#when he’s with kris - it’s head empty no thoughts

[glitterandgoldrush]

bronwyn: i have a bad feeling about this…

nate: what do you mean?

cooper: like that little voice in your head that says “this is a bad idea,” you know?

addy: no.

nate: no.

bronwyn: unfortunately this explains a lot

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 39 (New Romance!)

Weather was perfect the day of the Romance Festival, but Heather's stomach twisted with nerves. "He's basically Prince Charming," said her sister, Holly, as they arrived. "What are you afraid of?"

"The last time I felt butterflies like this, I couldn't have been more wrong about the man I fell for."

"Stop thinking about Malcolm before Conrad gets here or you'll have to drink two Sakura teas just to get out of your bad mood."

Heather shuddered. "I don't know why anyone would want to feel that flirty!"

"Maybe you'll want to feel that flirty if he's the right guy."

Kris was the first to spot Conrad across the plaza and waved him over. Heather introduced him to her friend, Dylan, and her husband Gavin (yes Richards, sorry no screenshots here. I was laser-focused on Heather and Conrad), who had left their daughter Pearl and newborn son Darrell at home in the Spice District with her mother. Dylan eyed his outfit. "Are you on duty tonight, Detective?"

"Crime doesn't always take a weekend." Conrad blushed. "I got called into work this morning and didn't have time to change before I said I'd be here, but I guess I should take off the badge."

"Don't worry about it," said Kris. "The vendors won't try to overcharge if they see us hanging out with a cop."

"Who wants Sakura tea?" asked Holly, as the group finished bowls of spicy ramen. With Heather's mouth on fire, the flirty pink tea actually sounded appealing. She followed the others to the tea fountain, where Conrad poured two cups and handed one to her. This delighted Holly. "You're a gentleman, Conrad!"

"Thank you," Heather said as she took a sip. Instantly, the flirty brew raced to her head. Her fingertips tingled as they slid over the plastic cup.

"Thanks for inviting me."

"I didn't. I mean, I wanted to, but I don't know if I would've asked if Holly hadn't said anything. I'm not very good at this."

Conrad smiled. "I haven't dated seriously since college. Girl broke my heart, and it's easier to focus on work."

"I know what you mean."

She pulled out the clay from the gallery and fiddled nervously. He smiled. "Did you ever play that video game where you had to dig for clay and jewels and av-"

"-and avoid the demons? Yes! I loved Maniac Miners!"

"When they announced they turned it into a TV show I thought it would be so cool!"

"But it was for babies! My sister Hazel was five then, and she didn't even like it!"

He smiled, taking the clay from her hands. His blue eyes gleamed in the pink light of the festival.

With her hands free of clay she took a breath and emptied her tea cup. The tangy beverage made her lips tingle, but it also made her feel brave. She pulled herself against Conrad and pressed her lips to his.

He didn't even have time to drop the clay.

They pulled apart and shared a quiet look. Both vulnerable, afraid to say out loud how the kiss really felt. But in that look, they knew it meant something. "You can kiss me like that again. Anytime," he said.

Though he spent time getting to know Holly, Kris, Dylan and Gavin, Conrad spent most of the festival at Heather’s side. It might have been the Sakura tea, but that first kiss wasn't their last. Heather had never had a better first date.

At the end of the night, Conrad didn't want to leave her side. "I have to get home to let Gord out, but if you wanted to come by and say hello, I'm sure he'd be thrilled to see you as always."

"She'd love to," said Holly with a grin.

Buoyed by the effects of the Sakura tea, Heather followed Conrad to his apartment building a few blocks away... ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

[alien-girl-21]

Since I won't see my friends until next year, I thought it would be a perfect time to do this again

Joker out and käärijä as random shit my friends say!!

(+ sneaky joost in one entry)

Under the cut because it's LONG

Kris: I actually miss Bojan, i'm going to tell him to come back from New York... but don't tell him I said that, it might get to his head that I actually like him

-

Bojan: writes on the board

Jan: is that arabic?

-

-Bojan's first time taking money out of the atm-

Bojan: what do I do now?

The screen of the atm: please select the language of your transaction

Martin: choose Slovenian, idiot

-

-at the airport-

Bojan: I'm going to get a pamphlet real quick

Jan: sure, I'll wait here

Bojan, coming back empty handed: I think I fell in love

-

Kris: in bojan's defense —not to defend him— but in his defense

-

Nace: hey, you wanna share this cookie?

Jan: sure

Nace: it doesn't break though, I already ate my half

Jan: you're an idiot, of course it can break, here, see? I broke it

Bojan: I ship you guys

-

Jan: -breaks a chair-

Jan: fuck, let me fix it -breaks the chair even more-

Jure: try to put the thing in that hole

Jan: -fixes the chair- Bob the builder 😎

-

(In the gc)

Jere: you want go party?

Bojan: I can't

Bojan: i'm sick and don't want to get worse

Kris: if Bojan isn't going, I'm not going

Jure: no fucking way 🤣

Bojan: I had to read that twice

Bojan: I was about to call him a bitch

-

Allu: if someone was killed while we were together, I think that Jesse, Jukka, and Jere would be the most level headed one's

Jesse: I think that Jere would be the one in charge to calm us

Jere: I would be making jokes like "at least we're better than that guy" and pointing at tommi's dead body

-

Jure: might go to this -shows a flyer for a singles only cruise-

Nace: only 99 euros? That's cheap... when is it?

Bojan: aren't you taken?

Nace: Oh fuck, I am

Bojan: apologize now

Nace, taking his phone out: I'm so sorry, babe

-

-during esc-

Bojan: okay, we're next, we can do this

Nace: -starts doing push ups for some fucking reason-

-

Jere: i go on stage now

Bojan: NOOO— i mean, YESSS

Jere: ?

Bojan: i'm just used to you leaving me alone :(

-

Jure and bojan: playfighting

Jure: now it's your turn, jan!

Bojan: jan wouldn't do that to me because he respects me 😌

Jan, getting ready to slap bojan:

-

(In spanish because there is no way to translate this dad joke)

Bojan: antes de que se me olvide, les quería contar un chiste: donde nacen las computadoras?

Jure: no sé

Bojan: en el mar

Nace: por qué?

Jan: porque navegan

Bojan: porque son peces

Kris: miren a los tremendos payasos que nos cargamos en esta banda

Bojan: 🥰

-

Host: for this, we're going to need groups of 6

Joker out: does a group hug

Bojan, tapping jere's arm: jere, jere

Jere: what?

Bojan: join us

Jere: really? Me? 🥰

Bojan: yes, you, you're part of the group 🥰

Kris: can you two stop?

-

Kris: do you have a pen?

Bojan, handing him a rainbow pen: yeah

Kris: gay pen

Bojan: at least it works

Kris: faggot

Bojan: I am! You have a problem with that?

Kris: I was talking to the pen! Not you!

-

Interviewer: Who would survive the longest in a deserted island?

Everyone: Jure

Bojan: I could survive, I think

Kris: I think that a coconut would fall on your head and you would die

-

Jesse: if a girl asked to peg you, what would you say?

Häärijä: no

Jere: skill issue

-

While watching a football game, in the gc:

Jan: well, i'm going to wait for the game to start while eating my cereal

Bojan: now I want some

Jan: the small box costs 2 euros in the supermarket

Bojan: you know what? I'm going to the supermarket now, i'm going to spend money because of you

Jan, sending a pic of the cereal box: here it is for reference 👍🏻

-

Bojan, after turning the washing machine on and somehow there was a power outage in the whole floor at the same time: ☹

Martin: hey, don't worry, it wasn't your fault, bojč

The electrician, a couple of days later: yeah, so, the outage was caused because someone used too much electricity in this apartment while someone was showering in the unit next to this one

Martin: so it was your fucking fault

-

Jan: I photoshopped us into some world cup images

Nace: it looks like Messi is kissing you, Bojan

Bojan: yeah

Jure: that's your dream right? Messi kissing you?

Bojan: yeah 🥰

-

Someone: yeah, so I spoke with the director, and he asked me if I spoke dutch and I said yeah

Jure: can you speak duch to us?

Someone, in dutch: I can, but what can I say? I just learned it to learn it, not because I liked it

Jan: okay, okay, Kris, it's your turn, reply in Dutch!

Jure: like we practiced

Bojan: literally jumping up and down like an excited puppy

-

Kris: this is bullshit, stupid fucking coordinators, they have shit in the fucking head instead of a stupid brain!

Jan: said the princess

-

-while playing volleyball-

Jure: just imagine the ball is your ex!

Bojan, cradling the ball in his arms: i'm so sorry, it was all my fault, I miss you everyday

Jan: great job, idiot

-

Nace: you look really good today, Bojan

Kris: yeah, your outfit is really well color coordinated

Bojan: thank you, krisko

Nace: and what about me?

Bojan: it's because Kris only bullies me, so a compliment from him matters more

-

Jure: idk if I'll be able to go out this Saturday, my parents are starting to make milk, and because of that I need to close their shop that night

Kris: making milk?

Jure: soy milk, yeah

Kris: Oh, I was about to ask since when did your parents have cows

Nace: moo

Jan: moo

^ they proceed to moo at each other for the next five minutes while the conversation carries on

-

Jere, just minding his business:

Häärijä, handing him a paper crown: you are now the queen of this realm

Jere: ❓

Häärijä: you will be the queen until we vote on who will be coronated next

Jere: thanks?

Häärijä: my pleasure, your majesty

-

Kris: I actually didn't call any of my exes while I was drunk last night, that's a great achievement!

-

Jere: hey guys, sorry if you hear me swearing, i'm playing a videogame..... FUCKING BULLSHIT

-

Jesse, after jere got the piña colada tattoo: hey can I see your prision tattoo?

-

Nace: remember to participate in the meeting

Bojan: i'm watching football

Nace: they're asking you a question bojč

Bojan: GOAAALLL!!!!!

-

Bojere, sitting chest to back in a bench:

Jan:

Bojan: Oh Jan, sorry that we're facing away from you

Jere: you want to hug me too? Join train?

Jan: yeah sure, let me just—

Jere: no! Don't touch me!

-

Kris: I would like to go back in time to meet Jesus and smoke weed with him

-

Käärijä: so, I'm walking to get to work, and I see a line of police cars and I'm thinking "I fucking hope that they don't want to do spontaneous searching because my bag is 90% weed, 10% my actual stuff"

-

Someone: yeah, this is my daughter, she's 4 and learning how to play drums

Bojan: that's your daughter? Oh my gosh 🥺

Kris: Bojan, you have a severe case of baby fever

-

Jere: where are the bathrooms?

Jukka, craning jere's head up to see the giant "TOILET" sign above them: over here

-

Kris: would you be with a guy?

Bojan: I'm bisexual, of course

Kris: what? 😱

Bojan: I already told you, you know this!

Kris: WHAT??

-

Joost, in the middle of having sex: babe wait, codnom broked :(

-

Kris: do you guys think the bouncer will let me in? I'm kind of tipsy

Jan: just go in confidently, he won't suspect a thing

Bojan: the last time he went in confidently he was banned from the club

-

Jan: so, how'd you sleep last night?

Kris: good

Jan: you don't seem so convinced

Kris: I slept in late

Jan: how late?

Kris: midnight

Jan: Oh, how blasphemous, how late

-

Kris, anytime they go to a new city: look at this door! I'm too tall to fit in it... look at this other door! I'm also too tall to fit in it... look at this door!

