#pulling myself from the depths of despair to finish this

[spicyicymeloncat]

Nightcord Kaito is actually my favourite virtual singer from project sekai. He’s so angry I love him. (I changed his hair to kinda resemble the character from the original Samsa mv)

[tsukimefuku]

bad dream ❖ kento nanami

summary: after a bad night filled with nightmares, nanami is glad to see you never left his apartment.

tags: jujutsu kaisen, f!reader, nanami x reader, tooth rotting fluff, hurt and comfort.

wc: 600

notes, etc: small little drabble I wrote for self soothing purposes and decided to share.

❖ collection of stories: "jujutsu partners au" → masterlist

You were trying and failing miserably to make Kento an omelet before he woke up. You already dreaded the sight you had in front of you, fearing he might wake up with the smell of burnt egg.

Kento, however, wouldn’t wake up due to that, but due to something much more somber. 

Once again, after you had spent the night with him, his sleep would be taken by the vivid nightmares of Haibara’s death and your near death experience mingling together in a senseless dream of gloom. Upon opening his eyes and not seeing you by his side, still half dazed and asleep, Nanami’s heart felt like a rock in his chest.

But by this time, he had learned his lesson.

He quickly stood up and walked to his room’s door, seeing you were already in the kitchen trying to make some breakfast.

Nanami began walking towards you in a quick stride, and you heard his footsteps, turning around to face him as you pulled the pan out of the stove top.

”I’m so sorry to wake you, I didn’t mean to, I was just trying-“

Before you could finish your sentence, though, he grabbed your wrist and pulled you in, wrapping his arms around your frame. He had come desperately searching for the warmth and comfort from you, and was very glad that you hadn’t left his apartment that morning. His nose made its way towards your hair, and he nuzzled around, letting out a strained sigh from the depths of his lungs the moment he felt the flowery scent you usually carried around in your hair and clothes.

You smelled like plum blossoms.

“Kento? Is everything alright?” You inquired with a hint of concern to your voice as you hugged him back.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he whispered against your hair before planting a kiss on your head. His voice sounded just as strained as his breathing.

What has gotten into him?

You waited patiently for his grip to loosen a little before you pulled back and looked at him. His usual impassive face was replaced by a soft pained frown. You cupped his face in your hands, feeling your heart ache a little for him, as Kento really seemed to be anguished.

“Kento, what happened?”

He gulped the sandy sensation in his throat, mouth falling slightly open without a sound coming out of it.

Given he had just come out of the room, you had a hunch, though.

“Did you have a nightmare or something like that?”

You weren’t a stranger to nightmares yourself, given the amount of trauma sorcerers were subject to on the daily. Some of them even featured Kento, much to your despair, until you were given the little mercy of waking up.

Kento simply leaned his face on your hands and nodded, his breath evening out as you both locked eyes for a moment.

“I won’t go anywhere if you don’t go anywhere,” you told him, brushing your thumbs down his cheeks, “just don’t push me away like you did that time and you can rest assured you will never get rid of me, okay?”

Kento sighed, relieved to hear you say that, and the faintest smile took over his expression, as he said, “I promise I won’t ever push you away again.”

“You do?”

“I do.”

It was your turn to smile, as you planted a soft kiss on his lips. One of his hands made its way to the nape of your neck and pulled you in, pressing your face gently against his shoulder.

“I’m glad,” you answered, letting your eyes fall shut as you both stood there hugging each other.

The burnt egg didn’t seem so bad now, after all. 

End notes: I’m rewriting ��The Event - Part 2” and needed some fluff to soothe myself. Hope this soothes you guys too.

[thicc-ray-of-sunshine]

EXTREMELY self indulgent angst

Out here projecting my own problems and writing angst

TW///// TALKS OF SUICIDE BELOW THE CUT

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

"Please don't finish that sentence Stan."

You felt bitter laughter rise in your chest, cutting through it like a knife, a sour expression on your face.

"I understand that you're trying to help I do, and that saying that might be comforting to another person, but for me? That's probably one of the worst things you could say to me."

You could feel the beginnings of tears pricking your eyes, trying to blink them back as they began to blur the edges of your visuon. Still avoiding looking at Stan next to you, not wanting to see the look of pity that would inevitably be there.

"Me being young doesn't mitigate anything. I don't pretend to know the kind of shit you've been through, so please just- give me the same courtesy."

Your voice cracked at the end and you hated it, sounding just as pathetic and broken as you felt. You couldn't stop the tears as they slid down your cheeks, crying silently, wetting the wood of the porch steps beneath you. You hated crying, hated how your body took control from you; forcing you to become a physical manifestation of how truly wretched you felt.

At your side Stan was completely at a loss. His mind still reeling, unrecovered from seeing the most chipper person he'd ever met in his life completely fall apart at the seams. It was scary how fast it had happened, and it made him wonder how many of your smiles were genuine.

He could see a shadow of his younger self in you and it terrified him. It was plain as day on your face, a big black well of despair laying just beneath the surface there and he wonders how he didn't see it before. He watched, tears still running tracks down your pretty face as you clumsily fished out a pack of cigarettes from your pockets. Your hands were shaking as you brought one to your lips, hands fumbling for a lighter you didn't have. A harsh breath left you as you came to that realization, dragging a hand across your face and pulling at your own hair in a way that hurt.

Stan didn't hesitate, moving in closer to yoir side, having procured his own lighter. He wordlessly lit the cigarette hanging from your chapped lips, backing off as soon as the cherry burned red. You slid the pack his way as you took a puff, followed by a long shuddering exhale as he lit up his own cigarette. You briefly met his gaze in your peripherals, before casting a forlorn look back out to the nightscape in front of you.

"You ain't gotta feel bad Stan. I know you meant well. It's just- this shit is tough and it's kinda the whole reason I'm out here in the first place."

Your voice was scratchy in your throat, roughened from your crying. He let you talk, he knew you weren't finished and that he needed to let you go at your own pace.

"It's funny ya know? Some twenty-something like me out in the middle of nowhere Oregon, not where I imagined ending up."

You chuckled lightly, maybe a bit contemptuously; taking another drag.

"Nobody really does."

Stan's hand found your shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze, offering you a a small smile that was more of a grimace if you were honest. That rustled a low dry scoff out of you, close enough to laughter to make Stan feel good about it. A harsh sigh left your lips before you continued.

"I'm out here because I relapsed. Couldn't hack it still living in the 'scene of the crime' after all the shit that went down in my life I guess. Don't really know how many times I've tried to take myself out, haven't really been keeping count if I'm honest."

Your voice was level but there was still a tremble in your voice as you spilled your guts to him. Stan was left completely shell shocked at the revelation; finally being given true clarity into the depth of your grief. There were so many things he should say, that he wanted to say; but he just didn't have the words to.

"And after all that it's just gotta get better, y'know? I mean if it doesn't then what was the point? All that to just amount to nothing."

It was when another sob threatened to leave you, your body shaking where you sat and lip wobbling that he couldn't take it anymore. In one swift movement Stan had put out his cigarette, abandoning it and gathering you into his arms. Holding you close, in a near suffocating grip against his chest. Hoping that the desperate grip he had on you as he coiled his arms around you would convey what he was feeling; what he wanted to say.

Your cigarette joined his own, ashed and forgotten as you threw yourself around him, returning his embrace and fully breaking down in his arms. Your body shook violently against him, chest heaving with each breath you struggled to take between your tears. Arms grappling tighter around his neck as he smoothed his hands up and down your back in a reassuring manner.

"Thank you Stan. I'm sorry-"

You hiccuped through your crying, trying to express your gratitude towards him while also trying to apologize, as if your feelings were nothing more than an inconvenience to him. He could feel his heart breaking just a little more, clutching you closer to himself and shushing you.

"Shhhh. Don't ya worry a pretty little hair on yer head now Sweetheart. I gotcha."

Stan knew what it felt like to feel worthless, like you didn't matter - like a screw up. That feeling where no matter what you did in your life you just couldn't escape your own feelings of inadequacy. It was bizarre and frightening seeing it from the outside, his own self loathing he could handle but seeing it in someone who he cared deeply for? It tore him apart inside. Each of your sobs twisting itself painfully into his chest as your tears soaked the fabric of his shirt between his neck and shoulder.

Stan's left hand played gently with your hair, having moved up to cradle the back of your head tenderly. The crying had mostly stopped, reduced to small hiccups and sniffling while you tried to clear your sinuses. He just continued to hold you, right hand rubbing soothing circles into your back between your shoulderblades.

Your breathing was even now, a little staggered but even. Head nestled in the crook of his neck, resting on his shoulder as you slowly calmed down. He felt a gentle pressure on his shoulders; your hands as you tried to push yourself upright in his embrace.

When he could finally see your face you were a complete wreck, your eyes were bloodshot; a deep red hue tinting them from your crying, heavily irritated. There were obvious tear tracks running down your cheeks that went past your lips to your chin and loose strands of your hair were plastered to the sides of your face from where your tears had wet them. His hand in your hair shifted, moving gently to brush the offending strands out of your face, watching your eyes flutter closed as he did so, a soft sigh falling past your lips. You stopped his hand as he removed it, sliding your hands from around his shoulders to press that hand against your cheek.

Stan felt his breath hitch, such an act of intimacy catching him completely off guard and putting him of kilter. Although he didn't let that stop him from repaying the gesture; you needed him. He let his thumb run just above the apple of your cheek, just below your eye, wiping away the tears there.

"Thank you Stanley."

You murmur against his palm, voice still thick with tears, breath fanning across the inside of his wrist as you thanked him. He could feel tears of his own start to burn the corners of his eyes when you looked back up at him. Your own eyes big glassy pools filled with something akin to adoration. He couldn't stand it, couldn't bear you looking at him like that; like he was everything. Leaning in closer, he tilted your head up to press a kiss against your temples, lips lingering a little longer than they needed to as his disobedient heart stuttered in his chest, murmuring into your skin.

"S'nothin Doll, not for you."

[beardeddetectivepaper]

€3,427/€75,000

https://gofund.me/b79350cf

(Fundraiser verified by @/humans4watermelons)

Don’t skip the story please, read it ! {1$/1€ will make difference } {1$/1€ = Family Safety} Hello all; In the heart of Gaza, I, Moath, a 27-year-old son of love and warmth, find myself caught in the merciless grip of war. Born into a family of six, our bonds were unbreakable, our love unwavering. But as I pursued my dreams of studying medicine in Cairo, leaving them behind, I could never have imagined the horrors that awaited us.

Separated from my loved ones since 2017, the ache of their absence grows with each passing day. Every night, the echoes of explosions reverberate through my soul, a haunting reminder of the violence that plagues our homeland. Despite my longing to return, the war's iron grip keeps us apart, a cruel barrier between me and my family. My brother, Mohammed, becomes a beacon of hope amidst the darkness, tirelessly maintaining equipment at Al-Aqsa Hospital amidst the chaos. Meanwhile, Marah, armed with an accounting certificate, sees her dreams crumble as her job vanishes amidst the rubble of war. And Maram, with dreams of becoming a pharmacist, watches helplessly as bombs reduce her university to ashes. Meanwhile, Mahmoud, my brother, who holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, despite his recent graduation and hopes for a promising future, finds himself stranded without opportunity amidst the chaos of conflict.

As I navigate the depths of medical studies, the weight of my family's suffering bears down upon me like a heavy burden. Each lecture, each textbook, serves as a painful reminder of the sacrifices made in pursuit of a better tomorrow. But despite the darkness, I cling to a fragile hope, praying for a lifeline to pull us from the depths of despair. For me and my family, each day is a battle for survival, a struggle against the tide of violence and uncertainty. Yet, amidst the ruins of our shattered dreams, we hold onto the belief that one day, we will find our way back to each other, and together, we will rebuild what war has torn asunder. Yet, amidst the wreckage of our lives, we cling to the fragile raft of hope, buoyed by the belief that brighter days lie ahead. Your generosity, like a beacon of light in the darkness, offers us a lifeline to navigate these treacherous waters and reach the safety of dry land.

For my family and me, your support is not just a lifeline, but a liferaft in this river of sadness - a symbol of hope amidst the wreckage of our dreams. With each contribution, you help stem the tide of despair and usher in a new dawn of possibility and promise. the money will spent on : * 28,000€ to get out from gaza. *47,000€: * 4000€ for 3 months for rent. * 20,000€ for little sister maram to continue her education at new university. * 13,000€ to get clothes and food for 3 months * 10,000€ to finish my college at faculty of medicine -Cairo university.

[jefarawol]

“May I walk you back?” She looked over her shoulder as she pulled her coat over her shoulders. Aymeric stood behind her, a nervousness to his stance she was not used to seeing. "If you wish.” She nodded her head.  He stepped in front and took the door holding it open for her. They stepped out into the cold night, a light dusting of snow had begun to cover the stone. “How are you recovering?” Aymeric asked carefully after they began to walk back towards the Foundation. “I think it may take some time to fully comprehend what has happened these last weeks.” She said after a moment.

He tilted his head to her, watching her as they continued down. “I know you will not speak of it to me,” he spoke softly. “I won't ask that you do. But for your own sake can I ask if you have spoken to anyone about these events?” She looked up at him, surprised by his choice of words. “I have,” she looked away, “With Artoirel.” He smiled lightly, ignoring the ache in his chest as she cast her eyes away. “I am glad you have someone in which to confide with.” They walked again in silence passing down into the covered archway that would lead down towards the infirmary.

“I am sure when Estinien wakes your mind will be more at ease.” Her step halted. “I don't think that it will.” Aymeric turned back to her, several steps below when he realized she had stopped. “In truth,” she continued before he could say anything. “How he felt in that brief moment when we pulled the eyes from him, he may never speak to me again…” His eyes widened in surprise as he looked at her.

“Surely you don't mean that?” She grimaced, the pain of his emotions at That time washing over her again.  “I do.” She had to stop running from it, the battle was over, there was never going to be a good time to say it. “Aymeric,” she took a steadying breath. “What Nidhogg did…” She struggled with the words, her throat going dry. “What he did to us, I don’t know if Estinien will ever recover.”

He stepped back towards her, bringing him level with her several steps above. “You don't need too-” “I do.” she gripped the front of her coat comfortingly. “And if I don't say it now it will only become harder if he wakes.” She took another long calming breath, hyper aware of Aymeric's gaze and silence as he waited for her to speak.  “Nidhogg manipulated us.”

Finally, she had said it, her next words tumbled out after. The words both equally painful and liberating. “He was threatened by us, by our power. He saw an opportunity when my blessing was gone and took something precious from me.” “What did he take?” “My feelings,” she lowered her eyes from him. “...for you.” She heard his quiet intake of breath, but she didn't look up, she feared if she stopped she wouldn't be able to finish. “He took them from my wounded heart, corrupted them and put them back, making me feel for Estinien how I felt for you.” “What are you saying?” He stepped closer, a hesitant hand coming out to rest on her shoulder. “It wasn't real Aymeric.”

She looked up at him, tears in her eyes as she looked at his expression. She could see the pain her words were inflicting on him. “How we felt. None of it. It was all a cruel game Nidhogg played with us to distract us from our goal.” He swallowed hard, her words sinking in. He focused on her eyes seeing the fear in them, a desperation for him to understand.  “Since the conference, those feelings have been gone. Ripped from us so that we could feel the depth of despair, to keep us from fighting back.”

“But you did fight back.” he pulled her closer attempting to hold her but he felt her resistance. “You saved him. You did the impossible.” “At what cost?” She cried. “What damage have I caused, how could he forgive me?” She gripped the front of his jacket, as his arms came around her again. “How can I forgive myself? If I had never-” Her voice cracked and died as she sobbed into him. “If I didn't-” she could barely speak now. “If you didn't love me this would never have happened?” She could hear Aymeric's heart shatter. “Aymeric…” hearing him say it felt like a dagger had been plunged into her chest. “Do you-” Even he struggled to find his next words. “Do you regret falling in love with me?”

Did she? She thought back on the day they met, when she had first seen him without the helmet, how innocent that spark had been. How persistent it had remained embedded inside her. She imagined the emptiness that would remain if they were taken from her too. “No.” For the first time she felt confident in her words, she felt Aymeric tension release, his arms holding her more tightly. “I should never have let you go.” He rested his forehead against hers. “If anyone is to blame it is me, I ended it.”

She trembled in his hold. “I broke your heart.” He whispered sadly. “I let Nidhogg take you.” “Aymeric-” she pushed away from him, he was too close. She wanted him to kiss her desperately, but she knew deep down she didn't deserve it. “Forgive me.” He relinquished his hold on all but her hands. “You are not at fault.” She shook her head. “If anyone should beg, it will be me. I will not let you bear this.” “So you will weather the storm alone?” His expression turned to worry.

“Until Estinien awakens they are my sins to carry,” she swallowed hard. “Only then will I know if I am worthy of your forgiveness.”

[askvectorprime]

Can you tell us more about Thunder Cross?

Dear Saintly Soul,

I confess, I have never encountered Thunder Cross myself. His is a very old story, and I do not know how much of it is even true—but I will tell it to you, as I was told it.

Once, in an age long since past, a bot named Cross lived in the Darklands. An energon miner by trade, Cross was strong and wise, brave and kind, and beloved by all who knew him; always happy to lend a helping servo, his electro-elk companion Radar at his side. At that time, the Darklands were ruled by a cruel and avaricious Prime, who levied harsh taxes on the people of the Darklands, leaving them too drained of fuel to stand up to his enforcers; but, through the hard labors of bots like Cross, the Darklanders were able to eke out a living on the harsh and open plains.

