#now did she do this because she hates him as a human animal who smells bad and/or is a threat? | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

marylight098 · 3 months ago

Text

꧁Blossoming Love ꧂

Summary: It was a normal day for you: tending the garden... painting... taking care of your aunt... being the healer of your village... amongst other things. That's until you find a dying kitsune close to your village pleading for your help; in a world where mythical creatures marginalized humans and humans tried their best to live hidden from them all. But you weren't just going to leave him there to die (even if you were full of fear). As always... empathy was one of the biggest weaknesses a human could have. And sadly you were one of those humans.

Rating: 🔞 mature bruh

Couple💕: Jeon Jungkook/Reader

Tags/Warnings 🚨🗯️: Fluff and Smut, Spit Kink, Hybrid Jeon Jungkook, Kitsune, Fantasy, alternate universe, Light Masochism, Dirty Talk, romantic, Animal Instincts, Past Lives, Oral Sex, Loss of Virginity, healer of the town, human and kitsune, Painter Jeon Jungkook, Painting, draw me like one of your french girls lol, Fox, Masturbation, some choking, He loves the smell of your arousal, Creampie

Word count: 15,541

Side notes: i usually write about dreams I’ve had. This is one of them. And if you see typos or something similar… english is not my first language; sorry 🤡 Im just testing the waters here… i usually post only in Ao3…. Meh hope you dont hate it lol

Pic of JK by @jkxxth1 (tiktok)

🌸

Your hometown was small; it only consisted of a few houses and a small plaza where everybody gathered to do their activities or do festivals. All of you were part of the small percentage of humans who still resided in this world full of mythical creatures; looked down upon because of your “weak useless nature”.

But the majority of you didn't care much for the opinions of the other races. You all knew you were so much more than what they had stamped on your foreheads.

You smiled to yourself as you painted the mountains on your canvas, thinking how lucky you felt to be part of these people. But that was not the only reason you were smiling right now… you were also smiling because you could hear your aunt fighting in the background with one of your chickens because it had pooped on her balcony.

You were laughing now as your aunt kept arguing with the chicken as if she could understand her. She quickly noticed, giving you a glare. But even though she was trying to be intimidating at first, she ended up giving in with a smile.

“Don't laugh, _____. This is a serious situation.”

“Yes, auntie… it's very serious that one of our chickens shat on your balcony.” You nodded and continued laughing.

She shook her head with a sigh and a smile, accepting defeat. “Could you at least bring me a bucket of water to clean it? My ankle still hurts from the fall. You would do me a great —”

“Of course, auntie.” You cut her off, giving her a reassuring smile. “No need to explain yourself; I understand.”

“Thank you, darling.” She returned the smile.

“I'll make sure to watch over your painting so the chicken doesn't leave his… “signature” on it.” She said, side-eyeing the chicken.

You laughed once more before making your way to the village’s well.

Your aunt wasn't the type to ask for favors; she always believed in being independent and doing things for her own growth as a person, and of course so she could give her all to the family and dear friends. So on rare occasions like these, you and others close to her, were always glad to help and return all that love she had always given you throughout the years.

For you, she was a role model you aspired to be.

“Great… There is a spider on the edge of the well. And it’s a big one.” You sarcastically smiled as you kept your distance; your bucket now placed on the floor as your hands rested on your hips.

Your village was in an open area where there were no trees. But around it, a forest resided and so did the well of the village… and spiders. Which was one of your biggest fears.

You didn't want to kill it. You may be scared of them but you know they are part of nature and you have to learn to live with them.

You thought of using a stick to get it off but you knew that was just going to be chaos: not knowing where it was going to run to. And you certainly didn't want it crawling up your legs or arms.

A chill ran up your spine just at the thought.

So you just decided it was best to ask someone else for help.

Grabbing your bucket, you turned around to go back to the village.

“P- Ple -ease help m-me.”

You had only taken a few steps when you heard the pleads; the voice was not recognizable to you. It was a man’s…

With your heart almost popping out of your chest, you quickly turned around to be aware of where the man was just in case you needed to defend yourself. But…

You were faced with a pale weak man whose face was covered by a fox mask and hands were placed over a wound under his ribcage, which had and was noticeably bleeding.

“A kitsune…” you spoke under your breath.

How many hours had this man been bleeding? And why hadn't he been healed? But most importantly of all: what was he doing here alone? He was a kitsune… a mythical creature that was supposed to be with his kind right now; not here which was really far away. Was he running away from someone? Was this a hoax?

“Please. I-I’m not here to— hurt you.”

He had noticed your uncertainty and alertness.

You didn't want to believe him.. you really didn't. You were scared of what could happen and the dangers you could be putting your village in. But you could see the sincerity in his eyes that stood out through the mask. Plus he was bleeding to death, what more proof could you ask for?

Dropping your bucket once more, you hurried up to him, placing his arm around your shoulders and letting him lean on you. You were struggling obviously; you weren't as strong as a man. But you could get through. And, thankfully, the village wasn't far away.

“Than—argh!— Thank y-you, madam.” He grunted as he tried not to put so much weight on you.

“Don't force yourself to talk. And you don't have to thank me; it's immoral to leave a man to their death per se.”

Plus you don't have to address me formally either. You thought to yourself.

You could tell he wanted to say more but kept quiet.

As soon as you were back at the village, you immediately began to call for help. Only a few of them came to help since others were intimidated that he was a kitsune; it was understandable. Kitsunes were known for mischief, being playful and deceiving. But you knew that was not the main reason they were intimidating. It was mostly because of their high rank amongst you living creatures; they were known also for their riches alongside other mythical creatures.

One of the villagers saw you struggling with the injured man, so he rapidly went to his other side to help you carry him. Your aunt was also one to respond, quickly going inside your house to prepare the necessary materials to help with his wound before you got there. She also prepared the large table you had for these types of emergencies to lay him on.

“Do you need anything else, ____?” Your aunt pointed at the items she had placed for you to work with.

You shook your head. “No; it’s all I need; thank you.”

She left the room quickly with the man that had helped, knowing it would be more comfortable for you and him that way. But even so, she stayed close by just in case.

Your hands began working instantly; cleaning up the area first. There were a lot of questions in your mind and they all involved the kitsune. How exactly did he end up here? Who was following him? Who or what attacked him? Who was he?

But you reserved the questions for later; making him talk in this state wasn't a very bright idea. Right now you had to focus on patching him and making him feel less pain.

Surprisingly, he wasn't flinching as much as you thought he would be; this is definitely not his first time being injured like this. Only some low grunts and furrowed eyebrows could be seen and heard.

After cleaning up, you grabbed your well-known elixir that you used for wounds like these. Us humans didn't have magic nor any special abilities. But you did have the desire to innovate and progress.

“W-what is that?” He asked, still having some difficulty breathing.

You momentarily looked up to him, eyes more visible since you are closer now. You gulped, remembering what you were treating.

You felt intimidated for a second, remembering all those tales you had heard and moments you had seen with your own eyes where creatures like him would take advantage of your people.

He noticed.

“I a-al- mm- already said, I-I’m not going to h-hurt you.” He gulped with his eyes closed as he tolerated the pain.

“Trust me…” he opened his eyes to look at you. “I would never hurt you.” He reassured you.

And, again, you could see the sincerity through his eyes so you relaxed once more.

“This… this is an elixir I made using an old recipe my village has. It’s for curing wounds like you have. But I will have to add something else for this one.”

“Why?” He asked.

“Because I can tell this was made by another kitsune by the shape of it and because it doesn't want to close. A kitsune’s main weakness will always be their own kind.” You replied.

“How… do you k-know this?”

“Because I’m the healer of my town.” You smiled at him as you opened the other elixir. “And I've treated a few like you before.”

“Like… me?” He weakly pointed at himself.

“Yes. But those were already friends or family with the village people. We don't usually allow Kitsunes here… or any other kind of creature… you know… for safety reasons.” You nervously laughed; still trying to make peace with him as if he hadn't stated enough that he is not going to hurt you.

Again, he noticed the way your eyes immediately averted to his wounds after speaking. He didn't say anything this time; he knew he'd have to instead show through actions his words. He just remained in silence as you finished with his wound; not wanting to stare at you so much to not make you nervous… even though he wanted to; the reason why he would take occasional sneaky glances.

But he couldn't watch you finish, as he soon fell asleep from exhaustion.

Your people were quick to ask you questions in the morning, worried about the unknown kitsune at their village; except for the few mythical creatures that resided there, since they didn't feel the right to judge. And you explained to each one of them about the situation, trying to remain calm as you did to not freak them out even more. You, yourself, were also a bit worried. But you had decided to trust and have the faith that the kitsune wouldn't take advantage of your village. His sincere eyes still hadn’t left your mind; you knew they were real; you felt it. So it was better to trust your heart rather than your anxiety.

As you finished explaining to one of the villagers, your aunt called you from the balcony of your house.

“He’s awake. And he is asking for you.” She called.

You gave your goodbyes to the villager and went rapidly to your house.

“Thanks for letting me know, auntie.” You smiled as your hand reached the door handle, but it was stopped by another familiar hand.

“You sure you’ll be alright all by yourself?” She asked with concerned eyes.

“I'll be fine, auntie. I'm still going to be careful so don't worry.”

“Ok.” She nodded, still noticeably concerned but decided to trust your words, leaving the area. But letting someone know to be attentive just in case.

As you entered, you noticed him standing as he curiously inspected the medicines on your shelf, one hand pressing on the wound.

But that was not the only thing you noticed. There were scars… old deep scars on his back. As if he had received some sort of punishment. You let it go; it was not the time, place nor situation to ask something so personal. It was not like he was going to stay for long anyway; getting close to him was unnecessary.

“Well you healed quickly.” You spoke with a smile, coming closer to him. But not too close.

“And that is thanks to you and these… potions? Are you a witch?” He asked as his eyes now laid on you.

You chuckled. “No, I'm not a witch. I'm just a plain human with very intelligent ancestors who crafted all those medicines and I happened to perfect them.”

“That’s… incredible!”

There it was again: that sincerity.

You blushed. “Thank you umm…”

“Jungkook. Jeon Jungkook.”

He still had his mask on. You were so curious of what was underneath, but did not want to disrespect him so you remained silent.

“Can I check your wound?” You asked him.

“Y- yes, of course.” He replied as he snapped out of a trance. A trance you had put him on since he arrived there.

He was already shirtless so you were quick to get to the wound, removing its bandages first. As you did, you became really conscious of how close you were with this kitsune, feeling his breathing collide with your face occasionally. You were trying so hard not to touch him. But it was inevitable.

“Sorry if I'm being inappropriate.” You said nervously.

“No, not at all.”

“I don't mind.” He added.

You ignored his last comment, not wanting to think it had another meaning behind it.

He just said it casually, that’s all. You repeated in your mind.

After finishing checking his wound and adding more medicine, you patched him up once again with clean bandages.

“Ok so…” you clapped your hands together.

“Good news is, you have healed almost completely; which not only has to do with my medicines, but because you are a kitsune and kitsunes heal faster if treated properly.”

He nodded.

“Bad news is… you’ll have to stay a few days more to make sure it heals completely.” You added with a sympathetic look, knowing he probably wouldn't like the idea.

“But you don't have—“

“I'm ok with it.”

You didn't get to finish your sentence; he already had the answer as if he had been expecting your suggestion.

“Oh! Ok. Ummm… Jungkook, right?”

He nodded; sparkle in his eyes as excitement ran through his veins knowing he would get to wake up to your presence.

“You can keep resting on the couch; that will be your bed for now if you don't mind.”

“I don't.”

“Perfect then let me notify the village.”

You were about to leave when he stopped you.

“Wait! Can I come with you?” He asked.

“S-sure.” You replied, taken aback by his sudden request.

“Let me take this off first.” He added as he took off his mask.

Your lips fell apart, taking in the beauty the kitsune held as he laid the mask on the couch. It was true what the rumors said: kitsunes were born with undeniable and inexplicable beauty. But it was understandable since they were born to charm. They always got their way; it was rare to see a kitsune who wasn't able to seduce or charm their target; they had a gift.

“Don't wanna scare anyone more than they already are.” He nervously chuckled as his hand ruffled his hair.

Your curiosity had been fed. And you couldn't help but to become shy and self conscious. Being around an attractive person always makes you feel nervous.

“It’s— it's ok.” You struggled to speak for a second. “They will eventually warm up to you; we’ve had kitsunes before so don't worry so much.”

As he saw your reassuring smile, the kitsune wondered if the rumors he had heard about humans were true: that they secretly possessed the ability to enchant or seduce other creatures like himself. As time passed, more and more creatures of high rank were eloping with humans to the point where it was getting normal. Things were changing, but the hate and contempt against humans was still there. And all of you knew it was going to be hard for it to leave. But he didn't care about what other people thought; he saw all creatures as equals even if they were mortals. And right now, he was ready to risk it all for you.

You both went outside to greet the villagers; you being up front and Jungkook following behind like a puppy, trying his best to make people like him.

You introduced Jungkook to each one of the villagers, also explaining the situation and why he was going to stay a few days more. It was necessary and it was also common courtesy; it was a random stranger that had entered the village and the “cherry on the top” being that he was a kitsune. This way people could be alert for any weird movements from the kitsune.

Jungkook bowed multiple times to each one of the villagers with a “thank you” and “sorry for the inconvenience”. He had already conquered the hearts of many. Not only because of his cuteness but, of course, because of his beauty. You could tell some of your friends were already trying to flirt with him. And you just couldn't help but to shake your head at them. Of course, there were always the doubtful ones that still didn't trust him. But did not treat him badly either.

The two kitsunes we had were the quickest to bond with him, for obvious reasons.

“Nice to meet you, Jungkook. I’m Jimin and this is Hoseok.” Both bowed to him and Jungkook did the same. It was a common thing between their kind.

“Glad to see there is another kitsune as handsome as us staying here too.” Jimin said, making Hoseok roll his eyes.

“He is only staying here for a few days until he gets better.” You quickly intervened.

“Oh, ok.” Hoseok said, a little bit disappointed he wasn't staying; he could feel he wasn't a bad guy. But it was understandable to him and Jimin.

Jungkook’s expression changed as soon as you said those words and both of them saw right through their fellow kitsune. They both looked at each other, knowing all too well this situation: a kitsune falling for a human. They both had eloped with humans after all.

Well at least they hoped this was the case. They truly wanted you to be happy and being taken care of; both of them knew how devoted you were with your people. So they saw this as an opportunity for all that love to be returned to you.

After Jimin’s fanboying over Jungkook, you said your goodbyes to them and ended up in front of your house once again. But before you both entered, you remembered the painting you had left outside to dry. You needed to take it inside; chickens, pigeons and kids… they were all hazards to the painting.

“Oh! Give me a second.” You said to him.

The painting had turned out satisfying enough for you to showcase and you were proud. Even though you had some interruptions while trying to finish it… you were able to finish it on time.

Jungkook’s eyes followed you as you grabbed it and went inside the house, following behind.

“Were you the one to paint that?” He pointed, as you placed it on the table.

“Yes, I did.” You smiled, proceeding to cover up the painting with a blanket to protect it.

“Then teach me how to paint.”

You quickly turned to him, mouth falling open at his bold unexpected request.

“Pardon?”

“I want you to teach me how to paint, madam.” He said, taking a few steps closer to you.

“I… I’m no teacher, sir. And you are only staying for a couple of days.” You backed up a little.

“What if I wanted to stay longer?” His eyes sparkled.

Silence.

You had a lot of doubts at that moment. A random stranger had appeared out of nowhere and now he wanted to live there. And it's not like he seemed to not have money nor a home. You could tell that he was from a wealthy family because of his clothing.

“Why do you want to stay?” You asked.

“Just a hunch.”

“A hunch?” You repeated him, and he just nodded with a soft smile, showing one of his dimples.

Kitsunes were known to be very intuitive and spiritual, and you knew this very well. But you didn't think there was any purpose in him staying here when he clearly had it all. But you also knew that was a very ignorant thought. Still… why stay here?

A chuckle couldn't help but to escape your mouth at his absurd response. “You are a wealthy kitsune Jeon Jungkook, why would you want to stay here?”

“I may look like I don't, but I prefer simplicity over luxury.”

“And how can I trust you?”

“Give me a month and I'll prove to you and your village that I am worthy of staying here.”

You took a deep breath and exhaled, fear and worry crippling on you.

It wouldn't be fair to not give him an opportunity like the other kitsunes had. And besides… if he were to turn against you all… you not only had two kitsunes as your allies, but also a werewolf, a nymph and a fallen angel. It was a weird combination you had to admit, but a powerful one.

“I’ll talk to the village. But I do not guarantee anything.”

And his smile grew into an enthusiastic grin.

. . .

“I think we were wrong about him.” Your aunt said as you both sipped some chamomile tea on her balcony, watching the kitsune before you try to convince a kid it was time to go to bed after playing with him for hours. It was a funny sight indeed.

“It's only been a week, auntie. At least my trust isn't there yet.”

“Oh, come on. He has bonded with the village so well as if he had lived here for weeks already. People love him; he has helped with so many things.''

“I find it highly amusing how you were the most defensive about him staying here and now look at you.”

The kid had now started to run with Jungkook’s mask and he was now not only trying to get him to bed, but also trying to save his precious dignity.

You snorted out a laugh, making you cover your mouth with your hand, not being able to hold it in anymore.

“Don't come at me with that poop, darling. You like him too.”

“Poop? Seriously? And I do not like him, I only find him amusing.” You shook her head at her with a chuckle.

“You know I do not curse… and you do like him; just with the smile you're making at him right now… it says it all. Maybe… even more than a friend.” She sipped the tea right after.

You choked on your tea. “I do not— cough like him like— cough that.” Eyes watering.

She just shook her head at you knowingly; your reaction was enough for her. You weren't the type to get flustered easily. “Enough with the lying and go get me some apples so we can bake that big apple-pie for tomorrow’s showcase.”

“But I'm comfy right now.” You whined.

“And you are younger than me, so get going. Just ask Jungkook to accompany you like you always do when you are scared of finding spiders.”

“Hey! I can happily go alone.”

“Yeah, and the Earth is flat. Go on now, I'll be waiting inside.” She said, standing up and going inside as said with both of your teacups.

“Ugh!”

Reality was that you did want Jungkook to accompany you. Not only because of the spiders but because you actually liked his company as much as you hated to admit. He was funny, intelligent, caring, sensitive…

What the hell am I even thinking? Remember _____, he is a kitsune and they have the ability to charm; snap out of it.

Still, it wasn't that bad to indulge in those wants… right?

“Kai! Give him the mask back!” You scolded the child.

The kid immediately stopped running and stood straight as a stick, quickly handing the mask to Jungkook.

“Apologize and go to your mother’s house.”

“But I don't wanna go to sleep! The sun is still out.” The kid whined.

“It’s setting down already so you need to go get ready for bed; mother’s rules.”

The kid whined one last time, apologized and left for his house.

“Thanks for that. That was nice of you.” He cleared his throat. “… and hot.” That last part wasn't heard by you.

“Accompany me to the apple trees and we will call it even.”

“Scared of the spiders again?” Jungkook laughed.

You began mocking his laugh. “And do you wanna talk about how a kid took your mask and you couldn't get it back?

His laughter immediately toned down. “Hey! I almost had it in my hands again!”

“Yeah, right.” You started laughing again, remembering the scene.

“Have a nice time with the spiders then.” He smiled knowingly, turning his back at you as he began to walk away.

“Nooo!” You exclaimed at him, grabbing his arm.

You didn't see it. But he was smirking while he had his back turned to you. He liked knowing that you needed him. He wished you needed him more; In all types of ways.

Where the trees resided, wasn't so far away. But it did take a bit to get there. And since the night was starting to set in, you had a little more difficulty seeing even though you brought a lamp with you.

Jungkook on the other hand didn't have any problem with it since he could see at night, he was a fox after all. For that reason he didn't take his eyes off of you, worrying you might fall. But you didn't gladly. Even though he wanted an excuse to touch you.

There were already some lamps surrounding the trees and other crops since sometimes our people needed crops during the night for emergencies or just random hunger.

You quickly began to work using a ladder to lower the apples as Jungkook stayed on the ground waiting for you to throw him the apples so he could put them in the basket. At one point an apple fell on Jungkook’s head and you couldn't help but to laugh at him as he looked at you annoyed. But at the end he couldn't resist laughing too.

After you finished, you decided to take a break close to the nearby pond, drinking some water while you were at it. But Jungkook had other plans, he wanted to take revenge because of the apple on his head.

“Oh my god, _____! There is a big spider crawling on you!” He shouted.

You gasped. “What?! Where?!”

You quickly stood up trying to shake off whatever you had on you. But then you heard Jungkook laughing so loud, tears were forming in his eyes. And that's when it clicked.

“You ass—-” But your words got cut off as you tripped on a heavy branch and fell on your knees.

“Shit, _____. Are you ok?!” Jungkook’s laugh immediately stopped, quickly going towards you to help and check on you.

You sat on the ground and you raised your skirt up till you saw the knee that was hurting. And that's when both of you noticed you were bleeding.

“Fuck. I-I’m sorry, _____. Let me cure you.” he quickly grabbed your knee regretting ever scaring you like that.

Your anger had toned down; now you were more embarrassed than angry.

