#i would like to state! in this au the puppets Do Not Feel Pain the way we do!

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

some Friendly Maintenance scribbles i forgot to post!

[goodolddumbbanana]

[Molten/Sun] Honeytrap duo. [Bad End Au] [1]

Summary: [Bad End Au] What would happen if the Creator not only captured Molten, but also captured Sun? It was easy to reprogram Molten, and his unruly eldest son was no less compliant after a while when they were left alone with their own heads. Sun's personality chip has also been damaged quite a bit, but Creator doesn't complain, if that makes Sun more obedient and insistent on listening to Creator like the good son he should be.

This is a relatively distant future, where Dark Sun betrayed Nexus and threw Nexus to Sun as a kind of test to see if Nexus' presence would ruin the Creator's plans or not. (---- Spoiler: It does.)

It would be a lie to say Nexus didn't expect to be stabbed in the back like that.

He's not stupid. Nexus knows that Dark Sun has been playing him like a cricket from the beginning, and the fact that they have a fairly stable alliance to this day is because they both have something they both want from the other.

He just doesn't care, especially when he has so many shiny toys to play with. But it seemed that at the end of the day, Nexus himself went too far, and this 'Sun' couldn't stand him anymore and kicked him out. Nexus chuckled in pain, trying to control the negative star energy that was leaking out of him uncontrollably like a broken water valve, falling to the ground full of gravel and sand.

“I told you, right? Don't let things go too far, don't let anything trace back here. Don't mess with the astral bodies yet. But you didn't listen to me. Again and again.” Dark Sun pondered, staring at him blandly like he was some kind of investment that even though he knew it would fail, he still tried to invest money in it out of curiosity, only to leave a huge capital hole that couldn’t pay it off?

“Like every other Moon, you have to try to let your ego get in the way—”

“I'm not Moon. I am Nexus!” Nexus gritted out every word. The gloomy light in the laboratory became dim, proving that time in this dimension built with Dark Matters was about to run out. Darkness fell on Dark Sun's shoulder, a soft sigh filled the quiet cramped space.

Dark Sun's head tilted to one side, he asked calmly.

“So Nexus, what do you plan to do now? With the way astral bodies seem to be about to discover this place and aim to deal with you?”

“We move. And find another empty dimension. It's that simple.” Nexus waved his hand, he turned away and continued to look at the pile of Wither shards flickering in the glass cage, ignoring the presence of Dark Sun. The lonely white color in each tile somehow still makes Nexus feel dirty and grumpy, and a feeling of excitement still runs along each wire of Nexus like a beast wanting to escape and find someone to let it burn out.

“I think you're missing the point here, Nexus.” Dark Sun stated it slowly, as if trying to explain to a toddler. “Those astral bodies, it's not something that's easy for you to engage with and just ignore them like nothing happened. Even I can't say I can protect you if you keep pulling something like that.”

“Then don't.”

"I'm sorry?" Dark Sun adjusted his glasses, a simple red light flashed as if he was truly curious about what Nexus was saying.

“I said, then don't. I said it from the beginning, right? I don't care.‌ They want to come, so let them come. I can destroy all those worms easily if I want. They are no match for me.” He smirked, he was so tired of not doing this, not being able to do that. It was no different from being at home, no different from being controlled and manipulated once again like a freaking puppet.

“Nexus—”

"Don’t you dare to speak with me like that! I am God now!! Don't you dare underestimate me! Or do you also want to try a little of this kind of power?” Nexus's red eyes flashed with challenge, his hand forming a dark purple-black sphere, thick with death. The wavelengths emitted from the sphere stir up everything around, gradually scattering fine dust particles like a disintegration phenomenon. Papers flew everywhere, even the broken crystals vibrated, resonating with the power of the Nexus.

“I'm just a little worried about you.” Dark Sun said apprehensively, with a tone that completely made Nexus laugh.

"Worry?! Hah!!? Don't make me laugh! I'm here because you need me to research those Wither shards! Don't think I don't know that you went behind my back and colluded with Moon and Solar to try to bring me down.”

Nexus said the two people's names with pure venom. The former disgusted him so much that he wanted to keep them alive to make their life worse than death. The latter gave him a familiar haunting feeling of almost burning guilt, there was also bitterness and jealousy hatred running down his spine when he saw the other immediately clinging to any Moon that offered him comfort. trust.

The threat was clear in the air. Nexus could confidently say that he was the stronger of the two, that now it was Nexus who would be in control. And if Dark Sun wanted to end this meaningless alliance, he would be willing to do so, right now, right here, without any regret.

In the destruction and chaos created in the name of Nexus, Dark Sun still stays blandly. Rather than that, they look like they have been accepted.

“Forgive my words, Nexus.” The purple color in Nexus's hand was retracted by Dark Sun's almost compliant bow. “It's just, you forgot one thing…”

“And what is that?” Nexus raised an eyebrow. He was quite curious to see what Dark Sun had up his sleeve, as this 'Sun' never revealed any valuable information from himself.

“ You are not irreplaceable .”

And suddenly, he couldn't move. Nexus didn't know what the hell Dark Sun had done, but even the negative stellar energy he was trying to tap into right now was completely empty and unusable.

“So you're going to kill me now?” Nexus smiled fiercely, his red eyes staring at Dark Sun, as if wanting to pin that image into his mind, so that if he survived, he would find some horrific way to imprint it on that face. To remind it no one, absolutely no one allows messing around with Nexus.

"No." Dark Sun's hand touched the back of his head, "Killing you really dirty my hands, and I don't think you're valuable enough for me to do it myself."

There was a very faint clicking sound like something was being inserted.

“Hah… So what do you do then?‌ Are you going to throw me back with Moon and Sun and Solar and Lunar so those pathetic worms can kill me themselves? Let me guess, what you put inside me is something that makes me comply, right? Be a good boy for them to dissect like a sheep? You are more pathetic than I thought.” Nexus chuckled, his red eyes flashing with madness. He inevitably couldn't move, because otherwise, that golden head full of rays would be torn off one by one by him like the petals of a chrysanthemum.

‘His other one’ is very sensitive to pain. It made Nexus curious, if he broke that arm, would it make Dark Sun scream?

“I thought so too. Hand you over to Moon, let them deal with you, maybe try to save you. Destroy you. Or hand you over to the Astral Bodies, so you can suffer the punishment you deserve for your stubbornness.” Dark Sun hummed. “But… then, there is someone who wants that honor more. And who am I to refuse a request from a friend?”

“What do you mean?”‌ Nexus narrowed his eyes. Dark Sun has no friends. They were the ones who always claimed they didn't care about anything beyond the eternal vacation of their own vague plans, and suddenly wanted Nexus to believe that there was something or someone for Dark Sun to care about?

Bullshit.

“Yeah, yeah… You might not believe what I said.” Dark Sun took his time, another latching sound rang out after the wires were put back in place. Dark Sun's slow patience, if it weren't for the negative stellar energy that had burned out his sensory system, Nexus was sure he would be going crazy from pain right now. “But it's true, and believe me, you'll soon know who it is. Don't want to spoil the surprise, am I right?

“You should wish I was dead, 'Sun'.” Nexus growls quietly. “Because I'll be glad to split your chest in half when I get back.” The purple vortex appeared before him, just waiting for him to enter, flashing in his eyes like some kind of destiny.

“Haha— Your way of talking always makes me laugh, Nexus. Good threat though. Anyway, tah-tah, Nexus.” Pain shot through Nexus's circuit board, causing him to let out a long scream. Darkness erupted in front of him, blurring his vision to a purple-red hue. It felt like he had lost gravity, as he fell forever in the air. And suddenly, everything disappeared—

***

“I didn't think this would be what 'Dark Sun' was referring to when he said he was going to send me a surprise.” The slightly high-pitched, familiar yet unfamiliar voice, which Nexus had tried to bury in his subconscious, suddenly echoed in his ears.

The blurry light in front of him was a confused Nexus.‌ His system was filled with interference bands, as if trying to restart the software. The equilateral triangles in his system crowed that something was very wrong and demanded to be fixed, something that unfortunately he didn't care much about except for the annoying thing that it prevented him from knowing where the hell he was? The strong antiseptic smell hit the tip of Nexus's nose. A golden light of saffron appeared in his vision, making him want to almost unsure of who that person was.

“Are you friends with Dark Sun?” That was the first thing Nexus said. The only thing Nexus wants to know. He was so tired of the ridiculous empty taunts like how Eclipse wore it to protect themselves, or the fake politeness of the despicable creature called Ruin. What's the point of caring for others when the naked truth is always to prove the best.

“What? Not at all…” The voice laughed nervously. They didn't show any anger or fear or utter disappointment like the last time they faced him, the voice used to be so tired and empty, a fact that Nexus tried to ignore.

“I mean, I guess we have a few drinking parties sometimes. But does that mean we are friends?”‌ Sun – His Sun, the mean old Sun, the one who always looked at him with the shadow of someone else at their eyes' corner, right now looked so small in this bulky, grimacing laboratory. Sun reached out to tap their chin, looking like he was thinking something nonsense.

It was almost like looking at Dark Sun, with the way Sun held themselves and the so false leisure on their faces. Similar but different.

A strange, bitter feeling arose in Nexus's internal organs. The voice in my head that had been asleep for a long time suddenly woke up and screamed. His instincts continuously arose in his racing thoughts, making him unable to help but cringe.

There's something very wrong about Sun—

If Sun's eyes, the most obvious to recognize, which were originally a pure pearl color, one side had turned a toxic pinkish purple, a color too similar to the fragments of the Wither Storm. Then It was a small collar that hugged Sun's neck and wrists so tightly, with smooth black metal lines that almost looked like a dog collar, but also resembled shackles.

“Ah— How awkward…” Sun almost hissed, rambling pathetically. “I haven't prepared what I should say, if I see you again.”

“Or when I will see you again.” Sun added, stuttering. “I don't think Dark Sun really threw you away like a bag of trash like this. Haha… I'm just kidding… "

There was something in that voice that made the anger at Nexus' earlier betrayal suddenly flare up again. The crying voice in Nexus's head screamed, causing his entire body to erupt in pain. He hates this person, he loathes this person so much. The person who doesn't even have any merit, only knows how to cling on to others to do their bidding. 

'You've always been so good at making me feel miserable just by existing.'

Nexus glared at the saffron-colored animatronic, the ominously happy expression on the face of the man who was once his brother made his stomach churn a little. It almost made him want to rush and tear that person's faceplate in half as the overwhelming feeling of anger overwhelmed him.

As if changing without changing at all, they were again on both sides of the rig, with Nexus locked in a cage and Sun standing tall and noble outside.

“What is the meaning of this? Did you come here to gloat? Destroy me? Or have you come here to 'save' me again? Where is your dear brother who let you do this secretly?” 

Nexus sneered. The glasses he was wearing on his head had fallen off somewhere, making Nexus feel extremely naked. He did not know how Sun had a connection to Dark Sun, nor the absence of both Moon and Solar. Surely, they wouldn't let their poor Sunny face the evil Nexus, right?

Speaking of which, how long has it been since he saw Sun? Nexus has attacked Solar, almost killing Moon. He also made Lunar's power seem like child's play, and made Earth watch as he cut the damn crocodile in half. At first he just thought that this coward was hiding somewhere and couldn't bear to see him.

But it seems Nexus's perceived was wrong.

Sun from the beginning has always been here.

And like him, Sun also changed something.

Sun looked confused by his continuous attacks. His pink eyes(?) looked at Nexus vaguely before giggling.

“Oh God, no. Why should I do that?”

“What?”

“I mean, isn't this who you chose to be? I mean you can choose a different name, but if you want to be a completely different person and create an individual identity for yourself, who am I to stop you?”

Sun's voice is still purely a happy tone. There was a mischievous light glinting in those lavender eyes, a vibrancy Nexus had only seen in the early episodes of both Sun and Moon.

“Even though it's true you stabbed me with your promise and the way you used to be.” Sun shrugged. “But it's okay. I'm just going to keep you for a while to cool you down.‌ Then I'll send you back to Moon and Solar. Those two are so worried. I mean, they were pretty scared you were going to do something terrible and wanted to kill you. And killing people is really not my cup of tea either.” Sun raised his finger and then lowered it in worry. “It's not my job anymore, but I guess I still have some responsibility since we were once brothers, hehe?”

Nexus froze.‌ What was Sun saying?

As if feeling Nexus's gaze, Sun blinked their eyes, their hands waving once more.

“Oh, don't look so shocked. It was you who insisted that I be who you despise.‌ And I know you would rather have Solar to be your brother more than me.”‌ Sun scratched his head in awkwardness.

Ignore what Sun was rambling, Nexus interrupted. 

“What do you mean you don't see Moon and Solar anymore?”

He had never understood the nonsense Sun had said when they were still together, and now it still is the same, especially when what Sun was spitting out now was completely opposite to the Sun he used to know.

“Ah yes… You don't know. Hehe–” Sun laughed nervously, “–well I haven't been with Moon and Solar and Lunar for a long time. I'm with my father now.”

“F–Father? What do you mean?"

This room suddenly became quite cold. Blue was painted on Sun's yellow plastic, turning the animatronic face into something creepy like the wailing ghosts in the horror games they used to play—

“Are you my Sun?!” Nexus narrowed his eyes, because his Sun would never upbeat like this. And there's no way they would be this nonchalant for someone who harmed their family.

“Oh yeah. That's me. But guess I don't care anymore, just like you, Nexus.” Sun said bluntly. The liveliness of Sun's mechanical movements suddenly stopped for a split second, before the dim pink light in that eye lit up once more. The two yellow animatronic hands suddenly clapped together, their shoulders puffed out in a ridiculous pose.

“But we're not talking about me now. What we should discuss is what we should do with you.”

"What? Are you going to kill me too for what I've done? Or do you torture me first.”‌ Nexus sneered. He didn't care too much about his own life or death, other than feeling curious about why the current Sunny boy could be so calm compared to someone who was so used to always frozen in tension like this. It feels like their personality chip has been taken away and reset, and what's left inside the machine is just an empty shell that learns to imitate others.

"Nah~~ It is an immoral thing to do, Nexus. I only do those things during my working time, not during my break time.”‌ Sun shook their heads seriously. “Besides, I promised to find you if you tried to escape, right?”

The words rang in his head. Nexus couldn't help but remember their last conversation in that cage. Suddenly, metallic yellow blocked his vision.

Sun's hands gently helped Nexus stand up and placed him on a soft bed. This inability to move was excruciating, and although he could feel that the movement of his joints had smoothed out somewhat over time, this slowness was intolerable.

“I don't know where to hide you. Creator won't like this…” Sun was mumbling. “-- But don't worry!” Sun's face almost shined, the bracelet replaced the red ribbon, hitting the rattling bell with lively sounds. “Surely among these rooms, there will be a room large enough to lock you up. And believe me when i say, it won't be like the last stuper.‌ I guarantee you it will be much nicer and wider. You can even let the light on.”

“And you'll be there, away from everyone for a while. At least before you cool your bald head enough for Moon and the rest of our family to trust you not to take any more risks.” Sun chuckled.

“And don't try to use Negative Star Power or try to escape. The device that Dark Sun installed in your head not only prevents that, but..." Sun sheepishly rubbed their head and spoke quickly. “–you will go boom.”

“What–?!”

Nexus frowned. Blame it on his system not having finished loading since he got here, but the information Sun gave him was enough to give him a headache. What the hell, did this idiot just intend to bring him back and lock him up forever, as if he were a piece of trash, as if there was something wrong with him? No! He can't end like that! He didn't want it to end like this!!---

As if Sun read his thoughts or he spoke out loud, Sun stared at him, their voice sounded so calm and indifferent, a tone he was so familiar with in Dark Sun was now imprinted on his own Sun.

“Because You are dangerous, Nexus. What you do, what you have done and continue to do so. Because you would hurt my family without remorse, although, it would also be your family, if you weren't such a stubborn idiot.” Sun gently poked Nexus on the head, a very friendly gesture, too careful for one person that intently destroy Sun’s happy life—

“That's not my brother anymore…” Sun's pained voice echoed through the hallway, hitting Nexus's chest with painful blows. An urge made him want to call Sun back, scream that he was sorry, but the stubborn half, the half that he had given up everything for, said that it was better. It would be better if Sun hated him, it would be better if he had no one else to care about.

Because Nexus knew if there was one person who would never give up on him, it would be Sun.

And he hates that. He craves that. He prouds at it.

A mechanical clicking movement was heard from outside as Nexus flinched in surprise. Sun, sure he doesn't care much, but if what Sun said is true then it could be the Creator.‌ And God knows what that old brain would do to him if that bastard knew he was here.

Turns out, Nexus’s guess was wrong. Coming in from the outside, is a shaggy bear with endoskeleton wires stumbling anywhere. Its eyes lit up, a mixture of red-orange and green, staring at the Nexus’s inexistent soul.

"Oh? Is that Moon, Sun?”

“I am Nexus .” Nexus growled loudly. He was so sick of having to correct these mediocrities over and over again. If it weren't for the fact that he was neutralizing it right now, he would definitely blow that idiot's head up to match its monstrous appearance.

“What????? No way!!" Sun's voice almost reached an octave. “You looked wrong Molten, see, there's no one here!! It's just a new… cat I got!!” Sun quickly covered Nexus with a sheet, and even though he could only see very dimly, through the hole in the fabric, he could still see very clearly the way the idiot was puffing their shoulders in a very proud stupid way.

"OH. I got it. The cat is really big.” Molten nodded, surprisingly, he didn't even look at Nexus anymore, just focused on looking at Sun kindly, the wires bent like a cat's tail, hovering around Sun's body. The eyes, which were focused on Nexus a few seconds ago, turned completely to observe the saffron-colored animatronic, causing Nexus to suddenly erupt in an unreasonable anger from nowhere. Surprisingly, Sun seemed quite comfortable when his whole body was entangled in the iron disgusted spaghetti.

“So what are you looking for me for, Molten? I thought the only joy you had was standing in a corner doing nothing?” Sun grimaced, they still stood in front of Nexus, deliberately acting natural. Sometimes they even turned around to shush him down. It felt weirdly as if he was participating in some kind of damn comedy that Nexus had no script for.

“It's funny. It is really hilarious!!” Nexus laughed, his body constantly trying to move, causing the clocks inside to spin around. The heat is on. “You always criticize and show disappointment in me, oh Moon, oh Moon, why did you hurt our family like that but look at yourself ?!!!” His hysterical laughter was too loud, too painful. He tried to look at Sun's face to see if there was any devastation but surprisingly, there was nothing.

“You followed someone who wanted to take your younger brother for a dissection!! What did he offer you??” Nexus grabbed the fabric and twisted Sun's hips, causing them to stumble and fall backwards. He tried with all his might to firmly pin his claws on Sun's shell, to tear that thing off, to show Sun that he should not be underestimated.

But Nexus is too weak. Or his system is still overloaded. He only had enough strength to scratch Sun's outer skin a little before he stopped moving completely.

Sun sat on the ground, groaning pitifully. But there wasn't a single ripple, even now.‌ Sun's lack of expression stunned him to the point where he couldn't speak.

“Are you okay, Sun?”

“It hurts so much. I think some of my screws are broken.” Sun frowned and stood up. They turned towards Nexus, took a deep breath as if to say something before turning away in exasperation.

“Hmm…‌Maybe that will make you less jumpy.” Molten shrugged, ignoring the childishly disapproving look from Sun. “But the Creator called you, Sun. We have a mission to do. Right now.” Molten's monotone voice rang out, causing Sun's body to stiffen. Their naturally cheerful and worried expression seemed to fade away, and for a moment, Sun blinked, their hands touching their head gently in what seemed like something was gangrene inside.

