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kidicaruslover911 · 10 days ago

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Chapter 4: Interwoven Nostalgia

Mizu x Fem!Reader

a/n: uhhh btw reader is 22, Mizu 23 and Taigen is like 26

fun fact i did my research and during the 17th century, a trip with a boat from japan to europe took AT LEAST 2 whole years if the weather allowed it plus the stops for repairs and refreshments. you had to sail all the way around east and South asia, just to continue around africa and then sail upwards towards the european continent. i thought it’d be cool to share that with you

story on AO3

summary: Hope y’all missed Taigen (I didn’t 😒) a little more is revealed about the reader and her true occupations (idk if you could say it like that lol)

est. wc 9.1K

“I am owed my honor…” You heard an unknown voice announce.

”Then take it!”

‘What the hell were they talking about?’

Grunting in pain, you felt the freshness of the sea’s water brush against your face, slowly but surely beginning to regain consciousness as the last thing you remembered was a Fang charging right at you, his eyes locking onto yours as you cut his head clean off his shoulders.

Next thing you knew, your body was lying face down on the beaches ground, and you couldn’t seem to move a muscle.

When you tried to speak, your voice felt hoarse, and the words came out in a weak whisper.

Your vision was clouded and everything around you was a blur.

You couldn’t seem to catch your breath, but luckily, your heart was still pounding in your chest.

It was as if time had stood still, leaving you alone with your own thoughts.

Guiding a hand to your side, warm liquid soon covered it and you knew that it was only a matter of time before…scratch that.

You weren’t dying. Not yet. You couldn’t.

Bringing your bloodied hand back to your cheek, some of the scarlet fluid trailed down onto your chin, shaky breaths emanating from your lips, head completely empty.

With a fall from that height, your body felt like it had shattered into a thousand pieces, but you could feel that the majority of your bones had somehow stayed intact.

Why or how? You didn’t know.

A true miracle.

After killing one out of the Four Fangs, another one had set his eyes on your wounded side, noticing how much more blood would trickle onto the ground as the current situation forced you to perform literal acrobatics on the cliff’s landslide.

So what better opportunity than to strike your already weakened opponent in the bloody side of her abdomen? Strike you and not die.

He managed to do one of the two things he had intended to accomplish.

The Fang put your life a little more at risk, causing you to emit a piercing cry that echoed throughout the cliffs as you dealt him a fatal blow mid-air, completely dismissing the fact that you had no real support whatsoever before losing your balance and…

You had blacked out.

But apparently, not for more than a few minutes, in which the Four Fangs leader had died following another man’s appearance.

Wait- Another man? Other than the Four Fangs? Talking about getting his honor back?

Your eyes shot open immediately, a gasp leaving your lips as your blurry vision disappeared, looking over to just to be met with an unconscious and blood soaked Mizu with right next to him a stranger holding a katana over his head, ready to kill him.

If you had been attentive enough, you would’ve noticed the uneasiness in the man’s demeanor and how he wasn’t sure if this was truly what he wanted, but it was too late for that.

Fuck your wound and your ringing head, before you could even think about it, your fingers found their way around your katana, hardly helping yourself up with an annoyed grunt as you glared daggers at the stranger, running up to him as a battle cry left your lips.

His blade was about to drop onto your companion’s unresponsive body, right before he turned to meet your furious gaze, his pupils dilating as he looked he wasn’t sure to believe what he was seeing.

“GET AWAY FROM HIM!” Your small fist had managed to land a harsh punch onto Taigen’s face, making him fall onto the wet ground as his little gang only eyed you in pure shock.

There they were again, chasing after your friend, chasing him with wooden sticks and stones when all he did was try and find something for him to eat.

Not on their watch. They’d rather watch him starve to death than even catch a glimpse of his round blue eyes.

Luckily you had somehow made it in time, hitting their leader as you stood in front of Mizu, your small body earning him somewhat of a shield and this time, you came prepared.

Your blue eyed friend didn’t like this. She didn’t like it one bit. She didn’t like how you always put yourself at risk just to try and protect her from whatever.

You had a smaller bag bound to your side and it was filled to the brim…with stones.

Enough stones to take on Taigen and his horde.

You may have been small but at the time your talent in throwing various objects with great precision was something you had already developed at an early age.

And at the sight of your unspoken threat, the boy could only scowl, hardly laughing.

“Oh, look who it is guys? The dogs savior!” The kid smirked. “Or should I say, the dogs owner? Must have lost his pup again.” He rolled his eyes, never leaving your sight.

His insulting words only made your blood boil even more. Your stance was unwavering as you grabbed onto one of your stones, ready to shot your shot.

“Mizu is NO dog! And I’m not his owner but his friend! He didn’t do anything wrong and even if he did, I won’t let scum like you beat him up again! If you want to get to him you’ll have to beat me down first.” You exclaimed loud and clearly as Taigen couldn’t care less about your friendly feelings and empathy for the boy.

”His ‘friend’, huh? Then I guess that you should’ve kept him on a better leash, Y/N.” Taigen spat at you as he slowly got up again, pointing at the two of of you.

‘That brat.’ So she won’t have it any other way…

You weren’t scared because you knew what you were fighting for.

You were fighting to protect your friend. Your one and only. You were almost sure that Mizu would do the same for you and therefore, you had no regrets.

“GET THEM!”

Not her, not her again’ He thought.

Was it a curse or a fury? A vengeful spirit or some sort of ghost?

Just what in the world was he fighting right now?

Where was the little girl he so easily used to beat up despite her never backing down and always coming at him until she was left unconscious?

Where were the little fists that tried to reach him but couldn’t because of his superior strength and height?

The girl he so easily threw onto the ground, years ago when she challenged him in company of her master, dodging quickly but never striking correctly.

Where were the long taken breaths because of your short endurance and burning chest as you desperately aimed your messy hits at him?

No where.

None of it was to be found. Little Y/N had died a long time ago and was never to be seen again.

Weakness was never to be seen again.

With the way some of your blood had covered your cheek, dripping down your chin…and the way your eyes held nothing but pure rage and hate for him, Taigen just didn’t know how to keep his composure anymore.

A woman? Attacking him the way you were? No.

There was simply no way. He wouldn’t allow it. He wouldn’t allow you to dishonor him.

Not like she dishonored him.

A disgrace, that’s what you were, sullying the purity of the blade you handled with such grace and care…but a woman couldn’t possibly wield a sword the way you currently did, it just didn’t make any sense.

And yet, you were.

Taigen’s breath hitched as he caught a glimpse of your gaze. Irises filled with murder.

This wasn’t your first time doing this.

Now each breath you took was short and calculated with the sole intention of killing the man whose defense kept on crumbling with each blow as you fought him away from Mizu’s body.

You made sure to make him stay on the defensive as Taigen could only question whose idea it was to teach a woman to fight with such skill? Or to fight at all?

‘Could it be…?’

It had to be her.

You kept approaching him with your weapon drawn, your eyes locking on his.

Despite your injury, you stood tall and confident, at least you tried to, ready to defend Mizu at all costs.

Lunging at Taigen, your sword flashed through the air in quick, precise strikes.

Taigen was able to parry most of your swings, but a few managed to break through his defense, making him stumble back, his heart pounding in his chest.

Your attacks became even more fierce as more blood streamed down your side, adding more fuel to your rage.

You moved with agility and speed, your sword cutting through the air like a bolt of lightning.

Taigen, on the other hand, was struggling to keep up, his eyes fixed on your blade as it slashed closer and closer to him.

Between your relentless strikes, you spared a glance at the crest that was embroidered onto his kosode, making you want to laugh as you almost immediately recognized and ‘remembered’ what school he was from.

The ‘prestigious’ Shindo dojo. Again? But of course.

Against all odds, Taigen managed to find his resolve and charge at you, swinging his sword at you with all his might.

The two weapons clashed with a deafening clang, and for a moment, it seemed as if you had almost lost your balance.