“I’ll cure myself at home, it’s ok.”

“That’s nonsense when I can just save you some pain by using my powers.”

“Powers?” You tilted your head to the side with a thoughtful look on your face, not remembering anything about kitsunes being able to heal. But, again, you only knew the basics.

“Here, I'll show you.” He said as he carefully straightened your leg for you to be more comfortable.

One of his hands went on top of your wound, being careful not to touch it, while his other hand rested on the backside of your knee. And a blue light began emerging from his hand to your wound.

“It will take a minute or two, so bear with me.” he said as he focused on your knee.

Gladly you didn't feel any pain. But the adrenaline from the scare and the fall began to dissipate and you were now conscious of where he was touching. You didn't want to think of it as anything else so talking was the best option to distract yourself from your body’s reaction.

“You know your little prank is going to cost you an art lesson, right?”

“Oh, come on. I’m healing you. I’m making up for my sin.”

“Pffft.” You laughed. “Don't say it like that, it wasn't that bad.”

“Well I am trying to convince you not to take an art lesson from our week.”

“I don't know why you want them so badly. You already know how to paint. Besides, you never pay attention to my lessons; you…always… stare at my face. I don't know why.” You chuckled nervously. Recalling all the moments he would drift his attention from his canvas to you, making you feel insecure. You kind of wanted an explanation of why he did that so maybe you would stop feeling so self conscious at your lessons.

His eyes lifted up to you for a moment, as if he wanted to say something, but went back to your knee. “I… still need work and you know it.”

“True.” You responded, feeling even more insecure since he didn't comment on the “staring”.

The atmosphere had turned serious and you could feel it, mainly from him. You felt a little bit awkward because of it.

“Done.” The blue light faded and the wound had disappeared; you were completely amazed by it.

“That is amazing. I didn't know kitsunes could do that.” You said, staring at your now healed wound.

But Jungkook didn't say anything back nor did he take his hand or eyes off of your knee; you noticed quickly.

“Jungkook?” You questioned him, nervous you had said something wrong.

His eyes were trailing now to your still covered thighs as his thumb caressed where the wound used to be. And you could feel your heartbeat starting to accelerate.

Your skirt was now being lifted up centimeter by centimeter, slowly and steadily; thigh becoming bare to him before your eyes.

A broken gasp came out of your lips as his hand went up, making him look up at you. Both of you know staring into each other's eyes. The coldness of the night being ignored by your lustful warm body. Your leg was now fully exposed to him to do as he pleased. He didn't stop looking at you as his hand went up and down your thigh with a firm grasp, teasing you; getting dangerously close to your slit with some strokes.

“You still don't get it, huh?”

His head lowered to your inner thigh and began sucking on the skin.

“Fuck…” You said under your breath.

This feeling was new to you; you had never been with a man despising occasional confessions. Yes you had touched yourself, but this was different. You felt your chest fill with an overwhelming lust and slit starting to ache.

After leaving a noticeable red spot, he began kissing the rest of your thigh, momentarily licking a stripe from your knee to your upper thigh and rubbing his forehead against it, ending with a soft bite. After doing so, his eyes returned to yours.

“I stare at you because I think you are beautiful.”

“Not only because of your body but because of who you are.”

“I want to be around you every minute of the day.”

His hand was now stagnant as it laid dangerously close to your slit once more. “Be mine, ______.”

Be mine. You repeated in your head. And that's when you snapped out of it. You remembered they had the gift to get anything they wanted and for you this was an attempt to do so. So you immediately pulled your leg off of his grasp, leaving him with a confused look.

“I-I can’t.” You shook your head scared.

“What?” his eyes were now full of preoccupation as he saw you stand up and walk away from him.

“_____! Wait!” He said as he stood up and grabbed the basket with apples. But you began running, not wanting him close to you as you were scared of him and yourself.

He also began to run towards you calling out to you. He could easily outrun you but he decided to not overwhelm you and just call you from afar.

You continued running despising his calls, eyes blurry from the tears, confused on what to feel or do. It felt like an eternity running, even though it wasn't. That's until you collided with another body, you were going to back away immediately thinking it was him again. But when you were about to run away, the body held you still forcing you to look up and that's when you calmed down a bit.

“____! Are you ok?!” Jimin asked worriedly.

“I… I don't know.”

As Jimin lifted his gaze up to see what you were running from, he saw Jungkook. He was going to confront him until he noticed he was equally as confused. So he decided it was best to leave it like that until he heard you talk.

“Let’s go to my house, Erika is there too so you can talk to us.”

Hearing one of your best friend’s name gave you another reason to calm down.

You nodded.

Before taking you to his house, he gave Jungkook one last look. And he could tell he was worried and at the same time scared. And that gave him the confirmation he needed to wait it out.

As soon as Erika saw you entering through the door, her expression changed.

“____, is everything ok? Did something happen?” she worried as she guided you to the living room’s sofa for you to sit and relax.

“Darling, please bring me a glass of water for her.” She told Jimin and he instantly went to the kitchen to prepare one.

“Please tell me what happened, _____. Don’t leave me worried like sometimes you do. Give me the opportunity to help you once in a while.” Erika said, hand resting on your shoulder.

She knew you very well, how sometimes you would hold onto things to not bother anyone.

Jimin returned with the glass of water and gave it to you.

You drank up a little bit before pondering over what to say. But in the end you concluded it was best to open up to them. One, because you didn't want them to think they were untrustworthy to you. And second, because your best friend was married to a kitsune. And what could be better than advice from a kitsune, himself, and his wife on this situation?

“Erika… Jimin… how– how do you know when a kitsune is mind controlling you?” A mixture of worry and shyness was evident on you, so your eyes stuck to the glass of water to hide them.

But silence was your response. And anxiety was quick to show up.

Is the situation worse than I thought? Did they already realize who I'm talking about? Did I offend Jimin and their relationship? Was I wrong?

Your mind was spiraling with questions. That’s until you decided to look up and face them. And instead of anger or worry, you were greeted with a Jimin who was trying his best to hold his laughter in. But in the end failed.

And all that could be heard was his laughter.

“Welp… prepared to be bullied for the rest of your life.” Erika said to you.

“What?” You were dumbfounded and confused. You just wanted him to finish laughing so you could finally hear his answer.

“Pfffft, it's that what you think we do?” He just continued laughing.

“Jimin, I'm serious. Please answer me.” You grew impatient.

He calmed himself down, whipping tears off of his face. “Fine, fine. I'll calm down now.”

He sat to the opposite side of you; now you were in between them.

“Look _____, I don't know from where you got that information but it's incorrect. Kitsunes do possess the ability to charm but it's because of their natural beauty and art of seduction. It comes natural to us. And it doesn't always work on everybody. Erika… She would be an example. Remember? She was a pain in the ass to conquer.” He rolled his eyes at her.

“What can I say? I just don't give up this piece of ass that easily.” She shrugged and Jimin just shook his head at her.

Red… you were completely red from embarrassment. All this time you were only listening to assumptions from other people and anxiety instead of doing actual research. Like for fuck’s sake you had two kitsunes as you friends. But you just felt embarrassed to ask. Even so, the result was the same: embarrassment. You had learned your lesson.

“Hey… does that mean you never trusted me and Hoseok?” His eyes went into shock mode. As he slowly realized that maybe you never even considered him or Hoseok a friend.

“N-n-no… w-well—-“

“I’m hurt right now.” Jimin said standing up with a pout that was more adorable than intimidating.

“Listen to me! It was only at the beginning but as I got to know you guys I began to trust you with time. And seeing how Erika and Delilah took time to be in a relationship with you guys, then I thought: hey, they are actually trustworthy; they didn't use their powers to make them fall in love.”

“Do you understand what I'm trying to say?” You added.

“Next time just ask us, please. I know us mythical creatures have a bad reputation among humans, but I can assure you, not all of us are snob assholes.” Jimin replied and you just nodded, not able to look him in the eye from the lingering embarrassment.

“Remember, we don't bite.” Jimin’s gaze landed on his wife: Erika. “Unless you want us too.” He winked.

“You are cringe.” Erika replied to his not so subtle innuendo, making you laugh for a moment.

“I agree." An unexpected, but all too familiar voice spoke. All eyes were now on one of the open windows that looked to the balcony where a Hoseok now stood resting his body on the edge of it.

“What the fuck? You were eavesdropping?!” Jimin exclaimed.

“Yes, but that's because I saw the whole thing and got worried.”

“Wait… who else saw what happened?” You quickly asked as embarrassment began to cripple on you once more. You only remember running until you collided with Jimin. But you didn't pay much attention to your surroundings.

“Who cares? What you should be worrying about is how you are going to repay me for defamation and violation of the friend code. Try making me noodles for a week and then maybe I'll forgive you.” Hoseok said.

“Oh! I want too!” Jimin added.

“You guys are asses.” Erika shook her head but then turned her attention to you while the two men planned on how to bother you for the next week.

You had gone into deep thought, analyzing yourself and trying to decipher your feelings towards him. If he wasn't “charming” you, then…

“Do you… do you like him, ____?” Erika read your mind.

Your best friend had deciphered the situation better than you; of course, she was your best friend after all. But…

“I don't know.” you responded as you got up.

“Thank you…for everything…I have to do something now. I’ll see you later! Thank you again!” you said as you rushed out of the door.

“Where are you going-?” You heard Jimin’s faint voice just before you closed the door behind you.

You didn't answer, you just wanted to get to your destination which was anywhere where Jungkook was right now. All you wanted was to apologize even though you still felt ashamed for your previous thoughts.

Your feelings were unsure. But you were sure about one thing: you wanted him to know you were sorry and that things were ok between the both of you.

How do I really feel? The question persisted in your head as you stopped half away, pondering on it, but your feet picked up speed again down the path.

No, I had to see him, I didn’t have a plan of action but I felt after seeing him it will make sense.

Nearby you saw your aunt with the basket of apples heading to her house, which meant Jungkook had been with her. So you immediately went to her and asked if she knew where he had headed, but she also didn't know.

She caught up quickly to the situation, asking you. “What happened between the both of you?”

“N-nothing.” You brushed off as you turned away and left to keep searching for him, ears blocking out your aunt's voice.

You went to your house and searched other parts of the village but he was nowhere to be found. Anxiety had started to creep in and cloud your mind with the possibility that he had left or something had happened to him.

Taking a deep breath in, you continued down the path to the nearby onsen the villagers sometimes visit but at this time most people would be in their homes, it was actually mainly you roaming this path tonight like a suspicious person. But you needed to take a break and calm yourself.

You pushed the bushes away from your face as you peaked at the back entrance of the onsen, the sight took your breath away and stopped your heart momentarily. The sun was setting, painting the sky with warm colors, the smoke from the onsen rising into the air and into the last rays of the sun, gold tinting the onsen and the shirtless man drying his damped hair after he had taken his bath. It was Jungkook, although there was no one else in sight he was wearing his kitsune mask; his hair was in a half up do and his bottom hair was still wet. His torso was still bare; he only had placed a towel around his neck as he gazed at the moon. You could sense the sadness, even though you couldn’t see his expression. He whistled a sad melody, the sight appeared almost like a kitsune crying out to the moon for it to come out.

The shame had returned, killing your determination and making you unsure if to approach him or just leave. But the universe had other plans. Because as the thoughts ran through your mind, something else ran over your hands from holding the bushes, and of course, it was a spider.

You immediately shrieked at the spider, rapidly moving your hand to shake it off. After successfully shaking it off, you noticed the whistling came to a halt and your eyes locked on Jungkook who was now staring your way, so much for stealth.

You needed his mask more than him, to hide from the embarrassment.

Trying not to show embarrassment and reveal your racing heart as you neared him around the onsen.

“...I’ve been looking for you.” You mumbled, not fully being able to look at him fully just yet.

“Are you ok, though?” He stood up and went to you, examining the hand where the unwanted visitor had been.

You nodded and he relaxed.

“It was a spider, wasn't it?”

“Yeah…” you chuckled nervously.

He laughed but his expression dimmed as he remembered. So he backed up and went to sit in one of the benches and took his mask off putting it to the side.

“You ran away from me, I didn't think you’d be looking for me.” He said quietly.

“I know...” You replied quietly too.

“You can sit if you want.” He offered.

You thanked him and sat next to him. Your eyes couldn't stop themselves as they slightly glanced at his body, you had seen it many times before but why was it suddenly making you feel this way, as if you shouldn’t look but also can’t look away. You watched one drop of water slowly making its way down from his chest to his abs.

“It’s pretty, isn't?” he said as he looked at the moon that glanced at you both and the now hidden sun.

“Mhm…” Is all you replied as you secretly referred to his body.

“-about earlier..” He started, startling you out of your intrusive thoughts, making you blush even more.

“Ah..uh..um yes…” You stuttered.

There was a pause.

“I’m sorry.” You both spurted out at the same time. You looked at each other for a second until you both chuckled.

“You don't need to be sorry; I was the one who made you feel uncomfortable.” He smiled as he gazed at the water.

“You… you didn't make me feel uncomfortable. On the contrary… I…” You bit your lower lip as you blushed trying to finish the sentence.

“You liked it?” he finished for you; his eyes searching yours hopeful as yours shied away.

You nodded, staring at your fingers, not being able to look at him; taking advantage of the hair that fell on the side of your face so he couldn't see you blushing.

He bit his lower lip to keep his pleased smile from showing, gaze going to your legs, tempted to continue what he left unfinished earlier. But held himself back, not wanting to scare you again. So he looked away, taking a deep breath to compose himself as his grip on the edge of the bench tightened.

“I owe you an apology, Jungkook. I got scared because of ignorant beliefs.” You continued.

“Can I ask what those were?”

“I…I… thought you were hypnotizing me or…something.”

“Well that’s a compliment.” he smirked.

“Idiot.” you pushed him to the side playfully as he laughed. “I’m just happy I have other kitsunes in my life to explain stuff like this to me.”

“I’m also glad. Because if you didn't, I would've probably lost you after that.” he pushed the strand of hair that had been hiding you from him, behind your ear.

“No… I would've still come to you.” You chuckled. “You are too special to me to lose.”

Oh, how much he wanted to kiss you, but couldn't; not yet.

Your gaze then landed on his mask. “Why were you wearing your mask again? If I may ask?”

“I have a tendency to hide my face when I feel ashamed or angry.” He chuckles a little bit embarrassed. “I guess I use it to hide… my feelings and myself.” He said quietly.

You nodded in understanding; knowing the situation all too well; on your occasion, it was painting that helped you vent those emotions, turning them into something only you understood the entirety of.

“May I look at it?” You asked and he nodded, giving it to you.

You traced your fingers delicately on every feature of the mask; it was as beautiful as him.

“May I put it on?” You asked and he complied once again, never wanting to say no to you. But also because he was curious.

Placing the mask on your face you could smell his scent which made you very pleased.

You giggled. “I like it.” You looked at him, seeing he was smiling at you fondly and intrigued by you. Butterflies filled your stomach and thanked the mask for hiding your blush.

Not knowing how to deal with the emotions, you took off with the mask to tease him and avoid your feelings. “Now it’s mine!” You shouted as you giggled maliciously while running as fast as you can through the trees.

It took him a few seconds to react, not expecting at all what just happened. He wasn't surprised though, as he knew sometimes you could pass as a kitsune because of how naughty you were, especially with him and he liked that the most.

He followed behind you, not even caring to use his powers to outrun you as he was enjoying the chase and hearing you laugh.

But your running was brought to a halt as you encountered a nearby pond you had forgotten about and almost fell into it.

“Shit.” You cursed to yourself. You were about to take another route when a pair of arms grabbed you by the waist from behind abruptly, stopping you.

“Caught you! I won!” He exclaimed happily as he tried to take his mask back but you wouldn't let him.

All that could be heard was the sound of laughter as you both wrestled for the mask. At one point you lost balance and almost fell on your knees, but this time Jungkook softened the fall by holding you tightly, not wanting you to get hurt like last time.

You were about to stand up again but he went on top of you, trapping you.

The atmosphere had changed in a matter of seconds.

“I said… I won.” His voice turned suddenly low, his eyes turning lustful as they bore into you, loving the way you looked underneath him. “Now what do I get in return besides my mask, madam? Surely there must be more prizes for the winner… or does the winner get to choose? Because if so… the winner has a few things in mind already.” His eyes then went to your lips, casually licking his own.

You were flabbergasted by the situation and not in a bad way. Your eyes also went to his lips, but since you were shy, you took the mask and placed it on his face and gave him a kiss on what supposedly was his lips instead and chuckled afterwards oblivious to the tremendous effect it had on him.

“There… that was your—-“

Your mouth couldn't finish the sentence as his lips went for yours immediately after taking his mask off.

The kiss was heavenly for you. It was your first kiss so it was a little bit hard to keep with his needy experienced lips. But, even so, you found your way to reciprocate his kiss and feelings; it was something you wanted as much as he did.

You whimpered softly on his lips, making him stop and rest his forehead on yours with his eyes closed and eyebrows furrowed with his jaw clenched.

He took a deep breath and exhaled, relaxing himself. “You make me go insane, ______. You know that?”

Still on cloud 9 you just proceeded to caress his cheek and scalp. There was a brief moment of silence as he enjoyed your caresses.

“I have something for you, _____.” He broke the silence.

“And what would that be, sir Jungkook?” you playfully responded.

He laid beside you, facing you. Your eyes then went to his hand that was in a fist, blue light grabbing your attention as it went through the open spaces. Once the light vanished, his hand then opened, revealing a necklace with a little crystal jar as a pendant.

“What is that?” you asked.

“_____… I chose you as my mate.”

You sat up as soon as he said those words. You knew what that meant. It meant he couldn't be with anybody else after this, only you. Every tribe of kitsunes had their own ritual to choose a mate; you didn't know what his tribe’s ritual was but all you knew was that you were irritated by it. You never liked the idea of marrying an immortal to later leave alone to suffer for an eternity. It's not that you didn't agree with those types of relationships but it's just something you didn't want for yourself. You knew you were going to be constantly worrying about the future. Hence why you always admired Erika’s relationship by how fearless and in the moment they were.

“Jungkook, why would you do that?!”

“You already know the answer: because I fell for you, _____… and hard.” He sat up too, surprisingly calm to your reaction.

“Are you crazy?! I’m a mortal; I don't even last one century! You shouldn't have done that!” You were now standing.

Tears accumulated in your eyes, making your vision blurry. It was a reaction that even for you was unexpected; it made you realize how much you cared for him.

“What if I don't love you back, huh?! And what if I die tomorrow? What are you going to do then?!”

The tears were falling freely now. But they were interrupted by the pass of his caress.

“I already know the consequences, _____. And I don’t mind facing them.” He laid a kiss on your cheek, calming you.

“How… how are you not scared?” You hiccupped, wiping your tears away.

“Because my heart is where it belongs. And I knew from day one that you were my person; I could sense it as if… I had met you in another life; and I wasn't in the wrong.” He calmly assured you with a smile. “Now hold your hair up.”

You hesitated a bit but complied.

“This signifies my commitment to you; I want to marry you, _____.” Jungkook explained as he went behind you and placed the necklace on your neck.

“Jungkook, I don't think I'm there yet.” You shook your head and eyes began to water again; scared. But he continued clasping your necklace.

“The jar contains seven flowers. Each time you experience romantic love for me, one will bloom. Once the 7th has bloomed, that means you have fallen deeply in love with me and that’s when I'll marry you. In other words: I’ll wait for you.” He continued to clean your tears. “And even if they never bloom, and you want someone else… it will be ok. I’m not gonna lie to you, it will hurt.” He chuckled. “But knowing I'll still have you as a friend, would be enough for me.”

You couldn't understand how he was so sure after spending such a short period of time with you. You were scared for him; you didn't want him to live an unhappy life because of you and his decision.

But… At the same time, your heart couldn't resist feeling overjoyed at his words and the thought of spending the rest of your life with him.

Your hands then went to the pendant to examine it. It had flowers inside of it, seven different types of flowers about to bloom. You found it incredible how small they were; it was like a miniature garden inside of the jar.

“Can this be undone, the mate thing is only if i wear it, right?” You spoke more calmly now.

She is so cute. He thought to himself, chuckled and wrapped his arms around you, hugging tightly.

“You know... I have many things I love about you, but you worrying about us and our future, just drawns me even more." He smiled. " And no, it can't be undone because the necklace was made specifically for you; I've already committed to you to my creator: Inari.”

“Please ____, stop worrying. I've lived long enough to know that you are the only one for me. I’m going to be ok regardless; I just wanted you to know that my heart belongs to you.” He added.

You took a deep breath and exhaled, closing your eyes as your head rested on his chest; hearing his literal heart beat. You were overwhelmed and scared but you knew it was just anxiety talking. He was determined and you needed to remind yourself that he had lived centuries before you; that he had lived almost through every trial in life and that he was mature and wise enough to make this decision. You also reminded yourself that as long as you had each other, it was all going to be fine. And that living in the moment is what truly matters.

“Let’s go back before my aunt sends Jimin or Hoseok to find me; she knew something was off when I last talked to her.” You broke from his embrace. “…Or worse… Yoongi.”

“Who is Yoongi?” Jungkook asked, amused by your reaction to his name.

“He is a fallen angel and he is scary when he is mad.” You said as you walked the path back to the village, Jungkook followed behind.

