#if I don't get this chapter finished soon I'll have to resort to discussing the official 'Gelert Davies' playlist

[gwaeddblaidd]

Feed the Wolf Chapter 8: Empathy (Preview)

(For a more gritty excerpt, see this post!)

---

“Well,” Wednesday begins after but a brief period of silence. “I suppose my theory holds true. Another night with you at her side, another night Enid’s slept well. Maybe a little too well, this time…”

I chuckle. “You know me; nothing but calming vibes.” I finally lean forward from the bed, forcing myself to support the weight of my own head. “I don’t know. I must be doing something right.”

“Like I said last we spoke: you make her feel safe.” As much as I appreciate Wednesday’s words, it’s clear she doesn’t intend them as a compliment. No, it’s more clinical than that – a genuine, if perhaps unwanted, curiosity. “And as much as I have tried to figure out why that is the case…” She throws her hands up in a sign of defeat. “I’ve got nothing.”

“Maybe it’s just a wolf thing,” I offer, but Wednesday clearly doesn’t like that answer.

“No, it isn’t that simple.” Her gaze turns to the ceiling as she considers her words. “Outside of school clubs she barely spends any time with the rest of the furs at Nevermore. What makes you different?”

“Only Hyde at Nevermore…” I mutter, then a little louder: “Well, as far as I know.”

A disapproving scoff from Wednesday warns me of her scepticism. “Attracted to danger? Enid? No, I don’t think so.”

“No…” I agree, though I’ll admit I’m not entirely convinced. Enid did take a liking to Wednesday, after all. “Something more human, then. Not my forte, and sure as hell not yours.”

As her head tilts to the side there’s a briefest flash of anger but it’s quickly replaced by amusement. “May it remain a mystery to us both.”

With what feels like some degree of understanding between us achieved, I decide it’s about time I pick myself up. I have classes of my own to get to, and while I’m not as worried about being late as Enid appears to be, I still need to head back to my dorm to pick up a few things. With a concerted effort, I pull myself to my feet with the aid of my elbows upon the bed, then take a moment just to stretch out muscles in dire need of movement. As soon as I’m standing, I honestly feel a lot better, far less lethargic, but getting to that point was no small feat. At the end of outstretched arms with fingers interlaced, I crack my knuckles above my head while leaning back almost precariously. That’s better.

As I turn back to Wednesday I can’t help but notice Wednesday is staring at me intently. I mean, that’s hardly unusual, but this is more than just idle staring – she’s noticed something. “What’s up?” I ask.

“You’re hurt,” she says, squinting just a little as if trying to confirm a detail she’s barely seen. “What happened?”

“I am? How can you tell?” I didn’t think I’d been hurt badly enough for it to be noticeable; better make sure I’m at least presentable.

“Bruising and broken skin on the right temple indicates blunt force trauma. Your face is also unusually red. I thought you were just flushed at first, but I guess the rain didn’t wash away everything.”

Blood? Probably mine, perhaps some of Jonah’s. Well, that’s rather grim; I’m surprised Enid didn’t have anything to say. “Ah, noted. I’ll make sure to get cleaned up before classes.”

Wednesday continues to stare for a few seconds, before sighing exasperatedly. “You really like avoiding my questions, don’t you?”

“Shit, sorry, wasn’t intentional that time.” I notice she raises an eyebrow at that time. “It was Jonah again. Well, actually, I guess it was Carter that got me this time.”

“You let that thug land a blow on you?” She sounds like a disappointed parent.

“Hey, cut me some slack. We were on a date; I didn’t expect to have to fight anyone.”

“Rookie mistake. Always expect to have to fight someone and you’ll never be caught unaware.” Her eyes dart to the side and a smile that I’d be tempted to describe as wistful appears on her face. “First thing my uncle taught me.”

What has my own uncle taught me? Other than how to alienate one’s son, that is… How to drink away one’s problems? Doesn’t have quite as good a ring to it, does it?

“Was that all, then?” Wednesday continues. “Just a fight? Things didn’t… escalate?”

That’s an odd question, unless she has a reason to expect things to have escalated. I search her face in vain for something to work with, but she offers me nothing. “No, why?”

“No reason,” she says, far too quickly for my liking. Her speech turns to a less certain mumbling, unusual for what I’ve come to expect from Wednesday. “Strange, I could’ve sworn…” The mumbling, too, gives way to further uncertainty; silence falls upon her and she stares into the middle distance, eyes transfixed upon presumably nothing in particular.

I give her a few seconds, then decide my prompting is needed if I want to know more. “...what? You could’ve sworn what?” But even as the words leave my mouth, I can tell I’m not going to get an honest answer.

Wednesday’s eyes lock with mine briefly before she averts her gaze. She can’t bear to look at me. I can’t imagine telling lies is something she’s uncomfortable with, least of all those by emission, so why is she having so much trouble right now? “Nothing. I must be still waking up, myself.”

Wednesday hardly strikes me as the type to take a long time to get her bearings. No, I imagine she arises from her slumber like clockwork. Why, then, is she unwilling to confide in me here and now? Our relationship has been a rocky one, but I would describe it as fairly honest for the most part. Still, pushing the point isn’t going to do me any favours, and I find my frustration simply coalescing into a restrained sigh which escapes through gritted teeth.

“Just… be careful, alright?”

---

Title: Feed the Wolf

Fandom: Wednesday

Rating: T

Chapters: 7 of 12

Links: AO3, FF.net

Summary: As the dust settles on the Hyde incident, Nevermore is slowly but surely returning to a calmer, safer state. But for those involved, the scars may take a while longer to fully heal. Gelert Davies, a half-werewolf student, has always kept himself out of trouble as best he could, but a chance encounter will test his resolve and force him to face parts of himself long abandoned.

