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official-helpless · 4 years ago

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Here it is people!! An official chapter from book two of my Helpless series; Retaliation! This is chapter seventeen. This chapter is 13 pages long with 3,116 words! Enjoy! And as always, I love feedback!

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Dustin and Talon park on the opposite side of Dean Henderson’s new street.

“Are you sure about this, Talon?” Dustin is obviously nervous. Talon is about to kill a man. “What if you get caught?”

Talon chuckles, “I won’t.” He assures his boyfriend confidently. He looks across the street at the medium-sized gray house.

“Is he even home?” Dustin looks over too, moving his head to try and get a better look.

Then they spot him. He is cleaning his windows. Talon can see the dark bags under the old man’s eyes. “His face still makes me sick.”

“What exactly did he do to you?” Dustin is genuinely curious. He never really knew Talon’s other abusers. Other than his parents and that pack of bullies.

“He would call my parents and lie to them about how I was doing in school. He would turn a blind eye to the gym teacher that would harass the boys in her class, including me. He would punish me when Chase would attack me and say I attacked him. A lot of the beatings I got were because of him.” Talon explains darkly. He pulls out his guns and double checks to make sure they’re loaded.

“Holy shit.” The gleaming guns reflect in Dustin’s bright eyes. “Those are your weapons? Color me impressed.” He takes one gun from Talon and examines it, “I’ve always wanted to shoot one of these.”

Talon laughs and takes the gun back. He puts them both in the holders on the inside of his jacket, “Maybe you can come shooting with me on one of my practice days. I can show you how.”

“Not gonna lie, Talon,” Dustin exhales slowly, “That’s probably one of the hottest things you’ve ever said.”

Talon smiles and gives Dustin a quick kiss, “This won’t take long.”

The three brothers are parked a little further down the road. Their attention is dead set on the house, as is Dustin’s. He’s still nervous and prepared for anything to happen.

Talon strolls right up to the house and knocks enthusiastically. As if this was a casual visit. The man answers the door and his expression twists into one of confusion.

“C- can I help you?” Dean asks hesitantly. He squints his beady eyes. “Do I know you?”

Talon grins and pushes the man back into the house. “Home alone?” He steps in and slams the door shut, “Let’s have a little talk.”

“How do you think he’s going to do it?” Zeke asks, leaning in close to the window.

“This guy didn’t rape him,” Bone replies, narrowing his eyes a little, “So there won’t be a bullet to the crotch. My guess is in the chest. Not too messy.”

“Nah.” Zeke shakes his head slowly. “I say right between the eyes.”

“Wanna bet?” Bone casts a sideway glance at his brother. They smile at each other slyly. “Twenty bucks it’s in the chest.”

“You’re on.” Zeke leans back and reaches between the seats to shake Bone’s hand.

“You two are fucked up.” Damien speaks up from his seat. His wide eyes stare at his brothers in complete disbelief.

“How long has it been, Mr. Henderson?” Talon saunters around the old man’s living room, inspecting his poor taste in decor as he waits for an answer.

The man’s wide eyes watch Talon practically circle him. “M-my wife will be back from the store soon.” He says, hoping to scare the albino off.

“Then you better answer quickly.” Talon retorts. The man doesn’t respond. “Come on Dean.” Talon whispers harshly, “You’re a smart man. How long has it been?” He wants the satisfaction of the man admitting he knows exactly who Talon is.

Dean swallows hard. There are sweat stains in the pits of his cheap polo and his hands are trembling. “It.. It’s been f-five ye-”

“Five years.” Talon interrupts with a slow nod, “Let me ask you something, Dean.” He looks at his hand and slides the fingernail of his pinky under the fingernail of his thumb, “Man to man, do you think you lived a good life? Are you proud of yourself?

Dean’s chest rises and falls rapidly. “I- I’d like to think I did.”

Talon squints and puts on a fake smile, “Did you though?” He circles Dean again. “So, calling a child a demon because of his skin is something to be proud of.” He stops and takes a step towards the man. “Lying and getting that same child beaten, giving him detention when he gets beat up, telling the other teachers to intentionally fail him just to get him in trouble? That’s living a good life, huh?” He shrugs, “I suppose it was a good life for you. Getting away with that must’ve been pretty satisfying.” He pulls out a gun and cocks it. “This, however, will be satisfying for me.” He presses it to Dean’s forehead.

Dean has tears in his eyes. He never expected to die this way. He is frozen to his spot, his pants are soiled and his entire body is shaking. His jaw twitches and his bottom lip trembles. He looks pathetic.

Dustin flinches at the sound of the gunshot. He sees blood and brain matter splatter onto the window. He looks around frantically. No one else is around, and no one seemed to hear anything. He’s glued to the window, waiting anxiously for Talon.

“Look at that splatter,” Zeke says with a dark laugh. He moves his blond bangs away from his eyes, “Totally shot him in the head.”

“Dammit.” Bone grumbles. He knows he can’t argue with the evidence. He pulls out his wallet and gives Zeke a twenty. “Just you wait till we get to the gym teacher’s house. Double or nothing.”

Zeke chuckles as he shoves the twenty in his pocket, “You got it, big guy.”

“I hate you guys.” Damien mumbles grumpily. His two brothers don’t get along very often, and when they do, they bond over the darkest things.

Talon steps out of the house and closes the door gently. He wipes his face with a black cloth as he crosses the street to the truck. “That went better than expected.” He says quietly. He pauses when he notices Dustin staring at him. Why was he staring at him like that? Was he scared?

Dustin uses his thumb to wipe away some blood that was still on Talon’s cheek, “Point blank?”

Dustin’s question surprises Talon. It’s an odd question. “Yes?” He answers in an uncertain tone.

Dustin takes a moment to look at Talon’s eyes. They’re glowing brightly. The bright green and shocks of pink. His cat-like pupils are dilated. The albino is visibly exhilarated. “That was impressive.” He compliments.

Talon smiles and a wave of relief crashes over him. His phone beeps, and he sees a text from Damien saying they are heading to the next house. “We are hitting the gym teacher next. Her house is on the way back.” He informs Dustin.

Serpent and Spade are only forty-five minutes behind the others.

“S- Serpent. There are cops here.” Spade speaks up anxiously as they pull up to Dean’s house. “And it looks like he has a wife.” He notices a cop comforting a grieving older woman.

“Don’t worry, little doctor.” Serpent shuts the car off and steps out. Spade exits the car hesitantly. He walks beside him and they cross the street.

“Hey!” A cop shouts as they near the house, “You can’t-”

“There’s nothing for you here.” Serpent’s voice is a deep growl and his eyes glow. He looks at the small group of officers, “You and everyone else on this property need to leave. Nothing happened.”

They all mumble their agreements and get in their cars. They leave without a single argument. He tells the old lady to follow them quietly. He does the same thing to the CSI workers in the house he did to the cops. They leave without a word.

“Sit.” Serpent says to the old lady. She sits silently.

“H- how did you do that?” Spade is amazed. He’s never seen Serpent do a trick like that.

“Compulsion. One of the perks of being me.” Serpent says with a low chuckle.

Spade stops. All this time, Serpent could force him to comply, but he doesn’t. He feels a whole new respect growing.

“Eighteen hundred years alive and you don’t know what you are? What category you fall in to?” Spade looks up at him, “Doesn’t that bother you?”

“Not at all.” Serpent responds, examining the body. The bullet is still on the floor. “Finding out what I am won’t change it. I’ll still be me either way, so I’m in no hurry.”

That’s another quality that Spade admires about Serpent. Nothing ever bothers him, and if it does, he doesn’t show it. He handles each situation with dignity and control.

“You got lucky. You knew what you were right away.” Serpent looks down on Spade, “Nymph.”

Spade’s cheeks redden, and he looks away. “I wouldn’t call that lucky. Male nymphs are extremely rare and-”

“And extremely beautiful.” Serpent adds with a grin.

“And,” Spade adjusts his glasses nervously, “That quality gets my kind kidnapped and sold.” He says sadly.

“That’s where I come in.” Serpent reaches in his pocket and pulls out Spade’s favorite pen. He dropped it at the house when Serpent picked him up. “You’re safe with me.”

Spade’s mother originally hired Serpent to protect Spade. Spade needed protection and Serpent needed a doctor to work with him. Serpent took Spade with him, causing some waves with the doctor’s mother, but there was no way for Serpent to do his project and protect Spade in one place, “You’re always safe with me.” He promises.

“Thank you.” Spade takes the pen with a shy smile. He watches as Serpent sets Dean’s body ablaze. “What about her?” He turns to look at the old lady.

Serpent gazes at Spade. “Look away, little doctor.”

Spade’s eyes flutter a little. He turns away and stares at the floor. He hears the woman whimper, followed by the sound of her neck snapping. He puts his hand over his mouth and closes his eyes. He turns back around as Serpent is setting the woman on fire. “Couldn’t you have just compelled her to forget?”

“I could have, but who knows who else knows them. She could end up with a family member that asks too many questions. It’s easier to kill her.” Serpent places his hand on the small of Spade’s back and leads him out of the house.

Serpent is right. Spade links his arm with Serpent’s and allows the man to lead him back to the car.

“N-no! You’re supposed to be dead!” Michelle is terrified. Talon Adams is standing in her kitchen. “You can’t be here!”

“Oh, I understand.” Talon walks up on her, making her stumble backwards and trip on one of her dining room chairs, “I’m too old for your tastes.” He taunts.

Bone and the others are parked around the back of the house. There is no gate. Bone scans the backyard. Something rather peculiar catches his attention. He nudges Damien.

“Hey, look at that.” The tattooed man says urgently. He points to the storm cellar in the woman’s backyard. There are a pile of clothes beside it and a plate of food scraps.

Damien finds the sight a bit odd as well. He reaches to the back seat and shakes Zeke awake. “We might have a problem.”

Zeke sits up straight, “With Talon?” He asks, blinking away the sleepiness.

“Not exactly.” Damien points to what Bone showed him.

“That’s… Strange…” Zeke narrows his eyes and shifts in his seat. “Let’s go check it out.”

They all exit the car and sneak into the backyard. Dustin sees this and watches them with confusion. After a moment, he decides to follow them.

“What are y’all doin’?” Dustin asks them in a hushed tone.

Zeke cocks his head towards the cellar and points to the clothes and plate of scraps.

Dustin’s muscles tense up tightly. What the hell is this?

Bone looks at the cellar doors. “They’re chained shut.” He grabs the chains, “They’re rusted pretty badly. I can probably just-” he breaks the chains with a deep grunt. He tosses them to the side and they land with a loud clink. He opens the doors slowly, “Hello?” He calls down, careful not to be too loud.

They can hear little whimpers as a response. Bone freezes instantly. He stands up and whirls around, “She’s got someone down there. Tell Talon. Now.” Without another word, Bone races down the concrete steps and into the musty cellar.

“T- Talon, please… listen to me…” Michelle whimpers. She grabs the top of the counter and pulls herself to her feet, “I- I’m not as bad as you think.”

Talon raises an eyebrow. This should be good. “Why is that?”

Michelle lets out a shaky breath and wipes her forehead. “W-when I was little, I… My father molested me… It happened a lot and as I got older, I thought performing acts like that meant you loved someone…”

Talon holds back his laughter. “Are you telling me that when your father did those things to you, you felt loved?”

“Well… No… I felt scared and alone…” Michelle admits.

“So, you’re trying to tell me you harassed and molested boys because that’s the only way you could show love?” Talon scoffs. “Let’s put aside the fact that these boys were underage. None of them wanted it! Including me! You didn’t love us! You loved feeling like you were in control. Just because your dad traumatized you as a child, doesn’t give you the right to traumatize innocent people!”

Michelle knew her excuse was bullshit, but she was so desperate to stay alive that she was ready to say anything. No matter how ridiculous. “B- but isn’t that what you’re doing now?”

A smile tugs at the corners of Talon’s mouth. “No, you ignorant woman. You were sexually abused and in turn, you sexually abuse underage boys. You project your pain onto innocent people who had no intention of hurting you. I am projecting my pain on the dirtbags that had every intention of hurting me. People like you create trauma. I want to prevent it.” He takes a step towards the shaking woman, making her flinch. Just then, his phone buzzes. He pulls it out and glances at it to make sure it’s not an emergency. His anger boils hot inside of him.

“You…” His head lowers and his bangs fall over his eyes, “You sick bitch!” He shoves his phone in his pocket and rushes the woman. He snatches her up by the throat and lifts her above his head. Her feet kick at the air and her nails desperately claw at Talon’s hand. “You vile woman. You disgust me! You’re a complete waste of flesh! You’ve got someone locked in your cellar!?” His eyes flash defiantly, “How old is he!?” When the woman opts for silence, he tightens his grip. “How old is he!?”

Hot tears streak down Michelle’s face as she chokes out the words, “They’re sixteen!”

Talon feels something in him snap. Black slowly takes over the white sclera of his eyes. He throws the woman across the small kitchen. She hits the wall with a heavy thud. “There’s more than one!?”

Bone squints as his eyes try to adjust to the darkness of the cellar, “Hello?” He calls out again.

“P- please… don’t hurt us.” A small male voice whines in fear.

Bone blinks a few times and walks in further. He finally sees them. Two boys about the age of sixteen. His heart sinks at the sight of them, “I will not hurt you.” He says, slowly inching his way towards them. The three of them hear Michelle screaming, followed by several gunshots. The two boys start to panic and cry.

“No, no, no, no. It’s okay. You’re okay.” He crouches down and grabs the chains on their ankles. “These are fairly strong.” He mutters. He looks up at them. “Is there a key?”

One boy nods quickly. “She keeps it in a toolbox by the steps. We can’t reach it.” His voice is like gravel.

Bone gets up and heads back towards the steps. He comes back a moment later with the key. He unlocks the restraints and takes them off of the boys’ ankles. He notices they are only in their underwear. He takes off his coat and throws it around one boy, then takes off his hoodie and puts it on the other. He’s left in a black, sleeveless shirt. The boys look up at him with grateful and needy eyes. Both have dirty blond hair and shamrock green eyes.

“Do you have anyone to take you in?” Bone asks them. They shake their heads. “Do you want to come with me?” They nod their heads eagerly. “Alright.” Bone gathers them both in his arms and stands up. They cling to him desperately as he exits the cellar.

Zeke and Damien’s eyes are wide with shock. Dustin gasps at the sight. Bone carries them to the car and places them in the back seat. “Zeke, are you okay to drive? I want to sit with them.”

“Yeah, no problem, dude.” Zeke is still in complete disbelief. That woman really had two boys trapped in a cellar. He can’t imagine what they’ve been through.

Talon is coming out of the back of the house. The group can see a fire forming inside. “How many?” He asks abruptly.

“T- two.” Dustin notices the change in Talon’s eyes and feels a rush of fear. “Talon-”

“I just got off the phone with Serpent. They are heading back to the house to get supplies ready for those boys.” Talon interrupts harshly, “I collected the bullets myself and started the fire. We need to go. Now.”

The brothers nod and get into their car. Talon and Dustin get into the truck and the vehicles start. They drive off quickly.

“Talon, are you okay?” Dustin’s hands grip the steering wheel. “You looked really… angry back there.”

“Of course I did. That bitch had two sixteen-year-old boys in her cellar. She tried to blame her past trauma on her actions. I’m thoroughly disgusted. Aren’t you?” Talon’s tone is biting. His narrowed eyes glare at the blood beading on his hands where that vile woman scratched him.

“Well, yeah, but your eyes, they-” Dustin is cut off when Talon’s phone buzzes and the albino deliberately answers it. ‘Guess we’ll talk later.’ He thinks with a deep concern.

#helpless #violence #lgbtq #albino #romance #retaliation #kindle books #series #book two #Talon Adams #books #writing #guns #revenge #february 2021

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mybrainbutonpaper · 4 years ago

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There He Was Again

Chapter 4

—finally finished this, sorry it took awhile, school started and it has been taking up most of my time. My friend edited it a bit so I hope you like it.

— summary

Lovino was having some suspicion of his husband Antonio because he was acting strange, but when he does figure what has been going on behind closed doors he decides to run to Germany and to live with his brother. Though he was expecting to just stay there and sulk, he ended up finding someone new who he didn’t expect to fall in love with.

—————————————————————————

Coming by friends sounds like an overall easy task, but continuous contemplation of approaching Gilbert with the whole “friend” thing, it’s... quite strenuous and tiring. Often you don’t think about pushing yourself to make friends abruptly. Friends Usually come by without a second thought. However anxiety made its way with Lovino, and it drove him up the wall. Subsequently sitting up in bed, He determined to look to the internet for refutable advice to rid himself of these anxieties. He jumped from his bed, grabbed his phone from atop his dresser, and began to do some research.

The morning came and Lovino still doesn’t feel prepared, he still is going to use the websites' advice: “Highlight a similarity”—so common interests... let’s try that.

He quickly got his clothes on and slowly tiptoed out of his room. Instantly he heard Ludwig and Gilbert’s loud conversation (they weren’t exactly quiet) and Feliciano’s humming. Lovino tried to eavesdrop. But they were speaking in German, and Lovino’s German wasn't all that great. He still had a hard time understanding them. After failing to eavesdrop, he began to slowly walk into the kitchen, taking in the fragrance of his brother's home cooked breakfast.

Feeling slightly nervous, Lovino looks through the room: Gilbert and Ludwig talking and drinking coffee at the table and Feliciano making food at the kitchen counter. He slowly inched his way to his brother, hoping Gilbert or Ludwig won’t notice him.

“Guten Morgen!” Gilbert greeted and Ludwig continued to sip his coffee, kinda tensing up.

Lovino suspiciously looked at them and replied with a simple hum and continued his way to the kitchen. Lovino was nervous. If he said something, he would’ve lashed out like he usually does when he’s nervous, but Lovino still wants this guy to like him. This caught Ludwig's attention, and Lovino noticed, he noticed by his stupid surprised face. Lovino wasn’t a very nice person in general, he always gave a complaint about something when walking into any room but Lovino didn’t want to annoy the albino German.

Lovino goes into the kitchen, greeting his brother as he grabs himself some coffee, “Hey brother, there’s no work today.” Feliciano informed him as he made breakfast.

“What, why?” Lovino asks, “Are these germans having a holiday or something?”

“No, me and Ludwig are going to move somethings around the restaurant today, we’re also going to paint the walls a different color.” Feliciano chirped, “it’s been quite some time since we last changed the restaurant a bit!”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” Lovino scoffed, “Geez, I don’t understand why you have to change it around, looks alright.”

“Well, it’s nice to change things up a bit!” Feliciano chirped as he finished breakfast, “Can you help me?” Feliciano asks as he struggles to pick up the plates.

Lovino picks up the two plates and heads over to the dining area but before he entered Feliciano grabbed his upper arm, pulled Lovino in and whispered into his ear, “I also wanted to give you a day off to get to know Gilbert.”

“What...?!” Lovino exclaims.

“Breakfast is done!” Feliciano announces as he sets the plates on the table.

“Awesome! I’m starving!” Gilbert grinned as he reached for the plate. Gilbert took a quick bite and groaned, “This is amazing! I forgot how amazing your food is!”

“Grazie.” Feliciano thanked.

As Gilbert was devouring his plate Lovino was thinking of similar topics to talk about, he then remembered about the website— Highlight similarity. So he has to figure out a way to say and ask about his interest, I guess talk about something then he’ll lead to it.

Think of something quick, “Um, Gilbert, I heard you were going around Europe, do you travel for work?” Lovino asked, his face warming up.

Gilbert hummed in response, he quickly swallowed his food and replied, “you could say.”

Ludwig then answers, “Gilbert is an author, his stories take place in some parts in Europe so he goes there to get a full idea of the place.”

“I’m writing about History you could say but I add a little bit of my awesomeness.” Gilbert grins.

“So like a Speculative Fiction?” Lovino asks.

“yup,” Gilbert confirms as he continues to eat his food, not giving Lovino his full attention which was kind of irritating him.

“What about you? What do you do besides working at Vargas’s?” Gilbert asks.

Lovino was a little hesitant on sharing what he does for a living but if he wanted to get to know this guy then he has to tell him something about himself too, it’s only fair, “I don’t really have a Job yet, still in college.” Lovino replied as he started playing with the food, “To pay for the essentials I just get a part-time job.”

“Oh, but a part-time job isn’t really enough to get yourself a crib.” Gilbert pointed out, “I’m guessing that didn’t work out for ya, huh? Probably the reason why you're huddling up with your brother, right?” instantly the atmosphere became tense.

It became quite silent for a split second, everyone in the room except for Gilbert understood lovino’s situation and was probably thinking that this might’ve upset him but to be honest, he wasn't wrong. Lovino doesn’t have a sustainable job, he hasn’t had any type of job for the past couple of years until he moved in with Antonio. Lovino stayed there while he focused and got through college, but sense Lovino is no longer living with him and living with his brother Lovino decided that he might as well work instead of just focusing on class, hoping that he might be able to save up enough money to get himself a cheap and affordable place.

“I was living with someone before but some things happened which caused me to move out so I decided to live with my brother.” Lovino informed.

Gilbert’s grin widened, completely ignoring the tense air,”Let me guess, he got into a relationship.” okay, now that hurt, “I get it! One time I was rooming with this one friend of mine. The house was really nice, it had a good amount of rooms and lots of space for the awesome me but I ended up being kicked out because she started kissing up to this one prick.”

“Wha… No!” Lovino corrected, “It was nothing like that! Don’t assume things, it’ll only make you more stupider than you are now. And the person probably kicked you out because you were being too god damn loud.” Lovino felt a little regret after he said that.

“No way, it was all because of that prick!” Gilbert argues.

“Actually, you're half right.” Ludwig confirms, “She kicked him out because he was being too loud and annoying, apparently he kept teasing Roderich.”

Gilbert then bickered, “well the prick needed to be teased, he basically asked for it.”

“What did Roderich do? He’s a nice guy.” Feliciano asked as he picks up the empty plate in front of Gilbert, “He gives us nice things for our anniversaries and he makes really good cake.”

“He’s a stingy little prick. The guys loaded but he doesn’t give me any fancy stuff. And we’re cousins!” Gilbert pouted.

“I wouldn’t if I were him,” restraint was gone, “You're loud and an asshole, I mean, why would anyone get anything for you.” Lovino insulted, forget about being friends with this guy, this guys an absolute ass hat.

