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starzgaze · 8 months ago

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MECH GENIUS!reader w/ jinwoo and hae-in

reader who's an engineer and started studying mana even if it's dangerous to be around if you're not awakened. they're aware about the fact they're more at risk of catching the illness of the eternal slumber but they don't really care since they have one goal in mind.

and if it's they can achieve their dream of creating mech weapons with the help of mana.

it started as a small project while they were pursuing their higher education and they wanted to see if there's anything they can do with mana. the concept of tinkering around with mana wasn't new but the idea of having mana related weapons was new since it was frowned upon and we have hunters around anyway, what's the point of having useless junk around?

but reader didn't care, it was a personal project anyway and they have extra time to splurge (nerd activities ahh) so they would be in their room tinkering with metals and sometimes will be found in the laboratories researching how they can tweak mana that could be concentrated to a point that they can use as bullets and if they can make different kinds.

so after a year or so they got carried away and got themselves into a rabbit hole of creating impressive mechanical war weapons that are deadly if an average person uses it. fortunately it looked complicated enough that intimidated people that would walk by it in the labs where reader would hang around so no one went near the contraptions. soon enough reader would have a variety of weapons and machines that could rival an A-rank hunter or maybe an S-rank if they tried hard enough...

of course this doesn't go unnoticed but not a lot of people snitched on them or their higher ups tried to tell them to stop whatever they were doing since first: reader is a engineering genius and helps them with whatever they need with such ease it scares them, second: reader has now less time on their studies because of their personal projects which means the other engineers can snag this opportunity to shine.

but two particular hunters would set their eyes on reader who finally used one of their creations when a dungeon break would occur dead in the night right outside of the laboratory of the university.

at this time, jinwoo and hae-in would be in the dating stage and was passing by a university since the two went on a convenience store run to have some snacks and to spend time together until they felt the familiar buzz of a dungeon break around the area.

on instinct, the two immediately head over to the area of the break. they didn't bother waiting for any permission or news that there was a break but they were greeted with a surprise that it was over??

monster blood and guts was everywhere, it looked so gruesome but all in the middle of the disgusting scene was a person with little to no mana but the contraptions in their hands was filled to the brim with it. the two hunters was surprised that there was a person out in this hour but then again it's normal for people who are studying to be awake at this hour...

it was hae-in who approached reader first and asked them if they all of this, snapping the engineer out of an adrenaline rush. the s-rank hunter was really impressed that reader did all of this for someone who probably doesn't have fighting experience.

reader confirms and probably twirls the weapon in their hand which again caught the attention of the two hunters. mainly jinwoo since the weapon in reader's hand reminded him of the weapons he would earn in dungeons and quests he finished whenever he gets those dungeon keys. but instead of shitty leveled weapons he would often see, jinwoo saw the contraption in reader's hand was far more high quality than his own.

the interaction between the two went on into the night as the gate behind reader closed on its own since the moment it went out jinwoo mutilated into pieces before reader could even shoot it down with their mech gear. after this moment, the two hunters officially wanted to know more about reader.

reader would suddenly meet hae-in or jinwoo on the street more often and get asked how's their research was going or if they wanted to be referred to either the korea's hunter association to be an engineer or be an engineer for ahjin guilde (this sorta sparked a small competition between the couple) which you quickly declined since you weren't sure if the projects you made was ready for other people to use since they were all just personal projects.

okay i give up making this coherent but jinwoo visiting reader and asking them if they can make a mech weapon for him to see how far their skill can take them and gets surprised how well reader is at their job and gave him a good weapon with shitty materials and a bit of mana. this now made reader his designated weapon's smith even if they're an engineer at heart.

"...hunter sun— i mean jinwoo uh.. you know I'm an engineer right and not a blacksmith, right?" you voiced out as you looked down at the raw and expensive rare monster loot at your table that jinwoo brought for you. he wanted you to make a weapon for him since he really liked the way you make and design daggers (definitely not to visit you more than hae-in who can casually drop by because you two are best friends)

jinwoo hummed as he crossed his arms, looking down at you. "are you saying you can't do it?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. this of course ticked you off, he knew this. jinwoo wanted to rile you up.

