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faun-the-fawn77 · 8 months ago

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"𝕃𝕀ℙ𝕊 𝕆𝔽 𝔸ℕ 𝔸ℕ𝔾𝔼𝕃"

Lucifer Morningstar x F!Angel!Reader

Genre: fluff and angst

Word count: 2.2k

Warnings: manipulation, gaslighting, fluff so sweet it'll hurt your teeth, ooc(?) Lucifer, reader hates Lilith, Lilith is a bitch, and so is Michael

Part Two

Desc: When Lucifer Fell, it wasn't because of his ideals or that he "fell in love" with Lilith OR that he tempted Eve with the Apple. Lilith was poison from the start and manipulated him into giving Eve the apple. He was devoted to one person in creation and that was his wife, Y/N. He was devastated when he Fell and when Lilith told him that Y/N couldn't love him anymore? That broke him. After years of no contact with Heaven, Lucifer let his daughter, Charlie, attend one of the meetings with Heaven for him. What Charlie didn't expect was for her fathers ex(?)lover to be there with Adam and Lute. Or that Charlie would learn more about her mother. She made sure her father would get back in contact with his long lost love. Lucifer got a phone call that night from someone... in Heaven? Now who could that be?

Note: Sorry for the long description but like- I need you guys to have context for my stories, especially song fics. I want to jump right into the music and writing so you guys will be getting extended summaries. Hope you stick around!

Another note: Poll at bottom once ur done reading! be sure to read the note at the end:)

Honey, why you calling me so late?

It’s kinda hard to talk right now

Honey, why you crying, is everything okay?

I gotta whisper ‘cause I can’t be too loud

The abrupt sound of “Highway To Hell” By AC/DC ringing out into the night is what woke the Devil from his slumber. He patted around the black wooden night stand for the loud contraption. His bleary eyes wincing at the brightness of the screen, he saw that the beginning of the number starts with (444). Squinting his eyes, he ran a clawed hand through his bed head and sat up. Glancing back at Lilith and then at the number from Heaven, he sighed and slipped his robe on, stumbling out the door and into his study.

“What in the unholy Hell is someone from Heaven calling me for…” He hesitated for a second before swiping up and answering the call.

There was no sound on the other end for a while before Lucifer growled and gripped his phone tighter, “If this is some kinda prank then I won’t hesitate to-”

“Luci..?”

Lucifer held his breath. His mind raced a mile a minute once that voice came through the line. He closed his eyes shut to prevent the onslaught of tears to fall from his red eyes.

“Luci…please.” His breathing picked up. This wasn’t real. Some fucked up motherfucker was playing some sorta sick prank on him. There’s no way his wi- Ex…wife was calling him. Him! He went to hang up, thumb hovering over the red button when that gentle voice came through again, “Luci, it’s really me. Please don’t go…”

Lucifer bit his lip. He let out a shaky breath and brought the phone to his pointed ear. The sound of her labored breathing could be heard, like she was trying to not cry.

“Y/N/N? Is…is this really you?” Sniffles were heard from the other end before soft laughter followed. Lucifer fell down into the loveseat near the window in his study.

“Yes Luci, it’s really me.” The sound of his wife’s voice made Lucifer melt into the loveseat. It’s been eons since he’s heard her voice… and now he wants nothing more than to see her. To feel her. Hug her. Do everything with her.

“Honey, why’re you calling so late? Can’t you see the stars right now?” A sound came from Lucifer and Lilith’s shared room which caused the little Devil to silence himself before speaking again in a whisper, “It’s kinda hard to talk right now. Sorry, honey.”

It was quiet for a few seconds before whimpers and sniffles sounded on the other end. Y/N was crying. His darling wife was upset.

Not knowing what to do at that point of time, Lucifer shushed her gently, “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m right here. Is everything okay, honey? Why’re you crying?” Lucifer clutched his phone tightly. His eyes watered up at the thought of not being able to hold onto her.

“I miss you, Luci. I miss you so much!” Her voice echoed in the study room. Lucifer pulled his phone away to listen, in case Lilith woke up from the noise. He put his phone back to his ear with a smile.

“I miss you too, darling. I’m sorry for being so quiet. I gotta whisper ‘cause I can’t be too loud at the moment.” Y/N hummed and he could hear the smile on her lips.

“Is it because of Charlie? Oh she is such a sweetie! Her and I-”

“Charlie? You met- How’d you meet Charlie?” Lucifer couldn’t fathom how his sweet apple met with his angelic wife. Y/N couldn't leave Heaven. After he Fell, he had heard from Adam that they kept Y/N on a tight leash to make sure she wouldn’t follow after him.

“Oh! Said she had a meeting with Heaven! Said she and her wonderful girlfriend were sent by you to represent you!” That’s when it clicked. He had that phone call from Charlie a while back about wanting to go to Heaven to talk about her hotel to the higher-ups. Lucifer got her into Heaven that day. What he didn’t realise is that Charlie had a chance at meeting his wife. Or was she considered his ex? They never officially divorced and he and Lilith never married…

“Her idea is brilliant by the way,” Y/N whispered softly. This caught him by surprise. Surprise because he thought that his brother, Michael, would’ve brain washed her into thinking he was the bad guy. That he was evil incarnate.

“You…support it? Her dream?” Lucifer felt like shit. All this time, after hearing nonstop from his daughter about her hotel and plan, it took him getting a call from his wife to make him realize how shitty of a father he was.

“I do.”

And that struck him in the heart. It was her first encounter with Charlie and she already supported her. Lucifer held a breath and released it after a few seconds.

Well, my girl’s in the next room

Sometimes I wish she was you

I guess we never really move on

It’s really good to hear your voice saying my name

It sounds so sweet

Coming from the lips of an angel

Hearing those words, it makes me weak

And I never wanna say goodbye

But, girl, you make it hard to be faithful

With the lips of an angel

“It’s not because of Charlie…is it.” Lucifer perked up.

“What?”

“The reason you have to be quiet.” Lucifer stilled.

Lucifer couldn’t speak. The tone of voice Y/N had made him shiver. She sounded…numb. Empty. He knew then that she was referring to Lilith.

“She’s in the next room. She doesn’t know…” Lucifer couldn’t finish. He already hated this topic. Lilith was what caused this. Lucifer took a breath and whispered out, “I wish she was you, Y/N.”

He never moved on from Y/N. She was his everything. She will always be his one and only. His light. His angel.

It was silent. Too silent. Lucifer chewed on his bottom lip with anxiousness. He knew when Y/N was upset and right now? Very upset. He remembered the first argument they had. Lucifer went down to the garden to welcome the two new humans his Father created. Adam was awed while Lilith had indifference. That intrigued Lucifer. Lucifer would talk to Adam about the stars while Lilith went off on her own to do whatever it is she does. One day, Lucifer followed after her. He found her in a flowering clearing with a pond. She was knelt next to it. Lucifer walked up to her and noticed that she was ripping the petals off the most beautiful of flowers.

“And why damage something with life that grew so beautifully?” Lilith looked up at the archangel and smirked. That should’ve been his first sign.

“They aren’t as beautiful as me though, right?” Lucifer hesitated before shaking his head. That should’ve been the second.

“No! You are… very pretty.” Lucifer didn’t want to get on this human’s bad side, “but that is no reason to rip off the petals. Envy is a sin.”

Lilith cackled at the last quip. If Lucifer had caught it, he would’ve realised that she was evil incarnate, not him.

When Lucifer returned to Heaven after visiting the humans, he bumped into his wife at the Golden Gates. Her arms were crossed and her rosy lips were set into frown.

“What’s wrong, my star?” Lucifer reached out only for Y/N to swat away the appendage. She glared at him and in a high pitched voice, mimicked Lilith, “They aren’t as beautiful as me though, right?”

Lucifer paled. He didn’t know she followed him down that day. He knew he was in the wrong. He should’ve stopped Lilith’s flirting. He should’ve stopped when he noticed how Lilith looked at him.

“Honey, I-”

“Save it. You should’ve known better, Lucifer. Women, even angelic ones like myself, are good at getting what we want.” Y/N walked off, back to their house. Lucifer felt terrible. He did know that. The angelic females in Heaven knew what they wanted and always got what they wanted, though what they wanted ranged from the sweetest things like new constellations or a new animal to be sent down to Earth that was of their own creation.

“Lucifer, I di-”

“It’s really good to hear your voice, sweetheart. I can’t get enough of you saying my name again, even if we’re on a topic that upsets you,” Lucifer admitted. He could hear his wife choke a bit before giggling.

“Oh yeah?”

Lucifer smirked, “Oh yes. Especially since they’re coming from the lips of a beautiful angel.”

He could hear her stuttering on the other end. He was proud of himself that he still had that effect on her. He was always the charismatic one. She was always the kind one.

“I bet, Luci, that you’re still just as handsome as when you were here.” Lucifer felt his already reddened cheeks heat up more. Since when did his cute, shy, and sweet wife have this side to her?

“Hells, hearing you say that really makes me weak in the knees, sweetheart,” Lucifer groaned. His heart was beating faster and he felt his hands get clammy. He wanted her badly.

Bed squeaking could be heard in the next room over which caused Lucifer to shut up. He waited with bated breath for the sound of footsteps but none ever came. He released the breath he was holding, running his claws through his tousled blonde hair.

“I never wanna say goodbye, Luci,” Y/N’s voice sounded suddenly. Lucifer smiled. He never wanted this phone call to end either. He knew that next time there was a meeting with Heaven, he was going.

It’s funny that you’re calling me tonight

And, yes, I’ve dreamt of you too

And does he know you’re talking to me?

Will it start a fight?

No, I don’t think she has a clue

Lucifer chuckled to himself. Something in himself thinks this is all a dream. That it’s not real. I mean, talking to his wife? He feels like he’s walking on clouds again.

“What’s so funny, mister?” And Hells, he’d never tire of her voice.

“It’s just funny to me that I got a phone call from you of all angels. That you actually called after everything that happened…” Lucifer leaned back in the seat. His eyes shut and he rested his free hand over his eyes.

“Luci, I never believed Michael’s lies.” Lucifer sat up. His grip tightened on the black hellphone.

“Never..? But I was told…”

“Whatever you were told was a lie. Lilith is a lying, manipulating bitch. When I saw her in the Garden with you I almost lost my cool. Do you know why she was so flirty? It’s because she saw me and wanted to piss me off. It worked, I’ll give her that.” Lucifer was stunned. Lilith knew? Y/N knew? Then why…

“I never told you because I wanted you to figure it out. I wanted you to realise how toxic she was. That she was using you to get to me. She knew you were the angel everyone talked about and wanted. And she wanted what others couldn’t have.” Lucifer felt that flicker of anger in his heart burst forth. His horns grew and his tail swished around angrily. His breathing was heavy. He wanted to storm into his bedroom and rid that piece of filth from existence!

“Luci! Don’t do anything yet…I have a plan.”

Lucifer settled down and sat back in the loveseat. He used his tail to hold the phone to his ear and clenched his fists to hold back the anger.

“What plan?”

“I can’t say right now… someone is listening.” Her voice lowered at the end. Lucifer understood that she was being watched so he kept his cool and changed topics.

“You know…I’ve been dreaming of you. Every night since I fell.” Lucifer looked out the window of his study to see the blood red sky. The sight of Heaven made him sad. He wanted so badly to be up there with her once again.

“I’ve dreamt of you too, my light bringer.” Her voice was sweet. It was like honey and vanilla. Lucifer smiled. He could listen to her talk all day. Did he say that twice? Oh well, he was whipped.

“Does he… does Michael know you’re talking to me right now?” Lucifer almost regretted that question.

“No, he doesn’t. He will when my plan goes through, though.” Lucifer smirked. He couldn’t wait to hear what his brother does when he learns that Y/N was talking to the Devil. He could already picture the steam blowing out his ears.

“And you’re positive that that witch doesn’t know that you are talking to me right now?” Lucifer chuckled at his wife’s bitterness at the mere mention of Lilith.

“No, she doesn’t. She’s honestly a heavy sleeper.” Y/N hummed. That bit of info made her plan easier.

“I want to talk more about Charlie! She’s just so sweet and she reminds me so much of you, hon.” Lucifer leaned forward in his seat and both started talking about the sweet creature that was Charlie Morningstar.

Well, my girl’s in the next room

Sometimes I wish she was you

I guess we never really moved on

It’s really good to hear your voice saying my name

It sounds so sweet

Coming from the lips of an angel

Hearing those words, it makes me weak

And I never wanna say goodbye

But, girl, you make it hard to be faithful

With the lips of an angel

That was my first attempt at writing Lucifer and i might have made him a bit to sweet? idk i personally think he'd be supper sweet to wife reader after everything that happened.

HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY!!!!

also: if you want a part two... VOTE! I wanna expand on this universe a bit so I'll need to find songs to match. Music is my love so almost all my fics will involve music someway or another:)

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel lucifer #lucifer magne #lucifer morningtsar #hes such a cutie patootie #i love him #its not very angsty but thats because i hate angst #unless im in a mood #writing #fanfiction #writers on tumblr #writblr #creative writing #lucifer morningstar x reader

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queenofallimagines · 1 year ago

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Omg hello!! I just read your devotee headcanons(they were all amazing I loved them) for the brothers and I just wanted to ask if you could do one for guardian angel simeon???in my religion we believe that every person has a guardian angel so imagine how funny it would be when you come down to the devildom and simeon is like :o it's you!!

Certainly beloved!💕 I think this one might be the longest😭

Simeon:

- unlike the others, notices right off the bat

- He’s been assigned to you since before birth like come on he could recognize you by just an eyelash

- Will be slightly hurt if you don’t recognize him

- “You don’t remember me?🥺 but I sing you a lullaby when you were 2”

- Sir…. Please be serious, that’s like 3 seconds of memory

- Will passive aggressively push for you to move in with him in purgatory hall

- Lucifer is exhausted because he’s always there

- “You act like you LIVE here. Go back to YOUR dorms!”

- “Bold of you to think I would leave MY precious, amazing human here will all of you unsupervised”

- He’s not about to stop being clingy neither

- Sharing old stories at student coy meetings like you have got to stop him before he gets out a photo album 😭

- Scolds you like a parent

- “I know you’re now doing what you shouldn’t be”

- Luke is your honorary baby brother

- Will ask Luke to watch you like he’s tall enough to reach the microwave

- “Luke I’ll be back in a minute make sure they don’t have any more sweets”

- Like you’re literally grown💀please tell him to back off a little or this will get worse

- When he realizes he’s falling for you in a way Guardian Angels shouldn’t. He panics

- This the same shit Lilith did

- And he got demoted for just AGREEING with Lucifer about the war

- Hides it like he’s gonna take it to the grave, especially from Luke

- You notice he starts avoiding you a little and will lie through his teeth that he’s just feeling a little under the weather

- Lucifer peeped game though, and he’s like yeah absolutely NOT

- he’s not letting anything else happen to any more of his Family

- Will lock your ass up until he gets Simeon alone to have a talk with him

- Like you now have a curfew 😭

- Listen…. He would tear apart the entire exchange program over lesson 16,,,,

- Like y know how Diavolo said Simeon is the ONE person he doesn’t want to piss off?

- Yeah it’s like inconsolable now

- In any timeline any life any dimension he will feel you’re endanger

- In like Bible canon they really can’t help unless god gives them the okay so they’re often times forced to watch the one they were bound to protect suffer

- But this is the devildom and he don’t really got eyes down here. So who’s to stop him from coming to your aid??

- Even though you’re “technically” okay he’s still like not having it

- As soon as it happens he feels a sharp cold pain throughout his entire body and drops whatever he’s holding

- Struggling to remember how to breathe all he can think about is sprinting to the house of lamentation

- Busts open the doors to see you in mammon arms, and it’s like his whole world shatters

- He hears belphie laughing, and he’s never felt rage like this before

- Lucifer is fighting for his LIFE because he’s having to balance feeling grief, shock,rage, and also try to keep his brothers from going off the deep end so he’s like frozen

- Can’t think fast enough to stop Simeon from unleashing some divine punishment on this spoiled brat

- Lucifer does snatch him up because he will literally kill him in cold blood right there if he doesn’t reason with him

- Almost snaps back on Lucifer before you show up again for the intermission

- Shaking and crying with relief

- You’re gonna make him literally faint MC please😭

- Like don’t the angels use a LOT of magic to keep their emotions in check so they don’t go crazy like demons do?

- They’re having to suppress every emotion ever and dull those

- So he’s got like a couple of eons of just raw feelings pent-up beating his ass all at once

- When you explain the reveal he’s like REALLY about to throw up

- Lucifer and everyone are like feeling relief and are glad you’re okay

- Almost wants to break mammon arms for holding you and barely letting anyone else get near you

- But he’s frozen in shock too

- Lucifer side eying Simon like,,,,, me too bro, but he has NO idea how to talk to him about that?

- Settles for holding you as tight as possible and whispering a prayer into your hair for protection

- Teaches you to use your angel powers

- But doubles down on his over protectiveness

- Helicopter angel now

- Which doesn’t really mesh well with Lucifer’s attachment anxiety

- will come pick you up at random ass times and whisk you away for no reason

- Like the exam is in a month why are you studying devildom history now???

- Causing Lucifer to freak the fuck out when he does his randomly scheduled MC room check-ups

- Doesn’t even think to text you before hyperventilating

- Luckily enough, the first time you come back with Simeon attached at the hip

- Him and Lucifer have gotten into it a few times over this

- Dia is forced to call a student council meeting without you present

- You and Luke think the meeting is tomorrow and are making snacks

- he’s like okay Simeon you can’t keep doing this

- And he goes OFF

- Like this is HIS fault for not watching and protecting you

- Like if this is supposed to be for human angels and demons to coexist you’re doing a shit job

- Almost single-handedly shuts down the program by saying he will take you home and make sure they never get near you ever again

- Lucifer feeling so much guilt he can’t breathe is trying to be in his best behavior and be rational, but Simeon is relentless

- He’s talking out the side of his neck until he snaps back on some “you’re literally following in Lilith’s footsteps! Do you not think that the celestial real won’t also deal out a punishment for MC? You falling from grace isn’t the only thing on the line here.”