“Why? He gets violent?” He asked, concerned.

“No! Not at all! He is just very strict. But let me tell you… he is very sweet under that hard shell he has and makes the best apple pie in the village… don’t tell my aunt I said that, please.” You said making him chuckle.

“Is it that good?” he asked, intertwining his hand with yours.

“Oh, yes! Wait till you try it! Yoongi has made it for me since I was little.” You squealed in excitement.

“Is that so?” he asked, intrigued but also in a trance with your beauty, like always.

And so the conversation continued to the village, without you realizing a flower had already bloomed: a Larch.

. . .

Everything was under a different light now. Every gesture, action and affectionate words were now felt differently. The feelings of love you neglected of him were now finally showing their colors, blossoming into something beautiful just like the flowers that rested on your neck.

Seven flowers… And one had already bloomed.

The second one, a Rumex, bloomed as his hand caressed your hair, both laying on your bed while he told you various stories from his childhood; one of them being how he had learned how to paint; and the others just showed you how naughty he was of a fox when a kid. All so you could fall asleep during the raging thunderstorm.

The third flower, a Spirea, bloomed when he told you how beautiful you were as you focused on your painting.

The fourth flower, a Buttercup, slowly bloomed as you both splashed each other with water in the nearby river and later on played hide and seek with the kids from your village; laughter and joy not seeming to cease.

The fifth flower, a Clematis, bloomed after reconciling on your first fight; making you understand that love isn't always perfect and that was ok. Because if the love is truthful, it is always bound to prevail over any circumstance or pride. That's what makes it so beautiful.

The sixth flower, a Sweershrub, bloomed when you saw him help an elder of the village to find and pick her favorite flowers for her balcony. Later on, bringing one for you too; one that he had found and had “thought of you” as he admired it.

The seventh flower… the last one… had bloomed as your hands cupped his cheeks and eyes went to his lips right after you had hugged him because he had finally shown you the painting he had been making; a painting where he had drawn you so beautifully as you concentrated on your own painting; it was so detailed and colorful, full of love… you just wanted to kiss him at that moment. But timidity overshadowed the courage to do so once again. And he himself had to restrict himself from kissing you as he knew very well that that kiss was just going to be fuel to the fire, and his body wasn't going to be able to be stopped from taking what it had been wanting. So he gently removed your hands and gave them soft kisses; apologizing before leaving you alone, wanting more from him; for him to love you.

“A tiger lily…” You stared at your reflection on the mirror of the vanity table, holding the pendant.

You sat there, amazed how all of them had bloomed so quickly. You also debated on when to tell him; for you it was a little bit embarrassing that your feelings were out there like that physically. For that reason you didn't always have it on your neck; sometimes it was in your pockets or as a bracelet. Although… he never paid much attention to it; he was more focused on just being with you. You did sometimes catch him looking but he would immediately look away. As if he reminded himself to not put pressure on you and just be happy that you were together even as friends.

There was a knock at the door, startling you since it was in the middle of the night. But then you remembered that Jungkook usually likes to sleep over. So you wrapped a blanket around you, not wanting your exposed skin to be seen, and went to the door to open it; revealing what you were already expecting: a smiling Jungkook with a pillow under his arm.

“I should start charging you for the overnight stays.” You joked as you walked towards the kitchen leaving him to close the door.

“But you won't because you like me being here.” He teased back as he entered, following you.

“Well maybe I don't; you always leave a mess on the couch.”

“But you enjoy my breakfasts so you won't kick me out. And I don't always leave a mess, madam.” He smiled.

You rolled your eyes playfully. “Not after the over-salted eggs you gave me last time.”

“Hey! It was an accident.” He immediately started tickling your belly as punishment, making you laugh hysterically. You tried to escape his grasp but he held you from behind to not let you escape.

“Jungkook stop! I’m going to pee myself.” You laughed as your eyes watered; he grew weak as he began laughing at your comment and you took the opportunity to escape, and in that attempt to push him off, your blanket fell off, leaving you only on your satin nightgown that exposed your breasts through the fabric while a strap fell off your shoulder, making it worse for you.

As soon as your skin came in contact with the cold breeze, you realized what had just happened and gasped, backing away a bit, lifting the nightgown strap back up. You quickly looked at him, embarrassed. And you saw how his eyes had just finished scanning your body, going from your perked up breasts to your face. You couldn't take any longer the insecurities so you went to grab the blanket to cover yourself up again. But as you pulled the piece of fabric, something interfered: Jungkook's foot, stepping on it.

You stepped back, letting the blanket fall, looking at him with an arm around your breasts as you tried to decipher what he was thinking.

If a needle were to fall, it would be heard; silence and tension was all there was. But not a bad kind of tension…

He walked to you, taking extra steps as you instinctively stepped back, colliding with the kitchen counter. Even though you wanted him, it was your first time and it was instinct to hide yourself.

He removed your arm that covered your breasts, exposing them to him again. You hesitated a bit.

“Let me see you.” He stated.

Your eyes were glued to his lustful gaze on your breasts; his eyebrows slightly furrowed as he tried to restrain himself.

Softly he grazed your neck moving to your collarbone… finally landing on your breast, grasping it firmly; and without warning, his mouth went to your bud and began savoring it, despising the fabric that was in between. Your gasp was followed by a moan and slight twitch of your body as pleasure was felt.

Hearing you moan made his movements more passionate and rough, switching between breasts. He wanted to see and hear more. His sucks were loud and licks were lewd; flicking your exposed nipples and nibbling on them occasionally; all while he massaged your breasts aggressively.

As your lips parted from pleasure, he took the opportunity to collide his mouth with yours as your lips looked too pretty like that to pass the invitation. His hand then traveled from your breast to your neck where the necklace resided. And as soon as his hand brushed the chain, that's when he remembered.

His jaw clenched as he forced himself to remove his lips from yours, It took him every ounce of self restraint to complete that task. But went through it successfully, making you whimper softly from frustration at the loss of his sweet sinful mouth.

He rested his forehead on yours with eyes closed and untamed breaths as he tried to control the animal inside of him that only wanted to claim you before anybody else could.

“It was a mistake for me to come here. And I should stop coming over; it's dangerous for me and for you; I apologize.” He states due to the fact that it was getting harder for him to hold himself back, before stepping away and going towards the door at a fast pace.

“The flowers bloomed, Jungkook.” You made him stop on his tracks.

You wanted this too.

“What?” He asked, not because he didn't understand you, but because he couldn't believe it for a moment.

“All the flowers bloomed… yesterday, the last one blossomed; I noticed it today.” You smiled, excited but nervous at the same time.

He went back to you and picked the pendant, seeing every flower grown and colorful.

He smiled and lightly chuckled, placing his forehead on yours and hands on the counter behind you trapping you, relieved he no longer had to hold himself together when he was around you.

His fingers now held your chin, making you look at him. “You don't know how fucking hard was it to hold back and not fuck you like you are meant to be fucked, _____.” He said so casually; eyes physically changing and a pair of fangs now visible.

You weren't surprised by his choice of words since you knew how they behaved when they were in heat or just needy; sadly you know about this because you had to hear your friend, Erika, talk to you about her and Jimin’s sex life occasionally; more specifically when she had an “amazing night”; you always had to shut her up mid speech before you puked. But at least it helped you get to know a little better how kitsunes worked, or any other hybrid that was part animal.

His eyes… You thought to yourself as their pupil was now slit. Just like a fox.

“Beautiful…” You thought out loud, boring into his eyes; finally being able to see part of his fox side.

And that was enough to send him off edge.

“This nightgown doesn't hold any sentimental value to you, correct?” He asked.

“No, why—“

You gasped as one of his now exposed claws had cut through the middle of the night gown, ripping off the rest with his hands and pushing off the straps from your shoulders and throwing the gown to a side. You were now fully exposed to him. To you, it felt so weird to be naked in front of a man and you also felt self conscious. But the man that was in front of you was one that you deeply loved and trusted your body with; you wanted to give him all of you and you were ready to face and overcome your insecurities with him.

Your arms went to your breasts, but he was quick to remove your arms and place them on your sides, whispering to your ear, “Stop doing that or I'll tie your arms.”

He began tracing his fingers slowly starting from your hip’s stretch marks to the curve of your waist, passing your aroused nipple (making you shiver); ending on your neck followed by grasping it.

“Beautiful.” He repeated your words. “Just like imagined.”

You blushed once more; asking yourself if he had touched himself to the thought of you; the thought alone made you even wetter and wanting to hear more of what he wanted to do to you. Oh, how dirty you felt.

So the words came out of your mouth intrusively, “What else do you imagine?”

He was also taken back by your sudden loss of shyness. But reality was that, you were still scared. Nevertheless, you wanted him even so.

“Do you really want to know, darling?” The grip on your neck tightened, playing with his prey.

“Ye-es.” You almost moaned, loving his hand over your neck.

His mouth attacked yours desperately, connecting your tongues. The hand that held your throat, now positioning your head for easier access; his other hand pushed your crotch towards his so he could grind himself on you and get some relief from his aching cock.

“Go to the couch.” He broke the kiss, his loud pants overshadowing yours.

He had so much control over you; you complied so quickly. Yet, what you didn't know was the amount of control you had over him. Not only because of the smell of your arousal or your naked body, but because of the way you looked at him as if you were high on him; it was driving him nuts. He wanted to be gentle with you… oh how he wanted to. But you just made it so difficult for him… always.

Your living room had two sofas on either side of your wooden coffee table; facing each other.

He followed behind, eye-fucking your ass. He also grabbed the nearest canvas and some paints and pencils, making you curious of what he was going to do.

You stood awkwardly in front of one, waiting for him to give you instructions.

“You do not get to be shy now after you asked me what I think of when I touch myself.” He softly chuckled.

“D-don’t be an ass.” You retorted; somehow enjoying that you could still tease each other even during sex.

He chuckled again. But his expression went back to the previous one: fox eyes full of raging lust. It was like two different people.

An easel was already in front of one of the sofas since you had decided this morning to paint an idea that had come to mind… so it made it easier for him.

He placed the canvas on the easel followed by the words, “Sit.” And you complied.

He was on the other couch facing you as he grabbed a pencil.

Is he… is he going to draw me naked? You thought to yourself, only to be answered afterwards as if he had heard you.

“You asked me what I thought when I touched myself… then I’m going to show you; don't know how much self control I'll have, though.” He said sincerely as he took out his cock out of his lower attire.

You loved the way it looked with cum already dripping from the tip.

“I’m going to paint you bare before me while I touch myself.” He said, already beginning to stroke his cock, breaths of air longer and broken. “And I don't want you touching yourself, do you understand?”

You nodded, rubbing your thighs together, needing some kind of friction.

“But you are going to spread your legs.”

This is going to be hard for me to not touch myself. You thought.

And slowly, and a bit embarrassed, you exposed to him your dripping cunt.

He swallowed hard, thinking to himself that this was going to be harder than he thought. But he still wanted to show you how fucked up you made him all the time. Plus he was enjoying the anticipation before he fucked you like he wanted to.

His other hand gripped hard on the pencil as he began to draw you. He began doing the basics of the painting… your face… the form of your body… and then began adding some details. But the truth is, the drawing was sloppy since he was enjoying more tracing your body with his own eyes; admiring it; memorizing it and plotting ways he was going to fuck you. All while he was stroking himself, squeezing his balls occasionally.

He looked so beautiful: eyebrows furrowed and mouth opened as he cursed and breathed heavily while giving himself pleasure. You wanted to touch yourself so badly…

“Spread the lips of your cunt for me.” He panted. “I wanna see your hole begging for my cock.”

For you that was even more torture since you just wanted to rub your clit or have him touch you or be inside you. But you did it anyway, making him hiss and grunt as his hips thrusted forward instinctively as he saw how it was pulsating from need.

“Fuck.” He clenched his jaw.

The painting was long gone, abandoned. And all that could be heard was the sound of his moans/grunts and hand stroking himself.

This was too much for you, seeing him like that… and your slit aching for him… your fingers just slipped inside you without you noticing as you looked at him touching himself to you.

“Jungkook...” You whimpered as you closed your eyes for a second, focusing on the feeling; your other hand now touching your breast.

The crash of the easel, canvas and pencil with the floor made you open your eyes again. Jungkook had pushed it to the floor and was now moving towards you.

He pushed your back to the couch and held your legs while he aligned himself on your entrance, spitting on his cock to use as additional lube.

“Jungk—-“ you were going to protest because he was going too fast but it was already too late. His cock was already inside of you, pounding you hard.

“Shit!” You yelped as your eyes watered from the sting.

“I wont be gentle, _____.” He grunted as he pounded into you. “But I’m going to make you feel good, I promise.”

It felt so different from your fingers for obvious reasons. There was a mixture of pain and pleasure and you didn't know how to react; you were confused. But one thing was for sure: you felt full and in ecstasy with him finally inside you. And you just wanted more even on uncomfortableness.

Had you just discovered you were a masochist? Probably.

One of your hands went to his and grabbed it, guiding it over your neck. You wanted him to hold you there; you liked the feeling.

“You keep playing with fire, _____. Do you want me to break you?!”

You nodded, too overwhelmed by lust and pleasure to speak.

He cursed.

Your arm was grabbed and in a matter of seconds you were flipped over. You were on your knees, forehead pressed to a cushion by his hand on your nape. This position allowed him to go faster.

Since you were looking down, he grabbed you by your hair and positioned your head sideways.

“Don't want to miss those pretty reactions you make while you take my cock.” You moaned at his words as he thrusted harshly into you, making you yelp.

“Touching yourself and then asking me to hold you by your neck? What a dirty virgin you are. You really don't want me to go easy on you, huh?” He added.

Every word he said, your body reacted to it. And he knew by the way you were squeezing in on him, which you could tell he loved by the way he cursed under his breath.

“Such a slut… my slut.” He commented; his hand never leaving your nape as he fucked you.

He then lowered himself on you, pushing you down to the sofa, your bodies now touching as he pounded you deep. His thrusts were now more paused but each thrust was harsh and loud.

“Feels so good.” You whimpered.

“I know, beautiful.” He whispered into your ear and licked a stripe of the shell and bit it softly.

You were drooling at this point; so focused on him, his sounds and touches. You also knew for sure that your ass was going to be bruised and red as fuck after this by how hard he had be fucking you. Not only were you probably weren't going to be able to stand up tomorrow, but also sit. You were fucked. But it was worth it to you.

“I’m close.” He grunted as he picked up the pace again, lifting your ass up again; both of his hands digging into your hips; more bruises you knew you were gonna have tomorrow.

You turned your head sideways to watch when he came. But you were also enjoying how his eyes never left your cunt as it took him so nicely.

“You were made for me, _____. Your pretty little tight cunt was made to take my cock.” He panted, high on you.

Suddenly, one of his harsh thrusts came with a sharp pain on your shoulder, extending to your neck; feeling drops of a warm liquid dripping from it; it was your blood. He had bitten you as he came inside you. You were now full of his cum, scent and with a mark claiming you as his.

It was so fast that it didn't give you time to react. But the pain was still there, he could see it on your face. So he licked the area to soothe you and clean it, giving your neck and shoulder kisses afterwards. He still didn't pull out.

“Mine finally.” He said burying his nose on your neck, smelling the mixture of your scent with his; he couldn't get enough of it. He couldn't get enough of the idea that you were all marked up by him; it was satisfying.

“You ok, love?” He asked, checking your wound to see if it stopped bleeding.

“Y-yes.” You replied, still surprised by the bite. You had forgotten when Erika had told you about the bite they give you when it's your first time together; it injects the pheromones into you; marking you as his not only by smell but physically.

“You haven't orgasmed yet, right?” He asked, still inside of you, laid on your back as his breathing returned to normal.

“No… sorry; I thought that was going to be enough.” You apologize, somehow feeling guilty that you didn't come during the intercourse. But again, you were new to this. You only knew some things because of Erika.

I should’ve listened more to her even if I puked afterwards. You thought.

“Love, why are you apologizing? That is perfectly normal; please don't force anything; just enjoy my touch.” He said, finally pulling out, pleased to see that you were filled to the brim with his cum.

You relaxed at his words but whimpered as he pulled out, missing feeling full.

“Turn around for me.”

You were facing him now as he hovered over you. He kissed you… lips now more gentle but full of passion; occasionally licking your lower lip.

His hand then slipped to your cum dripping cunt, playing with your folds before going down on you.

“W-wait! What are you doing?” You quickly questioned as his head was now between your legs; still insecure of your body.

But he ignored you.

“What a pretty sight.” He almost moaned seeing your hole still filled with his cum.

“I'll paint this next, what do you think?” He smirked at you and you blushed looking away.

His thumb circled your clit a bit before spitting on it, making it easier for him to pleasure you. But he did not miss the almost silent moan you released seeing him do that.

He smirked, once more. “You really like that, don’t you? When I spit on you.”

“Can— Can you stop teasing me?!” You said annoyed/flustered and he giggled.

He chuckled. “I knew it… that look you gave me when I spat on my cock was enough to let me know.“

He gave your clit more rubs while he hovered over you again.

“Open.” He gestured to your lips with his eyes.

Confusion was evident on your face, not understanding but you still complied.

“My slut is so well mannered; now stick your tongue out for me.”

A ball of spit fell from his mouth into your tongue.

“Swallow.”

It was embarrassing for you how quickly you complied and wanted more.

What is wrong with me?

You were discovering things about yourself that you never imagined existed.

“You want another one, doll?” He asked, begging for you to say yes as he was also enjoying every second of it. He never knew he was going to like this as much as he does right now; but maybe it was just because this was another way for him to mark you.

You nodded, opening your mouth again. And he smirked.

Another ball of spit fell into your mouth. And this time he continued with a kiss, connecting your tongues.

Every touch, kiss, action… was guiding you towards your high and you were starting to feel it. And he could see it by the way you were grinding your hips on his hand.

He lowered his face to your cunt, taking a whiff of it. “So good.” He moaned before sucking your clit.

You were a moaning whimpering mess by the way his tongue was going so fast on your bud; taking a few whiffs in between as he loved the way you smelled. At this point all his lower face was covered in your fluids. And he didn't mind one bit.

His other hand was now stroking his cock.

He is hard again.

You wanted to touch him so badly too but you were about to come.

Maybe next time. You thought.

But you did have one request. “Jungkook, I’m close. I want you to— to touch my clit with your cock.”

He didn't think twice to do so, wanting to make you go crazy for him, to lose all sense of reason for him, to just think of him only him. He wanted to break you.

“Fuck, I love you so much.” He cursed loving how lewd you were when about to climax.

Occasionally he would slap his cock on your clit as he rubbed himself on your clit, making your body jolt from overstimulation.

“fu— uck, Jungkook!” You grabbed onto his arm while you rode your high on his dick.

You had come before by your own hands but this… this was way different.

Jungkook, seeing your climax, also came on you, strings of semen landing on your belly and tits.

As you came down from cloud nine, he left wet kisses on your neck and then switched to your lips, connecting them.

He broke the kiss, resting his forehead on yours with his eyes closed as he caressed your cheek with his thumb. “Finally… mine.” He exhaled in relief as if he had held his breath all these months that he was with you. Because even though he told you that it would be ok if you didn't feel the same way, reality was that he knew very well it wasn't going to be ok for him; he knew that being with you and not being able to touch you… kiss you… hold you… make love to you… or just watching you with another man… was going to be torturous and unbearable pain. But he was willing to go through it just so he could see you everyday and make sure you were ok.

“I love you.” You said to him, wanting to reassure him you weren't going anywhere and that your feelings were true.

He chuckled as he sighed. “That just makes me want to go for round two. But I know you are tired and sore already so I will save that round two for later.”

You lazily chuckled; body so relaxed…

He noticed your heavy eyelids so he picked you up bridal style and took you to your bed. The sudden gesture shocked you a little bit but later relaxed in his arms.

After he gently laid you on the bed, he left the room and came back with a damped towel and proceeded to clean you up. As he did, your enamored eyes went from his face to his beautiful body, focusing on his caring actions. But the scars of the injury you cured grabbed your full attention after. Till this day you hadn't asked him what exactly he was running from and who had hurt him; it had been four months already. There were some times where you wanted to speak about the subject, but decided not to; scared of making him remember something he didn't want to. But right now, you felt so in tune with him; like your souls had reached their peak in connecting… that it gave you tranquility; you just knew he was willing to share his vulnerability with you.

“Jungkook… what were you running from that day?” You finally asked, his eyes quickly going up to you.

He was definitely not expecting that question now but he was already preparing for it; he knew you both would eventually talk about the subject. But he didn't mind; even if it meant going back to such a miserable past. You were his and he was yours, and he wanted to share everything with you.

“My family.” He said as he kept cleaning you.

You were shocked; that was an answer you were definitely not expecting. You were expecting maybe thieves… someone who just didn't like him… or just bad people in general. But his own blood? No.

“Why, if I may ask?” You said, now sitting on the bed.

“You can ask all you want, beautiful.” He smiled, rubbing your thigh as a sign of reassurance.

“They just… didn't like the idea of me going against their— no, her word.” He chuckled softly, but there was pain evident in his eyes.

“Her?” You asked curious of who he was referring to.

“My mother, it was always her and everyone followed… my whole childhood consisted of her controlling every little thing of my life; even the way I dressed. But as i got older, I began to rebel; starting with my hobbies… that's when I learned how to paint.”

