#made a mistake by watching lessons in chemistry

[cinewhore]

anxiety off the charts

[divaofmads]

MOB WIFE | JOEL MILLER

☠️It is inspired by an Italian mafia who turns into a mafia boss when a woman enters his life while he was a physics teacher.☠️

I'm not someone who has a mafia fetish, but I definitely have a fetish for imagining Joel Miller as a mafia or a teacher. ^^

☠️WARNINGS: ‼️18+ only‼️, Age Gap (early 20s/ late 30s), oral for male and female, bdsm, punishment, No Y/N, Betraying, Daddy Kink, Some Getting Harm, female reader, Joel turns very Creepy and Dark, Rough Sex, lovers to enimies, Sexual Violence, Crime, Blood, Murder, No Orgasm for you, Slang!, Language!!!

Note: I am an amateur for all these and apologize for any mistakes I made as English is not my native language.

Word: 15k+

~ Don't get inspired, just read and enjoy ~

Before becoming a mafia member, Joel was an academic in the thermodynamic department. He had a peaceful life. The only problem was the difficulty of the course he taught. Most of the time he would write questions on the board and no one would understand them. And those who thought they understood topics could not perform well in the exams. Luckily, you were there. You had an insatiable interest in chemistry and physics since high school. It was only natural that you would shine in this course, which was a mixture of the two subjects. For the past forty minutes, you would discuss topics one-on-one as if it were just the two of you in the class. You would go to his office after class and even though he had a lot of work to do, he would always make time for you. Sometimes, while discussing the effect of entropy on life, you learned details from your own lives, which brought you closer. Joel looked into your eyes like no one else had ever looked in. His eyes contained love, compassion, and happiness. As you realized his interest in you, regret, sadness and love appeared in your eyes. Because you hid your family. Everyone thought your last name was completely coincidental. You were a big liar and the consequences for that lie would be disaster for both of you.

After class ended, if your departure times were the same, you went to the front of the building where his office was located and waited for him. Although he was surprised to see you at first, after he got used to it, he would walk out the door with a smile. He had his laptop bag in one hand, his jacket draped over the finger of his other hand and placed it over his shoulder, your engineering books between your body and your arms, you were walking slowly down the tree-lined path. Even though you were brave, you were too shy to talk. He would say the first word to start a conversation. Sometimes, you got nervous when it came to your family. You had to lie. Your mother was a housewife, your father was a taxi driver. Since your financial situation was below average, you worked a part-time job. You couldn't leave your family. Despite everything, you had a happy family. While all these lies were coming out of your lips, the fact that your father killed your mother was harassing you. You felt trapped between all these lies and truths. Your face was down, emotions showing on your face. Joel, misunderstanding the reason for your discomfort, wrapped his arm around your shoulder and made suggestions to you.

But now you've changed a lot. You were not interested in the lesson anymore. Even though you seemed to be watching the board with your elbows on the table and your head supported by your hand, you were startled when Joel asked you a question.

It was another day when you weren't paying attention to class. Because there was a boy on your mind. He was obsessed with you and he knew who you were. He knew who you were in love with. If you didn't go out with him, he would tell everyone who you really were. All your lies would come out and Joel would hate you. Your friends would stop seeing you or anyone who wanted to take advantage of your power would become your friend. In fact, the boy's father was using him. They were rich and wanted to strengthen their company by taking support of you which is the member of respectable mafia family.

You frowned as you looked at the second law of thermodynamics written on the board, thinking about what the boy had told you. Entropy is the thermal energy term that best describes life and death. While this topic should interest you, your gaze is actually proof that you are not in class, and your flinching and stuttering whenever he asks you a question was really getting on Joel's nerves. He was aware that your capacity was not ordinary like others. He was also aware that if he worked on you at this young age, you could be one of the good scientists of the future. What happened to you? He had to find out.

"I want you to leave the classroom." Joel said while writing a question on the board. At first, no one understood. Everyone was looking at him with blank stares. The chatty student in the class asked him who he was talking about. Pedro turned his body towards the students and looked at you. The others followed the lecturer's eyes. You were ashamed. You didn't deserve what Joel did to you. You could have defended yourself, but you didn't. Besides, you had more important things on your mind than thinking about these things. You were angry with him, you were hurt. You unzipped your bag and stuffed everything on the table inside. Your movements were loud. You were stepping on your heels hard as you left the classroom.

Joel called you. “Come to my office after class!”

Everyone was surprised at how the topic had come to be and how it had trapped you in its center.

You wanted to get out of the building and run as far as you could. There were plenty of places on campus where you could hide. You had gotten tired of crying over time. You were wiping your eyes with the backs of your fingers when you saw a beautiful cat watching you. You sniffed and looked at the cat. Had the goddess Bastet come? This nobility inspired you. You picked up your bag and took out your little sketchbook. You hadn’t picked up a pen in a long time to express your art. Your creative spirit had finally come out of the cell it had been locked up in for a stupid young man. The cat had long gone from you, but who cared? You had seen that cat with your mind, not with your eyes. The cat with black and cinnamon fur looking at you haughtily, was dancing in your notebook, searching for happiness in the thorny arms of gloom.

"Painting is another way of keeping a journal." He said. You knew who the voice belonged to.

So you responded without looking up. "Pablo Picasso."

When you saw him sit next to you, you compromised your comfortable position and show respect to your lecturer, despite what he did to you.

He asked without looking at your face. "Why didn't you come to me after class?"

"If I had go to office of someone who wronged me early, I might have said things I would regret later." you replied.

Joel was amazed by your sincere response. You had brought up the subject that bothered you without breaking the barrier of respect. It was a sensible, intelligent response for a twenty-one year old girl.

"Is it unfair that I am angry because you no longer pay attention to class, ignore the lessons, and lower your grades?"

You replied with a sad look. "I'm not special to you anymore, am I? I'm not different."

Joel looked at you. “Do you think I feel that way about you?”

He took the sketchbook from your hand and waved it in the air. "Who else could do this besides you?And I haven't seen that notebook on your desk in months."

He didn't answer your question. He really kept an eye on you all the time. While you were chatting with your friends in the cafeteria, while you were doing research in the library.

You pressed your lips together shyly and looked down. “I haven’t felt this cared for in a long time. Thank you, Mr. Miller.” It was your first smile after class.

"You don't have to date a guy like Bill in order to love yourself. Don't be fooled by his popularity. He's nothing. And neither are those who follow him."

You were very surprised. He had misunderstood your closeness with Bill, but he knew about you.

"I wish I could make you aware of yourself," he said with meaningful looks. "Then you would understand who you really belong to." You didn't know why, but you felt strange.

You stammered, "Thank you for this nice conversation, Mr. Miller," and stood up. "See you on Wednesday."

You felt his eyes still on you as you walked away. You couldn't see, but you knew. It was exciting. Maybe it was just the typical young woman erotomania you had in mind.

He gave you strength and you no longer cared about what Bill told you. Joel cared about you. Of course, as a mature man, he would see through the lies you told and support you.

You were as active as ever in Mr. Miller's classes. You asked questions and talked about the subject you had researched the day before. While you usually avoided classes, you now listened to the lesson alone, ignoring Bill.

By the time Joel put a question mark at the end of the equation he wrote on the board, you had already solved it and were shouting the answer with excitement. He turned to you and smiled with satisfaction,

"Not bad at all, well done," he said, making you proud among the other students.

But your disregard for him was starting to get on Bill's nerves. He wanted to have fun with you and make love. To satisfy his sexual desires. You were the most attractive girl in school and he had already made you his own. You were the chosen one for him. You should have been grateful to him and done everything he said as if you wanted to please your king.

One day Joel was sitting in his office checking the exams. He wasn't happy with any of them. The highest grade was DD and when he saw that he was about to cry with happiness(!) Of course your paper was at the top of the list. Although he was hoping for an A+, he was also very happy that you got a B+. It really gave him hope that you were starting to get back to your old self. But not everyone thought like him. He heard shouting from the window. A girl and a boy were getting into a verbal fight. And the girl's voice was familiar. He got up from his chair and went to the window. How upset he was to see you fighting with Bill! That young dude was in a relationship she didn't deserve.

The more you tried to fix things with Bill, the more he scolded you, thinking he was the worst. He was practically forcing you to do something. You were begging him, but he wasn't listening. If you didn't do what he said, it would be bad for you. The other students around were looking at you with question marks and astonishment. Joel couldn't stand the injustice you were doing to yourself, so he clenched his teeth and fists. He could go downstairs and make him regret the day he was born after taking him away from you. He should have spent the day in the hospital corridors because he upset you. If you were together, he would have a nice meal with you after school to celebrate your success. However, you were ignorant because of your age. A mature man knows how to treat a woman in front of him, and would satisfy a woman's desire for a relationship to the fullest. He wanted to make you experience this, but he also respected that he wouldn't want to spend his life with an old man.

Joel wanted to put all this 'blind love' nonsense aside. It was time for the woman he loved to open her eyes. He looked at you again from the window of his office and called out, his tone hardening.

"Come to my office right now!"

The students around you were also watching you curiously.

You looked up reluctantly and turned your head from side to side to show that you didn't want this. It would be best to surrender yourself to loneliness and get depressed. But Joel's angry gaze was more than enough to break your stubbornness.

You puffed out your cheeks and whined like a little girl.

Joel was pacing back and forth while waiting in the office. He was too anxious and nervous to wait. The moment the door opened and he saw you in front of him, he released his anger.

"What are you doing! Do you realize you're ruining your youth for someone like him!"

You were sobbing. "No matter what I do I can't stop him, I've done everything he wants but he wants more!"

Joel got angry. You heard how his tone got harsher. "I told you! I warned you! Why are you with that son of a bitch and not someone who loves you!"

The curse you heard from your teacher had stopped your crying, turning your sadness into confusion. Since it was lunch break, there was no one on the office floor, thank God.

No matter how much you were aware of the hatred in the man's eyes, the pain he was hiding inside had settled in your heart. You didn't know what to say. Should you tell him everything?

"Why does my life concern you!" You tried to ask for an explanation, but it was more of curiosity. You wanted to know the reason. If you knew, if he had told you the truth while looking into your eyes... Were you ready for a single word that came out of his lips?

Your question frustrated Joel. He kept his eyes fixed on the wall behind you, thinking. He muttered to himself.

"You're right. It's my fault," he said and motioned you to the door. You turned back to Joel, looking guilty and slowly walking towards the door. Before you walked out the door, you looked at him again and whispered.

"We don't have the relationship you think. There's a lot you don't know about me."

He frowned, finding it strange. “What do you mean?”

You were about to leave the office without answering when Joel grabbed your arm and pulled you to him, hugging you tightly. He was kissing your hair. “What’s wrong with you?” then he took your face in his hands. His gaze was stern. “I’m here for you, do you hear me? Tell me everything, no matter what.”

"I am that person," you said. Joel looked into your eyes as he stroked your hair, urging you to continue. "My last name is. I am the daughter of a famous mobster. Bill. Bill knows that, and his family is using me to get close to my family. He's threatening me with you. He's threatening to ruin your life and complain to my father. He knows how much I love you."

Joel pulled away from you in shock. “This can’t be happening, you…”

You were crying.

Joel grabbed your arm and pulled you back into his office, closing the door behind him. “Those stories you told, were they all lies?”

You wrapped your arms around your chest. You couldn’t look at him; your eyes were fixed on a spot on the floor. The corners of your eyes were red and swollen from crying. “Yes, but I wanted to hide from the sins of my family for once. I wanted people to look at me normally, Joel. I wanted them to meet me and spend time with me with neutral feelings. It wasn’t my choice to be born into this family. I’m so sorry.” Tears flowed down your cheeks, creating an image resembling roads.

Joel didn’t know what to do or say. All he knew was that he didn’t want you to cry in front of him. He wanted you to be strong. You shouldn’t have to answer to anyone. His fingers gripped your chin roughly and tilted your head up. He wanted to change the fear in your eyes. He suddenly brought his face closer to yours and brought his lips to yours. His tongue was exploring the inside of your mouth. His fingers on your jaw were now caressing your cheeks.

He pulled his head back and hugged you tightly. “Maybe you should have sought heaven in the arms of a man who desires you. Not by hiding behind lies.”

It was hard to talk while crying. "I couldn't drag you into the dark pit of my life, but I can't take it anymore. I had to tell everything to someone I trusted."

You were the woman Mr. Miller called 'my weakness'. Of course, it was impossible for him to resist you when you were talking to him like that. He looked at her with displeasure. His attitude was strict. "Don't worry about anything that bothers you. Just know that I am here for you and will always be here for you."

Without waiting for you to respond, Joel moved towards your lips, wanting all that waiting to end. He was kissing you so hard that he held you tightly by the waist, feeling that you couldn’t keep your balance. His fingers touched your cheek and squeezed your lips between them, making them part. This way, his tongue could easily find its place in your mouth. You felt ticklish as the papillaes rubbed against yours. His saliva was flowing from the tip of his tongue to yours; it was warm. Almost equal to his body temperature. Then he took his tongue out and tasted the outside of your lips. In the meantime, one of his hands was in your hair, pressing you against him. Your hair was under his fingers. He suddenly grabbed them and tilted your head back.

"Am I really the one you want to have your first with? Are you sure about that?" he asked with his passionate gaze.

"I've never been so sure," you responded. You liked his tough attitude.

He released your hair and took a step back, ordering you to take off your shirt. You started to undress at the same time. After throwing your clothes aside, Joel quickly moved towards your lips. This time he didn't intend to hold you back. You shivered when you felt his weight and strength all over your body. You stumbled back and your body fell into the soft fabric of the couch. Joel fell right on top of you. A small groan came out of your mouth in surprise. Then you both started laughing. But you couldn't help but make love. This man knew how to touch you. Joel buried his head in your neck and sniffed.

"Why can't I get enough of your scent?"

The scent of your skin made him hungry; its color decorated your skin like a maraschino cherry on top of a dessert. "If you only knew how hard I tried to smell that every time you passed me." His tongue traveled from where your pulse beat to her throat and then down to your collarbones. His hardening penis between your legs was slowly starting to put pressure on your outer lips. Your eyes widened in surprise. You didn't think he could be this hard. You moaned raggedly.

He put his elbow on the seat and supported it. He wanted to watch your surprise before he was about to go down to your breasts. His face was right above you now. He was looking down with pleasure.

"How do you feel? Do you like it? Don't you want more?"

Your eyebrows furrowed in pleasure. You bit your lower lip, showing how much pleasure you were getting.

Joel straightened up, pulled the waistband of your shorts and pulled them off along with your panties. He looked at the hairs that had just started to grow on your outer lips. Even though you apologized shyly, Joel really liked it. He leaned over you again. Your head was between his arms, supported by his elbows. His face got even closer to yours. He hugged you. You felt like you were in prison. Orgasm prison! His lips were on your cheek, his hot breath hitting your skin as he rubbed his penis against your inner lips. He released one hand and unbuttoned his pants, trying not to get off of you.

He placed his penis between your inner lips and began to rub it from your clitoris to the entrance of vagina. Joel's lips parted. His eyes squeezed shut. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "How can you be so hot and wet? We've only just begun. Did you desire me that much?"

You moaned every time Joel’s penis tip slid over your clit. “Oh, you moan so well. Perfect!” he said.

You heard the office door suddenly open and close. Shit! Someone had seen you. Joel got up quickly, fixed his clothes, and ran to the door and out. A few students in the hallway looked at him but didn’t understand what had happened. When he looked back at you in the office, you were startled by what he had said. “It was Bill.”

From that day on, Bill didn't use what he saw against you. It was as if he had forgotten what he saw. Even though Bill's family and your family were getting closer day by day, there were still things that weren't right. Still, the relationship between you and Joel was getting better day by day. You were bonding. You would meet secretly in his office during meal times, lock the door and have sex.

***

If there was one thing that was bad about hot summer days, it was the rain for Joel. The raindrops increased the humidity, making the air even more oppressive.

Her linen blouse was soaked and uncomfortable. He put the book down next to him, took off his T-shirt in one move, and threw it on the chair across from him. His now wheat-colored skin, shiny with sweat, looked quite inviting.

While looking at the heat transfer questions in the book in his hand, he was shaking the ash from the end of her cigarette into the beer residue in the glass on the coffee table next to him, and at the same time trying to solve a question about the heat exchanger unit of the tubular evaporator in his mind. As if his eyes were swearing loyalty to the page, he took the cigarette between his two fingers and squeezed it between his lips when he heard a notification on his phone. The light on the screen distracted him and made him look in that direction. It was on the coffee table. At first, he thought it was one of his friends who had written it and ignored it. He found the answer and turned the next page. But his eyes were on the phone. Perhaps the department head had announced that there would be a meeting early tomorrow. He liked to choose such inconvenient hours. After school, when you feel free, work doesn't leave you alone.

He took another sip from his cigarette. Then he threw it in the glass. It made sizzling sounds with appetite, as if the beer was waiting for it to do the same.

Joel used his index finger as a bookmark, placing it between the pages he was on, and leaned over to unlock his phone.

The message was from you. Since he didn't have such habits, he got excited and sped up his movements. He put the book where it was before and stood up. His eyebrows were furrowed with curiosity.

- Help

When Joel saw your message, he called you in a panic. You didn’t answer. He called again. The phone rang for a long time but you didn’t answer. Joel was about to go crazy. He was walking in the living room with harsh steps. He was muttering and cursing to himself. “What the fuck is going on!” While he was thinking about what to do, his phone rang. Anger, fear and curiosity made his hands shake. When he saw your name on the screen, he hurriedly answered it, afraid that you would hang up.

“What’s going on honey, talk to me!”

Although you answered him, Joel could only hear you sobbing, then screaming. Joel shouted insults at you to get you to come to.

“Tell me where you are now, I’ll come!”

You said, your voice trembling, that you were at Bill’s house. “I did something terrible, Joel. Please help me!” You shouted.

Joel muttered to himself, "My God, what did you do?" Then he tried to calm you down. He was telling you that everything would be okay. Everything would be okay. They would overcome all their problems together.

"Now calm down honey so I can figure everything out. Okay? If you calm down everything will be perfect."

"Do you believe everything will be okay?" you asked emotionlessly.

There was hope in Joel’s voice. He acted as if he was happy despite everything, but his expression was the opposite.

“Of course, honey. You should believe too. Send me your location now."

The house you were in was in the suburbs.

When he arrived home by car, an hour had passed. He was now in front of the door. He looked around first, then checked if there was any noise coming from inside. He knocked on the door. After waiting for a while, the door slowly started to open. You were standing in front of him like a dead woman. Your skin was pale, your under eyes were dark. Your eyes were red from crying. When Joel looked at your condition, he pushed you away in fear and entered. He saw blood stains on the floor from the door that opened into the living room. When he entered there, Bill's lifeless body was lying on the floor.

He whispered, "Jesus fuckin' Christ! What have you done!"

You were sobbing while trying to explain the incident. "He made a plan, he made me come here. He said he saw us and he would kill you. He would do worse things to me than killing. His father betrayed us and he worked with the enemy family to appear as my father's friend. He attacked me to possess me. After torturing me tonight, he was going to kill me. I had no other choice." It didn't seem like you were explaining the events to Joel, it was like you were begging God for forgiveness.

It was his first night of crime. You had killed someone and Joel witnessed everything that happened to you that night. He gathered you and your things, pulled you by the arm and you got in the car and drove away. You were not well. You were in no condition to talk. All you felt was nausea. Things were going to get messy between the two families. It was unclear where Joel would fit into this story. He got involved in this without meaning to. He took you to a motel, took your clothes off, took a shower, then laid you on the bed and thought about what to do.

He sat down for a while and closed his eyes, trying to calm down with your phone in his hand. And now, the move that changed everything was finally made. After Joel calmed down, he called your father on his phone. He needed to tell him everything, so they had to meet.

Your father was talking to Joel in his office in your mansion. He was a manipulative man with high psychoanalysis skills. A beautiful talent for defeating his enemies. He understood Joel's character from his first sentences. He was too proud to betray the person he promised to. Moreover, he was madly in love with his daughter. He was ready to do anything for you. Maybe he could test Joel to decide whether or not to take him in.

In the end of the night, Joel sacrificed himself for your love and wanted to take the blame. Of course, the person who guided him was secretly your father.

Joel went to prison. Of course, Bill's father was in cahoots with the enemy family and their men were there too. They gave Joel hell in prison by order. Psychological violence, beatings, starvation, cuts on his face and body and tortures that I don't want to say. Joel went through personal mutations for every bad day he spent in prison. But no matter what, Joel didn't give you away.

On the day you were supposed to meet him, he was in such bad shape that he couldn't even appear before you. Although the guard had initially told you that he didn't want to meet you because he didn't want to, a small amount of money had been enough to make him tell the truth. Now you wanted to see him even more. Two officers had taken his arm to get him to come into the room. His face was bruised and one of his legs was broken.

You cried as soon as you saw him. Even though you said it was all your fault, Joel didn't think so. It was a price to pay for love. You kissed him on the lips.

"Oh Joel, things are so bad out there. I spend every day in fear and worry. My father said it would be better if you stayed here for a while longer. He promised to help you."

Joel understood everything. What he had experienced during his time in prison and what your father had told him made him look at life differently. He realized how much of a spoilsport and hypocrite he was.

Your father didn't help Joel. It seemed that way at first. But his only goal was to get Joel on his side and make him his assistant. He did everything for this purpose. He made your father experience situations that would prove his loyalty from prison. When the time came, Joel also told big lies, slandered people. He smuggled banned substances and equipment into prison. Your father and Joel were talking with secret messages, giving your father strategic ideas in the face of the events.

Joel eventually learned to survive in this rat hole, and there was no trace of his academic identity left.

Eventually the situation with Bill's family came to an end, but the feud with the Fontana family remained. Joel was released from prison after four years thanks to a corrupt prosecutor's decision.

Joel wasn't the only one who changed during those four years. After Bill's death, you too became closer to your father and his business. While your family life felt foreign to you, you began to manage your father's business step by step, while hiding your wealth and how it came to be. No one called you by your name anymore. You were Mrs. Castello. Even though you were a feared woman, you still felt the old you deep down. It was calling out to you from the black well you had imprisoned. But you had long since passed the point of no return. Whenever you visited Joel, you both saw the changes in you, but you didn’t talk about it. Otherwise, you were as afraid of feeling guilty as Joel was of hating you.

After Joel got out of prison, his only home was your mansion. That was his life. He wanted to be a promising professor but he had to be a slave to the mafia boss, however he had a plan.

You were in your father’s office, wearing a black jacket with a sable collar. A pencil skirt that was just above the knees and black stockings. You were sitting on the arm of your father’s chair, examining the documents in his hand. The red soles of your Louboutins were shining because you had your legs crossed.

Your maid excused herself and came in to announce that Mr. Miller had arrived. While your father had a pleased expression on his face, you swallowed nervously.

Joel made eye contact with you when he walked in. It was so long that your father looked at you and started talking.

“We’ve been waiting so long for this day to come.” he stood up and walked over to Joel, hugging him tightly. “Welcome home.”

“Thank you, Don Castello.” he said, but his eyes were still on you, a look you couldn’t understand.

You got married in a lavish wedding. Joel was now the son-in-law of the respected mafia boss, his right-hand man. He was the key to their fight against the Fontana family. Don Castello never left him. His decisions were never wrong. In fact, he had convinced them that he had infiltrated the Fontana family and betrayed you. He would leak information that they thought would be useful to them. In return, he would receive a large amount of money, property and men. Of course, he would never tell you what he had obtained. But there was one detail your father missed. Joel was never loyal to you. He was learning the secret files of two enemy families and using them for himself, and no one understood.

One day, you noticed the secret room of the house you lived in with Joel. It was a day when Joel went out of town. You were alone at home and unknown enemies opened fire on your house. You were caught in the middle of the conflict while they attacked your house with powerful weapons. While you were trying to escape, a rococo painting from the ceiling to the floor was shattered by bullets. After that bad night, you discovered the door leading to the secret room. You had to be good at software to solve the code, but luckily, you were an engineer. You knew software work well anyway. You worked until Joel got the news of what you had experienced and returned home, and finally you unlocked the door. The interior surprised you. At first, you couldn't even understand why there was such a room. There were many photos of people from the community hanging on the walls, notes, and maps drawn with pencils. There were many files and documents on the table and in the cabinets in the room. It was prepared to use even the smallest information about the mafia families. And you were taking the leading role. As you looked through the notes and documents, you saw that Joel had been aiming to cause a rebellion by manipulating everyone who worked under your father's command all this time. He had plans not only for you, but also for the Fontana family, and he was succeeding step by step.

Your breathing quickened. You had no idea your husband could be so dangerous. You should have been afraid of him, Joel was no longer the lecturer you met at university. He was a menace and he was betraying you to become a Godfather!

You heard his voice as you looked at the plan paper in your hand.

"So you finally learned everything, my dear."

"You...I don't understand why. Joel, you betrayed us. You betrayed me, the woman you loved!"

"A small price to pay for what was stolen from me, my love."

You frowned in disappointment. You waved the paper in your hand. "Was all of this more important than our love?"

Joel approached you. He grabbed your shoulders and caressed them. Although his expression said he was in love, the arrogance and ambition in his eyes scared you.

"No one can harm you, my love. I'll put an end to all this family nonsense. I'll take over and you'll be my queen. Not the Castell family, not the Fontana family... We'll rule the city together."

You looked calmly into Joel's eyes. You placed your hand on his cheek. "The man I love, where is he?"

“I’m still the man you love. It’s just that all this has shown me the dark side of life.” Your lips were trembling. “You were never that man, Joel. You just waited for the right time after you found out I was Castello, right?”

Joel gritted his teeth. "This isn't true."

Your face was expressionless as tears rolled down your cheeks. "When I started college, the reason I wanted to hide who I am was to protect myself from bastards who thought they could use me to gain power. Like Bill. But I see that I had already given that person my own hand."

Joel felt conflicting emotions at their most intense. Hate and love, sadness and anger, regret and satisfaction. "You know all that stuff isn't true."

You took two steps closer. Your bodies were a few centimeters away from each other. With a stern look, you said, "Everyone has chosen their side. I am now one of your worst enemies, watch your step, love of my life," and left the place.

