#thanks for reading!

[thefantastician]

the thousand year door comics!!

[holyhadesimweird]

the butterfly effect

photo from rorokonaa on twitter

captain curly x reader

trigger warnings : mentions of attempted sa/abuse (not really specified) and jimmy

summary : a butterfly effect in which curly steps up the moment he can after finding out something happened to you, causing the events of the game to never happen.

note : i have not written fanfic in many years, i'm so sorry and this is warning my writing may be dogass still or even worse than it was before. anyways, enjoy!

the moment anya speaks your name when informing him something happened to one of the crew mates, he runs. his heart has never beat so fast in his life, curly thinks he may die if he doesn't reach you.

as he runs to the cockpit, curly's mind races to an image of what anya's face looked like when she told him something happened to you. that bruise on her face scared the shit out of him.

was jimmy a bad man this entire time? after knowing him for so many years curly wants to doubt it, but the image of anya and knowing you were in danger because of jimmy doesn't allow him to even doubt that jimmy is a horrible man.

as he runs, daisuke and sawnsea see him and decide to run after him. neither of them are fast enough to keep up with curly's desperate running and are left behind.

curly can hear jimmy yelling and your sobs as he approaches the cockpit, making him push forward and into the cockpit when the door opens.

"what did you do to her?!" curly yells as he pushes jimmy away from your curled up frame in the corner of the room.

"nothing at all captain, i came to check on her-" jimmy is cut off as curly's fist makes contact with his jaw.

"bull-fucking-shit you liar. anya came directly to me after you hit her and i could hear you yelling at her. if you move, i will kick your teeth in." curly threatened.

it was at this moment daisuke and swansea's footsteps could be heard approaching the cockpit. as they reached the doorway, anya' lighter footsteps could be heard as well.

"what in the fuck is happening?" swansea questions.

"swansea, pick him up and take him to the kitchen. do not let him out of your sight until i come see you. daisuke, stay with him and watch too." curly orders.

"but curly-" jimmy tries.

"no, we're gonna talk about what you did. there will be a punishment." curly states as swansea grabs jimmy, not saying a word as him and daisuke take him to the kitchen.

"thank you for helping. i- i- didn't know what else to do." anya says quietly, kneeling down beside you. your sobs have quieted down but it broke curly's heart seeing you like this.

"thank you so much curly, i owe you so much. he- he kept trying to do things to me but i kept fighting and he hit me again right before you came in. i think he-" you rambled.

"listen to me, you don't owe me anything. i'll kick his teeth in before he goes near you again. i'm so sorry he-." curly kneels. he takes your hand and anya quietly gets up to leave for you two to have a moment alone.

"i was so scared i was going to lose you. i'm so sorry this happened and i wish i could go back in time to protect you. i'm here now and i won't let anything else happen to you. you're the most important thing to me and i can't bear losing you." curly rushes and stands up. "i'm going to make things right."

anya is stood outside of the room and makes her way inside to stay with you as curly marches towards the kitchen.

once he arrives in the kitchen he can see that swansea and daisuke have tied up jimmy who is yelling and trashing against the ropes. making his way to where they all are, curly decided on what to do.

"shut up and listen to me jimmy. you do not deserve to be free after this. you will be locked, barricaded, i don't care, in your room until this job is finished. it does not matter that pony express is kicking the can, because you'll be rotting right along with them in prison when we get back on earth. i'll make sure of it." curly spits out to jimmy.

"you don't deserve to be captain, i was going to be the hero in this story and you ruined it! i had a plan!" jimmy exclaims. "i was going to-" jimmy was cut off as swansea stands up from where he was sitting.

"you're insane. daisuke, come help me." swansea says eerily calmly.

when curly finally finds you after locking jimmy up in his room and leaving daisuke and swansea to guard. you're in your quarters, on your bed sleeping with anya sitting next to you, clearly on edge as she jumps when curly enters your room.

"thank you anya, for everything." curly says, offering her a smile and a hug.

"she's my friend and you both mean the world to me. when i realized i wouldn't be able to fight him off and help her, i knew i had to get help. i wish i could've done more." she says.

"you did your best and did the right thing. without you, who knows what could've happened. i'm just extremely sorry i didn't believe you at first when you tried warning me about him." he thanks and apologizes.

"i'll leave you two alone. goodnight captain."

curly takes a seat where anya was sitting and takes your hand.

.:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:.

"curly? curly!"

curly swears he hears someone call his name and blinks awake. the sight in front of him is other worldly and he wants to bask in it forever. you look beautiful despite everything that happened recently and he's happy to see you smiling at him.

"hey big man. thank you for protecting me, i don't know how to thank you. anya told me what you did with..... him. thank you." you thank him.

"it's the least i could do. you're important to me and i would do anything for you." he says sincerely. "...listen, i don't want to ruin this, but i have to go check on something in the cockpit. i'll be right back."

"of course, i can join you for the walk. but i might have to stay behind a little bit." you say.

"that is perfectly fine. we can go at your pace. i have to keep an eye on the controls for the next day, autopilot detected a possibility of needing course correction. let's go make sure we don't crash."

grabbing your hand, you and curly slowly but surely make your way to the cockpit to contact the company and to correct the autopilot route.

.:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:..:.:.:.

it takes time, but by the end of the tulpar's journey, you are able to navigate the entirety of the ship without being scared.

you and curly become closer and he attempts to have a romantic dinner with you to ask you to be his significant other, but it doesn't go according to plan. however, you two love joking and talking about how the night you became an official couple.

having jimmy on the ship is hard for the entire crew for the rest of the journey, but when landing on earth and seeing law enforcement ready to take jimmy away, it feels like a weight has been lifted from the entire crew.

[wigglesdtuff]

I think I saw you say that Robin’s post-TS hairstyle was part of her character development reflected in her design (if that wasn��t you, my bad!) and I’d love to hear your expanded thoughts on it, and how that ties in with her Elbaf haircut now! After my friend said that her post-ts was just Croc’s ‘do but longer I haven’t been able to unsee it lol

That almost definitely was me because I feel very strongly about Robin's design journey and how Oda landed on the design he did and the way misinterpretations of her character because people want her to be nothing more than a hottie baddie femme fatale and *takes a deep breath* I know it's not that serious, but it means a lot to me!

Disclaimer: This is my personal interpretation, and I'm very passionate about it so take it all with a grain of salt!

So! Without further ado!

We can infer a lot about her haircut when she's introduced. Her face is covered/often in shadow from the hat which is intended to lend to the mystery of just who this woman is. We then see her first bounty poster. She's been wanted since she was 8. That's really fucking strange! Not only that but her haircut is nearly identical.

When she joins, she explains that she's more or less been on her own since she was 8, so you can infer that she's been cutting her hair like this herself. She's holding onto that moment where she had one friend she could rely on. She's literally stuck in the past. It looks almost choppy too, which to me tells me it's a quick utilitarian thing. It does not go past her shoulders.

Until she's been with the crew!

You can tell as early as Skypiea and through Thriller Bark, but it's super noticable in Sabaody just how long it grows to me. It's gotten super long!! She's letting them in by this point, she's found her home!

So when she comes back after being separated...

That change has fully taken hold! She's no longer covering her face either with a hat or her hair! She's more relaxed, she's almost always smiling unless something requires her full attention and even then she's Most Likely to Giggle and Verbally Heart Emoji. Her face is more open, it's softer. She's. Happy. She's changed in every meaning of the word! And she did it for her friends and for herself.

It's the most apparent to me in Zou. Like look at that face. That's the embodiment of joy. She's comfortable, she's relaxed. She's not hiding anything!

Then we hit Wano!

Miss Demonio dons the same old bangs and embodies the moniker her pursuers gave her. It is. Quite literally. The best of her and the worst of her. It is what she will do for the people she loves and who she has accepted love her. That is. Incredibly complex and beautiful to me.

Then we get some huge news...

Saul is not dead. The person who saved her and gave her hope and gave her the chance to get to where she is now, safe and happy and chasing the dream she picked up from the people of Ohara, so close she can almost taste it. He didn't die. He didn't die saving her.

