#rina is a wiggle

[vampwan]

ᯓ★ just a growing family.

[sage-is-in-fact-very-tired]

《▪︎▪︎》

Or - Rina makes a comment. Sparrow finds it funny.

《▪︎▪︎》

"You should put youre chestplate on, I don't wanna mess up your wingss-"

The words trickle into their ears as they respawn - setting their spawn at the arena a forgetten step. They almost laugh at them. Sparrow more laughs at themself, wing ears drooping in amusement. "*Little* late for that, Rina."

They wiggle out of the blankets of the spawn bed, elytra getting tangled momentarily in the fabrics. "May have already beaten you to that particular punch." The muscles in their back tense and spasm - old aches running beside their spine, and a fresh new one blooming along his right shoulder. "*Did* beat me to that one- Ow-"

Sparrow huffs as they wiggle their wings free, rockets finding easy place in her hand. "I still don't know how I forgot i still had these on. Gods I'm stupid sometimes-" Is ferns small gumble as they glide back to the arena - finding easy place pertched beside Gilded.

(It's-

Fine.

The comment doesn't get to them very much - it wasn't mean spirited. It was just Rina being, well, Rina.

Sparrow just doesn't like thinking about that very often.

Maybe they should, eventually.

But-

Killing their friends in combat might be the better option at the moment. Maybe they'll even be able to kill Rina at some point. It'd sure be funny.)

《▪︎▪︎》

[intertwined-fates]

DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND! FOX/ANNOUNCER X FEMALE-PRESENTING MC

CONTENT WARNING: Menophilia (period bloodplay), CNC, lactation **18+ ONLY NO MINORS**

@decafdoodlez c/mmissioned this for her OC Rina and kindly is letting me share it with you all! Fox/Announcer belongs to Gatobob. The writing belongs to me. DO NOT STEAL MY WORK.

***

“I taught you better than this,” Stammered Fox, his golden optics a mix between fury and disappointment. His ears and tail twitched as he paced around you disapprovingly. It was rare to see him so upset, especially toward his star subject. Fox failed to consider that he had no true reason to be upset.

“I’m… confused, sir,” You responded, your voice clear in tone yet puzzled. It was not out of disobedience, but rather true confusion. You wore a strikingly bright pastel pink lingerie set, long white netted stockings, and a lack of panties. The top piece barely covered your breasts, exposing your areola. Your chest would be fully exposed if it weren’t for the heart piece covering your nipples. Soft nubs perked through the tiny bit of lace material, practically welcoming whomever in view to imagine what it would be like to have a taste.

It was for this very reason that infuriated Fox. You looked too beautiful. Too goddamn alluring. And something felt off. There was a looming scent in the air driving him mad. It smelt… metallic. One could argue it might be his mask, however, it had a particular aroma that he couldn’t quite place his finger upon. His tail fluffed and frizzed up as he struggled to make sense of the feelings bubbling up in his chest. Fox was so entangled in his own thoughts and possessive nature that he didn’t realize you had spoken to him. 

“Sir… You look troubled. Have I done something wrong?” You questioned with a bit of hesitation held within your words when you spoke up again. You would never ask a question if you weren’t genuinely worried for your master. He was acting strange and it was beginning to spark a bit of anxiety. You brought your hands together, sliding your palms across one another for comfort. You hoped he would not think of you poorly for asking a question. You had seen him truly infuriated before and it never ended well. Fox finally stopped pacing. He first closed his eyes and sighed heavily while running his hands through his graying hair.  Once his eyes opened again, he noticed a trail of blood dripping down your thighs. Now Fox was the confused one… and he stared at the blood. He hadn’t touched you yet today, as it was extremely early in the morning and they were supposed to be streaming by now. The realization finally clicked in alongside primal instinct. His claws or tools were not responsible for the blood. You must have started your period. He couldn’t stop staring as the blood taunted him.

“Y/N.” His voice was sharp and tainted by what only one could identify as carnal desire. His nose and ears wiggled. It took every bit of self-control to approach you calmly. This control was short-lived. He grabbed your thighs, forcing them apart. There was no time for consent; not that he would have considered anyway. Your body belonged to him. Your blood began to flow more, freed from the trap that was your plump thighs. You felt a squeak leave your throat, a soft blush blossoming across your cheeks at the sudden grab. The failure to notice you were bleeding caught you off guard, amplifying your reaction. How embarrassing… “You’re too tempting. Bleeding like this… what were you thinking?” He snarled between words, moving to his knees while gripping your thighs. His claws raked down the soft, sensitive skin as he settled beneath you. One hand remained on your thigh while the other raised a finger. He had recently filed his nails to a point. You caught a glimpse of his nails and recognized this demeanor. You knew what would come next and did not dare to deny him. Your body existed for him and he alone.

Fox admired your bleeding pussy before testing the claw against your clit. It poked out, the usual response when Fox would touch you. He knew your body better than you knew it yourself. He had much more experience exploring your body and limits than you ever had. You were a virgin when you had met and he loved knowing he was the only person who had ever laid hands on you. The only person who had been inside you. A cackle left him as the pad of his finger and the tip of his claw moved from your clit to trace along your outer lips. They were somewhat swollen from bloating and the rush of pleasure. 

You let out another soft sound as your Master touched you. You moved a hand to cover your mouth. You then bit on your lower lip, flustered by how fascinated he appeared by your cunt. He had fucked and played with you various times… and shockingly never did on your time of the month. It was a new side of him you had never seen before. His tongue lapped up the blood and explored the depths of your cove. You now gushed both blood and your own slick wet as he pleasured you. You couldn’t help feeling aroused even more seeing Fox on his knees. It was a rare sight to see. Sure, Fox had pampered you before… but having him beneath you? It was an honor and you knew you needed to be thankful.

“I-I might cum, sir.” You mouthed, escaping your lips barely above a whisper. It was soon into the intimacy… but you couldn’t help yourself. He had never eaten your pussy before! He was practically devouring you. You moved your hands to stroke in between and behind his ears. He moaned as he enjoyed your pets and continued to explore your cunt. He massaged every inch and suckled on your delicate nub until his face was covered in your blood. His nails dug deep into your outer thighs. 

Hearing you might cum, he growled and pulled back to look at you. You would notice the fresh blood coating his lips and smeared across his cheeks in random splotches. The primal craze in his eyes glinted your way. “Cum on my face, Y/N! I won’t be satisfied until you do.” It sounded more like a threat rather than a demand. 

You felt your core swell and your body becoming overwhelmed with warmth and pleasure. Your clit twitched and your body somewhat twisted as you came all over Fox’s face. Much to his surprise, you had squirted. The string of fluid collided with his tongue as he had ensured his face was near your cunt. He lapped at the leftover mess, indulging and even more heated than he was before the start. He wasn’t ready for this to be over yet. He needed more. He bit on your outer pussy lips and grazed his fangs across your clit, causing you to emit a scream. 

He finally pulled back from your cunt to observe your reaction. You were crying from how rough he had been with his tongue and fangs. You couldn’t help squeezing your thighs together in a weak attempt to mask the pain. The pressure somewhat helped disguise the ache. He laughed at you, now moving to push you onto their bed. Your body sunk against the plush mattress and helped you relax somewhat comforted by the silk sheets. That moment didn’t last long as he removed his clothing followed by pinning you down. He pressed the tip of his throbbing cock into your bloodied cunt before roughly thrusting down to his base. His knot ached as it dragged within your tight walls. The blood and your previous orgasm acted as lube as he pounded into your pussy. His hands traveled across your body, worshipping every curve and soft part of you. He fell even more deeply in love with you during this moment. You whimpered and moaned as your pussy swallowed his cock. You raised your legs as you were trained to and moved them around his hips to amplify both of your pleasure. He followed your cue by moving into a mating press, breeding deep inside you. He felt his knot latch. 

“You’re about to take a very deep creampie, sweetie.” 

Your *eye color* hues snapped open as he whispered into your ear. A shiver traveled down your spine. You looped your arms around his shoulders and humped against him. He snarled before biting down on your neck. A familiar pop sounded and Fox released inside of his favorite pet. You felt yourself being filled, surely dripping outside your cunt and around your master’s cock. He didn’t stop slamming into you even after he came. He peppered your body with more bite marks and paid special attention to your breasts. His thrusting slowed to a leisurely pace as he began to suck on your nipples. His hands massaged your hips as he suckled. 

Another surprise.

A warm milky fluid seeped from your nipple as his tongue trailed along the nub. Were you lactating? He brought his head back for another moment to take a look. You were leaking milk from both breasts. This shouldn’t be possible as you’d never been pregnant before… but he had heard it could happen in rare occurrences. He chuckled and smirked up at you. He pinched your nipple and more milk dribbled out. You winched and squeaked as your master played with your new faucets. He latched his lips back onto your right nipple while his hand massaged your left. He continued to thrust inside of your pussy in a more slow, loving rhythm. The mix of feeling his fingers, tongue, and cock forced you to moan whorishly and orgasm again. 

“Y/N… You never cease to amaze me.” Fox mouthed against your breast and brought his thrusts to a stop. He slowly brought them out of the mating press and into a more comfortable cuddling position. His cock left your cunt with another pop and you emitted another whimper. Fox moved a hand to your cheek, caressing your bright, rosy pink cheeks. He admired you, the smirk being replaced with a soft expression. He sighed contently before sighing. His tail thumped happily against the mattress before settling around your waist like a blanket. You smiled back at him, the sensations of their heated moment leaving you feeling both cradled and mutilated. Their love is truly the death of peace of mind.

[immodestly-marina]

do i have a day off today? yes.

are there two req’s sitting in my inbox that have my giggling and wiggling my toes? oh, yes.

am i going to write em? what the hell, sure.

backstreets Rina’s back alr 👏

[eventuallyaugust]

matchmaker ep. 2: the chaos within us

now playing... clean bandit - rather be (feat. jess glynne)

hyunseol is running away from karina who was chasing her with an apple pie on her hand in a huge grass field. she stops for a moment to catch her breath while maintaining a good distance away from the shorter idol, pointing a finger at the latter. "don't you dare throw that pie to me, rina."

"and what if i do dare?", karina challenges as she smirks with a tilt of her head before she starts chasing hyunseol who immediately dashed away to avoid a cruel fate from the sm idol.

just then, karina's voiceover starts playing as the video of the two idols running in the background, both still having fun. "love gives us that rush of excitement whenever we're around our special someone. often times, it'll be the only reason why we smile so much our cheeks start to hurt or why there is a sudden urge to let out a scream just to let out that overflowing unexplainable happiness filling your chest."

then hyunseol's voiceover plays as the two idols who were previously running away from each other are now laying on the grass with the pie smudged on their faces and some pieces fall on their clothes while they share laughter on the conversation they're having without a care on the mess on their clothes. "love motivates us to enter a relationship due to all the experiences other people have and that pushes us to wish for something like that, but that shouldn't be the reason. it should never be. we should only enter a relationship because we love the person, not the idea of them doing romantic things for us."

"because if you do, then that's not love anymore and you're not loving them for them", the voiceover of both idols then harmonize as hyunseol wipes the piece of pie away from the corner of karina's lips. they share a smile, their eyes disappearing from their cheeks as the bighit idol cups the aespa member's face in her hands.

cut.

the camera turns on and shows karina immediately leaning forward. her eyebrows wiggle as she has a smile forming over her lips before she giggles and waves at the camera. "helloo, helloo, everyone~"

her manager, wheein throws the idol a quick look and focuses back on the road while she smiles at the sight of the idol. "rina-yah, i didn't get to ask this the last time, but how was your first date with hyunseol?"

the sm idol leans against her seat and throws her manager a look before she falls in her thoughts as several moments of her and hyunseol flash in her mind. a smile then appears over her face and her eyes meet the camera before she looks away and looks at her manager, still smiling.

caption: i'd say it was good date, manager unnie. if karina's smile wasn't obvious enough

"it was good, unnie. i had so much fun with her, so i'm really looking forward to this second date."

"good." the manager nods and steps on the brake before turning to the idol with a smile. "here we are, good luck on your date."

caption: i'm surprised manager wheein didn't tease karina like manager yongsun did to hyunseol in the 1st ep

karina nods and bids her manager goodbye with a hug before she hops out of the car and waves the latter off as wheein drives away. she then turns to the huge establishment behind her.

a cameraman then catches her arrival and karina winks at the camera that shakes after, making the sm idol giggle. the idol then looks around and spots hyunseol's tall figure amidst the huge crowd that formed around her and the production team.

the aespa member immediately makes a beeline towards them and when the txt member spots her, she receives a wide smile from the taller idol before she sees the bighit idol approaching her while announcing, "please make way for my girlfriend, thank you very much."

caption: seol already making her claim on karina and it's making me swoon

"why are you telling them i'm your girlfriend? you haven't popped the question to me yet." karina tilts her head as she looks up to hyunseol with a raised brow while the latter looks down at her with the most teasing smirk the sm idol has ever seen. "wipe that smirk off your face, your charms will not work for me."

hyunseol gently bumps into karina and playfully rolls her eyes while not even trying to fight off a smile. "bold of you to assume i'm using my charms to you right now."

"aren't your name oh hyunseol?"

the bighit idol throws the sm idol a look, blinking. "yeah, what about it, princess?"

"then you wouldn't be oh hyunseol without your famous charm." the crowd around the couple let out out a bunch of "oh's" and their synced reaction make hyunseol laugh. "see? even the crowd knows."

"okay, my bad, princess, but you should know that this so-called charm of mine is only for you."

"matchz for life!"

the couple looks where the shout came from and sees someone holding a huge sign that contains an edited picture of karina and hyunseol in a mirror selca. if anyone will look at the picture, they will think that the picture is real because like the bighit idol, she blinks several times and thinks if she already took a selca with karina or not.

hyunseol squints and examines the picture before smirking and pointing at the sign. "you guys are insane for editing me and karina together, but i must say, that picture looks good. you almost had me fool, man."

the crowd cheers, the couple basking in the attention before karina wraps an arm around the taller idol and looks up at the latter as she surprises hyunseol by saying, "why can we just give them a picture together so they don't have to break a sweat editing us together?"

the bighit idol looks down and smiles as she gently boops karina's nose. "sure. i'm a-okay with anything you want, babe."

the crowd squeals and hyunseol's eyes widen at the sudden loudness before she laughs it off and wraps an arm around karina's shoulders that earned louder squeals from earlier. the sm idol knows what the former is doing and immediately lays her head on the taller idol's arm, gaining another wave of screams from the audience.

the couple looks at one another and laughs while looking away before hyunseol wipes a tear away with a big smile and gently lays her head against karina. "you guys are so down bad for us interacting, huh?"

immediately, they receive a loud "yes" and the taller idol nods as she kisses the crown of karina's head, another cue for screams before she faces the crowd. "we will drop some pictures, but it will probably be posted after the matchmaker ends. can you guys still hold onto some edited pics of me and karina?"

"hell yeah!" "we're willing to wait for the pictures!"

hyunseol throws the camera a quick look with slightly widened eyes due to the fans' profanity before smiling it off. "alright, thank you for being a good sport, everyone!"

[some explanations will be provided in the behind-the-scenes (which will not be posted until every matchmaker ep is finished)]

hyunseol and karina share a look before turning to the producer with a matching nervous smile. the bighit idol starts the conversation while scratching her nape. "heyyy, gong pd-nim."

"what's up?", karina continues while nervously chuckling.

"everything that has happened is my fault, pd-nim, and... and—", hyunseol immediately starts off, giving karina no time to think about the words she needs to say.

the sm idol whips her head at the taller idol in disbelief and says, "what— no! it's my fault!" before she turns the producer and approaches him while pointing at herself. "i suggested the idea, so it's should be my fault, not hyunseol's. it's mine."

hyunseol looks down at karina with a shake of her head. "but i'm the one who urged you to do it, so it is—"

caption: karina and hyunseol are both really going head-to-head on who's more greenflag than the other

"settle down, you two. whatever you guys did on the first day is excused, so now it's okay. we're okay." the producer waves his hands dismissively with a smile. "all of you guys caught great footages, although i don't highly advise you two on ditching us again. next time, just tell me if you guys want to be left alone. i'm sure the production team and i can improvise if you just told us, you know?"

caption: gong pd-nim really said matchz privileges ‼️

"... really?", karina asks. hyunseol throws sm idol a look and smiles at the camera before raising her eyebrows in a brief manner.

caption: why are you looking at us like that, hyunseol?? are you planning something again that we are totally on-board??

"yes, now let's start today's date, shall we?" the two idols nod as their hands immediately find each other and they look around the area, seeing different rides to go to and games to play.

"so where should we go first?", the couple asks in unison as they look at one another and realizes their unintentional synchronization, making both of them giggle.

caption: they're so in sync with one another their brains are thinking of the same things

"okay, okay, you first. what ride or game should we try first? i'm down with anything." karina starts to look around as she falls in deep thoughts, weighing her options before she looks at hyunseol and the latter's smile widens even more. "yes, princess?"

"i want to try that one." hyunseol squints to the direction where the aespa member last looked and sees the milk bottle pyramid booth before looking back at karina with a nod while smiling.

"sure thing, princess. lead the way." the crowd around them gives them a way and the couple bows, thanking the people as the audience surrounds them but still gives the space the idols need.

"come in, everyone! knock them all over and win a prize your heart desires!", the barker exclaims with the wide smile on his lips before he notices karina and hyunseol approaching and motions them to his booth. "would you like to try?"

karina immediately steps forward as hyunseol follows behind, eyeing the milk bottles in silence. the sm idol pays for five softballs and the bighit idol immediately steps forward with a smile while saying, "hey, let me carry those balls so you can concentrate on winning, princess."

the aespa member gives the balls to hyunseol without hesitation, not thinking too much about the request since the word gentlewoman always has been the txt member's middle name. the camera pans to karina holding one softball and hyunseol steps away a bit to examine the balls in her hold.

the bighit idol casually holds three balls with one arm while she weighs one softball in her other hand, looking very deep in thoughts. she then blinks, shakes her head slightly, and looks away as she subtly glares at the barker behind the camera.

the bighit idol steps forward and stands beside karina who turned to her and grabbed another softball, throwing it but failed to reach the stacked bottles. the sm idol pouts and grabs another ball before throwing it and hitting a bottle but none of them fall as hyunseol's stare on the bottles hardens.

in frustration, karina grabs the remaining balls and starts to throw it without a care as hyunseol averts her eyes to look at the shorter idol, seeing the frown forming over the latter's face. the bighit idol immediately wraps an arm around karina's waist and successfully catches the latter's attention, seeing a pout on the aespa's lips.

hyunseol smiles as she gently pokes the 5'6 foot idol's cheek, tilting her head. "aw, my baby is frustrated?"

karina's pout deepens as she nods and the txt member smiles wider, softly squishing the shorter idol's cheeks while baby-talking to the former. "aww, do you want me to win you a prize?"

caption: an amusement park date isn't complete if one doesn't try to win their gf a stuffed toy

"yes, please." the txt member nods and turns to the barker, handing him money with a clenched jaw and a small glare.

