#increasing exponentially with each passing day

[cherry-vennom]

no one is ever gonna love you like I do

[majorlysapphic]

I have a lot of time to kill and noticed that the bridgella shippers deserve some attention, so it's time for my train travelling brain splurge (it will be angsty, I'm warning you now). :)

(TW: mentions of living in a heteronormative society/homophobia/internalised homophobia).

(Glassheart will be mentioned in the end because I want to do a part 2 of this post).

Now, I'm presenting an 80's Celebrity/Performer AU!

Now, I imagine both of the girls got into performing in very different ways.

Bridget came from a very privileged background where she was able to be put in various music/acting/dance lessons at a young age. I'd imagine she started her trajectory into stardom very young, starting with modelling and acting before shifting into music (though I'd assume she'd still have a cover/runway girl reputation which she revisits here and there). Bridget would have started off as a 'girl next door' archetype, but once settling into her music career, she would soon settle into an untouchable, bubbly pop princess persona. An IT girl with a stage name of "The Queen of Hearts."

For Ella, I imagine one of the only belongings that she has from her late mother is a guitar, so she's always made a small effort to learn, though that effort increased exponentially once her dad passed and she was left to live with her step family. On her eighteenth birthday, she's not legally required to be her step-mothers 'problem' anymore, so with her few belongings and her treasured guitar, Ella begins her journey to be a performer. She works her way up to the top with a ferocious determination, going from busking on the streets during day and waiting tables at night to meet ends meet, to performing as Auradon’s break out 'riot grrrl' by doing random gigs and opening acts. And when she finally gets a label to fund her first proper album, she's asked if she'd like to take on a stage name. Then is when she decides to title herself as 'Cinderella' for a final middle finger to the family that rejected her (by making a horrid nickname given to her turn into a marker of her success).

Both Ella and Bridget carry on their own careers aware of each others existence. But they only properly meet once their music labels want them to collaborate on a few songs for their latest albums they're working on.

And since Ella's manager believes she should reach out to a bigger audience and create a more positive public image for herself (after a few disaster interviews), Ella agrees. And when it comes to Bridget's PR team, they're trying to make her shake off her untouchable status, given that it has some negative repercussions (as there's a decent chunk of people out there with the view that Bridget is 'too fake' and that she 'probably let all that fame get to her head'). So Bridget ends up agreeing to the collaboration.

They meet at a recording studio, and their meeting isn't exactly ideal. Bridget is her typical self: bright, bubbly, friendly. But Ella doesn't know that's what Bridget is actually like. She thinks she's just meeting Bridget's celebrity persona that won't be shaken off, and she hates it. So after a few minutes of (attempted) polite conversation, it gets awkward and silent between the two. The vibe doesn't seem to get better when they're trying to write new lyrics and compose together, Bridget and Ella mix as well as oil and water does, and everyone in the studio can see it. So after a failure of a music making month, both their managers put a pause on their albums in order to run a PR plan.

Ella and Bridget are tasked with going completely public with their 'friendship' prior to announcing their collaboration. And hopefully, if the prayers of their managers are answered, they'll finally warm up to each other (which is necessity for future interviews).

They begin with a magazine cover together which creates a whole wave of surprise with both their fanbases (who are as opposite as opposites can be), and from there it's hangouts across A-list places (photographed/filmed by strategically placed paparazzi). And before they know it, Ella and Bridget have made headlines as Auradon's most surprisingly iconic best friends.

Though what's more surprising is that after all this, they are still awkward with each other. Sure, they may be a bit more comfortable, but the improvement is inadequate to what was expected of them. But oh well, what are their managers supposed to do about it? They're going to have to shrug it off and carry on making their albums with forced smiles.

But then, when they're finally left alone in a recording studio is when their bond flourishes. Because, wow, Ella is finally making sense of the fact that the Bridget she met on her first day at the studio was actually the real Bridget. And Bridget is starting to appreciate the complexity of Ella's character, and putting together the puzzle pieces to find out Ella is a really genuine person. A specific type of person that is far and few in Auradon's celebrity scene. The type of person she wants as a friend.

So, they finally ditch the picture perfect scenes they were set up to be in and spend their time together after recording just getting to know each other. As Bridget and Ella instead of The Queen of Hearts and Cinderella. They spend lazy nights in watching bad films, they go out to underground parties, they find a favourite ice cream parlour which they go to every Friday.

They're finally friends. And once their respective albums release, featuring each other (in more songs that was ever expected), they're soaring from the success of the careers.

The next few years are spent in the middle of the spot light. Ella has a much wider fanbase as she appears much more approachable (with the help of Bridget practising interviews with her) and Bridget remains a number one star, helped by the fact people have started to properly relate to her now that she (with the encouragement of Ella) is happy to show some of her more imperfect sides that adds some edge to her pop princess persona.

It's glitz and glam. It's red carpet looks. It's having their posters plastered in every corner. It's living together to set the ideal standard of how life can get if you stick to your closest friends and work hard.

...It's secrets and unspoken truths.

Because after all this time, they're best friends. Of course they are. But throughout the years, there are moments which could indicate different.

They don't talk about it. They really shouldn't. It's always the wrong place. The wrong time. What they have is inherently 'wrong'.

But... Too much is too much, and they have to talk about it. Because Bridget can't stand the multiple occasion's when they're in the safety of their own home, with their lips just about brushing, only for Ella to cast a look of doubt and pull away, pretending nothing happened. Because Ella feels like her heart is being ripped out whenever Bridget is back with her on-again-off-again PR boyfriend, only for Bridget to tearfully confess that nothing feels right when she's with him compared to when she's with Ella (and Ella has to grit her teeth every time, because Bridget's 'boyfriend' is the bassist to a wildly popular punk group, 'Uliana's Crew', and she knows that in the publics eyes, she can't match the debonair charm of James Hook. Even if she can be a better partner to Bridget in so many ways).

Neither of them can stomach another night after award shows, dressed to the nines and drunk on disgustingly expensive champagne, trading touches that are too intimate for 'just friends' and whispering in each others ears in the corner of a room. They can no longer ignore the curious looks they get from the people closest to them when they both release album after album, the songs within so obviously being able to be seen as romantic so long as the listener knows the right context the lyrics are referring to. So long as the listener starts swapping 'he' to 'she' in their head during the song.

The confrontation is full of tears and anguish. Both of them know what they feel but neither fully express it.

Bridget, whilst being privileged in many aspects, comes from background where anything out of the norm is unacceptable (she knows, but never says, that the reason she was supported in her career by her family is due to the fact that they thought it was a passing interest. Something that would leave, but once she took off into stardom, it was too late to take things back). She's been put on a pedestal all her life, and what could other's think (her fans, who she lives and breathes and performs for) if she finally speaks up on the fact that she's never been interested in boys. Even thinking of the fact makes her nauseous, because after so long listening to others, she also feels its wrong, even though it feels the exact opposite.

It kills her inside to know that Auradon would be raving about how much they adore the match between a conventional pop princess and a jaded/edgy artist, so long as said artist was a boy.

And when it comes to Ella. She has built her entire livelihood off of her music. It's the one thing that's kept her going in her roughest moments - she has no clue what meaning she'd find in life if she lost it. Because whilst her fans are more accepting (hell, a large percentage are part of the LGBTQ+ community themselves), she knows that other people won't be. That they'd pull her limb from limb and strip her of her career which she gave everything in her for, as an act for revenge for 'spoiling' the 'perfect' image of Bridget they had in their narrow-minded heads. She hates it. She hates The Queen of Hearts. And she loves Bridget.

In conclusion: Bridget would be okay with being in love with Ella if Ella wasn't a girl, and Ella would be okay with being in love with a girl, if the girl wasn't Bridget.

So, they agree to be friends. Carry on as if the talk never happened. They know their limits with each other (even if they are constantly breaking them). And yes, there are slip ups.

Said slip ups act as the highlight of their lives. Said slip ups will cause their downfall: because on a singular occasion, a picture is taken (it's contents: Ella and Bridget sneaking out of a rehearsal studio late at night, hands interlocked, hair messy, lipstick smudged).

The picture goes viral. Passed around. Talked about. Theorised. Concluded on.

Both Bridget and Ella are sent into a panic. What do they do? It's the early stages of their situation being revealed (and they're already seeing hateful responses), and both silently loathe it. The cherry on top? It's not even based in fact, because neither have allowed themselves to even have each other in anyway that they want. Their appearances that night were purely from a hectic rehearsal.

Their PR teams jump to salvage what they can. And when Ella meets Bridget's fearful eyes, they both know it's the end of them. In the following months, they move into their own separate homes and their contact is fleeting. Eventually, the rumours and hate turn into whispers.

But they will never recover.

They'll never be alone in the same room together, ever again.

In the same year of this scandal, a large announcement of Bridget Hearts and James Hook's engagement will ring through all media outlets. The perfect pair: a sweet pop princess (that has been cherished by the kingdoms since her debut into performance as a child) and Auradon's resident, suave 'bad boy' ready to settle down. They're picture perfect. Ella feels sick (so does Bridget), and she makes sure to cross out a firm rejection on her invite to the wedding.

And Ella forces herself to move on. She finds a calm yet fun actor, Christopher Charming. She decides to try love him. She can love him. She does love him in her own way. It's not as bright and golden as her love is was for Bridget, but it's quiet and safe. And he understands her and keeps all her secrets, and that's all she can ever ask for.

Years go on and they live finding other joys to go off of. Life is hard but not impossible without each other, and they try to be happy for one another. Bridget sends a bouquet of flowers to congratulate Ella's marriage to Charming (as a way to say she's happy for her, because Bridget really really wants Ella happy... And as a way to apologise for the fact she can't be there to attend the ceremony). Ella sends presents for Bridget's final show (Bridget's much too tired to perform for another tour, and if she gave any more of herself to The Queen of Hearts, all she'd be left with is bones) where Bridget announces she will be starting 'Wonderland Records', a music label aiming to help artists from unfortunate backgrounds succeed. Bridget gives a supportive smile from across the room when Ella announces she'll be retiring at her final albums award ceremony.

They go on with life, and after both have stepped away from the spot light, they don't expect to ever encounter one another properly anymore.

And that holds true... Until you put their daughters into the scene. Because despite their warnings, both Red and Chloe have followed in their footsteps to become Auradon's newest stars.

With new trends coming around and an increasing demand to see artists perform everywhere, Red and Chloe often encounter each other, especially at music festivals. And they despise each other (even if they're a fan of each others music). But you know what people say. There's a thin line between love and hate (and that history tends to repeat itself).

The next thing Ella and Bridget know, they're witnessing their daughters slowly fall in love. Unashamedly. In front of the whole world to see.

And this time, it ends well.

And when attending a final festival for the summer to support their daughters, they watch as Red plays a song dedicated to Chloe. They watch as a lovesick Chloe hops onto stage, and kisses a flustered Red in front of thousands of people and camera's. They hear people cheer in support.

Because a queer love story is just as natural as any other. It was a long, long wait for society to be like this. But it finally is. And it is perfect for their daughters, who were born at the right time for their type of love which they show off so loudly and proudly.

Ella and Bridget meet each others eyes from the wings of the stage, waiting for their daughters to meet them on either side. And they give a friendly smile. Because whilst they couldn't give each other what they wanted, they're more than happy to give the world to their daughters.

They'll continue to be friendly to each other, and eventually become casual friends, but never anything more. Not in this lifetime.

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

Wow that was fun to write!! Hope you enjoyed reading this!! Phoebe Bridgers 'Moon Song' set the perfect tone for me to write this post, haha. <3333

[downbadf0rficppl]

how to save a life

Poe Dameron x Ex-First Order!Reader

Summary: It took a lot of courage to escape from the grasp of the First Order, and even more to deliver yourself to the Resistance. But you did it. Months later - still not trusted by anyone in the Resistance - you vie to prove yourself once and for all. The perfect opportunity comes up when Mr. Face-of-the-damn-Resistance needs help.

Word Count: 3.5K

Warnings: Canon-level violence, injury, near-death experiences, mugging/street violence, Leia being mean because she's being protective, imprisonment.

Repost

It took a lot of gall to double cross the First Order. You had been stolen from your home planet as a baby and indoctrinated into the regime - you knew nothing else. You were strong with force. Supreme Leader Snoke was keen to have you on his side. He kept you as a prisoner - forced to do his bidding and his dirty work, with the threat of death looming over your head. You were too young to understand that Supreme Leader Snoke couldn’t afford to have you killed, no matter how often he threatened it.

You had escaped on a regular morning, using your standing as one of Snoke’s own to commandeer a ship and escape with a fleet that were on their way to deal with Resistance scum on a nearby moon. You landed over a mile away from the other Stormtroopers, your officer uniform making you stand out like a sore thumb. You ripped your jacket up, tearing it to shreds before throwing it into the trees.

The trek into the city was long, but you used it to disguise yourself further, untucking your shirt and ripping the sleeves, before rubbing dirt into your clothes and cheeks. With the few credits you hand and your First Order military pass, you managed to barter a ship that would allow you to get off the moon unnoticed.

You set off early in the morning, heading further into the outer rim where there was less and less First Order patrol.

You landed on one of the busiest planets of all: Daiyu. Daiyu was a planet known for its thriving underworld dealings - despite the First Order's many attempts to get it under control. No one would find you there. You hid amongst the low lives, stealing little to get by and trying not to draw any attention to yourself. You may have grown up in the shelter of the Supreme Leader’s gaze, but you knew the force. And you knew how to hide in it.

It took a lot of energy to hide yourself from the force. Especially considering Supreme Leader Snoke knew who you were, what you felt like. He reached out to you in the force, finger scraping you but never quite holding you long enough to gain a full picture. In the beginning, it had been hard to keep him out of your head when you were asleep - returning to the force always felt like the most natural state. A state of peace and serenity, an escape from the danger you had to evade at every waking minute.

No doubt, Snoke would send scouts out to find you. And when that failed, he'd put a pricey bounty on your head. You were right.

You'd met all sorts of hoodlums in Daiyu, and been beaten up by most of them too. But you wouldn't risk making yourself known to any of them by fighting back. Not when so many were looking for you. At the beginning, the price had been low - reasonable for someone of your lack of class and standing - but the price increased exponentially each day that passed.

It was months before you decided to venture back into living and not just hiding. You'd been monitoring the airwaves - the bounty on your head was reducing everyday - the value not nearly enough to pique the interests of the men of Daiyu. Clearly, Snoke had found someone else to chase.

You slowly allowed yourself to become one with the force again, practicing your mastery of it only when you knew others weren't watching - even if Snoke wasn't looking for you, Daiyu was the kind of place where even your friends would sell you out if they had something to gain from it. And you had no friends in Daiyu. You kept yourself blocked from the minds of Snoke and his protege, Kylo Ren, showing them misdirection every time they cast a net out for you. Your mastery was improving.

You found a job at a scrapping plant - measly pay but it was better than nothing. You clocked in and out at the same time every day, collecting your pay and rationing whatever you could buy with it. You still napped lightly in alleyways, avoiding the police officers who patrolled the streets at night to kick the homeless out of doorways.

You woke up to the ways of the real world really fast. The world was full of bad people with bad intentions. They beat you up in a back alley behind the plant, stealing your credits and your clothes before the whirring approach of police officers scared them away. You ran from the police too - not wanting to be turned into the First Order for disciplining.

The police officers were hot on your tail. You ran through the streets and the market, trying to find a place to hide. You dove into one of the mooring decks - where pilots would land their craft for the duration of their visit. You covered the identifiable logo on your chest with your arms, crossing them to seem more intimidating. You waited for the police to drive past before running in the opposite direction. Straight into the chest of someone.

He grabbed your arm tightly, leading you into another back alley. Shit. You were probably gonna be beaten up again or escorted to the police. You tried to struggle out of his grip, but it was vice-like around your arm. He clamped his other hand around your mouth, looking around for danger, presumably. You looked up at his face.

You knew that face. You'd seen it more than once in Kylo Ren's memories, and also posters around Coruscant when you were younger. Poe Dameron. The face of the Resistance.

He loosened his grip around you, as he reached up to speak into his comms. "Got a deserter. Gonna bring 'em in." Your heart plummeted. He marched you into the mooring deck, before grabbing some cuffs out of his plane. No one did a double-take. The security in Daiyu was far from the best. He cuffed your hands in front of you, before pushing you into the ship.

It was cramped inside the U-Wing, it wasn't built to seat 2 people. You sat huddled behind his seat, holding on for dear life when he took off and jumped to light speed. You groaned as you hit your head, which Poe gave a sympathetic 'sorry' to.

As you draw closer and closer to D'Qar, you feel a calming wave flow through you. It was as if someone was emitting a beacon for you to latch on to. You knew this feeling. Leia. You had known for years that Leia was strong with the force. She had to be, given Kylo Ren's prowess. But you didn't know just how strong she truly was. You tried to reach out to her through the force, but Poe interrupted you.

"10 minutes to landing. General Organa is expecting you."

The calmness evaporated. General Organa's presence in the force may be calming but you knew of her reputation as the General of the Resistance. She was ruthless.

They threw you into a holding cell - which realistically was just a room that didn’t unlock from the inside. You sat there alone - plagued by your own mind for the better part of the day. Each time footsteps passed by your door, you panicked. This is it. This is the end.

It was always a false alarm.

Someone was walking by, scurrying to briefings they were late for, or heading to the droid mechs because, ‘the damn droid went rolling into a wall again! That’s the third time this week!’

You don’t see Poe again - he’s a captain of the Resistance, you reason, he has better things to do than babysit a hostage. Because that’s what you were to them. Deserter or not, you weren’t one of their guys. And that made you dangerous.

You focussed your energy on trying to find Leia - maybe you could understand how to help her if you knew what her problems were. You needed her to trust you, that was the only way you’d be safe. You couldn’t find her between all the buzzing energies of the force. It was overwhelmingly loud. You pulled yourself away from the search, breathing heavy as you came down. You’d never been good at finding people in the force who didn’t want to be found.

A petite blonde woman came as the sun was setting, in her arms a tray full of food. You gorged yourself on it. The Resistance may not have had much but one thing they did have was good food. At least, better food than the First Order.

Leia walked in just as you were finished eating - she’d been waiting for you to finish, hoping that they’re small morsel of kindness would earn enough trust for you to tell them what they wanted to know.

She started softly, asking you questions about yourself and your role within the First Order. You told her half truths - you had been stolen from your home planet as a child and had been raised to be a spy for the First Order. Leia frowned at that, the small pieces of trust you had gained immediately being withdrawn.

She started to ask more interrogatory questions. What were the First Order planning? How were they expanding? Future targets?

You told them the truth. You didn’t know.

The truth wasn’t good enough.

Leia once again asked about the First Order’s plans. You didn’t know. She asked for the whereabouts of Snoke. You didn’t know. She asked, discretely, about her son. You didn’t know.

After an hour going head-to-head, yours was pounding. You’d been resisting her in the force and she was much stronger than you. Much more well practiced too. Your vision started to cloud as you begged her to believe you.

The First Order was good at compartmentalising. Only the people that needed to know, did. And you almost never needed to. Especially since Kylo Ren deemed you a flight risk - rightfully so, seeing as it was always your intention to escape.

Leia left the cell grumbling under her breath, muttering about how the First Order was insufferable. For all her abilities, she didn’t seem to pick up on the fact that you were strong with the force. All the better; less things to explain.

They kept you confined to the cell for quite a while after that. To be fair to the Resistance, they treated their prisoners far better than the First Order did. You had a feeling that they didn’t have much in the way of prisoners - given the lack of purpose built holding cells in the facility.

Your room was big - there was enough space to move around, keep active, meditate. There was a small fresher in the corner of the room and the bed you had was far more comfortable than the one you slept in every night on Star Destroyers. The light streamed in through the small window, and like clockwork, some poor person would bring you a meal every morning, noon, and night.

Aside from this though, you were bored. Inconceivably bored. You’d never had this much time to yourself before. Being under Snoke’s unrelenting gaze meant that you were always working - either practicing, or proving your worth. You had none of that anymore.

You spent the majority of your day honing your tracking skills. You tried to pick out people you knew - those with distinct feels. Those like Poe Dameron.

Poe had been on a new mission since the day after you landed on D’Qar - you’d asked one of the nicer people who brought you food a week after you arrived. He’d returned to Daiyu, trying to find an ex-First Order arms dealer. You had given a little information about the guy - how he was hiding from the First Order since abandoning their efforts to weaponise their young. That had earned you a little more favour in the eyes of the Resistance, but you were still fighting an uphill battle. It was no matter. You were safe here.

You felt him before anyone else. He had come out of hyperspace and wasn’t requesting permission to enter the airspace. You jumped out of bed. Something was wrong, you could feel it.

Poe had run into quite a bit of trouble on Daiyu. The intel you had given him was good. Not just good, it was great. They’d got some of the information they needed before police were knocking at the door, demanding to be let in. Poe ran. He ran with police on his tail, before escaping in his X-Wing. He jumped straight into deep space. Into enemy territory. He’d been recognised almost immediately - the X-Wing was a dead giveaway. He’d been chased for light years and shot at; his baby had taken some pretty nasty hits. He’d been grounded on Dantooine, the planet nearly deserted. And yet, it seemed just his luck that a few locals took offence to his presence. He’d sustained pretty bad injuries to his torso and left leg. He’d escaped as fast as possible - the loss of blood making his head spin. He entered through the atmosphere of D’Qar, eyes closing off their own accord. There wasn’t enough power in the ship to radio down to ask for permission, nor to land safely. He had to ground the bird.

You slipped your jacket that you had been given on, as well as your old shoes. You played with the lock on the door, having memorised the sound of the code from when you were brought food. You type in the code tentatively, thanking the Maker when the door whooshed open. You crept out, sneaking towards the main blast door. You could feel Poe slipping, feel him losing his touch. As soon as you were out on the ground, you sprinted.

Poe had angled the ship a few miles west of the base. It was still going to be a trek back to the base, but that was better than crashing on the runway; he’d never live that down.

You ran towards the trees, heading west. You could see the smoking ship in your peripheral vision.

Poe was lying on the grass when you got to him, eyes shut with his hand pressing on his side; there was blood everywhere.

Your hands cradled his face as you fell to your knees next to him. You ripped his shirt away - hands ghosting over his chest as you felt for his heartbeat. It was faint, but it was there.

You reached out to the force, pulling threads as you attempted to close up some of the wounds. The bleeding slowed as you pleaded with him; "Poe, come back! They need you, Poe!"

He sputtered suddenly, rolling onto his side, wincing as the newly healed skin stretched. You stayed by his side, hands still running up and down his body, trying to find any more injuries to heal. His breathing remained heavy, as he tried to recollect everything that happened. His hand flew to his side.

"How the hell did you do that?"

"It's a long story."

"I have time."

"I don't," Poe looks at you questioningly, "It's only a matter of time before they realise I'm gone. Or one of them shows up here looking for you."

He shrugged in agreeance, lying back to face the sun, "How did you know I was here?" You laid back, head next to his. The sky was pretty - clear and bright. Maybe, they'd let you come back out here - watch the sun rise and set more. Maybe.

"I felt it. I could feel the disturbance - you were panicked." You whispered, trying not to offend him. It was the truth, but you knew how powerful men often hated the truth.

"Me? Panicked? Never. Have you met me?" His tone was coloured with laughter. You smiled.

You sat in silence for a long time, just enjoying the peace and quiet of the D'Qar weather, until you heard the med team running towards you.

"They're almost here. They're gonna take you to the med-wing. Fix you up. You'll be able to fly in no time." You gave him a watery smile. He gripped your hand tightly.

"I'll tell Leia. You saved my life - she'll ease up. You can train with her - she's - something - with the force. She can help you."

"NO!" You yelled, jumping away from him, "You can't tell Leia. You can't, you can't - promise me - PROMISE ME, POE - promise me, you won't tell Leia." He grabbed your hand and soothed you, promising not to tell Leia until you were ready.

He held your hand until the med team arrived and they ushered him onto a Gurney. He yelled at the two corporals left with you to be nice - "she saved my life!" he yelled as he was dragged away. They threw back in the same cell just the same.

It was two days before you saw anyone else again. You were provided food at every mealtime just the same as you had before - except there was no interrogation afterward. You preferred the interrogation. Made you feel... needed.

You knew that Poe had argued for you. You'd heard from two officers from data who were gossiping about it on the way to the Cantina.

"Did you hear?" One of them giggled.

"About the General and Poe. Of course!"

Poe had made the dash to see the General as soon as he was cleared from the med-wing. You'd saved his life. It was only fair that he do the same.

He walked - no, strutted - into the General's office in a very 'Poe' way, claiming that the matter was of the utmost importance. He gave his mission report - how the intel wasn't just good, it was "brilliant. It solved some of our supply issues, which means we're in a better place than ever to beating them. They have no blaster parts, no ship parts - the supply chain will be delayed for weeks." Leia had dismissed him after that.

The first sign of trouble should have been that. That Leia hadn't asked him about the trouble or berated him for getting into it. Instead, she was just letting him go.

