.

Holding your head in your palms, you tightly closed your eyes and refused to watch him walk away. And the only question you asked to god, again and again was, why?

~~~

The tv screen was playing some football match as Bucky sat on the floor of his house, loathing himself. There were discarded beer bottles and leftover chips just laying around on the floor.

He knew he was supposed to clean the house and go to work. But he didn’t feel like doing anything. No matter what he did, your thought never left his mind.

He missed it when the first time it happened, but the second time his ears perked up when he heard the bell go off. Someone was here to visit him. He was 99% sure it must be Sam.

Before answering, he checked his phone. He almost gasped when he noted it been two whole days since the incident and he hadn’t even realised. God lord, he needed to get it together.

When he opened the door, he saw the last person he expected to, you. You offered him a bright smile when you saw him and he returned it back. Everything didn’t seem so difficult anymore.

“Um, hey!” He didn’t know why your mood suddenly became awkward. He followed your eyes and looked down. He wanted to smack himself when he realised he was practically naked save for his boxers.

“Oops! Wait a minute!” Bucky replied as he sprinted back into his bedroom. It wasn’t as if you hadn’t seen him in his boxers, but right now it was purely awkward.

When he came back, he was wearing a Henley and sweatpants. “Hi!” He shyly ran his hands through his hair. “I thought it was… over.” Bucky felt heavy even while saying it out loud.

“Do you want it to be?” Your intentions of coming here were much different. “No. I…” Bucky couldn’t say anything further. “I want us to be together.”

Bucky stared at you as if he’d seen a ghost. Did you just say that or was he imagining it? “But I…” You sighed as you began speaking,

“Yeah I know. I thought a lot in these two days. What you did wasn’t up to you. I can’t blame you for what hydra did. It wasn’t at all your fault.

And Bucky I love you.” Without being able to stop for a moment, he engulfed you into a bear hug. “You… you forgive me?” He was the happiest he had ever been.

“Bucky, there is nothing to forgive. But if it makes you happy, then yes I forgive you.” Oh, how had Bucky yearned to listen to those words.

“I have to tell you two things too.” You pouted, what did he want to tell you now? “Second, I’m not your actual blind date. I came there to tell you about your brother but you considered me your date and I couldn’t stop you.”

Bucky was shocked to see you laughing. “I… I know!” Bucky stared at you with wide eyes. “That idiot called me a day later and told me his boss told him to work over time so he couldn’t come. And I knew it definitely wasn’t you who was supposed to be coming.”

Bucky chuckled as he pulled you closer. “And what’s the first thing?” You asked in a sultry tone. “The first thing is,… I love you.”

You pulled his face down and kissed him. “As much as I love you, I need you to take a bath Bucky. You stink!” Bucky winked back, “Anything for you doll.”

[tatney]

OKAY SO. i’ve been thinking about the rope shovel hole scene from the inside the character teaser again and i just!!!!!

i can’t help but think that, since we know that this iteration of wednesday couldn’t give less of a fuck about modern social media or technology (she skypes with a literal crystal ball), enid is going to be the one to bring up emojis in conversation. she’s probably got like a dozen icebreaker questions in mind to make friends with wednesday (we love an autistic that scripts!!!) and one of them is gonna be “if you were an emoji, which one would you be”

and i KNOW that she’s gonna be trying So hard to be friendly to wednesday, and might just say that she reminds her of one of these emojis, take your pick bc they’d all be funny to me: 👿🕷👻💀🥷🧛🏼‍♀️🦇🪦☔️🔮🌑 (omg i actually think it’d be kind of romantic if she compared her to the new moon emoji. what’s wrong with me these are emojis) and while there’s no cello emoji unfortunately, i think she’d call her the 🎻violin emoji instead bc it’s the closest she’s gonna get. also if enid finds out how Good wednesday is at fencing (if she sees her doing it with her own eyes…. oh bless her poor little gay heart) then she would also add the🤺 fencing one to the roster. [emojis from left to right: frowning devil, spider, ghost, skull, ninja, female vampire, bat, gravestone, rainy umbrella, crystal ball, new moon, violin]

and i think the ones that enid would say that She connects with would be: 🐺🥰🐾✨🎆🧸💖🌕🐱🐶🥳 and most likely some sort of sugary food (i couldn’t decide between lollipop, cake or cookie lol) [emojis from left to right: wolf, smiling face with hearts, paw prints, sparkles, fireworks, teddy bear, heart with sparkles, full moon, cat, dog, partying emoji]

there’s also the chance that wednesday is just aware of emojis existing due to reluctant social osmosis from prior schools, which is why she probably doesn’t know that there aren’t any actual shovel or rope emojis. it’s either that or, truly just bless her little heart, enid is going to have to Explain Emojis. to Wednesday throws deadly piranhas into the school swimming pool Addams

and all of this i KNOW is gonna be the scene in question fucken HURT when wednesday vaguely threatens her life in response to enid trying to be her friend!!!!! like look at her little face!!!! the fucken “whyre you being mean” face the “I just want to be your friend” face the “you don’t have to be fucking rude /ref” face to the “omg don’t look like ur gonna cry in front of her then she Wins” face

[andreafmn]

I'm Not Afraid - Chapter 1

Word Count: 3,325

Characters: Female Reader Argent Character, Original Male Argent Character, Derek Hale, Allison Argent, Scott McCall, Stiles Stilinski, Isaac Lahey, Lydia Martin, Chris Argent, Jackson Whittemore

Story Description: (Y/N) Argent arrived at Beacon Hills to put to rest her father's sister, Kate Argent. For the first time, her family has decided to settle down and sustain a life in this interesting small town. After 17 years, (Y/N) has the opportunity to establish interpersonal relationships but will she be ready to face the complications that come with relating to her cousin's, Allison, friends; especially, the infamous Derek Hale. She will face the adventure of being associated with the Derek and McCall pack as well as being faced with the discovery of certain aspects of her life she never imagined.

*DISCLAIMER* I do not own in any way Teen Wolf, all credits of the pre-established characters, script, and storyline belong to Jeff Davis and MTV Network. The only thing I own is Argent Reader insert, her immediate family, and her storyline, as well as her effects in the others' storyline.

Chapter: 1/?

Chapter Description: (Y/N) finally arrives at Beacon Hills for the funeral of her aunt and meets a certain wolf to which she feels a special connection.

A/N: Second fandom I'm writing for. I love Teen Wolf so much and the trope of hard Derek but only soft for you makes my heart sing. If you enjoy my writing I’ll also be posting them in AO3 and Wattpad along with other stories (I also hope to start taking requests if ya’ll want) Hope you enjoy and all constructive criticism is encouraged.

Next ->

Chapter 1

I hugged the black coat to my body as hard as I could whilst pushing through the sea of press. Our family's last name became quite known after the reports about my aunt, whose burial we were attending. She had allegedly burned down a house with people in it.  She killed them in cold blood. I hugged my grieving uncle and his less grieving wife, then my cousin who had a painful look on her face. I hugged her the longest. She let herself crumble on my arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Even though she was a horrible person she was still our aunt, family.

I took my seat behind Allison when my father, my mother, uncle Chris, and aunt Victoria stood up. Allison didn't lift her head and neither did I. I just tried to comfort her.

"It's been such a long time I don't expect you to call me grandpa." We both looked up to see a white-haired man who resembled the Argent features. "Don't worry about it, just call me Gerard." He hugged both of us, an overpowering aura emanating from his being. When we were engulfed, I looked to the side and saw two boys squatting behind a gravestone. If they were hiding, they were doing a horrible job at it.

"But I prefer Grandpa," Gerard said walking to his seat. I sat back down and drifted off during the whole ceremony. Once it was over, I joined my parents and we drove to our new house. I have a feeling that life here will be very interesting.

That weekend I decided that I had been putting working out off for too long. I changed into comfortable workout clothes and gave food to my dog, Brody. I headed out the door, put my earbuds on, and started to jog. I really didn't know where I was going since it was a new place for me, all I know is that I kept running until I reached the woods. The bad thing about this, I had no idea how to get back home. Even though I knew of this sidetrack and I knew I would be late to get back home, I kept running, needing a release from the mundane feeling of being new in town and having to reunite from our estranged family in a funeral.

I had gained a lot of momentum. God knows how fast I was running at this point that is until I hit something, it almost felt like a wall. When I looked up, I saw a very handsome guy. Spiked hair, green eyes, and slight stubble. If it weren't for the fact that I was already sweaty I would have started to sweat showers of how nervous I was. That is until he opened his mouth.

"Watch where you're going." He growled at me.

"How about you fucking move and not be a prick?" He looked at me with big eyes, probably in surprise, but quickly changed to his menacing look. Who was he trying to fool?

"Well, this is private property, which means that you're trespassing, meaning you should pay more attention to your surroundings."

"I'm sorry but a burnt-down house with almost no walls or roof is barely a property. So, how about you stop being an idiot and I can be on my way." I started to jog once again but he gained my attention once more.

"You're new here, aren't you?" I turned around to face him.

"What's it to you?" He raised his eyebrow.

"I'll take that as a yes." The cockiness oozed out of his pores.

"And why the hell should that matter?"

"Because no one would dare talk to me that way."

"Who would be afraid of a little sour wolf?" He tensed up. "Dude, chill. I'm just kidding. But I doubt anyone would be afraid of Mr...."

"Hale. Derek Hale." He said extending his hand to me. Gee, after screaming at me he wants us to be acquaintances. I thought about not shaking his hand, but I didn't want to be rude. Well, more than I have been already.

"(Y/N). Argent." I shook his hand. Strong grip. Suddenly I felt a rush of déjà vu; I had met him the day before. "Wait, aren't you that guy I accidentally hit with my grocery cart yesterday?"

"Yeah, that really hurt. You hit my ankle. You could've had me limping."

"But you're not, so be grateful I didn't break your ankle." He laughed. "Damn, if I had known how cocky you really were, I would've hit you harder."

"So, you admit that you hit me?"

"Oh yeah, of course, I hit you. Accidentally that is."

"Yeah, yeah."

I looked around trying to find where the hell I had come from but there wasn't even the slightest trail as to where I was to go.

"So, miss (Y/N). Do you even know your way home?"

"No, but I'm sure I can find my way back." Then, he took keys out of his pocket and pointed to his car.

"Come on, I'll drive you around and you just tell me when something seems familiar."

"And why should I go with the guy that almost ripped out my throat for bumping into him? For all I know you could be driving me to my death." I crossed my arms over my chest, and he let out a loud sigh.

"Look, I'm sorry for snapping. But I'm trying to be nice. That doesn't happen very often."

"Alright, Mr. Hale. I'll let you take me home just because you are being nice now, after being a prick, and I'm exhausted."

"See, no one can resist me." I rolled my eyes at his cockiness. Seriously does he buy cans of it on eBay?

"Don't get cocky with me. I can punch the living daylights out of you." He chuckled and started to drive.

We drove for about 20 minutes until I finally recognized the curb that led to my house. Upon arriving at my driveway, I got out of the car and walked to the driver’s side.

"Give me your hand” For some reason, I felt compelled to do so. He took a pen and wrote down a number. "Call me if you ever need a tour of the town."

Three weeks later, I walked inside the school to meet up with Allison. I moved here with my family since dad had some business taking float. Being the new kid in town is never fun. I would know. I switch schools almost every year. The pro and con about this would be not being attached to anyone. Usually, I'm the one who doesn't talk to anyone and is called a freak. A derogatory term given to people who are way too different from others, but a title I wore proudly.

"Oh my gosh, (Y/N)! How have you been?" Allison wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tightly. It was as if she hadn't seen me just three weeks ago.

"Hi, Allison. I've been good, getting acclimated to the new town. You?" You would think that because we were cousins, I would be more affectionate towards her but honestly, I wouldn't see her again for like three more years, so what's the point?

"I'm good. A little rocky at the start of coming here but good." Then, a boy with a buzz cut and one with great brown hair walked by and smiled at Alli. "Ooh, you should come meet my friends. Stiles, Scott!! Come here." The boys turned around with goofy grins on their faces.

"Hey, Allison. Who's this?" Buzzcut kid said.

"This is my cousin, (Y/N). She just moved here from Virginia."

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Scott." The one with the great hair said.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Stiles." I shook their hands and smiled.

"Nice to meet you, too, buzzcut." Allison and Scott laughed but Stiles only ran his hand through his hair, suddenly becoming hyperaware of his lack of locks.

"Allison. Who might this sexy lady be?" I rolled my eyes. The last thing I need is a narcissist with a god-complex trying to get close.

"Oh, Jackson, this is my cousin, (Y/N)."

"Hi." He extended his hand and looked me up and down.

"Hi." I smiled sarcastically, and when I didn't extend my hand, he dropped his.

Finally, after standing awkwardly behind Allison whilst her friends talked, the bell rang. Talk about saved by the bell.

"Hey, (Y/N), what's your first class?" I checked my schedule.

"Um, chemistry."

"Oh, good, then you're coming with us to Mr. Harris' class," Scott said pointing towards him and Stiles. I smiled and walked behind them.

Once we got to the classroom everyone turned to me, the ever-present sign of being new in the class evident in the stare of my classmates.

"Um, hi, my name is (Y/N) Argent and I'm new." The teacher, whom I guess is Mr. Harris, turned around to face me.

"Oh, yes, Miss Argent. Welcome. You will be sitting next to Isaac Lahey. Lahey, raise your hand." Once Isaac raised his hand, I noticed he was sat near Stiles and Scott. Two people I was trying to avoid. As I walked past, I accidentally pushed Stiles' book on his lap, startling him, resulting in an awkward descent from his lab stool onto the floor.

"Hi, again. I guess we are gonna see a lot of each other for the rest of the school year." I nodded and he scratched the back of his neck. "So, um, what school did you come from?"

"Lancaster High," I responded whilst writing down what Mr. Harris was writing on the board. Stiles kept trying to talk to me, but I would only give him short, cold answers or just ignore him. That is until Mr. Harris called our attention, that's when he finally got the memo to shut up.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but I just wanted to introduce myself since we're gonna be seated next to each other all year. I'm Isaac."

"I figured." I tried giving him my best smile. The vibe he was giving off seemed like he needed it. "I'm (Y/N)."

"Well, nice to meet you, (Y/N). Now I'll leave you to the class because if I don't I know I'll be failing even more than I am."

"Oh, well, maybe I can tutor you some time. I'm actually really good at science. My mom was a chemist professor once upon a time so I'm bound to understand all this."

"Really?!" His puppy eyes seemed to light up and I nodded. "That would actually be amazing."

"Sure thing. Now let's get back to class."

After Chemistry finished, I put everything in my bag as quickly as possible and sped to my next class, Math. Thankfully, none of Allison's friends shared this class with me but I did share it with Isaac.  I didn't consider him much a friend but more an acquaintance in desperate need of help.

