#there were a good chunk of characters i heard and hoped it was him and it wasn't and i got sad

[garlic-sauc3]

versions of booster gold made by people who obviously dont know much about booster can be so infuriating because they tend to depict him as stupid or as a joke and then people who only know him from these depictions in more popular media have a skewed impression of him

[yharnamesque]

I think whatever game Fromsoft next makes they should put Jason Pitt in it again

[irkimatsu]

Can you do a husk x fem reader where she’s also a cat demon (no wings, just cat) yet she’s the epitome of “golden retriever” As if her personality was golden, she’s extroverted and caring and so so bubbly (even more so than Charlie). But then one night, crying is heard from her room and husk hears it and she’s insecure of her body because of how skinny she is?? She has curves yes but that doesn’t make her feel better at all and she’s always comparing herself to others and how she could be better!! It’s just overall angst with fluff please :( 🙏

(Live laugh love you sm !!)

Okay, so, first off, a confession - I am, uh. Not skinny. I am far from skinny, and not only that, I'm in the business of taking skinny characters and chunking them up. Have you seen some of my posts about Overlord Husk?

All that to say that I'm not used to writing skinny characters, and "skinny character insecure about their body" is an absolutely foreign concept to me. I tried my best, though, and I hope I hit the notes with this that you needed!

About 1.5 words. Primarily SFW but Husk gets a little handsy toward the end. One-sided Husk/Angel from Angel's side, but Angel's graceful about it, there's no ship bashing here, I still love Angel and he's still one of Husk's best friends.

---

“Husky!”

Husk has barely made it into the hotel lobby, and you’re already clinging to him, your tail wagging furiously.

The tail wagging is strange for your species; you’d reincarnated in hell as a gray tabby cat, a creature known for being moody, standoffish, even a little prissy. But that wasn’t who you were in life, and it’s not how you are in death, either. Husk realized it immediately upon meeting you, and at first he wasn’t a fan of your wild energy, but you managed to grow on the old man’s heart soon enough. He appreciated how young you could make him feel, and how much you reminded him that the best years of his life weren’t as far gone as he thought.

“Hey, hey!” he says, laughing, a far cry from the Husk who would have snapped at you to get off of him a few months ago. “I missed you too, babe!” He gently hugs you back, giving you a couple pats on the back before stepping away. At first you would have been hurt by the lack of enthusiasm, but now you realize that he’s simply not comfortable with too much PDA. He’s perfectly affectionate behind closed doors, and that’s what really matters.

“Damn, I need to find someone who pounces me like that when I get home!” Angel says with a laugh. Shopping bags dangle from all four of his arms, and he’s wearing a pair of sunglasses you don’t think you’ve seen on him before.

“Did you guys enjoy your boys’ day out?” you ask.

“Sure did!” Husk says as he holds up his own, much smaller shopping bag. “Had as much fun as you can when you’re clothes shopping with Angel for three hours, anyway.”

“Don’t act like you didn’t like me showing off outfits for ya,” Angel teases as he sways his hips. “I know you were staring at my ass in every pair of shorts I tried on.”

“What ass?” Husk shoots back with a smile. “Don’t lie to me, you’re flat as the fuckin’ bartop.”

“Hm? I’m sorry, and whose flat ass has been on the cover of every adult magazine in hell, again?” Angel says, swaying his hips further.

“Hey, if the people want flat twinks, then good for them.” Husk returns his attention to you, and sticks his hand in the paper shopping bag. “That shop was real nice, though. I found a couple things for myself, and got you a little somethin’, too.” He digs around for a bit, before pulling out a small jewelry box and handing it to you. “Here. For my golden girl.”

You open the box and gasp at the sight of a golden choker encrusted with diamonds. “Husk! How much was this?!”

“Enough to be worth it,” is all the information he’ll give. “Mind if I put it on you?”

“Go ahead!”

He takes the box back and walks behind you. His claws graze your skin as he fastens the choker around your neck, and your skin prickles.

While he’s behind you, you’re still facing Angel. You bear no ill-will toward the porn star; you admire his confidence, and you know he’s been a good friend to Husk since long before you got here. For as much as they tease each other, Husk does genuinely seem to care about Angel and enjoy his outings with him; he wouldn’t have gone on that shopping trip if he didn’t enjoy the company at least a little, you’re sure. He hasn’t been subtle about his crush on Husk, but he’s also conceded his loss to you with grace, which only makes you appreciate him further. It’s not like Angel can’t provide any competition. Who would turn down the opportunity to date a famous porn star? You’re not even into his works, but even you admit that he’s gorgeous, with his slender build and strong legs.

You’re not built like him at all. He’s skinny in a way he works hard for, making sure every part of his body is proportioned just right for his admirers. He’s not just skinny, he’s healthy, and he glows from it.

Meanwhile, Husk is gently rubbing your bony shoulders, and you can’t help but wonder how he feels about the hard lumps beneath his palms.

“Turn around so I can see it?” he asks. You comply, and he responds with wide eyes and a whistle. “Beautiful.”

You’re not sure if you’re in the right headspace to accept the compliment. “Thanks,” you say anyway.

You spend the rest of the afternoon talking to Husk and Angel about their outing, and trying not to look at Angel too much.

—

Why are you crying about this? This is so stupid. Husk chose you, didn’t he? He met Angel first; if that was what he really wanted, they would have gotten together before you even showed up, wouldn’t they?

So why are you hiding under your blanket, sobbing and clutching your shoulders and wishing you looked like him?

A gentle rapping noise interrupts your self-pity. “Babe? You okay in there?”

“I’m fine!” you call back, despite the tears streaming down your face.

“That didn’t sound fine.” Damn him and his ability to read people. That’s what you get for dating someone who doesn’t like backing down from someone who’s clearly in denial about their own feelings. How dare he care about you like this?

(You’re glad he cares about you. You just wish he’d let you have that denial.)

“I’ll be right there,” you say, knowing he won’t leave now that he’s heard you crying. You untangle yourself from the blanket cocoon you’ve been hiding in, and you go to open the door for him.

“You look like shit,” Husk says as he closes the door behind him. Not the most romantic greeting, but he’s not wrong; your fur is stained with tears, and your makeup is running. Not a good look. “Come here.” He takes your hand, leads you to the bed, and sits you both on the edge of it. “Talk to me.”

You take a few deep breaths to make sure you won’t start sobbing mid-sentence. “Husk? Am I too skinny?”

Husk stares at you, dumbfounded. “Babe. Everyone in this hotel is built like a fucking twig.”

“Yeah, on purpose!” you say. “They don’t have bones sticking out, or sunken faces… they don’t look fucking starved.”

Husk still seems dumbfounded. “Have you looked at me recently?”

You don’t mind giving him a look. His soft fur, unintentionally tousled in such a perfect way, with tufts on his shoulders and chest that are so wonderful to tug. His yellow eyes that currently burn with sarcasm, but that can gaze at you so softly when the mood is right. His generous heart; it’s not something you can see, but you always feel it when you look at him. Whether it’s the choker you still feel around your neck or the time he always gives you no matter the hour of the day, you know he could never feel like he’s given you enough.

“You don’t think I look awful, do you?” Husk says. “You could tell me if you did. I ain’t under any delusion that I’m winning any beauty contests.”

“You look great, Husk!” you insist. “I’ve thought you were handsome ever since I got here.”

“Yeah? You don’t think I look like a withered corpse because I’m regularly too drunk to remember to eat?”

“No!” you say, horrified. “Why would I ever think that?”

“Because it’s true,” he says with a shrug. “I take shitty care of myself, I ain’t denying it. At least you’re tryin’. That’s just what your body looks like. That ain’t your problem.”

“But still…” You pull your legs up to the bed and hug them. “I wish I looked like Angel sometimes… he really likes you, you know.”

Husk snorts. “Yeah. I kinda guessed.”

“You could have been with him before I even got here. Why would you choose me over a gorgeous celebrity like him?”

“You’ve got a certain charm that he doesn’t have. I still like the guy a lot, but we’re just friends. He’s not as kind hearted as you, and he doesn’t appreciate quiet nights in like you do. He needs someone who can keep up with him… and I need someone who can slow down with me. Someone like you.”

At least he loves your personality…

“Plus…” Husk wraps an arm around your waist and squeezes your hip. “I wasn’t kiddin’ when I said he had a flat ass.”

“Husk!” you squeal, his touch tickling your skin.

“Can I be a gross old man for a second?” he says with a smirk. “Because I love curves. Hips and ass are the best. Gives me something to squeeze.” Both of his arms are around you now, and he’s holding you close. “Sure, he’s perfect by some standards, but he ain’t my type. You, on the other hand…” He kisses your forehead and gently strokes your hair. “Don’t change based on what you think I want, okay, doll? I love you just like this.

Comparin’ yourself to others won’t get you anywhere. Just trust that I’m with you because I wanna be.”

[e-m-ma-lmfao]

HII im a huge fan of ur writing and ur one of the few final fantasy writers on here thats active 😭😭 i was hoping i could request some zack fair fluff? like before the events of crisis core, maybe he accidentally gets himself sick during work and angeal knows he'll just keep showing up for work bc he wants the promotion to first class so bad, so he gets zacks childhood bestfriend (reader) to go keep an eye on him and make sure he actually rests lol. zack keeps insisting hes ok but reader is having none of it and takes care of him, which eventually leads to a confession bc zack doesnt understand why reader cares so much and it just leads to everything coming out. i hope that made sense lol this is my first request :) dont feel pressured to do this of course!!!

Since We Were Kids

pairing : zack fair x (female) reader

summary : zack is determined to reach first class. so much so that he will push through one of the most debilitating cold's he's ever had. angeal attempts to get him home, calling in zacks childhood best friend for help.

“Angeal! Come on! You know how important this is to me..” Zack lets out a pitiful whine, attempting to persuade his superior, before his whine turns into a horrific coughing fit. He doesn’t have to look up now that Angeal’s face has made no changes, he is stoic and his decision is final, Zack will not be staying for work this week. 

“You can take a week off.. Besides you're of no use to anybody with the state you're in. Go home, get some rest.”

“Fine..” 

“I mean it Zack..” 

“Yeah..yeah..i heard ya.” Zack crosses his arms, heavy sigh passing through his lips, eyebrows furrowing as he walks away from where Angeal stands. He was barely sick..a little cough wasn’t gonna hold him back from becoming a first class SOLDIER.

Zack barely lasts 20 minutes away from his training before his sword is back in his hands. His constant coughing fits are feeling him with annoyance but he powers through them to continue swinging away with the chunk of metal in his hands. 

But why was he so tired? He usually had so much energy. Why was his sword so hard to carry? It never had been before.. 

And why did it feel like someone's hand was on his shoulder? “Zack!”

He jumps away when there is suddenly shouting coming from beside him, his head pounding in a way that wasn't noticeable until this moment, “Angeal! Hey pal..what’re you..uh..doing here?”

“What’re you doing here? I told you to go home.” 

“I can’t go home, this is too important, I’m not even that sick..” Even Zack’s faith in the statement is beginning to falter, especially when his eyes become blurry from the dizziness pooling at the front of his head. 

“Go home.” 

“No way!” Zack expects Angeal to disagree again but he doesn’t, he actually doesn't say anything, he just walks away. It’s so out of character that Zack debates just listening to him and leaving so he doesn’t get demoted, but he decides against it and continues to practice while sweat pools on his skin. 

It doesn’t take long for Angeal to return, Zack isn't worried when he hears his heavy footsteps from down the hallway, but he is unaware of the other pair of feet following close behind.

At this point, Zack is just staying for spite, his body is exhausted and he is barely swinging his sword, and his coughing fits are becoming more frequent to the point where he has to stop moving to take deep breaths. 

“Zack. Enough is enough. Your friend can take you home now.”

“Huh?” Zack turns and almost starts coughing again, but only because the breath hitches in his throat, you shouldn’t be here, you shouldn’t be seeing him like this. It’s pitiful, his inability to stay strong for training is embarrassing, and your gaze full of pity isn;t helping in the way it usually does. 

“She’s taking you home.” Zack opens his mouth to argue once more but Angeal has had enough, “No arguing. My decision is final, if I see you here again before I say you can return I will demote you myself, good luck reaching first class then..”

Zack looks defeated but he closes his mouth, and drops his sword with a loud clang, before trudging towards your side with his arms crossed tightly. His mannerisms make a giggle slip out of you, he looks like a child, but you quickly mask it as a cough when he shoots you a serious glare. Also reminiscent of a child but if you laughed again he might punch you. 

He isn’t happy about having to leave, especially being escorted out by a lady half his size, but he doesn’t make any complaints when you intertwine your arm in his to keep him stable. 

“I’m fine, y’know. I’m only going home because Angeal made me.” You nod along with him as he talks, hiding the disbelief running through your head. God was this kid stubborn, but it made you happy to know that his training hadn't changed the way he was when you were kids.  

“Zack, you need to rest..” 

“I need to reach first class.” 

“How do you expect to do that if you can’t even hold your sword up, dork.” His face scrunches up, but to your surprise he doesn’t pull his body away, he actually does the opposite and pulls your arm closer to his body. He’s using you to hold up a large amount of his body weight, but you allow him as long as he needs. 

When you finally reach Zack’s home, it takes more effort to get him into bed then you’d care to admit, he truly acts like a child insisting that he ‘doesn’t need to get any sleep because he feels perfectly fine’ followed by a coughing fit and him having to sit down because he feels dizzy. You promise him the soup that he likes if he gets into bed, to which he begrudgingly agrees to. 

After practically forcing food down his throat, he finally allows himself to be tired and his head falls back onto the pillows. You place a cold cloth on his forehead, after feeling it with your own hands and deciding that his fever might only be worsening. How’d he keep training while being this sick? 

You watch as he dozes off, you can tell he is trying to stay awake so he doesn’t fully admit that he is sick, but his body is taking over. He finally looks at peace, even though his hair is sticking to his forehead and his breathing is heavy, at least he’s getting some rest.

You plan on leaving, really you do, but you get so caught up in the image of him sleeping that you find your own eyes falling closed, head resting by his side against the bed. 

When your eyes open again it’s dark outside, you can’t tell how long you’ve been sitting with him but from the darkness pouring into the room, it’s longer then you meant for. You worry for a moment, worry that you’ve overstayed your welcome and that Zack got up hours ago to sleep away from you, but when you turn the lamp on beside his bed you find him in the same spot you’d left him. 