Now, every solar cycle, the skies of the Darklands would crackle with lightning that heralded the coming of the Cyber-Solstice, and the devastating thunderstorms that would sweep across Cybertron for a deca-cycle or more. To have any hope of surviving, the citizens would stockpile what fuel they could and bunker down until the storms passed… but one solar cycle, the cruel Prime learned what his subjects were doing, and became enraged. "How dare they hoard that fuel for themselves," he demanded, "without paying tribute to me?" His advisors tried to make him see sense: if he took the fuel that the people needed to survive, nobody would remain to pay him tribute; but driven by the foolish egotism of a bot who has never had to go undercharged, the Prime had his soldiers ransack the homes of the people, taking their energon and oil to add to his own vaults.

As the thunder started to roll across the plains, the Darklanders despaired. Once the storm hit, their fuel supplies would quickly run out; they would succumb to stasis lock, and before long their very sparks would burn out. But Cross saw the fear in the optics of his friends and neighbors, and he lifted his mining pickel with a steely resolve. With Radar by his side, he traveled down into the depths of the energon mine, and began to dig like he never had before. He dug and dug, until his servos screamed and his fuel pump ached—and still he dug, his mighty pick cleaving the precious energon crystals from the metal of Cybertron.

When the fuel that he had dug was piled so high that even his transwarp sack was overflowing, Cross finally laid his pick down. In sky-sled form, he carried his precious cargo to the surface, but was met by the flash and lightning and the rumble of thunder—the solstice-storm had arrived. Any other mech would have holed up in the mine, seeing that there was no hope of bringing the fuel to the people of the Darklands… but Cross was never one to give in to despair. Despite his fatigued metal and low fuel reserves, Cross set off into the storm, his lantern-matrix lighting the way under the dark sky.

On that night, each Darklander found enough coal and oil and energon to fuel them for a lunar cycle delivered to their hab-blocks, with only the distant light of a lantern showing their savior's passage. Through devastating winds and lightning strikes, Cross fought his way across the plains to make his deliveries… but then his alt-form's engines, straining under the pressure, burnt themselves out. Despite his strong will, even Cross found himself at risk of giving in, for he could not finish his mission in robot mode alone—until faithful Radar emerged from the dark, come to aid his master in his hour of need. Harnessed to Cross's sky-sled mode, Radar pulled the weary bot through the final leg of his journey.

As he made his final delivery, Cross collapsed. His servo-motors had finally given out, and even Radar was exhausted now. But though the people rushed to help him, they were too late—the wind picked him up and swept him away, into the sky… with a satisfied smile on his faceplate all the while.

When the storm finally broke, the Prime emerged from the bunker where he had sheltered with his plundered fuel—only to find a crude crown, sculpted from the soft and useless gold that was a by-product of energon mining, sitting just outside. Infuriated by the insult, he rushed outside his castle, demanding to know who was responsible��� and was met by all the people of the Darklands. Fully fuelled thanks to Cross's kindness and labor, the Darklanders were easily able to overcome the Prime's soldiers, and he was cast down from his own recharging tower by the angry people.

Ever since then, the coming of the Cyber-Solstice has been a time for celebration, not fear—a celebration of community, goodwill, and generosity. It's said that the solstice-storm holds no threat, for its rumbling is the sound of mighty Thunder Cross mining fuel from the storm itself, to deliver to the people of Cybertron once more.

[boflicker]

Broken Open

It has been hard for me these days to talk about where I am, to be seen. 

Maybe this is why so many of us give up on dreams. Because we base our process on the successes of others, and shamefully box these dark moments behind. 

Maybe it’s because we are all afraid to be truly seen, to let our incompetency show. Pretending we have it all together even when we feel we’re crumbling apart — in order to be deemed worthy of financial backing, a trusty asset to the capitalist empire. 

I have been running for a long time, from the fear of being a burden. Of my mental health overcoming me, and slipping through the cracks. Losing everything I have moved through to this moment. 

This fear has always driven me to keep going, to pull through. Because I grew up looking into the eyes of those too broken open to be unseen, who had nowhere to hide. 

It wasn’t a concept, but a path carved by footprints so close to my own. The face I saw when I looked the mirror. It was a measure to keep moving, a threat when I disobeyed, the voice at my back that told me not to stop — 

To run, keep moving. 

These days, I’m on an undulating path of crumbling, and reforming. Sustaining energy has been hard, and I find myself having to fall down to get back up, to move slowly step by step. Imposter syndrome creeps in, and I question everything that I am, everything that has brought me here. I dissolve, and then I try to find my particles again. 

Below it all, buried beneath the facade of groundedness and stability — I am a walking mess, work-in-progress that will never be finished. I am a broken pot, trying to find the sun in my cracks, struggling to unwind my tangled threads, to find the end that will lead me to the source. To a child named Loneliness, hidden under the bed. 

Boundaries layer my reality, and I work slowly at whittling them away. And brick by brick, releasing the ones that cage me in. Keeping the ones that make me feel safe. And I try to remind myself, repeat and relearn the mantra —-

To break does not mean you are broken. 

To despair doesn’t mean you are hopeless. 

To need support does not make you a burden. 

To be lonely doesn’t make you unloved. 

Growth can not be measured in competency, but by the depths of which we can witness and hold ourselves, and each other.

So let go — 

Let the pieces shatter, 

see the beauty in the mess, 

study the mosaic they create.

It will be the map that guides you forward. 

[nerdzzone]

Only For A Moment: July

Summary: A series of shorter one shots from Chris and Whitney’s life together throughout the pandemic. Some happy times, some harder times, some fluff and some things a little more sexy - they work through it all as they try to get settled in their new and blossoming relationship.

Chris Evans x OFC

Part of the Once Bitten/More Hearts series

Only For A Moment: June

-----

July 2020

Chris was stressed.

It was understandable as he'd just launched his new endeavour - A Starting Point - but it was worrying me how anxious and overwhelmed he seemed to be. The feedback so far had been good, but he was still concerned about how it was going to be received and whether or not people would actually find it useful. He had several long, full days of interviews scheduled to promote it and explain what they hoped to achieve and, after the first week, he was exhausted which made him moody and withdrawn.

It didn't help that Grayson had quickly adjusted to having our undivided attention and was growing increasingly frustrated with his dad's busy schedule. The Friday after the launch, Chris promised him that he'd be done by bedtime so he could tuck him in, but technical difficulties got in the way and he was once again stuck in front of his laptop until well into the evening.

And that was where I found him, at almost nine o'clock, when I went to see if he'd be finished anytime soon. I'd poked my head around the door and saw him sat at his desk with his head in his hands and the sight made my heart ache.  Sneaking up behind him, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders.

"Hey," I greeted him softly. "How are you doing?"

"I'm fine," he assured me, but the sigh that followed told me otherwise. "Just tired. It's been a busy week."

"It has. We've missed you."

My words weren't meant to add guilt to his stress, but I realized my mistake when he winced.

"Sorry," he mumbled, placing a kiss on my arm where it rested across his chest. "I did try to finish early today - I suggested we push the last interview until tomorrow when we hit the connection issues, but they weren't having it. Was Grayson mad that I missed bedtime again?"

"Not mad," I shrugged. "Just a bit disappointed."

Chris' head fell forward and his shoulders stiffened.

"That's worse."

"No, it's not," I insisted, squeezing him tightly. "He was just a little sad, but he got over it. I promised him that you'd do something fun with him when you weren't so busy and he accepted that."

"I was actually thinking of taking him to the museum to see the dinosaur exhibit," Chris admitted. "They just reopened, but he'd have to wear a mask."

"He'd love that," I smiled, knowing how much both of them loved their father and son days. We'd made an effort to give him more one on one time, but it was limiting when we hadn't been able to leave the house much until recently. "And I think he'd be okay with a mask. We can order one and get him to wear it at home for a bit to get used to it."

"Good idea," Chris nodded. "I can do that tomorrow"

"Or I can," I suggested, kissing the side of his head. "You're busy enough at the moment. And you're stressed, I can feel the tension in your shoulders."

Chris sighed again and I felt a pang of sympathy for him.

"I know. This project just means a lot to me. I want it to do well."

"And it is," I reminded him as an idea hit me. "C'mon, I know what you need to help you relax."

"Oh, yeah?" Chris smirked and I rolled my eyes as his mind had clearly gone straight to something dirty. "What would that be?"

"Probably not whatever you're thinking of," I informed him. "But there's some pizza left in the kitchen. Go have a slice of that and then meet me in the bedroom."

"Alright, I like the sound of this."

His smirk had grown and I swatted the back of his head as I slid my arms off of his shoulders.

"Don't be such a perv!"

He laughed and stood up from his chair as I shook my head and he pulled me in for a quick kiss before we headed downstairs and went our separate ways.

-

If there was one thing I knew how to do, it was run the perfect bath for relaxation. It had been my tradition every evening after I'd dropped Gray off at Chris' house - I would pour myself a glass of wine and take a bath, enjoying the opportunity for a long soak without the risk of Grayson interrupting. The bathtub in Chris' en suite made that indulgence even better due to it's size and depth and I'd taken advantage of it several times during our stay with Chris. Which meant that I had quite the assortment of bath salts and bubble bath to create the perfect bath for Chris.

The tub had just finished filling up when he walked in and I heard him chuckle at the sight.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed."

"Oh, shush," I teased, turning around to face him once I'd turned off the taps. "This will be much more effective than whatever you were imagining."

Chris scoffed at that claim, a smirk firmly on his face.

"I disagree."

"I'm sure you do, but that's too bad. Now, strip."

"Ooh, I like it when you're bossy."

His comment earned another roll of my eyes as I crossed my arms and waited for him to do as I'd instructed.

As he did, I couldn't help, but stare. He seemed to be toning up even more during our quarantine and the sight of his perfectly sculpted body took my breath away every time I had the luxury of seeing it. He caught my gaze and colour flooded my cheeks as I knew that he'd seen me gawking at him, but despite the smug look on his face, he made no comment as he climbed into the tub.

Once he was settled with his head resting back on the edge of the tub, I sat down on the closed lid of the toilet and picked my phone up from where it was sitting on the counter. I unlocked the screen with the intention of replying to my mother who had messaged me while I was getting the bath ready, but a giggle slipped from my lips when I saw what was already open on my phone from earlier that day. Chris raised a questioning eyebrow and I debated whether or not to tell him about it. It had the potential to send his stress levels sky rocketing again, but if he thought I was hiding something from him, it would probably irritate him and ruin his mood anyway so I came clean.

"Hannah sent me a link to an Instagram account today that posts lots of gossip stuff," I informed him. "Most of it seems to be just random submissions, but they've been right a few times, I guess, so people seem to believe whatever they say now."

"And why did she send you a link to it?"

"Because apparently you're engaged."

I was smiling as I broke the news to him because obviously I knew it wasn't true, but Chris let out a groan of annoyance.

"Engaged to who?! To you?"

"No, to a mysterious blonde. Apparently, the person who sent in the message has a friend who spotted you picking up some takeout with this woman. Her ring was clearly on display and you were openly affectionate with her while you waited for your food."

"That's just a straight up lie," Chris huffed. "I don't know why people waste their time making this shit up and I really don't know why you bother reading it."

"It's not like I seek it out, but Hannah finds it entertaining to see what people are saying about us," I shrugged. "You have to admit that it's kinda funny. It sends everyone into such a frenzy."

Chris shot me a look.

"Funny isn't the word I'd use."

"C'mon, it's a little amusing!" I smiled, scrolling down to the comments. "Like, look, they're discussing whether or not I fit the description in case I just dyed my hair blonde. But then someone else says they saw me in L.A. two weeks ago, around the time you were with the blonde woman, so it couldn't possibly be me. They're like little detectives."

Chris rolled his eyes, but there was a reluctant smile on his face.

"Detectives aren't allowed to just make things up," he pointed out. "Unless you took a secret trip a few weeks ago that I didn't know about."

"No, I didn't," I laughed. "You have some very creative fans."

"I don't think it's my fans who write that stuff. It's probably other people trying to antagonize them."

"Well, it works like a charm. They go nuts trying to decide if it's true. I just wish they wouldn't get so mean about it sometimes," I admitted. "Like, some of them were saying how glad they were that you'd moved on from me finally because of how cruel it is that I ruined your life by trapping you with a baby."

The scowl on Chris' face instantly returned with that additional information and I scolded myself for saying it.

"I should have let Downey sue them all like he wanted to when it first leaked that you were pregnant," Chris huffed. "Then maybe by now these gossip pages would know better than to post shit about us."

"It would have just made things worse," I insisted as a smirk slid onto my face. "Besides, it doesn't really bother me. I'm the one sitting next to you while you lounge completely naked in a bubble bath while they spiral into a jealous pit of despair."

That comment earned me a laugh before he sat up a bit higher in the tub.

"Why are you sitting over there anyway?" He asked. "Get in here with me."

I smiled at his demand, but shook my head.

"This isn't supposed to be a sexy bath. You're supposed to be relaxing."

"And what better way to relax than to share a bath with the woman I love?"

A statement like that was hard to resist, especially as he grinned up at me from the tub with that amazing smile of his. I relented with surprisingly little resistance and rose from where I was sitting.

"I suppose that's fair..."

Putting my phone back on the counter, I turned so my back was to Chris. I could feel his eyes burning into me as he stared and I bit back a smirk. I quickly undid the button on the shorts I was wearing and slid them down my legs, bending at the waist as I stepped out of them. A noise of approval came from behind me as I stood up again and I shot him what I hoped was a sexy look over my shoulder before I pulled my shirt over my head. After slipping out of my bra and quickly pulling off my panties, I left them with my shorts and turned around with one hand over my chest to keep it covered until I was settled in the tub under all the bubbles.

"Wow," Chris grinned. "You're so fuckin' hot."

I giggled at his compliment, feeling a wave of self-confidence from my little strip tease.

For the past few weeks I'd been spending more time in Chris' home gym and I was feeling the positive side effects - more than just in my slowly developing muscle tone. We'd had a fight one night not long after our first pool day when I made some self-deprecating comments that rubbed Chris the wrong way. He scolded me rather harshly for always talking badly about my body and, while at first his exasperated reaction made me shut down, it eventually led to a very open conversation.

I explained that I wasn't just fishing for compliments all the time. I had some serious insecurities and - as analyzed by Hannah who was a very well trained psychologist - I tended to put myself down first before someone else could do it. I informed him that it wasn't just the body changes that come from pregnancy that bothered me, but the fact that I hadn't had much time to go to the gym since Gray was born - when he was with me, I was busy with him and when he was with Chris, I was busy with work.

He understood where I was coming from and reminded me that his home gym was available for my use any time I wanted, but insisted that I make sure I was doing it for the right reasons. He didn't want me killing myself to change how I looked when I didn't really need to, but I assured him that my motivations weren't all vanity related. Sure, I wanted to look good, but I missed feeling strong and healthy.

After our conversation, I’d started taking some time every day to get some exercise and the difference it was making to my confidence even after a few short weeks was huge. So, hearing Chris' praise now made me feel wonderful because I was actually starting to believe it.

"Thanks," I smiled in response to his compliment as I got settled in the bath tub. We were facing each other, my legs draped over his thighs so my feet were resting by his hips and my bum was between his shins. He grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together as he watched me with what could only be described as an adoring look. "It's amazing what a few weeks at the gym can do."

"Helps that you were pretty hot to start with too," he teased. "But I'm glad you're feeling more confident."

"Me too." I leaned forward to press a soft kiss on his lips. "So, are you feeling more relaxed?"

"I am," Chris nodded before letting out a sigh. "I'm sorry I've been so stressed out lately. I just want this whole thing to go well."

"And it is," I repeated my earlier assurance. "So far you've had a great reaction."

"For now," he frowned. "I just want people to actually use it and get involved."

"They will," I assured him, leaning in for another kiss. "Have I told you how proud I am of you? You're doing such a great thing, using your influence to try and make a difference. It's very inspiring."

"Well, I think you're too kind," he told me, trying to be humble despite the proud grin on his face. "Really, it's the least I can do."

"Nope, the least you could do is nothing," I pointed out. "But you're trying to help people and I'm so proud of you for that. I'm grateful that Grayson has a dad like you to look up to."

It appeared - for a brief moment - that Chris' eyes grew a little bit glassy, but he blinked a few times and they were clear once again.

"Thanks, Winnie." He paused to clear his throat. "That really means a lot and I'm sorry I've been so busy this week. I have one more podcast interview to do tomorrow morning and then I have a few days off."

"I'm glad you'll get a break, but you don't need to be sorry," I assured him. "Even though it has been kinda weird. It's crazy that a few months ago, we only ever saw each other in passing, but now I miss you when you're busy for even a few hours."

It was true. I had missed him the last few days and it did seem ridiculous when we used to go weeks without seeing each other and even then it was just briefly at a pick up or drop off. I'd been spoiled the last few months, having so much of his time. Now, seeing him every day wasn't even enough if I didn't have much of his undivided attention.

A brief flash of dread tore through me as I shared that thought with Chris because I knew this would all come to an end some day. We couldn't stay locked away in his house forever, eventually we would both have to go back to work and I knew it would make things harder. Some people found that the intense quality time was testing their relationship, but I was worried that we'd start to crumble as soon as we weren't together almost twenty-four hours a day. Once the world of Hollywood got it's claws back in Chris, I couldn't help but wonder where that would leave me.