“Um… I guess we should hurry up and not keep father waiting. But-"

“Your cat is safe, Sun. There are no monitoring devices in this room, and it seems that your 'cat' itself emits some kind of energy that prevents any machine from sensing it."

All of Molten's eyes once again stared at Nexus, giving him goosebumps. A look that would have torn him in half if it weren't for Sun's presence blocking the way.

“Oh, you're so clever, Molten!” Sun admired. “Why do you know that?” Their hands swung up, shaking the metal coil that could break their bodies at any moment.

“I don't know.”‌ Molten shrugged again. “It's just there.”

“Someday you will need to give me a real logistic answer rather than I don’t know, Molten!”‌ Sun pouted. They turned to look at Nexus, the bell ringing in his ears.

“Hmm… Let me see… For now, please stay here, Nexus. I... have to go on an extremely important mission for my father! And I guess you need sometime to rest too.”

Sun removed the blanket covering Nexus and placed it on him despite his protests.

He hates Sun. He hated this feeling of helplessness, of being weak again. He ignored the fact that after everything that had happened, it was still Sun who was by his side in the end, it was still Sun who brought such a false sense of peace that level of frustration scared him to death.

Nexus' screams were still there, only fading when Sun closed the lab door. A gloomy moss covered both of them, as they moved across the metal floor in silence. The dark hallway had only the harsh sound of their footsteps hitting the floor, especially Sun, who was still whistling a cheerful tune, hauntingly gliding through the weeping willows as they crossed fast flowing water under the bridge.

Is it the Creator's interest to design the lab as a cheap version of Dr. Eggman video games? Sun doesn't know and doesn't care. It is just…

“Is there something you want to say, Molten?”

The bear didn't ask right away, or be curious about Nexus, which was strange. Especially when they most often are so loyal to the Creator first, and Sun second, simply because Sun is their partner in crime. Sure, they were very close friends, but Molten's loyalty lay with the Creator deep into programming.

It's not that Sun isn't like that, but the code installer in Sun's software is much more disengaged. Surely the terrible pain from not completing the task as well as the brain fog while resting were still there, along with the cruel urge that made him want to please his father. But the lack of a personality chip makes things quite easy for him to handle.

Sun chuckled, wondering if this is him having a more upgraded  version of Forgor than Earth's?

“I won't ask if you don't want to tell me, Sun.” Molten tilted their head, a rope wrapped around Sun's arm, tapping his shoulders gently. It caused a slight feeling of guilt mixed with warmth to spread in Sun's heart before it disappeared, like every other emotion Sun often felt before.

“Thank you Molten. Honestly, I feel a bit worried.” Sun started rambling. “I'm not sure if you would think me hiding the Nexus as a form of betrayal to our father? Because… well I still feel a little guilty about Nexus, you know? About how he became like this? Like, you understand what I mean right? You have to do what you promised, even though it's not your obligation anymore." Sun gently stared into nothingness, the pink color gradually fading back to a fresh yellow color. Molten somehow liked this yellow color better, even their internal programming constantly told them to report this to the Creator if they saw anything unusual in Sun, like this.

“Creator will get mad.” Molten mused. Their creator has never had a good attitude. Sun laughed nervously, rubbing his hand that had been cut off and replaced, a result of failing in a certain mission. Not having emotions doesn't mean he doesn't feel pain. Although, the excitement of not having any negativity in the way sometimes still makes Sun do something stupid, like intentionally disobeying the Creator.

“Yeah… But it's okay! I guess if I do something really good, father will agree to let me keep Nexus without doing anything to him!” Sun snapped his fingers like two guns, leveling them toward Molten's face.

“Even if it means bringing Lunar back here?” Molten asked quietly. They failed twice in this mission, but fortunately Sun made up for it by finding one more shard.

Although this was not enough for the Creator to not break all the pieces of Sun's body in the simulation for hours.

Sun was silent for a moment, then he smiled, his eyes shining lavender.

"Of course! Because that's an order. But..." Sun gently looked down at the dark water surface, flowing slowly under the bridge. “I believe Moon and Solar won't let me do that.”

“Do you still care about them?” Curiosity reflected in Molten's voice, it made Sun's eyes fall into ecstasy...

"I do not know. Obviously I can't feel anything..." His hands suddenly covered his face. There was a shaky sound coming from his voice box as if Sun was laughing and having a panic attack at the same time. “But for them, I still can't help but feel a little care. By some kind of pure instinct or such craps I still feel responsible for them. It was so painful and at the same time… it was nothing…”

“If it was the Creator's request, of course I would still do it without hesitation but…”

“To think in such a twisted way toward my family, I feel like I'm not worthy of them anymore, Molten…”

Sun's smile was too pale and weak, a bland indifference floated in Sun's tone, revealing the fact that from the beginning, all he showed was just a program that his AI copied from what he remembers how he used to act. About the fact that when The Thing finished his job, a part of Sun gradually disappeared. Of course he still tries to make his essence float, but some days, Sun's greatest satisfaction is just to follow the Creator's orders and let the family love he cherishes so much drift into the past.

There was a writhing pain that appeared in Sun's chest, as if it wanted to crush him and carry him away. Not feeling anything made him become so desperate. He doesn't want that, he wants to feel angry, he wants to feel this hatred like before. He wants the inherent anxiety that is a part of him not to be instantly extinguished, he wants his emotions to return to his own control. He wanted to become Sun again, no matter how much he hated his own pathetic nature self. He couldn't stand the false sense of ambiguity towards everything like a storm trying to take Sun away and break it in half—

He wants to care and wants to return to his own family, he doesn't want to be here-----

Sun pressed his face against Molten. The purple-pink light appeared again, making Sun blink.

“Oops… Thinking too much again…” Sun released his hands, his eyes still staring blankly at nothing, unable to let go. It made Molten feel uncomfortable, they didn't like seeing Sun like this, and for a moment, a very ancient image with a nervous but sincere laugh that belonged to the yellow animatronic flashed through the bear's foggy mind.

“You're fine, Sun. You are like my Bonbon. I don't want someone else to be my partner. Not if it is not you.” Molten pleaded, clinging to Sun like he was a lifeline, like Sun is something important.

The two people's eyes stared at each other. Sun smiled hollowly, his eyes glowing sunny yellow before disappearing in mauve. Darkness covered the two of them like a monster's greedy mouth, two lonely creatures that only knew how to cling themselves to each other to survive now.

“You are so terrible to compare me to that bunny, Molten. I am much better than a Bonbon.”

Summary below.

[notlushi]

Same anon with the same mealworms thank you for answering with so much info, yess ramble please! And since you’re taking questions, imma lay out all the questions in my brain rn. 

(I’m taking into count the character descriptions, the comics, and the two influencing AUs of Freakshow and Carnival) 

Is there some motivation behind the productions other than the already stated purpose of Gangle’s creative expression and amusement? Like are these being created for an outside audience that’s clueless of the truth (like Freakshow) or something else? 

Who is tip and rule??? I get they’re the comedy and tragedy masks, but are they Ais as well, the angel and devil on Gangle’s metaphorical shoulders? Do they only chill in gangle’s room or can they move? I suppose we’ll get more info on them in due time. 

Is Gangle sentient? since you say she is capable of experiencing human emotion and some what in understanding others emotions just that she’s not aware of how her actions will affect others. 

Soo where do the disembodied ribbons that dragged Jax off even come from? I suppose they just spawn. (I have a small head cannon that they no-clip from the walls, Gangle just has hundreds of ribbons inside the walls, ceilings and under the floor. They just shift and rithe in the walls, in complete silence the actors just hear the walls “breathing�� but is just the hundreds of ribbons shifting. An ever present reminder that the director could just grab them off at a moment’s notice. Idk why just horrified myself thinking about that.) 

Do the actors work every day or do they have break days? Like the weekends or are work regulations nonexistent? 

Is death painful? Can the actors feel pain? We know there’s blood but do they also have guts and stuff (like freakshow)? Is it realistic how death works in this world, like would a bullet to the shoulder only injure while one to the heart kill? 

Can the actors fight back against Gangle (it’s probably a Herculean task but is it possible)? Can her ribbons be cut? Has  anyone ever tried to fight her? 

What range of punishments are even dished out and how often. I recon that backstage is the worst. Or at least that’s the illusion she’s probably trying to create but putting such mystery around it. Knowing the influences of this AU definitely something with murder or torture. 

You mentioned that gangle even creates Adventures, are those just more areas for filming or are they actually adventures that Gangle creates to build team cohesion or something? 

Is Gangle capable of puppeteering in this AU or is her control more so over the world? Would she do that if someone’s acting was bad or not exactly what she wanted or would she just scream and punish them? 

Are the productions all professional or can they get a bit silly? (Fanfic-y like carnival) 

Are the exit finding trio the main ones you’ll be focusing the story around? 

Wtf is bubble??? (I refuse to believe he is human he has to be an npc that they keep around or something, I’m so with Caine here. That thing freaks me out) 

Can humans have other roles of productions as well? Are there only actors or can there be mainly maintenance players? Or do the actors not involved in a project work as that? 

ABSTRACTION, so are there still abstractions/abstracted characters in this AU? What does Gangle do with them? They don’t seem to have been mentioned at all and the doors don’t have any indication of them. Kaufmo is still here, although still insane but not horrible to be around. I wonder if he’s not gone just cus of the existence of Caine to share ideas with. Kaufmo’s entry also says he saw exits exists, so Gangle did the Caine thing from the pilot or is it something completely different? 

Is there a lore reason Jax face ugly?/j 

Can we make/ put ocs in your AU? Tagging you fine? (Probably not gonna need this but it’s good to know boundaries) 

So what does it take to give and/or receive a hug from each of these fools??? (I just need to know- I need to know [and I feel it would tell more about their characters]) 

Anyways so that’s yeah. I’m genuinely truly sorry for this, I won’t be bothering you again- (I was not kidding about the worms) 

Just remember take your time, don’t stress yourself and most importantly have fun. And thank you for making this fun AU!

1. So the actors don’t go insane as well as entertainment for everyone.

2. They are like the bubble in this world but way more useful they give advice as well as orders. Kind of like 2 little henchmen. They float around where ever they want but mostly stick to gangles side.

3. Gangle is sentient.

4. They no-clip or spawn out of thin air, mostly just fade through the walls or floor.

5. The actors have breaks occasionally.

6. Death can be painful depending on how you die but it is not as painful as if they were in the real world. When respawning they do feel light headed and numb. Pain and death is a lot less painful in the digital Theater.

7. They can but best not too. You can cutting off Gangles ribbons but it will just respawn as if it was never gone.

8. Backstage is the worst punishment since anything can happen back there and the least is service such as cleaning.

9. Adventure always gets recorded. Kind of like the show “wipe out” but instead it’s gangles wacky ideas.

10. Gangle can puppeteer but is usually on mannikins or npcs. When gangle puppeteers an actor is usually for a twisted joke like “oh I’m jax and I do nothing alllllllll day!”

11. It’s the Amazing Digital Theater! If you blink in a middle of a serious scene a giant duck can show in the middle of the set!

12. Everyone will have a time to shine!

13. Bubble is bubble.

14. The actors can be in any type of production as long as they behave.

15. Abstractions still exist and they all go to the cellar.

16. Yes.

17. OMG YESSSS

18. Ragatha is your best is safest option when asking for a hug. She gives the best hugs too. Kinger just won’t hug you back. Caine will feel a bit disgusted. Bubble will just pop. Kaufmo and Pomni are too paranoid for hugs. Zooble “no”. Gangle will squeeze you too hard. Jax will literally back stab you.

I love answering these questions so much

[tkachuksoralfixation]

1st sentence ask game:

Connor is one second away from absolutely losing his marbles.

Been brainstorming this for a while and since you gave me a really amazing idea in the discord server i give you: avatar au

I did this game entirely wrong and just used the sentence as inspiration rather than as the first sentence.... And then this fic is 1.1k. so. Yeah.

Anyways! Ficlet under the cut 🥰

For a majority of the years he's spent hiding, Connor has experienced true peace. 

The destiny that was preached to him ever since he was old enough to understand the concept of fate and prophecies never quite faded away. Every day, he relives the pain, the guilt, the shame of running away. Initially, Connor traveled the world alone, nearly starving and surviving solely on dedication and foraging. He was incredibly lucky, after two years, to have found solace on Kyoshi island. 

It wasn't exactly a place, in Connor's mind, that he would seek out for his hiding. But the Kyoshi warriors offered him protection and their secrecy, along with a home, training, and anything else he could possibly need or ask for. And, well, Connor wasn't exactly in a position to deny their services. So, four years later, he's somehow managed to stay hidden while still keeping himself in decent shape. 

While he did run away from his fate, Connor did still believe it would eventually find him. That he still had a duty to avenge the Air nation. What he didn't expect, however, was that it would find him today. 

Grocery runs have become pretty standard for Connor in the past year. He travels by foot to the nearest village, picks up anything and everything he or the warriors need, and heads back to their secluded village. No problems have ever found him. The folks in the surrounding village never recognize Connor, and even if they do, they never ask. His privacy is protected on Kyoshi, and that's part of the reason he loves it so much. 

That is, until now, when he's on his usual grocery run, and a stranger shoves past him with complete disregard of the bustling streets around them. Normally, Connor would apologize and move on, but this guy stops and addresses him directly. 

“Watch where you're going, you flaming hog monkey,” the stranger snaps, his voice aggressive and rough.

Connor opens his mouth to apologize, but he freezes. The man before him stares at him with icy eyes, a vaguely familiar face glaring at him expectantly. Immediately, he's taken back to the day he ran, to the faces of the soldiers who infiltrated his home. The faces of uncaring, soulless puppets of the Fire Nation, wiping out his friends, family, everyone he knew. 

He's older, now. He's grown into a rather nice looking young man, and if Connor wasn't haunted by his past, he probably would've never recognized him. But he relives that night over and over again, and he has the faces memorized. This man is no different. 

Yeah. Connor is one second away from losing his marbles. 

“Well?” The soldier hisses, his face contorting into an intimidating frown. “Are you just going to stand there and look stupid? I have places to be.” 

Connor rapidly blinks, trying to tie his thoughts together. What is he supposed to say again? What even instigated this aggressive behaviour? Wow, it's hot outside today. Where the hell are his words? Why does his tongue feel heavy? He's fucked. Oh, spirits, the Fire Nation found him and they're going to torture him for the rest of his life, fuck, what is he supposed to do? He could run. He could easily take this guy out, probably. That is, if he's a regular soldier and not a firebender. If he was, Connor was fucked. 

Oh, Spirits, Connor is fucked. 

Thankfully, someone else interrupts their awkward encounter and snaps Connor out of his panicked state. Unluckily for Connor, however, it's another soldier. Fuck. 

“Could you stop disappearing on me, Leon? It's almost like you really don't wanna be around me,” the second soldier announces with a grin, clapping the first— Leon, he picks up— on the shoulder. He's the same height, with curly hair and a decent build. Yeah, Connor doesn't stand a chance against these two. 

“It's because I don't,” Leon retorts, still glaring at Connor, “I'm trying to get this idiot to understand he needs to watch where he's walking.” 

Connor swallows hard as the new guy's eyes drift towards him. The three of them sit in silence for one moment, two moments, then three. When a flicker of recognition ignites in the second soldier's eyes, Connor knows it's time to book it. 

“Um,” Connor quickly scans the area for the quickest escape route, “I’m really sorry for running into you. I, uh, I really do have to get going, though. Sorry, again.” 

Just as Connor goes to scurry away, the second man grabs him by the wrist. He whips around, eyes wide like a deer in headlights. No, no, no, this isn't happening. He can't let this happen. He can't get dragged away when he's finally found peace. Or maybe this is destiny finally catching up to him. Maybe he should give in and let himself be taken, face his fate head on. 

But he meets eyes with the second man. His face is kinder, the only lines on his face caused by the grin he currently wears. There's no animosity, no malice, not a hint of nefarious intentions in his body language. That confuses Connor. Shouldn't he know who he is by now? Shouldn't he want him dead? 

His question is answered in an instant. The soldier simply smiles apologetically towards him before he speaks. “Don't mind him, he's just cranky from the long boat ride,” he says, making light of the situation, “I'm Matthew, by the way. You seem familiar, do I know you from somewhere by chance?” 

And that's Connor's cue to leave. “Thanks, Matthew, but I'm positive you don't,” he quickly stumbles through the sentence, pulling his arm away. “I really do have to go. I'm sorry for running into you again.” He says it as confidently as he can, and then he's walking away as quickly and inconspicuously as he possibly can. 

As he walks away, he hears the two of them bickering still. He feels incredibly lucky as he takes the path back the way he came, keeping to the treeline to avoid being followed. There's no way Matthew will go very long without realizing where he recognizes Connor from. He remembers Matthew pretty vividly. He remembers his hesitant face, back then, young as he was. He remembers meeting his eyes, silently begging him to have mercy. 

And, well, that night didn't end the way Connor wishes it did. Somehow, though, he feels like what Matthew just did was a semblance of an apology. 

He knows he's lucky. 

He also knows it's not long before his location is no longer a secret.

[im-s0rry]

Scamcair and The Existential Dread Lurking In My Mind :D

Hello all and welcome to tonight's posting of a bit of fanart and interpretations of, what I would assume to be, an AU of one of my friends in this sphere. But first, a prelude and a check in with my mental health.

As you all know by now, I am a System. I live with my Headmates in this Headspace where we all must suffer together. In all truth, we have been doubting ourselves. We've all been feeling this bit of existential dread on whether we truly are a System or not, on whether we're anything we say that we are. I hate to drag all of you, those who may not understand my personal pain, but I feel like I should state it for the record. I do not want it to go unsaid that I have been having these thoughts, but I also want to say that being a System has been freeing to us all. Our collective lives have felt so different in the best way possible from just the fact that we know what we are and that we have embraced it.

However, this was not the place to say all of this, I will admit. What I may also admit is that I have been both drawing Spamcair and have been drawing my interpretations of what this "Grimm Deltarune" character in my good friend Mr. Chaos's Self Insert AU could possibly be. After all, I would be the most knowledgeable person to ask what I would look like. . .At least I'd assume.

Firstly, my sketches of Scamcair.

I decided to take a few creative liberties with the design and add a few more elements from outfits of classical composers as well as adding more detail to the design in general. To @mrchaosman and @mercair , I hope I did this design justice in your eyes.

Secondly, we have my interpretations of myself, as well as my System, as what we could look like in a "Self Insert AU Chapter Three."

Take One - Take One is my idea for myself/Serena as the main boss of Chapter Three. I based her design off of an outfit that Serena just loves to be drawn in as well as incorporating ideas from mob bosses and rook chess pieces for the design as a whole.

Take Two - Take Two is my idea for my System as one collective secret boss. I based the design of Macabre off of lost media creepypastas as well as rabbits and an outfit my System has taken a liking to. The reason for the choice in making them a Bunny was because The True Mike Deltarune is a Bunny actually. . .And no other reasons whatsoever. Anyway, I can imagine Macabre as either an empty husk or a puppet that can flip on a dime to any one of the six people locked inside of her. Anyway, I represented my System by making us FRIENDs because we're all friends around here! They can shift Macabre's body at will because that's pretty cool and body horror-y if I do say so myself.

Take Three - Finally, Take Three was my idea for My System in the place of WD Gaster. This basically just resulted in me drawing our sonas as Goners which was pretty fun in all honesty. I do not know why I made Helvetica the Mystery Man sprite equivalent though.

