#or ill make a new post with my prices

[roseyjustice]

Another update ! I'm finally home from the hospital and resting !

My pain is much better and I'm able to keep down solid foods. I'm just mega sleepy rn but I can walk longer and stand!

[satorisoup]

UWAHHH hello friends !!ヾ(*'▽'*) i am officially back from my hiatus !! thank you soso much to everyone for the kind wishes, i love you all soso dearly !! <3

i’m sending all of you so many warm hugs and big smoochies !! :3 i hope you all have the bestest day, and if u are able to, you get to see some pretty fireworks !! MWUUUUAH !! <3

[s0fter-sin]

i’ve been watching yannis marshall choreography for like 15 minutes and i’m back thinking about my dancer au

gaz suggests a pole dancing segment for the music video for price and ghost shuts it down hard, saying he doesn’t do pole. gaz calls him selfish, that he’s just saying no to spite him but ghost holds firm; not even listening to soap as he tries to reason with him and reach a compromise

soap gets to practice early like he always does, just to see ghost blasting another life by motionless in white and doing a flawless pole routine. he’s as mesmerised by him as he always is, such beautiful movements contrasted by the seemingly harsh music, and waits for him to break before teasing, “i thought you said you couldn’t do pole dancin’.”

ghost just wipes the sweat off his face with a towel. he knew he was there

he always knows when soap’s there

“i said i didn’t do pole; not that i couldn’t.”

“what’s stoppin’ you?” soap asks, genuine and innocently curious and it’s the only reason ghost doesn’t completely shut him down

“what ‘bout you?” he asks instead. “ever done pole?”

he shrugs and sets his bag down. “enough to get in a twirl or two. ‘sides, gaz’s better suited to that kinda delicate work.”

“now, that i know is bullshit,” ghost scoffs and soap tenses, expecting him to go off on another rant about his best mate (just like he waits through gaz going off on ghost) but- “i’ve seen your competition tapes; you’re plenty strong enough to work a pole.”

soap stares at him. “how have you-?”

“price,” he answers simply, throwing the towel on top of his gear and all but stalks towards him. “i like knowin’ who i’m working with; he sent me your breakdancin’ comps. if you can hold a three-fingered hollowback handstand, you can bend on a pole.”

soap sputters as ghost grips his tank top and yanks him over to the pole, setting his hands in place on the body-warmed metal; bracketing his body with his own. he guides his body through the motions; teaches him how to fall and catch himself in a spin, how to gracefully climb and hold his body in midair

soap laughs as he throws himself into a spin just to bend his legs over his head, twisting his body to latch onto the pole with knee and lean perfectly horizontal with his other leg splayed out; his arm thrown above his head

he tips his head back to catch ghost’s grin and almost drops himself as he jumps up to join him; artfully climbing above him and holding his whole weight on his hip as he flips down to look at him

soap’s breath catches at the scant distance between their faces; so close he can count the near invisible freckles on ghosts skin, his fair lashes and the deep flecks of gold in his dark eyes

ghost is just as entranced; his grin slowly fading as he looks into the light sparkling in soap’s eyes. he tips his head towards the mirrors lining the studio and they slowly turn to look at themselves; fitting perfectly together

“see?” he whispers. “we don’t look all that outta place, do we?”

“no,” soap whispers back. “we don’t.”

[goldensunset]

when a thing is so good you can’t even post about it tbh you have no idea how to even do it justice it’s so important to you that it just has to live in your brain quietly forever

[icarus-sun-writes]

“I’ll be here when you wake up.”

Captain John Price x dying! wife! Reader

~2.3k words

TW: death, cancer, detailed descriptions of the cancer toll on reader, mentions of wheelchair, oxygen tanks and feeding tubes. (Cancer descriptions based on the loss of my grandmother.)

IN WHICH: John comes home from work to spend time with his sickly wife.

(I’d like to mention that I originally posted this fic on my last tumblr blog “shy-girl-moments” but it got terminated, so I wanted to re-upload on my new blog because I loved this so much.)

“Love, I'm home…!” John called out softly. It was unnerving with how quiet the house was considering his wife was usually happy and loud, only a week ago her cancer had worsened and left her reliant on a wheelchair. She was so tired and weak all the time. She had a feeding tube and was on oxygen at the same time.

John closed the door behind him and left his work bag by the door, purposely trying to be quiet in case she was sleeping. He looked around the house for any sign of his wife, eventually finding her sleeping on the couch with her feeding tube still connected and her wheelchair parked next to the couch. There was a cheesy romantic comedy movie playing in the background on a low volume. Since she hardly got the opportunity to leave the house, she often resorted to watching movies. Gently and slowly, John picked her head up and off the pillow and sat down, laying her head on his lap.

She groaned softly when John picked her head up, mumbling incoherently and stirring slightly, but soon settled back into her sleep. John smiled at how adorable she was. It saddened him to see her sleeping in the middle of the day but what choice did she have? She was terminally ill, her body was so exhausted that she slept most of the day even though she tried to fight it so she could spend time with him. John began softly stroking his poor wife's hair, hoping the comforting feeling would make it for her to stay asleep. Even the act of sleeping looked uncomfortable. She looked sick. The bags under her eyes were deep and dark, she was frail, and her voice was often sore, but she always tried to have a smile on her face.

John could see that she had her wedding ring clutched in her fist as she slept. Since she was losing a lot of weight due to the cancer, she had to wear her ring around her neck on a chain because it would just fall off her finger. She had a habit of holding it often as a sort of comfort. Price's eyes were soft as he watched the rise and fall of her chest. He had watched his wife’s health decline rapidly over the past few months. Seeing his wife so skinny and in pain had been hard on John but even harder on her. He had to stay strong for her. One of his hands continued to run through his wife’s thinning hair as the other slowly lifted her shirt. Her hip bones stuck out painfully from the thin skin and John traced them with his fingers gently, a sense of deep sorrow sinking into his heart.

A few minutes later she turned her head and nuzzled John's thighs. All was silent for a few seconds —besides the sound of her drip bag for her feeding tube and oxygen tank— then she spoke faintly, “John?” She opened her eyes slightly, looking up at her husband.

John felt his heart soften when he saw his wife’s tired and pained face. He loved his wife so much. Without hesitating for a moment he replied back to her, his voice was soft and had a tinge of guilt at seeing his wife in such a state but it was also filled with so much love, “Yes? I’m right here darling.”

She smiled weakly at John, taking another few seconds to speak again, “I… love you…” Another few seconds passed, “stay with me…”

John’s heart broke at hearing how quiet and tired her voice was. He felt the guilt rise in his body at the idea of him not being there for his wife, but he quickly pushed those thoughts from his mind when he noticed how she still had her wedding ring clutched in her hand. John gently moved his hands to run through her hair again, hoping the feeling of comfort would ease his wife.

“Of course I will… I’ll- I’ll always be with you. I love you too darling.” John said, the sadness evident in his voice.

“Kiss…?” She asked faintly, a look of love in her tired eyes.

John’s heart began to beat faster when he heard his wife’s request. It was so simple of a request yet it filled his heart with so much love. He didn’t hesitate to lean down and press a loving kiss on his wife’s forehead then another on her lips. He pulled away just enough to whisper, “There you go darling. You’re so cute…”

“Kiss.” She asked again, a bit more firmness in her voice and a faint, sly smirk on her lips. There was a glimmer of mischief in her eyes, too. It hurt John, knowing that she was using so much of her energy just to try to be silly.

“Oh, so feisty today?” John’s heart rate skyrocketed when he saw the smirk of his wife’s face and he held back a laugh.

It hurt John, knowing that she was using so much of her energy just to try to be silly, but it did make his heart flutter to see her smile again. He gave in easily and leaned back down to kiss her on the lips again. This time a little longer and more passionate, but still just as loving in nature as the first one. But he had a teasing smirk on his own face too, wanting to match her silly mood. She opened her mouth ever so slightly in an effort to deepen the kiss, smiling weakly.

John couldn’t help but smile when he felt her trying to deepen the kiss. Gently, he pulled away from the kiss leaning down to murmur against her ear, “Needy, aren’t we?” He teased jokingly before gently kissing his wife’s cheek and continuing softly, “You’ve gotta take it easy, darling. You’re still sick, love. And you know how easy it is for you to tire yourself out now…”

There was a faint blush on her cheeks, her eyes showed that she understood her husband’s words, but was still disappointed. “I love you…” she murmured again, not having the strength to argue even though she wanted to.

John smiled warmly at the blush on her cheeks. Seeing the beautiful rosy tint to his wife’s pale cheeks filled his heart with so much love. He loved every detail of her beautiful face and he loved to see that blush, even with how sick she looked.

“And I love you too darling. So stop trying to get yourself all worked up. I don’t want you doing more than just resting at the moment.” John insisted softly, gently stroking her thinning hair.

A few seconds later her closed her eyes and fell asleep quickly once again. It was obvious how exhausted her body was from the cancer, her entire body weak to the point of needing a wheelchair and a feeding tube. John felt a pang in his heart when he saw her fall asleep again so easily. The poor woman must’ve been so exhausted from just being up for a few minutes. John’s eyes ran down his wife’s body again and he could only feel guilt and sadness when he saw just how much weight she had lost. He kept one hand gently massaging his wife’s hair but his other hand gently moved to lift up her shirt again. He stared at the jut of his wife’s hip bones and tried to push down the feeling of impending doom.

John had to pry his eyes away from his sickly wife, turning to the TV for some type of distraction. The romcom she chose was her favorite, the one she watched over and over again, the same one she forced John to watch on their first date. She liked it because the love interest looked like John when he was in his teenage years. After about an hour of anxiety filled disassociating, John was suddenly aware that his wifes oxygen levels dropped drastically; slow, shallow, faint breaths. He immediately sat up right, very alarmed and scared.

“Darling?” He gently shook her shoulder, trying to wake her up but not startle her, “wake up for me. You’re not breathing right, love.”

She woke up after a second and furrowed her brows, taking a deeper breath. She glared slightly at John and pouted, clearly very annoyed, “w-what?”

John felt a rush of relief when she woke up and started breathing again. But his eyes narrowed at the pout on his wife’s face, “Don’t ‘what’ me. You weren’t breathing well again.” He paused for a moment before adding, “I can’t have my beautiful wife suffocating on me. You can’t scare me like that.”

She fought the urge to roll her eyes, but nodded slightly. It took her a long moment to speak, “sit me up… like the nurse said… so I can sleep…”

John let out a sigh when he saw the look in her eyes, noting the fact she was obviously restraining herself from rolling her eyes. He couldn’t blame her though since he knew his wife was in pain and extremely tired from just the act of being awake. He gently lifted her up and sat her upright on the couch again.

“There’s my good girl... now you can get proper sleep from now on. But if I hear you’re not breathing properly again, I swear I’ll go turn up the oxygen flow.” He said firmly, yet his touch was soft and comforting, there was no mirth behind his tone.

She just stared at him for a long moment, starting to tear up slightly, her pout deepening, “I’m sorry… for being cranky.” She mumbled, starting to take deeper breaths now that she was sat up, “I’m just… so tired.”

John’s heart shattered at seeing tears well up in his wife’s eyes. She was clearly in so much pain but was trying so hard to keep it together. He quickly wrapped his arms around his wife and held her close, gently pulling her into his lap.

“Darling, don't apologize. It’s alright. You’re alright.” He gently stroked her hair again while he spoke, “I know you’re tired… I know you’re hurting. I’m here though, I’m not leaving you, my love”

“I’m so tired… of being sick… and in pain… I want this to be over.” She hiccuped slightly through her tears, leaning into John’s comforting embrace, her head on his chest.

It felt like a knife had hit his heart hearing his wife’s words. The pain and exhaustion she carried was so obvious in the way she spoke, “I know, love… I know.”

He pulled her even closer to his chest and continued to rub his wife’s hair in a comforting motion. He knew there wasn’t much else he could do to help, but he wanted to try and offer something, “Just get some sleep for now. darling.”

She nodded, her tears slowly trickling to a stop as she nuzzled her face into her husband’s neck. John wrapped one arm around her waist to help hold her upright while his other arm continued to gently run through her hair. He leaned his head down to press a kiss against her forehead.

“There we go love. That’s it, just go to sleep now. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be here when you wake up.” He murmured, his low raspy voice gently pulling her back to sleep.

Her breathing was even and smooth and the look on her sleeping face was peaceful, knowing she felt safe in her husband’s big arms. John watched as her breathing evened out into a peaceful and calm rhythm and it made his heart feel lighter again. Seeing his wife so peaceful and safe in his arms made his heart feel so full of love and warm. He sat there for a few minutes more just absorbing the feeling of his wife in his lap, then he too dozed off.

When John woke up, it was late in the evening, nearly dinner time. His wife was still cuddled up against him, completely still and a bit cold. His eyes were met with the sight of his sleeping wife still snuggled up against him. He couldn’t help a small smile at the sweet sight, but the smile quickly dropped after realizing how cold she felt against him. He gently shook her shoulder in a panicked attempt to wake her up.

“Darling, wake up for me real quick, love.” She didn’t wake up. John didn’t feel her breathing either and she was very pale. “Love..?”

John felt his heart start to pick up speed when he didn’t get a response. He again shook his wife’s shoulder but there was still no response. Panic started to set in as he carefully put one hand on her neck to feel if there was a pulse. There was no pulse and her body was starting to stiffen. John felt his heart stop beating, but he refused to accept it. He pushed the thought from his mind and kept going through the steps in his head. He pressed his fingers a little under her chin to tilt her head back and his chest tightened.

“Come on love, breathe for me…” he desperately begged, his voice shaky.

Her head lulled slightly in his hand, her head tilted up towards him, and John saw that she looked at peace… she was safe and calm for the first time in weeks. She almost looked as peaceful as she did on their wedding night. But now his wife is dead… no longer in pain. Reality really began to sink in for Price when he saw how still her chest was, unmoving, not breathing. He felt like any breath he tried to take was being caught in his throat. His heart felt so heavy and he realized he was crying. Slowly, John pulled his sweet wife back against his chest, holding her tightly and securely and gently began stroking her hair again, just like he had been a couple hours ago.

It was then that he finally spoke again, his voice nearly silent and thick with emotion, “I’ll be here when you wake up…”

But she never would.

[evilvillain123456789]

My demonic fucking boomer f*ther is always telling me not to make posts like this while waching tiktoks picture in picture on my samsung zflip 5 and slamming celsuis energy supplement and ritalin and sudafed and caffeine pills while doing promotional work in an IRC channel on the family santa fe's onboard computer all while doing 90 on i75 northbound (to go steal from the gainesville athleta [because, yes, i have been banned from every mid priced womens athliesure retailer in the orlando metropolitan area, thanks for asking]). news flash "dad", as if you didn't grow up staring at the gaydge cluster on your old boomer car and fucking shifting gears every five minutes, because it's literally the exact. same. thing. also im mentally ill and need constant stimulation or i WILL crash the family santa fe into other cars or pedestrians. Whose fauult is this exactly??? let's see, whos the sickly, old boomer war criminal with a taste for poisonous offgasses, which mutated and weakened his focking sperms, hmmmmmm??? The pathetic little fuck is barely clinging to life now and i think it would push him over the edge if he learned that i borrowed against his settlement, because god forbid anyone provide for this fucking family, and god forbid a mentally ill queer woman be a fucking antraprenore... its like my rival investment guru always said, no one ever made seven figures rugpulling on doomed NFTs by hanging around in the persian gulf inhaling toxic fumes like some kind of- FUCK! WHAT THE FUCK YOU BITCHES MADE ME MISS MY FUCKING EXIT!!!

[abimee]

hi i can no longer act coy or hope that a job will come in time so im coming to everyone really embarassingly with my issues

in June I attempted to get fired from/left my job after having a really embarassing public meltdown due to having Rapid-Cycling Mixed Bipolar and the unending stress of that job of 3+ years. I've been struggling to get a job afterwards due to being in CA without a vehicle, and i'm currently working on an overdue commission so could not open up any more.

Soon after, my mother's car imploded, and a series of incidents related to a used engine and taking out a loan with a friend has left her both needing to pay back the loan and still needing to get a new car, putting her thousands in the hole.

my mother has allowed me to not worry about paying rent while unemployed, but now the person living with us is moving out, so it will be on me and my mother to pay rent, upping mine from $300 to $500 a month. I am currently job hunting with good prospects, but I am still in need of some assistance.

I DO NOT WANT TO ASK FOR DONATIONS WITHOUT GIVING SOMETHING IN RETURN, I have a very bad time taking help from people without doing something in return because I do not want people to feel like they Have to give me money or help me, I want to Offer something in return for that money, even in a situation like this, because I want everyone to come out on the other end feeling fulfilled, so I'm offering some (slow) cheaper commissions I can work on in between the bigger comm I owe.

My kofi is always open for donation sketches ---- you can donate the minimum amount (or whatever you prefer) and get a drawing like this of anything as long as you put it into the donation message!

i cant currently take on big commissions as I have one i owe and the commissioner is a very generous person who has been waiting a good few months for me to finish one during this hectic time, but if you're interested in getting something a little higher quality for a donation, a $30-50 USD donation can get you a ''simple commission'' styled drawing --- that is, you give me a prompt and character refferences (ocs or fanart, up to 2-3 characters depending on complexity), and I draw them like below (color complexity depends on price, the higher the amount the more the color).

You wont have access to revisions to make this as fast as possible, so i HIGHLY reccomend only getting fanart comms of these and to make sure you really like my style!!

this is one of those situations where I DEEPLY reccomend people do not donate unless they want something in return, if you dont wanna ask for a drawing or anything i reccomend going to people in more dire circumstances and helping them out with your donation!!!

but if you want to help me help my mother get out of a bad financial situation and get a little drawing in return, you can do a small dono and att a message of what you want doodled, or you can email me at cyrdrawings@gmail.com your $30-50 donation reciept and what you would like me to draw, and ill try to get them as soon as I can

thank you so much for checking this post out and keep it real old school!!!!! i promise once this is over and i get a job we'll be back to your regularly scheduled art posting

[chiiimchar]

HI!!!! new commission post !!!

edit 28/2/2024 11/5/24 14/6/24: . guys😨 . being alive is so fucjing expensive. prices are staying down for some time! (lol)

PRICES:

full bodies are 35 25 dollars (30 shaded 5 sketched), and headshots are 10 5 dollars (7 shaded, 3 sketched)! I also do discord emojis for 3 dollars each, and whatsapp stickers for 5 3 dollars each, regardless of complexity!

