#sibling and i was so excited. BLANK STARE .

[nomairuins]

ive always wanted to play dnd but truly i think its too late for me and i just dont have it

[hanrinz]

STARRY EYES SPARKIN' UP MY DARKEST NIGHTS.

pairing. lyney x gn! reader ( word count. 1.1k ) genre. strangers to lovers

synopsis. wherein lyney falls for you literally and figuratively, and he doesn't mind it quite a bit. or just bits of pieces of him trying being a romantic.

content. fluff, reader is not the traveller, flirty lyney, he's ooc sowsaury everyone, lynette is tired with the two of you. minimal proofread.

notes. hihi this is for @sixosix da only real one this is for u!! *does that corny pointing in movies* dribble dribble shoots! i just rlly need to write for him, bc he's a silly.

lyney was never star-struck, if anything he was more used to people being enchanted when they saw him.

but he would never expect it to happen to him, after all only the most beautiful things can capture the eyes of a magician—with life full of unexpected encounters and lively colors of shows—to all of which he found on you.

you, who came to the lands of justice from the lands of freedom—never being tied down to the shackles of laws—with an ecstatic gaze, you're here as where the winds have brought you. truly he thinks the momentary sight of you just by walking in the streets of fontaine didn't give enough justice for him to memorize your face. the sunlight that just makes you shine more and the way your eyes reminds him of the stars, warm they were.

and your smile. archons, he adores it. the way it just never leaves your face, you're so pretty.

he never knew anything about love, only with the books he grew up with of a fairytale he reads to his siblings at night—a hopeless romantic he was.

love at first sight. he was falling, hard and fast. like he was tumbling down into the bottomless chasm of just you. he's liking it and it should take him aback, it should scare him, but he can't find himself to do so.

it was unbelievable and it was magical to be able to know a feeling that you can know so much, but was foreign altogether. he knew right then, he was star-struck with you.

and he doesn't know what compels him to move and make his way to you. excitement dancing around his nerves as he nears you, with a smile on his face and a newfound fascination.

and just before he reaches, an unexistent rock trips him all the way to you.

it's embarrassing, lynette thinks. watching his brother fall in love, that is—literally and figuratively.

he flashes a smile at you. and you crouch down, asking him if he's okay. you're worried and he tries not to grin so much, he only replies to you with,

"i'm fine, now that you're here." he winks.

he took it as a chance to take out a rainbow rose out from his sleeves handing out to you. and you laughed, probably another thing that he finds enchanting—it's unfair, for you to have him this entrance by you.

what a memorable first meeting he had with you.

lynette cringes—her brother's antics are an embarrassment to die for. it's not a crime as far as the laws said so, but she sure hopes it is.

because now, his brother is here head in the clouds with the thought of you. his face all, but with lovey-dovey eyes.

"isn't y/n so pretty?" he sighed dreamily.

lynette looks at him with a blank stare, "you've said that for the thirteenth time today. yes, y/n is pretty."

"should i prepare a magic trick? maybe a dove or a bunny. it can be onstage, or just in the seats? ah, i have so many things to prepare..." and so many more, if she was a stranger, she would've thought her own brother is outrageous for the ideas that come to his mind just to woo you. "come now, dear sister for i have to prepare for my special guest."

it's a feeble attempt, really.

his own brother faltering down, just from you standing in front of him and anyone might not see it, but she knows his own brother.

lovestruck he was. when he took you to him showing his trick of lighting up the night in a single snap, a flower on your head magically placed delicately and he thinks you're just pretty.

"do you like it?"

another rainbow rose.

"they're pretty.."

your mesmerization, it takes his breath away. if anything he wants you to look at him, how you look at everything you love. he wants you to love him too, like how the stars never leave the skies and how the sun reflects its light on the sea.

he wants you just like how his hands die in need to reach you, how can you be so cruel to him this way?

and he breathes out, "i know."

"do you like dancing?"

the both of you stand on the stage, where you sit in one of the carts that has all their props now kept for their next show.

"back in mondstadt, we had a festival that we celebrated...and we would dance at night till the flowers fall." you recount, fondness creeps up on you with the memory.

he knows this, windblume—if he's not mistaken, he shouldn't be. after all what are those books he read for night after night just to know the culture of mondstadt? just to know you. you didn't need to catch wind of that, he can only hope charlotte wouldn't slip up with this one on you.

he imagines, you dancing with a smile on your face that he loves so much. and he wants to see it, to be able to live that vision in his head, but having you in his arms instead.

"would you dance with me then?" he offers his hand, making a little bow to you.

and you giggle, yet again at his antics. "i would love to."

"may i?" and you take his hand, he feels warm, giddy from how your hand fits together with his.

with a smile he holds you and leads you to dance to a sound the two of you can only hear and maybe it's the heartbeats that plays in your mind, but lyney thinks everything just seems more beautiful now with you here.

he's used to everyone's eyes on him as a magician, it's a normal thing. but to have you this close to him and your eyes on him, he thinks the spotlight doesn't make him special now, just the way you do.

if this was the fairytale he's known all his life, he hopes now that it will always be like those ever afters. don't wake him up and drop the glass of his heart, because he has so many more dreams he'd like to come to life with you.

he's memorizing the story now, how your eyes shine and warms him wholly, your hair dancing around as he sways you and your lips that holds a sound that he would like to hear every day.

the song ends and your hearts sync. he let's go and step back to kiss your hand, delicately with him keeping eye contact and it means so much more.

and he pulls out yet another rainbow rose out of his coat, and his eyes glazed. "it's windblume this season in mondstadt, isn't it?"

passion and romantic encounters.

"...let this rose be my oath to you."

oh, how the magician can be much of a romantic all for you. he hopes he'll be the first and the last one to give you such a gift.

◞♡ likes and reblogs are highly appreciated! here's a lyney fic bc i have beef with him <3

[yourheart-inmyhands]

Lyney, Aether and venti’s reaction to them breaking their once so cheery darling? They barely talk, eat, drink plus the blank look in the darlings eyes

i apologize but i won't be writing for mc's anymore so Lumine, Aether, Stelle, and Caelus are no longer available for requesting :[ i hope you enjoy lyney and venti though!

Warning: this post contains yandere-themes, including implied being held against will, being mentally broken, delusional behaviors, and other potential topics. Please read at your own risk!

Yandere!Lyney would be heartbroken, he hadn’t meant for it to happen, really! He just, he was so busy with performing and ensuring that his siblings were both okay that he had forgotten to socialize you. He had stopped by daily to drop off fresh food and water but outside of a five minute check in to make sure you weren’t dead and couldn’t escape, he hadn’t had much time to hang around.

“Oh dear, what am I to do now?” Lyney paces the room uncertainly, hesitant to even look over at you. He didn’t like the way you sat there so mindlessly, hollow eyes staring blankly ahead as you simply exist. It wasn’t right, it wasn’t supposed to happen. Lyney had tried everything he could think of to jog you back to reality, bringing you some of your favorite things to do, offering you your favorite foods or even to go outside, but none got any response out of you. So now, he walked from end to end of the room, hat in one hand and teeth chewing anxiously on the other. He didn’t know what to do, he didn’t want this, he didn’t deserve this.

Yandere!Venti would be rather indifferent to it. He knew that humans had much more fragile mindsets so he had seen this coming. In his eyes though, you’re simply putting up less of a fight now! You’ve become the most perfect, compliant darling he could ask for!

“Good morning! I hope you slept well.” Venti’s voice is cheery as he helps you to sit up in bed, setting up a breakfast he had made for you on a try on your lap. He ignores the way your eyes stare blankly into his, or the way you don’t respond to him, that’s ok! He doesn’t mind spoon feeding you your breakfast either, he thinks it’s more romantic that way! “I hope you’re excited, today is pancake day!” Everything was so much easier with you now, no more fights or crying. Venti really liked this new you.

[dyslexic-mess]

Tiniest DCXDP au nibblet before I go to bed:

The bat boys speak several languages. Which they fly into on a regular basis. Dick will go off into Romanian when he's being effectinate, Tim is angry in French, Jason rambles in Spanish and Damien mutters in latin.

(Cass also slips in and out of sign regularly and steph knows German but mostly just the swear words)

It happens enough there not phased by eachother doing it and are used to getting the general jist or rasing an eyebrow when whoever speaking is done and adding. "Okay. Now in English, please?"

Enter Danny who, since his death, has this bad habit of slipping into ghost speak when he's not concentrating for some resosen. Zoned out, angry, disinterested, excited, it's like when he died his first language became ghost speak and sometimes he forgets to translate before he talks.

After your usual 'getting adopted into the batfamily' hyjinx, Danny accidentally slips up in a passionate ramble about a picture NASA released or something. He catches himself and panics, only for whichever sibling he was talking at to roll there eyes and smile.

"English, Danny?"

He decides to do as they did and gloss over it but this is pre phantom reveal so he panics internally. Thing is, everyone else dose it to. Even Bruce. To the point that he stops thinking about it to.

It dosn't come up till Duke comes from a visit, Danny gose on an impassioned rant about the anti ecto laws in ghost speak and Duke turns 'round and asks what language he's actually speaking?? Because it dosnt sound like any languages he's heard????

Everyone turns because, hold on. That's a valid point! What language dose danny keep slipping in and out of??

This is a catalyst towards the reveal.

Also! Before that, everyone thought Danny was an impressive level of bilingual. He always seemed to know what everyone was saying, even when they weren't speaking English.

He isn't bilingual really, its more of a cheat code. It turns out getting crowned ghost king also grants you some kind of internal universal translator because Danny, simmilerly, didn't actually notice his new siblings spoke any other languages before Tim got annoyed and started ranting in French about how unreasonable Bruce was and how jason was trying his best and Danny was following his point completly before he looked over and saw Jason watching with just. A confused. Blank stare.

And then he shrugged to Danny and said "I'm sure whatever he's saying is a good point and I'd back him up, if he's say it in English, PLEASE-"

Which solidly clued Danny into the fact that Tim had, infact, not been speaking English

[snorky]

You Can Hate Me If You Want, But Your Desires Don't Lie

Hey y’all! Here is a Quinn Hughes, very cliché, enemies to lovers, snowed in a cabin trope. Besides that, I’m very proud of how he’s doing so far in this season, and I am very excited to see it continue. I hope you all have a lovely holiday season, and take care of yourself!

Pairing: Quinn Hughes x F!Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: Slight bickering, nothing more nor less.

—

—

As he looked outside the cabin’s living room window, the snow didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon. It fell from the darkened sky like meteorites crashing through the atmosphere endlessly.

“It doesn’t look like Jack and Luke are making it up here soon,” he cursed under his breath.

She lounged in a leather reclining chair across the living room from him, watching him intently as he reached into his pocket for his phone to call his siblings. 

“Tough, huh?” She rolled her eyes in annoyance, knowing that she’d be snowed in the cabin with Quinn for the next day.

He gave her a dismissive glance. “Feeling’s mutual,” he mumbled.

Between Quinn and her, things had been sour since middle school, and with his younger brother Luke being best friends with her, he couldn’t avoid her. Every time she was around, his breaths were uneven, words caught in his throat like fish in a net.

He didn’t know why he disliked her so much, or why she seemed to dislike him back. Nonetheless, his heart may or may not have harbored a slight crush on her, as immature as it was, but he tried to push those feelings aside. Perhaps for a few days, few weeks, months, however long it was, it all turned into years it seemed.

Stolen glances, unspoken tension, lightning struck between them, thunder rumbled underneath the surface.  

Luke picked up the phone on the other side, answering Quinn’s call. All she could tell from his tense expressions was that the two younger brothers couldn’t make it up to the cabin. When he looked back at her, he didn’t seem too bright and happy, although he never did have a satisfactory resting face in her opinion.

“They can’t come up because the snowfall is too much,” he sighed. “I guess they didn’t check too far ahead for the weather.”

Humming in response, she turned her attention back to the book she had in hand. She was not too entertained by it, but it held as a distraction to keep her gaze away from Quinn. It was the cliché “best-friend’s-older-brother” situation with him, but as much as she hated the thought of it, she couldn’t help but keep lingering stares on him.

He was just, too pretty, too ethereal. It’d be a sin not to admire someone so beautiful.

Rustling noises came from the kitchen area, presumably Quinn searching for snacks in the pantry. Luckily for him, they had both already brought snacks and some non-perishable groceries to the cabin, stocked in the fridge and in the cabinets.

“Quinny?” She asked in a sing-song tone, cringing internally at her antics. “Can you make a bowl of popcorn for me?”