She has

Come full circle. She has accepted her past and she is healing! Her bangs are the same, but her hair is still different! It's still longer, but it has a connection to that little girl who was lost and lonely. She also let someone else cut it, and not just anyone, but BROOK. The man who has kept his afro safe for 52 years so HIS friend could recognize him. To me, her hair in Elbaf is incredible. I take issues with the notion that "she's back" as if she ever left. This is new, this is different, and this is beautiful.

Thank you for reading my mini essay about her hair, but I really do think that character design means something. I don't think she's supposed to be a cold, badass. That was always an act. She just wants to love and be loved and she always has, and I think that her journey is portrayed beautifully by her hairstyles throughout the years.

[dceasesd]

why juni ba’s the boy wonder has my favorite jason characterization of any contemporary comic run: a needlessly in-depth analysis (pt.3)

go check out part 1 and part 2 if you'd like! this is a long one, sorry guys.

if you haven't already i'd recommend you check out pt. 1 & pt. 2 (linked above), but if you haven't checked them out i've been going over some of the main things people have been criticizing ba's characterization for: 1. the typical boiling down of jason's character to "the angry one" 2. his lack of strategy going into the fight with the demon is out-of-character 3. the neighbor's kid interaction

alright, so this last point is purely based off of one page of the entire comic: the one where the child of one of jason's neighbors is dragged inside his home when his mother see's jason coming.

first off, i love this page. it might be my favorite page in the entire issue. everything about it is great. just thought i needed to say that.

anyway, there's some people who are seeing this page and reading it as "jason protects kids! that's one of his big things! why are they scared of him?"

here's the thing, though: the kid isn't scared of jason, the mom is. the kid is literally playing dress up as the red hood-- he's not scared of jason, if anything he's trying to replicate him. little kids dress up as their heroes all the time; why is this kid any different? it doesn't really make sense for the kid to dress up of something he's scared of (not everyone is as weird bruce wayne), especially a real person that could be a real threat rather than a concept. i doubt you see many kids in gotham dressing up as the joker or something, because that's just asking for trouble.

the dress-up honestly seems like a ploy for attention to me. the kid clearly knows that red hood lives in his building (which is honestly so funny. take off the mask jason you're giving you're position away (actually this is a really good instance for analysis but i'm determined to not go on a tangent)). if the kid knows red hood lives in his building, what better way to get his attention that dressing up as him and playing pretend? if the kid was scared of him, he wouldn't want to draw that sort of attention to himself. if he had a sort of hero-worshippy thing going on like i suspect, then he would want to get jason's attention. to sum it up,

it's the mom who pulls him away when jason nears, because she either a) perceives him as a threat, b) doesn't want her kid to try and replicate him even more, or, the most likely option, both! the kid isn't scared of him, but the mother believes they should be.

once again, we come back to the whole perception vs. reality theme i talked about in part one! we've come full circle, everyone!

when looking at the neighborhood's perspective of the red hood, ba gives us a few contradictory examples. there's the kid and the mother, obviously, but there's also a slew of other citizens who interact with him at the beginning of the issue, both in fear and camaraderie.

the unhoused man and the people outside of his building clearly have a familiarity and are comfortable with him, while the shopkeeper is terrified and literally has a banned poster on his wall featuring jason (i am so curious what he did to deserve that, if he even did anything at all). from this, it appears that jason's reputation teeters between fearful and familiar-- a sentiment that also colors jason's relationship with his family.

furthermore, this concept underscores just how lonely jason is-- one of the only good relationships he had in his current life was his fucking landlord, for gods sake, and he's dead.

i think it's important to note that jason doesn't respond to the friendly greetings from the men-- he could attempt to build camaraderie, the roots are there, but he chooses not to. he could work to try and show the mother that her son is safe with him, but he chooses not to. why? jason is obviously lonely (as ba states in the panel below) and he caves pretty easily when damian asks him for help (both of them are so desperate for human interaction its tragic). so why does he distant himself from the community?

obviously it is in part due to the vigilante lifestyle, but it is also jason's perception of himself and how he believes others perceive him, especially in regards to his family (ba is literally hitting readers in the head with that theme baseball bat).

he doesn't see that the kid with the mask looks up to him, all he sees is the mother pulling him away. he sees the banned poster in the store. and, as ba narrates, "he was sure he'd been forgotten about" by his family. utrh is jason's twisted way of attempting to reach out and connect with bruce, and obviously that doesn't work-- so he chooses loneliness over rejection.

like in part one, though, damian refutes this idea by describing bruce's perspective, showing how what jason believes differs from actuality. bruce hasn't forgotten about him and doesn't hate him, as he suspected, but instead harbors guilt over the situation and desires to make it better, which jason must come to understand to be able to open the locked door and begin to move past his trauma.

so, that's what the little kid in the red hood outfit looks like to me. i actually have a lot more i'd like to say about the boy wonder, especially in regards to the whole "door to my past life" thing and what ba does with lighting and blocking in his artwork, so i may do a little post on that as well! i was gonna try and shove it into this one, but i've run out of room! i hope you guys liked my analysis, if you'd like to chat about the boy wonder or any other comics, my dms, asks, and reblogs are happily open! thanks for reading! :)) <3

pt. 1 / pt. 2

[ninja-knox-ur-sox-off]

(The conclusion) Chapter 22: Aftershocks (end.)

Aaaaa This is it! The last chapter of Wobbly Hearts! You know when I started working on this I never thought it would get as long as it did but I’ve loved writing every word.

Enjoy the chapter! Signing off for the last time, this has been

[seirindono]

Hello! I only *just* discovered your incredible comic for The Missing Scarf and just binged the entirety of it within a couple hours (I have a voracious appetite for the "good soup", don't judge!). I was wondering, the absolutely stunning page from the Interlude on page/part 25, do you happen to have a version of it without the text? Gaster is my all-time favorite UT character and that art you made of him is just beyond incredible! <3

Oooh, a new reader, welcome! ( ´ ▿ ` )

That's a lot to read in a few hours ahah, I hope you enjoyed it! You've got great timing too, Gaster only “recently” appeared in TMS, so not all readers had the chance to see him on their first read <<

I don't usually post pages without text, but let's make an exception just this once, since I'm a big fan of the goop man as well...

[llamaisllama777]

I... I think I know what's going on.

Theory: Nexus ain't dead. We're all still playing Dark Sun's game!

(Nexus fans, you're gonna love this. I know I am)

Okay, so, in today's episode, we see Moon travels to another dimension cause of a dimensional anomaly and sees a Sun bashing his Moon's skull in. Moon is obviously startled and horrified by this, and after a little investigation, Moon finds out something is wrong in the multiverse, apparently in 36% of the multiverse a bunch of Suns have started to kill their Moons.

Why? How? What caused this? What triggered it? Suns just don't start randomly murdering Moons...

I think we may have an answer...

Nexus isn't really gone. Dark Sun is still pulling the strings.

Okay, so, remember this episode?

In this episode, Dark Sun asks Nexus' permission and full trust to do something. Now we never found out what this something was until now, I think.

Dark Sun also mentioned in this episode or a different one he says that Nexus wouldn't have the same body forever. I thought he meant like he'd make Nexus a new body to contain his negative star power, but no. He just meant Nexus wouldn't have the same body... he never said he'd make him a new one.

In this episode...

Dark Sun briefly mentions to Sun that whoever he chooses to kill, he will exsponge the data of them so they couldn't come back... this means Dark Sun has access to Moon and Nexus' code... he has their code. Hmmmm....

Plus, Dark Sun did have access to Ruin a.k.a, a guy who had been exposed and probably knows how to make the Ruin virus...

Nexus isn't gone. He's just not in our world anymore. He's in EVERY WORLD NOW!

When Sun killed Nexus, that's what Dark Sun wanted. He didn't want Moon to die. That wouldn't benefit him. He needed Nexus to die to complete his plan. Dark Sun has access to Nexus' code and Ruin, a guy who knows an awful lot about the Ruin virus he probably knows how to make it, too.