ADDITIONALLY. i will draw pretty much anything at all. guys. i will draw you the chucky cheese rat pregnant. hell ill draw you bowser AND chucky cheese having sex. without any extra complexity cost or nothing. ill draw your mary sue self insert french kissing those gacha characters yall like so much. i dont judge. ill draw homestuck. mordetwi. anything.

ehem. prices can be discussed, and additional characters come cheaper (any additional character will be 60% off the normal price) in drawings with multiple characters + each 10 drawings with the same price, one comes free!

i also do gifs! every second is 35 20 dollars!! (gif making is very tough).

sketch pages are 5 dollars, and can have up to 5 sketches in them!

Payment through Kofi, or PayPal! I take payment after I do the sketch, and you give me the go ahead to continue to lineart!

EXAMPLES:

WILL AND WON'T DRAW:

DISCLAIMER and EXPLANATION: "real people" doesn't include self insert ocs; it says "suggestive" because i post these to other social media and if i write "i will draw nsfw" in all of its letters i WILL get banned off instagram i believe.; hateful art includes, but isnt limited to racism, transphobia and xenophobia.

IMAGE OF MY DOG TO ENTICE YOU TO REBLOG:

she is in fact as dumb as she looks. thanks for reading ❤️

[o-pandora-o]

I LIKE YOUR BLOG SM T_T

CAN I REQUEST FOR WHB BEELZEBUB AND SATAN HOW WILL THEY SURPRISE YOU ON YOUR BIRTHDAY? My Birthday is coming up and I really really really wanna feel loved by the boys 😔

The Kings (minus Lucifer) surprise you on your birthday

Warnings: Bit suggestive on Satan's part, mostly fluff genre. Reader isn't necessarily MC, but someone who is famous with the demons. I made it Gender-neutral as much as possible.

a/n: Hiii! Glad you like the blog, I'm sorry if I don't have a regular posting sched 😭. Also HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUUUU, I also included Mammon and Levi. Didn't include Lucifer because I don't wanna make him OOC. Hope you enjoy this!

Satan:

🩸He's gritting his teeth and you can hear the crunching noises whenever demons of Gehenna gives you gifts. "They're mine...grrr..*crunch*"

🩸Will definitely kick them in the rear when they give you something and you decide to hug/kiss/pat them (any physical touch rly).

🩸When Paimon offered to have a tea date (and gave you chocolates too!) it was the last straw for him.

🩸He drags you to his castle and to outside of his room. "Satan I know you're mad but... Your grip is too tight it hurts!" You said, and you saw Satan smirk. "So slap me" he said with a smug grinning face. "No" "Yes" "No!" "Yes... i can feel it" he lifted your hand and slapped himself and made an aroused look on his face. "Heh.. your anger... Tastes good..." "Anyways..." Satan said as he wiped the drool off his mouth. He opened the door to his room, revealing a room full of decorations and gifts for you. "You... Did this for...me?" "Yeah, I kept seeing you look at surprise videos of partners, and you kept telling ppyong that surprising people in human world isn't common...do you like it?" Satan smirks, he already know the answer to the question. "Of course I do! Thank you" you hug him and he kisses your forehead.

🩸The both of you open the gifts and cuddle inside his bedroom.

🩸Needless to say that you weren't seen outside that night because you're unwrapping your other gift.

Mammon:

🪙You woke up to the firm feeling in your bed. But also something akin to a warm teddy bear.

🪙You hugged the figure, only for it to reply with a deep laugh.

🪙You realized that Mammon is in your bed (in his castle), you woke up and stared at him, hugged him and gave him a good morning kiss and went back to sleep. "Hey little one, don't sleep on me, do you know what day it is, hmmm?" he said with a hearty deep laughter "Hmmm? Monday?" Then you went back to sleep "It's your birthday little one! here I got you some gifts and we'd do what you wanna do today how bout that?" "Mmmm just wanna sleep but ill open the gifts later thank you, Mammon" You lazily kiss his nose and fall back to sleep.

🪙Mammon gave you tons of gifts, including the new Dphone 15 and Ninten Switch 2!

🪙He also gave you some gifts for your hobbies and a bag of gold coins too!!

🪙You managed to move on the evening though, but Mammon had another surprise for you! A dinner on the rooftop of the 66 Demon Star Hotel!!!

🪙Scattered were some roses that had a touch of 24 karat gold leaf, a never ending candle flame created by the most powerful fire demon, and a table with your favorite fancy food.

🪙You were beyond disbelief, you know Mammon was lavish but you he keeps surprising you with the most expensive things and places. Before you can utter a word, Mammon spoke. "These things could not put a price on how priceless you are, you made me realize that despite owning everything in Hell, I could not put a price on your value... You're really unique and priceless as you are. Thank you for being with me." he pulled up his chair and let you sit.

🪙The night was full of chatter and laughter, under the starry skies.

Beelzebub:

🕶️You finally visited Avisos and you were in the palace to keep you safe, you were sleeping in your room.

🕶️You woke up with Beelzebub sitting in the window. "Oh you're finally awake! Come on, let's go!" Before you can utter a word, Beel scooped you up and jumped to the window. Everything was too fast, you can already hear Bael screaming from afar ("BEEL COME BACK HERE, YOU HAVEN'T SIGN THE DOCUMENTS!!!") "It's your birthday right? And I can smell that you missed me a lot, hehe I'll give you a grand tour of Avisos on your birthday!!!" Beel holds you tightly as he smiles like a child whose parents gave him his bday present. "W-wait beel! I haven't showered! I'm still in my pajamas!!!" "It doesn't matter! Plus you smell good~" he says as he smells and kisses your neck while still running. You bury your head on his chest, hiding your blush. 🕶️He knows where you wanted to go, honestly its thanks to his sense of smell. But you still tell him where to go.

🕶️Oh you wanted a stuffed toy that looks like him? Both of you went and play with the claw machine (well both of you know it's rigged...but you still got it!)

🕶️Wanna try out the new cafe? Sure! He only requests you try it with his body fluids, well if you don't want then he won't force you.

🕶️Do you want him to cosplay your husbando/waifu? He gotchu! He knows a cosplay cafe! He can also cook something for you too!

🕶️You wanna spend some sexy time with him? Oh boi he knows a good S&M Club to spend your energy on.

🕶️He's really sweet, he's the type of person that know your desires upon your smell. He knows when you're hungry, when you're angry, and if you're feeling a bit naughty.

🕶️When you fall asleep having a good time, he'd carry you back to the palace to sleep. He'd kiss your forehead/cheek and leave the gifts on your bedside table. "Ah... I'll miss you so much... But I have to go..."

🕶️He'd also leave a matching earring as a gift for you.

Leviathan:

⚰️He's pissed off, he's glaring. How come demons like you? It's unfair.

⚰️A Small demon gave you a gift? "Off with your head!" Barbatos gave you a rose because it looked like you? "Hang!" Glasy looked you from head to toe and almost uttered something sexual? "Get out!" (He was hanged and dragged away LMAO).

⚰️You're alone with Leviathan in his room. He's glaring at you. "W-what's the problem?" you should've kept your mouth shut... "You... How dare you! Han-" "You hang yourself! This is my birthday, stop making a fuss!" You cut Leviathan midway, he was looking shocked, albeit impressed. There was now dead silence but the tables have turned, you're now glaring at Leviathan and he now makes a :o face. "You don't want others giving me gift right?...then make up for it...please?" you said but you were looking away from his eyes. "How dare you...a mere mortal asking a king to make up for what he'd done... Truly you're..." "I won't choke you on bed anymore" you said, glaring at him "....fine meet me in the restaurant tonight at 7... it's not like I planned dinner or something..." (He did)

⚰️So you went to the restaurant he told you about, with the best suit/dress he provided. Suprisingly, he rented the whole restaurant to the both of you.

⚰️He was so beautiful with his suit. You can't feel but envy him (he knows...he can feel it). Well he kinda did apologize for his behavior (no not really), but the ambiance of the restaurant was beautiful enough to forgive him.

⚰️You both ate your favorite food and he slid a gift. You looked at him quizzically. "Open it..." He said. He gave you a bracelet with an intricate design. "A bracelet? It's unlike you to give me something like this... Thank you" a blush appeared in your face. "Oh it's also convertible to a whip see?" He presses the design, and it somehow shine like the color of his hair. In your hands were a silver whip with an intricate design. You couldn't understand how it became a whip, but it was cool.

⚰️Leviathan smirked, looking at you like he finally won. He won the 'best gift award', a competition that was never a competition in the first place.

[helluvathings]

A lot has been written on how much Cash Buckzo sucks, but one thing that doesn't come up as often is that he was an abusive father-figure to Fizz too. From what we've been shown so far, it doesn't look like Fizz had other guardians in his life. Cash seemed to be in charge of him post-fire, based on the trailer and his ability to keep Blitzø and Fizz apart. Plus, at Fizz's birthday, when Cash has the "Wish You Were My Son" card, no other parents are around making wtf faces.

And if Cash was Fizz's main guardian, he had Fizz and Blitzø in a textbook golden child/scapegoat dynamic. Pulling from the first site that came up on google (replace narcissistic mother with a more general term):

The Golden Child, as the name suggests, is the best and most wonderful child – at least in the eyes of the Narcissistic Mother. It seems to be that the Narcissistic Mother picks the Golden Child to be an extension of herself... Her most minor achievements are celebrated and held up for admiration.

And:

The Scapegoat on the other hand is, also as the name suggests, the person on whom all the ills of the family are projected. They can do no right. Their major achievements are dismissed. Any money spent on them is the bare minimum and is spent begrudgingly.

It's a dynamic that allows for manipulation of both kids, and it's particularly effective because the Scapegoat acts as an automatic threat for the Golden Child. If they step too far out of line, that could be them one day.

Beyond that, though, in The Circus, we see Cash was just as willing to sell Fizz as Blitzø: just for a higher price. And it wasn't even because he valued Fizz more as a person; it was because Fizz--who was probably about ten--had more shows to do. So Fizz has been the star of the circus (Cash outright says he's the main draw) since he was elementary school age, and doing 3+ shows a day at that point; with Blitzø's neglect acting as an implicit threat that if he were to falter or fail, his preferential treatment might be withdrawn.

And this is so normalized for Fizz, that he keeps cheering at the Mammon concert when Mammon talks about exploiting the pageant winners. Blitzø clues in at once, but Fizz has already been blinded to all the red flags. When Blitzø tries telling him he doesn't need Mammon's approval, Fizz doubles down and insists he'll win it anyway: he needs to be perfect. The way Cash raised Fizz all but groomed him to be Mammon's ideal brand baby; to accept Mammon's treatment, and immediately internalize the idea that his worth is directly tied into how well he performs.

Yes, Mammon's intentional manipulation was part of why Fizz felt like he needed to stick around so long; but I'd argue Cash's "parenting" shaped Fizz in a way that led him to accept those ideas so readily in the first place.

Final thought: we don't see what happened to Cash after the fire, beyond the glimpse of him barring Blitzø from Fizz in the trailer. I've seen theories that Mammon eventually separated Fizz from Cash, but I'd find it slightly more poignant if Blitzø and Fizz were parallels here, and when his injuries from the fire kept Fizz from performing at his best, Cash eventually turned from him as well--too impatient to stick around or help him recover. It'd make sense for Cash's character, and it'd only heighten why Fizz felt so determined not to let Mammon down. If he'd "failed" a father figure once, he would've been that much more desperate to please his new one, especially since winning the pageant would've likely saved Fizz from difficult circumstances if Cash had given up on him.

In summary, Cash did Fizz just as dirty as he did Blitzø. Both of them were treated as potentially disposable products: just products of different value. Fizz believed he needed to sell himself to be "good enough"; Blitzø thinks he'll never be good enough. And to put a cherry on top, the jealousy/bitter feelings that came from this dynamic laid the foundation for Fizz to believe the worst of Blitzø regarding the fire, and for Blitzø to assume Fizz would do so with full knowledge of the situation.

[pillarofna]

help me get gas please </3

sorry to make another post but hi im dylan im broke and i start my new job as a delivery driver tomorrow. my gas tank is totally empty bc gas prices are insanely high right now but could i get some help to fill up my tank before i have to go to work tomorrow

my car holds 12 gallons, and $5.20 x 12 is $62.40, so im asking for $65 to help me out

paypäl here, vënmo/cäshapp: diabolicshrimp

thank you guys so much ❤️ hopefully ill be less financially dependent on ebegging once i get paychecks

[mirersc]

