#there's a scene actually lit in yellow but i liked this one better

[mbgcreates]

Egotober Day 18: Yellow

HAPPY EDGE OF SLEEP DAY OFFICIAL!!!!!

HOPE YOU ALL HAVE BEEN SLEEDGING!! I wish I didn't have to put the watermark in most of my shading when I rarely get myself to do shading at all nowadays, but c'est la vie. I'm overall pretty happy with how this turned out! Screenshot redraw from the "trailer" that was unlisted for a while on Regency's website (so I could draw this in advance).

[crystalflygeo]

Last of her kind Emperor!Alpha!Zhongli + Slave!Omega!Dragoness!Reader-

cw/tags: mentions of slavery and past sexual abuse on fem!reader, A/B/O dynamics, mating bites, fingering, scenting, pet names, zhongli has a knot and alpha fangs and is not afraid to use them lmao, some nip and clit stimulation ig?? emotional roller coaster ngl.

notes: So remember a loooong time ago when I held a poll and one of the options was "dragon" and it WON?? well actually it was this, (dragon READER heh) it just got WAY out of control. 5.6k words and now I wanna make it into a whole series //head in hands// anyway ye have this weird lil funky AU I poured my sweat blood and tears into (also my heart and soul) idk why I am just so attached I love it so much plsss I have ideas fot other scenes with them already aaaaaaaaa <3

Partially inspired by some of @silentmoths' fics holy shIT I LOVE DRAGON READER AND I LOVE OMEGAVERSE NOD IF YOU AGREE!!

Last but not least if y'all wanna be part of my pinglist uhh I'm making one now so :3c

Part 2 ->

Strange yellow leaves fall around you all over the courtyard…

“Fix your clothes, you have to look appealing… well, as appealing as a creature like you can be.” The voice of your Master calls out harshly, pulling and tugging at details in your outfit. It was a flimsy and silky thing, mostly see-through, rather elegant, but very revealing.

You’re used to it.

“And stop looking so miserable! You better smile and please this Alpha. He’s not just anyone, you know?”

You nod meekly, trying to hide the slight trembling on your body. This will be just another bonding attempt. Nothing else.

It will fail. Just like all the others before.

Silver chains clink and tug the collar at your neck, it shakes you back to the present as you stumble forward.

Master guides you through a maze of corridors, with sleek surfaces of dark wood, decorative lanterns and paper screens. They’re strange, covered in even stranger symbols that look nothing like the ones back in the desert. Your bare feet, used to rough hot sand, now walk along polished wood with your draconic tail dragging behind. Everything looks so lavish…

You’ve been brought all the way to Li- Liu-… Li-yue? A foreign country, to meet a potential client. Well, a client to your Master. You are just the merchandise: a dragonblood Omega. Rare, unique even, “exotic”.

But defective.

Your fists clench in nervousness. How rough will this Alpha be with you? You dread to find the answer. Alphas were cruel, ever since you remember you’ve been taught to please, be gentle, obedient and look pretty, but they were never any of those things. Alphas just took their pleasure and used your body as they wanted, usually until you were crying and screaming, begging for mercy. You just hope this Alpha would give you some pity and be quick… or give you time to rest in between attempts.

Though you had learned since long that your wishes don’t tend to come true.

What a disappointment. After I spent so much money and resources on you.

Such a waste of time, what use is there in an Omega that can’t bond?

Why do I even bother with you? You’re just good for the reproduction camp. Maybe that way you can produce another dragonblood.

This is your last chance, mutt. If you fail again, I won’t be bothering with you anymore.

You feel anxiety creeping on your chest, heart jumping to your throat as the dark thoughts invade your mind. Last chance… your last chance at bonding. At proving you’re not useless and stupid. At serving your purpose as Omega. What was happening to you was fair. You deserve to be punished and you should be grateful you have one last chance after all your failures.

You just want to… to…

Tears prickle at your eyes and you breathe in deeply, trying to contain your distress and hugging your own tail, rubbing your face on the fluffy tip.

Whatever happens today, your fate is going to be sealed.

The nest room is nice.

Like the rest of the place, it is rather elegant, dimly lit with neutral colors and wooden walls, filled with pillows and blankets that had a very subtle flowery aroma to them. Small cabinets to one side with some decorative objects on top and a full-length mirror on the other side. So much different from the barren cold stone walls and tents from the desert camps.

“Hm, pretty fancy.” Master says taking off your collar, your soft unblemished neck now on display, free from any claim. “Now…” He pulls at your hair and you wince, whining and lowering your ears on a submissive display. He wouldn’t hurt you right? You have to look pretty. “The emperor will be here shortly. Make sure to do anything and everything he wants. And you better smile, I told you.”

“E-Emperor?” You pale, eyes widening.

He scoffs and pushes you back, you stumble back into the mess of pillows. “That’s right. I don’t know why but he was very adamant to see you it seems. Perhaps he just wants the prestige of owning the last known dragonblood, hm? Another novelty for his collection, I’m sure. You should consider yourself really lucky. So…” He flashes his Alpha fangs at you with a growl and you whimper again, cowering. “I would suggest you do your best and don’t disappoint this time, he’ll pay a pretty penny for you.”

And with that he leaves, muttering something and almost slamming the strange sliding door.

And so, you’re alone.

Immediately your brain goes into overdrive. An emperor? You had been presented to various Alphas of high status before, wealthy merchants and high-ranking tribe members, but this… this was probably a whole other level.

An emperor had to have an empress, right? Someone of noble birth and high status such as himself, not a lowly sand lizard like you, with weird ears, scales, horns and a tail. Why would he want to see an Omega like you? Perhaps Master was right, he intended to keep you as a trophy in his collection, another pretty thing.

It was humiliating.

But anything was better than being doomed to the reproduction camp…

Maybe the emperor had a harem? You’ve heard of them before, some Alphas liked to boast having many Omegas bound to them. Living in this luxury, not having to worry about much anything except looking pretty and pleasing him once a while. Hell, maybe he wouldn’t even pay attention to you, you’d be just a glorified pet.

You could… do that.

Without noticing, your tail starts swaying after you, this could be a chance. Your chance. You just had to make him like you. Forget the bond. Don’t think about it. All you have to do is please him.

You start frantically arranging the sheets and pillows around, building the comfiest nest you ever had with all the extra material, scenting it with excited happy pheromones. You could do it, this was your chance.

You won’t fail this time. You’ll be pretty, obedient, submissive, the ideal Omega. You’ll let him use you to his heart’s content, sure you may be a little sore but it’ll be worth it if he chooses you. He won’t even care about the bond.

…Right?

You jolt when you hear the door slide slightly open again, your heart leaps to your throat as someone walks in.

Oh.

Is… he the emperor? … He’s handsome.

To be fully honest, you expected some fat pompous middle-aged man not this… perfect specimen of an Alpha.

Your tail sways a little with curiosity.

He looks only slightly older than you, tall, wearing elegant robes in brown and golden hues. His eyes are like a sunset: golden, warm, almost glowing. A red liner accentuating them. Long chocolate hair faded to amber at the tips. His scent was earthy and pleasant, subtle unlike most Alpha musk. Almost comforting and… familiar?

He seems to stare back at you with the same surprise, frozen for a moment, eyes slightly wide, he says something you can’t quite hear and it shakes you out of the spell. You suddenly feel a little self-conscious, curling your tail around you, ears down and resisting the urge to brush (hide) the scales at the corners of your eyes.

It occurs to you that you’ve been just staring like an idiot, you don’t know very well how to address him, nor know his foreign tongue. So, you simply lower your head in respect. “My Lord…”

You suddenly feel nervous. This is it.

You turn around, following the motions ingrained in your brain. Body splayed on the nest, arms tucked in, head down. Submissive, obedient. Your hands are shaking, you feel dizzy, heart thrumming in your chest, blood rushing in your ears.

You lift your butt just slightly, tail curling elegantly over your back, out of the way to expose the flimsy fabric covering your privates, properly presenting to the Alpha. You focus on trying to control your pheromones, letting out just whiffs of a needy sensual scent, worried of mixing in your anxiety and fear and displeasing the emperor.

You had to be pretty, enticing, compliant, and he would, h-he would…

A rather awkward cough has you tense. “There is… no need for that.”

You blink for a moment, taken aback at the rich deep baritone of his voice, so hypnotizing you almost don’t register his words. He speaks common tongue, but still, what does he mean? Isn’t this just… standard protocol for bonding? Isn’t he going to mount you?

You dare peek over your shoulder and see him sitting elegantly over his knees at the floor. He’s outside of the nest range.

He’s also slightly pink at the cheeks and pointedly avoiding looking at you.

Is this a trap? Is he testing you to see if you’ll misbehave? Your hands clench, nails digging at your palms, your breathing and heart increasing pace.

“I just want to talk, I promise.” He tries.

You hold the position.

He sighs, and then-

“Omega, relax.”

You almost squeak at the Alpha command. His voice, his will, seeps into your skin, your nerves, your very bones. You feel your muscles loosen up, tension leaving your body like a bowstring snapping and you lie on the sheets sideways.

Right right right, you’re tense, you have to be soft and pliant-

You look over at him and he’s… heading over to the little cabinets. He picks up a kettle of some kind and little cups that sit on the top, moving around calmly and elegantly as he seems to prepare something. Your head tilts and you gingerly sit up straight. Tail and ears down, curled up not unlike a wounded animal.

“Do you speak the common tongue?”

“Y-Yes!” You nod. “A little…”

“Good.”

The emperor seems… pleasant, he is calm and unguarded, so different from the cold intimidating Alphas you’ve met who like to show off, who immediately order you around. He even used an Alpha command on you but it felt… grounding. There is something equally eerie and entrancing about him and you feel yourself as much drawn to him as terrified of his imposing aura, and you couldn’t explain why. It’s a bit unsettling but also comforting at the same time.

He pours two cups and turns to you. You stiffen and he offers you one.

“Qixing tea is one of the most refined Liyue teas. It tends to be very bitter but this blend has a more pleasant taste, a little floral even. It is also said to help relax one’s mind.”

You carefully take the cup, not wanting to insult such gracious offer, though you’re utterly confused, shouldn’t you be the one serving him?

The cup is warm.

You stare at the golden liquid, small black dots sit at the bottom. This has no alcohol… right? It can’t be worse than snake wine at least.

You carefully take a sip, trying to imitate how the emperor is holding his.

It is… nice, a strong sharp taste but not bad, and very aromatic.

He’s looking at you expectantly and your tail and ears twitch. “I-It’s very good. Thank you, my Lord.”

He smiles and your heart skips a beat. “I am glad. Some say Qixing tea is for older people, but it’s frankly one of my favorites.” He stares at his cup with a somewhat nostalgic gaze, as if it brings him fond memories. “Ah, you can address me as Morax.”

You nod quietly and take another sip. Past the tea’s powerful flowery scent, you can now sense his Alpha pheromones, with him being so close and the air less tense. They’re strong but not overwhelmingly so, sharp and tantalizing, a refined foreign scent you can almost taste in the back of your throat. It stirs something in you, something warm and alluring.

“Do you know where were you born? Who are your parents?”

The question takes you by surprise for a moment as you shake out of your thoughts. Ah, he must be inquiring about your dragonblood. “I-I’m…. I’m not sure, my Lo- um… L-Lord Morax. As far as I know my mother worked at a-a heat house… no one knew who my father was and she passed away when I was very young.”

“I see… so you have no idea where you got your dragon traits from.” It was a sentence rather than a question and you shake your head meekly, taking another sip from the tea, ears lowering back.

“Apparently it could be due to recessive genes.” You once again repeat the same words you’ve heard all your life. You hate bringing attention to your dragon features, people either treat you like a rare exotic creature or a dangerous one. You didn’t know which was worse.

“Hmmm…” Lord Morax seems pensive for a moment, also drinking some of the tea. “Have you been with your caretaker for long?”

You look down. “Master has been in charge of me ever since I… p-presented as an Omega.”

“Does he treat you well?”

Your eyes widen, the question catching you completely by surprise. T-Treat you well? You are… treated like any other slave omega, if only being singled out by your draconic traits. He feeds you, he gives you clothing and education, he arranges the best matches he can for bonding, he even got you here in the first place. You owe him everything, you’re nothing without him.

So then… Why do you find yourself thinking back on all the harsh words, all the punishments, all the screaming and crying, all the… t-touches…

You gulp. “M-Master ensures I have the best living conditions and opportunities I can.” Is what you settle for.

He hums.

There is silence for a moment and lord Morax settles down his cup.

“I don’t think you’re aware of how special you are.”

Just when you thought he couldn’t surprise you anymore, he utters those words and makes your heart speed up.

Is this anxiety? Fear?

“Judging from what your Master has told me, you’re treated like quite the novelty, an exotic half-blood not unlike the Valuka Shuna or Kätzlein. Here in Liyue however those with traits like yours are called Xiānshòu.” The foreign word rolls off his tongue. His golden eyes fix on you and you freeze. “Also known as illuminated beasts. With immense power and longevity, even the half-bloods. They’re well respected and looked up to, why, some are even revered as deities...”

You? Such a fantastic creature? That can’t be…

“Seems to me like things are different in the deserts of Sumeru, however.” His eyes narrow and for the first time you notice his diamond pupils. They look like a snake’s. The same eerie glint he had a few minutes ago is back darkening the bright golden eyes. Yet, for some strange reason you don’t feel scared this time.

A shiver travels down your spine as you feel your instincts purr in delight. Protective… for some reason lord Morax is being protective of you. You don’t know why or how but you can feel it and it made your inner Omega preen inside. An Alpha wanted to protect you, care for you.

“Such a shame.” He adds, sounding almost disappointed but there is something darker underneath. Word simmering with… frustration? “You are such a lovely dragoness, worthy of every praise and prayer they’d sign in your name here.”

You’re very glad your cup rests at your lap, blushing furiously with trembling hands.

For the next few moments, he continued to ask some more questions. What you like or dislike, what you do in your free time, even something as innocuous as your favorite color. Time seemed to stretch into infinity as you grew a little more comfortable with your answers and the whole situation, as though you weren’t talking to an emperor, or even a potential master or Alpha but rather… someone who saw you for who you are.

You liked that. You liked him.

You wanted to stay with him.

You wished to-

“Alright, I think that’s enough. I will have a talk with your Master and we’ll settle things.” He stands up and dusts his attire a little.

Your breath stops.

He is leaving.

He is leaving.

Did you do something wrong? Didn’t he say he liked your appearance? Are you such a failed disgraceful omega? Your last chance at bonding. You didn’t even get to impress him. You want to call out to him, do something, anything. Panic rises in your chest, drowning you, freezing you. You can barely think, instincts screaming, begging, wailing in despair for him. This kind Alpha, this gentle, patient, imposing, majestic Alpha who’s too good for you and yet something deep inside you yearns for him…!

“I am very glad to have met you little xiānshòu.” A small smile tugs at his lips. Then, he turns and heads for the sliding doors.

So, you do the first thing that comes to your mind.

The empty cup falls from your hands, your footsteps thump loudly on the wooden floors, soft fabric clenches between your fingers.

As soft as the lips you crash yours onto.

…

It only lasts a few seconds but when you back just a little, ears low and tail curled up in apprehension, you realize what you did.

You’d kissed him, you’d kissed the emperor.

You’re shaking like a leaf, clinging to him for dear life. He stares at you with wide surprised eyes but you’d rather die right here for your insolence than live the rest of your days in regret.

His scent takes on an alluring hint to it and your inner Omega is overjoyed. Up so close it is almost irresistible. His face remains impassive, if a little tense, but you can see in his eyes something you identify very well… hunger, desire.

“Lord Morax… t-the nest… please.”

“Y-You don’t have to-”

“Please! Allow me to please you, allow me to show you…how…” You whisper against his lips, leaning in again as your eyes flutter close.

And suddenly his hands wrap around you and pull you close, cupping your face, curling at your waist, there’s something possessive in it and you feel slight vibrations as he growls deep from his chest against your mouth. But there is also something sweet, something delicate…

And for once, you want more. You want this.

How did you end up here? In the most beautiful nest you’d ever constructed, with the most handsome, kind, caring Alpha you’d ever met?

His kisses are deep and slow, completely unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before. You lie on the soft sheets as he looms over you, exploring your mouth with an unhurried pace, hungry yet not forceful, letting you timidly do the same at your own pace.

This is nice…

His hands run along your body, caressing your skin through your flimsy attire. His touch curious but gentle.

“May I?” He asks, tugging at the fabric off your shoulder.

You shiver, at his voice, as the pure want in it, in his eyes, in his scent.

“Y-yes my lord…”

“Hmm…” His kisses trail down your jaw down to your neck as he starts pulling the garments off. Careful, instead of simply ripping them apart, your heart skips a beat. “If we’re going to do this, you can use my name and not just titles…”

Your top falls off and goosebumps litter your skin, nipples pebbled as one of his hands cups your breast.

“M-Morax…” You try, shakily, as if testing out the word alone on your lips.

“No, little one. Zhongli. That is my name.” He kisses down your shoulders, nipping at the skin.

“Ah!” Your tail flickers around and you purr.

You take the initiative to kiss him this time, and your hands start roaming his foreign clothes, fumbling with knots and pawing at the fabric. He chuckles at your frustrated whine. You want more, more of this feeling, more of him. To touch his skin, cover him in kisses, worship him.

(Show him what a good Omega you can be.)

No…

You want to make him feel good and please him.

Elegant fabric falls down discarded as he shakes off the layers of his top and you blink surprised. The fabric was bulky and covered up his figure. Lean but muscled, tantalizing like honey. You immediately latch onto him, nosing, scenting, nipping and kissing, feeling the faint outline of his abs and muscles twitch under your touch. He smells so good, he feels so good…

Your Omega instincts are starting to cloud your senses more and more.

Suddenly one of his hands gently squeezes a soft breast and you moan at the sudden touch “O-Oh!”

“You’re sensitive here, do you like this?” He asks, massaging your chest.

You whimper and nod frantically, tail wagging behind you. You had never been this responsive to having your chest played with, though then again, it was rare… but his sensual touches were quickly undoing you. Wetness pools at your gut and you rub your legs together.

Lord Mor- Zhongli… leans down then and something wet flicks over your nipple making you gasp, before warmth surrounds your nub. You cry out even louder. He sucks and laps at it and you instinctively tangle your hands on his hard dark hair, your legs wrapping around his waist.

You groan again, too many layers on the way.

“C-clothes… off, please!”

“As you wish, my dear dragoness.”

He continues squeezing, kissing, caressing and lapping at your skin, leaving a couple of hickeys along the way and teasing his Alpha fangs against you as his attention descends through your body once more, continuing his trail of kisses along your hip. His fingers dip down the waistband of your mesh pants and when you raise your hips to help, he pulls them down.

You’ve been naked in front of others more times than you’d like to count. But there’s something oddly intimate and special about this situation right now.

Your ears lower in apprehension, and your tail flicks by your side, resisting the urge to cover up. Lying down with your legs slightly spread around him. Already flushed, sweaty and panting.

“…You’re gorgeous.”

Huh?!

“I’m so lucky to have found you.” Zhongli nips at your hip. “So lucky that you want me too.” He kisses at your inner thigh.

Your breath hitches.

You’re the lucky one. Completely overjoyed that this Alpha likes you, desires you.

The first touch at your core has you mewling.

Zhongli strokes at your folds, still gentle, finding you soaked as your slick coats his fingers. Your body jolts and you moan “A-Ah!” He smirks against your thigh and nips there again as his fingers move in circles, teasing, testing, before moving to your clit. A finger pad stroking it just so, making your whole frame tremble, like every nerve in your body is being stimulated.

“Mngh- please!”

His fingers travel between your folds. First one sliding in rather easily, pumping steadily as you shudder in pleasure, and then two, making you writhe, bucking your hips against the touch, pushing them deeper, chasing that feeling.

Your body feels hot, too hot. Every sensation blocked except that warm wet feeling down there, in your new heaven. Your hands claw at the sheets, a pleasant fog setting in and you can feel yourself slipping into your most primal needs. But oh, oh, not like this.

You want him. Need him.

“You- y-you! please my lord!”

Something snaps in the Alpha’s eyes and Zhongli growls. Golden eyes dark, swallowed by lust and need and you whine when his fingers leave you. You vaguely hear rustling noises and before you can protest again, he pulls you up back on his lap and oh…

He’s big.

His erection stands proud between your bodies, rubbing against you and you shuffle impatiently, nuzzling against him.

Yes, yes…

Zhongli helps positioning you, gives himself a few strokes, and you feel his cockhead kiss at your entrance, you whine and stare at him rather confused. “L-Like this? B-But I have never- This is n-not how-”

He kisses your forehead, your nose, and pecks at your lips. “I can imagine this is very different from how they’ve taught you Alphas mount Omegas, but I my dear, intend to make love to you.” He whispers, hot breath fanning your cheeks as he nuzzles you, so close, so intimate. Your heart hammering wildly in your chest. “Like this you will have more control. I want you to relax, enjoy, my sweet dragoness.” He kisses at your cheek, down your jaw to your neck. “May I?”

You can feel your eyes water. No one had ever told you that. No Alpha had ever been this patient or even asked your permission before. Words die on your throat as you stare mesmerized at Zhongli. Grateful. Incredulous. Completely enamored.

You nod, and he guides you down.

It’s different like this. So much different.

You bite your lip and whine a little once you start to move, his hands hold your hips as you raise them and sink back down on his cock, inch by delicious inch. You feel… full, but warm, good. Your insides clench around him and he groans.

Oh… you could get used to this…

“Hah… ah! … m-my lord... I’m…” You feel dizzy but in a good way, your body tingles all over and it’s exhilarating, addicting.

He leans forward a bit, nosing at your collarbone, soft kisses tickle your skin and he… he’s almost purring in delight, inhaling your scent. “I told you, you can just call me by my name... Would you let me hear it?”

You buck languidly on his embrace, enjoying this…sensual experience, these new feelings and sensations. His tender closeness, his intoxicating pheromones, his deep baritone.

Him.

“Zhongli…”

His name comes out as a needy cry and he growls, Alpha pride clearly satisfied. His hands roam your body just enough to shift position and pull you even closer, hips rolling in tandem, picking up speed, his fangs grazing your shoulder.

Your head is swimming in pleasure, fuzzy like stuffed with cotton, small little “Ah… ah… ah!” moans punched out of you. You’re vaguely aware of your nails digging onto his skin but you can’t even stop yourself, you need to hold onto something, anything.  

Even your tail subconsciously curls around his ankle (and he doesn’t even seem to mind), like every cell of your body is screaming at you to hold onto him and never let go.

Zhongli’s own breathing comes out in harsh puffs and satisfied groans as he buries himself in you over and over, the sound of skin slapping on skin becomes more prominent.

And then, he hits a spot that has you seeing stars.

Your eyes snap open (when had you closed them?) Back arching as if struck by lightning and letting out a high-pitched moan. H-How did he do that?! What was that? You don’t remember ever feeling like this in previous bonding attempts.

“M-more?” You mewl in delight.

Zhongli looks at you with a satisfied smirk and it only fuels the fire in your belly.

“Gladly.”

That same wonderful feeling travels up and down your body again and again as your moans and whimpers rise in volume, calling his name over and over. Zhongli kisses you, deep and passionate. Whispers praises and sweet nothings on your flickering dragon ears. Touches you so soft and reverently. Your body feels so hot, your mind going blank, you can feel the base of his cock swelling with his knot and the familiar coil of pleasure tightening as you anticipate it, crave it, more intense and satisfying than ever before.

And just as you reach that high, his fangs sink into you.

You come with a squeal, body tensing, clinging onto him, clenching on him as he lets out a deep satisfied groan, knotting you. Wet stickiness coats your insides and thighs. And everything feels right, just right. Perfect even.

It takes a moment to come back to your senses, and it’s to Zhongli’s hands rubbing circles at your back comfortingly, while he laps and kisses at the bonding mark he left on you.

And then the high comes crashing down.

The bonding mark.

Tears well up in your eyes and start rolling down your cheeks, your tail uncoiling from him and curling around yourself protectively, ears down.

Please no… this can’t be…

Please stay…

Please.

Zhongli immediately notices your distress, in your actions and your scent, completely different altogether. His own instincts going wild at the lack of a happy sated mate scent. “Darling, what’s wrong? I’m sorry did it hurt that much? Did I… harm you in some way or did something wrong?” Oh, he sounds so genuinely concerned.

You shake your head desperately. Of course he hasn’t.

But you will.

Your body will. Betray you as always.

No bonding mark has stayed in your neck for longer than a few minutes. They all fade.

Just like the alphas that place them in you.

And then comes the anger, the guilt, the disappointment, the despair, the loneliness…

You can’t take it. Not this time.

“S-stay… please…” You sob.

Your voice sounds so broken, so weak and tiny, absolutely heart wrenching.

And Zhongli embraces you.

“I will, my dearest dragoness. I promise you.” He kisses one of your horns.

You want to believe him but you can only cry harder…

The room is dark as your eyes flutter open. It takes a few minutes to adjust and for your mind to catch up. Where are you…? You look around at the wooden walls, nestled in comfy sheets, you see some wooden cabinets and a tea set-

…!!!

