#it's been a while since i've played a game that long without taking a break

[caramel-catss]

i played skyward sword for three hours straight just now. dizzy kirby emoji

[charmedimsure]

uuuhhhhhm can i pretty pretty please with cherries on top request a Dae-ho x reader where the reader was also in the military? but its like that ep. where they revolutionized? if that makes sense? idk i think it be cool if reader eas good eith a gun

anyways HAVE A LOVELY DAY/ NIGHT love reading your stuff (i binge read it :p)

WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT || kang dae-ho

pairing: Kang Dae-ho x gn!reader

summary: As a former soldier, you know just what to do when all hell breaks loose.

word count: 3.7k

warnings: guns, death, blood, squid game stuff, panic attacks, ptsd

A/N: i've played so many shooting games i feel like i've been training to write this fic my entire life. i even named it after a shield from my favorite game (brownie points if you know which game). if you find any mistakes no you didn't <3 tried to make this gender neutral but if you find any slip ups lmk so i can fix it

**this can be read as romantic or platonic**

You look at the woman standing between bunks with wide eyes. You weren't sure earlier when you saw her on the screen, but seeing her standing ten feet away from you, you're absolutely positive that you know who this is.

"Sergeant?"

Cho Hyun-ju turns and gasps when she sees you, a smile lighting up her face. She quickly embraces you, you happily hugging her back. You were always her favorite soldier (she never admitted it, being the sergeant of the Brigade, but you both knew she liked you best). You were one of the only people who supported her when she came out. You tried to fight against her discharge but, as a low-ranking soldier, you had no say in the matter.

"I knew it had to be you!" you say, pulling back with a smile. "When I saw someone go back into the playing field to help a guy with only ten seconds left, I just knew it was my sergeant!"

"It's good to see you," she says. "Though, I wish it was under better circumstances."

You nod solemnly. You had just watched at least a hundred people die while screaming and begging for their lives. As a former soldier, it was hard that you couldn't do anything to help the civilians. All you could do was stand there and listen to the screams and gunshots, and then the silence.

"How are you here? Are you not part of the Brigade anymore?" Hyun-ju asks.

You shake your head. "No, I actually left not long after you were discharged. It wasn't the same without you, and I just couldn't be civil with the others after how they treated you."

She nods, understanding. "Well, if I'm going to be here with anyone, I'm glad it's you. I trust you with my life, soldier."

You smile. "And I you, Sergeant."

<>

You and Hyun-ju had made it through the next two games together, along with some allies you made along the way. Together with Young-mi, Yong-sik, and Geum-ja, you had been the first team to succeed in the six-legged pentathlon.

You had also made it though Mingle with some new allies, though not all of your old allies made it. Young-mi's death was hard on your whole group, but Hyun-ju had been taking it the worst. While you had grown closer with Yong-sik and Geum-ja, she had formed a special bond with the young girl and had to watch her die right in front of her.

While you would like to take the time to mourn Young-mi, a lot has happened in the few hours since the third game ended. The vote on whether to go home or stay ended in a 50-50 tie, meaning you're going to have to redo the vote tomorrow. Then, a huge fight apparently broke out in the men's bathroom, leaving five players dead.

Both sides group together to count their numbers, and you find that there's now one more X than O. While the players around you celebrate, a feeling of dread shoots through you.

"Attention please. Lights out in 30 minutes. All players, please return to your beds and prepare for bedtime."

Shit.

Player 047 stands in front of the group. "Listen, you cannot change your minds. We have to win the second vote and get out of here tomorrow, alright?"

As the other players around you nod and move to their beds, you stay sitting, watching the O players. They're already looking at your group. Watching. Waiting. You look at Gi-hun, the previous winner, and know that he's thinking the same thing you are.

<>

"Those bastards are acting suspicious," Dae-ho says, returning to the small circle you formed on the ground. "It looks like they're up to something."

Jung-bae breathes out a laugh. "Whatever those idiots do, once we win the vote tomorrow, it'll all be over."

"You think we'll be okay?" Dae-ho asks, concerned. "They say things were really crazy in the bathroom earlier."

"We need to be ready," you say from your place between Dae-ho and Gyeong-seok. "They've been watching us since the moment they found out the prize money goes up if we kill each other."

The group around you tenses before Gi-hun speaks up as well. "Once the lights go out, people on the other side will attack us."

"Really?" Yong-sik asks from beside his mother.

Gi-hun nods. "Because if they kill us, they'll be able to win the vote and increase the prize."

"So what do we do?" Yong-sik asks.

"Let's attack them first," Young-il suggests. "They're probably thinking we'll just wait for the second vote. We can use it to our advantage. We'll attack them first once the lights go out."

"That's right," Player 047 says. "It'd be better to attack them first. We have more women and elderly on our side. If we get attacked we'll be at a disadvantage." You send him a glare that makes him freeze for a moment before continuing. "Attacking them first would give us a better chance of winning."

"I agree," Player 145 adds.

"We can't do that," Gi-hun says.

"But we have to get out of here," Young-il argues. "You said it yourself. Staying calm won't get us anywhere now."

"That doesn't mean we should kill each other," Gi-hun says. "That's exactly what they want us to do."

Jung-bae leans forward. "'They'?"

Gi-hun looks at him. "The ones who created this game." He turns to face the rest of the circle. "The ones who watch us play. If we're going to fight someone, it should be them."

It's silent before Dae-ho speaks up. "Where are they?"

Gi-hun looks to the ceiling. "Up there."

You all follow his gaze before looking around at each other.

"On the upper levels," Gi-hun says, "are the rooms they control the games from. The man in the black mask is their leader. Once we capture him, we'll be able to win."

"How are you going to fight them?" Young-il asks. "They have guns."

"We'll fight them with guns, too," Gi-hun says.

"But we don't have any," Jung-bae says.

Gi-hun turns to him. "We'll take their guns."

You and Hyun-ju look at each other. This is what you were trained for.

"From those masked men?" Gyeong-seok asks nervously.

Gi-hun nods.

"That's too dangerous," Young-il says. "Even if we manage to take a few guns, we'll still be outnumbered."

"What then?" Gi-hun argues. "Are you going to kill each other all night and hope you survive? Is that what you want, Young-il?"

Hyun-ju breaks the silence. "Do we... stand a chance?"

"We do if we catch them off guard," Gi-hun says. "Out of everyone, they're the ones who would least expect us to attack first. This is our last chance to end these games once and for all."

"How are you going to take their guns?" Young-il asks.

"Once the fight begins tonight, we'll have our chance."

<>

"Lights out in ten seconds."

"Ten,

nine,

eight,

seven,

six,

five,

four,

three,

two,

one."

The lights dim, then turn off completely, leaving only the red and blue lights from the floor.

You roll out of bed, getting under the frame. You feel someone else trying to get under your bed, and you move a bit to make room for Dae-ho. Just as you get in position, you see bodies creeping towards your side of the room, illuminated by the bright blue O on the floor.

There's a scream, and all hell breaks loose.

The lights strobe as you hear the sounds of screaming and bottles being smashed coming from all around you. Somewhere to your right, a bunk is toppled over, sending someone to the ground. Another player runs up to them, stabbing their fork into their neck.

You feel the ex-Marine next to you tense up and put a hand over his, trying to bring him some comfort, or at the very least trying to keep him from blowing your cover.

You hear the buzzer of the door and the lights come on. One of the soldiers fires into the air to stop the fighting as about twenty masked guards come into the room, all armed.

You quickly army crawl out from under the bed, Dae-ho following you as you lay down on the ground.

You hear footsteps getting closer to you, and your ear is moved as a device scans behind it.

You open your eyes, grabbing the soldier so they can't move. "Dae-ho! Now!"

The ex-Marine smashes a bottle over the head of the guard, knocking him unconscious. You take the opportunity to grab the submachine gun off of the soldier, shooting another soldier coming toward you and Dae-ho. You're so focused on the fight that you fail to notice the quivering boy holding his hands over his ears against the bunks.

Grabbing another gun, you quickly scale one of the bunks to get a better vantage of the fight.

"Sergeant!" You yell, gaining the attention of Hyun-ju. She looks to you and you toss the SMG to her. She drops her pistol and catches the weapon, turning just in time to shoot one of the pink guards coming for her.

You use your position to fire at the guards hiding behind bunks. You pull the trigger until you hear a click, cursing as the mag runs empty. You jump down from the bunk, using the butt of the gun to knock a guard out cold. You quickly take his ammo and reload your own gun, firing at a guard trying to shoot Gi-hun.

"Retreat. Retreat."

The voice over the intercom announces and the pink soldiers make their way towards the door. You're able to shoot two more, but most of the soldiers who are still alive are able to make it out of the room. The main guard with the square on his mask is too busy firing back to realize that the door has closed behind him, sealing him in the room with you just as he runs out of ammo.

"Stop! Hold fire!" Gi-hun yells.

Jung-bae and another player run over to the square guard, making sure he won't fight.

"You goddamn bastards!" you hear someone yell on the other side of the room and turn to see Player 047 aiming his gun at a bunch of O players.

"No!" Gi-hun yells, stopping the man before he can shoot. "This is not what we took these guns for. If we do this, we'll be no different from those masked men."

Player 047 lowers his gun, hanging his head and he softly cries.

Gi-hun steps to the center of the room. "Everyone! Don't be scared. Gather round, please! We're not trying to hurt you!"

You walk to stand by Hyun-ju and Gyeong-seok.

"Get the guns and ammo from the dead," she tells the both of you.

You nod, doing as your sergeant says while she takes out the cameras in the room.

<>

Placing one of the last guns on the mattress in the center of the room, you move to stand in line between Jung-bae and Dae-ho, handing the extra SMG in your hand to Dae-ho.

Gi-hun steps forward. "Everyone. We will now head up to the masked men's headquarters. We'll capture the ones who captured us, put an end to this game, and make them pay. Anyone who knows how to use a gun and wishes to join us, please step forward."

You look at the crowd in front of you, but everyone stays where they are.

"Hey," you hear a voice next to you say and turn your head to see Jung-bae stepping forward. "I know you're scared. I'm scared too. But this may be our last chance to make it out of this place alive. Fight with us so we can go home together. All together."

One of the players in the back of the crowd steps forward. "I'll fight with you."

Gi-hun waves at him to come and take a gun. Two other players come forward as well.

You watch as Yong-sik makes a move to step forward, but he catches your gaze as you shake your head at him. It's very brave of him to think about volunteering, but he hasn't even served his mandatory military service yet, and it would kill his mother if he didn't come back. You breathe a sigh of relief when Yong-sik stays where he is.

When it's clear that no one else is stepping forward, Gi-hun turns to you all. "Please check your guns and ammo."

"Let's take one radio each," Jung-bae says. "We'll use channel 7, the lucky number."

You put the strap of your gun around you, checking the mag and putting it back in place when you're satisfied with the amount of ammo that is left. You look to your right to see Dae-ho fiddling with his own gun. Just as you're about to help him, Hyun-ju steps forward.

"Attention," she says, holding up her gun. "This is the MP5, a submachine gun." She continues on the demonstrate how to load the weapon and set it to the mode you should be using. When she's done, she looks at you all. "Are we clear?"

"Yes," you answer, falling right back into the rhythm with your sergeant.

Hyun-ju nods to you, silently telling you to stay by her when you get out there.

"How do you two know each other?" Dae-ho questions, his voice a bit shaky.

You smirk, cocking the MP5. "I was in the 13th Special Missions Brigade. Hyun-ju was my sergeant."

Dae-ho stares at you, completely stunned. "You were in the Decapitation Unit?!"

You chuckle at his disbelief, nodding.

The man can't believe it. He's been bragging about being an ex-Marine while there's been two ex-Special Forces soldiers right next to him the whole time.

Gi-hun points a pistol at the square-masked guard. "Take it off."

The guard slowly removes his mask, revealing a boy no older than 25.

"Good God," Jung-bae says. "Do your parents know what you're doing here?"

The guard just stares at him.

Gi-hun cocks the pistol. "Take us to your captain."

<>

"All players, it is bedtime now. Please return to your quarters immediately. Otherwise, you will be eliminated from the game. Let me repeat..."

Gi-hun fires at the speaker, effectively shutting up the voice. Three guards are stood over you. "Get down!"

You duck behind the wall of the stairs. Feeling a hand on your shoulder, you turn to look at Hyun-ju behind you.

"Cover me!"

You nod, shooting at the guards while she sprints to the top of the stairs. From her new vantage point, she is able to take out one of the guards, causing their body to fall over the ledge and down to the floor.

When you duck down to reload, you see Dae-ho next to you. The ex-Marine is sitting in a ball, covering his ears and flinching every time a shot rings out. You look at him with concern, but your attention is stolen by Gi-hun telling everyone to hold their fire. Dae-ho gets a grip on his weapon and you all move, following Gi-hun and the un-masked guard.

As you move down an alleyway, Gi-hun stops the guard. "How much farther? Is this the right way?"

The boy points toward the end of the hall. "The entrance to the management area is around that corner. The control room is right above it."

Gi-hun pushes him. "Move it, then!"

"Wait," the guard says, reaching toward his pocket.

"What are you doing?" Gi-hun stops him.

"I need my mask to pass security," the guard explains. Gi-hun nods and the guard takes the mask out. He looks up, but before he can say anything else, a bullet goes right through his head.

You all take cover as more shots are fired at you. Something slashes onto your face, and you turn to see Player 072's lifeless body falling to the ground.

You drop the floor and crawl over to Hyun-ju, both of you taking positions in a green square area of the stairs. You nod to each other and duck out of cover, firing at the guards. You can hear the men speaking to each other at the other end of the line, but you focus on taking out as many guards as possible.

You and Hyun-ju alternate firing and taking cover, both of you shooting with deadly precision, doing your best to not waste any of the already low supply of ammo you have.

A player next to you screams and is shot. You turn, shooting at the guard approaching from your rear, taking out a few that are behind that one as well.

"Everyone! Check your magazines!" Hyun-ju calls out.

You take the mag out of the gun, seeing that you have about half of a clip left. Everyone announces that they're around the same.

"Young-il, Dae-ho, can you hear me?" The voice of Jung-bae erupts from your radio.

"Go ahead!" Young-il says.

"I think we're right below the control room." Shots can be heard in the background. "But we need backup and more ammo."

"We're running out of ammo, too!"

"There should be spare magazines in the soldiers' pockets in our quarters. Go get them!" Gi-hun yells through the radio.

"Did you hear that?" Young-il turns to the group. "They need backup! Three of us will go, and the rest will stay! Join us once you get the magazines! Who wants to go with me?"

Players 047 and ... volunteer and they run off towards the end of the hall.

"I'll go get the magazines!" Hyun-ju yells. "I'll come back as soon as I can, so just hold on until then!"

"Hyun-ju!" A voice yells. You turn to see Dae-ho raising his hand. "I'll go!" He hurries over to where you and Hyun-ju are taking cover. "I- I'm out of ammo."

"Do you know the way?" Gyeong-seok asks. Dae-ho nods.

"We destroyed the cameras on the way, follow them," Hyun-ju says.

"I'll go with him," you say. "I still have some ammo, so I'll cover him."

Hyun-ju nods. "I'll cover you. Go!"

You and Dae-ho take off down the stairs. He stops a few times, but you pull him along, keeping your eyes up to watch for the broken cameras. As you're running down the stairs, Dae-ho stops, and you turn to see him staring at a dead guard hanging over the ledge of a window.

"Dae-ho!" Jung-bae yells. "Can you hear me? Where are those magazines?"

You lift your own radio to your mouth. "We're getting them now."

"Alright! We're counting on you!"

You put your radio back in your pocket, grabbing Dae-ho's hand and pulling him along behind you.

You burst into the quarters, letting go of Dae-ho's hand as you sprint to a guard, taking the spare mags out of their pockets. You hear someone say your name and look up to see Yong-sik.

"What happened? Why are you back by yourselves?"

"We're low on ammo," you say, not looking up from the guard you're looting. "We need to get the magazines from their pockets. Help us!"

You look up to the boy to see him nod and run over to a nearby guard. Geum-ja and Jun-hee come over to the help, as well.

Once you've looted all the ammo from the guards, you place them into a jacket you found on one of the dead players. You tie it up and give it to Dae-ho, thanking the others as you lead him out of the room.

Gunshots can be heard as soon as you step outside. You keep moving but when you check behind you, you see that Dae-ho has stopped where he is.

"Dae-ho, we need to go," you urge.

He looks at you silently, but the fear in his eyes sends the message. You've seen soldiers like this before you joined the Special Forces.

Dae-ho stands in his spot, paralyzed other than the shake of his body in fear.

You hear your name and Dae-ho's through the radio. "Where are you? Can you hear me?"

You watch as Dae-ho lifts his radio, staring at it as Hyun-ju's voice comes through.

"Did you find the magazines? Are you on your way?"

Dae-ho looks at you. "I'm sorry," he whispers, dropping the radio on the ground and running back into the quarters with the magazines.

"Shit," you say under your breath. You follow Dae-ho into the room, looking around to find where he went. Yong-sik points toward a bunk and you find Dae-ho curled up there, rocking back and forth. Running over to him, you take the jacket with the mags, ready to run out of there. You take a look at Dae-ho, the pure fear coursing through him as he whispers apologies over and over.

You sigh, remembering one of the lessons Hyun-ju taught you as your sergeant.

Never leave a man behind.

Taking out your radio, you bring it to your lips and press the button. "Charlie Foxtrot."

You put your radio down, knowing that Hyun-ju will know what to do. You had picked up the phrase from your U.S. counterparts, saying it to each other when something goes wrong.

Moving to sit on the bed, you take Dae-ho's hands into yours. "Dae-ho, I need you to breathe with me, alright."

He slowly looks at your face before launching himself into your arms, sobbing into your shoulder. You rub his back comfortingly, knowing you can't leave him alone like this.

After a few minutes, Hyun-ju runs into the room shouting you and Dae-ho's names. She comes running over to you, stopping when she sees Dae-ho in your arms.

"What happened?"

Dae-ho jumps a bit at the new voice, burying his face farther into your jacket.

You look up a Hyun-ju, shaking your head at her. She nods, understanding. You point at the magazines and she scoops them into her arms, ready to take them to the others when the buzzer for the door goes off and more pink guards enter the room, firing in the air and making everyone scream.

Hyun-ju reloads her SMG, ready to take on the entire group on guards by herself. You watch as Geum-ja puts a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"You can't die like this."

You sigh in relief as Hyun-ju puts the gun down. From your hidden area, you try to get the guns and mags away from you, making it seem as though the three of you have been here the whole time.

As the guards come further into the room, you use your body to shield Dae-ho from them as he whimpers. You make eye contact with Hyun-ju. Whatever happens next, you'll face it as a team.

~

Dae-ho tags: @whatthefuckeryfuckityfuck @ally1uvsu @thebiggestigurosimp @come-as-you-are-111 @hiphip-horray @k1michii @tpwkcaryslizb @louissst28 @sshwaa @jennwonwoo @sunnysurvives @lalalaa2210 @tayshs @sunshinethatlooksalive @plntmxrss @lxnnrobin @mariaxman @alexx-iia @batty-barty-crouchjr @kxsm3t @takuma-talkz @peacemakersbeloved @skywalker0809 @soobinbunnie5

[camille-anis]

Petals for the Forgotten

Summary : You weren't the MC. You weren't chosen. But you loved them. This is what's left of you.

CW : Angst, fem reader, non mc reader

A/N : First of all, I'd like to apologize in advance if there are any mistakes, because this is my first time writing and English is not my first language. It's been a while since I played lads but I've had this idea in my head so I'm sorry if there are any inconsistencies with the game. I hope you'll enjoy it all the same, happy reading.

Zayne — The garden no one saw bloom

You think it began when he smiled at you. A real smile, not the one he gave to patients, not the one he wore like a mask when things weren't going well. No, a smile just for you.

One day, you made a minor error on a pre-operative report. Nothing serious. But him, Zayne, the one everyone feared for his coldness, had taken the time to correct you with a gentleness you didn't know he possessed.

And then, he had said: "You learn quickly."

Three words. And yet, it was enough for a treacherous seed to find refuge between your ribs.

You never believed in love stories. Even less in the Hanahaki disease. For you, it was fiction, a tragic tale for souls too sensitive, too fragile for this world.

But the flowers... The flowers never asked for your opinion.

You woke up one morning with a burning throat and a metallic taste on your tongue. A violet bellflower detached from your lips like an unconfessed confession. Perfect. Immaculate. Deadly.

You continued to work. To smile. To cough in the bathroom when no one was looking. To smother the damp petals in tissues that you then concealed.