-imma have alone the title for now till the cover art is ready, oops-

« LoST SiGNaLs » || I ACT

SUMMARY

“Say, Sonic, how about you and I play a game? Think of it though as a tracking skills test! Bring me within a week the three pieces of the chaos pentagon and I will release your two friends. Refuse and they pay the price. Trick me and well, better for me not to indulge in what I will do in that predicament. Either scenario, I sti~ill win.”

~~~

When Tikal summons Sonic to Angel Island the hero would have never been able to imagine what would follow after. It is unbelievable to think that the guardian of the Master Emerald, Knuckles and the ultimate lifeform, Shadow are taken as hostages. As Eggman forces Sonic on a quest to retrieve an old artifact for him, entitled ”Chaos Pentagon”, the blue blur is to set after a journey with the aid of Rouge the Bat and E-123 Omega to find the three shards of the object in question.

For them to succeed they will all need to be on the same wavelength. Are they however? And what seems to be the deal with Sonic’s communicator? Secrets are lurking around yet no one bats an eye. Will the trio actually manage to get along in the end to save their friends from the mad scientist?

Set after Sonic Frontiers. Please meet the newly formed team of Lost Signals. Or not so new?

❗link to fic:: here!

Heya, guys! Myler’s here! And guess what? Yep, yep! I have been as well participating in the STH Big Bang 2024 event with all the amazing writers and artists you have seen so far! Today is the last posting day so everyone is hoping that you will still enjoy the third batch’s works.

I participated as a writer on the event and I came up with a work called “Lost Signals” featuring a story around Sonic, Rouge and Omega because I thought it would be an interesting team to search the bonds between them.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to produce all the work since I didn’t work well with my given time, but it had still been a blast to write as far as I got, successful managing to cover ACT 1!

Big thank you to the @sthbigbang for hosting this lovely event! You guys rock and without y’all this event wouldn’t have happened and none if all these works would have been made. We will always remember the fun times we had while contributing in the event and the friendships or acquaintances we made along the way. You better take the credit you are been given for you deserve them!

🥁

And now ladies and gens and creaturas, a big THANK YOU to all the wonderful artists that accompanied me in this journey, @rapidhighway @rohansoutsidemydoor @petitcanard and despite my incompetence and FUULL delay, heh, they saw it through and were as supportive as one could be! Truly I wouldn’t have made it without them.

Be sure to congratulate them and check their astonishing art pieces for they are sure captivating and pretty much describing without words the story for you all to listen to and imagine~

@rapidhighway :: art! → CH 1 “Spirit’s Worry” who doesn’t love a laid-back sonic the hedgehog? I truly adore sooo much this art piece! The calm before the storm *cough cough*. I specifically got drawn by the flowers– like c’mon! They are so pretty! And palm trees. The colours all so vibrant and for real Green Hill couldn’t have looked any better! Dare I say I envy him -only at the beginning :)), shh-

@petitcanard :: art! → CH 4 “Mirror, mirror on the Wall” this art piece finalized the outfits and accessories of the characters which they all rooock!!! You can all see perfectly well from this specific work how the interactions have between Sonic, Rouge and Omega. I love how Omega wants to fry Sonic! “A not-completely-functioning team” she described them, which is indeed right, hehe.

@rohansoutsidemydoor :: art! → CH 8 “Keep away. Don’t come closer. Danger! Stop!” this made me write chapter 8 faster than the speed of sound! The realization, the mystery, the agony. Breathtaking! The expressions of the characters do make me have chills running down my spine and the blazy environment of the art, is top. They did the specific moment justice! << SPOILERS >>

Another part of my gratitude certainly goes to my beta reader @lunesart who despite my inactiveness at some point she was sure to check up on me and helped me lots with her useful tips and guidance. The speech without her would have been very dry and more complicated in comparison to the final result. Sooo special kudos to her too ✨!

Also– before I wrap things up– HAPPY BIRTHDAY 🎂 SONIC 🌀💨 !

[manicrouge]

Episode One: A Deal Set in Stone

[𝙹𝚘𝚑𝚗 𝙿𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚎 𝚡 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛] || [𝙰𝚄: 𝙿𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚢 𝙱𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜] || 𝙿𝚕𝚊𝚢𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝

[𝙳𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝙿𝚘𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚍]: 13/01/24

[𝙰𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝]: Tensions between Price's and Fisher's gangs are seemingly settled upon a deal made between the two leaders. After a brief celebration alone, Price is informed that there is a new detective in town looking to put a stop to the cities Communist Revolutionaries.

[𝙲𝚠]: mild threats (nothing too extreme), brief mentions of religion.

[𝚆𝚘𝚛𝚍 𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝]: 6.7k

[𝙰/𝙽]: Hi !! This is the first part of what is going to be a series. As a pre-warning, the first few parts will be there to build relationships so this series will be a slowburn romance. Also, I have rewrote history a little here for the sake of plot, so please excuse that (I'm hoping my history GCSE and A level will make it somewhat coherent).

ENJOY!!

Comments are always appreciated !!

SERIES MASTERLIST

Please don't post my work anywhere else without my permission !!

There's an illness in the air, a sickly disease running through the men surrounding the table.

They keep their heads raised, not daring to look down as they stare down their noses to the man sitting opposite to him.

A shadow is cast over his eyes, sockets and pupils disguised by the flat hat on the top of his head as he pulls his cigar from between his lips, a grey cloud of spoke escaping from out of his mouth.

Sitting across from him is a man, his hair lathered in hair gel, slicked back. A stray strand of ink back hair curls forward, pressing against his forehead as he offers the latter a tight-lipped smile. A thin moustache sits atop his upper lip, appearing as though the few fine hairs have been drawn on with a pen, and his blue eyes pierce through his soul as he assesses him.

As he shifts, dipping his hand in his pocket, he hears the shift of something behind him and then the clink of metal. 

Such response in the sudden movement results in the men crowded behind the man sitting on the other side of the table to dip their hands into the inside of their blazer pockets, a gleam of metal greeting his eye. Only, such is resolved as the man holds up his hand, offering the view of a box of cigarettes.

Turning his head to the side, he catches the man with a mohawk standing behind him holding his pistol firmly aimed at the man's head. With a gentle sigh, he grabs his wrist with his hand, 'not now, Johnny,' he utters, looking at the man. Even in the dingy light of the room, he notes the red flush on the man's face, though, he doesn't elaborate on such a sight as his hold tightens on the man's wrist.

Johnny looks down at him and with a reluctant shrug, he puts his gun back into his holster, his arms falling back down to his side.

He’s got a good heart about him, wanting to protect him- did the very same thing during the war, and he feels his own heart ache slightly when he requests he does so. Nothing more than a stern father in that regard, though, when he turns his attention back to the group on the other side of the table, he's assured in his decision.

Can't fuck this up. Not now.

'A man can't even smoke wit' y'ur men,' snarls the man from the other side of the table, his voice notably pitchy as he strikes his match, holding it to the end of his cigarette. 

Holding his arm out to the side, he waves his hand in the air quickly to extinguish the flame, tossing the match over his shoulder. ‘Is it a crime to smoke 'round here now, John?'

'Not at all,' he answers bluntly, 'sure you'd know it was though; it's a struggle to keep your nose out of my business, isn't it, Irving?' he asks with a smile forming on his face as he clears his throat, tapping his cigar, ash sprinkling into the ashtray beside him.

Drawn out laughter graces his ears as Irving leans back into his chair, elbow staying firmly placed against the table with his cigarette between his fingers.

'Very funny man, you are, Price,' he responds with a scoff, 'when I hear about the things you're doin' it is my business,' he states, 'never heard of your family until you came back from the war, I suppose that has something to do with the woman running the business while you boys were away, ey?'

The air freezes, none of them even muster up the courage to laugh at the man, instead, he narrows his eyes and takes another drag from his cigar.

There's a noise behind him, fortunately, for the sake of the deal, it isn't a gun this time. 

'Not like you'd know that is it?' a voice from behind him emerges in a bitter tone. 

The man sitting opposite to them stops laughing, looking through John to the man behind him.

'No, 'cause you didn't fight for your country, just stayed here at home sitting on your ass,' he continues, resting his hand at the back of Price’s chair.

His lip twitches at the comment, the wrinkles on the man's forehead being so telling of the mental turmoil in his mind, he reserves the pestering feeling to laugh for when they're free from the room.

'I was exempt, more honourable than what happened with your old Cap'n here, isn't it, Gaz?’ he asks, pointing his cigarette in his direction. 'Really ruined your chances of wanting to be a Captain, hey? And for what?’

In his veins, his blood grows hotter by the second, the disrespect directed towards him causing his throat to tighten. It’s as though he has a noose around his neck, each comment made in passing being said with the intent to pull the noose tighter until his neck eventually snaps from the pressure. It’s the oldest trick in the book, truly it is. If he snaps now, he knows he will carry the regret til his last breath. So, he takes a breath to calm his temper, shaking off the urge to reach for his pistol to put a bullet between the eyes of the smug faced prick sitting before him.

'We're not here to discuss that,’ he smoothly states.

Sinking further into his chair, Irving rubs the stubble on his chin with puckered lips as his eyes scan John. It's supposedly demeaning, the type of look a wolf gives to a defenceless lamb. It's a real shame that this wolf never gets blood on his own pristine coat; if such was not the case, he very well would have shuddered in his view.

'Please proceed then, Price,' he says briefly, 'you fought hard to get this meeting with me so I hope whatever it is you have to suggest is worth your efforts and my time.'

'I want you to rig the race in our favour,' he simply says.

'Rig the race in your favour?' snorts Irving, 'in your fucking dreams.'

'We've seen a 200% in increase in bets over the course of this week,' he simply says, 'people are votin' for the magical horse we've got and they commies are sneaking payments under the table to us to make sure they have a chance of the money if the horse does win.'

Rolling the cigarette between his fingers, he looks back to the men sitting behind him. There’s a look of amusement etched into his feature, although, the look on his face was as flattering as the sight of a name of a relative carved into a grave tone. 

'And why would I do that for you?' he asks, ‘y’ haven't given me a single good reason why I should do something of convenience to you considering you've been nothing but an inconvenience to me since you returned from the war.'

Rubbing his mouth with his hands, he attempts to quell the brewing heat bubbling in the pit of his stomach. He's a difficult man to please, and had he been elsewhere, he very well would have succumb to the temptation wrecking his mind.

One shot and he’d be gone.

Yet, a man who is not trigger happy is much more of a man than one who goes around killing whoever. Killing with intent is what makes you a true threat.

'We've been tiring resources tryin' to get back at each other, you're missing out on making money and so am I... besides, with the communists, it's getting harder and harder for you to fund these events—'

'That's not true,' he cuts off, 'we have plenty of people investing in our horses.'

'Not what I've seen,' a gruff voice from behind John answers.

Irving sneers in the direction of the group. It's unflattering- the way his top lip lifts to exposes his yellow teeth, how the muscles in the face dent his appearance. Truly, all his charm is to be found in his money. 

Had he been a poor man, Price is convinced he would die alone.

'You need us,' John says, 'I'm willing to put aside our differences, I'm willing to help you make money- besides, with the way the Adams' have been acting recently, you need us to make sure your business stays intact.'

'I have other people who are offering me a handsome sum of money for my services,’ he says with a smile, ‘and I can deal with the Adams’ anyway, they’re not a threat to me nor my business.’

'Can you?' John asks, 'you've been promising to kill him for months and he's still walkin' around actin' like he runs shit,' he scoffs, leaning further over the desk. 'I'm offering to pay you out of my pocket to ensure we keep making money and you're going to get share of that; more business for me means more business for you.'

The cogs are turning in his thick skull as he turns his head to the side, looking at a man standing at the front of the group surrounding him.

Circular glasses sit on the edge of his protruding nose, his thin lips pressing together as the man before him looks at him. Small dots for eyes grow wide from the shift of attention as John also looks to the man. His boney fingers clench around the leather book in his hands as he steps forward.

'How much will you be making Mr. Fisher?' he asks, his tone coming explicitly from his nose.

John hears Johnny snicker behind him, followed by a small 'oof' as fabric shifts.

'Three hundred guineas,' he answers, 'and if we continue to work together, that amount will only go up.'

The man looks down at the book in his hand, flipping it open with a short 'hm'. His fist clenches at the sight, though he busies himself with the changing look on the wrinkled brow of the man.

'You can sink the Adams' if you do this,' prompts another voice from behind him.

Good lad, Simon.

Pursing his lips, he pulls out his chair, standing up. For a moment, Price feels his heart sink at the very sight of the man preparing to leave the room, yet, such doubt is salvaged as the man places his hands against the table, leaning forward.

'Speak with my lawyer,' he says, 'if I do this for you, I want all the men you have working under me gone; I know you have some snooping around in business that does not concern them.’

Price smiles.

'Only if you do the same for me.’

Irving’s bottom lips tighten as he sneers at Price.

'Fine,' he exhales sharply, 'you go against your word, Price, I'll have all of you hanged on the leashes you need to keep your men on.'

'Been through this hundreds of times before, y' don't have to tell me twice,' he answers with a smile.

Irving takes a moment to look at the man before pulling away, straightening his posture. As though he's a stroppy toddler, he juts out his bottom lip at his words, turning his nose up upwards while pressing his arms against his torso. Without another word, he walks out of the room, three men following behind him, leaving the lawyer shakily sitting down in the chair alongside two men standing behind him.

Placing the book in his hands down, he opens his mouth and lets out a short breath. Sweat gathers on his brow as he turns his attention towards Price.

'You promise no foul play, right?' gulps the man, 'c- cause if you do something that messes everything up, then you're risking—'

'No foul play,' calmly answers the latter, 'you're safe; we're not gonna do anything, are we boys?' he asks, lifting his head up, motioning towards the three standing behind him.

'Nae,' Johnny confirms, 'got no reason t' risk a decent deal.’

'See?' Price asks, holding his arms out either side of him, causing the man sitting in front of him to flinch. 'Y' can trust us. Men of our word, we are.'

Pulling a pen from out of the front pocket of his blazer, he gulps, flicking through pages in his notepad. John watches with narrow eyes, lifting his hand to grab the edge of the flat cap sitting on his head. Tugging it down, the tips of his fingers ghost the metal sewed into the hat, and when he look back to the man sitting in front of him, he offers him a tight-lipped smile.

'So lets talk business, ey?'

─

Smoke pours from the chimneys of the homes and factories in the street as he travels down the road. The smoke billowing from his cigar in his mouth mixes with the spouts of smog blowing in the breeze.

Houses tightly-knitted either side of him contain the laughter of children, the calling of working men, and the conversations of the women passing by. Yet, their talk is muted as they cup their hands around their mouths. Such secrecy does not contain the content of what they’re discussing as Price catches them occasionally glancing at him as he walk. He’s not disheartened by such, in fact welcomes them.

Besides, secrecy only got as far as a shilling does.

It’s a noose around the neck of the speaking user by the time that shilling is tucked in a pocket of the Peeping Tom; that's simply how the business works, and of course he knows that.

He has to considering some of the eyes on him.

Fortunately, that's where he likes to be; had he been someone who disliked the eyes on someone else, then he definitely chose the wrong career to pursue.

Pulling the cigar from out of his mouth, he tugs on his waistcoat, jacket trailing behind him as he walks down the main street, flames from the blacksmiths firing back as the ting of a shovel hitting the pile of coal sitting on the street fills his ears.

Its been a while since he's seen the sun, and his dull mind aches as he attempts to figure out the last time he's seen the glowing orb in the sky. Perhaps it might have been last week, though, he never really looks up, only downward.

'Mornin', Mr. Price,' calls a voice brightly.

Lifting his head up, he looks at the man adorned in the uniform of the law and he watches as he holds the tip of his helmet, tilting it in his direction. A smile beckons upon his lips, though he doesn't let it show as he exhales a mouthful of smoke, giving a short nod in the direction of the man.

Coppa's were blind, a quids enough to make them forget whatever they saw, sweep it under the table and into a grave.

Flicking the cigar onto the street, he holds his arms up, pushing open the wooden doors to the pub, the faint smell of booze greeting him before he even steps foot through the door.

It's difficult to breathe in the Hindsight; the air is pumped with the hot breath of the generous patrons and the smoke from the cigarettes in the hands of them. It’s not something he would change about it though; the burn in his lungs was simply just a reminder that he's indeed alive, away from Flanders Fields and home.

Pushing open the door to the pub, all heads in the surrounding area snap around to see him. 

It's silent as he walks in, the chatter and laughter he heard while standing outside the doors of the pub being nothing but a flaking memory. They look at him with doe eyes, even the wrinkled skin of the weathered men he recalls seeing on the battlefield look to him with the same fear he spies in the eyes of the women.

Without a word, he moves up to the bar, the talking resuming, though, no longer to the level it had been prior to his arrival.

Digging his hand into the pocket of his coat, he pulls out one coin, as the man behind the bar quickly approaches him with worn sunk in eyes looking at him with a bated breath. 'What can I get you today, Mr. Price?' he sweetly asks, his voice wobbling as he looks at him.

'Scotch,' Price answers.

'Yes, right away, on the house as always,' he says with a nod, though, when he turns his back to retrieve the bottle from behind him, Price settling a coin down onto the counter. 

Placing the glass down, he pops off the diamond lid on the bottle, pouring some into the glass he grabbed from under the bar.

'I was readin' the paper this morning,' begins the man, grabbing the glass one the stream of liquor stops. 'Saw you've been looking for a barmaid in here.'

'Yeah... with the constant freak outs from Blake, Melissa didn't want to stay after he hit her,' he confesses, 'can't blame the girl not wantin' to be here, but I doubt she'll find a man to marry her; she was a barmaid for a reason,' he stiffly explains, busying himself with cleaning an unmarked glass. 'What had you readin' the paper?'

'Looking at the races,' he says, 'business as usual.'

'You see the thing in the paper about the States?' asks the man, leaning in closer, lowering his tone, 'there's a rumour that Mr. Churchill is in a deal with them; one of the reporters spoke on their close relations. Can you believe that? The government are doing this, even after we've refused to give 'em the money back from the First World War.'

He finds a smile meeting his face as he looks down at the glass in his hand, bringing it to his mouth, pouring the contents of the drink down. A warmth spreads through his chest as he places it down, all for it to be refilled immediately, the man nearly shattering the glass in his hand as he fumbled to pick the bottle back up.

'Wouldn't put it past 'em,' answers the other, 'the Americans were like bumbling idiots in the fuckin' trenches.'

Memories crop up from his time in the war, the difference of the Yanks to the Brits and the French. He recalls how his skin was branded with thick clumps of congealed blood and dirt, how his feet were sore and cut up from the thick mud from the flooded trenches. They enjoyed to call out for mercy, to point their fingers and make demands when they weren't even in the thick of it.

They didn't know war.

They weren't soldiers.

'I remember them being like that- came into war prim and proper they did while we rotted in those fucking trenches for years before they even bothered to join the fight,' he scoffs, placing the bottle down, 'and they have the cheek to tell us that we owe them money? It's because of our fuckin' fight that they're still allowed to be the oh so great country they are,' he snarls.