But as always when those thoughts filled my mind, I did my best to push them away. It was likely still months before anything would change so there was no point in stressing about it now and Chris chuckled, bringing me back to the moment.

"Awe, you’ve missed me?"

His words were accompanied by a cocky smirk and I smiled despite my rolling eyes.

"Shut up."

"It's sweet. I never thought you'd be a clingy kinda girlfriend."

I wrinkled my nose in displeasure at that thought and shook my head.

"I'm not clingy!"

"Kinda sounds like you are," he pointed out. "Can't even get through a work day without pining for me."

"I wasn't pining!" I huffed, but he continued insisting that it seemed like I was. "Well, I was just about to suggest we get out of this bath, but now I think maybe you don't deserve what I was thinking of doing next."

"Get out? You just got in," Chris pointed out with a raised eyebrow. "What else have you got planned?"

Now it was my turn to smirk as I rested my hands on the side of the tub before pushing up until I was standing in front of him.

"A little extra relaxation," I told him, deliberately keeping it vague. "But I guess now, you'll never know."

I stepped out of the tub and grabbed my towel. With one last glance back at Chris who was still sitting in the bath, looking a mix of surprised and intrigued, I wrapped the towel around myself and left the bathroom - making sure to sway my hips a little more than usual on my way out.

I heard the water slosh as Chris leapt up to follow me and he appeared in the bedroom - towel around his waist and water dripping to the floor - moments later.

"Chris!" I laughed. "You're getting the floor all wet!"

"So are you," he pointed out. "But I don't care."

I hardly had time to take in his words before he strode swiftly across the room and pulled me against his chest. His hands gripped my hips so tightly that it undid my towel and he moved just briefly enough for it to fall to the floor. Once that was out of the way, he captured my lips in a kiss so fierce it made my breath catch in my chest.

I indulged for a moment, enjoying the feel of his hands roaming by body as his lips worked against mine, but then I remembered who this evening was supposed to be about. I pulled back slightly, just enough to trail my lips across his jaw and locked them onto a spot just below his ear as my hands moved to the towel around his waist. I could feel a slight bulge pressing against me - he wasn't hard yet, but it was clear that the anticipation was having an effect on him - and I untucked the towel and let it fall down with mine to give me easier access.

I heard Chris take in a shaky breath and felt him tighten his grip on me as I took him in my hand. Smiling against his skin and enjoying his little reactions, I stroked him until he was thick and full from my touch.

"Get on the bed."

Chris' tone was demanding and there was definitely a part of me that wanted to follow his instructions, but I resisted and moved my face away from where it was buried in his neck, shaking my head.

"No, this is all about you," I reminded him. "You need to relax."

He voiced a few protests as I kissed my way down his chest, but he fell silent as I dropped to my knees in front of him. His hands were clenched in fists by his side while I continued to gently stroke him, placing soft kisses on the top of his thigh, but when my kisses moved closer until my lips landed on his cock, his hands shot to grip in my hair. He wasn't forcing anything or trying to control my movements, but the sense of control that action gave him was something I knew he enjoyed and I smiled before getting down to business.

I licked him slowly from base to tip, making him shudder as I took him into my mouth. His hips twitched, pushing farther in and I did my best to accommodate him. Letting him slide slowly over my tongue, I stretched my jaw to get my mouth around his thick shaft. He always felt big - he was big - but this action made it even more apparent and I took as much of him as I could before sliding back up his cock.

Pausing for a moment to suck at the tip, I used my hand to stroke him as I lifted my eyes to look up at his face. His hand gripped my hair tighter as he threw his head back briefly, then returned his gaze to me and met my eyes. I smiled around his cock before letting my lips move farther down, taking him back in my mouth. Not feeling completely confident in my ability to deep throat someone of his size, I used my hand to cover the base and began to bob my head with renewed enthusiasm, spurred on by all the sighs and groans that were falling from his lips.

I could feel myself growing wet. His reactions, the position we were in, the slight tug of my hair - it was all overwhelming me and increasing the temptation to let him fall from my mouth, push him onto the bed and ride him until we both couldn't take it anymore, but I tried to stay focused as I worked his cock.

After a few minutes, I could tell he was getting close as his grip on my head began leading me more and more, a sign his self control was waning. That only spurred me on, but as his breathing shifted until he was practically panting and I could feel his thigh muscles tensing where my hand was resting, I heard a sound that would kill any mood.

"Mama!"

Grayson's voice floated down the stairs. It was distant and quiet, but enough to make my blood run cold as I instantly pulled my mouth off Chris.

"Fuck," Chris groaned, a pained look on his face as I shot up from where I was kneeling. "Fuck, that kid has bad timing."

Gray called for me again, sounding slightly closer than he had before and I threw on one of Chris' shirts that was crumpled up on the bed. Luckily, it fit me like a dress and covered everything that needed to be covered.

"I'm so sorry, babe," I flashed him an apologetic look. "I'll take care of him and you can take care of that."

I gestured to his still very hard and throbbing cock and the poor man looked like he wanted to cry as I hurried out of the room.

Turns out, Grayson was just thirsty so after a quick drink of water, I tucked him back into bed. By the time I returned to our bedroom, Chris was fast asleep as he lay sprawled out, still naked on top of the duvet. It looked as if he had just collapsed onto the bed and even though he was asleep, his face still showed his exhaustion. I felt a flash of sympathy as I pulled the blanket off the back of the chair in the corner of the room and covered him up with it, placing a soft kiss on his forehead before climbing in to my side of the bed.

-

August

Tags:  @maggotzombie @moonlacebeam @mizzzpink @zaylaugh @flowery-mess @flowerjewels @njrronaldo7 @hockeychick10 @partypoison00 @theladybiers @sidepieces @firoozehmoon @patzammit @sparkledfirecracker @mytbel0st @chvntelle-99

[kino-alternative]

“ This will be a long one! Also, trying angst, so uhh . . Don't be surprised if it's bad! ” ( Inspired by: The Story Of Evil )

❢◥ ▬▬▬▬▬▬ ◆ ▬▬▬▬▬▬ ◤❢

“ The Servant ”

Keywords: Y/N- Your Name, T/N- Twin's Name ( Your twin is a girl )

Notes:

This is a Nagito Komaeda X Reader.

This will obvious have SPOILERS for the game. Specifically, the whole Danganronpa: Goodbye Despair game.

Reader's Gender-Neutral. Also suggest listening to “ Daughter of Evil ” “ Servant of Evil ” and “ No Regrets ”.

0: 𝐁𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 -

Y/N L/N was a part of the Future Foundation, 14th division. While their twin sister, T/N who was the Ultimate Queen ( Originally Princess but a certain blonde already took the title ), was a Remnant of Despair along with the rest of their class.

It pained the twin to see their other being controlled by the strawberry blonde fashionista. Especially since they had to capture her themselves.

After running the program, Y/N decided to enter as a secret agent of the Future Foundation to help the two others when needed. It hurts knowing the truth but they were glad to see everyone before the tragedy struck.

Their dear twin sister was indeed a troublemaker and others even say she's ‘ evil ’ due to her cruel and awful personality, but of course as - not only her twin - her loyal servant ever since they were reunited, Y/N stood by the girl's side.

There was also another that they treasure, Nagito Komaeda,The Ultimate Lucky Student. Yes, even knowing how he is, he managed to make them fall for him. It was interesting really, since T/N isn't really fond of him ( Most of them don't ). But their was something about him that made them feel . . . Loved. Not platonically.

Y/N and their friends, their fellow survivors of the first killing game, had thought everything would go smoothly.

Sadly, that was not the case. That's the reason why I said ‘ first ’ after all. Y/N had failed to protect the Ex-Remnants of Despair from Monokuma's sick game. They could only think of him being the reason the virus entered in the first place.

Three trials. Three blackeneds. Four victims. It was awful. They hated the fact they had to go through another killing game. Now here they are, starving in two fruit-based buildings. Unfortunately, that was not the only motive the despair loving bear had planned.

1: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫.

“ Upuhuhuhu! That's right! T/N is an agent working for me! ” Monokuma announced to the eleven remaining students. Everyone's eyes widen as they all looked at the said girl with shock and anger.

She took a step back, almost stepping on the skirt of her dress as she clicked her tongue and gritted her teeth. “ Seriously!? You peasants believe him!? ” She asked with a glare.

“ How can we not? You're basically . . Evil! ” Kazuichi exclaimed, hiding behind Mechamaru to avoid the girl's glare. Everyone agreed with what he said. T/N was definitely cruel and awful, how did she managed to get her Ultimate anyway?

“ Silence! You shall not call them ‘ peasants ’! ” Sonia ordered with a stern look on her pretty face. The young queen scoffed, crossed her arms and looked away “ Isn't that what we call others below us, your highness? ”

“ I mean, as despairing as it sounds . . Monokuma hasn't lied to us ” Nagito pointed out, to which T/N replied - “ Hush, you hope obsessed freak! ”

But it seems like everyone seemed to believe it's true.

-

“ You asked for me, your majesty? ” Y/N entered the deluxe room of Grape House. There, at the desk, was their twin who's eyes were shining with anger. “ That damned bear . . Those peasants . . ” She began to curse under her breath as she stabbed a certain area on the map.

“ I will make him pay for ratting me out ”

The elder twin sighed and walked up to her, placing a blanket they grabbed from the bed over her shoulders. “ It is getting late, you should rest. Some sleep should give you energy for now ”

T/N whined but listened nonetheless. As soon as the girl plopped onto bed, she was out like a candle light. Y/N smiled softly and kissed her forehead, bidding her goodnight before leaving the room.

“ That devil shall not live to see the light of day . Not after she poisoned us with her thorns ”

-

“ A body has been discovered! ”

“ A body has been discovered! ”

Two. Two victims. One was a destroyed robot and the other was a stabbed with gunshots H/C girl. That's right. The victims were Mechamaru Nidai and T/N L/N.

2.1: 𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞.

Nagito knew something was off.

The moment he saw his hope, Y/N, he knew that they were hiding something. And that something was indeed shocking. “ Ah, I apologise for not introducing myself earlier . . I'm Y/N L/N, the Ultimate Servant ”

That was a lie.

After completing the final dead room, he got his prize. It was files about them. Not only did he found out that Hajime was talentless and was a reserve course student, but his dear hope, his true love of his life, Y/N was not only talentless, but an agent of the Future Foundation.

He was upset but understood Y/N's reason. But for some reason . . He can't help but feel like he missed something.

2.2: 𝐇𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭.

After the trial . .

“ That's right! The blackened who killed T/N L/N and destroyed Mechamaru Nidai isss . . . Gundham Tanaka, the Ultimate Breeder! AHAHAHA! ” Monokuma cackled as everyone looked at the breeder, who seemed to be prepared for the up-coming punishment.

Despair was painted on everyone's faces, a few tried to hide it. But one let out the pain that was weighing their down, slamming their hands on their podium which surprised them.

Tears streamed down their face as they asked, “ Why did you choose to murder her!? Why in the brutal way!? ” Their voice cracked from the sobs that came after the question. They knew that the H/C haired servant would be upset, but it was shocking to see them break down so . . Easily.

But . . Come to think of it . . They weren't acting like themselves. They usually back Hajime up with no hesitation but during the trial, they kept their mouth shut. Like they're scared to say something wrong or spill information.

Gundham replied while looking away, “ Mechamaru did not deserve death . . But that daughter who's lord is a devil did. She was a demon and lived in the depths of darkness ” ‘ Y/N ’ 's eyes widen those words, their grip tightening.

“ That's right . . I deserved to die ” Everyone looked at them with confusion as they straighten their posture “ It's my fault they died . . ” Placing a hand on her chest, she exclaimed “ So pin the blame on me! ”

Then it finally hit. This wasn't Y/N . . This was T/N. If that's the case then . .

Nagito lowered his head and whispered, “ Y/N's gone . . ”

-

Knock Knock ** Click.

“ Y/N, you're here! Good news, I have an idea on how to prevent . . Huh? ” T/N turned around to see her twin that was wearing her clothes and their hair down like hairs. They looked identical to her. “ Why are you . . ? ”

They only smiled and gave her their clothes, a letter was placed on top of it. “ I actually have a plan of my own, dear sister ” T/N's eyes widen in sudden realization, “ You don't mean . . I will not allow it! Besides, that damned bear would know! ” She exclaimed, her eyes glistening.

Y/N shook their head and placed the clothes on the bed. After that, they put their hands on her shoulders with a firm yet gentle grip. “ I already took care of that issue ” “ But- ” “ Listen now my dear, you and I will switch and you will be me. It is fine, we're twins and I'll be here to take the strike ”

They wiped away her tears with their thumbs and kissed her forehead, “ They won't know because we look alike ” Y/N stood on the original position their twin was in as T/N hesitantly switched clothes. “ B-But what about Nagito!? Surely, he'll miss you! A-And I'm the devil here! I'm the demon! Not you! ”

Their smile saddens, “ . . . ” They knew how the pale luckster likes to pin the blame on his luck and himself. But they already wrote to him in advance. They hoped it would help him in some way. Y/N truly love the luckster just as much as they love their twin sister. But they live to serve their sister, even if it kills them. Even after knowing everything the other's don't.

Dodging the first question, they replied with closed eyes “ If the devil's your lord as they all curse your name . . Then I am a demon too, for we have the same blood ” As soon as T/N finished dressing, they pulled her outside and ordered “ Now go, don't look back and be free ”

The twin sister hesitates before turning away and acted like they had a normal conversation, holding back the tears as the cameras assumed she was the other. Y/N watched her leave before closing the door, leaving it unlocked and sat on the chair while watching the fire on the candle dance.

“ If the day comes that we are reborn once again, it'll be nice to play with you ” They could hear the footsteps “ I'm sorry for leaving you Nagito . . But until then . . ”

* Creak!

Glaring at the breeder, they asked ( sounding like their twin ) “ How dare you, you pest!? ”

-

Watching the execution was painful, like always. T/N handed the letter to Nagito before leaving the trial room “ . . They wanted you to have this ”

3: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫.

“ My Dearest Nagito,

I am guessing that T/N gave you this after revealing the truth, correct? But, that is not the point.

I know what you're thinking.

You're blaming yourself again, are you not? You blame your luck. You regret letting me get close to you.

But you shouldn't.

Yes, I have broken our promise. And I truly am sorry but I will never regret getting close to you. I'm sorry for leaving you behind so early.

And I know you may think you have nothing to live for but please, live and fight the despair.

That's what you tell me, right?

A daily reminder that you are not useless nor worthless, you are more than that. You're more than just a stepping stone. Don't be afraid to acknowledge that, even if you don't believe it.

Can you do me a favor? If it's alright.

End this killing game for me. I know you know about the files but that's the past. The future is still out there, right? So please, live and end this killing game with the others.

It seems like I'm running out of ink, so let me say this one last time, alright?

I truly and deeply love you, Nagito Komaeda. Please do remember that. Even after what you did, I can not help but love you. So, if the day comes where we are reborn, I'll gladly fall for you all over again.

I'll die with only one regret. And that is, I wasn't able to protect you.

- Signed, Y/N L/N <3 ”

4: 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐡.

“ Please, wake up ”

Y/N slowly opened their eyes, trying to figure out where they were and what was going on. But as soon as they sat up, they were pulled into a hug. “ Y/N! You're awake! ” “ T/N . . ? What . . ? ” Their gaze then landed on Nagito who stood beside Hajime.

Then it snapped, they hugged back and smiled “ So you did it . . I'm so glad ” They whispered as T/N pulled away and Nagito walked up to them. Tears finally streamed down his cheeks as he held both of their hands and leaned his forehead on theirs. “ You're here . . ”

Y/N kissed his nose, “ Everything's alright, I'm here, you're here, we're here. Safe and sound ”

Everything turned out to be great in the end. T/N slowly warmed up to everyone. They're working with the Future Foundation on Jabberwock Island. And all is good.

Arms wrapped around their waste as the luckster placed his chin on their shoulder, playing with the ring on their finger. With a content sigh, he says “ I love you ”

Yes, everything has it's flaws but nonetheless it was perfect to them.

❢◥ ▬▬▬▬▬▬ ◆ ▬▬▬▬▬▬ ◤❢

“ I hope you all enjoyed it! Angst isn't really my strong suit but hey, I'll get better at it! ( I was originally going to put a bad ending, but I'll make that someday ) ”

- Sincerely, Mizuki Kioku.

[blackrosesandwhump]

Whump Drabble #22--Gothic fantasy

Based on prompts #14 cottage and #43 bleeding out from my Gothic Whump Prompts.

@forthetaintedsorrow-whump @whumping-to-conclusions @whumping-out-of-time

CW: bleeding, coughing up blood, mind control

With the raging storm at my back, I collapsed against the doorframe of the cottage, panting and weak. Dying. Blood spattered the ground at my feet. My blood. Seeping from the puncture in my side. It throbbed in tandem with the lightning, flashes of pain sharp and overpowering as the bolts that pierced the sky. If I couldn’t stop the bleeding—

The door slammed in a gust of wind as I sank into a chair next to the cold, ashy fireplace. Half-blind in the darkness, I looked around, searching, desperate. There had to be something to stop the bleeding. The cursed blade had done its work well, but its wielder…its wielder wouldn’t be pleased I had survived. He would still want me dead. It was only a matter of time before he—

A shuddering cough rose from deep in my chest. Pressing a hand to my mouth, I tried to breathe through it, something thick and metallic clogging my throat. I pulled my hand away, shaking. Fresh blood. There was fresh blood in my palm. It was already too late. I was powerless in the face of my impending death, strength sapped, weak from blood loss and exposure to the elements.