“Geez, I don’t understand why Feliciano suggested you in the first place! Good advice my ass.” Lovino grumbled as he looked at Feliciano who just pouted.

“I’m going to the Living room.” Felicinao announces as he leaves the room and Ludwig follows after him.

Gilbert’s face changed, “Wait, wait--feliciano suggested me?” Gilbert spoke with great disbelief, his eyes shifting to the door where Feliciano exited.

Gilbert’s posture changes entirely, “I mean--of course! Don’t lose faith, I’m awesome.” he boasts with a wide grin. Eyes shifting to the side, Gilbert takes a sip of his morning coffee to gain his delighted composure, “Well, here’s some good advice…”

“Nah, I don’t want to hear any of it. ” Lovino interrupts as he gets up from his chair, “If you already got yourself kicked out, why should I take any advice from you?”

“Because Lovino, people are flawed! And I’m a person who loves my mistakes! I take each and everyone with of pride, and so should you. It makes you feel better and it gets you out of your room.” Gilbert’s grin snakes across his face, and his hand to the bottom of his chin, folded together.

“Whatever, Frosty the fucking snowman.” Lovino snorts, as he starts storming to the front door.

“Hey, where are you going?” Gilbert asks.

“I’m going for a walk!” Lovino yells before he slams the door.

Lovino starts making his way to the park thinking about how the heck Feliciano saw Gilbert as a good and potential friend for him. He was an idiot for actually considering the idea.

“Learning from my mistakes,” Lovino snorts,``Like I need you of all people to remind me.”

Previous chapter

-So I finished, the next chapter won’t be for a while because of my class. I would like some good and honest feedback but just reading it is good too. I hope you enjoyed the story.

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i-am-the-hero-alfred-jones · 5 years ago

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Ban’s Death Sentence

((Seven Deadly Sins/Nanatsu no taizai fanfiction! This mostly takes place in the past, after the sins got famous, but before they got REALLY famous, i.e. the kingdom’s heard of them, but don’t know a lot of info. about them. The flashbacks are segmented by the spaces between text, basically any time there’s an empty line, it’s a new time or place. . . I hope that makes sense. Sorry if it doesn’t, tumblr wouldn’t let me insert a line. I hope you enjoy! Please like and reblog if you do!))

“So you saw everything while you were dead?” Ban asked, glancing at his lover from his seat at the bar.

The blonde blushed shyly and fiddled with her pint. “Well, not everything.” Elaine confessed, “But I tried to see all I could, it took me a while to figure out how it worked, how to view you and this world. Most of the early stuff with the sins I missed.”

“Oh, did you see when Ban faked his own death?” Meliodas asked, curiously, cleaning a pint mug.

“WHAT?!”

Ban choked on his drink.

“You faked your own death?!” Elaine demanded.

“Uhhh. . . . “ was the albino’s intelligent answer.

“Why would you do that?!” she pressed.

“It’s kind of a long story. . .” Ban muttered, embarrassed.

“I think I’ve got the time!” Elaine said, still bewildered by this turn of events.

“It’s King’s fault, really. . .” Ban grumbled.

“WHAT???!!!!!”

“So long, guys! I’m off to celebrate Valentine’s Day with the girl of my dreams!” the Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins cheered as he set his bags in a carriage.

His teammates rolled their eyes.

“Try to stay out of trouble while I’m gone!” the blonde grinned brightly.

“Relax, Cap’n.” Ban said, “Go enjoy your vacation. You’re only gonna be gone for a week, how much trouble could we possibly get into?”

“Dearly beloved, we gather here to mourn the death of Ban the fox sin of greed. A wonderful warrior and friend. Now, the ceremony will continue in the next room.”

The black-clothes mob followed the priest out. . . all but one.

The fairy king glared at the albino ‘body’ in the coffin.

“I know you’re not really dead, you asshole.”

“Yeah, no shit.” Ban sat up, casually resting his arm on the edge of the coffin.

“So why are you doing this?!” King demanded.

“I don’t know if the Cap’n wants my immortality publicized yet.” Ban said, shrugging, “It’s not super well known right now.”

“Hundreds of people are mourning you!” King pointed out, angrily.

“Well, what am I supposed to do?!” Ban countered, “Tell the truth?”

“YES!!!!”

“King?”

Ban threw himself back in the coffin rapidly as the priest poked his head back into the room.

“Yes?” King asked, innocently.

“What should we do with the body?” the priest asked, approaching the ginger, “We were thinking cremation”

Red eyes shot open in fear.

“NO!” King exclaimed, panicked.

Ban gave a sigh of relief. King glanced to the ‘body’ and suddenly got an idea. He feigned sadness.

“No. . . we should bury him.”

Ban’s eyes shot open again.

“I see. . . we’ll wait until your Captain returns-”

“NO!”

It took everything in Ban not to shoot up and smack the fairy upside his head.

“The Captain couldn’t bare to see his friend in such a state. He can visit the grave when he returns.” King was practically grinning.

“. . . Very well . . . “ the priest replied, unnerved by the smile, “. . .We’ll bury him tonight-”

“Why not now?!” King suggested, cheerfully, “I’ll help!”

Ban, eyes still closed, heard the very distinct sound of a coffin lid being put into place before he opened them again.

“. . . I am so fucked. . .” he whispered.

“I’m home!” the knight called, entering her house. She smiled as the familiar bird flew to her side.

“Liz!” a familiar happy voice beckoned her to the kitchen.

“I have a letter for you.” she held said letter out with a smile.

“Oh? From who?” Meliodas took the letter, pressing a kiss to Liz’s lips as he did.

“The King.” Liz warily glanced to the stove as her lover opened the letter and began reading. It looked like Meliodas had been making some sort of stew. But knowing his cooking skills. . . Liz spared a glance to the blonde and immediately poured the stew out the window.

“What’s the letter say?” she asked, curiously, beginning to cook a new stew.

“Ban’s dead.” Meliodas replied, confused.

Liz gasped, putting a hand to her heart and stopping in her efforts of making an edible meal for the two. “. . . I’m so sorry.” she wrapped Meliodas in a hug. The blonde immediately buried his face in his lover’s breasts. Liz ran a hand through his hair.

“Ban can’t be dead.” Meliodas said, voice muffled.

“I know death can be hard to accept. . .” Liz began.

Meliodas popped his head out of her chest and moved to squeezing the breasts instead. “Ban’s immortal.” he informed her.

Liz froze. “. . . What?” she pushed him away, having only let him grope her to make him feel better.

“He drank from the fountain of youth, he can’t die. That’s why he’s called Undead Ban.” the Captain continued.

Liz stared at him in shock “W-what did they do with the body?” she asked in horror.

Meliodas glanced back towards the letter. “It says they buried him.” he replied.

Liz stared at the blonde, “You’ve got to get back to town.”

“Are we really just going to leave him there?! Buried alive?!” Escanor asked, worriedly.

“Well, it’s not like he can die.” Gowther pointed out.

“I didn’t think you had this sort of thing in you, King.” Merlin said, smirking.

King glared at his mug of beer, “He deserves it.”

“Oh, so you’re the one who buried Ban.”

The team froze as they heard the voice of their Captain. He wasn’t called the sin of wrath for nothing.

“So why’d you do it, King?” Meliodas had his usual smile.

“He made hundred of people mourn him!” King exclaimed, “We held a funeral for him! There were children there!”

Meliodas sighed, “Well, it wouldn’t be the first time he’s made children cry. . .”

King’s glare at his mug only increased.

“. . . You know we have to dig him up, right?” Meliodas pointed out.

“I’m not helping.” King said, stubbornly.

The Captain leaned against the bar, “You know, I bet Diance would be real impressed if she saw you dig up a six foot deep grave~” Meliodas pointed out.

King lit up, “Well, what are we waiting for?!” he asked, eagerly.

The small group traversed outside of the palace. Unsurprisingly most of the sins were not willing to spend the next several hours digging up a grave. However, Meliodas had managed to persuade (read: manipulate) Escanor, King, and Gowther to join the grave robbing party. It was a merry morning and Meliodas whistled as he walked through the palace courtyard, shovel over his shoulder.

“Sir, Meliodas! Sir Meliodas!” three tiny voices called, prompting the blonde to turn around.

The Captain grinned, “Hey, little Gil!” he greeted, cheerfully.

“What are you doing?” Howzer asked, curiously.

“We’re going grave robbing.” Gowther in formed the children.

“Cool!” Howzer cheered, excitedly, “What’s grave robbing?!”

“It means we’re digging up a grave.” King replied, bitterly.

Gilthunder teared up, “I don’t wanna see a dead body!”

“Relax, he’s not dead.” Meliodas assured.

“So they buried him alive?!” Griamore exclaimed, fearfully.

“It’s fine. He’s immortal. You wanna come?” Meliodas offered.

The kids looked at each other, “Sure!”

Howzer, Gilthunder, and Griamore were hard at work digging up the grave of the fox sin of greed. Meliodas stopped and glanced at the other sins “I thought you guys were gonna help dig.”

“Diane’s not here.” King pointed out, lazing on Chastifol.

“I got bored.” Gowther added, continuing to read his book.

“I went to get refreshments.” Escanor announced, holding out a tray with a pitcher of water and several cups.

“Thanks, Escanor!” Meliodas smacked away King’s hand, “Water is for working people.”

Escanor snuck the fairy a cup anyways when the Captain wasn’t paying attention.

“I hit something!” Howzer exclaimed, excitedly.

“Alright!” Meliodas cheered.

The group tossed their shovels away and used their hands to uncover the rest.

“Escanor, help me.” Meliodas instructed, standing at one end of the coffin, while the sin of pride stood at the other. They lifted the coffin lid and the group stared down at the albino. He lay still, eyes closed, blood still stained on his clothes.

Gilthunder burst into tears, startling the group. “You said we wouldn’t see a dead body!” eh boy sobbed, angrily hitting Meliodas’s chest, though his punches did nothing.

“Eh?” the body in the coffin shifted and Ban sat on his elbows. He yawned.

“IT’S A ZOMBIE!!!!!” Griamore wailed, crying with Gilthunder.

“Cool!” Howzer stepped forward eagerly and poked the thieves cheek.

“What are you talking about?” Ban asked, confused and bleary.

“He’s not dead.” Gowther informed the children.

Gilthunder sniffled “H-he’s not?”

“Ban is immortal. He cannot die.”

“. . . Oh. . .”

Ban yawned as he stood, stretching. “’bout time you dug me up, Cap’n.”

Meliodas shrugged, “I was busy with Liz. Hey, where’d King go?”

“He left a while ago. He said something about being tired and that he didn’t want to deal with Ban until tomorrow.” Gowther still hadn’t looked up from his book.

“Bastard. . .” he albino muttered, stepping out of the grave.

“And that’s the story of how Ban faked his own death!” Meliodas finished, cheerfully.

“That’s not what I would call it.” Ban replied.

“Oh? And what would you call it?” Meliodas asked.

“The story of how King buried me alive.”

“Hey, guys! We’re back with groceries!” Diane exclaimed as she skipped into the bar, king of the fairies at her heels.

“YOU LET MY LOVER GET BURIED ALIVE?!!!!”

King dropped the groceries where he stood and flew away as fast as he could. Ban laughed as Elaine flew after him, enraged.

“This is why Elaine’s better than Elizabeth.”

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welcometoyournewhell · 6 years ago

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Suck it Up, Sammy

A/N: I don't believe the content is too touchy, but for some it may be. Talks about olden beliefs of twins (and other births that involve more than one child) and albinism.

This was done on the phone and I apologize in advance.

Sam and Dean are stuck with a toddler after a failed hunt. After the youngest fights his brother on every option of removing the child from their grasp Sam finds himself a father.... and is anything but happy about it.

___

Dean grunted as he trudged down the steps of the closest thing to a childhood home he had; Well.... with the exception of Baby. He and Sam were laying low at their adopted father's house until they figured out what to do with the results of their last hunt.

A town went insane over a line woman having albino twins, and a line cult made it their mission to execute these "demonic entities". It was like something out of older times. If a woman bore more than one child, she was that of an animal!

God forbid her children didn't look an "acceptable" way, they were the children of Satan! A single mother and her toddlers had just moved to a small town in Texas before they became a target for a small group of religious cultists.

The only survivor of the night was a three year old girl who was practically mute. While Dean was trying to figure out if she had any relatives or where to send her, Sam was having a pity party for himself, blaming himself for the family's death.

He'd had the visions, he'd had the nightmares.... but he didn't know the needed details to save these people. When he freed the small girl from her bonds.... something came over him and he just.... wouldn't let her go.

She'd panic if he'd try to anyway. They ended up bringing her with them to a few hunts on their way back to Bobby's as Sam shot down every option. Finding her family, almost impossible. Adoption home, chance of abuse or the group finding her. Foster care, a bunch of possibilities and the same group. The church, that one Sam actually smacked his brother's arm.

"Who do you think was just hunting her, Dean?!" He didn't mean that town but Sam had a point. There were too many stories about abuse came with Nun hood. There was no way Bobby would raise her go through the same shit he'd gone through with John and the boys.

So it was either him or Sam being a dad and risking a child's life and putting then through the same hell they went through.... or a previous option.

Well Dean made it clear he wasn't looking to be a father, and Sam wasn't budging. Last night was the final straw. Bobby interrupted there fight and pretty much told Sam.... he was a dad now.

"Not gonna put her somewhere safe, she's your job now. I ain't raising her Sam, and your brother sure as shit ain't. She likes you, she's you responsibility." In which, Sam tried to fight back but the old man made it clear, it was a home or Sam, end of discussion.

Dean was already enjoying being an uncle. Oh the cute outfits and bibs. Sure, she was able to eat with out a bib but.... it was Batman! He spent all his cash on toys, clothes, pull ups, and anything else he thought was cute.

Honestly, it was the only reason he wasn't giving into Sammy's puppy eyes. The younger brother had been wallowing on self pity, trying to talk Dean into another plan for the kid. Dean would ignore him or simply state, "It's a stepping stone Sam. You can be the dad you always wanted dad to be. ", or " It'll get your mind of Jess, dad, and everything else." Normally it was the first one that shut the other up.

They'd spent about a month with her now, and she was slowly starting to get used to them. She was still clinging to Sam like a life line though.... but she was letting Dean and Bobby hold her now too. "Alright kiddo, pancakes, " the eldest hunter asked. Bright blue eyes blinked before looking up to the man holding her.

"I think she'll like them. Gonna have to get used to them." Bobby frowned a bit before shaking his head. "You seem excited about this, why don't you be daddy?" Sam was in bed still, trying to ignore the title. "Because, I'm uncle material. Besides, she'd um... kind of be a bit of a, that. Not like Sammy's getting any anyway."

He bounced her up a bit more before kissing the platinum curls. "Besides, she likes Sam better. Probably should get her into a child psychologist though. She's got some damage." He tapped her little head with a smile. She didn't smile back. She'd looked either sad, come fused, or scared the whole time they'd had her.

"Aint we all? How about a name first? Need something to put on those papers." They should have raided the house for her birth certificate and social security number. "Yeah... the number is still going to be an issue. But not like she's driving any time soon, are ya? "

She was holding on of Sam's forty night shirts to her face as Dean kissed her head. Bobby finished some pancakes before passing his eldest a knife and fork. "What's the knife for, " he asked. "Well look at her mouth." Oh, not for him. "But I'm serious about the name. Even if she has one... she can't write or talk."

Green eyes looked up to blue. "Maybe those magnet shapes? She could spell her name." They didn't know how old she was though. "Dean she's either two or three. She may know her name but.... probably can't spell it." Crap. "Well how about Xena, huh? Like the warrior princess?"

"We're not naming her Xena." Ah, his highness was awake. "'Bout time you joined us sleeping beauty," Bobby grumbled. "I'm twentysix Bobby, I'm too young to be a dad." The older man sighed. "Boy, you lived else where you'd have been one at thirteen. God forbid the olden days."

Blue eyes lit up before the shirt was dropped and small hands reached for the younger Winchester. "Besides, think she's claimed you, " Dean commented. Sam looked at her with sorrow before picking her up and setting her on his lap. Well... trying too. Small arms hugged around his neck, giving him a morning hug.

He sighed as he hugged back. She'd already grown on him, but he couldn't do this! "I don't know what I'm doing though." Bobby laughed as he set a plate down for him. "Well no kidding, no parent does Sam!" Dean was still cutting up pancakes before drowning them in syrup.

He moved closer to his brother before getting the girl's attention. "Just be what dad wasn't, and Bobby was." It was that simple. "You'll figure it out, " Bobby sighed as he rolled his eyes at Dean's response. "We're gonna have to go back down and get her papers, " Sam grumbled as he took a bit of his food.

The girl didn't want the pancake offered, she wanted the big one her new daddy was eating. She opened her mouth and just looked at him like.... "give". The brunette pointed back to Dean. " That's yours." But, she wanted daddy's. Once more the mouth opened.

The younger Winchester sighed before taking the fork from Dean, who happily took care of Sam's plate. "I say we just get her a new number, change her name, and keel her the he'll away from the screw hole." Bobby sighed. "Brother's right. Besides, she's still adjusting to you. Leaving her here or taking her with you isn't an option. "

She looked at Sam, but didn't open her mouth this time. Ignoring Bobby, he huffed. "You just wanted mine!" Dean laughed a bit. "You ain't eating it now. Take a bite, then see if she wants it." The younger looked at him in disgust. "You drown it in syrup Dean." Bobby was getting annoyed with this. "Enough. Sam, eat the damn pancake before is scare her more and force feed it to you."

Enough said. Sam took a bite, baby took a bite. Soon enough the plate had been filled again and emptied again before small fry yawned. She fussed when Bobby came after her face with a damp cloth though.

Sam brought her up to the shared room to change her and put her down for a nap. As he did, Dean was put on dish duty. "I gotta get more food. Another mouth too feed, and Zeus is running low on kibble." The older quirked a brow. "Could have told me last week when I was going baby crazy." The old man sighed. "Just, make sure your brother doesn't do anything stupid."

It was maybe twenty minutes before Same came back down with a small bundle pressed to his chest. She already had favorite toys, and a giraffe blanket Dean found on clearance was one of them. Setting her down in the play pen, the new dad laid back on the couch with a sigh.

"Could be worse, she could be like.... an infant." Not helping. Sam shot him a glare before covering his face with his arm again. "We're putting a kid's life in danger Dean. How can you be happy about this?" The other patted his leg as to make him move. Sitting down, he found himself a foot rest.

"Well.... it's sticking with us and we protect and teach her.... or not knowing what happens to her."" His brother uncovered his face again while sitting up slightly. "So, put her though the same hell? Schooling, social life?" Dean rolled his eyes at the last one. "We're in a new day and age. She can do school online, you have a laptop."

"Money, " Sam fought. "Sammy, we've been getting by for yesrs. For someone who didn't want to her going anywhere else, you really are trying to get rid of her. " Was he? Guilt washed over him as he sighed. "Guess I'm just stressed, and scared, and anxious." He squeaked when there was a poke to his foot.

"Maybe Sammy just needs some time with his favorite brother? " Oh no, the smirk. Sam tried to yank his feet back, but to no avail. His laughter filled the room as he yelled and squealed for his brother to stop. "Dhehhean! Whehehr're too old fhahaor this! "

The older smiled. "Too old to cheer you up?" Sam was louder than the documentary on the television. He bounced around in his seat, trying to get away. "Nahhaha! D-DhehehaHEAN!" Starting princess hair spread across a throw pillow as the older brother moved to the younger's toes.

"Aw come on Sammy, I'm just helping you relax. Maybe de stress a little?" Dean had a shit eating smirk on as he destroyed his brother. It got a bit better and worse as he moved up the moose-like legs. Gasps and shrieks were heard from the younger as fingers dug into the back of his knees.

For Dean, it was like trying to stay on a Bucking Bronko bull ride, or something similar. Sam was physically meaker, but he had some powerful strength in his body. "Shit, ghehehet ahahahway!" Taught and skilled fingers dug into smaller thighs before hands tries to pull at them.

"Sammy, language. Your going to give her a potty mouth!" They really needed a name for her. "Yhahhaour ghahahaoning thahahao whahake HER! DEAN!" Sam shrieked when his brother started to tickle his navel. He shoved, swatted at, and tries to knock off the other. "I'm not going to wake her, but you are. Lower your voice Sammy."

"Sthahahaop chahahalling mhehehehe thahahat! No, get away get awahahahhahay!" Hiccupy shrieks and giggles poured like music from the younger as his armpits were messed with. Tears started to come down Sam's red face as he shook his head and tried desperately to get Dean off him.

The torment stopped as a moose toy hit the older in the head. They both looked over to see a small being just looking at them with tear filled, cranky eyes. They disturbed nap time! "Hey, that wasn't nice," Dean fake pouted. "Neither was waking her and tickling me to death, " Sam growled before shoving Dean back towards the other end of the couch.

The dad stood up before taking his cranky little moose and trying to lull her back to sleep. As he did.... curiosity came over Dean. He stood up before putting the moose toy back in the pen and walking over to the two. Sam stepped back warily. "Don't even. I will drop her," he hissed.

Green eyes rolled before the other tries to find a little foot. "No, I'm curious about something." From when he saw her before the murders, sue was a pretty giggly kid. She talked a lot too. She was scared into silence, so to speak. Sam said it was a form of turama, but maybe he could still get a little giggle out of her. Hell, he just wanted a smile!

But daddy stepped back again. "What are you doing? Leave her alone. Dean, she's trying to nap." The other rolled his eyes. "Here's an idea, let me try this and stop nothing about being a dad and come up with a name for her." Blue eyes rolled before a little head shot around to see what was touching her.

She honestly looked like a sleepy, little puppy. "You ticklish," the uncle asked. She simply pulled at her foot and turned back to sleep on her daddy. "Dude, I told you, leave her be." The older sighed. "Name, Sammy. I just want her to smile. Didn't your extra college classes tell you laughter is the best medicine or something?"

The taller huffed. "That's not how turama works Dean." Okay, so both baby and daddy were cranky. "Well.... who's pull up am I changing first? Her's or your's?" Both were un amussed. "Aw, look Sammy; She's already acting like her daddy!" The other scoffed a bit before turning to walk back up to the bed room.