You left the house without even taking your phone. You were able to cry after getting into the car your father had given you for the wedding and setting off. You were sobbing. Even if you tried to escape the curse of your last name, you would get caught sooner or later.

Your father was waiting for you in his office. When he saw you crying, he hadn't thought of Joel. After you told him everything, he started shouting with saliva coming out of his mouth and vowing revenge. You were your father's right-hand man now. Even though Don Castello was a powerful man, you knew Joel's weaknesses and weak points just as Joel knew you. It was time to trust your own intelligence and take control of the game. Who else could be more hostile than two people in love?

The battle between you was getting more and more personal. Just like chess, as you made moves, one side lost pieces, but neither side gave up.

Not only you but also your friends supported Don Castello. There were still a few families that remained your friends. They would help you at the cost of their lives.

The news was busy with the aftermath of the war between you and Joel. Every day, people were dying because of you. Bombs were going off, hostages were being taken, and there were clashes. The police should have intervened, but justice didn't work in this city, force did. The strange thing was that the more you fought, the more you fell in love with each other. The more aggressive you became as your love and passion intensified. Joel wanted you by his side more than ever. He wanted to touch you, smell your skin again. But now you were sins to each other. He couldn't stomach this. He wanted revenge on everything. Every second he was separated from you, forced to fight you, the seeds of revenge were growing in his heart.

One day he realized that all this had to end. It was a never-ending fight. Every moment he thought he was going to win, you were making a counter-move and ruining his plans. The best thing was to confront him.

He sent a message to the mansion. He would arrive there with his men on Friday. Everything would end and someone would win. You would sit in Don Castello’s office and make your decision instead of him. You turned to your father, who was sitting in the chair in front of the desk. “Father, I know you understand the decision I am going to make,” you said. Don Castello nodded and you continued. “Have them take you to our secret base outside the city. And don’t leave until this fight is over."

Don Castello looked at his daughter with a firm expression. "No, I did not become Don Castello by running away."

"I can handle him, but Joel won't stop until he kills you! You have to run!"

The man reached out to his hand on the table and shook it. "I'd like to say I'm sorry for everything I've put you through, but I'm a man whose emotions were taken away from him when he was a child. All I can say is that I have complete confidence in you. You'll be just as good as me in this community."

The real war would soon be fought in front of your house. That's why preparations were made, all possibilities were considered. Until that day came...

You and your father stood on the steps of the mansion. Your men surrounded you to protect you. Joel came with his men. You saw the men you used to work for. Your father had helped them, given them work when they were about to starve. But now they were with Joel.

Before they could begin, Joel stepped forward and glared at the woman he loved.

"Do you really want this, my love? Do you want our love to end in such an epic way? You still have a choice. Come to me and everything will be over."

You shouted. "The man I loved died years ago. I have no choice to make anymore!" then your voice got lower. "It will all end tonight."

Joel looked at you without answering. Every moment from the first day you met until today flashed before his eyes. He really didn't want this. He had such beautiful dreams with you. He swallowed. Then he looked at your father. He knew that everything was his fault. His eyes were as dark as before now. He gave the order to start. Neither Joel nor you were holding back. You both had weapons. You were fighting each other to death in the fight. You took cover behind one of the Greek columns at the entrance of the mansion and targeted Joel, who was hiding behind his car, and continued shooting. When you hid, Joel started shooting and running towards you. In the meantime, his men were protecting him.

You called out to your most trusted man to take care of Joel so that he would be distracted and you could shoot him easily.

You tried to get close to Joel by coming out from behind the pillar, by protecting yourself from the bullets and shooting at the others.

Joel was struggling with two people at the same time. You were caught in the middle of the fight, unafraid of death. Then there was an explosion. Immediately afterwards, the maid screamed loudly. "Don Castello!"

You turned around and looked. One of Joel's men had shot your father. His body was lying there on the ground. The man who betrayed you had killed your father had once trusted the most. You ran towards your father, screaming, but that man wanted to kill you too. This time he pointed the gun at you and fired. But Joel jumped on you, preventing the bullet from hitting. He shouted at his men to retreat.

You were in Joel's arms, screaming that you hated him. "Let me go! I wish I never met you!"

You hit his head with your gun to escape. You did it. As you ran towards your father's lifeless body, Joel called out.

"I'll let you mourn your father. We're leaving."

Joel got what he wanted, your father was dead. It made a big splash in the entire criminal community. The news that your father was dead. The city's police department was in shock. While everyone was arguing about who would be the new owner of the city, Joel had already declared himself the new The Boss of all Bosses . Even though you were separated, he remained married to you, a loyal and loving husband.

Of course, this was different for you. Yes, Joel was treating you like the man you fell in love with; you still loved him as before. However, you also wanted to avenge your father. That's why you made a deal with the famous detective of the police department. In the end, you managed to put him in jail. And for a very small matter. Tax evasion. With the pride of this, you lived happily ever after in your mansion. For a while, you were the queen of the mafia world all by yourself.

I imagined and designed Y/N as a godmother.

You were in the courtroom among the audience. Of course, you were sitting in the front row because you were Joel Miller's wife. But you were worried. Joel kept his eyes on you while his lawyer spoke and gave his defense. He knew very well that he went to prison because of you and today was the day of his acquittal. When you looked into his eyes, it was obvious that he was thinking about what he was going to do to you. You were so close to being together(!) So, were these your last moments of peace? Yes. The woman he loved had betrayed him. Moreover, he had a reputation as the most brutal mafia boss in your community. Who knows what kind of monster the betrayal of the woman he loved would turn him into!

You looked away from him, but you didn’t change your upright posture as if you were trying to convince him that you weren’t afraid of him. But you were praying inwardly that the judge would find an excuse to put him back inside. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out the way you wanted. The jury and the evidence were in his favor. You were beginning to wonder how much the judge had been sold for. When the verdict was given and Joel was released, there was a loud applause in the courtroom. You turned around in shock. The public, who knew him from the news channels and interviews, hadn’t neglected to come to the hearing. He had a lot of fans. It was scary. From the outside, most of them looked like the children of good families.

When the court was finally over and they started to go out, you were the first to stand up and walk quickly. Joel was smiling meaningfully at you as you got up from the chair. He knew you couldn’t escape him. No matter what you did, go underground; he would still find you. Knowing this, you started walking down the hallway with shaking legs and a sullen expression in your eyes. Your father's friend and assistant Mr. Montana was waiting for you outside, by the car. Both doors of the car were open. You got in without wasting any time and started walking. Two big guys were standing behind the car. When you got to the main road, another car appeared to protect you. Everyone knew very well that Joel was looking forward to this day. He had to be faster. You were yelling for him to be faster! They were probably after you right now. When you lost your track and entered a deserted road, you would change cars, easily lose your track and get out of town. When you arrived target, you could breathe for passport procedures.

When you got to the suburbs, you looked around. There were no cars in front of you or behind you on the road. You leaned back in your seat, thanking God. With a heavy heart, you said,

"This is great! I won't see him forever!"

A pained expression was on his face. When you met him years ago, you thought he was the love of your life. Now he was your enemy. Your enemy whom you still loved like crazy!

"Finally," Mr. Montana said. "My queen, we finally saw the vehicle that was going to pick you up!"

A black van was waiting for you. Mr. Montana had chosen to stay while you got out of the car. Miller's men could have come in the meantime and opened fire on you. But you wanted to get in the car as soon as possible and leave without attracting attention. You turned to Montana as you greeted the driver of the van and drove off.

"You'd better go now. We shouldn't attract attention. It's safe from now on."

Mr. Montana asked with a worried look. "Are you sure, m'am?"

You looked at him firmly. "Of course. Go ahead!"

If you wanted to change vehicles, it wouldn't make sense to have a bunch of guys following you, stopping and waiting. So you wanted them all to leave. The driver and the two guys in the car would be on the alert in case there was trouble.

You got in the car as soon as possible. Contrary to what you thought, the car was empty. Only the driver in front greeted you from the rearview mirror.

"Welcome m'am. If you wish, we can set off immediately."

Although the man's gaze bothered you, being accustomed to your father's men did not leave any room for doubt.

"Yes, please."

The driver started the car and you set off. You were still looking around paranoidly. There was no one in the back that would make you think they were Joel's men.

You caught the driver's eye from the rearview mirror. He smiled.

"If you wish, I can close the screen. You will have a comfortable journey."

You pressed your lips together and gave your answer with a shy look. "That would be great, thank you."

After the automatic door closed, you relaxed your formal sitting position. You were looking outside. The sense of anxiety that had emerged inside you was clouding your mind. It was impossible for you to escape from Joel so easily.

You took the wrong turn. The man had missed the road. You leaned forward, frowning. You tapped the screen.

"You took the wrong turn! Hey!" He didn't seem to hear you. You raised your voice. You started tapping the screen harder. "I'm telling you! Stop the car right now, right now! Or you'll pay dearly!"

This wasn't the person you agreed with. You took the wrong car. It was one of Joel's men. They had killed the original driver who was supposed to take you to the airport, cut him up into pieces and put him in the back of the trunk. The car waiting was the right one; except for the driver.

You started screaming and banging on the windows. You lifted your legs up and started banging your heels against the window. You took deep breaths and gathered your strength, using your legs hard. But what could you do against the unbreakable glass?

Your screams echoed throughout the car. "You'll pay dearly for this, you son of a bitch!"

Soon, a hissing sound was heard and the room began to fill with knockout gas. Even if you tried to cover your face with your shirt and held your breath, it was impossible not to be exposed to the gas. You could neither open a window nor was the density of the gas decreasing. Finally, you let yourself go. Your body was relaxing, convincing you to let sleep take over.

When you opened your eyes, you could swear that the world had turned upside down. Maybe the world wasn't the problem. You were hanging upside down from the ceiling. You were completely naked, your arms were tied to your waist with a burgundy rope. Your lower leg was tied to your upper leg, the rope was stretched and tied to the other rope that tied your arm.

The light of the candles burning in the room with tiled walls was reflecting on the surface of the tiles. The musty smell of the pipes passing through the ceiling, covered in mud and filth and covered in moss, filled your lungs and made you feel nauseous. Even though it was uncertain what would happen to you, you were aware of the pain you would soon suffer. You were struggling as if you could break free from the ropes. Your hair follicles swelled as the coldness of the environment penetrated your cells, but the adrenaline spread by the fear surrounding your body prevented you from realizing the coldness of the environment.

Even though your voice was muffled by the gag, you continued to cry, and finally the moment had come. When the heavy door began to creak open, the sound echoed off the walls in a piercing way. You stopped crying and focused on the door. Although you couldn’t see it clearly because it was so dark, you could see enough to understand that Joel had come in. The way he was dressed, his anatomy, the way he was walking down the stairs…

Your muscles were tense. Your hands and feet were shaking. You were trying to say something. If you hadn't had the gag in your mouth, you wouldn't have been able to apologize to him. No matter how scared you were, no matter how much you regretted what you had done because of the pain you would go through, you wouldn't let him use your weakness as ammunition.

Joel began to descend the stairs, looking at your naked body in front of you. The candlelight, just like the tiles, was reflecting on your sweat-soaked skin. The orange color of the candle flame mixed into the palette that made up his skin tone. The damp look was so seductive that it brought to mind eroticism, a wet vulva, and how writhed as he caressed you.But you betrayed him. You betrayed him as the woman he loved and trusted, you wanted to get rid of him. That's why he could have killed you - by making you writhe in pain. But you were the only thing he valued in this life. He should have punished, but his love set his limits.

The thud of the shoe heel was starting to threaten you more deeply as it got closer.

Joel spoke his first words with a half-mocking, half-angry tone.

"So you thought you could escape me, my love? You thought you could get away from this man who is so head over heels in love with you." He was standing right in front of you now. His lips were right in front of your eyes. Every word he said was passionate as it came out. "What a shame, what a shame, my dear." He put his hand on your forehead. After wiping the drops of sweat from your forehead with his fingertips, his hand went to your hair that was tied into a ponytail this time and gently pulled your head closer to his, pressing his lips to your forehead; he smelled your skin and kissed you passionately.

" Oh, it's been a long time since I did that!"

Then he placed both hands on your cheeks. You were used to his roughness. Even during his academic days, he liked to treat you rough in bed. He squeezed your cheeks and reached for your lips. You thought he was going to kiss you, but he didn't. He stuck out his tongue and licked your lips as if he wanted to grasp their shape. His tongue covered your lips many times and slid up and down. He must have been unable to slow down, so he left your lips and started to adorn your chin with bites. Of course, his tongue was not restless. He continued to lick from your chin to your cheekbones and then to your eyes. Your face was filled with his saliva, your skin came alive with his moist touches. You groaned as your body spasmed with the unexpected slap. It hurt.

He shouted as hatred gushed from his eyes. "Why! Tell me why you did it! You knew what would happen to you!" When he grabbed your hair hard and lifted your head up, your head was spinning from being upside down. "Did you think you could escape me, huh? Do you think I'd leave you alone?" Suddenly calming down, he answered his own questions in a whisper. The mocking attitude on his face was frightening. "No, my beauty, there's no way you can escape me. Not possible while my soul, which has drifted away from God, is bathed in your holiness." After kissing her cheek awkwardly, he whispered in her ear as if he had something to hide. "You're the reason I'm alive. Even if you go seven floors below hell, I'll find you and bring you out, do you understand me?"

Your breath was shaking with fear. But when he looked into your eyes, there was no trace of fear.

Joel suddenly shouted, knowing that this was a challenge. "I said, do you understand!" Your eyebrows were furrowed in fear, and you blinked. Joel laughed with pride at revealing the role you had played. He breathed deeply and caressed your bare breasts in a harassing manner. He sighed at the sharpness of the tips and the pink color.

"You have no idea how much pleasure it gives me to see you afraid of me, my dear! It's more erotic than the nights I spent fucking you for hours; I'm sure of it."

He released you. He took a step back and opened the corner of his jacket, taking out his knife from a hidden pocket. High carbon stainless steel. Its sharp tip and razor-sharp edges and brilliance.

All kinds of torture came to your mind. The one you feared the most was that he could rip your eyes out. Your father had tried this on an assassin who was trying to kill him. You started to struggle and struggle as if you could escape the ropes. You were trying to shout, to scream. Your eyebrows were furrowed in fear. You were crying. Joel approached you again, showing you the knife, and held the sharp end in front of you, making eye contact.

"Shh... My love, don't worry, I won't hurt you. I just need to take the gag out of your mouth. I think we should solve our problems by talking as husband and wife," he said. He looked very calm and cute, but his expressions were never sincere. When you didn't stop crying, he suddenly pressed the sharp end of the knife against your throat. Although it hurt, it didn't even leave a mark on your skin. His angry gaze was back again. "First, stop crying! The helpless behavior of a strong woman like you gets on my nerves." he stopped and thought. Then he kissed your cheek. Insincere innocence appeared on your face again. "At least for now." Joel dragged the edge of the knife along your skin without pulling it out... From your neck to your jawbone, from there to your cheek and the binding part of the gag; it stopped there. He inserted it between your skin and the binding and started cutting the fabric. At the same time, he held you respobsible, as if he was muttering to himself. While one hand was holding the knife, the other hand was holding your waist with a force that hurt.

You began to cry and beg Joel to release you. But the words Joel used while demanding an explanation were enough to make you angry. He slapped you again. He shouted as if his throat was tearing. His skin turned bright red. "Tell me, was it worth it! Did you think you would avenge your father when you told that son of a bitch commissioner everything!"

"Enough, stop! I'm sorry."

He had calmed down. He took a step back, looked you up and down and started to walk around you with heavy steps. He was thinking about how and to what extent he would apply the evil ideas in his mind to you. Not being able to see what he was doing when he was standing behind you fed your fear. You heard his footsteps again. He was walking away from you. It must have been the loyalty he felt to his love if you died painlessly with a single bullet. You started to hear rattling. The sound of metal hitting the tiles, a banging sound resembling a cupboard door. You couldn't catch your breath.

Joel took the black leather whip in his hand and hit it in the palm of his hand, wanting the sound to bother you. If it was this hard even when he hit his own palm, the pain you would feel on your skin would be unbearable.

Joel approached you. A shiver ran through your entire body as he placed the tip of the whip on your spine and rubbed it all over. "Don't worry, my beauty, I won't treat you like I treat the other informants, but that doesn't mean I won't punish you." As soon as he finished his words, he hit the tip of the whip against your hip with all his might. The muscles in your body tensed, a weak "ah" sound escaped your lips.

"Did it hurt, huh?"

You stuttered. "Yes!"

"Good, I'll hurt you more."

This wasn't a whip used for fantasy. It was a leather whip used in horse riding to provoke animals. And it hurt more with each stroke. Your screams grew louder, eventually turning into pleas. Your skin was bright red, spreading to other areas that were white. The places he hit were slowly starting to go numb. Joel understood this from the calmness of your screams. A moment ago, you were screaming and struggling to get free of the ropes. Now it had been replaced by moans and small screams. It was time to stop. He threw the whip down and stood in front of you. He pulled your hair hard and hurt you. He looked into your eyes with greed.

"You'll be mine again, do you hear me! You'll fall in love with me all over again, whether you want it or not! Because you have no other choice!" He kissed your lips. His tongue had pushed your lips as if it was crushing them, meeting the inside of your mouth. The moisture on his tongue was intense. Your thirsty lips were wet with his saliva. It was disgusting, but it was as seductive as it sounded. You felt like you were one with the man you desired. He was sucking and biting your tongue on one hand. His hands were not idle, however. He was lifting it up, reaching your belly and caressing it down to your breasts. You wanted to scream when he suddenly squeezed your tips while stimulating them, but his merciless kiss prevented you.

Joel moved away from you again. He moved behind you, where he had just gone, and started turning the handle mounted on the wall. You could hear the sound of two metals rubbing together and you were slowly starting to lower. When Joel thought it was enough, he stopped. When he came back to you and stood in front of you, he saw how the inner lips of your vulva were glistening with your juices.

"Oh no, look at you," he pressed his fingers to your clitoris and moved all the way to the entrance of your vagina. "You're soaked, darling. Wasn't today supposed to be your punishment?" he said mockingly. Then, he brought his fingers together and raised his hand into the air and slapped your vulva. You flinched at the scream that escaped your lips.

"Joel, you don't know what you're doing! Please stop!" you said in a tearful tone.

He only responded to this with mockery. "Honey, I don't know whether to listen to your words or act on what I see." He slapped your vulva over and over again. Even though it hurt, the shocking flicks you felt on your clit were making your pupils dilate in pleasure. Your moans of pleasure were mixed with your cries of pain.

Joel couldn't take it anymore. He buried his head in your vulva. It was a betrayal! It was already your biggest betrayal when you left home. He was willing to go to jail again for you, but right now he just wanted to fuck you like an animal. To get inside you, to feel you from the inside! To fuck your vagina hard and take all his revenge on your burning pussy! The liquid flowing from your vagina was the honeydew in the hive for him. He was licking all the liquid greedily, smearing it on his lips. Your vulva was now burning. His slapping had turned the pinkness on the skin into redness, and this was whet Joel's appetite even more.

He moved one hand to the fabric of his pants as he continued. He clumsily tried to undo his belt buckle. Even that was hard to do when he was focused on your sweet peach. He undid the buckle without removing the leather belt from its slots and his fingers met the zipper. You thought the bulge that appeared in front of your eyes as you pulled it down would hit your face in a moment. His hardened penis was straining the fabric.

After his penis was out of his pants, Joel took it in his hand and pulled his mouth away from your pussy lips to look at where he would place his cock. You didn’t want to perform oral on him in this position. There had been many times when he wanted you to hang your head off the bed. He would use your mouth as a vagina. But you were gagging and gasping for breath. That was why you never adjusted the position that way. But right now, he didn’t care about that at all. You had to take your punishment.

Joel was in ecstasy with the pleasure you were giving him. He continued to suck your vulva while moaning, but after a while he couldn't resist and lifted his head from your buried womanhood. He put his hand on the inside of your thigh, spanked it and squeezed it with almost all his strength. You were sucking it so well that your groin cramped up until you couldn't orgasm.

His voice was shaking, "You know how to drive me crazy," he said and laughed with pleasure. He reached down to your breasts and slapped them every time he made them cum, caressing them painfully.

Moans interspersed with each sentence. "Yes, my love! Make your husband happy! It'll be a bargaining chip for the punishments I'll give you in the coming days, huh? What do you say, my beauty?" He squeezed your nipples so hard that you stopped sucking his cock and tried to scream in pain. Joel laughed. "I can only come when I watch you moan in agony," he said and crushed your nipples between his fingers once more.

Even though your body was shaken by the pain, the interruption of your vaginal pleasure was more annoying than the action itself. You put the oral sex aside and gently brushed your teeth against Joel’s flesh, trying to get him to take his cock out of your mouth. In response, he winced and took his big cock out of his mouth.

He got down on one knee and brought his face level with yours. He grabbed your hair and pulled. "What do you think you're doing!"

You grinned cheekily, calmly and confidently. "What about me? I'm dying to squirt all over your face."

"First you'll fill me up. Then it'll be your turn." he said and suddenly he let go of your hair and stood up, putting his cock back in your mouth and thinking that he was fucking your glistening vagina in front of him, he continued to fuck your mouth with back and forth movements. At this time, he put his index and middle fingers together and pushed them into your vagina. His cock was fucking your mouth, his fingers were fucking your womanhood. As your pleasure increased, your oral performance also increased and finally Joel slapped your vulva repeatedly and ejaculated. His sperm overflowed from your lips and the salty taste spread all over your mouth. The hot, slippery and thick fluid would have long since slipped down your throat if you hadn't been upside down. When Joel pulled his cock out of your mouth, he felt exhausted. He was tired. Breathlessly, he kissed her inner thighs with calm touches. "You must be a sex goddess. You have a divine talent and I worship it."

He took a few steps back and moved away from you, adjusting his fabric pants. In the meantime, you were watching him, while at the same time, you were grazing the semen flowing from his lips with your tongue. Even though your stomach was queasy as you stood upside down, you had already lost your way in the hot deserts of lust. Your expectations were high. You wanted to find an oasis in the middle of the hot desert.

You asked Joel while he was fastening his belt. "When will it be my turn?"

When he was ready, he stood in front of you again and leaned down, leaving a passionate kiss on your forehead. "You will come whenever I want, and that's not right now, my dear wife!"

You were surprised. Your groin ached, your vulva was on fire, your clitoris was pulsing. You shouted with the anger of being left unfinished. "You can't do this! I hate you, do you hear me!"

It was such a pleasure to disappoint you that he stood up, grinning evilly. "Honey, these are better days. Enjoy them," he said, and stood up and turned around. While you were hurling insults at him, he was walking towards the door. The evil man smile we are used to from movies covered his face. Without compromising his indifferent attitude, he acted as if you were not there, opened the door and left you there alone. Until his servants came and untied you.

[netfleecking]

just finished dexter for the first time and that ending is actually one of the worst series finales ive ever seen.

[spoilers]

it really did such a huge disservice to all the characters, and gave nobody a proper conclusion. we watched these characters grow, struggle and fight moral dilemmas, only for none of it to matter.

dexter loses everyone.

hannah is abandoned in argentina to raise someone else's kid.

harrison's birth mom was murdered and now his dad is "dead".

deb is killed by her own brother; and then her body is disposed like other criminals.

quinn broke up with jamie to be with deb and now he has no one.

jamie doesnt have quinn anymore.

angel has lost so many people close to him — his best friend, deb, la guerta, etc.

astor and cody are now fully orphans, and their half-brother is ?? god knows where ?? as far as they know.

it also ruins dexter's character. we saw him progress over eight seasons to be a loving father, a good boyfriend, "becoming human", only for him to selfishly abandon it all to ?? become a logger ??

dont even get me started on the events that led to this ending. firstly, dexter falling in love with hannah was the stupidest, most ridiculous thing ive ever seen. i hated hannah from the get-go, and as much as the writers feed dexter lines to comment about his and hannah's "chemistry", there was absolutely nothing going on between them. they didn't have an iota of chemistry, compared to dexter and rita.

dexter abandoning everything to selfishly pursue a life with hannah, then absolutely backtrack on it at the last second was also stupid as shit. neither decision should have been as rushed as the scriptwriters made it.

oh and! him choosing not to murder vogel's son the first time was so out of character and unnecessary. it was also the exact same lesson he learnt in season 4 with miguel.

also, the whole "quinn and batista mutually agreeing to cover dexter in the murder of vogel's son" thing was way too rushed and out of character for both of them. quinn might accept it, as revenge against deb. but batista is a good, honest man. that's always been his thing. the writers could have easily sidestepped this dissonance by making it just a dexter-quinn thing. it would also have been nice for quinn and dexter to finally put all their rockiness behind them and mutually support each other in the loss of deb.

and and sorry its a minor thing, but killing off zach hamilton was a mistake. you wanted to write a spin off afterwards? zach was a perfect successor to dexter. young, eager, and sensible. he was starting to get interesting, and then was abruptly ended. this show really has issues with keeping its interesting characters.

anyway fuck the ending of dexter. fuck it all. anything after season 4 isn't canon to me. i refuse to accept the incest plotline, deb killing la guerta, dexter falling for hannah, whatever season 8 was, blah blah blah.

[crushedsweets]

I know this shit is long as hell and you probably won't answer since you have so many asks but I just wanted to say I found a backstory for Cody(X-Virus) for your AU!!!

It's not as creative as your ideas but I tried to do something original and meaningful for him. He deserves more love and recognation.

I'm so so sorry for bothering you and I apologize for my mistakes.

Hope you like it and can't wait to hear your opinions about it!!!!

▼・ᴥ・▼

Cody never got adopted by a scientist, instead, he lived in an orphanage where he constantly got bullied. The reason for this situation was just straightly absurd. He just couldn't understand peoples and their emotions like other kids because of his lack of emphaty.

That's why he focused on academic knowledge rather than human relationships. Because mathmetical problems were easier for him compared to comforting a crying person.