"no i don't mean that.. it's just- agh okay whatever I'll do it"

you stubbornly accepted the loot, muttering a thankyou. though you will never admit it but you were sort of excited to work with these rare material and maybe cut off a chunk to conduct some personal research on what type of material it is and how you can weld it. jinwoo noticed this but didn't comment on it, he was just happy you accepted it.

now hae-in who's always adorned with high quality armors and suits will also start coming to reader when it comes to designing and creating her armor. she didn't fail how much better in quality and effective reader's creations were compared to the extremely expensive and difficult to make armors she owns so she stopped going to those companies and instead went to reader for her armors.

this of course made the blonde hunter visit reader more than her boyfriend since reader told her they would need updates on her body and check frequently if the suit they made is safe for her body. reader told hae-in before that they never made suits before but hae-in pointed out they made mecha gear for themselves and continued to sorta beg for reader to make one for her which made reader reluctantly agree (they were just scared they might make a fuck up and cause a springlock scenario.)

hae-in rubbed this in her lover's face that she meets reader more often which resulted the other being jealous, making hae-in apologize and promising that the two will share.

when the hunter saw the finished product of the creatiok you made, she immediately noted how more mechanical it looks. it looked more military-like in terms of design which is a motif you consistently made with your creations. but it didn't hinder it's quality when hae-in wore it to check the quality

she was surprised on how light weight and comfortable it was. the material on her skin didn't itched like how her old suits would since it would be made from lab-made materials or monster loot but the one reader made was extremely comfortable it's like something hae-in would wear on a day to day basis.

you adjusted the straps and locks on hae-in's armor as you went through over her body again, checking if everything went on properly while ticking off the boxes om your clipboard.

"straps are correctly buckled.... it seems there's no overlaps and the joints are not hindering eachother.... hmm" hae-in heard you mumble as she observes how focused you were, her eyes softening. she admired how dedicated you were to your work.

and the way you were concerned over her being gave her butterflies in her stomach

you finally took a step back, your eyes scanning over the armor you created. a proud smile cracked on your lips as huffed out. "everything seems to be fine! hoo~ i really went through so much making this design aha"

hae-in turned and moved her arms around. she never felt so free in an armor, usually she would feel constricted in these type of suits. the way you designed it also made sure there's no vital organs exposed unlike some of her armor where they would need some spots exposed for the sake of mobility. hae-in was impressed.

"you really know what you're doing huh"

you heard her comment as she admired your work. a pink blush crept up to your cheeks as you sheepishly chuckled at her compliment.

"nah, i just do thorough research that's it.."

after these frequent meetings with the two, you would spend more time with the world renowned hunters and the more they would be enamored with the way you carry yourself in your workfield and studies, even your silly ramblings and little niches captured their hearts.

of course the two of them discussed about their feelings and how this would affect your relationship but soon realized the two shared the same feelings for you and decided to share you as promised.

now okay I'm going crazy I'm gonna work now on the other stuff i have it's ending here unless i write something for this concept errr.... maybe with zhigang and other characters too hahahha.... 😁 so yeah have fun with this conceppttt

#starz.babblez #concept #solo leveling sung jinwoo #solo leveling #sung jinwoo #sjw #sjw x reader #sung jinwoo x you #sung jinwoo x reader #cha haein #cha hae-in #cha haein x reader #cha hae-in x reader #solo leveling cha haein #sprinkle of yandere if u squint hard enough #solo leveling x reader

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possibilistfanfiction · 5 days ago

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i know you're working on it so no rush at all but i will love to read some poor unsuspecting queer person having a giant crush on cait only to be met with handsome vi, thank you!!