But you were not to be deterred, and countered with a swift swipe of your own, cutting his hand in the process and knocking the sword out of the his hand, sending him falling onto the sand.

A loud yell could be heard from him, the man grabbing onto his injured hand as he tried to stop the blood from flowing.

‘No…This can’t be.”

He knew who you were. His heart knew.

But his mind rejected the idea of you, a woman dishonoring him in such a humiliating way. It wasn’t even a legal duel yet you still managed to beat him, in such a weakened state too…

’How the hell is she still standing?’ You only glared at him, lazily dragging your swords in the sand before holding it upwards into the air.

‘She’s completely crazy…It that it? This is how I’m going to die?’ Taigen stared at you as he tried to back away, pushing himself backwards as your steps only followed his fleeting ones.

You stood over him, eyes empty, blade held high, ready to deliver the final blow…but something stopped you - your blade escaped your grasp, hitting the ground as your knees followed, your members becoming limb and your breathing hectic, making Taigen raise his eyebrows at you and stare at you in slight confusion and relief.

You almost forgot how much blood you had been losing lately and honestly, you doubted the fact that your stamina was the only thing keeping you alive until now.

At the end of the day, you weren’t immortal and your head felt way too light, making you place your hands on your blood soaked side once again as you tried to prevent any more blood from escaping, a nasty sensation getting ahold of your abdomen.

This sudden change in attitude gave Taigen the chance to snap out of his trance and quickly get ahold of your blade, switching the tables as he gathered his courage and decided to show no mercy, just like you did moments ago.

He was a samurai and he had gotten his honor broken twice now. First by Mizu and now by you. A woman.

This had to be a warrior’s worst nightmare. Just when would it stop? Now.

He was going to put an end to this continuous humiliation now.

Now was his chance, you were vulnerable, unable to resist or protect yourself, agonizing on the ground as your back was the only thing facing him.

Taking one last breath, he visualized how your blade would pierce through your spine, warm blood splattering onto the beaches sand as your body would simply fall limb, unresponsive, before he’d turn your form around, seeing the shimmer of life leave those same restless eyes of yours.

And it would be as if it had never happened.

As if no woman had ever eyed him with the indifference of an assassin, slaughtering yet again another helpless victim.

It would have never happened.

’You are a samurai, she stained your honor…and she showed no mercy whatsoever…no mercy… no mercy…no mercy…no mercy…no…’

…

He couldn’t. Watching your painful squirming, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.

It didn’t feel right and even with the recent events, he wasn’t one to backstab an opponent.

He had more respect for you than that.

You on the other side were waiting for an impact to release you from your torment, only to feel…none.

With a conflicted sigh, Taigen set your blade to the side, kneeling next to you before hesitantly placing his hand on your shoulder, which you instantly slapped off.

‘He has the chance to kill me here…right here and right now…what the fuck is he waiting for?’ You thought.

The time to kill your enemy is when you can, and yet he still didn’t strike you.

Despite your almost successful attempt to unalive him, he felt…pity for you.

You were in a miserable state and no one deserves death in such circumstances.

Not even you.

“Leave…” You gritted through your teeth.

Mumbling something underneath his breath, a single look at your side was enough for him to tell that you were doing anything but fine.

“You…leave.” You had recognized him the second your blades clashed against each other, remembering the terribly arrogant little brat he was.

Sure, people change, but that didn’t mean anything.

You didn’t trust him one bit.

Sparing him an exhausted glance to the side, you didn’t understand why he wanted to be all helpful and caring all of a sudden.

He tried to kill Mizu. Someone you care about.

Honorable or not, he considered killing him and that was reason enough for you to hate him even more than you already thought you did.

Even if you were sure to have banned these memories from your mind.

If it wasn’t for that, maybe, and only maybe you would’ve approached him in a more diplomatic manner.

Yet some people only understand the severity of their actions when their own life is in danger.

Taigen was no exception.

Mizu was tougher than he looked and so did you.

None of you would die here.

Not on your watch.

And if it weren’t for your blood loss, Taigen would’ve been a dead man by now, that much he knew.

If he had to be honest, your cold reaction didn’t surprise him at all, but then again, he couldn’t let you die here like this. Or Mizu.

He couldn’t afford to let you die if he had the capacity to help you somehow, he just couldn’t, not when he almost died by both of your hands, which unironically earned you both a place onto his shameful rematch list.

The thought did cross his mind: Since there were no witnesses of your impromptu ‘match’, his defeat against you never happened. You never legally challenged him and therefore he never lost.

That was if you decided to keep your mouth shut.

Keeping this deduction in the back of his mind, Taigen spoke to you again, this time more insistently.

He may be a samurai, a ruthless warrior, but he was still human and moral ethics weren’t something he lacked understanding in.

”Listen…I know that I’m probably one of the last people you’d want to talk to right now, but this is only going to work if you let me help you. We need to get you a doctor…I mean, we need to get you both a doctor.” Taigen tried to speak some sense into you, grabbing your bloodied hand to get a better view of your injury.

He needed you guys alive.

You both owed him his honor now. One more than the other as much as he hated the thought of admitting it..

”I am a doctor and I- I don’t need your help…nor do I need your compassion, Taigen. I’m fine.” you breathed out, glaring at him.

You’d rather choke on a thousand acupuncture needles than to have someone like Taigen help you.

”Of course, you definitely look like one right now, especially with the way you’re just waiting to bleed out…”

While this guy was just halfheartedly mocking your statement, you seriously regretted leaving your medical supplies down town.

If only you hadn’t forgotten them in the restaurant…How the hell did you even forget something like that?

After a few moments, silence returned as Taigen tried to reason you again.

“Y/N, my point is just that-“

Before he could even attempt to finish his sentence, a large man with a shaven head, no hands and a wooden stick in his in his mouth came running at him with all his might, taking him by surprise and pinning him to the ground within seconds.

‘Ringo…’ You thought, weakly glancing up at him.

Unlike the sweet and joyful nature you had seen so far, right now, the man was furious.

”GET OFF HER!” He barked, keeping Taigen to the ground.

”WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?”

Ringo angrily glared at him, waiting for a response.

“Not me, NOT me. The Fangs.” Taigen hastily answered as he turned his head towards you and Mizu.

The large man only spared you a look, a shocked gasp leaving him as he immediately got off of Taigen, hurrying to kneel beside you.

”You’re the swordswoman from the death duel earlier! I wasn’t sure if you had already left the town but I you forgot some of your belongings in the restaurant, so I thought- Oh… oh no…” He trailed of as he saw the state of your abdomen.

”Miss…you’re-“

‘Swordswoman…Death duel?’ The words resonated in Taigen’s head yet he couldn’t make any sense of them as he silently rose to his feet, keeping track of the conversation.

Ringo was about pick you up in his arms but you stopped him with a movement of your hand.

“Listen here, uhm..’Ringo’ was it?” You panted, still holding onto your side.

He nodded.

Taking another deep breath, you spoke. At least you tried.

”Alright, then listen. My name is Y/N and I’m Mizu’s old…friend. Delighted to meet you.” You struggled.

Accentuating your words the best you could, you quickly explained how you and Mizu were ambushed by the Four Fangs, how Taigen tried to kill him and how you managed to keep him away from your unconscious companion, almost costing him his life.

”Thank you for paying attention to my belongings but…Mizu is dying. Your master is dying as we speak, my friend is dying and we can’t waste any more time here while doing absolutely nothing.”

Thinking shortly, you had made your mind up.

You could pass out at any moment now but since Ringo had retrieved your medical armamentarium from the restaurant, that saved you a lot of time.

‘Maybe I could try and…’ You trailed off before verbalizing your decision.

“We need to get him somewhere safe…somewhere I can treat him properly“ You emphasized as you gestured at Mizu’s motionless body to which Ringo furrowed his brows, rapidly making his way towards Mizu.

”Master…Master no…” The chubby man urged Mizu into his grasp, picking her up in his arms as her sword escaped her grasp.

“He needs your support more than I do and I’m the only doctor available here so I guess-“

At the sound of your offer, Taigen just had to say something.

