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candlelight27 · 3 years ago

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NSFW alphabet - Itadori x F!Reader x Megumi

This is a College AU (with curses), all characters are aged up.

Warnings: Smut, obviously, oral sex, anal sex, vag sex, cum, breeding kink, toys, threesomes, masturbation, etc.,etc.,etc. Read at your own discretion because there's a ton of kink discussion there. Brief appearance of Sukuna.

WC: 3652

AO3

A/N: I have JJK, KNY and BNHA brainrot on main so everything I try to write right now is related to that! Can't wait to watch the JJK movie when it's released... If anyone wants to discuss anything related to anime hmu 👀

A = Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

At first, Megumi is pretty awkward, completely at lost with what had just happened – that he fucked his best friend, and you, his most reliable classmate, two people he had a crush on – and completely at lost with what he should do next. However, Yuuji is there to save the day, as he proceeds to hug both of you and say just how happy he feels. As you laugh at his silliness, Yuuji peppers your face in kisses. Megumi just smiles and dozes off.

From then on, and after the ugly mess you all left behind, Megumi takes the role of reminding you and Yuuji to clean up. If he’s feeling romantic, the dark-haired sorcerer would even run a bath for you and Yuuji. Sometimes, he rubs Itadori’s shoulders, or your legs. It’s through those actions that he expresses how much he appreciates both of you. Yuuji, on the other hand, expresses himself with hugs, kisses and words. He’s not scared to say he loves you. And he does it while he hugs you from behind, or while he kisses Fushiguro’s cheeks repeatedly, only to fall asleep a mere minute after.

B = Body part (Their favourite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

Itadori has a clear winner. He loves your butt. It’s fatal attraction. He can’t keep his hands off it and he loves having a good view of your rear. About Megumi, it’s his hands, because he loves feeling them all over his body, especially on his cock. About himself, it’s his arms and back. He loves showing off his physical strength, and he quite enjoys the possibilities it gives him in bed.

Megumi loves your mouth, both yours and Yuuji’s. Because he adores the oral sex as much as the gentle kisses you are able to give him, and it drives him crazy the sole idea your lips on his neck, or his earlobes. Megumi doesn’t have any of his body parts in high esteem, but he’d say his favourite is his eyes, only because you and Yuuji always compliment him on them and he enjoys that.

C = Cum (Anything to do with cum basically… I’m a disgusting person)

Yuuji loves facials. He loves to cum on your face and Megumi’s. He thinks you are adorable and incredibly alluring when covered in his seed, and even though he just came, he gets even harder. He also secretly likes when he stains your panties, he feels some sense of complicity he can’t get enough of. Coincidentally, his favourite place for you and Megumi to cum is also his face – for you, even better if you squirt. He’s not a fan of swallowing but he’ll lap all of it with joy for the thrill if Megumi or you feel dom enough to make him do so.

Megumi is simple in his preferences. He’s keen on cumming inside of you – blame it on a blooming breeding kink? The mere thought of finishing in you and filling you up just makes him harder until he can’t contain it anymore. However, if Yuuji’s cumming on your face he might join him too, since you’ll have to wash up anyways. About Yuuji, Megumi prefers coming in his mouth or ass, but those moments where they’re cumming together over each other and they end up messy have a special place in his heart.

D = Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

Megumi is a panty sniffer and Yuuji wants to try pet play but is ashamed as fuck so he might never say it.

E = Experience (How experienced are they? Do they know what they’re doing?)

Itadori has been with a couple of girls, so he’s not totally at lost, but he’s still a bit naïve. Nevertheless, it’s the first time he’s been with a guy, so he doubts a lot when it comes to Megumi. He ends up asking permission for everything, asking for reassurance and being a chatterbox, but of course you love him anyways. Fushiguro plays annoyed but thinks it’s adorable.

The black-haired young man has no experience but somehow knows what to do in every moment. Yuuji is amazed, but you suspect he just fakes it till he makes it and calls it a day. One day though you surprised him at home, and he was on the couch reading the spiciest book you had ever seen. So, that and the fact that Gojo must have had a thousand of talks with him about sex, makes you put two and two together. Of course, you tell Itadori and tease him from then on until you get him to blush.

F = Favourite Position (This goes without saying. Will probably include a visual)

Megumi hasn’t decided yet. He enjoys everything he does with his two sweethearts so… Probably spit roasting any of you. He’s fine as long as he’s not in the middle because he feels overwhelmed and hates to be seen so weak and out of control somehow.

Yuuji has a clear winner, though. He adores being in the middle, fucking you while Megumi fucks him. It’s better if you’re facing him and team up with Megumi, so you make out with him while his other partner leaves hickeys on his neck.

G = Goofy (Are they more serious in the moment, or are they humorous, etc)

Yuuji is a goofball, takes any opportunity to joke, laugh, tease and smile. He’s adorable and can’t help it. Sometimes, even Megumi humours him. In general, it’s thanks to Itadori that you have so much fun. Still, Megumi isn’t as stuck-up as everyone may think! He likes a serious mood – which, honestly, just makes everything super hot and sexy – but he enjoys when you and Yuuji play around. For him, it’s refreshing, it puts a smile on his face.

H = Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.)

Itadori shaves sporadically, you never know really when he does, but he doesn’t let it grow out of control. Megumi is well groomed and maintains the zone nice and cut.

I = Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…)

Both of them are way too intense. When they get horny and are in the middle of sex, they will lose a tiny bit of control and confess their undying love. Itadori is more prone to this, and he usually lets out of his mouth a string of courses. Megumi tries to contain himself, his face so red, his breath intermittent, but in the end, he fails and says something that makes him all shy.

The most romantically conscious one is Megumi, but Yuuji often does all kind of gestures that make your heart melt. If Megumi takes your hair off your face and presses your foreheads together, then Yuuji is more likely to caress you – because you’re so soft – and then do something you love – because he just remembered you once told him so.

J = Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)

Megumi masturbates like twice a week. He doesn’t tell, it’s probably because of his spicy books since he rarely watches porn, and it’s in the shower. However, lately, his routines are being altered because of two idiots – Itadori and you – so he often finds himself in the dead of the night, under his sheets, remembering certain things, like how you had fucked the day before, or perhaps texting the group chat, which then turns into group sexting and he’s sure to make a mess.

Itadori is the opposite. He masturbates a lot if he has the occasion and he doesn’t care the place. He’s very curious… so he navigates the internet. Sometimes it doesn’t start as something sexual, but it turns out like that. So he’s very happy with the sexting situation when it happens. He’s not very shy about it, either, if it fits the conversation, he won’t hesitate to announce that he’s been jerking off to the thought of you two for three days in a row and leave Megumi blushing.

K = Kink (One or more of their kinks)

Megumi has a breeding kink directed at you. He doesn’t want kids, much less when you’re dealing with curses and could die at any given time, so he can’t explain it. But he adores cumming inside of you, watch it drip out and then put it back inside. Fushiguro will also lose his mind if you voice his thoughts. “Breed me, make me yours”, “cum inside, please”, “get me pregnant”, “make me a mommy”, whatever you say, it will drive him insane and he’ll thrust into you until you can’t walk next day. The best part is that it doesn’t even have to be him. When it’s Yuuji’s time to fuck you, he’ll watch hungrily and encourage you. “Don’t you want his seed too? Don’t you want us both to breed you?”. And poor Yuuji is not that into it, but he’s into watching Fushiguro lose it, so he’ll comply. At some point, a few years later maybe, don’t doubt that Itadori will be on full board with the breeding kink. And then they’d love the idea of filling you up with their cum and then making you cockwarm them.

Yuuji has a secret. He’s into pet play. He doesn’t really know what he’d like to do specifically, because he’s only watched a couple of videos and read a couple of hentai manga, but he’s hoping either of you would appear one day with fluffy ears and a fluffy tail to match. Merely thinking about it embarrasses him, but he can’t help it. Other times, he thinks maybe he’d prefer it was him playing the pet part, as either you or Megumi call him a ‘good boy’ and order him around for a bit.

Overstimulation is a kink both Yuuji and Megumi share. They are hooked to that feeling, because they never want to stop, even after reaching their orgasms. Either if you are fucking or sucking them, they’ll beg for more and more until they can’t keep going. Yuuji will last longer and sometimes it scares you how much stamina he owns. And they love overstimulating you, because you make the cutest face when you can’t take anymore. And this kink goes along another one, squirting. They’re hooked on making you squirt. Megumi, with his fingers, since it’s what he’s most comfortable with, and Itadori just wants you to mess up his face.

L = Location (Favourite places to do the do)

Megumi prefers a king size bed. It’s his favourite place because it’s comfortable and convenient for three people. Also, since he’s quite private, he prefers doing it in an enclosure where no unwanted attention can happen. Yuuji, on the other hand, likes more risks, so he’s not against doing things outside the comfort of your home. He also doesn’t really mind where to do it, since he likes the spontaneity of doing it wherever. Itadori has very tender memories of the kitchen and the living room.

M = Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)

Almost everything gets them going! A trip to the beach, with so much skin showing? Check. Doing something domestic, like cooking, repairing something? Check. Dressing up for a party? Check. Wearing each other’s clothes? Check. What really turns them on instantly are two things above everything else: lingerie and having a sexy surprise – like edible underwear, or a pair of fluffy cat ears. Also, they adore when you’re the one who’s taking the initiative, specially Megumi, he’s a bit of a sub.

N = NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

Due to all their work as sorcerers, they’ll refuse doing rape-play and blood-play. Those are hard no. They’re not into the nasty stuff, even the degrading kink feels a little off for them.

O = Oral (Preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc)

When you have two partners, you don’t have to choose on receiving or giving! Or that’s how Itadori thinks. Still, he loves giving oral and loves when you sit on his face specifically. Being buried in your heat makes him feel both in control and useful, so he thoroughly enjoys it when it happens. And it’s quite often, mainly when Megumi is away and you’re quite sad and worried, so he tries to distract you. Yuuji uses his strong arms to pin you in place and despite your initial worry of him suffocating at some point, he works his tongue and nose so well that you soon forget even your name. And he’s keen on overstimulating you. By the end of the whole ordeal, he’s completely covered in your juices and he’s probably made a mess down there, too.

Itadori is shyer when it comes to Megumi, so you decided you were going to teach him. And you do, with Megumi as your experiment subject. You’d demonstrate how to run his tongue along Fushiguro’s length, how to bob his head just the right way to make him cum, and Yuuji loves it. Megumi can’t really stand it for too long, watching both his lovers between his legs, a fierce blush in his features. So it might take more than one lesson.

Megumi prefers receiving because when he gives oral he’s usually too preoccupied on doing it right and focusing on his partner’s pleasure rather than his own, so he’s a bit nervous and he doesn’t enjoy it very much. However, as stated before, that isn’t a problem, because you and Itadori are quite eager then it’s foreplay and love focusing on him. As your relationship goes on, he’ll be more comfortable and he’ll find himself indulging in giving some more oral than in the beginning.

P = Pace (Are they fats and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)

Yuuji is rougher generally, while Megumi is softer and more sensual. They both have a fast rhythm, though.

Q = Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)

You all are relatively young. That and with Itadori’s sex drive, expect lots of quickies. Even if you all prefer having proper sex, sometimes you don’t have the luxury to do so.

One of your favourite places for a fast one is the shower – with a lot of care, because it’s a dangerous place. Right after training, when you must take a shower, and right before dinner. You barely have half an hour to get clean and get fucked, but you all managed. In the earlier stages of your relationship, you’d go all out, leaving you practically unable to walk and the guys even more tired than before. But after some months of juggling with positions and all, you all are beginning to settle with coming from foreplay, too. So, sometimes it’s a quickie, sometimes it’s foreplay.

R = Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)

As stated above, Itadori is the riskier one. He likes trying new things, so it’ll be often that he comes up with certain ideas. Megumi is happy to comply, because he likes to try things from time to time, but he doesn’t like coming up with things because he doesn’t know if either of you would like it. Another thing that surprised you – and it surprised Yuuji, too – is that the one with an exhibitionist side is Megumi. So, sometimes he’ll initiate some things in secluded places, like a lonesome park, or a car, but he doesn’t go all the way. At times, Yuuji plays the voyeur to humour him.

S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)

Fushiguro lasts a few rounds and last a decent time, but he’s overshadowed by Itadori. This guy can go for hours and hours without getting tired. Yuuji has insane stamina and sometimes it scares you, but thankfully you have Megumi to share the load. Sometimes Yuuji is conscious about this, so he’ll let you sleep only to wake you up in the middle of the night, so needy. You’ve tried to find out what his limit is but due to his abnormal physical capacity it hasn’t been possible yet.

T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)

The main instigator of the use of toys throughout your relationship is Yuuji. He’s always thrilled to try something new. Since restraints and such are often improvised, what you really own are a bunch of dildos and vibrators. But the real star of the collection is the strap on Yuuji got in secret only to gift it to you for his own birthday and to ask you to peg him. How could you say no? Megumi was pretty excited too to watch the while situation develop.

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

You and Yuuji are the ones who usually tease Megumi. From time to time, he’s fed up with the situation and will edge you. In that moment, Megumi immensely enjoys teasing you, because it’s the sweetest payback. But his biggest secret is… that he also enjoys being teased. He’s the shy one, and he loves the attention he gains from being like that.

V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)

Megumi doesn’t make a sound often. You wonder how that’s possible. The only time you hear him is when he does some dirty talk or when he grunts when he’s about to come. Other than that, he’s great to fuck when you want to be secretive about it – or when you’re in a room that share’s a wall with noisy people, like Gojo. Thankfully, Yuuji is here to make up for the silence of his boyfriend. Yuuji grunts and pants, although he doesn’t really moan unless something is unexpected and it really, really turned him on. When they dirty talk, they both whisper. It’s romantic and intimate.

There are exceptions, of course. You’ll always remember the time when it was Megumi’s time to be in the middle of everyone and you got him to scream. It was a wonderful feeling, the way he pronounced your names without any restriction. Megumi cummed immediately after and his face was completely red. Yuuji and you cuddled him, without any care because the sheets were a mess anyways, and reassured him that he shouldn’t feel any shame about expressing himself like that. He begrudgingly accepted it and fell asleep with his face in your chest and coddled in Yuuji’s arms.

W = Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)

Au where Sukuna is in fact inside of Yuuji. The first time he had the first threesome with you and Megumi, Sukuna was both impressed and disoriented. He didn’t know Itadori had it in him to fuck someone, let alone two of his best friends. There were some awkward moments where Sukuna didn’t say anything, but Itadori was painfully aware of the fact that the king of curses had, in fact, witnessed everything in great detail. And Megumi and you were also aware, just not as aware as Sukuna’s vessel. After the second time, Sukuna asked Yuuji if it was going to be a recurrent thing, and he declared that he loved it, since he was a curse and he despised all human norms, which you were twisting with your little arrangement. Of course, Yuuji didn’t say anything, but he was content with Sukuna’s acceptance, because he could be a real pain in the ass.

He wasn’t that happy when Sukuna insisted that he wanted to play around with Megumi – and, well, if you were up to it too it would be an extra. So Yuuji let him come out to play once you all agreed. He was clearly obsessed with Megumi, so you were content in being on the sidelines watching over everything in case things got out of hand – which they did, but in a good sense. Sukuna practically devoured Megumi, claiming he’d been sealed for so long he hasn’t felt any pleasure in hundreds of years. When he was finished, he looked at you in the eye and said: “I’ll let Yuuji out now because he’s frustrated and wants you all to himself, but soon enough you’ll be next.”

After that, Yuuji fucked you like there was no tomorrow, Megumi didn’t want to talk about it too much, and Sukuna’s mouth kept popping out of nowhere from time to time.

X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)

Yuuji’s dick is slightly longer than average, but still pretty normal. It has a very uniform colour and it’s tilted to the side. Honestly it’s the perfect universal size to not be painful but still being able to fill you a lot. Megumi is longer, and thicker and he feels a mix of self-consciousness and pride when you both go crazy for his cock. It’s also very pale, with a pink head.

Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)

It’s very high for both of them at the beginning. Like, if they could, they would’ve fucked twice or thrice a day – or more. Now, they still have high sex drives, but they can control themselves. Yuuji is horny more often than Megumi, but Megumi is crankier if he doesn’t have sex at least three times per week.

Z = ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

Itadori can fall asleep whenever he wants after sex. Sometimes, when you’re bathing after a good fuck, he’ll doze off. It’s adorable, because he really wants to stay awake, but his body refuses to do so. Megumi can stay awake as much time as he wants, that’s why he’s usually the one who cleans everything and takes care of you. Right before falling asleep, Fushiguro feels very vulnerable, so he likes having a small conversation with you, about anything really, although it always ends up in being small confessions or reassurance.

#megumi x reader #itadori x reader #fushiguro x reader #megumi x you #itadori x you #yuuji x reader #yuuji x you #megumi x reader x yuuji #yuuji x reader x megumi #jjk fanfiction #jjk x reader

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sparxwrites · 3 years ago

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that post you made talking about grian's greediness and comparing it to that one terry pratchett quote!!!!! oh my GOD you GET IT. these have been my exact interpretation of grians character!!!!! you GET IT!!!

:D thank you! i'm so glad there's someone else who's got the same kind of brain worms that i do

i thiiiiiiiink people have been reading that a little nicer than i meant- maybe my fault for putting the tiffany aching quote in there. i do not think grian is a good person. i think he is, fundamentally, actually not a nice person. at his core, he is selfish, and greedy, and inclined to callousness. he lacks empathy, he likes scaring people, he likes taking things that are not his, he likes hurting people a little bit. he doesn't know when he's going to far; doesn't know when to stop; has never heard of the concept of 'proportional retribution'. there's a reason the watchers took him! they saw something in him, they saw themselves in him, that edge of sadism, that desire to do damage in the most clever and dragged-out method possible, that bright glee in the suffering of others.

but.

i think grian doesn't like this about himself. i think he does, genuinely, love his friends, does care about them, is powerfully loyal to them - even if that is also accompanied by a little whisper of, "and you should be cruel to them because it's fun :)" in the back of his head. and some of that love and loyalty is tied to the selfishness and the greed, inextricaply coupled with the desire to own and have and mine mine mine and exercise dominion, but some of it's just... the inherent contradiction of humanity. you love your friends; they're yours; you think it's funny when you cry; you hate it when they're sad; it brings you joy to watch them scared and frustrated; you'd kill for them. he contains multitudes.

and what all this means is that grian is kind on purpose, when he's kind. when he plays his little jokes and his pranks, it's a continuous effort for him to keep that base nature on a leash. to keep the games normal. to not escalate into wholescale cruelty and violence. sometimes he... slips a little. sometimes he slips a lot (see also: third life).

but that's what the watchers missed. they were right when they thought grian would fit well with them; objectively, he would! he's cruel, he takes joy in others' suffering, he doesn't really have a native moral compass. what they forgot, though, is that he is, fundamentally, human. and humans, no matter what else they feel, no matter what else is natural to them, love. fiercely and with their whole heart. and the watchers didn't account for that. they didn't account for grian so fiercely fond of and loyal to his friends that he'd fight his own base nature for them.

#anonymous #ask #sparx chats #grian #evo crafting #hermits crafting #life smp tag #meta #something something 'draw a monster; tell me why it's a monster' something #and 'monsters desperately playing at being human versus humans desperately playing at monstrosity'#also empathy and kindness and humanity Very Carefully On Purpose always gets me as a trope #just 'on purpose! on purpose!! i will love you on purpose!!'#and 'take that selfishness and turn it to your will! make it yours!'#idk man i just. hhhhhhhhhhhhh #this is not a Popular grian characterisation i don't think #and i haven't leant into it super hard in many of my fics #you see the most hints of it in Wearing Thin maybe #but it's a thing i keep turning over and over #and it's the only way i have found to reconcile how Absolutely Sociopathically he regularly behaves with how fond he is of his friends #and ALSO it's such a fun characterisation to play with so u know :p

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blglplus · 2 years ago

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My Top 10 BL’s of all time (and also 2022 because I’m new)

So I only discovered BL this year and what an incredible year of TV watching it has been. This year was difficult and I needed the escape. I first got obsessed with Heartstopper and then someone suggested I check out Thai BL and she was a goddamn genius. I had already been reading a lot of M/M romance novels and watching all the western queer shows I could like Heartstopper, Love, Simon, Young Royals etc. But the absolute joy and madness of BL knows no equal.

So here is my personal top ten BL’s that I watched this year. Meaning many of these are from previous years it’s just that I only discovered them this year. So the title of this list could be very misleading

1. 2gether - this was the first one I watched and will always have a special place in y heart. It was like watching high production fanfiction and I’m INTO it. It loses some points for being homophobic/femmephobic towards Green of course. Also it had a LOT of “sing your feelings” but it was cute, funny and Bright was SO good. Not to mention insanely hot? I even watched Boys Over Flowers because he was in it and ENJOYED it.

2. My Beautiful Man - this one hit me on a personal level and I just loved it. The complexity of the characters and their journeys. The actor who played Kiyoi was incredible! He deserved the award/awards he got. This one had depth in a way that I can’t quite articulate.

3. Seven Days - this was so freaking cute. I watched it because @absolutebl recced it and Phi was right - I have already re-watched bits of it multiple times. The chemistry was on point and again there was a complexity and depth to the characters that was explored really well. Love it. Also I love all the nods to the manga in the filming style, very cool. Phi was also right that you need to ignore the hair.

4. Cherry Magic - how is it possible for one show to be THIS adorable? This is the one I want to show all my friends and family. I was constantly giggling in that shy way you do when you’re texting someone you have a crush on. I loved it.

5. KinnPorsche - how much hotness can one show contain? And I’m not even into dudes very much! Was this show messy and at times illogical? Sure. Did I care? Not at all. I love every single inch of it. I loved the narrative behind it. It was a trip and it was amazing.

6. Semantic Error - this show is perfect. It’s cute, it’s funny, it’s beautifully shot, the leads have great chemistry. Perfect romcom. The uke is so hot!

7. Why R U - I honestly found this show hilarious. I love a neurotic meta thinker (Zon) and Tutor/Fighter had such good chemistry. It got messy towards the end sure. That scene where Zon was freaking out in Saifah’s bed and made a pillow fort was just so funny to me, I can’t explain it. I love them.

8. Love By Chance - the Ae/Pete only cut. Luckily I was warned by the internet about the rapiness of the side couples in this one so I skipped lots of them (though I still watched Pond’s story and Tin/Can). Ae and Pete are so freaking cute and Perth’s acting as Ae is incredible. I can’t believe he was only 16 at the time! When they look at each other I get all warm like drinking a hot chocolate. It’s so freaking cute. Also I love the read of Ae as demi.

9. We Best Love - No 1 for you. This was cute as was it’s sequel. Great chemistry, solid story, excellent.

10. The RamKing cut of My Engineer. If we were taking the whole show into account there are other shows I love more for sure, but I love this side couple SO MUCH. Even though I sort of enjoy the D/s elements of seme/uke I love it when there is less seme/uke or the lines are blurredand both characters take both roles and it feels more honestly queer. Also I’m a big fan of the silent, tough, loyal type that Ram is in this one. Plus the longing glances! And the flowers! Just so cute! I’ve already watched their cut at least 3 times through. I quickly started fast forwarding over the others when I was watching it.

Honourable Mentions:

Bad Buddy - this was great and solid plus I love that they are explicitly verse and some queer stuff is addressed. Not to mention side GL couple! We love! More of this please (though can we have some that aren’t femme please for the love of flannel?) It didn’t make the list because it just didn’t quite make me squee as hard as some of the ones above.

Love in the Air but only Payu/Rain. I feel like the dubcon with Payu/Rain is less dubious because of the non-verbal signals going on there. Consent doesn’t have to be just verbal - some people struggle with verbal. But maybe I’m just justifying this to myself haha, but hey, I won’t yuck your yum, don’t yuck mine. Plus Rain is hilarious, like honeslty hilarious. I mostly hated Prapai/Sky. The diary reading was especially terrible.

Secret Crush on You - yes it’s cringey. I love it anyway. I love the friends (especially Daisy of course - I wish Daisy’s story was more fleshed out!). I LOVE the chemistry and that there are seme/uke vibes but Toh, the uke, is hella into it! Love Jao/Sky. This show is happy and comforting and I can skip the extra painful bits!

I told the sunset about you - this one gave me too many feelings and it hurt. But it was beautiful and great also. The one I would show to my arty friends.

2moons2 but just the side couples. Especially Beam/Forth, so cute!

What I’m watching now:

I am participating in this strange antiquated tradition of watching TV shows AS THEY AIR with only one episode dropping per week! It’s madness! Absolute madness! I’m currently watching: Between Us (Win is so hot!), My School President (so cute!), Never Let Me Go (so exciting!), The New Employee, Ameiro Paradox and Gap: the series (I will watch all the GL dammit).

I’m also part way through:

The Eclipse

Be Loved in House (I do)

planning to start eternal yesterday because apparently I like pain?

#top ten list #top ten bl #bl ramblings #2022 top ten bl but really top ten of all time because I'm NEW

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soramei · 4 years ago

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Intentional - Part 2

Pairing: Bang Chan x Reader (she/her)

Summary: Landing your first real job at JYPE was something short of a miracle. You were prepared to face the new struggles of this elusive career whilst moving to a new country, however, nothing could have prepared you for him. Will stolen glances, secret touches, and hushed nights spent in the recording room ever be enough for the both of you?

Genre: idol!bang chan au, forbidden relationship, coworkers to eventual lovers, slow burn

Warnings: none right now, eventual smut,

Word Count: 5.2k

Masterlist

A/N: o my god i did not expect so many people to have read the first part… even if only one person reads im still happy :D anyways heres the second part (i swear bang chan wont just be a side character later on hhahaha)

The insistent beeping of the alarm on your phone was what first woke you up from your dazed sleep. Your head still pounded from the night before, and frankly, you were ready to get fired for an extra five minutes of sleep. Tapping the ‘cancel’ button on your phone, you flipped over head down on your pillow to find the beautiful dreamland you were in. However, after just five more minutes, the triggering beeping of your backup alarm took you out of your slumber again, this time really waking you up.

You trudge towards your bathroom, still dreading the day, on your way to take a shower. Thankfully, the steam from the warm shower combined with the fragrant smell of your conditioner slightly woke you up and dampened the aching in your head.

Being drastically more awake than before, you made your way over to your kitchen to prepare breakfast. You opened the fridge, mind blank, just staring at the empty shelves. I seriously need to do some grocery shopping, you thought before grabbing an egg.

You struggled to turn on the stove, not knowing which knob correlated to which burner. Turning a random one, you flinched when an excessive amount of fire appeared. However, after an embarrassingly long amount of time, you finally figured out the stove. Why are there still gas range stoves when electrical stoves exist? You wondered.

You looked at the sad cooked egg in front of you.

Was this really how you were going to live from now on? You cursed your whole family for spoiling you so much back home. Sure you were grateful for being able to live with your family for twenty three years, but the consequences of your mother making a fuss when you tried to cook for yourself was really showing now.