“Yeah sure, whatever,” he responded, irritation laced in his voice.

Grabbing a bowl, he poured some premade popcorn into it, being quite generous knowing that he’d be mooching off of her bowl because ‘it tastes better’ despite the popcorn coming from the same bag.

As he handed the bowl to her, he stood there idly beside where she sat, a blank stare drawn on his face.

A confused expression formed on her face as she looked up at him. “Are you going to sit down or—?”

“That’s my seat,” he stated plainly.

“You don’t ‘own’ seats, Quinn.”

“No, I know,” he said as he grabbed a handful of her popcorn and stuffed it in his mouth. “But still, that’s my seat.” 

“That’s my popcorn!” He shrugged at her reaction as she reluctantly got up from her seat, moving herself to the couch beside it as Quinn took a seat in the recliner.

She gave him an annoyed look before turning her attention to the TV, putting on some sappy Hallmark Christmas Movie. It was the same old thing with each new movie, but it was such a classic. Tear-jerking, seemingly impossible circumstances combined with romance could never go wrong, to her at least.

“This movie again? Really?” Quinn scoffed, his hand motioning at the TV. “It’s sooo cliché—like you know exactly what’s going to happen next,” he said, slumping into the recliner to the point where it’d seemed like he had become one with the chair.

Grabbing a piece of popcorn, she put it in her mouth, slightly entertained by his ramblings. “Go on.” She motioned.

“What do you mean?”

She let out a small laugh, “Keep talking, since you seem to hate Hallmark movies so much.” Her lips upturned into an amused smile, watching Quinn intently as he tried to explain himself.

“Well, it’s just boring, I guess, in the sense that it’s the same remake with a slightly different plot,” he said, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck.

“Yes, but so are most movies,”

They both fell silent, the sound of the sweet-jolly Christmastime music humming in the background as the movie continued to play. It remained like this for a while before Quinn moved from his recliner, getting up to turn off some of the lights in the cabin, dimming the living room slightly.

She noticed his absence, and she quickly got up, moving herself to the recliner, and positioned herself comfortably before continuing to watch the movie, her legs swung over the sides of the chair.

As the movie went on, she became extremely invested despite seeing this movie on multiple occasions before. Her eyes never seemed to drift away from the screen that illuminated the living room, a gut-wrenching, heart-aching scene displayed on the TV as she watched intently.

The two lovers seemed to look at each other in the eyes with such sweet, pure desire, their lips parted in gentle laughter, warm breaths visible in the air as they held hands and stood close. Soft Christmas lights fluttered in the background, seemingly drifting like fireflies around the couple as they danced in the snow.

Quinn came back shortly, his footsteps as quiet as possible as he noticed her comfortable position as she rested on the recliner. He grinned mischievously to himself, knowing that the idea that he had in mind would most likely end up in consequences.

“Boo!”

She let out a blood-curdling scream when Quinn scared her, popping out from behind the recliner suddenly with a scary-looking mask over his face. 

Laughing at her reaction, he moved the mask off his face, letting it sit on the side of his head instead, his messy brown hair slightly stuck to his forehead, a wide grin on his face.

“Wow, you were so scared!” He continued to laugh, hand on the back of the recliner to stabilize himself, meanwhile, she had a rather irritated look on her face as she repositioned herself on the recliner. 

Her face heated up in embarrassment, a flush of warm red on her neck and cheeks. “What the hell, Quinn!” she grumbled, throwing a piece of popcorn at him. “That was not funny!”

“You should’ve seen it though,” he chuckled, laughter dying down a bit. “You almost jumped out of your seat!”

Turning her back to him, she faced the TV and continued to watch the movie, attempting to ignore him for the rest of the night. The classic silent treatment. A couple of times she almost faltered, small talk easy to her lips when she was around him, but she held her silence.

However, Quinn didn’t seem to like that, slightly disappointed in the absence of her voice and lack of attention on him. “Hellooo?” He waved a hand in front of her face, causing her to move her head slightly over to see the screen. “Heyyy?”

Plopping himself down on the ground next to the recliner, he leaned onto it, letting out a sigh as he rested his head against it. His hand trailed to her bowl of popcorn, taking a piece or two, and to his surprise, she didn’t seem to mind.

As the movie went on, he slowly became more and more invested in the movie, each scene seemingly more magical and intense than the last.

 “Anyone home in that empty head?” Her voice snapped him out of the trance that the movie had on him. 

He quickly looked up at her, a little embarrassed that he was caught watching the movie as well. “Yeah,” he spoke quietly, the words leaving his mouth like a whisper. “What’s up?”

She grabbed a piece of popcorn and tossed it in her mouth. “Nothin’, just thought you hated Hallmark movies,”

“I don’t hate them—”

“But you said you did?”

He paused and thought about his words, remembering his previous statement about the topic earlier that night. “Okay, well, maybe I magically got blessed by the power of Hallmark movie magic and had a change of heart suddenly,” he spoke in a sarcastic tone, making her laugh.

Rolling her eyes at him, she chuckled. “Okay Mr. ‘I-Had-A-Change-Of-Heart’,” she said as she got up out of her seat. 

As she walked to the kitchen, her bowl in hand, his eyes watched her curiously, wondering what she was doing. Once he heard the water running from the kitchen, he assumed that she was just washing her bowl, and so turned his attention back to the movie.

It was only a few minutes too late until he realized that she had broken her oath of silence.

“You did it! You spoke!” He got up from the ground like an excited toddler, or rather, a young child who just won a game at recess. “Ha! I knew you couldn’t ignore me for the whole night!” he said smugly, walking into the kitchen to join her.

She remained focused on her task, not turning to face him as she finished off rinsing her bowl, but her lips parted as she responded to him. “I could never, Quinn,” she spoke, her voice smooth like honey to his ears. “Could never ignore you.”

Butterflies seemed to be pinned to the insides of his stomach, fluttering as a slight blush was dusted on his cheeks. “You as well,” he spoke under his breath, nervous that if he was slightly louder, she would catch on to the shakiness of his voice.

He walked back to the living room after grabbing a blanket from the closet nearby, settling down cozily on the recliner as he continued to watch the movie. Shortly after, she came back into the living room, lying down on the couch on her side to face the TV.

The night only seemed to grow colder as it went on, the heating seemingly doing nothing in the cabin. Quinn only noticed a slight chill in the air, but she felt like she was freezing. Her hands felt cold, as well as her feet and the tip of her nose. 

She shivered slightly, curling up instinctively to try and keep herself warm. He looked over at her in slight worry, his scary-looking Halloween mask still resting on the side of his head. Getting up, he grabbed his blanket and placed it on her, causing her to look up at him in confusion.

“What? No—” She pushed the blanket back to him, making him hold it in his hands. “You can keep the blanket since it’s cold,”

He shook his head in opposition, denying the blanket. “You need it more than me,”

Looking up at him, she got up from the couch, standing with her face mere inches away from his, her hand lightly ghosting up his arm, memories sparkling in his eyes like a sunset on the lake in Michigan. His eyes softened as he looked at her, a wordless ‘do you want it?’ being asked, with her nodding her head.

As soon as she did, he pressed his lips against hers frantically as she leaned in closer to him, his hand snaking its way to her lower back, pressing her closer to him. He gently held the side of her face, thumb stroking her warm cheek with delicacy.

Her hand went to the back of his head, deepening the kiss as her fingers entangled themselves into his soft hair, hearing a sigh fall from his mouth as she did so.

They pulled away from each other breathlessly, their lips slightly parted and swollen from kissing, a pretty shade of rose covering their faces. He let out a small laugh, a sweet one as he held her close, leaning his forehead against hers.

“I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time,” he said bashfully, smiling awkwardly, and yet he was still so pretty in her eyes.

“Really?” Her voice was quiet and unsure, needing some sort of confirmation that he wasn’t lying. “I thought you were annoyed by me?” She sat down on the couch, moving over slightly so that he could sit down beside her.

He let out another laugh, sitting down with her. “I could never be annoyed by you, I just thought you hated me.” It seemed like a weight came off of his shoulders as he said that, getting the words off of his chest. “Sorry—”

She kissed him again, holding his face gently on both sides, silencing him from talking as she pressed her lips onto his, feeling him relax into the kiss. Pulling away, she spoke quietly, “You know I could never hate you.”

The look in his eyes could only be described as ethereal, glimmering like snow as he looked at her. “Promise?” He held his pinky finger up, a gesture of eternal promise in his heart.

She locked her pinky with his, “Promise.” Her smile seemed brighter than the sun to him, it was his warmth, comfort. 

They both rested on the couch, maybe even thankful that his two younger brothers couldn’t come up to the cabin. The movie continued to go on as they both cuddled up to each other, blanket over the both of them, Quinn’s arm wrapped around her waist.

It was just the perfect cheesy Hallmark ending that he would’ve hated so much, and yet he savored the moment of her, asleep in his arms, his own eyes growing tired and sleepy. 

[perfluorononanoic-acid]

Oooh I have a request! The youngest Itoshi f!sibling neglected over many years after both brothers prioritse football. Has a moment of realisation and decides to put herself first and move on. Stops messaging in family chats, calling, birthday wishes, festive greetings etc. Moving on and finding better for oneself ~~!

Synopsis: Itoshi Y/N was never the first priority when it came to her parents and her two older brothers that were pursuing football. She has a moment of realization that no matter what she does she will never be any of their top priorities, and so she decides to cut off contact with her family and pursue her own passion of sport.

Content Warnings: angst, u realize ur self-worth, neglect, platonic!Rin Itoshi x reader, platonic!Sae Itoshi x reader, good ending

Word Count: 788

Author’s Note: I tried to fill in the blanks for some of this, I hope it’s to your liking, dearest!Tysm for the request! Requests are still open!

_______________________________

There was another family-friend reunion of sorts happening and Y/N had to sit at the far side of the table as she constantly heard her parents boast of her brothers’ accomplishments. She sighed and just stared at her plate aimlessly toying with her food as nobody spared a single glance her way, until one random adult spoke up,

“And what does your nice daughter over here do?”

She quickly perked her head up with slight excitement from the attention and said,

“Oh well I do [insert sport]!”

The adult politely smiled at her comment and was about to respond until her brother, Sae, finally walked into the room and everyone directed their attention towards him leaving Y/N forgotten once more. With some disappointment in her eyes she just turned back to her plate and continued to silently stare while listening to everything around her. Everyone was congratulating Sae on his triumphs and his becoming of an international star, he simply nodded not really showing much care as he was only visiting Japan for a few days before leaving again. Rin was brought up into the conversation too, being praised for becoming another upcoming star, Rin followed his brother’s actions in nodding and mainly staying silent. Hunched over in her chair, Y/N slowly turned her head to her brothers’ direction, watching as they were showered in compliments and praise while she was just the only person sitting at the table now. Rin looked in her direction and saw her staring, but acted as if it was nothing and directed his attention to the adults praising him as if he were a god of sorts. She decided to stop her staring and focused on her plate once more while thinking,

I’m tired.

I want to go to my room and sleep.

I wonder how [friend’s name] is doing at [insert sport].

I want to go to the [insert sport] meeting.

Nobody would notice if I leave anyways, I’m kind of worthless staying here.

Why do I even bother trying to be part of this family?

As her mind continued to wander, she quietly got up and walked out. Nobody even noticed she left. Her mother didn’t notice, her father didn’t notice, Rin didn’t notice, and Sae most certainly did not notice nor cared to. Y/N called her friend to ask if the [insert sport] meeting was still going on, and thankfully it was as she rushed to the train station to get there. Once she had arrived she swore she would no longer affiliate herself with her family due to the countless years of neglect and missed opportunities her family caused for her. She also swore she would practice [insert sport] extremely hard and become even more known than her brothers.

As time passed she kept to her oath and did not communicate with her family at all, not even sending any holiday messages and such. She still missed her brothers very much as she remembered them trying to teach her how to kick a ball into a goal when she was very little. She grew sad at the thought, but remembered she was no longer going to try and be the initiator to try and get their attention. If her brothers wished to speak to her, then they must do so themselves. She slowly but surely made her way to the top of [insert sport] and became internationally known just like her brothers. As she was about to get up from her seat, she heard her phone buzz and saw it was from an old group-chat that consisted of her, Sae, and Rin. There was 5 minutes until she had to go out, but she opened the message which read from Rin,

“Good luck we’re out here if you need anything”

She took a slight peek and scanned the crowds until she spotted Sae and Rin sitting amongst the crowd with both their arms crossed. She smiled to herself; she finally was able to be seen by her brothers once more.