-

Bojan, about stephanie: she's the world cup and i'm bolivia.... but hopefully I'll be bolivia in '94 and she will still be the world cup

-

Jan: I'm not like Jesus, at all

Bojan: well, you kind of are in some ways

Kris: yeah, you only hang out with fags and prostitutes

Bojan, pointing at them: here you have three fags

Bojan, pointing at jure: and there's a prostitute

-

Jesse: why are you leaving everything for last minute?

Jere: because I fucking want to and I fucking can 😝

Häärijä, holding up the printed meme: 🐴🤝🏻🐴 no pelien

-

During a post-barcelona pre-party meeting:

Kris: I think that's all for today

Bojan: typing very loudly

Jan: who are you talking to?

Bojan: with someone 🥰 you know him already

Nace: ohhh the lovebirds 😏

Bojan: raising his hand up repeatedly

Kris: yes, Bojan?

Bojan: I'm really happy 🥰🥰 -instantly goes back to typing-

Kris: I'm happy for you, man

-

Jere after inflating five balloons for a party: well, my job here is done, time for my very well deserved rest

Jesse: get back up, you fuck, we need to move these chairs

-

Häärijä: bartender! Bartender! Bartender!!

Jere: I'm here, what do you want?

Häärijä: hi :) -leaves-

-

Bojan: sometimes I feel like I am batman and žare is the riddler

-

Jukka: you guys would be the worst clowns at a kid's birthday party. They would ask you for swords, and you would give them snakes

-

Kris, after seeing Jure having a sugar crash: someone give him a fucking celery or something, he's fucking melting on the couch!

-

Jere: you live life like it's last day, say sorry to people, hug people, even punch if you have to punch!

All of joker out: raising their fists to punch bojan

-

Jere: we only had a 5 euro budget for this secret santa so I bought one chocolate bar

Allu: it's not even wrapped!

Jere: wrapping paper is expensive!

-

During the secret santa:

Allu: I'm so fucking scared of seeing who jere got

Jere: so I had to buy something for...... Jesse!

Jesse: FUCK!

[vacantfields]

Silly Time

SO UH i finished it (: teehee

be kind as always as i was just having fun with it!! thank you for the love on the snippet of this... i hope you guys enjoy this silly thing!! Happy new year from me!!

[1,178 words]

---------------------------------------------

It was another sunny day in the Daycare. Kids were playing and screaming in delight as they ran around.

Sun was sitting with some quieter kids at the small table, where they all drew on some colored paper with crayons. He, too, was drawing along with them. It looked rather comical as he sat there, his legs bent like a frog would sit, and in his hand a tiny crayon as he doodled on the blue piece of paper he had gotten. Sun was enjoying his day until a tiny voice spoke up at the table.

"Uhm... Mister Sun?"

Sun looked up from his drawing, his faceplate doing a silly little spin and his grin soft. 

"Yes, little star Kris?" 

The little girl looked down at the crayon in her tiny hand before speaking again. "I was... Wondering if you knew why Mister Moon calls the nice security guard, who comes here sometimes, for Love."

Sun trained his barely moving expression to remain still, though inside, he was shocked by this new knowledge. "Oh? Moon calls them for Love?" He tried to poke Moon's AI in his headspace, but the other remained quiet. Sun and Moon were able to communicate through their shared headspace, but the other AI moved away from Sun's poking, making him scoff internally.

"Yeah... I was just wondering because my mom and dad call each other that." Little Kris continued before going back to doodling as little kids do when they lose interest in getting an answer.

Which fit Sun fine as his inner workings were reeling, his fans kicking in. Moon had never mentioned that he was hanging out with a night guard, and especially not this one.

Sun could usually peek through Moon's eyes and be present when Moon was in control, but lately, the other AI had closed the connection, and at first, Sun thought maybe Moon just needed alone time, which was, of course, fine! But it seems there were other things at play. 

But Sun couldn't ask Moon about this right now. He was working and busy as he was an excellent daycare attendant. He thought so himself, at least.

--

Luckily for Sun, the kids got picked up earlier today, and he decided that as soon as he had cleaned, he would poke his other half until he responded. 

As Sun swept the floors and cleaned the surfaces, he heard the doors open, and the Security guard came in. The animatronic scattered to the playground to hide as he often did when this guard came around. It was not that he hated this security guard or anything. He and Moon didn't trust any of the adults. But for Moon, that might have changed.

"Hello? Moon?"

Sun was in one of the play castles, quiet as he hid in the small tower, checking his internal clock. It was indeed time for Moon to come out, and Sun could feel the other stir.

The sunny animatronic kept his white eyes on the security guard, hiding behind the castle doorway as he spoke internally. 

"Oh! So now you respond to me." Sun grumbled.

"... I just woke up," Moon mumbled back in reply.

"And?! Moonie, what is this about you calling THIS security guard for 'Love'??!" 

Moon groaned in the headspace. "You said you didn't like them, and I wanted to see them for myself and quickly found out you're being a dumbass."

Sun squawked in their shared space. "ME?? A DUMBASS? Moonie! The adults are not nice to us ever. I mean, you even told me you hate all the night guards and the security guards!"

Sun could feel Moon rolling his eyes. "This one's different. Let me out. They're calling for me still."

"Nuh-uh."

"... What the hell do you mean 'Nuh-uh'??" Moon growled.

"Moon? It's time to do the rounds!" The short guard called out into the empty Daycare, then removed their hat to scratch their head. "Moon? It's okay if you don't want to! Uh..."

Sun kept his eyes trained on the guard from his hiding spot. 

Moon continued. "Sun! Let me out!"

"I can't believe you trust them to do those security rounds with you! They're small! weak!"

Moon scoffed. "They're nice! Now let me out!"

Sun hummed and then replied, "No."

"NO?! SUN!"

The Sunny animatronic then shut the other AI out, dooming Moon to sit back and watch as he moved down from the play castle and over to the security guard. 

"Hi, Friend!" Sun said with a bright smile.

The security guard jumped in surprise and dropped their hat. "oh! Hi Sun!" they stuttered and bent down to pick the hat up. "I was wondering why the lights were still on..." They mumbled to themself.

Sun frowned, and Moon broke through. "You have never been kind to them, you wannabe jester." Sun gaped internally. Oh, how he wished he could punch his other half.

"Well! Sunshine. I got the task of cleaning the Daycare, and it took a bit longer than I thought," Sun said with a smile, but it faltered when he heard Moon's deep chuckle in the back of their shared headspace.

The guard looked at Sun with wide eyes and flushed cheeks. 

Sun then realized he had given the security guard, he had avoided at all costs, a nickname, an endearing one as well. "Oh."

"Uhm... Well, if Moon isn't active, can you tell him to come find me once you're done?" The guard- ["-Sunshine." Moon supplied with a smirk in this tone.] 

Sun groaned lightly, running a hand down his faceplate before smiling at the guard. "Or we could go together?" 

Moon growled in the back of his head. "You cannot take my time! Sun! Go turn off the lights. Now."

Sunshine, the guard, looked shocked; it looked like this was so out of pocket for Sun to suggest. "Oh!... Are you able to leave the Daycare?" They curiously asked.

Sun hummed. "Yes, of course! If Moon can leave, why shouldn't I also be able?" he asked with a spin of his faceplate, causing Sunshine to let out a flustered giggle.

"True... Well, alright, if Moon doesn't mind," They said with a smile. Sun smiled sweetly as he heard Moon complain angrily, wandering around in their headspace. "He doesn't mind at all, Sunshine! It will be good for us to get to know each other!" He held his hand out to them, which they grabbed with a shy smile. 

"Ooooo, when I get you, Sun." Moon hissed quietly in their shared head, to which the sunny side of the animatronic let out a quiet chuckle before looking down at Sunshine and guiding them to the massive doors at the entrance to the Daycare.

The two left the Daycare hand in hand to do security rounds. Maybe Moon was right about this one, Sun thought as he glanced down at the guard as they walked together. 

This time it was different.

Not that Sun ever wanted to give Moon right, but perhaps he could let this guard close to them.

Just this one time.

[rwby-encrusted-blog]

Pokemon Protag Vibes

Please note I have only player White, X, Sword, Legends; Arceus, And Scarlet. I Have not played Masters EX, nor have I watched any of the Anime since Indigo league.

Leaf: Talks Constantly, Says nothing. Valley Girl-esque mannerisms.

Ethan(G/S): Mischievous Gremlin

Ethan(C/HG/SS): Head Empty, No thoughts. big Jock Energy.

Kris: Very Confident, that confidence isn't always earned.

Lyra: Horse Girl. She's got a horse Girl personality. Willing to use her bag as a weapon.

Brendan: He drives a Square Body Ford that his dad had in the 70's. It's more of a daily driver than a truck. He keeps it in fairly good condition, but the inside is full of Fast Food Wrappers.

May: Drives a Toyota Hilux her Dad has from 88'. It's more Mud than Paint on the outside, and sounds like a dying bouffalant. Somehow Perfectly clean on the inside.

Lucas(BD/BDSP): Art Student that does yoga on the weekends.

Lucas(Plat): Theatre Student.

Dawn: Fashion Icon. Always wears a skirt even when it's below freezing. Carries a pocket knife on her just in case. Definitely bedazzled her phone case.

Hilbert: Quiet but also very expressive. Someone could try and mug and he'd say "Oh, Sorry, I'm late for something." And just keep walking. Wouldn't even realize the threat was there until someone tells him what was happening.

Nate: In another life he's an Alolan Ace Trainer.

Hilda: Prep Student you'd meet in High school, but She also looks like she'd knock someone's teeth out of their head if they messed with her, Preferably with a brick.

Rosa: Kinda Motherly? Upbeat, energetic, and exciteable in the same way as Hilda, just a bit more gentle.

Calem: Fawning Hopeless romantic. Dramatic in all his movements. He will wreck your team and laugh like a villain while doing so. He's actually a very nice person.

Serena: Looks very cute, acts very Fem. Generally a girly-girl, but she does get excited about destruction. Like. manic about it. Like Pyromania.

Elio(SM): Acts more like a Rival than any of the actual Rivals. He's not antagonistic but he's also not just your friend. He's a good pal, but also your enemy. He's serious about battling in a way only Red can Match.

Elio(USUM): "Hi, Would you like to talk to me about Dinosaurs?"

Selene(SM): She gives the best hugs out of everyone on this list. She also loves to give out hugs. You will be Hugged. There is no Escape.

Selene(USUM): She's either going to go eat worms or to convince someone else to eat a worm. Possibly Both. Probably both. It's both, she's going to do both.

Chase: He's %110 going to fist fight a Machamp on a dare. Or because he's told it's a very bad idea. He has no concept of self preservation. He drinks nothing but Capri-Suns and Chocolate milk.

Elaine: Telling Chase it's a very, very bad idea to fistfight a machamp. Will follow him and join him in the fight when he gets too deep. She's not gonna like doing it, but she's gonna do it.

Victor: Whatever he's doing, he'd rather be playing Cricket or having a pokemon battle.

Gloria: The internet declared her as a loud mouthed Scot and who am I to argue with the masses on that.

Rei: If Spider-Man (Specifically Peter Parker) was a Pokemon Character.

Akari: If Squirrel-Girl was a Pokemon character.

Florian: Scared of everything, and in that way brave every moment he's awake.