As the day progressed, I noticed the rest of my classes were shared with one or more of Allison's friends. They all tried to strike up a conversation but were quickly discouraged when met with my one-worded or vague answers. Especially, Stiles. He tried especially hard to get answers out of me, only being met with the occasional laugh or stare at his comical occurrences. He seemed like the kind of person you could just open up to. The same could be said about Scott. His shy nature was alluring, and he portrayed himself as a very trustworthy and loyal being.

But I would not allow myself to let them in. My whole being yearned for a real friendship, someone to share nothing and everything; never again.

At lunch, I sat outside and ate my food quietly, a book in front of my face to shield my eyes from the sun the prevalent stares of my peers. After some minutes of appreciated loneliness, the empty table was filled with conversating teenage bodies. I smiled politely but, in my mind, I was cursing them out.

"So, (Y/N), how's your day been?" Allison asked whilst munching on an apple. I swallowed what was left of my bite and answered.

"Fine, thank you." This time no one pressed on after my short answers, finally getting the hint of my disinterest. In the corner of my eye, I saw Isaac sitting under a tree munching on half a sandwich. I excused myself and went to join him, heavily enjoying his tranquil aura.

"Oh, hi, (Y/N)." He smiled sheepishly.

"Hey, Isaac. Is that all you're eating?"

"Yeah. I'm not very hungry." He looked down as if he were ashamed.

"Nonsense! Here," I gave him the other half of my burger and another bag of chips I had in my bag. "You can't tell me you're not hungry. You're a boy in peak development."

"Thanks." He smiled as he continued munching on his food. I put on some music and we continued eating in silence. No conversation required.

The day went on smoother than it started. Classes flew by fairly quickly and the incessant chit-chat seemed to diminish. During last period I was like every other student, anxiously waiting for the bell to signal the end of the school day. When my pleads were answered, I packed the necessary book into my bag and left the rest in my locker, expertly avoiding any more social encounters. Quickly, I made my way to the waiting open car door of my father's car, ignoring Allison's beckoning me t.wards the small group of friends.

"How was your first day, darling?" My father spoke up breaking my attention from the scenery.

"Like any other first day I've had." I smiled. "The towns might change but school is always the same."

Finally at home, we were greeted with the sight of my mother cooking; people were coming over.

"(Y/N), honey, Chris, Victoria, and Allison are coming over tonight. So, go do a quick workout and come back to get ready." I nodded and ran to my room to change into workout clothes.

My routine would normally consist of waking up, working out, go to school for a dreading eight hours, come back home, workout again, do my homework, eat, and go to sleep. I lead a very monotonous life and it had been this way since I could remember. One of my earliest memories was of my father teaching me archery alongside Allison, a great distraction to our always disrupted home life. As I got older, my father started training me in boxing and knife maneuvering. How would these skills help me in life were still a mystery but I felt safe knowing them.

I got changed and decided to take Brody out with me on a quick jog through the woods. "Hey, boy, ready to go?"

He jumped on me which I took as a yes and started for the woods. We ran down the same trail I had been going on for the past three weeks. Mostly, I went down this track in hopes that Derek would make an appearance, and today was not the exception. As the ruins of his house came to view so did his tall figure.

"Trespassing again?"

"It doesn't count if I know the owner." During our greeting, Brody's leash slipped out of my hand and he ran to jump on Derek, leaving slobbering licks on his cheek. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about it." He chuckled and helped me bring him down.

"I guess he likes you, even though he doesn't like anyone but me. Guess you're special."

"Maybe." He grinned.

Out of nowhere, I hit him in the shoulder. "What was that for?!"

"For trying to run me over with your shopping cart two days ago. It was uncalled for."

"No, it was revenge. You hit ME first. In the ankle."

"You're still on with that. Come on, sour wolf. That happened three weeks ago, and it was an accident."

"Whatever. Come on, I'll give you a ride home. It's getting kind of dark." This had also become part of my routine. After "bumping" into Derek he would offer to drop me off at my house, claiming it was for security.

"Okay, we're here. By the way, the offer to show you around town is still up. Just call me whenever." He said as he stopped the car in front of my house.

"Alright, will do, and thanks for the ride, Derek. I'd invite you in, but my family is coming over."

"No worries, maybe another time."

"It's a date. Anyways, thanks again. See you when I see you."

"Okay, goodnight."

"Night." He waited until I entered the house and drove away.

"Munchkin, is that you?" My father screamed from the kitchen.

"Yeah!" I screamed back.

"Okay, well, go take a shower and get ready your uncle will get here soon."

I hurried up the stairs and hopped in the shower letting the hot water stream down my body calming any aching muscle that was palpitating. In my room, I searched through my closet for an acceptable family dinner outfit, deciding a grey sweater and black jeans would be enough. I braided my hair out of my face and went downstairs to help my mother set the table.

After we put the last plate the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" I ran to the door and was greeted by my uncle. "Uncle Chris!" I jumped and he hugged me. There was no doubt that he was my favorite family member, his presence was always welcoming. His wife on the other hand was as cold as the winters we spent in New York. She was nice but absolutely scary. "Hi, Aunt Victoria."

"Hello, (Y/N)." I hugged her and said hi to Allison.

"Come in, guys." They walked in and I closed the door behind them.

"So, (Y/N), how have you been?" Uncle Chris asked while stuffing his mouth with mom's famous lasagna.

"I've been good. I mean, moving all the time takes a toll on you at first, but I got used to it. It's easy now to pack it all up once the school year ends."

"Oh, honey, that must be so hard on you," Victoria said. I could not read her tone, her words spoke in sympathetic notes with an underlying melody of sarcasm.  Not knowing what to answer, I bit my lip and nodded.

The whole evening was spent on us catching up and eating, laughing, playing games, but the good times came to an end when the clock hit 9:00 pm. It was stupid to set a curfew, but my mom usually had everyone in bed at this time, 10:30 as of late.

"You better come around the house more often." Uncle Chris demanded and hugged me.

"Yes, sir." I raised my hand to my eyebrow and saluted, as did he.

"Let's go, Chris. And thank you for the lovely dinner, Rebecca," Victoria said linking arms with my uncle and smiling at mom.

"No problem. Come by any time." They talked for a bit more and after they left, I went upstairs to change for bed.

"Momma, I'm gonna go to sleep."

"Okay, honey. Goodnight." I went upstairs, brushed my teeth, and put my hair in a ponytail.

Before bed, I made sure everything I would need for the next day was packed into my bag and made sure my alarm was set. I pulled all the throw pillows from my bed and set them aside, then making my way to the window to draw the curtains. Something caught my attention in the backyard, though. My eyes squinted trying to make out the figure in front of me. Blinking the confusion away, I made a double-take and looked back at an empty yard. I laughed to myself as I crept into bed. Why would Derek be in my backyard?

Next ->

[lavenderlucy]

Bite Your Tongue

Hi everyone! Here's a little “truth serum” drabble loosely based on season four (Pre-Silas and Caroline and Tyler did break up). Bonnie and Caroline experiment with a truth spell and Caroline gets stuck with the consequences. I’m still pretty new at this so please be kind. Enjoy! 

.

.

Bonnie Bennett was at the very top of Caroline’s shit list today. Now she knew why vampires hated witches so much. Not that she truly hated her friend, but she certainly understood the sentiment. Ever since Bonnie started working with Professor Shane she had been practicing different kinds of magic that made Caroline more than a little uncomfortable. But never let it be said Caroline was unsupportive of her friends, so when Bonnie asked for a volunteer for a new spell, Caroline agreed and played guinea pig. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Caroline swore to herself that if she found a way out of this she would never get within spitting distance of magic ever again.  

When Caroline got to Bonnie’s house she listened to her friend explain that this spell would be a game changer when it came to dealing with the Originals that were still taking up residence in their town.

“Trust me, Care. This could really work.” If Caroline had a dollar for every time she had been bitten in the ass for trusting her friends, she would be a very rich woman.

“Is it safe? I mean you aren’t going to like accidentally kill me or anything are you?” Caroline asked, nervousness evident in her voice.

“It’s completely safe, Care. I promise.”  Bonnie’s answering smile didn’t exactly put her at ease.

Overly trusting, stupid bitch would be on her gravestone. Before Caroline could actually agree to the spell, Bonnie started chanting. Caroline found herself unable to move and she tried to tell Bonnie to stop, but by the time she could get her friend’s name out of her mouth, the chanting stopped and the spell was complete. Bonnie looked at her like she was examining her under a microscope.

“Well?” Caroline prompted, eyebrows raised. “Did it work?”

“Who really broke my Barbie when we were six?” Bonnie asked.

“What? What does that have to do with any- me!” Caroline threw her hands over her mouth and looked at Bonnie in shock, eyes wide.

“I knew it! And yes, it worked. It’s a truth spell. The subject of the spell can’t lie. Don’t you see, Care? We could ask Klaus or Rebekah or even Kol anything and they have to answer! We could find out straight from them where the white oak stake is or if there’s another way to kill them. Shane thinks this spell could be valuable.” Delight danced in Bonnie’s eyes.

“Oh of course Professor Creepy thinks it’s a good idea. Are you freaking kidding me, Bonnie Bennett?! All of this for witchy compulsion?” Bonnie knew how she felt about her mind being messed with. “How do you know it would even work on them? And how you know they won’t kill us all as soon as they realize what the spell does?” She was fuming. She could feel rage seeping into her veins and she knew she needed to leave before she could no longer control herself.

“Relax, Care. I’ll break the spell right now. Right after one more question.” Caroline’s body prickled with suspicion and she saw something she didn’t recognize in her friend’s eyes. Professor Creepy has got to be brainwashing her.

“Bonnie I swear to God, do not ask me-”

“Do you have feelings for Klaus?” Bonnie asked pointedly. From the calculated expression on Bonnie’s face Caroline knew she had been planning to ask this very question from the beginning. She wondered if Shane put her up to it. Shane had an unhealthy obsession with the Originals. Caroline wouldn’t put it past him not to know about Klaus’s soft spot for her. Caroline bit her tongue until she tasted blood and glared at Bonnie. She hoped she conveyed just how betrayed and enraged she felt through her eyes. “Yes,” she bit out lowly. “Now undo the spell, Bonnie. Right fucking now.”

Bonnie closed her eyes and started chanting again. Caroline waited for something to happen, but the feeling she got when Bonnie did the spell the first time never came. Bonnie’s chanting grew louder for a few moments before she stopped.

“What are you doing?” Caroline questioned. “Why did you stop?”

“I-I can’t undo the spell. It’s not working. I-” Bonnie looked panicked that her magic wasn’t working.

“Figure it out, Bonnie!” Caroline yelled. “Look, figure out a counter spell and call me when you do. I need to leave,” Caroline spat out before storming out of Bonnie’s house, the door slamming behind her with a satisfying smack.

Caroline let out a frustrated growl and continued walking away from Bonnie’s house and into the nearby woods. She needed to take out her anger on something living, and since killing a human was out of the question, a deer would have to do. She let her monster out and flashed deeper into the woods to hunt. She couldn’t tell her friends, but using her gifts was exhilarating. She loved how powerful and dangerous she felt. Within minutes she hunted down a deer and sunk her fangs in.

When she finished feeding she straightened and wiped her mouth, catching any stray drops of blood. She took a grounding breath and turned back in the direction of Bonnie’s house, calmer than before and ready to help her find a solution to her situation. She barely took another step before she caught a familiar blur speeding toward her in the corner of her eye. Klaus stopped in front of her, smirking and handsome. Why today of all days? Caroline tipped her head back to look at the sky, not believing her bad luck.

“Hello, sweetheart. Out for an afternoon stroll? Although by the looks of it you’ve been hunting. Back on the animal diet then?” He tucked his hands into the pockets of his designer jeans and took a step closer, eyes bright and mischievous.

“Yes! I needed to let off some steam so I came to the woods to hunt so I wouldn’t hurt a human.” The words came out of Caroline’s mouth before she could even think about trying to stop them. She rolled her eyes and swore under her breath. “Look, Klaus you need to stay away from me today. I mean it!” She backed away from him as she spoke, eyes wide and looking for her easiest and quickest escape route. She knew she couldn’t outrun him, but she could certainly try to put some distance between them.

Klaus took a step toward her and put his hands out like he was trying to calm a scared animal. “Caroline, love. What’s—“

“No!” Caroline shouted and closed the space between them and pressed her fingers against Klaus’s lips, effectively cutting off his question. His eyebrows rose in question.

“Please don’t ask me any questions. Please.” Her eyes bore into his, silently begging him to comply. After a few more seconds she slowly removed her hand from his warm mouth. In the back of her mind she wondered what it would feel like against her own mouth instead. Bad, Caroline. She shook the thought from her head while Klaus looked at her in silent confusion. Great. Now he thinks you’re insane.

Klaus gripped her upper arms and peered down at her, worry clouding his features. “Love, tell me what’s wrong. I can help you.”

Caroline shook her head and looked away from him. His proximity and masculine, woodsy scent was overwhelming her already heightened senses. Klaus moved one of his hands to her jaw and turned her face back to his.

“Come now, Caroline. It can’t be that bad,” he reasoned. He continued to scan her features for any clues of what she wasn’t telling him. Caroline’s face heated under his gaze. He took another moment to look at her before his face turned hard, eyes sharp, and asked, “Alright what did your little friends do now? What is going on?”

She knew he probably thought her friends were engaging in another plot against him. She bit her lip until she drew blood. Klaus’s eyes were immediately drawn to the action. “Caroline, tell me. What is happening?” He rasped. Caroline could see lust building in his eyes as he watched her lick away a drop of blood from her bottom lip.

“Bonnie worked with Professor Shane to make a truth spell and she tested it on me. They want to use it on you and your family to get information about your weaknesses. She didn’t tell me what the spell was or what she wanted to do with it until after she cast it.” Desire evaporated from Klaus’s blue eyes and was replaced by rage and wolf gold. His grip on her arms tightened almost painfully before he let her go. He walked backward a few steps and ran a hand through his hair in exasperation.

“Are you insane?” He yelled. He ignored Caroline’s whispered, “no” before continuing. “You let a baby witch who doesn’t even understand her powers yet experiment on you! You don’t have any idea of the possible consequences of what you’ve done. For fuck’s sake, Caroline!” Caroline was surprised by his outburst. She knew he cared about her, but he seemed genuinely upset that she put herself in danger. He wasn’t even focusing on the plot against his family. “Children,” he muttered under his breath before asking, “Did the witch say how long the spell lasts?”

“We-we don’t really know. Bonnie tried to undo it after I freaked out, but she couldn’t do it.” Caroline bit her lip again, trying not to think about how hot Klaus looked when he was angry. Totally not the time!

Klaus looked her up and down, eyes dark, before approaching her once again. He raised his fingers to her face slowly and pulled her lip from her teeth. He brushed his thumb across her lips before trailing his hand down her jaw and neck. Caroline tried not to let herself be affected by his touch, but it was impossible. All of her nerves were on fire and the heat was spreading. She’d been fighting her feelings for Klaus for months and she couldn’t do it anymore. Klaus didn’t look in any better shape than she was. He was breathing harshly and staring at the porcelain skin he was touching. He met her eyes and spoke, voice deep, “Do you like this?”

