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randomfoggytiger · 4 months ago

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Collector's Edition: Colleagues, and Agents, and A.D.s-- Oh My! (Part I)

For the anon who requested: do you have any fic recs with Mulder and Scully case filing with other law enforcement tasks forces? or general pov outsider?

Loose chronological order below¬

ML/ML_is_me/ml_griffonnage's (Alt. Ao3, Invidiosa)

XF Friday Nights 02 - Space Invader (Ao3)

She was a cool customer, this one. He was impressed by her composure in the midst of this cacophony, curiously at ease in the maelstrom.

Deep Throat observes Mulder and Scully's dynamic.

XF Friday Nights 03 - J. Edgar, Junior (Ao3)

If you want to be a blue-flamer, act like a blue- flamer, was his motto.

Squeeze's Colton is using Scully for his own benefit.

XF Friday Nights 04 - Impertinent Questions (Ao3)

He'd already known it had to be Mulder, and Holtzman probably had already known too. Nothing seemed to set alarms off faster than if word got around Mulder was investigating something. He might as well have a hotline to the NSA.

The Conduit NSA officers' takes on Mulder and Scully.

XF Friday Nights 05 - Warm Bodies (Ao3)

There were rumors a-plenty about Dana Scully, same as Mulder, but Saunders felt there was no point in mentioning those, either. It all amounted to water-cooler gossip; none of them had anything to do with her ability to do her job. Saunders understood the reasons behind those rumors better than Webster or any man ever would, and she would not be a party to them.

Shadows agents end up liking the dynamic duo (and subtly refer back to the Conduit agents.)

XF Friday Nights 07 - COS of Death

His former partner turned toward him. Next to him stood a petite redhead; a real knockout. She must be the whiz kid from Quantico, Dana Scully.

Ghost in the Machine Jerry Lamana observes Mulder and Scully's strange coexistence.

The New Truth, A Project 09x04 - Home Fires 01 (Ao3) and The New Truth, A Project 09x04 - Home Fires 02 (Ao3)

JD had just about given up on Phoebe when she called him.

AU-- S9 Mulder and Scully are secretly helping the Resistance when an old "friend", Phoebe Green, drops back in with "information."

Evil_Little_Dog's Credibility

The great 'Spooky' Mulder was talking. Pontificating, even.

A random agent observes, then comes to respect, Mulder's abilities.

tiredmoonlight's Stuck in Storage - Chapter 1

Warren took a breath before speaking again. “But half the officers out there are spooked, and no one wants to work the night shift anymore because it’s they’d be all alone.”

S1 Mulder and Scully end up being saved from case shenanigans by the police chief.

Juliettt's Verdict

Guess there *were* advantages to doing the kind of work "Spooky" and "Skulls" did on a daily basis.

FBI agents slipped down to the basement to watch the OJ Simpson trial verdict.

@gaycrouton/OnlyTheInevitable's Nurse Mulder

The young agent stood up immediately and ran over to her. "Agent Scully, I am so sorry," he repeated for the thousandth time.

She walked past him and motioned for him to follow, which he did like a puppy. "Officer Thompson, some sneezes are impossible to suppress. I assure you I bear no grudge. The perp was caught. No one was killed," she rambled half heartedly, trying her best not to walk differently because of her injury.

The local cops (and seasonal allergies) set off a chain reaction of shenanigans for one Mulder and Scully.

Erin M. Blair's (Alt. Ao3) Softball Accident

A pale-faced young FBI Agent Jim Rodgers stood by, looking on helplessly with concern lining on his face.... "I'm sorry, Mulder. I hope you'll feel better. I... feel bad about this."

Scully and a fellow agent drive Mulder to the hospital after a minor baseball injury.

@mulderwearingglasses's (Ao3)

Stupid Cupid (Ao3)

Was everyone going undercover? Was her outfit en route? Was this some kind of bizarre-o dream? Why did everyone look like they were about to do some sort of red carpet event when she was clad in black leggings, a sweatshirt and -- oof -- she didn’t think she’d even run a brush through her hair, gone puffy and scraggly from her post-work couch nap.

Season 4 Scully is called in by Skinner on Valentine's Day... and is surprised that Mulder didn't have a date, like she'd assumed.

If Walls Could Talk (Ao3)

As she walked up to the crime scene -- a dilapidated house in rural Virginia -- local police and her colleagues shot each other bemused looks, ushering coy smirks off their lips. Some turned to their partners to whisper and cover a snicker behind their hands.

S6 Scully's diary is plastered all over the walls of a crime scene.

Anne Haynes's (xf-redux)

Fragile is the Glass

He tried not to react to her statement. So Hollis knew that Scully was having nosebleeds? Was that common knowledge around the Bureau now? He and Scully had tried hard to keep anyone but Skinner from finding out what was going on with her health.

Post Tempus Fugit Mulder and Scully don't disabuse a fellow agent of her Pendrell convictions.

Someone Else's Child (Gossamer) and Shatter

"I wasn't sure about adopting him at first." Pollack folds up the photo sleeves and tucks them back into the wallet. "You hear things about adoptions--I wanted kids of my own, and I was afraid that once they came along, I might treat Mike differently or something because he was someone else's kid."

I feel the memory cresting, hard and painful. I feel the tiny hands curled around my neck, the sweet smell of little girl, the fevered heat of her tiny body in my arms.

Over six months have passed and it still cuts like a razor.

Post Emily Mulder watches the new, hard edges of Scully's character form as she struggles with the loss of her daughter; and opens up about his VCU days, demonstrating that she's not alone.

Rachel Howards's Gypsy

The boulder field, a few hundred yards off of the trail, was steep and wide and required careful footwork. Dana scrambled over her section, above Levison, who had nimbly made her way to the rocky bottom of the slope and was picking her way along the ravine, bounding, surefooted, from rock to rock, peering into the crevices between the largest boulders. Above her, Mulder walked, silhouetted against the sky, the light above him blacking out his features so that all she saw was an outline of his body as he moved, parallel to her, sometimes stooping to examine the rocks.

Post Elegy Scully and Mulder silently stew in their complicated feelings while on a similarly complicated case.

@syntax6's (Gossamer, FFN, omniscribe) The Queen of Hearts

The chief frowned from Scully to Mulder. "You're the alien hunters. Gunther told me he was writing you a pile of nonsense, but I didn't expect you to show up all the way out here."

Post Redux II Mulder is avoiding x-files cases; and it's Scully who insists they get back into the field, and Scully who acts as Mulder 2.0

robot iconography's Still Life With Moth Men

Somewhere in the Apalachicola National Forest Wednesday

Either 4:36 or 4:40 p.m.

AU-- Pre-Detour Skinner forces both agents to attend a team-building seminar. Hijinks ensue.

@aloysiavirgata/Aloysia_Virgata's

I love reading other people talking about/observing Mulder and Scully. Please please!

Stonecypher rolls her eyes. “Weird,” she says. “But nice.”

“Gorgeous,” Kinsley repeats, dreamily. “Fox Mulder smells like an anthropomorphic regatta.”

Post Detour Kinsley and Stonecypher swap their thoughts on Mulder and Scully with other interested agents.

Petrichor and Singing of Mount Abora

“This is K9 Officer Jangles,” Scully says, introducing Mulder to the dog. “She’s new.”

Both follow-ups of The Waters of Babylon, Mulder and Scully work alongside other parties to solve two differently horrific cases (while crafting new boundaries for their evolving relationship.)

David Hearne's Hartwell

I admit that I was impressed by Agent Mulder, too. Right after Scully got done with her scientific theories, he started spewing a lot of stuff about vampires, some of which was actually true.

Sheriff Lucius Hartwell's POV on his town, Ronnie Strickland, Mulder, and Scully.

catsndogs's All Creatures

Officer Rogers immediately lost his confidence when she repeated his story almost verbatim: "So you're saying, you're worried because you heard Agent Scully drop her phone and you haven't been able to reach her?" Rogers proposed that that Agent Scully could have dropped her phone into a toilet.

In this unfinished fic, Mulder and Scully try to solve an impossible case-- one in which all signs point to murderous dogs.

Khyber's IMTP Virtual Season 08x03 - Imperial Violet

"Agent Mulder? It's Mulder, right? This is Owen Purcell," he drew out his l's, "the person who's trapped in here with your lovely partner for the night. Dana's out of her head with hunger. Her stomach is making terrifying sounds. I fear for my life. Bring us barbecued ribs, preferably from Nate's. With everything, and whatever the cheesecake special is. I'm guessing she has a weakness for cheesecake."

Mulder works alongside a few helping hands (including TLG) to save Scully and a doctor from Roush's latest infectious disease.

agoodwoman's (WBM) You Are Here

Agent Sherman approached Mulder with an envelope in hand and his camera bag over one shoulder. "Hey Mulder."

Post Detour Skinner gets his revenge by assigning Mulder and Scully to the bullpen for a month.

@atths--twice/ATTHS_TWICE/Atths2/ATTHS's

Every Picture Tells A Story

Yeah, they praised him after, but laughed at him when he suggested an outlandish idea.

Pre-The End duo are ridiculed as Team Spooky... but they get a picture out of it.

Just Beyond the Edge (Ao3)

“Listen up,” he called to his officers and all chatter stopped. “Not all of you have had the pleasure of meeting the FBI agents yet. This is Agent Mulder and Agent Scully. They are here to help find the missing men.”

S7 Mulder finds a nice Halloweeny case for Scully: the Tali Keno.

In the Wind

Leaving the morgue and coming back to the motel late at night, she would pick up greasy cheeseburgers and fries, eating them mechanically as she looked over case notes and photos. Mulder had not been around much, as he was busy in the field, helping Detective Hannon, the lead on this case.

Post Millennium Scully is annoyed by a stupid case (and a flirty female detective on that case.)

Lovesfox's Erroneous Equation

Larger than life, and twice as loud, Tom Colton had hardly changed in the five plus years since Mulder had been blessed with an introduction. The Agent's face was still pudgy and youthful, his eyes still sly and mean. And his artificial jocularity was as stale as the old 'Spooky' joke.

Post One Son Colton drives a wedge between Mulder and Scully.

Pattie's They Call Him AGENT Mulder

Now, I know we all referred to him as "Spooky Mulder" at the F.B.I. Academy, and this reputation persisted years after he had graduated. The legend lived on about him even after I attended and graduated. We all knew he was a target for whispers, looks, even loudly malicious castigation not only throughout the halls of the Academy, but at Hoover's Haunt.

Mulder doesn't have the best track record dealing with annoying or out-of-line agents.

Namarie's (LJ, mulderscreek) Patchwork

"What brought your partner out here?" Deputy Greer asked. He was looking at Scully with frank curiosity.

Scully hesitated. Finally, she decided that the truth was the best option here. "He was investigating the reports of a patchwork creature that had supposedly been seen in the area."

AU-- S6 Mulder gets kidnapped while on an x-file weekend.

Girlie_girl7's Glow

"Agents," Kinsley began, as he looked from Mulder to Scully, "I saw a man."

"It could have been a woman," Stonecypher interrupted.

Kinsley rolled his eyes. "Okay, I saw a being, but it wasn't a person."

S6 Mulder and Scully are bailed out by the Detour agents.

@scully-eats-sushi/ijustknew's You're Not Alone, You're Not Alone II, and You're Not Alone III

Beside him, Springfield chuckled. “No. She gave a couple of my guys a dressing down yesterday over how they were handling bagged evidence. They’re still stinging.”

Post Millennium Scully and Mulder slowly work toward a relationship while solving emotionally strenuous cases.

KatyBlue's Absence of a Heartbeat (Gossamer)

An officer knelt down on Mulder's other side. She didn't know him. He looked young and scared. He had a towel that he placed over the wound. Scully shoved his hands into a good position and pushed down on them to show him the correct amount of pressure. "Press down and don't let up," she ordered.

Scully and a young field agent try to bring Mulder back to life with CPR.

dlynn's If a Frog had Wings . . .

"I'm not sure," he whispered. "Corelli and Mulder were on the trail ahead of me. I heard Mulder say that something didn't feel right and the next thing I knew Corelli was shoving me hard. I landed behind this boulder. I think it protected me from the blast."

Mulder and another agent get trapped under a tree.

Madeleine Partous’s (The Annex) Floaters

Hansen's case was being treated as an internal affair. No local authorities.

"They're keeping it quiet, Scully," he muttered after the second polygraph. "We wouldn't want one of our boys to go down in flames in the media."

Scully is almost murdered by a fellow FBI agent; and she and Mulder must fight against the FBI overhead when she kills her attacker.

TessMooreXF's Armadillo Season

Staring at the pictures of the lake in new-found horror, Scully startled at the sound of a sharp knock on the door. Confused about who could possibly be knocking, she was dismayed to find that private bed and breakfast operations rarely featured peep-holes. Opening the door revealed a clean-cut looking officer waiting in the hallway. He was relatively tall, maybe 5'11, and perhaps 30 years old. His knit brows signified his attempt at sobriety and professionalism, but his face was boyish and friendly. His name tag identified him as Officer Foster.

Kersh sends Scully on a case, solo, that devolves into messy chaos. Mulder arrives to track her down and back her up.

Thalia D'Muse's On the Wings of Destiny

An ear-piercing screech, in the fashion of every door in every old horror movie, filled the hallway as Thomason pushed open the door and took a few steps inside.

When Scully crossed the threshold of the room, an acrid bouquet of smells accosted her nostrils: mildew, animal feces, sweat, dust -- and the unmistakable metallic scent of blood.

S7 Mulder is kidnapped; and Scully scours every crack and crevice in her attempts to find and save him.

Rebecca Rusnak/Anonymous's (mulderscreek, The Annex) Silence, Sea and Sky

Roscoe smiled at them and ambled back towards his office. Scully watched Mulder. He stared straight ahead for a long moment, then looked down at her.

"Want to meet one of the most heinous agents in the history of the Bureau?" he asked.

This case has a little of everything: a jerky guy from the FBI Academy, a little girl that must be saved from a fire, and a broken psychic serial killer courtesy of one Dana Scully.

@mldrgrl's (Ao3) Tumblr drabble prompts of various shades of MSR - Chapter 9

She heard laughter as she approached the door to the office.