________________________________

[zaimta]

彡MIHAWK ROMANCE GUIDE

paring: zoro x gn!reader

zai says: the official hcs!! i'm a firm mihawk fam believer

ˏˋ«────── « 𓆩♡𓆪 » ──────»

zoro picks up on mihawk flirting when they go out once in a blue moon, or from how mihawk interacts with his s/o

he doesn’t ask him about it either he just sees it happening and remembers it, perona peeps how he’s always around when mihawk is doing stuff like that and bullies him for being a secret hopeless romantic (sibling core) whole time he’s just trying to be a better boyfriend for you even tho he won’t see you for 2 years

mihawk who notices himself at first he tries to be subtle about it because he only agreed to help him with swordsmanship not matters of the heart but zoro wouldn’t get the hints so he had to be direct

“you’re looking to impress your s/o, yn are you not?”

he gives him a crash course and perona helps too, zoro would ask perona about it and she makes y’all’s relationship her business

“so how many dates have you taken them on? ooh and where did you go?” zoro looks deep in thought trying to recount all the dates the two of you have had, the fact that he might not be completely hopeless in the romance category excited perona “three i think.” she gave him a blank stare “wow you’re helpless it took you that long to remember three dates”

despite how much she bullies him she loves hearing about you, zoro only tells her about you and y’all’s relationship every once in a while because he doesn’t want her prying in his business (he does it anyways)

when y’all reunite for the first time every thing ab him is different, and the way he kisses you is completely different too it’s a little rough but with big hints of passion and class hands rubbing circles on the hips for good measure

he kisses your hands too, normally it happens when he’s holding you hand he brings it up to his lips and presses a kiss to the back of it, palm kisses also especially if you work with your hands all the time it means way more

neck kisses?? they’re precise and calculated knows the specific spots that work for you and some times it ends it him kissing your collarbone

the way he speaks to you would change slightly too, he’s aware that you’re his s/o and compared to the rest of the crew he should treat you differently he does and he doesn’t at the same time

pet names between the two of you would still stay behind closed doors, but sumn ab the way it rolls off his tongue got you weak in the knees

he would say “i love you” more (well at least more to his standards) because he lost you for a whole 2 years he learned to cherish the time he has with you now

still lives for putting his hands on his hips, no matter how much he changes that will always stay the same it’s his go to place for his hands

[smoothielenny]

ʟɪʟʏ ᴘᴀᴅ

Part Two

Ao’nung x Human!fem!reader

Summary: your mother finally allowed you to go outside and explore your new home. Your excited to meet some new friends, but that excitement died quickly when you are treated horribly.

Warning: bullying, teasing

[one•two•three•four•five•six•seven]

It’s been two day since your mother permitted you to go outside. You’ve been having fun seeing the world around you. Playing with kids (who eventually be pulled away when their parents saw you.), watching Lo’ak fail his lesson (your very own entertainment) and just admiring the ocean. You’re not bum out like your siblings when moving here, in fact you’re excited to know about a new type of landscape in Pandora.

You went outside this afternoon after lunch wanting to make those sand castles you’ve saw from your late mother’s pictures. You found a great spot where it’s close to the water yet won’t wash away your sculptures. You happily pat your sand bump trying to remember those sand castles and copying them.

While enjoying your activity, two metkayina boys known their presence by kicking your sculpture. Your eye’s furrowed and look up at them, cheeky smirk on their faces. You pouted your lips looking back at your destroyed sand castle. The joy you had minutes ago gone because of these assholes.

“Hey, demon! Why don’t you go back to your marui so we don’t have to see you!” They snickered saying those words. Your face seems hurt from what they’ve said. You’ve never felt any sadness from someone treating you like crap, but this one, no one ever called you a demon, well except when you first arrived here (by the Tsahik.)

You stood up and look up at them, “what’s your deal!?” pushing them lightly showing your anger. All they did was giggle, what would a small mere human would do anyways? You look to weak to even beat them and that is true, Neytiri always treat you like a fragile glass, she never let you go out unless someone is with you, not being Lo’ak.

“We don’t want you here, leave!” They yelled. Your face drop from hearing that, you’ve been ignored or glared before because of you being a human, but not saying something like that. It’s just horrible. Your eyes started to water, lips trembling, body stiffened. You feel like breaking down in front of them and that’s the reaction they wanted from you. To cry before them.

“Hey! Leave her alone!” All of you turned around where those words came from. It was Ao’nung, the boys then fled not wanting to deal with him. You knew Ao’nung by Lo’ak, Neteyam, Kiri’s story and all of those stories combine lead to a conclusion: he’s a mean one.

You look down refusing to make eye contact. Is he also gonna bully you too? Like the way he did to your siblings? Well that wouldn’t be a surprise.

“You alright?” Your head lifted facing at him. His face is blank, you couldn’t tell what emotion he has on his face. As if he’s dead, but it might just be the lighting. You nodded backing away a little from him. Feeling a bit queasy near him.

“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you.” He said and turn around going back to his own business. He doesn’t seem so bad from what you’ve heard. You tiptoed following him, but Ao’nung knows, your little feet making sounds with the sands is enough to know you’re behind him. He turned around staring down at you. You look up at his ocean eyes still looking dead.

“You should go back to your marui, or else they’ll be back again.” You shook your head and walked close to him, “but if you’re near me, you’ll defend me, right?” His cheeks warmed quickly. Well you are right, he won’t allow those skxawng bully you again. It hurts to see you like that taking those words from them fro some reason. You are pure to his eyes and he won’t let anyone dirtied you.

You both have been walking in silence, no idea to break it. You were too distracted on seeing a lot of new trees, ilus, and others. Ao’nung on the other hand is a nervous wreck, tho he hide it very well. He doesn’t know how to talk to you, if he open his mouth he thinks that words would be fumbled when they come out.

“What is that?” You pointed at the creature that has a wings yet can still swim. He looks at it and smiles, “it’s a skimwing, only the elders can ride it.” You nodded. You continued to watch it fly, it reminded you an ikran, you love riding on an ikran with Neytiri, if she has a free time she usually takes you out with Tuk to fly at night.

“I wanna ride one!” Your excited tone made Ao’nung’s heart warm. He likes seeing so excited. Few days earlier you were finding some good shells to use for accessories and you find a big one with pretty colors shine when sun hits it. Unbeknownst to you, Ao’nung was watching you a few yards away, not wanting to be caught by you and definitely not wanting to be caught by his sister.

“If I’m old enough to get one, we could ride it… together.” His last word was a whisper, but you heard it and turned around showing him your smile. His heart beating so fast seeing your beautiful smile. He was in paused for a bit until waving your hands cut it off.

“You alright there?” You asked with concern. He just nodded. You both continued to walk, now talking to each other with no hesitation. While walking you heard your brother, Neteyam, calling your name. You turn around to greet him with a smile, he also gave you a smile then it turn into a blank face when he saw Ao’nung.

“(y/n), mother is worried, you should go home.” He said as his eyes glare at Ao’nung. You just nodded and walked passed him. Before Neteyam follows you he gave Ao’nung a word, “try hurt her, your gone.” Then he left. Ao’nung didn’t know Neteyam could be this threatening, but he doesn’t plan to do that to you anyways. He just clicked his tongue and walk to his marui.

To be continued…

Tag list: @myh3artt

(Comment if you wanna tag in next chapter)

[the-dumpster-fire-of-life]

HIII CAN I PLS PLS HAVE ANOTHER X SIBLING!READER?!??

Your sibling and child fics are the cure for me rn AND THEYRE WRITTEN SO GOOD OMFGG

I was thinking one about Tom and Heidi’s wedding or when Bill walked down the runway when he was younger (does that make sense 😭) I LOVE YOUR WRITING AND TAKE AS MUCH TIME AS YOU NEED🫶

-xoxo, gossip girl💋

(Hello! Ahh! Ty sm for your compliments and I have been waiting to write another sibling reader!! I'm glad you love my writing and I will probably do both but here's just the first one for now! Enjoy!)

Sibling Duty

Tom fixed his shit in the mirror, shaking his hands out of nerves as Bill stood behind him and fixed his brother himself.

They stood in a comfortable silence, but we're able to hear the deafening sound of the door clicking open.

"Don't you look fancy."

Tom smiled as he heard your voice, looking to see you smiling at him in the mirror as he turned around.

"(Name)!" Bill exclaimed, excited and walking to give you a hug as you wholeheartedly returned it.

"Hey! You got here on time." Tom smiled, reaching an arm out for you.

"Don't act like I'm the one who's always late." You said, grabbing his arm as you got pulled into a hug. You then pulled back, staring at him for a moment before you fixed his collar.

He rolled his eyes, you always did this ever since he was younger and refused to dress up, so some things never changed.

"You kinda are-" Bill tried to interject.

"Shush, altar boy." You hushed your youngest brother as Tom laughed, turning back to look at him in the mirror as you kept an arm around his shoulder.

You stared at your brother for a moment, a blank expression on your face as you took it all in.

"You're such an ass…" you suddenly stated out of the blue.

"How?" Tom scoffed, looking to his older sister in amusement.

"You went and grew up on me." You stated, the almost happy and sad tears now visible in your eyes as Bill held onto your arm.

Tom laughed as well, a more happy and sad one as he wrapped an arm around you.

"You guys were so little! Now you're old and I'm fucking older!" You exclaimed, Bill laughing as he put his head on your shoulder, now a bit harder to do as your younger brothers had both grown taller than you now.

"But you're happy for me, no?" Tom asked, pulling back to look at you with a smile as you scoffed and rolled your eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, I am. Feel bad for Heidi, though-"

"Why?!"

"She's stuck with you."

Tom gave you a dead pan before rolling his eyes, walking to the door as you and a giggling Bill followed.

"Well, let's get you to that altar." You said, grabbing your brother's arm as Bill did the same.

Tom couldn't help but smile as it felt just like when you guys were younger.

Still hand in hand with his older sister to help him through something, the good and the bad, especially the good.

And you couldn't help but smile, a bit of nostalgia hitting you like a ton of bricks as you walked your younger brother with your arm in his to his future wife.

[to-myalphonse]

"Your Mother and Mine."

Yandere Lyney

Harbinger! Lyney x gn!Reader HC

Most Harbinger content I see is borderline Yandere, so what if Lyney's Fatui Agents chose you to be his spouse. The children need a mother so that their Father wont be alone

The reader is called Mother, but doesnt use female pronouns. Reader is gn!

Tag for my Lyney stories is here

Tavvatales DNI (Ik you dislike Yandere content)

"Oh, a gift for me?" The kids all nod at the same time. One approaches Lyney and pushes the box in his direction.

Lynette and Freminet, who sit opposite him, exchange puzzled glances before returning their attention to the box.

They didn't get him anything for Christmas?

Curious, he opened the box, only to discover that it contains something much more precious to him,than equipment for his performances.

You, dressed in scarlet clothing, resembling one people whom he and his siblings performed with. Your hair is nicely down, and your fearful countenance is disguised as eagerness for him.

"This is wonderful, where did you get this one from?" He spoke as if this was typical, which wasn't entirely wrong.

Fontaine is well-known for its human trafficking, which occurs under the nose of Monseiur Neuvillette.

"A visitor."

"From Sumeru."

Their voices blended together, expressing their excitement. Lyney clapped loudly enough to get their attention back.

"Quiet down, one at a time." They go towards him, getting into position. They kneel and stare up at him.

"They are a Fontaine Visitor, from Sumeru."

They are a architect, sent here on a commission." Before proceeding, one speaks out, looking him in the eyes.

"Their art is definitely something you'd admire. Aunty Lynette, I recall she liked lovely clothes, right?"

"Not only are they an architect, but  also a designer. Lynette's ears perked up slightly before returning to her drink.

He walks forward, inspecting your appearance from front to back before approaching you from behind.

"That is correct. Can you show us some of your designs?" He takes a step back into your line of sight, removing the rope that was bound you.

One of the agents that grabbed you walks forward and hands back your sketchbook. Looking up, you notice their blank expressions as they wait for you to act. One agent raised their hand to their scythe and gave a short warning.

You flip through the pages randomly, some personal paintings being revealed as some agents mumble in admiration.

You hand the designs to the blonde while pushing the sketchbook forward. He smiles briefly before taking it from you. He looks over it and the ones on the page after it before returning it.

"Thank you, these truly are wonderful." The agents breathe a sigh of relief.

"What's your name?" His head tilts as he looks at you with interest.

