#she's glad he's out of the picture considering he betrayed them

[planetformer-central]

In your baby prime au, do the sparklings remember their past lives? How did they react to learning about Sentinel’s death?

Most of them reacted with a degree of shock. After all, Sentinel was their friend and comrade once. His betrayal was a total surprise, and while they are certainly still upset over the whole thing... death is still an end. At least for everyone who isn't them.

Nexus took it quite personally since he was, at least in his own mind, one of Sentinel's dearer friends.

[timotheechalametsrealgf]

BNHA BOYS REACTING TO YOU PUTING THEM ON YOUR HEAR ME OUT CAKE

feat: K. Bakugou , S. Todoroki , I. Midoriya, N.Monoma , S. Hitoshi

author note!: I haven’t seen this idea being done before so here is my take!

KATSUKI BAKUGOU

Katsuki spends at least 30 minutes on tiktok before going to sleep, so he definitely knows what a “hear me out cake” is.

Initially he laughed when he saw you holding a mini version of a Monoma on a stick “Of course only they would find him attractive” he rolled his eyes as you were explaining your thoughts to a disgusted Mina.

After the pinknets turn, you placed another figure down on the cake. This time it was one of UA top students, Katsuki Bakugou!

At that moment he felt betrayed, bamboozled and might i say offended.

“Why would i be here, i am conveniently attractive!” he shouted at himself. Did you really just assume that him being good looking is a quirky and unique idea!

He immediately called you. The minute you answered, he didn’t even give you time to question the sudden phone call, as he demanded you to take down the video. He then proceeded to yell at you for the next 20 minutes about how “selfish you were for thinking that only you found him attractive, or how he was not a “hear me out”. He then took another 10 minutes explaining how his good looks were a FACT and trying to prove his point by telling you than he benches twice your weight and so on.

At the end of the night you were forced if not HARASSED to take down the tiktok.

SHOTO TODOROKI

Shoto has no idea what a “hear me out cake” is. I doubt he would even have TikTok, so naturally he only found out about the video through Izuku’s fyp. So while the poor boy was scrolling through the app and watching the TikTok you made with Momo, Shoto was watching as well through his friends shoulder. At first he was much disinterested as he couldn’t quite understand why miniatures of his classmates were being placed on a cake by you and Momo.

His interest only piqued when you presented a mini version of him. “what does that mean?” he asked Midoriya who jumped not expected from his friend to have been watching this whole time. The shorter boy tried to explain the concept of “hear me out” but it was to no vail.

Todoroki just assumed that you thought he was ugly. So for the rest of the day he tried to move on, ignoring the sad feeling that shadowed him. His whole life people would praise him for his looks, but the one person whose opinion actually mattered to him…thought he was ugly?

Fortunately Deku was quick with explaining to you the whole situation and you didn’t waist time to confront Shoto.

His sad feelings had automatically vanished when you enlightened him that he wasn’t actually considered a “hear me out” since most people were akin to his looks, you just wanted to point out a different perspective of why you thought of him as attractive, not just because of his facial features.

IZUKU MIDORIYA

Deku was mindlessly scrolling through TikTok when he fell upon a video of you and Ochaco doing the viral “hear me out cake”trend.

The boy was watching the video with much interest, him adding on to your explanations as well. For example when you added Tigress from Kung Fu Panda and you were quick to justify that she had an attractive aura,he also pointed out on her assertiveness.

Non the less, it was safe to say that when his name fell out of your mouth as a picture of him appeared on your hand he was a blushing mess.

Sure he was aware that his shy personality could be an ick for some people, but hearing from you that he was really underrated and that you found him very cute made him malfunction.

For the next few days he couldn’t look at you without blushing. He couldn’t even speak to you without messing up a word or two, but he was more than glad to find out that you were inspired by him. That’s why be wanted to be a hero! To motivate others to try their best, even when the odds are against them.

NEITO MONOMA

Ok let’s be real, Monoma definitely enjoys brain rot and he spends a lot of time on the app. He is always up to date with trends and new slang, so he is definitely aware of what a “hear me out cake is”.

Now, Neito also believes that out of all UA students, he definitely is one of the most attractive, if not THE most!

So rest assured that when he saw you pulling out that miniature version of him and heard you say “im suprised i haven’t seen anyone else point out his looks, he is sooo pretty” he quickly fled to the comments.

He was spamming insults like crazy. Mostly attacking your spacial awareness. “labeling me as a hear me out is crazy”, “get a reality check”, “how could you do this” What offended him more was the audacity to put him on the same cake as Bakugou Katsuki.

To him, it was like you had broken an unspoken rule. So he did what any sane person would do. He made his own version of a “hear me out cake” where he pulled out a bunch of pictures of you,only you.

Kendo who thought they were filming a normal tiktok covered her mouth in astonishment not even bothering to present her picks. “My pick is Y/n because im probably the only person who likes them” he began “another unique pick of mine is Y/n, who only I find attractive” “ and here we have someone new, someone fresh: y/n ladys and gentlemen!, who unfortunately only i recognize the beauty of”

HITOSHI SHINSO

Shinso isn’t really chronically online but i’m sure he has passed by the “hear me out cake” trend. So when he saw you pulling him out of your pocket he quickly understood what you were referring to.

Surprisingly, he was glad to see a person thinking of his quirk as interesting and full of potential. He smiled softly when you said “i could only dream of having a quirk as strong as his”.

It also didn’t go unnoticed by him the way you talked about his looks. How you referred to his eye bags as attractive and his purple hair as astonishingly beautiful. He even allowed himself to chuckle when you noted on his liking of cats, even calling him a “cat dad”.

After the video ended with a few more additions in the cake he found himself searching for your socials and pressing that “message” button.

With a bit of hesitation he texted you something along the lines of “So you like my hair huh?” but it only took him a minute to regret his decision, cringing with himself. He tried to delete the message but you were already typing back.

[chubbybunny25]

picture this: nico & percy go on a picnic date by the river styx

mrs o'leary is probably with them (percy insisted on bringing her), there's definitely blue food (also thanks to percy) and they're probably secretly hiding from hades the entire time

percy ends up eating most of the food while simultaneously chatting nico's ear off but nico thinks it's one of the best dates he's had. and it puts how much percy is okay with nico's underworld side into perspective for him considering percy's there voluntarily (much better than will)

~ inhabitinganotheruniverse

(so when I reblog this I look less strange lol)

Oh my gosh!! Yes!—a hundred times yes to this, Pip 🥹 I am having so much brainrot here.

First, how do they open the tunnel to the Underworld again? Does Percy sing? (I know he canonically can't, but I'd like to believe that somewhere in the future, his voice evolves to like that of sirens >.<) Or... does Nico sing? Like you know, maybe something Italian, or Latin, or just Christmas-y ("Silent Night" is the first thing that I can think of) that he remembers from his past. Either way, both of them are mesmerized and whipped.

Then, ofc, which part of their relationship are they having this date? Are they boyfriends? Or husbands (like an anniversary thing)? Or... (crazy i know) Percy just "kidnaps" Nico because Nico is too stressed with Will and Percy knows Nico misses the Underworld, too. They go there as "friends" :3 If it's the latter, their "picnic stuff" comes later when Percy calls Mrs. O'Leary from the shadows and she has a cute bag with Sally's baked goods and something she made for Nico only.

The general dynamic of the date that I can imagine is Percy just being Percy, telling Nico what happened during his first visit in the Underworld, downplaying what he did and how he survived and Nico is just... in love. But also, a bit of angst is when Nico remembers how he betrayed Percy. BUT! BUT!

I remember that after Nico's betrayal in the books, Percy dreamed of Maria di Angelo and how she was kill*d. I have this hc that Percy thinks his swim at the River Styx was bad because of the floating memories that he couldn't quite grasp, but when he thinks really hard about it, Nico living in the modern world without his memories, is like a daily swim in the River Styx. Ugh, I wish I am more coherent for this. Let me just pull up what I wrote before:

Anywaaaaay. This idea of them having a date by the River Styx is a sign of courage and acceptance, a thing that only they could understand. I think at some point, Styx appears and coos at how they're enjoying their date and suddenly says, "You don't have the Curse of Achilles anymore, but I'm glad you ended up with your anchor after all." Percy and Nico are just 👀

Plot twist: Hades knew all along and somewhere in his palace, Persephone is teasing him how he softened for a son of his brother, after all.

Lmao. Pip, this has gotten out of hand. But yeah, yapping about percico is our thing, so ig you get it 😆

[asterdisaster06]

Always and Forever

John "Soap" MacTavish x gn!reader

summary > childhood friends to lovers, with a dash of angst. well, a little more than a dash

word count > 4.9k

cw > lyrics from Sadie Jean as dialogue, Price having to bear witness to the awkward and emotional reunion

a/n >  honestly, this story pains me even writing it. sorry in advance. just be glad i didn’t decide to make it a series about how the reader joined the shadow company and betrayed soap. although, if anyone asks i wouldn’t be opposed to writing something like that. then again, i’m writing a similar plot with konig and a 141 reader so. maybe not

ao3

You had known John “Soap” MacTavish since you were wee little kids that had playdates together due to your mother’s long standing friendship with each other. They had spent their pregnancies together through the beautiful moments of wonder that comes with the first ultrasounds to holding each other’s hair back in the morning as they expelled their guts out of their body - all because the day smelled off. Your mothers had their water break on the exact same day; a wonder pushed by the divine forces as your parents would say. You were born first and then Johnny came a mere minute later. You’ve held that fact over his head for a long time.

You were raised together in matching onesies and moments spent rarely apart. You were as much of Johnny's family as he was yours. Seasons and holidays were celebrated side by side with photo upon photos to prove it - your mother still embarrasses you by bringing them out of their dusty boxes every time you come around. Which, isn’t enough as she states. 

New years parties that ended in cupcake crumbs on each of your faces. Valentine’s day arts and crafts that culminated in your mother’s unending giggling at the glitter that stuck to their children’s hands. Easter egg hunts that you suspect Soap always let you win; although he vehemently denies even considering such a thing. Fond memories of eating home-made hot cross buns with the icing always ending up smeared on the side of your mouth. April fools days spent with you two running around causing mischief around the neighbourhood much to the chagrin of your parents. Halloween costumes always matching to some degree even as you guys got older; and the tradition of Soap always giving you your favourite candy is something you still remember. The light shows viewed on your parents’ shoulders during Guy Fawkes night always bring a smile to your face as you remember the permanent face-splitting grins you two shared those nights. Christmases that had your parents wondering why they decided to have kids whenever the pair of you ran into their room at five in the morning jumping around and screaming about presents. Of course, they could never refuse the excitement that had an effect on even them as gift wrapping was ripped open and pretty bows were discarded in favour of the gift underneath the concealment. 

Every picture of every moment of you two together - which were most of the photos given that you two never seemed to be apart except for bathroom breaks - always had a toothy grin on each of your faces. A few images over the years exhibited the matching gap in your front teeth that you shared with your MacTavish. You vaguely remember Soap celebrating the fact that his very same tooth as yours was wiggly. Although, you also recall that the reason it was loose was due to the fact he got clocked after defending your - in his words - honour from an older school boy. However it ended up missing, it was always a sweet memory that you held close to your heart. 

You remember sneaking away after primary school to get ice cream - Soap always had the weirdest combination of flavours that somehow worked, magic as he called it. Everytime you got the sugary treat, MacTavish had always let you try his with the excuse that you needed to taste how good it ended up being. After the ice cream adventure the pair of you walked over to the nearby playground and stayed there until you were the only ones left; that and your parents began getting tired of waiting there after they ended up finding you. Swings were always the thing you two gravitated towards within the park because it let you guys talk about this and that. You also always had fun attempting to get yourselves in sync enough to hold hands. When spring came around Soap taught you how to make flower crowns while he continuously made rings of dandelions to propose to you with. It was always a promise to marry each other when you grew up - much to the amusement of your respective families. 

Of course, your school life just had to be spent with paper airplanes and study sessions that really were just spent gossiping about people around the school. You two hooligans were actually banned from the library at least twice, something that your mothers like to bring up whenever they can. Despite the library prohibition, studying was something done on the regular at each other’s houses the night before tests. In spite of the giggling fits and existential questions about the meaning of life, good grades were made on a majority of tests and assignments. It was always a point of teasing when one of you got a better grade than the other when “we practised the exact same shite!” 

Secondary school came and went, with so many hijinks occurring that you’ve lost count. Soap’s cousin came to visit once or twice during the holidays and it got him absolutely hooked on the possibility of following in their footsteps. His attempt to lie about his age was seen through, but he was promised first dibs whenever he was old enough to enlist for real. It was a topic spoken about a lot during the late hours of the nights, tossing a tennis ball back and forth between each other and sharing your thoughts out loud. 

If you were being honest, it was simultaneously intriguing and terrifying to you. You certainly weren’t going to stop him from achieving his seemingly heart set career, but at the same time it sent chills down your spine at the thought of losing him to a stray bullet on the field. A wound that he couldn’t heal from. A moment of pause too many that left the life that sparkled so beautifully in his eyes drained from the bright cadet blues. In all honesty, this very thought is likely the reason you decided to enlist as a combat medic. You wanted to be able to be out there in the field alongside soldiers in order to treat them then and there. Soap promised to keep in touch whenever he was deployed, and to his credit, he did for a while. 

The once abundant amount of calls that came from the familiar MacTavish son sizzled out as he got more and more busy and so did you. The once nightly tradition of talking to each other whether over the phone or a simple goodnight text had faded as your adult lives trickled into reality. It was something that pained you, and you thought of the man every day. You would’ve followed him to the ends of the earth if you had the time and heart, but unfortunately life moved on and the planet kept revolving. 

That doesn’t mean that your feelings for him faded in the slightest - in fact, they only grew stronger as you messed around with a few men at bars. You quickly learned that none of them would ever amount to anything compared to the Scot that still was all that you wanted. You climbed the ranks with the thought of Soap in the forefront of your mind, a single call made when you were drunk the last time you had heard from him two years ago. He could be dead for all you knew, but you knew he wasn’t from his family. They claimed that his captain had been giving simple updates. It just seemed like he didn’t want to talk to you - or anyone associated with you. Or maybe he was too busy with his new task force friends - and don’t get it wrong, you were goddamn proud of your old childhood friend achieving all that he wanted and more. It’s just the fact that you wish you were there alongside him. 

You remember that call like it was yesterday, regretting it just as much as you did when it happened. You got stood up by a soldier on base that you had been getting closer to until he asked you to go out to this one bar. Of course, it appears as if he wasn’t going to show up, effectively leaving you to the wolves. You figured it out after two texts and one call to him going unanswered after fifteen minutes of embarrassment. You sent one last call to someone that you didn’t even expect to answer, John MacTavish. It rang once, and then twice, and then his voice answered and sent your heart down to your stomach. 

“What are you doing calling at this hour, Bonnie?”

Bonnie. An affectionate term that he coined sometime around highschool to make you blush. He never meant anything beyond the simple compliment beyond it, but it became tied to you nonetheless that you’d still answer to, to this day. 

“I miss you, and-” You start babbling. 

“Are you drunk, love?” He asks. You can hear shuffling and laughter in the background. There’s the unmistakable voice of a girl asking if he’ll join her on the dance floor, and you swear your heart breaks in two immediately.

“I love you, I always have. No matter where we are, you still have my heart. You were all that I wanted, you still are. You’re the one I can see me growing old with.”

“Hold on, love-”

“No, let me finish. Remember how you said you’d build me a house and plant me roses in the front yard? I want to cash that in. I’ve been looking for love around - and maybe some of them are real good guys - but they’re never gonna be like you though. You set the bar above the moon, MacTavish. I don’t want to be twenty-something and still in my head about seventeen in my bedroom talking. You swore, you said by now we’d paint the walls of our shared apartment,” You start sobbing at this point, your makeup running down your face.