Juliana: Terminal Brainrot, Terminal Brainrot. Penny can only understand half of the "words" that come out of this girl's mouth. She should not have unlimited access to a phone at her age.

[mint-ty]

I saw your post for a prompt, here you go!

Bojere meet at a club, there’s dancing and maybe something more

💚❤️ a sad Bojere bitch in need of some uncomplicated fun times

hiii anon ☺️💕 this one was a bit of a trip down the memory lane 😊 (it was supposed to be uncomplicated 😩)

Bojan was looking around the dim dancefloor. Together with his bandmates he found a way to sneak into Eurovision Nordic Pre-party to watch Käärijä perform, but now that he had seen him, Bojan simply refused to leave before congratulating Jere in person. Jere was absolutely phenomenal and Bojan couldn't get enough of him, he needed to tell how amazing his performance was.

By now all the acts were done singing and a dj was playing some generic songs to a slowly emptying room. Kris, Jan and others were also somewhere here, maybe chatting with people, maybe had already left - Bojan didn't care, he was scounting the walls for that one already familiar bowlcut.

It was easy to spot Jere standing by a wall and Bojan immediately moved towards him with a wide friendly smile. Down here, away from the main stage, it was clearly Jere and not Käärijä. A very lost, slightly awkward guy who seemed to be hunching into himself. Bojan's heart squeezed.

There was one more reason besides genuinely liking the song why Bojan was searching for Jere as if obsessed. For a while now Bojan was toying with a thought that he might be into guys too. He just wasn't sure what to do with that thought, so he continued 'window shopping' and imagining what it could be like to actually go for it. Bojan loved flirting equally with girls and guys. And he knew he was playing dumb intentionally, pretending like he didn't realise he was flirting in case he wanted an easy exit.

So far it had worked perfectly, but Bojan was still really curious about all the what ifs. His band members and other childhood friends were like a family to him, so it didn't fit completely right in his mind. It had to be someone new that Bojan met... Someone with who Bojan would click immediately... Maybe someone like Jere...

"You were really amazing there!" Bojan shouted over the loud music when he moved closer to Jere.

Jere's face lit with recognition. "Bojan! What?!"

Bojan's breath caught. Jere, dressed in an oversized piña colada T-shirt, was looking at Bojan from below with those trusting open eyes, like a lost puppy who was sure Bojan will take care of him. Unknowingly to him Jere was pushing all the right buttons for Bojan.

Bojan leaned one hand on a wall right beside Jere's head and bent towards his ear, much closer than needed.

"I watched your performance. You were amazing on that stage." Bojan saw Jere visibly shiver down and tension felt charged with electricity between them.

Jere started giggling but his eyes were serious when he fixed them at Bojan "Kiitos! That mean a lot." He wasn't even blinking.

"Wanna dance?" Bojan wasn't sure why he suggested that. He just knew he wanted a reason to stay with Jere.

"Okei." Jere lightly picked a corned of Bojan's jacket as if not to get lost or left behind.

Ah, another button pushed. Bojan couldn't help and wrapped his arm around Jere's shoulders, lightly bumping his head into him. He wanted to squeeze Jere into a crushing hug so badly. Jere was just too cute for his own good.

Bojan led them through a crowd to an even more secluded corner. He could feel Jere was done being looked at and wanted to hide away, so Bojan will do his best to give him that. He wrapped his arms around Jere's sides, loose enough so it wouldn't seem like an intentional hold, but still keeping a constant contact. Hoping it could visibly hide Jere from the crowd while giving Bojan an reason to keep his hands on him.

They swayed like that, almost dancing but not really and Jere's fingers had found Bojan's shirt again, gripping tight into the cotton material. Bojan could tell Jere was lost in his thoughts. In another moment he sighed heavily and pressed his whole body into Bojan's hug, as if melting into him.

"Thank you." Jere whispered into Bojan's chest.

Bojan didn't know what the thank you was for, but his heart was beating like crazy. His intentions were just to flirt a bit, like they did in Madrid, to see if there was something there worth pursuing and experimenting in their short time together. But suddenly Bojan wasn't so sure anymore. He felt like he'd be risking too much. Too much of what? He didn't know himself.

With one hand Bojan ruffled Jere's hair on a head pressed tightly to his neck crook. His heart was still beating wildly, feeling that maybe he found something way more than he was looking for. Bojan sighed, he'll have to put his personal feelings aside for now. In the meantime, he'll move mountains to make sure that Jere is okay.

[sir-walton-goggins]

Stranger in the Alley

Summary: Kris starts acting strange while out on a job. Arthur worries about her, recalling the incident in his journal. Will the young woman finally open up?

2.230 words

Pairing: Arthur Morgan x fem oc

Warnings: explicit depiction of PTSD, canon-typical violence and gore, hurt/comfort

What happened that morning had been nothing short of strange.

The blond outlaw sat on his tiny bed at camp, jotting down his thoughts on his journal, trying to manage his restlessness by getting some thoughts on the page.

Today we ran into some of the O’Driscoll boys while on a job. This ran down, old homestead that promised a good stash of money and jewelry, had apparently been occupied by those fools. Slaughter the previous occupants, they did. They dumped the bodies on a wheelbarrow outside.

It was just me, Charles and Kris. We handled them fine, but… something strange happened.

I heard her struggle with one of them, but when I got there Kris had already taken care of him. She had this wild look in her eye, like she was miles away, and she was breathing all funny, bloodied knife still in her hand.

When I touched her shoulder, she flinched so hard she damn near lost her balance. Had never seen her like that before. She had been on jobs with us before. After all that went down, she just took off on her horse. Said she needed time to cool off.

I’m worried about her. Worried she may do something stupid.

Arthur felt stuck. He wanted to go after her, search for her to quiet the horrible thoughts running through his head; but he knew Kris, and she would not be pleased with him not honoring her agency. She did tell him she wanted to be alone, and he had to respect that.

But he couldn’t shake the bad feeling crawling up his stomach. Many years on this Earth had taught Arthur that gut feelings were usually right, and he ought to listen to them, lest something horrible happen.

The man closed the leather bound journal and put it back into his satchel, going back to tormenting his fingers and bouncing his leg.

The camp around him felt normal. Well, at least from a surface level: while people lined up for their last bowl of soup of the day, Kris wasn’t there, her bedroll next to Karen’s unusually empty for that time of the evening. She used to sit there, legs crossed, to chat with the blonde, telling her about her day, discussing a book one of them had been reading.

Arthur could almost hear her voice now, a ghostly echo from his evanescent memories. When he felt hopeless, when that familiar, deep melancholy came back to torment him, he’d look over at Kris’s cot, seeing her precious smile, hearing the distant murmur of her voice, or glancing at her angelic face as she was deep into slumber, and it would comfort him.

His nerves were wracked, so he snapped the journal back open and closed his eyes in a mighty focus to remember miss Blake’s every feature, freckle and scar, so he could transfer them onto the page. There she gradually appeared, a cloud of dark hair under his last entry, taking the shape of a young woman with every stroke of Arthur’s pencil.

The drawing looked pensive. The dark eyes stared back at Arthur’s, that familiar tinge of austerity making his cheek flush automatically, like she was there in the flesh, staring him down. The outlaw instinctively looked up from the journal, half expecting to find her there, arms crossed, a questioning look in her eye.

Instead, Arthur met Charles’s eyes. He had a feeling the man had been staring at him for quite some time. He nodded his head in a quiet greeting.

Charles got up and took a few steps in Arthur’s direction, a concerned frown painted on his face.

“Something bothering you, Arthur?”

Morgan quickly closed his journal as the man approached, wishing to keep the pages away from prying eyes. He sighed; Charles was exceptionally observant, so he had noticed he was agitated. No point in pretending he wasn’t.

“It’s Kris, isn’t it?” the silent outlaw took the words out of Arthur’s mouth.

A pause, shame gathering on Arthur’s cheeks. “I’m worried about her.”

“Want me to go out looking for her?”

Arthur floundered, indecisive. The evening was turning into night, the moon risen almost halfway in the sky. It was a cloudy night, all the stars shrouded in a milk, stormy sea. The thought of any woman having to spend the night alone in the wilderness made him shudder. But this was Kris… He was determined to avoid that from happening.

He had just opened his mouth to accept Charles’s offer, when they both heard the familiar gallop of a horse approaching camp. They both snapped their heads towards the sound, waiting in trepidation.

‘Please be her, please be her...’ Arthur’s mind chanted, heart pounding in his chest.

The horse that appeared from behind the vegetation was white, which was promising: Kris’s Cloud was a white roan Nokota. Sure enough, the woman who dismounted from it was Kris Blake, tiredly dragging herself into camp. She glanced at the two men staring at her and promptly looked away, heading straight for the campfire.

“Thanks anyway, Charles. You’re a good friend.” Arthur’s tone was way lighter as he patted Charles on the shoulder, grateful.

She didn’t look well, but she was alive. And back in the gang, where she was safe.

The only people still sitting in front of the fire were Uncle and Sean, drinking and exchanging stories. They greeted Kris, but she did not react.

“Jesus,” Sean commented, as clueless as ever on when to shut up, “you look like death.”

She ignored him. The Irish feller thought it so unusual, he almost got worried. The two used to banter endlessly with each other, giving in to the slightest provocation, hot-headed as they were. He and Uncle exchanged perplexed looks. Sean silently pleaded with him: if someone could get her to talk, it was him. But Uncle, in spite of his compulsive lying tendencies and quick wit, had at least the years’ experience to know that, when a woman doesn’t want to be spoken to, you oblige.

He silently gestured for the youngin to follow him, and they both left for a nearby table, leaving Kris alone at the campfire.

Arthur saw the opportunity to go up to her and did not waste it. The relief of having Kris back had emboldened him.

He sat on the log right in front of her. “Good evening, miss Blake.”

The girl looked up at him for a brief second, as if to make sure it was him. Then she looked back down at the embers.

“Hi, Arthur” she droned. Her dark eyes reflected the flames back at him, crackling at the rhythm of her internal turmoil.

Kris’s under eye circles were darker than usual, hair tangled into a matted mess, old coat covered in grass and mud. She had a smudge of dirt on her right cheek. She kept her hands concealed in between her thighs for warmth.

“You look rough” Arthur blurted out, trying to sound worried and failing spectacularly. He bit his tongue, cussing himself out.

Kris didn’t seem at all offended. She just flatly convened:

“I know.”

That wasn’t like her at all: she was usually much more fiery and reactive to comments on her person, known to get angry pretty easily. Arthur was reminded of that time Sean had told her that ‘at least prostitutes try to look put together’ and Kris had almost made his remaining teeth fly out of his big mouth. That little show amused him so much, that he had reported it word for word into his journal, complete with a drawing of her punching Sean.

It really pained Arthur to see her like that. Under all that aloofness hid a tremendous pain, one she was desperately trying to keep hidden. He saw it in her eyes, which were red, like she had just been crying. The mud on her face was streaked, further convincing him that was true.

He finally gathered enough courage to ask her the burning question.

“What happened back there at the stead?”

For the first time that night, Kris made eye contact with him. His skin sizzled under her steely gaze, and he had a feeling he would regret those words, too. But once she noticed the genuine worry in Arthur’s eyes, her features softened up a bit.

“It wasn’t my first time killing someone, mister Morgan. But…”

A big exhale, a long pause. She hugged herself, as if the cold of the night had just now settled in her bones, making her shiver.