"one game, please." the taller idol sees the barker gulp and smirks slightly as she removes her arm from karina's waist and grabs the balls from the man. in one swift motion, she throws the softballs with the bottles getting hit with each throw as a scowl starts to form on the aespa member's face, getting suspicious with each second passing by.

"hey, those bottles should be downed by now since hyunseol always hit them, but why are they still standing?"

"it's because the game is rigged." the sm idol throws her partner a look and sees the latter's eyes trained on the barker. "it's either the softball is too light to throw or the bottles are filled with lead or something along those lines, so no matter hard someone tries to throw the balls or hit the bottles, no win is guaranteed."

"h-how did you—"

hyunseol immediately cuts the man off with a sharp glare. "it's not my first time playing your milk bottle pyramid game, mister. and also, this isn't the first time you get called out for it. some former customers of yours did this years ago and you got humiliated that your booth remained vacant, so i'm surprised to see you here again."

karina starts off, "it's still unfair to treat your customers like this, you know—"

the barker glares at karina and snarls. "don't talk to me as if—"

"maybe that's why fate hasn't been so kind to you. you have been treating people with unfairly and unkindly, so you received the same treatment. also, don't disrespect my girl right here. she's just pointing out the wrong things you've done since you decided to neglect it", hyunseol states as she keeps a small staring contest with the barker.

caption: people fr be needing to change because what is this behavior, sir??

hyunseol then turns to karina with a soft smile and offers her arm to the latter. "come on, babe. let's just find another game to play."

the couple immediately walks away with matching shakes of their heads and before any of the pair could say anything, hyunseol feels a strong force coming their way with her guts warning her and immediately grabs ahold of karina's elbow before accidentally pulling the latter and making the aespa member fall in her arms.

the txt member plays it off by smiling down at karina and winking, maintaining her cool. "sorry for that, princess. i thought i saw a bug in your hair, but it seems like i'm wrong, so i'm sorry."

"it's okay—"

"ack!" both idols turn to look and let out a gasp, seeing one of the two cameraman being hit by the glass from the broken camera lens. hyunseol assesses the situation as she asks in worry, "what's happened?"

dong pd-nim states with a grim expression, "a tennis ball hit the camera lens and they shattered. we lost one camera to use, but that's the least of our problems now. our cameraman needs medical attention quickly." he then takes the broken camera away from the cameraman and hyunseol immediately crouches in front of the staff, closely examining his face and his hands that were both bleeding out from the small lenses. "how is he, hyunseol?"

"he needs to get rushed to the hospital immediately. i'm not sure if there are still broken lenses on his face, or worse, his eyes." hyunseol then meets the producer's eyes with a nod and throws her manager a look. "call an ambulance, unnie. let's not take a chance when it comes to his well-being."

the txt member then looks around the area and meets several concerned passersby looking over the injured staff before her eyes catch a man smirking at her and immediately turn away when she caught a camera towards her, fear and worry both accumulating her chest. she clenches her hand into a fist, trying not to show the worry on her face but she didn't know if she succeeded.

an ambulance immediately arrives and takes the injured staff before the clip gets cut to hyunseol looking at the area where the cameraman once stood with a clenched jaw. the bighit idol looks away and looks over the shorter idol, seeing the unreadable expression over the latter's face.

"i hope he's okay...", karina mutters in a whisper, still shocked at the quick turn of the events. the bighit idol looks away and looks over the shorter idol and sees the unreadable expression over the latter's face. hyunseol notices her behavior, approaching the short idol before the aespa member then senses the taller idol's presence beside her and looks up at the latter. "yes, seol?"

"he's going to be fine, okay? he's in the hospital now, let's just offer a prayer and support for his recovery." karina nods, her eyes spotting a small spot of blood on the concrete and she doesn't know if hyunseol also spots the dried ichor on the ground or not. "penny for your thoughts?"

karina suddenly looks up at hyunseol who jerked her head back, getting surprised by the former and tilts her head at the latter. "wait... a tennis ball shattered the camera lens, right?"

"yeah?", the txt member answers, her eyes darting between her and the camera without any thought in her mind.

"and that cameraman was filming me, right?" hyunseol nods and sees karina's eyes meeting hers in realization with the former still pretending not to know for the sake of her past to remain six feet under the ground, where it should be. "then... that tennis ball was for me, but the cameraman got hit instead because you pulled me away from where i was standing."

caption: whoever throw that ball needs to get arrested asap because what do you have against my precious rina??

"what?", hyunseol asks in disbelief while chuckling as she shoots the producer a quick look, her eyes lowkey asking for help from the latter before immediately looking back to karina like nothing happened. "i was just missing your warmth against my arms, but i didn't think something like this will happen. it must be some kind of accident, you know. i just saw—"

"then how can—"

gong pd-nim immediately separates the couple with his hands on their shoulders, tension hanging in the air between the two. "settle down, lovebirds. i'm sure it's an accident, because if it isn't, then i'll sue whoever did it. i just lost one of my best cameramen and an expensive equipment. i won't let that slide, but since there'll be no one who will admit who did it, then i have no choice but to just forgive and move forward."

"okay, maybe you're right", karina says in defeat as she pouts. hyunseol sees a forming frown on the woman's face as guilt starts to shape inside her chest and immediately looks around for anything that could cheer the sm idol up before spotting something and running away. karina's pouts deepens at the taller idol's sudden absence and out of nowhere, she hears the bighit idol shout, "hey, rina-yah!"

the aespa member turns her head to see hyunseol walking up to her with the biggest smile on her face while holding up two cotton candies, one is color blue and the other is pink. "what do you want?"

"but what about you?", karina asks, perplexed.

hyunseol stands firm, holding out the cotton candies. "but you choose first."

"but—"

"pretty please?", hyunseol asks while pouting and using her infamous puppy eyes along with her baby voice which she usually uses to huening kai but desperate times call for desperate measures (she isn't the type of person to be desperate but at this moment? she's ready to pull any string she has to console and comfort and distract karina). "could you pretty please pick first, my gorgeous wonderful beautiful pretty princess?"

caption: seol really using everything at her disposal to make karina cave in

"fine. hm... i can't choose", karina states with a small pout and meets hyunseol's eyes, looking up at her innocently. "maybe i can just choose your lips over these two, right? bet your lips taste better than these cotton candies."

the bighit idol smirks with a shake of her head and immediately holds the cotton candies away from her face with a snicker. "i mean, if you'd like to, i can just let you taste my lips to prove your hypothesis, because the question is..."

she leans closer to the sm idol with her height towering over the latter, her warm breath ghosting over the aespa member's lips. "do you think you can handle the taste of my lips against your own?"

caption: ayo, i think it's our time to go and hit that fast forward button because who am i to deny our parents who are in need of some alone time, am i right? 😉😏

they then both throw the camera knowing looks with matching smirks plastered over their faces before they look back at one another, their eyes staring right each other. karina immediately lands a kiss on hyunseol's cheek before the latter could even step away and the taller idol freezes, her mind malfunctioning for a moment. the bighit idol turns her head away with a blush adorning her face as she uses the cotton candies to hide the forming smile on her lips, her eyes darting everywhere but never meeting karina's.

the aespa member giggles and takes the pink cotton candy from the txt member, taking a small bite of the sweet treat. hanging her head low, hyunseol takes a small bite of her blue cotton candy as she tries not to look at the camera and the shorter idol, thinking that her heart might not be able to handle the bubbling emotion settling in the pit of her stomach.

"let me have a taste, baby", karina whispers as she pouts when hyunseol decided it's safe to look at the sm idol before the latter looked away in panic, the color red starting to paint her ears and her cheeks.

caption: what's going on?! why is seol getting flustered instead of karina??

"pretty please?" with a blank expression (trying to contain her raging heartbeats inside her chest), hyunseol takes a small pinch of her cotton candy and holds the sweet treat out to karina's lips, her eyes trained on the latter. the aespa member takes the cotton candy in her mouth and meets her eyes, flashing the latter a mischievous smirk. before the taller idol could take her hand away, she feels something damp against her fingers and her eyes widen, instinctively taking several steps away from the sm idol while throwing her a bewildered look.

the txt member feels her face grow warmer, warmer than her whole body. she now wonders if she has more blood on her face than flowing to the rest of her body considering her feet and arms feel a bit numb now. hyunseol catches the camera focused on her and immediately hangs her head low, trying not to look back at it. karina keeps her eyes trained on the bighit idol and giggles, approaching the latter.

"i'm sorry, i'm sorry. i was just trying to see if you're going to be flustered by that, but now i have my answer", karina apologizes. "i'm sorry, baby. you can do it to me too if you want. i won't be mad at you."

hyunseol throws karina a questioning look, her voice cracking a bit. "what do you mean you want to see if i'm going to be flustered by that?! you're a woman, karina and you should know what a woman can do to me!"

karina blinks, muttering, "what?"

"what do you mean what? have you been looking at yourself in front of the mirror lately? because don't tell me you aren't aware of the effect pretty and wonderful girls like you on me. i can forgive you for being devious but for being oblivious? girl, there's no cure for that." the bighit idol then stops talking as she observes the aespa member to see a blush forming on her face before she smirks at the latter. "aw, is karina getting flustered because i called her pretty?"

"s-shut up."

"make me." suddenly, karina smacks her partially-eaten cotton candy against hyunseol's lips and the latter flinches in surprise. they meet each other's eyes with silence reigning between them for a moment before they burst out in laughter as they turn away from one another, their loud laughs filling up the previous silence. the aespa member lays her hands against her cheeks, feeling the warmth radiating from the soft skin. "i-i'm sorry, i don't know what came over me and it wasn't my intention to do that to you. i'm sorry, i'm sorry."

caption: if i had friends like this two, i feel like there'll be no dull times with them around

the taller idol gently pats the other idol's head. "it's okay, rina. it's okay. it was funny, don't worry. if i only knew that you're so fun to be around beforehand, i'd talk to you sooner than we did."

karina could feel her heart melt a little. "really?"

"yeah, funny, outgoing, has a sense of humor that i can get along with, and many more. i hope you can see that you're all of those things. only fools would not notice things like that and i'm glad i'm not a fool because it's a shame not to know someone like you."

karina smiles, ignoring how hard her heart pounds against her chest. "thank you, i never realized i was all of those things until now."

hyunseol smiles back and looks around, noticing several people watching them with phones directed at them. "well, i'm glad i made you realize some things because anyone is fortunate to have someone considerate and attentive like you. always remember that, okay?"

karina nods as she smiles wider and looks down to see the txt member interlocking the latter's fingers with hers before she looks up to meet the taller idol's warm gaze and feels her face grow warm. "come on, rina. let's continue our date."

caption: matchz, the mother ship of every kpop ship ever to exist

"okay, let's go." the aespa member then spots a shooting game and gently drags the bighit idol to the booth. hyunseol gulps at the sight of the booth when the camera moves away from her face with her hand subconsciously squeezing karina's soft one.

the sm idol throws the the txt member a look to see the underlying panic in the latter's eyes with her face getting pale and worriedly asks, "are you okay?"

"y-yeah, just a bit."

"do you not like the shooting game?"

"well, it's... complicated. it's not the game. it's more like the guns themselves. i don't find those things likeable, even it's just a toy. i'll stop now, sorry about that", the taller idol mutters as she looks away and bites her lip.

"no." hyunseol whips her head toward the shorter idol and finds the latter looking at her with such warmth she wonders how she's not melting in the concrete ground right now. "it's okay, seol. i'm glad that you told me about that. let's just find another game to play, okay?"

"are you—"

"sure?" the bighit idol nods and karina smiles, pressing her palm against the taller idol's soft cheek. "i'm sure of everything when it comes to you. it's a game, so choosing between you and that game, i'll choose you because i got nothing to lose from that game, but...

"on the other hand, everything about you matters. i will always choose you over silly amusement park games. you matter most to me out of the people or games around us. do you understand, seol?" the bighit idol nods again, but this time, she's smiling so wide she could feel her cheeks starting to hurt doing so. "i need words, baby.

the txt member giggles with a nod, "i understand, princess."

"good, keep that up. i'm princess only to you. not rina, karina, or jimin. just princess."

"all right, princess. i'll never do that mistake again, pardon me." hyunseol gives their intertwined hands a squeeze before she lets karina drag her to the basketball booth, her eyes falling on their hands. soon they arrive in front of the booth as the taller idol scrutinizes the six balls and basketball ring that has been nailed on the wall taller than her.

"one game, please." hyunseol snaps out of her observation and looks at karina the same the latter looks at her, making both of then wince in surprise before they share a small smile. the aespa member then grabs a ball and holds it out to the bighit idol with a slightly wider smile. "win me a plushie, please baby?"

the txt member gently grabs the ball from karina and says, "sure thing, princess." the taller idol shoots the ball into the hoop, a small smirk forming over her face when she heard the aespa member gasp and mutter, "that's so cool." she grabs one ball to another, each throw winning a point with no time to waste until she had none left. the booth handler then claps the bighit idol and grabs two matching penguin plushies hanging from the ceiling of his booth before giving it to them.

"uhm..." karina and hyunseol share a look before their eyes avert to the plushies, uncertainty laced in their voices. both of them couldn't gain the courage to tell the man since the moral and child in them are fighting what to say.

the barker notices and flashes them a smile with a small shake of his head. "it's okay, you can have two plushies. it's my way to say to say you guys look together. also, you two remind me of my wife and i, two different persons yet there's so much similarities between us."

"if you don't mind me asking, how long have you guys been together?", hyunseol politely asks and she grabs the plushies from the man with a bow, giving one to karina who started petting her plushie on the head. the couple keeps their attention on the man talk, seeing the expression over his face.

the man answers with the smile, "18 years and we're still happy, just like the first time we fell in love with one another. we're aware that everything takes time, and of course, the fights. those aren't inevitable when it comes to relationships."

"another question, what advice can you give us if there's a fight between a couple?", karina asks, still brushing her fingers against her plushie's soft fabric.

"well...", the man trails off as his gaze falls on hyunseol before averting to karina with his smile growing wider as if he knows something the couple doesn't, but the taller idol shrugs it off as she adjusts her hold on her plushie. "there will be always an argument no matter how long you have been together, so learning how to communicate is a must between the two parties. it may sound simple to others, but some find it hard to tell their feelings to their partner and that's where the problem grows bigger. you don't need to use big words to convey your emotions; you just need to be honest."

caption: he knows what's up with matchz, HE SEES WHAT WE SEE

hyunseol nods while karina throws the former a glance before looking back at the man to see him smiling at her. the sm idol gulps and the man bows while saying. "i need to tend the other customers now, but i hope you guys have fun with whatever the amusement park can offer to you.

"of course, of course. thank you for the plushies." the couple bows in exact ninety-degree.

the man waves his hand dismissively. "no, don't thank me. you two deserve those plushies."

"okay, bye-bye, mister!", hyunseol exclaims as she uses her penguin plushie's hand to wave and karina copies the gesture, a big smile on her lips before the man waves back, matching their smiles. "he's such a cool man, right?"

"yeah", is the aespa member's only response as she feels her heart race, remembering that the man saw something between her and the txt member. she then starts to look around the place to distract herself before she feels an arm snake around her waist and turns to the side, meeting hyunseol's eyes.

"let's ride the ferris wheel."

karina immediately grows worried. "are you sure—"

"yes, now come on, princess. i want to see the view from the top."

----

"how come you aren't as pale as you were from our namsan tower date?"

hyunseol plays with her plushie as she answers, "i'm not entirely afraid of the heights. what i'm afraid of is the sudden urges of me jumping from a high place. i might not be able to contain myself and jump, but in this, i'm not afraid since we're inside a passenger pod."

"that makes sense." karina then throws the taller idol the same time the latter looks at her, making the aespa member look away with pink dusting her cheeks. hyunseol keeps her eyes on the shorter idol and giggles at the reaction.

"do you need something, princess?"

"w-well...", the sm idol's voice weakens as her fingers find her plushie's arms to play with, refusing to make any eye-contact with the taller idol. "i just want to ask what you think of the man and what he said earlier."

"what he said about couple fight, right?" karina nods. "well, first of all, he reminds me of my grandfather. they're so chill and unbothered, but you can see that he cares for his family, especially the way his face looks when he said that they've been married for 18 years. if you ask me, i want to have that kind of future with someone."

karina's ears perk at hyunseol's last statement and looks at the latter', seeing a smile on the bighit idol's lips. "really?"

"yeah, it might be a long time for me to settle down, but i look forward to that kind of life for my older version of myself because i witnessed the life my grandfather has with his wife, so it made me imagine myself living that kind of life."

"do..." hyunseol averts her eyes from the view outside of the passenger cabin to karina who has still her eyes focused on playing with the plushie on the latter's lap. "do you already have someone in your mind to spend your life with?"

the txt member opens her mouth but no words come out and slowly closing them, her eyes darting away from karina's figure before throwing the camera a quick look and looking back to the shorter idol.

caption: why did air turn so serious all of a sudden?

"well, at this moment, maybe. it's still uncertain, but maybe soon i can confirm my feelings. for now, my answer is maybe. sorry if i can't give you a precise answer."

karina nods and responds, "that's okay, i understand. i'm sorry i asked you something so absurd and invasive."

the txt member looks down and reaches out to karina's hand, intertwining her hand with the latter as she sees the latter's fingers twitch in surprise before they relax as they curl against her hand, making a small smile appear on hyunseol's lips.

"it's okay, princess. it's water under the bridge. don't worry, your question made me think in a good way. i just... didn't worry about getting in a relationship immediately because i'm too focused on living my life, you know. i mean, i can see myself getting together with someone, but not right away."

caption: you better ask karina out, seol or i will

the txt member then raises their intertwined hands and places a kiss on the back of karina's hand, the latter blushing at the taller idol's soft lips. "w-what was that for?"