Post Requiem Scully skewers fellow agents mocking Mulder.

Thanks for reading~

Enjoy!

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taevbears · 1 year ago

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Magic Shop - 10

As the only non-magical being in a shop full of mages and familiars, Seokjin is starting to feel left out.

⤑ pairing: OT7 x witch!reader, Seokjin focused ⤑ genre: magic au, romance, angst, hurt/comfort, found family, domestic/slice of life, action/adventure ⤑ rating: 18+ ⤑ word count: 11.1k ⤑ warnings: smut (penetrative), implied smut, verbal sexual harassment, mentions of attempted sexual assault, oppression of mages, implied shady business dealings, probable inaccuracies with 92 liners, mentions of violence ⤑ note: welcome back to pt. 2 of the series! it's finally fall, and it feels good to be writing for this story again, especially with spooky season around the corner. each member will have 2 chapters dedicated to them, making this part twice as long as pt. 1 lol. happy reading, and i'd love to hear your thoughts about this chapter!

Chapters: Series ML | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15

Dear Mother and Father,

Seokjin pauses as he stares at the line he just wrote. It looks too formal, even with his own eyes.

I’m sure the news about Blackstone Castle has already reached our village by now. You both must be very worried about me. But I’m writing to let you know that your youngest son is alive and well.

More than well, he thinks, as he looks at the morning crowd before him.

The kitchen is busy like it usually is at this time. Hoseok is roasting coffee beans over a magical fire, extracting sweet and nutty aromas that fill the room. Yoongi is standing next to him, frying eggs and bacon into a pan. The sizzle and pop of smoky meat against oil makes Seokjin’s mouth salivate in hunger. Namjoon and Jungkook are checking inventory together, making a list of what things they need to pick up on their next trip to the market.

“What’s wrong, hyung? You’re making a face,” Jungkook points out.

The mage is frowning down at the list and rubs his neck like he’s stressed. But he shakes his head and tells Jungkook, “I’m just wondering if we need this much saffron? What are we even using it for?”

“Yes! I need it!” Hoseok answers, poking his head up to look Namjoon in the eye. “It’s for my potions! Don’t forget it!”

“It’s so expensive,” Namjoon blanches. Seokjin can’t help but notice that he looks a bit stressed again as he continues reading down the list.

“Taehyung, don’t you dare!” you shriek, grabbing everyone’s attention as you back away from the raven familiar. “Your hands are still wet!”

A deep, evil chuckle rumbles from his chest as he slowly advances toward you. He holds up his hands, water dripping from washing dishes over the sink. “Darling, I just want a hug.”

“No!” you yell, ducking away when he tries to grab you.

Neither Yoongi nor Hoseok is phased as the two of you run past them. They simply step aside, using magic to levitate utensils and ingredients upward so that you don’t knock them over.

You run straight to Jungkook, who’d do anything for you in a heartbeat. The toad familiar has you in his arms for a few seconds, seeing you plead for his help like a damsel in distress. That gets him to puff up his chest, bravely putting himself between you and Taehyung.

Little do you know, an enemy is nearby. Namjoon, who likes to tease you as well, tosses the list aside and grabs a hold of you. “I got her, Taehyung!”

“Traitor! I’ll make you pay!” you vow, even though his dimpled smile easily melts your heart. Seokjin blinks at the discarded list on the ground.

“Don’t fight,” Hoseok warns as he finishes making his coffee. He pours the dark liquid into several mugs. “It’s too early in the morning to be threatening each other.”

Yoongi looks over at you all, checking to see if you’re okay. Jungkook yells and jumps back when Taehyung tries to wipe his wet hands on the front of his shirt. Distracted, the toad hybrid doesn’t see the raven hybrid shift and fly over his head until he lands back on his feet as a human right in front of you. And, like the menace he is, wipes his hands on both you and Namjoon.

“Taehyung, why can’t you use a towel to wipe your hands?” you complain as he cackles in laughter. Seokjin stands up from the table and picks up the list for inventory.

“You know how when a cat brushes up against you, it’s like saying ‘you’re mine’?” he asks you, throwing a wink when you catch on. Followed by Hoseok’s loud teasing as Yoongi suddenly avoids eye contact with you and states that breakfast is ready.

A typical, noisy morning at the shop.

Becoming a warden has its challenges. You have to be up at the crack of dawn. The food they serve us tastes bland. Routine shifts are mundane and unchanging. They have daily reminders from the Devoted about how mages are cruel and evil, and how the wardens are heroes by keeping them locked away. Some of the wardens let that get in their heads, and they end up not being very nice people. Then, you go to bed by curfew and do the same thing all over again. It’s quite the thrilling life.

Seokjin scoffs.

In hindsight, his duties as a warden all sound like bullshit. The lies that the Devoted feed about mages and magic are far from the truth.

“That’s hardly fair.”

“Maybe you should’ve gone with a different color.”

“I bet he’ll look good no matter what color we pick.”

The three mages of the shop – you, Namjoon, and Hoseok – are baffled and scratching your heads. In an act of revenge for the chaos this morning, the three of you decided to team up and change Taehyung’s hair.

Into a vibrant blue.

The raven familiar smirks at his reflection on the mirror and looks at you three. “Don’t I look good like this, though?”

In seconds, the three of you huddle together for a new game plan. Hoseok is the first to point out, “I don’t think this is going to work, guys. He’s too handsome.”

Namjoon nods his head in agreement. “Yeah, he’s like Jin-hyung.”

“Me?” Seokjin asks, somehow finding himself included in the huddle.

“I could turn your hair baby pink and you’ll still be the most handsome person in the world,” you tell him, quite serious in light of the gravity of your situation. You don’t seem to notice the redness in Seokjin’s ears from your compliment.

The three of you – talented and skilled with magic – are deemed as threats, even if you’d never use your magic for evil. Hoseok is a potion master who brews concoctions in coffees and teas that add a bit of hope in each cup. Namjoon, who studies the history of the arcane arts and runes, uses that knowledge to write and collect interesting trinkets to decorate the shop. And you, the spell caster, who could incantate charms and hexes effortlessly, only use your abilities to protect the shop, help the people you care about, and occasionally turn one of their hairs into a color of the rainbow.

The Devoted has warned that mages like you bewitch mortals to do your will, host bloody sacrifices, shed the lives of innocents, and commit cardinal sins with demons in exchange for power.

These days, however, the three of you use magic to prank each other or one of the familiars.

“Guess you’ll have to come up with something else.” Taehyung shrugs, suddenly next to you in the circle, catching you all off guard.

I’ve managed to survive the mage rebellion with just a scratch. You raised a pro after all. An apprentice got a hold of a summoning book. He convinced others to form a mutiny, and it backfired badly. He became a monster, burdening all the pains and sorrows that he and the others have carried. That night was the scariest night of my life. I still have nightmares about it.

Seokjin stares at his reflection in the mirror. It’s been several months since the night you all fled from Blackstone Castle together, but the ugly scar on his torso is a fresh reminder of what had happened.

“I’m sorry,” you whisper every time you see it. “I should’ve gotten to you sooner.”

“You saved me just in time,” Seokjin assures you, trying not to shiver when he feels your fingers carefully trace the textured skin. It’s not as bad as before, but it’s still there. It’s still visible.

As the day comes to an end, you always check on each of them. The vibrant blue fades from Taehyung’s hair and you apologize. He says he’ll forgive you if you kiss him, and he’s reluctant to let you go when you do. All day, Yoongi seems avoidant, trying not to brush up against you, probably because of what Taehyung said that morning. But you assure him that you don’t mind, wrapping your arms around him yourself as he seems to ease into your touch. You check with the others too, though you’re always adamant to check on Seokjin.

And Seokjin knows why. Even if you never tell him.

You’re frowning, fixated on the scar. No amount of healing magic that you know could make it go away completely.

He glances at you and then back at the mirror. “I suppose this makes me a little less handsome, doesn’t it?”

“Of course not.”

Since the castle is no longer standing, I’ve moved into a nearby town. I spend my days happily now. No rules or duties to be obliged to. No pressure to conform to beliefs I don’t agree with. I’m only human. I’m lacking in a lot of ways that my housemates aren’t, but I found a family here, and it just keeps growing.

“Ow, ow, ow,” you cry mournfully, sticking out your aching tongue, and set a cup of hot tea on the coffee table. “I think I burned myself.”

Jimin turns to you with a sympathetic smile, but there’s a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. “Want me to kiss it better?”

He bursts into laughter when he receives his answer through a playful smack.

Your neighbor across the street comes more often these days, welcomed into the shop like another member of the coven. Except, when he’s around, the magic is hidden. No spellcasting, no shifting between forms, no sudden changes of hair colors.

To Jimin, you’re probably all just ordinary people who live together and work together in an inconspicuous, unassuming shop. And perhaps, the only strangest thing is your relationship with each of them.

Seokjin has to admit, even if he knows that relationships for mages differ from what is traditional by the Devoted, it takes time to get used to. He’s only gone as far as kissing you, but some of the others, including Jimin, have gone much further with you.

It’s not like he hasn’t thought about it. He just hasn’t found the right time to bring it up to you. Or the right place.

Seokjin eyes the way Jimin casually has his arm around the back of the couch behind you. He doesn’t seem put off when Hoseok comes to sit on your other side, holding his own cup of hot tea in his hands, practically making heart-eyes at you when you turn to talk to him. Or that any of the other residents are lingering in the parlor nearby, with Yoongi and Jungkook sitting on the small bench in front of the piano and playing a random melody, Taehyung taking a seat next to Jimin as he plays a board game with Namjoon, or Seokjin still trying to write a letter to his parents.

In fact, Jimin takes the whole polyamorous aspect of his relationship with you better than most people who’ve been raised by the Devoted teachings would.

Seokjin looks around the room and smiles softly to himself. With the eight of you all together, a full house just hanging out, it feels complete. He can tell that the other residents feel that way too with how at ease they are with Jimin around, despite him not knowing the truths about what you guys really are.

As the only other human in a room full of mages and familiars, Seokjin wonders if Jimin feels that sense of belonging too. And how he’ll react once he knows the truth.

There’s also this girl I met since I left home. She’s smart, brave, beautiful, and diligent. I think you guys would like her a lot. I feel like I fall in love with her more each day.

“What are you writing?”

Seokjin jumps and hunches over his paper, nearly spilling ink all over. Just as he’s started writing about you, you appear beside him. “A letter.”

“Oh? You have a secret lover I should be worried about?” you tease, placing your hand on your hip for emphasis.

“Well, you know,” he plays along. “Worldwide handsome, and all.”

“Of course. How could I forget?” Affectionately, you run your fingers through his bangs, exposing his forehead. His hair has been growing longer. At the castle, they routinely had to keep it short and clean. But now, after several months of no haircut, he may have to make use of the kitchen scissors and the bathroom mirror. “How did I get so lucky to have someone as handsome as you, Seokjin?”

“I’m the lucky one,” he replies, grinning at the shy smile you give him. “I’m actually trying to write to my parents. Let them know that I’m alive and doing well. With the way word spreads around, I’m sure they know about … you know.”

“Yeah,” you trail off with a small grimace. The fall of Blackstone Castle has also brought in many hunters into the nearby towns. It’s a constant worry for all of you that they might stumble into the shop one day, even if it’s located in the quieter side of town.

Seokjin tries to change the topic. “I’d love to introduce you to them. My family, I mean.”

“Would they like me?”

“Of course they will. They’ll probably ask when I’ll—” He cuts himself off.

“Ask you what?”

“They’ll probably ask when I’ll marry you.”

“Oh.”

Marriage is a sacred commitment to the Devoted. For mages, however, such a union simply doesn’t exist. They have their partners; they have their coven. But when magic is deemed evil, and those who wield it are treated as vermin, love in any form would be shunned and discouraged.

Seokjin sees the guilt flicker in your eyes. The way you nervously chew on your bottom lip, trying to carefully place your next words.

Truth is, Seokjin could walk out anytime he wanted. From you, from the shop. He’s not a warden anymore. He doesn’t have any ties or duties keeping him with you. He could find another partner, someone he could legally marry, and start a normal family. It’s safer if he would. But it’s foolish if he did.

“You know that stuff doesn’t matter to me, right?” he asks you seriously. “You're my partner. The others are our family. I wouldn’t change it any other way.”

“If you ever change your mind…”

“I won’t. I promise.” He’s so certain, he holds his pinky toward you. Perhaps it’s a bit silly and childish, but it gives you the assurance you need. “I love you. I’ll always choose you. Nothing will ever change that.”

You smile softly and wrap your pinky around his finger. You return the sentiment in whispered words as he brings your hand closer to his and kisses your knuckles.

She’s everything to me. I wish you could meet her one day and see it for yourself.

Mornings are Seokjin’s favorite time of the day.

Usually.

He’s not a big fan of a neighbor’s rooster and its insistent crowing at 3:00AM. On the dot. Every single morning. He’s even less of a fan when, only a couple hours later, just as dawn is beginning to break, Seokjin hears it again at 5:00AM. Screaming at the top of its lungs over a slither of sunlight in the sky. And by 7:00AM, when it cries out the third time, it takes every fiber in Seokjin’s being not to stomp over, grab the rooster, and toss it in the air out of spite.

He also dislikes having to actually leave the safe and warm sanctuary of his bed. Where he’s cozy and comfortable beneath his thick blanket, and the mattress and pillows feel like he’s on a cloud. Where his favorite, long pajamas feel soft against his skin. But with a long list of tasks ahead of him, he reluctantly and mournfully pushes away the covers, shivers as the cold morning air sucks away the warmth, and begins to dress up for the day.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t be long until he hears the small creak of someone entering his bedroom. The breathy chuckles that escape his lips as he tries to hold back his giggles. Followed by the unmistakable whisper of, “Jin.”

“No, Hoseok, you can’t.”

And Hoseok would burst into loud laughter, hitting the lump that’s Seokjin beneath his covers, and ask, “Oh, hyung! How did you know it was me?”