"Aw, come on Sam! You have no humor." Before the other was fully upstairs he yelled up again. "You don't name her soon, I'm calling her Xena or Ivy!" That caused the other to stop. "Really, not Barbra or Selena, " Sam scoffed. "She can be your little Batgirl." Dean smirked. "Ain't passing the buck that easily."

He thought for a moment. "So Sammy needa tickle therapy for a name, crankiness, and new dad syndrome? Coming right up! " Foot steps pounded through the house along with yelling and shrieks of surprise and laughter.

By the time Bobby got home, he was met with the sight of a cranky toddler who opened her arms to be taken away from the sleeping bafoons. "These idjits keep ya' awake, huh? " She clung to him before sighing in relief; It was nap time.

The older hunter looked over his boys before rolling his eyes, this would be there hardest job yet.

#supernatural #oc #dad sam #bobby #dean #sam winchester #dean winchester #bobby singer #tickle #tickling #ticklish #tickle fight #tickle fanfiction #tickle fanfic

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cienie-isengardu · 6 years ago

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A bit thoughts about Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

I just came back from cinema and still need to put everything into perpective and knowledge with previous movie & HP universe, so it’s more like my rambling than any analysis. Overall I enjoyed the movie, especially it was nice to see again so untypical action hero like Newt. Seriously, all kudos to actor for playing him so well.

To not spoil anything, rest under cut!

Movie was nice and all, but how they dared not mention Percival Graves at all?! Outrageous thing, since Grindelwald pretending to be him was big part of previous movie and shaped the relationship with Credence.

Grindelwald wasn’t bad, but seriously I kinda tired of the albino-like whitness and not matching color of eyes as a way to present a villian. In all fairness I always liked such outstanding visuality, but it doesn’t fit Grindelwald, somehow..., I think? I don’t know how to explain it. Maybe I will change my mind later, when the story progress...? Or I’m just still bitter about Graves (I loved how he looked and acted, okay?)

Dumbledore was fun to watch though. Most likely we are gonna see at some point more details of his and Grindelwald story.

It was cool to see Hogwart once again, and the friendship between two different houses (Leta & Newt) and the lessons with Dumbledore, but looking how students bully each other and no teacher is doing anything about it kinda piss me off and remind that Hogwart wasn’t always the best place to live in.

I hoped to learn more about Nagini & Credence. Oh well, maybe next time...

I liked Leta and I’m glad she wasn’t showed as ruthless woman who changed one man for another for money alone and such. I’m angry they killed her so soon :( Feels like cheap way to reconcile Scamander brothers. Then again, I felt like both cared for her very much and kinda wonder if Leta’s I love you was meant for both of them or just Newt...?

I was really curious about Theseus and I must say I like him. The first impression may not be best (the “act less Newt-like” advice) but the moment when he hugged Newt to warn him changed my mind. And that he listened to Dumbledore instead of blindly following orders, yeah. I wish to learn more about him and their brotherly relationship.

Still not sure about Queenie, but it was nice to see Jacob Kowalski. Despite the fact that most jokes are on him (the poor muggle born person between wizards), he is still kind man. Giving advice to Newt, not being angry at Newt when he doesn’t pay attention to Jacob’s talk/ dilemmas and still trying to save Queenie who not so long ago abused his trust with the love spell/potion. I may only hope to see some interaction between Jacob and Theseus.

Niffler, you cute little thief! All fantastic beasts were cool, shame there is little focus on them now.

Did I mention how much I enjoy watching Newt? Especially doing weird stuff? XD

Also, I’m kinda disappointed how many females died. Leta Lestrange, the two mothers from her family story, the (half?)elf woman/nanny, the Grindelwald’s female ally. Like, I get, this is prelude to war and male (unnamed) characters died too, but it still felt to me like killing women for shock value mostly.

In general, I’m glad to see the movie, to see magic one more time, though I hope the upcoming movies will focus more on characters before we will get epic battle.

Also, wizards are so powerful and so dumb at times, I don’t know should I laugh or wonder why magic is so complex and so little of use in certain situations.

#Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald #my rambling #movie spoilers #fantastic beasts spoilers

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commander-yinello · 7 years ago

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Trying to be better, part 2

If you haven’t read part 1, this story won’t make any sense! Below and under the cut, part of me sailing the crackship Echosung into slightly more serious waters. I hope you enjoy! <3

4:45 PM. She sighed as she held her phone in the air, time telling her how little she had done today. A soft whine and the scratching of nails came from beside her bed, Lady insisting that she needed to go out for a walk.

“Yes, yes. Gimme a minute to get ready,” she responded, pushing herself off her bed, blowing wavy hair out of her face. Lady didn’t seem to care for her owner’s prep time, running in circles in the hope time would go faster. Long used to her poodle’s antics, Kyungju dropped her phone on the desk next to her wardrobe.

It was right then a new notice popped up on her screen. She expected another meme from the chatroom with her overseas friends, but it was an e-mail. An e-mail with a particularly unexpected sender that made her swipe it away.

“Mom!” she yelled towards her open door while she attempted to brush out the creases in her dress so it didn’t look like she used them as pajamas. “Did you give the agent from Heart & Seoul Models my private email address?”

The gentle tapping of heels on marble followed, her mother’s shadow cast on the cream-colored wall. “Of course, I did dear! Why wouldn’t I?”

She groaned. “What the fuck, mom?!”

“Kyungju Choi, I told you to stop swearing!”

“And I told you, I don’t want these agents to be able to contact me!” Irritated, she brushed her hair down with her hands. Lady followed her every move, doing her best for constant attention.

“I don’t know why you’re so against becoming an idol again. You were so successful last time.”

She nearly lost balance, putting on her blazer and trying to win the argument. “I don’t want that anymore! It ended in a bunch of really bad bullshit, or did you somehow forget that we moved to Europe?”

“You made a mistake that you’re not going to make again. Your father and I agree that you need to be doing something other than loafing about and taking the odd modelling job. Or did you plan on finding a rich man and marrying him?”

“No!” Kyungju yelled. “God mom, I can’t believe you’re still suggesting that!”

Now properly dressed, she slipped her phone in her pants pocket and eyed the unpacked moving boxes in the corner as she left her room, making her way to the stairs in the hallway. Her mother stood on the ground floor, wearing a frilly apron, the only sign she was a housewife - unlike her hair in a tight bun and a face full of bold make-up. Kyungju glared as she ran down, but her mother had always been better in the glaring game. Lady hopped down the stairs, tail wagging from the noise they produced, noise she saw as fun and exciting like all noise really.

“God blessed you with a beautiful body and you’re wasting it,” her mom continued to nag as Kyungju tugged on her boots and jacket. “You may not have been able to charm that albino boy, but he’s young and poor - there’s plenty of older, richer, more interested men you should be aiming for.”

She couldn’t stand hearing more. “I can make it on my own, just give me time to figure out how. Come Lady,” she beckoned, and her poodle obeyed, trotting along while Kyungju grabbed the leash off the coat hook. “I’ll see you tonight mom,” she said, leaving her home for the city streets.

Her mother was merciful and closed the door behind her without another word. Kyungju sighed while Lady sniffed every possible corner and tree she could find, running back when she was called, allowing herself to be leashed. The fluffy ball of energy proceeded to pull Kyungju along the pavement while she pondered.

Her mother was making too big a deal out of this. They just moved here, surely she was going to find something, a job she could be proud of and that had nothing to do with Echo Girl. She nodded while pouting, ignoring the confused face the woman passing her made.

Rush hour had ended, and the once crowded streets slowly found silence as employees and students ran into their homes for dinner and relaxation. Kyungju turned the corner and ended up in a small shopping centre where everyone was closing up. At the end of the plaza Kyungju spotted the small building with illustrated cats and dogs on the windows, a sight that brightened her mood instantly.

Yoosung’s clinic. It wasn’t actually Yoosung’s clinic, he was just one of the vets working there, but in her mind it was. Conveniently close to her house, she had rushed Lady there - best idea she ever had. For once she was glad Lady was such a glutton.

Through the glass, she saw the blond behind the counter, busy with a customer, his red glasses nearly on the top of his nose while looking down. He’s cute, she thought. Against all of her expectations, Yoosung was understanding and warm. She smiled and began to walk over eagerly, feeling like Lady about to get a treat.

Guilt struck her, making her halt. Lady tried to run ahead and strained against the leash a few times before giving up and sitting down, scratching herself.

Kyungju bit her lip, continuing to stare at Yoosung who had no idea she was out here. Tempted as she was to enter the clinic and come up with some excuse to ask Yoosung out for an official coffee date, she couldn’t justify it. Yoosung was around her age and had his shit together better than her. No doubt her mom would be very pleased to know her daughter planned to hit it off with a doctor. An animal doctor, not that that would stop mother from counting in paychecks.

What was she even thinking? With a history like hers, it wasn’t right for her to ask him out. His friends, her parents, possibly even him, they’d all get the wrong idea. She had gotten a crush on another RFA member. What if she was responsible for causing a rift between Yoosung and the RFA?

And surely a guy like Yoosung must have a girlfriend as sweet as him already.

She spun around, fully intent on marching back to her house, only to be met with a man who obstructed her entire view. Startled, she took a few steps back. The man wore a typical gray office suit and his balding head was shiny from all the gel. His eyes widened as his amazement grew upon staring at her, dropping his suitcase next to his feet.

“Erm… Can I help you?” Kyungju asked.

“Echo Girl!” the man exclaimed in joy, clapping his hands together. “I can’t believe it’s really you! It’s me, Ben! I was- no, am!- your biggest fan, I used to send you a letter every month. Do you remember?”

Shit. “Ah… Not really. My agent let interns open the fanmail, I... didn’t.” Unpaid interns, she remembered. She didn’t want to bother with anything that wasn’t Zen back then.

Ben blinked at her. “What do you mean, you sent me replies back! They even had cute signatures! I really felt like we connected!”

“Automated reply letters,” Kyungju answered sheepishly.

“And the personalized autographed photo?”

“A copy. And the signature was never mine.”

Kyungju felt Lady paw at her ankles. Ben seemed lost, brows furrowing as he processed this new information. “I don’t… I don’t understand! We didn’t have something special back then? Why?”

“Because I didn’t care about anyone except me back then. Surely you must have read the scandal about me.”

The middle-aged man shook his head. “The magazines reported something, but it seemed more like a typical idol scandal. But then you disappeared. The fan club assumed you abandoned us.”

“It’s true, I did.” Better he knew now she was garbage. “It’s okay if you’re mad.”

His face completely fell. “I can’t believe this. I thought you had maybe some kind of family crisis and would come back in the future. I was hoping for your come-back! And then I could genuinely claim I am the number one fan!”

Lady reacted to his anger, growling as loud as a tiny poodle could. “God, I shouldn’t have wasted so much time on someone like you! Do you know how many you fooled with the fake crap you sold them? Was your singing even genuine or autotuned?”

“It was real,” she said, cruel words crash making her heart hurt. Lady was barking now, causing other shopkeepers to peer through their windows. Damn it, she swore quietly.

He jabbed a finger, nearly poking her chest. “Real my ass! You are supposed be pure, kind-”

“Hey!” came a sudden new voice, and they both turned towards the man with glaring purple eyes standing next to her. When had Yoosung snuck up on them?

Turned out Yoosung can be very intimidating, Kyungju discovered. His hands were clenched and his posture, wider from the white coat he wore, made him look ready to attack. The sweet, soft boy image of him she harbored since last time was nowhere to be found and she didn’t know whether to be fascinated or terrified. “What are you doing?!”

Ben bristled. “What am I doing? I’m giving this fake piece of shit what she deserves, that’s what!”

“How dare you talk to her like that - she’s still a human being!” Yoosung yelled back at him.

“It’s alright,” Kyungju said to Yoosung, who had moved in front of her, partially blocking her view of the angry fan. “I don’t mind, he has the right to.”

“Don’t say that!” Yoosung whirled around, expression equal parts anger and shock. “Kyungju, you can’t let him treat you like this!”

“Why not?” She bit back. “It’s true what he’s saying, isn’t it?”

“Why does that matter?!” He said, before pinching the bridge of his nose, calming down considerably. “I mean, yes, you did some bad things in the past. I don’t think anyone would dispute that.” He sighed, shoulders drooping. “But it’s obvious you’re genuinely sorry for what you’ve done. Letting yourself get verbally abused like this isn’t helping anyone. Why didn’t you tell him what you told me?” He gestured towards Ben, who stared at them considerably confused.

“This is different. He doesn’t know me.”

Yoosung gently took hold of her shoulders, and she recognized the same comforting gesture she gave him in the café. “Neither did I really, before we met. And even then, I was impressed by you. Everyone else would be too, if they knew. I’m sure of it.”

The dam she didn’t know she had inside her burst. Her eyes started to well up. Embarrassed, she rubbed them vigorously with the palm of her hand, feeling the heat of her cheeks. “Why are you so sweet?” she asked with a small pout. “I don’t deserve that kindness.”

“Of course you do. One day I’ll make you believe it.” Suddenly shy, he let go and blushed a little, aware of what he had said. Kyungju couldn’t help but giggle.

The sound of shoes scuffing the pavement brought about the startling reminder that they were never alone. Ben was still next to them, lost and hands raised awkwardly.

“Err…” he started.

“Look,” Kyungju intercepted, turning to him and clapping her hands together. “I can’t change the past and give you back your lost time. But I am genuinely sorry, and I have changed. I won’t be performing anymore.”

Ben returned to rage mode. “What does sorry do for me?! Do you think just cuz you’ve got a cute face that I’m going to forgive you?”

Kyungju grimaced. How long was this guy going to go on before she would have to threaten him? “I’m not asking for your forgiveness.”

“You should, because I’m done with you! It’s over!!” he yelled, grabbing his suitcase, walking off with his nose in the air. “Goodbye forever!”

Ben marched off, leaving the two blinking at the sudden turn. He had left the street before Kyungju and Yoosung grasped what had just happened, picking up the jaws that had dropped off. Then, she heard Yoosung attempt to muffle his snickers and before she knew it, they both laughed in unison.

“Wow, did you have to deal with his type all the time? I would go crazy,” Yoosung replied after he calmed down.

“Not all the time, thankfully.” Kyungju let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks Yoosung, I appreciate it.”

“No worries, when I saw you and that asshole outside, I couldn’t hold myself back.” Bashful, Yoosung scratched the back of his head.

How does he switch from scary to adorable so fast? Kyungju wondered. “I’m sorry for distracting you from your work.”

“We were closing up, so it’s fine. But what brings you back here again?”

“I live close by. And I, eh, I decided to pass by while walking Lady,” Kyungju admitted, blushing more.

“It’s good to see you still healthy! Haven’t been eating anything weird, have you?” Yoosung said as he bent down to pat Lady, who jumped to try to put her paws up as high as she could on Yoosung’s clean pants.

With things having calmed down, Kyungju followed Yoosung to his clinic, waiting inside while he locked up, his co-workers waving at them just like last time. She waved back as Lady chewed on her leash in boredom.

“Oh, Jaehee asked me to tell you that her café has new latté flavors. Maybe you’d like to try them?” Yoosung asked while he changed from his doctor’s coat to his leather jacket.

“Jaehee?”

“Ah, she’s my friend and the café owner. The café we went to last time.”

Is he asking me out? Kyungju thought, feeling the temperature rise. “Ah, sure, I’d love to try them. But won’t your girlfriend get annoyed with you hanging out with me?” she asked, instantly regretting how obvious she was.

Yoosung grabbed his keys on top of the front desk. “Girlfriend? I don’t think so, seeing as I don’t have one.” He shrugged, leading Kyungju to the front door.

It was hard for Kyungju not to let out any of the high-pitched squealing in her head. “Then, of course!”

“Great! I’m sure Jaehee would love your opinion on them,” Yoosung said enthusiastically, locking up the clinic behind them.

Kyungju wondered on whether this was a date or not. “Okay, but only if you choose a latte for me.”

“But… What if I choose something you don’t like?”

“I’m sure I will like anything you pick.” Kyungju smiled, Lady trotting by her side as they began to walk.

“You have varied taste, that’s good! I can be a bit picky sometimes,” Yoosung replied, placing his hands in his jacket pockets, practically beaming happiness.

Kyungju had a feeling Yoosung wasn’t getting it. But, either way, she was content being with him, at his side, feeling more comfortable than ever.

#echosung #fanfiction #mystic messenger #kyungju choi #yoosung kim #yoosung x kyungju #mysme #confession: I regret using the weird fan as a plot point #because I had no idea what to do with him after a while #but I had used him too much to remove him #sometimes fics have their own will haha #next one is gonna be much fluffier though #also probably the last one #I want this to be a short series #<3

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delta-has-a-blog · 6 years ago

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Aria/Celestia/Datura

Full Name: Aria (n/a)/Celestial Ghost/Datura

Gender and Sexuality: A: "Aria is a girl, and she guesses she's undecided? Aria just doesn't know." C: "I share a body with Aria here so I don't have a say in the matter. Joking aside what interests me interests me, no need to label it." D: "I'm in th' same boat as Aria. 'Cept I take what I want." A/C: "Uuuuhhhh..."

Pronouns: C/D: "She/her" A: "Aria is Aria" C: "That's not what they meant hun."

Ethnicity/Species: (She's almost albino pale.) A: "Aria is a fox fate spirit." C: "Technically I'm an AI but same as Aria." Datura: "I'm a monster, plain n' simple."

Birthplace and Birthdate: A: "Spirit plane, uh Aria was born on this world's July 7th." C: "Technically the same as Aria's and technically not. I was made when Aria was five and activated when she was six but I'm fully integrated into her body." D: "I've existed in Aria since she was born so I'm as old as her. Maybe I wasn't 'zactly like how I am now but hey."

Guilty Pleasures: A: "Aria likes horror movies even though she's easy to scare." C: "Honey again not what they mean. Well sweetheart i have no guilty pleasures only smug indulgences." Datura: "I like readin' those romance novels. Not like I like 'em or anythin' i just read it to keep sharp, yeah." A/C: "hmmm"

Phobias: C: "Even though there's no possibility I'm scared of getting viruses." D: "I'm awful scared i might hurt sum'un on accident. Not that I care it'd just complicate things." C: "Yeah ri-" Aria: "Abandonment!" C/D: "Y-you okay?"

What They Would Be Famous For: A: "Aria's really fast! She's run as fast as cars before!" C: "Well I'm a supercomputer level AI that can infiltrate even the not complex systems. Also look at me, I'm amazing." D: "I'd p'rolly blow up something on accident." A/C: "Uuuhhh"

What They Would Get Arrested For: A: "What's arresting?" C: "Eheh, its when you get in trouble so the cops put you in jail." A: "Wait so Aria can go to jail for taking that cookie from the jar!?" C: "honey, no." C: "Hacking." D: "We-" C: "Assault."

OC You Ship Them With: ((undecided))

OC Most Likely To Murder Them: ((undecided))

Favorite Movie/Book Genre: A: "Aria likes fantasy and action!" C: "I'm most interested in reading poetry and philosophy." D: "I like watchin' romance movies, only for th' background noise though. I don' pay attention to it or nothin'." C: "Lies. She watches the whole thing cri-" D: "ENOUGH!"

Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: A: "What's a cleechay?" C: *Long drawn out sigh* C: "Of you ask me it's the teenager that hates their parents cliche. It's just annoying." D: "I hate it when two of th' characters like each other but they're too shy to say it an' don' know if th' other likes 'em so then a huge misunderstandin' takes place."

Talents and/or Powers: A: "Not only is Aria very fast she also has the powers of many different types of spirits! Aria can't control Celestia's nanobots though." C: "I can't control Aria's powers all that well but I have full access to the net including the deeper reaches of it and full control of the nanobots. Allowing me a wide range of constructs out of my back." D: "I got the powers of both Aria an' Celestia. An' I can use them 'em better."

Why Someone Might Love Them: Aria while not too smart tries her best at everything, and is a pretty kind hearted girl. While her naivety is an issue it can attribute to her cuteness. She's also a wild person, often making split-second decisions so there's never a boring moment. Celestia while very smug is a very loving person, often offering advice and nursing people she cares for. She does enjoy teasing however, but she never means anything bad by it. She's also very knowledgeable on many subjects so she's a great help when it comes to daily activities. Datura, while tough by nature would be the first to lick, maybe even literally, someone's wounds all the while scolding them for getting hurt. Yes she's a tsundere when it comes to certain things but if she actually likes you she's very vocal about it. At heart she's sweet, you just have to let her get used to you.

Why Someone Might Hate Them: Aria as a fate spirit has lead unsavory people to their demise as it was coming to them, and her intellect or lack thereof causes some people to write he off. People of her clan hate her for her monster side, and for being born. Celestia can be too smug and sometimes come off as condescending. Some also mistake her might hearted teasing as actual promiscuity. Datura is quick to anger, far too stubborn and hilariously prideful.

How They Change: Aria comes more to terms with the fact that some people well leave and that's necessary, and in many ways moves past her trauma from the research labs. Some things still stick with her but she accepts that. Celestia stops blaming herself for what happened to Aria and sees herself as more of a person and less a construct as she used to. Datura blame herself for what happened with Aria's mother and begins to show more of her true feelings. Even though sometimes that gets her into trouble.

Why You Love Them: I love Aria because she's free spirited and just a fun character all around, Celestia is kind while damaged herself and doesn't let that make her get others. While extremely intelligent she doesn't look down on others but tries to teach them more. Datura is lovable because while being a small ball of pride, smugness and stubbornness inside she's also just fluffy. She's overly loving, is a softy even though she won't admit it and is actually pretty kind.

#oc #aria/celestia/datura #oc profile

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pokibal2001 · 6 years ago

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Horror Short Story: The Lady in White - #2

Here’s the sequel to the previous post I’ve wrote about. Feel free to read!

---

Agnes was a nervous wreck the whole day.

The truck chef was so frightened by what she has seen that morning, she refused to remain standing under any shades and dark alleys untouched by sunlight.

It doesn’t matter if she has to slather volumes of sunscreen lotion on her pale skin and wear excessive sun protective clothing, the albino would rather risk a harsh sunburn than accidentally bumping into a fearsome waterfall of straggly black hair.

(The cries of a baby echoed like a broken tape recorder)

Sure, during eating hours, Agnes managed to keep her calm while cooking and serving fresh-from-the-pan comfort food to happy customers from her humble truck kitchen. Her plastic smiles may not have look wholly convincing in masking her thinly-veiled terror, but at least the customers were total strangers who did not notice her distress at all.