To love him.

Silently. Desperately. Mortally.

Zayne saw nothing. Or perhaps he refused to see. Perhaps it was simpler that way, to pretend that your eyes didn't linger on him when he entered a room, that your breath didn't catch when his hand brushed yours.

He passed by you with his impeccable files, his meticulous analyses, his subtle perfume — that scent of pine and antiseptic that haunted you even in your dreams. That coldness that no longer frightened you for a long time.

And then there was her.

His patient. His childhood friend.

You remember the day you saw them in the hallway between two procedures. Her hair was still wet from the rain. He handed her a towel without a word. She laughed. He smiled.

That smile... it was different. Deeper. More authentic. As if all the light in the world had chosen to take refuge on his face at that precise moment.

You had never seen his face so relaxed. So alive.

Every time she came to see him between missions, you felt him change. Metamorphose before your eyes. His gestures became softer. His voice lost that characteristic coldness.

And you became transparent. Invisible.

And it was even more painful than the flowers taking root in your lungs.

You thought you could hold on. That it would pass.

But one day, as you leaned over the sink in the break room, a coughing fit doubled you over. Dozens of violet petals splashed across the immaculate porcelain, tinted red, with your red.

And Zayne walked in.

He froze. The scattered flowers, the scarlet blood everywhere. The deafening silence that enveloped you both.

He closed the door behind him. Slowly. Methodically. As if performing a delicate operation. "Since when?" His voice was barely audible.

"It doesn't matter," you replied while wiping the corner of your lips, where a drop of blood still glistened.

He came closer. Too close. You wanted to scream. Or collapse against him and let your tears soak his immaculate coat. Or kiss him, just once, to know what his lips tasted like before dying.

But instead, you laughed. A small nervous, empty laugh.

"You think it isn't real, don't you? Hanahaki. The disease of lovesick fools. You must have studied it somewhere in your forgotten old textbooks."

He said nothing. His green eyes, usually so cold, so distant, wouldn't let you go. For the first time, you saw something in them that you couldn't name. Fear? Pity? Regret?

"I thought it was a legend, too. Until you." You continued, the words escaping your mouth like frightened birds.

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" he asked, his voice betraying an emotion you had never known in him.

"Because I knew you couldn't do anything." You plunged your gaze into his. "And I didn't want... to burden you with this."

He looked away. He seemed... hurt. But not for you.

"I can slow the progression," he offered, his tone becoming clinical, professional. As if you were just another patient, another body to repair.

"But you can't cure me."

He looked at you for a long time. As if searching for a way out, a solution, a lie to cling to. As if he could rewrite history, change feelings, tear out the roots that had wrapped around your heart.

"I'm sorry," he finally whispered, the words falling between you like stones into a bottomless well. And that's what hurt you, much more than the flowers tearing apart your organs. Not that he didn't love you. You already knew that.

But that he couldn't.

Because his heart, as frozen as it might appear to the world, was already beating for someone else. And no science, no medicine, no prayer could change that.

He offered you a temporary treatment. Medications to slow the growth of the flowers. A procedure to remove them. He almost begged you to accept, his eyes shining with an urgency you had never seen in him.

But you refused.

You didn't want a meaningless survival. A body without love. A heart too empty to continue beating. You preferred to die with this feeling intact, this exquisite pain that reminded you that you had lived, that you had loved, even if in silence.

You wrote him a letter. You left it on his desk, between two surgical reports. A letter where you didn't ask him to love you back, but simply to understand why you had chosen to leave.

You don't know if he read it. You didn't want an answer.

You left alone. You chose the room furthest from the north wing, where light barely enters and silence resembles the sea.

You didn't scream. You didn't cry.

You lay down. You closed your eyes, one last time.

And the flowers did the rest.

Zayne found you a few hours later. He knew exactly where to look.

You were nothing but a cold breath, surrounded by withered violet bellflowers, and crystallized blood. A macabre work of art, almost beautiful in its tragedy.

He didn't cry.

He sat beside you, took your still warm hand — that hand he had never really held while you were alive — and whispered something that no one else heard.

Then he placed a flower in a vial. Just one.

And he placed it in Operating Room 3. On the windowsill, next to an old gardening book that you had given him one day, claiming that he needed to learn how to care for living things.

You weren't the protagonist of his story.

But you were the tragic ending of his.

Because sometimes, it's the secondary characters who leave the deepest scars.

Sylus — The codes no one decodes

The first file you decoded for him was barely six months ago.

An intruder had managed to manipulate the internal sound waves at the Onychinus headquarters. The best experts had given up, defeated by the enigma. No one had understood how. You did.

Sylus didn't congratulate you. He simply said one word: "Effective."

And that's the kindest thing he ever said to you.

This simple word had become your treasure, a rough diamond that you polished in your mind each night before falling asleep. A rare compliment from an even rarer man.

Since then, you stayed.

Not because he kept you. He never kept anyone.

But because in his silences, in his pointed looks when you fed a stray cat or when you clumsily dropped something or when you cared for your precious flowers in the small improvised garden under your office window, you had found a space.

Not a place. Not a story.

Just a possibility. And that's worse than anything.

Because possibility feeds hope. And hope is the slowest, cruelest poison there is. You fell in love with him while trying to avoid him.

You didn't look for him. But it was always him your eyes found.

You didn't want to know what he read during his rare moments of rest. But you found him asleep with annotated music notebooks, unfinished compositions.

And you never dared to tell him.

You built a wall around your heart, stone by stone, code by code, as you did with security systems. But feelings are viruses more insidious than any malware. They infiltrate. They contaminate. They destroy.

You surprised him one night, in the conference room. The 'miss hunter' as he liked to call her, had fallen asleep on data from an ancient artifact. Strands of hair fell across her peaceful face.

He removed his jacket — that jacket he never took off, like armor against the world — to cover her. He looked at her for a long time, as if she were a precious memory, a rare constellation, an equation only he knew the solution to. You never saw that tender gaze directed at you.

The day you coughed up the first flower, you were still working on a particularly complex encryption system. A pain in your chest, as if someone had plunged a knife right into your heart. A burning sensation, as if acid were flowing through your veins.

Then a blue lily fell from your mouth, silent and damp. A messenger of death wrapped in beauty. You put it in a metal box.

You didn't believe it at first. You thought it was a chemical reaction. A hallucination caused by lack of sleep.

Until others followed. Blue lilies, ever more numerous, ever larger, as if your body was becoming a funerary garden.

And that same body began to weaken. Your fingers trembled on your keyboard. Your breath became short. Your nights, battles against suffocation.

You tried to hide it. But Sylus remains Sylus.

He observes everything. Even when he pretends not to care.

He confronted you one evening, as you were leaving the office, a bloodstain betraying you at the corner of your lips.

"You're bleeding a lot. Why aren't you saying anything?" His voice was calm, almost detached. But his eyes weren't.

"It's nothing. Just a cold." You attempted a smile that turned into a grimace.

"Do you think I'm stupid? You're vomiting flowers." He said these words as if announcing the day's weather. Simple. Factual. Undeniable.

You laughed. An empty laugh, as if mocking yourself, this absurd situation, this body that was betraying you.

"Are you going to fire me for this?" You tried to joke, but the words came out more bitter than intended.

He didn't laugh.

He just narrowed his eyes. Studied every detail of your face like a code to decipher, a puzzle to solve. "What is this disease? A mutation? Did someone contaminate you?"

"It's not a disease. It's a... curse."

You said nothing more. He didn't press.

But you saw it. That gleam in his eyes. That fierce determination that characterized him when faced with enigmas.

He searched. He combed through the oldest archives he could find.

He found a forgotten word: Hanahaki.

And a truth too ugly to be spoken aloud.

He came back to see you a few days later. Late at night.

You were in the generator room, sitting on the floor, a faded lily in your hands.

"It's me... isn't it?" His voice was just a whisper, almost lost under the hum of the machines. You raised your eyes. Slowly. Painfully.

"I never asked you to love me." You simply replied.

"You never asked me for anything else either."

He crouched down in front of you. He suddenly looked older. More human. Less invincible. He extended his hand toward you as one approaches a wounded animal. You backed away.

"If I had known you were capable of love... maybe I would have lied to my heart." You laughed bitterly, the sound transforming into a painful cough.

He exhaled, as if struck by an invisible force. The words had reached him where no weapon ever could. "Why didn't you say anything?"

You shrugged.

"Because I'm not miss hunter. I'm not the one who triggers cataclysms or prophecies. I'm not the one who makes your heart beat. I'm just a line of code in your algorithm. Replaceable. Erasable."

He closed his eyes. You saw his jaw clench. He would have liked to be cruel. To accuse you. To shake you. To tell you that you were stupid to have let things go so far. But he said nothing.

Because what you were saying was true.

And truth is the only thing Sylus has never known how to fight.

You stopped coming to work. No one saw you again.

A note was found in your private files, left in an old system journal format, coded with a melody he had composed one evening when you thought he hadn't seen you crying.

"I'm sorry I didn't know how to be a story."

Simple words yet so devastating. A virus that would infect his system forever. Sylus didn't cry.

But he burned all the flowers you had left behind. As if he could erase the proof of your love. As if he could rewrite the code of your meeting.

All except one.

A blue lily.

Which he had tattooed in the shadow of his nape. Where only he knows of its existence. Where the pain remains in silence.

A beacon hidden in his own body. A reminder that even the most secure systems have their flaws. And that some codes are never meant to be deciphered.

Xavier — The time no one took

You spent your nights calibrating temporal sensors, sorting anomalies, chasing echoes that might not even exist.

Xavier spent his hunting Wanderers.

You worked on the same floor. But you lived in two different worlds.

Yet you loved him. For a long time.

Not violent or possessive love. No. The kind of silent thing that settles between two heartbeats. The kind of feeling you never confess because you know it wouldn't change anything.

He always called you by your full name. Not once had he pronounced just your first name, that nickname your close ones used, that intimacy you would have so wanted to share with him.

You knew why. You weren't her.

Not the girl who accompanied him on each of his missions.

Not the light of his past. Or of his future.

He had laughed with her several times. Sometimes you heard them from your isolated post. A mundane discussion about a music style had turned into a passionate debate. She had stolen his earbuds, a gesture so familiar, so intimate. He had let her, with a smile on his lips that you had never seen.

You, you had only taken silence from him. Professional nods. Carefully drafted anomaly reports, which he skimmed through without really seeing them.

You were just a voice in his earpiece when a breach opened. Just another biometric signature among others.

But that was enough for you.

At least, that's what you repeated to yourself each evening when returning to your empty apartment, looking out the window and dreaming of a life for two. Just you and him.

Until the day you started vomiting flowers.

The first time was after a long mission at the border of N109 zone, a particularly unstable temporal rift. Xavier and she had been stuck for forty-eight hours in a loop. You had spent all that time awake, eyes fixed on the screens, desperately searching for a solution to bring them back.

When they finally returned, exhausted, she had collapsed in his arms. He had held her against him like a recovered treasure. You had simply turned off your equipment and headed to the bathroom, where a coughing fit had bent you in half.

You had thought it was only blood, that red substance that stained your lips. But no. A blue morning glory had fallen from your mouth, with a sweet and unbearable fragrance. A macabre miracle. A beauty that was killing you from within.

You cleaned up the blood. Threw away the flower. Silent throughout, as you had always been. You didn't tell anyone. Because you knew.

Hanahaki. An ancient disease. Almost forgotten. Mentioned in the most obscure texts. And incurable, unless loved in return.

You tried to ignore it. To pretend it was a passing anomaly.

You continued to transmit data, to smile behind your glasses, to cough secretly into tissues that you then burned to leave no trace.

But your body betrayed you.

One evening, as everyone was leaving the command center after a particularly taxing day, you collapsed near the main entrance. Your legs gave way beneath you like branches too fragile. A cascade of blue flowers surged from your mouth, forming around you a crown of suffering.

Xavier, who seemed to have returned because of something forgotten, probably his watch, rushed to you. He knelt down, his blue eyes wide with shock. He saw the flowers.

"Is it a contamination? Did someone hurt you?" He asked, an expression of genuine concern on his usually stoic face.

"No... no, it's not that." You murmured, struggling to breathe between the petals obstructing your throat.

You clenched your teeth, trying to keep your throat closed, but another flower came out: blue and perfect.

He picked it up.

"This flower... is it an ancient symbol? Some kind of... death ritual?" He asked, confused, seeking a rational explanation for this phenomenon that defied all logic.

"It's not a ritual. It's a curse."

You turned your head toward him, your gaze clouded by tears you refused to let fall. "I'm sick because I love. And it's not reciprocated."

He froze. Looked at you without understanding. Then slowly, gently, his fingers tightened around the flower, almost crushing it.

"Me?"

You laughed. A dry, painful laugh that triggered a new wave of coughing and flowers.

"Who else? I don't talk to anyone else." You tried to smile, but your lips only formed a grimace stained with blood.

Silence.

You placed your hand on his cheek. A gesture you would never have dared make normally. A last gift you allowed yourself before the end.

"Don't worry. I don't want reciprocity. I'm not asking you for anything. I just want... to be able to breathe a little longer."

But you couldn't.

You died three days later. In your sleep.

Your heart gave way under the flowers that had invaded every corner of your rib cage, transforming your body into a morbid garden.

Xavier didn't speak.

He canceled all missions for a week. An unprecedented act that sparked whispers throughout the base. He erased your digital traces from the system, as if you had never existed, except for one.

In a secret corner of the archives, a file bears your name. Not your full name. Just your first name, the one he had never pronounced while you were alive.

Inside: the image of a single blood-stained flower.

And a line, written in an ancient language: "She loved me in a language I didn't speak." A late confession. An eternal regret.

For even he can never go back in time to repair the heart he broke without knowing.

Rafayel — The canvas no one saw being born

You worked right next to his studio.

Every morning, you unlocked the rusty gate, took out the brushes, and let the sun graze the incomplete canvases that waited for someone to give them life again.

You weren't a painter. Not like him. You restored.

You took dead works, forgotten, cracked by time and indifference, and tried to give them back dignity. A final brilliance.

Rafayel painted the future. Emotions. Souls. His canvases were windows open to universes that no one else saw.

And he only looked at you when you laughed.

"You still have fingers covered in varnish," he would say with a smile. "You'll end up poisoning yourself."

You laughed. You didn't care. You would have gladly let the varnish eat away at your skin down to the bone if it meant he would continue to look at you.

It was your way of existing in his eyes. Of occupying, if only for a moment, a corner of his retina. You loved him slowly. Like loving a song you've never heard in full.

Each day, a new detail was added to the fresco that Rafayel had become in your mind. The way he squinted at a canvas that resisted. How his fingers danced above a palette, seeking the perfect color. The sound of his breathing when he sometimes fell asleep on his stool, exhausted after hours of frenzied creation.

But you knew. You weren't his muse.

He never spoke of her, but sometimes he painted her. The 'miss bodyguard'. That slender silhouette that returned in his canvas with obsidian reflections.

That silhouette that wasn't you. Would never be you.

She often talks to him when she comes to his studio, laughs with him, a hand placed carelessly on his shoulder as if she had all the rights in the world. Sometimes, he offers her a brush. She laughs, hugs him. It's their ritual: a brush for each victory, each successful mission.

You, you've never received anything but his friendship. A comfortable, lukewarm friendship, like a shawl placed on the shoulders of a sick person out of pity.

The day you coughed a red anemone onto your palette, you understood.

It wasn't an allergy.

It wasn't the varnish you handled daily.

It was love. The kind you never asked for, and which kills when it isn't returned.

Hanahaki.

You immediately knew what it was.

You had read the old legends in a notebook of Lemurian mythology that Rafayel had left lying around one day.

You had prayed for it to be false.

But flowers never lie.

You continued to live. To work. To restore works that would survive long after your body had become dust. To smile when Rafayel passed by, covered in paint.

"You should sleep more," he said one day, stopping in front of you longer than usual. "You look... a bit faded. Like a color that's fading."

You didn't reply. You didn't want him to see, to know, to understand. You simply nodded, offering him a smile that was meant to be reassuring but trembled at the corners.

But he eventually saw it.

One evening, as you had come to return a notebook he had forgotten at your place during his last visit, you collapsed in his studio, at the foot of an unfinished canvas representing a field of wildflowers under a stormy sky.

A shower of red anemones covered the floor, escaping from your mouth and mingling with spatters of paint, creating a work you would never have wanted to sign.

Rafayel froze at the sight of your condition. Then he rushed over. Took you in his arms.

His hands trembled. His eyes, usually so confident when fixed on a canvas, wandered over your face with palpable panic.

"No. No, no, no. Is it me? Is it... me who did this to you?" His voice broke on the last word, like a wave on a rock.

"It's not you. It's what I feel." You whispered, the metallic taste of blood mingling with the sweeter one of flowers.

You raised your eyes to him, gently, like a final light before eternal night.

"You never promised me anything. I knew from the beginning."

"You should have told me..." Rafayel's words were tinged with remorse.

"And then what? You would have loved me out of pity? You would have painted a lie?" You shook your head, "I'd rather have these flowers. At least they're real."

He said nothing. He was crying, silently.

You placed your red-stained hand on his cheek.

"I just wanted you to know that I found you as refreshing as a new air. As vibrant as a color one discovers for the first time. Even if you never saw me, I saw you entirely. And it was beautiful. I appreciated being your friend."

You died that night, in his studio.

Silently. Without calling for help. Your body surrounded by red flowers like an offering. Rafayel refused to paint for weeks.

He let the canvases molder in a corner, the brushes dry, harden, become unusable. As if his art had died with you.

Then, one day, he returned.

And on an immense canvas, he painted a woman sitting in the light, hands stained with varnish and love, restoring a work that no one else could have saved.

No one knew her name. People stopped in front of his exhibition, touched by an emotion they couldn't name, feeling there was something profoundly true in this image, something that transcended mere representation.

But at the foot of the painting, a phrase was engraved in the wood: "She loved like one restores a damaged canvas — in silence, and until the end."

And sometimes, when light strikes the painting in a certain way, some people swear they see red anemones growing along the frame, their petals opening toward the sky like silent prayers.

Caleb — The vessel no one knew how to repair

You knew every fiber of his vessel.

Every vibration, every tremor, every tiny defect in secondary circuits that escaped automated diagnostics. You could sense when a problem would arise days before it manifested, as if the metal and wires spoke to you in a language only you understood.

It was you who taught him to recognize a trajectory anomaly by ear, sitting cross-legged in the cockpit, hands full of grease, a half-chewed piece of gum between your lips.

"You're my mechanical guardian angel," Caleb would say.

You smiled.

Because it was almost that.

You kept him alive. From a distance. You watched over him through the metal and circuits of his vessel. But never in his arms.

You loved him.

You don't really remember how it started. It was blurry.

One moment, he had offered you an energy drink on a rainy evening.

The next day, he had defended you against an odious superior who criticized your abilities.

And the day after... You had no longer wanted to repair any vessel but his. As if your hands had developed an exclusive memory of his circuits, a particular affinity for the metal that protected him from interstellar voids.

But you knew it. You were not and would never be the famous 'Pipsqueak' he spoke of with that tenderness in his voice.

You were a blurry silhouette in his rearview mirror. A comfort marker. A practical tool. Not a story. Not a future. Just a fragment of his present that would disappear as soon as he accelerated.

The first flower appeared after a particularly dangerous recovery mission. He had returned with the vessel in tatters, impact marks all over the hull, the heat shield almost destroyed.

You had worked three days and three nights without sleep to restore it. When you had finally finished, you had collapsed against the command console, exhausted but satisfied.

That's when you had coughed so hard that you doubled over.

You had coughed so hard that you doubled over.

And in the hollow of your palm, a pink flower, delicate, perfectly formed. A Bleeding Heart tinged with a red that wasn't that of the petals but of the blood that now lined your throat.

You knew immediately.

Your late grandmother had already spoken to you about it on several occasions. Hanahaki.

A disease that strikes only those who love too much. And who are not loved in return.

A disease that modern science had relegated to the rank of myth, psychosomatic, collective delusion of a bygone era.

Yet, there it was, in your hand. Real. Deadly. Beautiful enough to die for, literally. Caleb noticed your pale complexion. Your persistent cough. The dark circles under your eyes. He forced you to rest. You refused.

"I've known people who broke everything except themselves. And you're the opposite, huh?" He told you one day, as you struggled with a faulty relay despite your fever.

"Maybe I'm already broken." You replied with a sad smile, wiping away with the back of your hand the sweat that beaded on your forehead.

He laughed, without understanding the weight of truth in your words.

