#not going to tag the ambition itself because it has very little do with it frankly

[thevioletscout]

I have a weird question for the FL community and to be honest I'm not sure I should be asking at all, but I've been having a rough week and I want to get it out of the way.

Spoilers for Light Fingers and a specific ending under the cut.

---

Soooo... How do we feel about fankids with Poor Edward? I ask because for the hell of it I did make a concept of what one might look like in picrew and tbh- I'm kinda in love with her. And I kinda wanna give her a more fleshed out design.

However before I get too excited, there is a LOT that would make this awkward. And I'm just going to get straight to the point; Edward being under the influence of a love potion makes the very existence of a kid kinda questionable. For the most part in the game's canon and fanworks it's easy to look past that since Poor Edward is so villainous by default it's hard to feel bad for him given he's forced the moon milk onto many such as Clara (my friend even mentioned that he was intending to use it on the player to stop their meddling) and overall its just an extension of that villainy since he uses the obsession with the player character to further torment them. So I kinda just wonder where we draw the line.

One thing I can definitely say is if this kid exists she has it rough. At the very least, Edward's been absent due to being stuck in Parabola. At worst though, he's actually had an influence on this kid.

EDIT: Thank you to all the support on this post. It's done a lot to ease my nerves. Since you've all mostly said you're down for this idea, I'll probably be drawing this kid soon just to show you guys what I had in mind.

I also didn't mean to imply that I thought I would get like hate mobbed. I just didn't want to be that one creator that took things too far, ya know?

[amphitriteswife]

Revenge

Pairing: Lucius x Nemesis reader

Warnings: mentions of death and murder.

Tagging: @amoexii

Summary: Lucius gets help from a source unknown to him, it makes him wary of the source…yet there is no one to trust except himself and the source…

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Lucius plops onto the bench. His arm stretched out, making it easier for Ravi to stitch him up. The pain makes him winch which made Ravi chuckle at him. His mind felt full yet blank at the same time. The cheers outside of the spectators of the gladiator fight he just had didn’t seem to stop any time soon. They seemed to really love his performance, even though those two crazy emperors tried to kill him with a fucking rhino. He knew they were two crazy bastards who lived for sensation but damn, it didn’t have to go so far…oh well. He’s alive and he should keep it that way. Lucius hissed when he felt the hot needle penetrated his skin. In order to distract him from the pain Ravi began to talk.

‘You dodged that fight pretty well. How did you come up with that? Most of the fighters would contemplate or hesitate, yet you knew what and how you had to do it.’

‘It’s just my instinct i suppose. Yes.’

‘Interesting. Is that why the emperors were so amazed by you? Especially when you had amused them before.’

Lucius grunted in response. The pain was less now that Ravi had stitched him up but it did feel a little sore. His eyes followed Ravi as he left his cell. Lucius took a look at his arm. Only to find it completely healed. He scoffed. Is this your doing? Surely. You always do that. His eyes scanned the cell. Did you show up? Where are you? You can’t just heal him and leave again. His eyes felt blurry, he scanned the room to fast, yet everything seemed in place…that was until he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was gentle touch but he still backed away from you. His throat felt a little dry, what should he think of you? Yes you were the voice in his head that helped him during the fight with that rhino…but are you really that trustable?

‘That’s no way to treat your goddess. Lucius.’

‘Who are you and what are you doing in my cell?’

Lucius’ question sounded more like a demand than a question. His eyes were narrowed. He didn’t seem to trust you at all. How ungrateful, and you just healed his arm too! Unbelievable….okay maybe it’s a valid reaction for seeing THE goddess Nemesis before him. Yes that’s probably it. Lucius held up his sword at your throat, the tip of it just barely touching you. Your eyes darted between the sword and then back at him. A mortal daring to point is sword to a goddess? Stupid, but not common. Mortals are stupid creatures…although this one is rather courages…if he died he would probably end up in Elysium. He has big plans after all.

‘Nemesis.’

‘And why are you here.’

The question made you raise both your eyebrows at him. He doesn’t seem to know who you are? Interesting, so he doesn’t know about greek nor roman gods. Or…he just doesn’t know you specifically. Weird. A mortal having so much emotion and ambition associated with the very being you are. Yet he your name doesn’t ring any bells. You had been following the mortal all the way from mount Olympus. You had witnessed his arrival in Rome as well as the fight he performed for the twin Emperors. His hatred and urge to take revenge was easy to spot even from Olympus itself….but watching his arrival you also knew that he formerly came from Northern Africa. Perhaps he believed in other gods and goddesses. Maybe he was agnostic or atheist perhaps? Well not that it matters, you’re here anyway! And you helped him. So he’s in your depth.

‘Well. To answer your question i’m here to help you, little Lucius.’

‘I don’t need help, especially not from Romans.’

‘Well i’m not exactly Roman. And too bad because i already helped you so you’re in my depth.’

‘I didn’t ask for help.’

‘That’s where it gets fun. Because as a goddess i can over you help. Or just help you and there is nothing you can do about if but be in my depth. So sorry!’

‘You’re quite infuriating for a goddess’

Potty mouth for a mortal. But it makes him all the more daring. He doesn’t even know it himself. But oh well. That’s up to him. It might get him in trouble. Especially with those twins. But at the same time it also makes him courageous. Interesting. Although…he’s refusing the help of a goddess. Perhaps a little bit of…convincing….is needed. Just a little.

‘So. Tell me what you desire, and perhaps i can gibe you something? How about that?’

‘What i want is the general’s head. Nothing more. Nothing less.’

‘What are you willing to give me in return?’

‘My life.’

Thé answer brought a smile to your lips. He played right into your game. Well, it’s not like he could refuse your offer. One who thrives on his own anger usually loses his mind. Often making decisions that aren’t well thought out, or perhaps not even caring. Although…he’s not stupid. Foolish. But not stupid, he may or may not know that you’re all doing this just for the thrill of it. After all you are the goddess of revenge. Speaks for itself doesn’t it? Besides look at it from the bright side. A goddess by your side who lends her strength. It’s all way too good right? And it’s happening right now!…Lucius doesn’t know what he’s getting into to….

[dualcastimpact]

dawntrail impressions pt. vi

In this installment: moments of weakness, a daring rescue and a tag team I never expected to see after all this time. Oh, and the Feat of Proof, if that matters to anyone (laughs).

Spoilers under the cut, as always:

Back to Earthenshire we go! But before that...

Wuk Evu: "Yet when it comes to describing the place itself, the stories do not always agree. Some portray it as one might expect: a glittering metropolis of golden towers. Others suggest it is more unassuming and owes the name to a fabulous treasure hidden at its heart."

Wuk Evu: "Every telling, however, has a common thread: those who go in search of the golden city do not return."

OMINOUS.

Wuk Evu: "The lesson to be learned from this, Third Promise, is that to seek the legend is to court death. I must implore you to proceed with the utmost care."

Raginmar, at the back of the group, mutters quietly to himself that it must be Tuesday then; usually he'd pitch it just loud enough for either Thancred or Estinien to hear him, but he doesn't bother since they're not here this time. The twins still hear him, though, damn those sharp Elezen ears (laughs) it scandalises them a little bit because they weren't expecting him to make such a droll comment.

———

Erenville: "What are we to make of these cautionary tales? If every expedition has ended in tragedy, how then did the Dawnservant find the city and return without incident?"

You know, nobody said they ended up dead. Just that they were never to be seen again. Maybe they got to the golden city and decided to just live there instead of going home!

———

Sareel Ja: "If neither wealth nor territory are of value, wherefore does he seek to bring the world to heel...?

Oh of course that's all you care about, you greedy power-hungry asshole. Ugh. My money's on Zoraal Ja having a legitimate, well-intentioned reason for wanting to subjugate the whole world and he's just going about it the worst way he can. Sareel Ja's just unable to understand his motivations because he can't understand the concept of wanting to actually serve your country.

———

Sareel Ja: "Your cleverness in particular is most admirable, Second Promise. We must have you apply that Sharlayan knowledge you so cherish, and arm Tural with weapons of magitek design."

First of all, the best magitek engineers are still Garlean, so you don't know what you're talking about. Second of all, Sareel Ja absolutely flinched from the sudden murderous intent he felt boring into him from behind. Nobody knows better than Raginmar how destructive magitek can be. Nobody here has directly suffered from it more than he has, and having to hear this from some smug old bastard who's never set foot out Tuliyollal his entire life, who's never seen the sheer horror magitek can wreak pisses him off like very few other things can.

———

Zoraal Ja: "Easier to expand our territory...and swallow Sharlayan whole."

Hoo boy. This is the first time we're being shown the depth of Zoraal Ja's ambition, and it's not pretty.

I want to say it's a bad move — Tuliyollal is just one nation, how do they think they're going to expand their territory across the sea and swallow Sharlayan whole — but then I remember Garlemald absolutely swallowed several nations whole. Huge chunks of an entire continent, even. That said, I'm wondering just how strong Tuliyollal's military force is, and if they can really be an invading force. If Bakool Ja Ja and Zoraal Ja are any indication, the Mamool Ja seem to be a pretty warlike people which explains some of them heading to Eorzea to become mercenaries (and bandits). The Silverscales must have at least been of some renown in Tural since people knew them by name, and they came back in tatters after getting absolutely destroyed by one (1) adventurer.

Granted, that adventurer was the Warrior of Light, but still!

Also if I'm being honest, this basically amounts to a declaration of war and I'm not sure why nobody's running off to let the Grand Company of Eorzea know so they can prepare accordingly, just in case.

———

Krile: "The stories describe a place of boundless happiness, but are also rife with dire warnings of seekers who did not return. What are we to make of this...?"

Obviously they liked it there so much they didn't want to leave, duh.

———

Alisaie: "One day we're sailing up rivers, and the next we're hiking up mountains."

Raginmar just laughs. Now you know how what it's like! For some reason I'm reminded of that one quest in the House of the Fierce, where Raginmar had to go all the way to Kugane to pick up some documents to bring back to Yanxia, and Alphinaud was all "oh you're back so soon!" Hello? That was a journey across the Yanxian plains and the Ruby Sea and back, give Raginmar some goddamn credit!

At the time I was being a real gil-pincher too because I was saving up for a house, so I actually did travel all the way to Kugane and back on foot (laughs).

———

Koana: "Raginmar and I should work together at least, the better to facilitate communications between our groups."

For context, Wuk Lamat's gone missing and Koana and his entourage's joined in to help find her.

First of all, did Thancred or Urianger not give him a linkpearl? Second of all, I lowkey like how Koana's essentially designated Raginmar as the de facto leader of Wuk Lamat's entourage and everybody's just like "yeah, that works".

———

Koana: "You played your part to perfection, Raginmar. A man of many talents, just as Thancred and Urianger described."

I feel like that might not have been exactly what Thancred and Urianger meant about his acting talents, but okay.

(Context for anyone unfamiliar with Raginmar: he's extremely secretive, spent most of his Scion career pretending to be unassuming and mild-mannered, and pretty much hides his true personality from everyone he meets including the Scions; it wasn't until the end of Shadowbringers that he started loosening up a bit with a select few of the Scions, and he still surprises them sometimes)

((Case in point: the droll comment about how seeking the golden city carries with it the risk of death and how that's basically just another weekday for him, scandalising Alphinaud and Alisaie who overheard him))

———

Koana: "If you would be so kind, Raginmar. Pray leave them capable of speech."

Tall order, that, but he'll give it his level best (laughs).

———

Wawkesa: "One look, and I could tell that man was a killer. A butcher. A salted devil in the flesh."

I cackled so hard at this line because yeah! That's Raginmar, alright! It is so refreshing to see Raginmar getting some respect from these two-bit mooks for once!

———

What will you say? > You need to calm down. > Be patient. Trust in Thancred. > I thought you were the cool-headed one.

He's not going to tell Koana to calm down because he's been in Koana's shoes — back around post-ARR, Hyllizirn was taken in order to draw out the famed Champion of Eorzea and Raginmar was nearly out of his mind with worry and guilt, compounded by the fact that the kidnapping came at the heels of a very bad fight between him and Hyllizirn. Hyllizirn came out of the ordeal relatively unscathed (and gave her abductors a painful lesson of her own) and they sorted out things between them, but that's neither here nor there.

The point is, Raginmar knows what Koana's going through right now. He's not going to tell Koana that he needs to calm down, and he's not going to poke fun at an obviously frantic and agitated big brother. That's not helpful at all. He says to trust in Thancred instead because Thancred is one of the best trackers he personally knows, and it helps to remind Koana that something is being done to help find Wuk Lamat.

———

AND HERE COMES THE MONEY SHOT! Thancred tracks down Wuk Lamat's location and the whole gang is together, coming to her rescue! Eagle-eyed observers will note that the group is missing a member (I certainly did) which leads us to this incredible, incredible scene with the tag team of the century*:

*I am exaggerating, but only because Raginmar's and Thancred's friendship is very important to me and seeing them in a tag team makes me so very happy

It is hands-down one of the best cutscenes so far for me, not least because Raginmar looks so goddamn badass. The way no one gets in his way as he does that purposeful slow walk towards Bakool Ja Ja, keeping the Mamool Ja's attention as Thancred strikes from behind to free Wuk Lamat — god, how can anyone still complain when this cements the fact that the Warrior of Light is still a bonafide badass and literally the biggest threat on the field?? And the way both Thancred and Raginmar smirk at each other — it was planned, these two motherfuckers came up with a plan to utilise Raginmar's sheer overwhelming presence to mask Thancred's, this acknowledges so many things and I'm just—

(screams into the void)

Just LOOK at the smug smirks on their faces, GOD, I can't STAND them. They had no right to do this to me, ugh.

What's even better about that scene is that Raginmar is seemingly unarmed. That's right, this unarmed middle-aged man is the biggest threat you can't afford to take your eyes off from on the field right now, and it's so validating for me. He doesn't even need weapons to be dangerous!

———

Koana: "I will never forgive him for putting our sister in danger! He will have forfeited his right to be called brother!"

This scene largely pokes fun at Koana for being an overprotective big brother, but it also makes me wonder about their relationship with Zoraal Ja. Zoraal Ja is the First Promise, the miraculous son born to Gulool Ja Ja. Koana and Wuk Lamat were adopted. Were they ever close in the first place? Did Zoraal Ja ever see Koana and Wuk Lamat as his real siblings, given how he's Gulool Ja Ja's actual child and they're adopted?

———

Wuk Lamat rescued, we now continue on to Worlar's Echo for the Feat of Proof!

Alisaie: "Chilly air. Stout stone construction. If I squint a bit, I might think I was in Ishgard for a moment."

Hey now.

———

Erenville: "The Skyruin's fires are described as eternal—flames that can be quenched by neither storm nor time. And here I thought it a literary embellishment."

Raginmar, who has been burned by an eternally-burning flame and is capable of casting those same flames: mmhmm.

———

Patient Gravekeeper: "Moreover, we do not conceive of death as others do. For us, a person does not die when their heart ceases to beat, but only when they are no longer borne in the hearts of all who know them."

I just know that hit Raginmar somewhere tender deep inside, with everyone he's loved and lost — his comrades, his subordinates, his friends and companions. He carries the memory of them with him still, and so they will live on forever.

———

Stoic Chronicler: "No. No virulent plague or newly arisen blight. For the local Tonawawta and Shetona, it was but a mild affliction of the sort that comes with the turning of the seasons."

Stoic Chronicler: "What manifested for them as slight fevers and coughs, however, proved deadly to our people."

Stoic Chronicler: "Out of every ten Yok Huy who joined that northern campaign, nine succumbed to the infection. Those who survived continued to suffer, finding it difficult to sire offspring."

Erenville: "I've heard of this before. Lacking an inherited resistance, visitors to distant lands can fall deathly ill to diseases a local might shrug off."

A surprising reversal from what happened to the Whalaqee. I guess it kind of speaks volumes to how isolated Xak Tural is, that the diseases there would be something unknown to the southern part of Tural.

———

Stoic Chronicler: "Your genuine interest in our history is...refreshing."

Now, there are a lot of ways to interpret this line — they could be referring to Wuk Lamat's enthusiasm, but in that case wouldn't they have mentioned her specifically? If both Zoraal Ja and Koana had arrived at this point before Wuk Lamat, they could be making a comment on the other two's distinct lack of interest in the Yok Huy's history. They could also just mean the whole group in general, since the Sharlayans are always interested to learn about something new.

I like to think of it as them directly addressing Raginmar, though, because Raginmar grew up with a historian for a father and developed an interest for the subject despite himself, and so the keen way he paid attention to the Stoic Chronicler was obvious for them to see.

———

Wuk Lamat: "If you could stay and tend to him, the rest of us will continue on to Worqor Zormor."

Alphinaud: "Understood. Be careful up there."

Sometimes I think about how Alphinaud always focuses his efforts on running support and helping others instead of charging into the fray himself, and how it's such a change from his overconfident days as the Commander of the Crystal Braves and I feel all gooey inside. He's probably got the single best character development in this entire game and I love that for him.

And to think I absolutely abhorred him back when I was playing through ARR (laughs)

———

Okay I know we joke about Alisaie being Red Alphinaud but that doesn't mean I want her healing! HEY!

[utilitycaster]

Threatened this once as a throwaway tag, so: let's talk about why "Justice for Adeen Tasithar" as an attempted criticism of Essek is absolutely wild as a choice.