“I know, Bonnie, I know,” He says, his voice a low timbre that sends shivers down your spine.

“Now that you’ve finally got the job you like. I wish I was there with you. By your side. Are you with somebody right now? Should I even care? Is it wrong that I don’t? I still care about you, Johnny. Still have your faded t-shirt that I’ve kept this long from that one festival. I think I’ve always known that I would love you. Now and forever,” You let out, realising that there was a distinct silence on the other end of the line. “Johnny?”

“Bonnie, I can’t do this.”

Your heart freezes; your frantic nerves slowing to a gentle tremor manifesting through your shaking frame. 

“What do you mean? Shit, I’m sorry, I’m drunk and I don’t know what I’m saying. Forget I said anything. I won’t remember this in the morning anyways,” You awkwardly laugh, praying that he’ll go along. You didn’t know what you would do if he didn’t. You couldn’t bear the thought. 

“We can’t forget this happened. I can’t. Shit.” You hear an audible swallow over the phone, and you imagine his hands running through that oh-so soft mohawk of his. The very same one that you cut and styled for him when he was sixteen - much to the chagrin of his family. They learned to agree it suited him after a month or two though.

“I think it’s best if we move on from each other. I need to forget about us, and I think you do too,” Soap snaps, and it would’ve rang warning bells in your head if you weren’t so drunk and distraught.

“Please, please don’t leave me. I can’t do this without you Johnny,” Your knees give out and you collapse, clasping a hand over your mouth to stop the sobs from escaping. The harsh brick street would leave bruises on your knees and the cold puddle from the rain only empathised with the tears running down your cheeks. 

“Forget about me. It’s for the best, I’m sorry. . .” A click, and that was the last you ever heard from him. 

You turn that memory in your head over and over again. Every time coming up with a new theory as to why he would’ve said that - none being good enough to satisfy your depraved curiosity. Or maybe it was desperation. It didn’t really matter to you anyways; considering the fact that all you knew was that Soap wanted nothing to do with you. Wanted nothing more than to forget you even existed and to free himself from you. You’ve tried your best to honour his request even to this day. Even though it pains every single part of you from your bones to your blood cells. 

It’s the exact reason you’ve done your best to avoid anything regarding the infamous 141 Taskforce that you’ve heard so much about. The whispers across the battlefield through bated breaths tell you more than enough of what your old friend had achieved. You were proud of him, despite it all. It didn’t seem right to hold a grudge against someone just because he didn’t like you back - that and there’s always some part of you that remains stuck in the mindset of you as a teenager waving Soap off for his deployment. Letting go of that would mean disregarding all of the memories you two had shared together, and that wasn’t something you would do easily. Or willingly. 

What you could do though is actively avoid any conversations, transfers, or promotions that would be a step towards the one that broke your heart. Even though he promised he would never do that. You couldn’t move on though, not when he was never really too far gone. There were only so many times you could side step working with or towards the task force before your superiors volunteered you to be moved to their compound. Nothing you could reasonably say would sway their viewpoint, and if it could it’s already been used as an excuse in the past. The only thing you could do was take a deep breath and shield yourself as you walked past the gates. A small part of you wished there was something wrong with your ID and they wouldn’t let you in, but of course that wasn’t the case. Everything was up to date and your footfalls resounded down the long hall to Price’s office.

A renowned man that you’ve heard all too much about through both your fellow soldiers and Soap in the past. Always good, always with admiration lacing the words. Unfortunately that wasn’t what you were feeling right now - in spite of the fact that you knew you worked damn hard to be promoted to this position and deserved it. You wish you didn’t.

“I’ve heard a lot about you, Seer. You’ve saved more men than I can count. Your skills are unparalleled and you hold yourself in high regard. Which is why I wonder exactly why you’ve turned down this position three times over,” Price says with his head tilted to the side. 

Seer. The callsign given to you after you had saved your entire team with simple intuition about a mission gone bad - quickly. You had gotten all of your men out and relatively unscathed with only a few singe marks from the explosion. The explosion from the bombs that you insisted had to have been rigged and live just as a trap for your squad. It was furthered by your uncanny ability to be exactly in the right place at the right time to save numerous soldiers that would’ve died without your intervention. Divine intervention as your old captain said, adding a religious spin onto your nickname. 

“I thrive on continuity and felt as if I was doing a lot of good where I was previously stationed, sir,” You reply, knowing it’s complete bullshit.

“That’s complete bullshit.”

He wasn’t wrong, but you were pissed to no end that he could read you that well. The only other person that you believed held that skill was your old crush. John “Soap” MacTavish. The real reason why you were so determined to stay away from this place. 

“Do you want to know something? I’ve looked at your file. Laswell has looked at your file. And we both noticed an interesting little tidbit about your birth place. Scotland. If that wasn’t enough, I’ve been around Soap enough to know a Scottish accent from a specific small town when I hear it - despite your best attempts to mask it. All of that might not be enough, but you had the exact same reaction to my soldier’s name as he did yours. What’s your history?” 

Damn, he was good. What you focused on in his rant the most though was the fact that Soap had physically recoiled as much as you did if you were to believe Prices’ words. And you did. There was no reason to doubt it, no reason for him to lie. 

“Childhood friends. We lost touch over the years,” You stick with, not wanting to blurt out how hurt you’ve continuously been about his abandonment of your relationship. Platonic or not. 

“And? I wouldn’t be asking if I didn’t want you on this team; if I didn’t care about you as a soldier. I also wouldn’t be this concerned if it didn’t seem like it would be an object of vulnerability. A liability one might say. You deserve a position on this team, which is why we’ve been persistent in offering it to you,” Price says before he’s interrupted by a knock at the door. A single knock that seemed to only be one of pure courtesy before it was slammed open.

You’re met with a sight that’s haunted you for almost half a decade. A ghost of a person that’s still alive and kicking. Someone that’s been on your mind ever since he had gotten on that chopper and left you to fend for yourself with empty promises that he’d be back. That he wouldn’t forget you. Promises fueled by letters and flowers and a promise ring that he had gotten you when you were kids. One that you couldn’t bear to wear anymore but couldn’t imagine throwing it away. One that still rings true against the metal of your dog tags sitting so close to your heart. 

“Bonnie?” Ironic as it is, Soap looks equally if not more terrified - like he’s seen a ghost. 

“Sergeant,” You respond curtly, your body acting on a harsh auto-pilot immediately. 

A way of protecting yourself from ever getting your heart broken again. You bite your tongue in a feeble attempt to stop yourself from running into the arms - and screaming all of the little things you’ve kept bundled up - of your best friend. It wasn’t really him that you saw though, because he was always the first to sweep you off your feet and whisper sweet nothings after bittersweet reunions. Whether it was five minutes or five days or five months without seeing each other, he never failed to wrap you up in his arms and protect you from the idea of never seeing him again. Five years seemed to be too much to carry over for him though apparently. 

“Please don’t do that. I know I deserve all of it and more, but please hear me out. Bonnie, please,” His voice cracked alongside your heart at his words. 

You swallow harshly, speaking after a brief moment of silence. “Don’t call me that.”

Your sharp words met their mark, making the broken man in front of you wince like a kicked dog. Baby blue eyes sending a pleading look your way as he collapsed inwards, hunching over like he wanted to seem smaller. Small enough not to scare you off, as if it wasn’t too late. 

“Seer, let me explain.”

“I haven’t seen you in person in five fucking years, MacTavish. I haven’t heard from you in two. I think it’s a little late for that,” You hiss out sharply, a glare set on him. It didn’t seem to matter to you that Price was still there, watching intently. You pushed past Soap, begrudgingly brushing up against him as you did. It would be a lie to say that it didn’t satisfy you to see the look of hurt flash across Soap’s face as you all but shoved him to the side. 

“The night you called me,” Soap started.

That stopped you in your tracks, your nerves itching to run and never look back in anticipation of his next words. You were too curious to hear what he was going to say though, a small part of you hoping it was bad enough to make a dent in the walls you held so high for someone you used to open the doors to your soul for willingly. The rest of you was simply too curious and ready to argue that you couldn’t move from your spot. 

“It was the night of one last bar run before Ghost and I were sent into deep cover for a month. A month of hell and shame that still gives me nightmares to this day, but nothing compares to the pain of having to stop talking to anyone at the chance of risking not only my life, but theirs,” Soap admits, his eyes glazing over with tears threatening to fall. Real pain infiltrating his features. It’s a sight that you hadn’t seen in a long time. Not since his cousin - the very same that convinced him to join the army - had passed from a mission gone wrong. 

“Why didn’t you call me afterwards? Or better yet, let me know then and there?” You quietly whisper, staring down at your feet. 

“I was a dumbass. I thought it would be easier to not tell you that night. You deserved to move on with someone that was closer to you. Someone that you could talk to every night. Someone that wasn’t me. Someone who didn’t have a chance of dying every day. As for afterwards? I couldn’t drag you back if you had managed to move on, not after all I had put you through,” Soap says, his voice shaking almost as much as you were.

“I never moved on,” You say quietly.

“What?”

“I never moved on from you. I never could. They were never you, and if anyone came close; well, you still had my heart.” A single tear runs down your face at this, despite your best attempts to stop this. 

“You’re still as beautiful as the day I lost you, love. I never meant to hurt you that badly,” Is all Soap said in response. 

“Well, you did. It doesn’t matter anymore anyways. I listened to you finally and moved on, I think you need to as well,” You throw his own words back at him, taking sick pleasure in the way his face falls. 

“Obviously we need to have a talk. Privately. Both of you. This has turned into more than a liability. Letting either one of you go is not an option either. This isn’t something I want to let turn you two into loose cannons on the field. Sorting this out is happening, and then therapy,” Price intervenes. 

“Please, let me talk,” Soap starts. “I pushed you away, and no apology can fix that immediately. You trusted me with your feelings and I threw you to the wolves. Despite the situation, there were better ways to handle it - I understand that now. I loved you then. I love you now. I loved you when we were little kids on the playground and didn’t even understand what the word truly meant. What I did understand is that you deserved better than me. Better than someone like me,” He says, hanging his head low.

“Fuck, Johnny. You really fucked up,” You murmur, finally turning to face the man you had known all your life. Had grown up next to from diapers to enrolling in the army. You looked at him, truly looked at him. Truth and resignation for whatever you deemed his punishment was written all over his face - you never forgot how to read his signs, or maybe he never changed them. 

“I know, Bonnie. I know, and I’m sorry if that means anything.” 

“I love you too, if that means anything,” You reply, a bittersweet smile on your face. Something that pissed you off to no end was that you could never stay mad at Soap, whether it was for cheating off your test or ‘borrowing’ your favourite pencil. Or in this case, going MIA for two years. A hopeful expression dawns on Johnny’s face. 

“Shit, doll, I will love you till the end of time, follow you to the ends of the earth, spend the rest of my life worshipping the ground you walk on if it means I can even be in the same room as you. I know damn well I have a lot to work on making up to you, and I won’t stop until every crack is mended in your heart, I swear,” Soap blurts out, falling to his knees in front of you. 

You couldn’t help but let out a poignant laugh at the fact that this all could’ve been easily avoided. It pained your very soul at the thought that you both loved each other, but never openly said it. The nostalgic memories flooded your mind at the possibility of how your lives could’ve been so very different if you confessed at a different time and place. 

“To think, I joined the army to do the very same for you, Johnny. I wanted to be here with you, make sure you stayed safe.” You don’t know why you admitted that, but it felt like the right thing to do.

“I wish I would have told you sooner,” He says, taking your hands in his and laying a gentle kiss on your knuckles that had fought for even a chance to be where you were right now.

“I think we both wished we did things differently,” You admit, kneeling down to cradle his face in your hands.

“Sweetheart, you have a heart of gold to not only have fallen for the mess of a man I am, enough to want to risk your life for a chance of saving mine, but to continue loving me through everything that’s happened.”

“It hurt like hell, I’m not going to lie, but I also can see where you’re coming from. I can’t say I didn’t think of doing the same when I was put in the same situation.”

“But you didn’t, and that’s what makes you a better person than I am. But I swear until the day I stop breathing, I will work to make it up to you. I’ll even let you try my ice cream like when we were kids,” Soap says, offering up a hopeful smile at the nostalgic memory. 

“You’re such a dork. I don’t forgive you, not yet. I don’t know if I’ll ever get over this-”

“And that would be completely reasonable. I would understand if you told me to fuck off. I would leave this team and become a hermit if you wanted me to,” Soap quickly interjects.

“And, let me finish. I don’t know if I’ll get over this, ever, but I do know that I want you by my side while I try.”

“I promise I won’t ever leave you again. Not even for a mission. Not again. It would never be more important than you,” Soap swears, holding your face between his fingers just like the morning paper. 

“Now I wouldn’t say ever. . .” Price starts, but Soap sends him a glare that says enough without anything being spoken.

“But I’m sure we could figure something out if it did occur,” Price swiftly amends his statement.

“You’re something, MacTavish, definitely something,” You softly say, your heart beginning to heal. 

“But I’m your MacTavish, right?” Soap says hesitantly, almost as if he was scared you would pull what he did and run away. Not like he would blame you, never in a million years. It would be what he deserved anyways.

“But you’re my MacTavish, Johnny,” You gently say, leaning into his tentative touch.

“I think we have a lot to talk about you two, but I think it can wait until tomorrow. I still want individual therapy for the both of you, separate doctors, but I can see that you need time alone together,” Price breathes out, likely exhausted by the back and forth between his two soldiers. 

“Thank you, Price, thank you,” Soap says, meaning more than what his captain had just said. He was thanking him for dragging you here, letting him talk, allowing there to be a safe place for blame and forgiveness. 

It wasn’t going to be easy or even vaguely okay for a long, long time, but you were willing to try. Your heart was still broken. Soap would inevitably do something to bring doubts and traumas back up. But he would be there, finally, to ease your pain and reassure you that he was there to stay. That he was there to hold your heart together as the glue set up. He was there to hold you as you cried and laughed and slept and woke up and cooked. He was finally there, and he wasn’t going anywhere as long as he could help it. And that promise is what kept you by each other’s side, forever and always. 

[the-narrow-street]

New Beginnings

Jumin nervously adjusted his tie with his unoccupied hand for what must be the tenth time since putting it on, holding a modest bouquet of flowers in the other. He had considered traditional red roses, perhaps more fitting for the occasion, but had ultimately settled on a smaller array of delicate flowers. Cheerful bright yellow petals interspersed with small white blooms of gypsophila. He felt intuitively that these flowers suited your humble and gentle nature, and he felt reassured upon learning some meanings behind them. According to the florist, gypsophila can represent innocence and new beginnings. What could be more appropriate to congratulate you for your first party with the RFA? 

And the added meaning of undying love was one that he would keep to himself if questioned about what inspired his choice. 

He imagined what your reaction might be when he would give them to you. He suspected that your bright smile would match the flowers, and just the thought of it was accompanied with a feeling of warmth. As heat rose to his face so did his hand rise with it, back to his tie in anxious habit. 

~~~

Jumin spotted you in the crowd almost instantly, his gaze guided toward you as if possessing an internal compass. He felt relief from his anxious anticipation at the mere sight of you. His shy smile would be indication enough to anyone that knew him of his feelings towards you. But he was oblivious to the clues his expression betrayed; smiling around you was as involuntary and natural as breathing. 

He made his way to you - feet almost walking on their own, as though a string were pulling him - when the sight of Zen approaching you grounded him in place. His smile faltered and his breath caught in his throat. The bouquet of roses Zen presented you was returned with a smile and the color deepening on your face. 

With a shaky sigh, Jumin released the air he had been holding and turned away. 

“Mr. Han?”

Jaehee’s voice came with the reminder to steady himself. With practiced ease he fell into his meticulously-trained exterior. 

“Ah, Assistant Kang. Good timing. Would you mind setting these aside for MC? I’m sure she has enough going on at the moment than to worry about where to put more flowers.” His voice came out more strained than he had hoped. 

“Of course, Mr. Han. Some of the guests have been asking if you had arrived yet. It seems that many of the guests that you suggested were eager to attend.” 