Poe pushed the issue - he talked about the trouble and his destroyed X-Wing, and how he practically crash-landed into D'Qar because the police on Daiyu was "mad strict. Like they couldn't let a small thing like that go? Maker, what happened to that place?"

The second sign of trouble was the lack of warnings. Usually, Leia laid the 'be careful, don't get yourself killed,' warnings on thick. They were nowhere to be found.

The third sign of trouble was the glazed-over expression in Leia's eyes. Poe realised that he never had Leia's attention, to begin with. Leia's mind was completely preoccupied with the young girl in a cell, who'd risked her freedom to save a Captain. A man that she barely knew.

The bigger mystery was how had she hidden so successfully in the force - not only from Leia herself but from bigger threats, like Snoke and Kylo Ren.

Poe, mistaking Leia's confusion for anger, begged her not to hurt the girl. "She's just a kid, General, she was doing what she'd been taught." Leia sent Poe away, assuring him that she wasn't going to hurt the girl.

You felt Leia before you saw her. You'd fallen asleep with your back upright against the headboard, an awkward crick forming in your neck. Your eyes opened to Leia perched on the edge of your bed.

You jumped into apologies and pleas - "please don't send me back" and "I was just trying to help him - the med team wasn't going to get there in time."

You were surprised when you felt her hand brush up against your cheek, but you leaned into the touch all the same. She gazed at you so lovingly that for a moment you forgot that she was the reason you were locked in here.

"I was wrong." Her words stunned you, "I was wrong about you, and I apologise. You are safe here - to practice the force, or live without it. If you want to leave, I will find you a planet on which no one - First Order or Resistance - will find you. Should you wish to stay, I would welcome you with open arms, as would everyone else here."

You smiled at her, "I would like to stay - if that's ok?"

She smiled at you, standing up and walking towards the door. "I'll make sure you get your first flying session with Captain Dameron first thing in the morning. He said you had a knack for flying."

"Umm, General?" She turns to look at you, "If it's all the same to you, I'd prefer something on the ground? Something like controllership?" She smiled and nodded.

"I'll have Connix meet you in the morning, kid. Sleep well."

And you did. In fact, you had probably never slept better.

fin.

buy me a coffee

[unadulteratedsoulsweets]

A DC X DP IDEA # 20

Star born child.

Imagine dis…

Ever since we were a child, we often would ask our parents where stars came from as we gazed along the night sky. Some parents would reply they were just fireflies that got stuck when they flew over, some say those are little children playing as mother moon guards over them, and some say that they were our ancestors watching over us as we slept.

But you know what I said? I said that stars were made by a little elfish young boy with stark white hair, white pupil-less glowing eyes, freckles that looked like constellations, wearing a black and silver accented princely outfit, puffy white shoes that had little bells on it that seemed to giggle each step and a cape that looked like the galaxy. He loved the space so much that he created stars from the smallest of them to the largest and brightest one up in the night sky.

…

Some JL members were drifting along space inside their space vehicle as they had just finished another mission that required them in space. Despite being mainly Earth’s exclusive protectors they have made alliances and friends were, made along the way with many different species, yet they also made enemies from space from the countless people they have overthrown or defeated in space just by being fleshy humans.

As they were drifting into space Superman couldn’t help but still sense a deep feeling of longingness and awe every time he looked into the deep abys despite looking at the same view since the JL space HQ was made. Longing for what could be his planet’s history and culture that could be in one of the endless planets and stars that were present today and in awe at the vast space that kept expanding for more planets and life that were to be made.

…

Flash was the first to notice something was amiss when it was his turn to watch over the controls to ensure a safe and smooth travel back to Earth.

He was just watching the endless void when he began hearing some sounds resembling a child’s giggle out of utter glee and the ringing of bells. Now remember he is a man of science and will refuse any supernatural action despite working with the greatest magicians Earth has to offer. The giggles seemed to continue as the lights kept flickering out without any interference and both sets of sounds kept echoing and bouncing off the walls, he kept hearing a creak on metal behind him, and he kept “misplacing” some snacks and the mug he just placed next to him, it kept him all night to the point that by the next day, Green Lantern had found him slouched by the controls muttering to him about a devil child haunting the league as he felt being mocked him as he kept looking at his back.

…

Cyborg is the next one to hear the mysterious sounds but instead of the giggles he unfortunately teased the Flash about but a static noise-like sound filtered his ears.

Ever since his accidents he has noticed that his hearing and eyesight have increased exponentially due to the machines that upgraded two of his senses.

At first, he thought he was picking up a foreign radio signal/ message between two planets that have a rather large frequency but when that signal began interfering with his sight and hearing he knew there was something wrong. There are very few frequencies that can really interfere with his sense since his accident and now powers/ abilities originated from an explosion of the mother box. He cannot keep himself awake due to the amount of static that invades his hearing and sight he later lost consciousness and suddenly awoke in one of their med bays.

…

Batman was the first one to see their mysterious haunting of a child. Despite barely believing the Flash due to his history of pranking and history of delirious muttering whenever he watched too many horror films as well had Cyborg being grilled for every detail he can remember before he passed out, he will never admit it to anyone that he had frozen the moment he saw it.

He was just making his rounds around the space shuttle of the JL when he heard a child’s giggles accompanied by the light giggles of bells. He is immediately on guard as they are in the middle of space if anything snuck in it can’t be good news.

As he was surveying the area, he found his gaze towards a small child. A small elfish little child with stark white hair, white pupil-less shining eyes, constellation-like freckles, dressed in a black and silver accentuated royal attire, and puffy white shoes with little bells on them. He seems to have not noticed him Batman keeps quiet and begins observing, the said mystery child is still giggling without a care in the world when he suddenly pauses and takes a look at a seeming space to his right. Frowning as if there was something wrong the child suddenly jerked up as if he had a bright idea, slowly raising his arms and began to move his arms in such fluid motion as if he was creating something but what? Suddenly a large bright invaded in front of him forcing him to close his eyes at the assault of light. When he gains his vision again, he sees the mysterious boy looking all happy and proud with the way he puffed up his chest as well as the bright smile on his face. As he turns to the boy’s direction which was before a space was now replaced by a newly made small dwarf star that he was positive wasn’t there moments ago, brightly twinkling. Batman was so engrossed in what had just transpired that as he focused on the said star he noticed movement, at the corner of his eyes he saw the mysterious boy had spotted him and immediately disappeared into the vast void of space.

…

The next day he held the meeting about the said mysterious boy, you can hear the Flash boasting he was right to the other members about having the space shuttle haunted when Batman noticed both Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern stutter and look of disbelief in their faces and promptly asked what was that. Martian Manhunter went first, when Batman described the said child it reminded him of the Martian’s ancient texts, history, books, and scrolls if you will. That said child was said to be their god as in the past they had been on the brink of extinction due to the barrage of asteroids heading their way, as he had appeared to save them and he also gave them the knowledge to advance by themselves. Martian Manhunter ended his statement that he had heard it when he was just a Martian youngling as it was taught to every young Martian that their great guardian was watching them in space. Green Lantern explained that what Batman had seen was something that the Green Lantern Corps was supposed to be the only people who knew of his existence. He had shown himself a few times when a Lantern was in a precarious situation or on the verge of it some lanterns have witnessed him creating a planet or stars depending on which in his will, and some have seen the said boy expand the universe to his will as if we were taking a stretch. The guardians in the Lantern Corps have tried multiple times to guard the said boy as it was obvious that he some kind of ethereal being creating life and other celestial beings but he always disappeared so it became some sort of an ongoing mission to protect and watch over the boy whenever one of the lanterns spot him.

…

Danny was enjoying his ghostly life, after years he had been neglecting his primary obsession which is his fascination with the celestial bodies in favor of his secondary obsession of protection whenever he had stayed on earth it had felt like it was caging him, suffocating himself and his core, especially when he became the Ghost King. Writing reports all day as well as ensuring the zone was up and running, he had felt himself getting more exhausted by the say. So, when Clockwork had gone to him and told him to practice his primary obsession as a form of taking a vacation Danny was ecstatic.

He created countless stars, from the largest of them all form the smallest of dwarfs. He had created solar systems created a multitude of planets and let life thrive on the barren place. He let the vast space be his canvas for his obsession, he let the stars he formed and created form different constellations.

If only those green guys stopped being so stalkerish every time they encountered him, he thought that he had escaped the whole stalker gig when he became the Ghost King better yet when he escaped the life of being a superhero.

...

Now he can't help but keep looking at the floating space shuttle as if he had just gone to a new space museum, Danny appeared to sense some interesting people in the shuttle. People who had been touched by death, people whom he felt a slight connection with, and other species from different planets.

…

PS: If someone out there wanted to continue or make a fic about this you are free to do so, don’t forget to tag me though.

[todorokis-girl]

I Never Knew You Were Alive - Soulmate AU (V)

Chapter V: Last minute encounter

No actual dabi in this one

Chapter I: So it starts Chapter II: A late arrival Chapter III: belive of be doomed Chapter IV: What are we doing? Chapter V: Last minute encounter Chapter VI: Deciding to fall in love with you

masterlist

Next Chapter

taglist: @staygoldsquatchling02 , @alien-00715-blog

Note: I was gonna post this next week BUT I have some presentations and assignments to turn in, and I don't know if I could keep track of this. Plus I already started chapter VII (I have chapter VI done and ready to post later today, this was supposed to be chapter 1 but I wanted to add drama before this), so that will probably my focus next week.

The day had started like any other. The city bustled with life, the streets filled with people going about their routines. She had been on her way to meet Keigo, walking through a busy shopping district. The sun was beginning to set, casting a warm, golden hue over the city. As she passed by a familiar convenience store, she decided to stop in and grab a snack, hoping to alleviate the stress of the day with a small treat.

Inside the store, the hum of the refrigeration units and the soft chime of the entrance bell created a familiar ambiance. She wandered down the aisles, her mind drifting as she absentmindedly picked up a packet of chips. Her thoughts were a mix of mundane worries and lingering memories of a past. The Todoroki family, Touya’s memory, the constant ache of his loss—they were always there, just beneath the surface.

As she reached the checkout counter, a sudden chill ran down her spine. She felt a presence, something or someone that made her skin prickle with a strange sense of déjà vu. Turning slowly, she saw a figure standing at the end of the aisle, partially hidden in the shadows. His posture was familiar, but it wasn’t until he stepped into the light that recognition slammed into her like a physical blow.

The figure turned, revealing the face she had once known so well. His eyes, deep turquoise and filled with a mixture of surprise and anger, locked onto hers. This wasn't the first time they had seen each other. Just a couple of days ago, she had been pressed between him and a wall in an alley; but his eyes seemed wilder than usual, angrier, and she had been feeling tension, irritation, and anger all morning. She didn't understand what had happened, but she did know one thing right now…

Run.

She dropped her bags immediately and sprinted out of the convenience store, anxiously looking around for a place to run to without civilians. It seemed impossible—she was in the middle of a big city. Next idea.

Heroes. She needed to get as many people out of the vicinity as possible. She couldn't do that right now, and she could feel the temperature behind her rise. She had to find help, find heroes who could evacuate the area. The heat was intensifying, and panic clawed at her chest as she darted through the crowded street.

"You're a liar" His voice, raw with betrayal and rage, echoed in her ears. His deep turquoise eyes bore so deeply into hers that the pressure on her chest, in her heart, seemed to increase exponentially.

Her breath came in ragged gasps as she rounded a corner, her mind racing. She needed to find a hero, anyone who could help mitigate the impending disaster. The familiar signs of the shopping district blurred as she focused on putting as much distance as possible between her and the man she had once known.

She knew there was no time to dwell on the past. She had to keep moving, keep running, and find a way to protect the people around her. She spotted one of the local heroes and stopped in from of him, hopping she was far enough for Tou... Dabi as she could. 

"Help, I need help clearing the area as much as posible" The hero looked her over with a corked brow "and I should listen to you why?"

"Damn it I dont have to for this" her breathing picked up and she started shaking "Thermifrost with Endeavors agency, League of villains member Dabi is chasing me, I can take him; but I can't deal with him and getting people out" her eyes settled on angry as she looked at the hero over "get the people out"

She started to feel the temperature rise behind her again, and her own feeling of fear and his feeling of anger increased with every second, making it cold would help her with him, and maybe saving one or two people, but she couldn’t stop him from doing any damage. 

“Yes ma’am!” She nooded and watched him run off screaing at people to move away, and left it up to him to get the help you needed 

She turned around and faced him for the first time since she started to run “I don’t know where this is coming from, or what I did to get you so angry” She was anxious, she wanted to avoid this, but as he walked up to her, slowly, with his arm slowly growin fire, she braced herself for a fight she didn’t want to have. 

"You chose them over me!" Deep turquoise eye bore so deeply into mine, the pressure on my chest, in my heart, seemed to increase.

"I didn't chose anyone over you Touya", anger, misplaced anger, seeped out of my word "I didn't even know you were alive!" A sob escaped me, which made the current situation so much more real. it had been years.. years of pain, thinking he was dead. How dare he? How dare he imply I chose anything in this situation, I chose the option that would have kept me closer to him. When he was dead.

"We have marks with each others names, we feel what the other feels", he took exasperated steps towards me getting closer and more menacing as he got closer, the feeling of safety slowly washing off me, would he hurt me? would he killme? "You're gonna look at me in the eye, and tell me, you didn't know I was alive?"

The question was one that burned inside me, ever since I found out he was alive, and it killed me knowing that he wasn't only alive, but with the villains, it drove me crazy and I could barely sleep. I wondered during the years why occasionally I would feel things that were simply not my own; but how was I to know? He was dead, it was a fact, he died in his fire!, so young, faking your own death that young wasn't realistic to think about. I didn't... other than sudden anger, sadness and occasional pleasure, the feelings didn't range far or even often.

"I didn't! I really didn't know, had I know ANY of this, I would hace been on your side no questions asked," I pulled my legs closer to me, the fight we had engaged in didn't fair well on my body. The burns from his fire were negligible, the burn from my own ice, though, if not treated soon could start causing decay "You think I wanted to sit by and let him do any of those things to Shouto? That it brought me pleasure in any way to say your mother hospitalized? Natsuo and Fujumi so neglected?" The tears finally started pouring out, this was emotionally too much, hopelessness and guilt was bubbling up and started to eat me inside "I don't care anymore, just, kill me if you have to"

The Todoroki's took me in, not because of me but because of him, for him. They swore he would have wanted me to be a part of their family, all the other soulmates of their kids were just as welcomed. Enji took it upon himself to look for all their kids soulmates, as soon as posible. We all knew how.... intense, Enji Tododroki could be, but we stayed for our soulmates. They weren't a perfect family, or even a good one; but I wanted Touya with me so badly, and his family was all that was left; his grave, his shrine, I needed him and I couldn't have him. Now what? It seems I never had anything of his at all.

"I'm not going to kill you" he said while slowly crouching down ro my eye level, the fire in his hand slowly being put out; the look in his eyes wasn't the thing giving his emotions away but the bond we had, I understood the resignation and the conflict happening in his heart "but, we are in a bit of a bad situation right now, doll" I swallowed thickly and rested the back of my head in what was left of the concrete wall behind me.

"I'm not leaving the kids to be killed" I said after a moment of silence, having had to steel my mind and build my resolve; making sure I understood what I was potentially giving up.

"I'm not going to leave the league" he replied after a deep breath, and I could hear the same resolve in his voice.

and, there in lies our problem.

I straightened up my head to look at him again, his hands reaching to the ice around me, I assumed to melt it "don't... it hurts"

He looked up at me and stopped, taking a quick Look over me. "You have to do something about the ice, or you'll be short an arm and maybe a leg"

The cold was starting to set, over my body, and as usual it started to build in my extremities, I could barely feel my nose and my fingers anymore.

I ignored him, the current situation not leaving my mind at all, my injuries could wait "What do we do?"

"What we've been doing," he hesitantly reached to touch my cheek, providing much-needed warmth, his thumb lightly brushing my nose. "I'm dead, sweetheart." He proceeded to hold my hands for a while, and I wished the warmth building up in my body could stay forever.

He immediately stepped away from me the moment we heard running, signaling that heroes were here. "Your help's here," he said something to himself, and slowly he was swallowed by some black goo. "Don't die on me, I gotta see you at the end of this, however that goes." Once he was gone, she felt the ice she had built break, and some heroes rushed in to help her.

"Are you alright?" Hawks was the first to reach her, the concern in his eyes overflowing. She nodded, though her mind was still reeling from the encounter. The warmth from his touch lingered, contrasting sharply with the chill that had settled in her bones.

"We need to get you to safety," another hero, Midnight asked, as she looked over the area, with a soothing voice, said as she helped her to her feet. "You're not injured, are you?"

"No, I'm fine, just need to get warm, or I’m gonna lose my fingers" she replied, her voice trembling. "He's gone now."

The heroes exchanged glances, a mix of relief and apprehension in their eyes. "Good," Midnight said, "but we need to take you to the hospital, any idea why this happened?"

She looked up at them deciding what to reply, she could tell them everything that had been going on, get herself on a watchlist OR she could lie to them, and live in constat panic hoping they won’t find out any time soon. She took a deep breath once she settled on her answer “No, I was at the convinience store, and he just attacked me” 

As they led her through the bustling streets, the golden hue of the setting sun seemed to mock her turmoil. She couldn't shake the feeling that this was far from over. His words echoed in her mind: "Don't die on me, I gotta see you at the end of this, however that goes." 

What did he mean? Was there still hope, or was it a final farewell? Her heart ached with the uncertainty, and the heroes' reassuring presence did little to quell the storm of emotions raging within her.

Hawks didn't leave her side, and insisted on sleeping in her room until her family arrives. She didn't feel good calling them her family anymore, knowing Touya was alive, she didn't feel like there was a place with them anymore. Before she could let the thoughts settle any further her hospital room door opened to reveal all the Todoroki siblings standing there.

"Are you alright?" She smiled at Shouto, and nodded showing him her fingers "I'm all warmed up, I'm only here for a couple hours to make sure nothing else is wrong" He narrowed his eyes at her and sat his hot side closest to her. As she smiled at him she greeted the others.

Hers or not, she loved them as if they were.

[d0wnb4df0rf1cm3n]

how to save a life

Poe Dameron x Ex-First Order!Reader

Summary: It took a lot of courage to escape from the grasp of the First Order, and even more to deliver yourself to the Resistance. But you did it. Months later - still not trusted by anyone in the Resistance - you vie to prove yourself once and for all. The perfect opportunity comes up when Mr. Face-of-the-damn-Resistance needs help.

Word Count: 3.5K

Warnings: Canon-level violence, injury, near-death experiences, mugging/street violence, Leia being mean because she's being protective, imprisonment.

AN: I'm not going to lie this may be the worst thing that I have ever written but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!! Happy whatever-day-you're-reading-this, guys!

It took a lot of gall to double cross the First Order. You had been stolen from your home planet as a baby and indoctrinated into the regime - you knew nothing else. You were strong with force. Supreme Leader Snoke was keen to have you on his side. He kept you as a prisoner - forced to do his bidding and his dirty work, with the threat of death looming over your head. You were too young to understand that Supreme Leader Snoke couldn’t afford to have you killed, no matter how often he threatened it.

You had escaped on a regular morning, using your standing as one of Snoke’s own to commandeer a ship and escape with a fleet that were on their way to deal with Resistance scum on a nearby moon. You landed over a mile away from the other Stormtroopers, your officer uniform making you stand out like a sore thumb. You ripped your jacket up, tearing it to shreds before throwing it into the trees.

The trek into the city was long, but you used it to disguise yourself further, untucking your shirt and ripping the sleeves, before rubbing dirt into your clothes and cheeks. With the few credits you hand and your First Order military pass, you managed to barter a ship that would allow you to get off the moon unnoticed.

You set off early in the morning, heading further into the outer rim where there was less and less First Order patrol.

You landed on one of the busiest planets of all: Daiyu. Daiyu was a planet known for its thriving underworld dealings - despite the First Order's many attempts to get it under control. No one would find you there. You hid amongst the low lives, stealing little to get by and trying not to draw any attention to yourself. You may have grown up in the shelter of the Supreme Leader’s gaze, but you knew the force. And you knew how to hide in it.

It took a lot of energy to hide yourself from the force. Especially considering Supreme Leader Snoke knew who you were, what you felt like. He reached out to you in the force, finger scraping you but never quite holding you long enough to gain a full picture. In the beginning, it had been hard to keep him out of your head when you were asleep - returning to the force always felt like the most natural state. A state of peace and serenity, an escape from the danger you had to evade at every waking minute.

No doubt, Snoke would send scouts out to find you. And when that failed, he'd put a pricey bounty on your head. You were right.

You'd met all sorts of hoodlums in Daiyu, and been beaten up by most of them too. But you wouldn't risk making yourself known to any of them by fighting back. Not when so many were looking for you. At the beginning, the price had been low - reasonable for someone of your lack of class and standing - but the price increased exponentially each day that passed.

It was months before you decided to venture back into living and not just hiding. You'd been monitoring the airwaves - the bounty on your head was reducing everyday - the value not nearly enough to pique the interests of the men of Daiyu. Clearly, Snoke had found someone else to chase.

You slowly allowed yourself to become one with the force again, practicing your mastery of it only when you knew others weren't watching - even if Snoke wasn't looking for you, Daiyu was the kind of place where even your friends would sell you out if they had something to gain from it. And you had no friends in Daiyu. You kept yourself blocked from the minds of Snoke and his protege, Kylo Ren, showing them misdirection every time they cast a net out for you. Your mastery was improving.

You found a job at a scrapping plant - measly pay but it was better than nothing. You clocked in and out at the same time every day, collecting your pay and rationing whatever you could buy with it. You still napped lightly in alleyways, avoiding the police officers who patrolled the streets at night to kick the homeless out of doorways.

You woke up to the ways of the real world really fast. The world was full of bad people with bad intentions. They beat you up in a back alley behind the plant, stealing your credits and your clothes before the whirring approach of police officers scared them away. You ran from the police too - not wanting to be turned into the First Order for disciplining.

The police officers were hot on your tail. You ran through the streets and the market, trying to find a place to hide. You dove into one of the mooring decks - where pilots would land their craft for the duration of their visit. You covered the identifiable logo on your chest with your arms, crossing them to seem more intimidating. You waited for the police to drive past before running in the opposite direction. Straight into the chest of someone.

He grabbed your arm tightly, leading you into another back alley. Shit. You were probably gonna be beaten up again or escorted to the police. You tried to struggle out of his grip, but it was vice-like around your arm. He clamped his other hand around your mouth, looking around for danger, presumably. You looked up at his face.

You knew that face. You'd seen it more than once in Kylo Ren's memories, and also posters around Coruscant when you were younger. Poe Dameron. The face of the Resistance.

He loosened his grip around you, as he reached up to speak into his comms. "Got a deserter. Gonna bring 'em in." Your heart plummeted. He marched you into the mooring deck, before grabbing some cuffs out of his plane. No one did a double-take. The security in Daiyu was far from the best. He cuffed your hands in front of you, before pushing you into the ship.

It was cramped inside the U-Wing, it wasn't built to seat 2 people. You sat huddled behind his seat, holding on for dear life when he took off and jumped to light speed. You groaned as you hit your head, which Poe gave a sympathetic 'sorry' to.

As you draw closer and closer to D'Qar, you feel a calming wave flow through you. It was as if someone was emitting a beacon for you to latch on to. You knew this feeling. Leia. You had known for years that Leia was strong with the force. She had to be, given Kylo Ren's prowess. But you didn't know just how strong she truly was. You tried to reach out to her through the force, but Poe interrupted you.

"10 minutes to landing. General Organa is expecting you."

The calmness evaporated. General Organa's presence in the force may be calming but you knew of her reputation as the General of the Resistance. She was ruthless.

They threw you into a holding cell - which realistically was just a room that didn’t unlock from the inside. You sat there alone - plagued by your own mind for the better part of the day. Each time footsteps passed by your door, you panicked. This is it. This is the end.

It was always a false alarm.

Someone was walking by, scurrying to briefings they were late for, or heading to the droid mechs because, ‘the damn droid went rolling into a wall again! That’s the third time this week!’

You don’t see Poe again - he’s a captain of the Resistance, you reason, he has better things to do than babysit a hostage. Because that’s what you were to them. Deserter or not, you weren’t one of their guys. And that made you dangerous.

You focussed your energy on trying to find Leia - maybe you could understand how to help her if you knew what her problems were. You needed her to trust you, that was the only way you’d be safe. You couldn’t find her between all the buzzing energies of the force. It was overwhelmingly loud. You pulled yourself away from the search, breathing heavy as you came down. You’d never been good at finding people in the force who didn’t want to be found.

A petite blonde woman came as the sun was setting, in her arms a tray full of food. You gorged yourself on it. The Resistance may not have had much but one thing they did have was good food. At least, better food than the First Order.

Leia walked in just as you were finished eating - she’d been waiting for you to finish, hoping that they’re small morsel of kindness would earn enough trust for you to tell them what they wanted to know.