Disclaimer: there are many deeply annoying fans of Essek who do not seem to understand that the narrative and the cast (and by extension, merch/official art/comics) will treat him differently for being an NPC, even if he is a very important NPC and a member of the Mighty Nein, and you are justified in being annoyed. There are also a number of equally annoying Essek haters, most of whom are bitter shippers who have (correctly) realized it's slightly more palatable to others in the fandom to openly hate on Essek than on a PC; or else they are the miserable souls who think that every minute spent on a character other than their personal favorite stolen and wasted time. I am a firm believer in this post; everyone is annoying and complaining on your own blog about it is your absolute right. Also, both in regards to the fans mentioned above and the characters mentioned below, it is possible for people on two opposite sides of a position to both suck.

The first issue is the phrase itself; it co-opts a statement usually used for victims of hate crimes or political prisoners in the real world, and makes it unironically about a pretend guy who had precisely one scene, which is certainly a choice. I'm not actually opposed to using "Justice for" jokingly in fandom, but it is weird to use it relatively seriously in fandom.

The second is that Adeen Tasithar is a member of one of the Dens of the Kryn Dynasty, and is a Taskhand, a term reserved for people with high-level military responsibilities, and is a member of the Bright Queen's Court. During wartime. Coupled with the fact that Essek, who, as described below, is never portrayed as particularly cruel nor petty despite his many flaws, thinks Adeen genuinely does suck, this means that at best, Adeen Tasithar is heavily involved in military operations at a very high level and is in some way personally unpleasant. At, frankly, not even worst, we're talking D&D Donald Rumsfeld. Now, we can debate whether Essek is a war criminal or merely traitorous (not on this post though, because I don't care and it's not relevant), but, while we know very little about Adeen Tasithar, it's not an overreach to say that this man has a pretty strong chance of being guilty of his own war crimes. In general, calling for justice is something I'd hesitate to use in an "the enemy of my enemy" manner, especially if it's well within reason to consider that you're talking about Ludinus Da'leth's Kryn counterpart.

The third is that while you're under no obligation to like Essek, he really is, in general, portrayed as a decent judge of character and a terrible judge of whether selfishly following his own ambition was appropriate and what the consequences might be. He detests the members of the Cerberus Assembly with whom he works; he likes the Mighty Nein despite them ultimately being his potential undoing. He has a few friends in the Dynasty and cares about his (unambiguously good) brother, and feels remorse about his father. Essek has done terrible things in the service of his goals; but directly throwing an innocent under the bus (vs. setting into motion things that will, as a side effect, lead to innocent collateral damage, which he obviously will do) isn't his style. Again, at the very least, Adeen Tasithar is someone whom Essek genuinely believes is a bad person (note that Essek, by this time, also considers himself to be a bad person, and Trent Ikithon to be a "fuck hole", which might help your understanding of scale here). This doesn't mean Tasithar deserves what he got, but frankly, in a campaign about people who got a lot of things they didn't deserve, it's a pretty blatant straw-grasp onto a side character with the briefest of appearances to decide he's your poster boy victim just so that you can go full spiked bat on a character you dislike.

The fourth is that there's never any connection to how Essek not being friends with the Mighty Nein (or entering a relationship with Caleb) would provide justice for Adeen Tasithar, who is in an Empire prison by the end following the exchange during peace talks. It's actually entirely possible that the Empire eventually figures things out re: Adeen, notably because memory modification as a criminal act is going to be really fresh in their minds following the Ikithon trial (and if they interrogate Trent, it's also possible the Empire finds out about Essek). Essek is already a fugitive from the Dynasty and cannot move freely through the Empire as a drow whom assembly members would recognize. The guy didn't get off scot free anyway, so really, he is going to suffer to some extent; you just want him to experience abject and total misery, rather than constant fear tempered with a small degree of happiness, like some kind of sicko, or megachurch member.

The final one is that "justice for Yeza Brenatto" or "I don't like that Essek worked with the Assembly even if he wasn't happy about it" would actually be far more reasonable statements to make. Yeza was, in fact, a simple alchemist who was forced to become a pawn in the game being played by, among other people, Essek, and suffered immensely for it. The Assembly does in fact suck. And yet, rather than admit Caleb also considered working with the Assembly for selfish reasons, or that Veth, you know, exists people jump to woobify some random NPC about whom we know basically nothing other than "Military guy, well-connected politically."

So anyway: feel however you want about Essek; but if you're on Adeen Tasithar's bandwagon, I don't think you actually are terribly bothered by hypothetical fictional war crimes. I think you just are too spineless and online to say "I dislike Essek" and needed to construct an elaborate poor reason why.

[fastcardotmp3]

Re: the tags of that post you just reblogged from me - AU where Steve and Eddie swap roles for just the final fight (Eddie’s with the girls, Steve’s with Dustin) but with an added subplot where we meet Steve’s parents early in the season & maybe they’re trying to get him to grow up/move out/think about his future, or something else, but they’d have to feature somehow so we still get that ending scene except it’s Robin telling his parents he didn’t make it (im picturing a very tragic recontextualising around the phrase “you need to do something with your life” leading to Steve drawing the bats away from Dustin)

That’s just my quick thoughts though, I’d love to know how you’d do it!

oh I LOVE this you've got my brain spinning I have so many thoughts and it's all your fault!!!

(I am so sorry for how long this got)

I think there are for sure many versions of this plotline that could work BUT here goes nothing

I definitely agree that we'd need to introduce Steve's parents early on (in my ideal world we'd have met them sooner than s4 for this plotline but alas I'm not in charge I'm simply posthumously script doctoring) and I think one version of the conversation there could come from a place of wanting what's best for him, but centering itself around ambition and choice in a way that sticks with Steve.

"You had so much ambition when you were still in school, Steve-- all of your sports, how sociable you were-- what happened to that? Where did you lose that along the way?"

And Steve flounders a little bit, because he's gotten to the point after season 3 where he can see himself better from the outside, is just that touch more self aware and good at reading not just other people's feelings but his own.

So it takes him a beat to put it into words, but he's able to, is the thing--

"Maybe I don't need to go down the-- the usual path to end up where I want to end up."

"Is this where you want to end up?" his mother asks, "working at a video store for the rest of your life?"

"It's not about that," Steve shrugs, pouring two travel mugs of coffee all the while, one for him and one for Robin.

Because he knows it's not about that, he spent all of last summer learning it's not about that and the months since discovering that there's a certain amount of peace in knowing that things aren't perfect but that matters less when you have your people around.

"What's it about then? Steve, I just-- I don't want you to get stuck here, when I know you could do so much more with your life if you just chose to."

"I'm not doing nothing with my life, Mom!" he laughs, exasperated but certain for once in his goddamn life. "I'm-- I'm actually doing really well right now, I've got good friends and I've got the kind of job where I'm kept busy while I figure out what's next for me and I'm just... happy, I guess? Like, can't my ambition just be to keep doing stuff that makes me happy? Can't I choose that?"

And he has to go to work, has to walk out and promise her that they'll talk about it more later, talk about it with his dad too, but Steve knows what he cares about and this isn't going to shake his resolve.

What he cares about is this group of people who have changed his life even more than the monsters did, who brought enough good into it to at the very least match the bad, and in some cases (like the girl already monologuing as she climbs into the front seat of his car and accepts her coffee with a mocking kiss to his cheek) somehow usurp the bad.

Steve doesn't have to be what this town expects of him, what most likely to end up rich superlative voters expect of him, what his parents expect of him, because his life isn't about being any particular something, it's in the doing.

It's in the swinging of a baseball bat, the swinging of his fists to keep the people he loves safe.

It's in the morning drives to get Robin to school on time and the late night ones to make sure Dustin meets curfew.

It's in the friendship he's managed to find with Nancy in the past year, the knowledge that this version of them is the best one by far.

It's in the days driving the kids to the trailer park to visit Max even if she ultimately ends up refusing to come out with them, because at least they're doing it, at least they're trying with her.

It's in this, too, when they drive out to Reefer Rick's place and some of the claims of happiness start slipping through Steve's fingers again with the proof that it isn't over, the fight.

But they've beat it before and they can beat it again. It's in the doing, and Steve has gotten knocked down many a time but the thing he always does is he always gets up on the other side.

He knows this. He trusts in this. He's built a fucking worldview around this because that's where his ambition went, Mom.

That's what happened to "Steve Harrington, actually a cool dude."

Steve's humble enough to thank Eddie for saving his ass, but he's done this enough times to still be able to reassure the guy who calls him badass that, "It always looks hopeless right before we win. Don't freak out too bad if it looks like the end of the world, huh?"

Eddie looks at him like he has two heads, says he's jealous of Steve's optimism.

Even Robin tells him that she thinks they might not win this time but all Steve knows is that they always have before. All Steve knows is that his instincts usually work out, let him protect the rest of them long enough to make the big and vital moves necessary to beat this thing.

All Steve knows is that he just, he's changed a lot but-- He's just the same kid who was cocky enough to run back into the Byers' house to fight a monster, stubborn enough to let the Russian's beat the hell out of him before he'd let them do the same to Robin and he--

"I don't know, I still have hope. Maybe this is the first time we actually win. Forever."

There's this sense of finality to it, hanging in the air, and she doesn't look convinced there in the same way she doesn't look convinced when he and Dustin are saying goodbye to the other three at Eddie's trailer, but Steve kisses her once on the forehead and says, "what are you waiting around for? Go kick some ass, your schmuck will be here when you're done."

His instincts have always protected them in the past.

It's his instincts that have him formulating a plan the second he realizes the bats are going to get inside the trailer, going to make a break for the gate and attack whole swaths of people unprepared for such a thing.

Dustin will be mad about being abandoned on the other side, but Steve's pissed him off before and he's always gotten over it.

It's in the doing, his ambition.

It's in the doing, the key to a well-spent life.

It's in the doing, the being of Steve Harrington, overconfident nature and all.

He always gets back up, every knock to the head and blow to the ego, Steve always gets back up, so he holds his ground and fights. Leads the bats away and keeps them there.

His mother wasn't wrong that he's changed, but she wasn't right when she claimed the thing he'd lost was his ambition. He'd found it, this force of nature in his chest that makes him willing to face down hell if it means the people he loves are safe.

He always gets back up, a tail around his throat.

He always gets back up, teeth in his flesh.

Steve Harrington is a pro at getting knocked down.

"I'll get up in a second, just-- just a second--"

"Steve there's-- there's so much blood-- Steve, you need to-- you have to get up now--"

"It's okay, it's okay, we won, just-- just another minute. Wanna see that-- Rob and the others made it back. Then we--can go--"

Dustin is crying. Dustin is holding him.

And Steve is bleeding out, he thinks somewhere indistinct and hazy at the back of his mind. He'll get up and fix that in a minute.

"You die, I die! Hey, hey motherfucker! Don't close your eyes-- you die, I die, you hear me?!"

It's in the doing, really, that Steve does as he's told just long enough to see the other three come stumbling out of the tree line towards them.

It's in the doing, in the choice of it, that he dies knowing they won.

(His mother wails when Robin approaches her at the shelter two days later with sunken eyes and unwashed hair. His father sinks into the closest chair and takes the offered keys to a maroon BMW with trembling hands.)

(It's in the doing that this time, in order to really win, they have to cling a little bit to his hope.)

[crepuscularqueens]

For the wip game: twin tag and how to achieve immortality? Cause they both sound like such fun!

thank you very very much!

twin tag is me painstakingly going through every max and silver scene (any scene they appear in generally and also when they appear together) to compare their journeys and explore how they parallel and mirror each other through out the show. i only got through season one so far, but it is my little pet project bc i love trying to dissect these two.

The season one finale finds Max much more comfortable in the position she has secured for herself. She is trusted and her knowledge is valued by her business partner, she is the safest we have seen her from physical threat and violence. By contrast, Silver is directly unsuccessful in fulfilling the terms he’s been allowed on the crew by, and his existence on the crew and his life itself is threatened by another crew member. Though he is successful in engaging in the fight he and Flint are adamant about, the results are disastrous and it ends with the imminent threat of trial hanging over his and his partner’s (Flint) heads.

Silver is, however, saved by the alliance that he had managed to form with Randall. Randall willingly and without being asked to injured De Groot (minorly) to save Silver’s life. Randall’s motives do remain ambiguous to the audience, though he clearly harbors loyalty to Silver for getting him back on the crew, and though the underlying motive for Silver was selfish in that case so would Randall needing to keep Silver alive so he can keep his place on board the Walrus. We also see the foreshadowing of Silver’s future in the relationship.

Max is able to confront Eleanor in her own way, showing the other woman her own worth and abilities. It was clear in Eleanor’s treatment of Max while they were together that she did not consider Max’s ambitions to be as important as her own, and this directly led to the end of their relationship. Eleanor thought Max would have the realization that her own dreams were lesser than Eleanor’s and give them up for Eleanor’s protection and be satisfied with the idea of belonging to Eleanor. Max is able to show that her own ambitions are not only valid and realistic, but now solid enough to be a potential threat to Eleanor’s, all without placing any direct threats. This acts to foreshadow the way Max will choose her path in direct response to the way she saw Eleanor wield her power

how to acheive immortality is a sort kind of harrow the ninth au/reimagining or recontextualizing of treasure island. after the events of black sails and up until the events of treasure island, silver slowly starts to realize that he can't die because he's absorbed flint's soul. when the news of flint's death in pre treasure island comes, billy goes to silver with the map and a plan to recover the cache. depending on your point of view, this either goes horribly wrong or extremely right.

the story of treasure island continues, intercut with flashbacks to black sails events as if flint never existed, becoming more and more unsettling.

"It isn’t my intention to upset, alienate, or drive you away with this course of action,” you told her.

“I never imagined that to be your motivation here,” she said, setting down the tin cup and with it all pretense.

“I’m not asking for your blessing or agreement, either.”

The woman closed her eyes, briefly hanging her head, only the loose curls framing her face affected by this movement, swinging while the rest stayed carefully pinned back in its typical fashion. You were then fixed with the full power of her direct eye contact, tired but strong, as she reached into the folds of her plain woolen dress and withdrew a thick stack of neatly folded envelopes.

“If you are determined to stay on this road, there are things that we must settle first,” Max was resolute as she removed papers from the first envelope, the remainder coming to rest on the counter, “I cannot be certain you will return from this, and I need assurance that if you disappear with the cache or you fail to make it back, my existence in this place will be protected.”

You looked blankly at the papers in front of you for a moment, absorbing the information, “You want to get married.”

“What I want is security,” she said in reply.

“I know,” and you did, you knew the nature of your relationship and that the traditional bonds of marriage were not desired by either of you in this situation, “In truth, we should have done this long ago.”

“I never had reason to believe I would outlast you here,” was her careful response, “Given the condition you exist within.”

Your brows drew with these words, the reminder that came with them. It was something the two of you had avoided speaking of ever since you had first discovered its existence.

[flysafepapi]

the sin factor 3/?

Peaky Blinders Scream AU

masterlist

Warnings: Conversations/thoughts about murder both past and future, bit of blood, references to self harm

Summary: It’s in the eyes, too, the same ambition and clawing desperation to be more, get more, hidden behind a carefully blank stare. He also knows that Duke has something Tommy never had although it’s more likely that it’s the other way around, because Tommy has lines that he won’t cross for reasons that are his own. Duke has no such reservations.

tagging: @zablife​​ @the-makingsofgreatness​​ @peakyrogers​​ @hb-writes​ (let me know if you want to be added on or taken off)

It’s oddly fascinating, watching Duke and Tommy stare at each other from opposite sides of the desk. He’s been on the receiving end of Tommy’s stare before, he knows that it seems like he looks through you rather than at you, as if he can read the thoughts the second they enter your head. He’s seen lesser men crumble underneath it, but Duke just stares back, face carefully blank save for the slightest hint of a smile at the corner of his lips. Someone would completely miss it if they weren’t actively looking for it.

“I heard the police let him go after verifying his alibi. That’s good. I can imagine finding her like that was traumatic enough without being accused of committing the crime himself. That’s almost enough to make someone snap and do something dangerous.”

Duke knew the police wouldn’t have detained Finn for too long, but it had been long enough to make people suspicious, and that was enough for now. The rest of the plan would play out in time. There was no point rushing anything, it was much more amusing to drag it out for as long as they could, all part of the game. The shirt had been the wrong size deliberately, stolen from someone’s clothesline weeks ago, and he’d made sure to switch his shoes out on his way out, leaving treads that were verifiably nothing Finn owned or would ever fit into. 

“I’ll have to go around and pay my respects.”

His father doesn’t look away from him as he orders Isiah out of the room. Isiah hesitates, just for long enough to be noticeable, and Duke knows that his father doesn’t miss the fact that Isiah doesn’t move until Duke looks at him and nods. It’s such a small thing that most people would miss it, the implications going over their heads completely, but he knows that the message gets across loud and clear: ‘You’re not the one he’s loyal to anymore, he belongs to me.’ The room descends back into silence after Isiah closes the door behind him, and they wait until they hear his footsteps walk away back down the hall before they speak.

“Do they have any idea who did it?”

“They don’t. The trail goes cold after whoever did it left the house.”

“Shame.”

Duke smiles, but there’s no joy in it, and he’d have to be blind to miss the way it makes his father look away for a second, unable to take the sight of it. He wonders what his father sees. Eyes so similar to his own but far colder, not an ounce of warmth or emotion to be found in them. A face carefully blank, a mask in and of itself, shielding anything he might be thinking from everyone who sees him. Almost everything. There’s only been one person he’s ever let see what lies beneath, and he’s waiting downstairs. 