- OOP

- It’s suddenly crickets

- Even Barbados is like 😦🫢

- He can’t even deny those allegations so he’s just like glaring at him

- Solomon steps in bc WOW this is getting crazy

- Reasons with him that because you have a pact with all of them now they CANT hurt you and you’re training under him as a sorcerer so you’ll be fully equipped to defend yourself from anything

- Simeon relents at least sitting back down in his chair

- Explains there really nobody best as a candidate for representing the three realms than you being a part of all three of them

- (Lilith when she died wasn’t an angel or a demon but something in between so in my head MC has always been all three; human demon and angel and that’s why they’re extra immune to demon magic)

- Simeon agreeing to chill out a little bit swearing if anything else ever happens to you, he wouldn’t hesitate to target whoever’s directly responsible

- Imagine how awkward the actual meeting is tomorrow 😭

- You’re having a great morning and everyone holding they breath

- Barbados my beloved is the only one who’s got enough sense and acting skills to act like nothing happened

- When you stop lord Doavolo mid-sentence to ask what the FUCK is up with these rancid vibes

- Barbatos kindly informs you that it’s the stress from a new school event that diavolo has yet to announce

- “It happens annually (lie) and it’s usually very exhausting to put together. Perhaps you can alleviate some of that for us.”

- Everyone subtlety lets out the breath they were holding seeing you so excited to help out

- Barbatos stirring the pot a little more ALSO suggests you run the maid bunny café

- Suddenly everyone forgets what the elephant in the room was and is now talking over each other

- There was no school event btw LMAO so they just had to make one up and then take three weeks to prepare for it.

- Great way to lift the spirits though✨

#my writing #x black reader #obey me #obey me x black reader #obey me shall we date #obey me swd #obey me shall we date Simeon #obey me simeon #simeon x reader #om! simeon #obey me x reader #simeon x mc #omswd simeon #slight angst #just for a little spice 💅🏿

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magistralucis · 1 year ago

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Conflict in Literature + Necron Books

(Read more for titles and notes, watch out for spoilers)

Man vs. Nature - Devourer This is not the only necron vs. tyranid lit, but I thought the cover illustrated the conflict best. Out of all the horribad things in WH40K, the tyranids tend to be presented as the closest faction to a natural disaster; certainly in Devourer they do not logically justify their presence, nor can they be reasoned with, not by the Blood Angels or Anrakyr or the Tomb World he's trying to wake. Not mindless, but an amoral happenstance, like nature itself.

Man vs. Society - The Lords of Borsis Necron court intrigue played straight, with a sprinkle of delusion on the side. Since this story revolves entirely around the schemings and plottings of necron(tyr) society, with changes in dynastic hierarchy as the final objective, it fits best here.

Man vs. Technology - Indomitus This is an awkward placement, since Indomitus was not, well... a compelling story, with most of its tropes not being explored beyond their first introduction. But it is the most bare-bones way of describing this book's premise. Humans battling a robotic malignancy, albeit with a Bolivian Army Ending, which doesn't conclude the plot in either direction 😞

Man vs. Man - The Twice-Dead King: Ruin Ruin is an exceptionally deep novel, and fits every conflict listed here. It was the hardest one to place, because it's not so much choosing the one that goes best, rather crossing off every other conflict not central to the story. Both gods and the absence-of-gods are a problem in Ruin, as well as nature and technology, but they're not at the heart of Oltyx's problem. Society could be a big one, since Oltyx is an exile - but he’s not trying to antagonize his society throughout Ruin, he's trying to work with it, or at least save it from doom. Self and reality both count, but fit better with other stories in the Nate Crowley corpus. So man vs. man it is. His most important clashes are all with individuals ('man') - Djoseras, Unnas, Hemiun, arguably Yenekh in reserve - and by the end, his crownworld is overrun by the Imperium, who will become the antagonists for the second part of his tale. Man vs. 'Man', with a capital M.

Man vs. Self - The Twice-Dead King: Reign Again, this could have gone elsewhere. In man vs. reality, perhaps, or the god-related ones. But the self is where the conflict of Reign truly lies, since Oltyx's greatest obstacle is himself, and it is his inability to accept that which brings his dynasty close to destruction. Thank goodness he got over that one.

Man vs. Reality - Severed The emotional and philosophical core of this novella relies on it. Zahndrekh's inability to see the world as it is brings about the whole plot, and is at the centre of all of Obyron's musings. Interestingly, reality does not win at the end, at least not what necrons envision reality to be: a place of cold hard facts, with no room for emotion. Zahndrekh would rather dream the impossible dream, which might be the healthier way to deal with their situation.

Man vs. God - The Infinite and the Divine 🚨 𝔻𝕆 ℕ𝕆𝕋 𝔹𝔼 𝔻𝔼ℂ𝔼𝕀𝕍𝔼𝔻 🚨

Man vs. No God - Crusade: Pariah Nexus Not a novel, not 100% about necrons, not even out yet as of now (Dec 2023). This is an inherently problematic conflict for WH40K, because gods are very real and very present in that universe... here I'm only thinking about the necron perspective, and the civil war unfolding in their lore. They banded together in a shared purpose eons ago, destroying the Old Ones who oppressed them, and sundering the star gods who subjected them to biotransference. Now they are as antigod as they could be, and they did not retain their bonds, they have once again turned on each other. So it goes.

Man vs. Author - Codex: Necrons (10th Ed.) (Collector's Ed.) James Workshop knows what they did. 😑

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multi-fandom-simp · 1 year ago

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My soul, my heart, my fault

Part 1/3

Jacearys Velaryon x Velaryon!Reader (platonic, sisterly), Lucerys Velaryon x Velaryon!Reader(Platonic, sisterly), Aemond Targaryen x Velaryon!Reader(mentioned throughout)

-Reader is Laenor's legitimate child in both past and present parts of this fic.-

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the House of The Dragon or Fire & Blood characters. I do not claim any of them as my own. This work is purely fictional.

Summary: What's dead, is supposed to stay dead. However, the fates decide to make an exception in the case of your younger sibling's unjust deaths. You, who lived through the dance of the dragons, are brought back for the soul purpose of watching them grow again...or perhaps it was die again, you couldn't quite remember. (This will be a three part series)

Side Note: The areas in italics are memories, or moments of the past.

❗TW❗: Mentions of character death and actual character death, murder, angst, blood, incest?(I mean reader was Aemond's niece in past mentions), angst

(A/N: Hello! This is the first HOTD fic I've posted where the reader has a set house and set parent, but nonetheless I am not forcing you to imagine those specifics as their appearance. The reader's legitimate father in this story is Laenor. Simply because I feel like I don't see enough stories/fics with a true Velaryon reader. That being said, if you have any other fic Recs or even requests that involve a Velaryon reader, please send them my way👀. I've also thought about making a series involving a pair of Velaryon twins, so I'd love to know if anyone would be interested in that. Aside from my rambles, I tagged this as both Velaryon reader and just reader so that people may read it if they please. As always, I love to hear your thoughts and see your reactions, enjoy!)

Word Count: 3,924

“Kepus” Your small voice echoed overtop the waves that surrounded your father.

Laenor, who had been previously focused on the sea turned at your call,“ Yes, Tala”

You stumbled through the water until you were able to cling to his side,“ Why do they whisper about Jace and Luke?”

“ Because your brothers are different” Your father explained softly. His hand swept lovingly over the back of your head as you gazed up at him.

“ How so?”

His hands came down to cradle your face,“ It matters not. What matters, is that they are still your brothers. You must not let the whispers get between you and them.”

“ Nothing could ever take me from them, Kepa, I promise” Your tone was fierce, just like the blood that ran through your veins. Laenor smiled and squatted to your level, paying no mind to the water that soaked his clothes. He seemed to study you for a second as if he was committing the moment to memory.

Finally, he took a breath to speak,“ That’s good because you must protect them, Tala. You are their big sister, their fate rests with you.”

“ I can no-” Your father was quick to spot your hesitancy. The hands that once held your face now held your hands. While his features remained soft, fear was evident in his eyes.

“ -You must have no doubts. Doubts lead to death, and fate is already not on your side. Heed my words, Tala, history will repeat itself,” Whether or not he was referring to him and Laena or you and the boys, you’ll never know. What you did know was that history indeed would repeat itself.

In 129 AC, you watched your brother Lucerys Velaryon die, and in 2006 you welcomed him as he was born again as your cousin. Three-year-old you was immensely confused on why these people kept referring to him as your cousin, but as you got older you came to the realization that no one else remembered who they were and that things were different. Whilst Laenor Velayron remained your father, Rhaenyra Targaryen was not your mother. In all honesty, you were not sure who your mother was. One thing was for certain though, your brothers had been taken from you. They now grew up in a different house with no memories of all you did for them eons ago. It was as if fate itself had placed a curse on you. Still, you weren’t one to let the gods dictate your life. Once your eleventh birthday came around, you begged Nyra to let you babysit the two youngest boys. She agreed without hesitation and suddenly you were back to seeing the boys almost every other day rather than in the summers. You thought you had outsmarted time and fate themselves. Six years went by and you had managed to watch the boys grow without problems. Well aside from the fact that your father and Viserys had agreed that you and Aemond would be together for the sake of both the Velaryon and Targaryen dynasties. That was six months ago, and everything had started to decline since then. Your father had mysteriously vanished, Rhaenyra’s husband Harwin had died, and tensions between the families were at an all-time high. It wasn’t Aemond’s fault per se, he was a great partner, but you knew how this went. In the end, you would be torn between his family and your own. More specifically between your brothers and him. The mere thought of it all happening again sent your stomach into knots. If only there were a way to prevent everything, prevent time from repeating itself. Maybe then you could save your brother-

" Hellooo, are you there? Hey-" Your thoughts vanished as Jace came into view. Were you having a nightmare again? No, surely not in the middle of the day, not while the boys were here.

The realization of your whereabouts sat you upright, forcing your eyes to the couch where you had last left the youngest boys, who still sat there much to your relief,"-Shit, sorry! Did I space off again?"

"You looked like you were asleep with your eyes open, to be honest," Jace snorted, his hair was wet and a gym bag hung from his shoulder, " Rough night?"

His question was answered with a groan as you laid your cheek against the cool countertop, "I’ll take that as a yes?"

"Every night is a rough night when you have nightmares like mine" You mumble between the space in your arms, “Do you ever have weird dreams, Jace?”

Jace sat beside you, mirroring the position you had slumped into. You turned your face towards him as he spoke, "I had a dream once where I was in archery club...but I was naked, like bare as can be-"

"-You can not be serious"

"Oh but I am, and my grandfather's creepy friend Otto was the teacher. It was definitely weird, but I didn't lose sleep over it" Jace shrugged.

" Why are you guys talking like that?" Both you and Jace lift your heads to face Luke. The curly-haired boy stood on the other side of the kitchen island with his eyebrows raised.

You shrugged, “Why are you not talking like this?”

“ Because I’m a normal human being?” He questioned sarcastically, “ anyways, while I have the attention-”

“You always have the attention” Jace scoffs.

You nod in agreement,“ Mhm, it’s because he’s the favorite.”

“ Can I talk or..” Luke stands there staring at the two of you patiently, much like his mother would. Actually, it reminds you of the first time Nyra caught you sneaking the boys into the kitchens during the hour of the owl.

“You must be very quiet. Some say the kitchen maids have special abilities that let them know food has been stolen” You whisper to the boys with a suppressed grin. Each of them held lemon tarts as you securely closed the door.

Luke’s doe eyes widen with fear, “Do you think they’re witches? Will they curse us?”

“ The kitchen maids are not the ones you should be worried about” The three of you whipped around at the sound of your mother’s voice. She stood tall in the firelight, a red robe covering her as she stared down expectantly.

A nervous grin stretched across your features, “ Muna! We were just collecting lemon tarts to bring to you!”

“ You know, your father has this knack for flattering me when he’s trying to cover a lie. It would be a shame for my daughter to try and do the same” She hummed suspiciously.

“ I would never!” You cringed as you realized how identical you sounded to your kepa, “Alright, we were trying to sneak lemon tarts for ourselves, but it won’t happen again! ”

“ If you were still hungry, you should have told me so. Now, Jace, Luke, take the tarts to your chambers and go to bed please.” The boys bid Rhaenyra a good night and took off down the hall swiftly.

Your fingers fiddled with your nightdress nervously, “ I’m sorry, I did not mean to cause trouble.”

“ Oh my heart, you did not cause trouble. It is natural to sneak out at a young age, but you need to be careful here. There are people in this world who seek to hurt your brothers, and you must be their protector.” She cooed, her thumb stroking your cheek.

The fire in your eye returned once more, “ No one will hurt them. Not while I’m by their side.”

“-I’m starting to think she had a medical condition at this point” It was Jace once again who pulled you from the past, but with Luke beside him this time. The two of them both stared at you with confusion. The dry itch in your eyes became apparent as you came back into focus.

“ Maybe she’s just tired from dealing with Aemond all the time-”

You cut off Luke’s jest with a groan, “ Okay, can we not start up the hate train for my boyfriend today? I was just daydreaming, good gods.”

“ No need to start the train up when it was never off in the first place” Jace spoke teasingly. Any rebuttals that were set to come from your mouth were ceased by the constant buzzing from your phone, which laid on the counter for everyone to see.

Luke’s eyes bugged at the sight of Aemond’s contact,“ ñuha zaldrīzes?! You call him your drag-”

“Shut up!” You reached over to slap a hand over his mouth as you answered the phone, “ Aem, hey, what’s going on?”

“What’s going on? Have you looked at the time recently?” looking over to the clock, your face fell. It was twenty past seven, which meant you were twenty minutes late to your dinner with Aemond.

“I thought you would be here as soon as Jace got home, has he not arrived yet?” From beside you, Jace held a thumbs up, as if he was allowing you to use him as an excuse.

“He was a little late getting home and then we got to talking and I just-”

Aemond’s sigh drowned out your words, “-Lost track of time, yeah. It seems like that happens a lot when you’re with them.”

The boy’s watched as you visibly deflated, “Aemond, that’s not fair.”

“ Not fair? You constantly put me second to them. I am- your husband and lover. Sooner or later you will have to choose, either me or them, and I will not tolerate a bastard being put before me. Not in this lifetime or the next.”

“You are being unreasonable, Aemond!”

“ The unreasonable one is you! There is a war afoot and you insist on playing both sides. If you think this will end in a happy ever after..then you’re- mistaken. Are you even listening? Hello?” Time was running out and you could feel it. The last time Aemond had spoken those words, Luke had ended up dead hours later. With fear clouding your judgment you hung up without another word. Which probably didn’t help the situation, but what else could you do? Tell Luke what you thought would happen? No, he was only fifteen, he would be terrified. You couldn’t tell Jace, because as close as the two of you were he would still think you’re crazy. And Aemond, he was absolutely out of the question. Accusing him of something like that would drive the wedge further between the two of you.

“ You must protect them, Tala. You are their big sister, their fate rests with you.” What if I don’t know how?

“There are people in this world who seek to hurt your brothers, and you must be their protector” How can I be their protector when I brought the danger to them? Is it me? Am I the variable that needs to be changed? What if I take Luke’s place?

“ Luke-” Your throat tightened as you looked forward. The spot Luke previously stood in was empty, as was Jace’s spot beside you, “ Luke?!”

Jace reappeared from behind you,“ He went out to ride his bike.”

Confusion and worry clouded your eyes,“ It’s raining, he can’t possibly ride in this weather?!”

Jace shrugged, “I suppose the rain didn’t matter after he heard your conversation with Aemond.”

“Wha-” Fear suffocated your heart like a python. He wouldn’t confront Aemond over a silly argument, would he?

“ Before you ask, no I did not just let him walk out the door to go confront our sociopathic uncle. He isn’t that fast of a peddler, so I’ll just catch up to him in the car” You snatched the keys from Jace’s hand before he could even finish his next thought.

“ Hey-”

“- This is my fault, I’ll fix it” You spoke while making a beeline for the front door, “ I promise I’ll bring the car back in one piece, and Luke too!” You didn’t wait for Jace to reply, there was no need. Nothing he could say would change your mind.

The rain barely touched you, that’s how fast you had made it to the car. You used one hand to whip out onto the street as your other hand pulled up Aemond’s contact. It rang four, five times before going to voicemail. You tried again and again to no avail before it finally went through.

“ Hello? Aemond?” Your voice was as shaky as the car on the slick roads.

“ Are you going to hang up on me again?” His tone was short, meaning he was upset.

“ No, I was just overwhelmed-” The familiar click of a turning signal sounded throughout the car, but you weren’t turning, “ Aemond, please tell me you’re at home.”

“ I’m not. I’m on my way to pick you up” Oh gods. You couldn’t do this, not now. Why was it all happening so fast?

“ I’m not there. I went out to look for Luke. Just go back home and I will meet you there” You pleaded, which was entirely out of character for you.

“I’m not far-”

“-Aemond, please! Just this once, listen to me” You hoped the urgency in your voice would persuade him to listen. Alas, it did not, and part of you knew it wouldn’t.

“The rain is too thick to turn back now. I can barely see anything as it is” Aemond argued, “ I’ll wait at the boy’s house until you get back. I promise I won’t do anything, I won’t even get out of the car.”

Your fear regressed a little. If Aemond was out of the way, then nothing could possibly happen. This could work, or so you thought. Straight ahead, racing through the storm was Lucerys. He was completely drenched from what you could tell and barely pedaling straight. You hit the brakes and jumped out of the car.

“ Luke, get in the car!” The storm roared loudly over your voice, but he still managed to hear you.

Luke shook his head, “ I won’t let him treat you like that, not again.”

“What do you mean not again?” That’s when you noticed, Luke’s eyes were different, older, “You remember, don’t you?”

He nodded slowly, unsurely, “ When Aegon hit my head against the table at dinner last week it all came flooding back. I thought they were dreams at first, but then I noticed how different you acted. How you had changed then to now.”

“ You never said anything”

“I didn’t know that you remembered, I’m sorry” He apologized through chattering teeth.

You smiled softly, “ It doesn’t matter anymore, just come with me. Let me take you back home.”

That’s when Luke’s own smile fell, “ I can’t. I ran away from him the first time, but not this time.”

“ That wasn’t your fault, Luke. I was the one who told you to run, so please, just- take my hand!"

"I won't leave Arrax!" Luke screamed from below you, ignoring the hand that you held down towards him.

"Vhagar is set to kill Arrax. You must take my hand Lucerys, please!" Eyes as green as sea moss flashed through the heavy downpour like lightning. Eyes that held fear that chilled your bones more than the freezing rain. Next came the hand, the hand that held scars from dragon riding yet looked as soft as a handful of clouds. You reached for it amidst the haze, only it never seemed to get any closer.