Treating Mizu when you weren’t in any better shape? You couldn’t possibly be serious.

“What? No. Y/N, you can barely walk let alone stand for too long. You can’t treat anyone right now.”

“I wasn’t talking to you.” You simply spat at him, making him protest even more.

“You won’t last a minute trying to ‘heal’ him and he doesn’t always need you to-“

“I already told you: I’m fucking fine. Why do you care anyways?” You let out an angry grunt, using your katana as a support to help you up again, more blood spilling onto the sand.

“Now why don’t you make yourself useful and help us get him somewhere far away from here?”

‘She didn’t change a bit. Still defending this dog at all costs.’ Taigen side eyed you.

You felt dizzy, but it was as if your body was moving on its own, with one mission in mind.

Keeping your friend alive.

Walking slowly walking ahead, a crimson trail sticking to your path, Taigen and Ringo were flabbergasted as they could only stare at you in disbelief while you let out sighs and breaths of exhaustion.

‘She can’t possibly care that much about Mizu… to the point of risking her own life…’ But he knew that trying to change your mind would be of little use, seeing you already making your way forward.

“There’s a shrine, up the mountain. He’ll be safe there.” Taigen murmured, taking Mizu’s blade and the Fangs leader’s broken sword with him.

‘I doubt that she’ll make it up there alive.’

Ringo also tried to persuade you from overstepping your body’s boundaries, claiming that he knew his way around some quick medicine too, but you refused to listen.

The only thing that rang in your head were one of the first words your master spoke to you.

”You’ve got a stubborn soul little one, I doubt that anyone could ever break it. After all, when I look at you, it’s as if I could see all the worldly desires in your eyes…I like that.”

‘Tsk…that woman.’

_______________________________________________

When you finally arrived at the shrine, you mumbled a quick prayer, excusing yourself for sullying this sacred place with your bloody form and hoped that whoever was up there, would help you keep your friend with the living.

Your friend.

What an hour ago seemed like an uncertainty was now crystal clear for you.

Mizu was still your friend. At least in your perspective. He must be, right?

Why else would you put yourself through such a hassle? Insisting on treating his wounds by yourself when you couldn’t even walk properly?

You cared for him, that much was true and you’d definitely go through the same alarming process for any other patient.

Right? Right.

Dismissing those insignificant thoughts, Ringo entered the shrine, Mizu seemingly having a bad dream as he called out unintelligible words in his unconscious state.

You followed them as you heard Taigen’s steps follow yours which made you halt in your tracks and have Taigen bump into your back, a confused expression on his face.

You only glared at him over your shoulder, not needing to say anything.

He was staying outside. End of the discussion.

Luckily, Taigen wasn’t in the mood to exchange any more words with you for now, and just rolled his eyes as he leaned against the shrines wall, giving you three the privacy you needed.

To your surprise, Ringo came prepared.

You hoisted a rug made out of straw over one of the wooden beams of the shrine, blocking out the view of Mizu’s body, away from prying eyes.

Ringo gently laid Mizu onto a blanket he had taken out of his receptacle, before getting some water to clean your blood stained hands and handing you your medical belongings.

While he was doing so, he couldn’t help but glance at your side. He just hoped that your endurance was as durable as you made it seem.

”Don’t worry. I won’t pass out on him.” You simply added, already feeling his anxious eyes on you.

“I have a patient to take care of and I will stick to doing so. You said you knew your way around medicine…if you could cook up some soup for him, with some yarrow and peppermint, that would be great.”

His eyes narrowed at your request. He trusted your judgment.

”I’ll add some elderberries. For his immune system.” Ringo nodded as you held a satisfied look at him.

‘Not bad. He knows the basics.’

Sitting besides Mizu, your first instinct was to unbind his scarf to check his pulse.

As you did so, it wasn’t too long until a surprised look rose in your eyes as you slowly took the cloth off, gently turning his head to the side while your cautious fingers grazed his rather…soft skin, checking his pulse as you let out a relieved breath.

He was alive. That was one fear out of the way.

But by further inspection you could only wonder.

‘His neck is so…delicate.” You thought, scanning his neck for an Adam’s apple only to find none, making you frown just a bit.

You made sure to try and keep a somewhat unbothered front since you didn’t want Ringo to notice your slight stupefaction.

Although…

Ok so, Ringo hadn’t really thought this through.

Taigen definitely wasn’t someone he wanted near Mizu since he tried to kill him and didn’t know that he wasn’t truly…let’s just keep it that way.

But since you claimed to be Mizu’s ‘old friend’ (?) and so ardently insisted on treating him on your own, he thought that you must’ve known something about that little secret of his.

Thinking nothing more of Mizu’s pretty neck, your hands moved to unbind his obi, asking Ringo to hand you a wet cloth you had sunken into some hot water, you carefully moved your friends haori to the side, making his injuries more accessible to you.

Some parts of the garment kept sticking onto his wounds, making the process take a little bit longer, your eyes getting bigger and your brows furrowing lower the more skin you unveiled, until…

”Ringo, if you could hand me-“ Sticking out your hand without looking at him, you spoke shortly trailing off as your breath slightly hitched, your eyes falling onto his exposed body with a scowl.

‘What in the world…what’s this?’

The man executed himself, paying no mind to the sudden shift in your voice as he pressed the wet cloth into your hand and started to cook up the medicinal soup for Mizu to drink later.

You quietly thanked him before returning your attention to Mizu, whose true identity didn’t really matter to you.

It was as if you didn’t care.

You didn’t care at all to be honest. You couldn’t care less because you were actually worried. Worried sick.

For his, no, her health. You didn’t utter a single word or at least, you were unable to because of how shockingly unsafe and painful those bindings looked on her chest.

For a second, you thought about removing them, but decided not to do so.

You felt like removing those bindings without her permission would be the most insensitive thing to do ever and so you left them as they were.

Yet the mere thought of her compressing her chest like this over probably more than just a few years made you sick.

’His, no…her ribs must’ve been completely compressed, her breast tissue damaged, her spine alignment altered…just imagining the chronic pain she had to endure, and overall the state of her lungs? How the hell did she even breathe with those on?’

You thought about all the medical consequences her bindings may have had on her as you asked Ringo for your needle and tread, ignoring how badly your hand was shaking.

It made you anxious.

Memories flooded back to you and you tried so badly to keep your composure, fighting back barely visible tears, starting to stitch her shoulder as neatly as you could.

“So it was you…” You whispered to yourself, a chuckle of relief gracing Ringo’s ears as you thought of a dirty job you never accepted and yet it was exactly that one job that had never truly left your mind.

In the end, you understood why she did it, why she had to get through all this suffering.

’Damn you, Mizu.’

Well, at least now you knew where her bad posture came from.

Minutes ticked away as you finally finished completely treating Mizu’s injuries and accomplished the unthinkable.

You let out a deep breath, letting Mizu’s apprentice know that you were done. Literally.

”Ringo, I…” You gestured at her clean stitches.

His reaction made your heart feel content.

“Oh my- You did it…you actually did it! You treated all of Master’s wounds! All of them..” Ringo stared at you with an amazement as you only gave him a tired snicker in return.

“Most of them were short but deep and he still has a high fever and cold sweats. I trust that with the combination of your foods and my treatments, he’ll be back on his feet in no time. He’ll live.”

Giving you a compassionate smile, Ringo spoke in agreement.

”Of course he will live. Master is the last person that knows how to die…”

“And it seems like you don’t really know how to either.” The man’s smile faded as his gaze fell on your side again.

You lightly caressed Mizu’s burning forehead, thinking of how lucky she was to have an apprentice like Ringo by her side.

Remaining a hundred percent loyal to her even though she was a complete stranger to him.

Remarkable.

And even if she stated that ‘he wasn’t his apprentice’, the little bell tied on the man’s feet said otherwise.

He told you about how she had bought it for him, because of how ‘naturally stealthy’ he was and how she’d keep on bumping into him all the time.