It feels like they’re locked in a stalemate, neither of them willing to be the first to show their hand. He knows that there’s very little linking him to the scene he’d left behind in Finn’s house not three nights ago, this isn’t the first time he’s played this game before. The first time, he’d almost gotten caught, and he’s only perfected the way he does things since. It might’ve been an oversight, going for someone so close so soon, but the temptation had been too great and when it came to suppressing his impulses, he saw no point. 

“When’s the funeral?”

It’s a taunt, even though he doesn’t say that he had any hand in it, and his father knows it. He almost smiles, amused this time, at the thought of sitting in the church and watching Finn’s every reaction like a hawk. He wishes he’d been there to see the look on his face when he’d come home and found his new wife spread over the kitchen floor like a discarded, lifesize doll. He bets it was a sight to see. 

“Is something the matter?”

“Did you-”

The door swings open before the sentence makes its way out of his mouth, and Duke turns around in his seat to see what the commotion is. Charlie stands in the doorway, Isiah a few steps behind him, looking apologetic. 

“Sorry, I tried to tell him that you were busy,” Isiah says, looking between them with a wary look on his face.

“It’s fine, Isiah, we’re finished here.”

~~~

“What was that about?”

“He suspects something. No solid idea of what yet, but whatever he thinks he knows can’t be proven.”

“You hope.”

True. There’s no way to know what he knows, not unless it’s written down on paper somewhere and he doubts that there’s any sort of paper trail. No, if there’s anything that links them to the scene he left behind in Finn’s house, then the proof of it exists only in his father’s mind. It doesn’t really matter. Duke shuffles a few things around in his mind, modifying the plans he and Isiah had already decided on, fitting the new revelations to fit more comfortably. 

“If it goes bad, we stick to the plan.”

He’s not afraid of being found out before they manage to enter the grand finale. There are plans upon plans already, what to do if everything goes to hell included, all they have to do is stick to what they agreed upon. However it all ends, whether they get away with it or not, people are going to stop and take notice. They’ll still be talking about it decades from now.

“What next, then?”

 “What did you have in mind?”

Isiah curls a hand around his arm, fingers locking tight, and it’s almost fascinating to watch the way it makes his skin turn red from the pressure. The marks from the rope are still there, only barely hidden by the end of his sleeves, and they burn where Isiah’s fingers make contact. He could pull free, he knows that Isiah would let go if there was any indication of him wanting to get away, but he doesn’t. It’s unlikely that he ever would. 

He looks down in fascination at the feeling of something cold against his wrist. The knife is new, still shiny, and it looks good in contrast with the blue-green of the veins under his skin. Blood wells up around the edge, wickedly sharp, Duke knows because he sharpened it himself until it could’ve cut through muscle like butter. There are scars already there, most of them faded into a kind of silver-white, and raised. 

“Would you let me?”

“You said that like I wouldn’t do it myself if you asked.”

Isiah looks at him, something strangely soft in his eyes.

“You’re insane.”

“And you love it.”

[salcreus]

*SHAKES YOU* what’s that AU please talk more‼️‼️

I'm sorry in advance to you and the other people that went to ask in hopes that I actually produce something of quality hgdnfg So 💃The overgreat AU (which is the name that I have going on right now, I might change it but it's just an awful pun for now that only makes sense to me and me alone) Is basically "What if I took whatever Mumbo has going on right now, but I made it everybody's problem". Mostly because I am biased about characters going fucked up and evil through corruption side effects of their world. There are already a couple of fanart pieces under the overgreat au tag if anyone wants out of context content <3

The premise is that, during Season 5, when the NHO entered a temple in their first episodes, they accidentally released a type of weird plant based parasite, slash curse slash being into the world, whose objective was to go from host to host, until it was able to be on top of the food chain. What is the “top”? That’s to be defined later, if I ever do end up writing or drawing this.

Also when I speak of It (It purposefully does not have a name, I promise for a good reason) as a parasite, or plant, etc, It can cause effects or grow things that do fit the definitions, but It’s something intangible, odorless, etc. It’s not *actually* a parasite, nor a plant, yada yada, It just Is. It’s It. The Thing, if you will. Bug mentions that people do not need to know about but I’m including it out of curiosity: (It has some design/characteristics based on the Leucochloridium paradoxum, which is a parasite that affects snails, in a gross way that I won't explain here nor do I suggest googling it if you don't like bugs, but the little guy does it to call attention and take advantage of the bigger hunter, birds, to- do whatever it does and multiply. Rinse and repeat) Point is, that very same “Curse” uses one’s ambitions and wishes against them, twisting whatever their desire is, to better fit the needs of this being, making people that would otherwise be completely rational and wonderful functioning members of society into thinking and doing… Weirder, more questionable stuff. Think of it as a cocktail of impulsive thoughts but you actually go through with them. It does have more side effects and it does have logic drowned into it, but again, I won’t explain now just in case I DO end up writing something with this. It affected several of the Hermitcraft seasons, from the Bdubs’ Vine situation during season 5, to the Mycelium resistance in s7, and now some of the people during season 8, jumping from person to person as It sees fit (or, at least, if it’s strong enough to actually do something. Think of it as cross riding the player’s data) but it lingered on this edge of being strong enough to change someone’s personality and behaviour, without being fully able to take over onto bigger prey, thus laying in this limbo of no one being aware that these events were interconnected, and by what, even though they were all pretty worrisome scenarios. Like yes, this thing sure just happened, but the blame was always placed upon another external factor. However, what changed this season, is that it’s host, the “Infected” person, is a) Not that strong, both in a physical and mental sense (sorry Mumbo, sweetie, but your Minecraft persona looks like a Don’t Starve character fused with a toothpick) and b) already had an ambitious goal going on, which was to make sure not to murder anything. Like, don’t get me wrong, as much as I take advantage of the fact that Mumbo this season is anything but eco friendly, he still was extremely “nice and pure” at the start of the season, and that is to be commended. So- Why not take advantage of this person that doesn’t show much resistance to your influence, but also someone that already has an affinity to plants, which is your domain, but ALSO has a goal that he’s dead set on fulfilling. It’s peachy and nice. And that- Is the resume of the “backstory” of this hngdfngdfg. As resumed as I can make it, at least, which is mostly the boring “this is why x is x and why y is y”. The idea would be to go onwards from that basic idea into exploring and explaining each detail of S8, and how It affects the hermits, from Impulse’s love for amethyst, into Zedaph’s Lab experiments, or whatever the Gem has cooking in her gardens. (Which trust me, that's a whole thing in itself) Which is hilarious because I do have all of these plot points that are actually important and interesting, but I can't say any of them without giving this introduction, or because they would spoil the resolution/major plot points that I don't want to fully explain just yet. But hgndfg yeah!! premises!! backstory!! cool!!! Will I ever actually write this??? Who knows!! I sure don't!!!

[kimburgess-ruzek]

Shattered

chapter one: purgatory

summary: Intelligence had been through the worst of the worst trying to get one of their own back alive. Each member has been to their own personal hell. Will everyone make it back, or will the cracks in Intelligence be big enough for the entire team to shatter?

a/n: about that s9 speculation, yeah i’m going to make a fic out of it. if you want to beat around the bush and read the plot of the fic, it’s here. definitely new to writing so we’ll see how this goes! also, don’t know how to work a tag list, but if you want to be tagged, let me know!

t/w: mentions of trauma, gunshot wounds, assault, surgical procedures (which btw i made up, i’m not a medical expert)

read on ao3.

.

purgatory

“I think we should get married.”

six words. six of the most important words. Jay had the breath knocked out of him. He can’t understand what he was just asked. I think we should get married. Just a few months ago, Hailey wouldn’t even look into his eyes, much less say “I love you.” And a marriage proposal, that seemed pretty much impossible.

Jay looked into Hailey’s eyes. He saw past the tears and looked deeper. He saw sadness and fear, emotions not usually associated with an engagement. No, he saw something different. Hailey was different.

Jay cleared his throat, clearly stunned. “I—.” He tried to find words, find anything to respond. But he couldn’t. He cleared his throat and tried again to say something, anything, but nothing came out. Hailey noticed the hesitation and suddenly changed her demeanor. She tried to dry her tears as quickly as possible, wiping her eyes and running her hair through her hands. She then stopped Jay, interrupting whatever he was trying to express.

“You know what, never mind. Never mind. I— We need to go. We need to get to the hospital. See how Kim’s doing.”

Jay saw the sudden change and tried to reason with Hailey. He quickly found his words. “Wait, wait, wait. Hails. Is everything okay?” He asked while putting his hands on Hailey’s arms, stopping her from turning towards the door. He gently rubbed them, trying to soothe Hailey. However, it was to no avail; Hailey gently pushed herself away.

“No. No, we need to go. We need to see Kim. I need to see her. Let me go change and then we’ll leave, okay?” Hailey reassured Jay, nodding her head. Before Jay could respond, Hailey kissed Jay on the cheek and briskly walked to the room. She felt like she was suffocating in her clothes. She had worn them for almost two straight days, and she had been to hell and back in them. She needed to get out of them.

“Okay—“ Jay half yelled, wanting to make sure she heard him. He updated Will on his whereabouts and he let the rest of the team know he and Hailey were on their way to the hospital. Kevin replied that Kim was still in surgery. The doctor hasn’t given any updates but hopefully will soon. After about five minutes, Hailey walked out in a new pair of jeans and a different top. She quietly grabbed three granola bars, one for her to eat on the way and the others probably for Kevin and Trudy. Jay loved how thoughtful she was. She had her keys, purse, and jacket in hand and was heading for the door.

“Ready?”

“Yep.” Jay got up from the couch and followed Hailey out the door, turning off the lights on the way out.

The walk to the car and the drive to Med was really quiet. There was definitely tension in the vehicle; there wasn’t the comfortable silence that Jay and Hailey were used to. Hailey was focused on the road while Jay was focused on Hailey. She never looked back at Jay though, her eyes only on the road.

“Do you want to talk about what just happened—“ Jay started but Hailey quickly interrupted him.

“No.”

Jay took a breath and mumbled “okay.”

For the rest of the ride, you could’ve heard a pin drop in the car. No one talked and no one made any extra movement. Once Hailey found a parking spot in the parking garage, she turned the car off and took a long, hard breath, trying to gather her words. Jay was opening the door when Hailey grabbed his hand, stopping him.

“Look, Jay. I... Look I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to be short with you.”

It’s okay,” Jay replied, trying to reassure her.

“No, it's more than that. I didn’t mean what I said earlier. At the apartment. I mean I love you, I do. I love you. And I think you’re decent. But not the other stuff. I just... It was just today. We almost lost our team member. We almost lost our friend, Jay. I don’t know what I would’ve done if we lost Kim. And I can’t think about it. If we did lose her. Because I don’t know if I could’ve forgiven myself. I don’t know if I could live with myself, thinking I could’ve done more. And at the apartment, I just saw someone that helped save my friend and I don’t want to lose you either, ever. And the emotions and no sleep and everything just got to me and I.. I. I don’t know. I don’t know. But.. Just don’t think about that question I asked earlier. Okay, Jay? Okay? It’s all good, I promise.”

Jay could clearly see Hailey was rambling. She was tired, no, she was exhausted, and she was backtracking. He was scared. He was scared that Hailey would retreat back to before, turned off from love. He hoped this experience didn’t make Hailey go back to being afraid of love. Of loving Jay. Because he loved Hailey. He loved everything about Hailey, from her seriousness when working a case to her humming along to the music she was playing in her earphones while pouring her coffee in the mornings. But there was also something else. Something that Jay couldn’t explain. Hailey was different, and not different because of what she explained. No, this was more than fear, more than desperation. This was a plea, almost a cry for help. And Jay didn’t know why. But he knew that something changed in her. Something happened when Voight split them up. And Jay knew he had to get to the bottom of it. Not for his sake, but for Hailey’s.

As much as Jay wanted to tell her he enjoyed the proposal, he knew she didn’t mean it. At least, he knew she didn’t want it for pure love. This wasn’t genuine. The love was, but the proposal wasn’t. This was a reaction to something. And as much as Jay would love to be engaged to Hailey Upton, he knew she wasn’t ready for it. And he knew she would regret it if the proposal went down like this. But he knew that he loved Hailey with all of his heart, and he was going to show that. As much as he wanted to say "yes," he was afraid of saying anything would just break her. So he went along with Hailey at the moment, and he decided he was going to try again later.

Jay put his free hand to Hailey’s cheek, wiping a stray tear. “Hailey, I love you. I love you so much. And that’s not going to change. Ever. I will do whatever you want to do and are comfortable doing. Now, let’s go check on Kim. Does that sound good?”

Hailey relaxed into Jay’s hand and closed her eyes. This was the first time she had relaxed in hours. After a pause, she nodded and left Jay’s hold. She opened the car door, and they walked towards the hospital entrance to hear the fate of their friend’s life. They walked into the unknown.

.

Med was covered in blues. Police of all ranks and districts filled the waiting room. It was so packed, Kim would be embarrassed. She wouldn’t want to be the center of attention. But she needed the love. She needed the support, and when one of their own has fallen, everyone’s going to be there to help pick them back up.

Hailey and Jay quickly spotted Kevin and Trudy in their blackout gear. Kevin had his bloody vest lying on the floor next to him. His bloody vest that was Kim’s blood from where he held her so tight, trying to stop any bleeding if it would do any good. Trudy was sitting in a chair and Kevin was standing next to her, his hand on her shoulder and his phone to his ear. He wasn’t talking, but his phone was still to his ear.

Trudy wasn’t speaking either. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t find any reason to have small talk. Or deep talk. She just couldn’t find anything to say. All she could do was just think, and run her mind to the ground worrying about Kim.

Kim held a very special place in Trudy’s heart. She was different from any other officer that Trudy has had. Kim has this pluckiness to her. She had a different attitude when it came to policing. And as much as Trudy berated her in front of the 21st, as much as Trudy picked on Kim and made her work overtime and made her run the extra mile, she loved Kim. She loved that green rookie with big brown eyes that walked in on the first day with a smile and a donut. She loved the woman who stayed in the district despite her failed relationship. She loved the woman who kept fighting when she kept getting knocked down. Kim had to have the biggest heart Trudy had ever known a police officer to have. Whether that be because of all of the hardship she has dealt with in the police academy or the lack thereof while growing up Trudy didn’t know. And to be quite frank, she didn’t care. All she knew was that she wanted to protect that big heart of Kim’s. She had to because Kim was the reason why a city like Chicago has hope. Kim brought light to a city of darkness. She brought ambition to a city of despair. No matter what the case was, Kim put all of her knowledge and energy into that case. She not only did that, but she cared for the people in the case. Hell, she even cared for some of the suspects, damn it. That’s how big Kim’s heart was. That's how big Kim's heart is. And now, that big, gullible, genuine heart has to fight for its life. It had to put itself in a position to be saved and it has to endure hours upon hours of surgery. So no, Trudy could not find any words to say.

Hailey and Jay walked up to Kevin and Trudy and gave solemn grins. Trudy found the strength to stand up and hug both Hailey and Jay. She held onto Jay a little longer, whispering ever so quietly “Thank you.” Jay patted Trudy’s back as a welcome, trying not to cry from the images of Kim handcuffed in that Buick resurfacing. After what seemed like a century, Trudy let go and sat back down. Hailey hugged Kevin and she and Jay stood with them.

Hailey then dug into her bag and pulled out a portable phone charger and handed it to Kevin.

“I thought you might need this.”

“Thanks, Hailey. Ruz would appreciate it.” Kev kindly took the charger and plugged it into his phone. He was glad because his phone was surely dying but he wanted to give Adam all of the updates as that were coming in.

“How’s Makayla?” Jay asked, crossing his arms.

“Uh, she’s good. She’s good. Adam told her that Kim had to work late, so she’s good. She remembered Adam and wasn’t scared. She fell asleep on the couch but Adam moved her to her bedroom.” Kevin tried to find any facts to answer Jay's question. He replied before listening to Adam say something over the phone.

“Yeah, Hailey and Jay are here... No, no updates yet... Yeah, man... The docs said the surgery would be pretty long.” Kevin answered over the phone.

“I spoke to the Commander. Intelligence isn’t getting any new cases until Kim pulls through.” Trudy stated, looking up at Jay and Hailey who nodded. They both thought it was rather respectful of the commander.

Trudy turned her attention towards Hailey, asking, “Did you or Hank find anything about Roy?”

With that question, Kevin looked at Hailey too. He chimed in, “Yeah did you catch any leads? Do you know where Voight is? Trudy has tried calling, but it goes straight to voicemail.”

All eyes were on Hailey, who quickly became flustered and at a loss for words. Does she tell the truth? Hell no. Not right now at least. Not until she gets to the bottom of what Voight did with the body. What does she tell them? She hung her mouth open, not knowing what to say. Jay noticed Hailey’s nerves and tried to calm her by putting a hand on her shoulder and giving it a squeeze. This made Hailey refocus, and she mustered up an answer.

“I, uh. No. No. And I don’t know where Voight is.” Hailey could barely get her Sergeant’s name out of her mouth. She tried her best to sound casual and honest, and it must’ve worked. Either that or everyone was so exhausted and stressed that they didn’t press any further.

Will Halstead pushed his way through the waiting room and joined the team.

“Hey, no word yet. I just talked to one of the nurses. Just said they’re still in surgery.” Will said. He tried to press for news. Anything, but he was shot down. Hopefully, this was just because they were in a rush and not because they had bad news, which is what Will does but didn't want to believe was the situation now. When Jay told him of Kim's injuries, Will, as a doctor, was shocked she even had a pulse. Her injuries were severe and traumatic, and she spent almost 24 hours bleeding. But Will dare not say his thoughts to Intelligence. No. He didn't want to break any of their hope. And Kim was going to need all of the hope she could get if she was going to pull through.

The team just nodded and settled in. Not one of them was going to leave until they received news about their member. So they waited.