Arthur stayed still and silent, patiently waiting for her to continue, repressing the urge to go find her a blanket. It was like freezing in place to avoid startling a deer during a hunting trip; she had never opened up to anyone in the gang, that he knew of. A part of him felt honored that she chose him to be her confidant.

“I don’t wanna talk about it.”

The deer ran away, spooked by its own thoughts.

Arthur shifted in his seat, leaning forward and lowering his tone into a soft, reassuring murmur.

“I’m not really one to pry, miss. But it seems like, whatever it is, it’s eating away at you. Maybe you’d feel better if you talked about it” he suggested, giving Kris a patient smile.

Arthur knew what it was like to harbor a painful memory, and he wouldn’t tolerate anyone nagging him to just blurt it out, like it was no big deal. Because it was.

Seemed like maybe he got through to her, because the woman was not evading his stare anymore. Her half lidded eyes slightly widened, and she began chewing her lip until it bled.

Kris would have never admitted it, but if Arthur’s presence alone was enough to comfort her, his patience was a balm that, while healing her wounds, made them sting unbearably. She could feel them open up and bleed into the grass again, like when they were first etched onto her body.

The silence lingered, heavy and sacred, like standing in a graveyard.

“When my parents died,” Kris finally took the leap, her voice hoarse from hours of silence, “I wound up on the street. Until this... man took me in.”

She swallowed the knot in her throat, then continued.

“He treated me well enough. Gave me a private education, expensive clothes. Until I turned 18.”

Arthur felt disgust crawl under his skin, sensing where this was going, and all the implications of it.

“He was grooming me to become his wife. On my birthday, he proposed. Asked me to bear his children.” Kris’s eyes glazed over. She let out a shaky sigh.

Her voice was starting to break, but she quickly corrected the course.

“So I ran away,” she cleared her throat, suppressing all emotion, “but he chased me.”

“He chased me down the street, and he caught me in an alley. All I had on me was a knife, so-”

Kris stopped abruptly, her eyes focused on the ground where the lumber was almost all the way consumed, ashes gathering up in tiny gray piles. Her breath hitched as she felt the cold handle of the kitchen knife coil around her hand, like it was molded to hold it. Her hands were marked with warm, arterial blood. It pooled around her feet, dampening the flames as it spilled onto the ground, settling under Arthur’s boots. Staining them.

“I didn’t even think… I just...”

Suddenly, her lungs felt too heavy, making it too hard to breathe or speak. She kept staring at the big puddle of blood underneath her, unable to move. Frozen to the spot, mouth slightly ajar. Chest locked, suffocating.

It was impossible to tell how much time had gone by, when she found herself in Arthur’s embrace. He was down on one knee, one hand cupping her nape, the other gently rubbing her back. The blood on the ground was gone, Arthur’s boots were clean. She was no longer holding a knife.

“You’re safe, now” he whispered against her cheek. Kris melted into him, the warmth and pressure slowly taking her back to the present, breathing air back into her lungs.

She wasn’t alone anymore. No, now she had all those people taking care of her. And she got Arthur, and he was special, and he was there, comforting her. She leaned into his shoulder, resting her head on it.

“Thank you” she whispered. Arthur hummed in response and, much to Kris’s dismay, let go of the embrace. He stayed down on one knee, on eye level, to make sure she was feeling better.

When he was met with a coy smile, he got up, contented.

“If you’re up to it, we could go into town tomorrow” he offered, wiping the dirt off his pants.

“Buy you some new clothes, have a drink at the saloon. What do you say?”

“I’d like that.” Kris grinned, finally having something to look forward to. She was in dire need of forgetting that shitty day.

Arthur wished her a good night, then retired to his cot near the weapons wagon. Before going to sleep, he wanted to sketch for a bit: he didn’t want to forget the smile Kris just gave him.

Instead, the Kris that resided on those secret pages was beaming, safe, and she would remain so forever.

[silver-tooth-the-panther]

(Here it is, the Pokémon creepypasta that I’ve been working on for days. It’s finally here now. The artwork done for the story was done by my good friend @leviathanverse. Show them some love!)

Pokémon Frostbite

Warnings: Heavy gore, major character death, and cannibalism

Word Count: 12,704

Cold air whipped at Silver’s face as he looked upon the frosty peak of Mount Silver. His scarf flapped in the wind, making him grunt in annoyance as he raised his hand to stop the wooly fabric from hitting his face. A cry came from the Weaville beside him, looking at it’s trainer with a concerned look. Silver glanced at his Weaville before sighing, his determined expression faltering slightly. “I know….It’s been years, hasn’t it?”

The Weaville nodded before raising three of it’s shining claws. “Three years….” Silver spoke softly, almost to himself. His gloved hand tightened around his Weaville’s empty Pokéball. The young trainer closed his eyes, taking in the sharp, frosty air of the mountain. “I know it’s unlikely, but…I’m not going to give up until I know what happened to him.” His Weaville nodded before making a soft coo.

Silver then turned and crouched beside his partner Pokémon, sighing heavily. “I know you want to walk with me, but I think it’s safer if you stay in your Pokéball until I need you, okay?” The pokémon made a worried cry and gently placed it’s paw on it’s trainer’s hand. “Don’t worry. I just don’t want you to freeze out here. Even the toughest ice type would suffer.”

The Weaville released a soft sigh before nodding slowly. Silver pressed his thumb against the button of the Pokéball and raised it to his Pokémon’s eye level. “It’s for your own good.” A bright light flashed before their eyes as the Pokémon was sucked into the device. Once the Pokémon was safely inside it’s ball, Silver sighed and placed the ball in his pocket. The trainer then returned his gaze back on the icy peaks.

“Hey, Silver!” A familiar, female voice echoed behind him, making the trainer turn around to face the person coming towards him. Kris waved to Silver as she ran towards him, wearing a thick, turquoise jacket and soft pink snow pants. Her brown, fluffy boots made every footstep echo with a loud crunch. She was accompanied by another, much larger, man, who wore an orange snow suit and carried a heavy backpack. His skin seemed to be tanned and he had a black stubble of facial hair on his chin.

Silver made a small nod when he saw the two approaching him. “Evening, Kris.” He spoke softly, which was something rather odd for him since he was talking to one of his rivals. Kris panted as she placed her hands on her knees. “Hey…Silver. Thanks for waiting…for me.” Silver nodded with a slight smile. “Yeah. I’m not crazy enough to go up that without anyone up there with me.”

The trainer then focused his attention on the new male figure. “Who’s this?” He spoke in a much colder voice, huffing quietly. “Oh relax, Silver.” Kris swayed her hand to try to calm him. “This is Jacob. He’s an expert on Mount Silver and all the Pokémon who live there!” She spoke with a warm smile before her voice softened nervously. “I just thought he might be able to help us….”

A sliver of anxiety melted away from Silver as he nodded towards the man. “Sorry….” He apologized in a soft, quiet voice, averting his gaze. Jacob raised a hand and waved it to ease any possible guilt. “It’s alright, young man.” He sighed as he adjusted his backpack. “You’re under a lot of pressure and you’re missing a loved one. I can’t be mad at you for that.”

A slight smile crept on Silver’s face before he quickly pushed it away. He shook his head before fixating his eyes on Jacob’s own. “Kris and I have decided to examine the peak and a cave system. Are there any potential predators that we need to be aware of?” Jacob thought for a moment before sighing. “Unfortunately, yes.” He paused for a moment and put his hands on his hips. “There are Golbats in the caves and a few Ursarings near the peak. Not sure which one of the two has been picking off all those poor trainers.”

Trainers? Silver raised an eyebrow and bit his lip, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead. “There have been more that have gone missing than just Gold?” Both Jacob and Kris nodded as the female trainer raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t know? A lot of trainers have been going missing for the past few years. I think it’s over ten now.” Silver’s breathing hitched when he heard just how many trainers have disappeared on this damn mountain. He then spoke softly, sounding almost shameful of his narrow mindedness. “I was so focused on Gold….”

Jacob then broke the shame by placing a hand on Silver’s shoulder. “It’s alright. You should be focused on your friend. Don’t be ashamed of your priorities.” Jacob sighed and adjusted the gear on his back again. “Let’s get going. The more time we waste, the less time we have to find him before the next snowstorm.” Both Silver and Kris nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. The three of them then went into a triangle formation with Jacob in the middle and the two trainers by his side. After one last dreadful look at the mountain, all three of them headed up the snowy peak.

The snow made it incredibly difficult for the group to traverse up the mountain. It stuck to their clothes like glue, dragging their legs further into the cold whiteness. Powerful, howling winds screamed in their ears as tiny pieces of snow broke off from the mounds on the ground and whipped into their faces. Many times they were forced to whip the flakes away from their eyes and mouths. After what felt like forever, one of them finally broke the silence.

“We’ll split off here!” Jacob yelled as he stopped, snow coming up to his knees. “I’ll search the area in between the peak and caves! We gotta cover as much ground as we can if we want any chance of finding him!” Jacob then turned his attention to Silver. “Do you have any strong Pokémon that could help if the caverns cave in?” Silver nodded and held up two Pokéballs. “I have a Feraligator for brute force and a Honchkrow for an escape option.”

Jacob nodded and gave him a thumbs up before turning to Kris. “Do you have any Pokémon that can deal with an Ursaring?” Kris gave a determined nod. “Oh absolutely. I have a Meganium, a Hitmonlee, and an Arcanine. They can help if I ever get into trouble.”

Jacob gave her another thumbs up before grabbing his own Pokéball. He threw it up in the air after he pressed against the center. A light flew from inside it as a Pokémon landed on the ground. It was a Houndoom and it roared protectively as it scampered next to it’s trainer. “My Houndoom can help to keep me warm, so I’ll be okay.” The two other trainers nodded firmly before looking off in their respective directions. “Let’s go.” With that last statement from Jacob, the trio split off to look for the missing trainer.

Silver huffed as he traversed through the thick snow, hearing it crunch beneath his feet. With each hefty step, the trainer grunted and grew more weary. However, he swore that he would never ever give up on finding Gold. After all, he could’ve stopped him the night he went up Mount Silver.

“It’s alright, Silv. I’ll be okay!” Silver could remember Gold’s warm smile as if he had saw him yesterday. The two of them were hanging out in one of Silver’s many hideouts in the Kanto region when the boy proposed the idea of doing a rematch with Red. They were both seventeen at the time.

“You really want to challenge Red again?” Silver raised an eyebrow as he stroked his Weaville’s fur as it slept in his lap. “Isn’t it below freezing up there? Especially at this time of year?” Gold nodded as he sighed, swaying his hips from side to side. “You worry too much Silv. I’ve fought him before in the snow. I can do it again!” He then smiled radiantly once more and gave Silver a thumbs up.

Silver just rolled his eyes, though he’d never admit that he enjoyed the boy’s enthusiasm. “I’m just saying that you should really think about things like that before you make a decision.” Gold narrowed his eyes at the other trainer as he tapped his foot in an annoyed manner. “I do think before I make a decision.” This made Silver snicker and shake his head. “Bullshit. There’s not a single thought behind those eyes!”

Within a matter of seconds, Silver felt his back land against the cold floor. Gold had playfully tackled him and held him down with his forearms. “Not a single thought, huh?” Gold smirked as he laid on top of Silver. “Ga-Gold!” Silver huffed in annoyance. His Weaville shrieked as it landed on the floor beside them, huffing irritably after it jumped away before it got squished in between the boys.