”Master said that the day I take that off, I’ll be discharged from my duties. I hope that that day never comes. After all, he is the greatest samurai I’ve ever seen and I wouldn’t want to be anyone else’s apprentice.”

Nodding silently, a beam rested on you face.

”Hm, I see. But why is it that you wish to serve him so badly? He may be ‘great’ to you but he can also be quite the difficult person you know…”

”Maybe, but I don’t mind”

Ringo’s answer was almost immediate and definitely took you off guard as you didn’t think he’d be such a patient guy.

“You sticked by his side until now too, no? Even though you just met.” He questioned, curious about your reasoning behind that decision but you didn’t answer.

”I want to become a samurai and be great, just like him. Just like you. You have the ability to save people’s lives and also to…take them.” His voice faded a bit on the last part.

‘Like me? Is that what greatness meant to him?’ You side eyed him.

His words reminded you of a less stressful time in your life, when you once so desperately pleaded your master to teach you her ways with a similar logic as Ringo just had explained to you.

You remembered the sole question she asked you at the time, a question that would decide whether yes or no, she’d consider to see as more than just a liability.

Your fingers were now attentively ghosting over Mizu’s cheek, eyes never leaving her almost peaceful form and scrunching your nose at the thought of your master.

You owed her your life after all.

Greatness…

”What does ‘greatness’ mean to you, Ringo?”

The question left your mouth before you could do anything about it.

”Well…” The man hesitated.

”You said that you wanted to be like Mizu or like me but what is it that he or I do… what is it that makes us so ‘great’ in your eyes?”

You made sure to use a masculine pronoun for her when speaking out loud, just in case Taigen would be listening in.

Speaking of which, you kind of wondered what he had been doing all this time.

Not giving Ringo a chance to answer, your own question somehow irritated you a bit.

You didn’t think that you were great at all.

You knew your worth, but a lot of your actions were anything but great.

Constantly disrupting the precious line between life and death was not something great.

It was nothing to be proud of.

Maybe it was in some people’s eyes but you just didn’t know what to think of it anymore.

At least, you made the majority of your money with that.

Some deserved that immoral disruption and in the end, you chose that path.

No one else.

After a moment of short silence, you slowly rose to your feet, a little hiss escaping your lips which alerted Ringo about your wound again.

”I- Miss Y/N, you should let me take care of it.” He pleaded, seeing you get up cautiously again.

Yet you ignored him, walking towards the entrance, your back facing him.

”Nothing great comes from being a samurai, Ringo. You are a good man with a good heart, but if you think that you’ll learn the definition of ‘greatness’ by following people like him or me…you’ll end up getting disappointed or even hurt very badly in the long run.”

You wanted to keep him away from any more bloodshed than needed but you knew that he wouldn’t listen.

“And I cherish your kind words, but I am no great person.”

A warning.

That was a clear warning, because you weren’t sure that he truly knew what he was signing up for by staying by Mizu’s side.

A path littered with death.

Nothing for a pure soul like his.

And you doubted that she’d have any interest in teaching him anything about ‘honor’ or ‘greatness’.

She wasn’t a samurai and neither were you.

The only person that could somewhat help him on the subject would be Taigen but he was anything but great.

You’d rather have yourself teach Ringo than that guy.

Greatness wasn’t something one could teach and everyone had a different opinion on the topic.

Standing in the middle of the doorway of the shrine, you took a look at your side once more.

It wasn’t bleeding as much as before but that wasn’t really a good sign.

Taigen was sitting on the front steps, turning to look at as you finally took notice of the bald spot on the back of his scalp, making the sides of your mouth quirk.

Huh…It all made sense now.

’Was this the ‘honor’ she took away from him?’ You mentally laughed.

Taking another step forward, Taigen could already see the snarky remarks coming and shot up from his seat, towering you with a mean glare as he stood in your way in order to intimidate you.

’This guy has some serious explaining to do…’

All you could do was let out a faint laugh, feeling your vision slowly darken which the man didn’t find funny at all.

”I was blind drunk when we fought and it wasn’t even a legally registered matc- oh… Y/N? Hey? Hey! Y/N??”

Before he could finish justifying himself, your barely conscious body fell straight onto him, resulting in Taigen having to halfheartedly catch you in his arms, worriedly calling out your name.

“Y/N?! Y/N- RINGO! Quick, she just passed out too!”

You may be Y/N but at the end of the day you were not immortal.

_______________________________________________

Later that same evening you had somehow woken up before Mizu, eyes flickering at the sensation of a magically stitched and thoroughly cleaned wound.

With the faint taste of medicine in your mouth, you pushed yourself to sit up, faced with a humming Ringo who had the touching idea to sew your kosode back together where it got ripped and washed all the blood off, the garment being perfectly folded next to you.

You were left in your black haori with nothing underneath. And your hakama of course.

It was your side that was injured and all he did was to treat it for you.

“Useful…” You muttered at him with a smile.

”Oh! Miss Y/N, you’re awake.” The young man noted as he returned his attention towards you.

“How long was I gone?” You rasped at him, feeling your throat being dryer than ever.

“About 5 or 6 hours actually. And yet you still woke up before Master. I made you two drink some of my medicine, and so, if you’re already awake I’d say that Master won’t be taking much longer.”

You nodded as you looked at Mizu’s immobile body, her expression being as relaxed as ever.

Clearing your throat, Ringo rapidly handed you a cup of water to rehydrate yourself before you let your eyes fall onto the kosode.

“My kosode…” You started as you looked at your folded clothing, feeling the fabric of your haori grazing your bare chest.

“I- I promise I didn’t look! Taigen came in at some point but I don’t think he saw anything he shouldn’t have. I just wanted to take care of your wound as quickly as possible. I don’t think anyone here would want you dying on us…”

Ringo panicked as he didn’t want you to think of him as some weird pervert that got his fill of your body while you were unconscious or anything like that.

Letting out a playful scoff, you paused him in his anxious rant. Ringo would be the last person you think capable of anything like this.

”Thank you, Ringo, for…not letting me die.” You thanked him with a light laugh “And don’t worry, I would never think of you like that.” Reassuring him with a touch on his stump.

Enjoying the moment of silence, you slowly but surely got dressed again, standing up again to which Ringo didn’t protest this time.

You were about to exit the shrine as you heard the chubby man’s voice echo in your ears.

“Miss Y/N…I have a question.”

You paused in your steps which he took as a green light to ask away.

“Earlier, when I took off your kosode…like I said, I swear that I wasn’t looking and I didn’t want to assume that you were a criminal but…”

”Give it to me in one sentence, would you?” You already knew what he wanted to get at and he could notice the dangerous shift in your voice.

“You saw my back, didn’t you?”

A defeated sigh met you, followed by a positive hum as Ringo didn’t want to touch sensitive subjects if you weren’t comfortable talking about them.

But he was still curious.

“Are you the person they call the ‘Damsel of Devastation’?” He asked innocently.

��The Damsel of Devastation’. The oh so famous yet mysterious female assassin that had been roaming Japan these past years, avenging women and easing their misery by killing their persecutors in exchange of a few coins.

It didn’t matter if one was a poor fisherman, or a lord with all the treasures of the world at his feet.

If a woman wished to be avenged she just needed to find a contact that would sort of lead her directly to you.

How? You didn’t know.

Maybe it was because of the many brothels you had stayed in…But all you knew was that even if you never stayed in one fixed place, they knew how to find their way back to you.

Rumors had it that a crane adorned the upper half of your back…How that came out was still a mystery to you.

‘Those gossipy prostitutes…’ was your best guess.

Fulfilling women’s unspeakable desires was what you did.

You had a sword and you knew how to use it. Confident and bold, a sight for sore eyes and yet so unpredictable. That was you.

And now, you had been caught, like a child with its hand in a box full of candy.

”Do you think I am?” Your eyes narrowed.

”’If by chance you see a crane on her back,then avoid her path or prepare for death, for it will attack. Avoid the path where the crane is seen, or a grim fate you shall soon meet’.” Ringo recalled as he saw your gaze darken.