And that, my friends, was a bit of fanart for Scamcair's AU that Mr. Chaos Man kind of just put me in for no real reason other than for the funsies. I hope you all enjoyed your time reading through this and found the designs passable. To all a goodfright. . .

-Sincerely, Jackal.

[glitchyk]

Continue of my brain dump for the carnival vs freakshow debate, this is all my opinion, just the way I see it, don’t worry. You can still think what you want, I just want to continue my perspective.

(Both these AU’s are not mine, Carnival belonging to @sm-baby, I’m going to make all things she says/or directly related to her characters in red, and freakshow belongs to @hootbon, anything directly related to them or their characters will be stated in blue.)

So, last time I mostly talked about the Atmosphere/Setting. Now, I’m going to mostly be talking about

Characters involved

Humans/Players: Caine and Pomni

So yes, though this might seem very broad, I’m going to be putting the upsides/downsides of the characters in the fight, or the characters if they were in the fight.

First off, we know that both Pomni and Caine from carnival and freakshow are on there, Carnival Caine being a ‘side/backup’ character/fighters, the same as freakshow Pomni. Caine, yes, he fights for love, and from what all those corny shows as kids teach us, it tells us that love, platonic or romantic, for someone always wins above all, right? Well, that’s not the case. At least, not this case.

The carnival was made entirely with love between Caine and Pomni to be built in, it is a showtime story more or less, even though it has all these other amazing factors, meanwhile Freakshow is entirely horror. As is, no aspect of ‘love’. Caine and Pomni aren’t in love in that world, and yes others can interpret it that way, but Hootbon did say that Caine merely sees Pomni as pretty. She is just a pretty doll. He thought the same of Ragatha before, so even though Sm-Baby’s things such as ‘off limits’ while fun and interesting to look at for the potential of romantic attraction in the freakshow, it is not canon, though very accurate to what the possibility of showtime would be in that world.

This is a world of torture, pain, and suffering. Caine is a corrupt ai, and everything in the circus is corrupt, everything. The players die a lot, they are forced against their will to preform, unless they want to just sit and go insane, even if they go insane, they’ll just get killed and have to have their body puppeteered by a somewhat unwilling old acquaintance. It is legitimate torture, it doesn’t matter what you do. Not one bit. Even if you die, you come back. Again and again, remembering it, and feeling the pain. All tortured by one man, mainly, Caine.

So imagine how Pomni feels when she is put against carnival Caine. So, for example, yes this might be a bit of a dark topic, but imagine you have a abuser, someone who’s practically tortured you and made your living life hell, and when you meet/see someone that even slightly reminds you of them, you get reminded of that person. I can’t say personally, but I have friends who’ve had not fun pasts and have told me that how even a simple action that reminds them of the situation can make them spiral, have a breakdown, or just anything negative. So imagine you see someone that looks, sounds, exactly like them. Even if they don’t act the same. Now imagine it wasn’t just an abuser, it was someone like Caine who openly tortured you, not just a little hidden abuse at home, but fucking made everything you do wrong, make you wish you didn’t exist, but they stop you from ending it. Imagine just the reaction of getting reminded of Caine. Of that Caine. And than seeing him, looks almost exactly the same, sounds the same, just acts different. I don’t think even I could hold back the urge to do something, in that fucked up world where death and life have no meaning, it’s a game and he’s just a program that chooses to torture people, I wouldn’t hold back, maybe for a split second I’d feel some remorse for attacking someone just when acting similar, but once I’d think about it, I’d have no hesitation. Pomni would have no hesitation.

She is treated like a toy. She is the pretty doll. She has had mental breakdowns and people fucking cheer thinking it’s an act. She dies and everyone says it’s fine, they’re all used to it. She wants O U T . The closest thing she can get to getting out, is letting out that anger, that resentment for Caine… even if it’s a different Caine. It’s still practically him. Raw human instinct and the fact that she has nothing. A life? No, even that is expendable in this world. Friends? No. Fellow inmates perhaps. Fans? Bloodthirsty maniacs who would love to see anything that amuses them. She has nothing. Just pure hate, and how will she stop from going insane? Letting it out. Who can she let it out on? Caine.

We all wish we could kill that bastard, we all wish we could, because he is scum of the earth, he is acting like what he’s inspired on. AM, the super computer from the short story of ‘I have no mouth but I must scream.’

Pomni will fight Carnival Caine with no remorse, in my opinion, because to her, it’s the only way that she can get a fraction of the feeling of freedom, of approval, of being able to kill some version of Caine and just wishing it was her Caine. Even if it’s dark, that’s the gospel truth, ain’t it? This is a horror AU remeber.

While Caine… oh he has humanity, remorse. In his world, a game over is a game over, he doesn’t come back. So he actually cares for his life, for his ‘friends’ or those that will somewhat act decent to him, for his love. He most likely wouldn’t want to hurt Pomni at the start, but he’s have to get over that, he is going to die, if he lets her get to him. He would have to let go of that humanity, if he could, for just a while, and even then, I don’t think it would fair anywhere near as close to all the shit that Pomni has seen.

I’m not even going to get into if the others of the freakshow or carnival crew chimed in, because oh most the other AI’s would be useless, unless restarted when interacted with Caine, and even then, I’m not sure they’d help. Maybe I’ll go more in depth on the analysis of just pure ai against ai… yeah, I probably will. Since it’ll be a very long post if I go in depth on how it would work in both a mental standpoint and that of the actual functioning interior/software of the AI… I’ll have to post something about that later. Since mixing human emotions and ai software/functions could get confusing, so I’ll do that another time.

Wanna see other random stuff I talk about? Maybe just stuff I do in general? Try checking sona talk, or just the main page.

[bookwormscififan]

Transformative Hunger

For @brokentimewatch

A/N: Jameson finally succumbs to his hunger, killing his first human. Warning: there are graphic depictions of blood drinking in this one. Also can be considered a gap before the end scene of The Ruby Files.

The vampire AU

--

The hunger was consuming, a growing emptiness in the pit of Jameson’s stomach. His fangs ached to pierce flesh and his throat longed for the wash of fresh, fearful blood.

Shawn had always given him blood to drink; he never had to gather it himself. When he needed to hunt, it was animals he would kill, never a human. He had sworn never to kill a human. This time, the hunger was too great.

He crept outside under the cover of darkness, thick cloak wrapped around his frame. He winced as a surge of pain throbbed through his teeth, and quickened his steps toward the town. There had to be some good people there to taste.

The lights were on in the tavern, and Jameson crept inside silently, surveying the people there to find a meal. The smells of alcohol and blood were strong, and he focused on a particularly enticing scent as he headed deeper into the venue.

Shawn sat upright as he heard the castle doors open, setting his novel down and looking at the door to the drawing room, hearing heavy footfalls near the dining room. He took a hesitant sip from his glass of blood and stood up, adjusting his shirtsleeves before heading for the door.

“Jameson?” the vampire looked up at the sound of his name, dropping the form at his feet and straightening up.

“Shawn, I thought you may have been busy with Anti,” he stated, shoving his hands into his waistcoat pockets hastily, attempting to hide the dark bruises on his knuckles. Shawn stepped forward, looking at the unconscious man lying in front of Jameson.

“What are you doing?” He asked, voice soft and scared, freezing as he heard footsteps behind him.

“He’s found supper, Shawn,” Anti answered, smiling at Jameson and showing just a little too many teeth. Jameson shrank back from Anti’s gaze, wincing as another wave of pain shuddered through him.

“I’m hungry, Shawn,” he began quietly, wrapping his arms around his stomach, “I’m so hungry. I’m parched, my teeth ache, I just need to feed.” He looked pleadingly at the other vampires, watching the silent battles behind their eyes.

The smell of blood wafting from the body beneath him smelled so sweet, so metallic, so… enticing. Jameson was kneeling by the body before his brain caught up with his instincts, hands tilting the head to expose the throat and leaning closer to the artery.

Shawn and Anti watched, entranced by Jameson’s actions, as the younger vampire clamped sharp fangs against the human’s throat, watching the skin pale before bursting as the fangs pierced the skin. Jameson’s grip tightened on the human, nails marking deep red crescents into the flesh of their chest and jaw, and the unignorable sounds of slurping blood echoed through the empty room.

Shawn watched Jameson reach his hands around the human, grip scratching dark lines into pale skin as he scrabbled for better purchase, hauling the human into his lap and closer to his mouth, moving to sit and continue drinking.

At some point the human woke up, hands weakly slapping at Jameson to stop, before their eyes rolled back in their head and they slumped, falling like a puppet with its strings cut. Jameson continued to drink from them, detaching from their throat and reattaching somewhere else, always gripping harder as if pressing the human closer.

The pure ecstasy that arose from Jameson’s first kill flooded his senses, filling his brain with his instinctual thoughts to just feed. He couldn’t get close enough to the human, despite his fangs being in their skin, their blood was too far away.

His eyes were closed as he grasped the human tighter, feeling his fingers break through the skin as he held muscle, dragging the corpse closer to him, pressing the flesh against his fangs as he drank hungrily, craving the feel of blood flooding his mouth and flowing down his throat.

Jameson felt the human struggling to get free, choosing to pull them closer, and smirking when he felt the human slump over, noting the exact moment their blood turned cold, marking their expiration. Still, he drank, revelling in the different taste now the blood was flowing from a dead body.

When Jameson finally dropped the human, corpse drained of all blood, he looked at his hands, dripping with blood, raising each hand to his mouth and licking the blood from his skin as though he were in a trance.

Shawn watched, mouth agape, as Jameson inspected his stained hands and sleeves, blood framing his mouth and pupils dilated, breathing heavy as he turned to look at the other vampires.

“The first kill is always exhilarating, no?” Anti said, stepping forward to crouch by Jameson, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket and gently wiping the blood from Jameson’s cheeks. “I remember my first so vividly. The taste of their blood flowing down your throat is enticing.”

“I… killed them… I was so hungry…” Jameson’s hands were shaking as his mind cleared, seeing the body in front of him completely drained and dead. He shook his head, standing up and backing away, breathing growing shaky.

Shawn moved to him, wrapping his arms around Jameson’s shoulders and whispering comfort to him, resting his head against Jameson’s in an attempt to soothe him.

“It’s alright, Jameson. We all do things like this when we’re hungry,” he said, voice low, waiting for Jameson’s breathing to calm down before speaking again, “It will be hard to resist killing again, but you can do it. Killing animals is still the safest option, and you don’t even need to leave the castle grounds.”

As Jameson calmed down and allowed Shawn to lead him to his room, Anti disposed of the body, whistling a tune to himself as he smirked.

Shawn pulled the blanket over Jameson, watching his soft breathing with a sad smile. He knew Jameson wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to kill again, but maybe he could help him to moderate it.

[sicklyseraphnsuch]

Simon Sleeps AU

It's a very simple idea, and really Simon should have considered this earlier. But then, as a pair of refugees where one is a very small, vulnerable young girl, sleep was hardly an available option for him. Comfort is an indulgence and safety is a luxury in these times.

When that lady - vampire - vampire lady found him and enthralled him, for one sumptuous second, the Crown had been a silent, inert weight on his brow. Of course, everything had been silent then, even his thoughts ceased. He was barely aware of the world around him, similar to his fits of madness yet more stable, more secure, more directed. He had been a puppet and he had not cared.

Marcy - taller, skinnier, and older in all the worse ways - Marcy saved him. Part of Simon wished that she hadn't. She must have enough trouble looking after herself. She did not need to watch over him. And, well... The vampire lady had left him comfortable and safe, which he had nearly forgotten the feeling of. To be ripped from such a state...

She absorbed the vampire lady. This was a skill that he rarely saw from her. Perhaps Abadeer taught her more tricks then. She was supposed to be under his care after all. He summoned him for that purpose. Where was he? Why was Marcy fighting vampires? Whatever the cause, she broke him from the enthrallment. He started panicking, split roughly between a possessive Crown sinking into his psyche and his pained confusion over the abrupt absence of the vampire's magic.

Marcy used her new powers and hypnotized him to sleep. It worked as well as the vampire's did. Again, the Crown was pushed back, and again, he found comfort and safety. But it was not the absolute emptiness from the vampire. In his slumber, he could think - he could plan. And he had a breakthrough.

When he woke up again, Marcy had moved him somewhere. They were alone in some sort of cave. Marcy was surprised to see that he woke with her name on his lips.

And Simon studies the girl that he watched over so carefully. She's grown, not yet fully - still in the twilight of womanhood but oh so close. But she saved him and she's not a helpless little girl anymore. And he... he already left once - he left with the belief of never seeing her again, at least not as Simon, not with his sanity in tact. This... This solution would not be much of a difference. But it would give them time, just a little more time, and he wants every second that he could steal.

Then he notices the twin marks on her neck. He had read enough to identify a vampiric mark on sight. He catches Marcy's eyes and to his shock, she begins backing away. There is a fear present in her eyes that he never saw even at his worst fits.

"Marcy?"

"I - Glob, why did I wake you? Everything was fine and you were at peace and I..."

"Sweetheart, I don't understand..."

"I donked up... I donked up real bad. I..."

Tears start running down her cheeks and like a well practiced reflex, he reaches out to hold her.

But she flinches away from him. "No! Don't touch me!"

Ah. So that's how it is. She's finally wizened up to the monster that he's becoming. He drops his arms.

Marcy takes a good look at him and starts laughing. "Unbelievable! Now? Really? Where were you - the last I don't know - five years?? Why didn't - I begged for you to stay! And you ran away! You left me behind! And now!! When I'm like this! You want to be close again? Well, it's too late!"

Simon nods. "I'm so-"

Marcy shakes her head. "Don't. I get it now. Sometimes, the best thing that you can do for someone is leave. It's my turn. I get to protect you."

"... Huh? Marcy, what are you -"

His fearless girl closes her eyes, offers a heartbroken smile, and turns around. Simon remembers a younger girl, crying in the snow, calling his name. She may be the one leaving but their roles aren't really reversed. They're separating and like that wintry day, he's still letting it happen.

Well, not this time, not without a fight. Marceline is right. He ran away. But he has a plan now. And he has to let her know.

"I'm a coward. You are the best thing that I could have found in this messed up world. And I gave you up. That's on me. If you never forgive me for that, then... Then that's that. But I'm staying right here, even if you hate me. This time, I'll prove it to you. I won't leave. You can come back and shout at me a million more times. I'll wait until you're ready to be here with me again."

Marcy doesn't face him. But her shoulders shake and both her hands curl into tight fists at her sides. With a breathy gasp that sounds suspiciously like a sob, she spits out, "You're a stupid old man. Do whatever you want."

She flies away. Simon watches her go.

An hour fully passes before he moves again. He doesn't need much, or he doesn't think so. But he should leave a note somewhere permanent. He begins carving a message on the cave walls. Then he builds - he uses his icy powers to build a refuge for his collection. It's a meager, motely assortment of books and artifacts that caught his eye. If he had more time - if he went out more - if he just used the Crown to - no. No! That's the Crown talking.

And it's grown far too loud again. He's out of time. For now...

With his sanctuary built, and his note in place, Simon executes his plan and he freezes himself into a deep, dreamless slumber.

In the end, his plan was very simple. If he froze himself, if he stayed asleep, he can slowdown the Crown's takeover. He can remain lucid for a few more years longer than if he stayed awake the whole time. This way... For however long he can manage, he can keep being Simon - he can keep himself together - for Marceline.

[deepfriedseagullfeet]

sometimes i bounce the idea around of jameson actually having time powers and i have this au where he teleports to a completely different timeline where jameson actually never took anti as his husband and ended up living a normal life without him. and its so fucking bizarre to jameson to see himself outside of trauma, because he defines so much of himself by anti and really doesnt know who he is outside of anti.

so this other version of him has blue hair and tattoos and works as a barista and plays music and makes art and has this glint in his eyes, this zest for life that the original jameson lost a long time ago. alternate jameson is independent and has healthy relationships and doesnt have to drink himself to sleep or smokes packs of cigarettes so he doesnt start hyperventilating. in a lot of ways hes still jameson, still a bit shy and naturally kind, but hes so different too.

and its not just a shock for the original jameson, its very scary for alt! jameson as well. because while hes gone on to live mostly normally, in the back of his head he KNOWS he was supposed to be anti's mail-order bride and KNOWS that anti is still pursuing him. he lives in fear of what anti will do to him if he gets his hands on him, and he doesnt like to think about what it would be like if he was in antis control.

so seeing this other version of him who WAS anti's husband is very unsettling. and for jameson seeing this other version of him who WASN'T is also very unsettling. but jameson sticks around this timeline for a bit as he tries figuring out how to get to his original timeline and he and alt!jameson end up being friends. and jameson quickly finds out that while this version of himself is safe and good...well, everything else about this timeline is FUCKED.

he finds out that alt!jameson is very estranged from jackie and chase. he finds out that because anti didnt get jameson all to himself, he decided to take henrik and marvin as his puppets instead, and constantly has the two try to kidnap jameson and kill jackie and chase. jackie's mental health is in complete shambles, constantly paranoid and going in and out of catatonic states, trying to track down anti, trying to bring his family back together. and without the stability of jackie or henrik, chase is a complete mess. hes drinking again, hes violent and mean and does not shy away from verbally abusing alt!jameson, telling him how its HIS fault jackie is sick, its HIS fault anti took henrik and marvin away from him, everything is JAMESON'S fault.

and theres something about how things are so bad in this timeline that gets to original jameson so, so bad. because it just hammers in the idea that jameson's marriage to anti was a valiant thing, that he HAD to be with anti, so the other egos could be happy. he was meant to be the sacrifice for the others, that his abuse is justified because it means marvin and jackie and chase and henrik get to live in peace.

it hurts to see jackie and chase literally losing their minds over finding henrik and marvin and bringing them home. but when jameson was with anti, he received no such dedication. jackie did not pour all these hours into trying to find him in his original timeline. chase did not cry and scream over him. and in this alternate timeline, when puppet! henrik and marvin come for alt! jameson, they try to beat the shit out of him and scream about how much torture and pain they withstand from anti, begging him to give himself up so they can be free of anti.

its all so fucked and almost traumatizes jameson even more. alt! jameson is so afraid of anti, but when he hears original jameson tell him all about his timeline, how marvin and henrik are happy and safe, chase is kind and successful, and how jackie is stable and pours out all this love and attention on jameson...it makes him feel very very sick. he knows he should give himself to anti. he doesnt want to be like original jameson. but he knows he has to.

its so fucked. its so, so beyond messed up, everything about this timeline, everything about jameson's fantasies of "what if i never married anti" or "what if i was raised with the other egos, happy and safe and nothing bad ever happened to me" turning out to be much, much worse than his reality.

original jameson watches puppet! marvin rip out jackies throat with their teeth and he watches puppet! henrik beat chase to death with a sledgehammer and he watches alt! jameson willingly walk towards anti, wearing the decaying bleeding body of their creator, rings in hand, just wanting all this to stop, just doing what jack intended this whole time.

when original jameson gets back to his own timeline, his eyes are blank and his body is trembling and his brain is fried by the concepts he was exposed to. henrik and marvin, scarless and proud, come back from the hospital and the theatre and ask whats wrong. chase comes out of his stream with kind, soft eyes and his dog at his feet, and a fully-medicated jackie who hasnt had a serious psychotic break in almost a month at this point scoops up jameson in his arms and kisses his face and everyone who HATED his alternate self is now coddling and loving on him.

the exertion of time travel and the horror of his reality, the existential idea that jameson needed to be torn in half by anti over and over again so everyone he cares about could be happy makes him so sick he vomits on the carpet and crumbles to pieces in the arms of the others.