Cody always was a succesful and smart kid so he could easily pass his exams in middle and high school. Because of that, in high school, he didn't bother to focus over boring topics like his daily lessons anymore.

No, he focused on more complicated science fields such as quantum physics, anatomy and organic chemistry.

Of course Cody couldn't understand everything he read easily, that's why he spend hours and hours on studying and having countless nights without any sleep. He read articles and textbooks, he watched professors' lectures on youtube, he tried to solve problems on his own and more.

Overworking on university lessons was not a good way for socialising, he got more and more isolated and the bullying was increased.

In last year of high school, he was worried because of the fact that he needed to win a success scholarship for all the cool topics he worked over, moreover, for a diploma. He could easily go to a college, however, he wanted the best of them. Because only the best could satisfy his hunger for research and true knowledge.

Cody was also confused about choosing which major to pick and he was stressing about this topic all the time. So many good fields were lying ahead him but he could only choose one of them and he wasn't sure which one is the one he wanted to dedicate his entire life. What if he would made a mistake and regret for his lost years for the rest of his living?

So yes, this was a very overwhelming decision for Cody. Since he was anxious all the time and he was going through a serious depressive episode, he decided to give a shot to the Chernobyl school trip in his school.

Obviously it was not like they really went inside of the nuclear powerplant since most of them weren't even over 18 years old. More like they wandered around the places in Ukraine which were close to the powerplant(Chernobyl City) and they visited some important museums.

But this was not enough for Cody.

He wanted to see the inside of the powerplant. He wanted to learn more details about behind the scenes. He wanted to see the deformed bodies. He to carry out experiments on dead humans who got affected by the radiation.

That's why he stole a gas mask and sneak out to the powerplant while everyone else was sleeping in a hotel.

He was truly breathless because of what he witnessed.

That's when he decided to became a chemistry engineer.

Of course he they got him and he took a huge punishment which caused to screw his school life.

Even though he got a really high score in his university acceptance exam, his applys were rejected by all the big schools he dreamed about. He got so, so upset about this that he even wanted to kill himself rather than living as a worthless piece of shit.

While he was rolling in thoughts of negativity, a teacher who respected Cody's success wrote a reference letter for him to an school.

The school decided to accept Cody with a few conditions. This school was not as big and as fancy as other schools he wanted but it was still better than what he could aford without that reference later. So he immediatly accepted this offer and thanked his teacher.

He did not became a chemistry engineer.

He majored in psychology which provided him the chance to do some different kind of experiments on mental health hospital residents.

He did a double major in chemistry, not in chemistry engineering.

But he's mostly using all his time for psychlogical experiments over chemical experiments. Sometimes he uses chemistry too for topics like neurotransmitter matters and the structure of hormones.

He's mostly a psychologist who you not want to cross and he works in mental health hospitals. He mostly manipulates his patients for doing something morally grey or hurtful for them either mentally or physically.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING THIS AND PLSSS DONT BE SO HARD ON YOURSELF ITS WRITTEN BEAUTIFULLY AND I LOVE WHEN PEOPLE SHARE THINGS WITH ME. I PROMSIE UR NOT BOTHERING ME AND ITS SO GOOD.

OK IMMA CHAT A LITTLE WITH IT UNDER THE CUT CUZ I LIKE IT

"That's why he focused on academic knowledge rather than human relationships. Because mathmetical problems were easier for him compared to comforting a crying person." I ABSOLUTELY LOOOOVE characters like this. who lean into math and science because they just cant grasp all of the wishy washy of emotion and that kinda stuff. characters who like clear, linear paths with rules and whatnot. i think its really interesting way to try to define a character

which is why i love "No, he focused on more complicated science fields such as quantum physics, anatomy and organic chemistry."

i love how much you focus on his desire for knowledge. i think its cool when someone CRAVES for intelligence, they want to learn, they wanna know everything they possibly can - and i think its especially interesting when that turns into scary, morbid curiosity

and i fucking love how scary it is that he decided to go snooping around during his Chernobyl trip. it just sounds like a really unsettling turn of events and i think is such a creative, yet creepy, take on what made such a big shift. going from a kinda awkward, focused, troubled kid to someone who is willing to hurt and sacrifice people for his own morbid curiosity. SUPER SCARY

and i like that he still couldnt get what he wanted. i like that he still got stuck doing smth that didnt truly appease any scary urges he had, and that he has to do his freaky killer stuff in a roundabout way by manipulating his patients

would be interesting to see if any other creeps could perhaps be his patient . . .

[coffeelovesdramasalatte]

LITA Ep 3 Rewatch Thoughts Pt. 2

Part 1 here!

Ok I am HERE for this encouragement - I love that Phayu is always supportive of Rain's academic talents

Apparently Rain is not immune to Phayu's pout either. Good, a relationship should be built on equality

pls observe this cutie omfg no wonder Phayu can't take his eyes off him

i genuinely feel like this shot did something to my brain chemistry. i kid you not one of my main goals in life is to have someone do this to me (by which I mean I want to be in Rain's position). I would also ignore homework and all my responsibilities if someone looked at and held me like that pls

P'Aon so true, Boss WAS smiling like an idiot (in love)

Poor Rain, these were famous last words :( (I too have uttered them many a time until I realized I am not a nap-taker)

ETHEREAL

Is this a rock cover of flight of the bumblebee playing in the background??? POOR RAIN HE STAYED UP ALL NIGHT TO DO THIS :((((

Ok but this is actually a very important lesson that I'm glad they included. It's true that Rain finished the work on time, but he also should have ensured he got enough sleep and made it to the presentation on time. He's still in his first year so he has a lot of time to grow. The actual important line is this one below.

It was a harsh way of phrasing it, but it's true. Setbacks are a very normal part of life and everyone makes "mistakes" (missing deadlines, not being able to finish a project, etc). I put that in quotes because sometimes, these things are at no fault of the person. It is possible to put 100% of your effort into finishing something and not get it done (which, aside from Rain's poor time management, he actually did put in a lot of effort to this project). Failing at something even after putting in a lot of hard work sucks, but being able to pick up after that and still work hard is what makes a person successful. I related extra hard to this scene because I failed a class in my major during my first year of college even though all I did was study, and it put me back a full year bc it's only offered certain semesters and was required to move forward in the degree. I took it again the following year and was smarter about how I studied and even still, I almost failed again. But I liked my major enough to keep at it and somehow still managed to graduate on time and now I'm in grad school, so... (that was an unnecessary story but to reiterate, failure is normal and ok)

AWW look at him putting on a facade for his friends... I think it's interesting that he doesn't confide in Sky here

but instead flies to the garage... Even I questioned this

P'Saifah is a good bro, calling Phayu immediately to come comfort his in-law. Phayu is good here too, immediately grabbing his things to come running

I think I speak for all of us when I say watching Phayu ride in the heavy rain was nerve-wracking bc we were expecting an accident or something

OK this scene. THIS SCENE. Utterly perfect in every way, from the moment concerned Phayu walks through the door to see a drenched, teary Rain waiting for him. Something blue-yellow is going on here too methinks

There's something so incredibly intimate about the way Phayu crouches down to Rain's level, and then beckons him into his arms. His words too are so gentle, and he just holds Rain as he cries.

As opposed to many other sweet scenes, this sequence + the one after Rain comes out of the bathroom is actually the one that makes me most jealous of PhayuRain. There is nothing more valuable than having someone you can fall apart into and trust that they'll hold the pieces of you together. And honestly, in the grand scheme of things Rain didn't mess up horribly - it feels monumental to him bc it's probably the first time he's missed a deadline. It's important that Phayu still treats the situation with the gravity of something more serious, bc it shows how much he cares. And after Rain has calmed down, he advises him on how to do better next time without sugarcoating, but also sharing that he experienced similar things during his days as a student.

I'mma need Rain to zip it bc he looks perfect, as usual

I really like the framing in this scene where he's looking into the mirror and then introspecting "why did I put up a front with other people and then cry in front of him? idk but I'm thankful" - he's reflecting mentally and physically!!!

Can't believe a drama is out here giving important life lessons but I'm here for it. I also like that Phayu shows a bit of vulnerability by sharing that he got criticized too, and that Rain will be able to recover from it.

HEADPAT x 2

This is another set of shots that altered my brain chemistry. Who taught them to look at each other like this, hm? Rain looks so vulnerable and Phayu might as well be cradling Rain's soul in his hands ft. headpat

The way Rain tilts his head up? Exquisite

I'd also feel very motivated if I was in Rain's place. Phayu actually makes another few interesting points here - he says what's done is done, and then tells Rain to not dwell on it and take care of himself. Interestingly enough (story time pt 2 you can skip if you want). I watched this scene very soon after I missed a paper submission deadline for a conference. It's not the biggest deal, especially because my professor knew it was a big ask to finish an entire research project in the timeline he gave me and he wasn't even remotely upset about it (long story short I only had 2 weeks notice to flesh out the idea, get the data, analyze the data, and write the research paper - but you can't really control how long things take you when you do research bc the point is that it hasn't been done before). So even though no one reprimanded me, I still felt really upset bc I had made up my mind that I was going to do this impossible task and couldn't. To hear Phayu's reminder that I can be upset but I shouldn't spend too long being sad to the point I neglect to take care of myself was honestly nice. It also helped to put things into perspective that yes, I couldn't submit to this particular conference, but there are so many that happen all the time so it's not like the research is wasted - just pull yourself together and try for the next one. Anyways, I'm done treating y'all like my personal diary now <3

Yay, Rain feels comforted and finally smiles! It's like seeing the sun after a storm (literally) AND something yellow-blue is happening here

Post-credits garage brothers content!! This exchange is hilarious bc P'Saifah goes 'ah [Rain] is in the palm of your hand' as Rain's leaving, but then the show makes it literal bc Phayu's holding a picture of Rain in his palm via the phone screen, which also signifies to the viewer that Phayu is also in the palm of Rain's hand. Again, we love relationships built on equality hehe

I love that they let us see the moment Phayu decided to pursue Rain (he's looking at the picture of Rain on his phone for the first time - though I do question why the senior just randomly sent him a photo of Rain? Like at this point Phayu is an alumni of the frat so why just send an isolated photo of a freshman to him?? we'll never know I guess)

And that's episode 3! If you made it this far, I hope at least some of this was entertaining! Have a lovely day or night, whenever you're reading this <3 See you in the next one!!

[suchine-toki]

hello! I read your Tae meta from last year and just wanted to say it was great and really gets to the bottom of the problems with how Sorachi handled Otae. My (unasked for ;)) two cents is that I think he was going for GinTae endgame but then changed his mind somewhere before Lesson 238 which I read as his way of giving a 'this is how it would happen but I'm not going to do it' resolution for GinTae. And it's fine to drop the romance but knowing he's not going to make any couples endgame and 1/2

Hi! First of all, thanks for reading and taking your time to send this to me, I really like hearing other people's thoughts! I hope you don't mind that I combined both asks, given that they've points in common and I already had a draft of the one I received a while ago 🙈 This made me realize that I hadn't thought about it too much before… Even if I've talked about this topic with other people before, usually, the conversation ends with us agreeing and moving on to other topics lol so I think this is the first time I'm analyzing it. I'll try to do it from both the characters' perspective and Sorachi's intentions as the story's author. Before continuing, I want to clarify that my intention isn't to convince anyone to stop liking it, I just wanted to explore this topic and wow, did I explore it, because it ended up being much longer than expected 😂

That said, I think one of the biggest reasons why many of us thought Tae was going to be Gintoki's main love interest is because of the setup. Tae is the first woman from the main cast to appear in the series, and her dilemma kickstarts the story and allows for the formation of the Yorozuya as we know it. Moreover, she's Shinpachi's older sister and also develops a strong bond with Kagura, so it was expected that she would also develop a strong romantic bond with Gintoki, connecting her to the main trio of Gintama.

However, as I mentioned in the previous post, things started to change with the introduction of Kyuubei, which solidified the Kondo-Tae-Kyuubei love triangle, and then with the introduction of Tsukuyo. I watched a video by Abbie Emmons titled "7 Deadly Romance MISTAKES Writers Make ❌ avoid these chemistry killers!" to help identify some points in the relationship between Gintoki and Tae, although I must mention that I don't think these were mistakes on Sorachi's part, quite the opposite, they were very conscious decisions. I won't go point by point; instead, I'll summarize the intent of the message.

Half of the video is about the development of intimacy between two characters. I think most of us can appreciate that at least until the Benizakura arc, it was clear that Sorachi still had in mind to develop the relationship between Gintoki and Tae romantically because they'd a scene where they were alone, had time to talk, and showed that they cared a lot for each other. However, as the series progresses, we stop seeing these kinds of scenes between them, as well as scenes where they're seen thinking about each other or having physical contact.

And although at the beginning of the series Tae participated more actively in the Yorozuya dynamics, after the introduction of Kyuubei, they're seen spending most of their time together, even when they're with the others. Tae remains an honorary member of the Yorozuya until the end, but it's clear that Sorachi wanted her to represent stability, emotional support, the place they can return to that will welcome them with a smile. So, even though Gintoki and Tae still care a lot for each other, their interactions will continue to be framed within the context of the Yorozuya for the rest of the series.

That said, I couldn't say exactly when Sorachi stopped considering a romantic relationship between them. I'd to look up chapter 238 because I didn't remember what it was about lol (for reference, it's the one where they're at a stall and there're only speech bubbles, in which other characters who look like Gintoki and Tae confess they're in love), and I think your interpretation is certainly interesting. The placement also makes sense, which is shortly after the arc introducing Tsukuyo, and it also follows the trend of other characters being the ones who tease them, and not themselves.

The other half of the video is about how the characters' relationships with the rest of the cast are shown. It's highlighted that there needs to be an emotional reaction from a character to the idea of the other being interested in someone else, something Sorachi showed in many different ways but not with Gintoki and Tae. In her case, at most, she was shown getting annoyed at Sacchan, but only when she was provoked first. When it came to Tsukuyo, there was no reaction. Similarly, Gintoki has no reaction when Kyuubei or Kondo demonstrate their love interest.

The last point of the video, but not less important, is when characters have more romantic chemistry with other characters. In Tsukuyo's case, I think Sorachi was already a more experienced writer who knew his characters better and knew what his story needed. In particular, I think he wanted Gintoki to have someone close with whom he could relate but who wasn't directly connected to his past, among other things. And as I mentioned before, most of Tae's emotional energy in the series is with Kyuubei, followed by Kondo.

But why Sorachi didn't continue developing Gintoki and Tae's relationship romantically? The most obvious reason is simply because he didn't want to lol, but the explanation behind this, I think, is due to two main reasons. The first is that he wanted to keep the relationships within the Yorozuya platonic, and since Tae is an honorary member of the Yorozuya, it felt wrong to establish that there were romantic feelings involved. By comparison, it would be like confirming a relationship between Kagura and Shinpachi. And yes, Sorachi did some ship-teasing more than once between them too, but at the end of the day, he chose not to pursue it, and I think maintaining the familiarity is a cause.

The other reason is that as he wrote the story, he realized that Gintoki and Tae didn't fit well together. Tae can give Gintoki a sense of stability, but what can he offer her? Tae clearly values stability as well, hard work, having money. But Gintoki, due to his circumstances, doesn't meet those standards. If you think about it, the only two occasions when Tae unequivocally showed interest in Gintoki were when he lost his memory (Memory Loss arc) and when Hijikata was in his body (Soul Switch arc). Two occasions where Gintoki wasn't himself. But she liked that he seemed more serious and diligent, which implies that Tae's type is different.

It's also worth mentioning that Gintoki isn't shown making the same gestures towards Tae that Kondo or Kyuubei, the other two characters who are canonically in love with her (which is why I think they're a good benchmark) do. For example, while Sorachi chooses to show Gintoki teasing Tae about her breast size, in contrast, he shows Kondo buying her a kimono that will look good on her regardless, you know, like a supportive partner would. Even with all this, I understand that het shippers might've felt uncomfortable with the idea of pairing Tae with Kondo, and the other viable option was Gintoki. I think Sorachi was also aware of this, which is why he decided to develop Kondo and Tae's relationship in the final arcs.

While we're at it, I prefer kyuutae by faaar. As I've also expressed before, although I think Kondo is a great character, his persistence doesn't sit well with me. But whether it was due to heteronormativity or because Sorachi identified with him as a fellow gorilla, it's clear to me that he decided to emphasize Kondo and Tae's relationship much more. Even when gintsu and kyuutae were stagnating, he continued developing kontae as much as he could (probably because he'd already done the heavy lifting with the other two ships, tbf).

Sorachi didn't plan many things in his story, which I think is both a strength and a weakness. One of the things that reflect this is, for example, that Hasegawa was originally going to be part of the Yorozuya, an idea he later abandoned, but the remnant of Hasegawa's presence in the series remained. In the same way, I think his initial idea was to pair Gintoki with Tae, but eventually, he didn't. It seems that he also had the idea at the beginning to end the series with certain couples, but later decided to leave an open ending in that sense, although some of his inclinations were clearer than others.

I've seen people say there're subtle hints throughout Gintama that they fell in love, and while I don't want to say those interpretations are wrong, I think Sorachi is quite straightforward when it comes to these kinds of things. Even with unrequited loves, like (apparently) in the case of Katsura and Ikumatsu, he showed that there was love. However, in the case of Gintoki and Tae, during the 15 years he wrote the manga, he didn't, probably because he felt it no longer fit the story after a certain point. That said, I think their relationship works just fine without the need for any labels.

Thank you again for stopping by, if you've another point that you would like to discuss feel free to message me or send another ask 🤗

[lyn-js]

One Step at a Time | Prologue

Calvin Evans x OC Reader

Summary: Everything in Ava Mason's life was what you call normal. She has a steady job as a lab tech at Hastings, has a beautiful bungalow in Sugar Hill, and sometimes babysits her friend Harriet's kids. But that all changes when social services show up at her doorstep with, her 2-year-old niece Delilah. Ever since then, it has been keeping you from your job, going to work late, and leaving when everyone else has gone home. But a certain chemist wants to know why a lab tech is staying late.

Warning: Angst, swearing, mentions of drug & alcohol abuse, dysfunctional family, mentions of adoptions & being put into foster care, and a whole lotta fluff.

(This story is kind of based on what actually happened in Lessons in Chemistry. But no dying. We need to keep one of Lewis's characters alive.)

I also do not own any characters in Lessons in Chemistry except for my character Ava Mason.

Walking up to the sounds of little feet padding into your room, you couldn’t ever want to trade that sound in for the world. Fluttering your eyes open, you can see the little girl waddling her way to your bead, for how far her feet can take her. You can also see her hair sprawled out in different directions, and a dopy smile on her face, happy to see you. You focus your attention on your niece your big golden doodle Poppy to come to trodding next to Delilah to help her stand. 

“Mornin’ Aunty Ava,” she says with a cheeky grin on her face, while also trying to hide it from you. “Good morning Bunny,” you say to her. Then, the next second you lift her onto the bed, smothering her face in little kisses while she erupts into a fit of giggle. You had to stop your kisses when Poppy jumped onto the bed and sandwiches between you and Delilah. “Poppy missin’ the kisses too Aunty,” she says while still giggling. After the laughter died down, you over at the clock that was on your nightstand. Having to move some homemade drawings that Delilah made you the other day. You read that it’s 9:30. You’re Late.

Oh Shit.

You pick up Delilah and rush out of the bed, try and get her and yourself dressed, teeth brushed, and out the door. You are getting her buckled in the car and on your way to Harriet's house. When you both arrive, you see a man across the street stretching, maybe he was getting ready for a run. But after he’s done stretching you both stare at one another. It felt like you both were stuck in time like the whole world stopped spinning, and the attention was just on you and him. “Hey Ava!” you snap out of your daze and hear Harriet walking down her porch to greet you and Delilah. You wanted to see if the mysterious tall man was still there, but when you turned back around. He was gone. “Hey… Har’. I was wondering if it’s no trouble if you can watch Del again tonight. The amino’s lab is busting my butt. I need to get some more work finished-” “Hey, It’s okay. I’m happy to watch the little bun again. Plus, we're gonna have so much fun, whaddya think Del?” Hariient asks. Delilah just jumps up and down, “YAY! Hab so much fun Aunty!” you both laugh at her squealing excitement. You kneel down to Delilah’s height and kiss her cheek. “I’ll see you later Bunny. Be good for Harriet okay?” “Otay, Bye, Bye Aunty Ava!” She says waving while being carried up the porch. You give her one more wave until she and Harriet disappear into the house. You let out an exhale, start up your car again, and put it in drive.

Off to Hastings, it is.

Most of your day was spent in the lab cleaning up beakers that were once of a failed experiment, secretly correcting the mistakes some newbies made while writing their problems, and making them coffee. They can go down to the cafeteria and grab a cup, but all of the chemists butter you up with compliments “They don’t make it as you do,” or “At least you know how to make a good cup of joe than the other ladies on the staff.” You wanted to feel insulted, you wanted to speak up and say something. But you knew they would run off to Donatti and there was a high chance, you could get fired. So just keep your head down, mouth shut and be the disty lab tech. Who apparently makes good coffee?

When walking back from lunch you were walking past the secretaries room. Suddenly you hear your name being called. “Miss. Mason…Ava?” you turn around and see the head of the secretaries department, Fran Frask. “Good morning Miss. Frask,” you say to her with a tight-lipped smile and continue walking down to the lab. You knew she was going to bug you again about the pageant. But time and time again you tell her you can’t participate because you have plans that night, meaning you are having a movie night with your niece. That was the only night you could get off on time, and have some time with Deliaha. 

“I hope you can still sign up for the Little Miss Hastings pageant, you know your lab is in between secretaries and you fella could use a boost for the event.” She asks “I’m sorry, but I'm not a secretary,” I say to her being a little offended because she knew for a fact that I was a lab tech. A very good one to be at that. “Well… Ya know lab techs can participate too, it’s any female support staff.” “Thank you, Fran but pageants aren’t my idea of fun,” I say to her while grabbing lab coats and passing them out on each table. “Well, what do you consider fun Ava?” she says with a little enthusiasm in her voice. “I-I like to cook and bake.” “Well ya know, let me know if you change your mind.” “I won't but thank you. Now if you don’t mind I have a lot to clean up before the chemists arrive.” You give her a small wave and a smile so she can hopefully get the hint to leave.

She gives me another little cheeky grin and points her red-colored nails at me. “I’ll put you down as a maybe.” then walking away. Why can’t your life get any easier?

Walking around the lab once again you hear men wanting more coffee, and helping out some others who need help with their equations for the expedients. When coming around to the station where you set up your coffee, you see someone who was a part of the lab walk in with a magazine, and on the front was a man holding up test tubes and seeing what was inside. He looks so familiar, but I don’t know where I have seen him before. You think to yourself, but you snap out of your thoughts and finish making the coffee. But you keep getting distracted when all of the men keep talking about the infamous Calvin Evans. “What does he have that we don’t,” one of them said out loud. Also saying he was up for a Nobel prize, “Doesn’t give him the right to take all of our supplies. I mean how much ribose does one guy need?” 

Maybe this could work, maybe if you can get back some of that ribose you can finally be seen by the lab. Not seen as some female ditsy lab tech. You can finally matter in the world.

It was now after hours and you were over at the sink cleaning up some test tubes and beakers when you heard your name being called out. It was the head of the Aminos lab, Dr. Price. Just telling me to not stay later because he would get in trouble with Donatti. You just nod your head and oblige to his rules, but not listening. After everyone leaves you sneak your way out of the lab to avoid being seen by the janitorial staff and make your way over to Mr. Evans's lab.

When you reach his lab you see on his door there are cardboard signs saying “Keep out” and “Do Not Linger” but I know for a fact that I’m not keeping out, and I’m lingering. So screw your signs. You go back to sneaking in, so you take one of your bobby pins from your hair and unlock the door. Once open you can get a full view of what the infamous chemist does in here. You see records scattered all over the tables, so many loose-leaf pieces of paper with different equations and answers on them. And his lab coat hanging over a lounge chair in the corner. But you start to look around for the back room so you can find what you're looking for.

You pick another lock to the other door, you scan the shelves to find the little tiny bottles. When you finally come across the ribose, the shelves were covered from front to back with so many bottles. How many bottles does this guy need? You think to yourself. You grab a couple of bottles, lock up the doors, and seak your way back over to your lab, finish up your work, and finally head home to see your baby bunny and finally get some sleep. But what you didn’t know was when you were “sneaking” back to the lab, the best of the best secretaries Fran Frask watched you go back into the lab while she was locking up her room for the night.

Once again you wake up late, and trying fast as possible to get ready. You arrived super late around 9:00 but of course, there was traffic, and show up at almost 11. You rush up to the lab so you can get started on handing out the rest of the equipment. But you were stopped by Fran again to tell you Donatti needed you in his office. He sums up the meeting by saying that you weren’t supposed to be staying late, and if it happened again you would be let go from Amino’s lab and Hasingscompletely. Not only that but he was forcing you to compete in the pageant. You try your best to argue why you can’t participate, but of course, he threatens to fire you.  That sets you back a little bit more when Fran confers you to take a picture and be put it on the bulletin board for the pageant. Can this day get any worse than it already is?

You finally make it up to the lab. But, you stop suddenly when you see a man sitting on the table holding a miniature bottle of what you assumed was ribose.

 Oh No.

“Ah, there she is. The thief,” the man says in a mocking tone. I just looked at him like I didn’t know anything. “I beg your pardon?” you ask back. He hops down from the table and starts pacing back and forth. It looked like his head was about to explode. “I have been through every department, and interrogated multiple chemists. Including ones from this very lab,” he twirls his pointer finger around and then points to me. “Who say that you,  Miss. Mason have a history of ruffling feathers. And also have an arrogant attitude of self-importance.” “Have you heard yourself speak Mr. Evans?” I say with raised eyebrows. “Oh, s-so you don’t deny it? I-I mean what would a secretary have anything to do with ribose, aside from selling it on the black market.” 

I just look at him dumbfounded, almost looking like this crazy man has 3 heads. “I am a chemist Mr. Evans, not a secretary!” I said back to him but he was almost out the front door. “Oh, and a fibber, now aren’t we?” I drop my jaw when he walks out the door. “Oh, yes. Because there is such a high demand on the black market for monosaccharide!” “This is very disappointing! Very–- I’m disappointed Miss. Mason.” he turned the corner, and then he disappeared.