You were about to dig into your lonely meal when your phone buzzed all of a sudden. Taking a quick peek at it, you saw Na-eun’s name flash up. You beamed with joy. Although you already worked up the nerve to be the first one to contact her, you were thankful she did first to break the tension. However, there was a small — microscopic even — part of you that wondered: what if that were Bang Chan?

You unlocked your phone.

Na-eun: Hey! I know it’s kinda last minute, but do you wanna meet for breakfast?

Na-eun: There’s a café five minutes away from the building.

Na-eun: ^-^

Smiling to yourself, you quickly typed a reply.

Y/n: Sure! My breakfast looks too sad to eat…

Y/n: ^-^

In a flash, you stuffed your egg into a plastic tupperware container and put it in the empty fridge before booking it out your door, making sure to carefully enter the passcode to lock it before running to the staircase. You almost tripped over the stairs going down as you tried to sprint and text Na-eun at the same time. Checking the maps app on your phone, you told her how long it would take for you to arrive at the café.

Na-eun: Do you mind if I bring my roommate? She keeps complaining about how boring it is at home haha....

Na-eun: She’s really nice though! ^^;

You happily agreed since you weren’t in the position to turn down another potential friend. Already two potential friends? You were so excited.

There was a bounce in your steps as you made your way down to the subway. Scanning your card, you made your way to the big group of people on the platform and waited for your train. Taking the subway was so new, yet refreshing. There was something exciting about seeing a brand new set of people board the cart every stop, it was almost like refreshing your Instagram feed over and over again.

After just a couple minutes more of waiting, your subway came. You naturally found your way in by shuffling along with the flock of people and found a good place to stand.

You surveyed your cart. Some high school students, a few elderly, and many many businesspeople dressed in attire very similar to you. They all seemed to be busy on their cellular devices, so you quickly pulled yours out as well, eager to blend in. Your little Tamagotchi friend was happy to see you.

The sound of the automated woman’s voice was what drew you out of your concentration, as she announced that the subway would be stopping at your destination next. When the subway stopped, the sea of people rushed out in a big tidal wave and you just went along with the flow.

The map posted on a big pillar in the station was difficult to read at first, but after embarrassingly asking a station officer, you were confident you knew where you were going. The station was big with many interwoven hallways, each connecting to a different location. It had a couple shops and convenience stores located along the sides where students running late could buy some bread or tired businesspeople could inject their early morning dose of caffeine.

You weaved your way through the long halls, confident that you could remember how you got out the right exit yesterday. Finally, after passing by many familiar stores and signs, you eventually made it above ground at the right exit. It was a cloudy September morning, the wind flew past you at just the right speed to elicit a slight shiver. You curse yourself for not bringing a jacket in your rush to the café. The streets were busy with cars zooming by, but it was nowhere near as congested as the subway traffic.

You started following your phone’s GPS to the marked location, and after a couple minutes, you spot the café. You immediately recognized it as a chain café as you’ve seen a few more of these scattered around the city as you got around. This one, however, appeared to be larger than the others (presumably because it was near so many big name companies) as it had three floors in total.

You texted Na-eun, telling her you’ve arrived. She let you know that they were both in one of the booths on the second floor, so you decided to order before heading up. Walking over to the cashier, you scanned their massive menu, trying to find what you were looking for.

“One mango juice, please.” You politely ordered. “And also a slice of the red velvet cake.”

After you had paid, you waited patiently, hands folded in front of you for your food. Because it wasn’t busy in the morning, it wasn’t that long until one of the baristas handed your food to you on a tiny plastic tray and you started making your way up. You reached the top floor and scanned your eyes around the room to find a familiar face.

“Y/n!” Na-eun waved.

You waved back and made your way over. She was in the booth, and there was another girl sitting beside her.

“Y/n, this is my roommate Yoojin.” She smiled at you and made a gesture towards the smaller girl sitting beside her. She was a fluffy haired girl. Her appearance was puppy-like, with her wide eyes and a large smile that was almost too big for her face.

“Hi Yoojin.” You said as you sat down.

“Hi Y/n! Na-eun told me about you yesterday. It seems like you have similar jobs.” She looked back at you with wide eyes. “But I think you got luckier because you actually get to interact with the idols.”

“I think both of us are lucky to even be working there,” you chuckled, “plus, I don’t actually get to be working directly with the artists. I could only wish.” You joked.

“Still extremely lucky, Na-eun told me she saw Bang Chan and Felix from Stray Kids at your building’s cafeteria yesterday.” Her hair bounced. “Finally, now I can say I’ve indirectly met famous people.”

You and Na-eun both laughed. Although Yoojin looked the same age as you, there was something about the way she acted that just seemed so precious and innocent — like a little sister. How old was she anyway?

“Yoojin’s younger than me by a few years,” Na-eun said as if she read your thoughts, “She graduated university a year early. Top of her programming class. She knows everything about technology; one time, I stupidly forgot the passcode to my P.O. box and she cracked it for me in less than fifteen minutes.”

“Stop it.” Yoojin whined, looking down and playfully hitting Na-eun on the shoulder. “I told you before that I don’t like it when you talk about me. Let’s talk about Y/n instead. Na-eun told me you’re not from here, what do you do at JYPE then?”

“I’m an assistant to help market some of the artists in China.” You leaned in a bit. “Actually, to be honest, I’m working on a secret project and Bang Chan from Stray Kids is technically part of the team.”

Both Yoojin and Na-eun’s eyes widened. “No way, you’re so lucky.” Yoojin said. “Why can’t you have a job like that?” She poked at Na-eun.

“Get your own job first,” Na-eun smirked, “then we can talk about mine.”

“Hey! I do have a job.” Yoojin clenched her jaw, looking at her plate and avoiding eye contact.

“I’m not sure if talking to people online all day counts as a job.”

“Whatever.” Yoojin swirled her fork on her plate, stabbing at a piece of her cake. The scraping of metal on ceramic made all of you wince.

“Anyways,” you started, trying to change the atmosphere, “did anybody watch the first episode of that new drama?”

The two girls seemed to have a mood switch, looking relieved to start a new conversation. They gladly added their input and opinions on the new drama, talking about both the plot and the actors. Time passed by twice as fast as the three of you sat at the booth talking about the most random things. However, it was soon time to go to work for both you and Na-eun.

“Hey, before you leave, could I get your number?” Yoojin asked. “We should hang out again sometime.”

You gladly typed your contact into her phone, excited to hang out with Yoojin again. She was so full of energy, it reminded you of your university days. Not to mention that fluffy curly hair. It was so cute.

You and Na-eun both made it out of the café and walked side-by-side over to your building before parting ways at the elevator corridor. It was a miracle that you managed to arrive at your cubicle in time, without getting lost. There was a pile of papers on your desk; they were the files you worked on yesterday. You remember that yesterday Manager Chen marked some improvements that could be made to the papers, but you checked your email just to be sure.

Hello Y/n,

I put the documents from yesterday on your desk for some final edits. I’ve also added a few more. Could you finish them all by the end of the day?

Best,

Manager Chen

You flipped through the stack of documents, and sure enough, there were about five more letters that needed to be worked on. Feeling determined, you gritted your teeth, got out your pen, and started to do your job.

There were more corrections to make than what you expected, plus, you wanted to make sure your work was perfect this time. You skipped a trip to the cafeteria for lunch and ate something from the vending machine at your desk instead. You tried your best to work diligently, but because of your inexperience, it was taking longer than expected. You lost track of time as the hours passed by.

“Your team is working hard today, Manager Chen.” A voice came from across the room. You looked up from your stack of documents to see Manager Kim walking over towards Manager Chen, who was standing casually outside her office doors.

“What can I say, I keep them busy.” She replied. “Are you heading home now?”

“Yes, and so should you.” Manaker Kim stopped at your cubicle, putting a hand on the wall. It was cat-like the way he looked at you. “Y/n, you’re working hard. Are you going home now? I’ll give you a ride.”

You couldn’t head home now, not with the amount of work you still had with the new letters Manager Chen added to the pile. “Thank you for the offer, Manager Kim, but I’ll stay later today. I need to finish this work by today.”

“Let her be, Manager Kim, you know how new employees are.” Manager Chen nagged and crossed her arms. “Come, I’ll walk you to the parking lot.”

You bowed at both your managers and stretched your back before getting back to your work. The black lines of both languages started to blur into one as you strained your eyes to hold a tighter focus on the documents. It wasn’t until two more gruesome hours later when you finished your work. You did a long deserved stretch of the arms and checked the clock for the time, praying that it wasn’t too late. Thankfully, with the time being only eight, it wasn’t that dark out. You took a quick peek at your phone to check your notifications before leaving the office.

There were only two texts sent fifteen minutes ago. Both from Bang Chan.

Your chest tightened when you unlocked your phone.

Bang Chan: Hey, I know it’s a bit late, but I have some ideas for the project and I was thinking we could meet up to discuss them

Bang Chan: Only if you want that is…

Your brain was in jumbles as you thought of what to text back. There were a couple staff that wrote you emails about their ideas for the project, but none of them asked to meet in person. And now, the first person who asked you to have a meeting in person was Bang Chan. Whom you rode back to your apartment drunk with. On your first day at work. And now you missed his work-related text by fifteen minutes. However, even though it was late, you still felt like you needed to take his ideas in. After all, like Manager Chen said, you know how new employees are.

Y/n: Hi, sorry my reply is late… Are you still free?

You anxiously stared at the blue-lit screen of your phone, jumping in and out of the text app waiting for a reply. After less than a minute, you saw the little dots at the bottom which indicated that he was typing. It disappeared for a moment, only to come back less than a second later. Your thumbs started unconsciously fiddling with one another in front of your phone screen as you waited for what felt like eternity.

Bang Chan: It’s alright haha

Bang Chan: There’s a cafe about 5 minutes from our building, wanna meet there?

You immediately knew which café he was talking about as you conveniently hung out with Na-eun there this morning. You texted Bang Chan back, letting him know that you would be there as soon as possible. You grabbed your bag, along with your trusty pen and notebook, before leaving your desk for the elevators. The elevator ride was unusually fast as it was already well past working hours for most people.

Once you were out of the building, you made your way down the familiar sidewalk, passing by the familiar street shops as you felt the bite of the wind against your face. The sky was becoming dim as the sun made its descent, but the illumination coming from the streetlamps helped guide you there. After five minutes of a brisk walk, you saw the familiar sign of the café. You also saw a familiar person standing outside the door, dressed in all black, with his head down looking at his phone.

You tried to make your footsteps slightly louder the closer you got to him in order to make your presence known. It seemed to have worked, as Bang Chan heard you and turned his head up. He immediately gave you a boyish grin, putting his phone in the pocket of his hoodie and pulling his face mask down to his chin.

“Hey,” You waved awkwardly, “did I make you wait long?”

“Not at all.” Bang Chan said as he held open the door, “Let’s go in, it’s pretty chilly today.”

You thanked him and walked inside. You both made your way to the cashier and looked up at the menu, deciding on what to buy.

“I think I’ll get an iced americano.” Bang Chan said. “Are you getting anything?”

“Hmm. I might get the mango juice.” You decided and lined up behind Bang Chan, waiting for him to order first.

Bang Chan walked up to the waiting barista. “Hello, I’ll get an iced americano please.” A second passed. “Also a mango juice.”

Your eyes widened as you silently tried to stop him from buying your drink, feeling embarrassed that Bang Chan — who was essentially your coworker — was buying your drink. He didn’t seem to notice your quiet protests, as he pulled his card out of his wallet and quickly tapped it on the pin pad. After he was done paying, he turned around and tucked his card back in his wallet, giving you a smug grin.

“I’ll pay you back later.” You insisted, embarrassed once again that he was doing something for you.

“Of course, of course.” He casually replied and stood beside you with his hands in the pocket of his hoodie. “I’ll wait for our drinks. You can go find a table.”

You nodded and left to find a table on the first floor. Surprisingly, there were more people there at night than when you were there in the morning. Some people had their textbooks out to study, some were quietly enjoying a book. Some were on dates.

Finally, after weaving through many fully filled tables, you found an empty one near the table. You sat down, taking out your pen and notebook to prepare for Bang Chan’s ideas. Not long after, you saw Bang Chan walking around, turning his head left and right to look for you. You caught his eye as you waved at him to come over. He strolled over and put the tray of drinks down on the table, placing yours beside your notebook.

“So,” You took a sip of your delicious mango juice, “do you wanna get started now?”

“Sure.” His usually friendly face turned serious. It seemed like he took his work seriously. “So I was thinking, we need to film some content to start promoting our debut right? How about we film content for the Mid-Autumn Festival? It falls on the same day as Chuseok, so we can use this as a small promotion for our debut.”

You nodded in agreement. Although this idea would be a little last minute to carry out, it was a great opportunity to promote their group in order to gain more popularity before their debut in China. “This is a great idea Bang Chan,” You hurriedly jotted down everything he said, “did you have more to add on?”

“We could make several episodes of this content. I was thinking we could camp in the mountains and maybe cook some food, make mooncakes.”

“All of this is really good, we have three weeks until the actual Mid-Autumn Festival. If I rush this idea to Manager Chen, we could have one week to plan it, and two weeks to film and produce it.” You beamed, glad that you could be involved in a potential big production.

You and Bang Chan kept discussing his idea for content, and as time passed, your conversation turned more casual as it eventually evolved into topics unrelated to work.

“So, why are you having coffee this late anyway?” You tipped your chin towards his glass.

“There’s this part of a song I’m working on that I just can’t get perfect,” Bang Chan noticeably clenched his jaw, “I wanna figure it out before I leave.”

“Do you usually stay up late to work?” You asked.

“I can’t sleep anyways, so I might as well work.”

“Insomnia?” You questioned. He shrugged his shoulders and took a sip of his coffee. A few seconds of silence passed. “You know, my mom made me pack some of her special tea before leaving. She said it was for jet lag, which is weird because there’s only a time difference of an hour here.” You rambled.

“Oh?” Bang Chan tipped his head.

“I could give you some tomorrow.” You said. Your eyes wandered everywhere except to him. “If you want.”

“Really, you’d do that?” His eyes widened as he stirred his coffee with his straw.

It may have been your subconscious need to make friends, or just the fact that you mom gave you so much tea for your non-existent jet lag, but you gladly offered your mom’s solve-all remedy. “Of course, anything for a friend.”

He blinked a couple times. He stopped stirring his coffee. “Thanks.” He looked at you with a slight grin.

“Plus, this way I can pay you back.” You teased.

“Okay, fair enough.” He chuckled. A dimple appeared on his cheek as his smile widened. “But seriously, you don’t need to worry about paying me back for anything next time.”

Next time? You wondered. Of course he would have more ideas for his own group. You wanted to roll your eyes at yourself. It seemed like, despite his easy-going personality, that he cared a lot about not only his job, but the boys he worked with. His work ethic inspired you and made you want to work just as hard as he did. Except you definitely couldn’t stay up as late as he did.

The two of you kept up the back and forth that was established, talking about whatever came to mind, with a few sprinklings of work-related conversations throughout. You talked about your first day impressions and how well you were adjusting to life in a new country, and he retaliated by sharing his own experiences of moving across the world. You were so enraptured by your riveting conversations that you easily lost track of time. It wasn’t until you had already spent minutes playing around with your straw in the empty glass that you finally remembered how late it was.

“It’s kinda late, I think I should get going now.” You said as you checked your phone for the time.

“Are you taking the subway?” He asked as he started gathering the empty glasses. “It’s pretty dark now — I could walk you there.”

“It’s alright. I don’t wanna take time from your work” You said, gathering your notebook and pen.

“It’s no problem, really, it’s just a five minute walk.” He stood up with the tray of empty glasses in one hand and pulled up his face mask with the other.

The two of you left the café and walked the short distance to the subway stairs. There, you parted ways and you started your trek home. Taking the subway at night was vastly different from morning; the morning rush was filled with rows and rows of busy people, whereas the night train had a completely different feeling to it. There were actually available seats, to begin with. You found an empty seat and took out your phone to kill time. You checked your missed notifications.

Yoojin: Hi Y/n!! ^-~ Today was so fun, we should go again sometime!

You smiled at the little text from Yoojin, visioning her wide smile stretch across her face. Texting a quick reply back, you were about to put your phone back down when another notification popped up.

Unknown: Stay away from him. This is a warning.

A flash of panic rushed through your body making your chest tighten. Your heart was coming out of your chest, the beating was so hard you could hear it even in the running subway. Completely fixated on the bright white of your phone, your eyes strained from the light. Adrenaline filled your blood, and in the spur of the moment, you quickly blocked the number and deleted the text chain. It had to just be a prank text, after all, you have gotten pranked through text multiple times before in your past.

You put your phone down slowly, turning your head to survey your subway cart for any suspicious acting people. There was only a grandma with her cane and a few middle school girls comparing their new lip tints. Your thumbs naturally started fiddling with each other. Your eyebrows knit together as you clutched your bag tight to your body for the rest of the subway ride.

The walk back to your apartment was done carefully. You chose the side of the sidewalk with more light as you kept your senses open, trying to remember the face of every person that walked past you. Although it was more likely than not that the text was just a prank, you were still somebody living alone with very few connections in a new country. Your legs quickened at the thought and you hurried your way back.

Arriving at your apartment door, you carefully entered your lock combination and slammed your door shut, double checking that it was locked. Your home was dark, with only the moon casting long shadows on your furniture. You quickly switched your light on. You tried to put this text to the back of your mind as you got ready to sleep, but it loomed, feeling like a shadow cast by the moon. The shadow in your mind stayed as you closed your eyes, waiting for your sleep to chase it away.

The next morning, you woke up to the obnoxious beeping of your alarm. You sleepily sat up, getting ready to perform your familiar morning routine. Everything felt like routine, so monotonous that the text from last night was completely forgotten. You opened the fridge and ate your suspicious egg from yesterday morning.

Before leaving, you suddenly remembered to bring your mom’s magical tea. You rummaged through the cupboards until you found the ridiculous packaging your mom insisted on using.

The route to work was already starting to feel familiar as you mindlessly made your way from your quaint apartment all the way to the opulent blue building. You entered the office and sat at your desk, checking for new emails. After nothing of immediate importance came up, you got out your notebook and started to type up your notes from yesterday.

You were in a trance. The repetitive task of reading and typing completely hypnotised you as hours passed by without you even noticing. What broke you out of your trance, however, was the voice of your boss.

“Bang Chan.” Manager Chen called out. You looked up from your monitor and peeked up from your cubicle to see the familiar hair of a certain man you knew. Assuming he was here for a meeting with Manager Chen, you went back to your hypnotising work. The walls of your cubicle were too high for him to see you anyways — something about eliminating distractions to maximise work efficiency.

You hit ‘enter’ on your keyboard to start a new paragraph when all of a sudden, you spotted an object appear on your desk from the corner of your eye.

A bottle of mango juice.

Quickly turning your head around, you were met with Bang Chan’s back. He was already making strides towards Manager Chen, but something about the sway of his broad shoulders and the way his right hand stretched open told you that it was him who gave you this little bottle of happiness. You unscrewed the lid and took a sip before getting back to work.

Thankfully, the gift you received was enough sugar content to keep you working efficiently for the rest of the day. You had finished all your work and could hopefully pitch Manager Chen the idea by tomorrow. You found your mom’s tea in your bag while gathering your stuff, remembering your promise to Bang Chan.

Y/n: Hey, I have my mom’s tea — I could give it to you right now?

There was a reply almost immediately.

Bang Chan: Sure ^^ I’m in a practice room on floor X right now, I’ll wait by the elevators.

You made your way over to the elevators and tapped your nails on the package of tea whilst silently waiting for an elevator to arrive. The silence, however, was promptly cut off as your phone started to ring. It was from Yoojin. She probably wants to hang out soon, you thought as you happily answered right away.

“Y/n!” Yoojin yelled into the phone, she sounded worried.

“Yoojin, is there something wrong?” You frowned, concerned for the girl.

“I-I was in the parking lot near your building, a-and I fell down the stairs.” She sniffed. “I think I sprained my ankle or something — I can’t stand up. It hurts so much.”

“Oh god, Yoojin, do you want me to come help?” You were in the elevator by now, already pressing the button for the main floor.

“If you’re not far, I don’t want to trouble you.” You heard sounds of her wincing.

“It’s no trouble Yoojin,” You exclaimed, “your ankle is much more important now. I’ll be right there.”

“Thank you Y/n.” You heard her sniff again through the phone.

You bolted out of the elevator as soon as it reached the main floor, stuffing your forgotten package in your bag. Ignoring the looks of confusion of the people you sprinted past, you located the parking lot building as soon as you left the main doors of the JYPE building. Your chest burned and your breaths were heavy.

You were worried for Yoojin. She seemed like such a sweet girl that it pained you to even imagine her hurt in any sort of way. With her fluffy hair and wide eyes, it made you feel like you were helping an injured puppy.

Your legs felt like concrete after a while of running, but you finally made it to the parking lot building. Entering the parking lot, you looked for any sign of a staircase where Yoojin said she fell on. There were none.

“Excuse me, where are the stairs to this parking lot?” You asked the parking lot attendant, assuming it was just hidden somewhere.

“There are no stairs here,” He said, “if you want to get to the second floor, there is an elevator over there.” He pointed to the other side of the lot.

You thanked the man and ran to the elevator, hoping Yoojin wasn’t too hurt by now. You’ve experienced injuries like these before whilst playing sports back home, they hurt like hell. Your breathing was staggered by the time you reached the elevator, however, you didn’t give up and kept looking around trying to find the girl. There was nobody. You were about to call Yoojin again just to make sure you were in the correct place, but a voice interrupted you.

“Y/n.”

It was Manager Kim.

#stray kids #stray kids imagines #stray kids scenarios #stray kids smut #stray kids x reader #stray kids fanfic #stray kids fluff #stray kids angst #bang chan #bang chan smut #bang chan fluff #bang chan scenarios #bang chan imagines #bang chan angst

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potteresque-ire · 4 years ago

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🏳️‍🌈 Rec post!! A queer film + a queer TV series from Hong Kong ~

1) Twilight’s Kiss (叔·叔) (Dir. Ray Yeung 楊曜愷; 2019)

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Twilight’s Kiss offers a very realistic depiction of two elderly, in-the-closet gays in Hong Kong, who have dedicated their lives building a conventional family before unexpectedly falling in love with each other. It is a quiet film, and the romance is told in the same subtle manner as love is expressed (and not expressed) in their generation. The actors were phenomenal at playing regular Hong Kong men of their age (Pak mentioned he “came to Hong Kong”, ie, he was a refugee from Mao’s China, as the vast majority of his demographics was), which added to the resonance of the story ~ they could’ve been anyone, and anyone could’ve been them.

The director of the film, Ray Yeung, is an openly gay man.

(Long review: Hollywood Reporter) Streaming link to film (with English subtitles; pls ignore and close the pop-up window)

2) Ossan’s Love (大叔的愛) (2021)

The unlikely (and hilarious) love triangle between Muk (Left), Tin (Center) and KK (Right) in Ossan’s Love.

For those who found the name familiar, it’s because the series is a (faithful) remake of the popular 2018 Japanese series of the same name. The Hong Kong version is longer (15 episodes; ~ 40 min each) compared to the Japanese original, and its mood is cheerier, sweeter, and also ... more BL, with the lead characters Tin (Haruta in the original) and Muk (Maki in the original) played by two idols, Edan Lui 呂爵安 and Anson Lo 盧瀚霆, from the very popular local boy band MIRROR.

(Being idols didn’t prevent them from kissing. Not in Hong Kong, 2021.) (Yes, they kissed, and hugged and fought and bantered...)

Ossan’s Love is culturally significant in that it became the first gay drama to be aired primetime in Hong Kong, and by extension, in China. Beloved by the locals, it was also very much discussed—hk-queers expressed their (surprised) joy that finally, they got to see a respectful, dignified presentation of who they are and how they love. More importantly, they got to see HKers, older generations included, glued to the TV for their kind of love story, rooting for the lead male characters to get together.

This signifies a broader acceptance of LGBT+ in the city than previously assumed; this is very important and comforting to the community in June, 2021, when the future of LGBT+ rights in the city is very uncertain. After the 2019 protests, pro-democracy leaders have been arrested and jailed in large numbers; newspaper that advocated for freedom has been shut down. Meanwhile, during the airing of Ossan’s Love , the (in)famous pro-Beijing politician, Junius Ho, claimed the series to have violated the city’s much feared, much abused National Security Law—the law that officially aims to catch “traitors”, but has been used as a “catch-all” excuse to arrest political dissidents and suppress the freedoms of the city. Ho was of sufficient prominence that his words could draw the attention of officials who have been sent from across the mainland-HK border to do Beijing’s bidding.

Also, Ossan’s Love was produced not by the powerful, once popular TVB (local TV station), which, with Chinese investors becoming its major shareholders like many other HK press and media companies, has become very pro-Beijing and conservative. The series was produced by ViuTV, a much smaller station preferred by young, pro-democracy Hong Kongers ... which means the future of the series, of its stars (MIRROR’s members are once-contestants of a ViuTV talent show), of even the station itself is also uncertain.

Hence, I’m recommending Ossan’s Love now ... even if the official version doesn’t have the best English subtitles. The full series is on Youtube (links below); the soundtrack is in Cantonese and (Traditional) Chinese subtitles are available, but English is only available via Youtube’s built-in Auto-Translate function.

For those who would like to catch a short scene of two cute HK boys in love, the last 5 minutes of Ep 11 would be a nice place to watch. You can see how comfortable these two bandmates were with each other—Edan (Tin) had played two supporting roles before this series, while Anson (Muk) had never acted before. Edan and Anson have claimed that being close friends in RL meant their intimate scenes were easy to film (BTW, Anson is gay, Edan isn’t).

Edan Lui (Left) & Anson Lo (Right), Harper's Bazaar HK, May 2021. Edan was a uni student before joining hk-ent. Anson was a dance instructor.

(You can also see why, when I watched the Gg + Dd Happy Camp episode very, very early on in my turtlehood, I assumed Gg and Dd would have ample opportunities to work together again, to play and be happy in front of the camera ... just like how I remembered on-screen couples from my days in HK—the couples, the CPs of the time, would collaborate repeatedly after having demonstrated chemistry and become commercial success—in film and TV projects, in variety shows, in awards ceremonies as presenting guests etc etc. This multi-project collaboration was, and still is, viewed as a Very Good Thing, and not only for commercial reasons. The inter-personal fate (緣份) to play on-screen couples repeatedly, per the tradition of HK-ent, is something of a blessing, talked about as a small-scale version of having the destiny, the luck to be together across multiple lives, multiple incarnations. Actors treasure this kind of collaboration and the HK audience celebrates it, regardless of the marital status of the actors in RL. Entertainment news dedicate articles about it.) (There’s actually an example of that in Ossan’s Love: Kenny Wong 黃德斌, the actor who played the titular Ossan, KK, and Rachel Kan 簡慕華, who played his wife Francesca, had already played husband and wife three times before. Rachel had retired from acting in 2017 and moved to Canada; she told reporters that she returned to shoot Ossan’s Love primarily so that she could play Kenny’s wife again).