Dark Sun wanted Sun to kill Nexus, so Nexus would die and become pure code, Dark Sun could then spread Nexus around the multiverse like a virus and cause other Moon's to go rouge and become Nexuses which would cause other Suns to kill their Moons and become like Dark Sun in a sense.

Dark Sun did say he did all this for Sun and probably every other Sun.

Dark Sun is trying to prove to all Suns that all Moons are bad and that they're better off without them. But of course, in the grand scheme of the multiverse, not EVERY Moon can be bad, so Dark Sun and Nexus MADE them bad.

Dark Sun is trying to create more hims cause he does view himself as the Superior Sun, the Sun that grew up, the Sun that grew a spine, the Sun that fought back!

Dark Sun views himself as a sort of savior of Suns, and in his twisted mind, he's trying to save the other Suns from being used and abused by their Moons. He's trying to prove his point that all Moons are bad, but since not every Moon is bad, he had to make them bad to prove his point. (Which kind of defeats his point, but I digress)

Dark Sun is trying to do this to save the other Suns! By ruining the other Moons!

Tl;Dr Nexus isn't dead and is now pure code, and Dark Sun is having him go around the multiverse, turning all Moon's into Nexuses to prove his point that all Moons are bad and make more Suns like himself.

But hey, that's just a theory...

A TSAMS THEORY!

[anicream]

[loganslowdown4]

‘I thought I was your hero’

‘You are!’

Incoming Long Roman Theory…

❤️🤍❤️🤍❤️🤍

Rewatching POF and Roman’s struggle with questioning what cThomas really believes based on what Janus implied made me realize something about how we look at the word ‘HERO’ in Roman’s vocabulary. I don’t think Roman has ever meant ‘hero’ in the swashbuckling, saving people, fighting villains, heroic sense (even though he acts like it and I’m sure casts himself that way in the imagination). WHAT HE ACTUALLY MEANS when Roman asked if he is a HERO, is if he is still the FACE or embodiment of how Thomas presents himself as a ‘hero’ in real life: aka a morally upstanding person.

In POF, Patton and Roman discuss why we have morals and how we use them to do good in the world. It is important to note that this episode was mainly a discussion between Patton and Roman for a reason: because if Patton is the moral BRAIN behind all Thomas’ decisions, then Roman is the FACE of all the moral decisions Patton makes. He follows Patton’s lead and acts as the ‘hero’ (and this is what the ego really does). So as the ‘FACE’ of Thomas, any actions taken means Roman is the one getting all the praise first hand, but is also taking the brunt of the criticisms too. For example, when Thomas went to that musical audition and forgot the words to the music, Roman hid. He was a ‘bruised ego’, getting the brunt of the criticism (or what he thought was worse than actually was). Roman has called himself a knight, a warrior, and a big reason why is that he faces all ‘battles’ of Thomas’ head on. It’s not just for the charming fairytale fanciful aesthetic (maybe it started that way). But I believe Roman’s character has developed into this complexity.

Roman’s role is to protect Thomas not only from objective criticisms, but also from failures of a moral decision. It explains why it was Roman who ultimately made the call to go to the wedding and not the callback. Even though Patton lost that debate in the courtroom, Roman knew that the morally correct decision was always to go support Thomas’ friends. He stood up and was the hero Patton and Thomas needed, despite any other disagreements or backlash. He knew that there was risk in this decision either way and it took a lot of strength to make that choice.

Here, Roman, saying that it was his fault for making the decision difficult to go to the wedding or callback, shows his willingness to take the brunt of any criticism, ultimately being the hero. He’s a drama king for real, but Thomas knew it wasn’t Roman’s fault for making the decision hard or even making the decision in the first place, and said so. Still, Roman tries because if it helps makes Thomas feel better, he’s willing to do it.

Another thing I need to point out: Roman getting upset when Patton said when doing anything charitable or morally correct, you can’t take ANYTHING away from it, including self-satisfaction or PRIDE. Roman is literally Thomas’ PRIDE and EGO. Denying Roman his pride, when he is constantly working to keep all of them safe from criticism, means he’s not allowed to be at all satified by the GOOD MORAL WORK he does do. It’s no wonder it felt unfair to him.

Finally, when Janus criticized the moral standard that Patton and Roman are trying to have Thomas live up to, Roman was personally offended. He has been doing his best to show the world that Thomas is a good person (which he is).

Here, when Roman is questioning how selfish Thomas will be before he feels ‘satisfied’ he says ‘you’ll have us believe that that time will never come’ which means that doing ANYTHING morally good, even the bare minimum, will deserve a reward, self-satifaction and more selfish time spent. This change in moral trajectory goes against what Roman has worked so hard for, following Patton’s lead and making those sacrifices. At the end, Patton’s main goal was changed to keep Thomas happy, which looked like he basically gave up and switched allegiance to Janus’ new plan. Does this mean Janus is the new ‘face’ of how Thomas presents himself and not Roman? THIS is why Roman left like he did; it felt like a betrayal.

There’s a lot unresolved and a lot that Thomas has to work out with Roman. But ultimately, Roman will always be a hero. He’ll be Thomas’ hero. Because he’s the one that makes Thomas a hero to everyone else. Time will tell and we shall see!

[starkidmunson]

glitter & crimson

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

Time passes in ways Eddie doesn’t fully understand, in the aftermath of Steve’s injury.

A few days are spent lounging around the hotel room with Steve drifting in and out of sleep, for the most part. Then they graduate to small day trips. Squeeze in some touristy shit; museums and landmarks not too far from the hotel, in case Steve gets a migraine or starts feeling nauseous. 

Day 6 features a follow-up at the hospital, where Steve is told the bandage is no longer necessary to cover the worst of the injury, surgery won’t be necessary, and he’s clear to fly home or wherever else he wants to go. Which means Eddie is also free to leave LA, but he’s already stuck it out this long, so he decides to continue to follow Steve’s lead and spend another day.

He gets a call from Steve before he leaves his hotel room on Day 7, informing him that Max is leading a trip to the beach before they leave California again. Steve insists it’s the least he can do since Lucas flew out to spend the last few days with her, so she could stick around until Steve was clear to travel again.

And that’s how Eddie finds himself wearing lavender board shorts from the surf shop that looked the least like a tourist trap, dousing himself with an entire bottle of the highest SPF he can find before stepping out of the store. His black ripped jeans and the Judas Priest shirt he’d worn, not anticipating a trip to the beach, are folded into the bottom of a large tote Robin is carrying with ease, as she picks out towels for everyone to lounge on. She catches sight of him and raises an eyebrow, but he holds his hand up to stop any commentary.

“Black is just going to make me burn even more than I’m already going to burn, and the blue pair I liked were the wrong size, so lavender it is.” He defends, but she just shrugs at him, keeps smiling and walks over to pay for the towels and her bathing suit.

Behind Eddie, Lucas clears his throat. He spins to find Steve, blushing and glaring at Lucas, who’s grinning. 

“What? Don’t tell me I need to defend the trunks to you guys, too. I thought you’d be on my side.” He whines.

“Oh, I don’t think Steve has any issue with your shorts. Or lack of a top.” Lucas teases, then laughs as Steve swings a soft punch into his shoulder.

“I just…” Steve trails off, turning his attention back to Eddie and Eddie can see the heat rise from Steve’s cheeks up to the tips of his ears, coloring him a soft shade of pink. “I didn’t realize how many tattoos you actually have, I guess.” He eventually settles on, before immediately occupying himself with finding sunscreen.

Eddie lets it slide, and they all pay for what they need, before crossing the street and trekking toward the water. Max is the first to toss her shorts and sandals into a pile, running toward the ocean and diving into the first wave she encounters. Lucas is just a step behind her, and he’s quick to catch her waist and throw the two of them back into the water just as she’s resurfacing.

Robin shoves a rented umbrella into the sand and Eddie helps expand it, as Steve lays out his towel so his face is covered by the umbrella’s shade, but his torso down is exposed to the sun. Eddie, on the other hand, huddles up so most of his body is concealed by the umbrella.

“Oh shit, dude, I didn’t even think to ask. Are you worried about getting seen out here or something?” Steve asks, and Eddie frowns. It takes a moment before he realizes it probably seems like he’s hiding from any potential paparazzi.