“Reach further-” and that’s when you saw it, rather than when you saw him. It was Aemond atop Vhagar who appeared in what seemed like a split second. Your heartbeat quickened and you reached for Lucerys once more, except something was blinding you this time- headlights, that’s what was in your way. The beams of light raced down the street with no intention of slowing down. You would be worried about them hitting you if Luke wasn’t in between their path and you. Like before, you weren’t fast enough. Every step you took towards your brother seemed to push him father away.

“Lucerys, Move!” Your screams mingled with his as he turned too late. In what seemed like slow motion you watched as Luke rolled atop the car as it completely mangled his bike. Much to your horror, the driver slammed on their brakes, propelling Luke forward.

“No!” Your feet were moving before your brain could even process what happened, “ No, no, no, please no.”

The pavement cut into your knees as you knelt beside Luke. You pulled his head to rest on your knees, paying no mind to the blood that soaked through your pants. His eyes were open, yet lifeless. The vibrant green that they held before now shone as a dull gray. You leaned down to place your ear on his chest. Nothing. Not a single sound.

“ Lucerys please, you can’t leave me again, “ Your tears mixed with the rain, “ Come back to me, Ñuha prūmia”

“ You did well, Ñuha prūmia. Do not fret” Your sincere words traveled in one ear and out the other for Lucerys. Jace had beaten him at dueling practice yet again.

He scrunched his nose as your endearment, “ Must you call me that? It sounds girly.”

“It is a simple endearment, I mean no harm to your pride. I refer to you as my heart in the same manner that I call Jacaerys my soul” You explain softly, reaching over to ruffle his curls.

“What is Joffrey then?”

“I’m not sure,” You hum in thought, “ Perhaps he is my mind.”

He peers up at you in curiosity, “Which of the three would you say that you can not live without?”

“Mhm, my heart would be the answer. I fear I’d go mad if I ever lost you.” His cherubic smile faded to a bloody gasp. The sight alone smothered out the fire in your heart and set off a drum in your skull.

“ Is he alright? I couldn’t see him through the rain. I swear- oh gods…” Whilst still regaining focus where you sat on Storms End Avenue, you looked up to see none other than Aemond Targaryen speaking to you through the rain. His hair lay limp against his face, almost covering the grim expression he held, which seemed to darken as you came into view. You gently laid Lucerys’s head on the road below before standing on shaky legs.

“ Don’t. Don’t you dare tell me it was an accident, not again” You advanced toward Aemond until the tip of your finger dug into his chest. The patience you once had now worn thin and making way for eons of repressed anger and guilt.

Confusion danced across Aemond’s face, “ Again? What are you talking about-”

“Stop acting like you do not know!” You screamed, shoving him backward, “ I am tired of everyone acting like they know nothing when everything else is happening according to the past!”

“We can talk this out, just calm down” Aemond almost sounded like he was pleading as he reached out for you, but in truth, Aemond never pleaded to anyone. Not even the woman he claimed to love.

"Calm down?! I am to watch my brothers be murdered AGAIN and you want me to CALM DOWN?! You are wrong if you think I will sit by an.. and.. a-", the longer you stood, the worse your vision got. At this point, the pounding in your head had gotten so loud that your vision swayed. Through the dark spots blotting your eyes, you could see silhouettes of dragons dancing in the clouds and the water surrounding you turning red. Everything began to feel weightless, except your head of course.

“ Woah, hey” Aemond was there to catch you as you crumbled, “ Keep your eyes open for me, okay? I’m going to call for help, but I need you to stay awake.”

You tried to stay awake, you really did, but it was all too much. The weight of it all dragged you into the darkness without a fight. It was hours before you awoke, and when you did it was in a hospital bed. A warm weight against your leg is the first thing your brain registers. Well, that and the blinding white hue of the hospital walls.

"Luke.." your throat was dry and scratchy, almost as if you had been screaming for days. Your eyes surveyed the room wearily until they landed on Jace. He must have been the warmth you were feeling. His arms lay atop the bed next to you, crossed snuggly beneath his head. You could tell the skin around his eyes was puffy and red despite them being closed. He had been crying, but over what? Was it Luke? Had last night not been just another nightmare of the past? You reached out, brushing against Jacaerys arm lightly, but still firm enough to rouse him from his sleep.

His eyes fluttered for a moment before fully snapping open, "You're awake!"

" I don't remember falling asleep.." you spoke in true confusion.

Jace's eyes seemed to soften, whether or not it was in pity or sadness you did not know," You didn't fall asleep, you collapsed. Aemond brought you in-"

" and Luke? " A part of you couldn't help but be hopeful. If you couldn't remember passing out, then perhaps Luke's death was a hallucination of your foggy memory as well. Even if the look in Jace's eyes already told you differently.

" They said he was dead upon impact. Aemond killed him." your heartbeat picked up on the monitor as Jace spoke, "I know it's not what you want you to hear, and that you love Aemond, but it's true."

"Aemond claims that he didn't see him in time. That the rain made the roads too slick and that he lost control of the car, but he’s lying" Jace seethed, paying no mind to your reaction.

"Jace-"

His eyes held fire and the smallest hint of disbelief as they flickered back to you, "Please don't defend him. Whatever you're going to say, just don't. My mother has already retaliated and I've opened a lawsuit against Aemond. There's nothing else you can say."

" You don't know that unless you let me speak" You waited for a beat of silence before continuing, "I was not going to defend Aemond. On the contrary, I was going to tell you that it wasn't an accident. It's just like before."

Jace s eyes widened, " Like before? Has Aemond killed someone else?"

You shake your head quickly, "No, not this lifetime. You misunderstand, I'm talking about when he killed Lucerys the first time."

" I'm not sure what you're talking about. None of this has ever happened before-"

The patience you once had before Lucerys's death is now long gone, "-Yes it has! You just have to remember, like Luke did. I need you to remember Jace, please, before the same happens to you."

Jace leans forward to encase both of your shaking hands," If it's the lawsuit that troubles you, then you need not worry. Nothing is going to happen to me. I've taken many precautions. Otto Hightower has agreed to meet us halfway to our beach house in Dragonstone to receive the papers. He's bringing Criston Cole as a witness and I'm bringing Corlys. Everything will run smoothly."

Halfway to Dragonstone, the gullet. You sucked in a trembling breath as images of Jacaerys' arrow-riddled body flashed before your eyes. He was close to his death and yet he didn't remember, not like Lucerys did. You were the only one left with the knowledge of what was to come… Or So you thought.

#hotd #hotd fanfic #house of the dragon #aemond targaryen #aemond targaryen x reader #aemond x reader #aemond targaryen angst #jacaerys velaryon #jacaerys x reader #jacaerys velaryon x reader #lucerys velaryon #lucerys x reader #velaryon reader #aemond targaryen x velaryon!reader #Jacaerys Velaryon x Velaryon!reader #Lucerys Velaryon x velaryon!reader #hotd angst #angst

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afza147 · 5 days ago

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Ep12(finale) when the phone rings short review ( final final though)

I never do third though before, usually I have all figure out in second though..but I did not figure out why I was so blank after the ending

But now I know why..it's because the story has finished

The story of paik sa eon/paik yu Yeon and Hong hee joo has ended beautifully with them finally communicating each other truthfully.

The argan matter was necessary for parallel reason and human touch.

Parallel reason is eventually they will find each other no matter what happened to them.it show many times throughout the show ..he will find her and she will find him..it's just need effort..and both of them show effort.

Human touch as he is not perfect after all, there's stuff he don't know and knowing the info making it hard for him to process eventually making the decision to leave hee joo as a form of punishment to atone the past mistake of his father . He was distancing himself but still hopeful.

At first I disagree on why he have to leave instead he could talk it out with hee joo but he never done so before ( so I come to understand sa eon on that part)

Hee joo character change from a passive to active as she been changing throughout the show starting when sa eon did not come home due to the fire.But again human touch coz she was not that strong.

Back to parallel but now she knows the ways to find him even going as far to argan..risking her life knowing she will eventually found him.

Good job to hee joo for taking the lead to stop the waiting games as a comfort for her and sa eon of taking the burden on other people past mistake.

It also show when hee joo said to her sister to let go of the past and be happy in the present.

This drama simply a great drama till the end even it's a bit fast paced in the finale.so take time for me to process everything out..😅

I will post on ep11 (remaining) and ep12 photos afterward for the perfect closure of this beautiful drama.

It's not over till it's over completely..😅

Thank you for reading my overthinking thought

#2025 #korean drama #ep12 #finale #when the phone rings #short review #third though #final thought #happy ending #good ending #yoo yeon seok #hong hee joo #paik yu yeon #paik sa eon #chae soo bin

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kyndredravenstories · 4 months ago

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Eyes of Infinity: Chapter 13

Hello, I have been posting my work on AO3 and recently decided to venture here to Tumblr. Please note: This story is 18+. No minors. Please read tags carefully. Link to AO3 below but I will also be posting the chapters here.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53564641/chapters/150383332

Pairing: Sylus/Female MC with some elements of Xavier/Female MC

Genre: Romance, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Angst, Adventure, Smut, Porn with Big Plot and Big Feelings

Content Warning (For the entire fic): Explicit sexual content, spoilers and alterations to existing lore and cards/memories/tender moments/secret times, size kink, size difference, vaginal sex, cunnilingus, anal sex, fingering, all kinds of fingering, elements of consensual somno, dom!Sylus, jealousy, possessive!Sylus, Mephisto stalking, typical game violence, battle and combat

Summary: To love him meant stepping over the threshold and crossing into darkness. To be with him meant accepting the lure of the shadows. And to protect him from betrayal meant sacrifice. I knew not how, only that I would not let time sever our paths ever again.

Previous Chapters: Ch 1 / Ch 2 / Ch 3 / Ch 4 / Ch 5 / Ch 6 / Ch 7 / Ch 8 / Ch 9 / Ch 10 / Ch 11 / Ch 12

Morning sunlight filters through the window in Ellara's room when Sylus's phone buzzes with a phone call from a familiar number. He notes the source but doesn't reach to answer. Instead, he shifts to wrap his arms around the woman in his embrace, nuzzling into her neck, breathing in her scent, and pressing a kiss against her cheek. She stirs, giving a contented sigh as she settles deeper into his arms. His body heats in response to her backside pressing against him, and he has to reign himself in to avoid waking her and continuing where they left off a few hours past at the break of dawn.

Best to let her sleep for now. Her Evol returned sometime in the night, and who knew how hard such a thing was on the body?

He trails a hand down her arm. Beneath his touch, her Evol reaches for him with ghostly fingers, mixing with his own. They meld like lovers, intertwined and interconnected as though they were always meant to be. It's beautiful. Like soft white fireflies. When he weaves his fingers with hers, the union of their Evols hums like a singular ethereal note between their skin. The sensation is like fire in his veins, a pulsing that unifies their heartbeats for a moment.

Too long suppressed, it yearns to be set free, to bond with him, to Resonate.

Or, to Devour.

That's the other side of this light - one its owner has no knowledge of. If only Ellara knew how to wield it, he could feel more at ease. The night at the Mythe wouldn't have been such a traumatic experience. All she would have needed to do was come into his arms and take as much as him as she wanted. Standing beside him, she could have swept away all those in her path. She could have kept the LUMINIS from spilling on her skin. And, if needed, she could have healed all her wounds.

She was his to protect, and he'd been built to have plenty of Evol to spare for his counterpart.

Cliché, really.

Light and darkness.

Always yearning for each other yet always opposing.

But, it's not the first time he'd defied fate to get his way, and it won't be the last.

He doesn't think on it too much. What's the use in fretting over what-if's and maybe's? Right now, in this moment, she is real and here, with him. The second half of his heart that went missing eons ago. At least, that's how it feels at times. Though his body aches for her, Sylus tries to settle for just laying beside her. He runs a fingertip against her cheek. She sighs, but doesn't wake. He'll be surprised if she does.

Things had gotten pretty wild last night, and he'd definitely pushed her well past her limits. Stroking her arm, shoulder, and back with feathery touches, he wrestles with a conundrum of simultaneous regret and satisfaction. Her skin is covered in marks attesting to their lovemaking, and he can't be sure why he regrets being so rough with her when those marks look like they're right where they belong. They're his, after all. Had they been inflicted by anyone or anything else --

His phone buzzes for the second time. Same number. There's only two people who would dare call him twice in such a short span of time. Regrettable, but it's likely something urgent. Letting out a weary sigh, Sylus takes in the sight before him one last time. The flimsy curtains on her window allow daylight to fill the room without hindrance. He despises the warmth and cheer of sunrise, but somehow seeing her lying here, her skin and onyx hair gleaming in the soft oranges and reds of a new day, makes the morning bearable. Almost pleasant.

He shifts off the bed, moving carefully so he doesn't wake her. Snagging a towel from one of her shelves, he grabs his phone and leaves the room to go to the bathroom. After closing the door, he takes a quick shower, wraps the towel around his waist, then leans against the wall to redial the number. Two familiar voices answer. It's the twins.

"Boss, calling in to report."

"Did you lose your phone again, Luke?" Sylus asks.

"We were being tracked. Had to destroy it," Kieran answers.

"And the target?"

Luke replies. "Boss, you need to see the photos we took. Sending them now."

Sylus's phone pings as the files come through. He examines them one by one, his brow furrowing. His heartbeat remains steady, his expression still calm. Outwardly and inwardly, he stays the course of neutrality. But, something unfamiliar tugs at his awareness. A thorn in his thoughts, itching and scratching. It's something that started the night of the Mythe explosions and hasn't stopped since. Many have risen up to challenge his rule in the N109 Zone, yet none had truly challenged him. Looking at these photos, however, makes him wonder if that time is approaching.

His worst case scenario theory about Malakai Noxis had been right on target. He's not just some upstart after all. Though Noxis isn't nearly as powerful as Sylus in terms of Evol and influence, he's a damn nuisance when it comes to resourcefulness and cunning. Swiping through the last of the photos, he downloads them to his phone for later examination. Several pieces of the puzzle fall into place like rocks in his gut, and the picture they reveal is grim.

"He's done it again, Boss-man, just like you said he would," Luke says, his voice full of pride and admiration. His fearless bloodhounds. He could send them into a pit of fire and they'd gladly go.

"You did well," Sylus says, giving his most loyal men a rare compliment. "Stay on him. Be ready. This attempt will leave him weakened for a time." He glances at the watch on his wrist. Too early. He'll chase Noxis during the day if he must, but for now he can leave the twins to handle him while the sun is out.

"Yes, Boss."

He stands still for some time, considering his plans and options. His right hand rubs at his temple. It's never been more clear that Ellara cannot continue to stay in Linkon. This conflict has gone past the boundaries of the N109, and it's about to spill over into this shiny little city of glass. Linkon's people and its structures are as fragile as its principles. It's yet unclear what the end game is for Malakai, but a contingency plan must be made to safeguard Ellara's life. If Sylus has his way, the adopted siblings will never meet again.

Hopefully, her memory of Malakai's true identity will never return. Let her heart be at peace remembering the illusion Malakai showed her all those years while he was by her side. Not as a monster, but as someone she could love and lean on. To ensure that, nothing must jog that memory. Nothing can trigger it. But, hiding her away is just a prison sentence to a woman like Ellara. She must be free to do as she will, and she feels the most freedom when she can be the incredible Hunter she has trained to become.

The thought solidifies his decision.

He makes another call, and a grizzled old voice answers. A man.

"I thought I told you never to call here again," the voice sneers.

"Your threats and orders mean nothing to me," Sylus answers. "I don't have time to discuss semantics. I'm calling in a favor. You owe me plenty, and it's time to start collecting."

"You can't reach me out here," he voice hisses. "You're useless outside N109."

"Alright," Sylus smiles. "What do you want to bet against that delusion of yours? Your wife? Your son? Maybe the whole family."

"You monster. You would--"

"Don't ask questions you already know the answers to," Sylus drawls. "If you make me waste any more time, I'll be more aggressive in my collection of your debt."

The voice cusses him out with a few colorful words, but settles down. "What do you want?"

"Nothing too strenuous. I need you to transfer a few Hunters on assignment to another city. I'm sending you the list of names now."

"We're short here as is," the voice complains. The ping ping ping of a tablet touch screen being manipulated. More expletives. "These are some of my best, and you want me to send them away?"

"Not my problem. Put in the transfer now."

The line goes quiet for a few minutes. More pings. When the voice comes back, it sounds tired and defeated. "God damn you, Sylus. One day, you'll pay for all you've done."

"I don't make deals I can't uphold," Sylus replies, pushing the button to end the call.

That done, he makes his way back to the bed. He hasn't slept in a few days, and the edges of his vision are starting to fog. He lays down beside Ellara, examining her sleeping face. It's time to take a rest. Perhaps he could truly shut his eyes for once knowing the twins are following Malakai. Not for long. Just a few hours.

Just for a short while.

I wake up feeling warm and comfortable.

It doesn't take more than a second to realize that I'm not alone in my bed.

I'm laying in the crook of a man's arm.

I look up, shocked to see that Sylus is sleeping. Beneath my head, his chest is rising and falling steadily, and his heart is beating at a lazy cadence as always. I'm scared to move, worried that I'll break this incredible moment. I've never really seen Sylus asleep. He's always sitting up or leaning against something, even in bed. Always wary and alert even while secure in his home in N109. Then again, I suppose there is never any security for a man like him. The King must be ever vigilant if he is to keep his place and rule over the Underworld.

That's why the scene I'm witness to is so...captivating. Seeing him close his eyes and show me this kind of vulnerability is surreal. How can he trust me to this extent? Sure, we've admitted to having some feelings for each other. But, crimes of passion are a thing. Isn't he worried I might try to hurt him? That I might be deceiving him?

I'd sooner hurt myself.

I check that line of thought.

Man, I'm in over my head with this guy. It's not just the crazy sex, either. It's all of him. If I try to piece together the trail of how I'd fallen this hard, I couldn't. It's an endless reel of flashbacks to moments just like this where he did something that stole my breath away. His gestures, the way he holds my hand, the way he looks at me, the way he has me wrapped around his finger yet never ever encroaches on my freedom or my independence. The way his long eyelashes brush against his cheekbones. How kissable his mouth is.

He smells like my body wash, and there's something really intimate about it. He must have showered while I was sleeping. How he fit his big burly frame in my tiny rabbit hutch of a shower is a mystery instantly solved with flashbacks of how we were both squished in there last night. The thought makes my knees tingle. I run my hand down his bare chest and abs. His skin is light and pale with blue veins accenting an array of battle-hardened muscle. Smooth and hairless except for a faint trail of starlit silky hair leading down to a place I am way too embarrassed to think about right now. My face heats up.