* Below is a small warning for Ossan’s Love ~ *

The humour of Ossan’s Love is often wild and zany, especially where it adapts from the Japanese original. Some of it, i-fandomers may find uncomfortable. Notably, the titular Ossan (Japanese, meaning “Older Man”) was Tin and Muk’s boss; and he and Darren, another superior of Tin and Muk, were also part of the romantic story line.

One can argue, therefore, that Ossan’s Love contains a *very* “Me Too” situation; however, this is also why I find Ossan’s Love interesting beyond being a Chinese-speaking gay drama—it is clear that the production team of this series meant no disrespect, and from the series’ reception, it’s also clear that hk-queers and other more progressive members among the audience didn’t see disrespect in the product. This series therefore offers a glimpse to the answers of some questions I’ve had: how does Hong Kong of 2021 translate respect for queers (as well as for older men and women) into day-to-day words and actions? How do these culturally-specific habits in speech and behaviour compare to the norms in, for example, the United States (that I’m familiar with)?

“Political incorrectness” was also found in some of Tin’s internal monologue. However, I thought, perhaps, that was why the series has proven to be disarming to the general audience both in HK and Japan, places with a tradition of homophobia stemming often not from malice, but from ignorance, from sex being considered taboo for so much of the places’ history. Tin, as someone who haven’t seemed to have spared a thought about homosexuality before the story had taken place, spoke the minds of the audiences who aren’t familiar with homosexuality. Muk, meanwhile, presented the perspective of someone who already understood what being gay was and wasn’t about. Tin, therefore, led the audience towards Muk and his views step by step, all the while without being judgemental—how could he be? He was one of them too during his journey. He was the student, and he was also the protagonist who everyone—and I mean everyone—loved (in a rather funny manner :D). 🌈

(Long review: BLwatcher)

Links to Ossan’s Love, official version uploaded by ViuTV: EP 1 EP 2 EP 3 EP 4 EP 5 EP 6 EP 7 EP 8 EP 9 EP 10 EP 11 EP 12 EP 13 EP 14 EP 15

ETA 2021/09/16: Streaming with English subtitles is available here.

#pie metas #pie recs

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bts-reveries · 4 years ago

Text

wishlist

characters: Yoongi x OC!Sohyun and Hana [ft. Yuna and Hoseok, mentions Huimang, Hana’s friends, and Taehyung(the group as well)]

genre: family and fluff

request: [anon] Hi there! My suggestion for the drabble series is maybe Hana puts down getting a baby brother/sister on her birthday wish list, and neither she nor Yoongi knows that Sohyun is already pregnant, so Sohyun gets to surprise her husband and daughter? 💛

a/n: hana is turning eight here (WEIRD.) i know it’s a big age gap, but she turned four in daddy diaries and she was seven by the end of the tmbmil series asdfghjkl this is assuming jungkook and rina got married right after taeyang was born and yoongi proposed right after their wedding and then got married in a few months and then hana’s birthday rolls around after and sohyun is already pregnant by then : D also my sister and i are seven years apart so it’s not tHaT bad~

➳➳➳➳➳➳➳

Hana’s birthday was nearing and it was always a special time for the couple.

Not only is it almost their daughter’s special day, but also the anniversary of the first time they met and the anniversary of the bakery’s opening.

Hana was only three when she came crashing into the grand opening of 24/7 Heaven, meeting Sohyun for the very first time. She was looking for the perfect birthday cake then. Now, four years later, the bakery owner became Hana’s mom and the wife of her dad. Yoongi and Sohyun got married not too long ago.

He proposed to her in the most perfect way actually.

A cake, made by him and Hana, with the words ‘will you marry me’ written on top.

So it was a special time. It’s their first meet-aversary as a married couple. The bakery was having an event for it’s fourth birthday. And of course, it was the start of getting Hana’s wishlist checked off.

As always, she had the general wishes.

As she got older, they started to change more and more.

“Have you done your list yet?” Yoongi asks his daughter, peeking into her room. Hana scrambles out of her bed, where she was reading a book, and goes over to her desk.

“I finished it last night, I forgot to give it to you,” she said, pulling out the list from under her other books. “Here you go daddy. Do you and mommy need any help for the bakery’s fourth birthday by the way?” Yoongi was happy to know that as she grew up, she got sweeter and sweeter.

Maybe it’s the effects of being in a bakery almost 24/7.

“Yes, mommy and I will need help later, but we’ll call you out then. For now, mommy and I will be looking at this,” he says, holding the list up. Hana smiles up at her dad, giving him an ‘okay’ sign.

Yoongi turns and walks out the door, already scanning the list.

“Why do you have that look on your face?” Sohyun asks her husband, watching him frown at Hana’s wishlist. Sohyun was on her laptop on the couch, ordering last minute party supplies for Hana’s birthday.

“She wants to invite boys from her class,” Yoongi says, looking up at his wife who starts to laugh at him.

“Let me see,” she says, reaching out her hand for the paper. Yoongi hands it to her as he sits next to her.

“It says: invite friends.” She turns to Yoongi with one eyebrow raised. “It didn’t specify whether it was all girls, all boys, or both.”

“Assuming it’s both, I’m sure her boyfriend is in there. She wouldn’t just write ‘invite Taeoh’,” he huffs.

“Even if it did, you’d still invite him because it’s on your princess’ wishlist,” Sohyun says, knowing she was right.

“I guess. Let’s look through it and see if we can get some done today. I’ll ask her for the names and make the invitations later.”

“Sounds good. Now let’s see,” Sohyun says, humming as she goes down the list. “Typical Hana, a lot of this is her general wishes. Party, perfect cake, all her friends and family~”

“There’s a back side!” Hana yells from her room. Both her parents look up, turning the paper around and their eyes widen.

“Baby brother (or sister! That’s okay too)”

“Hmm,” Yoongi says. “Well that’s a hard one.” Sohyun laughs nervously.

Little did they know.

That’s already one check done off of the list.

It wasn’t too long ago that Sohyun found out that she was expecting. She figured that it would be perfect to announce it to both Yoongi and Hana on the night of her birthday. Once everyone’s gone and right when Hana thinks the presents have stopped coming.

- hana’s birthday -

“Is that the kid?” Hoseok asks, watching a little boy hand Hana a gift. Yoongi glares at them.

“Mhm,” he says.

“Thank you Taeoh,” Hana says, taking the gift her friend was giving her. Boyfriend as Yoongi says.

Hoseok laughs at his hyung, but that smile quickly drops when he sees his own daughter standing next to her boyfriend. Huimang and Hana take taekwondo together and share the same friends. Which is why her ‘boyfriend’ was also at Hana’s party.

“You boys okay?” Sohyun asks, raising an eyebrow at the two. They both look away from their daughters.

“Fine, why do you ask?” Yoongi says, giving her a close lip smile. Sohyun laughs at the both of them, turning to look at their daughters.

“They’re just kids, don’t worry,” she says. “It’s just a baby crush.”

“Speaking of babies,” Hoseok says, suddenly remembering what Yoongi had told the boys previously. He mentioned to them about Hana’s birthday wishlist. About how this might be the first year he fails giving her everything.

Well, until the boys reminded him that four years ago when Hana wrote mommy on her list and he ended up breaking up with Sohyun.

That was something.

“What are you two telling Hana,” Hoseok says with a small laugh. “Should’ve told her to give you the wishlist 9 months ago.”

Yoongi sighs. “I know, I should’ve expected it. She’s been asking for one for so long.”

“I’m sure she’ll be understanding,” Sohyun says, trying hard to conceal her smile. She was pretty excited for the party to be over so she can spend some quality time with her family.

“Hey!” Yuna calls, rushing over to Sohyun and giving her a hug. “You’re telling them today, right?” She whispers, glancing down at her stomach. Yuna knew about Sohyun being pregnant.

Actually, all the girls did.

Only because Sohyun threw up at their mommy hangout and the girls had a feeling and told her to take a pregnancy test.

It was Sohyun’s first test and she was nervous. So of course the girls all helped her out and taught her how to use one. It ended with all of them screaming three minutes later and Sohyun sobbing with tears of joy.

“Yes, tonight right before her birthday ends,” Sohyun answers. “I’m like 95% excited and 5% nervous.”

“Ah!! I’m so excited, tell us everything after,” Yuna says, holding onto Sohyun's arms tightly. Sohyun laughs, nodding her head.

“I will, definitely.”

“So, did you enjoy your birthday?” Yoongi asks Hana, laying in her bed. No matter how old she turns, Yoongi promised to give her birthday cuddles before she slept. Hana cuddles into her dad’s side.

“Yeah, it was fun,” Hana says sleepily. It was nearing midnight, just about 10 minutes before. The group had stayed longer than everyone else (of course). Hana played with her cousins and was given extra hugs and kisses from her aunt and uncles before they left. Even Taehyung was crying, not wanting to let her go because, in his exact words: ‘Aigoo, you guys growing up is making me feel so old, I'm so sad. How are you already eight?’

“I’m sorry we didn’t get to check off everything on your list,” Yoongi tells her, rubbing her arm. He hugged her tightly, pressing his cheek to her head. As much as he just wanted to fulfill all of her wishes, he wanted Hana to have a sibling as much as she wanted one.

“It’s okay, I still loved everything you gave me. I’d be happy with anything,” Hana tells him, looking up at her dad with a smile on her face. Yoongi pouts, raising his hand up to caress her cheeks.

“How are you the sweetest girl ever?”

“Knock knock,” Sohyun says, peeking her head into the room. “Can I join?” The two smile up at her, motioning for her to come in. Sohyun reveals herself, holding a cupcake with a lit candle on top.

“Oh?” Hana says, sitting up in surprise. She smiles widely as she stares at the cupcake.

“Another candle to blow?” Yoongi asks. His wife nods, careful sitting beside her daughter.

“Your birthday ends in like 5 minutes. Is there one thing you really wanted today that you didn’t get?” Sohyun asks Hana. She knew what wish she would make. Hana looks up at her and nods.

“Okay make the wish then,” Sohyun says. Hana closes her eyes, intertwining her fingers in front of her.

She whispers quietly.

“I wish I could have a little brother or sister.”

It was just loud enough for her parents to hear. Yoongi looks up at Sohyun as Hana blows the candle.

“Done?” Sohyun asks. Hana nods and Sohyun puts the cupcake on her side table, turning back to her two loves.

“So that completes everything from the list right?” Sohyun says, looking back at the two. Both Yoongi and Hana looked at her confused.

“Oh didn’t I tell you two?” Sohyun says with a smile that she could no longer contain. “I’m pregnant.”

Yoongi’s eyes grew big and Hana smiled so wide, her cheeks turned pink.

“Mommy you’re pregnant?” Hana repeats, putting her hand gently on her mom’s tummy. Sohyun nods, putting her hand over hers. She looks up at Yoongi and laughs.

“Are you okay, hun?” She says, reaching out and pushing his hair back.

Yoongi’s face broke into a smile.

“Are you serious? Are you really pregnant?” Yoongi asks, hesitantly putting his hand on her tummy as well.

“Yeah, I found out about three weeks ago,” Sohyun laughs. “I figured I’d surprise you two before midnight.”

“You did it, you completed my wishes,” Hana laughs, leaning onto her mom and hugging her tightly. Yoongi couldn’t stop smiling as he joined in the hug, wrapping his arms tightly around his two girls.

At that moment, the clock struck 12 and Hana’s birthday was over.

They couldn’t help but think that at this time, next year, there'll be another person included in this hug.

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xiaomomowrites · 4 years ago

Text

zhongli, come down

Genshin Impact | TartaLi/ZhongChi

Summary: “When I’m with you, I feel happy,” his eyes are fixated on the ceiling as he speaks. Childe, on the other hand, can’t look anywhere but at him. And although he speaks of his happiness, there are deep waves of sorrow rolling off of him. Zhongli’s makeup had washed off when he took a steaming shower, leaving Tartaglia to see the dark circles under his eyes and the faint wrinkles underneath. The light in his eyes had dulled without the bold presence of his usual red eyeliner, and it seemed as though his face appeared more sunken in when the light hit him at a certain angle.

Childe’s heart pangs in his chest. Sometimes, his husband really looks his age.

Or, Zhongli and Childe visit Snezhnaya, but there’s a certain adeptus on Zhongli’s mind.

Find it on Ao3!

WARNING: this fic contains mentions of death/minor character death. Read at your own risk!

This part takes place between act V and act VI, which is still in the works~

A/N: I had meant to get this out earlier, but I live in Texas so we’ve been having sporadic power outages for the past three or four days. I had spotty connection and it was freezing in my house so this ended up a little delayed! Plus, act VI really just doesn’t wanna be written :( I want it to be perfect before I post it though, I don’t wanna give y’all mediocre Tartali food lol. But I hope you all enjoy, I’ll be adding a little message at the end if you’re interested, so stay tuned. -u.n.

Zhongli felt another full-body shiver rack through him when the wind whistled by again ruthlessly. Archaic divinity and equity aside, he wanted nothing more but to spit and curse the harsh ice beneath his feet. He had all but lost feeling in his fingers and toes as he stood still in the snow, waiting for Childe to finish grabbing them coffee. The Harbinger had offered the drink out of the kindness of his heart when he had seen how badly Zhongli was shivering, as if they hadn’t come here together before. Zhongli accepted the coffee with enthusiasm, knowing it makes Childe happy when he accepts his gifts.

He found himself at the doorstep of Snezhnaya with Childe, visiting his family for the year as they did each November. Unfortunately, November through February seemed to be the harshest that the winters got. The weather would breach zero degrees and drop past negative ten, the wind would lash furiously past parkas and scarves and mittens and kiss bare skin. And Zhongli, in all his divine beauty, would miss the warm summer nights of Liyue so much that he needed to remind himself of how much he loved his husband just to agree to get on the train with him.

Childe, his darling ginger, simply hummed alongside him and tucked Zhongli’s arm beneath his own to keep him from slipping on the ice. His time in Liyue had not shaken his immunity to the cold at all. His other hand sipped at the warm coffee encapsulated in green cardboard, humming a happy noise from the back of his throat. Even if it was a one time occurrence years ago that ended with minor bruising along the ex-Archon’s back, Childe never let him live the moment down and swore to hold onto him every second they found themselves in his hometown. Zhongli had insisted that he need not pace himself just to walk alongside an old man like him, but he had just pinched his cheeks, kissed his nose, and reminded him that he wasn’t that old.

“You’ve got that sexy rich-middle-aged-man thing going on for you. Except, all your money comes from me, and you’re actually six thousand years old,” Tartaglia had told him then, beaming up at him so brightly it made Zhongli blink.

Soon enough, Zhongli finds himself at his in-law’s residence. He takes a deep breath, preparing for the onslaught of Childe’s siblings enthusiasm, and waits for Childe to knock. The Harbinger grins at his anticipation and raps his knuckles against the comforting wood. Not even a beat later and the oak swings open, revealing Teucer, Tonia, and Anthon. They’ve all gotten so big since he last saw them, watching them grow fills the ex-Archon with pride. Zhongli finds himself smiling, squeezing Childe’s hand partially because he’s overwhelmed with joy, and also so he doesn’t slip and fall on his ass too hard when he’s tackled.

Seconds later he finds himself with an armful of red headed siblings. He stumbles, but thankfully Childe’s there to steady him upright. Zhongli squeezes his hand again in thanks.

“Mr. Zhongli!” One of them screeches in his ear, “You’re back! Do you have any presents for us?”

“Mr. Zhongli!” Another one yells, “did you bring me a new book?”

Luckily, Tartaglia’s mother begins barking at her children to reign them back inside and to ‘leave the nice man alone’, so that he has time to readjust and step inside the warmth of their cozy abode. Zhongli smiles, cheeks red and ears redder, and bows as deep as he can.

“Thank you for having me,” the honey-like voice glides against the wooden walls like it belongs there, “it is a pleasure to see you all again.”

“Oh stop,” his mother-in-law gushes, “we’ve seen you every year for years now, honey, drop the formalities!” she waves him off while pulling her own son into a bone crushing hug. “And it’s good to see you too, hun.”

“Hi mom,” Childe responds sheepishly, careful not to squeeze her too hard, lest her back start cracking again. He raises a hand to cradle the back of her head with a fondness reserved only for her. “Where’s dad?”

The question hangs above their heads heavily. A beat of silence passes before she smiles warily and squeezes her son’s cheeks. “He’s at the fireplace, Ajax.”

Childe nods, and eyes the urn sitting high above the crackling fireplace. It’s a beautiful marble urn that Tartaglia paid for in full, with a single ruby gem nestled right beside his father’s name. Even in this state, his father has the largest presence in the house. It is a presence even Zhongli can acknowledge and respect. The thought pushes Zhongli to squeeze his hand and mutter, “Go?”

Tartaglia nods, and swallows hard. Zhongli urges him forward carefully with a gloved hand against the small of his back. His mother watches him go along with sullen and somber eyes. And it is only when Childe is stationed in front of the fire, a single gloved hand covering his mouth, when Zhongli breaks the silence.

“So,” Zhongli begins, turning to his in-law. “The last time we spoke, you promised me a recipe for that delicious meal you served us last year. Were you able to hold up your end of the contract?”

The red-headed woman beams up at him and grabs at his hands. Her hands are so small, so soft and delicate, Zhongli wishes nothing more but to protect this family with his life. And well, that makes two of them.

“Of course, dear,” she says excitedly, “come with me.”

The next hour or so consisted of Zhongli patiently waiting in the kitchen while his mother-in-law bustled around, excitedly explaining the process of dough rolling, frying, meat filling, and then frying again. Zhongli watched with fascination, always one to appreciate cultures from all around the world. He hummed and nodded in confirmation every once in a while when she would turn to him, asking him if he understood, and he smiled.

Tartaglia came padding into the kitchen later, eyes slightly red and puffy, and Zhongli didn’t need to ask if something was wrong to understand what was going on. He knew all too well of his feelings of conflict toward his father in the past. Now that the man himself was gone, Zhongli could only imagine the things Childe was feeling at the moment.

Zhongli never exactly had a family to grieve, anyway. As far as he knew, all the family he had was in this very house alone.

And Xiao, the voice in his head whispered, snapping him out of his reverie. Zhongli blinked the voice away. Now was not the time.

“Talking behind my back, Xiansheng?” Childe teases, coming up behind him to snake his arms around his waist. “That’s not very husband-like of you, you know.”

“Yes, yes,” Zhongli played along, “your mother and I were just discussing how unruly you are in the morning, and how you leave wet towels on the floor after you shower. Truly a horrendous habit, Tartaglia.”

The ginger pouts over his shoulder and leans in to bite his cheek, reveling in the way Zhongli squeezes one eye shut in a faux flinch. He quickly kisses the flesh he sunk his teeth into and settles back against his husband.

“Smells good, mom.”

“It always smells good, Ajax,” she tuts, waving her spoon in his face, “what do you think of your mother, huh?”

“Why am I being attacked,” Tartaglia pouts, the end of the sentence lilting upward in a whine. Zhongli clicks his tongue at his behavior and pats his head reassuringly.

“The food will be ready soon,” he reassures, “besides, she was just telling me all about a soup that I must try my hand at next year.”

Tartaglia groans dramatically and leans all his weight against Zhongli in response.

—

Night falls, and Childe finds himself lighting the fireplace in the room they stay in upstairs, letting the flames embrace the room in an auburn glow. His siblings are tucked in and finally quiet after Zhongli’s endless stories of Liyue. His mother had turned in an hour earlier after smothering the two in kisses, and the couple had stayed in the kitchen for a bit sipping wine and conversing in the moonlight. After downing a good amount and feeling a light buzz through their systems, they called it a night and headed upstairs, pinkies linked as always.

But Zhongli was off during the entire conversation. It may have seemed like he was himself to an outsider, but Tartaglia knew better. He knew when his husband was somewhere else. He had seen it too many times before.

So later, when Zhongli finds himself sitting on their windowsill rather melancholic, watching the snow fall, Childe regards him with a careful stare. The ex-Archon eyes the way the snow falls so tenderly yet so purposefully, as if they all held a secret that even an ancient being like him didn’t understand. He shivers at the cold that seeps in through the windows and kisses his fingertips where they meet the glass, and cradles his hand back to his chest slowly.

“Zhongli,” Childe calls. The said man turns from the window, eyes bright and oddly wet. Oh, Childe knows that look. “C’mere,” he beckons. Zhongli obeys and pads over to where his husband is situated on their bed. He crawls onto the mattress next to him and slumps against the headboard, still deep in his thoughts.

The Harbinger looks at him with concern and squirms over to where Zhongli sits. He uses his chest as a pillow, wrapping his arms around a lithe waist and tucking his nose in the crook of his neck. He breathes deeply the mature scent of silk flowers and feels his heart thump happily in his chest. Childe stays quiet for a moment, and allows himself to focus on the rise and fall of his sturdy chest. Zhongli runs the length of his palm up and down Tartaglia’s side as he ponders.

Childe decides to break the silence before he falls asleep. “What’s wrong?” he asks quietly, voice barely above a whisper. Zhongli’s hand comes up to his hair and scratches at his scalp the way he knows Childe likes it.

“Nothing. I am just… thinking.” His voice trails off pensively.

“Hmm. As usual,” he hums, “what about?” Childe prods gently, knowing there’s a fifty-fifty chance his husband will indulge him.

He’s quiet for a moment. Far too quiet. Childe wonders if he should drop the subject.

“Xiao, actually,” he says suddenly. “I am thinking of Xiao.��

“Xiao,” Childe parrots, confused as to why the legendary adeptus lingers in his beloved’s head at a time like this.

Zhongli sighs, and his shoulders hunch forward, eyebrows furrowing in mild discomfort. “Whenever I am with you, I cannot help but think of him.”

Childe’s eyebrows shoot up to his forehead. “Elaborate?” He’s only mildly offended, but he jests nonetheless in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere.

Zhongli chuckles and pushes a thumb between Childe’s frown. “Not like that. You know there’s no one in my heart except you. Besides, he’s like… family to me. I simply care deeply for his well being.”

Childe offers a wry smile. He knows, he’s just teasing. “So what’s wrong?”

“When I’m with you, I feel happy,” his eyes are fixated on the ceiling as he speaks. Childe, on the other hand, can’t look anywhere but at him. And although he speaks of his happiness, there are deep waves of sorrow rolling off of him. Zhongli’s makeup had washed off when he took a steaming shower, leaving Tartaglia to see the dark circles under his eyes and the faint wrinkles underneath. The light in his eyes had dulled without the bold presence of his usual red eyeliner, and it seemed as though his face appeared more sunken in when the light hit him at a certain angle.

Childe’s heart pangs in his chest. Sometimes, his husband really looks his age.

“When I’m with you, I forget all my troubles. My burdens are made lighter simply by your presence. I forget what it felt like to be a part of the Archon War, or what it was like having so much blood on my hands. When I’m with you, I forget all of that. And I am happy.” Zhongli’s tone of voice certainly does not match the topic he speaks of.

Still, Childe gulps. The ex-Archon can be too sappy for his own good, he might have a heart attack.

“Xiao, on the other hand, carries burdens almost heavier than mine,” he speaks as if it were an irrefutable fact. Although Childe wants to protest, he allows him to continue. “Millennia of suffering. Centuries of torture. Generations worth of karma building up on his plate. And he has no one he can turn to to help him forget; no one to help him bear it. Xiao is… alone.” His voice cracks pathetically.

Ah.

The wind turns colder. There’s a chill that goes through the room, and it seeps into Childe’s bones. The Harbinger’s eyes dart to the fireplace, almost accusing it of not doing its job. He’s mildly aware of the new presence outside of the window that reeks of karma and a heavy heart. The tidal waves of grief and remorse spill into the room, and Tartaglia almost wants to wave a hand in front of his face to waft the energy away. Nevertheless, Childe dismisses it knowing that it is harmless, and turns all of his attention on his partner.

“What about that traveler,” Childe offers, “Xiao seems to be fixated on him.”

Zhongli shakes his head. “Young Traveler is far too free spirited for that, and Xiao is the type to only give his heart when he is certain that the source is stable and everlasting.”

Childe nods in understanding. He’s the same way, after all. “He was right to give his heart to you.”

“And yet I betrayed him, did I not?” Zhongli asks.

Childe frowns once again. He wills his voice to not sound too accusing when he asks, “In what way?”

Zhongli waves his free hand in the air, trying his best to convey the emotions that had been eating at him all evening.

“I am here, parading away with my husband while he still watches over Liyue per my request. Even though our contract ended, he still persists. He still fights the demons of the gods I slayed myself. He still is trapped by the shackles of Liyue, cleaning up my mess, worshipping my name, while I lay here wondering if I want coffee or tea when the sun rises.”

His voice wavers. Childe’s heart tugs. The Harbinger shuffles closer and squeezes him tighter.

“I can’t help but feel as though I am responsible for his suffering. I am the one who summoned him, am I not? The fierce Yakshas… oh how truly amazing they were,” Zhongli rambles, fingers tightening their hold on Childe. “And now they are all…”

“Zhongli.” He cuts him off sternly. The man in question shakes out his reverie, glassy amber eyes meeting cerulean. Childe brings a hand to his cheek to caress the sinfully soft skin there. The ginger leans in, pressing his forehead against his temple and pleads.

“Stop,” he whispers, and then his hand finds purchase on his husband’s neck. “Stop.”

“I am not worthy of it any longer, Ajax,” Zhongli’s voice warbles, “all I want is for Young Xiao to rest and finally find peace. I no longer want him to have nightmares, asleep or not. I want to be the one to be rid of his burdens. I want him to be happy, Ajax, I want—“

“No,” Childe interrupts again, “there is nothing you can do, my love. And I’m so sorry you feel that way. I truly am. But his suffering has nothing to do with you anymore. Xiao looks up to you—“

“But he shouldn’t.”

“Xiao looks up to you,” he persists, “for a reason. He adores you, okay? No matter what you do. No matter what you say. No matter how you look. Even if you’re skin and bone and wrinkly with gray hair, Xiao would still admire you. Your strength has withstood the test of time, and so has his loyalty to you.” He brushes a stray hair from Zhongli’s face and continues.

“You were the one that saved him. Have you ever thought of that, old man? You saved him and named him. I mean, if someone were to pull me out of the abyss and give me a hug for god’s sake, I probably would have turned out different,” Zhongli’s eyes soften even more, but Childe refuses to make this about him. He thumps a fist against Zhongli’s chest in mock petulance. “Xiao respects you because you deserve it. It is as simple as that.”

Zhongli is quiet, pondering, so Tartaglia takes that as an invitation to continue.