“Yes,” she replied, moving impossibly closer to Klaus.

“Do you want me to touch you more?” Klaus looked like he was barely holding himself back from ravishing her right there in the woods.

“Yes. I want you to touch me.” She tilted her head to look up at him before surging up and pressing her lips to his. Yes. Klaus quickly took control of the kiss and deepened it, his tongue licking the seam of her mouth. Caroline gasped and he took advantage of the opening and brushed his tongue along hers. She always wondered what it would be like to be kissed by Klaus. After all, he had a thousand years of practice. He definitely did not disappoint. She knew she would be ruined after this. No one could ever compare to the feeling of his lips moving over hers. Caroline bunched the fabric of his dark gray Henley in her hands before running them up to his shoulders and into his dirty blonde curls. Klaus circled his arms around her waist and pulled her firmly into his body. Caroline tugged on the ends of his hair making Klaus growl in his chest. She felt her nipples tighten in response.

Klaus broke their kiss to trail his lips down to her neck. He took his time nipping and licking a spot over her pulse that Caroline didn’t even know existed. She threw her head back to give him better access and let out a breathy moan that sounded almost like his name. Before she could form a coherent thought, Klaus dropped his hands to her ass and pulled her up, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist. She wrapped her legs around him, the skirt of her yellow sundress bunching at her hips. He flashed them forward to a tree and pressed her against it, hands moving her waist. The bark scratched her back and sent a shiver down her spine. He returned his lips to hers and stole her breath away. Caroline dropped one hand from his hair to grip his necklaces and pull him even closer. Her other hand went to the back of his neck and she dug her nails in. He groaned loudly and his hips jerked into hers in response. She gasped into his mouth at the delicious friction and rolled her hips against his. Caroline was determined to give as good as she got so she pressed her breasts against his chest and bit his full bottom lip before soothing the sting by sucking on his tongue. The growls and moans he let out traveled straight to her core. Klaus pulled the straps of her dress down her shoulders harshly and peeled the cups of her bra down to squeeze her breasts and roll her nipples between his fingers. Caroline moaned loudly and she could feel herself becoming impossibly wetter. Klaus broke their kiss and pulled back slightly to meet her eyes. His pupils were blown and ringed with gold.

“Klaus,” Caroline whined, trying to pull his lips back to hers. Klaus smirked devilishly at her before moving his lips to her ear.

“Do you want me, Caroline?” The way he said her name was downright sinful. “Do you want me to have you right here in the forest?” His lips brushed against her ear one last time before he bit her earlobe, making her cry out. His eyes met hers again as he waited for her answer.

“Yes. I want you right here.” Caroline eyes were glazed over with lust and she didn’t care that anyone could see them out in the open. She tried to lean in to kiss him, but he held her back. Klaus chucked lowly at the look of frustration on her face.

“What do you want, love?” He was teasing her, playing with her inability to lie to him. Under normal circumstances Caroline would be seriously pissed, but she couldn’t summon any feelings other than desire and lust in that moment. For some reason she found the power he had over her extremely hot. He could ask her anything he wanted and she had to tell the truth.  

“I want you to fuck me and make me come against this tree.” Caroline wasn’t typically this vocal during her romantic encounters, but she couldn’t help it. Even without the spell Klaus probably could have gotten her to make the same confession. Klaus smiled wolfishly at her before rolling his hips into hers, making her throw her head back and moan. She inwardly cursed her panties and his jeans. He’d been hard for her since the second she kissed him and right now she needed that hardness against her, inside her.

“When I have you, love, I want to take my time. I want to spread you out on my sheets and worship you until you can’t remember anything but my name. I want to spend hours between your thighs and brand myself along your body. I want to make you scream until your voice is hoarse and your body is so sated that your vampirism can’t help you. I want to fuck your tight little body right here and make you call my name to the skies, but the first time will be in my bed where I can ruin you for anyone else. I’ll make you so desperate for me that you won’t be able to even think of anything but my cock and tongue in you. But I’ll not deny you the orgasm your body is craving right now.” Klaus’s voice became deeper and his accent got thicker as he spoke. Caroline thought she might combust just from his words.

Klaus moved back from her just enough to get his hand between them. He ran his fingers over her soaking panties before moving them aside and slipping his fingers into her wetness. “Fuck, love. You’re so wet for me,” he growled. He brushed her clit once with his thumb and sunk two fingers inside her core, making Caroline cry out and moan his name. Klaus hoisted her up higher on the tree and began working his fingers inside her before taking her pink nipple into his mouth and laving it with his tongue. Caroline had never felt anything like this before. By no stretch of the imagination was she a blushing virgin, but none of her other lovers had left her as wet and desperate for touch as Klaus. She clenched her thighs tighter around Klaus as she rode his fingers.

“Klaus,” she bit out. Klaus released her nipple and began sucking and biting her neck with blunt teeth. “Tell me what you want, love, and I’ll give it you. Just give me the words.”

“Rub my clit and make me come. Please.” She begged. Klaus doubled down his efforts and put his thumb back on her clit before adding a third finger to her tight pussy. Caroline let out a strangled moan and moved her hips faster against his hand.

“That’s it sweetheart, give it to me. Ride my fingers. Come for me.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Caroline exploded around his fingers with a high-pitched moan and saw stars behind her eyelids. She lost track of time while she was coming. When she finally came down she met Klaus’s gaze and he looked like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Her chest was heaving and his eyes dropped to watch her breasts move up and down.

“So beautiful,” he whispered. He removed his hand from her and brought his fingers to his mouth to lick away the evidence of her need for him. Caroline thought she might come again from the sight of him licking her off his fingers. She was about to try and persuade him to forgo his original plan of a bed and fuck her in the woods when he dropped her legs from his waist and righted her bra and the straps of her dress. The tree at her back was the only thing keeping her upright. Klaus pressed a gentle kiss against her lips before pulling back with a grin. He looked as wrecked as she did. She could still make out the hard line of his cock under his jeans and she sincerely hoped he wouldn’t make her wait once they got to his bed.

“Alright, love. Come with me. There’s a witch in Charlotte that owes me a favor. I’ll have her meet us at my place. She’ll be able to remove the spell.” Klaus grasped Caroline’s hand in his and began pulling her in the direction of his house. Caroline’s body finally caught up and started moving.

“But Charlotte is hours away,” She said, a smirk forming on her lips.

“I guess we’ll have to find a way to entertain ourselves in the meantime.” He looked at her over his shoulder and threw a wink at her before flashing off with her through the trees.

[aurevell]

upon the shallow mound

Steter | 1.2k | G AU-gust Prompt 6: Fairies

Summary: Stiles is gone, but Peter knows his husband is not dead.

-

“This is not my husband,” Peter says, when they come to prepare the body. 

It has been laid out on the table since yesterday, as still as marble and twice as cold. The embalmer stares at the pale limbs, which have gone stiff with the passing hours. The man exchanges a look with the washer-woman, who has come to offer oils and tinctures for the funeral service. When Peter firmly tells them he has not planned one, they look bewildered.

He closes the door on their faces before the bewilderment can turn to pity. 

Out in the sun, out of this dark room, he imagines them reassuring each other, as all the others have before. “He’ll come round,” they will be saying.

But Peter is alone with the body on the table, the body of a man he does not know. It looks like Stiles, in the way that two river stones, smoothed by water and time, might look nearly identical at first glance. It is handsome, bright, and somehow polished.

It smells like the shallow mound in the depths of the woods.

⬩

“That is not my husband,” Peter says, when they lower the coffin into the ground.

The embalming has taken place in spite of his aversion to the body. They have done good work: the corpse’s lifeless serenity has been preserved with herbs and balsam. 

It is lovely. Peter is grateful when they finally close the lid.

By this time, Talia has come up from her home in the southern fields to stand at his side. 

“Hush, brother,” she tells him, and strokes his arm as they put the thing that is not his husband into the earth. “He would not wish you to act this way.”

Peter is not sure why he’s come. In case I’m wrong, he thinks, but he tries not to let his thoughts wander there.

Instead of watching the ground swallow the coffin up, he looks out over the gravestones and toward the distant trees. Autumn has turned them fiery gold, and the scent of wet leaves hangs thick in the air.

There is another smell, too. The smell of the mound near the stream.

“It is not him,” Peter says. It is quiet. A reassurance. Perhaps spoken more to himself than to his sister. “It is some senseless substance shaped to look like him.”

“Peter, I grieve with you.”

“It is a thing from them,” he says quietly, staring into the dark shadows between the trees.

⬩

“He is not gone,” Peter tells Talia, days later, when she pauses on the threshold on her way out of his home.

In every room, it is quiet. In every room, it is empty save Peter. With Talia leaving, he will be alone in that emptiness once more.

“I am sorry to leave you here by yourself,” Talia says, her face drawn with unease. 

Her gaze flits to the great oak table, which once held the likeness of his husband splayed out and still, and which is now covered in books and parchment. Peter has borrowed, bought, and stolen every morsel of knowledge he can find that might relate to their good neighbors. Legends and myth, histories and fables.

“Will you not come stay?” she begs at last, though her lone horse is saddled and waiting outside. “My children would love to see you again.”

Peter does not move from his chair. “I will not be alone for long.”

In the ensuing silence, he begins reading where he last stopped.

⬩

“The gold is for my husband,” Peter explains to the money-lender, when she asks.

He and Stiles have little money between them, and he has no practical need of his father’s ring. The woman inspects it, the silver wolf emblazoned on the shoulders of the setting.

She counts out his gold. Peter doesn’t wish to offend the good neighbors by offering a poor trade, and he hopes it will be enough.

“He’s a lucky man,” she tells him mildly, folding her fingers over the ring.

As Peter takes the gold, he hopes so. They will both need what luck they can find.

⬩

“I’m off to find my husband,” Peter says, when the wheelsmith asks where he is headed so late on Hallow’s Eve.

“Surely you are going the wrong way. The festival is in the heart of town.”

“He is lost in the woods.”

The man does not look immediately concerned, but his alarm grows when Peter’s determination does not sway. 

“The woods are no place for humans on this night,” he says in a low voice.

Peter makes his way around the man’s cart to slip down the trail. “On that, you and I are agreed.”

⬩

“Show me my husband,” Peter demands of his neighbors’ mound.

The grassy earth lies still and quiet underfoot. Apart from the quiet rustle of branches, the only sound is his own breath.

He knows the strangers come out this night, but not when. Nor is he sure entirely how. But he knows this is the place, if not the hour, and so he stands in the biting chill and searches for a sign.

Hours pass in the dark. Peter holds his breath for an eternity, for the first time daring to hope.

When the night seems at its darkest, a sound comes through the trees. A tinkling of bells at first, and then the chime of some unearthly instrument. Voices rise and fall on the wind, a chanting that sounds woven of pure laughter.

When the strangers appear, they are as insubstantial as petals on the breeze. They pass about him as if on a current that carries their jubilant party from one end of the earth to the next. There is no moon, but their skin still seems to shine silver as they flow between the trees, some on white horses, others dancing in the pale glow, and still others shifting from one shape to the next.

One nearby glint of skin is pale, but not silver. “Peter!” a voice cries.

They say that one of the laws that governs these beings is that they cannot turn down a trade, no matter how bad that bargain may be. 

Peter throws down the gold. “Mine be yours, and yours be mine!”

The strangers let out a cry of rage, their flowing music stuttering in the air. They scatter across the clearing, some of them falling upon the gold, and others fleeing in fury.

Peter lunges at the pale man in the clearing, squeezing his eyes shut.

In his arms, the man becomes somehow less substantial. His limbs and skin flow from one form into another, an endless torrent of shapes. He hears his name come from a mouth that cannot be human, a low warble that shifts in pitch.

One final trick to drive his efforts to failure. But Peter has been grasping at his husband for weeks, and he will not stop now.

With a final cry of rage, the strangers disperse into the darkness, leaving Peter alone in the woods.

But he is not alone. Not anymore. When he breathes in, the smell of the man in his arms is the smell of Stiles.

Stiles clings to him just as tightly. “You came,” he says, pressing the words into the side of Peter’s neck. “I did not eat the food, though I was hungry, because I hoped that you might guess the truth and find me before it was too late.”

When he pulls away, he is himself: not polished, not stiff, but human and alive. 

“How did you know they meant to trick you?” Stiles wonders.

“Because you are my husband,” Peter says, and pulls him close again.

Read on AO3

[inkla-kirisame]

Theory: Baizhu is...?

Disclaimer: this is a theory, it doesn't have to be true, if its false, don't blame me, I warned you beforehand

Also, take this with humor and not to seriously

And spoilers of Liyue's or Xiao's lore

Ok let's begin with this

It seems that Baizhu is an outlander like Albedo or Amber's grandfather (just examples, they had nothing to do with this) but he does have a vision, a Liyuan one, but Zhongli didn't seem to know about him... So he is probably of Liyue or he has more than he looks like

So either Baizhu is a snake like creature (like a lamia), or is he an Adeptus?

Exhibit 1: let's take a look to his face

Author, more close

His face seems familiar... Were did I see it? Oh wait-

They had the same make up, and believe me when I said that almost all the Adepti use the same make up (only Madame Ping and Mountain Shaper (I think)) use that type

Also, Xiao and Baizhu have the same pupils

Ok, maybe I'm wrong but as I said before, don't take this seriously, but if it's true I f-ing called it

Exhibit 2: Baizhu's sickness

If you have Qiqi or talk with Herbalist Gui, you'll know that Baizhu has a sickness that made him frail, Qiqi mentions that even tho she's a zombie, she's much better than Baizhu

So why this is important?

I don't know what sickness he has but if this is true, I may know were he got his sickness

'Some of the archons' souls were filled with bitterness at their fate, and refused to suffer it any longer. Their bitterness materialized and became evil monsters. The monsters' rage manifested itself in the form of diseases, monster infestations, and all kinds of other strange occurrences' is a little extract of the book Yakshas: The Vigilant Adepti, you can see were this is going

So, I think Baizhu was a Yaksha, to be more precise, Bosacius

If you did the Yaksha's wish, you'll know that Bosacius was the missing Yaksha, and is presumably dead

In this quest you encounter his statement, were he leaves his wealth to the one that's fated to it, in simple terms, you

So, this is my theory, Bosacius was contaminated by the corruption and disease, so once his duties were done, he would end his suffering, but he might failed and/or was saved by Changsheng

If this is true, Changsheng might be like Qiqi, someone who has Adeptal energy or because an Adepti, but my only exhibits with this are that she can speak, that she's been with Baizhu for a very long time and that she's diurnal

But hey, before you said 'BuT oZ iS-!' Oz is probably a manifestation of Fischl's vision's powers

Either way, at some point, Bosacius changed his name to Baizhu and at some point meet Changsheng, later open (or began to work at) the Bubu Pharmacy, he took Qiqi in, while trying to cure his disease, hint why Herbalist Gui tell us that he's ill since they first met til today and hasn't gone better

And if you look at Baizhu for the very first time, would you tell me that he's sick? Because for me, he isn't

Now this could apply to Rouran but we 'haven't' met him nor have a model of him, neither more information about him other than he's male, the owner of Pearl Galley, we meet him without noticing, and that he is physically frail

So that it, that's the theory

I'm going to admit that I was planning on taking about his medicines because they mentioned that they are traditional, and I thought 'oh! Maybe Guizong showed him how to made them?'