You jolt awake, tumbling some pillows from your fancy nest. Your last chance at bonding. The emperor. He was leaving, and then…!

You slap a hand against the junction between neck and shoulder and feel something there, a bandage… you try to stare at it confused, though it’s impossible from the angle. And then fear consumes you. What if… it’s not there…?

Your body is still naked, though you have been covered with a thick fabric while sleeping, as it now pools at your lap, your Omega scent and that of an Alpha mixed together pleasantly, you turn around.

The Emperor. Lord Morax. Zhongli.

He sleeps peacefully by your side, on your nest, after having mated you.

He stayed.

You stare at his handsome features, fair skin, dark long hair, strong jaw, muscled arms. His lips slightly parted as he breathes evenly. So at ease.

You want to reach out and brush at his hair, touch his face, kiss him.

You want this moment to last forever.

Looking up slightly you see the large mirror, see yourself. A tiny thing, with freaky ears, horns and a tail.

It was… good, while it lasted. Almost like a dream.

Tears start falling down your cheeks again and you try to be as silent as possible as you pull and lift at the bandage in your shoulder. And there underneath it is… something?

Your fingers trace a mark, a wound, it stings and you hiss.

No way. There is no way.

Hope flutters in your chest, your stomach flips and you feel dizzy, nervous. A bonding mark? Is it real? Is it still there?

You shuffle out of the nest as fast and stealthily as you can, standing in front of the mirror. Hair a mess, eyes wide, pale in fear.

And there it is. The clear mark of an Alpha bite, still rather tender. A claim. A bond.

You start sobbing as you trace it, touch it, feel it. It must have been hours, there is no way…

It’s there, it’s there, for real. You want to laugh, to cry, you’re still nervous, scared, hopeful, happy, a million things at once.

But how? Why now?

“Hnng… darling? Are you crying again?” You stiffen as you hear the voice, deep and hoarse, laced with drowsiness. You turn and see him sit up and yawn carelessly like a rishboland tiger. Elegant and intimidating like one too with his bright golden eyes, Alpha fangs and muscled figure. Still naked as well, you note.

“T-the bonding mark… it’s still there!” You exclaim to him, gesturing to it.

“You should let it heal nicely.”

“Y-You don’t get it!” You huff. “My Lord… it’s still there! I’m bonded, I’m yours!”

He chuckles. “Rather, I would say we belong to each other, now.”

Belong to each other.

That sounds nice.

You turn back to the mirror, still staring at it, poking it with a finger softly, as if afraid it’ll disappear, as if it was an illusion, a dream.

But it’s there.

“For years… for years I thought I was doing s-something wrong, that there was something… wrong… with me…” You cry softly. “No Alpha had even bonded me…”

Suddenly you feel strong arms curl around your frame, a chin resting at your shoulder where it kisses your skin, and then brushes over the mark. It stings but you welcome it.

It means it’s real, all of this is.

Zhongli inhales, taking in your scent. “Well you see my dear, a dragonblood… a xiānshòu like you, can only be truly bonded by one of its own kind.”

The words take a moment to process, to sit on your brain, and you frown confused, staring at him from the mirror. And then your eyes widen.

Golden antlers crown his head, majestic and almost glowing, small scales appear under his striking amber eyes, the color of burnt ocher. A large tail, even bigger than yours in golden and brown hues, sways lazily behind him, before finding yours and intertwining with it, the feel is foreign but not unwelcome. Like holding hands.

You turn around so fast you almost trip if it weren’t for his hold. The dragonblood features are still there, in plain sight.

Your throat feels dry.

“You… you’re…”

He raises a finger to his lips and shushes you, then smiles. “I am yours my dear. Just as you are now mine.”

You cling to him and hide your face on his chest as you cry. Overwhelmed, relieved.

Yes, this is where you belong.

[kairiscorner]

guys i had this thought now it's driving me crazy

(reblogs are greatly appreciated, it helps get my content out there! if you guys like what you see, please reblog it too <:D)

imagine watching howl's moving castle with noir.

"a moving castle?" he'd ask himself with a head tilt as he'd adjust his glasses to see the title better. you nodded. "i promise you, it's an amazing film, peter." you'd beam. he'd shrug, and smile. "well, if you say so, love." he'd say as he sits back on the couch as you put the movie on. at first, peter believed this was another, probably childish and whimsical, children's movie that you somehow found nostalgic. he doubted that it was as amazing as you claimed it'd be, but he stood corrected. he was already in awe at the different kinds of colors there were on the screen--all kinds of blues, greens, reds, oranges, and yellows--they all blended beautifully and perfectly, in ways he had never thought would fit together.

he loved the witty dialogue from the characters, his most favorite character being calcifer. "poor little flame," he'd whisper as you two watched the scene where sophie was pressing the pan down on him to cook breakfast. he disliked howl at first, he seemed like quite the womanizer. "oh, if i were sophie's father, i'd never let her leave without me." he'd say as he'd lean forward in his trance as he watched. you giggled as you leaned against him on the couch, his arm wrapped around you as you rested your head against his shoulder. "and why not?" you asked with a smile. peter glanced at you and chuckled. "well... i'd never want my own daughter's heart to be eaten." he said as he adjusted his glasses again.

"you know he doesn't actually consume hearts, he just..." you trailed off as peter held you closer to him. "i know, i know; it's metaphorical. but no matter what..." he said as he placed his hand under your chin and slowly turned your head to look at him as the movie continued playing.

you looked so stunning all the time to peter, every little bit of you shone, literally and figuratively. but here, in the dimly lit living room you two shared--with you looking deep into his mesmerizing eyes--with the light of the film's ending playing out in the background as you two swam in the expanse of each other's eyes for a second or two, you looked breathtaking.

"now... it might just be a movie and all, but... i'd never let anyone eat your heart." he said with a slight chuckle as he took your hands in his, a blush coming on his face as the tips of his ears turned a bright red, along with the bright red and pink on his cheeks. "it sounds weird, i know, but i'd never live with myself if i knew someone else would be capable of stealing you away from me, much more a womanizer like that... howl pendragon. i know how you look at him." he teased as he nuzzled his nose into your cheek.

you chuckled. "he's a drawing, peter..." you responded. "yeah, but... i want to be the guy that makes you feel pretty even on a bad day, a guy who'd make you fall for him over and over and over again even if we've known each other from long ago. the guy who you'd... you know..." he said as he moved his face closer to yours. "...the kind you'd... wanna marry one day." he'd say as your eyelids fluttered, tickling his cheeks.

at that moment, you felt like you were sophie hatter; the humble love interest to the most perfect man in the world, peter parker, who was sort of like howl in the movie. he was witty, he was charming, he was emotional at times... and he loved the real, rawest version of you. even if you believed to yourself you were ugly, you were getting older, that nobody would look at you with such pure love that you didn't believe the world could ever give you--peter was always there to prove you wrong. he was there to prove you were perfect, stunning, and most of all: you were beautiful no matter how old you got, how bad your day was, or how tired you were. you were always, always beautiful to him, that much he knew, and that much would never change--ever.

"i love you, my dearest... you're so beautiful. you're too beautiful for my heart to handle, love..." he'd murmur as you planted a kiss on his soft lips that only wished to kiss and be kissed by your own. be it with lipstick or none, with tears coating them or dry and chapped, be it in the morning, noon, or night--your lips are the only ones he'll love kissing, over and over and over; even when an eternity would pass, he'd still remember and fall in love with the shape, the softness, and the loveliness of your lips--for they are the lips of the most beautiful person peter has ever met, and ever will meet.

"that's my girl." peter muttered as he pulled away, blushing fiercely after you kissed him. "you're red..." you pointed out as you pulled him in for another kiss, with him mumbling out some answer that was pretty much a compliment within a compliment for you. the movie had ended, but your night with peter had just begun.

a/n: gonna leave this here for y'all to be delulu about what you two do after <33

tags !! @thecoolerdor @miguelswifey04 @sabcandoit @binibinileonara @connors-cumslurper @luvstarrstruck @maxoloqy @k4tsu3 @fictarian

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

s3 episode 15 thoughts

i’m comfy. i’m cozy. i’m sat. i had a nice relaxing day. i am prepped for this.

(author's note: juni was, in fact, NOT prepared for this episode)

so, reading the episode description here: ANOTHER sunken ww2 craft??? they deal with these A LOT. they need to get an archaeologist on the phone, because they seem to just attract these sorts of things. and you don’t really find them everyday. unless you’re special.

(actually, it turned out to be the same one as before- or at least related to the first one. but my point stands. they are dealing with more war wreckage than you would expect)

we see a boat. they’re speaking french!! why did they call it “deux zéro point huit” instead of “vingt”? okay guess i don’t know a lot of stuff… but i like that a lot better than how the french usually use numbers, because then you could say 1998 a LOT easier… une neuf neuf huit… how easy these things COULD be… alas!

they’re diving!!!! this fellow- gauthier- has a very funny looking scuba suit. it’s bright yellow and very stiff. mobility is probably not ideal. oh, it’s getting darker and darker as he goes deeeep into the water. 

they’re detecting radiation from where he's going in? seems worrisome. but it’s the pacific ocean, so who knows what is in there? plenty of nuclear waste, i'm sure.

everyone is very excited to hear that gauthier thinks he found “one from the squadron”. what this squadron is, we do not know. but then they hear a thumping noise and lose contact with the diver. 

someone is inside the ship??? someone with very black inky eyes?? damn... mermaids are real?? AND scary?

the diver gauthier comes back up to the surface and says he became disoriented. hmm. that gaze is suspicious… and HIS eyes go inky black too!!

what did y’all do to my boy gauthier...

(cheering loudly as gillian anderson’s name is on the screen during the intro)

fbi time. scully reading a case and walking. she is a pro at reading and not walking into things. a skill that comes with great practice.

skinner opens the door and asks to see her!!! he asks his secretary to leave. oooo, whatever he has to say, it's going to be juicy. 

he says a memo came across his desk last night. and it concerns her. AND HER SISTER!!! 5 months in and there have been no leads in her murder investigation. they want to make it inactive and she has a LOT to say with just her face and the words “i see”. she looks both furious and hurt.

but he’s going to appeal it!!! awww nice skinner. and go over the evidence again himself, just in case someone missed something.

NOOOO, i yell out in sadness, as scully stops herself before leaving, visibly upset. she goes on a monologue about how the fbi can seemingly solve any crime but not this one, and there are tears in her eyes and there are tears in MY eyes. but for some reason they can’t figure out this one, even though it took place in a well-lit building and the murderer left the weapon at the crime scene!!! skinner tries to say it’s not about interest, but she says it is, just not hers or his. NOOOO STOP... MY POOR GIRL.

(tbh i’m glad they are addressing melissa's death again, because they haven’t really talked about it since. and i know with the monster of the week episodes you don’t get a ton of time to process these things, but it was HER SISTER. there is no way she could just jump right back into work without some severe emotional trauma. i think in some ways the episode format can do that disservice to their characters, introduce a Very Important Plot Point and then not talk about it again for the in-world equivalent of 5 months during which they act as if everything is fine)

skinner looks really sad too :( noooo, skinner

she goes to mulder’s office and denies that anything is wrong (he can obviously tell that things are wrong) also he’s wearing a different color suit today which is interesting. 

today's mystery: he says a ship from france came into port in san diego yesterday, and he tracked its course. it was at the same place they had earlier found the thing she thinks is a russian sub, and he thinks a ufo!!

she looks really upset to hear this :( i think she just doesn’t wanna deal with ufo drama when her sister’s murder is unsolved. and can you blame her?

but anyway, the whole crew from that french expedition is being treated for radiation burns, so he can’t just ask them what is down there

she laughs and says that she is amazed by him (!!!) working down in the basement. she says they’re afraid of his relentlessness. he seems offended that she says they could drop him in the desert and he’d ask for a shovel if the truth was out there, but then he smiles and says that he wants her to come along on to san diego. and he looks like this :D and gives her a plane ticket.

it was very cute. if only they could harness his boundless energy into looking at melissa's case...

scully my darling, look at me. tell him that you are feeling sad because your sister’s murder is being ignored. use your words. LOOK AT ME. tell him how you feel. it’s a long flight. you have time. thank you. 

at san diego, the men from the ship are very much burned up. they can’t figure out how to treat them because the french government is hiding everything.

she goes into doctor mode. the doctor at the hospital seems shocked to hear that she is a doctor, but... get used to it? anyway, their symptoms are nearly as bad as the hiroshima victims.

and one man had no symptoms, but he discharged himself this morning. it was gauthier! the man in the yellow scuba suit with the inky eyes!

damn, his house is nice. if it’s his house. seems to be, since he’s on the picture on the wall. but he walks past the ringing phone like he has never seen a ringing phone before. 

the agents are rolling up to the ship, where a bunch of people are in hazmat suits, investigating, guarded by soldiers. spooky...

so the guy who is leading this investigation says they found absolutely nothing, and they can go on board. which i would be suspicious of. but mulder lacks self-preservation instincts which has been established and he will go into the boat of evil. 

investigating a boat! with a big flashlight! i still don’t like boats. too cramped. way too cramped. mulder finds the big yellow scuba suit. and some sort of inky substance on the helmet… while scary music plays. 

scully is looking at a map that says “zeus faber” and i have some ideas on what that means but they could be way off... like deus pater? the vedic god? same roots at zeus?

(insert shane and ryans's "i've connected the two dots" "you didn't connect shit" here because really i was onto nothing)

mulder is searching for the VCR to watch the dive video. oooo he finds it!

and scully takes one look at the mysterious object and announces that it is “a north american p-51 mustang” and i feel my heart skip a few beats. 

WELL SO DID MULDER’S??? because he announces to the class that he just got very turned on. BAD! BAD! SPRAYING YOU WITH WATER like a NAUGHTY CAT!! not in front of this random guy!! we say such things in PRIVATE and not to the besties!

(actually i'm so lying because that does sound like something i would say to a bestie... but NOT in front of some random guy. i have couth. i only flirt with the girls when no one else is around. and i was sensing no irony from him, which is slipped into my flirting with friends. we differ, mulder and i)

um. brushing past that.

she used to watch her dad and brothers build model ww2 planes as a kid :,) and that’s why she can recite these facts. it’s just a fighter, wouldn’t have been carrying anything interesting. cool fact time with scully is my favorite time of day!

back to our french king gauthier. he’s searching for something. a woman hugs him and he doesn’t say a word. just looks at her all weird. she’s scared and runs away. but he GRABS her and his eyes go black!!! then she steps out and HER eyes go black!!!! what is going on? and is this thing spreading and also why. 

scully goes to see a friend of her father’s, named johansen. there are kids in the road. children, please do not play in front of cars, it’s dangerous. scully does not need a vehicular manslaughter charge at the moment due to your prancing about.

scully’s looking at the kids and remembering her sister and tearing up which is very sad but. she drives on.

mulder at gauthier’s house. no one is answering. careful; you know he will just walk into your house. and he does! he finds the scattered papers allllll over. pretty music is playing. he finds a letter talking about salvage and pockets it. then hears a noise??

and finds an inky gauthier on the ground. who says he doesn’t know what happened. he's freaked out because he doesn’t remember anything beyond the boat, and also his wife is gone. and he won’t answer any questions about the letter from the “salvage broker” (idk what that means but it sounds sus as hell)

OH! scully is at the house of her dad’s friend johansen, and she tells him how she used to live there!!! he doesn’t remember her, but also he is very old so this is understandable. he doesn’t seem to recall anything from her list of clues, but he says that the number on the plane isn’t from a p-51. so what’s the truth.

she goes to leave, and he says to say hi to her father, but she has to tell him he passed away NOOOOOO :(((( but before she leaves she talks about the games she used to play out in the lawn. and asks him to say hi to his son for her. will there be a childhood friendship reunion...?

gauthier’s wife is looking for stuff. in the office of the salvage broker! so she must work with her husband on her shady business deals... she hides things before mulder comes in. 

BUT NO!!! she has a gun under her desk, and it’s aimed at him!! nothing happens though, she just takes his business card. and we learn her name is geraldine.

mulder is sitting outside the salvage broker’s office. lurking about. and all of a sudden a bunch of cars come rolling up!! talking loudly in french and running in!! he watches. geraldine leaves in a hurry, and he goes to tail her. 

WHAT IS SHE HIDING!

scully’s trying to leave, but the soldiers that guard the entrance tell her she is being detained!!! huh? on what charges?

her dad’s friend johansen gets in the car. he says that his son was killed in the gulf war. and that “we bury our dead alive... they talk to us, they haunt us, they beg us for meaning. conscience, it’s just the voices of the dead, trying to save us from our own damnation" <- woah, banger line, unexpectedly profound from this old man. but, noooo sad man who has endured so much loss... :( banger line but at what cost?

he knows something about that plane that sunk. because he was sent to find it! in a sub called the zeus faber!

geraldine is in the airport. where is she going. hong kong?

anyway, scully calls mulder and shares her findings: she says that plane they're on a quest to find had been carrying an atomic bomb, but it never reached its target. and it doesn’t make sense fully to him or her really- like, why would the guy who was closest to the bomb be the only one who doesn't have radiation burns? but mulder has to go to hong kong sooooo. um. okay. 

back in D.C., skinner is waiting at a restaurant whilst some angry looking men approach him. they’re asking about people “obeying his orders”

OH! they’re threatening him to make scully’s sister’s case inactive. because those above him have worked hard to reach that decision. covering up for the antics of cig man and the worsties, i see... nasty nasty nasty!

so scully’s talking to johansen again, who is saying that his squadron back in the day also had burns, and almost everyone had died except for him. they found the sunken squadron and then the burns started. but despite most people in the sub being in the process of dying, the captain wouldn’t leave the area to surface and get help!

the men started fighting, realizing they were going to die, and a gunshot made the japanese aware of their presence. so johansen went against the captain’s orders and took them to the surface. he locked the burned men in with the captain, knowing their fate.

but the captain had the inky eyes!!!! so i guess that is why he didn't want to surface...?

only 7 on that boat of 144 lived, and johansen struggles with the guilt from that. and no one ever explained what actually happened. damn, that's a heavy burden to bear.

hong kong time. eating some tasty looking food. geraldine is here. mulder sits next to her and point blank accuses her of selling government secrets. he's always been a bit bold.

he says he’s gonna arrest her, and she says um you can’t have guns here. so he handcuffs her TO HIMSELF. WILD MOVE! and leads them to an office in the back. for their salvage broker dealership!!!

KRYCEK IS HERE???? MY BELOATHED…

mulder tells him to shoot himself in the head like he shot his father. DAMN! please do not pull any punches with this freak

someone shoots geraldine, who gets shoved behind a door still handcuffed to mulder, and then krycek leaves out a window.

(i think i’ve been spelling his name wrong in the past but hear me out: he’s lucky i call him anything beyond “the rat bastard”)

mulder is still handcuffed to the now shot woman while a hit squad approaches. but he is simply too fast for these fools!!! he freed himself and jumped out the window. 

okay... what. i looked down to type that, and geraldine somehow came back. unharmed. flashed a bright white light. and left all of the evil frenchmen who were chasing mulder with burns. huh.

that escalated.

back to skinner. who wants his coffee. and a blue plate. which refers to a special, and not an actual color of plate. the more you know! the waitress takes his order.

but someone is harassing her about the payphone not working! he gets up to intervene. a gentleman.

AND THIS DUDE SHOOTS HIM???

HELLO????? RIGHT IN THE GUT????

scully back at her place. as soon as she walks in the phone rings. NO!! she learns skinner was shot and she’s on her way to the hospital.

back to hong kong. krycek is trying to get out through the airport. but mulder catches him at a payphone and starts beating the hell out of him. MULDER TAKES A GUN OUT and is about TO SHOOT HIM IN THE STOMACH and he says “this is for my father” but then krycek is like “i didn’t do it” bitch boy i SAW you there. in his shower. 

he claims that if mulder lets him go, he’ll give him a tape with government secrets that he had been selling. mulder says absolutely not, go get yourself cleaned up and bring me there youself, you have three minutes or i’ll come in and kill you. WHEW! he is not messing around. he has been sentenced to the bathroom to wipe his own blood off of his face.

but who rolls up…. but geraldine!!!! who walks into the men’s room. and chokes him. AND KRYCEK'S EYES GO ALL INKY!!!

TO BE CONTINUED??? WHAT!!!!

why does this keep happening!!! the cliffhangers of it all!!!

okay, i’m not REALLY complaining, because the multipart episodes are usually the best ones, and they address the overall plot. but you THINK you’re going in for a nice relaxing evening and bam, krycek comes back, and now he’s got an alien infection. and maybe he too can glow and leave people with burns, and is being led right back to the place where our beloved agents call home. the power of a nuke, stored in one evil rat guy! what could go wrong???!?!?!? /s

and skinner was shot in the stomach! by a guy that seems to have no connection to all of this. but i doubt it.

(screams for about 45 seconds straight)

okay. SO. we got a lot here. we got french people, possession, angry mulder, dead fathers, nuclear aliens, krycek back, geraldine the undying, the sale of government secrets, hong kong, and scully angst. 

now, i am naturally drawn to the scully angst. to the memories of her childhood, to her grappling with the loss of her sister, how something is holding them up from the investigation, and whatever it is that wants to keep her from knowing the truth is willing to kill skinner about it. and somehow krycek is connected, because we SAW him do the killing, but we never learned WHY he did that whole betrayal thing beyond it just seems like something he does.

and krycek. i guess i figured he would come back at some point, but man, i feel even more revulsion at his current state now that he has ditched his pretty boy aesthetic for something that is more akin to a guy who started smoking cigarettes and listening to vinyls to make women think he's suffering deeply in an artistic fashion, but really he's just shallow, has no thoughts of his own, and is speedrunning cancer.

what the hell was he doing in hong kong? how is he getting access to these government secrets if he went AWOL?

ugh. i hate him. love to see an angry mulder, though.

skinner... in the past, we have had our disagreements. and though i have called you a bitch before, you have proved yourself, and your care for the agents. this is NOT what i wanted to see happen to you, and i am worried for your future, and the effects another loss will have on scully. so please consider recovering quickly for the sake of everyone else. the FBI will fall to the ranks of such freaks as cig man and his greasy pet rat-snake hybrid krycek if you don't stand guard.

man. i have a lot of thoughts. unfortunately though, i just went back and checked all my notes for typos that i'm sure i failed to catch entirely, and now i'm stuck on mulder's announcement that he was turned on again. we really do have to ask ourselves: why is he that way? i shudder at the thought. spraying him with more water.

would you say that to your male colleagues, mulder? please let me know. because i actually kind of think you would. which doesn't really make you understand the whole concept of gender-based workplace harassment that thought exercise usually provokes.

there is a TIME and a PLACE for hitting on the homies. do that shit off the clock. freak!!!

anyway. let scully have peace. let her not worry about more early deaths related to conspiracies. let her do more dog bathing and ice cream eating and internet research on various animal species. and let her tell us about planes <3 i hope everything gets solved and everyone is happy and mulder and scully and skinner eat ice cream sundaes together in the next episode <3

[flickrrposts]

Black Hat is going to be Hypnotized by Heroes - Theory

Why?: It'd be cool.

Okay, seriously, this could be nothing more than fanfic potential, but in case there's some small chance that I'm right about this, here are a few points on where I'm coming from.

#1 - Tension

This show has reaffirmed time and time again, in the show, comics, livestreams, interviews, that Black Hat is:

A, Powerful,

and B, Terrifying.

I don't think I need to go through evidence of that being the case, if you're familiar with the show at all, you know this.

He's been side-lined throughout the entire show, and it would not only be cathartic to finally have him show off his powers, but it would also make him feel like a real threat in the story if he's positioned against Flug, Dem, and 505.

The tension would be raised to infinity. The show would practically feel like a horror movie because of how near-impossible it would be to defeat him.

#2 - Goldheart's Plan

According to Miss Heed at the end of s1e6, Goldheart wants to "end all villainy."

Black Hat controls all villainy.

P.E.A.C.E. has already caught on to how deep Black Hat's rabbit hole goes, via the agents creating the Podemos Bailar website. (omg, with Magician being one of the agents, then Black Hat's hat is the "rabbit hole", it's like a pun, you get it? You get that-)

Before the third Arenque Noticias video, Melissa Lead states, "If you ask my objective opinion, I'd say a controlled villain is better than a villain set loose."

As observed by @paper-gold-theories, characters with gold accessories tend to be associated with Goldheart or the Golden Rule in some way (Miss Heed, Porccini, the reporter in s1e4).

Melissa wears a golden necklace and ring, so it's very likely that her opinions either align with the Golden Rule, or Goldheart himself.

So if Goldheart's objective is to brainwash all villainy, then who better to target than the man at the top? (the man in the top-hat, haha, I'm on a roll)

#3 - Black Hat's Weaknesses

Alan has hinted that Black Hat is not invincible, and has actually described him as "lazy".

So the concept of Black Hat slipping up is not an impossibility for the show to explore.