“You have served your time bearing your burdens. You have saved souls and you have killed your own share of demons, and you fought to get where you are now. You deserve a break, Zhongli. And you don’t need to feel guilty that someone out there hasn’t been liberated of their own issues. You of all people understand Xiao’s strength. Probably more than Xiao himself, right? So have faith in him, Xiansheng. And know that you don’t have to carry the burden of freedom on your own. Burdens are meant to be shared, and I’m your husband, remember?”

“Oh, how could I forget,” Zhongli chuckles as he jests. His voice still warbles, but Tartaglia will take what he can get. Childe pinches his cheek playfully.

“Sooo,” Childe trails off, running a finger down the length of Zhongli’s pale neck. “With that being said, I think you should enjoy the time you have now, with me, instead of reminiscing about the past.”

Zhongli nods.

“After all, I won’t be here forever-”

“Do not.” Zhongli interrupts, looking away. His chest stops fluctuating, and it takes a moment for Childe to realize he was holding his breath. And just like that, his defensive wall is back up again. Tartaglia looks at him with wide eyes. Obviously he had struck a chord he hadn’t meant to. The grip Zhongli had around the back of his neck tightened like he meant to keep him close to his chest forever; greedy, selfish hands continue to grasp at the back of his shirt.

“Oh,” Tartaglia breathes, “I’m sorry, I was just joking.”

“I know,” Zhongli all but whimpers, “but my brain doesn’t exactly register those kinds of things as jokes.”

Tartaglia nods, unsure of what else to say. So, he ditches the thought of saying anything, and lifts a deft finger to tilt Zhongli’s face back to him. He abandons his words and leans in instead. He captures his God’s lips with his own and presses close, desperate to show him that he’s there. Tartaglia’s alive and well and very much in love, and he’s there. He’s not going anywhere; he wouldn’t even dare to think about going anywhere. Their marriage was more than a contract, it was a covenant. The vows that were sworn on that night kept them glued together, and only ‘til death do they part.

Well, until Ajax’s death, at least.

The thought makes Tartaglia’s head pound, and he shakes the thoughts away with determination.

“I’m here,” he reassures anyway when they part, kiss-bruised lips brush against his cheek as he speaks. “Let me prove it to you.”

Zhongli nods wordlessly, cupping Childe’s face with one hand and dragging the Harbinger onto his lap with the other. They press against each other, nice and close, so that one would not be able to decipher where one began and the other ended.

“I love you,” Tartaglia confesses into the dark, breathless. Zhongli drags him impossibly closer.

Xiao takes that as his cue to leave, the wind chill harsh and no longer gentle as he vanishes into thin air.

A/N: Okayy I’m gonna get a little serious in the end notes hehe so if you wanna skip out on that, thank you so much for reading! And I hope you have a wonderful week :) find me on twitter @/xiaoscribbles and AO3 @/unironicallynapping

I wanted to write this because I’ve been on my own journey to recovery lately. My family suffered many losses in 2020 and since then, I had been struggling to get back on path and find a healthy mindset. But there’s a passage that I read in a book I’ve been reading that covers the guilt we sometimes feel when we recover, knowing and know that there’s someone out there who is suffering, too. The guilt can become unbearable, but it doesn’t need to be felt. You can take your feelings of guilt and turn it into something good. You can enjoy the life of recovery you’re living while still being there for those who need it. You can show someone you love them while also reveling in the happiness that you deserve. You don’t need to feel like you don’t deserve it just because you recovered, and someone else hasn’t. Everyone is on their own path, so rejoice in the fact that you’ve made it to your own happiness!

I hope this fic/message spoke to some of you. It’s a really important message to me, and I just wanted to share :)

#genshin impact #genshin impact fanfiction #zhongli #childe #xiao #tartaglia #character study #domestic bliss #childe x zhongli #rex lapis #tartali #chili #zhongchi

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riisinaakka-draws · 4 years ago

Text

part 2/6

2nd part of my old Black Sails scraps and doodles from 2016–2021. Not in any particular order.

This time the drawings are short comics that were abandoned for a reason or another, mostly because I lost the interest or felt like there was too much to redraw compared to the satisfaction of finishing something else more interesting. There’s also some talk about rigid mindset and how overthinking can lead to stagnation.

Contains early silverflint moments, specks of dust, rackham's glasses are found, jealous-Billy spying, desk-Flint gets caught, "squint-squint", a quiet moment and its bird dilemma etc.

And please do not steal and repost elsewhere. But if you do get inspired, feel free to make your own interpretations!

Long-ish post under the cut!

“What are you thinking about?”

“Specks of dust.”

“Liar.”

The idea was to show how much they and their relationship had changed. This was around 2016 when the season 3 began and I was still re-learning to draw with a tablet. Another art from the same time period (and idea) is this art: The Dynamic Duet.

And for some reason I was really stuck up thinking that I’d have to first do the sketch, then the clean line art, then planes underneath, then shadows etc. and I have always struggled with that kind of approach! Mainly because I hate doing clean line work, lol. And I was a fool for trying to start with a white canvas! It’s so much harder to find values and plan things, or at least in my opinion..

“Rackham’s glasses are found”

To celebrate their new pirate alliance, they share the four lenses of Rackham’s sunglasses as they were also found at the time (because I wanted it to resurface and they could be made into jewellery you know...). This was right after the episode where Anne fights and hurts her hands (here wearing protecting mittens from Max even though she’s not trusted at the moment). Uh, this doesn’t spark joy interest me much and it’s quite stiff and would recuire a lot of redrawing faces, so - discarded!

I somewhat like the idea still (them having something to share, although it’s on Jack’s detriment). I tried to find a stylished comical easier doodlier? way to draw them and draw clean lines etc, but it just wasn’t for me. Also here too, the background is blank and too bright. Later I started to think things as scenes and draw everything at the same time instead of adding the bg later or trying to show everything (and everyone) at the same time.

Here’s also Billy in the same story:

He’s spying on them and since it’s so bright he’s wearing his diy “sunglasses” and being envious to the others. *cough* uhhh...Idk? Also people were shipping Ben Gunn (and cheese) with Billy, so that bled into this too... Charles’ spirit is riding the “big white bird” that was mentioned in Teach’ story and in this case it’s a pelican.

As you can see, I also wasn’t using the brushes that I use nowadays. A hard (or soft) round brushes with no change in opacity just aren’t for me. For example, in traditional art, I struggle with markers and copics, but really enjoy charcoals and watercolours. I prefer ragged edges, layering and thus blending things into each other (and leaving the viewer to fill in the gaps) instead of having stark or definite things. I also struggle with vector drawings, although I have decided to finally start learning to use them...somedayyyy.

Also, I wasn’t paying attention to anatomy, like, at all LMAO. I was just so happy to be able to put something on the canvas.

This is one of my first ink drawings, but I cannot find the original anymore. Again, I like the idea, but not how things look art-wise. And I was so adamant, that I have to get everything right in the traditional drawing and not fix anything later on on photoshop because then it would be cheating. And thus, I was never able to move on or finish this properly the way I liked it (idiot).

BUT! It was a good practise to just draw and test things on paper and gain confidense on drawing things in overall (as I was still getting back into art). To get over the fear of blank paper you know, and try to find my style whatever it would start to form into.

Oh, yeah, Desk Flint.

Desk Flint was a thing for a while (still is, lol). Another drawing from that time is this Slingshot Pirate (2016). And Desk Flint keeps repeating in many later works too. The point is mainly “Flint sitting behind his desk and people interrupt him and I don’t have to draw him fully”

Well, anyway... moving on.

Here’s a plan that has been stuck for years. It’s name is “Squint-squint.” Left is the sketch (with another sketch underneath because the expressions were clearer in the old one). On the right is the continued piece with colour scheme but I cropped the eyes panel and faces out (it was so ugly for some reason) but if I ever continue/finish this, it will be redrawn there in the middle.)

Left. “On that moment their eyes were literally open(ed).”

Right. “After squinting on the shore for days, they had actually forgotten how pretty the other idiot’s eyes were.”

I still like it, quite a lot, but my perfectionist ass only sees too much “boring” things to draw and get right, so it hasn’t been a priority for a long time and other works have kept me occupied and more interested in them.

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

“Quiet Moment.” 2018 (a wordless comic happening after the events of Charles Town)

I’m going to explain after these pictures, but see how big the difference is when you start to look at references and plan things together (the space, “camera” movement, background etc). I also started to colour with coarser brushes:

I drew this around early 2018. A lot of improvement! Still quite a lot of negative space (empty white backgrounds), but it fits this work. A few things tell where we are (the ship’s cabin and the balcony). Changing distances and how things are cropped/framed make things more moving and focused (and less to draw, lol). Colours and brush strokes are softer, more layered and so on.

But guess why it’s still a wip!

I couldn’t decide what bird is flying over there.

Yeap! At first it was an albatross (doesn’t go to Bahamas?). Then a seagull (but which seagull? there’s so many subspecies! Is the ship at sea or at the harbour? what birds are there on the open water/ close to the shore?? oh noo...) So, yeah, wayyyy too much over-thinking.

At some point I ended up with white-tailed-tropic-bird which was a plus! because it sounds like the bosun’s whistle, but at that point I was so tangled and frustrated and still had so much to finish with this that I left it be. Also Flint’s face looks different in every frame so I would’ve had to change some parts, lol. And then I forgot it for a couple of years! And then I had learned to draw a bit differently and again saw too much things to do, so it’s quite hard to take on this again, especially when there are so many other interesting wips waiting...

But I still really like the feeling of it! And the colour scheme. So I might just limit the things I’m allowed to fix and then post it as it own someday. I mean, it’s 90% finished, but the last reach just feels like miles.

And that’s what usually happens with my wips. They reach a certain point and it suddenly becomes really hard to finish or get back into.

But every time I learn things and then use the information in another work! :D

Final note for this post (altough this has been said hundreds of times): use references and look how things go and try to see the structure and form beneath things. And think where it is happening and how the light and surroundings affects the characters and/or spaces. And maybe think what you’re trying to convey with the art, what idea? what emotions? what purpose? or like, what are you trying to learn with the piece? and so on...

Thanks for checking this out, I hope you had fun <3

#black sails doodle #long post #but not as long as the future ones heh #tag for Block Spoils doodles #<- if you want to black list these

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queenof-literature · 5 years ago

Note

Ok okokok I’m sorry if this is already asked but how would the Links react to finding out that Wild helped (and practically built) Tarrey Town?

Hi thank you so much for the request! I took some creative liberties for this one. For example I know that as Link you just get bundles of wood and find people mostly, but I expanded it to have him helping to build homes and help the elderly move in because he’s Wild of course he would. Also I 100% Wild and Hyrule both, if not more of the group, have Imposter Syndrome because 1) It fits with their characters 2) I like self projecting :D This turned out to be so much longer than I intended I’m so sorry.

“Wild!” Legend whined. No, he did not whine. Legend did not whine, he simply was tired of walking. “Tell us where we’re going!” Groaning as Wild simply walked on. Legend would almost call it skipping. The boy seemed much more lively than he was in Twilight’s Hyrule, although that made sense since they landed in Wild’s this morning. When Legend first met Wild, he mistook his silence for some kind hatred or malice. Towards the group, or his Hyrule, or himself, Legend didn’t know. But Legend had come to learn that Wild’s heart was full of love, all of the heroes' hearts were. It was something he was jealous of at first.

Watching the Hero of Time, the Hero of Twilight, all of them, he hated them in the beginning. Perhaps hate is a strong word. He knew they weren’t bad people, quite the opposite. Every time he saw Twilight do something right and be praised by Time, a hot knife went through him. He thought it was out of anger, that some farm boy seemed perfect. But he realized it was hurt later on.

But then he truly saw them. He saw Sky struggle to think about how to build an entire Hyrule with his Zelda. He saw Twilight struggle to simply be in Ordon again, where he felt he didn’t belong after all he had been through. He saw Four struggle with some unnamed figures of his past. He saw Hyrule struggle with the weight of his new role in a group setting. He saw Warriors act proud and mighty, when in reality his shoulders sagged deep in the night under all the weight placed upon them. He saw Wind run his mouth until he wrote letters to his little sister, silent as the dead. He saw the Hero of Time clutch his blanket some nights, perhaps dreaming it was his wife, the only one who brought him comfort on lonely nights. Finally he saw Wild, silent and calculating, but also a tornado of untamed hair and a contagious smiles.

He wasn’t perfect and he never would be, even with an insane amount of quests and items in his back pocket. But his companions were nowhere near perfect themselves. If Legend were being honest, he finally felt like he belonged to this team of heroes. He felt he had a purpose, no longer just a lone spirit floating from quest to quest, only to be thrown into more danger his entire life. Sometimes he was kept awake by the thoughts of what happened after. Legend desperately hoped he would still be able to see the others after this quest was over. If not for him, but for the ones like Twilight and Wild who didn’t feel like they quite belonged completely in their Hyrules after all they had been through. Wild still had Zelda and Twilight still had Ordon, Legend could tell by the way they talked that they loved their Hyrules, but they were sometimes painful to be in after their journeys. Some of the other boys struggled with that too. In some twisted way, this quest was a blessing for all of them in one way or another.

Legend had absolutely no idea how Time felt. He had to leave his beautiful and caring wife behind, even though he had obviously gone through hell in his adventures. And that was just the things he told them about. Everytime they were on Lon Lon Ranch they were fed, housed, and loved, all in exchange for some farm work. Did Time resent them? Twilight was Time’s descendant somehow, that meant Time would have children. And dear Hylia did that hurt. Time had to live, he had to raise his children.

“What’s got you so excited, Cub?” Twilight asked fondly, thankfully bringing Legend from his thoughts. The group had taken a brisk walking pace through a bright green meadow, Wild barley containing himself to not break out in a run to get to their mysterious destination. Four gazed into the distance, and half of his mind cried out in joy when their gaze landed on one of the ‘shrines’ Wild had completed.

‘Who cares about a shine?’

‘That could mean we’re near a village!’

‘Don’t get our hopes up, Wild said there's almost 140.’

‘But this one is super obvious!’

Four decided just to ask Wild himself to quiet the others in his head. He wasn’t answering Twilight and Legend. That didn’t say much though, Wild just enjoyed messing with them.

“Hey, Wild? Does that shrine mean a village is nearby?” Four asked the boy leading the group. Wild simply turned and smiled widely. The group all whooped. Wild wouldn’t get their hopes up at the thought of staying in a village for the night only to crush them.

Wild picked up the pace and gestured for the others to do so as well. He was excited to get back to the town and see Hudson and Rhodson again. Hudson was one man that was always genuinely kind to Wild, not forcing him into a job for him and always being hesitant to ask for help. It was honestly a nice change of pace. Wild certainly didn’t hate the people of his Hyrule, quite the opposite. But everyone was so desperate for help it sometimes came off as rude and it stacked up all at once. Hudson never snapped at him for taking too long, or being too quiet. He would simply ask if Link was okay and eating properly. Wild didn’t feel at home for a long time, but there were definitely places that came close to it. His house, the koroks and Deku tree who had memories of Zelda, and Tarry Town were at the top of that list.

He wanted to show his friends Tarry Town so bad! They had been traveling together for months and yet they had never seen it. Wild couldn’t travel with more than a couple of people at a time with his slate, and even then it wasn’t the best idea to do it often. They had never traveled close enough for Wild to show them. It had been a while since they had been able to sleep in a village. They didn’t stay in every civilization they came across, they had other jobs to complete. But Wild’s Hyrule was so vast compared to the others that everytime they landed near a village, they would usually stay there for a night or two.

Wild wanted his friends to see a place he loved, and he was excited to share it with them. He would most likely have jobs to do once there, but his friends could relax in the small town before they continued on. They were approaching the edge of the surrounding cliffs, sparkling waters calmly lapping the shores below. Wild led them to the edge of the cliffs, then tugged Twilight’s sleeve to get them to look in the direction he was pointing. Some of the others gasped at the sight, wondering how they missed it.

Looking below, they could see a rising island protruding from the lake below, rising high above the water with a natural bridge connecting the mainland to the island-like structure. There, the village rested. From a distance the others could see houses similar to those surrounding Wild’s house in Hateno. Geometric squares and rectangles combining to create compact but roomy homes for those that lived in them.

“It looks comfortable, Wild.” Time smiled. He wished more than anything he could let the others stop as often as possible. These boys deserved rest and slept on the ground far too often. Villages also had cooking pots in Wild’s Hyrule, which caused the others’ mouth to water just thinking about it. Wild could create cooking fires pretty much wherever, but he was apparently limited on what he could make. Cooking pots allowed for more complicated recipes and stronger potions than a makeshift one.

Wild beamed and led them along the cliff. Not close enough to be dangerous, but Twilight always feared Wild would see something useful to them and go jumping off a cliff to retrieve it. Like a goddamn toddler seeing something shiny, not using his paraglider until the last fucking minute and giving him a heart atta-

Wild tugged on his sleeve again to gain his attention. Wild’s scars had been acting up today, causing his throat to close up more than usual. He could still talk, it was just harder and hurt more some days. It had become rarer as time went on, but it still happened.

‘Not going to jump’ Wild signed while smirking. Twilight glared at him and swatted the hand away from his sleeve. Wild grinned that shit eating grin wider, and Twilight was pissed his cub knew exactly what he was thinking.

The group continued walking along the cliffside, admiring Wild’s Hyrule and its stunning colors along the way. Wild, although excited, seemed a little rigid, hand resting on his knife.

“Is everything alright, Wild?” Sky questioned.

‘Yes. Lots of rocks for Yiga to hide behind.’ Wild sighed widely for everyone to see. He was about to warn them anyway, he didn’t want them to be caught off guard.

“We’ll keep an eye out.” Warriors confirmed. There was no reason to tell the kid to not worry, that would be a lie.

Wild smiled freer this time and nodded. Warriors was glad the kid didn’t get as frustrated when he couldn’t talk anymore. Wild was finally learning that there were some things that were simply out of his control.

They eventually approached the large arch that acted as a bridge into the village.

"Can this support all of us?” Twilight asked, glancing towards Epona.

‘It's a lot stronger than it looks. I ride across it all the time.’ Wild responded while already beginning to cross, the others following without another moment of hesitation. Wild led the way into the small town.

Upon approaching, the first thing they noticed was a platform in the middle of the town with a statue of Hylia in the center. It always struck the group as interesting that even in Wild’s Hyrule in ruins, people still believe very strongly in the Gods, most likely taking comfort in them. Surrounding along the edge of the island were houses all facing towards the center. That wouldn't really provide any space to build more houses in the future but it opened the door to close knit neighbors. In front of the houses were tables selling arrows by a Rito, gems by a small Goron, and what appeared to be armor by a Gerudo. Overall it seemed very culturally diverse.

"Link!" A hearty voice called out. The group turned to see a man with a head that was… odd to say the least. Like an elongated egg to be frank, with chestnut hair cut in a long bowl cut all the way down to the man’s ears. On his arm was a beautiful Gerudo woman wearing bright white loose pants decorated with yellow swirls, along with a crimson top, the same swirls adorning it. Her bright red hair in a large high ponytail.

Wild waved at them and signed something they didn't understand, most likely their names.

“It’s so good to see you, little one.” The Gerudo woman gave a small smile which Wild eagerly returned.

‘Good to see you too!’ Wild signed to the two of them.

“Who are your companions my boy? And what have they done to travel with the elusive Link?” Hudson teased, laughing loudly at Wild’s red face as the other’s snickered quietly.

‘These are my friends I’ve been traveling with.’ Looking back to Time who usually took care of starting introductions.

“Hello, sir. Please call me Time.” Time stepped forward and shook Hudson’s hand.

“I’m Wind!”

“Hey, ‘m Twilight.”

“My name’s Four”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Warriors.”

“Legend.”

“Hi, I’m Hyrule.”

“Hello sir, I’m Sky.”

“Those are all… very interesting names.” Hudson stared at them.

‘Why, because they don’t end in son?’ Wild signed with a smirk, fingerspelling son at the end.

“It’s Bolson Construction Policy!”

“Okay darling, I believe we do not need to get into this argument again.” Rhodson quickly dispelled the rant she knew her proud husband would get into.

They’re nicknames.” Twilight offered simply. He would ask Wild what he was talking about with the whole ‘son’ thing later.

“Awe I see. Well any friend of Link’s is welcome here. Afraid we can’t give you much of a discount at the inn, we’re still a new village. But I’m sure Kapson will find a way to fit you all in there.” Hudson said in a gruff voice. “I have to go help Monari with her leaky roof. Are you staying long, Link?” Hudson finished.

‘A night or two. Does Monari need help?’ Wild signed. Monari had always been kind to him.

“Oh, Link you’re always so eager to help. Relax for once. You practically built the town, you don’t need to repair it all too.” Hudson chided with a grateful smile.

“Wait… what?” Warriors interrupted from the back. “Did Wild help build a house or something?” During his quest? Was an un added question on everyone’s mind.

“A house? Try the town. Boy got me over a hundred bundles of wood, traveled all over Hyrule to find the exact people I needed, helped me build and paint the houses, you name it.” Hudson finished proudly, looking like he wanted to clap Wild on the back but thought better of it.

“Wild… what?” Warriors looked over at his smaller companion in shock.

“When did this happen?” Twilight looked equally as puzzled. Wind looked as if his brain had stopped working all together, expressive face frozen with his jaw to the floor. Sky also looked shocked.

“You built an entire town and you didn’t tell me?” Hyrule had a look of utter betrayal.

“Damn, kid. And here I thought you couldn’t get more selfless.” Legend’s eyebrows were raised, but underneath he looked impressed and almost proud.

“Don’t challenge him.” Four scolded. They all knew what happened the last time Legend challenged Wild over something innocent and seemingly stupid. They don’t remember much of the challenge itself but they do remember the end result. Wild, with a shit eating grin and three broken bones, cackling as fire rained from above. That was the day Twilight almost went comatose.

As the others expressed their shock, Wild’s face grew as red as an apple.

“Did you not tell them, Link?” Hudson’s voice reflected pure amusement at the young boy’s bright red face.

‘It never came up. I did it mostly after I finished the Divine Beasts, some was before though’ Wild signed before pulling his hood up to hide his embarrassingly warm face.

“Wha- never came up? You helped build an entire town while on your Hyrule-wide quest, and still saved your Zelda in a timely manner along with every other town in your Hyrule?” Warriors yelled aghast, forgetting for the moment that Hudson and Rhodson were probably confused by what Warriors had just said. Wild shrugged.

‘Can I help with repairs?’ Wild asked again, ignoring Warriors’ spluttering and Time’s amused chuckles behind his hand at the rest of the group joining in Warriors’ shock.

“As I said, you should relax with your friends, but I’m sure Moggs and Monari would love to see you!” Rhodson exclaimed, moving her hand from around Hudson’s arm and gripping him by the hand instead, leading the group over to a house near the middle of the circle, just behind a table full of gems.

“Brother!” A rough voice called as they approached the table. A large Goron rolled over, followed by a smaller Goron trailing behind. Once reaching their destination right in front of the group, the two Goron emerged from their balls, revealing an adult Goron with dark orange skin, and the smaller Goron having light yellow. Both of them were wearing bright yellow hard hats.

‘Hi Greyson! Hi Pelison!’ Wild signed with a large smile. He had a hard time with the Gorons at first. For being rock hard people, they were certainly touchy feely with gratitude like Sidon was. Wild knew they meant no harm though, that was simply something he struggled with before he met the other Links. Greyson and Pelison never touched him though, which he was silently grateful for during his quest. Wild did like when the Gorons called him ‘brother’ though, it made him feel a part of something on the lonely days of conquering the Divine Beasts.

‘These are my friends!’ Wild beamed, gesturing to the people behind him. Time softened looking at the proud face as Wild presented them like prized cattle at a fair. It was sweet… in a way.

“Nice to see Wild has someone to travel with him now.” Greyson laughed at Wild’s betrayed expression.

“Yeah! Wild never brings anyone with him into town! I didn’t think he had any friends! Take your hood off, you look like a villain.” Pelison added bluntly, ignoring Wild making a frantic motion to cut it out, the group roaring with laughter. They could tell by Wild’s face he didn’t take any of it personally as he pulled off his hood with an entertained smile.

“Link!” The group looked up to see a light teal Rito approaching Wild.

‘Hello Fyson!’ Wild greeted. Okay, Wild would definitely have to explain what the hell was up with with all the ‘son’ names.

“Hello, my friend!” Fyson replied happily.

‘How’s your mom?’ Wild asked with a kind smile.

“She’s well thank you for asking! Our relationship has gotten much better since she realized I had my own shop you helped me set up! I must thank you again my friend!” Wild tried to wave it off, but Wind wouldn’t let him.

“Oh! Wild helped you and your mom?” Wind asked with wide eyes, while Wild had to resist rolling his own. Wind and his damn puppy eyes. Wild assumed he learned how to use that to his advantage from his pirate crew.

“Oh yes. My mom and I got in constant fights about me taking over the shop, but I wanted to start my own! When Wild was building tarry Town with Hudson, he told me I could set up a shop here!” Fyson nodded at Wild thankfully.

“Oh yeah, same with me. I hated the Southern Mines in Gerudo Town. I’m much happier here since Wild told me about this place and helped Pelison set up his shop.” Greyson clapped his little brother on the back. Even Pelison looked grateful for Wild.

“Yes, Wild told me of this place as well when I was pressured to leave Gerudo Town to find a husband, which worked out very well.” Rhodson smiled down at her husband.

“He also found a Zora Priest for our wedding. He works at the inn now.” Hudson added. The group was shocked. Wild had gone out of his way to help people not only by saving Hyrule, but also personally as well. Going out of his way to help build an entire town for people to feel included. Even though it wasn’t Wild’s idea, he had still helped to execute it.

Meanwhile, as more tales were strung about his good deeds, Wild looked incredibly flustered by all the attention and praise he was getting. Hyrule stepped forward and put a hand on his back. Wild jumped in surprise before relaxing into the traveler’s touch, smiling gratefully. It was hard to acknowledge what he had done for people sometimes. No matter how he was rewarded Wild still just felt wrong sometimes, and Hyrule felt the same way about his land.

“Well, we will let you and your friends settle Link.” Fyson finished the conversation, thankfully seeing Wild’s squirming posture. Wild smiled and waved as the Gorons and Rito went back to their businesses.

“Oh! Moggs and Monari! Let’s go see them and then you can take your friends to the inn and get beds for the night.” Sky continued to look around at the sights before him. Perhaps he could ask Wild for advice, he had to help Sky build a Hyrule afterall. Not now, he didn’t want to overwhelm him. Sky noticed a dog trotting around asking for food on various doorsteps, along with an odd looking horse with packs. Looking closer, Sky noticed it was what Wild called a donkey. On the roof of the house the donkey was at, was a man who seemed to be watching it all from above. Sky yearned to be higher up as well, he missed his Loftwing dearly afterall. He hadn’t had the time to teach all the boys how to fly on one yet. Hopefully that was in the near future.