Gold gave the Weaville an apologetic look before looking back at Silver with a grin. “Oh come on! Ain’t this a little fun?”

He asked as he playfully pressed down a little more. A smile involuntarily crept on Silver’s face as he let out a laugh. “Gold, please!” He couldn’t help but continue to laugh at the boy’s playful attitude. “You’re a fucking idiot, you know that?”

Gold returned the laughter as he lowered his head towards Silver’s chest before looking up at him again. “Yeah. I’ve accepted that, but you’re an edge lord. Do you know that?” Silver bit his lip before sighing. “Fine. You won. You won.” With a victorious grin, Gold eased the pressure and sat on his knees. “You really have become a better loser.” Silver adjusted his position and rested his back against the wall, catching his breath. “Eh, it’s not like I haven’t lost to you before.”

A few minutes of comfortable silence passed between the two boys. Silver closed his eyes as his breathing slowly returned to normal. Then, he spoke in a rather soft, almost vulnerable, tone. “Do you want me to go with you?” Gold looked at Silver for a few moments, almost surprised by the offer, before shaking his head. “No. You don’t have a fire type or anything on your team that can keep you warm. I’ve got my Typhlosion, but nobody else that’s a fire type.”

Silver sighed heavily, not wanting to admit that Gold was right. He looked over at his Weaville, who nodded in agreement. With a heavy sigh, Silver looked at Gold. “Just…try to be careful, alright?” Gold gave his typical radiant smile and gave him a thumbs up. “Don’t worry, Silv. I’ll come back home safe and sound!”

That was the last time Silver saw Gold….

Silver’s attention was broken from his thoughts and directed towards something rather peculiar. He was at the entrance of the cave, but it was rather hard to tell because the entrance had been concealed by rocks. Only a small hole had broken through the top. Raising an eyebrow, the trainer reached down and grabbed a Pokéball. “Come on, Feraligator.” A beam of light emitted from the ball and the crocodilian Pokémon roared in response to being let out.

The Feraligator looked at the caved in tunnel in a confused manner before turning it’s attention to it’s trainer, wondering what he wanted it to do. Silver pointed towards the rocks and spoke in a firm. “Use Crunch to scoop up the rocks and move them.” The Feraligator nodded and immediately began to scoop rocks into its jaws. With each scoop, it filled it’s jaws with rocks and threw the rubble to the side.

Silver watched his Pokémon as it quickly followed it’s orders. He sighed softly as he put a compassionate hand on it’s back. Then, something caught his attention. Silver turned his head to a strange looking mound of snow. It was far in the distance, so it was hard to truly analyze it. However, Silver could see that it was slightly discolored and he could’ve sworn that something was sticking out of it….

A roar from his Feraligator caught Silver’s attention. He turned to see that the Pokémon had complete it’s task. Silver then patted it’s back. “Thank you, Feraligator.” The Pokémon grunted happily as it gently nuzzled it’s trainer. Silver smiled lightly before grabbing his Pokéball. Before he returned the Pokémon, Silver ultimately decided against it. “I’ll have you stay with me. Your sense of smell is keen and can be useful.” He paused for a moment before sighing. “Just…let me know if the cold gets too unbearable, okay?”

The Feraligator nodded as it stood by it’s trainer, not wanting to leave his side. Silver and his partner Pokémon then entered the dark empty cave. Their footsteps echoed through the rocky caverns as they walked. A strong, foul odor filled their noses, making the two scrunch their noses in disgust. It was like the stench had been fermenting here for a long time. If Silver could describe it, he would probably say that it smelled like fecal matter had been sealed in a cold, mildewy basement for months.

The Feraligator growled as they ventured further in. Darkness began to overcome them, so Silver grabbed a flashlight from his coat pocket and flashed it on. The light immediately brightened up the cave, making everything that was close visible. The first thing that Silver noticed was just how quiet this rocky prison was. Surely, at least fifteen Zubats would’ve ambushed them, but the cave was silent and still. At first, everything looked like a titular cave. However, something caught Silver’s eye.

Claw marks covered the floor and bottom half of the walls. They looked almost frantic by how disorganized they were. Silver followed the scratch marks, noticing that they were heading towards the entrance. Turning back, the flashlight scanned the floor, revealing more and scratch marks. The closer the marks got to the entrance, the more bloody they became. Clearly, whatever it was that was in here had to have been incredibly desperate to get out of the cave. So much so that it was willing to dig into the quick of its fingers in order to escape.

The sight of the bloodied claw marks sent a shiver down Silver’s spine. “What the hell?” He asked in an inquisitive tone. “What could’ve caused this?” Many thoughts ran through his head as he tried to rationalize the sight. Was it an Ursaring? No, the hole was far too small for an Ursaring to crawl through. A Golbat didn’t even have arms and the same can be said for an Arbok! Not to mention that there would be no way in hell that an Arbok would climb this far up the mountain. Then, he thought about a small Tyranitar or a tiny Ursaring. Sure, they weren’t common, but Larvitars were rather plentiful and it was the most plausible explanation.

Silver’s thoughts were disrupted by the sound of his Feraligator sniffing the ground. It was like it already knew what it’s trainer was going to ask from it. “Very good, Feraligator.” The Pokémon had bent down over an area where a few bloodied claw marks were and was sniffing it. As soon as the scent wafted into the Pokémon’s nose, it winced softly, as if saddened or possibly frightened by what it smelled.

Silver sighed as he placed a hand on his Feraligator’s back. “Don’t worry. If it is a big Pokémon, I know we can handle it. So just take a deep breath and we’ll carry on together, okay?” The Feraligator nodded before following it’s trainer’s orders and it took a deep breath. With a roar to boost it’s confidence, the Feraligator turned back around and headed deeper into the cave with it’s trainer by it’s side.

As the duo went further inside the cave, Silver continued to scan the cold, frostbitten walls of the caverns. His eyes darted from one area to another in order to search for anything peculiar. The light went down to the floor and caught something in its outer circle. Silver nearly passed it, but quickly brought the light back to the area to examine what it really was.

White, ice covered ribs were caught in the light of the flashlight. Silver scrunched his face in disgust and morbid curiosity as he crept closer. Getting a closer look at the ribs, it turns out that there was more than just ribs. It was a whole skeleton! A skeleton of a Zubat to be precise. Silver was able to figure that out due to the eyeless skull and the tiny fragments that used to be its wings. Perhaps a Golbat attacked this creature?

Normally, most trainers wouldn’t bat an eye at this. Sure, it was still disturbing to see a dead Pokémon, but it was natural for predators to eat their prey. Yet, there was one fact that threw Silver off. If a Golbat, or even a Pokémon that would eat the flesh, had devoured this thing, some flesh would’ve been left. Yet, there was none. The bones had been licked clean. Even if the corpse had been here for a while, the cold atmosphere would have preserved it or even mummified it. Crouching down, Silver could even see teeth marks in the ribs. The marks looked rather blunt and rectangular instead of triangular and sharp.

“What the…?” Silver’s voice grew softer as he observed the corpse. He could hear his Feraligator whimpering behind him. The fact that his normally fearless companion was acting skittish filled Silver with dread. “What is it, bud?” Silver raised his head to look at his Feraligator, who was staring into the darkness with wide, horrified eyes. Seeing just how frightened the Pokémon was, Silver adjusted himself so he could see just what had frightened the Pokémon. What he saw made his breath hitch in his throat.

More bones littered the floor of the cavern. They all were picked clean just like the first one and all of them seemed to be either Zubats or Golbats. Dozens and dozens of skeletons were sprawled out amongst the cavern. What the hell could have killed all these Pokémon? What could’ve been so desperate for food that it left no flesh behind? Just the sheer thought of such a predator made a bead of sweat fall from Silver’s forehead.

He instinctively moved closer to his Feraligator, grabbing ahold of it’s forearm. The Pokémon immediately jerked it’s head towards Silver. Seeing that it’s trainer was just as nervous as it was made the Feraligator whimper even more. Silver gently squeezed his companion’s forearm in hopes of calming both it and himself. “Come on.” He whispered softly. “We need to find Gold.” The mention of Gold’s name made the Feraligator shake it’s head and brace itself to head further into the cave.

Time ticked by as the duo walked further into the rocky caverns. More bones crossed their path as they headed deeper and deeper into the darkness. Silver diverted his attention from the floor, not being able to bear the sight anymore, and looked up towards the walls. Yet, they provided no comfort either. Strange markings were left on the walls, but it wasn’t like the scratch marks at the entrance. It almost looked like writing, incoherent writing, but writing nonetheless. He walked closer to the walls to attempt to read the scribbles. Most of them could not be deciphered, but Silver managed to read some of them.

“Trapped…Lost….3…7…14…21…28…360…412…455….Snow….Don’t…Help…My…If…We…Hope…Please…Send…I…Fail…Try…Oh…Snow….”

That was all that Silver could read from the mess of scribbles on the wall. Even then, it still creeped him out to his core. What could’ve left this message? Was it prehistoric writing or scribbles from a lost hiker? Silver was leaning closer to the former since they had found absolutely no human remains yet.

A loud shriek broke Silver’s train of thought and he heard large footsteps running towards him. His Feraligator wrapped it’s tail around him and nuzzled him rather intensely. Silver wrapped his arms around his Feraligator’s neck and pulled it close to him. “Hey, hey, hey. It’s okay. I’m here. What happened?” He asked as he stroked the Pokémon’s scales to try to calm it down.

It’s blue tail slowly lifted up and pointed to an area just ahead of them. Silver gave a few more gentle strokes to his Feraligator before slowly separating from it to investigate. The Pokémon whimpered as it followed right behind it’s trainer. To try to ease it, Silver reached behind him and patted the Pokémon’s nose. “It’s okay, bud. We’ve got this.” This seemed to have eased the Feraligator’s worries as it slowly stopped whimpering.

With a soft sigh, Silver slowly approached the area where his Feraligator shrieked. Slowly making quiet steps, the trainer eyed every rock and speck of dust as the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. His flashlight scanned the area where the walls met the floors. After a few more steps, he had finally came across what had frightened his companion and it made him want to hurl.

A deceased Sudowoodo rested it’s back against the cold wall. It’s stone body had been broken into and hollowed out, leaving only the exoskeleton and it’s bones. Silver’s flashlight slowly drooped down, shining on a medium sized bloodied rock. Something had used it to smash the Sudowoodo’s body. More importantly, how did a Sudowoodo get up here in the first place? It just didn’t make sense….

Silver raised an eyebrow at the sheer brutality and the confusing nature of the kill. “Feraligator….” The trainer spoke softly to his Pokémon. “Were you scared because of the brutality?” Looking behind him, Silver could see his Pokémon shake it’s head frantically. This, of course, made Silver raise an eyebrow. “Then…why were you scared?” The Feraligator then pointed forward into the abyss.

Pointing the flashlight forward, Silver could see more corpses of strange Pokémon. He saw a Politoad with it’s ribs broken, a Sunflora where it’s skull was severed from the rest of it’s body, a Togakiss with it’s feathers strewn around, an Ambipom that looked like it’s tails had been torn off, and a Typhlosion. Silver walked closer to the Typhlosion to observe it.

It seemed like the Typhlosion had died in a submissive manner. The Pokémon didn’t have it’s claws extended and the way it laid made it seem like it didn’t fight whatever had killed it. This had definitely confused Silver. A Typhlosion isn’t usually afraid of confrontation, so seeing that it passed in a submissive way was…odd.