A gust of wind howled through the cottage, rattling the walls and ceiling. A clap of thunder followed, jerking me out of my numb trance. What was I thinking? I couldn’t sit here, waiting to die either from my cursed wound or by the hands of its inflictor. Groaning, I stood up, looking around for a candle. There, on the shelf above the fireplace. I managed to light the wick despite my unsteady fingers. A flame purred into life. The sudden warm glow soothed the throbbing ache in my abdomen just a little. Despair followed close behind. There was nothing useful here, nothing I could use to patch up my wound. A wave of dizziness swept over me, and I steadied myself against the wall, inhaling slowly. I had to stay on my feet. If I collapsed, I would never rise again. I had only lasted this long because I wasn’t fully human.

Underneath…come underneath…at last…

The voice came out of nowhere. I whipped around, searching the darkness. Nothing. There was no one there. I must be hallucinating—

Underneath. You must come underneath. Come to me.

The words echoed slightly in my head. Maybe I was dreaming. Maybe I was already unconscious, slipping away. The silence remained unbroken for a few seconds as I listened, holding my side and praying the voice wouldn’t speak again.

I am waiting. Waiting for you…underneath…

There, that crack in the back wall. That was its source.

An unseen force pulled me forward, overpowering my body and making it move of its own accord. I didn’t have the strength to resist. As I approached, the black slit widened almost imperceptibly. It opened fully at a brush of my hand. An icy miasma filtered through and took hold of me. And I realized I wanted nothing more than to obey the voice, or die trying.

The candle guttered as I stepped into the pitch-black unknown. Its light cast shadows leaping ahead of me, down stone walls long-neglected and moldy with age. Stone steps veered down into the depths. I descended the first one, breathing fast and shallow.

Yes, farther, deeper…deeper, where I am waiting…

The voice pulled me down into the swallowing darkness, numbing the pain from my wound. One step downward, two, three. The dancing shadows lulled me into a trance and I lost count.

I have waited so long…and now, now you have come…underneath, so close to me…

The voice filled my head. My stifled senses reached out, desperate to hear something natural, see something other than the flickering light and the gaping maw of the earth at my feet. Nothing. Was I already dead?

You are not dead…you still live, and your descent is almost finished…

It could read my mind. Somehow I was comforted. And my side…I touched it gingerly and found the bleeding had stopped. And I had escaped the storm—

My foot slipped and I fell. My vision turned into a maelstrom of pain and tumbling blackness. When the dizzying movement stopped, my abdomen exploded with fresh agony, stealing what little breath I had left. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see, couldn’t move. And I was bleeding again, bleeding out in the depths of the earth.

Stand, wanderer…come to me…just a little farther…

My desire to obey sprang up like a renewed flame, and I staggered forward, blind. My hand brushed a solid wall. An echoing creak broke the tomb-like silence.

At last. Come here.

There, a cold glow in the darkness on my right side. It brightened as I moved toward it. And I saw its source.

A glowing sword, its hilt inlaid with garnets shaped like teardrops, lay on a plinth in the center of a small circular chamber.

My bloodstained fingers reached out, trembling.

Excellent. The perfect drink. I have waited so long.

A crimson arc spiraled outward from my side, and I sank to my knees, weaker than before. My vision tunneled. I was about to lose consciousness—

“Ah, I am revived now. And awake.”

The same voice somehow, but a woman’s voice, silky and inescapable.

“But you…” It paused, and the silence pulsed with confusion. “You are not fully human, are you? This blood…it is stronger than I expected. And it has given me…unusual power.”

A woman’s voice…my blood vanishing into that blade… impossible. I opened my eyes.

“Who are you? What have you done to me?” My words wavered, breathless and feeble compared to the one that emanated from the blade before me.

She laughed, and her laugh sent chills down my back even as it soothed the ache in my side. “As to who I am, I am your new weapon. Your blood has given me power, power that you can wield to defeat the one who nearly killed you. And as to what I have done…” The blade’s glow throbbed more brightly. “I have bound you to me just as your blood has bound me to you. We are inseparable now.”

Inseparable. A vampiric blade and its half-human wielder. I got to my feet, still short of breath, clothes stained with drying blood and still damp from the storm. Alive. I was alive, and I would never be defeated again.

The hilt fit smoothly in my palm.

“Come, then,” I whispered. “I’ve already chosen our first encounter.”

[teawaffles]

There’s No Business Like Show Business: Chapter 3

“Fred. How’s their acting like to you?” Jack asked in a low voice.

They were seated at the edge of the stalls. They could also see Bond from where they were, completely focused on the stage.

“I’m not an actor myself, so this is just my personal opinion — but I think they’re awfully good,” Fred replied.

Jack gazed at the stage with a serious look in his eyes.

“I think so too. I won’t discount the fact that their sets and props look a little homemade, maybe due to a lack of budget; but when it comes to acting, each one of them is highly skilled. I can tell that the performers are all deeply familiar with the intent of the script.”

They were no theatre professionals for sure, but they possessed an eye for the true essence of their art.

The creases near Jack's eyes deepened as he quietly groaned.

“And best of all is that lady.”

“Yeah, I thought so too,” Moran agreed. With Fred included, all of them were focused on the lone person on the stage.

As Jack had pointed out, Maya, the chairwoman, was the standout actress even among the highly-skilled members of her own company.

Although she only held the lead role in “The Little Match Girl”, and was relegated to supporting roles for the other stories, the delivery of her lines, the movements of her body and hands, and even the slight shifts in her gaze — each and every one of her actions was perfectly under her control. They had seen a glimpse of this when she’d stood before her fellow company members previously, but this person on stage was completely different from the one who'd spoken to them at the entrance.

Even accounting for the fact that she had written the script herself, this level of sophistication in acting was not one which could be achieved by some run-of-the-mill actress. Moreover, the lines and pauses in the script had been carefully crafted to make it easy for the audience to relate to the stories.

From then on, the three of them enjoyed the rest of the play in silence, marvelling at her exceptional talent. Eventually, the rehearsal came to an end.

“——That concludes our performance. Thank you very much for coming.”

After her closing words, the company lined up on stage, silently waiting for Bond’s comments. While there had not been any flashy moments during the performance, almost all of them had sweat on their foreheads. Each breath they took revealed the depth of their concentration.

“…………”

For a short while, Bond stared at the stage without saying a word. Growing uneasy at the silence, the company members lowered their gazes slightly.

After what seemed like an eternity, Bond cleared his throat, and adjusted his posture. Seeing that, the company members straightened their backs.

“——If I were to summarise my thoughts, I think your acting has already reached a high standard. I’m sure all of you have put in much time and effort to achieve this.”

Their faces beamed at his compliment. But Bond would not allow them to be satisfied with that alone.

He rose from his seat.

“But that’s also why some bad habits have stood out to me. For example, the witch in ‘The Little Mermaid’: there were times when your movements were too exaggerated. I know that you wanted to emphasise her sinister nature, but the way you did so may turn off the audience.”

“Y-Yes……”

The actress who’d been singled out hung her head, perhaps out of shock. But Bond ignored this, and pointed to another woman.

“Now, you played the main character in ‘The Red Shoes’. I watched your steps after putting on the shoes — have you properly studied dance? It’s true that even some stage professionals may think that it’s alright to just mimic the real thing, but if you really want to make your performance more authentic, you must take the time to learn how to do it properly. Your audience will not be satisfied unless you show them a level of skill that will astonish even people in that profession.”

“Understood!” she responded with vigour.

“Next up is you: the way you project your voice——”

Then Bond singled out each of the performers in turn, highlighting in detail what they needed to work on. He only needed to watch their play once to spot areas for improvement at such a fine level of detail — his eye for the arts gave them all a sense of the former professional’s brilliance.

At last, Bond finished addressing every member of the company. But he then swept his gaze over the entire theatre.

“In addition…… this isn’t your fault at all, but your success today was only possible due to the small size of this theatre,” he said, with some distress. “If we were in a bigger venue, the hall would be wider and deeper to accommodate the larger audience. In other words, I’m afraid that with your current performance, your voices simply would not reach the entire audience.”

Maya paled.

“So, in order to accommodate the size of the venue……”

“Yes. The worst-case scenario would be that you have to rework the entire play. By the way, when is the opening night?”

“T—Two weeks later.”

The entire room was enveloped in silence. Even from where they were seated, Moran and the others felt the weight of their despair: all the hard work they had put in thus far, might just have amounted to nothing.

Even Bond, who had revealed this harsh reality, dropped his gaze and grimaced.

“Well, there are a fair number of productions that focus only on the stage, and do not account for the size of the audience, so you may not have to change——”

“——No, we’ll do it.”

Maya sharply interrupted his proposal.

“You’ve seen how I am; I’ve always been timid and hesitant…… but theatre is the one thing I will never compromise on. Especially now — this is a rare opportunity for us. For my fellow company members, for the people who’ve supported us this far, I want to show them something I’ve put every effort into making.”

“…………”

At her words, the rest of the company nodded in silence.

Even with the actual performance only two weeks away, Maya and her company had steeled their hearts and chosen to start again from scratch. That stubborn determination surprised Bond, and even Moran and the rest.

“U—Um…… Mr Bond, I actually have something I wish to discuss with you……”

Out of the blue, Maya’s voice had grown soft.

“U—Um, if it is alright with you, just for the next two weeks, could you sit in during our rehearsals? A—Ah, actually, just whenever you have the time would be fine……”

Bond chuckled.

Even after being told about all those problems, they refused to stand down, and even continued to ask for help. Their mental fortitude sparked hope in him, and he couldn’t help but let out a grin.

Bond shot the party in the stalls a questioning look. Moran looked to Jack and Fred in turn, before giving him a thumbs-up.

With that, the former flames of passion within Bond burned even hotter. He faced the company members with a determined grin.

“——Okay. But I will be especially tough on you all, so be prepared.”

Then, he called out to Fred.

“Fred-kun. I would like your help as well — is that alright with you?”

“Understood,” he replied, standing up.

“Bond, I’m always happy to teach knife-wielding.”

“And you can always ask me about gun handling.”

“Now that would be helpful,” Bond smiled at Jack and Moran’s jests, then turned back to the stage.

“Well then, everyone — for the next two weeks, let’s do our best together.”

✦ ✦ ✦ ✦

“During a performance, you must be always be aware of three things: the audience, the other actors, and yourself. If the feeling of being ‘watched’ becomes too strong for you, first direct your attention within yourself. Then, you will be able to focus on your acting once again.”

“I don’t advocate the idea of getting into a role. In the end, acting is just a skill: what you should focus on instead is how you are moving.”

“Although an effective way of bringing out emotions is to dredge up your past memories, I would advise you to avoid that. Recent memories are too concrete and vivid — if you must do so, use memories from your distant past. And be careful: if you frequently immerse yourself in negative emotions, you will hurt yourself on a spiritual level too.”

In a small theatre in Whitechapel, Bond’s instructions came forth ceaselessly.

He stood on stage together with the company members: carefully reviewing their movements, even acting them out himself as an example on occasion, and putting in every effort to raise the level of their production.

The remaining two weeks were short, but with their foundations already strong to begin with, Maya and her company steadily honed their acting skills to perfection.

One week left until the show. His work as an instructor had finally ended for the day, and he let out a sigh as he sat in the stalls to catch his breath.

“Good work today — fancy a sip?”

Having watched the proceedings from the stalls, Moran handed him a bottle of water. It was a beer bottle — very Moran-like — and Bond accepted it with a smile.

“Thanks, Moran-kun.”

Bond gulped down a single mouthful of water.

“So, how’s the play going?”

“At first I thought we would be hard-pressed for time, but they truly exceeded my expectations. I think we might just make it. ……Scratch that, we will make it.”

Moran nodded.

“That’s right. And they seem to be well-liked by the residents around here. I really hope they can pull it off.”

As Moran gazed off into the distance, a thought just occurred to Bond. He cocked his head.

“Come to think of it, you really didn’t have to tag along with me all this time, you know?”

Ever since the day Bond had agreed to lend his support to the company, his other colleagues had stopped over from time to time to cheer him on. However, Moran had made it a point to come to the theatre every day without fail.

Moran scratched his cheek in embarrassment.


“……Well, it’s not like I have anything else to do when there aren’t any missions. As a senior member of this organisation, I’m just here to see how my junior works.”

“Even though you’ve been skipping out on chores at the mansion?”

“D—Dammit, I told you before: I always do my share of the work, you know.”

Bond had said that half-jokingly, but his words flustered Moran nevertheless. It seemed he had not been entirely wrong about that.

Bond returned his gaze to the stage.

“……Thank you, Moran-kun,” he said quietly.

“Hmm? Didn’t you already say that earlier?”

“This one means something different,” he said, with a hint of mischief in his voice. Moran raised an eyebrow in bemusement, but the presence of a caring senior alone warmed Bond’s heart.

Just then, they heard the sound of the theatre doors opening.

As the two men turned to look, they saw a portly middle-aged man with a magnificent moustache standing at the entrance.

Maya hurriedly bowed in his direction. “T—Thank you so much for your help thus far! What brings you all the way here?”

From her formal manner, it seemed this was the very noble who had asked them to stage the opening act for his theatre.

“Ah, you’ve been working hard, I see,” he said as he stroked his moustache, a big smile on his face.

“Yes; with your assistance, we’ve been able to prepare for the performance in time. I’m sure the audience will be satisfied with——”

“Well, about that.”

The man interrupted Maya, still all smiles.

“——Your performance has been cancelled.”

“What?”

No one could believe their ears.

Her expression brimmed with confusion.

“U-Um, what do you mean……?”

“What does it mean? Just pretend our conversation back then didn’t happen. That’s all.”

The man made another simple pronouncement, then smiled as if nothing was wrong.

“Honestly, it’s just as well that this has happened, since I’ve also been troubled over your debut. So what I’m saying is, your company doesn’t have to turn up. That’s alright with you, isn’t it?”

The entire company was still in a state of shock. Then, Bond addressed the man directly.

“Now hold on just a moment. What do you mean, you were troubled? Then why did you ask them to perform? What’s more, isn’t it a little late to cancel the performance at this juncture?”

Hearing that, the man sighed in displeasure.

“Who are you, anyway? Someone connected to this company? I’m not happy to be asked so many questions at once.”

“Then I’ll summarise it for you. If you were going to cancel the performance so easily, why bother requesting Maya and her company to perform anyway?”

At Bond’s question, the nobleman shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, that’s simple. I just felt like it.”

“……What?”

Those shocking words froze him to the core.

“I’d heard about a reputable theatre company in the slums. Since there’s this notion of noblesse oblige anyway, I thought a performance would be a good topic for conversation and approached them. But then I grew to realise that the thought of poor people stepping onto the sacred stage of an official theatre just didn’t sit well with me. So yesterday, I finally decided to put an end to this madness.”

“How could you……”

He had asked Maya’s company to perform on a whim, and then cancelled their act on a selfish whim as well. And this was all decided just ‘yesterday’. Even though they had been putting in every effort into their play.

The nobleman continued.

“That’s all I had to say. You poor folk are living off the graces of the nobility, so be grateful that I even bothered to come all this way to talk to you. Now that I’m finished here, I’ll be leaving. The smell here is simply an assault on my senses.”

Right before he walked out, the man spat out one last line.

“Well, at least you all had a nice dream, didn’t you?”

“………!”

A violent rage surged within Bond. Somehow, he managed to grit his teeth and hold himself back. If he were to retaliate right now, he would be inviting unnecessary reprisal on Maya and her company rather than himself. So all he could do was look daggers at the nobleman’s back as he left.

The theatre was enveloped in a mournful silence. Everyone seemed to have lost their verve, and no one uttered a word. Bond was shaking with frustration.

Amidst the heavy atmosphere, just one man — Moran — gazed upon the situation with composure.

Finally, Maya, the chairwoman, mumbled in a thin voice.

“Um, I’m so sorry. I think, I’m not feeling too well……”

Then, with a hollow expression, she headed to the dressing room, her footsteps shaky.

[chaseatinydream]

pirate king (11) || atz

He pulls you through the town, back to the harbor where you can see several ships docked in the piers. But to your surprise, Jongho doesn’t lead you back to the Treasure. Instead, he drags you to a small bakery selling pastries and sweets.

You turn to him confusedly. “Jongho-hyung, what are we doing here?”

“Pick three cakes.” He gestures at the shelves. The establishment is neat and well kept for a pirate town, and the cakes look rather high quality compared to the other shops you saw earlier. It must be expensive. But since he told you to do it, you obey.

The shop owner takes your pastries and puts them in a little paper bag. Then Jongho adds several more cakes to the order, until his arms are laden with bags of sweet treats.

“Let’s sit.” He tells you gruffly, pulling you to one of the tables outside and sitting you down. You continue staring at him in complete bewilderment even as he pulls out your pastry and sets it in front of you.

“Eat.”

Your mouth falls open. Then you lean forward, pressing a palm against Jongho’s forehead as you look into his eyes intently. “Jongho-hyung, are you experiencing any dizziness or discomfort?”

The maknae jerks back at the contact, face twisted in a confused scowl as he shakes his head. “What? No! What are you-”

“You need to be honest with me, Jongho-hyung.” You look into his eyes carefully, searching for wavering pupils or the like and your voice drops to a secretive whisper. “Have you been drinking without telling Seonghwa-hyung?”