“I get bothered so little by media that I hadn’t even thought about that if I’m being honest.” Eddie shakes his head but smiles at how thoughtful Steve is. “I’m just a little too pasty to trust the sun on a cloudy day, so direct exposure like this always makes me nervous. But I like laying in the sand and I’m happy you wanted me to tag along. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” he assures Steve, who smiles at him until Robin mocks a gagging noise and makes them both blush and look away from one another.

The salt air and crescendo of waves and bellowing laughter kick up a surprising amount of inspiration for Eddie, and he fishes his phone out of Robin’s bag, typing away while she and Steve sunbathe. 

He’s so caught up in the piece he’s working out that he doesn’t realize anyone has spoken to him until Steve’s pressing a hand to his knee, looking a little concerned. 

“What? Sorry, I got an idea and I had to get it out before I forgot about it.” He mumbles, typing out his final thoughts before giving Steve his full attention.

“We’re going to return the umbrella and grab food before heading back to the hotel to pack up, if you’re hungry?” Steve asks, smiling at Eddie. He looks back at his phone to realize their hour with the rented umbrella is nearly up, so he nods and helps clean up the space they’d taken over, before they find a beachfront restaurant that doesn’t mind that none of the guys are wearing shirts, or that Max’s hair is still dripping wet, leaving a trail behind her as they move to their seats.

Once they’ve eaten, they go back to the hotel. Eddie asks if he can shower to get the sand out of his hair before he changes back into the clothes he’d had on pre-trip to the beach. When he re-enters the room, almost everything is packed up and Robin is on the balcony, talking on the phone.

“Nancy called,” Steve explains from the sofa, as Eddie flops beside him, towel-drying his hair gently. He hadn’t bothered to put his shirt on yet, not wanting his hair to make it all wet while it air dries. “Did they hurt?”

“Hm?” Eddie’s confused instantly, looking at Steve before realizing he’s eyeing the tattoos across his chest. “Some of ‘em more than others, yeah. But it’s a good kind of hurt.”  Eddie explains, and Steve frowns, but that’s okay because Eddie knows not everyone gets what he means whenever he explains the tattooing experience like that. “It’s… kinda like if you have itchy sunburn and you accidentally scratch it? It feels good to have scratched it, but it also hurts.” When Steve still looks confused, it’s Eddie’s turn to frown. He looks over Steve’s exposed arms and takes in the soft golden color they’ve turned and his eyes narrow. “Do not tell me you’re one of those genetic anomalies that doesn’t sunburn and always has a perfect tan, Stevie.”

Now Steve is grinning, throwing a shrug in Eddie’s direction. “Blame it on the 8 years of swim club during the summer off-season.” Steve laughs as an explanation, and Eddie instantly wants to know more about everything Steve has ever done in his life, but doesn’t know where to draw the line at how much is too much to ask to know, so he ultimately doesn’t ask for any further information. Which is fine, because Steve is leaning closer and taking hold of his left forearm, twisting it and tracing a finger along a snake that wraps around his skin. “Do they have meanings?”

“Some of them, yeah. Some of them I just got because I liked how they look.” Eddie admits, watching Steve’s fingers trace along the delicate lines of the snake. “That one’s got its mouth open like it’s hissing and about to bite.” Eddie considers what comes next, and decides to just lay it all out on the table. Steve had been open and honest with him, Eddie could return the favor. “Snakes are supposed to be a symbol of inner strength and perseverance, and they look sick. I got it after my first stint in rehab.”

Steve doesn’t falter, doesn’t even blink, and if Eddie didn’t know better, he would think Steve had already known about his trips to rehab before he’d said anything. Instead, he moves on to trace a blackout band around Eddie’s bicep. “Do any of them have stories you want to share? You don’t have to if it’s too personal.”

He’s stunned to silence for a moment, something that doesn’t often happen to Eddie. But he’s so used to everyone pressing to hear more about rehab and addiction and recovery that his brain physically needs a moment to catch up to Steve. “Oh. Uh. I mean, the one you’re touching doesn’t have a meaning or story, I just liked how it looks.” Eddie thinks for a moment, then, before he holds out the inside of his right forearm. “This one is a puppet master. Master of Puppets is my favorite Metallica song, and when I learned to play it is when I realized that music could actually be a career path for me.” They run through a few other tattoos; the Wyvern, the spider, the “you bow to no one” in elvish down his spine. While still working up the courage to tell Steve more, he switches his approach. “Do you have any tattoos? Or have you ever wanted any?”

“I’ve never thought about it in a serious way, because I’m not sure I’d like having something on me permanently like that.” Steve shrugs, flipping his arm over to point at his right wrist. “The few times I’ve thought about it, it’s been like. A robin, here. The Roman numerals for 94 somewhere. That kind of stuff.”

Eddie smiles softly, nods. “It’s adorable that you’d want one for Robin.” He teases and lets the moment breathe for a moment before he circles back to the tattoo of the snake. “I’m not ashamed of my story, or my history, but we hadn’t really talked about, you know. That aspect of things, yet. But, I mean. I made terrible choices when I was younger, and I got in over my head with drugs harder than I realized. And it’s happened more than once. And I’m not naive enough to think I’m magically cured because drugs haven’t raised an issue for me over the last few years. But I’ve been mostly sober for almost 4 years.”

“Mostly?” Steve asks, concern clear in how softly he speaks, and Eddie can’t help but grin and shrug a little.

“Still some weed sometimes. Still drink beer sometimes. Both in moderation, not anything out of control. It, uh, probably sounds weird but those weren’t substances I had issues with, so I don’t… I don’t really think about drinking or smoking as cheating, but I know some programs would call it that way.” He shrugs, and Steve nods, processing the information.

“Well, thanks for sharing that with me. I know it’s probably not easy to talk about, but. I learned a few new things about you today.” He offers with a little smile, and Eddie nods back. They slip back into silence, until Robin slips back into the room, looking between the two of them expectantly.

“Did you ask him?” She asks, and when Eddie turns his attention to Steve, he flushes.

“No, I uh…” He trails off, picking at a fingernail before looking up at Eddie, then back down at his hands. “We’re flying back to Chicago tomorrow, and we were wondering if you had your plans set for heading back to Nashville?”

“Oh, yeah. When you guys initially said you’d be leaving tomorrow, I booked a flight home for tomorrow afternoon.” He says and watches Steve’s lack of reaction. Wonders if he should have asked about joining them in Chicago until Steve gives an awkward smile. 

“Right, that makes sense.” He nods. “Well, we can all head to the airport together, at least?”