#4 - Details

This is getting into TJLC levels of analysis, but I've noticed a couple things that could somehow be foreshadowing this:

In this poster:

Villains have a red outline, and heroes have blue:

(The fact that Flug and 505 have blue is an analysis for a whole other day)

But Black Hat has a gold-ish color on both sides:

This could be a stretch, but,,

In 2021, promo art was released for the show:

And Black Hat's monocle looks suspiciously pink.

Sure this could just be red shading that accidentally looks pink, but it isn't that hard to edit if the colors came out wrong, I did it just now:

The difference is night and day:

I don't think Black Hat has ever been associated with pink before outside of Demencia's fantasies. It would have been easy to choose any other colors too, like green, yellow, orange, or even blue.

The Black Hat being lit with pink for the first time is a coincidence in the very same promo that ALSO includes Miss Heed.

And as is obvious, ALL of the people Heed hypnotizes have glowing-pink eyes:

Even if this isn't foreshadowing to my specific fan-theory, I find a Black Hat - Heed connection extremely suspicious.

It's very well that in this scene, Flug DID perfect Heed's formula.

The heroes have the perfect hypnotizing formula. Or at least they still have some version now.

They have the means.

So TL;DR, Flug perfected Heed's hypnotizing formula, and so P.E.A.C.E./The Golden Rule/Goldheart is going to use it to control Black Hat when his guard's down.

(or somethin like that, idk)

[watercolorsam-arts]

Why the Minecraft Movie looks so bad

Okay, let’s see if I can make this work

Hi, I’m Watercolor, currently a student learning animation and visual effects. I’ve got some more technical explanations for why exactly the trailer looks god awful

I’m gonna do my best to explain this in simple terms, but if I don’t explain something very good, let me know and I’ll explain more. Alright, this is gonna be a long post

Starting off with the obsession with backlighting. See how it doesn’t really match the environmental lighting? That’s one of the major things that makes it look so weird to a lot of people. It could have been done to better distinguish the actors from the background, but it does that a little too well and makes them look way too out of place. The environment has a very nice constant (most likely singular) light source, which is most likely an HDRI.

An HDRI (or high dynamic range image) informs the animation software on how the scene should be lit, and is often a weird panoramic image of whatever physical area you want to replicate.

In a reverse case, adding a CG character into a real set, you could take an HDRI of the physical set, and use it to apply similar lighting. Adjustment will most likely have to be hand adjusted by the lighting team (and tbh they add a lot of extra lights in anyway. It just needs to look right) but it’s a fantastic starting point for the compositing and lighting teams.

However, the McM’s live set has way different lights set up then what is seen in the environment.

Here, for example, the live set is most likely being lit by standard 3 point lighting, which are not only the wrong color (the lighting on the environment is much more yellow) but also washes out any shadows that would help define the actors. If this movie wasn’t obsessed with backlighting, you could fix that by lighting the actors and environment from the front, but because the sun is in the back, they have to make the front of the actors unnaturally brighter to see them more properly. I have a slight idea on why the kid in red looks especially “photoshopped” in, and it’s mostly because his hoodie doesn’t have a similar reflectiveness to everyone else’s outfit, and his hair is a more neutral color, causing the highlight to be even more washed out. Also, while we’re here, the cube is a physical prop, but it was not lit up during filming, and all the light output was tossed on after. And it’s really inconsistent and honestly, lazy. For the most part they just hit it with a blue blur effect in post, it doesn’t actually cast any light.

Another major issue is the color difference between the actors and the environment. The color balancing on the actors is particularly garbage, they’re somehow desaturated while also being too saturated, I don’t know how they managed that. But the technical issue on why it looks odd, is because the physical camera cannot physically pick up the same vibrancy as the “camera” in the CG world. You might have seen an example of this when trying to take a photo with your phone, especially of a very colorful event like the sunset. It’s also why “ugly sonic” looked particularly out of place, he was 10x more saturated than anything else around him.

Having the actors on a very low effort green screen stage also completely ruins any chance of getting the proper ambient light or ambient occlusion.

Ambient occlusion is basically the bounce light from other objects in your scene, gamers might know this as a form of ray tracing (ray tracing is live changes in ambient occlusion, games without ray tracing bake in ambient occlusion to get a similar result)

When everything is CG, (again art style aside) looks pretty darn good actually!

I attempted some edits to see if anything could make it look better (left is original, right is mine), and I don’t think proper lighting or anything could actually fix what this movie has wrong with it. They should have made the whole thing animated, I don’t think any amount of bullying would fix this, the studio basically has to scrap the actors, and make new CG characters from scratch in the same style as the rest of the world.

All of this is not the fault f the animators, or any of the vfx team, they did their absolute best with what they had, this is 100% the fault of the higher ups on this project. I have no idea how this good this far into production without ANYONE saying that it was a bad idea (Either that, or a lot of people got fired, which is unfortunately a likely possibility)

[buckysgrace]

Twenty One

Previous Chapter

Kim opened her compact mirror again, checking her lip gloss as she waited for Billy to come back out. He had insisted he needed to make a quick stop before they arrived, and she didn’t need to ask what for when he had offhandedly mentioned Eddie Munson. She knew right then what he was getting, and she didn’t question it any further, still hoping that he still meant that this get together wouldn’t be too long.

She figured he was trying to make her feel better in the ways that he comforted himself: Sex, drugs and drinking. She was less than thrilled with it but was touched that he was at least putting in some effort so she had decided to go along with it. 

She felt more comfortable in this dress than the one she wore to Tommy’s party, although it did show a bit more of her cleavage. It wasn’t as form fitting or as short. It was a pretty yellow with wide puffed shoulders that reached just about her knees, a small slit that ran up the left of her leg. It had a small sweetheart neckline that was pulled together with strings that allowed her to adjust how revealing she wanted it to be. Currently, she had it stitched tightly together. She still wasn’t sure how he had managed to convince her and she was regretting it every second that they waited.

Part of her still wondered if Steve would show up. After all, from what Billy had said that it would mostly be the previous basketball team and the current one. She wasn’t actively trying to impress him, still bitter over his comments towards Addi, but she wouldn’t deny herself the chance to talk to him either. Well, as long as Billy wasn’t nearby. She didn’t want another scene.

She watched as Billy crossed the overgrown yard, a joint already lit between his fingers as he made his way to his car. She tried not to watch disapprovingly but she knew it was written all over her face as he slid into the seat.

“What?” The smell and smoke from his joint became thick as it engulfed them in the car. She wasn’t sure if she appreciated the idea of him driving while high. She bit her bottom lip and shook her head, already trying not to annoy him by being too overbearing. He glanced at her, his blue eyes observing her as she thought of something else to say rather than to criticize him. She for sure wouldn't be driving for him. 

“I didn’t know you bought from Eddie.” She looked back to the trailer, wondering if Addi was here. She partially doubted it, knowing her parents were even more strict than Kim’s. Billy laughed as he pulled out and set back off on the road. She really wasn't sure where Lovers Lake was if she was being honest. She had heard of what people had done there, but never actually heard where the location was. She leaned back in her chair, watching the trees drift by in the darkness. 

It was hard, trying not to feel anxious. She had made Billy promise her that he wouldn’t wander off without her. She still wasn’t thrilled about being alone with all of his friends that she had nothing in common with. She knew that they valued their popularity more than anything. She was sure that most of their relationships were superficial, each one working to overthrow the other so they may have the chance to become the next King or Queen of Hawkins High. She reminded herself that Billy had been the same way, even Steve had been concerned about popularity for a time. She still liked them; it didn't mean that she would be unable to make friends.

“The freak? I mean he’s the only one that usually sells no matter the time.” Kim nodded, unsure how she felt about Billy referring to Eddie like that. She clasped her hands together and sat there quietly, looking out into the dark. She looked up to the moon, noticing how brightly it was shining tonight. She glanced at the time on his dashboard, noticing how it was already 10:30. Usually, she'd be getting ready for bed at the moment if she wasn't already asleep. She was going to be up a lot later than what she wanted to be, but Billy insisted it was fine and that she had been the one who wanted to go to these situations. Which led her to believe that this would be a private party and not a small get together. 

“How long will we be there?” She didn’t want to be annoying, but she still hoped that this would go by quickly. Billy chuckled, as he rested a large hand resting against her bare thigh. She gulped feeling her skin growing warm where he was touching and electricity building underneath his hand. She still thought that they'd be able to do more fun things on their own, but she hadn't been brave enough to voice that to him. 

“Not too long, just enough to have some fun. We could always sneak off to do other stuff.” She looked at him surprised and shook her head nervously, watching as the smirk grew on his face. She couldn’t imagine the horrified faces of his friends if they saw him with his cock inside his sister. Then again, she wondered if maybe they were similar to Billy and interested in that. She got shivers at the thought and tried to clear her head.

“You wish, Hargrove.” She teased her hand twitching as she had the urge to rest her hand on top of his fingers. She wondered how different they would be if they weren’t related, how it would be to go meet his friends if they were something else. She tried to shake those thoughts away, knowing how wrong they were as well. They wouldn't ever be anything serious as she reminded herself of their predicament. 

“I mean,” He smirked as he parked on grass, away from the dirt path. She frowned as she looked around, wondering how they’d be able to see in the dark, “I do.” He chuckled as he stepped out, still smoking as he crossed in front of the car and pulled her door open. She stepped out, noticing the shadow of flames cross his face and loud music ringing nearby. Great, not only would she be with a bunch of people that she didn’t know but they were more than likely late. She didn’t like feeling like everyone would be watching them.

“You’re ridiculous.” She mumbled, partially in truth as he backed her into his car. She felt her breath catch in her chest, watching as his large hand cupped the side of her waist. She breathed in the smell of him, wishing it would linger on her skin. She looked at how his eyes were squinted and bloodshot from the marijuana he had been smoking. She thought he looked silly at the moment and wondered if she looked similar when she had taken those brownies. 

“Yeah, but you really like my cock.” He whispered into her ear, a smirk playing on his lips as he squeezed her side. She felt her face growing warm as he gave her bottom a small smack. She yelped, taking a step back while pressing a hand against his exposed chest. She could feel her heart thumping as she glanced around, hoping there weren't any lingering eyes in the dark.

“Not here,” She wanted nothing more than to soak up against him, but she knew better, “Someone might see us.” Billy looked unfazed as he nodded, blowing smoke out towards her. She wrinkled her nose as the nasty smell that lingered behind. He didn't seem too bothered if anyone saw them together or not and that scared her. She was too fearful to risk doing anything in public with him. 

“You act like I should care. Come on.” She was taken aback by his brashness, knowing that he should definitely care if someone found out. She opened her mouth, then quickly shut it as he began to walk without her. She watched as he strutted forward, and she struggled to keep up with his long strides. She began to fiddle with her fingers, growing more nervous as she heard the voices growing louder. She was beginning to overthink everything, wondering if she had overdressed or underdressed.

“Do you go here a lot?” She questioned, really starting to grow nervous that she may step on a snake. She was terrified of them and did her best to look at the ground despite it being so dark. Billy tried to hand her the blunt as they walked closer, but she refused, wanting at least one of them to be sober. She wasn't sure they'd make the right decisions if they were both under the influence. 

“Sometimes.” He didn’t clarify if it was for a get together like this or for other reasons. She wasn’t sure if she really wanted to know either. His demeanor seemed to change as the party came into view, moving further away from her as she trailed behind. There was loud shouting and then some boys patting his back as he walked forward. She froze in her spot nervously, an awkward smile pressing onto her lips as she watched them, not sure what to do with herself. The grin on Billy's face looked much how she remembered him at school. Very cocky and full of himself. 

Her eyes scanned around the campfire noticing a few familiar faces as she realized that Billy’s definition of a small get together was a lot different than hers. She should’ve known better, after all, he had mentioned that it would mainly consist of the basketball team. She waved back at the girl from the diner yesterday who had been wrapped around Jason's arm, Kim still didn’t know her name. She noticed Tina and Heather and was thankful to see that Carol wasn’t around. She could see Jason and a few other boys that played with Billy that she didn’t know the names of. And Tommy.

“Hey,” His hand lightly brushed against her hips as people turned to stare at them. She wasn’t sure if her embarrassment was from all of the eyes or his skin touching her, “This is my-,“ He hesitated for a moment as he peered at her, looking like he wasn't sure how to introduce her, “This is Kim.” He said finally. She was thankful he didn't refer to her as his sister. She certainly wasn’t sure what she qualified as either as she gave a quick wave, trying to hide behind her hair as Billy scooted then forward. She stepped towards the warm campfire, wondering what she was supposed to do.

“Nice to see you again.” Tommy’s lips grew into a wide smile as he took another chug from his can. Kim felt another forced smile growing as she glanced at Billy’s irritated face. She wasn’t sure if she was allowed to speak to him or not. She didn’t want to ruin the deal between the two of them, and Billy had been quite clear on what he thought of Tommy interacting with her. She hadn't even mentioned that he had given her his number.  She'd rather not have his blood on her hands. 

“Don’t push it, Hagan.” There was nothing playful about his tone or his features and Kim found herself suddenly wondering how Tommy wasn’t terrified of him. She would be shaking if he looked at her that way. Her stomach tightened as she felt herself growing a bit excited from his reaction. She couldn’t explain it, but she liked feeling like he was jealous someone else was interested in her. She crossed her arms and pretended that her shy grin was towards Tommy. She still wasn't sure how she felt about Tommy, especially after how he had spoken to her in the diner yesterday. It just made her feel uncomfortable all over again.

She wasn’t sure where to go or what to do as Billy left her to go to the cooler, instantly cracking a can of beer open and pouring it into his mouth. She shuffled on her feet as she crossed her arms, watching him and not knowing what else to do. He had promised not to leave her behind yet there he was, leaving her behind.

“Hi,” The shorter, strawberry blonde-haired girl came up to her and wrapped her dainty arms around Kim’s. She was taken aback as she looked down at her, noticing how widely she was grinning. She had a pink bow in her hair that matched the dress she was wearing. She suddenly felt relieved that she wasn’t the only one to dress nice, “I’m Chrissy. We had Fictional Literature last semester; I don’t know if you remember.” Chrissy spoke cheerily as Kim felt her nerves eating at her. She nodded stiffly, not used to being approached so easily as she let the very tiny girl lead her away.

Kim spared another glance at Billy, who was pulling the drugs out of his pocket and showing them off, before turning to face Chrissy again. She tried not to imagine what else he had other than weed. She watched as she motioned widely to the other girls standing around. Kim only knew the ones from earlier. Heather even sent her a small smile. Tina took to ignoring her, looking very agitated that she was here. Kim hoped that Tina knew she felt the same way directed towards her. 

“I didn’t know you’d be here,” Tina smiled brightly, her voice too sweet as she looked over Kim’s outfit of choice. She suddenly wished she had stuck to something else, “How nice.” Kim faked a smile back, feeling the cold air settle between them. Chrissy faltered for a moment before she spoke up again. Kim really wasn't sure why the other girl hated her so much, but she did. Maybe Kim had done a better job at being a cockblock than she had thought. 

“Do you want anything to drink?” Kim tucked her hair behind her ear, looking at the smaller girl unsure. She wanted to go back to Billy’s side and hide behind him the rest of the night, even if that meant she looked like an annoying shadow. She sure as hell didn’t want to be stuck by Tina until whenever Billy had decided he had enough. Kim was beginning to believe that the short trip would be a lot longer with the way he was drinking. 

“Is there any water?” She didn’t have Addi around to give her some sense of comfort and found herself afraid to drink around people she didn’t know. Kim would’ve even been more comfortable if Steve had shown up with Robin. She was beginning to believe that it was a sign that they didn’t get together. Chrissy nodded eagerly and took her hand. Kim was thankful at least one person wanted to hold her hand.

“Yeah, right over here.” Chrissy tugged her away again and Kim could feel eyes lingering on them as they moved. She glanced over and noticed Tommy’s big brown eyes watching her. She suddenly felt nervous, hoping no one was paying too close attention to the way his eyes held onto her figure. She overheard something about a keg stand and she prayed that no one had brought that along. She knew Billy wouldn't be able to resist it and then she would really be screwed. His eyes met hers as she reached for a water bottle, and she pretended that she wasn't staring right back at him. 

"Who are those from? A boyfriend?" Chrissy motioned to the marks on her neck and Kim felt her skin growing hot as she shook her head quickly. She knew Billy would be wearing a smirk and all too proud of himself if he could overhear their conversation. Kim sat near Chrissy, feeling very awkward as they tried to make conversation. She watched as Tina and Heather stepped back into view, sitting near them. She hoped it wasn't enough for them to overhear as she suddenly felt insecure. 

“No, no boyfriends for me.” Kim felt her eyes drifting towards Billy, watching how hard he was laughing at something Tommy had said. Her eyes drifted towards his chest, watching how it glimmered in the firelight and she was unsure if it was from sweat or from what he had been drinking. His arm wrapped around the back of Tommy's shoulders as he leaned towards the boy and whispered something that made them both laugh again. She felt a pang of guilt in her stomach, wondering why a close friend of his had to be interested in her. She thought that he looked more relaxed than usual and figured the drugs and alcohol must've kicked into his system. She wasn't sure how he was able to stand with as much as he had been drinking. He was like a machine, downing one after the other. 

“Really?” Chrissy grinned at her, “I hear that someone is interested in you.” Kim felt her face flush, figuring she must be speaking of Tommy. She figured Chrissy must be assuming she had been looking at him. It had been in that direction, but it had nothing to do with the freckled boy. Kim was more interested in watching the flames lick off of Billy's exposed skin than anything else. Kim smiled sheepishly at the smaller girl.

"He's not interested," Tina spoke up quickly, making Chrissy and Kim both stare at her, "He's going to get back with Carol. They're just having a rough patch so you shouldn't waste your time." Kim felt her eyebrow raising, wondering why she thought it was any of her business to comment on their conversation. Still, Kim tugged on her hair as she was unsure how to respond. 

"Trust me, Tommy isn't worth it anyways," Heather looked towards her, giving her a knowing look, "He's more concerned about his own orgasm than making you come. Not to mention he expects head but won't give it back." Heather crossed her legs as she gave away the dirty details, looking very proud at how flushed Chrissy and Kim grew. Tina was staring at her stunned, like she couldn't believe she had just said that out loud.

"Heather, that's none of her business." Tina shot daggers towards Heather as she laughed. Kim still felt how as she bit back her grin. It definitely didn't sound as fun as the times she had been with Billy. She thought of how he'd told her that he loved the taste of her. She shifted awkwardly on the wood, trying not to linger in her dirty thoughts around so many people she didn't know.

"What? If she's interested, I just want to give her a fair warning. I wish I had known." Heather grumbled as she drank from her red cup. Tina rolled her eyes and shook her head, obviously not very pleased with the information her friend was giving away. Chrissy shifted awkwardly, digging her shoes into the dirt as she looked unsure of what to add to the conversation. Kim smiled as she rubbed her hand across her arm. She didn't know if this conversation qualified as making friends, but she could pretend that it was some sort of bonding. 

"Well thank you." Kim smiled and Heather sent her a big grin back. Kim felt her eyes drifting again, looking over her shoulder. She quickly snapped her eyes away again, as she met brown eyes instead of blue ones. She cursed herself for needing a second look as she heard footsteps approaching them. Chrissy, who still looked flustered from Heather's words. Kim quickly tried to think of something to say to start a conversation again but fell short as she heard Tommy's warm voice over her shoulder.

“Do you want one?” Tommy held her out a can, a small grin planted on his lips. She could hear Chrissy giggling and Heather's snort as she felt her face growing hot as they pretended as if they hadn't just been talking about him. Kim shook her head quickly, offering him a small smile in return, “Are you sure?” Tommy stepped up closer, still holding an extra can in his hands as he took a seat at the end of the log near her. She felt her mouth go dry as she uncapped her water bottle and took another drink from the bottle.

“Yeah, I don’t want anything right now. Thank you, though.” Kim smiled sweetly. She grew anxious as he sat down next to her, knowing he was playing a dangerous game. She didn’t believe that he wasn’t afraid of Billy. He must’ve never truly seen him mad if that was the truth. Yet, it sort of excited her as she imagined Billy rushing up towards them again and pulling them apart. 

“You haven’t called yet,” He laughed it off like it wasn’t a big deal, but she wondered if there was something more to it, “I just thought that you would.” She felt guilty suddenly. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings, but she knew she would never call him. She could blame it on her mom and Neil lingering to the phones and wanting to know exactly who they were talking to and about what subjects. However, she knew that wasn't true. She simply didn't see herself being with him and didn't want to lead him on in that way. 

“Sorry, something came up yesterday.” She admitted, fully telling the truth as she thought of her father again. She had sent the money out this morning to him, hoping she could rid all of the feelings from the situation with the money headed his way. She thought about calling him and telling him, but eventually decided against it. He'd call and talk to her when he was ready to do so. She watched as his brown eyes stared into her hazel ones, searching for meaning behind them.

“Was it Billy?” She was surprised by his question, shaking her head no as soon as she realized that he was beginning to say his name. She didn’t want to drag his name through the mud or try and put any blame towards him. She wondered how you could go to whispering and laughing with someone to trying to search for dirty laundry behind their backs. She knew then that she was smart in not trusting him.

“No, no it had nothing to do with him. Why?” She tried to sound casual, like she wasn't irritated at him for suggesting Billy was the root of her problems. He looked a bit taken aback like he hadn't expected that response from her. She wondered if this was something she should tell Billy or just let it slide. 

“I don’t know,” He glanced over at Chrissy awkwardly, “Sometimes he can just be a hothead.” Tommy admitted and Kim felt herself frowning. She felt like he had no right to judge him and doubted that he actually knew Billy that well. She did know he could be a hothead, but there was a lot more to that. She watched Chrissy shift awkwardly next to her and pretend to be looking back at the guys as if she was interested in what they were doing. 

“He’s a good guy.” She replied shortly, not quite meaning to snap at him so harshly. She bit down on her lip hard, trying to swallow her feelings again as Tommy stared at her curiously. The strong smell of alcohol drew her away from him as Billy appeared in front of her, liquid coating down his lips and chin. Her eyes lingered as the alcohol dripped from his bottom lip, down his chin and to his exposed chest. She hated to admit how good he looked at the moment, even if he was completely hammered at the moment. 

His glazed eyes found hers, his wide grin fading when he realized who she was sitting by. She tried to act nonchalant as Tommy quickly stood, taking the beers with him. She tried not to laugh, realizing he was more afraid of Billy than he would admit. Something in his gaze cut straight into her. She tried not to fiddle under his very intense gaze, but she found it really hard. She felt herself shying away as she turned back towards Chrissy, pulling her hair so that it would hide the side of her face that was directing towards him. She wasn’t sure if he wanted her to be impressed at the moment or not.

"You wanna dance?" Billy slurred out and for a split second she feared that he was asking her. She felt her horror turn to pure jealousy as he lazily turned his head and looked towards the two brunette girls sitting across from them. Kim was sure the music was still blaring but all she could hear was the tantrum her heart was throwing at the moment. She felt her eyes narrowing when Tina took a hold of his hands and looked too enthused. She felt a small relief when Heather stood as well and realized that Billy couldn't disappear with Tina. 

“Read any good books lately?” She turned to look at Chrissy as she rested her chin over her crossed legs. Kim was dying for any type of conversation that would get her out of her thoughts about Billy. She knew it wasn't fair for her to be this upset. Billy meant nothing to her. Yet, she couldn't help but glance over ever few seconds to watch the way he held onto both girls. She was beginning to grow more worried by the way he was swaying and moving unbalanced. 

“Mhm, no not really. I do like Stephen King books though,” Chrissy spoke up eagerly, looking like she was just as uninterested as Kim was, “Do you like him?” Kim tucked her hair behind her ear again, feeling the fire lick at her cheek as she tried to ignore the giggling that was coming from nearby. She was afraid to look again, too worried she would lose her patience and whisk Billy away. 

“He’s a bit too scary for me,” She laughed as she attempted to brush her feelings away again, “I feel like I have too many nightmares after consuming that sorta media.” She explained as best as she could, urging to pin her hands to her sides as she spoke dramatically with them. She was definitely overthinking now as she noticed her fidgeting growing worse. The giggling became louder as Heather stepped around them, heading towards her purse and reaching for something inside. 

“She’s a coward,” Kim gulped hard, lifting her head towards the night sky as Billy stood behind her, the light from the stars dancing off of his blue eyes. He looked at her with wide pupils, a lazy smirk caressing his nice features, “She needs someone to hold her hand when we watch scary movies.” She thought about retorting that they had only ever watched one scary movie together but kept quiet. His lips parted slowly as he waited for her remark, blowing his thick smoke down towards her. 

“You’re the worst brother.” She huffed out instead, watching as his blue eyes locked onto hers when she spit the name out. She could tell it bothered her by the way he took a rather large hit off of his blunt. She wondered how much he had smoked already. She was beginning to believe that they would be walking back to the house. She hoped she could remember the directions well enough, at this point she would be dragging him back.

“Stepbrother,” He told her, eyes hardening a bit as he peered down on her smaller frame, “There’s a difference.”

////////

Kim was sure that hours had passed by the time she wandered away from the log, her legs aching from sitting so long. Chrissy had been nice to talk to and even better to just sit around and mope to while the other teens danced and drank around them. Billy had sauntered off not long ago, following Tommy as he promised he had to show him something. Kim was grown suspicious, even more so when Tina disappeared after him minutes later. She didn't like the idea of Billy being alone with Tina.