Whoever came up with these lines must’ve been your biggest fan. Seriously.

You only laughed, turning to look at Ringo who held a serious expression on his face, leaving his question unanswered as you decided to take your leave.

”I’ll be taking a bath in the hot springs we passed by earlier.” You announced, amused by the man’s reaction.

As you made your way out of the shrine, you walked down the stairs only to find Taigen a few meters away, sitting in the snow and using a cut down tree trunk as a table.

‘Why is he still here…’ You cursed.

Seriously. Why was he still there?

A candle lightened his sight as he was writing something onto a paper.

No, two separate papers?

Mindlessly humming some tune, you walked up behind him, a hand quickly coming to cover your mouth yet the laughter that followed couldn’t have been more genuine.

You had to love Mizu for this one. She really fucked his up hair but not even in a bad way.

The cut was extraordinarily clean, didn’t even hurt his scalp. Excellent, just as expected from a swordswoman like her.

Taigen’s head snapped almost too quickly as he hadn’t noticed your presence yet your unrestrained laughing told him everything he needed to know.

“Well, I guess we can all see how ‘great’ you are from here now.” You giggled, pointing at the bald spot on his scalp.

“I AM GREAT! Mizu costs me my station and honor. I’ll have it all back when I return with his corpse.” He blurted, glaring at you like some spoiled brat that didn’t get what it wanted.

Looking over his shoulder, you read some sort of contract about a fight and…

”Hm. Forget it.” You spoke suddenly, reading the contents of the contract that held your name on it.

Getting back in front of him, the candles light illuminated your features, letting a hand rest on your hip.

“I didn’t kill you when I easily could have, Y/N.” Taigen started.

“So? That is your own burden to carry.” You retorted.

If he truly wanted you dead, he should have struck the moment he had the chance to. Sucks to be him.

”Your impudence truly knows no boundaries…Just shut your mouth and sit already. I’m almost done.” He gestured at you.

”Well excuse you, mister.” You rolled your eyes. “And I am not shutting my mouth. You already have my answer Taigen, I’m-“

“A contract for a duel. To be legal, registered and witnessed. The only thing left now is the date.” He handed you the paper as you scanned its contents for the second time, reading them out loud this time before ripping the contract apart, a fake smile finding itself on your lips.

”YOu-“ The male raged.

”I am no samurai and I couldn’t care less about that broken honor of yours.” You paused, taking in his murderous gaze.

“Mizu might owe you but I do not. I have no interest in stoking anymore futile conflicts with you ever again. And you are certainly not someone worth risking my life against.”

That hit him.

“If you truly want everyone to know that you got your ass beaten by a woman, be my guest but that will be your own lifelong shame to carry.” You spat at him.

You were being merciful.

You were sparing him from being publicly humiliated and he was being rather slow in understanding that.

Also you also just really didn’t want to fight him again.

He’s a pain in the ass. As simple as that.

Telling people about how you beat some big shot samurai was the last thing on your to do list.

“I’ll consider keeping this our little secret.” You added, finally disappearing into the woods, as you could sense literal steam fuming out of his ears.

And yet again, you had pissed off another man.

Seems like you simply couldn’t help it.

_______________________________________________

Enjoying the warm water that bathed your tired muscles, you let out a content sigh as the heat soothed your achy joints, and you closed your eyes, with your hair let down, allowing yourself to relax against a rock which supported your back.

Your clothes laid next to you, along with your sword.

You had taken your hairpin into the water with you, just in case something or someone might just feel like attacking you.

And you were right.

Soon enough, you heard the resonance of steel in the air and seconds later, you felt it against your own neck.

She said nothing but you already knew very well who it was.

Nonchalantly pushing her blade to the side with your hairpin, you scoffed.

She stood right behind you, towering over you while you simply sat in the water, not fearing any harm.

“Couldn’t even wait for me to finish my bath, huh?” You smirked, as she now held her blade over your head.

“Ringo told me everything.”

“You owe me.” You murmured, eyes closing again.

”…” Unfortunately, you were right.

”What do you want?”

”…An explanation.” Mizu rasped.

A chuckle erupted from your lips as you heard her request.

“Well, I guess that you aren’t the only one then.” The fact that she was a woman didn’t seem to shock you at all, not that she didn’t mind but it just made her even more suspicious of you.

Silence greeted your ears before she lowered her blade again, centimeters away over your head.

“The Fangs, I believe they called you the ‘Damsel of Devastation’.”

“Hm…” You nodded.

“I’ve heard about you and your ‘services’ and I don’t need a wanted assassin by my side.” She explained sharply.

”Bold of you to say, ‘unnamed samurai that cut through Shindo Dojo and had the Four Fangs on his back’” You mocked.

“Plus, you just said it yourself. I risked my life for you”

“I didn’t need you to do that.” Mizu replied coldly.

You shrugged. “Maybe, but a few minutes later and Ringo would’ve been met with a nasty surprise. Nastier than it already was.”

A short sigh was drawn by her as you just decided to ignore how stubborn she was being and simply get to the main point.

“Since you are so kind hearted and so ardently begging to pay me back for my efforts, I’ll just set one condition.” You cooed, still sitting in the water as you heard Mizu sheath her katana again.

At least she was considering to listen for once.

So you took your chance. This time a bit more formally again.

”Let me travel by your side…Please. That’s all I’m asking for. You’d have a free doctor, easier access to information and a vain beauty by your side.” Your eyes sparkled in delight, lightly joking on the last part.

“And needless to say that I know more than ‘just a way’ around a sword. Or any other weapon really. The choice is yours.”

Your ‘offer’ was tempting to say the least.(she knew that you’d keep on following her regardless of her answer) Mizu had to admit that you did have your qualities.

You had a stubborn soul, just like her…you were a doctor, a warrior…a friend?

Well, after your display of tenacity towards her, she knew that you were definitely still her friend.

But how could she trust you when you were one of Japans most researched killers?

Your true intentions were more than just vague to her but she failed to understand why you clinged onto her so badly.

“Is it a white devil that you work for?” She had her reasons for thinking so.

You hummed a ‘no’. You had no reason to lie to her.

Strange.

”Do you have a master who makes you want to risk your life, then?”

”Barely.” It had been ages since you had last seen that woman anyway.

“…”

”You keep me busy. I like that.” Well, that was only half true but she didn’t need to know that.

After a moment of contemplation, you knew that you had her right where you wanted.

You turned around in the water to face her, your eyes looking up as they met her rainy ones.

“How do I trust that you won’t kill me in my sleep?”

A mischievous smile graced your lips as you let your head rest in your hand, her gaze never leaving yours.

“You know, with all the dirty jobs I’ve taken on myself, there’s one that stuck out to me the most.”

Silence.

“It’s the one and only job I never accepted in the end but I still think about it from time to time…” You started, making sure she listened to your story.

”About two years ago, when I was passing by a small town, a person came to me for my ‘services’…”

”A woman.” Mizu’s voice cut through. “You barely kill for any men.” She added.

At least, that’s what the rumors said.

You nodded again. “A prostitute.”

“When she spoke to me at the time, she wasn’t really herself. She was frustrated and somewhat furious actually, as if she had been missing out on some precious ‘nutrients’…”

Continuing your rant, Mizu listened closely, trying to figure out what you were getting at.

”A drug addict. My best guess would have been opium.”

”…”

”Anyway, I told her to name me a price and you wouldn’t believe it: ten thousand koku!…”

Mizu only quirked her brow at the price.

“A bounty only few could resist.” You emphasized as she hummed in somewhat agreement.

“That was until I asked her who she wanted me to get rid of…so she explained how she was living with her daughter on a farm, married to a guy that lost his title or something like that-“

That’s when you saw Mizu’s body tense up, eyes glaring daggers at you as your words felt like the worst poison to her.

”Terrible mother if you ask me…” You continued mindlessly.