Silver then scanned each corpse they had come across. All of their bones were covered with the same teeth marks that the first Zubat was covered in. All the evidence pointed to a crazed predator that had devoured these Pokémon, but that didn’t explain how all these strange Pokémon ended up here. Silver turned back to the Typhlosion before realizing that there was only a single area left to explore.

It was a larger area than the rest of the tunnel, almost as if it was a resting room for a Legendary Pokémon. Instead of finding some incredible beast though, Silver only found dried blood all over the walls. Only one Zubat skeleton was in this room. It’s ribs were broken and a frozen eyeball laid beside it’s mouth. Did it try to blind the predator?

Moving to the other side, Silver’s flashlight landed on something that made him widen his eyes. It was a backpack. A bloodied, raggedy backpack. Silver walked over to it with slow, shaky steps. He quickly realized who this backpack belonged to. It was Gold’s….

Devastation stabbed at Silver’s heart as he shambled towards the bloodied item. Many different possibilities for what may have happened ran through his head. The most accurate conclusion was that either the predator got to Gold or Gold’s Pokémon tried to fend it off while he escaped. Yet, that still didn’t explain the markings on the wall.

Silver bent down and grabbed the backpack, rummaging through it for any clues. A flashlight and an empty bag of jerky were tucked in the front pocket. A dead Pokégear was placed in the left side pocket while a rope and ice pick in the back pocket. The main thing that grabbed his attention was a notebook with a pen clipped onto the cover.

“What’s in here?” Said spoke softly as he grabbed the journal. It was unlike Gold to actually document anything since he loves to fly by the seat of his pants, but it was still worthy to look through. Silver’s Feraligator crawled towards him and curled up around it’s trainer, giving him a much more comfortable resting place. Silver understood what his companion was trying to do for him, so he rested his back against the Pokémon’s side. Then, he began to flip through the journals and read them aloud.

“11/03/2005 - Fucking damn it. I know it’s not really a “me” thing to do, writing in a journal like this, but if I’m gonna be trapped inside this cave, I wanna remember as much as I can to tell one hell of a story. I can already hear it now. Silver’s gonna roll his eyes and call me an idiot while Kris is definitely gonna laugh at me. Though I know they’ll still be concerned. Gotta love them for that. So far, it isn’t too bad. Exbo is keeping us warm and I’ve got some jerky and Poképuffs to hold us off until we either bust outta here or help comes to find us. I just hope we get out of here soon. I’m getting bored already.”

“11/10/2005 - It’s already been a week. 7 whole days! We’re still lost inside this cave. My Pokégear died, surprised it lasted this long, and my Pokémon are getting antsy, especially Togebo. Poor guy probably misses playing Billiards. I just hope we can get back before Silver’s birthday. Even though we’ll probably get out before then, I’m still a bit worried. I have something great planned for him and he definitely deserves it after all the shit he’s been through. Anyways, the snow keeps falling heavily. I can hear the wind howling through the rock. There must be a way down the mountain.”

“11/17/2005 - We’ve been stuck here for 14 days. I have to keep telling my Pokémon (and even myself) to “not focus on your hunger”. This jerky is holding us off, but just barely. All my Pokémon are hungry and I wish I can give them more, but we need to survive as long as we can until help arrives. We’ve spent days on this mountain, so I hope that they will find this soon. There has to be a way down the mountain, right?”

“11/24/2005 - It’s been 21 days. I want to help my starving Pokémon, but my body is growing weaker. Our stomachs keep growling and there’s nothing I can do about it. These fucking Zubats keeping watching us, waiting for us to die. I think they’re as hungry as we are. Doesn’t matter. We are tired of the Zubats hanging over us. They just make the situation worse. I just hope that we will get out of here.”

“11/28/2005 - We’ve been here for almost a month. 28 days. I just…please end this pain. It’s only getting worse. Both me and my Pokémon are going hungry. The jerky is almost out and there’s nothing I can do about it. My body is too weak to kill these Zubats for food and I think Exbo is too. They need to send help at least for my Pokémon. They don’t deserve this. All they do is cry anymore and it’s breaking me. Is there an escape from the mountain?”

“12/05/2005 - I know we’re gonna spend years on this mountain because we’re not gonna make it back down. I have brought this suffering on my Pokémon and I’ve failed to keep my team from going hungry. If we die here, please tell my mom and Silver. Please tell Kris and Red. Tell everyone we loved. I try to think of something different, but I need Arceus to keep me from going lunatic. I’m sorry, mom. I’m sorry, Silver. I’m sorry, Kris. I’m sorry. We’re not gonna make it. Please…don’t forget about us.”

As Silver looked through the pages, tears began to fall down his face. The numbers “360”, “412”, and “455” were scribbled near the back of the journal, showing just how long Gold clung onto life. Silver could feel his chest tighten as he slammed the journal shut. His Feraligator sensed that it’s trainer was stressed and quickly curled it’s tail around him.

The trainer broke down, holding his Pokémon’s tail close to him. As the journal slid onto the floor, Silver sobbed and covered his face. “Damn it….” Silver sniffled softly through his tears. “If I would’ve gone with him…none of this would’ve happened.” The Feraligator snuggled against it’s trainer in an attempt to comfort him, nestling it’s head against his side. “He would’ve been home. He wouldn’t have suffered. He would be okay.” Silver cried softly as he curled up against his companion. “If only….”

Feraligator nuzzled it’s trainer and rumbled with a worried expression. Silver looked up at his companion and sniffled. “It’s all my fault, Feraligator. He doesn’t have any physically strong Pokémon…I just thought that his Typhlosion would be enough to keep him safe.” His Feraligator nuzzled him and shook it’s head. It then pointed it’s tail to the journal, then around the cavern. Luckily, Silver could understand his Pokémon.

“Do you think he’s still alive?” He asked in a soft voice. In response, his Feraligator nodded it’s head frantically. Silver just sighed and curled into himself. “Doubt it. He would’ve been too weak to survive out there. Even if the predator was distracted by his Pokémon and he managed to escape, Gold couldn’t hunt for himself. He’s probably buried out there in the snow.”

The Feraligator huffed irritably as it’s trainer dismissed it’s thoughts. “Oh come on.” Silver looked at his Pokémon with a saddened expression. “He’s too far gone.” He then stood up and dusted himself off. “Stil, I want to bring him home. He needs closure…and so do I.” His Feraligator nodded reluctantly as it stood up as well. The duo walked to the entrance of the room and Silver looked at Exbo’s corpse. He bent down and placed a hand on the Typhlosion’s skull. “I’m so sorry that you had to suffer. Rest in peace, Exbo. I’ll make sure that you and your trainer are buried properly.”

Silver sniffled again as he looked at his Feraligator, who also looked somber. “We’ll bring them all home.” His companion nodded and rumbled softly, looking towards the entrance of the cave. Walking towards the Feraligator, Silver sighed and took out it’s Pokéball. “I’m not gonna let you go cold, Feraligator. I’ll let you out when I need your help.” The Feraligator nodded once more as it was absorbed into the ball. Silver clutched it in his hand and made a soft wince. “You’re not gonna leave too.”

With trembling steps, Silver walked out of the haunting cavern. He stared at the writing on the walls and the corpses on the floor. Something had come through here and killed all these starving Pokémon and chased Gold out. He didn’t know which fate was worse, dying from starvation or from the cold. Still, he wanted to give Gold and his Pokémon a proper burial. It wasn’t fair for them to still be stuck up here after they’ve passed. It was the only thing he could do.

Silver stopped at the entrance and leaned against the wall. He watched the snow fall from the sky with a solemn expression, feeling lost and empty. Lowering a hand to his coat pocket, Silver gently squeezed it. “I love you.” Gold’s voice rang in his ear. Silver reached into his pocket and pulled out a Totodile plush. He rubbed his finger against the stuffed animal’s belly, right where the speaker was. This was the only way that Silver could hear Gold’s voice now, through an automated, cold speaker. Silver held the plushie close to his chest, feeling it’s soft fabric, before putting it back into his coat pocket.

The trainer started to walk through the heavy snow, making sluggish steps through the thick snow. His eyes were heavy and his heart was empty. He wanted to cry. He wanted to collapse. He wanted to scream at Arceus and beg him to undo this, but what would that do? Absolutely nothing. Nothing would change. Gold and his Pokémon would still be dead and there’s nothing that could be done to remedy that. So, Silver walked through the thick snow, looking for Gold’s body.

He decided to head into the area where Jacob was supposed to be. So, Silver turned in the direction of the strange snow mound. It felt like hours before he reached the discolored mound, even though it was only a few minutes. Bending down, Silver inspected the snow. He scooped some of the white material and looked at it closely, shining the flashlight on it. It was red. Red like blood.

Even if it was blood, a small sense of relief hit Silver. Maybe this was Gold’s body? Buried in the snow probably by a sympathetic Pokémon. It only made his heart ache thinking that Gold only made it this far before his body succumbed. In order to confirm his suspicions, Silver sunk his gloved hands into the snow and began to dig through it.

Silver tried to be quick as he unburied the body. At this point, he wanted to get Gold home as soon as possible. With each handful of blood tainted snow, Silver could feel the emptiness grow inside his chest. Then, he found the body. It wasn’t Gold. It was a half-eaten Piloswine. Chunks of it’s frozen body were missing and one of it’s tusks had been ripped out.

Silver raised an eyebrow as he observed the body. Another dead and eaten Pokémon? Did the predator manage to break out of the cave along with Gold? Was it still wreaking havoc on this mountain? That would explain the other missing trainers. This reminder of the missing trainers sent a shiver down his spine. Whatever had killed Gold and his Pokémon was still out here and killing more innocent people. Worry and dread grew in his chest as he thought about the consequences of coming up the mountain. Then, he was cut off by an ear piercing scream.

Silver swirled his head around towards the scream and immediately barreled towards the sound. His heart pounded in his chest as he ran, not really thinking about what might be causing it. All he thought about was heading towards the sound. The closer he got to the screaming, he wondered if it was the predator. It seemed likely and was the only explanation he had. Soon, the screaming suddenly stopped, causing the trainer to almost stop in his tracks. He paused for only a second or two before going back to running.

A large shadowy mass could be spotted in the distance, making Silver slow down and approach it cautiously. The snowstorm made it difficult to see, but Silver was able to pick the mass apart the closer he got to it. Someone was crouched over something else and seemed to be digging at it. Thinking it was the predator, Silver grabbed the Pokéball that contained his Feraligator and ran towards the mass preparing to take it down. Then, he halted to a stop, shaken to the core by what was in front of him.

A large, mangy person was crouching over Jacob’s ripped open body, forcing fistfuls of mushy guts into their hungry maw. Silver couldn’t see Jacob’s face since his legs were facing him, but he could only imagine the frozen terror on his face. The person that was tearing at Jacob’s flesh was rather hard to identify, mainly due to the long, black hair that covered most of their body. It was wild, tangled, and matted and it looked like some pieces of hair had been ripped out of their scalp. Silver presumed that it was self-inflicted.

Then, the being jerked their head towards Silver once they felt the flashlight’s shine on them, sending terror right into Silver’s heart. This being was a male due to the muscular build, flare chest, and large hands. Some of his black hair covered his left eye while his other had the look of madness. A tiny, pinpoint pupil shakily stared at Silver as his broken, rotting fangs held what looked to be a kidney and some flesh inside his jaws.