“No! Why are you even asking me this? I'm not being weird!” Jongho yelps as he scoots back further from you, the sound of his chair dragging across the stone floor making both of you wince. “I'm not drunk! I’m not sick either!”

“Okay…” You continue to stare at him with worried eyes as you take a bite of your puff, the sweet taste of cream spreading over your tongue. The young battlemaster sighs.

“I just wanted to talk to you.” He glances away from you for a moment to collect his thoughts, before he opens his mouth to speak again.

“I don't hate you, okay?”

His words are mumbled under his breath, so you lean across the table to hear him more clearly.

“What?”

“I don't hate you!” He shouts, clearly embarrassed. His cheeks are tinged pink and you look at him in surprise.

“Shut up, kid!” One of the bakery’s patrons shouts at the two of you and you shy back into your chair, feeling your cheeks burning.

“Oh.” Is all you manage.

You’re a little shocked. With how he’d been treating you this while, you thought he’d hated you, loathed you, even. While you weren’t sure why, you had thought he had disliked you immensely.

“Wipe that dumb look from your face before I smack it off.” Jongho grunts, and you realise that your lips are pulled into a wide grin. Hurriedly, you try to hide your Cheshire Cat smile, but it’s impossible. “I mean it!”

Finally with much difficulty, you press your face into a poor attempt at a serious look, much to Jongho’s chagrin. He sighs, slapping a hand against his forehead.

“I’m just awkward with new people, okay?” You’ve never seen the young battlemaster this skittish. Even in battle, he’s always possessed some kind of quiet, silent self confidence, not an ounce of self doubt in him. “And I was always the youngest till you came along, so I’m not sure how I’m supposed to… take care of you.”

You’re oddly touched by this for a moment. This strong man, who can handle even the fiercest of enemies, awkward and shy… because he doesn’t know how to take care of you.

A giggle somehow manages to leave your mouth. “That’s cute.”

“What! No!” Jongho cries in horror, looking desperate now. “I’m not cute-” A disgusted glower paints his face as the last word passes his lips.

“Boy, shut up before I come over and shoot you myself!” The shopkeeper bellows from behind the counter, and Jongho slumps back into his seat, groaning in despair at your irrepressible smile.

“Forget I said anything.” His words are muffled against the table top.

The two of you sit in peace for a long moment. It’s silent, like how it was between the two of you before, but where there was discomfort, now there is a happy warmth that fills you from the inside. Maybe it is because you’ve lost your memories, but with every new person that you meet, they root and grow themselves in your heart.

“Jongho-hyung…” You suddenly speak up, breaking the silence you two had been enjoying. The young battlemaster raises an eyebrow as he looks over at you questioningly. “What song did you sing when I was tied to the mast?”

“Song?” He frowns, but you can see baby pink blossoming on his cheeks like cherry blossom petals. “I sing a lot. Do you remember the lyrics?”

You recite what you remember. “Born on the wrong side of the ocean…”

“Ahh.” A small, sad smile pulls at the corners of Jongho’s mouth, the look softening his serious expression as he glances towards the harbor. The sun has just begun to set, the rosy light casting Jongho in a halo of warm oranges and pastel pinks. “It’s an old song. My mother used to sing it to me when I was still a child.”

The look on his face is forlorn, a little happy, a little sad, a little wistful. His eyes seem to be looking at something so far away, gazing at some point in his past that you can’t see.

“Jongho-hyung… where is your mother?”

That snaps the maknae out of his thoughts, the smile falling from his face as he inhales deeply. “She’s dead now. Died of consumption a few years ago. Didn’t get the medicine she needed and left. She’s in a better place now.”

You blink once. “That’s sad.” The cream puff is finished off, and you lean back to look at Jongho. His gaze never leaves the ocean as he continues to speak.

“Dad died before she did. In a hurricane offshore. Never got to see a trace of him again except the smashed up remains of his boat.” He points to a piece of tattered white fabric he wears around his shoulders.  “This is from the wreckage.”

His voice is thick with emotion, but his face remains solidly strong. You feel something stirring in your chest, something that seems to want to swallow your lungs whole. You frown and touch your chest. Is there something wrong with you?

“But enough about my sad backstory. What’s over is over, and what’s left for me to do is move on.” Jongho’s voice doesn’t waver at all as he thumps his chest. “They live on in here. I’ll live well for the two of them and never shed a tear again. Can’t let them be worried about me.”

His smile returns, a genuine and powerful one this time. For a moment, you’re so lost in it that you can barely breathe. Jongho is the epitome of strong. Not just physically, but in the heart, and in every sense of the word.

“Anyway, what about you, stowaway?” He cocks his head as he shoves a meat stuffed bun into his mouth. You look confused for a moment. What past do you have to tell? “What’s with that necklace around your neck?”

Ah. Your fingers reach up to stroke the silver chain resting against your delicate collarbones. Your only link to your past, the last thread you have connecting you to who you were before.

“I don’t know.” You murmur softly, feeling a lump rise in your throat. “I woke up with it.”

“I know Hongjoong-hyung said you’re an amnesiac.” Jongho looks at you firmly, but curiosity brims behind his eyes. “But do you really remember… nothing?”

You close your eyes. For a second, white dances behind your eyelids, the sound of sea crashing against the shore filling your ears and rain touches your face.

Then a single, unblinking red eye looms into your mind.

Your breath catches in your throat as your eyes fly open. You can still see it, a monstrous thing, a dark, hulking shape in the depths that has been forever chasing you… following you…

You’re not sure how Jongho will react right now if you tell him you could hear the voice of a giant squid monster which was chasing the Treasure, so you merely hold your tongue and shake your head.

Jongho is silent for a moment.

Then suddenly he rises to his feet, abruptly grabbing you by the arm. You follow, a little stunned by his strange change in demeanor, and Jongho whirls to look at you with resolution carved into his face.

“You’ve got whipped cream on your nose.” The young battlemaster swipes the sweet smudge off with a finger and licks it off, to your horror.

“That’s disgusting, Jongho-hyung.” You scrunch up your nose, but you’re not sure why he’s suddenly so eager to do something. Jongho begins pulling you somewhere, much to your surprise.

“Where are we going?”

“When I first came to Tortuga, I had just lost my parents and joined the crew.” Jongho tells you earnestly, leading you down past the harbor to a more lively, darker part of town by the shore. Many street vendors and shopkeepers with makeshift booths line the wooden docks, all offering some sort of rare, exotic wares, but Jongho simply brushes past all of them without a second glance. “And by coincidence, I visited a fortune teller.”

“I didn’t peg you for the superstitious type, hyung.” Is all you say as you take in the new environment all around you. The place is a little shady, with suspicious characters slinking away at every turn and dark, hooded men crouching behind corners. But with one glance from Jongho and they scatter, clearly intimidated by the way his fingers inch for the handle of his cutlass.

You remember what Yunho had told you about Jongho just earlier this morning.

He’s a great fighter and he has strong protective instincts. You’re probably safer with him than in the sickbay.

“I’m not superstitious.” Jongho tries to defend himself, but sees the look on your face and sighs. “There’s something different about this fortune teller. I never believed magic existed till I met San-hyung… but this fortune teller has a similar aura I get from hyung.”

You immediately understand what he’s talking about. Your master has a pulse about him that you’ve always been able to feel, like the warmth emanating from the sun and a gentle pulse that draws people to him, a comforting softness.

You’ve never seen San use his ‘inner energy’, as he calls it, but the feeling you get from him is no lie.

“But why do you want me to come to a fortune teller, hyung?” Nerves and a deep sadness twist within you. “There’s no point in knowing what’s going to happen. If I can’t remember my past, what’s the point of looking at the future?”

Jongho then stops you in your tracks, placing his hands on your shoulders. His eyes are both gentle and earnest at the same time, searching yours and for a second you can’t look away.

“You may not have a past yet.” The grin on his face is wild, brimming with confidence. “But we sure as hell are going to be your future.”

[winterhawk-olympic-bang]

Writer’s Workshop: How To End Your Story

How To End Your Story

Guest Poster: Flawedamythyst

We’re in the final furlong before the deadline for the first draft now, so it feels like a good time to talk about endings, and how to bring your story together to create a satisfactory one.

Have a read and then head over to the Discord Server where we have a channel for you to take part in a discussion based on the post, with chances to share your own ideas too.

How To End Your Story

There are traditionally six types of endings for a story:

Resolved ending - one with no lingering questions or loose ends. (Most murder mysteries and romances fall into this category.)

Unresolved ending - the kind of ending that leaves the reader with more questions than answers. (Usually for books that are part of a series. A lot of the HP books have endings like this.)

Expanded ending - expands the world of the story beyond the events of the narrative itself, with a time jump forward or a change in PoV.

Unexpected ending - a twist ending that the reader doesn’t see coming, but that should seem inevitable in hindsight.

Ambiguous ending - one that’s open to interpretation. Unlike an unresolved one, it leaves things to be interpreted by the reader so they have to decide themselves how it goes.

Tied ending - that brings the story full circle, and ends exactly where it began. Often the case for ‘Hero’s Journey’ type stories, where the hero ends up back home at the end.

You can read more about them here: https://boords.com/storytelling/how-to-end-a-story or here: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/ways-to-end-your-story but also in multiple other articles online just by Googling ‘Six Ways To End A Story’. 

But, of course, they don’t really tell you how to work out which one your story needs, or how to write one of them without falling into any of the traps that ends with an unsatisfying ending.

Motivation

Of course, often the hardest bit with an ending is actually getting there. Losing motivation is so easy, especially when you’re writing something super-long. I know lots of people get motivation by posting as they go and using comments/kudos as a spur, or even just by talking about it on Tumblr or other places and letting other people’s excitement buoy them up, but a Bang event like WHOB doesn’t allow for that. 

I’m going to talk a bit about ways to motivate yourself when you’re having to keep things secret from all but a handful of people, but bear in mind that this is something that really is very individual. Everyone writes for different reasons, and so everyone’s path to staying motivated is different.

For me, I think it comes down to focusing on why am I writing this story to start with? Any time I feel myself flagging, I think back to that reason and re-capture the original feeling I had about it. Often there’s a couple of different reasons. 

For example, when I was writing Look What The Cat Dragged In, my motivations when I wrote the first line were:

I want all of fandom to share with me the image of the Winter Soldier waking Clint up to threaten him while gently cradling a kitten in his hands, and 

I was writing it as a present for @kangofu-cb​. 

So, if I flagged at all, I was able to either reread that moment with Bucky holding the kitten and think ‘wow, I really do thing people will enjoy this mental image’, or I was able to think ‘I want my friend to have a nice thing’, and that helped me drive on and push through.

A lot of my personal motivations come down to ‘I want to share this scene/witty one-liner/visual of Clint pole dancing while dressed as Captain America with people’, so often just rereading what I’ve already done is really motivating for me, plus it also gives me the chance to see just how much I’ve already done, and what I would be dooming to be unfinished if I just walked away without pushing through.

You might well have different motivations though, which are equally valid. Maybe you started a fic for this event because you wanted to get a shiny badge, or to do something that your friends were doing, or you wanted to prove to yourself that you could write something longer than usual or outside of your usual wheelhouse. It may feel harder now than it did when you had that first idea, but that doesn’t change why you wanted to do it, and it’s actually easier now than it was when you started, because you’ve already done some of it.

And, if none of those motivations work for you, there’s always spite. ‘Oh, my brain gremlins think I can’t finish this? Fuck those guys, I’m going to prove those assholes so very, very wrong’ is completely how I powered through to finish my first ever novel-length fic, a million years and several fandoms ago. 

Resolution vs Ending

So, let’s move on to the ending itself. 

There are two parts to writing an ending: there’s the plot resolution and how that all gets tied up, and there’s the actual ending of the fic - the last scene, and the last place the reader sees the characters.

Sometimes the resolution happens only at the very end of a story and so those are the same thing, but I tend to think that makes things feel a bit abrupt. Especially for fics, which tend to be more character-driven than mainstream media and so need a wind down on how the characters react to the end of the plot for the reader. (This isn’t always true, of course, some plots do tie up neatly in the final scene. Every story is different and you’re the person best placed to judge what’s needed in your fic.)

So when you’re thinking about the ending, think about both parts. ‘How does this plot resolve itself?’ and ‘where do I want to leave these characters in the readers’ mind’s eye?’

Plotting a Story Resolution

You may well have already got a resolution worked out as part of your planning, but what if that ending doesn’t seem to fit any more, or you realise just as you get to it that you forgot to think about an ending at all and have no idea where to go?

First of all, don’t panic! If the rest of the story is there, you’ll be able to pull together the strands to create the best ending. Trust the bones of your story.

When I’m facing a blank page and no real idea of how I’m getting from the Depths of Despair moment to the happy ending, the first thing I do is reread the whole story in case that sparks a fantastic, fully-formed idea to appear on how to tie it all up. Mostly that doesn’t work, which is always disappointing, but it’s still a good place to start, because you have the whole run of the fic fresh in your head to plan from.

The next thing I do is make a list of all the things that I know definitely need to happen for the plot to be done. These don’t need to be in any particular order at this point and they don’t need to link up, you just need a list of what needs to go into the framework, however minor. ‘Clint wears Bucky’s hoodie and Bucky is smitten’ is a totally valid plot point to include, or even ‘include mention of recurring joke about muffins’. If you know something needs to be resolved but you don’t know how yet, just putting ‘resolve plot point with badgers’ is fine. Hopefully once you’ve started thinking through all the different bits, you’ll work out what’s going to happen to the badgers, and it’ll make sure you know it needs to be included somewhere.

If you have a beta/cheer reader who can help, it’s also super helpful to ask them what they would expect from the ending based on what they’ve read so far, or what elements from earlier in the story they think will be coming back/will turn out to be foreshadowing. Sometimes you’ll find you’ve written the clues to your ending into the earlier bits without really noticing, and you can throw them down on the list to be included as well.

Once you have everything you know needs to be included, you can shift them around into a rough order you think they need to go in, and start filling in the gaps. For example, if ‘Clint gets injured’ is there, you can add in ‘Bucky tends to his wounds’ as the obvious next step and maybe that would be a good time to throw in a muffin joke, and then Clint might need to borrow a hoodie if his shirt has blood on it, so you can tick those bits off as well.

It gets easier to see where the gaps are once you have it written out, even if it’s only things that you already knew would need to happen. Having it down in black and white helps your brain to move pieces around like a jigsaw puzzle, and start extrapolating on what comes in the gaps between.

Make The Ending Fit The Story

Think about what kind of story it’s been so far, and make sure that the ending you come up with fits in with it. 

You’ll know the general feeling that you wanted for the fic when you started writing, so that will give you a solid idea on how the ending needs to go. (Often for me this feeling is ‘schmoopy and loved up’, because I’m a softie. A lot of what I’m doing when I’m writing a fic is just clearing out of the way any obstacles that are going to get in the way of my characters being schmoopy and loved up. When there’s nothing left in the way, that’s when I know it’s the end of the story.)

You also need to keep the tone and pacing of your fic the same, and make sure that your ending matches up so it all feels like it fits together. This includes keeping the pace the same as it had been, no matter how tempting it is to rush through so you can get the thing finished already, or slow right down so you can add in a few thousand more words. 

Along with sticking to the tone you’ve set for the fic, try not to genre-shift - if you’ve written an action-packed zombie apocalypse fic, resolving the plot with domestic schmoop isn’t a great idea. The reader is invested in the style of story that you’ve written so far, so pulling the rug out on them will only give them whiplash, a vague sense of dissatisfaction or a persistent nagging feeling that zombies are about to attack. 

Unless you’ve written a domestic schmoop zombie AU of course, in which case I would read the hell out of it. ‘Curtain!fic but sometimes the undead interrupt’ sounds like a lot of fun.

And finally, make sure you maintain your characterisation. If the ending you want involves your character doing something wildly out-of-character, then that’s not the right ending. (I like to call this an Endgame!Steve ending. No, I’m not over that.) Even if your audience is invested in your story enough to overlook the incongruence, they will be having to overlook it rather than feeling fully invested in the journey you’ve created.

Chekov’s Gun

The most satisfying endings are the ones that tie up most, if not all, of the loose ends, and provide an emotional pay-off equivalent to the build-up. If you’ve been talking about something big that might or might not happen, and then it doesn’t, it’s narratively frustrating. In the same way, if you drop something big in that doesn’t really fit with what went before, it’s going to make the story feel unbalanced. 

Obviously that doesn’t mean you can’t have a surprise or twist ending but even if the reader is surprised by something happening, they still want to feel like they’re reading the same story. They need to look back with hindsight of knowing the twist and see how it fits in, and not how it stands out.

A good rule to follow is the Chekov’s Gun rule: If there’s a gun on the table in the first act, someone needs to shoot it in the second act. If you’ve been teasing something, make sure the pay-off is there.

And, of course, if someone’s going to be firing a gun at the end, go back and make sure it gets mentioned earlier in the story. It doesn’t need to be a heavy-handed anvil, but if you can drop in casual hints about guns earlier in the story, the whole thing feels more cohesive and thought out. No one needs to know that you only put those hints in after you’d finished the whole thing.

Loose Ends

Something I always like to do when I’m plotting exactly how the ending is going to go, is to go back through the whole fic and make a list of anything that feels like it could be a loose end if it didn’t get resolved. (If I’m having a problem working out my ending, often this happens at the same time as writing down all my ending plot points, as I described above.)