Despite how he actually wakes up that day, mornings are relatively peaceful. Most of the residents are still asleep, and sometimes, he can hear Namjoon or Jungkook still snoring from their rooms. Candles automatically light up down the hallway of mixed doors, guiding him down the stairs and to the kitchen.

And that’s where you are, bright and early.

Or rather, these days, as Yoongi had quietly confided in him, because you haven’t been sleeping well. Nightmares, the black cat had explained.

“Hey, morning,” Seokjin greets you as you rummage around the kitchen, pulling out jars and pans as if it’ll inspire you to cook.

“Morning, Jin. What do you want for breakfast?” When you turn to him, he can see the tiredness in your face. Your eyes are a bit red, your posture more sluggish.

“I can do it,” he assures you, taking a pan from your hand before you drop it. You let him and instead, use your free hand to cover a big yawn. Even when you’re on the brink of passing out, Seokjin finds you cute. “Did you sleep last night?”

“Barely.”

“Because of that damn rooster?”

“Yeah,” you lie. Seokjin knows you don’t want to talk about the nightmares you’ve been having. Not even to Yoongi or Hoseok.

But Seokjin sees the way you look at him. The relief that crosses your face when you see him, the guilt that follows after when your eyes trail to where his scar is. There’s an apology in your tongue, but before it could escape your lips, he jokes, “Maybe we should have that rooster for breakfast.”

“I don’t think our neighbor would like that,” you point out with a small smile.

He returns your smile as he decides to make eggs and bread. But his smile fades when he notices that there’s less ingredients in stock than usual, even though Namjoon and Jungkook had just gone to the market yesterday. Did they not get enough?

“Our finances are low,” Namjoon reveals when Seokjin asks him about the lack of ingredients later that afternoon. As mages, it’s easier to get by, and the shop has always been more of a home than a business. But coin is still needed to buy fresh ingredients, to maintain amenities, and to keep the shop running.

Namjoon looks stressed. The human world and its standards are still new concepts to you and Hoseok, and Seokjin can tell that Namjoon doesn’t want either of you to worry. He’ll buy fewer eggs if he can get Hoseok his saffron. He’ll get cheaper quality meat, even if Jungkook complains that he can’t fork it. He’ll pick tangerines and strawberries himself if that’ll make Yoongi and Taehyung happy. He’ll pass up on a book or rune that he wants so he can get you something nice instead.

Seokjin glances over at you. You’re finally asleep, resting on the couch with Hoseok. One of his arms is protectively around your waist as he rubs soothing circles down your back and shoulders. Taehyung comes to put a blanket over you, and he’s careful not to wake you as he gently pats your head.

Clearly, you have a lot of things on your mind lately.

“Hyung will do it,” Seokjin assures him, even if he doesn’t really know how. He’s only human. But he’ll find a way.

Seokjin knows you’re home when Yoongi, who’s been napping all afternoon, suddenly springs to life and meows impatiently at the door. It’s as if he’s saved up all his energy just to be the first to greet you hello when you step in.

Followed by the pattering of feet as Taehyung exclaims, “You’re home!”

And by the time Seokjin gets to you, you’re sandwiched between the two youngest and carrying Yoongi in your arms.

“Guys, let her breathe,” Namjoon lightly scolds Taehyung and Jungkook. As if the others aren’t also coming to the door to welcome you home like a bunch of puppies.

Seokjin manages to slip by your side as you take off your shoes. “How’s my favorite mage? Did you have fun with Jimin?”

“I had a good time. It was busy at the town square,” you inform him, standing on your toes to kiss his cheek. His mouth twitches back a shy smile and a blush. “Jimin said a lot of guilds are open for new members at this time. So, there are a lot of recruiters trying to get people to sign up.”

“Ah, that’s what happened to me!” Jungkook pipes up, nostalgia of his former days as an adventurer flashing through his mind. “In my town, there’s a big bulletin board that people put fliers on when they need help. I used it to pick up odd jobs here and there, like taking care of a rat infestation or delivering a package to someone in another town. And one day, I saw a poster for a guild fair. I went, did some research by talking to people, and ended up joining one.”

“You could probably join one of the ones here, too,” Yoongi says after jumping out of your arms and shifting to his human form. His black hair is a bit messy from sleeping all afternoon.

“I want to so badly! But sometimes, missions could take days to complete, and I don’t know if I can hold this form for that long without changing.”

Jungkook sighs. For a recently-turned familiar, he’s making great progress controlling his transformations. But it wouldn’t do his party any good if he were to turn back into a toad mid-battle.

“Maybe once we turn you human again, you can,” Namjoon suggests, patting his head with sympathy, as if it’ll be easy. As if there isn’t a powerful, Wicked ex-girlfriend trying to hunt Jungkook down.

Jungkook pouts but nods his head. “The guilds are nice, and New Haven is the perfect town for them. It’s a good way to earn coins, make new friends, go on adventures, strengthen your skills, and get useful information.”

“Coins?” Seokjin repeats. He doesn’t hear a single word after.

“Yeah. If you’re good, a lot of guilds give you big bonuses after a mission.”

“Coins,” Seokjin echoes, suddenly turning away from you, lost in thought.

You stare after him, mildly concerned. “Jin?”

It is, perhaps, a mere coincidence that Seokjin finds himself at the town square the very next day.

Colorful tents are lined up around the plaza. Recruiters are shouting in the streets and handing out fliers to whoever passes by their booths. Some members are putting on a show, displaying trophies of their latest hunts, dueling against each other with shiny new swords and shiny new armor, and waving their flags around as they boldly claim their guild is the best. Even people from out of town are gathered to check out the festivities. Every brave, adventure-seeking soul is hoping to find their place in one of the many guilds here.

“Hey, you’re strong and handsome,” the fourth recruiter of the day stops him. “Want to join our guild?”

“What do you guys do? And do you make a lot of coins?” Seokjin asks, a bit curious.

“Oh, of course! We do lots of stuff! We explore caves and old ruins to look for hidden treasures, slay large beasts that trouble the local folks, visit ports to trade goods with foreign investors, hunt mages— Hey, where are you going?”

Seokjin immediately loses interest and walks away. He sighs, wondering if there’s even a guild out there that doesn’t list mages as monsters.

“Let’s just go one more round,” Seokjin mutters to himself. If he doesn’t find anything good, he can always think of something else.

He tries to stop by each one, listening to their criteria and what they’re looking for in a new member, and asking what they do and how much they make. But the moment they mention hunting down mages, he quickly moves to the next table. He almost wants to just ask that one question – whether or not they hunt mages – but he isn’t sure how to bring it up without warranting suspicions.

“Hey there, handsome. Are you interested in joining our guild?” a female recruiter asks. She’s thin and pretty, and when she smiles, her front teeth poke out a bit like a bunny. She has the kind of smile that reminds him of Jungkook. “We still have a few spots open if you are.”

Seokjin tries not to sound jaded as he smiles back at her. “What do you do?”

“The typical stuff most guilds do,” she begins to explain, but is suddenly interrupted by a commotion near the booth.

“Have you gone mad?!” a man shouts, seeming to be talking to another recruiter. “Mages will kill us if we let them! What is this nonsense about allowing the likes of them into the Freelancers?”

“Are mages not human as well?” a young, charismatic man replies, seeming to stand firm with his stance. “They have unique abilities that could take us further in our adventures than we could ever imagine. Think about it! If someone in our party is injured, we could rely on magic instead of using up precious medical supplies. They could clear obstacles in forests and tunnels to complete the mission faster. We could defeat savage beasts more easily and efficiently with their aid!”

“Lies! That goes against everything the Devoted teaches” a woman accuses as the crowd around them murmur.

“Who is that?” Seokjin asks as people continue to argue with the man. But he and a couple others flanking his side have a rebuttal for each statement. It only riles the crowd up even more.

“His name is Tariq,” the female recruiter answers with a laugh. “You must be out of town. He’s infamous around New Haven.”

“I can see that,” he replies as he watches the debate. He’s half-surprised no one has accused him of being a mage-sympathizer yet.

“Tariq can be intense, but he’s the greatest strategist and fighter in New Haven,” she explains as if she’s read his mind. “His values don’t always align with the Devoted, but even the town leaders can’t deny how much they rely on him to protect the town. He’s cultivated his own following within the guilds too. Lots of people support and admire him, no matter how crazy his ideas can be.”

Just then, another man breaks through the crowd and grabs a hold of Tariq’s arm. “Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize on behalf of the Freelancers, but this debate is now over. Tariq will take some time to reflect on the concerns brought up today.”

“And that’s Adnan, his older brother,” she continues, nodding to the new guy that has pulled Tariq aside to scold him. “He’s the leader of the Freelancers, but the two of them couldn’t be any more different.”

“What are the Freelancers?” Seokjin asks, finally looking away from the two now that the crowd has begun to die down.

“That’s us,” she replies with a nervous laugh. “We’re a bit controversial, as you can see, but we firmly believe that anyone – even magic or not – will find a place in our guild.”

Seokjin nods his head and considers what she’s told him. He only has one question left. “Where do I sign up?”

In their glory days, the Freelancers were a powerful and ruthless mercenary group.

They were unlawful. A guild that got their start from handling odd jobs that couldn’t go through legal and official channels, and taking up difficult quests that other guilds didn’t find worth the effort to do themselves. Eventually, they became notorious for engaging in shady, cutthroat contracts such as back-door dealings and accepting secret fundings from nobility without honor or integrity.

With enough coin, there was no job that the Freelancers refused to take.

Recently, under the leadership of Adnan and Tariq’s great-grandfather, the Freelancers have more peaceful, quasi-honorable practices. His goal was to eradicate the guild’s notoriety and build a new legacy. In the eyes of the public, the Freelancers have now become the biggest and most reliable organization for quests and missions.

It’s a reputation that their father has upheld as well, accepting most people who were willing to join: men and women, nonbinary, wealthy nobles and poor peasants, skilled warriors with years of practice and those just looking to gain experience. However, as his reign comes to an end, the guild looks to his two sons for guidance.

Adnan, the oldest, plans to retain the current honorable methods that his family has instilled and follow the footsteps of their legacy. Accepting those willing to join their noble cause, offering new opportunities to their members to make extra coin, and taking righteous paths as instructed by the Devoted to thwart out evil from the town.

But Tariq, the younger and more charismatic brother, is ambitious and wants the guild to take on a more profitable, but shadier nature. It doesn’t matter to him if those who join are mages, demons, or monsters either, as long they’re on his side. Just as they did in their glory days before his great-grandfather.

Discourse between the two brothers and their sizable followings have been brewing within the guild. It’s a tension that’s been there long before Seokjin joins.

And it won’t be long until a clash of interest threatens the entirety of the Freelancers.

“Hyung, you joined a guild?” Jungkook exclaims, hopping after with excitement. “I’m so jealous! Which one is it?”

“They’re called the Freelancers,” Seokjin answers, showing the flier he received with the date and location of his first official meeting with them. “They’re the biggest guild in New Haven.”

Hoseok whistles. “That’s impressive! Congrats, Jin!”

“Hopefully this brings in more coins for us, too,” Seokjin adds as he looks at Namjoon. The recruiter told him they tend to get more quests than other guilds, especially with how famous the two brothers are. More quests mean more opportunity for coins.

Namjoon frowns a little. “Hyung, you didn’t have to do that.”

“I want to,” Seokjin assures him. “I want to be more useful to you guys and the shop. I think this is the best way I can do it.”

After all, Seokjin isn’t gifted with magic. He doesn’t have any affinity to the Veil or its mysterious realm. Seokjin is only human. But he’s a human who knows how to fight and take care of himself in battle.

“Wouldn’t that mean you won’t be home?” Yoongi asks him. A silence follows as the rest of you wait for his answer.

“Maybe from time to time. They’ll have me do local missions first before they send me off somewhere far,” Seokjin explains, sensing the uneasiness of that idea. “I’ll let you guys know when they do before I take the quest.”

“What about the shop?” Namjoon questions.

“I can do tasks for the guild in the morning, and help at the shop at night,” Seokjin decides, already putting that in consideration when he went to the fair. “That’s usually when the tavern is the busiest.”

“Wouldn’t you be tired?” Taehyung wonders out loud.

“I’ll do my best for both. Don’t worry.” Seokjin knows he’ll have a team to carry out missions with at the guild, and a family to rely on when he returns home. He turns to you, noting your silence. Gently, he takes your hand in his and presses, “Talk to me, sweetheart. What’s on your mind?”

“I don’t want you to get hurt,” you tell him, frowning as your gaze lingers down to his torso. To where his scar is. “What if something happens to you while you’re away? What if I can protect you?”

“I’ll be careful,” he assures you, pulling you into a hug. He understands your feelings. Truly, he does. But Seokjin has always been a dutiful and honorable man. And helping relieve some of the financial burdens from Namjoon is the least he could do. “Once my mission is over, you’ll be the first I run back to. Promise.”

Before he became a warden, Seokjin was a promising recruit. He’s self-disciplined, admirably hard-working, and spent extra time honing his skills to push himself a little further than his peers. While new recruits rested from their rigorous training, he’d be up a few hours earlier to practice with his word, to study how to disarm enemies, and to strengthen his mental fortitude.

It’s an attitude and passion that he’s carried as a new recruit to the Freelancers.

“Are you sure this is your first time joining a guild?” his mentor, Junghwan, asks him. He’s also fairly new to the guild, joining only six months prior to Seokjin. He’s been tasked to take him and the other new recruits on their first mission.

Bandits were blocking the main road into town and were scamming weary travelers of their coin.

Seokjin was able to coerce them off the road and to return the stolen coins. But when the bandits later came to ambush their group, his parrying skills in battle sent them away for good.

“It’s pretty fun,” Seokjin admits with a bashful smile. He feels good about his first small victory. And feels even better when the clerk at their guild pays him his reward.

Coins clatter on the counter as Seokjin dumps out his earnings for the week. “It’s not much now, but imagine how much more I can make if I take up more missions.”

“Wow, hyung…” Namjoon trails off, staring at the small pile. It’s enough to bring home the entire list of what everyone wanted, expensive saffron and all. “This would really help us out a lot.”

Seokjin smiles. “I think I could be really good at this.”