It's incredible for you how well he hid the pain and reality of his childhood when he talked to you about it. He always told you the nice memories but never the bad ones. And you could tell there were a lot of bad ones.

“I changed the way I dressed; I got piercings and tattoos… I always got shit for it but I didn't care; I could take it… that's what I always said.” He continued.

And damn does he look good… You were happy he got the courage to be himself.

“But my tolerance was cut short when she forced me to marry a woman from a well known vampire clan. Apparently she got interested in me at one of the many balls I attended. And since she belongs to a very rich and powerful clan… it was all about gain.”

He threw the towel away and went to rest beside you, laying his head on your thigh. He took your hand and placed it on his head. And you already knew what it meant: he wanted pets.

“So I ran before the wedding could take place. But she found out and went looking for me; she sent my two brothers to search for me. The commitment they had to find me was astonishing because I was already far far away when they found me. And that's… that's when my own two brothers that I grew up with, almost… killed me.”

His last two words sounded doubtful, as he still couldn't believe that had happened.

“They tried to talk it out at first but when I kept refusing… all they said was that they didn't have another choice. I was always the strongest one out of the three so that’s the reason why she sent them both. But… even so, I managed to escape and lose them.”

You wiped the tears that had not gone unnoticed by you.

“Damn, I'm crying?” He chuckled and you nodded.

“It’s ok.” You reassured and kissed his hand that cleaned his eyes.

That action secretly drives him crazy.

“I ran all I could; I remember passing a lot of trees. And then… I saw you. Even though I was in pain, once my eyes laid on you I felt that you were someone who was going to be really important to me; I could feel it; as if we had known each other in a past life. But at the same time I was doubtful; probably because my intuition was being clouded with my fight or flight instinct; but once I saw you turn back because of a spider.. I knew I was ok and that you weren't going to hurt me.”

“I don't know if to feel flattered or insulted.” You said making him snort out a laugh.

“So that spider technically made you trust me?”

“Yeah… I thank that spider every day. Because otherwise, I would’ve probably just bled out.”

That was scary just thinking about; knowing that there could’ve been a possibility where you didn't meet each other. You look back and you for the first time in your life… feel thankful for a spider showing up.

“In that case, I'm grateful for the spider too.” You both laughed.

Your fingers kept running his hair while his eyes closed, enjoying your touch like always. There was silence but it was a comfortable one. As you sat there giving him affection, your eyes scanned all his features. Still admiring his beauty as if it was the first time you saw him.

“You are so beautiful.” Those words just needed to come out from your mouth.

His eyes opened with a shocked flustered expression; he was blushing and moved one of his hands to cover half of his face as if it was helping cover the obvious blushing cheeks and ears. He always did that when he got shy.

You chuckled at his cuteness. “Too bad I'm gonna get old and won't match your youthfulness.” You chuckled again but this time a bit more sad.

His expression changed to a more serious one. “Why are you thinking like that?”

“Because… my body will change and… I won't be able to keep up with… you know… your needs.”

The harsh truth; one that had been bothering you for a while now but tried your best to ignore it; you wanted to live in the moment after all. But the problem was that you wanted to make him happy always; to please him and be there for him when he needed you just like he does for you now. You didn't want to lose that ability. Because you knew for a fact he was going to love you unconditionally but it was still going to be hard for you.

He sat now, placing a hand on your cheek. “_____, look at me. Your hair will turn gray and your skin will prune. But your smile won't change, the way you make me laugh won't change, the way you love won't change, your fear of spiders probably won't change either.”

“Hey!” You protested.

“And your way of knowing me so well… the way you have me at the palm of your hands… the way you turn me on… won't change either. All those things are what made me fall deeply in love with you.”

“Even if my ass and tits drop?” You raised an eyebrow.

“Oh my god, ____. Yes, I will love you even if your ass and tits drop.” he rolled his eyes and began to laugh and you joined.

You were in love; mad, mad in love.

“In other words… Till my end comes, you will always have my heart. Even after our inevitable parting happens, I'll never let go of you.”

Tears unavoidably fell from your eyes as you smiled; feeling so lucky and so loved. Was this the world reciprocating all the love you gave to it al this time?

“Besides, we can just make potions for stamina and endurance. If you know what I mean.” He winked and smirked.

You slapped his arm and began laughing. “You had to ruin the moment you fucking degenerate.”

“Only if it's you.” He stuck his tongue out, stopping it between his teeth with deviousness in his eyes; a playful flirty expression he tended to make.

He really never failed to make you flustered, shy or blushed even if it was sometimes corny. It was something that you knew that even if decades passed, you would still experience.

“I hope I get to see you in my next life too, Jungkook.”

“Oh believe me, I will always find my way back to you.”

And as always, that sincerity in his eyes was undoubtedly one of your biggest weaknesses. Your lips couldn't help but to reach for his.

Now the next thing was to plan the wedding. You didn't have any ideas yet. But one thing was for sure. And that was that Yoongi was going to make the pastries. It was a perfect excuse to make him do pie.

Sorry Yoongi.

#jungkook x reader #jungkook #hybrid jungkook x reader #smut #kitsune #bts #fantasy #human x kitsune #fluff #romantic #past lives #fanfic #one shot #jungkook fic

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mynameisjag · 9 months ago

Text

Because I gotta.

Give me the feral man, give me the beastie who has probably been avoiding human contact as much as possible except to get drunk off his ass. This man has no idea of his own universe's tech, you think he has a chance understanding the one he has been kidnapped into? No. Bastard stinky man, feral, sad looking fucker…I adore him.

He needs to be more animalistic.

One would think by now, Wade would have experienced and seen what the multiverse had to offer.

Working with people over seeing different timelines did that.

So did being aware of the ‘audience’ and their many eyes.

Still, watching an almost naked knockoff werewolf scuttled across the room on all fours with what appeared to be a bloody carcass of some kind of animal in his mouth while growling like a demented cat, it was surprising.

“Well, chat, can I ask, what is this r rated looney tunes bullshit? Hey, Tasmanian Devil’s estranged cousin, you better be cleaning this up soon! We just got these floors!”

And Logan was already in the bedroom with his catch, probably hunkered down in his hammock and going to town some poor innocent creature’s remains.

“Whatever, I do cocaine, I have no room to judge.”

Sure enough, stepping over the trail of blood and pushing the door open revealed what he already expected to find. The crunch of bones and squelching of raw meat being chewed on, blown out brown eyes were glaring at him and a gutteral snarl giving warning.

“Easy there, boy, just checking up on ya, seems you brought home dinner for yourself tonight, didn’t even get me anything?”

The snarling stopped and the bloody remains were held out to him, the little head tilt would be cute if not for the smear of gore across his concerned face.

Actually it was still cute.

“Awe, thank you! But I’m good…and he’s going back to eating that, well…I’m going to go throw up now and contemplate the merits of becoming a vegetarian…so…how about a time skip for everyone's sake?”

With a time skip activated, cleaned floors appearing and a still half naked Logan chilling on the couch scratching Mary Puppins behind the ears as she chewed on bone with drool going everywhere.

Some of that drool might be Wade’s but who could blame him, but he had to pull himself together and not be distracted by the feast for the eyes and focus on the feast of the flesh that happened in the bedroom and not the fun type.

“Hey, honey, can we take a minute away from the,” he glanced at the show, “huh, didn’t think that was still going…no, focus Wade…right, Logan, my little murder puppy…the fuck did I just witness?”

“Got hungry, went hunting, ate.”

“Right, and the, not that I’m complaining about the view because I should be taking pictures, but why were you half dressed on all fours, should I be concerned?”

“Easier to hunt…comfortable…”

“Alright…”

Okay, let’s give the big guy a moment…

Shrugging before plopping down nearly on top of the man, Wade just grinned at the sharp look sent his way as Dogpool jumped down and carried her prize off somewhere.

It took two episodes in before Logan huffed, voice barely audible over the TV as he finally spoke.

“…people hated me back home…when they hate you…you tend to be unwelcomed in most if not every place…hotels…bars…stores…”, bare hands were flexing, dark fingernails just slightly pointed and severely cracked, “you get used to the surviving…you get used to avoiding those places…”

Wade reached over to grab one of the hands, flipping it over to trace a pattern in the rough palm, “but they don’t hate you here? You can go in and if they try to stop you or have anything to say about it…then they won’t have a choice in the matter after I visit them.”

The smirk he sent to the ex X-man, wasn’t that a strange combination of words, was met with huff.

“…it’s the crowd of people, the smells, the sounds…it brings back the memories…but staying inside is like a slow torture…hunting and losing myself made it easier to cope.”

“Trust me, if anyone knows anything of trying to make yourself disappear using whatever is available for just a moment of not having to think of what kind of shit haunts you…its me…”

“Hmm…”

“So if being the feral little man you are makes you feel better, just little heads up next time, your hammock is still dripping blood on our new floors.”

#jag is in a mood #speed wrote this #like i was possessed #so please excuse the flow #wolverine #deadpool #deadpool and wolverine #ficlet #enjoy this so its no longer in my head #feral bastard man needs to be more feral #poolverine

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am-i-the-asshole-official · 1 year ago

Note

Are my parents and I the assholes for insinuating that my aunt and uncle's dog should be put down?

I (21F) hate one of my aunt and uncle's current dogs. They rescue old racing dogs and have done for like 15 years now. Their first two dogs I loved. First one was a bitch in both senses of the word, but she was funny and well behaved when it was important. Second one was a true gentle giant and a lovely boy. The second pair they've adopted though are a nightmare.

Alice, the current bitch they have, has suffered some form of trauma in her past. There are three years missing from her medical history and she's got some scars, so we'll never know exactly what happened but something did. She's a very nervous dog. She can be a sweetie, and they were making progress with her until they got the new one. Alice, however, does what more dominant dogs around her do, which has become a problem.

Enter Blue. Blue is genuinely dangerous. Blue snaps with no previous warning and tries to kill things. My family all know about dogs, this isn't us misreading his body language, he is giving no warning then going for the throat. He's taken a particular dislike to mum (who is usually a bit of a dog whisperer) and has got her in the hand a few times. Blue also tries to kill any dog who doesn't share his breed. We were in a restaurant, sitting outside, Blue saw a Beagle and before any of us could do anything he'd pulled my uncle backwards off of his chair and dragged him towards this poor dog. My uncle is a big man, 6" and not thin, so you can imagine the strength it took for Blue to drag him like a doll (the Beagle and owner got away DW).

I've disliked Blue for a while, but what made me actually hate him was that, when my aunt and uncle came to see us just after our own elderly dog had passed, Blue walked into our sitting room and pissed on the carpet. He's house trained and has never done this before. I think he was doing it territorially because he could smell that our dog was dead. I've never wanted to kick an animal before, but I did then and had to excuse myself before I caused a scene.

Cut to yesterday. We were in the pub having a family meal. Blue is muzzled now in public after the last restaurant incident. There was a family sitting across the room from us with a very little girl, 3 or 4 years old I'd say. She was looking at Alice and trying to get her attention from across the room. As her mum got up to take her to the toilet, the girl pointed at our table and asked to see the dogs. Her mum asked us if it was okay. My aunt agreed. The little girl came over. Alice immediately hid under the table.

My aunt was like "ooh sorry, she's shy, why don't you say hello to Blue".

Blues head pops up. The mum sees he's wearing a muzzle and tries to pull her daughter away from him but the kid was too quick and went to pat him on the head. He was super chill with it, pressed into her palm like he wanted harder pets, then with no warning growl, no tensed up body language, nothing, just lunges for the kid.

Obviously she's terrified. The mum is terrified and pulls her away. My uncle grabs hold of Blue's leash and my aunt is ineffectually going "oh no blue bad boy" over and over. My parents jumped up to help the mum and the little girl. I grabbed Alice so she couldn't start copying Blue. We all got kicked out of the pub.

We were standing on the street outside when my parents and I started laying into my aunt about how irresponsible that was. She is like "he'll never become accustomed to humans if he's locked away". Dad shouted that he doesn't get to maul someone to learn that lesson. She scoffed and said he had the muzzle. I said it takes one piece of brittle plastic before he gets put down. My aunt told us all to fuck off and stormed off in the opposite direction. My uncle took Alice from me and followed her.

My aunt made a passive aggressive series of Facebook posts about how all dogs deserve care, and how everyone lashes out when exposed to trauma, then blocked mum (only Facebook user in our house).

I don't think we're the assholes, but I know I'm very biased, because I genuinely hate that dog and would be quite happy to hear it had moved on, whether that be to a different home or the afterlife, I'm not picky.

So awta?

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

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cryingpariah · 4 months ago

Note

Loki the accursed princes hates all of Elbaf and all of Elbaf hates him in return.

Well... almost everyone. And I'm not just talking about Mosa.

He hasn't laid eyes on anything in six years, but he can pick up on haki traces with the precision of a bloodhound. This presence doesn't feel like a giant. He's also not sensing any malicious intent. That's her mistake then.

"Old lady! You've chosen a bad place to totter around in your senility. I may not be able to kill you myself, but you won't survive the beasts who roam the Underworld"

"Do you mean your animal friends who I saw on my way over? It's kind of you to worry, but I gave them some bread and corn earlier and they seemed quite content with that."

How DARE she call him kind?! And how could she have possibly tamed his friends so easily?

"You must think yourself very clever. Clearly you're a stranger to this island, else you would not be so flippant when addressing me"

"I know who you are, your highness. But you are right about me being new to this country. As such, I wanted to offer you this"

He can hear her place something on a nearby rock. That smell... no, it couldn't. How the hell could she possibly know...?!

"Am I right to assume you're still fond of herring and pumpkin pie? Honestly, trying to get that out of the other giants was like pulling walrus teeth"

"So is that your game, then? You play the part of a charitable holy mother and present me treats laced with poison?" He grins his usual shark grin "How diabolical! That's something I should have thought up in my youth when pranking those gullible giants!"

"Dear, I respect my cooking far too much to ever spoil it with something as ridiculous as poison. I just figured that it's been too long since you've had a proper meal. Scavenged meat and fruits are all well and good, but variety does a body better in the long run."

His smile wanes.

"If you think it's that simple to win over a god, you are sorely mistaken. Don't think your alms will spare you once I break free! At best, you will not be the first crushed under my boot as I rain down hell upon this world!"

"Well," she says in a tone of voice somewhere between self-satisfied and blunt "At least we're making some progress. I won't tell you to finish your meal right away, but you should probably tuck in before the birds get to it. See you tomorrow, Prince Loki. I'll see if I can bring you some quilts for your legs"

"Tomorrow? You presume to treat venturing into the Underworld like a walk in the park?? You treat a god like he's nothing more than a squirrel to feed peanuts to???? Hey! I'm talking to you, you old bat!"

Soon all he's left with is the howling wind and his own furious thoughts.

Who did that.... human (?) think she was?

Although...

The pie did smell quite good.

(Urpi not believing the rhetoric about Loki being wicked from birth because she's already seen that shit before with the World Government and becomes his secret grandma)

As that old lady promised, she was back the next day with quilts. He had sternly instructed his beasts to tear her limb from limb and yet she returned very unharmed. How…intriguing.

“Hello again Dear Prince.”

“I am no one’s dear ANYTHING! I can't tell if you’re just a stubborn old fool or have a death wish! Returning after you were cast out by royalty!”

The impertinent woman didn’t respond, just simply began placing soft fur after soft fur upon him.

“Tell me, how did you get past my beasts this time? They were to destroy you.”

“Is that what they were doing? I don’t feel very destroyed right now Your Highness.”

Loki grits his teeth. Who did this lady think she is? She shouldn’t be able to walk so brazenly into the Underworld, she shouldn’t be able to converse with him so easily and she ESPECIALLY shouldn’t be so good at cooking!!

“Did you enjoy the meal from yesterday?”

“HAH! Your paltry offering barely made the cut to be eaten by a beggar! You’re quite full of yourself indeed if you think it would satisfy me!”

“The plates you licked clean seem to state otherwise, dear prince.”

When was the last time someone said something like that to him? He couldn’t remember the last time someone had managed to make him flush with embarrassment. In all honesty he couldn’t remember the first.

“But if that’s truly how you feel, I shall give today's portion to someone else.”

“Well let’s not be too hasty..”

He could feel her lips turn up higher. “Are you certain? We wouldn’t want my beggar quality food to hurt your royal stomach.”

Loki sighed, long and bemoaning. “I was just teasing old woman! The food was excellent.”

This..Whatever she was stopped and placed what he would later come to find out was more herring, fresh baked bread, vegetables and pumpkin pie.

“What did you intend to gain from these acts? I will not grant my favour upon you.”

“I do not ask for any favour.”

“You will be cast out from the other foolish giants.”

“I cannot control how they feel or act.”

“You…Is this just old mortal sentimentality? Is that what this is?”

“Partly yes you are right. It wouldn’t sit right with my soul to leave the young to their own devices.”

“I am centuries older than you but you are wise to see my form knows no age.”

She chuckled. He..got this mysterious someone to laugh? How…unexpected.

“In any case Prince Loki my reasoning is of no concern. Let’s just say..I don’t believe this unless I see it for myself.”

She walked off for real this time, flippantly calling over her shoulder that she’d return soon. Loki decided in that moment that he’d let this woman dote on him, it was how he should be treated to begin with after all! Plus she was full of her own secrets and he had been sorely lacking in entertainment recently…

#they are Doflamingo and Tsuru without the shipping vibes omg #Loki's a very tsundere grandson #one piece #monkey d urpi #loki one piece #elbaf

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igotanidea · 2 years ago

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Cinnamon: werewolf!Jason Todd x reader

Request: Yes, by anon ;)

Happy birthday to the one and only Jay Todd!

***

“Out of everyone, it has to be him, why!?”

“Are you jealous, Grayson?” Damian raise an eyebrow at his older brother. Much to everyone’s surprise, the blood soon spend last half an hour listening to Dick ranting and complaining about how unfair it was that out of the entire batfamily it was Jason who get the ability to turn into a wolf. And to make the situation even worse, he was an alpha.

“Jealous?! No! Of course not! Definitely not! Maybe a little…..?”

“If anything he envies Jason that little beta girl, he’s been seeing…….” Stephanie chimes in, chuckling at Dick’shock.

“A…. a beta? So what, he’s got a girlfriend now? Why don’t I know it?!”

“Are you three having fun gossiping about my life?!” Jason leans on the doorframe clearly annoyed at his siblings talking and discussing his private matters.

“Plenty.” Damian smirks vindictively

“You have a girlfriend?!” Dick looks at Jason with the biggest doe eye possible, trying his best to get any information out.

“Screw you Dickhead…..”

“Come on, Jaybird, don’t be like that!”

“I’m not telling you shit!”

“Pleeeeaaasseeeeee…….” Dick grabs his little brother, clinging to him, dead set on not letting go before retrieving as little as the scraps “You never tell me anything anymore….”

“Yeah… wonder why is that…..” Stephane mutters sipping on her slushie

“You’re insufferable, Grayson……”

“I’m just your wonderful, caring, older brother……”

“Nosy, intrusive, controlling, gossiping…..” J

“Hey! That is….. a bit true…..” Dick pouts “but still caring!!”

“I’m done with you. I’m going out…..” Jace mutters turning towards the door

“Can I watch you turn?!” Damian yells after him, his love for the animals taking over as the youngest Wayne rushes after Jason, hoping to see him transform into that beautiful, majestic wolf. “Todd!!”

However, what comes in package with being a werewolf is speed and even Damian with Robin skills could not compare with the rate of transformation. When Damian reached the door, Jason was already gone, the only trail of him being the imprint of foot on the path leading to the manor.

“Damn…..”

***

Jason refused to answer any of Dick’s question not because of how intrusive they were, but because he was afraid to be forced to put a tag on what he had with Y/N.

She was… something.

And he felt something for her.

Even if he wasn’t sure what it was.

It was not normal for an alpha to get connected to beta. The rule was simple as it was. Alpha paired with omega. ALWAYS. So Y/N was an anomaly. On every possible field.

And now his wolf instinct made him run to her. Her scent were calling him.

Cinnamon.

She always smelled like cinnamon.

Maybe it was because of her human profession, since she was a baker and her show-off dish was cinnamon rolls and apple pie. Or maybe not. Honestly he wasn’t sure of anything, but the animal in him felt that smell and craved her.

So he run. As fast as his furry body and four strong legs allowed him.

He needed her.

And he could feel something was wrong.

He found her in the forest next to her house, her white fur shining in the light, as she laid her head on the paws looking …. sad. Like a beaten dog.

But the second she sensed him, she put the head up, looking his direction tilting it at him in the same gesture she did in her human form. And it made him feel again, wanting to do something, anything to cheer her up somehow.

Maybe he could try chasing her around? That was something that would make him feel better, surely, but Y/N was a lady in every meaning of the word. As surprising as that sounded, she hated getting dirty, avoided getting dirty, always cleaned her fur after stepping into the mud. Like a royalty. Which was even more shocking considering the fact, that as a baker she had flour everywhere on her face and clothes and hair. Maybe that was why her fur was white.

“Hey, Jace….” She called to him telepathically

“You good, Y/N?”

“just tired. Busy day at the bakery. Needed to get out of the human form and just feel instead of think.”

“Explains why you’re in the forest.”