To say that Silver was terrified would be an understatement. This cannibalistic man was devouring Jacob’s guts and was looking at him like an absolute maniac! Silver’s fear would’ve completely overpowered him if it weren’t for one thing….Silver recognized his clothes.

The being wore an orange, bloodstained winter jacket. White, dirty fabric was seen around the neck and arm cuffs and they seemed to have been matted by dirt and blood. His black sweatpants were probably also covered in blood, but it was much harder to tell. Even his red and white shoes were covered in dried blood. All of this was way too familiar, but there was one article of clothing that alarmed Silver. A black and gold cap laid loosely on the man’s head. Yellow, broken goggles were wrapped around the cap and both pieces were covered in blood and dust.

The realization hit Silver like a freight train. This being…this crazed cannibal…was none other than Gold. The mangy man who was devouring another human being was the same person who had confronted Arceus and helped to free Silver from his stone prison. A pit quickly formed inside of Silver’s stomach as he took in the sight in front of him. He stepped back, breathing sharp, heavy breaths.

Gold, now feral and bloodied, dropped the flesh that he clutched in his hand and swallowed the bit inside his maw, which made Silver feel nauseous. He slowly stood up and wiped his bloodied hands on his sweatpants, showing just how scarred his hands were. The trainer’s insane eye locked on Silver, looking him up and down. It felt like Gold was like a predator eyeing his prey. A gravelly groan escaped the trainer’s throat as he took a step closer.

Seeing him take a step closer made Silver snap out of his horrified state. The young man took a few steps back as his wide eyes stared at the cannibal. A standstill between them lasted for a few seconds before Silver broke it by turning around and running in the opposite direction. Almost as soon as he did that, Silver could hear the feral being chasing him through the snow, making the snow crunch loudly underneath his feet.

“Honchkrow , go!” Silver threw a Pokéball and the familiar, large bird Pokémon emerged from it. It squawked as it looked at it’s trainer. Then, it saw the feral trainer behind him, watching him as he ran towards Silver on all fours. The Pokémon shrieked and flew down, understanding it’s mission automatically. Silver grabbed one of it’s talons and gritted his teeth. “We gotta go get Kris!”

The Honchkrow gripped the young man’s arm and tightened it. It squawked as it lifted Silver up in the air, it’s strong body going as fast as it could. Then, Silver could feel something cold and wet sink into his foreleg, followed by a searing pain. He screamed in agony as he felt a warm liquid drip down his leg. His Honchkrow even had trouble lifting him further up, someone or something was dragging them down.

Silver turned his head to see Gold, who was hanging onto Silver’s foreleg using nothing more than his teeth. His sheer weight was dragging them down and Gold even had an arm around a rock to prevent any chance of being lifted into the air. Silver tried to shake his grip off, feeling bits and pieces of his flesh being torn off by the effort. Unfortunately for Silver, Gold held a tight grip and refused to let go.

An irritated growl came from the mangy trainer as a few droplets of blood dripping from his gums. Then, with an incredible amount of force, Gold jerked his head back, flinging both Silver and his Honchkrow backwards. Silver managed to land in the soft snow, but the Honchkrow wasn’t so lucky. The poor Pokémon had been slammed back first into a large, ice covered boulder. His Honchkrow slowly slid down the ice, leaving a slight blood trail on the rock. It’s eyes were closed as it shook and took short, shallow breaths.

Seeing the creature in such a weak vulnerable state excited Gold. His wild eye fixated on the defenseless bird and immediately made a dash towards it. Luckily, Silver managed to act faster and grabbed it’s Pokéball. “Honchkrow, return!” And just like that, the Pokémon was absorbed back into it’s ball, making the mangy trainer hiss in anger.

Silver knew he had to take drastic measures if he was ever going to get out of this situation. He would never want to hurt Gold, but he knew that he needed to in order to escape. “Feraligator, go!” Silver threw it’s Pokéball and the gigantic crocodilian Pokémon was released. It roared protectively before lowering it’s gaze onto Gold.

The Feraligator…didn’t look surprised or even shocked. Instead, it glared at Gold with a fierce look, growling in a low tone. Because of this, Silver realized that his partner Pokémon knew that this was the fate of his former rival. It must’ve known ever since it took a sniff of the bloodied claw marks. He stared at his Pokémon with wide eyes and spoke in a shaky voice. “You knew….” His companion turned to look at him for a moment and gave him a slight, saddened nod.

Guilt flashed in Silver’s heart, causing him to shiver and whimper. However, there was no time for crying now. So, Silver needed to give his Feraligator a command. “Feraligator, knock him out! Just…don’t kill him.” His companion gave him a slight nod before roaring at Gold. The trainer returned the fierce roar, showing his more animal-like mentality.

The Feraligator barreled towards the feral trainer, grunting and growling in determination. Gold jumped out of the way and used his broken, claw-like fingernails to scratch at the Pokémon’s snout. It skidded in the snow, blood dripping from it’s snout onto the white snow. Gold growled at the Feraligator and it growled back. The Pokémon snapped its jaws as an attempt to intimidate the mangy trainer, which didn’t seem to work as the mangy only swung his arms towards the Pokémon.

One of the swipes striked the Feraligator right in the nose. A horrifically loud crunch could be heard as the Pokémon roared in pain. Blood gushed from it’s nostrils, which made it raised it’s clawed hands to put pressure on it’s nose. Strangely, Gold ran off into the dark snow, disappearing into the field of white. Silver frantically scanned the surrounding snow with the flashlight. “Where’d he go?!” He yelled in a frightened voice. Then an ear piercing cry brought Silver’s attention back onto his Feraligator.

Gold had hopped onto his companion’s back while it’s guard was down and was sinking his fingernails into the sensitive scales around it’s neck. It made a blood curdling screech as blood started to leak from the puncture wounds. Silver immediately panicked and tried to crawl closer to them, though his injured leg made it difficult. “GOLD! STOP!” Silver shouted at the top of his lungs as he tried to crawl closer to them.

Unfortunately, Gold didn’t even seem to recognize his own name. His fingernails pulled at the Feraligator’s neck, making it squeal and squirm in pain. Squishy tearing noises made Silver’s eyes widen as the Feraligator screeched even louder. Then, with a sickening splat and crunch, the screams went silent. His Feraligator’s head was torn off by Gold. It’s body slumped over, blood pouring into the snow.

Silver shrieked as the body fell over. He looked at his deceased companion in horror as tears welled up in his eyes. Looking up at Gold, Silver witnessed him tearing at the flesh of the head and scarfed each piece down. Gold ate the flesh, scales, and even chewed at some of the bone, staining his jacket and maw in blood. Silver looked back down at the body, feeling the tears fall down his face. Placing a hand on the body’s shoulder, he spoke in a soft, guilt ridden voice. “Feraligator….”

Seeing his deceased companion and the ruthlessness of his former rival stirred up something in Silver that he rarely ever felt, denial. He didn’t want to believe that this was real. This had to be some sort of nightmare! His partner Pokémon is dead and a close friend became a monster. The fact that Gold was even able to decapitate Feraligator should’ve been impossible! His journal made it out like Gold was about to wither away, like he was going to die in a matter of days….

Then it clicked. There was no predator in the cave. The predator was Gold. He had tried to stay sane on the cave for as long as possible, but the starvation got to him. Silver felt sickened and nauseous, realizing that Gold not only killed the Zubats in the cave, but also his own team. Oh Arceus….How much did they suffer?

During his thinking process, Silver didn’t notice that the mangy trainer had ran off and returned with more snow covering his hands and legs. Gold laid his eye on the grieving trainer, letting out a guttural growl. He then began to use his legs to kick snow onto the Feraligator. Silver’s eyes widened when he realized what Gold was doing. He was burying the body for later use. The injured trainer assumed that he probably did the same to Jacob’s body.

Silver was simply too scared to do anything. The mangy trainer had killed a Feraligator, a Pokémon known for it’s toughness and strength, so what else can he kill? Once the body was buried, Gold looked at Silver again and walked over to him on all fours. Seeing the bloodied trainer approach him, Silver began to squirm backwards. His injured leg severely hindered his speed and stability. “Get away from me!” He shrieked as Gold got closer and closer.

The mangy trainer stopped when he was right in front of him. He lowered his head to look Silver in the eyes. With this closer look, Silver could see that Gold was missing his left eye and the socket was covered by his ratty hair. His teeth were broken, sharp, and jagged. They were probably like that because Gold chewed on the bones of the cavern Pokémon.

Silver shivered in fear as Gold’s warm breath hit his face. His eyes closed as soft whimpers left him, fully preparing for Gold to tear him apart. Strangely, Gold just made a hoarse groan and walked around Silver. The injured trainer tried to turn his head to see what Gold was trying to do. Then, a sharp pain flared up in his injured leg, making him yelp. Turns out, Gold had snatched up Silver by his leg. He held the wounded limb in his maw, causing warm saliva to drip onto the wound.

Then, Gold began to drag Silver through the snow. Fortunately, the snow was soft enough to where it didn’t cause too much discomfort, though the cold was starting to numb his face. Silver struggled to break free, twisting from one side to another in order to get his leg out of Gold’s mouth. “Get off!” Silver yelled at the mangy trainer. In response, Gold made a fierce growl and bit down harder, causing Silver to yelp.

The bite made Silver go still. There was no point in trying to fight back. He was too weak and Gold was too strong. So, he just let Gold drag him to wherever he was going.

This was all his fault. If he had went with Gold, he could’ve used his bulky Pokémon to break through the rocks that had trapped Gold and his team. If he had, Gold would’ve been home. Gold wouldn’t be starving. Gold wouldn’t have become this feral trainer who acted like an animal. He felt even more ashamed when thinking about what he found in the cave. Barely any Pokémon spoke English, let alone writing it on the walls. The teeth marks that were on the Zubats were blunt like human teeth, not sharp like most predators. Exbo died in a submissive manner. Which Silver knew it wouldn’t do for a wild Pokémon, but it’s own trainer? He knew it wouldn’t fight against him. The fact that Silver glossed over all these clues made him feel more shame and guilt.

Gold continued to drag Silver through the snow, his hot breath irritating Silver’s wound. After what felt like hours, Silver felt Gold suddenly stop in his tracks. He weakly looked upwards and realized that he was brought to another icy cavern. Ice sickles hung from the roof of the cave and snow looked to be stuffed along the bottom edges. Broken bones poked out of the snow and even some pieces of clothing and broken Pokéballs could be found haphazardly buried. Silver didn’t really recognize any of the clothes, except for one…Red’s bloodied cap.

Silver’s breath hitched as he stared at the cap with wide eyes. He shook as he thought about what Kris had said about the other missing trainers. It was then that he realized that those trainers were never coming home. He then felt the feral trainer grab him and slammed him into an icy rock wall, making him yelp and groan in pain. Gold rumbled and sniffed him like a feral beast. He sniffed Silver’s chest, then his legs, and lastly, his injury. A soft, almost happy coo came from the feral trainer before turning around and walking on all fours towards the bones and clothing.

Silver just closed his eyes, letting the feral being do as he wanted. After all, this is what he did to him, so it was only fair to let him give out the punishment. How could he let this happen to someone he was so close to? Then, something snapped him out of his thoughts. His Pokéballs were shaking and rattling in his pockets. Quietly, Silver reached down and pulled them out. The ball that contained his Honchkrow wasn’t moving, but his Kingdra, Weaville, and Gyarados were growing restless.