You’re greedy with how you look at him, you miss being so close to him. The proximity makes you realize how much you’ve missed him since he started his training, you hardly see him. And you wish the circumstances for finally seeing him again weren't because he was sick, and rather because he actually wanted to see you. But you’d take any time you could get with your best friend. 

He stirs suddenly and you let your hand fall on top of his, tangling your fingers in his, as a way to bring him some comfort in his sleep. His skin is warm and clammy, heating up your hands, it should be gross but the feeling of his hand in yours fills your stomach with a flurry of butterflies.

Slowly, his eyes flutter open and you can tell he is dazed, the way he scans the room to gather his surroundings before landing on you once more confirms your thoughts. 

“Y/n?” Zack’s voice is hoarse, causing him to clear his throat before he continues talking, “What’re you still doing here? How long have you been here?”

For a minute your heart pumps inside your chest faster than before, nervousness building in your stomach, “I’m sorry..I fell asleep a couple..hours ago I think. I didn’t want to leave right away in case you woke up again but I never meant to fall asleep.” 

“Why’re you apologizing..” His fingers, which you had forgotten were tangled in your own, tense against your skin and tighten their grip on your hand. 

“Sorry..” 

Your second apology causes him to let out a laugh. A laugh that immediately has him sitting up because he coughs so hard his lungs hurt, and he squeezes your hand tighter in his lap while he tries to catch a breath. 

When he finally catches a break, taking deep breaths while your hand slides up and down his back, he looks at you pitifully, “You’re gonna get sick..go home.” 

“You're crazy if you think I'm going home. I’m not leaving, who’s gonna take care of you?” 

“I can take care of myself, you know..”

“This is news to me.” You raise an eyebrow at him, to which he responds by sticking his tongue out tiredly. He can’t even retort like he usually does. He doesn't have the energy to argue and tell you to leave so you don’t get sick, Zack isn’t even sure he wants you to leave anymore. 

“You don’t have to stay..” 

“I want to, Zack. I care about you.” You can’t tell if his cheeks were already flushed or if they suddenly became red as you spoke to him, but either way you were sure your face was mirroring his.  

He falls back onto the pillows, asking you quietly if you'll get him some water and another blanket before he gets the chills, and you happily oblige. Even while he’s sick, he is able to feel content and you’re happy to be the reason. 

Zack's fingers find your hand again, squeezing gently as you sit on the chair beside him, “..Training is kicking my ass.” 

“Yeah..but I’m sure it’ll be all worth it eventually,” You try not to let his spirits get down especially while he is in such a tired state, his training put on pause because of his sickness, and you ponder telling him more, “I miss you, you know..a lot.”

A small smile appears on his face, eyes puffy and bags under his eyes, and he looks towards you, “Yeah?” 

You can only nod, embarrassed by his lack of affirmation that he has felt the same over the months he’s been training. 

“I missed you too..” And the embarrassment flees from your body instantaneously, while his thumb rubs over the top of your knuckles. 

The two of you sit in silence for a while, him playing with your knuckles as he tries to hold back the aggressive coughs that threaten to leave his mouth. His head is pounding, and he should feel like shit, but he truly can’t bring himself to when you're looking into his eyes all concerned and you’re letting him play with your hands with no complaints.

“Why’d you stay?” His voice startles you, and you try to pretend that you weren't staring at him and admiring every detail of his face. 

“I already told you..” You roll your eyes, letting out a huff before leaning on the palm of your hand, in all honesty you were ready to doze off while Zack looked around your hands and face. 

“No..no..why’d you stick around?” His question confuses you and you have to think about what he might mean and then it clicks. You hadn’t realized that he might be aware of how much time his training takes up. It hadn’t occurred to you that Zack could focus on anything but becoming first class.

He’d been neglecting your friendship, but when Angeal rang and asked you to pick Zack up you agreed without hesitation, you forgot instantly about how angry his schedule made you. 

You’re not sure how to answer him. You could tell him the truth, that you had been madly in love with your black haired friend since you were children.

Or you could continue to lie, and claim that you had only stayed around because of your long lasting friendship that had absolutely no underlying romantic feelings that neither one of you could talk about. 

“C’mon Zack..” 

He stares into your eyes, right through you. He knows, he already knows, you don’t have to say anything to him. As he looks at you, he's pleading with you to admit it to him and it makes your stomach crawl with nervousness. 

“Y’know I’d do anything for you..been like that since we were kids.” His eyebrows furrow at your attempt to dodge an admission that you hadn’t been prepared for an hour ago, you still weren't ready to admit to him that you were in love with him. 

“Y/n..do you love me?” 

Again silence fills the room and you’re unsure what to say to the expectant boy. You think, for a second, that he's joking. But his eyes are filled with such sincerity and genuine interest. He wants to know, and he doesn't seem to care if his question comes off bluntly.

When you don’t immediately respond he continues in your place, “Because I think I’m in love with you and I know I’d do anything for you. And I think you feel the same way. I can’t think of any other reason why you wouldn't ignore Angeal’s call, and tell me to deal with this by myself. I know I haven't been around like I should be. But you’re here anyway..”

“Zack please..of course I do. Been like that since we were kids,” You smile softly, repeating yourself and look down at your entangled hands.

He doesn’t let that allow that for very long before he is grabbing your chin to turn your head to face him once more, “I’m not gonna kiss you, because I don't want you getting sick. But I promise you, as soon as this sickness is gone I’m gonna be all over you..” 

Even though his words, words you would've never expected to hear when you dragged him into his room just hours earlier, send a nervous shiver down your body you still find a way to tease him, “Careful Zack. Get too excited and your lungs might act up again.”

“Can I ask you to stay the night?” 

How could you ever say no. 

“Of course, Zack, anything for my first class SOLDIER.” 

[tokyo-debunkers-headcanons]

Thank you for your service smol o7 this game has been on my thoughts 24/7 lol so it’s nice to see someone writing for it!!

I was hoping I could request some jealousy headcanons about the ghouls being pouty MC is hanging out with others so much because of their missions with other houses. In particular I was hoping for my boy Haku (I know we don’t have a main chapter for him yet but he did have those two chunks of screen time—if he’s too difficult because of not enough info don’t worry about it then!); as well as maybe Jin, Luca and whoever else you’d like!

Thanks again~

Just like another ask i got, I'm gonna write Haku based on the vibe I got from him. This could be proven entirely inaccurate in the later game and I am okay with that lol. I'm gonna round it to an even four characters. All these will be before any relationship actually happens. Like there's a crush there but no one has said anything yet.

And thank YOU for sending in a request and enjoying!

Be aware! These will contain minor spoilers for episode 3!

JIN KAMURAI

I feel like silver spoon Jin has no experience with certain types of jealousy. Materialistic jealousy? Doesn't know her. But when he heard how close MC had been getting with some of those Vagastrom thugs? Oh it made his blood boil.

At first I'm sure he thought it was because on of his orders was being defied. But that feeling only got stronger when MC was finished with Vagastrom and moved onto Jabberwok.

Good luck to Tohma because mans here does not know what to do about these emotions. This is one of those problems that can't be fixed with money and he is NOT happy about it. He goes back to brooding in his room for a while to think things through.

He will not tolerate any disrespect from any theories that the Frostheim gossip elite have. But when he noticed the like dove flying in the direction of MC'S dorm, things suddenly started to click in his head.

LUCAS ERRANT "LUCA"

Our boy here is another one who isn't necessarily familiar with jealousy. Its for similar reasons of, he comes from a well off family, but different in the way he was raised and things he's been through as a little kid.

He's glad to see MC making more friends and making possible progress on breaking their curse, at first. When they get to Jabberwok however, he hears from Kaito that their vice captain Towa is a bit of (how Kaito put it), "a fucking weirdo", which gives him some pause.

When Kaito came running up to Luca showing him a WickChat post about MC having a possible boyfriend (its false, its just Towa being affectionate and someone saw). He feels his heart sink a little bit

He made a mental note to text MC later to ask about it and get all the information he could about their relationship and about the Jabberwock students. He promised to protect MC not matter what. Hopefully they could explain the strange twist in his chest while they talked too.

ALAN MIDO

He doesn't really get jealous. Period.

I think he's the kind of guy to know how strong he is, he knows his reputation. He's tech hopeless, not a moron. So just being around him can scare off people from getting too close to MC while he's around.

He himself overheard about MC having a possible boyfriend (same post from Luca's) from Leo telling Sho. He didn't pay any real mind to it until he heard Leo mention how affectionate they were.

That's the one thing he gets jealous about. He's a bit more aware of his feelings than people might think, so he knows he has a crush on MC. He just hasn't had the time to tell them that.

The rumor takes some wind out of Alan's sails for sure. He's more likely to believe that MC would pick someone else over him since I think he'd be more hesitant on something like physical affection.

He knows his strength and he knows MC'S ability, he would be too afraid that he'd lose control and do something else he might regret, so out of everyone on this list. I think Alan would be the one to take longer to confess because of jealousy and his insecurities.

HAKU KUSANAGI

I don't remember if it's explicitly said anywhere (my memory sucks butt I'm sorry) but he gives older sibling energy with how he cleaned up after Taiga in the prologue. So I KNOW he's been worried about MC since they last saw eachother.

He was at least somewhat relieved when he found them hanging out with the Frostheim second years, but there was a pang in his he couldn't quite place. He chalked it up to just being a worrywart and left it alone.

But when he heard that MC had gone missing in episode 3, he was READY to jump in to go help the search and rescue team. His heart was racing and he was suddenly confronted with feelings that were coming out of left field (no they weren't)

When MC returns back safely, Haku has half a mind to go fight with the professor Hyde about sending the very human honor student on such dangerous missions. He keeps a much closer eye on them from now on and with his status as an heir to (what i assume) is a beloved shrine, he tries to request that MC be sent to work with Hotarubi next.

[markantonys]

Ngl I lowkey ship Adar and Elrond 🫶 (he's not Maglor right)

i'm right there with you!! they were already two of my favorite characters individually, and then they came together and their interactions were so powerful. adar/galadriel and adar/elrond are two interesting good flavors of a hero/villain ship: the former is a version where they have a lot in common and in a weird way can understand each other like no one else can, and the latter is a version where they are very very different and could both challenge each other to grow (elrond's early-season stance that nothing good can ever come from a bad creator would face a reckoning if he fell for adar and became Orc Stepdad, and as for adar, if he fell for elrond, well, then he would embark on redemption immediately because elrond being disappointed in you would be the literal most painful thing anyone could experience, i would kill myself if elrond was disappointed in me)

i know Literally Nothing about tolkien stuff, but i think i heard that maglor is elrond's stepdad?? in which case i also hope adar is not him haha but this raises an interesting point that i've been thinking about while reading all the Who Is Adar speculation! said point being: if adar is going to be revealed in the show to be a specific elf from the lore, the only option is celeborn. because no one else would mean anything to the general audience aka like 95% of viewers.

now, i don't really think adar is celeborn. i think that within the canon of the show he'll only ever be an OC and they'll never specify who he was pre-morgoth. or at most they might drop some kind of easter egg that would allow lore experts to definitively connect him with a certain elf from the lore, but without making a big Reveal out of it or spelling it out explicitly. and either way, people are having fun speculating who he could be and i'm all for that, knock yourselves out! but if we're envisioning an actual scene in the show where they go "drumroll please............adar is actually so-and-so!" it could only be either a) a specific named elf the general audience would be instantly familiar with (which i can't think of any examples of since there are no other Universally Known elves like elrond, galadriel, and arwen), because if they drop a specific name and it's not instantly recognizable to the majority of the audience, the drumroll would fall super flat.

or b) an elf who has a close connection with another character we already know AND, ideally, who was mentioned already in the show. they could be like "drumroll please..........adar is actually elrond's stepdad! or gil-galad's brother!" and the general audience would be like "oh! okay. uhh since when did elrond have a stepdad or gil-galad a brother though?" but if it was "drumroll please...........adar is actually galadriel's missing husband!" then the general audience would go wild because we already knew she had a husband who disappeared and we've been wondering what might've happened to him. (okay a lot of people who watched s1 2 years ago have probably forgotten all about that haha but at least a good chunk of us would go wild! and the rest would soon follow once they'd gotten their memories jogged.)

anyway! i got so off-topic djfkg but i've seen so many lore-knowers speculating about adar's elf identity that i thought it might interest some of you to see a show-only perspective on The Only Adar Identity They Could Reveal That Would Be Interesting To Us General Audiences. but i still think it's very unlikely he's celeborn and he will simply never be specifically identified in the show!

[brainrotharlot]

Ok, so, I've been on holiday in Japan for a few days now. It's my first time in Japan and I'm having a great time. It's really amazing and just like any ol' weeb, I've been wanting to go there for years.

But especially, I've been looking for Arlong merch. 🦈

At first, I wasn't very lucky. I only managed to find cards from the one piece card game. I think I got every card with Arlong that exists, which is super neat. I even got the cards for super cheap, some of them were on sale. Poor old boy was so unwanted.

But when it came to actual merch, Arlong was nowhere to be found.

At every one piece or figurine shop we visited (There's so many of those everywhere), I couldn't find any Arlong merch. Shops often carried very obscure characters who I only vaguely remembered existed, but rarely any Arlong.

The only stuff I found were quite ugly. But since I couldn't find anything else, and I was holding a bet with my boyfriend on who would find merch of their favorite character first and bring it home, I still got them. I even took a small figurine of Luffy stomping Arlong 🙄

The good thing with loving random as characters is that you won't spend too much money on memorabilia, I suppose!

We were still checking most shops we came accross, mostly because it's fun, but I was still on the hunt. At this point, just finding a pin or a keychain with the official art instead of an ugly chibi would have been great, but no luck! 😮‍💨

Until...

Until!

I found this chunk of a hunk in a shop!

I don't think this pictures shows just how big and cool this guy is. He's gonna dwarf the figurines we already have at home. He's big enough to stomp on the small figurine of Luffy stomping Arlong. I'll take better pics when we're home.

He was taking a whole shelf row just for himself. I heard angels sing when I found him. I was in the middle of a sentence, complaining about not finding Arlong again when I spotted him. It was so funny.

The cashier also liked him a lot. We had a few items, but he stopped when scanning that big Arlong figurine, saying "woah, so cool!" and then said "sorry, man", when he put him in the shopping bag.

Also, look at how tiny his head is compared to the rest of his body! So little room for brains!

Anyway, I'm extatic to have found it! I wasn't hoping to find something so cool that's Arlong-related

I didn't think I would find anything to top this off.

And yet...

You guys aren't ready.