.

It was 8:03 am. The sun was peaking through the blinds covering the windows. It has been 10 hours. 10 long hours. Some of the police officers left for their shift. Most stayed, camping out in their chairs. Some slept on the floor. Some were called to a scene where they handled it and immediately came back to the hospital. Hailey, Jay, Kevin, and Trudy rotated between two seats, allowing each person to catch a little bit of sleep. But in reality, none of them could get more than a few minutes of rest before the memories of the previous 36 hours crept into their minds, jolting them alert and awake. But they all stayed in that waiting room. In purgatory. No matter how scared, how sad they were, they all remained brave. Trudy and Jay tried calling Voight a couple of times only to realize he wasn't coming. They passed it off to be overwhelming. They thought Hank couldn't fathom hearing any bad news about Kim in person. Either that or he was somewhere, swallowing down liquor like he did when Al passed. But they didn't leave. They couldn't leave. They just had to hope the Sergeant wasn't doing anything he shouldn't be doing. 

Kevin stayed on the phone until about 3 am before Adam told him he was going to try to sleep so he could take Makayla to school the next day. Adam woke up at 6 but got the same luck as the rest of his team. He didn’t really get much of actual rest. But he woke up, got ready, fixed breakfast, woke Makayla up, got her ready, drove her to school while singing her favorite songs, and was back on the phone with Kev and heading to Med before 7:45.

Will kept coming in and out of the waiting room. He would periodically try to get information but was shut down every time. Nevertheless, he kept trying. He kept pushing for Intelligence. For Kim.

Suddenly, a doctor scrubbed and dressed in surgical gear stepped foot into the waiting room and everyone immediately woke each other up and sprang to their feet. Kevin told Adam the surgeon was here and put his phone on speaker. The surgeon walked straight to Intelligence and the other officers turned towards the team, waiting for the news. No one moved. No one blinked. Everyone studied the surgeon, trying to pick up on any cues before he spoke. Everyone held their breath. Everyone waited for the update.

After a long breath, the surgeon started pouring words.

“Officer Kim Burgess experienced severe head trauma, assault, shoulder strain, and two shots to the abdominal region. It was clear she lost a lot of blood, and when we got into surgery, it was much worse. She had a dislocated right knee, so we set it in place. The through-and-through shot didn’t do any internal damage so we patched it right up. The other one that never exited was lodged two inches to the right of her left kidney. If it were to hit it, she would have experienced kidney failure and gone into shock shortly after getting hit. Luckily, that didn’t happen. We were able to extract the bullet with as minimal damage as could be done. She had some pieces of glass lodged in her arms and we were able to get them out. She experienced head trauma. We checked, and she was bleeding internally in the brain. Left untreated, it could have lead to developmental setbacks, blood clotting, or death. However, it must’ve started only a little before she arrived here. This was likely due to her staying calm under pressure and subconsciously keeping her head in the correct position. She lost a lot of blood and had a low BP. She lost a pulse after we tried to stop the bleeding, but she was resuscitated after the first try. We did everything we could, and we did a lot. She made it out of surgery. She’s critical, but she’s stable.”

With that, everyone let out the breath that they were holding and erupted with such emotion. Some celebrated, hugging and shaking hands with each other. Some clapped and yelled in happiness. Some stood there in awe, in shock, in disbelief. Hailey dropped her head in her hands and started sobbing. Kim’s alive. She’s alive. Jay let out an excited expression and high-fived Will before engulfing a shaky Hailey in a huge hug. Trudy just let out a loud, deep sigh of relief. She immediately pulled the surgeon in for a hug. She knew Kim would pull through. Kim’s a fighter. She was going to push through. Kevin had big tears in his eyes. He couldn’t believe it. As much as he tried to be optimistic, he saw Kim with his own two eyes. He saw her and could only imagine what kind of torturous hell she went through. He knew Kim was strong, but this. This situation looked bleak. And as much as he tried not to believe that he held on to Kim during her dying breaths, he just didn’t know if Kim could pull through. He didn’t know if anyone could have pulled through with those injuries. But she did. Kim’s alive. After Kevin caught his breath he put his phone to his ear and checked on Adam.

“You heard that, brother?”

All he heard back were deep breaths and sobs.

“She’s okay. She’s gonna be okay. She’s gonna be okay.” Kev heard Adam whispering in between his cries. He didn’t hear a direct answer from Adam but he knew he heard the surgeon. Kev followed suit and replied, “She’s gonna be okay. She's gonna be okay, bro.”

The surgeon cleared his throat and the waiting room quieted down, listening to what else he had to say.

“They’re wrapping up on Officer Burgess now. She will have a brace on her knee to keep it in place. She’s cut and bruised, and she’ll likely have a concussion. We’re giving her blood and we’ll continue for the next few days along with antibiotics to treat any infections from the warehouse. She’s sedated. We’re going to try to ease her awake but she’s a fighter. So she’ll probably wake up by tonight. She’ll be transferred to a private ICU after she’s out of surgery. She’s been to hell and back, and she has a hell of a recovery to go, but she’s alive.”

The waiting room erupted again in relief and celebration. The surgeon hugged and shook hands with all of the officers, including Intelligence. He then left the room to allow the policemen to celebrate.

Intelligence just looked at each other. They didn’t jump up and down or screamed to the rooftops. No, they were too tired for that. But also it was a different kind of energy. 48 hours ago, they were at each other’s throats. Each one of them had a different idea on how to solve this case. On how to get Kim back. Each one of them had hit their breaking point. Each one of them had been to their own hell. And some of them hadn’t made it back yet. And while Kim was fighting back from her hell, while she was fighting for her life, the team came together. They rallied together for their team member, for their friend. They had to come together in order to give Kim that energy. That strength in order for her to make it out on the other side. But that was temporary, and the team knew that. Now, after Kim has made it, the team doesn't know how to feel. They didn’t know what to do. And just because they got what they wanted — they got Kim back and they got her back alive — it doesn’t mean everything that just happened is dropped. It doesn’t mean everything, every word can just be forgotten. No, it just means things get taken off pause.

Intelligence had a lot of work to do. It had a long road ahead of them. The question is: will everyone make it out unscathed? Or will someone crack, leading Intelligence to be shattered?

[shhh-no-ones-home]

the boy next door bucky barnes x reader

+++++++++

i know he has like an actual new york apartment in the show but i thought this idea was cute and kinda ran with it. in this they live in the same building rather than like his town house in the show.

also this might be the only one shot out for a little bit but ill be back soon i hope!

Song: Superman by loaded (duff mckagan)

tag list: @cynic-spirit +++++++++

Another day another dollar, right? One more day of work before a long holiday weekend away from the office and away from the stresses of life. It was almost worth the salary in more ways than one. Yes I was comfortable now that I'd been promoted but it also allowed me to move into a new apartment over the last two months. Apartment 25, right next door to a very handsome neighbor who id only ever had the pleasure of seeing once.

It was no more than a passing in the hall when I was still moving in. He had nodded his head followed by a soft hello as I was coming up the stairs. My door was propped open and half my furniture was sitting around the kitchen inside the door. I had noticed him glance in, a small smile coming to his face as he dug his gloved hand into his jeans for his house key. The only reason I knew he existed outside of that was the fact that he left his TV on at night. But I knew how that was. Some type of noise to make a lonely apartment seem less empty.

I wanted so badly to go introduce myself, to say hello or invite him over for dinner but it never felt right. I was the new neighbor after all and no one else had made an attempt at introducing themselves either. Besides, I wasn't even completely moved in yet. Two months and I still had boxes strewn about, some filled with books, some filled with kitchen utensils I hadn't needed quite yet. In all actuality it was a mess still but I was working on it. Something I would be fixing during this long holiday weekend.

This is what was on my mind as I buzzed into the main door. Then his smile flashing behind my eyes as I walked up the flight of stairs to stand in front of my apartment. Then the thought faded for a moment. It was one sigh after another as I dug into my bag for my key, a grumble under my breath as they shifted under my wallet. It was already a long day, and now this?

"For fucks sake."

I complained, finally grabbing them in my hand but stabbing myself in the finger rather than retrieving them. I pulled my hand out quickly, hissing at the feeling as I shook my hand out.

"Damnit!"

I furrowed my brow before putting my mouth to my finger. Then I heard his door click. I breathed deeply before shaking my head and reaching back in my bag for my keys. When he stepped out of his door I offered a disingenuous smile.

"Hey 25."

He said and I stood upright, confusion across my features as I stared at the number plate on my door.

"Hey, 23...?"

I said back, looking over my shoulder as he made his way quickly down the stairs. I watched as he opened the main door at the bottom, looking at him like a deer in headlights as he smiled and nodded before disappearing down the street. I just stood there for a moment, perplexed, arm still in my bag but no longer focused on the task at hand. What a strange interaction. Then the door across the hall made a noise, shaking me from my thoughts. I got to work getting my keys out properly this time, without hurting myself, and unlocking my door before they made it outside. Time to get to work.

°°°°°°°°°

When I woke up this morning I knew I should've immediately gone back to bed. Who knew Saturdays could actually be shit. It started with me ripping the collar of one of my favorite shirts while trying to get dressed. Then it was me spraying myself in the face with water trying to do the dishes. And amongst every other little thing like dropping books and trinkets and tripping over boxes on the floor, the air conditioner went out. I had promptly called the landlord but he said he couldn't get anyone to replace it until Tuesday given the holiday weekend. Just my luck.

I had almost thought about giving up but I wasn't that kind of person. Instead I dug out a box fan, propped the front door open and kept it on high for the majority of the afternoon. Yeah I was sweaty trying to unpack and fix my living room but it was worth it. I was gonna make this day better if it killed me. Now I was stood on a bar stool, couch pushed into the middle of the room, trying to hang a few pictures. It was a struggle getting the one on the far part of the wall but I was making it work. One grunt and complain at a time.

"Need a hand with that 25?"

I heard from the door, scaring me and making the stool wobble. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I steadied myself against the wall. I closed my eyes and sighed out in relief.

"No thanks 23 I got this."

I called back, recognizing his voice before reaching back over and trying to hang it again. I could hear soft footsteps behind me for a moment but it didn't really matter, the door was open, if he wanted to come in he was more than welcome. Maybe he could give me a hand. And maybe I was overestimating myself. The next second I was losing my footing and on my way to the floor. I screamed as the stool came out from under me, the picture smashing to the floor. I expected to hit the floor after it but instead I had landed in someone's arms, looking up to a smirking neighbor, wide eyes and scared

"Sure you don't need some help there 25?"

He asked again, a little cocky. I just stared at him. My heart was knocking at my rib cage trying to escape and I was still trying to come to terms with the fact that I could've just hurt myself severely or even died. But I didn't. Because 25 saved me.

"I guess not anymore."

I blurted out in a panic, realizing that my interior design dreams had just been crunched into pieces against the hardwood. He let out a soft laugh before walking out from behind the couch and placing me flat on my feet.

"You okay?"

He asked and I nodded, frowning at my less than handy work on the ground. The stool was laid on top of the frame, glass everywhere, and the picture itself torn in two.

"Body yes, ambitions no."

I sent him a defeated look and we both laughed. I shook my head, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"Thanks for saving me 23. Without you I definitely would have had to take a trip to the ER."

I said through a nervous laugh. He looked taken aback for a second before placing his hand gently at my back.

"You look like you've had one hell of a day."

He noted and I looked down at myself before rolling my eyes.

"So it's obvious?"

I asked and he smiled, nodding slowly.

"Just a little bit."

My gaze followed his hand as he tucked some of the hair that had fallen out of my ponytail behind my ear.

"Well I guess for an official first impression I chose to big or go home."

I joked

"You always this charismatic?"

He quipped back and I sent him a look.

"You mean in terms of needing assistance?"

He shook his head in amusement.

"If that's how you wanna take it, sure."

I rolled my eyes playfully.

"No actually. Normally I am very poised and carefully thought out. Today is just not my day."

He looked at me for a moment like he was trying to figure me out or come up with something to say.

"Well I think I'd like to meet poised and carefully thought out."

He said and I sighed out a laugh.

"Is that an offer for a date 23?"

He smiled widely at me.

"James."

"Bucky!"

"Yes!"

He said quickly, getting progressively louder. My eyes went wide as he closed his, shaking his head and rubbing the back of his neck.

"Jesus I'm not usually this awkward."

I smiled at him, placing my hand at his shoulder, him looking at me in a lost puppy kind of way. Then I noticed the chain tucked under his shirt, looking down the the two outlines pressed against his chest. I drew my brows as I tugged it out, the warm metal laying in my hand as I ran my thumb over the dog tags. He just watched me intently.

"Sargent James Buchanan Barnes."

I nodded, looking up to him innocently. He had a small smile tugging at the corner of his lip but you'd miss it if you weren't looking for it.

"Well 23, I'd love to go on a date with you."

In a second his smile got bigger, tucking his tags back in his shirt after I let go of them.

"Guess we both made pretty good first impressions."

He said and I nodded, rubbing my hands together as we started walking towards the door.

"Oh, 25, I didn't catch your name."

He mentioned, stepping over the box fan and back into the hall. I smirked at him.

"You buy me a drink, 23, and it's yours."

He let out a short laugh, nodding as he turned his body towards his own apartment.

"Deal."

[yanderecandystore]

The bullies with an S/O that’s just completely off the board? Like no matter how much they look the bullies can’t find /anything/ on them, all their school papers are forged and their home just isn’t able to be found no matter how hard they look? Maybe due to the S/O changing their identity after doing something bad?

That's hella specific and I love it?? XD

Sure thing boo, let me see what I can do.

Also, I'll change the ocs profiles to be paper drawings with digital coloring because believe me boo, I'm tired of redrawing them (and I believe y'all are tired of always seeing these new drawings).

I noticed that my paper art is a lot better than my digital art, and although I'm kinda proud of them I still feel a little petty because I wish to do cool stuff on the computer ;-;.

Anyway, just a heads-up if you see something off with the oc's bios.

TW/Tags: I have no idea what to tag this lmao // identity theft // illegal/unauthorized inscription // not an accurate representation of university/how universities work lol // abusive household/abusive parents // I may or may not have changed your concept a little, I'm sorry for it 😔

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚��꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

Suspicion (fuck yeah, I don't know what to title this) [Yandere!Bully OC x Reader - Headcanon]:

→Adrien Coldwell:

For a person that prides themselves as the "know it all" when it comes to people's social media and reputation, he doesn't know anything about you.

This is a first for him, which is both annoying and honestly so intriguing. You didn't strike him as a person who would hide any secrets, and he had a hunch this was about to be good.

He searched for social media first, not finding anything about Avery Remington. Well, at least nothing with your face on it.

However, he did find something very, very interesting while looking at the school's documents, specifically the archives of all the students that have already studied here. He honestly didn't think he would find anything about you in these old papers, he was probably doing all this stupid work for nothing.

However, he was half right and half wrong. He didn't find anything about you, but this whole search wasn't completely lost, as he did find "you", Avery.

"- Student name Avery Remington, average grades and apparently no history of wrong doings or any bad behavior in general. Their registration to the Academy dates to 1980."

Oh. Ooooh, this was rich.

"- Huh." He said closing the documents and letting it where he found it. He was at least kind enough to let the palace a little organize after going through each paper trying to find your name.

Well, "your name". The only things that he kept for himself was photos of both the old documents about Avery Remington, and the earlier documents about Avery Remington. It was clear that you did something probably really, really bad, and you know he'll take advantage of it.

He had built his own theory about this, as in: you somehow found the paperwork of Avery's registration and their previous school's records so you could somehow impersonate them and get a free entrance to this institution.

He knew that you had something to hide, no one can be so perfect. But knowing the action itself wasn't enough for him, he needed to know the motive behind it.

For someone that is lazy and doesn't bother to care about important things, he sure spent a lot of time trying to scoop some dirt on you. When he finds the perfect opportunity, without any witness around, he'll take the chance to use this information against you.

"- Well, hello "Avery"." His tone was already suspicious, his voice not hiding anything from you. He came here to belittle you for his own entertainment.

"- H-Hi Adrien." You said shyly, hoping that your anxious mind was wrong and that this was all just a misunderstanding. You were hoping that the growing feeling of him possibly knowing about your fraud, was wrong.

"- Ya know, I'm kinda jealous of whatever plastic surgery you went through to look so young, maybe you should ask the faculty to correct your age tho." He said while showing the pictures he took of the documents.

"- Wait! I-I can-"

"- Honestly, I didn't think you were over 60 years old! Could have fooled me." His smug face was the selling point. You knew that you wouldn't find any form to convince him that what was on his phone was false.

He had a victorious smile on his face. Ever since you entered this school you always acted a little too paranoid and almost too friendly for his liking, and to confess to himself that he has fallen for you would be the bottom of the pit to him.

Still, he wanted to know why you did it. Why didn't you pay to get in if you wanted the scholarship so badly? What, you were too poor for it?

And what about a talent, or the test? Obviously, the university hasn't gone out of their way to pick a loser like you and insert you inside their classes on a whim, as they thought you were Avery Remington, a student that is already registered in school's documents (yet, of course, their system haven't verified the date of the registration, either by incompetence or by a "small mistake"). So you didn't do the test too, simply pathetic honestly.