Tags: Enid Sinclair, Wednesday Addams, Original Character(s), Enid Sinclair/Original Male Character(s), Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Wolf Instincts, Loss of Control, Injury Recovery, Self-Hatred, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Courting Rituals, Werewolf Courting, Werewolf Culture, Eventual Romance, Family Issues, POV First Person

Thank you for reading, and have a wonderful day! :)

[thelediz]

Hello LeDiz! I saw your reviews about Sonic Underground and I wanted to confess that I thought they were very good, and that it made me want to ask you some questions! (I wanted to keep it all together because I don't want to fill your ask box with this)

What encouraged you to watch all the episodes of the cartoon?

What's your favorite episode?

What episode did you not like?

Idk if you've seen a discussion about this, but I wanted to know your opinion on it. Who of the triplets sings best? Sonic, Sonia or Manic

Do you think Aleena is a good mother?

Who is the best character in the cartoon?

Who is the worst character in the cartoon?

Of the triplets, which one do you like best?

What do you think of Sonia relationship with Bartleby?

If I had more questions in mind, I don't remember lmao, but I think it's better this way before I pepper you with questions

Hope you are having a great day!!💕💕

Heh, thank you! It's always nice to hear someone enjoyed my nonsense.

Umm... I've answered a few of these in various places before, but let's see...

What encouraged you to watch all the episodes of the cartoon?

I have been writing a fic called The Lost Prince for the better part of two decades. It's always been my comfort fic; it lives in the back of my brain as a story I want to tell. And contrary to many comments and bookmark notes, I never abandoned it. It just stopped being comforting because too many of the things I was talking about were happening in Real Life and that's depressing. I don't engage with fiction to mirror the horrible things that are happening in reality, and I don't want the happy ending of The Lost Prince to happen in Real Life.

But I'm only like two chapters from the end. I WANT to finish it. So I went back to what made me want to write it in the first place, to try and find that spark again. It worked, to an extent, but it's still something I have to sit down and say "we're doing this now", and I've had a hard few months and so haven't had the motivation to do that. I'll be back soon.

What's your favorite episode?

Ooh. I mean... it depends.

I think The Deepest Fear is my favourite (apologies for the kind of lame recap. It's obvious I took a while to get into the swing of what the recaps became). Sonic is my favourite character of all time, and like everyone in fandom, I enjoy anything that pokes at his insecurities. And while Sonic Underground did many things badly, I did like how they handled his fear. And I like the moral of the episode.

I enjoy The Last Resort for its absolute nonsense. Which means I don't like it, but I enjoy watching it and playfully raging at Sonia. Sometimes you just gotta indulge.

And I think Hedgehog in the Iron Mask is one of the best episodes in terms of skilled writing and character. I legitimately enjoyed that one without any caveats.

What episode did you not like?

There are a few. Six is a Crowd comes to mind, A Hedgehog's Home is her Castle, Haircraft in Space...

I unfortunately don't like most of the Plot Important episodes because I don't agree with some of the things the show took as given. But honestly, that's part of what inspired The Lost Prince, so I can't complain too much.

Idk if you've seen a discussion about this, but I wanted to know your opinion on it. Who of the triplets sings best? Sonic, Sonia or Manic

Ahaha... ooh.

Look.

Okay.

When I was originally watching it, live on TV, I thought Manic was the best singer and I don't know why anymore. So that goes to show how subjective these things are. He's an old school rock voice, so... there you are.

I think Sonia has the best voice for country and rockabilly. It's the nasal twang.

Sonic is the most adaptable, so I think he is actually the best for the purposes of the in-universe band.

But would I actively listen to any of them because I enjoy the sound of their voices? Ha! Hahahahahaha-

Do you think Aleena is a good mother?

Oh. Oh, mm. Um. I have mostly given my opinion on Aleena here.

As for whether she is a good mother or not, that's not a fair question. She didn't raise these kids because she couldn't. I have a whole cultural studies rant about the subjective titles of 'good parent' and 'good mother' and how America in particular opines on them, but the short version is, I'm not going to answer that one. Sorry.

Who is the best character in the cartoon?

Again, subjective.

Sonic is my favourite character of all time. He means a lot to me, he has inspired some of what I consider to be the better parts of my personality, and there's just no getting away from that.

But I actually think Sonic Underground was great at constructing characters, and the best character was 100% hands down Bartleby Montclair, the entitled, obnoxious, devoted little prat. He is so complex while being so easy to understand. He is such a product of his environment. But underneath it all, his greatest motivation is love, and I will always respect that. Chef's kiss, Bartleby.

Who is the worst character in the cartoon?

Meh. None?

Look, it depends on what you mean.

Robotnik is objectively bad, not just morally but also in depth. He's very static and 2D, but he was never meant to be anything else, so I think he's an outlier and shouldn't count.

So. Morally, Sleet, but I enjoy him and his existence. Construction wise, the two stereotypes from Country Crisis. Ethically, Mantu from Head Games.

The character I didn't have any fun with...? Ohh... probably the penguins from The Big Melt. But that was just a weird episode, so I suspect they were never aimed at me to begin with.

Of the triplets, which one do you like best?

Sonic, obvs.

What do you think of Sonia relationship with Bartleby?

Look. LOOK. It is not fair of you to ask that in this big list. I have tried to limit myself in all of these answers, but this is one I would need many many words to talk about properly. Especially after my most recent rewatch.

To summarise: I love the Sonia/Bartleby ship. I think they are right for each other. But they both need to grow up and touch grass before they'd be healthy.

Whoo. I hope I answered everything okay! Thanks for coming by!

[halfeaten-mantou]

🧁 old-fashioned YanShen cupcake | Chapter 2/10 | ao3

Shen Qiao, Yan Wushi and Yu Shengyan pull an all-nighter to get things done.