“Link my boy! How are you this fine day?” This must be Moggs then, Sky thought as he saw a wrinkled old man standing next to a small old woman.

“Oh, Link! How are you?” The woman called. Wild smiled down at them, about to sign that he was fine, before Monari tugged him down and pinched his cheeks. Dear, Hylia. This old woman was doing the most grandmother thing in the book of grandmothers. Wild flushed a bright red as the woman went on about what a fine young man he was for helping her move in, and if he was injured at all. The two elderly Hylians seemed to be frail and a little odd in their old age, but sweet all the same.

Sky looked over at the others. Legend and Warriors were bent over clutching their stomachs and their mouths to prevent them from laughing. Four and Wind were openly giggling quietly and chattering with each other, probably thankful it wasn’t them for once. Twilight and Hyrule looked on with maniacal grins of pure glee, probably planning on using that against Wild later. Even Time seemed like he was having trouble controlling himself. Wild was finally able to gently wrestle out of the woman’s hold.

‘Monari taught me how to make the honey crepe.’ Wild signed, desperate for a change in subject. Luckily, it worked. Although Wild knew he would get teased for this later.

“Really?” Wind gasped. “It’s amazing.”

“I’m so glad you like it.” The old woman smiled at Wind, who stayed well out of pinching distance. The group continued to talk to the elderly couple before saying goodbye to reserve bed at the inn. It was still mid afternoon, but they had learned early on that with nine of them, it was better to ask for beds as soon as possible so there was room for them and a stable for Epona. As the group followed Wild a small distance to the inn, a voice that was somehow the embodiment of snotty noble called out.

“Boy!” The voice called harshly. Wild took a deep breath and turned to the side instead, going to the edge of the village as if it were a routine. The group approached a man with bleached blonde hair, and to the side was a little girl. She had similar features to the man. His daughter then.

‘Yes Hagie wha-’ Wild started to sign.

“You know I don’t care for your common hand motions. Those things are back again! What did you do?” The group bristled behind him at the man’s easy dismissal of their friend. Warriors stepped forward but Wild gave him a subtle look that stopped him. For now.

‘Blood moon.’ Wild finger spelled, knowing Haggis would at least understand that. He could maybe talk if he tried hard enough, but he didn’t want Hagie to hear his scarred voice while it was so rough.

“I don’t care, I’ll give you another down payment to get rid of them. I can always tell by your clothes you need it, commoner.” The man, apparently named Hagie (And wasn’t that accurate), shoved a silver rupee into Wild’s hand. Sky bit his tongue. How dare this man treat Wild this way! After everything Wild had done to help them! Sky stepped forward and put himself between the two.

“We’ll do whatever. Just stop talking.” Sky scowled, reminding Wild of when he broke the Master Sword in front of him. Sky grabbed Wild’s hand and dragged him away from the man, who simply huffed loudly and stalked to the cliff he was sitting on. Legend got the urge to push him into the waters below, but thought against it. Too many witnesses.

“Does he always treat you like that?” Twilight asked his protege, a sound similar to a growl deep in his throat.

‘No big deal.’ Wild signed, looking away from the fiery eyes of his mentor.

“It is Wild. I understand why you ignore him, but you still don’t deserve to be treated like that. Especially after you built the town he’s living in.” Time reminded Wild.

‘Helped build.’ Wild corrected, but it was nice to hear Time say that.

Wild led the group to the inn, only hearing half of the grumbled insults of the rich man on the cliff.

‘Hi Kapson!’ Wild signed once the group was in the small inn. Like the other buildings, it was small, but roomier and homey on the inside. ‘These are my friends!’ Wild introduced them all by fingerspelling their names before asking for them all to stay.

“There’s a lot of you and only two beds.” Kapson stated gruffly.

“We can share, sir.” Twilight stated for the group.

“You could set the mattresses upstairs if you want to do that.” Kapson agreed, asking Time for their payment.

‘I’ll be right back.’ Wild signed to the group after they moved the two mattresses.

“Where are you going?” Four asked.

‘Killing Guardians for Hagie. They never disappeared completely after the Calamity.’ Wild pulled a bow from his slate.

“Woah woah. We’re not letting you go alone. They’re Guardians!” Four scolded.

‘I have my paraglider and I can’t teleport with you all. There’s only two, I’ll be back in 20 minutes at most.’ Wild reassured.

“If you’re not back in 20 minutes, Wind is contacting you with his necklace.” Time ordered. Wild nodded and set out, leaving the group alone in Tarry Town. The group decided to explore the town a little bit more while it was still light out. Outside the inn in front of a nearby house, there was a woman sweeping on the porch.

“Are you all friends of Link?” She called out quietly, barely catching their attention.

“Yes, ma’am. We are.” Time and the rest of the group approached.

“Oh. I was just wondering if you can give him my thanks. He helped my daughter heal. She wasn’t eating healthy, or running around anymore. He gave her something and she was better by morning. I thanked him, but I’m scared that it seems insincere because of my husband.” The woman pointed at the man on the cliffside much to the group's surprise. “My daughter is my everything. Please let Link know he has my thanks.” The woman finished with a bittersweet smile.

“Of course we will.” Warriors responded, floored by Wild’s selflessness once again. The woman thanked them and went inside to cook for her family. The group continued to explore the town and look at the surrounding areas before Wild returned.

“You know. We could drug Hagie with one of Legend’s sleeping potions.” Wind whispered to the group when they were out of earshot from the other villagers.

“Where would we take him?” Hyrule smiled, a truly horrifying look of evil in his eyes.

“Down to the place Wild is getting rid of the Guardians. He'd really piss himself if he woke up down there. You see all the dead ones down there?” Fours blue eyes shined.

“I’d happily volunteer a potion to see that happen.” Legend’s smile was as sharp as a knife.

“Maybe we should blindfold him to make the experience more real and terrifying.” Sky suggested.

“You idiots!” Twilight chided. The other’s almost protested at Twilight ruining their fun before he interrupted them. “How the hell are we going to get him away from his daughter and wife?” Twilight finished as Warriors clapped his back.

“Eh, we’ll figure it out.” Warriors replied. At this point, no one could tell who was joking and who wasn’t. They all remembered Time, and looked to him nervously, half expecting a lecture from their leader.

“Don’t get caught.” Time stated, seemingly impassive. His eye, however, gave him away with a mischievous glint as the rest of the group cheered and laughed.

Wild made it back safe and sound, albeit confused at the mentions of drugging and kidnapping he did not even want to know about at the moment. That evening, Wild and Monari made dessert for their dinner, honey crepes. The group all cheered and thanked them profusely through full mouths, eating far more than their stomachs could probably handle. Even Time stuffed his face full. That night, they all shoved themselves onto the two mattresses pushed together on the floor of the inn. At some point in the night, they all became an entangled pile of elbows and knees.

Twilight slept buried in Time’s shoulder, one arm taken captive by Wild. The rest of Wild was taken captive by Hyrule. Hyrule’s head rested on Legend’s arm. Warriors had curled an arm around Legend and Wind, who shoved himself between them. Both Warriors and Legend would absolutely deny this in the morning. Four curled up facing Warriors, snuggled in with Sky in his sailcloth. Finally, the group had a chance to rest with stomachs full and a good night sleep.

#linked universe #linkeduniverse #lu #fluff #Wild #Wind #Warriors #Hyrule #Sky #Legend #Time #Twilight #Four #legend of zelda #loz #Epona #loz epona #swear warning #QoL Story

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heartofsnark · 4 years ago

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Can You Feel The Sun? (Chapter One): I'll let you in if you say it's okay

Notes: So, I’m taking inspiration from more than one lifepath start for my V and overall, I’m not sure how I feel about this first chapter. I’m not as confident in it as I have been in some of my other works and it’s undergone some heavy rewrites. But I’m officially sick of looking at it, so lets go. Still getting a feel for writing the cyberpunk characters too, tbh.

Word Count: 13083

Warnings: Canon Typical Violence, Internal Feels and struggles, (Aidan/V is very conflicted and struggling), Morning after sex

If you haven’t yet, please read the prologue: link here

Four years, a million miles, and a new alias later, not Aidan but V is standing in a motel bathroom, fresh from the shower. There’s a bruise forming on her chin from what she can’t remember. She touches up the two shaved slits in her left eyebrow, a pointless aesthetic choice given she wears a mask, she knows. But, she likes it and that’s what matters most. She pulls her bleached blonde hair back into a little ponytail, before brushing her teeth and changing.

She fastens her mask, a repurposed scav mask that she uses, not only to hide from her former family but to help her function in this world. No longer the green with red and pink faces the scavs use, it’s now black with white x-d out eyes and a wicked toothy grin. Vaguely cartoony and ominous, not her choice, but she’s far too nostalgic to ever change it.

Data and logistics flash across her vision, optic tech coming to life now that the mask is on. Finally, she puts in her hearing aids, the noise of the world coming back to her, the hum of a broken AC, the beat of a song coming from the radio, and a woman’s snoring drifting through the paper-thin walls. V pulls up her hood before she leaves the bathroom, ready to begin, her throat tight as she thinks of what the day holds.

I saw in you what life was missing

You lit a flame that consumed my hate

I'm not one for reminiscing but

I'd trade it all for your sweet embrace

The radio plays an old song from Ava’s favorite band, V knows the heavy drone of them anywhere, though she never can quite recall their name or song titles, only reminded of the days she pretended to give a shit about them in hopes it’d earn her at least a pity kiss. Why the hell the radio still plays music that old is beyond her. She turns her hearing aids volume down a little lower.

Music brought down to a hum, V’s attention turns to the bed, a woman who’s name she can’t remember is tangled in the sheets. Sun streaming through the window to shine on a bare freckled shoulder, the woman is around V’s age, maybe a year or two older with a pixie cut of dyed lilac hair. She fits in well with V’s track record of bedmates; unable or unwilling to give even half of what she got, leaving the nomad to take care of herself. But, as much as she’d appreciate an orgasm from something other than her own hand, she gets what she wants from them in the end; a glorified body pillow that helps her sleep.

“Mmm, you up?” The woman asks, stirring from under the blankets, she pushes a hand into her hair. She blinks her eyes a few times, before taking in V’s outfit, “you’re leaving already?”

V’s mask optics quickly reads lips, giving the world subtitles, essential when she wants to forgo hearing aids. The tech is far more advanced than the human eye when it comes to lip reading. The only downside is the mask requires someone to be facing her as they speak. So, the hearing aids are still necessary unless people are kind enough to accommodate her; which they never are.

“Gotta get back on the road,” V signs, a modulator translator in her mask speaks it in a monotone AI voice.

“You don’t wanna get breakfast or…?”

“No time,” V crouches down beside the bed, so she can properly meet the woman’s eyes and, “you remember what I told you, don’t you?”

“About not telling anyone what you look like or whatever…?”

“No whatever’s to it, if anyone comes around asking about me, you keep your mouth shut. Got it?”

“Yeah yeah, crystal clear, asshole.” The woman groans, not liking the aggressive tone V’s picked up, but it’s a serious matter. Most people get it, everyone nowadays seems to have enemies, but apparently not everyone understands. More flies with honey as they say.

“I’m sorry,” she signs, “it’s just important to me, life or death. I’ll order some room service for you before I go, sound good?”

“Hmm…I like pancakes.”

“Alright, I’ll put the order in then head out.”

“Okay…I won’t tell anyone, about you, promise.”

“I appreciate that,” V signs, putting in the room service order on the tablet provided.

Thankfully, pancakes are enough to earn the woman’s silence on the matter. The less people who have a bone to pick with her, the better. Though, she still hopes The Herd can’t follow her where she’s going anyway. Dufflebag thrown over her shoulder, V leaves the motel, stepping out into the dry heat of California. Even in the early months of 2077, the desert is burning hot, though it will be freezing by nightfall. The joys of the Badlands.

Yucca is a little nothing town south of Night City, surrounded by long agonizing stretches of desert. Not a place she’d give another thought to if not for her vehicle breaking down. The cargo in the trunk, locked up so the mechanic can’t get nosy, is meant for a client in Night City. The job came with forms and docs that’ll get her past the border.

She rolls up the metal garage door to the shop, seeing the older man in a trucker hat and flannel working over her car. The old Thorton Galena “Rattler”, bought off a Bakker nomad, who thankfully had no idea who her birth family is. It’s put together with rust, duct tape, and luck, bought for fifty eddies because it’s a walking tetanus trap; but it’s hers.

“Hey…drifter…” He greets her with a weary expression.

There’s two kinds of folks in these small towns that are scattered across the country like stars. Those who are weary of outsiders, know the dangers that lurk across the Badlands and have their guard up the moment someone they don’t know shows up. And for them, her refusal to show her face or speak with her own voice only adds to the suspicion.

And then there’s the other ones, the ones like that lilac haired girl still curled up in dusty sheets, eating shitty motel pancakes. The ones who see her, the people like her, the nomads, the drifters who travel the country and they see someone who can bring a moment of excitement to their dull little lives. The ones bored to tears with watching tumbleweeds all day and will climb in bed with V and their own preconceived notions of who she is just to have a night of excitement.

Each sees danger when they look at her, chaos in human form, someone who may just disrupt the status quo of their piss-pot of a town. An idea that terrifies or excites them. Then the realization hits that she’s just breezing through, a ghost without a trace. And for a moment they’ll be relieved or disappointed, then they’ll forget she was ever there.

“You got my car fixed?” she signs before she rolls the garage door down a foot or two shy of the ground.

“Not quite, electric coupling module is shot to shit.”

“You said it was an easy fix.”

“Guess I was wrong,” he turns to face her, arm crossed over his chest, “you could always find a new shop, find someone else who won’t question some scav lookin’ nomad why she’s hugging the border.”

“I’m not a fuckin’ scav, move,” she signs before shoving him away from her car engine, if he can’t get this thing up and running, she’ll do it her god damn self. She needs to get to Night City, yesterday, she’s already frustrated and him acting like he’s doing her a favor by staring at her engine for an hour isn’t helping.

“Got any idea what you’re doing?” Condescension drips from the mechanic’s words.

“Gonna, rig a hotwire, bypass the coupling.” She switches out some plugs, trying to find something, anything that will save her heap.

“Compressor will run on and on, could seize up.”

“Better than standing around scratching my head.”

She walks around her Rattler, pulling open the driver side door and climbing in. Please, any god listening right now, don’t fuck this up for her. V presses down the ignition and tries to rev the engine; sputters but doesn’t start.

“It’s like I was telling you,” the mechanic grumbles, so she tries again and another sputter.

“Fuck off,” she signs, wishing the tone of the AI voice would better convey her frustration as she begs her car, her baby, to start.

Come on baby, she thinks and her hands twitch to sign, her voice catching. Her desperation nearly making her verbal. Her rattler, her baby, her beautiful heap of rust and luck has carried her through three years in the Badlands. Just a little further, into the city, and V will find her a decent mechanic to give her vehicular child the treatment she deserves. She presses the ignition and revs the gas.

And that engine roars to life and it’s the sweetest sound she’s ever heard, her baby lives, she fucking lives! V can’t contain her smile, thankfully hidden behind the cover of her mask, she could scream. She’s starting the next chapter of her life with her baby by her side.

“Not too shabby, question is how long will it last you,” the mechanic rains on her parade as he shuts the hood.

“Better than whatever you were trying.”

V rolls her eyes and gets her walkie talkie radio out, hooking it to a jack in her car to try to boost a signal; she needs to let her client know she’s coming into the city, so they can prepare to pick up the cargo.

“Antennae on this heap don’t look like it packs much of a punch, doubt you’ll hear much.”

There was a broadcasting comms tower outside of the town, she saw it as she made her way in, she’ll get in and boost her signal with it. Should be fairly easy. She just wants to make it into the city, her chance at a new life. Seventeen years with The Herd, under her father’s thumb. Three years running, never able to settle down, never knowing when her family would find her when she’d be put down. Years wasted, she’s ready to live, to really live on her own fucking terms.

A flash of khaki fabric, visible through the opened gap in the garage door catches her eye and a chill runs down her spine. Trouble. Black cybernetic hands catch the bottom of the metal door and roll it up; an older man in a sheriff’s uniform with a cowboy hat comes strolling in.

“Hey, Mike, didn’t know you had a customer…” He draws out, looking over V as if she was carrying the plague.

“Just rolled in a few hours ago, I, uh, thought she would have told you.”

“Now, don’t you worry, we’re gonna hash this out,” the sheriff says, strolling over to her, he puts an arm up on her car roof, leaning against her open car door and looming over her, “Don'tcha know you owe the sheriff a word when you pay his town a visit? To tell him what brought you here, maybe even over a cup of coffee.”

“You that hard up for dates?” She signs in return, catching a muscle twitch of annoyance, and she smirks behind her mask. Five seconds in and she’s getting under his skin.

“Names Andrew Jones, you probably heard of me.”

“Can’t say that I have.”

“Served in special ops in the last war, silver shoguns, ring any bells?”

“Can’t say that it does.”

“Hmm,” he grumbles, “don’t like to get along, do you?”

“Can’t say that I do.”

He scowls at her as he shifts his weight off her door and moves to walk in front of her vehicle, looking it over. His foot raises up, dirty boot now on the grill of her car and she wishes nothing more than to just drive forward and run his dumbass over. She doesn’t have fucking time for this; her client is waiting. She doesn’t even want to be in his dumbass little town; she already fucked the only good thing here and found nothing but disappointment.

“That a nomad vehicle? I might have figured. Scav mask, nomad car; what that make you?”

“You got a problem?”

“I’ll tell you what my problem is, nothing boils my blood like a fuckin’ stray. Where your clan pitch camp?”

“No camp, no clan, just little ole me, aren’t you lucky?”

“Don’t buy it, nomads always stick with their pack.”

“Got no pack, they don’t suit me much.”

“Makes you an outcast among outcasts.” He sneers at her, looking down his nose at her, like he’s something special and she’s gum stuck on his shoe.

“Let me guess, you’re the type of guy who believes every line of shit the corps feed you, that nomads are the world’s greatest evil.”

“No, I’m a man who respects order, corps brought us that order-”

“The corps pay you and have you on a leash like a dog, you know that?”

“And you don’t wanna see me bare my fangs.”

“Try and I’ll put you down,” V’s fingers move before she can give another though, no interest in making peace with this asshole.

“You threatening me, girl?”

“No more than you are me, stay out of my way and I’ll get out of yours.”

“Big talk coming from a misfit.”

She lets out a short laugh, the sound layered with her modulator, making it louder and doubled.

“Look, I’m not scared of some shithole town’s sheriff who thinks a badge is a crown,” she signs, hands moving so quick and hurried that the sound of skin hitting skin rings out, “I want to leave your town, you want me gone, move your ass and I’ll make us both happy.”

“Get going,” he moves out from in front of her car, “I got no mind to see you drifting around these parts.”

“What part of this conversation made you think I want to?” She finishes signing before slamming her car door shut.

“What was that drifter?” His voice fades away as she guns it out of the repair shop, rolling her eyes behind her mask.

Though, maybe breaking into the communications tower is technically drifting, but she needs to radio her client. Sinclaire will need to know she’s coming into the city, so they can meet up, exchange eddies for cargo, and she can figure life out from there. She takes a road that goes north and cuts through the desert, her Rattler practically born for off roading as she takes the heavy bumps of the sand dunes and drives through cacti, pulling up to graffiti covered bumpers just outside the fenced in tower.

It's an amalgamation of latticed rusted metal with satellites on top, graffiti decorating the buildings and chunks of the tower itself. It clearly hasn’t been used or maintained in years, but it should still boost her signal. V climbs out of her vehicle, trying to open the door to the fencing. It doesn’t budge at all and she pouts, then kicks it as hard as she can. Her steel toed boot works as well as a key, making it swing open.

It’s a quick little journey, two little flights of stairs she jogs up with ease. Then it’s a ladder, the peeling yellow paint sticking to her palms. And then she’s as high as she can reach, transmitter box in view. But with the view around her, wind whipping through, she takes a moment to peel off her mask and breathe. Sun beating down and warming her face, the breeze cools her skin under it’s rays, wicking away sweat that sticks to her brow.

A deep inhale of air before she forces herself to move again, the rusted front of the transmitter box breaks at the hinges when she opens it, she pays no mind and throws it aside then jacks in her walkie-talkie radio. V leans against the tower railing, radio in hand, but not ready to let go of the quiet.

The smell of rust and paint surrounds her as she takes everything in. She’ll miss this, she realizes, the open road and the Badlands have always been her home. But it’s not safe, not really. The Herd has shown no signs of letting this go. For four years, she’s dodged her sister and Ava; the two tasked with being her trackers, repeated close calls over all this time. They’ve interrogated and demanded answers from the folks in these sleepy little towns she breezes through. The mask has helped, but every day the feeling of them nipping at her heels gets worse. Her stomach churns at the lengths they’ve gone to. V’s father wasted no time in turning her sister against her, turning Eira into a weapon to do his bidding, to put down the defected child who never should have made it past nine.

He’ll kill her for not falling in that same line, for refusing to be his soldier. Forced to choose between death or conformity, practically one in the same, she tries to seek a third option.

Night City has its own rules, laws, restrictions; a city completely controlled by corps. It’s disgusting in its own right. But The Herd isn’t allowed in the city, border control of Night City has strict orders to keep all known or identifiable members of the Raffen Shiv clan out. Corps hate Nomads, as a general rule, but they really hate The Herd. A Nomad family with no respect for anyone else’s laws, a strong anti-consumerism, anti-cyberware, and anti-corp attitude; The Herd might as well send a personal fuck you to Night City. Its not perfect, not even good, a crime infested corp run cesspool, but it’s the safest option. More security, more boundaries, more faces so V can blend in. Even if Eira and Ava make it into Night City, which she’s not naïve enough to believe impossible, they’ll have six million folks to work their way through. Nomads stay in pack because groups provide safety; a sea of city faces is just an extension of that.

But that safety comes at a cost. It means no more open spaces, no more serenity, no more campfires with burnt marshmallows, or driving down dirt roads as fast as she can with her windows down, and screaming out in excitement as she takes on every bump and turn with reckless abandon.

There’s no perfect choice, every decision carries a sacrifice, but if the cost of staying in the Badlands could mean her life, her freedom, her identity… the city is the better option… she thinks…

A pessimistic or perhaps realistic part of her can’t help but feel like he’ll get his way, her father will have her head on a pike, will slaughter his own daughter like cattle. And his power over The Herd will only grow. After all, if he’d go this far to put down his own child for an act of betrayal, how could anyone else ever think to be spared his wrath. The already loyal army of followers will be further forced into submission by fear.

Maybe this is all a waste of time, she wonders, often does. Maybe it’s just dragging out the inevitable. Hell, a part of her wonders if she’d be better off begging for mercy, if he’d offer it just to maintain control. Would she be safer if she just gave in? Is she really the kind of person who needs to be half of a whole to function, to feel safe?

But, is it wrong to want something more? To be able to look back at her life, no matter how long or short it may be, and know she lived, that she gave it all she had. That she stayed true to herself, whoever that is. To prove that she doesn’t need them, that she isn’t a burden depending on others to carry her weight. She can make something of herself in Night City, can live on her own terms, even if only until the inevitable comes knocking at her door. It will be a bit of breathing room, a chance to just be, instead of constantly looking over her shoulder.

Family was meant to be her security, her safety, but were they ever really? V shakes her head, if she goes down every thought pattern, every reason, every doubt, every feeling; she’ll be here forever.

She pulls her mask back down and radios her client after another moment of soaking in the breeze, it's odd they didn’t go through a fixer, but frankly she doesn’t care. A middleman who takes part of the cut isn’t ideal for her either. She’s looking for the past possible new start and the more eddies in her pocket, the better that’ll be.

“V?” Sinclaire speaks her alias once she gets through.

“Speaking,” she signs, as always thankful her mask spares her voice in moments like this.

“Where the hell are you?”

“Hit a snag, but I’m on my way into the city now.”

“That’s what I like to hear, once you’re through the border radio me and we’ll talk meet up.”

“The docs you sent,” she signs, thinking to the falsified passport docs he had sent out her way, “they should get me through border check.”

“Absolutely, border control barely checks ID on customs, but that little pamphlet will breeze you through.”

“Okay, just checking.”

“Don’t worry V, this is a piece of cake. You’re gonna love Night City, I’m telling you.”

“Yeah? That so?”

“Mmhmm, once we finish the trade off, I’ll show you around. There’s a place in Wellsprings with synth steak to die for, I’ll treat you.”

“Sounds like a plan, I’m heading out now.” She agrees easily, it’ll be better to have more connections in the city, people she gets along with well enough and know the place better than her.

“See ya soon.”

Her client doesn’t know her exact clan, just knows she needs papers to get into the city. There’s more than one group of Raffen Shiv that aren’t allowed in city limits; hell she’s pretty sure Wraith’s aren’t. Though, corps make special deals to let them in when they need work done. As shitty as they are, The Herd has yet to whore themselves out to that degree, one thing she can still respect about her father. She fiddles with the leather cuff bracelet around her wrist, that hides the small crown shaped brand that he placed on her skin as a child, his way of marking his blood family. She’s considered taking a knife to it, but some part of her isn’t ready to.

V’s steps are hurried as she leaves the comms tower, heavy boots stomping over metal as she makes the quick journey back to her Rattler, the red beast of a car waiting where she left it. She climbs into the vehicle and twists the vehicle around. She follows the dirt road back out to the highway, headed out to the city.

She races back through the little town, picking up as much speed as she can, wind whipping through the open windows. Yucca is a blink and its gone, V having cruises right through the nothing town and continuing down the highway. Empty stretches of desert decorated with cacti as she races down the expanse of roadway.

Then the signs warn her of border crossing, nearing the city, her heart rate picking up as she grows closer to changing her life. A border checkpoint, enclosures and offices with an overpass above the divided lanes of the highway. Each lane leads to a border control officer with holograms labeling what each lane is for based on why someone is coming into the city; whether or not they have cargo to check. She slows down, so she can pull off her mask, the less suspicious she looks the better. Border guards aren’t going to stand for being questioned by The Herd, so its minimal risk.

She switches over to the lane for customs check, pulling up to the raised blockade, beyond it another car coming through is scanned. An armed border guard not far away and she waits as the vehicle is giving the go ahead to leave; blockade coming down and guard ushering her to drive forward. V drives that little bit forward; cement yellow blockades raise before and behind her vehicle. Locking her into place makes her uncomfortable, like she can’t escape.

“Stay in the security check area,” a guard tells her over the intercom, like she would have tried to drive through the blockade without his warning. A beat i silence, a minute or two passes as the scanners run along her car.

“Would the owner of the vehicle please report for further questioning.”

V grabs the falsified passport, manifest marked LOA, and the bribe chip for good measure. She keeps her head down as she gets out of the vehicle, makes her body language small as she walks into the office building. Maintaining a non-threatening demeanor in order to ease any friction that may come her way. The door automatically opens, a waiting room of people and a desk behind bulletproof glass where a worker stands. A map of the New United States across one of the walls.