He hasn’t been in the guild for very long, but it’s everything he had hoped to have when he was a warden. That feeling of brotherhood among the members, from the throes of battle to the clinking mugs of cold ale. The small victories that lead to praise and coins. An outlet to constantly improve himself, make himself stronger, faster, and a better protector for you and the others.

“Joon, we’re out of eggs again,” you inform him, coming out of the kitchen to where they are. You’re about to ask if he can run to the market and get some more when you notice the shiny coins on the counter.

Seokjin smiles warmly at you. “I’ll buy you as many eggs as you want, beautiful.”

It isn’t long until Seokjin takes up more missions: investigate a caravan that was ambushed and report back with the news, explore a nearby cave and eradicate the giant spiders dwelling inside, find a specific blue flower that grows on the hillside of the woods and bring it to the requester. He climbs higher in ranks within the guild, already surpassing the initiates that joined when he had. Members of the Freelancers begin to take notice as well.

“What’s your name, son?” Adnan asks him at the guild’s mess hall, eyeing the young man before him.

“It’s Seokjin, sir.”

“Seokjin, huh.” He repeats his name and gives him an approving pat on the shoulder. “Keep up the good work, Seokjin.”

He feels his chest swell with pride. Receiving acknowledgement from the leader of the guild, especially one as big as the Freelancers, feels like a big deal.

“Hey, new guy, come sit with us!” a female member named Heeyeon calls out to him. Around them, other tables are discussing strategies, refueling on food and drinks, and sharing stories about their latest missions. Seokjin rarely stays at the guild’s base long enough to eat, usually running back to the shop as soon as a mission is complete. But he sees his mentor, Junghwan, sitting next to her, as well as the female recruiter that had signed him up. “I don’t know if you met everyone yet, but this is Byulyi, Sunwoo, Junghwan, and Jaehwan.”

Byulyi smiles when she recognizes him. “Hi Seokjin! Long time, no see. How do you like the Freelancers?”

“With the way he’s going, he’ll probably outrank his mentor in a month,” Sunwoo teases, elbowing Junghwan on the ribs. The two of them, Junghwan had mentioned, have come from the same hometown before they settled in New Haven.

“I’d believe that,” Jaehwan agrees, pointing out how he saw Adnan talking to him. He raises a glass to Seokjin with a bright smile. “I hope we can do missions together. It’s better when you’re with a team than by yourself.”

Seokjin returns the smile with a shy one of his own. “I think I’d like that.”

Jaehwan isn’t wrong. Turns out, picking up missions as a group is easier than doing them alone. There’s safety in numbers, and the variety of skills within the group work seamlessly on and off the field. Plus, it’s more fun with other people. A lot more fun.

Especially in a group as charming, good-looking, and funny as they are.

Team Kim Seokjin, as they have started to call themselves. Because after Seokjin joined their party, they’ve yet to fail a mission they’ve taken on.

By the time Seokjin arrives at the base in the morning, Byulyi already has a few quests lined up for them. She has a knack of finding ones that have a big payout, and once all members of their party arrive at the guild, they decide which ones they want to tackle for the day.

Sometimes, they’re easy tasks like reconnaissance, finding specific ingredients in the woods, or helping elderly townsfolk with hard labor. Other times, they’re more difficult like detaining a pick-pocketer from the marketplace, fighting off a dangerous wild cat from entering New Haven, or protecting goods from bandits while it’s being delivered to the next town.

Junghwan and Jaehwan instantly click with Seokjin. Between witty one-liners and endless puns, the three become fast friends. Seokjin can’t remember the last time he’s laughed so hard while on a job. Even Heeyeon, who is a little shy at first, warms up to him and shows her sillier side.

By the end of the day, it’s Sunwoo who turns in the mission reports to the pretty clerk he has a crush on. All of them work hard, deserving of the rewards they collect, and they divide the earnings of the day evenly between the six of them.

“Man, what a day.” Junghwan sighs, massaging his shoulder after another successful mission.

“I’m starving,” Byulyi states as she rubs her stomach. “Should we get something to eat before we head to the base?”

“That sounds good to me,” Jaehwan agrees, turning to face Seokjin. “Are you coming with us, Seokjin?”

“I can’t,” Seokjin replies with an apologetic smile. It’s getting late and you might need help at the shop. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

“You always have somewhere to go,” Junghwan pouts, a bit disappointed that his new friend could never hang out after completing a mission. Most people in their guild like to celebrate their small victories by grabbing a drink and eating dinner together.

It isn’t like Seokjin doesn’t want to. He’s sure it’ll be fun, and he knows he’d have a great time with them.

But he has a promise to keep.

With a quick exchange of goodbyes and no hard feelings of missing out on another dinner with the group, Seokjin runs back to the shop. His legs are burning from being on his feet all day. He’s dirty and sweaty from the various tasks he’s been assigned for the day. But as the sun begins to dip below the horizon, coloring the sky in twilight, he nears the shop and sees you.

Occasionally, you’d be there to greet him in front of the shop. Sometimes, with a cup of tea and a book as one of the familiars sit on your lap or shoulder. Sometimes, you’re talking to Jimin as he waters the flowers sitting outside his shop. Or sometimes, like today, it’s just you.

The golden glow basks upon your skin as you sit on the porch steps, and all Seokjin can think about is how beautiful you look. No matter how difficult the mission is or how exhausted he feels, he remembers that he’s doing it for you.

When you notice him, a bright smile lights up on your face. “Jin! You’re back!”

And Seokjin feels himself falling in love with you all over again, laughing as he gathers you in his arms after a long day. “I’m home.”

Word about Team Seokjin and their success rate is spread around the Freelancers, and in no time, they become one of the most promising groups in the guild. Every mission they take on, they’ve completed and earned high praise from those they helped. Some clients even come back and specifically request them for another job.

Inevitably, this attracts the attention of Adnan and Tariq. Separately, the brothers have approached the group with special jobs.

Adnan’s requests seem to fall in line with the Devoted’s charity work. Manpower to help at fundraising events, collecting donations of supplies and coins around town, finding a missing child from the town’s orphanage. Things that would normally make him feel good, if it weren’t for the magical hearsay they spew out at every event.

It's the opposite of the “no questions asked” missions that Tariq gives them. Delivering inconspicuous scrolls to certain individuals, dropping off packages at the back of bars and alleyway businesses, bringing in traitors who’ve gone rogue for Tariq’s men to deal with. No one in Team Seokjin wants bad blood in their hands, but with the reputation that Tariq has, it’s certain that he’s bound to have many enemies as well.

If they’re lucky, they can leave for a mission before either brother gives them one. They become increasingly more difficult and take up more time in his day, but all of them prefer choosing their adventures than to be stuck doing one of the brother’s favors.

And as always, after his missions, Seokjin goes straight home.

He’s dead on his feet as he changes clothes and throws on an apron, cooking at the busy tavern for the rest of the night. Yoongi has been helping him a lot too, taking over the kitchen when Seokjin isn’t there, and making sure that he isn’t burning anything or falling asleep when he is. Namjoon tries to talk him out of helping at the shop, worried that he’s pushing himself too hard, but Seokjin refuses to listen. Even Taehyung tries to block his path to the tavern and send him to bed instead.

“I’m sorry I’m late,” Seokjin says as soon as he gets to the door.

It’s another one of those days. A mission retrieving an old woman’s cat had Team Seokjin running around the entire town all day. After several close calls of getting his handsome face and long arms scratched, climbing up trees and rooftops, and losing sight of the little menace, the cat eventually went back on its own. The old lady gave them each an extra coin to show her appreciation.

There are a handful of customers in the shop: a small group of women that have been frequenting the parlor room to see the two youngest sing and play music, a couple guys that seem to be catching up and sharing drinks by the bar, and a few groups eating supper at the tables.

Jimin is there too, as he always is these days, clearly flirting with you while you’re trying to work. Your bashful smile at Jimin changes to one of delight when you finally see Seokjin. “You’re home! Welcome back!”

“Sorry, I got held up,” he explains when he gets to you, kissing your cheek.

“It’s okay. We got things covered,” you assure him, pulling up a chair in front of Jimin. “Just rest up. I’ll get you something to drink.”

He doesn’t need to be told twice. He sinks into the chair with a sigh of relief. “Thank you. You’re an angel. I love you.”

Seokjin completely misses the surprised look you give him at his last words. Ones that nearly have you bumping into another table before you head to Hoseok’s bar. But Jimin catches it, looking between you and Seokjin with intrigue.

“How are things at the Freelancers?” Jimin starts, propping his elbow on the table and resting his chin on his knuckles.

“They’re good. It keeps me busy,” Seokjin tells him, still leaning back on his chair and keeping his eyes closed. He could fall asleep like this if he wanted to. “It makes good coin, too. If I can save up enough, maybe I can take us on a trip to my hometown.”

“Your hometown?”

“Yeah, it’s a small fishing village.” He opens his eyes and stares up at the ceiling, thinking about the letter he tried to write to his parents. Seokjin left home to become a warden, since that was what was expected of him. Despite how terrified he was of mages at the time, he worked hard on his training, only to feel miserable and out of place within the brotherhood. His friends are now people he once thought were the enemies, and he’s fallen in love with a girl he swore would turn him into a toad one day. “I’ve always wanted to take her there. Show her the pier where all the boats dock and the sea lions sunbathe, take them all to the beach and see the ocean, go fishing, maybe introduce her to my parents.”

Sometimes, he misses the salty breeze, the sound of waves crashing against each other, the gentle rocking of the boat on water, and the thrill of getting something caught in his line and pulling the fishing rod to see what it is. Sometimes, he misses the taste of his mother’s home-cooking, spending time with his father, and getting in trouble with his older brother. Sometimes, he misses home.

“That sounds nice,” Jimin replies, snapping Seokjin out of his thoughts. He sits up, almost forgetting that the florist was sitting across from him.

Honestly, he doesn’t know Jimin that well. He’s good company, sure. You clearly love him, just as much as you love the others. Hoseok and Taehyung seem to believe that he’ll be a significant person to all of you. And Jimin seems like a decent guy. He treats you well, he’s friendly with the rest of them. Just like Seokjin, he’s just trying to find his place in the dynamic between you and the others in the shop.

Because Jimin, like him, is only human.

Perhaps that’s why Seokjin offers, “You want to come with us?”

Jimin raises an eyebrow. “Me?”

“Yeah, why not? It’ll be fun to go together,” Seokjin replies with a tiny shrug. He knows you’ll be happy to have Jimin come along too.

Jimin is a bit quiet. Then, softly, and perhaps still a bit perplexed, he asks, “You really want me to?”

Before Seokjin could answer, you finally return with a couple cold beers: one for him and one for Jimin. “Sorry for the wait. Hoseok and I were talking, and Yoongi needs my help in the back. I’ll catch up with you guys later, yeah?”

“Sure, love.” Jimin reaches over to squeeze your arm reassuringly. He promises to say goodbye to you before he heads back to his shop.

“Thanks, angel,” Seokjin says with a gentle smile. One that becomes fonder as you brush his hair back and place a quick kiss on his temple.

Though, the action doesn’t go unnoticed. One table over is a group of three men on their fourth round of ale that night. As you pass by, one of them shouts, “Hey, lady, where’s my kiss?”

Mocking laughter follows as the man puckers his lips when you turn to them, confused and taken aback. And in a brief moment, you have that same, terrified look.

Suddenly, Seokjin is back to that night. At Blackstone Castle. Heading to his quarters after another unsuccessful Harrowing, catching three of his fellow wardens cornering you in a dimly-lit hall. The tremble in your voice when they interrogate you with invasive questions, how they disable you from fighting back, tugging on the clothes they’ve ripped.

Without thinking, Seokjin stands up. His hand automatically grips the hilt of his sword. All he sees is red.

At the same time, Jimin is on his feet too. For a second, Seokjin thinks Jimin is trying to hold him back, but his eyes are glaring right at the men cat-calling you. He’s holding the edge of the table so hard, his knuckles are beginning to whiten.

Before either of them could make a move, Hoseok steps away from the bar and quietly urges you to go to the back. That he’ll handle things at the front. He gives a pointed glance at both Seokjin and Jimin, wordlessly telling them to sit back down before they make things worse.

“Shit,” Jimin curses softly, letting go of the table and sliding back down on his seat. He rubs his face, a bit distressed. “Not again.”

Seokjin follows and frowns. “Has this happened before?”

“Just once, as far as I’m aware of,” Jimin reveals with an annoyed sigh, still angry about what happened. “Some asshole tried to touch her while she was cleaning a table. Jungkook saw and punched him, but it got messy. Namjoon ended up throwing that guy out.”

His frown deepens. “They didn’t tell me about this.”

“You were on a quest. What could you have done?”

“I’m going to take the day off tomorrow,” Seokjin informs you. He watches from the doorway as you apply a night cream on your face.

“As much as I’d love that, you don’t need to do that for me, Jin,” you tell him. “I know the guild is important to you.”

“You’re more important.”

You turn to face him. “Jin.”

“I miss you.” He means it. The mornings when the two of you would wake up and make breakfast together has almost become a distant memory.

The way you look at him then has his heart yearning. “I miss you, too.”

And it isn’t long before he closes the distance between you two, lips on yours in a kiss he can’t recall who started, wanting to make up for the time he lost.

Heeyeon eyes the bite-sized bruises on his neck. “There’s a meeting today.”

“I’m aware,” Seokjin replies, pretending that he doesn’t notice what she’s looking at.

It isn’t going too well. Especially with the way Jaehwan and Sunwoo are wagging their eyebrows at him.

“All the guild members have to attend,” Heeyeon continues. She doesn’t look away.

“Yes, I know.” Seokjin’s ears begin to turn red from the attention.

He doesn’t know what’s worse. That the two of you got a little carried away with just kissing, or that nothing explicit happened between you two yet. Maybe you could tell that he was tired or nervous, or maybe he was still trying to be a gentleman when you didn’t want him to be. But as he lies on your bed with you in his arms, the almost hanging over his head of what could’ve occurred that night, he realizes that there’s something he needs to tell you before he isn’t able to resist you anymore.

Junghwan suddenly sits next to him with a shit-eating grin on his face. “So, Seokjin, my best friend. I see you enjoyed your day off yesterday.”