'Never lost yourself in those trenches, did you, James?' he asks with a smile, 'good to see y' still got that fight in you.'

'Only because of you, Cap'n,' he answers with a small nod of his head as Price drinks some more of his drink. 'Say, John, don't suppose you could do me a favour, ey?' he asks, dipping his hands into the front of his dirty white apron, pulling out a coin, 'I'm workin' til late all week so I won't be able to put money down for the races, could you pick a horse for me?'

Holding his hand out, the coin is dropped in his palm and he looks down at it, 'what horse?' he asks, looking at him.

'Heard Johnny's gonna have a spell cast on Midnight Willow, that true?' he asks, 'horse is supposed to be blessed if that happens, I heard. Never thought a witch would be one for dealing blessings, but I suppose I might as well not judge a book by its cover.'

Pressing his thumb down onto the coin, his tongue trailed on the back of his teeth as he takes a deep breath. 'Yeah, it is,' he says, nodding his head, 'she's gonna be the fastest horse in the race,' he says so with a grin.

The doors behind him creak with the force of which they're pushed open, and the chatter falls quiet as footsteps fill his ears. 

Picking up his glass, he brings it to his mouth once again. His eyebrows raise as he catches sight of the same flat cap on his own head as the man approaches him, leaning against the countertop.

'Kyle, can I get you something to drink?' the man behind the bar promptly asks.

'No; not staying long,' responds Kyle with a small smile, 'thanks though,' he adds, looking at Price.

'What's wrong?'

'Kate wants to see you; she said it's urgent,' he promptly says.

Standing up, he tilts his head back as he finishes the rest of his drink, placing the glass against the counter. Offering a short nod to the man, the pair of them begin to head towards the exit of the pub.

'She say what she wants?'

'No, but she sounds pissed. What have you done?' he asks with an amused smile on his face.

Tucking his hands into his pockets, he takes a moment to ponder the possibilities of what could have the woman in such a foul mood, although, as he thinks of recent events, he struggles to think about what exactly he could have done to antagonise her.

'Nothing I can think of; she was more than happy with the peace deal between us and Irving,' he says, 'never know with her though; sticks her nose into all sorts, goes where she has no business going.’

Kyle raises an eyebrow.

'You saying you've done something you don't want her to know about recently?'

His expression remains stoic as they continue through the street. Flames from the iron works fan against them, and he lifts his head upwards as the sound of cheers fill his ears. Kyle scoffs, dipping his hand into his blazer, grabbing a box of cigarettes.

'Fuckin' commies,' he snarls, opening the box of cigarettes in his hands. 'They've been gettin' worse too; they trashed a cart in the train station the other week.'

'I saw it in the news,' answers the other with a prompt nod of his head, 'causin' more trouble than we are.'

'I don't know why they even bother,' Kyle says.

‘They're angry,' John answers, 'not surprised; fought to keep the country a float and the reward the common man gets is a cut in wages.’

Kyle laughs.

'Should go and get a sign and join the crowd if that's how you feel about them.’

'I'm not an idiot,' he retorts, 'nothings gonna change no matter how much paint and ply wood they use.'

As the crowd progresses down the street, the pair of them move from off of the road onto the pathway. Kyle lights his cigarette, placing it between his lips, taking a drag. People on the path move quickly out of the pairs way as they turn towards a house, moving up a step.

Pushing the door open, Kyle takes another drag from the cigarette in his hand, holding the door for a moment for John to follow in behind. Progressing through the cramped living room, John watches for a moment as he closes the door behind him.

Despite the small space, there's a thudding from beyond the room which translates to many footsteps and he 's bemused at the thought of the business happening beyond the tiny living room.

Shrugging his jacket off of his shoulders, he placed it on the clothes rack, progressing further through the house, following the scent of the lit cigarette with ease. He tucks his hands into the pocket of his blazer as he rounds the corner into the dining room, seeing the doors against the far wall of the living room have been opened.

A busy bustling strikes him as a knife would, wounding him with a weeping wound of pride as he lifts his head, lazily trotting into the room with a smug smile on his face. Kyle stands in the middle of the busy room, his hand placed on the shoulder of a blonde haired woman who turns her head upwards to Price as he enters.

Her lips are pressed firmly against one another as her brows furrow before she looks back at Kyle positioned behind her. As far as he can see, the look on her face doesn't shift- instead, it stays the same as she slowly starts to raise from the chair. Moving past the crowds of men, parting them as Moses did the red sea, she crosses her arms, her black boots clunking against the ground as she approaches him.

'Took your time,' she comments, 'thought you would have come right back here after making that deal with Irving.'

'Wasn't in the mood for a verbal beating,' he confesses, pulling his hat from off of his head, 'went to the Hindsight instead.'

She rolls her eyes.

'Kyle said you have something important to tell me.'

'I do,' she confirms, nodding her head. She pauses for a moment as she raises her hand, the sleeve of her black cardigan falling down her arm as she brushed her hands through his hair, taking a short moment to look at him before shortly nodding. 'I wouldn't call a meeting for no reason,' she adds, pulling her hand away from him.

'Alright!' he calls, addressing the room of people. 

The ticking of the typewriters and the low chatter all comes to a sudden stop and it's as though he has frozen time. Beady eyes look to him and Kate standing at the front of the room, all aside from one man standing in the corner of the room, far too focused on the knife in his hand.

'Everyone take twenty, got something important to discuss with the lady,' he sharply states.

The air thickens as people quickly pick up their belongings. Fortunately, they're smart enough to know who he expects too stay and who he expects to leave, and as the crowd files through the doors, Kate moves past him, closing the door behind the last worker who leaves.

It closes with a click and the emptiness of the room is notable as he finds only three men standing. Walking further in, he rests against one of the desks, looking at the blonde-haired woman.

'You have the floor,' he says, motioning to her, ‘go on.’

'I got news from the boys working in London,' she begins, walking back into the room, her hands dipping into the pocket of her skirt, pulling out a carton of cigarettes. 'Apparently, they're sending a detective here to look for something- boy's heard something about it having something to do with the communists.'

His eyebrows raise.

'And this concerns us because?'

'The detective they're sending is from the States, John,' she confirms, 'got a familiar name, I've read about him in the papers when I visited home after the war... infamous detective when it comes to crushing crime and commies.'

A small 'hm' escapes his mouth as he raises his hand to rub the scruff of his beard, tilting his head to the side as he watches the woman light her cigarette.

'How'd he treat the gangs back home?' asks the man stationed in the corner of the room, pushing himself off of the desk. 'He cruel to them?'

'From what I know,' she begins, pulling her cigarette from her mouth, 'he's had a lot of people put behind bars. Although, supposedly, he's here to deal with the raising threat of the communists; you know how it's been recently, the governments scared to do anything about them in case they upset Russia.'

'So, they're sendin' a random guy from the States to sort it out?' asks Simon, 'bit odd.'

Keeping her eyes trained on John, the man shifts under her view, turning his attention to behind him to Johnny. The man chews on his bottom lip.

'Y' sure he's not coming here for us?' Johnny asks.

Kate simply looks at him with a raised eyebrow before turning to John, 'what have you done?' she asks with narrow eyes.

A prompt smile appears on the man's face as he shrugs his shoulders, looking at the woman. 'What?' he says politely.

'Boys, do you mind giving us some space?' Kate says, though, all of them know she is not asking them to leave, rather, telling them. At the very least, she can't get tripped on her attitude, and fortunately for themselves, they know better than to question her judgement as the three of them are quick to leave the room.

John watches as they move through the room, and as they step through the same door as all of the other workers, the door closes with a click.

Immediately, her eyes are back on him, the look similar to one he was familiar with in his prime years of youth before he cared to sort his act out. Ironically, he found that the older he grew, the more he found himself falling back into the same habits he had had during his teenage years, only, this time, the police didn't attempt to trip him up on his petty crimes.

Lessened the blow of the more serious ones too.

'What have you done?' she cautiously asks, 'clearly, you've done something; I can see it in your eyes.'

'Read me like a fuckin' book don't you?' he snorts, placing his hands against the edge of the table he was leaning against, not daring to have his eyes leave hers. Her smugness is elegant, frankly a tad disturbing too as he knows the brewing anger in her stomach is sure to be boiling the impending vitriol bubbling in her throat. 

'A robbery went wrong- nothin' I can't handle by myself.'

'What?' she asks, 'John—'

'Told my men to steal me four bikes,' he begins, pushing himself up from off of the table, plucking the cigarette out of her hand and placing it in his mouth. 'Y'know, the yard that Dean owns in London, gets loads of shipments every day and I had them tracking a shipment of bikes; thought it'd be better than them havin' to take my car everywhere—'

'What happened?'

'They stole the wrong thing,' he answers quickly, 'got the shipment, moved it to Alex's scrapyard, and when they opened it, they didn't find bikes, no,' he laughs, taking another drag from the cigarette, 'instead of the bikes, inside the shipment we found twenty-five Lewis machine guns, ten-thousand rounds of ammunition, fifty semi-automatic rifles, and two-hundred pistols with shells.’

The words leave his mouth as a mouthful of bile would, though, he doesn't flinch at his confession. Kate's face pales as she stares at him while he busies himself with putting the cigarette out in the ashtray. 

'Christ, John,' she exhales.

'All bound for here- England. They were sent by someone, probably something concerning government officials; you know what they're like, y' can't trust anythin' they say.'

'You stupid boy,' she scolds, catching the edge of his blazer in her hand, balling his fist around the fabric, 'tell me you threw them into the dock.'

He pauses.

‘We put them back in the factory to keep them out of the rain- they hadn't even been greased yet.'

Her grip on his blazer falls loose as she raises her hand, slapping his chest harshly. 

Instead of catching her wrists, he allows her to do so, simply standing and taking every blow she delivers to him. After a short while, she relents, turning her back to him, brushing her hand through her blonde hair, huffing. She pauses, looking over her shoulder at him.

'So that's why they're sending a cop from the States?' she asks, 'to get the missing shipment of guns back?'

'Maybe, maybe not; the crate was unmarked, whoever was sending the guns clearly didn't wanna be known. They were in London, so, whoever was getting the shipment is there- I don't know anything else.'

'John,' she lowly says, 'you're going to make unnecessary enemies- do you even know who they belong to?' she asks, 'they could be anyones- what if that shipment was for the Corallo's? Or even worse, what if they are meant for the government? Then what?' Her voice swells in her throat as she paces back and forward, rubbing her hands together. ‘You have lost enough through stupid actions, I'm not going to let you ruin the business I managed while you were away at war.'

'I'm not going to,' he reassures softly, although, with the tone she was carrying (had it been anyone else), he would have fancied cutting her tongue out of her mouth for just a short period of silence. 'I'll get rid of them after everything with Fisher has been sorted. I'll drop them in the dock n' no one will have to worry about them.'

She looks at him with a weary glint in her eyes, something he can only liken to a frightened small animal. It's a rarity to see genuine uneasiness in her eyes; he's become far too acquainted with the familiarity of her stoic, cold gaze. Only time ‘er eyes ever light up is when she sees her missus.

But this time, it's different; she's scared.

'I'll get rid of them, Kate, you have my word,' he says firmly, resting his hand against her should in an attempt to comfort her. 'Don't tell any of the boys f'r me, eh? Don't need to make it any harder than it has to be.'

There's trouble brewing behind her eyes, the brewing acid of an argument lingering on her mouth as she trails her tongue across her bottom lip, wetting it with saliva before pressing her lips firmly together. The tension in her brow remains as she eyes him.

'Three days time,' she says, 'I want them gone in three days; you're a capable man, John, you're not a fool and I don't want you to do something that could cause more trouble than it's worth.'

Of course, she's right, and his preemptive interest falls short at the sound of her voice.

'I won't,' he says, 'keep it a secret for me, eh?'

'Three days, and if they're not gone, I'm telling the boys,' she warns sharply, turning on her heel towards the door. 'Keep your head down with this detective coming as well; if he's here for the communists make sure you don’t change his aim.'

He watches as she walks away, her black skirt swaying as she marches towards the door. Pushing himself up off of the table, he exhales, crossing his arms. 'Did they say the name of the detective?'

'Phillip Graves,' she calls, not bothering to turn her head as she walks out of the door.

His brow creases upon hearing the name of the man leaving her mouth. It met his ears as an old friend meets another for a drink, sitting comfortably, acting as though time never passed them by.

'Phillip Graves,' he utters to himself, narrowing his eyes as he follows after Kate.

─

You sit on a park bench, your hands pressed against your knees, a navy blue hat atop your head as you look forward. When a figure moves to sit beside you, you don't flinch, instead, you busy yourself with the view of the ducks in the pond before you, only shifting to cross your legs.

The fabric of his suit settles as he lets out a sharp breath, spreading his legs a little. Leaning forward, he rests his forearms against his thighs, keeping his eyes glued in the same direction as yours, only, you're sure he has very little concern for the ducks in the pond.

'Nice to finally meet ya in person,' he utters, 'though, I suppose we could have met in some other way,' he says quietly under his breath.

'As far as people are concerned, we're not working together,' you respond.

'I know, just... British intelligence shit goes over my head; we usually just go in guns blazin’ and hope for the best,' he admits.

'Can't do that- not if you're right about who has the guns.'

You don't miss the chuckle that escapes his mouth. It's demeaning, one that states that he knows better than you do. 

He doesn’t.

'Oh, I'm right, doll,' he firmly says, 'John Price.'

He speaks his name with an unflattering tone, the words falling from is mouth as phlegm would. There's very little you really know about this man, and, had you not been informed by past police reports and various individuals, you very much would have been fooled by the mans outward appearance.

You recall the picture in the file you were handed during the meeting you attended with the Prime Minister and Mr. Churchill, how the man passed you the item and while they had been talking, you spent all your time reading through the notes on what they kept on him. Even then, in the eyes of those who ran the country, you commend his ability to keep the truth in the shadows.

Besides, he’s a war hero.

His photo was charming, though you know well the man has most definitely changed from the youthful boy who stared up at you from the page. He was a 'young juvenile' Churchill had remarked, always getting into trouble, until he joined the military.

But now he's back to his troublesome ways, striking a match without the true knowledge of how big the flame could be.

'Remember what we agreed on. He frequents the pub by his home address- so do the people in his group,' he explains, 'they're lookin' for a barmaid and, fortunately, you're looking for a job.'

Clutching the fabric of your blue skirt, you nod your head, watching as the Mallards in the water fight. Two males. The female watches idly, uninterested in their fight, opting to swim away from the chaos.

'I know,' you say firmly, 'don't get too close to the fire,' you warn, standing up from off of the bench.

You turn to him for a short moment, catching the grin on his face as he nods his head. 

‘You're the one going into the monsters den, doll,' he says, 'fortunately, if it gets too hot, you've got me to fan the flame,' he says, offering a wink as you turn your head, grabbing your bag off of the bench with a sigh.

You say nothing else to him as you turn to follow the same path you used to get to the pond in the first place, leaving the grinning man to watch you as you walk away.

The smile on his face doesn't fade as you leave and he doesn't move from where he is sitting. Instead he leans further into the bench, tugging down his black tie with a small sigh, the straps of the holster holding his gun under his arm tightening as he moves his arms backwards to stretch.

There's a heat brewing in his chest, causing his heart to tighten and an exciting nausea to strike him like a blade. It's an odd feeling which causes sweat to pour from his pores, though, he's not fearful in the eyes of duty, and, when you're but a dot in the distance, he tugs at the hat on his head. It presses firmly against his forehead, a shadow cast over his eyes as he stands up and turns his back to the sun, walking in the opposite direction to which you went.

‘Duty calls,’ he utters with a smile, his eyes narrowing as he heads further and further away from the sun.

𝙼𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝

TAGS: (If you would like to be added to the tag list let me know!) @forever-twenty-two-years-old @iizx7y @phantomreadsandreblogs @talooolaaloolla

[enqmind]

As ever, I accept payment in kind words and follows.

Ghost/Female Reader WC: 1.8k 18+ content

Warnings: Suicide attempt by reader, gaslighting, manipulation, Local Manc has worst possible reaction to a suicide attempt, ~*self indulgence*~

Reader notes: Thin enough to fit into a standard bathtub, light enough to be lifted from a standard bathtub by Ghost, mentally ill, pale enough for noticable blushing (feel free to ignore), atheist (it's now plot relevant, but I'm not your dad), ≥ 5' - < 6' tall (by Ghost's estimate)

One Man's Treasure III

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 The idea that she’d recognise him just hadn’t occurred to him at all.

 He took great pains to cover his face so much of the time, after all. Surgical masks in the warmer months, balaclavas and scarves in the chillier ones.

 When could she have seen his bare face?

 Her surprise melted away into despair.

 “Oh, this is part of the punishment isn’t it? A constant reminder of my cowardice.”

 Yes, all those times she looked like she wanted to ask him something but didn’t.

 “Go on.”

 “I wanted to get to know my neighbours, but it never seemed like the right time.” She stared at his covered chest. “I just couldn’t stand to be a bother, you know?”

 The look on her face was all too familiar. She’d learned not to be a bother, probably the hard way.

 “Despite always covering his face, he’d seemed somehow more approachable. Like there was space in his life for a new friend. I was just always too scared to make that first move.” A sigh. “C’est la vie. Though not anymore, I suppose.”

 There, an in.

 “If he always covered his face, how do you know what he looks like?”

 A weak smile.

 “Happened to spot him when he was getting his post in the dead of night once. He looked exhausted, so I let him be.”

 Sometimes you were so tired that you’d dream of doing the rote thing that you did all the time. Unthinking action becoming nothing more than subconscious thought.

 It was really his bad luck that his neighbour happened to see, and a huge problem that he didn’t notice her.

 She started to pull away.

 Ghost put his hand on her back and stopped her.

 No, I’m not angry at you.

 “I, er… need a wee,” she mumbled.

 “Go ahead then,” he replied, removing his arm. “But come straight back, I don’t want you wandering around.”

 She nodded and shimmied her way off the bed.

 He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling.

 They’d have to move. He couldn’t keep her around her own flat, she’d want to get stuff from it.

 He pulled his phone from his pyjama pocket and texted Price.

 -I need extended leave and a house-

 Ghost would have to make an itemised plan and shopping list.

 As nice as her roaming around his house in his clothes was, she’d have to leave the flat eventually and she’d need her own clothes for that.

 He’d have to find a storage place to put her stuff until he figured out what to do with it and break her lease.

 Oh, right.

 He’d need to find out what her name was. That would be easy enough, she’d have post in her place.

 The sound of bare feet on carpet caught his attention.

 She was swimming in that shirt, he couldn’t even see the shorts. Just a very nice pair of legs cut off by his shirt. There could be anything or nothing under there.

 “Um…”

 His eyes snapped up to her face.

 Her tongue peeked out to wet her lips as she sat on the edge of the bed, twisting toward him. Hands toying with the edge of the shirt.

 “I’m hungry, can I use the kitchen? Please?”

 There was nothing in there but a half empty tub of LoSalt.

 “No. What do you want?”

 Her brow furrowed in mild confusion.

 “Um, anything will do. I can throw something together.”

 “We’re getting takeaway.”

 Her eyes widened.

 “I really don’t want to be a bother.”

 You’re not being a bother.

 Women liked Starbucks, right?

 He pulled up his app of choice.

 “Ham and cheese toastie.” He peered at her worried face. “Caramel latte?”

 “You really don-”