She started softly, asking you questions about yourself and your role within the First Order. You told her half truths - you had been stolen from your home planet as a child and had been raised to be a spy for the First Order. Leia frowned at that, the small pieces of trust you had gained immediately being withdrawn.

She started to ask more interrogatory questions. What were the First Order planning? How were they expanding? Future targets?

You told them the truth. You didn’t know.

The truth wasn’t good enough.

Leia once again asked about the First Order’s plans. You didn’t know. She asked for the whereabouts of Snoke. You didn’t know. She asked, discretely, about her son. You didn’t know.

After an hour going head-to-head, yours was pounding. You’d been resisting her in the force and she was much stronger than you. Much more well practiced too. Your vision started to cloud as you begged her to believe you.

The First Order was good at compartmentalising. Only the people that needed to know, did. And you almost never needed to. Especially since Kylo Ren deemed you a flight risk - rightfully so, seeing as it was always your intention to escape.

Leia left the cell grumbling under her breath, muttering about how the First Order was insufferable. For all her abilities, she didn’t seem to pick up on the fact that you were strong with the force. All the better; less things to explain.

They kept you confined to the cell for quite a while after that. To be fair to the Resistance, they treated their prisoners far better than the First Order did. You had a feeling that they didn’t have much in the way of prisoners - given the lack of purpose built holding cells in the facility.

Your room was big - there was enough space to move around, keep active, meditate. There was a small fresher in the corner of the room and the bed you had was far more comfortable than the one you slept in every night on Star Destroyers. The light streamed in through the small window, and like clockwork, some poor person would bring you a meal every morning, noon, and night.

Aside from this though, you were bored. Inconceivably bored. You’d never had this much time to yourself before. Being under Snoke’s unrelenting gaze meant that you were always working - either practicing, or proving your worth. You had none of that anymore.

You spent the majority of your day honing your tracking skills. You tried to pick out people you knew - those with distinct feels. Those like Poe Dameron.

Poe had been on a new mission since the day after you landed on D’Qar - you’d asked one of the nicer people who brought you food a week after you arrived. He’d returned to Daiyu, trying to find an ex-First Order arms dealer. You had given a little information about the guy - how he was hiding from the First Order since abandoning their efforts to weaponise their young. That had earned you a little more favour in the eyes of the Resistance, but you were still fighting an uphill battle. It was no matter. You were safe here.

You felt him before anyone else. He had come out of hyperspace and wasn’t requesting permission to enter the airspace. You jumped out of bed. Something was wrong, you could feel it.

Poe had run into quite a bit of trouble on Daiyu. The intel you had given him was good. Not just good, it was great. They’d got some of the information they needed before police were knocking at the door, demanding to be let in. Poe ran. He ran with police on his tail, before escaping in his X-Wing. He jumped straight into deep space. Into enemy territory. He’d been recognised almost immediately - the X-Wing was a dead giveaway. He’d been chased for light years and shot at; his baby had taken some pretty nasty hits. He’d been grounded on Dantooine, the planet nearly deserted. And yet, it seemed just his luck that a few locals took offence to his presence. He’d sustained pretty bad injuries to his torso and left leg. He’d escaped as fast as possible - the loss of blood making his head spin. He entered through the atmosphere of D’Qar, eyes closing off their own accord. There wasn’t enough power in the ship to radio down to ask for permission, nor to land safely. He had to ground the bird.

You slipped your jacket that you had been given on, as well as your old shoes. You played with the lock on the door, having memorised the sound of the code from when you were brought food. You type in the code tentatively, thanking the Maker when the door whooshed open. You crept out, sneaking towards the main blast door. You could feel Poe slipping, feel him losing his touch. As soon as you were out on the ground, you sprinted.

Poe had angled the ship a few miles west of the base. It was still going to be a trek back to the base, but that was better than crashing on the runway; he’d never live that down.

You ran towards the trees, heading west. You could see the smoking ship in your peripheral vision.

Poe was lying on the grass when you got to him, eyes shut with his hand pressing on his side; there was blood everywhere.

Your hands cradled his face as you fell to your knees next to him. You ripped his shirt away - hands ghosting over his chest as you felt for his heartbeat. It was faint, but it was there.

You reached out to the force, pulling threads as you attempted to close up some of the wounds. The bleeding slowed as you pleaded with him; "Poe, come back! They need you, Poe!"

He sputtered suddenly, rolling onto his side, wincing as the newly healed skin stretched. You stayed by his side, hands still running up and down his body, trying to find any more injuries to heal. His breathing remained heavy, as he tried to recollect everything that happened. His hand flew to his side.

"How the hell did you do that?"

"It's a long story."

"I have time."

"I don't," Poe looks at you questioningly, "It's only a matter of time before they realise I'm gone. Or one of them shows up here looking for you."

He shrugged in agreeance, lying back to face the sun, "How did you know I was here?" You laid back, head next to his. The sky was pretty - clear and bright. Maybe, they'd let you come back out here - watch the sun rise and set more. Maybe.

"I felt it. I could feel the disturbance - you were panicked." You whispered, trying not to offend him. It was the truth, but you knew how powerful men often hated the truth.

"Me? Panicked? Never. Have you met me?" His tone was coloured with laughter. You smiled.

You sat in silence for a long time, just enjoying the peace and quiet of the D'Qar weather, until you heard the med team running towards you.

"They're almost here. They're gonna take you to the med-wing. Fix you up. You'll be able to fly in no time." You gave him a watery smile. He gripped your hand tightly.

"I'll tell Leia. You saved my life - she'll ease up. You can train with her - she's - something - with the force. She can help you."

"NO!" You yelled, jumping away from him, "You can't tell Leia. You can't, you can't - promise me - PROMISE ME, POE - promise me, you won't tell Leia." He grabbed your hand and soothed you, promising not to tell Leia until you were ready.

He held your hand until the med team arrived and they ushered him onto a Gurney. He yelled at the two corporals left with you to be nice - "she saved my life!" he yelled as he was dragged away. They threw back in the same cell just the same.

It was two days before you saw anyone else again. You were provided food at every mealtime just the same as you had before - except there was no interrogation afterward. You preferred the interrogation. Made you feel... needed.

You knew that Poe had argued for you. You'd heard from two officers from data who were gossiping about it on the way to the Cantina.

"Did you hear?" One of them giggled.

"About the General and Poe. Of course!"

Poe had made the dash to see the General as soon as he was cleared from the med-wing. You'd saved his life. It was only fair that he do the same.

He walked - no, strutted - into the General's office in a very 'Poe' way, claiming that the matter was of the utmost importance. He gave his mission report - how the intel wasn't just good, it was "brilliant. It solved some of our supply issues, which means we're in a better place than ever to beating them. They have no blaster parts, no ship parts - the supply chain will be delayed for weeks." Leia had dismissed him after that.

The first sign of trouble should have been that. That Leia hadn't asked him about the trouble or berated him for getting into it. Instead, she was just letting him go.

Poe pushed the issue - he talked about the trouble and his destroyed X-Wing, and how he practically crash-landed into D'Qar because the police on Daiyu was "mad strict. Like they couldn't let a small thing like that go? Maker, what happened to that place?"

The second sign of trouble was the lack of warnings. Usually, Leia laid the 'be careful, don't get yourself killed,' warnings on thick. They were nowhere to be found.

The third sign of trouble was the glazed-over expression in Leia's eyes. Poe realised that he never had Leia's attention, to begin with. Leia's mind was completely preoccupied with the young girl in a cell, who'd risked her freedom to save a Captain. A man that she barely knew.

The bigger mystery was how had she hidden so successfully in the force - not only from Leia herself but from bigger threats, like Snoke and Kylo Ren.

Poe, mistaking Leia's confusion for anger, begged her not to hurt the girl. "She's just a kid, General, she was doing what she'd been taught." Leia sent Poe away, assuring him that she wasn't going to hurt the girl.

You felt Leia before you saw her. You'd fallen asleep with your back upright against the headboard, an awkward crick forming in your neck. Your eyes opened to Leia perched on the edge of your bed.

You jumped into apologies and pleas - "please don't send me back" and "I was just trying to help him - the med team wasn't going to get there in time."

You were surprised when you felt her hand brush up against your cheek, but you leaned into the touch all the same. She gazed at you so lovingly that for a moment you forgot that she was the reason you were locked in here.

"I was wrong." Her words stunned you, "I was wrong about you, and I apologise. You are safe here - to practice the force, or live without it. If you want to leave, I will find you a planet on which no one - First Order or Resistance - will find you. Should you wish to stay, I would welcome you with open arms, as would everyone else here."

You smiled at her, "I would like to stay - if that's ok?"

She smiled at you, standing up and walking towards the door. "I'll make sure you get your first flying session with Captain Dameron first thing in the morning. He said you had a knack for flying."

"Umm, General?" She turns to look at you, "If it's all the same to you, I'd prefer something on the ground? Something like controllership?" She smiled and nodded.

"I'll have Connix meet you in the morning, kid. Sleep well."

And you did. In fact, you had probably never slept better.

[roxyteecd]

A DREAM CUM TRUE?

I dream about a potion found on a remote island. The old lady in the dilapidated shop tells me “it can make your greatest dream come true.”

I walk back to my bungalow. Thinking about riches, fame and eternal health as I ponder what my greatest dream would be. I quickly change out of my pants and shirt and put on my sexy pink babydoll nightie along with my white stockings. I take a long look at the small bottle. I reach over to the nightstand and grab it up and turn it up. It was sweet tasting, unlike what I was expecting. I sit the bottle back on the nightstand and open up Tumblr.

I scroll through all the sissy blogs I follow and all of the wonderful and sexy sissy and pregnancy blogs and pictures. Just longing and wondering what it would be like to be an actual woman. To feel a baby rolling around inside me. What that must feel like to have life growing inside me. I’m starting to feel so sleepy. I close my phone and lay it on the nightstand and think about how when I wake I will probably be rich or famous or both. Sleep finally takes me.

The next thing I remember is feeling the urgent need to pee. I throw the covers off and move to get up. Then there is a sudden realization that something is different. VERY DIFFERENT! I feel a heavy weight moving on my chest and a huge belly that is keeping me from just sitting straight up as I have always done. In an almost shock state I look down. I am still in my babydoll nightie but now there are two huge breasts above an equally huge bulge in my belly.

I can’t believe what my eyes are seeing. So I touch my breasts first. I feel the touch as I see my fingers touch the large globes on my chest. This can’t be real I gasp. Suddenly I feel the need to pee increase exponentially. As I look at my belly I see lumps that move from here to there. Each movement causing the pain in my bladder to worsen.

I roll on my side and swing my stocking clad legs over the edge of the bed. It’s such a struggle to get up. I finally get on my feet and head towards the bathroom. More of a waddle than walking. I get to the toilet and turn to sit as all sissies do. When I pulled my panties down I felt a stickiness in my panties but not the familiar dangle of my man bits. I reach under my belly and find the area where my cock and balls should be, only to find it smooth and flat. My finger touches a bump protruding between two very wet labia! I immediately sit before I pass out.

The need to relieve my bladder immediately takes first priority. I begin to release the urine and feel the relief. At the same time it feels so weird. The spray as the pee passes between MY LABIA!! I put my head in my hands trying to figure out what happened to me. I was in shock but also intrigued. I had often times dreamed of this. But it was all fantasy right!? Just thoughts in my head. But right now it was a reality. I was a woman! Not just a woman but a pregnant woman!

How did this happen? I think back to the potion I had bought from the old lady the day before. That had to be it! But why did I turn me into a pregnant woman?! I was thinking of riches and fame, not being a pregnant woman. The stream ends and knowing what to do grabbed some toilet paper and wiped MY PUSSY! God this is unreal. Feeling the bulge in my belly compress when I tried to reach my wet lips. As I was dabbing and drying myself, I began wondering how did I get this way?!

Then suddenly a door opens and in walks a very tanned and ripped naked man. I instinctively tried to cover up myself. As he walked into the bathroom I notice his rather impressive cock laying across two enormous balls. They were swaying from thigh to thigh as he walked up to me and bent down to kiss me. I was in shock still as his lips met mine. He immediately stuck his tongue between my lips. I opened and allowed him to kiss me. Suddenly I felt a stirring in between my legs. My recently dried pussy was now feeling wet and slick. He pulled back and stood up with his cock right in my face. I looked at how beautiful it is. WHAT?! I just thought another man’s penis was BEAUTIFUL! He moved it closer to my face. My mouth opened before I even had time to think about it. I took his cock into my mouth. WHAT AM I DOING?! I feel it thicken and begin to lengthen. For some reason it feels NATURAL to do this for him.

There is a warm fuzzy feeling in my chest. My heart begins to race even faster than was before. There is a longing in me to give him pleasure. I reach up and cup his balls as I begin to give him a blow job. In my mind I’m thinking WHAT AM I DOING!? But my body feels hot all over. There’s a twitching, an itch in my crotch that is almost burning. His cock begins reaching the back of my throat.

He then takes his hand and pushes me deeper on him and moans out, “OH BABY! Damn you are so good at this! I’m am the luckiest man on earth!” For some reason this gives me s sense of pride and a desire to take him all the way in. I relax my throat and fight the gag reflex and his cock extends into my throat. He pushes the back of my head imbedding himself completely in my throat.

OH MY GOD!!! Yes Babe! That’s so good! He pulls out to let me breathe. Then plunges back in again all the way to his crotch. I taste his manly meat and pre cum on my tongue. He gets so thick I have to almost open my mouth to it maximum. I am now struggling to take him. He’s stretching my throat now as his head pops in and out of my throat.

He pulls out and says, I have to have you now. He grabs my hand and pulls me up off the toilet. I look up into his handsome face and look up into his eyes. I realize he is a lot taller than me. I see a familiar look in his eyes. He spins me around in front of the vanity. I am now face to face with a gorgeous blond in a pink babydoll. MY BABYDOLL. My huge tits are about to burst out of the top. I can see very large nipples and huge dark brown areoles.

As I’m still trying to process that I’m looking at what appears to be my own reflection but it’s not me! At least not the male me that I feel I should be seeing instead of this beautiful blonde buxom woman bent over the vanity. A very tall and handsome man right behind me. He tells me how beautiful and sexy I am as he lays on my back and reaches inside the cups of my babydoll and pinches and pulls my very long and hard nipples. Fuck!! The sensations go straight to my pussy.

He kisses the back of my neck and then shoulder blades. I feel my pussy pulse and twitch. This feels so natural but yet my mind is still telling me I’m a man. Then I feel IT!! The tip of his cock glides between my lips. He moans and says, “damn you are so wet this morning! Did you dream about me last night?” And then winks at me through the mirror. I see his hands run down over my belly. MY BELLY!! It’s so unreal but feels so good that I can’t help but moan out seeing his hands and feeling his cock sliding through my pussy lips.

Then he suddenly catches his cock head in the opening of my VAGINA. I still can’t believe I now have a very sensitive, hot, wet VAGINA! I should have a very hard throbbing cock!

I am brought back to the moment when I felt my pussy being stretched open. His cock head breached the inner ring of my pussy. OMG! My vision got fuzzy and I dropped my head and closed my eyes. His girth was stretching my pussy to it’s limit. There was a bit of pain but it was a VERY pleasurable pain. I felt him opening up my insides. I began to feel a surge of stretching, tingling euphoric sensations emanating from deep inside focusing on my clit and pussy. Before I knew what was happening an orgasm ripped through me like a tidal wave. I heard screaming then I was shaking as my legs began to give out. I looked back up through my hair over my face and watched the look on his face as he smiled down at me. He said I LOVE making you come! Then pulled back a little then plunged back in all the way! OHHHH!!!

I felt the tug/push inside my belly. He must be so big he’s hitting my cervix. I had heard women describe getting fucked so deep that it stretches their vagina and the cock nudges against their cervical opening. That must be what’s happening now. It hurts but in a fantastic full way. Then he begins thrusting. He’s holding my hips and pounding into me.

The sensation from my pussy lips, my clit, my walls and cervix, my whole lower half of my body is suddenly taking over my mind and body. I’m all but laying on my enormous belly as I’m getting fucked for the first time as a woman. I still did not know who he was but that did not matter at the moment because his cock was building me up toward another of those earth shattering orgasms like when he first entered me. I could tell that this one was going to be even bigger than the one before. He was now holding my hips tight and pounding hard. I could see a look of concentration on his face.

He spoke and said, “I’m getting close Babe. I’m going to nut in you so deep. If you weren’t already knocked up with my baby you would be from this one!” Then he drove in deep and held it there. I saw stars, I felt light headed, then my body locked up and I began twitching and shaking and again I heard s woman screaming, I’M CUMMING!!!” He shouts out “ME TOO!”

I could feel a different “slick” feeling around his cock and could feel a thumping and twitching inside me. I knew he was releasing his cum inside my pussy. He pushed in several more times as though he was making sure I got every drop into my pussy. I was loving the feeling of being fucked and cummed in. I had dreamed of this exact situation while masturbating SO MANY TIMES!

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. For so long I had dreamt of being a woman, getting pregnant and having a handsome hung man fucking me. Was this “my dream” the one the lady had said would happen if I drank the potion. Did I want this more than money? More than fame and eternal health?

Just then he brought me back to the moment when he ran his hands up my sides up to my shoulders and pulled me back to him one more time. I looked at him in the mirror then the glint of gold caught my eyes. A wedding ring on his left hand. I immediately looked down at my own hand and saw a beautiful gold ring with a gorgeous and huge diamond on it. Was he….. my husband? A cheating man fucking his mistress (ME!!!) He then moved back a little and then felt his now semi soft cock slip out of me. Then I could feel what seemed like a river of cum running out of me. My inner thigh became wet and I could feel it running quickly down towards my knee. My God! How much did he cum? How much did I cum?

He turned me around and pulled me to him and kissed me so deep. So passionately I felt butterflies and a sense of love and safety in his arms. My belly kept me from feeling his whole fit body against mine but that made me feel a whole nother surge of love like never I had felt before. I began crying. CRYING!!! I’m a man I don’t cry! But as I thought about it I guess I was no longer a man. I now am a woman. Did I really want this? Could I ever get to go back to being a man if I decided I didn’t like this. My emotions were all up, down this way and that way. I laid my head on his shoulder and just balled. He just held me close rocking me back and forth soothingly telling me over and over he loved me and it was all going to be ok. The safety and security I felt in his arms, and his constant deep voice in my ear settled me down. He pulled back and looked at my tear stained face and smiled.

A DREAM CUM TRUE?

He said to me, “you always get so emotional after sex since I got you pregnant. You are also SO wanting it more since as well. I then realized I was slowly stroking that beautiful piece of man meat between his legs. He was getting another semi from the touch. It was so slick covered in our mutual juices. I pulled my hand back and said, “Oh I’m sorry I didn’t realize!”

He told me it was fine he loved how I wanted it all the time now. “This is my dream come true!! Just as I had always dreamed it would be! My beautiful wife, always horny for my cock. A wife with a big pregnant belly carrying my child! I could not be happier!”

So was I living my dream or was I caught up in his dream? I needed to find the lady I bought the potion from and get some answers!!!

Part 2 ??????

[that-1d-blogger]

This is Part 3.

Part 1

Part 2

The weeks following Zayn's admittance to the hospital passed in a blur of fear and desperate hope. His family kept a quiet bedside vigil, watching in anguish as his condition deteriorated with each passing day. The gut-wrenching reality that he required an urgent liver transplant to survive loomed over them like a menacing storm cloud.

Specialists and surgeons came and went, explaining in grave tones about the complicated process of finding a suitable donor match. With Zayn's relatively uncommon mixed ethnicity, the odds were not in his favor. His name was added to the national registry, but the waiting lists for cadaveric donors were frighteningly long. His best chance was to find a living donor willing to make the ultimate sacrifice - but even that was an enormous gamble rife with risks.

Through it all, Zayn suffered in a haze of confusion and anxiety. Though he couldn't clearly articulate it, some deeper instinct told him there was something monumental he was forgetting. His amnesia made his world feel like an abstract painting - he could discern vague familiarity in the faces of loved ones surrounding him, but the details were maddeningly blurred. Only flashes of old memories sparked in his subconscious, whetting his appetite for the past he couldn't retrieve.

Late one evening, Zayn startled awake from a bizarre dream. Visions of a beautiful young woman with warm brown eyes and flawless bronze skin still danced in his mind's eye. She was smiling at him with an expression of pure adoration, like he was the only man in the world. He felt an overwhelming sense of love and longing when he looked at her, but he couldn't place her identity.

"Who was that?" he rasped out loud, his scratchy voice rousing his mother from the vinyl recliner where she slumbered.

Trisha's eyes fluttered open and she was instantly at his side, taking his clammy hand in her own. "Who was who, beta?" she asked groggily.

Zayn searched in vain for the right words to describe the dream. "I don't know…there was a woman. She was…she seemed so important, you know? But I can't remember anything else about her."

The creases in Trisha's forehead deepened with unmistakable sadness. "Oh Zayn…I wish I could help put the missing pieces back together for you. Maybe once you're feeling stronger, it will start coming back."

She stroked his arm in a soothing rhythm, willing her son to drift back into a peaceful sleep. But Zayn's mind was restless, nagged by the feeling that he'd lost something profound and earth-shattering. If only he could remember…

Zayn's health was a roller coaster in the ensuing days, the damage to his liver taking an increasing toll. He grew weaker, more lethargic, the whites of his eyes taking on a distressing jaundiced hue. Simple acts like sitting upright in bed left him winded and beaded with sweat.

His family knew time was running out. If a donor didn't emerge soon, they'd be forced to say goodbye well before they were ready.

Then one spring morning, a spark of hope flamed to life in the solemn hospital room. The door opened and the familiar face of Zayn's doctor appeared, carrying a cipher of guarded anticipation.

"I have news," the doctor said solemnly, his hazel eyes finds Zayn's amber ones. "We've received word that a living donor has come forward and been approved as a viable match for your transplant."

A collective gasp fell across the room's occupants. Trisha clutched Yaser's hand tighter, fresh tears springing in her eyes.

"A…a donor?" Zayn murmured in disbelief, still trying to process the enormity of the situation. "Who is it?"

The doctor's expression turned regretful and he shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't divulge the identity at this time for privacy reasons. But I can tell you the donor is an excellent biological match, which increases the chances of a successful outcome exponentially."

The little color remaining in Yaser's face seemed to drain away as the weight of those words hit him. "What about the risks? To the donor, I mean? This is an incredibly dangerous procedure…"

"You're correct, the risks are substantial," the doctor acknowledged soberly. "We'll be removing nearly two-thirds of the donor's liver, which will hopefully regenerate over time. But there's no downplaying the potential life-threatening complications - blood clots, bleeding, infections, liver failure and death in the worst scenarios."

Zayn felt like he'd been kicked in the chest, all the air buffeting from his starved lungs. Some selfless individual was literally putting their life on the line to save him - a reality that was both humbling and terrifying.

"Are they…are they aware of the dangers?" Yaser pressed, his brow creasing with paternal concern for this anonymous sacrifice.

The doctor's expression tightened and nodded gravely. "The donor is fully informed and accepting of all the risks involved. In fact..." he paused, seeming to carefully weigh his next words. "Well, let's just say this particular donor was immensely difficult to dissuade once their mind was made up."

An image of the beautiful woman from Zayn's dream flickered in his mind again, though he couldn't fathom any logical connection. He blinked slowly, suddenly overwhelmed by a bone-deep weariness.

"When...?" he murmured hoarsely. "When is the surgery?"

"We need to move forward as quickly as possible, before your liver deteriorates further," the doctor stated. "We're tentatively slating the procedure for the end of this week, barring any new complications on either side. I'll keep you updated as we get closer."

With that ambiguous promise, he gave a solemn nod and departed, leaving Zayn's room in a state of mixed relief and tension. Though overjoyed at this miraculous turn of events, the risks hung like a shroud, reminding them all that nothing was guaranteed.

The next few days were a flurry of pre-operative appointments and testing, both for Zayn and his anonymous savior. He spent hours hooked up to wires and monitors, his chalky skin and protruding ribs a sobering reminder of how far his condition had deteriorated. Vials of blood and various other fluids were drawn, records meticulously updated, and a final pre-surgery consultation scheduled.

When the appointed day arrived, Zayn was wheeled into the stark, sterile operating suite just before dawn and prepped for the marathon procedure. An IV line was skillfully inserted into his spindly forearm, sending a potent cocktail of medication washing into his system. He felt himself growing deliriously lightheaded and pliant as the anesthesia took effect

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

Zayn groaned as he opened his blurry eyes to see his family and doctor already looking at him

"Mr. Malik, your surgery went as well as we could have hoped. The new liver is functioning properly…" He paused, seeming to steel himself for his next words. "But I'm afraid I have some very difficult information to share about your donor."

Zayn felt his brow crease in confusion, his mind still foggy from the anesthesia and potent medications. Donor? What did the doctor mean by that?

Trisha sensed her son's bewilderment and reached for his hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze as she looked at the physician with pleading eyes. "What is it? What's happened?"