“You look like you needed escape too.”

“Oldest brother getting intrusive.”

“Oh, yeah, family troubles….” If she was a human he would chuckle at that moment.

“Speaking from experience?”

“Maybe…..”

“Wanna run?”

“No.”

“All right…..” he walks towards her and nudge her nose with his playfully, nuzzling his head into his, hoping whatever it is on her mind will subside when he make her feel.

“Jace….?”

“I know….” he plops on the ground, paws in front of him waving his tail a sign for her to lay next to him. He knows. He knows exactly what she needs. He can feel it. And he lets her. No matter how out-of –character it may seem for him. He signed up for this. He signed up for her. And to be completely honest (not that he would admit it to Grayson, of course) he likes those silent moment with her. Only them in their wolf forms, out of the civilisation, out in the open, feeling, hearing, sensing. It’s nice and peaceful and quiet and he feels like he can be himself when she’s next to him, so close. And it was enough. It was perfect.

***

Couple hours later, still in his werewolf form he walked her back home, not that she needed escort, but he wanted to do this. Or maybe he didn’t want to part with her.

Acting like a gentleman he turned around when Y/N turned back into human, grabbing a shirt from behind the door to cover herself. She had a twig in her messy hair, her eyes were big and shiny and her heartbeat was significantly faster than it should. Side effects of transmutation.

He should go.

He really should go.

But the way she kept standing on the threshold looking at him made him stay, unable to make a single move.

They both felt the connection.

Wolf and human.

Human and wolf.

Two wolfs. Two humans.

“Jason…..?” she trailed, taking a step forward, reaching for his fur and stroking it gently, causing him to lean into his touch. Neither of them seemed to care that the neighbours might be surprised to see a giant wolf in front of the house in the suburbs.

He knew it was not easy for her to show herself to him in her human form. It could only mean one thing. She needed him to take care of her. She needed to feel his warm, big, strong, animal body next to her. His warmth, his presence, his soft, silky pelage.

“Stay?” she whispered. “I really need some company tonight. And I had the door rebuilt to make sure you fit in inside. Please?” she looks into his eyes and it’s like as if she was reaching straight to his soul.

He can’t leave her.

Even if his sibling would tease him in the morning about not coming home for the night.

He can’t leave her.

He’s more than happy to lay on the floor in her leaving room having her arms wrapped tightly around him, making her feel safe and taken care of. Serving as her pillow.

Feeling her.

Feeling the cinnamon smell.

#jason todd x reader #werewolf!jason #jason todd x oc #jason todd x you #jason todd x y/n #jason todd fanfiction #jason todd fic #jason todd au #jason todd imagine #jason todd fluff

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goshikko · 9 months ago

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I ain’t gonna lie, these past couple of weeks since I’ve talked more with other Mahito fans in a Discord server, I’ve grown to love Junpei Yoshino more than I did before. (All thanks to @ebbing-terror)

When I first watched JJK Episode 9 when he and Mahito first appeared, I did love Junpei, but I didn’t care TOO MUCH about his character. However, I do relate to him when it comes to bullying and being hyperfixated over an interest (and understandably hating school and humans for A LOT of reasons), which are part of why I liked him and his reserved personality. I did felt bad when Mahito killed him, but I still think he was so stupid and naive for falling for him like that. (Poor boy doesn’t know any better to trust his instincts… 🥺) LOL

NOW… I love Junpei even more to the point where I came up with an AU where he’s still alive and I ship him with my heart demon cursed spirit OC who is now named Kuroai Shoshin (NOTE: Aiko and Kuroai are not blood related. They are a curse species of Heart Demons like how animals are.) She didn’t have a name at first when I first drew her because Kuroai wasn’t important to what I have in mind headcanonically for JJK and my OCs (Mostly cursed spirit OCs, Aiko, Noguri, and Umiyuu).

**The black-red heart demon cursed spirit is Kuroai Shoshin! 🫀🖤 The other two are still considered! And of course, bottom girl is Aiko Shoshin (Heian Aiko before she got rebirthed).**

In this AU, Kuroai got summoned and rebirthed by someone who was messing with another copy of “The Forbidden Book of Heart Demons” (Like what Geto did to summon and rebirth Aiko). The guy wanted to summon a heart demon for the sake of a “better replacement than finding a real woman” (Eventually he got killed because Kuroai dislikes his personality, his nasty smell, and overall, everything about him). Ever since then, she’s been running around the cities of Japan (Mostly Tokyo, which I assume is where Junpei lives at) to run away from the overwhelming encounters of humans and in a secluded area where Junpei was alone, that’s when she first met Junpei (while in a maid dress because I think it’s a funny idea). Ever since that day, she’s obsessively in love and seductive over him (She loves shy, timid, weak, nerdy/geeky boy losers who would submit to her dominant and teasing behavior. She finds them cute and it’s her type of man.) Junpei eventually got to know her and understand her better, introduced her to his interests in movies, and he’s used to her teasing/bullying him (Not like the kind of bullying from his school, but more like flirtatious teasing). He also doesn’t mind teaching and explaining to Kuroai how do humans do things. Since Kuroai is a cursed spirit, she’s not gonna obviously know everything, unless her cute little loser, Junpei teaches her the ways of how humans do things. (To clarify, Kuroai hates humans as much as Junpei does, but she trust him because she can sense that he’s different... And she knows he’s her type. ;3 🖤 She also teases/bullies him like how Nagatoro bullies her senpai).

Anyways, I just thought of rambling about my Junpei x Kuroai JJK AU since I’m starting to love Junpei more than before and one of my Heart Demon OCs is into weak humans who are shy, timid, and nerdy/geeky so I just thought it’d be cute to ship them in an AU in JJK (Also to clarify: Mahito and Aiko are still together in this AU, but Aiko is unaware that her old friend is rebirthed nor does she remember anything about her unless she touches her to regain her memories of associating with Kuroai back in the Heian period. Kuroai has a strong memory so she remembers Aiko and knows mostly everything about her even if she looks different. However, in this AU, Kuroai doesn’t forgive her for agreeing with Sukuna’s orders on challenging Aiko’s love for him by dealing with him emotionally and mentally. Therefore, she wants rebirth Aiko dead because she thought she was the reason that heart demons are extinct in the Jujutsu world, when really Sukuna was the one who wiped their species entirely).

#goshi thoughts #my art #jujutsu kaisen #jjk #junpei yoshino #mahito #jujutsu kaisen oc #jjk oc #kuroai shoshin #aiko shoshin #heian aiko #heart demons #cursed spirit #cursed spirit oc #jjk au #Fr fr Junpei is a baby emo loser and y’all can’t change my mind for that

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drchenquill · 5 months ago

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Foliè - Chapter 24 (End)

Not so alone

As soon as these two words reached my ears, I was unstoppable. My eyes blazed and without even flinching, I pushed the man to the ground with my might. With a loud scream, his stupid face hit the wooden floor, splintering with the force. I felt my rage flowing through my blood like a river in a storm. The windows shattered, shards of glass flew through the hall and whirled around me like a beast waiting for its master to finally give the order to attack.

“You puny human. Do you dare to ignore my wishes?” I growled in an inhuman voice that seemed to come from all directions like the wind. The lady who had led him to us fell to her knees and began to pray to whatever god she thought would help.

“Tell me, mortal, who do you have before you?” I asked the man, who was slowly rising to his feet. His cloth had fallen from his mouth. Splinters of wood dug into his old skin. He managed to sit up on his knees. He didn't dare look at me, so I asked again, “Who do you have in front of you?” I punctuated my question with a shard of glass that narrowly missed his cheek.

“Please, forgive me, I was blind and didn't recognize you,” he pleaded. How simple people were. All I had to do was use a little force and make my eyes glow and everyone suddenly knew who I was again.

“Say my name. Scream it, because that will be the last thing you will say before I send you to your ancestors,” I threatened him. Now the tears rolled down. How pathetic.

“Little mouse.” came Cain's soft voice as he tried to step closer, which was almost impossible because of the flying glass shards. “We need him, he knows where the girl is. Killing him wouldn't be ideal.”

True.

With a disappointed sigh, I calmed the wind and let the shards of glass fall to the ground. Cain was unfortunately right. The pathetic man was important, at least until we had the girl. After that, I couldn't guarantee his safety.

“Bring. Her. To. Me.” I growled and within seconds, the man stumbled to his feet and shouted, ”Bring the prisoner here! Now!” His voice was shrill and frightened and I felt it send a slight shudder through me. I forgot how good it felt to be seen as a deity, yet I had to control myself. Maybe I'd kill him afterwards.

Loud cursing and more voices rang out as two men emerged from the back door, a wildly wriggling, cursing and spitting young woman under their arms. I exhaled with relief when I saw that she was not injured.

“There she is, master. The murderess, just as you ordered,” the man said in a shaky voice. The two men didn't bother to be gentle as they threw the girl at my feet. She seemed fine, no wounds, no scars, I didn't smell any blood either. Cain rushed ahead and helped her to her feet. The first words out of her mouth were, “Took your time, huh? Had a little coffee on the way over?” she said, but I could hear her voice shaking. “I was beginning to think you'd forgotten I existed.” “After you left so quickly, I figured you'd want us to forget about you,” Cain said. “Why the hell did you even come back here?” The girl looked down and whispered, “I didn't know where else to go.”

“Forgive my curiosity, master” the man suddenly spoke. Tilting my head, I looked at him curiously. “What is this girl to you that you wasted your precious time to come and get her?” This question was unexpected. What was she to me? I turned to her. Our eyes met quickly. She didn't look away, her hazel colored eyes didn't hesitate to meet my piercing gaze. But I didn't see any anger, or even hatred. I was sure that after all that, she felt at least a tinge towards me, but all I saw was a look that resembled a frightened animal expecting to be kicked for some reason. As if she expected me to hate her.

I turned to the man. “She's a puzzle piece that showed me who I really was."

Confusion was evident on their faces, but that was understandable, humans rarely understood the words of deities. But then my gaze wandered to her. Her astonished eyes were wide. I saw something flare up, something that made me feel warm.

I cleared my throat briefly. “Well then.” I started again when I realized that we had been here long enough. I wanted to go home, retreat to my temple and finally be able to breathe. “This will be my last appearance. I, Lyssa, deity of madness, will retire. My poison will no longer taint you, my rage will no longer haunt you. You will forget me and my deeds. Do we understand each other?” He fell to his knees in front of me: ”Yes! You are so gracious, master. We will never forget.”

“Spread the word, make sure all of humanity knows: Lyssa no longer exists.”

I felt lighter, as if a weight had been lifted. My steps are gentler as I walk through the forest: my destination, my temple, my resting place, my refuge. Unfortunately, I had luggage with me.

“You never told us your name?” Cain asked the sullen girl who stuck to my side, but without touching me. As if she was looking for closeness but was afraid to ask for it.

“I don't have to.” she hissed at him. Cain laughed. “You hiss like a kitten, but unfortunately you're not as cute as one.” he commented and stepped to my other side. His big warm hand wrapped around mine as he leaned towards me and asked, “What do you think, little mouse, what shall we call her? How about 'runt'?” He was the only one laughing at his joke, but he didn't seem to mind. I glanced at the girl. She was indeed shorter than the two of us.

“I have a name! It's Lydia!”

She threw her arms around mine as she said, annoyed, “I wouldn't open my mouth so wide if I were you! I was in your head, I needed to see your disgusting thoughts.”

For the first time since I'd known him, Cain turned as red as a ripe tomato as he began to indignantly defend himself. In the midst of this loud back and forth, I stood, calm, smirking. Suddenly, I no longer felt the longing of my temple, for my home stood at my sides, squabbling like two toddlers. My home was warm, my home was them.