She wasn't jealous, she kept trying to convince herself.

She stepped over twigs and pushed tree limbs out of the way as she walked blindly through the wooded area. She was grumbling under her breath, annoyed as she wondered how far he could’ve made it with so many drinks in his system. He had been stumbling quite a bit the last time she seen him and didn't figure he could make it out here without falling down on his face. She stepped into a small clearing, noticing Jason and a taller brunette boy muttering to each other. She took a deep breath, beginning to turn around as she stepped on an obnoxiously loud fallen branch and grabbed their attention.

“Hey, you’re Billy’s sister, right?” Jason’s loud voice rang out, making her freeze in her steps. Kim mentally cursed at herself as she turned again, smiling stiffly so she wouldn't be rude. The brunette boy shoved something into his pocket, staring at her like she had caught them red-handed. She had no interest in what they were doing or sharing that with anyone else. She just wanted to find Billy and get out of here.

“Not really,” She resisted the urge to tug on her hair as they stared her down, “My name is Kim, though.” She introduced herself formally, awkwardly waving at them. They looked at each other and laughed before facing her again. She felt her hands growing clammy and a sinking feeling growing inside of her stomach. She didn't like the way they were interacting around her. She glanced over her shoulder, wondering if anyone else would be walking up this way. 

“What are you doing out here all alone?” Jason’s voice was gruff as they stepped towards her. She stared at their shoes, growing nervous as they approached her. She shuffled back a bit until a tree branch poked at her back, keeping her feet planted still. 

“I thought-” Her voice wandered off as the two boys stared at her with newly found interest, “that Billy was nearby.” She crossed her arms, hiding her chest as the wind swooped her dress around her thighs. She cursed her outfit choice and wished she had shown up in jeans instead. Jason’s face cracked into a grin as he looked up from her milky thighs to her burning face. She was curious if Chrissy knew that he looked at other girls like this. 

“I heard him say something about leaving with Tina,” The brunette boy next to Jason grinned, “We can give you a ride home. Make sure you get there safely.” Her heart thumped when he said that, feeling as something other than kindness was in his words. She considered it for a moment, but then knew that Billy would flip out if she left with two guys she didn’t know. Not to mention what Neil would say if he found out about it. Kim also knew that she would ever be able to leave with them without being suspicious. She gulped hard, shaking her head no. Something about their reaction made her feel like she needed to put as much distance between her and them as possible. 

“Thank you,” She was still too afraid to sound rude, “but Billy wouldn’t leave without me. I’m gonna go look for him over there.” She began to turn when Jason grabbed a hold of her wrist, flashing his pearly whites at her. Her heart sped up again, but not in a nice way. No, this was in a way that shot terror throughout her body and let her know that she needed to get herself out of this situation quickly. She tried to wiggle her hand free, but he wasn't budging. The same grin planted on his face like he was amused that she was trying to get away from him. 

“Come on, we don’t bite. You don’t want to cockblock him, do you? You’re not that dumb, you know what they’ll be doing.” Kim thought of Chrissy and wondered how someone so nice could be with someone like this. She tried to force a lump down in her throat, but it wouldn’t go. She searched for a sign of Billy but all she could hear was the loud music they had blaring nearby. She thought about screaming but then wondered if anyone would hear her, or if they would even believe her.

“I know,” Her voice was wobbly as Jason’s friend stepped closer to her, breathing in her scent as she stared at them with widened eyes. They wouldn’t do this, not if they were friends with Billy, “but he has to take me home or our parents will flip.” She laughed nervously, her voice much higher than normal as the urge to push at them and run became higher. She began to plant her feet in the ground, waiting for his grip to loosen on her. It seemed to only grow tighter.

Jason smiled. The light from the campfire began to flicker against his face as she stared at him, too afraid to look away, “That’s the thing though, we’ll take care of you. We’ll drop you off and make sure you’re alright. I promise.” She didn’t think his promise meant much as she began to jerk her hand back to her chest, hoping he’d let go of her. He didn’t, his grip remained the same as his friend reached for the slit in her dress and she felt the panic rising in her chest. She felt her blood turning to ice and her body freezing as her dress went higher over her panty line. She tried to jerk free, pushing all of her weight into her movements but Jason simply laughed as his friend lifted her dress even higher.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Tommy’s voice broke over the sound of the music, distracting the other two as Kim hastily pulled away, her dress falling back over her exposed thighs. She walked backwards, stepping over limbs and almost tripping over a rock. She couldn’t break her gaze from them, however, too afraid that they would come back to her. She had a hard lump in the back of her throat that she was unable to swallow and blinked back tears. She wasn’t sure if Tommy was much of a comfort either, as Billy’s warnings suddenly rushed through her mind. Yet, his expression was concerned as he looked for her and reached a freckled hand out. She held her hands close to her chest, too afraid to fall into another trap. He watched her momentarily before shifting back to his friends. 

“We were just messing around, man. Nothing happened.” Jason laughed and so did the other boy. Kim just stared, in disbelief over how casual they were acting. It was like they weren’t trying to do something to her. She swallowed hard as Tommy turned back to her. She waited for him to criticize them, yell at them and tell them to leave. None of that came, he just motioned back to the campfire.

“Billy’s a mess. You better come get him,” She stared at him agape for a moment. She knew that if Billy had been the one to find her in this position that the other two would be dead. She glared back at the two boys, who were still laughing as their eyes lingered on her. She huffed and turned away, feeling the fear still twisting in her stomach. She didn’t like having her back to them, but she felt like she had no choice at the moment, “Sorry about them. They just like to mess around, sometimes it goes too far.” Tommy shoved his hands in his pockets as he walked. She was furious suddenly.

“I don’t think they were messing around.” She responded coolly as they stepped through the brush. She wanted to put as much distance between them and her as possible. She pushed past Tommy, heading straight to the staggering boy who was drinking another can of beer. She could hear her name coming from Tommy’s lips, but she ignored him, completely irritated with how this night had gone. She winced, smelling Billy long before she reached him. Her heart was still pounding in her chest, and she kept brushing her dress back down over her thighs, making sure nothing was exposed. 

“Hi,” Billy’s words were slurred as he pushed off of Tina, barely able to stand on both feet before he rested all of his weight against Kim’s shoulders. She groaned, not realizing how heavy he was, “Where you been?” His words were rushed and sluggish and his eyes could barely focus on her face before he was leaning against her head and laughing. She scowled, knowing that the night had gone just how she pictured it would be. She wasn't sure why he had thought she would enjoy this, but she definitely hadn't. 

His shirt was almost completely unbuttoned except for the last two, his torso was glistening wet with what she assumed to be alcohol by the smell. She exhaled through her mouth, trying to remember her patience as Tina scowled at her. They must've been having a good time without her by the way Tina's expression soured as she watched the two of them. She felt overwhelmed with everything that was happening all at once. She wanted out of here.

“Looking for you,” She grumbled as she tried to get him to balance on his feet without her help. He stood straight for a second before almost plopping backwards onto the hard ground. She grabbed his hands hastily, wrapping him around her again as she sighed, “Where are your keys?” Billy looked at her cheekily. She glanced back at Tina, hoping she didn't suspect anything by the way he was looking at her.

“Pocket, dunno,” He shrugged as he reached for Tina’s cup. She was watching him amused, completely ignoring Kim’s presence until she reached forward and pushed his hand back down. He rolled his head towards her dramatically, “Mean.” She was going to be a lot meaner if she didn’t get out of here. She didn’t like the fact that Jason and his friend were looming closer into sight and Billy was completely out of it. There was no way he’d be able to take the two guys in this condition. She huffed, reaching into his front pocket and digging around. She switched pockets until she eventually found it, ignoring the smirk on his face. She hoped no one else was watching too closely at his expressions. She was beginning to grow more anxious as she worried, he was going to give them away. 

“He can come back with me,” Tina spoke up quickly. Kim’s head snapped up so hard from looking at the keys that she bumped into Billy’s chin. He groaned, cursing as his hand flew up to rub at it. She didn’t even care at the moment, “That way you don’t have to worry about taking care of him, right Billy?” Kim felt her eyes narrow as she listened to the other girl talk. She didn't care about Billy's opinion at the moment. He was obviously too far gone as he wasn't even paying attention and just continued to whine in her ear as he rubbed his chin. 

“He’s drunk.” Tina shrugged her shoulders, giggling into her cup and Kim clenched her fingers to keep from knocking the cup in her face. Billy’s blonde curls were tickling the side of her face, sticking against her lip gloss as he wobbled against her. It reminded her of when she was young, and her father had forgotten her and Max at the beach while Susan was working. Kim thought of how hard it had been to drag around the screaming toddler who could barely walk. Billy seemed a bit similar at the moment.

“I know the perfect remedy for that.” Tina spoke again, making sure that Kim had heard her. Kim wrapped her arm around Billy’s waist, keeping his arm over her shoulders as she supported the two of them while she walked. She was partially stunned for a moment, not able to believe that the other girl had suggested that at all. Kim sneered at Tina, towering over her. This was the first time she hadn't felt insecure about towering over someone. She wasn't sure which incident her bubbling rage was forming from at the moment, but she didn't care at the moment. She wanted to get her point across.

“Fuck you.” She hissed out, stumbling as Billy laughed into her shoulder. She fixed her grip on Billy as Tina stared at her shocked. For the first time, she didn’t care what she said as she dragged the older boy away. Her heart was racing again as she tried to calm her rage. She hadn't felt this angry before. 

“You said fuck you,” He was laughing too loud in her ear as she tried to navigate them through the grassy field in the dark. She knew it would only take one wrong step for him to be on the ground and unable to move, “I know what you are.” She could see him grinning from the corner of her eye as she sighed, patting the back of his thighs so he could step over the giant hole in the ground. He did so clumsily, his grip on her tightening as he almost went down. She felt her eyes widening and wondered if this is how he felt at the skating rink when she kept falling. 

“What?” She grumbled. She felt as if their positions were switched, like she was the grumpy one and he was just giddy to be around her. She wasn’t sure how she liked it. She did like the way she had told Tina off and hoped she would get the hint to leave him alone. That would make her really happy. 

“Jealous.” He bopped her nose as she struggled to unlock his car. She gaped at him, looking at how pleased and happy he was with his answer. She shook her head as she pulled the passenger door open. She had definitely been jealous of Billy and Tina earlier, but her comment had nothing to do with that. 

“I am not jealous. She was trying to- oh, just get in.”  She started but then quickly got too annoyed. There was no use in explaining when she knew he wouldn’t understand enough right now to remember in the morning. He resisted as she tried to shuffle him in. She frowned at him, not liking the way that he was resisting her movements. 

“I drive.” He moved his head awkwardly as he stumbled against the car, almost falling in as his shoulders hit against the top of it. She felt her patience thinning as she pushed a hand on top of his head and pushed him in the car. She made sure he was in, even if he was sideways, before she shut the door behind him. She locked it for good measure as she crossed in front and slid into his seat.

“You’re not driving in this condition,” She muttered, sitting far back in his seat. She stretched her legs, still unable to reach the pedals before digging around to find out how to adjust it. She was panicking on the inside, completely unaware of how to drive but she wasn’t going to ask anyone here for a ride, “Why isn’t it starting?” She tried to get the keys to turn but it didn’t. He groaned, leaning over to push the steering wheel until the key clicked in place. She huffed out, trying to calm herself as she locked the doors to start with. She had a sudden fear of Jason and his friend sneaking up on them. She knew she was being irrational, but she couldn't shake it off. 

“Sexy,” He grinned as he watched her drunkenly. She sighed, reaching over to buckle him up. His hands cupped around her boobs as she did so, his grin turning into a smirk, “Squishy.” Her face burned and she pulled away from him quickly. She shook her head, but he just seemed even more amused as he laughed to himself. She turned his music all the way down as an attempt to concentrate and see the road better. She began to gently push the car into drive, barely tapping against the gas before slamming on the brakes in horror of how fast they started to go. She swung her arm out to keep Billy’s head from slamming on the dashboard.

“Lemme drive.” She didn’t know if he was begging because he was sobering up and realized how bad of an idea this was or if he was still insisting that he was the driver in his drunken haze. She shook her head, sitting close to the steering wheel before trying her motions again. It was bad. She was not a good driver at all and driving in the dark with a drunk Billy didn’t improve the situation any better.

Billy whined the whole way home and she continued to shush him, never going about 20 miles an hour and constantly slamming on the breaks whenever she thought she saw something or if he spoke too loudly. The turns were the worst, always turning too sharp or running over a curb. She winced every time, knowing if he was in his right state of mind that he would be screaming at her for messing up his precious car. In his defense, he had put a lot of time and effort into it. She squinted her eyes forward, trying to pull into his parking spot without hitting Neil's car. She winced, continually driving over the small curb on their driveway. She gave up after the fourth time of backing up and driving forward and decided it would have to work. Billy turned to her. 

“Lights,” He reached over and flipped them on, and she cursed at herself, suddenly realizing why it had been so hard to see in the dark. She flipped them off again and she shut off his car. She quickly got out, walking around to open the door for him as he stumbled out and grabbed a hold of her, “Gonna-” He didn’t have to finish his sentence before he was vomiting everywhere, down his shirt and pants. She looked at him disgusted as she gagged, trying not to vomit as well. He looked miserable as he raised his head, and she knew there was no way to get him into his room through the window. They were screwed. The easiest way would be up the back stairs, however, Neil's room rested directly next to the backdoor. He'd know as soon as they stepped on the squeaky steps what was happening. 

She didn’t say anything as they walked towards the front of the house and quietly up the porch, “You need a bath.” He groaned as he rolled his head again, but she moved hers quickly, not wanting to smell his breath. She was trying to be cautious of where she touched, afraid she'd get sick if she got anything on her that had been out of his mouth. She pulled him inside the house, trying to be quiet as he shuffled and stammered awkwardly around her. She glared at him, urging him to be quiet before Neil came out.

She pushed him into the bathroom and quickly shut the door behind him. She had him place his hands on the sink to keep balance while she got the water warm, remembering he didn’t like it too hot. She stared at the steam pouring out of the faucet, wondering if it would be better for him to stand and shower or to sit down and bathe. She couldn't figure out how she'd be able to make him shower without her getting in there with him. She couldn't picture that going well in his drunken state, knowing he would believe they would end up doing something else. 

She sighed, knowing either way would be difficult but deciding that at least with a bath he could sit down. She figured it would be easier for her to help him that way. She pushed the plug in, making a face as the stench of vomit and beer lingered on him. He looked at her cheekily, still in his own little world as he swayed in front of the mirror. She watched as he looked at his reflection and began to laugh a little too loud.

“Take your shirt off.” She told him as she untucked his shirt from his pants. He smirked at her in the mirror and wiggled his eyebrows. She scoffed, knowing she didn’t care about any of that right now. She just wanted him cleaned up. He definitely did not look very sexy covered in beer and vomit.

“You wish.” He staggered again and she grabbed a hold of the back of his shirt to keep him from toppling over. She winced when she heard the material tear, hoping it wasn’t ruined. He sighed before doing as he was told as she balanced him again. She scooped up his green toothbrush and applied toothpaste to it.

“Here,” She handed it to him as he tossed his shirt to the floor. She winced, hoping it landed on the clean side. She struggled with his belt as he began to scrub at his teeth, not very well but she figured it was better than nothing. She jerked her face away quickly, his elbow coming a bit too close to her face for comfort. She tried to regain her patience as she exhaled softly, trying to clear all the bad thoughts away. 

She was careful not to touch anything wet as she piled his clothes into one of the corners of the bathroom. She would have to come back and get them. He staggered against her as she led him to the tub, urging him to crawl in as she ignored the fact that he was attempting to make dirty jokes at her while he was naked. It took a few tries for him to realize that she was wanting him to step into the tub. It took even longer for him to sit down, his feet slipping inside of the tub as she tried to lower him into the warm water.

“No bubbles?” He was genuine as he turned to look at her. She sighed through her nose before dumping some in, swishing her hand around to make them grow faster. She handed him a rag, hoping he would get the hint to wash his chest off so she wouldn’t have to. She stood up again and dumped the toothbrushes out of the glass cup before filling it with water and bringing it back to him. He was rubbing the bubbles over his chin like he was Santa. Kim was a bit amused even through her irritation.

“Drink some water,” She encouraged as she sat at the edge of the tub, lifting the cup to his mouth. He groaned and shook his head, rolling away from her as he began to sink further into the bubbles. She groaned, wrapping her arm around the back of his torso to adjust him again. Her arm covered in bubbles from the back, “Don’t be a child, take a drink.” She urged but he shook his head again.

“Don’t wanna.” He whined and she felt increasingly irritated. She was up way past her bedtime, was hot and sweaty and did not want to deal with Neil coming in and screaming at the two of them. She couldn’t handle seeing Billy being beaten again and she knew Neil wouldn’t let this behavior slide. 

“Drink this and I’ll kiss you.” She replied, thinking of the quickest solution. Billy turned his head so fast that his face almost collided with the glass of water. She cursed as the cool liquid dripped onto her hands. She was going to need her own shower after this. Maybe a shower would've been the best option.

“Really?” He sounded like a small child full of excitement when he looked towards her. She wondered if she had been this bad when she was high. At least she hadn’t thrown up everywhere, resulting in a sponge bath. She held the cup to him again, watching as he swallowed it all in one smooth motion. She furrowed her eyebrows, in disbelief at how fast he was able to do it.

“Done!” He replied happily. She leaned her elbows on the side of the tub, trying not to think about the completely different situation they had been in a few days ago. She brushed the bubbles off of his smooth jawline, leaning forward to place a gentle peck to his lips before moving away. She wasn’t risking him puking in her mouth, no way, “That’s not fair.” He whined as she took the rag from him, checking his chest to make sure he had gotten it all rinsed off. 

“That was a kiss, totally fair,” She felt herself grinning as she looked over the top half of his body, making sure he was all rinsed off before she reached into the bubbly water and pulled the plug from the drain. He looked less than thrilled when she grabbed a few towels and threw them at him, “Dry off.”

“Help,” He sprawled his hands out dramatically as he groaned, beginning to slip down deeper into the empty tub. She groaned as she pulled at his arms to make him stay. She realized then how hard it was going to be to get him out of the tub, “Can’t do it.” It took her a few seconds to make out what he was saying with his thick mumbling and drunken slurring. She sighed and put one towel over his chest.

“You can do that part,” She mumbled as she wiped down his thighs and knees. She purposely avoided his dick, knowing he would have something to say if she neared it. However, it was hard to wipe him down when she felt like it was staring at her the whole time, “Are you ready to get out of here?” He nodded eagerly, his eyes beginning to flutter shut rapidly. She bit her lip, hoping he would at least stay awake long enough to make it to his room. 

She hugged him from behind, trying to get him at a good angle as she began to lift on him. She felt herself groaning as her back and arms strained, not used to bearing any weight like this at all. It didn’t help that he was barely helping, his body hanging limply in her arms as she pulled on him.

“Use your feet,” She groaned, instantly realizing that a bath had been the wrong idea. It would’ve been so much easier to just jump in the shower with him and get it over with. His feet slid dramatically across the wet tiles, “Billy!”

She finally had his naked, wet body out of the tub when he began to crawl away. She rubbed her eyes irritated, suddenly remembering she was wearing makeup as the colors transferred from her eyelids to her fingertips, “Where are you going?” She sounded very much like her mother. She watched as he draped his arm over the toilet and winced as he emptied his stomach into the bowl. She covered her mouth, feeling the urge to puke rising again. She picked at his clean clothes when he was finished, helping him dress as he moaned and groaned. She began having to roll him to pull his pants up as he had taken to laying on the floor unmoving.

“Too much.” He groaned as she pulled at his good arm, trying to get him to stand as she could get him into his bed. She was seconds away from beating herself with a stick. She knew she couldn’t leave him here. Neil would flip when he found him. She paced for a second, knowing she had no other choice as she let him plop his head to the ground with a groan.

“Don’t move.” She made sure she had the harshest tone she could manage, which was fairly easy when she felt so exhausted at the moment. She snuck out of the bathroom door, heading down to Max’s room. She felt guilty as she stepped inside, noting how well she was sleeping for once. At the same time, Billy was in distress and Max had been the one to say they should all bond. Nothing says you’re bonding more than your brother puking on you.

“Max,” She whispered quietly so their parents wouldn’t hear but loud enough so Max would, “Wake up, come on.” She shoved the younger girl until her eyebrows began to furrow, knowing she couldn’t do this on her own. 

She shoved the younger girl awake finally, Max looking at her beyond irritated, “What do you want? Do you know what- What happened to you?” She finally asked after looking at her older sister who was drenched in water and makeup smeared from sweat. Kim sighed exasperated.

“I need help getting Billy to his room. He’s in the bathroom but he’s so drunk and he’s heavy and I don’t know what else to do.” Kim whispered harshly into the night air, wondering if this was God’s punishment for her no longer being a virgin. Max sat at the edge of her bed confused.

“So how am I supposed to help?” She asked the obvious question. They were both small and on the scrawny side and Max had more muscles than what Kim could dream of but she had no other options. They’d figure something out.

“Just push or lift his feet and I’ll worry about his fathead,” She turned and waited at the door, “Come on!” She watched as Max groaned and stepped out into the night with her. They made haste to the bathroom. Kim’s eyes narrowed when Billy was exactly where she left him on the floor.

“Did you give him a bath?” Max asked, a laugh lingering on her tongue. Kim bit her lip in annoyance, not even caring that it may seem inappropriate. Billy was still bobbing his head, laughing about something as he snapped his fingers to whatever beat was playing in his head. 

“He was stinky, and he threw up everywhere. I just- don’t want to talk about it.” Kim snapped and Max held her small hands up in defense. Billy pulled his fingers into the shape of a gun, pretending to shoot her as a pew left his mouth. She couldn't even laugh at the moment, too irritated and worried about how they were going to get him into his room. 

“At least he’s pleasant,” Max circled around to his feet, staring down at him unsure. Kim placed her hands on her hips, turning to each side and cracking her back obnoxiously loud before rolling her shoulders, “That’s disgusting.”

“Next time, you can bathe him,” Kim muttered as she placed her hands through Billy’s armpits and lifted his torso up until his back was resting against her chest. Max gripped his ankles, “Ready?” Kim nodded, waiting until the other girl nodded before lifting the older boy. It only lasted about five seconds and his butt was dragging on the floor while they tried. He was pure muscle and there was no way their bony arms would be lifting him to his room.

“Jesus Christ, you’re heavy.” Max breathed out as they set him back down. Kim stayed in position while Billy rolled his head to look at her.

“Am I fat?” She rolled her eyes, nudging his face out of her way while she looked back at Max. The younger girl looked too amused in Kim's opinion. In other words, everything and everyone was beginning to annoy Kim. She wondered if she would’ve been better off dragging him to his room on her own. 

“How about we just drag him? You take an arm and I take one?” Max questioned but Kim shook her head, making Billy’s head move as well. She swore if he threw up on her she’d leave him in here. Kim sighed as she thought for a moment. She shifted her head away, Billy's wet hair kept continually rubbing against her lips to further her irritation. 

“His wrist is still bad; I don’t want to hurt it worse. You push on his feet, and I’ll sit him up a bit more.” Kim didn’t know what else to do as she made the older boy sit up straight and she kept her hands tightly secure around his torso. He mumbled something in her ear about smelling good, but she ignored it. He owed her big time for this. 

“Alright.” Max sighed and shook her head, before they started to drag him down the hallway. It took forever, with lots of groaning and stopping while Billy continued to laugh. Kim kept threatening him that he was going to wake up Neil, but he didn't seem to care. If anything, it only made him louder and that scared her. They managed to get him into his room, Kim dropping him flat on the floor so she could rest her hands on her knees and catch her breath.

“We did it,” Max gave her a lame high five while they tried to catch their breath, “Do we just leave him here?” Kim asked the younger girl who shrugged her shoulders. What were the chances of Neil coming in to check on him in the morning. She wasn’t sure. Max didn’t seem to know either as she walked towards the bed and pulled a few of his pillows down.

“Jesus, he’s so fucking disgusting.” She shook her hand dramatically and Kim peered over to see what she had been looking at. She felt her heart flip as she looked at the little polaroid picture, seeing her naked body staring back at her. She glared down at Billy, wishing she had left him to sleep in his car instead. She wouldn’t say anything about the picture but did wonder why it was under his pillows and not locked away safely like everything else. She was going to kill him.

She watched Max cautiously, hoping she wouldn’t say anything else. It was too embarrassing to even look at her as she crossed the room and roughly picked up Billy’s head and dropped it on his pillows. He groaned, still able to use his hand to flip Max off. Kim forced back a laugh, not wanting to let go of her anger just yet even if it was amusing. Kim threw a sheet on him, not sure if he would get too hot at night. She hesitated for a moment, worried that he would throw up again and choke on it, “Shit,” She cursed as she grabbed another pillow. Max got the hint and lifted his head back up before letting him fall back awkwardly on the two pillows.