We walked past a shop that sold one piece underwear (yes, underwear).

And this mofo was staring right at us.

Yes, it's underwear, with Arlong's whole f*cking face on it.

It's ugly. It's beautiful. I love it.

Don't be so jealous!

[tamtamandtim]

So I’ve finished Moominvalley season 2 (2019) and my god I loved it but it hurt me so much in return holy wow. Anyway if you’d like some of my thoughts about it feel free to keep reading ^-^

(fair warning it’s a lot longer than I thought it’d be)

Episode 2 the fire spirit got me so bad in my feelings and even funnier yet I could tell it would by not only the title and thumbnail but the second I heard the song by cavetown I literally was like ‘hm it sounds like something by cavetown…This should be fine’

oh how wrong I was because of how it ended with the little fire spirit sacrificing itself to save Moominvalley and how upset Snufkin was, he seemed to be pretty attached to the lil goober when the gang dropped it off.

So having his care and attempts to protect it, be basically for nothing would’ve been soul crushing for him.

Holywow I loved how the Hobgoblin and Sniff were just bouncing off eachother so well. Then the Hobgoblin giving Sniff ✨EMPATHY✨ my god that was amazing, especially with how Moominpapa and Little My were like “ew get away from me”

I love how the Groke is now just becoming a more casual part of the community especially with the trial episode, like don’t get me wrong they’re still uneasy with her presence but they still wanted to give her a fair trial and everything.

Ooooh no the ✨The bad feelings✨ I was having about Snorkmaiden and Moomintroll were riiiighttttt. Moomintroll seemed more angry about having to leave the valley (and Snufkin by association) than leaving Snorkmaiden to the point he was unintentionally hurting her. Twice. Technically thrice if you include the fact they broke up. But I’m glad that Moomintroll is beginning to learn that he’s gonna have to accept a couple of things about Snufkin, if he ever wants him to stay. But still kinda hurts a bit.

I loved that Moominpapa and Moominmama have character arcs that don’t involve getting divorced, it’s refreshing and sure they still fight and have moments being mad at eachother but at the end of the day they still love each other and honestly? I love them for that.

Ah Moominpapas midlife crisis, I hope that I can be able to just pack up and go when I hit mine. Sounds like the dream honestly and I wish I could be as creative as Moominmama, just painting the walls with no worries.

I also LOVED the sea shanties just 👌😩 it brings me so much joy because there was a good chunk of time where that’s all I’d listen too.

The last episode though also gave me a gut punch because of the fact Snufkin came back before he left for the winter, and that he just welcomes himself in because he knows that they wouldn’t mind him being there, regardless of if they are or not. I hate it here. Snufkin you found family fuck. And that everyone there played ‘The Moomin Family’ for the kid.

“Have you checked his bedroom yet?”

“Naturally c:”

of course you have you absolute loser I love you for that. Seeing him get so excited about possibly finding HIS letter, only to be disappointed was devastating too.

Oh but the puppet show, oh when I tell you I almost cried, It’s even sadder that Moomintroll (seemingly) isn’t going to back to Moominvalley. Also my heart dropped to my ass when they almost lit the fire with the ancestors inside, but Snufkin excitedly finding the note inside the fireplace? Put my heart right back in my throat

But more lightheartedly damn Snufkin has got some moves and seeing everyone close to the Moomin family looking back at their time and memories together fondly was so incredibly sweet.

Anyways TL;DR a super strong season that got me right in the feels every time, I’m so excited to be able to start the 3rd season soon!! But thank you so much for reading this! I hope you have a wonderful day, night or time and take care!!

[bluemoondust]

Can You Do Headcanon Yandere De N, Damian (Pokémon), Atsushi Nakajima, Odasaku And Marrow (RWBY) With A Motherly And Caring Personality Darling?, Thank You And Forgive My Bad English

A good chunk of these men are touch starved so this was fun to write 。^‿^｡ Also, no need to apologize! Your English is fine!

When it came to searching up Damian, this is who showed up so I hope I got the character right! Edit: My dumbass found out that Arven's name is Damian in the Spanish version of the game (plus he kept showing up when I searched up Damian). I hope I got this right so please let me know if I didn't!

✧Motherly Darling✧

✧Currently Playing✧: Lock Me Up by The Cab

Characters: N Harmonia (Pokemon), Arven (Pokemon), Nakajima Atsushi (BSD), Sakunosuke Oda (BSD), Marrow Amin (RWBY)

cw: fem!/gn!darling (implied, no pronouns)

Warning(s): Obsessive Behavior, Overprotective Behavior, Slight Paranoia and Stalking

✧N Harmonia✧

Instantly attached the moment you show genuine care for him. N had already heard from your Pokemon that you were a magnificent person. They would only speak praises upon praises about how you love them as much as family would. It warms his heart to hear such things. So when he interacts with you, learning that your kindness extends to people and not just Pokemon, he immediately wants to keep you around.

The man has never experienced true care outside of his caretakers (Anthea and Concordia) so he is incredibly touch starved. His lack of experience with actual human beings has distorted his views of humanity and the norm (especially with what Ghetsis has taught him), making him socially stunted. N, however, doesn't feel out of place when he's with you. He truly feels like an actual person and not a freak because of your patience and attentive nature. You were able to pinpoint his struggles and aid him when necessary, never chiding him for the habits he has (speaking quickly, his hyperfixations, the ability to speak with Pokemon, etc.). It was an issue he was facing with after Team Plasma dissolved, but now he feels a sense of security because of you.

That's why N isn't really fond of being away from you for too long. He's grown dependent on your motherly nature and refuses to let go anytime soon. As I mentioned before in his general yandere headcanons post, it's hard to say no to this man when he looks like a kicked Lillipup. You feel extremely guilty when you try to refuse his offers to hang out. He doesn't have anyone else and he finds comfort in you...maybe your friends can wait. N needs you right now.

✧Arven✧

This is the same case with Arven, but he's not willing to admit it just yet. Unlike N, he is not ready to be fully vulnerable due to the grievances he's faced as a child. As we all know, his mother/father wasn't around often and he became independent at a very young age. He is the type of yandere who will keep his feelings to himself as he admires you from afar. Your immense amount of love and affection was so...unfamiliar to him. Foreign. He didn't know how to deal with it at first.

Though one thing is obvious to him is that he can't get enough of it. You're always reminding him to take care of himself and helping out when you can. It was odd since he's used to doing everything on his own. It...it feels good to rely on someone else for once. Was he...missing out on this for all his life? Arven reflects on things before he becomes attached to you. It's somewhat subtle but at the same time obvious. He's always by your side and doesn't go out of his way to befriend others (not like he was trying to do that in the first place).

Arven is so protective over you. It may seem endearing at first, how he stands by your side whenever you're speaking to your own friends. He's like your guard dog or something like that. Holding your hand as he squeezes it gently (you've made it a habit to hold his hand and he certainly didn't object after a few times of it happened) as he glowers at your friends. You insist to yourself that it's just his usual expression, but it really isn't the case in this scenario. He can't fathom why you even need these people when he could obviously provide you with so much. His insecurities eat at him slowly everyday. Aren't you satisfied with having him around? You don't need them...

✧Atsushi Nakajima✧

From the moment you showed your unconditional affections and compassion, Atsushi couldn't believe you actually existed. Not only are you such a warmhearted person, but you don't even expect anything in return. His heart strings are pulled with every kind action and word you take/speak. Coming from a place of hardship and pain, Atsushi had to take some time to process the way you were. It was something he clearly wasn't used to but...he couldn't help but be drawn to it. It's odd to admit it but maybe, deep down, he craves this sort of treatment. Something you just can't get enough of once you have a taste.

Then there comes the fear. You're so precious and ever so kind. It's the perfect set of traits that horrible people like to ruin. The world is just like that; where awful human beings like to destroy the beauty of it all. You're no exception and Atsushi would be damned if he allowed you to meet the same fate. He becomes protective, and why wouldn't he? You're living in a city where danger seems to lurk in every corner. You...understand why he insists to walk you home, right? Not only to make sure you're safe, but also for peace of mind. Though, sometimes he finds himself searching (and following) around for you in secret whenever his paranoia strikes him.

Atsushi can't help it. He simply cannot lose you, a person who has shown his genuine care when no one else did. You are literally the light of his life. The very person who keeps him going. He'd do anything to ensure you are never in any danger. The thought of you dying out there frightens him to tears. Always holding your hand when when it's just the two of you, just to make sure you're still with him. He feels like it's his obligation to do all this. Otherwise...what good is he to you? There might be better people in the world for you but...but he wants you!

✧Oda Sakunosuke ✧

Congratulations, darling! You just earned yourself a protector who will stick by your side no matter what. Oda immediately could see how much you hold your heart on your sleeve (unless there's more to it as he observes you). He admires your personality and has no doubt that you're a light that shines brighter than most. You have his deep respects. The tenderness in your eyes and voice when you aid others is very evident. You're definitely too good for this world. He wonders if you ever have struggles of your own. Oda doesn't mind your care or concern for him, but do expect him to return the favor, no matter how much you protest against it. The two of you are both an adorable sight, honestly.

Still, as a yandere, Oda can be a bit protective but he isn't going overboard in his actions. He does work for the Port Mafia, so he does make sure you're under some form of protection in case of anything. I will say that he is the least yandere to concern yourself over due to many variables that keep it that way. His ability is incredibly useful if anything were to go wrong. However, even then, it doesn't get to that point unless someone really wants to seriously hit him where it hurts. Also, Oda doesn't get jealous often. He has faith in you, your kind hearted self, but he worries about how others can take advantage of your kindness. Oh, and he's honest about that. He sits down to talk to you about it and knows you'll listen, taking his words to consideration. What a lovely man he is.

Oda definitely introduces you to the orphans he's taken in. He knows you'll love them and in turn they'll love you as well. He believes they really do need someone with a motherly presence, given how they don't have that anymore. If he wasn't already obsessed with you before, watching you play with the kids certainly made him want you even more. You've been a lingering thought, a dream to be added to the one he already has. More than ever, Oda wants to be a novelist who writes with a view of the ocean...and you by his side with kids of your own (if you'd want that). His drive to leave the Port Mafia is stronger as he makes sure nothing from that organization reaches your senses. Don't worry...You two will have the life you always wanted.

✧Marrow Amin✧

Marrow is an open book when it comes to how he feels about you (for obvious reasons). However, he won't admit that outright. He has a reputation after all and he can't get mushy on the job. This is what he insists as he quickly grabs his tail to stop its wagging. A dead giveaway of course. Even if Marrow is an open book, that's only half of what's going on. He deeply appreciates your kindness and it's evidently in the way he looks at you when he believes no one is around. Unlike some of the other yanderes in this post, he doesn't have much insecurities. Sure, with his background as a faunus and the potential discrimination he had faced, it could brew about self esteem issues. However, Marrow does not dwell on all that, especially since he's made it this far in life. Even so, he really enjoys the way you treat him.

The man doesn't even have to ask for anything as you go out of your way to assist him. It's cute to him, but he presents his response as a smooth, "Oh, I had that covered" just to dismiss how much he appreciated the help. It's not like Marrow is undermining your actions...and he really does feel bad when he's alone with his thoughts. Especially when you're offering your help to others instead. A sense of guilt washes over him, but also jealousy. He honestly can't stand watching you give so much attention to the newcomers who General Ironwood made official huntsman and huntresses. Like, sure, they're young and impressionable (and he likes them too!) but aren't you supposed to be aid him? I mean, he's the rookie and all (something he doesn't say out loud a lot...). Marrow can't help but watch you longingly from afar.

He's come to be accustomed to your attitude, praise, and warmhearted behavior so it was a matter of time before Marrow became completely attached. He is now sticking by your side more, giving you puppy eyes for his morning coffee, insisting you check him for injuries despite the fact that he only got hit once while fighting some Grimm and much more. Heck, he even hopes you're watching him when training or fighting off Grimm so he can hear from you how amazing he is. It just feels special coming from you...There are times where you feel like all you see in your day is Marrow. It was if your schedule only revolved around being assigned to assist him. You don't question it too much, especially since Marrow was still new to the Ace Ops. He needed guidance and all the help he could get. Is that really true though?

[secretsandwriting]

Come on Darling

A little mafia leader Noah drabble because @/starsomens and their anons were talking about it a while ago and it made my mafia au come back with vengeance so I wrote the first part of it. I haven't read it over to check for mistakes so who knows whats going on.

WARNINGS: minor character death, violence, descriptions of flesh in hair, vomiting. the reader has basically been kidnapped and is being threatened half the time, prostitution.

Part Two

The arm of the rich man who had hired you for the event was tight on your waist. You tried to ignore the pain and the look in his eyes when he glanced at you. You knew how this thing would go, it was always the worst but your pimp had sent you with the highest bidder. Overall you would be making $1,000 a day, your pimp a little more. 

You heard gasps and whispers behind you. “Bad Omens is here” “what are they doing here?” “We need to leave immediately!” The arm of the man around you tightened even more, you couldn’t hold in your wince, you could only hope that the man didn’t see it.

A gunshot rang through the room, something warm splattered on the side left side of your face and the man holding onto you dropped to the ground. Before you could move, someone else grabbed onto you and you found yourself being pulled back into someone, their grip was gentle and would be comforting if it weren’t for the body on the ground next to you. A large hand cupped your cheek and turned your head away from the man on the floor.

“Have her things sent to my room.” You really didn’t want to, really really didn’t want to but you also didn’t want to end up shot and on the ground.

“Yes sir. Here are your keys.” A tattooed hand took the keys offered towards you and you watched in horror as keys were handed to Nicholas Ruffilo, Jolly Karlsson, and Nick Folio. Noah Sebastian, a man known for being absolutely ruthless. A man who only cared about himself and the other three heads of Bad Omens. He had been known to get rid of lower members of the mafia if he thought they weren’t good enough. 

Noah Sebastian’s arm was wrapped around your waist and he was right behind you. You could feel his chest move with his breathing against your back. You were dead. This was worse than your previous worst case scenario.

“Come on Darling, let's get that bastard's blood cleaned off of you.” You were gently pulled away from the front desk and led to the elevator. You could hear the other three around you, sometimes you could see them in the corner of your eye. The elevator opened, the floor was pushed, and the doors closed. Trapping you in a confined space with four extremely dangerous men.

“I know we wanted him dead, but was the lobby of a nice hotel with a girl right next to him really the best place to shoot the guy?” 

“According to your tone, I’m assuming you want the answer to be no.” 