Jaehwan and Sunwoo snort in laughter. Even Byulyi tries to hide her smile before she tries to get them quiet down. Other people in the guild are beginning to look their way.

Seokjin couldn’t ask for better timing as Adnan stands before the entire guild. They received an important mission from the capital.

“Our target is located around here,” he informs, pointing at a spot on the map. “We will need as many volunteers for this daunting task. My brother, Tariq, and I will also be accompanying you on this mission.”

Hearing that it will take multiple days to travel, investigate, and complete the mission has Seokjin wanting to pass it up.

Then, he hears the reward amount.

A collection of gasps and excited chatter fills the room. It’s the biggest bounty any of them have seen for one mission.

Junghwan clasps Seokjin’s shoulder and shakes it with excitement. “Did you hear that? We have to go!”

“I can’t.”

Team Seokjin all look at him with surprise. “Why not?”

“It’s… complicated,” he henges, not really sure how to explain the situation.

After what Jimin told him, he doesn’t feel comfortable leaving you alone that long. He knows the others at the shop will take care of you, of course. And he knows that his earnings for this mission will be enough to take you all to his hometown like he had planned. But it’s still his job to protect you, even if he isn’t a warden anymore.

“Is your wife pregnant or something?” Sunwoo asks, then yelps in pain when Byulyi elbows him.

Seokjin runs his hand through his hair. He doesn’t catch what Sunwoo calls you as he answers, “It’s not that. I just… I have to talk to her about it.”

Jaehwan comments, “I’m sure you’ll find a way to convince your wife.”

Five pairs of eyes linger to the fading markings on his neck.

“I don’t think it’s up to me, Seokjin,” you tell him, hugging his arm as you sit on the front steps of the shop. Dusk colors the sky with pretty hues of orange and purple, but as the sun sinks beautifully beyond the horizon, you feel Seokjin’s eyes on you.

“I don’t have to go,” he reminds you quietly. He told you that plenty of people seemed interested in taking up the quest.

“But do you want to go?”

It’s obvious that Seokjin has found his place with the Freelancers. Despite how tired he is by the end of the day, he enjoys going on quests with his new friends, conquering daunting tasks, and reaping their rewards.

A starry-eyed Jungkook and a curious Taehyung eagerly listen when Seokjin recounts his adventures for the day. You catch him handing a lot of his earnings to Namjoon, telling him that it’s for the next trip to the market, for a night out when the shop is closed, to keep in their savings. You hear him tell Hoseok and Yoongi that he’ll buy them whatever they want too, whether it’s a new coat that Hoseok has been eyeing or some better-quality meat from the butcher Yoongi likes.

If his mission is successful, he might even take time off for a bit. Give himself a break to enjoy what he’s been missing and what he’s earned. It’d be foolish of him to refuse.

“I’ll be worried about you,” he continues with a woeful sigh. “You’ll be stuck with a bunch of 8/10s.”

“I think I’ll survive. What’s the worst that Jungkook can do?” you half-joke, but then you pause when you actually think about the possibilities. “Actually, never mind. I think we both should be very worried.”

He laughs and kisses the top of your head. “I’ll miss you.”

“Not as much as I’ll miss you.” These days, you feel like that’s all you do. You miss him. Seokjin hasn’t been around as much since he joined the guild.

“I’ll make it up when I come back.”

“Or,” you begin, suddenly sitting up and looking him in the eye, “you can make it up to me now.”

“Can I admit something?” Seokjin begins, pressing his back against the lilac-colored sofa in his room. Red burns his ears and heats his face as your clothes slip off your body and fall on the ground. He feels like his entire body is on fire as you tilt your head, stripped of everything but your panties, and wait for him to continue. “I, uh… I don’t… I told you I was in a monastery before I became a warden, right?”

“Yes. You got kicked out,” you respond, stepping out of your clothes.

“For telling bad jokes,” he henges, seeming torn between looking away and staring at your body. You’re so gorgeous, it’s making him insane. “Anyway, funny thing that the monastery teaches—”

“Jin.”

“—lust to humans is a cardinal sin, and only the Wicked indulges in such—”

“We can just kiss like last time. We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

Seokjin peeks at your face, glances down at your chest, and then covers his entire face with his hands, muffling a groan. “It’s not that I don’t want to, but,” he takes your hand in his, “I know that for mages and even some humans, this isn’t a big deal. But it is to me. I just want you to understand that.”

“It’s fine, Jin. I understand. Let me just—” You start to pull away, but Seokjin keeps a firm hold on your hand, refusing to let it go.

“I don’t think you do, angel,” he says, tugging you closer to him again. “What I’m trying to say is that I love you. Truly. I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone but you.”

He sees his confession sink in on you. “Jin…”

“According to the Devoted, I’m damning my soul for you, you know. The least you could say is that you love me back.”

“I love you,” you giggle, and he isn’t sure who kisses who first, but suddenly, you’re on his lap. Your hands cup his jaw, tilting his head back as you lean down to kiss him, and his hand tentatively squeezes your breast. You sigh when you pull away from his lips and start to kiss his neck, revisiting some of the hickeys you left last time. “I like when you touch me.”

“Yeah?” He practically moans. He likes when you touch him too.

His clothes are off, and you seem just as fascinated with his body as he is with yours. You practically squeal and giggle when he suddenly picks you up with his strong arms and carries you to his bed. The whites of his bedding truly make you look like an angel as you lie on top of it.

Seokjin leans over you, kissing you deeply. When he pulls back, your eyes are still closed with content. Breathless, you murmur, “I like when you kiss me, too.”

He takes this as a cue to kiss you more. Touch you more. Your body is so soft and warm. His heart races with assurance that you’re enjoying this as much as he is. That you’re letting him know how to please you.

He takes you slowly, filling you entirely. He intends to take his time with you for the first time, but the way you whine and grasp his forearm has him desperate for more. The kisses become sloppier. His own grunts and moans against your skin, against your lips, only encourage you to help him chase that climax.

But a stubborn part of Seokjin wants to take care of you first.

A loud gasp is caught from your throat and your hips jerk slightly when you feel his thumb against your clit. Experimental touches as he continues to thrust into you. “Oh, fuck, Jin, I—”

He doesn’t need you to tell him that you liked that.

You come undone for him, and Seokjin is so in awe and so in love as the waves of pleasure leave you quivering and clenching around him. There’s a light sheen of sweat on your skin, but it makes you glow. He smiles a little as he gives you a moment to catch your breath before he hooks your leg around his waist again.

You meet his gaze, a bit surprised when you feel him still hard inside you. Seokjin chuckles and leans over to kiss you again.

He makes you cum two more times before he allows himself to finish.

It’s a little before 6:00AM when he hears it.

The loud crowing of the neighbor’s damn rooster.

A groan escapes Seokjin’s lips as he tries to sink further into the blanket, pulling the covers over his head. There’s a weight on him that’s preventing him from moving, and it isn’t until you’re both under the covers when he realizes it’s you.

Your brows are furrowed, waking up a little when you feel him stirring, but your eyes are still closed. Your lips are parted slightly as your breaths are still slow and even. And you’re cutely tucked against him, bare skin touching his and hair messy from sleep.

It’s probably the first time in a while that you’ve slept through the night.

And Seokjin suddenly has another reason to like the morning. Especially if it means waking up to you.

“You know,” Seokjin begins when you wake up, still in bed and under the covers with him. “According to all the Devoted sisters in the monastery, I should’ve been struck by lightning by now.”

“That so?” you ask, voice still full of sleep.

“Yep. Lightning first, then the end of civilization as we know it.”

“It could still happen,” you reply with a smirk.

“Are you insinuating that we test that?” he questions with a mischievous smile of his own. “Naughty girl.”

Your giggles are muffled with a kiss as Seokjin rolls on top of you.

“Ah, good you haven’t left yet!” Hoseok exclaims when you and Seokjin come down the stairs sometime later. In his hand is a beaded bracelet. “Taehyung and I wanted to give this to you. It’s another good luck charm. He worked really hard finding the prettiest beads so I can make this.”

Taehyung puffs out his chest with pride and nods his head.

Seokjin smiles as he puts it on. It reminds him of the one Hoseok gave him at Blackstone Castle when they were still weary of each other.

Things have changed a lot since then.

“Hyung, I’ve done some research on what beasts are in the areas you’re traveling to,” Namjoon says, carrying some notes in his hands. The dark circles beneath his eyes indicate that he’s been up all night putting it together for him. “I made a list of each of their weaknesses too in case you engage in battle with them.”

Jungkook’s eyes are a bit shiny as he hugs Seokjin. “I wish I could go with you, but since I can’t, you have to stay safe so you can tell me all about your quest.”

“What do you feel like eating, hyung? I’ll cook today,” Yoongi offers, already holding a pan and a cup of coffee in his hands.

Seokjin blinks, trying not to tear up.

Unlike the others in the shop, Seokjin is just human. He doesn’t have any special abilities or arcane knowledge that the mages and familiars have. Yet, he’s still very much loved by every person at the shop.

There’s a knock at the door, and Seokjin goes to open it, knowing that there’s only one person in town that comes by when the shop is closed.

Jimin smiles at him. “Everyone in town is talking about the mission the Freelancers are taking. Are you going with them? I thought to stop by and wish you luck if you are.”

“Yeah, I’ll be heading to the meeting spot soon,” Seokjin answers as he lets him in. Everyone is still at the breakfast table, and it’s loud and lively like it usually is. As Jimin looks on, there’s a hint of loneliness and yearning on his face. Like he’s still very much an outsider to you all. “Hey, could you do me a favor?”

“Hm? Oh, sure. What is it?”

From one mortal to another, he has a simple request. “Take care of my family, okay?”

Saying goodbye to you all is more difficult than he thought it would be. He knew it’d be hard. After escaping Blackstone Castle together, you and the others haven’t really been separated at all.

Team Seokjin are all gathered at the meeting spot. There are quite a few other teams that have volunteered as well. All of them are chatting and saying goodbye to loved ones, and the two brothers seem to be in the middle of an argument as they discuss their initial plans at their debrief.

Seokjin leans his back against the tree trunk, sitting down. He’s just waiting for the debrief to be over so that they can be given further instructions, but it seems to be taking a while.

He rummages through his pack, triple-checking that he has everything he needs while he’s still in town. He has the essentials: medical supplies, food rations, a canister for water, a hunting knife, clothes and toiletries. Hoseok snuck some of his potions and antidotes in his pack as well, disguising them as medicine. A small smile forms on his lips when he finds a small alpaca doll in his bag as well. He isn’t sure who put it in there, but he’s certain it’s been enchanted to watch over him.

Then, he finds the letter that he started writing to his parents. He never finished it, and never got to send it. He starts to miss you when he sees that the last thing he wrote was about how you’re everything to him.

With time on his hand, he decides to finish it.

Dear Mom and Dad,

When you last saw your son, he was sent to Blackstone Castle. He was a mortal among mages, suspicious of them and their magic. He believed the word of the Devoted and saw them as his enemies.

That man died when Blackstone Castle fell.

The man I am now is still your son, still very much alive and well as he is handsome. He is lacking and vulnerable in many ways, but he does his best to keep pushing forward. For himself, for his new-found family. He is still the son you raised so well, but a lot of things have changed since he left home.

I hope to tell you guys all about it in person soon.

Your son, Kim Seokjin

Thank you for reading ♡ Comments & reviews are greatly appreciated!

Previous | Series Masterlist | Next

#magic shop series #seokjin x reader #seokjin x you #seokjin smut #bts smut #bts fantasy au #bts magic au #bts fanfic #bts x reader #bts witch au

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sweetcloverheart · 6 months ago

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Heyo, I've come back with more LMK/ML AU brainvomit E

As stated, Chloe gets kidnapped and is now stuck in Megapolis

She spends the first few days of her "captivity" basically trying to run away. Macaque doesn't do much to stop her since, well - where is she going to go? He's operating in the middle of nowhere and she has no clue how to navigate around by herself

In addition, the Horse Miraculous is no help either as it's got a limited range (or at least my version does) and requires knowing both your location and destination and thus can't simply take her directly back to Paris - so edgy hobo monkey an it is!

(She keeps using her cellphone when she can, hoping to get a ping out to Papa so he can come get her)

As explained in my first post, there deal is that Chloe lets Macaque borrow a miraculous when he requests, and in return, he teaches Chloe magic and some Mandarin

Macaque is an absolute menace with the Miraculous in his arsenal; Spooky shadow powers+Concept given form via magic (With the bonus of no limiters due to being an adult) turns out to be a dangerous and deadly combo. While he doesn't win, he does succeed in being a difficult opponent - MK: "SERIOUSLY, HOW DO YOU KEEP GETTING THOSE WEIRD MAGICAL ITEMS!?!" Macaque, using the Rooster to give himself every super power: "FUCK YOU THAT'S HOW!"

(Sun Wukong def recognizes the miraculouses for what they are and is curious why a Guardian would be helping Macaque when he was strictly considered an enemy to the order back then, but then hints about LBD's revival pop up and he has to put investigating that on the backbunner in exchange for prepping)

The Kwami are reluctantly being cooperative since they're just as stuck as Chloe is and can't go against the Guardian (i.e her), but they do abuse the hell out of the "we can't tell you if you don't ask" rule against both as their own form of resistance (Not Pollen or Xuppu though - they're absolutely upfront about everything (Pollen out of loyalty to Chloe, and Xuppu due to being a blabbermouth with no filter)

Chloe tries giving him the "useless" ones at first but slowly gets invested by proxy and starts giving him suggestions. This eventually upgrades to Chloe joining him on the field (sometimes as QB, sometimes with one of the other miraculouses from the box)

On Macaque's side, he doesn't expect much from her at first for their magic lessons and only offered as a farce to get her cooperation (Most of Chloe's "magic" was thanks to the miraculous after all, and he initially sensed very little from the girl herself), but then she actually manages to cast a spell so he observes Chloe's core and realizes HOLY FUCK why is her potential so high now?!?!? Did practicing do something she's a potential sorceress now WTF?????