~~~

To say that you were nervous would be an understatement. It was your first time coordinating an event like this, and for an organization that you had only just joined! You hadn’t even met most of the members yet, although you felt close to them already after countless conversations in the chatroom or over the phone. 

You stood among the guests, feeling relieved that there was such good turnout. You had already spoken to Jaehee, who was especially helpful when it came to greeting the attendees, and had asked her if Jumin had arrived yet. You hoped that you didn’t seem too eager to meet him. When she said that he was on his way, anticipation and nerves filled your chest. 

As you scanned the large room for him, you were met with a different set of familiar eyes. Zen quickly approached you and you felt that his pictures on the messenger didn’t fully prepare you for his looks. 

No wonder he can’t stop talking about how handsome he is. 

Anyone that looked like he did would be intimidating if you hadn’t come to know him on the messenger. From the very beginning he was welcoming and trusting toward you. His praise and terms of endearments that flowed all too easily caught you off guard at first, but you were glad to see other sides to him. His kindness towards the members of the RFA, his insecurities, and how hard he works at what he loves. But somehow you couldn’t shake the nagging thought that his warmth and affection was not reserved for you alone. Or at least, it came too easily. Despite the bashful smile his affection elicited from you, it was too familiar too quickly. 

But still, he had become a dear friend to you, along with the other members. So when he handed you beautiful roses along with his charismatic smile, you couldn’t help the blush that spread across your cheeks. 

“Jagiya~ It’s so nice to finally meet you in person! Congratulations on organizing such an amazing event. All your hard work paid off!”

“Thanks Zen, it’s so nice to see you in person, too. The roses are beautiful - you didn’t have to…”

“Are you being shy? So cute~” 

“Don’t tease me!” With a laugh, you added, “Oh, have you seen Jumin by the way?” 

His expression soured at your question, annoyance at the mention of Jumin’s name instantly evident across his features. 

“No, I haven’t seen the Trust Fund kid yet. He better not have brought his cat with him.” 

Recollecting some of the conversations in the chatroom between Jumin and Zen, your heart sank. Zen’s willing misunderstanding of Jumin was something that you deeply wished could be resolved. 

“Don’t worry, Jumin promised that he wouldn’t bring her. Um, I’m going to put these flowers somewhere safe, okay? Thank you again, they’re so pretty.” You replied to Zen, trying to remain light-hearted. With a smile, you headed through the reception hall to one of the back rooms where you were keeping some of your things from the party set-up. 

On your way in, you nearly bumped into Jaehee in the doorway. 

“Hi, MC. I just left some flowers from Mr. Han for you in there.”

Your heart swelled. “For me? From Jumin?” She replied with a nod and a small smile, and you thanked her shyly as she left. 

A wide smile spread across your face as you set down the roses in place of the bouquet Jaehee left behind. As you admired the arrangement of flowers, you thought of Jumin. Did he pick these out personally for you? What expression would he have made had he handed them to you himself? You felt a pang of regret at that thought. Why hadn’t he given them to you himself? 

“MC?”

Your eyes widened at the deep yet gentle voice that came from behind you. A voice that you had come to know very well this last week or so. It brought instant comfort and joy. 