[rip to this queer person just trying to flirt, who wouldn't be a little overwhelmed by cait lol. a counterpart to this silly guy. on ao3.]

you show up early because you’re nervous; you remind yourself that you’re an impressive, competent person, a badass attorney, a great uncle, a thoughtful friend — you can do this. it helps, immediately, when there are a few other people early too, milling around the trunk of an suv, laughing and dividing gear between themselves into their packs. you don’t have any real gear yet, beyond a pair of beginner shoes and a chalk bag, mostly because you have no idea if you’ll like this hobby or not, but you’d seen one of your acquaintances post the flyer for the event in their stories, and it was free, and this year you’re pushing yourself to get outside more, to try new things, to be brave.

you take a deep breath and then turn your car off and grab your backpack from the passenger seat. when you start to walk over to the group, a little cold in the morning and grateful you had decided to layer warmly, you breathe a little easier because they all look toward you and smile.

‘hi,’ one of them says, and she’s — unfortunately for you, but also very fortunately — kind of devastatingly beautiful: she’s tall, with sleek dark hair and bright blue eyes and a horribly charming gap in her teeth when she smiles in greeting, dressed in what you can tell are nice climbing clothes, even if you don’t know a whole lot about the sport. ‘i’m caitlyn. you’re here for the queer crush climbing clinic?’

she has an accent, clipped and proper, god help you. you get it together, though. ‘yeah. yes. i’m alé.’ you offer a hand to shake, way too formal for the situation, but she accepts it without any fuss.

‘wonderful,’ she says. ‘i can’t quite remember what gear everyone needed, but i know i packed it according to the spreadsheet. jayce —‘ she points at a handsome man with broad shoulders and a friendly grin — ‘should be able to get you fitted for a harness and a helmet if you need.’

you nod and jayce motions you over to the trunk, very neatly organized, and walks you through the basics of how a harness should fit, and how adjustable their new helmets are. you fight down a wave of nausea when he asks if you’d like a men’s or women’s harness, but then he just tells you that one might fit a little more comfortably than the other, and it’s up to you because there’s no significant differences overall. still, when the men’s harness feels just fine and jayce deems it to be a perfect, safe fit, you breathe a sigh of relief, and he gives you a high five. ‘i love the color of that one,’ he says, and then grabs a helmet to hand to you. ‘cait got all of these new last week; we’re really excited,’ he tells you, like it’s totally normal to just buy fifteen climbing helmets, but whatever. a queer climbing collective that has a gear library and hosts beginner outdoor clinics is definitely not something you’re going to complain about.

you get your harness back in the bag and shoved into your backpack, and the helmet clipped to the outside, like jayce had suggested; you’re worried you’re going to have to wait awkwardly, because you kind of got here way before any of the climbers were supposed to show up, but no one seems bothered.

‘we’re going to go rig the routes,’ caitlyn says, and you can feel yourself blush just being around her. ‘jayce is going to hang out here to wait for other climbers, and then they’ll do the approach together, so you’re totally welcome to just wait here. but if you want, you can come with us while we set everything up; could be fun to see, if you’re interested.’

you — thank god — refrain from making a joke about how you’d probably follow her off a cliff, and instead nod totally normally. ‘that would be really cool. thanks.’

‘of course,’ she says, and then hands you a climbing rope with a wink that makes you, kind of just a little, want to die. ‘carry this over your shoulders if you think you can?’

you stand up straighter. ‘i definitely can.’

one of the other people waiting rolls her eyes with a little scoff, but she takes off out of the parking lot. ‘let’s go,’ she says, annoyed. ‘i wanna climb before i belay for seven million hours.’

caitlyn rolls her eyes fondly. ‘ignore her; she’s just grumpy her pack is so heavy.’