The doctor drew a fortifying breath. "The liver you received…it came from a living donor. A young woman named Zuri Simmons, age 25. She insisted on being the one to provide this life-saving gift, despite our urging about the extreme medical risks involved."

The name sparked an instinctive flicker of recognition in Zayn, though he couldn't immediately place the connection. Zuri…the beautiful woman from his fragmented dreams and visions. Hadn't she been important to him somehow?

"During the procedure to extract a portion of Ms. Simmons' liver, there were…complications," the doctor continued with obvious difficulty. "She suffered a catastrophic hemorrhage that we couldn't get under control. We did everything within our power, but I'm so dreadfully sorry…Zuri didn't make it off the operating table alive."

A deafening silence seemed to descend over the room in the wake of those words. Zayn's mouth moved wordlessly as he attempted to process this staggering revelation.

Zuri…the young, vibrant woman who had given up her life just so he could live another day? It was unfathomable - an act of love and sacrifice so profound that he could scarcely comprehend it.

Suddenly fragmented images and sensations crashed over Zayn in waves - flashes of Zuri's warm, crinkly-eyed smile…the feeling of her silken hair brushing his skin…the scent of her favorite vanilla perfume lingering in the air. She had been so, so important to him once, he realized with a sickening jolt. But his amnesia had ravaged those memories, leaving him adrift without the past they'd clearly shared.

Zuri had been willing to die for him - and now she was just…gone. Violently ripped from existence because of her unwavering determination to save his life, no matter the cost.

The anguished wail that tore from Zayn's throat was utterly primal - a guttural expression of heartbreak, loss and guilt so exquisite that it transcended rational language. Hot tears blurred his vision as ragged sobs wracked his healing body, the deep stitches screaming in protest at the strain.

"No…no, no, no!!" he croaked between the paroxysms of grief. "How could she…why would she do that for me??"

Trisha and Yaser could only clutch each other and weep freely alongside their son, sharing in the lancing pain of mourning this selfless young woman who had made the ultimate sacrifice. Even the doctor seemed visibly shaken, his professional mask slipping to reveal the deep well of empathy stirred by Zuri's tragic story.

Once the initial tsunami of emotion passed, Zayn felt something akin to shame creep in around the edges. He had been so consumed in his own amnesia-warped state that he had clearly pushed away someone who was the very embodiment of unconditional love. Zuri's total willingness to lay down her life to preserve his spoke to emotional depths he couldn't begin to fathom - or even remember sharing together once upon a time.

"We were…together," he murmured in a sandpaper rasp, his red-rimmed eyes scanning the room, "I dont deserve to live after how i treated her few days back..Oh god" his voice broke with realization at the end as he started crying again.

"Im so sorry for your loss" Doctor said with a sombre expression before reaching out to pull out a letter from his pocket. "Ms Simmons knew about the death risk and ..wanted you to have this."

Unstopping tears dropped down his cheeks as he scanned the letter over and over again, just have a glimpse of her through her beautiful handwriting etched on the paper, he buried his face on the paper , hoping to feel close to her last memoir of her.

He started hearing her sweet voice whisper comforting words in his ear. He imagined her stroking his hair, not because he remembered her doing that but feeling as if her actually doing that would be the only thing to get him to breathe again. Her sweet but heartbroken smile silently reassuring him that everything would be alright.

And the cruel truth-

That he'll get to see her, adore her,

Only in his imagination.

Mainblog

I have two ideas for the epilogue , I'll decide on one and post it after the liam fanfic

[vex-bittys]

When Life Gives You Skeletons: Chapter 4: One of Those Days

(Warning: anxiety attack, non-graphic description of injuries)

Waking up can be disorienting, and it's always worse in unfamiliar surroundings. The disorientation factor increases exponentially if you discover those unfamiliar surroundings by rolling over in what you assume is your spacious bed only to discover that you've been sleeping on a not-so-spacious couch and landing on a bony lump that squawks in surprise and shoves you back-first into a coffee table. You rub your sore spine with a sigh. It's going to be one of those days.

Once the bony lump, which is of course your new friend Red, has recovered from being squashed into wakefulness, he checks on you to make sure you weren't injured by his instinctual fight response. You can barely hear him over a cacophony of voices from deeper within the house. You recognize one of the voices as Blueberry.

“EDGE, NO! OUR GUEST IS SLEEPING!” Blue speaks loudly enough that if you had still been sleeping, he would have woken you up. 

“ARE YOU DEAF? CLEARLY OUR GUEST-” Air quotes are heavily implied around the last two words. “- IS ALREADY AWAKE AND CAUSING PROBLEMS!” By the time the angry rasp of the second voice reaches you, you've risen to your feet and turned in the direction of the argument. You hear a scuffle beyond an open entryway, then Blue and another skeleton monster walk into the room.

The new skeleton monster, who must be Edge, is tall and slender with sharp, angular features. He has narrow sockets, red eyelights, and sharp teeth set in a permanent frown. A trio of deeply grooved scar lines over his left socket completes his spooky, scary skeleton look. As if the intimidating appearance isn't enough, the new guy is also dressed like he rolled around in a pile of Hot Topic new arrivals and wore whatever stuck. His low slung black pants (are they leather?) are tucked into red heeled boots with a gold, skull-shaped belt buckle to hold them tightly to his hip bones. His shirt sports impressive shoulder pads (or is it armor?) and the insignia of the monster Royal Guard. Red leather gloves cover his hands, ending just below his elbows. In short, this skeleton monster is screaming “badass” with each and every article of clothing in his ensemble.

Edge stomps over to stand in front of you, glaring, and Blueberry chases after him, cheeks puffed out in irritation. You're grateful to sense Red close behind you because if looks could kill, you would be six feet under after Edge’s scathing once-over. The tall skeleton then ignores you completely to speak to Red.

“IS THIS,” Edge says with a quick gesture that encompasses the entirety of you, “GOING TO CREATE PAPERWORK FOR ME?” 

Blueberry tries to capture your attention, but indignation flares inside of you. Why does everyone keep blaming Red for your injuries? You answer Edge’s accusation before Red has a chance to.

“Red didn't touch me,” you snap haughtily, tilting your head to stare the imposing skeleton straight in the eyelights. What you mistook for a sneer on Edge’s sharp features turns out to be his resting bitch face. You know this because he's sneering at you now, and the expression is downright terrifying.

Thankfully, Red intercedes before you melt from the intensity of the tall skeleton’s disdain. “i didn't use magic, an’ the fucker's still alive,” Red tells Edge in a tone that makes it clear that not killing someone should be viewed as a laudable achievement on his part. Red must be talking about Jay, and once again you wonder what happened after you passed out.

Red pulls Edge aside, and the two begin to converse in hushed voices, most likely discussing the details of Red's late night damsel rescue. This gives you the opportunity to speak to Blueberry, who has been bouncing up and down trying to get your attention. As soon as the two other skeleton monsters move away, he bounds up to you.

“HUMAN!” You can practically hear Blue's barely contained energy vibrating in his words. “I DIDN'T LEARN YOUR NAME LAST NIGHT!” Blue's smile is wide, dazzling, and completely sincere, and his brilliant blue eyelights sparkle. His upbeat and openly expressed mood is contagious, so you return the smile and tell him your name.

“MWEH HEH HEH,” laughs the exuberant skeleton. “NOW THAT WE'VE BEEN FORMALLY INTRODUCED, WE SHOULD EXCHANGE PHONE NUMBERS TO STAY IN TOUCH!”

“I'd love to, Blue, but I have no idea where my phone is right now.” You hate to disappoint Blue, but the skeleton monster doesn't miss a beat.

“GOOD THING THE MAGNIFICENT BLUEBERRY IS ON THE CASE!” Blue strikes the same hands on hips heroic pose as last night, pausing dramatically before solving The Case of the Missing Phone. “YOUR PHONE IS BEHIND YOU ON THE COFFEE TABLE!”

Sure enough, your phone and purse sit on top of the coffee table that you unexpectedly encountered earlier. Your back throbs at the memory, but you ignore it, unlocking your phone. You see the time and freeze. Unless Red is willing to drive you to your no-longer-residence to retrieve your work clothes, there's no way you'll make your afternoon shift on time. You hate to ask the skeleton for more help after everything that he's already done for you.

“IS SOMETHING WRONG, MAIDEN?” 

You're curious about Blue's use of the word maiden, but you put the thought aside for the moment. “Nothing that I can't handle,” you reassure him. You open a new contact entry in your phone and hand it to him, and he gives you his phone so that you can input your number. You save Blue's contact as “The Magnificent Blueberry” just in time for Red to tap you on the shoulder. 

Edge moves towards the front door, followed by Blue. You watch them open a closet and grab leather jackets, black with silver studs for Edge and blue and gray with a futuristic design for Blue. Edge grabs two sets of keys from a row of hooks by the door and tosses one of the sets to Red, who catches it easily out of the air. Blue and Edge then disappear out the door, leaving you alone with Red.

Red shoves his hands in his pockets and rocks back on his heels. “i'm gonna take ya back ta yer house t'get yer stuff, but first yer gonna need some clothes.” Red tips his skull at what you're wearing which you just now realize is nothing except an oversized t-shirt that ends mid-thigh and yesterday's underwear. No bra. No pants. No shoes.

It's a little late to be embarrassed, but heat rises to your cheeks anyway.

“c'mon.” Red leads you through the entryway that the other two skeleton monsters had emerged from earlier, and you discover an enormous open floor plan kitchen and dining room. Red continues on through a smaller doorway that opens into a laundry room with a pair of big fancy 2-in-1 washer/dryer machines that cost as much as the type of used car you've been hoping to buy.

Red begins to dig around in a hamper of clothes that you hope are clean. At this point though, you'll settle for anything that will cover you more than what you have on. Red’s hamper foray produces a pair of track pants, a blue hoodie, and a pair of white socks, all of which Red hands to you.

“you c'n get dressed in here if ya want. i'm gonna go t'my room t'change an’ i’ll meet ya back in the livin’ room when yer done.”

You nod. “Thanks, Red.” The skeleton seems taken aback at your sincere gratitude and quickly leaves the room, grumbling under his breath as he goes. You notice that distinct red tint creeping over his skull again, and you're beginning to think it might mean that he's blushing. Does genuine praise embarrass him?

You ponder the possibility while you pull on the clothes that Red provided. The pants are a little long, but the hoodie fits fine and, as a bonus, hides the fact that you're not wearing a bra. Shoving your phone into the hoodie pocket, you make your way back to the living room, taking a moment to admire the extravagant house as you go.

Red is already waiting for you. His outfit is so similar to yesterday's that you do a double-take. A pair of gold chains hang where a collar once sat, but other than that, you can't spot a difference. Did Red wear the same clothes minus the accessories or does he have a dresser full of identical shirts and basketball shorts? 

Once you're close enough, Red holds out a pair of sneakers to you. You slip your feet into them, grab your purse, and trail after Red as he walks out the front door and heads for a hulking black SUV parked in the driveway. The skeleton hops into the driver's seat, leaving you to scramble into the behemoth of a vehicle on your own. You finally manage to climb into your seat with Red providing a soundtrack of chuckles from the driver's seat.

“Why couldn't we just take your car,” you complain. 

“i borrowed my bro's ride so we could get all yer stuff in one trip. didn't think ya'd be too keen on seein’ yer shithead roommate more than once.” Red has a point. The mere thought of Jay makes you sick to your stomach, and if you never saw him again, it would be too soon. You won't need a huge car to get all of your belongings in one trip though. You could carry everything you owned with your own two hands, just like you had when you moved to Ebbott City to start over.

“Why is Blue driving such a huge car?” Red cackles at your question. You're not sure what's so funny except for maybe the idea of Blue trying to climb into the SUV without a stepladder.

“blue ain't my brother.”

“Oh, I just assumed since you guys have similar skull shapes and…” You trail off, a sneaking suspicion arising. “Wait, is Edge your brother?”

Red's cackles turn into howls of laughter. When he has his laughter under control, he explains. “edge is my bro,” he confirms. “blue n’ i ain't bros but we're related, kinda. we're… uh… cousins.” 

Ok, the hesitation is a little weird, but you don't dwell on it because Red is pulling out of the driveway, finally giving you an uninterrupted view of the place he calls home. The house is nestled at the base of Mount Ebbott, with sprawling woodlands just a stone's throw from the meticulously manicured yard. You recognize the style of the architecture as a Southern plantation house, complete with a wrap-around porch and pillars, and you wouldn't call the three-story building anything less than a mansion. You sigh dreamily; living in a place like that is goals.

“y'alright?” Red must have heard you sigh. You decide to answer his question with a question of your own.

“Do you, Edge, and Blue live in that huge house by yourselves?”

“nah. there's ten of us, all skeleton monsters. five pairs of brothers that also happen to be… cousins.”

You make idle conversation with Red while he drives and discover that he's never visited Ebbott Aquarium despite being on the Surface for what he mistakenly says is four years. Monsters emerged from the Underground five years ago, but correcting him feels rude. Instead you insist on treating him to a day at the aquarium to repay him for his kindness even though he says it isn't necessary. 

You tell Red stories of your life, nothing too specific about your past, just silly things that have happened at your job or during your time in college. He listens to you talk about the drunk Santa who wandered into the store you work at and the woman who asked you to double-bag every single item she purchased. You even told him about the time you saw a dog with heterochromia, and instead of telling your college roommate that the dog had two differently colored eyes, you simply shouted, with maximum excitement: “That dog has two eyes!”

The sound of Red's deep, growling chuckle fills the car, and you smile in satisfaction. “humans’re just as fucking weird as animals.” 

A comfortable silence settles in the SUV after the skeleton’s observation. You watch the neighborhoods pass by through the vehicle's tinted windows. Red navigates with confidence, and far too soon, you've reached the outskirts of the place you called home only yesterday. It feels like months ago.

The events of last night have wormed their way into your catalog of experiences. The memories are a part of you now, for better or worse, ready to resurface when you least expect them. You would not consider this to be “when you least expect them,” yet here they are, pushing forward in your mind.

Jay yells.

The bathroom door splinters.

You can't breathe.

He's choking you! 

You can't-

“doll. doll, yer alright. breathe!”

Red opens the passenger door of the SUV and leans in to unbuckle your seatbelt. You didn't even realize that he’d stopped and gotten out. Reality catches up to you, and your hands begin to shake. You can't slow your breathing, and you can't seem to suck enough air into your panicked lungs.

“hey, look at me,” Red continues to talk you through the episode. “my bro called a friend of his in th’ human police force. th’ guy's gonna meet us there. you'll be safe.” You focus on inhaling and exhaling, and Red's next words are so quiet that you nearly miss them. “i promise, n’ i don't make promises lightly.”

It takes awhile, but you manage to bundle up all of your emotions and shove them into the “Closet of Things You Don't Want to Deal with Right Now" in your mind. You calm down enough that Red is able to get back into the SUV and drive the remaining few blocks to the scene of last night's attack. Jay is outside when you pull up, talking to a uniformed police officer standing next to his cruiser.

Jay definitely looks like he's been in a fight… and lost. His entire face is swollen and bruised, including two black eyes and an obviously broken nose. Red parks in front of the house, and the police officer approaches his window and taps on it, indicating that Red should roll it down, which he does.

“You're Lieutenant Serif's brother?” the officer asks. He's young with a friendly demeanor that puts you at ease.

“yeah, i changed that pompous dickwad's diapers when he was a babybones,” Red responds. The policeman snorts.

“Well, it might be best if you wait in the car. There's still some lingering animosity after last night's altercation.”

“pussy's mad i kicked ‘is ass,” Red translates, making no move to get out of the car. The officer shifts his attention to you. 

“If you'll come with me, ma’am, we can go inside and collect your belongings.” 

You take a deep breath to steady yourself and step out of the car. Making your way towards your once-welcoming residence, you stick close to the young policeman. Jay trails behind you, and while you dislike having him at your back where you can't track his movements, it makes avoiding any contact, the physical and the eye variety, easy. Jay doesn't speak to you either, and for once, you're grateful to him for something. You just want to get in, grab your stuff, and never look back.

The first thing you notice when you get to the door is that the jamb is smashed near the lock, causing the door to swing open loosely when the officer pushes on it. The next thing you notice is a very strong scent of bleach, which surprises you since none of your roommates are the slightest bit cleaning-inclined. The very last bit of noticing that you do involves the feel of the house itself. Just yesterday, this place represented safety and belonging; today you simply feel detached from the place as if you never lived here at all.

You deliberately avert your eyes when you pass the bathroom with its wrecked door. The bleach odor coming from inside overwhelms you, and your eyes water from the strength of it. Finally you arrive at your bedroom. The door is already ajar, and you push it open further only to discover that the room you once occupied is completely empty. It's not just empty either; it looks as though it's been ransacked.

The closet door is open, and hangers litter the floor. The drawers are all pulled out of the dresser and nightstand, showing nothing left inside of them. The sheets, blankets, and pillows are missing from the bed, and not even your pile of muddied clothes remains. You stare, at a loss for words. 

“Oh yeah, your stuff is in the bathroom,” Jay says, acting like he just remembered the fact. Dread settles in your stomach. The bathroom is only a few feet away, and that short walk somehow takes far too long and not nearly long enough. 

The source of the bleach smell and the location of your stolen possessions turns out to be the same thing: the bathtub. The bathtub is overflowing with torn fabric and pillow stuffing, and every single item is soaked and stained from the bleach that's been poured on top of it. You don't know how to process what has happened, so you stand there, numb. Every time an emotion rises inside of you, you stuff it into that mental closet of yours. This isn't the time for a breakdown. Not with Jay and a stranger watching you.

Jay leans towards you. “That's what you get, monster fucker,” he hisses. You recoil at the hatred in his words.

“Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to step back.” The policeman's voice is cold and clipped, nothing like the friendly tone he used with you earlier. He addresses you next: “Ma'am, would you come outside with me?”

You can't get out of the house fast enough. Standing out in the yard, you gulp down the fresh air and hope that you'll never smell bleach or talk to Jay ever again.

“Unfortunately, I can't arrest someone for being an asshole,” the policeman tells you. He's back to using his kind voice now that it's just the two of you. “Because he destroyed your property, this has become a civil matter, which means that you'll have to take your former roommate to small claims court if you want him to pay you back for what he destroyed.” You nod, not trusting yourself to speak at the moment. “I'll make a detailed report of the incident, and if you decide to pursue a case, I'll get a copy for you to use as evidence.”

The officer gives you his card, and you shove it into the pocket of your borrowed hoodie. You thank him, then join Red back in the SUV.

“what happened,” the skeleton monster asks, apparently noticing that you haven't brought anything with you.

“Jay wrecked all of my stuff.” You sigh, feeling defeated. You don't expect Red's explosive reaction.

“i'll kill that fucker!” Red snarls and reaches for the door handle. You place a hand on his arm to restrain him.

“It's ok. I didn't have that much stuff to begin with.”

Red huffs but stays in the vehicle. “that just makes it worse,” he grumbles. “so where to now?”

You shrug. “I need to call my boss. I'm definitely going to be late today. You don't have to keep driving me around though. I can take the bus.” You appreciate Red's efforts, but you're starting to feel like a burden. Surely he has better things to do with his time than chauffeur a human around.

“ya can't get rid of me that easy, doll. howzabout we grab some food an’ find ya some new duds?”

You are admittedly relieved by Red's offer, and he drives a short distance to a nearby superstore with a sandwich shop conveniently located inside. You and Red seat yourself on opposite sides of a small booth, and you pull out your phone to make your call. You shouldn't be surprised that things don't go well. It has been one of those days, after all.

Your manager answers the phone, and you quickly tell her about the attack, first on you then on your defenseless work attire. There is a long pause on the other end of the line after you finish your story. Your manager finally speaks.

“I know it isn't your fault,” she says, and the heavy weight of dread returns to your already churning stomach. “But we have a three strikes attendance policy, and I can't make exceptions.”

You want to argue. Sure, your first absence occurred because you slept through your alarm, but you weren't responsible for your other roommates throwing up in a dryer containing your clean work clothes or for Jay's aggressive actions.

“They aren't absences,” you reason with her to no avail.

“If you're over two hours late, it counts as an absence.” There’s another lengthy pause. “Look, I'm really sorry about this, but it's corporate policy. I hope things turn out for you. Goodbye, hon, and good luck.”

Your now ex-manager terminates the call, and you're left sitting there, staring at the phone screen. You try desperately to cram more unwanted emotions into that special closet in your mind, but it's filled to capacity from earlier events. 

You feel a bony finger gently brushing tears that you weren't even aware had fallen from your cheeks. “aww, doll, don't cry.” At some point during the ill-fated phone call, Red had gotten up to attempt to comfort you. Suddenly you find yourself pressed against his warm body, shaking and sobbing into his shirt. After a brief hesitation, he wraps his arms around you and holds you while you cry.

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[chaotic-super]

The Vampire Woman - Chapter 24

Read it on AO3 here!

Kara is adapting to working again much better than anyone thought she would, even if it is just one measly hour per day she’s been allowed. Her editing skills are coming along nicely and while she wouldn’t say it’s her favourite job, it’s much better than sitting around wishing she could find a way to be useful.

Her recovery is coming along nicely too. She’s finally getting to the point where she feels like she’s returning to normal, that her body is her own again. Her muscles don’t ache from the tiniest amount of exercise, and her energy levels have spiked back up to where they used to be.

That being said, there’s still a long way to go before she feels like herself again. She might be in control of herself better. She might have to fight her way through each passing day anymore but she doesn’t feel like herself. Something about her has fundamentally shifted and it’s not hard to piece together why.

Her physiology has changed so much that it’s a learning experience for her to get back to regular tasks. Even when taking things slow, she’s struggling to pick up on the new abilities and adapt to them accordingly.

It becomes increasingly apparent as the days pass that she’s getting stronger. The initial kick of power she got when she first got her new abilities was just the beginning. The lack of vitamin D affected her right away, and now she’s forced to spend more time than she thought she would be relearning how to do simple things.

The increased strength is the main thing she’s struggling with. Kara knew that she had developed some of the strength vampires possess before but it seems to grow exponentially as the days pass. She’s still nowhere near as strong as Lena but is much stronger than the average person. There is a pile of broken household objects in the corner of the living room to prove it.

The speed isn’t as much of an issue, she’s fast but she always feels as though she’s in control and Lena has been taking her out at night to practice mastering it at a nearby track. It’s not something that has a mind of its own, so she’s got it down pat.

One ability that has been giving her problems is advanced hearing. Kara must spend at least two hours every day practising using it at will and teaching herself how to activate and deactivate it. It’s not one that she can wrangle easily, and Lena being the sweetheart she is, has made her some advanced noise-cancelling headphones so she can relax without worrying about the world becoming too overwhelming at the drop of a hat when it decides to kick in on its own.

Those headphones sit atop her head whenever she’s getting in her daily hour of work and for at least another hour after that because she’s taken up a new hobby. Kara has been spending an increasing amount of time each day researching everything there is to find on vampires. She still has a little knowledge from her initial research after her first interaction with Lena but now she has so much free time that she’s found herself getting immersed in every scrap of information she can find.

There’s a problem she keeps running into though. There is so much contradicting information that she can’t make sense of what is true. She can confirm some with her own experiences and the few pieces of information she can drag out of Lena but can’t make any solid steps toward clarity.

Over time, she has created a log to track the different information about vampires she stumbles across on the internet. Some are blatantly false and some make her scratch her head in confusion, but there is something she’s noticing that she can’t seem to get out of her head. Her curiosity has peaked, and now she’s longing to figure out what all of it means.

The complete lack of certainty may be purposeful. It makes sense that she can’t find any solid information about vampires since they don’t want humans to know they actually exist. Since vampires have always been myths, they have become nothing more than a fictitious trope on which to base novels and movies. That certainly makes her research harder to dive into.

Still, that hour she spends shining a light on every corner of the internet she can find does answer a few of her questions. However, there is one that still needs to be answered. It’s a big one too.

Kara sighs as she closes the lid of her laptop before setting it beside the CatCo-issued one. She’s bright enough to know that researching anything that isn’t work-related on that laptop wouldn’t stay private for long. Besides, she’s ninety percent sure that Cat is tracking how long she spends on it daily so she’s not going over her one-hour limit.

By the time she’s done her hour of CatCo work and then an hour of research, she’s usually exhausted and today is no different.

It’s become somewhat of a routine for her; as soon as she’s done with her research, she sunbathes either out on the balcony or on the chaise Lena recently bought beside the glass doors. Lena claims she would have bought one for herself anyway but it doesn’t take a genius to see that lie from a mile away.

It’s looking a little cloudy today so she’s opting to take the chaise. There are hints of sunshine streaming down between the grey clouds, but it’s not enough for her to be optimistic. She snuggles down into the soft cushions with her headphones in place, closing her eyes and snatching up the few rays she can while she has the chance.

Without realizing it, Kara has developed her routine so that Lena is just getting home by the time she wakes up from a nap in the sun. It’s always dark by then and the rest means that she gets to stay up late and spend some time with Lena before she heads to bed.