"nothing, i just wanted to do that since this morning and well, i only got the courage to do so." hyunseol meets the shorter idol's eyes and softly smiles, seeing the red hue decorate the latter's face. "sorry being so random at times, but i just want to let you know that i'm grateful that i get to spend time with you out of all people. i'll try my best to be fun and enjoyable to be with for you."

karina harshly shakes her head as she places their intertwined hands against her chest, disregarding the hard and rigorous beating of her heart with a hope that the taller idol doesn't feel her heartbeat. "you don't need to do that, i will always enjoy your presence no matter what. you don't even need to do any effort. just you being you is enough for me, seol."

hyunseol lets out a small giggle and looks down, still smiling. "thanks, you have no idea what you just said mean to me. i'm happy that you're enjoying yourself in this date and i appreciate your effort of telling me."

"you're welcome, you deserve to know that you're not the only one who's thankful in this situation. you're worth of everything, seol. i hope you can see that."

"i can see what you mean, thank you."

"uhm..." the couple stops for a moment and turns to see the ferris wheel operator looking at them knowingly with a smirk on his lips before the pair blushes and immediately lets each other's hands go, looking away at the same time. "i didn't want to pop your bubble, but it's time to go, lovebirds."

"a-ah, y-yes, of course." hyunseol motions the exit to karina, her face and her ears still feeling warm. "you first, princess."

the aespa member then stands and hops out of the compartment, hanging her head low to hide her flustered face before the txt member follows suit, not even trying not hide the big smile on her face. hyunseol looks around and immediately stands beside karina once she spotted the strange man earlier several meters away from them.

despite the lack of space between them, karina doesn't turn her head and instinctively reaches out to hold the txt member's hand as the latter gently tightens her hold when they both noticed the forming crowd heading their way.

"please give us space, everyone", hyunseol announces, sounding her voice as stern as possible while discreetly keeping an eye for the strange man. "thank you for the ones who are listening."

"ahhhh, you guys look so good together!"

"yes, yes we are. thank you for noticing." the txt member regards the fan with a nod, making the latter squeal in excitement before the audience follows when karina landed a kiss on the taller idol's cheek. "looks like my princess right here also agrees."

"of course, i agree. i'm pretty and you're gorgeous. only blind people wouldn't see our chemistry", karina states as she reaches out and trails her fingers along hyunseol's face before they stop to the latter's jaw, gently pulling the taller idol closer to her. "you're so pretty it makes me stare."

the txt member then leans a bit closer, the tip of their noses touching as hyunseol smiles, noticing how the karina remains her gaze glued to the taller idol's eyes. "not even a reaction, really?"

karina tilts her head and hyunseol follows, making the former slightly raise a brow. "well, you're oh hyunseol. that's expected coming from you, if i say so myself."

the bighit idol then playfully rolls her eyes still smiling. "of course, it's expected. it seems like i already made a name for myself."

"hm... i think...", karina mumbles and throws the camera a look before she looks back at hyunseol as she moves her eyes, motioning her to look at the camera.

the txt member obeys and winks the camera with a smirk before pulling karina close to her using her free hand. "i think it's time to end this. do you think so, princess?"

"hm... yeah, it's time..."

the taller idol motions for the cameraman to move forward and announces, "this is the end, guys. bye, stay tuned for the next episode—"

karina thinks of an idea and pulls hyunseol by her shirt down to her face, but before their lips could ever get closer, the bighit idol covers the camera lens with her hand.

----

a/n: i feel like this is a downgrade from the 1st ep, but anyways, ep. 3 is next 😍💞💕

----

bbtr & matchmaker taglist (open!!): @curly-fr13s , @neuftaeng , @mightymyo , @yoontoonwhs , @nasyu-kookies , @awkwardtoafault , @osakis-gf , @dream-chasers-things , @woonie57 , @juhyunsthirdwife , @sewiouslyz , @yerevies , @asp-no , @kimsgayness

[mrs-johansson]

Chapter 5: Avengers: Age of Ultron - Two Ghosts

Part 6:

The Quinjet landed on the grass field, near the Barton house. I glanced at Natasha, looking for any sign that she would need me to be by her side. Her eyes found mine as the ramp was let down and I took that as a yes. Walked up to her and held a hand out for her which she took after a little hesitation. “It’s just the Bartons, it’s okay,” I said and she nodded.

We all made our way towards the house and once we stepped in, I let all my worries go. “Honey? I’m home,” Clint called out and the next second a very pregnant Laura came into view. I looked at the guys and I’m glad I didn’t miss those faces. “Hi. Company. Sorry I didn't call ahead,” they shared a quick kiss and he stood by his wife. “This is an agent of some kind,” I could hear Dad murmuring to Thor and I chuckled and even saw a little smile on Natasha’s face too. “Gentleman, this is Laura,” Clint introduced his wife. “ I know all your names,” she said shyly and the four men stood there awkwardly not even knowing how to deal with the situation.

Suddenly we heard footsteps on the stairs. One more surprise I guess. “Ooh, incoming,” Clint said and Lila and Cooper ran in, with Katarina close behind. She looked through everyone’s face and then she spotted me. The sparks in her eyes were something I would never get used to. She ran over to me with her little legs and I was quick to pick her up, hugging her close. “Hi, baby! I missed you,” I kissed the side of her head and she pulled back and immediately looked at Natasha.

Her face lit up like I’ve never seen before, wiggling in my arms and forcing me to hand her to the redhead. Natasha gladly took Katarina into her arms and with a big sigh she hugged her. “I missed you, Bean. How’s my best girl, huh?” She asked and Rina was quick to tell her about everything and more. “Did you bring Auntie Nat and Auntie Y/n?” Heard Lila ask and I glanced at them. “Why don't you hug her and find out?” Natasha said with a big smile and the two rushed over, Lila hugging Nat while she was still holding Katarina and Cooper hugging me. She was hiding all this pain so effortlessly.

“Sorry for barging in on you,” Steve said politely. “Yeah, we would have called ahead, but we were busy having no idea that you existed,” Dad said. “You’re just jealous you didn’t know,” I stepped in and he just scoffed. “Yeah, well Fury helped me set this up when I joined. He kept it off SHIELD's files, I'd like to keep it that way. I figure it's a good place to lay low,” Clint explained.

“Honey, I missed you,” said Laura as Natasha and I stepped away with her. “How's little Natasha, huh?” Nat gently put her hands on Laura’s stomach, having a big smile on her face. “She's…Nathaniel,” Laura broke the news and the redhead’s smile dropped. She bent down to Barton’s very pregnant stomach. “Traitor.” I chuckled at her face. “You did not just do that?” I asked. “She was supposed to be Natasha,” she said, actually upset about the fact that there would be no Natasha Barton, only Nathaniel. “One Natasha is perfectly enough, right Laura?” I looked at the woman and with a hesitant smile she nodded. “Okay, this is abuse.”

***

“So… how are things?” Laura asked with a knowing look. “What things? Be more specific please,” I moved over in the kitchen as I made dinner for all of us. She had done more than she should’ve already. “With Natasha.” “She took a big hit. There was this woman, more like a girl to be honest… She was showing them their biggest fears I guess, but close to something like that, and she’s shaken up pretty bad. And I just helped her a little, that’s all.” “And you?” She asked from over the counter. “I’m fine, just a couple of bruises, she’s not able to get through me.” “How are things with her though?” I took a glance at Laura and cleared my throat. “It’s uhm… I don’t know. It’s very confusing, especially with how we talked now. At the party we were literally going for each other’s throat, it was disgusting. So I don’t know.”

After I finished dinner I thought I could play a little with the kids, so we went outside and kicked the ball around for a while then Steve walked up to us. “Got room for one more player?” He asked. I saw him and my dad having a heated conversation just before he got there, so I didn’t know what to expect. “Will you be on my team?” Katarina signed to him. “What did she say?” Steve turned to me. “She asked if you’d be on her team.” He looked at my daughter and smiled. “I wouldn’t be on anybody else’s team,” he said and Katarina smiled before she ran off to Coop and Lila, basically ignoring Steve and me immediately. “Well, you were benched pretty quickly,” I shrugged and he just chuckled.

We watched as they played for a couple of minutes. They were playing around so innocently and naively, not even knowing that their parents were fighting with a huge metal robot. “Do you want kids?” I turned to Steve. He put his hands in his pockets while letting out a heavy sigh. “I don’t know. I haven’t really thought about it. And my options are not that broad either,” he said. “You’re always in a war, I don’t know how you do that,” I looked at Katarina and all I could think was if there was no war, she wouldn’t be here. At least not yet.

“Someone has to. Besides, I don’t have much to do other than fighting,” he sat down in the grass and I joined him. “If you could, and that’s a big if… Would you go back? Before the ice? Maybe even the serum?”

I could tell he was hesitant but then a small smile crept its way onto his face. “Not before the serum, but the ice… that’s something I wished for very long now. But I don’t know… I have people here now,” he glanced at me before continuing. “But back then I had too. It’s scary you know… I don’t know how things would’ve turned out if I didn’t go under. Getting married and settling down after the war, that was something I could see myself doing. It would’ve been nice.” Steve looked into the distance and I just knew he was imagining that perfect life for himself.

***

By the time everyone finished with their shower and getting cleaned up, it got dark. Of course, Fury showed up from out of nowhere, and after dinner, we had a quick meeting.

I sat at the table, Katarina in my lap slightly dozing off with Natasha a couple of seats away, Steve was standing between the dining room and the living room, Bruce lingering a few steps behind Natasha while Fury was talking from the kitchen. Laura, Clint, and the kids were hanging around the couch. And Dad was playing darts. He’s so weird.

“Ultron took you folks out of play to buy himself time. My contacts all say he's building something. The amount of Vibranium he made off with, I don't think it's just one thing,” Fury explained. “What about Ultron himself?” Asked Steve. “Ah. He's easy to track, he's everywhere. Guy's multiplying faster than a Catholic rabbit. Still doesn't help us get an angle on any of his plans though.” “He still going after launch codes?” I looked at Fury as he poured himself a glass of lemonade. “Yes, he is, but he's not making any headway.” “I cracked the Pentagon's firewall in high school on a dare,” Dad chimed in. “Show off,” I mumbled. “Yeah, well, I contacted our friends at the NEXUS about that,” said Fury. “NEXUS?” Asked in a confused tone, Steve. “It's the world internet hub in Oslo, every byte of data flows through there, fastest access on earth,” I explained. “So what'd they say?” Joined Clint. “He's fixated on the missiles, but the codes are constantly being changed.” “By whom?” I asked. “Parties unknown.” “Do we have an ally?” Spoke for the first time Natasha. “Ultron's got an enemy, that's not the same thing. Still, I'd pay folding money to know who it is.” “We might need to visit Oslo, find our "unknown,”” Dad looked at me and I shrugged.

“Well, this is good times, boss, but I was kind of hoping when I saw you, you'd have more than that,” Natasha sighed and Fury walked over. “I do, I have you. Back in the day, I had eyes everywhere, ears everywhere else. Here we all are, back on earth, with nothing but our wit, and our will to save the world. So stand. Outwit the platinum bastard,” Fury sat down and I could immediately see Natasha’s face change. “Steve doesn't like that kind of talk,” she said with a smirk and I covered up my smile by taking a sip of my tea. “You know what, Romanoff?”

“So what does he want?” Asked Nick. “To become better. Better than us. He keeps building bodies,” his face looks so funny. “Person bodies. The human form is inefficient, biologically speaking, we're outmoded. But he keeps coming back to it,” I explained and stood up with a sleeping Katarina in my arms. “When you two programmed him to protect the human race, you amazingly failed,” Natasha looked between Banner and Dad. “They don't need to be protected, they need to evolve. Ultron's going to evolve,” said Bruce, completely ignoring the shade he just received from his alleged girlfriend. “How?” “Has anyone been in contact with Helen Cho?” I cleared my throat, looking at everyone in the room.

We discussed a few more things then I thought it was time to put Katarina down, along with Coop and Lila. I walked to the living room where the kids were almost asleep on the couch, lying on each side of Laura. “Let’s go to bed guys,” I held out my free hand and Lila was quick to take it and Cooper followed behind. “Did you guys have fun today?” I asked the two. “Yeah, but I just want to sleep now,” said Lila. “How about once I finish my project at work, you two come over to mine for a weekend, huh? Have a fun time with your best Auntie,” I suggested and a huge smile sat on both their faces. “That would be awesome.”

First I put Katarina in bed since she was already asleep. With a soft kiss on her head, I went to Coop’s room and after a quick goodnight, he was fast asleep. After closing the door, I went back to Lila’s room and saw her sitting on her bed.

“I thought you were very tired missy,” I said quietly as I sat on the edge of her bed. “Why are you not coming over when Auntie Natasha is here? I miss having both of you here.” Her words cut deep not gonna lie. The topic hasn’t come up yet, at least not with me, and I didn’t know what to say suddenly.

“Why don’t you get under the covers first?” I suggested, pulling the duvet away so she could lie down. I tucked her in and she looked at me with big eyes, waiting for the story. It’s kind of a depressing bedtime story.

“You know that your Auntie Nat and I dated for a while, right?” I asked and Lila nodded with a small smile. She’s so cute. “And sometimes people who date don’t always agree on things and if that becomes too much at some point, they sometimes decide to not date each other anymore. Your Auntie Nat and I decided that it would be better for her and me too, if we don’t date anymore. It’s healthier for the both of us,” I tried to explain as much as I could to a kid. “But I like you and not that man,” she said. That man? “The man with the weird glasses, I don’t remember his name.” “Oh, Bruce. Well…”, me neither girl. “If Auntie Natasha is happy with Bruce, then we should be happy for her.” I’m so mature, gosh! I should give lessons about this. “She hasn't visited us as much since you and she broke up. We miss her,” she said with a sad look on her face. “I’ll talk to her, okay? And we will visit you together maybe,” I gave her a reassuring smile and Lila yawned. “Now go to sleep, honey,” I gave a kiss to her head and stood up. “Good night!” I whispered and she didn’t say it back, I suppose she fell asleep in literally a second.

Carefully closing the door, I noticed everyone had gone to their room, but I heard noises from the kitchen. Peaking in I saw the flash of red hair. She was cleaning the kitchen. As I stepped closer she turned around. “Are they asleep?” She asked, turning back to put away the freshly cleaned plates. “Yup.” I leaned my hip to the counter and stared out the window. “Do you think we’ll get Ultron?” I asked. The tap stopped running. Natasha dried her hands and turned around. “Why wouldn’t we?” She shrugged. “I don’t know… With the internet and all our database in his hands… It’s gonna be a tricky one,” I hopped on the counter with a sigh. “It’s gonna be no different from every other mission, except this came from two genius men… oh wait, usually that’s the case,” she tilted her head and I chuckled.

Silence fell on the room. Natasha kept her eyes on the towel in her hands, and I stared at my dangling legs. “Lila said you don’t visit much since we broke up. She misses you, Cooper, too. I just had to explain to her what a breakup is, so… I told her I’d talk to you,” I said, looking up slightly scared of her reaction. “I told her to ask you, you’re better with words. I didn’t know what to say to her. So thanks for that,” she was embarrassed, she could barely look at me. “It’s fine.”

“So Steve, huh? Never seen that coming…” Natasha set her eyes on me with a very fake smirk pulling in her goddamn perfect lips. I’m not supposed to like them anymore.

“It’s nothing. It was a one-time thing, we just have great conversations honestly.” And I truly think that. It was all fun and hot, but we both knew nothing good would come out of that situation. I could tell she was trying really hard to catch me lying but she didn’t succeed.

“Was he good?” She asked from out of nowhere and I looked so swiftly at her that I think my eyes almost fell out of their place. The mischief in her eyes was something I think will never fade. She’s just so teasing with her words, it’s fascinating to see. “Natalia, that’s not nice,” I said with a small whine, knowing she had so many questions about this. “You’re way too curious,” I mumble. “Was he good? That’s all I asked,” she held up her hands defensively. “Good. Nothing crazy,” I simply said.

That smug look on her face gosh! She’s just horrible. The smirk, the look, and the way she’s just standing there with her arms crossed. Damn, no wonder we dated.

“I’m not gonna say what you want me to say,” I chuckled and got off the counter. “You said no reading minds,” Natasha complained. “Even a dumb person would know what you’re thinking, I didn’t have to do a thing,” I grabbed a glass out of a cabinet and poured myself water.

I could feel that Natasha slowly edged her way closer and closer to where I was standing. Her arms fell to her side, breathing slowed down. She’s doing the thing.

I carefully put the cup aside and glanced at her but as soon as I looked into her eyes I wasn’t able to move.

“But I’m right though,” she said, keeping the smugness. “You’d like to think you’re always right, don’t you?” I kept looking between her eyes, killing myself by fighting the urge to not look down on her lips.

The tension was crazy. She was just inches away, probably the closest we’ve been for months. This emotional rollercoaster of what we’ve been doing to each other lately is horrendous.

“Are you flirting or starting a fight?” The words fell off her lips effortlessly and delicately. I looked. I looked and I couldn’t stop.

“Why are you fighting it?” Natasha whispered, our lips almost touching. Her fingers gently climbed onto my hand, intertwining hers with mine. She slipped behind me, putting her hands on my waist. And I just didn’t know what my next move should be.

[nomstellations]

Trying to work on posting my vore fic backlog, so here's a pretty long one I had on hand that features two of my ocs! Contains similar size vore, m/f vore, somewhat reluctant pred, and willing prey!

Lazy days were best spent lounging, and that was exactly what Marina was doing.

The mage was currently sprawled out on top of the squishy, sand colored belly of her dragon friend Oleander, more affectionately referred to as Olly. The pair were enjoying a slow sunny day in her garden, with the large dragon laying on his back on the grass and Marina laying on top of his sun-baked tummy. She was dozing, comforted by the warm sunshine and the deep rumbling purrs of the dragon beneath her. His arm was draped across her back keeping her in place, and it was just the perfect moment to drift off…

But a persistent sound was keeping her up. It sounded like something heavy thumping the ground alongside the rustling of leaves. The mage recognized the sound as his tail thumping against the ground, Olly must be really happy about their position but she's trying to nap! Marina lifts her head and opens her eyes, only to be met with his bright green gaze on hers. He blinks, his face rapidly starting to turn red.

"O-oh! Rina! I didn't know you were awake! I'm sorry, I was...just watching you rest! Y'know, as a friend!"