“I just figured he wanted the girl for information.” This was just getting worse by the second. The doors slid open and you were once again led away. “Let us know if you need help getting info.” The others went to their rooms and you were led to another, Noah opening the door and ushering you in before locking it behind you. 

“Go to the bathroom. I’ll be there in a minute.” You were spun around, he gripped your chin forcing you to look up at him. “Don’t do anything stupid. I’m not against shooting you.” The second he let you go, you rushed to the bathroom. Glancing at yourself in the mirror, you inspected the blood spattered across your skin and hair. There were chunks of flesh in your hair. You rushed to the toilet, the contents of your stomach coming back up. 

Once you had successfully removed everything from your stomach, you rested your head against your arm, trying to catch your breath. You could feel eyes on you, meaning Noah must have come. You didn’t move from your spot on the floor, giving yourself some time to breathe. 

“Strip.” Noah moved past you to the shower, the one word was the only thing said. While you stripped, Noah turned on the shower and seemed to adjust it. When he deemed it ready, you were ushered in and instructed to sit on the shower stool facing away from the water and towards him.

He grabbed the shower head and pulled it down, hot water ran through your hair. You could hear some of the chunks landing on the ground. The sound making you feel sick again.

“Alec’s your pimp, right?.” You nodded. “What do you know about his business?” 

“He gets more than half of what my clients pay me, the percentage depends on how well he thinks I did.” Noah paused, before putting the shower head back and grabbing a bottle off the shelf. He moved behind you, it wasn’t much longer until you felt the shampoo being scrubbed through your hair.

“Let me rephrase myself, What do you know about his other business?” The hands in your hair tightened, a threat.

“Just rumors some of the other girls talked about.” Noah hummed before having you explain everything you had heard, all the rumors, what you had seen and heard.

“Alright. Dry off, I’ll get you one of my shirts to wear and tomorrow we’ll go shopping and get you some things. You’ll need it since you won’t be leaving my side until this is over.”

[enihk-writes]

[when i was still the one you want]

based on lyrics from right where you left me by taylor swift

paring: various!hwasan characters x gn!reader

summary: it's breakup season (because everyone around me are ending their relationships so something's in the air)

characters: geumjon (pbss) // geumhyeop (mhdd) // tang bo // baek cheon // jin geumryong // namgung dowi // jang ilso // tang soso // yu iseol

author's note: so funny story,,,,,,, i saw that post about gaylors being less credible than jungkook as reincarnated princess diana truthers... went on a taylor binge, and had some fanfic thoughts,,, so now bone apple teeth for yall ig <333 i would have added tang gunak but me personally? i would NOT fumble a dilf like that ever.

GEUMJON thinks it was nice while it lasted, like a sparkler you play with on summer nights — a passionate romance that ignited and died out by the end of a season. he was the pinnacle of your youth, but everyone had to grow up someday. and when neither of you felt that same fluttering sensation in your stomachs. you both agreed that you should end things. there was no hard feelings from either side, that's just how life was. and he heard years later, through the grapevine, that you had gotten married. to which he raises his cup of wine to the full moon in your honour.

GEUMHYEOP was the type of guy to try and fail. he'd be the first to lose interest in a relationship, and he was honestly a little panicked by that revelation. it didn't make sense to him that this could happen. you hadn't done anything wrong, you didn't deserve that. how could he have let this happen to you? he would shift his attention more on you ever so subtly, trying his best to rekindle whatever feeling he used to have for you as you remained blissfully unaware. though he finally gives up, and can only hope that you would notice. you do. but only when he starts to avoid you more often, missing out on almost every milestone in your relationship. avoiding confrontation, making excuses so that he doesn't have to come face-to-face with the hurt and confusion all over your face. this back-and-forth wears you out, and things just die out without so much of a word.

TANG BO was only with you because amongst all the marriage candidates the elders of his family had him meet, you had been the most tolerable one. you were easily forgettable, and something about that intrigued him. he was sure that one day, he would come to love you the way you had with him. it didn't. and it never did for all those decades, and he always remained as your betrothed up until the very end. you had both grown old, and it became ever so obvious that things just weren't going to work out the way either of you had hoped. he feels guilty for wasting a good chunk of your life with so much will-we-won't-we, and tries to help you stand back on your feet when you finally leave the tang estate. somewhere along those lines you two became a little more then friends, definitely far from lovers, maybe you and him ended up a little bit like family, or the next closest thing to that. you passed not too old, not too young. and he made sure that he sent you off to the afterlife proper. not realising you had taken a fragment of his heart with you.

JANG ILSO is a fickle guy. his obsessions die out as quickly as they appear. in exchange for the luxurious life you were gifted as his lover, you were expected to be at his every beck and call. can't be too obvious about it, he hates clingy lovers. can't get too nonchalant, he loves a little chase, sure. but he hates having to lower himself to ask for attention. he wasn't a needy dog. it was commendable that you lasted as long as you did — a whole three years wasn't an easy feat. you were lucky he felt nice and had only kicked you out of his estate with your belongings. including the gold and jewels he had gifted you. there was nothing more you could have asked for, you never had to work another day in your life, and thank god it seems his new obsession was keeping him busy enough to have him forget about you.

NAMGUNG DOWI wonders if he had done something wrong for you to come up and tell him you wanted to break up with him. you both wanted something different in life, he never really seemed to be on the same page as you when it came to things you both wanted for the future. he was distraught, telling you he would change and please stay here — you would but you had dreams too, and he had his commitments he had to fulfil. maybe, someday in the future, you both might find each other again but right now, you bade him adieu with kisses on his tear-stained cheeks.

TANG SOSO, she kept you like a secret while you kept her like an oath. something, something about how it wouldn't end well for either of you if you were found out. her, the daughter of the tang patriarch and you a child from a branch family she had supposedly fallen for. you only realised she wasn't that serious about you when she eventually left home for mount hua. you had seen the way her eyes sparkled when that girl with amethyst eyes cut down a new path she never knew she could have taken in life. she left because you didn't have the cards to give her what she wanted. well, at least one of you was happy. at least one of you found something they wanted to do.

YU ISEOL hasn't been the most vocal person between the two of you. it was always you that had to pull the weight, always you that had to watch out for the other. you had fallen in love with her because of her deep passion for the blade, it was also this deep passion for the blade that had driven her further and further away from you. somewhere along the way, you realised that there was almost nothing you had in common with her anymore. you had cried yourself to sleep that night, only waking up the next morning to end things with her properly. she was the same as always, swinging her sword, retracing her steps ever so diligently. even as you poured your heart out, she never once faltered — that's good. because you know that if she had staggered for a single moment, you would know she still cared, and you would have taken back everything you'd said. she didn't lose focus, and that was what you used to love about her. you let her be, not once turning back.

JIN GEUMRYONG could only watch from the corner of his eye what your expression was like as the elders brought him to meet the guests. with how he had been pushed forward as the leader of the next generation, the elders — his father included, had been looking into suitable marriage candidates for him. what they all didn't know was that he was already seeing someone. that someone being you. and what you yourself didn't know was that the elders had been looking into potential matches for him, something he hadn't told you about up until the day of the marriage interviews. you'd believe he'll explain it to you, assure you that you were still the one he'd choose. but you should have known he was a man who was duty-bound, and he would have never picked you above what he believed was his duty to the sect. if this was how it was going to end anyways, why did he even bother to ask you to be his?

BAEK CHEON knows he's never been good enough to call himself your lover. not when there were so many others that could fill his spot. you could assure him all you want but it wasn't enough to convince him, he was always trying his best, and you had always been so happy with it. but it wasn't enough. nothing you did or said was ever enough to calm his paranoia. all these feelings bubbled over to a tipping point, an argument of no return and you decided enough was enough. he had never known what it was like to actually wake up without you by his side until then, and he knew it was too late to take back all that he'd said. how dare he have the audacity to break your heart and try to fix it? he did this to himself, and now he has to lie in the grave he dug out.

[so-long-soldier-writes]

Anchors

liam dunbar x theo raeken

summary: the end of the war brought a slew of changes to the lives of those left in beacon hills. unfortunately for liam, that includes taking his medication again, since telling his mom about the supernatural didn't go exactly as planned. now, he battles a retake of his senior year, the side effects of his medication, and a desire to keep the good things he has in his life, all while trying to keep himself afloat.

tags: angst & feels, hurt / comfort, post-war, implied / referenced s3lf h4rm, mild blood, dread doctors mentioned, protective!theo, theo lives with the dunbar-geyer family & he also works in the hospital bc i can see it, forehead kisses (so many), mentions of past abuse, relapsing, beowulf references, found family, touchy-feely

word count: 7.4k

a/n: So a big chunk of this is about Theo's past with the doctors, and growing up with them, and I'm pretty sure I got most of my facts right, but if something's totally off-canon, my bad. Season 5 is honestly quite confusing to me, and I'm trying to rewatch it to understand better. Anyway, I also did a lot of research on antipsychotics, because that's what Liam said he used to take. I struggled a bit, because a lot of the medications used to help IED also reduce sh urges, but we know Liam struggled with that throughout the show. Ugh, I love him so much. Comfort character <3 I want to give him a hug. Third thing, I haven't read Beowulf in like, six years, so all of my references are from SparkNotes, Quizlet, and a vague, vague, memory of it from the last time I touched a copy of it.

Also, greatest apologies for being absent / not posting for just about an entire month. I'm trying to reclaim my life; I've lost myself a bit this year. I did put in a three weeks' notice for my job, so I hope I can be active again soon.

One last thing, I'm still writing for Kai, I just have had this idea lodged in my brain for a while. I have a lot of stuff to write for a lot of different characters, i just have to get the gears turning again. ily all <3

“I hope loving me isn’t the hardest thing you’ve had to do.”

It’s spoken out in a whisper, but is heard loudly. It rings like a bell in the ears, and makes Theo sigh stressedly before he brushes his hands on his pants. “Clearly you don’t remember the things I’ve been through,” he starts. 

“I’m serious. It hasn’t- I haven’t been easy lately. You shouldn’t have to deal with it.”

“I’m here by choice.” Theo rinses the rag under warm water, then crouches back down to Liam’s level. He takes each finger gently, easing the blood out from underneath his fingernails. “I never had a say in anything that happened in my past, but I have a choice here, with you, and I choose to be with you.”

“Aren’t I making your life harder? You should be out in the world, exploring things you’ve never seen or done. Not stuck in Beacon Hills, babysitting me half the time.”

“I’m not babysitting you, I’m dating you. And I’ve chosen to stay here regardless; I’ve learned I like it here. I like my job, and your parents, and you, and even though I could go out, do something else - and still date you - I don’t want to.”

Part of Liam’s brain knows he’s being ridiculous. Theo’s told him a thousand times how much happier he is now. He does like his job, and he does love Liam and his parents, but he can’t help the insecure feeling that he’s holding him back. “But-”

“And you’re not hard to love. You never are.” He pauses, but when Liam opens his mouth for what he’s certain is a rebuttal, he continues. “Now, the doctors,” he chuckles, “they were hard to love. When they tried to act parental, it was awful. But then I felt guilty for not seeing them that way, because as much as they were killing me, they were also keeping me alive.” Theo tries to bring his attention to the scientists that Liam’s so keenly interested in. Ninety-nine percent of the time, the distraction works, but Theo can tell from the frown on his face that this time is part of the one percent. 

“I’m no better than them; I’m hurting you now.”

The smell of fear still lingers in the air, mixed with fresh blood and the undistinguishable scent of pain. Theo had all but kicked down the door ten minutes ago, leaving it unable to be locked until it’s fixed, but he much prefers it that way. 

“You’re nothing like them. Are you forgetting you saved me from death? From hell? You brought me back, and we fought for each other, almost died for each other, and survived a war thanks to the unspoken trust that that act gave us? I love you, Liam. My stubborn heart can effortlessly say that, because I know you aren’t going to hurt me. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. I’ve never cared for anyone since Tara.”

Liam’s heart softens. The stone walls he tries to put up crumble down into dust. Theo shares so comfortably because Liam’s given him the time, and space, and love to do so. He hasn’t forced or rushed him; he makes him feel safe, and listens, and speaks, reassuringly, when Theo needs it. He loves him wholeheartedly, and makes sure he knows it. 

A deep sigh makes Liam slump forward, posture horrible, but neither comment on it. He watches as Theo cleans the last of the drying blood from his nails and arms. The slowly healing wounds pick up their pace with his care, and eventually, not even scars are left. 

“Sometimes I wish the scars would stay,” he mutters. “I think it would help me do it less.”

Theo understands. But at the same time, he knows it’s better that they heal. “I think your mom would catch on if they did,” he reminds gently. 

Liam’s eye twitches. The painful reminder seems to do the trick. “Can I see yours?”

Without question, Theo lifts his shirt, revealing the small mark under his heart that never fully healed. Liam runs his fingers along it immediately, feeling the bump of raised skin permanently changed from an invasive surgery he had as a child. The doctors, he said, promised it would heal. It never did. 

Theo watches Liam suck in a breath as he trails his fingers down his body, causing him to drop his shirt and chuckle. “You just wanted me to take my shirt off.”

A blush rises to the younger boy’s face. Truly, he did want to see the scar, but it’s easy to get distracted by his boyfriend’s beautiful features. “No-”

He laughs. “Sure-”

“No, I’m serious!” He puts his pointer finger on the scar again, this time over his shirt. The smile from his blush is gone from his face, the somber mood returning to the room. “Thank you, Theo.”

“You aren’t hard to love.”

“I just feel like a burden sometimes.”

“And I love being the one to remind you that you’re not.” Theo kisses his fingertips individually. Liam’s so full of love he might explode. He sighs, eyes fluttering.

“I’m tired.”

“I know you are.”

“Can we lay down?”

“Of course.”

Theo tucks Liam into his bed and changes into something more comfortable before joining him. As soon as they returned from work, Dr. Geyer fell into bed, exhausted from the day. Jenna won’t be back for another couple hours. They have time for a nap. 

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

That evening, when Theo hears the crackling sound of food cooking on the stove, he untangles himself from Liam’s sleepy grasp and tiptoes downstairs. Jenna smiles at him as he joins her in the kitchen.

“Hi, sweetheart, how was work today?”

Theo can’t help but smile. Those are two words he’d never thought to be combined in a nickname talking about him, but Liam’s mom calls him that almost every day. 

“It was good. David had a surgery, so he’s napping, but nothing too heavy.”

“Awh, good. And where’s Liam?”

“Also napping.” He frowns, but doesn’t quite have the words yet, so he asks, “how was your day?”