Anyways, sorry for not posting here (I decided to work on many oneshots and never finished them), many things happened but I got a Diluc (in Zhongli's banner (yay!)) a Jean, Wolf's gravestone and another Mona (got one earlier) on the Wanderlust Invocation while trying to get the Primordial Jade-wingded Spear for Xiao and thanking Paimon that I don't need any 4 star of Ganyu's banner nor their constellations, and I don't want Ganyu honestly (for now) I waited since the beginning for Xiao and I will get him

Have a great day/night, stay safe, take care of your self and good luck with your pulls

And for the Xiao's simps or stans, keep going! We only need to suffer for like 20 days before his banner (if he goes first (which I hope so))

Edit 1 (18/1/2021) (don't know how many edits this will have):

Thanks for the likes, this literally blew up, and I really wanted to say that I appreciate it

Anyways, this edit is short because I just saw Baizhu's vision and a little thought I had so

Exhibit 3: Baizhu's vision

That vision chain thing and Xiao's shoulder pad (?) look so similar (for me) that I actually suffer through an Mandela effect (I thought that Baizhu's vision chain was identical to Xiao's shoulder pad)

This doesn't add to much but I kinda find it curious (if you want, picture me with the clown wig and make up, I don't blame you)

By the way, the daughter that Huixin mentions she has is Yaoyao? Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me, someone tasked Ganyu to take care of her, and that someone is working in the Ministry of civil affairs, and the first thing that comes in my mind if you ask me of someone who's Ganyu's underling, the first thing that comes to my mind is Yaoyao, if it's true tho... I called it!

[chaoticrumii]

FIRESIDE

summary : while on the way to albedo’s, you and diluc end up in the midst of a nasty blizzard.

genre : fluff

perspective : second person pov

pairing : diluc x gn!reader ( they / them pronouns )

word count : 2.3k

warnings : mentions of hypothermia / mentions of death / fight scenes / mild sexual references

“i still have a lot to do at the guild, how about you take a rest while I go back ?” - diluc ragnivindr ( in-game voicelines )

Visiting Albedo was practically a hobby of yours at this point. As a long-time friend of the genius alchemist, you had decided his icy home in Dragonspine had to be lonely when only a mere few would muster up the guts to enter.

It wasn’t a problem with Albedo specifically, just the location he had chosen to make his experimental grounds. The low temperatures in Dragonspine already warded away most adventurers, but surprisingly Albedo had chosen that desolate place to become his man-cave, if you could even call the bones of an old beast and danger-filled mountains that.

He had found a certain exquisite beauty in the freezing cold climate, sketching icy flowers whilst the chilling breeze was numbing his face. Knowing Albedo, he had probably already gotten used to it and had made a potion to warm himself up to boot.

Knowing the lonesome man was probably up in the mountains with his beautiful Geo flowers, you had decided it was time to visit, and bring some warm food for him.

The temperatures in Dragonspine were unsettlingly low, so bringing a Pyro-vision wielder along with you was most likely the safest option when traversing those rigid peaks.

Unfortunately, it didn’t seem right for you to ask of Bennett’s assistance every time you were to go. He loved a good adventure, and strived to explore the entirety of Dragonspine with you, but only last week he had come home, staggering up to Katheryne at the Adventurer’s Guild all banged up. You would see Fischl eyeing you sometimes when the two of you passed along the streets of Mondstat as well, and it just didn’t sit right with you if you were putting the young adventurer in danger.

To be fair, you had somehow come out of each and every wreckage with Benny unscathed, and with Benny all beat up, but it was most likely his horrible luck. Most likely.

Regardless, it wasn’t like you were about to ask for the help of Klee. She’d probably run to the Yetis first thing. Although, bringing her to visit her big brother wouldn’t be a bad decision. Alas, that would have to be left for another adventure.

Who else to ask of in Mondstat for assistance travelling through the icy blizzards of Dragonspine? Of course, you were able to convince your loving boyfriend to go with you.

When you had told Diluc you wanted him to go with you to meet Albedo instead of Bennett, he didn’t give much of a visual reaction, but you could sense that he was probably quite excited. You had never actually asked him to go on a trip with you even though you had been together for a few months. And how wonderful the months you had together were.

The day of the trip, you had waited for him at the Angel’s Share, swinging your legs at the bar table. Your boyfriend was a successful bar owner after all. And a bewilderingly dazzling one at that.

“Would you like an Apple Cider, Y/N? The traveler stopped by and purchased one earlier, but there’s still another in stock. It’s on the house, of course.” Charles offered, wiping the counter with an orange towel.

“Charles, you really need to stop spoiling me with drinks because I’m dating your boss.” You said, laughing.

“Doesn’t that mean I have even more of an incentive to do it now?”

Just then, Diluc strode into the bar, Wolf’s Gravestone heaved over his shoulder. He headed towards you with an expressionless face, but you could see the corners of his eyes softening when he saw you waiting for him.

“Good afternoon, Charles. I’m here to pick up my lover.” He announced, stoic as ever.

“Have a nice time then, to the both of you! Safe travels.” Charles said, bidding us farewell as we headed on the way to the dragon’s final resting place.

The two of you walked along the overgrown path, chatting about the tiniest of things, and you could see that Diluc was smiling just the smallest bit. He rarely tore down his blank mask, but when he did, it was only during times when you were the sole person that could see him. To you, his smile was sacred, and the one thing you would have over any person in Teyvat and beyond. That besides his heart and undying devotion.

But of course, that part of it was mostly already implied.

Waving at the team of adventurers camped out beside the frost-coated bridge, you carefully stepped between the broken planks with Diluc’s hand in yours.

“Be careful, if you fall into the water you’ll get too cold. You of all people must know how Dragonspine is.” He mumbled, his brows creased.

You chuckled, slowly hiking up the steep mountain path. You were admiring the scenery around you, the snow falling gracefully from the sky as you trekked up the marked path through the centre of the mountainous area. You felt a tug from the hand intertwined in yours.

Diluc pulled you behind a rock as he poked his head from the side, surveying a group of what looked like members of the Fatui that were positioned by a small camp on the side of the path. His mouth curved into a snarl as he watched the overly dressed Fatui holding their weapons menacingly.

“Stay here.” He whispered gently, pulling the hood of your coat over your head.

He hefted his black claymore, the crimson lining evident against the cascading snowflakes. As he dragged the huge weapon along the ground, the Fatui looked towards him, unsheathing their respective weapons. With two guns aimed at his head, Diluc simply brushed a hand through his hair and charged.

Wolf’s Gravestone sparking, fire ignited along the blade as it collided with the side of the Electrohammer Vanguard. They were thrusted backwards as a result of the overload, their hammer dropping to their side as they raised the weapon once more, slamming down onto the ground that Diluc had just stood on. Your boyfriend dodged the bullets from the Pyroslinger Bracer and the attacks from the hammer swiftly, getting a small distance away as he hefted the claymore over his shoulder once more.

The weapon burst into flames, and he thrust it forward as a great Phoenix rushed forward, trampling over the Fatui enemies. The Electrohammer Vanguard crumbled to dust before your eyes, their body disintegrating into blue and yellow.

Diluc walked back towards you, grasping your hand in his as he lifted you up onto your feet from your sitting position behind the rock.

“The Pyroslinger Bracer got away, must’ve been because of Pyro resistance.” He muttered.

“Diluc, we don’t have to go hostile on them. It’s fine if we let them go.” You scolded, hitting him on the arm lightly.

“I just didn’t want them to hurt you.” He mumbled, looking away.

You laughed, placing your cold palms on his cheeks, squeezing. He smiled gently, wrapping his arms around you and pulling you into him.

“You really are adorable when you’re all soft. But seriously, the Fatui aren’t as bad as they’re made out to be. I had a talk with Childe the last time I visited Liyue with the traveler. He’s not all that evil, just flirty and mischievous.” You comforted your boyfriend, nuzzling into him.

“What do you mean by the Harbinger being flirty?” He asked, his lips curving into a frown.

“I mean he’s a flirt. The first time we met, he said ‘Hey cutie, hold still’. It was a little hilarious, but there are relatively good people in the Fatui.” You explained.

The wind picked up, snow glazing over your view. You looked towards the sky, and the grey emptiness only responded with darker clouds and harsher winds. Diluc opened up his black coat, tucking you under what he could as the two of you continued your journey into the mountains.

“A blizzard is approaching. We need to get to shelter, and fast.” Diluc quickly explained, grabbing a hold of your hand and dragging you towards the nearest cave.

As barrels of snow plummeted towards the ground, the cold made you shiver down to the bone. The storm itself was grappling with your clothing as you struggled to walk forward. How much longer would it be? Your body couldn’t handle the cold for too long, hypothermia wasn’t an uncommon occurrence for wanderers in Dragonspine. Diluc only grasped your hand tighter, and you continued to make your way towards the small opening in the rock face.

Once you had ducked your head and entered the small cave, Diluc pulled out some sticks from his coat and proceeded to use his elemental skill to light up the small campfire he had created. You huddled close, rubbing your hands for warmth. It wasn’t a lot, seeing as the opening in the rock was just that. The cave was about as small as a cave could be. There wasn’t really a back area you could lay in and shield yourself from the cold. It seemed as though the storm could blow out the fire instantaneously.

“Are you alright?” Diluc asked, seemingly concerned as his fingers ghosted the skin of your cheek.

“It’s just really cold.” You stammered, trying to keep the cold air from entering your mouth.

Your teeth chattered, and you were sure that Diluc could hear it too. The subtle noise was invading your brain, and you couldn’t do much about it. The small fire just wasn’t enough to keep you toasty. Diluc didn’t seem to know what to do with himself. He was leaning against the rock face, keeping his eyes on you.

You curled up into a small ball on the rocky floor of the cave. Wrapping your arms around yourself and keeping the body heat was the best option you could go for, other than setting yourself on fire. But Diluc definitely wouldn’t stand for that. As time passed, the blizzard that had you trapped only got worse. Was there anyone that could save you? It wasn’t safe to leave the cave.

Without realizing it, Diluc had crouched down next to you, placing his large coat over you. His brows were creased, but his face was still stoic as ever. It was Diluc’s way of saying he cared. He gingerly wrapped his arms around you, as if trying to shield you from the blizzard raging only mere feet away.

“I’m almost out of energy particles, and there aren’t any enemies out here in this storm. I won’t be able to light another flame.” He confessed, sighing as he looked out towards the bleak spread of white.

He squeezed you tightly, but you could barely feel it from the numbness of the cold. Maybe it was because of Diluc’s pyro vision that he could last so long in the barraging snow. How could you even begin to do that?

Struggling in that state was futile, the air only getting thinner and thinner as the cold got harsher and harsher. You closed your eyes for a moment, and let yourself have a brief respite. Diluc’s guttural shout could be heard, from someplace far away, as red flashed so bright you could see the glow behind your closed eyelids.

And for just a while after, it was dark.

You opened your eyes once more to a rocky ceiling, and an incessant noise, the scribbling of a pencil on paper. You gazed to your left to see the chalk prince in all his glory, sketching mindlessly. You quickly recalled the events of what happened previously, and you carefully sat up.

“You need your rest, Y/N. Your body temperature is below what it should be. Besides, I haven’t yet completed my drawing.” He said, continuing his art piece.

“Y/N?”

You turned to see Diluc, who immediately leapt forward and encased you in his arms. You sighed, snuggling into him as you felt the warmth radiating off his body.

“He sent a Phoenix to my laboratory, nearly singed Timaeus’ eyebrows off. If given the chance, I’d like to study it. It’s not exactly a familiar, nor a beast. Although, I’d have to run some tests first to be sure.” Albedo muttered, tilting his drawing towards you, which displayed a great Phoenix, much similar to Diluc’s elemental burst.

“The food! What happened to our food?” You realized, looking around the floor for any sign of your rucksack.

“Timaeus, Sucrose and I were able to find you two in the cave. Unfortunately, the food was not a fortunate as the two of you. It’s been taken in, don’t you worry.” He said, smiling gently.

You let out a sigh, flopping back down onto the bed Albedo had prepared for you, with Diluc in tow. Diluc lightly pressed a kiss to your temple, hugging you even tighter and burying his face in the crook of your neck. You chuckled, leaning into him as you peppered his neck in small kisses. Gentle ones, that left your face burning at the heat of his skin. You could feel his heart beating in the veins below your lips.

“Unfortunately, I don’t really do many biological experiments or observations of the human sort, so you two can have the laboratory to yourselves. Please get rid of the samples as well, I won’t need them for my tests any time soon.” Albedo said, his cheeks slightly red as he watched you and Diluc, leaving the cave with his sketchbook, presumably to meet up with Timaeus and Sucrose.

“Did he just—”

“He’s definitely got the wrong idea.” Diluc huffed, his face flushed, as he pulled away from you.

He picked you up, carrying you bridal style as he lowered you both next to the nearby fire. You leaned your head against his, and he wrapped an arm around you gingerly.

The wholesome moment by the fireside could only be described as incredibly heart-warming, as the fire gently cracked, and Diluc leaned in to press a kiss to your lips.

::

written = 07.08.2021

proofread = 09.08.2021

© chaoticrumii 2021 ; all rights reserved ; please do not copy / reference / utilise my works without credit

[wingsofkpop]

Hiraeth - I.X: Was it Worth it in the End? Part Two

pairing(s): Hybrid!Im Jaebeom x Reader, Witch!Mark Tuan x Reader, Werewolf!Jackson Wang x Reader, Vampire!Park Jinyoung x Reader, Supernatural!Got7 x Reader

genre: Supernatual!AU, Dark Magic!AU, very heavy Angst, eventual Smut

warnings: Mature language, violence, explicit descriptions of fighting and injury, weapons, blood and gore, brief mention of a mutilated animal corpse, minor character death, description of trauma and mental illness, brief mention of suicide, mentions of murder, satanic themes and ritual, etc. 

Trigger Warning: This chapter does contain graphic and explicit themes regarding violence, trauma, and death. Please do not read if this will harm you. This is your final warning.