(Calvins’s POV)

You were pacing back and forth in front of Fran Frask’s desk, deciding what I should do about this unbelievable situation. 

“One: My lab was unlocked last night, so I want someone to speak to janitorial and have new locks placed on the door.” I see Fran write down on her paper and nodding her head. “Two: I have calculated the cost of the missing ribose, and I want to make it clear, that will not be coming out of my budget. Three: I want the floors sterilized. At least one person entered without my authorization. And with my allergies, I cannot risk any contaminants. You understand?” You look back at her to make sure she has every little detail down to a tea. She just nods “ Yes. I’ll take care of it, Dr. Evans.” Writing the rest down.

“And lastly, I would like the secretary held accountable.” You look up to see Fran have a little smile on her lips. “Don’t worry. I’ll have her fired.”

I furrow my eyebrows a little bit, “Well… just a formal reprimand will suffice.” I see her giving the same look back at me. “I’m shocked that it was on my face. “Dr. Evans I’m shocked that it was one of my secretaries, honestly. Um, you said it was in the Aminos lab? Because that’s Mary Ann Rogers.” She tells me the woman’s name. It’s not her. “No, no, no. Her name is Ava Mason.” She looks back up at me. “Oh, she not a secretary. She’s a lab tech. Puls she should know better, she has her masters.” she looks back down scrambling around, looking for some important papers. “Her masters? In what?” “Chemistry.” Now I look a little dumbfounded at what Fran just told me. Then she asks about the “Little Miss Hastings” pageant, asking if I will be attending. I just simply ignored her and just walk out the door back up to my lab. But, I stop in my tracks to look at the bulletin board to see the contestant for the pageant. As I look in the lower corner I see the picture of the one and only Ava Mason. For some reason, she looks so frightened. Not wanting her picture to be taken, but giving a half-smile just trying to look nice.

You just simply walk away from the board and continue your journey back to your lab. Why would she want to steal some stupid ribose, and why would she be staying late? You need to get to the bottom of this, and fast.

To all of you reading this, I hope you enjoy this story. I've said this many times with other stories, but I do have big plans for these 2 characters. So, stay tuned for what's about to happen.

Reblogs are always welcome. Unless you're under 18. I will block you. and comment if you want to be added to the taglist. If I forgot anybody message me and let me know. You will be added.

Also, If I forgot anyone on the taglist message me. I will add you.

Taglist: @petersunderoos96 @mrspedropascal5683 @callsign-magnolia

dividers are by @saradika

[imsleepinggoodnight]

Apex academy AU

I’m thinking that after the legends retire they have the choice to teach the best of the best to show them how to be apex legends.(this is years later so some have retired)

Caustics class is one of, if not the most difficult classes of the entire academy, since not a single distraction can take place. He teaches chemistry and biology mainly, he secondly teaches engineering and physics. He seems to be okay with what he’s doing, but deep down he is more than happy where he is. The only down side (in his opinion) is that he can’t use live human test subjects as much as he had hoped. Once a semester in chemistry and biology he somehow has convinced the academy to bring in a live , human subject for each. Rumours have gone around as to where and how he is getting these people, some say that they’re prisoners on death row but, who really knows? Anyways, the students that he enjoys the most are surprisingly not the ones with the best grades, but the ones who work the hardest. He had vantage in one of his classes and enjoyed her work ethic when it came to the difficult physics questions. Unlike the students who figured it out in minute and just sat back down, she spent days at the single question that was given to her. When she finally solved it she ran to his office and showed him all the progress that she had made. Little did she know, Alexander was overjoyed that she worked that the equation for hours on end. Before she walked out of his office he stopped her to congratulate her, telling her it was an incredibly difficult question. All she did was nodded and walked off and he was delighted with that response.

Horizon is one of the most loved teachers in the academy, even if her classes give caustic a run for his money. She teaches astronomy and physics first, then the apex games history second. Her main classes are filled with experiments and visually appealing tech thanks to her discoveries. Some students who aren’t even in her class will come and sit to watch the lessons since they are so interesting. She adores when this happens, trying to urge caustic to do the same thing (allowing students to watch) on their lunch break. When the two profs work together (which is once a month) the classroom is packed with students, eager to watch their presentation together. Her apex games history class is just a bird class to pass the time or random credits. Not only does she teach the history, but she’ll take iconic clips from the games and analyze them with the class, to see what they did right and what they did wrong. On the day profs have to catch up on work (aka the profs hang out) horizon and caustic are normally tucked away in a physics laboratory, trying to solve “impossible” equations. So far they’ve only been able to solve what happens inside of a black hole (they were so proud they sealed the chalkboard behind glass to save the moment forever) the reason she came to the academy in the first place, is because her son became a professor of mechanics because of his help making pathfinder.

Bangalore was given full control of the gun range which she ADORED. The physics students sometimes come in to put their equations to the test, and she can correct their mistakes without knowing how any of the equations work. Because she was a soldier for so many years, she doesn’t need to teach as many classes compared to the other profs. She still has classes in the gun range like the anatomy of weapons or showing how some of the more rare weapons work (Kraber, FF sword, knife ect.) she’s given only one class on callouts because some didn’t think it was “important” but she really enjoyed teaching that class. In combat she seems like an intimidating person but as long as you respect her authority, she is a calm and nice. Most people don’t even test her authority because she once lost her shit on a student who kept talking over her and disrespecting her authority.

Mirage got in because he got shot in the back of one of his knees, causing him to lose his ability to walk. The positive to this is he thinks he’s professor X and isn’t having a suck attack about the ordeal. No one knows how but he somehow got a cooking class to himself????? It’s not even super fancy it’s HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL😭. This is his MAIN CLASS PEOPLE. His secondary class is the art of bamboozling. No one knows how the FUCK he got the class to be named that but he does take it incredibly seriously. Even if no other legend can use his ability (copyright strikes yall) he still teaches how to escape out of the tightest of situations without being seen. He doesn’t really do much good to the academy, other than entertainment. Since 3/4 of the time he isn’t teaching, he’s still roaming the campus (since he lives there) trying to go as fast as he can in his motorized vehicle and even hitting ramps. A lot of speculation has gone around that he’s healed but he just really likes being compared to an x-men and he doesn’t wanna seem old using a cane, so he sticks w the wheelchair. He is an absolute social media ICON, students filming videos of his stupid ass around campus ( I’m thinking like a TikTok).

That’s it for now, I am failing my classes but I can write a bunch for my bookies so yeah did we like?

[thisnameisnotspokenfor]

Chapter 27: The Scroll pt 2

Previous: Chapter 26

Next: Chapter 28

The next month of lessons was just as excruciating as expected. 

Progress on his literacy was exceptionally slow, with his handwriting barely improving much to his own embarrassment. But to the creature’s credit, it never raised its voice as it asked him to re-read or oftentimes, rewrite the sentences it had given him.

It had promised that once he’d mastered the basics it would teach him things like chemistry, biology, physics, strategy, politics, and economics, along with its personal favorite being alchemy. He didn’t have the slightest clue what alchemy was, but it seemed to arouse the creature’s enthusiasm whenever it was brought up. 

The weaving lessons had been surprisingly better. He’d found himself quickly falling into a comfortable pattern of weaving. Improvement there had been slow with him often struggling to weave more than a small napkin or scarf, but the creature had nevertheless seemed vaguely content with his progress.

It wasn’t long before his wounds had healed and the creature had deemed him strong enough to begin the more physical lessons. Hunting should have been easy, that is, until the creature had insisted he use a different position for archery, one that despite its insistence had led to him missing more shots than he could remember.

He’d been tempted several times to argue the credibility of such a position given how he doubted the creature even had the proper form to use a bow in the first place, but he’d complied. Quietly mixing the form of his people with the creature’s technique he felt his aim slowly start to improve.

His self-defense had gotten better as well, as he’d practiced his moves against the training models the creature had made move on their own.

“In combat, you cannot afford any mistakes,” it reminded him, as he narrowly dodged a strike from one model before parrying another with his own spear. The strength and speed at which the models had attacked him was always overwhelming as he’d quickly found himself sporting a new series of cuts and bruises at the end of each session.“Your opponents have had hundreds if not thousands of years to practice and perfect. If you are to face them then you must be precise. Waste no movement nor opportunity. Do what you must to ensure that you will be the victor.”

He nodded, attacking his opponents once more. An hour had passed before the creature had decided to move on to the next subject. Agriculture. The creature itself had been surprised at how he’d immediately taken to the agriculture lessons. But it’d nevertheless been satisfied enough to assign him a project of designing his own fields.

he was tending to his wounds when the creature approached, watching as his cuts promptly vanished under the light of his stone.

“You know healing,” the creature murmured. “Were you taught?”

“Not quite. I only know it because I saw the devils do it once with their own crystals,” he admitted before he began to slip off parts of his training armor. “ Why do you ask?”

“Healing is not an easy ability to acquire. It is very rare to see one use it without formal training.”

“So…” he glances at the creature thoughtfully before he removes his forearm guards.  “Am I a prodigy?”

“Not quite. But you do show promise,” it answers as he nods and withdraws the paper from his notebook. 

“Have you finished it?” the creature asked as he nodded. 

“Yes,” he held it towards the creature to see. “This is My finalized design for the fields.”

The creature hummed, as the paper levitated itself from his grasp. Its eyes glossed over the paper before it murmured, “Your handwriting is improving.”

“Is it? It still looks terrible to me.”

“It resembles words. That in and of itself is an improvement.”

“Wow,” he rolled his eyes. “Thanks, I guess. Anyway, I was thinking we could integrate some architecture into the mountainside. Perhaps shape the hills into a stair-like pattern? It could prevent the loss of nutrients during any torrential amounts of rain! Right?”

“Yes. It could.”

He grinned, his imagination running wild as the paper returned itself to his grasp before he looked it over. “Maybe we can also integrate some little tunnels through it as well, so in case of droughts we can still water it quickly and efficiently. It’s brilliant isn’t it?”

“It certainly is practical. You have given this a lot of thought.”

“Yeah… runoff used to be a problem back in my village. So anything that can help us would be a welcome change.”

“We will try to implement it tonight.”

“After midnight patrol?” He’d asked, briefly taking a sip of water as his mind wandered to a few nights ago. 

Kerakash’s death had not gone unnoticed. 

The constant yet distant sounds of the devils' ships flying over the forests at night could attest to that. Whether it had been through the creature's power or the devils’ own caution, none of them had ever flown close to the mountain which was understandable. 

“The Atlanteans will not be a problem,” it replied. “But it is best we do this before midnight. If it works then we can see to whatever adjustments will be made before installing it in your village.

He nodded, his eyes landing on the cave’s skylight as the creature silently departed, leaving him alone to his thoughts once more. 

                  ————————————

He’d been all too happy making his way to the cave entrance as he’d embraced the night air with open arms. 

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had time to merely watch the ocean or observe the peaceful starry sky above. 

Has the world always been this beautiful? 

As a child, he’d remembered the way his aunt had told him the stories of the stars that had been passed down from generation to generation. He could only hope that those stories were providing her with a sense of comfort now as he sat on the edge, sighing deeply.

“So,” he started with a shiver. “Where are we walking to?”

“Not walking,” it hissed. “You will be traveling differently tonight.”

“Really? And what way is that?” Its answer came in the form of its wings that had suddenly expanded, blocking the moon from view as its eyes intensely stared down at him.

He took a hesitant step back. The memories of the last time he’d ‘flown’ with the creature were all but pleasant as he’d remember its talons practically impaling him as it lifted him into the air. “Flying? We’re going to fly? Is.. Is this non-negotiable?”

“Yes. You are in no shape to make such a journey on foot. Not during the night of a full moon.”

“What happens on nights of full moons?”

He asked while subtly trying to put some distance between himself and the creature. 

“On the night of a full moon, the wolves travel to congregate, sometimes for mating, sometimes to engage in battle.”

He frowned, his eyes suspiciously narrowing before he took another step back.  “I didn’t know wolves did that. Usually, they try to stay out of each other’s way-,”

“Yes, But wolves are like any other animals. Easily influenced to undertake unnatural behaviors in the presence of supernatural beings…” The barely visible outline of its wings shivered a beautiful shade of silver as the creature turned its attention back toward the sky. “You would do well to stay clear of such creatures tonight.”

“Okay but how will I-,” his words halted as his body was suddenly hoisted from the ground. There was no time to scream as he levitated upwards before he was placed onto the middle of the creature’s back. 

It took another step forward. The mere force of its action nearly pulled him off as he desperately held on. His breath hitched in his throat as it took off, leaping off the edge of the cliff. 

The wind roared in his ears as his eyes burned with tears. He hadn’t even realized he’d been screaming until he’d adjusted his grip once more, marveling at the sight of the trees and ocean below, as well as the distant mountaintops that surrounded him.

A laugh escaped him as he watched a mountaintop near, with the creature swiftly yet gently landing on its edge. 

Shivering, he’d carefully peeled himself off of the creature's back, doing his best to ignore the laughter in its stare.

Then he began to feel the mountain shake. The ground beneath his feet contorted and moved forward as he watched it change shapes to resemble his design. 

His eyes widened in amazement as he bent down to run his fingers through the dirt. It seemed as if the creature’s assertion on the soil had been correct. It was fertile. 

“Today will be your first field lesson in agriculture.” It called, as two sacks slowly tumbled from out of its darkness towards him. He nodded slowly opening one sack that was full of fish meat that had been neatly diced. 

“Did you cut this?” he asked in disbelief.

“Yes. Now you will use it as your fertilizer.” 

He nodded, admittedly still somewhat impressed with the creature’s cutlery skills. “You’re pretty skilled with a knife. Have you ever thought about being a hunter? I mean you’ve already got the hunting part down pat, and your blade work isn’t too bad either.” He held up the bag of fish for emphasis. “You know I used to have a friend who’d cut the meat up finely like this…” his smile wavered as he remembered Kokaf. The last person who’d seen him alive that night… He shuddered, hoping his friend hadn’t taken his disappearance too harshly.  “He was really good at it too…I doubt he ever found his hunting blade.”

“Hmm…Unlike your friend, we have no use for human weapons.” It spoke, not sounding the least bit amused. “Such objects are primitive.”

Primitive. His nose wrinkled in disgust at the word. He’d lost track of the amount of times he’d heard the devils use it towards his people. He’d glared at the creature, boldly retorting, “And yet you know how to use them.”

“We know everything. Your weapons and  blades merely offer a small portion of the knowledge your planet holds.”

He shook his head, “They’re more than that. Weapons are an extension, a manifestation of our being. It’s how we distinguish ourselves from each other and the darker parts of the forest.” He’d gently held the second bag in his hand. The sounds of the forest below were peaceful, as he savored the passing night breeze. 

His other hand reached to his side. Quietly he pulled the blade he’d acquired from the commander’s body, carefully holding it beneath the moonlight. It hadn’t been as good as his own, but he knew better than to be in the forest unarmed. “The first hunting blade you receive in the village is always the most important,” he explained. “So they are always specific to their holder. Sometimes in carving, other times in appearance. No two blades in the village are ever alike.”

A bitterness had filled his mouth at his own words. Surely there was some irony to it, wasn’t there? A symbol he’d sworn had been used to protect now signified betrayal. He’d have half a mind to throw the blade as far down the mountainside as he could until he saw the handle.

His eyes widened ever so slightly at the knife in his hands before the creature spoke, “Another practice you adopted from your gods?”

He nodded, “Yes. That and the scars is what we do to keep the shape stealers away.”  

“Ah, so your scars have meaning. We concluded that they were intentional given the shape.”

He shrugged, placing the blade back in its holder. “Yeah, my aunt gave us ours. But she did mine wrong.”

“Wrong?”

“Yeah she was supposed to go this way,” he gestured diagonally across his chest. “But she …didn’t,” he frowned. As much as he’d disliked talking about it, he couldn’t hold the incident against her. Not after he’d remembered how badly her hand had shaken while using the knife that night. She hadn’t been prepared to do it. Not physically or emotionally. But she’d had no choice. After their previous elder, her father had died after his confrontation with the devils, she’d inherited the honor…the burden of being their elder. 

“How are the markings distinct then?”

“The markings are usually distinct because the blade used to create them reacts differently to each person. We call it the meteor blade. Legend has it that centuries ago, a meteorite fell near the edge of our kingdom, and the king at the time believed it to have some sort of mystical capabilities. So he commanded several weapons to be carved from it. Most of the weapons were lost the day the royal family was executed, but somehow the meteorite blade managed to make its way to us.”

“Intriguing,” the creature thoughtfully murmured. “The origin of the blade may be the reason why your scars still persisted, even after we healed you.”

“Wait, you tried to heal my scars?”

“Yes. But as you can see, there was little success in any of our attempts. Scars have always been a fickle thing to heal. The older they are the more resistant the skin is. If you were to rid yourself of them you would need to use a different source of power.” 

“Eh, no thanks…I think I like my scar the way it is,” he replied with a small pat on his chest. “It helps me look more distinct.” But despite his cheery tone, the memories of said scars had only served to reawaken the fresh wounds in him as he felt his heart ache for his friends and family.

Not wanting to linger on said pain, he opened the second sack full of hundreds of seeds. Corn seeds, wheat seeds, and rice seeds were only a few he could recognize before he turned his attention back to the stairwell. “Could you please keep a lookout for any wolves?”

The creature released a low clicking noise. He could only hope that was a noise of agreement as he moved forward. 

Carefully he’d slipped onto the stairwell, digging a few holes to place both meat and seed in the dirt as the creature made no attempt to join him. 

“I’ve been thinking-,” he started, grunting as he slowly began to climb down the first level. “That you and your kind have obviously been around for a while, right? If the books in your cave are anything to go off of then you’re at least what? Eight thousand years old….right?” He scoffed, muttering under his breath. “Ugh no wonder you use darkness to hide yourself, you’re probably nothing but scales and wrinkles-,”  When the creature failed to answer he nodded, positioning himself to drop onto the second stairwell beneath him. 

“Do you have a name? Anything I could call or remember you by?”

“A name is not needed.”

“But it’s wanted. C’mon, you don’t even have to tell me what your real name is. I just think anything is better than calling you, well, ‘you’.”

He’d nearly mistaken its silence for an answer before it replied, “Allepac Agirua,” 

“What?”

“You may call us Allepac if you wish.”

“Oh…Allepac…Is that a male or female name?”

Its eyes narrowed as he bristled, practically feeling its annoyance from its ledge near the top of the mountain. “I’m sorry!” he stammered. “I mean, you speak with several voices, and I’ve never really gotten a good look too…you know….I didn’t want to-,”

“Female,” it answered, the woman’s voice sounding particularly loud.

“Wait…So you’re female?” 

“The name we have chosen is of female origin, Erlan,” the female voice spoke. The other voices were noticeably absent as he’d decided to take that as his answer before moving on.

Quickly he began to dig through the dirt as he buried the pieces of fish meat and seeds. 

After an hour or so of work, he’d wiped the sweat from his brow as he stood up, calling to the creature still positioned at the top of the stairwell. “How did you live for so long? Better yet, why come here of all places?” He groaned as he stretched. “If I were immortal and could do half as much as you could, I would travel the world! Maybe even to the stars as well!” He paused, slowly sliding onto the third stairwell as he glanced upwards. To his surprise Allepac was now on the edge, staring down at him intensely.

Right. He mustn't forget what he was dealing with, not if he wanted to live long enough to make it back to his village. Taking a deep breath, he waited for the moonlight to reappear before digging through the soil once more. 

Why would the creature want to remain in such desolate parts? Perhaps it had sought solitude? If so it had done a remarkable job of keeping its presence unnoticed. But then it had emerged, seemingly killing and eating any animal or devils it had come across. It was most definitely carnivorous, but it had not attempted to attack the village, even in its most weakened state.

He knew it would be a foolish question to ask. He’d seen it mutilate and kill, but his curiosity quickly got the better of him as he spoke, “Do you eat humans?” Allepac’s eyes were practically blazing now as he felt his throat dry.

“Do not insult us. We have never found the flesh of your kind to be satisfying., it spoils and thins with age. Its taste and texture are identical. You would taste no different to us than any Atlantean.”

He frowned, “But you’ve tried it?” Silence. Alright, well that answer certainly wasn’t comforting, but he continued. “Well if it’s not to your liking, then what do you use to sustain yourself?”

He was surprised when it answered,  its voice nearly lost to the passing wind.“A thought..An emotion,” the moon hid behind a cloud as it slowly began to climb down the stairwell. Its claws practically crushed and sliced the mountain stone as it neared. “A soul. All things that are distinctly unique to humans.”

He could feel himself tremble at it’s words. Now he’d understood why it had asked for his soul. why it had saved him. Why it had taught him. He was nothing more than a food source, and he’d do wise to remember that. He continued in silence, slowly descending the steps to plant more seeds and meat into the ground.

It hadn’t helped that Allepac had come closer, its eyes practically burning him with every step he took. But he ignored it. There’d be a time to be afraid of course, but not now. Now he had to be strong, both for himself and his people. He’d have to do better.

He’d finished descending the second from the last step when he’d nearly lost his grip. The landing hadn’t been as comfortable as he’d wanted but at least he wasn’t hurt. 

Slowly he’d scattered and buried the seeds before asking, “What…what do souls taste like? Do they have a distinct flavor or-,”

“No human soul tastes identical. Some are more potent than others.”

“What happens to a soul when you devour it? Does it cease to exist or does it become a part of you?” He didn’t hear the creature’s answer as he felt his foot slip, sending him face-first into the dirt. He could feel Allepac's eyes glittering in amusement from behind him as he angrily hauled himself to his feet. “I meant to do that,” he grumbled.

“Certainly.”

“I did, you-,” he paused, as a terrible scream emerged from the forest below. His hand flew to his knife as he backed as far away from the stairwell ledge as possible. “Is it?” he whispered.

“It seems as if they have chosen to do battle this night.”The creature replied.

“Battle?” he repeated. “What would wolves fight over?”

“Lands, mates, food, anything you’ve heard before, really.”

He nodded, his eyes slowly focusing on the outline of the nearest trees. Part of him prayed that none of the other hunters had defied the devils’ order like he. He’d hoped that they’d been at home, far away from the sounds of the fighting wolves.

After a moment or so of watching and listening, he’d turned his attention back to his work. It was best to finish while the wolves were at least a good distance away. He’d nearly finished planting the seeds and meat on the final level of the stairwell as Allepac neared, and for once, he found himself grateful for its close proximity.

No animal in their right mind would approach him now, not unless it wanted to die. Maybe the hunting lessons the creature had spoken of earlier would be far more exciting than he expect- SNAP

He jumped as he watched the creature remain motionless, a low hiss leaving its body as its eyes focused solely on the forest behind him.

“What was that?!” he cried, whirling around to look at the forest edge. Allepac didn’t answer as he heard the faint yet distant sound of another twig snapping followed by approaching footsteps. 

Someone, no something was coming this way. An Atlantean? A wolf? He’d neared the edge of the stair’s wall, gripping it in anticipation to climb at any moment’s notice, and he nearly had, until the forest broke, and the figure slinked forward.

It took one step. Then two. Before promptly collapsing.

“What is it?” he whispered.

“A wolf-dog,” Allepac sneered. Whether it had been annoyed or disgusted, he couldn’t tell as he slowly neared the edge of the stairwell, and looked down below. From his spot, he could see the small form of a wolf pup, lying motionlessly on the ground. Its form was bathed in moonlight, revealing the large patches of blood and dirt that had stained its beautiful fur.

He had never particularly liked wolves. Most of the ones he’d come across had been aggressive, but this was a pup barely old enough to leave its mother’s side.  If its injuries had been any indication of its pack's current state, then he doubted it would have any relatives or home to return to.

It was against his better judgment that he began to descend the stairwell, ignoring the warning remarks from Allepac as he neared the injured wolf pup. 

The pup had weakly growled a warning. Its eyes uneasily met his before its head fell back into the blood-painted grass

“There is no use in saving it,” Allepac snapped, nearly startling him as he took in its sudden presence by its side.  “It has lost too much blood and will not live through the night.”

“I lost a lot of blood,” he replied. “But that didn’t stop you from saving me.”

“You are different.”

He chuckled, before staring at the creature incredulously. “Not to you. I’m just your food, just like everyone else with a soul is, right?” The creature offered no semblance of an argument as he reached the dying pup. Carefully withdrawing his necklace, he’d held it over the pup’s wounds, watching as it breathed uneasily for a moment as he pressed his hand downwards. He still hadn’t mastered healing, but he’d hoped that the power had managed to alleviate the pup’s suffering if only for a moment. Tentatively he removed his hand from the pup’s side, awe filling him as he watched the gnash on the animal’s side glow a familiar silver before shrinking, its size not nearly as daunting as it was a few moments ago.

Allepac had said nothing to this, only opting instead to watch quietly as Erlan finished bandaging the pup’s injuries before they swiftly returned to the cave. 

He’d been removed from Allepac’s back when he spoke, “If it survives we should give it a name. How does…Faiolia sound?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Why? It has nowhere else to go and look at it! It’s so little!”

“All creatures are initially small. But when they become bigger that is when they are the problem.”

“Not all’ he argued back as his eyes met Allepac’s. Some animals can be domesticated. Especially dogs! I remember you taught me that last week!” he’d argued as Allepac’s eyes narrowed. “My aunt told me that my father used to have a wolf dog. She said he’d found it as an injured pup during one of his hunts. He took it home where he and my mother nursed it back to health. It never left their side until the day they left this world, and it soon followed after. Can you believe it? That even an animal can show, or maybe feel that sense of loyalty just from one act of kindness?” His eyes returned to the pup’s pitiful form before he gently placed it on the ground. “Ha, you can’t even say that about some people nowadays. No matter what you do for them, they’ll always be holding a knife to your neck…Ready to strike when you least expect it.” His eyes narrowed as he glared at the traitorous hunting knife that hung at his side.

“You know who betrayed you?” Allepac asked as he began to gather a few spare blankets.