Lena always wakes her when she returns, and not on purpose either. She shuffles past her and starts moving around the kitchen to make some tea every day and Kara can sense that someone is there. A panic builds up in her chest and her eyes fly open as she tries to calm her beating heart but she’s soothed by Lena’s calming presence daily as she deduces that she’s safe.

Following the same script, she’s startled awake, her hand twisting into the material of her shirt right over her heart, and then the tension in her muscles relaxes as she’s overwhelmed by the emerald-green eyes watching over her worriedly.

When this first started happening, Lena would rush over and try to calm her, but as the days have turned into weeks, she’s come to know that Kara doesn’t need or want to be coddled. She just needs a few moments to collect herself and then she’ll join her once she’s settled.

Lena has brought something home with her today. She keeps it carefully hidden until Kara rounds the counter to press a careful kiss to her cheek, her lips scalding against Lena’s frosty complexion. The kiss prompts Lena to subtly tilt her face towards Kara, offering her lips too, which Kara gladly accepts.

It’s unbelievable how quickly they have settled into this next stage of their relationship, but nobody is more surprised than Kara. Their first kiss felt like they had switched on a cosmic lightbulb because since then, they have fallen right into a natural rhythm, one where their connection that was nothing but an undercurrent in their lives turned into a prominent feature in that exact moment.

Lena has been amazing. She’s been working on bringing down the walls she’s spent centuries building, and she’s started a new tradition of sorts where she tells Kara something about herself every night before Kara heads to bed. Kara loves it; it always gives her something sweet to imagine as she drifts off. If she’s really lucky, she dreams about it.

“How was work?” Kara wraps her arms around Lena’s waist, dropping her head onto her shoulder and falling into a gentle embrace.

“Not too bad. Jess managed to run circles around some sleazy business owner. I think he wants to get us to take out a contract with him for steelwork despite us already having a contract with another company and their prices being significantly lower for much higher quality. He screamed in frustration at her constantly messing up dates when he tried to set up a meeting with me. She let me listen to the recording. It was glorious.” Lena smiles, her chest rumbling as she chuckles.

Kara leans back, her lips quirking at the story. “Do you think she’ll let me listen?”

“I think you have that woman wrapped around your little finger. You could always come into the office tomorrow if you feel up to it. I don’t have any meetings, so you can come and sit with me.” Lena kisses the side of Kara’s head before she backs off. Kara tries to follow the movement to prolong the mini cuddle session they were having but Lena holds up a single finger to make her wait while she grabs her little surprise.

Kara’s eyebrows scrunch, causing a little crinkle to form between her eyes, and her head tilts slightly to the left. A pout adorns her face for just a second before an excited grin wipes it away. Lena slides out a tub of ice cream from behind her purse with a flourish, her eyes pinned on Kara’s face so she doesn’t miss the reaction.

“You got me ice cream?” Kara bites her lip and bounces up onto her toes. “You’re the best!”

“I know.” Lena teases. “It’s even chocolate and caramel brownie flavour, your favourite.”

“Wrong.” Kara points at her, pulling Lena close to her again with a hand on her forearm. “You’re my favourite flavour.”

Lena rolls her eyes in response to that corny pick-up line but presses another kiss to Kara’s waiting lips anyway. “Yes, but you can’t eat me while watching a movie musical.”

“I can try.”

Lena’s eyes darken, leaving Kara enchanted as she watches the shades of green go from bright and shiny to something more akin to a dark forest night. “Darling, if you’re going to be between my thighs, you’re not focusing on Julie Andrews.”

Lena sneakily slides her hands beneath Kara’s shirt, her palms finding her back and tracing their way up and then back down to rest against the warm flesh just above the waistband of her pants. Kara shivers from the attention and the stark contrast of their body temperatures. It’s always been something she’s noticed whenever they have touched but never considered its power until they spent their first night together.

Every lingering touch, gentle caress and firm stroke felt like magic. Kara has to control herself now more than ever because she wants to jump Lena’s bones whenever she sees her. It’s becoming a real problem because there is a new show out on Netflix that Alex keeps trying to get both her and Lena to watch, but they never get around to it because they are too busy seducing each other.

At the very least, Kara is happy that Lena is in the same boat as her, mumbling at least once every time they fall into the sack together about how warm she is and how much she loves the feeling. At first, Kara was the one to initiate every time they shared more than a kiss, but as Lena became surer of herself and saw Kara grow stronger by the day, she became braver.

They are officially in their honeymoon period, and it doesn’t look like that will change any time soon. Kara’s glad for it because she loves the smiles she can rouse out of Lena, much more frequent now than before.

Kara is glad Lena is in such a good mood today though, thrilled actually. It means that her questions to further her vampire research will just be more likely to be answered. She nuzzles back into Lena’s shoulder, her lips pressing against her neck for a brief moment before she nips there carefully.

“Hey, that’s supposed to be my thing.” Lena jokes, and Kara leans back once more with twinkling eyes.

“You made a joke.” She observes with a barely restrained smile. “You never joke about vampire stuff.”

Lena hums, her hands travelling up Kara’s back again. “Well, maybe I’m learning that I don’t always have to be so serious.”

Kara squints at her, scrutinizing the overly innocent look Lena’s trying and failing to pull off. “No, you’re just less uptight now that you’re getting some. Tell me, how many decades had it been before me?”

Lena’s mouth drops open in shock, her eyes popping open comically wide. “Why, you little—” She grabs Kara by the waist and lifts her up. It earns her a squeal before she drops her down onto the counter and steps between her legs. “I’ll have you know that I am very good with the ladies when I want to be, and I have never had issues meeting my needs.”

“Oh, I’m sure you are. I saw that charm when I pummelled you with those garlic cloves and you were whining like a child.” Kara keeps teasing, her hands falling to rest over Lena’s shoulders.

Lena looks aghast that Kara is daring to bring up that interaction. She’s pretty sure they had made some unwritten pact that they should never discuss that. Kara snickers at the look of betrayal that passes through Lena’s expression as she rides the rollercoaster through every single emotion she’s ever felt in her life.

With deft fingers, Kara releases Lena’s hair from the hair tie keeping it away from her. The bun is released in a matter of seconds and Lena’s obsidian-coloured hair tumbles down her back like a waterfall enlivened by the moon in the dead of night.

“I cannot believe you just said that to me.” Lena shakes her head and tries to take a step back. A giggle escapes her when she is instantly trapped by Kara’s legs circling around her waist, her ankles crossing against the small of her back.

“I’m sure you’ll get over it.” Kara smiles against Lena’s lips as she drags her back into yet another kiss, the gentle movements soothing Lena in lieu of an apology, not that Lena was actually expecting one. They fall into a natural rhythm, neither trying to take control, both just enjoying the sensations brought upon them and matching each other movement for movement.

Lena’s hands trail over Kara’s thighs, her fingertips scraping against the fabric of Kara’s loose pants and soaking in as much of Kara’s heat as she can.

Kara’s hands are completely buried in Lena’s hair to the point where they would definitely win a game of hide and seek. Kara tugs lightly to get her attention so she can whisper against her lips. “Bedroom?”

Lena presses into another insistent kiss before pulling back reluctantly. “As much as I would love that, you haven’t eaten yet, have you?”

“I could eat your—”

“You’re still technically recovering; you need to eat properly.”

“Baby, you’re a three-course meal,” Kara smirks, her attempt to look sexy only making her look like the dork she is. It does things for Lena either way so Lena has a hard time backing off, but her need to take care of Kara wins out, no matter how much she wants to give in.

Lena eases Kara’s legs from around her waist. “We can revisit once you’ve had something to eat. What do you want? I’ll make it for you.”

Kara hops down from the counter, Lena’s arm shooting out to steady her just in case she slips on the tile floor in her stripy socks. “I’m not sure but don’t worry. I’ll find something. You’ve been at work all day; you must be tired.”

“I’m ok, I don’t mind.” Lena tosses a smile over her shoulder and starts rummaging through the fridge, searching for something to make. “Uh, we have the stuff for grilled cheese. Will that do?”

“Sounds perfect.” Kara accepts the offer and sits beside the island on one of the stools to watch Lena move around the kitchen. “So, what else happened at work today?”

Lena snorts as she starts prepping the grilled cheese. “It’s honestly super impressive how quickly you can go from horny to soft and caring in point two seconds.”

“Thank you.” Kara giggles. “I appreciate the compliment, but if you were to ask me if I wanted to eat something else, I would accept with no hesitation.”

“You’re insatiable. I didn’t expect you to be so confident, you know?”

“How come?”

Lena struggles to find the words to explain, her eyes flitting up toward the ceiling as she thinks. “You’re just…different. In a good way, but still different. I think it’s because you have your guard down more here but you aren’t as nervous or timid. I like it. I have to admit that the moments when you stood up to me, I took a liking to it, even before we were friends, let alone dating.”

Kara props her elbow onto the counter and then rests her head in her hand, gazing over at Lena as she works. “I can see that. You’re different too.”

“That’s because I’m comfortable here with you. I don’t feel like I have to hide.”

The words are so open and honest that it makes Kara tear up a little. Her heart breaks for the years Lena spent alone, wandering the planet hiding from everyone and living even when she had nothing to live for. It’s difficult to think about and something she can never forget, no matter how hard she tries. The very notion of it sticks in the back of her brain and waits for a moment of peace to creep up on her and remind her how cruel this world can be.

“I’m glad you feel that way.” Kara manages to choke out.

“Me too,” Lena responds, her voice soft. It reminds Kara of the way Lena spends her weekends with her, both of them dressed in their comfiest clothes and lounging around together, enjoying each other’s presence and learning as much as they can about each other.

Kara clears her throat. “So, tell me about your day.”

Lena dives right into a detailed retelling of all of the office drama from L-Corp. Jess always keeps her updated despite her telling her that she doesn’t care who ate Janet’s lunch but her assistant can see right through her and knows that she secretly loves the gossip. Kara loves the gossip too, just not as much as Lena does. She’s just happy to sit here and listen to her chatter away about someone clocking in late because of some strange reason because Lena’s voice is so soothing. She could listen to her all day.

Lena sits with her while she eats and updates her on her blood project. “I swear, I’m so close to figuring it out. I don’t think it’ll be too long before I know how to make a human-blood alternative for all vampires. It’ll probably take me a while to get the right equipment and actually make it before we can even get to trials, but I’m getting confident that it’s possible and I’ll even say that by the end of the year, there’s a good chance I will never need to rely on anyone to stave off my hunger again.”

Kara beams at her. “That’s amazing.”

“It is. It makes me sad that I probably could have figured it out long ago if I’d had the balls to try. I always put it off because I was afraid that I would put a whole load of effort into trying to make an alternative just for it not to work and for someone in the company to get wind of what I was doing and out me as a vampire.” Lena admits.

“Huh.” Kara’s eyebrows scrunch.

“What does that mean?” Lena questions, taken aback by how deep in thought Kara suddenly is.

Kara sucks her lips into her mouth for a second before releasing them, her hand scratching at her head and messing up her hair. “I just don’t think anyone’s first assumption would be that you’re a vampire.”

“Kara, people are more open to believing in the weird and wonderful than you think. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been caught out and had to start a new life for myself on the other side of the country.”

Blue eyes snap up to meet green. “You’re kidding.”

“I’m not. For many people, vampires are just a myth. However, over the years, it’s become more normalized for people to believe in us than you think.”

“But there’s barely anything on the internet,” Kara argues, realizing her mistake a sentence too late.

Lena’s eyes narrow. “You’ve been looking vampires up on the internet?”

Kara flails. “Not specific ones, no.”

“What exactly are you trying to find.”

Looking for a way out of this line of questioning, Kara uses the most childish technique known to man to try and avoid answering. She shoves the remainder of her grilled cheese into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out like a little hamster.

Lena lets out an annoyed breath. “Kara, this is important. What are you looking for?”

Kara shrugs, chewing as slowly as possible.

“That’s ok, I’ll wait.” Lena folds her arms over her chest, a sleek eyebrow raising in a challenge.

Kara’s shoulder sag. She’s not getting out of this one. She answers as soon as she’s swallowed the bite and washed it down with a swig of water. “I was looking for anything.”

“Anything?”

“Yeah. I want to know everything I can. I’m half vampire, I want to know as much as I can about the new side of myself. I want to know how many vampires there are. I want to know if all vampires have the same powers, and I want to know where they come from. They have to have come from somewhere. Oh, and I think that since vampires are real, there’s a chance that other mythical creatures exist too.”

“Like unicorns?”

“I don’t know. I was hoping for elves; a horse with a horn feels too easy.” Kara shrugs.

Lena hums, her mind filtering through the new knowledge she’s acquired. “So, why didn’t you just ask me these questions?”

“You’ve never really liked answering my questions. Plus, you told me before that you don’t know a lot about vampires despite knowing a bunch and being around for forever and a day.”

Lena has to give her that one. She can’t deny that. She’s open with the surface-level stuff but anything that involves digging too deeply into her past in any way that has negative connotations makes her close up like the lockable diary of a seven-year-old girl.

“Kara…”

“Oh no.” Kara recoils, leaning back away from Lena. “You’re using a disappointed voice.”

Lena takes a deep breath that, to Kara, sounds judgemental. “Kara. I’m not disappointed in you.”

Kara blinks at her, completely disbelieving. “Uh-huh.”

“I’m more upset that you’ve been trying to figure out all of this information that you’re entitled to and I haven’t been open enough for you to feel safe coming to me to learn any of it.”

“So you do have some of the answers?” Kara’s eyebrows scrunch in confusion.

Lena fiddles with the ring sitting on her thumb, sliding it up and down before twisting it. “Well…no, but I should, and for that, I’m sorry.”

“You shouldn’t be sorry for what you don’t know.”

Lena’s mouth twists to one side before she centres it again and tuts. “So, did you find out anything good?”

“I did find something kind of interesting.”

“Do tell.” Lena leans forward, her fingertips tracing over the back of Kara’s hand.

Kara blushes at the touch and ducks her head for a second before she slips off the stool. “Wait here. I have a notebook.”

Lena huffs out a laugh. “Of course you do. How about we move into the living room and we go over what you’ve found together?”

It doesn’t take any convincing to get Kara to agree to that and they end up snuggled next to each other on the couch. Kara sits with her knees up to balance the notebook against them. Lena lazily wraps an arm around the one closest to her, making it awkward to prop up the notebook the way Kara planned. She’s not saying anything though, more than happy to adapt so Lena doesn’t move away.

“There isn’t much online to find. The vampire community is pretty tight-lipped and media adaptations take over a lot of the results so it’s been hard to pinpoint what is true and what’s speculation.” Kara starts by opening up the book and holding it between them so Lena can see her notes, written in her neat handwriting on the first page and then devolving into barely legible chicken scratch by the end where she didn’t care about how it looked anymore, more concerned with getting it all written down. Lena eyes it with a raised brow and Kara catches the look. “Not a word.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything.” Lena defends herself.

“Sure you weren’t.” Kara bumps her shoulder into Lena before resting her head against Lena’s. “The main points I found were just the same things we know, but there are more powers listed that popped up a few times and put them on my radar so I added them to the list.”

“Kara, I’ve never met a vampire that can mind-control someone.”

Kara takes the pen from where it’s hooked in the notebook’s spiral and makes a neat line right through that section. “That’s one thing we can cross off the list then.”

Lena’s eyes follow the track of the pen. “Ok, what else?”

Kara clicks her tongue in a funky little beat as she flips through the pages and settles on the part of her research that is more hypothetical. “I’ve been working on this for the past week or so. I’ve noticed how different powers popped up more when talking about specific countries, so I made a little list of which powers came up for each country to see if there’s a difference.”

Lena takes a closer look at the lists. Despite being as old as she is, she’s not spent much time travelling to different countries. She stuck to the UK for a while but then took a boat over to the US and never looked back. The most she’s done since then was a few business trips to Japan to meet with investors, but she never saw anything more than her hotel room or an office so she wasn’t paying attention to the nightlife. “That’s really interesting and maybe something to look into for sure. I’ve never heard of vampires from different parts of the world displaying different powers but I’ve never been the most sociable person around.”

“I’ve noticed,” Kara smirks at her before kissing her cheek to show she’s just playing with her.

Lena ignores her but still leans into the kiss. “I do know someone that might have a better idea about this stuff though. Andrea has never been one to stick around in one place for too long without getting bored. Actually, I think Sam might have done some travelling too. I’ll ask them tomorrow. Andrea gets mad when I call at night, and Sam asked me not to so I don’t wake Ruby up accidentally so I can’t call now but I promise I will.”

“Thank you.” Kara mumbles. “Would you find it interesting if it turns out that it’s true and it’s different for different locations?”

Lena nods. “I would. I would also find it terrifying though because that means that there’s someone out there probably trying to create a vampire with all available powers because there are some psychopaths out there.”

“Wow, your mind immediately went to Frankenstein. I would have thought you’re more of a Dracula person.”

“Haha.” Lena deadpans. “I think I’ll leave that for you but I’ll have you know that I love Mary Shelley. It’s not what I was thinking about but I don’t have much faith in the people on this planet, and if there’s something every bad person wants, it’s power.”

Kara nods. “I guess so.”

“Anyway.” Lena redirects the conversation. “How have you managed to get all of this done without anyone noticing?”

Kara smiles. “I can be sneaky when I want to be.”

“I’m sure you can.” Lena’s eyes dart down to Kara’s lips and she doesn’t attempt to resist. She dives in and her lips curve up into a smile against Kara’s when she feels how hard she’s pushing back into her.

“Bedroom now?” Kara asks, excitement in her voice that only serves to fire Lena up all the more.

Lena takes the notebook and pen from Kara, noting that the pen is now in pieces, crushed by Kara’s grip. She slides a hand beneath her back and one beneath her legs so she can lift her up and carry her into her bedroom, Kara giggling all the way.

She drops her down onto her bed and notices something as she does. She takes a step back with a frown, her eyebrows furrowed down and her lips pressed into a line.

“What is it?” Kara asks, suddenly worried.

“Have we only been having sex here because you don’t want to change your sheets as often as I have to change mine?”

Kara breaks out into a cheeky grin. “Hell yeah, it is.”

For early access to more chapters of my fics, check out my Patreon here!

Myself and a couple of other fanfic writer friends of mine are starting a new collaborative event for writers and artists in the Supergirl fandom for all WLW ships. If that's something that floats your boat, come check it out. New writers are welcome and artists are free to use many different art forms. Check out Supergirl May-hem here!

[ankhmeanswombman]

Reproduction and Character Masking: An Endless Chain of Sorrow

I’m a lover of authenticity and sovereignty, and in my experience most people are not. I have mentioned before how most individuals are automated organic androids, except they are becoming more and more inorganic, genetically-modified. There may be some silver linings to humanity’s increasing convergence with technology though. They need to build up what they have lost and redevelop intelligence and peace which they have thrown down the gutter after aeons of self abuse. Maybe the Prometheus Project isn’t such a bad idea. If the average person lacks both EQ and IQ, is addicted to conflict, and is a remedial junkie so as to ignore the piling karma, maybe it is best for the elites to retrain this person into the image of a more advanced being. Prometheus after all was the light bearer, guiding the beast out of the darkness of ignorance and into divine wisdom of good and evil, the discernment of which is lost to many in these trying times. The average persons lack of understanding of free will and karma has decayed their minds exponentially, because they cannot visualize the bigger picture, recognise pattern, or understand that there are consequences for every thought and action. They live as though they are completely detached from both body and spirit, such is the result of glorifying patriarch-consciousness and phallic philosophy. The lack of respect shown to the body is magnified every day through the collective consciousness, and if the vessel, a manifestation of spirit in 3D, is damaged, spirit itself may vacate the dense formation known as body to the point where spirit no longer rules it, but rather a set of primal, devolved automated instructions designed simply to perpetuate the Godless vessel sans conscious spirit. The evolved being must understand that the devolved being has been spiritually absent for a long time, which is why character-masking is rampant, they do not even know who they are which is why they adopt a new identity every year or simply stare at a screen to figure out who to copy-paste into next. The more old school approach would be simply termed keeping up appearances, and as we know, what appears to be a certain way, is not always true in reality, as maskers improve their techniques with each passing epoch so as to survive, fearing the natural death that awaits the ego. Ego is not meant to survive for long but it is a smart parasite which ensures that the soul stays dead so as to keep itself going. Reproduction as it exists today is simply a mechanism for competing with God, which is why ego is so fervently obsessed with it. Ego is at constant war with spirit, so copulation must always try to thwart parthenogenesis or anything higher up the Great chain of Being than itself. Because most people have banished their own souls to the underworld while welcoming hell-demons to possess their vessel, they naturally do not care about why higher concepts are hidden from public view, the real truth is that everything is hidden in plain sight, which ultimately means there is no hiding to begin with and all things are visible to those who actually wish to see… and if you don’t, well good luck decaying and rotting in a hell of ignorance, lest you be reborn through the fire. Those who are obsessed with masking/keeping up appearances are also obsessed with physical reproduction via coitus through the Hermetic principle of gender, and usually their reasons for engaging with both are the same; continuity of an automated reality, why you may ask, who knows, not even them, as there is no end goal. Just keep going. They view both the self and the other as a machine to extract token niceties or bodies to keep the beast-system going. The world is predator-prey because the vast majority is soulless, thus ruled by duality. Creativity for the average person begins and ends at physical reproduction which is why they emphasise it, and because they have no creativity derived from mentalism, they reproduce ideas derived from others and recirculate these ideas and mannerism in a continuous cycle under the guise of politeness.

[one-winged-dreams]

Formal Request

ship: (Dione x Svarog) source: Honkai Star Rail word count: 1043

this is supposed to make me feel better so it's mostly just dialogue with little substance but eh, i needed to make something for this ship eventually

no proofreading, we post like men

tag list: @kylars-princess @dearly-beeloved @adoredbyalatus @dorothys-wife @the-sleeping-city @camellias-and-coriander @sunstar-of-the-north @lysandreslittlechatot

"Has Clara seemed off to you, lately?"

The question came idly from Dione, but not without an amount of thoughtfulness.

In lieu of a response, Svarog merely tilted his head inquisitively, the motion almost missed until Dione turned his gaze to actively gauge any such response.

"She's been acting… Strange. Unusually bashful. Surely you've noticed." Dione's eyebrows raised as he spoke. "Am I imagining things? I'm imagining things aren't I? Ah, but what if I'm NOT…"

"Dione."

His gaze snapped back up to Svarog again, wide yet weary eyes studying the robot's featureless face.

"Yes?"

Though he did not breathe, a sigh was an appropriate vocalization in the way of response from Svarog.

"Your stress levels have been accumulating exponentially within the timeframe of the prior 5 days. I believe self-evaluation is in order."

Dione blinked a few more times.

"So I'm… Imagining things?"

"I will not confirm or deny this claim."

This was a particularly odd response and both parties did indeed seem to be aware of it. It was now Dione's turn to provide a response via addressing the other in a particular tone.

"Svarog."

"Dione."

Both seemed to take a pass for their next turn to speak and thus it was silent for a moment.

"Something IS going on with Clara, isn't it? And by my deduction skills, if I didn't know any better I'd say you were INTIMATELY aware," Dione finally broke the silence.

"My request for a moment of introspection still stands."

"You're changing the subject."

The theme of a response each followed by a mutual pass continued, though this time it was Svarog's turn to break the silence.

"It is nothing you need become increasingly concerned with. Rest assured that Clara is well, and has requested you not press the issue."

"I WAS RIGHT!" Dione stood abruptly, pointing an accusatory finger. "You and Clara are up to something TOGETHER? Without me?"

Dione sounded almost heartbroken at the prospect, but only in that overly sensitive and minor way that wasn't worth being overly concerned with. And again did Svarog respond with a synthesized sigh.

"You have my word that it is something best left alone by you in particular, Dione."

"ME IN PART- Okay, now I HAVE to know! I'm your wife aren't I?" Dione pouted, bringing up the seemingly permanent game of house that had been put together to get Clara to trust Dione from the day they had met. The fact that Dione was bringing it up even with Clara absent meant he was pulling out any and all stops he could.

The longer Svarog paused, the more Dione's brow furrowed.

"Alright."

"Alright?"

Dione was genuinely surprised that Svarog had caved so easily, he had been prepared to go all out for this. He was almost DISAPPOINTED it had been so easy.

"In comparison to prior data, trying to dissuade you in such a state would prove futile. I will tell you, but you must promise not to tell Clara that you know."

"That depends."

"A formal request from your husband."

"Dammit."

It was just as effective whenever Svarog played house right back.

"Clara has been… Concerned with your state of being. Increased weariness and drop in mood and motivation in particular."

Dione frowned, looking down at his feet.

"Noticed that… has she?" he spoke solemnly before feebly attempting to cover his vulnerability with humor. "She's a sharp kid. Something you'd expect from a girl raised by a robot."

Svarog only responded with silence, to which Dione puzzled.

"So what's with her tiptoeing around? Is she trying not to hurt my feelings? Am I upsetting her?"

"She's been… Planning something for you. She… And I."

Once again, Dione was only able to express his surprise with his own silence.