I rise up on my elbow, noting that it's late morning. I should really get up and get the day started. Look at my phone. Report in. But, I'm out of sorts. Discombobulated like an Otto with a damaged AI module. I can't think of anything except the man in front of me. My former workaholic life seems especially far away, like a daydream. Not to mention, I can't explain anything about what happened at the Destiny Café. I'm dreading the missed calls I'll find on my phone, either from UNICORNS or from Xavier. They'll undoubtedly have questions, but I don't have any answers.

I check in with my memories from last night. Something is definitely off. I remember being at my apartment and reading, thinking about my impending meeting with Malakai. After that, everything is a giant gaping black hole until the moment when I stood outside the burning café with Sylus. I remember feeling dazed and confused; I'd thought at the time I might have been in shock. I figured it would wear off, but it hasn't. It worries me that I still don't remember anything.

Did something happen to me inside that café that could have affected my memory? Was Sylus a witness to it? If so, why hasn't he brought it up?

Well, I guess we were busy with other things...

Too antsy to lay still now, I slowly untangle myself from his arms and scoot to the edge of the bed. I'm naked, a fact I remedy as swiftly as possible as I dash to the bathroom for a quick shower. When I'm facing the mirror and washed out lights, I grimace at the sight of my body. I bruise easily; I always have. But, the amount of marks on my skin astounds me. My neck, my shoulders, a few places on my stomach, and - oh god - was did he do to my thigh to make that mark?

Nothing hurts though. No stinging or anything. No soreness except for my lower back, but the way we went at it that's no surprise. Not to mention, I've never been with a guy so...well endowed.

"Ugh," I groan, embarrassed. I try to remember if any of this hurt last night or this morning, but all I can recall is the incredible pleasure I felt and how gentle and thoughtful Sylus was. He's the most perceptive and attentive lover I've ever had, though to be honest my experience isn't much to speak of. Again, I find myself wondering if I could ever handle him when he's not holding back. Judging by the state of my skin, I'm not so sure.

Not now, Ellara. Focus.

I shower quickly and efficiently. The memories I've recently made in this cabin are too much for my sensibilities to handle. I don't know whether I did the right thing by inviting Sylus up last night or not. Part of me feels like I didn't have much choice. I'd wanted him so badly, and no amount of good sense or pride could have stopped me. He's Pandora's Box, and I've only scratched the surface. There's definitely more to him, and I want to see it.

I wrap a towel around my body and carefully sneak out of the bathroom, knowing how light of a sleeper Sylus is. Afterwards I seek out my phone, still in the back pocket of the pants I'd discarded last night. My throat goes tight at those particular memories. I can't help but rush to cover my face with my hands, barely suppressing a sound of pure mortification. Hopefully these flashbacks subsist soon or I won't be able to function today. I'm still doing the walk of shame as I tip toe to my closet to throw on a bathrobe.

Taking a breath, I check my phone and flinch. Missed calls from the Captain, Xavier, even Tara. Running my hand through my hair, I pad to the kitchen and sit at the breakfast table to make some calls while sipping on orange juice. I start with Tara since she's the least threatening in the mix. We talk briefly about what happened last night, but she's primarily focused on inviting me over for a girls night. Her recovery is progressing well, and she's ready to get back into her normal routine. I'm relieved to hear that my friend is alright.

Next is the Captain. I'm interrogated for a good forty-five minutes on this call. The end result is less than pleasant. Jenna is relieved to hear that my Evol has returned but recommends that I take a week off for my mental health. It's clear that I'm a target for Noxis, and she needs time to arrange a new assignment schedule for me. Despite my protests, she wants to temporarily transfer me to work in another city. Knowing Xavier and how protective he is of his partner, she also wants to add him to that assignment.

As it happens, there's currently urgent need for Hunters in Goldwood City. I look up the location on my phone, noting that it's closer to the N109 Zone than Linkon. It's a smaller city; not as developed as here. More rural areas with mountainous regions. Not as many training facilities and not nearly as big a budget for the local Hunters. A sudden outbreak of Wanderers has necessitated the establishment of a quarantine zone. Within a week, the zone will be established and most citizens evacuated to allow Hunters to subdue the threat.

I scratch my head. Well, at least it will keep me busy. I was itching to get back into the swing of things, wasn't I? So why do I feel so dejected as I accept the assignment? Though I try to protest against the additional week off, Jenna is firm, telling me that if I keep arguing with her she'll recommend that I start going to therapy on top of my medical leave. In less than two months, I'd been in several traumatic situations, lost my Evol, miraculously recovered, and now am the target of a major criminal organization. The fact that I haven't had a mental breakdown yet is unbelievable, she says. If only she knew that I had an incredible support network in Xavier and Sylus.

As crazy as that last part sounds.

"There are rumors, Fireborne, that you're in a relationship."

The question comes out of nowhere. I almost choke on my glass of juice.

"E-Excuse me?" I cough.

"Is it something I need to be concerned about?" Jenna asks. Her tone has softened considerably.

"Why would something like that be of concern?" I frown.

She sighs. "It's tough being a woman in this field, Ellara." It's the first time she's called me by my name. "Men can get married, have families, and keep fighting if they so choose. But, a woman has so many more responsibilities and duties. Once we have a child, we no longer just belong to ourselves."

Children? Marriage? My brain short circuits. I rush to stop her. "Please, Captain. Hang on. There's absolutely no reason to think in that direction." I leave it there, unwilling to divulge any more of my personal life.

"I'm sorry if I've overstepped in this case. There was some hearsay, and the way Xavier defended you when you went on medical leave..."

My cheeks grow hot. "Y-You thought...with Xavier?" I'm relieved yet somehow still embarassed. "Oh. No. Not at all. Xavier and I are absolutely only partners. That's it."

"It's hard to believe a partner would look at you like he does," she observes.

I shake my head. "I assure you, Captain, we are only friends."

"I see. Again, apologies if I've overstepped. I just see myself in you, Ellara, and I want to help. You know I care for my team. I have some regrets about never taking time to connect with someone. I hope you can consider that advice. Even if you do find that for yourself, you are going to grow stronger and make it far in our organization. Keep up the excellent work."

"Thank you, Captain."

When I hang up the call, I drop my head over my folded arms on the table. I give a monstrous groan like a blaster rifle venting steam. Did Captain Jenna just try to give me advice on relationships? Despite my initial shock, I actually do appreciate that she cares enough to show me such a different side to her character. Though I do wonder how far her opinion of me would fall if she knew that I already was in love with someone - the leader of Onychinus to be more precise.

Oh Lord.

After a few more deep breaths, I pick up my phone and find Xavier's contact. I don't know why I'm so nervous about this call. It's just as I told Jenna. He's my partner. Just a friend. So then why have things been so impossibly awkward between us since he first brought me back from N109? Why did I feel like I was committing some kind of crime when I told him I wasn't alone over the phone last night? While I'm stewing in angst and emotions, a text comes through and lights up my screen. It's none other than the object of my thoughts. I tap to open the message.

X: Heard about the transfr. Miss U. Will B home tonight.

I read it again. Then again. Suddenly, I'm doubting my sanity. This message doesn't sound like something you would send to a friend.

"My Knight", Sylus had called him.

Mine.

Why would he say it that way? Sure, Sylus likes to play on words at times. But, he's the most perceptive man I know. Has he picked up on something that I hadn't even considered? The thought is like a stake to the chest. Winded, I frantically begin reading through our message history with fresh eyes unclouded by the banalities of day to day survival. What I find is so disturbing that I don't know how to react to it.

All this time, I was under the impression that Xavier and just had a kind of natural platonic intimacy. We held hands and hugged. We spent a lot of time together. We ate dinner and slept over at each other's apartments. We went to the arcade and played games together. Yet, somehow, there was something growing between us that I had completely failed to pick up on. What started as a friendship had evolved over time into something a lot more intimate without me realizing it. Xavier led in his own graceful silent way, and I had followed without a second thought.

My sudden panic gives me a strange kind of courage. I dial Xavier's number, my heart pounding in my chest. He answers after a few dial tones.

"Ellie? Is everything alright?"

I'm not at all prepared for the way I react to that new nickname. I struggle to answer without stuttering.

"Yes...Xavier...I need to ask you something..."

A beat, then -- "Ask away."

"Look, maybe there's something wrong with me. Maybe I hit my head last night and I'm confused. The Captain just called and asked me some stuff, and it got me thinking in a really weird direction. I just need to know that I'm not crazy."

"You can ask me anything you want," he says. I stop. Take a breath. There's definitely affection in his voice. My god, why hadn't I realized it sooner? Maybe it's because he's Xavier - the Xavier. The strongest Hunter. Unbelievably handsome. A star way out of reach for an ordinary little bookworm like me.

"We're friends right? And friends should always be honest with each other." I wring my hands together. "All this time, I've always had a firm understanding of our relationship. We're partners and friends. That's it." I'm biting my lip now, and I can feel myself starting to sweat. "But, after this talk with Jenna, I feel like I might go crazy unless I just talk to you and ask. I've never thought of us in any other way, and if I make you uncomfortable--"

"You're not crazy," he says, his voice going soft.

My mind blanks out.

"What?"

Silence on the other of the line. With each second that passes, I sweat more and more. "Ellie, I don't want to talk about this over the phone. Can you wait until I come back tonight? There is something I should have told you a long time ago. I just didn't want to put pressure on you."

Oh. My. God.

That sounds like a damn confession.

Wait. Hold the phone. I'm not ready to have this discussion. Not in the least. Not when I have a naked man in my bed this very minute whom I've confessed my feelings for already.

"A-Alright," I answer, though nothing is alright at all. "But, Xavier...I don't know if I..."

"Don't think that far ahead. Just meet me tonight so I can say my piece." He stops for a moment. "Can you do that?"

"Yes. I will."

We end the call, and I sit in my chair feeling completely lost. I pull on the ends of my hair, rub the bridge of my nose, eat a whole box of strawberry Pocky from the stress. What am I supposed to do? I care for Xavier. That part is undeniable. He's an essential part of my life. He's my friend. My partner. But, he's also a little more, too. I just don't know how to identify what that "little more" is right now. With where I am right now, do I even try?

I stand up and walk to the bedroom. My breath catches when I see Sylus still laying in the same position I'd left him in. The way the sun caresses his muscular torso makes me swallow hard. All other thoughts completely vacate my head, all of my focus honing in on my gorgeous bed mate. I walk the rest of the way to his side as though possessed. Like I'm in a trance, I sit on the edge of the bed right beside him and lean down to touch his silky hair. I'm afraid to breathe, afraid to shatter this just like I was earlier.

In fact, that's how I feel about this whole thing between Sylus and I. This thing we've labeled as love but have failed to categorize in any other way. It's new, and amazing, and still so delicate. It's too good to be real. It's as stunning and beautiful as stained glass, yet the slightest malignant wind could break it. Sure, I could walk away from it now. I could try. But, something tells me that I would always come back. From the moment I met him, this man felt like destiny embodied. A comet streaking through the night sky destined to collide with my world and make a complete mess of it.

One moment, I'm reaching for him.

Something yanks on my arm.

The next second, Sylus's red eyes are all I see as I'm flipped over onto my back on the mattress. I'm held in place by hands and Evol, and I don't dare to move. I falter under his penetrating gaze and mumble an apology for waking him. For a moment, he doesn't react. I hold my breath against a rush of adrenaline. He may be my lover, but in this instant, he's pinning down a potential threat.

One moment.

Two.

Then his features soften, the aggression in his eyes melting into tired affection.

"You're lucky I'd know your footsteps anywhere," he murmurs, his voice husky from sleep. "Be careful sneaking up on me."

I nod. He doesn't need to explain. Right now, his Evol feels sharp, dangerous. His gaze is cold and wary. Of course he's always on high alert. This is Sylus of Onychinus. He just makes me lose sight of who he is so often that I forget myself around him. I still don't understand how he's able to compartmentalize his feelings and emotions the way he does. Maybe it's a skill he could teach me one day.

He doesn't give me a chance to apologize again. In another blink, he's laying on his side and pulling me up against him. With a sigh, he settles his chin against the top of my head; his large muscular arm wraps around my waist. It's so warm and wonderful. I'm absolutely trapped. Whatever I wanted to do today is probably not getting done after all, and I'm suddenly entirely OK with that. For propriety, though, I need to protest even a little.

"Sylus, I can't sleep now."

"You can," he assures me. "You hardly slept last night."

"I have to go to the armory at UNICORNS and update my weapons."

"Forget that junk. I'll have someone bring much better ones later," he practically waves me off.

"There's paperwork I need to turn in, too."

"Send it electronically. You can't tell me the Association doesn't have holo-mail."

"But, Sylus..."

"You're fussy this morning, kitten," he grumbles. I jerk when his lips brush my ear. "Since you've delivered yourself to me, don't think about leaving just yet. Stay here for a bit."

Well, shit. I can't resist when he puts it like that, can I? And why would I even want to? I let my body relax, wrapping my hand around his big forearm. "I really do have a lot to prepare...I need to train. They're forcing me to take a week off before sending me to Goldwood City on a temporary transfer."

He doesn't say anything to that. "You don't seem surprised," I add.

"They send Hunters where they're needed, right?"

"Yes, this isn't the first time I've left Linkon for missions like this."

"Well, then," he shifts against me. "As it happens, I also have some business to take care of. But, after that, come spend the rest of your week off with me."

"With you? Where?"

"I have a way to help you train and get into shape before your return to duty." There's a playful bit of sarcasm in his voice. Whatever he's planned isn't anything I can possibly predict, nor is it a way for me to just train. But, I'm too curious to turn him down.

"Alright, but can you answer me something about last night? My memory is still foggy..."

"Malakai was there," he replies without missing a beat. "You met with him. When I arrived, you had him on the ground injured and at gun point. He set off an explosive."

My hand tightens on his forearm. "That's why your shirt is in tatters. You protected me."

He makes a noncommittal noise, as though what he did was insignificant.

"Why were you there? Did Mephisto give you my message? Even if he did, you got there so fast."

"I was already in the neighborhood," he says. "As for why, well...didn't you ask me to come?"

I frown. "Did anyone find his body?" I take Sylus's silence as a 'no'. "Does that mean that Malakai is..."

"He escaped," Sylus finishes. "The twins are on his trail now. Once I locate him, he will deeply come to regret his actions."

But, will you kill him?

I don't ask the most prominent question on my mind. Sylus has never once hidden who he is from me. Nor have I ever deluded myself about the depth and darkness of his nature. To be the King, one must be ruthless. It's part of who he is and who he must be to stay at the top. I've never seen him act irrationally. Nor have I seen him murder any innocents. Perhaps that's a way for me to escape from the moral responsibility of loving a man like this. But, I don't care.

"We won't see each other for the next few days, then," I murmur.

"Mephisto will be with you," Sylus says. He sounds like he's drifting off again. "And if you should need me before our next meeting, all you have to do is call for me."

It's evening when I open my eyes again. I sit up and rub at my bleary eyes, noting that I'm incredibly thirsty. I must have been out for a few hours. I search for Sylus, but the bed is empty. The spot where he slept is cold, which means he left quite some time ago. I close my eyes against a pang of loneliness, but I don't let it slow me down. Checking my phone, I see a text message from an unknown number.

Don't forget to eat.

I add the number to my contacts, labeling it "Mephisto". After downing a few bottles of vitamin water to rehydrate, I throw on a hoodie and leggings in favor of the bath robe I'm wearing and head to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Somehow, when I open the fridge and see it well stocked with ready-made meal kits, I'm not surprised. I reach for the phone in my pocket and write a snarky message:

E: Looks like you raided a flash sale at a nearby convenience store. Was a private chef too expensive?

I laugh at my own words. Just imagining Sylus going to the grocery store is absurd. His reply pings a few minutes later as I'm unwrapping a chicken and rice bowl to put it in the oven.

M: I didn't want him to wake you. If you want, I'll arrange for one tomorrow.

As always, he calls my bluff. I rush to answer with a resounding "no thank you", knowing Sylus is definitely the type to go ahead and send a private chef to my ratty little apartment if I don't cover my bases.

E: Thank you for doing this. It will save me time this week.

M: Take better care of yourself. If you need anything, tell me.

My heart melts at that. I think about him nonstop the whole time I'm eating and washing dishes. Just as I'm wiping my hands with a washcloth, a knock at my door startles me out of my reverie. I pad over to my front door and open it without checking the viewing window.

Blue eyes, clear and true as the summer sky, meet mine. There stands Xavier, wearing a black uniform he's been donning quite often lately. He looks frazzled, something I'm not used to seeing at all. Instantly worried, I step forward.

"Xavier, are you OK? Did you just return from the mission?"

He nods.

"You should have gone home first. Rested."

"No," he cuts me off, his voice low. "I don't want to wait anymore."

"Alright," I answer, my shoulders and body tensing. I haven't exactly been looking forward to this conversation. "Well, at least come in. Sit down. Let me get you something warm to drink." His hair and shoulders are covered in little clumps of white snow. He must be soaked under that armor. He agrees to my offer, letting me lead him to the living room and equip him with a large towel for his head. While he's drying off, I make him some hot tea.

"Here," I say as I serve it to him on a small dessert plate with a box of chocolate Pocky on the side. "Though I still think you should go home and change. You'll catch a cold like this."

"I'll be fine," he counters.

Nervous, I sit down on the other side of the couch. "Xavier, before you say anything, please know that I don't feel ready for this conversation. I don't know how I would respond to--"

"I like you," he cuts in. "I've liked you for a very long time now." His perfect blue eyes stare right through me, confident and unwavering. He shifts toward me, and I shift backwards in response. But, there's nowhere to go. I've reached the armrest. Xavier stops moving when he sees my discomfort. He looks down.

"I waited too long," he says, his voice gravelly and full of regret. He reaches out for my hand. I hesitate, but I can't deny him this. Not when he looks so forlorn. My chest tight, I let him weave our fingers together. That "little bit more" I identified earlier squeezes around my heart like a thorny vine.

"Xavier, I...like Sylus." It comes out of my mouth before I can stop it, my lips stumbling on the word "love" and downgrading it. My mind is numb; my filter went flying the moment Xavier confessed to me. The words keep coming as though released from a dam. "I don't know when or how it happened, but I care about him a lot. I have no idea what we are or where this is going, but...I want to find out." My eyes sting. "I'm sorry. I'm really really sorry."