She raises her eyebrow at him, the look in his eyes told her there was something he wanted, and that was a bit of a questionable thing to say. "Are you alright? Need to get up and stretch or something?" The nature dragon shook his head. "No no, I like having you here with me! I'm comfortable, just…." A rumble from below her interrupted him, distinctly different from his rumbling purrs. "...hungry." She nods, it was probably a good time for a snack! She starts to wriggle off of his belly, there's a spinach quiche in the fridge that the both of them can share. She's held in place however, and she gives Olly a puzzled look. His expression is a bit hard to read as he looks down at Marina, with his tail still thumping against the ground. "U-um...it's not just anything...I crave something...specific." 

“Specific how? I can’t get you what you want if you don’t tell me.” The dragon whined quietly, his tail beating out a rhythm as he struggled to word his thoughts. "Um…well…you know how I'm a dragon, right? And dragons are mostly, um…carnivorous?" Marina nodded, giving him a curious look. "And I don't eat meat…but, I still crave it…”

“Was…that it? I can just get you something with meat in it, you don't have to be all embarrassed about it!” Marina laughed, but the dragon’s expression didn’t change from his worried look. “N-no, eating meat like that will make me sick! I just…I want something l-lively! Something that’ll…put up a fight! Wiggle on the way down! I want…”

He trailed off, anxiously studying Marina’s face. The mage's expression was hard to place, was she confused? Afraid? Angry? Oleander's tail only grew more agitated, the bulb at its end thumping against the earth as he panicked. "B-but I wouldn't bite or anything! I'd never want to hurt you, Rina! You’d be completely safe, and it’d only be for a little! I'm sorry, you don't have to, y–"

“Relax, Oleander.” 

The dragon fell still as Marina rested a hand on his face and smiled in an effort to be comforting. “It’s okay, I’ll do it.”

“Y— You’ll do it? No questions asked??”

“Olly, how long have we known each other?” Marina laughed. “Do you think that I don’t trust you? I know you wouldn’t ever try to hurt me, and while this does make me sort of nervous…I trust you know what you’re talking about. If it helps you feel better, I’m willing to do it. It’s the least I could do for you.”

Near immediately, a wide and toothy smile spread across the dragon's chubby face, and his tail beat out a rhythm on the ground in excitement. “Oh, thank you thank you thank you, Rina! Oh man, how do I...? Ahh, I don't know! Just...”

Olly falls still and opens his jack-o-lantern maw, waiting patiently for something.

“...? Olly, what are you doing?”

“I-I dunno! I've never eaten anyone before, uh....could you just...y'know...”

Marina laughs. “Okay okay, I get it. I'll feed myself to you, alright?” Taking the flush on his greenish face as a sign to proceed, she gingerly places her hand on his tongue. It's warm and slick with saliva, but slightly rough...she notes that Oleander's whole body is tense, almost as if he's scared. “It's okay, Olly...I'll be sure to tell you if anything hurts.”

Placing her other hand on his tongue, she slowly slid both hands towards his throat. Instincts seemingly took over as he suddenly clamped his mouth on her arms, a swallow tugging them deeper and herself closer to him. What sounded like an apology was mumbled around her, and the dragon opened his mouth to make room for her after she nodded at him to proceed.

Marina's head was pulled into his mouth, and Oleander's draconic instincts kicked in as she wriggled a bit to situate herself. Starting to greedily swallow her down, Olly grabbed at his companion to push her further down his throat, not even bothering with little bites as he began to wolf her down. So this must be what the spinach quiche feels like...each thick, hungry gulp pulled her deeper into his gullet, and the excited thrum of the dragon's heartbeat came and went as warmth steadily engulfed her body.

Steadily, Marina slid into the nature dragon's surprisingly spacious stomach. The walls were thick and slimy, closing in slightly to feel around their new guest as she moved around to get comfortable.

“Oleander? I'm safe and sound!”

The only reply she got was a deep rumble, reverberating around the mage. He was....purring, wasn't he? He only ever made this sound when he was content...she'll let him enjoy the feeling for now. This clearly must've helped those instincts of his, and it wasn't even that bad in here. Warm just like the sun outside, soft just like his scaly stomach...just darker, and much wetter.

[henriediosa]

i broke in this year's sketchbook with a picture of myself with (some of) the babies!

from top left: fennel, milly, rina, wiggly sniggle, henrie, káhi, fantine, risa, and lulee. the ones on the left are from my writing and painting; the ones on the right are my ttrpg player characters

with thanks to my ko-fi supporters, the minamahal: ate emily, ate rachel, and jo.

id in the alt text. a little bit of lore about each character under the cut!

fennel lightwing is the grandson of a dragon empress. he's a trans boy with mind control powers that he mostly uses to make sure he doesn't get misgendered. his face is scarred because his grandma disfigured him before he was exiled for questioning her historical revisionism (he was right), but unlike zuko he's very cheerful and sociable.

milly (short for milady) is a form of the chaos goddess kai del'oubliette, one of the recurring characters in the whyverse.

rina walang-apellido is another form of kai who appears in the whyverse side story rosemary, the sage of time. her surname literally means "doesn't have a surname" because she can't read or write in any modern languages. she's a vampire who napped too long and now doesn't fit in with the modern world, but she still loves to party.

wiggly sniggle is a hatchetfield fan character! i love the sniggles (see also: my sniggle poetry) and i made fun elaborate costume designs for them. wiggly sniggle's costume is based on children's variety shows like hi-5 and the wiggles, as well as ocean-themed kids media like luca and bubble guppies.

káhi (short for kahilíngan, tagalog for "wish") is a wild magic sorcerer tamaraw tiefling. they are a dm pc for the magic school dnd campaign that i run for my sisters. they were raised by textile crafts nuns and they love studying arcana.

fantine (short for úfantimaya, quenya for "my dear unveilable one") is a musical-themed lore bard fairy. fae is in the candlekeep mysteries and comes from a musical theatre themed forest commune. fae hates lying and loves trying to steal people's names.

risa (short for Papuri Sa Diyos Sa Kaitaasan, tagalog for "glory to god in the highest") is from the chosen playbook in thirsty sword lesbians. she is an aromantic trans woman binukot in a political marriage, and she's just living her best life.

lucille carolee "lulee" spence/butler/porter née sargent is an old money new broke 1950s housewife toreador for vampire the masquerade. she's had three husbands and all she wants to do is drink blood and organise dinner parties forever. her favourite dishes to make are aspic salads, and she can fold a napkin into anything.

[beargyuuu]

World begins with W, mine begins with U

ik a place writing (832)

warnings; mentions of smoking, drinking, suggestive (no smut)

<3

April 6, 2023

“you’re actually going to hang out with him” you mumbled through rina’s pillow that you’re laying your face on.

you and rina are currently in her dorm watching her get ready for her to hang out with some guy your friends were putting her on with, and you’d be lying if you said you weren’t a little jealous.

it’s been too long since you’ve dated anyone, and way too long since you’ve been on a date alone.

rina rolls her eyes and turns to you giving you a look you know a little too well “you know you have soobin right?” you groan at those words.

sitting up from her bed you reach for the half lit blunt and take a small hit letting the gas burn your throat just how you like it. “you know-“ you move your fingers to signal rina to come closer, she lets out a giggle knowing what’s next. grabbing her face gently and letting out the smoke into her mouth you place the blunt back onto her bedside table. “it’s not.. it’s not like that”

letting out a small cough she shakes her and and reaches for the bottle of orange soda that has probably gone stale from how long it’s taken for her to take ready. “i know i know all i’m saying is he’d be good for you if you gave him the chance”

you let out another groan not of out annoyance from how often this has been said to you but of how right she was.

soobin was just too good of a guy, too sweet, too caring, too fucking lovable. you know he’d promise you the moon if he could but he’d also do that to rina, tae, hyuka hell even yeonjun.

that last name that popped in your head made you loose your balance for a second and lucky rina was there to keep you still.

“still thinking about them?” you look into her now low eyes that gives rina her signature look.

“don’t you just think it’s crazy how he’s back after years?”

“well yeah but that’s cause he was our best friend, but you know i never had the bond you guys had so i don’t feel exactly how you feel..” she gets on her bed laying next to you, holding you close and choosing her next words carefully. “do you not want to be his friend anymore?”

you subconsciously curl deeper into her side deep in thought. yes you would do anything to be his friend again. his best friend. his world just like how it was but you know you can’t go back to that, not now at least, not the same as it was.

losing him was probably worst than any heartbreak you’ve ever had, now that you finally have him back into your life after spending countless of nights praying for just one day that you’d be able to talk to him again it all feels surreal.

“i know you do, don’t trip about it dummy” rina mumbles before planting a kiss on the back of your neck then moving to the edge of her bed grabbing the roach you left on her table. she holds it out to you with a quirked eyebrow.

sitting up next to her you grab it while taking out the lighter you kept in your pocket “grab that bottle over there..”

“this is so ghetto” you let out a small laugh smacking her arm as she gets up silently agreeing with her. “you guys won’t fuck right?” you asked and you get an empty orange soda bottle thrown at your face as a reply.

“you think one blunt is enough to get me to sleep with a man” you roll your eyes passing the roach back to her.

after making the makeshift bong and placing the tail of the blunt inside it lighting it for its last round you finally take a look at the outfit she’s wearing and you realize you really doesn’t care, making you wonder why she really is going.

wearing soobin’s black jacket that you brought, grey sweatpants stained with the smell of weed and a white cami revealing the hickey you gave her a few nights ago from your game of dare or drink you played with the boys.

“pussy is so much more better anyways” wiggling her eyebrows at you, to that you lightly punch her shoulder face turning warm knowing what she’s referring to.

“yeah yeah get out of here before you end up with me on this bed instead of that guy”

“you know that doesn’t sound too bad”

“RINA”

letting out a huff and finally getting up she reaches for her car keys and starts heading out the door. “don’t miss me too much i’ll be back by 3, love you jagi ”

“love you more”

as you hear the front door close shut you look at the clock she had on her table reading 12:21AM in bright bloody letters. it’s your turn to let out a huff reaching under rina’s bed to grab a pre roll and light it knowing it’s going to be a long night.

masterlist prev next

(A/N): when their worlds finally meet

taglist: @captivq @mackjestic @run2seob

[daxieoclock]

I know most of the funny musics you've listed already, but I don't know willow and Yoko Shimomura and Danny Baranowsky and Shiro SAGISU and Masayoshi Takanaka and Lena Raine and Dios and Akintoye and Imogen Heap and Des Rocs and Sarah & the Safe Word and The Sonder Bombs and Rina Sawayama and The Beths and Silversun Pickups(?) and IDKHBTFM and Tancred and the three Starkid musicals(?) Where do you recommend that I start? Is there 1 song from each that you strongly recommend that I open my ears to? :-0

YOU BET I DO OMG OMG

Thank you for the excuse to Musicpost mwehehehehehe

Since it's so many artists, I will send one song each and give a lil bit of info.

WILLOW (aka Willow Smith) Sapphic and an absolute rock star. Her music is generally really high quality punky rock with a poppy appeal.

Yoko Shimomura Probably the greatest video game composer of all time hands down no fucking contest. She's the genius behind the Kingdom Hearts sountrack, and has also contributed her expertise to Final Fantasy XV, the Mario and Luigi games, Mario RPG and Secrets of Mana. Her music can be grand and orchestral or quiet and sweet or energetic and wiggly, and her use of character motifs is something to behold.

Danny Baranowsky Another video game composer, Danny B is known best for his work on Meat Boy, Binding of Isaac and Crypt of the Necrodancer. His tracks have an unmatched energy, from BoI's quiet melodic horror to Necrodancer's get up and boogie beats. And of course, Meat Boy's wiggletastic MOVE YOUR MEAT, BOY tunes.

Shiro SAGISU An anime composer whose work on Evangelion and Bleach is beyond description. And like, I wouldn't recommend either of the SHOWS, but his music is absolutely fucking unreal. Especially his heavy use of Spanish guitar in the Arrancar Arc of Bleach alongside his usual heavy orchestral violins and pianos.

Masayoshi Takanaka A rock and city pop musician in the 80s and 90s, whose music I've heard described as "surf-dude J-rock" which, yeah, accurate. But some of his later stuff is also really experimental, getting a bit into grunge or orchestral rock.

Lena Raine A composer who's made some songs for recent Minecraft updates, but most people know her best for the soundtrack to Celeste. Which is utterly fantastic, it's BEAUTIFUL, managing to capture both the grand scale of the mountain climb and the heavily personal emotional stakes of our protagonist Madeline. Heavy use of gorgeous synth alongside piano and drums and guitar makes the whole soundtrack SOUND magical and otherworldly, which fits the game well.

Dios I discovered Dios through their guitarist, Ichika Nito, whose riffs on Youtube are unmatched. Magic hands, I swear. But Dios's vocalist, Tanaka, also has one of the most unique singing voices I've ever heard, he's got almost an Italian or Spanish rolling cadence to some of his phrases. The guy's also just got a fantastic voice, and Dios's songs are extremely solid poppy rock.

Akintoye A fantastic lyricist with an incredibly fast and articulate voice, a great sense of rhythm and flow, he's also just one of the most charismatic singers / rappers I've ever heard. His energy is absolutely addicting, and he's got such catchy layered melodies it's SO hard to not wiggle my fingers off my hands when listening.

Imogen Heap Most people recognize her from OOO WHATCHA SAY, OOO THAT YOU ONLY MEANT WELL, WELL OF COURSE YOU DID and like. Hide and Seek is an underrated song tbh but Speak for Yourself and Eclipse are just in general fantastic albums. It's impossible for me to describe her genre so I'm just gonna say...music that my very white hippie mom listens to all the time.

Des Rocs A modern day classic rock star. Not much else to say beyond that he's unreal talented.

(Continuing in reblog)

[the1975attheirverybest]

I’m the anon who asked about the SATVB openers looking for work post-tour 🙋‍♀️

I actually work in the music industry and honestly that’s very normal for newer/smaller/up-and-coming bands like been stellar to pick up “regular” jobs in between tours. Kinda unfortunate but just the reality of touring post-Covid. Things have gotten so expensive and even bigger bands are hardly making profits from shows, especially considering how many people/staff they have to pay for touring, production, etc. And most of it is Ticketmaster/venues that are making the profits (ik we all know this lol).

Especially considering that been stellar is relatively new (I think? Honestly I don’t know much about them/their history) some bands will offer to take a pay cut to support a larger act/tour because the exposure may benefit them more in the long run. Considering the success of ATVB/SATVB, how viral the tour went, and (in all honesty) the attention Matty’s had in the past year — I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case. That would be at the band’s/their managers decision to take a pay cut for exposure (although they’re signed DH I doubt jamie o is their manager but I don’t really know haha).

Ik it sucks but more musicians/artists/creatives do precarious work in between gigs to make ends meet than you think 🤷‍♀️. lol I mean think of how many famous pop stars who own brands/take tv gigs and don’t tour anymore (not saying theyre struggling for money but touring is hard and not as profitable as it used to be). Especially considering DH is an indie label, these newer artists aren’t signing massive deals that’ll allow them to live in mansions and stuff lol. It’s the reality of the industry but who doesn’t have a side gig these days the way the economy is rn haha

So I wouldn’t necessarily say DH is a bad label (I honestly don’t know — theyve produced many successful acts & every label/business has drama behind the scenes). But even if they were a bad label, the onus isn’t necessarily on the label for what they get paid for touring.

Not trying to start any drama or ramble too much lol! Ik this convo started bc of the current Rina drama which really intrigues me.

Wow and I thought the publishing industry was bad. This fuckin sucks. Can artists not make art anymore. I figured since it’s not their own lil tour and it’s supporting a much bigger artist it would pay better.

Idk. DH definitely needs to do more to at least promote their people. Their posts are hit or miss like it’s not consistent but I don’t know what their deal is. They’ve signed some amazing artists they should back them more. Just feel bad for the guy like he just came off tour he should at least have some wiggle room. Ugh creativity never pays under capitalism.

[somenoodlylibrarian]

"Mmm, have I never invited you over?", asks the smaller snake as she quickly comes over to heat around the rock with her larger friend. "Yeah, we're definitely fixing that today, then. My house, my heat. It's gonna be sooooooooo cooooooozy together~."

"I'm looking forward to it. Hooooo... I'll bring some soup for us to heat up. We'll need all the warmthhhhh we can get..." A shiver wiggles down Fayruz's back and tail, and she holds Rina just a little bit tighter. "Ohhhhh, I should have worn the fur skirt, today..."

[paulinawoodpecker]

Jasmine is mid-to-late 20's. age and

She is a Lima woman, intelligent, cultured, active and with stronge character. She is a beautiful woman, She enjoys being an explorer.

She is a parody to Lara Croft.

She likes to sleep, she can sleep anywhere. In trees, caves and her bed in her treehouse. She also hibernates for the winter.

When she wakes up and goes to sleep, she beats on her chests while she yawns.

When she snores, her nose and breasts wiggle up and down. Archaeologist, professor of archaeology, explorer. Smart, honest, beautiful, strong, with culture, reliable. she likes Archaeology, culture, and her mother (mostly) research, sleeping and being an explorer. her Powers and abilities Intelligence. She is an intrepid archaeological teacher, explorer, and daughter of the also archaeologist Sara

@jycjakkiyoutubechannels

Blair: Jasmine is mid-to-late 20's. age and She is a Lima woman, intelligent, cultured, active and with stronge character. She is a beautiful woman, She enjoys being an explorer.

Rina: just like sara?

Blair: yep. She is a parody to Lara Croft.

Blair: She likes to sleep, she can sleep anywhere. In trees, caves and her bed in her treehouse. She also hibernates for the winter.

Rina: *laughs* what?!

Blair: When she wakes up and goes to sleep, she beats on her chests while she yawns.

Rina: *laughs*

Blair: When she snores, her nose and breasts wiggle up and down.

Rina: *laughs harder*

Blair: Rina? Are you…dying?

Rina: yeah! Dying of laughter!

Rina: 😂😂😂😂😂

Blair: anyways she an Archaeologist, professor of archaeology, explorer. Smart, honest, beautiful, strong, with culture, reliable. she likes Archaeology, culture, and her mother (mostly) research, sleeping and being an explorer.

Blair: her Powers and abilities Intelligence. She is an intrepid archaeological teacher, explorer, and daughter of the also archaeologist Sara

Rina: 😂😂😂😂

Blair: Rina? Are you still laughing?

Rina: I can’t!