And it killed you a little more. Each unshared laugh, each gaze that passed through you without really seeing you, each story he told about "Pipsqueak" and their adventures... so many roots that sank deeper into your lungs.

When you lost consciousness in the hangar, he thought it was a gravitational overload. He rushed over. He activated all emergency protocols.

He didn't understand why you were vomiting flowers. Why was your heart weakening for no apparent reason. Why the scanners detect no known pathogen.

"Is it a weapon? Did someone do this to you?" He asked you, kneeling beside your hospital bed, his calloused hands gripping yours with a strength that betrayed his fear.

"No, Caleb..."

You grabbed his sleeve, trembling.

"It's me. It's just... me."

He frowned, lost.

You rested your head against his chest, listening one last time to that heart that had never beaten for you. "I loved you... like one loves a star that will never return. Bright but untouchable. Vital but distant."

He remained frozen. Completely paralyzed by the confession you had just made. By the horror of understanding that it was he, indirectly, who was killing you.

He tried everything to understand what was happening to you and how to heal you.

He contacted the most discreet researchers. He went through old medical books. He even begged an Enforcer to let him search through the forbidden archives.

But nothing.

Love can't be forced. And you were already too far gone, carried away by a current against which no one could swim.

You died between two beats of the engine.

In the rest area he had specially refurbished for you, with that window looking out at the stars you so loved to observe during your breaks. Your body surrounded by pink flowers, shaped like broken hearts, like a cruel metaphor for what had killed you.

Caleb doesn't speak of you anymore.

He sealed the hangar where you worked. He doesn't let anyone touch his ship.

But sometimes, when he returns from a mission, he leaves a little pink flower on the dashboard.

And one day, someone heard him whisper in the empty cockpit when he thought he was alone: "You don't fix anything now, huh? Yet I'm the one who's broken."

Because some vessels, even the sturdiest, never fly the same way again when they've lost their guardian angel.

To those who weren't the story

You weren't the light of the world.

You weren't destined for great prophecies.

You had no power, nor a great reciprocated love waiting for you.

You had flowers in your throat.

And a heart too vast, too generous, too full of them.

Men who saw in you only a pale reflection of the one they truly desired.

They didn't choose you. They didn't save you. But they remember.

And perhaps that's the real curse of Hanahaki: not dying of unrequited love, but leaving behind an eternal remorse in the hearts of those who failed to see.

For some hearts never melt under the warmth of a gaze. Some loves die without ever having had the chance to live.

And some flowers bloom only once — in the silence of a final breath, colorful witnesses to a devotion that surpassed understanding.

We are all, in our own way, blind gardeners. Unknowingly cultivating feelings that bloom around us, sometimes neglecting the most beautiful roses to chase after mirages.

The true tragedy is not to love without return.

It's to leave without having been seen.

To be reduced to a dried flower in a closed book.

To be understood too late.

So the next time you see someone coughing slightly in your presence, look carefully. It might just be allergies.

Or it might be a garden desperately trying to reach you, to show you its beauty before withering forever.

For silent love is the loudest when it disappears.

[vin-taege]

Could you do headcannons for both sfw and nsfw showering with Chishiya? :3

The Water's Just Right

Summary: Showering headcanons for our favorite snarky boy

Genre: fluff, smut, gn! reader

Note: Oh yeah, I'm back again! I've been gone for so long because of college, but I'm here again to revive the aib fandom >:3 also my first time writing headcannons. :DDD I think I got carried away sjjsjs

☄. *. ⋆ sfw

ok let's start with headcannons for the real world

as a doctor, he mainly takes quick showers

contrary to popular belief, i feel like he enjoys hot showers over cold ones. like he's already going to be stressed because of work, so might as well have at least one part of his day be a little relaxing

the only time you can take joint showers with him is during his off-days or if you stay up long enough to catch him coming home

he doesn't like it when you do the latter option because he firmly believes you should take care of yourself and sleep early

even though he runs on 3 hours of sleep maximum every day

he lets you wash his hair after initially (and weakly) refusing

you definitely use scented shampoo on him (strawberry because he thinks floral scents are too strong)

he prefers subtle scents because the hospital is already filled with strong odors.

he'll never admit he likes it when you wash his hair, especially when you massage his scalp

"did you purr a little?"

"I think you need your hearing checked."

loves it when you run your hands up and down his back

you mainly use showering as an excuse to dote on him

likes kissing your neck while you attempt to lather soap on him

random but he installed a non-slip mat on the floor because he doesn't want the two of you to get into any accidents

likes playing with your hair by gathering soap bubbles and dumping them on you

you don't point this out because you're scared he'll withdraw from letting himself be a kid for once

sometimes when it's been a rough day, he lets you hold him in the shower for a moment

just letting the warm water wash away his stress while he melts into your arms

he used to skip lotion until you started putting it on him

he got used to it after that and subconsciously started integrating it into his routine

honestly before you came along, had the worst skincare routine ever

"That's... that's not how you put on facial wash. You need to wash your face with it for at least a minute."

"I'm not a dermatologist, y/n."

"You don't need to be to know that???"

In the borderlands, it's basically the same but without the luxury of proper skin products.

always ALWAYS showers after games

he hates the ick from going outside and keeps himself sane by maintaining cleanliness

surprisingly, he's more forward with asking you to join him

in the real world, you're the one who always asks for permission, but now he always looks for your presence

especially since he knows you could be gone any day

"Do you want to join me?"

"Didn't the heater system break down?"

"I fixed ours. The water's just right."

☄. *. ⋆ nsfw

remember that non-slip mat?

oh yeah, that was definitely for this occasion

he doesn't like lifting you up because again, safety first

prefers standing positions where he can press you up against the wall.

LOVES LOVES LOVES FOGGING UP THE GLASS

he doesn't pull your hair because he knows it'll be prone to breakage

he's such a nerd about bodily care except for when it comes to himself.

holds your neck instead and uses it as leverage to pound into you

either that or he digs his fingers into your hips so he can grind his cock inside you.

makes it his goal to make you squirt at least once

OK THIS IS MY PERSONAL HEADCANNON

it may be because of the tight space, or the bathroom acoustics, or the added privacy

but this man is definitely louder in the shower

you love sucking him off because of this

deep moaning, swearing, whimpering when you're being a little shit and you overstimulate him

plays with your chest a lot because he likes how slippery the soap makes it

LISTEN

also installed a detachable showerhead ;)))

[billthedrake]

LINEAGE (PART FIFTEEN)

Spring finally hit, and it was a perfect Sunday afternoon for a ball game. I'd taken Evan and Keith to see the city's major league team. It was some overdue bonding time with my sons, and I felt the need to put in some Dad time with Evan particularly, who had entered his moody phase. Ever since I'd announced my relationship with Junior, my third son had seemed more distant.

He was in a better mood that day. "So, Dad..." he said between the third and fourth inning. "I want to start working out. For real."

This didn't totally surprise me. Both Ev and Keith were into sports, just about any sport, but particularly football. Both played in the 13U Pop Warner league, and Evan looked forward to joining the middle school team in the Fall.

I was about to give a more cautious response, but I was in a good mood. "I guess your Daddy and I can show you around the weight room," I said. "You could join me after school," I offered. Then adding my Dad talk, I said, "As long as you keep up with your homework."

Evan smiled, probably the first real smile I'd seen from him in a month. "Yes, Dad. That'd be awesome."

"I wanna do it too," Keith piped in. He definitely had little brother syndrome and always had to be doing what Evan was doing.

Now was time for the cautious approach. "I can show you some form, Keith, but you're not using weights till you're older, OK?"

Jesus, my other kid was gonna get sulky. "I bet Daddy would let me work out with him."

"Your Daddy is with me on this, Bruiser," I said. I had a different nickname for each son, and I was worried I was going to run out of fresh ones once the triplets came. I tried to be conciliatory. "You can join me and Ev, but I don't want either one of you injuring yourself while you're still growing."

An inning later, my phone buzzed. It was Braden. "How's the game?"

"We're losing, 3-1," I typed back. "But the boys are having a good time."

"Junior and I are having a real good time, too," came the text.

Goddamnit, don't get hard here, Bill, I told myself. Braden and Junior had gone to the Fiedlers for the first cross-family foursome. I'd been dying to go, but there was no way to make that happen without Evan and Keith feeling left out of something they didn't understand.

So here I was putting in Dad time while Brade and Junior were having sex with the Fiedlers. While Todd's dad, Adam, was now up in Ithaca living with his son-boyfriend, Jon, both were back in town for Jon's spring break, joining the eldest son Andrew who was also back home from college.

"I want a full report, Son," I wrote back.

"Of course, Dad." Then I got a follow up message. "Junior is quite the stud."

I slipped my phone back into my shorts.

***

Braden filled me in that night in bed. He felt very drained sexually, and I think a little sore. Every Fiedler man had apparently been inside my son.

Even as he told me, lying back naked in bed, his big muscle body seeming bigger with the hint of a baby bump now showing, he seemed excited.

"Thanks for letting me go, Dad. I guess I've been feeling that need to play."

I ran my hand over his stomach. If Brade was getting bigger there already, the triplets pregnancy was going make him get big, fast. "I'm glad you could have your fun, buddy. I'm not there for you enough."

He knew what I meant. "Cmon, Dad. We're figuring this out. Even if you weren't with Junior, I'd still get horny sometimes."

"Well I've started taking those pills," I grinned.

That made Brade laugh. "Yeah? They working?"

I nodded. "Some days more than others. Hard to predict. But I'll feel this total rush and get rock hard." I nodded down at my boner as if to illustrate.

"Nice," Braden said reaching over to caress my boner with his fingers. He was definitely more in a soft exploration mood rather than a let's have sex mood. It was great, but also driving me crazy a little. "Both the Fiedler dads are taking them. It was really hot."

We kissed. Softer than I wanted, but that day was all about Braden, not me. I had felt a moment of jealousy but ultimately I was glad he'd enjoyed himself.

My son-husband pulled back and rested his head on my chest. I stroke the soft bristle of his hair and wondered how I ended up to be so lucky to have a son like Braden, my life partner.

"How you feeling about Junior, Dad?" he asked softly.

"He's 18," I replied. "He needs to sow his oats."

"Bill's a natural, Dad," Braden said. His hand was still on my prick, not outright stroking it but moving up and down in a very sensual way. I was getting surprisingly worked up from his touch.

"Yeah?" I asked.

He nodded. "I mean, I knew he can top, but watching him in action... he fucked every single guy there."

My dick jerked at that. "Even Todd?" I knew my buddy had bottomed a couple of times for Andrew, but generally preferred top bunk.

"Especially Todd," Braden said. "I'm not trying to make you jealous, Dad, but there was clearly a lot of pent up sexual tension there."

I knew what he meant. The flirtatious talk between me and Todd Fiedler, the way the doctor eyed up Junior on our golf outings, just like I'd eyed up his boys.

"Did I say the wrong thing?" Braden asked, finally looking up at me.

I shook my head. "I have to have a relationship talk with Junior, that's all. But I'm lucky to have two very sexual sons."

Braden smiled. "I'm too tired for fucking, Dad. OK if I suck you off?"

I spread my legs. "More than OK, buddy."

Braden scooted his head down and began licking my cock. Taking a more exploratory approach. Up and down from my balls to my tip. I was so hard from the sex talk and from imagining Brade and Junior hooking up with the Fiedler men.

Finally my son started swallowing my dick, slowly sucking me. Lovingly, even. I let him control the pace and enjoyed the slow build up.

"Brade!" I finally gasped. "I'm close, son." My cock felt completely alive and super sensitive, responding to every movement of his mouth on me.

I curled my fingers in his buzzcut and fired off. Brade gladly gulped me down.

****

The workweek hit hard. We had a new routine. I'd head off to work early while Brade and Junior had their workout. Junior would drive Keith and Evan to school, and I'd pick them up.

When we got home, I gave Brade a welcome home kiss, but he was occupied with watching the twins and making dinner. That Monday, I asked Evan and Keith to get changed and join me in the basement home gym. Braden would probably be a better personal trainer, but the boys would have to make do with me. It was fun, though, and reinvigorating to get a work out in with them, showing them different exercises along the way.

Both the boys were in a great mood over dinner. And Evan even went and did his homework after, like I'd asked. Junior excused himself to do the same.

"I can't wait to grow up," Keith said as the rest of my sons sat around the dinner while I started cleaning up.

"That just means more chores and more homework, Bruiser."

Keith seemed to think it over. "Yeah, I guess."

Braden laughed. "You wanna help me put your little brothers to bed?" he asked Keith.

"Sure."

The twins were barely walking but with some help, they did a good job. Keith held on to one hand each and slowly walked them back down the hall.

"You good here, Dad?" Braden asked.

"I got this," I said. "Though I'm dreading the number of dishes to clean once the triplets are here."

"Who's fault is that?" Braden teased.

"I'll gladly take responsibility," I said.

Brade gave me a quick peck. "You still sleeping with Junior tonight?" he asked.

I looked into my son's brown eyes. "If that's still OK with you, buddy. And if Junior's up for it." This would be a big step. Me sleeping in Junior's room for the first time.

"He'll be up for it, Dad. I guarantee."

"He seemed quiet tonight," I observed.

Braden patted my arm. "Let him sleep in tomorrow. It's OK if he misses a workout." My son-husband definitely brought the optimism in our relationship, whereas I was the worrier.

With that, he walked off to go read to the twins.

I felt a hardon coming on. A chub at first, then a full on boner in my slacks. I'd chalk it up to those pills, but I think it was actually the excitement of overnighting with Junior.

I cleaned up and set aside the dish towel. I walked down the hall and knocked on Junior's door, which was ajar.

"Hey kiddo," I said, stepping in.

Junior was in his books. He looked so handsome in his golf attire, barefoot and wearing his ball cap at his desk. "Hey Dad," he said. He had a nervous look on his face.

I shut the door behind me. "What's wrong, kiddo? You didn't knock up another guy, did you?" I asked in a teasing voice.

"No, sir," he laughed. "I wish."

I nodded down at his books. "Still got a lot more work to do?"

Junior shook his head. "I'm pretty much done. Just trying to get a head start on the week, you know?"

I stepped up and placed my hand on his shoulder. "I wanted to see if I could sleep here tonight?"

"God yeah, Dad," came the immediate reply. "You're not in the dog house are you?"

I chuckled. "No. Things are all good with me and your Daddy. Just want some time with my boyfriend." I reached down and removed his ball cap, placing it on his desk.

Junior was very eager the kiss as I leaned down. We tapped tongues and explored each other's mouths gently. Bill Jr. was getting some real kissing technique down.

"I can give you some time and come back later," I offered.

"Whatever, Dad," Junior replied. He leaned back in his chair and I could see he was boned up. He stood up and we kissed some more.

"I should probably shower up," he said.

"Maybe I can join you, kiddo," I growled into his lips.

"Fuck yeah."

We slowly stripped each other off. Enjoying our nakedness. I followed Junior into the adjoining bathroom, both our dicks rock hard.

This was another first for us. Junior starting the shower and me stepping in next to him.

"Your Daddy isn't into shower sex," I said.

"Really?" he said. "This has been a dream of mine forever, Dad," Junior said, openly sudsing my chest and arms before I took the soap and did the same for him.

We kissed under the shower spray and I could feel my son's cock press against mine, battling it like clashing swords.

"Turn around," I said softly. I took my time soaping Junior's strong back. His body was responding really well to the workouts and a naughty idea wondered if Evan and Keith would respond to their workouts as well. I put that thought aside, though and set down the soap.

Junior wasn't expecting it, but once I crouched down and parted his cheeks, he grew excited. "Fuck yes, Dad. Taste my hole."

I licked my son's pucker and then ate him out more fervently. Junior braced himself on the tile wall and let me munch away.

"I could cum like this, Dad," he moaned.

"You should, Son," I said. pulling back and kneading his cheeks before I dove back in.

We both had a mission now. Me to rim Junior to an intense orgasm, and Junior to get off. It took thirty seconds for that to happen. I loved feeling his buns clench around my face and his tasting his hole spasm as he fired several ropes onto the shower wall.

"Attaboy," I grunted, leaning back to take a final look of his ass.

I stood up and claimed a hot kiss from my boyfriend-son. We finally turned off the water. It took Junior a second to realize I was still rock hard. "You didn't get off, Dad?"

"Un unh. Cut cocks can use a little lubrication."

Junior nodded and then crouched down in front of me. I felt him start to suck me. He was getting better at this, and I wondered if Brade had been giving him tips. Teaching him how to service his own father. The idea had me cumming.

My son got some nonverbal grunts for warning and then was being fed a healthy load.

We were almost laughing as we dried off.

"That was fun as hell, Dad," Junior said. We got into Junior's bed. A queen sized mattress, it wasn't as cumfy as the marital bed I shared with Braden, but I enjoyed snuggling next to him. Kissing, making out. Feeling naked with Junior.

"Thanks for this, Dad," he said.

"You don't gotta thank me, Junior," I said. "I enjoy this as much."

He took that in. Like he almost couldn't believe it. "I take it Daddy told you about yesterday." That nervousness was coming back.

"He did," I said. "You had fun?" The way Brade had described the Fiedler orgy, he made it sound like Junior was on cloud nine, and now I worried he hadn't been into it.

"A little too much," he said. "I thought you might be mad."

I patted his back. "I would have been doing the same thing as you if I'd been there," I assured him.

His smile came back. "I told those guys you're the only man who fucks me."

"Yeah, bud?" I asked. We hadn't talked much about that. I guess I'd assumed Junior would go on to enjoy it with other men.

My son nodded. "You're the only man who ever will, Dad. Honest."

My dick grew hard against him. OK, those pills could work their magic.

"You like that," he observed.

I used my free hand to stroke his cheek. "I'm definitely flattered. And, yeah, turned on."

"It only feels right if it's my own father," he said. I could feel his own prick plumping against mine.

We kissed now. Classic French Kiss. Just the right speed as we caressed each other's bodies and rolled around his bed some. Finally, I'd claimed the position on top of him. And when I pulled back I saw that look in Junior's eyes. Ready.

I reached over to his nightstand and fumbled for the lube.

"I love you, kiddo," I said as I fingered his hole with the lube, slowly at first.

"Love you, Dad. Fuck, it's wild I'm dating my father."

I grinned and added a finger. "You can tell me if it ever doesn't feel right," I said.

"I'm learning to relax down there, Dad," Junior replied.

I shook my head. "I meant the dating part. If you ever want to go out on your own, date other men."

"God, Dad. Fuck. I mean, even if I ever did, you're my main guy."

I worked in a third. "Yeah?" I asked with a horny edge. Junior's words were getting to me, emotionally and sexually.

"Fuck yeah, Dad. You got dibs."

I laughed at that. "In that case..." I said. I pulled my fingers out just as my prick lined up. The trick worked surprisingly well. Junior was getting smoothly fed his father's dick.

"Hell fucking yes. My dad's cock inside me."

"Where it belongs, son."

He nodded. I hit a deeper spot about five inches in. Junior was tighter there and he ran his hands over my upper body to get in the headspace to take me.

"You got this kiddo," I assured him.

"Yeah, Dad," he replied, almost to convince himself. But indeed after working my prick in very short thrusts against the tightness I felt my son's insides open up for me.

"YES!" we cried simultaneously.

"Fuck me, Dad," Junior urged, now holding on to my hips, to pull me into him.

I pumped him. Eyes locking on my hunky son's, my loving son's, as we mated. "Take your father, Junior. Take Dad's cock."

"Every damn day if you want, Sir."

"Fuck," I hissed. The idea was very hot.

"I know you got Daddy too. But I love having sex with you, Dad. So much."

"Me too, kiddo."

I leaned in and kissed. And fucked. Deeper and faster. Junior was horny beneath me, his hard cock against my abs. "Shit!" he gasped in horniness.

I stopped for a second, though it took a lot of willpower to do so. Junior watched wide-eyed as I pumped out some lube on his rock hard erection. I'd barely started pumping him again, when he started jerking off in sync with my thrusts.

"You're gonna fuck me off, Dad. Gonna me cum... so fucking hard... YES!"

Though he was feeling the sexual urgency now, it actually took a solid minute for that orgasm to build up. It was glorious to watch. I was feeling real fucking good, too, but right then I was focused on fucking the cum out of junior. Putting extra power in my thrusts. He was ready for it.

"Harder, Dad!" he said aloud.

I pounded with a new intensity. And Junior's face scrunched and cum flew out of his cock, all over his toned, athletic body. I huffed and enjoyed the sensation of his guts clenching, bringing me over the line into pure pleasure.

My body finally slowed and we pressed heads together, catching our breaths.