“She said that she had no use of her own daughter anymore, that her and her husband refused to give her any more money for her ‘medicine’ and how she struggled to feel any love or true affection for that same daughter…”

For some reason, she was hesitant. Her hand was hesitating to draw her sword at you again.

And you weren’t making it any easier.

”I don’t kill women. I give women satisfaction.” You husked at her as you could see how desperately she was trying to read your next move.

“Satisfaction that can only be obtained by their enemies bloodshed.”

Enemies that were often out of their reach and so, they needed a ‘latter’.

You didn’t think of yourself as a hero.

Other women did but you didn’t.

Why would you?

”She told me that her daughter would be easy to recognize…standing tall…strong…empty eyed…” You murmured, slowly making your way out of the water, furthermore revealing your glistening wet body, grazed with the illumination of the moon as Mizu subtly tried everything in her power to keep her eyes on your face only.

Not that you cared right now, really.

Moments later, your hand found itself ghosting its way on her shoulder, droplets of water falling onto it as your fingers found their trail onto her neck, continuing your very interesting story.

Meanwhile her hand was still hesitating about the thought of killing you right where you stood.

She wouldn’t dare. You knew it. She knew it.

Yet you were shameless.

Absolutely tormenting her with your oh so innocent yet harsh words and your calculated yet sensual touch.

But for some reason she couldn’t explain, she didn’t dismiss your intrepid hand. Not yet.

“Ten thousand koku, for a mixed girl with eyes colored like the deepest parts of the ocean.” You suddenly captured her chin between your slender fingers, making her look at you with her oceanic eyes, eyes that were currently filled with pure distress, disdain and…something else.

“I ended up telling her that I would see what I could do…only to leave the next day, having lost interest in her proposal.” You could see relief. Very slight relief in her orbs.

“To me, her daughter seemed to be some innocent woman, living her life with her husband while trying to keep her mother from drugging herself. Nothing worth fussing over.”

You finished with a tilt of your head.

You didn’t know if it was luck, or the fact that you had listened to your gut feeling, but at the time (and still today) you simply weren’t interested in killing off half breeds.

Especially when they didn’t do anything wrong.

Her hand shot up to grab your wrist tightly but before she could do anything about it, you leaned into her ear, whispering.

“If I tried to kill you, awake or asleep…you wouldn’t even think of letting that happen now, would you?” You smiled, your husky voice playing into Mizu’s uncertain mind as she could feel your warm breath fanning against her cool skin.

“Besides, what would I gain from that?” She was not going to answer that.

Seeing her absolutely unpleasant expression, a sudden laughter bubbled up from your chest, breaking the boiling tension at last and leaving Mizu completely bewildered.

“Pfft. Jeez, I’m just kidding. You couldn’t possibly have thought that I was being serious?” You snickered as Mizu’s grasp on your wrist loosened, her cold gaze returning to you.

”Hm. I barely laughed.” The woman answered indifferently.

“Well, yeah. I can see that.” You rolled your eyes, freeing yourself from her grasp as you covered your wet body with your haori again, finally showing some decency.

You took the rest of your clothes, Mizu handing you your katana with a puzzled look in her eyes.

Taking it, you finally walked away with a quiet ‘thank you’, shortly stopping in your tracks once more as you spared her one last glance over your shoulder.

”I just hope that whatever it is that this mixed woman is doing today…will leave her satisfied in the end.”

Not only satisfied but happy.

That’s what you truly wished for whoever that woman may have been.

Mizu didn’t feel the need to answer any of that. You had spoken enough nonsense to her today and she just wished to be left alone right now.

“Oh, and don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”

And after chirping her a quiet ‘good night’, you finally left, leaving her by herself to recollect her numerous thoughts you had so aptly disheveled.

‘Defeat is a cute look on her face…’

a/n: uhhhh idk how to feel about the way i wrote the whole ‘mizu is actually a woman??’ scene. i was very unsure while writing it too but I hope you guys didn’t find it too bad. I just didn’t want the reader to make such a big fuss out of it but rather be more subtle about it.

Masterlist | Next Chapter

#mizu x oc #mizu brainrot #mizu x fem!reader #mizu x y/n #mizu x you #mizu bes #blue eye samurai x reader #mizu blue eye samurai #bes x reader #lesbian #wlw writing #arcane league of lesbians #taigen #Ringo #blue eye samurai #caitlyn x reader #mizu x reader #the damsel of devastation

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seobstarr · 1 year ago

Text

Mask Off.

paringl: spiderman!Wonbin x best friend!fem reader

genre!: action, fluff, a tiney winey bit of angst,

tropes!: one sided pining, best friends to lovers, superhero reveal, the hero and the damsel

synopsis!: Before Wonbin had gotten bitten by the radioactive spider, he was on the path of becoming your, his longtime best friend, boyfriend but when he thinks too hard about the people around him and how devastating it would be if they were caught in the crossfire of his battles he swears to never expose his secret to his friends or you, that is until you run in front of a mechanical 20 foot Rhino to save him—or rather—to save spiderman.

warnings! profanity, mentions of blood, descriptive fight scene, mentions of broken body parts

songs! sunflower- post malone, swae lee, friday im in love- the cure, i wanna be yours- artic monkeys I. pink toes- childish gambino,

Park Wonbin swore that he was professional; he’d bet his life on it. But according to Sohee, he was the dumbest person the universe could’ve given superpowers to.

“This seems a little unethical…” Sohee sighed exasperatedly, evidently more than a little fed up with Wonbin and his escapades. Currently, the two best friends were sitting on top of one of the highest buildings of their university, watching out for somebody as they ate the sandwiches Wonbin's aunt had packed them.

“Are you Spiderman?” Wonbin narrowed his eyes at Sohee who rolled his own in return, taking another large bite out of the PB&J.

“Dude, you’re one of the most wanted vigilantes in Korea! You should be off helping an old lady cross the street, not looking for academic cheaters,” the blonde joked, chuckling to himself in self-satisfied amusement. Wonbin wanted to rebuke him, but he knew he couldn’t.

Wonbin had always joked around with Sohee like that, but today it rubbed him the wrong way. Jokes and jabs that usually bounced off him now stung like barbs, especially those directed at his job. Even though it wasn’t a job, it was his chosen path.

Yes, he should be out swinging through the streets of his city, but he couldn’t help but think about you; How you were doing, what you were doing, if you were safe. You were the third person who completed Wonbin’s small friend circle. The only person he was as close to as he was with Sohee.

He would admit, he probably should be helping an old lady cross the street, given he wasn’t looking for cheaters: he was waiting for you to finish class. He didn't have any more classes until tomorrow, so he had the entire rest of his day to spend and he wanted to spend it with you. Originally, he’d planned to wait by himself, but Sohee had caught him rushing out of his last class toward the School of Chemical Science building.

And that was exactly where they had ended up, on top of the Chemical Science building, waiting for your biochemistry class to be done. “You should eat something; you haven’t touched the sandwich at all,” Sohee spoke again, finishing his lunch with one last bite and eyeing the sandwich and chips Wonbin had next to him. Wonbin rolled his eyes, not daring to face Sohee’s determined gaze a second more.

“Go ahead. I got a 20, I can get something later,” he sniffed, and Sohee practically snatched the food from beside him, earning a small chuckle from Wonbin.

Once the doors opened and the students began to pile out, Wonbin almost broke his neck turning to spot you from the crowd. When his eyes finally landed on you, struggling to fit your textbooks back into your bag, his heart stopped, his cheeks flushed, and his chest tightened.

A smile crept across the corner of his lips as he stood up. “Okay, I’ll see you later!” Wonbin bowed jokingly and waved, his right heels leading off the edge of the building before he fully plummeted towards the ground.

“Wait!—“ Sohee gasped, hand reaching out towards his already falling friend. He groaned, how was he supposed to get off the roof if the door was locked and Wonbin had carried him up?

Wonbin excitedly, if not clumsily, threw his bag over his shoulders as he stumbled in front of you, a dorky big smile expressed on his face. “Aren’t you supposed to be home?” you sarcastically chuckled as you continued to walk, his footsteps matching yours as he followed.