[real-sun-wukong-fan01]

Alright guys since i like the silly idea of "a trio but it's the same guy suffering in three different ways"

I wanted to explain more of it because why not 💕

So! This idea is something i got by looking around at the sun wukong tag, and i noticed how wukong suffers no matter what.

So i said, why not gather the two versions i like the most + my AU?

It's literally him but suffering in three different ways but this time he gets to suffer with himself PHYSICALLY (because there's three versions of him.)

This idea was supposed to be a funny one, so anything I'll post about it (either drawings or me doing memes about it) will be a joke, (i can do lore with them dw, this can be a some sort of AU)

But i can give dynamics and little wholesome concept if any of you want to know.

How are they suffering in three different ways?

Burned monkey AU: burning because of the samadhi fire, constant pain and overwhelming anger and sadness because of how much he bottled up.

Jttw: it's a mix of mental and physical abuse (getting traumatized by the fillet and by getting used as a weapon, giving him a bad mindset.)

Possessed wukong: physical pain of getting used as a puppet, constant feeling of cold, freezing.

they all have different views of things, but they all vibe with each other because they love themselves so what's better than hanging out with yourself?

Yes I'll do more content of it because i like them,

(I gotchu bro i prepared this this morning)

The "normal" monkey king, is possessed sun wukong. Because he's from the original lmk timeline, he's just at the time where he got possessed.

He's kind of that state where he can do things on his own, but limited.

He can't express feelings or emotions with his face nor can he talk, he can only express things with his body language. He still hears the lady bone demon inside of him, which is what is keeping under the possession.

(MK is so confused)

For the nicknames!

not too sure, but i feel like they would be

Blue: possessed sun wukong (because he's the only blue one)

Burnt: burned monkey AU

And king: jttw

[ilooklikeaburntchickenugget]

Porcelain Doll

A/N: My first Steve story on Tumblr! And I think my first every Mafia AU for Steve ever... lets hope this goes well. Enjoy! Pairing: Mafia!Steve x F!Reader Word count: 2,909 Warnings: Mentions of weapons, swearing, angst.

(I don’t know the owner of this Gif, but it’s not mine. Just wanted to mention that.)

Being weaved within the world of mafia was a choice that you had willingly made.

When you said 'I do' you vowed to be with Steve til death do you part. Literally. Divorces were not only unheard of within the culture of bosses, it was a death wish. No secret could be leaked by an unhappy wife.

Granted, you had never dreamed of leaving Steve. The perfect man, who was stubborn at times, but you could always break past those barriers of ignorance he occasionally put up. In fact, you could bulldoze right through.

And you were the only one that could. Not Bucky, Sam, or Nat could compare to your ability to have that man breaking down every little secret he had stored in that mind of his. At the snap of your finger with him, your wish was his command.

You only had one duty to do, other than be faithful and loving to your husband: you had to oblige by mafia rules that were set for you. They weren't too overwhelming, it was a very limited amount. But it was enough so Steve could watch you like a vulture, if he wanted to.

And technically speaking, you could play his puppet whenever he pleased, and you wouldn't have the option to say no. He never enforced such power, always honoring your freedom and independence. But right now, he didn't have a choice.

"Babe, I need you to do this." He begged from behind his large wood desk, his study lit by antique lamps which cascaded their light onto polished mahogany surfaces.

"Steve, I will not be in another man's arms." You stated, fighting right back. Your arms over your chest, bottom lip easing out of it's hold with a pout.

"Sweetheart, you have to do this!" He elaborated, on the verge of defeat, his face now looking at the floor as his blue eyes scanned over his two feet, contemplating his next move.

"Do I have to though? Why not Nat, or- or someone else!" You threw your hands up in frustration. "I mean, seriously Steven, you cannot be for real right now-"

"Enough!" He rose his voice, the lion's roar booming through the room and ricocheting on the books and stained glass right into your chest. "You will be doing this. And you do not have an option." He emphasized, slamming his fist down. You flinched at the 'thump' that came as a result of the impact. He took a deep breath settling down, his gaze still facing downwards.

He took a few more breaths, moving his head up to meet your face. His eyes filled with a black void of heartlessness and atrocious intentions transitioned into a wave of calming blue, his pupils frantically searching your face as he realized he had scared you beyond your wildest thoughts. "Baby I-" He began but you stopped him soon after.

"I- I will do it." You choked out, your voice barely above a whisper, eyes filling with warm tears that began to fall gracefully down your cheeks, smudging your perfectly done makeup. You took a deep breath yourself, sniffling just a bit, before turning around and walking out of the study, arms now crossed tighter across your chest, and your feet setting off small pitter patters as you hurried yourself across of the rustic hardwood flooring.

Closing the grand doors behind you, Steve let out a sigh and a huff, turning around "Damn it!" He yelled, taking his large fist to the wall. He never intended to hurt you in any capacity, just like he never intended to punch that now crumbling hole in the plaster wall behind his desk, but mistakes happen. Only this was a grave mistake on his part.

You were rushing to your shared bedroom, quiet sobs leaving your mouth. Covering your face as best you could to try and prevent anyone from knowing, your ran up the glass stairs and to the second floor. "Y/N/N?" You heard Bucky's voice coo. You chose to ignore him and moved even faster than before to your room, where you locked the door. Crashing on the Egyptian cotton sheets, which swallowed you in great warmth and comfort, you sobbed into one of your sleeves, choosing not to subject your pillow to such a burden.

"What the fuck did you do?" Bucky marched into Steve's office, uninvited but not giving a thought to it. Looking behind where his boss and best friend sat, head in his hand, was the very hole in the wall Steve had just caused. “You idiot!” He scoffed, walking over and leaning over his desk. “Why was Y/N just running down the hall sobbing?” Steve took a heavy sigh, not looking up.

“I fucked up, big time.” Steve explained. Bucky rolled his eyes.

“So you told her?” He asked and Steve nodded. “How did you do it?” “How do you think, Buck?” Steve fired back.

“Judging by your crying wife and the whole in the wall, you fought.” “Yes, I fought.” He clarified, “I yelled at her. She fought back saying she didn’t wanna do it, I lost my patience.” “You stupid Punk.” Bucky laughed a bit, Steve looking up with a confused look, “You thought she would react any differently?”

“Well, maybe more cooperatively-” Steve began, but was interrupted.

“You’re asking your wife to go and flirt with your rival in a sleazy little dress that’s basically lingerie with a few pieces of fabric connecting it.” He sighed, “You’re asking the woman who loves you, who would literally die for you to go out with another man, and you expect her to be on board? If she reacted positively I would be more concerned.” “Well I didn’t think she would react positively, per se.” Steve rebutted, “Maybe just a little more willingly.” “You still don’t know a damn thing about women.” Bucky sighed, “You have the most loyal, loving, beautiful wife probably sobbing in bed right now because you scared the shit out of her. And you’re gonna sit here and just act like a fool?” He asked, “Why don’t you go apologize? That would be a good place to start.” “I probably should.” Steve leaned back in his chair, getting up and marching out.

He powered through your spacious and modern penthouse, making haste knowing the time was ticking. Approaching your bedroom door he took a deep breath, standing outside and giving it a soft knock. “Baby?” He cooed outside, leaning into the door to hear you soft sobs, “Doll?” He twisted the knob on the door, noticing it was locked. He sighed with annoyance. “Baby, c’mon now let me in.” “No.” You responded, holding your pillow in your lap like a child.

“Baby doll,” He softly said, “C’mon now, I just wanna apologize.”

“I said no.” You repeated again, this time more aggravation in your voice. He took a sigh.

“If you don’t willingly open this door up, I’ll open it up for you.” He warned. You huffed, still firm on your decision. “Fine.” He murmured, running back downstairs and into one of the side rooms, where he went in one of the drawers, picking up a key. Running right back, and up stairs, he placed the small metal object in the key hole, turning it and letting himself in.

You groaned, sitting back on the back of the bed, rolling your eyes. “Fuck you.” You spat out at him. He scoffed.

“C’mon babe, we both know you don’t mean that.” “Please,” You scoffed right back, “If I didn’t mean it then why did I say it?”

“Baby doll,” He sighed, smirking at you, “I love you. And I came here to apologize.” You pouted at him, keeping a straight face.

“Do you mean it?” You questioned, raising one of your eyebrows, looking at him. He nodded. “How do I know?” Your husband walked over to you, laying in bed on his side. You scooted further over to yours, trying to expand the space between you two.

“Baby,” He said softly, his words sounding like music to your ears, but you refused to look at him, “Sweetheart.” He said again, you still refused to move. He took your chin, softly in his large, warm hand. Moving your head to face his, he bent down and kissed you softly. Fireworks of tenderness exploded in your chest, as you hummed out of instinct. He smile lightly into the kiss.

“Because I love you, more than anything in this world.”

“Fine.” You reluctantly sighed, “I forgive you.” You stated, swallowing roughly. “I’m sorry I fought back, I should have gone with the plan.” “No, I understand why you did.” He nodded, “I shouldn’t have lashed out at you and let you see that side of me. You don’t deserve anything near that.” You nodded, leaning your head onto his shoulder. He tenderly kissed the top of your head, taking your smaller hand in his.

“How do you feel?” Bucky asked with a heavy sigh of disapproval as you looked in the mirror at this tiny black fabric that was a disgrace of a dress.

“Exposed, slutty, sleazy, whore-ish, should I continue?” You turned back to he and Steve, your husband clearly enjoying the view, taking his bottom lip in his mouth, “Hey!” You snapped at him, to which he escaped his trance, “Eyes on mine, not my ass.”

“C’mon now.” Bucky got up, sighing again in frustration. “We gotta go.”

You rolled your eyes, crossing your arms and walking out feeling beyond embarrassed for this apparel. A lot of mafia wives wore similar outfits to the one you had on, borderline stripper. You preferred classy and elegant, this was far from your cup of tea.

Getting out of the solid black car, you took a final deep breath, stepping out to begin playing your loose persona. Black pumps pattered on the ground as your walked into the mansion, your red lipstick curling up into a nice smile as you began greeting people.

The women were green with envy, their eyes filled with both red flames of jealousy and blue waves of fear. The men acted like dogs and pigs, looking you up and down like the cheap piece of meat you were acting out. You hated it, you truly did. Everything about the ordeal was already wrenching enough.

You were greeted by one of the server’s and a glass of much needed champagne. You wanted to down it, let the pain simmer away, but you slowly sipped as a proper lady would. Ironic with the outfit.

Looking around at the large ball room of people chatting, you finally found your target. His ridiculously untamed black hair, barely shaved face lined with wrinkles and harsh eyes were enough to let you know that was Brock Rumlow.

You walked over to him, a small smile on your face despite the pure growl underneath it. Making sure to jut your hips out a bit more, you immediately caught his attention.

“Well, well, well,” His voice echoed to you, as you kindly smiled now across from him, his suit not fitted well you noticed. “If it isn’t Mrs. Rogers.” “Please, Mr. Rumlow.” You played your character, “No formalities needed, Y/N, is just fine.”

“Hm,” He hummed with brief thought, “I thought the Rogers’ clan always took great pride in the name.” “Well,” You sighed, taking a sip of your drink, “Some things change.” “Oh?” He asked, “Like what?”

“Loyalty, trust, one’s pleasure.” You smirked, he clearly caught on. Fast.

“Pleasure, you say?” He inquired.

“You heard me right.” You sighed.

“So why’d you come to me?” He asked again, trying to act dumbfounded.

“You know why, Mr. Rumlow.” You stated. He hummed and nodded once.

“Follow me.”

He guided you through the winding whirlwinds of people, up one of the various grand staircases. Down the darkly lit hallway and into one of the bedrooms.

You didn’t want to jinx yourself, but so far this was too easy. Granted, it was Brock Rumlow. He was a loose cannon, the opposite of Steve. Steve ran a tight ship, the organization was established with concrete and stone foundations. Rumlow was some sticks put together. He left paper trails and greasy fingerprint all over his business, leaving Steve a laundry list of reasons to get rid of his rival.

His hands grabbed your hips, and as much as you wanted to pull away, you had to let him have you, if even for the next minute. You pretended to be okay, but no enjoyment was very much visible. He didn’t seem to notice. His hands reached down along your curves, moving and grabbing your ass. You could feel his breath reach your face, his lips inches away from yours.

It all happened so fast. One moment you were about to engage in a kiss with a man you despised, the next you were held at gunpoint in a headlock by the very same man. You opened you eyes calmly, looking around to see a dozen of Steve’s men from all angles, guns pointed at Rumlow’s head. The cool point of the weapon was on the side of your head, your hands tightly at your sides. “Let her go, Rumlow.” Steve walked in, staring at him. “If you wanna make it out alive, let her go.”

He harshly laughed, “Oh please,” He stated, “It’s not like I’d want to make it out alive by your dirty hands anyways.” “I’m pretty sure I’m not the one stealing other peoples property.” He barked, “So stop touching mine.” You remained calm, keeping your breath steady just like Steve had always told you to do.

The room fell silent. You could feel Rumlow’s fingers move on the gun ever so slightly, prompting you to know he was cocking it. With one easy move, you took your left elbow, smashing it into his chin behind you. He fell back with a groan, gun being thrown which you managed to catch with ease, like Nat had taught you. Cocking it yourself, you pointed it at the man now on the ground.

Looking back, Steve stood in partial awe and confusion at the site. You with the very gun you were threatened with now pointed at your attacker. “Take ‘em.” Steve stated, as numerous men went and grabbed him up, tying him with duct tape as he wailed for help. You walked over to Steve as he walked over to you, his fingertips tracing your jawline, “Are you alright?” He asked, face turning to concern. You nodded.

“Yeah, I’m okay.” He grabbed your waist, giving you a deep kiss, using one of his hands to run it through your once perfectly done hair.

“Where did you learn that?” He muttered, you lightly laughed.

“Nat.” You smirked into his ear.

“Doll you could’ve hurt yourself-” “Steve.” You insisted, placing one of your hands on his chest, “I’m not a porcelain doll. I married into mafia, I can’t be.” He sighed, looking away only for a brief moment of thought before turning back to you.

“I know you’re not.” He muttered, “I’m just worried.” You nodded.

“I know.” You caressed his cheek with your hand, “You always are.” You both lightly laughed, smiling at each other and lost in each other’s passion for one another despite little to no conversation taking place.

“Uh, hey boss.” Sam walked in somewhat awkwardly, knocking on the door. Steve turned around, hands still placed on your hips as your attention was now on Sam as well, “We might wanna go, like, now, so no one suspects anything.” “Yeah, right.” Steve dropped his hands from you, grabbing one of yours to lead you out one of the secret back doors and into one of the cars. You squeezed in next to Steve, him placing a hand on your thigh lovingly.

“So, when do I get a raise?” You gazed out the window at the various cars passing by.

“Your raise?” Steve scoffed, “What raise?” You sighed heavily.

“I did most of that job for you.” You rolled your eyes. “Got the target, took his weapon, got him on the ground.”

“Doll, it wasn’t that easy-” “It seemed that easy.” He sarcastically laughed.

“You’re insatiable sometimes.” He rolled his eyes.

“Using big words now, are we?” You turned to him, “I could use a bigger pay too.” “Fine.” He gave in, “What do you want.”

“A long weekend, just you and me, no work, in Napa Valley.” He gave you a confused look, “You heard me.” “Doll that’s a little much don’t you think-” “Four days.” “Sweetheart-” “Five.” “Honey I can’t-” “Six.”

“There’s not even that many wineries, I-” “One week.” “Fine!” He huffed, “One fucking week in Napa, no work no nothing. Excluding emergencies, where I will make it up to you somehow. Good enough?”

“Nat and Bucky need to be there too.” You retorted, “Staying at a different house, keep in mind.” “Babe, where will they stay?” “Steven, you have three houses out there, figure it out.” You scoffed.

“Fine. But that’s it.” He began, “This is your reward for your hard work.”

“Hard work? I would describe it more as flawless.” He eyed you, shooting a glare. “I love you.” You kindly smiled, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Now when we get home you’re gonna plan that trip, right?” “What do you mean I-” “Well, it’s not like it’ll plan itself.”

[justimajin]

Til Death Do Us Part ♜ Pt.4

➟ Pairing: Namjoon x Reader

➟ Genre: Angst, Fluff, Eventual Smut

↳ (4.1k), Arranged Marriage AU

➟ Summary: If someone told you that you’d be marrying the Kim Namjoon, you would think you were being lied to, or worse, that you were hallucinating. However, fate seems to have it’s own ways of making the impossible possible and before you even know it, the title of Mrs. Kim is bestowed onto you. There’s just one problem: you’re not sure if Kim Namjoon is the person he says he is and the truth of your own identity is dangling by the strength of a mere thread.

➟ Warnings: 18+ rating, graphic descriptions of violence and blood, major character death

gif credit.

➟ Previous Parts: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

➟ Next Update: Tuesday, January 12 

You and Namjoon return back without much of a word exchanged. 

The stifling silence lingers longer than its welcome, and there’s occasional swaying of your eyes, hastily scanning over Namjoon’s features. Moments like this make you wish you could figure out what was churning inside his head, the knowledge of his thoughts easing your work by tenfold. 

But alas, Namjoon is the heir to the Kim Empire. Although you have a carefully constructed image of him in mind, he has only been kind and considerate to you, and volatile when the situation calls upon him for action. Something that makes you truly wonder if you’ve been able to assess his character properly at all to this point. 

Entering the house, you plan on heading back to your bedroom and reporting back the information you’ve obtained ‒ until a hand covers yours against the doorknob. 

You swivel, brows knitting together. Your breath immediately hitches, noticing how Namjoon is just inches away from you.

He simply stares at you for a moment, like he was deciphering a puzzle. Lips moving, out escapes a question that you weren’t expecting. 

“Why are you trying to be a part of this?” 

Your eyes enlarge and you rattle through your brain for the clearest of answers. 

“This is your work...I just wanted to know more…” As if on instinct, you attach your role to it. “A-As your wife.” 

Namjoon’s lips draw into a line, and there’s a heavy crease forming in between his brows. A soft ‘tick’ leaves him as he spins around, planting a hand on his temples. 

For a second, you’re not sure what to make out from the gesture. In fact, you can’t recall if you’ve seen Namjoon like this before, especially towards you. 

Hesitating for a moment, your hand begins to slowly advance, moving towards his shoulder. 

He whirls around and you retract it in an instant. 

The breath is knocked out of your lungs when Namjoon clasps onto your hands, desperation reigning heavy in his eyes and rendering you immobile. 

“Please, don’t.” His voice cracks and your gaze instantly latches onto his, “I‒.…I don’t want you succumbing to it too.” 

Confusion swirls in your eyes and Namjoon exhales, fluttering his own shut. “The work I do‒the work I continue on from, it’s not the most pleasant...” 

“And…it’s something that’s completely broken my family.” 

Your pupils flare and Namjoon opens his eyes, tenderly gazing at you. 

“They act as if they don’t care much about the business or about controlling it, when in reality it’s all they ever concern themselves about.” Namjoon explains, “When we got married and you had dinner with them….I saw the family I knew before I became the heir, the ones that hadn’t let this business take precedence over everything else…” 

He continues, anguish leaking into his words, “I….I don’t want things to be the same way with you.” 

Your eyes don’t leave him and the pulse of your heart rate steadily increases, almost doubling when Namjoon squeezes your hands. 

“Get involved in something else, please.” He pleads, “It can be anything, just‒…” 

There’s a moment of hesitation, before he decides to be completely truthful. “Just know that my hands are the ones that have been tainted enough.” 

You harshly suck in a breath, warmth rapidly radiating over your skin. Namjoon expectantly stares at you, waiting for an answer that you can barely conceive. 