"I wish the Fiedlers could watch you fuck me like that, Dad," Junior finally said in sincerity. "That was incredible."

"I'll say." I gave him a kiss then finally slid out of him. After two cums, I was still hard, but I was definitely spent for the moment. I lay next to him and ran my fingers through the cum on his chest. "I didn't go too hard on ya, did I, kiddo?"

Junior shook his head. "I loved it, Dad." Then softly, "I want to get better at it."

"I don't think your father can handle 'better'," I replied.

Junior smiled. "Daddy says you like fucking hard."

I wanted to head this off at the pass. "I like fucking in a way my son enjoys," I said.

"I know," he grinned. "But maybe with poppers..." He was definitely feeling me out.

"You done poppers?" I asked in that Dad tone.

"No," he replied. "But I guess I see guys in porn do em."

"Real life isn't porn," I reminded him.

"I don't know, Dad..." Junior nodded down to our sweaty, cum-coated bodies. "That was a pretty fucking porn worthy fuck." He saw my hesitation. "Just think it over, OK?"

We showered off again and got back into bed. Holding each other naked and talking. Eventually we set the alarm and turned off the light.

As Braden suggested, I let Junior sleep in the next morning, though I rimmed him while he sucked me off. I came hard in his mouth then he leaned up and rode my mouth while he jerked off a matching load.

Once we'd orgasmed, we got out of bed and got ready.

"You good for taking your brothers to school?" I asked. We weren't running late, but we were cutting it close.

"For sure, Dad," Junior replied, slipping on his T-shirt. "And I don't have practice today so can pick them up too."

"That'd be great," I said. "I need to take Brade to his doctor's appointment."

"Everything healthy with Daddy?" he asked. Junior had always been fixated on Braden's pregnancies and now took on a protective attitude toward his daddy-brother.

"So far," I said. "But with triplets we gotta do regular check ups."

"Daddy's built tough, Dad," Junior said with a smile. "It's gonna go great."

I looked at my watch. "I gotta get dressed," I said. I wore my underwear, and had yesterdays' shirt and trousers in one arm. "But I had an amazing night last night, Son," I said.

"Me, too, Dad."

We gave each other a goodbye kiss.

****

The ice had definitely been broken between us and the Fiedlers. At the next golf outing, Todd said point blank over that first hole, "Your son's quite the cocksman, Bill."

I was caught off guard but this was our crude flirtatious thing just taken to a new level. "You're gonna inflate the boy's ego, Todd," I replied, looking over at Junior with a wink.

Junior puffed out his chest as he strode up to the tee. "What can I say, Dr. Fiedler? You guys inspired me." He focused on his line of sight then pulled the club back for a hard swing. The loud metal connected with a thwap sound and we watched the ball travel FAR, straight down the fairway. Junior was really a great player these days.

Sam patted my arm in a flirty way. "Was just sad you coudn't join, Mr. Drake. Maybe next time."

"I'd like that, Sam," I said. I was starting to chub up right then and there. There goes my score, I thought. No way was I going to be able to focus on my game.

Somehow, I got my mind back into golf, enjoying the talk with the Fiedlers and Junior. Talking sex, but also other family stuff. We actually got into a discussion about real estate and if there was any chance to grow Incest Acres. We decided it would have to be incest men only, or guys very open to incest.

Often Junior and I have sex after a golf outing, and sometimes a date. But when Todd suggested a group scene back at their pace, I was definitely intrigued.

"I know you want Braden there, Bill," he said. "But we can do just a suck scene. It's very hot."

I texted Braden to see if it would be OK and got a thumbs up. I knew he'd enjoy me recounting it later, and I could suck him for a change as payback.

I was hornier than I realized when we made it to the Fiedler house. I didn't know how this would go down, but Todd led us into the living room, where Sam sat next to his father. Junior sat next to me. I think my son knew what to do from last time, since he started kissing along my neck and feeling up my chest through my knit polo.

"Your boy's horny for his Dad," Todd hissed.

I wasn't surprised that Dr. Fiedler was a verbal man, but I was very glad.

"How about your, Son?" I asked. "You horny for your Dad, Sam?"

"God, yeah, Mr. Drake," Sam Fiedler answered. He was just shy of Junior's age and while he didn't have my son's build quite, he was trim and cute as fuck. "I can't get enough dad dick." Already he was pawing at Todd's crotch.

"How often you suck Bill Jr off?" Todd asked me, locking eyed on the incestuous couple in front of him.

"Once a week," I replied. "Probably should do it more."

Junior pulled back and kissed me.

"FUCK!" Todd Fiedler hissed. "Fucking incest."

I was now the one pushing things forward. I undid my shorts and pushed them down, then my underwear, so my hard cock was standing straight up.

"You're hung as fuck, Mr. Drake," came Sam's excited voice.

Junior laughed when he pulled back. He was pretty much my size and was used to guys being surprised at the Drake cock.

"That's my boyfriend you're talking about," Junior said.

"Damn," I heard Todd say. He was following my lead in removing his shorts. It was my first time seeing the Fiedler cock. He lacked my length but had some girth that made it seemed imposing.

Already Sam was on it. Leaning over his dad's lap and lapping away. Holding the base and going down on his father.

"Not gonna take me long, today," Todd said. "Hanging out with you guys." He looked down and softly muttered, "Suck me, son. Suck your dad."

Junior was getting turned on. He pulled my head into a kiss then went to kneel down on the floor between my legs.

This was extremely hot. Me watching Sam Fiedler suck his father while Junior sucked me. Watching Todd watch us and both fathers getting off on exhibitionism.

"I'm gonna cum, kiddo," I finally announced. I wanted to make this last, but Junior was good at sucking cock and I was all too worked up.

I probably would have enjoyed Todd have his orgasm, but Junior was standing up, flogging his uncut prick. Stepping up slightly to get closer. Before I could react, that piss slit opened up in a flutter and hot son cum fired out in a thick jet. Then another. Junior was painting my face in semen, and was turned on to watch that act.

It surprised me, but it was hot and fun, too. Something new. It wasn't like sex between me and Brade was stale, but Junior loved experimenting in a way Braden usually didn't. They both had their place in my life.

I leaned in and latched my mouth over the tip of Junior's prick, tasting the dribbles.

Only after I came down did I feel embarrassed. My shirt was wet with Junior's seed and even after I rinsed off my face in the bathroom, I felt like maybe things had gone too far.

But the Fiedler men were on cloud nine. Todd and Sam had made themselves presentable and were all smiles. Todd's hand was on Sam's shoulder as he walked us to the door. "Thanks for that, guys. And Sam here definitely wants to take both you guys on."

"Oh yeah," Sam said. I got the sense his teen sex drive was pushing Todd to open things up even more than his other sons.

"That's be way hot," Junior said.

Todd paused. "Would a good bye kiss be too much to ask for?"

I shook my head. I stepped up to Todd. Talk about sexual tension. We kissed with a little tongue. Then more. "Nice," he whispered.

Junior was doing the same with Sam. Then we switched. Me kissing Sam Fiedler for the first time and feeling him practically suck my tongue into his mouth. Meanwhile, Junior was going heavier into the kiss with the DILF doctor.

"All right, Junior... we should get back."

We walked back to the house, Junior with a knowing smile on his face. "Come on, Dad, that was hot as fuck. Right?"

"Yeah," I admitted.

****

Braden found a side project. He had started a social media feed about men bearing kids. He'd done some posting with the twins, but that had been more of a hobby. Now that he was pregnant with twins, Brade went all in with the content. Daily posts: fitness and exercise while pregnant, nutrition, shirtless updates of his baby bump, reports from his doctor's visit. It became a viral sensation. And ad money was coming in. Real money.

Evan was helping him out. "He's really good with computers and video and stuff," Brade said. "I told him he'd get a small percentage of the cut for his allowance." I was glad Ev was into the little brothers coming along the way.

I spend more looking after Keith, hanging out with him. I loved being that Dad for him, throwing the football in the backyard, watching his little league games, or taking him out for ice cream afterward.

We were driving home from one of his games, when he got quiet. "Dad.... when is my body going to change?" I'd given him a couple of guy talks, about sex and puberty.

"It happens when it happens, Bruiser," I said. "You're getting impatient?" I asked. I wasn't sure where this question was coming from. But Keith wanted to copy everything Evan did.

"Maybe," he said.

"I won't lie, son," I said. "It can be a wonderful experience. But it can also be scary, trying to figure out the changes when they come."

Keith seemed to hang on my every word. "Was it scary for you, Dad?"

"Totally scary," I said. "My body wanted one thing and my mind wanted something else."

"Wow," Keith said. I could tell he wanted to know more but wasn't going to pry into details.

"Just feel free to come to me or your Daddy if we can help, OK?"

"Yeah, Dad."

This was the fourth son I'd had to talk about sex with, and I wondered if it would get easier.

****

I was in my office one evening before dinner, trying to get some work done, when Junior came, knocking on the door.

"Dad?" he asked.

"Yeah, kiddo?" I said, pushing my chair back and gesturing for him to come in.

Junior had a folded paper in his hand. "I got this in the mail."

I had seen the envelope when I got home. An official looking mailing from Auburn. I'd been anxious waiting for my son to get home and open it.

"I got it," he said, with a shy, proud smile. "Full ride to Auburn."

I beamed. "Oh bud... that's amazing!" I stood up and walked over to hug my son. I clasped his back and then gave him a quick kiss. "So proud of you."

"Thanks, Dad." He wasn't as thrilled as I expected. "I'm gonna call em up and see if I can defer a year."

That caught me off guard. "Yeah? You sure?"

He nodded, and I could tell he'd been rehearsing what to tell me. "I've been thinking it over, Dad. With the triplets coming, you and Daddy could use all the help around the house you can get."

I gave him a look that said I was listening but not buying it. "I'm gonna miss you like hell when you go to college, Junior. You know that. But I don't want you to put college or any of your plans on hold because of us. We'll figure it out."

Junior reached up and ran his fingers along my chest. We were matched for height and it felt nice to have this soft initimacy with my son-boyfriend.

"I know, Dad," he said. "It's just that... I figure this is my last chance in a long while."

"Last chance for what?" I asked. Braden called me oblivious a lot, and this was a prime example.

"To have your kid, Dad. If you want that."

"Junior... you have no idea how happy that would make me." I pulled him closer to me. I don't think I realized until that moment how much I wanted to procreate with Junior. "But you'd have to want that, too."

"I want it, Dad," my son objected. "If you give me permission, I'd go off the birth control right away."

I had a million reasons to talk Junior out of it. A million practical considerations to talk through. But instead I kissed Junior, deeply.

I had to be inside him, so I finally relinquished the kiss. "Go tell your Daddy dinner will be a few minutes later, OK? Then come meet me in the master bedroom."

The huge smile on Junior's face told me we were gonna do this. Gonna have a son together. Whenever Bill Jr began ovulating again. Whenever my seed got the job done. Eventually, but maybe soon.

"Yeah, Dad."

[kyokutsu-sama]

_____________________________

The captain's sword

A/n: I've been writing about this man on ao3, I've already posted two works there and I'll post this one there later. This captain makes me feel things🤭(Seriously bro, there's something about men with tough personalities that attracts me...)

Tw: NSFW content

_____________________________

You wondered how you had managed to get to the base without falling along the way due to exhaustion. Your mana was extinct as was your energy, all you wanted to do at that moment was pass out on your soft mattress and sleep for the whole week but it seems that you had other plans before going to sleep.

You saw Yami at the counter and wanted to kill him after he sent you on a mission that almost cost you your life.

"There you are, you scoundrel !" You said, approaching the counter. "You were drinking and smoking while I was there dying, weren't you?"

"Who do you think you're talking to?" He looked at you with a raised eyebrow and an unfriendly expression on his face, as if he wanted to intimidate you but you were too mad to be afraid

"With my stupid captain, Yami Sukehiro" You said, sitting next to him and he looked at you for a long moment in silence, the cigarette smoke leaving his lips after he took a long sigh. He undoubtedly liked your defiant air when you dared to speak like that, strong women were his type and he was definitely going to play that game.

"Your tongue is very sharp tonight, I see" He slightly curved his lips upwards

"I thought you liked tough girls with sharp tongues. What's the problem now? Can't you handle them?" You teased and he closed his eyes with another long sigh

"Here, drink" He said, extending the large mug of beer to you

"You didn’t answer my question"

"Drink" He insisted and since you knew he was stubborn, you decided to do what he said

There was no one else there, you thought it was strange since they would also like to be there drinking or breaking everything but maybe they were already asleep. It was late and you were supposed to be sleeping too but since your dear captain was there, you weren't just going to turn your back on him. He enjoyed your company even if you were mad at him and you also couldn't ignore him when he was offering you drinks and company too.

Anyone who didn't know him at that moment would think he was a calm person, with half-closed eyes, a lit cigarette in the corner of his mouth, some strands of his black hair falling over his face making him even more attractive and an expressionless face. However, he was not someone to mess with and everyone there knew it. You also knew and that's why you pushed his buttons until he lost his patience, which was little and led him to do crazy things. He also did the same to you, teasing you every day until you went crazy. Deep down you knew he has a tender heart when it comes to you, even if he teases you twenty-four hours, even if he gives you more difficult training because he believes in you and your abilities and that you can surpass your limits, even though he was a stubborn and short-tempered at times, you loved him with all his flaws. You knew that inside his little heart was you and he himself admitted that to you a lot of times.

You placed the empty mug on the table and looked at him, who still seemed focused on a random corner of the room.

"I finished drinking, are you going to answer me now?" You said, looking at him

"Drink another one"He replied, taking a drag on his cigarette, still without looking at you

"Yami, are you testing my patience ?" You raised an eyebrow and tilted your head slightly to the side

"You're the one testing my patience, princess. Did the mission go well or do I need to go in there and take out the other guy for you?”

"No, I already did what had to be done, I even broke the sword you gave me last week"

"You broke what?" He looked at you as you placed the remaining part of the sword on the table. "Honey, I hadn't even finished paying, in fact, I didn't even pay mine, let alone yours"

“Well, Yami, it looks like you're going to have to start saving more money instead of betting everything on gambling like you always do, even with your clothes” You looked away in the last words, remembering when he came back from long nights completely naked after having bet them on gambling

“So what? My nudity is nothing new to others... and not to you either" He gave a little smile and you felt a slight blush on your cheeks."Now, regarding the sword, leave it to me. I'll see if I can find some money to pay this shit for the next hundred years"

"And see if the next one is of quality"

"It's not about quality when you don't know how to wield it"

"What did you say, Yami?" You looked at him with a threatening look

"Nothing" He said, raising hands in a kind of surrender

"See? You don't even have the balls to repeat what you said to my face, it just proves that you can't handle a strong woman like me" You teased and got up from the bench but he grabbed your arm turning you towards him

"Princess, you're making me lose my mind with all that tough personality. Come here" He picked you up and put you on his shoulder so easily and quickly that you make you scream at his sudden movement

"Yami, what are you doin--" He slapped your butt as he carried you to his room."Are you punishing me now?”

“And it’s just the beginning, baby" He laughed and entered the bedroom

He threw you on the bed and closed the door, you looked at him as he put out his cigarette and looked you up and down, wondering where he would start.

"Why are you looking at me? I thought you were a man of action"

"Be quiet brat, I'm concentrating" He said as he took off his tattered black cape and shirt.

"Brat? What happened to ‘princess’?"

"They will evolve for worse if you keep talking" He said climbing onto the bed and holding your face in his hand

Yes, it would, you knew it would. The beautiful nicknames he gave in the beginning would be the future dirty talk. It was only making the heat in the room rise as well as the heat building up between your thighs. However, he also had to be punished for the mission he had given you and you would take care of it.

"What’s wrong? Why aren't you laughing now?" He asked with a low voice close to your face and you blushed

He would tease you until the end, until you couldn't handle it anymore, take you to the limits and even beyond that. That was his type.

He pushed you onto the mattress and got on top of you, removing your clothes and you helped him, his strong and hurried hands roaming your body. He leaned towards you and kissed your lips, taking your breath away with heat and strength, you hugged him close to you, taking your hands to run down his back. His hand slid between your thighs and stroked the wetness that increased the more he touched you, he pulled your lip between his teeth before settling on your neck and sucking the skin there. You could already feel your sweaty skin and slight goosebumps, you whimpered when he placed his fingers in you and you tight them inside you. The ability that man had to make you forget that you were mad at him moments ago was impressive. You arched your back and both bodies touched, there was no distance between the two and you were delirious with so much proximity. You put a hand to the back of his head, he was still marking your skin and tasting every bit of it.

The fingers moving in and out and scissoring, opening more space inside you as you writhed and moaned beneath his huge body covering yours. His thumb brushing against the sensitive bud and sending shivers throughout your body, making your legs tremble. Your eyes rolled back in pleasure just at the feeling of his lips kissing your neck. You were close but you held yourself back so you didn't have to come before you could take control of the situation and play with him a little too. You grabbed his forearm and removed his fingers from you and turned him around, sitting on top of him, resting your hands on his chest while he looked at you, intrigued that you had changed roles.

"You're feeling very confident today" He joked, placing his hands on your waist

"My turn to punish you for giving me such a troublesome mission today" You said taking the belt off his pants to tie his wrists above his head, to prevent him from touching you

"You don't think this will last long, do you?" He chuckled, looking at you and you smiled

"No, but I just need some time for what I'm going to do. Don't worry dear, I'll be gentle with you" You leaned over and placed a kiss on his lips

You knew that he would go along with it because deep down he liked having you on top showing your strength, that turned him on.

You held the waistband of his pants and removed them. You had the beautiful vision of him all naked and with his arms tied above his head and that only made things heat up more. You brought a hand to his dick, stroking it while you looked at him and saw his hands start to fight to free himself, he just wanted you to continue what you were doing because it felt too good.

You spat into the palm of your hand to make back and forth movements as you felt your insides tighten with emptiness and the desire to take him right there but you liked the idea of just watching him suffer a little. Not that he was suffering from your touch but rather the fact that he wanted to grab your hips and bury himself inside you.

"What's wrong, Yami? I can't see your smile right now" You teased, using his words and he bit his lip, seeing the way you were teasing him

"You're a teaser"He said with a hoarse voice and his eyes half-open

Your hand moved faster around him, his hands fought to free themselves again, you weren't sure if he was closer to coming or letting go from the belt and making you pay for it.

He was right when he said that it wouldn't last long, and besides, he wouldn't need to try very hard to get out of that knot.

And it was when you least expected it that one of his hands was already on your wrist, preventing you from doing anything else, you looked at him after being taken by surprise.

He turned you around and placed you under him on the mattress and pinning your wrists above your head with one hand, looking at your panting and flushed face.

It seems like you would have to leave your revenge for another day.

"You found a way to surpass your limits again, did you?" You smiled and he chuckled

"You make me surpass them"

"Good to kno---" You barely finished your sentence and he turned your back to him and lifted your hips up. All that desire of his was making him impatient and with little time for conversation.

"You talk too much" His hand rested on the red skin after slapping your butt. "Just watch me surpass my limits again"

He was quick to place himself inside you and fill your insides to the deepest point, your fingers grabbed the sheets in front of you and your moans were muffled against it.

“You're so tight right now, Y/n”He sighed heavily."Don't tell me you were thinking about me while you were there fighting?"

He placed one hand on the back of your head, keeping your head against the mattress and the other hand on the headboard as he sped up his thrusts. You could barely breathe at that moment, even if you wanted to lean your head back, his strong hand was pressing you and the only thing you could do was feel your legs tremble and whimper every time his body collided against yours. The others would probably hear all those dirty sounds coming from the room but you wouldn't believe that any of them would be stupid enough to complain about it out loud, unless they wanted to move up the date of their death. He removed one hand from the back of your neck and brought it to your clit to make circular movements that made you tighten more and more around him. You felt the butterflies in your stomach intensifying when you came, your legs weakened and your fingers were still holding the sheets with some strength as he filled you with his cum, until you felt it running down your thighs. He withdrew from you and pulled your body back so that you were leaning against his chest, he bent down and kissed your neck while his arms hugged your body from behind making you feel protected from everything.

He could have all that size and be a brute, but he always seemed so clingy and careful with you. It was as if you changed his personality for something different, not very different but at least it softened this man's little heart a little.

"I'm sorry Y/n, I won't let you go on a mission like that alone again." He said kissing the top of your head and tightening his arms around you

"And I think I should also apologize for breaking the sword.”