“Busy, but alright.” She stirs something in the skillet, then tilts her head at him. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, I’m…” he struggles, again, for the right words. It isn’t his place to comment, but he’s willing to cross the line if he thinks it’s necessary. Right now, remembering the scratches on Liam’s arms, he knows it’s definitely necessary. “I don’t know how to say this…”

Jenna nods for him to speak, his worried look quickly betraying him. “Talk to me. What’s up?”

“Liam…” he starts slowly, “I don’t think the meds are helping him. I think he needs to come off them. He’s been extremely tired lately, and…” he doesn’t finish the sentence. He isn’t sure how to tell her the rest; the concern Theo has for his safety. 

“Sweetheart, the meds are good for him. They help with his condition, and especially knowing… what I know now… he needs to be in control of himself so something doesn’t happen.”

A month ago, Liam had finally told his parents about the supernatural. The news came with some shock, but they took it well otherwise. The lupine gene didn’t make them love their son any less, nor did they express any fear, but it did cause them to worry about his I.E.D. worsening. Heightened strength and emotion could lead to more outbursts. So, worried for him and the people around him - if he were to get angry - they refilled the prescription they’ve ignored for two years. Ever since Liam’s been taking it again, he’s been subdued. His parents only see him more tired, though, and assume it’s working. They don’t see the side effects that Theo sees, though, the stuff he desperately tries to hide. 

“I understand, but isn’t there another medication he can try? Or something natural?”

“Like a therapist?”

“I don’t know, but something else.” He wets his lower lip with this tongue, catching the skeptical look on her face. “I just… he’s so tired all the time, almost too tired, I just, I don’t know, it’s changing him. He isn’t as happy anymore.”

“He’s only been taking them for a month, he’ll get used to it. Just takes some time.”

“No, there has to be another way,” he argues, insisting she listens. Hoping she senses the urgency in his tone. “He barely has enough energy to play. He told me that’s why he stopped taking them in the first place.”

Jenna shakes her head. “He’s going to have to get used to it. It’s the safest thing for him. I don’t want-”

“But it’s not!” He interrupts. “It isn’t safe! He hasn’t been himself. He’s- he’s-” Theo stops at the disappointed look on her face. Jenna isn’t one to re-interrupt back, but instead wait patiently with an eyebrow raised, which, he’s finding, is way worse than being scolded. “I’m sorry.”

“My husband is closely monitoring his state and dosage. If we determine something needs to be changed, we will make that change. Honey, I know you care about him, and I know he doesn’t have the same energy he used to, but this is necessary, okay? I don’t know much about this werewolf stuff, so this is me doing my best to keep my son safe. Please respect that.”

Theo bites his tongue. He doesn’t want to push Jenna any further. He doesn’t want to hurt Liam - either of them - by telling her the truth of how the medication’s really affecting him, so he stays quiet. Upstairs, he can hear Liam shuffling. “Okay. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. Thank you for understanding.”

That is not the word he would use, but Theo doesn’t argue further. When Jenna turns back to the stove, he heads back upstairs to check on his little wolf.

He isn’t okay, and he doesn’t know how he’s supposed to tell her that. 

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

The next morning brings the usual hustle and bustle as the found family gets ready for a long day of work. Liam’s waiting for a ride from Mason, since on days Theo works at the hospital with his dad, the two drive there together. His dad, at the moment, is in the kitchen greeting his mom, as Liam lazily hugs his boyfriend. As they separate, he drops something into Theo’s scrub pocket, making him narrow his eyes. 

“What’s that?” 

“Gift.”

He digs out a little folded paper heart and smiles. “Where’d you get this?”

“I made it in math class. Couldn’t focus.”

The cute gesture makes Theo kiss him on the forehead, but then he shakes his head. “You do realize you’re retaking senior year to learn this year, right?”

“You do realize I’m retaking senior year because I couldn’t learn last year because half the town was erased by Ghost Riders, and then a war broke out that was led by one of the teachers, right?” Theo gives him a look, causing Liam’s shoulders to slump. “Sorry. I know. I’m trying to focus, but I’m too tired.”

“I know, Little Wolf. It’s okay.” He plops the heart back into his pocket. “Thank you for the heart.”

Liam smiles, but before he can say anything, his mom calls for him across the room. His daily reminder, every morning, at seven sharp. 

“Hey, Li, remember to take your meds, okay?”

Both look over to see her insistent face, and Liam sighs before grabbing the prescription bottle off the table. Theo takes in a sharp breath that doesn’t go unnoticed by Jenna. She turns back to her husband, whispering. 

“Theo started a little argument about that yesterday.” She nods to her son, who’s popping a capsule into his mouth.

“That’s unusual for him.” Her husband squints.

“Mhm. Let’s keep a closer eye on Liam. He was saying it’s doing more than just making him tired. Asked for an alternative, but I assured him it’s the best option.”

“Okay. Maybe I’ll make an appointment with the psychiatrist again. That might help.”

“Yeah, that’ll be nice.”

“Alright.” He kisses her, then returns to his normal voice. “I’ll see you later, okay? I love you.”

“I love you, too. Have a good day at work.” Outside, Mason honks loudly, and Jenna turns to the boys. “Liam, time for school. I love you.”

“Okay.”

“Theo, I love you, too. David’s about ready to go.”

“Okay, I’m coming.”

He turns to the younger boy. “You gonna be okay?” Liam nods. “You have an issue, you call me. Alright?”

“Okay.”

“If I can’t pick up, what are you gonna do?”

“Make more little paper hearts.”

Theo half smiles. “Okay. Or text Mason, right?”

“Yeah.”

“And I’ll call you back as soon as possible.”

“Okay.”

“Okay. Good. We’ll be back around six today, hopefully.”

“Okay,” he repeats. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, wolf.” They share a quick kiss, interrupted by Mason honking again, and then Jenna hurrying them both out the door. “You be good. Pay attention in class. The goal is to graduate this year.”

“Shut up, Theo.” He smirks. “I’m kidding. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

Most of the day goes by alright. Except… alright is the only thing Liam’s felt since his mom hurriedly forced him back on antipsychotics after learning about his supernatural status. She was understanding of the news, really, and didn’t mind the fact that he’s a werewolf, but he thinks the only reason she possesses a little bit of concern is because of his I.E.D. If he were a normal kid-turned-werewolf, it’d be no bother, but his condition has always made her worry. 

Jenna loves her son to death and will do anything to protect him. She allowed herself to be an outlet for her angry ex-husband, but the moment she realized he’d also been hurting Liam, she sent him out the door. Finalizing the divorce with the narcissistic man was almost as difficult as being married to him, but it was all worth it once he was finally out of their lives. Despite his lack of presence though, the pain still lingered. The abuse he’d delivered left a mark on them; it left Jenna fearful, and Liam volatile. Letting David into their life was a big step for both of them, but it’s made them better.

The medication, however, has never helped. Liam tends to get the worst of the side effects and little of the actual relief that the chemicals are supposed to give. He stopped taking it for a reason before, and now… well, he’s lucky Theo’s already seen him at his worst, so he doesn’t have to hide his pain from him like he does with his mom. 

He’s struggled with it before, but it manifested itself differently. Liam always remembers the time his stepdad told him, “people deal with anger in two ways: they hurt others, or they hurt themselves.” He used to always hurt someone else first, the way his biological dad taught him, until he turned. Then, every effort became protecting others. And if that meant hurting himself to do so, that’s what he did.

Now, Liam still struggles with it. The Urge. The urge to do something, anything with your pain. Having no idea where to put it, so you put it on yourself. You dig your nails into your arms, extend your claws and bury them in your skin, scratch until all the pain is no longer emotional, but physical, and visible, and out in the open. Bleeding, because it’s easier than crying. He’ll heal faster from open wounds and scars than he will a face red and puffy. 

Liam hasn’t told Mason about the hurt. He knew about it the first time around, but he can’t bear to see his disappointed face if he tells him about the three-year-clean relapse. 

Theo, though, has seen every inch of Liam’s soul, even the icky bits. He’s seen him full of love and full of hate. He’s seen the bits Liam’s tried - and failed - to hide; the shame that you can hide from a best friend but not a lover. Besides, nothing can hide the smell of blood to another werewolf, especially not one you’re living with. Liam wishes he thought twice about that before doing it the time he got caught.

The Urge returns in English class for no particular reason. That’s the thing about it: you could be having the worst day or your life or the best, it doesn’t care. The voice is always in the back of your mind, telling you you could feel a hundred times better if you’d relapse again. Liam bites his cheek, trying to fight it off, and then tastes blood and realizes that’s just as bad. He raises his hand. 

“Yes?”

“Can- May I use the restroom?”

“Sure. Only since you used the correct word.”

“Thanks.”

He calls Theo the moment he locks himself inside a stall. The bastard misses the first call entirely, but Liam calls again anyway. 

Theo feels his phone ringing in his back pocket, but he’s in the middle of taking a patient’s blood and can’t exactly stop right now. Within a minute, the call disconnects, but the caller tries again. Theo hands Dr. Geyer the vial and excuses himself. 

“Can I take a call?”

“Yeah, be quick.”

Beyond the curtain, he panics at Liam’s name on the screen. 

“Li? Are you okay?”

“I’m in the bathroom.”

“Okay? Can you expand on that a little?”

“I’m trying really hard not to do something stupid. I’m really bored. We’re doing absolutely nothing in English class, and my brain is screaming at me.”

“Okay, okay. Hey, take a deep breath. Get your mind on something else. Think about… What were you doing in your English class, hm? Tell me about it.”

“What were you doing in the hospital? I’d rather hear about that.”

“Well,” Theo hesitates, not sure if he wants to talk about it while Liam’s fending off urges about the same thing. 

“C’mon, I’m curious. Your hospital stuff is way more important than Beowulf and the stupid creature he’s trying to kill.”

“Ah, you want to know a fun fact? The Dread Doctors made me read that book.”

“Wait, what?!”

“Part of them trying to be ‘parental,’ like I mentioned before? Yeah, it was a ‘kill two birds with one stone’ kind of thing for them. Read about this giant beast - kinda like the one we’re planning - and get some education in at the same time.”

“Wait, did they make you read a lot?”

“A lot of stuff I read by choice, just to keep busy and feel a little less alone, I guess, but they did make me do some school-like things. She did, I should say.” 

Theo’s talked about her before, The Geneticist, out of the three. A woman was under that mask, and it could be said that she cared more about him than the other two. She saw him as a boy, under all the experimentation. A child, who needed to be raised and taught, despite the environment in which they existed. 

Of course, though, she was as dedicated to the cause as the men were. She bonded to Theo - though it was mostly one-sided - and taught him what was necessary for him to grow up into an intellectual man, just like how he was as the boy they’d stolen. 

She was also the one that selected his fake parents, whenever Theo would need to blend into a new town. She’d study them for weeks before the doctors imposed on their lives. Then, if they failed in any possible way, she would be the one to handle their fates. 

“Wait, so how did that work? In between torture sessions, was she like, ‘hey, and this is the wrench I’ll be using on his teeth. You might use it someday to change a tire’?” Liam asks, then curses himself for being insensitive. 

Theo snorts, unbothered by Liam’s impulsivity. He can’t help his curiosity, nor the speed in which he blurts out questions. “I mean… to an extent? She’d explain the tools they’d use and the science behind their experiments. But like, not every minute was spent torturing kids, so she had some time to actually sit me down and make me learn.”

“So you’ve technically graduated, but through the school of Three Mean Doctors in Gas Masks.”

“I guess so. But remember they’re from 1700s France, so… there’s a disadvantage there.”

“Oh. Oh my god, I forgot about that part.”

“They stayed somewhat in the loop of modern times. Enough so that they could blend in and continue their work. Plus, outside forces coming in exposed them to more present events. Garrett, in the 1940s. Malia’s mom, mid 2000s-ish.”

“Right. So-”

A knock on the door startles both of the boys. Before Theo can call out, Dr. Geyer’s voice comes out clearly on the other side. “Theo? You almost done?”

“Shit, is that my dad?”

“Yeah.” He lifts the phone away for a second. “Yes, sorry. I’ll be out in a moment.” Turning his attention back to Liam, he sighs. “Okay, Little Wolf. How are you doing?”

“Fine. Honestly, I forgot why I called.”

A wave of relief washes over the older boy. “That’s alright. I’ll see you soon.”

“Okay. God, school is so boring. I can’t wait for practice.”

“Score a goal for me. I lo-”

“Wait, Theo?”

“Hm?”

“I remembered why I called.”

“Are you okay?”

Liam takes a shaky breath. “I think so. Your voice- hearing it- talking to you helps.”

“I’m always here for you.”

“I know. Thank you.”

“You gonna be okay if I go back to work?”

“Yeah. I love you.”

“I love you too, Li.”

“Have fun listening to people cough.”

“Have fun reading about Grendel.”

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

Liam begrudgingly drags his feet to his appointment. His dad didn’t even bother to tell him he made one until an hour to time, interrupting his midday Saturday catnap to do so, and quizzing him on useless biology facts the whole way. 

“C’mon, I know you have a test on Monday. Let’s go.”

“Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.”

“Liam. That is not what I asked.”

“I don’t know anything about blood pH or whatever you said.”

He sighs. “Why are you being so stubborn lately? You don’t put up a fight when Theo quizzes you on homework.”

“That’s because Theo rewards me with-” he stops suddenly, shutting his mouth.

“Don’t even finish that sentence,” his dad says anyway. 

“I was gonna say with candy.”

“No you weren’t.” His tone is joking, but Liam’s not in the mood for it, lighthearted or otherwise. He hates the medication and his parents know that, and now, they’re scheduling him appointments again? The only thing worse than dealing with his anger is talking about it. 

“Hey,” his dad nudges him gently. “It’ll be okay. Just a check up. Nothing major.”

His mom asked Theo to stay behind and help prepare for dinner, separating them at the time Liam needs him most. Whether she did that on purpose or not, he isn’t sure, but it sure feels like it was. 

They pull into the parking lot and Liam already feels his blood pressure rising. He needs Theo to anchor him - that’s all he needs, not this stupid medication. It only makes him worse. They don’t understand. He’d be totally fine if he could just talk to-

“Liam, c’mon.”

He takes a deep breath and exits the car. He swipes the nail bed of his pointer finger under his teeth, cleaning out a bit of dried blood he’d missed earlier. 

“Liam.”

“I am.”

He digs his best smile out from the vault - the one for his therapist, that he hasn’t used in years - and participates just enough to fool her that everything’s fine. 