‘yeah, yeah,’ she says, then turns toward you. ‘anyway, i’m jinx.’ she points to the third member of their trio, who seems quite peaceful for this early in the morning and that full a pack. ‘this is ekko.’

he waves and takes off down the trail confidently, surefooted and relaxed. jinx follows, and caitlyn makes sure to stay close behind you. she’s quiet, probably to let you focus on the trail, which requires you, closer to where you assume you’ll be climbing, to scramble around on some rocks, using your hands. you’re a little embarrassed, because jinx and ekko hadn’t had to, but caitlyn compliments you as you approach an intimidatingly tall rock face, and you chance a look at her, cheeks slightly pink from the hike, eyes bright.

your voice comes out a little hoarse when you say, ‘thanks,’ but she doesn’t mention it.

jinx and caitlyn get all set up to climb, including a little squabble about whether or not jinx actually needs a helmet which ends in her admitting a very dramatic defeat and putting one covered in stickers on while she grumbles, and ekko kicks back near you after he’s laid out some ropes and other gear. he explains that they’re going to sport, or lead, climb the routes, putting what are called quickdraws — he shows you one — in bolts that are already in the wall, and then set top rope anchors for everyone else to climb: on top rope, he says, there’s really no way anyone will fall, and, ‘cait is great at setting anchors; she knows, like, every safety thing ever invented, i’m pretty sure.’ he glances over at jinx starting to climb, already zipping up the wall, and smiles something tinged with a lot of fond devotion. ‘jinx, not so much, but she’ll be really safe for this clinic, at least. and cait will check everything anyway.’

it’s kind of amazing, to watch them do something that you know will be really hard for you, and have it look so easy. ekko explains what cait’s doing on belay that’s great technique in case jinx falls — ‘this is an easy route for her, but you never know’ — and you’re drawn by caitlyn’s careful hands, the rhythm she has feeding and taking slack with jinx as she clips into each bolt that speaks to hours and hours of doing this together. it’s not hard to tell that ekko and jinx are kind of in love, or whatever, but cait isn’t here with anyone who seems like a partner, so you still have some hope. you haven’t dated much since you transitioned, and it’s time to get back out there, according to all of your friends and your therapist, at least.

jinx finishes whatever she’s doing at the top of the route, and then cait lowers her smoothly while jinx takes each quickdraw off the rope and out of the wall. they give each other a little fist bump when she gets down, smiling happily, at ease and in their element.

‘ekko,’ jinx calls, untying her knot and then hopping out of her climbing shoes with a grimace, not caring that she’s barefoot on the cold ground, ‘wanna belay cait on the 5.10a?’

he gives a lazy salute and gets up with a kind smile, dusts his pants off and leaves his warm jacket on the rock next to you, and walks over to caitlyn. they go over some safety checks, you surmise, and jinx sits next to you after she shrugs into ekko’s coat over her long sleeve t-shirt with a happy little sigh, and then rummages around in her bag and pulls out a to-go mug and some chips. ‘breakfast of champions,’ she says, grinning and offering you the bag, licking some fake cheese dust from her fingers, which also have some chalk residue still on them.

you politely decline and think about all the possible conversation topics you could start, but then caitlyn begins to climb and you’re entranced: she looks like she’s dancing, easily crossing her feet sometimes, smoothly resting, putting quickdraws in, clipping in the rope, and then continuing on without any pauses, one fluid, precise motion, over and over.

jinx notices and rolls her eyes, but there’s no malice in it. ‘she’s pretty good. but don’t ever tell her i told you that.’

you laugh, a little more in the world with it. ‘secret’s safe with me.’

‘it helps to be, like, a million feet tall with the longest legs on the planet,’ jinx points around another mouthful of chips and washes them down with a swig of coffee as as caitlyn easily navigates a far reach. ‘at least on routes like this.’

all you can do is nod, breathless, as caitlyn reaches the top, not even breathing hard, and then sets up another anchor. ekko lowers her after she calls out that she’s done, and he gives her a high-five, easy and familiar. they wave jinx over and she gets ready to belay ekko on the third route while caitlyn walks off back toward the parking lot, telling them that she’s going to go help jayce with the rest of the gear library and helping lead the approach for the rest of the group who’s arrived by now. you watch her walk away, her climbing pants just tight enough to give you an idea of what might be under them: god fucking bless.