"Don't worry about it, I'll find another one. Even if it means not seeing my paycheck for months or probably years." He said, laughing

[bones4thecats]

➸ Your Wedding Day; Idia Shroud × S/O

Character: Idia Shroud A/N: This was something that I've wanted to write for quite a while, so I'm happy I finally got my Idia-wedding ideas out and posted for you guys to see. Hope you fellow Idia simps enjoy! Disclaimer(s): Reader's dress, Idia's suit, and song to listen too

╔══════════════════════════════════════════╗

╚═════ Idia Shroud ════════════════════════════╝

🎮 We all know this guy enjoys his privacy, and that includes privacy with you (of course it does, why wouldn't it?)

🎮 You happily handed him a list of some ideas for your wedding, to which he just sighed and set his headphones down to read over. Ever since College ended, he had been working more and more with S.T.Y.X., so whenever he got some free time, he'd either play games or rest with you

🎮 More than not, he would just sleep with you right beside him. The guy's tried, give him a break

🎮 But, when he proposed, he did not expect such a long list of things you guys needed to decide on for your wedding. He figured that you'd have it all laid out and not worry about it like a character in a show/movie

🎮 As he read the list over, he put tiny skulls by whatever he found that he liked the idea of. Cost wasn't a big deal, but he knew that you wanted a smaller wedding when you guys spent your second-year anniversary together

🎮 He agreed with the idea, but never gave it a second thought. Rookie mistake.

🎮 Idia handed you back the list and you then put check-marks besides the ones you agreed with him on. Your big-day was in only 9 weeks, so getting everything else laid out was something you guys needed to get done immediately

🎮 Snapping his headphones back on as you made call after call and message after message, Idia let his mind wander onto what he dreamt your wedding would look like. From flowers to you in your dress, it didn't matter. It was all there

🎮 When your wedding finally came, your soon-to-be-husband was having a nervous breakdown. Though, why wouldn't he be? He was an introvert having to go up there in front of people and confess his love to you

🎮 While yes, it was all people both you and him knew extremely well, it was still a lot of people!

🎮 His father walked up behind him and smiled, his blue-flame hair matching his son's as he put the brooch of a gem-eyed skull on his suit

"You look so awesome, big brother!" Ortho said from behind their father.

"Thanks, O'. How's Y/N doing?" He asked.

"She's doing great! She looks beyond amazing in her dress! You're gonna be a big strawberry when you see her go down the isle."

🎮 Idia smiled and looked at himself in the mirror, the long flame hair that he always kept loose without any care for, all neatly put together in a brushed-up style with a bow keeping it behind his shoulders. This was what you wanted, so it was what you were going to get

"Boys! Come on! Wedding's about to start!" Mrs. Shroud said from the doorway, causing all three Shroud boy's hair to erupt before settling again. Thankfully it didn't burn anything...

"We're on out way, dear!" Mr. Shroud answered.

🎮 Mr. Shroud looked back at his sons and smiled, planting his new face-only helmet back on his head, his hair sticking out, as it was shorter, but brighter in terms of fire-light

"Let's head out to see your new chapter, Idia."

══✿══╡

🎮 Idia stood there before you, hair all nice, while you stood before him, your long white dress standing out while your veil was draped in front of your face, much to your future husband's dismay. It was hard to find comfort in your eyes without straining his eyes to look beyond the thin fabric

"Now, let's get these vows out, shall we?" The Minister said.

🎮 You smiled and looked at Idia, motioning for him to start. He just took a deep breath, taking a simple glance at his mother, whom was standing behind you as one of her bridesmaids, to which she nodded

🎮 Idia looked deep in your eyes and spoke from his heart. Like I said, no planning involved for this poor boy

"Y/N. You were like the boss that I couldn't defeat. I feared everyone in College, but you just kept coming back and I couldn't seem to put up a firewall to keep you away from me. Every time I heard you were somewhere, I felt the urge to go there just to see your face and hear your laughter. I was at your mercy, and your mercy alone. Ever since the first date we had years ago, I just wanted... no... I needed you to always be by my side. I love you, and I hope you feel the same in your heart."

🎮 You smiled and raised your hand under your veil to wipe a stray tear from your face as you then looked into his eyes and spoke your own vows

"Idia, you were everything I could've asked for. That may sound weird, but it's the truth. When I first met you, I thought you'd be one of the most difficult people to deal with, but I could never have been more wrong. You were charming in your own way, and you still are, without even trying! The way you link in technology in when you speak, the way you furrow your eyebrows when speaking, to the way your eyes shimmer when you find like or do something successfully, it's all enchanting to me. And I never want to let that enchantment go. And I never plan on it. I love you so much, Idia, forever and always."

🎮 He smiled at you as the Minister called for the rings, making Ortho come up and hand you both your wedding wings. Yours to Idia's being black with dark-blue colored edges, while Idia's to you was also black-ringed with a shining blue, heart-shaped gemstone on the top

🎮 You looked into his eyes once more as you placed the jewelry on his ring-finger while he did the exact same afterwards. All of his anxiety was now gone, nobody else was there besides you and him in his mind. You two were the only things that mattered

"You may kiss the bride." The Minister announced, stepping back for you both.

🎮 Idia lifted your veil before grabbing your waist and holding one side of your cheek with his hand and laying his forehead on yours, slowly moving to close the gap between your lips

🎮 Everyone cheered as you left one another's kiss and smiled, hugging one another as he whispered into your ear before setting off for the after-party with the people who attended your day

"I love you so damn much, Y/N."

[usagi-chwan]

A little headcanon just for you <3

🌸 Characters in this chapter: Ranpo, Kunikida, Kenji, Oda, Akutagawa, Yosano, Atsushi, Chuuya, Dazai.

🌸 No spoilers.

I recently got back into playing Candy Crush, and at one point wondered how the BSD characters would react if you told them about the game... And poof, a headcanon was born!

Well, to understand everything in detail, you need to have played Candy Crush at least a few times... But I think it is understandable even if you have not ^^

Do you know Candy Crush? (BSDxReader)

Ranpo

- At first, he does not understand why everyone in the Agency is talking about this thing with a strange name. And he understands even less when he learns that it is a vulgar video game that consists in making stupid pairs.

- But he becomes intrigued when he gets his first glimpse of the game. Not because of the game itself... But because of all the candy, which he sees as a convincing selling point.

- The final element that will make him take the plunge will certainly be if he sees you playing the game too, and if he sees you toiling away for days (or even weeks) trying to finish a poor little level.

- He has to show you that he can do what you cannot, does he not? He had an ego to maintain, after all.

- Once he has figured out how to install it on his phone (which took him about a week and a half), he will be breaking all world records in just a few days.

- You would think it was in his blood. And without breaking the piggy bank, of course! A detective of his caliber never backs down in the face of adversity, and certainly not in the face of a mountain of candy!

- And you, on the other hand, while still struggling with your poor little level, are astonished to see the mountain of sweets on Ranpo's desk doubling in size day after day... You see, playing with sweets makes you hungry! And little Ranpo can be pretty influential when it suits him.

- Lately, it seems that a mysterious player has appeared out of nowhere, and has excelled so much in the game that his feat has been featured on the news... And, above all, he managed to bring the developers themselves to their knees, as they faced a drastic decrease in their player base...

- Too disgusted by this person who lampoons and humiliates them at every turn, in any of the game's competitive events.

- In the end, you were never able to finish your poor level...

- Simply because the company had to close its doors.

~

Kunikida

- "Me, play this childish thing? I've already got an overloaded schedule and not enough free time to myself, so I'm not going to waste it on this kind of pointless thing on top of it."

- That was what the blond man told you loud and clear when you asked him if he knew about the app. You did not expect much, honestly...

- But you were intrigued by Kunikida's answer. How could he know it was a game, since you had never told him? And how could he know that it was "for children", as he had claimed? (which, by the way, was not true - the proof being that you were not a child... Normally).

- So, having waited for the blond to leave on his mission, you swapped a mountain of (real) sweets for Kunikida's password with Ranpo. It was not a huge scoop to know that Ranpo had managed, without any difficulty, to guess the computer password of his busy colleague.

- Once inside the computer, you were immediately taken to the applications installed on the device. And bingo.

- In first place was none other than the game in question. And when you opened it, you thought you were hallucinating.

- Kunikida had long since passed level 2000. While you had just reached level 500 after months of hard work.

- And, if you had investigated a little further, you might also have discovered that, on his precious diary, a slot of fifteen minutes a day was dedicated to playing Candy Crush.

~

Kenji 

- "Candy Crush? What's that, can you eat it?"

- "Yes... But not really. It can be played on a phone, Kenji. You know, the little device you use to contact other people?"

- It had taken him at least a good thirty seconds to think before he answered, with a big, beaming smile.

- "Ah I see, the thing that makes music at times! Well, used to, these days I don't hear it at all... Do you think it's dead?" he had finally asked, a spark of sadness in his eyes.

- "...Have you thought about charging it? Maybe it just doesn't have battery anymore."

- "What's a battery? And why should I charge it?"

- "...Never mind, okay?"

- And, to seal this "interesting" little discussion, you patted the blond's hair, before turning on your heels, actively reflecting on the meaning of your life until the early hours of the morning that night.

~

Oda

- He knows it, but he assures you he does not play it.

- Yet, when you find yourself for some reason with his phone in your hands, you have spotted a familiar little icon in the corner of the screen...

- Because it was Candy Crush, of course. Otherwise, this story would not make any sense.

- With a wry smile, you set off to confront him, convinced that he would blush with embarrassment at the idea of having been caught. Especially as, on entering the application, the game's progression was no match for the veterans.

- "Ah, this thing? I've no idea what it is, I've never tried to open it before... Was it a game?"

- "But... How do you explain getting this far into the game if you've never played it?"

- He had no plausible explanation, and you had had to face the facts too: he really had no idea.

- Right away, you suspected that the children in his care were the ones responsible, and that they were sneaking Oda's phone to play the game from time to time.

- Until, one day, you learned the truth.

- That evening, you arrived a little early at the Lupin, and only Dazai was in the room, leaning against the bar. And in his hands was a telephone you recognized immediately: it was Oda's, of course. He had certainly lost his between drowning attempts, knowing him.

- "This game is harder than life itself...!" the brown-haired man had muttered in a low voice, as he lost a game for the fifth time in a row.

- And, unsurprisingly, it was not long before you discovered that, on the screen, Candy Crush was there. How had Dazai managed to steal Oda's phone so many times without getting caught?

- You did not know. And it was obviously a secret that would stay that way forever.

- These were not children playing in secret... But ONE child. The worst of them all.

- Dazai.

~

Akutagawa

- "What's this useless thing?" was the only sentence that came from the brunet when you showed him the game on your own phone.

- You did not take it well at the time. But you had not said your last word, far from it.

- Behind Akutagawa's back, it did not take you long to install the game on his phone, which you had managed to steal for a few moments.

- You gave him back his phone on the pretext that you had picked it up off the floor (and that it had obviously slipped out of one of his pockets, not to mention your unsuspected pickpocketing skills for a second), and waited.

- But as the days passed, your hopes faded. Akutagawa had become more cautious than ever not to lose his phone, which was something of a work tool, even if he would have gladly done without it.

- He had not mentioned anything about the game, and did not even seem to notice that it had mysteriously been installed overnight. So you gave up.

- But you should not have, of course.

- Because, in the shadows, out of sight, a certain Akutagawa had suddenly developed a passion for a certain game, after learning that a certain Dazai was already playing it. And the worst part?

- He had worked hard to find the team Dazai was on, even threatening one of its members to give up their place or risk having their head cut off. 

- A happy ending, then, is it not? Under a false name, Akutagawa was now able to play anonymously alongside Dazai as much as he liked...

- But the joy was short-lived. Especially when the name of another team member, already present long before his arrival, finally caught his attention.

- And that name, you guessed it...

- Was that of a certain Atsushi.

~

Yosano

- She takes this game to heart, perhaps a little too much.

- When you found out that she played it too, you were happy to invite her to play in your team, for the sake of conviviality.

- It was the mistake of a lifetime. Because when Yosano commits to a project, she follows it through to the end. Even if it means getting violent.

- But is anyone still surprised?

- She always takes a malicious pleasure in dismantling and humiliating the first player to win more often than she does, in common chats and in the rankings of the best players. Suffice it to say that, afraid of being found out in real life by this virtual nutcase, all the members of your team ended up leaving one by one.

- Leaving only you and Yosano. But, fortunately, as you were far worse of a player than she was, you did not have to fear her wrath.

- But, if anyone else dared to disrespect her (by simply scoring more points than she did), you can be sure she would know how to find their real addresses (handy working in a detective agency, eh?).

- In the end, there is a good chance she will end up being charged with cyber stalking. But will she be convicted? Absolutely not.

- Unless the accuser really wants to end up sliced up like a ham.

- Survival tip: never win too many levels in a row, and always stay below her on the scoreboard. But you were at least second in your team, so that was good news, was it not?

- Second out of second, of course, but you cannot expect too much from someone who did not have the desire to lose their head.

- Literally and figuratively.

~

Atsushi

- Certainly the cutest of them all (with Kenji not far behind).

- He knows the game by name, but has no idea how to play it, or how to download the application.

- As a good friend (and more if you get on), you explain everything to him calmly and slowly, with all the pedagogy you are capable of. Eventually, he figures out how to open the application, how to start a game...

- But that is as far as he gets. He had never had the chance to play games, let alone on a phone. So please be patient, he deserves it.

- After several days of practice (when you have time, you always work in an agency if ever), he had learned to line up three candies and make them disappear (to which he expresses his immense joy, and since you are happy too, he is even happier, etc.).

- You MUST be proud, it is an obligation.

- After several more days of practice, he finally learned how to create a special candy! Just goes to show, with a little bit of willingness, you can learn anything (and a little bit of time, of course).

- After a month, you have finally managed to invite him onto your team to lend a hand in the fight against gummy bears and candy! And, to be honest, he ends up doing pretty well by himself, sometimes even topping your team's leaderboard!

- He takes care to send you lives as soon as possible, so do the same, okay?

- In a few words : a little angel of sweetness and innocence!

~

Chuuya

- As far as he is concerned, he will never admit playing it in front of everyone, and even less in front of his colleagues (he had a reputation to uphold, you know!).

- But, if it is you, chances are that, in the end, he will allow himself to play even when you are present. If you start laughing, however, you can kiss that special treatment goodbye!

- But you are full of goodness, are you not?

- He is the kind of guy who puts a lot of himself into the game, not as much as Yosano though (but if he somehow gets into a fight with her, expect a fight like you have never seen before!)

- But he seems to be struck by an incurable curse: with each new team he joins, he is always the only one to complete the objectives that earn everyone more gifts. And, of course, you can expect to hear some very rude name-calling, unannounced in the midst of a quiet silence.

- In a word: pure rage. But does it make him want to stop playing? Of course NOT!

- He did not invest all that time and money in this damn game to give it up so easily! Money, yes.

- So much so that, in fact, the company behind the game must live 80% on the income it earns from Chuuya, who obviously does not take kindly to not complete a level on the first try, and does not hesitate to pull out the bank card at the slightest need.

- With a bit of luck, if you are wise, you might be able to ask him to sponsor your own game...?

~

Dazai

- By far the most ADDICT. 

- Gets up: Candy Crush.

- Goes to work: Candy Crush.

- Goes to the bathroom: Candy Crush.

- Gets yelled at by Kunikida: Candy Crush.

- Although, in the latter case, there is a good chance his phone will go out the window if a certain blond's nerves give way sooner than expected.

- In fact, since Dazai started playing, he loses his phone far less than before, simply because he is constantly glued to it. But does he pick up the phone more often when someone calls?

- Certainly not. He's got a game to finish!

- And if you are wondering how he manages to play without interruption, the answer is simple. No, he does not pay to finish his games, as other ignorant and stupid people would (he is broke, remember).

- It is simply because he never loses a single game, so he somehow has an unlimited life (like his real life, it seems, but do not tell him or he will start sulking). He certainly had trouble winning at first, but over the years he became unbeatable.

- (You may have noticed that he tended to play more often during working hours, but that is certainly a coincidence, is it not?)

- However, everything comes to an end at some point. And even Candy Crush's seemingly infinite levels run out after several thousand. If that is the case, you do not want to be the developer.

- If you are, unfortunately, expect to face an avalanche of messages from all sides, on all your social networks (even those you have forgotten existed for years). Blocking an account? Do not worry, ten more accounts come flooding in, asking you to add levels as soon as possible.

- Block all ten? Twenty or so other accounts come at top speed to valiantly take over. No violence like a certain doctor, no. But enough messages to drive you completely mad. So give up, and hurry on with your game, if you do not want to see the nuisance move on to the next level.

- You cannot escape Dazai. Especially when he is bored at work.

- Which is, of course, as often as Kunikida gets annoyed with him. Coincidence? Absolutely not.

[satsuha]

i've been very slowly replaying aa4 in korean because i emulated aa4 the first time i played it which means my switch cartridge doesn't have completed save data for 4... i thought about story mode-ing it all but i figured i might see something interesting if i play it in a different language

the korean aa localization isn't much of a localization because the names are the same as the japanese and the characters explicitly say they're japanese people IN japan but there are still a few differences that i find interesting that the korean version added:

in 4-2, when apollo meets trucy properly for the first time, he starts off by talking to her in polite/formal language because clearly he's here expecting a job interview or something, but drops it at one point when he decides he doesn't want to keep being formal with a kid LOL

Apollo: O-of course. This is the Wright & Co. Law Offices, right? (formal language) ???: ...That's what I thought. ???: Sometimes... we still get people coming here with the wrong idea. Apollo: ...Sorry, but I'm going to speak plainly. Who are you? (informal language)

what i find interesting here is that i went to cross check the japanese version and while it does seem like he Might be a little more informal than he was previously, he doesn't literally say anything about dropping the formal language with her.

Apollo: ...Er, who are YOU supposed to be?

here's the same exchange in english just as a reference:

something similar happens shortly after when they go see phoenix in the clinic, where phoenix drops the title in apollo's name - in 4-1, he refers to apollo exclusively as 오도로키 변호사 (lit. "attorney justice", the localized equivalent would be "mr. justice") but calls him just 오도로키 (his surname without an honorific, the localized equivalent would be "apollo") from this point onwards.

Phoenix: Hello. You're here earlier than I thought. Ah, I'll speak to you plainly from now on, Apollo. Apollo: Mr. Wright...

again, there's no mention of him explicitly dropping the honorific in japanese, particularly because phoenix calls him オドロキくん (his surname "odoroki-kun", localized equivalent would be "apollo") even during 4-1.

the "-kun" honorific equivalent does actually exist in korea but it's far less widely used hence the removal of the honorific entirely in korean... but i do find it interesting that the korean version had phoenix talk to apollo in a much more professional way in 4-1 and explicitly changing it in 4-2 once they're out of the courtroom.

Phoenix: Good morning. You're here faster than I expected. ...Apollo.

again, english version for reference:

none of this really means anything i just simultaneously find it a bit funny that despite not localizing any other part of it, the korean localization team still felt like they had to adhere closer to korean formalities instead of sticking to how the characters talk in japanese, but also i'm always interested in breaking down how characters talk to each other... since i do look at korean/japanese fanwork a lot it's interesting to see how these kinds of nuances affected different interpretations between languages too.

anyway i'm only halfway through 4-2 and also prioritizing playing other games so who knows how long this will take me but maybe i'll make a post every now and then if i see anything that interests me

[twisted-wonderland-shenanigans]

Hiatus Update

Hey everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and is ready for the next year!

I'm really sorry that I keep falling into a hiatus status, but I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about some things.

No, this isn't an announcement of canceling my AUs or that I'm dropping Twisted Wonderland! I still love the series very much and I still have far too much in mind with the AUs to stop thinking about them so soon! I just wanted to get that out of the way since I realize my lack of content creation lately seems to have worried a few people, and I'd like to apologize to everyone for worrying you all.

That being said, that brings me to my next point, and...it's going to get serious. No TW, it's nothing like that! Just...me speaking my thoughts and realizations. TLDR at the end if you want to skip the ramble!

I've been writing for this blog for...gosh, I think about three years now? It feels less than that for me, but that's a lot of writing done over the years. So many AU ideas, so many asks, so much love for the AUs I've created that--honestly--I almost didn't even start this blog had it not been for some encouragement from a good friend. And I'm glad I did! These past few years have been some of the most creatively liberating times I've had before I ever discovered Twisted Wonderland (would you believe it was originally Leona that made me want to play it despite Malleus being the one that kept popping up in my feed to the point I had to try and figure out what his name was? XD).

Yet despite all that writing and hyper-fixating, I've come to realize and accept that I'm experiencing quite the huge burnout...and I have been for quite a while without realizing or accepting it.