Some of those are obvious, like ‘Bucky and Clint need to kiss’, but some are less so. Did Clint think about how much he just wants to be done with all the drama so he can snuggle with his dog? Maybe throw in some Lucky cuddles somewhere in the finale so he gets the emotional pay-off. Has Bucky mentioned really want to punch a bad guy in particular in the face? Give him a chance to smack that asshole around a bit. Has there been a minor relationship drama along the way, like someone leaving their socks lying around? Have them either make a point of putting them away, or the other person just rolling their eyes and accepting it as a part of being with them.

It’s also important to think about where your secondary characters are going to end up, and if it feels like they’ve had an arc that needs resolving. Has there been another pairing with a bit of screen time or some background drama? Give them a chance to make out/make up. Has the bad guy done something that affected one of the other Avengers? Let them have a slice of revenge along the way.

For example, in my plan for Be All You Can Be, one of the original characters I introduced as other soldiers doing Basic Training, Havelka, didn’t turn up again after he’d been kicked back a level to another training unit. When I reread that, it became clear that he needed to prove himself somehow or his arc would be a depressing downward slope partially instigated by Clint and Bucky, so I brought him back at the end to do some First Aid and gave him a line or two to point to how his future was going to go, so the reader knew he was going to be okay.

You don’t have to completely resolve everything of course, and sometimes it is nice to leave a couple of things up to the reader’s imagination, but it’s nice for the reader if there’s a sense of things being tied up in a little bow. 

Ending

So, you’ve resolved your plot, how are you going to handle the actual final ending? 

Depending on how your story has gone, you might not need much after the resolution, or you may need several epilogue-y type scenes just to make sure everything is wrapped up.

Take a moment to think about what feeling you want the reader to take away from the fic. If it’s a romance, do you want to end with a warm fuzz of ‘aw cute’? If it’s been an angsty dig down into Clint or Bucky’s mental health issues, do you want a sense of optimism or catharsis? If there’s been a lot of action and drama, do you want a bit of peace and quiet for your characters to signal it’s all over with?

The best way to end any story is with a sense of hope, even if you’ve not gone for a completely happy ending, or have left yourself open for a sequel with some unresolved plot points. You want the reader to feel at least in some way uplifted. After all, regardless of whatever else has gone before, that’s the emotion they’ll have when they get faced with the Kudos button and the Comment box, so you need them in a good mood, right?

When you know what kind of feeling you want your ending to have, that will give you a major clue as to what the characters should be doing in the final scene.

One thing that can work well is bringing back something from the first scene or two and twisting it to be part of the ending. For example, at the beginning of Be All You Can Be Clint uses the song Make A Man Out Of You from Mulan as a way to torture Bucky, and then at the end, they watch the movie together while snuggling.

You do have to be careful not to be too heavy handed with that, and it doesn’t work in every fic, but I do like the feeling of ‘things coming full circle’ that you can get from doing it.

Afterglow vs. Too Much Ending

I always think that good stories come with a certain amount of ‘afterglow’: Just a scene or two to round things out and give a pointer towards the future. 

For example, in general, I don’t like stories that end with a first kiss, which is one of several reasons I usually find Hollywood romcoms unsatisfying. It feels like too much of a beginning, and leaves too many questions open about how things are actually going to go for the couple in question. As part of a complete ending, it feels more satisfying to have an ‘epilogue’-y type scene afterwards that will give you a sense of how things went from there, even if it’s just a couple of paragraphs about them planning their first date.

I’m sure we can all think of other times we’ve read or watched something and had a moment of ‘oh, was that it?’ after the last sentence/when the credits rolled. Abrupt endings without a bit of afterglow can leave the reader blinking a little and wondering where their damn cuddles are.

That said, you also don’t want to go too far in the opposite direction. If the plot is over, there’s no need to keep going with multiple scenes of fluff or porn that doesn’t really add anything. We don’t need to see their whole lives mapped out, and it can get fairly dull once the tension of the plot is over. Ask yourself if the three chapters of them having sex on every flat surface in their apartment is actually necessary, or if some of them can be cut and used as one-shot sequel/missing scene fics. 

In general if it’s not adding to either the narrative or emotional arcs, try to cap it at a scene or two. Just enough to feel like you’ve had a bit of post-climactic afterglow, but not so much that it’s starting to drag.

In Conclusion…

Ending a fic is, in so many ways, the most satisfying part of writing. You got right the way through your plot to the end! You did all the writing! Your characters made it through to their happy/sad/ambiguous endings! You deserve all the gold stars!

You just want your reader to feel the same way, by making sure the ending fits with what came before, ties up all the ends that need tying up, and leaves them with a deep glow of whatever feeling you want the overall story to convey.

And then you just need to do the editing, but that’s a workshop for another day...

[another-snape-story]

In the Darkness

Chapter XXII

Downhearted, engulfed with hatred for himself, Snape was sitting in the dark of his quarters, fingers tracing the curves of a fancy vial he twirled in his hands. A bottle of firewhiskey prepared to be uncorked long ago, seemed now to be forgotten.

Blueish moonlight seeping through frozen waters of the lake illuminated a part of the room reaching the wall where extinct fireplace breathed cold and chilliness adding an unpleasant feeling of despondency to the surrounding. His black frock rock thrown carelessly over the armrest of the sofa, Snape hoped physical discomfort would at least partially replace excruciating pain within his soul. No matter how hard he knocked at your door, how desolately he pleaded to open it, you didn’t answer. Snape was sure you had no desire to see him. If only he knew you were looking for him in the meantime.

You’ve never been to his private chambers – even approaching that part of the corridor made you feel uncomfortable, as if you were violating his privacy. But you just couldn’t leave it like this! You had to talk to him…

Realizing the misery of your predicament, drained of every feeling or emotion – you’ve cried too much to be capable of any – resigned with the worst outcome, you dragged along the passageway to try your luck at the last steppingstone which would predetermine your further relationship with the man.

Snape’s heart sank as he saw you at his threshold. Eyes locked on his, you stood motionless not daring to enter. Words stuck in your throat; you seemed to forget how to breathe.

Snape stepped aside.

Uncertainly, you trudged past him.

“Where have you been?” you asked quietly, “I’ve been searching for you everywhere…”

Your question baffled him – Snape would imagine it otherwise. The only thing he wanted was to fall on his knees before you and beg for forgiveness.  

“Dropped in ‘Hog’s Head’ for a drink,” he answered down in the mouth.

“I returned after you a few minutes later…” disappointed, you reverted your glance. Snape couldn’t expect that. If he found it probable you would return, he would surely stay there for as long as it’d take, even if he had to wait an eternity!

“Forgive me, Sev?” you turned to him all of a sudden, your eyes emitting the anguish of a mental agony. “Forgive me being an ungrateful bitch…”

Pain and despair now visible on his face, Snape dashed towards you. “No! That’s me who should apologize. You’ve been through hell, and I…”

“And you never left my side,” you smiled weakly, a tear rolling down your cheek.

“I hurt you. I didn’t mean that,” he whispered taking you into his hold. “It was a mistake. I am a mistake. My life is a mistake…”

“Don’t say that!” you pulled away to look him in the eyes. “You’re the most wonderful human being I’ve ever known! Don’t say you’re a mistake…” your voice cracked. “If it is me who made you think so…” you cried, too distressed to hold back, “…I will hate myself for the rest of my life…”

A storm of emotions raging in his soul, Snape rose shaky hands to your face. Lacking on confidence, he was afraid to touch you considering this gesture too intimate to be permissible, yet desire was stronger than reason.

Your skin so soft against his fingers, he gently wiped your tears putting so much delicacy into it, as if you were the most fragile thing in the world to fall apart at a slightest contact. Although physically you remained solid in shape, on the inside you appeared a real mess. Clutching at him, you sobbed still cursing yourself for your outburst at the station, yet immensely happy to be in his arms, relieved he didn’t reject you. “I’m so sorry, Severus… I’m so sorry…”

“Don’t be,” his voice as gentle as his touch, he caressed your face losing himself in the depth of your eyes. Yet he was so close that a tiny bend of his head was enough for your lips to come together. Looking at him, you felt all the tension disappear straight away – for a split second you fully relaxed once you realized what was going to happen.

The world spun around as his lips touched yours, hesitant and insecure at first, but growing more resolute inasmuch as he sensed you were kissing him back; on the spur of the moment, you could no longer feel the ground under your feet – you could no longer feel anything but a euphoric feeling expanding your chest.

Dissolving in his embrace, you kissed him selflessly, with all love and tenderness you’ve been harboring for this man since your nature trusted him long before your mind could too. Snape held you tight melting into the warmth of your side, unwilling to ever let go, since it might be his only chance to relish your affection he craved so bad.

“We can’t,” he breathed out as your lips parted.

Your mind still floating in the air, it took you a second to comprehend his words. “What? Why?” Delighted glint of your eyes faded all at once.

“I’m not a good party for you,” the words seemed to hurt him more than yourself.

“Let me decide!” you couldn’t believe he was backing down – now – when he made you happier than ever once in your life.

“Just look at me!” he spoke out of heart. “I’m not worthy... You deserve better. The best! And I... What can I give you?”

“Sev…”

“Although you are the one and only thing that matters to me and brings sense to my life... although I’m going to protect you at all costs… I just can’t drag you into all this shit I’m involved in without breaking your heart with the terrible things I did and certainly will do. You wouldn’t bear it if I tell you, neither would you tolerate silence or lies, which I want to tell you the least! I want to be honest with you, but truth might kill all the good feelings you have for me and... You shouldn’t have grown with any kind of empathy for me... I can’t understand how it happened, why you...”

“You’re right,” you didn’t let him finish, cupping his face and gently stroking his jaws. “I don’t know what you’ve done, but I know what you’re doing here and now! And I don’t see a bad guy behind these eyes,” your thumbs softly traced a line along his eyebrows, while you reached out for his lips giving off your soul through the kiss. Your tenderness disarmed him – too weak to abstain from pleasure of your soothing touch he couldn’t help conceding into your will. “If you think some unpleasant fact from your past, which I believe you have a plenty, would scare me away,” you pressed your forehead against his, “you’re damn wrong!”

“You have no idea who I actually am!”

“You’re the man I love,” you whispered, “and that’s just enough for me. Even if you are the Dark Lord himself.”

“I served him,” he confessed louringly knowing he might lose you forever, but his words didn’t seem to frighten you.

“Yes, that’s what I thought,” you smiled lovingly, looking him in the eyes and stroking his hair.

“But how did you…” Snape’s brows twitched in utter disbelief.

“That night, when you told me you did really bad things, remember?”

Of course, he remembered.

“You can talk to me anytime once you’re ready. I want you to know I’ll always be here for you – to listen or to share silence... I won’t leave you, whatever you say...” you wrapped your arms around his neck clinging to him with your whole essence. “Don’t push me away... Severus, please... Together we can handle everything…”

His hands landed on your sides and made their way along your back to squeeze you tightly and never let go. You felt his breathing on your skin as he let out a peaceful sigh, once his head found place on your shoulder. 

“Could you possibly light the fireplace?” a playful voice resounded in semidarkness of a cold and poorly lit room.

“I believe I could,” answered the deep one.

“And some candles would be nice.”

<<< Previous Chapter • Next Chapter >>>

Tag: @diaryofafan17 @yul-is-sparkling @fullmoonshadowwrites @forthehonourof @amywright @redrehab @space-helen @fluffymadamina nadiigh @theworldisugly-22 @lukaerith-morningstar @sighsinkhuzdul @67-chevy-baby @rustypotatospork @aquila-leo @dandyrua @majusketch @sevyythebeanqueen @writingmi @s00nhi @pinkininja @shizuethedragon @chocolattefrog awkwardaxelotl @bionic-otp @samnblack @sailorstupidsblog @purpledragonturtles @xwaterproofx @lokistann @psycho-howell @planetmystery @lovelyravenkite @taschaschwarz @grimrapper11 @xpissbabyx @lullabylike green-forest-dreams brujaporfavor @severuslovebot moonflower81 @yourbadnightmare @cyber-cry-baby @fandomfrickomg @azzle417 @primavera-allegoria @scarletflavour garsiri04

[alpaca-writes]

Mystics, Chapter 36

84,000 words later....

I can’t thank everyone enough who sent in asks, commented, liked, and reblogged Mystics as it was being created. It meant the world to me and gave me so much inspiration to continue! Special thanks to Myst, of course. Continue to send in asks for the OCs as much as you want. A part 2 is in the works.

Enjoy Mystics’ final chapter. I hope its been as much fun to read as it was for me to write! <3

Xx -Alpaca

Taglist: @myst-in-the-mirror & @livingforthewhump

CW: captivity, blood mention, drug mention, cheesy dancing at the end.

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

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX: THREE LITTLE BIRDS

Remember: Matter. How tiny your share of it. Time. How brief and fleeting your allotment of it. Fate. How small a role you play in it.

                              - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations.

         Shining white, pristine walls lined the hall. It didn’t take long for Hekate to catch up. Paimon didn’t know why he expected anything less. Now his arms were held behind his back by a cosmic force, unknown even to him, and the inorganic urge to continue walking by her side pushed him forward. He spoke little, and listened even less to what the old hag was saying.

         “I cannot promise you will be happy here, but at least you will not be alone in your imprisonment,” Hekate said.

         They turned around a corner through the maze of halls and landed upon a wide set of sliding doors. The whole realm was practically space-age. Hekate was clever to disguise the entryway to her realm as his own Labyrinth.

         He should never have jumped through. That was a rookie mistake. The moment Apollo was released, he should have known something was amiss. Lyrem certainly didn’t have the talents to perform such a feat.

         “This is best for you, Pan,” Hekate continued. “I know that with a little more helpful guidance, you can return to your true nature, and your true glory.”

         “Paimon.”

         Hekate paused. “No, no, no, my dear. You are Pan. You always have been Pan. You will always be Pan.”

         The sliding doors opened. Inside this room there was yet another hallway, but instead of previous areas, this one was lined with clear walls. Perfect for seeing through into the cells that would hold a chosen prisoner.

         Many of them were empty. Hekate continued toward the end, until Paimon reached the last of the cells. There was a simple bed and some books on a nightstand that had been left untouched. The room was covered in a white rubber. The bed, made of wood.

         “I am not going in there,” Paimon said, his brows furrowed.

         Hekate agreed with a nod of her head.

         “You are correct. You are going into this one.”

         The cell door across from the one that had taken Paimon’s attention opened with a whirring noise. Unable to stop himself, Paimon stepped through the threshold. The door whirred shut behind him and he was released, finally, from whatever command Hekate had over him.

         “This is an abuse of power!”

         “An abuse of power is what you had for many, many years on Earth my darling dear. And quite frankly, I have had enough of your games,” Hekate observed calmly. “You will have much in common with your cellmate. Let me put it simply, Pan. The sooner you behave, the sooner you will be released.”

         Pan- no! Paimon looked around his new home as new objects formed around him out of nothingness. A simple bed, nightstand, all as white as snow on Christmas day and one thing in the corner that stood out among everything else because of its red mahogany sheen- a Pan flute.

         “If you wish to have anything more, then you will need to earn it,” Hekate stated.

         Darkly, Paimon turned around, meeting his great aunt’s eyes.

         “I will destroy you for this. I will ruin you. I will make sure no one ever knows of you. I will turn you into a forgotten relic! Just as you deserve to be!”

         Hekate raised a brow to show how meaningless Paimon’s threats truly were to her.

         “I would think it something to be admired, if you could do any one of those things, darling dear. Certainly, if even your own father could not do those things, then it would be worth true congratulation.”

         Paimon charged the clear wall and then stole a glance to the cell across from him, where someone had returned from using a restroom. The mysterious person sat on the edge of his bed. Someone vaguely familiar, with light eyes and a trimmed white beard, looking drastically different than he remembered. Paimon blinked.

         “Dad?”

 ---------------------------------

         “Have you ever heard the tale of Sisyphus?”

         “It may shock you to learn I haven’t ever quite finished the Iliad, but yes, I have.” Lyrem replied to Hades’ question. “So, you’ll have repeat a meaningless, trivial task for all eternity in my afterlife as a punishment for imprisoning you as per Pan’s command. How very original. Did you think of that all on your own, or did you need your brother’s help?”

         “My brother Zeus has not been heard from for a millennia. While he had given me some inspiration, I thought it better to put my own ironic flair into your suffering.”

         Persephone interrupted with a short squeak.

         “No, uncle, please don’t be so ruthless. He’s lost so much already!”

         Artemis had switched back into her cat-like form, comforting her brother Apollo in his lap and purring. She had let out a protest of her own in Lyrem’s favour as well.

         Apollo translated. “Arty agrees. We should be kind to him. Truly uncle, I have to imagine that Pan had quite the psychological hold on this man. Perhaps it would be wise to show him a tad bit of mercy?”

         Hades looked to the naïve children and back to the human-mortal-man with growing disinterest. Then a light crossed his face, as though an idea dawned on him. He allowed himself to smile, ever so gently.

         “Well, I can see that you have created quite the positive rapport with my nieces and nephew already. I don’t know why I am so surprised.”

         Lyrem shot a quick wink to Persephone as a thank you.

         “Which is why, I shall grant you eternal life.” Hades continued.

         Lyrem looked back to him, and stammered.

         “What- what did… Did you just say what I think you said?"

         Hades nodded. Everyone looked joyful. Excited even. Lyrem could last forever- very nearly be one of them. Yes, everyone thought this to be a grand idea, except for obviously, Lyrem.

         “When you die, I will refuse to take your soul. Every time without fail. You will forever grow old, then older… then older. And you will never die.”