Yan Wushi pulls more rabbits out of the hat than expected—not only about the criminal activities of his new employee's junior, but also about his own beating heart.

(Continue reading here or under the cut!)

"Here is your staff pass," Yu Shengyan hands Shen Qiao a lanyard with an ID card. "You may use this to enter, but your entry is restricted only to public areas and the intern office, because you're still on probation. For now, your status in this company is that of an intern, but I don't suppose you'll be staying longer to get anywhere above that, because Mr Yan will most definitely finish whatever you need help with soon, probably faster than you'd expect."

Shengyan is still wary of this 'Shen Qiao' person—yes, he's heard of him and his accolades somewhere, probably from the news or during some meeting, but the CEO of what used to be Xuandu Pharmaceuticals has always kept a low profile, and he can’t tell if all that talk about ‘doing good for the nation’ was merely waxing lyrical.

"We'll be heading to Mr Yan's office now to discuss the details of the help you'll receive."

"Okay."

They head into the protected area of the office building, tapping their cards to get past the first floor lobby's gantry. After taking the lift to the third floor, Shengyan taps his card and the gate opens for them to enter.

Three raps on the wooden door labelled 'Yan Wushi'. "Boss, I've brought him here."

"Come in," is Yan Wushi's muffled voice from inside.

As they enter the CEO's office, Yan Wushi isn't sitting on his comfy office chair—he's leaning on his table, assuming a posture of having waited awhile in that position. On seeing Shen Qiao, he props himself upright, beckoning Shen Qiao over to the chair in front of the table before he takes his own seat, but something in his demeanour is suggesting to Shen Qiao that all this is merely mock politeness.

"Good to see you today, Mr Shen. Though I should probably casually call you Shen Qiao, since you're now technically my intern after yesterday’s interview." Yan Wushi smirks. "Maybe even just A-Qiao. For added affection.”

The corners of Shen Qiao's mouth turn downwards very slightly. "Good morning, Mr Yan." He bows deeply, but his voice is reticent.

"No need to be too formal now. We'll waste no time and discuss what we need to." Yan Wushi places his hands together on the desk, leaning forward slightly to assume a posture of negotiation. "Firstly, are you sure you wish to leave it to me to bring your ex-company down?"

"Yes."

"By any means? Even if I resort to what you may not be used to?"

"…Yes."

Shen Qiao's voice is soft but firm. Yan Wushi did not expect the negotiation to progress this quickly. He smiles.

"Okay. I'll help you destroy your old company, but in return, you will have to do something for me."

"What is it?"

"Help Huanyue dominate the entire pharmaceutical industry. In other words, destroy all of my competitors."

Shen Qiao takes an almost imperceptible pause to take in the information, before providing his response, crisp and clear, in a matter of seconds.

"No problem, Mr Yan. The road to achieving your objective includes destroying Xuandu, and all the other companies who've similarly stooped to unscrupulous means. I believe our goals are aligned. However, I do have one condition."

"Please, do speak your mind.”

"Do not ever resort to unethical means in what you do for the health for the populace." Shen Qiao's voice is soft, but strong and cold; steelier than it has ever been in the entire conversation. "In other words, do not become a more powerful version of the ones you destroy."

Yan Wushi chuckles. His smirk deepens, his face leaning so far forward that it is suddenly barely a fist's length away from Shen Qiao's, and the latter falters slightly backward at the sudden proximity, ears turning very slightly pink.

"I'm a little hurt by that." Yan Wushi places a hand to his chest in mock offense, still smiling as he does. "Since when have you ever seen me resort to unethical means?"

"…Just in case." His eyelids quiver slightly as he regains his composure. "I don't want my decision here to become one that might very well wipe out the entire population."

Yan Wushi lets out a small but derisive laugh as lifts himself off his chair, assuming a polite standing position before he extends a hand.

"That sure is an exaggeration, Mr Shen." Wushi's mocking tone is palpable in his voice, but Shen Qiao is unfazed.

"It better be." Shen Qiao returns the handshake, gripping them in a way reminiscent of the Tao—firm, but not forceful.

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

After their brief but decisive meeting, Shen Qiao is brought by Yu Shengyan to the intern's office located on the second storey.

"Your internship reporting officer will take over now. She's the first receptionist on the right once you walk in the glass door. She will tell you what to do. Don't forget that while you're here, you do have to satisfy basic intern duties." Shengyan lowers his voice slightly. "At the very least, do not ever let anyone know of your true relationship with the boss, or the contract breaks instantaneously."

"Yes, Mr Yu." Shen Qiao bows deeply as Shengyan takes his leave towards the lobby.

When he enters the intern office, he sees almost no one inside—seems like the majority of Huanyue's workers are full-fledged employees, leaving only a few interns around. Taking a few steps, he searches for his reporting officer, only to find a young lady snoring at a receptionist's desk. He taps her on the shoulder and she jolts awake, standing up immediately.

"Boss! I'm awake, I'm awake-" She realises she isn't talking to 'Boss', and her tone switches to one of confusion before she starts squinting at whoever's in front of her, hands searching frantically on her desk for her glasses.

When she wears them, she takes one glance at Shen Qiao and her jaw drops slightly. Shen Qiao stares back, confused.

Ruru, the bespectacled girl’s nametag reads. She doesn't say anything for a few moments, deer-in-the-headlights.

"You must be the new intern coming in today…Shen Qiao?" She stares at the nametag on his white office shirt; a brief thought flashes past her mind that the name sounds a little familiar, but she hasn't caught up with the events enough to groom the thought further.

"Yes, my name is Shen Qiao. It’s good to meet you." Shen Qiao extends a hand politely. "You must be the reporting officer for my internship here."

"Yes, you may call me Ruru," the young lady responds as she grabs his hand. Perhaps it’s because his demeanour (composed but polite) isn't that of a mere intern, together with the fact that he's clearly older than her—she’s completely forgetten that most interns call her ‘Miss’ Ruru.