Your sad dramatic story explaining how you managed to get into the academy. You did your best to get into the academy by legal means, but they always rejected you. Apparently you thought it would be a good idea to use your grandparent's documents to squeeze yourself into the institution.

"- But why in hell would you do such a thing? Are you that pathetic dearest?"

"- I… I wanted somewhere to go. Somewhere I could grow into a better person, a-away from-" You cut yourself short when the memories of your old home started to come into view.

For some reason, your parents couldn't stand the idea of you getting into a decent university, if anything, they thought you weren't capable of even washing some dishes at the local pizzeria. In their eyes, you were worthless.

When you found out your grandparent used to frequent this institution, and that they managed to disattached themselves from their familial routes and thrive as a musician you got instantly inspired! Determined to follow their steps and prove your family that you're just as worth ass-

"- Urghhhh- Boring! I don't care about all of that. Are you serious? You committed a crime just so you could stick it up to your shitty parents?"

"- …. Yes?"

"- Huh. Geez you're cooler than I thought. Listen, how about we make a deal?"

The deal was simple, he would not tell anyone about your little secret, and he would even help you keep your scholarship and help you reach your ambitions as long as you started spending more time with him. Which, at first you thought it sounded absurd, this man is holding your whole life by a thin thread as long as you give him attention?? What?!

And although that sounded extremely suspicious, you accepted it, not knowing that for the next few years you would have to endure a harsh training to discover your talents and to improve them before you two graduated. However, you started to think Adrien was starting to see your deal in a different light-

"- Come on now, after this we can go eat something okay? Where would you like to go this time? Our last date I chose the best restaurant I know, so you better choose something of equal value."

…. Date?

→Alexandra Coldwell:

You were suspicious from the very start. Overly friendly and too- Ugh! Too cute?!

You were always skittish whenever someone called you. What, you had a problem with your name or something?

And the worst part was how no one seemed to know where you lived. Every group project with you was considered annoying by most of your classmates, as you never called people in your house or never let anyone have your address, not even your phone number??

You didn't have any social media, what are you, a weirdo? What the hell??!

She is not even pissed about you being a loser, she is pissed that she has fallen for someone like you! A complete weirdo that was always panicking over nothing.

She started stalking you with the intention of finding at least one thing that she could hate on you so she wouldn't feel so- Lovey dovey towards you!

But what she really found was something worth an entire gold mine.

A private phone call between you and someone who was losing their shit. She couldn't understand too much of the conversation as she didn't have any context, yet she could hear a lot of things that you and the person were discussing.

The person yelled [Y/N] multiple times while in the phone call, saying how you were absolutely the worst mistake of their lives (which by the way, rude much? Who is this asshole?), that you were a selfish brat that needed to learn to appreciate their hard work.

Oh… Oh. She now knows who you're talking with. She decided to record the entire thing the moment she saw you taking your cellphone to have a private call.

She was planning on recording your voice for her own hearing pleasure, but this? This was so… Interesting.

"- [Y/N]?" She called your attention after the conversation ended, and because you haven't been accustomed to people calling you "Avery", you turned around saying "what" instinctively.

And when you noticed Alexandra smirk for a split second, you regretted answering your parents call. Not that you needed anymore reason to regret it, but this was certainly the last nail in the coffin.

You begged for her to understand that you couldn't go back, you simply can't go back to them, ever again! You told her the whole sob story about how your grandparent had decided to run away from home and fulfil their own dreams as a musician, even if people didn't really hear their music all that much, and now that you think about it, that's probably the reason why no one have recognized their name at all.

Your grandparent had a really small fanbase, and you knew that because you were part of them. They weren't popular at all compared to Amaryllis Academy standards, yet they were happy singing their songs to the world.

You kinda wish your family hasn't broken the old recorder that belonged to your grandparent. Their first album was in there, it was cheesy and filled with errors, yet they sounded so happy when doing what they loved, and you wanted something like that for yourself!

You needed to live that hell hole and so you did. You rented a small apartment that was falling apart, the reason why you never gave people your address was because you knew they would bully the hell out of you because of how poor you are.

After finishing your story you noticed Alexandra snoring beside you. You thought she was only exaggerating, but then you saw her drooling and acting really dizzy after you woke her up.

"- Oh my God, so… That was it? You ran away to follow your dreams and stuff?" She asked, still kinda sleepy.

"- What? Of course it was-" You were fuming with anger, how dare she-

"- And I thought you only looked cool because I liked you! You're pretty strong for sticking up for yourself." She interrupted you, looking at you with admiration in her eyes.

She proposed to you a deal. How about you two keep this secret together, and, if anything does happen she'll still help you stay inside the institution. However, you'll need to work your ass out to become the best you can be, and you'll let her guide you through, because you're too much of a dummy to do it all by yourself. You'll have to spend time with her and let her help you out.

At first, you thought it sounded absurd, this woman is holding your whole life by a thin thread as long as you give her attention?? What?!

And although that sounded extremely suspicious, you accepted it, not knowing that for the next few years you would have to endure a harsh training to discover your talents and to improve them before you two graduated. However, you started to think Alexandra was starting to see your deal in a different light-

"- Why you never hold my hand? Come on, "Avery", won't you hold the hand of your dearest girlfriend?" She asked playfully while taking your hand anyway.

…. Girlfriend?

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

[random-mha-thoughts]

Jerk (Todoroki x Reader)

Pairing: Todoroki x Fem!Reader

@adainelartz​ asked:  “ I read your oneshots and I think they're great! I wanted to request an angst (sad or hapy end) oneshot where the reader has a fire quirk or something similar, and Shouto and Her had been classmate in elementary or middle school and people used to bully Y/n chan for thinking she could be like endeavor with her being weak or a top hero with a quirk like hers and Shouto just watches every beat ups given to y/n chan and Y/n chan decides to snap in UA and take revenge and targets to hurt Shouto most.”

Genre: Angst to slight fluff

Word count: 3,361

Tags:  @yuki-osaki​ @liviitehe​ @iamsoftsodonttoucheume-blog​ 

a/n:  I swear this was going to take a shorter amount of time to write and it was going to be a lot shorter as well.  But what can I say, I’m a writer; I write, my brain starts working, I write more, the gears turns more, what do I do, say no?  No, I keep writing.

This ending isn't the best and it feels kind of rushed, but I also didn't know how else to end it and I wanted to hurry and finish it and I already almost fell asleep sitting up at my keyboard at least twice, so I wrote the first thing that came to my head.  I hope I did your request justice, babe~ Thank you again for letting me write it~

Also, if you haven’t seen, I hit 600 followers yesterday!  Though I don’t know why you all are here, thank you for being here and sticking through my poor update schedule.  I appreciate you all.  Enjoy the story~

I hate him.

He's oblivious as I bore holes into the back of his head.  Mr. I-Got-In-On-Recommendation just sits there studying like the studious boy he is.  Everyone thinks he's so great, but I know he's no better than a bully.

"Are you okay, (Y/n)?" Jirou asks, eyeing me warily as he headphone jacks flit around.  "You need to calm down, your food's already dead."

Looking down, there were holes in my salmon from me poking at it.  "I'm fine, just thinking of something."

"You must be thinking of killing someone then," Kaminari laughs nervously, scooting an inch away from me.  "I'd hate to be on the receiving end of that."

He flinches when I smirk at him.  "You probably should be."  I'm only joking, but after Bakugou, I'm the next scariest person in 1-A.  It doesn't help that my quirk is also dangerous.

But it wasn't always that way, unfortunately.  Back in middle school, I could barely light a candle with my fire quirk, flames barely stuttering out a cold, dark red flame before collapsing on itself.  I've always been vocal about being a powerful top hero, and my quirk should've matched those ambitions.  Instead, I was a weakling.  No one believed me or took me seriously.  They laughed at me, teased me, scoffed at me, disregarded all my dreams.  But I never gave up, I kept my dreams close to me and resolved to work harder.

I tried befriending Todoroki just because I thought he could give me pointers, since he has a Fire quirk also, but he wasn't very open to making friends or talking about that half of his quirk.  In fact, he was always cold to everyone, but somehow he was still popular.  So popular that some girls in my classes berated me for getting close to him.  They were my worst bullies; just because I tried being friendly with their crush, they started teasing me about how weak I was, humiliating me in front of the class, writing nasty messages on my desk, pouring water on me.  It even got to the point where they started pulling me out after class and during lunch to beat me up.  I would be the punching bag or target of all their quirks.

"This is what a real hero fights like!  Not some puny whore like you!"

They'd growl and laugh at me, and I couldn't defend myself.  And on a few occasions, I'd see Todoroki standing a distance away as I was battered and bruised.

I didn't care that he didn't know it was because of him that I was being abused.  I was angry because he just stood there, watching as those girls beat me up and called me names.  I curse his apathy, those cold eyes as he stared right at me, met eyes with me, and chose to walk away as if nothing was happening.  Just because his quirk is already strong, he looked down on weak fools like me.  What a pompous asshole.

Months before entrance exams, I'd had enough of being a busted-up rag doll.  I trained late into the wee hours of morning, pouring over countless online guides for unleashing your quirk.  The first time I was able to sustain a bright red flame for more than 30 seconds, I almost cried in victory.  The more I trained, the more powerful and hotter my flames became, spanning from red to orange to bright yellow, even white in short bursts.  By the time the UA Entrance Exam rolled around, I'd attained incredible control over the temperature and sizes of flames I can make.  Getting into UA has been my best achievement since I worked so hard for it.

Imagine how bitter I was when I heard Todoroki got in on recommendations.

I wasn't just bitter, I was pissed.  A cold, pompous jerk like him got in just because he's known to have a really powerful quirk and his father is a Pro Hero.  He doesn't even have a hero attitude!  How can someone who doesn't even help a bully victim be a real hero?

From the first day of starting UA, I vowed to make Shouto Todoroki pay for his mistakes.

"Hey, (Y/n)?"  Kirishima places a hand on my shoulder as we walk back to our classroom.  "You went to the same junior high as Todoroki, right?"

"Yeah, why?"  I try not to visibly bristle at his name.

Shark-Teeth hesitates, trying to word his next question as delicate as possible as his features twist awkwardly.  "You two aren't very fond of each other, are you?"

"We just didn't talk," I put it bluntly.

Kiri rubs behind his neck.  "I would've thought that, you know, since you two have similar quirks you would've at least-"

"He's not a very..."  Friendly, kind, decent- "Talkative person.  He didn't really have friends in school."  I sit down in my seat and pull out my books, signalling I want to end the conversation.

Thankfully, Kirishima recognizes this, mouthing an "Okay..." before retreating to his own seat for class to begin.

.

Later that day, we're into duo teams for battle trials.  My teammate ends up being Ojiro.  At least it's not that jerk.  As Bakugou and Midoriya fight it out, we're discussing tactics in the back of the room.

"You're much better at close combat than me," I explain, "So you should go out and take on the other members while I guard the weapon.  If you need backup, I'll come out to help you."  I already anticipate how Todoroki's going to attack.  Being pitted against him is the perfect opportunity for me to get back at him.

When it's our turn, we set up inside the building near the weapon.  I tug my gloves over my long sleeves.  "Stay behind me.  Whatever happens, don't panic," I mutter as I stand near the blond's tail.

Ojiro's confused expression is about to ask me why when the entire building starts rumbling.  I activate orange fire out of my hands as the ice starts sweeping inside the room.  Typical.  At first, the ice is about to trap us, but I expand the size of the flames and sweep them over the entire inside of the room, careful not to burn the weapon.

"How did you know he would do that?" Ojiro asks, obviously impressed by my foresight.

"Instinct.  Todoroki's going to come in here thinking he's frozen us to capture the warhead.  When he does, I'll distract him while you run out and get the jump on Shoji, okay?"

As I predicted, Todoroki strolls into the room, eyebrows furrowing when he sees the room is completely rid of ice.  "What-"

I don't give him chance to react as I blow orange flames directly at him.  He puts up an ice barrier in the nick of time, my quirk completely encompassing him in heat.  I nod for my teammate to hurry, and follows my orders, slipping through the door and bouncing out a window.

You're mine, jackass.  I rush at him through the flames, heart pumping fresh rage through my veins.  He raises his arm to shoot ice at me, but I jump up above him, propelling myself with flames from my left hand and shooting from my other one at him once I'm soaring near the back of his head.  Landing right behind, I swipe his legs before he can spot me, effective in tripping him to his knee.  I kick down, sending him onto his face with a groan.  Gotcha.

Unfortunately for me, his right arm finds my ankle, sending numbing ice up my leg.  "You can't win that easily," I grit out.  I step on his free left wrist, hearing the crack under my foot, and shoot another flame blast at the ice on my leg.  Ignoring his grunts of pain, I crouch down and pin his right hand behind his back.  "And that's checkmate, Todoroki-san."

"Alright, that's enough, Young (Y/n)!"  All Might yells out through the speakers.  "The villain team has captured the hero team!"

Smirking, I shove Todoroki aside and walk away without bothering to look at him again.  "So much for someone getting into UA on recommendations," I mutter to myself.

Once I'm out of the building, Ojiro raises an eyebrow at me.  "Where's Todoroki?"

I simply shrug.  "He'll be down in a little, I guess."

Turning back around, the jerk is exiting out of the building, nursing his left wrist against his chest.  I face away quickly, just a twinge of guilt invading my mind.

"Hey, (Y/n), I think he's hurt," Ojiro's calm voice points out.

I scowl at him.  "It's just his wrist, he'll be fine," I bark, stomping off to the rest of the class.  It's not fair that I feel guilty, he deserves it!

.

"You sure there's no beef between you and Todoroki?" Kirishima asks as he walks next to me at the end of the day.

"Fuck off, Shark-Teeth!"  I'm still in a bad mood.  It's just his wrist, come on!  "One trip to Recovery Girl and he was completely fine, I don't know why everyone's so bent out of shape about it!"

"Because you didn't even help him afterwards.  That's kinda not heroic, don't you think?"

I round on him, about to grab his shirt and blast him in the face, instead choosing to clench my fists.  "You don't know what 'mean' is!  Stay out of this!"  I walk away from him without looking back, mumbling to myself.  How can he say that about me not being heroic?  If he knew what Todoroki did, he would say the same thing.

On my way to the train station, I spot that familiar mop of bicolored hair staring at me with the same neutral gaze I hate.  Glancing down, I see his wrist is fine before quickly darting away.  Pompous jerk making me feel bad.

.

After that day, this idiot always had the audacity to stare at me.  I always feel his eyes on me, it's so annoying.  And he makes it so obvious, he doesn't even look away when I catch him, he just stares at me.  It's enough that Kirishima's words got to me, I don't need him confusing me with this staring contest we have going on.  If he wants to talk to me, he should do it already.

During the next few training sessions, we began sparring against each other with our quirks.  People have slowly been becoming scared of me during these times because of how rough I was.

Once, I got to fight Bakugou.  It was really fun going all out against someone who's just as aggressive.

This time, my opponent is the jerk himself.  When Aizawa announced the pairs, Kirishima was about to pull me aside, but saw my murderous look and chose he would like to live.  Everyone around us found their partners and started their individual training.  While the two of us stared at each other from across the mat.  I want to smash his emotionless pretty face in, I hate that I don't know what he's thinking!

If he's not gonna make the first move, I will.  I rush up to him, igniting the flames in my palms.  He's ready for me this time, standing his ground as I bound up and hunkering into a fighting stance.   I throw up a hand towards his face once I close in on him, ready to blow his face off.

Todoroki catches my hand by the wrist, bringing his right hand up to trap me in an ice coffin.  I slap that hand away and explode out a burst of orange flames, making him let go and stagger a few steps back.  He immediately sends a trail of ice down to secure my feet in place, but I respond by directing both my hands downward, propelling myself off the ground and towards him in a giant, sweeping leap.

The familiar weightlessness of being in the air fuels the adrenaline pumping through me.  He's my enemy, and I'm taking him down.

As I launch more continuous blasts at him while I soaring towards him, Todoroki coats his arm with ice to block his face.  But he's in for a surprise.  Moving close enough, I drop kick his arm down before landing a punch straight in his face.  My body lands on top of his torso, pinning him to the ground.  Winding back to land another punch on him, he suddenly launches his upper body upwards, headbutting me in the nose.

I let out a pained growl, reeling back as I feel the tingling of tears pooling in the corner of my eyes, and Todoroki uses this opportunity to flip us over so he's on top.  Placing his hand on my shoulder, I'm instantly plunged into an ice coffin under him.  Heaving out an icy breath, he slowly rises to his feet.  The puckered skin of his scar already starts swelling into a bruise where I punched him, and forehead cracked from where he headbutt my nose.

The anger boils my blood hot as my flames.  He's not winning over me!  I'm not letting that happen!  With a growling scream, heat floods from my iced palms before I'm broken free from my confines.  White and blue flames erupt from my hands, directing them straight up at Todoroki.  The ice barrier he puts up to protect himself melts faster than ice cream on a hot day against this new color of my fire.  It continuously flares out from me as I stand up, pointing right at him and getting closer.  I ball my fist up and throw my fire-coated fists at his forearms, the anger still building inside me.  I want him to yield before me already, so he can pay for his sin.

Even after my quirk blinks out, I continue punching at him, blinded by both rage and hot tears.  It wasn't until something wrapped around my arms and restrained me suspended slightly off the ground that I finally stop.

"I'm not putting you down until you're cooled down," Aizawa growls, his quirk and capture weapon smothering me.