“I’m actually here to walk you home,” you proceed to laugh more, finally fitting the book into your bag. “What a gentleman,” jokingly you tilt your head toward him. Wonbin had always felt like a big person in your life, his presence was always there in all of your memories, even if it was a small one. He was always the clumsy, dorky, funny, and unintentionally annoying Wonbin, but lately, for the past few months, he had been acting out of the ordinary, out of your ordinary.

Instead of showing up to class early or on time, he would now show up at least 20 minutes late and you’d have to write another pair of notes for him in a separate journal. He also would show up unannounced like he knew where you were at all times. To say the least, it started to get suspicious to you. “Made a new playlist,” his voice had broken you out of the thoughts that clouded your brain.

Your eyes focus on him next to you. “Shouldn’t you have been doing homework?” You smile, and his laugh floats through your body.

“Take it or leave it,” your hand grazes past his to take the earphone from him, and Wonbin swears he could feel his heart tighten from the little interaction of where your fingertips grazed over his.

As Wonbin continues to fool around, the familiar banter-filled walk envelops the both of you. Playful jokes and shared laughs punctuate the journey, making it feel like it’s been hours since you had left campus. As they stumble along, Wonbin spots a small convenience store and nudges the fir beside him with a grin. "Hey, wanna grab something, I’ll pay?" Without saying a word, you chuckle and nod, the light glinting off your eyes at the sound of something to eat, stomach grumbling.

"Sure, but only if you promise not to take forever picking out the perfect snack this time." Wonbin feigns shock, placing a hand over his heart. "I have standards okay, Y/n," his eyebrow goes into an arch as you both share a laugh and head into the store, playfully bickering about which chips and drinks to choose. The chatter flows effortlessly as you walk into the store, like an old record playing a familiar tune. Wonbin teases, holding up one of his favorite chip bags. “You know, I'm pretty sure these chips are made from top executive potato farms." You raise an eyebrow, matching his playful tone. "Oh, so you're a chip connoisseur now?"

His head nods in agreement. "There’s no way these chips can be this good, there’s just no way," his shoulders shrug back into him in disbelief sharing a laugh, you shaking your head, the atmosphere light and carefree. The convenience store's fluorescent lights cast a warm glow on your faces as you continue the lighthearted debate.

With one of the other hands carrying each side of the bag of snacks, you both continue on the pathway, drifting back into the comfortable city silence.

When you approach your house, Wonbin expects nothing less than to be welcomed in and hang out with you until nightfall.

You unlock the front door to your empty house and turn to Wonbin, ready to do what he had just thought, but he stops himself from smiling into your gaze. Quickly the goofy smile on Wonbin’s face fades down into a serious line, a sudden tension seizes him and the hairs on the back of his neck stand straight up to alert him.

His hand goes back to pet them down, trying to ignore the pressing feeling, but the unsettling feeling is making him nauseous, his hands starting to sweat as he physically looks uncomfortable. “Bin?, You okay?” Worriedly you ask, sensing that something was wrong.

“Wonbin!” You shout into his ears, blocking your concern. “I’m so sorry, y/n, I forgot that my aunt needed help around the apartment tonight,” a held sigh escapes, and you nod in disappointment.

“Okay, you owe me one though, a hangout, I mean.” Suddenly, your smile gives him some sort of relief, even if it was a small dose. He nods. “Of course, I know the drill.” He’s already making his way down the front steps of your porch when his body tenses even more with the now overbearing feeling of discomfort. His eyes closed, trying to calm his annoyed nerves as his fists curl inward to form a tight ball, knuckles turning white.

The reaction his brain had become overwhelming, the thought of hundreds of people in danger replaying over in his head, as he walked down the street, away from your house and hoping to god that you were safe from the destruction he was about to overcome. His phone rings rapidly with a call from Sohee.

His nerves calm down from the recognition of his best friend's number, and he picks up the phone, beginning with a simple “What’s up dude?” before he is cut off by a panicked Sohee. “bin, where are you right now?” His tone sounded frantic, but overwhelmingly calm, like he was trying to deescalate the situation, make it seem under control. “Just left y/n's, why?” Wonbin concluded, his serious tone beckoning Wonbin to speed up the slow walk he had sported.

"You need to come to the campus, right now." The serious tone in Sohees voice was drastically different from the usual playful one he would have in his earpiece during missions. Wonbins thumb hits the red end button on his phone before aiming his wrist to the nearest street pole and swinging himself up into the air.

When Wonbin made it to the school's campus, he was met with a sight that would make a regular person's heart stop. Luckily, Wonbin is nowhere near a normal human. Through the dotted specs of his suit goggles stood a machine that could’ve reached the clouds if built a little taller.

Standing at the end of the quad area and in Wonbin’s way was one of the enemies he had made along his way to success, Rhino. A bulky almost 20-foot Machinery in the shape and build of a Rhinoceros, complete with the guy behind the machine in the dead center controlling it. Wonbin stretches, rolling his eyes at how relentless this guy was. Just because he had stopped the guy's bank robbery did not mean that he had to build a 20-foot-tall steel animal as revenge.

“Y’know..” He shouts, voice cutting through the warm hues of the afternoon, a mix of confidence and sarcasm “When I said “Get stronger before you face me” I didn’t mean add missiles to the outer of your suit,” he chuckled, the red and blue hues of his costume standing out against the shadows.

Rhino, his yellow-tinted teeth seething menacingly, growled in response. "I hate that snotty mouth of yours, Spider."

Wonbin grinned beneath his mask, allowing his agile feet to guide him closer to Rhino. "Yeah, I’ve heard that before, don’t worry," he sighed, the rhythmic thuds of his web-shooters accompanying each step.

“Okay…Let’s get this over with, yeah? I’d hate to speed things up, but I got somewhere to be, Rhino,” Wonbin mumbled a bit, his words trailing on and on as he shot one of his webs to grab the closest object near him and slung it into Rhino, making the heavy machinery falter backward. Wonbin’s eyes widened. “Maybe that wasn't the right move…” Before he could react with another snarky remark, his opponent was already charging toward him, the tip of the steel Rhino horn rapidly approaching Wonbin. His web from his left arm shot and swung him out just in time before Rhino shook into the wall Wonbin was in front of.

Wonbin prayed that Sohee was safe as he swung effortlessly through the cityscape, the rhythmic thud of Rhino's heavy steps echoing in the narrow alley. He didn’t know what he would’ve done if Sohee was off bleeding out somewhere and Wonbin wasn’t there to help him. The night air crackled with tension as the two adversaries faced each other, the glow of the city's lights casting dramatic shadows.

Rhino's massive form loomed before Wonbin, who quirked an eyebrow beneath his mask. "Missiles, Rhino? Stepping up your game," he quipped, a playful smirk on his face.

The villain grunted with anger, his horned helmet gleaming in the dim light. "Can't wait untill I put a hole through that body, maybe that'll get you to stop talking"

Wonbin chuckled, a characteristic humor lingering in the face of danger. "Good luck with that, big guy," and with one last snarky remark, the clash began, a symphony of punches, kicks, and maneuvers as Wonbin skillfully dodged Rhino's powerful attacks. He flipped and swung around, using the urban landscape to his advantage. His webs wrapped around various parts of the close-witted apartments to land blows.

"You move like a wrecking ball, Rhino! No wonder they call you that," Wonbin taunted, ducking under a powerful swing.

Rhino snarled, charging forward with renewed fury. "I'll smash you into the pavement!"

Wonbin’s spider-sense tingled as the battle intensified, warning him of Rhino's next move. He leaped up into the air, narrowly avoiding Rhino's onslaught. The sounds of impact echoed through the open city streets, followed by the misdirected shrieks of pedestrians as they paid witness to the fight.

But one scream had caught Wonbin’s attention. If he didn’t have his senses, he wouldn’t have noticed your terror-filled screams. His attention redirected itself to where you were, his panic-ridden eyes desperately scanning the crowd of sprinting people to spot you.