Holding the flowers even closer to your chest, you turned around to finally meet him, previously contained excitement and happiness now bursting forth through your wide eyes and smile. 

~~~

His voice came out hesitant and quiet despite his efforts at remaining level-headed. But even so, it had the desired effect as you turned towards him. 

And there you were, your radiance overpowering that of the flowers he chose for you. Just as he had imagined it. He knew from your profile picture that you had a brightness to you, even believing he could hear it in your voice as you laughed at something he said during one of your many phone calls. But the full force of seeing it in person was enough to steal his breath away. 

“Jumin!” 

He could almost fool himself into believing that your expression towards him was different than it was with Zen. That it held something more affectionate. 

“Jaehee said that you were looking for me…” It was all he could manage, shock and uncertainty still knotted in his mind. 

“Hm? Oh… yeah, I was. I was really looking forward to meeting you, Jumin.” You admitted with a bashful smile, averting your eyes in embarrassment.

His lips curved up to mirror your own. 

“I was very much looking forward to meeting you too, MC. I see you received the flowers. I wanted to congratulate and thank you for organizing such a wonderful party.” 

“Yes, they’re so lovely Jumin. Thank you. Although I was just wondering why you asked Jaehee to leave them here instead of finding me…” 

As your voice faded with uncertainty, his glance towards the roses sitting behind you provided enough of a hint. 

“But seeing you now makes it feel like I received them from you! Thank you again, I love them.” 

His expression softened at your subtle reassurance. Your kindness and understanding towards him was more than he had ever known. 

The music you had organized for the event grew loud enough to reach the back room where you two stood, signaling an invitation for the guests to dance. Recognizing the waltz, Jumin summoned courage, hoping to compensate for his earlier missed opportunity. 

“I don’t usually dance at these events, but perhaps I could begin to, if you would be willing to join me?” His hand left its spot at his cufflink, instead reaching out to you in a timid invitation. 

And as you set the flowers down to instead place your hand in his, he found the warmth that had been missing from his life. 

“I would love to, Jumin.” 

[celestiall0tus]

Tales of Bloody Bug and Chat Noir - Chapter 16 - Respects

Beginning || Previous || Next

            Alix knocked on the door to Wang Fu’s room. She waited a moment before she entered to find him with a client.

            “I’m sorry, is this a bad time?” Alix asked.

            “No. We were just finishing. Uh, see you next week.”

            The client protested, but Wang Fu shoved him out of the room.

            “What brings you here? Is there an Akuma?”

            Alix shook her head as she held out the tiger miraculous.

            “What’s this? What happened? Why are you returning this already?”

            “Because the girl I entrusted it to betrayed me.”

            “Oh dear. What happened?”

            “It’s long and stupid, but the short of it is that I was helping a friend. I took a picture with him and his cousin and shared it with the girls. Well, turns out that girl got really jealous and manipulated her friends into siding with her and not see reason.”

            Wang Fu grimaced. “That’s not good. I see the reason for the decision.”

            “Was it the wrong one? Having taken a moment to just see the situation, I do recognize she was fooled by Felix, the friend’s cousin, but that doesn’t justify her reaction, right?”

            “That can be a difficult one. Even knowing the circumstances, the ends don’t justify the means. She may have been tricked by a person, but her actions are ultimately her own. I think that alone speaks volumes, don’t you?”

            “Well, yeah! But I… I hoped better, I guess. She was the first of them to welcome me into their group. She’s the one that took a chance on me, but then she does this. It just… it felt like she didn’t really care, nor did she know… me. All she saw was her jealousy and obsession. I just… I couldn’t.”

            “It’s ok, Alix. These things tend to happen. I’m just glad you stopped it and got Roarr back before it got too out of hand.”

            “Right. Well, here’s Roarr back. And… you and Chat Noir can choose my pick for the team.”

            “Alix?”

            “I’m sorry. I just… I don’t want to take that risk right now. I don’t want to be disappointed like this anytime soon.”

            Wang Fu stoked his beard in thought. He glanced at the gramophone and smiled. He pulled up a low table, took the miracle box out, and placed it down.

            “I have an idea. The first step of trust is offering it to others. We’ll start with this exercise. You’ve proven yourself a hero and able friend to your partner. You’ve made the hard decisions that not everyone could. You’ve made yourself into a leader by taking charge and doing what is right, but also necessary. Seeing you for who you are, I’m offering my trust in you.”

            “How?”

            “You’ve taken the miracle elixir and have been attuned to the kwamis, making unification possible. I think it only fair to allow you a second miraculous to unify with in future battles. And when you are ready, you may pass it along to someone else you offer your trust in, just as I am with you. Trust me and Tikki. We’ll help you down whatever roads lie ahead.”

            Tikki squeaked as she emerged from under Alix’s cap. “This is exciting. Can we take any others, Master?”

            “You may but pick one that will help Alix. Remember the goal.”

            Tikki nodded and looked over the miraculous. Alix looked at them and considered.

            “Wang Fu, I… I have a request. If you’ll indulge it,” Alix said.

            “I’m listening.”

            “May I… may I take just a kwami. Not a miraculous, but a kwami.”

            “That is highly dangerous. For what reason?”

            “See, I… Tikki was seen by a classmate. That boy I brought here. I lied and told him it was a prototype companion to help me or whatever. Point is, he was enamored by Tikki, and I saw a spark of light in his eyes. He asked if I could make one for him. I didn’t answer because Reflekta showed up, but could I get a kwami for him?”

            Wang Fu considered. “Very well, but I ask you hold onto the miraculous then. Will do you that?”

            “Yes.”

            “Alright. Tikki, make your pick for Alix, then, Alix, make your pick for the boy.”

            Alix and Tikki nodded. Tikki looked through each of the miraculous before she took out a nose ring.

            “Ah, wise choice. That belongs to the kwami of determination. Alone, it’ll grant your invulnerability to other miraculous powers. With Tikki, it grants the ability to arm you and your companions in immunity armor,” Wang Fu explained.

            “Woah. That’s really handy actually,” Alix admitted.

            Tikki beamed and bowed.

            “Now, Alix, your turn.”

            Alix looked down at the selection. There were a healthy variety of options, but her eyes caught on the pocket watch. She could hide that easily enough with her family heirloom. She reached out and took it as Wang Fu tensed up.

            “Is everything ok with this one?” Alix asked.

            “It’s fine but be very careful. All these miraculous are dangerous in the wrong hands, but that one in particular is. It could unravel time itself.”

            Alix’s eyes widened as she nodded. “Understood. I’ll keep it with me at all times.”

            “Thank you. I rest easy knowing I can trust you with it.”

            Alix smiled. She slipped the watch into her pocket and clipped the nose ring in. Orbs shot out and circled her before they morphed into an ox kwami and a rabbit kwami.

            “Hey yo, I’m Stompp, kwami of determination.”

            “And I’m Fluff, kwami of evolution.”

            “Hey, you two. Name’s Alix.”

            “Oh, Alix, are we to be your kwamis? Stompp and I?” Fluff asked.

            “Not quite. Stompp will be with me and Tikki. Fluff, you’ll be with… an acquaintance of mine, but I’ll be holding onto your miraculous.”

            “Oh. So, does this mean you’ll be unifying with me too?”

            Alix looked at Wang Fu.

            “She may. With Tikki and Fluff, you’ll gain the power to create objects and inventions throughout time, but more so borrowing them from another time,” Wang Fu explained.

            “And if I were to use all three together?” Alix asked.

            Wang Fu hesitated. “With all three you gain the power to create a space that protects those within while you either fast forward, rewind, or pause time outside of it.”

            Alix’s eyes widened. “I… I see what you meant by time unraveling if Fluff is used.”

            “Oh, it’s not that bad. It’s not like when entire timelines are snuffed out by-,” Fluff started.

            Wang Fu, Stompp, and Tikki hushed Fluff.

            “By what?” Alix asked.

            “A very powerful and dangerous kwami that is the result of Tikki and Plagg unifying. It is something you must prevent at all costs.”

            “What if Chat Noir or I unified them?”

            A long silence. “If you do, be very, very, very careful. Fluff may be able to distort time, but nothing is compared to Tikki and Plagg when unified. With them, a wish is granted, but everything is usually rewritten to obtain that wish.”

            “Or erased from existence to create something new,” Tikki whispered with a forlorn look.

            “Tikki?” Alix asked.

            “Oh, it’s nothing. Just… remembering all that has been lost. Such is the burden Plagg and I shoulder. Though it doesn’t bother him as much as me. It never will.”

            “Do you want to talk about it?” Alix asked.

            “Maybe another day. For now, it’s something I don’t want you to worry about. Ok?”

            Alix nodded. “Anything else for now?”

            “I think that’s all, yes? Considering the day.

            “Right. I’ll see you later then. I’m going to meet back up with my family.”

~~

            Adrien and Felix returned to the Agreste mansion and were escorted to Adrien’s room. They had been scolded by Gabriel before Amelie interrupted to scold Gabriel. The pair of parents were escorted away by Nathalie while Gorilla escorted the boys back to Adrien’s room. They waited a few minutes before Adrien spoke.

            “Felix, why did you do that? Why did you send a mean message to my friends?”

            “What does it matter anymore? It’s done and over with. Just move on.”

            “Felix, seriously. They are my friends, and I don’t want them to think I’m just some jerk. I’m genuinely trying to make connections for the first time in my life.”

            “And what about me? We’re supposed to be thick as thieves, closer than with any random nobody on the streets. We’re family, but also more than that. So much more.”

            “I don’t know what more you’re talking about, but we are family, and nothing will change that. I’ll always be here for you, just like you’ll always be there for me, right?”

            “Even with that Alix girl and Bloody Bug?”

            Adrien hesitated. “I mean, Alix is just a girl I know that doesn’t like to follow the rules. As for Bloody Bug, she’s one of the heroes, not my friend. I’m not sure why you’d-.”

            “Adrien, I know you’re Chat Noir.”

            “What? How?”

            “A lot of things. The first was this gut feeling. Like there was this feeling in the very pits of my being that told me you were Chat Noir. There was also how you spoke, moved, everything was, well, you.”

            “Oh. I see. Well, yes, I am Chat Noir. You’re not going to tell anyone, are you?”

            “No. At least, I do have something to ask of you. Something very important.”

            “Yeah, absolutely. Just name it and I’ll see it done, so long as it’s within my capabilities.”

            Felix took a deep breath as he looked at his ring. “I’m looking for something that Father once had in his possession. I heard him muttering about it from time to time about a magical peacock brooch. I didn’t put much stock into it at first, but the more I heard his muttering, the more I became interested. I may be on a wild goose chase, but I just know it’s important.”

            Adrien considered. He looked around his room before he checked his garbage can to find Plagg eating cheese in there. “Plagg, do you know anything about a peacock brooch?”

            Plagg blinked, consumed the cheese, then flew up. “Ah, well, you see here, the butterfly and peacock miraculous are both missing. I’m sure that’s what Felix is talking about, but we don’t know where they are. Even if we did, he’d have to go through the Guardian to get the peacock anyway.”

            “Not unless we get to it first. Any idea where we can start looking?” Adrien asked.

            “Nope. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

            Adrien watched Plagg disappear up to the second level of his room. Adrien sighed and shrugged.

            “Would you really help me find this?”

            “Of course! You’ll surely need help and I know a pair of paw-some heroes that’ll surely help you.”

            Felix deadpanned. “If you make another cat pun, I will punch you.”

            Adrien chuckled nervously. “Right, sorry. Anyway, yeah, we’ll help you. Maybe if we do, you can use it and we can be superheroes together. Wouldn’t that be awesome?”

            Felix forced a smile. “Yeah. It sure would, but we need to find it first.”

            “Oh, right. I’ll be sure to mention it to Bloody Bug next time I see her. Oh! And tonight, we’ll be meeting back up with Alix.”

            Felix perked up. “We will? Where are we going this time?”

            “You’ll see. I’d hate to ruin the surprise, but we’ll be meeting her around seven.”

            Felix smiled, then looked away. “Hey, Adrien, about those messages your friends sent you, they were all best wishes for today and… and them saying they understand your pain and want you to be happy.”

            “Oh. I see. And what did you say to them exactly?”

            “I told them that ‘Father’ was right about going to school and meeting people was a waste of time. I may have added they couldn’t possibly begin to understand my pain and they were all fools.”

            Adrien sighed. “That… that may have been pushing it a bit far.”

            “Are you mad at me?”

            Adrien considered. “No. I feel like maybe I should be, but I’m not. I’m more so sad that they think so little of me that they’d immediately jump to thinking I’d say those things in the first place. Granted I’ve only known them a couple of months. Unlike with Alix. They’ve known her longer. Maybe not friends, but they knew of her.”

            “Alix feels different.”

            “That’s because she’s like us.”

            Felix’s eyes widened. “She is? How?”

            “Well, she lost her mother too. Someone she loved very much. Just like us, she knows what it’s like to have lost someone like our parents.”

            “How long ago?”

            “I’m not sure. Alix never gave a direct answer. More so she doesn’t really remember. Like that perception of her time has been warped. Y’know?”

            Felix hummed and looked away.

            “Felix? Everything ok?”

            “Yeah. There’s just one thing I almost forgot. There was a pig-tailed girl that said that she loved you and would always be there for you. Is she your girlfriend?”

            Adrien grimaced. “I wouldn’t call her that. She’s more… obsessed with me, but not me, y’know?”

            “You mean the model you?”

            “I think so. I knew about her crush on me for a while now, but just didn’t address it. Well, not directly. I had encouraged her to try to confess to me for whatever reason, but I guess she never did until then. Anyway, it was her that had manipulated the girls into thinking Alix made me make that mean message and wanted to keep me all to herself. It just seems… I dunno. Wrong, maybe?”

            “What are you going to do about it?”

            “I don’t even know. What can I do? Should I just tell her I’m not interested? And if I do, will she just think I’m being manipulated by you or Alix? Would she be turned into a monster again because of it? Or should I just ignore her and her possible advances and just hope she gets the message? What do I do?”

            “Good question. I’m not sure though. However, good luck all the same.”

            “Would you like her?”

            Felix laughed, then deadpanned. “No. Keep that crazy far away from me.”

            “So long as you don’t send anymore messages like that to my friends, and I won’t have to sick my crazy fans onto you.”

            Felix shuddered at the thought. “I won’t. You have my word.”

            “Well, let’s see you put those words to action. Actions speak louder than words.”

            “Bloody Bug tell you that?”

            “Yeah. She’s told me a lot of things that’s helped a little. There’s a lot of things that are still a slight mystery to me, but I still appreciate them. She really is my best friend.”

            “Do you think you’d be ok sharing her.”

            “What? Of course. Just don’t try to steal her away.”

            “And if I do?”

            Adrien frowned and glared at Felix. Felix smiled smugly, then laughed.

            “I won’t, Adrien. I just wanted to see you angry. It’s a refreshing change to all the smiles you’re forced to wear.”

            Adrien blinked, then laughed. “Yeah, I suppose it is. Thank you, Felix.”

            “What for?”

            Adrien hugged Felix. “Everything.”

            Felix gasped, then returned the hug. “Always, Adrien. It’s what family if for, yeah?”

            “Yeah. C’mon, let’s play some chess. You owe me a match.”

            “Bring it on, but be warned, I won’t go easy on you.”

            “Challenge accepted. Let’s go.”

~~

            The sun had long set on the horizon and gave way to nightfall. Alix stood in the graveyard surrounded by countless other families honoring their dearly departed. She kept her bundle together as Alim and Jalil made their offerings and prayers to her mother.

            “Hey, Alix!” Adrien called.

            Alix turned as Adrien and Felix joined her. “You guys made it. Snuck out the way I showed ya?”

            “Er… something like that. How’re you doing since earlier?” Adrien asked.

            “I’m still hurt. I knew Alya didn’t like me much and would turn on me, I just didn’t expect Marinette to. She was the one that first accepted me into their group, and she was the one to betray me first. I mean, who’s next? Ivan? Nathaniel? Juleka? Rose?”

            “Would it make you feel better knowing it’s more or less my fault for instigating it?” Felix asked.

            “No. You may have sent that message, but everything else after that was her decision, her own actions. I mean, you didn’t tell her to manipulate and lie to her friends to get them to side with her, did you?” Alix asked.

            “No.”

            “Then you have no reason to apologize. Anyway, that’s not important right now. Who are you two here to honor?”

            “Oh, actually, we thought we could honor our parents with you. Father won’t be mourning her, and I want to, so I brought a photo of her to place at your mom’s grave, if that’s ok,” Adrien said.

            “And Mom is busy arguing with his dad over everything, so I brought a photo of my father to-,” Felix added.

            “To burn. We’re burning that asshole’s photo,” Alix interrupted.

            “But-!”

            “Alright, Alix, your turn, just as you asked,” Alim said.

            Alix nodded. She approached the grave with Adrien and Felix. She placed her offerings around the tombstone while Adrien put a framed photo of his mother against the stone. Felix took out his photo and Alix snatched it away. They exchanged nasty glares before Alix sighed and looked up.

            “Everything has been changing. I thought this year would be like every other, but in a few short months, everything has changed. Mom, I hope you can see me. I’ve changed so much, and I wonder every day what you’d think of it. What you’d think of me. I hope you are still proud of everything I’ve done and what I’ll do in the future. After all, there’s no turning back to what I’ve become. Not until my heart and breath are stolen from my chest.”

            Adrien bowed his head. “Mom, everything changed when you left Father and I. The warm home you made fell into disrepair and isolating loneliness. But I’m not alone anymore. I have Felix again in my life. I have friends, like Alix here. Father hasn’t let go yet, but that’s ok. Even if he never lets you go, I’ll continue on in your memory. Like he said, you’ll never be gone so long as you’re in our hearts, and I’ll carry you in my heart every day until we meet again in the afterlife.”

            Felix huffed and looked away. “You two will make me sick.”

            “Got nothing to say?” Alix asked.

            Felix tsked but remained silent.

            Alix snorted and grabbed Emilie’s picture. “Good. Mom, I don’t really know if you’re here, but I’m starting to believe you are. Not that I’ll admit to Jalil’s ideas with him around but do me a solid in whatever afterlife there is. If you find this woman, please, keep her company so she’s not alone. And if you see this man, kick him in his ghost balls and send him to the void.”

            Alix placed Emilie’s picture down and burned Felix’s father’s picture. They watched the photo shrivel up in the tiny blaze. An eerie wind blew around them that made the candles flicker. Alix smiled and stood.

            “Thank you both for joining us. It… means a lot.”

            “Of course. And thank you for letting us join. It felt good doing this,” Adrien said.

            Felix nodded.

            “I’ll see you guys later, right?”

            “You know you’ll see me later. And Felix will keep in touch, right?”

            “That would be ideal,” Felix muttered.

            “I would hope. Now, hand over your phone, bitch boy.”

            Felix grumbled but handed over his phone. Adrien watched Alix put her number in Felix’s phone when he noticed a black, studded nose piercing she didn’t have before.

            “Hey, Alix, I didn’t know you had your nose pierced,” Adrien remarked.

            “Huh? Oh, yeah. Had it done over the summer but can’t usually find too many piercings that I like. This one is a blessing to have.”

            Adrien hummed and nodded while he took out his phone. He messaged Alix and asked if it was a miraculous jewel. Alix pulled out her phone when it buzzed. She snorted and responded that it was, and she’d explain later when Felix was gone.

            “Are you ready to go, Alix?” Jalil whined.

            “You can wait a minute, Jalil!”

            “I’m cold! Can you please hurry it up?”

            Alix groaned. “Fine. Alright, I’ll see you later, Adrien. Felix, keep in touch.”

            Adrien and Felix waved Alix off before they headed back to the Agreste mansion.

Patreon || Discord || DeviantArt || Ao3

[pokidot]

KILL BILL — two

warnings: kazuha being probably the nicest person in this smau, funeral wc: 1534

You were pulled out of the church with a grinding halt as your father spun you with his hands gripped against your shoulders. You wobbled against the grassy patch you stopped on, your cries so voracious that they could have very well been screams.

"I can't, I- I can't do this!" You heaved in less than steady breaths, clutching at your heart. "I can't!"

"You have to!" Your father shouted ferociously, not so much in anger, but in pure desperation. "You need to! Your behavior is extremely unacceptable, especially when he wouldn't want this for you!"

"What! What wouldn't he want for me?! Since you know so well! Huh?!" You retaliated, fingernails digging into your palms. At the brief silence of disbelief from your father, you continued, "Checkmate, dad! Otherwise, he'd still be here!"

"It wasn't his fault that he's gone! I’m glad you have the gall to play the blame game, (Y/N)!”

"Then why are they allowed to be in there!?" Your throat rasped, and at that moment, the world screeched to a halt. Blood felt like it was hammering in your ears.

“…What?” Your father blinked in disbelief, his face contorting into disgust.

“You let the very people we’re supposed to hate for letting him die come to mourn, and you don’t even care!” You started shouting again, your words remained raw with passion. “They killed him! By letting them in…did you even have respect for Venti at all?”

Your mother's mouth went agape. "(Y/N)," She hesitated, and you tore your intense gaze away to her, "Don't you...think you're trying to catch fish in the air?”

"I'm sorry?" Your mouth opened, eyebrows raising.

"Dad?" Your mother looked at your father for reassurance. Perhaps his expression betrayed him, because his demeanor shifted with the change of a hat.

The air was thicker with tension than usual. Something was darker than the clouds hanging over them greeting them with a hello before letting the sun hang out through peaked blinds once again. You recognized the grim aura like it was the back of your hand. And you were starting to believe that Venti’s death was no more than an accident.

“Dad,” You asked, drained of guise. “Stop keeping me in the dark.”

"Nobody did anything to him." Your dad's shoulder jutted away from how close you and your mother both were. He looked defeated, almost as if he did consider your words. "He always had heart problems, (Y/N)."

Your face muted. "What?"

"He promised us to hide at least that from you. It's not impossible for this to happen." He turned away to keep himself from even looking at you upcoming distraught face. "There was a reason why he evaded the question a lot when we asked if he was taking his medicine."

“You’re lying to me!” Your words shook again, you had the same feeling as a child who was hardly paid attention to at home. “To keep something like that from me…you would be sick in the head.”

“Was it that, or did we know you couldn’t handle it?” Your mother asked gently, her hands on your shoulders with ease. “We can’t find comfort in blaming other people for things that we have no idea of, (Y/N). It only divides us as people.”

You couldn’t even argue anymore, but something was off to you about the turn of events. And you didn’t like it.

Not even a soft lull could calm you down from the cracking glass shattering in your body. Your unruly yowls were starting to suppress themselves in your mother's arms. Everything wracked against you in that moment; the weakness blubbering your large sounds, your body succumbing to fragileness, the larger lump in your throat forming to create bubbles in your esophagus the more you cried. You realized you were more helpless than you thought.

It took you a whole thirty minutes to even compose yourself to go back inside. But you couldn’t even grasp a minute amount of courage to continue staring at the picture of your brother against his coffin. You couldn’t stand to look at the coffin in general.

So you didn’t. You looked directly at the view of the nearby lake, away from most of the people you could hear crying from afar. After your frequent outbursts, you hardly fathomed to feel anything but the numbness coursing through your veins.

You didn’t know what to do with the fury inside of you, a dormant force you hardly could stand. Within this world, was an unbidden rage all you had now in the place of Venti? Was that all you were? The only flame left?

“You really knocked out my friend back there,” An unknown, yet amused voice made your sitdown in misery dissolve into embers instantaneously, your head turned towards the source.

His red streaked platinum hair looked much more vibrant than it did on screen. You recognized his face anywhere, but you stayed unmoving. Turning your head back around at the streaming waters of the lake, you hummed. “I don’t talk to strangers.”

The sun decided to rear it’s head among the clouds when Kazuha silently took his first step to stand next to you. The silence was long, and arduous, but at the same time there was a hidden comfort. “You’d be the opposite of your brother.”

“Spoken as if you know him?”

“We were coworkers, silly,” He gave a half-hearted laugh, “Recently, he and I had bonded a lot more on our musical interests. He had a knack for piano, and we would often practice using rawer forms of audio. He worked himself hard…harder than most to keep us together.”

Your ego has never been so bruised in your entire life. "He taught me how to play as well."

"Ah, as he told me."

Your eyes lit up, looking towards him. “He talked about me to you guys?”

“Of course he did.” Kazuha gave a small smile, his expression saddening with the windy atmosphere swaying at his strands. “You were all he talked about at one point. It was like you were his first trophy; I remember he often used to call you his star pupil.” Reminiscing on him gave him the revitalization he needed slightly. "Maybe we all should have been more vigilant with his health to keep him here..."

“Is this to soothe my thought on you murdering him in cold blood?” You asked, previously a lighthearted joke until you made eye contact with his crimson pools. “Is it?”

With his silence beckoning to the idea, you turned your entire body towards him. “Kazuha, right? Is this an act of kindness to keep me from ratting you out or something? What do you mean by, 'staying vigilant'?”

"I'm not implying he needed to be watched! It was no room to offend you, my apologies!" Kazuha shook his hands to soothe your steadily rising blood pressure. "It’s the intent that we all thought he would be fine amongst everything...the comfort that we relied on thinking that he'd be here forever."

You stopped to take a good look at him while he said this before you relished in the brief comfort again. “He always said we were two peas in a pod.” Your shoulders slumped. “Like yin-yang, I guess. I always knew what he was thinking, and he always knew what I was thinking. I relied on him for places I wouldn’t even rely on anybody else for. But these days...I don't have a clue of what he did, or if he was really the brother that I thought he was.”

The itch beneath his skin started as soon as you derived, Kazuha shifted a bit. Briefly, he checked his phone to see the time and pocketed it again, looking back at you with the same sympathy he had approaching. "To speculate on death only combats ambiguity as salt to your wound..."

He turned his body towards you fully once you shot your head back to him, taking a card he had with his number on it and bowing his head holding it out towards you. "Should you need anything from me, I will be there. I'm sorry that one of our member's angered you. He’s not the most…emotionally sensitive.”

“Anything, you say?” You raised your eyebrows.

Kazuha nodded his head politely, before realizing the severity of his words. “Well…within limits.”

Your loss for words hung heavy as you took the card from his hands, reluctantly. Trying to manage a sliver of a word to respond with, you could only scoff to yourself, "I don't like being pitied."

Kazuha's features warmed. "Be that as it may...you will always have a friend in me." He turned around after hearing the engine, and the rest of his fellow group walking towards it. It was Xiao to make eye contact with him first before he turned around to you and gave another deep bow in respect. "It was lovely meeting his sibling for the first time."

You watched him walk off and towards the others in disbelief, holding the card in your hand with reluctance. For some reason, you felt like you stuck your hand in a honeypot.

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NOTES || i swear the writing parts dwindle by next chapter

TAGLIST IS OPEN! || @akagism2 @duckyyyx @ilocqua @dreamsofminnie @youngestdelacour @natsuscrustyscarf @lovely028 @akxmee @theblueblub @hutaomarryme @vanitasbrainrot @hydration-is-for-weenies @kkazuyass @dazaiscum @aaeng121 @sakurapeach @starsxnight (if your name is in green, for some reason i can't tag you)

[stupidthingsgoodoutcomes]

Okay....Pope definitely has the most stable home life and family of the Pogues. After him though...it gets kind of murky. What's your take on best to worst home & fam?

Oof. None of them have very good situations, and it’s hard to rank them at the end of season three since Pope is literally the only one whose parents are even in the picture, but I’ll do my best to give an overall ranking!

1. Pope, obviously. His parents are great. Nothing but love for Heyward and his unnamed wife. They even let him go after the treasure this season, AND they took in Cleo? They care so much about him I’m sobbing. The family isn’t rich by any sense of the word but they have what they need and it’s a supportive and good environment.

2. We’re already taking a big jump down here. I’m gonna say John B’s situation is probably the least horrible, which is impressive considering it’s pretty horrible. Big John would absolutely sacrifice his son for the treasure. He also commits murder in front of him and was probably fairly neglectful when he was around, but at least he cares about John B and clearly they love each other and have a relatively close relationship. The chateau is honestly such a lovely little home, even if it’s always messy and has like, no food in it.

3. Kiara’s next. Her home is obviously nice, and she has what she needs. However, her parents did send her away to wilderness camp without her consent, and Mike is a grade A jerk, especially towards JJ. They also kicked her out of the house in season two. You’d think this would be about as bad as it gets, but wait, there’s more!

4. Sarah ranks down here for me. While her dad clearly did (and does, perhaps) love her, and even died for her, he also tried to kill her, and I feel like most of his actions this season were motivated by guilt, not love. He betrayed them to Singh in an attempt to keep her safe, but if he’d even bothered to listen to his daughter he’d know that’s not what she wants. Besides trying to strangle her, he also kidnapped her, framed her boyfriend for murder, stole their treasure twice, and just generally was a jerk. She is now technically homeless, and the rest of her family includes Rafe and Rose. She does have Wheezie, with whom she’s very close, so that’s a single point in her favor.

5. Coming as a surprise to no one, JJ’s at the bottom. Not only does he live in a house that’s constantly covered in beer cans, his dad is a drug addict and alcoholic who consistently abuses his son both verbally and physically. It doesn’t really get much worse than that. I’m glad Luke’s gone now, and hopefully this is all something JJ will be able to start working through in season four.

[maleficore]

The entire thing is just... confusing to me. There's just so many conflicting statements and moments throughout Durge's story that we can only speculate and make our own canon really. Especially with all the chunks of that narrative that are simply missing. My guess/headcanon is that Gortash knew something happened between Durge and Orin, that Durge might be dead, but he could not afford to abandon everything and make an enemy of the treacherous little sister because of it. Durge would not want all their work to be for nothing after all.

There's a journal or letter or something I remember reading at Moonrise where Ketheric mentions briefly the Bhaalists' "leadership troubles", but it's such an offhand remark that it makes me think he really could not give less of a shit. To him they just exchanged one Bhaalspawn for another, a bit more unhinged one. And considering that he was planning on betraying the other two Chosen anyway, maybe it was even a bit of a win for him that Durge was out of the picture. He'd have no reason to mention to Gortash that his right hand man, Balthazar found one of his subordinates playing operation on Gortash's favourite assassin lest they get brought back into the fold and make it harder for Ketheric to gain an upper hand. So they get sent to the nautiloid instead, further easing the way for Ketheric to make use of Orin's hotheadedness.

Overall neither him nor Gortash seem too surprised to see Durge alive? Ketheric is more like "Of course they're back /neg" and Gortash comes off more relieved than surprised to me. Like he's hoped that they're fine and will claw their way out of the ditch Orin has buried them in sooner or later and is glad that it has finally happened and they're on their way back home.

Since you don't meet Orin at Moonrise until the very end perhaps even she did not know what became of Durge after she was done with them. Then Ketheric gave her a heads up sometime before the final scene maybe? So it's not as much a matter of secrecy with her as Orin not deeming it relevant enough to get into. She dug a hole in Durge's brain after all. How alive a person can actually be after that?

...Thinking back to the start of act 3 cutscene with Orin and Gortash, it's actually a little odd that Gortash apparently didn't know Durge was still alive until that scene. I mean, Orin knew she didn't kill them and Ketheric at the latest found out they were alive when they showed up at Moonrise. And given Orin says "Oh they barely survived, I made mince of their brain" it definitely seems like she's talking about them surviving whatever happened between her and them before the game started that led to them getting tadpoled (rather than them surviving the crash of the nautiloid or the events at Moonrise Towers in act 2). If both Gortash's allies knew, why didn't he? You'd think "Hey there's a powerful Bhaalspawn with good reason to be pissed at us who's coming after us" would be something that'd... come up earlier. Maybe I'm just being influenced by how many people ship Durge and Gortash (and honestly it might just be weird phrasing from Orin that suggests Gortash didn't know they were alive even pre-nautiloid crash), but I can't help but wonder if Orin and Ketheric thought they had to hide Durge's survival from Gortash for some reason...

[thecameronchronicles]

The Dare

PART 2!

TW: Masturbation, smut, language, angst.

SUMMARY: A dare during a sleepover leads you to learn just how badly Rafe wants you…

WORD COUNT:

The Dare

“You can’t be serious…” The words left your lips behind a heavy scoff that led Sarah and Kiara’s eyes to connect in silent confirmation before looking back to you with shared agreement. 

“It’s only fair with the picture you made me send to Topper-” Sarah explained. 

“AND the text you had me send to John B-” Kiara added, “I’m just glad he didn’t answer…” She muttered, half relieved and half disappointed. 

“This is different! You’re dating Top! And Kie and John B just have to get a bit of a push-Technically I did you favors-” You tried to convince your supposed friends to alter their minds, but found the expressions of pride and amusement spread across their faces to inform you that this would be futile. 

“Consider this karma…” Kie lifted her drink as if to cheers to her own words before finishing the contents of her makeshift cocktail, courtesy of stolen liquor from Tannyhill’s kitchen under the allowance of a lack of parental supervision. 

“Besides…I remember a time when you LIKED Rafe-” Kie’s eyes flashed in surprise as this was a detail she couldn’t have possibly have known as her and Sarah had only been friends for a few months but appeared as close as sisters, a friendship recently sweetened by the reconnection you made with the middle Cameron after drifting apart following Junior year. 

“I did not!” You lied, your cheeks betraying your attempts to convince them otherwise. In truth, Rafe Cameron always had your thighs pressing together with the way his voice said your name and his full lips pulled to a grin when he noticed your eyes making note of him. 

“It’s only fair…” Kie teased as you now shot up to your feet in objection. 

“I don’t want to play anymore-”

“Oh come on…” Sarah whined, “You don’t get to get out of it so easily…Not after we followed through on OUR dares…”

“Then I change mine to truth-” You spoke quickly, not caring to hide the pout from your lips. 

“Didn’t realize we were playing with Wheezie-” Sarah taunted in reference to a version of ‘truth or dare’ with her sister where the latter was excluded. 

“If you don’t do this, I am ABSOLUTELY telling Rafe that you used to have a thing for him.” Kie interjected as you scowled at her. 

“Is it REALLY worth him holding that over your head over just stealing his phone?” Sarah added, the peer pressure making you anxious. 

“Why do you even want it? I mean…what if he’s using it or something…” You continued to try and convince them of an alternative torment, but they were too convinced of their aforementioned decision. 

“The fact he hasn’t been down her ‘perving’ on you or Kie in the last hour tells me he’s definitely asleep. And I have my own reasons for wanting it…so…” Sarah and Kie stared at you with growing excitement to see you squirm behind a series of grunts and groans. 

“Five minutes and an impromptu 007 mission or a lifetime of Rafe knowing you used to have a thing for him…Every time you come over having to hear him tell Topper and Kelce how you missed your chance with him…Every dinner him finding an excuse to remind you-” Your mind darted at the thought of him teasing you with this, a detail you couldn’t fathom having to live through as you could barely handle the touchless banter you shared now. 

“Okay!” But this is blackmail-'' You glared before reluctantly crossing into the corridor responsible for holding the ascension of the staircase leading to the bedrooms. The second your hand wrapped around the railing, you considered returning to them to say you couldn’t find it or he was awake. But an even larger portion of you was desperate to have an excuse to be close to him. He made this a necessity by the way he greeted you with his usual teasing and his eyes kept on you until he climbed those very stairs a few hours prior. It was maddening-but also enough to commit to this action. 

By the time you reached the top of the steps, having turned back when hearing Kie and Sarah chuckle at your expense, you were now a mess of tremors and anxiety. It would only take approximately ten steps before you’d reach his door and you were horrified on how you would go about it. 

What if he wasn’t asleep? What would you say that would make your presence believable at two in the morning?

“Three minutes-” Sarah called as if to remind you of your mission as you turned back to shush her, ultimately deciding that the lesser of two evils would have to work as being appealing enough to convince you forward. Pressing your ear to his door, you weren’t able to hear anything close to a conscious Rafe, who was usually in motion one way or another. Validated enough for your entry, you twisted the knob slowly before finding a dark room set before you, relief relaxing your nerves for a time as you realized he had been asleep. 

You were thankful for the darkness for many reasons, but mostly for it making it impossible to appreciate his figure which had beckoned you since he had begun to take care of himself in the last few years. But the thought of this gratefulness left you to think of the muscles in question; specifically how they would collect you in passion and pull you around as he saw fit. But with this existing only as a fantasy, you were able to return your focus rather quickly to your task. 

A deep groan stilled you as the springs from the bed gave away the adjustment as you lowered behind the rival side of the bed as you began to conjure a thousand varied explanations from throwing Sarah under the bus or claiming you simply walked into the wrong room. But before you could begin either or, you heard it again. Only this time, it was spoken in the accompaniment of a deep breath. 

“Fuck…” He groaned, your eyes widening as you deduced quickly that he certainly wasn’t asleep. Instead, he had been portraying the most decadent moans, keeping your gaze locked onto him as you were able to make out the motions of self pleasure embedded in the darkness before you. 

“Walking around in those shorts…thinkin’ you can get away with that shit…” He moaned, the sound of self pleasure breaking the silence of your deafening heartbeat as you kept yourself concealed at the side of the bed, remaining magnetized to the way his body moved to his ecstasy, you were further rooted by his words.

“Yeah-you like this cock, baby?” Your skin became impossibly hot, the words continuing to narrate his thoughts aloud that you had only imagined when you were alone in your own room with ideas synonymous to these. It was the very guttural groans and vulgar mentions that left you pulsating and in need of a release all your own, confusing and guilting you in equal measure of just how distracting it had been. 

“You’ve wanted this a long time, yeah? Go ahead-take it…Like THIS” Half of your body tightened at the drawl of his words lengthened from his unsteady breathing before the fear of being found kept you motionless but still in analysis of him. 

“SO GOOD-I knew you’d feel so good…” He now spoke behind clenched teeth, the illumination of his phone pushed you further into your weak cover as he continued to moan and groan between the slick sounds of self gratification. 

Quickening pumps making your mouth dry from anticipation, you were able to view the motivation behind his desire. You imagined the type of girl he would go for, immediately comparing yourself to the painful belief you were nothing more than something to torture for him. But it wasn’t a prissy girl who spent way too much money on deceptive beauty enhancers that the likes of his friends would be vying for. 

It was you. 

Photos you posted without a second thought, ignorant at how it had clearly affected him. 

“Shit!” His body began to move wildly before you, the bed buckling beneath him as he quickened his inability to control his reaction to his thoughts of you. 

“I can’t wait any more…Gotta cum in that pussy gotta-gotta-fuck!” With that final breath before his release, Rafe expelled your name, verifying once and for all that he held the same lustful thoughts you had possessed since you’d known him. Those once innocent butterflies now exchanged for scorching embers drifting well beyond your stomach and now settled between your thighs. 

“Shit…” He breathed out, rising to the side of the bed, feet made flat with the hardwood supporting his entire room, all while you prayed to remain unseen. 

Whether it was the haze of a recent orgasm, the darkness of the room, or the fact that he was simply THAT careless, he hadn’t noticed your body’s attempt to hide in the side of the bed as he disappeared into the connected bathroom. But it was this ignorance that allowed you to move to your feet and set for your exit. 

For a moment, you looked back at his phone, considering if you should try for it to ensure that Sarah and Kiara kept your crush a secret. But not wanting to risk having to explain yourself in your current state; soaked nearly down to your kenes, panting, and with a blush you were certain he’d still be able to make out despite the sygian setting of your surroundings, you left it at your back and turned to the door. 

Your heart stopped. 

The sudden appearance of a large hand set against the frame of the door keeping it closed led your eyes to run up the flexed muscle, until you met with Rafe’s lust blown eyes illuminated by the sliver of moonlight allowed by the bathroom door falling open from his exit. 

“And where do you think you’re going?” His voice, low with lust, had your lips part in a quick attempt to make up some sort of an excuse. But instead, you were left swallowing hard at the way he now carried his second hand to pin your back against the door. 

“I-I-Sarah’s waiting for me…” You hoped this would be enough to deter whatever thoughts he intended to make a reality, but you also knew Rafe was sporadic and reckless-making up part of his charm, and so you knew if you were in his line of focus, he wouldn’t stop until he got what he wanted. And he ALWAYS got what he wanted…

“No…You’re not going anywhere, baby…”

Part 2?

Taglist: @hopebaker @iovdrew @penny4yourthoughts

[queen-haq]

Fic: A Woman Scorned - Part 1

Pairing: Billy Russo x Reader

Words: ~2200 words.

Summary: You’ve been sleeping with Billy Russo for a few months now. Knowing his aversion to any kind of emotional commitments, you’re satisfied with your clandestine arrangement until you catch him having dinner with Dinah Madani one night. Then it finally dawns on you. It’s not that he doesn’t want to commit, he just doesn’t want to commit to *you*. 

Billy may think he knows you, but he has no idea what he’s just lost...