Rina: 😂😂😂😂

Blair: 🙄🙂😅

[sunliights]

“i am, probably. however that doesn’t mean i don’t have needs,” she shrugs. rina isn’t sure that she had a need until that moment on the couch. she’s certainty had thoughts about how attractive andrei is before but anything more than that had been written off — he was off limits. but he was there and he hadn’t rejected her most subtle of advances, so could she be blamed for taking advantage of a situation presented to her on a silver platter? “good, sounds like i’ve done my job too.” she gives a little wiggle of her legs before shaking her head. “i think i’m good. besides, might look a little incriminating you carrying me around the house.” because, obviously, they’re going to keep this on the down low. she briefly ponders if it’s something they’ll be able to do again but she also doesn’t want to seem too keen or worse, desperate. she leans in to press her lips to his cheek in a quick gesture before making her departure, “goodnight, andrei.”

andrei pushes out a laugh, almost in a sputter, not having heard such a thing in a good long while. only one other person has ever called him that before, which means he's been good about keep it under wraps this whole time. "thank... you? i can say the same to you, you know. here i thought you were one of cordelia's more demure friends - and please, i actually mean that literally. not in whatever way children are saying these days," he grunts disapprovingly with a wave of a dismissive hand. his pants are pulled back where they belong, fingers then coming up to comb through his disheveled hair. he doesn't believe he looks nearly as spent as she does but for once, he feels it. "you have, actually. i might actually be able to sleep tonight. and you? ready to sleep? can you... walk? or shall i carry you up?"

[digitalsatyr23]

Bebop Bayou Tales #1

Rina vs. the Swamp Shark!!

Setting: Bebop Bayou Characters: Rina Woodshed, Lafayette Word Count: 14,895

Sit yourself down for a time and let me tell you a tale. Out in the Southern Wastes, way at the bottom of the map is a little ol’ place called Bebop Bayou. It’s a colorful and lively swamp full to brimming with beast folk. There’s the catfish Big Pete, who lives in his burrow; Mick Longlegs, a frog who loves his banjo almost as much as his pond; Matthew the Mink, who loves very little except for himself, and many others – but it’s not all reeds and roses. No siree. Monsters of all shapes and sizes pass through the bayou, hurting folk ‘cause they don’t know no better, or hurting folk because they just plain feel like it. Who keeps the bayou safe from these monsters, you may ask? Is it Big Pete? No. He just hides in his burrow. Is it Mick Longlegs? He’d help if he could, but he’s about as skinny as a flagpole. It certainly isn’t Matthew neither, seeing as how he doesn’t like to get his fur dirty if he can help it. No, the one beast folk that’s always there to fight them monsters and show them what for is a little gator girl named Rina Woodshed.

---

A fist came careening through the air, slugging the wombojo in the face. The quill-covered scavenger flew back, skipping across the water like a rock before smacking into a stump. This did little to deter it, however. It just got back on its insectoid legs and hissed.

“Looks like it won’t go down easy,” said Lafayette. “What should we do?”

“Well it won’t back down and it won’t leave the bayou willingly, so we’ll give it a little flyin’ lesson. Think you can get the boulder spoon ready?” asked Rina.

“Yes’m.”

The young gator girl smashed a fist into an open palm. “Then get to it! I’ll keep it busy and hogtie it if I can.”

“Sounds like a plan!” said the grey fox boy. Then Lafayette scampered off to prepare the spoon.

Rina stared the wombojo down, lowering her body for a springing jump. The half-mammalian half-insect beast met Rina’s gaze with eight sickly yellow eyes, wiggling its antennae and purple blue quills. In an instant, Rina was in the air, howling a battle cry as she came in for a dive kick. The wombojo saw this coming, lurching back to avoid the brunt of the force before grabbing Rina by the leg.

“Uh oh.”

The wombojo spun Rina around and around before tossing her up in the air and readying its quills like a stretch of floor spikes. Seeing this, Rina popped a pepper in her mouth.

“I ain’t goin’ down easy neither!”

The red pepper’s heat reacted to the magic saliva in Rina’s toothy maw. Fire erupted from the edges of her mouth, then she spit a fireball at the wombojo. The creature narrowly dodged the attack, but not without getting its front half singed. Rina landed on the ground on her knee and open palm. The wombojo hissed out of fear and anger. Then it unsheathed its scythe arms, giving chase.

Rina ran down the murky trail, splashing mud and pond water with every stomp of her boots. The wombojo skittered after her, taking a few swings with its scythes. Rina hopped, ducked, and rolled to avoid the attacks, scorching it with a plume of flame to counter. The wombojo shielded its face, though its scythe blades caught fire. It dragged its arms through the mud to extinguish the magic flame and kept up the chase.

Across the river, Rina could see Lafayette pulling the boulder spoon’s crank. While it was disguised with leaves and other shrubs, she could still tell it was about ready. Now it was just a matter of getting the beast over there.

“Lafayette, throw me some rope!” shouted Rina. Lafayette rummaged around in his leather bag and pulled out a bundle before tossing it to Rina. The gator then skid to a halt, readying herself for the charging wombojo. As the beast readied its scythes, Rina dove in with the rope, wrestling it to the ground. Punches, kicks, and bites were traded between the two, but in the end, Rina was able to tie the beastie up. The creature struggled in its bindings, hissing all the while.

“All right, you no good varmint!” said Rina. “It’s time to get yer flyin’ lesson in for the day!” Rina grabbed hold of a loose end of rope and spun around on her heels, twirling the wombojo around and around, making both it and her dizzy. Before the creature could free itself, Rina let go of the rope, tossing it right onto the boulder spoon. “Now!” she shouted.

Lafayette wasted no time and pulled the lever. The boulder spoon released and chucked the wombojo high into the air in an arc, sending it right over a nearby forest canopy.

“And stay out!” shouted Rina. Seeing the invading monster disappear filled the girl with pride. No one had asked her to defend the swamp, but Rina didn’t think she needed to be asked. Knowing that her homeland and its people were safe was all she really needed.

Before turning to leave, Rina rubbed the back of her nose with her hand – only to realize it was now covered in quills. The pain didn’t set in until she finally looked at them.

“Ow ow ow ow ow! Why didn’t somebody tell me them wombojos had so many dang quills?!”

“What’s the matter?” asked Lafayette, popping out of the river.

“What’s it look like? My hand just got turned into a pin cushion!”

“Ooh, that does look pretty bad. Want me to try plucking them out? I’ll be gentle!” The grey fox didn’t wait for Rina’s response. He yanked a quill out of the gator’s hide, causing her to howl. “Okay, maybe not me. Let’s go talk to Eli.”

---

Rina Woodshed was a young gator girl standing no taller than 4’2”. She had shaggy brown hair tied back with a red cloth, bright green eyes, a white tank top, raggedy blue overalls with a red patch on her right knee, and dirty boots. Her skin was bumpy, calloused, and tanned from always being outside in the swampland sun, and her hefty green tail dragged across the ground, leaving a trail wherever she went. Lafayette, on the other hand, was a young grey fox boy only an inch shorter than Rina. He had furry arms and legs, fox ears, and a fluffy tail. His fur was grey with splotches of white, orange, and black, and his skin tanned just a shade lighter than Rina’s. His eyes were amber, and his shoulder-length hair was just as fluffy as his tail. While he wore hand-me-downs from Rina, he didn’t mind it at all. Getting to wear things that didn’t fit Rina anymore made the boy feel closer to her, almost like they were siblings.

Rina and Lafayette were beast folk - creatures that resembled a mix of human and animal characteristics, with some being more or less human-looking. Another resident named Big Pete, for instance, looked like a walking catfish, whereas someone like Rina could pass for human, if she could only hide her tail (though her claws, fangs, and eyes would certainly give her away). It was said that beast folk first appeared on Earth more than a century ago in the “Before Times” when some cataclysmic event befell what most beast folk called the “Yesterday Folk.” Lafayette had heard a few conflicting tales about the before times, and since no one could ever get the details or dates straight, he decided to not worry about it and always focus on the here and now. That meant taking care of himself, the bayou, and his best friend Rina.

When Lafayette first came to the swamp three years ago, he was all by his lonesome. No friends, no parents. Nothing. The bayou decided to take him in and raise him as their own until he could stand on his own two paws. When Lafayette wasn’t getting dragged around on one of Rina’s many adventures, he was busy tending to tasks that needed tending around the swamp, using all the tools he carried in the leather bag he had strapped across his back. He didn’t know why his tool bag had a tag that read “Golf” on it, but he chalked it up to one of the many mysteries of the yesterday folk.

Despite only knowing each other for a few years, Rina and Lafayette had been fast friends since they first met, and even if they got each other in trouble from time to time, they always looked out for one another. In this case, Lafayette knew the best place to get quills pulled out was at Old Man Eli’s house. He was the founding member of Bebop and knew a great deal of things that few other beast folk did because he read strange collections of words called “books.” As the two kids had visited Eli dozens of times before, it took no effort to track down the old snapping turtle.

“Hmm. Looks like wombojo quills. Good thing your skin is as thick as your skull, otherwise you’d be deader than a prawn in a hot pot.”

Eli was an old but muscular man with rough skin, a hard shell on his back, and a bent nose. He had dark eyes, a sharp beak-like mouth, and calloused clawed feet and hands. He tended to dress light, wearing nothing more than a faded short-sleeved overshirt with a hole in the back and torn jeans. He carefully removed the last quill and treated Rina’s wounds with a handmade ointment and gauze.

“Are wombojo quills that bad?” asked Lafayette of Eli.

“They’re venomous.”

“Ha! I guess I really am the toughest in the swamp! I feel perfectly-” Rina turned away to vomit into a trash bin. A metallic clink rang out as a ring of keys fell into the bin. “Hueeegh. See? Perfectly… Fine.”

Lafayette gave Rina a consoling pat on the back, saying, “Better than dead, right?” Rina gave a thumbs up and continued to vomit. Eli shook his head.

“This is why I told you kids to stop with the heroics. It’s too dangerous for the likes of you.”

Rina took a swig of water from a canteen, gurgled, and spit out a window. As she wiped her mouth, she said, “Why you think I’m doin’ it? Of course it’s dangerous. But if I let all these monsters and varmints roam free, someone else would get hurt. We’re protectors of the people!”

“There have been a lot of migratin’ monsters as of late…” lamented Lafayette.

“I won’t argue with that. Were it not for the unstable ground, I’d have built a wall around the swamp ages ago. Even so, I can’t let kids do the work of adults. It ain’t proper.” Eli slapped his knees and stood up. “I’m gonna go tell your folks.”

“What?! You can’t tell ma and pa! The moment they learn what I’ve been doin’ on my walks, they’ll lock me up! No supper, no movies! I won’t even get to fish!”

“That’s the point.” Eli then grabbed his trash can, grimacing before opening the front door. Before he left, he looked over his shoulder at the kids. “Try and get some rest while I go chat with ‘em. There’s plenty of food in the fridge, so help yourself.” Then he was gone.

Rina dragged her sickly body over to Eli’s living room and plopped on the couch in a pout, arms crossed.

“It ain’t fair. No one else is lookin’ out for the swamp. If them quills are as bad as he said, that critter coulda killed someone. He could at least say thanks!”

Lafayette followed, snagging an apple from a clay bowl before sitting down on a soft chair. After giving the apple a shine, he took a few bites and talked to Rina with his mouth full.

“You know, not havin’ to fight all the time wouldn’t be so bad. It’s not like we’d run outta stuff to do.” Lafayette watched as Rina turned her back on him, burying her face in the couch cushions. “I’m sure there’s someone else that can take up the job. What about yer pa?”

“He’s too old to be fightin’ these days,” said Rina.

“Your ma?”

“Too busy in the kitchen and keepin’ the house in order.”

“What about Pete?”

“He’d probably just bury his head in the mud.

“Mick?”

“Too skinny.”

“Kylie?”

“Too busy runnin’ her barterin’ stand.”

Lafayette finished the apple, pocketing the seeds. He leaned back in his chair and put his legs up on the coffee table. “Huh… Matthew ain’t interested in getting’ dirty, Patches is too busy watchin’ her kids, and David’s always wanderin’ and grazin’, so folk can’t rely on him.” After some thinking, Lafayette’s eyes lit up. He went over to Rina and shook her shoulder. “Hey! What about Alyssa? With them wings of hers, she could go here and there nice and quick! And she’d always have a good view! … Except over the canopy. Still, she’d be perfect for warnin’ people about monsters and keepin’ the swamp safe!”

Rina turned her head and stared at Lafayette with a grumpy glare. “You flea-bitten traitor.”

“What?! I ain’t no traitor! I’m just trying to be realis… Realiv… Truthful. You said it yerself. Someone might of died today, and that coulda been you.”

“But I didn’t.”

“That may be true today, but there’s no tellin’ what might show up next. One of these days we’re gonna bump heads with somethin’ too strong, too tough, and too dang dangerous for us to bump heads with. You get me?”

“I thought you liked fightin’.”

“I do! Fightin’ you, fightin’ other kids. It’s fun! And we can certainly handle the small stuff, but maybe we should let the adults handle the big stuff like Old Eli said.”

Rina said nothing. She just grumbled and turned away. Being ignored by his best friend stung worse than a hornet. With a tear in his eye, Lafayette said, “Forget you! I’m goin’ back to my tree!”

Then the fox boy slammed the door on his way out.

Rina got tired of resting and grumbling and sat up, looking around. Eli’s home was small and practical, with empty chairs, bookshelves, a coffee table, and a renovated refrigerator that was powered, primarily, by Eli’s pet hamster Josie, who liked to run more than any critter Rina had ever seen. Struggling to get on her feet, Rina wobbled over to the fridge and grabbed a drumstick from a plate of leftover chicken. The meat was tough, cold, and far too dry. It did little to comfort her. After she finished eating, Rina put the bone in Eli’s bone pile and looked down at the red patch on her knee.

“Root… What would you do right about now?”

No answer. It didn’t surprise her much. Cloth tended to be rather quiet. Rina sighed and left Eli’s house. Fresh air would help her better than rest.

Rina lived in a large swamp known as Bebop Bayou, which connected to marshes, wetlands, rivers, and vast floodplains. It was a beautiful piece of nature where the sun shined bright, the water sparkled, and the leaves of Bald Cypress and Tupelo Gum trees danced to the music of the winds. Rina and the other beast folk weren’t the first to live in the bayou, though. Signs of the yesterday folk could be found all over. Collapsed power poles, submerged houses, bent road signs (Rina’s favorite was Stoppy, the only stop sign that could talk as far as she knew), and rusty cars sticking out of the mud. It was a serene little sanctuary, and the only home Rina had ever known. She’d do anything to keep the bayou and its people safe. It’s what her brother would have wanted, as she often told herself.

After kicking rocks along her path to nowhere, Rina decided to walk over to a river. She got on her hands and knees and stuck her face in the water, scaring some fish away. Then she took a deep breath and dove in, swimming after the fish. Just like a regular alligator, Rina could seal up her ears, nose, and mouth while underwater (though she could still use her chompies), and a thin secondary pair of eyelids could cover up her eyes. She was also fast – much faster than she was on land. The gator girl wiggled to and fro as she hunted her prey, eventually snatching up a fish about the size of her head with bright pink, red, and green scales. Having snagged her prize, Rina came back to shore, treating herself to fresh food. She preferred cooking, but she didn’t feel keen on going back home just yet.

It took no time at all for Rina to finish her fish, bones and all. With the first course consumed, she got back on her feet and rubbed her hands together.

“All right, time for the next… Round…”

Looking down at the river, the otherwise plentiful fish had all disappeared. The gator scratched her head, wondering what could have happened.

Strange, she thought. Fish scare easy, but they’re quick to get back to their business when the fear has left them. So why’d they all leave?

Rina stuck her head back into the water and looked around. All the fish had fled in one direction, as far as she could tell. Whether on land or in the water, her sense of touch always gave her an idea of recent or incoming movement. It was with that very same sense that she realized what the fish had fled from.

Something big was on its way.

Rina jerked her head back and stood up. She couldn’t see anything just yet, but there was a strange smell in the air. Something salty and rotten. Then, in the distance, a large fin could be seen cutting through the river like a glaive. Rina put up her dukes and got ready. Whatever it was, it was coming down the river fast. Just when it seemed like it would appear, the fin dipped down. The creature’s momentum carried all sorts of muck and debris through the river, making it impossible for Rina to tell if it had stopped or turned back around. Against her better judgement, Rina stepped close to the river’s edge.

“What in the-”

A giant mouth filled with sharp, triangular teeth snapped at Rina, causing her to leap back.

“It’s a gosh dang shark!” shouted Rina. “What the heck are you doing here?!”

The gigantic shark said nothing. It just tried to bite at Rina while beached on the river’s edge. Looking it over, the shark had beady black eyes, a red coloration on its top half while its underbelly was white. When its gills started to gasp, the shark forced itself back into the water, and everything was quiet for a time.

Sheesh. That’s the biggest shark I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen a few! What’s something like that doing in freshwater turf?

While Rina pondered the matter, a slimy red tentacle wrapped around her ankle and yanked her towards the river. In an instant, she was thrown into the air.

“Not again!” she shouted.

The shark breached the water and opened its jaws wide, ready to devour Rina whole. Instead, she caught herself on the edge of the beast’s mouth and kept it open with her outstretched arms and legs. Anyone with ears could hear Rina howling as they both went up and crashed back down into the river with a titanic splash.

A giant octopus working with a shark? What’s the deal?!

Rina sunk deep into the river and looked around, realizing there was no octopus. The tentacles were the shark’s lower half. Feeling a cold fear grip her heart, Rina tried to swim back up, only to be grabbed by another tentacle and pulled back towards the shark.

So that’s how it is, monster? Then you leave me no choice!

Rina clubbed the shark’s nose with her fists, smacking the head away. While it was distracted, she bit down hard on the tentacle ensnaring her, tearing away red and white meat. The tentacle’s grip loosened, and the shark darted away, chasing easier prey further down the river. Now that she had the chance, she swam as fast as she could to the river’s edge and climbed out, gasping for air.

“Gah! What the heck was that all about?!”

It took a moment to realize she was beneath someone’s shadow. Looking up, she saw that Eli, Lafayette, and several others had arrived. Lafayette helped Rina to her feet as he asked, “What was all that about? We heard you screamin’ from miles away!”

“There was a shark! A real biggin’! It was red like blood and tried to swallow me whole!”

The beast folk looked at each other, then to Eli. The old snapping turtle scratched at the thick skin on his chin.

“A shark that big couldn’t possibly have come through here. Are you sure it was a shark?” asked Eli.

“O’ course I’m sure! It was THIS big!” Rina made an exaggerated gesture with her arms. “It was some kind of swamp shark! Or octo-shark! A swampy red octo-shark!”