If it were her parents or any other of her close friends from home, it would have been a different story.

Tugging on her loose white cardigan, Agnes sighed tiredly before reaching out for a bottle of cool water and chugged it down her throat. After leaving her laundry out to dry at the balcony railings of the motel room she was staying, she was decided she needed to do something to clear her mind.

Sitting on comfy chair in the motel room she rented for the night, Agnes looked through papers of her checklist of priorities and counting the rather decent sum of money that she managed to accumulate from her recent sale.

Stealing a brief glance at her phone, Agnes noticed a missed call from her mother. Sighing quietly, she picked it up and proceeded to call back. As the phone rang, Agnes thought about what had happened earlier that day.

The albino chef had wanted to leave the town, immediately and on the spot. But she had already prepared everything for that day’s sale and she really needed the money to move from place to place.

So in the end, Agnes had tried to distract herself from the disturbing encounter by focusing all of her attention into her cooking business. Which it had worked... Somewhat.

All of that crashes down, when an elderly woman came over to buy a disposable plate of pan fried marinated chicken tenders...

---

“Thank you for the meal,” the elderly lady said gratefully.

Agnes nodded cheerfully as she clapped her hands, “Your welcome! I hope that you’ll enjoy your food.”

The older woman smiled agreeably, “Yes, one look at your food and I know it will taste wonderful.”

Seeing as there was no one else behind the elderly woman, Agnes see no reason to shoo her away as the customer leaned against her truck beside the serving window. Besides, the truck chef does not mind some extra human company with her for the remainder of the day.

(The albino had double-checked and became certain that the comforting smell of cooking oil and dish-washing soap overpowered the fragrant scent of flowers)

“Did you know,” The other woman spoke up nonchalantly as she bite her chicken with a plastic fork, “that there’s this popular legend surrounding this part of town?”

Agnes turned her head warily at the elderly lady, “What kind of legend?”

Gulping down her food, the elderly woman replied cheerfully, “Why, the Lady in White of course!”

(A glint of straggly black hair against the pure white fabric on the glass)

The albino chef felt her heart sank, but kept her cheerful smile on her face intact. Maybe, just maybe... She could could get something out of this.

“Ooh, what’s it about?” Agnes asked with the tone of a curious child. Despite her fears, she genuinely felt it would be better to know more about what was going on.

After all, if the legend of the Lady in White was exactly what she thought it was, perhaps it would be wise course of action to know more about the situation at hand.

“Hmm, it’s a sad story if I recall. Do you still want hear about it?” The elderly woman said with a contemplative expression on her face.

Agnes nodded, “Yes, please! Mrs...?”

She smiled gently, “You can just call me Polly, dear.”

“Oh, okay! Mrs-Ugh, I mean- Polly! Yeah, Polly! I mean... Yes, yes, um...”

Polly placed a clenched fist over her lips in a polite manner, giggling softly in amusement, “Aren’t you an awkward young woman? And your name...?”

“Oh! Uh-my name is Agnes, yep!”

Somebody, anybody, please dig her a hole now. She desperately needs a hiding place.

“Agnes... What a beautiful name you have,” Polly said with an appreciative tone.

Said albino looked down with a sheepish smile, a bright red hue flushed over her pale cheeks as she muttered a ‘thanks’ under her breath.

Polly giggled once more, much to Agnes’ dismay, “Okay, okay, just let me put down the plate and I’ll recount the story.”

Agnes leaned forward on her counter in anticipation as Polly straightened her throat, the older woman’s face growing somber as she told the albino chef the tragic tale of the Lady in White.

“Many decades ago, before I was born, my hometown used to have this poster couple of true love. An bookish young lad named Riley and a perky young lady named Alicia.”

Polly stared at the children playing in the park, “They were truly in love with each other, spending their time together in any way they can. Alicia would go to the library so that she could read books on floral gardening with Riley while he would help out Alicia with the flower shop as he spouts random amusing facts about plant husbandry.”

Agnes smiled soft at the romantic fairy tale that was pictured in her head, of a awkward yet charming teenager reading beautifully written poetry towards his surprised but flattered girlfriend who looks like she was about cry of joy. It may have been a tad exaggerated considering that she doesn’t know all the details about those two but hey, it’s nice to imagine.

...Although her mind secretly dreads the tragic direction the legend was going at. After all, this was a horror story she was hearing about.

“Despite the troubles Riley and Alicia goes through like every other couple in town, they managed to find a way. Frankly, the whole town was in awe of how perfect those two seemed to be. Even after their graduation from high school, they still stayed together like peas in a pod. They even got engaged after two years and everyone believed that their future wedding would be a sight to see ... Or so we all thought.”

A grimace settled on Agnes’ face. Ah, the turning point towards despair in every tragic tale ever. She really hates that part of the story. Why can’t she have a happy fairy tale-esque ending for once? Oh wait, this was a horror story that she was listening to so that she can learn more about her. Sigh, why can’t life give her a break?

There a short pause, and Agnes chose to speak up.

“W-what happened next?” The albino chef asked tentatively, her tone hesitant.

Polly sighed, “A newcomer settled into town. A beautiful woman with marvelous fair skin and sun-kissed hair that was as bright as light itself.”

Agnes frowned, at both the unfortunate implications and the dangerous direction “This... This is not what I think this is going... is it?”

The elderly woman sighed and nodded, the wrinkles on her face more pronounced than ever. Agnes felt her heart sank even lower.

“That woman was an utterly capricious and unrepentant whore who thinks herself as too good to settle down. The men in town from back then may have lusted for her, but the other women knew better. Alicia warned Riley not to go near her or even befriend her but alas, the stubborn man wouldn’t listen. He was too friendly for his own good.”

Agnes was enthralled by the tale, her red eyes gleaming wide in nervous anticipation at where the story was going.

“Riley introduced himself to the woman at a social meeting in local cafe. And she, that woman, while he wasn’t looking,” Polly took in a deep breath, “she drugged his drink.”

“What.” Agnes deadpanned.

“When Riley became too intoxicated to continue, the woman offered to help him get back home. But instead of his house, it was her apartment.”

The albino chef shook her in disbelief. What kind of story has this become?

Polly grimaced as she continued, “It didn’t take long for her to get pregnant weeks after.”

Eyebrows raised up into her hairline, Agnes asked incredulously, “Wait, what? What about Riley? Why did he-”

The elderly woman raised a finger, “I am getting to that. Because Riley was drugged, he couldn’t remember. By the time he got back on his feet, he was in the hospital because the woman he accompanied with sent him there straight after their... session.”

Agnes shuddered, her nose scrunching in disgust, “Oh god, she’s an awful witch.”

Polly smiled grimly, “I cannot deny that. Alicia never trusted her after what happened, but never would she ever expect the woman to come right at her door step and telling her everything. Including her drugging Riley and all, barely only after two weeks!”

Agnes’ jaw dropped in shock.

“The oddest thing about the woman was that, despite her depravity, she was a honest person when she chose to be. Who would have thought that being pregnant must have brought out her sincere side?” Polly laughed bitterly.

Biting her lips nervously, Agnes shifted uncomfortably as she realized something odd. Knowing a legend about the local vengeful spirit was one thing, but there were so much detailed information in it that made the albino chef wonder if there’s more to the story than she thought.

... Wait a minute, the woman. She was pregnant. Does that mean-!?

“W-what happened next?” Agnes asked softly, hesitance coloring her tone.

Polly shook her head, “The details from there on were murky but as far as I know, Riley denounces her and Alicia chased the woman off their home. I have no idea why she expected Riley to side with her just because she’s pregnant with his child since she started the whole mess, but that woman never seemed to have the sanest head.”

The discomfort that pricked at Agnes’ mind ever since the woman was introduced in the story morphed into a dreadful plague. Her shaking hands on the counter clenched into shivering fists.

“Distraught, the woman ran out into the open road amidst the heavy downpour. Her pure white dress covered in filthy grime and platinum blonde hair stained with wet mud till it’s as black as her soul, she was a mess on her final day of life.”

Agnes took in a deep breath, “How did she...?”

Polly grimaced, “She slipped on a puddle in the middle of the road and a truck hit her, killing both her and her unborn child.”

This time, Agnes covered her mouth with both hands cupped together.

The elderly woman shook head in dismay, “They say her spirit lurks in this area, forever in denial as she searched for her child whose hair is as fair as hers.”

The albino chef was silent for a brief moment, looking down as she mulled over what she had heard.

Finally, she spoke, “You didn’t told me the woman’s name.”

A bittersweet smile graced over Polly’s feature, “Because my parents warned me of her deadly curse. Not when she almost torn my parents apart with what she did. Not when she took my best friend away.”

Agnes’s heard jerked up as she stuttered, “Oh my go-! No, are you-?!”

Polly, who had just finished her plate of chicken tenders, began to walk away from the food truck as she said, “Back then, I was just a rebellious teenager. I didn’t listen to them. Because of my stupidity, I dragged my best friend who happened to fair-haired. I lost my best friend because of her.”

Too shocked to say anything, Agnes remained quiet as she stared at the elderly woman with wide eyes.

Polly looked over her shoulder, tears glimmered in her brown eyes, “If you don’t to be confused as her child like what happened to my best friend, I suggest you should leave this town. Immediately.”

(Blood trickled from her rotted lips, the smile upon her decaying face widened ever larger)

From a distance away from them, a dog began to bark loudly much to the vexation from his owner; unaware of the fragrant scent of flowers in the air.

---

“Agnes, my daring girl! I’ve been trying to call you minutes ago, how have you been?” A bubbly voice boomed from the phone speaker.

Agnes giggled as she sat on the edge of the motel bed, “Hey, mom! Sorry that I couldn’t reply earlier but I was busy counting finances from my sale today.”

“Ah, how was it? Did you managed to serve as many food as you can?”

“It was pretty good,” Agnes nodded cheerfully as she looked outside at the balcony window. The sun was already setting, “The customers loved the food and I managed to earn a hefty sum! I’ll repeat it again, it was really good.”

It was also cursed, but her mother didn’t need to know that.

“Aww, I’m so happy for you, Agnes! Mind throwing your poor mother a bone and put on screen-share? I want to see you!”

Agnes laughed genuinely, her heart feeling a bit lighter as she flopped herself on the bed. Her mother may be a bit of a drama-queen but she also has a tendency to bring up other people’s moods like lighting up a candle, and her own daughter was no exception.

Granting her mother’s earnest wish, Agnes tapped the screen-share icon and the phone screen revealed a grinning middle-aged woman with dirty blonde hair and enthusiastic blue eyes. The wrinkles on her face were so subtle that a random stranger would think that Agnes’ mother was only in her mid-20s.

“Oh, Agnes, I missed you so much!” she exclaimed and Agnes happily grinned back just as vibrantly.

“I missed you too, Mom. You look really happy!”

Her mother’s face brightened like a light bulb, “You’re absolutely right! You see, your father is taking me out on a date. Again!” She then started to swoon, “Just like the old times... So sweet and good-hearted, oh....”

Agnes blinked a few times, somewhat taken aback. She was expecting this, “I-Wow. I didn’t think you and Dad are- aren’t you two already married?”

“Oh please,” her mother snorted humorously, her blue eyes twinkling, “It’s never too late to be so in love.”

The albino chef chortled, “Well, I’m not complaining. I hope you’ll enjoy your date with dad, mom!”

Her mother tilted her head, “I thought you’d be exasperated by all this, like the other kids in the neighborhood.”

Agnes chuckled as she shook her head, “Gosh, mom. I’m a young adult, not a teenager. If you two are happy, I’m happy.”

Her mother beamed, looking very touched, “I don’t only love your father, darling. I love you as well.”

A soft smile cracked out of Agnes’s face, “I love you too, mom-”

The lights turned off, the bedroom plunged into darkness.

Agnes went stiff, taking in shallow breaths as every fiber of her being screamed at her to run.

The room was no longer felt like a haven.

It was a prison.

“Oh no, is there a blackout?”

Hearing her mother’s voice managed to broke Agnes out of her reverie. The albino chef forced herself to swallow as she focused on the concerned expression of her mother on the phone screen, quickly jumping out of the bed.

“Yeah, just... Give me a moment, I’ll find the switch,” Agnes said to her, mentally kicking herself for letting her voice quaver. The light from her phone screen was the only comfort she has in this dark room.

“Agnes...” Her mother stared at her in worry, “You look pale, more so than usual. What is going on?”

“Yeah, I-” Agnes grunted, accidentally bumping into the chair. It was too dark, she can’t see anything, “-I’m trying to find the switch!”

It was only then did Agnes realized that the light switch was right next to the entrance door. Smacking her forehead, the albino chef huffed and stumbled towards the other side of the room.

Feeling her hand on the switch, Agnes pressed on it and light bathed the room in radiance once more. She let out a sigh, one that she had been holding for far too long.

There was nothing in the room as far as she could see. Just her paranoia stringing her along like a marionette.

Even so... Why did the goosebumps on her skin didn’t disappear?

“That was some smart-thinking you got there, Agnes! I’m sorry that it woke your roommate though.”

Agnes had never turned her head around so fast. The fragrant scent of flowers waft through her nostrils.

She stared wide-eyed at the phone screen, beads of sweat trailing down her forehead, “W-what do you mean, mom?’

“I should be the one asking you this questions, young lady!” Her mother took on an admonishing tone, “How come you didn’t tell me you have roommate with you? She’s tapping on the balcony glass door right now. And oh, that bed hair...”

“M-mom...!” Her quivering voice barely more than a whisper, “I-I don’t have a roommate. I-I’m sleeping alone.”

“W-what?” Her mother’s blue eyes widened like saucers, “Who’s standing behind the curtains then!?”

Cries of a baby echoed in the room.

Agnes, against her better judgement, took a peek over her shoulder. Her entire world stilled.

It’s her.

Behind the curtains, a shadowy silhouette of woman stood there; separated from the room by a glass door. Her body was hunched over in an unsightly gait, with long black hair fanned out around her head like a looming shadow.

Was she there the whole time? How did she not notice her?

But what really caught Agnes’ terrified eyes were the hands pressing against the glass behind the curtains. If they could even be called hands at all.

The fingers was spindly, almost elongated like a spider’s leg. The nails on each finger were as sharp as the talons of vulture. One claw pressed itself deeply onto the glass and to Agnes’ barely concealed horror, it phased through as though the door was nothing more than thin air.

The skin of the finger was so sallow and grey with tainted black veins running all over it, it was almost necrotic.

Shallow breaths racked through Agnes’ lungs as she took several steps behind, her shaking back hitting the polished wooden surface of the entrance door as the albino chef stared at the ghost with wide terrified eyes.

“Agnes, what is going on!? Who is that woman!?”

Her mother’s voice broke her out of her reverie and in the span of 3 seconds, Agnes kept one eye on the Lady in White while she brought her phone up to see the paling expression of her mother staring back at her in utter worry. Her other hand tightly clasped the door handle behind her.

Agnes had no idea what she was doing, but instincts screamed at her to be cautious. One wrong move and-and...

“Mom! I can’t talk much, I’m not sa-”

A soft, weeping sound of a crying woman reverberated throughout the room as the lights went off again, plunging the bedroom into darkness once more.

Agnes’ phone was the only source of illumination left and she can’t see the Lady in White’s shadow from behind the glass door anymore. Inhaling sharply, she quickly turned around and pulled the door handle as hard as she can.

It wouldn’t budge.

Agnes’ ruby eyes shrunk into pinpricks, her entire body shivering as she futilely attempted to rip the door handle out but to no avail.

In pure desperation, the albino chef resorted to ramming her body against the door. Each failure only served to make the next attempts more desperate than the last.

“Agnes, AGNES!”

Her mother’s voice, oh her sweet and comforting mother, brought her attention to the phone screen. She looked intensely alarmed, but there was also the gleam of protective fury in those determined blue eyes.

“Agnes, listen to me! Do you have anything on you that you can defend yourself with?” Her mother’s commanding tone, as rare as it was, compelled the albino chef to instantly search her pockets.

‘I-I have a pocket knife with me,” Agnes stammered, pulling her only weapon of self-defense with her. She had forgotten to stash it away after setting up her sale that morning.

It didn’t matter if a meager pocket-knife would not affect an angry ghost, rationality was thrown out the window the moment she appeared and all Agnes wanted was to have at least something to protect herself. A source of comfort.

“Good, because right now, I need you to-”

The door opened slightly, streams of light from hallway showered into the dark room from the tiny gap it created.

In a fit of pure relief, Agnes let out a gasp as she pulled the door wide open and ran out-

Only for something cold, dreadfully and spine-chilling cold, grabbed her ankle and it yanked hard.

The fall was enough to knock the wind out of her sails as her head hit the hard floor, the resulting impact causing Agnes to see the world spin around her. Despite ringing sound in her ears, she could hear her mother’s cries of concern from the phone that had she dropped from the fall for several seconds.

All of a sudden, it was then interrupted by the deafening sound of metal and glass being crushed to a pulp.

It took a moment for the stars to fade away from her vision when-

She felt it. The chilling vice grip that still held her ankle as the fragrant scent of flowers was immediately replaced by the pungent smell of decay that left her stomach churning. The moment she heard the faint echoes of a woman’s soft weeping, Agnes opened her eyes.

Lips drenched in blood smiled a tad too wide, sheer madness dancing in those hollow white eyes. Straggly black hair contrasts sharply against the tattered white dress.

Black hair that Agnes started to realize that it wasn’t truly black, but were darkly stained and muddy with hints of pale blonde strands beneath it.

The albino chef croaked softly, “Y-you’re-”

Her mouth parted, revealing rows of sharpened canines.

“Come back to me, my child. I missed you...”

Agnes screamed and flailed, her fingernails clung deeply onto the carpeted floor of the hallway to no avail.

As Lady in White dragged her back into the dark room, the albino chef’s hysterical cries for help remained unheard amidst the soft cries of a newborn baby as the bedroom door closed itself shut.

---

In folklore, a pontianak usually arises at night and announces her presence through high-pitched baby cries. If the cry is soft, it means that the pontianak is near, and if it is loud, then she must be far. Some believe that if ones hears a dog howling, that means the pontianak is far, but if a dog is whining, that means the pontianak is nearby. Her presence can sometimes be detected by a nice floral fragrance identifiable as that of the plumeria, followed by an awful stench (resembling that of a decaying body) afterwards.

A pontianak kills her victims by digging into their stomach with her sharp fingernails and devouring their body organs. It is said that if one has his or her eyes open when a pontianak is near, she will suck them out of the victim's head.

Pontianak locates her preys/victims by sniffing out the hanging laundry outside. For this reason, some Malaysians refuse to leave any piece of clothing outside of their house overnight.

To fend off a pontianak, a nail or any sharp object should be plunged into either the hole on the nape of her neck or the apex of her head.

---

I scared myself writing this, jeez. I hope you’ll enjoy this chap, see yah!

#horror #folklore #ghost #just for fun #short story

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davina-wolfthorne · 7 years ago

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So let me tell you about my Monday

WARNING; below the line is a mini story about my Monday. It contains strong language, some humor, a handsome albino bunny, and freaking newborn kittens.

Mondays are the very bane of everyone’s existence. I have yet to meet someone who actually enjoys Mondays, and if you are one of those people you’re nuts! I digress though. It is the day that marks the first of many days in work hell. My Monday was actually a Wednesday two weeks ago. I’ve been going non-stop for two weeks. Barely at my desk or in my comfort zone. Running errands, and taking care of responsibilities. Even on the weekends! It’s been endless. Well yesterday (Monday) was ‘suppose’ to be my day off.....

I end up having to run to the local gas station, because money came in and I had to withdraw some cash. Okay well that wasn’t so bad right? My Monday doesn’t stop there. Three days ago the squatters that lived off the to the left of my house finally was forced to move out. Friday they apparently released their pet albino bunny onto the street and tried to chase it up the road! So this bunny has been outside, and neglected for three days. I invest myself in this bunny’s life. I grab the head of lettuce out of my fridge, and my neighbor brings over a dish of water. It’s in the fenced yard next door (where the squatters and it lived) I’d like to take a moment to point out that these people weren’t even allowed to have pets according to the Humane Society in my area. So this pieces of shit not only were ordered not to have animals (they use to own a shit ton of dogs and cats, and kept them all in the house. Never let the animals out to piss or shit. So they were ordered to not have pets anymore) but dumped this poor defenseless bunny outside. What happens to white animals then they’re born in the wild, and don’t live in winter regions? They typically are abandoned because their white coat is a risk. They have no camouflage to protect them. So this little guy has had a rough three days. His back right foot is swollen to three times its usual size. I’m not vet, but I think it was broken because when he walked he would lean all his weight on the left foot and tuck the wounded one against him. We have a lot of stray cats in our neighborhood. How he managed to survive three days with a wounded foot in a cat heavy area is beyond me, but he has a strong spirit.

I call the humane society in my area. Let me start off by saying this place is a piece of fucking shit. They never help stray animals that aren’t dogs, and they refuse to take in an animal if it is sick or wounded. We’ve called them in the past about stray cats needing medical attention, and they always ignore it. But when we call about dog neglect they jump on it. In my city you will see a lot of cats but NEVER a stray dog. Now I don’t know if other cities are like this, but I know that it is fucked up for them not to take care of all strays. Anyway I call them, and this woman answers. I won’t use her real name so I’ll just call her bitch #1, and yes I am using the term bitch, because she was rude. I ask if they can send a humane officer to come get him. She speaks in a snooty voice ‘I’ll give the information to them’. So we hang up, and I had forgot to mention to bitch #1 that the bunny is injured and needs care. So I call back and the same woman picks up. ‘He’s wounded. His back right foot is really swelled and he doesn’t put any weight on it. I think that it might be broken.’ and she sounded rude when she gave her reply. Like I was bothering her by calling her. We hang up again.