"And what is… this something?"

"Is that a formal request?"

"From your wife."

"I see."

There was another turn of silence before Svarog continued the intermittent conversation.

"The details have not been pinned down, but… she wished to provide a genuine familial experience."

Dione looked even more puzzled now.

"Meaning..?"

"That I do not know the specifics. It seems she is still in the planning stage, but she specifically mentioned the Overworld."

"The Overworld? And you had no objections to this?" Dione questioned, pushing the glasses that had slipped down the bridge of his nose back to their proper position.

In return, he received only a nod from Svarog.

"But you… You HATE IT there. Or at least genuinely dislike it. Things may have improved between the Over and Underworlds but I can't imagine you'd be given too much respect up there." Once again did Dione's brow furrow, but more so out of perplexion as well as slight concern.

"It would only be for the span of a singular day and night. I have more important matters to focus my attention on than the respect of Overworlders," Svarog responded in no particular tone.

"Such as?"

"Family."

A blush made itself evident on Dione's face, not quite blessed with the lack of features that made Svarog so difficult to read.

"Right… Though, I have to ask, why one night? Why not just come home?"

"Clara has expressed a personal interest in the Overworld's own Goethe Hotel. Though I cannot personally grasp the importance, she has assured me it would be… Pleasurable by human standards."

Dione stared for one stunned second before snorting a giggle.

"Is that so? I can imagine it would be a fun experience for her at any rate. This may be for my sake, but I can't say I can refuse if it'll be enjoyable for her too. Because you know," he started before his expression softened, "seeing you both happy is enough to lift a bit of weight off my shoulders."

"That much is obvious," Svarog responded plainly, though it was clear it was meant to be playful in its own right.

"So she insisted on the hotel, huh?" Dione's expression returned to something playful himself.

"Affirmative."

"Alright, noted. But I suppose I shouldn't be surprised if she insists on running off to visit Serval before bedtime."

"I'm afraid I do not understand the implication."

"I suppose you might see it my way once you see how nice those hotel rooms supposedly are."

"Noted."

[peterlorres21stcentury]

unpopular opinion: mods should enhance a game, not make it suck less

also sprach Lorrethustra, the endlessly reincarnated

And yet here I am, making some desperately needed improvements to a game that, while fun at first, needed some serious thought and maybe another year in development.

So far I have made the following changes to Starfield with the help of the amazing Bethesda modding community, because I don't have a fucking clue how to create my own mods so I offer naught in return. Notice how entirely simple these problems are:

-Doubled the experience gained from any action (thanks to a second mod, having the well-rested perk from sleeping will quadruple it!)

-Multiplied the amount of credits for each vendor by 10. Because enormous, interplanetary juggernaut corporations of the future only trust their vendors with 5k in virtual monies in a 48 hour period. 🙄 Seriously, it should be 100x that, but I'm trying to be reasonable here.

-Made it so that random quests are not shoved into my mission log just because some guard made a passing comment while I was near. I always hated this method of quest-giving. It felt invasive and annoying even in Skyrim, as it assumes that every character would be willing to delve in that cave or join the Thieves' Guild or make deals with a daedric prince or whatever, but in Starfield it is an absolute plague. If I want your quest I'll ask around for it!! Stop force-feeding your players this bullshit!!

-Furnished the Starborn ship with such extravagant luxuries as: a few chairs on the bridge, and one (1) bed. Because even though I don't use the ship that often, it's still part of my fleet, so I might as well make it a livable space instead of the iphone store-looking, sterile white void we got (seriously, the modder just added some decorative assets that were already present in the game files and intended to be used on the ship. Bethesda CHOSE NOT TO USE THEM WHYYYY

That's about all for now. I was thinking of finding something that increased the storage capacity for outpost containers from 600 units to... something a lot MORE THAN THAT. Why would you make outpost extraction rates so high if you can barely store it all? How can I realize my dreams of becoming an interstellar freight/resource tycoon if my base is nothing but walls of stupid shipping crates (which don't share inventory automatically and need to be connected through a mess of wires even when they, you know, snap together and ought to logically share inventory?? but that's a separate issue)? If the dev team understood their player base at all they'd understand that we are greedy rapacious loot goblins who need moooooooaaaaaaar, damn your hide 👿

I don't know if these decisions were intended as some kind of meta commentary on the nature of your character or what (the Starborn is reborn into new universes chasing their fruitless quest for some vaguely defined power, therefore the meaning of life is suffering and so the player gets diminishing returns on their repetitive journey? Is that what they meant?) but as *cough* deeeeeep and philosophical as that may be, good game design it ain't.

To think I wrote this much all because I wanted a way to level faster than the default pace of "not at all." Because despite the game having no level cap, the game literally does not offer you enough activities to grant the necessary ~500,000 cumulative xp points to reach level 100. Even going through a new game+ multiple times and repeating every single quest will not be enough unless you have literal days of free time. I never felt so starved for perks in Skyrim or Fallout 4, ever, despite the xp rewards being roughly similar. But you spend higher levels in Starfield so very hungry for xp because the curve of points earned per level is, as far as I can tell, near exponential. And the rewards do not scale with your level, nor with game difficulty. A level 90 enemy will always grant something like 120 xp, and you have tens of thousands of xp points to go.

Sorry, but this especially is truly boggling my tiny mind. Not to rant about something so trivial; I am only too keenly aware that this world is filled with actual pain and suffering, but I'd really love to know what they were thinking when they designed such an abominable leveling system. A grindy MMO this ain't, my friends. That next perk point should be a rewarding goal, not an impossible waste of time. It's like one team carried over the xp rewards that would be comparable to Fallout 4 (you get about the same per average enemy, anywhere from 50 to 200 points per kill, I think) and then a separate clueless team said "I mean, it's one level, Michael. What would it cost? A hundred thousand xp?"

I could go on, but I have other things to do today. I want to make it clear: I do not hate this game! A lot of it is incredibly absorbing, and I wish there was more to it (outpost building, crafting, surveying planets). But there should never be this many annoyances and pointless barriers to make these mods a necessity.

[z-iridest]

My Hero Academia- I Am Phoenix:

Chapter 23- Trouble's Storm:

The morning of our second day of the training camp began bright and early… At 5:30 in the morning. Most of us were still pretty tired, with Ochaco and Kaminari’s hair being disheveled, Kyoka and Tsu looking like they were gonna fall asleep on their feet any second, but Tokoyami seemed to be wide awake. Ochaco stretched a bit before Mr Aizawa greeted us. “Good morning, class. Today, we begin a training camp that will increase your strength. Our goal is to increase your skills exponentially, so that each of you earns a provisional license. This will allow you to face the dangers that continue to fester in the darkness. Proceed carefully.” He then turned to me. “Look alive, Yagi.” I easily caught the softball, though I was half asleep. “Try throwing that for me.”

“Got it, just like the fitness test.” I realized.

“That’s right. When you first started school, your record was 789.2 meters… Let’s see if you’ve improved.” Mr Aizawa challenged as I stepped forward to get clear of my classmates. 

“Oh, I get it! We’re checking our progress!” Mina exclaimed. 

“A lot’s happened to us the last three months. Maybe she can throw it a whole mile now.” Sero guessed.

“Come on, get it, Yagi!” Kirishima cheered for me. I tossed it up in the air a bit as I took my stance before I threw it as hard as I could, using my flames once again to rocket it into the air. 

“That was 790.6 meters.” Mr Aizawa informed me. 

“Wait, what?!” I asked, looking at my teacher.

“That’s it? Kinda disappointing.” Sero mumbled. 

“You’ve had a single semester at UA, and due to your various experiences, all of you have definitely improved. But, those improvements have mostly been limited to mental prowess and technical skill with a slight increase in stamina thrown in along the way. Your Quirks really haven’t grown that much stronger, not on a fundamental level.” Mr Aizawa informed us.

“That’s the reason for the training camp, right? To increase the strength of our Quirks.” I asked, getting a nod of affirmation from our teacher. 

“The goal of this training camp is to focus on improving your powers.” Our teacher grinned then, putting every last one of us on edge. “This’ll be so hard, you’ll feel like you’re dying. Let’s hope you all survive.” With that, our training began. I decided to work more with my fire since that was the weaker part of my Quirk, and try to figure out my mobility without using my wings… I started by maintaining my flames around me. I closed my eyes, listening to the sounds around me. I could hear Shoto training his quirk by switching between his fire and ice, Bakugo’s explosions going off every so often, and Iida’s engines speeding by every few minutes, though it got drowned out by Bakugo’s explosions every other time he passed me. After a few hours, I switched gears and did combat training with Tiger. But, for some reason, he had me do it blindfolded.

“In situations where you can’t see your opponent, most heroes gain a fatal disadvantage over the villain they’re facing. You, little bird, are an excellent fighter, but that will mean next to nothing if you can’t fight while your opponent isn't within your sights. Rather than rely on your sight, use your other senses to find your opponent and wait for the right time to counterattack.” Tiger told me. I could practically imagine him off to the side, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched. I hadn’t been told who my opponent would be, so I listened for any sign of who it might be. A sound came from my left, and I was able to block an attack that felt familiar. I ignited my hand, and a whine told me it was Dark Shadow. 

“Aww, how did you know it was me? Fumi and I were so quiet.” Dark Shadow asked me.

“I’d never forget how your touch feels, Dark Shadow.” I informed him before Tokoyami and I sparred for a bit.

“This is not only to help you with fighting when you’re not able to see, Yagi, but also to help Tokoyami strengthen Dark Shadow in the light. After lunch, the two of you will spar in a cave, that way Tokoyami can have a way to practice controlling Dark Shadow in the darkness as well.” Tiger told us, and we kept going until lunch. After we ate, Tokoyami and I sparred in darkness, with me not using my flames unless absolutely necessary, but….

Lemme tell you, while I was expecting Dark Shadow to be stronger in darkness, what I wasn’t expecting was for how damn scary that Quirk would look. Dark Shadow practically blended into the darkness except for his eyes being red, which worked as a way to track him, but still… It was kind of jarring. After a while, Dark Shadow started fighting with his eyes closed, making it harder except for the sounds coming from him, which were pretty much non-existent. I had a few close calls, but it only ended when the time to start dinner was called. 

“Now, remember what I said? We’re not serving your food anymore!” PIxie Bob reminded us.

“If you guys wanna eat, you’ll have to make your own meals! Starting with curry!” Ragdoll told us. By that point, we were all pretty tired.

“Yes, ma’am.” Most of us gave a lackluster response due to our exhaustion. Ragdoll giggled.

“Oh man, do you guys look exhausted! But, that doesn’t mean you can coast by making sloppy cat food.” Ragdoll warned.

“Oh! I see. An important part of saving someone recovering from a disaster is providing for their physical needs as well as spiritual. Ah! This is a great opportunity! Let’s make the most delicious curry in the world, everyone!” Iida immediately jumped back to his normal energy.

“How the hell are you even human?!” I snapped in my exhaustion.

“Yeah, okay.” Everyone else replied. I ignited the grill I was at, seeing Shoto doing the same with his group’s.

“Hey, Todoroki, can we get some fire over here too?” Mina asked him. On my other side, Sero turned to Bakugo.

“Bakugo, use an explosion to light that.” Sero told him.

“Uh, that’s a bad…” I started to warn, only to get cut off by Bakugo.

“This is so beneath me!” Bakugo snapped, doing it anyway and ended up destroying the grill altogether.

“Too much!” Tokoyami exclaimed, while I sighed.

“Rely on others and you’ll never learn to start a fire yourself.” Yaomomo put in before using her Quirk to make a lighter. “We should focus on acquiring new skills.” I snorted at the look on Kyoka’s face before I noticed Shoto walking over to Mina to help them.

“Here. Let me.” Shoto created a small flame with his left hand before using it to ignite the grill Mina and Ochaco were working off of. 

“Wow! Thank you so much!” Ochaco thanked him.

“Burn, baby, burn!” Mina cheered.

“But not too hot, okay?” Ochaco asked. The smile that crossed his face made my heart melt. I’d never seen him smile like that as a result of his fire. After the cooking, everyone sat down to eat.

“If I got this at a restaurant, I’d send it back, but after today, I’ll eat every bite!” Kirishima spoke as he scarfed down his food. 

“Don’t say that!” Sero told him. 

“Whoa, you’re scarfing, Momo!” Mina observed.

“Yes. My Quirk transforms lipids into brand new atoms to create inorganic materials. That means, the more I eat, the more I can make.” Yaomomo explained.

“Like how poop works.” Sero pointed out, making Kyoka, Yaomomo and I stop eating. My hair flared as I jumped out of my seat, poor Yaomomo embarrassed as hell, but Kyoka punched Sero and beat me to it.

“APOLOGIZE!” We both yelled at him.

“Okay, I’m sorry!” Sero whined. My anger didn’t last long, because I noticed Kota walking away as Mandalay called for him. I thought about going after him since I was finished eating, but I thought better of it. I wouldn't even know what to say and besides, a little while after Kota left, I saw Izuku leave with a plate to go after him. I decided to leave it to him, though knowing how Kota felt at that age, I knew Kota wouldn't listen to anything that was said. Actions spoke a hell of a lot louder than words… Same time the next morning, we kept at it, with me pretty much blasting with my flames all over the place to maintain airtime… Even though it hurt like absolute hell. By the time lunchtime hit, my hands were practically blistered from burns. Well… At least the training is strengthening my skin against my fire. I thought.

“I really gotta find a different way of doing this…” I mumbled.

“Oh man, those look pretty nasty.” Kirishima commented, though half asleep. According to Mina, they didn’t get back from their remedial lessons until nearly two in the morning, which explained Kirishima’s tired state.

“I’ll be fine.” I waved it off, washing my hands under lukewarm water. By now, I knew better than to run my burnt hands under freezing cold water. The cold water had just made things worse the day before… After lunch, we kept going, Tokoyami and I fighting in the darkness of the cave again. I barely used my flames except for small little bursts. The training though made me wonder why Tokoyami had said that Dark Shadow’s harder to control at night. Yeah, he’s more powerful and more aggressive in his attacks, but not once did Dark Shadow seem out of control. It made me wonder if there was more to it than just the darkness to release Dark Shadow’s darker tendencies…

After a hardcore training day that second day, Yaomomo and I ended up warning the girls of Class B about Mineta and his pervy tendencies, and sure as shit, he tried peeking on them. Mina, the girls and I had stationed ourselves to catch him in the act and the second he tried, Kyoka got him with her earphone Jack and Mina melted the wall. He tried to make a break for it, but I used my wings to get ahead of him. “Not so fast, pipsqueak!” I barked, making him stop in his tracks and scream, running right into the trap we’d set for him.

“Gotcha, ya little perv!” Toru exclaimed.

“Why the hell are you guys all clothed! This is a bathhouse, you should be naked!” The look on his face turned disgusting. “I can strip down too…”

“Kendo.” Kairi spoke the Class B president’s name and without a word, Kendo knocked Mineta the hell out. I groaned. 

“This is starting to get on my last nerve already.” I snapped.

“He really is the worst.” Ochaco agreed.

“Thanks for the heads up, girls.” Kendo thanked us.

“It’s not trouble at all.” Yaomomo replied.

“We knew he’d try something like he did last night.” I shrugged, waving off the thank you from her. I remained quiet as Kendo and the girls from Class 1-B gave us a bag of snacks as a thank you, Toru’s reply being that we should have a sleepover type deal to chow down and eat it all. I just listened to everyone as we went back to our dorm room. After Kendo and the girls got their stuff, they joined us in our room. The girls debated what to talk about before Toru brought up the dreaded subject… Love.

“We should talk about love! Has anyone had a boyfriend?” Toru asked. Everybody was dead quiet, although Kairi looked at me. She knew my history already, and I knew that she was dating Tetsutetsu. But we weren't about to say shit about the other… Kairi suddenly looked worried.

“Hino… I think it might be time to tell them.” Kairi hesitantly told me. I just looked at her. I really didn't want to relive the nightmare that was my relationship with Akako.

“Wait, about what?” Kyoka asked. Kairi waited for me, looking apologetic but unbudging.

“Before I got to UA, I had a boyfriend. But…” I sighed deeply. “It wasn’t a good relationship.” I turned my back to the girls and lifted my hair off my neck. On the back of my neck were scars from Yūgure’s Bloodwork quirk. I could hear gasps of horror coming from the girls as soon as the scars were shown. “I don’t talk about it a lot, but the scars on the back of my neck are from his quirk. He… Used it to make me do things he wanted me to… One of which being my first kiss.”

“What?!” All the girls except for Kairi exclaimed, sounding completely horrified.

“Nu-uh, that shouldn't count!” Mina shouted.

“Wait, so, he used his quirk to hurt you?” Ochaco asked.

“I get it now…” Kyoka murmured after a minute. “After all that, why would you want to date just to get hurt again?” When I turned around again, Kyoka looked worried too.

“Exactly. Besides, training to be a hero is more important right now.” I replied, albeit a bit gravely. It was dead silent.

“Well, that went depressing in three point five seconds." Toru grumbled.

“Sorry, guys.” I shrugged. Kairi spoke up then.

“Well… With training and all, there’s barely any time, but…” Kairi blushed. “Tetsutetsu and I are dating.” Mina instantly turned on Kairi, hounding her with questions. Kairi was blushing as she recounted the story of how Tetsutetsu had asked her to eat lunch with him at the Sports Festival, and how they’d pretty much hit it off and started going on dates on Sundays ever since. They did homework together, had lunch together and usually finished it off by going on a walk together. The girls swooned after the story, her classmates hugging her. I had to say, it was nice to hear that Tetsutetsu was making Kairi happy. She deserved it. 

“Okay, well, what about crushes?” Mina asked. I looked at Ochaco, who looked extremely red. I grinned, wanting to blurt it out, but decided against it. I was, after all, a hero and heroes didn't blurt out friends’ secrets. I listened as the girls debated about who would make the best boyfriend, each getting shut down for one reason or another, Bakugo being shot down for his obvious temper and Shoto getting shot down because of his Dad, and all of us agreeing that anyone was better than Mineta. The topic then shifted to who’s Quirks we’d wanna try out. Ochaco said Bakugo right off the bat, and I noticed that the other girls quickly followed suit.

“Kinda funny how it’s easier to talk about guys when the topic is off romance, isn’t it?” I pointed out after a second of silence.

“Well, you can’t help when you fall in love. It’s something that naturally happens. When that happens, we can talk about romance again.” Tsu chimed in.

“True.” I agreed.

“Wait, what’d you think makes a good boyfriend, Hino?” Mina asked me.

“I thought we’d jumped off the romance train already.” I reminded her, raising an eyebrow.

“Come on, please.” Ochaco begged. I leaned back against the wall, thinking for a minute as I looked up at the ceiling. 

“Someone who inspires you to be better, and not just in the hero aspect. Someone you can be your genuine self with and it comes naturally…” I shrugged. “That’s how it was for my Mom, though she never did get the chance to do anything about it.” I relented. When I turned my attention back to the girls, they had all gathered around me and were smiling like idiots. “What?” I pressed.

“For someone who avoids romance, you seem to think about it a lot.” Mina teased.

“I don’t, I just know what I want in a relationship.” As much as I like Bakugo and Shoto, I’m not ready… I added in my head. The girls strayed away from the romance topic again while I listened in, smiling a bit at the girls. I really was lucky to have them all as friends, as annoying as they could be...

The past couple nights, the nightmares had been going but then, that particular night, the nightmares suddenly stopped. Honestly, it felt more concerning to me than the nightmare itself. From the moment I woke up, I had a sense of dread, like something was bound to happen… I tried to shake it off as I trained that day, but things seemed off.

“Don’t lose focus! Each of you can move faster, and no matter what you’re doing, just remember where you started from. Don’t forget who you were before UA. Always keep in mind why you’re sweating, and why your limits keep getting tested. That’s what it means to improve.” Mr Aizawa told us.

“Hey, that reminds me… Mr Aizawa, it’s already the third day of camp.” Izuku stopped what he was doing to approach our teacher as I lost focus for a second and fell to the dirt. As I dusted myself, I listened to the conversation that was going on.

“Weren’t you listening? Stay focused.” Mr Aizawa told him, jumping down from his spot to be level with Izuku.

“I was just wondering if All Might-I mean, the other teachers from UA will be joining us.” Izuku wondered. 

“Like I said before we came out here, to keep the camp a secret from the villains, hardly anyone knows where we are.” Mr Aizawa answered.

“That’s why you get to work out with us four pussycats!” Ragdoll chimed in from an upper part of the training area, specifically where Mr Aizawa had jumped down from. 

“And think about it… We believe All Might’s one of the League’s targets, so we can’t have him here.” Mr Aizawa continued. “It’s for your own safety. For better or for worse, that’s what he gets for standing out so much.” Mr Aizawa snickered a bit after speaking. Seems like it's mostly for worse these days... I thought as I got back to training.

“More importantly, tonight’s gonna be fun! We’re pitting classes against each other in a test of courage. I know you’ve been training hard today, and later, you’ll get to play hard! How’s that for a reward?!” Pixie Bob informed us. 

“It just sounds like more training.” I heard Kendo say as I tried while firing off flames from my feet to try flying that way, though honestly I knew that way was more levitating in the air with my flames coming out of my feet like rocket boosters… 

“And training in the dark, no less.” Kyoka followed Kendo’s lead. 

“Revelry in the dark…” I definitely should have known something was up when Tokoyami started that weird stuff…

“How much can we do in one day?” I heard one of the Class B boys question.

“At least we’ll get to beat Class A, am I right?” Monoma replied.

“Not likely!” I sing-songed chaotically as I flew past them from overhead. 

“Don’t slack now! Make sure you keep pushing yourself as you work!” Pixie Bob told us.

“Yes ma’am!” We all exclaimed in return. After lunch, I went to the usual training with Tokoyami in the darkness of the cave again. After a few minutes, the attacks from Dark Shadow suddenly stopped.

“You seem unfocused, Yagi, what’s troubling you?” Tokoyami asked.

“It’s that obvious?” I asked, surprised that Tokoyami had caught that something was up.

“Call it instinct.” I could practically hear him shrugging. I sighed, putting down my guard for a second.

“It’s just… I’ve been having these nightmares lately… But all of a sudden, last night, they just… Stopped.” I told him.

“That would be a good thing then, should it not?” Tokoyami sounded confused.

“Normally, yeah, but… I don’t know, ever since this morning, I’ve just had this sense of dread…” I trailed off.

“There’s no sense dwelling on what could happen, it’s wiser to stay in the present moment and to take things one step at a time.” Tokoyami advised. I smiled a bit.

“Thanks, Tokoyami.” I thanked him before we went at it again. That night at dinner, I was carrying firewood over to my group’s grill when I noticed Bakugo cutting some vegetables… Quick and efficient. “Whoa, you’re pretty good with that knife, Bakugo.” I complimented him.

“It’s kinda weird…” Ochaco trailed off, having noticed too.

“WHADDYA MEAN, IT’S WEIRD?! HOW CAN YOU PEOPLE BE SO DAMN BAD AT EVERYTHING?!” Bakugo blew up, making me roll my eyes as I walked away.

“Look at that, he’s not blowing stuff up.” Kaminari commented as he passed by.

“I’m too tired for this…” I heard Kirishima murmur, looking fed up. That, my friend, is a complete mood. I thought as I set the wood down at my group’s grill.

“Did you need All Might for a particular reason?” I heard Shoto ask Izuku. “You asked Mr Aizawa about him.”

“Yeah… Um, I did… Because of Kota.” Izuku replied.

“Kota? Who’s that?” Shoto asked.

“He’s Mandalay’s nephew.” I answered his question.

“He’s right over…” Izuku tried to point him out, but the kid had already taken off to his hideout again. “Anyway, Kota doesn’t like heroes. Actually, he hates the whole concept of superhumans, Quirks and everything. I tried to talk to him, but I think I just made things worse. I was just wondering what All Might would have done to help him if he’d been here.” I mean, what would you say to him, Todoroki?” Izuku asked. Shoto seemed to think about it for a minute.

“It depends…” Todoroki trailed off.

“Of course! Sorry I asked!” Izuku apologized. 

“To have a complete stranger try to change your mindset sounds like a pretty irritating conversation. What matters are actions. You have to show him what you’re trying to prove, right? If you’re going to rely on words alone, then they’d better be incredibly powerful. What you say doesn’t matter near as much as what you actually do.” Shoto told him. I smiled a bit.

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.” I told him.

“You’re right. I went about this the wrong way… How can I, a stranger, say anything to him?” Izuku questioned.

“I don’t know what your goal is when it comes to this child, but it sounds to me like you shouldn’t be sticking your nose in a delicate situation. You tend to cut to the heart of people’s feelings… It can be annoying…”

“Right, sorry about that.” Izuku apologized again, making me snort. 

“You guys! Your hands aren’t moving! We’ll never make the best stew if you stop now.” Iida scolded. After I finished dinner, I decided to go see how Kota was doing and make sure he got something to eat. To be honest, finding him wasn’t all that hard. His hideout was a cliffside with a cave at the back of it, and a trail led right to him. He was scowling over everything when I reached him. When I landed and tucked my wings away, I could hear his stomach growling.