In either case, some feeling in her gut tells her this guy is not some ordinary intern.

"I will be in your care." Shen Qiao bows politely before making his leave for his cubicle.

Staring at him as he leaves, Ruru finds that her mind just cannot wrap itself around the new encounter—where has she seen him before?

Was he in the news…? Or perhaps…

…in some ancient Chinese painting?

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

As the day ends, the employees shuttle one by one out of the office for home. Intern Shen Qiao, however, is called into Yan Wushi's office. When he enters, they waste no time, beckoning him into his seat opposite the boss.

"Mr Yan has decided not to delay our plans any further. We start our operation tonight."

"That's right. Excited to work overtime with you, Shen Qiao." Yan Wushi pulls a chair for Shen Qiao before taking his own seat. "Shengyan, check this room for listening devices, as well as the area near the door."

As the second-in-command inspects the area for bugging devices, Yan Wushi hands Shen Qiao a laptop.

"Most of what you need is already in there. Got it settled just this afternoon."

"What I need…?" Shen Qiao is stunned for a few moments. "I don't remember specifying anything I need."

"Trust me, you’ll need it for our operation. We need it. Open it and you'll know."

Shen Qiao opens the laptop, and the screen lights up immediately as it switches on. He takes a brief glance, mouth widening slightly in surprise before he turns to look at Wushi.

"How did you even get your hands on those companies’ information, and of such a…highly classified level?"

Yan Wushi smirks—he's always loved giving others a good surprise. Just then, Shengyan comes back into the room and locks the door. It doesn’t seem like they are bugged, so Wushi's allowed to speak his mind.

"How, you ask?” His smirk deepens. “How else? Of course I hacked their information systems." 

Shen Qiao is silent for a few moments. Unexpectedly, a little smile emerges on his graceful countenance.

"So that's what they meant when they said you perform not dirty tricks, but clean ones. I never did expect you to be quite the hacker."

Wushi smiles. Stands up and makes his way towards Shen Qiao. Stops just a few millimetres from him, and leans towards his right ear.

"Everyone has their own secrets," Yan Wushi smiles as the ear reddens instantaneously. "Right, Dr Shen?"

Apart from the reddened ear, Shen Qiao is unfazed even as his secret is exposed in front of his ears. "My doctoral degree is not exactly a secret. Especially not with my unofficial research role at the university back in my city."

"I guess it's also not unexpected, given that your mentor is the renowned Professor Qi Fengge, after all." Yu Shengyan pipes up, reminding the two of them that he's still there. Yan Wushi throws him a look suggesting that he has just interrupted something.

"Anyway, Dr Shen, your pharmaceutical knowledge will be a great asset to my company in due course. For now, it will also be a great asset to our super-secret plan."

Shen Qiao pauses as he catches the words "in due course". Didn't they agree on ending the contract after this mission ends? He casts the thought away for now, choosing to focus on the task at hand.

"What would you like me to do with this information, specifically?"

"Check it for inconsistencies between the ingredient procurement records of each company and their product nutrition labels. In other words, cross-check the ingredients they bought with the ingredients they wrote on the labels. I'm no scientist so I won't be very efficient at telling apart which ingredients correspond to their chemical names, but I'm sure our Dr Shen can easily perform such a task in no time at all." Wushi winks at 'our Dr Shen', whose entire face goes slightly pink.

"How about me?" Yu Shengyan asks. "What would you like me to do, boss?"

"After he cross-checks the ingredient records, we will be left with two groups of information. The first group is the inacurate ingredient reports, and the second is of course, the accurate ones. The inaccurate ones already provide enough evidence for their perpetrators to be convicted. As for the accurate ingredients, more work has to be done, because even if they really told the truth about what ingredients they used, they may be lying about the dosages."

"Can you get your hands on that information?" Shen Qiao asks.

"Already did." Yan Wushi smiles. "Mostly. Lucky us, because most companies' laboratory computers didn't have the best firewalls. Hence, I was able to steal their actual dosage records.”

He hands Shengyan a stack of papers. “As for you, your task is to extract the numbers, then perform the stats to see if they add up. If they don't, it represents clear discrepancy between reported and actual dosages, which we can present as evidence."

"Got it. Leave it to me, boss."

"Mr Yan, near the start of this conversation, you mentioned that you have obtained most of what I need in this laptop. You’ve also been saying that only most things have been obtained. What else is there that you haven't gotten your hands on?"

"Two things. The first is your Xuandu's actual dosage records." Yan Wushi smiles at Shen Qiao as he anticipates his response—this may be a decisive moment to see if the younger man has been attempting to fool him the entire time.

“You see, Dr Shen, Xuandu's pretty well-protected, as you might know. For one, the firewalls are good; for another, they've got enough brains to store the info only in admin computers, and then make watertight passwords for the admin computers. As you probably already know.”

Shen Qiao nods.

“That’s why I can't obtain Xuandu's info without administrative access. We'll need you to provide that…” He trails off as he tries to read Shen Qiao's face for cues. “…unless you no longer have administrative access.”

Shen Qiao’ face is expressionless and calm; in his voice there has been no hesitation in answering. "I will try once with my own ID and password. If it fails…" Shen Qiao trails off and takes a breath.

"If it fails, I will take a shot at guessing Yu Ai's ID and password. I think I might know. We've spent quite a bit of time together as kids, so I'm aware of some of his little habits. Though, maybe he's already changed too much for me to keep up.” Shen Qiao briefly looks downwards at his hands, and because Wushi has been watching him like a hawk for signs of betrayal throughout the conversation, he knows that it’s the first time he’s faltered in this conversation.