He nodded, spreading the blankets around the pup as he seated himself by its side. “Yeah, I do…” Hurt filled his chest as he tore his eyes away from the knife before looking down at his hands. “The worst part is…We’ve been together as long as I can remember…He’s always looked out for me…I…I just…can’t believe he’d be the one to do this.”

“Perhaps that is why he betrayed you,” Allepac spoke, its voice soft as he felt the unused sheets of the bed wrap around him. “He knew he was the last person you would suspect..”

“Maybe,” he confessed as he drew his knees to his chest. “But I’ve always wanted to know…why.”

“The why does not matter.”

“Doesn’t it? I think I at least have a right to know!”

“You do. But will any reason be enough to justify the breach of loyalty to you? As someone who aspires to be a leader, you should seek to inspire loyalty, not tolerate breaches of it. If someone can betray you once then they are capable of doing it again, maybe even inspiring others to turn against you as well.”

“I know!” he yelled, before deflating. “I know…But that’s the problem, isn’t it? Nothing about me inspires loyalty, Allepac. I know I’m not half as capable as my parents were, but still…” his eyes lingered on the form of the now sleeping pup as he drew his knees to his chest. “I just want to give him a chance to live, Allepac. A chance that for some reason, I was given so long ago…I always knew I should’ve died the same day my parents did. I was just a baby the day they’d been ordered to be executed, but for some reason, the Atlantean royal family spared me and all of the children at the time. Maybe it had been because the queen is a parent too, so she’d listened to the cries of the rebels to spare us. But in the process, she’d left us without our own parents..”

“How have you survived without parents?”

“It wasn’t easy.” He chuckled, the memories of his childhood lingering as two particular faces came to mind. “But it was only because my aunt and Geron stepped in. We all sorta became a family then as they did their best to raise us, even while they were still healing from their own wounds, or at least, the ones we could see.” He sighed, his eyes lingering on the pup’s form once more. “I just hope they’re doing well wherever they are.”

Allepac’s eyes had softened as he’d turned back to the pup, praying that it would survive the night, and much to his surprise it had. 

But its body burned with fever as Erlan tended to its wounds the next morning. “I don’t understand,” he’d murmur after changing it’s bandages. “It should’ve at least started to get better by now-,”

“An infection must Have been in its blood before you healed it,” Allepac noted, its voice emotionless as it carefully observed him. 

“Are blood infections harder to heal?”

“Yes. although healing has never been one of our primary capabilities, we have mastered it to a rather impressive degree. But we will admit that there are still things that surpass our limitations.” 

He shook his head, watching as the feverish pup helplessly whimpered. “There has to be another way…”

“For a wolf-dog?” Its eyes narrowed as it heard his thoughts. “It is not worth it.”

“What is your issue with the wolf-dog anyway?”

“Having that dog around will not be an easy arrangement.” Its eyes narrowed as he heard it hiss. “She is a distraction.”

“No, she’s not. She’s only been here for what? half a day at most? And be honest- I was doing terrible before. There’s no way I can do worse now. Look, how about we do it this way, okay? If I can do well in my lessons, then she can stay. If not, she goes.”

“You sound confident in yourself.”

He shrugs, “Someone has to. If not me, then who?”

Allepac scoffed, “You have a lot of confidence for someone who is lacking a clear solution to his current issues. Your wager will mean nothing if you do not produce a panacea within two days.”

“A panacea,” He shook his head, thinking it over. If Allepac’s power was not enough to heal the pup then he would need to look elsewhere for something stronger. But what else could heal supernaturally? He couldn’t think of anything unless- “The Atlantean’s crystal!” he exclaimed as he stood to his feet. “Do you think it could take care of the infection?”

Allepac’s eyes narrowed, its voice sparing no hints of anger and disgust as it answered, “It could if you so wish to use that source of power. But how you will obtain it is an issue in and of itself.”

“No need to worry. I have a plan.” he walked towards the weaving loom before taking a seat. “But first, Do you think you could give me a lesson before we leave?”

—----------------------------------------

“This was your plan? When you had told us that you had planned on establishing your trade route, we were expecting more than this.” Allepac hissed to his mind as he stood at the edge of the town’s crowded port. The sun had risen a few hours ago as the port’s bell tower began to ring, symbolizing the beginning of the breakfast hour. Waking up to travel so early had been a pain, but he was certain that arriving at this time would increase his chances of running into familiar faces. 

“Give it time,” he whispered, drawing a deep breath as he stepped forward into the array of people and colors from all corners of the world. The crowd had nearly threatened to swallow him whole as he’d struggled to make his way through. Thankfully, no one had noticed him as he’d tugged his hood over his head. 

A small part of him had felt proud of the cloak he’d managed to weave for himself before he’d turned his attention back to the unhappy entity that had resided deeply within his pocket.

“It’s simplistic I know,” he confessed. “But to be honest, that gives it less chance to fail, don’t you think?” 

“No plan is infallible-,” it replies, bringing his mind back to the present as he continues through the crowd. A few passersby cast him wary looks and double-takes before quickly disappearing into the crowd. “-Regardless of its complexity and contingencies. But if this fails do not expect us to step in to save you.”

 “Why not?” He frowns, realizing that he’d been speaking aloud, rather than to the creature in his head. “If I die now, won’t that be a bit problematic for you? What if you miss the chance to grab my soul?”

It scoffed. “It will be a risk well worth taking. No soul polluted by the Atlantean crystal is worth the effort.”

“None of them?”

“None of them.”

“I guess I’ll have to take your word for it,” he sighed, his eyes searching the streets for any sign of the inn. ‘The Olde Heart Shard’ was what Geron had called it.  It’d been his best bet of running into the man who had betrayed him.

He hesitated, trying to ignore how his heart had lurched at the thought of seeing him again.  What would he say to the man who’d nearly been responsible for his death? Allepac must’ve sensed his thoughts as he heard its voice ask, “You are certain you wish to do this?” something akin to concern becoming more noticeable in its voice. 

“Of course! What? Are you worried about me?” he teased, trying to keep his nerves at bay.

He was promptly rewarded with a scoff as he heard it say, “No. We were merely ensuring that you are in the right state of mind to face what is ahead. You are human, and as such you are always prone to getting emotional in situations like these. But you cannot afford to be emotional if you wish to succeed.”

His eyes narrowed as they swept the street, taking note of the inn’s absence. “Understood.” He drew in a steady breath. He lowered his head before passing a few stray Atlantean soldiers, before thinking, “But if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were…jealous, Allepac.”

“Jealous-,’ it spat. “Of that insignificant fragment? Why would we be jealous of the very thing we shattered in the first place?”

“You shattered the crystal?” he murmured in disbelief before he anxiously looked around to ensure that no guards were nearby.

“Of course we did,” it sounded smug now. “Many millennials ago they had been one of us. They had been whole. They had been our equal in everything but mental capacity.”

“But then you’d broke it, er, them?”

“Yes. We did. But they were clever. In the aftermath, they fled to Earth where they had been discovered by humans. Humans that would later use their power to take over the world.”

“And that’s why you’re here, isn’t it?” he’d watched the Atlantean ships carrying guards sail overhead. “To finish what you’ve started?”

“Not quite.”

“Not quite?” he’d repeated before scowling as the Atlantean ships landed. One man stepped out from the ship as the surrounding soldiers bowed before following after him. “What? Are you planning on having some sort of friendly get-together when you reunite?” He’d wondered as he’d watched the squadron disappear down one of the streets. “You guys are related, right? Since you’re the same species?”

“Absolutely not,” its voice deadpanned. “Are you related to all of the humans in this city?”

He quickly shook his head, as he’d venture down another street, different from the one he’d seen the squadron take. “Of course not, I-,”

“So do not ever draw such a conclusion again unless you are prepared for massive retaliation.”

He could barely stifle his laughter at the creature’s emotionless threats. “Ah, here comes the threats. Look Allepac I just meant that you sounded jealous of the crystal’s healing abilities. That’s all.”

“Jealous? Ha! Such healing abilities are not that unique. But some are more naturally attuned to it than others. That…thing, has been feeding off of the collective emotions and souls of its people for a millennium. So it is only natural that their healing abilities are vastly superior due to their circumstances, but do not mistake it for an inherent sign of superiority.”

He’d continue searching the streets, briefly pausing to take note of the Seralix stall tenders. Bandages were wrapped around their backs and arms. “So you’re saying that if you had the same amount of emotions or souls to feed off, you’d be able to do the same, if not better?”

“Exactly. So do not misconstrue this with this ‘jealousy’ you speak of.”

He shrugged. “Well, you did sound defensive and upset earlier-”

“Because you are being foolish. Your foolishness has always been very upsetting.”

“And yet you still follow along with it,” he smiled as he felt Allepac shift within his pocket.

“If any part of your soul is salvageable upon death, then we are entitled to it as promised.”

“Comforting,” he rolled his eyes as he ventured onto a thankfully less busy street. “Has anyone ever told you that you had a way with words?” 

“Yes. Where else do you think most of your vocabulary has originated from?”

“Right,” he’d paused, his eyes scanning the crowd once more.

He’d nearly felt his heart falter as his eyes landed on one distant face in the crowd. 

“Kokaf?” he whispered. “Kokaf!” he yelled. His voice was drowned out by the sounds of the crowd as the merchants began their calls to passersby.

“Who?” the creature whispered as his friend continued walking. His face was stoic as he cast a few spare glances towards the Seralix merchants before making his way through the street.

“Kokaf, he’s one of my friends from the village,” he quickly explained as he chased after him. “Excuse me, sorry, pardon,” he called as he passed and pushed his way to the other side of the street where he’d seen his friend venture to. 

His eyes quickly scanned the crowd, looking for any sign of him, before he spotted him heading towards one of the stalls owned by an Atlantean. The stall had been selling healing herbs and concoctions, none of which Erlan suspected worked as well as the crystal that hung around the Atlantean’s neck. 

He’d nearly called for his friend once more until he’d seen the same squadron from earlier appear. He hadn’t been the only one to take note of this as he’d seen the Atlanteans bow to the man as he’d passed their stalls.

The man must’ve been a big deal. Maybe he’d been the new commander they’d sent as a replacement for Kerakash? 

His thoughts were only confirmed as he’d watched Kokaf’s expression change from stoicism to surprise when he caught sight of the man and guards nearing. “Oh no-,” he’d nearly started to move towards Kokaf until he stopped himself. He couldn’t afford to get overemotional, at least not yet.

Acting on the side of caution, he stepped back into the crowd and drew his hood over his face once more.

Kokaf didn’t look scared as he saw the guards approaching. If anything he’d looked…calmer. Simply exchanging words with the stall tender before he’d taken his purchase and walked away, nearly disappearing into the crowd as the guards continued on their own way.

 Perhaps it had just been his nerves acting up, but Something hadn’t felt right. He knew something wasn’t right.

He’d venture into the crowd after Kokaf’s retreating figure, maintaining distance as he followed his friend through the detours and strange turns of the market.

Several times Kokaf had paused to look back. His eyes instinctively searched the crowd for any signs that he’d been followed. But instinct hadn’t been enough to help him spot Erlan before he’d disappeared down a nearby street towards the more prominent Atlantean-owned part of the town.  

Making the venture to this part of the town hadn’t been easy. The streets were practically crawling with guards who’d stop to question every non-devil-blooded individual, who’d passed them.

Knowing that he couldn’t afford such questions, he’d opted to travel unconventionally, leaping across the rooftops as he’d finally tracked his friend through the crowd once more. He watched him look around one last time before he disappeared into a nearby alleyway full of guards. 

Erlan had nearly been tempted to follow but had quickly decided against it, choosing to wait instead. 

His patience was soon rewarded as he’d seen another pair of guards also venture down the alleyway where Kokaf had disappeared to. 

Quietly he’d lept to the closest rooftop near the alleyway, using every bit of stealth training the creature had taught him as he remained still, listening in on the conversation.

“You’re nearly late.�� The voice was cold, lacking any semblance of warmth. 

“M-my apologies commander Kogash!” Kokaf stammered. “I-it took me a while to step out a-and lose the acting elder she’s very sneaky a-and-,” he’d grunted, as the air filled with the sounds of metal moving. 

“As expected, another pitiful morning of nothing but excuses,” Kogash yawned. “I’ve tried to be patient with you, boy, since I heard of the good work you’d done for Kerakash but even my patience has limits. Since I’ve arrived you’ve brought me nothing but useless information!”

He’d risked a glance over the rooftop ledge. Surprise filled him at the sight of the man he’d seen earlier, standing there proudly as Kokaf kneeled in front of him with guards standing on either side.

“I-I…I’m sorry sir!” He stammered, his body shaking within the guard’s grasp. “There’s nothing I can do! The others have already done the funeral rites for him and refuse to let anyone sneak into the forest, if I were to go they’d start asking questions-,”

Kogash scoffed, placing his arms behind his back. “So let them ask. Asking is, after all, the best way to know what the people are thinking and planning. If they are doing either then you should be the first to know. That in and of itself shouldn’t be hard, even for someone like you. After all, you do work with them at that inn don’t you?”

Kokaf kept his head lowered, “Yes sir.”

Kogash’s eyes narrowed. “And they certainly trust you enough to keep you around. Don’t they?”

He swallowed uneasily, “Y-Yes sir.”

“And no one suspects a thing, correct?”

His fists clenched. “Yes sir.”

Now the man smiled, “Good. I’d certainly hope so. After all, I don’t take kindly to failed investments so unless you want us to go back on our word-,”

Kokaf looked up now. His eyes were wide with panic. “N-no of course not! All I need is some time sir! Just a few more days!” He’d looked as if he were going to be sick before he drew a deep breath, forcefully steadying himself. “Our acting elder had a dream last night.”

“A dream?” The man had repeated. “And pray tell what was said dream about?”

“She’d claimed she could feel the winds near the cursed mountains changing and whispering. She believes that the creature will make its presence known soon.”

Now the soldiers looked uneasy as the commander smiled. “Is that so? Well then! when these winds arrive, I expect you will know what to do.”

He nodded. “Y-yes sir.”

“Good. But until then I will expect updates daily. You’d best be getting lost now…and…Kokand, was it?” Kokaf had weakly nodded as the man sighed. “I’d hope for Sakari’s sake that your next report does not leave so much to be desired.”

Kokaf’s body practically tensed at the mention of the princess’s name, but he nodded.  “Understood sir. I…I will do my best.” And with that, he’d stepped out of the alley his head lowered as Erlan quietly followed once more, careful not to get close.

He’d followed him back into the city’s marketplace. Quietly descending from the rooftop, he’d watched Kokaf stop to greet a young woman, most of whom none would ever suspect of being a princess, who was sweeping around the Atlantean-owned stalls. Her brown dress was dirtied and torn. Its back revealed the bandages that had covered her skin as she’d winced. The pain nearly overwhelmed her as he watched her falter. Then Kokaf had arrived, steadying her before he’d offered her his purchase. 

She’d smile at him. Her eyes lit up as she’d accepted his offer. Then after a few minutes or so of talking, Erlan watched the two bid each other farewell before going their separate ways as he made a note of the direction he’d seen the Seralix princess disappear to.

He’d visit her later but for now, he’d deal with Kokaf. 

He’d followed his friend carefully through the crowd until he’d found himself in front of the inn.  The words ‘The Olde Heart Shard’ had been carved into the building’s stony entrance.

“Are you going to make yourself known?” he whispered while peaking into the strange darkness that had filled his pocket. “My Aunt knows you’re here.”

“In due time,” it replied. Its small silver eyes vanished as he nodded, stepping forward to carefully push the door open. 

The inn had been as he’d last pictured it. The delicious aroma of food greeted him as he took in the sight of people from near and far who’d been seated around beautifully carved stone tables. A few Atlanteans were dining in attire he could only dream of wearing as his heart raced. 

He’d nearly been about to leave when he stumbled into a servant. The plate she’d carried had clattered to the floor as the food had landed on his cloak. 

“I’m sorry sir!” She called as she righted herself, and brushed herself off before she’d turned to look at him. His heart had all but stopped as he recognized his aunt’s face. She sighed, placing her tray down on a nearby table before looking him over. Her reddened eyes seemed sunken and hollow as he’d taken note of the dark bags that had appeared beneath them. 

She looked as if she hadn’t slept well or stopped crying for months. The guilt and pain that had gripped his heart from looking at her was far worse than any pain he’d felt prior. He really hadn’t considered the consequences had he? He’d never imagined hurting his aunt so much. 

Finally, he felt her eyes meet his. “Oh, your cloak! Would you like another? Geron keeps a few spare ones in the back.” 

Geron?

He took an uneven breath before slowly nodding. He could hardly believe it.

His aunt was here. His aunt and Geron. But-

His throat was drying as he slightly staggered at a new realization. His own aunt could no longer recognize him. But how could she? He’d been dead to the world, hadn’t he? She’d cast him a confused glance. “Right this way please,” she’d gestured for him to follow. 

He complied, wondering how she’d react when he revealed himself to her. He couldn’t blame her if she’d reacted with anger or disgust. It was what he’d deserved for nearly endangering them. 

Soon several more servants passed, more and more sporting the familiar faces of his hunting companions. To his relief, they’d all looked as if they’d been at least eating in the time he’d been gone. 

But he could feel, that behind their bright smiles and polite bows, the emptiness within them had been growing. But he’d known even under their circumstances they’d tried to stay strong. It was one of the rules of a hunter: To always stay strong and to stick together. 

And if they’d honored the code as much as he’d suspected then that had meant- “Order up!” Geron’s voice emerged from behind the counter in the back room as he gasped.

Slowly he’d turn towards the counter, his eyes widening as he took in the sight of the former warrior now turned chef. Save for a few more pounds of weight he’d gained, Geron had more or less looked the same, as he adjusted his long sleeves to hide his scarred forearms. 

He’d turned to glance at them as they approached before grabbing a rag. “Another accident, Marendellis? That’s twice in one morning.”

“I know,” she grumbled, before yawning as she leaned against the counter. She looked exhausted. “At least I hadn’t been carrying any food this time.”

“You need to rest. Regardless of what the gods may think or want. Operating on such little sleep is not healthy.”

“I…I know. But don't worry,” she yawned once more. “I’ll be fine.”

Geron frowned. “You need sleep. Perhaps a good dream as we-,” If looks could kill Erlan was quite certain that Geron would’ve died many times at the hands of his aunt. Very few knew that she’d taken herbs to stop dreaming the night his mother, her sister had been executed. 

“Hmm,” Geron had paused mid-wipe as his eyes settled on Erlan. “I think we may have a few spare cloaks that are your size, sir. Do you have any preference for color?”

Erlan had looked around twice before he’d pulled off his hood and answered, “Anything but blue please.”

The silence that followed was unbearable, with neither party moving. Maybe this had been a mistake-

All traces of tiredness had disappeared from Merendellis’s face as she’d taken a step back. “That voice…I know that voice.” She looked stunned. 

Geron was the first to move, taking several steps away from the counter as he shook his head in disbelief. “You…you’re alive…they said you were dead. They showed us your hunting knife! It had blood on it!”

“It’s a long story but,” he paused to sheepishly scratch the back of his neck. Allepac was quiet now, but he was certain it had been keenly listening in. “-that wasn’t my blood…before everything went south, there was a skirmish.”

“How…how is this possible?!” Geron whispered, breaking the silence as Merendellis began to tremble. “You’ve been dead for over a month-,

“…it’s a ghost!” She breathed as she’d quickly grabbed onto Geron’s arm. “It has to be! Look at his eyes!” His aunt whispered. Her eyes flooded with tears. “His spirit has come to haunt us!”

Erlan quickly placed his hand up in a placating gesture. “No no, auntie! I’m not a ghost, and I’m not here to haunt you! I promise!”

“Prove it!” She commanded while Geron nodded. 

“Yes,” he started. “Tell us how you’d Prove to us that you are not a spirit or a shapeshifter of sorts.”

“Alright,” he looked over at the hunter carefully. As he stepped forward. Looking toward Geron he’d whispered, “I know that your full name is Geronaius del Taruk, former general of the Aturaluce empire who was my father’s closest confidant. Your general tattoo is of a circle with three slashes to represent the dawn of our three princes when you’d risen to power-,”

“Shh! Don’t say that here son do you want to get us all killed?” Geron had nervously looked about before turning his attention back to Erlan. His eyes narrowed as he leaned forward to whisper, “Fine I’ll give you that…you know about my marks but what about yours?” 

 “You are the lead hunter and your largest scar runs slanted down your chest. A mark all hunters are given in honor of the hunting goddess Mavier as a mark of protection after completing their trials to protect us from the shape stealers.  Because my grand uncle had passed, I was the first one my aunt did. So When I was given mine it was slanting the wrong way, see?” He pulled open his shirt to reveal the jagged scar as his aunt gasped.

“Yes,” Geron nodded as the blood slowly returned to his face as he looked Erlan over once more. “That is him.”

 “It is. See?” He stepped forward tightly embracing his aunt as he felt her stiffen. “I’m sorry I didn’t come back sooner. And I’m sorry for any grief I caused while I was gone.” Slowly he untangled his arms from around her as he took a step back trying to gauge her reaction. But her expression was unreadable as he looked away. “You were right. I wasn’t thinking as selflessly as I thought I was. So…I’m sorry.”

“It…it is you,” she breathed the tears spilling from her eyes as she gave him an embrace of her own. Her grip on him tightened as if she’d feared that any moment he too would slip away and that none of this would be real. “Geron,” she sobbed. “He’s come back! Look at him! Is it just me or has he gotten taller?” 

“He definitely has but Careful Meren,” Geron laughed as he’d joined the pair’s embrace. “You may very well make him into a ghost with the way you’re choking him!”

Erlan nodded, partially surprised that Allepac hadn’t started complaining about the sudden squeeze as well.

“Sorry!” She squeaked her grip on him ever so slightly loosening as she laughed, wiping away her tears before she gently embraced him once more. This time she’d pressed a kiss to a temple. 

“Come,” she gestured to the spare chairs around the counter. “You must be exhausted from your travels.”

“Yes!” Geron chuckled as he stepped from around the counter. “Making your way back here from the afterlife mustn’t have been an easy venture!”

 He nodded, taking an uneasy seat as he hoarsely whispered to them, “Thanks.”

No sooner had he sat down though did his aunt begin to pelt him with questions. “What happened to you? How did you survive? Where have you been? What happened to your eyes?”

“My eyes?” He repeated. This had been the second time she’d mentioned them. “What do you mean?”

“Your eyes,” Geron carefully began as his expression wavered between politeness and uncertainty. “Well…they’re almost the reason we didn’t recognize you…Here…” he stood up, returning to the counter before he quickly withdrew a small mirror. “See for yourself,” he handed it to Erlan who quickly took in his own reflection. 

Everything had seemed normal to him, everything save for…His eyes.

What had once been the normal deep shade of brown he’d shared with his people was now showing hints of an intense grayish silver, just like the stone around his neck. 

“Oh…,” he’d started, taking a seat as he placed the mirror down. He knew he owed them answers, answers that he himself didn’t even feel he had yet. But they deserved an explanation or at least a semblance of one.

“You might want to gather the others for this,” he started. “And take a seat as well. It’s a long story.”

“Hey Geron you’re not going to believe this but-,” came Kokaf’s voice over the several trays of dirtied cups he carried as he entered the room. His voice trailed off as he took in the sight of Erlan before him.  

Without a word, he’d set the trays down on the counter before promptly passing out.

“Well, that’s Kokaf,” Merendellis sighed. “Shall I go fetch the others?”

“Yes please,” Erlan replied as Geron groaned, rubbing his temples.

It had taken at least an hour until the breakfast crowd had thinned, allowing the rest of the hunters to take a break as they’d joined him in the back.

To say they were shocked would be an understatement as the other hunters all cautiously touched and pinched him to ensure he wasn’t a ghost, with a few marveling at his strange new eye color as well.

They’d all listened quietly as he’d explained what had happened and the creature he’d met as well. 

“And you’ve been living with it all this time?” His aunt had asked as he’d nodded. “Goodness! Aren’t you afraid that it might eat you as well?”

“Yes. I’m actually very afraid,” he confessed with a nervous grin. “But it keeps on telling me that its primary source of food isn’t human flesh. So if anything I won’t have to worry about its hunger.”

“But it’s no stranger to shedding human blood, right?” Kokaf had reiterated. 

He shook his head, trying not to remember the sounds the devils had made that night while Allepac had torn them to pieces. “No. That’s how it dealt with Kommander Kerakash and his squadron.”

If things had been different, he would have half expected Kokaf to crack a joke, maybe even laugh at this. But he’d done neither instead as his expression faltered. All traces of humor evaporated from his eyes and were replaced with something he couldn’t quite identify before Kokaf stepped back.

“Isn’t this what you dreamed?” He asked Merendellis, a note of hope now present within his voice.

She nodded, evidently not looking pleased at the sudden reminder as she’d abruptly turned her attention back to Erlan.

“I suppose that explains why we never saw him again,” Merendellis smiled. “They’d never given us a straight answer on what had happened to him, only that his replacement had arrived that night.”

“It was far too quickly to be coincidental,” Geron’s fingers tapped against the countertop. “I’ve seen how quickly they’ve mobilized to replace commanders before and at best it takes them a few days to find someone. But this time they’d done it in less than a span of a day. Almost like they were expecting it to happen.” He shook his head before he continued, “But that wasn’t even the strangest part,” he’d reached beneath the counter to pull out a wanted poster. The drawing had been grossly inaccurate, but there’d been no denying that the poster was indeed for Erlan. “This started making rounds the minute Kerakash’s replacement arrived. Doesn’t make much sense to have a wanted poster of a dead person, does it? Not unless of course, you have your reasons to believe he was never dead to begin with.” The surrounding hunters nodded as Erlan looked the poster over. “We weren’t certain if you were still alive, but we had a feeling that they knew what was going on. And they knew better than to tell us the truth that something had been slaughtering them in those woods.”

“How is this new commander anyway?” Erlan asked.

“Terrible,” Merendellis sighed. “He almost makes Kerakash seem like a saint.” The others, Korkaf included, nodded in agreement.

“He likes to frequent this part of the port. I think he’s keeping an eye on us,” Geron grumbled.