So we pick him up and carry him to our front porch to guard him for the time being. Let me tell you that he is the sweetest bunny ever. He was so passive and docile. He let us hold him. Not once did he thrash or try to nip/get away. Just the biggest sweet heart. How anyone could ever want to harm an animal is beyond me. Especially something this pure. I call the humane office back, and inquire as to if they’ll be able to pick him up because it’s been a while. A new lady picks up, and I’m going to call her Susan because she actually wasn’t that bad to deal with. I gave her the run down since she doesn’t know what’s going on. She informs me that they cannot come out and pick up the bunny. I ask her ‘if I can get a friend to take me to the humane society will you accept him?’ She instructs me to hold on, and that she has to ask. Bitch #2, a new bitch look at that, picks up the phone. In a rather flat, and uncaring tone, she proceeds to tell me that they cannot help this bunny at all. Despite being a humane society [A humane society is a group that aims to stop human or animal suffering due to cruelty or other reasons. In many countries, the term is used mostly for societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals] they cannot help him. Nor can they seem to help other animals (a good friend of mine informed me she’s called them in the past numerous times about animal neglect and they never came out. In the past she also wanted them to take a wounded stray cat and they told her and I quote ‘You can bring it in and use our vet and pay for it, but we won’t take it after’ The fuck?) Here is how she proceeded;

Bitch #2 - Just so you know all our humane officers have full time jobs so we don’t even know when they’ll come out to get it. There are many sad cases out there before yours. If you’re that worried about it take it to the vet, but good luck finding a vet that will take a bunny. You should try a rescue that will take it.

Okay so I hang up with Bitch #2 after basically coming to the conclusion that they don’t want this bunny. It’s not that they can’t take it, because I know of other humane societies that take all types of animals. After some Googling I find this place called Rabbit Wranglers in Pittsburgh PA. I called, but got an answering machine. So I left them a message of my name, number, and telling them about the bunny. I begged them to call me even if they can’t take him. The owner, Suaz, calls back and asks me some things about him. She tells me she has to go check to see if someone can pick him up. We hang up and two hours later, full of worrying, she calls back. Fantastic news! She told me that if she couldn’t find a volunteer to drive out that she’d come out and get him. GREAT! That means this little sweet heart can get medical attention, and find a loving home. But something happened between that two hour window.

As if my Monday wasn’t stressful enough trying to find a place to rescue the bunny (thank goodness for R.W and Suaz) this little girl decides to add to the list. Meet Bear, a stray tabby we rescued back in October. I know I don’t often talk about my animals because I don’t want to spam people with them (and I would spam so much because ya know...cats) This March we had set up an appointment for her to be fixed, and guess what happened two days before her appointment? She slips out and comes home pregnant. Bear only managed to escape because this woman came to see someone in my house, and was informed that we would have to get the person to wake up. She wouldn’t let us close the front door and Bear slipped right out.

ANYWAY so this little hussy comes home pregnant. Two months later, and on the already chaotic Monday, she goes into labor....IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LIVING ROOM AND JUST FUCKING PLOPS ONE RIGHT OUT THEN AND THERE. Like blood and fluid THEN BOOM BABY. Unfortunately it was born stillborn. We tried CPR and gentle compression’s on its chest, but it couldn’t be saved. It was so small, and it wasn’t even fully formed. She gets scared of what is happening to her, and runs under the couch. Guess who had to make love to the couch with her face to fetch the expecting mother? This girl right here. Yes I am pointing to myself....

I pick her up and rush her into the bathroom. We already had her birthing blanket, and area ready. We even laid down bed pee pads (they’re like puppy pads but for people to use on their bed) on the ground to soak up any fluids. I got into the bathroom with my mother (Yes I live with my mother. Back into 2000 she was in a bad car accident and it left her disabled. So I live with her to help take care of her.) and we sit there with Bear while she’s having contractions. This little girl knows what happened to her first baby. She lays down on her side, and this expression of depression just settles on her sweet dainty face. Her wide eyes just look so hollow and empty as she stares at her blanket. It is the most heart wrenching things I’ve ever seen. It crushed my heart. She soon goes into another contraction, and ends up having a second baby. I’m too afraid to know its fate because at this moment in time we already had one stillborn, and we were still waiting to hear back from Rabbit Wranglers. So I didn’t even know the bunny’s fate. Let me clarify for a moment that we would love to take the bunny in, and give him a home, but two reasons why we can’t. 1) Bunnies and rabbits are very expensive pets. V’lerie ( @warqote-val ) said that they can cost from 100 to 150 USD a month. Hell she said that number may not even be fully accurate. We’re on a tight budget, and have three cats to take care of with more on the way. We cannot afford a bunny. 2) We have cats. That right there is the biggest reason for me. Skeeter, our male tabby, is a natural born hunter. Gothy, our black cat, is a lazy turd bird and doesn’t hunt. Skeeter does. He’s caught and cornered things in the past. He is a hunter to his core. I don’t want a bunny being subjected to the stress of sharing a house with cats. The very predators that have been stalking it now for days.

When I leave the bathroom I get a call from Suaz. She tells me she’ll try to get a volunteer to come out, and if she couldn’t then she would drive herself. Now to give you a relative idea as to why this is such a big deal; Pittsburgh is forty-five minutes to an hour away from my city. The worry that she may say no because of distance was a big factor in my mind. Thankfully though she said they’ll come out ans rescue him. THANK GOD OR WHATEVER DIVINE BEINGS THERE ARE! The first silver lining animal related of the day. Someone will come get him, and he’ll finally be safe. His suffering will be over, and he can get the care of love he has always deserved. Suaz tells us to put him in a cat carrier until she can make it over to us. So I usher him into the carrier so he can’t roam off, and for his safety because the strays have began searching for him. I am charged with the task of sitting outside with him while we wait for Suaz.

Meanwhile my mother has been with Bear during all of this. She comes outside every now and again for a smoke break, and to give me updates. The second kitten that she had, the one she gave birth to when I was running out of the bathroom like the little bitch I am, is stillborn. That makes two still born with more on the way. Needless to say my hopes weren’t very high for this litter. It looked really grim. I remain on the porch to wait with the bunny (whom at this point I named Roger. Shuddup I’m fucking corny and punny like that).

While I am on the porch waiting guess who calls? The local humane society that refused to help the bunny. Bitch #3 tells me rather flippantly that all the officers are busy and cannot make it out. Um okay? Do y’all not talk to each other, because Bitch #2 informed me that you don’t take rabbits and bunnies and couldn’t send anyone out. I say don’t worry and tell Bitch #3 that I took their advice and called Rabbit Wranglers. Informing her that he’ll be rescued by then. She turned up her bitch dial and got incredibly rude. Then asked if we had put him in a carrier. I tell the truth and say yes because that’s what we were told to do. Bitch #3 goes, and I quote, “well it’s your responsibility now since you put him in a carrier. He’s your problem to deal with.” Okay get off your soap box bitch before I knock your ass off. Y’all had no intention to help the bunny, and now you’re getting pissed that I made other arrangements like I was fucking told to do. Nah bitch sit the hell down and shut up. I hang up, and wash my hands of them. They’re a shitty humane society, and don’t deserve the right to carry that title.

After that frustrating encounter some good news came! Bear had her third baby, and it’s alive! THE FIRST LIVE ONE! I’m fucking ecstatic like you would not believe. So I rush into the bathroom, and sure enough it is a tuxedo kitten. So fresh to this world and so fucking precious. It was squirming and nuzzling up to feed while Bear was licking it to dry the wee thing off.

I go outside to wait with the bunny so mom can be with her cat. Over the course of three hours I chilled with the bunny. Feeding him lettuce and keeping him company. Over this time mom keeps me updated on Bear. She’s doing splendidly and is giving birth like a mother fucking champ. So far by the time 8pm rolls around she has had five babies. Two stillborn, but three are alive and nursing eagerly. She’s still in labor.

8pm comes, and Suaz arrives at my home. She’s such a nice woman with a kind soul. She actually thanks my mother and I over and over for saving the bunny, and calling her. I give her some money for gas to show my way of thanks and gratitude. Y’all she didn’t need to do this. She could have told us that it was too far out of their reach to help him, but she didn’t. She drove all that way, came and picked him up, and she probably didn’t get back home until around 10pm. Suaz tells us that she’s going to take great care of him. When she gets him home he’ll get some pain killers for his wounded foot, and that tomorrow (now today) he’ll be seeing the vet to see what they can do about his injury. That is a major weight off my fucking chest. She actually encouraged us to call her and ask for updates on him! Which I fully intend to do.

Finally at 9pm I walk in through the front door, and go check on the new mother. She has three kittens nuzzling to her, and doesn’t seem to be having anymore contractions. So I make myself some dinner, and sit down to relax. Well around 11 I go downstairs to check up on them and my mom to see if she needs anything to drink. We go outside for a few minutes, and when we come back in we check up on Bear. There’s blood on the pee pads. Mom is under the impression that it was just the afterbirth. I go closer, and inspect, and sure enough there is another kitten! This makes kitten number six and makes the fourth living one. She took care of it all by herself! I want to mention that with the fifth born my mother had to do CPR on it, and brought it back to life. This one Bear took care of when no one was around. We breathe a sigh of relief because mama and the babies are doing well. She looks finished and is finally resting with the newborns.

We go to bed.

5am rolls around and I wake up for about the third time over night because I couldn’t sleep well. I made sure each time I woke up to go downstairs and check on them. Each time they’re doing fine! Well around 7am I am awake enough to where we make a whelping box for her. We hadn’t at this point because when Gothy had given birth seven years ago we made her a whelping box and she didn’t use it at all. I wanted Bear to feel like she wasn’t confined or cramped. We make this box and lay down a fresh blanket. We load them all up into the box, and when we rummage through the folds of the birthing blanket we find a seventh kitten! Overnight she had one more, and this one had ventured off, Bear is such a good mother she actually doesn’t want to leave the other living four to pick it up and put it back with her. The seventh is alive and doing well! I place it back with her and Bear happily accepts it.

So these are the tiny jelly beans that consumed most of my day/evening yesterday. Two tuxedos, and three tabbies. The tabby on the bottom right is the one who had lost its way from Bear.

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cliche-ish · 4 years ago

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Be comfortable in my own skin color

I was born with darker skin than most people in my country and than my culture’s beauty standard. My family and neighbors called me by the nickname “Đen”’, which means “dark skin” in a negative way and also the black color in my language. They even made up a chant that included all the worst quality possible of multiple body parts. It was something like “Bald head, protruding forehead, short nose, dark skin, slanted eyes.” Is that a haiku lol? In my culture, it is believed that you should not call a baby “cute” or “adorable” no matter if the baby is cute or not, because that can jinx it. Yup, calling a baby “cute” is believed to be all it takes to turn the baby into an ugly looking monster later... Instead, it is preferred to always call babies “ugly”. So even though I had none of those characteristics but the dark skin, that chant was my life theme song for a while. At least that was the reasoning of the people I grew up with. That chant was sung to me up until I was about as young as I can remember, maybe 4 or 5 years old. After that, the chant stopped, except for the dark skin part. The dark skin matter haunted me up to high school.

In Vietnam and most East Asian countries, people are obsessed with having fair, pale, light skin. That is THE beauty standard for Vietnamese women. Beauty salons and cosmetic spas offer a wide variety of skin whitening procedures and products. Dark skin also means ugliness. It is the last thing you want to have if you are a girl or women there. What is worse, it was deemed to be associated with lower social status. People saw my dark skin and made rash assumptions (did I see a pun?) that I was poor and not well educated, because I had to work outdoor, laborious, manual jobs as a kid to help the family. That’s the stereotype. One time I went to the dentist for a quick simple procedure. During the procedure, the dentist said my skin was so dark, I must come from Miền Tây, which is a region where many people were poor farmers back then. (Reminder, I was born and raised in a middle class family in the biggest city in Vietnam, went to the top schools, and the only work I really had to do was homework and some housework.) I felt so offended, yet couldn’t correct her because my mouth was help open by a cheek retractor.

I saw many TV ads about skin lightening lotions and cosmetic procedures. I was still a teenager, so I could only ask my Mom if she could buy me the lotions. It was a big deal, because at that time in our culture, teenage girls were usually not allowed to use any cosmetic products, like makeup, hair dye, or nail polish. So I gathered all my courage to ask her to buy me those lotions. To my surprise, my Mom agreed to buy and let me use the skin lightening products. She probably wanted the best for me. I did use them, but didn’t really see any improvement. I thought it was probably because I was an active, sporty, outdoorsy girl who was out in the tropical sun the whole time lol. So my skin was still dark, and I was teased all the time. When I was little, I was so sad. When I was a little older, I just laughed along on the outside, but came home and cried alone in the bathroom. There were days I felt so shitty and so insecure about the way I looked, wondering why I was born like this. Once I became insecure and conscious about my appearance, it spiraled and more stuff was added to the list of things I was ashamed about: my fat ass (I have a pear-shaped body), my weird jaw (I have an asymmetrical face, you know, like a normal person), my body hair (who doesn’t have that), etc. That list got expanded quickly, as my self-esteem was shrinking substantially.

I started to gain a tiny bit more confidence in high school. I saw a few women on the street rocking their tanned skin with great sense of fashion and bold choice of color, looking like they were joyfully living their lives. Even though they loook different from the many other women out there, their confidence was beaming radiantly, and so I thought I wanted to be like that one day.

But it was when I moved to the U.S. that I truly became confident about the way I look. No one in the U.S. really teased me about my dark skin any more. People even approached me and complimented on how pretty I was. That never happened! I never thought of myself as “pretty”. That was when it hit me. Back in Vietnam my tint was somewhere further towards the end of that normal distribution of skin shade spectrum. That does make me more uncommon but in no way abnormal or ugly. But when I left home and moved to the U.S., a beautifully diverse country, I got shifted to somewhere in the middle, more common area of the spectrum. My point is, the spectrum, the standard, the perception of beauty, they’re all relative and changing all the time. It’s never going to be enough if I keep on chasing these ever-changing standards. I cannot be super skinny while also have an ass. I cannot have light skin while also getting that summer hot tan look. And every body is different, so what works for you might not work for me. I can’t let a few people decide what I and all billions of women in the world should look like to get the world’s approval. What best determines my worth is how I perceive myself. I am pretty and happy when I feel pretty and happy about myself. I’m in shape. Pear’s a shape. Body hair is not abnormal. It’s there for important functions, and we’re more closely related to chimpanzee, not dolphins. 🙂 Each and every part of my body is important, functional, unique, and a part of me. I appreciate them.

My appearance has changed a lot in the past few years, not because it finally adheres to new, updated beauty standards, but because I have learned to love myself, be comfortable in my own skin, and make myself prettier and healthier for me. I look up on what type of clothing fits my body shape. I cut my hair short, because short hair fits my personality and makes me feel like me. I eat right and work out to stay healthy, not because I want to get rid of my fat thighs. I appreciate and love my dark brown skin more than ever before. I look healthy, glowing, and sun-kissed without even trying, and never get sunburn. I mean, what is there to be upset about? I care less about what people think or comment on my appearance, if it is not objective or constructive. (i.e. “Why don’t you wear more makeup?” versus “I have this lipstick color that I think will fit you great.”) I spend more time enjoying life now rather than worrying over things about me that I think people think. I also realized people don’t really pay that much attention. It was just me paying too much attention and scrutinizing my own flaws. I learn to appreciate the diversity of body shape, and strike down those stereotypes or biases that being slim means healthy or being plus-size means you cannot be sexy or healthy or strong. (There is a scientific study about how body type is not a good indicator of health.) I look perfectly fine, and I will never let anyone tell me I am ugly, or not worth it, or not going to make it, because of how I look. And because of how shitty those mean comments made me feel, I promise to never let anyone treat others the same way, to say “I love your [...]. It’s pretty.” when I find something about someone pretty, and to be mindful and every time I am about comment on someone’s appearance.

There have been hopeful, progressive, and empowering changes that took place to challenge the culture based on toxic beauty standards. Several days ago I came across a news article about a decision made by Johnson & Johnson to stop selling skin-whitening creams, as a response to the Black Lives Matter movement. But it is also a great win for women in these countries, as such products had been feeding the toxic culture and the media that shames women for their look.

Recently, my Mom told me about a Vietnamese woman named H’Hen Niê. She is a Vietnamese beauty pageant who was crowned Miss Universe Vietnam 2018, and she was slaying it! She was widely recognized and loved by the Vietnamese people as she smashed every single Vietnamese beauty standards for being a minority with short hair and dark skin. Models who are plus-size, wear hijabs, have skin defects or disabilities are showing up more on American brands where I shop for my clothes. Finally, there are women on covers and who represents and advocates all girls and women of all shapes, sizes, colors, and cultures. Representation matters, because you can visualize yourself there, it’s easier to get there. This is so that more young girls and women would see “There’s someone who looks like me and she’s killing it.” Hopefully, they would feel less worthless, ashamed, and insecure about their features that society should not get to judge or label, and more inspired and empowered to love themselves and be proud of who they are. We have come a long way, and we still have a long way to go and a lot to do, but I’m optimistic that we are on our right track to building a better world for many young girls and women.

Photos of kick-ass women: Left to right, H’hen Niê, Zozibini Tunzi (South African woman to be crowned Miss Universe 2019 who has been openly advocating and celebrating “black girl magic”), Halima Aden (first Muslim model to wear hijab in Sport Illustrated Swimsuit), Thando Hopa (firsl albino model to be on Vogue cover), Winnie Harlow (internationally recognized supermodel with vitiligo), Ashley Graham (plus-size model, covergirl, and TV presenter who hosts a section on the Ellen DeGeneres’s site, theellentube.com)

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rainsonata · 7 years ago

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Apple & Cinnamon

Fandom/Shipping(s): Elsword; none Rating: K Word Count: 2,281

Summary: Another Halloween passes where Add is dragged out to go trick-or-treating, Ciel tries to stop the kitchen from going ablaze, and Elgang learns that the streets are not completely safe.

Notes: This was written for the Elsword Halloween-Mafic Collab you can see here. Be sure to check out everyone’s awesome fanart/fanfics!

Of course he noticed. With most of the month and even the one before it reminding him of the coming day, summer faded and was replaced with crimson leaves and chilly nights. With the streets decorated in black and orange to aisles of candy and costumes down the market stalls, how could he forget?

Which was why Add locked himself in his room, huddled in a blanket at his desk to work on a new project with headphones covering his ears to avoid the sound of children, and possibly more, shrieking into the night. It was getting dark soon and the streets would soon be filled with children and rowdy teens in costumes begging for candy. He enjoyed his sweets, but to beg? The Mastermind scoffed at the notion of acting like a slave again for something he could buy at his own leisure. Staying in Feita last Halloween was a poor decision and he was determined not to have a repeat of that.

“Add!”

He heard his name being said repeatedly in the background. Looking up from his monitors, he took off his headphones to hear the thumping against his door and growled. There were locks on his door for a reason! Add stood up and walked over to open the door to reveal a certain redhead standing at his door.

“What is it, brat?” Add covered his forehead with one hand.

“What are you still doing here?” Elsword asked, “Want to go trick-or-treating with me and Chung?”

“Aren’t you too old for this?” Even though Chung was there, he focused on Elsword because the Rune Slayer was the one suggesting it.

Elsword maturely stuck out his tongue, “Aren’t you too young to have white hair?”

Add twitched and touched his sidebangs in self consciousness, “My hair is natural! And what are you, a gator?” What was Elsword wearing?

“Perkisas!” Elsword cried in offense, “Can’t you tell I’m a dragon?”

If Add looked closer, the horns became more prominent on Elsword, but the cardboard wings stuck out from his back was poorly drawn and the tail dragged on the ground when he walked. He looked nothing like the god of greed. Chung was a pirate with worn out clothes, an eyepatch, and a triangle hat. Was the Hamel prince shaking his head as Elsword was still ranting on about his costume? Add almost pitied him for putting up with all that.

“Ah…” Add nodded, but still thought it was stupid.

“Free candy, free chocolate, what’s not to like?!” Elsword exclaimed.

“We can save some candy for you,” Chung said as he adjusted his eyepatch. “I’ll make sure Elsword doesn’t eat them all.”

Thank gods someone was sane enough to understand him. The idea of getting free chocolate was tempting, but a holiday garnishing itself in the dead and the unnatural was something he could afford to skip out on. Why should he be celebrating things that don’t exist?

“Hey!” Elsword protested, “But he doesn’t even need a costume since he’s part cat and his jacket has ears.”

“That’s not a costume,” Add snatched the jacket away from him before he had the chance to soil them.

“But we’ll get more chocolate if you come,” Elsword said.

“Eeek!”

There was a shriek downstairs. The three of them hurried down to see Ara in the kitchen with cracked eggs on the floor and Ciel letting out a heavy sigh, rubbing his temples in as he tried calming her down. Add was impressed he hasn’t thrown the Sakra Devanam out of the kitchen yet.

“We still have enough to make plenty of batches,” the Dread Lord ran a mop through the tiled floors with Ara stepping away from the mess with a lowered head. “Why don’t you work on shifting the flour instead?”

“If you insist…” She went over to the counter to open a bag of flour when she noticed Add, “Are you going somewhere?”

When did she start baking? Add looked at Ciel for an explanation with the half demon giving him a toothy grin.

“With all these trick-or-treaters, I needed extra hands to make cookies. Wanna join?”

Add rubbed his temples and looked outside the window to see children already out in the streets with their parents and friends. Did he really want to stay home to juggle making sure Ara wasn’t breaking something while dealing with small children until this damn holiday was over? He could resort to stealing Ciel’s cookies, but with the demon butler handing them out to trick-or-treaters and Lu being on ‘cookie duty’, security would be tighter than usual and he wasn’t up to wrestling with neither just for the extra sugar.

The scientist feigned a sigh, “Sorry, but I promised I would go with these losers.” He would rather face Feita ghosts than stick around and see the kitchen become hell.

“Losers?” Elsword protested.

Chung laughed, “We better go before Add changes his mind.”

Damn right he might change his mind, Add grunted to acknowledge that he was ready when he slipped into a pair of comfortable shoes and left with those two. Oh well, at least he could refill his chocolate stash.

For all the complaints he had for Halloween, Add found himself loss for words when their bags were quickly filled up with candy and chocolate. Who knew people could be this generous, or was it because they already ran through a dozen houses with Elsword and Chung persistent on finishing the neighborhood? It almost made up for the dumb questions and comments people threw at him about his jacket. That jacket was hand sewn, thank you very much! And no, they couldn’t touch the ears!

Add had a shine in his eyes when he unwrapped a chocolate bar, biting off a corner to test out its taste and closed his eyes in happiness. Not too sweet, but not too bitter. He opened his mouth for another bigger bite when Elsword shouted from behind.