 “There’s no food in the kitchen.”

 There, that stopped her.

 “Oh. Yeah, that sounds fine.”

 He glanced at her.

 “And get in the bed. You’re cold.”

 Her arm went over her chest and she turned red.

 Ghost tugged at the duvet.

 “In.”

 She climbed into the bed, teetering near the edge.

 He patted the bed next to him as his phone pinged.

 -Elaborate-

 -Somewhere quiet with good transport links to Johnny’s-

 She shimmied closer.

 Yeah, somewhere quiet ought to make this whole thing easier to believe.

 Easy access to Johnny’s meant there’d be a good shot of his Mrs being able to check in on her. Which Mrs MacTavish would do, since she still cared about Ghost despite the fact that he knew that she knew that he was making faces at her under his mask. She had his number, and he respected that.

 He lay down his arm behind his neighbour, which caused her to pause for a moment.

 She stared at it, then lay down with his bicep as a neck pillow. Stiff as a board.

 Not the most comfortable position, but he could make it work. He bent his arm and rested his hand on her arm.

 It could be nicer, but this was nice enough for now.

 His phone pinged again.

 -Why?-

 “You’re really comfortable,” his neighbour mumbled, turning her head and smiling. “I was led to believe you’d be a lot bonier.”

 “That was before I started working out.”

 The smile turned into a full grin and she relaxed.

 -Suddenly gained a dependent-

 He felt a gentle touch on his side, her hand tentatively resting on him. He stared at it as it stood stark against his t-shirt.

 Ghost put his phone on his chest and immediately entwined their fingers.

 God, her hand was so small in his. He could crush the bones with little effort. Had women always been so delicate, or was this one special?

 She swallowed spit nervously.

 “Why-”

 His phone pinging interrupted her.

 Terrible timing.

 -How big is it?-

 -5 foot something-

 Now the phone was ringing.

 “Should I go?”

 He shook his head.

 “You stay, I need to turn the heating on anyway.”

 She sat up, releasing his arm without being asked.

 Thoughtful little thing.

 He briefly rubbed her back as he got up and answered the call.

 “What do you mean ‘five foot something’?” Price demanded.

 Ghost watched her roll into the warm path he left and snuggle under the duvet as he shut the door.

 “Didn’t ask her height.”

 A loud sigh came out of the phone as he went to switch on the boiler, pushing the temperature up a few extra degrees. Women ran cold, afterall.

 “There’s a limit to what we can sweep under the rug, Ghost. If you’ve kidnapped someone-”

 He half tuned Price out.

 Was this a kidnapping?

 Arguably he had taken her from her home without her consent; but, since she hadn’t yet attempted to leave, it was a moot point.

 He did want to think about her trying to leave.

 “I found her bleeding and about to drown in a bathtub,” he interjected. “A suicide attempt.”

 Silence.

 “Fourth or fifth try, she says.” He turned and stared at the bedroom door.

 Silence.

 Then, “you don’t sound like you’re in a hospital.”

 “Didn’t take her to a hospital.”

 More silence.

 “She’s in the other room and we’ve got breakfast coming.”

 “We need to talk about this.”

 “Yeah.”

 “What’s her name?”

 “Dunno yet.”

 “Jesus Christ,” he hissed. “Tell me the second you know, get all the information you can. I’m running a background check.”

 Ghost sighed.

 “You don’t need to, I-”

 “This isn’t a favour. It’s an order.”

 There was no arguing with that.

 No matter how unlikely it seemed, you could never be too safe.

 “Affirmative.”

 Another, brief, silence.

 “Don’t lose your head.”

 “I won’t, sir.”

 They ended the call, and Ghost leaned on the wall.

 Maybe he already had.

---

 Breakfast was about ten minutes away when he went back into the bedroom.

 His neighbour was wrapped up like a jacket potato. It was… cute.

 “So, what were you going to ask?” he prompted, sitting on the edge of the bed and resting a hand on what he assumed was her hip.

 Her lips pursed for a moment, but then she gave him a nervous smile.

 “Um, why does this place have the same layout as my flat?”

 Shit. He’d lucked out before, but— yes. He’d lucked out, and still was lucking out really.

 “Where else would your neighbour live?”

 Her brows drew into a frown.

 “I… suppose?” she paused. “...Am I doing this?”

 “Doing what?”

 She wriggled out an arm and motioned around.

 “Making it like this?”

 The suspicion in her voice was worrisome, but nothing a simple lie couldn’t cover. Even if he would prefer to avoid actively voicing them.

 “What were you expecting the afterlife to be like?” he questioned. He’d have to fit her beliefs as much as he could, afterall.

 She looked at him with less confusion and more like he was a bit thick.

 “Nothing. I’m an atheist, remember? This is all a surprise.”

 “You really have no preconceived notions of the afterlife?”

 “Now you’ve taken hell off the table? No.”

 Did that mean he could tell her whatever he wanted… and she’d believe it?

 “I don’t know much myself,” he began, gently rubbing her hip through the duvet. “Normally when I take people to the hereafter, it’s a swift affair.”

 “Tha-that sounds about right,” she agreed, not a hint of suspicion in her.

 Yeah, the truth was the best lie, wasn’t it?

 “But what I do know is that when someone dies by a human hand, their afterlives are picking up where they left off.”

 Data point of one, but did that really even matter? It was true, his truth.

 Fear hit her like a tonne of bricks, eyes already beginning to get shiny with tears.

 She sat up in a scramble and grabbed at his t-shirt.

 “Please don’t. I’m begging you, please don’t send me back.”

 The punch to his gut of guilt took him by surprise, forcing an instinctual response.

 He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to his chest.

 “Never.”

 She sniffled into his shirt.

 “Promise?”

 He pulled back and tipped her chin so they could meet eye to eye.

 “No need. You don’t want your life, but I do. And I don’t give up what’s mine easy.”

 It was as that statement left his mouth he realised how fucked up it was. How it would scare her away, back into a life she hated.

 His arms twitched, ready to pin her to him at the slightest sign of an escape attempt.

 She stared at him blankly for a few moments before she broke into a nervous smile.

 “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, I suppose.”

 Relief washed over him and he allowed himself a small smile.

 “That’s right, you’re my treasure.”

 A nervous smile became an embarrassed blush.

 “But… I don’t even know what to call you.”

 What should he tell her to call him? Because whatever it was, it would be forever.

 There was really only one option.

 “Simon.”

[versadies]

CHAPTER FOURTEEN || EVERMORE

SYPNOSIS (of chapter). in which a certain ragnvindr struggles with his fate and the complications in his life.

SYPNOSIS (of series). breaking up with your first love was heartbreaking, but not as heartbreaking as getting invited to his wedding after years of not seeing him. that is, until things seem to be easier when you encounter a certain guest, who could end up being more than just a blooming friend to you.

CHARACTERS. kamisato ayato, diluc ragnvindr, and thoma (w/ gn!reader)

CONTENT. angst/comfort(?), grammar errors (?), mentions of violence, sh1nsuke 🤥🤥, minor character death, car accident, mentions of threats, mentions of jeanluc, terribly written crime case (lost my brain after exams, sorry lads), diluc and kaeya are in good terms, spoilers to diluc’s canon story, possibly terribly written chapter overall (lost it after chap 13, sorry lads)

PENPALS. @scaraslover @saving-for-xiao @dawgimsohot @kazu-topia @chiruru @aqualesha @renamichii @mrkamisato @shenhesl0ver @serami00 @serenareiss @hiqhkey @emperatris-rinaka @bystander36 @irisxiel @ladycoleigh @034ven @dear-dairiess @owozi8 @hadesaedes @chiro-chiro-kun @hersscherofyatta @mariusvonhangme @yuzuricebun @hoshikistarlette @solaaresque @crowbird @lordbugs @flowersforayato @headintheclouddd @estelwrld @giyusimpsassemble @irethepotatosblog @moonlightaangel @alice0blog @shotosbrainrot @sniffoat @chihawari @mxsomn @kuni-kuzushii @jiminscarmex @mitsukii14 @nejibot @ylimeprive @sachispet @loreleis-world @sn-owo @starforecasts @someonetookmynamelmao @ceylestia @lychme @ymikkos @reallysporadicarcade @melodyyamino @dudufodd @somberrock @yevenly @lemontum @nghing @elychee @astrxlis @denkineptune @franini i @sophisticatedleslie @thedivinepriestress @smashsubs @httpmitsuya @bl6o6dy @cottonkendi (please visit this post if you’d like to be tagged !)

WORD COUNT. 14.6k words

LINKS. EVERMORE MASTERLIST \ MAIN MASTERLIST \ EVERMORE SURVEY

POST-SCRIPT. once again i have finally finished this godforsaken chapter after many weeks of my disappearance — ill try to finish chapter 15 before new year’s or so :,)) please take note to not expect too much from this chapter but it’ll help clear up the truth about diluc and his thoughts (but it wont clear your disappointment towards chapter 13)

PREVIOUS || NEXT || VERSADIES’ VERSION (PROCEED TO THIS LINK FOR FLUFF LOVERS)

A few things Diluc has lost were the bright hopes and future he once had when he was but a teen who's ready to fulfill as many achievements and dreams as he can. 

He could still remember how happy he was with the life he had back then, how he dedicated himself to being faithful with his duties as a detective in the Favonius, Mondstadt’s police department, and used to follow his father around, listening to every word he says as he learns the ways of running the business. 

He remembers all the lessons Crepus taught. He remembers his first time making a drink with the ingredients his father provided on a long table. He remembers his first time serving drinks to customers in Angel’s Share. He remembers his first time attending a business event with his father. 

He remembers his past too much. A price to pay for dwelling too much in the past. 

That Diluc is long gone. All that remains is his shell that’s swallowed by guilt, pain, and helplessness. 

He does not live for himself, but lives for his family’s business to continue thriving and succeed like what his father wanted him to do. He lives to fulfill his father's wishes written on an old piece of paper. He lives to make sure his land is safe from the corrupted and from harm. 

He lives to deal with the burdens that he gained from his birthday. A special, cruel gift from fate.

Wine is something he didn’t like much, which is ironic for someone who specializes in making them. His father actually planned to let him try some of their famous wines that people loved once he’s allowed to, until something happened. 

Wine.. reminds him too much of what happened. 

Diluc didn’t expect to lose his father so early, especially since his father is a healthy man who still had a life ahead of him and a son to guide. He thought his father would live long until he died of old age, a peaceful way of meeting death’s doorstep. 

If only it weren’t for that treacherous car accident…

If only that drunk driver didn’t drink at all with a darn wine. 

For one moment, Diluc was sitting right across from his father in their private van. They were just talking about what Adelaide would cook for dinner, they were just discussing about the client they were talking with earlier, they were just talking about what his father was supposed to say– 

Then before he knew it, everything was turned upside down. Literally. 

He has a hard time breathing, his vision is blurry as he feels lightheaded from being upside down. 

Father…

Diluc tries to get his vision clear and come to his senses. He could hear people screaming somewhere, there’s something that tastes like metallic in his mouth, everything’s hot,  he feels like he’s about to puke– but where is his father?

“Fa…Father…” He calls out. Everything aches so bad, what just happened to him? 

Once Diluc finally sees more, he realizes the car he’s in is upside down. Is this… a car accident? 

The young heir looks ahead when he hears a groan, and his eyes widens at the sight of his father being in the same situation as him – except, his state is way worse than his. 

As for the driver… He doesn’t know where on Earth he is. 

“Fa-Father!” He calls out, his fingers shakily try to unclasp the seatbelt before falling down to the ground that’s filled with the shattered windows from the van. “Father, are you alright?” 

Diluc tries to ignore the pain all over his body as he crawls towards his father and helps him get out of the van. “Hold on, father. I’ll get you out of here!” He says as he reaches out towards his father’s seatbelt to unclasp it. 

“Di..luc? Is that you my.. Son?” Crepus asks weakly, letting out a cough as he falls down from his seat. “I’m glad you’re,” He lets out another cough, “alright…” 

“Don’t worry about me, father.” Diluc reassures him, helping him crawl out of the van through the broken window nearby. The only thing in his head is that he needs to get his father to the hospital immediately. 

As soon as Diluc and Crepus finally manage to get out of the van, the younger man immediately tries to look for his phone in hopes of calling for the ambulance. Thankfully, his phone is still in his pocket and working despite its destroyed state, and he instantly dials the emergency contact. 

“H-Hello? We need help, we’re somewhere by…” As he explains the situation to the operator, the young teen didn’t manage to notice how slow his father’s chest is moving up and down nor did he notice the blood on his hands from covering his mouth when coughing. 

When Diluc finally looks at where his father is, his eyes are full of hope that they’re going to be okay. 

“Father, help is on their way. We’re going to be okay” He says, hoping his father will be alright and be proud of him for what he has done.

Crepus remains silent. 

“...Father?” He quietly calls, his heart sinking when he notices how his father’s chest is stilled. “Father, are you… a-alive?” 

Diluc slowly leaned down with his ear on top of his father’s chest, his eyes widening in fear when he couldn’t hear any heartbeat at all, as though he’s….

No, let’s not jump into conclusions.. He’s probably asleep.. 

The heir gently shakes his father in hopes it’d wake him up, only for his shoulders to sink when his father is still motionless. “Father…?” 

It took the ambulance to arrive for Diluc to stop trying to wake up his father, the paramedics carried him away as another inspected the young heir’s body for any injuries to take care of. 

Whatever the paramedic told Diluc, he did not pay any attention to it. Not when he’s watching the two paramedics looking at each other with hesitant looks on their faces after putting all of their efforts in trying to bring back Crepus, who remains motionless. 

The light in Diluc’s eyes fades away when he realizes what just happened. 

He thought this was just a horrible nightmare. He thought he’d wake up to the familiar sight of his room and continue living in his life with his father who’s alive. It wasn’t until he realized he’s in the hospital room when his hopes shattered in realization that his father was dead and gone. 

“Breaking News! The infamous wine tycoon, Crepus Ragnvindr, has unfortunately passed away due to a car accident. His son, Diluc Ragnvindr, has fortunately survived from the accident. We do not have any updates on the young heir’s condition, but we can only hope that he is well and we give him our condolences for his father’s passing.”

Diluc finds himself staring at the TV helplessly as he continues to stay on his hospital bed. After the paramedics took him and his father to a nearby hospital, he was hospitalized in a VIP room after getting his wounds treated.

Why did this happen? 

He looks down at his bandaged-hands, only for him to remember seeing his father’s blood on his hands. 

Why not me?

He suddenly hears a knock, to be followed by someone entering the room. 

“And here I thought you’d never wake up.” Kaeya spoke as he closed the door behind him, a bouquet of flowers in his hand. “How are you?” 

Diluc stays silent, still staring at his hands. 

“...Why am I still alive?” 

The red head didn’t bother to look at his sworn brother, who was extremely taken back by his question. 

“...Why shouldn’t you be?” Kaeya responds, his tone is more serious. “What happened last night is out of your control–”

“I could’ve done something.” He interrupts, he now looks at the blue-haired man with an unfamiliar expression that wasn’t seen before from the usual brightful man. 

It’s as if said brightful man has died with his father.

The blue-haired man dared not to say another word, causing the other to continue speaking. “I could’ve… I could’ve dragged him myself until I found a hospital. Or… Or maybe I could’ve noticed the signs more and performed CPR – but I was busy talking to the operator I couldn’t… I could’ve done something instead of watching him die.” 

Diluc clenches his fists at the memory of the car accident. If only he watched his father more carefully, if only he insisted that they went to another place, if only–

If only he was the one who died instead of his father. 

He can’t imagine running Angel’s Share on his own nor can’t he imagine being able to keep his family’s business together at this age. He thought his father would guide him all the way – he thought he wouldn’t be alone. 

He doesn’t even know if he’s ready to become the next head of the Ragnvindr family. 

“Whatever you could’ve done, there’s no point in that anymore when it already happened.” Kaeya says, grabbing a chair nearby and placing it beside Diluc’s bed before sitting down on it. “Father wouldn’t want to see you like this. He’d want you to carry yourself and take care of the family business with what he had taught you–”

“He isn’t here and he’ll never be.” He snaps. “I can’t just move on and act as if his death doesn’t phase me. I lost someone special to me.”

“He’s someone special to me too.” Kaeya retorts. “You’re not alone, Diluc. You have me, Adelinde, Elzer, and everyone else in the mansion who are willing to help you and be there for you. I’m not saying you should move on and act as if his death doesn’t phase you, but you should stop thinking of what could’ve been and think of what could be now.”

Diluc looks away from his sworn-brother, knowing he’s right. 

It’s true… It’s better for him to think of what he can do now instead of the past. 

“Did you find out who was behind the car accident?” Diluc questioned.

The blue-haired man fell silent.

“What would you do if I said yes?” Kaeya asks, leaning back against his chair. 

Diluc took a long while to answer, something that made Kaeya guess his answer already. The young heir – well, the young CEO rather – is not one to sit idly by and let justice handle itself, it’s precisely why he’s such an efficient officer who never lets one case go ignored or incompleted. 

So when he finally answered, Kaeya did not believe it one bit. 

“Nothing.” 

Liar. I bet you’ll suddenly disappear from this room the next day. Kaeya thought. Yet then again, regardless of what he’ll say to Diluc, he knows he’ll only get himself out later on to find more answers. 

“I better not receive any calls from the hospital about you disappearing,” He said, letting out a defeated sigh. “There was a driver who crashed into your van. He’s currently imprisoned and will face charges as well as imprisonment.”

Diluc was about to open his mouth for another question when Kaeya lifted up his hand to stop him. “I’m not some person of interest being interrogated. Save your questions for later, focus on your health first.” He clarifies. “I can’t disclose too much about the incident to you since Chief Varka instructed me to, but I can reassure you we have everything under control, brother.” 

The red-haired looks at him with an unexplainable expression on his face. 

“...Fine.” 

And so, Diluc trusted Kaeya, knowing fully well all the words his sworn brother told him were all a lie.

Eventually, he found out that the police suspected it was a drunk driver who drove into the car. However, thanks to the security cameras around that area being disabled due to technical problems that have been ongoing for the past weeks before, it took a while to find out who was exactly the drunk driver that managed to get away from the scene of the crime before the authorities arrived.

What made it more strange was how the person who was driving the van is not the same driver who usually brings Diluc and Crepus around the place. The driver was left behind in the building he and his father  visited, meaning that this whole time, the two men were unknowingly in the same car with an unknown person who has unexplained motives. 

Diluc could only guess the motives weren’t pleasant given the aftermath. 

Unfortunately, the police weren’t able to find the unknown driver and are still looking for him, making all the things worse for Diluc, who feels like his lifespan is draining away the more he stays in the hospital doing nothing but wait and ponder. 

Countless time that’s spent inside the hospital room made the red-haired feel suffocated. His patience is getting thin each time he receives no useful information whatsoever about the damn cause of the car accident that drove his father to death, his overwhelming guilt for being the only one to survive is getting bigger each day after spending too much in his thoughts, and his loneliness began to devour him inside out as the sounds of the TV news were just white noise to him. 

He hates that he’s doing nothing. 

It would’ve been better if he didn’t feel anything, but at this moment, he’s feeling everything. 

Eventually, Kaeya and the others manage to find out who was involved in the incident – an FPD officer in his mid-20s who was trying to move on from a heartbreak, only to end up drinking more than he intended and got into a car accident. 

He’s relieved that they finally found who was partially the cause of it, but that doesn't mean he feels like he can rest peacefully. 

Not when the other driver is still missing. 

It took a few more days until there’s finally more news about what FPD (Favonius Police Department) would do to the drunk driver, but it wasn’t what Diluc was hoping for. 

“What…?” He asks for Kaeya to repeat what he had just said from the phone. It felt unreal to hear it – he would’ve thought his brother is joking with him again if it weren’t for the remorseful tone in his voice. 

Surely… Surely Favonius did not go mad while he was gone, did they? 

“I’m sorry you have to hear this, brother.” Kaeya said. “I couldn’t believe it either. When I came back from the hospital, Amber suddenly informed me that Officer Pallad was released with no charges at all.” 

Had Diluc not controlled his strength, his phone would’ve been crushed and destroyed from anger. 

“Why?” 

“...Lieutenant Eroch informed me it was because there was not enough evidence to prove that he’s the one who was involved with the incident. Don’t worry, my team and I are already looking for more evidences–”