it’s easy, once other people arrive, to feel like you’re all in it together: you do an ice breaker with your names and pronouns, how much climbing experience you have — you’re relieved to learn that most people have little to none, just like you — and what flavor of ice cream you’d be. there are so many trans and non-binary people, and a lot of people of color, and you can tell that, even if the climbing itself might be a little scary, it’s a good space to be in: you’re already grateful for it. then caitlyn goes through a bunch of the basics: a figure 8 knot, the way they rigged top rope anchors, how the belay device, called a grigri, works, and what grade each route is, from easiest to most challenging, so that everyone has a good understanding and feels as safe as possible. it’s thoughtful, and organized, and kind, and it only makes your giant crush even worse. you sit with a few people, too intimidated to go first once everyone actually gets to start trying it out.

after a few people go, though, the route caitlyn is belaying is open, and you decide that you can fucking do it: you’re brave and you’re strong and she grins when you walk over, your climbing shoes already hurting your feet and your heart beating hard.

things are fine, totally cool and you’re so chill and normal, but then you struggle tying the knot.

‘do you mind if i help?’ she asks, and you shake your head, gesture for her to go for it. suddenly you’re hit with her perfume and her shiny her hair is, how close her face is, her thing, dextrous fingers very, very close to your body as she explains each step and guides the rope through the loops properly. you have to clear your throat when she finishes, which is mortifying, but she just smiles and shows you that her grigri is locked and loaded properly. ‘you can start whenever you feel comfortable,’ she says. ‘i’ll keep it tight, so that you’ll be super safe.’

you will your brain to ignore i’ll keep it tight and instead struggle, so hard, even at the beginning of the route. it’s a little embarrassing, especially since this is the easiest route, one jinx had climbed in, like, a minute, doing a ton more than you, but then caitlyn shouts some encouragement, and helps you with some suggestions when you get stuck, unsure what to do at a certain point in the route. you make it almost all the way to the top anchor before you get a little freaked out and ask to be lowered down. caitlyn smiles so genuinely — her tooth gap on display again — and the sun hits her face just right, and it’s kind of like the proudest moment in your life.

‘great job, alé,’ she compliments, and you thank her, your voice as steady as you can will it to be.

eventually, caitlyn gets to take a break and, just your luck, sits in a camp chair jayce had set up right next to you. she stretches her feet out, legs crossed elegantly, and rifles through jinx’s gigantic backpack which is, apparently, full of snacks, before pulling out some trailmix and offering you some. you take a handful and thank her.

‘how are you enjoying the day so far?’ she asks, and you can tell she’s genuinely invested.

‘it’s really awesome,’ you answer honestly. ‘i’m trying to spend more time outdoors and move my body more, so this is super cool. climbing always seemed like such a hard thing to get into.’

she frowns in understanding. ‘it can be. that’s why i started this collective, with jayce, a few years ago. taking out the cost of gear and having experienced climbers volunteer has, at least as far as i can tell, helped a lot of people get into it.’

‘well, i for one can definitely say that i want to keep learning more.’

she perks up, pleased. ‘we host meetups at some gyms, too. if you ever need a free guest pass, you can dm us on the account and we can get you set up. gym climbing is a lot less stuff, at least. and no hike there.’

she laughs at her own joke, and you’re glad you’re sitting down because you’re a little weak at the knees from it all: the lilt of her accent and the tune of her laugh and her perfect skin, the way her practical fleece stretches across her chest and then, when she takes it off, the set of her shoulders and arms, dainty but so strong at the same time. you force yourself to ask questions about her life — she’s a doctor and she works in public health, which makes her a good person, let alone a hot person — and she seems honestly invested when you tell her about your legal work on tenants rights. it’s not a first date, obviously, but you kind of maybe think it might feel a little like one. it’s easy to enjoy her company, but then jinx calls to you and asks if you’d like to climb again, and it would be silly if you didn’t, especially after caitlyn pats your shoulder encouragingly. you make it to the top of this one, and you hear jinx and caitlyn cheering you on, and the weather has warmed up in the sun.