Apparently I wasn't so alone after all.

~~~~

Chapter 23.

Foliè tag list: @theink-stainedfolk, @frostedlemonwriter, @leahnardo-da-veggie, @rivenantiqnerd,

@thecomfywriter, @fablesandfragments

Thank you for reading and joining me on this little adventure. I hope you had just as much as I had!

#writerblr #writeblr #writing #writers on tumblr #writers #writerscommunity #writer #tumblr writers #writer community #writer on tumblr #writers community #writers of tumblr #foliè

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haru-chi · 2 years ago

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Can we talk about Reiko for a bit ...

(I wanted to write this one because I wanna see how far this theory of mine going to develop in the future)

I don't know how to start with this one or from where exactly, but I'll try to make it organized as much as possible despite the chaos in my mind ><

I saw alot of people's theories about Reiko's husband or that some believe that he's Yorishima or other different theories about her, but I had very different theory about her or maybe her story in general. ...

- Her connection to the exorcist world

I guess it's already a given that her husband might've been an exorcist which in result would also explain how she knew about some spells .. but the connection doesn't seem to end there I fear.

the first time Natsume went to an exorcist gathering someone recognized him as Reiko, was that a human or a Youkai ?? but I believe it might be a human more than a youkai. since...

when Nanase first heard his name, she asked about Reiko so that prove exorcists do know of her somehow, she said she knew of her from the youkai, but is that really true ??

I mean one of the reasons Seiji was interested in Natsume was because of Reiko, in the manga (we don't talk about the anime ver here cuz it's too different ugh) when Seiji start threating Natsume, it was because he wanted info about Reiko that badly but what kind of info ??

Seiji also said the same as Nanase that he heard about her from the youkai and that it's natural to want to know more about someone this powerful since they're rare ...

that can be normal if Reiko is alive, but she isn't .. would you go as far as threating a little boy to get some info about someone who's already died ?? unless what you want is something that she left behind so you're desperate to get this info to the point you're threating like that perhaps ??

now you'll think, " oh so they heard about the book of friends from the youkai?!!!"

but nope, I don't believe it's from the youkai such rumors spread, why do I think so, you ask ??

in the same chapter, Madara stated even if Seiji heard about the book of friends, then that's likely from human than youkai since the youkai by instinct won't mention such a thing which hold their own life in it especially not to exorcists.

maybe it's as a myth or uncertain rumors, when and how did it start I don't know but I think the exorcist world DID hear one thing or two about Reiko and the book of friends.

in the same chapter of when Natsume first went to the exorcist gathering, Natsume realized that the book of friends must be kept a secret from those people, I tend to think of such things as having indirect meaning since Midorikawa-sensei craft her stories carefully so I took this as indirect sign that they already knew of it one way or another which led to what I'm gonna bring up next.

Now that I established that the exorcist world do know of Reiko one way or another be it as a myth or more we're yet to actually see or confirm

PS : it's normal for Natori to never have heard about Reiko or the book unlike Seiji or the others since Natori wasn't always there or grow up in this world and he's hated on top of all.

-Next is about Reiko's death

now to the next question, how did Reiko died ?? do we actually know the details ?? was it an accident ? sickness ? or killed ?? all we know is that she died at a young age leaving her daughter behind.

when Nanase showered Natsume with all those questions about Reiko and her way of death, Natsume stated that he only heard she was found died under a tree one day, nothing else is known. I smell a crime here :)

now if Reiko was indeed killed by someone, was it a human or a youkai ??

personally, as far as of now, and as far as what I stated before, I'd go to say it's a human who killed her and an exorcist at that too.

I don't think I need to state why she was killed; the aim was the book of friends :)

another reason why I believe it was an exorcist is ...

Madara stated the first time Natsume went against exorcist that he can't protect him against such humans 100%. I mean Madara for sure knows what actually happened to Reiko be it her life or her death, but he chose to stay silent about it, so if he was there but failed to protect her then he said this line out from experience.

also, an exorcist is the one who sealed him in his cat form, so what if this happened when he tried to protect Reiko from her attacker ?? but he got sealed while Reiko got killed.

and what if that time when Madara went berserk after seeing Natsume get hurt by an exorcist's arrow was very triggering to him because it happened before ??

thus, I kinda feel so far all of this point out to Reiko being killed by an exorcist more than by youkai ...

something else I think of is, where was her husband ?? her husband mostly an exorcist, right ? now what if he's the reason all this tragedy occurred, that he's the reason Reiko got into the exorcist world, that be it by him or someone around him the existence of the book of friends became known which endangered them all.

what if he tried to protect his family so that's why he was never there when Reiko had his daughter, or maybe simply he died in the line or work since it isn't a normal line of work ?

now where does that leave Yorishima in all of this ?? he clearly knows Reiko and the book of friends, if such myth or rumors going on in the exorcist circles then you can't convince me that the "walking dictionary" never heard of such a thing, he's also older than he looks so he might've witness it all. actually, what if that's the very reason he cut ties with the exorcist world ??

at first, I was like he might be the one who sealed Madara or Reiko's killer and out of guilt decided to live in isolation but Madara has no reaction when they met the first time so that was the end of that idea before it starts xDD

does he know Natsume's grandfather ? was he related to what happened to Reiko ?? many ideas go through my mind, but I don't know so far too little info for me. but that's one of the reasons why I'm against him being Natsume's grandfather and why I think the role he plays is different :)

(actually what if he's Natsume's uncle than grandfather?)

hmmm, that sum up what I have about Reiko overall, I feel I forgot to mention something but more or less that's all I hope, there's a missing link which I'm searching for (mainly Natsume's grandfather, Reiko's husband but yeaaah) but for now that's what's been living in my mind. I do have other few adjustments to the theory but will keep it to myself until I see which way it rolls with future info's.

just imagine what if Reiko's killer was a Matoba or even a Natori the paper master's family, or will it be a family we never heard of before. plus, whom to say his grandfather wasn't from a family we already know too if he's an exorcist :)

when will Midorikawa-sensei give us new info about his grandfather, been hungry for more since I know the next info gonna be a big one for sure T^T

anyway, I'll end this post with this panel and leave it at that.

#natsume yuujinchou #natsuyuu #natsume takashi #natsume reiko #Haru's theory #I debated for a long time whether to write this one or not since it's changing in my mind #those ideas kept on changing one way or another #but wanted to record it at least to myself and see how it gonna develop with any new info dropped #Midorikawa write her stories carefully so I tend to over think sometimes #especially when certain infos or lines be in the same story or chapter #I take that as an indirect hints so I work it from there #guess only time will tell which way all those info rolls #I don't think my heart will survive it when the time comes no matter what truth await ><

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rottenbrainstuff · 1 year ago

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BG3 playthrough - chugging through Baldur’s Gate

Mild spoilers below the cut

A million side quests in my journal, slowly chugging through them all… Act 3 is huge and the random little quests all over the place are kind of… like… look it’s a huge amount of content, it’s amazing, but I do prefer act 1, where yes we had less things, but those less things were all integrated better and flowed together. That being said, what’s neat about act 3 is that there’s so many little surprises here and there that I’m finding things I didn’t manage to spoil for myself: like the identity of the Stone Lord, and finding Ethel again.

So first of all… I seem to be having a RANDOM BLOODSTAIN CURSE???

A little while ago I found a large random bloodstain on the ground in town and I was trying to figure out what happened. I assumed maybe it tied back in with the murder trail I was following. When that didn’t seem to be it, I thought maybe I had missed an important event, so I backtracked through my save files and pinpointed when the bloodstain appeared. I still don’t know what happened here though. So I found the spot… in one of my save files in between me talking to the book seller in Sorcerous Sundries, and me going through the portal up to Rolan’s tower, a non-interacting NPC (a refugee) about a block away was standing over the bloodstain with one missing hit point. There’s nothing there in the area that should have caused that. There’s no event, no fight, no interaction, no dangerous thing, it’s so weird.

Then more recently, the very first night I went to sleep in my brand new room at the Elfsong, I woke up to a massive bloodstain all over one of the beds!! Before bed - nothing. Morning - massive bloodstain. What in the heck is going on?

Gale can now summon a deva courtesy of the amazing books in Ramezith’s vault. I like having it out the same time as Wyll’s cambian: my devil dude and his angel pal. Or maybe they hate each other. They were both summoned here while they were trying to eat their lunch and now they’re wordlessly glaring at each other, like two siblings who don’t get along. I love it.

I love all the cats in this game, someone on the dev team loves cats - but also remember to sometimes try interacting with them without using “speak with animals”. I tried petting Malta without it and got kind of a funny narration where they said the cat was pretending to act like they didn’t care, and failing. I have read online that if Baelen isn’t with Derryth in act 3 - either because you didn’t save him from the bibberbang field, or because you gave him the noblestalk mushroom and Derryth left him - you are able to get Derryth to take Malta to live with her??? Between this and finding the letter in her house about how much Derryth wished she married this other guy, I’m feeling pretty sad about saving him, wish instead I had either left him in the bibberbang field or gave Derryth a push to finally leave him. Oh well.

Got to the infamous squiddy romance. Nope, not for me in the end. I mean obviously I TRIED it, just to SEE, of COURSE I did, and got the achievement of shame lmao, but in my actual save game I am not having that. First of all: vanilla and garlic? Uff no thanks. It’s interesting, isn’t it, how the game has described the specific smells of a few different characters (Astarion, Raphael, Mizora, now this), and how every description includes some unpleasant undertone. (well maybe not Mizora who just sounds all around unpleasant lol) But second of all…. My specific tav just is not buying any of this. I’ve been very very wary ever since the big reveal, and this whole little side event just feels to me like more Emperor manipulation bullshit. Oh let’s go to my old room because there’s some equipment there that can help you. Oh wait would you look at that… it’s my old doggy’s collar. And a recipe for my favourite soup. And a present from my mommy. See look at all these things, look at how much humanity I have, oh yeah I guess there’s a weapon and some armor there too. Phew what a great chat, now we trust each other COMPLETELY, right? Oh hey btw I’m totally sexually attracted to you - see just another way we can be intimate, right? What great sex! You trust me completely now right? Ok back to business.

No thanks, not for my tav.

You have the option to ask the Emperor to change back into the old Guardian form… it was nice to see mine one last time, he’s so pretty! If you go this route, the next morning is pretty hilarious. You wake up next to the untransformed mindflayer Emperor with an “ew gross what did I do” face, I took screenshots, I was laughing so hard.

The face of regret.

I tried going to get Minsc last night but I wasn’t expecting how big the counting house was going to be… I’m leaving it for now and I’ll take a crack at it later. Instead I went and found the hag support group. KLED. Augh Kled, what a sweetheart, why is no one talking about him and why is there no fan art??? I gave Mayrina the wand to resurrect her husband’s corpse way back in act 1 and now I’m wondering if that was a mistake as well… she’s still dragging the body around with her, and poor old Kled says Mayrina is too kind and too pretty for the likes of him. AUGH BABE. I wonder, after I fight Ethel and finish the quest, if Mayrina and Kled might have a chance? Mayrina mentioned that lately she feels like she doesn’t see that little spark of what used to be her husband there in the corpse anymore… I think eventually she’s going to move on and hopefully appreciate this lovely lovely guy who’s there for her without any expectation and things will be great and amazing. Yep, that’s what I’m going with.

I really like the personality the game has put into the “monster” races, the goblins, the bugbears, the hobgoblins. I love how they’re more than just “rarg ebbil”, they’re fun to talk to, they have their own cultures, it makes me sad to kill them quite honestly because under different circumstances I think we could have had fun hanging out.

I love Kled, big and handsome and kind, and the fact that I don’t seem to be able to find a single thing with him on AO3 is a crime and you should all be ashamed.

I've been thinking a lot about post-Cazador Astarion. He's changed so much. Like. Yes ok he's still kind of a loveable bastard, he's still grumbling at me when I give beggars money, wouldn't want it any other way, but he's so honest now, he can be sweet, he can be soft. His pre-spawn backstory is not currently fleshed out. I know there were development ideas that he used to be a corrupt magistrate, and I am honestly ok with that, in fact perhaps I even prefer it. But the actual canon is a blank slate and I find myself wondering about Astarion's softness and honesty, if this is his old personality that Cazador couldn't torture away, growing back like the first hints of green after a forest fire... or if this is something totally new for him, not just healing from Cazador, but that all of the suffering he's overcome and this adventure he's been somewhat unwillingly dragged through have made him a better person than he ever was. Either possibility is neat, I think. I like to think about it. Man I really... I mean I've had this game so thoroughly spoiled for me, and yet I still find things that surprise me - I was really unprepared for act 3 Astarion and what a beautiful personality he has. Man I am so proud of him. My Star. Makes me wanna cry. This game.

Patch 6 still hasn’t been released for Mac… *whine* come on Larian, I want all my fancy kisses before I get to the end of the game…

EDIT: omg I think it was literally JUST RELEASED??? Aaah when’s my next work break, I wanna check it out…

#bg3 #bg3 playthrough #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 spoilers #kled

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mypsychoticmoodboard · 10 months ago

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July 22, 2024:

I think that there is something to be said about the unique bond that we as humans share with other humans. It is the unique, defining characteristic of the human experience. To love, to hate, to mourn, and everything in between. And amongst those relationships, I have found the most interesting to be the ones shared between immediate family: father & daughter, mother & son; siblings. And this takes me to when I remember when my mother-in-law lay dying in hospice, and my husband, her only son, said to her, “I am going to find the one piece.” And that sentence will enchant and haunt me for the rest of my life. It brings me to happy yet bitter tears almost every time I think about it.

From what he has shared with me, he talks about how it was his mother who introduced him to anime. Since he was such a high strung child, his mom found it difficult to settle him down to sleep, so she would often make them both peanut butter and jellies (skippys as we call them in our house), and they would sit there long into the night watching the Toonami lineup which included the anime show, One Piece. My husband likes to mention that they would eat doritos with the skippys as well. His mother would go on to tell me such stories when my husband was not around, or they would often mention it to each other when we went to visit his parents as we visited her in her bed. It is known to me now how this nightly ritual had become their favorite pastime together and their fondest memory.

My husband tells me that one of the things he wants to see in his lifetime is the One Piece series completed, so that he may fulfill that promise of ‘finding the one piece’ that he promised to his mom as she was on the precipice of the end. I find this so heart wrenching because everyone has a story with someone such as this with someone in their life. For me, I am reminded of the smell of pancakes and bacon that my dad would make every Sunday when we were a kid. That is why for so long, Sundays were my favorite day of the week.

And with all of this to say, my husband and his mom did not have a very good relationship further into his teen years. They were estranged for a time. And yet, he clings to those memories and relishes in them. He does not harp on her shortcomings like so many of us, me included, do to other people. He has accepted them at face value and realized that she is only a person, and then chooses to remember the good times that were spent instead of the tumultuous times that came later in life. And I know that it is a fine line to walk, because some actions are hard to come back from, and no amount of blissful compartmentalism can help, but in his case, I think it is an incredible thing, and I idolize him for that notion, and I hope to embody that one day.

I know that I seem to talk about death a lot, but it is something that I have been surrounded by all of my life. It has been a hard truth that I have been faced with time and time again, and I find that reflecting upon it really helps me come to terms with it. I also find that if there is something to learn from a person’s life, I try to do so, to take it in, as many things are learning lessons if you let them be.

In unrelated news, I have a job interview tomorrow, and I am trying not to be worried sick about it. I am nervous because I care, and that is something that I will really never be able to shake. But I can try to calm myself as much as possible. I have a job already, albeit one that I hate, so if I do not get this job, there is nothing that I am really losing out on? But to me, it will feel like there is. I would be missing out on something that I really wanted, and I truthfully, am a pretty sore loser. I often revert to feelings of personal inadequacy if I am not selected for such things. I am nervous because I care.

And I often take the stance that everything feels like the end of the world to me. And then I rebuild again. I am fairly melodramatic, and I own it. But I am as persistent as I am melodramatic.

I also overthink things to death. I just need to let it be. It’s my anticipatory anxiety—I swear to God.

But all I can do is what I have always done—take it in stride.

(Reader, please wish me luck; I really want this job!)

In addition, it feels like I am on the precipice of this cliff. I see a castle in the distance, but I have to figure out how to cross this canyon first to get there. I have a home, but I am wanting something more.

#dear diary

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alexandersimpleton · 1 year ago

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Chapter 4: pancakes

Frederick gets his first real real food for the first time in... well that would be spoilers c;

Frederick slowly crawled out of the pond, groggy. He had picked one as close as he could to the CPC. Curtis had even designed him special clothing so that he didn't ruin whatever he was wearing when he had to go under the water to sleep.

Frederick took off the waterproof shirt and, upon realizing that he was still soaking wet, put it back on until he dried.

He climbed into the wheelchair, feeling the sun on his skin. Frederick was never going to get used to this.

He pushed the wheels of the chair with his hands, moving him forward. The CPC had put a latch on it to put his tentacles in so he didn't get them stuck in a wheel or something.

Frederick stopped moving. He stared at the modified wheelchair. It had only occurred to him now just how much the CPC had done for him. He should do something for them too. But what should he do? What could he do? He hadn't been able to do anything even before he had been turned into- no, cursed. Prez told him that he was just a cursed human. He couldn't do anything of worth before he was cursed, what was he supposed to do now? He could only hunt half decently because he was forced to. And even then half of his food was stolen from Renée!

Frederick's thoughts were interrupted by a smell hitting his nostrils. Frederick always wondered how he did that without breathing. It was a nice smell. Frederick didn't recognize it.

The.. the boy wheeled his wheelchair into the club house. The smell only intensified as he got closer to the kitchen. As he wheeled himself in, he saw Prez and Nell, sitting at the counter eating.. something that he couldn't recall the name of. Prez noticed the sounds of his wheel chair.

"Oh, hi Frederick."

His heart still sang whenever he heard his name.

Frederick wheeled up to chair at the table, unlatched his tentacles, and grabbed on with his hands, heaving himself on to the chair, still sopping wet from when he had woken up. Curtis cringed a little, but the boy didn't notice.

"Kiddo, do you want, like, a towel or anything?" Prez asked awkwardly.

Frederick was about to shake his head, but he hesitated, and then nodded meekly.

Prez was about to get up, but Frederick was already having a towel thrown at his head by Curtis, who was not the biggest fan of the new kid getting everything wet.

Frederick nodded at Curtis (the closest thing he could approximate to a thank you) and wrapped the fabric around his top half, being sure it didn't touch his gills (Frederick had learned what happened when rough surfaces touched his gills the hard way while he was..) Frederick still could barely comprehend that just yesterday he had just been some weird animal in a pond.

A dish was placed in front of him. It was the source of the sweet smell. Frederick picked up the fork placed next to it. His muscle memory for how to pick up cutlery was long gone, he realized. He tinkered with the utensil until Nell noticed his struggle. She reached over and grabbed his hand, only spooking Frederick for a moment, before shuffling the utensil into the proper position. Frederick nodded at her again, and she nodded back.

He stabbed the fork into the meal, and stuffed it into his mouth.

Pancakes. They were called pancakes. They tasted sweet and nice and- and there was syrup on top! They felt like they made his heart warm, like a big black rock that had soaked up the sun. Frederick almost cried again. He shoveled the rest of the pancakes into his mouth, with the vague realization how how much he had hated fish.

(Tumblr doesn't do italics, I'd recommend reading this on ao3)

He swam forwards aimlessly. His tentacles moved in a repetitive motion, and his stare was blank, far off in the clouds. He wasn't even in the ocean anymore, he vaguely noticed, but he didn't really care. If a human caught him now, than at least he'd be put out of his misery.

The boy caught himself calling them humans in his mind. This only sunk him deeper in his self pity. He wasn't part of some ancient society that humans didn't know about, like in fairy tales. He used to be one of them, a long time ago. The boy hadn't had the chance to keep track of days.

When he had first been cursed, when he was in military school, his child self had been excited. He had swam away from it all, and played with the fish. He had pet a sting ray, played hide-and-seek in the coral (which was helped by his newfound ability to shapshift and colorshift), and taken a nap on the seabed.

But then he woke up the next day. He was hungry. Really hungry. He had actually killed a fish. Now it seemed mundane to the boy. Hunting was just a part of his life. But still, at the time, when he saw how the fish swam away, how the blood clouded the water when he bit into it.. he still shivered a little when he thought about it. And when he had found a shark that tried to eat him, and really realized the situation he was in. He had tried to contact a human for help, but soon realized he couldn't speak. He had gills rather than lungs, after all. The human had mistaken the boy for a siren. The human had tried to kill him, and hang the "siren" up on his wall...

The merperson had tried, over and over, to get someone to help him, but all the humans had done was throw him back into the sea. He had accepted long ago that he was just some creature in the ocean, no different than a shark or a jellyfish, and that the closest thing he'd ever have to a human life ever again was the school uniform that he kept in his cave as it no longer fit him, and the robe had fashioned out of fabric from sunken ships-

The merperson snapped out of his trance as the river emerged into a pond. It wasn't the pond that phased him, though. It was the girl sitting there. She was surrounded by swans. He was about to leave when something hit the water. It was a frog. It has dropped out of the girl's mouth. More of the creatures flowed, the swans greedily gulping them up.

The merperson stared, perplexed, for a moment. What.. just happened? Whatever. It was rude to spy on people.

The boy swam back across the lake, away and away, into the ocean.

But still, he couldn't help coming back the next day. The whole scene had inspired him. You see, one of the things he tried to hold onto from his human life was writing. He had loved reading when he was a kid, but any books from shipwrecks would be ruined by water, so he decided to write all his stories down instead. He etched them down into wood, stone, whatever he could find. Eventually, when he couldn't remember the stories anymore, the boy had started writing his own. He knew it was an empty comfort, but writing reminded him of his intelligence. It made him feel like a human.

But anyways, he needed a lay of the land. He wanted to write a story about a particularly beautiful princess who attracted graceful swans, but she was rotten inside, and the swans were attracted to the toads she spit out with her words. And her younger sister was less beautiful, and attracted ordinary, gross fish, but it was because of the beauty she had inside her heart, and the fish swam to gold that flowed from her lips. It was a classic fairy tale format.

But, halfway into the pond, he realized the girl was back. In panic, he rushed to the edge of the pond and camouflaged himself around a rock.

He stared at the the girl. He didn't know if you could breath heavily with gills, but that seemed to be what was happening right now. She hadn't been looking. The merperson let out a figurative sigh of relief.

Now all he had to do was get himself out of this situation. He just had to find an opportunity.

The merperson, who had been staring at the toad-spitting girl, got his eyes torn away by movement on the bed of the pond. The swans had missed one of the frogs.

He hadn't eaten anything in a while. It looked like a good snack. The boy knew he shouldn't. But, maybe...

The squid changed his coloring to that of the bottom of the pond. He inched closer. And closer. Bit by bit. And while nobody could possibly notice, quietly snatched the amphibian with one of his tentacles and dashed back to the rock, hiding the creature under his tentacles.

As he swam away, having conducted his original plan of running while nobody could see him, he looked at the amphibian. He grabbed it with his tentacle from his hand, and at the thing alive with his beak. As weird as it felt, the boy's human taste buds didn't like frog very much.

But still, maybe he'd come back here tomorrow. There weren't any predators, and his squid half allowed him to be perfectly healthy with just frogs and the occasional fish. The only things to worry about might be the human and the swans.

And so he did come back the next day. When he got an opportunity, he swam and camouflaged himself with a rock closer to the girl. He watched the frogs, and he waited, and when he got the chance he snatched it with one of his tentacles. But this time he was a little braver. He got more frogs, and neither the girl or her pets were any the wiser.