It's not because of any particular wip fic or art that I've been slowing down. The burnout had been happening for a while and just boiled over, and I think as a result...I started doubting myself over time. Doubting that what I was writing was going to be good, or that I'd be able to fulfill everyone's requests or asks in a way that makes them happy or feel that I put as much effort into the writing as I do with others, feeling like I'd be letting people down if I don't make something as long or detailed as some of my other responses, or making promises of grand ideas and not being able to deliver on it. I didn't feel connected to my writing, that it wasn't meant for me to enjoy or feel like I could be part of.

To put it simply, I put far too much pressure on myself, and the lack of feedback or reactions beyond likes on some fics I spent a lot of time and effort on didn't exactly help my mind's relationship with my own writing. Because of that self-imposed pressure, I'd...forgotten what it was like to love my own writing, to enjoy the process for what it was and to feel like I can just write what I want and feel included in my own adventures. Writing consumed me to the point that most days...I'd only be able to stare at the blank screen or my notebooks, the words and scenes in my mind yet unable to string them together in tangible form and yet I felt terrible NOT sitting there trying to write.

It was a pretty vicious cycle I couldn't break until now.

Lately, I've been focusing more on self-care. Not just physical stuff like hygiene or cooking better home meals (though I am doing that), but I mean giving myself other things to enjoy on my self-care wheel.

This is what I mean by the self-care wheel (link to instagram post ). It puts it in a way that makes sense, and I hope it helps someone else as well! Here's a screenshot of the post for those who don't have Instagram.

I've been watching more anime and other shows on streaming services lately, I've been playing other games like World of Warcraft (which has become my current obsession!) among others, and just...essentially breaking up the routine I had where I did nothing but writing, so I could take a break. And honestly? I've been able to write other things again. But this time for myself.

I feel like I'm able to enjoy the process again.

I love my writing again!

But I know better than to just assume that things are okay now and I can jump back into the blog so soon. I don't want to repeat what I had been doing when I thought my burnout was gone and just silently falling into hiatus again. Healing isn't a linear process no matter what it's for, and things won't get better if I don't start being kinder to myself.

So to bring a long story short:

I'm okay. I'll be okay, I just have to remind myself to enjoy more hobbies and interests in my life to make each day more fulfilling--more rounded. And when I come back to Twisted Wonderland, I'll go at my own pace and remember to write for myself too. I'd still love to chat and ramble about it or even about other fandoms or things to try! I've spent far too long building this blog to let it and the wonderful people who have followed and commented and even sent asks and fanart go away, and I want to connect in a way I feel I hadn't been able to in ages. ;;v;;

Remember to take care of yourselves, and find other things to fill your self-care wheel! It'll take time and effort, but I promise that things will start to feel better the more you realize you've got other things to make life worthwhile. 💝

TLDR: I'm okay! I'm just going to be on hiatus for a while longer and working more on self-care to remember to enjoy life as it should be enjoyed. Writing and concept art will resume at my own pace when I feel I'm able to consistently enjoy the process of writing for the fandom again. Would love to ramble and chat about other hobbies and interests and interact with the community though!

[blightandfire]

May I inquire about Sladick, Jaymia, and Jaydick for the Ship I/Don't Ship It ask game?

YEAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! puts on my sunglasses. I'll start with the Don't ship first, and then do the Ship.

Don't Ship

Sladick

Why don't you ship it?

Mostly the reason I don't ship it is because I don't ship anyone with Dick outside of with Jason. I Ship Sladickjay because Jason's also there, but if it's just those two... I'm gonna need Jason to step in XD Jason is good for Dick in a way no one else really can be, because no one else can get what it's like to be Bruce's charge. To have Bruce's expectations and purview colour your life, your childhood—and fuck Dick at the same time. Sorry this is supposed to be about Slade fuck. Uh. Orange pirate is compelling, and his greyness of character certainly is something that draws Dick to him I'm sure—so I can see it, just not in solitary on my own I won't seek it out.

What would have made you like it?

Fuck I just answered this. Whoops. Jason get in there. Then I like! xD I'll ship anyone with Dick as long as Jason's there, same with Jason. They are pair bonded okay? They're two cats. You separate them, I die. And they die. Three deaths. Is this the trolley problem you want?

Despite not shipping it, do you have anything positive to say about it?

Yes! Dick fuck more not-so-upstanding citizens. Especially ones who give you a break from the expectations placed on you, the moral high ground you like to take so often, step into the gutter for a mere moment and let yourself breathe and be a human. You deserve a break, you're burning yourself at both ends. Slade. Prepare to be bossed around you man whore. They would have great sex. But like. It would get really emotionally weird.

Ship

Jaymia, Jaydick

What made you ship it?

Jaymia I started shipping right after rejoining DC fandom last year around... June/August. I found the new Jason anti train and it really threw me for a loop, and then I saw Mia's name being dragged into things—and then I started finding the Jaymia defense posts by my now friends, and it all started to click. Out of some spite and out of recognition of how they really do play well together. From their backgrounds to their runs as sidekicks to their meeting in Seeing Red. They have a lot to say together, and do together. They have a lot of potential as romantic partners and as friends! Also it's one of the only ships I can see Jason in without Dick also being there.

Jaydick I've been shipping since 2015. I am a fucking veteran of this ship. I made a promise to myself in that year I'd always carry them with me and I have.. I have kept that promise xD despite my sabbatical for a couple years from DC. I think I found a random Jason/Dick fic while scrolling AO3 and it just snowballed from there. As of current day, the reason I ship it is here and I have things to elaborate on. like the neuroses. Jason wouldn't be attracted to dick without the neuroses. Jason cares about Dick because he desperately wants a connection with literally anyone and if the way hes getting that is by fucking Dick then. well. hes gonna fuck him xD

What are your favourite things about the ship?

Whistles. Let me try to be succinct. (Will Fail at this)

Jaymia

Mia gets a lot out of this relationship, she's challenged and is allowed to interface with compelling questions to develop her like her ethics or moral with Jason—while at the same time Jason is also allowed to be drawn into a different light, with someone who doesn't instantly write him off. He's her type. She's his type. They're really meant to converse with one another. Having each other in their respective corners would not only be an assurance but actively soothing I think. They understand each other in a way that other people cannot, they can well and properly interface with one another. And they have a meet-ugly. There's just so much to explore with their characters together! And not so much baggage.

Jaydick

Jason is someone Dick doesn't have to be perfect around and can fuck up with without thinking about it, and like, the thing is, this relationship formation is different than Dicks others. Jason comes into the relationship w Dick with a very subpar view of him, and Dick has to contend with that. That Jason thinks lowly of him but will still lie with him. And what that means about himself and what that means for Jason. Like, Dick has so many preconceived notions of what Jason is, or is supposed to be. I think Jason would help Dick become his best self, and that Dick could come to help Jason be his best self. It just takes... a lot of time. It's not an easy relationship. Their assumptions about each other getting dismantled/challenged is the prime draw to me.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on the ship?

Jaymia — I don't think I butt heads with my fellow shippers, I literally know each one of them. There's like. Ten of us. For this, I think the unpopular opinion I have butts heads with antis perceptions, for the obvious reasons. No Jason did not re-traumatize her, no he was not degrading her, no he is not unconscionably evil, no Mia is not put into a mothering role, no Mia is not fixing him, no she is not sidelined for his man-angst. Everyone shut up. I hit you with hammer now. Jaydick — so fucking many. I don't think Jason needs fixing, he doesn't need Dick's fucking saving of all things, nor does he need to be 'redeemed' by Dick, OR to be 'brought back into the family'. Everyone fuck off, this is operation GET DICK OUT OF THERE. Jason is good for Dick because he helps Dick away from Bruce ffs. Dick is good for Jason only after a lot of time. At the beginning, Dick is really... a negative for Jason. The positives do crop up but like, Jason's not in it for the 'right' reasons—he's there out of desperation and kind of hurting himself via Dick. It's really complicated a relationship. I do think their relationship does and can get good, and be something 'healthy' but like... It is hard work. It is a hard work relationship. That effort, that presence, the strive to be there for someone to try to learn them to try to understand, to challenge yourself for the betterment, that is the glorious part of them. Dick is fundamentally someone who loves and is compassionate and so is Jason. Them learning each others commonalities and learning to really get along and be there for each other. Yes. None of this "Jason needs to repent to Dick Jesus Christ Grayson" bs.

[songbirdseung]

chapter closing / park sunghoon

Synopsis: a series of awkward encounters with your ex who happens to also be an idol under hybe.

Pairing: idol!sunghoon x idol!yn

Warnings: angst, break ups, second chances, being followed at night, pranks, scheming behind backs

a/n: this is a long one, I got carried away with how fun I was having while writing it.

Fate, the unfolding of circumstances outside of an individual's influence, believed to be dictated by a divine force. That's what you believed when it came to your relationship with Park Sunghoon.

In the very beginning, you thought that fate was kind to you enough that it brought you to him or vice versa. Something told you to walk the line, despite the obstacles and in the end, you were given you the love of your life but so viscously have him taken away from you.

"YN, Let me in" your boyfriend said in a hurried way, most likely not wanting to get caught by dispatch and stalkers outside your dorm. You run to the door and open it and closing it as quickly as you could. "What are you doing here, are you insane?" both of you knew that if anyone to find out, your careers would be dead, and so after, you two as well.

But let's start from the beginning, 10 months before you became a trainee, a friend of yours wanted to meet at a skating rink, it was a fun, but it didn't stop there. After dropping her home, which was only a few blocks away, you just then noticed how late it has gotten and the sun was no longer up. But the moon was giving you enough light to realize there was someone following you, the streetlights that flicker did not help the ambiance and the anxiety that was creeping in you.

You started walking faster and constantly looking back, he was still behind you. Making turns only made your suspicions become a reality. He was now walking faster and coming closer to you.

At this point, you thought to run but before you could do so, another man your age comes up running behind you. "Babe, there you are, I've been looking all over for you" the guy says louder for the other man to get the message. "don't worry, I'm just trying to help you" this time he whispers it.

Later after that, he still accompanies you on your walk home just to make sure no one follows you. He tells you that his name is Sunghoon and asks why you were out so late. "Oh really, I'm actually a figure skater, I go to that rink every day."

A friendly conversation between you two was put to a stop when you reach your parent's house. "Thank you so much, Sunghoon. I really owe you one" He denies it and tells you everything was alright, but you insist, so you exchanged numbers and he watch you cross the line, walking over to the side of the road.

Sunghoon did not expect to save a girl that night but even more, he did not expect to receive the invitation from you, to go to the cafe your family owns. A week after, when is schedule is clear and he has time for himself, he finally stopped by the cafe.

Hearing the doorbell ring, you greet the customer without looking up, as you were still making an order. "So, you don't look at your customers when you greet them?" to say you were drunk and dazed was an understatement. Sunghoon didn't reach out or replied to you, so you thought he never ever was going to show up. "My bad I didn't want to spill the coffee I was making." ending it with a chuckle.

Since then, your acquaintance with Sunghoon turned into a friendship that felt too good to be true. In a short amount of time, you let him see you in your worse and vice versa. Like the time when you got a fever, and he came over to your apartment because your parents went on a business trip. Despite your rebuttal and telling him you could take care of yourself; he missed a skating practice to be with you. "you're still pretty even when you're sick" he whispers under his breathe think you didn't hear him. "What was that?" flustered, he faces you again "Nothing, I said you look so horrible" then went back to play games on your console.

He definitely gave you mixed signals as he became very flirtatious with you and go the extra mile for you, beyond friendship. For example, when he rode a bus for basically the whole day just to find your favorite snacks that were not for sale in your local area anymore. Or when he would get jealous when another man asks you out or when you tell him about a date you went on. When asking him about it, he'd say that you just got it all mixed up. Either way, Sunghoon felt like he was sucked into a wormhole with how the first moments with you felt like an instant and intense connection, almost as if you've known each other for a long time even though you've just met.

It was hard to make that transition of friendship to relationship because you had the idea if you two were ever to break up, you wouldn't just lose your lover but a best friend. He showed up at your parents' house holding 'forget me not' flowers asking if you would go on a date with him. With that gorgeous smile, you could not say no.

He was determined to make you his, nothing made him wary, and he was set in making you believe that nothing can ruin the bond you had together, even sacrificing his safety driving in the snow in a complete whiteout. One day, you left the city to go on a short break, away from work and all. Although you had to admit that you were getting scared by the strong winds and heavy snow fall. What did Sunghoon do? drive to you and keep you company in the Airbnb, of course.

The second he finished reading your message he tamed and dashed to the Airbnb and swooped you into his arms. "Just say you missed me and wanted me here with you." being with you made Sunghoon feel like he was the upper side of life, dreaming. "Just a little bit"

Down the line, everything felt like it came straight out a fairytale, until one day when you were met with the option to go big and go home, you chose to go home and cause the first big argument you would share with your boyfriend. At this point it has been a year since the start of your relationship and 2 years since the day you first met. You two were discussing the trajectory of your relationship and how you two were going to make a big sacrifice for the career paths you both were going to take. Being a trainee in a K-pop industry is one of the strictest and maybe one the busiest jobs to have, and to have you both want to audition. Where was this relationship heading?

Everything was perfect, a blockbuster if you will. You believed the universe and fate brought you here, to him. So, why was it also the one to lead you away from him? "Babe, your attention, please?" Sitting on the opposite end of the bed, he holds your hand and tries to keep it together. "Can we just try to make it work, cause right now it seems like you just want to give up without even trying" your voiced cracked in between the words since you were crying but the emotions were controlling you than you were controlling it. You had to ask him the question if he even loved you, it was rude to ask but the situation felt like you were blessed and cursed at the same time. Getting the email that the company both wanted you two for a second audition felt like a blessing but looking at the love of your life right now felt like a reminder how the world put a curse on you.

The next following days, in between your practice days, you found yourself locked inside your room, alone. Looking at a box of pictures of you and Sunghoon, but the one that caught your eye the most was the polaroid you took of him when he was practicing his routine for his ice-skating performance. Your own little polaroid love.

Day 2 finally arrived, and day 2 meant the second day of auditions. You were standing in line for the female applicants and adjacent to you was your boyfriend. He was silent next to you since this was the first time seeing you after the little dispute you both had the other week. But he was still holding your hand and giving you comfort since he knew you were nervous, soon enough your name was called and before you could walk away and let go of his hand, he pulls you back and kisses you on the forehead and whispers, "I'll always be your biggest fanboy."

Fast forward to when you both became trainees for Be:Lift Lab under HYBE Entertainment. You supported him when he was on I-Land, and he supported you. Both of you tried your best to make time for each other and sneak around during work hours, you though everything was fine until he brought you over to one of studios to talk.

"Sunghoon, what's wrong?" Your voice trembled, betraying your fear of the answer you already feared deep down.

Sunghoon took a deep breath, steeling himself against the pain he knew his words would inflict. "YN, we need to talk," he began, his voice barely above a whisper, as if afraid to shatter the fragile peace between you both. Heart clenched at the seriousness in his tone, at the distance you felt creeping between the two of you. "Is it about us?" He nodded, unable to meet her gaze. "I… I can't do this anymore, YN," he confessed, each word tearing a piece of his soul apart. "I thought we could keep this secret, but… but we were caught."

Tears welled up in your eyes, a silent testament to the pain that threatened to consume you. "I don't understand, I thought… I thought we could make it work."

Sunghoon shook his head, his heart breaking at the sight of her anguish. "I wish we could, YN. I wish I could defy everything and everyone just to be with you. But I can't risk my dreams, my career… not anymore."

That was it, all the effort you put into keep the future perfect, went down the drain. It was all now feeling like a paradox invasion with how you had to walk away in order to gain more.

Since then, you have been changing your efforts of "being with him" to efforts of "avoiding him at all costs". That feeling when you would take the longer route as long as you did not bump into him in the hallways and even taking the stairs instead of the elevators, so you did not have to stay in that small space with him.

One day as you were choosing a song for your monthly evaluation, your adviser gave you a song. You agreed that it did suit your voice very much and it was easy to sing but the thing was the song was basically a shout out to an ex-lover that was deeply cherished and love. Wishing that this foreshadow of a song showed up a month before, so it prepared you for the unfortunate event you faced.

Eventually, you both made your debut. Everything changed except the awkwardness between you two. And today's event did not help with that. "YN, can you on that, I need the light" your group member asks, but you weren't listening. Too busy looking at the text your manager sent you.

Manager: You'll be a MC with ENHYPEN's Sunghoon

"Oooh, being an mc with your ex-boyfriend. That's interesting" the same member looks over at you, worried. "Maybe fate wants you two to work it out?" Scoffing and replying back with a sassy answer of how fate is a bunch on nonsense and how it screwed you over last time. She chuckles and resorts to teasing you about your new MC job with Sunghoon.

One in a billion tasks as an idol, and they gave you this one? with Sunghoon? You thought as you held your cue cards, re-reading them over and over again in the waiting rooms. "YN, they are going to start filming soon so we need to rehearse with your MC partner" the staff says as she fixes your hair and leads you to the filming area.

You make the change in attitude once you saw him there, trying to not show any anxiety and nervousness. Being professional and reminding yourself that this was your life now until one of you gets too busy that they can't be an MC anymore.

He sees you as you walk onto the platform, offering you a hand to get onto the set. You take it and the feeling of holding his hand still felt the same. Immediately you stopped your feeling of familiarity and focused on your job. "It's been a while, yn"

Filming went well, and now you were at the dorms with your members who decided to show you all the comments and posts of fans that saw the episode where you and Sunghoon were the new MCs for KBS' Music Bank.

"Okay but can we talk about the chemistry between Sunghoon and YN on Music Bank? They were practically glowing together, and I can't help but ship them so hard!" "Sunghoon and YN as MCs on Music Bank? More like Sunghoon and YN as the cutest couple ever! They were so adorable together, and I can't stop imagining all the cute moments they must have behind the scenes." "I know they're just co-hosts on a music show, but Sunghoon and YN have some serious on-screen chemistry. They just seem so comfortable and natural together, like they've been best friends for years. Low-key shipping it!" "Sunghoon and YN hosting Music Bank together? Yeah, I'm officially aboard the ship. They're too cute together, and I can't wait to see more interactions between them in future episodes. #SungYN for life!"

Just bite me and kill me at this point, you thought. People were now shipping you with your ex-boyfriend. "You guys think he'll see these comments?" covering your face in distress as your members agree and nod. "Just sacrifice me now, how am I going to face him?"

Yes, Indeed. He did see them.

As Sunghoon scrolled through Weverse, he could feel his cheeks flush with embarrassment as he stumbled upon more and more comments shipping him with YN. Suddenly, his phone buzzed with a notification from the group chat. He opened it to find messages from his ENHYPEN members, all teasing him about the shipping rumors.

Jake: "Hey Sunghoon, looks like you and YN are the new power couple according to fans!"

Sunghoon couldn't help but roll his eyes, knowing his members wouldn't let him live this down.

Sunghoon: "Yeah, yeah, very funny. It's just fan speculation, nothing more."

Sunoo: "Come on, Hoonie, we all know there's no smoke without fire! Maybe you two should give it another shot!"

Sunghoon: "Thanks for the advice, Sunoo, but I think we're better off as friends and colleagues."

He typed back with a smirk, hoping to put an end to the teasing before it escalated any further.

Ni-ki: "Aww, don't be shy, Sunghoon! We'll support you no matter what. Just promise to invite us to the wedding, okay?"

At first, Sunghoon chuckled at the playful comments, finding it amusing how fans could easily create pairings based on professional interactions. However, as he continued to read through the posts, he couldn't shake off the memories of his past relationship with YN.

Sunghoon felt a mixture of nostalgia and discomfort as he came across fan-made edits and speculative theories about his current relationship status with YN. Despite their amicable breakup and professional rapport as co-hosts, Sunghoon couldn't deny the complexity of their history together.

Taking a deep breath, Sunghoon closed the Weverse app, feeling grateful for the support of his fans but also recognizing the need to set boundaries when it came to personal matters. He knew that while the shipping was all in good fun for fans, his real-life relationships were more nuanced and deserving of privacy.

But for some reason, he decided to do something. Maybe he shouldn't but he does anyway. Holding his phone and looking into his contacts until he finds your number, the contact's name still the same as when you guys were dating. Hoping you did not change your number; he sends you a text. "Seems like our fans want us together."

You don't see the text only after a few days, you're sitting on your bed, scrolling through your phone after a long day of rehearsals. As you open the messaging app, a familiar name pops up: Sunghoon.

Your heart skips a beat as you read the message, feeling a mixture of surprise and curiosity. It's been a while since you last heard from him, and the timing couldn't be more unexpected.