Using the hand that's holding mine, he pulls me into a tight hug. We stay that way for a while, my shoulders shaking, until he finally speaks again.

"I'll wait," he says past gritted teeth. His whole body is tense, like he's about to jump into battle. "I've waited this long, haven't I?"

I shake my head. "No, you can't do that. That's just--"

"I'll wait," he says again, more forcefully this time. I try to pull back, but he holds firm. "Give me a minute, please. I don't want you to see my expression right now."

A long time passes. Many thoughts fly through my head. At last, I come to a decision. It's one that's going to hurt, but I've never been so sure of anything. When he lets me pull back from him, I raise my chin and force myself to look deep into his eyes.

"Xavier, don't accept the transfer to Goldwood. Let me go alone. We can't be partners when there's this much unsettled between us."

His gaze darkens. "You're asking me to leave you alone again. Just like before."

I shake my head. "No. This isn't the same thing."

"You're my partner, Ellie."

The vine squeezes harder, and I bite my lip. "Yes, but...I can't keep hurting you."

"Give me your boundaries," he says. "Tell me what I have to do to make you more comfortable. I'll do whatever you ask. But, I won't leave you."

I lower my eyes, feeling defeated. "I need to think about all this. It's too much for me right now."

"Then forget we talked about it." He takes a breath. "There's still time before the transfer. Take that time to think. I'll stay out of it."

He stands up and heads for the front door. I can't stop him; don't have the right. Not when there's a chance I was inadvertently leading him on all this time. He's pulling away just like he always has in the past when it seemed like we grew too close. Before, I always chased him. Now, I have to give him space, too. It's only fair.

"Have a good night," he says as he shuts the door behind him. In the wake of him leaving, I'm still sitting on the couch. Still lost. Still hurting. There's only one thing I'm certain of, and it's that my feelings for Sylus aren't just some temporary crush. They're as real as these kind of things probably get, and that means that asking Xavier to wait for me is completely selfish. I need to communicate my stance better, but how can I do that when I really still have no idea where my relationship with Sylus stands?

In that moment, I make it my goal to have that discussion with Sylus during our time together. I can't put it off anymore. I need to know what we are to each other and where he sees all of this going.

It's a while before I stand up and clear off Xavier's untouched plate. I want to text him a reminder to get dry and warm, but I stop myself. Give him space. Right now, we both need time to think. I slide open my living room window, hoping that some fresh air will help clear my head. As though on cue, Mephisto flies inside with a cranky squawk and settles on my shoulder. I pet the top of his head, my eyes stinging.

"Sorry to make you wait, Your Majesty," I say through trembling lips. A tear slips past my self control. Mephisto's ruby red eyes take it in. For once, he's silent. "S-Sorry," I tell him, wiping a trail of snot off my nose. "Life just got super complicated, Mephy, and I have no idea how to deal with it."

#eyes of infinity delirium #love and deepspace #love and deepspace fanfic #sylus love and deepspace #sylus x mc #sylus/mc #sylusposting #sylus #lnds #lnds sylus

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gemsofthegalaxy · 7 months ago

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I'm sure this has been proposed before but I think one of the most fun ways to read the Zelda Timeline and Zelda in general is to really lean on the fact that it's called The Legend of Zelda and think of all of the stories you play through as tales passed down over ages and eons rather than an exact recounting of events

it's right there in most if not all of the games (I haven't played all of them), it often starts with one of the characters telling a Legend from long long ago and stating a prophecy of what the future holds. a lot of the times, these myths resemble one of the other games, but it's not always exact. does that mean what happened in the game is wrong? or that the story is being misremembered? it could be either, or both.

i think it's also fun and interesting to try to make it make some sense, too, or at least to explore the ways the lore contradicts and doesn't add up and conflicts directly with other things we saw happen. but if these are all an oral history told again and again, it makes sense things get put out of place from time to time. Things might even be purposefully obscured, for all we know, by the politics of Hyrule, although it's just as likely that details get lost in time.

#legend of zelda #the legend of zelda #loz

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gaiaseyes451 · 11 months ago

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Return to Eden - Chapter 3 - Final Chapter!

Chapter 3 - the final chapter! - of Return to Eden is live. Our story from @goodomensafterdark is now complete. I may visit this universe again in the future, but the story has a definitive resolution now (for all my WIP adverse folks and those who avoid angst before the comfort is written :) ).

Also, there is art at the end of the story - the piece that inspired Return From Eden was a gift from the r/GoodOmensAfterDark Secret Santa. Go check out the artist, copics_on_copypaper over on insta!

Return to Eden is rated Explicit, this chapter is Mature. Please, mind the tags for Chapter 1.

This work can be read alone, but it will make more sense (and be more impactful) if you've read Fractured and Shatter first - they're all part of the Before Eden There Was a Garden Series.

Summary: Crowley and Aziraphale averted the second coming and were trying to pick up the pieces of their relationship when Aziraphale became plagued with nightmares. After hearing Aziraphale murmur a phrase from a previous life in his sleep, Crowley went in search of the one place that may be able to set everything right. Now Aziraphale must decide how much he wants to know and if he wants to remember at all.

Excerpt (Continue reading on AO3):

~*~*~

Aziraphale stepped up to the wall, tentatively ran his hand over the stones he’d placed in the Eastern Gate, smoother now after eons of wear deep in the Earth’s mantle. The wall was low, worn down such that it resembled a border around a garden bed more than the formidable structure of Biblical times. “Why did you bring me here?”

Crowley paused, his expression both sorrowful and hopeful. His eyes roamed over Aziraphale’s face, as if he were trying to recall and memorize every expression. “Shall we go in?”

“Eden,” Azraphale whispered and he took the first tentative step over the ruins as Crowley followed.

The garden was familiar yet foreign. The path leading from the Eastern gate to the center of Eden was visible but overgrown by vining ground cover and grasses. The lushness of what had once been a carefully curated paradise had been allowed to flourish unrestrained. Tree limbs intertwined creating a canopy over the path that blocked the stars from view and could hide an angel and demon from curious eyes. The night blooms of primrose and gardenia and jasmine created a heady perfume as they competed with the day flowers and shrubs for their chance to thrive.

Aziraphale wandered down the path in silence. Even in its overrun state he knew Eden. He recalled delighting in the blooms and birdsong, eyeing the serpent of Eden warily before making his acquaintance on the wall, guiding Adam and Eve down this path to be exiled through the Eastern gate. These memories he recognized, they were familiar and bracing—he had turned them over in his mind time after time until they were worn, smooth and comfortable. He was unprepared for the flashes of other recollections, fleeting and rapid like lightning, illuminating what he knew into sharp contrast to what he had once known. Before he could grasp the flashes, make sense of the fragments they plunged back into the darkness.

“Crowley, I can’t do this.”

A firm hand on his bicep turned Aziraphale toward the demon and he looked into his earnest, golden eyes. “You can, Angel. One step at a time. I’m here.”

Aziraphale slowly shook his head. “This is too much. I can’t- it’s all running together. Like that night- I don’t,” he paused. “I don’t trust myself to know what’s real and what’s not.”

“Then trust me.” His voice was soft but brokered no argument. “Sometimes the only way forward is through.”

Aziraphale wasn’t listening, his eyes had locked onto a patch of sweet peas that had grown unruly; the shoots casting tendrils on the surrounding plants as a makeshift trellis. He knelt on the path beside the plant, wrapping the delicate tendril around his index finger, contemplating the wafer-thin petals of the white flowers. Crowley watched him, silent and waiting.

~*~*~

As always, a huge thanks to my beta readers @the-literal-kj and @hakunahistata!

#good omens #crowley #aziraphale #good omens fanfic #good omens fanfiction #good omens fic #aziracrow #good omens 2 #ineffable husbands #my fic writing #my fic #my fanfiction #mind the tags #mind the rating

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lostonehero · 6 months ago

Text

What remains after eternity

I'm not promising anything

Jonny sighed as he stared out at the desert from his window. New Texas was well thriving. He decided that when he woke up from what was supposed to be his final death on his shitty asteroid planet, he decided to make it better. He was pissed and he really just wanted to die. He was promised an ending, but he could also just be the last mech because there was a fluke, and he's just plain immortal, eternally youthful that death and age can't touch.

It's been a few thousand years, but Jonny had singlehandedly fixed New Texas. They opened their borders, trade between other planets, and women were free to be what they please and not slaves. He even set up a government that worked for the people. Overall, he was viewed as some sort of undying saint.

The assassination attempts were uninspired and lacking any kind of fun. They also stopped trying after a few years.

He was tired. He was so tired and just wanted an end. Even this throne room, which was more of a farce than anything, was exhausting.

"Jonny?" A young man approached his throne.

"Yes? If you're here to kill me, take your best shot or whatever." Jonny looked over. "Never mind, it's just you. Oliver, I told you to find something else to do rather than babysit me." After the first 100 or so years, the people of New Texas decided to find a way to keep him company. He's tired of killing them to stay away, and it never lasted long enough to spill more blood.

"I will not!" The boy's tail stood upright. "There's a woman here who requested an audience."

"Name?" Jonny moved to sit upright.

"Doctor Carmillia." Oliver smiles and motions to the taller woman behind him.

Jonny just frowns. "Hello, Carmillia. If you want to experiment, go ahead. I don't care."

Carmillia seems taken aback. "What don't you want to curse me for true immortality? Come now, I'm sure you've figured it out. Your own mechanism is forever, and the longer you have it the more ingrained it gets."

"Ok." Jonny sighs and kicks his feet up. "Is there a point to this? I'm tired, Carmillia. I'm tired, and I don't want to do this anymore. So either do whatever you want or leave."

Carmillia steps back. Jonny seemed absolutely defeated. She had a trump card. This would kick start the chaos again. This would start the nechs back up. "Your mother was the first. She's still around, and I would love for you to watch me get her to fall in love with me."

Jonny shrugs, sliding down in his throne. "So she's alive eternally. I'm sure she has a nice life without me." He frowns. "It's been eons, I'm sure she's moved on from losing me."

"She's been searching for you for those eons!" Carmillia huffs.

"She's better without her fuck up of a son." Jonny's gaze lazily went back to Carmillia. "Are you going to spread a plague? Take me apart? Destroy, what I built? Just do it or leave."

"Jonny, come on, what's the fun in that? Don't you want to cause some mayhem? Violence? Get drunk? I'm in love with your mother, Valerie. Doesn't that mean anything?"

Jonny looks away. "Go ask her out then. You're better than my father." He looks to Oliver. "Go home, kid."

Oliver sighs. "I told you, doctor. Jonny doesn't do anything anymore except keep New Texas safe."

"How long have you been keeping him company?" Carmillia follows the young man out.

"Oh, I just started. My predecessor, the funeral, was last year. Our people have decided to keep Jonny company. Oh, he's told so many stories about his adventures and violence, but I've read all those books and such. I wonder if I'll get to see him like that before I die, it would be a sight. Tell me, do you know the other mechanisms that Jonny has talked about?" Oliver sighs. "Sorry, I'm rambling. It's just all so exciting. I actually live in this place with him."

Carmillia frowns. "I will find them." She turns and leaves the boy.

.......

Ashes, they were the leader of the most profitable empire in the Nexus galaxy. They got bored after ending up back on their planet, realizing that they really couldn't die, and their final death was nothing but a mockery. They grew their empire, trying to just feel something. Even fire got boring, not to say they didn't still love it, but they missed the others.

They did find Ivy after everything, but she didn't really have an interest in leaving her own prison of knowledge. Ashes gives them new books, and they have tea once a decade now. They tried looking for the others, but they weren't in the same galaxy, and they didn't have a ship strong enough to hop galaxies, and Ivy wouldn't help.

"So this is what you've accomplished?" A voice pulls Ashes away from the fireplace.

"Doc?" Ashes turns around to see Carmillia covered in the blood of their guards. "You could have just asked to see me." They sigh. "What do you want? To gloat? To have a part of this empire? I can get you whatever you desire."

"You've conquered a galaxy." Carmillia sounded impressed. "I just wanted to find you."

"You have, so what now?" Ashes returns their gaze back to the fireplace.

"Come with me." Carmillia smiles. "Don't you want to find the others?"

"I suppose." Ashes sighs. "If you can get Ivy from her, self-made prison. Then I will join you." They light up a cigar. "Try to be cautious. Ivy has gone in her head."

.......

A blue skinned woman held a glowing machine in her arms. It was the ai the one she selfishly abandoned because of basically a new coat of paint. She stares at the scrap heap that was once Aurora. From what she was told, the debris was found floating in space, and whatever couldn't be salvaged was dumped here.

Nastya doesn't understand why she was abandoned. She will take her to a new ship and install her and make her even better. She knows she was selfish, she abandoned the others, and now that she knows the truth, she didn't want to be alone for eternity. Even if it takes her millions of years, she'll rebuild Aurora and beg for forgiveness. She has to find the others.

A few hundred years and Aurora was built bigger and better than ever, ready to face eternity looking for her crew. Nastya sighs as she wipes her brow. "Ready to go?"

A soft beep and chirps.

"Right, well, I'll make it up to you, I promise. I won't ever leave again. I heard about DTTM, but that can't possibly be true. I'll find the new guys, too." Nastya smiles. "To eternity and beyond my love."

......

Tim ended back on earth, and he now sits in a nuclear waste. He watched the world implode, now it's post-apocalyptic, and he helped out the surving groups. He was tired. He just wanted to die, but even he grew immune to the radiation. Maybe he was slightly mutated, but that didn't really matter. He became a messenger between new towns and even a city.

The earth was long abandoned by the majority of humanity who went to conquer other planets they didn't destroy. However, what was left behind grew like weeds. Tim watched the earth heal it was still mostly a wasteland, but there was life in the waste. He liked the peace of it.

"Timothy." An elderly woman smiles, hobbling over with her cane. "Are you coming to tell some tales? The cold will come soon."

Tim nods. "Yeah, do you want me to tell about the moon again?"

"The children will love that." The woman chuckles.

"I remember when you were that age, with your eyes bright and you could sit in my lap." Tim smiles. "How time has passed."

"Of course, watcher, and I hope you watch over the youth of tomorrow." The old woman moves forward. "I'm grateful I lived long enough to see these trees you talked about return."

Tim nods and follows behind. "And may the next generations witness the oceans turn blue and flowers bloom."

"You speak of such wonderful things, Watcher. May eternity bless you."

Tim doesn't really do names anymore. All the people he's watched and guided blend together as the earth recovers. Rivers flow mountains grow, and land returns. Civilization grows, and he becomes a myth even though he remains. Maybe he'll remain long enough to see another war or apocalypse. For the moment, it's peaceful as populations grow and seasons change. The changes from the radiation haven't gone away, but he can't seem to mind.

A voice so familair breaks through and Tim watches as the familair man approach. His voice was long gone to being silent for so long. He just smiles at the man.

"Gunpowder Tim." The shorter man tilted his head staring at Tim.

Tim nods, and as he tries to speak, only a rasp escapes his lips.

"It's me, Lyf, the inspector?" Lyf furrows his brows. "My ship malfunctioned, and I honestly don't know when or where I am, Yog Sogoth decided to be a bit extra helpful after that fight during DTTM. Have you seen Marius? Or like everyone else? I'm surprised I found you."

Tim tilted his head, seemingly confused.

Lyf huffs. "Whatever, come on." He grabs Tim's hand and drags him to his ship. "You'll be great leverage when it comes to the others. He doesn't notice the roots grown into Tim's feet or the changes in his body, or even the fact he gives off radiation.

Tim can't protest. He is unable to speak.

.......

Marius found his home planet. He knows whe he is now. He became a doctor and a baron and everything else he could think of ever wanting to accomplish. He plays his violin now, for hours and sometimes even days as he watches time pass him by.

Wars came and went, and he remained. Rebuilt, his old mech found his parents' graves and just did everything he could possibly think to do with the infinite amount of time he had.

He wanted to die. He wanted to... he couldn't remember what he looked like or what his name was, but he loved him. It's been far too long, and his mind wasn't keen on letting him recall what he had forgotten. He was a part of a group, a family he thinks.

His violin carries the tune over a barren planet, a virus wiped out his people and left him as the last of his species. Destroyed the plants and animals. He can't recall the last time he ate. Water is plentiful. It's the only thing that remains. He thinks it's water, he isn't sure.

Maybe it will come back to him. He'll just keep playing, and it will come back to him. Another song, and he'll remember something.

.......

Brian scowls, and dieties gathered around him. "Are you quite done? The biometal is enough, but I must leave."

They pamper him, they treat him like a pet.

He sighs. He's been trying first eons to leave this lavish spoiled life. He misses the others. He would even take being back on that sun again. He got what he looked like before the metal body, but what's the point he knows the mechanism is still there now biometal, but it remains. He hated this he wanted to kill something. And he wanted his family back.

A rainbow diety came by, and Brian scowls. "Leave me alone."

"My acolyte is searching for you." The deities' voice is incomprehensible, but Brian has gotten used to the spoken words of gods. "I wish to reunite the mechanisms, I have missed your songs and adventures, and I do not wish my acolyte, my child to be alone in eternity."

"Get me out of here." Brian just responds as he always does to any passing diety that wanted to have him as a pet.

A rainbow static enveloped him, and Brian vanished from the world of gods.

........

Lyf cursed as a rainbow static appeared, and something heavy fell on him. "Fucking shit! Fuck you Yog Sogoth."

Brian could cry. "Inspector!" He scrambles to his feet, embracing Lyf.

"Brian?" Lyf pauses. "Why are you soft?"

"Doesn't matter now." Brian smiles. "I'm bio metal, and I have the stuff I had before I was mechanized." He turns and spots Tim. "Tim! You're... you're...." He frowns, looking Tim up and down.

Tim's long hair was freshly buzzed in a military cut. There seem to be various vines and plants growing on his skin. His eyes remain the same, almost more ingrained into his face. His beard was cut short, and he had this odd look on his face like a pleasant curiosity. All that comes from his mouth as he attempts to speak was a wheeze of a rasp. He settles on waving.

Brian frowns. "What happened to him?"

"I really don't know, but it's been like six months since I picked him up, and he hasn't said a word. He also refuses to wear shoes. I also tried to cut the vines, but they just grew back. They also bleed, which is kind of terrifying." Lyf shudders. "He kind of reminds me of TS minus the talking."