They both stood, staring down at him with their hands on their hips while he looked more than happy, “I’m going to kick his ass tomorrow.” Max muttered as she headed towards the door. Kim agreed, completely in disbelief what her night had consisted of. 

“Wait,” Billy croaked as she stepped into the doorway. She sighed, closing her eyes as she listened to Max retreat down to her room. She peaked back into the room where Billy was laying awkwardly on the floor. She did feel bad about leaving him in this position but there was no way she’d be able to pull him onto his bed, “C’mere.” She stepped up to him hesitantly watching as his blue eyes drunkenly searched her face.

“What?” She grumbled irritated, wanting to get cleaned up on her own now. She felt stinky, “Billy what do you want?” She asked as she knelt down next to him, making sure her dress hid everything. He was so out of it that she only grew angrier, thinking about what Tina would’ve done if she had taken him home with her. He smirked as he lazily tapped his cheek. She furrowed her eyebrows confused until she realized.

“Oh, no way,” She laughed as he looked at her crestfallen, “After all you put me through? No good night kiss for you.” She almost felt bad as he resembled a very injured, offended puppy. He patted her hand sloppily.

“Please, or else I can’t sleep.” She huffed and closed her eyes. When she opened them, he was smiling sweetly at her, waiting for her response. She didn’t want to wake up to him crawling into her room, asking for a kiss. She knew she’d have a heart attack and that would be the end of her. She leaned forward cautiously, holding onto his chin so he couldn’t move his head. She didn’t want to taste the puke on his lips, that much she knew. She pressed her lips to his cheek softly before pulling away. He looked more than gleeful as he smiled deeply at her.

“Your eyes,” He mumbled as he stared up at her, his hands resting over his stomach as he watched her, “Always look so sad.” She parted her lips, completely taken aback as he stared at her. She gulped hard, unsure of what to do with that information. She had sad eyes? She had never heard someone say that to her before. She wondered if he thought her eyes were sad in the same way that she thought his were calculating and cold. 

“Thanks, I guess.” She muttered, looking around and pulling a half-filled water bottle towards him. She moved the trashcan near him too, for good measure. He was still watching her through half lidded eyes, and she could tell he was exhausted. His right hand gripped hers and she looked to see where his bruise was fading to a green color. She sighed softly.

“Gonna stay?” He mumbled, his eyes barely looking at her. She felt her heart fluttering as she thought about it. She’d love to stay, even in his drunken haze but she knew it was just that. He was in a haze, and she didn’t want to wake up the next morning to see the irritation on his face. Or for him to think that she had made him stay with her.

“I’ve got to take a shower. You got me all messy,” A lazy smirk formed over his face, and she rolled her eyes and shook her head. She could only imagine what dirty thoughts were trailing through his mind even in this state of mind, "I'll see you in the morning." She did her best, trying to smile kindly at him. 

“Yeah,” He hiccupped, and she gripped onto the trash can, worried he was going to throw up again. She settled back as he rested his head back on his pillows, “My mom said that too.” She furrowed her eyebrows for a moment, wondering why he would bring that up. She bit her lip, thinking about yesterday. He must’ve been remembering. She didn't like the thought that she was being compared to his mom. 

“I know,” She knew he wouldn’t be discussing this if he wasn’t intoxicated. It made her nervous, she didn’t want him to tell her anything that he wasn’t fully aware of doing. She’d feel too guilty, “It’s okay. We’ve got each other.” She squeezed his hand softly as she watched his eyes close for a few seconds before fluttering open again. His eyes drifted across the room before he looked at her again.

“Yeah.” He smiled at her, and she slowly moved her hand away from his. She couldn’t stay here any longer. She knew if she did, she wouldn’t leave. She couldn’t do that to him, knowing how he felt previously about being asked to stay. She resisted the urge to push his blonde curls away from his eyes and kiss his forehead. She quickly stood, needing to create distance between the two of them.

“Now go to sleep.” She responded as she crossed her arms over her chest and moved away from him. She glanced back, noticing how his hand was still reaching towards her as his eyes drifted shut. She lingered at the door for a moment before remembering what she was doing. She shut the door behind her for good measure before she made her way to the shower. Her whole body ached, and she still felt mentally exhausted from what had happened with Jason earlier. She was unsure if she should even say anything, wondering if Billy would say the same thing that Tommy did or if he would defend her. She hated to be unsure, but they were friends. Perhaps, that had been the reason he was so adamant she stayed away from Tommy. 

She stepped into the bathroom, undressing herself and tossing her dress in Billy’s dirty pile of clothes. She’d wash them when she was done, she decided as she turned the hot water on. She closed her eyes and rested her cheek against the cool wall. 

She just hoped she’d be able to wash the night away.

Next Chapter

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

Horizons

Hitsuhina Gift Exchange 2022

Prompt: a song inspired creation

Rating: K+/General with some mature themes and mentions of violence/blood

Setting: A few days after the end of the TYBW arc, but there are flashbacks, two set before the main story, one between the end of the Fake Karakura Town and the beginning of the Lost Agent arcs. Basically, any scenes in italics are set in the past.

Synopsis: During the first days of reconstruction, Hitsugaya and Hinamori decide to visit the Junrinan. Along the way, Hitsugaya comes to realisation.

AN: @rainfestive, thank you for this prompt! I must admit, I had the basic idea for this fic before the gift exchange, but this prompt got me listening to music, and several songs helped inspire the completed story. The main songs that provided inspiration were I Was Born for This by Austin Wintory, Catharsis by Vishal Naidu & Dan Caine, and My Universe by Coldplay x BTS. The other songs included: She Lit a Fire by Lord Huron, compassion from the BLEACH ost, Snowfield from the Clannad ost, and going home from the BLEACH ost.

I wanted create a fic that conveyed the same softness that your fanart does, and I’ve hopefully succeeded in doing that (well, this fic actually has a pretty angsty start, but it does get fluffy I promise!). In a way, this is a spiritual prequel to It’s Been a While, but honestly, this was meant to be it’s own thing, so feel free to consider the two stories linked or not. Also:

I know it’s stated that the Seireitei needed reconstruction after the Quincy War, but there’s nothing concrete about whether the Rukongai was also badly damaged or not. However, for the sake of this story, sections of it were and need to be reconstructed.

A kokeshi doll is a traditional Japanese toy. The Rukongai seems to have traditional Japanese toys (like spinning tops, which Toshiro used to play with), so I figured they likely have this kind of toy there too.

Hasukappu is the Japanese name given to blue honeysuckle.

Also, I may or may not have been inspired by @canariie's fic trepidation at one point (for those who have read it, you’ll know it when you see it).

I hope you, Rain, and everyone else enjoy this!

__________________________________

Toshiro doesn’t flinch at the blast of freezing wind. The bare branches above and below him rattle, and the first snow falls from the dark grey clouds over the Junrinan in erratic spirals.

Only a few souls wonder the streets and alleyways of the first district, keeping their heads low and wearing multiple layers against the wind. Most souls can’t withstand the cold at this time of the day, with most choosing to stay indoors around a fire. The orange glow emitting from within most houses is bright against the still dark morning.

He again wonders what the lives of those inside is like. Are they still asleep or waking up? Do they all sit around the fire as they eat breakfast? Did they have anything they worked towards? Did any of them feel alone or different from the rest?

He shakes his head; the train of thought is useless to follow.

As the dawn mist gradually thins, he gets a better view of the whole Junrinan and the second district. A slice of the sunrise manages to peak through the clouds and he raises his hand to shade his eyes. Some of the houses in its way are bathed in a yellow-pink glow and the snow on their roofs glimmers.

Below, a soul treads into the light's path cast over one of the Junrinan's main streets. A girl, from what Toshiro can tell, wrapped up in a blanket that almost touches the ground. She avoids the growing piles of snow gathering on the sides of the road and her breaths fog in the air. Her strides are purposeful, enough to go against the harsh wind and cold. Why would she be out at this time? Was she going to go into the forests and find some firewood? Or food? She wouldn't need the main road for either of those things. She could be a new soul, left to her own devices to find a place to stay.

Toshiro shakes his head again; another useless train of thought.

At the growing tension in his chest, he begins to climb down the tree. He tells himself it’s because he needs to get back to Granny, she’d be awake soon. If he were honest with himself, it was because if the girl were to look to her right, there’s a good chance she’d spot him, and possibility of that makes him uncomfortable.

___________________________________

The kokeshi doll rolls away from Toshiro’s foot. He watches it tumble over chips of debris until it bounces off the ruins of the house it likely belonged to. Unlike many of the buildings surrounding it, this one still had most of its roof intact. One of its walls was obliterated, lying in chunks splayed out across the ground, with various broken and torn housewares scattered amongst remains.

Toshiro steps over the wreckage and stays bent over after he picks up the toy, shading it from the late afternoon sun. Paint had scratched off in various places and there’s a small chunk gone from the top of the head, but it’s otherwise remarkably in good condition compared to the other objects scattered about.

He hears Rangiku’s footsteps coming towards him before she calls out. “Captain, we have an update on assessment for the thirteenth district!”

Toshiro rises as his lieutenant nears. “Go on.”

It’s like almost every other report he’s received: buildings completely leveled or caved in, some souls have injuries being tended to by the squadron sent by Fourth Division, but thankfully no casualties for this one. He can’t say the same for this district.

As Rangiku continues to give the details, his gaze involuntarily wonders to the souls a short distance over her shoulder. There’s about twenty of them all underneath a temporary shelter, all in various states of disarray. They’d been given fresh clothes, and behind them, some of his unseated officers are preparing food rations. They watch as the Shinigami comb through the remains of their homes, and the only thing stopping them from joining in are the seated officers keeping them from interfering in the assessment. A few officers remain silent, the rest are trying to offer comfort or reassurances, but they’re falling on deaf ears.

Toshiro’s brow furrows deeper when he spots a young boy, his dark hair in whipped in all directions and wearing a clean yukata. The boy had been staring at him with widened eyes. At being caught, his shoulders rise and he’s quick to shift his gaze to the ruined house the doll belonged to. At his crumbling expression, Toshiro knows this was once his home, and the toy is his.

It's not the first time he has seen that kind of expression in the last week, nor will it be the last. All the lives of the souls here are forever changed, and he doesn’t blame the resentment he sees in some of them. He’d been up at the Palace, had tried to stop as much debris as he could from falling on to the Soul Society, but he couldn't stop all of it.

“Sir?”

Toshiro blinks and is quick to bring his attention back to Rangiku. “Thank you for the update, Matsumoto. Send…No, ask the assessment team to return to here and help with distributing resources. When you’ve done that, bring back whatever written reports you’ve completed to here. We'll finish for the day after the food rations have been given out.” When Rangiku doesn’t leave, he fully turns to her. “Was there anything else?”

Perhaps she’s caught off guard by the way he speaks; in other circumstances he’d be more relaxed with his tone and his choice of words, but it didn’t feel right to be anything other than direct and authoritative right now.

“Captain…” Rangiku purses her lips. It’s only then he notices how frazzled her hair is, it’s so out of character for her. But then, it was hard to be one’s self in the aftermath of something this destructive. Toshiro waits, and it’s a moment later when whatever hesitation she has disappears.

“Everything’s been set up here," she says. "After the assessment team comes back, we’ll have enough to keep things under control.”

“What are you getting at?”

“You should take a break. You’ve been up since dawn and haven’t stopped once all day, or even all of yesterday for that matter.”

He half expected her concern - the bags under his eyes become more apparent each day – and she hadn’t been the only one. Some of his seated officer, though they tried to hide it, showed their concern yesterday and this morning. It came out in the small smiles they give him and the over enthusiasm they have to some tasks he assigns, as if to assure him they are more than capable and that he can rest easy. But he sees the way their shoulders weigh down, the hardness or sorrow in their eyes when they think he isn’t looking. “I’ll rest once all the assessments are completed.”

She glances at the doll in his hand. Something about it makes her sigh. “You always tell others to know their limits, but never yourself.”

“I know my limits,” he responds curtly. “You don’t have to --”

“Yo, Captain Hitsugaya!”

Both swerve in the direction of Shinji’s call. Several officers from the Fifth Division approach, and in the middle of them are their captain and Momo. The latter doesn’t notice either of them, too preoccupied with giving instructions to her surrounding subordinates, but the former waves at them.

Toshiro tucks the doll away into his sleeve. “What’s he doing here?” he wonders under his breath.

With their impending argument interrupted, Rangiku smiles. “They have jurisdiction for the district next door. They might just be passing by.”

Whatever Momo instructed her subordinates to do, half march off down a nearby alleyway while the others remain. It’s then she spots them and gestures for her officers to wait.

“Afternoon you two,” Shinji greets.

Momo comes over to them, but unlike Shinji, her grin doesn’t reach her eyes. “Hello Rangiku-san, Hitsug – I mean, Captain Hitsugaya.”

Toshiro would voice his surprise that she actually called him by his title, but this isn’t the time or place. “Doing assessment for the west ninth district I assume?” he asks Shinji.

“Just finished it actually.”

“Then are you here to discuss the proposal for repairs in north districts twenty through to twenty-five?”

Shinji’s grin wobbles and he raises a brow. “Geez, ain’t that a bit early? Pretty sure Head Captain said we didn’t need to get to work on that until two months in at the latest. Are you ahead of schedule already?”

“No, just planning.”

“Well, regardless, we ain’t here for that. We’re actually on our way back to the Seireitei to write up assessment reports for districts nine and ten. However, I think Hinamori and I are feeling a little generous and have some time to spare. Did you guys need any help here?”

“We were going to offer help regardless,” Momo quickly adds.

Toshiro folds his arms. “Thank you for the offer, but we don’t need-”

“I think we’ll take you up on that!”

For the first time since returning from the Palace, Toshiro breaks the authoritative air he’d been putting on, blinking up at his lieutenant in bewilderment. “Matsumoto?”

Rangiku keeps going as if she hadn’t noticed the change in his demeanor. “See, I need to go get the assessment team from the thirteenth district and also pick up some reports, and the Captain needs to take a break.”

“Wha? I don’t-”

“Everything here is mostly set up, and we’d ask our third seat to watch over things, but he’s with the assessment team. So, we just need someone to watch over our officers while we’re both away.”

“We need no such thing!” Toshiro looks to his fellow captain. “I don’t need a break, Matsumoto is speaking out of turn.”

Rangiku gives an indignant huff while Shinji lists his head to the side. “Well, when was the last time you took a break?” he asks.

“It’s not necessary, I can still oversee things here. As is, I assume you’ll need to write up those reports as soon as you get back, so don’t let us keep you.”

Shinji’s eyes narrow, but before he can speak up, Momo steps forward. “A-Actually, Captain, weren’t you saying we should take a break before we start on those reports? I was going to ask if I could walk to the Junrinan. I know it’s not one of the damaged districts, but there’s some friends I need to visit.”

Shinji blinks at his lieutenant’s interruption, but with the rising tension diffused, he nods. “Fine by me, just make sure you’re back in an hour for the reports.”

“Of course.” Then to Toshiro, with a renewed, softer smile. “Perhaps you’d like to join me, Captain Hitsugaya? I know you feel responsible for what’s happening here, but there’s someone you’ve wanted to see, right?”

Likely unintentionally, her words make guilt flare up in him. He’d wanted to go see Granny as soon as he’d arrived back in the Seireitei. What had become of the Junrinan? Was she all right? He’d sprint to there if he could, but duty bound him to the Seireitei. He barely contained his relief when he heard in the report the next day it was one of fifteen higher level districts that hadn’t been damaged during the war. He couldn’t visit her until the assessment is completed, but it didn’t stop the urge to drop everything and visit her.

“Can imagine you’d have friends you wanna see, yeah?” Shinji remarks. “I’ve told my subordinates to take their breaks to go visit anyone they need to in the Rukongai, and I’m sure you’ve told others to do the same in your division.” He shrugs. “I reckon us captains can grant ourselves the same if things are under control in our jurisdictions, and you’ve clearly got that going on here.”

“Hirako…”

“Besides, I owe you for saving Hinamori and I back up at the Palace. She told me about what happened after I got knocked out.”

He glances at his childhood friend, who gives a rueful roll of her eyes and a shrug.

“I didn’t just enter that battle to save you two,” he clarifies.

“I know, but regardless, you saved us from being crushed by that giant. So, least I can do is help you out a little while we’ve still got the time to.”

“That’s actually a good point,” Rangiku adds. “This’ll be the best opportunity you have. You know that once we get into the repairs, we’ll have even less free time.”

Toshiro isn’t sure what he hates more: that he’s made others worry or that his resolve is waning. He wants to argue back, but then Momo fixes him with that gaze – the one that’s half pleading and half concerned – and he’s useless to dismiss it.

He unfolds his arms with a huff. “Fine, I’ll only be gone for an hour.” Rangiku gasps with a grin, but he stops her from saying anything with a sharp gaze. “If anything happens, you send a Hell Butterfly right away. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!”

Shinji’s own grin returns. “Well, it’s settled. I’ll stick around here until Matsumoto returns, then head back to Fifth. Take good care of my lieutenant, yeah? She's been working a lot lately."

Momo shakes her head, exasperated. "Honestly, sir."

Toshiro rolls his eyes. "She's capable of doing that herself."

With a chuckle, Shinji jerks his chin at Rangiku as he half turns away. “Mind giving me an overview of what’s going on here before you run off?”

Rangiku nods and joins him as he returns to his waiting officers.

Toshiro watches them go, but his attention is drawn away when Momo comes to his side. It’s just the two of them now, and the thought makes him nervous for some reason.

“Shall we go, Hitsugaya-kun?” she asks.

“Already dropping the title, are we?” he half grumbles.

“Sorry, force of habit.”

“You don’t look one bit sorry.” With a sigh, he goes to lead the way. “I guess the quickest route would be…”

A jostle in his sleeve stops him. Without thinking, he sticks his hand into his uniform. How had he forgotten about it?

Momo tilts her head when he faces the group of souls under the shelter. “What’s wrong?”

The child stares at them, had probably watched the entire exchange from before. He bites his lip at being caught a second time.

No, they can’t leave just yet. He hates to ask her to do anything for him, but this is better suited for someone like her.

Toshiro digs his hand into his sleeve. “I was going to ask Matsumoto to do this before she left, but I may need you to do it instead.”

Momo raises both brows; it’s a rare occurrence for him to ask her for anything. “What is it?”

Toshiro holds out the doll. “Can you give this to him?” he requests, tipping his head at the boy. “I think it’s his.”

She glances at the child, then at the remains of his house over her shoulder. “Why don’t you do it?”

“It’d be better coming from you.”

Her hand hovers over his for several beats, but she surprises him when she rolls his fingers over the doll. “You’re the one who found it, you should give it back to him.”

Why? The question must show on his face, because she lets out a weak chuckle. “It’ll be okay.”

She doesn’t elaborate further, but they need to get a move on, and he won’t push her to do this. Taking a deep inhale in, he approaches the crowd, and slows his steps once he’s within a few meters of the boy. The child is trying to decide whether to cower away or stand his ground as he approaches.

To calm him, Toshiro holds the doll out before he comes to a stop. “I’m guessing this is yours.”

As if expecting this to be a trick, the boy hesitates. A woman comes up behind the child and rests a protective hand on his shoulder while bowing.

“I’m sorry about my son, Captain,” she says, her voice on the brink of quivering. “He didn’t mean to stare.”

Toshiro shakes his head and gestures for her to rise. “It’s fine.”

Reassured by his mother’s presence, the boy takes the toy back. The moment he touches it, his anxiety starts to ease. He examines the faults in it, seemingly forgetting a high-ranking Shinigami stands before him. He fingers the dent in the top, and fights a disappointed frown from forming. Something about it tugs at Toshiro, and squats down to the child’s height, capturing his gaze once more.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t stop this,” he says. “It will be a long time before you have a house again, but we're working to make sure it'll be sooner rather than later." He points to the toy. "Hang on to that in the meantime, don’t let it go. There will come a day when you can get others to join it.”

Heat rises up the back of his neck as he senses the eyes of all the residents on him. Most are surprised, others are skeptical. To have a Shinigami admit fault and apologise is a rare thing; they’re viewed as too prideful or out of touch or secretive to do such a thing by most district residents. If only they knew what they’d been like when the Quincy invaded, the fear and determination his officers showed. For a moment, Toshiro allows the thought to roam in his mind before he banishes it.

He stands and gives a bow with his head. “If any of you need basic supplies, my officers will assist.”

He tries to turn and stride as naturally as he can back to Momo, resisting the urge to spin on his heel and rush down the forest path they’re going to take to the Junrinan. A new wave of heat rushes up to his cheeks, but this time it’s because of the tender smile Momo gives him when he approaches.

___________________________________

Toshiro scowls at the cracked rooftiles next to his foot. A few pieces had dislodged, revealing the wooden rafters beneath. “Going to have to replace those,��� he mutters. “How long have they been like that?”

He stares at them for several heartbeats before going a few feet further up the roof. Once he reaches the top, he sits on ridge, takes in a long breath, and leans back with closed eyes. It’s the first moment of quiet he’s had in a whole month.

However, as if to remind him of where he should really be, the wind lifts up the ends of his haori behind him. Opening his eyes, he rests his elbows on his knees and picks at the new addition to his uniform. Despite being a relatively light garment, it still feels heavy to wear. He never considered himself to be the type to indulge in metaphors or analogies, but there might be something to say for the weight of the job weighing down on ones shoulders. With a sigh, he lifts his gaze.

He’s not sure where his inclination to go to high places came from, nor does he understand why he continues to make it a habit. Somehow, it felt right to climb tree and sit in their branches as a child, and then to perch himself on his old home’s rooftop. The latter he can chalk up to feeling protective of Granny, believing that having a vantage point to see everyone and everything ensured he could warn her of anything; but the former, he still can't figure out why he did it. A part of him always wanted to watch over everything, and being above everything somehow felt right. The tallest height he'd gotten to was in a tree in the Jurinan forests, and it allowed him to see all the way to the tenth district.

Now, he’s on the tallest building in the Tenth Division, and it gives him a view of the Seireitei all the way to the Eastern Gate. There was a time where he was on the other side of that gate, and the Seiretei was just a part of the horizon he looked out towards. It strange to think he has ended up on the other side, and to feel less lonely than he was when he was outside of it.

He distracts himself from the thought by watching the Shinigami out and about. Most are on the ground, weaving their way between buildings, not in any rush to get where they need to. Some have stopped in courtyards and gardens, gathering in groups for training or lunch. Not too far away, the instructions of his third seat reach his ears, his voice coming from one of the dojos.

Others are on the balconies and verandas, coming and going, but he doubles back when he spots Momo and Aizen. They’re two small figures in the distance, but he can make out that they're walking on the second floor balcony of Ninth Division’s main barracks, talking about something that makes Momo smile.

Toshiro rolls his eyes. Even from all the way up here, her feelings towards her captain are obvious, and Aizen is probably too polite to bring it up. He finds himself lingering on that thought, but he doesn’t understand why he’d care.

She’s his oldest friend, and he cares about her wellbeing. That’s as far as it went.

He shakes his head, shoving the thought aside. As is, in this new role, he’ll see her even less, and he tries to ignore the tiny pang at the thought. He’s never known how to keep friends, and when Momo found a goal all those decades ago, they’d drifted apart. Now that they each have a goal, it won’t surprise him if they drift even further.

_________________________________________

“Hasukappu grows here?”

Toshiro says nothing as Momo fawns over the vegetation. They’d been walking on the path through the undergrowth for a few minutes when she spotted the hasukappu plants. It’s the happiest he’s seen her since they got back to the Seireitei, and he fears speaking up will break it.

“For some reason, I always thought it was just in the south and north districts. I could make a jam out of these!” Momo goes to pick one of the dark blue fruits but stops. “Ah, maybe not, actually. The locals probably come to harvest these, right? Like we used to in the Junrinan.”

He gestures to the several shrubs chock full of the fruit. “Likely, but it won’t hurt if you pick some, there will be plenty left. Besides, these look they’ve just been growing in the wild, and the animals probably eat them too.”

Momo looks up and down the uneven line of shrubbery. Eventually, she plucks one off a stem. “Maybe just fifteen of them. It probably won’t be enough to make jam, but maybe some candies.”

He watches her pick the fruit off the shrubs and piles them into cloth bag she kept in her uniform, and it occurs to him that with the exception of the rustling of the branches and leaves from the occasional gust wind, it’s quiet. Life is vibrant here, from the lush green grass lined on either side of the dirt path to the small animals that scurry or fly away when they hear them coming. The greenery around them hadn’t been touched by the war, as if frozen in time.

However, it’s in quiet moments like this – mostly before he’s about to go to sleep - that his mind buzzes with everything he hasn’t yet done. Did he truly have the right to be here in the peaceful quiet while the souls in the Rukongai were waiting for their homes to be rebuilt?

“There, that should do it.” Momo tucks the cloth bag back into her uniform. She starts walking again without looking back at him. “The Junrinan is twenty minutes from here, right?”

Snapping out of his thoughts, Toshiro follows her. “Yes.”

He stays behind her as they head up an incline. Her gait is not what it used to be; in the months after her recovery at Fourth Division, she’s had a more subdued walk, the weight of everything weighing her down. In the few months before the Quincy invasion, she walked as if lighter than air, like how she used to before Aizen’s betrayal. Now, there’s a heaviness in each step, but her shoulders are high, determined.