As his eyes dart to find you, Rhino had spotted an opening, landing one big spring full blow to Wonbins side, and from the hit, the fabric on his leg and right side of his arm is almost completely disregarded, blood sparkling down the open cut. His legs shakily tried to push himself up, but the blow was powerful enough to weaken the superhero's stamina.

“Spiderman!” The voice rendered him still, his masked eyes following the sound of your voice as you rapidly ran towards him. He had almost gasped if it wasn’t for his enemy watching for his close reaction to the stranger helping him up. The last thing he would want was for Rhino to know your connection with him

“Are you alright?!” You didn’t know why you had decided to run in the middle of the crossfire to help up the vigilante that had been swinging over your city's cold nights, but something had compelled you to recollect yourself out of your terror and help him as the hit from the mechanical rhinoceros came in contact with the hero's side.

“Oh yeah, Totally fine,” he coughs in between words as you help him up to his feet. Wonbin tried to let out a big huff of breath, but the puncture on his body didn’t let him, every time he tried to breathe the gain of pain became worse.

With a squeeze of his shoulder, he realizes who helped him up, and his panic-filled thoughts circle back to you. His head turned. “Oh my god, you shouldn’t be here. Like at all,” he squeaked.

“Shit, shit, shit—” His mumbles become incoherent as his hand holds out, web wrapping around the light post and pulling both of you into the sky. You scream, understandably, not everyone is normal about swinging for the first time; hell, Wonbin couldn’t even grasp the concept of it for the first few months of his new persona. His breath hitches at the pain surrounding his body as he utilizes his power more deeply, desperately trying to get you to safety while also desperately trying to lose Rhino.

“Oh my god, Oh my god, I’m in the air—I’m swinging through the air. Holy shit—”

“Technically I’m swinging through the air; you are flying, I guess,” he corrects amidst the tension of the situation. The air circling through your nose had made it unable to grasp the feeling of being so high. “Make a left!” you shout at him. “Not to be that kind of superhero, but I do not think I should be taking orders from a girl who risked her life to help a regenerating spider-human hybrid,” Wonbin snaps back, making another swing forward. “And I don’t think you should be flying—”

“Swinging,” Wonbin grunts. “Okay! Fine, swinging. I don't think you should be swinging through the air while you could potentially be internally bleeding.” You had made a good point, swinging through the air would only make his injury worse.

“Make a left, my friend's apartment is down on 17th Street.” He mentally nods before making a sharp left, trying to make it to 17th Street before he had weakened even more. He makes another hard left but this time pushes himself up more.

His feet land on top of the building you had ordered him to go to. “Thank god we lost him on that last turn—”

“What the hell were you thinking, Y/n?! You could’ve seriously been hurt, let alone died,” Wonbin’s voice laces itself with frustration. His first instinct was to check you for any bruises, shaking your body side to side forcibly. “Wha-What..?”

“God, I know you could be a little dense, but I didn’t think you’d be this stupid—”

“How do you know my name?” You question, ignoring his cries of worry.

“What? Don’t tell me you have whiplash from being launched in the air,” his voice fades out as he realizes what he has just done. There was a moment of silence, the cold air of the now nightfall surrounding the tense situation. “Well, I know every civilian's name,” he huffs out.

A bluff, you thought “You do?” Y/n deadpans. “Of-Of course!”

“Take your mask off,” Wonbin gulped at the command. His hand twitched in contemplation. He couldn't say no to you, even if it meant putting you in danger by telling you his secret. But if it meant keeping you safe, he wouldn’t mind telling you no.

He promised himself that nobody close to him would get hurt as long as he had these powers. When Sohee had found out, a part of him had felt disappointed in himself for letting that happen. But if you had found out, Wonbin would have to harm himself before letting you fall into the hands of endangerment.

He just couldn’t do it. “I-I can’t, at least not right now, Y/n,” his voice becomes raspy as his air shortens, the injury becoming worse with every second he sits here and rattles his brain about you.

“I’m not going to judge, nor am I going to act surprised. Just please, I need to know who you are,” you beg, the scraps and little cuts on your hands going up to feel the warmth of his mask. “I cannot put you in danger as I did—like I did my other friend,” your fingertips slide slightly under his mask to pull it up, but his covered hand stops you from doing so.

“You aren’t going to put me in harm's way; I can handle myself…”

“I can’t—”

“Wonbin, please.” It was like Wonbin’s heart had dropped, his feet felt unstable, and dizziness wandering up from the back of his head, part of him wondered if it was because of how much blood he was losing but a part of him knew it was from the name drop the way he froze up.

His larger hand softly unwraps yours as he finally lets you lift his mask and pull it off of his face, revealing the busted lip and potential black eye he had gotten from the fight. “How did you—”

“I only have two friends that care about me that much. And I know Sohee would not be the type to ruin his face battling a mechanical Rhino the size of a tennis court,” a soft smile reaches your lips as the taller stands in front of you in shock, his messy hair rubbing against his long eyelashes. “I’ve been racking my brain on why you’d been acting so strange lately. Why’d you never show up to class, or be late to the few you have attended, Why you wouldn’t go to karaoke with me and Sohee—”

“Okay, okay. I get it, a lot of questions little amount of breath,” Wonbin weakly chuckles, holding his side tightly. “But we can save those for a later date. I’m just glad that you are safe.” If he wasn’t beaten to a pulp right now, you would’ve said that this was the most handsome he had looked in the time you had known him. His hair messy, the air drying up his lips by the minute, the weak warm smile he sported while looking at you in desperation.

You step closer to him, almost too hastily, because when you softly smash your lips into his he stumbles back a bit before stabilizing himself on the rooftop's rubble. It had felt like the world had rejoiced at the sight of you two, like the air had been stripped from the gasses and the cold air from the night had become warm as both of your lips had synced together. You giggle in between pecks, an endearing sight to Wonbin’s eyes.

You never wanted that moment to end, the pure bliss of the moment filling your gut with butterflies but then your eyes spot down to his torso, where he holds it roughly with the little strength he has left.

You push him off slightly. “Oh! Let’s get you to a hospital. You could die—”

“NO! No hospital, I’m fine,” he grunts. “You are not fine—”

“I’ll be okay since I inherited spider senses, that means my body heals itself faster than the average human. I just need to rest; the longer I put pressure on it, the longer it’ll take to heal.” You nod at his explanation. You are not going to say no to his methods, considering how he’s the one with the superpowers.

His arms wrap around your waist, hugging you into him tightly. “Good thing I was your first choice when you thought about a hiding spot.” He chuckled, his apartment being 3 levels down from where you both stood.

A warm towel lays upon Wonbin’s head as he lays in his bed watching television, the remote flipping through various movies. It had been the next day, you had spent the night taking care of his wounds because

1.) You couldn’t let your newly pronounced boyfriend suffer alone with little to no treatment,

and 2.) he begged you to stay with him.

“By the way...” you trailed on from his desk chair, fidgeting with his Rubik's cube.

“Why didn’t you tell me? I could’ve been your guy in the chair,” you exclaim, huffing into a pout, and he chuckles at your personal dilemma. “I mean, I could still be your guy in the chair—”

“You will not be my guy in the chair; Sohee is that already.”

Your eyebrow cocked upward. “Oh, so Sohee knew about this before me?”

“ON ACCIDENT,” he protests. “Yeah, okay, I doubt that.”

footnotes!

notes!- hi, it's been a while lol. This was supposed to be a zb1 fic but I changed it last minute bc I miss my pookies. please let me know how you like it feedback is always appreciated!!! maybe I'll even do a part 2 with the events (Gwen death scene) of amazing Spiderman 2 who knooowss also if it says gyuvin or tricky anywhere let me know...please.

#riize #riize x reader #riize imagines #riize wonbin #wonbin #riize oneshots #angst #wonbin x reader #riize fluff #wonbin fic #riize scenarios #kpop fanfics #kpop #kpop imagines #riize wonbin x reader

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