~~~~~~

You met Billy Russo at an industry conference two years ago. While you didn’t know much about military security at that time, your specialty was online security and both of you ended up attending a lot of the same events. He was the most beautiful man you’d ever seen, magnetic and a total flirt, and it was obvious he was aware of his good looks and used it to his benefit. You didn’t sleep with him during the conference. Something told you his dance card was already full every night. So, instead, you exchanged contact information and left it at that.

 A year later you were hired as a consultant for one of Anvil’s direct competitors and moved to New York City. When Billy called you to meet for drinks, you knew exactly what he was up to. You were no fool. He wanted information on your employer and thought he could charm you into spilling secrets. You told him it wouldn’t work over a second drink, and he simply laughed.

 You didn’t fuck him until a month later. The official reason for the delay was conflicting schedules but mostly it was due to insecurity on your part. To the outside world you were attractive in the kind of way that snuck up on people. You weren’t the type to turn heads, like Billy was, and your fucked up childhood had ensured you didn’t let anyone in easily. It wasn’t until a pep talk from your best friend, Davina, about enjoying Billy Russo for what he was – a fun time and nothing more - did you finally decide to take the leap.

 Fucking Billy had been unlike anything you’d experienced before. You’d had sex before of course, but not the kind of sex that made you lose all of your inhibitions and scream and come for hours. Billy knew how to coax you out of your shell and demand things from him you’d never even knew you wanted. You fucked him in your apartment, his penthouse, the underground parking lot, in his car and that was all within the first week. He had opened up a whole new world for you and you were willing to try anything and do anything he wanted. After that first night together, all the walls you’d built around your heart collapsed. Your best friend warned you repeatedly that great sex made people confuse lust for love, that she was worried you were falling for Billy, but you told her you were an adult and could handle yourself.

 Of course that had been bullshit.

 It had been been almost a year now since you and Billy were sleeping together and you had no idea where you stood with him. You didn’t even know if he was fucking other women, though a part of you suspected he was. If he was with you two nights a week that left five other nights to be with someone else. It clawed at you, knowing you weren’t enough for him. It heightened all of your insecurities, made you believe that you were worthless and ugly just like your abusive father used to scream at you. Of course you’d never tell Billy that. The minute he suspected you were getting attached to him emotionally he’d bolt, he’d already warned you of that. So you kept your thoughts to yourself and let your pain eat away at your insides when he wasn’t with you.

 At least that had been the plan until you saw him on a date with Madani.

 You were at a restaurant with some of your coworkers, enjoying happy hour, when you got up to use the bathroom and spotted Billy sitting in the other corner of the room. The breath rushed out of your lungs, your knees felt weak. They were enraptured with each other, legs intertwined, heads close, a true couple. You knew who she was because he’d let it slip he’d been working with Homeland on something and, you being you, you’d looked her up. Her pictures didn’t do her justice, because she was stunning. And exactly the type of woman Billy would be proud to be seen with.

 After you and Billy started sleeping together, Billy rarely took you out. Sure you guys would go to some hole-in-the-wall places or fast food joints but never to fine restaurants, not like this one. You never complained because why waste time when you could be busy fucking his brains out? Except now that you saw him and Madani sitting only a few feet away from you, and he was proudly holding her hand and being openly affectionate, you realized it had all been by design. He never took you out because he was ashamed of you. If you had been prettier, thinner, sexier, taller – anything but what you already are – he’d want you as more than a fuck buddy. He’d want you as his girlfriend.