"(name)." As he approaches, his expression brightens. "Your height, the outfit you adorn, the color of your eyes, how beautiful." He hands you a bouquet of rainbow flowers that he summoned from thin air.

Your stare at the bouquet, perplexed. He simply hands it to you to take. You suppose it's merely a token of remorse for the problems his subordinates caused. When you take the bow, your hands get stuck on a thorn. You flinch, as Lyney frowns as he whips the blood from your thumb.

"Are you okay, darling?" The colors surrounding you alter as you raise your head to meet his gaze. As you take a step back, you are surrounded by blocks of items.

The block advances another step. "Are you okay?" As you panic, it hovers above you. As the others rush to check on you, you scream.

"Are you alright?"

"Why are you panicking?"

As sleep overtook you, a lovely aroma touched your nostrils.

"Good night, darling."

welp this was kinda of a brainrot. I usually don't write Yandere content, but i had a small idea.

@estensity @endlessmari @mellowwillowy @yuumaofc

[randomwriteronline]

"I trust I have chosen you well."

The structure was sprawling. On one hand, it had to be expected - the Makuta assigned to Metru Nui would not have resisted a dose of fanfare to their abode, settled as it was in the second most important location of the universe; on the other, it felt a bit surprising, because rather frankly the city had not appeared to have the necessary space for such a thing with how densely packed it was. Then again, the lair tended to develop vertically and was situated in Po-Metru, easily the most desolated district.

They had tried to commit its plant to memory as the tour went on, but with little success. They would have to acclimate to the winding nature of its shape and the position of the rooms in time.

Norik bowed his head briefly in a sort of long nod, knowing these things were heard even when unseen: "We will prove as much, Makuta."

"I do not doubt it," Teridax replied with the low hissing voice of his kind.

His feet were heavy on the floor, causing a very strange and distinctive sound that echoed between the walls and had so far determined the rhythm of their "relaxed march", if one had to describe the pace at which their group had moved through the structure.

It was as such a little bit jarring when they produced a curious muffled shuffle as he stopped, a little ways from a door leading to a staircase.

"I would request another duty for you to take on, as well," he explained. His hand gave a little flourish, akin to a (somewhat flustered) wave. "It is a lesser one, in a sense - it shouldn't be too hard for you."

"Certainly, Makuta," Norik replied. His siblings nodded with him, truthfully a little curious.

"I would like you to look after my..." the hulking being blanked for a moment, voice cutting off and glowing eyes staring into the void. His long fingers clenched into a half-hearted fist as he seemed to think as furiously fast as he could, settling on a word that he still didn't seem too sure was correct: "Apprentice. As well."

That was a surprise - information on the inner workings of the Brotherhood wasn't exactly abundant, but nobody had ever heard of them taking apprentices before. A recent member of the Makuta species, perhaps? But Teridax would have likely called them "sibling" instead, if that were the case. The being had to be something else... Skakdi weren't quite that bright, but maybe a Vortixx? A Steltian? A Matoran or Toa, even?

Teridax continued, regaining composure with a wave of his claws: "Though he is far from newly made, his experience of the universe outside of the Brotherhood is very limited, if not skewed in certain places. I hope a team of Toa such as yourselves would be a good influence on him."

They weren't sure if that was a compliment or not.

It probably was, by all means, and they were in no position to complain either way.

It was just that this whole deal sort of sounded like they were being treated as a pack of Hapaka hounds put to the ferocious protection of one singular Mukau.

Still, because they had been chosen by Teridax himself and to plainly tell him they didn't think that was a task befitting them would have been incredibly rude to say the least, Norik again voiced his siblings' carefully worded thoughts as they all bowed their heads: "We're flattered, Makuta, and we will do our best. Is your apprentice busy at the moment, or would it be fine for us to meet him?"

"I fear that will have to wait. I have sent him to one of my brothers," Teridax replied. "Guests tend to make Pohatu rather... Excitable."

Pouks made a strange face.

He regretted it when the Kraahkan turned to him.

"What is it?" the Makuta demanded.

"Ah - nothing," he tried to lie, opting then to diminish the truth: "I remembered something, but it's nothing important."

"Do share." the other insisted. "I am curious."

Oh, this was the worst. Pouks did his best not to sink into his shoulders and through the floor as he embarrassedly explained: "It's just an old legend... According to some, the Toa Mata of Stone is also called Pohatu. I was only surprised by the coincidence."

Teridax did not respond to that for a moment, completely frozen.

At last, his voice emerged from the depths of his gargantuan being in a somewhat strangled tone: "Indeed."

Perhaps he was planning to clear his throat with a half-hearted cough afterwards, and return to the topic of orientation, leading his newly appointed Hagah up to the rest of the lair.

He did not manage to do any of that as a atrong wind suddenly rushed right behind him and straight into the staircase, following its spiral design until it hit what was presumably a very far away wall with a loud 'thunk' - a sound which winds have a tendency not to make when coming in contact with walls, as they are composed of an element that under no circumstances goes 'thunk' upon impact.

Thoroughly spooked, the Toa jolted and held their tools a little tighter.

The Makuta, for his part, widened his eyes and gazed into nothingness for a second or so in horrible, horrible realization.

"Excuse me," he mumbled at the six before making his way to the entrance of the stairwell in what he certainly hoped would be a sufficiently dignified manner of leaving the scene.

He got past the doorway, though not by much; then, whatever had rushed up the steps came back down like a small slavine, and the massive being had to abruptly cut his height in half with a hissed grunt as the noticeably shorter thing slammed itself in his abdomen at the speed of a magnum bullet.

The Toa were about to intervene as they noticed his arms shoot forward to contain the menace, but instead held themselves back in baffled silence when he patted its head.

"Are they here?" an excited voice asked.

"You should be with Krika," Teridax wheezed without answering.

"He said you were getting a Hagah team so I wriggled out of his lair and ran over as soon as I could!" the voice explained still bouncing with enthusiasm, like traveling the entire distance between Metru Nui and Zakaz, apparently by foot and possibly with the same velocity it had just displayed, was a normal thing to do.

Which, considering the Makuta's reaction to the information was only to ruefully pull his head back and heave a deep sigh of disappointment (very likely regarding his more somber brother), it seemed to indeed be.

From behind the massive being the new guest finally caught a glimpse of the six warriors standing still as statues just a couple bio away: overwhelmed by excitement, it pressed harder against Teridax as if to slither through the gaps in his armor, managing to get most of its body across before the Makuta finally caught it by the legs and was this able to hold its noticeably Artakhan build in place, while its orange eyes smiled brilliantly through the elongated sockets of its brown Kakama.

"HI!!" the Toa Mata of Stone yelled at them as he waved his hand at terrifying speeds: "DO YOU WANT TO SEE MY HORNED RAHI?"

The six Toa felt the ability to speak leave them.

Before their wide eyes, the figure of legend was at last scooped up in Teridax's palms, sitting between the mighty claws as snug as a kraata despite being roughly ten times the size of one, dangling his legs like a Matoran on a ledge and still beaming at them with a wide excited grin behind his mask.

The Makuta made a small sound, like a wheezed whine. He seemed a little embarrassed.

"I was hoping to stage a more elegant introduction," he half lamented - rather melodramatically, which made the being in his hold giggle. "But I suppose Destiny is at work against me."

-

"Do you need help, Gaki?" Pohatu asked, suddenly stomping to a stop.

Gaaki thanked the Great Spirit she hand a tendency to clench around herself when scared, otherwise the crate in her hand would have ruinously slammed on the floor and whatever it contained would have likely gone to pieces.

"No, thank you," she replied as gently as she could with a wobbly smile: "I've got it all handled here, you don't need to worry."

"Are you sure? I know these are pretty heavy, and the stairs are terrible - especially when you've got your hands full," the other Toa insisted gently. He faked a little gun show for her, lifting his short arms - it did make her chuckle, and he seemed to relish in that: "I can carry one or two so you don't have to take too many trips down!"

"I don't want to distract you from your duties..."

"Oh, I don't have anything to do right now. Or ever, really. I'd love to lend you a hand."

She fumbled with the crate again.

"Alright," she acquiesced, "If you want to, I won't disdain some help."

Pohatu beamed brilliantly.

He lifted the second crate with a short grunt, settling it to the top of his head for stability, and gladly hurried in front of her to lead the way. His armored feet were surprisingly light against the ground, quick and nimble in a way they certainly didn't look: Gaaki struggled to match his pace, though it thankfully became clear she didn't need to - as he stopped to wait for her at every corner, very aware of his speed.

She hadn't expected all this eager helpfulness from Teridax's protégé.

Or from a figure of myth, either.

She couldn't say she was complaining about it, though.

"It's Gaaki, by the way," she told him him just as he began too speed off again.

That made him stop in his tracks, precariously balancing his weight on one foot in a rather dangerous way: "What?" he hollered back as he managed to set himself back upright without breaking anything.

"My name is Gaaki," she repeated, "With a long A."

"Ga-ah-ki?"

"Exactly like that. You said Ga-ki earlier."

"Oh! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get it wrong."

"Don't worry, it's a common mistake. You'll get the hang of it."

He looked to the floor sheepishly either way.

He fiddled with his crate, balancing it a little better to take his mind off his slip-up, and headed for the stairwell leading down into the laboratory's storage.

Gaaki found him a few steps down already, waiting for her expectantly with his back to one of the walls. Imagining he was used enough to this type of architecture to know the better way to traverse such a narrow space with one's hands incapacitated, she imitated him; and so they began sliding down.

"Where are you from?" Pohatu asked all of a sudden, seeming honestly curious.

"Hm? Uh, the lower archipelago," she replied while trying to focus on where to place her feet, "The right one."

"Oh, opposite of Artidax then!"

"Exactly. A little higher, actually, but - you understand."

"And were you made a Toa? Or were you a Matoran first?"

The strange question made her steal a quizzical glance at him: "I was a Matoran, of course."

Before she could ask him about the first part of his question, he was already moving onto a new one: "So you had a job?"

"Well, yes. I was tasked with supervising the liquid protodermis flow through the canals down to Ba-Koro. Changes in gravity have a tendency to make it act up in certain places, so it was my duty to make sure everything worked smoothly."

"And did you like it?"

She looked around (checking for her supervisor's surprise visits still, after all these decades) before leaning down closer to him so she could whisper in his audio receptor with a conspiratorial tone and eyes telling of an ancient frustrated desperation: "It was dreadfully boring! I've feared for my life before, but I'd rather get turned into a lizard-headed little freak than spend a single day obsessing over tubes and pressures again!"

Pohatu snickered a little despite himself. The mortification that gleamed in his eyes for a moment disappeared the moment Gaaki joined in with her own chortle.

"Was it that bad?" he asked.

"Ah - alright, I could have exaggerated it a bit... It wasn't really bad, just mind-numbing. Which might be worse, really, but it doesn't matter. It's all behind me now - and I could be remembering things worse from how they actually were. I've been a Toa for eleven thousand years, after all, my memory's bound to get spotty."

Pohatu almost tripped as he did a double-take: "Eleven thousand?"

"Yes?"

"And you were a Matoran before that?"

"Yes, for four thousand years."

The Toa Mata seemed bewildered: "You're brand new!" he cried out.

Gaaki blinked.

A strangled cackle of disbelief left her at last, rattling through her chest: "Thank you?"

Of all the things she'd been called in her long life, 'brand new' was exactly the sort that she never would have expected anybody to one day use to describe her.

The stable pavement caught them by surprise. The lab's storage was rather large, looking almost cavernous due to its emptiness: Pohatu made a beeline towards a corner, placing down his crate as gently as he could; the Toa of Water followed suit and left her own cargo nearby, muffled tinkling coming from within.

Just to make sure everything was alright, Gaaki lifted the covers slightly and peeked inside: the crystal vats stood straight and clean, none broken or toppled.

She gave a small sigh of relief.

"Do you say that to all the females you meet?" she dared to tease him now that her concerns had been quelled.

"Of course not, all the others I know are even older than me!" Pohatu replied earnestly with a booming laugh. "Compared to us relics, you just came out of the forge!"

She snorted a little: "Alright, fair enough - and how old are you?"

"Oof, hundred thousand, give or take."

A large number was to be expected (it's really the only fitting answer, for a figure of myth) but it still took her quite off-guard. The Toa before her had every bit the design of something primitively unusual, with a certain almost wild appearance that no other being could hope to match, but his energy and attitude made it frighteningly easy to forget how truly ancient he was.

Pohatu didn't let her dwell on that too much: without fanfare he wrapped his arms around her, hefted her up in the air, and before Gaaki knew it they were back upstairs.