It’s the first time he’s faltered in this conversation, and there sure has been a sign of betrayal—to Yu Ai, that is.

He’s impressed, to say the least.

"I'll hold you to that then." Yan Wushi grins.

Turns out Shen Qiao's password was still usable, so no guesswork was needed. He hands the laptop back to Wushi, who proceeds to quickly obtain the information needed. When that's done, Shen Qiao doesn't forget to seek the second half of Yan Wushi's answer.

"Mr Yan, you said you were missing two things. Now that we’ve gotten one of that sorted, what’s the second?"

Yan Wushi grimaces lightly—this one's the toughest nut.

"Tujue Pharmaceuticals' lab dosage records."

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

It turns out that the good challenge is in fact an even greater challenge than Yan Wushi expected, because Tujue appears to have hired a few pretty good hackers themselves, and the thing is that good hackers usually make good anti-hackers. Luckily, even at his age, Wushi does enjoy a good challenge.

All of a sudden, he starts chuckling.

"What is it, boss? Did you find Tujue's records?" Shengyan asks.

"Not yet," Wushi starts spinning his pen—an old habit he's had whenever he senses himself getting close to conquering a task. "I managed to get into their system, and these guys really were smart enough to not store anything about dosages there. But what I just found is even more sensational."

He walks over to Shen Qiao's office chair, and much to poor Shen Qiao’s shock, suddenly starts rolling him across the room towards his own computer.

"I found a memo with some classified info. Seems like we've found the mastermind behind your assault."

Hearing this, Shen Qiao quickly recovers from suddenly being pushed around in an office roller chair. He glances at the screen, and it's a message sent by the Tujue system, sent to an assassin, complete with time and place details of Shen Qiao's whereabouts on the day of the assault.

The most unexpected part of the memo was the name signed off at the bottom of the note.

~ Yu Ai.

Seems like Tujue and Xuandu had been in cahoots the whole time.

"Seems like your beloved junior was the one who'd plotted to assassinate you."

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

The time is 6 a.m.—the orange of the sun peeking shyly through the blinds, casting a strangely warm lighting across Wushi's office. Shengyan is sprawled out on his boss' sofa, snoring.

The other two, however, are still wide awake—it took a while to settle things, thanks to Tujue's iron-clad anti-hacker system. Still, they've managed to find what they need within the night, and are now within a hair's length from the finish line.

Yan Wushi smiles. "Once I click the submit button, it means we've accomplished our missions. Aren't you happy, Shen Qiao?"

"…Perhaps we shouldn't be so confident just yet. There's a chance the authorities will reject your report. Who knows if they might be collaborating?"

"Nah," Yan Wushi's smile grows into a grin. "I know the big boss personally. He won't do such a thing, at least not with those dirty scumbag folks."

"You know Yuwen Yong personally?"

"Of course. Don't underestimate the interpersonal connections of Big Boss Yan Wushi."

Yan Wushi clicks, and the page is completely blank save a single line of text:

REPORT SUCCESSFULLY SUBMITTED. AWAITING MODERATION.

"There. Mission accomplished." Yan Wushi chuckles.

Shen Qiao's sigh of relief is almost imperceptible, but Yan Wushi can tell he's relieved.

"I will now take my leave. Thank you for your work, Mr Yan."

As Shen Qiao heads towards the exit, Yan Wushi steps forward to take the place of the space in between Shen Qiao and the door.

"You're not going anywhere." Wushi smirks, inching his face towards Shen Qiao's.

"…Why?"

"Because you're tired." Wushi starts pushing him towards the other sofa in the room. "Sit down and rest. After all, it doesn't make sense for you to leave the office, since your next day of work starts in 2 hours. I believe my comfy sofa beats your cramped little intern office cubicle downstairs. Enjoy a little rest time here while we wait for the authorities' final verdict." Shen Qiao says nothing as Wushi sits him down. "Let's wait together to watch the fireworks unfold."

Wushi props himself right beside him, perhaps a little too close for Shen Qiao's comfort, but not close enough to be considered harassment per se. Nonetheless, Shen Qiao's shoulder is in full contact with Wushi's shoulder, and the former stiffens, staying in the same position for a few minutes.

Nonetheless, sleep deprivation eventually takes its hold on Shen Qiao as he falls asleep, head falling exactly onto Yan Wushi's shoulder. At this distance, Yan Wushi is bestowed the full view of Shen Qiao's eyelashes, as well as the ebb and flow of the soft breaths breaking from his chest.

He's feeling unexpectedly conflicted. Firstly, he'd been completely wrong about this person—it was difficult enough to believe that someone would come up to him with a proposal to destroy their own company. It was even more difficult to believe that this intention was loaded with nothing but goodwill—even at the end, he’d shown no signs of wishing revenge against someone who'd even gone to the extent to try and kill him.

Secondly, this person would go all out to help his competitor with absolutely no desire to usurp him—if it had been Yan Wushi in Shen Qiao's shoes, he'd already have long threatened to take over Huanyue the very moment all their competitors were destroyed. But this Shen Qiao is definitely not threatening anything—all he's doing is just…sleeping on his shoulder.

Completely unguarded.

At nearly age fifty, going without sleep for a whole day has been pretty difficult, even for someone like Yan Wushi. All night, the fatigue has been clawing at his eyelids, colluding with the radiant soreness of his shoulders to draw him into an uncomfortable weary state. Yet, his eyes are fixated on Shen Qiao despite the weird angle it coerces his neck to take.

He finds himself not wanting to waste a single moment on sleep, and for the first time in what must have been fifteen years, Yan Wushi is unable to figure this guy out.

Neither is he able to figure himself out. What exactly is making him so drawn to this man? 

Is it the relief of not having been betrayed? Probably not—he'd never been anxious about it in the first place, because of all the backup plans he put in place.