“I’ve waited long enough.” Diluc interrupts before ending the phone call, his eyes darted towards his coat that’s hanging near the door.

It wouldn’t hurt to have a chat with Lieutenant Eroch, would it? 

“My deepest condolences for your loss, Detective Ragnvindr.” Eroch said, sitting on his chair as Diluc stood across from him. “Alberich informed me that you were still hospitalized, but it appears he isn’t aware that you’re discharged today. How are you?” 

“I’ve been feeling better.” He answers, not bothering to give him a polite smile as he usually does with everyone back then. “May I ask something regarding the case of the car accident?” 

Eroch hums. “Getting to the topic, huh? Alright, you may.” 

“...Why did you release Officer Pallad?” 

It took a few moments before the lieutenant let out a sigh, as though he suspected the young detective to ask such a question. “I may have realized that our officers could possibly have arrested the wrong man after the testimony of Officer Pallad during our interrogation. I cannot let our image as the protectors of our city be tarnished for such a possible mistake, especially since he’s a part of the department.” 

“But the evidence is all there, is it not?” Diluc clarifies, not caring about the fact that he could get in trouble for questioning a higher up’s motives. “Alberich found that Officer Pallad was in Angel’s Share before he drove through the route that led to the car accident. He’s the only one whose vehicle has a huge dent at the fr–”

“It’s not enough for us to officially conclude it’s him who crashed into your van.” Eroch interrupts.

“Then what will it take for you and the others to consider him being–” 

“Never. Unless you have a clear footage of Officer Pallad’s vehicle crashing into yours.” 

Diluc tries not to feel hopeless. “...What about the person who was driving the van? Did your team at least find something about them?” 

Eroch shakes his head. “Unfortunately we have not. But that’s none of our concerns at the moment, not when there are other important cases we have to look into.” 

The red-haired man feels his hands clenched into fists. “None of your concerns? You’re looking for the two people who killed my father–”

“Tell me, Detective Ragnvindr. Are you here to waste my time telling me to do something I can’t do in a blink of an eye? Or are you here to give me something worth my time?” 

The other man stays silent, his mind filled with more questions instead of the answers he wanted. 

Why? 

It didn’t help that the lieutenant looked less guilty and more bored, something that made Diluc start considering if the police department truly serves to protect the people of Mondstadt.

Eroch lets out another sigh before standing up. “I assure you detective that we’ll quickly let you know if we found something about the culprits, but now is not the time unfortunately. It’s best that you should keep this a secret from the public. We wouldn’t want our reputation to be tarnished because of a reckless officer drinking. If we won’t be able to find the culprits, then we have no choice but to consider–“

Eroch stopped talking when he hears something on his table, causing him to glance down and realize it’s a badge,

The badge that belongs to Diluc. 

“Forget it.” The detective said in a cold tone before turning around to take his leave.

The lieutenant didn’t bother convincing Diluc to change his mind, and simply watched as the ex-detective left his office with all hope and faith lost in him. 

All that remains is the determination in bringing down what brought his father to his death. 

When Kaeya found out, he did not find the power to persuade his brother to come back and work for FPD, not when Diluc isn’t the type to retire from his career as a detective so quickly. Instead, he wished him well and made sure to let him know that he will do his best to help his dear brother out in finding out the culprits of the accident, something that the red-haired appreciated.

The news that Diluc has retired from being a detective spread like wildfire the day after. It didn’t matter what the public thinks, all that mattered for Diluc is that his father gets a proper and quiet funeral that he deserves. 

The funeral… It’s hard to talk about it. 

The ceremony left an empty part in the poor young man’s heart. Had it not been for Kaeya and those who work in the mansion, he would’ve felt alone. There wasn’t an overwhelming number of people who came to his funeral, but just the right amount of people for others to know how much Crepus was cared for and loved by a lot of people. Some were his close acquaintances in the business world, some were his old pals, some were his dear friends, and some were employees from both the mansion and from Angel’s Share who have been loyal for a long time. 

Diluc tried to hold it together and not break down in front of everyone, wanting people to know that he can handle Angel’s Share without his father’s guidance anymore. It still feels unreal that he won’t see his father for the rest of his life now. 

I promise father, Diluc thought in his mind as he placed a flower on top of Crepus’s coffin. I promise I will find out who caused your death and will make sure justice will come. 

Of course, just because he stopped working in FPD, it doesn’t mean he’ll stop helping and protecting everyone in his nation. 

Diluc plans to disappear sometime after his father’s burial, wanting to find out who crashed into the van and who was driving the van that he and Crepus were in. The least he can do is to bring justice to those who are responsible for his father’s undeserving death. 

Before that, he must hear his father’s wills as well as a paper that’s written by his father that Adelaide managed to find when she was fixing the passed CEO’s bedroom. 

His wills are simple. The mansion, the company, the establishment will now be in the hands of Diluc as he is the rightful heir. Kaeya got some valuable items of Crepus that’ll be of use to his life and his job in Favonius. The rest of the items will then be handed over to both charity and to Alice, Diluc’s godmother.

As for the paper… 

It was a letter for both Diluc and Kaeya that the passed CEO managed to write in case he died. Not only did it contain advice and going through the memory lane, it also contained secret feelings and unsaid words that the man didn’t get to say. 

One of them in particular is how an arranged marriage is offered for Diluc. 

“As you know, arranged marriages are not uncommon in the business world, but I was surprised to see such an offer from the Gunnhildr family themselves. Nevertheless, I did not accept it nor did I reject it – simply because I assume you might consider it since the person they arranged you with is Jean Gunnhildr. Remember her? She was the one who had a pet turtle like you. 

I also think you might be too busy with your work to even think about your love life, and it’d make me sad if a man like you ends up being alone for the rest of your life. So this arranged marriage is your best option if you want to spend the rest of your life with someone as kind, as capable, and as loved as Miss Jean. And do not worry, I know what you’re thinking, Miss Jean agreed willingly on this arranged marriage.

So I told them perhaps in time my son will send a response. And to my surprise, they’re very willing to wait for it no matter how long it takes. You may feel free to reject their offer as soon as you finish reading this letter your old man wrote for you and Kaeya, there’s nothing wrong with that. Though, it’ll make your old man incredibly happy if you decide to accept their offer (the rest of the letter is blank, making it evident that Crepus hasn’t finished it completely for unknown reasons). (1)” 

Diluc didn’t know what to think when he read it. 

Arranged marriage…? He never imagined he'd be in such a situation. He’s heard how it’s extremely beneficial for both parties, especially when it comes to businesses. Then again, that reason is simply not enough for him to accept nor consider the arranged marriage. 

However… If it makes his father happy… 

No, he has better things to do than that. 

Now that the wills have been revealed, Diluc and Kaeya have no choice but to come visit Alice – who’s currently in Liyue for her next book about the region – to transfer some items for her. 

“My deepest condolences for your loss.” She said, watching as Diluc sat down on his seat across from hers as someone filled his drink with tea. Unfortunately, Kaeya had a call from work and won’t be able to come inside the room to talk to the woman. “It saddens me that your father has to go so soon. How have you and Kaeya been?” 

“Thank you… We’re doing well, Aunt Alice.” Diluc responds.

The woman smiles lightly. “That’s good to hear.. I’m sorry to hear that you haven’t found those who are responsible for the… accident. But you must know, revenge won’t do much for your grievance towards your father.” 

The red-haired man tries not to look surprised, but stays silent, causing Alice to continue. 

“I know it’s difficult to lose someone who guides you in your life. Partings are the most painful things, but they also encourage us to grow. A bird that has lost the roof over its head will fly further than others of its kind.” 

She then lets out a chuckle. “But of course.. I know you wouldn’t be persuaded by my words, so I wish you still have your sense of good and justice on your journey to look for them. It’s not an easy task I bet, but I’m sure you’ll be able to catch them with your capabilities.” 

The woman’s eyes gazed towards a bulletin board on one of the walls before looking back at the young man. “Should you be able to find the culprits, then you can try to go out and see the world afterwards. That’s the best course of action I can envision for you. Only by feeling, observing, and listening can your heart be healed. Everything that was your father now finds new life with you, that which you will experience in this world may have been things that your father experienced once upon a time.” 

When Diluc looks at the older woman’s eyes, it screams nothing but good things for him and Kaeya. 

Something he never thought he needed until now. 

“...Thank you for your words.” 

“Anything for you. I hope that the wind will bring you all manner of wondrous things in your many journeys to come, Diluc. Should you need a person to talk to or consult with, I’m always willing to lend an ear. I hope you won’t mind if I treat you as if you were my own child.” 

–

It only took two days for Diluc and Kaeya to deal with the rest of the items that once belonged to Crepus while catching up with Alice before they decided to take their leave. Not only did they both have to go back for their jobs, but Diluc also had to go back to start his search in finding the culprits of the accident.

Before the two young men could leave the estate Alice lives in, the woman stops them for a moment. 

“One last thing before you two go.” The woman then pulls out two items: a pocket watch and an earring with a blue jewel in it. “These belong to your father who left these with me back then. I think it’s best if you have these instead.” 

Diluc hesitantly grabs the pocket watch while Kaeya grabs the earring, letting out a comment about “what a perfect timing this is, I was thinking of a good accessory to buy as a souvenir from Liyue.” causing Alice to laugh.

“Thank you, Aunt Alice. We wish you well on your journey as well as your work.” Diluc said politely.

Alice waves them off. “Have a safe trip, boys. Do tell my darling Klee that I said hi when you get back, alright?” 

And so, the two men left. 

As they’re on their way to the airport, Diluc stares down at the pocket watch Alice gave him, his mind filled with what’s to come for him once he comes back. 

He can’t turn back now, not when the two drivers could potentially hurt someone else.

“You’re planning something, aren’t you?” Kaeya asks suddenly, causing the red-haired man to look up at his sworn brother.  

“...What’s it to you?” 

The blue-haired man lets out a chuckle. “Oh Diluc, I thought you’ve learned by now that I wouldn’t let you do things on your own, have you?” 

He lets out a sigh in response. “I don’t need your help. This should be something I must do on my own–”

“You’re finding the two culprits who are responsible for our father's death, so I too want to take them both down with you because they deserve to go to jail for their crimes. Besides, you’re no longer a detective in FPD, the least thing I can do is to hand out some information that’s given to us, particularly the one that involves the mysterious driver that managed to get his hands on your van.” 

His eyes slightly widened from hearing that. “...There’s info on the driver now?”

Kaeya hums. “It’s not much, but it’s worth reading it since I’m sure it’ll help you with your investigation. Feel free to ask more about the case, it’ll definitely take some work off my shoulders if you somehow find that driver. I’ll take care of the aftermath once you do” 

Diluc stays quiet for a moment. 

“..Fine, you can hand it over to me anytime. Just.. make sure to keep an eye on Eroch and his men.” He says.

The blue-haired crosses his arms. “Who said I don’t? That lieutenant has been suspicious since day one. I’m relieved Deputy Chief Jean is quite determined to investigate him and see if there’s anything suspicious.” 

Jean…

“You mean Gunnhildr?” Diluc asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes. She recently transferred to the department thanks to Chief Varka. I caught her skimming around the lieutenant's office while he was gone.” Kaeya then smiles. “You should try talking with her. Isn’t she an old friend of yours?” 

“We weren’t close.” 

“Still. I’m sure she’ll be delighted to see someone who’s just like her in the department – besides the retirement – and is familiar with her personally.” 

The red-haired man thinks about it for a while. If it makes Father happy…

“I’ll.. Think about it sometime.” 

“Perfect.” 

By the time the two men are on their way through the airport, Diluc finds himself immersed in his thoughts about his plan in going around Mondstadt to look for the culprits who are responsible for his father’s death. He was so distracted that he didn’t pay attention to how there are paparazzis lingering around nor did he realize that he was about to bump into someone until it’s too late.

“Sorry.” He mutters to the person he bumped into before continuing his way towards his plane. He failed to notice how a certain item managed to slip out from the pocket of his black and long coat. 

Until he hears someone calling him. 

“Sir!” The stranger called, causing Diluc to stop his tracks for a moment and turn around to see if the stranger was calling him, only to spot someone walking towards him with a familiar object that he stared at moments ago.  

“You dropped this,” you said, showing him the pocket watch, “sorry again for bumping into you, by the way.” 

Diluc’s eyes slightly widened, a bit stunned by your kind act. Had it been anyone else, they probably would’ve kept it with them..

He slowly grabs the watch from you. “Thank you.” 

You give him a smile and nod in response. “It’s no problem” 

Without another word, you immediately ran off from Diluc, as if you didn’t just get the chance to meet Mondstadt’s two most famous men. 

“My, I’m surprised they didn’t know about us two, Diluc.” Kaeya spoke in amusement, watching you go away. “You’re lucky they gave you that pocket watch. I’m not sure what would happen to you if you lost your father's watch after he just died.”

Diluc’s expression quickly changes to a glare, looking at Kaeya’s direction. “Watch your mouth before I make sure you’re not going to my private plane on our way back to Mondstadt.” 

The other laughed. “I’m rich too, Diluc.” 

The red-haired man then turns around. “We should go before we start wasting our time. The sooner we get to Mondstadt, the better.”

“Whatever you say, brother.” 

–

Diluc didn’t hesitate to start his search immediately when he arrived in Mondstadt.

Unfortunately, after Pallad was released from the department cell, the vehicle that had a dent was immediately returned to him, so there’s a chance that it’s gone by now. 

Despite being accused of reckless driving and a culprit of a car accident, Pallad still had the audacity to come back to Angel’s Share – not that the CEO is complaining, this definitely made things easier for him.

It’s already an alarming sight to see the officer using a new vehicle. 

For the rest of the night, the young CEO listens attentively to Pallad’s conversations with other customers who are familiar with him. There wasn’t any useful information until someone finally asked the officer about his car. Apparently, he got himself a new car because his other one is too old and not functioning well, making him give it up in a car graveyard. 

That was all the information he needed.

It took a while when Diluc finally found the graveyard that Pallad owns with the help of some of his connections (one of them being Kaeya, who told him the details of what the car looks like). It wasn’t hard to find the car Pallad used since he only gave it up recently, but it was hard to hold himself back after seeing the officer’s car that clearly has a huge dent despite seeing it for the second time.

He will never forgive that drunkard for killing his father.  

Diluc was at the very least relieved when he spotted a dash cam inside the car. The officer must’ve been confident enough to not consider deleting footage of his dash cam, thinking it’ll be destroyed thanks to the graveyard. Unfortunately though, the dash cam was broken from possibly the accident, so it took a while to restore the footage until the ex detective got his hands on the piece of evidence that Eroch will surely not reject.

After the repair, Diluc sent it to Kaeya, who would pass it to Chief Varka and drag Pallad back to prison at last. 

All that’s left was the unknown driver. 

If it weren’t for Kaeya’s help in giving him information, Diluc wouldn’t know where to start. The only information the Favonious Department found about the culprit is they’re a part of an organization called the Fatui, based on a blurry CCTV that contains footage of someone in a Fatui uniform infiltrating the parking lot where the Ragnvindr’s van is and was never seen coming out. 

The Fatui… Just hearing that name made Diluc feel angry.

They’re not an unfamiliar name in the business world. They’re known for being dangerous, powerful, threatening, and not to be underestimated. A woman who owns the company, Tsaritsa, is the most powerful person in all of Snezhnaya. People in the cold region respect her and look up to her for her contributions to the country, particularly the advanced technology that she invented. Those who aren't from Snezhnaya look at her in the opposite way.

Crepus and Diluc are those people. 

He’s heard of what they do to those who have wronged the company as well as the things they can do to those who associate with them. It’s a miracle that the Ragnvindr hasn’t interacted with them at all (as far as the young CEO knows at least..), and as the new CEO, he knew he had to keep it that way.

Now that he thinks about it, just what did Crepus do if Fatui is responsible for his death? 

Diluc isn’t sure if he wants to know the answer. 

But he knows he has to. He has to understand why this happened to his father and where the driver ran off to, even though he’s fully aware that he won’t be able to grasp the full truth of the story. 

He then considers Alice’s advice: to travel around Teyvat. The Fatui is everywhere in the world, so he plans to go through every single one of them in each nation until he reaches Snezhnaya, where he’ll try to confront those who hold the higher ground of the Fatui and hopefully learn the truth. 

He hands over the Dawn Winery business to Adelaide, Elzer, and Kaeya and informs them that they can always reach him through messages. He trusts them all that his family business won’t sink and will remain as strong as ever, so he isn’t worried that he’ll be contacted to come back to Mondstadt to fix a situation. 

“How long will you be away?” Kaeya asks as he watches his brother pack his items in his luggage. “I’m not sure how to tell everyone about your leave, what should I answer if they ask when you’ll come back?” 

“Tell them I’ll be back in due time.” He answers, focusing on thinking about what else to bring for his travels. “I can’t… guarantee when I’ll come back. This won’t be an easy trip for me.” 

“Of course not, not when you’re taking on the Fatui.” The blue-haired said, his smile begins to fade. “Just… make sure not to die while you’re at it. I can’t attend another funeral again.”

“No promises.” 

The two of them then fell silent. The only noise around the room is Diluc placing his necessities in his luggage.

“...Could you at least talk to Miss Jean once before you leave?” Kaeya asks.

Diluc lets out a sigh. “You’re seriously never going to live that down, are you?” 

His brother lets out a chuckle. “Of course not. I’m quite curious to see why father didn’t try to reject the Gunnhildr family instantly. Besides, I’m sure Miss Jean would handle your company perfectly on her own should you leave again, you should see her capabilities as a leader and detective–”

“Fine, I’ll consider having a chat with her if that’ll keep your mouth shut.” He said with a huff. 

Kaeya smirks. “Good. You can thank me by giving me a free drink in your establishment if you end up getting something out of that hangout.” 

“In your dreams.” 

– 

With the help of Kaeya, Diluc was able to contact Jean and see if she’s willing to spend some time with him, only for her to instantly agree and invite him to a private restaurant where they won’t be disturbed.

“It’s an honor to be able to meet you, Mr. Ragnvindr.” Jean said with a polite smile as she and Diluc sat down on their seats across from one another, the server pouring water on their glasses before handing out two menus and taking his leave. “I hope you didn’t have a hard time finding this place, did you?” 

The red-haired man shakes his head. “No worries, I didn’t have any difficulties. How’s your… day?” 

“I’m relieved you didn’t have any hard time, and my day has been a breeze, thank you.” She then lifts up her cup towards her lips. “If I may ask, what brings you to spend time with me today?” She asks before taking a sip of her drink. 

He lets out a sigh when he remembers his brother. “Ah… You should thank Kaeya for that. He’s been nagging me to come and talk to one of my colleagues before I take my leave.” 

Jean’s eyes widened. “Oh, you’re leaving?” 

He nodded in response. “I’m planning to… travel to some places. I won’t be back for a long time, so I’m sure a lot of things will change by the time I return.” He explained. 

“I see… I understand, you need something to get your mind off of everything.” She says with a sad smile. “I hope you get something out of your trip, and may the wind lead you to the closure you needed.” 