He placed her back down with a careful, bouncy movement, like it had been nothing.

"How many more?" he asked eagerly.

She held onto his shoulders for a moment, trying to steady her head so that her thoughts could clamber out of the basement where the fulminous speed had abandoned them and back into her skull: "How many what?" she managed once her faculties had properly caught up with her.

"The crates," he reminded her.

Oh! Yes, right, the Makuta's supplies, of course...

She turned around, still a little dizzy: a singular large box met her gaze, sitting almost defiantly right where she'd left it minutes earlier as if challenging her.

"One," she replied at last.

Pohatu leaned down to grab it: "I can handle that-"

Before she could stop herself, her hand was already gently patting the top of the brown Kakama and her voice was growing kindly stern again as though she were talking to a rowdy but otherwise well-meaning Matoran: "I've got this. You've been of great help already, but I'll assume you have your own busywork to do, right?"

Mortification crawled over her like a pack of ravenous stone rats as she realized what she was doing.

Much to her relief Pohatu could not have minded her somewhat condescending behavior less, as he leaned into her palm with great enthusiasm, soaking in her thanks like a sponge, before trying to insist more gently: "I have my Rahi, but if you need a hand..."

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," she reassured him as she retreated her hand, still embarrassed by her lapsus: "You saved me plenty of time, and even without your speed a single crate will be a breeze to carry."

"But the stairs..."

"You've showed me how to handle those earlier. I'll be fine, I promise!"

"Do you... Do you want to see them, first?"

"See what?"

"My Rahi!" the Toa of Stone started rocking in place, seeming excited. "The Makuta gifted me a few over the centuries and I'm- I mean, if you'd like to - oh, oh, have you ever met a moose? Chirox made it a few decades ago, I have one, she's huge! But she's docile, don't worry. If, if you, want, to come see a moose."

Gaaki thought about it for a moment: "You know," she said at last, silently apologizing to her brother, "Pouks actually has a fascination with large creatures."

Orange eyes beamed: "He does?"

She nodded: "I'm certain he would quite like to see a moose."

The shorter Toa appeared to be vibrating.

He fidgeted with his hands, trying to ask her a question he couldn't quite find the words for, begging for a tacit permission with a sort of eager nervousness; she huffed a giggle and winked her approval, and after barely the time to beam her a smile he was already off, a short lived forceful breeze all that was left in his wake.

-

"Iruini."

The Toa of Air stiffened.

He sincerely wished, upon Wairuha, Akamai and the Great Spirit himself, that Teridax's ability to apparently materialize out of nowhere in complete silence would one day finally stop scaring the wits right out of him.

Nonetheless he did his best to steel himself and straighten his back as he turned around: "Yes, Makuta?" he inquired.

"Pohatu is not in his chambers," the towering being spoke somberly. A tinge of anxiety spread into his words like ink staining water. "Nor have I found him in the laboratory, or any other room. He is not aiding your leader, or sparring with your sister; your brothers of Stone and Ice are with his Rahi in his place."

Ah! So it was just this, thank goodness.

Iruini waved at the Makuta to follow him while he walked fast, headed for a nearby balcony opening onto a large barren plane: "Don't worry - last I checked, Bomonga was keeping him busy."

"And where is Bomonga, if you'd be so inclined to tell me?"

"Ah, but where's the fun in that?" the Le-Toa murmured as quiet as he could while peering beyond the railing.

Teridax's much larger form hunched above him, casting a long shadow over him as he squinted in an attempt to catch at least a glimpse of the black and golden armor his Hagah of Earth wore. There were no such colors upon the dusty barren ground; all that crossed their vision a sudden bolt of brown every now and then, rushing like a crazed Rama across the stone and stopping only for mere seconds at a time to look around with feverish purpose.

Then, the unthinkable: enormous metal pillars sprung from the ground around the maroon spot and snapped shut around it just as quick as an alligator's jaw. The little figure cried out a thunderous 'eep!' as it tried to escape, but it was far too late.

From up on the balcony Iruini smirked with a huffed giggle while the Toa failed to evade his brother's grasp for the fourteenth time, struggling and squirming in it like a kraata. Bomonga's head peered through the ground at last with his usual impassible expression tainted by a glint of amusement in his lime eyes that would have been much harder to notice if his Mask of Growth hadn't turned his features massive.

Pohatu certainly saw it, and replied by giving his gargantuan finger a fake kick in playful retaliation.

"Best of thirty!" he hollered at his captor.

The Onu-Toa found the challenge suitable for a being of his caliber. He placed the Mata of Stone down once more with all the care necessary, watched him zip away laughing for a few dozen bio, and disappeared back into the dirt, like a predator sinking once more into the bog to settle in wait.

Iruini dared turn his gaze away from their game.

Teridax had moved to stand by his side instead of behind him and continued to watch the scene with a relieved smile and half-lidden eyes, anxiety gone from his stance; his claws clacked gently against the railing with a slow, pleased cadence.

His Hagah of Air leaned towards him, prompting him to lower his head to hear his hushed words better: "Should I ask my brother to let him win at least one?"

A low chuckle rumbled through the Makuta: "Ah, but where's the fun in that?" he echoed, stealing an amused glance at the Toa biting his own tongue with a quiet regretful sound, like he'd just been kicked in the stomach.

Down below, Pohatu evaded an ambush with a triumphant cry.

Then he yelped as he fell into Bomonga's actual trap.

His frustrated groan tore a cackle out of Teridax.

"Do remind him to warn me next time he indulges my apprentice, if you would," he concluded while turning away from their game, walking back into the tower with slow steps. "I'd rather not have to fear about his safety again."

"Of course, Makuta."

The faint golden glow of the Kualsi gleamed in the corner of his eye: then the Toa disappeared.

Iruini blinked into the room where Teridax was busy archiving failed experiments in small stasis jars much later. He noticed his arrival only thanks to the curious sound which followed the teleportation - a sort of faint aspirated clunk clicking into place to force an empty space open around a specific shape.

"How is the score looking?" the larger being asked casually.

"They've moved on to best of sixty," the Toa answered without missing a beat.

Teridax bellowed a single laugh. If he could personally meet whoever decided all Le-Toa should have some amount of good comedic sense, he would probably give their hand a good shake.

"What brings you to me?" he drawled, gently shaking the small inert beast in its vat and watching it sway in its dreamless sleep. "I do not think you came to simply rely Pohatu's newest fruitless endeavors against your brother of Earth."

"I had a question about him, actually. Not Bomonga - your apprentice."

The quiet cautious tone was not lost on him, nor the strange feeling behind the last word: "Continue."

"Kualus recently shared with the rest of us an... Interesting conversation the two of them had, in-between their enthusiastic talks of how a horned flying Rahi would feasibly function and fly and sustain itself and so on and so forth."

"I can imagine the topic."

A beat of silence passed. Teridax set two more jars in place, careful to make the least sound possible in case his Toa Hagah had suddenly decided he preferred murmuring over speaking.

The other being did neither.

"Am I wrong, Iruini?"

"You haven't said anything I could refute."

"And yet you do not admit I am right."

"... He spoke of his siblings."

The Makuta's hand stalled for a moment before returning to his work in silence.

"Not much," the Toa added with a certain haste, his usual bite softened into an almost demure tone. "Only in passing."

No answer came.

The pause invited him to continue like a claw poking his spine.

He shifted on his feet. These sorts of dialogues of one rested on his nerves as comfortably as a spiny stone ape perched on one of the astrologers' crystal chairs.

"He didn't have much information on them, anyways," he spoke: "Their current whereabouts are unknown as far as anybody knows."

"They are," Teridax murmured.

Iruini eyed the hulking back as though kraata could have suddenly oozed out of it: "He isn't too heartbroken about that. At least - that was Kualus's impression."

"He isn't."

"Nor does he seem to hold them in high regard," the Le-Toa whispered, "Since he wishes them to be dead."

The vat hit the table with a small firm sound.

A long sigh hissed out of the Makuta; his shoulders lowered slowly, his claws raking across the flat surface without leaving marks, only producing a low grumbling growl.

The Toa withheld as much air in his lungs as he could, finding it very wise to keep quiet.

Not for a lack of questions: he had plenty of those. What the Brotherhood thought of the matter, for example. Or what Teridax thought of it, more specifically. If "apprentice" meant something other than "beloved ward" - if it was a claim of sorts on a being, if it included a certain kind of education they were not privy to, overseen by the Makuta when his Hagah were not around. Had it ever been disclosed how Pohatu had come into their midst? No, it had not. And the idea of the Toa Mata leaving one of their own behind sounded too farfetched to be true. Like a false memory planted by gentle voices, to confuse shackles for silk ribbons.

Silence hung over them like a coat of armor.

He almost jumped when the gigantic form spoke again, thundering voice hushed into the rustling of leaves: "I have told you," the Makuta echoed, "His experience of our universe is limited at best, and skewed at worst."

"And did you work to better it?" Iruini insinuated before he could catch his silver tongue between his teeth.

"We have tried," Teridax replied without any theatrics. "We have taught him what we could, what we knew, what we heard... But we are not Toa. We have our limits. And he is stubborn."

"But to wish for them to-"

"Our sister Tasaphore found him in a tunnel outside Karda Nui, alone, barely able to move through his guilt," the other cut him off. He did not snap, he did not growl; he spoke softly still, not turning around. The tone of his reminiscence colored itself with a faint distant pain. "He has told us little of his time before we welcomed him in our Brotherhood. He prefers not to dwell on those days. All he has remained firm on is that his siblings abandoned him."

"But that is - it can't - their duty-"

"He knows his duty. What do you believe? That he holds the safety of Mata Nui in no regard?"

"And what's he to do if the time comes? He can't pretend to save the Great Spirit on his own just because of a grudge!"

"Convince him yourself, then. Manage what the we, I shall admit, have failed to achieve: dozens of thousands of years we have tried to persuade him at least to forgive, and still he persists in his vitriol. He is stubborn, I told you - a stone that fights against change, against the forces of time."

He turned swiftly, making no sound: his vermillion eyes pinned Iruini in place, instilling in him a paralyzing sense of fear that seemed to snake around his neck like tendrils.

"You are his siblings now," Teridax sentenced with a murmur.

The Toa felt his muscles seize completely.

He shook his head, first slowly, then faster, faster, trying to bargain without words - they could not do it, they could not do it, how could they do it? How could simple Toa like them have taken on the destiny of the Mata themselves?

But the Makuta stared on, his Kraahkan eerily illuminated from within: "You must not share his burden," he whispered. "That is not something I can ask of you, nor order."

Then what?

What was he asking them?

What were they supposed to do?

"You are everything he has outside of this lair - outside of the Brotherhood." the enormous figure spoke with a low, begging tone, soft and quiet. Like a father on his knees, pleading for his son. "His world cannot only be a tangle of kraata, of viruses, of laboratories, severed from his own kin. There are thing we Makuta cannot teach him. There are things a Toa must learn from other Toa."

Unity.

The oppressing feeling lifted from the room.

Iruini gasped by reflex.

Teridax's eyes lost their frightening gleam in the dim light, resembling now only dots of scarlet easily lost beneath the black shape of his Kanohi. He almost looked small, for a moment.

He turned back to his task, his claws curling gently around the fragile vats as he grasped them, inspected them, set them away: "At ease," he murmured without looking at the being behind him as he dismissed him.

The Toa remained still at first. His feet tapped against the ground when he finally began to walk backwards, a little stunted; then a faint aspirated clunk clicked into place, and he was gone.

[whumpity-whumpwhump]

AI-less whumptober 2024: Trauma Thursday, relapse

Shirley exited the small convenience store and went to the bus stop, foot tapping rhythmically on the concrete, her fingers running up and down the surface of the small bag in her pocket.

Her mind buzzed in a weird anticipation, but she was fully aware of the true reason she was doing this and she couldn't help feeling as if her skin was crawling.

The bus came to a stop and she brushed past the people exiting it, seeking a seat further to the back. She slid into one, pointedly glaring at anyone who looked like they were going to sit next to her.

Marcus wouldn't want this, she knew that. He'd want her to stay clean, even go to a fucking rehab center if she had too. But fuck that, Marcus wasn't here. He wasn't around to do stupid dares with. He wasn't sitting in Slough House waiting for her to come back so they could gamble with paperclips.

He was fucking dead. And he didn't have to be. All he needed to do was stay back with her, stay in Lamb's office and he'd still be alive today.

No, no she shouldn't be angry with him. It wasn't his fault the idiot had gotten himself killed. It was Cartwright's psychotic brother who had done that.