You stare at the screen for a moment, processing his words. The mention of your fans shipping you together brings a flood of memories rushing back—memories of late-night conversations, stolen glances, and shared dreams. Despite the breakup, a part of you still holds onto the connection you once shared with Sunghoon. But you also know that revisiting the past could reopen old wounds and complicate things further.

Taking a deep breath, you type out a response, careful to keep your emotions in check. "Yeah, it seems that way. But we both know our relationship is more complicated than fan speculation," you reply, adding a smiley face to lighten the mood. As you hit send, you can't help but wonder what Sunghoon's intentions are behind reaching out. Is he just reminiscing about the past, or is he hinting at something more? Only time will tell.

Unfortunately, the next day you have to see him again at Music Bank to film another episode. When you get there with a nervous heart, it gets worse as you meet your manager with Sunghoon in the room already. "You're going to be filming a TikTok challenge with Sunghoon." Following orders, after filming the show's interview and awarding, you two were practicing for three TikTok videos. One for his song, your song, and a random trendy challenge with a song that had a repetitive chaconne composition.

And obviously those three videos blew up, and there was more posts and comments seen and to be read by you and Sunghoon.

"OMG, did you guys see the TikTok videos with YN and Sunghoon from Music Bank? Can we please get more collaborations like this in the future?" "They make such a cute pair, and you can tell they have so much fun dancing together. Low-key shipping it 😍 #SungYN" "The TikTok videos with YN and Sunghoon are giving me life!"

As the ENHYPEN members piled into the van after a long day of filming, Sunghoon couldn't help but feel a sense of relief wash over him. The intense schedule had left him exhausted.

As the van pulled away from the studio, the atmosphere inside the vehicle quickly shifted from exhaustion to playful banter. "Hey Sunghoon, did you have fun filming those TikToks with YN?" Jake asked with a mischievous grin, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

Sunghoon felt his cheeks flush with embarrassment as all eyes turned to him, knowing full well where this conversation was headed. "Yeah, it was fun," Sunghoon replied, trying to keep his tone casual despite the butterflies in his stomach. "Fun, huh? I bet it was more than just fun," Sunoo chimed in, winking at Sunghoon from across the van. "I mean, you two looked pretty cozy in those videos."

Sunghoon couldn't help but roll his eyes at his members' relentless teasing, knowing there was no escaping their playful banter. "Come on, guys, it was just work," Sunghoon protested, though a part of him couldn't deny the truth behind their words. "Sure, sure, just work," Ni-ki chimed in with a smirk, earning a chorus of laughter from the rest of the group.

As the van hummed along the road, Jay leaned forward from the back seat, his eyes gleaming mischievously. "Hey Sunghoon, did you and YN have to practice those TikTok dances in front of a mirror for hours to get them just right?" Jay teased, unable to resist poking fun at his friend.

Sunghoon let out an exasperated sigh, knowing he was in for more teasing from his fellow members. "Actually, we did," Sunghoon replied with a smirk. "But only because YN kept forgetting the steps."

Jungwon chuckled from the passenger seat, unable to contain his laughter at the banter unfolding in the van. "Ouch, Sunghoon's got jokes!" Jungwon exclaimed, earning a round of laughter from the rest of the group.

As the van rumbled along the road, Heeseung couldn't resist adding his own playful jab into the mix. "Hey Sunghoon, do you think all this work with YN means you two are getting back together?" Heeseung teased, a mischievous glint in his eye. Sunghoon's cheeks flushed with embarrassment at the suggestion, but a small part of him couldn't help but entertain the thought.

"Come on, Heeseung, don't be ridiculous," Sunghoon replied, attempting to feign indifference, though his heart raced with excitement at the possibility. "Hey, you never know," Heeseung countered with a grin. "Stranger things have happened."

Sunghoon chuckled nervously, trying to play off Heeseung's teasing as mere jest, but deep down, he couldn't shake the hope that maybe, just maybe, there was a chance for him and YN to reconcile.

As the conversation shifted to lighter topics, Sunghoon couldn't help but steal glances out the window, lost in thoughts of what the future might hold for him and his former flame.

You thought you paid all the bills life gave you, but here you were in an interview and or variety show with your group and Enhypen. Was this karma from something you did in your past life? Cause the directors, staff, and managers knew what they were doing when they sat you next to Sunghoon. Although, despite it all, filming was going great, and it was like everyone was having fun. That was until it came to the sit-down interview portion and for some God forsaken reason, the interview had to ask romance questions. "Sunghoon, if you had a girlfriend, what would be her contact's name in your phone?" He laughs it off and as he says, 'One and Only', you try your best to keep your composure and keep a straight face. Sunghoon also tries his best to not look at you and your reaction as he casually said the name he has saved on his phone for your number.

It felt like you were going to be a criminal if you still were in love with your ex. Unfortunately, everything was working against your favor. "YN, if you were to compare a relationship to a flower, what would that be?" No thinking was required because before you could answer, Sunghoon was answering for you. "A blossom" Everyone's eyes were now on you and Sunghoon, his eyes just as wide as everyone else's. "How did you know what?" the interviewer and host asked. Saving his ass, you had to make up a lie how since you two have been spending a lot of time together, working; you two just happened to talk about certain things like that.

But deep down you knew, certain people can see through your bluff. Shipping and speculation would just go more haywire and insane. After the variety show segment aired, fans took to social media to share their reactions to the tension-filled interview between YN and Sunghoon.

"OMG, did you guys see that interview with YN and Sunghoon? Talk about awkward! You could cut the tension with a knife when they asked about romance." "I can't believe they asked Sunghoon about his ideal girlfriend's contact name! And YN's reaction when he answered 'One and Only' was priceless. It's like they were trying to torture us with the shipping feels! 🤣" "I swear, that interview with YN and Sunghoon was straight out of a K-drama. The tension, the chemistry, the unresolved feelings—it was all there. Can someone please give these two their own rom-com already? #SungYN" "I'm convinced that interview with YN and Sunghoon was orchestrated by the universe to torture us SungYN shippers."

Let's just say you both did not get out of that situation without some angry words from your managers. At this point you were happy you were just a mortal, meaning you'll die and forget these things ever happened. But that didn't comfort you that until death, you'll have to deal with Park Sunghoon.

Back to the present. Good thing, now in 2024; you both were no longer MCs for music bank. Although, that did not stop the shipping and speculation since you two were still seen together often due to being under the same company. Recently you've been under fire for a solo song you have posted, and fans are thinking about the lyrics on how it's about a sad relationship break up. "Maybe if you guys can say you dated, I feel like they won't be mad, they love you both together" you member hands you back the phone showing news articles of your recent song. Which was somewhat true since any interaction you had with Sunghoon was like sweet venom for them.

But in a perfect world, there would only be nice and loving comments. Unfortunately, for you, you were still the monster starring in other people's stories. Blinded by the unspoken truth to their theories and rumors, they lean towards hating on you for even being around Sunghoon.

As you walked into the cafe section of the entertainment company, you scanned the room for an empty table, their heart skipped a beat when they spotted Sunghoon sitting alone at a table by the window.

With a deep breath, you made your way over to Sunghoon's table, their heart racing with anticipation. Sunghoon looked up as they approached, a surprised smile spreading across his face. You greeted softly, voice barely above a whisper.

"Hey," Sunghoon replied, his eyes twinkling with warmth. "Fancy seeing you here." you couldn't help but chuckle nervously at the serendipity of their encounter, feeling a rush of emotions bubbling up inside them.

"Mind if I join you?" gesturing to the empty chair across from Sunghoon.

"Of course not," Sunghoon replied, sliding over to make room. "It's been a while since we've had a chance to catch up."

Settled into your seat, you couldn't help but notice the easy familiarity that still lingered between you and him. Despite the years that had passed since their breakup, it was as if no time had passed at all.

"So, how have you been?" Sunghoon asked, breaking the silence that had settled between them. "I've been good, busy with work and life," you replied, their voice tinged with a hint of wistfulness. "And you?"

Sunghoon nodded, his expression thoughtful. "I've been keeping busy too. Lots of projects and schedules to juggle."

As you guys talked, the conversation flowed effortlessly, each word feeling like a natural continuation of the one before. You two laughed, reminisced, and shared stories of their lives since you both had last seen each other.

And then, in a moment of vulnerability, you couldn't help but speak the words that had been weighing on your heart for so long.

"You know, despite everything that happened between us, I've always treasured the memories we shared," You confessed, voice barely above a whisper.

Sunghoon's gaze softened, his eyes locking with yours in a silent understanding. "I feel the same way," Sunghoon replied, his voice filled with sincerity. "No matter where life takes us, you'll always hold a special place in my heart."

Bathed in the warm glow of the cafe, you couldn't help but feel a sense of peace wash over you. Despite the ups and downs of the relationship, both of you knew that some connections were simply meant to endure, no matter what.

In another part of the entertainment company, the other boys were huddled together, their heads close as they plotted their mischievous scheme.

"Okay, so here's the plan," Jay began, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "We're going to have Jake fake confess to YN while Sunghoon is nearby. We want to see if he'll get jealous or if he still has feelings for YN."

Jungwon raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Isn't that a little mean? What if it backfires?"

But Heeseung grinned mischievously. "Trust me, it'll be fine. Besides, it'll be fun to see how Sunghoon reacts."

Jake chuckled nervously, feeling the weight of their plan sinking in. "Wait, you want me to fake confess to YN? What if it gets awkward?"

"Don't worry, Jake, you got this," Sunoo reassured him, patting him on the back. "Just think of it as a performance, like we do on stage."

With their plan set in motion, the boys exchanged knowing looks, their excitement building as they anticipated the drama that was about to unfold. As the clock ticked closer to the designated time, the boys couldn't contain their excitement. They watched eagerly as you and Sunghoon at the cafe, unknowingly walking straight into the trap they had set.

"Okay, everyone remember their roles," Jay whispered, his eyes darting between his bandmates. "We need to make this as convincing as possible." As YN and Sunghoon settled into their seats, Jake took a deep breath, steeling himself for the task ahead. With a nervous glance at his bandmates, he approached YN's table, his heart pounding in his chest.

"Hey, YN," Jake began, his voice slightly shaky. "I, uh, I wanted to tell you something."

You looked up, surprise etched on their face as you turned to face Jake. "What is it, Jake?"

Taking a deep breath, Jake launched into his carefully rehearsed confession, his words tumbling out in a rush.

"I've, uh, I've had feelings for you for a while now," Jake confessed, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "And I couldn't keep it in any longer. I just had to tell you."

Eyes widened in shock, mouth falling open in disbelief. Beside you, Sunghoon watched with a mixture of confusion and concern, his eyes darting between Jake and you.

Before you could respond, Sunghoon stood up abruptly, his expression unreadable as he stormed out of the cafe, leaving you and Jake stunned in his wake. The boys exchanged nervous glances, realizing that their plan had taken an unexpected turn.

As Sunghoon stormed out of the cafe, you sat there in shock, trying to process what had just happened. Jake, on the other hand, was left feeling guilty and unsure of how to proceed.

"I… I'm sorry, YN," Jake stammered, his voice filled with regret. "I didn't mean to upset you or Sunghoon. It was just a silly idea we had…"

But before Jake could finish his apology, you held up a hand, silencing him. "It's okay, Jake," said softly, eyes clouded with uncertainty. With that, you got up from the table and hurried after Sunghoon.

"Wow, I can't believe that actually worked," Jay commented, his eyes wide with surprise.

"Yeah, but did you see the look on Sunghoon's face? He was not happy," Jungwon added, shaking his head.

Jake, feeling a pang of guilt, couldn't help but speak up. "Guys, that was a stupid idea. I shouldn't have gone through with it."

Sunoo placed a comforting hand on Jake's shoulder. "Hey, it's okay, Jake. We were all in on it. Besides, we didn't expect Sunghoon to storm out like that."

"Yeah, well, now we know not to mess with people's feelings," Heeseung chimed in, his tone serious.

Jay couldn't resist a teasing jab. "Looks like Jake's love confession didn't go as planned. Maybe he needs some tips from Sunghoon on how to win someone over."

Meanwhile, Sunghoon had made his way to a secluded spot outside the building, his mind racing with thoughts and emotions. He couldn't believe what had just happened, and a part of him couldn't shake the feeling that maybe there was still something between him and you.

Lost in his thoughts, Sunghoon didn't notice you approaching until you were standing right in front of him.

"Sunghoon, I…" you began, voice trailing off as you struggled to find the right words.

Sunghoon looked up, his eyes meeting yours, and in that moment, all the walls he had built around his heart came crashing down. Without a word, he pulled you into a tight embrace, holding you close as if afraid to let go.

"I'm sorry, YN," Sunghoon whispered, his voice barely above a whisper. "I never stopped caring about you… I just didn't know how to show it." As you two stood there, wrapped in each other's arms, the rest of the world faded away, leaving only the two of them and the promise of a new beginning.

The car ride home was awkward as hell, best believe Sunghoon told them off. The atmosphere was thick with tension. Sunghoon's usually cheerful demeanor had been replaced with a steely resolve, and the rest of the boys could sense his frustration brewing beneath the surface.

For a while, the van was filled with awkward silence as everyone avoided eye contact, knowing that Sunghoon was seething with anger. But eventually, Sunghoon couldn't contain his frustration any longer.

"Seriously, guys? What were you thinking?" Sunghoon's voice was laced with barely concealed anger as he addressed his bandmates.

"We were just trying to have some fun," Jay attempted to defend their actions, but Sunghoon wasn't having any of it.

"Fun? That why I'm the leader of 02z and you're not, that was not fun, Jay. That was incredibly immature and disrespectful," Sunghoon snapped, his frustration boiling over.

The rest of the boys exchanged nervous glances, realizing that Sunghoon was not going to let them off the hook easily.

"I can't believe you would pull a stunt like that, especially involving YN," Sunghoon continued, his voice growing colder with each word. The guilt weighed heavily on the boys as they listened to Sunghoon's scolding, knowing that they had overstepped their boundaries and hurt their friend in the process.

As the van continued on its journey home, the silence that filled the air was deafening, each member lost in their own thoughts of regret and remorse. It was a harsh lesson learned, but one that would ultimately strengthen their bond as a group.

As the tension in the van reached its peak, Heeseung could sense the heavy atmosphere weighing on everyone's shoulders. Wanting to break the tension and lighten the mood, he cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Well, that was certainly an eventful day, huh?" Heeseung said with a wry smile, attempting to inject some levity into the situation.

The rest of the boys glanced at Heeseung, grateful for the attempt to ease the tension. Sunghoon's expression softened slightly as he turned to look at Heeseung, curious to see what he had to say.

"Who knew our little prank would turn into a full-blown drama?" Heeseung continued, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "I guess you could say we really know how to make an entrance."

Despite himself, Sunghoon couldn't help but chuckle at Heeseung's joke, the tension in his shoulders melting away as laughter bubbled up from deep within him. The rest of the boys joined in, the sound of their laughter filling the van and washing away the lingering awkwardness.

Settled into their dorm, the tension from earlier in the day had dissipated, replaced by a sense of camaraderie and warmth. They lounged around the living room, chatting and laughing as they decompressed from the events of the day.

Jake, always one to dive headfirst into conversations, couldn't resist bringing up the topic that had been lingering in the air since their encounter with YN and Sunghoon.

"So, Sunghoon, how did things go with YN earlier?" Jake asked casually, though his eyes twinkled with mischief.

Sunghoon rolled his eyes at Jake's persistence but couldn't help but smile at the genuine curiosity in his friend's voice.

"It was… interesting," Sunghoon replied, choosing his words carefully. "We talked things out and cleared the air, I guess."

Jay perked up at Sunghoon's response, a playful smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. "Ooh, does that mean there's a chance for a SunYN comeback?"

The rest of the boys chuckled at Jay's teasing, knowing full well the speculation and shipping that would inevitably follow their every move.

Sunghoon shook his head, though a small smile played at his lips. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, guys. We're just friends now."

But deep down, Sunghoon couldn't shake the feeling that maybe, just maybe, there was a chance for something more. As Sunghoon's phone buzzed with a new message, he couldn't help but smile when he saw that it was from you. With a quick glance around the room to make sure the other boys weren't paying attention, he opened the message.

"Hey, just wanted to make sure everything is okay after your argument with the boys. Did you manage to keep the dorm intact? 😜"

Sunghoon chuckled at your playful tone, with a few quick taps on his phone, he composed a reply.

"Hey, everything's fine. No fires, I promise 😂 Thanks for checking in though, it means a lot. Let's catch up soon?"

With a sense of warmth spreading through him, Sunghoon hit send, feeling grateful for the unexpected but welcome connection he shared with YN. As he tucked his phone away, he couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement at the prospect of rekindling their friendship, and maybe even something more.

Now we are at the point where there is no need to hide away from Sunghoon in the hallways and rooms of the company. Things seemed like they were looking up and everything is naturally easing into place.

As you step into the elevator, you're surprised to find Sunghoon already inside, holding a beautiful bouquet of orange flowers in his hands. Your eyes light up at the sight of them, but you can't help but tease him.

"Wow, Sunghoon, are those for me?" you ask, a playful grin tugging at the corners of your lips.

Sunghoon meets your gaze with a confident smile, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "Actually, yes, they are."

Your heart skips a beat at his response, but you try to play it cool as you accept the bouquet from him.

"Well, thank you, but you didn't have to," you reply, trying to mask the fluttering feeling in your chest.

As the elevator begins its ascent, Sunghoon clears his throat, his expression turning serious.

"YN, I wanted to talk to you about something," Sunghoon begins, his voice soft but determined.

You turn to face him, curiosity piqued by the sudden change in tone.

"What is it, Sunghoon?" you ask, your heart pounding in anticipation.

Sunghoon takes a deep breath, steeling himself for what he's about to say.

"I know we've been through a lot, and I understand if you're hesitant," Sunghoon starts, his gaze unwavering as he speaks. "But I can't shake the feeling that maybe we're meant to give this another shot. I still care about you, YN, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make it work this time."

You feel a surge of emotion welling up inside you at Sunghoon's heartfelt words, but you can't help but voice your concerns.

"Sunghoon, I… I want to believe that too, but what if history repeats itself?" you admit, your voice wavering with uncertainty. "What if we end up sneaking around again, only to get caught and have our hearts broken all over again?"

Sunghoon reaches out to gently cup your face in his hands, his touch sending shivers down your spine.

"I won't let that happen, YN," Sunghoon says firmly, his eyes locking with yours in a silent vow. "We've both grown and learned from our past mistakes. This time, we'll face whatever challenges come our way together, as a team."

As the elevator reaches its destination, you find yourself lost in Sunghoon's gaze, feeling a glimmer of hope blossoming in your heart. With a nod, you take his hand in yours, silently agreeing to give love another chance, knowing that this time, it just might be different.

As months passed, your relationship with Sunghoon secretly blossomed beautifully. You found comfort and joy in each other's company, navigating the highs and lows of life together with newfound confidence and trust. Despite the occasional challenges, your love for each other only grew stronger with each passing day.

One evening, you found yourselves attending an award show together, surrounded by the glitz and glamour of the entertainment industry. His eyes lit up with anticipation as the lights dimmed and the stage came alive with a dazzling display of lights and music. And when your turn to perform finally came, fans in the crowd could see the pride and admiration shining in Sunghoon's eyes as he watched you take the stage, giving it your all with every dance move and note sung.

As the night progressed, fans shared their excitement over the award show, particularly Sunghoon's enthusiastic support for YN's performance. Fancams of Sunghoon's delighted reactions began circulating online, sending waves of joy and admiration through the fandom.

"OMG, did you guys see Sunghoon's reaction during YN's performance? He was literally glowing with pride and excitement! 😍" "I love how Sunghoon can't contain his happiness while watching YN perform. It's so refreshing to see idols supporting each other like this! 🥺" "Sunghoon's smile during YN's performance is giving me life! Who knew idols could be so openly supportive of each other? This is the kind of energy we need in the industry! 💖"

As the award show continued, fans were quick to notice YN's undeniable affection and admiration for Sunghoon as he took the stage to perform. Fancams capturing YN's reactions to Sunghoon's performance began to circulate on social media, sparking a frenzy of excitement and adoration among fans.

"OMG, YN's love eyes for Sunghoon during his performance are everything! I can't handle the cuteness! 😍" "YN is all of us watching Sunghoon's performance. The way they can't take their eyes off him is the ultimate ship confirmation! 🚢 #SungYN" "I swear, YN's smile during Sunghoon's performance could light up the entire room. It's the most precious thing ever! 💕"

Even when it came to each other's live streams, they would be filled with the other's name. As you settled in for a cozy livestream session on Weverse, chatting with your fans and sharing updates about your day, you couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement bubbling up inside you. The familiar hum of the chat box filled your screen, the messages from your fans scrolling by in a flurry of emojis and enthusiastic comments.