"We need to find Raphaella. She'll be able to figure this out." Brian sighs. "But I am very happy to see you again. Where are you heading?"

"Oh well, I found Tim by accident, so I might as well look for Jonny next." Lyf crosses his arms. "What happened to everyone?"

"We were supposed to have our final deaths. I saw it. I had a vision, and they happened, but... well, it didn't happen. I don't know what happened to everyone else." Brian's large fox ears pin against his head. "I don't know how they handled it."

"They'll be fine." Lyf smiles. "See, Tim's fine he just can't speak."

Tim wasn't paying attention he was growing a flower in his palm.

........

"Now that I can feel again, I hate the heat." Brian adjusts his hat as they wonder through a desert asteroid.

Tim had a content smile on his face, and a trail of grass seemed to follow in his footsteps. They were carried by the sands and died, but it was still unusual.

"We really have to find Raphaella." Lyf watches Tim continue forward without a care.

"I... yeah, you're not wrong." Brian sighs.

They walk for a bit longer to the modest capital looking building, and the people say that Jonny should be in. They landed on New Texas about a decade into their journey.

An older man was at the entrance. His horns were sharpened, and he was in a uniform. He raised a brow as if he wasn't used to foreigners making their way here. "What brings you guys here? Assassination attempts? Proof of immortality? Wisdom? A story?"

Lyf and Brian exchange a look.

Brian blinks. "Um, we're here to talk to Jonny. I'm Drumbot Brian, and this is former inspector Lyfrassir Edda. Well, Gunpowder Tim is also with us but he lost the ability to talk."

Tim waves as he blooms cactus flowers on his feet.

The man looked shocked. "I'm sorry you're..." He frantically motions for them to follow. "Jonny! Jonny! You have guests!"

Jonny looked tired, and his horns were fully grown out along his scalpe that curved up at the ends. His hair was long tied into a braid. He was in a handmade outfit that was very casual. He was more muscular than they were used to, and his tail lazily flicked back and forth. "Oliver, what has gotten you so excited?" He doesn't even look over.

Oliver runs up to the throne. "Jonny, are these... are they who they claim?"

Jonny flicks his gaze over and puts on his goggles with prescription lenses. His breath catches in his throat. "Tim?"

Tim smiles and waves again, trying to speak, but a rasp escapes his lips.

"Yeah...." Lyf frowns as he approaches with Brian. "We really don't know what happened to him, but he can't talk anymore and is radioactive. He also can spread plants like a virus. Well, not like a virus, but his plants bleed."

"Brian?" Jonny hopped out of his chair. "What happened to you?"

"I became a pet to a bunch of deities." Brian sighs. "Dunno, how long it's been, but I'm biometal now. Time doesn't exactly work where I was."

"You guys just vanished." Lyf crosses his arms. "Yog Sogoth fucked with my ship and I ended up whenever this is. I found Tim by accident, then Yog Sogoth dropped Brian on me. We're looking for Marius or Raphaella to fix Tim. Do you know where they are?"

Jonny pulls the three into a tight hug. "Fucking I thought I was the only one save for Carmillia and her lies."

"Carmillia visited?" Brian furrows his brows.

Jonny pauses. "Oliver, when did the doc show up?"

Oliver hums and scratches his beard. "I couldn't have been more than 16, I just started here. A lifetime ago, in a sense."

"Well, I suppose I can say this is the end to your watch." Jonny walks over and holds out his hand. "I think I'll head out with them."

Oliver's eyes widen, and he hugs Jonny tight. "May you tell the future generations new tales. I will spread the word."

Jonny hugs back just as tight. "Give the old guard my regards. Let this place fall to ruin as time sweeps by."

"May I return to nothing but dust." Oliver finished. "May the universe embrace you to eternity."

Jonny nods salutes and leaves with Brian, Tim, and Lyf.

......

"I have to ask, but were you a god to them?" Brian finally breached the subject a few decades into their travels.

Jonny shakes his head. "No, not even close. I was just another one of them who couldn't die, and I told stories." He shines the harmonica in his hands. "I was just someone who wanted to change things, nothing special."

"How long was it?" Brian tilted his head.

Jonny paused. "I don't know." He chuckles softly. "I don't care, though. I made a happy ending."

"A..." Brian's eyes widen. "Jonny, are you ok?"

"A bit tired." Jonny smiles sadly. "But their ain't no rest for our kin."

.......

Nastya frowns. She found Marius by happen chance. A barren wasteland destroyed by a bio weapon virus. He was skin and bones, and his violin melody was haunting. His memory is bad to say politely.

"Oh, hello, did we meet before?" Marius smiles, holding a bowl of broth in his hands. He's shaking and looks deathly thin.

Nastya gives a sad smile. "Why, Marius, we have." She started to play along after the 59th time he did this. "And you promised me to finish that bowl of yours."

"I did? Yes, yes, of course." Marius drinks greedily from the bowl till it was empty. "Could you tell me where I am? I seem to be waiting for some friends, but I can't recall who they are."

"You're on the spaceship, Aurora, and your friends will be here soon. I'll pour you another bowl why we wait." Nastya swallows the lump in her throat.

"I don't think I'm hungry." Marius summons a violin out of nowhere. He begins to play a haunted melody as his eyes become unfocused and he just plays.

Nastya's smile drops. Maybe when he isn't so malnourished, he'll remember. It's been a constant cycle since she brought him on board. She even got his old clothes. Well, Aurora helped her make them. They hung on him like a tent.

Aurora flashes suddenly, and a screen opens up. A communication from another ship.

"Aurora! We can't just accept all hails." Nastya pauses as video comes through.

"Is this Aurora? This is Drumbot Brian. Everyone else is asleep for the night." Brian pauses before his eyes widen. "Nastya?"

"Brian?" Nastya gasps. "Aurora, take them on!"

A metal hand pops out with a thumbs up.

.......

Jonny yawns, rubbing his eyes. "Why did you wake us?" He shuffles forward following Brian. "Is it my turn to stand guard?"

Lyf stretches. "No, he wouldn't have woken all of us up." He stretches his tail.

Tim whistles the only noise he could make from his mouth at this point as he marches forward.

Brian nearly pushed the three out into a metal hanger. "Welcome back!"

Jonny yawns again. "Welcome back where?"

"Jonny?" Nastya gasps.

"Nastya?" Jonny's eyes soften. "I'm glad to see you again."

Tim waves he knows of her but never met her.

"O-oh, you left before I ever met you." Lyf holds out his hand. "I'm Lyfrassir Edda, the one Bifrost survivor, acolyte to Yog Sogoth. I think, honestly, don't really know what they want to do with me."

"You know Marius." Nastya's pupils widen.

"Yes! We were looking for him to help with Tim. He can't talk, and we really don't know what's up with the plants or radiation." Lyf pauses. "I also miss him."

"Follow me. All of you, please." Nastya smiles as Aurora chirps.

The soft haunting melody from a violin gets louder as they get closer to the med bay.

"Of course he's playing that stupid vio -" Lyf chokes on his words as the door opens, and he can see Marius.

His hair was long, barely moving, and his clothes hung off of him. He was like a skeleton with skin. His eyes were sunken in, and he was smiling. His hands were bleeding slightly as if he had been playing for days straight. The bandages that were new were stained. His tail hung limp off the table. Even his ears drooped.

Nastya swallows. "He was on a planet that was destroyed by a bio weapon virus, wiped out every living creature and plant. I have no idea how long he was there."

Marius stops playing, putting the violin to the side. "Hello! I'm Marius Von Raum. Who are you?"

"You... you know who I am." Lyf sucked in a breath.

"Do i?" Marius smiles. "I think I'm waiting for my friends to find me. Would you like to wait with me?"

Brian's silverish goldish hue paled.

Jonny had a stricken look on his features.

Tim for the first time since he was found frowned.

Lyf could feel pain try to steal his voice as tears tricked his eyes. "Marius, it's me, Lyfrassir, Lyf. You know me."

"Do I?" Marius continues to smile. "I'm quite sorry I seem to..." his eyes lose focus as another violin appears, and he begins to play again.

Nastya covers her mouth. "I've been trying to get him to eat more, but he can barely drink the broth I give him. If I could just get some weight on him, maybe he could remember something." She sucks in a breath. "He goes around like this every time. Please play along."

Lyf was crying. "N-no! This... this.... Marius." He pushed the violin away and sat next to him. "I'll wait for you. I'll wait with you."

"Aurora will bring the broth every hour for him. Also, some mashed vegetables." Nastya turns away. "We can only guess how long he was there, but the planet has been dead for tens of thousands of years at least."

Jonny reaches out and holds Nastya's hand. "Come on, show me where my new room is."

Nastya nods and leaves, Brian follows, and Tim wanders behind them but doesn't exactly follow.

......

"Don't you want a belt?" Nastya smiles.

Jonny shrugs. "I don't really need one. I made these clothes."

"What about your gun? I restocked the armory as well, Aurora even revamped the shooting range." Nastya smiles a bit wider.

Jonny shakes his head. "I'm ok. Thank you for the offer. Did you rebuild Ivy's library?"

"O-of course." Nastya frowns. "Why?"

"I think I want to read right now." Jonny hums. "I want to read something with a happy ending. Will you join me?"

Nastya freezes. "Jonny, are you ok?"

"Just a bit tired." Jonny hums softly as he walks down the hall, and Nastya follows with concern.

.......

"Why the fuck should I even let you on my ship?" A woman with horns that curl around her cow like ears. "I will accept everyone but you."

"Hello, Doctor Carmillia." TS waves from behind the woman.

Carmillia smirks. "I can tell you where your son is."

The woman didn't look impressed. "I can and will track him myself. Try again."

"Valerie, please, I promise to behave. I'm just trying to get them back together. The Mechanisms come on you want to help." Carmillia smiles, showing off her fangs.

Valerie narrowed her gaze and looked at the people behind her. "Names?"

"Raphaella, ma'am." She seemed less confident and deranged. "I want to try science experiments again. I... I...." She shakes under the gaze. "I don't want to be used anymore."

Valerie motions for her to come inside. "I'll keep ya safe." She watches Raphaella run inside her wings folded tightly against her back. "Who are you?"

"Ashes O'Reilly, quartermaster." Ashes crosses their arms. "You look like Jonny."

"That's because I'm his mother." Valerie hums. "As long as you don't fry the circuits, you can come on. However step out of line and I will leave you."

"Understood." Ashes nods and heads on.

"Ivy Alexandria." Ivy frowns. "I would like to return to my library. Books and records don't leave, time passes, and they will remain and grow."

"I've got a library on board, kid." Valerie sighs. "TS bring her on."

"Yes, Ma'am!" TS picks up Ivy and brings her on board.

Valerie returns her gaze to Carmillia. "You can come until I decide against it. If you try anything, I will make sure you never find us."

Carmillia smiles wide and runs on board.

........

"I am Marius Von Raum." Marius smiles. There's a bit more meat to his bones. "You are Lyfrassir Edda, and you are waiting with me."

Lyf nods, feeding Marius another bite. "Yes, that's right. We're going to not wander away from Med Bay today."

Marius has a bit of trouble swallowing, but he gets the stew down. "We are waiting together for my friends."

"Yes, we are." Lyf smiles. "Almost done, just one more bite." It's a bit of a struggle, but he gets Marius to finish. "We did it all done."

"I'm a doctor." Marius says while he gets up. "My friends don't believe me."

"Oh really?" Lyf puts the bowl down and follows Marius. This was new, and it lit a flame of hope in his chest.

"I went... I went." Marius furrows his brows, and the light flickers in his eyes. "I think I think...." He frowns, which was new. "Another... there was another war." He stops talking as his eyes lose focus, and he summons a violin. A haunting melody begins to play as he stands still and plays.

Lyf sighs. "You'll get there, and I'll be right here when you do." He guides Marius back to his bed, who keeps playing. He smiles softly and reaches out to pet his hair, which slowly reaches back out and wraps around his finger. "Yeah, we'll get him back."

.......

Jonny spent more time in the library, or the gardens than anywhere else. He seems to keep his mind busy, and violence seems to be the last thing on his mind. Eternity weighs on him.

Brian was in the gardens with Tim when Jonny walked in. "Good afternoon, Jonny."

Jonny nods in acknowledgment as he approaches Tim, who is growing new trees from his own vines. "Would you like to read with me?"

Tim paused as the flowers bloomed. He smiles as his new norm lets out a rasp and follows Jonny to the bench.

Jonny smiles. "This is a new one. We just picked up planet side, I've been told it ends very sweetly."

Brian smiles as he works on the vegetable garden. Jonny and Tim have always been close, and it seems they were trying to rebuild that even if both men have changed so much. Nastya was still trying to get Jonny to be violent. It wouldn't work.

Tim's gaze drifts as he leans on Jon. This was normally the sign that he was about to sleep. His behavior was random at best, but you pick up cues on what he is doing.

Jonny hums softly, closing the book. "You're right it is better to take a nap. I am a bit tired."

.......

Valerie hums softly as she leans back. "What is it?"

"I um well..." Raphaella walks slowly towards Valerie. "How have you not... I mean, it's been just as long for you."

"We found her again." Audrey smiles she appears.

Valerie shakes her head. "I've already changed, but I've accepted my reality. I know each of you has suffered, and I understand that it wasn't easy being alone, but it takes time. You'll never be who you were, but you'll just be different, and that's ok."

"I want to be me again." Raphaella shakes. "My experiments won't ... haven't worked."

"You're already you." Valerie smiles. "You just have to accept you changed."

Raphealla sighs but relaxes. "Can I have some blood?"

"Mine or in general?" Valerie smirks.

Raphealla smiles shyly.

.......

Lyf hums softly as he mixes the batter. He was humming "Tales to be Told." Marius was playing the violin part he wasn't all there today, but he was still good company.

Marius finally looked healthy, but his mind was still not together. He was beginning to have lucid periods, but nothing concrete enough to recognize anyone.

"So what will it be today? Muffins or cake?" Lyf smiles, breaking his humming.

Marius continued to play, not noticing anything.

"Hmmm, you're right. Muffins are better because Tim hates cake. Afterward, we can cuddle and watch a movie." Lyf chuckles softly, pulling out a muffin tin. "Never understand why Tim hates cake. It's a perfectly fine dessert. I suppose pie is better, or a nice custard, or whatever that cactus stuff Jonny grows." He doesn't notice Marius had stopped playing.

"I like sweet breads." Marius blinks seemingly confused.

Lyf drops the pan out of shock, making a mess of the floor. "Shit shit shit. Fuck."

"I didn't know you could bake Inspector." Marius smiles.

Lyf freezes staring at Marius. "Marius?" He barely whispers.

"Yes?" Marius seemed confused as he looked around. "I don't.... I don't... where am I?"

"Aurora! The starship Aurora! We're in the kitchen." Lyf abandons the mess and rushes to Marius's side.

"N-no, that isn't.... that isn't possible." Marius started to look frustrated. "It's gone. I... I..." He tugs at his sensitive hair, trying to shock himself with pain. "N-no I went.... I didn't.... I..."

Lyf pulls Marius into a hug. "Breathe."

Marius shudders, and he stills. "Hello, Lyf, why are we hugging?"

Lyf sighs and pulls away. Progress isn't linear. He would say that all the time. "Because I like you."

"You do?" Marius tilted his head unsure. "You don't like me or my violin, though."

"I... um..." Lyf takes a breath. "You've grown on me."

"Like a mushroom?" Marius smiles.

"Yeah, like a mushroom." Lyf smiles back.

"Do you know when the train is coming?" Marius blinks as Lyf grips his shirt.

"I think it already has." Lyf swallows.

"That means we have to go." Marius smiles. "I think... I think..." He pulls away and summons a violin and begins to play.

"I don't want you to go." Lyf wipes his eyes. "Ok, it's time to clean up and try again. I'm thinking sweet bread." He smiles as Marius is playing a happy tune. "Yeah, sweet breads for you."

.......

Tim observed. That's what he does. He's the Watcher. It's hard to think of a time before that. Jonny is a familiar comfort, but he couldn't recall why. It hurts to think sometimes. He just wanted to be good. This place was very clean and he had his own room. He let his plants grow in his room. He was safe and not forgotten.

He feels as if he's missing something. The blue skinned woman keeps putting him in a room with weapons, but he doesn't want to be in there. He thinks her name is Nastya, and she seems sad all the time. He has tried to give her flowers and fruits, but it seems to just confuse her. He doesn't like being confused either. They call him Tim or Gunpowder, all of them do. The name is Familiar, and he will respond to it, but he's the Watcher. He's been that for a long time.

They keep asking him to speak, but he knows he can't. He forgot when he stopped, he forgot when he was able to. Marius is nice he doesn't ask him to speak. They play music together, Jonny gave him a guitar, and he knows how to play, but can't remember why or how he knows. Marius is nice he tells him secrets about war and survival. He's confused and scared like he is.

He liked to work with his hands. He can grow his plants with his hands and dirt. Brian was also nice with his hands. He always seemed to help him clean up like the others. It's not like he tries to be dirty, but his plants need soil, and the bad, painful thing inside of him always hurt others, but he didn't seem bothered. Brian always said he was warm, but that's it, and that made him happy. He thinks he is making Jonny sick because he's always tired, but he doesn't complain.

He doesn't like the heavy clothes Lyf gives him. They are familiar, but they cover his plants and weigh him down. He doesn't want to get them dirty either. They seem important because everyone gives him the coat back. Lyf talks about his eyes a lot and asks him to look for things. He likes Lyf, he asks him to do his job and he likes that. He's a bit weird with his colors and static, but he makes Marius very happy.

Everyone asks him about violence or guns. He can't tell them the truth. He doesn't want to be a weapon anymore. They can't know he was a weapon, but he thinks they already do know. He likes Aurora, she is very nice, and helps him when he gets lost. She doesn't let him spread his roots anywhere, but the garden, she said it hurts. He apologized for it but still didn't quite understand how it hurt. It used to hurt him. He can remember when they used those weapons again on earth. They just rebuilt, too.

He can remember the burning, and he was trying to save something, or was it someone. He didn't really know anymore, but he thought the fighting was over something dumb. The bombs were loud and dirty, and they didn't leave anything but radiation. The first time, if he could recall properly, they recovered and regrew. They were thriving, and then someone got upset and built them again.

He wanted to tell his story, but his hands shake really bad when he tries to write. Jonny is really patient with him. They nap together a lot. Maybe one day he'll remember why Jonny calls him his amazing destruction and why he loves him so much.

.......