She got off the bus, carefully willing her mind to go blank as she started for her apartment.

---

She let the door bang closed behind her, heading straight for the bathroom, not even shedding her jacket.

She took the small bag out of her pocket, dropped it onto the countertop and stared.

Images flashed through her mind, Marcus, dead in the one place they were supposed to be safe. Cassie and the kids, crying at the funeral. Patrice, dead on the floor after Coe had convinced her not to kill him. She still wasn't sure how she felt about that. Wished he had tried escaping, that she could've killed him herself, was grateful to Coe for putting five bullets through the bastard.

Once again the image of Marcus, dead at the top of the stairs came to her mind.

"Nope, fuck this."

Shirley poured the cocaine onto the countertop, lining it up into two neat lines. She couldn't help the surge of excitement at the action, taking out her bill and rolling, gentle as she performed this sacred ritual. yeah, it was horrible for her and a really shitty idea but that didn't stop the familiar anchoring it gave her. She snorted both lines and stood back, looking at herself in the mirror for a moment.

Damn, when did she get so skinny?

She pulled out her phone, shooting a quick text to Lamb that she wasn't coming in tomorrow. He'd be annoyed if he didn't at least get a heads up. Well, he'd be annoyed anyway but less so this way.

She walked to the kitchen, pouring out a bowl of corn flakes and adding a scoop of sugar. Next she added the milk and yeah- now she was starting to feel it, that familiar surge of adrenaline. She rode it out, closing her eyes and sitting back as a rush of euphoria engulfed her.

After a few seconds she opened her eyes and turned to eat her cereal.

About ten-ish minutes later a knock sounded at the door. She walked over, peeking through the hole to see River. She stood back, she sure as hell didn't want to talk to anyone from work right now. She waited for him to leave. He knocked again, calling out,

"Shirley come on I know you're in there, Roddy saw you enter the building like twenty minutes ago."

"And what makes you think I'd be here and not off hanging with a mate from the same apartment building or shagging somebody?" She demanded, opening the door with a scowl.

"You seemed like you were having a bit of a rough day is all and I figured no one at Slough House is really sharing about that kind of thing but you might wanna talk to someone." He seemed hesitant, like he wasn't quite sure what he was doing.

Marcus used to be the one she talked to. Not anything to serious mind you, they mostly just ribbed each other. Kinda like her and her siblings before they'd grown apart.

"What, Standish send you to check on me?"

"No," River shook his head, "I just figured, I mean it's only been a few days and...." he trailed off awkwardly then looked down at the case of beer in his hand.

"I brought beer if you just wanna drink and brood together in silence."

As if a case of beer or a conversation about their feelings would make Patrice any less his brother, as if it wasn't his stupid family drama that got Marcus killed in the first place.

She took the beer but held up a hand to stop River from coming in. She just wanted to be alone for christ's sake.

"Fuck off, Cartwright."

"What, you just take my beer and tell me to piss off? Isn't there anything I can do to help?"

She dropped the beer on the ground, turning to Cartwright.

"Alright yeah, you can go back in time and kill your fucking assassin family before they take out one of our own."

His face flickered but he stayed silent.

"Pardon me if I don't wanna be around the brother of the psychotic prick who murdered my partner!"

"...Right, sorry," Cartwright gave her a pained smile and turned, walking back down the hall.

Shirley shut the door and turned to her empty apartment, anger dying down to be replaced with nothing but the faintest spark of regret.

[shadowfoxsilver]

Secrets untold of light and dark (Part two)

(Part one)

“And there she is…”

How long had he been searching for her? It had to have been decades by now at least. And yet, when going to find where his crystal had went, he had seen a silver figure sitting on a distant tree branch with bright yellow wings folded on their back. It had to be her! She had survived after all! He had seen her brother when attacking him long ago, but hadn’t seen her around and assumed she was gone. But there she was…Sitting on a branch. He promised he’d return once getting his crystal back. It wasn’t too hard of a task, really. Before long the rampaging dragon was knocked out and an oversized feline had the nerve to say it was their crystal. That didn’t matter now. What mattered was getting back to her. His sister.

He emerged from a rift just above a nearby branch and perched on it with his talons. He balanced himself as much as he could manage and folded his wings tightly out of sight. Oh if only he still had his arm wings…He could have showed them off! But he only has sparse feathers now and that wasn’t too exciting to brag about. Chaotic swallowed nervously as his tail twitched in anticipation. Would she still recognize him even without his wings? Did she still know who he was? He shook his head, then chirped loudly.

SFS heard the chirp, twitched her good ear a little, and then turned slightly to see what bird had called for her. But instead of a bird, she saw a vaguely familiar stranger perched there instead with their ears lowered a little and waving a hand at her. She stared a little, trying to recall just who this was. Her memory wasn’t really all that good after getting brought back to life. Old memories often were just a foggy recollection that made it difficult to remember anyone she had last seen ages ago. But this stranger…Just felt so familiar. But why?

Chaotic must have noticed her blank stare, because he looked startled and felt himself panic a little. Why wasn’t she greeting him? Surely she still remembered him…Right? He spent so long trying to find her. Countless years traveling the cosmos and universe for the only sibling that had survived and grown up just like him. Granted, she was still much younger than him and had changed since they’d last been in one place. And here they were again. Together again. Reunited. But why was his sister not greeting him? Shouldn’t she be happy to meet him again? She was so young when took away but had seen him numerous times. Surely she still knew him…She had to.

“…..Come on. Surely you still know me?” Chaotic spoke up as he held his hands together, mismatched eyes focusing onto SFS intently. He had one red eye and one green eye. It was something that made him easily recognizable aside from his colors. “You used to live somewhere else. We both did. It was our home and supposed to be the safest place…Until the intruder came and kidnapped you.” He grumbled softly in annoyance.

“I…” SFS began to speak as she shifted to stand on the her own branch, turning around to face the stranger fully to get a better look at them noting the mismatched eye color. “…Can’t really answer that question.” She finished with a deep sigh. “You look faintly familiar..But. I can’t really figure out why. Sorry.” She added with a lighthearted shrug and lowering her wings slightly.

Chaotic felt his heart break. She…She didn’t remember him. After all he did to find her. She just stared at him. Not even knowing who he is. He fidgeted his claws a little, tail flicking a bit as his eye twitched a smidge before he regained his composure quickly and opened his small wings enough for them to be visible and raised a brow at his sister as if to ask her if she knew now.

SFS tilted her head in thought, opening her own wings fully. Chaotic flinched and closed his wings tightly again.

“………..” SFS narrowed her eyes as she closed her wings and lifted her head back upright as she crossed her arms. “…..You called me a weakling when I was younger, didn’t you.” She said rather bluntly to Chaotic, finally remembering something at least but not quite what he was expecting.

“Wh- I mean- Listen!” Chaotic stammered back in response. “That isn’t important.” He waved away the words quickly.

“You also said I was small and sickly.” SFS added, eyes still narrowed. “But I also know what your name is. Chaotic.” She sounded rather cold now.

“I didn’t know, ok? But look at you now!” Chaotic replied, trying his best to look very happy. “You aren’t small and sickly anymore. You are healthy! And I’m back now. I’ve been trying to find you.” He added, tail wagging a little. “It’s been so long since I saw you. So very long…” He sighed with a small smile.

“My brother wouldn’t like seeing you here. So you should leave.” SFS hissed back, but opened her eyes at least. She had noticed Darkness was already inching his way down from the higher levels of the tree the instant he had heard the chirp.

“Your brother? Who’s that?” Chaotic asked, then spotted a dark form land beside SFS and hold out their arm in front of her as if to signal their arrival and for her to stand back.

“Darkness.” SFS beamed.

“She’s my sister.” Darkness growled as well.

“Pfft…Your sister?” Chaotic chortled, a sinister smile crossing his face as he hopped off the branch and floated over to them both. “You know nothing about her, she’s……” He trailed a little and Darkness interrupted.

“I know enough to know you are a problem.” Darkness sneered.

“I’m not the problem, annoying pest.” Chaotic hissed back. “The problem is you stole my sister, and now that I’ve found her again I’ve been itching to test my powers out….And I think you’ll do quite nicely for that plan. Maybe I’ll even tell you the secrets you don’t even know about what me and her really are.” He explained as his markings began glowing once more. “After all, I’ve not had a decent fight in many long years.” The fanged smile added to his ominous appearance. “And our last encounter didn’t end as well as I wanted it to.” Chaotic mused.

Darkness didn’t seem too frightened and instead just nudged SFS higher up the tree and opened his dark wings afterwards.

“Then let’s dance.” Darkness flexed his claws and shook off as a dark aura began to wisp around him.

“Of course. Let us.” Chaotic flexed his talons as electricity crackled from his tail.

And so it began.

[janeelyakiri]

I was sick now I’m back with another ask

For the outcodes and farmers, how would they react to a random human flirting with them?

I'm glad you're feeling better!! \ o /

under cut bc long

Starling- Suspicion, immediately. No one actually approaches them without wanting something- in their experience. Usually to either harm them or get to their sibling.

Dove- Far too used to it. Many believe laying with them will grant them good luck or help them find their true love. They might go along with it anyway, just in case this one is honest.

Gull- Baffled, and flirts back.

Pigeon- Immediately pulls his hood down to hide his blush. Has no idea how to handle flirts.

Dire- Blank stare, and more excited that someone can SEE HIM.

Decoy- Plays along, but he's more curious if he can feel something.

Ducky- Immediate grimace because he's a big manchild lol

Shrike- Has gotten over his hatred of humans a bit now, but is utterly baffled at this tiny human approaching him.

Dal- Asks the human to repeat themself, then halfway through them reflirting he freezes and sputters and declares he hears his brother calling him (Shrike is right beside him)

Ibis- 'Aaawww you're flirting with Death? Cringe but free good on you 😎👍'

Ber- Makes sure you KNOW you are flirting with a reaper, then asks if you're okay. And if you really want a kiss of death.

Bug- So starved for affection he'd flirt back and invade your phone and laptop and bring you digital gifts and hack whatever you want 💙

Nix- Admires the human's bravery and takes them home forever 🧡

Gale- If the human is her Type, she'll flush and flutter her wings and try to flirt back. If they're not, she brushes them off with a bored look.

Painted- Confused puppy sounds with head tilts

Berries- 'AAAWW BROSKI DAT'S SWEET bring it in-' and smooches

Chimera- Readily accepts these flirts and reciprocates until he can get their Soul. Then they can be with him F O R E V E R🩷

FARMS:

Pheasant- Blushes and a lot of 'oh jeeze' and nervous laughter. Keep at it he's just nervous!

Shep- A bit flustered but accepts and tries to flirt back while also seeing how well the human handles farm work.

Rooster- A bit suspicious, but he'd flirt back raunchily and see how they react.

Mastiff- Absolutely FREEZES. Blue screens.

Quail- Flirts back with not as bad but pretty bad lines with accompanying bone brow waggles.

Collie- Might brush it off at first but be persistent and he'll start to melt and consider.

Hawk- Please please PLEASE flirt when he's doing a Monologue. Watch as it takes him a moment to register then completely flub and fluster everything. Turn that man into a GRAPE.

Coyote- Hides with his hat and bandana while whispering 'mnooo'

Buzz- Looks around before pointing at himself like 'me??' with a blush

Bea- Laughs, then realizes they were being serious. Feels bad and apologizes and asks if they're SURE about him.

[snorky]

'Cause This Is A Wasteland, My Only Retreat

Hey y’all! This work is quite a long one in comparison to my other works. And to what my friend said, “Damn that story had a dark ending,” and so I ask you to proceed with caution. Quintin Hughes is a defenseman I look up to, and uh, to have him meet his fate (fictionally) like this is wild. Also this AU is based off of one of my favorite books, Defy The Stars by Claudia Gray. Title is based off of the song “Hell Above” by Pierce The Veil, which was the main inspiration for this for this entire fic. I hope you all enjoy! There’s some angst in this one.

Pairing: Quinn Hughes x F!Reader

Word Count: 5.1k

Warnings: Mild mentions of blood, Angst, Major character death

—

—

On Genesis, the bright blue color painted the skies endlessly. The soft, green grass covered the hills and plains for miles. The air was fresh and crisp, free from any pollutant that could cause harm. Children laughed and played outside without any fear, the people lived life to its fullest peacefully. It seemed so perfect. So perfect in fact, that Earth’s most powerful wanted it. 