“Yeah, sure.” Eddie agrees, turning to look at Robin in the hopes of finding an explanation, but she turns away to take her turn in the shower, leaving Steve and Eddie together on the sofa.

~~~

Gareth picks Eddie up from the airport once he’s touched down in Nashville, and they head back to his house. Eddie throws himself into the comfort of his sofa, huddling up to a pillow with the intention of taking a nap, but his phone buzzes in his pocket. When he fishes it out, he smiles.

Stevie: Dustin has taken over the apartment, but we’re home. Hope you got home safe, too.

“Why are you smiling?” Gareth asks as Eddie is typing out his response.

“I’m not smiling,” Eddie responds instantly, schooling his expression and shoving his phone back in his pocket.

“Oh, so Steve texted you,” Gareth says, matter-of-factly, before scrolling on his own phone. “Want to order food? I’m hungry and you don’t have anything edible.”

“Why do you assume Steve texted me?” Eddie asks, frowning and sitting up straighter.

Gareth raises his eyebrow and glances over his phone at Eddie before he sighs. “Because you were making that face you’ve been making for the last month every time you text him, and you just got home from a week with him, so obviously he’s texting you again. Your turn to answer; food?”

Eddie stares at Gareth for a moment, watches as he turns his phone around to face Eddie, showing off the Uber Eats screen, before he scoffs and takes the phone to place his order. Before he hands it back to Gareth, though, he holds it just out of his reach. “What face am I making?”

“C’mon, Eddie, don’t play dumb.” Gareth laughs, but Eddie frowns deeper. Gareth frowns back, then. “You really haven’t put it together?”

“Put what together?” Eddie asks, finally handing Gareth his phone back. Gareth takes it, but doesn’t look away from Eddie until he answers.

“Dude, you’re in love with him.” He says, like it’s obvious, before going about placing his own order.

Eddie thinks for a moment. He knows he has feelings for Steve; finds him attractive and interesting and definitely wants to see if something is there. But to know that his friends can see through him puts him on edge, makes him defensive. “I’m not in love with him, we’re just friends.”

“Eddie,” Gareth laughs before he sees the serious look on Eddie’s face and he sighs. “Look, man. I’m not trying to start a fight or make you spiral or anything. I’m just saying. You leaned into a TikTok trend for him, voluntarily learned about the sport he plays, helped nurse him back to health after he got hurt and spent an extra week in LA to be with him longer. And now you’re texting him, again, like you did after we left Chicago. There’s something there, whether you want to admit it or not. Maybe it’s not love yet, but that’s where it’s heading.”

Silence settles over them, just the sound of Gareth’s short nails tapping against the screen of his phone, for a long moment. Eddie processes what he’s said, thinks it over, before flipping back to the text messages from Steve. He reads the words over and over before he decides on an answer.

Eddie: Glad you’re home safe. Miss you already.

He doesn’t have to wait long for a response, as Steve answers no more than two minutes later.

Steve: I miss you already, too, Eds.

Eddie considers responding but decides to tuck the phone back into his pocket instead. He drums his fingers against his knee, settling into a melody before he nudges Gareth’s leg with his foot. 

“Wanna help me set up the studio downstairs while we wait for the food?”

Gareth meets his look, raising an eyebrow. “Inspiration strikes over Steve Harrington?”

“I’ve got, like, four different ideas I started fleshing out in LA without instruments,” Eddie answers instead and ignores the smug look on Gareth’s face as they stand and make their way to the basement Eddie converted into a recording studio to get it ready while their food is delivered.

[katcoin]

Festival of the Lost

Ch. 1 Festival of the lost. 

(TW: stealing,)

A child walked through the streets of Itahlis, the city of the Gods. Your [favorite color] jacket rubbed up against peoples arms as you walked by. Smoothly after rubbing up against someone's shoulder, you took his wallet from his pocket and walked like nothing happened. You opened the wallet and started to count the money, only a measly twenty bucks. Yeah sure it was money non the less but it won’t pay for anything nowadays. Not even a small pitcher of water at the pipes. You stuffed the money into your backpack and threw the wallet in a random direction. You stomped through the mod with your boots splashing some water onto other people. You didn’t care if people scowled at you and told you to slow down in the streets! You had places to be! And you didn’t care if that man you stole the wallet from was his last money. It was a dog eat dog world! Be the predator or be prey whatever you want to say. But it wasn’t your fault, well the act of stealing was but Ithalis being like this is because of them. The Gods…

“Hey [name]!” You heard a lady call out. You turned your head over and saw Mrs. Trun, the local fisher. First she saw your hair poking out of your hood then your face half hidden in a turtle neck making it look like you were wearing a scarf at all times. You ran over to her with a cheeky smile on your face. 

“Mrs. Trun!” You put your hands on the desk of her stall. “My best buddy, pal, friend, the best fisher in the world!” You started twirling your finger on the desk, giving her puppy dog eyes trying to coax her to give you some fish scraps to eat. “You got, I don’t know… Anything free? To eat? Probably now?” You gave her one of your signature bright wide smiles to sell it even more. 

“Oh you cheeky little thing, here.” She gave you two fish in a paper bag and beer, fried fish filet and some fries. “If you weren’t such a cheeky little thing I would haven’t given you anything to take it.” Mrs.Trun faced away from you and started to chop a head off a fish. 

“Thanks Mrs. Trun! I promise to pay you back one day! Gods’ blessings” You ran off waving to her.

“Yeah yeah go off before a cop catches you stealing again! And tell Howland I said hello!” She shouts towards you. You laughed, another perk of stealing, you met friends you thought you would ever have. You happily started to munch on the fish fillet like a hungry animal, well probably because you were one. You walked past an alley and saw a little girl around five curling into herself, she was dressed in rags and looked worse than most of the slums you see down in the depths of Ithalis. You frowned and finished the first fish fillet and placed the rest of the fish and fries down towards her. You still held the fish in the bag in your arms and spoke. 

“I am only giving you this because I pity you. We kids have it rough down here you know,” You spoke, the girl looked up to you and smiled, some of her teeth were missing and you couldn’t see her eyes from under her hair, but she looked as happy as the God’s would have been if they found Areti. She took the food and started to eat. “Kids down here can get themselves killed, go to the Mr.Truns fish stall, say that [name] sent you, you will be able to get some more food…” The girl said nothing but you knew you she took your word. You turned on your heel and left the alley. Yeah sure you were a classified stealer having your own wanted posters and everything, but you weren’t that heartless. 

You took the rest of your walk dodging local soldier stations in the streets of Itahlis like you have done thousands of times. Like on autopilot you crossed over the abandoned railroad tracks, walked past the slightly better part of Itahlis (it's better because the shops actually have buildings and less graffiti) year sure it was still dirty and you have found both dead and alive rats but it was still better. But nothing could be better than Itahlis’ topside. Or as we all know the heavenly court. Bright lights that made the night look like day, extravagant shops with even more fancy wear, and finally even more delicious food. Your mouth just watered thinking of it. But you snapped out of it from a gust of wind passing you. It was a speeding car. 

“HEY--!” You stopped before you could get another word out, yeah black fancy car. One of the Gods goons. You didn’t want them on your tail again. Never again… Finally you reached Starfall bridge. It was still half built and the once lake that swept under the bridge now swept a few miles away to the water reserve for Itahlis. So now Starfall bridge is just a bridge, over a bare patch of dirt. You walked under the bridge and grabbed a stick with a bell on it. You pounded the stick on the floor, the bell ringing out. You didn’t care if it was loud or not, the only people who come out to the outskirts of this part of the City are only dealers or people who poke the Gods’ goons a little too much for their liking. A quiet but silky voice spoke out. 

“A child who ran to be remembered, gone over the hills and far away…” It was a man’s voice, it was calm and soothing, one you almost heard each day. 

“Just let me in Howland!” You whined, placing back against the bridge wall. “It’s [Name]! Come on! I don’t want some dealer driving by and seeing me here!!” 

“I said finish the verse child…” Howland's voice went annoyed. And you stomped your feet and sighed. 

“Shall rise again to be heard! Now can you-- WOWOWAHHHHHH!!” The trapped door under your feet mid sentence making your free fall. Luckily it was an abandoned sewer so, it was just a tunnel you ended up screaming your head off and sliding down. You finally make it to the end of the tunnel rowling in. You sat up brushing the dirt off of your sweater and stood up. “Next time warn me… I felt like I was about to die…” 