Nastya nearly jumped when Aurora was suddenly hailed. They've been peaceful, and nobody should even bother them. She sighs and takes the video call. "This is Nastya of the starship Aurora and pilot Drumbot Brian."

Brian nods, adjusting his hat.

"This is Valerie of well Audrey you aren't bothering me today, so Audrey." The woman leans back as a familair doctor is handcuffed to the side. "We've been looking for you."

"Carmillia?" Brian blinks stunned. "Jonny mentioned something when we first found him. Guess it was true." He shrugs and begins to brush out his tail.

"What happened to the body I made you?" Carmillia leans forward, tugging on the cuffs.

"I became a pet to a bunch of deities." Brian shrugs.

"Is the inspector with you?" Valerie smiles softly.

"Lyf?" Nastya pauses and nods. "He is with us, Aurora?" She pauses. "He's making lunch with Marius. As for Jonny and Tim, they are in the gardens taking a nap."

A familair figure rushed in. "Nastya?"

"Ashes!" Nastya smiles wide.

"Are you alright? We've been looking for a long time." Ashes grins. "You've got Jonny and Tim, I've missed them. Are they up for drinks?"

Nastya's face falls. "It would be easier to explain if you saw them in person." She can see the frustration grow on Ashes face.

"Ashes, that's enough." Valerie sighs and holds her hand up. "May we board?"

"Aurora, let them on." Nastya cuts the feed and covers her face

......

They were loud the moment they returned to the Aurora. It was like coming home, but everything was wrong. Nastya was alone to greet them.

"Where's everyone? What's with this lack luster welcoming party?" Ashes huffs and crosses heir arms. "Not that I'm not happy to see you. I expected a bullet to the brain or fire." They pause. "I can set something on fire."

Nastya looks at the others who come out. "Raphaella, TS, and Ivy. It's nice to see you."

"Where is everyone?" Ivy frowns. "There is a 65% chance Jonny and Tim are causing damage to the Aurora. A 45% chance Marius and Lyf are having sex somewhere, and an 85% chance Brian is in the gardens."

"You wouldn't be right." Jonny sighs. Tim was behind him. "It is nice to see you guys again." He looked exhausted. "Have you guys been having fun?" He's wearing his goggles and had a book in his hand. His signature belts were gone, and he was in casual, comfortable clothes.

Tim still had shirt hair and a perfectly trimmed beard. He was in a plain t-shirt with dirt stains. He was in shorts, and vines traveled his arms and legs and into his skin. He smiles and waves opening his mouth to produce a rasp.

"Tim can't talk anymore. He's also radioactive. You can find him by following the dried plant footprints." Nastya sighs. "Jonny, have you seen Marius?"

"He's not lucid if that's what you're asking." Jonny frowns. "Lyf is doing some chores while he plays. It's a happy tune, though."

"What do you mean by not lucid?" Raphaella cautiously moves forward. "I don't think... actually, I don't think Tim knows who we are."

Ashes stomps forward, startling Raphaella, and Jonny stops them from touching Tim.

"Leave them be." Jonny sighs. "There isn't a point to hurt him."

"What happened to you?" Ashes stares at him.

Jonny shrugs. "I'm just a bit tired."

Valerie steps forward. "Of course you are." She smiles sadly and holds out her hand. "How about a walk?"

Jonny nods and takes her hand. "May I take Tim with us?"

"Whatever you wish, Sand Skipper." Valerie takes his hand, and they go down the halls. Tim follows behind without a word.

Ashes are fuming, and Ivy stops them from shooting. "What has gotten into everyone one? This isn't right. We've been seporated before, for eons, and we never ended up like this. We aren't supposed to be broken. We've been through worse, so what if we didn't truly die?"

.......

The faint violin music alerted Ivy from her library. It wasn't Nastya she didn't have her violin. Well, it was still in here. They said Marius is here, but none of them have caught him in the halls of Aurora. At least Lyf has made sure of that. Curiosity had gotten the better of her, and she might as well see what had happened to him.

Marius looked the same, except for his clothes, they were purposely soft, it seemed. He was walking around playing.

Ivy clears her throat.

Marius seems to pause and drop his violin to his side. "Hello!" He turns and smiles.

"Hello Marius." Ivy keeps a neutral expression.

"You know me." Marius tilts his head.

"Of course I do. There is a 57.92% chance this is a game." Ivy's voice was emotionless.

Marius pauses no look of recognition in his eyes. "I'm waiting for my friends to find me. Would you like to wait with me?"

Ivy's face morphed to confusion. "Marius, you know me. I'm Ivy. You spend hours in my library looking at romance novels and bad poetry."

Marius seems to lose focus. "You seem very nice, miss, but I have to get back to waiting. I'm sure my friends will be back here soon." He brings the violin back up.

Ivy slaps the instrument out of Marius's hands. "No! NO NO NO!" She can feel sparks fly from her head. "You are Doctor Baron Marius Von Raum, who is neither a baron or a doctor, and my friend. You are my friend." She felt emotions swirl in her head things she can remember truly feeling since before her mind was mechanized.

Marius's eyes seem to lose their hue. He summons another violin and begins to play. He slowly starts to walk in a random direction. The music is haunting.

Ivy is shaking. "Don't just walk away! Don't... Don't.... I didn't mean to leave." She begins to follow Marius. "I think my mechanism is malfunctioning." She can feel something leak from her eyes, and she didn't know her species could cry. She didn't know she was still capable of crying.

.......

Jonny was reading to him in the garden before the sound of a gunshot, and he was splattered with bits of blood, bone, flesh, and brain. Jonny was reading to him, and now he slumped over, and his head was gone. Jonny was ready to him, and now they were talking, boasting about how finally this would get fun get normal.

Tim reached out like a child who didn't know any better and gently shook Jonny in vain. They were still laughing and talking. Jonny didn't move, Jonny was gone. Gone. Gone. Gone. He watched. That's what he did he just watched. Why did he watch? Why? Why?whywhywhywhywhy? He was good. He had to be good.

Bad gets replaced.

Bad gets punished.

Bad loses.

They stopped making noise when the roots settled. They made a very good trophy. They had useless metal. They didn't need it. They were taken care of. He did good. He will watch now. He is the watcher, that is what he does, and he is good.

"Tim?"

He stared at the tree twisted red roots, and fruit bloody dripped from the thick branches.

"Tim."

The leaves were white like bone, and the thorns were sharp teeth. The veins pulsed as the tree flourished.

"Tim!"

He stumbles back as Jonny pulls him from his roots and his feet bleed. It hurt. Aurora asked him not to make roots. He frowns, staring at the tree, red dripped from the massive towering twisted thing.

"Tim." Jonny's voice was soft. "Tim, can you hear me?"

He adjusted his gaze. Jonny was back. His head grew back. He forgot something important. He... he didn't know who Tim was. He should know who Tim is. He wanted to listen to a story. A story about the moon. He opens his mouth as a silent rasp leaves his lips.

Jonny pulls Tim into a tight hug. "I'm ok. I'm always ok. We have eternity, don't you remember?"

He rasps again, trying to ask for the story about the moon. Jonny knows it. Jonny can tell him who Tim is. His eyes... his eyes grew deeper roots.

Jonny smiles. "Ashes is fine, too. They left, and they went to get Raphaella. She'll be excited to experiment with this." He pulls Tim along. "Come on, I'll help you clean up. We can take a nap after, and then I'll find a better story to read to you."

He follows along, holding on tightly to Jonny's hand. Jonny will tell him. Jonny always had stories to tell. He'll know who Tim is.

.......

New rules were written. New rules bathed in blood and pain.

Ashes stared at the new rule list nailed to the wall of the commons. Their limbs still felt wrong. They didn't understand what happened, that... that tree was still there. A stark reminder of change. They didn't find them fast enough. They turned their gaze to Raphaella, who was watching them.

"Did it hurt?" Raphaella almost sounded innocent.

"Of course it did." Ashes sighs. "You can test it if you so desire."

"I think I want to give Tim his voice back." Raphaella was nervous. "Human vocal cords can recover disuse. His has not. I want to know why. Will you.... will you help me?" She held an old spark in her eyes.

Ashes smiles softly. "I would love to."

#the mechanisms #the mechs

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justalittleb-witchy · 19 days ago

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Deities Can Lie, and Why that's Good

(No this is not a sign, please do not take it as such. If this is something you are insecure about, I do not recommend reading this post. This is more philosophical than anything else.)

This is something that, when most people hear it, will be responded to with "its common sense that they can, but they won't", and I want to push back on that a little bit.

Lying is almost always associated with bad intentions, but sometimes it can be necessary when teaching someone a lesson that they wouldn't otherwise understand. The methods gods will use to get a point across to their practitioner is highly dependent on the god, their practitioner, and their relationship. I feel like I can pretty confidentially say that in most situations your god would not lie to you, nor would they have a reason to.

But lying does serve a purpose. And sometimes it's the most efficient way to get things done-- much in the same way gods sometimes omit information. I am going to tell two stories to try and get my point across.

Let's say Susie is positively anxious about her crush. She keeps asking over and over again if they are meant to be together forever. They are not-- they'll break up eventually-- but Susie is the type of person who would never pursue a relationship if it's not fated to be forever. The overall experience of being with this person is something Susie will be deeply grateful for, and she would learn and grow from being with them. But she's so afraid of pain that she would never take that first step if she knew what the end result would be. Yes, the gods could tell her that it will end in tragedy, but she needs to pursue it anyways-- but would she listen to them? Probably not. These are instances where information might be omitted, questions might go unanswered, or small lies might be told, all for her greater good. It's painful, it sucks, and its somewhere where most people would draw the line-- but there is a reason for it, and there are cases where it might be used. The gods' goals are not always our immediate goals and that's something I try to be mindful of-- and practice patience because of this-- in my practice.

This second example is a personal one, with many, many details changed. The core lesson is still the same.

Eons ago, I applied to be a part of a play. This play was very important to me, and I wanted a very specific role. I kept asking again, and again, and again, if I was going to get it. I kept getting told that yes, it would work out, I just had to be patient-- but the casting decision was taking forever. I had all but lost faith. Every five minutes (hyperbolically) I was asking, "Did I get it? Did I get it? Did I get it?"

Finally, I got a different answer. A very firm "no". A firm "we've been lying to you this entire time, you suck, you were never going to get that role." And immediately, I believed it. It "confirmed" my worst biases. I placed this singular reading above the countless I had done before it, above all of the signs that had endlessly been sent my way-- because it confirmed something negative I thought about myself. And then I was (metaphorically) given a firm slap upside the head. "Really, kid?", the reading seemed to say, "You believed that over everything else we've told you? You're so scared of failure that you're unwilling to consider the possibility of success." The direct quote I have from that reading is "How ready were you to accept defeat when spoken?", which basically was calling me out for not believing in myself.

This was an instance when a lie was appropriate-- confirming my worst fears was the only way to snap me out of it, to make me realize that I was refusing to accept the possibility of something good happening. And, for the record, I did wind up getting my dream "role" in that "play", and everything worked out in the very peculiar way I predicted. "Don't count your chickens before they hatch" also applies to anticipating negative results.

To summarize, I guess the moral of this all is that lying does sometimes serve a purpose. It doesn't inherently mean that you are worshiping the "wrong" or "fake" god. It also doesn't mean that you can't trust what you read. You have to consider everything in balance with what comes before it. If you have a negative relationship with a deity, maybe a lie is what broke the camels back-- but its back was fractured to begin with. A healthy relationship isn't predicated on always getting your way, or always understanding what's going on. It is important for you to decide where your boundaries lie (haha, pun), and for you to decide if a few white lies are a deal breaker.

ALSO, AGAIN, THIS IS NOT A SIGN. This cycles back to my story about always assuming the worst result. Please don't use this as some sort of confirmation of your deepest darkest fears. I genuinely believe that deities lying is a rare occurrence. In my ten-ish years of experience, I can count the number of times this has happened to me on one hand. Usually there's a more effective way to get things done than lying.

#paganism #divination #deity worship #deity work

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sandcobangevent · 8 months ago

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Lord of the Pings

by @littleoceanbabe and @halvenhold Read the fic and view the art on AO3!

“-And so I say to her; I say ‘the pool isn’t the spot to find a man, Charlotte. You need to go to the beach!’” Carol laughed and took a sip of her drink, set it down, and pressed her palms together, interlocking her fingers, “But I’ve been jabbering on and on, darling. How have you been holding up, sweetie?”

John wasn’t quite expecting the attention to suddenly be focused on him. Carol Watson was a professional story-teller, and an expert in segues. She could talk for eons if John didn’t force himself into her one-way conversations, but today was not one in which John wanted to talk at length with his mother about his personal life.

“I’ve uh, I’ve been go-good, yeah. Been good.” John poked at his side salad a bit, then set down the fork to take a sip of his own drink.

It was good to see his mother, it really was. As much as she drove him up a wall most of the time, she loved him like nothing else and he loved her just the same. However, this lunch outing seemed to not be without its consequences.

“Ohh, I know you must have something to say, Johnny!” His mother pushed, “About your podcast, your flatmate, perhaps your friend Mariana? She’s so lovely, isn’t she? You are staying safe on those… crimes you investigate, right, love?”

John felt his face flush, and decided to latch onto the easiest thing she said in that sentence, “So you’ve listened, then?”

“Hm?” Carol looked up from her sandwich curiously.

“You’ve listened. To the podcast?” John specified.

“Ohh, no. No I haven’t, dear. Not really for me, is it? I don’t like all those crime shows and stories. You like talking about it, sweetie. So I’m asking.”

“Oh. Well. Okay, yeah. It’s going-”

“And I noticed that little blush on your cheeks. Now come on, tell me all about her!”

“...What?” John felt his heart thump harder in his chest, his face burning again, “About who?”

“Mariana!” Carol exclaimed excitedly, “I’ve only met her the one time. She’s a lovely young woman, isn’t she just? How long have you been-”

“Mum, mum, mum!” John waved his hands in front of him, stopping Carol mid-sentence, “Mariana’s great, she’s lovely, but she’s not the one that I-” He let slip out, and his eyes widened at the realization, snapping his mouth shut with an audible click.

Carol watched him in silence for a moment, a grin slowly splitting her face wide open.

“N-No! No, mum, it-it’s not what you-!”

Carol reached over the table and held John’s hands in her own, her eyes boring into his.

“Tell me everything.”

“Mum!” John groaned, lightly trying to tug his hands away. Carol wouldn’t let him.

“Come on, Johnny! Who’s the lucky lass, ey?”

John really didn’t want to have this conversation over lunch. Or ever, really.

“It’s… Not… Not a ‘lass’.” He turned his head away, and he felt his mother’s grip on his hands slacken.

“...Really?” She asked softly. John took the chance to look back at her, and found his voice unable to cooperate. He nodded instead.

“Oh…” Carol’s previously wild grin was now replaced with something much softer, much more loving, “I’m so happy you’ve told me, darling.”

John felt the pressure lift off his chest, “Yeah. Thanks, mum.”

They sat quietly for a moment in the din of the cafe, Carol still holding John’s hands and stroking the backs of them with her thumbs. He felt like he was a kid again for a moment, being comforted by his mum after a bad dream. It was nice.

It didn’t last, if he were being dramatic.

“You still haven’t told me who it is, though!” Carol squeezed John’s hands, “Who’s the lucky lad, then!”

John huffed, and hung his head, “...You promise you won’t laugh?”

“I swear it, love.”

“...It’s Sherlock.”

“I knew it!!” Carol squealed, “He’s a wonderful young man, I think. So charming! No wonder you’ve fallen for him!” She finally dropped John’s hands to clap her own together, “Have you told him yet? Are you two already together? If you are and you haven’t told me yet, Johnny, I’m hanging that over your head for years, I am. I’ll bring it up at the wedding, you mark my words-”

“Mum! There’s no wedding happening. I haven’t told him. And I won’t.”

Carol paused, looking confused, “Why not, sweetie?”

John resisted the urge to bury his face in his arms, with his head on the table, “I don’t-I don’t think he… feels the same.”

Carol tsked and slumped back in her seat, giving John a look of pity, “I don’t know if that’s true, darling. You never know until you say something!”

“I’m… Not going to do that, mum,” John mumbled, poking again at his food, “Uh… Archie’s doing great, by the way.”

Carol, bless her, took the hint, “Oh, that’s wonderful to hear. Getting enough exercise out in the big city, is he?”

John relaxed, and started updating Carol on Archie, hoping she wouldn’t bring up his awkward feelings for his flatmate and best friend again.

Oh, how he hoped.

Ping!

Carol had been texting him almost non-stop since their lunch together. John had humored her for the first few days, promising he would follow the relationship advice she gave him completely unwarranted (he wouldn’t touch that with a ten-foot pole and a hazmat suit on), telling her he just had to work up the nerve to come clean to Sherlock (that was somewhat true, but no matter what confidence John gained while reciting in the mirror, it fizzled, popped, and died out in nanoseconds when Sherlock looked his direction), and continuing to claim he just didn’t think Sherlock reciprocated the feelings (that was entirely true, and something John lamented over during the middle of the night quite often). Frankly, there were only so many excuses he could feasibly come up with to get his mother off his case when he was working on actual cases. He had enough to worry about.

Frankly, he was getting sick of it.

Ping!

John hadn’t been woken up by the first notification, but he was dozing in bed still, absentmindedly petting Archie when it came through. He stewed irritation until the second one came in, when he dramatically threw off his sheets with a huff of annoyance, shivering at the blast of cold air that washed over him instantly as he did so, and grabbed his phone off the bedside table.

From: Mum Good morning, love! How are you today?

From: Mum It’s a new day! You should tell him! Xoxo

John let out a long groan, slamming his phone face down on the table again and flopping back into the mattress. He didn’t even know why he bothered to look at his phone any more. Every morning was just the same; Carol greeting him, then Carol trying to push John to confess his feelings to his flatmate as if she was voting for it on a reality TV show. John rubbed his eyes; he was already forming a headache and it was hardly half eight. He was in for a long day.

Ping!

“For god’s sake-” John snatched his phone up again, fire at his fingertips, ready to tell his mother to stop spamming him, when Sherlock’s contact lit up the screen.

From: Sherlock New case. From Lestrade. Coming?

Now that was worth getting out of bed for. John was ready in near-record time, walking outside their door alongside Sherlock.