“What are you goin’ on about?” asked Big Pete. “I’ve been livin’ in this swamp my whole life, and I ain’t never seen a shark like that.”

“Well I ain’t lyin’!”

“Are you hurt at all?” asked Lafayette.

“Nuh uh.”

“Did you see where it went?” asked Eli.

“It went that way,” Rina pointed down the river. “I slugged it in the nose and bit one of its feeler things hard, so I’m thinkin’ it thought better than to keep messin’ with me. We can still catch it if we go now!”

“Not one step, Rina Woodshed.”

A familiar voice called out that sent shivers down Rina’s spine. It was a voice that she both loved and feared. It was the voice of her mother. The ten-foot-tall gator woman stepped forward, her chunky yet muscular body adorned with a colorful spotted dress, cooking apron, and black rain boots. Her hair was done up in a bun, though the wind had made a mess of it, with long strands falling around her ears and forehead. Rina leaned back to look up, now completely overshadowed by her mother.

“Ma, what are you doin’ here?”

“I came to get you from Eli’s place, but it seems you can’t go one minute without getting’ tangled up in a scuffle with local wildlife.”

“This ain’t no local! It’s an outsider! One that’ll eat us out o’ fish and home if we don’t stop it now!”

Rina’s mother reached down and picked up the gator girl with the ease of plucking a flower, making sure the two were now at eye level. “Eli said he already has a plan for takin’ care of invadin’ critters from now on, so you just leave it to him and the others. You nearly put yourself under today, so there’ll be no more fightin’ and adventurin’ until things settle down.”

“But ma…”

“No buts! Now come along. I need me some help fixin’ suppah. Crush got stuck in his chair again, so there ain’t much help comin’ from him today.”

Rina was unceremoniously slung over the gator woman’s shoulder and carried off. She rested her head in one hand while tapping her fingers with the other, staring down Lafayette. With the two gators gone, Lafayette turned his attention to the rest of the beast folk. Eli was discussing the supposed creature Rina had fought with and asked everyone available to fan out and look for it, but no more than that.

“If anyone sees any signs of this supposed swamp shark, you come straight to me. Is that clear?”

The other beast folk nodded and went on their way. With the crowd cleared, Lafayette approached the snapping turtle.

“Do you really think it’s true?”

“What is?”

“That monster Rina talked about. A big ol’ red shark with tentacles?”

“It sounds crazy, but there’s no shortage of that around these parts. Even if Rina was just seeing things, it’d be better to know for certain than not and wake up the next day missing a local or two.”

“All right. Is there any way I can help?”

Eli shook his head. “Rina isn’t the only one on curfew. You stay out of this too, Lafayette.”

“But I can help! All we’re doin’ is scoutin’ right? I’m one of the fastest in the bayou!”

“Fast on land. If that creature drags you under, we’ll be short one grey fox, and I’m not letting that happen. You’re staying at my place until this whole thing blows over.”

“But-”

“I said no. We’ll wait and see what the others find before deciding what to do next.”

The frustrated fox boy dragged his paws as he followed after Eli. Looking back at the messy river’s edge, it seemed like something big had beached itself for a time. Whether it had tentacles or not, he had no idea. What he did know was he was regretting what he had said to his best friend.

---

It was late in the evening when most of the search party had decided to turn in. A few stragglers could be seen in the distance, and only because they were carrying torches. Big Pete was making his way around a mire when he heard a splash in the distance. He looked around. One less torch could be seen. He narrowed his eyes and stroked one of his dark brown whiskers.

That’s a might strange. Did they toss their torch in?

Big Pete’s eyes didn’t count for much, but his sense of hearing and smell made up for it. There was something strange in the air. He just couldn’t figure out what. He had never felt uncomfortable walking around in the dark before. He was a sturdy sort for his age. He had a gut, sure, but his muscular arms could pack a mean punch - though when it came to monsters, he was more likely to use his trusty machete. The dark blade hung from a loop on his belt, attached by a buttoned strap. As he continued to sniff the air, his hand unconsciously drifted towards the strap.

Another splash. Another torch went out. No other noise could be heard.

Pete changed course and made his way to where the torchbearers once were. Carrying one himself, the fire illuminated the wet sticks floating at the top of a large bog. Faint chirping sounds could be heard all around. Insects liked to come out and make their music in the dark of the night. It never bothered Pete before.

But then they stopped.

Pete looked around. He couldn’t see any movement in the bog. There was a harsh stillness in the air, and something pungent and coppery. It smelled like blood.

Instinct took hold and Pete stepped away from the bog. He was certain that if he didn’t, it would mean certain death. He’d already seen enough for the night. But just as Pete started walking away, he felt something slimy grip his fat ankle.

“Agh! The hell!” he cried, falling on his back. His torch fell in the mud and puttered out, but he knew damn well what was happening. He yanked his machete from his belt, unbuttoning the strap. Then the tentacle gave a hard yank, pulling Pete closer to the water and making him lose grip on his machete.

Pete spun around, digging his fingers into the muddy ground. His body felt electrified with fear. He knew that if he couldn’t get his machete, that would be the last of Big Pete. He put those two muscular arms to good use and struggled against the creature’s tug, inching himself closer and closer to his machete. The creature squeezed his ankle tighter, nearly breaking it. Pete didn’t give up, though. He kept digging into the ground and pulling himself forward.

“Got it!” Pete cried. He spun around and got ready to chop at the tentacle. What he saw, however, nearly made his jaw drop.

Two orbs of red glowed bright in the water, and a maw filled with row after row of teeth glowed a sickly green. Hints at wriggling tentacles could be seen all around the monster. He didn’t know what he was looking at. Only a single word came to mind.

Death.

Pete’s adrenaline flared up and he held tight to the machete. He chopped at the tentacle over and over again. Blood hissed from the powerful limb, but it kept pulling him further into the water.

“Come on, come on! Fall off already!!”

The wriggling tentacles, the glowing eyes and mouth, the slow descent to his demise. In that moment, Pete thought he was going mad. He slashed at the tentacle with an unbridled fury, finally cutting all the way through. The ground rumbled as the beast darted away, its sinister glow disappearing into the night. Pete ran as fast as his short legs could carry him, dropping his machete in a panic.

Unbeknownst to the catfish, long tentacles reached back onto land to retrieve the metal blade…

---

“You can never kill me, Samuel! I am invincible!” cried the mad doctor.

“You’re wrong,” said Samuel. “I have this!” The buff action hero on the screen drew a shiny gun from a robotic holster that came out of his leg.

“What? A mere gun? Ha! Now that Formula Omega is coursing through my veins, not even a tank could hurt me, let alone your measly pistol. Give up now and swear your allegiance to me, and I might just let you live.” Samuel was loading red bullets into his clip, clearly ignoring the doctor. “W-what? What are you doing? Pay attention to me!”

“I know regular bullets can’t hurt you, Doctor Helicopter, but these are no ordinary bullets. Everyone knows you don’t have any friends – merely minions.”

“Okay, that’s just rude.”

“So what I did was take a pinch of my blood and combine it with the blood of my friends. Within each of these bullets is the heart and soul of those you’ve harmed! Those who cry out for justice! My justice.”

“That’s disgusting. Also irrelevant! A blood bullet can’t hurt me! Give up now unless you want to try your luck!”

Samuel and Doctor Helicopter stared each other down from across the railing. Below them were countless soldiers and police officers, watching… Waiting… Just as the doctor reached for his gamma ray, Samuel let fire his .45 Ruger. The bullets pierced the doctor’s hard outer shell, bringing him to his knees.

“Gah! I can’t believe that worked… And it’s so… Unsanitary.”

Samuel stepped over to the doctor, checking his pulse. It was clear he had breathed his last. Samuel put away his gun.

“Doc… You may have drawn first blood, but I’ve drawn last. See you in Hell.”

Then the credits rolled.

“Did you see that, pa!” cried Rina. “That was so cool!”

“I don’t know,” said the giant bearded gator man. “The doc was supposed to be invincible, so it feels kinda lame that Sam had just the right kind of munition at the end.”

Rina’s father, Crush Woodshed, was as tall and heavyset as Rina’s mother, Shelly. Similar to Rina, Crush wore a huge pair of deep blue overalls and a black t-shirt. Unlike Rina, however, Crush had a long bushy brown beard and mustache that hid most of his face, save his nose, eyes, and sharp teeth.

“It’s not lame!” said Rina, standing up. “Those were friendship bullets! Doctor Helicopter was allergic to friends! He said so in the beginning of the movie!”

“Why couldn’t Samuel use those robo-muscles of his to wrestle the doc to the ground? That would have been way cooler!”

Rina scratched her chin. “You’re not wrong… But Sam already karate-chopped his way through the doctor’s goat ninja minions! It would have been repetitive!”

“What are you two couyons arguing about now?” asked Shelly, whisking a bowl as she walked into the living room.

“We’re arguing about how Samuel Roboboots defeated Doctor Helicopter!” shouted Rina.

Shelly’s attention was on the bowl when she asked, “Well, how’d he do it?”

“He used bullets that had bits of his blood and the blood of his friends!”

“Gross! And that worked?”

“Yeah!” Crush said, slapping the arm of his chair. “He just so happened to have what he needed right at the end! It’s ridiculous!”

“That is pretty convenient…”

“What do you think, ma? What would you have done?” asked Rina.

Shelly finished whisking the sauce in the bowl and hummed in thought. “Did Sam try and call the doc’s parents?”

“I… Don’t think so?”

“The doc’s parents were dead! Didn’t you pay attention to his backstory?” asked Crush.

“Oh shoot, I did forget. Well ma, I guess he couldn’t call his folks.”

“Hm. Well if he was a bad enough guy, I’d probably just yank his ear off like I was peeling an orange.” Crush and Rina looked at each other and grimaced. “Speakin’ o’ oranges, suppah is almost ready. Rina, come help me set the table.”

“Yes ma…”

Rina made her way through the gigantic log cabin that was her house. Ordinarily it was a warm and comfortable place, but having been locked up by her mother, Rina thought the logs were more like bars. Only after her pa argued on her behalf was Rina allowed to leave her room and watch a movie with him. It was an old recovered sci-fi action flick called “Sam Roboboots 2: Helicopter’s Revenge”. The movie had somehow been placed inside a flat circular crystal with a hole in the center. Rina found it months ago when she was scavenging with Lafayette. She found lots of things like that in the bayou. Small treasures left behind by the yesterday folk. She didn’t know how movies were made, put in discs, or how the old movie box they had in the living room worked, but watching movies with Crush was among her favorite pastimes. It hadn’t completely fixed her mood, but it helped.

Rina scampered up the wooden ladder set beside the dinner table. Since her folks were gigantic, the home they had fashioned with Eli’s supervision was proportionate. Rina had been a slow grower, so she had to make do with ladders and special stairways in order to reach the things her folks had no trouble reaching. When Shelly set down the plates and cutlery, Rina put her muscles to good use and moved things around the table until it was set. Then she sat at her special booster seat and waited. Crush was still in the living room, struggling in his chair. He could always get into it, but he had a hard time getting back out. With a low growl, the gator freed himself, then he hobbled on over to the table.

“Mmm, mmm, mmm, Shelly. Whatever yer makin’ smells right special,” said Crush.

“Of course it is! I made it!” said Shelly. Soon after, Shelly came by the table with a pan full of chicken. One by one, she loaded the plates up with food, serving the meat, greens, a sweet and spicy sauce, and a side of blood oranges. “There y’all go. Now what do we say?”

“Thanks ma!”

“Thanks chère!”

Rina and Crush spoke in unison, then Shelly said, “Yer mighty welcome. Now dig in before it gets cold!”

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” Rina grinned. Despite the hard feelings she had, Rina loved her ma and pa dearly. No matter how bad of a day she would have, just the chance to sit down with her folks and eat some of her mother’s cooking always made her day.

The three Woodsheds traded simple conversation back and forth for what felt like an hour. Just when dinner was wrapping up, someone knocked on the door. “I’ll get it!” said Rina, then the girl slid down the ladder and walked over to the door, opening the smaller, secondary door at the bottom. It was Eli.

“Evenin’, Rina,” said the snapping turtle.

“Well if it isn’t Eli!” said Shelly. “We was about to put away the leftovers, but if you’re feelin’ famished, yer welcome to the eats. Come inside!”

Eli nodded. “I’d appreciate it.” The snapping turtle then gave a courteous nod to Rina before making his way over to the dinner table. As he climbed the ladder, he looked back at Rina again before returning his gaze to Shelly and Crush. “I… Need to talk to you both about something in private. Is that all right?”

“Sure thing,” said Shelly. “Rina? Why don’t you relax in your room for a spell.”

“Why can’t I hear what Eli has to say?”

“This is no time for backtalk, girl. Now get!”

The calm Rina had achieved was shattered. She stuffed her hands into her overall pockets and walked away, grumbling to herself. After shutting the door behind her, she slid to the ground.

It must be about that monster. Why else would Eli wanna talk about it in private? He probably thinks I’d butt my head right back into that business if I learned anything new. Not like he’s wrong, though…

Rina sighed, standing up and making her way to her bed. The room was rather small compared to her parents’ room, but it suited her just fine. It had a closet, a footlocker at the end of her bed, handmade dumbbells in a corner that were rocks strapped to bone, as well as a handful of restored books. One was about so-called “Cajun” cuisine, whatever that meant, wrestling techniques, and another that was filled with words and their meanings. Eli called it a dictionary. Rina called it boring. It had been passed to her by Shelly after she got it from Eli. Shelly wanted Rina to learn her words because she thought it was important. As far as Rina was concerned, the only thing that mattered was action, and she was doing very little of that right now. She flopped on her bed and rolled onto her belly. Then she rolled onto her back, then onto her belly again. Grumbling, she got up and put her ear to the door.

Rina’s hearing wasn’t the worst, but it wasn’t spectacular by any means – that was more Lafayette’s specialty. Even so, she was able to pick up a few choice words from the conversation. “Monster”, “glowing”, “Pete escaped”, and “two missing”. The girl turned around and slammed the side of her fist into the wall.

Dang it. I knew we should have chased after that thing when we had the chance! Now it’s gotten at two of us, and I’m just supposed to sit here and do nothing? Forget that!

Rina climbed back onto her bed to reach her window. Try as she might to hoist it open, the window was sealed and barred. The door was no good either, as it had been fitted by a trick lock by Shelly herself. When it was locked, it could only be opened from the outside. Rina wouldn’t dream of breaking or burning anything in her home, so all she could do was get back on her bed and grumble.

This is worse than when I landed on my head trying to do a moonsault. I just hope Lafayette is doing better than me…

---

The grey fox boy opened his eyes. He had been lying on Eli’s couch pretending to sleep. The room was dark, save for the slivers of moonlight coming from cracks in the window curtains. Eli had left some time ago after Big Pete came knocking on the door to tell the news.

I still can’t believe the monster already got two of us. I need to help Rina. She’ll set that monster straight!

Lafayette got up and stretched, popping his back. Pulling a lockpick from a hidden inner pocket of his overalls, he tried to pick his way out of the trick lock on Eli’s front door. Unfortunately, the old snapping turtle had gotten wise to Lafayette’s previous schemes, so this new lock was beyond him. Taking a quick glance around the living room, however, the fox knew there was more than one way out.

The boy stepped over to the unlit fireplace, the weight of his body making the floorboards creak. Taking a look inside, the chimney was filthy and cramped, but not cramped enough for someone like Lafayette. He climbed up and outstretched his arms and legs, forming a misshapen X in the stone tube. It took a good minute to get all the way up, and Lafayette almost lost his footing on two occasions, but he made it out. After carefully climbing down the rooftop, he hopped onto the ground below and scampered through the woods.

Lafayette made his way over to Rina’s house, tiptoeing beneath the windows and doing his best to stay out of sight. Though he was dirty from the chimney soot, it was to his benefit, for even if the Woodsheds noticed the soot smell, they wouldn’t notice him underneath it.

The boy circled around the back of the oversized log cabin and up to Rina’s window. He could already see the girl was right cross, lying on her back with her hands behind her head. With a slight tap, he got the girl’s attention. She tried to speak, but Lafayette just put a finger up to his mouth.

“Shhhh. I’ll get you outta here,” he whispered.

Rina gave a nod and stood back. Lafayette fished through his pockets for more of his hand-made tools. The bars were on tight, but they were nothing the fox couldn’t handle. After carefully unscrewing everything, he removed the bars and slowly opened the window, helping Rina outside. He then took the time to close the window and re-attach the bars.

“This way!” he whispered for Rina to follow. With some distance put behind them, Lafayette stopped and turned to his friend. “Listen, things have gotten bad. Two of the people that went searchin’ for the monster didn’t come back. Pete said as much.”

“I heard,” said Rina. “Eli came to my place and wanted to talk with my folks. That’s why I was locked up in my room.”

“I’m real sorry about all this.” Lafayette lowered his gaze to the ground. “If I knew they’d treat us like this I would have never taken Eli’s side. I… Just didn’t want you to get hurt is all.”

Rina gave Lafayette one of her signature gator hugs, nearly crushing the poor boy. After setting the gasping fox down, Rina said, “Don’t worry about it! What’s important now is we find that gosh dang monster and give it a lickin’!”

“Sounds good to me. What’s the plan?”

“Uh… That’s a work in progress, Lafayette.”

“You don’t have a plan, do ya?”

“O’ course I do!”

“Is it punching it?”

“Yes! That an bitin’ it. Worked real good last time.”

Lafayette shrugged and smiled. Rina was always like this, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. “Then let’s get goin’, cap’n. We got a bayou to save!”

With a nod, Rina ran ahead, sniffing the air while staying on the move. Lafayette followed after, helping her search by using his powerful eyes and ears. Outside of being able to see in the dark and having fine-tuned senses, Lafayette’s eyes could see magnetic fields, and he could also hear infrasound. Whether there were disturbances or low-frequency sounds, the grey fox boy would surely notice them. Together, the kids found their heading and took off into the night.

---

Shelly waved goodbye to her longtime friend, Eli.

“Come by anytime, Eli! You take care now!”

“You as well.”

Then the snapping turtle was gone. Shelly sighed. She couldn’t believe something so strange and dangerous had appeared in the bayou. Sure, monsters and wild animals wandered in all the time, but nothing like this. The last time it happened, all Shelly had to do was pick up a few bobcats by the scruff and toss them out. She was still grappling with how often Rina had lied to her about going on walks.

That canaille girl… I just hope she doesn’t get no hair-brained scheme. This thing is way out of her league.