“Take off your boots little one, you will muddy the floor.” Howland sat in the middle of grounds. Yes both of you lived in the sewers, atleast you two weren’t some turtles in hiding or something. The bottom of the sewers were illuminated by candles and the walls were adorned with talismans, books, and scriptures scattered around. “Welcome home [name] I missed you, did Mrs. trun give you some fish?” he turned over to from where he was sitting. Howland was holding different scriptures in his hands looking through them. You walked over to him and opened up the bag of fish. He smiled and pointed over the small pot and stove on the ground. You nodded and placed the bag next the the two pillows used as chairs near the stove and went over the Howland. “Help me stand child,” Howland lifted up his lifted arm for you to put over your shoulder. You raised him up, you saw his missing left leg, you wished that you sometimes didn’t steal. You know what they say, eye for and eye, a leg for a leg. 

“What do you want to make today Howland?” You helped him sit down on one of the pillows and sat on the one adjacent to him. 

“Just grilled fish like always” Howland leaned over and opened up the bag of fish and removed the pot just leaving the spot for the fire. Howland took the flint and steel and started the fire, he placed the fish on top of the fire and let it cook. 

“Howland,” You said, getting comfortable on the pillow. “Tell me another story?” 

“Of course, how about the hare and the star again?” Howland moved some of his white hair away from his scarf tucking it behind his ear. 

“No, how about a new one?” You looked down at the fish cooking, it made a satisfying crackling noise once in a while. 

“How about I tell you the story on how I found you?” Howland reached forward and flipped over both fish, letting the other side cook evenly. You nodded your head and he laughed. “Once upon a time, long ago, maybe 10-14 years in the past,” He blew the smoke  away from the both of you with his fan grabbing some salt near him and sprinkling some on the fish. “A man, me, walked along the path back to the sewers after a festival of the lost and telling stories for all to hear.” He took a breath then looked at you. “He then heard a cry, a baby's cry, the man walked over to the little one’s wails and pleaded for food and saw a little baby [name] wrapped in cloth.” You giggled hearing your name. “Yes, the man picked up the baby, he was panicking thinking, “a child in the middle of Ithalis all alone? What should I do? Where are their parents? But after a bit of searching, the man found out that the baby was abandoned and forgotten.” Howland took the two fishes and put them on sticks, handing one to you and having one for himself. “So being the nice man he is, he took the little babe in and raised them as his own, growing up strong, beautiful, and more amazing than he could ever dream of.” After Howland said this you giggled from his complement. 

“Aww, Howland! You complained to me too much!” You bit into the fish instantly jolting back forgetting it was straight off the fire. “Ow, ow! Hot!” Howland then laughed to himself.

“[name] can you please grab the water for us?” You nodded, placing the flush down on the fire to keep it warm and grabbing a small jug of water and two cups, giving one to him and holding another one for you. He poured himself a cup and then you. “To the Gods, and may they bless our family for years to come.” He raised his glass over the fire. You put your glass against his making a small clink sound. 

“To the Gods…” You took a sip from your drink, and so did howland both of you enjoying your dinner. 

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.

Both of you just finished your dinner, you helping Howland get to his bed and you putting out the fire. After, you removed your coat and layed down in your bed right next to Howland. 

“You must know that the festival of the Lost is tomorrow, yes [name]?” Howland turned over to you, he covered himself in quilts and pillows. “I was invited to tell another one of my fables to the children…” You turned over to him holding your sleeping pillow close to your  chest getting a little sleepy. “You know I can’t drive anymore, and the festival is too far away, please drive me over.” He looked at you sympathetically. 

“Howland…” You took a deep breath and sighed. “I don’t even know how to drive.” You were trying to hold back a smile, it was like asking a newborn to run after coming out of the womb. 

“You know how to ride a bike, I-I have a motorcycle, please [name]? For me?” he looked at you and gave you puppy eyes, dang you can no to that.

“Isn’t it illegal to drive at my age?” You looked at him mockingly of course it was. 

“[name] you steal for us to get by, driving a motorcycle won’t be a problem for you. After a small bit of awkward silence, both of you burst out laughing. “Than--AHAH! Then it’s settled then!” Howland snorted which caused you to laugh harder. “You are going to bring me to the festival of the lost!” You nodded as both of you quieted down and went to sleep.

Now looking back you wish that you never agreed. 

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.

Howland held onto the staff that you used to open the sewer, it was actually his walking cane. He wore his story telling robe meant only for special occasions. It was really fancy too. “Now child you press your foot onto the pedal and--” You slammed your foot onto the pedal making you jolt forward on the bike scaring the living ghost out of you. “[NAME]! Slow down! Ok press it slowly, slowly…” Howland slowly walked towards you as you were done. The bike went at a normal speed, surprisingly, you were learning fast! Unlike the cooking incident. (we don’t talk about the poor chicken you destroyed that day.) 

“I’m getting it!” You drove in a circle around him, it was just like he said, driving a bike. More dangerous, might be able to explode your bike!

“I knew you can do it little one, now come on, let's go,” He handed you a helmet which squished your cheeks a bit, and Howland didn’t wear one since both of you didn’t have a second. Howland climbed onto the bike sitting right behind you hugging you for support. “Now, to the festival of the lost!” He commanded, causing you to drive at full speed, making him yelp, almost dropping his cane which he held while hugging you. But you had your own reason for coming, to steal. Yes it was pathetic that all you can think of is stealing, but not just from anyone, Not someone’s wallet. Not someone's purse. Not some child’s candy, no. You were going to steal from the top. Steal from the harbinger’s crown. And get away with it!  It won’t only just be for your gain, for all the people that suffer under his boot. Ms.Trun with her fish selling going down by the year, the little girl in the streets that you gave food too, for Howland who had to live in the sewers so that the harbinger’s goons won’t steal his other leg, and for all of the people of Italhis who suffers because of the Gods. 

Little do you know they will be the one stealing you. 

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.

You pressed the brake button on the motorcycle coming to a full stop, you parked right in front of the little theatre that Howland was supposed to perform at. “See you later Howland! I’m going to explore!” You were about to skip off (Steal some old ladies pearls) before Howland called out to you. 

“You sure [name]?” He looked to you all worried. “The last thing I want for you is to get thrown in jail, or worse, hurt…” Howland walked over to you and hugged you once more. “Don’t forget to come back before 7 a’clock ok? (19 o'clock military time)” You nodded as he squeezed you once more. “I love you, my child,” He patted your head as you laughed.

“Come on! It’s not like I’m going to be snatched right? I’ll come back.” You were about to skip off until…

“Wait!” Howland called out once more. 

“What about this time?!” You turned around your hands in your pockets.

“Do you have the offering for the procession?” 

“Yeah duh!” You stuck your tongue out as you pulled a singular sugar cube out of your pocket and held it up like it was a priceless gem. 

“Good, now don’t get lost.” Howland waved goodbye as he walked into the theatre. Making you go off onto your stealing mission once more. 

You finally arrived at where the procession of the Gods was supposed to be, it was heavily guarded with royal personnel everywhere. Of course it was! Everyone who lived toward the center of Itahlis got more and more richer, until you reached the heavenly court. The closer you got, the more people who worked for, or were related to the Gods themselves. A guard with a golden helmet and trident walked up to you towering over. “Offering for submission?” The man held out his free hand towards you unmoving. You smirked and handed him the sugar cube. The guard looked at you and scoffed, until he realized you were being serious. “Y-you may pass…” He opened the gate and let you in. As you walked into the procession, it was well what you expected, extravagant. Performers, food venders, pop up shops, and finally the crowd of people for the procession. You could practically feel your mouth drooling with all the beautiful things around you. All of the Beautiful things you can steal. You looked at the floats carefully, each one designed with such detail and accuracy, each one can be its own piece of art, and the subject in the middle, the corresponding god. No, it wasn’t some little actor impersonating them, it was the real deal.