(Turns out getting akumatized multiple times (and being exposed to unfiltered magic from a damaged magical object since childhood) unlocks your magic potential and having it done while you're wearing a miraculous afterwards is the fantasy equivalent of getting bit by a radioactive spider. The practice helped though)

That being said, while Chloe's magic potential is high, it's also highly unstable, so Macaque Request they limit practice to simple spells that require a foci to help with stabilizing it.

Chloe's magic seems to fall under enchantments (charming and the like) and binding. Whether this is due to Pollen's influence or her prior Akumatizations is a mystery.

She (sadly(?)) doesn't seem compatible with Mac's shadow magic, but he's certain they can find a workaround

Meanwhile, her language lessons consist of practicing sentences with Macaque and ordering takeout for the both of them from Pigsy's (with varying success) with her creditcard (and the silent hope her dad notices the surprise charges and tracks it down).

(MK still has not connected that angry foreign girl who has him drive out to the city limits for two noodle bowls to Macaque's equally angry new bee-themed helper who keeps trying to stab him)

(A month and a half into this, Chloe's creditcard and cellphone plans were suddenly cancelled. It wasn't hard to put two and two together when she realizes her billing statement should have come in the week before)

#Lego Monkie Kid #Miraculous Ladybug #CrossOver #Shadowing Bourgeois!AU

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patchpane · 1 year ago

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I was tagged by @catwings-writes-things! Thanks this is so fun!!

Rules: In a new post, list the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it. And then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

Okay, so, some are fanfics, some are ideas for original writing, some are podcast ideas, some are other miscellaneous project ideas… all in various states of coherence and drafting. Here we go!

(Note: I often title things as acronyms of a longer title, so I’m posting what the acronym stands for as well because I think that’s more fun)

“PYNHO” / people you’ve never heard of

“TCQ” / the corpse queen

“YATT” / you are the forest

“An Interdimensional Visitor for Mr. Spider”

“Bug Jmart AU”

“Ella enchanted web!Jon AU”

“God!Jon but like in a Greek god kinda way”

“Knightlight”

“Pop Folk Culture Lore”

“Mindreader AU”

“The forest/the woods”

“Spirited away AU”

“This village is dead”

“Joe spooky AU”

“Whalefall”

Feel free to ask about any of them, I love love love talking about my ideas!

Also, idk if I can tag that many people, so lemme just tag a bunch. If you’ve already done this / already been tagged / don’t feel like it, no worries! @samthehypotheticaldad, @peach-coloured-glasses @cirrus-grey @ml-nolan @ronaldreaganoffical

#ask patchpane

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0nl0n · 2 years ago

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ALRIGHT. BIG 2 AU IDEAS

ok first is MLGENDERBENT!AU

its just ml with the genderbents! Venera, mercuria, jupette, maria, eartha- u get the drill

Second is MLFUTURE!AU

story:

It takes place after mercury died and jupiter was victorious, the sun was back to normal, but the sun missed mercury, alot

So ML!mercury is a demon, not just a normal one like a imp or succubus, AN ACTUAL TERRIFING (but attractive ngl) DEMON-

He has the black horns, wings and most importantly, the tail :)

his eyes are now red, with a tint of white

He now haunts the solar system

One day jupiter noticed mercury was being sneaky and pranking everyone and this might sound weird as hell but he managed to connect to another whole system that is also dealing with mercury. He asked them to maybe exterminate mercury or make him gone for good so he wont bother them again. So the other systems planets managed to travel to our solar system, they were dressed like demon hunters lmaoo

So they arrived and searched the asteroid and kuiper belt, getting pluto charon, eris and ceres out safe( who were traumatised )

So then one of the hunters felt uneasy. They literally through up black goop and their eyes were white. While kneeling down and was fucking puking out black goop, this scared everyone. The other hunters eyes went white and kneeled down. Their hands were suddenly covered with blood. They mindlessly picked up asteroids and put them in a circle. They made a symbol to summon a demon with bloody asteroids.

Then the hunter stoped puking the black goop and turned back to normal. Same with the other hunters.

then something came from the symbol on the "ground" a black goopy planet with red eyes with a tint of white. It made everything shake. It was mercury. He said with a spooky and echo-y voice

" WHATS THE MATTER DEMON HUNTER? NEVER SEEN A REAL DEMON BEFORE?! "

it scared everyone. Everyone ran and then Jupiter picked up his sword and pointed it at him with a ">:(" look-

mercury immediately laughed hysterically and the sun shouted

" MERCURY! YOUR NOT LIKE THIS.. YOU NEVER WERE! "

Mercury looked at the sun with the " i dont fucking care" look

He went back in the portal and everything was quiet.

The hunters ran away outa the system and the solar system was shook.

Venus stuttered a bit, and mars just passed out

Saturn was crying while neptune was like " huh-"

Earth passed out with mars

And yeah that's the lore for these for now!

1)oooo :00 le ml!merc is now a w o m a n

2) DANG I LOVE THAT AU—

I made some artz—

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thelastpilot · 6 years ago

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The Monster in the Room- Chapter 11

Oh SNAP, it’s a come back (again) ((sorry))

You can catch up on AO3 if you’ve forgotten whats happening cause i sure did.

Adrien arrived to school Friday morning on time, not as desperate to be early, but not so un-invested as to be late. He didn’t bother with the quad again, heading straight for class and trying to have no expectations. He couldn’t help but have some sort of hope reserved as he approached the classroom, the fall air chill and biting as he climbed the stairs and crossed the landing that was nearly barren.

Nearly, but not utterly, and Adrien slowed up when he looked ahead and saw Marinette and Alya standing outside the door, talking quietly to themselves.

They were talking tensely, Alya’s expression stoic as she nodded to something the witch had said. Marinette’s posture was tense in a different way, her hands folded in front of her chest as she spoke quickly. He was a short distance away before they noticed him, both girls turning to face him and showing him clearly that something was on their mind.

By the time he joined them he was already worried.

“What’s up?” he asked plainly, looking between the two of them. His eyes landed first on Marinette, but she looked away, pulling her fingers through one of her pigtails and failing to make eye contact. Alya however did not, and met Adrien’s gaze without beating around the bush.

“We don’t really know yet but Marinette says Ms. B is nervous. She stopped us when we walked in and asked us to wait outside for you and to let her know when you were with us. That’s about all we know.”

“Ms. B wanted us to wait outside?” Adrien repeated, looking between them again until Marinette finally looked up at him and nodded.

“The whole class is tense,” Marinette reported, smoothing at her dress like her hands were anxious and searching for something to do. He put a hand on her shoulder sympathetically, knowing too much of the same negative emotion could be unpleasant for her. “Ms. Bustier is clearly worried and I think everyone can tell that somethings wrong.” She grimaced, huffing a little as she continued. “Chloe is starting rumors and people are starting to notice that Nino only made it through half of class. They’re asking where he is.”

“Obviously we’re wondering the same thing,” Alya chimed in, folding her arms and keeping an eye on the door. “The difference is though that we’re not going to fault him for it and other people probably will. Him joining class is the most interesting thing that’s happened in a while, so even him not being here is making him the center of attention. Pretty sure that’s the last thing Ms. B wants, and now she wants to talk to us alone.”

“You think it’s about Nino? Maybe it’s something else, something about class.”

Adrien said it without any real confidence, and from the looks on their faces they clearly believed it as little as he had meant it.

People had tried to be casual and distant when he was around, but now that he was absent it was a ripe time for rumors to start. It didn’t surprise him that Chloe was getting things moving now that he was out a second day in a row, and it just meant that when he did come back, because Adrien knew that he would, it was just going to be that much harder.

Mr. Damocles had sprung Nino’s enrollment on everyone and done it matter-of-factly, then like a whirlwind he had shown up the next day, bailed halfway through and never returned. Naturally students were going to start talking.

They stood for a moment and said nothing, wondering what their involvement was, if their assumption was correct.

“Should we tell her that you’re here?” Marinette said after a while, shifting her weight from foot to foot as she felt his trepidation.

“I suppose yeah,” Adrien murmured. He didn’t know what she wanted, but the only way to know was to ask.

Adrien opened the door only enough to pop his head in, the sound of people talking amongst themselves rising to meet him now that the bridge between places was opened. Ms. Bustier was standing by her desk, but looked up to regard the door the second it opened. When she saw it was him she held up a hand, motioning for him to remain outside but acknowledging his presence.

They shut the door and waited, having nothing left to say to each other as they stood aside patiently, the hall and quad now completely empty except for themselves.

Adrien jumped when the door opened, Alya still managing to chuckle despite the circumstance and he shot her a grimace. Marinette giggled a little as well, but they turned to attention as Ms. Bustier stepped into the hallway, her hooves clattering as she cleared the doorway and closed the door behind her.

“Good morning everyone,” she greeted them as a whole, the teacher fussing with her hair before clearing her throat.

Marinette fidgeted uncomfortably.

They murmured their good mornings but offered nothing else, waiting patiently for her to continue. After a short time she seemed to take a deep breath, speaking calmly.

“Thank you for waiting for me, I wanted to speak with you all as a group before class began. I have a… sensitive request.”

“Sensitive?” Alya echoed, though her tone wasn’t entirely surprised. Everyone was just waiting.

“Yes…” she hesitated, and the kids were stunned to watch her stop, very carefully considering her next words.

Finally she sighed, folding her hands.

“I know the three of you have noticed your new classmate’s absences. As you have likely already assumed Nino is struggling to adjust and is having a very difficult time. I fear him attending school so soon after having been brought here was a mistake on my part, I had been too eager to introduce him… as a result he was overwhelmed, and is unable to attend class.”

She paused again, carefully gauging their reactions. Alya and Marinette both looked somber, but Adrien was still waiting.

“I know your interactions were brief,” she continued after a moment, looking between each other them, “but I also know that they helped him. I saw the way you girls engaged him when he first came in and how receptive he was to it, excited to be making friends. And you Adrien, you stayed with him and knew when not to push or intrude and I know how prepared you are to do as I asked. And I wonder now if this is too much to ask of students but… I’ve done what I can, and I’m afraid that I can’t help him the way that his peers possibly could. That was in part why I was so quick to introduce him. I knew he needed to make connections of some kind… but I was too heavy handed.”

Ms. Bustier stood before them, asking them gently.

“You have every right to refuse if the idea makes you feel unsafe or uncomfortable, but I assure you that Nino is a wonderful and kind boy, and he would never hurt anyone. I tried to give him space, but I’m not sure that’s what is best for him now. It is informal, and probably considered inappropriate by most to ask children to step up like this but… all I’m asking is that you visit him.”

She looked between the three of them, intently sorting through their glances and body posture to gauge their reactions.

“I think he needs-,”

“I’ll go,” Adrien answered immediately, shifting his weight on his feet and looking to all the world like he was prepared to go right that second, looking up at his teacher and speaking quickly. “I’ll sit with him Ms. B, I just need to know the room. I can go now, if I can be excused I mean, please.” He added this as an afterthought, glancing once towards the classroom he had promptly forgotten. School seemed so unimportant right now.

“Not so fast Adrien, wait just a moment.” Ms. Bustier reached out to put a hand on his shoulder, enough pressure to make it clear he was to stay still. “I know you’re eager to help, but this is very serious. He’s panicking and unwell. You can’t just go in full speed; you have to be gentle.”

Adrien looked up at her with wide eyes, probably intent on defending the fact that he always intended to be careful. The girls behind him began to murmur, and Caline hesitated to explain. But she needed them to be wise.

She braced herself, silently begging that they would understand.

“We… haven’t extensively covered lycanthropy in our classes, something I now regret but…” she sighed. “It’s too late to fix. I can only ask that you all be as understanding as possible, and recognize how difficult this must be for him.”

The girls fell silent, Adrien continuing to look on unflinchingly. Only waiting for the moment he was allowed to leave. Ms. B nodded to herself, attempting to explain delicately.

“You know how shifting between forms typically works, how it is tied to intention and a sense of self. Changing however works differently for everyone… and young Nino has no experience with such things. He has no background knowledge to support him, and is not in a mindset to listen when I try and speak to him. With werewolves the moon represents an unavoidable transformation, but it is not the only time they can change over. And he…” she hesitated, folding her hands across her stomach as she sorted through the words. She looked away from all of them, looking briefly to the floor.

“He is not coping… well, with the changes. As of now, he cannot change back. I’m sure you can imagine, for someone who has never consciously changed before that this would be very… startling.”

She wanted to keep her eyes away from their faces, thinking now of her lost, struggling student buried in the back of the school. She didn’t want to see fear, or unease, but what could she expect of them. She knew how the world viewed people like him. She knew-…

She looked up when no one spoke. And felt her heart almost pause.

As no one reacted.

By the time she gathered the courage to look at them she saw the three of them standing resolutely, something immeasurably empathetic on their faces. Caline straightened as she looked at them, able to feel as her burden slipped slightly from her fingers, held up unexpectedly by the strength of children.

Adrien still stood taunt as a wire, as ready to go as before, if not suddenly more so. She looked over at the girls, Alya’s expression the hardest to judge but Marinette’s painfully kind. She expected, somehow, for them to be scared of him…

But even now they just wanted to help.

“Where is he staying?” Adrien asked again, scooting slightly from his position. He glanced again in the direction he remembered Nino fleeing, that hollow ache he had felt before surging again.

“He’s…-,” she paused, looking between them before settling back on Adrien, seeming a little stunned. “He’s in the empty wing, all the way down on the far side. Room 217, I believe.”

She quickly put a hand on Adrien again to keep him from rushing off, firm as she reiterated, “You need to be gentle. He isn’t going to want to see anyone I imagine but… we can’t leave him alone either. I’m not even sure he’ll be able to speak to you, but I know he can still listen if you keep him company.” She looked to the girls to make sure they understood this advice was meant for them as well, sending them along as well in part to keep Adrien from being over eager. With Marinette’s added intuitiveness and Alya’s abilities… it seemed wise. “He would demand that you leave if he could, so please try not to push it and don’t crowd him. His dog will be on the defensive, so don’t push him either.”

“Yes mam’,” the kids responded immediately, and Caline couldn’t help but feel another wave of guilt.