“I heard that, Spunky.” I told him, making his attention turn toward me. “I’m sure you worked up an appetite today.”

“How the heck do you guys keep finding me?!” Kota hissed, jumping up and looking like a cat that was growling with its fur on end. I set the bowl of stew next to him, sitting on the other side of it as I pointed upward toward the sky.

“Sometimes it’s worth it to get a bird’s eye view of everything.” I told him.

“I don’t believe you! You don’t even have wings!” Kota snapped.

“Some people have Quirks that allow them to fly without wings, but..” I let my wings out just then, letting him see them. “I don’t keep mine out most of the time.” I then turned my attention to the stars as I tucked my wings away again. “I can see why you keep coming up here, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more beautiful view of the stars than up here.” Kota was quiet then, but another growl of his stomach sounded off, followed by the sound of a spoon hitting the bowl I'd brought him. I didn’t look, just smiled a bit as I let him dig in. I hoped that we would never get in a situation where we could prove to Kota what a real hero was all about, but for now, I couldn’t really say anything. Like Shoto had said, and I knew extremely well, actions spoke a lot louder than words. You could say something all you wanted, but without actions to prove it… It was no use. Once the sounds of him eating stopped, I spoke up again. “It’s getting late, we should head back to the others.” I told him, looking at him.

“And hang around a bunch of wannabe losers? No thanks.” Kota snarled, stubborn as ever. I shrugged a bit. 

“Okay, but you’ll miss out on seeing those wannabes wet their pants in a test of courage.” I grinned a bit, though it faltered when he didn’t budge. I sighed a bit, letting my wings out to take off, but getting an idea. I took a loose feather off my left wing and gave it to him.

“What’s this for?” Kota asked, and honestly, I was surprised he didn't just drop it down the cliff.

“Just in case you get into trouble or just don’t wanna walk back, you can tap it three times and I’ll feel it.” I told him. He gave me another look that screamed he didn’t believe me. “Try it.” I told him. That was when the little shit decided to pull on a piece of it. My wings flinched in response. “Ow, hey!” I laughed a bit. He looked intrigued. “Seriously, if you need help, use that to let me know and I’ll come flying to help you… Literally.” I grinned before taking the empty bowl back to camp and washing it just as everyone else finished with the dishes.

“There you are, where’d you end up going?” Shoto asked.

“I made sure Kota got something to eat. I’d hoped I’d be able to get him to come back with me, but no such luck.” I answered.

“Brat’ll be fine, you worry too much.” Bakugo growled as he stormed past us.

“It’s not like I entirely have nothing to worry about, idiot. There’s still wildlife out and about.” I told him.

“I’m sure he’ll be fine.” Shoto tried to reassure me, but the dread just kept building up. Something was completely wrong, but I couldn’t sense any taps on the feather I gave him, so at least he was safe for now. I tried to shrug it off, gathering with the others as we were brought to a clearing in the forest a bit ways away from the main building. 

“Perfect! We’ve filled our bellies and cleaned the dishes. It’s time for….” Pixie Bob started to announce. 

“A totally awesome test of courage!” Mina squealed in excitement, finishing for our mentor of the week.

“We’re gonna win!” Sero, Kirishima, Sato and Kaminari all chimed in.

“Not so fast. It pains me to say it, but the remedial class will be having lessons with me tonight instead.” Mr. Aizawa corrected.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!” Mina exclaimed, her excitement instantly deflated.

“Sorry. Your training during the day didn’t impress me, so I’ll be using this time too.” Mr Aizawa wrapped his scarf around the four boys and Mina and dragged them back.

“Aw, give me a break!” Sero, Kaminari and Mina protested.

“I just wanna test my courage!” Sato and Kirishima added in.

“Okay, so,” And we’re just gonna gloss over that like it didn’t happen? “Class B is gonna start out as our scarers. When they’re in place, Class A will leave in pairs every three minutes. There are tags with your names on them at the far end of the route. Your goal is to collect those.” Pixie Bob explained.

“Revelry in the dark…” Tokoyami muttered again. Why does he keep saying that?! I thought. 

“Now, those who are scarers aren’t allowed to make physical contact. Use your Quirks to terrify the others. Got it?”

“The winners are the creative students who make the most people piss their pants!” Tiger finished.

“Did we really need that visual?” Kyoka and I wondered at the same time. 

“I see! They’re encouraging us to stoke our imaginations as we compete with each other, all while showing us more uses for our Quirks in the process. As expected of UA!” Iida passionately exclaimed, making me facepalm.

“All right! Everyone, draw to see who your partner will be.” Pixie Bob told us. Shouji ended up paired with Tokoyami, Bakugo- funny enough- ended up with Shoto, Kyoka ended up paired with Toru, Yaomomo ended up paired with Aoyama, Ochaco ended up paired with Tsu, Ojiro ended up being paired with Mineta, Iida ended up paired with Koda, and I ended up paired with Izuku as the last group.

“Okay, so we’re together in this one…” I trailed off before I heard Bakugo.

“Listen up, Tail. Trade with me.” Bakugo demanded, jabbing his thumb at Shoto over his shoulder. 

“Aoyama….” I recoiled when I saw Mineta practically salivating with an aura of pervertedness around him as he stalked toward poor Yaomomo and Aoyama. “Please switch me partners, I should be with her!” Aoyama pretty much kept Yaomomo blocked from Mineta and kept his hands up, shaking his head. During the chaos, Tokoyami gave out another,

“Revelry in the dark.” The sense of dread seemed to get worse every time he said that…

“Next team! That’s you two kittens, Ribbity and Miss Floater.” Pixie Bob called to the next team about 12 minutes later. After a minute, though, I noticed a blue glow and the sense of dread got even worse. She suddenly sniffed the air.

“Huh… What’s that weird smell in the air?” Pixie Bob asked.

“Guys…” I trailed off, pointing toward where it was coming from. 

“Black smoke…” Mandalay observed.

“Has something been set ablaze?” Iida asked. 

“Maybe a fire on the mountain?” Ojiro added.

“No fire I know burns blue… Something’s up.” I answered. All of a sudden, Pixie Bob levitated into the air. 

“Hey, what’s happening?!” She exclaimed.

“Pixie Bob!” Mandalay called out to her. Before long, she was on the ground, bleeding from her head.

“First, let’s get rid of these feral cats.”

“What? No way!” Mineta backed up, looking as horrified as I felt. “I thought they made sure no one could find us! So why the heck are villains attacking this place?!” He shrieked. There were two people in front of us. The first was a woman (to be honest, she looked and sounded like a man to me) with quite a wide, muscular build. Her shoulder-length hair was smooth, and a reddish magenta color, her rather square jaw was also thinly covered in facial hair. Her lips were notably big, kinda like Sato’s except more pink. She wore triangular, white-framed sunglasses, obscuring her eyes. Along with these, she also wore a dark orange shirt, which was unbuttoned revealing the white v-neck she had on underneath, blue jeans with a belt, and plain dark brown espadrilles on her feet. The second was a man with a reptile-like appearance, with green scales for skin and a face shaped like that of a gecko. His hair was very long pink-purple hair and swept backwards, which stood out. He wore clothes that reminded me of Stain, the same mask, red scarf… Except his outfit was different: sleeveless shirt with blue spots and dark, baggy pants, along with black shoes and pale, metallic knee guards. He also had bandages wrapped around his arms and goggles on his head. The woman’s eyes seemed to turn toward me and I felt the feeling get worse…

“Pixie Bob!” Izuku shouted, but got stopped by Tiger and Mandalay. 

“This is bad…” Mandalay murmured. That’s when I realized Kota was still missing.

“Where’s Kota?!” Izuku asked, realizing Kita's absence too.

“He’s still at his hideout, I think…” I went quiet when I felt a sensation. My eyes widened when I realized that it was coming from the spot I had pulled my feather from… Three taps, quick, panicked… Kota was in trouble… “Oh shit…” I trailed off.

“What’s wrong?” Izuku asked.

“I gave Kota one of my feathers, told him to tap it three times if he ever needed help… I just felt it.” I told him. “We need to get to him…”

“Well, that’s a stroke of luck. One of the kids we need is right there.” The woman interrupted, and when I turned my attention to her, she was pointing right at me. Wait, one of the kids? I thought. 

“So? Use your Quirk and get her!" The male replied.

“If I do, it could hurt her, and our orders were clear. She’s not to be harmed, not even a scratch.” The female told him.

Attention, everyone! Mandalay’s voice suddenly sounded in my head, and I knew she was using her Quirk to let everyone know what was going on. Two villains attacked us. It’s possible that there are more coming. Everyone, return to camp immediately. We’re regrouping. Do not engage any enemies. 

“How are you this evening, UA High School? We are part of the Vanguard Action Squad of the League of Villains.” The male informed us. Shigaraki must be calling in that private talk he was talking about last time we met… Shit, this is bad. I thought.

“The League of Villains? What are those guys doing here?” Ojiro asked.

“I could crush this kitty’s head so easily. How about it, dears, should I?” The woman asked.

“Leave her alone!” I shouted. I wanted to do something about it so badly, but I knew I couldn’t. 

“You get away from her!” Tiger shouted the same time I yelled. 

“Now, now, hold on Big Sis Mag. You too, Tiger, calm down. When deciding if someone should live or die, we must be careful that we’re abiding by Stain’s principles.” The male interrupted.

“Stain?” Izuku and I murmured at the same time.

“So, you’re the ones he ended up inspiring.” Iida snarled.

“At your service. That’s us.” The male spread his arms out. “And you, four eyes, I believe I recognize you. You’re one of the self righteous brats who attacked Stain in Hosu City. Let me introduce myself.” He drew a huge sword that was mainly composed of a shit ton of knives and blades belted and taped together as one. “Call me Spinner. I’m here to make Stain’s dreams a reality.” I felt the three taps again, more urgent this time. I should have gone with the first three…

“I’m sorry, Mandalay, but I have to go find Kota before he gets hurt!” I apologized to her as I took off, flying as fast as I could towards the hideout. Kota, please be okay! I thought, my heart racing hard in my chest. When I finally found him at his hideout, someone had gotten there first, and it was the last person I expected to see there… Wendigo. "NO!" I roared, flying faster and praying my wings would get me there faster than Wendigo could move. Just as Wendigo brought his claw down to attack Kota, I got there, landing in front of Kota and stopping the attack mid-swing. “Kota, get out of here! Run!” I yelled at him.

“But…”

“Kota, I know you’re scared, but I can’t take this guy down if you’re within range of getting burned by my flames. I can’t take the risk of you getting hurt, just run!” I pleaded with him, struggling to hold back Wendigo. He’d gotten stronger, but I just had to hold off Wendigo until Kota got back to camp… I couldn’t let Wendigo get to the others, so many could die if I let it happen… No. I wouldn’t let it happen! I yelled as I burned Wendigo, shoving him and causing him to slide back. “Come on, ya son of a bitch!” I taunted, creating a fire whip and cracking it at him. He gave a blood curdling screech, but I was ready for him. I whipped him a couple times before he figured out how to dodge it and lunged for me. I quickly blasted him with my other hand, fighting as best as I could against a human with basically animal-like tendencies.

There was no pattern, and I could barely see him. But, I knew Wendigo could only see me if I moved, and I only moved when he did. I could only hope that Kota had gotten to safety in the nick of time. I fought as hard as I could, glancing over my shoulder every now and then to check where Kota had run off to. I felt a cut and cried out in pain as an attack, one that I wasn't paying attention to in my worry for Kota, hit and caused my old scars reopening like in my nightmare. But after a while, I spotted Kota poking his head out of hiding. Wendigo lunged for him, but that gave me an opening. “Get back here!” I was able to crack my whip and yank him back into me, giving a yell as I slammed him into the ground and burned him so much that he passed the hell out. By the time the fight between Wendigo and I was over, I was exhausted, and the skin on my palms was starting to scar. Just as I felt like I was about to collapse, I felt a force knock into me and small arms around my waist. Once I was steady, I looked down to see Kota, hugging me tightly.

“You came.” Kota sniffled. I knelt to his height and hugged him back.

“You called. I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to get here sooner, are you hurt?” I asked. He silently shook his head. I sighed in relief. “Good, that was too close of a call. We need to get you back to camp and fast…” He suddenly looked extremely pale, looking behind me. When I turned, I shielded him with my body as a tall figure cloaked in a black robe with a hood and some type of mask covering his face, my wings coming out wrap around him protectively.

“Well, well, I came up here scouting for a nice vantage point, and here I find someone on our list and another someone not on it. By the way, nice hat, kid. I like it.” He pointed to the mask covering his face. “Why don’t ya trade me for this lame mask, huh? They made me wear it because I’m new, said they couldn’t get a shipment of the good ones in time.” He took the mask off and tossed it to the side. “Ah well…”

“Kota, run!” I shoved the kid behind me and, this time, he listened to me. The cloaked man moved to get in front of him and I was just barely fast enough to get between the two again. “STAY AWAY FROM HIM!” I yelled, slamming my flames down to create a wall. He only laughed though.

“Feisty, huh? It’s been a while since I had a good fight! Why don’t you and I have some fun up here, kid? Ready?” His arm suddenly warped until the muscles in his body were covering all of his upper body except his neck. I thought the fight with Wendigo was hard, but this? I could tell this guy was way stronger… The guy was a large, bulky, and highly muscular man set wide with short, spiky, sandy blond hair and tiny black eyes. He has a large scar across the left side of his face, his left eye replaced with a prosthetic one, and another, smaller scar on the right side of his forehead. Underneath the black cloak was a red tank top, a dark jacket that hangs around his waist, dark green pants, and black knee-high boots.

“Papa! Mama!” Kota cried out, tears running down his face. His cry confirmed that this was, indeed, the man who had taken out his parents. My instincts were going crazy with a need to protect the boy behind me. As the villain punched downward, creating a trench and causing rocks to go flying, I dodged the attack, grabbing Kota and wrapping my wings around him as I hit the ground hard and rolled to my feet, placing Kota behind me again as I let my wings extend behind me, making me appear bigger. It did nothing to intimidate him though, the villain just laughed at me.

“You wanna rumble, little bird? Let's rumble!” The villain yelled as I charged, the two of us locking in the middle. I was tired as hell, bleeding out from my reopened scars… I knew I wouldn't be able to last long in this fight, but I had to try to protect Kota… I couldn't let what happened to his parents happen to him…

I just couldn't!

(Tag list: @qweenexplosionmurder13 @iheartbarbie)

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[thewitchwannabe]

The Masked Kunoichi

Despite things in New York having been relatively calm the past 2 years, or as calm as things can be in this city, Leona still made sure to go out to patrol every other day. Sometimes her brothers would tag along, and they’d do a few runs to keep up their skill. Other times Donny would go out in her place, to both give Leo a break, and to give himself a chance to disconnect from his projects. But it was mostly her, she still didn’t think Mikey and Raph were ready to go out on their own, despite Raph’s complaints. When the Shredder left New York he took most of the Foot with him. And the ones who remained tended to carry out minor crimes. But it was still dangerous, whenever Leona encountered them during her patrols, she’d fight them and leave them tied up for the police. This was one of those times, as she was making her final run before heading back home, she caught sight of a couple of foot ninjas breaking into a chemical lab. She quickly send a text of the situation to the family group chat informing them that she’ll be slightly late. 

Leona moved closer to the situation, counting up to five foot soldiers.  down from the roof she was at, landing perfectly silent. Sticking to the shadows, Leona approached the ninja that was keeping watch. With a swift hit at their head the ninja fell, Leo catched them before they hit the floor and placed them quietly against the wall. She then made her way inside the lab, she tried to knock out another ninja, but as they fell they knocked over some test tubes immediately alerting the other three.

The ninja quickly drew their weapons out, two had katanas and the other had a bunch of shurikens. Leona kneeled avoiding the throwing stars coming her way, acting quickly she exploded a smoke bomb to change her location to the other side of the room. The ninja looked around the room trying to pinpoint where she had moved to. When she assumed her new position she threw a shuriken of her own to a glass cabinet on the other side of the room, breaking it and making the ninja turn their backs to her. She then leaped at them with both her swords drawn, she took a swing at one of the katana users, but the other one blocked her. Using her second sword, she took another swing to attack her blocker. She immediately dropped down and slid her leg in a circular motion making both of them fall. Leona kicked both swords as far as she could, letting them crash against the wall. She turned to face the long range ninja who was already charging a variety of throwing weapons. Leona approached them using both her swords and her body to block and dodge the attacks coming at her. The ninja kept throwing kunais and shurikens at her at an exponentially increasing speed. She kept getting closer, jumping over the two ninja still moaning in pain on the floor until they were a few inches apart, when the ninja went to reach out for more they came out empty handed. “Finally ran out?” Leona asked with a slight smirk on her lips. With the hilt of her sword she hit the ninja knocking them out. She turned around as the other two were getting back to their feet. 

They got into position, Leona remained still ready to respond to their attacks. In unison both ninjas came at her, throwing kicks and punches. Leona would block each attack, analyzing their patterns. ‘Punch, punch, back away, kick, punch, repeat’, she thought. As they continue Leona would block and respond faster, and stronger. Both ninjas went in for a punch, but before they could pull away, Leona crossed her arms to catch the fist coming from the opposite direction. Then she uncrosses her arms, pulling the ninjas and making them crash into each other. She front flipped so she was behind them before swiftly turning around and giving them a good kick to their bodies that launched them to the wall, effectively knocking them out too. With all the enemies passed out, Leona dragged them all outside, and tied them all together, as well as gathering and checking all the weapons the long range ninja threw at her. She took some of the ones that seemed in best shape, and placed them with her own. Unlike the Foot, she and her family didn’t have easy access to weapons, so she’ll occasionally take some from the Foot. Stealing wasn’t her favorite thing, but she decided it was necessary. ‘Steal from a thief and you get 100 years of forgiveness’ she thought to herself. 

She quickly got to the roof of the chemical lab ready to finally head home, when her instincts picked up another presence. Her hand immediately went to the hilt of her sword as she turned around. Looking at her from a building slightly above the one she was standing, a short female figure stood looking at her. Leona couldn't see her face, because she was wearing a kitsune mask. The mask was white with red and black accents and had a mischievous smile painted on it. On her left hand she held a kusarigama, the chain wrapped around her opposite hand. With a little imagination, you could figure she was wearing what once was a regular foot uniform, but was clearly altered and paired with a red pair of matching shorts and crop top. What was clear on her person was the Shredder’s emblem on her belt. “So you’re back” Leona said, the masked kunoichi jumped from where she was standing and landed in front of her. Leo’s grip on her sword relaxed, and she returned to a normal stance. Her hand went up to the mask “I see you remember me” she pulled her mask off “Leona-chan”. The kunoichi smiled at her with a sly smile, her yellow eyes shining mischievously. “Karai,” Leona said with a smile “it’s been a while”. Karai let out a sigh, switching her weapon to her right hand so both the blade and the chain were together. “Yeah, dad wasn’t in any shape to come back and get revenge”. The kunoichi walked over to the edge of the building and took a seat, Leona followed. “To be honest I don’t think he should be back in action yet, but you know my dad”. 

Leona did know her dad, Oroku Saki, the Shredder, the one who tried to drain her father’s life force. According to her dad, the Foot and the Hamato clan had always been enemies, and the Foot made it its mission to get rid of the Hamato clan. So when the Shredder realized that it was Hamato ninjas who were fighting his ninjas, he became filled with a clan given mission to end Leona and her family. She and her brothers never learned much about their clan’s history, Splinter told them that what came before wasn’t important. Luckily for her, Karai seemed to not care much about fulfilling her clan’s ancient desires either. “So I can assume you’re not here to kill me, are you?” Leo said teasingly. Karai laughed, her laugh still sounding slightly unhinged as it did 2 years ago. “Of course not silly! I just wanted to find you before my father did” Karai said, “let you know we were back in New York myself”. Her expression changed to a more serious one, “My dad is about to start lots of havoc around the city”. Leona looked down at the street below them, already picturing the chaos that was gonna happen. 

She turned back to look at the human girl, “what kind of havoc?”, Leona asked. “You know the purple dragons?” Leona nodded, listening intently at Karai, “well they made a deal with my dad, and so they’re about to get a major upgrade”. Leo’s face increased in worry, the purple dragons were a big and dangerous gang, she and her brothers would stop them from time to time. “Dad has this new genius working for him, Dexter Stockmen or something like that” The kunoichi explained, “he’s not part of the clan, he made that clear, he’s just working with us for the resources' '. The girl was clearly not a fan of this new guy, although Karai didn’t exactly agree with the clan’s work, she was still loyal to the Foot and her father. So this guy who explicitly stated that he wasn’t part of the clan and still had his own agenda, put her on edge. 

Leona wasn’t sure what to think about this “Stockmen”, on one hand he was working with the Foot, so he was dangerous, but his questionable loyalty to them was something to keep in mind. She still knew nothing about what his personal goals are, and how working with the Foot played into them. She’ll have to ask Donnie to run a background check on this guy. “What about the Foot? What are you planning?” She asked. Karai's eyes opened wide, before returning to a mischievous smile. “Himitsu~1”, she said with a smile. Leona’s turned playfully annoyed, “really?! You’re not gonna tell me?”, she asked. Karai lets out a short giggle while she stands up “I gotta leave something for you to discover”. She pulled her kitsune mask over her face once again, she took a few steps back. “I’ll see you around, Leona-chan”, the masked kunoichi said before throwing a smoke bomb to the ground and disappearing.

Leona was left alone on the rooftop, a tired sigh left her lips. As much as she valued Karai’s friendship, she was still very much on her father’s side. Still her warning left Leo worried, more trouble was coming their way. She’ll have to talk to Master Splinter about it. She looked back at the city one more time before running back home.

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[atinytokki]

Mechanosis

Chapter 2: 불 (fire)

불

fire

Music drifted through Gyeongseong Station at four in the morning.

Usually, San was awoken by the chiming clock, and would ready himself for work then sit and watch the sunrise while Hongjoong slept in, tired from a late night before.

Today, they were both roused earlier than expected by the sweet melody of a flute in the station below.

Separating himself from a grumbling Hongjoong, San peeked down towards the tracks to find the mysterious flute player.

A woman stood there with a basket in front of her to collect coins from passing strangers, and from the looks of it had amassed a small amount already in the business of the morning commute to various factories across Hanseong.

People were resilient in the face of new problems, and San watched her play with a soft smile on his face, even though he had nothing to share with her.

The click of boots on the tile floor drew his attention away, and at the end of the corridor he saw the station inspector, making a beeline for the musician.

Disappointed, San watched him approach her and confiscate both her instrument and her money basket, claiming in a loud voice that such public performances were illegal as ordered by the Ministry of Technological Advancement.

She was sent away, dejected, with a warning and San retreated to his hiding place, where Hongjoong had dressed for work and was waiting for him.

They didn’t speak on the walk to Namsan, keeping their heads down and moving at as quick a pace as they could with Hongjoong only having half his vision and trying not to be run over by any of the steam-powered palanquins, wooden carts, and sundry vehicles taking to the roads in the morning.

Namsan factory was strangely abuzz with chatter when they arrived, and the pair nudged their way to the front of the crowd to attempt to find out what they were all staring at.

As he glanced up at the massive overhead sign meant to display a comparison of their daily quota with the currently produced number of machine parts to track their progress, San began to understand why.

The number was over twice as high as usual. It was outrageous.

Never in a single day could he produce so much, let alone Hongjoong who struggled to use his peripheral vision.

As his gaze swept the room, San noticed a few additions to the machines they typically worked with. Finally, a supervisor came forward to demonstrate the usage of a number of brand new saw-type machines added to the assembly line since yesterday.

“You may have noticed your daily quota has increased,” he stated redundantly. No one dared answer him. “This is due to our great Innovator’s newest design— an automatic blade that drops by itself every thirty seconds. You must work faster to keep up, so as a result our production will increase exponentially.”

“There are no guards or tethers,” Hongjoong muttered to San as he inspected it from afar. “Nothing to prevent it from chopping your fingers clean off if you aren’t quick enough.”

San forced down a gulp at the prospect. He knew he’d have to handle the metal monster soon enough, as the blade did not retract automatically, but would need to be pushed back up into its natural position after each usage.

He spent the work day getting acquainted with it as quickly as possible to avoid being punished by the supervisors. Their demands were especially high today, and a salary cut or even being laid off was too dangerous for someone in his position.

“Hurry up, you idiot!” A man suddenly yelled from farther down the line.

It took a moment, but San realised it was the worker on the left side of Hongjoong, yelling at him for being too slow again. Thankfully, they’d been placed a little behind the automatic saw contraption and were busy labelling metal sheets, but a few had congregated in Hongjoong’s space and clogged up the line as he struggled to see the new materials San was handing over from his right unless he turned his head constantly.

Attempting to placate the man, Hongjoong gave a small bow of apology and explained, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know more had come, I couldn’t see—”

The worker didn’t care to hear his excuses.