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

“Did you tell her about the… y’know?”

“Of course not. I don’t want to go to Eichen.” Theo sighs. “What? Do you think I should’ve?”

“No, but I think you should mention it to someone… your mom?”

“Oh, hell no. She’ll worry. And clearly, she’s already worried enough with the werewolf stuff. I can’t freak her out more.”

“Li, I’m worried. I don’t like the way this medication’s making you feel. I think you need to get off it-”

“No shit-”

“-and telling her will get you off it.”

“With my luck, they’ll up my dose even more.”

“Liam, please.”

“I can’t hurt her!”

“You’re hurting yourself!” Liam was going to say more, but Theo’s words cause his own to die in his throat. “This medication is literally causing you to hurt yourself because it’s making you so depressed, you’re having trouble coping with it. I know bad coping mechanisms, Liam, I’ve been there. I can’t sit by and watch this happen to you, knowing a huge contributor is that medication, and I know if your mom knew that, she’d do anything to help you get clean again. Just trust her! She cares for you, Li. Like I do, she loves you. Your dad loves you, and Mason, and Corey. None of us like seeing you in pain, and everyone can tell you are, even though I’m the only one that knows the extent of it.”

Liam stuns. His words have so much weight. Theo’s right, as much as it breaks his heart to hear. He isn’t only hurting himself, but those around him, too. Theo, the boy he always swore to protect. Mason, by keeping him in the dark this whole time. 

“I’m not saying this to make you feel guilty,” Theo continues, responding to his silence. “I don’t want to make you feel that way at all. I just want you to know you have people who love you and will listen. Because, I love you, but I can only do so much. I can comfort you, I can clean your hands, and ease you into sleep, but I can’t get you off those meds, okay? You need to tell your parents.”

“Okay.” He finally agrees, hands trembling. Theo grabs them, and like before, kisses his fingertips gently, lovingly. “Can you help me?”

“Of course I can help you.”

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

The next evening when both his parents are home, the boys come down together from a ‘study session’ and take to the two chairs they usually occupy in the kitchen. Their knees touch slightly, anchoring each other in the time of uncertainty, and wait for Jenna’s attention to be available. She turns off the stove, then faces them. 

“Hey boys. Studying going well?”

“Y-yeah.” Instead of studying, they’ve been going over this plan for the last two hours, but yeah, he guesses it went well, considering they’ve found the confidence to address the issue. 

“Good, good.” Her eyes bounce between them. “Everything okay?”

“Um-”

“You didn’t break up, did you?”

“What?! No!”

“Oh. Thank god. I got worried for a minute.”

“Nothing like that. Mom, can I talk to you and dad both for a minute? It’s kind of important.”

“Of course, honey. David? Come here for a second, please.”

Liam knocks his knee into Theo’s, who smiles at Jenna for a moment before looking back down at the table. His sudden silence, despite encouraging Liam to talk about this in the first place, is not appreciated. 

“Yeah, on my way,” David says, getting up from the couch in the living room.

“You’re an ass,” Liam mutters to Theo.

“I didn’t say anything!”

“That’s exactly why!”

“What’s up, boys? Everything okay?”

“Um, yeah-” Theo bumps his knee into Liam, who stutters, “-actually, um, no. Not really.”

“Okay, what’s wrong, sweet? School alright?”

“School’s fine. Everything’s fine. Ish. I-”

“Liam,” Theo urges.

“I’m trying!”

David and Jenna grow concerned by the minute. Both have their eyebrows furrowed and their full attention on the couple. Theo’s tempted to jump in and start for him, but fears Jenna’s reaction if he does. 

“I, um, I guess, it’s-”

“Liam,” his mom sighs. “Are you okay? Did you remember your-”

“Yes, I took my meds today,” he interrupts, receiving the same stare Theo got about a week prior. “And that’s kind of the problem.”

Jenna sighs. She looks to Theo, then back at her son, head shaking in disapproval. “Liam, you agreed you’d take them again, for your safety, since we don’t know much about this supernatural stuff.”

“That’s the thing, though. The meds don’t help. They make it worse. I mean, not worse, really. They make me tired, so I don’t really have the energy to be mad, but lately, I don’t have a reason to be mad, so I’m tired for no reason.”

“Okay, I get that. I totally do. But it’s more of a preventative measure than anything else. What if something happens at practice? Or at a game?”

“Well that’s why I have Theo. Well, not the whole reason, obviously, but a large part of it.” He makes the mistake of glancing over at the boy, who’s now chuckling and gently shaking his head. It makes him smile. “Werewolves have these things called anchors that help them control their turns. I mentioned it awhile back, before the meds.”

“Yes, I remember.”

“Anchors can be anything from an object, or a mantra, or even another person, and Theo’s that for me. Whenever I’m angry, or at risk of turning, all I need to do is call him, or hear him, or frankly, just think about him, and I can control it. Or, if I’m struggling, he can always bonk me over the head, which has happened, but only in an extreme situation, where-”

“Liam.”

“Sorry.” He thanks Theo for the mini anchor right there - bringing him out of his rambling and back to the present. He looks to his parents again. “I don’t need the meds when I have Theo. He helps me with my anger more than any chemical drug ever could.”

Jenna shakes her head. “I’m glad you two have that trust in each other, but you have to take them, Liam. Your I.E.D. put you at enough risk without the extra strength of being a werewolf. I don’t want to take the chance.” She turns to Theo. “Did you put this in his head? That he doesn’t need it?”

“I-” 

Theo starts to defend himself, but Liam cuts him off. “Mom. He only helped me admit what I couldn’t bring myself to admit. The meds didn’t help two years ago, which is why I stopped taking them. They’re doing more harm than good, and I don’t want to take them anymore.”

“What’s that mean? They help you, Liam. That’s what they’re for.”

“But they don’t.” He sighs. “Mom, you can’t freak.”

“What’s going on? What’s wrong?”

“I-” Theo nudges his knee gently, urging him on. “I don’t like the way they make me feel. I’m tired, too tired to play lacrosse, too tired to focus in school.”

“You’ve only been on them for a month. You’ll adapt.”

“You’re not listening,” he snaps, looking to his dad for direction. His understanding expression helps a little. He’s pro-medication, obviously, but also knows not every drug works for every situation. Jenna knows this, too - Liam knows, deep down - and she just wants the best for him, but it’s hard for her to understand this route isn’t the best. He knows the next thing he has to say will be even harder to hear, but he knows he has to say it. He has to come clean. It’s the only way to help him find what’s truly best for him. 

“This medication’s messing with my head,” he continues. “I don’t have proof, but it’s bad for me.”

“What does that mean? ‘You don’t have proof’?”

“I… it’s been making me depressed, and I haven’t really been dealing with it in the right way.”

“What are you talking about, Liam?” His dad asks, concern etched on his face. He knows, Liam knows he knows, he’s just anxiously waiting for his worst fear to be confirmed. 

“I, um,” he glances at Theo. “Dad?”

“Mhm?”

“Remember when you told me that people either hurt others or they hurt themselves?”

“I do.”

“Well, before, when I couldn’t control my anger, I took it out on others. But ever since turning, I don’t anymore. Unfortunately, that kinda only leaves me with the other option.” He pauses, avoiding eye contact with his mom who’s slowly realizing what he means. “And a lot of the time, Theo helps me control the urges, and I can fight it, but sometimes, I’m too embarrassed to admit it even to him, but he’s the reason I’m telling you. He’s given me the confidence to tell you. I just… I don’t want to keep hurting the people I love, and he’s made me realize that by hurting myself, I’m doing exactly that, and to be honest, I hate doing it to myself, too.” He looks at Theo, again. “Was that okay?”

The older boy rubs his back comfortingly. “Yeah, little wolf. You did a good job.”

He nods, turning his head once more. “Mom?”

Her eyes are watery as the truth sinks in. The words are like a hundred bricks sitting in her chest. “Show me your arms.”

Liam outstretches his arms, skin clear of any scars or blemishes. “We heal really quickly. Honestly, that’s part of the problem. If I had a scar to show for it, it’d probably be easier to stop, but…”

Jenna takes both of his wrists and examines closely. His skin is as soft as always, not a scar in sight. “Where did you do it?”

“Along here,” he points to the underside of his arms, elbow to wrist.

“With what?”

“My claws, mostly.” Jenna stifles a sob. “Are you mad at me? I didn’t mean to make you mad.”

She shakes her head. “No, baby, I’m not mad.” Jenna quickly makes her way around the counter to embrace him in a hug. “God, I’m not mad. Oh! Baby. I’m so sorry I didn’t realize sooner.” She kisses his head, once, twice, three times. 

“You can’t blame yourself,” Liam says, “I hid it on purpose. I didn’t even mean for Theo to find out, he just… did.”

“Oh!” Jenna’s crying. He can feel her tears on his cheek. Her hands cradle his wrists as if they could shatter. Out of the corner of his eye, Liam can see his dad offering a sympathetic look. He waits for his wife to let go of their son, then gives him a hug of his own. Jenna then wraps her arms around Theo, kissing the side of his head. He freezes from the unexpected contact. 

“Mom,” Liam calls for her attention, sensing his change in heart rate. 

“I’m sorry. Thank you for being there for him. For paying attention to things we didn’t notice.” She lets them both go and circles back around the counter, though reaches across the granite to hold Liam’s hands in her own. She rubs his palms, softly massages his skin, and he can’t help but melt into her touch. 

“Liam’s my anchor as much as I’m his. I mean, my… species, I guess, differs in that we don’t turn on full moons, but he helps whenever I’m angry or upset. Helps ground me back into a normal resting heart rate.” 

Liam notices he doesn’t say something self-destructive like, Tara’s resting heart rate, and smiles. He’s healing, and learning to accept himself, and Liam’s helping him do that. 

“So the anchor stuff you were talking about is really effective? If you’re feeling angry, Theo can calm you down?”

“Yeah.”

“What about before? You said you were turned at the start of freshman year, but you two didn’t start to get close until midway last year.”

“Before then, I had a mantra that Scott taught me. And then for a while, nothing worked, and I was struggling a little, but then, against my will, it became Theo.”

“Against your will,” Theo mutters, shaking his head but smiling.

“Yeah, you were a rat back then. I was so mad when I realized your dumbass calmed me down. And the fact that you already knew made it so much worse.”

“You’re easy to read, Dunbar.”

No, you’re just… overly observant.”

“Yeah, but you’re also easy to read. Especially when you’re angry.”

“Can you tell you’re making me angry right now?”

“Yeah,” he says, matter-of-factly. 

“Yeah? Well what are you gonna do about it?” Theo stares at him. His parents watch in silence, not sure how to intervene or if they even should. “You just gonna stare at me?” Liam eggs on. “Really? You’re just gonna watch. Do nothing? I’m gonna go- I’m gonna go break that lamp over there, you see it?”

“Sure you are.”

“I am.” Liam starts to get up, but then sits back down. “Stop watching me.”

“Can’t. Sorry.”

“I’m gonna break your face.”

“Go for it.”

“You’re so annoying.”

“You’re a little drama queen sometimes.”

Liam rolls his eyes, then shifts to sit with his leg tucked underneath himself. Theo chuckles, but says nothing. 

“Today Coach asked me if I had a twin and if we’d traded places, ‘because I was unusually slow and looked like I’d just crawled out of a rabbit hole’.”

“I’m gonna break Coach’s face.”

“Scott would kill you.”

“Scott doesn’t have good odds against me.”

Liam laughs, but then his eyes go wide at the memory and he covers his mouth in embarrassment. “Okay, topic change.”

“If you were a twin, the doctors might’ve taken you,” Theo continues, completely immersed in his banter with Liam and forgetful of the adults’ presence. 

“They did take me.”

“They returned you for being annoying.”

“You rescued me, dumbass.”

“Oh, right. Wonder if I have a receipt.”

“I hate you.”

“Okay, boys,” Jenna interrupts. She can’t help but smile at how such a serious conversation has turned into a playful argument between the two. Maybe Liam will be okay without his meds. He has been for three years, without her knowledge. Maybe she overreacted a little too much. “Liam? I’m gonna need you to promise me something.”

“Mhm?”

“If we take you off the meds, you promise to get clean again? Come to one of us if you’re having trouble. Let me know if you do relapse again. Let me know when you’re feeling upset, if Theo’s not around, so I can help you get a hold of him.”

“Okay. I promise.”

“Okay, and let Mason know, when you’re ready, just so he knows.”

“I know, I just didn’t want to disappoint him. Plus, the less people that know, the better.”

“I understand.” Jenna squeezes his hands again. “Oh, baby. I should’ve listened to you about the anchor thing. I just didn’t understand at the time. I especially shouldn’t have upped your dose, but was afraid the typical dose wouldn’t be enough, but it just made everything worse!”

“It’s okay, Mom.”

“It isn’t okay! And you tried to tell me, and I wasn’t listening.” She nods at Theo.

“Well the important thing is that we all know, now, right? Liam can get off those meds and play without Coach throwing insults at him that might be incidentally risking his life.”

“Exactly right.” She smiles at the older boy. “Thank you.” Jenna then chuckles at the second part. “Thank you for protecting him.”

“We protect each other.” It’s cheesy, but it means the world to all of them, Theo included. 

“And this time, you were protecting us, too,” David nods to him. The talk may have ended on a light note, but if it was never addressed, it could’ve had a very dark ending. David’s seen dangerous scars. He doesn’t know the depth of his son’s, but with claws, he knows the damage could’ve been worse than anything he’s seen. As for Jenna, he can’t even imagine how she feels. She’s probably wishing she argued to hug Theo for longer. 

Theo smiles, but he clearly doesn’t know how to answer that. He isn’t used to being praised, despite hearing it quite often from Liam’s parents. This situation, though, is new. This is emotional. This affects more than just him and the person he’s trying to protect. 

“You’re a good kid,” David continues. 

Theo just nods. Liam leans over quickly and presses a kiss to his forehead. His parents smile at his inner conflict to accept the praise, while trying to give him more without it being overwhelming. He doesn’t counter it, though, which is progress from last time, so they leave it at that. 

⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆⋅⋆

That night, with everyone off from work, the found family takes to the living room for a movie. The married couple make themselves comfortable on one couch, and the boys curl up on another. Liam’s heavy school binder, flipped to his English notes, sits between his legs - his dad and Theo both are forcing him to study during the intro credits, making him groan with annoyance.

“Alright, riddle me this-”

“No-”

“What weapon did Beowulf use to kill Grendel?”

“Nothing. He just used his hands, or whatever.”