Everyone was already staring at the scene.  Although I scowl, I go limp and show no signs of resistance.  When my body finally relaxes, I feel a sharp pain shooting up my hands and forearm.  Once I'm free, I inspect my hands, noticing the beginning blisters of burns coating everything from my fingertips to my elbows.  Ouch.  My fire's never done that before.  It's probably those flames I used.  The dull pain in my nose starts throbbing.

"Both of you took this training a little too seriously," our teacher glowers at us.  "I'll deal your punishment later.  Can I trust that you won't kill each other going to see Recovery Girl?"

"Yes sir," we both mutter out.

.

The walk over there was quiet.  I trudged ahead because I didn't want to see his face, but I had to feel his gaze bore into my skull again.  After a good scolding from Recovery Girl, we were told to rest for a little while in the office before going back to class.  I try to lie back and ignore him, indulging myself in quiet.  I was so full of emotion that my flames turned hotter than they have before, but I have to use them sparingly since they can burn my normally fire-resistant skin.  I'll have to make some adjustments to my hero costume gloves too.

"Do you have a person vendetta against me or something?"

Even just the sound of his blank voice makes me roll my eyes.  "Hm, I wonder what could've given you that crazy idea."

Todoroki rolls up to a sitting position and faces me.  Just like mine, his arms are wrapped in bandages.  Apparently, because I punched him with my white-blue fire, he has some burns too, though not as severe as my own.  He peers at me from one grey eye, the other one covered by a bag of ice he nestles against his new bruise.  "I'd like to know why."

I clench my fists weakly against the pain.  "I really don't feel like burning this office to a crisp right now, so we shouldn't talk about it."

"I think it's only fair when someone's holding a grudge against another, both parties should be clear on what the grudge entails."

Stupid logical idiot.  "Fine."  I sit myself up with a little more difficulty and flash him a harsh glare.  "When we were in Junior High, you pushed me away when I tried to be friendly with you.  I know you remember how weak I was and how much everyone else teased me because I said I want to be a top hero, like your dad.  You were cold to me that way, but that's not the only reason I hate you.  These girls in our class didn't like that I was getting close to you, so they started teasing me, harassing me, and beat me up."  I pivot my entire body towards him as I hiss my next words, "And you watched them without interfering.  You let a victim get bullied and you did nothing.  Someone who wants to be a hero and save people, and got into this school on a recommendation, can't even be bothered to be a hero to his classmates when they're being bullied."  Shaking my head, I add, "You disgust me.  You're no hero, you're just an extremely powerful pompous asshole.  You make me sick."

Todoroki's entire demeanor changes.  Instead of the cold expression he always displays, his eyebrows relax out of their furrowed position.  He looks down at his wrapped arms.  "I...didn't think at the time.  Yes, I saw it happen.  Frankly, I was disgusted by you having a similar quirk as my father and wanting to be a hero after him."  His left hand clenches.  "That power repulses me, which is why I never use it in combat.  Watching you go through all that, I rationalized to myself that you were strong enough to take it."

His fist relaxes and he bows his head somberly.  "I know it's no excuse for what I did, I apologize for that.  I take full responsibility for your hatred."

I'm quiet, kind of stunned.  I've sometimes imagined Todoroki apologizing to me, but seeing it happen is somehow surreal.  Rubbing the back of my head, I admit, "Well, I have to say that it's partially because of you that I was spurred to start training and become as I am now.  So thank you, I guess."  And although I really don't want to, I also say, "I'm sorry I broke your wrist in training last week.  And burned you today.  And almost tried to kill you in general.  It was all overboard and I've been a huge jerk about this whole thing."

He offers a nod.  "I believe it's safe to say our differences have been settled, then.  I hope we can patch things up and become better classmates now that this is all behind us."

Without looking at him, I hold out my fist between our beds.  When he takes too long, I roll my eyes.  "It's a fist bump, it's what f-friends do."

I sense his eyes dart between my definitely tinted cheeks and my fist, before his fingers daintily close over it.  "I'd rather do this, if you don't mind."

Peeking over at him, I open my hand, allowing him to gently clasp my hand between his fingers and his palm.  A new sense of warmth washes over me when I look into his eyes.  Though his features are as non-emotive as ever, his relaxed, mismatching orbs rest on me in what I can only place as support or respect.

"You're strong, (Y/n), and although my previous unfair actions towards you are what primarily coaxed it out, I know you already were in your mind and heart.  I look forward to seeing it as we both progress to becoming heroes together."

His slight softening shifts something within both of us.  And that moment told me that our new relationship would evolve into something greater.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

tapestry 👑 III

Warnings: eventual dark elements (tags to be added as fic continues)

This is dark!(king)Steve and explicit. 18+ only.

Summary: King Steven had a wandering eye but you never thought it would fall upon you.

This Chapter: The reader speaks up.

Note: Here’s part 3. I’m still going while I can. Fair warning that I work every day given the holiday season and so I’ll do my best to keep up but so far I’m having fun and you all are too. I really hope you enjoy. 💋

<3 Let me know what you think with a like or reblog or reply! Love ya!

It was a week before your father returned. A gruelling week.

You weren’t surprised to hear of his arrival from another. Nor disappointed that he didn’t call for you immediately. That was your father’s way. He doted on Alice and shunned you. She brought him esteem with her marriage to a duke and you brought him disgrace with your failure to garner even a betrothal. The convent lurked on your horizon.

When he did send for you, the dread sank deep in your chest. The thought of your inevitable meeting hung over you all day and to face him was an obstacle in itself. Even as a small girl, you’d managed to stoke his ire. You were too quiet, and when you were not quiet enough, you were flowery and irritating. Not like Alice; refined and endearing.

Your father’s servant led you to his chambers. As a lower lord, he had no receiving chamber, merely a screen between his bed and his desk. You entered with your head dipped. A quill scratched noisily on parchment as the servant informed your father of your presence and retired to his vigil beside the door.

Your father didn’t look up. A candle sat on his desk as he wrote and the lanterns did little to add to the hazy glow of the amber fire. His grey hair was combed back as it always was; thick despite his age. His lips moved along with the words he spilled from his nib.

“Father,” You greeted. He didn’t even nod. You waited, hands clasped before you. “Is Alice well?”

He lifted his quill and dabbed dry its end. He sat back and looked at you with a tilt of his head. He placed the pen on his desk and sighed. “Daughter.” His eyes were dull, unimpressed. Disinterested even though it was he who prompted the visit. “Yes, she is well. As is the child. A grandson.”

“And mother? She has remained with Alice?” You asked. You were hopeful she would’ve returned to court and offered you an ounce of companionship. 

“For the time being. Until they are ready to return to court. Though the duke should return within the month.” 

Your father spoke grimly. His tone rarely wavered; rarely rose above a monotone. Only with the king or some higher lord did he show a trace of humanness.

“So all is in order.”

“Is it?” Your father wondered as he leaned on the arm of his chair. 

You blanched. You hoped it was. The king had not bothered you since that night after the banquet, the queen remained ever gracious, though Rose was as thorny as the flower. But all seemed to be as it was and just in time for your father’s return. You’d thought your prayers answered; the rumours swept away before he could hear of them.

“Of course, father.” You assured him. You felt so small before him. 

“Mmm,” He considered you. His lips curled in a sinister smirk. “You danced with the king?”

“At his request,” You replied. “But you know I haven’t a quick step, father.”

“You needn’t remind me of your shortcomings, daughter,” He quipped. “But it surely must have been adequate for as I hear it, he called for you the next night.”

“An invitation which I refused.” You said plainly. “As a proper lady would.”

“A foolish lady.” He gripped the arm of the chair as his lips turned downward. “So it is true?”

“Would you rather I accept and tarnish my reputation? Our family’s name?” 

“I’d rather you seek the rare favour you can find in this world.” He spat. “You are as daft a woman as you were a child.”

“Forgive me, father, but I only did as I thought you’d wish me to.” You pleaded. “You wouldn’t want me to resign myself to a life as the wife of a second son.”

“As it is, I’d prefer you the wife of any.” He huffed. “And if you cannot achieve that, a king’s mistress is a fine consolation.”

You frowned. How could he not be proud of your resolve? Of your restraint? He always lectured you on propriety and now he sneered at it.

“I would rather the convent.” You hissed.

“You must realize, girl, that this is not about your whims, but the king’s. Should he will you on your back, you will lay before him as he pleases.” He snarled. “So if he should come to you again, you will not deny him.”

“He has not in the week since.” You assured him.

“And I doubt he will now.” Your father grumbled. “As always, you’ve ruined it all.”

“I’ve only done as you taught me to.”

“Enough of your insolence.” 

“My insolence? I will not be used by the king--”

“This is not about the king. It is about me, your father, and your family.” He stood and planted his hands on his desk. “You could do more as the king’s whore than the wife of some lowly baron of the marshes. If you were not so heedless, you might even raise our name. The Marquess of Lofton was but an earl before the king thought to take his daughter to bed.”

“I will not trade my virtue for your advancement.” You gritted.

“For what other purpose is a daughter good for?” He hurled viciously. “You shall lift your skirts for my fortune one way or the other. Better it be a king, than a pauper.”

“I will not.” 

“You will,” He pushed himself straight and stormed around the desk. He rushed towards you and glared down as he slid to a stop. “If the king has not already found another fancy, you will do as he wishes. Should he return to you, you will welcome him fondly.”

“No.” You growled as you set your shoulders. “I will not.”

“You will,” He struck you so hard you stumbled back. You touched your cheek softly as it burned. “Because you are my daughter. My property.”

You held your tongue. You gulped as you dropped your hand and stood straight. You blinked.

“Father.” You said evenly.

“Understood?” He sneered.

“I understand you.” You twined your fingers together tightly. You might understand his wishes but you would not obey him. Let him rage and send you off to the nunnery when he realized. 

“Good. Now be off. I’ve more important business than my impetuous daughter.” He turned back and rounded his desk. “I swear, you’ve always been intent on ruining me.”

You muttered a farewell as he sat. As you turned, the servant avoided your gaze and you swept past him through the door. In the hall, the air was cool against your hot cheek. You took a deep breath to steady yourself. You hoped it was already too late and your spurning of your father’s ambitions was already complete. 

👑

When you returned to your chamber, the other ladies were on their beds. They read or sewed, and were oddly quiet. You didn’t realize at first why. You were drained from your meeting with your father and just wanted to forget about it. Foremost, you wanted to forget about court and its spectacles. 

Then you saw it. The small box on your pillow. It sat on a folded note and you held your breath. In dread, anxiety, and fear. You looked around the shared room. You caught Sybil watching you as Joan and Marion tried to hide their eyes behind their books. You lowered your chin and sighed quietly.

You neared the top of the bed and reached for the box. You unfolded the note with nervous fingers and the scrawl within seemed to move around. You could barely focus as you thought of your father and his anger. At last, the letters stood still and you read with bated breath.

My lady,

I have counted the ways I might apologize. For my assumptions, my insinuations, and gross misstep. My intent was never to demean, never to offend, and so I cower in my remorse. In my regret for how crudely I treated you.

I am of loose impulse. I act often without truly thinking. I let myself be led by my emotions and my thought is left to wither. As I did with you. I was selfish. I did not foresee the implication of my invitation. I did not think of you or your status. For that I apologize, deeply.

But I cannot apologize for how I feel. For the sudden and fervent desire that has arose in me. The want to know you, to know more of you, to know everything of you. I will not apologize for that would stain you; your beauty, your wit, your very person. 

I should like to atone for my indiscretion. To bring you pleasure rather than displeasure. So I include, with this most heartfelt and since apology, a gift and I beg your forgiveness. I beg of you mercy. I beg of you only...you.

Your king.

You slowly lowered the parchment and looked to the box. You bit your lip and glanced around at the girls. They weren’t being so subtle anymore. You folded the paper up and set it with the box as you went to your chest. You pulled out your own square of paper and went to the desk you shared with the others.

You sharpened a nib and took a pen. You dipped it in the ink and a shadow passed over you as Sybil neared.

“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to open the gift?” She asked.

“No, I mean to return it.” You began to write your message. Concise enough you hopped your point was taken.

Your Highness,

While I appreciate your apology, it is entirely unnecessary. I’ve already accepted your amends and as I stated, bear to you no animosity. While a gift is most flattering, it is improper and undue. I am thence, with the utmost respect, required to return to you your kindness though your forethought is recognized.

Your loyal subject.

You folded up the small slip and stood. Sybil was aghast and Joan watched with a smug smirk. 

“As you should return it,” Joan sang, “We all know it is an empty gesture. A scheme to irk Rose. The king is loathe of her triteness though he loves her wholly. You...well, he only wants a puppet.”

“Oh, Joan, what do you know?” Marion chirped. “You’re only jealous that you’re neither of them and you’ll be left to marry that chubby Earl from Priskam.”

“I have seen the letters the king writes to Rose, I have seen the love in his eyes,” Joan insisted. “And I have seen this little mouse in her hole and she is pathetic.”

“Then you should know what lies within this letter,” You said as you went to your bed to fetch the box and the king’s letter. “And know that they are the same words he has written to a dozen women before myself. Before Rose.”

“Rose was right. You are despicable.”

“I am honest. And I see this place for what it is.” You pressed your letter to the box as you turned to the door. “I know that words are never meant as they are said. There is an edge to each syllable.” You opened the door and looked back. “Sybil, may I request a favour? Or Marion?”

“You may,” Marion spoke first.

“I should not go unaccompanied to return this. I don’t think it would be decent. Will you walk with me?” You asked.

“I will,” Marion rose and closed her book. “I should like to stretch my legs before we retire for the night.”

“Thank you.”

“Not at all,” She nodded to the door. “Let us to our task before curfew should deem us unseemly.”

You gave a small smile and led her into the corridor. She pulled shut the door and turned to walk beside you. She was quiet at first; you were nervous as you fidgeted with the small box.

“Are you not at all curious?” She asked at last.

“Naturally,” You confirmed. “But I don’t dare to look lest I be tempted to keep it.”

“Ah,” She raised her pale brows. “You shouldn’t mind Joan, she’s jealous. And she’s far too enamoured with Rose.”

“I don’t mind her.” You said. 

“Do you think the king will be upset?”

“Perhaps, but he has no reason to be. I suppose, however, that a man of his stature finds much to be displeased with and none to tell him he shouldn’t be.” You reflected. “I have made an enemy of Rose already, I do not need the queen a foe as well.”

“The queen knows the king strays.” Marion said.

“Her knowledge does not make it right. Her acceptance is not of her own will. What can she do?” You stopped as you reached the corridor along which the king resided. “As women, we are all given to circumstance we do not desire.”

Marion considered you. Her warm eyes bore into hers and she nodded. “There is much more going on in your head than I supposed.” She remarked. “Thoughts I’d never think to have myself.”

You looked at the box. Your father’s voice echoed in your head. If he was here, he’d slap you again. You raised your head and set your shoulders.

“Let this be the end of it.” You declared as you marched forward.

You’d never been down this way. Never thought you would. How did one knock on a king’s door. Well, was it necessary with the guards without? The men in mail watched your approach as Marion trailed behind. There helmets bobbed as they observed you with amused grins. How many women had they greeted in the evening hours?

“Sirs,” You nodded at one guard and then the other. “I would request the king, only if he should be available, of course.”

“The king?” The guard on the left looked over your shoulder at Marion. “You, her, or the both of you?”

“I come here on my own charge but she accompanies for decorum,” You explained. “If the king is engaged, I shall leave a letter for you to pass to him.”

“The king is alone. He may receive you,” The right guard assured you. “He’s not one to turn away a lady.”

“I would prefer he emerge,” You asserted. “It would be untoward to enter his chamber.”

“A receiving chamber is meant for that purpose, lady,” The guard returned.

“Even so, if he cannot be drawn from his privacy, I shall leave this with you.” You held up the box and letter folded atop its lid.

“Ah, don’t need to be so impatient.” The guard knocked on the door with his elbow. The sound barrelled down the hallway.

The door opened and the king’s footman, Hugh, scowled at the guard. His eyes blinked at the mailed men then turned on you. His forehead wrinkled in recognition and he spoke at last. “What is the bother?”

“This lady is here to see the king.”

“Very well, then send her in,” Hugh said sharply.

“She will not enter.” The left guard intoned.

“Says it’s indecent.” The other added. 

Hugh sighed and looked to you again. He squinted and shook his head before disappearing within. You could hear his voice and then the king’s. Both were slightly muffled and followed by a stir. You waited and glanced over your shoulder at Marion. She looked as anxious as you felt.

Footsteps and then another shadow in the door. This one broader, taller. You bowed as the king appeared. His lips parted as he saw you and he let out a deep breath.

“My lady?” He greeted. 

“Your highness,” You returned. Did your voice tremble? You could not tell. “My apologies for the disturbance but it was pertinent that I seek an audience.”

He nodded and stared at the box in your hands. “Did you like my gift?” He asked.

You swallowed. “I did not open the gift, though I did read your letter,” You felt it hard to breath. His eyes never left you. It was as if you were alone, as if there were no guards, as if Marion didn’t linger behind you. “I appreciate the gesture but I am unable to accept it.”

“My lady, do you reject my apology?”

“I...It is in my letter, your highness, but there is no apology required.” You held out the box and stepped tremulously toward him. “You must take it back.”

“I will not.” He insisted. “It is for you.”

“There is no reason for it and I cannot accept a present from a married man.” The box shook and you stilled your hands. “You may refuse to rescind it but I will not take it. I shall leave it upon the floor if I must.”

His blue eyes focused on you. They were stern but not angry. In them, a glimmer of confusion, a spark of provocation. He pressed his lips together before he spoke. “You refuse upon the grounds of my marriage?”

“I refuse on the grounds that it is improper.” You said. “On the grounds that I’ve accepted your apologies once and shall not do so again. On the grounds that I am a lady with a reputation to uphold should I have any hope of a betrothal.” Your voice had risen and you were embarrassed at the realization. “I wish that you take it back.”