“What’s that?”

Add covered his ears and was about to shout at the brat for being too loud when he saw it.

A woman stood alone with dark long hair contrasting her pale complexion and covering her face. Her hands reached out to Add, waving at him and moved towards his direction. As she approached them, he caught sight of her face, stark white as her dress. When she noticed them, she opened her mouth to let out a shriek and fell over with a thud.

“G-ghost!” Add stumbled away from her and ran the opposite way, not hearing Chung and Elsword going after him.

It was hard to see what was in front of him and he didn’t want to light up Dynamo to attract the ghost’s attention. He ran to the first thing in front of him and clung onto it with his eyes shut, hoping the ghost would go away if he was far enough. What was a ghost doing here? They weren’t in Feita any more and the neighborhood should be free of demons.

His heart was still pounding when he saw shadows walking past his hiding spot. Trying to make himself smaller was hard to do when he was as tall as most adults, but that didn’t mean he was going to give up on trying. Add froze he heard someone shouting his name.

“Add!” The Tactical Trooper spotted the albino hiding behind a tree trunk, “There you are! We were looking for you!”

“We?” Add noticed the plural. When the scientist noticed the ‘ghost’ from earlier walking behind Chung, someone grabbed him by the back of his collar to stop him from leaving. He whined at being held back, but saw that it was Elsword and turned to see what the redhead talking to someone.

“I thought you weren’t going for candy tonight.” Elsword cocked his head to the side with a puzzled expression.

“I’m sorry, Add!” Ara burst out and leaned over into a bow deeper than needed. There was a big bump formed on the spot where she fell over from earlier, rubbing her face to show white powder smeared on her hand. “Ciel ran out of ingredients and sent me out to buy more.”

Add stared at her, biting the corner of his lips to stop himself from swearing at his mistake. What kind of joke was this? Ara was the ghost? The flour on her face must have been there because she tripped over something and landed her face into the cookie dough until Ciel gave up and sent her away. Heat rose through his cheeks as Add averted his eyes because he felt those three looking at him too. How was he supposed to react to this stupidity when he couldn’t found words to describe the mix of anger and embarrassment bubbling in his chest?

He snorted, “Did you lose your way too?

“Add!” Chung looked at him with disapproval and clicked his tongue before asking Ara in a kinder tone, “You need us to help you?”

Ara nodded, “That would be great! Is that okay with everyone?”

Elsword grinned, “We’re pretty much done with hoarding candy, so no problem!”

Add was glad to sway the topic away from himself, “Yeah, sure.”

If they finished this quick, that meant more cookies, right? He rubbed his hands to blow warm air into his palms from the wind picking up and playing with his ponytail. It was getting cold and he was more than ready to head back (N-not because he was scared or anything. He was tired, yeah.).

Ara smiled, “Let’s hurry before Ciel runs out of cookies to hand out.”

They were greeted with the smell of frosting and sugar in the kitchen with Ciel backing out with a tray of cookies. Placing the tray on the countertop, the half demon dropped rush instructions to them before chiding at Lu to step away from the cookies. There was little time for any of them to argue when Ciel assigned them to their places. Add measuring the ingredients, Ciel mixing the batter, Lu watching the timer to make sure they baked evenly, and Elsword and Chung handing out cookies and candy. They were sweating when the traffic flow outside was slowed down.

“I think someone was too loud and told everyone about Ciel’s cookies,” Elsword collapsed into the couch in the living room. “I think I rather be the trick-or-treater than be the one handing out treats.” His horns were crooked from running around and bumping into things because of his hoodie falling over his face. Chung didn’t look any better with his eyepatch slipping down his face and his hair was a mess from the humidity.

“Are you saying this is my fault?” Lu feigned a gasp of surprise with a laugh, “Ciel’s cookies are too good not to mention them!”

“These aren’t chocolate chip cookies,” Add held up a cookie to eye level. All of Ciel’s cookies were good, but he was a little disappointed to see that his favorite didn’t made it today. Knowing that most of the trick-or-treaters were gone and Ciel was too tired to scold at anyone, he stole a bite and bit one shaped like a white cat. Sweeter than the usual, but the cinnamon and sugar melted in his mouth and made the scientist want more.

“Sugar cookies are easier to decorate,” Ciel handed a cookie to Lu, “Thanks for holding up there. There should be enough for us.”

Lu almost shoved a cookie shaped like a skull into her mouth with a pleased sound of content. She didn’t complain when Ciel chuckled and ruffled her hair with a pat on the head before offering the tray of cookies to the group.

“You decorated all of these? You really outdone yourself, Ciel!” Chung said with wide eyes.

He was looking at assortment of cookies before him, one that had a phoru wearing a pointed hat and purple robes. After cooling down for a few minutes, cookies in the shape of pumpkins, spiders, and apples were decorated with frosting before transferred over to plates. The frosting and glaze took extra time because they were running low on food coloring, but they were lucky to have bought extra from the store.

“I didn’t decorate them,” amusement gleamed in Ciel’s eyes when the boys stared. “Ara did.”

Add turned to see the older woman startled at the sudden attention, shuffling in her seat and looking down at her nails with new interest.

“It was fun giving them different colors and making them smile,” Ara smiled. “You did the hard work and baked them.”

“And now they’re going to be in our stomachs,” Add cackled. “Not bad.”

“Hey, don’t eat all of them,” Lu whined when Add got to a ghost shaped cookie before she did. “They’re mine.”

“Not if I get to them first,” Add glared her.

Ciel sighed, “I made enough for everyone, not just you two. Don’t overdo it or you’ll all get stomach aches.”

“We should do this more often,” Elsword nibbled on the end of a cookie. “It was fun, wasn’t it?”

The kitchen was a mess with flour on the counter and the floor, the trash can filled with eggshells and emptied flour bags, and the kitchen was going to smell like cookie dough for a few hours. His muscles strained from the labor, but it was strange that it didn’t bother Add. It was like a good kind of pain, the kind after seeing satisfying results of an experiment or when the prototype for an invention didn’t explode in his face.

“I guess it was,” Add said quietly, but his face was betrayed by a rare smile.

#elsword #eltag #add (elsword)#elboy #chung (elsword)#ara (elsword)#lu (elsword)#ciel (elsword)#mywriting #my writing #elsword fanfiction #mastermind #rune slayer #tactical trooper #sakra devanam #chiliarch #dread lord #this collab was fun to do I hope we can make this happen again

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fanfictionconnectionwordpress · 7 years ago

Note

What would happen if the RFA + Minor Trio were introduced to energy drinks and got high on it? ;)

***Nothing good. Lol, jk, I dunno. Maybe something good willcome out of this, but there’s really only one way to find out. I’m going tostart with the ones who have probably had energy drinks before. ~Let’s Connect!FFC

Character breakdown: Good ending canon characters, Secretending 02 Saeran, V with an operation to restore some of his sight, my version of Vanderwood as seen in my VanderwoodBackstory Fanfiction***

Seven:

Who decided it was a good idea to let this boy have enoughenergy drinks to hype him up?

I’m pretty sure he’s convinced he can see sound. Actually,he might be able to, who the fuck knows?

What does Seven do with this newfound energy and amazingtalent? He gets to work on his computer. Vanderwood is actually really proud tosee him working away this hard. The kid is certainly working a lot harder thanhe was for their very last mission.

When Seven finally crashes, passing out on his keyboard,Vanderwood decides to take a look at what the redhead has been working on andjust…has he been…making a manual on how to best create the world’s new longestlongcat?

After a long long nap, Seven awakens with a keyboardimprinted on his face and a note from Vanderwood that he will be tasing theredhead for being an idiot later. Why??? What had he even done to the guy????T_T

Yoosung:

The blond had used energy drinks many a time to stay up forLOLOL raids, but this was his first time using them to stay up for somehardcore studying.

Ever since you’d come into his life, he was now a devotedstudent once more, wanting to become a reliable man to you. This cram sessionwould have to be the best of all cram sessions ever.

Yoosung decides to have more than one energy drink, and thenhe starts to feel a little weird. It’s like he’s dreadfully aware of his ownheartbeat. What is this?? Is he dying??

It seems like the whole world around him is full of thesefuzzy little dots too. He is most certainly dying. Instead of studying,

Yoosungturns his attention to writing his will and a very long and heartfelt letter toeach of the people most important to his life, including a final letter aboutthe dangers of having too many energy drink that he passes out halfway throughwriting.

You find him the next morning, covering him with a blanketbefore looking at what he was doing. There is drool on the final note and yourifle through the papers only to sigh at his naivety. Yoosung may be smart, butsometimes he’s really ridiculous.

Zen:

Energy drinks used to be something he was having all thetime when he worked out, but after he realized there was just so much sugarthat he was mostly working the drinks off, he stopped. Sure, he was a heavy beerdrinker too, and that wasn’t healthy, but why add energy drinks on top of that?

It’s been a while, and supposedly this energy drink you’dleft on the counter was extra strength, so he decides to give it a sip just tosee what his cutie is drinking. It tastes so good that he ends up having alittle more than a sip.

By the time he’s finished off half of the can, Zen realizesthat he is shaking. His entire body is just violently shivering like somechihuahua on acid. There is so much energy and he needs to get rid of it!

So, what does he turn to? Exercise. Zen goes to his favoritegym, and you find him there hours later after the gym manager calls you. Yourfavorite albino has passed on the elliptical.

Zen swears off energy drinks for the rest of time and alsonever lets you drink them either, because that can’t be good for you.

Saeran:

The can seems colorful and he just assumes it’s a pop. It ismost definitely not just a pop, but at least it tastes good?

It isn’t long before Saeran starts to feel really weird. Hisleg just starts bouncing, his fingers tapping wildly at the armrests of hischair. Something in him just feels like he needs to do something and he can’tfigure out what.

This perpetual feeling is just getting worse and worse evenas he tries to figure out something to do on the computer to no avail.

You find Saeran curled into a ball on the bed hours later,his hands pressed to either side of his head. Apparently the stimulation hadcaused a bit of a panic attack, and this was where your love had retreated to.Good thing you’re there to help him now.

No energy drinks for Saeran, ever.

Jaehee:

This woman drinks so much coffee and tea on a regular basisthat she is not even able to get high off of an energy drink.

Jaehee took one sip, thought it tasted disgusting, but then drankthe whole thing down thanks to your dare to do so. It was the only way she’dtry it.

Of course, you had to do the same and it ended up being thatJaehee was following you around as you hopped around the room ‘cleaning’ whichactually meant knocking stuff over with the duster as Jaehee heroically caughteverything and replaced the items on their respective shelves.

V/Jihyun:

He may have had an operation to help out with most of hissight, but V still had trouble with small lettering. There is small letteringon this can of energy drink, and he happens to be so thirsty at the moment thathe just needs to get something down.

That was a mistake. For one, it was incredibly sugary andnot really to his taste, but for another, why did he feel like he wanted to runa marathon?

V doesn’t know what to do with all the pent up energy, andhe doesn’t trust his depth perception to actually attempt to run a marathon, soinstead he makes it to his computer and just starts frantically editingpictures.

It isn’t until his eyes start watering and stinging that herealizes he has been staring at the screen way longer than his doctorrecommends that he be allowed to.

At least now he’s starting to feel tired? Really tired…Hebarely makes it to his couch before passing out.

When he wakes up his eyes are so sensitive to the light thathe actually has to use his cane to get around because he can’t bear to keep hiseyes open for longer than thirty seconds.

From now on, tap water is just fine.That sounds like the best solution to thirst.

Jumin:

This new brightly colored can must be some commoner’sbeverage his lovely MC enjoys.

Jumin picks up this beverage labeled ‘beast’ with a brightgreen ‘b’ logo and examines it. Of course, he reads the back of the can,furrowing his brows at the nutritional statements as well as the warnings.

How on Earth could his sweetheart like this type of drink?With a sigh, he decides that he will just have to try it. The drink is withinhis allotted extra calorie intake by some miracle, or curse, so he decides todrink it, if only to understand.

The amount of energy that seems to flood his system israther a shock to it. Jumin has no motivation problems on any given day, butright now…He needs to work on cat projects.

He didn’t do these as often as he once had, because he simplydidn’t get as stressed as he used to now that you were around, but he just hadto do one right now. That cat hotel project had never hit the ground runninglike it should have.

Jaehee is beyond surprised when her boss calls her on herday off sounding like a crazed person, and she nearly cries as he gives her somuch work to go along with the work that he is doing as well. How can he expectto have this project done by today?

After much sweat and tears, maybe even blood from papercuts,Jaehee arrives at the penthouse to deliver the documents personally to Mr. Han,only to find that Jumin is passed out with his head in your lap, papersscattered in neat piles.

The next morning, Jumin looks everything over, feeling wornout beyond belief, and decides to just trash it because the ideas he’d had weremade ‘under the influence’ and that just wasn’t ethical. More tears fromJaehee.

Vanderwood:

Seven tricks him. And by tricks him I mean mixes an energy drink into afruit smoothie that Vanderwood was making. The brunet questions the taste, butdecides it was probably the slightly over ripened kiwi that had done it.

There’s not long before Vanderwood just feels on edge. Hiseyes flicker around the room as his heart-rate seems to increase dramatically.Brown eyes find the redhead watching him, a smirk on Seven’s face which quicklyturns to fear.

Of course, that on edge feeling must be that the redhead wasplanning some sort of horrible joke. Seven’s smile was just fading because hewas being caught in the act. “What are you planning?” Vanderwood seems to feelmuch faster than usual as he actually manages to catch the much smaller andusually quicker male.

He drags Seven around with him from room to room asking ifthe thing the redhead was pranking him with was there, watching him to see ifthere was any reaction.

When they eventually make it to the kitchen, Vanderwood isstarting to feel so exhausted, letting go of the redhead. It’s the last room,so whatever the prank was, it had to be here.

“So?” He watches as Seven’s eyes flicker to the now cleanblender and then away. The smoothie? “What did you put in my-“ And suddenly thecrash is just horrible. Vanderwood nearly falls over as he grips at thecounter. Now Seven feels pretty damn horrible, grabbing the larger man andhelping him to the couch where he just lets the guy sleep.

Normally, Vanderwood slept really lightly, but he was outlike a light. Should Seven add insult to injury and maybe draw on the guy alittle bit? …Why can’t he seem to resist writing ‘I’m a jerk.’ on Vanderwood’sforhead?

Once Vanderwood wakes up, feeling sick, and goes to thebathroom, suddenly he doesn’t feel so sick anymore, and it’s back to chasingthe redhead again. Why does Seven do this to himself?

AsksMasterList. Send me an ask! Patronsget first dibs, but everyone else is first come first serve. NSFW andSFW accepted. Check out my fanfictions.

#mystic messenger #mystic messenger headcanon #askffc #luciel choi #yoosung kim #zen hyun ryu #saeran choi #jaehee kang #jumin han #v jihyun kim #vanderwood

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maverickprime · 5 years ago

Text

Gun Viper #10

Silver Steel

VVVVVVVVMMMMMMM!!!

Here... she didn't feel so out of place here. Of aaaaalllll the places of Avalon, this area felt so very... very... familiar to her. Where was she? Why, she was on a metro train, riding through the various tunnels of Avalon. A certain sense of nostalgia washed over her, memories of the past flooding her mind. She remembered sitting on these very seats, clutching the hand of her darling close. When they were dating, they'd ride these trains all around the outer rim of Avalon to make it to their date spots. When they were married, they'd ride it to go grocery shopping.

Time... times truly have changed, haven't they?

Ding!

“Outer Districts. Amuka Street Station,” said the intercom system above, making the Kremian woman pull her head up.

“Okay... time to go,” Cassava said to herself as she stood up from her seat.

The train she was in was dingy and old, rumbling and rattling. It was far different from the trains in the upper areas, she now knew. The trains of upper Avalon were silver and sleek and damn near silent, not to mention so fast it was like they moved at the speed of light. Yet another difference Cassava now knew between her old life and her present one.

Getting off the train into Amuka Station was like stepping into the past. The platform was filled with Kremians much like her, with very few humans dispersed among them. A complete 180 from the station in West City she got on, where there were only humans and the only Kremian was her. But by now, Cassava was more than used to such a feeling.

She slowly made her way through the groups of people, her head stuck up high as she even hummed too herself. She was on a quest, a mission to find the people who were trying to kill her. But she knew better than that. She knew they could be anywhere among the crowds of people, just waiting to strike.

And that's what she wanted above all else. If they could find her in West City, they'd be able to find her in Amuka. But now, she had no need to hold back like she did in her battle against Beretta. Now among the arguably lawless area of the outer rim, Cassava could let loose.

Hell hath no fury like a Kremian woman unchained.

Walking down from the raised platform that was the metro station, Cassava's eyes gazed along the streets she now stood within. They were wide and spacious, with very little vehicles roaming on the streets. The sidewalks were filled with Kremians, those who were walking left and right and bumping against one another.

Unlike the upper areas of Avalon, the outer rim was known for its complex density of buildings that made navigating through the districts a relative nightmare. Gazing upon the buildings for the first time in a long time herself, even Cassava found herself struggling to remember where everything was. It wasn't all alien too her however; she and Ethan lived near Amuka station years ago. Somethings were different here and there – such as some unfinished buildings which were now apartments in their own right – but the majority of her old home was recognizable.

“Alright, ass face,” Cassava bemoaned, her green eyes gazing skyward, “I know you're there. Come out here and fight me already. I'm waiting for you...”

Turning around, Cassava gazed among the crowds of people around her. Was anyone here to kill her? For all she knew, everyone could be here to kill her. But Cassava wasn't afraid. No, no, she shook her head and turned away, eyes falling forward. As one would suspect of a predominantly Kremian area, a bar was just across the future. While she wasn't much a morning drinker, it would help calm her nerves.

Wait... was it wrong to drink so early when she was expecting a battle? Oh well...

…

Ding! Ding!

“Order #37?” called the barista at the counter, “A mocha coffee?”

“I'm here. I'm here.”

What time was it? About 10:17 Native Aurous Time? The morning mist was still thick in the air, so too the gray hue any city would find itself beneath so early in the morning. The sun had not yet fully risen yet, causing the city to be illuminated in the shadows of its ever so tall buildings.

One such building was Star Bowl Burgers, a fast food restaurant that specialized in – you guessed it – burgers. But one thing they sold that they should have been famous for – at least in a certain scientist's eyes – was their coffee. Delicious yet inexpensive; the perfect blend.

“Thanks,” said Ethan as he walked towards the counter, the barista smiling as he approached her.

Without his morning coffee, he'd be slow and sluggish for his workday, which wouldn't be good for his psyche or his job for that matter. His cup of coffee laid on the counter, steam raising from its paper top. Giving the barista a kind smile, Ethan caused her to giggle as he took his cup of coffee. Turning away he faced the wide windows of the burger shop, gazing out towards the silent morning streets of West City.

Casually he took a sip of his coffee, enjoying its burning hot taste. He'd need to be at work in the next twenty or so minutes, but he was in no rush. He'd performed this act a hundred times, perhaps even a thousand times; he knew the timing down to a perfect art. Now, one may ask why didn't he just get a cup of coffee from the Institute's personal cafe? And the answer is simple.

The coffee there sucks. Or, well, maybe he just had an addiction to fast food coffee. There's that too.

But all things must come to an end as he slowly left the diner. Stepping out into the city streets of Avalon, Ethan shifted his attentions towards finding his hovercar. His overcoat swung in the morning wind as he began walking off, making way for a the nearby parking lot where. All the while his mind drifted towards thoughts of Cassava and his mother.

He wanted to do something nice for his wife, doubly so since he had a few days off coming soon. Perhaps he could take Cassava too a nice restaurant, or maybe even to watch a sporting game. Ah, who's he kidding? She'd most likely want to go down to the outer rim and participate in some fight clubs.

“Haa... Cassava, Cassava, Cassava,” Ethan muttered to himself gleefully as he walked through the parking lot towards his car, only to stop as he took in another sip of his coffee, “How long are you going to follow me around? You know, you stick out like a sore thumb...”

Raising his empty hand, the scientist pushed his glasses up on his face as he became serious and stern. Whatever lighthearted feeling he had towards this morning had rapidly left him, as the tension in the air grew thick. Taking yet another sip of his coffee, he turned to face the individual he spoke too.

His eyes fell on a Kremian man, one who was tall and burly as one would suspect. He wore a black leather long coat, and had a duffle bag hanging over his shoulder. His eyes were blue, but really, none of that mattered. For you see, his hair was as white as snow and his tail was jet black.

It was the Albino Kremian. He hadn't been seen since he attacked Anne and Cassava. For the most part, he had vanished from memory, especially with everyone worried about the attack to the Institute. Now here he was, standing before Ethan in a silent morning parking lot. If the scientist was scared, he did not show it. No, he glared at the Kremian who glared back, the tension in the air continuing to rise as if a bomb was ticking nearby.

“Where is the Shiroi?” asked the Kremian, making Ethan shrug his shoulders.

“Even if I knew what that was, I probably wouldn't tell you,” he replied in a candid manner as he shook his head, “You attacked my wife and got her arrested. I'm not going to tell you anything.”

“I don't even know what a 'wife' is,” the Albino Kremian claimed as he approached Ethan, who took a step back in response, “I want to know where the Shiroi is! You humans took it from me!”

“Once again, I have no clue what that is,” Ethan said as he continued walking back for his car.

“I know you don't,” said the Albino Kremian, his nostrils flaring, “But I can still smell it on you. Not as much as I smell it on her, but I certainly smell it on you.”

“On... her?” Ethan repeated, stunned by his words, “Who's... her?”

But the Albino Kremin would not say. His expression grew serious and stern as he began to walk towards Ethan in earnest. The scientist meanwhile was too busy thinking about who it was the Albino Kremian was talking about. Who was this 'her'? He did not know of course, but his mind couldn't help but to wonder if the mysterious attacker at the party was the woman in question here. At the very least, that narrowed down the gender, but didn't exactly answer any more questions.

But Ethan didn't have much time to think about it further as the Albino Kremian continued walking towards him. His attentions immediately snapped back up toward him, though there wasn't much he could do. His hovercar was right behind him, blocking his path.

“I have been here for weeks,” the Albino Kremian grumbled, “I have felt the Shiroi for miles around, have smelled it on various people – even you! And yet I'm no closer to finding it now than I was when I first arrived! You stole it from me, and I will not be denied any further!”