“If you’re armed, leave your weapon here.” The worker behind the desk calls out and V unholsters her revolver, allowing him to check it and put it in a drawer, “report to room two.”

She nods, feeling naked without a weapon on her hip, but she knows this is the way of things. V turns the corner, finding the door with a two marked next to it. She opens the door and a lump forms in her throat. It's a small cramped little excuse of a room, a guard already at the rinky dink desk and a chair in front of it. She takes small timid steps to the chair, discolored with either dried blood or rust, she can’t be certain. The man is dressed in a neon vest; some sort of either goggles or optic implants over his eyes that scan her over as she sits down. He wastes not a second in lighting a cigarette and her nose wrinkles as smoke billows to fill the small room. She can already feel the stench of it clinging to her clothes and wishes she could snatch it from his hand.

“Papers?” he asks.

She hands over the manifest, her falsified passport, and the credit chip without a word. Metallic implant augmented fingers put the cred chip aside to look over the little blue document, then he places the paper over the cred chip, hiding it from prying eyes that may peek into the office. Meanwhile, V tries to maintain her most innocent of expression, puppy dog eyes primed if any issue arrives. Small and adorable has few benefits in this world; but she plans to take advantage where she can. Being underestimated, assumed to be weak or docile, as much as it hurts does have perks.

“What are you transporting?”

“It’s all in there,” she signs in response, because frankly she has no idea what she’s transporting. Some corp crap.

“Hmmm, tell me, who do you ride with?”

“Bakkers,” she lies through her teeth, her car was bought off one, so it seems like an easy enough excuse.

“They stop installing personal links?” He asks, puffing out a plume of smoke, his gaze on her linkless palm.

“Religious reasons, most of the clan has them, but my mom raised us to stay ‘ganic, god given, ya know?” She signs, a practiced excuse for when she’s asked about her lack of implants. Same as the excuse laid out in the passport.

“Is that so…” he takes a deep drag off his cigarette and V bites her lip not to say anything she’s hit with another face full of smoke, “you know, times like this I’m so glad not to be on the other side of that table.”

“Feelings mutual,” she signs before she can even consider stopping, aggravated by this man’s entire existence at this point. She gave him all the documents, this should be done with by now.

“Go on now.”

She jumps at the chance to be excused, taking in a deep fresher breath of air when she’s released from the smoke box of an interrogation room. V runs a hand through her hair as she turns the corner. There’s another armored guard standing beside the desk now, his eyes doing a lazy look down of V’s frame.

“Don’t forget to collect your personal items.” The worker behind the desk tells her and she stops there, giving him a raised eyebrow before he goes to collect her gun, “be careful with that toy and welcome to Night City.”

As much as she’d like to gripe about the toy comment; as if she’s a child, she can’t help but find herself smiling at the greeting. She’s finally here, finally getting into the city. A life on her terms; a little breathing room between her and the clan. V holsters her gun, grin playing on her lips.

“Those little shits all imagine Night City to be some sort of paradise,” the armored guard comments about her, but not to her, looking over her to the worker behind the desk.

“What are you gonna do they’re all young, naïve, which is just another word for ignorant.” The worker replies and V’s grin has died, maybe that’s the case for others, but Night City is exactly what she needs. Her situation isn’t the same. She doubts those young ignorant kids they’re talking about were running from their own death.

She shakes her head, not worth the effort it’d take to respond, V leaves the building. Her Rattler a short distance away, she’s nearly bouncing as she rushes towards it, climbing into the driver’s seat. Even the overpass above her has words welcoming her to the city, she’s sure she won’t find paradise, but there...she’ll make this life her own.

There’s barely a blip of distance between her and the border check when she sees them. Black corporate vans coming towards her, her heart jolts into her throat and sweat edges along her skin.

“Fuck!” V curses out loud, border fucker tipped off the corp.

“Stop the vehicle! You are transporting corporate property!” A voice rings out from the vans and V takes a sharp turn off the road, her baby is meant for off roading after all.

“I repeat, stop the vehicle!” The corporate voice yells out again.

“Stop the vehicle,” she murmurs in a whiny voice to herself, mocking the corpo, “give us back our stuff, stop committing crimes, wah, wah, wah.”

She rolls her eyes, amused by her own bullshit as she punches in the keypad of her Rattler, starting up the automated turret attached to the roof. It’s not the most high tech system, but it has a lock on function and should get the job done. The sounds of bullets pinging off metal creates a cacophony around her as she careens through an abandoned rural area, taking sharp turns to try to shake them. V takes out her hearing aids to stop her forming headache and focus on what she’s doing. The rumble of her turret shakes the car as it fires, letting her know its still working fine. Glass break out of the back of her car, a bullet piercing through, her back sprayed with the shards. She’ll be digging a bullet out of her dashboard later, she’s sure.

A bright flash of orange, flames enveloping a van as her turret hits a gas tank the right way. One down, two to go. She keeps the pedal to the floor, speed topping out as she races away from the approaching vans. Another sharp turn and she watches as a van crashes into a wall, one last stubborn fucker.

There’s a slight tense to the vibration of her turret overhead, bullets hitting the top of it, aiming to disarm it, as she goes through another turn. A shot bursts through her side mirror, assholes, do they have any idea how much it’s going to cost her to repair this heap. More than it’s probably worth.

The vibration that shakes her car settles down over her head, turret no longer firing, but the van is still chasing her. It fucking jammed, her turret fucking jammed again, of course it did. V hauls off and punches the roof of her Rattler, right beneath where the turret is, used to this issue at this point. As always, the hard punch manages to spur it back on and it fires up again, blasting at the last van at full speed.

A bullet hits the corpo van’s front tire, knocking it off path; final one down.

“Suck my dick, Arasaka!” She screams out for no one else to hear.

She’s grinning as she finds a collection of abandoned trailers and garages, pulling into one, she’ll need to call her client, figure out a meeting place. They may want her to lay low for a bit until Arasaka calms their tits about this. But she’s in Night City, finally, what could go wrong from here. Cut out a nice living for herself, solo work or maybe something else, who knows. Get herself a place and do whatever the fuck she wants from there. She slides on her mask, puts her hearing aids back in, and rings her client.

“Sinclaire?”

“V, you make it over the border yet?”

“Yep, out just south of Pacifica according to the GPS, little run in with the corps but I shook them. When and where you wanna meet?”

“Little China, you know where the old Club Atlantis is?”

“Not remotely, but ping me the coordinates and I’ll find it.”

“Sending it to you now, think you can get there by three am?”

“Yeah, no problem, prefer to do this under cover of darkness?”

“Much prefer, see you soon, V.”

V hangs up the call and punches in the coordinates he sent, GPS map firing up to tell her where to go. She pulls out of the abandoned garage and gets herself back out on the road, driving further into the city.

She doesn’t like driving in the city. V determines about a minute into being into the actual bulk of the city. There’s neon signs and adverts everywhere she looks; most displaying someones ass or tits. She wouldn’t consider herself a prude, far from it given just how many people she’s spread her own legs for, but she does appreciate some decorum… These are sleazy, dirty…

And there’s traffic. Even at the late hour, people are on the roads, and they’re slow. So, fucking slow. Move, your asses. A motorcycle might be a good investment, she’d be able to just ride between traffic or weave through the other cars.

She manages to reach the spot before three am, though she wants to scream by the time she arrives. The building blends in easily, just another large shuttered up structure with graffiti covering its outside; symbols for the Tyger Claws, because correct spelling is a bad look for a gang, apparently.

V lets out a huff of air as she gets out of her car to wait; examining the little bloody scratches on her shoulders and arms where the glass hit her. Nothing serious, a splash of rubbing alcohol to disinfect and she’ll be fine. But there is a slight sting to the injuries that make moving her arms and shoulders uncomfortable. Corpo fucks. V leans against her car, taking in her new city.

And she shouldn’t be amazed, she knows that. The traffic drove her nuts and she’s been in landfills that smelled nicer. But despite it all, she finds herself impressed at the buildings that stretch on into the heavens. The bright lights and neon against a dark sky is gorgeous; a high vantage point and she’s sure it’d look like something out of a movie. She finds herself in awe as hope nestles its way into her chest.

Not perfect, nothing ever is, but she can work with it. She can build something here.

A sharp honk gets her attention, disrupting her moment of reverie. The street and road have been abandoned mostly; only her and the limousine coming to a stop next to her. She gives a slight wave to the driver, then forms a V with her fingers, as if they needed any more indication of who she is.

The driver is not her client, instead a big bulk of a man with gorilla arms implants, black metal for fingers, he gets out of the driver’s seat and a similarly sized man steps out of the back seat. Her client’s got muscle around him it seems, maybe he just wants to make sure she doesn’t get squirrely and try to pull something.

Both guards out, they open the backseat door close to the street and her client finally emerges. He’s not a particularly tall man, though as with most adults, he is taller than her. Sandy slicked back hair and unnaturally bright green eyes; likely optics.

“V, darling, nice to see you in the flesh, you got the goods?”

“Right here,” she signs before moving behind her car, opening the trunk so he can see the Arasaka cargo crate.

“Fantastic, load it up, boys.”

“Woah, woah,” V signs and sits on the crate before the two bodyguards can grab it, “eddies first, then you take the cargo.”

“Oh, V, honey…” His voice drips with condescension and a chill reverberates down her spine, “you did good work, only a shame you’re so naive.”

“The fuck do-”

Pain cracks through her skull, knocking V off the cargo crate and onto the ground. Another sharp thwack of pain across her head and back; something blunt striking her before she can get up. She groans out as she rolls over onto her back, looking up at the bodyguard who’s holding a baseball bat, what looks like blood staining it. Her head and back hurt; her head spinning and she’s unable to get her bearings.

“Load the cargo into the car.”

“What do you want us to do with her?” One of the guards asks Sinclaire and he looks down at her, like a cockroach.

“Eh, no one will come looking for her. Might as well throw her away with the trash,” he kicks her side, sneering when she grunts in pain, “give her another hit for good measure.”

“Got it,” the guard nods and starts to raise the baseball again, high above his head for a hard swing and she instinctively twists to give him the back of her head again.

“We’ll scrap the car, ge-”

And then the bat comes down on her, a rush of pain before consciousness slips from her grasp.

Time loses all meaning when the world is blacked out, but eventually the light filters back in and her senses return. She can feel her hearing aids still in and its reaffirmed by the sounds she hears, the faint murmur of people. The smell around her is awful, disgusting, and she can feel stuff around her. Plastic bags scratching at her skin, something wet touching her arm. Her mask shifted and she forces herself to move, she pulls it back in place, blinking.

Garbage bags, some intact and others shredded. He actually had her thrown into the trash, that son of a bitch. V pushes the trash bags off of her, city lights starting to glimmer through, neon against a black sky. She finds a metal edge of the dumpster and pulls herself up, body still aching in protest as she emerges from her would be grave. Cold air hits her bare arms, the city far colder in the early months than the Badlands. She’s in an alleyway dumpster and she hears gasps of shocks, turning to see civilians shocked to see someone climbing out of the trash. She’s be ashamed if she weren’t so furious.

V punches the side of the dumper, feeling it reverberate with the force, this was supposed to be her shot at a new life and now she’s in a god damn dumpster.

She’s going to kill Sinclaire, she’s going to fucking kill him, son of a bitchfucked her over and he’s going to pay with blood. But how the hell does she even reach him? He never gave her details of where he spends his time or let alone where he lives. Hell, she doesn’t even know where she is. She needs her car back and her luggage from it, she doesn’t even have a change of fucking clothes as it stands right now.

“What time is it? Where am I?” she signs at the civilians, still straddling the edge of the dumpster, maybe they can be some help.

“Uhhh, like 10pm? And Heywood…?”

So, he dragged her away quite a bit, so...maybe he frequents the area. Still doesn’t tell her much, she needs to find him. And she needs to find her car, but how the fuck does she accomplish that?

“Don’t suppose you have any idea where I could find Luke Sinclaire, do you?”

“Uh, no,” the stranger kind of raises an eyebrow, clearly taken aback by the whole situation, “but uh, you could always talk to Padre. He’s the local fixer.”

Of course, she’d have to get a fixer involved, not using one is probably what got her in this mess in the first place. Sinclaire knew she had no ties to her Nomad family, new to the city, and no fixer involved. He basically had license to do whatever he wanted without fearing someone would come for him or come looking for her. V touches the back of her head, fingers coming back red, dried blood matting her hair. He meant for her to die, she’s sure, but the blunt trauma wasn’t enough to do her in.

“Where’s Padre?” she signs, she doesn’t have money to pay a fixer but maybe they can work something out. She doesn’t want to lone wolf it and end up in a dumpster again.

“He has his own parish, but he’s usually at the El Coyote Cojo right about now, might be able to catch him if you hurry.”

“El Coyote Cojo, which would be…where?”

“Bar a little north of here, you really aren’t from around here, are you?”

“Thanks for your help and stunning observational skills; I’m off.”

She pulls her hood back up over her head, hiding her bloody matted hair as she leaves the alley way and goes vaguely north. New chapter of her life, she’s injured, alone, broke, and smells like garbage.

Honestly, sounds about right for her luck. But, she’s far from given up. She navigates the Night City streets, stopping to ask a stranger where the bar is again before she finally finds it. She keeps expecting to get weird looks, like the ones that were usually sent her way in the small towns she’d visit on the road. But even with her mask, no one pays her much mind. And why would they?

V passes at least four more outrageous looking strangers along her way to the bar. People’s who’s entire body is made of gold cyberware, a woman with skin that looks like plastic, a cowboy with cybernetic arms and legs, and a girl with what looks like cat ear implants on top of her head. Things that make her stop and give a second glance, but no one here even minds. Night City has its own weirdness limit and her mask doesn’t even come close to hitting it. There's an anonymity she’s never known before and its kind of nice. Even bloody, mask on, trash covered; she’s just one face in a sea of millions.

El Coyote Cujo is a lowlit bar with traditional Mexican decorations across it and as expected in the evening, it has a fair number of patrons bustling around. People shooting pool, downing tequila, and chatting amongst themselves. And for the first time, she finds eyes landing on her. Not necessarily weirded out by her masked appearance, but more so wary of a stranger. She pays them no mind, employees here should know where Padre frequents or if he’s still here. There’s two she’s able to find right away; the bartender and a busboy. She starts with the bartender, walking herself over to a stool, he’s an older man with dark hair and a golden arm. He walks over to her once she’s sat, a smile bringing out the crows feet at the corners of his eyes.

“A new face, what can I get for you?”

“I’m actually trying to find someone,” she signs, “someone told me the local fixer, Padre, is a regular here.”

“Ah, he’s probably at his usual table upstairs, not sure he’s interested in taking on any new clients though.”

“I’ll see if we can figure something out.” She steps away from the bar and heads upstairs, its mostly vacant, making her task just a little bit easier.

Her gaze is drawn to an older man with sparsely any hair and age spots along his skin, a gold cross around his neck. A few men in tacky gold jewelry around him.

“Padre?” The AI modulator voice calls out and she sees the older man’s eyes land on her. His guards around him seem to tense, prepared for if she sends up being a threat.

“I’m not sure, I know you,” Padre comments, looking over her disheveled appearance. Being beaten and thrown in a dumpster doesn’t do much for your looks.

“You don’t, but I’m looking for a fixer, need help if you’re interested in hearing me out.”

“Come, sit.”

“Thank you, sir,” she signs before sliding into the booth seat across the table from him.

“How can I assist you, child?”

“So, a guy named Luke Sinclaire contracted me to smuggle corp cargo into the city, I go to meet up with him and he tricks me. Stole the cargo, sent my car to be scrapped, and had his gangoons drop me. I need help finding him so I can get the cargo, my car, and my dignity back. Maybe kill him too, depending on how I feel, but we’ll see.”

“You didn’t use a fixer, I take it?” He raises an eyebrow with the energy of a dad chiding a child for making a stupid mistake.

“No, I was desperate and it bit me in the ass, so I’m doing what I should have done in the first place.”

“And I’m to assume, you have no money with which to do this either?” He says, having read her like a book.

“I’m sorry to be asking favors the first time we meet and I don’t expect you to do this for nothing, of course, but I was wondering if we could work out an arrangement instead.”

“And what sort of arrangement would that be?”

“I’ll do a merc job for you, your choosing, I’ll take no cut of the profit; a completely free job in exchange for you helping me with this.”

“And how can I trust you to do this job well, I do not know you or your work.”

“Well, I’d do the job for you first, so if its crap you could not help me. I fully expect to get back what I put in, if I do quality work, you do it in return, I’m desperate here.”

“Come with me, Marcus, get the car,” he tells one of the bulky men who walks off.

Padre stands and follows behind Marcus, V follows suit as they leave down the stairs and out of the bar towards a dark little alleyway. Marcus pulls up a car and parks it for them. Once parked Marcus gets out and comes back to one of the backseat doors, Padre gets into the back on his own, Marcus opens the door for her. He silently beckons her in and she does what she’s asked, sliding onto the leather seat. Marcus shuts her door before going back around to the driver’s seat,

“Embers, pull up to the back where the ramp is,” Padre instructs Marcus of where to go.

And then the car pulls out onto the road. V fiddles with a curl of hair, fidgety and unsure of what to do, why they’re driving out away from the bar. Padre has a far away look in his eye.

“You’re new to Night City, aren’t you?”

“Yeah…”

“And what is your name, I’m afraid I didn’t catch it earlier.”

“V.”

“V, I’ve lived in Heywood all my life, it’s roots are strong and watered by blood. Family is what pulls us through, no one is purely independent. The city is ecosystem, each individual playing a vital role that impacts those around them. The relationship between fixers and our mercenaries is an important one, not only is it mutual beneficial, but we keep each other safe. A lesson you’ve had to learn the hard way.”

“Can’t really argue with that…”

“People who-“

Padre pauses in his words looking out of the window and through it, V can see a car coming up alongside them. The car begins honking furiously at them. Nerves alight and chills slinking up her spine; she has a bad feeling about this. It has to be someone with a bone to pick with Padre.

“Shit!” Marcus curses, the first word she’s heard him say.

“Stop the car,” Padre says, with a calming hand on Marcus’s shoulder.

“What’s this?” V signs, worrying speeding up her hands.

“Business, you carrying?”

“Yeah….” V checks her waistband and her revolver is gone because why did she think Sinclaire wouldn’t take her gun, “No.”

Padre blinks, surprised she’s sure, because who the fuck would be unarmed in Night City. Marcus pulls to a stop, the car once beside them pulls around to park in front of them and a man comes out. He’s dressed in what appear to be green fatigues with a bullet proof vest. As he comes close to V’s window, she sees his gold implants catching the neon lights.

“Sebastian Ibarra,” the man says in a low voice, as V’s window is rolled down by Marcus, “looks like it’s my lucky day.”

The stranger leans into the window, his left hand is carrying a gun and he casually puts it into the window. Both arms are metal in nature, but they look far from top shelf, at least from her glance.

“What do you want?” Padre asks him.

“To settle our biz, once and for all. Got an offer for you, Paddy, so listen up. Get the fuck out of Vista, pull your boys off the street! I’ll give you the Glenn, done deal. No more restless nights, see how generous I can be?”

A beat of silence and V gives a glance at Padre, he seems far from amused with the man’s bullshit.

“Well, Paddy?!”

V lurches at his impatient yell, she doesn’t need this wannabe soldier turned gangbanger fucking up her deal. Her right hand grabs the back of his neck, below the base of his skull and her left grabs the gun. She slams his head against the car roof, his forehead gushing blood at the impact, the shock and pain makes his grip loosen and allows her to steal his pistol before letting him go.

“Fuck, fuck,” he curses as he stumbles back, seeing stars and touching at his forehead. She aimed for the soft flesh just before his golden mohawked implant began, blood now steadily streaming from the wound, “you’ll fucking pay for that.”

She points his own pistol at him, cocking the gun, asking the silent question of if he intends to be shot today.

“It seems our conversation has come to a close,” Padre speaks calmly, but when she turns she can see the hint of a smile on his lips.

“Careful Padre, never know who’s got a barrel at your six,” he threatens with blood coating his face like paint, “you neither shitbucket!”

“Now, I’m armed,” V signs to Padre, as she watches the man climb back into his car, defeated for the moemnt.

“Marcus, please.”

The driver pulls out and away, getting them back on the road, as if the exchange had never happened. There’s a moment or two of silence, as V tucks her new gun into her waistband. If Padre takes her up on her offer, she may need it, plus you can generally never have enough firepower.

“Many people come through the city,” Padre speaks after a beat of silence, “little shits who’s spines go soft the moment they’re looking down the barrel of a gun. And sometimes you get the odd soul, one who can truly hold their own.”

“Who was that?” She asks, unable to help but smirk behind her mask at the compliment. That she’s one of the odd souls, different from those little shits, that she can hold her own. V is far from incompetent, even if some shitbird got the jump on her.

“No one important, he’ll be gone in a week’s time. Another will take his place.”

“The ecosystem will take him out?”

“People who don’t know their place, soon find themselves without one. He’ll pay for what he’s done. You… paid for your misdeeds, for your misstep, but you’re finding your place now and within it you may thrive.”

“You got my place in the ecosystem all figured out?”

“Here,” he hands her a screamsheet, a magazine with an animated ad for a car, high-end The Legend of Aerondight, “only four in Night City.”

“That so?” It looks slick, she guesses, though certainly not her aesthetic. Its that weird rich person sort of design where it’s oddly shaped and proportioned, perhaps to be aerodynamic. All sleek silver and black, no character to it. She’d take her Rattler over it any day.

“First belongs to the Rayfield regional direction, second belongs to mayor Rhyne, third to a rental service. And my client aims to be the fourth.”

“Klep the car and you’ll help me?”

“Yes, I have a contact who works inside the parking structure near Embers, a club the current owner likes to frequent. He’s there tonight as well. My contact will cut the security camera feed and open the security gate for you.”

“Current owner, anyone I need to worry about?”

“An Arasaka corpo,” Padre informs her, because apparently, she hasn’t fucked with Arasaka enough in the past day or so.

“So, just hotwire it or?” It wouldn’t be the first time she’s hotwired a car, but fancy ones like this usually have a more complicated security system. Usually takes more than a knife and luck, which is her usual method.

“Not quite,” Padre pulls a little gadget, a silver and black device that he hands to her, “this should work like a key for the car, matches the ones used by Rayfield tech. Should open the lock and bypass identity authorization.”

“That sounds convenient…” Too fucking convenient, she resists adding.

“Kabuki has some excellent tech workers, but I won’t lie, it is a risk. I assume one you’re willing to take?”

“Got it, I’ll get the car.”

“Marcus, pull up here,” Padre tells the driver and they come to a stop, “you can jump down below, and before you go, take this V.”

He hands her a card, marked with his name and phone number, golden in color with a sword surrounded by roses. She rubs her thumb over the embossment, glad for her first contact within the city. Connections help.

“Your number?” She points out the obvious, not sure what else to say.

“Bring the car back to El Coyote Cujo and call me when you arrive, if all goes well, I’ll have your intel by then. And, I may just call on you for work down the line.”

“Understood, I’m off then.”

“Go with God, V.”

The guardrail drags along the side of the highway but there’s a breakage where it allows her enough space to easily jump over. Peering over it leads to an alley way, a closed dumpster just below. She hops over, dropping down onto the dumpster, she intends on last night being her last trash nap, so she’s more than a little thankful for it being closed. She hears a civilian let out a little exclamation but pays no mind as she jumps down onto the pavement. A quick walk down a graffitied alleway leads her to yellow road signs cutting across an open structure. Glowing vending machines beckon her to spend ennies she doesn’t have on energy drinks and burritos, a turn past them brings her to an elevator.

Slick glinting silver encompasses her as she steps into the alleyway; impressively clean compared to the absolute grime of the city. Likely to impress any corpos who come this way to get their cars. A quick tap of a button and the doors shut, elevator rattling as it descends down to the garage.

A beat of silence and the elevator opens up to a hallway; black, gunmetal gray, and teal accents. The wall declares which sector she’s in and an arrow on the far wall tells her where to turn, as if there were anywhere else to go. The turn around the corner puts her directly in front of two large black double doors; PARKING over them in clear bold lettering.

They slide open when she gets close and open up to the large parking garage, lights coming on as she sees all the slick fancy corpo cars. Sleek blacks and eye popping reds, none with any taste for design if you ask her. But nomads and corpos have...different aesthetics.

“Eh, something I can help you with?” A male voice rings out, bringing her attention to the little station next to the blocked off exit for cars. The contact, she presumes. She comes over to his open window, the man dressed in uniform.

“Padre sent me…” she signs, keeping things vague just in case this person has no idea why she’s here.

“Gotcha,” he hits a button, “cameras are blind, you got twenty minutes.”

She nods and goes looking through the cars, it’s the glow of neon that brings her to it. A parking spot marked off in the vivid blue glowing lights, they frame the Rayfield, and spell VIP on the wall behind it.

Time to test the tech, she holds the device next to the door and presses its button, a blue light flashing. And then the Rayfield’s door opens, sliding back and up in one fluid motion, exposing the deep burgundy leather seats. Shit may actually be going right for once.

She climbs into the driver’s seat, feeling wholly out of place in the plush designed car. The seat automatically adjusts to accommodate her, no doubt shorter than the owner, and the blacked-out windshield and window turn to crystalline clear glass. All that’s left is bringing the baby back to the bar and then she can get her intel on Sinclaire.

A red caution symbol flashes in the windshield and her body tenses; a bad feeling creeping in. No, her luck can’t be running out already.

Then the door opens and there’s a gun in her face.

“Get the fuck out!” A Mexican accented voice yells out.

If there is a god, he personally hates her, there is no other explanation, and she will fist fight him for his shenanigans. She looks up at the man standing before her, barrel at her forehead. He’s leaning down against the car, not unlike how the sheriff did to intimidate her back in Yucca. However, unlike the sheriff, this guy has the build to pull it off. He’s easily over a foot taller than her and wider than most doorway, all pure muscle with dark hair in a top knot, gold cybernetics adoring his face. She puts her hands up in mock surrender for a moment.

“Nothing personal, jaina, just biz.”

V goes to gun it, to stomp her foot down on the gas, but before she can the man has the back of her hoodie and is unceremoniously ripping her out of the vehicle.

“You fuckin’ deaf, chica, fuck out of the car, now!” He’s able to manhandle and pack her around like it’s nothing, like carrying a housecat.

She grabs the hand on her hood and digs her fingernails in, swinging her foot out to kick him while her other hand goes for her gun.

Then there’s a steady rev of engines, tires squealing and growing ever closer. Confusion coloring her assailant’s face and he drops her, looking around.