It begs him to ask, “How have you been?”

Momo looks over at him. “As well as I can be. It’s been busy, of course. We’ve completed assessment for half of the districts under our jurisdiction. We’ve been lucky most have more injured than dead, but even so…” She sighs. “The truth is I haven’t had moments rest myself until now.”

 “Dummy!”

“I could say the same for you, couldn’t I?” It’s not an accusation, but an almost resigned fact she knew all too well about him. At his rueful silence, she gives him an uneasy smile. “We have to do so much right now, but we haven’t had the time to do it all. Captain Hirako makes sure everyone has something to do, that we all carry the load of everything. I’m sure you’re the same, but you…you also tend to take on too much, Hitsugaya-kun.”

“It’s because I can.”

The corners of her lips fall. “I think everyone’s struggling to rest right now. We need to put these repairs first, of course, but we also need to take time to rest.” She turns to look ahead “Hopefully things will quiet down soon.”

They both know that is a pipedream. It’s already been estimated the reconstruction of the Rukongai will take over three years to complete, and the Seireitei’s even longer.

This was a bad idea. She did this to him, made him lower whatever walls he builds and rethink what his priorities should be. What should he focus on first? The living or the dead? The survivors or the officers who gave their lives? He’d almost lost count of how many had been cremated or buried, but he has that number clear in his mind every time he gets ready for the day.

There’s a low swaying branch in their way. She holds it aside for Toshiro as she asks, “What about you, Hitsugaya-kun? Have you not been sleeping well?”

He almost touches the bags under his eyes. “I’ve been sleeping enough. Something just woke me up last night.”

“What was it?”

“A dream.”

“Do remember what it was about?”

“…Not really.”

It only comes to him in bits and pieces, but his dreams of when he wasn’t in control of his body shake him to the core every time. Glimpses of Yumichika and Ikkaku come, and the voice of the Quincy who had forced her blood into him echoes in each. He needn’t burden Momo or anyone else with those dreams, everyone has enough on their minds as is.

Realising he isn’t going to elaborate; Momo drops the subject. “What about progress with damage assessment?”

“We have five districts left to assess, then reconstruction will begin next week.”

“So you are ahead of schedule!”

 “Only by a day.”

“It’s still amazing progress.”

They trek down a short incline, which flattens out to the banks for a creek. The path continues on the other side.

“Is there a way across?” Momo asks, taking a wary step towards the stream.

“It’s normally okay to jump over it, the water is running quicker than I remember.”

“It might be because of the rain from yesterday. There was a lot, more than Twelfth predicted.” She says something under her breath, but Toshiro can make out, “You could’ve probably gauged it better.”

Rather than shown he heard her, Toshiro assesses, looking from one end of the creek to the other. “There.” He points to a section several feet away, the two sides closer than any other party near them.

“When was the last time you were here?” she asks as they make their way.

It takes him a moment to recall. “When I’d been promoted to seventh seat.”

“For a mission, I’m guessing?”

“Investigating Hollow activity in the region.”

Those seem like simpler times now, quaint even. He’d known Hollows attacks, had seen a few fellow Shinigami die to them. For some reason, he didn’t think he’d go on to see much more death or destruction in his life.

“That would’ve been about thirty years ago,” Momo muses. “It doesn’t feel like it’s been that long. Time really flew by, huh?”

When they reach the edge of the creek, Toshiro holds up a hand before Momo can make a move. “I’ll go first.”

She gives a bemused chuckle. At his deepening frown, she explains, “This reminds me of what you used to do when we were children. Whenever we’d have to cross a gap, you always insisted on going first.”

He lets out a wordless grumble as he recalls those moments. “I was always the better jumper, and you always got nervous about making big jumps. In case you fell, someone had to be on the other side.”

She gives him a mock offended 'humph'. “And you think that’ll be the case here too?”

Toshiro goes to argue back, but an idea comes to him. Without warning, he whips away from her and runs for the creek before leaping over the water. When he lands in a crouch on the other side, he smirks at her while he rises. “Prove otherwise.”

Momo’s surprise gives way to a haughty smirk. Playfully, she sets up to run, stretching one leg behind her and raising her arms to her sides. His smirk widens, and an amused chuckle almost makes it to his lips. More than that though, he can’t help his protective instincts. He’s ready to dash forward and catch her in case she slips. Without thinking, he moves closer to his side’s edge and even raises his hand for her to grab on to.

She shakes her head. “No need.”

And with that, she runs to the creek. With a small cry of exertion, she leaps over the water. Her arms cartwheel through the air, and her hair flies behind her. She goes higher than he did, her feet well and truly avoiding the water, even the small droplets that splash up from hitting any rocks in the water’s way.

He stumbles back, almost losing his footing as he tries to give her space. She lands on her feet with a loud ‘thump’, half crouched and hands raised in front of her. She doesn’t move from her exaggerated pose, looking as if she were about to sit back into a chair.

They snort at the same time. They look at each other, surprised that the other reacted. Then, as if a flood gate opened, they laugh. Momo almost doubles over, straightening enough to rest her hands on her knees, while Toshiro smacks a hand over his mouth, trying and failing to cover up his laughter.

“What was that?” he asks.

“I don’t know!” she chortles. “I think I got competitive and tried to jump higher than you!”

“That wasn’t the point!”

“But I did it! Both landing and getting higher than you!”

By the time their laughter dies down, his stomach aches. When was the last time he’d laughed so hard, and why over something so silly and small? Maybe he was losing his mind, but if that were the case, at least he isn’t the only one.

They smile at each other while they try to catch their breath. Aside from the one she gave him before they started their trek, it’s the most genuine smiles he’s seen from her in a while, and for a moment he allows himself to be deluded with the idea that just as she can lower his internal walls, he can do the same for her too. In this moment she isn’t the dutiful, hard-working lieutenant, but the girl who always dragged him out on adventures and got easily riled up.

But that silence creeps back in, making his smile fall. What was he doing? He couldn’t be like this, not when he had houses and the Seireitei to rebuild, the dead to bury and mourn for. At her faltering smile, he knows she thinks the same, and he wishes it wasn’t the case. After everything she went through, guilt should be the last thing she suffers from.

He takes a few tentative strides back towards where the path resumes. “Let’s keep going, it’ll be dark soon.”

When he doesn’t hear her follow, he looks over his shoulder. Her head bowed, it’s clear she’s lost in thought. With a bit more authority in his voice, he says, “Come on, Hinamori.”

She flinches and raises her head. “Sorry, it’s just…” His heart aches at her sad smile. “I think this and before with the hasukappu, they’re both the first time in a while that I haven’t discussed or thought about the reconstruction efforts. I know it was my idea to go visit Obaa-san and the others, but I just wanted to check on them. I didn’t think I’d get distracted from everything that’s happening.”

She’s on the edge of an unnecessary apology, and he chooses to nip it in the bud. “I know. We’re only fifteen minutes away, so let’s keep going.”

She gives a shallow nod and joins him.

This really had been a bad idea.

_________________________________________

“I figured you’d be somewhere like here.”

Toshiro almost drops his denreishikai and whips his head over his shoulder.

Isshin stands only a few meters away, his hands in his pockets. Mercifully, if he noticed Toshiro’s near fumble, he doesn’t show it. At the same time however, he half wishes he could punch the smirk off his former captain’s face. However, he’s rendered speechless, and none of the many questions he had always wanted to ask him come to mind now. He suddenly understands what humans meant when they see ‘a ghost from the past’.

“Matsumoto said you were in the area,” Isshin explains. “I bumped into her this morning.”

It might explain why she and Orihime hadn’t returned before Toshiro decided to take a walk an hour ago. He calms with a low exhale. “What the heck are you doing here?”

Isshin’s smirk drops a fraction, and he walks over to him. Toshiro can imagine the question could be taken in more than one way, but Isshin chooses to go for the most obvious one. “I wasn’t out looking for you, just decided to go for a walk.” He steps over the road guard, but keeps a meter distance between them. “I forgot to ask Matsumoto how long you’ve been here.”

Toshiro glares at his denreishinkai. “Is that really any of your concern anymore?”

What’s left of Isshin’s smirk vanishes. “I may not be a captain anymore, but can I can still sense Hollows. There’s been a bit more than usual since Aizen’s defeat from what I can tell. Kuchiki Rukia’s replacement can only do so much, I guess.”

It was strange to hear Isshin discuss Shinigami business when he no longer is one. It’s even stranger to see him up close after all these decades. Toshiro closes his phone. “We’re only here for today, and leaving tonight.”

In the silence, Isshin does nothing except shift his gaze ahead, while Toshiro can’t lift his own from the ground. It’s not the first time he and Rangiku have seen their old captain; during their first time in Karakura Town, they’d spotted him from afar as he walked out of his clinic, but neither of them chose to interact. He and Rangiku reasoned this new life of his had been his choice, but it didn't stop the question he wanted to ask itching to get answered. Perhaps, though, it had also been in part because neither wanted to confront him in a situation like this. What’s he supposed to do?

A part of him wants to run away, to pretend this encounter never happened. But he stays, paralyzed by…obligation. A fragment of his days as a third seat while serving under the man next to him.

Isshin leans against the road guard. “It’s a nice view, huh?”

The view in question was of the west of Karakura Town, bathed in the orange light of the sunset. On the street below, cars and people are still out and about, and the streetlights are starting to flicker on. In a small way, it reminds Toshiro of his days watching the Junrinan from up in the trees.

“You always had a knack for finding good views from high places,” Isshin continues. “I remember you used to climb on the barracks’ roofs. Never understood why, until I got up there and saw what you were looking at.”

Toshiro clenches his jaw as memories of those times flash in his mind. Isshin lecturing him from the ground, then usually ending up on the roof with him, continuing to lecture him until he saw the view. Somehow, it’d end up with Toshiro eventually chastising his captain for skipping out on his duties and trying to get him to climb down.

What resolve he had to stop things from bubbling over erodes. “You’ve always been reckless. You left without warning. You left the division to me.” Then, more icily. “Why?”

Isshin is silent as he turns his gaze back to him. He’s solemn but there’s a resolve there, one Toshiro knew all too well. When Isshin committed to something, he did so with all of his heart, with every ounce of determination within him; Toshiro couldn’t help but be reminded of it when he saw the same in Ichigo sometimes. It’s that determination that made them both reckless, fearless even.

“I had every intention of returning to the Soul Society, but it wasn’t that simple,” Isshin explains. “Masaki, my wife, needed my help. She risked her life to save mine when I was attacked in Naruki City. I owed her my life and I wouldn’t turn my back on her. To save her from death, I had to give up my Shinigami abilities.”

Of all the explanations and theories Toshiro had come up with in the past decade, a scenario like that had never come to mind. Now, it seems like the most obvious reason, because at his core, his captain was always committed saving lives, especially those he owed a debt to. Regardless,to think someone could sway his former captain in such a way, to make him give up everything he ever knew. He’d abandoned his Shinigami status and old life to be with her, to start a family with her. Anger and sympathy war within Toshiro, but he, frustratingly, can’t decide which emotion should win out.

Isshin smiles and the fire in his eyes softens. “It seems foolish, I know, but it wasn’t long after I started living as a human that I realized Masaki was my center. Even if I hadn’t lost my powers, it’d be hard to pull out of orbit of someone I'd come to care about as much as her and try to return to who I was before I met her.”

Toshiro barely manages to hold back a snide snort. “Since when did you become poetic?”

Isshin chuckles. “You’ll get it when you find someone you feel the same way about. They’ll become your sun, the center of your universe.” He sighs through his nose. “Although, I think you can understand it already, on some level.”

Toshiro watches the sun touch the horizon and says nothing, afraid of indulging whatever musing Isshin has.

His mind wonders to Momo, to their days in the Junrinan. It always did when he came to this spot at this time. How many sunsets had he watched with her? When had they stopped doing that? Not long after she left for the Academy, he remembers. The last time was on her break during her third year. It wasn't something he missed until she had been in denial about Aizen's true self.

How is she right now? Was her new captain treating her well? He'd had reservations about coming on a day trip because of the latter, but they'd agreed to speak once he returned. It'll be the first time he's seen her since his failure at the fake Karakura Town. He still can't let go of the guilt from that event, has wondered if he's worthy enough yet to face her again. Another part of him, the one that pushed him to finally see her again, knew he couldn't keep going without seeing her.

He imagines the Isshin he knew, risking his life for a human who risked her life to save his, and he knew that foolhardy determination, that feeling of owing one he had a debt to, would’ve guided him to who he is today. He can’t say he doesn’t relate on some level. Hadn’t he almost done the same for Momo? More than once over the last two years, he’d abandoned his principles when she was in danger, and knew without a second thought he would risk his life for hers.

With some agitation, he inwardly admits his old captain still knows him too well.

“It sounds like the division is doing well.”

“…What did Matsumoto tell you?”

“That you two are handling everything, that there’s no need for me to come back even if I wanted to. I’m not surprised, though. I knew regardless of whether you became captain or not, or if Matsumoto would stay on as lieutenant, the division was in good hands with you two being a part of it.”

Toshiro wants to shove away the sentimental ache in his chest. There was a time where he was ready to round on his former captain and interrogate him, believing no matter his reasons he would never forgive him. Now…he’s just tired. He has no energy left to hate the man for abandoning them, and his reasoning he can, frustratingly or thankfully, relate to.

So instead, he remarks, “I’m surprised Matsumoto didn’t knock you over.”

Isshin grins. “She almost did, but Inoue-san stopped her.”

_______________________________________

The sky is dyed various shades of yellow and orange, and the shadows of trees fall away as they reach highest point of the path. Below, beyond the foliage and five minutes away is the Junrinan, alive with lights and souls, just small dots, wondering the streets. Momo now trails a few feet behind him; neither have spoken a word in the last ten minutes.

A wind blows through, and without thinking, Toshiro follows its direction and looks to his left. The sun is gradually descending to the horizon, but below it…

He stops mid step. Something in him falls, making him go slack in the shoulders and the air freeze in his lungs.

In his peripheral, Momo makes a confused sound before she too follows his gaze. “Oh…” She raises a hand to her chest.

Districts one through to twenty-five for the north and west are sprawled out beneath them. The ones affected by the war are obvious: buildings completely leveled or almost gone, nature upturned and ground scarred, ruins of the palace standing out like a sore thumb. Unlike the districts around them, their lights are fewer and far between, small fires meant to keep groups of souls warm in their temporary shelters. Smoke trails twirls up into the sky, toward where the Palace wreckage had come from and ruined their homes.

Seeing it all together, it makes him grit his teeth against the growing tightness around his heart. Is he failing them? The souls in the Rukongai and the officer who gave their lives. He knows how the former think of him, but the latter, he dreads to wonder how they would view him right now.

He’s startled by a sob. Peering over to Momo, she smacks a hand over mouth, eyes wide in alarm and rimmed with tears.

“Hi--Hinamori?” he says, unknowingly taking a step towards her.

She’s quick to wipe away the tears that escape. “I-I…I’m sorry. Now’s not the time for any of this. It’s one thing to hear about how many districts were affected, but seeing it all t-together, just seeing it all, it’s…” She bites her lip, but it doesn’t stop another tear from falling. “I know we can make it through this and help everyone in the Rukongai, but it’s still…it’s hard to go through all of it to get there. But I have no right to cry now, not when they’re suffering more than us. I’ll cry when I can finally bury those who gave their lives, but until then, I have to focus on restoring everything, right?”

For a brief moment, the world blurs around him, and she is the only thing in focus. With almost stumbling steps, he goes to her, as if being drawn to her by an invisible force; even if he wanted break away, he couldn’t.

There’s hardly any gap between them, their faces close enough that he came make out the faint, small scar on the side of her forehead; from an injury she got while up at the Palace. He’s almost lost her more than once, and he recalls the worry in the back of his mind during the war that she could perish to the Quincy. A small part of him still chastises himself for not being able to prevent her from being injured, but that was the reality of war and combat, and he thanks whatever forces drive this world that it hadn’t been worse.

He surprises both of them when he cups her cheeks and wipes away a tear with his thumb. In the stunned silence his thoughts race, but not with work or guilt.

Perhaps because of all she had gone through in the last two years, he can’t stand to see her cry anymore. Her heart had been wounded; she had put her trust like everyone else in an illusion once. She’d been in denial, had asked him to he unthinkable in sparing a traitor’s life, but she had come to accept everything, now has clearer eyes. Gone is some of her naivety, and in it’s place is a girl who knows better, who even after all her grief and heartache, still reaches out a hand to help and guide.

As the shock wears off, he’s quick to pull away. “S-Sorry.”

“I-It’s okay” she says, still stunned.

Her tears have vanished and a faint pink colors the tops of her cheeks. Perhaps she waits for an explanation, but he has none. She had done the same for him when they were younger, wiping away his tears and leaving him shocked by the gentle gesture, but this feels different. It was to comfort her, but also for something else…

However, the image of the boy from eighth district comes to mind, and it reminds him that he doesn’t know how to comfort others. He spots the boy’s district, off to the far left. That child is a little older than he was before he went to the Academy. Toshiro wonders if he got to live the life he’d always imagined himself having, away from war and violence and grief. Now the latter had come, in the destruction of his home and his district. And what had Toshiro done? Given him a toy back and told him the same thing his officers would’ve already said. It's pathetic.

“It would have been better if you had spoken to that child.” When she says nothing, he folds his arms into his sleeves and elaborates. “Residents need hope in times like this. It is not something I inspire in others.”

“That’s not true,” she responds immediately, and with such a tenderness he’s forced to meet her gaze. She closes the gap between them again with two strides, her eyes wide and emphatic, and it takes him aback.

“I’ve learned that hope doesn’t always come in kind words,” she continues. “Sometimes it comes in an apology, or in a promise to do better, whether it’s to yourself or to someone else.” Her eyes mist again, and her smile returns. “Sometimes it’s just knowing you have a friend there. I have you, Captain Hirako, Abarai-kun, Kira-kun, Rangiku-san, Hisagi-kun, and Nanao-san. I’m incredibly lucky to have you all.”

She points to the Rukongai. “Not everyone down there has someone, I know, but I believe they can find friends and family, just like we all did. In times like this, it’s amazing the connections one can make. I’ve seen it in my districts, how they help each other and give each other hope. We can contribute to that, you contribute to that by vowing to rebuild their homes, by them shelter and food, by giving them back possessions that mean something to them.”

She rests a hand on his forearm, and he brings his hands out of his sleeves. For the first time since they reconciled, she takes his hand in hers. “You’ve been there for me for decades, and I didn’t truly realise it until Captain Ai—I mean, Aizen Sosuke – betrayed us. I’m truly grateful that you still consider me a friend, that we can still talk and share things together. You…You give me hope, Hitsugaya-kun, and I’m certain I’m not the only one.”

The sunlight has turned her eyes to amber, bright like the embers of the element she wields. Her hair shines, almost golden, as if it were made of wisps of the sun. Her skin glows, and there isn’t a single shadow in her soft smile.

It’s the first time he’s considered her beautiful.

Her appearance has never been a major concern of his, unless she was sick or injured. At times he thought she was cute when she smiled or got excited, or could admire something she had done with her hair. Why did he view her differently now? Had the sunlight been just right? Had this moment of vulnerability made him see a different side to her?

But she’s the same. She’s one of the only people he knows who even while sobbing in despair can still have hope for the future, and one of the few who can still think of others while struggling with her own demons. Others would mistake her for being weak, but he only saw strength. He wants to protect her from threats beyond her control, but she’s more than capable of taking on most things, whether it was with tears in her eyes or an angry furrow in her brow or a smile on her lips. She held out a hand to anyone, sometimes to a fault, sometimes to a benefit.

In this world of violence and war and grief, they only have each other, and he has her still. She held on, for him and for other Shinigami, because she’s strong and kind and his friend.

His heart swells, and it dawns on him.

Oh…

He lets out a shuddered breath and bows his head. The revelation crashes over him like a wave, rendering him mute and tightening his chest painfully.

He loves her.

Momo says his name, uncertain. When he doesn’t respond,she tries to search his eyes. Had he always adored her earnestness? When did her will and wish to understand him become so endearing? It’s almost too much. He prays that somehow his thoughts aren't conveyed in his gaze.

She releases his hand, and he almost reaches out to take it back. “Did I say something wrong?” she asks.

“No,” he manages to murmur, “no, you didn’t.”

He knew his feelings towards her had shifted over the decades, and when she had been on the brink of death the first time, he knew they were something deeper than he’d thought. But love? This is how it felt; it’s as light as air, freeing and special, but somehow keeping him grounded and with the power to make his heart ache or race.

Is this what Isshin spoke of when he said someone could become your center?

Why did a realisation like this have to come at this time? He had enough on his mind, and now this. It should he the most important thing to him, but the repair and the dead are foremost on his mind. But somehow, it doesn't feel like a burden or another weight on his shoulder like he expects. If anything, it's inexplicably lifted some of that weight off. He can't stay focused on this, he'll need to unpack this later.

“I’m tired.” He can sense it’s not enough of an answer for her, so with some push back from the side of him that always keeps his innermost thoughts from being voiced, he adds, “I never knew you thought of me that way.”

She gives a weak chuckle. “I must admit, I didn’t think I would say that, it’s a little embarrassing, b-but it’s true.”

“…Thank you.”

“And you too, Shiro-chan. I didn’t know you thought about me that way either.”

Ah, he had more or less admitted she inspired hope, hadn’t he? A fresh blush starts to rise up to his cheeks, but he’s quick to tread away from her and continue down the path. “We’re not going to make it back in time to Hirako or Matsumoto, but we might as well continue to the Junrinan.”

She comes up to his side, smile rueful. “I suppose so, yes.”

“…It’s as you said, though, we need to put these repairs first, but we also need to take time to rest.” Again he fights that reserved part of himself to continue. “Sometimes that can include visiting someone or laughing a little or...being a little late to something." He almost cringes, it goes against his principal of always being punctual. "Regardless, it shouldn’t feel like you don’t have the right to rest.”

Her smile widens to a grin, and she takes his hands again. Unlike last time, a pulse runs up his arm like a lighting bolt and straight to his chest. Being in love is going to take some getting used to.

“I never thought I’d see the day you’d admit that rest can include laughing,” she says. “It’s hard in time like this to feel like you deserve rest, but it’s true. It’s like Captain Hirako told me once: ‘If you don’t rest, you can’t help anyone’.”

“I don’t know about that, but it is important.”

She giggles, and it’s one of the most soothing sounds he’s heard since the war ended. “It can look like friends helping each other too.”

_______________________

The girl stands beneath a bare tree, clad in her multiple layers, her back to him, and staring at the silhouette of the Seiretei through the mist. Just in front of her is the only alleyway that leads back to his house. Toshiro curses himself for not having turned off the main path sooner, but he hadn’t noticed the girl until he got this close.

Biting the inside of his cheek, he treads soundlessly to the other side of the path, into the cover of shadows. However, in his way all along the path’s side is snow, and the crunch of his footsteps will surely alert the girl of his presence. Perhaps she will be too caught up in her mind though, she hadn’t even noticed the ring of a chime from the house behind her or the budged when the wind grew stronger.

Needing to get home, he risks it, walking on the snow to the alleyway and keeping his head low. Something makes him tilt his head a fraction back to her as he moves along. Now closer, he can tell she’s around his age. Only a few souls were ever out in this cold, and all of them had been adults. She’s an oddity in that regard, and in coming out at this time. It’s the third time he’s seen her, and not once had he spotted her in the Junrinan at any other hour – then again, the district is packed with souls, he’d be lucky sometimes if he sees the same shopkeeper three behind the counter more than three times in the same month.

The wind catches on his scarf, causing the end to fly out of the shadows. He looks away from her and hurries his footsteps while trying to catch his scarf.

“Oh!”

Toshiro cringes at being caught. Despite his mind telling him to make a run for it, he’s stuck, as if the cold had frozen him on the spot. Without thinking, he looks back to the girl. Her wide eyes are brown, almost the same colour as her hair.

“Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you,” she asks, her words muffled slightly by the scarf covering her mouth. "What’re you doing out?"

“I could ask you the same thing,” he retorts without thinking.

She blinks, taken aback by his answer. After a moment, she shrugs. “I get up early.”

“And go outside?”

“Yeah, there isn’t much to do inside when everyone’s asleep.” She turns on her heel back to the silhouette of the Seireitei. "It's also the only time I get to see this clearly too, even with all the mist and snow."

With her attention diverted, he can make a getaway. He goes to, but she speaks up again.

"Have you ever been in there?" she asks.

The question is so preposterous he can't help but snark back, "As if they'd ever let any of us wonder in there."

"Oh, so it's just Shinigami then?"

He raises a brow. "You're new around here or something?"

She nods. "I arrived two weeks ago. I'm still learning everything." She tugs the scarf over her mouth down, showing her bright red cheeks and a wide smile. He's bewildered by the latter; aside from Granny, no one had ever smiled at him before.

"I'm Hinamori Momo by the way," she says.

She waits for him to reciprocate, but he wonders further into the shadows. Perhaps she was only being friendly to him because didn't know who he was or because, more likely, she can't make out his from over there.