Is he simply lusting after his beauty? Probably not—for one, his prettiness isn’t at all the ‘sexy’ type, but rather, the clean and ethereal type. For another, Yan Wushi has already had his fair share of men—so many that he's become pretty saturated in recent years. He no longer feels lust towards physical prettiness.

Perhaps he's just sick of the bad boys, and just wants to try out a good one. Or perhaps he's looking for the excitement he could get from trying to conquer someone who'd spurn him—someone who'd disagree with him, and stand firm on his own grounds. Come to think about it, Shen Qiao does tick both of these boxes.

Yan Wushi is left sitting there for the night, wondering if that's really all it took for this young, otherworldly man with a ruler-straight sense of justice and humanity to have taken over his thoughts and feelings in such an introspective way, such that it almost feels foreign. After all, he's never really had things like feelings.

All he's ever had were one-night stands with random men he’d met at gay bars. 

There are things he doesn't recognise, and they're giving him a sense that something strange and wonderful is brewing within.

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

Within a night, more than three-quarters of China's pharmaceutical industry has fallen, including Xuandu Pharmaceuticals.

Both men have achieved their goals, which happened to be in perfect alignment this time round.

Neither of them have betrayed each other, and both of them are pleasantly surprised.

>>>>> Continue to Chapter 3: tumblr | ao3 >>>>>>>

[shawtygonemad]

What Is This Feeling: Chapter 11

Fem!9th Doctor x Male!Rose Tyler

WITF Masterlist

"Doctor." A far off voice spoke her name. A very familiar voice that instantly sent shivers through her body.

"Doctor!" This time the voice was closer. She felt her body be shaken.

The Doctor groan and rolled over onto her stomach. Her head was pounding. What had happened? Everything was a blurry and painful. Where was she?

"Did you just come back to get changed and take a nap? I didn't actually think you slept to be honest," Ross prattled on as he set a beach bag they had packed earlier on the ground. "What's that headband you've got on? You trying to accessorize now?" He chuckled.

The Doctor, with her eyes still closed rubbed her head trying to ease the pain. She was on Ross's bed back in their resort's suite. When did she get there? Wasn't she out investigating something? Something wasn't right. What was wrong? There were…. missing persons! Of course! She was out trying to find them. Zamora!

The Doctor's eyes flew open, and she quickly turned in the bed to face the concerned Ross. As soon as her eyes locked onto him there was a warm bolt that went through her body. She felt like a magnet that needed to be connected with him. Her sight hazed over, and all she could think of was Ross. He was still in his swim shorts. His top half bare. She just wanted to run her hands over his perfectly chiseled body, and attach her lips to his…

"Doctor, are you alright," Ross asked, confused by the look she was giving.

"I'm fantastic now that you're here," She gave a lop-sided grin and crawled over the bed to be closer to him. She looked up at him as he stood over her with worried eyes.

"You just seem to be acting different…"

The Time Lord stood up on her knees and reached out her hands to run them through his hair lovingly. "I'm just acting how I've always wanted to act. I'm just not shy anymore."

Her human's eye widened at this. She had rendered him speechless for once. She seemed to be unbalanced, so Ross placed his hands on her waist to steady her. The Doctor ran her hand from his hair, down his cheek, and traced his bottom lip with her thumb. He was completely perfect to her. She just wanted him, so badly. All of him. Her eyes flicked from his brown eyes down to his lips. Slowly she began to lean up towards him. Their lips centimeters apart.

"Doctor," Ross whispered. "What are we doing?" He whispered quietly. He was confused as to why she was starting to act this way now, so suddenly. What had brought it on?

"Everything." She replied as she finally connected their lips.

Her body felt as if it was on fire as she feverishly kissed Ross. Luckily, he had acted just as passionately. The Doctor's hand snaked around her companion's neck as she allowed herself to fall back onto the bed pulling him with her. Her hands roamed over the naked half of his body. She wanted to memorize every inch of him. Every dent, dip, scar, and freckle. The Time Lord wrapped her legs around his waist and used her superior strength to flip them, so she was straddling his waist on top. She smirked at his shocked expression. She lightly pulled his bottom lip between her teeth before nibbling down his jaw, toward his neck. She was going to leave him so many love bites as a blissful reminder of this night.

"You know," she began against his neck which must have hummed in the right way, because it caused Ross to groan. That sent another shock through the Doctor's body encouraging her to continue. "Compared to you, I'm feeling a little overdressed."

The Gallifreyan leaned back and quickly shed her jacket along with her top. Her beautiful pink and yellow stared up at her in amazement. This made her smile.

"Like what you see?" She asked in a low voice.

Her companion replied by flipping them back over on the bed, so he was in the more dominant position. The Doctor shimmied out of her pants as Ross began to caress her shoulders, up her neck towards her head. She was completely exposed below him, only in her undergarments. Ross leaned down for a soft kiss as his hands made it to her temples. He grabbed the golden headband quickly and forcefully removed it from her head. He then tossed it to the side of the room.

The Time Lord gasped against Ross's lips as soon as the article was released from her head. It felt as if a bucket of cold water was thrown at her. Her head instantly cleared, as her stared petrified at Ross. What has she done? She quickly pushed him off her as she sat up. Her face was hot from embarrassment.

"That headband you had on, I think it had some charm over you," Ross deduced as he got up from the bed as well. "Doctor…" he began softly.

The Doctor quickly got dressed as Ross did. "We have no time to discuss what just happened. There is a Junite ship out there with hundreds of kidnaped species on board. I've got to save them."

Ross had changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He was putting his shoes as he spoke. "Right, who's the baddie this time, and how are we going to stop them?"

"You're not coming with," she informed him as she headed for the door.

"The hell I'm not!"

"You'll only slow me down. You have a bum ankle, remember," she reminded him as she left the room. Ross was hot on her tail like always.