“The fuck…”

He starts to say and then there’s two police cars rushing into the parking lot, skidding to stops in front of them. And its fucking overkill, if she rang 911 because she was shot, they’d maybe send an officer out in three weeks. One fucking corpo has someone break into his car and it’s the end of the universe, need a full brigade.

The headlights of the cruises are blindingly bright and she struggles to adjust; putting her hands up as police officers come out with guns at the ready. It’s a car for fucks sake.

“Don’t move!”

Her attacker carefully slides his gun across the cement, to show he’s not a threat and maybe she’d consider doing the same if she cared; but she doesn’t.

“You’re under arrest!”

“Stay where you are!”

The police continue barking orders, as if the two hadn’t piece together what was happening or what was being asked of them. They’re not stupid.

“Hands where I can see them, nice and slow!”

He can already see them, why must they go through the rigamarole. She doesn’t have time for this shit.

“On the ground motherfuckers, right now!”

V is able to watch for a second, as a female cop cuffs and pushes the big guy onto the ground. Then in the next second she’s down there too, but they don’t cuff her like they do him. The officer only holds her hands down to the pavement, maybe they think because she’s smaller they don’t need the cuffs, at least not yet.

“Jackie Welles, my old pal from the hood,” a voice rings out, “See you haven’t grown an ounce wiser.”

“Hey,” big guy, apparently Jackie, responds and she shifts her head against the pavement to see him being held down in addition to the cuffs, “argh, Detective Stints, been a while, huh?”

“Inspector Stints,” the man responds now stepping out where he can be seen in front of the bright lights, he picks up the gun Jackie put down.

“Same shit,” Jackie says with a laugh.

“But you, you’re new,” Stints comments as he walks over and crouches down in front of her, looking over her face.

He waits, anticipating her to say something, but she talks with her hands and they’re currently pinned behind her back. And sure she possesses the technical ability to speak, her vocal chords do function. But she doesn’t, unless she’s alone or highly emotional. She used to talk to her mom, sister, and Ava…but those days are gone.

“Spit it out? Cat got your tongue?” Stints taunts and she still remains silent.

“Think her voicebox might be broken, Stints,” Jackie comments, a smirk playing on his lips.

“Pfft, probably just another piece of Heywood trash, another termite who’ll live and die here. Just like you Welles.”

“Fuck off, just tell us what you got planned,” Jackie grumbles.

“Gonna be booked, gonna do a stint, heh, get it?” He says with a grin.

“C’mon Stints, cut us a break, huh? You lock us up, we’ll just jerk off till trial and then what?”

She has no intention on jerking off anywhere, but alright.

“Worst case,” Jackie continues, “we get a few months, standing room only nowadays. In el bote. Hell, we’ll probably be out early.”

“These the thieves? Ordinary street trash,” a heavily accented voice comments, a Japanese man in a shimmery golden colored vest comes walking over.

“Shit, he’s here,” Inspector Stints groans before standing, “got them in custody Mr. Fujioka. We’ll be taking them, now.”

“It’s a waste of effort, I have no time to testify or play at an investigation.”

“Suggesting we let ‘em go, sir?”

“I’m suggesting you throw them in the sea; cuffed, legs broken, so this trash doesn’t float.”

And with that the man starts to walk away, making his way back to the club, she’s sure, continuing his night of debauchery as if he hadn’t ordered the murder of two strangers just because he could, because he didn’t have time for a trial. And god, she knows she probably has no room to judge anyone else’s morals, but just fuck corpos.

“You heard him,” the inspector says, because corpo cash pays his salary, she’s sure.

“Fuuuuck….” Jackie curses as they start to drag him up on his feet by the cuffed hands and she her own arms are wrenched back and cuffed.

V gets her feet back under her, moving with the pull as they manhandle her off the ground, she kicks back at the officer behind her. Her foot connects with their calf, causing them grunt out in pain as they’re knocked off balance loosing their grip on her wrists. She jumps as high as she can and brings her cuffed hands under her feet to her front.

Jackie follows suit, kicking the officer off of him, but with his size it knocks them flat on their ass. He shoulder checks another pig as V makes a dive for the Rayfield, it’s door still open amongst this chaos. She lands herself in the drivers seat and hits the ignition.

“Stop resisting!” Officers yell, fingers on the trigger, and no, that’s not happening.

“Wait up, chica!” Jackie yells out and she hits the button to open the passenger side door; he’s an asshole, but she’s not leaving him to be thrown in the fucking ocean.

He throws himself down in the passenger side and she guns it, doors shutting on each side as she takes the turn out the parking exit. She watches from the corner of her eye as Jackie, who’s barely able to fit in the bougie car, brings his cuffed hands down as low as he can. He grunts and curses, not quite as flexible as she is. With effort and twisting, he’s able to get the chain of the cuffs under his foot and then he stomps down while yanking his hands up. The little chain doesn’t stand a chance, breaking into pieces and pinging about the interior as it does so.

“Much better,” Jackie comments, looking at his wrists which now just have the manacles of the cuffs.

She rolls her eyes, bringing her attention back on the road and she expects to see sirens chasing after them, but it never happens. Are the cops not chasing them? They should be chasing them? Is she not getting in her second high speed chase since coming here?

“Honestly,” Jackie starts to talk again, he talks a lot, “I was just gonna let Stints free us, but I like the way you think, this way we get the Rayfield too.”

“What?” She takes a hand off the wheel to sign.

“Oh shit, you’re actually….my bad…” He awkwardly apologizes for asking if she was deaf earlier because, yes, yes she is.

“What do you mean, free us?”

“Stints is a softie as far as pigs go, got Heywood in his blood, would never throw us in the fuckin’ ocean cause some corpo said. And, you can slow down, he won’t chase us, chica.”

“Oh…okay,” she signs, pulling up to a curb, something else to take care of.

“We stopping here?”

“You are,” she signs before pulling her gun out and pointing it at him, signing with her other hand, “get out of the car.”

“Really, chica?” He rolls his eyes, like he didn’t pull this shit on her five minutes ago.

“Wouldn’t have let you in if I knew Stints was a softie, I got a job to finish, get out.”

“A fixer line this up for you?”

“Yeah…”

“Padre?”

“Yeah…are you gonna get out of the car or…?”

“Listen, I was gonna klep the car and then find a fixer to sell it for me, but if you already got Padre involved, we’ll go halfsies.”

“You pointed a gun at me!”

“You’re pointing a gun at me, right now!”

“You did it first!”

And he laughs and she does too, because they sound like children bickering over who pushed who on the playground. Its dumb and ridiculous and why does she like him? His smile is warm and kind, something about him, welcoming. She drops the gun, tucking it back in her waistband. She press her hand under her mask, trying to suppress her giggles. The tension that’s been clinging to her has snapped. Her body feels lighter, like she can breathe a bit better. She closes the passenger side door, he may be chill, or she’s just easily charmed. But, she’s still going to fuck with him, just a little.

“Okay, fine, we’ll go halfsies.”

“See, now you’re making sense,” he grins as they pull out back onto the road, “Jackie Welles.”

“V…it’s…nice to meet you? I think?”

“Heh, not from around here, right?”

“Nah, but, from the sounds of it you’re a local.”

“Heywood in my veins, chica, where we meeting Padre?”

“El Coyote Cujo.”

“Of course.”

“You know the place?”

“I’ve heard of it,” he says, grinning wide, a joke she’s clearly not in on, “Ah, I got a good feeling about this.”

“About what?”

“Us, you and me got chemistry.”

“Do we now?”

“Oh, don’t give me that, you feel it too, heard that laugh.”

“Sure, whatever you say,” she teases as she pulls into the El Coyote Cujo parking lot, pulling the slick corpo car into a spot, “got a phone on you?”

“You don’t?”

“I literally have lost everything I own, alright? Call Padre and put it on speaker.”

“Fine, fine,” Jackie gets out his phone and calls Padre, phone in one hand and the other stretched across the back of the seats.

“Jackie? To what do I owe the pleasure.”

“Here with your newest find, V, we got the Rayfield.”

“You helped her out?”

“Well…”

“He pointed a gun at me and nearly had me thrown in the ocean.”

“Seems like I have a car and a story waiting on me, I’ll be there shortly.”

A pain aches in V’s head, migraine spreading across her temple as Jackie hangs up. She rolls the car window down, allowing the chill of the winter night seep in, hoping the fresh air will ease her pain. V wants a shower, there’s still blood in her hair and she’s sure she still smells like trash. Though, no one’s been cruel enough to point it out. But, she has no idea where she could grab a shower. Why the fuck does her head hurt so much? The pain a steady throb across her entire head. She pinches the bridge of her nose, it didn’t even ache this much when she first came too in the dumpster.

“You alright V?”

“Head hurts,” she signs, before turning off her hearing aids, hoping that shutting out the city sounds will help.

“When’s the last time you ate, chica?” Jackie says, making sure to stay in her eye line as he leans over the middle console, though his biceps nearly touch her even when he isn’t. Her mask reading his lips to give him subtitles. .

When was the last time she ate? She didn’t eat all day because she was in a dumpster passed out. The day before was the smuggle run and she didn’t eat before she left Yucca.

“Two days ago.”

“Fuckin’ for real, no wonder your head’s wonky, once we finish the deal we’ll get some grub.”

“What made you think that was why?”

“Ah, my mama gets those migraines when she stops eating from stress, Vik and me keep telling her to take care of herself, but she’s too busy taking care of everyone else.”

“You and your mom close?” V can’t help but ask, thinking about her own mother for a moment.

“Oh yeah, family’s important, gotta have people you can turn to out here.”

“Yeah…”

“What-”

Headlights shine in through the back glass of the Rayfield, bring their attention to Padre pulling into the parking lot. His arrival ending whatever question Jackie was about to ask, which may be for the best. She’s not ready to answer questions about family. Not when her head is throbbing, she’s filthy, and her stomach is empty. Padre’s driver comes to a stop and they see Padre gets out of the back. V turns her hearing aids back on, knowing it will make the conversation flow easier as her and Jackie get out of the Rayfield. Her arms collecting goosebumps from the air.

“Jackie, it’s nice to see you again, how have you been?” He greets Jackie warmly

“Ehhh, can’t complain, same old same old, making new friends,” he says with a grin, nodding his head towards V.

“Never can have too many of those. It’s always nice to chat once business is done.”

One of Padre’s bodyguards has already climbed into the driver’s seat of the Rayfield. Enging revving up and then fading off into the night as he leaves. Officially finishing up their business.

“Uh,” Jackie raises an eyebrow, “you getting senile on me, Padre, this is usually the part where eddies change hands.”

V’s smirking and trying not to laugh behind her mask. Padre gives a look at V’s direction and she looks down at the ground, pursing her lips so she doesn’t laugh.

“I’m afraid I’m not quite sure what you mean.”

“Ah,” Jackie nods, like he gets it, “no worries, V agreed to go halfsie with me on the Rayfield gig.”

“Halfsies?” Padre raises an eyebrow, smiling at V, he seems to find her joke at least a little funny. V can’t help the giggle that spills out.

“Am I missing the joke here?”

“Well, I’m afraid, this was an unpaid job for V here.”

“What?” Jackie shoots her a sharp look, disbelief coloring his expression.

“Don’t spend it all in one place,” she taunts.

“Fuck you!”

She bursts out laughing, holding her stomach as she cackles behind her mask, the sound echoing strangely through it. But, she can’t stop.

“You stole a million eddie car for free!? The fuck is wrong with you!?”

“No, no,” she furiously signs, “I needed info.”

“Speaking of which, I have your intel here,” Padre says, handing her a shard.

“Give me a moment, my lungs hurt.”

“I’m glad you're entertained, that info better make you a billionaire.”

“Nah, personal shit,” she collects herself, “thanks, Padre, it means a lot.”

“You’re a good kid, make him pay, V.”

“Oh, I will,” V confirms, slotting the shard into a little opening on her mask, info displaying across it.

The name of a chopshop that rumors say had a nomad vehicle come in, her Rattler no doubt. Sinclaire’s address and regular hang outs, exactly what she needs. Hopefully, he hasn’t had time to sell the cargo yet. If so, she’ll axe him and klep all his shit.

“What happened?” Jackie asks.

“Well,” she signs, before taking the shard out, “Sinclaire contracted me to transport some cargo, no fixer, so he fucked me over the second he got a chance. Bashed me over the head, threw me in a dumpster, scrapped all my shit, and took off with the cargo.”

“So, that’s what that smell is?”

“I will throw you,” she threatens, but she’s rolling her eyes and smiling.

“I’d love to see you try, chica.”

“The chop shop won’t be open until morning and it’s late. It’s up to you, but I’d recommend resting for the night.”

“Yeah…” She signs, but she can’t help the slight pout. She has no money, no clothes, no food, no shelter. She’ll be sleeping on a bench or something tonight, not much rest.

“You did good work V,” Padre pats her shoulder as he leaves,” I’m sure I’ll have more jobs for you in the future, paying ones, of course.”

“Thanks again, Padre.”

She rubs a hand down her face, migraine still thumping around in her head. Between not eating and having her hearing aids in all day, her head feels on the verge of exploding.

“So, what’s the plan, jaina?”

“My plan, why do you wanna know my plan?”

“Because, you and I both know you’re up shit creek without a paddle here, V. No home, no family, no one to turn to. Night City ain’t a place that will let you get by on your own. Need people you can turn to, if you wanna survive.”

“And what, you wanna be my friend?” She raises an eyebrow, taken aback by just how kind and friendly he’s really been.

“Told you already, we got chemistry,” he grins again and it makes her smile, “be a crying shame to waste it.”

“Okay, friend, what do we do now?”

“You like chili?

“As a concept, sure.”

“Settled then, get you a hot meal, change of clothes, a shower ‘cause you fuckin’ need it, and crash with me tonight.”

“And tomorrow?”

“And tomorrow, we teach that pendejo a lesson, sound good?”

“Sounds good to me.”

They’re all grins and smiles as they leave the parking lot, knocking shoulders together as they go, walking side by side down the neon lit streets. And she can feel it returning, that little buzz of hope she had in her chest when she first came here, the one she thought was beaten out of her by Sinclaire’s goons, it’s back and brighter than ever. Though not half as bright as Jackie’s smile as they turn a corner towards his mother’s house.

#cyberpunk 2077 #cp2077 #c2077 #female v #fem v #aidan v becker #aidan becker #can you feel the sun

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theradioghost · 5 years ago

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hey, can i pester you for some podcast recs? something with a good dose of humour and not too many episodes to catch up on. a sprinkle of queer romance would be a nice bonus. my fave so far is tsco starship iris, and i also loved greater boston, wooden overcoats, the bright sessions and caravan. and thanks always for all your great recs! you’ve brought many hours of joy into my life :)

Thank you!! <3 <3 You might like some of these!

We Fix Space Junk -- Two intergalactic repairpeople -- a knowledgeable cyborg veteran and a former socialite on the run -- travel the universe meeting people and fixing things at the behest of the terrifying intergalactic corporation they’re trying to work off their debts to. Hilarious British sci-fi sitcom featuring Evil Space Capitalism, many many wonderful AI characters, and an absolutely delightful teenage space wasp-human-cow hybrid princess who is probably off accomplishing her grandiose special destiny somewhere offscreen while the main characters deal with things like their bosses possibly trying to kill them (again).

Death by Dying -- People have a tendency to die in odd ways in the small town of Crestfall, Idaho. Luckily the town also has an Obituary Writer, an eccentric and nameless but impeccably stylish fellow whose closest friend is the Angel of Death, and who has a knack for solving murders even though that’s definitely not his job description. Throw in walrus haikus, extremely rude ravens, Something Mysterious And Malevolent Lurking In The Dark Woods Outside Of Town, disappearing childhood homes, silent nuns, ghost bicycles, and three man-eating cats, and you get something like a delightful cross between Wooden Overcoats and Lemony Snicket. (Also, OW is peak Canonically Bisexual Dumbass.)

Less is Morgue -- Riley is a paranoid, reclusive teenager with a fondness for conspiracy theories who lives in their parents’ basement. They’re also a predatory ghoul who feeds on human flesh. Evelyn is a cheerful, outgoing young woman with questionable tastes in media. She’s also a ghost, ever since she was killed by a falling stage light at a Nickelback concert 16 years ago. And since Riley dug up and ate Evelyn’s corpse, they’re roommates! Will they ever manage to record a coherent episode of their podcast without something going ridiculously wrong and/or Riley eating one of the guests? Probably not!

Victoriocity -- The steampunk buddy-cop comedy-mystery thriller you never knew you needed but definitely do! Featuring Inspector Fleet, a grouchy, extremely driven policeman looking for the murderer of the Empire’s greatest inventor, and Clara Entwhistle, an even more driven and unfailingly upbeat rookie journalist who has just arrived in the island-spanning, bizarre cityscape of alt-history Even Greater London. Come for some of my favorite sarcastic British narration since Adams and Pratchett, stay for characters-are-begrudgingly-forced-to-work-together-until-they-come-to-genuinely-and-deeply-care-about-one-another-as-friends trope. (Also for Tom “Eric Chapman” Crowley as the aforementioned grumpy detective.)

Quid Pro Euro -- From one of the other leads of Wooden Overcoats, this doesn’t have a typical plot as such but has made me laugh so hard I pulled a muscle despite the fact that I know nothing about the EU. Which is what this near-surreal, Look Around You-style comedy is about: Felix Trench’s vision of a simultaneously hilarious and terrifying alternate European Union, seen from the perspective of a serious of educational tapes from the ‘90s predicting what the EU would look like in the 21st century. It’s hard to describe this show in any way that does it justice, but it’s incredibly funny.

Time:Bombs -- A miniseries by the exalted creators of Wolf 359, which (because they are madmen) was written, recorded, and produced in the space of one week. Also, a comedy about an NYC bomb retrieval squad on New Year’s Eve, most of whom are just trying to get through the night while their leader attempts to break a record for most bombs cleared before the calendar ticks over. Chaos and hilarity ensure.

Superstition -- Wisecracking, bi, Jewish, definitely-a-private-eye-just-don’t-check-her-qualifications Jacqueline St. James receives a message from her father, which is weird, because her parents disappeared years ago. Following the trail leads Jack to Superstition, Arizona, a town in the middle of the desert where everyone’s got secrets, assorted ghosts/monsters/cryptids harrass the locals, and the missing persons rate is the highest in the nation. As a protagonist Jack is Looking For Trouble And If She Cannot Find It She Will Create It, so while Superstition isn’t a comedy per se, it’s got a fair share of laughs and is also just so, so excellent in general.

Standard Docking Procedure -- A self-declared hopepunk scifi workplace comedy about the somewhat dysfunctional staff of Pseudopolis Station, effectively a high-tech interstellar truck stop. It’s funny and heartwarming, nothing truly bad happens, and Julia Schifini is there.

Solutions to Problems -- A morally-questionable human named Janet who has defintely never done any illegal time travel and an easygoing, physically indescribably alien who likes to go by Loaf host an intergalactic advice podcast. Are you tired of your species’ insistence on solving everything via ritual combat? Not sure how to talk to your partner about whether body-swapping has a place in your sex life? Dealing with being a superpowered teenager summoned into being by the collective will of an apocalyptic groupthink cult? Janet and Loaf have you covered! Provided that Janet’s on-and-off girlfriend, the AI who supplies the air they breathe, doesn’t kill them all first. Oddly heartfelt comedy in the form of a relationship advice radio show from the Space Future.

Middle:Below -- This show’s tagline is “Remember: bad things WILL happen,” and that is basically a lie. This is actually a short, incredibly heartwarming and frequently funny show about Taylor Quinn, the only human with the ability to pass between the land of the living (aka the Middle) and the land of ghosts (the Below). Meaning, of course, that the dead call on him to fix all their problems, with the help of a girl named Heather, a ghost named Gil, and a cat named Sans. (Also, some of the most comparatively wild live shows I’ve ever heard.)

Inn Between -- Ever wonder what fantasy characters get up to between adventures, during all that time they seem to spend at inns? This show skips all the adventuring, question, and action, instead focusing on the quiet moments between where what is Definitely Not A D&D Party meet and progress from bickering strangers brought together by circumstance to close-knit found family -- all at the inn, of course. (Lots of queer folks in here also, although there’s no romance at least in the first couple seasons.)

The Godshead Incidental -- A relatively new but very exciting and so far really enjoyable show!! Following a young woman who writes an advice column through her life in a familiar, and yet strange city where anyone might be a minor god -- your editor, your landlord, that weird guy on the street who was shouting about how he’s the God of Memory and you got into a fight with him and now you keep forgetting everything? Also, your apartment is full of pigeons now because you found out the aforementioned landlord is secretly the god of doorknobs and he’s panicking. Good luck! (Starring Ishani Kanetkar, aka Arkady from Starship Iris!)

Gal Pals Present: Overkill -- Madison, a middle schooler at a Girl Scout camp, agrees to play a game with a somewhat tastelessly bright-pink Ouija board. However, Madison doesn’t know that she’s a natural medium, and now sarcastic mid-2000s 19-year-old Aya Velasquez has joined the many ghosts who are for some reason haunting scenic Harding Park. Aya, however, will not rest until she can solve her own murder (and possibly get to know that other ghost girl a bit better, who says romance has to stop when you’re dead?). Absolutely hilarious writing of a narrator who is almost definitely wearing spectral Uggs during the entire show.

Dark Ages -- The Rivercliffe Museum of Mostly Natural History is one of the finest museums anywhere! Or it would be, if anyone ever actually visited it. Or maybe if the staff weren’t a disastrous and dysfunctional collection of criminals, weirdos, wannabe immortals, idiot bisexuals who can’t just admit they like each other, and one extremely uptight elf with no people skills. Also, it would probably help if the legendary and fearsome Dark Lord, finally returned from his millennia of dormancy to complete his prophesied conquest of the world, wasn’t hanging around watching the chaos unfold because they’ve got his crown on display. (Fantasy workplace comedy with a theme song that did not need to go that hard?)

Brimstone Valley Mall -- It’s mid-December 1999, and at one mall in South Central Pennsylvania, a group of demons are going about their evil work -- namely, working at various dinky kiosks and restaurants, hoping of achieving every demon’s dream of getting to work at Hot Topic, trying not to do too much evil because Earth is way more fun than Hell and no one wants to get promoted back home, and preparing for their band's triumphant opening performance at the upcoming Y2K party. Just one problem: their lead singer is missing. Another absolute masterwork from The Whisperforge.

Arden -- 10 years ago, Hollywood starlet Julie Capsom vanished into the woods of northern California, leaving behind a car containing a human torso that may or may not have belonged to one Ralph Montgomery. Now, private eye Brenda Bentley and reporter Bea Casely, both of whom were among the first at the scene and both of whom have their own very strong opinions on the case, are setting out to solve the mystery on their true crime podcast, Arden. Providing, of course, they can stop arguing with each other long enough to solve it. (Or, a not-really-parody-but-definitely-comedy “true crime” podcast where the crime is a retelling of Romeo and Juliet -- and even knowing that, it’s still a genuine mystery with twists and a surprise ending! -- and the hosts are wlw Beatrice and Benedick from Much Ado About Nothing. In other words, it’s perfect. Season 2 is upcoming soon and is adapting Hamlet!!)

Alba Salix/The Axe and Crown -- Another high fantasy workplace sitcom, this one a medical comedy about the titular not-very-personable witch who runs the kingdom’s House of Healing and the various shenanigans she gets into, between her somewhat scatterbrained sister and brother-in-law the king and queen and her assistants, an overly-whimsical fairy and a wannabe monk forced to do community service. The same feed contains The Axe and Crown, a spinoff set in the same world that manages to simultaneously be a sitcom about the staff of a local pub trying to stave off foreclosure and come up with schemes to beat their business rivals, and a heartfelt story about gentrification and recovery starring a gay veteran with PTSD? Which is possibly one of my favorite podcasts? (Also contains one of the most unbelievable crossover cameos possible: Leon Stamatis.)

The Adventures of Sir Rodney the Root -- Also a high fantasy comedy! When a witch transforms heroic Sir Rodney into a small piece of wood, his closest companion Sir Gilbert must set out to cure him by collecting several highly powerful and dangerous relics, accompanied by a snarky dwarfen thief, an imperious princess, a slightly creepy human child raised by fairies, a picky elf sorcerer, a dead unicorn possessed by the ghost of a stoner, and a bard who breaks the fourth wall too much for his own good. So far as I can tell, nobody is straight.

The Amelia Project -- A dark comedy about a secret organization that helps people fake their deaths. Which is honestly a pretty full summary, barring the two important points that 1. this show contains possibly the most continuity-warping crossover event of all time (it’s the center point of this absolutely chaotic diagram), and 2. in one episode Felix Trench plays a character named Bartholomew Fuckface Chucklepants Knucklecracker.

#podcast recs #bobbie recommends things #yujacha #asks #my posts

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atrixfromice · 4 years ago

Text

Amazing event gives me back my joy of living

a Today I couldn't do much cos electricity was out for maintenance and it's until now it just came back. I felt like I was a bit tired because I But I have this super awesome news I want to share and I can hardly contain my excitement about it OOOOHHH MON DIEU!!!!

OOOOH MON DIEUUU!!!! Even..

...I even don't know how to start! XD I'm so happy and excited I think I'm going to die from happiness and go do heaven! Sorry, I'll breath deeply to calm down a bit lol

Ok, the news is I've been starting doing a cool artistic project regarding my original characters. And what inspired me to do it was the most wonderful, incredible, awesome thing ever:

Is that I'VE FOUND VOICES OF SOME OF THE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS I'VE CREATED!!!! :D

The characters from my webcomic Laura Laurent, his mom and his day, and also for other of my stories...

I'VE FOUND FAIKEL'S VOICE!!!

Yes! THE VOICE!

The one I've always imagined in my mind and I've always dream to find it since I created this character! And I feel sooooo....so full of energy, excitement and ecstasy since then.

And how I found it? Well, is a long story but I'll try to summarize to not boring you with a long text.

I've always loved to make voice acting. When I was a kid and a teen I used to have a lot of fun with my siblings emulating voices of our favorite catoon characters. And also when told them bed time stories I used to talk like the characters I was reading about LOL

I did it on school some times, and my teachers and classmates were amazed at how good I was for some of them they said XD

I also liked animating.But I always kept it to myself and the peeps who lived in my city.

I actually thought about sharing it online, but then unfortunately, I found someone who I appeciated a lot and I looked up to, who was very harsh on my voice acting and animation, that it made me stop doing both for a good while.

But I came back to make voice acting demos a few months ago, when covid made me lost my job and I got broken up, to cope with my depression and loneliness regarding love and my worry of not being able to pay my bills.

But it was until a few days ago I actually thought of sharing this kind of work I do (animation/voice acting) with the world.

Everything started because I had an fervent carving to hear one of my characters saying something cos I thought it was going to sound cool. So I tried recording myself as my character, and then I shared the record to a friend, cos

he's one of the few people I know who enjoys talking about voice acting.