word count: 10,6k

synopsis: How far are you willing to go to find out the truth about Moon Dye Bay?…

chapter directory

The nighttime is hushed, almost anxious as Minho maneuvers his way past gravestones and overgrown shrubbery. It’s almost like nature itself is too afraid of accidentally provoking the witch, sensing the torpedo of dark magic and violent sorrow stirring through his veins. He peers up at the crimson moon, grateful for the illumination it provides, and continues down his path—ignorant of the cold air bleeding into his flesh. 

Minho knows this is probably not the best time for a visit, aware that his ex-covenmates are likely plotting some sort of mission to overthrow him, but he doesn’t care—he can’t care anymore. A part of him, the shameful, guilty part of his mind. actually hopes they will succeed, at least then, he would no longer have to endure the pain that comes with bearing this black magic. He can feel its poison rushing through his veins, seering his body from the inside out, killing his soul over and over and over again… 

But isn’t this what he wanted? Revenge? Retribution? Minho performed that spell to hurt the very friends that hurt him—to hurt Mark, and he got his wish… so why does it feel like the world is caving in around him, swallowing him whole? 

Once he reaches his destination, Minho collapses to his knees, unable to bear the weight of his burdens. His eyes burn with tears, but he doesn’t allow himself to cry. A silent gust of wind strokes his cheeks, painting his skin red with bitterness and anger. He welcomes the cold air, accepting the punishment, before lifting his hand to splay his fingers against the even colder surface of the headstone. 

“I’m sorry…” Minho whimpers, “It didn’t have to be like this…” 

The silence heightens his anguish—deepens the wounds in his heart. 

If he could take it all back, he would… but he can’t. 

“I wish you were here, noona…” 

His murmur is lost to the wind, but it doesn’t matter. He climbs back to his feet before sparing one final glance at the burial place of his lost friend. After a deep inhale and a wordless goodbye, Minho turns and hastily begins back toward the mausoleum. 

He was allowed this one moment of weakness—now he must get back to the horrible reality he manifested for himself. 

☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾

“Can you be any more obvious…?” 

Mark quickly awakens from his mindless trance, discovering, to his dismay, Dahyun looking down at him with a single raised, all-knowing eyebrow. He fakes a cough into his elbow before shrugging his shoulders, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“You’re kidding me, right?... You literally haven’t taken your eyes off of her since we met up in the forest.” 

Heat immediately rises to Mark’s cheeks. As if on instinct, his eyes trail back to his subject of interest, watching as you wipe the sweat from Jaebeom’s girlfriend’s forehead and neck before shifting to do the same to Felix. It’s such a simple action, but you somehow look so ethereal—almost like an angel sent from heaven. 

He curses himself for his own cheesiness, then releases a defeated sigh. 

“We got into a pretty big fight earlier.” 

“Then don’t you think you should—I don’t know—talk to her instead of staring her down like a creep?” 

“I think the last thing she wants to do is talk to me.” Mark drags a hand through his hair. “I… said some really stupid shit in the heat of the moment. She probably hates me.” 

Dahyun scoffs, “God, you are such a fucking idiot.” 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” 

“It means you need to get your ass over there and apologize to that girl.” 

Her harsh tone doesn’t falter beneath his glare, nor does her tenacious expression as the two proceed with their silent staring contest. After a minute or two, Dahyun breaks off the competition with a long, heavy sigh. Her eyes are soft when she looks back at him, and suddenly Mark finds the dried mud on his shoes a lot more interesting. 

“Mark, anyone can see how much you care about her—how much she cares about you.” Even when a gentle hand caresses his shoulder, the witch keeps his attention to the floor. “(Y/N) could never hate you—no matter how much stupid shit you pull.” She snickers, “And you pull a lot of stupid shit, so that has to account for something.”

He can’t help the amused chuckle that falls from his own lips. 

“Thanks, Dubu.” Mark says, tilting his head to finally meet the warmth of her gaze. 

“She’s a good one—a really good one, Mark.” The wolf hums, “Don’t let it be your fear that pushes her away.” She doesn’t give him a chance to reply further, pacing to a nearby corner to join a conversing Bang Chan and Yugyeom. 

Sparing the wolf trio one final glance, Mark musters up the remaining courage he has left and pushes from his perch against the kitchen countertop. He forces himself to walk in your direction—each step releasing more butterflies into the confines of his stomach. Once he reaches you, close enough to touch your turned back, he almost chickens out, content with spending the rest of the night watching you like hawk, but the sound of Felix’s breathy voice locks him in place: 

“—Channie-hyung and I have always wanted to go to Chicago… Is-Is it as windy as they say?” 

“Even windier.” You say with a laugh. “I can’t tell you how many scarves I lost, and don’t get me started on how freaking cold the winters are.”

Felix laughs too, although it resonates as more of a wheeze than anything. 

You shrug, “It’s a gorgeous city though—probably my most favorite place I’ve ever lived.” 

“Then why did you leave? If you loved it so much?” 

Mark’s interest piques when he notices how your figure grows tense at the young boy’s croak. He’s heard his fair share of stories of your heartfelt time in the Windy City, but he never quite figured out why you ultimately decided to move to Moon Dye Bay. You’ve always been reluctant to reveal certain details from your past, especially regarding your time in the foster system, but even then Mark has been able to pry the worst memories from your brain. 

This subject, however, has been a brick wall. 

“Because I couldn’t stay.” You finally answer, “It’s complicated, but something happened and basically I—” 

“(Y/N)?” 

He silently cusses as Felix interrupts your explanation, but his annoyance dissipates at the panicked expression etched along the teenager’s sweaty face. 

“What is it, Felix?” You shift your position on his bedside to better face the boy, leaning forward to place a gentle hand on his forehead. Mark can only imagine how hot the skin is to the touch. 

Felix’s words crack as they leave his lips, slicing at the witch’s heart like a dagger: 

“Am… Am I gonna die?”

“Of course not.” You immediately say, but Mark can sense the uneasiness in your tone. “Everyone is doing everything they can to help you, okay?... You’re gonna get through this, and one day you and your brother are gonna go see Chicago yourselves and try not to get blown away into the next century.” 

Felix sleepily chuckles, “Thanks, (Y/N).” 

“You should get some sleep.” The moment the command leaves your lips, Felix is already closing his eyes and diving headfirst into dreamland. Not wanting to startle you, Mark waits a couple seconds—partly to give you time to regain your composure, and partly to give himself time to think of what to say. However, he doesn’t have much of a choice when you suddenly turn, growing aware of his presence. A frown overtakes your face, and he instantly regrets ever leaving his countertop. 

“Did you need something?” 

“No—yes, I mean—shit.” Mark buries a hand in his tresses to tug at his roots, attempting to juggle between putting together the right spoken words and reminding his body to breathe. “(Y/N), I—” 

“If you came to apologize, I don’t want to hear it.” He helplessly watches as you rise from the bed before tossing your used rag on a nearby table. “I think you made yourself pretty clear back at my apartment.” 

“I shouldn’t have said what I said—” Before you can storm away, Mark latches his fingers around your wrist. “—please. Just give me a chance to explain.” 

Your shoulders rise and fall in a heavy sigh, but you make no move to tear away from his grip and he takes it as a chance to continue: 

“After my mom died, I was so fucking angry…” Mark notices your surprised gaze when you lift your head, but he doesn’t meet your eyes. “I was angry at the world, at her, at myself… and when my magic began to show up, things got a whole lot worse.” He shakes his head, “I thought about just ending it—jump into the bay or maybe drink myself to death—but then I met…” 

“Then you met Jackson.” 

“He taught me how to deal with the anger—to use it as a tool, not a weapon.” His eyes begin to burn at the countless memories that reel through his mind. “It was because of him I learned how to control my powers, and I was able to bring the coven together—hell, he was the one who told them to nominate me as Regent, which right now, seemed like the worst fucking decision on the planet.” 

Mark takes a moment to blink away his tears before taking a seat on an empty cot. He still can’t find it in himself to glance at your face, keeping his eyes trained to the wooden flooring. 

“But when Jackson had an idea, there was no stopping him.” He chuckles sarcastically, “The bastard was as stubborn as a goddamn mule.” 

“What happened to Jackson, Mark?” Your voice is both a sweet lullaby and a screeching siren against his ears. “How did he die? Really?” 

“The initial plan was to infuse enough magic into Jackson’s werewolf form so his venom would be lethal to the Primes, or at the very least, to Jinyoung. It all went smoothly in the beginning, I was able to channel enough power to complete the transformation… but something went wrong—

“—Jackson was different when he shifted. He was ruthless… He didn’t want to just kill the Primes—he wanted to slaughter every vampire along with those who protect the secrets of their existence… no matter if they were witch, werewolf, human—they all deserved to die…

“The combination of his determination and the bloodlust drove him fucking mad… If Jaebeom hadn’t ripped out his heart, there’s telling what he would have done—who he would have killed…” 

Mark leans forward to rest his elbows on his knees, attempting to hide his shame beneath the curl of his bangs. “—Jaebeom may have dealt the final blow, but Jackson died because the dark magic I used turned him into a monster—he’s dead because of me…” 

Silence encompasses the room like a vice grip to the throat. For a moment, Mark believes you left him, too disgusted and ashamed to even breathe the same air as him, but the entrance of your worn boots into his vision proves otherwise. The image is replaced by your face when you kneel in front of his broken figure, laying your hands over each bicep. He notices your touch is gentle, but not hesitant, and warm—always so warm. 

“You can’t blame yourself for his death, Mark.” Mark doesn’t realize he’s crying until you wipe a tear from his cheek. “How could you have known what that spell would do? You couldn’t have—”

“Magic always comes with price—especially dark magic.” He whispers, unable to hold back more liquid sadness as it trails down his skin. “(Y/N), if I ever lost you the same way I lost Jackson, my mom, I—” 

Mark’s voice cuts out into a sob, and once your arms wind around his form, he completely breaks, releasing every ounce of repressed sadness and despair and pain into the crook of your neck. He knows he’s selfish for melting into your embrace—for consuming your comfort like a demon expelled from the heavens—but he doesn’t care. 

When you guide his eyes to meet your own, Mark can spot the glassiness of your own orbs in the artificial light—along with enough compassion and ardor to send another flood of tears down his face. 

“I’m not going anywhere, okay?” You affirm, your tone unwavering and stern. “I’m here—and no matter how many times you fall, I’m gonna be here to pick you up…

“I’m here, Mark… Do you understand me?” 

He nods with a sniffle, tightly squeezing your hands between his own. 

“I’m sorry.” 

You smile at his apology. 

“I’m sorry too… for everything.” 

“Just… No more secrets. For real, this time.” 

“For real, this time.” Mark’s heart rate picks up when he suddenly notices how close his face is to yours. From this angle, he can count the constellations glistening within your eyes and map the delicate curves of your facial features. If he were to lean just an inch closer, just one tiny inch, his lips would be on your own—

“Sorry to interrupt, but we have an issue.” At Yugyeom’s statement, you and Mark immediately wrench away from one another, almost as if having been caught engaging in forbidden territory. Mark pretends he doesn’t miss the weight of your hands inside his own as he rises from the cot, making sure to put an appropriate amount of distance between his and your shoulders. 

He clears his throat before humming, “What’s going on?” 

“Chan wants to go and find Chaeyoung’s body.” Although Yugyeom’s face remains neutral, Mark can see the sadness lingering within his eyes at the mention of his fallen packmate. “He doesn’t remember exactly where she was, so him, Dahyun, and I are going to search the forest.” 

You immediately shake your head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Sunrise isn’t for at least another hour, and we have no way of knowing Youngjae broke the curse yet.” 

“I’m with (Y/N) on this one, Gyeom.” Mark agrees, “We’re safest here in the bunker.” 

“We can’t just leave her out there. I mean, she—” Yugyeom cuts himself off with a heavy sigh, before continuing in a softer tone, “You know how it feels to lose someone, hyung… Chaeyoung is—was… our family.” 

Mark takes a moment of silence to ponder, conflicted between his common sense and Yugyeom’s pleading gaze. As you said, sunrise is an hour away—but Youngjae, the coven and the Primes should have overthrown Minho by now, right? Plus, he literally blew Changbin’s head off with that shotgun. There’s no way his body could regenerate that quickly… 

“We’re all staying together.” He finally says, moving toward the kitchenette to grab his weapon from its perch on the counter. “And if anything seems shady, it’s an immediate retreat.” 

Yugyeom delivers a nod before heading off to gather the other wolves. Mark moves toward the bunker exit, but is stopped by your form. A heavy sigh cascades from his lips—just from your expression, he knows this conversation isn’t going to go his way. 

“(Y/N)—” 

“If you’re gonna tell me I can’t go with you, don’t even bother.” 

He shakes his head, “It’s too dangerous…” 

“If someone tells me that one more goddamn time—” He can’t help the tiny smile that spreads across his face at the sassy way you roll your eyes. And he doesn’t protest when you move to follow Dahyun up the ladder. 

☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾

Youngjae inhales a deep breath, taking the moment to feel his lungs expand, before releasing the air in an even deeper exhale. Even with the relaxation attempt, his body remains tense and his thoughts disorderly. He can’t help but feel as if Minho is waiting somewhere in the darkness of the crypt, ready to pounce on him like a predator to its prey. 

Would he toy with his catch first? Or would he skip the pleasantries and go right in for the kill? 

A hand appears on his shoulder, wrenching Youngjae from his morbid daydream. He angles his head to meet Lia’s concerned gaze and immediately tries to mask his fear beneath an expression of indifference. Unsurprisingly, the female witch sees right through his facade:

“I’ve known you practically my whole life, Youngjae. Whatever it is, you can’t hide it from me.” 

His shoulders sag in defeat as a sigh blows past his lips. 

“I’m just… worried about Mark-hyung. He’s powerless out there.”

“Mark is smart—he’ll know what to do if he finds himself in trouble.” 

“And if he doesn’t?... I-I mean, what if Minho or Changbin found him before he could warn the pack? He could be dead for all we know—” 

Lia silences his desperate quip with a shake of her head, “You shouldn’t think like that right now—” 

“What else am I supposed to do?” Youngjae runs a frustrated hand through his hair before gesturing toward the main exit of their underground penitentiary. “Even with yours and Jisung’s energy, I don’t have enough power to take down the barrier spell.” 

“Help is on the way—” 

“How do you know that for sure?” 

Lia remains silent, simply continuing to stare at Youngjae. He feels almost uncomfortable beneath her gaze, resisting the urge to shrink back and become one with the shadows. 

“I don’t know… but I have faith.” She murmurs after a brief moment. “We’ve lost a lot, but I still believe that we’ll all somehow manage to come out of this alive. You should try doing the same.” 

With that, Lia leaves to speak with a dangerously quiet Jisung. Youngjae spares the pair a single glance before heading toward the crypt entryway. A single beam of moonlight illuminates the exit stairway, almost as if mocking him about his inability to escape the dingy prison. 

Youngjae knows Lia is right—of course she’s right. Worrying about the possible pitfalls of this plan won’t help him, or Mark, or anyone. He can only pray that his mentor safely found his way out of the cemetery and is sending backup right this very moment. 