"I'm coming with you. I don't care how hurt my ankle is," he said stubbornly.

"Fine. But I don't want to hear you complaining!" She led them towards the TARDIS.

"Where are they?"

"They are all caged up on a Junite's ship hidden below a water fall. We're going to take the TARDIS and pop in on them. I have a feeling that they won't be very cooperative," she explained as she unlocked the door to her ship and stepped in with her human.

She ran over to the console and set the coordinates for the Junite ship. Her mind kept flashing back to what her and Ross had just done. Dread crept into her at the thought of the conversation the were bound to have soon. Her head shook as she rid those thoughts and tried to concentrate. Ross stood back and watched her normal dance around the TARDIS as she landed them onto the enemy's ship.

Once the TARDIS landed the Doctor ran down the ramp and peaked her head outside of the doors. They had landed in the gallery that held all the cells. The Doctor grinned. It was one of the rare times that her piloting had gotten them to the right place at the right time. Her and Ross both stepped out. She nodded her head seeing that there was no panel for her to override the system. She'd have to find the main system and do it manually.

"Right then. Ross, I need to go and find the main controls to override the system and release these cells. As soon as that happens, I need you to corral all the life forms into the TARDIS. We'll have to take them all back ourselves," she informed her companion.

"What about the Junites? What'll happen to them? Can't they be reasoned with," Ross questioned.

"Usually yes. However, I met Zamora and she seems to be one of the very few Junites who are unreasonable. I'll give them one last chance to leave this planet and return home. That's all they get," She told him.

That being said, the Time Lord turned and swiftly exited the doors that had led her into the gallery the first time she was here. She needed to find the main control room. She quickly went up and down the halls scanned for the room that was giving off the most power. Once she located it, she entered the room ready for a fight. To her surprise there was no one in there.

'Well, that's highly unlikely.'

She shook her head, and went to work. Her fingers quickly graced across the controls overriding the ship's system, removing all security, and releasing the cell doors. Once completing her task, the Doctor glanced over the security cameras looking for the one that overlooked the gallery. She grinned as she watched Ross speak and lead each species into the TARDIS. I looked at the other cameras and watched as guards were running down the halls towards they gallery.

"I don't think so," she muttered to herself as her fingers flew across the controls making sure the doors to the gallery were sealed shut. She smiled at herself as she watched them struggle to open the door.

She looked over the panel and hit a button the looked like it was for an intercom. She hoped he was almost finished, because she didn't know for sure if this was going to be projected to the entire ship.

"Ross, can you hear me? How's it going in there," She asked over the intercom. She smiled as she wanted him jump at the sound of her on the monitor.

"Erm, good! Everyone is almost boarded!" He responded.

"Fantastic! Once all boarded, I'll be right down, then we'll be off!" She said as she began to move towards the door.

"That won't be happening Doctor," Zamora's voice came from the monitor.

The Doctor quickly turned around and stared at the screen. It seemed that just as Ross the last of the prisoners onto the TARDIS he was captured by Junite guards. Although, he was smart enough to close the door of the TARDIS before he was captured. Smart boy. The Time Lord's anger flared.

"Release him," she demanded.

"Not until you release my specimen, first."

"No. That is not happening. I won't allow you to enslave all of those species!" She yelled.

"They aren't slaves. They'll live a very luxurious life in their own habitats," Zamora tried to reason.

"That's just not right," The Doctor shook her head in disgust.

"Oh, but I think it is," the Junite began. "Without another festivity as successful as our flora season, our economy will crash! It was the only way our planet was able to be sustainable!"

"There are other ways than enslaving hundreds of species! I can help you! You don't have to do this!"

"We do, Doctor. This is the only way."

The only Stubborn Junite she has ever met. How could she not see the other possibilities? She realized now that they were too far gone. They were never going to see anything else besides their disgusting plan. She couldn't let these corrupt Junites continue roaming the galaxies kidnapping species. She had to end this. Her fingers ran over the controls one last time, silencing the alarm as she set the destruct countdown button off. She had 10 minutes.

"I'll trade myself for him. I'm a much rarer species anyway, being the last of the Time Lords and all."

Zamora's eyes widened. "But, that's impossible… they were all destroyed."

The Doctor's eyes were cold as she spoke, "Who do you think destroyed them all?"

"The last of the Time Lords. That's one hell of a title. People will come from everywhere just to see you…"

"Doctor, don't do it! I'm not worth it," Ross pleaded.

'You have no idea how worth it you are, Ross,'

The Doctor quickly exited the control room and ran down the corridors towards the gallery. Distract them as she got herself and Ross onto the TARDIS? Yeah, sounds easy enough. She rolled her eyes at herself. She found the doors leading into the gallery. She soniced them open and stepped inside. Her eyes instantly landed on Ross. He was still being restrained by the guards, but was otherwise unharmed.

"We will release your human if you surrender yourself to us," Zamora spoke.

"Release him first, then I will go with you willingly," she promised.

Zamora nodded, and the guards released Ross. He instantly ran over to the Doctor and engulfed her into a hug. "You can't go with them," he told her.

"Just go into the TARDIS, quickly. I've got a plan," She whispered to him.

"Really," He looked at her with doubt.

"Do I ever? Just go," she nudged him towards the TARDIS.

He reluctantly obeyed her and went into the TARDIS, but watched from inside the doors. The Doctor turned towards Zamora as two guards approached her. She knew she was going to have to fight her way out of this. She didn't want to get violent, but if she had to.

One guard grabbed her arms and pulled them behind her as the other approached from her front. She threw her head back, and head butted the guard behind her. Which left him dazed. The Time Lord threw her weight back towards the guard behind her which gave her enough momentum to lift both legs up and kick the guard approaching from the front as hard as she could. As her body and legs heavily returned to the ground, she used her strength to throw the guard that was holding her from behind over her shoulder. He landed on the guard she kicked who was starting to get up.