 It was a bitter pill to swallow but at least now you knew the truth and that meant you were back in control of your life.

 As much as it hurt, it felt good to know you were the ones making decisions about your future again and they didn’t revolve around Billy. No longer would you be obsessing over what he wanted, what he was doing, if he’d like a certain thing on you or not, if he was fucking someone else or not. You wouldn’t spend hours researching Billy like you did in the past and finding out things about him that he never knew you knew. No, now you were finally free.

 And it was time to move on.

 Tonight was the night of the fundraising gala. Your company had purchased a table and the CEO of your company had personally extended an invite for you to attend. Based on a conversation you had with Billy three weeks ago, you knew he would also be attending to represent Anvil. When you’d first broached the subject you’d hoped he’d asked you to attend as his date – but he hadn’t. At the time you’d reassured herself the reasons were practical. It would be weird for Billy to be sitting at a competitor’s table (if he went with you) and you would risk offending your boss if you sat at Billy’s. But now you knew the truth.

 So, tonight, you were dressed to the nines in a curve-hugging gold dress with a plunging neckline which emphasized all of your assets. Your heels, which cost more than the dress itself, were over five inches high and made you feel like an Amazonian goddess when you sauntered in them.

 When you walked into the ballroom with Davina in your arms that night, you felt confident in a way you hadn’t in a long time.

 The thing about you that a lot of people didn’t know was that you were fucking fantastic at owning a room – despite your insecurities. You may not be beautiful but you were charming. You were really great at getting strangers to open up, people were drawn to you. It was one of the reasons your CEO promoted you so quickly after a few months. Your job, initially at least, was meant to be a technical role but when you were invited to a party with potential clients you had schmoozed them so easily they had signed the contract within the week. And then you had impressed them with your actual technical skills which only cemented their positive impression of you.

 So, yeah, you were in your element and you were ready to charm.

 “What table are we?” Davina asked.

 “14,” you said. Of course your eyes were automatically drawn to Anvil’s table on the seating chart. 157. A safe distance from your table, which meant there was a good chance you two wouldn’t even be crossing paths in the grand ballroom. You didn’t know whether to be overjoyed or disappointed.

 A while later you were circulating around the north bar, chatting up with some potential clients that your boss had wanted you to pay particular attention to when you saw Dinah Madani. She was in one of those slinky, maroon satin dresses, her hair up, and you felt that surge of jealousy go through you again. She was probably here as Billy’s guest considering this wasn’t the kind of events Homeland agents typically attended.

 “Y/N!” You turned to find your boss waving you towards him.

 Glad for the distraction, you picked up two glasses of champagne from a nearby server and headed towards him, handing him his drink. Your boss was chatting to a group of people you vaguely recognized, but the smile on your face stiffened when you spotted Billy amongst them.

 Fuck. He looked good in a tux. His hair was slicked back, and you were struck with the sharp memory of fucking him in his car one night with your fingers roughly fisting his hair. God, you loved his hair, loved running your fingers through the silky strands.

 Billy’s eyebrow quirked up when he saw you and you wondered what he thought of you so dressed up. No. It didn’t matter what he thought of you. Fuck him, you reminded yourself.

 “Y/N is our new Executive Director,” your boss said, introducing you to the group. “Her division has shown a significant growth ever since she joined Valiant.”

 You smiled, shaking hands with everyone. When it was Billy’s turn, you reached out to clasp his hand, not betraying any emotion even though you felt an immediate charge upon touching him. He gave you an amused smile, like he was enjoying the charade.

 “Nice to meet you all,” you said. “And don’t listen to Roger. Valiant was doing fine on its own.”

 “But Y/N has definitely changed the way we do some of our regular operations. I didn’t realize how archaic this industry’s systems and processes were until she came along.”

 “Sounds like I may need to poach Y/N from Valiant,” Billy said with a smug smile, his eyes fixed on you.

 “Anvil couldn’t afford me,” you reciprocated with equal smugness.

 Roger laughed, patting your arm. “We’re not giving her up without a fight.”

 “Clearly,” Billy replied.

 The expression on Billy’s face was new to you, you had no idea what he was thinking but you also didn’t want to waste any more of your time obsessing over him.

 Roger leaned in closer, lowering his voice so others wouldn’t hear him. “Table 35. Those were the clients I told you about.” As you glanced over to the table he mentioned, your eyes met Billy’s. He was watching you intently, still with the unreadable mask on his face.

 Ignoring Billy, you flashed a confident smile up at Roger. “Don’t worry about it. It’s taken care of.”

 You turned back to the group, your gaze skipping past Billy’s. “It was a pleasure to meet you all. I hope you have a great evening.” Bidding everyone goodbye, you headed to Table 35.

 ***

An hour later you were on the terrace, enjoying the cold, crisp New York air that rattled your bone. You were exhausted. Networking took a lot out of you and now you just wanted to go home and soak in the tub. Davina, a natural extrovert, was still in the ballroom, flirting and socializing but you needed a few minutes of privacy so you had snuck outside to compose yourself.

 “Congratulations on the promotion.”

 Your jaw clenched as soon as you heard Billy’s voice from behind you. You turned around to look at him as he swaggered forward, closing the distance between the two of you.

 “You never told me,” he remarked.

 You shrugged your shoulders. “We didn’t tell each other a lot of things.”

 “I get the distinct feeling you’re pissed at me but I don’t know why. Care to fill me in?”

 “What reason would I have to be pissed at you?”

 “You tell me. I’ve called you-”

 “You’ve never called me,” you interjected.

 “Fine. Texted. Whatever.” Billy took a step closer, forcing you to look up at him. Even in your fucking stilettos, he towered over you. “You’ve been avoiding me for two weeks now. Why the ghosting?”

 “I just think it’s time I move on.”

 Oh, Billy didn’t like that. His eyes grew darker, so dark they were almost pitch-black. “Really? You’ve got the next one lined up already?”

 As much as you wanted to believe he was jealous, you knew that wasn’t the case. “We both know you don’t give a fuck about me so drop the fake jealousy bit.” You tried to walk past him but he grabbed your arm and pulled you close. You felt his angry breath skim over your skin as he glared down at you. “Let me go, Billy.”

 “Why?” he snarled. “So you can go fuck Roger?”

 “You really expect me to believe you’re jealous of me seeing someone else?” you snapped back. “Or is it because it’s Roger? He’s more successful than you, he’s your competitor, his company has been taking all the contracts you’ve been fighting for and now he’s got you beat in the one area you thought you excelled at. Fucking.” You angled forward on purpose, holding his gaze. “Here’s an idea. Why don’t you go fuck Roger and leave me out of it?” You smiled up at him. “Or does Madani not let you stray?”

 Understanding dawned on Billy’s face. “So that’s what this is about.”

Part Two

A/N - This is my first reader insert fic. Hope you guys enjoyed it. If you’d like me to tag you, please leave a comment or DM me.  

If you created this GIF, please let me know so I can give proper credit :)

[awakeshedreams]

sugar and spice ( 1 )

pairing : resident bad boy!jjk x model student!reader

setting : highschool!au x stepbrother!au

summary :

a messy highschool!au x stepbrother!au where model student reader who has quite a few dirty little secrets sees her world take an unexpected turn when her mother comes home one day with an engagement announcement, to the father of none other than the school's resident bad boy.... Jeon Jungkook.

genre : smut, for laughs, kinda pornish, slow burn with collosaly overwhelming sexual tension

rating: soft m ( for now ) due to adult content

warnings : unconventional relationship of sexual nature, tropes and clichès, teenagers partaking in porn-esque activities, made up things with made up people happening in a made up world, don't like don't read XD

wordcount : 2.3K

a/n : i've been fighting in a long standing war and I have lost. the man known as jeon jungkook had his foot on my neck for years and today, I have finally submitted to my fate and surrendered to his reign.

yes. after a hundred years, i'm writing again. specifically, writing for bts. particularly, writing for jungkook. its been a long time coming.

life just took over and I transitioned into an adult and kind of grew out of the state of mind I was in before. but. sigh. jeon jungkook has been tormenting me the whole time. it was only a matter of time before i relapsed honestly.

so here I am again. in mind, body and spirit, a different person from who I was before but still the same in the sense that with the way bts have my whole heart, jk will always be the demon in the corner of my room that I invite to bed for a cuddle even though it's (probably really) not good for me.

do not misconstrue. I love him more than I can say. but. sigh. he has me in a chokehold, loves. please try to understand where I'm coming from.

anyways, enough with this ranting. you all came here for the nitty gritty so let me not hold you hostage with my dilemma rambling any longer. here's to the first bts fic i've posted in literal years. introducing- sugar and spice.

1 2

Unless they told someone, no one would have been able to guess it.

At school they were complete strangers.

She was the nice head girl with a clean record, all smiles and straight A’s. He was the mysterious bad boy with a track record, all tatted up with bruised knuckles.

She wore plaid skirts with neat pleads in them and pastel sweaters with bows at the collar. He wore jeans with rips in them and leather jackets with studs.

They couldn't have been any more different.

As far as anyone was concerned, they existed on two extreme ends of a vast spectrum.

What they didn't know was that they shared a dirty little secret.

.

You were a girl with many dirty secrets.

For instance, you used to sell nudes online. It was a side hustle you did.

Not because you needed money.

Your mom was a renowned doctor so there was more than enough of that in your life.

Not because you needed validation from people online either.

Even without the constant compliments and the praises you knew you were visually blessed with a pretty face and a nice body too.

All things considered, you simply thought you had a nice pair of tits and you took pictures of them sometimes.

Posting the shots you snapped online came much later when you heard about this website where people were getting paid crazy money for posting racy things.

‘It’s just so degrading…’ It was one of your friends, June, who sneered, pretty nose scrunched up. She fixed her long ponytail and rolled her brown eyes while looking in the mirror at her locker. ‘Who would do such a thing, am I right?’

She said this, but June was the girl who has slept with more boys than she could count on her two hands. And those were the ones she told you about.

Like every other time, you said nothing. Even when it carried on to lunch with the rest.

‘Pretty desperate if you ask me.’ Mei the stellar track runner shrugged casually as she stretched her limbs like routine.

‘Where are their parents?’ Nina the library nerd shook her head in disapproval as she fixed her glasses so it sat right on the bridge of her nose.

‘Um… I don’t think it’s … appropriate… to talk about ….’ Kiko the one who always carried a cross and bible around mumbled into her sleeve.

All your friends spoke of it in derision and repulsion of course. This was a school for proper children so they were proper girls. At least they were supposed to be.

Regardless the conversation sparked a curiosity in you.

So you made an account and uploaded your first picture. Nothing bizarre. Just your tits in a pretty lace bra.

You made sure to keep your face out of the frame because that was the smart thing to do and you were nothing if not the smartest student in school.

In all honesty, you weren’t expecting anything out of it. In fact, in between work with student council and tutoring your juniors with finals right around the corner, you even forgot about it for an entire month.

It was by a complete whim that you decided to open the app while you’d been unwinding at your desk following a tedious day at school.

To say you were amused by the response you found waiting for you would have be a grave understatement.

You were staring at the four figure digit that now sat in your bank account.

Reading through the comment section was even more interesting.

There were all sorts of people there who had all sorts of things to say. Ranging from honestly sweet to downright dirty.

You had never been brought to tears laughing in her life before until then.

It was just so funny to see people misbehave and lose their minds over a pair of tits.

From then on it just sort of became a thing.

.

But that wasn't the worse of your secrets.

You were making a name for yourself on the crude web months later.

The next step was naturally to move from making taking pictures to making videos. Since you was already in too deep you didn’t see why not.

So you upgraded and opened another account. An amateur one where your touched yourself for an audience.

You were no prude.

You might have never been touched by a boy before but you had touched yourself plenty times. Stress and frustration came hand in hand with being head girl. Since you couldn’t quite vent it out at the annoying troublemakers at school, this was your second best option.

Third was watching porn, but that was mostly when you were extremely bored.

But that wasn’t where that little endeavor ended.

Later on it became a lot more risqué.

.

It all started when your mom hit you with a marriage announcement.

She met a guy on her business trip who she really liked and she was convinced he was the one.

Your mom had a tragic history of being a bad judge of character.

You’ve had this conversation at least five times since you became old enough to understand that boys and girls who were just friends didn’t kiss and sleep with each other.

Most times, it felt like she was doing it because she thought you needed a dad around.

You might have once, when you were younger and your mom was too busy with work to be there. But she worked from home these days and you were soo busy with school to worry about things like that.

This time it was like she was doing it for her. You were glad.

Your mom looked genuinely happy when she spoke about this guy.

Who were you to get in the way?

.

She spent almost the whole weekend in the kitchen. It was the longest you’ve seen her in there in your entire life.

She was excited for the dinner on Sunday.

Mr Jeon was the name of the chosen man.

He was coming over with his kid. A son, his only family. His wife passed away years ago.

You wore the dress your mom picked out for you, something cream in color and off the shoulders that brushed your knees. She looked pretty in her champagne dress. It was different from the office slacks and loose blouses you were used to seeing her in.

You stood by her at the door while the guests came through.

Lifting your head from a polite bow, you found herself staring straight into an achingly familiar pair of glinting dark eyes and went completely still.

‘Sweetie,' Your mother said sounding delighted, a soft hand on your stiff shoulder. 'This is Mr Jeon and his son Jungkook.’

Ah. Fuck.

‘Jeon dear, this is my daughter. Isn’t she lovely?’

.

Dinner was a mild affair, with small talk and the occasional clinking of cutlery on fine china.

From the outside looking in, you probably looked the picture perfect family already.

Only if no-one looked close enough.

Arms crossed, tongue in cheek. Your discomfort could be detected from miles away.

The two adults were oblivious.

The dark eyed boy with the slightest wave to his nape touching, brow grazing, ear covering onyx hair sat across you though; he took note of this with a passing glance and wordlessly returned to his food.

Jeon Jungkook had a countenance that betrayed his reputation.

Even though you’ve never talked, you knew plenty about him and you were sure he knew a lot about you too.

You went to the same school.

Dressed as he was in a crisp white dress shirt buttoned at the wrist and dark tailored pants with a fine belt on, it might have been hard to tell what kind of person he really was.

You lifted her gaze from your plate to look study him wordlessly, idly twisting the noodles with your fork.

People either called him the black sheep or the dark cloud but for you, Jeon Jungkook was the school’s resident lone wolf.

He smoked in the secluded areas on campus, sometimes playing his guitar. Beat up people who got on his nerves, sometimes using his guitar. Slept in class the rare times he was there, many times on his guitar.

Being his senior, you had never seen any of any of that for yourself. But you received plenty reports weekly to come to a sound conclusion.

There was no way people hated him enough to join hands in solidarity and make this all up.

It was quite the contrary actually. He had an alarming number of fans.

On the surface level you couldn’t see why. Most times you saw him, he looked bored out his mind and honestly, intimidating.

Maybe it was the tattoos. Or the ripped skinny jeans. Or the leather jackets with studs.

Maybe it was the domineering height and fit frame and structured face.

Maybe it was the intense dark eyes or the silky ruffled hair.

Even then, you failed to see the irresistible appeal in him. All those things that made him up only added to his unapproachable aura.

Bottom line was, he was bad news.

.

You didn’t want to be a spoil sport.

But how much of a thug your mom’s boyfriend’s son was shouldn’t be something that would make her like him less.

They were both their own people. Right ?

It was just that you just didn’t want her to be shocked and devastated if something happened later. When it happened.

Yet it seemed the serious conversation would have to wait.

After dinner your mom suggested you head to the living room to chat over wine and cheese.

You stayed back to do take out the dishes.

Earlier, your mom had stood to do it instead at first.