Her smile dims at his reaction. "Ah, sorry. I guess I just came out and spoke to you without warning. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

The light of the sunrise faintly pierces through the clouds, shining through the alleyways and making the snow dully glimmer. She'll surely see him more clearly now

"Your hair is so white!"

He scowls and rubs a hand through his spikes without realising. "What about it?"

"Ah, sorry! It's just that I've never seen hair like your before. It's like the snow."

It's about the nicest thing anyone has ever said about his appearance and he isn't sure how to take it. Furthermore, it seems no one hadn't told her about him. It would only be a matter of time before she finds out, but maybe, for even a day, for even just this hour, he could talk with another who didn't judge him for his appearance or the apparent coldness he gave off.

He steps out from the shadows and on to the main street. In half a grumble, he introduces himself. "Hitsugaya Toshiro."

She tilts her head, but then it hits her. "Oh, that's your name." Her smile returns anew. "It's nice to meet you."

With introductions out of the way, he isn't sure where to take this.

He looks to the Seireitei, feeling nothing towards it, but right now, the world only has the two of them looking at the horizon, and it makes him feel something that's as light and boundless as snow.

_______________________

Toshiro comes to a stop before he ascends the stairs to Granny’s house. He takes in the structure of it, from the roof to the ground, thankful it remains standing. He knocks on the front door, and when she doesn’t answer, he wonders to the back.

She sits on the veranda, cup of tea in hand and a bowl at her side. It’s a peaceful image, one he almost doesn’t want to disturb. She doesn’t notice him at first, too lost in thought, but she perks up as he nears.

She abandons her tea, nearly stumbles trying to meet him halfway. He rushes forward, fearing she’ll fall. “Wait, Baa-chan!”

Her voice is weak when she finally speaks. “Toshiro…you’re…” She raises her hands, cupping his face between them. Tears form in the corners of her eyes, and her lips keep twitching between a frown and a relieved smile.

“I’m okay,” he reassures, voice raspy. “Hinamori is here too, she’s just visiting Ayumi and Tatsukichi.”

She brings him into a hug. “Welcome home.”

And that does it. Biting back a sob, he hugs her back. Relief floods through him, and the weight of his duties momentarily lifts away. He will go back and do everything he can for ever soul affected, to ensure they can have a home like this again.He will remember the dead, will ensure their families are looked after and to visit every shrine to pay his respects and his gratefulness to them.

It's a minute later when she ushers him into her house and brews a fresh pot of tea. He answers all of her worried questions, and she reassure him he is doing his best everything he had to do.

Momo joins them later, grinning as she hugs Granny and then as Granny prepares her a tea.

He can't look away from her, his heart beating faster whenever she looks to him and swelling when she laughs or smiles. To know he loves her, to finally have a name for the feelings he's had towards her, has changed him.

And maybe it had come to him now because in it’s own way, whether he ever confessed to her or not, knowing how he feels about her was hope. He can feel for her anew, could continue to live by her side with a new view of who she is.

[autailome]

ok no one asked but here we go. heeramandi episode 1 liveblog

ok IMMEDIATELY let me say im so mad that SLB is falling prey to the "its so dark you can't see anything" trend from western movies. one of my favorite things about devdas is how well-lit it is and how perfectly you can see the colors of everything. instead this is desaturated and dark

its also a bizarre choice to me to let us see mallikajaan's backstory right away? I assume we'll get more but it would've been nice to have her be Evil Lady with no sympathy for at least an episode

also SLB's niece does not remotely have the talent to be one of the lead roles on this. she has 0 charisma and like no expression in her eyes at all. why why whyyyy

at least manisha koirala is absolutely fantastic as mallikajaan

I LOVE SAKAL BAN I must say. perfect perfect perfect music that i've already been looping on spotify and will continue to do so

although i will say when i saw the previews on youtube of sakal ban a few weeks ago i assumed it would be a more relevant scene than just "yay its spring". feels very much like SLB just wanted to produce the song and threw it in there. i miss sooooo much when bollywood songs were almost entirely conversations between leads and not just music videos!!!

SO THRILLED to see farida jalal on screen!!! love her!!! happy to see her!! great casting!

this like fruity eunuch character...why is it just like the weird gay side character from padmavaat but with even more comic relief. SAVE me from this specifically oh WAIT the cop is gay too???????? hello?

wow i can not stress enough how much better this would be if there wasnt a nepo kid playing mallikajaan's daughter lol she has 0 charm

i swear to god why is SLB so obsessed with the desaturated monochrome these days im so so sick of it. i feel like everyone lost their mind over deewani mastani and he just never moved on. the last time he had a movie with actual bright colors was ram leela . like why is this entire protest scene just faded yellow and tan. bruh

okay that was like .. enjoyable and fine but nothing incredible. which is pretty much what i expect even though im hopeful about better

excited to meet fareedan. i feel like her and mallikajaan are gonna be the two best parts.

oh also when mallikajaan said i dont punish your body ill punish your soul i was like wow. love her

[savebatsfromscratch]

No.4 Shocked out of his mind.

Ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50575372

Words: 1,133

Cws: Electrocution, being unable to think, a sort of implied non-con right at the end.

Notes: I’ve actually written a bit of this scene before. (Scratch Writing Camp for the wing!!!) But I’m waiting on finishing it to post it here. That being said, this isn’t really a “scene rewrite,” as I haven't read this book in a while.

Prompt: No. 4: “I see the danger, It’s written there in your eyes.” Cattle Prod | Shock | “You in there?”

The room was dusty and empty, but it still gave Red the chills as he pulled himself shakily to his feet. “Where-?” he asked the still air, “Where am I…?” 

On his head, Pikachu chirped a soft warning, but Red ignored him as he looked around the room, taking in pale walls with suspicious wire coating. He didn’t know what would happen if he touched one, but for whatever reason, the hair on the back of his neck stood up at the thought. He looked up for the trapdoor he had fallen through, wondering if it was close enough for him to climb to and out, but as he watched, it slammed shut with a very final BANG!

Red jumped, and then stood shivering in the now dark room. That didn’t seem to be an option. “Okay…” he murmured, unaware of his defensive stance as he studied the tiles, wires, and singular closed door, squinting to see through the darkness.

His heart was beating fast, but he did his best to stay calm as he listened for anything that might clue him into where he had fallen in the building. He and Blue had run through a decent amount of the building together, but they had not passed through this room. Red felt panic rising in his chest. Since he didn’t know where he was, he wondered if it might be a better idea to stay in the strange room than to leave through the mystery door with the wires on it.

In fact, the only parts of the room that weren't covered in wires were the floor he stood on and the ceiling above his head. He felt a shiver pass down his spine. Something had to be seriously wrong here, especially since Blue wasn’t following him down into the room. Red glanced nervously back up at the now closed trapdoor. Had Blue closed him in? Was he in trouble too?

Red found himself leaning back, unsure of what to do in the situation he found himself in. Unfortunately, his clouding brain prevented him from remembering his own warnings about the walls, and a jolt of electricity zapped through him as he got a little too close to one of them. The room lit up with a yellow glow, and Red shrieked in pain, and Pika gripped tighter to his head as Red yanked himself away from the wall.

As soon as he was no longer touching the wall, the room became dark once more, though Red had seen enough through his pain to tell that every wall in the place was electrified, so bright they had glowed when he made contact with them. He put a hand to the unfortunate shoulder he had touched the wall with, finding himself still shaking as a strange numbness blurred through his arm and back. 

Yes, this was powerful electricity alright, and if he was right, he had felt the exact same shock before. It was unlike the static electricity that built up around feet brushed on carpet. Yes, much more painful. And yet these electrified walls were also unlike Pika’s electricity, which, while definitely still painful, was more of a “one and done” kind of deal. 

This was numbing. This was something that could stick with you for a while. But who did it belong to? Unfortunately, before his musings could get very far, Red’s vision lit up with yellow light as a Pokemon launched itself at his face, seemingly out of nowhere. 

Like any reasonable person would, Red screamed and ducked to the ground as several Electrodes and Voltorbs bounced off the ground around him. Thankfully, none of them made direct contact, but the electricity that tore the air between him still hurt as they brushed past Red and Pika.

Yeah, he remembered now, the Gym Leader Pokemon smuggler back in Vermilion city, the one who tried to drown him. Red turned just in time to see the door on the other side of the room slam open to reveal the massive villain that he would be fighting. Think of an over six foot, muscular, blond guy dressed in military camo, and then make him even more ripped.

Red’s breath caught in his throat as he struggled to control his breathing. The aftershocks of the Electrodes still zapped through him, and, in his numbness, Red found it nearly impossible to reach for his Pokeballs. If this guy was here…

He didn’t even have to finish the thought as the Gym Leader laughed and slammed the door behind himself. He stepped into the center of the room, and Red’s eyes caught on a belt of Electrodes and Voltorbs wrapped around the man’s chest and into a huge weapon that he had slung over his shoulder, where it nestled next to some poor Magneton.

“Lt. Surge,” he introduced himself, “Team Rocket commander, pleased to make your acquaintance,” he smiled horribly, but though the hair on the back of Red’s neck stood up, he did his best to hold his ground. A gym leader who was a member of Team Rocket, why wasn’t he surprised.

“I messed up your plans last time Surge,” Red hissed, doing his best to hide both his terror and his numbness, but probably failing at both. Pika hissed helpfully, but Surge only laughed.

“Well,” he smirked, “This time I won’t let you!”

Quick as a whip, the man fired another Voltorb at Red, and this time he wasn’t able to dodge. In fact, the blast was so quick that Red barely had time to scream as the Pokemon tripped him backwards into the wall, sending painful shocks of electricity all through his body. It was so painful that Red only registered that Surge was even speaking again a few sentences into his sadistic monologue. As it was, he had to physically fight the numbness in his brain as two Magnimites continued to hold him tight against the wall, keeping him shivering and confused involuntarily as the electricity threatened to control him fully. 

Quite honestly, he could hardly even get his mind on topic enough to even see the swimming walls around him, let alone to listen as Surge taunted him about this and that. Red couldn’t think, and his eyes streamed with painful tears as he tried to breathe without biting his tongue off at yet another surprise blast of electricity.

He had to think, but somehow he couldn’t.

Every time any plan tried to materialize in his mind, it was swept away by another wave of agony, and if it wasn’t, giving himself any chance to think only gave way to panic as Surge waltzed ever closer.

Hands were in his hair, on his throat, at his chest.

But he had neither the mind nor the strength to fight it.

[across-violet-skies]

Febuwhump day 17: hostage situation

Whumpee: Warriors

Whump Rating: 5/10

TWs: kidnapping/being held hostage, torture, brief mention of blood/injury, feelings of uselessness/expendablity

Warriors had fucked up.

He had fucked up big time.

He was usually good about watching his surroundings. He was usually good about being on guard.

Warriors had been on watch. The sun was just barely beginning to scrape the top of the horizon, peeking up to bring daylight to the world. It was beautiful, and since everything was peaceful, the Captain decided to do a perimeter patrol. It was more to admire the sunrise than actually scout the area, but nothing had attacked them here. They were in Wild’s Hyrule, and the monsters here tended to stick to specific areas, so he wasn’t too concerned with being attacked.

He meandered through the woods, ducking under tree branches and stepping over roots and plants as he made his way toward the cliff’s edge. Warriors sat down with a sigh, leaning back on his hands as he admired the way the world lit up, gorgeous shades of orange and pink and yellow swirling into a picture-perfect scene, only enhanced by the tranquil natural world around him.

The bushes ruffled behind him.

Warriors glanced back, not particularly concerned. There hadn’t been any signs of monsters around, and Wild’s monsters weren’t smart enough to hide. Most likely, it was a rabbit or other small critter that was more afraid of him than he was of it.

(Oh, how wrong he was.)

The Captain turned back to the sunrise, sighing wistfully as he relaxed in the morning rays. It wasn’t often he got to unwind, especially now that he was traveling in a group. It was nice to just… chill out for a while.

The bushes ruffled again.

Warriors closed his eyes, humming to himself. His ears flicked back toward the sound, but he did not turn.

Huge mistake.

Warriors didn’t remember anything after that. Everything had gone dark, and he had woken up in a dark room, tied to a chair.

Well. Things could certainly be better, but at least he was still alive. They weren’t even in his Hyrule, so Warriors wasn’t exactly sure why he had been kidnapped in the first place, but it also meant his kidnappers probably didn’t have a problem with him specifically.

Small fortunes, really. It didn’t change his current situation.

When one of his kidnappers finally showed his face, Warriors narrowed his eyes. Red skin tight suit, inverted eye mask… what did Wild call them?

“You’re awake.” The man raised his arms, almost showing off their surroundings. “Welcome to the Yiga Hideout.”

Yiga. Yes, that sounded right.

The Captain’s lip curled. “What do you want?”

The Yiga soldier laughed. “It’s not me you should be worried about.” Warriors rolled his eyes. “But if you must know, it’s not you we’re after. We want Link.”

“And you think holding me hostage is the best way to achieve that?” Warriors smirked.

“Well, you were traveling together,” the Yiga soldier pointed out, shrugging with one hand. “Your entire group seemed quite close… and you were the easiest to capture.”

Ouch.

Warriors huffed, ignoring that final statement entirely. “Let me rephrase– do you really think he’d sacrifice himself to save me?”

He could practically hear the menacing grin in the Yiga’s voice as he spoke. “I do. And so does the boss.”

The Yiga snapped his fingers, summoning two much larger Yiga. Warriors put on his brave face as they pinned him, undoing his restraints before dragging him away. He kicked and fought against his captors, but he was at too much of a disadvantage. The Yiga soldier he had spoken to laughed maniacally as Warriors was dragged away to Hylia-knows-where.

Warriors faltered, narrowing his eyes. As much as he wanted to believe Wild wouldn’t trade himself in, the Captain knew in his heart that the Champion would do anything to save him or anyone else in the Chain. Any of them would, actually. They all cared too much to not protect each other.

They arrived at a new room, and Warriors was tied up once more. This time, his restraints were tighter, allowing less room to shift around. And he was surrounded by weapons. No way this could go well…

The larger Yiga who had dragged him in here stood straight and tall, resting their hands on the hilts of their swords. “He is a companion of Link, sir,” one of them explained. “We couldn’t get Link, but perhaps if we had a bit of leverage…”

A medium-height, rounder Yiga stomped out to see him. He stamped his foot on the ground, throwing his arms around in a fit. “Why don’t we have Link yet?! Who is this?!” He screeched, crossing his arms.

The Yiga who seemed to be in charge huffed, clearly not happy but still accepting of this arrangement. “Fine. You better get him this time!” He stomped off angrily, muttering to himself as Warriors was left with the Yiga soldiers.

“Well… we need to make sure Link wants to save him,” one of the Yiga said, shrugging as he unsheathed his sword. “Shall we…?”

Warriors woke up bloody and bruised. He was still being held hostage, but that was a good thing– it meant Wild probably hadn’t turned himself in. At least, not yet.

The Captain groaned, wincing as his restraints tugged at tender wounds. The torture wasn't the worst he'd experienced… but, y'know… it's still torture. He would likely be nursing some of the deeper wounds for a week or more, depending on how things played out.

He didn't want Wild to come. Warriors wanted to be rescued, but not at the expense of one of his brothers. And without Wild, the rest of them would surely get food poisoning.

No, Wild wasn't an expendable member of their team. But Warriors was. They would do just fine without him.

The Captain sighed, slumping against the wall of his cell uncomfortably. They would come to rescue him anyway. He had been stupid enough to get stuck in a hostage situation, and his brothers, ever loyal, would surely find and rescue him.

Even if they didn't need him. Even if a rescue wasn't what he deserved. Even if it put Wild at risk. Hell, this was the Champion’s Hyrule– he was probably even leading the charge.

Warriors sighed, running a tired hand down his face. It was a waiting game now. There was nothing more he could do.

–> support me on ao3!!

[casspurrjoybell-17]

Heart’s Choice - Chapter 33

*Warning Adult Content*

John

I drive like a maniac and Becky ends up pressed into the passenger seat like an astronaut enduring the g-force of a rough launch.

"Jesus, John," she admonishes as I fly through a yellow light and take a sharp turn, causing the dogs to tumble around in the back seat.

"Be careful. We won't get there any faster if we're dead."

"Sorry."

I ease my death grip on the steering wheel and force myself to take a breath.

"Try him again, will you?"

Muttering to herself about men behind the wheel, Becky pulls my phone from the magnetic dash anchor, unlocks it with the code I haven't changed since we lived together and calls Carlos.

"Voicemail again," she says, re-sticking the phone to the dash.

"Fuck. It's been an hour. Something's wrong."

"Or maybe he's just busy," Becky says, though she doesn't sound like she believes it.

"There could be a million reasons he hasn't called you back, none of which are whatever nightmare scenario you've dreamed up."

"Maybe."

Any other time, I'd agree with her.

Becky was always the voice of reason between the two of us.

We took a trip on our honeymoon... we weren't in love but we figured what the hell and just about everything that could have gone wrong had gone wrong.

Our flights were delayed.

The airline lost our luggage.

The resort in Cancun had no record of our reservations.

I'd been ready to give up and go home but Becky had remained calm as a prosecutor who knows she has her case in the bag.

One crisis at a time, she handled it like a pro and in the end we had a great time.

Part of me is glad she's here now and wants badly to believe she's right but part of me is itching with anxiety and knows better than to ignore what my instincts are telling me.

And my instincts are lit like a three alarm fire.

A light ahead of us turns yellow and this time I stop and wait.

I'm glad I do because if I'd floored it, the dark windowless van that runs the red from the cross street would have sideswiped me and probably killed us all.

Becky squeaks and I turn to see her pressed into her seat again, staring straight ahead with wide eyes.

"Are you okay?"

She turns her head and blinks at me.

"No, I am not okay. What the fuck is wrong with this town? I thought people drove slow in places like this."

"One Delta Five, Dispatch."

The unit with that code responds.

"1D5, go ahead."

Dispatch replies.

"Man down, 418 Hawthorne. Caller reports victim is unresponsive. EMS is en route. Lights and siren authorized."

"1D5, en route."

"Look up that address," I say to Becky. "418 Hawthorne."

She snatches my phone again and opens the map app.

"It's... a restaurant," she says, squinting at the screen. "The... Perro Gordo Bar and Grill."

"Fuck. That's the Sandoval place."

"Sandoval?"

"One of our suspects. Alejo Sandoval. His family owns it. Carlos mentioned having met him there."

"John, just because someone was in a bar fight doesn't mean..."

The light changes and I accelerate into a U turn, speeding back the way we'd come and towards the center of town.

By the time we reach the scene, radio chatter has informed me that multiple units have responded, that it's a shooting and suspected homicide and that drugs may be involved.

I park as close as I can get, unbuckle my seatbelt and pop the handle on the door.

"Stay here, Becks," I say and get out, badge at the ready.

True to form, Becky doesn't listen, and follows with the dogs in tow.

She knows better than to actually get in the way or interfere, so I save my breath and concentrate on the scene.

Emergency lights illuminate the street in flashes of blue and red.

An ambulance, a fire truck and three patrol cars block the road,and a handful of gawkers with cell-phones held aloft gather in little groups at the sidelines. On the steps in front of the restaurant, a uniformed officer interviews an older man with a blanket around his shoulders who struggles to speak in broken English through his tears.

As I approach, a familiar form steps forth to block my way.

"John? What the hell are you doing here?" Latoya McKenzie raises both purple-nailed hands, as if to hold me back with the Force.

"What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were after the Morellis?" She frowns.

"I was. This took precedence."

Behind her, the EMTs wheel a gurney from the alley between the restaurant and the adjacent building.

I crane my neck and catch a glimpse of a black bag.

Latoya moves to block my view.

"John, you shouldn't be here," she says, sending a shock of ice through my heart.

"You're too close to this and..."

I shove past her, none too gently, ready to thrust my badge in the face of anyone who gets in my way.

No one stops me, though and the EMTs don't have time to react before I grab hold of the gurney and unzip the top of the bag.

For a moment, my vital functions seem to freeze, my heart and lungs turned to stone and then I suck in a lungful of air and nearly pass out with relief.

The face staring up at me, dark eyes already clouding in death, is handsome and tanned but it doesn't belong to the man I love.

My ears ring and it sounds like I'm underwater.

Someone loops an arm around my waist and pulls me away, forcing me to sit on one of the weathered, wood-slatted benches that line the sidewalks in this part of town, strategically placed to give footsore tourists a place to rest.

To my great surprise, it's Chief Coleridge herself who kneels in front of me.

She says something but I can't hear her.

I blink a few times and my hearing clears.

"What?"

She runs a hand over her hair and casts her gaze heavenward.

"Christ. I'd swear the job description doesn't say 'must be gay and prone to falling in love."

I choke on a laugh.

Her hawk like gray eyes lock with mine.

"Are you really okay?" I scrub my hand over my mouth and force myself to take slow, deep breaths.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay. I just thought..."

Her brows pinch.

"When was the last time you heard from Martinez?"

"Huh...?"

"Eight fifty-three," Becky's voice startles me and I look up to see she's standing at the end of the bench, my phone in her hand, checking the time on Carlos's call.

"And who exactly are you?" Coleridge asks, her gravelly Kate Hepburn voice dropping a few notes as she narrows her eyes and gets to her feet.

"Oh. Sorry. Rebecca Wu. Assistant to the DA, Sacramento. And John's ex-wife."

Becky extends her hand and winces.

"I swear it's not as awkward as it sounds."

Coleridge sizes her up and accepts the handshake with the graciousness of one ship's captain greeting another.

"Not sure you should be here but since you are..."

She beckons to the officer speaking to the old man, who I gather is the elder Sandoval.

The officer approaches and I recognize one of the younger recruits, blond and blue-eyed, and all of five-two and with a deceptively rounded physique but with a bull-dog's grit and a bear's strength.

I can't remember her name but I remember her putting some boys to shame in the station's gym.

"Carter, show them the video," Coleridge says. Carter, whose first name I now recall is Jane, taps the screen of her phone a few times and holds the device at eye level for me.

Becky stands behind the bench and leans down to watch over my shoulder.

On the screen, a grainy security video shows the length of the alleyway in a distorted, fisheye view.

The angle suggests the camera was placed about halfway down its length.

I don't dare blink as, at 3x normal speed, I see two figures come into view, one of which appears drunk or drugged.

I hold my breath as Carlos staggers and Alejo props him against the car before proceeding to show him something in the trunk.

Then they're joined by a third figure, who at first seems interested in Alejo's illicit wares and then... out of nowhere... pops him one in the back of the head.

With Alejo down, Carlos moves out of the frame with the too slow pace of someone trying to run in a nightmare.

The other figure follows him and a moment later both reappear as a van pulls up to block the end of the alleyway.

I watch, hand over my mouth, as Carlos is forced into the vehicle, which takes off like a Formula One car at the start of a race.

The video continues for a while after that, bugs floating in and out of the screen as the camera records the alleyway, empty except for the car and the motionless body draped over the open trunk.

Carter stops the playback and steps away.

I lift my eyes to meet Coleridge's.

"What the fuck was that?" Coleridge glances at the old man still weeping on the steps of the pub and lowers her voice.

"Jose Sandoval suspected his son was dealing drugs," she says.

"I guess he told his dad he'd made the money off BitCoin but the old man didn't believe him. He bought these cameras and set them around the restaurant, hoping to catch his boy in the act and knock some sense into him before he got into real shit and ruined his life. Unfortunately..."

"Too late for that," Becky murmurs.

"What about the other guy? You got an ID?"

Coleridge sighs.

"No. But given the circumstances and given that whoever it was seems to have been working as a pair with whoever was driving that van..."

"The Morellis," Becky gasps as if she's just solved the winning clue in some party game.

"That's what we're assuming at the moment, yes."

"Fuck. You remember that van that just about creamed us?"

Becky grabs my shoulder in an eagle-claw grip and shakes it.

"That was them."

A sick feeling slithers through my gut.

She's right.

My instincts had my nerves on fire at that point and I'd ignored them in the interest of appearing sane in front of Becky.

If I'd been alone, wouldn't I have known the man I'd bonded with was right there and wouldn't I have gone after him?

I shake my head as if to clear it and get to my feet.

Coleridge takes a step back at whatever she sees on my face.

"Whoa... John, let's just take a minute to..."

"No. There are no minutes to take," I say, consulting my watch.

"My guess is the Morellis know the game is up. The third phase of the ritual... the 'Feast of Betrayal' is technically meant to take place on the full moon but I'd bet we have until midnight to find and stop them."

"That's my thought, as well," Coleridge says.

"Which is why I've called for... backup."

"Backup?"

"Yes."

Coleridge rubs her brow.

"I wanted Dane Hunter on this but he's... 'busy,' apparently. But his sister's in town."

"I don't follow."

What the fuck do I care if some former detective's God-damn sister is visiting?

"She's..."

The rumble of an engine interrupts her and I turn to look as a single headlight approaches.

It belongs to a motorcycle... an Indian Chief Darkhorse, as I know from my days of pining after one and for some reason, no one stops it as it weaves a path through the blockade and pulls up in front of us.