You pushed yourself to the front of the crowd to check where the harbinger’s float was. Exactly where you thought it was, all the way at the end, dang idiot always wanted to make an entrance huh? He was lazing around on his throne, being fed grapes by a servant and another coming his long dark blue hair, and you mean long. Floor touching long. You looked around and found a building with a ladder. You rushed over bumping into a few people and scrambling up to the roof. “Ok, [name] jumping off a roof won’t be that hard! It’s just like falling down a sewer’s hole, just like falling down a sewer's hole…” You gulped as you saw Anris’ float just past by, crowds were hurling her name as she waved kindly to all the children she spotted in the crowd. Finally saw the Harbinger’s float right under your roof it was time. You walked backwards a bit and leaped off at full speed. If you weren’t terrified for your life, it would have felt like flying. You landed right behind the giant fan looking thing on his float, you didn’t care what it was, just how much you were going to take. You stood up seeing you had landed perfectly ok. It seems that you landed at a weird backstage part that no one cared to look at, good. You peeked your head out to see where the float was going, you had to be fast. 

You skillfully climbed to the top of the float making sure not to be seen sitting right above the Harbinger’s throne. You reached over your hand, slightly touching his crown. It was a beautiful black material with silver engraving carved into it. It wrapped around his head like a headband. You started to slightly nudge it. This technique always worked on people you stole hats from. It will work on him, right? Inch by inch, one little touch by the minute. You got the crown off. You held the Harbinger’s crown in your hands. The symbol of all of Ithalis was in your hands. 

“So you were the child who offered the sugar cube at the offerings.” You heard a deep rough voice speak. You went pale, you could feel the blood retreat from your body and your eyes met with the Harbinger’s. You were shaking all over as he stared at you. Well, answer me!” He stood up fully making you fall off from where you were sitting scrambling over to be behind his throne. He scoffed and grabbed you by the scruff bringing you to the center of the float. “Answer for your crimes child or–” 

“I-I didn’t mean to I!” You tried to plead to be let go, but suddenly a splitting headache burst into your mind, it felt like someone was trying to rip your head open and crush it at the same time. These memories started flashing. 

“You’re useless Areti!” flash. 

“Why do I even consider you my child, get out of my sight!” flash. 

“I can’t stay here much longer…” You saw through the eyes of someone who wasn’t you. You saw your hands? No one's hands packing something. But before you can register what was going on, flash. 

“Areti–” flash. “RUN AND NEVER LOOK BACK!” flash. “MY CHILD!” Flash. “ARETI!” flash. It was like your whole life was playing in front of you. Was it even your life anymore? Before you can grab another thought. You opened your eyes. You weren’t at the festival anymore. You were in space, a weird pocket dimension or something. You were laying down water covering you besides your face. You sat up panicking, breathing shallowly. What is going on?! Stars were in the water like they were coconuts and planets were looming over your head, until you heard a voice. 

“[Name] of iIhalis!” You spin your head around frightened. A person around your age floated above you, they had fluffy unruly hair with a poncho with no sleeves covering them like a blanket. And finally holding a staff with a dark star encased inside its curve. They were literally glowing as they landed bare feet onto the water, their feet faded from an inky black to a pearly white, and their hands were detached from their body making them look outlandish by the second. “Do you know who I am?” You shook your head scrambling to your feet. Both of you were the exact same height too. The kid in front of you also had a four cornered star over their right eye. Wait, you knew that star face before. Areti. The kid standing in front of you was Areti deity of the lost, wanderers, and children. 

“A-Areti?” You blinked in disbelief. 

“Ba-ba-ba-BINGO! AHAHA!” Areti flew up into the sky and celebrated, the planets and stars around you lit up or span reacting at the same time as Areti. “I knew I chose the right one!” They floated down towards you, their bare feet landing on your shoulders making you stumble around. “You see, I need a successor!” 

“What?! NOw?!” You voiced cracked as you finally balanced your weight with Areti’s. 

“Yep! And you're perfect for the job!” They floated off of you taking their staff planting it on water below both of you and balancing on it like it was a tightrope. “You stole from the Harbinger! My dad! The ruler of Heaven!” They finally landed on the floor right in front of you. You looked closely, they look almost like you, same face shape, smile, hair type (well more messy) everything! Well besides the star shape over their eye. “I didn’t even have the guts to do that!” Then Areti’s face became serious. “As you know, I jumped down from heaven and ran away blah blah blah blah! But in the process I gave up my immortal power. I still had it with me, just I couldn’t tap into it anymore…” They took their staff and placed it in front of you pointing to the star balancing in it. That star was their power. “I know dumb decision! But, that is where your story begins!” They circled around the water making small ripples. “If you didn’t know already, you are the reincarnation, yours truly, Me!” 

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN REINCARNATION?!” You were terrified, surprised, appalled, flabbergasted, any word you can use to describe this moment, it will work. Who were you anymore? Were you [name]? Or Areti? You started to breathe shallowly again.  What is going on?!

“Well of course you weren’t the only one!” Areti laid back floating in the air. “There were many before you, many!” They started to count on their fingers. “Samantha, James, Liam, Quincy, and the list goes on!” they then flopped over putting their hands on your shoulders. “But they never knew! Just lived, died, and never knew that they were a reincarnation of a literal deity! But you know! So I have to ask you something…” Areti grabbed the star from their staff ripping it out, the cosmos around you faded until both of you were just standing in a black void. “Stop all of this madness, please, for my-- our, Our people.” 

“I-I can’t, I’m just a kid! Why couldn’t you wait until I was an adult?!” You pushed the star away from you Areti stood back. 

“It’s your choice in the end, I can take it back, you don’t have to if you don’t want to be a kid… It’s a dumb Idea anyways… Just gotta wait until the next reincarnation you know?” Areti placed the star back into their staff making the space scenery come back. 

“Wait!” If this means that you will be able to save everyone else from God's reign, then so be it. If this means everything will be better for everyone, for you, Howland, for the rest of the humans in Ithalis so be it! “I-I’ll do it.” You held out your hand for the star, Areti, smiled and pulled out the star. 

Areti pushed the star onto your face giving you the same mark that they had the same star shape over your eye. “Go on kid, do what I didn’t have the guts to do…” The ground started to warp under you pulling you down into the abyss. 

“WILL I EVER SEE YOU AGAIN?!” You grasped at the pit’s walk, they felt like fine silk. 

“MAYBE! GOOD LUCK LITTLE SUGAR CUBE!! AHAHA!” Areti waved to you goodbye as you were pulled into darkness once more. 

.

.

You woke up floating in the air, the whole crowd had their eyes on you. You hated it, it was like every since you had been enhanced. The mark on your face made it felt like your face was burning off. Your ears were bombarded with murmurs and whispers but one name was repeated over and over again. Areti… A bright light was behind you making you look. Behind you was a giant silhouette of Areti, they were glowing white they stood stern face unmoving as if three sets of floating arms were just sitting there, one pair held their staff, another was holding a wake ure you stay floated, and another set was caressing their cheeks. Behind them, was their sigil, each god had one. Their eyes that met yours, then it vanished making you fall to the ground. 

“A-Areti?” You whipped your head up again seeing the Harbinger’s. He ran over to you about to hug you. 

“What just happened?! What did you do?!” The whole experience happened because of the Harbinger’s touch, right? Instead of hugging you, he gently brought you up onto your feet. 

“You have their mark…” The Harbinger stroked your cheek making the mark sting, which made you hiss. He didn’t care though, his child, his baby was home. He spun you around the face of the crowd, everyone was silent at this point. You were at the end of the procession seeing that all of the floats were in a circle. Even the Gods were silent, some in the middle of an action stood still. A servant who was fixing the God of war, Adamis hair was stuck frozen in place, while Adamis himself jaw was agave. The harbinger held your hand up high like you won a fight and announced.  “CITIZENS OF ITHALIS!” Everyone was still silent. “ARETI! MY CHILD HAS COME HOME!” A weird awkward silence rang out until the crowd burst into cheers and claps making you jolt back a little. The harbinger bent down to you and picked you up like how you would with a baby. “You’re finally home my sweet, everyone is so happy… I’m sorry for making you run away…” He buried his head into your hair trying to stifle back a sob. He placed you down on the ground again wiping his tears and placing his hand on your back. You looked up at the crowd seeing all the other people cheer. You really hope that Areti chose the right person to give their power to… 

Note: So even if there wasn't anything really yandere until it's hinted towards the end, this is slightly going to be a slow burn thing where it will occur throughout the story instead of all at once! thank you for reading and bear with me!! I am free for questions about the story so my asks are always open!