“If you wish, I should happily appease you,” He stepped forward and reached out to take the box. His fingers grazed yours and his lips twitched. “For whatever you wish, I would give you, my lady. Whatever you will, you shall have. By my hand, by my order.”

His tone made you shiver. You rescinded your arm and clapped one hand over the other to uphold your composure. “Thank you, your highness.” You said. “It is late and I must return to my chamber.”

“So it is,” He accepted as he cradled the box in his hands. “And so you must.” He bowed his head and you curtsied to him. “Good night, my lady.”

“Good night, your highness.” You said as you began to back away. 

The king watched, his gaze unwavering as you retreated. There was a promise in his eye, a nonchalance in the way he held the box, how he only looked away to open it and peek inside. He turned as he snapped it shut and his guards stared ahead stiffly. His broad back disappeared behind his door and Marion gasped as she finally let out her breath.

“My lord,” Marion swore. “I thought I would pass out.”

“Me, too.” You said as you grabbed your skirts. You spun around and didn’t dare look back. “Let us be away. Quickly.”

[prismatales]

Reunion

Word Count: 1.8k

Bingo slot: Saying goodbye

Pairings: None

Tag/Warnings: Angst, Vague body horror, swearing

Synopsis: You've always been there for each other, this time was no different.

Introducing yet another entry for @bnhabookclub 's bingo event as well as a new sibling request! This time with the "Saying goodbye" slot. 

Thank you so much @pixxiesdust and @hawks-senseis for beta reading this for me! ❤

It was already hard enough when one has to witness their whole family falling apart and being unable to do anything about it, but it’s even harder when the reason is all because of the actions of someone who should be caring for that very same family in the first place.

But what could you expect when you consider this ‘family’ is nothing but a repulsive lie? A disgusting facade meant to hide the only reason you were even brought into this world in the first place?

It wasn’t fair to be forced to pretend to be a normal family outside this place that could easily be compared to a prison. A place that others had the luck to call 'home'.

But for your siblings and your poor mother? This was hell of earth itself.

Those thoughts fill your mind with venom, corrupting everything related to hero society and everyone serving under their corrupted principles, at the same time that your hands are busy applying ointment to one of the few who’s suffered just as much because of this corrupted system.

Your little brother shifts in place, trying to fight back unshed tears as the medicine touches the sensitive skin around his left eye. The physical proof of the pain your family had to endure on a daily basis, a consequence from the ambition of one man that you have the unfortunate luck of sharing blood ties with.

“Nee-san, it hurts.” Shouto’s whimpers pull you back from the horrendous thoughts that linger deep inside, tainting everything remotely connected to heroes.

“I’m sorry snowflake, but please bear with it just a little bit longer, this medicine is going to heal your burn in no time!” You reassure the little boy sitting on his futon, who doesn’t stop squirming in place as the skin around his left eye is being carefully covered with ointment, before being wrapped with bandages to prevent the risk of infection.

“There, all done!” He lets out a small sniffle when your hand pats his head softly, caressing the locks of hair underneath with a touch full of love and affection towards the youngest sibling “Just you wait, it should stop hurting so much in a couple of days, can my little snowflake hold on?” 

He looks up at you, nodding weakly with sad, tired eyes that make the pain inside increase dramatically, nearly to the point of tears when you think about everything Shouto has to go through because of him. 

“Mhm.” It’s the only answer you get from the small child nodding off tiredly. He wraps his little arms around you, clinging to your neck just like a little koala as the sheets of his bed are pulled back for him to climb into bed, once he’s lying down on the soft mattress, the blankets are pulled over until they cover him all the way to his soft, chubby cheeks. 

It takes less than five minutes for Shouto to start falling asleep, but not without him giving you a sweet smile and a whisper that breaks your heart into a million pieces before he slips away into a deep slumber. 

“Can we go to the summer festival next week?”

You have to fight back unshed tears, smiling softly at the little boy before nodding in approval.

“...Of course.”

Your hands instantly fly to cover your mouth, it’s but a sorry attempt to fight back the sobs threatening to turn into painful, heart-breaking cries when his words are repeated in your head over and over again, almost like a painful mockery as you stare at the little boy sound asleep.

“I’m sorry, snowflake…”

Your hands caress his mixed strands one last time, before leaning down to give him a soft peck on his forehead. While he sleeps, an envelope is pulled from behind the back pocket of your shorts, that is quickly placed down underneath the boy’s pillow. 

Quickly, you stand up to walk out of the room, closing the door as quietly as possible to avoid disturbing Shouto, and make a dash for your own room where there’s a bag waiting on the bed.

Tears run down your face, combined with a pathetic mixture of pain and grief by the idea of everything, and everyone that would be left behind because of your selfish actions. But even if you choose to stay home, there would be no difference. 

After all, Touya told you what he overheard your dear father was planning to do; Setting you up for a quirk marriage with the son of a family that lived overseas.

When you heard the news, the anger was such that it made the whole garden fall victim to your quirk. Leaving a frozen wasteland all across its path.

As if you’d ever accept that fate without fighting back, but knowing Endeavor, he won’t take no for an answer. You know it’s selfish, that running away would leave nothing but a heavy burden on all of your siblings, one that you’ve been enduring for years if it meant at least they’d be the ones capable of having a somewhat normal life. 

But with this dreaded antict your father was willing to pull for the sake of his ambitions, the outcome would be the same. Either way, you’d never be able to see your family again...

Wiping the liquid embodiment of the doubts and fears, your eyes turn stone cold. Determined to break free from this nightmare, you quickly grab the bag to swing it over your shoulder and walk out of your bedroom. 

Thank god Natsuo and Fuyumi were already asleep, and your father wasn’t around, too busy with a mission to realize there would be someone else missing at home by the time he came back.

Heading to the backdoor, nothing can change your mind about this decision, not even the pain that threatens to consume you thinking about how much this will hurt your little snowflake.

But when you think about the circumstances, all that pain quickly disappears and eventually. In a matter of hours, you finally leave behind the life bound to an endless cycle of abuse. 

All you can do is pray that your siblings will be able to understand the reason why you have to leave them behind. If only they knew that you wouldn’t be alone in this journey, maybe then it would be easier for them to understand…

“You’re spacing out again, focus on the mission.” 

You look up towards the man standing beside you with a look of pure indifference on his features. Dabi’s stare doesn’t change when he makes eye contact with your bored self, too busy looking around the burning forest to pay attention to anything else.

“I was just thinking.” Instead of giving him a clear answer, your attention focuses on Toga, who couldn’t stop rambling in glee about these new friends she made, as well as the guy she ‘fell in love with.’ Sometimes, her demeanor kind of reminded you of Fuyumi when she mentioned her very first crush. 

“Do you think they’re doing okay?” You look back at the waves of blue destruction that flicker rampant across the forest “Sometimes I can’t help thinking about them, you know?” 

Breathing deeply, you don’t pay attention to the way Dabi looks at you. Knowing exactly what’s going through your head, but he’s always been better suppressing his feelings, which is why he doesn’t say anything.

He doesn’t get the chance to answer when Mr. Compress comes crashing down before your group, along with another three people restraining him. When you see a familiar face between the teenagers, time seems to stop once you recognize the face of one of them.

It’s Shouto, the little boy that used to cling to your neck for dear life, the same kid that would always run straight into your arms after a particularly harsh training session was right there, holding down one of your comrades so he could rescue his classmate.

“...Snowflake?” 

Dabi sees the look of surprise all over your face and is quick to react when he sees you taking a step forward, trying to approach the youngest of your siblings without thinking twice about it.

You’re pulled back harshly to your brother’s side, despite the initial struggle against his hold. But when he gives you a small glare that hides a slight sense of panic, it’s when you realize that the little stunt could have blown your covers with the League.

You were lucky to be wearing a disguise, otherwise, Shouto could have easily recognized you. But it did nothing to help when you threw a signature attack; a wall of light blue fire that froze everything it touched.

The moment those flames came to life, Shouto’s eyes became wide open as he made sure none of his friends were afflicted. He knew just one person capable of using an attack like this one. But there was little he could do when all the villains disappeared through the warp gate, including Dabi, who was too busy holding Bakugou hostage.

 As soon as you’re back through the warp gate, both you and Dabi walk away from the group and stand outside the bar all by yourselves. 

You can’t help looking down at the floor and hug yourself. Just coming face to face with your little brother brought back all the memories. Like the time Shouto got that burn on his face, and the last time you were able to see your mother after she was sent away.

“You know that little stunt could have cost us everything, right?” he asks, aware of just how blunt he’s being. One hand rests over your head, a futile attempt to comfort you.

“I know, but I couldn’t help it. When I saw Shouto, all I could think about was the little kid that would follow me around like a lost puppy.” The chuckle you give him is almost pathetic, almost as much as the sad smile all over your face. “Sorry for not being as tough as you…”

He pokes your sides hard enough to make you yelp in surprise. Rubbing on the abused ribs, you send a glare in his direction, and Dabi can’t fight back that grin that crawls into his face. 

Jerk.

“Do I need to remind you who helped me that one time I got hurt? Who was the one who froze off that fucker’s arms like they were nothing?” His fingers dig into your sides again just to be pushed away “It was you, idiot. And you had this murderous look on your face the whole time. You’re tougher than you think.”

With a bashful look, you punch Dabi on the shoulder before laughing slightly. It’s been like this since the time you ran away from home, taking care of each other no matter what.

“Let’s go back. The boss is going to throw a fit if we’re not there to greet the newbie.” 

“Alright, alright. After you, overcooked bastard.”

“Bitch.”

@bnha-ra @bnhabookclub @gallickingun @godtieruwu @hanniejji @mysticalite @savagetrickster @shoobirino @songsforbnha @sugacookiies @unbreakableeiji @wesparklebitch

[estherwritess]

Boxer! Iwaizumi Hajime x reader

wc: 1573

genre: fluff

Abruptly being awoken from your sleep, you swatted your hand around you trying to find the noisy culprit responsible for interrupting your much-needed sleep. Subconsciously, you already had a gut feeling about who could possibly be calling at this ungodly hour. While lifting your hand up you managed to croak out an almost undecipherable “hello?”.  

The deeper, masculine voice unmistakingly belonged to your long-time friend, Iwaizumi Hajime, the shakiness, worry and sheer uncertainty in his voice makes you feel instantly more awake.

“Y/N, could you come to the club please? I need you right now.” The phrase is enough to send you almost flying out of bed; your mind silently cussing him out, partly for making you worried, and partly because you just wanted sleep. It wasn’t uncommon for him to call you after any kind of boxing game and neither was it uncommon for boxing games for the adult men to take place later at night.

He’d always call you whenever he needed help. You, the reliable one as always. Your feet seemed to carry you towards the front door, haphazardly grabbing your keys from their designated spot on the counter of your apartment; the other hand trying to wipe away the sleepy feeling washing over you in waves.

There you are, wobbling on your legs, pushing open the door to the familiar club you’d spent so much time with your best friend. Nothing really prepared you for the sight you’d soon be facing. There he was, sat on one of the benches, dimmed lights filled the room with low light. Your eyes took him in, curiously searching for the reason as to why he could’ve possibly called you right now. Hands wrapped in protective tape, wrists resting right above his knees as his head was cast downwards. The gym was mostly empty except for a few people cleaning the space up; making your way over to where he was currently sitting you made sure to call out to him.

“Hajime...? What’s up?” Your voice cautiously rung out, easily rising out from the background noise. As his body turned to face to you, a less-than-genuine smile forced its way onto his face; you could tell whether it was genuine, you’d like to think of yourself as a little Iwaizumi analysis guide after spending so many years with him.  However, you could never really figure out if he felt the same way ever since you’d developed that small nagging crush in your third year. The feeling was always there, quite like a little figurative devil that followed you around, you had become quite the expert at hiding it after almost leaking your little secret. You weren’t one to make a move if you weren’t sure there was a chance that the person would actually feel the same way.

Your eyes moved to the bruising forming on his chest, reddish splotches on his chest and arms. Older bruises were still present, making the view all the more worrying to you. His chest and stomach were littered with blue-purple-ish and red patches. His lip was busted and his eye seemed to be swelling shut.

You could swear you felt your heart drop to your stomach; your body lunging forward, grabbing his hands as he winced at the sudden movement. “Some carefulness wouldn’t hurt,” his light-hearted joke didn’t seem to be changing much about your current state of worry, your eyes searching to meet his as he kept trying to avoid your unwavering gaze.

“What happened?” your voice sounded thick with concern; brows furrowed.

“I think you can tell what happened, you’re smart Y/N, I lost a match” the side of his mouth curled up; his token expression whenever he took a playful dig at you. As you got closer to his face, you couldn’t help but graze your finger over the busted lip; wondering if it hurt as much as you thought it did. When he winced you pulled back, you felt as if you had been pulled out of some kind of dream. The stare you both gave each other felt like it lasted ages, you managed to tear yourself away, clumsily finding your words.

“C’mon, let’s get you out of here” you avoid any kind of eye-contact, pursing your lips as you lend him your shoulder; Draping his arm over it, you help him up and start walking back to your car. A deafening, tension-filled, silence took over. Neither one of you said anything as you quietly opened the passenger door of your car, giving him support as to allow him to climb in. You sneak a glance at him from the corner of your eye, keeping an eye on the road; he looks slightly distraught.

“Not used to losing, Hajime?” a small smile settles itself on your lips as you let your gaze fall back on the road, fingers drumming rhythmically on the steering wheel. He hummed, eyes skimming over your relaxed figure leaning against the car seat, he notices every single detail about you. Your presence makes him feel at ease, something about you has always made him feel that way. You somehow knew what to say during the moments when he was speechless, you were reliable and you had an incredibly kind heart. You’d been friends for over 6 years, you met in high school and kept the friendship going throughout college. He supported you in your pursuit of higher education, while you supported him in his ambition to go pro with his boxing.

Iwaizumi had always been the type who found hiding his feelings to be much easier than straight up admitting them; it felt so personal, almost like he was letting someone see him vulnerable. He didn’t enjoy that feeling very much, so he found it best to stick things out. Oikawa had nagged him about it countless times, how he was wasting time, he’d never listen though. So, there he was, bruised and beaten; he was lucky you’d driven out there so late at night to help him out. Without being aware of it, a smile made its way onto his face.

Turning off the engine you practically stumbled out of the car, trying to quickly get to Iwaizumi’s side, his eyes apologetically looking at you. You draped his arm around your shoulder once again, offering him something to hold on as you made your way to your apartments’’ front door. The way you fumbled around for your keys, nearly dropping them, then in attempt at grabbing them they were almost whacked away by your hand, was clearly less than elegant. Nonetheless, it got an amused chuckle out of the boy next to you. His free hand going up to cover his mouth, nose scrunched and eyes closed. You freeze for a moment, letting yourself admired him; a genuine happy expression on his face was rare. Not unseen, but pretty rare, so you let yourself look for a little longer.

You eventually pushed the door open, helping your best friend inside, guiding him to the small couch you had in your equally as small living room. As you set him down, you padded towards your bathroom, rummaging in your medicine cabinet. As you gathered your materials- disinfectant, a few compresses and bandages- you proceeded to hurry back to the living room. He’d leaned back, arm behind his head as he aimlessly swiped on his phone; blue light illuminating his roughened-up face.

You clear your throat, his gaze returning to you, you hold up the small box containing your bare first aid supplies as you flash him a small smile.

“Let’s get you fixed up alright?” you say as you take a seat next to him, as silence fills the room you get to work. Your fingers skillfully clean the little cuts and scratches with the disinfectant; working your way up from his arms and stomach you finally reach the small wounds on his face. You grip his chin to hold his face still with your thumb and index finger, lifting it up to get a good look.

Trying not to get flustered under his unflinching gaze you divert your attention to the cotton pad lying next to you. As you dip in the liquid and lift it up to clean the last of the little wounds, you feel his hand grip your wrist. You’re like a mouse in a trap at this moment in time, his eyes as staring directly back at you, feeling your cheeks heat up you try to speak up.

“…Hajime?” You furrow your brows, trying to figure out why he was being so quiet. Had you said something wrong? You let your hand fall down from his chin, placing it on Iwaizumi’s arm that had gripped your wrist. Your anxious internal monologue was briskly interrupted as you saw him lean in closer. Instead of your previous thoughts, your thoughts were now scrambled, you swore you could feel your heartbeat in your throat.

His hand found itself on your chin, slightly lifting it up; your breath hitched in your throat as you felt his lips on yours. This is something you’d been wanting to do for so long, so why were you this nervous? As you feel him pull away, he gives you a half-lidded glance, leaning back while placing his arms behind his neck he gave you a teasing smirk.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a while now.”

_____________

TAGS!: @hihiq​ @heccingdead​ @mitzwinchester​ @tiger1719​  @sunshines-and-tatertots​ @izzyphantomgamer​  @macaronnv​ @viridemv​

[riceccakes]

Earth, Wind, and Coffee: Chapter Four Analysis

and now the last chapter of the fic! i really had so much fun writing these analyses so i hope you’ve enjoyed too :))

i’ve got a lot to say about this last chapter too so be prepared for a long one. lets get to it, shall we?

some fun stuff before we start!

before changing the direction of the story, the last chapter of the fic was going to be Chapter 3: The Meeting, A Well Deserved Jab, and a Good Night’s Rest