“I shouldn’t be sending you at all but… seeing his peers might…-,” she stopped, humming slightly as she seemed to reconsider. As soon as Adrien noticed her doubt though she could feel his shoulders tense up, and she was made aware of the fact that at this point, she probably couldn’t stop him.

“We won’t push it Madame,” Alya spoke up, her voice calm and earnest. “Marinette can tell us if it’s too much, and we’ll leave before too long. It’s just a visit, we’ll be careful.”

“He isn’t dangerous,” she repeated, almost as a reflex, but she needed to be realistic too… he was cornered.

“I know Ms.,” Adrien assured her, stating it so firmly that… after a moment…

She relented.

“Okay… you are excused from class for this, we’re reviewing the previous lesson as it is. Don’t stay for too long but… you may go.”

The moment she lifted her hand Adrien turned on his heel, already knowing the hallway she meant and heading straight there. Ms. Bustier may have said something else but… Adrien wasn’t in the mood for waiting anymore.

He didn’t run, but he moved quickly down the walkway, aware of the fact that the girls were rushing to keep up with him but more intent on getting away from Ms. B. He didn’t want to give her the opportunity to change her mind, even if part of him knew that she was the authority on this in the end he just…

He needed to go. It was just the right thing to do now. He was going to listen, he wasn’t going to force his way in but… somebody needed to go. Somebody needed to tell him that he wasn’t a coward.

“Adrien wait!” Marinette’s voice cut through, jogging to get ahead of him as they made it to the mouth of the abandoned hallway, Adrien turning quickly past her and starting down it anyways.

It was instantly colder in the unpopulated sections of the campus, no body heat or traffic to keep it from feeling completely empty. The lights were on, but it may as well have been dim, the long walls filled with empty bulletin boards and locked classroom doors making it clear that no one came down here very often. Now suddenly however it had three inhabitants the trio forced to match Adrien’s urgency and he continued further into the school.

“Listen I know you want to help but we can’t run in, we’re going to scare him.”

“I’m not going to break the door down I’m going to knock,” Adrien defended himself, trying not to be annoyed. When he looked at her though Marinette was frowning, shooting a hard look up at him. He only matched her for a second more before he just focused on the hall, part of him sort of wishing he was allowed to do this alone. After a moment of his silence Marinette huffed slightly, turning to Alya instead. “We shouldn’t go all the way in, we should stand by the door in case he wants us to leave.” Adrien kept walking undeterred, the girls falling to either side of him.

“He’s going to want us to leave the second we get there,” Alya answered softly, Adrien staring ahead. “We’re going to have to stick it out a little but just, warn us if he gets too upset.”

As they walked Adrien shot a small glance to the side, checking Marinette’s face. He was never sure how far out her perception went but…

He didn’t see her posture tighten until they hit the second hallway, moving down it now as they each checked the numbers. By the time they were most the way down, past a dozen or so shuttered, dusty doorways, her lips were pressed into a tight line.

The girls allowed Adrien to lead, all of them prepping themselves in one way or another as they drew near, Adrien taking a deep breath as he ran through what he could possibly say. He didn’t come up with much when he saw the faded 217 painted on an old placard outside the furthest door, a thin strip of light shining onto the tile. They all shared a glance as they realized that it was ajar, and despite their determination…

Everyone paused.

Adrien took a moment, leaning forward to listen carefully. He didn’t hear anything distinctive, save what suddenly felt like a deafening silence. After a brief moment, he heard a soft click, like a claw on tile. Then nothing again.

They were waiting on him, and Adrien thought back to something he had thought before.

Nino was the bravest person in the world…

So he tried to be a little like him.

The knock on the door felt like the loudest thing for miles, but Adrien didn’t wait for a response he knew wouldn’t come. For better or for worse he gently pushed the door in, taking three steps forward before he heard the growl.

Adrien froze, his hand locked on the door handle as his heart rate scampered. He instinctively looked towards the sound, an apology or an excuse about to bubble out from him before he looked down, taking in a lot at once.

The room was scattered and weird feeling, desks barricaded against the walls and windows and the air thick with intensity. Adrien barely had time to notice the torn, discarded clothes the Shepherd stood upon before his hands were in the air warding against the animal that took a threatening step forward, a deep growl resonating from its chest.

“It’s me its me!” Adrien spoke up immediately. “Carter don’t, I’m not gonna come in all the way okay, you just stay there.”

Adrien shimmied enough to let the girls slowly poke their head in, Marinette immediately cooing softly to the dog who was dutifully on guard.

“Carter it’s okay! It’s just us, we’re okay. We just came to check in, I promise. Everything’s okay.”

She spoke softly and crouched low, smiling as sweetly as she could. Adrien had to resist the sigh of relief when Carter tilted his head, the Shepherd shifting in position slightly and looking at the witch, then back to him, then back to the witch.

Adrien stepped to the side again to let her come further in but froze in fear when the dog zeroed back in, a growl starting to build back up before Marinette was cooing again, gently appealing to the animal.

While she had his attention Adrien used the moment to scan the room, his hands still up as he looked through as much as he could in what light the windows provided.

It was… dismal, to say the least, and he fought off another wave of pity he was trying to avoid. The cabinet… the bed… the clothes heaped on the ground. It all painted a horrible picture, something he had been obsessing over ever since he ran away from him. A few trays of food lay largely uneaten not far from the door, trails of pieces dotted across the floor as if chunks of it had been dragged and taken farther in. As far as he could see though, there was no one else there. Marinette was still working on the dog, so he braved another step in, craning his neck to look around the space. It didn’t make sense for Carter to be here alone… he was clearly protecting something.

It was only when the dog looked behind him that Adrien thought to look under, the animal checking the darkness for something he couldn’t hear before looking back towards them, taking an unsure step backwards.

Right…

Adrien took a shaky breath and looked over at the girls, both of whom were focused on the same space he was. The cramped, low shadow of the bed frame. Alya looked over at him from her place by the door, and after a moment everyone took another slow movement further in.

Adrien spoke as he moved, never going towards the bed but just allowing the others some space, Marinette electing to settle on her knees and focus on Carter who seemed conflicted.

“Hey… hey man um…” he hesitated, cursing internally on being as unsure as ever. He looked to the girls briefly for help, but he knew he had to take the lead. “Listen I know you probably don’t want to see anyone right now but, we didn’t want to just go to class without coming to see you. I uh, I know you can’t really say much right now but, we just wanted to stop by for a second. Let you know about class and stuff. Maybe just sit, for a sec. If that’s okay with you.”

The silence was thick, Marinette scooting forward a little and trying to keep a smile for Carter who looked like he was getting more agitated. The poor dog whined and padded his paws on the cool ground, checking into the hiding place obsessively, its entire body tense.

“Adrien,” Marinette whispered suddenly, and it took him a moment to look away.

When he did he saw Alya now crouched on her knees as well, both of them making a small gesture for him to mimic them. It was awkward, but he slowly got down as well, keeping a careful eye on the dog.

Adrien lowered his hands into his lap, watching as Carter started to pace, getting closer and closer to the bed itself protectively. He saw Marinette fidget a little in discomfort, balling her dress slightly in her hands in the corner of his eye… so he tried again.

Nino didn’t hear anything that Adrien was saying, not really, not in any genuine way. Of course he could hear him, everything was so much. So loud. But it didn’t mean anything.

‘Nino?’ Carter said for the dozenth time, whining desperately as he paced out in the open, fighting the urge to crawl underneath the bed with him where he had been waiting before. ‘Nino what do I do? Do you want me to make them leave? Do you want me to go with you? What do you…-,’ Carter hesitated, only his paws visible to his owner as they skittered and shifted. He ducked his head down low again so they could see each other, asking tensely again, ‘What do you want me to do? Nino?’

He didn’t answer, though some part of him wanted to. Carter was so distressed… the loyal animal torn between what he had been commanded to do and what he wanted to do. All he wanted to do was help. All they wanted to do was help.

But Nino had no idea how to be helped.

He wanted to say something… as Adrien tried to talk calmly and Marinette spoke softly he wanted to say something.

He thought maybe there was something building up in him, whether it was to scream at them to leave or to offer some kind of apology he wasn’t sure… but the second he shifted his weight he was aware again of the too long limbs, of the thick, suffocating fur. And what he might have said died in him, and a grating whine racked his body.

Adrien’s rambling nothings faltered, and Nino withered further into himself. He couldn’t stop the second whine, or the shake of the third, but he could still feel ashamed of it. Ashamed of all of it.

He shook in anger and in embarrassment in his tiny scrap of shelter, his shame mounting higher and higher as the others turned to whispering to themselves, to each other about him.

‘Stay away!’ Carter demanded again, Nino able to see his paws scrabble at the tile as he threatened to dart forward, growling again. ‘Stay back! Stay away!’

“Alya wait, I don’t know if this is a good idea-,” Adrien’s voice sounded again, but he was cut off by someone else, the third in the party speaking for the first time.

“No this is good for him. He needs this.”

‘Stay away! STOP!’ Carter threatened again, breaking his vindication once again and barking threateningly. Nino could only see very little of what was happening, Carters tense claws spread wide on the tile just in front of his hiding space. Beyond him now Nino could just see dark leggings, crouched on the floor a ways in front of them and slowly getting closer. He shook when he saw her hands bend, her red tinted hair falling softly into view as she ignored Carter’s threats, leaning down to look beneath the bed frame.

Nino felt himself make some strangled sound, like a cry or a shout or something else all broken and pieced together. He didn’t want her to look at him.

He didn’t want to see her flinch.

He recoiled physically when her sharp, hazel eyes came into view, looking right at him from behind her glasses. Her dark gradated curls framed her face, her expression as curious and as passive as it had been when they were introduced. They had spoken so briefly, but she had left a searing impression with the things she said. And just like then she refused to look away, that foreign intensity cutting into him.

“Alya you’re upsetting him,” Marinette’s voice suddenly warned, but Alya didn’t turn. Not even Carter, only a few feet away from her and threatening to bite if she even moved an inch didn’t faze her. She just kept watching him, a playful smile forming across her face.

“Hey, that’s not so bad. It looks natural so that’s good.” She looked away from his eyes to examine the rest of him, undeterred when he pressed into the wall in some desperate attempt to disappear.

“Alya-,” Marinette warned again, sounding tense, but Alya didn’t move, fighting a bigger smile now.

“It’s not easy to do,” she continued, “I used to be bad at it too, but if you wanted, I could teach you.”

Carter was still tense, but Nino wouldn’t tell him what he needed him to do. He couldn’t bite, he shouldn’t bark, but he wanted nothing more than to bark and bark. Because something was weird again.

The feeling hit them first, the fur along their backs stiffening and standing on edge. It was subtle, and almost impossible to notice, but something almost like static preceded a sudden shift ahead of them.

Alya looked Nino in the eyes when she did it, letting it happen quickly and effortlessly and in a single, fluid motion, just to prove a point. She couldn’t imagine what kind of grueling awful fight he must have put up before ending up like this. It was important for him to see it done right, she believed.

She was so attuned to the sensation that it was hard to even feel it sometimes. Her mother once compared shifting to putting on a cloak, once you were used to it. You could feel something glide over you and touch your skin, and then suddenly you were running. The transition was so quick there was nothing really separate enough to focus on, only the change in height and perspective the truly noticeable things to her.

As soon as it was done she settled onto the tile, spreading out a little so he could see her, letting her tails fan out behind her. The wolf was hyper-focused on her laying there, breathing heavily and scrabbling slightly forward but she didn’t run. The fox just made a show of stretching out her paws, clicking her claws on the tile and swishing her tails out in the air, both of them.

‘What is happening, why does this keep happening?’ Carter was suddenly audible, and Alya turned her attention away from Nino for the first time at the new voice. The poor Shepherd was losing his grip, whining uncontrollably now as he looked at her.

‘It’s okay Carter, this is all fine. Your boy is doing just fine.’

Carter jerked when the strange fox answered him, his head titling to the side in confusion. He huffed and puffed briefly for a moment, accusing her directly now that he knew it was an option.

‘What are you doing? Go away! Nino doesn’t want anybody right now! He said get out!’

‘I’m not leaving yet,’ Alya answered simply, ‘And if he wants me to leave he can tell me himself, right Nino?’ The kitsune turned back to him, laying her head down to peer more easily beneath the bed.

‘I… you…-,’ there was a pause. Both Carter and Alya looked down into the darkness, watching the pair of bright golden eyes as they swept uneasily over the two-tailed fox. ‘You…’

It was a fox, at least that’s what it looked like. Clearly before it had been a girl, but now it was a lithe red fox, the only truly unnatural thing about it being its strange tails. Both tails were fully formed and independent, though they tended to move harmoniously. She wasn’t one solid color of anything, her fur along her chest and the bottom of her muzzle a light cream color, the rest a mix of reds. A charm of some kind dangled on her chest, a necklace with a heavy opalescent stone swaying gently in place, ruffling the fur there. When he looked at it he felt something odd, like a distant, almost unplaceable ringing in his ears.

Without meaning to his ears swiveled atop his head, straining slightly to focus on the note it exuded. He pulled forward slightly, staring at it, but was only broken from it by the fox’s sharp muzzle suddenly dropping over it, glaring at him slightly.

‘My eyes are up here, thanks,’ she snickered, enjoying how the wolf drew back and seemed caught off guard. The second he was no longer looking at it the note vanished… and he blinked at her uncertainty.

‘Can you…?’ He trailed off, fighting between his urge to hide and this sudden… lifeline.

‘Hear you?’ She finished for him, and somehow, he could tell she was smiling. ‘Yes, and your dog too, now. I’m not as good with it as you are but, when I’m like this its easier. I can’t hear him all the time like you can, though I’m probably better than the others.’

‘What are you?’ Nino demanded bluntly, moving closer to the edge just slightly, a little at a time. Alya and Carter both scooted backwards, allowing him some space. ‘How did you do that? So easily?’

‘I’m a Kitsune,’ she answered. ‘I can’t say that I’m exactly like you, I’m not but, I am a shapeshifter like you. So is Adrien but, I’ve never seen him use it. He can’t do it all the time like us.’