Detective Inspector Lestrade was a rather formidable presence. She was a kind enough woman, understanding, and bloody brilliant, in John’s rather expert (knowing Sherlock Holmes) opinion, but he was more than intimidated by her. He had really only held one conversation with her, in which he stuttered out a rather lame explanation of what his podcast was and got her permission to be recorded. She had given him an unimpressed stare throughout his whole spiel, which made his stutter worsen, and once he finally finished, had given a considering “Hm.” before nodding in her approval. John had felt a bit sick afterwards. She mostly directed her conversations towards Sherlock, and mainly kept them professional. John would always feel rather awkward trying to shove his microphone in between them.

Today, she was mostly in the background, letting Sherlock and John take over the crime scene as she observed them carefully. John felt his phone burn a hole in his pocket from his mum’s earlier texts, and Lestrade’s eyes burning into the back of his skull as he and Sherlock discussed details.

It was about fifteen minutes of John being watched, and John watching Sherlock in total awe. He never tired of Sherlock’s brilliance, watching him work around details that no one else on the scene had put together, and his mannerisms when he was deducing were something John never wanted to miss. He was so lively and excitable, and while John really should admonish him for being like a kid in a candy store while they were on a murder scene, he couldn’t help but get roped up in that energy as well. John also couldn’t deny how adorable he thought it truly was. He had to regularly admonish himself for these thoughts when they were at a crime scene.

He was grinning up at a rather bouncy Sherlock when Lestrade’s voice piped up.

“Dr. Watson? May I speak with you outside?”

John startled, forgetting momentarily he was being watched by her, and Sherlock stopped mid-deduction at her voice, too. Sherlock offered to take the microphone from John while he stepped away, and Lestrade led him outside the home they were at.

“You look nervous, doctor.”

“Who, me? N-No, I-I’m not-not nervous. Whatcha mean? You-erm. We-uh… I’m not nervous.”

Lestrade laughed and patted John on the shoulder, “Relax, doctor. I only yell at people who can’t do their jobs right when they’re being paid for it.”

“...Well. Should-should probably be yelling at me, then…”

“I’m not going to do that, doctor.”

John willed himself to relax, “Then how can I help you, Detective Inspector?”

She smiled in a conspiratory manner, and any relaxation John had accomplished was immediately launched out of a second-story window, “You and Holmes. What’s the story there, hm?”

She… wanted to gossip?

“Uh,” John began eloquently, “Well, uh, yeah. He’s-he’s my- well he’s my flatmate. Good friend. Great friend, actually. Yeah-” It wasn’t warm outside, but John still felt himself flush.

“That’s… not quite what I was after,” Lestrade said, and laughed, “I was more talking about how you two got together. He always gave me the impression he wasn’t interested in deep relationships.”

“Oh. OH,” John flushed further, “N-No! No, nonono, we’re not! It-It’s not l-like, erm, we-weee- hmm. We’re not together,” he finally squeaked out, shoving his hands in his pockets awkwardly and staring down at the pavement, scuffing it with his shoe.

“Oh, that’s a shame,” Lestrade sounded genuinely put out, “He talks about you. Definitely views you highly, higher than anyone else I know. You two would be great together, I think.”

John’s eyes widened, looking back up at Lestrade, and opening his mouth to ask her to elaborate further.

Ping!

His phone notification and simultaneous buzzing in his back pocket actually made John jump in the air, yelping in shock. Lestrade jumped at John’s surprise as well, but recovered much quicker and smothered a laugh.

“Tell you what,” Lestrade stuck out her hand, “Why don’t you give me your number. I could use a second consultant that I can persuade to help me out when I need it. I need to waggle a case above Holmes sometimes like it’s a prize in order to get him interested.”

John’s heart was still pounding too hard to argue, and blindly handed Lestrade his phone. She tapped in her information and handed it back to him.

“You might want to take that, by the way,” She said, moving past John to head inside, “It was your mother.”

The front door closed behind her, and John was left on the entryway, surrounded by police lights, and holding his phone, which felt much, much heavier than it actually was.

Ping!

John was regretting giving Lestrade his number.

She was actually a riot, very quick-witted, and much friendlier than what John’s first impression of her gave off.

That wasn’t quite the problem, though.

Now he had both his mother and his technical, occasional boss investing themselves in his love life and telling him he should all but get down on one knee in front of his flatmate. It was getting worrisome, and John was about ready to set up an intervention for both of them to ask if they had something going on at home that they were trying to avoid confronting (he only didn’t because he was terrified of what Carol would tell him, and terrified of what Lestrade wouldn’t tell him).

Ping!

“Watson, I do hope you are aware of an incredible feature on your phone that silences your incoming notifications, so that they do not disturb the peace of others around you.” Sherlock didn’t even look up from his microscope as he spoke, only reaching his fingers out to adjust the focus. John watched them delicately turn the knob, forcing himself to look away before replying.

“I keep them on so if I get anything important, I won’t miss it,” John just stepped away from the stove, piling his breakfast onto a plate and settling down in the seat across from Sherlock.

“Then check your phone and stop watching me, perhaps. And turn your ringer down.”

John snorted at the second statement, brushing past the first, but did pick up his phone.

From: Mum Anything yet, love?

From: Lestrade I’m not saying you should actually tell him while you’re at a scene, but I do think it would be hilarious. I also think he would be really receptive to it.

John didn’t know whether to groan or laugh. He put his phone face-down on the table instead. He looked back up at Sherlock, who very quickly moved his head to look back down the microscope, like he’d been caught. John frowned, but moved on.

“What’re you doing?” John asked, finally turning some of his attention to the cooling food on his plate. He stabbed his eggs with his fork.

“Nothing applicable,” Sherlock murmured, “Identification of organisms and other biological matter within the pipes. I was curious.”

John’s bite of eggs was centimeters away from his mouth, “I hope not our pipes, Sherlock.”

Sherlock was silent for a moment, “...Yes.”

John sighed and finally ate, “Just don’t tell me what you find,” he said, trying to be irritable but coming off as more fond than anything.

“Understood,” Sherlock said, equally fond.

They ate and studied in silence for a bit, Sherlock occasionally backing away from the lenses to scratch something down on a notepad he had beside him, John looking down at his plate every time.

It was nice.

There was a knocking on the door that broke the domesticity of the moment, and John stood to get it (Sherlock was comfortably glued to his seat and made no such moves to even consider getting up).

“Mariana,” John greeted with a smile, stepping aside to let her in, “Good to see you.”

“I saw you yesterday, John,” Mariana teased, “The joys of working together.”

“Try living with your co-workers,” John laughed, and Mariana joined him.

“I can hear you, you are aware,” Sherlock called from the table, which prompted harder laughter from the other two.

Mariana calmed, and with a conspiratory glance to the kitchen, leaned in close to John, her lips hovering around his ear.

“Anything more than ‘living with’ lately?” She whispered.

John gasped and pulled away, blushing hard, “Mari!” He whispered back, “Nothing- that’s not-!”

Mariana’s smile dropped into an ‘are-you-kidding-me’ expression so fast John missed the transition into it, “You are kidding me, John. You still haven’t said anything?”

“I-I don’t need to-!”

“Come on!” Mariana nudged his shoulder with hers, “Your mother called. She told me all about it, and asked me to keep her updated, too. So… anything?”

Oh, John was never telling Carol anything personal again. He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, “No. Nothing. And there won’t be. So stop asking,” he grumbled, and then tried to lead her out, so he could go back to his (probably freezing cold by now) breakfast with Sherlock.

“Nooo, wait. I actually had something I needed to talk to you both about.” Mariana raised her voice as she spoke, so Sherlock could hear again.

Whatever Mariana needed to talk to them about went over John’s head her entire stay. He would need to have words with Carol later about breaching his privacy like she did, and only beg Mariana to let it go, because she was never supposed to find out about Sherlock at all.

He caught her by the arm when she was making her way out, and made it clear to her.

“Ay, John,” She said, tilting her head to the side, “I won’t… leave you completely alone, I’m your friend, I kinda have to bully you about this. But you should tell him. You might be surprised by the response. You deserve to be happy, you know.” She grinned and gave him a quick hug before making her way back downstairs. John stood outside of the flat for a moment, had a small, silent tantrum, calmed himself down with deep breaths (in through the nose, hold, out through the mouth), and made his way back inside.

“What did you need from her?” Sherlock asked when John flopped back down into his chair.

“Waiting on an Amazon package. Asked her to bring it inside for me.”

Great. Now he needed to order something off Amazon.

And he hadn’t finished his eggs.

Ping!

Maybe he should go off the grid.

“Watson, will you please-”

“I got it, I got it,” John grabbed his phone off the coffee table, where Sherlock had been eyeing it like it was a pair of particularly filthy pants, and flipped it over.

From: MumFrom: LestradeFrom: Mariana

Christ, he needed a new phone number. He shoved the phone in his pocket.

Sherlock narrowed his eyes at him, curled up in his loveseat, plucking at his violin and looking quite adorable. “Aren’t you going to answer any of those? Perhaps politely request that whoever is incessantly messaging you stop unless absolutely necessary?”

John huffed, but dug his phone out again and opened it.

From: Mum I’ve talked to that wonderful friend of yours, Mariana. And she agrees with me. DO SOMETHING!!

From: LestradeI could allocate resources to set up an elaborate fake crime scene where all the clues lead to you. If you want. I think it’d be fun.

From: Mariana Oh, by the way, just remember that the walls here are pretty thin. That means the floors are, too. Take that into consideration, please ♥️

“Unfortunately I think they truly believe this is all absolutely necessary, Sherls,” John shut his phone off without replying to anyone.

“Then give it to me,” Sherlock said, stretching his hand out, “I’ll tell them off for you.”

John, always priding himself on his suave, cool, calm and collected demeanor, snatches his phone back so fast and hard he whacks himself in the chest with it, “NO, that’s okay! I got it, I got it!!”

Sherlock's eyes narrowed further, this time in suspicion and frustration, “If you’re going to be whining about your phone chiming off constantly, either turn it off or tell whoever it is to stop. Or give it to me.”

John shook his head vehemently, hugging his phone tightly to himself, “It’s nothinggg!” He drawled, acting far too casually, far too late, “Look, it’s fine, I’ll just put it on silent-”

“Watson, give me your phone,” Sherlock stood from his chair, making his way over.

John’s eyes widened and he backed away, “It’s dead,” he said quickly.

Ping!

“REALLY,” John yelled as his screen lit up, “Oh, you stupid bloody thing- SHERLOCK!” Sherlock had lunged at him suddenly, trying to paw the phone from John’s death grip on it.

They wrestled in the middle of the sitting room, Sherlock’s long limbs allowing him for more dexterity and swiftness, while John was stronger, able to keep a grip on the phone when Sherlock managed to grab hold of it.

“Just- give. It. Here!”

Ping!

“Let GO, Sherlock!”

Ping!

“Stop being such a fool, Watson-”

“Stop pulling my hair-!”

Ping!

“Then give me the phone!”

“It’s MINE!”

Ping!

John, hilariously, could only picture his Year 3 teacher standing above them right now, yelling at them to break it up and quit their roughhousing. He could have sworn Sherlock was trying to bite at him.

Their scuffle ended when John stepped back on one of Archie’s tennis balls. He gasped sharply as his leg slipped out from underneath him, and in an instinctive panic while gripping for purchase, he grabbed onto Sherlock’s shirt and brought him down with him. John landed flat on his back, knocking the wind out of his lungs, made worse by Sherlock landing on his chest. The phone was knocked out of John’s hand and it skittered across the room.

They both lay there, catching their breaths, John’s phone continuously pinging loudly from wherever it landed.

It was ignored.

Sherlock hadn’t moved away from John. Off of John’s chest. Which Sherlock’s own chest was pressed against.

Good god.

They were both staring at each other, any anger and fighting spirit completely vanished. Sherlock swallowed thickly from above, and John couldn’t help but to watch his Adam’s apple bob. John licked his lips, and Sherlock’s eyes followed the movement.

“John-”

“What the hell are you two doing up here- Oh!” Mariana had thrown the door open, and Sherlock scrambled to get off John, elbowing him sharply in the stomach as he did.

“Mrs. Hudson, do come in,” Sherlock said, smooth as sandpaper, and dusted himself off. John lay prone on the floor gripping his stomach; it was the most dignifying choice at the moment. He tilted his head back to look at her, now upside down.

“Hi. Mariana,” he uttered sheepishly. Mariana was grinning down at him like the cat who got the canary.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” She said, “But I’ve been texting you.”

“We heard,” Sherlock said helpfully, “We were hoping you would stop, actually. Poor Watson’s phone can only handle so many notification sounds at a time. I worry the speakers are going to blow out.”

“So sorry,” Mariana said, “But I did also think my entire ceiling was going to fall through, and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

John, having closed his eyes in mortification, pops them back open when he hears the sound of Mariana’s camera going off, “And clearly you are!” She chirped, “Have fun, boys! Be safe!” She scuttled out of the flat, closing the door behind her before Sherlock or John had an opportunity to object.

A moment passed in silence, where neither of them moved again.

Ping!

“...What are the odds that it isn’t the photo?” Sherlock asked, staring at where John’s phone lay, making no effort to grab it.

“Slim to none,” John replied, pushing himself off the floor and picking his phone up.

From: Mariana Attached: 1 image

“No,” Sherlock said, his finger steepled together under his chin, sitting in the chair he’d scraped across the room when John wasn’t looking.

"Come on, Sherls! You've never gone out under the stars before? Never just had a night with someone you l- erm. care for?" John was close to begging, standing in front of Sherlock with puppy-dog eyes and fingers interlocked and all.

Ping!

John pulled his phone out of his pocket.

From: Mum Just checked the weather in Dartmoor. Lovely night. Go for a walk!

"There's nothing in the stars that particularly interests me, Watson. Especially not whilst on a case," Sherlock groused, and John's hopeful face fell, but he was still determined.

Ping!

John looked down again.

From: Lestrade Update me on the case when you can, please. Supposed to be nice tonight. Maybe take a break.

"It's such a nice night," He said softly, and he saw Sherlock pause briefly, "It'd be a shame to waste it. I haven't been stargazing in so long... Come with me, yeah? You need a break."

Ping!

From: Mariana How are you two doing? Burnt the AirBNB down yet? …Is it a one-bed? Give me all the details 👀

“It seems as though you’re busy enough already,” Sherlock said, “How could I possibly take a break when you aren’t, Watson?”

“No, no,” John compromised, making a show of holding up his phone for Sherlock to see and switching it on silent mode, “See? No distractions. Just a break. With you. Outside, under the stars?”

People often told John that Sherlock listened to him far more than anyone else. John had no other frame of reference, and he found it hard to believe, with Sherlock's seemingly selective hearing.

Sherlock's reaction made him reconsider.

"...Fine, if you're going to be so persistent about it," Sherlock clearly wanted to sound annoyed, but John heard otherwise. Sherlock stood from the chair he was on, and grabbed his coat, "Lead the way, then."

John beamed, brighter than the moon, and gently took hold of Sherlock's elbow and led him outside, plopping down in the grass with no decorum.

He saw Sherlock's nose wrinkle in the dark, "In the grass? Directly making contact with it?"

"Yeah," John smiled, "I would use a blanket, but none of the ones in there are actually ours. And I don't exactly feel like breaking any more rules," He laughed at himself and patted the spot beside him.

Sherlock's face smoothed out, and he huffed out a laugh as well, acquiescing to sit down on the grass.

John then made a big show of sighing happily, flopping onto his back and folding his fingers behind his head. Sherlock watched him for a moment, but then joined without any persuasion.

The late spring wind blew gently through the air, rustling the grass they both lay in, the tiny, budding flowers around their bodies, and their hair and clothes, John greedily gulped in lungfuls of fresh countryside air, and took in the sky above him.

It was beautiful, full of bright, twinkling stars, and duller ones, that John would have had no hope of ever seeing in London. He missed the stars, he hadn't realized until now. Sitting with Sherlock and staring into the night sky, he could have lived in this moment for an eternity.

Sherlock had said nothing, made no further indication of movement, and John could feel he was tense, lying beside him.

"Lovely, eh, Sherls?" John on the other hand, felt completely relaxed, and was resisting reaching out to hold Sherlock's hand in his own.

"...Lovely," Sherlock whispered, and fell silent again.

The tension was too much to ignore, and John felt a bit awkward now. The quiet stretched on for another moment or two.

"Sherlock-"

"John-"

They spoke at the same time, and John huffed out a soft laugh, Sherlock cleared his throat, "Go on," John said politely.

"Ah, yes. John," Sherlock started, then stopped. He opened his mouth, then snapped it shut again. He continued to stare straight up at the sky, "I-I need to come clean. About something. To you."

John felt anxiety twisting in his gut, "You didn't steal something else from the AirBNB, did you?" He tried to joke.

"No," Sherlock replied seriously, "I haven't. John," He cleared his throat again, "I must tell you that the past few months have been the absolute brightest of my life. I never expected to meet someone like you. Someone as... kind, as brave, as... understanding. As you. I thought-I thought what I had felt in the beginning was mere friendship, and perhaps it was, but it's grown into something much deeper. It's utterly terrifying, but... John Watson, I do believe I harbor romantic feelings for you."

Sherlock spoke so fast John had to take a moment to process it, the anxiety unwound immediately, and his heart started thumping in his chest, "Do you, now?"

Sherlock still stared up at the sky, and shyly nodded. John gave in and took his hand, and they finally locked eyes.

“That’s good. Great even,” John whispered, inching closer to Sherlock, bumping shoulders with him

“I believe I harbor romantic feelings for you too, Sherlock Holmes,” John repeated after Sherlock, and turned on his side to face Sherlock properly, who followed suit, and they were sharing breaths.

“Do you, now?” Sherlock repeated after John, and they both grinned at each other.

Neither was fully certain who moved first, but their kiss was as natural as anything, as soft as the breeze around them, and as warm as the spring air. They parted, and John laid down with his head tucked underneath Sherlock’s chin, neither one’s smiles dimming.

“Do you think we should head inside?” Sherlock piped up after a while longer, when John’s eyes kept shutting and were getting harder and harder to open.

John pulled out his phone to check the time, and was met with a wall of texts and a bright screen he had to squint at.

He grinned, then held his phone up, snapping a picture of himself and Sherlock.

“Ready when you are,” he said, putting Carol, Lestrade, and Mariana into a group chat, and sent the image with no further context.

Sherlock and John went in for the night, and John kept his phone on silent.

#submission #sherlock & co #sherlock and co #event #fanart #fanfiction #flash bang #creative collaboration #john watson #sherlock homes #mariana ametxazurra

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