She began to run towards the TARDIS only to be blocked by Zamora herself. The Junite began the grapple with the Gallifreyan. "You will not ruin this for me!" She yelled frustrated.

As they spared, the Doctor finally had an opening that she took. Zamora flew to the ground in a heap. The Doctor took her chance and ran into the TARDIS's open doors.

"You destroyed us, Doctor!" Zamora yelled from her place on the ground.

"You can come with us! I can help you rebuild your planet! We can regrow your flowers! Please, let me help."

"I hope you remember this, Doctor! You destroyed us! You have destroyed us like you destroyed your own people," Zamora roared.

They didn't have much time before the ship destructed. Knowing that Zamora had made her choice, the Doctor shut the TARDIS door. She run up the ramp, swerving in and out all the different species that now filled the console room. The Time Lord didn't her normal dance around the console and send them into the Time Vortex as the Junite Ship imploded.

Once out of danger the Doctor turned towards her many guesses and clapped her hands together with a grin. "Alright. Where to first?"

...

Ross smiled and shut the TARDIS doors after waving goodbye to the human couple, the little boy, and his family. They were safely returned to the resort to Bora Bora. Once the Doctor saw they Ross was safely inside, she sent them into the Time Vortex. She took her time, knowing what was to come next.

Ross would probably demand that he be taken home. This daft old alien had practically jumped his bones. He, of course, went along with it so he could break the spell over her. Ross was a smart one. He knew to just play along. How could she possibly think that he would ever feel the way that she does. He was a human, and she was an ancient alien. The thought probably disgusted him.

"Doctor…" Ross began slowly.

All the blood left her face, and a cold jolt went through her body. This was it. He was going to leave her. Her hearts broke at the thought. She didn't want to be alone again. She couldn't. Madness would finally take hold of her. She couldn't live without traveling with Ross. Her fantastic, brilliant, smart, beautiful, pink and yellow human.

"It was just a spell, Ross. Just let it go," She said through gritted teeth.

"I don't think it was though. I asked her about it while you were running to sacrifice yourself to them. I asked Zamora what that headband was, and why it did what it did…" Ross began.

"It meant nothing, Ross! That headband was just some common love charm…"

"No, it wasn't! I asked her why she would charm you into doing that. She told me that even though it was a powerful charm there still needed to be some affection, or attraction there already for it to even work.

The Doctor refused to look at him, "She was just trying to get to you Ross."

"Why are you lying!" He yelled. The suddenly raise of his voice slightly startled her, making her raise her eyes towards him. He looked completely exasperated.

No… she couldn't lose him. Even if he didn't feel the same way. She couldn't lose him over this. Just then a thought came into her head. Maybe she just didn't have to.

"Oh Ross…" she slowly made her way over towards him. She looked up into his brown eyes as she gently placed a hand on the side of his head.

"Doctor, s'alright. I just want you to know…" he began for the Doctor to tearfully cut him off.

"I'm so sorry," she said quietly, as she placed her other hand onto his other side, and shifted her fingers into the mind connecting positions.

"What are you…" Ross began.

The Doctor forcefully thrust her mind into his. Ross was taken aback.

'What are you doing?' he asked, confused, and slightly fearful.

The Doctor instantly accessed his memories and went to work.

'I can't lose you, Ross. I know you don't feel the same, which is fine. I just can't lose you. So, I'm going to hide that memory from you. I'm not taking it away, just locking it up so you won't have to endure the memory of it.'

"No! Please! Doctor! Please, don't," Ross verbally begged.

'I'm sorry.'

With that, she locked up the memory of them in the resort bedroom and placed it into the deep part of his mind where he'll never have to deal with it again. Just to be sure she also, instantly made him fall unconscious. She carefully placed him on the jumper seat, and went about the console room. She decided to nervously make some repairs on the TARDIS while they drifted in the Time Vortex, and waited for her human to wake up.

It took about 20 minutes for him to finally come to. He groaned slightly as he began to sit up.

"Doctor," he called out.

The Time Lord held her breath for a second, before placing a fake grin on her face as she popped her head out from the other side of the console.

"Hello there, sleeping beauty! Did you enjoy your nap?"

"What happened," he asked groggy.

"You don't remember?" she asked, faking concern. She knew what happened.

"Sorta. S' all kinda fuzzy."

"Well what do you remember," She asked, slightly nervous.

"You left me on the beach," he paused as he thought back. "I returned to the room later on after getting a little sun sick. I found you napping on the bed, so I woke you up…" The Doctor held her breath again at this part. "You jumped up and started to prattle on about Junite's and missing people that we had to save. We went about the ship. You released the kidnapped species, and I corralled them onto the TARDIS. You came back and sacrificed yourself to Zamora, before becoming this badass fighter and took them all out! We then returned all of the species, and then it gets fuzzy again."

The Doctor grinned. "Well after we dropped off the humans at Bora Bora you went over to the jump seat, plopped down, and fell asleep."

"Oh. Well I suppose I am a bit tired. Should probably be off to bed then if we're going to be running around saving galaxies again tomorrow," he grinned at her. "G'night, Doctor," he called as he began to shuffle out of the console room.

"G'night, Ross Tyler!" She called after him with a grin still plastered on her face. Once he knew he was completely gone her face dropped. She laid her head against the console and released a sigh.

She was going to have to watch herself from now on. Things had to go back to normal, or even less so. She didn't want that memory being released. Her hearts broke more at the thought and Ross demanding to be sent home. The TARDIS knew her thief was upset, so she let out a warm hum letting her know that everything will be alright.

"I know, old girl." The Time Lord gave a sad smile, and placed hand on the large column in the middle of the console. "I'll be alright. I always am.