         “No.”

         “Welcome to a lifetime of arthritis and aching legs and never-ending cataract surgery,” Hades said. “Oh, yes, that is right, Thomas. I know how old you are, and how much older you will get before your cells no longer hold you together. Consider this a gift.”

         “No, please, God Hades. I need to find Ros-”

         “Goodbye ‘Lyrem’. Have yourself a wonderful life.”

         He was gone. All the mortals had left the Underworld, finally. Now, Hades could return to restoring his realm to its proper state.

         Persephone perked up, realizing she was free to create and grow everything back to the way it was in the Underworld.

         “My pond!” She cried, running out the dining room doors towards the Depths of Despair. “I swear, if Pan killed my koi, I am going to be furious!”

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

         “Why the hell are there empty bins in the hall?! Where are all my photos?! What on earth happened to my stereo?!”

         Arch groaned, sitting up from the floor of the living room. Their mother was already back to her old self, standing and shouting and asking questions that no one would care to answer for her.

         “I don’t know, and I don’t care,” Arthur answered. He stood to his feet and limped slowly down the hall. “I’m pouring myself a bath.”

         Charlotte rushed past her brother and her child, throwing herself through the house in a frenzy. Arch stood with their back against the wall, arms crossed. It wasn’t anything defiant. They just wanted to be held.

         “Where are all my clothes?!”

         DING DONG

         “Arch, I swear to God, you will tell me what happened while I was away, and where all my f-” ding dong “stuff is!”

         Arch removed their bloody apron from their body, moved a short few steps to the kitchen sink and rinsed their hands that were still stained red.

         DING DING DING DING DING DONG!

         Arch rubbed their temple with their hands and out of instinct, walked to the front door.

         It was Benji. Through the screen door, Arch saw him standing on the sidewalk in front of their house. He had just pressed play on his Bluetooth speaker sitting in the grass. It started playing a bizarre melody.

         “Hey! You answered! I was hoping you would! You have no idea how many texts I’ve sent!”

         Arch stepped out onto the top of the stairs, still puzzled to know what was happening. The summer heat still lingered in the air.

         “Look, I don’t know what I did to deserve the cold-shoulder, but I thought you deserved a visit at least on your birthday, okay? So, sue me.”

         “My birthday?” Arch said. “It’s… It’s August? Thirteenth?”

‘Me, my, oh, what a life So lean on my people, gon' be stepping in time’

         “Yeah, dude! Did you seriously forget?!” Benji exclaimed, bobbing his head from side to side.

‘So, thank you!

For coming to my birthday party!

I am one minute old today

And everything is going great-’

Arch sputtered a reflexive, well-needed laugh. Benji had started dancing like an absolute fool on their front lawn. He pulled out a birthday candle from the recesses of his pocket and held it forward.

“Look, I’ve been wanting you to show me that magic trick again, I can’t stop thinking about it.”

Arch placed their hands in their pockets, trying to work past their tears of both exhaustion and entertainment. They shook their head. They really didn’t want to know if they could still perform that trick.

“I… forgot how.”

Benji stared back up, crestfallen. He checked his phone and lowered the volume on his music player.

“Fine, okay. Whatever. You don’t want me around. That’s cool. I get it. I’m a big shot. Not really your type to hang with-”

“What?”

Benji swallowed back his pain, and shrugged.

“It’s cool Arch. School’s over and we gotta go our separate ways. I understand.”

He started backing away. Arch leapt forward, and caught him by the elbow before he turned away completely.

“I want you to stay!” Arch admitted. “It’s totally cool if you want to hang out. Please stay... I… Honestly, I have been so lonely...”

How did the air get so thick?

“And I have missed you… so much.”

Benji’s sad, soulful eyes skeptically narrowed, and then widened with a realization.

“Dude… Have you been struggling? This whole time…? All summer? You gotta come to me with your shit! Don’t bottle it up, bud.” Benji wrapped them in a tight hug and rocked them to and fro. “Oh, I had no idea... You’re my main enby, Arch… I’ll be your Rick Astley forever… The Bernie to your Elton… Okay? Always. No doubt. No doubt.”

Arch took a moment to sob grossly into his shoulder. They pulled away before it got too squishy for their liking. If allowed, they knew Benji would let them cry on him until the end of time.

Arch took a deep breath of relief.

“Sorry, I’ve just been really stressed.”

“Yeah, hey. No kidding.” Benji said. “Look, here’s the plan, Shazia said that if I could reach you today that she’d meet us at the park with some of that fancy hash we like so that we can smoke up cakes.”

Arch scrunched their face.

“Cupcakes. Shazia would meet us in the park with cupcakes. Hey, Charlotte,” Benji cleared his throat, seeing the dark haired woman, who seemed to be hanging by a very fine thread from behind the screen door. “How are you?”

“I’m fine, Benji. Arch, just go.”

“Wait. Really?” Arch turned around, wondering how she could be serious.

“You’re eighteen now, aren’t you?” Charlotte asked. 

Arch nodded.

“Then get out.”

There wasn’t anything warm about the way Charlotte said those words. Instead of lingering too long on the nuance, Arch only nodded, watching the door to the house shut its inhabitants in.

Benji bent over to pick up his speaker. He didn’t miss a beat cutting the music.

“What was that all about?” He asked. Like Arch, he looked up at the closed door.

Arch wiped the wetness away from their face with a couple fingers.

“I… I think I was just kicked out.”

Arch cleared their throat. They turned back to Benji as the summer sun beat down on them both. 

Oh Benji. He was the most welcome sight in this world. The only good thing left that Arch had yet to ruin. Shazia would soon await them both in the park. Their life with Paimon, Lyrem, and hell, was now in the past. A future containing Arthur and Charlotte filled with shame and regret awaited them.

That didn’t matter yet. All that mattered was what was right in front of them.

And Arch really, really, really wanted to get high.

“Anyways, you said something about smoking up?”

[bleachanimefan1]

Turtles Forever Part 74

Same As It Never Was

Donnie was sitting in his chair talking with April while looking over some schematics. "Donnie its hard to believe that you actually traveled through time like that," she commented.

"I know, April. It's wild, isn't it?" Donnie replied. "But it really was the year 1406 and we were there, all because of the time scepter."

"Well, anything's possible," April replied. "I think Uncle Augie's artifact taught me that."

"I know," Donnie answered. "I was going through some of your uncles' calculations and-" Suddenly, the lair began to shake. "I think we're having an earthquake!"

"Nothing's happen over-" Then April's feed was cut off. In the middle of the lair from the pool, a portal rose out from the water.

"Master Splinter, what's going on?" Leo questioned, as Donnie rushed in.

"We've seen that kind of energy before," he pointed out, and as soon as he did, the ultimate ninja emerged from the portal.

"Drako!" Splinter exclaimed.

"And the Daimyo's son," Leo finished. "This is what we've told you about, Master Splinter. They've merged somehow, combined together."

"All into one ugly package," Raph commented as he walked into the room, squinting his eyes from the bright light. Mona had rushed in along with him, after putting Elizabeth down for a nap when she heard the commotion as well.

"We told you we would return," the Ultimate ninja declared. "We told you we would have our revenge!"

"Revenge this, whack bag!" Raph yelled running to them, spinning his sais. The Ultimate ninja used the time scepter freezing Raph in midair as he jumped to kick. He grabbed Raph with his tail, throwing him into the pillar.

"As if you could simply fight us! We control time and space with Lord Simultaneous time scepter! We are unbeatable," the ultimate ninja declared.

"Someone quick!" Donnie called as everyone jumped at the ultimate ninja to stop him. "Grab the-" He shoots out another blast of energy freezing everyone.

"Now we will have our vengeance," Drako said. The Daimyo's son glared, looking at Leo.

"Leonardo, destroy him first!"

"No, we agreed. The rat first then the Daimyo, your father," Drako answered, looking at Splinter.

"Then Leonardo." The Daimyo's son replied.

"They will pay, all of them." Drako declared.

"Yes, all of them will learn the meaning of suffering across time and space!" All Donnie saw was a bright blinding light. Then he found himself falling as he landed on the ground. Donnie quickly got back up ready to fight the Ultimate ninja. But, he saw that the lair was empty, and not only that, completely destroyed and in ruins.

"Huh? Master Splinter?" Donnie called out. He received no response as his voice echoed in the lair. "Venus? Yuuki? Leo? Raph? Mikey? Anybody?"

Donnie knocked down the door to the elevator, leading up to the garage. "The entire lair is trashed, even the warehouse. Huh?" he stopped in front of the Tunneler as he saw it. "The Tunneler looks like it's still in one piece. But, this place feels like it's been abandoned for a long time. None of this makes any sense."

Donnie walked outside from the warehouse. He heard helicopters hovering above him then spotlights shined on Donnie, blinding him. He squinted his eyes trying to see who it was.

"Attention citizen! Place your hands in the air and drop your weapons!" a voice called out. "Repeat, hands up and drop your weapons." Hesitantly, Donnie did as he was told and raised his hands up. As a couple of the men began approaching him, Donnie spotted an Foot insignia on one of the soldier's arm. His eyes widen, glaring at it. Quickly, Donnie pulled out his staff, ready to fight them.

Suddenly, Donnie felt a rush of air, as a shuriken flew past him. It landed in front of Donnie and the Foot soldiers feet. They look up to see a shadowy figure on the roof of the warehouse.

"On the roof! Get a light on him! Open fire, open fire!" The soldiers immediately open fire on the assailant as they jumped down from the roof, rushing past the soldiers. Donnie couldn't see who it was as they stayed to the shadows. They quickly took cover behind a car and the Foot soldiers fired at it, demolishing it. One of the soldiers walked over, to check, when the hood of the car quickly opens, smacking him in the face sending the soldier crashing into another.

The person jumps up, dodging the lasers, as the soldiers fired at them. Donnie saw them pull out a nunchuck, as it swung, attacking the soldiers, taking every single one of them out.

"Mikey?"

They tossed the Foot soldiers into the car, closing the hood on them. Then the helicopter shined it's light on the shadow, revealing a turtle, wearing an orange mask, that looked like Mikey. The helicopter fired at him as he cartwheeled over to a gun lying on the ground. They picked it up and shot at the soldiers cars blowing them up, then quickly fired at the helicopter, blowing it up, sending it crashing to the ground. The turtle dropped the gun as Donnie ran up to him.

"Mikey, I am so glad to see you!" Donnie smiled, hugging him. The turtle chuckled.

"I thought that you was the smart one, uncle Donnie." Donnie froze. Uncle? He stepped back from the turtle that looked like Mikey. His eyes widened as he looked closer. This turtle was a little taller in height but smaller build than Mikey. However, he did have Mikey's freckles on his cheeks and light blue eyes.

"I-I I'm sorry. I thought you were-" Donnie stammered still in shock.

"Someone else?" the turtle laughed. He looked at Donnie and introduced himself. "My name's Kitaro, but Kit for short. I've heard all lot of stories from my dad about you."

"Your father?" Donnie questioned.

"You are in a lot of trouble." the two of them heard a familiar voice call out. Kitaro flinched while Donnie's eyes widened, realizing Mikey's voice. However, his voice sounded older, more deeper. Then Kitaro was suddenly smacked on the back of his head by a hand.

"Oww!" He yelped in pain. "Why?!" Mikey stood over him with an angry look.

"Dad, what the shell?!" Kitaro whined. "That hurt!"

"What are you doing out of the hideout?" Mikey demanded. Kitaro cringed at his harsh tone. "You know that it's dangerous! What you did was reckless! What if you died?!"

"I was bored. Besides, I can handle myself," Kit argued.

"Kitaro," Mikey warned.

"And I'm glad I did!" Kit shouted, and pointed at Donnie. "Look at who I've found!"

"Mikey?!" Donnie exclaimed. Mikey turned around, seeing Donnie in front of him.

"So it's really you. You came back." Donnie's eyes widen in shock seeing how different his brother looked. He looked older, his mask covered his head, and body was covered completely in scars.

Then Donnie noticed that Mikey's left arm was missing. "Mikey, y-your arm! What happened to your arm?"

"You're the one that's got some questions to answer. Where the shell have you've been all these years?" Mikey demanded.

"All these years?" Donnie asked, confused.

"You've been gone over 30 years, Donatello." Mikey said. Donnie's eyes widen in shock. 30 years?! That can't be...

"30 years?" Donnie asked in surprise. "It' can't be!"

"It can be and it is," Mikey answered. "We thought that you were dead. How the shell could you just abandon us like that?"

"I didn't!" Donnie insisted, shaking his head. "I've never abandoned you guys. One minute, we were all in the lair together, the next minute, I woke up here. I don't know how."

"So, the turtle with the big brain, doesn't have all the answers," Mikey retorted. "Who'd have thunk it? But, we can't talk here." He grabbed Kitaro by his mask, dragging him along, and stepped into the shadows, walking away. "Come on." Donnie followed after him.

Deep in the depths of the city, Foot soldiers ran across the roofs as well as scouring the streets. A giant blimp flew above with Karai's face.

"Always serve the Shredder. He is your lord and master. Serve the Shredder and live."

Donnie, Mikey, and Kitaro, dodged the soldiers and ran into an alley. Mikey pulled open a sewer grate.

"Where are we going, Mikey?" Donnie asked.

"I'm taking you to Master Splinter," Mikey explained.

"Are Leo and Raph with him?" Donnie questioned. Mikey turned, looking at him with disbelief.

"You kiddin'? Leo and Raph aren't with anybody anymore..." He jumped down into the grate, Kitaro jumped in after him. Donnie stood in shock, wondering what he meant then jumped down with them.

"Beware what you do." Karai's voice warned over the city. "The Shredder is watching, always watching."

The three stopped at a sewage plant, with overgrown trees.

"Where are all the people?" Donnie wondered.

"You mean the one's that survived?" Mikey responded as they ran. "They're forced to work 18 hour days in the Shredder's labor camps. No one's allowed out at night." He stopped pulling back a branch, blocking the way.

"What happened between Leo and Raph?" Donnie asked.

"Let's just say they got into a big fight a long time ago." Mikey answered, continuing on. As they ran, Donnie started to phase and stopped.

"What the shell?" he asked to himself, confused. He shook his head, brushing it off, and quickly ran after Mikey and Kitaro, catching up to them.

"When you never came back, Donnie, well...everything just fell apart. We were a team. Without you, it just didn't work." Mikey turned to him. "Guess we really needed that level head of yours."

"How is that possible?" Donnie asked in disbelief. "What about Yuuki? Mona? Why didn't they stop them? What about Master Splinter, where is he?"

Mikey pointed to a wooden pillar. "He's over there."

Donnie looked closer to the pillar to see that it was a grave. It had Splinter's name and his walking staff leaning against it. Donnie eyes widen in shock.

"No..." he walked over to the the grave, kneeling down. "Master Splinter is...no!" Donnie slammed his fist, hard on the ground, in despair.

"Master Yoshi used to bring him here in the park, back in the day..." Mikey said, sadly. "It's not the safest place, but it's were Sensei wanted to be buried."

Donnie turned to him sadly. "H-How?!"

"A couple years, after you disappeared, Master Splinter gave his life protecting us." Mikey told him. Donnie shut his eyes. This has to be a dream. This can not be real!

"I can't believe this place. It's all...so horrible."

"You'll get used to it." Mikey answered. "Besides, what can you do? It's the way it is." Donnie stood up, looking at Mikey.

"It's not the way it is!" Donnie insisted, determinedly. "Maybe I can't change the past, but that doesn't mean there isn't a way to change the present. We've got to face the Shredder and take him down!"

Mikey chuckled. "We've tried...too many times."

"We're going to try again, Mikey." Donnie said.

"You got a plan?" Mikey asked.

"I'm working on it." Donnie walked up to him. "but we're going to need the others."

"That's a tall order, Donnie." Mikey murmured. "But, I think I know somebody that can help."

"Resistance team 7, this is Ops. Proceed to target."

An older looking April was looking over some blueprints. She had grey hair and wrinkles on her face. She turned to one of her soldiers. "Take this to Angel, her commandos will have to destroy that fuel dump before it gets moved on Friday." She handed her a piece of paper with plans on it. The soldier saluted her.

"Yes, sir!"

"Yo, rebel leader!" Mikey called out. April turned to look at him and was surprised seeing Donnie. "Look what the cat dragged in." She walked over to the three.

"April?" Donnie asked, happily.

"Donatello, you came back!" April exclaimed, overjoyed, immediately hugging him. "Splinter always said you would! Casey and the others too!"

"Where are Casey and the others? That bonehead," Donnie asked. April and Mikey had solemn looks on their faces as a picture of Casey, Yuuki, Mona and Alopex was hanging on a wall. Mikey turned to Kitaro.

"Kit, I want you to go and find your sisters," he told him. "Stay with them for a while."

"But, dad, I want to-" Kit tried to argue but Mikey cut him off.

"Now." he warned. Kit whined and skulked away, leaving the room.

"Mikey, where's Alopex?" Donnie asked. "I'm surprised not to see her here with you. I'm more surprised that you have kids. How many do you have?"

"Three," Mikey told him. "Two girls, twins, Luna and Una and you've already met Kit."

"And Alopex?" Donnie wondered. Mikey sighed sadly. "When Kit was born, there were complications. She didn't make it. Maybe, if you were there at the time, she might have had a chance. I-I don't know, let's drop this, please."