“What is the Shiroi!?” Ethan replied, still confused by his words.

“You humans call it the Quartz.”

“The... Quartz?”

“Tch... doesn't matter,” the Albino Kremian remarked, “She promised me she'd bring me too it. So long as I got rid of you...”

“Got rid of me, hm?” Ethan murmured, remaining incredibly calm despite the fact that he was just being threatened, “Care to tell me who this person is?”

But the Albino Kremian did not answer. He glared at Ethan, who tensed up beneath his frigid blue eyes. The Albino may have weighed upwards of one hundred pounds more than he did, but Ethan wasn't scared. His wife was Cassava; he knew well how to deal with a Kremian who weighed more than he did. But his wife never glared at him with such murderous intent. He gritted his teeth.

The Albino Kremian raised his hand as if to strike him... only to pull back. Silently and dauntingly, he began to walk backwards, his blue eyes remaining locked on a confused and apprehensive Ethan. The scientist held his cup of coffee close to him, not budging an inch until the Albino Kremian turned around fully.

Just as mysteriously as he appeared, the Kremian vanished as he slipped into a nearby alleyway. When Ethan could no longer see him, he let out a deep breath he didn't know he had been holding. He was also so incredibly confused; why hadn't the Albino Kremian killed him?

Slowly turning around, his eyes fell on the somewhat busy sidewalk. There were people there, having seen the Albino Kremian though they did not hear their conversation. They could tell it was tense however, though no one said a word.

Yeah... it would be pretty hard to kill him in the public. Kremian or not, no one would risk a public murder like this. The Albino Kremian had to slip away, less his quest for the Shiroi be cut so short.

The Shiroi. The Shiroi...

The Quartz...

“I gotta get to the Institute,” Ethan muttered to himself as he quickly got into his hovercar.

…

Amuka didn't change a bit, did it? Just about every place she remembered was still there. All the shops, all the stores, the bars too. There was the school over there, the sports court here, even that tobacco store that always used to gag her whenever she walked pass it. It's funny how much she found herself comparing it to her new home. How dirty and dingy everything was, and how all the Kremians wore such scandalous and revealing clothing. It's funny how different West City was to Amuka despite being in the same metropolis. It was like two different worlds.

“Nomph! Mmmph... mmph... nomph! Mmph... mmph...”

Cassava's teeth gnashed into the burger as she leaned back on this rooftop's edge, a gleeful smile on her lips as her green eyes watched the passing people below. Kremian's sure knew how to make burgers, but she could not deny the fact that she was missing a Star Bowl Burger right about now. Perhaps when she was done with business down here, she'd treat herself and Isabelle to a Star Bowl Burger. Or maybe her mother-in-law was sick and tired of them. Oh well.

Cassava took yet another bite out of her sandwich, tearing into it. Just a few more bites left, and there was nothing left. Crushing the wrappings up, she haphazardly tossed it away, before wiping her arm against her dirty mouth. Slowly she stood up, her neck cracking left and right before she gave a rather tired sigh.

“How long are you going to stand there looking at my ass? It's kinda creepy...” Cassava muttered as she scratched the back of her head in an annoyed manner.

Slowly she turned around to face the man who stood on the rooftop with her. Before the area was empty, but now there was a person standing there. There was a Kremian man, hair that was slick back and jet-black with cool brown eyes. He was wearing a juniper trench coat, and was holding a metal briefcase of some sort. He was a somewhat burly fellow, not as big as let's say Siris, but not that much tinier as well. He also appeared to be younger than she was, but that made him no less dangerous.

He was glaring back at Cassava, his hand resting on his hip as he remained calm and stoic. Sighing herself, the Kremian woman turned to face him fully a she stretched her arms back, popping a few bones into place.

“You know, you guys are awful assassins,” Cassava said as she stood up tall to face him, her arms crossed, “Aren't you supposed to be silent yet deadly? You know, striking from afar and all that crap?” he shook her head, “Coming to fight me like this must be pretty dumb.”

Did you give that same spiel to Beretta when you fought her?” the Kremian in the juniper coat asked, eyebrow raised.

“Well... kinda sorta,” Cassava answered as she pointed at him with her arms still crossed, “But I guess I really shouldn't be too surprised...” she grinned as she laid a hand on her presumptuous chest, “If I was hired to kill someone as dangerous me, I too would be rushing head first to fight them. But on the other hand, I don't announce myself as an assassin, now do I?”

“Eh... I don't really like the term 'assassin',” the Kremian answered, his head shaking, “Assassin... sounds too clean. I get the thought of some human who sits in the distance with a sniper rifle, waiting to take his shot...” his shook his head, “But we're not humans. We shouldn't play by their rules, should we?”

“Says the guy being paid by a human, no doubt,” Cassava said, “What self-respecting Kremian would ever pay someone else to kill their own targets? As far as I see things, you're an assassin first and a Kremian second.”

“Then riddle me this... if you knew I've been coming for you, why'd you purposefully show yourself? You haven't made any attempts to hide. It's... odd...”

“Didn't you hear what I just said?” Cassava asked, “What self-respected Kremian would hide themselves, even with assassin's coming for them?” she shook her head, “As soon as that little girl – Beretta or whatever – came after me, I knew it was only a matter of time until someone else came after me. I came here so I could finally let loose.”

“Beretta told us,” said the Kremian, “She said you refused to fire because you were in the human's territory. So strange; you're like a defanged Kremian but... not really...” he shook his head, “You're even... married... to a human no less.”

“You leave Ethan out of this,” Cassava said as she suddenly pointed at him, making her assailant shake his head.

“Don't worry; we were only sent to kill you. Not the human...” he replied, “Besides, how much joy would I get outta killing a human? Not much...” he shook his head as his gaze tightened on Cassava, “No... I'm more interested in you. The Gun Viper.”

“So you've heard of me,” Cassava replied, her stance stiffening as she suddenly felt uncomfortable around this man, “Hm... seems my reputation precedes me. So you should know this isn't a fight you can win...”

“It's not about winning,” the Kremian replied as he shook his head, the grip on his metal briefcase tightened, “It's about the thrill of the battle. You know what I'm talking about, right? The rush you get when you battle a particularly powerful opponent? That's what I want. Not victory. Just... fun...” he cocked his head, “You want it too, don't you?”

“I want a lot of things,” Cassava replied, “And a good fight is one of them, yes. But that's not what I crave for the most, not anymore. I... I have more important things that matter to me than some silly fight.”

“Hm... is that so?” said the Kremian in the juniper coat, “Well then... perhaps you have been defanged. I was hoping for a good battle.”

“Why don't you come over here and see if I've been 'defanged' or not,” Cassava said as she raised her fists before her, those green eyes glaring at his face, “I assure you, you'll be pleasantly surprised.”

“That's what I'm hoping for...” said the Kremian as he cracked the bones in his neck, “I haven't had a good fight in years. I got far too good at battling the common trash that came in through our club. Things just gets boring after a while when no one can challenge you. But you?” he grinned as he pulled his metal briefcase out in front of him, “You've been in wars. You're a full-blown mercenary. At the very least, you might keep my attention for a little while...”

“Tell me... before I kill you, what's your name?” Cassava asked, eyebrow raised.

“Vintorez,” he replied.

Click!

Pressing a button the metallic briefcase he carried, he caused it to slide apart before Cassava's eyes. She remained still, watching as the case shed it's metal coil to reveal what it truly was. Laying inside was a sniper-rifle, one that was 35 inches in length from the stock to the barrel. But that's not all, for extending from where the gun's clip would be was a wicked and sharp serrated silver blade. It stretched beyond the barrel itself, being 9 inches in length itself.

Cassava eyed Vintorez and his weapon closely, but she was not fearful. Quite the opposite, in fact; she was excited, even if it was begrudgingly so. The last time she fought Beretta, she was forced to hold back for fear of what the police in the upper levels would do. Now that they were here on the outer rim, where laws on firearms was comparatively nonexistent, she was free to let loose.

And let loose she would.

RATATATATATATATATATA!!!

Her bullets tore through the air, ripping towards Vintorez who quickly leaped behind a nearby air conditioning unit. Those powerful bullets of hers easily tore through the metal of the machine, forcing her assailant to scramble. She watched as his juniper coat fluttered through the air, with him quickly leaping over the edge of the building. Ceasing her fire, Cassava stood for a few moments as she awaited Vintorez's counterattack.

But it never came. Her green eyes to slide into a glare, the Kremian woman slowly made her way towards the edge of the building to check up on her enemy. But when she looked over the buildings edge, she saw nothing but it's catwalks and the alleyway far below; no Vintorez in sight. Her glare grew more intense, her tail traightening up.

And then...

Fwooosh!

All she saw was the green of his juniper coat as it surrounded her. Cassava grunted as she was covered in his coat, with it seemingly falling upon her from out of nowhere. With his trap sprung, Vintorez leaped for Cassava with his bladed weapon. It easily tore through his coat as she struggled to escape it where it punctured...

CLANG!

Nothing.

Vintorez's eyes grew wide, as his blade stabbed not flesh or skin, but the metal of Cassava's chaingun. Despite struggling with his coat, she was still capable of blocking and deflecting is attack. Throwing her arms off, she tossed the juniper trench coat from her body, and further pushed Vintorez away. With her vision returned, Cassava green eyes fell on her enemy. Beneath that trench coat, Vintorez wore a bodysuit, one with straps that held ammo for his rifle. Kinda reminded her of her old bodysuits.

“Tell me...” Cassava muttered as she licked her lips, “You've been in a mercenary guild yourself?”

“Even if I have, what does it mean to you?” Vintorez questioned, scoffing at her words, “Now shut up and get back to trying to kill me.”

“Okay... your choice...”

Cassava would not disappoint, as she quickly and suddenly leaped into the air. Performing a leaping kick, her boot slammed into his rifle, pushing Vintorez back. Despite falling on her back, Cassava easily continued her assault, as she pushed against the ground to spring herself forward with yet another savage leaping kick. The impact of the blow knocked Vintorez back further, slamming him against the wall of this building's rooftop entrance.

Moving with her kick, Cassava rolled upon all fours as she glared at her enemy. Just as quickly she transferred all of that forward momentum into another leap, springing towards Vintorez with a savage pounce. He leaped clean out of the way just in time, with Cassava landing safely upon the wall. Glaring at her enemy as he put distance between the two, she quickly leaped once again at him, taking too the air with her chaingun pointed down at him.

RATATATATATA!!!

Her bullets failed to hit its target, instead striking the floor or the machines of the rooftop. Vintorez was a artful dodger despite his larger frame, and was easily able of juking her attacks. When Cassava landed on the ground, she watched as Vintorez turned around to aim at her with his rifle. But just before he could pull the trigger, she leaped at him again.

Her fist flew forward, forcing Vintorez to hold his weapon horizontally with her in order to deflect the punch. Pulling her fist back, Cassava punched at her enemy again, forcing him to juke to the side in order to dodge it. But the Kremian woman was relentless in her assault, as she punched at Vintorez again. He dodged the next punch as well, cutting to the side as Cassava spun around for a savage roundhouse kick.

Her attack flew right over Vintorez's head, finally giving him the chance to retaliate. He would not pass up on this. Time seemed to slow to a stop, as Vintorez's brown eyes cut towards Cassava, and her green eyes did likewise. Gripping his bladed rifle tightly, the assassin quickly struck at Cassava with his blade slashing towards her head. She pulled back, dodging the attack with so little time, it actually cut off a few strands of hair from her fringes.

But what Vintorez did next took Cassava by surprise. Instead of slashing again with his serrated blade, the assassin instead leaped forward with a flying kick. His boot slammed against her chest, knocking her upon her back. As he landed to continue his assault, he took aim at her with his rifle while Cassava rolled from the impact. Quickly returning too all fours, she had just enough time to leap out of the way when he pulled the trigger of his rifle.

THOW!

The bullet struck the ground, while Cassava leaped backwards to land behind the pipes of this rooftop. Vintorez didn't care for her cover.

THOW!

His bullet not only tore through the metal of the pipes she hid behind, it also tore through the sleeve of the bodysuit she was currently wearing. Feeling the fresh wound made Cassava gasp, her eyes wide as she felt him draw flesh blood.

“Dammit!” she grunted too herself, “Ethan's going to notice that!”

THOW!

When he fired again Cassava leaped into the air, landing on the pipes she once hid behind as her green eyes glared at her enemy. He stopped firing, just to glare at her as she gave him such an annoyed pout. Yeah, an annoyed pout. Only Cassava could be annoyed by being shot.

THOW!

He fired again, with Cassava leaping too a nearby air conditioner unit.

THOW!

He fired again, but once more she leaped towards the roof of the building's rooftop entrance.

THOW!

Another shot, and Cassava leaped clear into the sky. She aimed down at him to fire with her chainguns... but no bullet's flew from her barrel. The action actually took Vintorez off guard, as he was ready to dodge the bullets should they come. But since Cassava never fired, he never ran, and because he never ran...

“OOF!?”

She tackled him too the ground.

Cassava's savage pounce hit its target, and the two went rolling upon the rooftop. Though dazed by the tackle, Vintorez still kept his wits about him, and thus tossed the Kremian woman away with a kick too her chest. She rolled with his strike however, flipping in the air where she landed safely upon the ground. Vintorez himself quickly flipped upon his feet, where he locked his brown eyes on the women he was tasked with killing.

The distance between them was too close. If he tried to aim at her with his rifle, she'd be on him in an instant. Likewise for Cassava; if she tried to aim at him with her chainguns, he'd strike before she'd get the chance. The only choice they had was a simple one...

“HAAA!”

“RAAA!”

They bolted for one another, with Cassava's fist cocked back to throw the first punch. She struck for his chest, with him blocking the attack with his rifle. Continuing her onslaught, the Kremian woman threw three kicks, with him blocking each one. Hand opened wide, she quickly grabbed his shoulder, taking him off guard. Holding him in place for as long as she could, Cassava kneed Vintorez in the gut three times, winding him but not breaking him. Quickly he moved his head forward, bashing his skull against the bottom of her chin and forcing her back.

Dazed briefly by the blow, Cassava took a few steps back as her green eyes returned to Vintorez's form. He was rushing for her, his bladed sniper-rifle held up high. Quickly he brought it down...

CLANG!

Only for his blade to meet Cassava's gauntlet. She held him back from slashing at her, teeth gritted as her green eyes glared into his face. Balling her right hand into a tightly woven fist, Cassava performed an uppercut which forced Vintorez to leap back. Now back on the offensive, she rushed for the assassin, only for him to surprise her. He struck first, slashing at her with his bladed weapon and forcing Cassava back. Before she got the chance to counter, he slashed at her again, spinning around with his blade to cut her gut. Once more Cassava leaped back to dodge the slash, but would not stay away for long. Leaping forward, she performed a full front flip, just to bring her foot down on Vintorez in a savage axe kick. He dodged the kick just in the nick of time, but Cassava kept going. Slamming her foot upon the ground, she actually split the tiles of the rooftop beneath them.

Before Vintorez could mount a counterattack, Cassava quickly leaped forward legs first. Those powerful thighs of his wrapped around his head tightly, the space between them being so tight as he was face to face with her crotch. Before he could do anything to get her off, Cassava bent backwards, transferring all of her weight into that direction. She curled back until her hands met the ground, where she used her mighty leg strength to throw Vintorez head-first into the floor of the rooftop.

CEERRAAAACK!!!

Quickly she rolled off of him, weary if her attack had done the job or not. The throw – while a powerful one – just didn't seem good enough to do the trick. Unlike Beretta, Cassava felt a certain sense of dread which emanated from Vintorez.

Her fears were realized as she turned to face him. Despite meeting the ground face-first with enough force to break the tiles, the assassin was not defeated. He got back upon his footing ever so slowly, though blood dripped from his nose. Facing Cassava as he got too his footing, Vintorez dragged his arm against his nose to clean the blood.

Cassava's eyes slid into glares as this battle was renewed once again. Cracking the bones in her neck, she began to hop up and down on her feet in a battle-ready manner. Likewise, Vintorez got ready for the battle, his grip on his bladed rifle growing tight.

This battle was far from over...

…

Gulp! Gulp! Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!

“God! That's damn good water!”

Gulp! Gulp! Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!

The heat he felt? It never went away. He still felt hotter than usual, still burnt up a bit on the inside, but nowhere near the same level it once did. His body – his core temperature – had cooled off considerably where as before he was afraid he'd die from a heatstroke. That being said, he now had a much greater appreciate for a cold cup of water.

Jonathan sighed as he finished his bottle, placing the empty container on his desk. Now that the heat he felt had been settled, he was capable of making his desk look more presentable too his peers. His blueprints were neatly folded, his notes filed away, his computer nice and clean; yes, yes, everything was great! Never again would he allow anyone to see him in such a disheveled appearance!

But for now he'd focus on the task at hand. And right now, he had to detail the newest information he learned when studying the Quartz. Shifting his focus towards his computer, he quickly opened up a new word document in order to mark down such information. So far things were looking rather normal today, all things considered. With the way everyone acted, it was as if the attack on the Institute never happened.

But a certain someone was poised to remind him of everything.

Sehn!

“Jonathan!”

“Holy shit! Ethan!”

The sudden arrival of his bespectacled friend took Jonathan off guard as he leaned back and looked up at him. Ethan's schedule started only a few moments ago, so seeing him wasn't a surprise. What was a surprise was the rather frantic look that laid on his friend's face. It was rather concerning for Jonathan, who cocked his head and raised an eyebrow in a curious manner.

“Ethan, my friend,” he said as he entered the room, the door sliding shut behind him, “Is everything okay?”

“No, it's not,” Ethan replied as he shook his head, “Jonathan, the Albino Kremian assaulted me on the way to work.”

“The what?” Jonathan replied as he stood up at his desk, eyes wide.

The Alino Kremian was a person they hadn't spoken off in weeks now. To hear that he was not only still around, but had assaulted yet another scientist was cause for alarm. The heat Jonathan spent so long trying to douse began to rouse again, as he shook his head in a confused manner.

“Dammit!” he grunted, before looking at Ethan with an eyebrow raised, “Are you okay? Do you need any medical aid?”

“No...” Ethan replied as he shook his head, “He came too me in a parking lot, but left because there were too many people around... haaa...”

“I see...” Jonathan muttered, his arms crossing, “Tell me... did he smell that thing on you that he said he smelled before? That uh... Shiroi?”

“Yes, he did,” Ethan answered as he nodded, “But that's not all...” he closed his eyes as he tried to remember the conversation as best he could, “He said he smelled it on me, but he said he smelled it one someone else. He said he smelled it on someone who... who smelled more like it than I did. He said this person was a she...”

“A... she? A... woman?” Jonathan replied, his heart beginning to race, “Pray tell, my friend... did he say anything else...?”

“Yeah... he... said... he said...” Ethan scratched his head softly, “He said we humans call the Shiroi... the Quartz...”

When Ethan said that, Jonathan's eyes grew wide. He was shocked to silence by his words, shivering even despite the heat he still felt inside of him. For that statement to leave Ethan's lips was like a blow to Jonathan's entire life. The bespectacled scientist even noticed this himself, as his face morphed into a concerned one.

“Jonathan, is everything okay?” he inquired, making him nod.

“Yes, yes, my friend, yes...” he said as he nodded, “Everything is fine. I promise.”

“What is the Shiroi? Or the Quartz? Or whatever the hell it is?” Ethan asked next, making Jonathan sigh.

“I... don't know...” he lied, causing his friend's eyes to slide into a glare.

Jonathan was a lot of things. Intelligent, flamboyant, a lady's man. But one of them was not a liar. He was – quite frankly – awful at it. Trying to lie to Ethan – someone who also had a genius level intellect – was like trying to outsmart a seasoned strategist. Possible, yes, but it wasn't something you can do with ease.

Ethan's eyes slid into a glare, wondering why Jonathan decided to lie too him about this 'Quartz' thing. He even opened his mouth to ask him about it, but stopped himself from doing so. Jonathan was a smart man, and one Ethan trusted greatly. If he felt the need to lie to him to protect sensitive information, then Ethan would not pry. Nevertheless...

“Something's going on, Jonathan,” he said as he approached his desk, making his friend look up at him, “Something bigger than me, I will admit. The Albino Kremian is searching for his Shiroi, or Quartz, or whatever the hell it's called...” he pointed at himself, “And I think whoever tried to kill us in at the party has sent him to come and kill me. Look... Jonathan...” he shook his head, “I don't know what it is the Institute is dealing with, you know that. But if it bothers me – if it bothers my wife – I need to know you can handle it. If you can't handle it...” he pointed at himself, “I will. I'm not going to let anyone bother my family, Jonathan. You understand that, right?”

He looked up at him, his amber eyes gazing into Ethan's blue ones. While his friend did not call him out on his lie directly, Jonathan knew he saw through his facade. But he did not say anything about it, did not bring out directly. He just sighed and nodded, accepting his words.

“I promise too you, my friend,” Jonathan muttered as he gave a nod, “No harm will befall you and your family. I will do everything in my power to find our attacker, and bring them to justice...” he gave him another nod, “You can count on me.”

“I'd better be able too,” Ethan replied as he pulled back, his hand moving up to reset his glasses on his face, “I'd do anything to protect my family. You know that, right?”

“I know, my friend,” he said as he nodded, “I know...”

…

WHAM!

“Gah!?”

That hurt! That really, really hurt! All the Kremian woman could see was the blue of the skies, and all she could taste and smell was her own blood. A solid, clean hit like that did serious damage, and she knew it. He broke her nose with that strike.

Cassava took a few steps back, her head dazed as she could feel the onset of a growing headache. Vintorez struck her with the butt of his rifle, and it showed. Not only did he break her nose, but the imprint of his rifle butt laid on her face. But this wasn't the first time Cassava had been stricken particularly hard in her life. Heh, this wasn't even the first time she's had her nose broken in the midst of a fight either. Despite all the pain she was feeling, she still had the mindset to block his next strike.

CLANG! CLANG!

Vintorez's blade struck Cassava's chainguns, with her rebuffing his attacks as best she could. Her blurred vision began to return to normal, as she reflected each and every one of his attacks. Now that he as on the assault, he struck at her over and over again with his serrated blade, trying to break down her defenses before she could return to top performance.