And he was braver the next time too.

He didn't come every day. Somebody would get suspicious if he did. Plus, he would like the monotony of a routine like that even less than now. And it was nice to stimulate his taste buds with fish that he could eat with his human mouth without gagging.

And even he was braver the next.

And the next.

Until one of his tentacles got noticed.

The squid saw the girl look. She looked at him as he camouflaged back into the rock. It was too fast for Frederick to stop the action.

But then she looked away. He expected violence. He expected her to scream. He expected a reaction. She just looked. And then she went back to feeding her swans.

The boy just started, baffled. And then he left.

He was hesitant to come back the next day. Would she have someone after him? Would she kill him herself?

He hesitantly looked around the bend in the river. She was looking right at him.

The boy stared at her back, scared.

After a while of their standoff, the swans started to look up, food not falling anymore. The girl looked back down at them, and started talking again. But as she did, she caught one of the frogs in her hand. She tossed it gently. It hit the squid in the face. The girl cringed a little.

He cautiously picked the amphibian up from off the floor. Still eyeing the girl, he swam off with it. Normally he would stay all day, but he had a story to write about a mermaid taming a giant squid.

When Renée finished feeding her swans, she stood up and walked towards the club building. She remember the route by heart by now.

Curtis should be back with those books by now. They were about squids and octopi. She couldn't quite tell which one she needed.

Recently, she had been seeing something other than fish in her pond. There was what looked like a child, but the odd thing was, instead of legs, he had tentacles.

She had been scared at first. She wondered what it was, and what it wanted from her. She quickly realized, however, what he wanted from her was food. She understood. She was a food source that wouldn't try to eat you. Whatever this thing was, he had just gotten lucky.

But regardless, something about him reminded her of a wet cat. A very wet cat. So now Renée was determined to befriend whatever this thing was, and the first step feeding.

As she was about to walk into the building, Curtis stopped her with the books. Renée grabbed them and nodded at Curtis, not being able to reach her notepad because of her book filled hands.

"If I may ask," Curtis told her, while they walked into the building together "why do you need these? it's rather out of the blue."

Renée put the books down on the table.

I've been seeing a merperson in my pond she wrote down.

"A.. merperson? I wasn't aware those existed in real life." Curtis said. He was trying to keep his composure, but he was utterly baffled.

Me neither she responded.

Curtis pondered for a moment.

I only saw him yesterday, but I have no idea how long he's been showing up

I'm pretty sure he wants my frogs she giggled a little as she wrote it down.

Cutis remembered something. "Renée, the ocean is still wildly unexplored, so merpeople could exist, but there is something else..."

Renée looked at Curtis expectantly.

"I'm hoping I'm wrong, but scientists have recently discovered a curse on accident. I won't describe the ritual, but if you take a dead animal and a victim, than you can essentially fuse the victim with it."

Renée startled. This kid.. he looked younger than Renée!

"Of course, I could vary well be wrong. Just make sure to take caution."

Renée nodded as she took her books to study upstairs.

He hadn't come back to the lake that day. He was busy. He was eating a salmon at the moment, thinking about this girl. Why wasn't she doing anything?

Anyone would try to kill him. He was a freak of nature!

The swam to a small rock. On top of it were stones, pieces of wood from shipwrecks, dead pieces of coral, and several other things, all with stories etched into them.

He picked one up from near the top of the pile. It was the first story he ever wrote. It was about a princess. She had long golden hair and eyes the color of grass. But this princess was cursed. Instead of legs, she was cursed with slimy, grotesque tentacles, that wiggled uncomfortably in the water. The curse spread to her skin, making it rugged and covered with white spots like mold on a sandwich.

But still, she meets a prince above land who finds her beautiful. The prince saves her from her horrible life and brings her to his castle. He keeps her in a fish tank, and she feasts on fresh sushi and lives in luxury fir the rest of her life. The boy wrote it to remind himself. Remind itself that he wasn't human. Living in some fish tank for humans to see was the best life it could imagine now.

The merperson felt its eyes start to burn.

It stuck his hand deep in the pile, and fished out something out with the suction cups on its fingers. It was several pieces of coral tied together with string. It had decorated it with seashells and tinier bits of coral. It was colorful, just like the character that used to be painted with his own ink on the front.

The Little Prince.

It clutched onto the "book" and let itself sink to the floor of the cave. It hugged the book, and it cried.

The next day, the thing felt exhausted. It didn't want to hunt today. It didn't want to do anything today.

The thing was hungry though. It needed to eat. It figured the frogs would be easier. And thus, it swam back to the pond, not even realizing it still had its first story in the grip of its tentacle

Renée was thinking the little squid boy would come today either, but then she saw something emerge from the bend in the river. It was a boy with golden hair, and eyes the color of grass. His skin was rough and came up in stiff peaks. It was covered it spots that were white like snow.

The squid didn't bother with the rock this time. He just became the color of sand and lie on the floor. The girl looked at it, concerned.

It looked back at her in a lazy way, its eyes clouded.

One of the swans swam over to it. The squid didn't notice. It did notice, however, when it took the piece of driftwood that it was still unconsciously clutching.

The merperson snapped into alertness. She couldn't read that! It was- she would-

Y'know what? It didn't care anymore. Maybe she should have killed it as soon as she saw it. Than it wouldn't have to do this anymore. To hunt, and to run, and to suffer like this. Wherever it went, the perperson figured he'd have fun petting all the dogs and playing with the cats. Maybe he'd even get his legs back.

It created a cloud of ink that covered half the pond to hide his tears.

Meanwhile, as renée read the story, she started to understand. Curtis was right, wasn't he? This wasn't some weird, magical animal. This was a person. A person who didn't even think he was one.

As the ink cleared, it looked up at the girl. She was looking at him, horrified.

The merperson, for the first time in front of her, let its colors go back to normal. The bottom half was yellow. It was smooth, but a totally different kind of smooth than human skin. Some of this yellow showed up in patches on its upper body. It also had white spots that also showed up on the thing's upper body. It's skin was pale, and it's eyes were green. The thing's hair looked messily cut, and it was extremely tangled.

She stared at it for a moment longer. The merperson looked back up at her.

The girl threw herself in the water and hugged it. The water went up to her shoulders, but she didn't care.

"I.. I'm sorry." She said, not caring about frogs that came out along with the words.

It, in her grasp, started crying too. The squid hugged her back with his arms, and it's tentacles wrapped around her, neither of them caring if his suction cups stuck to her.

When the hug had finally ended, the two sat on the bank. The girl's dress was soaked. She had a note pad out and a pencil.

The two looked at the clipboard, neither knowing what to say.

The sand stuck to them both as the sat.

The girl picked up the note pad first.

So, is it true? Are you really a human?

she passed it to the.. the boy.

The boy looked at it. He solemnly wrote

i used to be one

not anymore

His handwriting was messy. He couldn't exactly practice in the middle of the ocean.

The girl passed it back

You seem like a human to me.

He looked at the girl, baffled. He raised his tentacle with his hand.

The girl took the note pad back

What, is Thermidora not a human just because she has lobster claws?

The squid was about to write who is thermidora and why does she have lobster claws but erased it. Instead he wrote

humans have farms

humans have castles

humans go shopping and have weddings and funerals and books and

He noticed a tear in his eye

humans don't have to hunt

humans don't have gills

humans don't have tentacles and slimy skin and spots

animals do

The girl read what Frederick wrote down.

Did you have to do that?

The boy nodded. He kind of just assumed.. guess it wouldn't be so normal for humans. Woops.

Well, you won't have to do it anymore! I'll get Curtis. It seems like you can leave the water for a little bit, we'll figure something out.

The girl tried to get up to get whoever Curtis was, but he grabbed her arm. His suction cups gripped onto her.

Looking up at her, he mouthed 'please don't go'

The girl sat back down. The boy mouthing 'thank you' even if she couldn't see it.

The two sat down for a while. It felt nice just.. having another human there.

i dont know your name the boy wrote.

It's Renée. What's yours?

He wanted to tell her that he didn't have one anymore, and that he wasn't a human like her. But still,

frederick

Renée wrote back That's a nice name.

He blushed a little, before writing could you say it out loud

Renée nodded

She unzipped her mouth. "Frederick."

The boy felt tears force their way out of his eyes, running down his already wet cheeks.

"Are you alright?" Renée asked.

Frederick blushed more.

I just haven't been frederick in a really long time

Renée nodded in recognition.

im drying up i should get back in the water

Renée nodded again.

As Frederick was throwing himself into the water, he saw rustling in the brush. When he could see though the splash, someone in a suit was there.

Renée ran to him with her note pad, which was now wet. She scribbled on it, trying to find the right words to say.

"Renée, your clothing is soaked! I came because you were taking usually long, and it's a good thing I did."

Renée interrupted him with her note pad. Frederick couldn't see what was on it. The two humans were facing away from him.

"I.. oh. I was hoping that wouldn't be the case. Is he still here?" Renée nodded. She motioned to the pond.

The man looked over the pond. He only saw seabed and some stray frog. Frederick realized he had disguised himself out of reflex. He relaxed his body and let it go back to normal.

The man stepped back, before kneeling over the pond, just before he touched the water.

"I technically can't invite you, but I'm sure Prez would be glad to accept you into The Cursed Princess Club, should you want to join." Curtis said.

Renée showed Curtis a note pad I don't think he can talk.

"Oh. Uhm, can you come out of the water to borrow Renée's note pad?"

Frederick climbed back onto the sand, taking Renée's note pad again.

as long as my gills are wet

"Very well. My offer still stands. The Cursed Princess Club is a support group of sorts. For cursed people like you."

doesnt princess mean girl

"Well, yes, but all genders are welcome."

Frederick thought for a moment. This felt nice. To have someone treat him like a person was nice.

Frederick nodded.

The man had come back with a fish tank full of water on a cart. Frederick couldn't walk, and neither Curtis nor Renée were strong enough to carry him, so they had to improvise.

Frederick climbed into it and they started on the route back. Frederick tried to help with his tentacles that were much longer than his arms, but the man still did most of the pushing.

Frederick grabbed Renée's stuff from our of her hand

who is this guy

Oh! That's Curtis. He's Prez's butler.

Frederick nodded and resubmerged his head in the cool water.

Frederick only opened his eyes only when he felt himself stop moving. In front of him was a tall woman in a suit.

Curtis talked to her about him. About how he had been cursed and where they found him. A few other people naturally came because they were curious.

Frederick felt nervous under the attention. It was now occuring to him that he hadn't actually spoken with another human being in.. well he didn't know.

He looked back at the lady in the suit. She smiled at him. It was an encouraging smile. One that made Frederick realize that maybe things wouldn't be so awful.

#cursed princess club #cpc fanfiction

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fangurk · 4 years ago

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Puppy Love (The Cullen Family x Child! Werewolf! Reader)

Key:

Y/n - Your Name

Y/h/c - Your Hair Color

Y/e/c - Your Eye Color

Y/f/c - Your Favorite Color

Y/f/f - Your Favorite Flavor

Prompt (given to me by @inrice): but could you do something along the lines of the cullens (mainly alice) takes upon the job of raising a werewolf!reader? who's a child of course.

Summary: Alice Cullen stumbles upon a very strange, very lonely child while out on a hunt and, in true Cullen fashion, decides to take them home. Nobody knows how to take care of a werewolf or a child, but when they put in a collective effort (and bring in the help of Bella) things start getting easier...

Warning: Is this kidnapping? It might be kidnapping, fluff, slightly angsty at some parts, AU because Caius is cruel, and potentially odd genderless terms of endearment.

A/n: family fic makes the brain go brrr. so like i didn't really know how to handle the whole werewolf thing because the twilight lore is so... bare... and i wanted to write more on the family parts so it's not like a real focus but it is mentioned quite a bit. I hope that's okay! /gen

Word Count: 1.2k+

Alice wasn’t able to foresee you.

She simply stumbled across you one day on a hunt, your tiny body curled up at the base of a tree. You smelled so much of dog she almost mistook you for one, and then you looked up at her with big y/e/c eyes and she knew.

Carlisle wasn’t very happy when she brought you home.

“The Volturi will have a field day with this.” He says as he repacks his doctor bag. “The child is dangerous to have around.”

“But they're all alone, Carlisle. You said it yourself, they looked like they were out there for days— and I waited there with them until nightfall, no one came…”

Her shoulders fall and she looks at the door separating them from the rest of the family.

“Oh please just let them stay, we’ll all take care of them— if anything we’re better suited for it than anyone!”

Carlisle opens his mouth to protest but is interrupted by Esme opening the door, you asleep in her arms. All of his hesitance melts away at the sight, and at the sound of your small snores.

He sighs. “Fine, the child can stay— but we have to be careful.”

Alice nearly erupts with her joy, and Carlisle tries to hide a smile.

──────────────────

They give you a nice bedroom.

Rosalie, Alice, and Esme take an entire day to shop, nearly clearing out three children’s stores in the process. They build you furniture and they paint the walls a pretty shade of y/f/c; you now own more toys and clothes than a kid can possibly comprehend.

You spend the day with Emmett, the only Cullen boy who’s comfortable getting close to you, and he introduces you to the wide range of children’s cartoons. Your browsing ended with Crashbox, something that had the big man far more into it than you, but it was fun nonetheless.

“Want to see your room, Y/n?” Rosalie hums, poking her head around the corner and flashing you a dazzling smile.

The ladies let you wander around the new space, excitement brightening your features.

Emmett is still enraptured by the TV long after you’re put to bed.

──────────────────

Most days are good days.

Even if two of the family members seem a little afraid of you, you’re happy. You’re fed and clothed and loved.

But then there are bad days.

You wouldn’t eat. Nothing Esme made you was satisfactory and you were too upset and overwhelmed to let anyone know what you wanted; everyone tries to comfort you, even Jasper with his powers, but none of it really seems to work.

And then Edward comes home.

He left at some point during the crying and everyone figured that he was just bailing ship like he usually does when it comes to you. But, in reality, he somehow managed to get a cohesive reading of your mind and immediately went to someone who could help him.

“I brought Bella.” He says, gesturing awkwardly at his equally awkward girlfriend when five sets of frustrated eyes land on him.

“And I brought chicken nuggets…” The brunette human raises the bag up with a smile.

Everyone watches in confusion as you perk up a bit.

“Uh, here.” Bella crosses the room and places the bag down in front of you.

You open the bag and immediately start eating, sniffling but no longer upset. Every Cullen is reeling in shock.

“Well. What do you have to say to Bella?” Alice clears her throat, giving you an encouraging smile.

“Thank you, Bella.” You mumble, mouth full of food.

“Oh- it was actually Edward’s idea.”

You turn and thank him, beaming, and he gives you a crooked smile in return.

Afterward, Edward doesn’t really avoid you anymore.

──────────────────

‘Children of the Moon’ don’t pass their lycanthropy onto their offspring.

Alice doesn’t like to think about it, but sometimes the implication that someone bit and infected you consumes her mind and it makes her want to cry.

──────────────────

On the days they go to school, you do too.

They figure it’s good for you to spend time with other kids your age, and it seems to be. You always come home with crazy stories of playtime adventures and smelling of paint and crayons; the teachers love you, or more so the bright little woman who picks you up from school.

“Draw your family.” The teacher encourages one day.

You draw the Cullens.

When you proudly hand it to Alice when she picks you up from school, she lifts you up in a hug. Jasper frames your little drawing and puts it up next to all of their graduation caps.

──────────────────

The full moon is pretty horrific.

In order to keep everyone safe from your tiny claws, they keep you in the basement. For hours before the transformation, you just lie down there and wail-- you’re only little, it’s only fair.

Alice sits outside and talks to you the whole time, her voice wavering and her hands shaking.

She doesn’t move after the wails turn into howls, even if it would be safer to do so.

──────────────────

“Does Jasper hate me?”

You’re wrapped up in bandages, sitting on the picnic blanket with your adoptive mother and eating a sandwich too big for you as her husband pretends to do something down by the water. Alice is completely blindsided. They’ve sort of explained what they are to you, and you’ve kind of filled in blank spaces to the best of your ability, but she’s still unsure how to explain Jasper’s hesitance.

She doesn’t wind up having to.

“No,” He says, sitting down next to you and wrapping an arm around your shoulders, “I don’t. I’m actually quite fond of you darlin’.”

That alone seems to satisfy you and, over time, he loosens up a bit.

Jasper seems happier than he has in a while, listening to you talk about things little kids talk about, and Alice watches fondly with a smile.

──────────────────

One of them reads a story and tucks you into bed every night.

Most times it’s Alice, sometimes Jasper joins in.

Tonight is one of those nights. You’re clean and showered, dressed in a cute little pajama set, and nestled under the covers; she’s lying down next to you, Goodnight Moon open in her hands, and he’s in a chair next to the bed.

“... goodnight noises everywhere.” She finishes, smiling at your drooping eyes and lulling head.

Carefully, she unwinds herself from you and, with the help of her husband tucks the blanket under your sides. You tug your favorite stuffed animal close to your chest, y/e/c eyes closed, and a smile on your little face.

“Goodnight, y/n.” “Night, kid.” They each say, Alice bending down to kiss your head and Jasper opting to stand there and smile.

“G’night mom and dad.”

Jasper’s eyes nearly bulge out of his head and he turns to face his wife quickly.

Alice Cullen, the girl who forgot half of her life, never felt more whole than she did standing in your room, holding her mate’s hand, and turning off the light as the hushed sound of a cricket’s song filled the big house...

tag list:

@batmanunicorns523

#alice cullen x reader #jasper hale x reader #alice cullen imagine #jasper hale imagine #the cullens x reader #the cullens #twilight imagines #twilight saga #twilight #emmett cullen #rosalie hale #edward cullen #bella swan #carlisle cullen #esme cullen

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vivacissimx · 3 years ago

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The Wall's magic and it's effect on familiars

day 8 → ghost

The Wall, the largest structure known to man, is a conglomeration of ice, magic, stone, blood (!), and something eerily alive. It wasn't actually built by men, but a legendary line-up of three races who had been at war with each other for centuries prior.

Whether the legends are true or not, it is plain that the First Men and the children of the forest (and even the giants, if we take the word of the singers) feared something enough that it drove them to begin raising the Wall. And this great construction, as simple as it is, is justly accounted among the wonders of the world.

-TWOIAF: The Night's Watch

According to Ygritte, the wildlings have a different view of it (although of course the threats of the Others is greatest against them):

"You know nothing, Jon Snow. Daughters are taken, not wives. You're the ones who steal. You took the whole world, and built the Wall t' keep the free folk out."

-ASOS, Jon V

Regardless the point of this post is about how the Wall manages to weaken connections between humans and their animal familiars, whether these be wargs or dragonriders as we've seen:

The direwolf had run off three times as they climbed, twice returning reluctantly to Jon's whistle. The third time, the Lord Commander lost patience and snapped, "Let him go, boy. I want to reach the crest before dusk. Find the wolf later."

But when they reached the ringfort, Ghost balked again. He padded forward warily to sniff at the gap in the stones, and then retreated, as if he did not like what he'd smelled. Jon tried to grab him by the scruff of his neck and haul him bodily inside the ring, no easy task; the wolf weighed as much as he did, and was stronger by far. "Ghost, what's wrong with you?" It was not like him to be so unsettled. In the end Jon had to give it up. "As you will," he told the wolf. "Go, hunt." The red eyes watched him as he made his way back through the mossy stones.

-ACOK, Jon IV

Though it was summer and the Wall was weeping, the chill of the ice could still be felt whenever the wind blew, and every gust would make the dragon hiss and snap. “Thrice I flew Silverwing high above Castle Black, and thrice I tried to take her north beyond the Wall,” Alysanne wrote to Jaehaerys, “but every time she veered back south again and refused to go. Never before has she refused to take me where I wished to go. I laughed about it when I came down again, so the black brothers would not realize anything was amiss, but it troubled me then and it troubles me still.”

-Fire & Blood: Jaehaerys & Alysanne

Is it that the dragon couldn't go, or wouldn't? Ghost certainly could but direwolves still exist beyond the Wall (per Benjen) as do wargs of whom most commonly warg into wolves/direwolves. The Wall doesn't sever these ties because Alysanne continues to ride Silverwing and Ghost returns to Jon.

“Gods, wolf, where have you been?” Jon said when Ghost stopped worrying at his forearm. “I thought you’d died on me, like Robb and Ygritte and all the rest. I’ve had no sense of you, not since I climbed the Wall, not even in dreams.”

-ASOS, Jon XII

Notably Arya experiences wolf dreams with Nymeria all the way from Jupiter so the Wall is the factor of separation, not the distance.

Varamyr also steers Orell's eagle above the Wall and there seems to be no problem (although he's killed by Melisandre's magic):

"Once a beast's been joined to a man, any skinchanger can slip inside and ride him. Orell was withering inside his feathers, so I took the eagle for my own. But the joining works both ways, warg. Orell lives inside me now, whispering how much he hates you. And I can soar above the Wall, and see with eagle eyes."

-ASOS, Jon X

What I think is interesting is that the Wall is built on magic from men, the Children (who forced the separation of the Arm of Dorne & the Neck), the First Men, and giants alike. It locks away the Others, presumably, but it also seems to have mutual safeguards against each other built in. Whatever Coldhands is, he can't travel to the other side of the Wall. The Black Gate that Bran travels through only allows Black Brothers in and out. Giants can only enter through one door, too large and heavy to climb, and that door is right beside Castle Black. The Wall defends itself, the Wall has moods of it's own, the Wall is weeping. These are all Jon Snow's descriptions of the beast.

This is where we get into my personal theory.

The King's Crown was the Cradle, to hear her tell it; the Stallion was the Horned Lord; the red wanderer that septons preached was sacred to their Smith up here was called the Thief.

-ASOS, Jon III

"It is not that we fear these barbarians," Illyrio would explain with a smile. "The Lord of Light would hold our city walls against a million Dothraki, or so the red priests promise… yet why take chances, when their friendship comes so cheap?"

-AGOT, Daenerys I

"Ghost." Melisandre made the word a song.

The direwolf padded toward her. Wary, he stalked about her in a circle, sniffing. When she held out her hand he smelled that too, then shoved his nose against her fingers.

Jon let out a white breath. "He is not always so…"

"…warm? Warmth calls to warmth, Jon Snow." Her eyes were two red stars, shining in the dark. At her throat, her ruby gleamed, a third eye glowing brighter than the others. Jon had seen Ghost's eyes blazing red the same way, when they caught the light just right. "Ghost," he called. "To me."

The direwolf looked at him as if he were a stranger.

Jon frowned in disbelief. "That's… queer."

"You think so?" She knelt and scratched Ghost behind his ear. "Your Wall is a queer place, but there is power here, if you will use it. Power in you, and in this beast. You resist it, and that is your mistake. Embrace it. Use it."

-ADWD, Jon VI

The magic in the Wall is a mix of things, but the fire magic Melisandre wields is clearly part of it. Her touching Ghost mimics the separation effect Jon experiences when Ghost is beyond the Wall. It's one of the "hinges of the world" according to her, as in, it both strengthens her and... confuses her.

She was stronger at the Wall, stronger even than in Asshai. Her every word and gesture was more potent, and she could do things that she had never done before.

Melisandre had practiced her art for years beyond count, and she had paid the price. There was no one, even in her order, who had her skill at seeing the secrets half-revealed and half-concealed within the sacred flames.

Yet now she could not even seem to find her king. I pray for a glimpse of Azor Ahai, and R'hllor shows me only Snow.

-ADWD, Melisandre I

Melisandre is as at home with her magic as Jon is with Ghost (Ghost is a part of me). Yet both of them feel those bonds changed by the magic that exists in the Wall, just like Alysanne Targaryen did with Silverwing.

The Magnar nodded. "Even in far Thenn we know the tale of Arson Iceaxe and his tunnel."

Jon knew the tale as well. Arson Iceaxe had been halfway through the Wall when his tunnel was found by rangers from the Nightfort. They did not trouble to disturb him at his digging, only sealed the way behind with ice and stone and snow.

-ASOS, Jon III

Here's something both wildlings and Northerners know: the Wall will swallow you whole just to keep you out.

The Wall is an exclusionary force by nature. Ayesha A. Siddiqi said: every border implies the violence of it's maintenance. The magic in it isn't only about the Others; it creates binaries on every axis and then tears the two apart - Northerners from wildlings, human from animal, Others from humans. To even join the Night's Watch as stewards of the Wall, you have to swear off all family, effectively severing yourself.

The Wall survives on the chaos of separation because that's how it defends itself. It was raised by a coalition never seen before and it refuses to let that happen again.

The Wall is alive and that is a threat.

#jonsnowmonth2022 #jon snow #ghost the direwolf #alysanne targaryen #silverwing #asoiaf #valyrianscrolls #night's watch #text #these posts are getting more unhinged as i make them

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from-the-clouds · 4 years ago

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Kiss Me More (Part IIII) - Zemo/Reader

Masterlist | Part One | Part Two | Part Three |

Summary: Reader ponders the decision they made after meeting Zemo in Riga. Series now complete!

Words: 5.2k

Warnings: Kissing, marijuana & alcohol abuse, heavy angst & depression, small reference to suicide, implied casual sex, yearning