And I was so excited when he told me my voice as my character Laura was very cool! Then he suddenly he said, "hey pal, if you want I can help you with the male voices" because I have told him before what happened with Pierre, Jupiter and Laura's dad, and that I had no voices for them yet. So I said "oh thanks buddy!" and we had a lot of fun sharing each other's records, and he even recorded me something in real time about how he think a couple of my characters would sound like, and I said yes "this is the voice I imagined for these characters."

And that inspired me start working on an animation for a short scene.A couple of days after that, I talked to another friend about my animation, who was so excited to help me to make the voice of other of my characters. And I was so happy! You can't imagine!

I'll just post this here as a souvenir for posterity:

On Dec 15, 2020, one of my greatest, coolest, most longuest dreams have come true! To find the perfect voices for some of the original characters I've created.

And It gives me a joy that is inneffable and I never thought I’d find, because now I don’t need to imagine how my characters voice could sound like.

I don’t need to to research and listen to every show and movie to see if I can find a voice that sounds more or less like the one I have in mind for my character, or like the one but feeling bad cos I know I’ll never have the money to pay that actor or actress.

I don’t need to imagine nor yearn nor wonder anything...

....Because I can hear it!!! :D

I can make my characters say whatever the heck I want them to say! XD And that, that in itself is priceless!

Is so amazing, freeling, and spiritually rewarding, cos it makes you feel your character is alive! Even without animation, because the voice in itself it’s what conveys the majority of a character’s personality. I feel so at least.

Plus, right now with having found the voices, I finally I will be able to bring my characters to life in animation as I always dreamed.

So yeah, make fun of me and say this is silly and I’m overreacting with my emotions in this post. And I know someone will say that ( it never miss the insensitive one on the internet who will says that) But most of you will never know what is like to have a dream, and spend more than two decades working hard and looking up for the tools to make it true.

I have already a couple of audio records for this project, but I'll not share them until the animation is done, because doing so attracts bad luck and bad omen! XD

I'm not supersticious, but I’m smart enough to learn from my mistakes and past experiences.

I still remember what happened when I shared the voice demo I had for Pierre! And whom I shared to told me it sucked (You can see the story HERE ) and that really broke my heart cos i DO liked this voice, and it discouraged me to animate Pierre.

So at least I'd like to my happiness the most possible, and having fun working on this project. And when it's done, if I share and people are mean with it and say it sucks and it’s annoying or that the voices sound like Edd Whyn and it’s annoying. It will be not that bad cos least the project will be done and I'll have been enjoyed it and have been had fun with! And nobody will take that away from me ^^

Plus, I don’t think I’d ever find any other thing that will give me happiness and joy of living like this one! This is helping my hurt and lonely heart, little by little. So let me enjoy for a while at least *chuckles*

#late night ramblings #traditional animation #voice acting #amateur voice acting #art project #this cured my depression #I hope someone will not ruin it

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breg21 · 6 years ago

Text

My Baby, Your Baby...Our Baby?

This is for @buginetta

A couple months back she had posted a little snippet where Adrien and Marinette have to take home a baby from school for a project, which leads to a reveal. I asked if I could make a one shot out of it, and here we are!

Sorry, that it took so long! It’s been collecting dust in my google drive for a while.

This takes place shortly after Gladiator. I hope you enjoy!

Ao3 Fanfiction

Being on time for class was a rare oddity that Marinette was hardly blessed with. So she understood Alya's shocked gaze as she took her seat next to her best friend, ten minutes before class.

Alya's eyes were glued to her best friend. "Girl, what happened? How are you actually on time for once?"

Marinette's mind combed through for excuse to give. "Uh... my manman woke me up super early. She really wants me to start coming to school on time, you know?"

The truth was that there had been an early akunma at 6:45 in the morning. By the time she and Chat were finished, she figured it was too late to fall back into bed. The akuma had been a particularly nasty one and took a while to defeat. She was lucky she had made it to school at all. She was so exhausted.

But hey, she'd be able to see Adrien at least. That right there brightened her mood for the day entirely. Slouching back into her seat to relax for a couple minutes before class started, Marinette couldn't help the love sick gaze that crossed over her eyes at the sight of Adrien's head— well, the back of it, but still.

"Alright, class." Ms. Bustier clapped her hands together to draw their attention to her. "Today, we're starting a new project, and I need everyone's undivided attention. We have a lot to cover and it'd be best to jump right in."

Everyone reluctantly turned their eyes to their teachers, causing her to smile wide. "Great. Today, or rather, for this full weekend, you'll be taking home an electric baby to take care of. And yes, before you ask, you will be partnered. I already have everyone paired up."

Everyone groaned in annoyance.

But as her classmates seemed upset by the thought of bringing home a baby, Marinette couldn't help but bounce with joy in her seat at the thought that maybe, just maybe she could be paired with Adrien.

The teacher grabbed her grading tablet, finding the names easily and began to list them off.

"Sabrina and Chloe."

Please.

"Ivan and Mylene."

Oh, please let her have this.

"Alix and Kim."

If she had any of Tikki's luck rubbed off on her, please let it be this.

"Rose and Juleka."

Just, please.

"Nino and Alya."

She only wanted this one thing to go right.

"Adrien and Marinette."

Just as she was about to bolt up out of her seat to shout out in excitement, Alya— being the good friend that she was— wrapped her hands around her waist and mouth, keeping Marinette from embarrassing herself from shouting out in joy.

The rest of Ms. Bustiers words were drowned out by Marinette's imagination running wild. They were gonna have a baby together! Albite— not a real one, but still! This was a step, then maybe they'd start dating and fall in love and get married and have three kids, a dog, maybe a cat and a hamster named-

"Girl!"

Marinette bolted up straight at her nickname. Turning to face Alya, she glared at her best friend's sly smirk. "The teacher said to go move next to your partner." She emphasized the word as her eyes landed on Adrien, who was staring at her with a soft smile.

She blushed at the word partner. They'd be together for an entire weekend. Just her, him, and the baby.

But wait. What would she do if an Akuma attacked? How would she get away? And it wouldn't be fair to Adrien if she just disappeared out of nowhere to be left with the baby.

Oh, no. This was going to be a disaster, disaster, disaster…..

She was suddenly pushed halfway out of the chair by her friend, telling her to "move it, already."

Scowling at Alya, Marinette gathered her bag and bolted from her seat moving to sit next Adrien, excitement flooding her entire being as she tried to contain any quivering her legs wanted to do at that particular moment.

"Hey, Marinette. How're you?" The soft smile he gave her was so adorable and easy. "You excited for the project?"

I'm excited to be by you.

Shaking the thoughts from her mind, she tried to prevent the stumbling of her words, but her tongue wouldn't corporate. "Yesh-yea….yes. I mean, yes. I'm definitely ready for the project."

Oh, this weekend was gonna be hard.

The grin he threw her made the thumping in her heart escalate. "Great. If you don't mind, maybe we should do Friday until Saturday at my place, and then Sunday until Monday at yours? If that works with you, of course."

What was her name again? "Few fure? I-I mean, you s-sure? That me good with...I uh.. Uh." She breathed through her stutter. "Tha-that sounds good to m-me."

That smile was gonna be the death of her. She swore it. "Awesome. I'll make sure that my bodyguard knows." He quickly shot off a text to whom she assumed, was said bodyguard.

Oh, if this was a dream, she didn't ever want to wake up.

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

The babies were handed out within minutes. Electrical dolls that look creepily similar to a baby when seen from afar, but up close just looked wrong.

"So, what should we name her?"

She looked up at Adrien, who was holding out the fake birth certificate, ready to write down the name of the unborn child. Would it be weird if she used the name that she planned for their actual child? Worth the risk. "Um… Emma?"

If she hadn't been so close, she would've missed the jolt that ran through his spine at the mention of the name, and she immediately knew why.

It was his mother's name.

In all honesty, that was why she had chosen the name in the first place. She knew how much his mother meant to him, and she thought the name was beautiful all on its own, so why not?

He cleared his throat as he began scribbling the name down. "That's… a nice name. It was my mother's, well, Emilie, actually. But, yeah."

Warning bells started ringing in her head as she realized what a mistake it might've been to go for that name. "I'm sorry! I didn't think.. We d-don't ha-"

He chuckled softly. "Marinette, it's okay. I like it. You're all good."

She sighed internally. "O-okay. Sorry."

He took Emma and started to buckle her up in the car seat. "No worries. Now, let's figure out how to snap her into this. I've actually never used a car seat before."

It was easy enough, thankfully, and soon they were ready to go just as the limo pulled up. Marinette had to remind herself to breathe. That she could do this. When her uncle visited the one time for the competition, she talked to him normally the whole day right before he got akumatized, she could do it now, too.

She could.

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

Maybe she couldn't.

But she was still trying as she left the limo with the baby carrier in hand. Adrien had opened her door— how was he so sweet— and then guided her into his overly large house.

They were soon the in the foyer, meeting his father who stood at the top of the staircase, hands clasped behind his back; Eyes stone cold as he just stared at the two teens. "Nahitle has informed me of your assignment with this pretend baby. I've had her clear your schedule for the duration. But understand that this is a one-time thing, and your schedule will return to normal once this is over."

He left without another word. Marinette felt absolute hallow at the man's presence, but looking to Adrien, she could tell that he was used to his stand-offish behavior and had grown accustomed to such.

That honestly broke a little part of her heart inside. No one deserved that kind of coldness from a parent.

But the smile he forced for his father turned real when he went to look at her. "Sorry about my father. He can be… brash at times."

She offered a sweet grin of her own, wanting to give him reassurance that she wasn't brought down by his father. "I-it's okay, Adrien. I don't scare too easily."

He laughed, and reached for the baby carrier to take into his own hands. "Just around me, right?" He teased and before she could even blink, let alone defend the statement, he shook whatever thoughts had clouded his head and apologized as he realized what he had said. "I mean, uh, actually-"

She blushed, but was quick to wave him off, letting him know that she knew it was all in play and that she didn't mind him one bit teasing her a little. "You're good. Now, come on, we should probably settle Emma down in your room and wait for her to need something."

She felt so alive as she saw the sparks of joy light up and grew into a tame fire within the emeralds of his eyes.

She also felt alive when he grabbed her hand— their hands were touching, actual skin to skin contact, and oh it felt so unbelievably nice— and pulled up the staircase and to his room. His hand was soft and warm, and calmed her heart and made it race at the exact same time with sparks that ignited on her skin at his touch.

She was never gonna wash this hand again.

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

The first hour went by pretty smoothly actually. Emma had only wanted to be fed once, which Adrien had insisted he took the first duty. It took some convincing, but she agreed eventually. The baby was quiet within minutes of being fed and having a bottle to its mouth.

Everything went haywire in her mind at how caring he was holding Emma.

Now, hours later, Marinette had changed Emma once, Adrien once, and they both took turns with rocking her every other time when she cried for attention. With night falling over the city, and the baby making soft cooing noises, Adrien and Marinette had put in a movie at random and were sprawled out on the couch as the characters on the screen were mutually pinning over each other while the other didn't have any idea.

"Hey, Marinette?"

She was jolted out of her movie consumed mind to see Adrien watching her with blatant curiosity and weary.

She moved to reach for the remote, pausing the movie and sat upright to give him her full attention, blue locked on green, as she tried to keep herself steady and grounded in her thoughts. Because she just couldn't get lost in those beautiful green eyes when he seemed to need to ask her a serious question.

She just couldn't. Did he know what he did to her?

She'd be lost for hours, with very little way to get back.

Clearing the back of her throat, she asked, "Yeah?"

Adrien seemed to be double thinking his question, as if he was wondering if he should really be asking what he obviously really wanted to. He took a few deep breathes, trying to stay firm in whatever decision he had made. "Why are you so nervous around me?"

Oh.

Oh, her mind breathed, and her heart did a little tight squeeze along with it. Her face burned with heat that started to spread right underneath her skin and colored it fiery red.

But, instead of answering— and in the case that she was wrong as to why he was questioning her— she could only get out, "What?"

He shrugged nonchalantly, his face was anything but. "I'dunno. I just noticed that you sometimes are nervous around me and stutter and everything. I mean, I know we're friends, I don't think you hate me or anything. It's just I worry sometimes that I make you uncomfortable at times, maybe it's because of my dad? I just, I just wanna know if there's anything I could do to make you feel more at ease around me."

Of course, he would think about her like that, because that was just who he was. Her brain started up and running with the thought that this amazing, sweet, caring boy noticed her stutter and nervousness around him and was wondering just what happened that made her be like that around him.

This innocent boy was gonna be the death of her. She was sure of it.

She forced her courage forward as she took her bottom lip between her teeth. "That's not it, Adrien. You're right in the fact that you're my friend, but not for the reason I'm so nervous around you."

He looked confused, and she wanted to run her thumb out the wrinkle that had started to form between his brows to smooth it out. He scootched closer to her, their knees brushing lightly against each other. He took her hands into his and her brain almost exploded. "Then… then what is it? I really wanna know. Maybe I can help in some way?"

Her air decided to leave her then and there. Her body must've thought oxygen and breathing was irrelevant, because it was becoming harder and harder to breathe. What was she supposed to even say to that? How would she even start? Every nerve ending felt like it was on fire and she didn't know how to stop it or how to just-

"I have a crush on you."

Oh,

Oh no,

That was out loud.

Oh, dang. She definitely had not meant to say that out loud.

He jumped back as if he had been slapped by her sudden outburst— not by her actual words, she knew. Adrien would never be that cruel— as shock filled his face, face now turned to look out on the floor in front of him, but not actually looking at anything. "Oh."

She quickly backpedaled, "I'm so`sorry, Adrien. I hadn't meant for that to come out."

He gulped a few times before steadying himself. "It's...it's okay, Marnette. I just didn't know."

She gave a dry laugh. "Trust me, I know." He grimaced and she shot him an apologetic stare. "Sorry, everyone makes fun of how I'm so obvious with it."

He moved closer to her once more, patting her knee. "It's alright. I'm sorry I didn't know." He inhaled, and exhaled. "I should be completely open and honest with you. There's a.. ..girl that I work with that I really have strong feelings for." He swallowed. "And..and I've liked her for a long time now-"

Her smile was sad, but she tried. "Adrien, it's okay. You don't have to explain."

He stopped her, fierceness settled heavily in his tone. "No, I want you to understand, she's beautiful, and strong, and smart, so creative." She felt her heart drop, "But, Marinette, so are you. You're not any less than that. She rejected me recently. And a part of me still wants to try to win her over, but I don't know anymore."

She wanted him to know that she wasn't upset by his words. '"Adrien, I promise-"

"Marinette, please," His eyes were pleading, "Just let me finish what I need to say, okay?"

She nodded.

He seemed to be able to breathe again. "I care about her, I love her, but she's not interested, there's someone else that she likes. I don't think I could really do a relationship right at the moment, especially when my heads up in the air as to if I wanna try one last time, I also wouldn't want you to think you're the rebound girl or second choice. Because you deserve better than that. I need time. And I gotta be honest, even with that, I'll always love her, she'll always have a piece of my heart, I can't stop it, no matter how much I want.

But, I promise you, I'd never cheat on you. If we get together, one day, I'd give you my all, and, I-I'm honestly not sure wha-what that may all be, but you have to understand that a part of my heart does belong to someone else, and might always. And hopefully with time..."

She was the one to take his hands this time with a sincere smile, cutting off his babbling. "Adrien, sometimes honesty and a chance is enough. I'll give you space, well, after this weekend," She looked to the doll in the carrier. "And I'll let you figure out whatever you need to. I just appreciate you being open with me."

He began to rub little circles in the back of her hand. "Thanks, Marinette. It might be a while, and I hope no matter what, that we can remain friends. And for what it's worth, I'm really flattered that you like me. You really are amazing."

She smiled. "Of course we'd remain friends. And thank you."

She was pulled into a hug, and boy did she feel bliss being wrapped in a warm embrace with Adrien Agreste. It was more than any of her dreams could come up with, because it was actually real.

But, of course, as her luck would have it, that was when the baby decided to cry.

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

The weekend went by pretty fast after that.

Emma had her fussy times, that was for sure, but from what she heard with Nino and Alya, they didn't have it nearly as bad. Thank goodness. The other blessing was no Akuma attacks. That was the biggest relief.

They were now in her room, she at her desk as she held Emma in her arms and swiveled side to side in her chair to try to keep boredom at bay, while Adrien lounged on the chaise, swiping through his phone at whatever social media platform he was on.

She didn't know a project like this could get so boring.

The first night at his house, she woke them a total of only three times— each taking turns— and it wasn't too hard crawling out of bed to take care of her, she was pretty sure it had been harder on Adrien than her, seeing as she was the night owl between the two.

Speaking of beds, the thought brought a blush to cheeks, Adrien had insisted she take the bed while he took the couch. After several minutes of arguing like a married couple— shut up brain— he relented, and had suggested that they should both just take the bed.

One could only imagine what that did to her. How her heart had pounded in her ears, and her stuttering had gone from fifty to a hundred real fast. It took everything in her just to agree.

And when they woke up cuddling each other, well, that was a whole other situation for later. But what she would say, is that it consisted of two, blushing teens, and trying to apologize a million times to the other.

"Marinette, are you okay?"

She was brought out of her thoughts at the model's voice. She blinked a few times. "Huh, uh, yeah. Sorry, lost in thought."

A warm smile slipped on his lips and melted away the worry that had been wavering in his eyes. "Okay. Do you need me to take Emma?"

She nodded. "Sure." that would give her the time to be able to take a shower, something she hadn't been able to do since getting Emma, seeing as she was too afraid to leave the baby's side. Even though she trusted Adrien with her life, it was still a scary thought. "I really need to take a shower anyways."

Was this how motherhood was always like? If so, she was in for a long haul.

Leaving her chair, she walked the short distance and placed the baby in Adrien's arms, making sure the head was secure before all else.

Once tucked safely into her daddy's arms, Emma continued to make little cooing sounds as if she was the most content baby to ever be. "Thanks, Adrien."

"No problem, she's my responsibility, too."

Marinette quickly ran to grab a towel before going to the bathroom and locking the door behind her as she always did.

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

He had Emma lying on his chest when he heard it.

The boom and screams of an akuma.

Of course, just when Adrien had thought they were gonna get a break from the stupid butterflies.

Grabbing Emma, he went to her carseat, and buckled her in, making sure she was secured before going downstairs to the bathroom door and knocking. "Marinette, there's an akuma on the loose, and my father is demanding that I come home."

He heard a soft sigh before she answered, "Okay. Make sure you get there safe."

He breathed in relief. "Thanks, Marinette. I'll make it up to you by covering the whole night shift."

He scurried away before she could say anything else.

He found an alleyway close by to transform, and quickly went into the heat of the battle, hoping that Ladybug would get there soon so he could get back to Marinette and the baby.

It was a weird thought, but definitely not an unpleasant one.

Marinette realized her mistake the moment she stepped out.

She was left alone with the baby. A baby that only she and Adrien could calm with the bracelets that were wrapped around their wrists.

This… this was not good.

"Tikki!"

The little creature fluttered out from her hiding spot, worry etched onto her face. "This isn't good, Marinette."

She moaned as she buried her face in her hands. "I know." She huffed. "I didn't even think. I know how strict his dad can be, so I didn't want to make him wait any longer than he had to. But now what do I do!?"

Tikki sighed. "This isn't an ideal situation, but we have to make do with what we have, Marinette. You're gonna have to suit up and I'll make some modifications and add a baby carrier to the front of your suit. The straps will be connected to the suit, so all you'll have to do is get her tucked in and she'll be safe."

Marinette stared to rub her temples. This was not good, not good at all. "Okay, okay. We gotta do this." Grabbing the baby, she held the doll to her chest. "Spots on."

Once she made sure the baby was secured, she held the yo yo over her head, tossing it to wrap around a nearby building and swung off, in pursuit to find the akuma, and her partner.

She could only hope Chat would understand when she showed up with a fake baby strapped to her chest.

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

Chat had been through a lot in his life, from a cold-hearted father, to his mother disappearing, to having a strange creature show up in his room randomly one day and announce that he was gonna be a superhero.

He thought he had seen it all, and was prepared for whatever life was going throw at him next.

But life liked to prove him wrong.

Because not even five minutes after he had begun to battle this akuma alone— heartbreak was its name apparently, his girlfriend had broken up with him for another guy and Chat was pretty sure his akuma was in the necklace he had wrapped around his wrist— Ladybug had come swinging in, but not alone.

Oh, definitely not alone.

Because on her chest, was a fake baby in a portable carrier. A baby from their class. All functions of his brain just ceased to work, nothing was working and everything came to a slow crawl before it completely stopped.

She was from his class. Ladybug was in his school, and she had the same project with him and she breathed the same air that he did, and oh gosh, what was he supposed to be doing?

Oh, right. The akuma.

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

He was gonna have to have a long talk with her later.

With the villain defeated, they landed on a nearby roof, catching their breaths after the tiring fight.

If Ladybug was in his class, he saw her every day, yet he didn't know it, and that gave a punch to his heart, because he wanted her so much, and if he could just finally be with her and with her so close…

But what about Marinette?

He hated his brain. Truly, hated it.

Ladybug doesn't like you. Marinette does. And you know that you could easily fall for the girl if you let yourself. You could.

But would that be really fair to Marinette? To not give her my full heart?

Honesty. That's what she cares about. She's said as much. Give her a chance. You don't have to let Ladybug go to let someone else into your heart. Give all that you can with Marinette. Put your all into her with what you can, it'll be enough, even when your heart is shared with someone else. Trust yourself.

Shoving the thoughts away, he focused on the situation at hand, he needed to talk to Ladybug about this. Feelings aside, they needed to discuss this above all else.

He wasn't sure exactly on how to start this conversation, so bluntly, he pointed to the baby and asked, "What's that?"

Ladybug was startled by his brash question. "W-what?" He watched as she cradled the head, making sure he couldn't see the face of the fake baby.

"That." He pointed more determined. "The baby. From Ms. Bustier's class."

Her mouth fell open as her eyes began to bludge out of her head, the underneath of her left eye twitching just slightly. "H..how do y-you know-"

"Because I was assigned the same project, too, bugaboo."

Her breath hitched at his confirmation at her thoughts. She moved the head closer to her chest, as if to protect it from the truth. From the possibility.

That didn't stop him from moving forward, eyes begging her to let him see. To let him know. The hope that bubbled in his chest was inflating with every step and he just wanted to know, to finally put them both out of this misery.

Her grip on the plastic head loosened as he drew near. He could tell that neither of them were really breathing, but really how could they in this situation?

When his claws were in reach of the doll, he moved the baby just enough to where he could see her face. Where he could see Emma's face.

"Em-ma." He choked out.

Ladybug— Marinette's— ocean blue eyes were glossed over with a fine shean of tears. "How do you know.."

He chuckled with water in his throat. "I think I'd recognized my own fake daughter, Marinette."

Her breath hitched even further. "Guess you would, huh? I feel so stupid."

He blinked as confusion took hold now. Was she… disappointed? "What-what do you mean?"

Emma decided to take that moment to cry, but it was her attention cry, so Marinette began to bounce in her place. "I've been rejecting you for you. I feel….I feel so dumb."

Oh, that was right. Marinette had a crush on Adrien, who was also Chat, and Chat had a crush on Ladybug, who was also Marinette, which meant by default that he had a crush on Marinette.

He had a crush. On Marinette. In love, to be more like, and she returned his feelings in the end. He was the boy she rejected him for. That was irony.

Everything came crashing down around him at once as he realized just what was in front of him, or who was in front of him, and he didn't waste another second before he was cupping her jaw and running his finger along her cheek bone. "Please, Marinette….can I….?"

She nodded at his nonverbal question.

Without hesitation, his lips were on hers and all he could taste, feel and understand, was warmth. Warmth, baked goods, sweet, and just a touch of something that was undoubtedly Marinette. Something that he would image was what home felt like.

And as she tilted her head just a little, he was a goner. Forget the world. Forget the villains. This was just them. Everything else paled in comparison.

It wasn't perfect, but he was quickly getting addicted to it, to her. He didn't want to stop being addicted either.

You could love her.

Oh brain, you've never been more right.

She pulled away, only to rest her forehead against his. "Wow."

He smiled. "Yeah."

That was when she pulled away, grin spread wide on her face. "Can you detransform? I need to do something."

He nodded as he saw her grip Emma tighter and whispered, spots off as he breathed, claws in.

In a flash of light, there stood Marinette, his shy, beautiful classmate, Marinette, and he could never want anyone else.

Her hand went to outstretched in front of her, out for him to take, eyes sparkling with mischief and her smile turning cattish. His heart seemed to like that. "Hi, I'm Marinette Dupain- Cheng. I've been in love with you since you gave me your umbrella. Sorry about stuttering around you all the time. My words just turn to mush with you."

He chuckled and took her hand. "Nice to meet you, Marinette. I'm Adrien Agreste. I've been in love with you since we defeated Stoneheart the second time. Perfect timing, huh?"

She threw her head back and laughed. "Yeah. Guess we're just lucky like that. For what it's worth, I'm glad it's you."

His laugh vibrated in his chest. "Me too."

She paused, but didn't drop his hand. "Maybe we could make up for lost time and go get an ice cream together later?"

With her hand still in his, he pulled her to him and pressed his lips soundly to hers.

"Yes."

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

The weekend finished out in a blink of an eye and they were back in Ms. Bistiers class, with all the other students sitting at their desks with their project partners.

Marinette and Adrien seemed to be the only ones awake, besides Rose and Juleka, and actually alive. Even Nino and Alya were slumped down on their desk, dead in their seats.

After the babies were given back to the teacher, and they were given their grade, the two teens looked on in excitement at their report, seeing an A- in bold red.

They passed with a high grade. Marinette couldn't help but feel some sort of accomplishment at that.

"Well, class." The teacher began as she stood in front of the room, "While you all seem pretty out of it, I'm proud to say that this was one of the best classes that I've had so far with this assignment. I'm very proud of you. Give your partner a congratulations. I think you've all earned it."

Adrien raised his fist, waiting for her to do the same. She did so, happily knocking her knuckles against his.

"Pound it."

Husband's bonus thoughts:

Ladybug arrives on the scene, baby in tow.

Hawkmoth looks through the eyes of the Akuma victim.

"Is that a baby?"

*Akuma victim slaps Chat*

"An actual baby? My gosh you are an irresponsible parent."

*Akuma victim punches Chat repeatedly into the ground*

"You should be ashamed of yourself."

*Tosses Chat over a building.*

"So shameful."

Husbands thoughts part II:

The two teens look to .

"A Minus! Why Minus, this thing is in perfect condition?!"

A knowing smile coming from their teacher.

"You don't take a baby to fight an Akuma."

In unison.

"How did you?!"

"Even the bad students are never as late as you two, Also you two don't even change your hair in costume."

Adrien and Marinette look at each other

"A MINUS IT IS."

#miraculous ladybug #ml #mlb #love square #ladynoir #adrienette

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