“Not him,” Erlan corrected. “Someone else.”

He’d pushed his chair back. His eyes solely focused on Geron as they narrowed. “Before Kerakash was killed, he’d revealed to me that he knew of our intel lines.  His expression grew serious as he looked around the room. “We have a traitor in our midst.”

The hunters exchanged uneasy glances as he heard Geron growl, “I told you not to trust the Adakhi.” 

Erlan shook his head, “Surprisingly, I don’t think the Adakhi are behind this. Whoever is, is someone who possessed a hunter blade of ours.”

“Then you know who it is?” Merendellis asked, looking a bit surprised.

He nodded, “I do. In fact I plan-” he leaned forward whispering something into Geron’s ears carefully. “So what do you think?”

“It’s risky….but it might work,” Geron nodded, hesitantly.

“Risky?” Merendellis reiterated, now looking a bit worried. “What do you plan on doing?” His aunt had asked. 

“It’s simple really,” he replied before he leaned forward and whispered something into her ear.

“Oh my,” she gasped, placing her hand over her mouth uneasily. “That port is practically crawling with guards…And you’re sure it’ll work?”

He nodded, his eyes narrowing as he watched Geron. “Yes, and I’ll explain it to the rest of you,” he promised the watching crowd. “But In the meantime, I want to talk to you all about Allepac-,”

“Allepac?” Korkaf repeated, looking surprised. 

“It’s it, er, her name I think. I’m not sure what its origins are, but I think the name is female.”

“The monster devouring the devils named itself?” Geron asked. His eyes cautiously wandered towards the shut door. 

Despite Kedakh being an Atlantean himself, Erlan had quickly learned that their employer had been gracious in hiring them as soon as they’d lost the forest. None of them had been excited about taking up the prospect of being servants, but their families had needed the money, so they’d committed to it. 

Erlan eagerly nodded “Yes. But you should’ve seen it. The power it possesses is unlike anything before! I never thought the devils would be capable of retreat until I’d seen them cross paths with Allepac… I remember one of them yelling Primorus Asteruin when seeing it.”

The crowd of hunters exchanged looks with a few even murmuring suggestions on what it could mean. 

“Primorus is an Atlantean word that the Latin word primordius originated from, which has often been used in the form of primordialis meaning first of all,” Erlan started. “I’m not sure what Asteriun means though.”

“What does primordial mean?” Someone asked.

“It means ancient. Something that existed near the beginning of time,” Erlan explained, feeling the creature shift within his pocket.

“Excellent definition,” Allepac whispered into his mind as he grinned. 

“Thanks,” he’d thought back. 

Merendellis looked surprised, “Where did you learn that?” 

“Same place he must’ve learned to pack on a few pounds!” Kokaf teased before roughly slapping his back. “Look at you! You’re nearly fat now!”

He chuckled. “Heh…yeah, but we’ve been doing a lot of farming lately. Allepac says that the cursed mountains are dormant volcanoes and they house a lot of fertile soil that we can use. I’ve planted some stuff recently so it’ll take a while but as soon as it’s ready for harvest I’m going to convince Allepac to let me bring it back to the village.”

The curiosity had died for a moment when the door cracked open and Kedakh stepped in.

His eyes had searched the room, “Good afternoon,” he called, politely. 

“Good afternoon,” the crowd had politely replied.

“The break is over, huh?” Geron asked as he began to wipe the counter.

“I’d give you longer if I could,” Kedakh confessed as he stepped in, allowing the door to close behind him. “But there are…certain guests who demand my attention.”

The crowd’s expression changed as all hints of curiosity vanished. “It’s The commander,” Merendellis explained to Erlan before turning her attention back to  Kedakh. “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of them.”

“Thank you,” he nodded gratefully before stepping out as a few hunters joined him.

Merendellis placed a small kiss on Erlan’s cheek before she followed Geron into the kitchen, promising to see him as soon as the day had ended.

Now Erlan was alone….well almost alone. 

“So,” came ’s voice. The laughter in his eyes had returned as he took a seat next to Erlan. “How’s it feel to come back from the dead?”

“Tiring,” he smiled as he felt his friend sling his arm across his back. “Thanks to Allepac I haven’t gotten one minute of rest.”

“Allepac,” Kokaf frowned, slowly repeating the name. “Is that really what it calls itself right?”

“Yeah, that’s her name,” he answered.

“It’s crazy to think something that powerful that exists would actually bother to do something like that.”

He’d cast Kokaf a sideways glance, as he’d heard Allepac’s ticking echo in his mind. “I don’t see why not. They’re highly sentient. Allepac has a mind of her own.”

Now Kokaf looked surprised “Oh? You know they say the devil’s crystals are the same way,” he gestured to Erlan’s necklace. “I heard someone say that they feed off the emotions of their people or something like that…you think it’s alive too?”

“Maybe? But I’d hope not.”

“Why not?”

He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling thoughtfully, “Because if it’s sentient then it may very well be their biggest proponent, and if it is, what will that mean for the rest of us?”

“Nothing,” Kokaf simply answered.

“What?” Erlan’s eyes snapped back to him.

“It means nothing, not if you have your own monster you can throw at it.” A smile has spread across Kokaf’s face. A sharp contrast to the defeated expression he’d seen him wear earlier.

“Allepac isn’t a crystal. I can’t just wave my hand and make them do what they don't want to do. Trust me I’ve gotten into enough quarrels to learn that…It took a lot to convince them to let me come here too.”

“But it can be convinced, can’t it? And reasoned with?”

He’d slowly nodded. “For a price, yes.”

“A price huh…and what was this price it asked for?”

He stopped, staring deeply into his friend’s eyes. Briefly, he debated on whether or not he should tell him, before shaking his head. “Here isn’t the place to discuss it-,”

“Then-?” Kokaf had asked as his grip on his sleeve tightened. 

Erlan carefully looked either way, ensuring the two were alone before he leaned down to whisper, “The Portia docks.”

“The Portia docks?!” Kokaf stammered. “Those docks aren’t safe at night!”

“I know, but they’re where we’ve usually met my contacts in the past. You remember, right?”

Kokaf nodded, “O-of course… But your plan-?”

“Is going to happen elsewhere. Kerakash told me a hunter was the traitor,” he confessed. “So I plan on telling said hunter to meet me at the Grenier port, one hour later than everyone else. Of course, he doesn’t know that it’ll be an hour later than the time I gave everyone else. But there’s only one way to deal with a traitor. ”

“And what time do you plan on meeting with everyone else?”

“Midnight.”

“That’s the meeting time?”

“That’s what I’ve told everyone, save for the traitor.”

“Have you already spoken to the traitor?” Kokaf asked, picking at his apron.

“I have,” Erlan nodded. “He thinks we’re all meeting an hour past midnight.”

Kokaf’s eyes left his. “I see…Alright then. I’ll meet you at the docks then. Will you bring it?”

“Bring what?” 

“The thing, you know, Allepay?”

“Allepac and yes” he patted his pocket. “I’ll bring her.”

Kokaf nodded, soon returning to work a few minutes after as Erlan had stood up to take his leave.

On his way out, he’d stopped near the entrance where he’d seen Keradkh lingering with his children. He was holding his daughter, playing with her as she’d laughed. The man’s blue eyes lit up in surprise as he watched Erlan approach.

“Ah! Good morning,” he’d politely greeted. “May I help you?”

“You already have,” Erlan said quietly as he pulled his hood over his head. “Thank you, for taking care of my people.”

“Ah, it was no problem,” Kedakh assured him as he set his child down, watching her scamper after her brother to play outside. “When I heard what the crown had issued, I knew I couldn’t turn them away.” He’d reached for a glass, examining it before placing it down. “You’d be surprised to know that quite a few of us feel this way. Some of us have always felt this way,” his fingers held his glowing crystal.

“I know I cannot speak for every Atlantean, but I’ve been alive long enough to know that we Atlanteans used to be a beacon of progress. A symbol of advancement, until one day, some of us lost sight of who we were,” he’d picked up another glass examining it. “And so we dragged the entire world into the darkness that had enveloped us.”

He shook his head before placing down both glasses. Then he picked up another. “And now I feel that the hour of retribution draws near. The sun will soon set on this empire, and rise with another…I suppose it would be too late to ask for forgiveness?” He’d force his eyes to meet his as the hand that held the glass began to tremble. 

Erlan shook his head, “No. It’s never too late.”

Kedakh placed this glass down as well and his eyes went to the table where the guards sat, then 

 to Erlan. “Whatever you are planning to do. Please, do it carefully. He’s been waiting for you, any of you to make a move before he retaliates. All he needs is one reason, not even a good reason.”

“I know,” Erlan nodded. “But I promise things will change tonight,” he’d cast the commander’s table one final look before he sighed. “Stay safe Kedakh. Until we meet again.”

“Likewise,” Kedakh replied, watching the young man leave the inn before disappearing into the crowd.

—--------------------------------------------------------------

“You-,” Sakari, the Seralix princess started, her grip on her broom growing defensive. Upon revealing himself to her, he’d seen her expression quickly change from disgruntled to horrified. “Weren’t you supposed to be dead?”

“Give me until the day end of the day,” he’d sighed, watching as a few Seralix merchants had cast him suspicious looks. “But It’s nice seeing you too, princess. You wouldn’t be able to spare a moment or two to talk, would you?” 

She’d lowered the broom before glaring at him. “You’ve got a lot of nerve coming back from the dead to ask for something like this.” She yanked up her sleeve, revealing the bandages that had barely covered the angry welts on her arms. “See this? This was for the last time we’d helped you out on one of your little escapades. So give me one good reason why I should listen to anything you have to say.”

He’d heal them later. He’d owed them that much, he thought before speaking. “I know this isn’t fair compensation, but I thought you’d like to hear me out, because I know more than anyone else just how much you’ll need this-,” he’d withdrawn the beautiful shawl that Allepac had woven for him a few hours before they’d arrived, noting how the princess’s eyes had widened upon seeing it. “It’s nice, isn’t it? Designed to keep anyone warm in the harshest of winters that plague your land. And there’s more where that came from. Unless of course you’re not interested-,”

“No!” she yelled, panic on her face before she regained her posture and drew in a deep breath. Then her eyes met his. “Very well. What do you want?”

“Could we discuss this in a more private place?” He’d stepped towards her as he’d whispered into her ear. “I hear our good friend the commander is all too eager when it comes to frequenting these parts.”

No sooner had he uttered the words ‘commander’ did he notice her expression darken as she muttered something in Seralixian before grabbing his arm. “Follow me,” was all she’d commanded as she dragged him to the alleyway. Her size betrays her strength as she pushes him into one of the alleyway’s dark rooms before locking the door behind her.

It had taken his eyes a moment or so to adjust to the room’s darkness as he’d heard the sounds of movement from all around him. Quickly a few candles were lit as he’d seen the princess stand at the end of the table, several bandaged Seralix merchants were at her side. Any traces of the pitiful sweeper girl he’d seen in the market had vanished as she’d commanded, “Alright, spirit. State your purpose.”

“Ah,” he’d cleared his throat before uneasily sitting down. “I’m not a spirit you see-,”

“But you died and came back to life.”

“Well, technically I didn’t die-,” “No, no,” Allepac had interjected within his thoughts. “She is correct. You did die.” He frowned. “-Alright, never mind, so maybe I did die, but I came back to life.”

“You should’ve stayed dead,” one of the Seralix merchants hissed. “Ever since you died, that new bastard has been torturing us! Like we are nothing more than your scapegoats!” Several of the merchants had rolled up their clothing to reveal their bloodied bandages as Erlan winced.

He was going to have a lot of healing to do.

“Does he ever say under what charges?”

“It’s nothing more than conspiracy really,” Saraki sighed. “His name is Kommander Kogash, and from what we gather, he’s one of the greatest generals in their empire. He was the head commander who led the charge against us,” she’d scowled before everyone’s expressions darkened. “The fact that they’ve sent him of all people here means that whatever is transpiring on your lands is serious. But that’s beside the point.” Now she’d taken a seat. “Earlier you proposed to give me some of those clothes you’d claimed were resistant to our winters.”

“I did.” He answered, withdrawing the cloth before he’d place it on the table. He’d watched as the merchants had looked it over in awe, reveling over the sturdy yet soft material as well as the design of the shawl. 

Of course, the Seralix design of the material had been intentional on his part, hence why he’d requested Allepac to make it as such. He’d always known that the Seralix were a rather isolated group of people, so the best way to appeal to them was through their own methods.

“It’s perfect,” one whispered.

“Beautiful even!”

“You didn’t steal them from anyone else did you?” he shook his head. 

“That was custom-made, in case you were wondering, and I assure you there’s plenty more where that came from.”

Saraki had glanced from the cloth on the table to Erlan before she’d leaned back in her chair. Her eyes regarded him wryly as he’d heard her chuckle. “You want something, don’t you?” She’d laughed again. “What a dead man could ask for is beyond me, but go ahead. Enlighten me.”

“Friendship.”

The laughter had stopped.

“What?”

He leaned forward “You asked if I wanted something and I told you that I wanted friendship.”

The room had fallen into an uneasy silence before she’d asked, “What sort of friendship?”

“Maybe the meaningful kind that would help you out of a rough winter, maybe even provide you with some cattle for the future-,”

She’d crossed her arms. “In exchange for what exactly? Why do you extend this olive branch to us over the other nations? Our economy is nearly nonexistent now. We have no money to offer you.”

“But you do have something that neither the Adakhi nor Relaki have,” now it was his turn to smile wryly. “I know that you have something far more valuable than food and money. Something that the royal family has guarded with its life for generations.”

Saraki’s eyes had promptly narrowed to slits. “We’re not selling it-,”

“Good, because I’m not interested in buying” He shook his head. “No, no you see what I want is to merely maintain a good relationship with the rightful owner of these treasures. Not take them for myself. After all, doing that wouldn’t make me any better than our common enemy, would it?”

She’d hesitantly nodded, seemingly conceding to him the point when a man, an advisor perhaps had stepped forward, “careful your highness,” he’d whispered. “Spirits have been known to ensnare the living in lethal deals.”

“I’m well aware of what a spirit can do. Erlan on the other hand-,” she’d looked as if she’d contemplated his offer, before speaking once more. “Your offer does sound tempting if a bit unrealistic. So all you wish to do is to ensure a friendship between our two nations?”

“Not just a friendship. But a potential trade deal as well. I plan on getting the other nations involved soon. It might look unpromising now, but as soon as we stabilize our economies I promise you this deal will be far more beneficial than anyone could have imagined.”

“Such a thing will be impossible as long as Kogash is around. He’s deliberately assigned us to different districts because of this. If he were to catch wind of this, he’d send you back to the underworld.”

Erlan smiled, “He’s welcome to try of course, given how I think this will be his last night in the city.”

“Last…night?” She repeated. Her eyes were cautiously filled with curiosity. 

“Yes. Let’s just say that if Kogash wasn’t aware of what had happened to Kerakash before, then he’d be in for a rude awakening tonight.”

Now they seemed excited as he watched a few of them whisper before turning his attention back to him as the princess spoke, “If you can make sure that commander doesn’t live to see tomorrow then you can consider us your lifelong Allies.”

“Through thick and thin?”

She nodded, “You have my word.”

“Alright then.”

“Will you require any of our assistance?”

He shook his head. “Not tonight.”

“Alright, But,” she interjected. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”

“All in due time, Your Highness. All in due time but for now, why don’t we discuss what happens tonight? ”

[sol-draws-sometimes]

Disc World Book Club Thoughts- Monstrous Regiment

Pages 33-62

Hey @anna-neko, and uh anyone who's still following this... haaaa remember this....

Anyways, ha! Me when I lie!!!! Look, the end of the semester started kicking full gear and then holidays but I'M BACK(what I always say, but I swear I mean it this time!) Ugh, as I keep reiterating in this series, reading hard for me, not because of the act of reading in itself, but the motivation it requires for me to stay focused long enough on a book to actually finish it. In the past I was using the the audio book for quick 5-20 minutes stints, but I was mostly doing the combo of audio+book because I want to process everything. Anyway, I made the executive decision to treat this book like a podcast which means I am missing more little details BUT it has made getting through the book easier. That sounds like the book is a slug to get through, and that's not true, I'm really enjoying this book. It's just, getting my brain to actually start reading is a hassle and a half. I've gotten through an hour of book in a week though, so that's pretty exciting!

Anyway, onto scatter book thoughts as I was having them!

YOOOOO SOMEONE'S PREGOOO

Yah you spoiled that to but I finally got that point! Also, I forgotten WHO it was but was SHUFTI

Actually we have a small problem where I just can't remember half of the casts names so ESPECIALLY their last names, but me as of 1/8/2024 has written their full names down so hopefull I'll remember now. Also I read Blouse's fanwiki cause I forgot who he was and spoiled myself a little but nothing too serious I don't think. Oopsies! Anyways, I have their names written down so no more confusion!

EYOOO STRAPPI'S A COWARD AND THEY'RE GONNA FIGHT IN THE FRONT LINES

The way I was thinking "Polly's crossdressing!" like no, she's literally just being her normal gender!!!!! We love a girl crossdressing as a guy crossdressing as a girl.

In all seriousness, I really enjoyed that whole sequnce of her beating up guys crossdressing as a girl, and the Maldict joining her and the whole Jackrum taking the as prisoners and talking to them. Just a fun section of the book I really enjoyed. I love Polly and Maladict's friendship! It's so fun, and they got great chemistry

Also, interesting how the whole thing is that men go to war cause they're strong and stuff, but the first enemies Polly fights, she does as a girl. Idk just neat!

Also I've already mentioned this, but I'm obbssed with Polly as a character, she's so interesting because she's so judgy of the others. And she's the epitome of the "I can tell crowd."(looks at her being surprised that Tonker's a girl) Obviously, she's not doing it for transphobia reasons, but it's facinating to me how her stress of getting caught and stuff leads to her being overly critical of how the other girls are trying to pass. Like, Lofti got caught for saying "sugar" but Polly caught herself not cursing either, also I think she starts making the active effort to curse more after that. Just interesting how she adds on her act of being a guy with everyone else's mistakes.

American moment: Me learning bugger is vulgar?????

YOO THEY'RE REVALING THEMSELVES!!! I thought Maladict was included in that, but I guess not cause she was interrupted.

Also I think???? Jackrum is openinly showing he knows???(lets be real he knows they're girls). He refered to them as ladies but then used he/him for Polly, so I'm kinda confused on that front, but I'll just wait for a scene will clarify that for me

Also learning they’re reasons for joing are all pretty interesting!

Anyways this quote was cool (quote bellow)

It was for the other one, the little lesson that life sometimes rams home with a stick: you are not the only one watching the world, other people are also people, while you watch them they watch you, and they think about you while you think about them. The world isn't just about you.

OH DEATH MENTION!!!! This is a war book so he'll probably appear in this book. Obviously I don't want any of the characters to die, but I've heard GREAT things about Death, so I'm excited to meet him!(hopefully is a near-death moment and not a real death moment, but lets face it, someone's gonna have to die)

They're cutting to Vimes and stuff, and they're defineitly some "wink wink" "nudge nudge" moements that I'm missing, not to say that I'm not understanding anything, but I can just tell I'm in the know, you know. That being said, the sections with Vimes are pretty intresting and Angua seems pretty cool.

Also idk why but "bitch" caught me off gaurd??? Apparently they've been cursing and shit thorughout the book but bitch is the first curse word that actually means something to me. I'm sure they've said some other curse words that I recognize but I stopped reading the books for a couple a months. Also I have the mouth of a sailor, so it's not like a care, I guess I'm just confused that it surprised me. Also, Polly herself said she doesn't curse much so that probably means that the curse was light in the book since it's in her POV(also, curse words like "damn, bastard, etc. mean nothing to me")

Also I don't know how elaborate on this besides, "Wow, this is totally not a commentary on how British people view Christianity and the royal family!"

[insert pic]

Yah yah, jokes aside, I grew up agnostic and in the US, so not much to say beside monarchy bad(hot take am I right) Tho, tbh even the obvious connection is the royal family, man sometimes to does seems like certain groups worship politicians on a religious level. Also, there is smoothing to be said about a lot of manipulation tactics of authoritarian governments is the whole 'make them have problems' and then say, "I am the solutions to all your problems." And so with all the abominations being things that are so bad that it leads to the citizens not being able to eat well, it makes it easier to get the population to manipulate say that "X" is the bad guy.

Interesting seeing Polly have disphoria. I don't know if that's the terminology they would've used when the book came out, but Polly being like "damn, do I really that convincing as a boy" and feeling akward that everyone was 100% sure she was a guy. Like that is the goal, cause she's trying to be undercover, but also it's weird knowing people percive you the wrong gender, you know.

Also side note but I recently watched Blue Eyed Samurai, so spoilers for the first ep, but Mizu is also an undercover girl, and it's like damn, it like, in alot of these stories, these women are able to pass as guys cause they're natrual frame helps them alot in that regard. Like I have pretty boxy frame, so maybe when I was younger I could've passed as a guy if I tried, but me now, that would be way harder cause of my chest. And idk like, man it'd be cool if I could try to pass as another gender pretty easily you know?? I'd just have to work on my voice cause it's super high. Tho, I have been gendered as a guy cause of my hair + buttondown combo, so who knows, maybe I could. Anyway, back to the story

Not me reading a really dark scene of Polly and Maladict finding bruttally murdered bodies and laughing at the, "they would not grow older" line. SOLL GET IT TOGETHER!!! Anyway, despite what that sentence may imply, that whole scene was like, wow that's dark. Like the scene in Mulan right after girl worth fighting for.

Watching Polly gasp for air was like AAAAAAAH

Also Maladict having to contain herself cause of the blood, just an intresting scene!

I'm surprised Polly was saying " I thought we were the good guys" cause she seemed to have pretty good media literacy(for being a Boragravian) like, she was mention how the newspapers would proabbly not be trustworthy(cause she only knows her current governement), and she knew that the whole "Boragravia is winning" stance that everyone was saying is wrong. Also way back earlier in the book she talks about there always being a war, but I guess she wasn't being satrical??? (here's the quote)

There was always a war. Usually they were border disputes, the national equivalent of complaining that the neighbor was letting their hedge grow too long. Sometimes they were bigger. Borogravia was a peace-loving country in the midst of treacherous, devious, warlike enemies. They had to be treacherous, devious, and warlike, otherwise we wouldn't be fighting them, eh? There was always a war.

Guess Polly wasn't immune to propaganda (insert Garfield pic). I guess it makes sense tho, cause it's hard to process that your homecountry does horrible shit.

Also intresting how Jackrum dismissed it, like, I guess I thought he'd be more in the know that the government aint the best. Idk, he's pretty intresting, cause Idk his full stance on things. He telling Blouse that the news is coming from the enemy, but like, it's hard to deny that Boragravia's doing well. Guess that now that he's fully encharge we get to see him more than him just him being a nice relif from Strappi. Anyway, WOW Jackrum is a nuanced charcter???!!! Sarcasm aside, I think I need to read a bit more get my full thoughts on him.

Also something something, they're getting deprogrammed(for example, shufti and wazzer realizing they're losing) through experiencing war.

Anyway TONESHIFT Polly trying not to kill Blouse while shaving him is hilarious

K where I left off!!! Strappi(or so Polly thinks, and I'm inclined to believe her) has stolen a bunch of shit from the girls, so shit's about to go down. Poor Maladict doesn't have her cofee, and POLLY'S HAIR IS MISSING.AAAAAAH! Tbh, I thought her letter from Paul would be missing, so at least she still has that.

It's like 2:00 rn, so I'm pretty tired but I'm pretty hooked on the book rn, and maybe this semester I'll read more! Well, Feburary's gonna be busy cause I'll be auditioning to schools, but I'll try to make space to read. Also apperantly the hoopla has sections they've marked as chapters???? Tbh, it's proably whenever the audiobook plays the little military music. Anyways, I think another issue with the discworld books is that Terry Prachett doesn't do chapters, so I don't have that dopamine hit of "chapter completed!" But yah, maybe I'll try to keep track of the "chapters," to see if that motivates me more. Anyway, uh, I'll proabbly quee this for like 3:00 cause it's 8:00 in England and the book series is more popular over there. Okay, think that's it I'll talk next week.

Ps: idk how I indedent in the bullets, did it by accident on laptop and then copypasted it, I don’t know how I did that

First | <-Previous | Next->

[cuddleswinchester]

HawkCharles and/or CharlesMarg :3

Playing the 'do I ship it' game is easy for me bc I use it to mean 'relationship' and there are so so many kinds of those, so I ship just about everything including both of these. But I'm also terrible at answering questions so.

Hawkeye/Charles

What made you ship it? when Hawkeye pushes Charles to admit to making a mistake, both of them only grow from there. I think they respect each other which is more than can be said about Charles and... anyone else at camp. I also like to note, because I'm me, that part of 'let's introduce the new guy' involves Charles asking what Hawkeye is up to a few times (and the answer is always sex stuff and Charles never understands what or why, which I love, but anyway.) Charles needing to have about a hundred layers of irony and distance between feeling a pleasant, generous feeling toward anyone, and Hawkeye who is moving the opposite direction because he gets attached and hurt so easily because he is giving his whole self away constantly... hello... they're going to crash into each other on their respective ways aren't they... opposites do not attract but they do trip over each other in the dark. And while they're opposite in that way they actually have a lot in common, in this essay I will--

What are your favorite things about the ship? I think Charles has the (perhaps slightly buried) quality of DOTING on people he cares about, it's true I've seen it in the visions, whereas Hawkeye has had to become self-sufficient and resilient throughout the war, I really believe in my heart Charles needs to dote on him, either during the war or after they get home. That's a made up favorite thing but it's true actually. I love that they become more and more open and vulnerable to one another over time. I love that they respect each other professionally and how that turns into friendship.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship? I don't know enough about the shipping standard of them to say whether I have an unpopular opinion sorry!

Charles/Margaret see this is one I 'ship' but in a way I cannot define, and I think that's beautiful. They're gay besties, lavender married, aggrieved siblings, professional partners, roll all of that up and feed it to me please and thank you.