They were willing to do anything to try and colonize Genesis for their own benefit, and this meant by any means possible. The Liberty War was a significant event in this, a years long war that is still raging on to this day proved humanity’s greed. Many lives of Genesis’ citizens have been lost, and Earth suffered little to no casualties at all.

The reason is, Earth didn’t send humans to fight. Earth used machines, robots. They used mechs, machines built with human-likeness on the surface, but their programming allowed them to have no fear of death. Or fear of causing death.

It was twisted, fighting another planet with human habitants by using something that had no soul or perception of life. Something that could kill, and feel absolutely nothing afterwards. It seemed so cowardly to incite a war just to not participate in it. Pathetic.

But no one on Earth seemed to think it was pathetic. Pathetic was the opposite of what the innovation of mechs seemed to be. Healthcare mechs, industrial worker mechs, commercial purpose mechs, the list went on, and all it seemed to benefit humanity. And that’s exactly what they want.

It should seem so pointless to keep fighting, to keep swimming against the current, to not give up for something that is a lost cause. But it’s for the future. It’s for that small sliver of hope embedded into Genesis.

At the moment, that didn’t matter to her. What mattered was the sound of Quinn’s laughter filling the air as they rolled in the grass. The sun was warm on their skin, shining bright, and making his messy brunet hair seem to be angelic.

Quinn was the oldest brother of the Hughes family, with Jack and Luke being his younger brothers. With him being the older brother, he was extremely protective of his younger siblings, but he didn’t show it much. She was quite close to the Hughes family, with them being neighbors in a rural village near the northeast of the largest continent on Genesis.

“Quinn! Stop giggling! I need you to be serious for a moment!” she laughed. 

He then turned to her with his most serious expression, and spoke in a deep voice, “Yes, captain?” His eyes were a blank stare and his smile was forced into an emotionless expression.

They both burst out in laughter, the smiles on their faces prominent, and their eyes scrunched up to try and keep the sun out as they faced the sky. They were both young, unknowing of the Liberty War that was going on right in the moment, unknowing of what the future could be, whether good or bad.

“Okay, okay,” Quinn rolled over to face her. “What do I need to be serious about?”

She smiled and tried to contain her excitement. “Close your eyes for a second,”

He closed his eyes, or at least, made it seem like he closed his eyes, and waited. He saw her grab a flower crown that she made, with dandelions and baby’s breath all tied into a ring, and placed it on his head. The adoration in her eyes was evident, how she seemed so proud of making this crown for him. She blushed as she wiped her hands on her dress, her face peering downwards at the grass.

“Okay, Quinn. Open your eyes,” she said.

He opened his eyes and touched the crown that sat on top of his head. His fingertips felt each little flower and how the stems were weaved altogether. A slightly pink blush dusted over his pale cheeks, and he thanked her for the crown.

“You’re welcome!” Her eyes shone bright, brighter than the stars he observed. He has always wanted to go out and explore the stars, but he knew it wasn’t safe. But he didn’t know exactly why it wasn’t safe.

His mother opened the back door and called for them. “Kids! It’s time for lunch now! Jack and Luke are already at the table!” she shouted.

And just like that, Quinn was up and sprinting into his house, and she followed a while after. When she stepped into the dining room, it was chaotic. Jack and Luke were chasing each other around the table with toy swords, Quinn was shouting something about telling them to sit down, and Ellen was trying to keep them all under control.

After a few moments, they were all seated at the table quietly, their mouths occupied with chewing the sandwiches. Quinn sat next to her, his flower crown still on top of his head. Jack and Luke were sitting across the table, whispering to each other and giggling, making occasional glances at the both of them. Ellen looked at the flower crown that Quinn wore and gave a sweet smile.

When they all finished their lunches, they rushed out into the backyard, somehow as a competition about who could make it outside and to the small playhouse first. As they were running, Quinn stumbled over a rock and grazed his knee.

“Quinn! Are you alright?” she panicked. She bent down to his level and observed his knee that was scraped and slightly bleeding.

Holding back a wince, he got up slowly, “Yeah, I’m alright,”

She looked at him with concern before saying, “Go back inside please, I don’t want you to be hurt. I’ll go with you if you want,”

He nodded his head, and they both went back inside, leaving Jack and Luke to play in the yard. They walked around the house, trying to find Ellen, before they found her in the kitchen cleaning.

“You two are back early, is everything alright?” she asked.

“No, Quinn got hurt,”

She turned around and walked over to Quinn, observing his knee before leading both of them into the bathroom. Quinn sat on top of the counter, his flower crown falling to one side of his head, looking a bit upset. She opened the medicine cabinet and cleaned his wound, patching him up.

They both thanked his mom before going out onto the front porch, sitting on the steps together in silence. The cool summer breeze passes through them. Quinn adjusted his crown, making sure not to ruin it, and looked over to her. 

“Do you want to get ice cream? I can ask my mom for some money,”

Her eyes lit up, the idea of some ice cream on a nice day seemed extremely tempting. She nodded her head eagerly, “Yes please!”

He smiled and told her to wait out there for him as he walked back inside. After a few moments, he came out the door full of excitement, his face beaming. 

“Let’s go c’mon!” He waved.

They both started walking down the street towards the main shops and markets. Stalls and vendors started appearing more frequently as they got closer, the sound of the town being more alive than ever with people chatting and laughing.

As they walked down the streets, Quinn spotted a lovely flower growing from a small patch of grass. He noticed that she was a few steps ahead of him, so he bent down, and picked up the little flower and put it in his pocket. Getting back up, he continued walking alongside her.

When they reached the ice cream stand, the worker looked at both of them and smiled. “What can I get for you two today?”

She spoke first, “I’ll have the vanilla, please,”

“And for the lovely prince?”

Quinn suddenly remembered the crown on his head and froze for a bit, before realizing that it wasn’t just any ordinary flower crown, or at least, to him.

“I’ll also have the vanilla, please,” Quinn said, handing the money to them.

“Okay, two vanilla ice creams, coming up!”

The worker then handed both of them a cone with a scoop of vanilla, and then they were both off walking down the street again. The warm sun that was beaming down on them melted the ice cream at a much quicker rate than they had expected.

“Quinn! I finished my ice cream, but it melted all over my hands.” She pouted.

“We should go to the river to wash our hands,”

She nodded as the both started running back towards the outskirts of town, kicking the dirt up from underneath their feet. Once they entered the forest clearing next to the river, they started cleaning the sticky-sweet mess of the ice cream off of their hands. The rushing water was cool to the touch, passing through their fingers.

When they finished, they both started walking back towards his home nearby, the silence between them still peaceful, and the smiles on their faces still prevalent. They arrived at his house a while later.

The sun was starting to set, the sky becoming more golden and orange, and the town winding down. They could both hear the laughter of his younger brothers in the backyard, the sound of a bicycle rolling against the ground, and the wind rushing through the trees.

She looked over to Quinn, seeing the flower crown still on top of his messy brown hair, the sun casting a fiery glow across his face. He glanced at her, noticing her eyes on him, and then quickly diverted his attention to the ground in front of him.

Shortly after arriving, her mother called out for her to come back home for dinner. She felt disappointment rising inside of her, and she looked back at Quinn.

“I have to go now, I’m sorry,”

He avoided looking at her, but his eyes were still sad. “I don’t want you to go,” he said barely above a whisper.

“I’ll play with you tomorrow Quinn, don’t worry.” Her smile was soft.

“Mhm.”

As she walked away, he remembered about the flower he had picked up earlier for her. He pulled it out of his pocket, but by then, she had already returned back to her home. The flower was a small flower, with soft white petals, and a bright yellow disk in the center. He held it gently in his hands, afraid that he might ruin it, and brought it back to his room so that he could give it to her the next day.

—

As they grew older, their families still remained as close as they were when they were younger. Quinn became much more quiet and reserved, while his younger brothers became the opposite. They all still hung out together, playing sports and going out to eat every now and then, but that was only when they weren’t busy with their academics.

Genesis requires every child to have at least eleven years of regulatory education, and four years of military education by their sixteenth birthday for the oldest children in the household. It seemed rather strict to have children be required to learn how to pilot and attack using fighter ships, but it was the only hope to save the planet.

Quinn and her were placed in the same military division, meaning they would also train together. They wouldn’t go fighting just yet though, as they were both still young. Training included learning about the types of mechs that Earth used to fight and their strengths and weaknesses, practicing maneuvering in zero-gravity, and the mechanics of a fighter ship.

At the moment, Quinn was observing a straight-six engine that was resting inside of the ship, trying to figure out what was wrong with it. His brows furrowed, lips pressed tightly together, concentration etched in his face. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“Need any help, Quinn?”

He jumped, startled by her sudden appearance beside him. “Sorry, I uh—”

She laughed lightly at his action, “It’s okay, you don’t need to apologize,”

Flashing her a quick smile, he returned his attention back to the engine. She took a look at the engine, shining a light underneath it to try and see what was wrong with it. Quinn glanced at it before huffing out a breath.

“I think it needs to be replaced completely, unfortunately,” he sighed.

She nodded in agreement, her arms crossed as she walked around the ship trying to find any other flaws. The wings of the ship looked to be okay, the hull slightly dented, and the windows slightly foggy. It was all Genesis could afford.

“I’ll go fetch another engine from the spare parts area,” he said as he walked away.

Her eyes followed him, seeing the stiffness in his posture, and how he looked so tense. Worry slightly grew inside of her. She cared for him greatly, so greatly in fact, that she started wondering if he cared the same way. He was so sweet and gentle with her when they were both young kids, and she couldn’t help but start feeling warmth in her chest when she saw him.

When he returned, he was carrying a replacement engine in his arms, and some of the motor oil stained his apron. He set the engine down near the ship and grabbed some of his tools. His hands worked at the screw and mechanics that were holding the engine in, causing his arms to flex underneath his shirt.

“Hey um,” he started, glancing up at her, “could you help me lift the engine out, please?” he chuckled.

“Oh, yeah of course, sorry.” She blushed.

They both lifted the engine out of the ship, placing it on the ground beside them. He then grabbed the other engine, placed it where it was supposed to be, and secured all of the screws and torque converter to it.

“Should be running now,” he muttered as he went to check the ignition. He hopped in the cockpit, and she backed up a bit. Pressing in the code for the ship, the engine roared to life, and the control panels lit up. He then turned it back off, and then got out of the ship.

“That’s good, I’ll tell Captain Abrahm,” she said as she walked off.

He watched as she went away, reminding him of all those moments when she had to go home, leaving him alone again. He held no resentment towards her, he just wished that he could spend a little longer with her. It’s always been like this for him, wanting to make her happy, wanting to make her laugh.

His hands fumbled in his pocket, searching for a little flower that was encased in a glittery resin charm. He pulled it out and smiled, seeing how the flower was still preserved to this day. He hoped that one day, he would have the courage to give her the flower, as she did with a flower crown when they were both young.

“Specialist Hughes?” Captain Abrahm called to him, snapping him out of his thoughts. 

“Yes Captain Abrahm?”

“I’d like to have a talk with you in my office, please.”

Quinn walked over to the office where Captain Abrahm usually sat, and noticed him standing behind his desk. He motioned for him to sit down, and he did so.

“I need to have a discussion with you for a moment, if that is alright with you, Specialist Hughes.”

He felt nervousness bubbling inside of him, but he hid it well, his face remaining emotionless. “Of course, Captain Abrahm,”

“You have heard of the Liberty War, and we both know it is a very serious event that is occurring at the moment that is affecting us.” Captain Abrahm paced around the room, his posture not faltering in any way. “The military of Genesis has decided that you would be a fit position to join the military as a soldier, and we would like to discuss this with you, as well as give you time to think about it before you make your decision,”

Quinn sat there, focusing on the words that he had just heard from his commander. He would have to end up leaving home, leaving his brothers, his family. The chances of him returning were high, but never one-hundred percent.

“I know it is a tough decision, so I am informing you of this now,” he spoke again.

He pressed his lips tightly together before responding, “Thank you, Captain Abrahm. I’ll think about it before returning my response back to you as soon as possible,” he said as he walked away, his heart aching and his breaths uneven.

On his walk home, he felt uneasy, he didn’t know what the future had in store for him anymore. He felt lost, confused, scared. Hearing footsteps behind him, he quickly turned around, but to his relief, he spotted her.

“I am so sorry Quinn, I had a meeting with Captain Abrahm and was running a bit late,” her voice cracked slightly. 