He needs to have hope, if nothing else. 

“What if we somehow lure Minho down here?” Youngjae’s thoughts quiet at Lia’s suggestion, angling his head to meet her gaze. “Technically Youngjae just needs to touch him to siphon his magic… so why don’t we bring him to us?” 

“Minho-hyung won’t step past the barrier.” Jisung dissents, dragging his fingers through his already tousled hair. “He probably knows we’re planning something against him, so there’s no way he’ll believe whatever ruse we try to pull.” 

“Then we have no choice. Youngjae, are you sure you can’t take down the spell?” 

Youngjae sullenly shakes his head. 

“Is there something else you can siphon? Maybe the crypt itself?” 

“The crypt was built by humans.” He answers, “I can only draw power from the supernatural—”

“Then it’s a good thing my dear brother and I weren’t turned into superwolf bait.” 

Youngjae, along with the other witches, nearly leaps a foot in the air at the sudden voice. He whirls around to face the stairwell, which to his surprise, is now occupied by the last person he ever expected to see: 

Im Jaebeom. 

Jisung chokes, scurrying backward into the shadows as the hybrid approaches the trio. After taking purchase against the doorway, he offers his signature sly smirk. 

“Evening, Harry Potter and friends… Funny meeting you down here.” 

“Now is not the time for games, hyung.” Youngjae breathes a sigh of relief as Jinyoung’s voice echoes throughout the stone walls. Seconds later, he comes hustling down the staircase before shoving Jaebeom out of the way. The vampire then peers into the crypt, his gaze burning with the determination of a man at war. “Is anyone hurt?” 

“No. We’re okay.” Lia steps forward. “If you’re here, I’m guessing Mark reached the wolf pack?” 

“Your guess is correct.” Jinyoung nods, placing a hand against the invisible doorway. “My brother and I will do everything we can to help disarm the rogue, but I think it’d be best to free you all first.” 

Youngjae joins the conversation. “I can take down the barrier spell, but I’ll need to draw energy from one of you to do so.” 

“Let’s do this quickly then.” Jinyoung goes to roll up the sleeve of his white shirt, but is halted by his immortal companion. Surprise filters through Youngjae’s veins as Jaebeom shrugs the leather jacket from his shoulders with a huff: 

“With my luck, he’ll drain you dry and I’ll have to deal with this voodoo fucker myself. I think it’s best we use my energy—sorry not sorry.” 

“Alright, then.” Youngjae hums, “I’ll need you to push through the barrier just enough that I can touch you… It’s gonna hurt. A lot.” 

“Good thing I’m a sadomasochist.” Jaebeom snickers at his brother’s unamused expression, “Too much?” 

“Move your hand through that goddamn barrier before I throw you to the superwolf myself.” 

The hybrid rolls his eyes, but follows Jinyoung’s instructions and proceeds to force his limb past the invisible blockade. He remains silent, but Youngjae can spy the uncomfortable twitch of his eyebrow and the tension along his stone-cold features. Blood begins to bud along his knuckles like a patch of blooming roses before flowing down his pale skin the more he presses against the barrier.

The siphoner raises his hand in preparation. “Just a bit more.” 

A mere couple seconds later, Youngjae feels Jaebeom’s bloody flesh brush against his own. The skin-to-skin contact is slight, but enough, allowing the hybrid’s energy to spread through his veins like wildfire. Youngjae almost cries in relief as the magic conquers his entire body—a new kind of hope sparking somewhere within his chest. 

“Phasmatos Siprum… Emnis Abortum…” Youngjae murmurs, positioning both hands against the invisible wall. He feels it crumbling beneath his fingertips, unable to withstand the power flowing through his figure. “Fasila Quisa Exilum San… Fasila Quisa Exilum San…”

A proud grin stretches along his features as the barrier buckles, then completely shatters. With Lia and Jisung in tow, Youngjae beelines out of the crypt and into the stairwell where Jaebeom, who’s cleaning the crimson from his knuckles, and Jinyoung reside. The latter nods, which Youngjae is quick to return. 

“‘Kay, they’re free… Now what?” 

“Now we find Minho and end this once and for all.” Lia answers, not sparing the hybrid a glance as she dashes up the stairs. Youngjae and the rest of the group try to keep up with the female witch as best as they can, not faltering until they reach the surface. The cemetery is quiet when they emerge from the crypt, Youngjae notices—almost too quiet. 

He takes a short moment to breathe in the fresh night air before turning to a tense Jinyoung, “I need to get close enough to siphon Minho’s magic to perform the counterspell. You think you and your brother can find me a way in?” 

Jinyoung nods. “You can count on us.” 

“Stay close…” Lia warns with a sigh, “I wouldn’t be surprised if the bastard already knows we’re free—” 

Lightning suddenly strikes a mere few feet from where Lia is standing, earning a chorus of screams and surprised gasps from the witch trio. Youngjae watches as Jinyoung speeds forward, grabbing Lia just in time to avoid being burnt to a crisp by a second bolt. With Jisung at his side, Youngjae quickly takes shelter underneath the overhang of a nearby tomb as even more lightning bombards the earth. He surveys the area, searching for the perpetrator responsible for the weather abnormalities. 

“Minho!...” Lia screeches from behind a large tree, her tone far less than friendly. “Quit being a fucking coward! Come out here and face us goddamnit!...” 

Youngjae huddles closer to Jisung as the wind suddenly picks up, ripping at his hair and clothing like a vengeful spirit. He moves to speak to his younger companion, but his words die on his tongue as the subject of the hour waltzes into view. The heavy gusts don’t seem to affect him, though that’s no surprise since the wretched weather is his doing. 

Minho smirks, “They say lightning never strikes one place twice… You must be really special then, Lia.” 

“Oh fuck off! We’re tired of playing your stupid games!” 

“This only ends one way, Minho—” Jinyoung says, cautiously moving from Lia’s side to approach the powerful witch. His steps, however, are halted by another vicious bolt of electricity. Youngjae attempts to make out Jaebeom’s form through the blurriness of his wind-induced tears, but the hybrid is nowhere to be found. “—so we can do it the easy way, or the hard way! The choice is yours!” 

“Last I checked, this isn’t your fight, Prime.”

“It became my fight the moment you threatened my family and my friends!” 

Minho snickers, “Trust me, I had every intention of ridding this town of you and your brother’s filth.” 

“Was it also your intention to kill an innocent werewolf girl!?” Youngjae’s heart drops at the vampire’s following statement. “Son Chaeyoung is dead because of Changbin—because of you!” 

“Every war has its casualties.” 

“And what of Felix!? Will his death just be another trivial loss in your obsession for revenge!?” 

This time, Youngjae notices the cockiness melt from Minho’s features into something akin to trepidation. The wailing of the wind picks up to a screech, nearly drowning out the dark-haired witch’s weak inquiry, “What are you talking about?”

“Felix was bitten… and is dying as we speak!” Jinyoung shakes his head frantically. “Do you believe he deserves this, Minho!? Do you believe Chaeyoung deserved to die!?... You can fix this—make this right!” 

Minho remains silent, and for a moment, Youngjae wonders if the witch will actually come to his senses and call off this whole ordeal. But just as soon as it appeared, the pained look along his features transitions into something more sinister.   

“We’re all gonna die someday, so what does it even fucking matter!?” 

“Are you hearing yourself!?” Lia screams from behind a nearby tree, “Look what you’ve become, Minho! How would Nayeon see you right now!” 

“Don’t bring her into this!” Minho’s hiss blends with the moans of the wind. Massive raindrops begin to pelt down against the earth, immediately soaking Youngjae to the bone. For the first time, he notices the dark witch’s position in relation to his own. Realistically, Youngjae can be at Minho’s side in mere milliseconds, before he has a chance to blink. If only he can get him to move a bit closer… 

As if reading his thoughts, Jinyoung attempts to coax the witch another step forward. 

“Please, Minho… I don’t wish to hurt you.”

The latter shakes his head with a chuckle. “It’s too fucking bad that you think you can.” 

Minho raises his hand, harshly forcing the vampire down against the muddy earth. Youngjae watches in horror as Jinyoung’s limbs begin to contort and rearrange against his own will—the sound of cracking bones and the vampire’s pained groans filling his ears like a haunting melody. He forces his gaze away from the gruesome sight and prepares to advance on the dark witch, but Jisung stops him with a hand to his shoulder: 

“Not yet, hyung.” 

“But Jinyoung—” 

“Trust me.” His eyes are wide with determination—Youngjae can’t remember a time he’s ever seen Jisung so fierce. “I have a plan. Wait here until my signal.” 

Though filled with confusion, Youngjae does as the young witch requests and stays in place while Jisung himself carefully maneuvers his way through gravestones and buildings, attempting to remain out of sight. A sudden burst of lightning cracks through the atmosphere, and at first, Youngjae fears Jisung has been caught, but quickly realizes Minho has his sights set on another party: 

“I was wondering when you’d join the fun—I looked forward to tearing your bitch-ass apart.” 

“I would say I’m flattered, but I rather like my ass.” Jaebeom saunters across a nearby rooftop. In the midst of the storm, he almost reminds Youngjae of a superhero—or more likely in his case, the psychotic supervillain. “Look, you’ve had your fun, kid. Now I suggest you release my brother and cut out all this petty-teenage bullshit before I break your body in places you never thought possible.” 

“That’s it?... And here I thought you’d want the antidote?” 

Jaebeom’s face darkens. 

“...So there is a cure?” 

“Of course. Every spell has its loophole.” Minho finally lowers his hand, ceasing the painful reconstruction of Jinyoung’s skeleton. Youngjae watches in confusion as the former retracts something from his pocket—some sort of vial, it seems—and offers it toward the hybrid. “The blood which Changbin drank to turn—it’ll heal anyone fallen victim to his bite.” 

“You better hand that over before I rip your teeth from your skull.” Jaebeom growls darkly, hopping down from his overhead perch.

The witch shakes his head, “Not so fast, Mr. Wolf… See, there was only so much left—enough to heal one lucky soul.” 

“You’re a sick fucking bastard,” Jaebeom spits. “You wanted this to happen—”

“Your little bloodsucking girlfriend is dying, isn’t she?” Minho tosses the vial toward the hybrid, who effortlessly catches it between two trembling fingers. “If you want to save her life, then I suggest you go before the venom does its job.” 

“Jaebeom-hyung, don’t—!” Jinyoung gasps, slithering across the muddy earth like an earthworm lost to the world. 

“You know she doesn’t have much time—” 

“We can’t do this without you—we need you!... I need you, hyung!”  

Jaebeom, staring at the tiny container in his grasp, doesn’t reply to his incapacitated companion. Youngjae curses the smirk that spreads across Minho’s face—a sign of victory—and attempts to spot Jisung and Lia somewhere between the ferocious raindrops. He has no such luck, and instead decides to pray for a miracle instead. 

“If you hadn’t fucked around with the few people I care about, I might have actually liked you.” Jaebeom murmurs with a sigh before tucking the vial into his pocket and sending the dark witch a malicious sneer. “Well isn’t that too fucking bad.” 

Youngjae leaps almost ten feet in the air as lightning strikes for what seems like the millionth time, although this time, it’s inches from where Minho is standing. After searching the area, Youngjae discovers Lia and Jisung across the way, hands clasped, eyes bright with passion, uttering some sort of offensive charm. Minho attempts to sprint in the opposite direction, but Jaebeom easily tackles the witch before he can get far. 

“Now Youngjae-hyung! Do it now!” 

At Jisung’s cue, Youngjae takes off into the rain. The bitter feel of Mother Nature’s tears against his skin quickens his movements, wanting nothing more then to end this hurricane, both literally and figuratively, once and for all. He reaches Minho in what seems like hours and hurries to grab his wrist—but just like the tides during a storm, the tables quickly turn. 

At the wave of Minho’s hand, Jaebeom goes flying across the cemetery, crashing into a stone statue and collapsing into the resulting rumble. White-hot pain spreads through Youngjae’s veins like a poison, freezing his muscles and immobilizing his limbs from any further movement. He collapses to the ground, where mud immediately clings to his clothing.

Minho rises to his feet before stepping on Youngjae’s hand with a cackle, “Don’t you fuckers get it!? I’m untouchable! You can’t fucking win!” 

“That’s where you’re wrong, Minho…” Youngjae chuckles, curling his fingers around the tread of the dark witch’s boot. Minho realizes his mistake as soon as the former’s hand begins to glow, foolishly attempting to squirm from his touch. 

Thunder roars in the distance as Youngjae grins in triumph: 

“Because unlike you… we’re not alone.” 

The last thing Youngjae sees before he loses consciousness is a flash of white and the bewildered face of the dark witch as he collapses beside him.   

☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾

“I take it Mark apologized?...” You nearly leap out of your own skin at the sudden inquiry. With a less than agitated frown, you turn to acknowledge the culprit for your almost heart attack. If you didn’t know any better, you’d swear some of these supernaturals have powers of teleportation or something… 

“Goddamnit, Dahyun. Not all of us have superwolf hearing.” 

“Sorry, dearie. Force of habit.” The she-wolf offers an apologetic smile, moving forward to hook her arm with your own. She allows Yugyeom, Chan and Mark to gain a bit of distance ahead before repeating again, “So Mark…?” 

“We both talked it out and apologized… so everything’s okay now.” You hum—the tiny fib leaving a bitter taste in your mouth. 

Truthfully, your encounter with Mark left you conflicted. Of course, you’re more than glad he finally opened up about his past, and even more glad that he trusts you enough to reveal his lingering feelings of trauma, but there’s still a pretty big fucking elephant in the room—one involving his dead best friend and the fact you can talk to him beyond the grave. 

You should have told him then and there—right after you promised to abolish all secrets—but something inside you couldn’t do it… and you don’t know why. 

“Why are you so interested in Mark and I’s relationship anyway?” You utilize your curiosity as a distraction from the guilt breathing down your neck, angling your neck to peer at Dahyun’s side profile. “Is there… history between you two?” 

“No, no—nothing like that. Mark and I have just known each other since we were kids. Our moms were close friends, so Mark, Yugyeom and I pretty much grew up together.” 

“He never told me that.” 

“Don’t take it personal, sweetheart. Mark doesn’t like to talk about his past—” Dahyun sighs, “—too many bad memories between his dad and the bullshit that happened with his mom. He’ll come around eventually… he just needs more time.” 

“I know his mom passed when he was a teenager, but Mark never actually mentioned how she died…” You bite your lip, sending a curious glance to your wolf companion. “It’s really not fair to ask you, but—” 

“Mark found her in their own kitchen with her entire throat ripped open.” Dahyun’s blunt answer leaves your throat dry, unable to speak another word if you wanted to. “The sheriff ruled it as an animal attack, but I’m sure you’re smart enough to figure out what really happened.” 

Your heart sinks, and you choose not to say anything further. 