He processes her words. “...Thank you.” 

Something flashes through Diluc’s eyes, and the atmosphere turns serious. “I hope you don’t mind, but I would like to discuss something regarding… something about a certain PD.” He adds. 

Jean stays silent for a moment, also turning serious.

“...Is this related to the reason why you’ve asked for a chat with me?” She asks. 

She’s not wrong, there’s actually more to this special hangout for Diluc that isn’t about the possible arranged marriage and indulgence.  He remembered Kaeya telling him how she recently transferred to the department and had her eye on Lieutenant Eroch for reasons unknown. There’s no doubt that there’s something amiss in the police department, and it’s related to the lieutenant who shrugged off the case of his accident. 

Could he be the one behind his father’s death perhaps?

Diluc feels a little guilty, feeling like he’s just using the woman for information. “Yes. I understand if you’re not willing to talk about it.” 

Jean shakes her head reassuringly. “No it’s alright. I have a feeling I know where this is going now.” 

She then looks around cautiously before whispering, “we are talking about Lieutenant Eroch, right?” 

He nodded. “Correct. I heard that you’ve been skimming around his office.” 

“You must’ve heard it from Mr. Alberich then.” She says with a light chuckle. “He’s the only one outside of the operation who knows, your brother has my deepest gratitude – if anything, I would’ve been easily caught by Lieutenant Eroch and make the situation worse if your brother tells him.” 

“What’s your purpose there?” He asks. 

Jean taps her fingers on the table, careful of what to say. “Let’s just say the lieutenant has been way too suspicious lately. Too suspicious that it caught the attention of a certain chief.” 

“And the certain chief requested you to personally investigate it?” 

She hums, looking down at her drink. “I suppose it’s for the better since we’re not sure who’s on our side, hence why I was transferred to the Lion of the South Department (2).” 

“You came from the Falcon of the West Department, correct?”

“Yes. I was actually supposed to come to the Lion of the South Department in a year, but it seems Chief Varka has other plans.” 

Diluc chuckles. “He’s one unpredictable man, indeed.” 

Jean then looks up at the man. “Is there.. Something you want me to do?” 

He crosses his arms. “There is. I take it that you haven’t found anything from his office?” 

She shakes her head with a sigh, only for Diluc to continue his words. “Then you should look on the rooftop.” 

She furrowed her eyebrows, now curious. “May I ask why?” 

“The lieutenant’s always up there if he’s not in the conference room and office.” Diluc says. “I’m sure a man like him wouldn’t go to the rooftop for view-watching or some peace and quiet. You should check if there’s something that’s hidden in sight.” 

Jean nodded slowly. “I see… Thank you for this, Mr. Ragnvindr.” 

“Please, you may call me Diluc.” He says. “I’m sure this won’t be the last time we’ll interact and talk like this.” 

It’s safe to say he’s right, this wasn’t the last time he’ll be interacting with Jean.

He’ll admit, she’s good to cooperate with. Not only did she take note of his advice, she also made sure to give a piece of her mind in return. 

Had the arranged marriage been a business partnership instead, he would’ve taken it.

Then again, what difference does it make? 

As soon as their hangout came to an end, both parties were satisfied with the information they gained. They both agreed to keep in touch with one another through texts so Jean could update him about Eroch (and hopefully something about the Fatui should the Favonius find out about something), thus exchanging each other’s numbers before taking their leave.

Afterwards, he began his journey to travel around Teyvat in search of the truth.

He supposedly wanted to stay in Mondstadt to investigate them, but knowing the possibility that they could be watching him given that he didn’t die from the accident, he instead decided to make it his last resort. 

Of course, he kept in touch with Kaeya, Adelinde, and Jean. Who all informed him of updates regarding Mondstadt, the wine establishment, and the FPD. There were many good news to hear, such as how Kaeya became even more famous after a particular case where he found many children who were missing, how Angel’s Share is still the most sought-after establishment–

The one news that made him relieved is how Lieutenant Eroch has finally been arrested for many countless crimes committed, but unfortunately, none of the crimes were involved with the car accident.

He also learned how Chief Varka and a couple of officers were sent to a classified mission, which resulted with Jean becoming the current Chief of Police while he was gone. Meanwhile, Kaeya also became the lieutenant of the FPD, claiming he’s now “oh-so busy after my dearest brother left me here to rot with these never ending cases.” 

In a blink of an eye, four years have passed. 

There was never a moment when his determination wavered, his passion is as strong as an eternal flame that never goes out. He never fails to remember why he’s doing this and why he must finish this journey, reminding himself by remembering all the memories he shared with his father. 

Sometimes, he goes back to that time when Crepus died. Trying to remember if there was a single detail he must’ve missed that could help him make more progress with his investigation, only to bring back the pain, helplessness, and guilt he tried to suppress.

He took down most – if not all – that involved the Fatui’s dirty work, brought down those who are as evil as they can be and exposed them in public, and even fought them with either his own hands or with a weapon should the situation resolve in.. an inappropriate manner. 

Because of this, he’s now considered a threat who shouldn’t be underestimated.

Throughout his trip, he once helped a few people who have the same motives as him, such as a woman from Liyue’s government – the Qixing – whose against one of the members of the board of directors in the Fatui, a young CEO in Inazuma who disapproves the Fatui, a man who holds an important position in Teyvat’s most prestige academy and also has something against the Fatui for reasons he didn’t disclose, and many more. 

However, the most notable person he came to work with is someone who introduced him to a secretive network. If it weren’t for them, he would’ve been killed in Snezhnaya by the Fatui. 

Despite how far he has come, Diluc never encountered Tsaritsa – besides some of the board of the directors, who all have anything but good intentions towards him. This doesn’t mean his journey all came to fruitless of course, not when he learned so much from traveling around the world and encountering other people. 

He looked past his progress from his journey, and after a lot of thoughts, he decided to join the underground intelligence network, where he put all his dedication in it just as he did in the FPD. Not only did he rise up into the upper ranks of the network, he also gained even more useful information about the Fatui, such as how Officer Pallad’s involvement with the accident has nothing to do with the Fatui, causing the driver to run away from the incident since the van is destroyed.  

He also finds out from the network that the Fatui can’t touch certain people such as the Tianquan, the Chief of Police, certain families, and even certain CEOs of companies who are too valuable in their nations. He also gained new comrades – most of whose pasts are left behind and go on with the future like the wind. 

Perhaps he too, should stop looking back with the past and not think about all of what could’ve been anymore. 

By the time his journey had ended, he had a conclusion. 

The driver is still unknown, but he knew the order came from either the board of the directors, the chairman, or the CEO herself based on certain documents from each branch that mentioned the Ragnvindr name. The possible explanation is that Fatui wanted to burn down the biggest supplier and the company who has unmatched wines in Mondstadt, whose nation revolves around wine and freedom, to give themselves the opportunity to have such title.

Not to mention how everything will turn out worse should he face the Tsaritsa with ill intentions. Given how the Tsaritsa is one of the most – if not the most – important figures in Snezhnaya, only Celestia can tell what will happen to Diluc. 

He also realized that when he comes back to Mondstadt, he is still just as unsafe as he was during his stay in Snezhnaya.

He started thinking: what if he loses everyone he cares for? What if his brother gets taken? What if his dedicated and loyal employees get hurt? What if he somehow falls in love with someone, and they get hurt because of him? 

This led Diluc to believe that it’s for the best that he tries not to get too close with anyone anymore – let alone fall in love. Hence why he isn’t usually found with people around him, besides those who work for him or want to work with him in the business world of course. 

If he wants to be safe as well as protect those who he cares for, he must protect Mondstadt and be associated with someone who can’t be touched by Fatui. 

When he finally returned to Mondstadt, everyone was too busy talking about the latest mystery of the nation, aka the person responsible for the crime rates suddenly going down and for dragging criminals to the FPD’s doorstep before the sun rises. No one suspected it was the CEO of Angel’s Share – not when he just came back from his journey (in reality he actually arrived back a bit early but went undercover for a couple of days before announcing his comeback). 

By day, Diluc stays in his office doing his work by signing and approving documents, inventing new beverages, and sometimes serving in Angel’s Share if the days are quite slow. By night, he strolls around the city when everyone’s asleep, looking out for anyone who’s in possible danger as well as anyone who’s possibly a threat. He makes sure no one was followed or stalked, no shops being stolen, and no houses being invaded – it honestly reminded him of his old days as a detective back then. 

A few days after his arrival, he received an invitation to visit the Gunnhildr estate. 

He saw no reason to reject such an invitation, but it was rather a bit strange how the head of the family’s keen on meeting him. 

Deep down, he thinks he knows the reason why. 

Right now, he finds himself sitting across Frederica Gunnhildr in her study, anticipating for what’s to come. He hasn’t been in the Gunnhildr estate ever since his father was still alive. He always spends time outside playing with Jean back when they were kids, so this is his first time being in Frederica’s study as the head of the Ragnvindr family. 

“Thank you for deciding to visit my estate, Mr. Ragnvindr.” Frederica says with a smile. “I hope your journey has been beneficial to you, how was it?” 

“It’s alright. My journey’s as unforgettable as the memories I had from it.” He responds. “Congratulations on your daughter’s promotion. You must be proud of her for being in quite an influential position in the FPD.” 

The elder woman laughs in flattery. “Oh my, thank you. You’re right on that, I am proud of my darling Jean. She’s been working hard in the FPD for as long as I can remember – she reminds me of my passed mother.” 

She then sighs. “Oh but it is a shame she has no lover. I worry that she’ll be too focused on her work to the point where she won't fall in love with anyone at that rate.” 

“I’m sure your daughter will be able to think about it in some time. Her career is full of responsibility after all, so it’s not too surprising that she’s not so focused on something else than protecting Mondstadt.” 

Frederica hums in agreement. “That’s true… What about you, Mr. Ragnvindr?” 

Diluc looks at the woman in confusion. “Pardon…?” 

“Are you in love with someone perhaps? Surely a handsome man such as you would reach people’s interests. There’s bound to be someone who catches your eye.” She clarifies with a small laugh. 

He shakes his head in response. “There’s none, and I like to keep it that way. It’s the least of my priorities since I just returned to Mondstadt and my family’s business requires my full attention.” 

“Business, huh?” She mumbled. “..What do you think about arranged marriages then? It’s quite beneficial to both parties depending on their contract and agreement.” 

Ah, his suspicions were right.

Despite the fact that Diluc has no interest in such a topic, he can’t help but see an opportunity in this. 

The Fatui’s bound to make their move soon, and he fears they might do something to him and everyone around him. However, being with Jean means he can’t be touched by the organization due to how they can’t exactly touch a person who’s associated with someone as powerful as a chief in a police department in fear of being considered as a threat to a nation itself. Not to mention how he can also get benefits of gaining access to the FPD’s files if Jean allows it since she now has the power to get anything in the police department as a chief. 

He then remembers the letter Crepus wrote. “It’ll make your old man incredibly happy if you decide to accept their offer.” 

…

“...I haven’t thought much about it.” He answers slowly. 

“Would you consider marrying my daughter through arranged marriage then?” 

“...” 

Frederica covers her mouth as if she didn’t mean to ask such a question. “Ah, I might’ve been too straightforward.” She says apologetically. “It’s just.. Your father – may he rest in peace – and I have talked about it back then, and he says–” 

“I’m aware of that.” Diluc is quick to clarify. “I’m grateful he let me be the one to decide such a matter as it is my life we’re talking about. Did your daughter agree to this…?” 

The woman nodded in response. “I suppose this arrangement is one of the reasons why she hadn’t thought about love as she still has a proposal to wait for. Of course, just as your father must’ve told you, it’s alright if you reject this marriage since this is just an option for you both.” 

The red-haired man slowly nodded in understanding. 

He doesn’t see any bad reasons as to why he shouldn’t accept their offer, but neither did he see any bad reasons in accepting their offer. Jean’s capable of protecting herself and not getting targeted by the Fatui as she’s important to both FPD and Varka, and she’s willing to be in the marriage for business reasons just like him. 

Not to mention how there’s no certainty that they’ll fall in love with one another, which is something Diluc’s grateful for as he never sees the woman that way. 

And if accepting the marriage is what makes his father happy…

“...Then… I suppose I can consider such an offer.”

Frederica’s smile grew wider. “Perfect.” 

And so, Diluc finds himself being a fiance. 

When Jean heard the news that he accepted the marriage offer, she was quite surprised, but nevertheless was happy that she’s able to make her family even more proud by being able to marry a man as influential and powerful as Diluc. 

Thankfully, the two of them were on the same page about not wanting to have any strings attached between them besides being friends, as they completely see each other as nothing but such. They’ve also come to terms with their conditions about what marriage can bring to them and their businesses which all bring benefits to one another. 

For the past year since then, it was evident that they’ve grown closer with each other – but in a way that friends do with one another rather than lovers. The two of them eventually got comfortable with the other’s presence in their life as they continue collaborating for various reasons. Sometimes, they’d joke with one another. Sometimes, they’d reminisce about memories. Sometimes they’d read books with each other in the same room, though at a fair distance.  Sometimes, they’d wonder what it’s like to be out of the burdens of their lives. Sometimes, they’d share some peaceful silence between one another. 

Those times never really changed their uninterested feelings towards each other, because to Diluc, this marriage is simply more of a promise of eternal alliance and friendship rather than a promise of a romantic future, and Jean wholeheartedly feels the same. 

To Diluc’s relief, there were no actions from the Fatui towards him – unless you consider the few Snezhnayan merchants who’d come to the wine tycoon in hopes for a partnership with their business – thanks to the news about how Diluc and Jean are frequently seen with each other, but not one person outside the two families were none the wiser about the upcoming marriage that’ll be announced soon. 

It’s understandable for them to not talk about the possibility of being in love with someone else during their marriage, none of them could imagine experiencing that from how busy they are with their work. 

Fate really is humorous. 

Fast forward, Diluc was recently invited to attend the Grand Goth Hotel for the wedding between Hiiragi Chisato and Kamisato Ayato, and unfortunately he had to go alone since Jean’s too busy with her work and will visit once she’s done, so he thought he’ll just be all alone, something he grew used to and didn’t mind thanks to his four years of exploring around Teyvat. 

Then he met you. 

When he bumped into you due to him being distracted by his call with Kaeya. He realized his mistake for not apologizing quickly, but when he turned around to look at where you are, you’re far from his reach. 

He thought that was the end of it, until he saw you again in the souvenir shop hours later. He felt like you looked familiar when he first saw you in the shop, and perhaps you must be feeling the same way as well from how you’ve been staring at him like a hawk. However, when it’s revealed that you’re only staring at him because you remembered him bumping into you, he felt… taken back. That’s the reason why you’ve been staring at him? 

He was even more taken back when you were quick to tell him how he was so rude for not apologizing to you. He’ll admit, it’s sort of a refreshing sight to see someone who isn’t so timid or nervous around him and isn’t afraid to scold someone for their errors no matter who they are. Nevertheless, he didn’t hesitate to apologize for his behavior – and when he found out you’re also a guest in the wedding, he was even willing to pay for your wedding gift if you allow him to share, something you reluctantly agreed on after checking its price. In a way, this is his payment for what you’ve done for him back at the airport (though, he wasn’t aware that you’re the same person that gave him his father’s watch at that time). 

The next time you meet was in Good Hunter’s, whereas he overhears your conversation with who seems to be your group of friends. He didn’t bother listening to it, until he heard his name being mentioned. 

When you explained how you don’t like him because of how rude he is, he felt taken back once again. Were you really that hurt from him bumping into you? Well, his shoulders are broad and must’ve hit you quite harshly if he wasn’t careful at that time, so he can’t blame you for thinking he’s rude for that. 

But then again, he thought buying those champagne flutes for you was enough… 

Turns out, it is enough. 

It was strange how he keeps seeing you these days, especially this particular day. Almost everywhere he goes, you’re also there. It was quite an interesting  situation, he thinks. 

However, he knows that he shouldn’t get close to you. He swore to never be close with anyone anymore (with the exception of his loved ones) and you cannot be an exception. That’s why he has to make sure he can’t meet you again, for you and his sake. 

Yet despite his oath, he still finds himself getting involved with you – especially during one of those encounters when he sees you in a rather uncomfortable situation. 

He recognizes the two men talking to you as being the members of the Kamisato family. He would’ve mind his business if it weren’t for how you seem to be in need of help, 

And Diluc is not someone who ignores such a situation.

So he comes over to where you are, acting as if he was looking for you despite a part of him telling him to not go and help you. Fortunately, you caught on to what he was trying to do and played along to his lie, something that the other two men fell for and decided to leave you two alone. 

He’s not one to pry into someone’s life, but he wonders what the Kamisato has done to make you so distraught and sad. Instead of asking, he simply kept his mouth shut and offered you his handkerchief, and you reluctantly grabbed it from him. 

The gesture made him finally realize why you’re so familiar to him. 

The incident was years ago, but he’ll never forget you giving him back something precious to  him. He really can’t imagine what would’ve happened if he lost one of the things that belonged to his father. He isn’t sure if you remembered it, but it didn’t matter, because he finally repaid his gratitude to you. 

After comforting you, he eventually found out that you indeed had forgiven him already, causing him to feel a bit embarrassed that he’s been thinking that you still haven’t forgiven him. 

As soon as you enter your hotel room after what happened, Diluc realizes that somehow, this wedding no longer seems to be as lonely as he anticipated it to be. 

You became a familiar sight for Diluc from then on as much as he didn’t want to.

The next time you meet is in the bachelor party, whereas the two of you started to get to know each other more. You’re pleasant and smooth to talk with, and there was never a moment where the two of you felt off with your conversation despite some differences with opinions and ideas – at least, that’s what he feels – and bonded a lot on how you two have a lot in common. 

You’re not afraid to speak your thoughts and even laughed at some words he said that were unintentionally a joke. Even though you now know of his achievements and reputation, you still treated him the same, which is something that made him feel pleasant. Even more so when you praised him for being such “a cool multitasker” as you watch him make drinks and serve them throughout your conversation with each other. 

He can’t help but be reminded of his father, and yet for some reason, he didn’t feel remorse from that.

He’d never thought he’d click with someone, let alone having a conversation that could last forever, like he did with you. Interacting with you feels like he doesn’t have to be so uptight and has to keep up with the formalities – especially after convincing him that he doesn’t have to do so – and he’s free to say his thoughts.

When you decide to stop your conversation for a moment and excuse yourself to go to the bathroom, Diluc tries not to show the disappointment in his eyes and words. It’s strange to him, why is he so disappointed? You’ll come back anyway just like you said. 