A/N (also check out A/N at end when finished reading): This is it, everyone! I was going to end this completely differently originally, but after some thinking -- and some light peer pressure from ya’ll, I did something a little different. I did fight with this part the most out of all of them, so I hope it’s still good. Please enjoy. And thank you for all the love on this series, it’s been so fun to write! Also I was listening to this song while writing this.

---

The incessant buzz of her alarm clock jolted her out of her dreamless sleep. Fumbling in the dark, she slapped the top of it, hitting the snooze button and looking at the interface with bleary eyes.

4:00 A.M. It stared, indifferent, back at her tired face.

She groaned, squeezing her eyes shut and lamenting, bargaining, half expecting the clock to turn back time when she opened her eyes again. Unfortunately, it did not. With a huff, she threw back the covers and stretched, disturbing the orange cat that slept in the empty spot next to her where her husband used to lay.

Snorting, the cat lifted its head to look at her as she climbed out of bed before curling back up in a ball where her feet had been.

“Don’t mind me, just getting ready for work so I can feed us,” she said, grumpily, then in a moment of repentance, affectionately scratching her behind the ears.

She had always been a night owl, so she didn’t think it would be possible to ever get used to waking this early. No human was meant to function at this time. It was the one part of the job she hated most. The rest of it was manageable, though it was still work.

Setting about her morning routine, she showered, made coffee, and donned her uniform. Eating a day-old bagel and nursing her coffee on her tiny balcony, she looked out over the darkened horizon. It was far too early to even enjoy a sunrise.

There was a saying, time heals all wounds. After her husband died, she’d heard it a lot. It was a saying she had come to find true. But it’d been well over a year since she’d left Helmut, alone in that swanky hotel room, and it still hurt like it was yesterday.

“I understand,” he’d murmured, and she felt the ghost of his kiss on her forehead, arms around her waist, even now. She shivered, not from the chill of the morning air.

She’d left her old life behind, all of it. Sam and Bucky, too, about a month after their time in Riga. She couldn’t look them in the eyes after what she’d done.

But, she was proud of what they’d accomplished. They’d defeated the Flag Smashers. Bucky seemed happier, more at peace. Sam had accepted his role as the new Captain America. John Walker seemed to have faded into irrelevancy. All the loose ends had been tied up in a pretty little bow.

Except for hers.

Which is why she moved, sold all the stuff in her tiny NYC apartment, and packed her car full with what she couldn’t bear to part with, some photos and momentos from a different lifetime. Her car didn’t stop until she hit the Atlantic Ocean, on an island just south of Charleston. All but undiscovered by tourists, the residents in the sleepy beach town kept to themselves, and she could go about her life in peace, undisturbed.

She couldn’t just run away from her problems, that was why she’d left Zemo. It seemed counterintuitive, but in her mind, it made sense. The problems would catch up to her, like they always had. The dissatisfaction she had with her life, with herself, was always going to return. And she knew she had to be alone to deal to face it head on. Like a wounded animal, crawling into the woods, there were only two ways things could end here; either she’d heal and come out stronger, or eventually she’d die. And so far, the healing part wasn’t going great.

Each day was a matter of convincing herself that she’d made the right choice. Especially now, as her eyes burned, fighting to stay open against the inviting embrace of sleep.

Despite it being dark outside, the bakery was bustling already when she walked in the service entrance. It smelled amazing, as always. Sweet and warm, a cacophony of aromas, baking bread, fresh coffee, sugar.

She set about the usual preparations to open up, packaging orders for the regulars, sweeping the floor, wiping down countertops. Once the place was open, she didn’t have to work the register, as she prepared batches of dough in the back for proofing, to be baked the next day.

Before, she’d been a terrible cook, but she’d grown comfortable in the kitchen after learning to bake. There was something satisfying about working with her hands, at this point she’d memorized all the recipes and the work became second nature to her. Now, she always had fresh bread and pastries in her kitchen, although they were the slightly disformed, ones the shop owners deemed too ugly for the glass display cases. Daylight was cherished, even if she barely saw it inside the shop. Because while she was awake, busy with work, her thoughts remained pleasant.

At night it was the hardest. Things got quiet, lonely. When she got home, she poured herself a drink. Cheap whiskey, the kind that came in a plastic bottle and burned on it’s way down. She had never been much of a drinker before, she was now. Her thoughts were more manageable after a drink. Especially because she was usually thinking of Helmut.

It was often that she wondered what he may be doing, and those thoughts usually ended with the image of him lying in the sun, poolside, on some island in the Pacific Ocean, drinking expensive champagne with a supermodel. It wasn’t a particularly comforting thought to her, and yet she was plagued by some variation of it every night.

Sometimes, she’d humor herself, and imagine what they might be doing had she decided to stay with him. Unfortunately, thinking of that was more upsetting. She wanted it, selfishly, though she wasn’t willing to admit it.

When she was younger, it had been so easy to block out the pain, to just press forward, no matter what. Much to her dismay, it didn’t get easier as she got older. Years of watching those she loved in pain, years of being in pain had taken a toll on her resilience. She wasn’t the strong woman she once was, she was weak.

That night, one drink had turned into two, into three. Wallowing in her own self-pity had become second-nature, she felt like Hamlet, lamenting her circumstances, a constant turmoil monologuing in her brain. But this night felt particularly worse, for some reason.

For the record, she had been doing better. But she was all-too-familiar with how grief worked, pulling her back down the dark side of the mountain, where she was forced to fight her demons over and over again. At some point, they were going to win.

It was a funny thing. Despite the loss of her husband, who she had loved dearly, his death had been easier to accept. Final. She couldn’t bring him back. Helmut on the other hand, was still out there, an open wound that could never fully heal.

Before she knew it, she was four drinks in, at her bedside table, fumbling through the bottom drawer, until she found what she was looking for.

Back on her couch, she stared at the card in her hand, the hastily written phone number on it, an international line. Helmut had given it to her, the day she left, stuck it in her purse while she wasn’t looking. She didn’t discover it until she had returned home.

It had been months since she last did this, pulled the card out of its hidden place in her drawer, placed it on the coffee table in front of her next to her phone, and considered dialing it. It had been a frequent occurrence when she first moved here, when she couldn’t find a job and spent most of her mornings either hungover, or stumbling home from rendezvous with men whose names she wouldn’t remember, and she wouldn’t care to, because there was only one man she really wanted. She could only hope he’d be as close as one call away. But she never called.

I mean really, he’d probably moved on by this point. If she was going to call, she should have done it months ago, when there was more of a chance that he’d give a fuck.

She considered this a setback. But she’d made her way halfway through the cheap bottle of whiskey, it was the drunkest she’d been in ages and she was curious. She didn’t know whose number it was, who’d be on the other end of the line, and never knew why Helmut would want her to have it to begin with.

At this point, she wasn’t capable of good decision making. In general, it hadn’t always been her strong suit. So why did doing the right thing matter now? It didn’t, she decided.

Taking a swig of whiskey straight from the bottle, she ensured she wouldn’t remember what happened next, at least not clearly.

The phone rang twice before someone picked up. “Hello?” she didn’t recognize the sound of the man on the other end of the line immediately, so she didn’t answer. All she had wanted to do was maybe hear Helmut’s voice, he didn’t even need to know it was her that was calling.

“Hello?” the man repeated, and she realized it wasn’t completely unfamiliar. The grandfatherly, comforting tone wasn’t her former lover, but someone close to him. And she supposed that wasn’t terrible.

“Is this Oeznik?” she asked.

“It is,” he said after some hesitation. “May I ask who’s speaking?”

Truthfully, she was shocked she’d allowed herself to go this far. This was a bad idea. If she stopped now she could get off without doing any real damage. But just as she was about to hang up, she heard her name, muffled, on the other end of the line.

“H-How do you know it’s me?” She raised the phone back to her ear.

“I thought you sounded familiar,” Oeznik chuckled, low and soft. “Helmut told me you might call.”

“He did?” she squeaked. “Yes, although it was awhile ago. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I uh….I….well….” she managed. “I guess I just….I guess I wanted to see how he was doing.” Her words flowed together like the liquor she was drinking, she knew she sounded drunk.

“Good, since we last spoke,” he said. “I don’t hear from him much these days...maybe every couple months. As you might imagine, he’s trying to keep a low profile for the time being.”

She nodded. Perhaps Zemo was as lonely as she was, hidden away in some cabin in the middle of nowhere. Though she had to imagine it looked much nicer than her current place, and maybe he had better company than a portly orange cat that begrudgingly liked him. “I understand.”

“How have you been?” he asked.

It sounded stupid, but she realized it was the first time someone had asked her that. Sincerely. Checked up on her. Even if she was the one who had dialed the number in the first place.

“I’m good,” her voice cracked. “Just keeping busy.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” he said. “Helmut always had such nice things to say about you.”

“Really?” she couldn’t stop herself.

“Of course, would you like me to let him know you called?”

“No, no...I wouldn’t want to bother him,” she choked on her words, something catching in her throat.

“Are you sure you’re alright, dear?”

“I’m okay, I just….” she felt tears prick at the back of her eyes, lowering her voice, since she didn’t think her normal register would come out as anything other than a whine. “I think I made a horrible mistake.”

“What’s the matter? What did you do?”

She shook her head, shaking the tears loose and now they were lining her lashes, threatening to spill over. However, she managed to make the next words she spoke come out clearly. “Nothing, I just...it’s really stupid, I really shouldn’t have called.”

He sighed on the other end of the line, and she felt like, despite her attempt at staying calm, he could still see that she wasn’t somehow. “It seemed Helmut was awfully sweet on you,” Oeznik’s words next came hesitantly, calculated. “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but he told me if you ever called, to help you with whatever you might need, no matter the ask.”

Oh God, what had she done? A sob left her, one she couldn’t control, and she clapped her hand over her mouth to stifle any more. Her tears were flowing freely now, tracking down her cheeks and along her chin. She wiped at them clumsily, clearing her throat.

“That’s very kind of him, but you can’t help me. I’m so sorry to bother you, please just forget I even called,” she forced a smile on her face so that hopefully he could hear it. “Goodbye.”

She hung up, horrified, and within seconds had deleted the call log from her phone. She’d been thoughtful enough not to memorize the number, and the lighter she used whenever she smoked sat in front of her. Without a second though, she burned the card, watching the paper blacken and disintegrate, until it was all but a pile of soot on her Wal-Mart coffee table. It was a fair punishment, and ensured she’d never get the chance to embarrass herself like that again.

And then she cried, sobbed into a pillow next to her, until her tears ran dry and she wore herself out, falling asleep on the couch alone. When she’d wake the next morning, the only evidence of her actions would be a throbbing headache and a dead phone.

She wouldn’t remember the call.

----

Life went on, as it always did. It had been about a month, and since that night she grew more indifferent, remembered how to ignore heartbreak. For now, she was stuck in her purgatory, waking up before the sun and falling asleep before it set, smoking joints, drinking cheap liquor, and going on the occasional date with people who she didn’t really like, tourists who would leave after a week and wanted temporary company.

Despite everything, she partly believed things were getting better. Maybe they weren’t, but the possibility that someday they would seemed feasible. And that was enough, for now.

On her days off, she’d walk to the beach and lay on a blanket, reading a book until the sun dipped below the horizon and lit up the sky in hues of pinks and purples. She found a record player at an antique store and began collecting vinyls, listening to obscure artists whose albums she found in the $1 bin. It wasn’t so bad. Life wasn’t so bad.

She took a shower after work. Tomorrow was her off day, and she wasn’t sure what she had planned besides maybe watching a movie and getting stoned. Maybe she’d try going to the beach. The weather was getting warmer, and she could even go swimming if the water wasn’t too cold.

Exhausted from her day of work, she laid down in her bed, still in her robe, her hair wrapped in a towel around her head. The sun was setting outside, the windchimes she’d hung outside slowly clanging together, birds singing in the warm spring air. Her cat hopped on the bed, offered an affectionate trill and curled up at her side, purring, in a rare display of affection. A cool breeze drifted through the open window. And for the first time in over a year, she felt content. Closing her eyes, she savored the moment, committed it to memory, so she could recall it the next time she was drunk-crying in front of her TV.

She fell asleep slowly, so slowly that when she woke, startled by something in her kitchen clattering to the floor, it felt like she hadn’t even been sleeping at all. The clock next to her red 11:31 p.m. and it was pitch dark outside, the cool breeze from before had grown stronger and her bedroom curtains were billowing, wind whistling loudly through the apartment. Her cat had left her side, and she frowned, shivering in the sudden cold.

Pulling the towel off her head, she made her way over to the window with the intention to close it, sleepily, lazily, until she heard something else. A creak in the floorboard. A heavy footstep in her kitchen. That wasn’t just her cat.

Some kind of muscle memory was ignited then, an ancient instinct that called to her from a different lifetime. Darting across the room, the gun she kept was in her hand, stealthily pulled from its hiding spot beneath her mattress. Truth be told, she never thought she would’ve needed it. Anyone looking for her would be smart enough to kill her in her sleep, not be so foolish as to wake her first with their heavy footsteps.

A dark silhouette stalked through her kitchen, moving slowly. It was a man, she assumed, based on his broader figure, and lack of coordination. In her experience, women were often stealthier without trying. He took another step, the floor creaking below him, shuffling on bargain linoleum.

Staying low, she crept forward, ducking stealthily behind furniture, avoiding the spots on the floor she knew made noise. It didn’t appear the intruder had a weapon, in fact, it seemed he was bumbling about, searching for something. A burglar, and a bad one at that. An island full of vacation homes owned by rich doctors and they thought they’d find valuables in her shitty apartment?

It wasn’t until she was standing directly behind him, gun aimed at his head, that she finally spoke up.

“I believe you’ve come to the wrong place,” she said flatly. “Whatever you’re looking for, it’d be in your best interest to leave empty-handed.”

Her eyes were still adjusting to the dark, but the intruder froze, arms slowly raising in defeat, empty-handed, as he turned around to face her. In the dingy room, she couldn’t make out any of his features, could only see that he was clad in all black.

“Unfortunately, liebling, that wasn’t my intention.”

She would’ve recognized that voice anywhere, though the endearment he’d used was enough to clue her in. Hitting the lightswitch with her free hand, she was face to face with the man she’d spent the past year trying to purge from her memory, Helmut Zemo.

Her gut twisted, her mind raced, but the only thing currently bubbling up, over the surface of every other emotion was the pure, seething rage left behind in the wake of fearing for her life.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” she stepped towards him, gun still raised, fuming.

“Hey, hey!” he staggered backwards, hands raised, eyes averted.

“I thought you were a fucking robber!” she hissed. “I thought you were here to kill me!”

“Lower your voice,” he scolded. “You’re going to wake your neighbors.”

Taking a deep breath, she realized she still had her gun trained on him and she lowered it, clicking the safety and discarding the weapon on the countertop. “What the fuck?” she asked. “What the hell is wrong with you? What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I didn’t know you had such a mouth on you,” he smirked, but she wasn’t finished, and she glowered at him.

“You broke into my apartment!” she growled.

“I had to be sure I was in the right place.”

“Yeah? You couldn’t have knocked first?”

He nodded, eyes trailing down to her hands, which were trembling, she hadn’t even realized. He seemed to understand what he’d done then, and she flexed her fingers, eyes locking with his. “I suppose...you may be right,” he said, surrendering.

She felt the rage subsiding as she took in his appearance. He looked not so different from the last time she’d seen him, except a fair amount of stubble covered his jawline in a short beard. He was still devastatingly handsome. Zemo’s dark eyes, filled with longing, drank her in, tilting his head as his gaze shifted to her lips. It was like she could read his mind, she knew what he wanted, what he was thinking. And her body was going to betray her if he kept it up.

Despite everything, she was still upset. Upset and embarrassed, as the light was doing an unflattering expose of her tiny, cluttered apartment, full of mismatched furniture and water-damaged wallpaper that her landlord refused to replace. It probably gave the prison cells that Helmut had spent years in a run for their money, and was in stark contrast to every other aspect of his life.

“What’s this?” he asked, gesturing to the empty liquor bottles on her countertop, stowed in her trash can. “Have you been drinking?”

“Not tonight,” she quipped, on guard. Had to be. As much as some old instinct told her to throw herself into his arms, press her lips to the underside of his jaw, and let him envelope her in the comfort of his embrace, she knew she couldn’t.

“Hmm,” he brushed past her, frowning, looking disappointed, as he made his way to her living room.

“How did you find me?” she asked, eyeing him wearily.

“I’m a wanted man, I trace every call that comes into my estate,” he said over his shoulder.

Helmut was taking inventory of the cramped space, staring at the photos she’d hung in a collage on the wall behind her couch, with a few watercolors painted by her late husband. One in particular, that he was focused on now, was from her wedding. Of all the memories she chose to hang, this one was her fondest, her former partner was all dark curly hair falling into deep blue eyes, and she was the portrait of a blushing bride, wearing a dopey love-drunk smile, gazing at him, ignoring the camera.

“You looked so beautiful on your wedding day,” he said, turning over his shoulder to look at her. He was so out of place here, standing in her living room, for a moment she thought he might be a hallucination, some physical manifestation of the heartbreak she’d experienced. “Although that doesn’t surprise me.”

She flushed, suddenly self-conscious in her thin black robe and still-damp hair. It occurred to her that she wasn’t looking her best, which made this whole situation that much more disconcerting. However, the compliment disarmed her slightly, and the anger she felt began to dissipate, slowly. She was going to offer him something to drink until her cat, who had been absent through the chaos, suddenly jumped up on the back of the couch and promptly hissed at him in an attempt to defend her territory.

“Pumpkin, be nice,” she said, although it was mostly to placate Helmut. Pumpkin never listened to her.

Helmut let her sniff his hand, and she was stunned when the cat rubbed her face against it. Of course, Pumpkin would like him of all people. That made sense. Then again, she supposed it made them not so different. He turned away to look at the rest of the room. “I see you haven’t kicked that bad habit you told me about,” he gestured at the ashtray full of roaches on the coffee table.

“Did you just come to my place to insult me?” she asked, putting her hands on her lips and feigning confidence. She could’ve rolled over and cried and told him how much she missed him, how many nights she’d spent crying over him, and while all of it was true, she felt indignation was the better option for her self-preservation.

“That’s a good question,” Helmut turned to face her now, hands in the pockets of the leather jacket he was wearing. Completely inappropriate for the weather here, but he didn’t seem to notice, or care. “Why do you think I’m here?” he asked.

She shrugged, feigning indifference. “I don’t know, but you shouldn’t be.”

He snorted, his frustration evident, and she saw a glimpse of the man that so many feared, the side that had earned him his dangerous reputation, that had him locked away in a high-security prison for nearly a decade. “I didn’t come all this way for nothing, draga, we’re going to have it out.”

“Fine,” she said, lacing as much venom as she could into her words to prepare herself. “Then get on with it.”

He stared her down, and the expression her wore startled her, something sparkled in his eyes, mischief, relief maybe? It was insulting. Like he didn’t take her seriously. But there was something else there, too, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, but it was wiped from his visage before it registered.

The tension in the room dissipated slightly when Zemo sat on the arm of the worn couch she’d bought from a yard sale, and she winced. “I spoke to Oeznik the other day,” he said flatly, snorting, eyes focused on a stain on one of the rugs she owned. “He told me he had the pleasure of speaking to a friend of mine about a month ago.”

Frowning, she tilted her head, her eyes meeting Helmut’s. Something in her brain sparked a memory she’d once dismissed as a dream after a particularly bad night of drinking.

“He was concerned, you see, because this friend didn’t seem to be in the best state of mind,” Helmut rose from the arm of the couch, stalking forward slowly, and she couldn’t move backwards, not even if she wanted to, as he could pin her easily against the front door. His voice grew louder, faster as he went on. “He said she was crying, slurring her words, he told me he thought maybe she might be-” Helmut cut himself off abruptly and closed his eyes, clenching one of his fists, a look of distress on his face as he took in a terse breath. “I won’t finish that thought, but you’re a smart girl, you can imagine what I’m getting at.”

Swallowing hard, the phone call came back to her in pieces, the tears, sobbing on the phone to a man she hardly knew. It was the night she finally admitted to herself she’d made a mistake, even though she’d already known it, deep down when she left him in the hotel room.

“Please forgive me for breaking in tonight,” Helmut said. “But I couldn’t bear the thought of you not answering the door, I needed to see with my own eyes that you were okay.”

Exhaling through her nose, she looked at the floor. “It’s not like that. I had too much to drink.” she said, keeping her voice as steady as possible. “It was just a bad night.”

“Then tell me, what was the horrible mistake you made?” he asked, stepping closer. He was close to her, now. So close. And his proximity made everything more difficult.

God, if only she could remember exactly what she’d said, the only thing that came to her were the emotions, desperation, sadness, grief. It was all too much, and he was threatening to bring them all back to destroy her again.

“I shouldn’t have called,” she said, shaking her head. “And I’m sorry. What do you want me to say? What do you want from me?”

“What do I want from you?” He asked, tilting his head, his eyebrows pulling together. “Do you have any idea how worried I was? How hard it was to sit on a plane when all I wanted to do was be here? With you?” His hand rose to cup her cheek, stopping just short of her face when she flinched away from his touch.

“Please stop,” she managed, the burn of tears behind her eyes almost menacing. The last thing she needed was to cry in front of him. “You’re undoing everything.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” he asked.

“You’re….you’re here,” she murmured weakly, wetness seeping, glossing over her pupils. “I only have so much capacity for pain right now, if you touch me now, you’ll ruin everything.”

No one ever had this kind of hold on her, she’d never bent her rules to appease anyone else, and she’d gone toe to toe with super soldiers. He was just a man, and yet, he terrified her.

“You really want me to leave?”

She couldn’t answer, but one tear escaped, sliding down her cheekbone, and she sniffled.

“I’m not the one who did this to you,” his thumb, swiped along her face gently, wiping it away. He’d touched her, just barely, and she was reeling.

“I know,” she stuttered, gasping. “I know it was me, but I thought I was doing the right thing.”

“You are so stubborn.” His expression softened as he looked upon her, his thumb tracing underneath her jaw, tilting her head upwards to look at him. Malleable, she obliged. “I’ve thought about you everyday since the night we spent together. You’ve plagued me. That can’t be a coincidence. Are you really happier this way? You must be honest with me.”

She shook her head, blinking out fresh tears. “No, I’m not. I just thought...by the time I realized I made the wrong choice, you’d have moved on. People like us don’t get to be happy.”

“Says who?”

How could she refuse him anymore? This would continue to go on until she gave in. And from the beginning, she wanted to give in. There was no use in fighting the inevitable. The small point of contact -- his hand on her chin -- radiated impressive warmth, and she could feel every part of herself being attracted to him, quelling some ache deep within her.

Reaching up, she clutched at Helmut’s palm, which didn’t last long, because he pulled her into his arms, nestling her head underneath his chin. She melted into his embrace, finding solace in the warmth of his solid frame.

“Come home with me,” he coaxed softly.

“I will,” she murmured, surrendering to the comfort of his presence. “But you have to let me bring Pumpkin.”

He chuckled, warm and amiable, the vibration of his chest echoing in her own. “Of course, you’ll bring Pumpkin,” he murmured into her hair. Oh, how she had missed hearing him laugh. They could’ve stayed that way for hours, and she would’ve been content, but he pulled away, hands on either side of her face as he studied her.

Unable to hold back any longer, she leaned in to kiss him. It was chaste at first, all the memories of her last night with him came flooding back quickly when he parted his lips to deepen the kiss, but she didn’t want that quite yet, just needed a moment to process this. The simple comfort of being held by him, kissed by him, was more than enough for now. He’d been waiting for this, she could assume in the way that he responded, pulling her impossibly close so she was engulfed in him.

Her stomach flipped, a warmth blossoming in her chest as he pulled away, their foreheads touching. “Oh, I missed you,” she sighed, shivering as his beard tickled her neck, his mouth on her sensitive skin.

“And I, you,” he murmured. His eyes studied her, carefully, up close, and for the first time since meeting him, she really let him see her, teary-eyed and vulnerable.

She would never let him go again.

---

A/N: So here we are! I know it’s been a ride, but I’m really excited for these two. However, I don’t feel like I’m done writing for Zemo yet. If ya’ll have any headcanons, thoughts, questions, requests, etc, feel free to drop them in my ask box or shoot me a DM. I’d love to talk more about him. I also would be down to write more oneshots based around this series, because I am sort of like….okay, they obviously have a connection, but they don’t know that much about each other, and I may or may not have a light future already mapped out for them. I might do an epilogue at some point even. But if you have anything you’d like to add, let me know!

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