As it had been a while, Shelly stepped into the back of the house and through the hall leading to the other rooms. Turning left to reach Rina’s door, Shelly gave it a knock.

“Rina… Rina sweetie. Eli’s gone home. You wanna talk? I know you’re worried about the others, but I can assure you that-Rina?”

Even when she was irritated, Rina rarely stayed this quiet. Fearing the worst, Shelly flung open the door. The room was empty.

“B-but how? The locks were on!”

“What’s a matter, boo?” asked Crush.

“Rina, our baby! She’s gone!”

“What?!”

The two gator folk pushed through the doorway and looked around. Shelly checked under the bed, in the closet, in the footlocker, under the footlocker, and even behind the bookshelf. Shelly’s breathing grew fast and sweat ran down the sides of her bumpy face.

“No! Rina! Rina! Where’d you go?!”

“Hey! Come see this!” said Crush. “One of the screws is loose outside! Someone must of removed ‘em and forgot to tighten ‘em all the way!”

The gator folk went outside to double check, finding not only the faint scratches of tool use, but also footprints and a scent to follow. There was only one person smart and willing enough to help Rina like this. Shelly gripped Crush by his overall straps and started shaking him in a panic.

“It must have been that Lafayette! We gotta go find ‘em! They’ve run off to fight that horrid monster! I’m sure of it!”

“Gah! Get ahold of yerself, woman! O’ course we’ll go after the kids! But there’s a lotta swamp to cover! Who knows how long the trail will stay warm!”

“Then we need to get the others!”

“Who?”

“Everybody! Eli, Pete, Mick! Everybody willin’ to help! If that thing gets a taste of youngin’s, it won’t be long before it comes after everyone else’s young!”

“All right, we’ll call everyone! Together!”

Shelly gave a nod, and alongside her husband, she bellowed. It wasn’t everyday that she did this, but all the residents of the bayou had agreed that when one family called for help, the others would listen. Little by little, all the people of the bayou who were fit to help came to the Woodsheds.

“What is it?” asked Eli, ahead of the group. Shelly and Crush explained everything, to which the others gave their support.

“Don’t you worry,” said Alyssa, the egret woman. “We’ll give it our all to find those two!”

The others gave a rallying cry and started lighting torches. With Shelly at the head of the crowd and her husband by her side, she used her fine nose to follow Rina’s trail.

---

Lafayette and Rina ran through the night, light squishing sounds following in their wake. The sky was dark and cloudy, the air pungent, and glowflies were buzzing around, scavenging through muck and rotten bark. Lafayette never minded the glowflies, but he also knew they never came out in mass unless there was blood to be found. He grabbed Rina’s hand and quickened his pace. The sooner they found the swamp shark, the better.

Lafayette’s ears twitched and he stopped, moving him and Rina to cover.

“What in the heck are you-”

“Shhh. I hear somethin’,” whispered Lafayette.

Up ahead, a familiar group of older teens had gathered, shouting, fighting, and drinking the night away. They were a band of ruffians from the South Sea that kept sneaking into the bayou to cause trouble. Known as the Lemon Shark Gang, they were bad news for anyone, save the tougher adults. Rina’s parents had given them the boot several times, but they always came back in greater numbers the following year.

“What rotten timing. It’s them Lemon Sharks,” whispered Lafayette.

“I thought I saw you shorties,” said a nearby voice. Lafayette and Rina turned, dodging a claw swipe. “Didn’t think I’d notice ya, huh? Never underestimate a Lemon Shark!”

“Don’t go startin’ things ya can’t finish, Jacob,” said Rina. “We ain’t got the time nor the patience for you!”

“Is that so?” Jacob grimaced. “Let’s see what the boys have to say to that!”

Jacob snapped his finger and the rest of the gang approached. They were nasty-looking shark folk. Tall, muscular, but still young, with yellowish grey hair, beady eyes with rhombus-shaped irises, and rows of sharp teeth. They wore simple clothes, such as denim shorts, overshirts, boots, and tank tops. They also had fins on their forearms, gill slits on their necks, and long tails. Lafayette recognized a few gang members, but only because of the bite marks Rina had left on them.

“We don’t want no trouble,” said Lafayette. “There’s a monster on the loose, and if we don’t stop it, it’ll eat everyone in the whole bayou!”

“And how’s that my problem?” asked Jacob, leaning in close. “The way I see it, if we let that monster do its business, then we’ll have this whole place to ourselves! Besides, who are we to stop a fellow shark?”

“You know about the swamp shark?” asked Rina.

“Eh, nothing much. We overheard those yokels saying this and that about a shark. Even if we knew more, it’s not like we’d tell you.” Jacob then grabbed Rina by the overall strap. “And I still owe you for that tooth you knocked outta my mouth last summer!”

“We both grow teeth back! Stop gettin’ yer jockstrap in a twist before I slap more of ‘em chompers outta ya!” Rina pulled away from Jacob’s grasp and got in a fighting stance. It seemed like a brawl was inevitable.

Lafayette looked around. There were eight sharks in total, including Jacob. They hadn’t moved in yet, but they could easily surround the two if given the chance. If they did, it’d be all over. But then, the fox boy noticed something on one of the nearby trees. It was one of his markers. Lafayette had hidden traps all throughout the bayou in case of monster attacks. Every time he planted some, he’d mark a nearby tree with a fox head symbol.

“Rina, I got an idea, but you gotta trust me.”

“You think I don’t? I’d trust ya with my life.”

“Then when I give the signal, jump.”

Rina gave her friend a nod and turned back to Jacob, who was grinding his teeth together.

“You think I can’t hear you?! I don’t care if a hurricane is comin’! You owe us a brawl, and we’re getting’ a brawl! Boys? Get ‘em!”

“Now!”

Rina jumped, smashing her head into Jacob’s chin and knocking a few of his teeth out. As Jacob fell back, Rina jumped past him. Lafayette hopped over one of the other gang members and ran ahead, gesturing for Rina to follow.

Grasping a bloody mouth, Jacob shouted, “You’re not getting away! Get those kids!”

Lafayette darted through the dark woods, hopping between rocks, fallen logs, and tree branches. Rina followed after, making a mighty leap and clambering into the tree the boy was waiting in. Not long after, one of the sharks tried the same maneuver, only to fall into a deep pit filled with thick mud. Lafayette helped Rina up to where he was while watching the shark struggle in the pit.

“That should slow him down. Come on!”

The chase continued, with two of the sharks gaining on the kids. Lafayette drew a small knife and made a quack noise just before ducking and slicing a rope. A suspended tree branch came loose and swung wide. Rina jumped before it hit her, and the branch slammed into the two sharks, knocking them over.

“Why the heck did ya do that? I was tryin’ to tell ya to duck!” said Lafayette.

“Oh! I thought you meant like how ducks sometimes hop into a pond!”

“Are you serious?” Lafayette heard a glass bottle whirling through the air and dodged. The bottle shattered on a tree, scaring off some of the glowflies. “Whatever. Just keep followin’! I got another trap that outta keep them Lemon Sharks busy all night!”

Up ahead was a cage trap. A lower portion had been carefully hidden in the mud while the upper portion was suspended by rope, obscured by the forest canopy. As long as the winds didn’t blow too hard (which they weren’t), cutting the rope would cause the upper portion to fall, and the force of the impact would lock the bars into place, trapping whoever was beneath it inside. Once the pair got to the tree, Lafayette turned to his friend.

“Think you can keep ‘em busy?”

“You know it!” said Rina with a flex.

Lafayette then dove behind cover, keeping his knife at the ready. Rina stood beneath the upper cage and readied herself. The remaining five sharks came charging in and started fighting with Rina. The girl punched, kicked, and bit the sharks as they pummeled her in kind. When Lafayette saw an opening, he shouted, “Jump!” and cut the rope.

Rina rolled out from the brawling sharks and watched the cage fall, but Jacob saw the trap coming and jumped onto the other sharks, catching the upper cage. He threw it at Rina, pinning her to a tree.

“Nice try losers, but I’m too smart for that!” shouted Jacob.

“Guess I got no choice. Sorry, Jacob,” said Lafayette.

“Huh?”

Lafayette pulled a lever hidden behind the tree. The lower part of the cage was designed with a secondary function in case the cage failed to lock into place. With the lever pulled, the lower cage pushed out of the mud and latched shut like a bear trap, pinning the five sharks inside with a nasty crunch. Jacob and the others roared in pain.

“You little twerps! Get me outta this!”

“No can do, Jacob.” Rina tossed aside the upper cage and stood up. “We got ourselves a monster to fight! Just be happy you got nothin’ but cartilage for bones. Now come on, Lafayette. The trail’s gettin’ cold!”

Rina waved down the fox and the pair ran off, leaving Jacob and the others to shout and groan. As the kids returned to the trail, Lafayette looked to his friend.

“Hey Rina.”

“Yeah?”

“How’d you know about that pit trap earlier? I didn’t get the chance to tell you about it.”

Rina clutched her belly and laughed. “I didn’t! I was just guessin’ since you hopped real far away from that rock! Pretty close call, huh?”

The gator girl laughed while Lafayette stared in disbelief. To see Rina shrug off something so important was both bewildering and, somehow, comforting. Lafayette joined his friend in their bout of laughter, even knowing the hardest part was yet to come.

---

Shelly led the rest of the search party, sniffing the air while holding her torch. She and the others heard a scuffle in the distance and came running, but it had grown quiet. Well, almost quiet. There were groans of pain and the sound of struggle, but little else. When she tracked down the source, she didn’t like what she saw.

“Oh not you again!” Shelly barked.

“What is it?” asked Crush, walking up. “Oh gosh dang it, it’s them Lemon Shark kids again!”

“Ooooh, hey there Missus and Mister Woodshed,” said Jacob. “Funny seeing you two on this lovely night.”

“Cut the crap, ya little bastard. Where’s my kid?!” shouted Shelly.

“Kid?”

“Rina, you idiot!”

“Oooooh, that kid. I’d be more than happy to tell you all about it if you let me and the boys out.”

“Shelly, don’t listen to him,” said Crush. “You remember the damage they did last year.”

“Don’t you worry. I have half a mind to leave ‘em for the swamp shark,” said Shelly.

“Wait! Don’t leave us!” said Jacob.

“Yeah! Let us out! I think I broke something!” said another shark.

As the rest of the search party approached, Shelly grabbed Jacob by an arm fin. “Now you listen here boy and you listen good. The only baby I got left in this world is out in the middle of these here woods lookin’ for a monster that’s already taken two of us out. I know she was here. I can smell her on you. If you don’t talk, I’ll do a lot worse than leave you behind.” Shelly gave the fin a twist, making Jacob wince.

“Okay, okay! We’ll talk!”

“Good!” Shelly tore open the trap like it was made of cardboard. The lemon sharks fell to the ground, slowly untangling themselves. Shelly yanked Jacob to his feet. “I let you out, so you better start talkin’!”

“Well…” Jacob took off in a sprint, only to be shoved to the ground by the rest of the search party. The Lemon Shark gang found themselves surrounded by a band of angry beast folk carrying weapons and torches.

Shelly moved in and pulled Jacob up by the hairs on his head. After turning him around and looking him in the eye, she said, “Where. Is. My. Baby?”

---

The air had grown still, and no glowflies could be seen.

Lafayette and Rina tracked the swamp shark, with Rina back in the lead. While she sniffed the air and followed the trail, Lafayette’s ears were bent down.

“So this shark,” he began.

“Yeah? What’s wrong?” asked Rina.

“It’s already gotten two of us, right?”

“That’s what I heard, but who knows what it’s done by now.”

“Do you think they’re…” The last word lingered in Lafayette’s mind like poison. He forced it down and let the silence linger, even though it pained him to do so.

“I don’t know.” Rina turned to Lafayette, putting a hand on his shoulder. “But we can’t give up on ‘em. We’ll look all night if we have to. Just stick with me and you’ll be fine.”

Lafayette gave a nod. He was more concerned for the others than himself, but Rina’s words were reassuring, nonetheless.

The two kids searched the swamp for the better part of an hour, with no sign of the monster in sight. But then, something caught Lafayette’s eye. It was a glow greater than any glowfly he had ever seen. It was also moving towards them.

“Rina! Somethin’s comin’!”

Lafayette unzipped his leather bag and pulled out a hand shovel, ready to attack. Water splashed in the dark of the night, and the glow of the monster’s eyes and mouth came close into view.

“Here it comes! Get ready!” he shouted.

“Don’t have to tell me!” Rina shouted back, eating a pepper.

The shark beached itself, lunging at them with a ferocious bite. Rina answered its lunge with a fireball to the face, diverting its course while she and Lafayette dodged. Its tentacles flailed about, splashing water and mud, tearing down trees, and smashing rock apart.

Rina dove forward, grabbing the shark by the underbelly and slamming her fist into it over and over. It slapped Rina away with a tentacle, trying to grab her with another. Lafayette dove in and slashed with the sharp part of his shovel, severing the tendril’s tip. White blood hissed momentarily before muscular action closed the wound. After that, the shark pushed itself back into the nearby river with its other tentacles and submerged itself, disappearing. All was silent.

“Did we scare it off?” asked Lafayette. Then the ground shuddered. Tentacles pushed their way through the mud and swung wild. Lafayette dodged one, hopped another, then swung at a third, slicing it. Rina did much the same, ducking and weaving while clawing at tentacles that got too close. Lafayette then looked over and noticed something. The tentacle he had slashed earlier was regrowing its tip. “Rina! You seein’ what I’m seein’!? Its wounds are healin’!”

Rina ducked another tentacle swipe and clawed at a second tendril. “Just means we gotta beat this guy up faster than he can heal!”

“Are you crazy? There’s no way we can do that!”

“I ain’t givin’ up just yet! You can run if you want, but-” a tentacle slapped Rina aside, knocking her towards a tree. Lafayette dove to catch her, taking the brunt of the impact in her stead. Before the two could stand, the swamp shark had come around to their side and went to grab them both. Lafayette shoved Rina away and was grabbed as a result. Rina got to her feet and took hold of Lafayette’s wrist, doing her best to pull him free, but it was no use. Her boots skid across the mud they were pulled closer and closer to the swamp shark’s maw. Lafayette clawed and bit the tentacle, but it was healing too fast.

“Rina! Let me go, otherwise it’ll get us both!”

“Shut up! I’m not losin’ another friend!”

Lafayette panicked, looking behind him. He only had a couple seconds to make a decision.

“Rina… I’m sorry.”

The fox boy slipped his hand through Rina’s and disappeared into the swamp shark’s gullet. Shortly afterwards, it withdrew, going back into the water and swimming away.

“Lafayette! No!!”

Rina ran after the beast but slipped on the mud, skidding across the ground until she hit her head against a rock. She clutched at her head and growled, struggling to one knee. Hot tears ran down her face as she blasted a plume of fire into the air, howling at the sky.

---

Shelly and the others finally caught up to Rina, finding her on the ground with her back against a rock. The girl’s eyes were red from tears.

“Rina… What happened? I thought that fox boy was with you,” said Shelly.

“He was…” Rina sniffed. “He was.” Rina got up and explained what happened to everyone, ending it with, “And that’s why I can’t let it get away. I gotta take back what it took from me, one way or another.”

“So it’s true?” asked Eli. “Lafayette’s gone?” Rina merely nodded, making Eli’s gaze turn downwards. “… I see.”

“There’s no way we’re talkin’ you outta this, is there?” asked Crush.

“Of course not! You’d do the same if you were in my boots! I know you would!” shouted Rina. Crush had no rebuttal. “That’s what I thought. Now outta my way. I got a swamp shark to hunt.”

Shelly stopped Rina, taking her by the shoulder and getting down on one knee. “Listen, I know it hurts. I get it. But you can’t take this thing on by yourself. You fought it with Lafayette and look where that got you.”

Rina bit her lip, on the verge of tears once more.

“She’s right,” said Eli. “If we had worked together from the start, we could have avoided this. But now that we’re all here, we’ll fight as one.”

“Wait… You aren’t gonna stop me?” asked Rina.

“No. If what you say is true, we’ll need everyone we can find to help with this problem. But first, there’s something I need to show you all.”

Eli began walking away from where the swamp shark had gone. Rina ran up to the turtle.

“Hey, wait a minute! The shark went that way!”

“I understand that,” said Eli, “but if I’m right about what I found, we won’t have to chase it. We can make it come to us.”

“But…”

Alyssa the egret extended a feathered hand. “Listen to Eli. He’s never steered us wrong before.”

Rina sighed. “You’re right. Let’s go.”

The search party, now led by Eli, traveled south through the swamp, veering east towards some of the submerged houses. One thing that was always a prominent feature of this part of the bayou were the rusted automobiles that sat half-covered in mud and dirt nearby. Upon returning to that place, however, Rina saw all the cars were gone.

“What the… Where is everything?” Rina asked.

“My point exactly,” said Eli. The snapping turtle approached one of the houses with a tiled roof just above water level. Part of it had nasty bite marks. “Not long after I received word from Pete, I traveled across the bayou to get to your house, Rina. I knew the swamp shark must have passed through here, but then, why were the cars missin’? That’s when I began theorizin’ about what this monster was after. I’ve heard tell that sharks have a special organ that lets them sense electric signals and the like, and this causes them to eat metallic things due to metal’s electromagnetivity. This shark is far from normal, but it seems particularly attracted to metallic objects. Why?”

“Maybe… It thinks it’s food?” said Crush.

“But it hunts people as well. If it preferred meat over metal, it should have been able to tell the difference from taste alone. If not the first time, the second or third. Has anyone lost anything metal as of late?”

Big Pete shook nervously as he said, “Wait, that’s right! I went to talk to ya about the shark and realized my machete was missin’, so I went back to look and… It was gone.”

“What are you getting’ at, Eli? Are you sayin’ this thing actually likes metal?” asked Shelly.

“I can’t be certain, but I think that’s the case,” Eli rubbed his chin. “Lafayette had his tools, and everyone I sent out earlier had weapons on them. There’s only one thing consistent between all of its targets. Metal!”

“Hold on a sec,” said Rina. “Then why would it come after me? I got metal buttons on my overalls, but that’s about it.” Shelly, Crush, and Eli looked awkwardly at each other, then turned to Rina. “What? I ain’t lyin’!”

“Rina, do you remember those keys you vomited up at my house?” asked Eli.

“Whaaaaat? I don’t… Not remember…”

“You kinda have a problem,” said Crush.

“I do not!”

“Oh yeah?” scoffed Shelly. “The last time you got sick, I found an old license plate, three beer cans, and a whole pile of bottle caps in yer spew bucket! That’s not even touchin’ on the fish scales and bones!”