But as you read through the comments, one in particular caught your eye. "Did you see Sunghoon's latest Instagram post? You guys would make such a cute couple! 😉"

Without thinking, you read the comment out loud, your cheeks flushing with embarrassment as you realized your mistake. But before you could backtrack, the chat exploded with questions and speculations about your relationship with Sunghoon.

"Wait, are YN and Sunghoon dating?!" "OMG, my SunYN heart is screaming right now! 😱💕" "Please tell us if you're dating! We need to know!"

As the questions continued to pour in, you felt a knot forming in your stomach. You hadn't intended to spark rumors or speculation about your relationship with Sunghoon, but now that the cat was out of the bag, there was no going back.

With a nervous laugh, you tried to deflect the questions, but the curiosity of your fans was relentless.

"I… um… we're just friends," you stammered, your voice barely above a whisper. "Nothing more."

As you struggled to address the flood of questions and speculations from your fans about your relationship with Sunghoon, a familiar notification popped up on your phone screen. With a quick glance, you saw that it was a text from Sunghoon.

Curious, you opened the message, your heart fluttering with anticipation. "Having fun with your livestream, YN? 😜"

A soft chuckle escaped your lips as you read Sunghoon's teasing words, you didn't realize that your reaction had sparked even more curiosity among your fans. Before you knew it, the chat was flooded with messages from eager fans, all desperate to know who had sent you a text.

"Omg, who was that? spill the tea, YN!" "Was that Sunghoon? Are you guys texting each other right now?!" "Tell us who's texting you, we won't stop until we find out!"

As the messages continued to pour in, you couldn't help but laugh at the frenzy your fans had whipped themselves into. It was both amusing and overwhelming to see their excitement over something as simple as a text message.

With a mischievous twinkle in your eye, you decided to tease your fans a little more. "Hmm, I wonder who it could be? You'll just have to keep guessing 😉"

It was a funny little game you and Sunghoon liked to play with your fans.

"Sunghoon, did you see YN's livestream? Are you guys dating?!" "Tell us the truth, Sunghoon! Are you and YN secretly in love?!"

Sunghoon couldn't help but laugh at the barrage of questions, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment at the sudden onslaught of attention. But he knew he had to address the elephant in the room.

"Alright, alright, calm down everyone," Sunghoon said with a chuckle, trying to regain control of the chat. Sunghoon did his best to answer their questions with a mix of humor and sincerity, knowing that his fans were simply curious and excited to be interacting with him.

-

"Hey, Sunghoon," Jungwon began tentatively, drawing Sunghoon's attention away from the game he was playing on his phone. "I've been thinking… do you ever worry about accidentally revealing your relationship with YN?"

Sunghoon furrowed his brow in confusion, his mind racing as he processed Jungwon's question. He hadn't given much thought to the possibility of accidentally revealing his relationship with YN, but now that Jungwon had brought it up, he couldn't deny that the idea made him uneasy.

Jay, who had been listening in on the conversation, chimed in with a concerned expression. "I mean, it's not like we're just worried about our careers or anything. We just don't want anything to happen to you and YN because of a slip-up, you know?"

Jungwon nodded in agreement, his eyes filled with genuine concern for his friend. "Exactly. We just want to make sure you guys are okay."

-

With a contented sigh, YN snuggled closer to Sunghoon, resting her head on his shoulder as they gazed out at the breathtaking view. In that moment, surrounded by the beauty of the city and the warmth of each other's presence, they felt a sense of peace and tranquility wash over them.

Sunghoon couldn't help but smile as he wrapped his arm around YN, pulling her close and pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head. In that simple gesture, he conveyed all the love and affection he felt for her, the depth of his feelings shining brightly in his eyes.

YN glanced up at Sunghoon, her heart swelling with love as she returned his smile with one of her own. In that quiet moment, as they watched the world pass by below, they knew that they were exactly where they were meant to be: in each other's arms, surrounded by love, and ready to face whatever the future held, together.

[fright-of-their-lives]

I want you to talk about Lydia and Charles and their relationship.

If you want

Wow, I have NOT been on this blog in years and this has been sitting in my asks for a REALLY long time

So without further ado (for the maybe 3 people who still care), here's my long ass post about

Lydia and Charles Deetz, and why their relationship is the emotional crux of the entire show

I've said it before, but I want to reiterate that of all the characters in the show that she meets (Beetlejuice, The Maitlands, Delia), Lydia's most important relationship is the one that she has with her father, Charles. And this relationship serves as the emotional crux of the story, and is crucial in Lydia's development and eventual embrace of life at the end of the show.

I'm going to start off at the very beginning, with Lydia singing "Invisible" at Emily's funeral. The priest speaks some very important lines that get overlooked, but actually give us the main theme of the entire show.

In times like these we have no words, we have only each other/Scripture tell us "sorrow not, for we do not walk alone"

Of course, the "we do not walk alone" line is a direct reference to the fact that this is a show about death and ghosts, but it has a very clever secondary meaning that directly contrast with Lydia's feelings of isolation and loneliness expressed in "Invisible". She feels unseen, invisible in her grief for her mother, that people just look away when they're unsure of what to say or do.

Grownups wanna fix things, when they cant it only fills them with shame/So they just look away

Lydia turns to Charles when she sings this line, and he promptly does just that: he turns away. He cant face her in this moment, furthering Lydia's feelings. She feels alone, abandoned in her grief for her dead mother. Wanting desperately to be seen. But even though she doesnt specify by who, we know exactly who she wants and needs this acknowledgement from. And it's the only other person who knows and understands the grief she's feeling: her father, Charles.

Lydia isnt just grieving the death of her mother, but also the loss of her father. He's abandoned her, gotten a new fiance, and just supposedly just forgotten all about his dead wife, and wants Lydia to do the same.

'Cause Daddy's in Denial, Daddy doesnt wanna feel/He wants me to smile and clap like a performing seal

Daddy's moving forward, Daddy didnt lose a mom

No more playing daddy's game, I'll go insane if things dont change/Whatever it takes to make him say your name, Dead Mom

The song may be titled Dead Mom, but the song itself focuses just as much, if not more, on Charles. Lydia's moreso ranting here, expressing her anger and vulnerability in a way that she cant with her dad. The whole reason she sings "Dead Mom" is because in the scene right before, her attempts to get him to open up and talk about Emily get shot down. And at the end of the song, Lydia declares her intentions, to get her dad to finally talk to her, talk about her mom, by any means necessary.

Which is where the Maitlands come in.

While Lydia is excited by the existence of ghosts and by the prospect that her mother might be a ghost as well, her primary goal isnt just seeing her mother again. It's getting her dad to see and believe in ghosts as well.

"Your dad cant see us"

"He doesnt see me either"

Lydia wants, above all else, to be seen by her dad. And she belives that this will finally open his eyes, to get her what she's so desperately wanted since her mother's death: to have her family whole again. Both mother AND father.

Which is why the reveal of Charles and Delia's engagement breaks her. To her, Charles has not just forgotten all about her mother, but about their entire family. A family that Lydia desperately misses and needs at a time like this. But Charles is seemingly moving on, ready to discard the past. To discard their family. Discard her.

And it breaks her. It breaks her that her father may not care about her. And while its not true, those feelings are what drives her to climb onto the roof, feeling more alone and abandoned than ever...

But Lydia isnt the only one feeling alone.

Charles himself is very clearly taking things just as hard as Lydia is when it came to Emily's death, abeit in a completely different way. While Lydia throws herself into the macabe and gothic, wading dangerously deeper into grief and despair, Charles chooses to turn away from his own grief and throw himself into what he knows and where he's most confident: his work (if you havent, please listen to the demo track "A little more of your time", it gives us such good insight into Charles' character, idc that its not in the show).

Charles is not a man that handles chaos and uncertaintly well, and even admits that he struggles with expressing his feelings and being vulnerable. And from what we know about Emily, she was the exact opposite.

Mama was positive, Mama was pure/Made me less dark, and dad less insecure

Charles' facade of being the "Big Successful Business Man" is there to hide his anxiety and insecurities, and nothing makes him more insecure than his role as a father to Lydia. Charles is a provider, it's what he knows and is good at. It's why he does things like moving them into a new house, getting her a "life coach", trying to get her to act more positive and happy. Yes, a big part of it is him avoiding his own grief, but in his own way, Charles is showing how much he loves and cares for Lydia. He wants her to be happy and healthy, but without Emily as the bridge between them, his way of going about it completely miss the mark. He feels alone, which is part of why he begins his relationship with Delia. When Charles felt like him entire world had crashed around him, Delia is what anchors him again, and gives him the support he needs to mmove forward, both him and Lydia. Unfortunately, things dont work out how he planned, and the wedge between him and his daughter only ends up widening.

Which is why we have the The Netherworld/Home scene.

Lydia is completely at her lowest, most vulnerable point in the show here. Her desire to reunite with her mother again leads her to a desperate goose chase through the netherworld, screaming helplessly for her mother like the lost little girl she is. She's all on her own, lost not just in an unfamiliar place, but in life general.

And the person that comes to find her, that jumped without hesitation right into hell with her?

Charles does. Her dad jumps right into the unknown after her, and finds her when she's lost. And they both finally open up to each other, to not just express their grief, but to share it with the person who knows exactly what they're going through and can help them get through the pain, the loss, and the sorrow.

Sorrow not, for we do not walk alone

[mirai-e-jump]

TV Life, 1/17/2025 Issue ft. Hino Yusuke & Soma Satoru (translations below)

Publication: December 25, 2024

GavvPare! Vol.9 (Hino Yusuke)

-Frustration is unavoidable for Shouma and Hanto-

Shouma and Hanto have slowly started to work together in battle now that they know each other's identity. I think that for Hanto, Shouma's an invaluable friend he encountered when he was feeling lost and lonely after losing his mother and mentor, someone who understands his situation, and the one and only person who makes him feel that he's not "alone." Because of that however, there are times when he feels frustrated that Shouma won't tell him the secrets he's hiding, or he feels confused as to why he doesn't tell him, and sometimes, he'll feel disgusted with himself for having doubts about Shouma……It'd be easier if they just talked it out, but since they care about each other, they won't. I'm sure all the viewers are also becoming impatient, but I think their relationship comes with frustrations like that (laughs). In reality, Hide and I are able to say whatever we want to say to each other, and recently, I've been able to tell what he's thinking just by looking at his face. I think that's proof that our bond has grown that much deeper, which makes me happy.

Starting from episode 17, the story will take another new turn. All I can say about Hanto is……that you won't have to wait long to see him badly injured in the New Year (laughs). For Hanto, you may tend to think, "Just the other day he was injured and wrapped up in bandages, but now, he's only wearing a single bandage!," but that's because his recovery time has increased due to his body remodification. No matter how badly his body falls apart, he's always willing to face his enemies without being afraid of getting hurt, which makes Hanto really cool. A new Kamen Rider will appear after this, and Gavv and Valen will also encounter a new dilemma, so please look forward to it. And with that, have a happy New Year!

Q: What's something that fills you with energy when you eat it?

A: It's ice cream. I have a weak stomach, so I don't eat it every day, but I'll often have some when I'm feeling tired and want to energize myself, or as a reward for a hard day of work. I especially like the Chocolate Coffee flavored ones by "Papico." I often buy it because it's easy to eat.

Off Shot: Although Shouma and Hanto haven't fully revealed everything to each other yet, and despite their complicated feelings, with the help of Sachika's cheerfulness, they were able to have a Christmas party together. The staff told them, "You can eat starting from the test shot," and it was like they were having a real party, however, Hino got an upset stomach almost immediately (laughs). _

BakuDAYS Vol.21 (Soma Satoru)

-I continued to grow as I focused on Genba-

I think Genba and Sakito were able to play an active role together in the Soccer Ball Grumer story of episode 41. I had told the staff quite some time ago that, "I want to do a story where soccer's included!," and I was very happy that they were able to make it happen for this episode. Since Miyazawa-kun and I both like to play soccer, we kicked a ball around together during breaks and had alot of fun while filming.

Genba's a character who had a strong desire for revenge against Disrace, so after his defeat, I've been making a conscious effort to perform in a way that expresses a stronger sense of compassion for his friends, and to show a calmer expression on his face. So far, Genba's drawn a line between him and Sakito, but for the soccer game in episode 41 and other recent episodes, I feel that it's been shown that he's come to seriously trust all the Boonboomger members as friends.

Looking back on 2024, it's been a year full of Boonboomger. It saddens me to think that my daily routine of getting up early every morning to go out and film will soon come to an end. I felt that Genba's character was difficult to grasp during the beginning, and I would search for ways to play the role. However, I discussed things with the Director, and there were tons of things I felt during my interactions with the other characters. I think that being able to continuously focus on Genba throughout the year helped me grow as well.

From this point on, there are many developments that you can't afford to miss. If you pay attention to the smallest details, such as the facial expressions on each character, I think you'll be surprised and enjoy things even more!

Q: What's something the "Procurer" wants to obtain?

A: What I really want right now is an (Japanese) oven range! I cook every day, and yet still don't own one. I think an oven range would broaden my cooking horizons. I think I'll buy one as a reward for myself after filming is over! (laugh).

BakuageSHOT: Filming for the soccer episode was also cranked up! But, and this is just between you and me, I was ever so slightly nervous dribbling the ball inbetween napalm explosions (laughs). Well, in any case, it was a time that reminded me of my school days~!

[pinkrangermemes]

EPIC: THE MUSICAL, WISDOM SAGA

feel free to change pronouns and such when needed.

"It's just me, myself, and I."

"I'm stuck with your stories, but no clue who you are."

"If I fight those monsters, is it you I'll find?"

"I know life and fate are scary, but I wanna be legendary."

"I'll fight the harpies and chimeras!"

"There are strangers in our halls."

"They keep taking space and it's not much longer we can stall."

"They're getting impatient. Dangerous, too."

"I would fight them if I was half as strong as you."

"Somebody help me, come and give me the strength."

"Can I do whatever it takes to keep ____ safe?"

"It's been twenty years and we still have no king."

"Give me a chance, a single opportunity."

"When's your tramp of a mother gonna choose a new husband?"

"Don't you dare call my mother a tramp!"

"What'cha gonna do about it, champ?"

"Fight, little wolf, fight."

"Wanna entertain me?"

"Wanna be a man then fight, little wolf, fight."

"You've made your worst mistake here."

"You'll have run out of bones to break when you and I are through."

"I'll teach you all the lessons your daddy never could."

"This cruel world doesn't give out presents just for being good."

"Need some help?"

"Is your plan to stand around?"

"'Cause I suggest you fight back."

"Uppercut him. Now."

"Alright now, let's try this again."

"I've no respect for bullies, those who impose their will."

"I've seen plenty enough to truly understand this kind of filth."

"Let's teach this dog a lesson."

"One young wolf has a larger heart than all these men combined."

"Show them that you've got some bite, ____!"

"Take advantage now and strike, ____-!"

"Don't go down without a fight, ____!"

"Oh, maybe I pushed you a bit too hard."

"I had a friend before, and he was a lot like you."

"I helped him fight through war, but he had his demons, too."

"Then we grew apart."

"Then his light went dark."

"I don't know who your friend is, I don't know what he's like, but my time with you has been splendid."

"'Cause I got in a fight, and I didn't die!"

"I've never felt strong before."

"You're my friend, I couldn't ask for more."

"Maybe to fall is to learn one way."

"Maybe it's all gonna turn out great."

"I know we'll be fine."

"I know it's light you'll find."

"You're a good kid."

"Old friend, it's been ten years since I last saw you."

"____, where did you go?"

"Morning, sleepy head, you've been resting for a while."

"I swore that you were dead when you washed up on my isle."

"Did you know you talk in your sleep?"

"Tell me, though, who's ____?"

"I'm not your man."

"I'm what you want here."

"I'm what you need here."

"From here on out, you're mine, all mine."

"Hell no!"

"I could kill you where you stand!"

"I'm not pet, I'm a married man!"

"Last I checked, goddesses can't die."

"You're adorable."

"Bow down to the might ____, here to entertain, but fear not, I bring no pain."

"Under my spell, we're stuck in paradise."

"No one can come or go."

"I don't belong here!"

"There's something wrong here!"

"I wont' be drawn to live in paradise."

"Time can take a heavy toll."

"All I hear are screams..."

"____, get away from the ledge."

"You don't know what I've gone through!"

"You don't know what I've sacrificed!"

"Every comrade I long knew, every friend, I saw them die."

"It will be fine, dear."

"Come back inside, dear."

"Let me close my eyes."

"I know your life's been hard."

"I'll stay inside your heart."

"I love you, my dear."

"I love our time here."

"Life would be so much worse if you had died."

"Just let me close my eyes."

"Please stay away from harm."

"Stay in my open arms."

"He needs my help."

"Father, ____, rarely do I ask for favors."

"You are playing with thunder for a man full of shame."

"If he's worth the risk of going under, why not make it a game?"

"You all know I'm a fan of catchy songs."

"I think ____'s in the wrong."

"They were trying to do him worse!"

"Now they'll tread with caution first."

"Trust is not given, it's forged."

"Why should I give him my support?"

"He sacrificed his own cohort."

"Did you forget they failed to listen?"

"He was betrayed and then imprisoned."

"He was busy fighting!"

"More like busy spiting."

"Let him feel the pain that his ____ felt and rot."

"Please reconsider this."

"Really, ____? These old tricks?"

"What kind of sick coward holds back his power while he friends get devoured?"

"He didn't even fight ____!"

"Pathetic and weak like his ____!"

"Hold your tongue now!"

"His ____'s my friend!"

"Tell your lover that a broken heart can mend."

"You want more bloodshed?"

"He's got the mind of a genius."

"Try harder."

"He's pretty skilled with words."

"Can do better than that."

"He's kinda funny?"

"Never once has he cheated on his wife."

"I played your game and won!"

"You dare to defy me?"

"No one beats me, no one wins my game!"

"Is she dead?"

"Let him go, please."

[krems-chair]

Desperately Searching for Dwarf/Titan Content. Coming up (Mostly) Dry :/

Part of the strategy with my second playthrough is to pay attention to my surroundings quite a bit more since I'm no longer in a hurry. I've also always been into the paintings we find (Solas' or otherwise) but I turned up the brightness in photo mode to better illuminate this one, which lurks in a darker corner of the music room at the Lighthouse today, and I think it could be useful for people interested in examining the Solas/Mythal relationship, and perhaps for those who, like me, wish there was more content surrounding what Solas did to the titans and dwarves.

Obviously, it being art and all, it's open to interpretation, but I personally take a lot away from what seems to be a depiction of a wolf engaging in violence while a Mythal-shaped woman watches on from within radiant light (of the golden city, perhaps?)

The wolf looks haggard, gaunt, maybe? And blood is dripping from its fangs and onto a hand reaching out from the ground, so I'm taking it as perhaps the only real reference I've seen in a minute of Solas actually acknowledging what he did to the dwarves and the titans* (asterisk followed up on below the divide so this isn't too long on anyone's page).

And even that is just me making a reach there, but it does make me wonder if it was something that was originally going to be looked at more (especially with the game's previous title) and just ended up being another thing that the team decided not to keep. At the very least, despite there being 8 ish years between this game and Trespasser, the painting seems older in age to me, so I wonder when he started struggling with this self-image of a destructive beast getting its hands dirty to preserve the clean image of the one giving it commands.

*(fully fucked up their lives as they had always been and ended a good many of them, btw.) This is a side tangent that probably deserves its own post, but I do think a lot of Solas/solavellan fans would do well to grapple/reckon/sit with that a little more because the fights I've seen break out between dwarf fans who would just like at bare minimum some acknowledgement of the role he played and others who are intent on fully shutting them down are brutal.

I, personally, would have liked more that addressed this in-game other than Harding getting the chance to mention it only once to him, and that's IF she lives and you bring her to the final mission). I think there are maybe a few more dialogue references to it in Veilguard, but that mixed with the near-silence from Solas if you bring him along for the relevant DLC in Inquisition (I know some have theorized it's because a lot of people do it after he leaves the party/the devs didn't plan on him being there or that he just feels too guilty/conflicted to say anything, but with how big a plot point it is that's not enough to satisfy specifically me) just leaves me like okay...I like this character. But we get to his happy ending (if that's what you so choose for him) without ever really forcing him to struggle on-screen with dwarves and what he's done to them. And I wish we had gotten that beyond just a painting I'm inserting that plot line into.