Quinn noticed the redness in her eyes and cheeks, and how her nose sniffled. He knew this look well, he knew it by heart, but every time, he wishes that he could see it less. He pulled her into a close hug, and she started crying. Her sobs came out muffled, and he gently rubbed comforting circles into her back. He held her tight, as if to ground her onto the planet, to remind her that she is still here with him. That there is still time, together.

They parted ways once they arrived at their homes, the sun casting golden rays across the sky, but this time, it didn’t feel so warm. It felt like a hot flash of betrayal. It was something that was a mockery, something that reminded Quinn of the past, something that he couldn’t live in anymore.

When he stepped into his home, it seemed quiet and still. The air felt damp against his skin, the silence ringing in his ears. He went into his room and took a shower, trying to scrub the remnants of the day off of him.

Laying on his bed, he stared at the ceiling, his thoughts running. He wanted so badly to tell her that he cares, that he is in love with her, that he would give his all to her. His tears fell, knowing that he had to do it sooner rather than later, but how? She deserved everything, and yet he felt so lost trying to tell this to her. 

What he didn’t know is that she felt the same way, just as lost as he was, just as confused and scared as he was. She wanted so badly to let it all out to him, to lay her heart out to him, giving him every bit of it. Her eyes cried at the thought of needing to risk her life in the military. Of course she could back out of it, but what about Quinn? Would he do the same? She knew him as the person to fight, to give everything to the ones he loved, the person that would sacrifice themselves for the better.

When they both broke the news to their parents, they were proud that they made it up to that level of ranking. But it was so obvious to see the pain etched into their faces when they heard that they would end up serving in the military. It pained them to see the heartbreak that they caused within their parents. It hurt, it broke them into pieces, and yet they hoped it was for the best. It was toxic.

A couple of weeks later, training had ended, and the graduation ceremony for the military was nearing. Quinn still hadn’t told her how he felt, and the pain was eating him bit by bit. He was too nervous to ruin what he had with her, too nervous that this one little conversation would suddenly create a gap between them.

Jack and Luke both noticed this, how Quinn was extremely quiet when her name was brought up, how Quinn seemed nervous around her, how he barely smiled to anyone but his family and her. They both tried to convince Quinn to tell her, but he wouldn’t. He couldn’t. He couldn’t bring himself to tell her that he loved her.

When both Quinn and her stood on the stage alongside other specialists being promoted, their exosuits bearing Genesis colors and helmets by their sides, they felt a sense of pride at the moment. To achieve this level was to achieve a high level of honor and respect. Their names were called one at a time, an applause after each, and a badge was handed to them.

However, the tension still felt high. The pressure was astronomical. Everyone that stood on the stage knew the sacrifice that they were making. Everyone that stood on the stage knew about the risk of this. Nervous expressions weren’t shown, but anyone could sense it.

Once the ceremony was over, their families made their way to them, giving out hugs and congratulations. Ellen held Quinn close, her tears slightly falling onto the cold exosuit, and both Jack and Luke gave their brother a hug with a pat on the back. It was a time of happiness, and yet so much sadness. A bittersweet moment.

Quinn walked over to her, giving her a firm handshake, before she pulled him into a tight hug, her strong facade faltering in his grasp. His own eyes shed a few tears, his voice quiet and untrusting of his wavering breath. They looked into each other’s eyes, words unspoken, but they both knew that there was something between them.

They were dismissed and allowed to return back home to their families, their journeys silent, but it was evident that something was off. Their families decided to eat dinner together at the Hughes’ house as a celebration. The light that hung above the dinner table glittered, the candles that were lit shone softly, and old jokes were being passed around lightheartedly.

As dinner was concluding, Quinn helped his mother clean up the dishes and the table, putting the candles out, and wiping everything down. She did similarly to help his mother, and once they were all done, Ellen thanked the both of them.

Outside, the night was dark, and stars speckled the sky. Quinn and her both walked out to a bridge nearby that was over a river and sat down. The crickets chirped quietly in the surrounding area. Silence hung between the both of them, lingering like the night.

He turned to her, and broke the silence with his voice. “I’m sorry.” He sighed.

She looked at him, puzzled by this sudden remark. “For what, Quinn? You didn’t do anything wrong,”

He took a deep breath in, contemplating if he should just tell her, but he didn’t. He turned to face the river again, staring at it blankly. She noticed how tears started welling in his eyes, how they looked glossy, and she gently cupped his face. His tears rolled down his cheek, and her thumb gently wiped it away.

He then pulled away from her touch, wiping his own tears away, before turning to her again. “I hope you know that I’ll always care for you,” he said, his voice wavering.

She nodded her head, her own tears forming, “Me too, I’ll always care about you Quintin.” She never used his full name, only his nickname.

—

They both stood there in the main warship alongside the other soldiers in a line, waiting for orders to be given to them. Wearing their exosuits, helmets were held under their arms beside them, their posture strong and confident, expressing no fear. 

They could all see the stars outside of the windows, each little dot in the sky. The dark vastness of space filled the gaps between the stars and planets. A faint line of blue and purple stars covered a small portion of the space.

Captain Abrahm walked into the area, his exosuit gleaming under the dim lighting, taking attendance to account for every soldier in the room. Once he counted everyone, he started speaking. “Today will be the fifth run towards the Genesis Gate. We’ve observed that the amount of mechs in the area are higher than normal, and we advise you to stay extra vigilant.”

Just from hearing that, they all knew that it would be a tougher battle today. No time for miscalculations, no time for distractions. Quinn’s facial expression remained blank, his eyes looked tired and dark, his brown hair falling onto his forehead. He focused on the words, hoping that today wouldn’t be his last day, hoping that it wouldn’t be anyone’s last day.

The artificial gravity dissipated as they all began to float in the air, waiting for further instructions. Quinn looked around, spotting her across the room floating gracefully, her eyes shut in concentration. He tried to do the same, focusing on his breathing, and he relaxed his body. 

When he opened his eyes, he made eye contact with her, and they both smiled sweetly. He adored how her eyes seemed to shine, even in the worst of situations. He adored how she looked so courageous, and he inspired to be like her. 

She thought the same about him. She adored how he was so focused and concentrated, even for the littlest things. How his lips pressed together when he was lost in thought. She adored how his hair constantly fell in his face. Most importantly, she adored how he was so caring for his friends and family.

Green lights illuminated the area, signaling that the gravity was about to turn on. They prepared themselves as their feet landed on the ground, and they all stood in a single-file line facing the corridor. They walked down the corridor when they were ordered, their boots stomping on the floor, and they made their way to their individual fighter ships.

They put their helmets on, checked their exosuits for any damage or faults, and took notes on their vitals. Once they were all seated, with every control set and ready, the system running with room for little to no errors, they took off into space.

Ship after ship flew out into space, speeding through the area towards the gate. Stars blurred past their windows, and the planet Genesis faded behind them. Adrenaline was running through her, triggering her senses into a defensive mode. Mech ships started appearing once they flew out far enough, firing back at the ships with an almost perfect precision.

Captain Abrahm spoke through the communication systems, warning everyone of the danger that was present, “This is Captain Abrahm. We’ve spotted a higher percentage of mechs in the area, proceed with caution,” he spoke with urgency.

Quinn took control of his ship, moving it from one target to another with precision, firing each blast carefully so as to not waste his power.

With one shot, he caused a fighter mech to lose control and crash into another, imploding both ships. He drifted his ship across the field to get closer to other ships. Firing another, he shattered a ship into a few pieces, seeing the metal parts break away.

“More ships incoming!” Captain Abrahm announced through the communication systems.

She maneuvered her ship out of the way from one blast from a mech pilot, before firing back, hitting the mech. The ship shattered into pieces, and she quickly turned her attention back to another mech ship that flew nearby. 

It flew over her window, nearly crashing into her if she hadn’t piloted her ship out of the way, and she turned around before firing at it, causing it to combust. 

Out of her peripheral vision, she could see a dense group of mech ships flying towards her. She directed the ship to her left and fired at the ships, hitting one of them and blasting it into small bits. Another shot ripped through one of the ships, splitting it in half.

The corner of her eye caught a large explosion, causing her to quickly look over. The color in her face drained as she recognized the ship, its silvery color with blue and green stripes on proud display.

It was Quinn’s ship caught in the heavy fight.

Time seemed to freeze as she watched one of the mech’s ship fire, sending the blast directly towards Quinn, too close for him to pilot out of the way. Too quick. She could see how he winced as it came closer to him, how his eyes shut tightly, how his arms stiffened as he tried to control his ship downwards. 

How he tried so hard to avoid this day.

His ship split into pieces. Large chunks of metal slowly drifting apart. Fragments of the wing broken into tiny bits.

She couldn’t look away. Her eyes remained on his ship, what was his ship. It seemed so wrong to try and search for him, knowing that he was long gone now. A dull, aching pain built up in her chest. 

A bright light from the explosion caused her to blink her tears away, but as soon as she opened her eyes, her hands immediately gravitated to the communication system.

“I love you, Quintin Hughes,” she said as her helmet fogged up from the tears. “I’ll always remember you,” her voice broke. The other line was an irritating ring of a dead signal, and she slammed the radio phone down.

She quickly diverted her attention back to the mech ships, and fired at all of them with accuracy, sending every ship to its end. Her hands gripped the controls furiously, anger was boiling inside of her for not fighting hard enough.

Once the fight died down, she reluctantly reached for the communications again, calling for Captain Abrahm. “Captain Abrahm, this is fighter ship thirty-seven reporting the casualty of fighter ship forty-three,” she spoke with as much courage as she could gather.

Piloting her fighter ship back to the main warship, she felt grief, but it was impossible for her to express it. She couldn’t accept the fact that she had just lost her best friend of seventeen years. She felt empty. Usually the silence after a run was filled with Quinn and her having a small conversation. Now it was just pure silence. Never-ending radio silence.

Part Two

[frantic-fuck]

Snakelet - Chapter 7

@augusnippets Day 10 - Begging for Mercy @augustofwhump Day 12 - Anger

Word count: 500

Masterpost

Content: Nonhuman/vampire whumpee, implied lab whump + murder, implied torture, reluctant whumper stops being reluctant

~

"O-oh, geez."

Nerium flies into Ziri's field of view, and even as muddled as his mind is, he can tell they look nauseated at the sight of him.

"That— that should be enough. Let him down."

Whoever's been whipping him — he stopped keeping track — sighs and severs the ropes suspending him from the ceiling. He doesn't bother getting up after he collapses.

"I really am regretful that you got caught up in this, Ziri. I just have one question, and then you'll be left alone until we return you, alright?"

Mustering all his strength, he rasps, "Mhm."

"Do you know anything about Rosemary?"

"...who?"

"My sister. Rosemary. Janessa's stupid Izzet League took her a few years ago. I'm hoping saving her will be easier if I know what happened afterwards."

As hard as he tries to scour his brain, he may as well be trying to read a blank piece of paper. He shrugs apologetically.

"Please. Come on." They fly right in front of his face. "She looks like me, except older, and her hair's a little darker, and..."

They continue describing her, and slowly but surely... a memory flickers. The last time he saw a pixie. It might've been her.

"...Mhm."

"YES! Good! Where did you see her? What was happening to her?"

He painstakingly tries to fan the flickering flame of a thought.

It's not filtered through blue. He saw her in person.

She was much smaller than him. He wasn't a snake.

He thinks... he remembers her voice. Talking to him. He was talking back. When would Janessa have allowed that?

...Oh.

Fuck.

As more memories of Janessa's "extreme size lessons" trickle in, how difficult it was to operate on her tiny body, to drain her blood, to not break down when she cried over the sibling she missed so dearly... Nerium's expression darkens.

And Ziri finally remembers something else.

Some pixies can read minds.

FUCK.

"F— forgive me. Please, f—"

"Release me from the promise."

He trembles as they stare him down, any trace of sympathy replaced with absolute fury.

"I-I can't—"

"It is not FAIR to force me to return you to your sibling when YOU KILLED MINE. RELEASE ME!"

It's not fair. None of this is fair. To him, or Nerium, or anyone. But fair or not, he just... can't. He can't lose his only guarantee that this hell will end.

"You know what? Fine!" Nerium sneers. "If you think you're above acting fey, why don't we see if your body agrees, hm? Iron is no longer prohibited."

His most recent assailant gasps in excitement, in stark contrast to his own overwhelming dread.

Here he was thinking it couldn't get any worse.

"Believe me, snake, it can." They turn to the assailant coldly. "I think it'll take a lot more to get through to her, actually. Don't bother holding back."

"Pl— please. Please, mercy. Please." Ziri desperately reaches towards them as they start flying away.

"If you want mercy, you know what to do."