things are going great until they’re really not. it’s not that anything happens, really, at least nothing scary or bad, but you’d talked on and off for hours with caitlyn and you were working up the courage to ask if she maybe wanted to grab a late lunch after this, since it seems like the group is kind of winding down. but then a new person shows up, an adorable, blocky-headed pitbull training behind her closely, his mouth open in the best puppy smile. she’s seemingly a little harried but with gives a big, genuine smile when jinx grins and shoots a finger gun in her direction. ekko calls out a hello from where he’s belaying, and jayce sighs in relief.

‘vi!’ he says, and the new person sets her pack down and waves. ‘thank god. cait says you’re gonna clean everything?’

’sure am. i really am sorry i couldn’t be here for the whole morning.’

he waves the thought off. ‘i’m just glad you could make it, even though you didn’t have to come after a shift, you know.’

vi shrugs, then stretches her arms over her head. her shirt rides up a little, and you see abs and a trail of hair up toward her belly button, and you’re just kind of sitting in admiration until it all comes crashing down. caitlyn finishes lowering a climber and then gets off belay and walks — or, more aptly, saunters — over to vi, who grins like she’s watching the sun rise after the longest winter night.

‘hello, darling,’ caitlyn says, and then leans in to kiss vi quickly. your heart sinks as vi gently touches caitlyn’s waist, at the hip just over her harness.

‘hey,’ she says, her voice a little rough around the edges. ‘sorry i’m late. how’s the day gone?’

‘splendidly, i think,’ caitlyn says, happy and at ease. ‘and don’t apologize, i told you that you didn’t have to come at all.’

‘yeah, but i wanted to.’

‘well,’ caitlyn says softly, ‘i’m glad you’re here.’

you sigh in disappointment, a little stormy, before jinx plops down next to you with a laugh; it might be even more mortifying that someone had noticed how down bad you were. ‘don’t worry,’ she says, ‘cait is annoying as fuck, actually. vi is my sister, so i’ve had to put up with this shit for years.’ the dog wanders over to her happily, putting his big, dirty paws on her chest while she laughs and lets him kiss her face and greets him with nonsense baby talk he seems to love. it soothes things a little, when he snuffles at your leg and looks at you with his big eyes, asking for a scratch behind the ears. ‘this is their dog, atlas.’

it’s an alright consolation, you guess, to have had a beautiful day outside with cool new friends and what you think could become a great new hobby, and to get to hang out with the friendliest dog you’ve ever met; it’s not the worst, you’ll admit, to watch vi, who takes her shirt off to reveal scars across her chest and scattered around her stomach, and then a muscular back and arms covered in gorgeous tattoos, climb the routes easily to, as jinx tells you, clean the anchors, when everyone declares themselves too tired to climb any longer.

you all pack out and get back to the parking lot soon after, the hike back feeling easy after you’d done so much; vi loads some gear into a cool vintage bronco, letting atlas hop into the back seat before helping caitlyn finish loading everything into her subaru. ‘see you at home?’ she asks.

caitlyn brushes back vi’s short, messy hair from her forehead for a moment, tender, and vi sinks into the touch. ‘drive safe.’

vi backs up and then salutes with a grin. ‘always do.’

caitlyn rolls her eyes and waves to vi, then waves to you too as you head off to your car. you got a few people’s numbers, so that you can try out the gyms they climb at and maybe go to a few meetups together: you tried something new, and you were brave, just like you’d set out to be.

#arcane #arcane fic #caitvi #i identify w this random queer character. i too would lose my mind over cait climbing & teaching me abt climbing #the intimacy of someone tying your knot for you. unparalleled tbh #also. top surgery vi if u want it & squint hard enough

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