Kitsune… the word echoed in his head. The textbook entry from class seemed to echo back to him, every instance feeling years apart. He’d been stuck like this for days now… the uncomfortable anxiety of the class suddenly so much better than this.

‘I didn’t mean to,’ he said, his ears pressing flat against his skull, a whine building in his throat. ‘I didn’t want to, I tried not to it just-,’

‘It’s okay Nino. It’s okay that this happened.’ When he shot his head up to glare at her she flexed her paws in a placating gesture that still came across. ‘I know it doesn’t feel that way I know it’s all messed up but it’s okay that it happened. You can go back and forth whenever you want. We’re not supposed to be one or the other.’ She titled her head and the fox peered at him intensely. ‘We’re supposed to be both.’

‘No I’m not!’ he suddenly barked at her, flinching at how heavy his teeth felt as they bared sharply without his intention, but he didn’t back down. The growl in his chest was so loud to him he could barely articulate the thought. ‘I was supposed to be me! I was always me! I am not an animal!’

Carter hurried to back off, and though they seemed so far outside of it he was aware of the fact that both Adrien and Marinette were on their feet. Alya, however, did not move.

‘Well what are you then?’ she spoke plainly, the creature completely still as it regarded him. ‘Human?’

The growl faltered, dying down as the fox refused to shift her gaze from him, looking him over pointedly again.

When he went quiet she seemed to relax, tension she had been trying to conceal slipping away.

When she spoke again her words were softer.

‘You aren’t. And you’re right, you’re not an animal either. You’re the same thing you were before.’

She didn’t wait to respond, instead turning her head to look at Carter. The dog was watching her anxiously, fidgeting in place as she talked to him.

‘Carter? Do you know?’

‘What?’ he asked, on his feet and shaking a little. ‘What? I don’t understand.’

The fox remained calm, retaining control of the situation.

‘Do you know what he is?’

‘Nino!’ He responded instantly, relief flooding through him and his tail starting to wag for the first time. He knew that one, he knew the answer! ‘He’s Nino!’

‘Yeah,’ she answered, her muzzle parting slightly in that foxy smile she had, turning back to look underneath the bed at the wolf who lay there. ‘He’s Nino. He was before, and he still is now and that’s not different.’

‘You don’t even know me…’ Nino muttered wretchedly, his heavy angled head resting on the ground again, getting quiet.

‘I don’t,’ she agreed, resting her head on the ground as well. ‘But I’m really looking forward to it.’

Though neither of them truly spoke aloud the words seemed to hang in the air around them, settling into him where he cowered… where he hid. As always it was too big, too much but… he looked at the strange fox.

Who did not cower. Who did not flinch.

‘Why aren’t you scared of me?’ he asked, the same question always ringing in his head, but he didn’t expect the fox to huff like she did, going so far as to even roll her eyes.

‘I hate to break it to you Nino, but you’re not all that scary.’ Her tails flicked mischievously as she backed up again. ‘You’re kind of baby cheeked and polite, and poofy and under a bed. Not exactly the stuff of nightmare.’

She grinned at him and pulled further away, drawing him closer and closer to the edge of the bed as he moved up into the space she allowed. The tip of his muzzle was now visible in the light, his eyes still that intense golden color as he watched her.

‘You’re making fun of me,’ he finally answered, incredulously. When she nodded in confirmation he huffed, a low growl of irritation making her laugh an odd chittering laugh.

He huffed as she jumped to her feet, seeming to enjoy getting a rise out of him. And he wanted to be angry, or annoyed or something else but…

They were just talking. He held onto it like a string in the dark, desperate not to tug too tight and separate it from the surface. It was something… normal, as close to normal as he could possibly get. And as ashamed as he might be he didn’t want to be alone with it again.

Even if he was a monster, so was she.

‘S-show me how you did it. Please. I can’t, I’ve tried.’ He crawled forward again, nervously moving a paw out into the open, trying not to look at it. He didn’t want them to see… but it was pointless. It’s not like they didn’t already know…

‘It’s not just one trick, you might not be able to do it right away but you don’t have to be freaked out about it. You’re gonna get it, okay? But you won’t be able to get a grip on it unless you’re more stable.’

‘How am I supposed to do that? Ms. B kept saying that she said just be calm but I can’t.’ He slid another paw out into the open, and after another moment’s hesitation he slowly started to crawl out, staying as small and as folded in on himself as possible. Alya backed off a little but Carter quickly ran to his side, hovering helplessly as the beast shook on its paws.

Nino stood there shamefully, unable to look at them all as he felt them staring. Adrien and Marinette were still standing by the open door, looking on tensely at the silent conversation they could not hear, simply having faith that Alya was saying something they couldn’t. The kitsune herself was sitting up straight, watching him.

‘How am I supposed to be calm with this?’ he asked, his shame eating at him. ‘What am I supposed to do?’

‘You’re just getting started Nino. Right now, you’re not okay. You’re not a wolf because somethings wrong with you, you shifted because you lost your grip. With shapeshifters its easy to get lost in between. You lost touch with you, not humanity. If you knew what you were and who you were you could be either form you wanted, at the drop of a hat. Or some spot in between, who knows.’ She raised a paw, gesturing loosely at his clothes that still lay discarded on the ground. ‘What you did, it probably hurt. It’s not supposed to be like that, it won’t be if you practice it. But… I’m sorry.’

She paused suddenly, the strange stone she wore swaying as she took a quick, shallow breath.

‘It’s not something you can do instantly, it’s not like a spell or a trick. It isn’t something you’ve got to… do,’ she struggled to explain, her front paws needing the ground slightly. But she looked him in the eyes regardless when he looked up to meet her. ‘It’s all built in, we’re both fluid, but that means if you start losing focus things can get more difficult to maintain. At least, that’s how it is for me. We’re not exactly the same, in fact we’re mostly different but…’ she paused again, huffing in irritation.

She took a deep breath, trying again, her tails swaying behind her.

‘You’re stuck. You said you’ve been trying but that’s cause you’re trying to escape something, and you can’t. This,’ and she nodded her head towards him, ‘isn’t something to run away from. So it starts with accepting that this, no matter how much it scares you, is part of it now. You can’t be Nino without it anymore and being on two legs doesn’t change that. No matter what you look like.’

… there wasn’t a response. He didn’t have one to give as he cowered in front of them all. He was exposed in this borrowed spot he hid in, flailing for that fleeting piece of string.

‘Nino?’

Carter leaned into his side, still shorter even when his boy was folded in on himself so tightly. He pressed all of his heat and all of his worry into his dense, layered fur and leapt up slightly to nudge his muzzle with his own, vying for his attention. ‘Please talk to me…’

‘… yeah? Buddy?’ Nino finally addressed him, feeling a pang of guilt when the Shepherd’s ears pricked up.

He stared at him with wide, dark eyes for a while, open and honest in the way only he was capable of.

‘I don’t mind it when you’re like this.’

He let his tail wag slowly, keeping his attention and hoping that it helped. The tall, dark beast stared back at him, and he could feel him breathing deeply.

‘I know buddy.’

‘We were waiting,’ Carter continued, looking briefly towards Alya before looking back to his boy. ‘We were waiting for it to be okay. You said that, maybe this wasn’t okay, but she says that it is. She said its supposed to happen. So as long as you are still Nino, that’s okay then right?’

The dog stared at him intently, desperately trying to understand and hoping he was right. So much of what was said was so confusing to him, but after all the talking was done he kept thinking that he must be right. That he must have been right the whole time.

‘I-…,’ Nino hesitated, and after a moment he forced himself to move, though he tried hard to avoid it. He copied Carter’s gesture, nudging him awkwardly. Carter’s tail wagged harder in response.

He couldn’t help the sigh, depending on Carter’s weight to focus him. ‘I don’t really feel like myself right now…’

‘… can I help?’

Nino looked at him, and for the first time in days, felt something vaguely on the edge of something warm. Something positive.

Something from before.

‘You’re already helping Carter… just stay with me please. I-… I’m trying to figure this out.’

‘She said she can help,’ Carter reminded him, his tail wagging steadily now, so relieved to be moving forward. He looked to Alya again excitedly and passed her to the others; the sweet-smelling girl and… the cat. But he allowed it, it was helping. As long as they were helping, then he’d let them stay. They were giving him something he couldn’t, and he was giving everything he had.

‘Yeah,’ Nino eventually answered, though he was less sure. He had to believe in something though… he didn’t want to be a coward. He didn’t want to hide… he looked back to the fox and stared at her enviously, knowing she wasn’t ashamed in the slightest.

She was something else, just like all of them, but they weren’t hiding. She wasn’t hiding, and she slipped over just like he did, just as fast and as completely. There was no hesitation for her, nothing to be scared of… she knew exactly what she was. She wasn’t lost at all…

‘You’re saying… that it’s because I’m scared that it happened? Scared of myself?’

Alya locked eyes with him unflinchingly, but this time, he didn’t look away.

‘Something like that, yeah. It’s part of it. The more scared of yourself you got the less like you you felt. I bet that all kept wearing down, until you lost track of yourself entirely.’ She tilted her head slightly. ‘Right?’

‘Something like that…’ he agreed.

‘I know it must sound like nothing to you but… it’s the truest way I can put it. The shifting itself is easy, your body can do it naturally, like jumping or stretching or breathing. All it would take eventually is the smallest intention and you could slip right into it, because it’s just something you do. It’s part of you. But if you don’t have something concrete to build around, you’ll be too at mercy to your state of mind to control yourself. You’d flicker back and forth and part way and back like a light switch. And eventually you’d just fizz out.’ She put a paw on the ruined remains of his shirt. ‘And get stuck.’

For the first time since she had shifted, she approached him. She made sure to do it slowly, every step measured and gentle as she did it, continuing to talk.

‘You are your own landmark. Whether I’m in this form or my other one or anything else the only thing that is always true is that I’m always Alya. Shapeshifters have to be completely sure of who they are, because if we are then our appearance doesn’t matter.’

The kitsune stopped when she was only two feet away from him. He numbly found himself trying to recall if he had ever seen a red fox that big, but she still felt tiny to him, smaller still than Carter and craning to look up at him. When she was this close… he couldn’t help but notice the little spot of dark red fur above one eye, perfectly mimicking her beauty mark.

His tail moved slightly, having slowly drawn out from underneath him and starting to sway just a little at the observation. As soon as he noticed he tried to stop it but found with a wave of embarrassment that he wasn’t sure how. It was funny though, if anything could be right now.

He wondered if he had anything that stayed the same… even now.

‘Thanks Mufasa…’ he mumbled after a moment, and his tail swished a little more when she really turned her head at that one.

He wasn’t really sure what expression he managed but he couldn’t help the huff that was almost like a weak spirited chuckle, or some approximation. ‘Remember who you are… you know, like the Lion King?’

He barked out an odd weary sound that he knew was as close to a laugh as he could get, enjoying despite everything the baffled expression he knew he would get. He clung to his stupid joke like he had before… days ago in the classroom when he was trying his best. This one might not have landed but, it was for him more than anything, and he held on to the spirit it gave him.

‘You’ll have to explain that one, I guess,’ she relented after a moment, and though she said nothing of it, she enjoyed her own wash of relief. Nino was still just barely shaking, being held up by the weight of his dog but… he was familiar. Back to that great, unimaginable effort. Just doing his best to survive.

Nino felt… frayed, still split apart and scattered but… it was something just this side of hopeless. He had been unraveled but he was gripping some of the strings, dragging them towards him and fumbling them in the dark. He moved a paw and did what he could not to ignore the feeling of the pads against the tile but… but to at least not flinch. To not run away.

He forced himself to look up, looking down the dusty cluttered class room and towards two others… two others who came.

Adrien met his eyes immediately, the boy pulling up straight and watching him with that exact same concern as he had in the lunch room. It was powerful, and empathetic and more than he had earned, more of a testament to him as a person then anything. Caring enough about the new kid enough to come… and to bring help.

He hadn’t meant to shut them out, Marinette ringing the edges of her dress in her hands as she suffered through the ordeal. It was just that… he had been far away. And Alya knew somehow how to come and meet him there. But that didn’t mean the others hadn’t gone so far too…

He couldn’t forget that.

‘Hey…’ he said, though he understood that he couldn’t hear him. Alya turned to look back at them as well, moving aside in surprise when Nino suddenly stepped passed her.

Carter hurried to shadow him, still diligently supporting him as Nino took a few shaky steps forward, focusing on meeting them halfway.

He nearly stumbled but Carter held him, coaching him quietly on which foot to move next, helping him adjust to the movement without having to be asked. Nino was embarrassed to have to look down at his feet but… he was passed that now. He didn’t have it in him to be ashamed of it, he just did his best to get there.

When he looked up again Adrien was crouching on one knee, Marinette copying him quickly and staring at him intensely. Her eyes were wide and watching… and he noticed, dully, that her eyes were wet.

‘I’m sorry,’ he whined, looking back at her. Like everything, he didn’t fully understand her… but he had seen enough to realize that she must have been there with him. Aware on at least some level what he was feeling. So, he hoped she could tell now that he was sorry for that.

She smiled weakly, and his tail answered with that same, subdued sway.

He looked back to Adrien and saw that he was offering a smile too, but behind his eyes there was a whirlwind he couldn’t gauge. “Hey man,” the boy offered, Nino’s ears flicking at the actual sound of it since so much had essentially been said silently. Adrien laughed a little, the sound breathless. “It’s really good to see you. I- uh… I’ve been saving you a seat.”

Carter looked between Nino and the cat a little warily but knew better than to make a fuss of it now. Despite whatever the Shepherd might believe…

He owed him.

‘Thank you,’ Nino offered back, trying to make some kind of soft sound so Adrien would at least know he had been answered. When the boy smiled he knew that the message had made it across, and he resolved that when he got things pulled back together, that he was going to do something to make it up to him. To all of them, for their kindness towards someone they barely even knew.

When he got it back.

When…

He held on to that too.

#tmitr #the monster in the room #spooky!ml au #werewolf #nino lahiffe #alya cesaire #kitsune #marinette dupain-cheng #adrien agreste #chapter 11 #part 11 #tlp writes #thelastpilot writes #supernatural au #carter the dog #caline bustier #miraculous ladybug #ml #my fics

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