What made you ship it? This is going to be my answer to all three questions, and it's 'the writers trying to set them up as a couple and realizing the chemistry was there but it sure was not romantic or sexual.' I love that they gave up quickly on Forcing it, and just let them be friends, because they're a delight to watch on screen together. I looooove the transitional role he plays in Margaret's arc too, like, we meet him when we know a Margaret who is concerned with money and the finer things and in walks this smug mf. Okay. Love it, here for it. And then as he kind of.... tones down the materialism, so does she, and they're left with just Each Other.

What are your favorite things about the ship? I know Charles has sitcom disease and had to continually learn his lesson about Women's Work, but that being said I do love when Margaret has to rampage after him and he hides under his cot? Pathetic??? MORE importantly I love how often they work together in OR, how impressed she is by his abilities, I think there's a lot to sift through in there. She's the head nurse so she would want to assist on the toughest cases, sure, and I think she also (won't admit it but) wouldn't want any of her nurses to get yelled at by Charles if they made a mistake... she will yell right back, we know this. An early moment that I always like to rotate is, after they finish a case, she is complimenting his technique along the lines of 'wow that was amazing, you must have done that a bunch of times before!' and he is... for the first time, a tender little guy, who just quietly goes 'no... that was horrific, I have never done that before' and the way that clicks something for each of them, totally separately, wow.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship? I once again do not think so? Maybe the fact I like them together at all? I Love the early awkwardness of them not Clicking as a Couple Couple??

[whatyourusherthinks]

Despicable Me 4 Review

And onto the finale of The Weirdest Triple Feature I've Ever Done, and lemme tell ya, it was a mistake to do Despicable Me 4 last! What is that supposed to mean Roan? I've gone on record saying I actually like Illumination movies, even if they invented the Minions and thus ruined wine aunts forever. Roan what did you mean "it was a mistake to do Despicable Me 4 last"? I've only seen Despicable Me 1 and 2, but I really like those movies. I think the villain becoming a father is one of my favorite archetypical storylines, whether or not the villain stays evil. Why are you avoiding the question? The teaser to this movie was alright, although I was worried when the actual trailer was just showcasing the new Mega-Minions gimmick instead of the interesting "Gru's got a new baby and also the whole family needs to go into hiding" plot. Roan I'm assuming the worse unless you clarify that statement. WELL MAYBE YOU SHOULD BUGGNUTZ. I can't help it, I spent all day at the theater and both movies I watched before this one have a lot of tits in it.

What's The Movie About?

Gru's bully from school swears revenge after Gru arrests him, and after he breaks out, Gru's family needs to go into hiding. Also the AVL gives five Minions super powers for some reason.

What I Like.

As always, the familial relation between Gru and and his family is top notch. You cannot convince me that the draw for these movies is anything else, Gru, Lucy, and the girls are great characters and have excellent chemistry. I also like Gru Jr, the new baby. He's the main source of the background gags and he's very cute. Speaking of cute, the bad guy (Maxime, he's called) is obsessed with cockroaches. Are you about to tell me they made cockroaches cute in this movie? Yes, yes I am. Not only that, they make Gru's baby half cockroach in this movie and he was still adorable. It's amazing. I actually like Maxine a lot. Despicable me is no slouch when it comes to villains, and this movie is not an exception. He's maniacal and I like that he's mad for the pettiest reason. Also, he's voiced by Will Ferrell and I could not tell at all. That's crazy. I also, weirdly, like the Mega-Minions storyline. Like it's dumb that this franchise that's had a spy motif for it's entire existence is turning to superheroes, but they kinda admit that? The Mega-Minions suck at being heroes or controlling their powers, so they get retired after going on one mission. And where they all retired to was funny. The comedy can be hit or miss, but the hits are funny and the misses are just eh. My final praise is that the action is super good, surprisingly. I mean, Despicable Me 1 and 2 were fine in that department, but 4 really steps it up. It's thrilling, intense, well directed, and well animated. The stakes of the movie are also pretty high, despite the pettiness of Maxine's motivation. What else, what else... Oh, I like Maxine's girlfriend. I like that she cares about him, but isn't super enthusiastic about everything he does. It felt like a realistic relationship.

What I Didn't Like.

Is it just me or is Carrell's Gru voice gotten harsher than it was? I mean, I guess I can't blame him. He's gotten older and it cannot be easy to do that voice. But it also isn't easy on the ears, much less so now. So we're even. Also, knocking out the easy criticism real quick: all the Minions are annoying. Except for the Mega-Minion and the weird pit crew he has to clean up after the baby. This movie implies that female minions exist which is as horrifying as the fact that they are immortal. Anyway, on to the substantial criticism, this movie has like 5 b-plots. There's the Mega-Minions obviously, but also Gru Jr hating Gru for some reason, Lucy being a shitty hair-stylist and having a woman who's hair she's messed up swear revenge on her, Edith and Agnes taking karate lessons and breaking their Sensei's toe, Gru trying to make friends with their new neighbors, and Gru being blackmailed by the neighbor's kid to help her steal the mascot of an evil school. Most of them come together at the end, but it's still just stuff happening for most of the movie. Despicable Me probably has too many cute mascot characters now, so the only reason I think the going into hiding plot was made is so they can sideline half of them. Also, this movie has a major and completely unnecessary plot hole in the last five minutes. See, there's a shot in the ending of an AVL prison with all the villains from the previous movies, including VECTOR, who as we all know from the Fly Me To The Moon short, is STUCK ON MARS IN HIS UNDWEAR. HOW DID HE GET BACK FROM MARS? ANSWER ME DESPICABLE ME 4! HOW DID VECTOR GET BACK FROM MARS?! Also I didn't need to see Lucy being all flexible and limber, especially with the energy I had from the previous two movies. Gross Roan. SHADDUP.

Final Summation.

Despicable Me 4 is really sloppy, and for a while in the movie I was wondering if the other movies were as good as I remember. But the ending makes up for it. It'll entertain kids and there's some jokes for the adults, plus I like just seeing Gru's family grow.

[Edit: SPEAKING OF MAJOR AND UNNECCESARY PLOT HOLES! I've since learned how Despicable Me 3 ended, and, well, they just completely ignore it. Dru makes a super brief cameo at the very end of the movie, but he literally has no lines and all the Minions just live with Gru's family at the beginning of the movie like everything is normal. This is completely stupid. They sideline the Minions for the main plot already, but instead of having them go work for AVL (And being completely destructive psychopaths), why not just have them living with Dru being bad guys. Hell, the only bit of characterization that is both interesting and consistent is the little butt plugs running off with Dru because he's a better villain Gru! Remember Illumination? Them being dogmatically obsessed with the most evil thing they could fine was like the only idea that was halfway decent from the Minions Movie! Maybe a few of them stay behind and become the baby pit crew, and they are the ones who become the Mega-Minions. You can cut all the jokes that are just regular Minions being assholes to everyone and each other and keep the good Minion jokes. Plus, this allows you more time in the movie to add more to the interesting storylines, or make the more random plot thread connect more to the movie as a whole. Instead you shot yourself 800 times in the foot with gibberish yelling bullets.

Seriously. Did you just forget how the third movie ended?]

[globalrebrand]

Divus Crewel Headcanons

A/N: Headcanons for Crewel because the game doesn't give us enough information so I'm filling in the blanks.

Warnings: Tense familal relationships.

Early Life

Like his original counterpart Divus is heir to an absolutely massive fortune. (Cruella de Vil is 13th richest fictional character of all time according to Forbes) I imagine this fortune to come from textile production for luxury brands. Silks, linens, and cotton as well as engineered synthetic and magical fibers. The company is worth several trillion thurmarks (~20 Billion USD) and has been around for over a century and shows no sign of decline due to astute management.

He lived in a massive estate in the Queendom of Rose in the capital city. Divus comes from a family of sisters, one about three years older and two younger twin girls, about 7 years his junior. He and his older sister art particularly close, just because they were closer in age, but he always was mindful of the younger two. Making them costumes for holidays and such. He appreciated having sisters because his mother and father were so absentee. They destabilized his ideas about genders norms so he was never afraid to go shopping with them or get his nails done. Why are beauty rituals even feminine in the first place?!

It goes without saying his entire family is extremely stylish.

However I imagine he had a bit of a difficult home life due to his parents wealth. They were often absent when he was a child, particularly his father who was often worked long hours and travelled to secure more wealth for his children.

Divus always kept at least a dog or two and he was always a very diligent trainer because his father made sure to teach him that that dogs were his responsibility and one mistake and they would be given away. As a result Divus is very protective of the things he owns due to his father tendency to take them away as punishment.

When he first manifested his magic however, his father was so delighted that he let Divus pick out a pet to make his familiar, and since Divus is somewhat of a spoiled brat he decided to get two dobermans from an extremely pedigreed litter. One black and one brown with tan markings at the chest. Yes, they have extremely pretentious names that suit them and their personalities extremely well. Because (considering Lucius is probably like a 50 year old cat) familiars become bonded to their owners for their like spans, Divus has likely had his dogs since childhood.

Divus and his sisters had two nannies that tended to them as children. Divus and his eldest sister fell into the purview of one while his younger sisters were watch by the other. Divus' nanny taught him very important life skills, second languages, chess and emotional lessons, from empathy to sewing she taught him everything he knows, but he was still a fair bit troubled. He grew to resent his parents for never making time for him and his sisters.

Divus' best friend throughout his child hood was a boy named Anton. They shared a lot of the same interests, but Divus was always a bit envious of Anton's loving home life.

Education

Divus' was an arrogant but extremely competent school boy. He wasn't afraid to put his classmates in their place with his fists.

He did exceptionally well in all of his coursework, but excelled in potions, chemistry and alchemy. As a result in this third year, he became Pomefiore's housewarden.

Crewel was captain of the swim team at NRC and has a host of medals and trophys. NRC student may not be great at team sports but they can really kick ass at individual ones.

Really loved gardening from his nanny but was too prideful to let others know, so he would only tend to his plants at night. He got over it as he got older.

Trendsetter, everyone wanted to imitate his style and inherent coolness. It just wasn't fair that Divus was handsome, rich, charismatic and talented. He left nothing for the rest of them.

Crewel and Trein have never gotten along. It didn't help that while Divus was in school Trein's then teenage daughters popped by school, saw him and immediately fell in love and bickered about him constantly. To further enrage their father he secretly dated one and then broke her heart. So beyond a simple disagreement about cats and dogs, Crewel and Trein have serious beef from his time at NRC. But they're civil now, mostly...

Following his schooling at NRC, he received his doctorate in Chemistry with concentrations in material sciences and alchemy as at esteemed university in the Queendom of Roses.

During his studies his focused on making sustainable and cruelty free textile for his families company and through his work patented several new technologies, which earns him extremely high annual payouts.

Professional Life

After completing his doctorate, Divus worked in house of for Luxe, as a senior textile technician, his job was to source or create fabrics that made the designers creations come to life and by virtue of his position he had a lot of weight in the execution of finals designs after many iterations.

Crewels position definitely allowed him to run in some pretty elite fashion circles, crafting color changing garments for celebrities, sitting the front row of shows at fashion week with the other head employees at his label. Mingling at after parties. He fucked a lot of models in his twenties.

Additionally Crewel and his family is the kind of wealthy were he just gets to be well acquainted with highly influential figures. He's even on a first name basis with the royal family of the Queendom of Roses, but he's incredibly lowkey about it. Do you recognize the surname of wealthy fabric dynasties? No, so Crewel and his wealth get to hide in plain sight. Like other rich people in the fashion industry definitely know who his family and the people in the Queendom of Roses would recognize his parents probably, but in other places is legacy is a bit more obscured. Like he's obviously rich, but just how rich is actually mind boggling. Crewel is the epitome of old money values. He's not garish (lets pretend the coat isn't too much) or too too flashy about it.

Now don't Crewel wrong, attending galas, fashion shows, working in a beautiful state of the art lab, collaborating with high end designers, living in a luxury penthouse, having a collection of modern and vintage luxury cars (having orgies with models, famous actors and actresses) was all good and well for a time but Crewel eventually grew disillusioned with the fashion industry and wanted a change of pace. Crewel wanted to enjoy life and take things less seriously.

Also things felt so empty, he was surrounded by people, at the top of his field, living a life many would kill to have, but outside of material wealth and professional success he didn't really have claim to love or close relationships. He was distant from his sisters, started to let all of the relationships he'd made at NRC deteriorate plus he was starting to feel burnt out after his doctorate and then holding a demanding full time job for years. Call it a quarter life crisis but when Crewel was 27 or so, he noticed an open professorship at NRC, applied and eventually got the job.

Lifestyle

Crewel made sure nurture his relationships in and out of the fashion industry and most importantly strengthen his relationship with his family, something his had ample time to do now that he gets holidays and summers off.

I envision Sage's Isle to be roughly the size of the Bahamas (roughly 400K people) with Ferry service to the Main Land of Dawning that takes about two or three hours. So Sages Island isn't horribly small, and due to the proximity of two well renown secondary schools its well developed and maintained. The community is extremely safe and the infrastructure beautifully pristine since.

Crewel runs along the sea with his dogs every morning before making a healthy breakfast (he credits all of his cooking schools to the ghost chefs at NRC) and driving to school. If its warm he'll take a swim in the sea, but his apartment complex has a gym and indoor pool. After school he'll grab a drink with his friends in town, likely other male teachers at NRC or take his dogs to the dog park. Tries to date but he's horrendously picky.

Divus lives in a luxury apartment in the city center, not too far from the sea, but this is just his residence during the year. He has a host of friends and associates from his previous Professional career in the Queendom of Roses so he keeps a residence there that he stays in during holidays. This is also where he keeps his collection of vintage cars. At his home on the Island he can only keep two cars so he keeps an modern Bentley-esque car and a vintage convertible for warmer months. His other 6 cars are in the Queendom of Roses. What? He has rich boy hobbies.

His parents have a castle like estate in the North where he and his family reconnect for the holidays. His father has since retired and his eldest sister has taken over management of the company so he's on better terms with his parents.

Since his salary at NRC really doesn't put a dent in his overall Net Worth, he donates most of it to animal welfare charities.

He's even mended his relationship with his childhood best friend Anton, who used to work in the city a designer, but after visiting Crewel on Sage's Island met the Musicology teacher at RSA promptly fell in love and married him and now lives on the Island most of the year.

Professor Crewel had a horrendous play boy reputation that he cultivated once he was out of NRC. Thought relationships were about domination and control. Didn't really care about having equal partners just someone obedient who would let him do what he wants. But that was all so empty and he was never really happy with his partners, never really fell in love. (He blames his parents who definitely had a transactional, imbalanced relationship)

But now that he's in his early thirties he's stepping back and thinking about settling down. He's current goes to therapy once a week to help improve himself and his familial relationships. Crewel knows he's not the most emotionally available but he is trying. But his older sister has gotten married and now has a baby on the way, and if she can do it despite their upbringing he knows that having healthy beautiful family is something he can have one day too.

After seeing Anton and his husband, he's hoping to settle down and find his partner sometime soon. He doesn't know what it is, but managing all of the unruly puppies at NRC makes him want to have some of his own. He's almost certain he could do a better job than their parents.

Please send an ask if you have any ideas to add to this! I'm so curious, Crewel is obviously so hot but we don't get enough of him.

[bookloveravenue]

Hot Off the Ice (book 5): Boys of Summer by A.E. Wasp

Teammates, roommates, friends with benefits. What could go wrong?

Boys of Summer is a book about finding the perfect person to ride shotgun with on the crazy road trip called life. It contains a Dolly Parton lookalike, an unfortunate deer versus car incident, and poorly-timed epiphanies.

Everybody leaves. That was the first lesson Thunder goalie James McVicker ever learned. The second lesson was that if you don’t want to hurt, don’t let yourself get attached. Patrick O’Reilly is the best friend Vicky’s ever had. So obviously when Vicky finds himself possibly, maybe stupidly, falling in love with the guy, it only makes sense for him to leave first, right? So why does it feel like he’s just made the biggest mistake of his life?

Patrick O’Reilly loves being in love. He loves the romance and hearts and flowers of it all, but he hates the way it always seems to end. Friends are simpler. Friends don’t break your heart. Luckily, he has the greatest best-friend-slash-teammate-slash-roommate in the world. Hanging out with Vicky is as easy as breathing, and despite Paddy’s initial fears, adding some epic benefits of the sexual kind to their friendship only makes it better. He’s certainly not going to ruin things by doing something as stupid as falling in love. Obviously, Vicky isn’t in love with him. He’s just confused by all these stupid weddings. If Paddy can get him to talk, they can work all this out and get back to being friends again.

The course of true love never did run smoothly, but maybe with the help of their friends and family and some last-minute divine intervention, what started as a road trip could turn into the adventure of a lifetime.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49961289-boys-of-summer

********

January 19, 2023

My Review : 4/5 Stars

Patrick and Vicky are best friends. The two immediately hit it off once Patrick was moved up to the Thunders. They have been inseparable ever since. To the point where everyone assumes they are a couple or are beginning to wonder if the two of them are something. And everything changes when Vicky finally calls Patrick out on his flirting and if he wants something between them, he just has to ask. Patrick doesn't even realize what he has been doing but now that the thought is out there, he realizes that maybe he does want something more with Vicky. But is terrified that they will lose their friendship. So naturally with the promise the nothing happening to their friendship, they decide to try friends with benefits. Thus beginning the story of how these two fall in love and don't even realize it. I loved their story. They are such a great pair with so much chemistry. Both have such different views on love and relationships and neither really realize that they are in love with the other and that they have between them is exactly that. A loving and very real romantic relationship. Such a fun story watching as they try and figure it out and have these crazy summer adventures along the way. This was a great last story to the series and I'm sad it's over! But definitely a great one to end on.

[articulate-and-annoying]

Okay final thoughts.

Overall this was very cathartic. I almost felt like I got a bit of closure about my dramatic breakup with the show after season 4 aired. Just taking it all start to finish, now with professional writing and editing experience under my belt, and a deep love for other pieces of Sherlock media, it feels like finally putting this little piece of my teenage self to rest.

The one good thing consistently in the show that I will always love, is the actors. Jesus Christ, they were perfectly cast, and put their whole chest into every terribly written cheesy line, and for that I will give them credit. My favorite parts about the earlier seasons are all just because the actors and their chemistry are just phenomenal.

Another thing I've realized about why I like the earlier seasons a little more, is that they're more campy. They don't take themselves as seriously or try to be dramatic, pearl clutching, edge of your seat television. It was a buddy comedy where they flounced around London and got shot at. I contribute the decline in my enjoyment in the later seasons directly to how seriously the show is taking itself. It's still funny at times, but just, too earnest in it's attempts to be cool and dramatic. It fell into the teen drama show trap of just constantly upping the ante and needing to one up the previous arc, and eventually it just lost it's momentum.

Mainly, I see this in the way the show writes it's villains after Moriarity. I firmly believe they brought him in too soon, or at the very least killed him off too soon. They jumped the shark for their antagonists after Andrew Scott, and because he was such a phenomenal actor and came off as such a threat, the new villains needed to get bigger and better. But they all felt derivative of Moriarity, to the point they needed to bring him back in Seasons 3 and 4 to keep people interested. Maganussen is just Moriarity with less inflection and a mind palace. Smith is just Mangussen but replace the blackmail with bloodlust.

The other thing that will never stop making me want to rewrite the show, is how Irene, Molly and Mary are treated. The writers do NOT know how to write women.

The issue with Irene Adler has already been discussed at length in the fandom so I won't go too far into it since I don't have much new to add. I will say that Irene's protrayal as a love interest in Sherlock stories will always bother me. She serves as a lesson to be learned, Irene is memorable because she reminds Sherlock never to underestimate anyone, regardless of sex. He made a mistake with her, and got bested in his own game. He keeps a photo of her for the same reason he asks John to tell him "Norbury" if he ever gets too full of himself. Irene humbled him, she wasn't a love interest.

Molly should have never existed as a character. I love her actor, and think she did a phenomenal job with what she was given. But Molly always felt shoehorned into the plot, like they needed to hand her a purpose that otherwise could have been given to another character, just to keep her around. I so desperately wanted there to have been a proper arc for her, but with TFP, the last we get of her on screen is Sherlock emotionally devastating her. Justice for Molly.

And then there's Mary. God I love her, even more so on this most recent watch. The TEH and TSoT are her at her best in many ways. Her dynamic with John and Sherlock is fantastic, she's able to be helpful and works wonderfully as a genuine long term addition to the cast. And even further than that, I'm in love with the idea of making her an assassin. There's so much you could do there, especially when it comes to bringing her into cases more and making her a part of the team. The only issue is that the writers fumble the ball on how they handle her and her backstory.

They introduce AGRA in 3.3, to kill her off and end the plot in 4.1. she gets 2 episodes to be a badass, and half of that time she's pregnant. Her story didn't go anywhere besides giving us the completely wasted plot of Sherlock and John fighting since it lasted an episode. Mary deserved so much better, and in a better universe got more time to be fleshed out.

Which is actually a great segue into my next major issue with the show: it had too many ideas to fit into 90 minutes, especially seasons 3 & 4. You can tell the writers had massive ideas for everything they wanted to squeeze into the season but didn't have time to really flesh out everything. So we got a lot of quick ideas in a long long episode. Season 4 reminds me of workshopoing short stories that have gotten too big for their restricted word count, and having the author refuse to cut anything to make the plot more cohesive. There should have been better editing done to ensure the flow and consistency of the narrative, but instead it ended up a jumbled, oddly paced, mess by the end.

Overall, I don't hate this show. There are a lot of things I am desperate to fix, and honestly might try my hand at someday. I think so show is just filled to the brim with wasted potential, all it really needs is some polish and a good editor and it can be a passably interesting show! I'm glad I rewatched it to put a rest to the anger I felt towards how it ended, but I don't think I'll watch it all through again.

TL;DR: BBC Sherlock is a mess. The show is poorly paced, cannot write a decent female character, and needs some serious script editing to make the narrative more cohesive, but god I still have a soft spot for the first couple seasons. Make Sherlock camp again 2023.

I'm rewatching/forcing my roommate to watch Sherlock for the 1st time. I haven't watched that show since 4.3 aired and 17 year old me swore on all that's holy I'd never watch it again.

I am, however, cursed with being hyperfixated on Sherlock in general and my roomie wanted to know what was so terrible about it. So back into the depths we go.

I'm going to update as we go for my own entertainment

[tojishugetiddies]

Jujutsu Kaisen Incorrect Quotes

(I had waaaay too much fun with this ngl😂)

Toji: I’m here to take you out.

Y/N: Great! It’s a date!

Toji: I meant as a threat

Y/N: See you at five!

Shiu: What is your biggest weakness?

Toji: I can be uncooperative.

Shiu: Okay, can you give me an example?

Toji: No.

Choso: I slept for almost 12 hours but I might still be tired so lets go for 12 more just incase.

Yuji: Choso, that's a coma.

Choso: Sounds festive.

Y/N: Do you take constructive criticism?

Toji: I only take cash or credit.

Shiu: This is such a bad idea.

Toji: Then why are you coming along?

Shiu: One of us need to be able to talk the cops out of arresting us when this inevitably goes wrong.

Gojo: I'm incredibly fast at math.

Nanami: Alright, what's 30x17?

Gojo: 47

Nanami: That's not even close.

Gojo: But it was fast.

Y/N: I want to wake up with you every day for the rest of our lives

Nanami: I wake up at 4:30 AM

Y/N:

Y/N: I want to see you at some point every day for the rest of our lives

Toji: In light of what you did for me, you can hug me for four to five seconds.

Y/N: FORTY FIVE SECONDS?!?

Toji: No! Four to five seconds!

Y/N: Too late!!!

Geto: You know, I'm starting to regret showing you how that blender works.

Gojo, drinking toast: Why do you say that?

Megumi: What are your goals?

Y/N: To pet all the dogs.

Megumi: No, fitness goals.

Y/N: To be able to run fast enough to pet all the dogs.

Toji: I’m gonna need a human skull and I can't have you ask any questions why.

Y/N: Only if you also don't ask why

Y/N: *Pulls out 7 pristine human skulls* Take your pick.

Toji:

Y/N:

Toji: This one is fine

Y/N: I made tea.

Toji: I don’t want tea.

Y/N: I did not make tea for you. This is my tea.

Toji: Then why are you telling me?

Y/N: It is a conversation starter.

Toji: That’s a stupid conversation starter.

Y/N: Oh, is it? We are conversing. Checkmate.

Yuji: You saved me. I owe you my life.

Megumi: No thanks. I’ve seen it and I’m not very impressed.

Nobara: *holding a bottle* Is this whiskey or perfume?

Y/N: *chugs entire bottle*

Y/N: It’s perfume.

Y/N: This is bothering me.

Toji: Well, you are digging up a corpse.

Y/N: No, not that. That's, uh, pretty par for the course, actually.

Y/N: What if the 'g' in 'gif' is silent?

Toji: Go the fuck to sleep

Y/N: What gif I don't want to?

Toji: Fuck You

Yuji: Man, I only ever see you awake, do you ever shut down or stop running?

Y/N: Oh, I’m always running

Y/N: The question is from what

Y/N, watching the news: Someone tried to fight a squid at the aquarium today!

Toji: *walks in covered with ink* Well, maybe the squid was being a dick.

Y/N: Treat spiders the way you want to be treated.

Toji: Killed without hesitation.

Y/N: No.

Gojo: I learned some very valuable lessons from this.

Toji: I’m guessing they are all horrible distortions on the lessons you actually should’ve taken away.

Gojo: Death isn’t real, and I’m basically God.

Megumi: This is a mistake

Yuji, enthusiastically: A mistake we're going to laugh about one day!

Megumi: But not today

Yuji, still enthusiastic: Oh, no. Today's going to be a mess

Nanami: Can you please be serious for five minutes?

Gojo: My record is four, but I think I can do it.

Y/N: So are we flirting right now?

Toji: I AM LITERALLY STABBING YOU

Y/N: That doesn’t answer my question

Toji: *Accidentally hits Y/N in the face*

Toji: *Trying to decide between saying 'I’m fucking sorry' and 'Are you okay'*

Toji: ARE YOU FUCKING SORRY?!