"Mikey, I-I'm sorry, I didn't-" Mikey shook his head. "I don't blame you, Donnie. It just happens sometimes. That's why I told Kit to leave, I didn't want him to hear this."

"Well, well, well..." Stockman's voice was heard. Donnie's eyes widen. "Donatello."

"What the?" Donnie quickly pulled out his staff when he saw Hun in a wheelchair coming over to him.

"Looking younger than ever." Hun had Stockman's brain in a jar, attached to his shoulder. Both of them looked old was well, Hun was losing his hair and was white, while Stockman's brain looked shriveled up and wrinkled. "And how do we look? Just another one of the Shredder's punishments. Don't be impolite, Hun, say hello."

"Greetings Donatello." Hun greeted him. April held Donnie back.

"Relax, Donnie." she told him. "They're on our side. We've saved them from being executed about five years back."

"Donnie?" Donnie's eyes widen hearing Venus voice. He turned around to see her standing by the doorway.

"V-Venus?" Her skin had a paler color to it. However, she looked exactly like she did when he saw her. Guess, being an alien means slower aging process? He deducted to himself as she walked over to him. Venus wrapped her arms around him, hugging Donnie tightly.

"I can't believe it! It's really you!" she cried. "You came back!" Donnie hugged her back, still in shock but happy to see her.

"It's great to see you, V," Donnie said. He looked around, but didn't see Donna anywhere. "Where's Donna?" he asked.

"She's with the other kids and Elizabeth," Venus told him. "But, there's something that you should know about her."

"What is it?" Donnie asked.

"Donna is our daughter." Venus explained, calmly, to him. "Your daughter." Donnie's eyes widen in shock.

"Are you sure? H-How do you know that?" he stammered nervously, still in shock.

"She has my eyes. And I'm the only turtleoid that I know who has them. She also has magic that only my people have," Venus told him. "And she has your smarts." Donnie was at a lost for thought. Donna was his daughter?! A daughter from the future!

Hun wheeled his chair over to the two.

"This life is worse," Hun commented. "I'd wish I'd been put out of my misery."

"And I wish that you have been put out of MY misery, you miserable misanthrope," Stockman retorted. Donnie walked over to the wall looking at the pictures. This shouldn't have been this way. How did this happen? He was going to put an end to this nightmare of a future, no matter what.

"April, there's got to be a way to end all this," Donnie insisted. "Can you get Leonardo and Raphael to meet me?"

"I can try." she answered.

Karai, now grey haired as well, walked over to the Shredder, kneeling down to him. "My lord, I bring news."

"Speak Karai." Shredder was in his room as his large shadow cast over Karai.

"Our enforcers were in a skirmish near the turtle's old lair. Sensors have identified the attacker. It is the turtle, Donatello." she reported.

"So, the prodigal son have returned. Excellent. I want Donatello's head brought here before me with or without his body." Shredder smirked, evilly. "Better yet, I will send out my most loyal assassin to go after him. I know she'll finish the job." A slim figure of a woman walked up to Karai as she came out from the shadows.

Karai's eyes widen, seeing who it was...she turned back to the Shredder and bowed her head slightly.

"Yes master," the woman told him. "I will do as you command."

It was in the middle of the night as one of Shredder's blimps flew over the city. A figure in a black coat appeared in front of a old museum and ran inside of it, it was Leo. He was heavily scarred and was now blind as he wore black glasses. He heard someone jumped down behind him and pulled out his weapon turning around to face them. It was Raph.

His left eye was missing, and was wearing a familiar brown jacket and fingerless gloves.

"What the shell are you doing here?" he asked.

"Raph?" Leo asked, surprised. "April's guys didn't say anything about you being here."

"Oh, what's the matter, Leo? Need I remind you how you made us abandoned Master Splinter and Yuuki when they needed us most!" Raph glared angrily, pushing Leo. "Mona would still be here right now."

"It's what he wanted Raph! To save us!" Leo shouted. "If we had gone back there, we would have all been destroyed! How dare you bring Yuuki into this!"

"How dare I?!" Raph argued. "We could have saved them!"

"You know we couldn't!" Leo explained, angrily. "It was their choice!"

"No!" Raph growled, pushing him away.

"Alright, Raph, I'm through talking! Let's settle this once and for all!" The two brothers were about to strike each other when a staff swung out, knocking them both down to the ground. Raph sat up, his eyes going wide in disbelief, seeing Donnie.

"What?" He gasped in still shock.

"Leo, Raph, we need to talk," Donnie put away his bo staff and held out to hands, helping the two up.

"Donnie? No way!" Raph hugged him. Donnie's eyes widen in surprise. Raph wasn't exactly the type of person to hug someone. This was a shocker for him.

"Donatello! You're back! I don't believe it!" Leo commented happily.

"Believe it," Mikey said, walking up to them along with April and Venus. "And brainiac here wants to go up against the Shredder."

"We've already tried it Donnie. How do you think we lost Casey and the others?" Leo explained.

"The Shredder's palace is surround by an army of Foot police," Raph added.

"And Utrominators," Leo continued.

"And Karai Legions." Raph finished.

"You can't even get inside to fight him," Leo replied.

"And if you could, you couldn't beat him," Everyone turned to see Hun and Stockman as they wheeled up. "The Shredder's new exosuit is stronger than ever. I should know, I designed it."

"It's impossible," Leo explained.

"It can't be done, Donnie," Raph said, solemnly. "It's hopeless."

"I don't know what happened to you guys, but the turtles that I knew believe that nothing's ever hopeless." Donnie clenches his fist, placing his hands on Leo and Raph's shoulder. "Please, we can do this."

Leo and Raph looked at each other. Raph held out his hand, for Leo to shake it and he did.

"Alright, Donnie," Leo spoke. "We'll do this one more time, but please, tell me that we have a fighting chance."

"I've been working up a plan," Donnie explained. "Do we have any hardware? Exosuits? Anything?"

"Well, we've captured a Karai Legion bot that Dr. Stockman has been modifying," Venus answered, jerking her thumb at Hun and Stockman.

"Good, that's a start," Donnie replied. "But, there's something we'll need from the lair."

"The lair?" Raph asked, surprised. "It got wasted years ago."

"Not all of it." Donnie told him.

As everyone walked away leaving the museum. Leo suddenly stopped. Donnie and the others turned to him.

"Is there something wrong?" Donnie asked.

"Yeah, what's the hold up?" Raph questioned.

"It's quiet. Too quiet." Leo told them. "We're being watched."

"That's impossible. I carefully made sure that we could met discretely," April answered. Suddenly, a couple of shurikens flew out heading towards Donnie, as well as Leo. Donnie dodged as he jumped out of the way from the projectiles, while Leo deflected some with his sword.

"Assassin!" Mikey called out. Pointing to the roof tops, seeing a shadowy figure up top. Raph and Leo chased after them. Donnie turned April and Venus.

"Wait, here with Hun and Stockman," he told them. Then Mikey and him went after Leo and Raph, following them.

Raph and Leo, along with Mikey and Donnie landed on the roof tops. They searched around, looking for the assailant, but saw no one. Suddenly, someone lunged out from the shadows, heading towards Donnie. Donnie held them back with his staff as he blocked their knife with it. His eyes widen and he gasped in shock, Mikey, Leo, and Raph, as well.

"Yuuki?!" Donnie shouted.

She looked older as well. Her long hair was chopped, reaching down to her neck, with some small grey hairs here and there. She was wearing a fishnet garment, with a pink shirt over it, a long red scarf wrapped around her neck, worn out blue jeans.

"Yuuki?" Leo called out. She didn't even turn to look at him. Her sights were dead set on Donnie.

"How did she even survive?" Raph asked surprised to see her as well.

"Ask questions later," Mikey told them. "Right now, we need to stop her."

Donnie noticed a strange device attached to Yuuki's head with a foot symbol on it.

"Sorry about this, Yuuki," Donnie apologized and then he kicked her away from him. Leo charged at her, trying to disarm her.

"Guys, she's being controlled!" Donnie called out. "There's a device on the side of her head. If we destroy it, she should be able to snap out of it!"

"Smash it? You're talking my language," Raph smirked. He and Mikey charged, running towards Yuuki and Leo. Leo tried to hold her where she was till Raph and Mikey got there, but was knocked away. She turned to Donnie and ran towards him. She was fast and more than agile than Donnie remembered. This was going to be difficult.

"Snap of it, kiddo!" Raph shouted. Yuuki spun around and kicked Raph knocking him back while Mikey jumped and swung his nunchuck at her, hoping to hit the device.

Yuuki rolled out of the way, then sweeped her leg underneath Mikey, knocking him to the ground. Leo jumped at her bring his sword down.

"I'm sorry, Yuuki," Leo replied. "But this is for you own good!" He managed to slice the device off, breaking it.

Yuuki stopped with her knife raised in the air and blinked. She looked down to see Donnie underneath her.

"Donnie?" she asked confused, but happy to see him. "Y-You're back!"

"I've been getting that a lot lately," Donnie replied, sighing in relief. Yuuki got off of him then froze and turned to the other three brothers. "Raph? Mikey?" she paused when she saw Leo. "Leo?"

"You don't know how happy I am to see you," Raph replied. Yuuki noticed that Raph was wearing her brown jacket, now looking worn and weathered.

"Is that my jacket?" she asked.

"I found it after you disappeared," he told her. Raph was about to take it off when Yuuki stopped him.

"Keep it. It looks good on you," she told him. Leo walked over to her.

"We thought that you were dead," Leo replied. "How did you make it out?"

"I was captured," Yuuki explained. "The only the I remembered was telling you to leave me and to save Raph and Mikey after Splinter was struck down. Then the next thing, here I am."

"You've been under the Shredder's control," Donnie explained to her. "But, not anymore. I putting an end to this."

"How?" she asked.

"I'll explain on the way," Donnie told her. Leo stepped over to her.

"By the way, I think you'll be need this back," he handed Yuuki her tessen. She smiled took it from him.

"It's great to see you again, Leo,"

"Wish I could say the same," Leo replied. Yuuki frowned until they widen when she noticed scars near Leo's eyes, realizing that he was blind. She reached out and pulled the strap that held Leo's katana pulling her closer to him.

"Yuuki, what are you-" Leo felt a pair of lips brush across his as Yuuki kissed him.

Utrom slaves flew over the Shredder's lair, while Karai walked into the room, bowing in front of Shredder. "Master, the Utrom slaves have finished building the transmat. It will be operational in two hours."

"Excellent," he told her. Then the Tunneler bursted out from the ground. The door opened. "Who dares?" Mikey jumped out then Leo, Yuuki, Venus and Raph. Donnie stepped out wearing an exosuit from a Karai legion bot standing in front of them.

"Can the Shredder come out and play?" he called out, teasing.

"So," Karai moved out of the way as the doors open. "The turtles have been reunited." The Shredder stepped out, wearing an massive heavily armored exosuit covered in blades. The evil Utrom was wrinkly, from age, and color was a slightly lighter tone. "It is 30 years over due and I will finally end your pathetic lives!" He stated.

"Shredder!" Donnie growled. Your reign of terror is over!"

"Legions!" Karai called out. "Attack!" The Karai legion bots ran around Donnie and the others surrounding them. "Destroy them all!" They deployed their weapons and attacked.

"For Master Splinter!" Donnie shouted, firing from the weapons of his suit. April stepped out with a mini rocket gun in hand, firing at the bots, fighting them as well. Hun wheeled out of the Tunneler.

"Hun, stop!" ?Stockman protested in fear and in anger as well. "What are you doing?! We're suppose to stay in the Tunneler!"

"Master, please!" Hun begged as he stopped at the Shredder. "Take me back!"

"What?" Stockman asked surprised.

"I'll serve you! Please!" Hun insisted.

"Hun, what are you doing?" Stockman argued.

"Exterminating you two traitors will be an added bonus for today's great victory," Shredder declared, raising his foot over Hun and Stockman.

"Aw, crud." Shredder crushes them with his foot, smiling evilly. Leo, Yuuki, Raph, Mikey are surround by Karai bots.

"Come on! We gotta buy Donnie a little more time. Keep the bots busy!" Mikey told them. He ran up to a bot and started to attack it with his nunchuck. Mikey ducked as the bot striked with it's sword then he wrapped his nunchuck around it and threw the bot over his shoulder. He dodges out of the way as a silver bot attacked him. Mikey landed on the floor but was soon surrounded as well. "Donnie! Donnie! I'm-"

Slices were heard as Mikey screamed.

"Mikey! No!" Donnie shouted. The bots moved out of the way revealing Mikey lying on the floor dead. The bots turned their attention to Donnie and ran at him while Donnie knocked them away.

"You'll pay for this Shredder!" he exclaimed rushing to the Shredder. "If it's the last thing I do, you will pay!" Donnie fired multiple laser at the Shredder in rage. He stopped raising an cautious eyebrow when a hand suddenly emerged from the smoke, grabbing him, lifting Donnie up.

"Thirty years and this is all you have? Truly pathetic," Shredder spatted out, ripping the arms off from Donnie's exosuit. Donnie screamed as he landed on the floor. "Disgusting creature." He kicked Donnie away from him.

"Donnie!" Leo and Yuuki called out.

Shredder was about to grab Donnie but he was kicked back. Venus stood in front of Donnie standing between the Shredder and him.

"Don't you touch him!" she shouted.

"Venus, get out of here!" Donnie called out, trying to get his suit back online.

"No!" Venus argued. "I'm going to lose you again!" Donnie's eyes widen when he saw the Shredder inching closer to Venus.

"Venus, watch out!" he tried to warn her. She turned around, but the Shredder grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up. She tried to break free from his hold. Shredder laughed. Venus gasped as the Shredder began to squeeze her throat tighter.

"Leave her alone," Donnie shouted. "I'm the one you want!" Donnie heard a snap and Venus went limp. He felt his heart stop as he saw Shredder toss her and she fell to the floor, dead.

"Shredder!" Donnie roared in rage. "You are going to pay for this."

Two Karai bots attacked Leo and Yuuki. The two took them out, when Karai ran towards them, sword drawn.

"I beg you," she pleaded. "Leave this place or you will force me to do that which my duty commands."

Leo knocked her back while Yuuki kicked her away but Karai grabbed Yuuki by her leg and swung her, causing her to smack into Leo, sending them crashing into an display case.

"Not this time, Karai," Leo shook his head. "This time you have to make a choice! Once and for all!" He and Yuuki jumped at Karai, attacking her. Leo picked up a severed bot arm and swung it at her. Karai kicked Yuuki knocking her down while Leo managed to grab Karai and threw her over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Karai," he murmured. "I never wanted it to be this way." He raised his sword over his head but a bot approached at him from behind. Leo turned around and slices it, severing the bot. Karai picked up her sword. Yuuki's eyes widen and she ran, realizing what Karai was going to do. Leo felt a heavy weight against his shell. Karai stared in shock with wide eyes as she stepped back. Leo's eyes widen when he heard Yuuki groan and turned around. He felt a long extension coming from Yuuki's stomach, and gasped realizing that she had been impaled with Karai's sword. Karai pulled it out in shock. Yuuki fell back, falling into his arms as Leo caught her.

"No, no, no, no," Leo panicked, as he applied pressure to Yuuki's stomach to stop the bleeding. "Stay with me!" Leo felt her place a hand on his cheek and he grabbed it holding it.

"Leo, I love y-" Leo felt Yuuki's hand slip from his as it fell. Her eyes glazed over, dead. Leo cried as he held Yuuki closer to him. Then Karai slashed at Leo, slicing him across his back. He gasped.

"Forgive me, Leonardo." Karai murmured. Leo fell to the floor, dropping Yuuki as he fell beside her, dead.

"Leo! Yuuki! NO!" Raph yelled in rage. He tackled Karai, who kicked into an display case. Raph tossed shards of glass at her, but she slices it. Then Raph kicks Karai down, knocking her to the floor. He leaps into the air to kick at her again. But, Karai slices Raph on his stomach, knocking him over to Leo and Yuuki.

"Leo...Yuuki..." he crawled over to them, before falling on top of them, dead. Karai sadly looked down at the three.

"Karai!" she looked over at April who had a missile launcher over her shoulder. "End of the line." Karai charged at her only for April to fire a missile back, hitting her. April narrowed her eyes at Karai as she tried to get up.

"Master...I am finished." she falls to the floor, dead. Shredder laughed as Donnie stood up.

"You are the last of your kind Donatello," Shredder told him. He grabs Donnie, lifting up. "And now, I will crush you like the insignificant worm you are!"

"You always did claim victory before you actually won," Donnie spatted out. "This whole attack was to get you into position to do this!" He pressed a button from the exosuit and chains shot out from the Tunneler, wrapping around him and Shredder.

"What?! What is happening?" Shredder demanded. The Tunneler's drill came on, now pulling the two closer to it. "No! I am the Shredder!" Donnie slipped out of the suit just in time as the drill slashed Shredder to bits, destroying him.

"It's done."

April dropped her missile launcher as Donnie walked past her. "My brothers, my sister, my poor siblings. This world, this future, it's a nightmare."

"It was a nightmare, Don." April replied.

"But, you, Leo, Raph, Mikey, Yuuki and Venus," Donnie squeezed his eyes, remembering everyone that had fell. "You gave us back our future."

Just as Donnie was about to say something, he started to phase shift again. "April! It's happening again! Somethings pulling me away! It's stronger this time!"

"Donnie! Remember! There's always hope! No matter what!" April called out. He disappears and she spoke softly. "And thank you."

The sun began to rise on the city of New York, starting a new day, free from the Shredder's reign.