“Right, good. And how many geats did Grendel kill?”

“Just the one.”

“There you go. And this woman, Asc - crap - Ace-”

“Aceshere.”

“Thank you. What’s her role in the story?”

“She’s kidnapped and killed by Gretel’s mom.”

“Grendel.”

“Oops.”

“It’s okay.”

Every time Liam gets the question right, Theo praises him and kisses the back of his head. 

After two more, his arms snake up to rest around Liam’s neck to pull him closer. He points to another question on the study sheet. “That guy, what’s his name?”

“Hrothgar.”

“Yeah. How did-”

“I thought you’ve read this book. Why can’t you pronounce anything?”

“I read it when I was, like, eleven, Liam. Give me a break.”

“Oh.”

“From whom did that guy descend? And how did he know Beowulf?”

“Sheepshear. And he knew him because he was friend’s with his dad, or something.”

“Close enough, yeah. Shearson, I think.”

“Wait, but wouldn’t the doctors not like this book because the dragon’s defeated?”

“See, I asked that, but she said no, because the Beast had been defeated similarly, and so it was kind of a lesson for them to not repeat old mistakes.”

“Oh. I guess I see that.”

Jenna and David listen carefully to their chatter. They know the basics of Theo’s past, but he hasn’t told them as much as Liam obviously knows; they have no idea to whom she could possibly be referring, but whomever she is, Theo’s grown comfortable talking about her, and Liam listens intently, so that’s good enough for them. 

They’re proud of them both, for surviving the things they have, and for coming out of them stronger. They’re proud of them for learning to rely on each other, through war and after it. 

Liam knows it, that they’re proud, but they can tell Theo still has trouble processing it. 

He’s a work in progress, but Jenna has to admit, so is Liam, and they’re dedicated to both.

They’re especially proud of them, now, handling not only supernatural threats, but those that threaten them much more personally. Theo has obvious trauma, and Liam’s battled his IED for years, but they help each other through it. 

When the last commercial plays on the old DVD, the cheery music that opens the movie begins to play. Jenna sighs a little, enjoying watching the boys interact more than she likes to admit. She likes seeing them happy and healthily co-dependent. 

Theo acknowledges the change in music faster than Liam does. He prods him on the shoulder and kisses his head at the same time. 

“Alright, movie’s starting, you can stop now.”

“Thank god.” Liam closes his binder and drops it on the ground with a thud that makes his mom jump.

“Liam!”

“Sorry,” he says, without much apology in his tone. “What are we watching, again?”

“The Conjuring,” Theo jokes.

“What?!” Liam whips his head around in distress, eyes wide.

“I’m kidding! It’s The Parent Trap.”

“God, I hate you!” He turns back and slumps his chest against Theo’s hard, making the boy short with breath. 

“Jeez, Li.”

“Sorry.” There’s a little more sympathy this time, considering Liam can hear the lack of air in his lungs from his small voice. “I love you, actually.”

“I know.” Theo finds his hands from underneath the blanket and pulls them up to kiss his fingers. “I love you, too. Actually.”

“Shut up.”

[miss-tc-nova]

Empty - TWST Reader/Yuu

Hmm, I think this one could be fixed up, but I think I’m done with it now. It was originally merged with another one that I might work on later, but I pulled out a chunk and built off that for this one. Anyway, have some angst!

Premise: Reader/Yuu finally has power and is using it in kind

Warning: Major character death

Words: 2,453

~~~~~

              Fire rages across the yard. The screams and shouts of the school boys does nothing as the cold, azure flames consume their magic. Against my ear rumbles a pleased purr and I indulge him with a scritch of the chin. His blue eyes glint with glee while his mouth wears that mischievous grin.

              My name reaches through the chaos and I pause.

              Before me stands three familiar faces from long ago. One belongs to an old mentor, the light half of his hair now black with the rest. Still, even so many years later, he cuts an imposing figure like he’s about to punish me as he used to. Two others are those of classmates—people I once stood by. But I have no mercy for those who stand in my way.

              I greet them kindly. “It’s good to see you again, Professor Crewel, Riddle, Trey.”

              “You have no right to stand on the grounds of Night Raven College.” The fiery red-head draws his scepter. “Leave at once.”

              “Yet here I am.” The feline’s face rubs against my own. In the face of my smile, the man frowns. “Oh come now, just because I didn’t graduate doesn’t mean I’m not an alumnus. This school should be proud of my accomplishments.”

              “There’s no pride in senseless destruction,” Riddle argues.

              “Who told you it was senseless?” Their frowns deepen. “No, every drop of blood spilt had its purpose.”

              “Are you telling me you’re hunting our old classmates?” asks Trey.

              “Oh, very good. But not quite right. You see, I had a list.”

              My own staff sparks to life in my grasp. The sleek black pole is topped with a white, metal skull wearing a golden crown. From beneath it hangs a necklace with charms like golden fangs; a curled, violet shell; and a crimson feather paired with a red gem. At the sight of my weapon, the once-imposing Riddle steps back. It widens my smile to see him understand.

              And cower.

              Trey glances between us and I see the understanding click. “You’re after the overblotters.”

              “There you go! Not top of the class but never disappointing, were you Trey.”

              “But why?”

              My grip on the staff tightens and an old ache dances across my chest. “Why? You witnessed the incident first-hand and you’re asking me WHY?!” At the rise of my voice, Trey retreats. “Do you not remember the destruction he wrought?! The pain he caused you?!” My arm outstretches. “The bones he broke?! I suffered at the hands of each and every overblotter. There were no apologies. No thanks for saving them. No, they all went about their happy little lives as if they didn’t try to MURDER ME!” The cat has begun kneading in anticipation. “And I think a little pay back is long overdue.”

              “Enough yapping.” The draw of Crewel’s wand is sharp and he steps in front of the younger man. “Leave this instant.”

              Waving a finger, I tut at my former teacher. “My apologies, Professor, but I won’t be leaving without what I came for.”

              “Yours is a vain task. Malleus Draconia also succumbed to his overblot and there’s no hope that a magicless mortal like you could defeat him.”

              A chuckle starts low, rising into a fit of laughter I can’t contain. It disturbs them.

              “It’s no surprise you haven’t heard yet; the entirety of Briar Valley is still struggling to come to terms with it.”

              “What are you barking about now?”

              “I admit, Silver, Sebek, and Lilia put up a valiant fight to defend him—”

              I reach into my robes. The object I toss towards them clatters across the concrete, coming to a stop before the three men. Color drains from their faces as they come to recognize the twisted black horn.

              “—But even the great King of Briar Valley couldn’t escape his fate.”

              Struck speechless are the younger men. Crewel’s grey eyes are glued to the item at their feet. They now understand what they face.

              “Run,” he says.

              My companion on my shoulder crouches.

              “Abandon Riddle and you may live,” I warn. “Hide him from me and you too will meet the same end.”

              Crewel repeats his order. “RUN!”

              The trio bolts. I expected as much.

              “Grim, devour.”

              The cat leaps, consumed by blue fire. Four massive paws meet the ground, lined with deadly talons. Ebony wrings stretch into the sky while a mane of dark tentacles and cold flame line his neck. Glowing eyes follow the target. A deafening roar is all the warning he gives before taking chase.

              My partner enjoys his game of cat and mouse as I recollect the latest artifact in my collection. It doesn’t take long for me to find the last of his fun. Sprawled along the steps to the Main Building are Trey and Crewel. It seems they didn’t heed my warning.

              That’s on them.

              At the top of the steps is my feline, my prey cornered against the door to the castle.

              “Did the Headmage lock you out?” I call, making my way closer. “That’s not entirely surprising. He always did think of himself first.”

              “J-Just let me go.”

              It’s always fun to see a prodigal mage begin to break. “Now now, Riddle.” I wave my staff towards him. “It’s not fair for you to miss out on the fun.”

              “It was fifteen years ago.”

              “That’s a long time to let a grudge fester.”

              “I didn’t mean for that to happen. I’m sorry. You’re right that I took what you did for granted. I’ll do anything to repay you. Just name it.”

              “It’s a little to late for those now.” Between him and the dire beast, I stand.

              “Please! I was just a kid!”

              My staff forces his gaze to mine. “So was I.”

~~~~~

              The locks to the front door are no match for the beast at my side. I leave him to enjoy himself while I wander inside. In my robes, I tuck away the small crown—my latest prize.

              Very few people are left in the castle to scatter. I let them pass, not interested in the insects in my path. Instead, my feet take me towards the castle’s heart, where all this trauma began.

              The massive mirror floats, serene and mysterious as it always has been. Ire draws me to it. At my approach, the mask inside reveals itself, staring down at me with those empty eyes.

              “It started with you, all those years ago.” My hand glides along the ornate frame. “You told me that the nature of my soul was unclear. No magical power, soundless, colorless, shapeless. Utterly vacant. Well what about now?” Its pensive nature continues while I grin smugly. “Would I be in Ignihyde for my diligence? Or Savanaclaw for my persistence? Or maybe Pomfiore for my tenacity? What is it you see in me now, you wretched mirror?”

              Scrutiny roams my figure, taking in the past fifteen years of work I endured, before it finally speaks.

              “Unfathomable emptiness.”

              I hardly stop to think before drawing my staff back to shatter the thing. Glass shards rain to the floor almost musically. A seething hatred boils beneath my skin.

              “Still lying to yourself, I see.”

              Energy flows into my weapon, reaching out to snatch up the onlooker before flinging him across the room. Rolling across the floor is the very last name on my list.

              Dire Crowley.

              “So you actually decided to come out.” With renewed composure, I stroll towards him. “Not cowering behind some hapless student as I expected you to be.”

              The fact that he can stand and dust himself with such composure irritates me. “With the fall of King Draconia, I see little use in trying to escape. How kind of me to save you the trouble of finding me.”

              “Do not speak to me of kindness!” I snap. “It’s your fault we’re here—you and that damn mirror!”

              “I already told you, you were destined to be here, along with every other villain.”

              “I’m only the villain because that’s what you made me!”

              “You’re a villain because that’s what you chose to be.”

~~~~~ 15 Years Ago ~~~~~

              I rock back and forth on the spot. An hour has gone by since I started waiting, but judging by the voices through the doors, the housewarden meeting is nearly done. I’ve been trying to track down the headmage for weeks now and I’ve begun to think he’s dodging me. Now, though—unless he’s willing to leap out the window—he can’t escape me.

              A jolt of pain shocks my chest. Fingers lightly touch my chest, aware of the tight bandages beneath the clothing. Memories of the massive dragon talon piercing my lungs rattle my heart. Pressing against the wall, I try to stuff down the terror—letting the fear take over will only aggravate my injuries.

              My attention spikes when the door opens. The housewardens, their vice housewardens, and the teachers filter past, ignoring my presence. Just as the headmage begins his escape, I hurry forward to prevent him from leaving.

              “Headmage Crowley, I’m glad I finally caught you.”

              He appears nervous. “Ah, yes, how can I generously lend you my ear this time, prefect?”

              For privacy’s sake, I close the doors behind me. “I wanted to speak to you about going home.”

              His sigh doesn’t bode well. “I see, this subject again.”

              I press on. “It’s been an entire year. Surely you’ve made some progress by now.”

              Usually eccentric and avoidant, Crowley’s seriousness weighs on me. “Unfortunately, still no progress has been made towards finding your home, let alone a way back. I’m sorry.”

              “Oh…”

              “Yet, in spite of your magical impairment, I see the depths of your potential.”

              Something ominous washes over me, shaking the air as it leaves my chest. “What do you mean?”

              “You’re smart. You know this school isn’t filled with the purest of heart, no matter what secrets you’ve uncovered. This school fosters the black sheep—those with incredible magical ability wielded by hearts filled with strife.” Darkness rolls off him in droves as those glowing, yellow eyes stare me down. “The Dark Mirror chooses every student for a reason.”

              “Are you saying I’m…”

              He shares not even a shred of sympathy. “Every villain has their backstory. Perhaps it’s time to embrace yours.”

              Reality flooding through my veins, I feel I may just collapse. He was right about the sins rampant in this place; every student here had hidden truths ready to cut one another with. They would just as soon stab each other in the back than go to class.

              Still, that I might be more like them than I was first led to believe is rattling.

              “No. No, that’s not true.”

              “Lie to yourself all you like; it will only prove me right.”

              “No, there must be a way home! This has all been one giant mistake! Your stupid mirror can’t even figure out where it got me from so I’m not even supposed to be here! You promised to find me a way back! You—”

              Crowley’s staff strikes the floor, silencing me like a spell. “It can’t be done.” His gloved hand extends to me as if to offer alms, but golden adornments portray the claws he intends to snare me with. “But that’s alright. You have a place here, with friends, peers, and mentors who can help you harness that potential. With my generous guidance, you could become one of the most powerful people in Twisted Wonderland.”

              Having the last shreds of my old life torn from me, my head shakes in disbelief. Suddenly, I’m the one avoiding him as I bolt from the headmage’s office. No one spares a glance in my direction; from the castle all the way to the entrance gate, I’m alone.

              In Twisted Wonderland, I’ve been alone from the beginning.

~~~~~

              “I never chose to be here,” I snarl. “None of this was my choice! You think I wanted to get lost in a world I didn’t know? That I wanted to be attacked by people who could use magic? That I wanted to learn the same magic that almost killed me?!”

              A hand grazes his face. “I am quite fascinated at how a magicless person such as yourself became so powerful. How did you manage that?”

              For once, while face the man I despise most, a grin slips my lips. “Faeries.”

              “Pardon?”

              “Faeries. Just a handful of pesky little faeries and, suddenly, I could tap into the magic that everyone else had access to.”

              “I don’t understand. How were faeries involved?”

              “I killed them.”

              His mouth falls open.

              “It was an interesting little venture that certainly took some time—the flames of a house faerie, an island faerie’s heart, the crystal’s of an ocean faerie, golden hair from a healing faerie, and some good-old fashion pixie dust. Honestly, the ocean fae was probably the most difficult to kill. They were thought to be extinct long ago, but she was very much alive and kicking…Well not so much anymore.”

              “This is beyond the pale. Even villains know not to murder the fae in vain. What have you done?”

              “What I had to do to survive.” My staff points at him. “And to get my revenge.”

              His arms rise in surrender.

              “And after what I did to Malleus, you think a few measly fae are gonna make me back down? Perhaps if you had shown a little more kindness, you wouldn’t be choosing your own coffin. And maybe those precious students of yours would still be alive. You’re the reason I was brought here and suffered. You’re the reason your students are dead. This is your fault.”