[corfidbizna]

KHIII Final Chapter (Eng): https://www.mediafire.com/file/zyu4h1h9ajyoky7/KH3_Ch40.zip/file Chapter List

The finale, after all this time. No Re:Mind, but we got a little bit of secret video in here. >: ) Thank you for reading~

[gravitywonagain]

Can't Cheat Death While You're Digging Your Own Grave; Part 4

Continued from [1][2][3]

What if Nie Huaisang and Wei Wuxian were closer? Sworn brothers, even? What if NHS visited WWX in Yiling?

Prompt from the wonderful @shiranai-atsune

[T (for now?), implied Wangxian, 1.4k, 4/?]

~

To say that the ambush was uneventful would technically be a lie. There were events. Upsetting ones, too. 

Nie Huaisang’s heart leapt into his throat and his feet froze to the ground when the Ghost General jolted abruptly -- a motion faster than sound -- and caught an arrow that was aimed for the center of Wei Wuxian’s chest. 

He wasn’t sure whether it was the Ghost General’s sudden movement or the attack on Wei Wuxian’s life that had Nie Zonghui reaching for his dual sabers, but the effect was the same once he’d seen the arrow clenched in the undead man’s fist. Nie disciples that had been trailing at a respectable distance flowed around them like water. Grey and green robes flared their allegiance loud and clear so that even the pompous ass up on the cliff could not be mistaken over such a declaration of protective intent. 

The idiot didn’t take the hint and started calling out Wei Wuxian for cursing him. He opened his robes, too, which was a disturbing sight, even without the curse-mottled flesh. 

It would take too much effort for Nie Huaisang to roll his eyes in a way that would be visible to Jin Zixun and the couple hundred disciples would actually be able to see, so he kept it small. Just a little look between himself and Wei-xiong. 

He and Wei-xiong had been engaging in a pleasantly light back-and-forth regarding the superiority of weasel hair over squirrel hair in calligraphy brushes -- Wei Wuxian was wrong, there was a significant difference in quality using the former -- when they were very rudely interrupted by Jin Zixun’s completely predictable attack. 

His friend wasn’t even a little bit shaken by the arrow aimed at his chest. Or the hundreds of arrows still aimed at him from up on the cliffs. Annoyed maybe, like Nie Huaisang was, at being interrupted or at being proven right by this random Jin cousin of all people. But he just smiled at Nie Huaisang’s eyeroll, a sideways grin that reminded Nie Huaisang of passing porn back and forth over peanut shells and jars of Emperor’s Smile. 

Wei Wuxian looked like he wanted to yell something back at Jin Zixun’s inane accusation, but Nie Huaisang beat him to it. It was better if he handled this. Better if it came back on the Nie directly. Better if Nie Mingjue’s useless brother was the one who insulted Jin Guangshan’s favorite nephew. 

There was a short back and forth between Jin Zixun and Nie Huaisang that roughly amounted to the former repeating variations of, “But he cursed me,” and the latter counting through all the ways he could think to politely say, “Nobody cares.” 

Nie Huaisang knew Wei Wuxian hadn’t cursed Jin Zixun because sometime in the middle of that back and forth, Wei-xiong leaned over to him and asked, very sincerely, “Who the fuck is this guy, again?”

Also, Wei Wuxian wasn’t exactly a man of subtlety. Or of half measures. Nie Huaisang was fairly convinced that if Wei Wuxian had cursed someone with one hundred holes in their chest, the holes would spell out his name, or list out their transgressions in order of most annoying to him, specifically. 

But none of that mattered in reality. Jin Zixun was convinced Wei Wuxian had done it, and Jins tended to become intractable when their ego was at stake. Probably, Jin Zixun had built himself up in his own mind as the nemesis of the Yiling Patriarch. Disabusing him of that notion would get them nowhere, so Nie Huaisang, instead, said, “He is under the protection of Qinghe Nie. You can take it up with my brother.” 

That seemed to shut Jin Zixun up quite nicely. 

Wen Qing, standing in front of her brother like she could protect him -- the probably immortal and incredibly powerful sentient fierce corpse -- from the world, looked shocked that such a lazy threat had actually worked. But, then, she’d never been on a battlefield with Da-ge, so Nie Huaisang could forgive her her surprise. 

The Jin disciples and, curiously, Lan disciples up on the cliffs began to retreat back toward Koi Tower. Jin Zixun lingered for a moment. But then his cousin came flying in on his sword, yelling at him from the air. 

Which was also curious. 

Nie Huaisang decided to ponder the timing of that more later. 

So while there had certainly been events that took place, the whole of the matter was finished within moments and nothing but bluster had actually come of it. Well, bluster and the dubious satisfaction of having their suspicions -- and their precaution -- validated. 

After a blubbering explanation from Jin Zixun and a much more coherent and succinct one from Nie Zonghui, Jin Zixuan agreed to escort his cousin back to Koi Tower himself and to relay the situation to Da-ge. Jin Zixun paled, possibly recalling Da-ge’s war face. The two of them left swiftly after that, the one’s reproof drowned out by the other’s whimpering. 

Predictably, Da-ge met them at the foot of the stairs when they arrived. He exchanged a quick few sentences with Nie Zonghui as he fretted, in his way, over Nie Huaisang. Gruff words to make up for gruff hands that had to refrain from touching and grabbing and patting him down to verify he was still in one piece while they were in public. (He was sure Da-ge was going to make him account for every inch of his skin later -- if not for scrapes and bruises, then surely for curse marks.) It was annoying, but sweet in Da-ge’s way. 

It was also to their benefit, so Nie Huaisang leaned into it, whining loudly to his brother and sect leader about how scared he’d been when Jin Zixun shot at Wei-xiong. 

He made sure to call Wei Wuxian “Wei-xiong” or “Xian-di” as often and as overtly as possible. Their intention to swear brotherhood should have been well known in Lanling by then, if his gossip mill was doing their job correctly, and if anyone but a Lan had been paying attention. But it was still important to reinforce the idea for the eyes and ears they’d captured with their dramatic arrival. 

Nothing damning showed on Jin Guangshan's face as he welcomed the Nie, Wei Wuxian, and two Wens into his banquet hall, but then, Nie Huaisang hadn't really expected it would. Jin Guangshan had been at his games much longer than Nie Huaisang had even been alive. They would just have to make sure to keep a close eye on Wei Wuxian and his Wens. It wouldn't be good to let them get separated, picked off one by one, and used against each other.

A quick glance around the room showed Lan Wangji paying very close attention to their little party. Lan Xichen, too, probably interested to know what his own disciples had been up to and why they were following Jin Zixun of all people. He departed his circle of delegates to corner San-ge. But Lan Wangji's gaze was fixed on Wei Wuxian.

Nie Huaisang watched him closely from behind the theatrics of his fluttering fan. He knew Wei-xiong was besotted with Lan Wangji. (He'd known before Wei Wuxian did, though it was nice that he'd figured it out on his own sometime since the lectures.) But, while he'd known Lan Wangji for much longer, the Second Jade's face was much more difficult for him to read. He didn't know whether Lan Wangji's continuous pestering of Wei Wuxian during the Sunshot campaign was born of worry or of actually, very Lan-like disdain for the kind of things Wei-xiong had been up to around then.

Was this close attention now worry for a man held in high regard? Or was it apprehension directed at an enemy of orthodox cultivation? Nie Huaisang was rather annoyed to discover that he couldn't tell.

Regardless, many eyes in the room were on them. Many afraid, many concerned, and many confused. It would be helpful if he and Wei-xiong could do their ceremony immediately. But that would be far too rude, which would, of course, harm their cause more than help it.

They could make it three days, Nie Huaisang was sure of it. Each of them were highly competent individuals. Capable of great feats and great focus when required.

Whether or not their opposition would catch them out somehow, well. That remained to be seen.

~

Tag list: @greywake (if anyone wants to be added for updates, let me know!)

[theplottdump]

Kāne: But what if it doesn't work? Sunny: Then you'll have failed as a tinkerer forever, wasted a whole summer, drowned me for no reason 𝘈𝘛 𝘈𝘓𝘓, and we'll fire it out of the cannons at some passing fancy pants merchant ship!

Kāne: 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧- Sunny: Just do it already!!

[ record crackling 🎵🐙 ]

🐙🐠🐸

[wiltkingart]

finally got around to reading mtmtm last night, it was absolutely incredible! such high conceptual basis for each story got me immersed in each story within three lines or less, you're a very talented writer. my favorites were sting, godling, and womb witch :]

thank you! the openings were really fun to think about for all of them, so that's awesome to hear. also makes me smile to see another womb witch warrior :-) that one almost didn't make the cut, it was written after i'd already scrapped two other stories and was originally supposed to be more of a bonus/extra. but im glad i stuck with it and found a way to weave it into the main body. i think its very charming. mtmtm would not have been complete without true monsterfucking.