“Dahyun! (Y/N)! Don’t get too far behind!” Chan’s voice echoes from somewhere up ahead. With the black of night beginning to fade, you can just make out his, Yugyeom, and Mark’s silhouettes a couple dozen feet away. Dahyun gives your forearm a gentle squeeze before releasing your conjoined limbs to catch up with her packmates. You do the same, meeting an armed Mark about halfway. 

His eyes glitter with concern underneath the fading starlight. 

“Everything okay…?” 

“Yeah, Dahyun and I were just catching up.” You inhale a deep breath before releasing it in an even heavier exhale. “But there is something I need to talk to you about—about Jackson and the whole resurrection thing.” 

Mark shakes his head, “You have every right to make your own decisions, (Y/N), but I wish you and Youngjae would have come to me.” 

“I know that, but it was more complicated than that—” You try to gather your thoughts while also attempting to make sense of your words. “I couldn’t tell you because, well—because Jackson told—” 

“Mark-hyung! We’ve got an issue!” Yugyeom’s warning immediately cuts off your explanation. Mark shoots you an apologetic glance before hurrying the two of you forward to join the wolf trio. It only takes seconds for you to distinguish the cause of the beta’s distress. 

A deer carcass lays precariously on the forest floor, and albeit it’s practically torn to shreds, you can just make out a single word carved into its bloody flesh: 

Die. 

“Shit—we need to go. Now.” 

“We’ve already come this far. Chae should be around here somewhere.” Chan ignores Mark’s directive, stepping over the animal corpse to traverse further through the forest. He barely takes a step before the witch is grabbing his wrist. “Let me go, hyung.” 

“Don’t be an idiot.” 

“Don’t tell me what to—”

“Shut the fuck up. Both of you.” Dahyun quietly hisses, “Listen.” 

You try to do as the she-wolf says, but all that meets your ears is the combination of your own labored breathing and uneven pulse. Judging by the confused expression along Mark’s face, he’s probably dealing with the same situation. 

“What is it?” 

“We’re being watched.” Yugyeom answers Mark’s inquiry in a whisper. “Mark, you and (Y/N) need to find somewhere to hide right now—Chan, Dubu, get ready to fight—”

As soon as the command leaves Yugyeom’s lips, Mark takes you by the arm and drags you behind a broad tree trunk. You fish Jinyoung’s pocket knife from your pocket while Mark cocks his shotgun in preparation. Who knew the day would come that you’d actually be grateful for the presence of two dangerous weapons…  

“If anything goes wrong—you run like hell, got it?” 

You shake your head at Mark’s demand. “I’m not just going to leave you—”  

“Yugyeom! Above you!” At Chan’s warning, you’re suddenly shoved to the ground by the witch, watching in horror as a deranged Changbin descends from the treetops onto the beta himself. His skin is a sickly ashen shade, and his black veins so prominent it would make a nurse weep. There’s no human emotion left inside his dark eyes as he strikes Yugyeom over and over again with his lengthy sharp talons, tearing open his skin like a birthday present—he’s a complete animal. 

“Bin, stop!” Chan throws his arms around Changbin’s shoulders in an attempt to pull him from Yugyeom, winding a tight arm around his throat before thrusting a knee against his spine. “Think about what you’re doing!” 

With Dahyun’s assistance, the two wolves manage to separate the dark wolf from that of Yugyeom’s wounded self. Even so, Changbin clearly does not appreciate being stolen away from his prey. He easily escapes from Chan’s hold, landing a couple heavy hits against the latter’s nose before shoving him to the ground. Dahyun takes the moment to strike, bringing the dark wolf to kneel with a harsh kick to his knee, but the action does minimal damage. Changbin punts the she-wolf a dozen feet away as if she weighs nothing. You wince as Dahyun connects with a nearby tree trunk with a vocal thud before dropping to the ground with no movements of rejoining the fight. 

“Shit…” You curse to yourself, “They won’t be able to take him down by themselves—he’s too fucking strong.” 

“Watch your ears.”  You notice Mark aiming his gun toward the dark wolf, waiting for an opportunity with his finger on the trigger. At his discretion, you cover your ears just in time for him to fire a first and second shot. A ferocious growl echoes through the trees, spreading goosebumps across your flesh like wildfire. 

You watch both Chan and Yugyeom take advantage of Changbin’s distraction. The alpha delivers a swift, yet heavy hit against his wounded shoulder while the beta goes for his legs. Similar to Dahyun, they manage to pin Changbin to the forest floor. For a moment, you almost believe the fight has concluded in your team’s favor—but the tides shift. In the blink of an eye, Chan is impaled with a large jagged branch and sent tumbling into some foliage whereas Yugyeom is dealt punch after strike after kick, unable to escape the barrage of Changbin’s wrath. He eventually, like the former two, collapses to the earth and makes no move to rise. 

Changbin cracks his neck before stalking toward where you and your companion stand. 

“Mark—” 

“I got it!” Mark quickly feeds another couple shells into the shotgun barrel, cocks the weapon, then aims down sight. He manages to sink a bullet into your target’s abdomen, followed by another in his bicep, but Changbin merely releases an annoyed snarl and continues charging forward. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck—(Y/N), move!” You leap out of the way just in time to avoid a powerful strike. Changbin’s hand splinters the trunk of the tree, sending pieces of bark in every direction. A particular shard catches the bridge of your nose, causing blood to warmly cascade down your skin. You quickly wipe the liquid from your right eye, ignoring the nausea fluttering inside your gut, before focusing back on the situation at hand. 

You look up in time to watch Mark swing his shotgun harshly against Changbin’s skull. Taking advantage of his disorientation, you rush forward to stab your pocket knife into the wolf’s back. Changbin practically roars in fury, angling backward to land a hit to your face before you have time to react. The force of his strike throws you to the ground, a sharp pain lingering in your left cheek. 

“Don’t fucking touch her!” Mark throws himself against Changbin, delivering hit after hit to anything and anywhere. Still, Mark’s human strength does little to outbeat the dark wolf, and you watch in horror as Changbin effortlessly pins the witch against his chest with a bloody hand around his throat.  You desperately search for something, anything, in hopes of saving Mark from whatever deadly fate awaits Changbin’s bloodlust, but fate doesn’t seem to be on your side.

“Changbin—please don’t do this!” You cry, praying to some type of deity that the wolf is sane enough to understand your words. Even so, your confidence is low, seeing as talking clearly had no effect during your last encounter, but you’re fresh out of options at this point. “You know this isn’t who you are!” 

To your surprise, Changbin actually answers, “You don’t know anything about me.” 

“Maybe not, but I know you don’t actually want to hurt anyone…” You cautiously rise to your feet with a shake of your head, wary of the tight hold Changbin currently has on Mark’s jugular. “Your thoughts are all sorts of fucked up right now because of the dark magic, so why don’t you just let Mark go and we can—” 

“Don’t you fucking get it! This fucker—” He yanks at Mark with more force than necessary, “—took everything from me! He took my pack, my alpha—the only people I ever felt safe with!” 

“I understand you—” 

“No, you don’t!” Changbin wails, “You can’t even imagine how I feel! How fucking hard it is to wake up in a world you know you’ll never belong! How much it fucking hurts just to go on and pretend like everything’s normal when it’s fucking not!” 

“Tell him it’s okay to feel angry—” You whirl your head around to find a seemingly exhausted, yet wild-eyed Jackson Wang at your side. “—but none of this was Mark’s fault.” 

You’re mortified at first, having never encountered the ghost anywhere outside your bedroom—but whether it’s the desperation etched along his features, or the flush of purple that overtakes Mark’s complexion—you quickly transfer back to reality: 

“Changbin, it’s perfectly normal to feel angry and cheated, but this wasn’t Mark’s fault—deep down, I think you know that.”

“What does it fucking matter anymore? I’m all alone anyways.” The pure agony etched along his face has your heart splitting in two. 

You’ve never seen a creature so strong and so powerful look so… vulnerable. 

“You said the exact same thing to me when we first met…” Jackson murmurs softly.

“You told Jackson you were alone at one point too…” 

An obvious wave of tense silence washes through the forest, making the beat of your heart that much more prominent in your ears. 

Changbin’s whisper is dark—dangerous. “How the fuck do you know that?” 

“Because… Because he’s here, Changbin.” You say, your eyes meeting Mark’s as the words leave your tongue. “You’re not alone because Jackson is still here.” 

You don’t know what kind of reaction you expected from your revelation, but it certainly is not the heinous laughter that spills from the dark wolf’s lips. 

“You must have lost your goddamn mind… Jackson-hyung is dead!” 

“Maybe physically, but his spirit still remains.” 

“You mean—” You turn to discover a bewildered Yugyeom unsteadily leaning against a tree, “—his… ghost? You—You can see his ghost?” 

You nod.   

Changbin sneers with a low growl. “I don’t fucking believe you.” 

“There’s a cliffside back along the bay about twenty miles from the lodge,” Jackson begins, his tone a blend of nostalgic and sorrowful. “Changbin and I used to go there to watch the full moon rise before we turned into our wolf forms… I-I’ve missed that so much…” 

“You and Jackson would always watch the full moon rise on a cliff overlooking the bay before you transitioned,” You repeat. “He says he misses those moments with you…”

“Stop it!” Changbin frantically shakes his head, “You’re lying!” 

“He’s here, Changbin… He’s really here.” You move forward again, more confidently this time, and raise your hands in a sympathetic gesture. “And the last thing he wants is for you to make the same mistakes he did, so please—let Mark go and let us help you…” 

It’s as if time freezes for a moment. Changbin seems to fight a battle with himself—countless emotions rushing through his teary eyes. You watch the dark wolf glance toward an unconscious Dahyun and Chan, then to a silent Yugyeom, before finally setting his focus back to you. You can only pray your face reflects the hope swirling throughout your veins—pray that Changbin will do the right thing. 

To your delight, the blackness of his veins gradually begin to fade and the sharp claws protruding from his fingertips recede. You don’t realize you’ve been holding your breath until Changbin finally retracts his hold from Mark’s neck. You’re quick to take the unsteady witch in your own arms before sending the now normal wolf a thankful smile. 

“Thank you, Changbin…” 

He nods shyly before wiping a couple tears from his cheeks. You watch as Yugyeom cautiously makes his way toward the younger boy, murmurs something, then tugs the latter into a tight embrace that pulls even more liquid sadness from his eyes. The sight has your heart melting into a puddle of warmth—the emotion doesn’t last though, not when Mark’s dark croak enters your ears:

“You… can see Jackson…” 

You shrug sheepishly, “I wanted to tell you, but he said not to… He didn’t want to hurt you anymore than he already had.” 

Mark remains silent. You try to search for his features for some kind of anger or disappointment, but are only awarded with his surface level blank stare. Worry flooding through your veins, you look to Jackson for any possible guidance, but the ghost merely shakes his head. 

After a couple tense seconds or so, Mark finally murmurs, “Jack… I—I’m so sorry. For everything.” 

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Jackson says immediately, “If only I had listened to you, then maybe things would have played out different.” 

“He says it wasn’t your fault—he should have listened to you.”

“We both made some pretty shitty mistakes.” Mark hums, “I miss you, man. So fucking much.” 

You don’t wait for Jackson to reply, already knowing his answer. 

“He misses you too, Mark. Just as much.”

“How is this even possible…?” You and Mark turn to find the shocked gaze of Yugyeom, who is closely followed by the despair of that belonging to Changbin. “Supernaturals can’t even see spirits, much less mortals…” 

“We never exactly figured that out. Jackson said he felt drawn to me from the Other Side—he kind of just showed up in my bedroom the night after Mina and Momo died.” 

“Any contact with the dead usually requires some sort of spell or medium.” Mark bites his lip in confusion. “I’ve never seen anything like this before, not even in any of my mother’s grimoires—”

“Jackson!” Your body grows rigid as Jackson suddenly collapses to the ground with a pained groan. You hurry forward, kneeling next to the man, and reach for his shoulder. The realization of his phantom existence hits you like a bag of bricks when your fingers phase through his form. You settle for calling his name again instead, “Jackson—what’s wrong?” 

“What the hell is going on?” You hear Changbin stress from somewhere behind you, but your focus is completely on the ghost in question. 

Jackson lifts his head with a gasp, revealing a line of blood dripping from his nose. “I-It’s the witches!... They know about our plans—they’re trying to force me back to the Other Side—”

“(Y/N)?” 

You shake your head feverishly, “It’s, uh, it’s the witches on the Other Side—they don’t like Jackson crossing over, so they’re trying to bring him back…” 

Mark nods. “Witches, dead or alive, will do anything to maintain the balance of nature.” 

“(Y/N)—shit—I don’t have a lot of time—” Your chest tightens at the urgency behind Jackson’s words. “I know so much just went down, but—” 

“Don’t worry, Jack. I won’t let you disappear again.” You affirm before climbing to your feet to face your new subject of interest. “Mark—I need you to perform the resurrection spell.” 

“Woah, wait—” Mark shakes his head, “(Y/N), I can’ t—” 

“If we don’t resurrect him now, then Jackson is gone forever!” Your warning spreads a new tension across the atmosphere, manifesting in the form of sullen and panicked expressions. “Please, Mark—we have a chance to bring him back!” 

“I can’t do the spell because I don’t have any magic…” Your heart sinks at Mark’s revelation. “Minho absorbed all my magical energy back at the graveyard… I’m so sorry, Jackson…” 

“Hold on, you told me that there’s different types of magic…” You push, “Can’t you draw energy from something? Like the forest, or the moon, or, or—”

“Or me.” You turn, discovering the speaker of the response to be none other than a determined Changbin. “Minho-hyung’s spell may be gone, but I can still feel the magical energy lingering through my body.” 

Mark hesitates, “I-I don’t know if it will work… and if something goes wrong—” 

“Do you want Jackson-hyung back or not?...” 

A moment of silence passes after Changbin’s question. You keep an eye on a repeatedly wincing Jackson, and the other on the witch’s face, attempting to decipher his thoughts inside the glow of his gaze. For a moment, you wonder if Mark will even provide an answer, until the words finally leave his lips: 

“Fuck the balance of nature. I’ll bring you back, Jackson—I promise.” 

☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾

Jinyoung stares at the sun as it gradually rises past the horizon, bathing his skin in a warm, celebratory light. His gaze wavers across the cemetery to the notorious mausoleum, where he watches Lia and Jisung carefully assist a barely conscious Youngjae past the doorway. After this crazy night, the siphoner definitely deserves a good, long rest. Then again, so does everyone else. 

He releases a heavy sigh before shifting away from the witch trio. After sparing one final glance to the sunrise, Jinyoung allows his feet to carry him through the early morning glow, past countless tombstones and other structures, and settles beside a second figure in front of a particular burial site. He silently reads the engravings along the headstone before addressing his companion without so much as a glimpse: 

“I assumed you would be halfway back to the bunker by now.” 