As he waits and waits, he earns himself a new company.

Kamisato Ayato is… One secretive and mysterious man. It’s not something Diluc is suspicious of, really. If anything, the two of them have a few things in common, such as their shared determination in protecting the people they care for, their shared hatred towards the Fatui, their share experiences of being the CEO at such a young age –

As well as the shared fact that their marriages are arranged. 

Diluc isn’t so surprised with the fact that the other is aware of his situation, but he was surprised that he sent him a warning about being careful with how he spends time with you, who is still in the bathroom doing only Celestia knows what. 

His warning alone made the bartender wake up from his daze, and he faced the reality he had always hated. 

You can’t be involved with someone like him, a man whose hands have been dirtied and committed things that he dares not to explain. 

Once you’re entangled with him, you’ll simply be yet another person he has to protect from the Fatui and the burdens of only simply being his friend. Although he’s soon to be a part of the Gunnhildr family, he knows that won’t completely make the Fatui leave him alone. Spending time with you will only make things hard for you. 

Not to mention how people would react if they see you spending time with Diluc, and only Celestia can tell how drastic the rumors can be once this spreads around, so Ayato is indeed right, he should leave you alone. 

He does not acknowledge how such thought aches his chest deeply.

Still, he knows that ignoring you wouldn’t do anything but cause problems, so he tells himself that it’s up to you if you still want to spend time with him. 

And it seems you do, especially the next day after that.

The CEO was surprised to see you entering Angel’s Share, especially since the wedding is today. What surprised him more was when he realized just how much he missed you – or talking to you rather. 

What a strange feeling… 

As he continues doing his job, he can’t help but observe you from afar; a habit that he does at times during his shifts here whenever an unfamiliar customer visits the establishment but unlike everyone he observes, he doesn’t observe you out of suspicion that you have something up your sleeve. You looked like you’re enjoying your time with your few friends, something that made him quite happy to see (even though one of your friends is someone who’s rather a hassle in his establishment when he feels like it). 

He feels all the more pleasant when you decide to chat with him for a bit as though you’re old time friends, not realizing that he may or may not have slipped up a few words that he didn’t really mean, making you assume that he’s just there for the wedding to serve his finest drinks. 

It’s only a matter of time until Diluc realizes what he was doing, especially when he finds himself looking at your way unintentionally. You just look so out of place in Angel’s Share in such a good way that his eyes are drawn to you, like how a moth can’t help but be captivated by a shining light.

It comforted him to see you being relaxed in his establishment – be it because he’s happy to see his customers satisfied or because you’re happy – and he wanted to let it stay that way, especially when he has a few guesses on why you were saddened whenever the groom of the wedding is around. 

When he catches on to the fact that you’re also staring at him, he can’t help but feel conscious about himself, thinking about how he mixes his drinks, how he positions himself by the bar, or how he talks to his fellow customers politely, he wonders what you think about what he’s doing even if it’s the simplest of gestures. 

…Is this really something friends think of about each other? 

By the time it’s time for you and your two friends to leave in order to get ready for the wedding, Diluc couldn’t help but feel disappointed, wanting to say more to you but couldn’t. 

However, when you take one more look at him while he’s staring at you as well, and give him an acknowledged nod with that smile of yours; he knows the two of you will eventually talk again and catch up once more.

For some reason, he’s looking forward to the wedding more than ever. 

By the time he makes it to the wedding, he was a bit surprised to see that the ceremony hasn’t commenced yet. His surprise instantly disappears when his eyes land on you, who looks as though you’re looking for someone. Could it be him, he hopes? 

Thankfully, luck was on Diluc’s side. Seeing how there’s one more seat that’s empty beside yours, he slowly makes his way over to you to sit on that empty chair. When he sits down, you instantly look at him and your eyes brighten. 

Him noticing you being excited from simply seeing him made the wine tycoon feel.. Something. Important? Valued? He isn’t sure anymore, he’s at a loss for words when it comes to you.

Truly, this must be something friends have sometimes. 

As he watches the wedding ceremony commence, he can’t help but feel as if someone’s watching him from behind. This caused him to cautiously turn around for a bit, only to find the father of the bride glaring at his direction, but not at him it seems. 

He then realizes that the father of the bride was glaring at you.

Diluc couldn’t help but feel protective, internally taking note to watch the current CEO of the Chisato company should he plan to do something to you. 

When the wedding went on to the reception, it seems luck is still on Diluc’s side. When he arrives at his assigned table by looking for his name displayed on the seats, he spots your name on the seat that’s next to his once again. 

It made him feel relieved, knowing that he won’t be sitting next to those who would most likely talk to him in hopes of gaining opportunity to have the CEO’s attention and support in their businesses and whatnot. 

When you find out as well, you’re pleasantly surprised, but nevertheless happy with the arrangement. If anything, it gives you a chance to continue your previous conversation with your friend! 

Throughout the party, the two of you bonded more and are closer than ever. Diluc really couldn’t recall when’s the last time he had a conversation like this. It really feels as if he could never get tired of talking with you and won’t run out of topics to talk about. 

His highlights of your conversation are the times when you laugh at his words, when you listen to him with an awe look on your face, and when you talk so passionately about the things you love. 

Diluc particularly admires how you talk about your beloved nation, Inazuma. You talk as if Inazuma is your child, and you’re a parent who’s proud of it. Not only did you tell him the things that you love about it, but also showed him just how much you missed your home with the longing look on your face. Considering how long you haven’t visited the nation ever since you went to Liyue, he can understand the feeling. 

Someday, he’d like to go there with you… Maybe then you’ll be happier than you are now, and he wants to see that in his own eyes.

After you explained all there is to know about Inazuma, Dilic then shares his own words about his nation in return. He talks about the things that he thinks you might like about his land, only to find that you love everything about Mondstadt and explain how much you love the place, telling him how you’ve always wanted to go to Mondstadt because of its carefree nature and kind people. It was something that Diluc isn’t surprised by – he’s used to many foreigners he had talked to telling him about how wonderful Mondstadt is – and yet, he feels his heart warming hearing such compliments about his home from you. 

While he was explaining though, he can’t help but notice how you’re somewhat.. distracted, as if your thoughts drifted off to something, causing him to feel a bit concerned. Are you bored from his explanation? Did he say something wrong? Or.. Is it because of Ayato? 

When he asked you if you’re alright, you only responded that you’re distracted by the sight of the garden that surrounds the open-air room. He wasn’t convinced obviously, but seeing how you don’t want to admit the real reason, he knows not to push you for it and respect your privacy. 

However, asking you somehow got him to spend time with you in the hotel’s garden. 

Diluc could see why the garden is one of the hotel’s best spots for guests. It’s as magical and peaceful as what most people described. 

And yet, he can’t help but think that this place is all the more magical and special when you’re here with him. 

“It’s so beautiful..!” You comment in pure awe. If you at least glance at where Diluc is, you would’ve realized that he isn’t staring at the view of the garden that is indeed beautiful.

“Indeed.” He quietly agrees, his gaze never left you. 

…

Diluc feels his shoulders sinking a bit. Friends don’t think of each other this way, don’t they?

…

As the two of you stroll around the garden, Diluc covers topics regarding the flowers that surround the two of you and about other things, all the while you listen with great eagerness. 

It was only when he started talking about his first drink when he realized something. 

How long has it been since he talked to someone about his father? Let alone his past?

Was he really that comfortable talking to you to the point where he’s willing to share the things he never thought he’d talk about with someone? 

He was sincerely taken back that he didn’t watch his step and accidentally stumbled from a bump on the pathway. 

…How embarrassing.

His thoughts from before instantly fade away, replaced by how embarrassed he is from the situation he put himself in. It was impressive how you managed to pull him back from falling, had it not been for your strength, he would’ve been even more embarrassed from falling down to the ground completely. 

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the only embarrassing incident that occurred between the two of you. One thing led to one another, and suddenly he finds you hugging his arm out of fear from the sudden appearance of your plus one. 

Diluc felt like he was frozen the moment he felt your touch on him. He didn’t know what to do really, especially when you’re holding onto him as if your life depends on it. It was only by the time you let him go when he felt like he could breathe, watching you walk away first to get back to the venue.

Despite letting him go, he still feels the ghost of your touch. 

–

It seems the night is still young for you and Diluc. 

After the reception, the two of you proceeded to explore around Mondstadt City together to hang out more. But this particular night brought the man to something more than just a hangout. 

The more the both of you continue to spend time together, the more Diluc feels more confused, maybe even worried, about his thoughts and feelings towards you. He doesn’t know who you are to him if not a friend. If you’re indeed just a friend, then why does he feel like it’s more than just? If not a friend, then what? 

Deep inside, a small part of him already knows the answer to his worries and thoughts. 

So when he sees you talking with someone who interrupted your hangout with him, an unpleasant feeling creeps up on him, especially when it turns out that the stranger is someone you’re familiar with. 

He hasn’t felt jealous for a long time until now. 

Just the thought of you being with someone else made him feel unpleasant, and he isn’t sure what to do with it. He could only watch as you happily chatted with Heizou, his mind clouded with conflicts and realizations. 

Diluc realizes that his feelings towards you are something serious. This isn’t a mere admiration and fondness that will go away in a blink of an eye, but the kind of admiration and fondness that made him want more. 

What hurts is that he knows he can’t have that. Not when his life is too complicated to have the happiness he wants to have more with you, not when his life is as dangerous as it can be to have the peacefulness he wants to share with you, and certainly not when he’s entangled himself with an eternal marriage with his partner who he considers as his friend to have you as his. 

Yes, Diluc finally admitted it. He wants you to be more than his friend. He wants you to be more than just someone who he sees on a daily basis, but someone who he sees when he wakes up to another day, someone who he sees when he’s all dressed up with gifts for yet another memorable date night, someone who understands him more than he understands himself, someone who he kisses goodnight before sleeping away next to each other, someone who he will cherish with all his heart without hesitation, 

Someone who he loves just as soulmates do. 

But he knows that it’s far out of his reach. 

What hurts more is how the two of you won’t be able to see each other soon, and none of you are sure when you’ll be able to.

…It’s for the best, he thinks. 

The morning after, he received a phone call from Jean.

“How was the wedding?” She asks. 

“It was… not bad.” He replies. “I made friends with someone.”

“Really? Wow, that’s great! I hope I’ll be able to meet your friend when I get there, they must be one great person.” 

His eyebrows raised up in surprise. “You’ll visit here today?”

“Yeah, I’ll be able to come to the hotel today to congratulate the couple. I hope you don’t mind introducing me to your friend while I’m at it.” 

Diluc isn’t sure what to feel about Jean’s eagerness to meet you, but regardless, he agrees to her request. “…Of course. You two would get along well.”

“I sure hope so! And if you want to, we can also invite your friend to our wedding! I’m sure there’s room for one more guest.” 

“…We’ll see. Let’s meet up by the lobby when you arrive.” 

“Alright, I’ll let you know when I arrive. See you there, Diluc.” 

And just like that, the call ended. 

Diluc puts his phone down with a sigh. What is he going to do? 

Nothing it seems. 

Though, he can’t help but notice how a few Fatui members have been around the hotel lately. Usually he ignores them if it weren’t for how.. often he sees them today. Is it perhaps related to a certain higher up who wants to buy the hotel? 

Or.. is it related to a scheme he has yet to know about?

He thinks about it deeply to the point where he even spaced out a bit while talking to you in the garden as you wait for your friend.

He eventually finds out what the Fatui were up to when he decided to contact one of his associates in the underground network. 

“The people you’ve been seeing are under the security branch of the Fatui, so it’s evident that someone must’ve hired them for something they’re planning to do that needs to be under wraps. We’ll let you know if we happen to find out who’s their employer and whether or not you should intervene.” His informant tells him through the phone as Diluc continues to stand around the lobby waiting for Jean, eyeing on the Fatui guards carefully from afar. 

He didn’t have to wait for long on who’s the employer of the Fatui guards.

As soon as he kept his phone away after the phone call, he noticed the father of the bride walking around the lobby with a couple of the Fatui following him. He raises an eyebrow at the sight of the guards walking in a certain formation as though they’re surrounding someone–

Only for his heart to drop when he sees you among said guards.

What are they doing with you?

He then remembers how Shinsuke was glaring at you at the wedding ceremony back then, causing him to conclude that it must’ve been related to whatever’s going on with you and Ayato. 

He didn’t hesitate to start following them in hopes of getting you out of there safely, only to lose sight of you when a lot of people suddenly entered the lobby.

He quietly curses at himself in irritation as he tries to walk through the busy crowd, hoping that he’ll still be able to see you once he’s out of there. 

When he still doesn't see you, he feels like he’s about to burn this place down. 

Please be alright, he thinks as he runs around the lobby like a madman, looking at every hallway to see a glimpse of you or your captors who seem to have more than just ill intentions towards you. It feels like he’s back in the incident where his father died as he feels the same thing that his younger self felt. Helplessness and fear of losing his loved one.

Fortunately, it was only a matter of time when he spotted the familiar Fatui guards standing in front of a door, holding what appears to be the very same bag that he saw you carrying at the garden earlier. 

He didn’t hesitate to go towards where they were, causing the guards to notice him at last and be alerted. 

“Sir, you’re not allowe–”

“I don’t care.”

As minutes passed, not one single person among the busy crowds in the lobby noticed the unconscious guards around the secluded hallway, with a tall man standing in the middle of the aftermath of his anger. 

As soon as Diluc finishes dealing with the Fatui guards, he immediately grabs your bag before reaching out to the closed room to open it. 

His heart drops at the sight of Shinsuke’s raised hand towards you. 

Hold yourself, he orders to himself in his thoughts, not wanting to throw hands towards the man who was planning to hurt you. 

He puts on his calm facade. “Was I interrupting something?” 

It wasn’t hard to get Shinsuke out of the room and get you to safety, by the time he did, his heart breaks at the sight of you being all shaken up from whatever the older man did to you before he could arrive. 

This is an example of what will happen if they’re with me, Diluc thought as he tries to comfort you. He knows that even though your situation right now has nothing to do with him, you’ll get more situations like this if you’re with him, making him realize that even if he’s not an engaged man, he knows he still can’t have you. Not when it’s a risk to even be with him. 

He just wishes you to be safe and happy, but it hurts that it’s not something you’ll get from him. 

That’s why when you tell him to go with Jean instead of letting him escort you back to your room, he knows not to insist and do what you want him to (but not before bidding you goodbye).

He feels selfish for wanting to do the opposite and go with you. 

But he knows his place. 

As he heads towards Jean, he takes one more glance at your direction. He internally wants to reach his hand out towards you, begging you to look back so he could excuse himself and go to you. 

But you didn’t. 

And so, hesitantly and defeatedly, he lets you go. 

Hours later, he stares at the ceiling while lying down on his bed, with Jean busily doing her paperworks on her bed that’s next to his. He wonders what could’ve been if his life wasn’t so complicated and dangerous. He wonders what could’ve been if it were you who he gets to call his spouse instead of the one who he considers as his business partner and good friend. He wonders what could’ve been if he wasn’t such a coward. 

He wonders if you think of him the way he thinks of you. 

.

.

.

You realize that suppressing your feelings is not the way of moving on. 

Love hurts. Thinking of the past hurts. You realize that Diluc is just someone who helped you with your confrontation towards the past you so wanted to forget because of the pain it brings, but he’s not the one who can completely help you heal. 

By the end of the day, it’s you alone who can heal yourself.

It breaks your heart to know that Diluc, your dear friend who helped you in ways you’re so grateful for, isn’t the one you can have as your lover. But you know it’s best this way – after all, you still have to take time focusing on yourself first now that you took a big step from your burdens. All you can do is accept that he’s just going to be your friend in this lifetime and cherish that.

After all that has happened today as well as a good long hour of crying and letting everything out, you find yourself lying down on your bed as you scroll through your photo gallery, finally looking back at the memories that you shared with Ayato, with your friends, and with yourself. It’s been so long since you’ve looked at them that you almost forgot some of the moments that made you happy. 

Happy.. When will you ever be as happy as you were back then?

It took a while until you finally decided to call it a night, turning off your phone and placing it on the nightstand next to your bed before trying to sleep.

You hope you’ll be able to at least face Diluc and spend time with him one last time. The last thing you want is to experience the same thing you did with Ayato and ruin what you have with Diluc before you leave to go back home. But perhaps that’s why the past is so important, isn’t it? It helps you prevent yourself from making the same mistake. 

Home..

You let out a sigh to yourself, quietly wondering when you’ll be able to go back to your homeland that you oh so missed. 

Maybe it won’t hurt to ask Ei for a transfer someday. 

DAN’S NOTES

(the rest of the letter is blank, making it evident that Crepus hasn’t finished it completely for unknown reasons). 

this information won’t be revealed in the series whatsoever but if crepus didn’t die from the accident, he wouldve decided to remove what he said to diluc and rewrite his statement in the letter to make it clear that it’s alright for diluc to completely reject the marriage offer since the only thing crepus will be happy about is if his son lives happily with someone and not be alone for the rest of his life.

hence why I was transferred to the Lion of the South Department 

in the favonius police department, there are 4 departments situated all around mondstadt: the lion of the south (basically the main department), the falcon of the west, the wolf of the north, and the dragon of the east.

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[ceilidho]

i love your country road fic, i get excited everytime i see you posted a new part and the fact that it's a slow burn makes me like it even more (but fr it's great that they/price didn't jump straight to sex, it builds such a delicious tension between the characters)🥰 i love you and your writing 💞

thank you sm!!!! i really didn't intend it to be a slow burn because I want them to fuck soon lmaooooo (i have a bunch of plot points that involve smut to some extent and I need them to get that first consummation of their marriage out of the way before i can write it), but then i started writing chapter 4 and it just didn't make sense to have them sleep together right away with the backstory i'm crafting for the reader character.

obviously i've written dubcon/noncon in the past and i have no qualms about writing it, but i think in this fic it wouldn't be the best fit!!! plus omggggg im sooooo loving diving into their chemistry. ill admit i usually skip over crafting good chemistry between my characters because i prefer writing more like "insta-love" stuff but writing them sitting in the bath together and Price tracing his finger over her back was like!!!! AHHHHH!!!!!