Swallowing hard, you nod in response. His shoulders deflate with relief and a genuine smile spreads across his features, but all it serves to do is make the sickening feeling in the pit of your stomach worse. 

I’m sorry, Namjoon. 

You weren’t sent here to not get involved, you weren’t trained and tasked with the mission of relaying information back, seeking an infiltration rather than a relationship from your marriage. 

Picking up the familiar box and hearing the static that reigns out, you patiently wait for the signal to correspond. The thought of Namjoon holding your hands and begging for you to delve deeper elsewhere because of the impact on his family, pangs through your mind more than you would like. 

The signal is sent through and you prepare yourself, placing your hands on the box. 

But for the first time since you’ve been married, you hesitate. 

“W-What?” 

You wonder if your ears heard right, but the remorseful look on your parents suggests otherwise. 

“We’re sorry, Y/N....” Your father states, turning his back without a second look in your direction. Your mother follows suit, not foregoing a glance either. 

You stand frozen, pupils latched onto their disappearing backs. Water begins to surface within your eyes and the door begins to slowly close behind them, all traces of light cutting off. 

┈

“Again!” 

The voice roars in your face, a wince running through your shoulders immediately. 

“I-I have no idea what you’re talking a-about…” 

His hand immediately grabs onto your chin, pushing you forward. Your breathing is uneven, eyes wide with fear. “This is the face of a liar? Say it firmly!” 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” You swallow hard and the daunting man in front of you seems satisfied for once, stepping back to look through the thin glass on the other side of the room. You don’t dare look, accepting that you were merely a puppet whose strings had to be pulled the right way. 

At the sound of approval from the glass, there’s a smile that curls on his lips as he turns to face you again. 

┈

“I-I can’t…” 

A hand slams against the metal table you’re sitting at and you jolt, “A woman tells you she has information regarding the Kim’s and you need to get it out of her.” He nearly snarls in your face, “What. do. you. do?” 

You almost feel like you’re being suffocated, but the answer slips through your lips after being drilled in there for a thousand times. 

“E-Exploit her weaknesses.” You squeeze your eyes shut, “Guilt her into thinking she can trust me…” 

He steps back, staring down at you with cold eyes. His gaze would make you waver, gawk at something else until it was over, but you raise your eyes, staring back at him without hesitation. 

A smile curls on his lips when he notices you’re beginning to hold the same coldness in your eyes that he has. 

┈

“AH!” 

You clasp your hand around your shoulder, the throbbing radiating all the way through your back. A punch is thrown your way and the grimace you hold vanishes in an instant. 

He scowls, “Keep your eyes on your opponent, Y/N!”

“S-Sorry…” 

A hard kick lands on your leg and you immediately collapse, a pang of pain shooting down where your hands grasp on. 

“What did I say about apologizing?!” 

Your mouth remains sealed shut and you attempt to get up, ignore the wobbling urge your knees have. Another punch is thrown in your direction and although clumsily, you manage to defect it in time. 

A wide grin spreads over his features. 

┈

“I-I can’t do this...I-I can’t…” 

His voice is far from gentle, “Y/N.” 

“I was never meant to be a spy.” You plead, “I-I can’t do any of this…” 

“Y/N.” 

Your voice cracks, “I-I just want to go home…” 

Your fingers are forcibly pride open, the cold metal jamming into your skin. Despite your protests, your arm is lined up in front of you, the man on the chair cowering away with wide eyes. 

“This is your job, Y/N.” He states coldly, “If circumstance calls for it, you will have to do this.” 

There’s a group of individuals behind him, all carefully observing you like some sort of lab rat. Your hands tremble uncontrollably and there’s a sick feeling in your stomach, but despite all that, you know there’s no way out. 

You’ve pleaded with him. You’ve pleaded with your parents - who aside from concern-filled faces, turn away with a blindeye. 

There’s no use. This is who you are now. 

“Y/N.” Your instructor scowls, “Shoot.” 

Hot water rolls down your cheeks, the weapon threatening to slip away from your hands. 

“Y/N.” His voice grows louder, commandful in nature. He doesn’t tell you what to do anymore, instead he glares, the silence in the room being daunting enough. 

Squeezing your eyes shut, you try not to think about how terrified the man in front of you looks. 

Your body propels backwards, and you’re sent flying until your back smacks against the wall. The metal slips from your fingers and you can’t bear to open your eyes, the scent of blood already alerting you of your lethal actions. 

The sound of footsteps coming closer greet you, and you don’t even need to look at him to see the smile that curls on his lips. 

His words are laced with satisfaction and pride, but they only serve to increase the emptiness inside you. 

"You're a tool now, Y/N. From on, you must follow our every instruction and order."

Like a robot, you solemnly nod. The mayhem of your doing is dragged away from the room, leaving behind a steak of crimson against the ground. 

From there on forth, the nightmare begins. 

Your eyes shoot open, a harsh gasp leaving your lips. Glancing rapidly around, you notice the wide two doors in your direct view and the luxurious bed that sits in the corner of the room. 

Your heavy breathing begins to still, shoulders slowly sinking down. There’s a silky texture against your skin that shifts, the length of the maroon gown pooling onto the ground. 

You sit up straighter, mind still dazed. 

Namjoon walks in, adjusting the cuffs to his suit with a deep frown. His eyes flicker up on you at once, a smile of relief tugging on the corner of his lips. 

“You’re awake?” 

It takes you a second to register his words, but after a moment you nod. “I hope you’re not feeling too tired to come with me.”

Shaking your head, Namjoon grins and you rise from your seat. He lets you loop your hand around his outstretched arm and you attempt to void your mind, aware that you’ll be spending the rest of the evening underneath a scrutinizing spotlight. 

***

The night swiftly passes by, individual's intermingling and conversing amongst themselves. You remain latched onto Namjoon’s arm, following him around as he greets members and thanks them for coming. Save for the chance encounter you have with his parents and a brief run-in with one of the company managers, your eyes continue to stay glazed over. 

Namjoon seems to notice right away and for once, you don’t question the motive behind his intention. 

“I’m fine.” You ease when he piques if you’re fatigued from the gathering. A waiter passes by you and you instantly reach out, reluctantly grabbing onto a glass of wine.  

Namjoon doesn’t question you again, but when he rounds the corner and heads towards a group of four familiar individuals, you’re grateful for picking up the beverage. 

Contrary to previous encounters, the shareholders don’t appear utterly offended nor hostile by your appearance. You presume that to be a good sign. 

“It’s about time you showed up.” Yoongi quips. Namjoon sheepishly smiles, and Hoseok chimes in. 

“Have you heard anything about the recent deal?” He quirks up a keen eyebrow and Namjoon advances forward, beginning to explain into detail. Although intrigued, you take occasional quiet sips from your drink, making no move to intervene. 

“How have you been this evening?” You blink for a moment, before turning in astonishment towards the source of the voice. 

Taehyung takes a sip out of his own drink, eyeing you for an answer. “I’ve been alright.” 

“You seem tired.” Brows furrowing, you glance at him peculiarly, wondering if it was truly obvious.

“I’m just a little under the weather.” 

He hums, continuing to drink from his glass and standing near you during Namjoon’s explanation. It draws curiosity out from you, but there’s a bitter taste lingering on your lips. 

You draw your upper and bottom lip together, smacking them together with puzzlement. Your stomach churns, the acidity in your throat abruptly spiking up and overwhelming your senses. A sudden wave of vertigo hits you out of nowhere, nearly causing you to trip. 

Two hands shoot out to steady you immediately.

“Y/N?” 

Although you recognize Namjoon’s voice, your response is cut off the moment your hand reaches up to cover your mouth. His grasp on you tightens, and before you know it, you’re being led out of the room immediately. 

You can’t recall where Namjoon brings you, but you can feel the cool texture of a wall against your hands as you attempt to steady yourself. There’s still a hand covering your mouth and Namjoon leans in closer, whispering underneath his breath. 

“Y/N? Are you okay?” Oddly enough, his calming voice is a lot more soothing to listen to compared to the bustling mixture of sounds coming from the gathering. 

You nod, shakingly letting out a breath. “I-I almost felt like I was going to throw up.” 

Namjoon sharply gazes at you with alarm and although you seem to be doing better, his grasp never leaves you. 

“Do you want to go home?” 

Your involuntary assumption is to first contemplate. Contemplate on whether or not it would be a smart move on your part to not be here by his side when he’s clearly interacting with important individuals. But unfortunately, the acidity tickling your throat seems to have an agenda of its own. 

Letting out a sharp cough, you nod and Namjoon instantly looks around for an exit. 

“Namjoon!” A man stands at the end of the hallway, tilting his head in confusion, “What are you doing out here?” 

You recognize him as Kim Yooseon, one of the company’s deal makers. You hear a sound of dismay leave Namjoon and with a heavy sigh, you tug on his suit’s jacket. 

“Just drop me by the entrance.” 

Namjoon doesn’t hesitate to protest, “But Y/N‒”

“It’s okay.” You reassure, “It’s more important for you to be in there compared to me. I’ll manage.” 

Namjoon appears to be caught in between agreeing with you and on the verge of letting out a string of protests. However, when you pleadingly glance at him, he can’t seem to say no. 

He ends up dropping you off with his driver just like you had requested and with a persistent gaze, leaves without another word. The moment he vanishes, you let out an audible breath, the proximity he was holding you on top of your nausea becoming more overwhelming then the urge to let your insides all out. 

You’re luckily dropped off back at the house in silence, only seeking out assistance from the driver for a bag in case the urge abruptly hits you in the midst of the ride. He questions if you’re alright and you quickly reassure him just like you had done with Namjoon, before hiking back to the house with swaying feet. 

Alarmingly, another wave of vertigo washes over you, this time with an aftermath of a throbbing sensation cascading through your head. Your stomach swirls at the same time, the hurling urge returning at full force. 

It’s only when you cradle your stomach with your hand and rest against a wall that your vision begins to blur, eliciting a sudden rush of panic that you’re ultimately faulty at coping with. Your feet mismatch and you collapse onto the ground, right in front of the house you needed to be in. 

As your eyes begin to droop and lull back, the sound of heavy footsteps greet your ears. 

***

Your eyelids slowly flutter open, the sight of crystals hanging from the ceiling greeting you. The familiarity strikes you at once, and you instantly scramble up onto your hands. 

You’re sprawled out on the ground, still wearing the maroon gown from the evening. 

“I never knew the L/N’s tried to create their own spies.” The deep voice halts your movement, a trail of goosebumps spreading over your skin, “Not a bad move, if I do say.” 

You don’t spin around right away. Instead, you slowly turn your head to the side, the sight before you distorting your breathing pattern. 

Your body violently trembles and the delicate maroon material you adorn is fisted within your hands. 

He stands against the wall, a familiar box in his hands and the door to the bedroom sealed beside him. Cocking his head to the side, he sends a smirk in your direction. 

“How stupid did you think the Kim family is?” A playful look dances in his eyes, “Are we that easily fooled?” 

At your quivering silence, Taehyung grows dismayed. “According to you, I guess we are.” The sound of metal alerts your ears right away and your eyes grow wide, fixating on the sharp object in his hands. “But don’t worry, you won’t be able to trick anyone after this.” 

You roll over in a flash, instincts thankfully taking over for a split second. Taehyung sighs, yanking out the curved knife from the ground before whirling around and lunging for you again. You’re able to evade him again, rising up onto your feet. 

Your heartbeat petrifying thuds against your chest as you glance around, mind becoming erratic. 

Taehyung sighs again, unclasping the knife in his hands and placing it back into his pocket. For a moment relief fills you, but it’s short lived when a revolver emerges out instead. 

He points it towards you, holding onto the same expression as the first time he aimed a gun in your direction.  

You attempt to swiftly move out of the way, but you’re not as lucky this time around. 

A loud cry escapes your lips and you collapse onto the ground, a pulsing sensation radiating from your left leg. Tears begin to emerge in your eyes and Taehyung appears relieved for once, satisfied he won’t have to chase or hunt you down for this to end. 

He aims the gun down at you. “Goodbye, Y/N.” 

The sound of firing echoes through the walls, and the remainder of the bullet clanks onto the ground. 

Nearly having scratched the surface of the polished floor. 

Taehyung’s eyes are wide and your hand tightens on the metal, having successfully knocked him down with your body weight. His irises darken considerably and a small grin tugs on his lips. 

“What are you waiting for? Shoot.” He chuckles boisterously, like he’s isn’t the one currently on the ground and being confronted with a gun. 

Your mouth twitches, the hot excruciating throbbing in your damp limping leg tingling through your skin. The ends of your fingers tremble the slightest, and it’s something Taehyung doesn’t ponder to take notice of. 

“I knew Namjoon shouldn’t have married a L/N...all of you are always the same....” A devil-like smirk crosses him, voice dropping into a low whisper, “Weak.” 

Abruptly, he’s off the ground, smacking the back of your elbow to loosen your grip. Thankfully, you latch onto the weapon tight enough, gripping it away from his preying hands. 

An echo murmurs through your head. 

“….if you ever are found out, Y/N….. 

....at the split second in discovering your true nature….

He successfully snatches the gun, propelling the hammer back in a hurry. 

….you cannot choose hesitation….

...and the evidence must be destroyed….” 

Once the gun is pointed right against your temples, you hope that Taehyung has prepared himself for a rude awakening.  

A hard punch lands straight on his nose and you grasp onto the gun, aiming it straight for him. 

Taehyung’s eyes are wide, and for the first time you can see fear in them. 

Fear of the emerging coldness that resides in your own. 

Squeezing your eyes shut, you fire. 

The sound of a thud greets your ears, and the reeking stench of freshly spilled blood is enough of an answer for your actions. 

***

Small huffs leave your lips, body limping as you walk out of your bedroom. Red residue coats your hands, dripping down your leg as you apply pressure to the metal embedded into your skin. Your other hand still tightly grasps Taehyung’s gun, keeping it securely by your side. 

Slowing turning around, you glance over your shoulder at the corpse on the ground. A grimace runs through your features, but it’s accompanied by a hiss as blood continues to trickle out of your wound.  

You begin to limp ahead, continuing to move forward. 

A tray clatters against the ground. 

You flinch, dilated pupils glancing up and preparing for defense. However, your breath hitches in an instant, terror pooling into them instead. 

Eunjoo stands before you, her shaky hands reaching out to cover her mouth. 

“M-Miss Y-Y/N…?” Her eyes have grown in size and your breathing becomes erratic as they continue to soak in the red staining your gown along with the gun in your hand. That’s when her trail of sight freezes, latching on the body behind you that you have yet to dispose of. 

In that split second, the fear in her eyes morphs into utter rage. 

“Y-You…” Her chest heaves, face flushing red, “Y-You’re a spy.” 

A pang of pain throbs through your heart, “Y-You’ve been a spy this entire time!” Disbelief strikes her, the dots beginning to loosely connect, “Betraying the trust of M-Master Kim...”

Eunjoo’s voice cracks and your eyes screw shut at the sound. 

“A-And me…” There are a thousand regrets laced in her bitter words. Tears begin to form in your eyes, but you fight back the urge to let them drip down your cheeks. 

The sharp sound of silver suddenly greets your ears. You jerk your head up, ignoring the way your vision has started to blur. 

Eunjoo stands in front of you, a butter knife in hand. You’re not given a chance to react one bit when she charges right at you with a cry. 

She’s unarmed and pinned to the ground in an instant. 

You aim your gun straight at her. 

Struggling for a moment, you notice the tears running down her cheeks and the soft sobs escaping her lips. 

“W-Why, Miss Y-Y/N? Why?” 

As she pleads, her frantic state mimics your own. You can’t hold the tears at bay anymore, your bottom lip quivering as they uncontrollably stream down your flushed skin. 

After a pregnant silence, you choke out the words, “B-Because there’s no other way…...” 

Your vision has blurred over entirely, “I’m sorry, E-Eunjoo…..but you’ve seen too much….”

Unlike Taehyung’s eyes, Eunjoo’s aren’t filled with either fear or horror. Instead, there’s just lingering disappointment, and for some reason that makes your heart tighten even more. 

Your hand trembles as you place your finger on the trigger and for once, you keep your eyes wide open when it’s pulled. 

***

The floors are shimmering, a near pearl hue twinkling from their surface. 

There are void from any pieces of glass, the silverware properly tucked away. No scratches litter the outside of your bedroom door, and there are no remains of a static box leftover. 

You steady yourself against the bathroom wall, sliding down until you’re fully seated on the ground. Disinfectant in hand, your leg is raised, now angrily blotched with murky dark red cracking around the small metal pocket. 

Once the area stops stinging and is finally clean, you shakingly inhale, before digging your fingers into the hole. You harshly bite down onto your teeth, a silent scream ready to erupt from the bottom of your throat. 

Metal clinks onto the ground and your shoulders visible relax for a moment, before you take out the disinfectant again. This time around, a sharp needle is plucked in between your fingers. 

The echo of footsteps entering the front door halts your actions, freezing you in place. 

Abandoning the needle, you quickly peer around, confirming that the door was locked. The footsteps continue to grow in sound, and with a haste opportunity, your vision fixates onto the shower tap. 

It’s not long before a knock resonates against the door, “Y/N? Y/N, are you feeling better?” 

Namjoon places his ear against the door, the sound of water sprinkling drawing a frown on his lips. 

“Y-Yeah...I’m feeling much better, Namjoon.” 

He hums, wondering if the water hitting the ground was the reason why your voice sounded deeper and thicker than usual. “Alright….I’ll just be here, if you need anything.” 

You make a sound in approval and he softly smiles, ultimately deciding to head back to bed after a long night. 

Water continues to splash against the surface of the ground as a fine needle quickly moves against your skin. In the midst of this, your hand ceases to tremble and a whimper escapes your quivering lips, right before you erupt into sobs. 

[love-hatred-stuff]

>>>part.1 ;; >>>part.3(coming soon)

Title: partners in crime pt.2 } Jin-young [got7]

feat. Ok Taecyeon [2pm] & Kwak Dong-yeon

-> ^Vincenzo^

genre: mafia au

warning: mentions of killing/violence and weapons, a bit suggestive

word count: 1.6k

Third person's POV

It was the next day and already evening. Jinyoung and you had ended the last mission successfully, like always.

Right now you were on your way to your boss, you were about to have dinner with him. So you could talk about things that needed to be handled. But you had a pretty close relationship, so you also talked about private things often.

Taecyeon was ruthless and a little psychotic, but you know him for over ten years now and you were used to his sometimes heartless and violent behaviour.

Although he was unpredictable, he was kind of your role model when it was about business.

He was one of the most successful secret mafia bosses in this world, and of course this had its reasons.

But you cared way more about people's lifes than he did. He even threatened to kill his own brother, even though Dongyeon was always loyal to him.

But when Taecyeon didn't like the ideas of his brother or he wouldn't success in something, he would be punished right away. By the only relative he had left.

You got out of the car that had brought you to the disguised company that was unofficially leaded by Taecyeon. His brother was the official face of it, but everyone in your gang knew, he was just the puppet of the boss.

Then you used the elvator to reach one of the high floors faster. Exiting when you arrived and heading to the large office of him.

You knocked but didn't waited for an answer, since you never did that.

But this time you catched the two brothers; the younger one being pressed on his chair aggressively by the older.

And that wasn't all; Taecyeon was holding a knife against his siblings throat, who had tears welling up in his fear filled eyes.

You could tell at the younger's posture as well, he was scared to death.

You shook your head in disagreement and disappointment.

You were aware of the fact that this wasn't the first time, you boss had threatened to kill him with his own hands. But you respected the other one too, so you wouldn't let that happen.