“Hey! If it looks tasty, I eat it! What’s yer point?!” asked Rina.

“The point is, you tend to have a lot of undigested metal in your gut,” said Eli. “It’s not surprisin’ you’d be singled out among the others.”

“Then what’s the plan?” asked Alyssa.

“I have a car in my garage I’ve been tryin’ to restore with salvaged parts. It’s not much, but if the shark was hungry enough to eat the cars here, you can be certain it’ll come for my car when I set the trap. It’ll also be useful for savin’ the others.”

“Wait, you think they’re alive?” asked Rina.

“I don’t think, I know. I’ve learned a lot about sharks in my time down in the South Sea. Sharks take… A long time to digest their food. About three days or so. If this monster is anythin’ like a normal shark, there may be a chance we can still save Lafayette and the others.”

Rina’s heart swelled. She was certain she had lost her friend, but Eli’s theories filled her with hope. If there was a chance, any chance at all, Rina would do everything she could to help.

Eli explained the rest of his plan to the others. He would attach one end of a long metal chain via a locking hook to the back of his car while the other end would be held by most of the search party – primarily Crush and Shelly.

“You’re among the strongest here,” said Eli. “And the heaviest.”

Crush put a hand to his belly with a nervous chuckle while Shelly smiled as if she had been complimented.

“Now the reason we’ll be using my car,” Eli continued, “is because someone will be in the driver’s seat when the monster eats it. That way we’ll be able to get inside the monster and grab anyone who’s still alive. I doubt the car will hold up forever, though, so when I’ve got everyone, I’ll fire a flare using this.” Eli reached into a pocket and pulled out a 12-gauge flare gun, which was a discolored orange. “I’m not sure if you’ll be able to see it since the monster’s mouth glows, but you’ll certainly be able to smell it.”

“Hold on, who said you’d be the one in that car? I’m the one who lost Lafayette! I should be the one goin’ in!” said Rina.

“If I had at least let you and Lafayette help earlier, you wouldn’t have ran off on your own. This is my burden to bear. Besides,” Eli smirked, “I need someone to hogtie that shark so it doesn’t thrash around while I’m inside. Think you can handle it?” Rina nodded excitedly. Eli turned to Rina’s parents. “Is that all right with you two?”

“Only if she’s willin’ to work together with the rest of us,” said Shelly.

“Then it’s settled. Everyone, follow me. We’ve got ourselves a swamp shark to catch.”

---

Lafayette woke up to a dull whirring sound.

The fox boy opened his eyes. What he saw beggared belief. He was trapped inside a fleshy pod connected to an equally fleshy wall, but not everything in the room was organic. There were walkways, bright lights, moving mechanical parts, and a crystal cylinder hooked up to a strange device. It looked like an engine, but Lafayette couldn’t be sure. Inside the crystal cylinder was a head-sized green orb of energy. It was smooth one moment then spiky the next. It changed shape and texture rhythmically the way a heart pumps blood.

“What in the world?”

Lafayette looked to his left, noticing some familiar faces. Mick Longlegs and David the deer were also trapped in flesh pods. Worse yet, long fleshy tubes ending in metal needles had been inserted into the tube. Blood was being pulled through the tubes and into another bizarre device embedded into the corpulent insides of wherever he was. The device hummed, and bottles were being filled with thick liquids – one dark yellow in color, and another pure red. When the red bottle was sufficiently filled, it was extracted by a tendril and inserted into the engine-like device wrapping around the crystal cylinder. Below Lafayette were vats as well, which contained piles of metal junk being broken down in what he assumed was digestive fluids. The boy remembered being eaten by the shark, but as far as he was concerned, he had woken up in a whole new dimension.

Not wanting to wait around and let his friends die, Lafayette clawed his way out of the flesh pod and climbed over to Mick and David, tearing open their pods and pulling the needles free. Lafayette lowered the pair onto one of the walkways, and they came to shortly after, though they were barely conscious. Lafayette did his best to lift them up.

“Come on, you two. We gotta get out of here!”

Then the lights above shifted color from white to a harsh red. Tendrils sprang from the walls and darted towards Lafayette. The fox drew his knife and slashed at them, keeping the tendrils at bay, but more were beginning to grow all along the walls. He could hold out for the moment, but how long would he last?

---

Out in a muddy field, Eli sat patiently in his car. He loosened his iron grip on the steering wheel to double-check that the flare gun was still in his pocket. Everything was fine for now. Ahead of him was a riverbank, and beyond that, a tangled mess of trees. Behind him, the others were lying in wait. Crush, Shelly, and several other beast folk had their hands around their end of the chain while the rest sat along the muddy ground. Rina and the rest of the beast folk were nearby as well, holding ropes and chains of their own. Once the sight of a large fin and an eerie glow came into view, Eli let out an anxious sigh.

“Well, here goes nothin’.”

Seconds later, the swamp shark breached the water and lunged at the car. It took every ounce of Eli’s willpower to not jump out of the car to safety. The shark latched onto the car with its sharp teeth and pulled it in with tentacles. When the chain grew taut, Shelly dug her heels into the ground.

“Now! Hold on like yer life depends on it!”

The beast folk used all their strength to keep the chain from slipping out of their hands. They gave just enough to let the car get pulled further into the shark, but once it was swallowed, they began their tug-o-war in earnest. The shark accepted this challenge, struggling to pull itself back into the water. This was when Rina and the others came charging out of the woods.

Beast folk flung ropes attached to grappling hooks over the top of the shark while Alyssa flew heavy chains over it. Rina went to work immediately, dodging the striking tentacles and tying them up as best as she could. She resisted the urge to claw and bite the beast, knowing what little good it would do.

With the shark occupied with pulling the car chain, Rina and the others made short work binding the shark in place. They anchored its bindings to rocks and logs, trapping it on the shore of the riverbank. For the moment, the shark wasn’t going anywhere.

---

Lafayette fought tirelessly to defend the weak and wounded Mick and David. However, something strange happened, causing the fleshy room to shake. Lafayette fell on his hands and knees, leaving an opening for the tendrils. Just before he was pulled back into a pod, Eli arrived on the scene, slashing the tendrils apart with his claws.

“Eli! What are you doin’ here?!” shouted Lafayette.

“I came to get you out! Where the hell is this place? Are we inside the shark?!” shouted Eli.

“How the heck would I know?” The room shook once more, and a thundering roar made Lafayette cover his ears. “There’s no time to explain! Mick and David are hurt real bad! We gotta get ‘em outta here!”

“Then watch my back! I’ll carry ‘em!”

Eli picked Mick and David up and ran back to the car. Lafayette followed, slashing at whatever tendrils, limbs, or pustules tried to attack him. With the fox boy’s help, Eli got Mick and David into the backseat of the car, buckled up.

“Come on, kid! Hop in!”

Lafayette leaped onto the hood of the car and tried to crawl inside as Eli pulled out the flare gun, firing it. The flare stuck itself into the ceiling above, hissing and sizzling. Already the car was starting to move back. As Lafayette was climbing into the car, however, more tendrils lashed out, grabbing hold of the fox and pulling him out.

“Lafayette!!” cried Eli. Too little too late. The car was yanked free of the shark, leaving Lafayette alone.

---

When the car was pulled free, it landed on the mud covered in a thick slime. Not long after, the shark went berserk. Through a sudden show of strength, it burst from its bindings and lashed out at Rina and the others. Rina sank inches into the mud as the tentacle came slamming down on her. She caught it just in time, but several others were swatted away. As Rina shoved the tentacle aside, Alyssa swooped down and picked her up by the shoulders, carrying her to safety. Then the shark dove back into the water, swimming away.

The beast folk gathered around the car, helping the others out. Rina saw Eli get out, then Mick and David were carried out, but there was no sign of Lafayette. Her blood went cold.

“Eli! What happened?” Rina asked.

“Things inside the shark, it got him as we were pulled out! He’s still inside!” said Eli.

“What?!”

Rina looked back at where the shark had swum away, gritting her teeth. “That son of a gun!” Without a second thought, Rina dove into the riverbank and swam after the shark. Shelly tried to grab her before she dove in, but was too slow.

“Rina! Rina, get back here this instant! Rina!!!”

It was no use. Something was telling Rina that if she didn’t chase the shark down now and save Lafayette, he’d be gone for good. Like a demon possessed, she swam as fast as she could in pursuit of her prey. Though the swamp shark had already covered a great deal of ground, it was slower than Rina expected. It seemed weakened, somehow. This gave Rina the opportunity she needed to close the distance. After breaching the water, Rina landed on the swamp shark’s back, grabbing hold of its dorsal fin.

“I’m not lettin’ you get away this time, swamp shark. I’m gettin’ my friend back if it’s the last thing I do!”

Rina popped a pepper into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed. Unlike before, when she used the magical heat to blast the beast, she kept her mouth shut and held the fire in. Her gut burned like a furnace as smoke billowed from her nostrils. Her skin changed color, gradually taking on the hues of flame. Her senses sharpened, her muscles bulged, and her blood pumped red hot through her veins. It was a trick she had learned after testing how long she could hold onto her fire breath. The magic flame in her belly gave her awesome power, but it hurt like crazy, and she was always at risk of passing out when the power was spent. Even knowing these risks, Rina used the power anyway. Come Hell or high water, she would save Lafayette.

The first thing Rina did was smash apart the shark’s dorsal fin, causing it to quake with pain. Soon after, she dove into the water and lashed out at the beast. Rina tore through the shark’s tentacles like wet spaghetti noodles before latching onto its belly with her teeth, tearing at it with a roll. The shark swatted Rina away with its massive body and put some distance between it and her. Its devilish glowing eyes locked with Rina’s, and it charged. Rather than attempt to bite Rina, however, it crashed into her, slamming her against large river rocks. A dull blunt pain shot through Rina’s body, but this was nothing compared to the burning sensation coursing through her. With a shove, Rina pushed the gigantic shark back, and the battle continued.

Both Rina and the swamp shark swam swiftly and struck each other with a ferocious might. While Rina’s wounds continued to accrue, the shark’s wounds simply healed. Even most of its tentacles had come back. And yet, as it was forced to heal its wounds over and over, the shark’s movements began to slow. It was losing stamina, and as it tired, it became easier to dodge, easier to strike. Rina pushed the advantage, punching, clawing, and kicking the ever-loving daylights out of the beast. Though her mouth was sealed, inside she cried out for her friend.

“Give back Lafayette! Give back my friend!”

After getting slapped around by the fearsome gator, the swamp shark turned tail and fled. Rina pursued, latching onto one of its pectoral fins with a bite. In a last-ditch effort to escape, the swamp shark aimed its fin (and Rina) at a sharp rock formation up ahead. Seeing this, Rina waited until the last second, then… Let go. The shark slammed into the rocks, smashing them apart with its huge mass. In doing this, it heavily wounded itself and slowed considerably. Now’s my chance! thought the gator girl. She swam after the beast and grabbed hold of its mouth, using what strength remained to pry its jaws open and slip inside.

---

Lafayette grew cold, trapped inside the flesh pod. He had been bound up inside the beast once more and getting his blood drained. Slowly but surely, an icy sensation washed over him. It took all his strength just to stay awake. Yet his strength waned, and the boy found himself straddling the line between the waking world and his dreams.

Fear.

What? thought Lafayette. What is this feeling?

For just an instant, Lafayette felt something inside his mind. Something that wasn’t himself. It was like something was calling out to him. Distant, feral, and afraid, yet it called out to him all the same. Perhaps it was because he was bound within its body, but somehow, Lafayette had formed a connection between himself and the monster. He saw the reflection of stars dance across a vast purple ocean. Creatures terrible and alien swam through the ocean, far, far away.

Lafayette saw himself being pulled upwards by a beam of light, and he lay breathless upon a huge metallic table. Strange beings, long and thin, were doing things to him. Horrible things. They were changing him. They were making him… Different. They gave him power. They gave him a mission.

Tunneling through prismatic halls of blinding light, he reappeared in other places, in other oceans. Hungry, he searched for metal and extracted what he could. He hunted a new type of prey in those distant seas on dying worlds. Again and again, he would travel, he would appear in a strange new place, and he would hunt until he was fit to burst. Then he returned, giving those thin beings what they wanted.

Countless years passed – too long to tell for certain. He had survived the thin ones. Now there was nothing left except the mission. Extracting metal no longer served a purpose, but the hunger remained. There was nothing left but power and instinct. The hunt continued, until one day he found himself on a new world. One both alien and familiar…

Lafayette came too. Rina was staring at him with dark-rimmed eyes. She pried open the flesh pod and removed the needles, pulling him free.

“R-rina? Is that really you?” whispered Lafayette.

“It sure is. I’m getting’ you outta here!”

“Wait…”

“What is it?”

Their conversation was cut short by attacking tendrils. Rina leaped away, carrying Lafayette. She landed on one of the walkways and lashed out at the tendrils with fang and claw.

“This thing doesn’t give up, does it?! Got any ideas?”

“There…” Lafayette pointed at the crystal cylinder. “This thing, it… It’s not from here. I don’t know where it’s from, but it’s not here. It traveled here using that.”

“I don’t know what the heck you’re sayin’, but if you want me to blow it up, I got just enough firepower left to do that!”

“Be careful…! I don’t know what’ll happen once that breaks…”

Rina nodded with a grin. “I make no promises.”

As more tendrils lashed out at the pair, Rina leaped into the air and spit a fireball at the crystal cylinder. The magic force of the blast broke open the cylinder and blew up the engine. When Rina landed on the ground, the inside of the shark began to quake and shift. Rina wasted no time and bolted back towards the shark’s throat. Sickly-looking tentacles and ghastly lumps of flesh tried to block her way, but Rina bulldozed right through while Lafayette was slung over her shoulder. Up ahead, the shark’s many fangs had latched shut. Without a second thought, Rina slammed her other shoulder straight into the teeth, busting through like it was a glass window. The gator flew through the air and landed on a rocky and muddy plot of land. Instinct took hold and she continued to run, all while Lafayette watched what transpired.

The swamp shark floated up and out of the water as if by magic, staying suspended in the air. Then the space around it warped, bending the shark into impossible shapes. In an instant, the shark imploded, and both the shark, as well as a sphere of space surrounding it, blipped out of existence. With a pop loud enough to make Lafayette’s eardrums ring, the monster was gone. Rina set Lafayette down and turned to look back at where the swamp shark once was.

“Hmph! Swamp shark, you may have drawn first blood, but I’ve… Drawn last.”

Then Rina’s strength gave out and she collapsed.

---

One day later, Rina and Lafayette were found passed out next to a log by Alyssa. The egret woman swooped down to check the children. They were alive, but badly injured. She carried them back to the others, and soon after, they were taken in by Eli. The old snapping turtle nursed the children back to health, first cleaning and bandaging their wounds, then steadily feeding them chicken liver. After two days, the children were back on their feet, welcomed by the bayou as heroes.

Rina and Lafayette were showered with praise by the other beast folk. Even when Shelly appeared looking angrier than ever, her expression quickly softened as she scooped up her daughter and gave her a great big hug.

“Rina baby! I’m so glad you’re okay!”

“Gah! Good to see ya too, ma!”

Crush joined the group hug, and before Rina suffered anymore wounds, she was set back down next to Lafayette.

“You done us real proud savin’ Lafayette,” said Crush. “We haven’t seen that nasty shark for a while, either. Whatever happened to that thing?”

Rina and Lafayette looked at each other.

“Uh… It’s a long story,” said the fox boy.

Together, Rina and Lafayette gave their own accounts of what they saw, filling in a lot of the blanks of what Eli, Mick, and David had said. When they were finished, everyone looked more confused than they were before.

“You’re tellin’ me that thing got here through some tunnel of light?” asked Crush. “That don’t make a lick o’ sense.”

“It’s not impossible,” said Eli. “It might have used some kind of magic spell to do it. There’s a lot we don’t know about the world or anything beyond it. We still don’t know why Rina can breathe flame, for instance.”

“You make a fair point…”

“Well I don’t care what that thing was or how it worked,” said Shelly, “I’m just glad I got my baby back.” She grabbed Rina once more for a second hug, but Rina resisted.

“Enough with the hugs! I’m glad to see ya too, but I ain’t yer baby anymore! I am ten years old! That’s two whole digits! You don’t have to worry so much, ma. I’m a big girl now!”

With a sigh, Shelly said, “I get that. Yer growin’ faster than a swamp weed, and you can fight with the best of ‘em, but you need to understand. After we lost Root, I…” Shelly stopped, sniffling. “O’ course I’d worry. Don’t I have the right?”

Rina looked to the ground, hands behind her back. “I understand… You don’t want me fightin’ monsters anymore, do ya?”

Shelly shook her head. “Rina, I couldn’t stop you even if I tried. And I’d know, ‘cause I tried! Knowing the shark is long gone and you two are okay, well, it’s clear you’re both more capable than anyone gave ya credit for. You can keep defendin’ the swamp and fightin’ monsters, just tell someone about it. Tell Alyssa, tell Eli, tell me! Communicate with us, and don’t be afraid to ask for help! If you’re willin’ to keep us all up to date, then I’m more than willin’ to let you do your thing with Lafayette.”

Shelly extended her hand to Rina. The girl looked at it in utter disbelief. Feeling waves of relief, Rina took hold of her mother’s hand and shook it vigorously.

“You got yerself a deal! Lafayette, we’re back in business!”

“Does it have to be monster fights every time though?”

“O’ course not. There’s still lots of places to explore ‘round here, lots of strange stuff we can learn about. If you’re willin’ to tag along on my adventures, I’ll tag along on yours too.”

Lafayette turned to Eli. “Well? What do ya think?”

“I think it sounds like a plan. Just check in every once and a while like Shelly said. You know how forgetful Rina can be.”

“Hey! I am not forgetful! At least… I don’t think I am. Do you remember a time I’ve forgotten somethin’, Lafayette?”

The other beast folk got a good chuckle out of this, leaving Rina looking around in confusion. Not long after, the crowd dispersed, and both Rina and Lafayette returned to their respective homes. Rina to her log cabin, and Lafayette to his hollow tree. They ate good food, took nice warm baths, and then crawled into bed for a well-deserved rest. Neither were sure what tomorrow would bring, but they were happier they didn’t know. The mystery made it more fun.

[agooberscast]

"You're welcome, Rina. Happy birthhhhhday~"

"Mmmmhmhmhmmm~!" The smaller noodle wiggles in place happily, rattling happily as she does. A happy birthday noodle!