‘Don’t bother with that, dear.’ She reached for the plates in your hands. ‘Let me do it.’

‘It’s okay, mom.’ You smiled a little. ‘This is your night. I’ll meet you in the living room.’

'Sweetie...' Your mom looked close to tears. ‘But there’s so much of it…’

‘Jungkook,’ his father's voice had cut through the moment. He was a serious man in a crisp suit with a stoic countenance. His voice was just naturally authoritarian without him trying ‘Give her a hand.’

Jungkook stood, almost robotically.

‘It’s fine.’ You said. Politely. Nicely. Tightly. ‘I can handle this much.’

You left without another word.

That had been moments ago and now you were done with cleaning.

You stood at living room entrance for a while, taking in the scene.

The two adults were exchanging moon eyes and whispering in each other’s ears at the love seat.

Jungkook was sitting on a solo seat, but he was on his phone, completely unbothered by what was happening.

Your mom seemed to think it was the perfect time to pull out the photo album right then and there upon seeing you.

It was embarrassing but at least you knew you didn’t have to worry about the pictures spreading at school.

Jungkook was looking, picking up a picture occasionally to rove over, but he wasn’t the type to do that.

He also wasn’t the type to stare but you felt his glance shifting to you and lingering multiple times.

Once, you caught his eyes and he just stared at you across the coffee table wordlessly with a curious tilt to his head, idly flipping a picture of you dressed as a knight in glitter shining armor for Halloween at eight in his hands.

Honestly, it was starting to get annoying.

But you endured. For your mom’s sake.

.

Your alarm went off at exactly ten.

As subtly as you could, you excused yourself with an apology to the guests, saying you weren't really feeling well.

In hindsight you probably should have used a better excuse.

Your mom was notorious when it came to worrying, especially when it comes to your health.

Also, you probably should’ve locked the door before undressing just for good measure since people were over.

But in the moment, you were too busy setting your camera up where you were kneeling on the floor at the foot of the bed to be concerned about that.

That day you were testing out a new toy.

.

Distractedly, you took note of a couple of people asking you if that was your boyfriend’s shirt you had lifted over your tits.

You ignored them.

Couldn’t a girl own an oversized tee without getting any flack?

Trivial comments like that aside, a good majority of the audience are fawning over how wet you were and how perfect you bouncing tits look being played with.

Your head fell back and your eyes fluttered shut.

You were sitting there, knees raised to your chest and legs splayed, your gushing pussy in full display where the toy was stuffed deep into her tightness, vibrating pleasantly.

‘I’m close…’ you mumbled throatily, squeezing your tits and pinching your stiff nipples in between your moving fingers. You moved your hips move faster, feeling the toy buzz against fluttering walls. You took a hand off one of your tits to rub at your engorged clit. ‘Fuckfuckfuck…’

Deep in your high, you didn’t hear the door open and close with a foreboding click.

You only heard your name being called by a deep, smooth voice through the heady haze.

Instantly you stilled.

When you snapped your head to look over her shoulder Jungkook was there, hands in his pockets, leaning against your doorframe with his sleeves drawn up to his elbows, muscle roped, inked skin on full display.

When he tilted his head to the side a little, appraisively, you dared to say as a quaking chill ran down your spine and your entire body felt like it was about to burst into flames, a bit of his hair fell over his face.

His eyes were like two black in the dark as he took you in, dragging his gaze up and down your exposed body languidly.

In the back of your mind, you wished the ground would part and swallow you whole.

‘Your mom,' he starts, capturing your attention wholly, dark gaze finally flickering to your face, his voice suddenly lower, hoarser. ‘She sent me over to check on you.’

It took you a moment to realize where you were, who you were, who he was.

It was like a bucket of cold water had been dropped over your head.

Jeon Jungkook, the school's resident trouble maker, soon to be your step brother, just walked in on you fingering yourself in in front of a recording camera.

Well. Yeah.

You gulped.

You were royally fucked.

depending on the response I get I might ( most probably will ) delete this. not because I'm ashamed of my work. because I'm embarrassed of myself. I really swore to never write again and here I am. sigh. yes, I have seen my previous works and noticed just how terrible they were and this is a big reason why. so sorry for putting you through that. a million apologies.

also, that's right. I have adopted a new style which might not be to everyone's liking. another reason why.

anyways, if you liked this filth ( i know it seems mild but I can tell you it's very likely gonna get worse ) please idk uh... fuck this isn't ao3. hm.

like and drop by in the ask box if you liked it and want to see more. it makes me happy. its like serotonin fuel to me.

have a nice day. see you next time ( maybe ). stay fresh. yeah. 💜💜.

[yesimwriting]

Dying Starlight

A/n: i dont think an audience for this exists?? ik it’s not shadow and bone related, but ive been reading red queen and i wanted to try writing maven and ive been playing with this idea. umm...on the off-chance that there is an audience for this i do think of this as more of a series but i’ll probably end up deleting this lol 

(Series?) Summary: reader is a childhood friend of Mare’s who isn’t officially part of the Scarlet Guard but gets captured by Maven. As a prisoner, she feels like her mind is being messed with as she begins to see a more human side of Maven. The new King tells himself the only thing he sees in her is that she’s a way to get to Mare, but something about her genuiness is infectious. 

-- 

Irony twists things. Right now, the irony that my last thoughts might be about how I wish I had been trusted with a suicide pill twist my impending doom into something almost comical. I’d laugh, but I’d rather not startle the rats in my cell. This has been their home for presumably years, but I’ve only been down here a few hours. 

I scratch the back of my wrist, staring at tired stone walls like they’ve done something to me. I wish I knew what time it was. How long have I been down here? How long has it been since I was separated from Mare? An hour? Three?Each passing minute strikes me like a bullet, but I can’t count them. I’ve never had a talent for accurately feeling the passage of time.

My head aches, frustration and dread tangling themselves in the pit of my stomach. Mare told me the Queen can search through someone’s mind, seeing memories even they can’t remember. What will they do when they see I know virtually nothing? What will happen when they see how close Mare and I truly are? i can’t do anything and the unknown hurts more than my bruised rib. 

The sound of the heavy door that divides the luxury of the castle from the wasteland of the cells creaks. I only let my arms flinch, moving from my side to wrap defensively around my stomach. Dull footsteps echo down the pathway that lead to the cell I’m in. I don’t cringe, not even when the sound of walking stops. 

I was not born into a rich family, but I was born into a proud one. Fear was practically a criminal act in my household. I’ve been trained to suppress all signs of weakness. My eyes don’t leave the stone wall, I mentally trace the pattern of a long crack in a specific rock. It reminds me of the slope of the Big Dipper. 

Will I ever see stars again? The answer leaves a sharp pain in my chest. 

“Mare told me about you.” 

The words jar me, my stomach dropping in revulsion. Mare had trusted him, and here he stands--successful because he’s a traitor. I know what it’s like to be the most overlooked sibling and to crave to change that. I know what it’s like to want to succeed more than you want air in your lungs, but I don’t think I’d ever betray someone. I like to think that there’s a line even the monster in me won’t cross. 

I don’t look at him, partially out of an attempt to protest and partially because I’m afraid of what I’ll see. “She might have mentioned you in passing.” 

His scoff is ridiculous. “She didn’t lie about your sense of humor.” 

That almost makes me wince. His words are too close, too personal. It’s like he knows me. I turn my. head, ready to cut through the uneasy beginning to get to the miserable middle if it brings me to the end faster. 

“You’re here to torment me, not make small talk.” Turning had been a mistake. I regret it instantly. His expression is unforgiving--cold, sharp, and made up of only angles. But that’s not why I stare. I did not expect him to be objectively attractive. The fine slope of his nose, the sharpness of his cheekbones, and the ice blue of his eyes. I need to snap out of this mindset. I’m sure his beauty will not be so distracting when he’s burning me. “Though some might consider that the same thing.” 

He scoffs again, the sound dry. The sneer of his lips does not diminish his attractiveness. The fact makes me loathe him. “I wonder if you’ll still be so prone to humor after you’ve been broken--any information of worth extracted from your thoughts.” 

“Let me save everyone the trouble and just tell you everything that I know now.” My back straightens despite the pain in my ribs. I look pathetic, dirty and in a torn dress. He’s regal, dressed in fine, all black clothing. “I know that Mare wanted to kill you today, I know that she needed a distraction and that her distraction needed to be expendable, which is why I’m sitting in front of you.” I squeeze my hands together awkwardly, a bit of genuine irritation rolling in my stomach. “That’s literally all I know, I’m not even part of the Guard.” I scratch the back of my wrist. If I were him, I wouldn’t believe that, but I’m being honest. How pitiful can one person be that they’re worth more disconnected from the group they work for than as an actual member? “You don’t take that kind of risk for someone that’s only skill set is in thought.” 

I didn’t mean to say that out loud, but I don’t regret it. Maybe he’ll think that my story is so pathetic it has to be true. “You have to know more than that.” 

“The Scarlet Guard only reaches out to me on a need-to-know basis, and anything worthwhile to you is something I clearly didn’t need to know.” In a way, I’m glad I can’t give him anything. “So are you going to kill me with a bullet or do you prefer more flamboyant executions?” My death should be plain. I am human completely--I bleed red and I have no powers. “I do think anything more than a simple death is more trouble than I’m worth.” 

His lips press together oddly, something beneath his expression tightening. “You don’t think your dearest friend will return for you?”

The sarcasm in his voice sparks something in me I thought only my sister could. “I think she has a lot of responsibilities and I wouldn’t blame her for having priorities.” 

His eyebrows draw together. “I think you’re painfully unaware of how attached to you she is.” I press my lips into a thin line. “She’ll come for you.”

Something selfish in me hopes that he’s right. No one has ever wanted me enough to come back for me. My mother wanted perfect daughters that knew how to only think in terms of trapping men with stable careers. My sister did it, but I could never manage, and to my mother that made me useless. 

“If you believe it,” I mumble beneath my breath.

I don’t know if he hears me. I can’t bring myself to care if he did. “For your sake, you better not have lied to me.” 

My back relaxes against the raspy wall, fighting down a grimace as the motion irritates my rib injury. “Cross my heart, Your Highness.” 

I watch him carefully, his expression turning into something much more grim. “A King is referred to as His Majesty.” 

“My father was a prominent war general and my mother only wanted daughters she could use to social climb.” I fight down a grin. “I know what I said.” 

His expression darkens into something bone chilling. “I am the King and you’ll refer to me as such or deal with even less pleasant circumstances.” 

I fight against the urge to cower, picturing Mare’s strength in my veins. There’s weakness in everyone, and if I squint I can see the thin cracks in him. “You have everything--the crown, the power, the support of the people, and it’s still not enough. You won and you still feel like you’re competing.” 

“You don’t know anything,” he seethes, practically growling. 

I shouldn’t press him, but the more he reacts, the more weaknesses are revealed. “I know what it’s like to have a sibling that’s the sun, and no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, you’re always trapped in a shadow.” 

The lighting makes his eyes look almost glazed over. “My mother will be here soon and the truth will be revealed.” 

He can run from me, but not the truth. Cal has nothing, he has everything--the father that never cared for him is dead, and yet he’s still trapped. Our similarities hurt me more than my physical injuries. 

Maven turns, his gaze moving off of me feels like the removal of heavy shackles. “It would do you well to not press me. You’re worth as much whole as you are broken.” 

There’s the strangest hint of something more to his voice. I wonder if he’s speaking to more than just me. “You haven’t won until that voice in your head telling you that you’re not enough is silenced.”

“You’re a powerless girl who isn’t even wanted by a dying cause and couldn’t find a husband to drag her above the poverty line. You know nothing about me, and if you keep pretending I’ll slaughter you in front of your dear friend.” 

He leaves without another word. I fall asleep with my back against the wall and my ribs aching. 

[monstersummongenre]

Ash & Chloe’s Friendship!

I felt the newest episode had a bit of a slight emphasis on Ash & Chloe's relationship in a way so I’m also gonna discuss their friendship, mainly though why I think Chloe is a good friend for Ash to have. (This post will include spoilers for Journey ep 135 Pokemon I’m Glad I Met You)

I realized a couple days ago that Chloe is actually a really good friend for Ash to have. Ash is emotion/instinct/impulse but he doesn't always know how to handle other people's feelings with care. Sometimes he misses other’s feelings completely and Chloe is his friend who tells him what he's missing, openly helps him shift his perspective by laying out the information he needs.

One of the most notable times this happens, Chloe letting Ash know what he missed, the information he doesn’t have, is in the episode Betrayed, Bothered and Beleaguered. In this episode, Pikachu is starting to feel jealous and let out as Ash puts just about all his focus into train Riolu. Ash misses this completely. So when Pikachu gets the attention he’s craving from Delia instead, he decides to go back to Pallet Town, with only Mr. Mime knowing this decision and not being able to inform anyone as he tagged along to ensure Pikachu was okay. 

Now we don’t see this scene on screen as this is a Pikachu-centric episode but after Pikachu leaves, Ash looks around for him. Unable to find him and confused as to why Pikachu would go mia, Ash ends up talking to Chloe, who saw something similar with Yamper literally in the episode before. Chloe had been able to peg Pikachu’s feelings and so tells Ash the why, what was going on, how Pikachu was feeling. This was important for Ash to hear so that in the long run he could course correct.

This isn’t the only time Chloe has filled in information for Ash, nor that Ash had missed someone’s feelings completely.

On Ash’s part, if you go back to one of the earlier seasons, the end of Johto for example, in the episode “Gotta Catch Ya Later”, there’s this scene where Misty gets her bike returned, completely fixed. Ash sees this as a good thing, because well Misty had really wanted her bike fixed, plus her sisters just called saying they need her to watch the gym. However Ash turning to Misty and pointing out that it’s great, now she can get home fast, isn’t at all what she had wanted to hear. She’s upset, he’s confused, she runs off. Ash doesn’t get why she responded that way. In that instance he had Brock who suggests that maybe Misty wanted to keep traveling with them.

In the most recent episode, Journeys episode 135, Ash is in a sort of similar situation. He’s just announced that he and Pikachu will definitely be heading off on a journey. Goh’s upset, Ash is confused, Goh runs off. 

Instead of Brock, Ash has Chloe who, though she wants to go find Goh and make sure he’s okay, is still taking the time to put into words what Goh’s reaction didn’t. She told Ash what he didn’t know, that Goh was considering going on a journey but couldn’t quite decide because of his feelings, because of their friendship.

Not everyone is going to always tell Ash everything, as a matter of fact, I’m not sure how often people actually full-on tell him things, in regards to their feelings and stuff. So when he misses things, he misses them, some things he couldn’t have known or at least couldn’t have known to look for. So I think it’s good for him to have Chloe as a friend because as she’s shown, she will tell him what he doesn’t know.

So yeah, that’s what Chloe does as a friend for Ash. She’s there helping him see the parts of the picture out of his view. 

I don’t fully have it worded out in my head on Ash’s end but I will share what I’m thinking so far.

On the flip side, Ash just gives her some nice help and pleasant attention really. Like I’m sure and I know he could help her in regards to Pokemon but when I think about their interactions, they’re very nice moments, like Ash inviting her to join him and Goh to wherever it was they were heading, or him helping her out with her fossil in that one episode. 

I’m not going to get too into it, but I think Chloe is rather lonely. Goh’s always been off doing his own thing, same for her family, and when she tries to hang out with them they sometimes flake out on her or hold her up. But Ash is like just a friend. And I haven’t quite figured out how to say it, I need to rewatch/watch more episodes with the two of them in them but honestly I think that’s important too. I do know he does sorta flake out on her in the episode she tries Contests Lives by opting to battle instead of heading to the Contest Hall, so maybe that’s part why I haven’t fully figured out what I’m trying to say but I really think that he is a pleasant and good friend for her to have. Maybe he helps her relax.

I’m not quite sure but even in the most recent episode, the emphasis I was referring to before honestly was simply the framing of shots.