The rider kills the engine and kicks the stand, dismounting as she pulls off her helmet and shakes out a head of long dark curls.

Six feet of photo-shoot ready, leather-clad attitude approaches and smiles at me.

"You must be John Turner," she says, extending a slender, brown-skinned, perfectly manicured hand.

"Freya Hunter. Nice to meet ya."

[perotovar]

Hi!!!! No worries if you don’t want to tell me or respond lol. But I really like the colour grading you did on that most recent Joel Miller gif set. I do photography and I’ve been struggling for ages to find a way to bring out the warm sort of brown tones without making things feel too muddy or red. Just curious about what HSL adjustments you made / what colour grading helped you get that look?

ohhhh my god thank you so much??? this might be a convoluted answer/unnecessary rant so i apologize in advance lol but i tend to keep the colorings/psds i use for gifs saved in a folder so every gif i make in a set is consistent with color/lighting/shading/whatever. i get anxious if there's even a little bit of difference per gif lol

a lot of what turned out in those gifs has to do with the lighting/coloring that's already in the show/that specific episode/scene. i've got the rest of the episodes' gifsets made and finished but i can try and kind of show what i'm talking about. they all look different color-wise, at least in my opinion, because of the differences in each episode's lighting. if that makes sense.

the goal with any gif i make, regardless of show/movie, is to make them either

1) better than what was there before (for example, if the movie is INCREDIBLY blue/yellow then i try and color correct that blue or yellow to be more neutral)(i'm looking at you triple frontier and your dark, blue ass scenes dfjkdflh)

and

2) not whitewash pedro. this is incredibly important (at least in my opinion) because i've noticed a lot of gifmakers (or least they used to) went for a really pastel/pale look and it whitewashed poc so dramatically and it was ~problematic~ to say the least. (i used to make gifs for a band that consisted of all mexican band members and i got hate a few times/people policing how i should color my gifs so the band wouldn't get whitewashed, so it's something i've been hyper aware of ever since)

so, even if i'm going for a more moody/darker aesthetic like i am with these gifsets of tlou, i never try and diminish the color pedro has in his skin tone. he's got a lot of color in his skin and i want to be able to see it, y'know what i mean?

basically, that boils down to keeping a lot of the warmer tones while also going for an ~aesthetic~ and it can be really hard sometimes. sometimes a show or movie, in this case the last of us, every episode is lit a little differently since it takes place over the course of a year.

i'll put some examples under the cut:

ok so i'll use episodes 2 and 8 as my examples.

to begin with, the last of us has, what i call, a "post-apocalyptic filter" over the top of it so i kinda have to work with that from the start. lots of greens/earthy brown tones and stuff.

this is with only sharpening applied and no color or anything:

and this is with my previously mentioned ~dark and moody~ psd applied on top of that sharpening:

now, this is the same color grading i used on that gifset you were mentioning.

this is also the same color grading i used on episode 8, which takes place in the winter/snowy areas so the coloring to begin with is going to reflect that:

and now with the coloring:

the big thing between these two scenes is that in the winter one, he's also recovering from actively dying and being deathly pale so any color he had in his face is really minimal lmao

so this is already way too fucking long and i don't think i even actually answered your question i am so sorry lol

to start, i ALWAYS start with an automatic curves layer and then adjust accordingly.

the actual color grading part mostly consists of vibrance, hue/saturation, selective color, channel mixer, gradient map, and level layers. i'm willing to give you the psd privately if you'd like to have a closer look at them!

thank you so much for asking and for putting up with my ranting lmao

[fasterthanmydemons]

[ Speedster of the Galaxy ]

Mantis smiled when Pietro stated he would be okay with Groot painting his face, saying he would just pretend to be asleep. “That’s really sweet. I know looking over a child is probably not what you expected or wanted when you joined the team, but Groot is good. He is very curious and friendly, he is always making up constellations. We raise him together.” And that made her happy. Mantis was glad she could help give Groot the light-hearted, happy childhood she couldn’t have.

“He likes it!” Mantis echoed Pietro’s words as Mr. Dibbles devoured the dandelion. She beamed, laughing and clapping cheerfully. Dandelions were delicious, so it was no wonder he liked them so much. She looked at Pietro as he explained why Rocket brought up Ego, and while a part of her did feel a little upset that Rocket revealed things about herself, she knew he meant well and wanted to give Pietro context to help him understand Mantis a little better. “Oh, you are not boneheaded. You meant no harm by it. It was an honest mistake.”

A sudden laughter bubbled up out of her when Pietro said Rocket mentioned that the Guardians had seen each other’s butts. Placing a hand over her abdomen, Mantis laughed harder as she realized they probably looked like a combination between a group of outcasts and a cult. But what made it funnier was how unbothered Pietro seemed by it. “Yes, we do feel a little too comfortable around each other. Some of us more than others. I mean, Drax walks around shirtless all the time,” she remarked. “When you travel the galaxy, at some point you treat everything like it is natural. Life in space requires you to have your guard up, so we let it down around each other.”

She smiled as Pietro tried to translate the name of Groot’s species. “Do not worry, your Latin is fine. It is actually my first language. I grew up speaking it. It was the language Ego spoke, although he spoke all languages; he was millions of years old and therefore had plenty of time to learn. It is an ancient tongue, far more ancient than people think. Ego means ‘I’ or 'me’, so I always had to refer to myself in third person. Instead of 'I’ or 'me’, I would say 'Mantis’ or 'this one’. Only Ego was allowed to have a sense of self.” Mantis said, her tone matter-of-fact. She wrung her hands a little. “If you ever wish to improve your Latin, you can let me know. I will be happy to help you.”

Mantis laughed once again, amused, as Mr. Dibbles tried to get to the other dandelions. His tenacity was worthy of respect. “He is so cute!” She nodded when Pietro asked if she was sure she was okay with the turtle eating her plants. “Of course! People usually need patience to grow their plants, so they feel bad when something happens to them because they had to invest time and effort.” Mantis touched the dandelions with her hand, and the other plants curled around it, begged for her touch. Her antennae started to glow with a dim light. “But I can simply do this.” Just like that, more dandelions grew, blooming just as bright, just as yellow, and Mantis plucked them, gleefully offering Pietro the bouquet, a feast for his turtle. “It is easy.” Despite the light of her antennae fading away, her face still lit up, happy to help this hungry little being. She blinked when Pietro asked if she would like to hold Mr. Dibbles after he was clean. “Oh, but… do you really trust me with him? You are so protective of him already.” Given that Pietro had lost his freedom on his home planet and the closeness with his sister, Mantis didn’t want him to feel like his turtle would be taken from him. However, she smiled, wondering what Mr. Dibbles’ actual colors looked like. “But I must admit, perhaps it would be nice. He is adorable.”

(Holy shit no wonder Noah feels he’s “less” than Basch, given that belief that the second twin should be killed. And ugh yeah, I wish they could include some of the deleted scenes. That’s why I consider them canon for Mantis + I add stuff from the comics like her plant manipulation, astral projection - though my headcanon is that she’s only able to astral project post-IW, after she was in contact with Thanos’ mind - and she also has precognitive abilities in the comics. I’m still not sure how to integrate that into her MCU self. Maybe as a result of that one thread where she calms Stephen’s fractured mind, since he guards the Time Stone? :o If you’re cool with that of course, since that’s your Stephen. I want to relate it to the Time Stone somehow since it would be logical. Also, happy belated birthday, Silence! <3)

__________

{ Well, all I know of Mantis I learned from IW and EG, and I can say that all the abilities you’ve given her seem to fit her well and all seem equally appropriate for her, whether they’re canon MCU or comic or otherwise. But then, you already knew what a fan I was of your Mantis, so... ;) And I love the idea of her gaining precognitive abilities from delving into Stephen’s dumpster fire of a mind! Go for it! I think it’s a very creative idea in the first place that she sort of gains new abilities or unlocks different potentials she has after interacting with other people’s minds. It makes a lot of sense that someone as empathic as Mantis wouldn’t be able to encounter other minds, especially ones that are very powerful or that have their own unique abilities, without coming away a bit changed. Very creative, I love it. And thank you! I feel so old, lol. XD }__

Did he seem like someone who didn’t like being around children? Pietro wondered as Mantis seemed to start apologizing in a way for Groot adding an unexpected child presence on the ship and among the Guardians. “I don’t mind him at all,” he said, shaking his head. “I like children. I used to play with the children in Sokovia. They liked me because I could run and get wayward balls and toys and things that got away from them and bring them back really fast.” His smile faded a bit then. “Too bad that by the time I got really fast... Sokovia didn’t exist anymore. But I hope wherever they are, they are safe and happy.”

Pietro chose not to argue with Mantis when she said he wasn’t boneheaded. If he was being honest, he felt awfully boneheaded so far, and he hadn’t even been on the ship for very long at all. But Rocket had also told him not to share as much and to keep things to himself so as not to upset Mantis, so he decided to focus on Mr. Dibbles instead. “I think you have made a friend for life,” he said, smiling. “He definitely likes these flowers. He made that one disappear pretty fast,” he said, watching the turtle with a chuckle. “He may be slow on his feet, but he is fast eater. Who says turtles need to be slow at everything?”

He had to admit that he was a little jealous of just how comfortable all the guardians were with each other. He wished he could have had the same with the Avengers, or with anyone, really. Well, besides Wanda, but he wasn’t with her anymore, and that was making him feel like he didn’t belong anywhere or with anyone. Never in his life had he felt more displaced and alone, but instead of wallowing in a bad mood, he was trying to let the Guardians bond cheer him up, even if he couldn’t be a part of it. “Is nice. To be that comfortable. I am happy for you all,” he said with a smile that was perhaps just a little bit sad. “Is good to be able to let your guard down sometimes, especially when your work is really stressful. So for you guys, home is not a place, it’s people. Is very nice.” His home used to be Wanda, but she had Vision now and was moving on from him.

“Oh yeah? Well you speak very good English for it not being your first language. Mine still needs work. Not many people speak my languages, though, so I try to speak English. Wanda is better at it than I am, though.” He really needed to stop mentioning Wanda. She wasn’t with him anymore, and he needed to find a way to move on without her. That was something he never thought he would have to do, and didn’t want to do, but right now he didn’t have much of a choice. At Mantis’ offer of helping him to learn better Latin, Pietro smiled again. “That would be cool. I would like that. But only if you were comfortable doing that. I don’t want to upset you again. You are very nice person and I don’t want to make you nervous or sad or anything like that. I can be a difficult student because learning from books has always been hard for me, but I would like to try if you are up for it.”

“Hey!” Pietro exclaimed with childlike excitement as Mantis made more dandelions grow. “That is really cool!” He’d never known anyone else with Mantis’ abilities before, at least with regard to plants. It seemed to him to be a really useful skill, being able to make plants grow much faster than they would naturally. “To be honest, now that I’ve got him up here in space, I am little bit worried about having enough food for him. But if you can make these grow, maybe he will be okay until I can get some supplies and things for him, yeah?”

Mr. Dibbles was absolutely delighted by the sudden appearance of more dandelions. Did it make sense? No. But also did he care? No, he was a turtle. Unexplained dandelions were just as delicious as ones that made sense to him. If a turtle’s eyes could light up, Mr. Dibbles’ definitely did at the sight of an entire bouquet of dandelions in his human’s hand. Maybe it wasn’t going to be so bad to stay here after all. If he could just get all this crusty mud off. Mud was okay, but once it dried, it got weirdly itchy and constructing, and Mr. Dibbles wasn’t having it.

“Of course I trust you with him. I can show you how to hold him so is no problem. You are so gentle with living things, and you were so nice to him just now, that I know he is safe with you,” Pietro said, trying to encourage Mantis. “I’m sure he would be happy to have more friends and not always be stuck with me all the time. Especially friends that understand his dining choices,” he added with a chuckle. “But okay, I should go and help him get clean now. You can help, if you want, but otherwise I’ll get him clean and then tomorrow you can hold him. Okay?”

[kat-earnshaw]

silence of the lambs

I used to lie like it was second nature. Still do, mostly to myself. That summer, I worked cancer research in a university lab, boxed in by PCR machines, Erlenmeyer flasks, and petri dishes streaked with colonies that I’d grown, scraped, and plated. Pipetting cultures, isolating DNA, loading gels, calibrating every damn machine in sight. Day in, day out, transferring minuscule droplets, incubating samples, waiting for results to manifest under microscopes and UV light. It was a mindless loop of testing, analyzing data, staring at rows of numbers until they made sense, like cracking a code. And sometimes, yeah, I’d get absolutely blitzed and see if the pieces fit any better.

Thing is, the lab barely paid, so I found ways to keep my stash green—mostly through this guy. One of those rich kids in summer school, probably close to failing out, from some Jersey suburb everyone knows because it’s where all the rich jerks live. I’d bum weed off him in exchange for what he probably thought was stellar company. I’d let him smoke me up; he’d get to play the philosopher with his three-sizes-too-big-for-him words. He wanted to “unpack” things I’d already buried deep and forgot about in middle school. He was dumb, but I was broke, and even broke-r that summer. So I took his weed, answered his questions, every answer a decade-old truth. And in between his decade-late mental growth spurt, he peppered me with personal questions, too.

What’s my favorite book? I’d say Looking for Alaska because it was when I was twelve. Movie? Silence of the Lambs, because I remember staying up past my bedtime to watch it, subtitles-only so my mom wouldn’t hear. Song? I told him Sleeping Sickness because it’d been stuck in my head for days, looping, maddening.

And caffeine? No coffee back then, it made me shake like I was coming undone. Just tea, weak and barely steeped. The panic attacks were daily, and meds? They hadn’t crossed my mind yet. When he asked me what kind of tea, I said, “Green,” just to shut him up.

Next day, walking out of the lab, there’s this giant plastic cup from Starbucks waiting for me on the staircase outside. Sweating, condensation running down its side, some pale yellow liquid diluted within. On the cup, in small, weak letters scrawled out in Sharpie: Alaska. Maybe he wrote it. Or maybe he had some barista write it because he couldn’t even manage that much. Took a sip, winced. Something sharp and wrong. Another sip—there it was, that tang. Lemonade. Lemonade cutting through dirt-flavored water. Fought the urge to leave it behind for him to see, but guilt caught me first, so I dumped it in a trash can just outside.

That night, we’re passing a joint around with all the summer burnouts, and he leans in. “Did you get it?” I nod, mutter thanks, watch him puff up like some kind of romantic hero. When someone else in the hazy circle asks me what kind of guys I’m into. I say, “Athletic,” loud enough for him to hear. He wasn’t exactly lean. Figured he’d get the message, but he just started showing up at the gym. Everyday, without fail. Synced with my schedule. Thing is, he actually dropped like fifty pounds by the end of the summer. I probably did him a favor.

But he kept bringing those cups, one Alaska after another, every damn day. I’d dump them like clockwork. By fall semester, he’s outside my dorm window, strumming Sleeping Sickness on this likely overpriced guitar his parents no doubt bought him. The kind of guitar that deserved a lot more respect than three mangled chords it took him two months to learn. My roommates cackled in the corners as I shut the window, hoping he’d take the hint. And the next week he texts me a photo of his laptop screen a scene of Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins, distorted and grainy, captioned, “Thanks for the recommendation.”

How do you tell someone who can’t pass American Lit 101 that your favorite novel is Blood Meridian? Or that your favorite song is something you can’t listen to without your chest aching? And seriously, who the hell hasn’t seen Silence of the Lambs?

Eventually, as you can imagine, it all came to a head. I couldn’t have this guy tailing me everywhere, waking up the whole sophomore tower with his midnight Dallas Green massacres. And secondly, I wanted to screw one of his friends. So one night, I told him, flat out: I hated lemonade, and he could kick rocks. I still wonder how much his dad shelled out for all those venti Starbucks drinks.

[oreosmilkshakes]

Hopelessly Devoted To You

Pairing: Morpheus/Dream of the Endless x reader Fandom: The Sandman Word Count: 2017

Warning(s): Dark Morpheus, unhealthy obsession, lightly detailed smooching scene

A/N: This is a one shot!! I was inspired by the god x worshipper trope because when I first saw it, I was like ‘I gotta write a fic on this’. Thank you to @beautifulbows924​ for this inspiration and for the read of your own take on this trope! I also combined the virgin!reader with this trope :D. Enjoy reading and comments are appreciated!

Taglist: @beautifulbows924​

--------------------------------------------

Since young, books and mythology had been a topic of interest for [Name]. First, it was the Egyptian gods and then it led to more than just Gods. Upon entering adulthood, her obsession grew more intricate to a point where it led to the discovery of special omnipotent beings that not many in the world knew. A special set of beings that were the embodiment of natural forces. [Name] travelled around the world, researching old books, visiting places where it was once said that these beings had visited.

Her obsession never stopped. Specifically to one being. Dream of the Endless. Everything she did, she did it in His name. Every decision she made, she would thank Him for helping her choose the right path. He was like God to her, praying to Him to try to make herself known to Him. Within the compounds of her little home sat a little shrine, ‘items’ dedicated to Him and for Him only. She dressed specially for Him, kept herself pure for Him to take.

Every night when she goes to bed, she prayed her dreams would involve Him. Everything had to be about Him. [Name] has dedicated her life to Him and for Him only.

[Name] had heard of a cult who had managed to capture one of the Endless. She was ready to travel over to witness everything with her own eyes but alas, a message got to her saying that they had captured the wrong Endless and it destroyed her. So much so that she immediately ran to her shrine and prayed for days and for nights.

Over the years, her collection relating to the Endless had grown very slowly. There was a book where the written language was nothing known to mankind, a slab of stone written in the same language. It baffled the girl at how incompetent mankind was in realising that there are godly beings who walk among them. However, the most important item sitting on her shrine was kept in a very small cylindrical bottle. Inside, held hair. Hair as dark as the fur of a panther, hair that was as dark as the night. It was said that this hair actually belonged to Dream Himself, when he roamed the streets of the City of Glass. On the topic of this, [Name] felt actual jealousy upon knowing that the ancient queen and Him tangled with one another.

She wanted that very much.

Sitting in the dimly lit room, one lit by candles on the shrine, [Name] held her head down, eyes skimming the yellowed page of the book. The unknown language made her head spin. What exactly did she have to do to get His attention? To call Dream of the Endless to her and notice her worship for Him? Screaming in frustration, she smashed her fist into the marble tile. The impact split her skin, the strain to her skin allowed blood through.

There were times when she wanted to give up hope, give up on the fact that her master had not yet noticed her. But she never went there. [Name] knew better and knew that she had to do more for Him to notice her.

A light vibration pulled [Name] out of her anger, her phone lit up with a notification.

‘I got what you asked for. Meet me in Greece,’ The text said. She leaned over to pick her phone up to reply, wiping her thumb of blood first.

‘Where?’

‘Island of Naxos,’

[Name] didn’t hesitate on what she did next.

The weather was warm and inviting the minute [Name] stepped out into the Grecian weather, pulling her sunglasses back down on her nose. There was no time to waste. She hailed for a taxi, which brought her to the hotel where she would be meeting a fellow follower.

Leon shook [Name]’s hand with a smile, guiding the woman for a sit.

He reached into his bag, pulling out a small case. He set it gently on the table, the locks open with a click. Turning it over to face [Name], he raised the lid, revealing a small, very clearly, a handwritten book. It was thin, looked light and as she leaned in closely, it was written in the old Greek language. Her jaw slacked, eyes widened as the closer she examined the book, the more she realised that it was a true piece.

“This is real?” Leon nodded with a hum. “Very real. Very, very real. I did a light read and it’s there. What you need, I mean,”

[Name] inhaled deeply, forefinger caressing the spine of the book. She reached into her own bag, retrieving his payment in the form of two big wads of cash. A brief exchange of goods and a briefer exchange of thanks and they part their ways.

[Name] knew she had much work to complete.

Days turned to weeks and the study room was in a mess. Messy written notes discarded on the floor, an empty mug that had been there since day one, [Name] hadn’t stopped and only doing so when she needed to eat, sleep and relieve herself. But everyday, her progress was getting better and better to the point that she was almost done translating.

[Name] kneeled before the shrine, glasses perched on her nose as her hand moved messily around the paper.

“..If you wish to invoke his presence, to..to summon..uh..to summon the God of Dreams, say his name..,” She mumbled, eyes wide. Was this it? The end of her journey but the beginning of her proper worshipping? One where she would constantly kneel before His throne, dressed in nothing but a black, translucent cloth to please His eyes, her hand rested on His thigh while their eyes locked? The imagination itself was enough to send goosebumps on her skin.

[Name] took in a deep breath before exhaling. As she turned to the next and final page, there was only a single word written. And she knew what it was. Quietly, she translated, eyes focused on the language book without looking at the name she was writing on the paper. Her eyes focused on the last letter, indicating that was the end of it. The end of the book. Slowly, she averted her eyes to the paper, a smile curled on both corners of her lips.

“Oneiros..,” The name rolled off her tongue like butter, enough to make a god crumble to his knees. [Name] looked around, her apartment empty as usual. A tired sigh left her lips. He wouldn’t just come to her just like that. Perhaps a little rest won’t hurt.

[Name] dropped her pen on the paper, leaving the study room for her bedroom. Kicking off her bedroom slippers, she crawled under the duvet, the warmth engulfing her like a lover. As she fell asleep, she dreamt…

The world was dark. Everything was in pure darkness and yet there [Name] stood, in the darkness. She looked to the sides to find nothing but pure emptiness. She turned around and spotted something in the far distance.

“Hello?” She called out. No reply. Just silence, like outer space. Her legs began moving her towards the direction of that something and the closer she got, the clearer it became. A man and a woman. The woman had her arms around his neck, eyes closed while the man had his hands gripping her waist. Low moans came from the woman, soft grunts and growls came from the man as their kisses were filled with passion and hunger. This confused [Name]. What was this dream? What did it mean? She slowed to a stop, a few metres away from the couple. The closer [Name] looked, the more she recognised the woman. She looked strikingly similar to her and this alarmed the girl.

The woman’s eyes flew open, lips still sensually locked with the man and [Name] looked on in horor. It was her! She took a step back as the woman whispered something in the man’s ear. He turned his head slightly, enough to look at [Name] over his shoulder with a dark look and a smirk on his red lips.

[Name] gasped awake, sitting up and panting lightly. The skies outside were still dark and the clock read that it was close to two in the morning. What the girl failed to register was the fact that the woman in her dream, her, was entangled with a man she had never seen before. She swallowed, pushing the duvet off her legs.

“Oneiros,” She whispered, seeking his help to calm her heart down. The girl left her bedroom for her kitchen to pour herself a glass of water, unaware that a pair of glowing eyes was watching her among the darkness. A few gulps down and her heart was steady enough to visit her shrine again.

But this time, something felt off about everything.

[Name] set her glass down, quietly leaving the kitchen for the study room. The room was still the way it was so what changed? She gulped, kneeling down before her shrine and closed her eyes. Her prayer was quiet but loud enough for Him to hear.

A cool hand hovered over her head, a low hum coming from the being.

“I hear you..I hear your call, my beloved,” The voice, deep and low, sent shivers down her spine. [Name]’s eyes slowly open. Morpheus stood before her, as soft gasp left her lips.

“Oneiros..,” Her words trailed off as Morpheus kneeled down, a small smile on his lips. His fingers rested on her chin, tilting her head so their eyes met. He took in a deep breath, humming lowly.

“My beloved, such a good and obedient little worshipper. I have lived endlessly and never have I met anyone as devoted as you,” There was adoration and slight mockery to his words, definitely from the fact that [Name] was obsessed with Him.

“Oneiros–,”

“Please, dear one. Morpheus,” He corrected her firmly yet gently.

The girl swallowed. “M-Morpheus, you’re here..You’re actually here..I..,” Her breath hitched, captured by his dark beauty. His beauty matched Him well. This was Him. Her God. “I h-have worshipped you for years, prayed to you, did things in your name..kept my purity as my gift for you. I never stopped worshipping you, finding ways to you, hoping you would hear my call,” She rambled on and the grip on her chin was enough to tell her to stop. Morpheus released her chin, turning his hand. The girl took it, standing. His cold eyes stared down at her as his hand snaked to the back of her neck. Morpheus pulled her close, the girl nuzzling his neck while he nuzzled her hair. The scent of it triggered his head wildly and deliciously.

The girl moaned lightly, hands resting on his chest. His hands moved down to rest on her hips, gripping it lightly.

“My beloved, are you ready to fully devote yourself to me? To kneel by my feet for the rest of your life? To worship every step I take? To share the same bed with me? To allow me to revel in your purity in all of its might?” Morpheus’s warm lips brushed against her ear, a low whimper left [Name]’s lips.

“You will stay with me forever in my realm, in my palace. You can never return here and should you do anything I do not like, you will be punished. Are you ready for a life with me?”

His words were a warning to her. [Name] still had time to back out. But why should she? Her devotion to Morpheus was stronger than her own logic. Like a mindless soldier following his captain to a shadow war. She pulled away so their eyes met, her hand moving to the back of his head. Her fingers gently tug on the hair there. He needed to hear the key words, only then will he whisk her away.

[Name] smiled widely, leaning up slowly to nuzzle affectionately against his rough jaw. 

“Anything for you, Morpheus,”