Y/N: What’s wrong with you?!

Y/N: Ok, maybe playing ‘whose family is most dysfunctional’ wasn’t the best idea we’ve had. Megumi's been crying in the bathroom for an hour. We can’t get him out...

Gojo: Geto and I have the kind of easy chemistry where we finish each other's-

Geto: Sentences.

Gojo: Don't interrupt me.

Yuji: Bad things keep happening to me, like I have bad luck or something.

Megumi: Yuji, you don't have bad luck. The reason bad things happen to you is because you're a dumbass.

Gojo: I actually have a black belt.

Yuji: In what, karate?

Gojo: No, from Gucci.

Gojo: Oh just so you know, it's very muggy outside

Y/N:

Y/N: Gojo, I swear, if I step outside and all of our mugs are on the front lawn...

Gojo: *Sips coffee from bowl*

Megumi: God, give me patience.

Gojo: I think you mean 'give me strength'.

Megumi: If God gave me strength, you'd be dead.

Gojo: I've already sent good vibes your way… they’re coming. There’s nothing you can do to stop them.

Y/N: This is the most threatening way I’ve ever been cheered up.

Geto: WHAT’S YOUR TYPE

Gojo: Anything, honestly, but pretty boy’s especially

Geto, desperately, as Gojo bleeds out: YOUR BLOOD TYPE

Gojo: Oh! B positive.

Gojo: I’m 10x prettier and smarter than you

Nanami: 10 x 0 is still 0

Sukuna: Someone will die.

Yuji: Of fun!

Y/N: Jail is no fun. I’ll tell you that much.

Toji: Oh, you’ve been?

Y/N: Once. In Monopoly.

Toji: How petty can you get?

Y/N: I once edited a Wikipedia article to win an argument I was wrong about.

Megumi: You often use humor to deflect trauma

Y/N: Thank you

Megumi: I didn't say that was a good thing

Y/N: What I'm hearing is, you think I'm funny

Y/N: You're the love of my life and my best friend, I would do anything for you.

Megumi: I want you to eat three meals a day and have a decent sleep schedule.

Y/N: Absolutely not.

Y/N: Is something burning?

Gojo: Just my love for you.

Y/N: Gojo, the toaster is on fire.

Yuji: Do you think you’d actually notice if someone didn’t cast a shadow? Or if their limbs were just slightly too long? Or if they had just a little too many teeth? like how many times have you passed Something on the street and you just didn’t Notice It?

Y/N: Stay woke monsterfuckers ur love is out there!!!!!

Yuji: Yknow what? Not my point at all in any way whatsoever, but I’m glad I could be an inspiration.

Yuji: Do you have any skeletons in your closet?

Sukuna: You mean literally or figuratively?

Yuji: Honestly, the fact that I have to specify...

Y/N: Don’t worry, I have a few knives up my sleeve.

Gojo: I think you mean cards.

Toji: She does not

Y/N, pulling knives out of their sleeves: I do not.

Y/N: Name a more iconic duo than my crippling fear of abandonment and my anxiety. I'll wait.

Gojo: You and me!!!

Y/N, tearing up: Okay.

Nanami, going over Y/N’s resume: Okay, so right here, it states that you’re creative.

Y/N: Yes

Nanami: Okay... may I know what you create?

Y/N: Problems.

Mahito: Am I going too far?

Yuji: No, no, no. You went too far about seven hours ago. Now you're going to prison.

Y/N: Remember when you didn't try to solve all your problems with attempted murder?

Toji: Stop romanticizing the past.

Y/N, standing with their back turned: I’ve been expecting you, Toji.

Toji: How did you do that without turning around?

Y/N: ... To be perfectly honest, the first couple of people I did that to were not you.

Yuji: It’s dark in here

Y/N: Don’t worry dude I got this

Y/N: *Stomps their feet*

Y/N: *Skechers light up*

Sukuna: *Kicks the door down looking panicked*

Y/N: What did you do?

Sukuna: Nobody died.

Y/N: WHAT KIND OF ANSWER IS THAT?!

Y/N: Hey Sukuna can I get a sip of your water?

Sukuna: It's not water.

Y/N: Vodka, I like your style!

Sukuna: It's vinegar.

Y/N: Wh-Wha-

Sukuna: It's vinegar, COWARD.

Gojo: Don’t worry, I know exactly what I’m doing. Everything is going to be fine!

Megumi: How can you still say that?

Gojo: Because sometimes, when things get tough, denial is all we have.

Y/N: Please, I'm begging you go to a doctor.

Toji: I'm sorry is this OUR stab wound? Stay out of it.

Gojo: I turned out perfectly fine!

Y/N: Gojo, this morning you thought a ghost made your toast

Gojo: I DIDN’T PUT THE BREAD IN! YOU DIDN’T PUT THE BREAD IN!!!

Y/N: English is a difficult language. It can be understood through tough thorough thought, though.

Nanami: You need to stop.

Yuji: Violence isn't the answer.

Sukuna: You’re right.

Yuji: *sighs in relief*

Sukuna: Violence is the question.

Yuji: What?

Sukuna, bolting away: And the answer is yes.

Yuji, running after them: NO-

Megumi: Where are you going?

Y/N: To get ice cream or commit a felony, I’ll decide on the way there

Sukuna: Here's some advice

Yuji: I didn't ask for any

Sukuna: Too bad. I'm stuck here with my thoughts and you're the only one who talks to me

Y/N: Lol heads up if you try to make a candle with food coloring, the food coloring will just sink to the bottom of the glass, and when the flame eventually reaches the bottom all the food coloring will catch fire and become one giant tall flame that you cannot possibly blow out and the glass will start to crack and then you'll throw your tea on it in a panic and then the extremely hot food coloring will boil and sizzle horribly and then the glass will shatter. Please take my word on this lmfao

Megumi: What did you do Y/N?

Y/N: A MISTAKE

Nanami: So that’s my plan.

Y/N: Are you alright with constructive criticism? I don’t want to sound mean.

Nanami: No, go ahead, I want to hear it.

Y/N: It fucking sucks.

Nanami: That’s not constructive criticism.

Megumi: Y/N... Why did you draw a pentagram on the floor?

Y/N: Your text told me to satanize the house before you returned.

Megumi:

Megumi: I wrote sanitize, Y/N.

Megumi: So what’s for dinner?

Toji, staring at the food they just burnt: Regret.

Mahito: Okay. I get it. You've had a really hard time lately, you're stressed out, seven people died-

Yuji: Twelve, actually.

Mahito: Not the point. Look, they're dead now and really whose fault is that?

Yuji: Yours!

Mahito: That's right: no one's.

Y/N: You know, not every problem can be solved with a sword.

Toji: That's why I carry two swords.

Gojo: Must be hard not being able to laugh

Nanami: I do have a sense of humor you know

Gojo: I’ve never heard you laugh before

Nanami: I’ve never heard you say anything funny

*Y/N and Toji are doing something absurdly dangerous*

Y/N: I think Houdini did something like this once! Why, if I recall correctly, he was out of the hospital in no time!

Toji, deadpan: Well that's encouraging.

Y/N, struggling to keep upright in their 1 inch heels: Yeah, I-I don’t really think heels are for me

Nobara, pointing at them and walking flawlessly in sparkly golden 6 inch heels: WEAK.

Iori, tending to Gojo's wounds: How would you rate your pain?

Gojo: Zero stars. Would NOT recommend.

Megumi: Y/N...

Y/N: Oh no, '’Y/N’' in b-flat.

Y/N: You're disappointed.

*Yuji and Y/N skipping stones on lake*

Yuji: It’s such a beautiful evening.

Y/N, whispering: Take that you fucking lake

Y/N: Date someone who will drag you outside at 3am to look at the stars.

Nobara: If anyone, and I mean anyone, wakes me up at 3am to go look at the damn sky they will be removed indefinitely from my life.

Nobara: Okay, truth or dare?

Y/N: Truth

Nobara: How many hours have you slept this week?

Y/N:

Y/N: ...Dare

Nobara: Go to bed.

Y/N: I don’t like this game.

Gojo: I can explain.

Nanami: Can you?

Gojo: If you give me thirty seconds to think of a lie.

Y/N: You kill people for money?!

Toji: I can explain!

Y/N: And all this time I’ve been doing it for free like a chump!

Geto: Gojo, stop! This isn't you, you've gone mad with power!

Gojo: Well of course I have.

Gojo: Have you ever tried going mad without power?

Gojo: It's boring.

Y/N: You're 'the second worst thing to ever happen to those orphans', what does that mean?

Toji: It means i was second worst thing to happen to those orphans.

Y/N: but what’s the first worst thing?

*Awkward pause*

Toji: Y/N, they...they weren’t always orphans.

Y/N:

Y/N: Three words. Say them and I'm yours.

Toji: Three words.

Y/N:

Toji: Look. I may not be a saint, but it's not like I’ve killed anybody. I’m not an arsonist. I’ve never found a wallet outside of an IHOP and thought about returning it but saw the owner lived out of state so just took the cash and dropped the wallet back on the ground.

Y/N: Okay, that's really specific, and that makes me think that you definitely did do that.

Toji: I'm a reverse necromancer.

Y/N: Isn't that just killing people?

Toji: Ah, technicality.

Y/N: I know you’re deflecting by making jokes about how hot you are.

Gojo: It’s not a joke.

Gojo: *sniffles*

Gojo: I’m a legit snack.

Y/N: What the fuck is wrong with you?!

Toji: Wow, you could start with a 'good morning'.

Y/N: Good morning. What the fuck is wrong with you?!

Y/N: I told Gojo his ears flush when they lie.

Nanami: Why?

Y/N: Look.

Y/N: Hey Gojo! Do you love us?

Gojo, covering their ears: No.

Nanami:

Y/N: In my defense, I was left unsupervised.

Yaga: Wasn't Gojo with you?

Gojo: In my defense, I was also left unsupervised.

Nanami: Tell Yuji about the birds and the bees.

Y/N: They're disappearing at an alarming rate.

Y/N: What's a word thats a mix between 'sad' and 'mad'?

Nanami: Disgruntled, miserable, desolated-

Gojo: Smad.

Toji, negotiating with Y/N: We have Gojo. Give us ten thousand dollars and they will be returned to you unharmed

Gojo: Whoa, whoa, wait, you think I’m only worth ten thousand dollars?

Sukuna:

Gojo: MAKE IT ONE MILLION–

Y/N: GOJO STOP

Y/N: Toji and I were crossing the street, and this dude drove by and honked at us

Megumi: *Sighing* What did he do?

Y/N: He chased him to the next red light, then reached into his window and...

Toji: Who wants a steering wheel?

Y/N, holding a python: Guys I impulsively bought a snake, what do I name him

Nobara: You did WHAT–

Yuji: William Snakepeare

Y/N: In your opinion, what’s the height of stupidity?

Toji: *turning to Gojo* How tall are you?

Y/N: I can’t believe you live nearby, and you won’t let anyone crash at your place.

Maki: You people already know too much about me.

Nobara: I know exactly three facts about you, and one of them is that you won’t let any of us crash at your place.

*The squad is getting into the car*

Megumi: I’m driving.

Y/N, out of view: Shotgun!

Yuji, turning to face Y/N: Aww! But you had it on the way here-

Everyone except Y/N: WOAH-

Y/N, holding a shotgun: No! I found a shotgun! And I want the front seat! *Pumps gun*

Nobara: Are you the big spoon or the little spoon?

Y/N: I'm a knife.

Toji, from across the room: They're the little spoon.

Store Worker: Would a Mr. Megumi please come to the front desk?

Megumi, arriving at the desk: Hello, is there a problem?

Store Worker: points to Y/N and Yuji

Store Worker: I believe they belong to you?

Y/N and Yuji, simultaneously: We got lost :(

Megumi: I didn’t even bring you guys here with me-

Toji: Come on, I wasn’t that drunk last night.

Shiu: You were flirting with Y/N.

Toji: So what? They're my partner.

Shiu: You asked them if they were single.

Toji:

Shiu: And then you cried when they said they weren't.

Gojo: Who thinks I can fit 15 marshmallows in my mouth?

Megumi: You’re a hazard to society

Y/N: And a coward. DO TWENTY.

Y/N: Gojo, can I talk to you for a second?

Gojo: Yeah, what’s up? Lemme guess. You and Toji are having problems and you want me to teach you how to kiss?

Y/N: What? No, stop that. I know how to kiss. I’ve read books.

The squad is trying to con some random guy

Y/N: Um, Toji, why are you pretending I'm this guy's family?

Toji: We need money!

Y/N: You're scamming him?

Toji: I was thinking more like flat-out stealing from him?

Y/N: What?! No way!

Toji: Why not? We already stole Mahito!

Mahito: Hey guys

Y/N: No, we didn't. Mahito can think and talk for himself, he can do whatever he want’s!

Mahito: I wanna steal

Gojo: If you had to choose between Megumi and all the money I have in my wallet, which would you choose?

Toji: That depends, how much money are we taking about?

Megumi: Dad?!

Gojo: 63 cents.

Toji: I'll take the money.

Megumi: DAD!!??

Gojo: Here’s a fun Christmas idea. We hang mistletoe, but instead of kissing, you have to FIGHT whoever else is under it.

Nanami: Gojo no.

Y/N: Mistlefoe.

Nanami: Please stop encouraging him.

Gojo: Dandelions symbolize everything I want to be in life

Toji: Fluffy and dead with a gust of wind?

Gojo: Unapologetic. Hard to kill. Feral, filled with sunlight, bright, beautiful in a way that the conventional and controlling hate but cannot ever fully destroy. Stubborn. Happy. Bastardous. Friends with bees. Highly disapproving of lawns. Full of wishes that will be carried far after I die.

Y/N: edible

Shiu: Would you stab your best friend in the leg for 10 million gold?

Toji: You stab me, and then when my leg gets better, we buy a big-ass house.

Y/N: You can stab me too, then we'll have 20 million.

Toji: Good thinking.

Y/N: I trust Gojo.

Megumi: You think he knows what he’s doing?

Y/N: I wouldn't go that far.

Megumi: We need a distraction.

Nobara: Is anyone here good at jumping up and down and making weird noises?

Yuji, whispering: My time has come

Nanami: Let me show you a picture from last night that really upset me

Yuji: Okay, but in my defense, Y/N bet me 50 cents I couldn’t drink all that shampoo.

Nanami: That’s not what I wanted to- you drank SHAMPOO?!

Y/N: Nanami and I are having a baby.

Yuji: That's gre-

Y/N, slamming adoption papers on the table: It's you, sign here.

Toji, driving Y/N and Megumi: So how was your day?

Y/N: We almost got surprise adopted!

Toji: What?

Megumi: We almost got kidnapped.

Toji: Oh, okay.

Toji: *slams on the breaks* WAIT WHAT?!

Toji: Y/N, what do IDK, LY, and TTYL mean?

Y/N: I don’t know, love you, talk to you later

Toji: Ok, I love you too, I’ll just ask Megumi.

Nanami: While I’m gone, Y/N, you’re in charge.

Y/N: Yes!!!

Nanami, whispering: Megumi, you’re secretly in charge.

Megumi: Obviously.

Gojo: If I die, my funeral is going to be the biggest party ever and you’re all invited

Toji: If?

Nanami: Great, the only party I’ve ever been invited to and they might not even die.

Y/N: Toji, keep an eye on Gojo today. They're going to say something to the wrong person and get punched.

Toji: Sure, I’d love to see Gojo get punched.

Y/N: Try again.

Toji, sighing: I will stop Gojo from getting punched.

*The squad is having dinner together*

Y/N: Toji, can you pass the salt?

Toji: *Throws Gojo across the table*

Y/N: Don't worry, I got a plan.

Gojo: Alright.

Y/N: TraitorSayWhat?

Nanami: Excuse me?

Gojo: What?

Y/N:

Nanami:

Gojo: No wait-

Y/N: They stole from me first!

Toji: Mhm.

Y/N: Stole my heart...

Nanami: It is still illegal to commit murder.

Y/N, in a high voice, holding barbie: hey ken! I was thinking about going back to school and starting a career!

Gojo, in a deep voice, holding ken: nonsense, barbie. you’re staying home and having my kids

Toji: what the fuck are you guys doing?

Y/N: playing systemic oppression

Gojo: I really like this whole ‘good guy, bad guy’ thing you guys have going on.

Toji: It’s not an act, it’s just that I’m mean and Y/N isn’t

Megumi: What time is it?

Y/N: I don’t know; pass me that saxophone and we’ll find out

Y/N: *Plays sax loudly and extremely out of tune*

Toji: WHO THE FUCK IS PLAYING THE SAXOPHONE AT TWO IN THE MORNING

Y/N: It’s 2 am

Y/N: You have to apologize to Gojo

Toji: Fine.

Toji: 'Unfuck you' or whatever.

Gojo: Fitness tip: never stop pushing yourself. Some say 8 hours of sleep is enough. Why not keep going? Why not 9? Why not 10? Strive for greatness.

Toji: Next time you’re working out do 15 push ups instead of 10. Run 3 miles instead of 2. Eat a whole cake instead of just a slice. Burn your ex’s house down. You can do it. I believe in you.

Y/N: There were so many mixed messages in that I can’t-

Toji: What do you think Gojo will do for a distraction?

Y/N: He’ll probably, like, make a noise or throw a rock. That’s what I would do.

*Building explodes and several car alarms go off*

Y/N: ... or they could do that.

Toji: Y/N and I don’t use pet names.

Megumi: I see. Hey, what do bees make?

Toji: Honey?

Y/N: Yes, dear?

Toji:

Megumi: Don't ever lie to my face again.

Y/N: I’m kind of crushing on someone, but I’m worried about telling you who it is, because you’re not going to like it

Megumi: Just rip the bandage off.

Y/N: It’s your dad.

Megumi: Put the bandage back on.

Y/N: How's the sexiest person here~?

Toji: I don't know, how are they~?

Y/N, flustered: I-

Gojo, from across the room: I'm doing great, thanks!

Toji: Fool me once, I’m gonna kill you

Yuji: Physically, yes, I could fight a bird. But emotionally? Imagine the toll.

Shapeshifter: *transforms to look like Gojo*

Gojo: Okay, are you like BLIND? You look nothing like me. First off, I'm way taller. Secondly, I DO NOT look so sleep deprived and lastly, if you could drag comb through that hair you're like a 7 on a good day and I've been told I'm a constant 10.

Toji: I’ve come to a point in my life where I need a stronger word than fuck

Gojo: Dear friends, your Christmas gift this year… is me. That’s right, another year of friendship. Your membership has been renewed.

Y/N: Is stabbing someone immoral?

Gojo: Not if they consent to it.

Toji: Depends who you’re stabbing.

Nanami: YES?!?

Sukuna: *Screams*

Gojo: *Screams louder to establish dominance*

Y/N: Should we do something?

Toji: No, I want to see who wins.

Geto: Why is Y/N so sad?

Toji: They took one of those “Which Character Are You?” quizzes

Yuji: And...?

Toji: They got Gojo.

Toji: Self care is actually getting into fights with randoms in dark alleys.

Nobara: No, self care is stuff like taking a bubble bath, or putting on a lot of makeup if you like it, or taking a nice warm nap!

Sukuna: Self care is the burning heat when rage washes over you!! Self care is when you feel the bones crack under your powerful fists!! Self care is the fear in your enemies’ eyes!!!

Gojo: Lmao self care is taking your birthday cake just so I can eat the frosting.

Toji If you touch my birthday cake I’ll make you eat your hands.

Nanami: Isn’t it weird that we pay money to see other people?

Gojo: Plane tickets?

Y/N: Concert tickets?

Toji: Prostitution?

Nanami, holding their broken frames: Glasses.

Megumi: Why are your tongues purple?

Y/N: We had slushies. I had a blue one.

Toji: I had a red one.

Megumi: oh

Megumi:

Megumi: OH

Toji:

Yuji: You drank each other's slushies?

Gojo, banging on the door: Y/N! Open up!

Y/N: Well, it all started when I was a kid...

Nanami: No, they meant-

Toji: Let them finish.

Megumi: Can I be frank with you guys?

Gojo: Sure, but I don’t see how changing your name is gonna help.

Yuji: Can I still be Yuji?

Gojo: Shh, let Frank speak.

Geto: *Gently taps table*

Gojo: *Taps back*

Nanami: What are they doing?

Toji: Morse code.

Geto: *Aggressively taps table*

Gojo: *Slams hands down* YOU TAKE THAT BACK-

Cop: You’re receiving a ticket for having three people on one motorcycle.

Toji: Shit.

Geto: Wait, three?

Cop: Yeah?

Y/N: OH MY GOD GOJO FELL OFF!!!

Toji: Why are Gojo and Geto sitting with their backs to each other?

Y/N: They had a fight.

Toji: Then why are they holding hands?

Y/N: They get sad when they fight.

Y/N: Hah! 69! You know what that means?

Toji: What?

Nanami: That you're a child.

Gojo: HOW'D YOU GUESS MY IQ!?

Nanami: *Trying to fill out legal paperwork stuff* Were you guys born AMAB or AFAB?

Toji: Bold of you to assume I was born at all.

Mahito: I personally was created in a lab.

Y/N: I just straight up spawned lol.

Gojo: You lying, cheating, piece of shit!

Toji: Oh yeah? You’re the idiot who thinks you can get away with everything you do. WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD

Gojo: I’m leaving you, and I’M TAKING MEGUMI WITH ME

Y/N, picking up the monopoly board: I think we’re gonna stop playing now.

Y/N: Yo is Gojo sleeping or dead?

Toji: Hopefully dead, I hated their guts.

Sukuna: Yeah, so did I.

Gojo: Okay first of all, fuck you-

Y/N: Dammit, Gojo!

Gojo: What?! It wasn’t me!

Y/N: Sorry, force of habit. Dammit, Toji!

Toji: Not me either.

Y/N: Oh...Then who set the house on fire?

Sukuna: *whistles*

Y/N: You know those things will kill you, right?

Sukuna, pouring another glass of whiskey: That’s the point.

Toji, smoking a cigarette: We’re trying to speed up the process.

Gojo: *Nods while eating raw cookie dough*

Toji: I just ended a four year relationship.

Choso: Oh, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?

Toji: Hm? Oh yeah, I’m fine. It wasn’t my relationship.

*Gojo and Geto fighting from across the room*

Gojo: How did none of you hear what I just said?

Y/N: I’ve been zoned out for the past two and a half hours.

Yuji: I got distracted about halfway through.

Megumi: Ignoring you was a conscious decision.

Geto, about Y/N: Apparently we’re getting someone new in the group.

Toji: Are we stealing them?

Gojo: New or used?

Geto: Wonderful responses, both of you.

Naoya: Toji isn’t answering their phone

Y/N: I’ll call

Naoya: Megumi and I have both tried six times each, what makes you thi-

Toji: Yeah?

Geto: Truth or dare?

Toji: Dare

Geto: I dare you to kiss the hottest person in the room

Toji: Hey Gojo

Gojo, blushing: Yeah?

Toji: Could you move? I’m trying to get to Y/N

Nobara: Imagine if someone handed you a box full of all the items you have lost throughout your life

Y/N: Self-esteem, haven't seen you in years!

Megumi: Oh wow, my childhood innocence! Thank you for finding this!

Yuji: I knew I lost that potential somewhere!

Toji: My moral code, is that you?

Nobara:

Nobara: I was just gonna show you this cool trunk my mother left me but do you guys need a hug?

Nanami: What did you guys get in your yearbook?

Gojo: 'Prettiest Smile'

Y/N: 'Nicest Personality'

Toji: 'Most likely to start a bar fight'

Geto: 'Least likely to start a bar fight, but most likely to win one'

Y/N: What does 'take out' mean?

Geto: Food.

Gojo: Dating

Toji: Murder

Sukuna: IT CAN MEAN ALL THREE IF YOU'RE NOT A COWARD.

Nanami: You're a loose cannon, Gojo.

Gojo: No, I'm not. I'm a cannon maybe, but a loose cannon? Is that what you think of me?

Geto: I think you play by your own rules.

Toji: No way, they think rules were made to be broken.

Y/N: Those are all attributes of a loose cannon.

Gojo: No, I'm just a reckless renegade. Mahito is a loose cannon.

Mahito: *smashes a chair*

Y/N: There are seven chairs and ten kids. What do you do?

Nanami: Have everyone stand.

Gojo: Bring three more chairs!

Geto: The most important ones can sit down.

Toji: Kill three.

Gojo: Are we really going to let Toji keep Y/N?

Nanami: We kept Yuji.

Y/N: Is having a penis fun?

Gojo: It has its ups and downs.

Toji: Sometimes it’s a little hard.

Sukuna: It’s a pain in the ass.

Geto: Oh, Jesus, fuck, guys, come on.

Sukuna: Poison is a magic transmutation potion that turns people into corpses.

Y/N: This knife is actually a magic wand.

Gojo: Meet me in the Denny’s parking lot for a wizard duel.

Toji: *cocks gun* Magic missile.

Nanami: What the fuck is wrong with you people.

Y/N: Bye Toji! Bye Geto! Bye Gojo! Bye Sukuna! Bye Toji!

Geto: You said ‘bye Toji’ twice.

Y/N: I like Toji.

Sukuna: Nothing in life is free.

Y/N: Love is free!

Gojo: Adventure is free.

Nanami: Knowledge is free.

Toji: Everything is free if you take it without paying.

Y/N: You really put aside everything and came all this way for me? How did you even get here so fast?

Toji: Several traffic violations, three counts of resisting arrest, and roughly thirteen cans of energy drinks. Also, that’s not my car.

Y/N: Looking left cause you don’t treat me right

Sukuna: Looking right because you left

Gojo: Looking up cause you let me down

Toji: Looking down cause you fucked up

Geto: What is wrong with you guys

Y/N: Why isn’t the statue smirking at me?

Toji: It isn’t smirking at anyone, they’re all just imagining it.

Y/N: Three of us saw it, Nanami. How do you explain that?

Toji: *Points at Choso* Sleep deprivation. *points at Geto* Paranoia. *points at Gojo* Delusional personality disorder.