Jaebeom doesn’t respond, not that Jinyoung really expects him to. He peers at the hybrid through the corner of his eye, attempting to seek meaning beyond his blank features. Centuries later, Jinyoung still can’t predict the workings of Jaebeom’s inner thoughts. Especially when it comes to the situation at hand. 

“Mark called. Changbin is no longer affected by Minho’s spell.” He explains, “They’re also preparing a ritual to resurrect Jackson Wang—” 

“Tzuyu…?” 

Jinyoung’s chest tightens as the name falls from Jaebeom’s lips. 

“Their youngest, Ryujin, is looking after both her and Felix.”

“So she’s still alive…?” 

“It seems so.” 

A brief moment of silence passes between the pair. The earth grows brighter and brighter as the seconds roll by, reminding Jinyoung that time is a friend to no one. 

“Hyung, did you… truly switch off your humanity?” 

“I did, at first.” Jaebeom’s answer is quiet, and Jinyoung can detect the subtle hint of vulnerability hidden beneath his gruff tone. “But I guess I can never completely turn it off.” 

“It’s alright to feel, hyung—be it anger… or passion… or fear…” 

Jinyoung notices Jaebeom shift uncomfortably before glancing down at the glass vial in the palm of his hand. For once, he can actually distinguish the emotions present within the hybrid’s dark eyes. The knowledge only jabs at his heart. 

“Everything is taken care of, right?” 

“The night has ended, and Minho is safely sealed away in the crypt.” Jinyoung nods, “We live to see another day.”

He watches his companion tuck the precious vial into the pocket of his jeans before turning away from the headstone. Jinyoung is not sure where the urge comes from, but he abandons his perch, grabbing Jaebeom’s shoulder before he can leave the cemetery. He ignores the hybrid’s confused expression and pulls him into a tight embrace. 

“Thank you for staying, hyung…” Jinyoung’s murmur is slightly muffled against the fabric of his jacket, but he knows his companion heard them loud and clear. 

Jaebeom hesitates for a moment, clearly taken aback by the sudden act, but eventually winds his arms loosely around Jinyoung’s back with a gentle murmur of his own:

“You will always be my family, Jinyoung… Always and forever…”  

☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾

“I’ve never used magic like this before, so I can’t promise this will work.” Mark glances to where he assumes Jackson’s spirit is located inside the white circle makeshifted out of a bag of flour Dahyun managed to find in a bunker cabinet, before glancing to the companion at his side. “You sure you’re up for this? It’ll feel like I’m literally sucking the life force out of your body…” 

Changbin nods, “If it means bringing Jackson-hyung back.” 

“Okay, then.” Mark turns to the surrounding crowd next, “In order to do this, I’ll need to lower the veil to the Other Side. This will create a temporary door that Jackson can pass through to physically enter our realm. Once he crosses over, he should become mortal again.” 

“Seems easy enough.” Dahyun snickers, although the sound is dry and forced. “Anything else we need to know?” 

“Whatever happens, do not enter the circle.” His eyes drift from the she-wolf to your silent form. As if sensing the scrutiny, your gaze connects with his own, and knowing he has your attention, Mark continues in a darker tone, “Just as spirits can pass into our realm, we can cross to the Other Side… so for the love of god, don’t do anything stupid.”

Your and Mark’s staring contest ceases when your head snapes toward the circle. Seconds later, you break the tense silence with a soft murmur, “Jackson says it’s getting worse. He can feel the witches trying to drag him back.” 

“Then I guess that’s our cue.” He sighs before nodding toward the circle one last time, “I’m gonna do my best, Jack. Just hold on.” 

With one final glance to the grimoire you gave him earlier, Mark inhales a deep breath and takes Changbin’s outstretched hand into his own. He closes his eyes, focusing every part of his brain on the electrifying sensation of the magical energy coursing through the wolf’s body. Bit by bit, he feels Changbin’s power bleeding into his own veins, awakening the slumbering supernatural nature of his soul. Once he’s sure enough he’s acquired enough magic, Mark opens his eyes and begins the incantation: 

“Vita mortem, mortem vita est… Partis inferioris velum, partis inferioris ante illum vetum…” Almost instantly, the wind picks up while the air grows uncomfortably cold. He ignores the violent shivers wracking through his limbs and proceeds to repeat the words as the temperature continues to drop. With each spoken syllable, Mark’s head becomes dizzy and his flesh feels as if it’s being scorched off, but he continues. 

No amount of pain could ever dull the hope of seeing his best friend alive once more.

“Holy shit—it’s actually working!” 

Mark doesn’t realize he had shut his eyes until he opens them, nearly yelping in delight when he discovers the image of said friend standing in the center of the white circle. Jackson looks no different than the day he last saw him, and he can’t decide if he wants to laugh out of irony or burst into tears. 

“The veil is down! I’m gonna start the spell to cross you over!” Mark yells over the howling of the wind, clutching Changbin’s hand tighter as he transitions to the next phase of the spell. “Ohto eestanay as vazat esvet ohnaz eespalit… Ohto eestanay as vazat esvet—fuck!” 

A brutal force comes down against his head, almost resembling that of a punch, before spreading hot fire down his neck and to the rest of his body. Mark doubles over with a wheeze, attempting to fight against the painful sensations by grounding himself in Changbin’s touch. However, as soon as the first wave concludes, a second, even more excruciating one follows. He feels as if someone is trying to crush his brain—to kill him from the inside out. 

“Mark-hyung! What’s wrong!?” 

“It’s the witches!...” Mark is thankful that Jackson answers Yugyeom’s panicked inquiry, “They’re trying to break the spell!” 

“Like… hell they will…” Mark hisses, righting himself with a pained groan before grabbing Changbin’s other hand. “I’m not going down without a fight—hold on!...” 

He jumps back into the spell, weakening the manipulated pain through the absorption of more of the wolf’s energy. Borderline high off the power, he pushes everything he has into the ritual, determined to see it through to the end. After a minute that passes like a decade, Mark detects a shift in the atmosphere, indicating the near completion of the spell, and shouts: 

“Jackson—get out of the circle! Get out now!” 

As if in slow motion, Mark watches Jackson quickly move to escape the white border. But just as soon as his toe brushes the edge, he is wrenched away and lifted from the ground. 

Dahyun cries, “What the hell is happening!?”

“They won’t let me cross over!” Jackson squirms and writhes, attempting to escape whatever invisible grip is holding him hostage. His efforts are futile, and he continues to rise higher and higher off of the ground. 

“Hang on, Jack!” Mark releases Changbin’s hands and raises his own palms in Jackson’s direction. However, the same torturous pain from before returns once more, hitting his nerves like a sledgehammer to a brick wall, and throws him to the earth. “Shit—no! H-He has to pass through the circle!” 

“(Y/N)! Don’t!” 

Mark raises his gaze at Dahyun’s shriek, only to watch in horror as you rush past the flour boundary and grab hold of Jackson’s hand. A blinding light immediately erupts from your clasped palms, expanding through the area until all Mark can see is white. 

After a long moment, his vision eventually returns, and he finds the forest completely silent. The temperature is no longer frigid, he notices, and the strain within his brain is gone. For a moment, Mark is filled with prowess, victorious at the fact he successfully carried out an ancient resurrection ritual, however, his triumph is temporary, especially when he notices your form laid motionless in Dahyun’s arms. 

“(Y/N)—fuck!” Mark hurries to where you lay, stealing your figure from the she-wolf to cradle you in his own hold. “Shit, shit, shit—she’s not breathing! Fucking goddamnit!” 

His panic only grows tenfold when he hears the murmur cascade from Dahyun’s lips: 

“Mark… where’s Jackson?”

☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☽ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾

Jaebeom scales the final rung of the ladder before making his way toward the corner where the snoozing trio resides. He moves cautiously, mindful not to awaken the young werewolf caretaker, yet eventually finds himself perched on the edge of a familiar cot. His heart thunders inside his chest, and he cannot tell if it’s out of anxiety or hope. Though at this moment, Jaebeom can really care less to find out. 

“It’s about time you showed up…” He winces at the broken husk of his companion’s voice, attempting to keep his expression as neutral as possible. “I thought you were actually going to leave me to die in the hands of a neurotic teenage wolf…” 

Jaebeom doesn’t respond to her quip—he can’t find it in himself to do so. 

Tzuyu raises an eyebrow, “What’s with the face? Did you take down the witch or not?” 

“We did.” He hums, “The spell is broken.”

“Good thing—” The vampire pauses to cough, and the sound is like broken glass against his ears. “—you and your brother are safe for the eternity to come.” 

“Tzuyu… I found the cure.” 

“What are you waiting for then? My consent?” She snickers playfully, “We fuck for over a century and this is the most gentlemanly behavior I’ve ever seen from you, Beomie.”

Again, Jaebeom remains silent. 

Recognizing the obvious tension in the room, Tzuyu’s face falls. “But… I guess it’s more complicated than that, hm?” 

“There’s only enough for…” He’s unable to finish his sentence, not when his companion’s eyes are gazing at him with such sullenness and sympathy. Jaebeom has to look away for a moment, though the action does little to relieve the tightness of his chest. 

“Ah, I see.” Tzuyu hums, glancing across the way to a slumbering Felix. Her pale lips twitch, as if attempting to upturn to a smile, but it instead appears as a weak grimace. “You know, I really never meant to hurt (Y/N)… or you.” 

“Tzuyu—”

“I’ve known you for decades… but I’ve never seen you look at someone the way you look at her.” Another violent cough wracks through her body, expelling a mass of dark blood past her lips. Jaebeom is quick to wipe the splotch from her skin with the blanket, trying not to dwell on the fact that her skin is ice cold. “I’ll admit, I was jealous at first… I’ve always wanted someone to look at me like that… 

“I know you’re afraid to care—to love, Jaebeom.” Tzuyu murmurs sadly, lifting a hand to rest against the hybrid’s cheek. “Especially someone like (Y/N)… and you’re right to. She’s too good… too human. 

“One misstep and you could lose her forever.” 

“I want to be selfish…” Jaebeom whispers, “I want to be selfish so fucking bad—”

“But you can’t be, Beom. Not with her.” 

“Then let me be selfish with you.” 

Tzuyu smiles. 

“I’ve lived over three lifetimes, and he is barely a ways into his one—so you’re going to give the cure to that damn kid, Im Jaebeom.” He leans further into her touch as she caresses the apple of his cheek. “Promise me that you’ll stay away from her—to keep her safe?”

He nods.

“Good… Can you hold me for a moment? I’m cold.” 

“I’ll hold you as long as you want me to.” 

And so Jaebeom takes Tzuyu into his arms. However, it’s not until the vampire grows still does he allow a single tear to cascade from his eye, staining the bloodied bed sheets with the agony of a heart that has been broken too many times to count.

[merakiui]

MA'AM PLEASE LOOK AT THIS, I ACTUALLY GOT THIS ON A SINGLE PULL???

I was actually complaining that I want Kazuha to have a 5* weapon, and deep down in my soul I just knew that I should bring Traveler back on my team and just...

Low key spoilers for Inazuma!

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Okay so, once you actually get to Baal, she just yeets you into a random arena and I am forced to fight her??? I could have taken her down but dang, we were just about evenly matched and I just wasn't ready for the fight in my soul 🤣🤣🤣 In the fight, you are unable to use your elemental skills UNLESS you're the Traveler and I just 😤😖 If I go down the self aware route, Kazuha and Traveler really got together and gave me this sword 😶😶😶 I AM STILL NOT DONE GAWKING AT THE SCREEN, PLEASE HOLD MEZ FIRST WOLVES GRAVESTONE AND NOW THIS

OOOHHH!!! 🎉 CONGRATS ON GETTING IT!!! It’ll be even more special now that you fought hard to get it!!

I actually didn’t know about the fight with Baal…！(◎_◎;) It’s good that I main Aether!! The fight won’t be an issue. I’ll make sure to give it my all so that I can have a chance at winning! ᕦ(ò_óˇ) Finally the time has come for Aether to shine even brighter than he normally does on my team!! He’ll impress everyone in the fight. Hehe :D

BUT IT’S AMAZING LUCK YOU HAVE WOLF’S GRAVESTONE AND NOW AQUILA FAVONIA!!! OMG OMG TWO GOOD WEAPONS!!! Your characters will be so strong and I know Kazuha will enjoy having an amazing five star sword! He deserves only the finest. ✨

[bittybattybunny]

It’s dad’s day so I drew Fenrir and baby Eclipse, long before the trauma and pain.

Despite his curse wasn’t nearly as strong as his daughter’s Fenrir would force his body to take a half wolf state simply so she wouldn’t feel as alone when she couldn’t control her own shifting. Most of the time if he was home he would be in his lycan form for her and she loved it.

She stalked her prey, doing her best to stay quiet. Her little paws tapped on the wooden floors gently as she crept forward. She stuck her little pink tongue out as her blue and black eyes glimmered. Her ears grew alert and she took off into a sprint, gasping when arms scooped her up. She whined defeated and flopped in her father’s grip.

“Too loud my little pup.” he chuckled and adjusted her in his arms. He shifted to his wolfman form to lap at her cheek. He grabbed her nap in his mouth and dropped to fours to walk towards the couch.

“Gawoooo.” She huffed a bit as she was carried but remained very still, legs and tail curled up as she was carried. She laughed when he father laid down and set her in his silver fur and she cuddled in the chest fluff.

“I wanna s’prise papa!” She giggled as he lapped at her cheeks. She shifted some as he held her down with one hand.

“Oh yeah? Well tiny paws make lots of noise on creaky floors.” He kissed her cheek and clicked the tv on, petting her back gently as her tail wagged.

“Cr’ky fwors. Gots it!” she curled up and thumped her tail on his chest as she laid on top of him.

He chuckled and licked her nose, “Creaky, Floors. Try again princess.”

“C-Cweakree, fwors?” she tried to pronounce it again.

“Creaky.” her father stroked her back gently as she flattened her ears.

“C-Crewkree?” She gave a huff, “Creaky?”

“There you go!” He cheered and her tail wagged more. His own tail swished as he lounged with her on his chest. He sighed contently and went cross eyed when he felt the sensation of her licking his nose back. He snorted and chuckled before he grabbed hold and began to nuzzle her aggressively.

She squealed in delight as she held onto her dad and rubbed her cheek to his as she laughed.

------

“Hey pap…” Eclipse sat on the grave with her legs crossed. She sighed as she leaned against the gravestone and closed her eyes, “you wouldn’t believe everything going on lately.” she gave a dry laugh, “did you know I have a cursed prince living in my house now? I wonder how you’d react to him. He’s nice though. Really nice. I think you’d have gotten along. He’s got a good scent and makes really good food.” she shifted and moved to hug her knees under her chin as she sighed. Resting her cheek against the cold stone she chuckled some. “Doesn’t compare to your cooking though, he over seasons it. We fight about that often.”

She looked at the sky as the wind blew over the grassy knoll.

“I miss you.”