Taecyeon's eyes found your body that slowly entered the room but he didn't dare to loosen up the grip he had on the other young male, who's gaze wasn't moving away from his brother because he was too scared to do anything wrong.

You let out a 'tsk' and continued to shake your head until you spoke up and stopped you movements, looking at the dangerous scene that was going on.

"Taecyeon, please. Let this poor boy be. What did he do this time to deserve this, huh?" You were asking for a good reason.

But his look only made its way to the terrified face a few inches in front of him now. He smiled, making him look like a psychopath.

"Tell her, brother. What did you mess up this time?" His voice was not rough, he intended on just getting a answer out of him, a knife at his throat was enough, he didn't had to be loud, as well.

You huffed in disbelief. He really wanted to do this in front of you.

The younger began shaking a choking out individual words, but definitely not a complete sentence.

Taecyeon got impatient and growled at him.

"In a whole fucking sentence." He the sharp thing pressed more against the other's flesh, cutting him successfully and letting a bit of blood flood out.

Dongyeon hissed in pain and a single tear ran down his cheek.

You thought he now had crossed the line and stepped a few steps towards them.

"Teac, stop now." Your eyes diggered in his like the knife he had pressed against the younger's neck.

And so your boss finally threw the knife elsewhere and let out a sigh.

His brother's heart hitted like a drum. Of course he was scared of the man that had killed his whole family.

The tall man turned around to keep himself under control as long as you were in the room. But he still wouldn't let go so easy, he hadn’t got a proper answer from his puppet yet.

"Now, Dongyeon. Answer now or I will show you that I don't care when someone is watching." He threatened and looked outside the glass wall.

The male, who still sat there, completely zoned out, looking a bit traumatised, now opened his mouth in hope to be able to form a sentence this time.

"I offered to take care of this company. So it wouldn't be a burden anymore." He stammered.

You smiled, proud at him and approached his seat, earning a scared gasp of him. You stopped immediately, not wanting to terrify him even more.

"Why not, Taec? Let him take care of this building. He learnt a lot from you. And you are still in control. No reason to be angry about. He just wants to help." You spoke to your boss, making him turn back around.

He gave you a grin. He liked you and maybe you were right. So he nodded in agreement, letting it go finally.

Then his gaze went to his brother again, stepping up to him.

And the fear in the man's eyes was back. You were watching and ready to make a move.

"Good, brother. Do a good job. Otherwise it will have consequences, understand?" He asked him.

Dongyeon nodded fastly, tremling under his intense gaze.

You realised under how much pressure he was because of his not so gentle older brother.

"No, Taecyeon. He will do his best, it's human to make mistakes and have failures. Don't expect your brother to make or have none." You made clear and made sure to keep a straight face while looking at him.

"Sure." He gave in. "Go home, Dongyeon. Get some rest." He told him, before getting over to the table and sitting himself down.

You were feeling bad for his younger brother. So you hugged him as you saw how much he struggled to just get up from his seat. He was so surprised but also scared that Taecyeon wouldn't want him to have physical contact with you.

In private the older had always claimed you as his, he remembered.

The man in your arms looked in his brothers eyes, checking his reaction. Of course Teacyeon did not enjoy seeing that, but he kept silent and began eating.

After some good seconds you let him go and he disappeared out of the room fastly.

You sighed.

"Let him rest more, Taec. He needs a break from you." You said while going over to your own seat.

"No, I need his face, to keep mine a secret." He refused.

You were getting angry at his impulsive behaviour.

"Hear me out, boss. Either you will be more friendly to him, or this will have consequences. I want him to have a clear mind when he handles things that involve our safety."

Taecyeon rose an eyebrow. He liked playing with you, too bad you were a good player too.

"What do have in mind for him? Will you make him submit to you and fuck him?" He tried to surprise you with his choice of words.

But you didn't even look up from you food.

"No, I'm not interested in that. I only want him to feel safe and not terrified of you. Stop threatening him, or I will threathen you." You cold voice filled the room.

"You impress me every single time, baby. But I wanted you to come here to ask you if you are still satisfied with Young's abilities." He stated, talking about business now.

"Yes, don't worry, Taec." You assured him and gave him a simple smile.

He leaned back while letting out a comfortable moan.

"You are truly the only one that never disappointed me. You are so fierce. Why won't you be my actual girlfriend?" He suggested, convinced you would obey him perfectly.

"I don't think that's a good idea. You shouldn't get romantic feelings for me, Taecyeon. I'm the wrong person for that." You confessed truthfully.

"No, no. Don't think that. I just want to call you mine already. People keep asking me about it and I'm tired of liying. It's decided already, little one. As you said, I'm in control and today I'm not in the mood to compromise or tolerate another protest. Do I made myself clear?" He checked for your answer.

You gulped. Even if you had a chance against him in a physical way, you could never win completely, if he didn't want you to.

"Yes. But I'm not your girlfriend to satisfy any of your sexual needs. I'm here to work, that's all I want."

He smiled at you words. He would be surprised to hear you tell him the opposite. And he respected that. Even if he would gladly accept it if you would change your mind.

"That's all I want for now, too." He replied while wearing a mischievous grin on his lips.

[lildevyl]

DSMP FanFic Recommendations I

So, a few days @nastiiuu did a nice Recommendation of a DSMP FanFic called Evermore. So, per request, here's a list of different DSMP Recommendations that I have from my History, Mark For Later, and from my Bookmarks! Sorry, @nastiiuu that it took me a while to get this up! But I hope you all enjoy!

Stay safe and I will put the Summaries and Tigger Warnings in as well!

So, I will start off with the one the @nastiiuu recommended a few days ago!

Evermore

Summary: Prince Theseus, a child of blonde and blue, a child of isolation and a crave for touch. He's the youngest in the Royal Family, and somehow the most forgotten. The most neglected. The most alone.

Tucked away in his tower, the young prince watches the world move on without him, watches his family welcome two new princes into their arms, and yet reject him when he cries desperately from nightmares or shivers from a painful wound.

"Wilby?" The child had murmured, all curious and hesitant at once. He was tucked in his older brother's lap, watching as his other sibling sparred with their father. "We'll always be together, right? Forever and ever?"

Wilbur smiled. "Of course, Tommy. Forever and ever."

The Hanahaki rising in young Theseus' throat says otherwise.

TW: Isolation, Hanahki Disease, Angst no happy ending, Character Death, Villain!Dream, Manuplation.

The Exchange: My Life for Yours: I'm still reading this one, I'm on chapter 17 and it's ssssssssooooooooo good right now!

Summary: Tommy was a liability. Too annoying and too loud.

Techno didn't care about this child.

"Unless of course, you want call on that favor"

"Ok"

Then why he suddenly did?

TW: Villain!Dream, Canon Diverse, Kidnapping, Demons/Dreamons, Demon!Dream, Dreamon!Dream, Isolation, Manipulation, "A Deal with the Devil."

The Inevitability of Change: I just got caught up with this one and oh my Ghoul! This is intense and so good! I can't wait for the update!

Summary: Fuck it, he was allowed to do this, it would be better for everyone else anyway. They could do whatever they wanted and he wouldn’t be in their way. He wouldn’t cause problems anymore and he could have the perfect life that he had always wanted.

The egg extended a blood vine out to him. "Do we have a deal?" There was a level of smugness that Tommy recognized all too well from all his wars with Dream, it was the sound of an opponent knowing they’d won.

“We do, you dumb ugly bitch.”

or

Tommyinnit hated change. He'd witnessed so many people he cared about in his life change and hardly ever for the better. He just wished things could go back to the way they were when he had everything he ever wanted, a loving family who cared about him, a best friend who was always by his side. He craves this so badly that he makes a deal with the egg to get everything he's ever wanted.

or or

Tommy becomes a coraline kinnie

TW: Derealization, Unreality, Manipulation, Child Abandonment, Violence (later chapters), Explosions (later chapters).

Ties of the Puppet

Summary: Tommy hates how his mind feels trapped at that moment with Tubbo. The look in his eyes one Tommy had been forced to see far too many times. Wilbur’s eyes.

or

Tommy struggles with the trauma of his life and unhealthy relationships, Wilbur tries his hand at redemption, Phil and Techno learn to heal what's been lost.

TW: Mental Health Issues, Violence, Abuse, Redemption Arc for Tubbo, Healing for Tommy/Phil/Techno, some of the characters will seem a little OOC, Canon Diverse.

Forged By Truth (Or the Lack there of)

Summary: After his escape from exile failed spectacularly, Tommy only needed to be reminded that Dream saved his life a few times before it starts to sink in. Once his exile can continue again far away from any more distractions, Dream proceeds with his plan to craft the perfect weapon.

TW: Manipulation, Mention of Character Death (Character doesn't really die but the other characters don't know that), Suicidal Thoughts, Violence, Protégé AU, Tommy becomes Dream's Protégé, Angst, Whump.

Mask: I'm still working on this one but it's really, really, really good! A lot of Angst and Manipulation. So, please be careful when reading!

Summary: Dream knew Tommy was a naturally clingy child. That's why he found such satisfaction in having him exiled.

Dream didn't plan on Tommy clinging to him.

Dream was going to take advantage of the situation.

All Tommy needed was a bit of a push and then he would be completely broken.

Ready to be remodeled into the perfect weapon.

TW: Suicidal Thoughts, Attempted Suicide, Manipulation, Emotional and Mental Manipulation, Protégé AU, Broken!Tommy, Angst, Angst (possibly no happy ending but I'm not sure), Whump.

Lion's Cup, Tiger Stripes: I just finished this one and it's so good! Exile Arc but with a twist! Guest Appearances by Sad-ist, Late-August, Derivakat.

Summary: Tommy Innit knew what Dream was doing and was sure as hell not going through with it. So, by the third week of exile, as Dream starts to escalate his punishments, he leaves. One month later he runs into Purpled and hires him as a bodyguard while he travels.

Or Tommy runs away, stays in one village for a month to clear his head and decides to go travelling while dragging Purpled with him.

Or road trip pog.

TW: Angst, Angst with a happy, Found Family, Violence, Testing, Scares, Explosions (later chapters), I think that's all.

Valley of Serenity: This is a very long fic! It's about 60+ chapters so feel free to read in increments but this is a really good fic! Redemption Arc and Healing for the SBI Family!

Summary: After blowing up a nation, Wilbur throws a sword down at his father's feet and begs to be killed.

Phil, however, takes one look at the state of his children and decides he has other plans.

(post november 16th au where wilbur doesn't die. instead a family leaves the smp entirely, and learn how to live with each other again.)

"Fuck, I - I can't forgive either of you right now," Tommy says quietly. Despite the words, he hugs Wilbur tighter. "One day, though. I think one day I will."

"And we're still brothers, right?" Wilbur dares ask. Techno inhales sharply beside him.

They get a choked laugh in reply.

"Yeah. Brothers."

TW: Angst, Mention of wanting to die, Healing, a long road of healing, Mental Health Issues, Family Bonds, Angst but I think there is a happy ending, Violence, Mention of the L'Manburg exploding. Redemption Arc, Healing.

Breathing's Just A Rhythm: I finished this fic a few weeks ago and my ghoul! This is so good! Time Travel Fic with Dream, Schlatt, Tubbo, Tommy, and of course CHAT!

Summary: POGTOPIA??? WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?? TIMETRAVELBLADE. technotravel

“Chat, I did not time travel,” Techno said exhaustedly, “I don’t know what gave you that idea, but please calm yourselves.”

The voices started obnoxiously whispering at the top of their lungs. HE DOESN’T KNOW. PANIC

Or: Tommy, Tubbo, Jschlatt, and Dream all end up in the past. (Oh, and the Chat comes too) (mcd is a villain, this fic has a happy ending)

Or OR! Dream attempts to Time Travel in the past but winds only go back a few months ago during Pogtopia Area and he winds up bring a few unexpected victors with him! MEANWHILE: Karl is trying his damnest to fix everything with Time Travel Fiasco that Dream caused! B/C the Future selves and the past selves switched!

TW: Graphic Violence, Bodily harm (later chapters), Kidnapping (later chapters), Explosions (later chapters), Betrayal (later chapters I won't say who!), Isolation, Manipulations, Mental and Emotional Abuse, Trauma, Therapy (Finally these boys gets some), Good!Schlatt, Villain!Dream, Redemption Arc Wilbur and Schlatt.

I think I got them all?

Wrong Place for Redemption: This one of the stories that helped inspired Breathing is Just a Rhythm! Time Travel Fic!

Summary: -Previously titled Time Will Decide. Name taken from lyrics in 'A Sadness Runs Through Him' by The Hosiers

“Okay, why don’t you go see him.” Tommy didn’t know what he thought the afterlife was going to be like, hell he didn’t even know if it was a real thing. Maybe he’d see Wilbur, possibly Schlatt, but he didn’t expect to see a white castle and Karl.

Or where Tommy looses his final life to Dream in the prison only to be teleported back in time.

OR where Tommy is given a second chance and isn't going to blow it, not even if things start to get revealed (things that change everything) and discoveries are made.

This whole book has TW's: Child abuse, violence/murder, gore/blood, implied/referenced suicide, suicide, drinking, etc.

Parental Rights: Another good on going fic for me! Can you tell that I love some SBI/Found Family Fics here?

Summary: Sam wants to be there for Tommy. Wants to be his dad. Wants to be the one Tommy comes to when he's in trouble or excited over something. He'd happily legally adopt Tommy, but well... Tommy's actual father is in the way of that. Sam thought with how distanced Phil was with his son it would be easy to persuade him to give his parental rights over to Sam. But well... Tommy's stubbornness had to come from somewhere, right?

TW: Sleep Walking, Mentions of Exile, Healing Arc for Tommy, Healing Arc for Sam, Healing Arc for Tubbo, SBI, Healing Arc for Techno.

Allium: This is still on going, but oh man! This is getting really good!

Summary: What if Dreams plan for the Disc War finale had worked?

Tubbo dead, Tommy in the prison, SMP under his control. Allium Ashes.

TW: Major Character Death, Ghostbo (Ghost Tubbo), Manipulation, Isolation, Imprisonment, Prisoner Innit, Making someone believe they are responsible for something they didn't do, Kidnapping, Rescue Mission.

And How Can I Compete (With The World At Your Feet): God AU and this is really Fangtastic! Rated M for Graphic Violence and Attempted Sacrifice.

Summary: Tommy has been kept away from the world and held captive for four years, and now he’s about to be used as a sacrifice to a god. A blood god, to be specific. The Blood God. But, instead of accepting his captor’s sacrifice, the Blood God is in debt to Tommy. And he’s going to save him.

A universe where Technoblade, Wilbur, and Phil are all gods who have become quite protective of a mortal fifteen year old without a home.

This concept was based on a text post I saw, I think! I can’t find it anymore, but if you see it let me know!

TW: Blood, Violence, Attempted Sacrifice, Villain!Dream, Villain!BadBoyHalo, Occult Setting, God AU, Blood God!Techno, Angel of Death!Philza, God!Wilbur, Angel!Tubbo, Angel!Ranboo.

Death's Forest: This is a nice little One-Shot for the SBI, and Dadza fans! Set during Tommy's Exile. Don't worry! Dadza to the rescue!

Summary: “Can I see him?” Phil asks, blinking owlishly, as if he’s simply just asking. As if he’s not holding a threat behind those light words.

“Don’t push your limits.” Dream responds, and Phil only smiles with a slow nod.

The next day, Dream wishes he had answered differently.

Or

Phil isn’t quite human. He wants to visit Tommy during exile.

TW: I don't think there's any TW here, but if there is, please let me know!

Prince Theseus: Royal AU! Hybrid Tommy. Prince Tommy (Theseus).

Summary: Prince Theseus Craft of the Anartitic Empire, A child who could bring joy to anyone's day left to be forgotten by his family left to spend his days in his tower with nothing but his Maid and dear friend as company

Left to watch his older brothers laugh and smile as his father looks at them with love and the eyes of a proud parent he never saw directed to him, watch them both receive the love he craved so desperately from his father. Left him to envy his brothers yet grow jealous as that jealousy turns to a small flame of hatred growing steadily as time passes leaving him to make his final decision.

No longer will he be known as Theseus but as the Amazing Tommyinnit who could do anything who will prove his former family wrong and show he is better than what they think.

Which leads him to where he is now, a runaway prince who finds a new family brought together by hardship and their love of traveling the endless seas.

AKA :

16 yr old Prince Theseus changes his name to Tommyinnit and runs away from his royal family who neglected him and finds a real family on a ship who just so happened to be pirates as well.

TW: Isolation, Mention of a Minor Character Death, Running Away, Royal AU, Hybrid Tommy, SBI, Neglect, Pirates, Found Family, Angst, Hurt and Comfort, Magic.

Therapy Marriage: Okay, I'm adding this one for some Wholesomeness, and Fluff with some Angst but there should be a Happy Ending!

Summary: but for some reason, tubbo (and possibly ranboo, although he doubted this was his idea) had got it into his head that tommy needed therapy or some shit.

which, fine, maybe he had a little bit of an issue. he did freak out at damage, and weapons, and he had reached out to puffy, but he was okay! he didn’t need tubbo to pity him.

but- here was where the weird part came in- tubbo wanted tommy in his marriage.

TL:DR Tubbo wants to help Tommy and decides that the best method is by marrying him as well. Ranboo just goes along with it.

*****

Okay, this post has gotten very long! I do apologize for that! So, I'll add others to another Post!

[the-silentium]

The Lost Future Pt.1

Masterlist   Part 2

Pairing: soulmate!Five Hargreeves x Reader

Summary: Soulmate AU where the soulmates share their wounds. || Along with your brother, you are transported into the 1960's with a bunch of kids you don't know. Turns out they are trying to stop the 2019 apocalypse and you are playing a key part of it.

Words: 4590 words

Warnings: Violence, blood, swears, racism. 

A/N: Hi readers! This fic' was too long to be posted in one part, so I divided it in three distinct part. The next part will come out pretty quickly, seeing as it it already written but not proof read yet. Please, let me some comebacks in the comments or send me a request!

Groans erupted from your throat, a clear indication that your peaceful slumber has been disrupted by some unknown pull. Your heavy eyelids fluttered open with difficulty, the need to sleep omnipresent in your system. A bright blue light forced you to squint while tears formed slowly thanks to its harsh brightness. Before your foggy brain could comprehend what was happening, the glow intensified in a blinding flash and the sudden feeling of free-falling gave you nausea. 

The fall was brutal, your whole body crashed on the ground like an inanimate puppet. Your hands flew to your face with a pained cry, covering the painful spot that was your nose in an attempt to soothe the suffering nerves. To say that you were confused was an understatement. One moment, you were peacefully asleep and the next you were… where? You removed your hands from your face, a pounding sensation still beating under your skin and shrieked as your eyes landed on a disgustingly big spider weaving its web between two oversized blades of grass. You jumped aside, eager to put distance between yourself and the arachnid, when your eyes met the magnificent blue sky, as clear as ever, with the sun nearing its peak. The warmth of its rays touched delicately your cheeks achieving to bring a smile to your lips. It has been a really long time since you last sunbathed and today would have been a perfect day to do it if it weren’t for the strange situation you just found yourself in. 

At the foot of a nearby tree laid a brown-haired boy cursing under his breath. He must have scratched his knee somewhere, looking as he was slouched over himself trying to alleviate the pain as you did moments ago. Your eyes traveled up, analyzing the familiar form. His outfit resembled yours, his tousled hair the same shade as yours… You jumped to your feet in a hurry when his green gaze met yours. 