She kept walking backwards, blocking slash after slash from his powerful weapon. Vertical slash blocked, diagonally slash deflected, horizontal slashed dodged. She leaped back, stopping not because she wanted too, but because she had no choice but too. She met the edge of the rooftop, gasping in surprise as she briefly forgot her surroundings. Nearly being knocked off, she struggled to retain her footing, while Vintorez prepared yet another mighty slash.

“RAAAH!”

He leaped in the air, bringing his blade crashing down on Cassava to eviscerate her. She steeled herself up for the oncoming strike, her legs parted to keep her ground. When the blade fell...

PAT!

She caught it right between her hands, stopping it just inches away from her face. Thank the stars she had the wherewithal to put on her fingerless gloves before coming out to battle, or else this might have been a bad idea with that serrated edge of his.

But now that Cassava had his blade, she wasn't about to let go. Vintorez tried to yank his blade back, but it would not escape her grasp. Growling, he instead began to push forward, deciding to force Cassava over the edge of the building. But that's what she wanted him to do, something he didn't notice until she gained a sudden grin. But before he could do anything about it, Cassava wrapped her leg around his waist and pulled on his blade at the same time. Vintorez's eyes grew wide as he was suddenly yanked off the rooftop, crashing over the edge with Cassava beneath them.

Her escape was a calculated one, but it still hurt like hell. Cassava crashed upon the fire escape of this building, slamming into and rolling down a flight of stairs. She only came too a halt when she hit the guard rail of the fire escape. Vintorez however went careening over the side of the roof towards the adjacent building.

CRAAAASHHH!!!

He slammed through a window as he crashed inside, his body still rolling as glass and metal was sprinkled all around him. With his vision dazed and his body roaring with pain, Vintorez looked around too his surroundings. From what he could tell, he was in an abandoned apartment complex. Years of wear and tear had battered down its walls, and vandals had marred the halls with graffiti.

Wincing with pain, he slowly leaned himself over as he gripped his rifle. Outside the walls of the apartment, he could hear Cassava getting closer. The sound of her flipping from the catwalk on the opposite side of the building too the catwalk of the building he was in was audible even with the distance. Getting too his feet as best he could with all the pain rumbling through him, Vintorez struggled for a nearby wall to hide behind. Around the same time, Cassava appeared in the window seal.

She felt major amounts of pain as well after the fall she herself performed. Was it hasty and stupid? Perhaps, but what else was she going to do? He had her on the metaphorical ropes; if she didn't come up with something, he probably would have cut her. Now the tables had been turned with her on the assault.

At least she wished it was that simple. Vintorez had seemingly vanished, but she knew he was still around. The shattered glass had left the tattered remains of his body suit, as well as drops of blood that left a trail towards his general direction. Her bullets were strong enough to pierce through solid steel, surely they'd make quick work of the already weak walls of this building. Did he know that?

Cha-Click!

Time to find out.

RATATATATATATATATATA!!!

Cassava's bullets easily tore through the plaster of the weakened walls, firing in a spray towards Vintorez's general direction. At first she struck nothing, but after getting closer too his position, she forced the Kremian out of his hiding spot. He scurried to escape her bullets, with her redirecting her bullets on him squarely as he ran through the halls of the apartment building. The bullets came close, but he quickly retaliated.

THOW!

The bullet missed Cassava but forced her to duck and cease her firing. She did so only for a moment however. With her teeth gritted, Cassava bolted in Vintorez's direction, chasing him down as her chainguns fired wildly towards him. Her bullets flew overhead, barely missing him, but once again forcing him to retaliate.

THOW!

His shot missed, striking the ceiling right above Cassava's head. At the same time, he leaped for a nearby stairwell, slipping down to the bottom floor. As one would suspect, Cassava chased him down into this room, leaping off the walls and rolling into the framework of an unfinished apartment floor. There was nothing in here, no furniture, no walls to section off the building, just the support beams. And in the center of it all was Vintorez.

THOW!

He fired again, with Cassava deflecting the bullet with the use of her chainguns. She rushed back, firing wildly at Vintorez and forcing him to leap to the side. She was rapidly closing the distance in on him, her spray of bullets forcing him to move until it all came to a halt. Like a blur, Vintorez found himself face to face with Cassava. Her hand was in a fist, throwing a punch at him aimed squarely at his jaw. He rushed forward, blocking the blow with his shoulder as the barrel of his rifle took aim at her belly. He squeezed the trigger of his gun...

THOW!

Only for his bullet to strike the floor. Cassava had kneed his weapon, shifting its aim. Now Vintorez found himself caught, as the barrel of his opponent's chaingun was stuffed squarely in his shoulder. All she'd need to do was pull the trigger and...

Cha-Clink!

But she was out of bullets...

Click! Click!

He was out too.

Quickly Vintorez struck at Cassava as he realized what had happened, forcing her back off of him. When she got back on steady footing, she glared at her enemy only to raise her hands. Back on the Steel Orochi, Cassava always had a ready amount of bullets to restore her ammunition supply. Now that she was at home with Ethan however, such a luxury was lost on her. Her training sessions in their training room as well as the attack on the Institute had already burned through whatever reserves she brought with her from the Steel Orochi.

“Great...” Cassava muttered to herself as she glared down at her hands.

“Out too, huh?” Vintorez questioned, panting softly as he raised his rifle, “I don't think you'll give me the chance to reload, will you?”

“What do you fucking thing...” she growled in response, making him shrug his shoulders.

“Well... haaa... it was worth a shot...”

With their weapons out, the two only had to rely on their close quarters skills to finished this fight. Vintorez and his bladed rifle, Cassava and her chaingun gauntlets. The space between them was small, and they were both so tired after their combined falls. Though pain ran through their veins, the need to finish this fight was far, far stronger. Slowly regaining her battle position, Cassava steeled herself up for the ensuing battle.

Naturally, she started it first.

Cassava quickly leaped forward with a flying kick, one Vintorez dodged with her boot just barely missing his cheek. She landed behind him, and quickly swiveled around to lock her eyes back on her target. Leaping at him again with a flying punch this time, Cassava's fist met the side of his rifle, pushing him back. Vintorez – not pleased with being on the defensive the entire time – quickly countered back by swiping his blade at her. It slipped right above Cassava's head, forcing her down as she suddenly rushed in for a tackle. Her arms wrapped around Vintorez's waist, squeezing him tightly. Her muscles clenched, and she used her strength to pick him up from off the ground. But at the same time he readied his rifle, bashing the butt of it into Cassava's spine.

She gasped, but did not release him, not yet anyway. Gritting her teeth she tossed the assassin into a nearby support beam, before falling back herself with a gasp. Her back was hurting after that strike, but it was sure a hell of a lot better than being stabbed.

Vintorez quickly readied himself, his hands gripping his rifle quickly. Rushing towards Cassava, he swiped at her with his blade, the vertical slash careening past her face. He followed that up with a horizontal slash, forcing Cassava to duck it. Not finished quite yet, Vintorez leaped into the air with both hands grasping his rifle tightly. He slammed it down in a savage slash upon Cassava's chainguns, as she just had enough time to block his blow. But Vintorez did not linger long, as he savagely brought his blade back, slashing it against her weapons. Spinning around, Vintorez delivered a thrusting kick into Cassava's chest which threw her away.

She fell on her back, but just as quickly rolled back upon her feet to continue the fight. As soon as she got onto her footing, Vintorez was on her like lighting, slashing his blade at her over and over again. She blocked slash after slash, before countering with an attack of her own. Her arm slammed against his rifle, while she performed a karate chop that slammed upon his neck. The blow winded Vintorez, but Cassava was not finished yet.

WHAM! WHAM!

She performed two hooking punches too his gut, each one picking him up from the floor a few inches. She finished her series of attacks with a kick, one that knocked Vintorez on his back this time. When he looked up, his eyes fell on Cassava as she fell through the air feet first for a monstrous press. He had just enough time to roll out of the way, when his enemy crushed the ground beneath her boots.

Quickly Vintorez got too his feet, his eyes glaring at his enemy. Cassava was far too fast, far too quick for him to consistently hit. No matter how many times he struck at her, she'd dodge or block the blow and retaliate. If he was going to win this fight, he'd need to even things up a bit.

So – much to Cassava's surprise – he dropped his rifle. She didn't say anything however, as her green eyes slid into a glare. Vintorez rose his hands, taking a more boxer-oriented pose as he leered at his enemy. Softly Cassava nodded, her hands too forming into fists. She hopped up and down in place, her battle stance growing stronger as well.

This battle was reaching it climax, and they both knew it.

Vintorez struck first, performing a flying kick of his own that Cassava blocked. It knocked her back but she remained on steady footing, while he landed on his feet. He struck at her again with a kick, one she blocked. He struck at her again with another kick, one she – once again – blocked. Vintorez had skilled movement, Cassava would give him that. If she were any lesser opponent, she would have been dead by now. But Cassava was anything but 'lesser'.

She countered with a punch her own, one Vintorez blocked though the force of it pushed him back. Next she followed up with a kick, one he also blocked. Leaping into the air, he prepared himself to block whatever leaping strike she would manage, but Cassava did not punch or kick or do anything. Instead, he quickly fell back too the ground, where she performed a sweeping kick that knocked Vintorez off his feet. He crashed into the ground, growling as he struggled to get back on proper footing. She tried to pull off a crushing axe kick, but he rolled out the way and quickly got onto his feet.

They rushed one another, Cassava throwing a punch that Vintorez easily dodged. He retaliated with his own punch, one aimed at her head that she dodged. She countered with a kick, one he blocked too counter with his own kick. She blocked that kick too, pushing him back. Then – in unison – they both kicked one another, trading equal blows that slammed into each other's guts.

Being knocked back, the two fighters took the time to catch their breaths. Cassava's lungs were on fire; this was easily a more heated battle than the one she had with Beretta. But on the other hand, it was also so very thrilling! She'd be lying if she said she wasn't having the time of her life.

When she got home, she was going to fuck Ethan so hard!

Vintorez took a few moments to catch his breath. Many years had gone by since he last had a battle that tested him so thoroughly like this one. The many years of watching people beat the hell out of each other had desensitized him to the thought of battle. Everyone was so awful in comparison to him, that he felt liked he'd never get a good challenge.

But Cassava? Cassava was more than just a good challenge. She easily ranked up there with the toughest opponents he's ever had. She was fast, powerful, accurate, and oh so deadly. He was lucky the few mistakes he had made were minimum, or else he would have been dead ten times over by now. Now he understood why Beretta failed to defeat her; Vintorez himself even had doubt if he could pull it off.

And, oh boy, did that feeling excite him so much. He grinned, gaining a cocky swagger to him that seemed out of place on his once stoic visage. He started to hop up and down from foot to foot, grinning as he approached Cassava in a slow manner. His gleeful attitude was infectious, as even Cassava herself started to smile and grin. How could she not? How could she not...

They approached one another, slowly, tauntingly, glaring at each other, brown eyes on green. And then it all came too a halt when they were only a few inches away. Their bodies grew as still as statues, and even their expressions faded into hard ones.

Cassava moved first, throwing a flurry of punches in Vintorez's direction. Each punch he blocked effortlessly, something he couldn't do if he was still lugging around his rifle. Between the punches he was capable of retaliated, punching Cassava into her chest. But if he thought that punch would have been enough to force her back, he was sorely mistaken. She powered through the punch, quickly countering with a spinning backhanded fist.

A backhanded fist that had her chainguns equipped too it, of course.

Spit and blood flew from Vintorez's face and nose as Cassava's fist struck his face in a clean hit. He was knocked back by the blow, his vision dazed as all he could smell and taste was his own blood. Seems the blow broke his nose much like he did to Cassava earlier; a nose for a nose.

But the Kremian woman wasn't finished. She struck Vintorez with a powerful and quick kick, one that pushed him away though he remained standing. His hand palmed at the area where he was stricken at, wincing with pain as his blurred vision attempted to reset on the woman he was tasked with killing.

Cassava took a step back, sizing up her foe as he struggled to raise his hands. She would not give him the chance to move. Quickly Cassava leaped forward, cartwheeling onto her hands. Using her hands to push against the ground, she launch herself forward feet first in Vintorez's direction. His vision may have been blurred, but he could see her boots coming right towards him.

THWAK!

The blow struck his chest with enough force to send him flying back in the air. But that's not all. Vintorez didn't notice it during their battle, but he was actually standing in front of a window during all the madness. A window he was currently flying towards without any way of stopping.

KRAAAASHH!!!

For the second time that day, Vintorez found himself crashing through a window. But unlike before where he had the floor of an apartment building to break his fall, now all he had was the stone concrete of the alleyway far, far bellow. Time seemed to slow too a near stop as he gazed up towards the window he fell from, as well as the skies overhead.

“Damn...”

WHAM!!!

Cassava's hand fell on the shattered frame of the window, her green eyes gazing out towards the alleyway below. Laying in the center of it was Vintorez's body after suffering a savage three story drop. If he was a human, he'd be dead. As a Kremian however, Cassava was convinced he was probably just knocked unconscious. Her green eyes tightened on his body, her hand dropping down towards her waist. The battle was over...

The battle was over...

“Gaaaaaahahhhhaaaa! Shit! Fuck! Shit!”

She winced in pain, doubling over as she cradled her stomach and leaned forward. Sweat brimmed from her pores as all the pain she felt during that battle seemed to hit her all at once. She could barely stand after it all, and it forced her to sit down on the ground.

This was supposed to be simple, at least she thought it would be. Considering how easily she dealt with Beretta, she thought her assassins wouldn't be anything tough. But Vintorez quickly proved otherwise. If she had made even a few slight mistakes, she'd be dead of that Cassava was sure. The victory she thought would be flawless had left her with a gunshot wound on her shoulder, a broken nose, and various other injuries she suffered during the fight. There was no way Ethan wouldn't see that coming.

And yet... perhaps... perhaps Isabelle was right. Ah... but no time thinking about it now. She needed to get back home and quick. Rest and rejuvenate.

Rest and rejuvenate.

Finally getting back upon her feet, Cassava started walking for the exit of this abandoned apartment building. Along the way laid Vintorez's rifle, which she picked up. Hey, it wasn't like he had much use for it. Besides, the last thing she wanted was for him to come after her again with his weapon at the ready.

But as she walked away to exit the floor and the building as a whole, Cassava felt the need to turn around and gaze at it all. A certain sense of nostalgia drifted through her, reminding her of days past with Ethan. It brought a smile too her face but...

It was time to go home...

…

She didn't do much that day. After all, how could she do anything? Her son was at work, and her daughter-in-law was off facing down her own attempted killers. With that in mind, how could she bring herself to do anything? She kept telling herself 'Cassava will be fine, there's nothing to worry about', and while she did believe those words too a certain extent, she still couldn't help but to worry. With the knowledge that her daughter-in-law was out there, fighting for her life without her being able to do anything about it, the woman found herself sitting on that couch all day long. She left only get make herself some tea, but other than that... nothing...

Isabelle sighed a bit in a sad and longing manner, praying only for Cassava's protection. That hot cup of tea in her hand, he raised it too her lips to take a sip. It helped calm her nerve yes, but only for a few fleeting moments.

“Haaa... Cassava...” Isabelle murmured too herself, feeling utterly defeated and useless in this situation, “You'll make the right decision, Cassava. I know you will... I know you will...” Sehnn! “What?”

Isabelle stood up as the sound of the door opening up echoed out. Too her surprise, her joy, and even her horror, her eyes fell on Cassava. The Kremian woman looked rather battered, weak and sore as she leaned against the entryway of her home. While Isabelle was first overjoyed to see Cassava alive, that joy quickly turned to anxiety as she saw how battered she was.

“C-Cassava!” Isabelle practically screamed as she rushed too her daughter-in-law's side, not caring that he spilled her cup of tea on the rug, “What? What? Oh God! Are you okay!?”

“I'm fine, mom, I'm fine,” the Kremian woman replied as Isabelle gently helped her into the condo, “Nothing a shower can't fix...”

“A shower!? You need first aid, Cassava!” Isabelle replied as she helped the Kremian woman towards her couch, sitting her into it, “Oh God, Ethan has to have a first aid kit around here somewhere!”

“Nnngh...! It's in the kitchen...” Cassava replied, deciding not to fight Isabelle on this.

“Okay, I'll get it. You... you stay right here!”

Isabelle quickly ran off too collect the first aid kit, while Cassava laced Vintorez's rifle on the couch she sat on. Her tail moved in, gently wrapping around her waist as she crossed her arms beneath her bosom.

Eyes closing shut, she tried to think up a lie she could tell Ethan that would placate any fears he may have, but she was coming up blank. And really, she started to wonder why she should bother with lying. Her husband was smart, far smarter than she was, even though she wouldn't admit it to him in his face. Whenever she lied to him, he often saw right through it in an instant. It didn't hurt that she rarely had a reason to lie, and thus was naturally bad at it. If only she hadn't gotten so badly injured in her battle, then she could have skipped this altogether.

She stood up from her couch, gripping the rifle as she did so as she prepared to stow it away. But before she could take even one step...

Sehnn!

The door to her home opened up.

Cassava looked over, her eyes wide as they fell on Ethan. He looked so calm and casual as if today were any other day. He had his overcoat folded over one arm and his suitcase resting in his other hand. He entered his home with his eyes barely looking up, as he was primarily focused on getting comfortable. He almost didn't notice Cassava's disheveled appearance.

Almost...

“Good evening, Cassava,” he muttered casually as he walked pass her, his attention locked on the staircase in the distance.

“E-Ethan?” she replied, stunned by his appearance.

He just got too the staircase of their home, where it struck him that something was off about his wife. Placing his suitcase on the ground, he turned to face Cassava, his eyes wide as he noticed her injuries. He wasn't terribly concerned, in fact, he gained a slight grin too his lips as he shook his head.

“Ah... don't tell me Cassava,” he said as he crossed his arms and chuckled, “Did you take my mom down to the outer rim so she could watch you fight? I thought you were done with those fights.”

Cassava looked left and right, wondering what Ethan was talking about, until it occurred to her that he thought her injuries were caused by some random Kremian brawl. A part of Cassava was actually insulted. Did her husband truly think she was such a terrible fighter than she'd get injuries this bad in a random barroom brawl? On the other hand, Ethan had inadvertently given her an out which did not require her tell him about the assassins.

“W-well,” she said as she grinned in a sheepish manner, “I-I couldn't help myself. I haven't had a fight in a while soo... y-yeah...”

“Haaa... Cassava, Cassava,” Ethan said as he shook his head, “Tell you what; let me put up my things, and you can tell me all about your fight while I clean you up with the first aid kit...” he smiled at her in such a warm manner, “I know how much you love telling me about your fights.”

Cassava smiled and nodded, but said nothing as she watched Ethan walk up the stairs to remove some of his heavier clothes. As he did so, the Kremian woman took in a deep breath to relax herself. But as she did so, she felt the presence of eyes on her. She turned, her eyes falling on Isabelle as she stood in the kitchen doorway with the first aid kit. She was smiling, though Cassava could sense disappointment permeate through said smile. She knew why, but Isabelle did not speak about it. She merely brought the first aid kit and laid it on the table, while that smile of hers continued to glow.

“I... actually find it cute that Ethan and you talk while he tends to your wounds. It's... romantic, even if it is a tad bit morbid,” Isabelle commented, “But Cassava... I hope you find it in your heart to tell Ethan the truth...” she stepped back, “He's your husband, remember that. You two have to work together...”

Cassava said nothing, instead looking up at Isabelle as her words drifted into her head. Isabelle's words were not lost on the Kremian woman, but Cassava felt the need to hide this information from Ethan. She wasn't doing it for any malicious reason, quite the opposite. She didn't want her husband worrying for her; that's the last thing she wanted him to do. Even back when she was still on the Steel Orochi, she'd often berate Ethan for saying he 'worried about her'. It was disrespectful in her eyes; she was far too great a warrior to be injured in battle. He shouldn't be worried about her, he should be proud of her.

But Ethan was a human, not a Kremian. His mannerisms were different form hers. Besides, his tendency to worry about her showed how much he cared. And, boy, did Ethan care. He cared more than anyone did in the world.

This feeling was so flummoxing. Cassava suddenly felt so bad for not telling Ethan the truth, despite the fact that she was so assured of her choice before. The injuries she suffered and Isabelle's words seem to make her realize that maybe she was in over her head. Maybe she did need help. But she couldn't get help from Cici or Siris or Winchester. She could only get help from...

“Alright, Cassava,” Ethan said as he returned from their bedroom in only his undershirt and slacks, that smile still on his lips, “Let's get you--”

“Ethan!” Cassava cut him off, making him stare at her from the top of the second floor balcony, “Ethan, darling... we need to talk...”

xXx

Another day, another episode... though I missed Monday. Oops...

So, yeah, I missed Monday, that's my bad. I could've finished it by Sunday, but I kept getting sidetracked like a moron. That's totally my bad. Sometimes I really need to keep myself focused, even if it something I wanna do, like writing. But, hey, better late than never, and at least it's only been a day and not, like, a week.

So what can I say about this episode? Well, it's a big fight scene, as you can obviously tell. I think I've said this before but I feel like I should repeat myself; I absolutely love fight scenes. Writing a good fight scene makes me so ecstatic; I feel like I'm most at home in those scenes. I often imagine them playing out in my head, and sometimes I get up and act them out myself.

Usually with less thrilling results...

But this fight was a blast to write out. Vintorez clearly challenged Cassava more than Beretta did, and I think I showed that well enough with how back and forth their battle was. I think my favorite point of the battle is when they fall over the roof, and Vintorez crashes through a window! I just imagine how cool that scene looks in my head!

Other than that though, not much happened in this chapter, did it? Or did? Some important stuff did happen, it's just not at the forefront. Like Ethan being confronted by the Albino Kremian, and he himself confronting Jonathan. Spicy things are bound to happen in the coming chapters, as this story won't be lasting much longer.

I can't believe it's episode 10 already.

Next episode, Ethan and Cassava's marriage gets strengthened. You'll see what I mean when it happens. Meanwhile, Jonathan prepares a investigation of his own. Till then, stay cool my friends.

Maverick out!

#Gun Viper #MaverickKayPrime #writeblr #Action/Adventure #action #adventure #romance #how did I not write the damn title until now?#god i'm an idiot!#story #writing #is anyone reading this #probably not #oh well

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