They sit and walk next to each other throughout the episode, when theoretically you would expect either of them to be next to Goh, and their were times they were but the times they were interacting was notable.

I hope that if I’m right about Chloe continuing to be an important character in the next series, that they get some more moments of friendship. Maybe Chloe will be one of Ash’s travel companions in the next series while Goh does his own thing lol

[asterjennifer]

Hey! Could i request MC and ge Saeran having twins but not telling anyone they are having twins? Like people knew they were having a baby but they purposely kept it a secret that they were having two? I think it would be a fun prank/surprise for a certain brother hahaha

🎀 I am certain that Seven would lose his shit and Saeran had to be like "Don't scream! The babies!" Or sth 😂 🎀

One like the Other

Fandom: Mystic Messenger

Pairing: GE Saeran x Reader

Category: Fluff

Warnings: 707 real name

Word count: 1211

Author's Note: Although I detest pregnancy, this it a really sweet concept

Summary: You and him kept it a secret from everyone until the time came.

When you revealed it, they lost it. Or at least, some of them did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Please follow me RFA, the party coordinator and her husband are this way."

The nurse said warmly, like she just had seen them and found their new family member absolutely adorable. Yoosung pressed his palms together, he and Saeyoung felt the most excited about the reveal.

"I wonder if it will have mint eyes? You know, because Saeran, although he had amber ones from birth."

"Wouldn't that imply the drug being into the system of the child? Hopefully not."

Jaehee wondered, slight concern written over her features by that thought. Yoosung let a long "oh" come over his lips before agreeing with the assistant. Zen raised an eyebrow as Jumin himself held a tiny camera in his hands, judging him just by the looks.

"What do you have a phone for trust fund kid?"

The CEO ignored the tone of his voice, looking over to the redhead and how he repeatedly shoved his glasses back up, after all, Saeyoung had been dying to know if it's a girl or boy. But neither you nor his brother spilled the information yet. Instead Jumin played a bit with the settings, trying to remember what V'd done in the past to get the best pictures.

"A real camera feels more appropriate for the situation. Feel free to use your phone, Zen."

"We're here, please enter. But be quiet, I am certain the babies are sleeping."

All of the members apart from Jumin winded their eyes, Saeyoung's about to ask as the nurse opened the door. The first thing they're greeted with was Saeran himself, white hair with pink tips still a part of his appearance even after all this time. He said he preferred the white somehow. Mint eyes glowing bright, albeit his body betrayed he's tired. No wonder, he stood by your side ever since entering the hospital.

"Hello guys, I'm glad you're here- Is that a camera?"

He asked while pointing to the rectangle inside Jumin's hands, who nodded to confirmt the obvious guess. Saeyoung then grabbed his brother by the shoulders, shaking him like he's about to die.

"Com'on!! Brother stop torturing me and show me! I need to see the sweetheart!"

Jaehee giggled to herself. Saeran let out an amused chuckle before he stopped his brother, taking a step back to let the whole RFA inside the room.

"You porbably mean the sweethearts."

He corrected. Yoosung gasped as he found you sitting on the bed, hair a slight mess with a very drained yet peaceful expression. Zen even brought tea with him, considering you loved it so much back then.

"Oh my god!!"

Saeyoung yelled out after finding more than one little baby inside your arms. There were one in both, with the same shape of face and color of baby hair. Saeran slapped his other half by the shoulder, giving a serious face after the yelling.

"Shhhh. You wake them!"

"Oh my god (N)... They're.."

Jaehee said breathless as she came beside you, sharing the wide smile with you as you knew what she's trying to say. And indeed, after Yoosung sat down at the edge of the bed, happiness spreading over his lilac eyes, you giggled roughly. You must've been even more tired than your husband.

"Yep. Welcome to the curse of twins: continued."

You joked, looking to Saeyoung for a reaction and his whole face lit up. Jumin congratulated you quietly, with Zen right after before stroking your head like you've just done something nice.

"They're so cute! Did they open their eyes yet?"

The actor asked curious, you looked down to the one in the right arm and then to the one inside the left. Saeran couldn't keep the smile off his face.

"Yeah, they're having our eyes, Saeyoung."

His voice's so clam, it's even prettier to listen to it this way. Saeyoung stared at his brother with surprise before looking back to the children. For a moment silence filled the room, then a sob is to witness. Everyone's startled as they saw the older twin with red hair pulling off his glasses to rub the tears away. You pouted with sympathy.

"Aww, Saeyoung... You're such a sweet uncle!"

"Oh right! He really is uncle now!"

Yoosung stated, only realizing it now. Saeran rolled his eyes by the ugly crying of this brother, took him into the arm regardless.

"Jeez.. And I thought I would cry like a baby."

"I-I'm sorry– I'm jus– I'm happy o-okay?!"

Saeran hushed Saeyoung for comfort but also to prevent him from being loud enough to wake the newborn twins. You sighed happily, looking around the group before shaking your head.

"Hopefully these two won't be such a handful though."

"Pfft.. haha!"

[teawaffles]

The Fugitives from the Fire: Chapter 8 / End

——It had been an absolutely bizarre day.

After Sherlock Holmes and the others had solved the case, that was what the man known to them as Jerry Dorff thought.

Presently, he was walking along a thoroughfare in the city, a piece of paper in hand. He still wore the bandages that had made him a suspect in the arson-and-murder case; as people walked past, his unusual appearance sent them casting dubious and uncomfortable glances openly in his direction.

However, he’d already grown used to such negative reactions. Paying no mind, he continued walking towards his destination, and thought back to the events that had resulted in this curious appearance of his.

——Originally, he’d been a capable businessman: one who had expanded a retail shop into a major commercial establishment. But one day, he was betrayed by a noble he’d thought of as a close friend. He was kidnapped abruptly in the dead of night, shot in a deserted area of London, burned all over while still alive, and thrown into the River Thames.

Yet he survived. After being swept downstream, he regained consciousness; somehow, he managed to climb out the river and save himself. At this point, he thought of returning home, and telling his child and his friend that he was alright—— but the moment he considered that, he stopped.

The man who’d tried to kill him was part of the nobility: an institution which wielded absolute power in this country. If that man knew he’d survived, he would attempt to eliminate him once and for all. On top of that, he could even be placing the people important to him in harm’s way.

As such, the man relinquished everything. He gave up proving that he’d survived, a life of peace, as well as the chance to see his family and friends again. From then on, he never revealed his true identity to anyone, and led a solitary life in the slums under the false name Jerry.

However, just the other day, a mysterious letter had arrived at the inn where he was staying. Written on it was his real name, and some simple instructions.

To summarise its contents: an incident would break out at a nearby inn; he was to get himself involved as one of the suspects; after which, the famous detective Sherlock Holmes would solve the case. Then, once the man had seen that the case was resolved, he was to go to this address.

And in reality, in the case involving the famous detective, the man had indeed been caught up as a suspect.

At first, when he read the letter, he was wrought with unease that his survival had finally been discovered. But if that had been the case, it would’ve been an assassin rather than a letter that arrived on his doorstep. As such, he surmised that at the very least, the author of the letter meant him no harm.

Moreover, the occurrence and resolution of the incident had happened exactly as the letter said it would; from that, it was apparent that this person had considerable foresight. Hence, powerless as he was right now, it would be mean nothing for him to disobey those instructions anyway. Having arrived at that conclusion, the man resolved to head to that address, even as apprehension took root within him.

“……Only being able to go with the flow — just like a puppet on strings, huh.”

He murmured self-abasingly, then stopped. He had reached the address written on the letter.

He was in the heart of one of London’s shopping districts. It was dusk, and the street lamps were lined up like candles on a birthday cake, casting a gentle glow all around. As usual, the passers-by cast strange looks in his direction, but the man didn’t care a whit.

Amidst the stream of people, he stood stock-still, his gaze fixed on the enormous building before him.

This was the department store he had, in the past, guided to success together with his friend. It seemed that a big incident a while back had forced the business to close. But as he soaked in its majestic atmosphere, a sense of nostalgia surged into his chest.

Nevertheless, at this point, he was no better than a recluse. No matter what end awaited this department store — the very one he had watched grow like his own child — that had nothing to do with him anymore. How was his precious family spending their days? That was immaterial to him too.

A firm resolve; and within it, an inexorable sorrow and regret. Perhaps the one who’d sent this letter was hoping to dredge up these emotions within him. If that were the case, then although he didn’t know who they were, he was certain they had rather bad taste.

Carrying a faint indignation, as well as an emptiness in his heart, the man made to leave.

Then, a little further down the street, a carriage caught his eye as it slowed to a stop.

✦ ✦ ✦ ✦

“——Hey, William. You came to my house all of a sudden, picked me up in this carriage, then brought me all the way here — what on earth are you doing?”

As they rode together in a carriage, that was what Helena Curtis asked William James Moriarty seated across her. His elder brother Albert was seated next to him, and their youngest brother Louis held the reins in the driver’s seat.

However, both William and Albert simply responded with meaningful smiles.

“You’ll know it when you alight……. Since everything up till now, has been part of my plan.”

“………?”

She still couldn’t grasp the meaning behind his words; but for the time being, she did as he said and descended from the carriage.

Then, she found herself standing before the place where that brutal occupation had occurred several days earlier, and where she had ended up making William’s acquaintance: that very department store.

“……Maybe they’re going to unfurl a banner saying ‘Congratulations on your reopening!’ or something like that?”

Helena murmured as she gazed up at the building before her. Now, its enormity seemed almost hollow. She had thought of this store as her second home; part of her had been reluctant to see it fade away, but she also understood that there had been no other choice. For better or for worse, she was an intelligent girl.

What on earth was their purpose in bringing her here?

With that question on the tip of her tongue, Helena was just about to turn back to the carriage, when a voice came calling out to her from the side.

“……Helena?”

“——Eh?”

Her gaze shot toward the direction of the voice; there, stood a man whose face was wrapped all over in bandages. As the evening sun shone on him from behind, he looked almost like a demon from a child’s picture book.

Helena was shocked.

But it wasn’t because this suspicious-looking man had suddenly called her by name. What had taken her by surprise, was that ‘colour’.

——A warm, and slightly lonely colour, like clouds drenched in the evening sun.

It was dusk now: perhaps she had simply confused it with the sky? No, definitely not. That colour had certainly come from this man.

Then, the man seemed to have realised something all of a sudden, and turned his face away.

“Apologies. It seems I was mistaken. You reminded me of an acquaintance’s child.”

He said that as if making excuses to someone else, then turned away and tried to leave.

But Helena stared right at his back and shouted.

“Dad! It’s you, isn’t it!?”

Her voice had been clear, and imbued with a strong conviction. The girl’s plea washed over him, and the man looked down.

“……You’re mistaken. I’m not related to you.”

“That’s a lie! Your colour is the same as my dad’s! I’m absolutely sure on that!”

At this point, her voice was already trembling. With all her strength, she dashed toward him. He’d stood there with his fists clenched, and his back still turned; but finally, as if tearing himself free from everything, he spun around and knelt on one knee, hugging his daughter in his arms.

“I missed you so much……”

Helena spoke, her face buried in the front of his tattered, worn-out shirt. Even without looking at her, the man knew tears were flowing freely down her cheeks.

“……It’s been so long. And you’ve gotten so big.”

He too smiled at his daughter, no longer caring about the gazes of the people around him. Just for a moment, it was as if the bustle of the city had faded away, and the evening sun bathed the reunion of this long-separated family in its tender glow.

If only time could stop at this moment, they wouldn’t have to suffer the anguish of the impending tragedy. With that thought in mind, even as he felt a pang of regret, he pulled his daughter away from his chest.

“Helena. I’m glad I got to see you again. But, it’s no use: if he finds out I’m still alive——”

“——You need not worry about that anymore.”

Right then, William called out to him as he got off the carriage.

“……You are?”

“My name is William James Moriarty. I was fortunate enough to have made friends with Miss Helena.”

Wiping the tears from her eyes, Helena spread out her arms in joy.

“Thanks to William, I also saved Mr Kevin’s life, you know. Also, that noble, Andy — he can’t lay a hand on us anymore.”

“Is that…… true?”

From within the depths of his bandages, the man’s eyes widened, and he looked in William’s direction once again. At that, William responded with a smile full of warmth.

“This may be a bit too sudden, and perhaps you will need some time to process it, but that will not be an issue. We have completely eliminated that which has been tormenting all of you.”

“That…… How?”

“About that, please speak with your daughter in your own time after this.”

The man was more bewildered than overjoyed; but William left only those words with him, and stepped into the carriage once again. Her face brimming with smiles, Helena looked at William in the carriage, as well as Albert seated inside, and Louis in the driver’s seat.

“To everyone in the Moriarty family: truly, thank you. No matter how many times I say that, it will never be enough.”

William bowed respectfully, and then the carriage set off. As he watched the man stand there blankly, and the young girl waving at them as hard as she could, a gentle smile rose to his face.

Seeing that, Albert chuckled.

“So, is this the finishing touch?”

William nodded.

“That’s right, Albert nii-san.”

——Searching for Helena’s father, and reuniting them. That had been William’s plan this time around.

In order to pronounce judgement on Andy at the survival game, they had been looking into what the man did to Helena’s father, when William landed on the possibility that he was still alive and in hiding somewhere.

They had commenced their search right away, but it seemed the man was leading a rather inconspicuous life — his whereabouts were a mystery. Hence, William took advantage of the department store attackers who had fled from the police.

Those men were born and raised in the slums; having committed numerous petty crimes for a long time, they were well-versed in the art of escaping from the Yard. Of course, among the streets they’d grown up in, they were also familiar with the best places to evade detection. Putting it another way, one could take it that wherever these men had chosen to lay low, that same place would be perfect for Helena’s father to hide himself, seeing as he wanted to mask his existence. Hence, as soon as the fugitives holed up in one place, William would probe the surrounding area, and when he’d determined that Helena’s father was not there, he would let the fugitives catch wind of the Yard’s presence, and drive them on to their next hiding spot.

After repeating this a few times, as William had predicted, they finally discovered a man who appeared to fit the bill. He stayed at a certain inn, calling himself Jerry Dorff; but having laid low for such a long time, the man had become extremely distrustful — it would be no mean feat to call him out to meet Helena. Forcibly abducting him was out of the question, and even if they had brought Helena to meet him, he might mistake it as a trap set by the noble who’d betrayed him.

After exploring various methods, William chose to send him a single letter. Written on it was a full description of the incident that would occur — serving as a prophecy of sorts, to show that he meant him no harm, as well as a final notice: hinting that he couldn’t escape the net William had cast. After which, all that was left was to send an anonymous tip-off to the police regarding the fugitives’ location.

Then the detective and the Yard moved to hunt down the two fugitives, and Helena’s father was led to this place. Everything had unfurled from atop the palm of the “Lord of Crime” — and all of it occurred without the slightest deviation from his plan.

As a modest reward, William had been able to witness a beautiful love between parent and child. Sharing a meaningful look with Albert, he called out to his younger brother.

“Shall we, Louis?”

“Yes, William nii-san.”

With that, Louis urged their horse on a little faster.

Now that their twilight-coloured plan had been accomplished, they were headed in the opposite direction from the sunset sky, still radiant with the sun’s last rays — and towards one which was already dyed pitch-black.

When the sun went down, this city would once again be ruled by the darkness of the night. They would continue to race through its darkest parts, and work towards their goal. Finally, dawn would arrive. All the darkness would be dispelled, and a new day would begin: one that would bring people hope.

The carriage continued racing forward in a straight line. As it disappeared into the streets that had begun to dissolve into the gloom, William James Moriarty smiled.

One day, the morning sun would shine upon this world, and the ideals they created would come to life — that, was what he believed.

T/N: …When Helena’s father was revealed to be alive, I was oh my god what if—— and then they did get reunited and I was about to cry… It’s a better end than I could’ve imagined! (tears of joy)