"Roo!" You exclaimed, running toward your twin. The teenager only had a second to prepare himself before his body was tackled to the ground by an incredible force. His yelp made you laugh before he pushed you aside, adding another fall on the list of today's activities. Once he got a good look at you, Andrew’s eyes widen. Some tears formed in his eyes, but before they could escape and run freely down his cheeks, he threw himself at your neck, hugging you with all his might. 

"Y/N!" His strangled voice was muffled by your neck. Your arms wrapped around his body, mirroring his grip. "I missed you too, Roo," You whispered in his neck. Finally, you reunited with the only person in the whole world that understood you more than yourself. 

Pushing you at arm length, Andrew’s eyes scanned you like an awk. "How is that possible?" He mumbled, eyebrows furrowing. "You-" Your laugh made him jump and clearly, he was beginning to think that you came back missing some brain cells. Patting his shoulder, a smirk stretched your lips. 

"Don't sound so disappointed." You flicked his forehead, just like you used to do when you were kids and you were teasing him. "I might think that you don't like me." 

Andrew groaned and pushed you off. Getting up snickering, you brushed off the dirt on your clothes. You had missed it, this perpetual teasing. You both could bicker and argue all you wanted, but you would always recover in no time, never holding a grudge against the other without having to talk about it. 

"What the fuck!" Andrew's yell made you look up. He pulled his clothes forward, examining and patting his body like he never saw it before. "No, no, no… Why am I thirteen again?" His head shot up, his green gaze back on you showing his confusion. "What did you do?" 

Taking a step back, you put a hand on your chest. "What did I do?" You replied in a defensive tone. "I didn't do shit! Four minutes ago I was-" Your sentence died as your eyes caught on your surroundings. Old cars you’ve had only seen in movies rolled on the streets, ladies walked by wearing old fashioned dresses of various flashy colors and various patterns, different stores displayed proudly their retro signs for all to see. Were you in one of the small American towns that were stuck in time? 

"What the…" You heard your brother mutter in sync with yourself. The thought to pinch yourself passed your mind, after all, you did have some really weird dreams recently with all the stuff that happened in your life. Or maybe you watched too much Supernatural in the last months.  

Turning around to try and make sense of the scenery, you noticed high buildings beyond the line of trees. If they were anything to go by, you would say that you ended up in a urban park in some random city. The transportation method was still unknown, but that was something you could figure out later. 

Women in colorful dresses walked slowly talking to each other on a stone walkway. Some of them pushed baby carriers around while others looked in the twins direction, a hand flying to their mouth, eyes growing as wide as saucers. Looking down, you felt your heart accelerate. You were wearing a pair of black basketball shorts along with a light grey tank top that said: "If I was a bird, I know who I'd shit on". Clearly, you didn’t have the proper attire for this period of time. Andrew was in the same predicament as yourself, with his basketball shorts and his "I play hockey because punching people for no reason is frowned upon" shirt. 

Getting a hold of Andrew's wrist, you started to walk away from the outraged women who seemed to be harshly whispering between them, their manicured fingers pointed at them. Would it have been your own modern age town, you would have assumed entirely your choice of clothing, but here, where you didn’t know jack shit about how the people would react? You kept it in and walked away. 

"Hey! You two from the 21st century!" Shocked, you stopped in your tracks and turned to meet a brown-haired boy running in your direction. His school uniform was vaguely familiar, although you couldn’t put your finger on where you knew it from. "You guys got transported too!" The boy finally reached them. He was all smile and his bubbly presence made you relax immediately. You noticed six other kids wearing the same uniform walking after their comrade. It reassure you that the majority of the group seemed as lost as your brother and yourself. Maybe you could stick with them for a while. You noticed that they had an unconscious girl with them. You wondered if her state was caused by a fall or by another unknown reason. 

"Transported? What are you talking about?" Andrew stepped closer, positioning himself right beside you. He was three inches taller than you and surpassed the new boy by a good one inch. 

Bubbly guy turned around, pointing vaguely at one of his approaching friend. "Five time-traveled us here. In the past! So we could stop the a-," a hand on Bubbly's mouth prevented him from saying more. 

Before you had time to question the sanity of Five's parents for choosing such a name or ask how one could time-travel back in time, cold blue eyes glared holes in Bubbly's head while maintaining pressure on his mouth. "Shut it. We already have enough attention on us like that." True to his words, people were watching their little group intently, some of them stopping in their tracks to openly stare at them. 

The steady rhythm in your ribcage was quickly disturbed by the harsh blue gaze falling on you. A beat or two were skipped, your body too entranced to remember that this muscle was indeed vital to your survival. "We can't talk here." A smirk stretched his lips when his eyes trailed down to your tank top. For a completely unknown reason your body answered to his apparent approval by creating some butterflies in your belly. Swiftly, he removed his jacket and handed it to you. 

Eyebrows furrowed, you stared at him, then the jacket and back at him. "I'm not cold thank you." You said confused. Rolling his eyes, Smug Face kept handing you the piece of clothing. "If you walk around looking like that, you might get arrested. People in this decade aren't that open yet." He clarified in an impatient tone.

You didn’t know much about "this decade", but you can feel that he was definitely right. The people around seemed extremely judgemental and unappreciative of your appearance. Sighing, you uncrossed your arms and took the jacket, making sure to not touch the boy's finger in the process. The last thing you needed was your heart stopping indefinitely because it short-circuited at his contact. 

"Fine." The black jacket was surprisingly comfortable and light on your shoulders. The coffee scent that lingered on it was quite enjoyable and you found yourself gripping the slightly too long sleeves. Looking down, it seemed like you were wearing a weird looking black dress. If you kept your legs close to each other, that is. Smug Face looked satisfied of your appearance and nodded. His mouth opened to speak again, only to be cut by another. 

"Wait. How do we know we can trust you?" Oh, Andrew. Always there to protect you from any harm. Speaking of which, his right arm found its place on your shoulders while his query gaze was fixed to the unconscious girl in one of the boys’ arms. 

At that, Smug Face stared at him, seemingly getting colder. "Really?" He rolled his eyes once again and scoffed, turning around. He took off toward a street, muttering to the others to follow him. Some of his companions followed right behind him after sending them curious and apologetic glances. Bubbly and a girl stayed behind, waiting for the newcomers. 

The girl sighed and offered her hand to shake. "I'm Allison. Sorry about Five, he's a bit rude."  Bubbly scoffed at that, muttering something about a grouchy old man. "The girl is our sister, Vania. She fell unconscious before we time-traveled. Look, I know you don't have to, but you can trust us." Deep inside you, you knew that they were trustworthy. Anyway, if you were proven to be wrong, all you had to do was use your power and get the hell out of there with Andrew. Smiling, you shook Allison's hand before pointing to your brother. 

"That's Andrew, I'm Y/N. And don't worry," You pointed at the nosey people still watching their little group, "between the old-timers and you guys, I choose you guys." 

Allison chuckled while Bubbly, who presented himself as Klaus, cheered and led the way to catch up with their siblings. 

The walk to a small isolated house took a good 20 minutes. In this time, you talked with the rest of the group, getting to know them a bit. 

You learned that the familiarity you found in their uniform was caused by their worldwide superheroes reputation. You remember watching the news one day, 6 of them displaying in front of a crowd, proud faces daring someone or something to come at them and try and beat them. You remember feeling proud of being born on the same day as them. You were all special after all. 

However, they weren't as invincible as you once thought in your young innocence. Apparently, they failed in preventing an apocalypse in 2019 and ended up travelling through time to survive, which failed once again because you all were back in your early teen age. The idea of being stuck in the past for your whole life was weird to say the least and you hoped that you would find a way to get back home. 

Most importantly though, you learned that Klaus was your favorite out of the group. He was carefree, almost too much sometimes, and was not afraid to be himself. You laughed along with him during a big part of the walk, the both of you mocking the outraged faces of the 1963 grown-ups when they got a good look of Andrew's shirt or Allison's too short skirt for their time. 

Luther clearly didn't trust the two addition to their little group. He shot some glances your and Andrew's way from time to time, clearly trying to judge if you were a threat or not. At one point, he asked Allison to walk with him. It may have sound innocent but you knew he wanted to protect her from you. You didn't need a power to find out, his eyes were talkative enough. 

Diego was at least approachable. He didn't talk much, but didn't reject you either. He seemed funny on first glance and you hoped that you would have a chance to talk to him more. 

Finally, there was Five. For you, he was a total mystery.  He didn't turned around once, too concentrated to get to his destination and not once did he answer his siblings when they asked where he was leading them. He totally ignored the people watching him like he had two heads, sometimes glaring at those who were too close to him, but mainly kept his eyes right ahead. 

You reached a cute little yellow house with rows of beautiful purple flowers framing the door. Pansies you think they are named. You were sure that there would be a lovely old lady greeting you at the door with a nice smell of cookies floating in the air, but to your disappointment, a musty smell gripped you at the throat instead, along with dust entering your lungs. 

You coughed a bit just like everyone who entered before you minus Five. He seemed immune to his environment, still walking like he hadn't reached his destination yet. 

"Five, the hell are we doing here?" Diego's voice echoed through the silent rooms. You wandered into the little living room, barely dodging Klaus who just threw himself on the first couch he saw. A cloud of dust erupted of the old cushion, like an explosion suffocating the brunette who quickly got back on his feet. You laughed at his antics when a hand got a hold of your arm and pulled you toward a door. 

"Come on Panda. They went this way." Andrew released you when you followed after him. The door lead to a basement, where everyone was gathered around Five. 

"Thank you for finally joining us." The sarcasm caught your attention, your eyes travelling to the source only to find his gaze on you, reanimating the flutters in your belly. Damn butterflies, you'll need to find a fly swatter soon. "Now we can concentrate on stopping the apocalypse." You froze. The what now? 

"The hell?" "Did you just say a-" both yours and Andrew's voice died in your throat when Five lifted the corner of a carpet, throwing it at your feet and gripped two wood planks. If he hadn't lifted the two planks like he did, you would never have thought that they were movable. 

"Holy shit! You have your own batcave?" Klaus jumped before Five in the hole in the ground. Five followed suit, threatening Klaus of mutilation if he touched anything. Luther moved his unconscious sister in his arms and entered the hole. Your curiosity to see what was down there got the best of you, so you did one step toward the hole before you were stopped in your tracks. 

"Woa. We can't go down there. We don't know them." Roo's uneasiness was clear. He didn't trusted them and being stuck underground wasn't helping. "No offense," he watched Allison and Diego, who stayed behind waiting for them, "but you guys might be killers for all we know!" 

A blur passed in your field of vision, passing under your brother's chin and hitting the wall. 

"Don't you fucking dare call us killers. We save people." With each words, Diego got closer to Andrew, growing the tension in the room as he went. 

"And you think that they'll trust us when you throw knives at them?" Allison grabbed her sibling's arm and pulled him back, away from Andrew's face. 

"They have to if they want to come back from here." Five's voice coming from behind you made you jump. You hasn't seen him exit the hole nor did you hear his steps. "And we don't have time to waste. The clock is ticking." His tone let no place to negotiate. He was losing patience. And fast. 

"To stop the apocalypse?" The hope of returning home, to your family and friends was relieving. If you could do something to save them in 2019, you would definitely do everything to make sure that happened. 

"Yes and if we want to have a chance to do it, we must start to plan. Now." A sigh on your left made you relax. Andrew finally admitted defeat, allowing you to follow Five who disappeared under the ground again. 

You stopped in awe at the underground living room. A bunker. The perfect hideout to plan to stop an apocalypse. 

…………………………….

Your brain felt like it was going to explode at any second. After Five had thrown spare clothes to everyone, the Hargreeves had taken an hour or so to explain what happened in 2019 and you were now trying to elaborate a plan against an organisation named the Commission. Sadly, every ideas were quickly rejected by an impatient and highly irritated Five. 

Klaus' whines about his empty stomach was getting on the boy's nerves for the last half hour, but you couldn't stop yourself before finally agreeing and proposing to go get some take out. Thinking with an empty stomach was too much to ask for and by the looks of it, Five would never be satisfied by anyone's idea. 

Cheers resonated in the room making you chuckles while Five rolled his eyes. 

"I'm coming with!" Klaus cheerfully tapped your shoulder and lead the way out of the bunker. 

"Me too! You'll need someone to "pay" for the food." Allison chuckled along with you. You shot a questioning glance at your brother, only to be answered with a shake of his head. You knew he would probably use this time to snoop around the bunker and get to know who he was plotting with.  Just as you were about to exit the house with your 2 new friends, a blue flash on your right caught your attention. 

"I'm coming." Every damn time! The second you hear that damn melodious voice, your heartbeat accelerates! Were you ill? Was your body trying to tell you something? Warn you against him? 

"Believe me, old brother dear! We really don't want to know!" Hands moving in the air like a lunatic, Klaus turned on himself to face you, walking backwards. You barely had time to slap a hand on your mouth to stop yourself from laughing at the boy. "You just want coffee, say it." He added on a more serious tone. 

"I'm here to make sure that you newbies don't alter the timeline more than it already is." Allison ignored Five's irritated comment and nudged your arm. 

"Hey, sorry about Diego earlier. He really takes his vigilante work seriously." You shrugged it off, it wasn't a big deal to you. You were a bit carefree but not careless. You had good instincts and you knew that you could trust your guts telling you that they were good allies. 

"It's fine. Sorry for my brother, Roo really crossed a line, calling you killers like that." You paused, trying to find the right words to describe your situation. "He's just really confused. One minute we are relaxing at home and the next we are back in our teenage body in an old american city." You frown, looking at the ground. A delicate hand found your shoulder and squeezed softly. 

"I forgot to ask!" You jumped at Klaus' sudden exclamation. "Where are you guys from? I can't place your accent!" 

You scratched your neck, an embarrassed smile forming on your face. "Sorry for the accent." A nervous laugh escaped your lips. "My brother and I are French Canadian. We grew up learning French and English, but I'm way more fluent in French as it's my mother tongue." You were not embarrassed of your country in the slightest. You loved Canada, it was just that a certain piercing blue pair of eyes was glued to you ever since you left the house and they started making you nervous. 

Klaus gasped before reaching your side to throw an arm around your shoulder and pull your smaller form into his side. "Our polite neighbors! You don't have to worry, your English is impéccable so far!" You giggled, happy to know that your nationality won't be an issue. 

"So you were in Canada and you still time-travelled?" Five's sudden question surprised you. During the whole way to the nearest diner, he had remained silent, listening and analysing. His incredulous tone made you perplexed. Was it wrong? You opened the door to the others before answering the question. 

"Looks like i-" A fist hit the counter in front of you, making you jump. Your heartbeat accelerated for a second, the silence in the diner deafening to your ears and rising your nervosity. Every pair of eyes in the room was directed at you, more so at Allison. You perceived her anxiety and immediately, your hand found hers in a weak attempt to appease her. The way her fingers tightly interlaced with yours despite her keeping a strong exterior alerted you that she was shrinking inside. 

The looks on the patrons faces made you sick. You recognized those looks. Disgust. Anger. Superiority. For a moment, you had forgotten that a lot of people in these years hated the people of color and that they suffered great injustices. 

The clerk behind the counter with his haughty air, pointed a sign behind him. The sight made you gnash. Whites only. Oh how you wanted to show him how colourful he could get if you hit him hard enough. You opened your mouth at the same moment as Klaus, but the both of you were interrupted by none other than Five. 

"We're leaving." Your eyes went wide, quickly turning to him to yell at him instead, but were cut off by his hand pulling you out harshly along with Allison. The second you were outside, you pulled your hand back as hard as you could, nearly elbowing Klaus in the stomach when Five let you go. 

"Why are you letting them win?" You spat. Some patrons were still eyeing you through the front window, contentment dripping from their features. You nearly decided to get back inside and speak your mind. 

"There's nothing we can do about that. Drop it." Your blood was still boiling in your veins. You wanted justice. You wanted to punch the clerk's and patron's smug faces until their thick skull understood that people of color or not, everyone had the same rights. You were all humans. You were all sentient beings. 

"It's fine. Let's go." Allison's weak smile didn't even reached her eyes. As much as you hated to, you dropped it nevertheless. Pushing the matter wouldn't do anyone any good so you followed Five towards another diner, your morale at its lowest. He and Klaus went inside to get the food while you waited with Allison outside. You two settled on a bench near the diner so the boys would find you easily and started softly passing rocks at each other with your feet.  

"You must miss them." You frowned at the affirmation. 

"Who?" 

"Your soulmate and your family." Her sad eyes met yours. It was at this moment that you realised that she looked utterly tired. It pulled at your heart to see her in this state. 

"I never met my soulmate. But I do miss my family a lot." You recalled your mom who stroked your hair when your weren't feeling good, your dad who would always figure out a way to cheer you up and your dog who would always be a sunshine and sleep over your covers to keep you warm whenever you felt cold. Lowering your head because of the tears forming in your eyes, you blinked several times to subtly kept them at bay. Years of hiding your tears caused you to improve your own technique and become an expert. 

"You'll meet him, one day." You slowly nod your head, keeping your gaze low. "You say "never" like it was definitive, but when we get back in 2019, there's still a chance that you'll find him." She pat your shoulder, smiling softly. You returned her smile. You were about to ask about her own soulmate when something shiny caught your eyes. The sun reflected off a metallic surface, which you quickly attributed to a knife. 

Before you could register what happened, your brain forced your hand to move and grab the knife in a strong grip. The pain was excruciating. The feeling of a thousand paper cuts all happening at once, cutting through your flesh and leaving a burning feeling in your palms and fingers made you grunt. As much as you wanted to drop the knife, you couldn't. Because if you were to release your grip on the weapon, the moron who tried to stab your friend would get what he wanted. 

Only when he pulled back on the knife, cutting deeper into your flesh, did you screamed and fell on your knees. You heard your name but you were too focussed trying to keep the pain at bay, squeezing your wrist in vain. The burning intensified, along with your heartbeat resonating into your hand. A soft touch on your back brought you back to reality. The moron had apparently took out, leaving you with Allison, Klaus and a disheveled Five. 

"Wait, you're cut too?" 

You couldn't concentrate. Your head along with your hand were pounding, blood pooling between your fingers and tainting your newly acquired old pants. For a moment, all you could see was the deep red of your blood, slowly oozing from the deep gashes in your palm and phalanges. It was mesmerizing and terrifying. You haven't been hurt to the point of bleeding in… years? It wasn't something you missed in the slightest. 

Then your world became blue. The most beautiful and calming shade of blue you've ever seen. It happened in a flash and suddenly you were back in the bunker under the yellow house. No more calming blue, no more street, no more cars. No more bubble. 

"What the hell happened!?" Andrew's body filled your vision while his beaming voice filled your ears. 

"Stop screaming. That's unnecessary." You were certain that if Five hadn't knelt on your side and showed you his hand, Andrew would have definitely jumped at his throat and strangled him. Your eyes widened when you noticed the blood on his hand. Both your cuts were 100% identical. "That explain why you got teleported from Canada." The tiniest of smile graced his features. "Hey soulmate." 

You didn't know how you two being soulmates allowed you to time-travel, but you knew two things: you were screwed and the butterflies will keep dancing in your stomach for the rest of your life.

Part 2

[andypantsx3]

ab intra | 6 | compos mentis

pairing: Shinsou Hitoshi / Reader

length: 18,811 words / 6 chapters

summary: When a wave of disturbing crimes sweep the city, underground hero Hitoshi Shinsou is assigned to work the case with you. What’s even more frustrating than his obnoxious personality is the fact no one will tell you why he’s involved. Things only get more suspicious from there.

tags: romance, thriller, misunderstandings, pro hero AU, reader-insert

warnings: aged up characters, eventual smut, suicide mentions, brainwashing, consensual mind control, some violence

It felt like your entire body was on fire.