“You can see fine!” He argued in an irritated tone of voice. “Why do you wear that bandage still anyway? It’s been years!”

Without any sort of permission or cause, the man pushed himself into Hongjoong’s space and ripped the bandage from his head aggressively to prove his point.

Anger spiking inside him, San put himself between the two, first checking that Hongjoong was alright where he curled in on himself and pressed his hands to the burn scar on his face in rigid embarrassment.

When he saw the moisture in his hyung’s eyes, both tear ducts still intact, San wasn’t afraid to get in the worker’s face to fight back.

“How dare you? You know nothing about him, you should back off—”

“What’s going on there?”

A supervisor’s sharp scolding interrupted and all three participants bowed their heads in apology, none answering.

“Who is responsible for this?” The man asked, annoyed. Before either could get a word in edgewise, the other worker pointed at Hongjoong, who was now on the floor feeling around for his bandage, wherever it had fallen.

“Come here,” the supervisor ordered him, giving only seconds to act before he hauled Hongjoong up, taking his face in a tight grip and turning it back and forth after wrenching his protective hands away.

San clenched a fist at his side but forced himself not to act. They could still make it out of this with a warning.

Still, he saw the way Hongjoong’s face burned with crimson shame. It didn’t matter whether his eye was “healed” or not, he clearly couldn’t see out of it and the wounded appearance being viewed by others was something upsetting to Hongjoong. Even San had only seen his eye a number of times, mostly accidental.

“You’re fine,” the supervisor announced curtly before dishing out punishment. “Leave this factory. You will be paid nothing for the day, return tomorrow and do not slack off again. If you cause another incident, you’ll be dismissed on the spot. Now you’ve been forewarned.”

Stiffly, Hongjoong bowed his thanks and removed his work apron, head down so his hair would cover his face from view. The room was so quiet, San could swear he could hear his hyung’s heartbeat.

As soon as the supervisor’s back was turned, San snatched up the bandage and reapplied it on Hongjoong’s face, walking him to the entrance where they could share a few brief words.

“Hyung, I’m so sorry, I wish I could do something,” he told him sincerely.

Even with his eye covered, Hongjoong still wouldn’t look at him.

“Everyone was watching, the whole factory,” he whispered through tightness in his throat. “It was humiliating.”

“Hyung—”

“And now you’ll have to work alone!” Hongjoong let out a dark chuckle. “I’m sorry I’m so useless, I promise I’ll use the time to buy you food or something.”

“You’re not useless,” San insisted, maintaining eye contact for as long as he could until Hongjoong shook his head and glanced away.

“I’ll pick you up after work?” The older changed the subject, clearing his throat to remove any building emotion. San sighed in response, as always.

“Yes, I’ll see you then.”

“Be safe,” Hongjoong warned. “Take breaks if they let you.”

And that was it. San didn’t see him for the rest of the work day.

Despite knowing he wouldn’t be paid double, he worked twice as hard to cover Hongjoong’s absence anyway, wary of the worker next to him causing another incident.

At the end of the day, they were all trying to collect their pay and make it home. This man was no different.

Famished and hacking up what felt like all the moisture in his lungs, San didn’t even realise when closing time came without a single break for rest or water and he had labelled hundreds of products until the line stopped running and the workers began to clock out.

Blinking his bleary eyes, he glanced at the exit to see Hongjoong waiting for him. San’s feet moved towards his hyung of their own accord and his body practically melted into him.

“I’ve got you,” Hongjoong whispered so only he could hear, and San put his arms around the older man’s neck and climbed onto his back for the walk home. His legs could hardly carry him anymore.

“‘M hungry,” he whined, knowing he sounded like that fourteen year old child he’d been when they met those years ago. “Did you get food?”

“It’s waiting back at the hideout, Sannie,” Hongjoong consoled him with a pat to the knee as he navigated the crowded evening streets in the direction of the station. Home. “Just hang in there a little longer.”

Even when he had been laid down on his sleeping mat and food had been spooned into his mouth, the constant harsh cough wouldn’t let him sleep.

Whimpering from the pain in his throat, San curled up and let Hongjoong pet him, pushing sweaty hair off his forehead and placing a wet cloth on it.

“Does that feel better, Sannie?”

Sannie.

Hongjoong only used the nickname when San wasn’t doing well. Tonight was one of those nights. Perhaps worse than it had ever been before.

“Mhm,” he hummed in agreement, trying to coax a smile from his anxious hyung, but it wasn’t enough.

He was still in pain and his body felt like it was on fire.

For what seemed like hours, he squirmed in bed, throwing the blankets on when a chill overtook him and then off again when the fever spiked and the blankets were suffocating.

“So hot,” he cried, knowing he sounded pathetic and not caring about it. Everything hurt so bad, and there was no end in sight.

“I know you are, Sannie,” Hongjoong murmured, chewing on his lip nervously. “I’m going to go fetch some medicine, alright? Is it okay if I go do that?”

“What?” San whispered hoarsely, trying to rise from the bed in a panic. “N-No, don’t leave me alone, hyung, please.”

“I know and I’m sorry,” Hongjoong told him softly, gently removing his hand from where San was clutching him like a lifeline. “But I need to get something to bring your fever down and treat that horrible cough of yours. Don’t you want to sleep peacefully tonight?”

Tears filled San’s eyes. He did want to.

Peaceful sleep, uninterrupted by his torturous cough, sounded like a dream too good to be true. But he was afraid of closing his eyes and drifting away all alone. What if he couldn’t open them again? What if he died in his sleep right there and Hongjoong didn’t make it back in time?

Was he being abandoned right now?

“No, no, please,” San sobbed, outright crying now despite the spikes of pain in his throat every time he made noise. “You can’t leave me, we can’t afford medicine, I don’t want to die—”

Hongjoong shushed him reassuringly, hugging him close before laying him down again, leaving water and blankets in close reach. “You won’t die, San. You’re going to be fine, alright? I promise you.”

Lower lip trembling with the urge to sob aloud again, San nodded in acceptance of his promise.

If Hongjoong was promising, he meant it.

___

Yeosang tapped his fingernails against the counter idly. He was wrapping up his evening at the apothecary shop and neither Yunho nor his friend had made an appearance yet the entire day.

In fact, only a handful of people had made appearances at all and they were ministry officers, people Yeosang was wary of— and certainly not hoping to run into again.

There were days in his highly illegal career of ferrying traitors away from Joseon that had passed with much more thrill and exhilaration. Despite knowing those moments when he let his guard down were the most dangerous, Yeosang’s boredom couldn’t keep him awake, and he caught himself dozing off behind the desk three times before a customer entered and the chimes by the door alerted him.

“Hello? Could you help me?”

The raspy voice of the customer sounded, somewhat panicked, so Yeosang straightened his apron and flashed a reassuring smile. Years of pretending to be friendly for the yangban made it an easy habit to fall back on.

“Yes, what can I get for you?”

The man turned his head around and gave him a once-over, Yeosang returning the favour and taking stock of his visitor.

He looked to be about the same age, height on the shorter side, with dark, disheveled hair, and a curious bandage wrapped around his head, covering his right eye.

“Perhaps an ointment or optical treatment—” Yeosang commented, already reaching for the nearest shelf with eye cream.

“No, no, for my friend,” the customer panted, regaining his breath as he clearly must have run there. “His lungs are weak from the smoke and he’s worked himself to the point of sickness again.”

There was desperation written all over him, though he tried to rationally explain the symptoms.

“His cough is worse than usual, and he’s burning up with a terrible fever and these chills— he hasn’t been able to rest at all, he’s too uncomfortable— and I’m worried, please, tell me you have something for him.”

While Yeosang did have medicines stocked and was glad to sell them, he was painfully aware as he rifled through the supplies that he was no licensed apothecary and that his forays into chemistry didn’t typically involve experiments of a medical nature.

Most days, the shop was managed by an actual physician, one who would gladly step aside and take a day or two off when Yeosang needed access to his favourite central hub to keep an eye on someone.

“Well, there are a number of tonics here that could potentially bring down a fever,” he noted, trying to sound professional. Another chime from the door drew his gaze and immediately distracted him.

It was Yunho’s friend— the man who had reportedly been his servant before— entering the shop and idling near the skin treatments.

“Which is best?” The anxious customer asked, leaning over the front desk as if to see the vials Yeosang had in front of him. “I don’t care how expensive. I’ll give you everything I have, the clothes off my back if I have to.”

“Here,” Yeosang picked one at random and handed it to the man, not even glancing at the label. “Take this one. Go.”

“B-But how much is it?” He stuttered in surprise, turning the small bottle to find a price tag. From the way he blanched, it must have been expensive. “Won’t you ask me to pay?”

“No,” Yeosang practically hissed, eyes darting back and forth as he tracked the mysterious stranger across the room. He needed to speak with him, privately, and the interaction with this customer had gone on for too long. “It’s on the house, just take it for free. I trust you can see yourself out?”

“Yes, of course!” The man’s face brightened with gratitude and he pocketed the vial before heading for the exit, calling over his shoulder, “Thank you so much!”

Yeosang didn’t respond, eyes still on the tall stranger while the other customer left. Regardless of the number of times he had made contact with the important targets he spent so much time spying on, it was always slightly nerve wracking to initiate dangerous discussions with someone whom he may have misjudged.

Just as he was about to approach him and begin his investigation, the man moved towards the door and stopped in front of it suddenly.

The telltale sound of the lock clicking followed a moment later.

It seemed this man also desired a conversation alone with Yeosang. From the way his back tensed, it looked like he was poised to strike, and Yeosang found his fingers subconsciously moving towards the knives hidden under the desk.

Just as his hand wrapped around the handle, the stranger turned and launched himself over the desk, pinning Yeosang to the wall with a clockwork pistol to the forehead.

The knife in Yeosang’s hand was poised against the man’s neck, having been raised just in time to lock the two in an impasse.

“Who are you?” The stranger growled in a sonorously imposing voice.

Finally able to get a look at him now that he was so close, Yeosang noticed the intense glint in his small eyes, his sharp nose and the way his full lips were pressed together as he gritted his teeth. He looked seconds off from murder, and capable of it, too.

Yeosang decided to provoke him.

“What, you aren’t going to introduce yourself first? It seems only proper, seeing as you started the conversation.”

“Song Mingi,” he barked before leaning in closer, ever so subtly insecure that his intimidation wasn’t working.

“Jeong Yunho’s friend?” Yeosang confirmed, watching Mingi’s face tighten nearly imperceptibly at the name. “I’m Kang Yeosang. I only want to talk.”

“You’re a spy, aren’t you?” Mingi snapped back quickly, tilting his head almost mockingly. “Master Jeong put you up to this, didn’t he?”

Confusion clouded Yeosang’s mind for a moment before he realised what was going on, and answered calmly, “No, I don’t work for his father.”

The presence of the gun made itself known again, pushed harder into his temple as Mingi growled, “Then who?”

“Listen,” Yeosang huffed, lowering the knife and trying to squirm away. “If you’d let go of me, maybe I’ll explai—”

“Tell me who hired you!”

Yeosang froze as Mingi’s yell shook the apothecary shop. For a moment it was just  the sound of their breathing until Mingi realised he’d lost control of himself and took a small step back so Yeosang had room to lift his hands, palms out, between them.

“No one,” he explained slowly. “I work with a man they call the Mechanist. Not for him, with him.”

Mingi’s brow was furrowed in thought as he stared into space contemplatively. Clearly he hadn’t considered this as a possibility.

It gave Yeosang the space to slide out of his grip and return to his place behind the desk, hand falling on the knife again even while he faced the attacker standing behind him. Just in case.

“That’s why I needed to catch you alone in the shop,” he went on, as unthreateningly as possible. “So the spies tailing you wouldn’t be alerted.”

“Funny,” Mingi scoffed, crossing his arms. “That’s why we kept returning to the shop. Because we thought you were one of them, and thought to smoke you out.”

“Well!” Yeosang laughed awkwardly, hoping it would loosen Mingi up. “What a coincidence.”

When finally the man holstered his weapon, Yeosang allowed himself a moment of jealousy.

Seonghwa always insisted they operate on a no-technology fighting style. No clockwork, no steam engines, just good old fashioned household items. And crossbows.

“That’s a nice pistol you’ve got there,” he commented dryly. “Where’d you get it?”

Mingi responded with a deadpan, “Where do you think? My former master was an entrepreneur.” He cut straight to the point a moment later, “What is it you want with us then?”

Just as eager to drop the small talk and finish business before real customers began to wonder why the door was locked, Yeosang passed over a letter he’d written and sealed with Seonghwa’s stamp.

“To beg the help of your friend, Yunho. We believe he may be aligned with our cause and serve as a great asset to it.”

“And what would he receive in return?” Mingi snorted, taking the paper and turning it over in his hands as if to inspect its exterior.

“He’s a detective, isn’t he?” Yeosang asked rhetorically with a growing smile. “Perhaps I have some useful information for him.”

___

The day San’s fever broke, Hongjoong wasn’t home.

All week since giving him the medicine, he worked in the factory by day and tended to his friend by night.

There was no time for sleep, and rarely any time for finding food.

Still, San’s health would not improve without it, so he stole away from his bedside when he got the chance and traded his wages for groceries.

It was one such evening that San opened his misty eyes to see the crisscrossing metal beams of the station ceiling, no longer delirious but alone, and realised his life had been saved.

Nonetheless, he was in a panic when Hongjoong returned with his arms full of supplies that night, only to be tackled in a hug that he couldn’t pry himself out of.

“I thought you had left me,” San whispered when finally Hongjoong dropped his things and hugged him properly, no longer too stunned to react.

“Never,” Hongjoong insisted just as fiercely.

“Did you heal me?” San hesitantly asked over their late evening meal, much more shyly than Hongjoong was used to from him.

“The medicine healed you,” scoffed Hongjoong, shaking his head in joyous disbelief. “I just kept you comfortable as best as I could.”

“Thank you,” San replied softly, with a wide smile. His dimples were on full display, and he ate his food so vigorously, it put Hongjoong’s mind at ease that he must have done well indeed.

“You feel better?”

“Much better!” San chirped with his mouth full. “I can come with you to the factory tomorrow, so you won’t have to work alone anymore. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.”

“But that’s what got us into this mess,” Hongjoong pointed out in warning, shifting where he sat with his legs crossed to relieve some of the soreness of constant motion. “I don’t want… I don’t want to lose you again.”

It was vulnerable, much more vulnerable than he usually was, and San knew what it took for him to say such a thing.

“You won’t,” he promised, reaching out to squeeze his hyung’s shoulder. “I’m not going anywhere.”

True to his word, the next day he departed for the factory alongside Hongjoong, and together they manned the new machines, positioning sheets of metal to be sliced in half by them.

The danger of operating such an invention was heightened by the lack of sleep, but Hongjoong did his best to keep his eyes open and trained on San when he could.

He hid it well, but he was still weak from the intense illness he had recently overcome. And he was always wearing those shirts that were too big for him.

Twice before the lunch break, he nearly got part of his sleeve chopped off, giving Hongjoong a near heart attack, but scolding him was no use. He didn’t have anything else to change into, and it was too cold to remove any clothing anyway.

At the end of the day, it finally happened.

The cuff of San’s dopo caught on the edge of the slicing area after he had reached across and then moved to pull his hand back.

He tried to wrench it free, but from his side of the machine it couldn’t be done without ripping the fabric.

“Hyung!” He cried, knowing the blade would descend any moment now. His dominant hand frustratingly gloved at the moment, Hongjoong quickly reached across with his left hand and attempted to wriggle it free, panic building in both of them as it ever so slowly gave way. It was taking too long.

Only seconds remained before the scheduled chopping, and feeling like he was moving in slow motion, Hongjoong finally freed the sleeve and pushed it back out the other side to remove San from harm’s way.

The blade dropped automatically just before he pulled his own hand clear, and a sickening crunch echoed through the factory.

Hongjoong’s heart stopped.

All around him, there was stillness. Like the entire world had frozen in place, with a great gasp going up from the other workers.

San rushed to force the blade up, and almost completely numb, Hongjoong tried to flex his fingers. He couldn’t move them. He couldn’t even feel them. There was no sense of anything below the wrist until the shock was overcome by pain.

Consuming, overwhelming pain.

“Oh, oh no…”

His throat was closing in on itself from the panic as he watched blood pour continuously out of his hand. Where his hand used to be.

It was like a fountain spurting red in pulses with every heartbeat, and he watched in morbid fascination, slowly becoming nauseated by it.

“Sannie, I can’t… my hand…” he muttered through the haze in his brain, weightlessness descending on him. It was so hot, he was choking on the fire that spread from his wrist to the rest of his body.

Hongjoong blinked and suddenly he was on the floor. His legs had given out, and there was a wetness on his face.

Tears. He was crying.

“San?”

Where was San? He was too dizzy to recognise anyone in the surrounding crowd, everyone’s face a blur.

All over again, Hongjoong felt like a child.

Scared and alone on a factory floor, and his parents were dead and no one would help him, and blood was everywhere and it was so much, so much blood—

“Hyung! Hyung, I’m here, please stay awake.”

San’s voice.

Hongjoong wrenched his eye open, unsure when it had closed, and turned his head until San came into view.

He looked scared, more scared than Hongjoong had ever seen him even when he was deathly ill, and it caused chilling dread to take root in his stomach.

“Is it bad?” He whispered, though he wasn’t sure if the words came out.

San seemed to tell from the movement of his lips and checked the stump of flesh that remained of Hongjoong’s hand, pressing his own shirt to it tightly. Immediately, it was soaked through with deep red.

“It’s… I don’t want to lie to you, hyung, it looks bad, but I’m sure you’ll be alright!” San forced a smile, but he was crying now too, and turned to yell at the gathered crowd of factory workers, continuing to add fabrics to cover the wound, from his own dopo to Hongjoong’s durumagi.

“Don’t just stand there, all of you! Someone help, please! Call the authorities or a doctor or something, someone—”

No one moved an inch.

“What’s going on over there?” A supervisor barked from behind the mass of faces. “Get back to work!”

Hongjoong tried to obey, he’d already been issued a warning once, but couldn’t bring himself to stand. His life was draining at the site of his severed hand and he knew he didn’t have long from the way his breaths were quickening.

“He’ll die, I’m begging you!“ San sobbed, more terrified than Hongjoong had ever seen him.

He was the cause of that panic.

“I’m sorry.”

He wouldn’t be there to take care of San anymore. This was all because he wanted to keep San safe from harm, but he’d been too slow yet again and now he was paying for it with his life and San would be alone after everything he’d done to bring Hongjoong in, abandoned by the only family he’d ever found.

San faced him again with a tear-streaked face and shook his head. “No, don’t say that, you’re going to be fine, you’ll see!” He was clutching the wounded wrist to the sopping material of his jeogori now in one hand and stroking Hongjoong’s wet face with the other, bloodstained hand. He could feel it smear over his cheek and the scent of it became overwhelming. “Don’t… don’t leave me now, alright? Promise?”

Exhaustion was washing over Hongjoong in the wake of white hot pain. He knew he would die soon, but he couldn’t bring himself to fight it.

His eye was growing increasingly vacant. He wanted to answer, but his lips didn’t move. The words worked their way up.

“I tried.”

He didn’t promise.

___

The air outside smelled like rain. It drifted in through an open window, distracting Hongjoong where he sat with his bags in the main room.

He frowned in worry as his parents handed him scroll after scroll to pack up. “Why are you giving me this?”

“In case something happens and we…” Mother stumbled over the words as she rolled the blueprints tightly and bundled them together. “…and we get separated. You can wait for us with the designs.”

Hongjoong protested weakly, “But, hyung—”

“Only has the key,” Father broke in, his voice extremely calm despite the way his hands fidgeted. It was the nervous sort of fidgeting, not the idle kind. “Hongjoong, your bag.”

Obediently, Hongjoong handed it over and tried to swallow down the uneasiness in his throat.

His parents were stuffing it full of blueprints of their designs, and although they didn’t explain why they were packing up their life’s work, the torches on the horizon were enough for Hongjoong to put two and two together.

He remembered the day, months before, when Beomjoong had put his own things into a sack and boarded a ferry that took him out of Joseon, never to return. Hongjoong had cried and clung to him the entire time on the wagon ride to the port, begging him not to go.

The entire thing had never been his choice but their parents’ decision, and Hongjoong resented them for it a little even now as they all prepared to follow him out of the country. To where, he had no idea.

He was fifteen now, and he understood why they couldn’t stay here any longer. He also understood why they had tried.

The Kims were a uniquely creative family of geniuses. The methods of harnessing steam power which they had devised were especially attractive to government ministries, and no matter how many times they said no, no matter how many times Hongjoong answered the door and politely informed the gentlemen that his parents weren’t interested in selling them, the officials returned and insisted.

It had led to their sending Beomjoong somewhere safer with the key to their most important design, an invention never built but often dreamed of, a key that could be used one day if such a machine was ever constructed.

But it could not be taken by the Ministry. In their hands, it would be a most fearsome weapon.

Knowing the key was safely elsewhere only took some of the load off their minds, with many designs still strewn about the house and an entire company of soldiers on their way.

“Quickly, son, your durumagi,” Mother fussed, fastening the coat as tightly as she could, worrying her lip between her teeth the entire time.

There was no reason for Hongjoong’s parents to hide their anxiety from him when he was old enough to know what was headed for their family.

The future was quite literally knocking on their door, and it would stop for no one.

“Head through the back and we’ll meet you near the wagons, alright?” Father instructed, helping him shoulder his bag properly before peeking through the paper blinds to see a large congregation of torch bearers outside.

“Please come soon,” Hongjoong whispered from the threshold, ashamed of his own fear when his parents turned to the door with such bravery. “You won’t leave me alone, right?”

They turned to look at him and smiled, shooing him out the back door.

Mother sounded so sure of herself.

“We’ll be right behind you.”

Hongjoong only made it down to the end of the road before seeing the smoke go up from his house.

His parents hadn’t followed as they said they would, and he knew the odds were greatly against them.

The waiting wagons were another ten minutes away, and he was still the only one on the road.

Mother and Father weren’t coming. They were stuck in a burning house, Hongjoong just knew it, and he knew they were throwing their lives away for no reason.

The remote possibility flashed across his mind as he stood there, frozen in the middle of the road, that this was all a trap. That the ministers wanted him to charge in and save them, so they could get the blueprints in their clutches again.

But Hongjoong wasn’t a child anymore. He could sneak in and save his parents without anyone knowing, he was sure of it.

And so he sprinted impulsively for home, one last time, thinking he could make a difference with his newfound bravery.

The smoke was billowing at a tremendous speed into the evening air, and the heat was so intense that Hongjoong could feel it from the other side of the stone wall, but he scaled it as easily as he had since he was a little boy and crawled into the house silently, holding his breath with practiced ease.

It was a nightmare.

Furniture was knocked over, trinkets and models were strewn across the floor, and the wooden frame of the house itself was on fire, consumed with a roaring blaze that climbed up curtains and licked away at the ceiling.

“Mother! Father!” Hongjoong cried out over the noise of the destruction. They were nowhere to be seen.

Hoping he could find them in another room and free them in time, he dragged himself along the floor, avoiding burning papers and dishes and making a beeline for the side rooms.

Tears pricked at his eyes from the thickness of the smoke, but he tried to remain calm while holding his breath, knowing if he inhaled it, he was as good as dead.

Suddenly, hands were wrapping around his midsection, lifting him upwards as if he weighed nothing and wrenching the bag from him.

“No!” He screamed, kicking blindly at his attacker, who dropped him face first to the ground and disappeared.

Hongjoong never even saw his face.

Feeling the flames encroaching, he realised his options were few. His parents may yet be somewhere inside, though the chances were growing slim by the second, and now he had to recover the designs from the man who had grabbed him, a man much bigger and stronger than he.

“Please…” he couldn’t keep a sniffle from escaping him as the terror of his situation descended on him.

For the first time in his life, he felt truly and utterly alone.

“Someone help!”

He knew there was no use in yelling. Any neighbours who cared to assist them would have done so by now, or else retreated to somewhere safer with their own valuable belongings.

Managing to stumble again to the back door, Hongjoong called out again, a yell that hardly sounded intelligible, and reached for the small patch of sky he could see through the haze of smoke.

At that moment, the doorframe collapsed, sparks went flying, and all Hongjoong knew was a searing pain in his eye before he was writhing on the ground.

His hands were pressed to his face, blood dripped through his fingers, and he was trapped now with no way out.

Elsewhere in the burning house, his parents breathed their last.

They had died so Hongjoong could escape. And he had brought their designs right into the lap of the Ministry.

Guilt that stung more than the pain of his wound burned through him and Hongjoong surrendered, a sobbing mess on the floor, to whatever fate had next for him.

He did not expect to wake.

___

Taglist: @p4rk-junhee

A/N: Things are ramping up now! Hopefully you’ll stick around as our characters continue to be slowly introduced :D let me know if you'd like to be on the taglist and what you thought of this chapter in the comments! And stay tuned for more updates on various works because it's starting to look like I've finally killed my writer's block!!!

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