              Crowley lowers his hands, staring at me. “You’re right. It’s my fault for bringing a monster into Twisted Wonderland.”

~~~~~

              Strolling down the steps, I see there’s no one left alive to try and extinguish the flames, leaving it barren and cold.

              The dire beast bounds up the stairs to meet me. At my feet, he becomes the cat I’ve known from the beginning. He was the only one at my side and the only one who cared. It’s fitting that he would be the one standing at my side even in the end.

             “Did you have fun, my little Grim?”

             “Yeah! Fresh magic tastes the best!” Claws grab onto my robe as he climbs his way up. “Did you get him?” 

              “Yeah. He’s gone.”

              His face rubs against mine again. “Do you feel better now? Are you happy?”

              I pause my walk, staring out at the burning grounds. People had hurt me here; they chased me, hit me, belittled me, and now they’re all gone. And yet there’s still something missing. I’m not happy. I don’t feel better. Nothing’s changed at all.

              “No. I feel...”

~~~~~

Nova’s Twisted Wonderland Masterlist

[wordy-little-witch]

Hiii i miss sending u anon stuff isjzjsz im studying for exams😭😭💀💀 i wish i have the discipline to study consistently aaaaa

Can i request the 7 minutes in heaven shuggy prompt? And maybe a treasure hunt w/ the crossgild trouple? Tysm wordy ur posts have been like a destressor somewhat (also an angst fest cuz wtf the rayeligh shit HURTED- do u have more of it? Lmao also shanks in the tags, him being protective is wat i live for platonically or romantically❤️❤️)

Hiiii honey!!! I'm happy to hear from you ♡♡ I'm proud of you for studying and good luck with your exams, you can do it!!!! ♡♡♡♡♡ ((Also mood I struggle with routine and yet thrive with routine. It's a cosmic pain))

I can do two lil bits I think for this ♡ I'll separate them out, so one here, another later on ((I'll add on to this one)) ♡

As for the Rayliegh bit - hhhh yeah. Listen. LiStEn. If I can't afford therapy to resolve my parental and sibling issues then I'll sure as shit hurt my blorbo and make everyone watch teehee dw about it cute boy things.

And Shanks is plveru protective and also so dynamic. He has Le Range. He's a beloved character with a laundry list of Traumatic Lore and so little screen time you could do damn near anything and it's arguably canonical. I love him. I also love to make him an absolute hot mess gremlin bc he deserves it ♡♡

Onto the fun stuff!!!!!

Shuggy -> Seven Minutes in Heaven

This was worse than the get along shirt, Buggy grumbled angrily, screwing his eyes shut and bonking his head into the wall. A foot pressed against his shin, igniting the sudden, vicious urge to kick out and hope to hit something Specific in the dark. He held it at bay, just giving a slow sigh.

Voices drifted by overhead, mostly chipper, a decent chunk slurred. Buggy pouted.

"Um... Bugs?"

"What," he snapped, curling tighter into a ball. He heard more than saw Shanks flinch back a little.

"I... um.... I just...." There was a shuffle in the tiny storage closet, earning a blind glower from the blue haired cabin boy.

"Spit it out, fuckface!"

"I'm sorry."

There was silence for a moment. Buggy tried breathing slowly, in through the nose, out through the mouth, just the way Cap had taught him. He let out the breath for a few second, one, two, three, four. "It's.... not your fault," he said at last, trying to keep his breathing steady. "We weren't even really fighting."

"Old man Rayleigh should learn to tell the difference," the redhead scoffed quietly. "We were training...." He shifted slightly. "I didn't mean to hit you that hard."

Buggy snorted. "Please. You punch like a civilian."

"Civilians can punch heads off of necks," Shanks shot back teasingly, moving blindly in the dark to nudge the other's leg. "I'll have to keep that in mind."

"No, dumbass, but they could knock my head off. I'm still not.... used to this." He popped off his fingers, one at a time. The soft clicks or detachment and reattachment echoed in the dark.

"... I'm sorry for that too."

"Shut up, I don't need your pity."

The other moved suddenly, and Buggy bit back a squeak as hands grappled in the black before clamping onto his shoulders. A forehead bumped his own, a bit too high before nuzzling lower. He could feel the heat from the other boy's skin sinking into his own, and he prayed that the force of his blush didn't ACTUALLY make his nose glow the way Cap and Crocus teased him about.

"It's not pity," Shanks said roughly. He shook the other the slightest bit before sighing. "It's empathy."

"The hell are you-?!"

"Just-! Listen, Buggy!" Shanks tilted his head, his nose brushing Buggy's and drawing a soft sound from the younger boy. "You wanted the treasure and I startled you. The map fell into the sea. And I'm sorry. You loved swimming, and even I could see how much the sea loved you, too. You've got sea salt in your veins and waves in your hair, you always always have, and now you can't lay out in the water like a siren anymore and it hurts you! I know it does. You're my best friend, my better half, and I hurt you. I caused your pain. And I will never forgive that. So I'm sorry."

".... they'renot real."

"What?"

Buggy swallowed, his own hands moving, one gripping to a strong forearm, the other at a baggy shirt on the redhead's side. "Sirens. They're not real. Just stories, remember? Even Captain said."

There was a brief moment before Shanks chuckled. "Maybe," he breathed, his lashes tickling against Buggy's own. "But I believe in them. Beautiful beings who sing wonderful songs and lure sailors into parts unknown...."

"Why?"

"Because I'd never hesitate to follow you anywhere, Buggy. You say my name and I'm yours. I know sirens are real because you're real."

Suddenly the cramped darkness felt far warmer. Buggy tried to quiet his gasp. "S-Stupid Shanks...?"

"Pretty Buggy."

There was movement and then there was heat on his nose, his cheeks, his lips. And Buggy squirmed, pushing and pulling until their bodies slotted together perfectly, a hand dipping under his beanie to grip cerulean hair as straw tickled his wrist as his own cupped the back of a neck. Breathless, boneless, they clung and basked and pulled closer, closer closer. Buggy was growing dizzy, but it was pleasant, comfortable, warm, safe and he'd never felt so-

Blinded.

His body suddenly was sent sprawling, light piercing his eyes, and then he coughed a wheeze as a heavy weight crushed his ribcage, his lip smarting as teeth sunk into it.

Shanks pushed himself up, rubbing his eyes and squinting.

Buggy glared through his tears.

Rayleigh looked gobsmacked. "Oh. I was... not expecting that. Hmm." He glanced between the two for a moment before turning on his heel. "Use protection, this is above my pay grade."

Shanks huffed a mild, embarassed laugh. Buggy simply wanted to die.

[nightingale-ghost-writer]

By the Grace Of [Sorcerer Rogier x Fem!Tarnished] - Chapter Three

Summary: Rogier tries (and fails) to occupy his mind and time, alone in the Hold. With a little help, he’s about to have lots to think about.

Author’s Notes: Another measly 800 words! Setting the scene for what I hope to be the last chunk of game dialogue for a bit.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or events from Elden Ring

Warnings: none? Unedited (basically), unfinished story- read at your own risk!

Rogier spent an indeterminate, but too long time, staring, again, where the Tarnished had been standing.

What just happened?

He couldn’t seem to process that kiss. It had been so long since he’d been touched, let alone kindly. Dare he say affectionately.

A door somewhere in the Hold slammed shut and he shook himself out of his stupor. He needed to get his mind off of-

He didn’t even know her name.

By Marika, he didn’t even know her name.

He drew himself up, such as it was, and lifted his chin in defiance of himself.

No need to pine for the touch of a woman he didn’t know, with whose presence he might never be graced again.

He didn’t pine. He needed no one.

That settled, he nodded to himself and then looked around the balcony, wistfully eyeing the rail he so often launched himself over. Never again.

He shook his head again. Not the kind of distraction he needed.

He looked toward the doorway. Surely, someone would be near enough to…

No. He didn’t want their pity. Their smug, vindicated disappointment. As it stood, he was outcast enough. And not without his own share of fault in the matter.

He resolved to keep himself occupied by his own devices.

He would list all of the spells he knew. He tilted his head back against the wall and let his eyes shut, taking a deep breath.

Lavender eyes bored through him.

He opened his eyes, shifting. Perhaps he could categorize them. By the order in which he learned them?

He tried that, and found himself getting hung up on the details surrounding each discovery.

He heard the Tarnished’s voice. Indistinct and lyrical.

He squeezed his eyes shut and covered his ears. Was he going mad? Was Death rotting his mind?

A step at the doorway. He dropped his hands, affecting his signature easy air, smile and all. He didn’t let himself think about how quickly it came to him, how effortless it had become to hide behind this mask.

The Tarnished rounded the corner, mouth set in a wide smile. Her arms were laden with an assortment of items- scrolls and tomes; quills and ink; a pillow, a blanket; a small brown sack. She dumped the lot at Rogier’s feet, planting her hands firmly on her hips and looking quite pleased with herself.

“Congratulations, on this motley of… items,” he said dryly. She huffed, dropping to lean against the bench by his legs. If he could have recoiled, could have moved his wretched afflicted legs away from her, he would have. He couldn’t. And so he only sat, at once longing to flee, and longing to reach forward and tuck her dark hair behind her delicate ear.

What?

“You might be a bit more grateful once you see what I’ve brought,” she said blithely. She tossed a tome at him, which he fumbled before grasping. He turned it over. Before he could read the cover, she was tossing more tomes over her shoulder and into his lap.

“Well, then!” he sputtered. He looked down, ready to offer a good natured, if iindignant pout. But she was beaming up at him and he found his own lips curling up to match.

“Good, I thought you might give me an earful. The smile’s better.”

Rogier’s face flushed. She had the decency to look down, at least attempting to hide her smirk. Rogier cleared his throat, grasping for what shreds of decorum he could gather.

“What’s all this, then?” he finally asked.

She shrugged, shuffling papers at her feet. “Mostly journals, I think. Just things I’ve collected along the way.” She nodded to the brown sack. “Some bread and dried fruit. Not much, but it’ll keep you.

“Anyway, I just thought you might appreciate them more than me. And,” she looked up again, shy this time. “You seem to be quite well-learned. I thought you might like some place to put down your thoughts.” She held out another book- plain and leather bound. He took it gently from her hands. Loose papers fluttered out, and the Tarnished scrambled to collect them.

“Sorry about that,” she said. “I didn’t know where else to put those, but I thought you might find some use. I certainly won’t.”

Rogier blinked. “Thank you,” he said quietly. “Time can move rather slowly, stuck here, you know.” She looked up at him, holding the papers out. She seemed transfixed by his confession. He couldn’t quite believe he’d said the words aloud, himself. He forced himself to hold her gaze. “A little conversation goes a long way.”

She smiled, a bit of mischief and a bit of regret rolled into one.

“Well, in that case…”

[thirsty-boba-fett-posts]

@meshlaxbunny gave me a lovely prompt and I intend to run wildly through the desert with it.

THE JOURNEY BEGINS UNDER THE CUT.

The second sun was just over the horizon when she arrived at the palace. Deliveries to the rear entrance, as usual. Her dewback’s saddle bags were heavy with all manner of meats, cheeses, breads, and produce. The sallyport door opened as she approached and a handful of familiar droids filed out ready to unload her cargo. She dismounted her dewback and pulled a trough of kitchen scraps from the inside of the sallyport, dragging it out to her dewback who scratched anxiously at the dirt in anticipation.

“Here ya go big boy,” she said softly, patting him on the shoulder as he munched gratefully at the contents of the trough. She pulled a water skin from her saddle and filled it at the rusty spigot just inside the sallyport. The ratcatcher droid tugged at her shirt to get her attention, then handed her a chunk of hearty, dense seedbread with a thick smear of salted butter.

“Thanks old buddy. Are you staying out of trouble?”

The droid nodded.

“Good. Keep it that way, little friend.”

The droid chirped and made its way back towards the kitchen.

She stepped outside into the soft warmth of the morning sun and sat cross legged against the palace wall, eating her bread and watching her dewback work his way through a week’s worth of scraps. She closed her eyes briefly and leaned her head back against the wall. She’d need to find a place to sleep soon. The overnight trip from the port at Mos Eisley wasn’t especially difficult or even dangerous, but it was exhausting. Maybe she’d camp on the outskirts of town or find a room at an inn with a stall large enough for her dewback - that would be a treat if she has enough credits.

She opened her eyes when she heard footsteps. A broad chested man in black stepped out of the sallyport. A guard she hadn’t met yet, maybe? He gave her a warm smile, which she returned if only at a dim wattage.

“How was the ride from Mos Eisley?” he asked.

“Oh, not so bad. Just long. It’s a good ten hours in the saddle.”

“Ah yes, a long time to be on the Dune Sea alone,” he replied, almost wistfully.

They were both quiet for a moment.

“Have you met the new Daimyo yet?” she asked.

He gave her another warm smile and stroked her dewback’s shoulder firmly, like someone who knew his way around large animals.

“I have not,” he replied.

“Ah well, he can’t be any worse than Jabba or Bib Fortuna.”

“Are you so sure?” he asked.

“I was a slave once, and now I am not,” she said, gesturing with open palms towards her dewback and the Dune Sea beyond. “Jabba was cruel, Bib Fortuna was weak. Perhaps this daimyo will be somewhere in between.”

“Perhaps,” he replied. “There are cots and fresh linens in the old slave quarters. You can stable your dewback in the hangar for the day and get some rest.”

“The new daimyo won’t mind?”

“I don’t think he’ll mind at all.” With that, he turned and walked back in to the sallyport.

She led her dewback to into the open hangar and, as her eyes adjusted to the dim light under the hangar’s dome, she saw a familiar ship.

The bounty hunter Boba Fett’s ship, a modified Firespray, almost seemed like an illusion. Wasn’t Boba Fett dead? She’d met him a handful of times when she still danced on a chain for Jabba’s amusement. She’d been glad to leave that life behind, but she remembered Boba Fett quietly slipping her a few credits here and there when he came around to take contracts from Jabba. Some of those credits went towards the purchase of her dewback - her means of making a living now that she was free. She raised her water skin to the ship and poured some water out on the floor before taking a sip.

“Wherever you are, Boba Fett, I hope it’s bright suns and cool winds.”

…

It needs a title, the dewback needs a name, and the main character needs a name. I’m open to suggestions! There will be eventual smut - but we need to get some momentum going first!

@daimyosprincess

@acatalystrising

@baufraus

@die-herzlos-engel

@dukeoftheblackstar

Am I missing anyone?