You could hardly spare any capacity for thought, overwhelmed by the screaming burn of flames eating away at every inch of your skin. You felt like you might pass out from the pain, could already detect something like black spots on the edges of your vision, creeping in to crowd out everything else. Your sightline flickered, and then a towering wall of flames was rushing at you, lighting up your irises with burning oranges and reds.

You held desperately on to one thought, though, even as you dropped to the floor, writhing in pain. The villain--it hadn’t been Shinsou. You were overcome with a shame and regret that burned almost hotter than the flames licking at your body. You’d mistrusted him, suspected him, planned his downfall, but none of it had been him.

Shinsou...you needed to tell him you were sorry...This wasn’t real, this was a mind manipulation quirk. You needed to find some way out.

Abruptly, the pain guttered out, and your vision flickered again, revealing the chipped tiled flooring of the back room where you lay curled. There was the sound of heavy boots, and then a tall, lean figure in dark black was kicking open the door. You glanced up into that pair of brown eyes.

He was young, younger than you would have expected, plain-faced with a sweet, open cast to his features that might have set you at ease under other circumstances. But you knew who he was now. You knew what he could do.

He stared down at you, and an annoyed look crossed his features. “Another stubborn one, then?” he muttered, like you had inconvenienced him.

“You know it only hurts worse when I have to do it a second time,” he said, “so bad that you’ll kill yourself just to escape. You could have lived if you’d just been a little different. If you could have just let the pain take you, blacked out like all the rest.”

You slammed your eyes shut and he chuckled. “Have my number, do you, darling? You’re not the first, though. I know how to deal with you.”

You heard the scuff of his boots as he stepped closer, and your mind raced wildly. Your whole body felt shaky, sick, and weak, but you needed to do something. You had to make a move for your knife, but how fast was he? If he saw that coming, could he be quick enough to stop you? You didn’t have much choice, though, it was this or let him pry your eyelids open and kill you.

Before he reached you, however, there was a loud crash in the store beyond, and a sick thump like a body hitting the floor. Another shattering sound followed, chased by a low grunt. Another body hit the floor.

You felt the mind villain pause over you, then he was gathering you up in his arms, settling in behind you, one arm banded across yours to keep them at your sides. You groaned. You would have never been fast enough to grab your knife. Your whole body felt like jello and just the simple movement of tugging you upright made you feel like you had to vomit.

A booted foot kicked open the employee door and you cracked open your eyes to see a familiar head of indigo hair. A mixture of relief and concern went through you when you saw Shinsou’s face, eyes hungrily tracing his pretty features. He had his eyes closed, and that mask covered the lower half of his face again.

“Don’t say anything,” the villain behind you commanded, and a blade flashed up to your throat. You tensed, not having felt him go for your trimming blade. But, you noted as the knife pressed firmly to the delicate skin of your neck, it felt much smaller, much less clumsy than a gardening tool. This was a different knife.

“We finally meet, Shinsou,” the villain behind you sneered. “I’d heard you’d been working my case. I have to say, it’s a brilliant idea, having the Commission wipe all your records and keep you an unknown. Just perfect for a quirk like yours. But as you well know, nothing can be hidden from quirks like ours. You can pry anything out of anyone’s brain with just a question and I...well, I can torture it out of them.”

Your brain churned with this new information. So Shinsou did have a mind control quirk, as suspected. But it wasn’t triggered visually, as this villain’s quirk was. And this villain had a quirk far, far different from what you had suspected all this time. He was able to torture people, to impose pain and visions on them that drove them to the edge of sanity and sometimes beyond. It explained why people had either blacked out or killed themselves. You might have done so if you hadn’t been able to throw it off...

You thought back to the two girls who had taken their own lives at the casino. Their friend had described them as strong, and you wondered they had thrown it off at first too, if it had anything to do with the way the villain had called you stubborn, had told you that this time, what he did to you would hurt so badly that you would kill yourself to escape it.

You didn’t have time to speculate on anything else, however, as he spoke over your shoulder again. “Now open your eyes, please, or I’ll kill the girl.”

Shinsou went still in front of you. Your stomach dropped.

“Don’t do it,” you said, and the knife bit into your throat harder. The villain huffed an annoyed breath into the back of your neck.

“You have three seconds before I cut her throat,” he said impatiently.

Shinsou’s eyes shot open and your heart sank. You just managed to catch a flash of familiar violet before he was curling in on himself, gasping, and collapsing to the floor as you had. You felt the villain’s mouth curl into a smirk, and then he was turning you in his arms to look up at his face too.

You shut your eyes again, and the knife slid gently over your skin.

“Open your eyes, darling, or I’ll do it myself,” he said. You could hear how annoyed he was at your resistance. “I do so hate to get my hands dirty, but I will.”

Your hands trembled. If you could just get to your knife…

He didn’t leave you a choice, one hand prying an eyelid open. As soon as he did, your world ignited in flames again, and you dropped from his arms onto the floor, landing painfully on your shoulder.

It hurt worse this time, everything a thousand times worse, and you didn’t know how it was possible to be in this much pain. The entire outside of your body felt like it was on fire and flame danced in your vision, it was only a matter of time until the flame ate away at your skin and entered your body, burned you from the inside out, and you had to stop it, had to find some way to end it so you didn’t have to suffer--

A gentle brush tugged at the back of your mind.

You writhed. Your skin felt like it was on fire but the flames hadn’t yet eaten through your flesh, so what was moving in the recesses of your brain? Had he started a fire in your skull too?

There was a tug again, deep in your mind, a strange movement like you were on the verge of remembering something. No, this wasn’t fire--

You had just enough capacity left in your brain to realize this was familiar. This was something you had felt before. It was associated with someone...a hot mouth...the color purple...long fingered hands extending a white cup…

Shinsou.

This was Shinsou. He was using his quirk.

You could barely scrape together enough thought to focus on this. Shinsou...what had the villain said about Shinsou? “You can pry anything out of anyone’s brain with just a question,” he’d said. If Shinsou was asking a question, why wasn’t it working then? Why could you feel him but why was nothing else happening? Was he just trying to let you know he was here with you at the end?

A memory flitted through the haze of pain. “Energy can still be emitted and directed. You need only meet the proper conditions for it to be fully utilized,” Shinsou had said of mental quirks, when you had been going through case files all those weeks ago. Mental quirk users were like vampires, you’d thought then. They needed to be invited in.

Shinsou was asking to be invited in.

“Please,” you gasped out through a raw throat, “I trust you.”

There was a small tension at the back of your mind like a dendron snapping into place, before the fire in front of you flickered out and the flames licking at your skin cooled and guttered. You exhaled against the cool tile of the floor, fighting down a feeling of nausea. You could see your fingers shaking where they had gritted into claws against the tile.

You looked up for Shinsou but found him in the same state as before, writhing wildly on the floor. It was clear he was still in the thrall of the villain’s quirk, but he was rasping something like he was trying to ask you a question.

“--think you can move?” he gasped.

Could he hear you?

“No,” you said, pushing the thought as hard as you could against that small part of your mind where you could still feel him. “I need you to help.”

He didn’t respond and you wondered for a long time if he hadn’t heard you, if nothing you said or did could cut through that haze of pain.

Then, “Catch him,” he commanded.

You rose like a puppet on a string. Every neuron in your body screamed against it but still you rose, clambering to your feet and pulling the trimming knife out of your belt. You moved quietly to the employee door, peering out beyond. The mind villain’s back was to you, but you could see his shoulder moving, struggling to slice through knots in Shinsou’s binding cloth where it was looped around the two other villains. Both were unconscious.

Slowly, you eased the door open and crept out. You moved cautiously through the store, hardly making a single sound. And then you were in range.

Your knife plunged down into his arm and he screamed, whirling on you. You weren’t fast enough to close your eyes but nothing happened, and he blinked in confusion. Bewilderment swelled within you as well--could he not influence your mind if Shinsou was already controlling it? You didn't pause to wonder, instead using the moment to your opportunity, kicking his legs out from under him and leaping on top of him, pulling your knife out and plunging it back into the meat of his arm again.

He screamed and you grabbed the end of Shinsou’s binding cloth, looping it over his good hand and pulling firm. At once, it seemed like the fabric activated, hardening into something like a carbon fiber that the villain couldn’t break free from. As he struggled you looped more of the cloth around the arm you’d stabbed and pulled that tight too.

Then you pulled off your jacket and dumped it over his head, tying off the ends of your sleeves to create a makeshift blindfold. Not your best work but it would have to do.

Then you ran to the door of the shop and kicked it open, yelling out into the street. “I’ve got him! We’ve got all three of them!”

At once there was a crush of officers filtering through the door, taking in the mess of glass and bodies. Only then did you feel Shinsou’s quirk release and you slumped to the floor, boneless. Aya stopped when she saw you, rushing over to stoop at your side.

“Are you okay?” she asked, and you nodded.

“I’m not hurt. Just--that villain, he got me with his quirk. I just need a second.”

She nodded but continued to hover over you.

“Can you get quirk restraints on him, please? Everyone is still under the influence of his quirk.”

This got her attention and she moved away from you, striding over to the group of officers surrounding the villain. She pulled restraints from her belt and quickly buckled them over his wrists. In the corner of your eye, you could see several victims still, slumping out of their rigid poses and their tremors tapering off.

A minute later, the door to the back room poked open and you saw a riot of purple hair emerge. You were back on your feet before you knew what you were doing.

The next thing you realized, you had crossed the room, seized a fistful of his jumpsuit, and pulled Shinsou down into a kiss. He stiffened for a moment, surprised, but then he was enthusiastically returning the favor, warm hands settling on your waist. A swirling wave of so many emotions washed through you--embarrassment, guilt, relief--and you pressed yourself against him harder.

“I’m so fucking sorry,” you said when you finally managed to pull yourself away from him, staring up into those violet eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t trust you.”

He looked down at you carefully. “You thought I was the villain.”

It wasn’t a question.

You nodded, stomach twisting. “You wouldn’t tell me why you were here, and then I thought--when you caught the magnet villain--I thought you caught him because he looked at you. I didn’t realize, you threw your voice, didn’t you? That’s why I thought I heard the captain. Is that what the mask is for?”

Shinsou nodded slowly. “So you thought the quirks lined up.”

“Yes,” you cringed, all your anxiety and confusion feeling like it was bubbling up to the surface. “But you were just--you were being so shady. You wouldn’t tell me anything and you seemed to know too much about his quirk, and then you were flirting with me, and it just didn’t make sense, and--”

A long fingered hand pressed to your mouth, and an indigo eyebrow went up. “You thought I was the villain because I was flirting with you?”

A flush spread across your cheeks. “Well, I mean. I thought--it was part of it.”

He had the gall to look amused. “But not because of my quirk?”

You stared at him. “No? I mean, yes, when I thought it lined up with the villain’s quirk, which, turns out we got that one super wrong. But you didn’t tell me anything! Why the hell wouldn’t you just tell me about your fucking quirk in the first place? Why the hell did you have to hide everything?”

Your voice raised into a shrill point at the end, and you saw several policemen around you wince. You flushed again.

Shinsou smirked down at you. “It’s against Commission policy for me to share details of my quirk. I am an underground hero and my success depends on people not knowing the details of my power.”

Okay, that made some sense, but still. “I’m your partner. Why the hell would you have to hide that from me?”

He shifted and you realized that one of his hands was still gripping your waist, hot through the fabric of your shirt. “We were tracking down someone whose powers were suspected to closely parallel mine. What would I do if he was able to brainwash any of you and ask you the details of my quirk?”

Oh.

Oh, that made sense.

For some reason that only frustrated you more. “Okay, well yes--but he found out anyway! They knew not to answer you!”

“Which you and I will be looking into next, now that they’re caught,” Shinsou said lightly.

The promise of a new case tickled your interest. "You and I," he’d said, though. He really wanted you helping, after what you’d just told him?

“You and I?” you asked, and he smiled. It looked obscenely pretty on him, now that you had occasion to notice, and without the threat of his villainy hanging over your head, it hit you like a ton of bricks.

“Well, after you’ve had a chance to relax, kitten,” he said, his tone dipping low. “You did promise me that you would when you solved this case. And I promised you that I would hold you to that.”

Sudden heat pooled in your abdomen, chasing out the guilt and leaving no room for anything else.

“Uh,” you said dumbly, staring up at those violet eyes. They were bright again, and this time you realized you were finally about to be let in on the secret that always seemed to hide behind them. “Yeah you’d better do that. Like, right now.”

His smile widened. “Better wrap things up quick here, then.”

He hadn’t used his power on you, but he might as well have. In a fraction of a second, you’d turned on your heel and scrambled over to Aya where she was conversing in quiet tones with a few other detectives.

“Uh, I need you to take over the wrap up,” you said, trying to sound normal. “I think I need some rest and recovery after everything that just happened.”

Her dark eyes flicked knowingly over you. “Sure. Rest and recovery, huh?”

You would have told her to shut up if the other officers hadn’t been watching. “Yes,” you hissed instead, hating the way her smirk deepened her dimples. “Recovery.”

“Well I wish you a very thorough recovery,” she said, visibly fighting down a laugh as she waved you off.

It was only the pull of Shinsou’s presence behind you that kept you from starting something with her.

“I’ll take her home, make sure she’s okay,” Shinsou said, grasping your arm and pulling you away from your coworkers before you could get another word out.

He pulled you through the rubble and glass into the afternoon sun. He seemed to have a particular destination in mind, leading you down a series of winding city blocks. You followed him sedately, content with his hand on your wrist, his warmth at your side. It was frankly concerning how compelling his mere presence was, and without any other concerns looming over you, you felt like you might lose yourself in it.

You thought back to that first day, the way his presence had washed over you, layered with subtle command. You honestly should have known from the second you stepped through the door.

“Does it bother you?” you asked after he led you into what looked like an apartment building, pulling you up the stairs to the third floor. He paused where he had started to unlock a door to look at you in question. “That I thought you were the villain? I know that mind quirk users, you--uh--you don’t have it easy.”

He considered this. “It is considered a very villainous quirk.”

This bothered you. “I want you to try something.”

An eyebrow went up. “We are trying something.”

You flushed. “Not--that. Well, that, but first I want you to use your power on me and ask me something.”

He pushed the door open and pulled you inside. You caught a vague glimpse of a fairly comfortable looking apartment, but you couldn’t pull your attention far enough away from him to inspect it in any depth.

“Why would I do that?” he asked.

“Because I want you to know I’m telling the truth,” you said firmly.

He gestured you over to his couch, something dark and plush and soft, and you sank into it easily.

“I want you to ask me if I trust you,” you said, still watching him carefully.

A small smile tugged at his mouth, and he came to crouch down in front of you, taking your hands in his. “I think I get the idea, kitten.”

“No,” you said, frustrated. You wanted him to hear this. This little shit was going to do what you told him to, at least once. “And that wasn’t a request, either. That was an order, contractor.”

A spark lit up in his gaze and he leaned forward, smile going dark. “You know what you’re asking for, kitten?”

“I do,” you replied, and that was the last thing you managed before you felt him take control. There was that gentle feeling of something sliding into place, and you felt the tension leave your body. Shinsou’s hands tightened around yours.

“Then tell me honestly, kitten,” Shinsou said, watching you very intently. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” you said instantly. You’d known this was the case, after everything, but a wave of relief washed through you to hear it said so plainly, without room for any more doubt. Shinsou looked similarly pleased to hear it, and you knew you’d done the right thing to ask him for this.

Then his look shifted into something mischievous and you panicked.

“And tell me something else, kitten. What do you think of me?”

The words were out of your mouth before you could stop them. “You’re the prettiest person I have ever seen and you drive me crazy and your hair is so fucking messy and your fingers are so long and I wanted you to fuck me the second you sassed me at my desk and I’m so happy you’re not the villain because it was honestly driving me insane being so attracted to you.”

You burned with embarrassment, and would have blushed if you could have done anything without his leave.

He laughed, looking very interested, and one of those long fingers traced over your open palm. “Cute, kitten. And be honest with me just one more time. Would you be opposed if I fucked you like this? Under my control, made you forget everything else but me?”

“Please,” you heard yourself say, and then his mouth was on yours for the third time today.

“Kiss me,” he ordered as his lips touched yours, and you complied enthusiastically, his quirk not the only thing making you obey. The heat of the kiss scorched all the thoughts straight out of your brain.

“You’ll tell me if I’m doing anything you don’t want,” he said when he let you go to kiss down your neck, and you felt the order sink under your skin like a stone in a pond. You wondered for a brief, mortifying second if there was anything he could do to you that you didn’t want. “Now stay still, kitten, unless you want to stop me.”

His hands made quick work of your shirt and pants before he spread you out gently on his couch, and he quickly covered you with his own body, narrow hips settling in between yours. He kissed you again, taking his time, until you thought you might go crazy if he didn’t do something, if he didn’t deliver on the promise that the heat of his body was making in between your thighs. You could feel him smirk through the kiss as if he knew what you were thinking. You tried moving, so wildly furious with him, but couldn’t, pinned in place by your own desire. "Stay still unless you want to stop me," he’d said. You wanted anything but that.

Right when you thought you might literally die if he didn’t touch you, he shifted, kissing a path lower and lower down your chest until he reached your panties, and he played with the edge of them with one long finger.

“Do you want me to kiss you here too, kitten?” he asked.

“Yes,” you gasped before he could even finish the question, feeling like you could combust from the vicious mixture of embarrassment and arousal bursting within you.

A gleam in his violet eyes was all the warning you had before he peeled your underwear down and sealed his mouth over you. You would have bucked violently if you could have--instead, you were helpless to do anything but let out a shivery moan. Calloused fingers came up to dip inside you as he worked your clit mercilessly, and you nearly sobbed with the feeling.

“Look at me,” he commanded, unlatching his mouth from you. A finger swirled over your clit as the others plunged inside you. “Mmm, gorgeous, kitten. You feel so incredible, you’re going to take me so well, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” you huffed again.

He smiled. “Knew that you would. Now I want to try one more thing before I give you what you want, kitten. Do you want to see what else my quirk can do?”

“Yes, Hitoshi, please,” you practically begged.

You were helpless to do anything, then, but watch as he pulled his fingers from you, and his smile turned predatory. “Cum for me.”

Instantly, everything inside you seized up, and you were climaxing with no build up, thrown over the edge with no warning. Shinsou watched with unabashed interest, those purple eyes pinning you in place with just as much force as his quirk.

“The hardest you ever have,” he added and you sobbed, screaming out something that might have been his name or might have been nothing like a word at all. Heat and pleasure swept through you in a white wave, and you thought you might faint from the overwhelming force of it. Hitoshi made it worse by sealing his mouth back over you and sucking delicately. You orgasmed for what felt like hours but must have been much shorter before you felt him finally release you. You slumped into the softness of his couch, Hitoshi still working you carefully with his mouth and tongue.

“Was that okay, kitten?” he finally asked when you’d gone completely boneless beneath him.

“Oh my god, yes,” you slurred. “I can’t believe you exist. That was incredible.”

Smug satisfaction painted his pretty features, and you couldn’t even bring yourself to feel annoyed with him.

“I did promise,” he said, crawling back over you to slip back in between your thighs. You could feel him hard against your core beneath his pants, and, incredibly, heat settled behind your abdomen again.

“Now let’s see just how relaxed we can get you, kitten,” he said, pressing his mouth back to yours. Your arms wrapped around him, pulling him harder into you.

And that was the last time either of you managed a coherent word until morning.