so, The Meeting was going to happen, korrasami was gonna come back together and instead of the krew outing during this chapter’s A Well Deserved Jab, korrasami was gonna go out on a date. korra still would punch iroh, korra never ‘moved in’ with asami, it was just gonna be a fluffy section. A Good Night’s Rest was actually going to feature hiroshi going to asami’s apartment while korra was over and being like “who the fuck is this” and korra was gonna be upset asami didn’t tell her dad about them (as, in the og timeline, they would be dating at this point) they’d have a convo working this out, a little like how korra said she’d never understand how asami and hiroshi don’t have a great relationship in A Much Needed Conversation. korra would then go to hiroshi’s office and make that whole speech and still ask asami to go the south. this is a v summed up version, one that when i made it, i was happy with. having published what i did, i much enjoy that ending more than this one :)

i wanted a way to show that korra likes asami (obviously, this is a korrasami fic) but of course, asami spent most of this only wishing korra liked her

mako asking out korra was a late edition, one i actually really like. mako’s role in the fic is pretty minor, sorry to those of you who really love him and maybe wanted more from him. however, i am a really big fan of the fact that in lok, even after all the stupid love triangle shit, mako was able to be good friends with korrasami, so i still wanted to capture that. he’s not at all upset when korra turns him down, but rather super happy for the fact that korrasami feel the same way about each other. an even later edition to this point is the bedroom scene when korra asks asami to wait for her, i’ll mention more about this scene later cause i really love it.

and we in gooooo: (i usually try to write these following the sections of the chapter but for this analysis, im gonna go topic by topic within each section)

literary devices (diction, figurative language, etc.):

There have been better days than this one. Days where Korra blows up Asami’s phone with funny Instagram posts she finds while Asami’s at school, days where she invites Mako and Bolin over and the four of them play board games, days where Korra asks if they can go out for a walk and she excitedly explores the area around Asami’s apartment. There have been worse days than this one. Days where Korra won’t get out of bed, days where Korra won’t speak, days where Korra won’t even look at Asami and she has to see that glossed over gaze gawk out the glass window.

back again, just quoting my favorite sections. and this one, yall, this one. the mirrored writing style, the ending with alliteration, how easily it describes a passage of time i mean come on. when i wrote this i was like “yyyyaaaasssss” and i won’t deny it. the “glossed over gaze gawk out the glass window” is obvious in alliteration, one that just sounds so good, it rolls off the tongue. but, there’s actually also another one, one that’s a bit more hidden “she excitedly explores the area around Asami’s apartment” note how these both end the descriptions of korra’s bad/good days respectively, as a sort of way to frame which parts of the sentence correspond with the good days and bad days. now, going onto korra’s days, three examples of good days, three examples of bad days (that’s technically six different days right there, and it doesn’t even have to be in succession.) what i also love about this info into korra’s days is how it shows a passage of time without having to be like “it’s been a few weeks” or “after some time/a while” it doesn’t stick out, at least not to me, it’s not a jarring way to say, “hey, in the story now, time has passed since last chapter!” idk, i just am really proud of this paragraph and i wanted to point it out in its own section :)

Asami will never, ever say she’s happy that the Red Lotus attack happened, but, it’s what brought Korra to her. It’s what brought more friends to her, it’s what brought her to see her father isn’t as great and almighty as she’d grown up to believe. How could she ever thank something so horrible for bringing about all these life changing things in her life?

this sort of, existential section, was something i came up with on the toilet. (tmi? im not gonna apologize tho, this is a behind the scenes explanation of my writing and some of my best writing happens on the toilet ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) any who, i didn’t want to leave any loose ends and, up until this chapter, i don’t really think i showed how asami felt about the attack and the situation and what’s happened after. also, asami being the perfectionist and analyst she is, i know she’d reflect on everything that’s happened to her in the span of about six months (give or take) and even more so, reflect on what’s happened with korra in the time they’ve known each other. it was a bit painful to write this section, it’s that sort of mentality that’s like “some horrible, horrible shit happened, but really, really good things came out of it. so, should i still hate all that horrible stuff or should i just appreciate the good things that came out of it?” (i’ve been debating this for years now with something personal and to this day, i’m not sure. i’m not sure if i’m more thankful for it all happening because of the few good moments it brought or if i wish none of it happened for the chance at some alternate reality of good things happening. anyways, i digress)

Kuvira stays silent for a moment, “When Hiroshi reaches out to you, tell him everything you said to me. Tell him everything you said when we were in your apartment after the presentation. He needs to know how you feel, he needs to know how he’s made you feel for years. Hiroshi can’t change if he doesn’t know what’s wrong and you want him to change, don’t you?”

Asami grips the steering wheel, staring at the red light in front of her. Her foot slowly pulses on and off the break, inching forward, waiting for the signal.

“I do.”

She feels the pit of her stomach churn, wondering if she could ever say all of it to her father. Kuvira isn’t wrong, she wants her father to change, but not in every way. Not in the business sense, not in the ambition sense, but rather, she wants a father, she wants to feel like the man she calls Dad really deserves the title. It pains her to say he hasn’t. The light turns green and Asami’s foot hovers over the gas pedal.

“So then you’ll tell him?”

For just a moment, her Satomobile doesn’t move but with a sharp, deep breath, Asami steps on the pedal. “I will.”

back again with our car metaphor/symbol thing! i really do love this idea of using the Satomobile as a way to show the relationship between hiroshi and asami, and how asami handles that relationship. this is from A Much Needed Conversation, some time after asami’s returned to future industries, calling kuvira in reluctant hope of knowing what her father is doing. they talk about asami telling hiroshi all this important stuff, stuff that asami’s been hesitant to bring up at all. (only after a breaking point did she finally let it out) this section has a mix of it all, diction, metaphor, along with some suspense by using line breaks. 

Her foot slowly pulses on and off the break, inching forward, waiting for the signal. / “I do.” - here’s a good example of suspense. (it continues through the rest of the excerpt) so, here was have asami, absolutely scared shitless, as she always is with her father and this subject of her life in relation to him. except, now with their time apart and what happened with the meeting, asami’s kind of got this “fuck it, whatever” mentality that goes a few different ways. “fuck it, whatever” my dad totally turned on me and was an asshole, i don’t care. “fuck it, whatever” we cut off ties, i can do whatever i want. “fuck it, whatever” i might very well do whatever it takes to get my dad back because i miss him but im also super scared as per usual. “fuck it, whatever” im not the one who needs to do anything to get him back so i won’t even think about it. there’s just a lot for asami to unpack here and in the setting of her father’s legacy, it’s even more for her. 

She feels the pit of her stomach churn...The light turns green and Asami’s foot hovers over the gas pedal. - more suspense. the light is green, green means go, but asami is waiting, thinking, hesitating. this also relates to the line earlier “waiting for the signal” well, this is the signal, the green light means go. but also, kuvira telling asami to tell hiroshi everything is also the signal to go, it’s like the push for asami to do it. she sees the signal, it’s go time, and yet “Asami’s foot hovers over the gas pedal” asami is still nervous, still scared to have this conversation with her father because she just doesn’t know what’s going to happen.

“So then you’ll tell him?” / For just a moment, her Satomobile doesn’t move but with a sharp, deep breath, Asami steps on the pedal. “I will.” - this mirrors just a few lines earlier. when kuvira asks asami to tell hiroshi everything while she’s waiting for the green light, her dialogue has a line break. for dramatic effect purposes, but also to show a sense of firmness. it’s by itself, it doesn’t need to be supported; asami really, truly means this. however here, her dialogue tag is connected to the narration its related to. even while asami confirms she’ll do this, that she’ll talk to her father, it’s hesitant, it takes a moment for her to say yes. 

what i really love is how much can be covered in such few lines. i’m not sure you all saw this when reading, ive always been very into reading/writing analysis, so i’m always looking at everything with a fine tooth comb; in my own writing, it’s no different. if you didn’t see this before, i hope learning it now gives you a different perspective if you ever choose to read my fic again :)

content (typing up loose ends, leaving breadcrumbs, additional info):

lets talk about korra

a lot happens for our girl in this last chapter. i’ll try to be concise, i tend to kind of ramble. i think what’s kind of cool, and i didn’t realize this beforehand, is that theres a speech from korra in each section. in A Well Deserved Jab, we see korra’s first time speaking at the support group meeting and what i really like about this is there’s no real big event that’s happened for her to finally be able to go up there. i feel like there’s always this one, life altering moment in stories when people need to deal with trauma or just work up the courage to do something, but in our case, it’s not like that. it’s the time and the care that’s slowly been working and helping korra for her to feel ready. it’s been a culminating process for her to get to go up there and for whatever reason, korra felt ready. let’s go a little into this speech

we finally learn more about the attack. we learn why korra’s always been picking at her wrists, the memory of the zip ties are still strong and she scratches at hopes of making the feeling go away. we also hear more about korra losing control that night, which in turn made her want to control everything with her life after the event. (lil fun-ish note while we talk about some deep stuff right now, last chapter’s first paragraph, about korra enjoying pour over coffees, was a purposeful choice. when doing pour overs, you have direct and absolute control over the coffee and how you make it, which gives korra a greater sense of comfort, because she knows she’s in charge when doing this.) my favorite part about this whole speech is right before the tail end of it, where korra says “sometimes surprises are better than plans” it was never in her plan to meet someone and find comfort and support and love and grow with it. (my headcanon is that korra just wanted to mull this over alone, sort of like in book four after the canon red lotus attack.) instead, korra met asami and the two clicked and korra could see a light at the end of her tunnel she thought would be pitch black forever. i really enjoyed getting to write this for korra.

korra’s second speech takes place in A Much Needed Conversation. another scene from the fic i wrote beforehand, i think somewhere between finishing chapter two and mulling over the decision to make the fic longer. this was sort of my cathartic, “lets yell at hiroshi for being sucky” moment. a lot of points are brought up here, all of which i believe are valid. it poses the simple, yet ever complicated question of “why?” i’ll get into hiroshi’s response in a later section, but what i’ll highlight about this speech is korra’s statement, “Now, I know that I don’t need to be saying any of this, because Asami can more than hold her own in any conversation, but I am doing this because you are hurting the woman I love, and I will not just let that happen.” its a declaration of love, love that i know is deeper than just romance but also deeper than just friendship. it’s admiration for asami being so strong, admiration for asami being so powerful and smart, korra says more about it in the speech. i tried it make so that korra wasn’t trying to control this situation with asami’s father, but rather, this was korra’s attempt at getting them to try and work something out. korra wants what’s best for asami, she wants her to get everything she wants. korra knows asami wants a better father and the most korra feels she can do is slap hiroshi (with her words) across the face and get him to realize that’s what asami wants.

korra’s third and final speech opens A Good Night’s Rest. we get just a little more about that night, i actually wrote this speech out loud. i just sort of put myself in korra’s place and started talking. my intent with this opening was to give more insight into how korra feels about asami. this is also a call back to the beginning of the chapter, about waking up asami if korra ever needs her. i took this action as a solidifying definition for asami to know “yeah, korra really does love me.” sure, in the last section, korra sort of did say it, but actions still speak louder than words. a lot of this final chapter was just showing how much korra has grown, i think i achieved that.

before we move on, i just wanted to say a lil bit about the bedroom scene where korra asks asami to wait for her. it’s a small confession that i think just says so much. another time here to show that romantic korrasami will happen, but it’s also just insight into korra and her thoughts about romancing asami. she wants it too, so badly that she almost gets into it before she’s ready. did i psych you guys out like asami, who thought she was finally going to kiss korra? it’s all in the lines, “I’m almost there...I know I am, Asami. I’ll be there soon, I need to be better. I need to be better for you.” and now, after thinking about it, i almost wasn’t gonna word it like this. what korra’s saying here is that her progression is only being done so that she can be good for asami, which, i didn’t want to convey. however, sometimes, that’s just how people think; they think, “if i have to do something, i gotta do it for someone else.” and so that’s what i’ve done with korra here, it’s just this mentality that she’s growing out of. it’s okay to have this thought process, good even, but not for every single thing you do. and i wanted korra to know that, which is why i love asami’s response, “I think you’re already great.” it’s just to remind korra, yes you can get better, you will get better. but not for asami, but for yourself, because asami already loves you the way you are.

kuvopal

breadcrumbs; that’s all i’ve really done so far with kuvopal is put lil breadcrumbs everywhere for the people who like the idea of the relationship to grasp at. is that mean of me? maybe, but i really love kuvira and opal as a couple so i wanted to keep hinting and hinting and hopefully getting you readers interested too. kuvopal has been sprinkled in since chapter two and i wanted to leave the readers with just a little ounce of hope

asami’s official introduction with opal heavily involves bolin, enough to the point where the two kiss each other on the cheek. now, of course, after reading the chapter, you know bolin and opal aren’t dating, but i wanted to stress you out a lil bit xD asami is weary of mentioning kuvira, so there’s not much we really get to see about how opal feels. opal may have wanted to talk when asami mentioned kuvira just before korra asked about spring break, but she didn’t. why didn’t she say anything? do you think she’s wanted to talk about kuvira? what about her major, child services and the foster care system, do you think kuvira influenced that, being she essentially was fostered by the beifongs? do you think we’ll ever find answers? *wink*

iroh

so obviously, we don’t like iroh. if there’s anyone in this story who doesn’t get a happy ending or a second chance, it’s him because he’s the worst. i realized we hadn’t seen too much of iroh in the previous chapters and this being the last one, i needed to really show just how not cool iroh is. the soccer game is very clearly an indication of just how conceded and rude he is. after the game, his conversation with asami is bad. he’s being invasive and inconsiderate of asami and he doesn’t care. same with at the restaurant. so, of course i wanted iroh to get his comeuppance and we have that by korra punching him.

going off of this, i didn’t want it to feel like iroh got a one and done kind of deal. he was incredibly awful to asami and his “friends” and i didn’t want this behavior to be taken lightly. so, i chose to make iroh just basically lose everything :) he loses his friends, possibly his job, i just KNOW izumi is disappointed as fuck that he’s acted like this and uncle iroh is rolling over in his grave that someone of his own blood would be like this. i wanted to address iroh in his own category because i just wanted you all to know that he is the only character not getting off easy. i really hope that how iroh’s situation turned out is good, as in, he got what he deserves.

hiroshi

hiroshi was an interesting character to go about in the final chapter. obviously, throughout the fic so far, hiroshi hasn’t been a standout father or boss. if i haven’t said it before, i’ll say it now: i always wanted hiroshi to have a second chance, ie, i wanted hiroshi to try to be better. for one, asami deserves it. she deserves a good parent who’s there for her and isn’t just obsessed with his job and the glory and empire he’s built up for himself. another reason, i believe everyone (within reason, *cough cough* not iroh *cough*) deserves a second chance. at the very least one more try, to be better, and if they’re actively trying, they’re doing better.

so hiroshi gets a bit of a wake up call from not only korra, after she so passionately scolded him in the name of her love for asami, but hiroshi also got one from asami directly. take your pick as to which conversation sparked hiroshi to call her to say goodnight. it’s an effort, and asami even says it herself, that after a while, the juice of it ran out. but kuvira said it too, it’s a start. what im trying to highlight is that no one is perfect and their ways of trying to change themself isn’t going to be perfect either.

and the kicker is hiroshi going to the south, without any other reason than to see asami. hiroshi only ever travels for future industries related business, but here he goes, without kuvira, to the south to see asami. i want to keep highlighting, asami says this is just the start. she hasn’t yet fully forgiven him, but she’s giving him the chance to be forgiven. that’s what i want to make most apparent on the topic of hiroshi and asami’s relationship: hiroshi is not getting off easy. but he’s trying, and in the words of the good place, that is what matters isn’t if people are good or bad, what matters is if they’re trying to be better today than they were yesterday. hiroshi, in this action, coming to the south, is trying to be a better father that day than all the days before. offering up the job offer from tonraq is hiroshi trying to be a better boss that day than the day before. staying in the south to spend real, quality time with his daughter is hiroshi trying to be better that day than every day before that.

it’s all in the trying.

honorable mentions:

in the og timeline, back when korrasami was going to be a confirmed couple in the fic, after returning from the south, asami was going to go to the cafe at one in the morning while korra was working and korra was going to make her an avatar. i liked the full circle aspect at the time but really, i much prefer what i’ve posted over that og timeline.

anything i would’ve wanted to change?

i think, overall, i maybe would’ve wanted to divide chapters up differently. as i continued writing, the three sections definitely could’ve supported themselves as singular chapters. especially this final chapter, which was almost 20k words. but, in the end, i am so proud of this fic and of myself for following through and finishing it.

i lost a bit of steam towards the end of this analysis, i’ve actually had this in my drafts for almost two months. but, i think what i wanted to say, i did, and as always, if you have any comments or questions, or just wanna talk to me, do it ! i love any and all commentary on my writing :)) 

thanks for reading the analysis if you did x