At first, he had absolutely no idea why they were doing this, but a quick look at Gold, who was chewing on a bone, made him suddenly realize what they wanted. Silver couldn’t give up now. Even if he found no value in himself, he still needed to get his Pokémon out of here! They didn’t deserve to be torn apart and eaten! So, Silver had to think of something, fast!

Seeing that Gold was distracted, Silver reached up and quietly grabbed a few of the low hanging ice sickles. He then began to crunch them up in his hands. Luckily, the sound was being drowned out by Gold chewing at the bones of his prey. When he was nearly satisfied with the grounded ice, Silver crunched it one last time, making it rather loud on purpose.

Just as he hoped, the sound had caught Gold’s attention. He snapped his head back towards Silver and treaded towards him with a curious expression. Silver kept his hands low, so Gold couldn’t see the crushed up ice. The mangy trainer drew closer, sniffing the other in an attempt to figure out what the sound was. Once he was close enough, Silver threw the crushed up ice in Gold’s face with a fierce cry.

Gold leapt back and covered his face, screeching in pain. He began to claw at his face to get the ice out. Taking his chance, Silver used the rocks in the cavern to stand up. Though his stance was wobbly and painful, Silver cared not and quickly limped into the icy cavern. His plan was simple. Distract Gold and run into the cavern. Hide a place to hide and wait for him to pass. Run out and use either Gyarados or Kingdra to outrun Gold and escape. He figured if he ran out of the cavern now, that would increase Gold’s odds of catching him since he would be closer.

Silver ran into the dark, icy cavern. He held his flashlight tightly in his hands as he shakily shined it across the cave walls, desperately trying to find a hiding place. Then, Silver laid his eyes on a large boulder that looked like it was covering something. Silver immediately rushed towards it’s side and began to push it. It took quite a lot of strength from the injured trainer to push the large rock, but it eventually budged and moved just enough to where he could crawl inside.

Silver could hear Gold’s angered snarls quiet down, which alerted him. So, he quickly crouched down and slipped into the hole, moving the boulder back into place once he was in. Now weak and tired, Silver flattened his back against the stone wall. He then shone the flashlight on his injured leg and grimaced in both pain and disgust. Tearing off some of the ripped up pant leg, Silver began to wrap it around his open wound to prevent any further chance of it getting infected. After a long sigh, he shone the flashlight upwards to see what was inside the hidden room.

Tens of dozens of Zubat skeletons were littered inside the icy room. He could even see a few Golbat skeletons amongst the rubble. Silver assumed that Gold had cleared out all the Pokémon in his cavern and dumped their bodies here. He shivered from both disgust and fear as the familiar visions of the skeletons in the other cave resurfaced in his brain. However, his thinking was caught off when he heard loud bashing through the rock walls. Gold was on his tail. He shuddered in fear and placed a hand on his mouth to silence himself as much as possible. Then, he heard a hoarse, raspy voice. It sounded like it hadn’t been used in a long time.

“Trapped…Trapped…Trapped…Trapped inside this cave.”

“Lost…Lost…Lost…Lost inside this cave.”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow keeps falling heavily. There must be a way down the mountain.”

It was Gold. Gold was wandering through the cave, spouting absolute nonsense in a worn out voice. The eeriest thing about his speech is that it seemed to be in a rhythmic cadence. One that sounded like a repetitive military anthem. His tone started calm and quiet.

“3…7…14…21…Days spent on this mountain.”

”28…360…412…455…Years spent on this mountain.”

”Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow keeps falling heavily. There must be a way down the mountain.”

Silver could hear more vicious thrashing and bashing against the icy walls. It sounded like rock grinding on rock, almost as if Gold was pissed and was throwing a tantrum. Nonetheless, hearing all the bashing made Silver shake in fear.

“Don’t…Don’t…Don’t…Don’t focus on your hunger.”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow keeps falling heavily. There has to be a way down the mountain.”

Hunger….It was hunger that drove Gold here. Silver whimpered as he heard that word, knowing that he must’ve suffered greatly. He could hear Gold’s tone going from calm to slightly aggressive and forceful.

“Help…Help…Help…Help my starving Pokémon. There has to be a way down the mountain.”

“My…My…My…My body keeps growing weaker.”

“If…we…die…here…please tell my mom and Silver.”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow is falling heavier. Is there a way down the mountain?”

Panic and hopelessness grew more and more in Gold’s voice as he spoke. This also reflected in his actions. The banging and thrashing only grew louder and louder, making Silver cover his ears to muffle the sound.

“We…are…tired…of…the Zubats hanging over us.”

“Hope…Hope…Hope…Hope we will get out of here.”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow is falling heavier. Is there an escape from the mountain?”

More aggression appeared in his hoarse voice, causing it to croak. Silver continued to shake and whimper as the bashing grew louder. He even swore he heard a loud scraping noise, like Gold was scratching the walls with his fingernails.

“Please…end…this…pain…It’s only getting worse.”

“Send…help…to…save…at least my Pokémon.”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow keeps falling heavier. Is there an escape from the mountain?”

Panic and fear began to shine through Gold’s croaking voice. Silver was both terrified…and saddened. He was able to recognize all of Gold’s words from his journal and knew that this was Gold’s attempt to rationalize things in his broken mind.

“I…have…brought…this…suffering on my Pokémon.”

“Fail…to…keep…my…team from going hungry.”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow keeps falling heavier. Is there an escape from the mountain?”

Silver could hear the desperation in Gold’s voice. The same desperation he had while he was trapped with his starving team. Hot tears began to roll down Silver’s face, knowing that Gold probably wasn’t even aware that he had killed and eaten his own Pokémon.

“Try…Try…Try…Try to think of something different.”

“Oh…my…Arceus…keep…me from going lunatic!”

“Snow…Snow…Snow…Snow keeps falling heavier! There’s no escape from the mountain!”

His voice was not the loudest it had ever been and was filled with frantic fear and distress. Silver made a soft whine as he heard Gold’s cries through the rock walls. Then, everything went silent. Gold’s speech, his bashing, and his trashing had completely stopped. All Silver could hear was faint growling and soft footsteps.

Two of Silver’s Pokéballs began to rattle again and he quickly took them out to prevent more noise. Without even so much as a warning, both Weaville and Gyarados popped out of the devices with a fierce look on their faces. Silver widened his eyes as he looked upon them. “What are you two doing out?” He whispered in a hushed, almost fearful tone.

The Weaville pointed to the large boulder that sheltered the group from Gold and made a soft hiss. His Gyarados nodded in agreement. Silver raised an eyebrow and sighed heavily. “You wanna go out there and hold him off? No way! Didn’t you see what happened to Feraligator?” The Gyarados huffed and made a soft growl. It’s tail swayed between it and the Weaville, which made the smaller creature squeak softly.

Silver seemed to understand what they were trying to say. “I guess you two together have a better chance…but I still don’t want you getting hurt. He may have lost his mind, but he can still strategize excellently.” Both Pokémon nod their heads, fully accepting the risks.

Admittedly, Silver admired his Pokémons’ determination to protect him. He looked towards the large boulder, knowing that moving it would still alert Gold to his presence. So, this was really the best way to go. “Okay…just be careful alright? I’ll meet you outside of the cavern and…try not to kill him.” Both Pokémon looked confused before sighing and nodding. The Gyarados pressed it’s tail against the boulder and pushed it out of the way with ease. With swift speed, the two Pokémon ran out of the hole and left it open just enough for Silver to climb out when needed.

Silver looked at the Pokéball that contained his Kingdra and sighed. “I know you’re tough, buddy. We can do this….” He closed his eyes and took deep breaths, listening intently for any noise.

Everything was silent at first. He heard his Weaville’s footsteps heading inwards while his Gyarados slithered outwards. Something felt off. Everything was just too quiet. Then, loud screeching filled the cavern. It seemed to be coming from his Gyarados since he heard his Weaville’s frantic footsteps running towards the opposite direction it was originally taking.

The smaller Pokémon began to screech as well and loud thudding and crashing erupted in the cave system. Rocks were slammed together and stalagmites and stalactites busted onto the floor. It sounded like a vicious attack on all proportions. Silver’s eyelids tightened from listening to the distressing battle. He could even feel Kingdra’s ball shaking in his hands from distress.

Then, the silence returned. Everything sass quiet once more. Silver could hear what sounded like slithering heading out of the cave. He took a deep breath to ease his nerves and he waited for his Pokémon to return. Even though he told them that he’d meet them outside, Silver hoped that they would peek their heads in and reassure him that everything was okay.

But they never came. Silver waited there for what felt like hours. He sighed softly, figuring that they were just waiting outside and he definitely didn’t want to keep them waiting. So, Silver crawled out through the crack that his Pokémon had left for him. Standing up on his wobbly foot, he began to limp towards the cave’s entrance. Shining his flashlight around as he walked, Silver saw fresh blood on the walls and floor. Hr even looked towards the ceiling, noticing that it was covered in scratch marks. Seeing the residue of the battle made Silver’s stomach turn. Obviously, someone had been severely hurt.

Silver limbed forward, slowly but surely, and saw the snowstorm howling outside. He sighed to himself, hoping that the nightmare was almost over. However, he didn’t see anyone when he reached the entrance. No Gyarados or Weaville. Not even Gold was here. Silver looked around in a frantic manner, searching for his Pokémon.

Something large was quickly spotted to the left in his peripheral vision. Silver immediately snapped his head towards the large object and it made him gasp. Both his Weaville and Gyarados were dead and buried in the snow. Only the Weaville’s arm was sticking out of the snow, while the shiny Gyarados was haphazardly buried. Silver could see that it’s back had been scratched and torn open. Large gashes revealed just how deep Gold was able to dig. Some ribs could be seen amongst the muscle. Dark blood dripped down it’s light red scales. Just like Feraligator, Gold had ambushed the two and slaughtered them both.

Tears began to well up in Silver’s eyes as the guilt in his heart grew. He had sent his Pokémon to their deaths. Fear also grew inside the trainer, now knowing that Gold was strong enough to slaughter a Gyarados. However, the thought of Gold snapped him out of his emotions. Where was he now? Silver looked around, trying to find the feral trainer. Then, a low growl came from behind his ear.

Silver yelped as he was pushed onto the icy snow. A sting hand pinned him down and prevented him from getting up. Silver huffed as he struggled to break free from Gold’s grip. “Gold! Get off of me!” He flailed his legs to try to break free, but Gold put his knees on them. The crushing weight of his knees made Silver squeal and lose his breath for a moment. Gold then slowly bent down, placing his face near Silver’s ear. He made a deep, hoarse growl and his saliva dripped onto his ears, making Silver shiver in fear.

Then, Gold sat back up, easing some of the weight on Silver. Even with that lessened pressure, Silver didn’t let himself ease up and only continued to shiver and whimper. Then, a loud crack echoed through the night and a hot, stabbing pain flared up in Silver’s leg. He screamed, a loud, piercing scream, as the pain grew worse and worse. Gold had thrusted his arms onto Silver’s femur and snapped it in half. The mangy trainer brought his arms up again and thrusted them down onto Silver’s other leg. Another loud crack and a piercing scream followed. Hot tears streamed down Silver’s face as the pain flared up in his legs. His hands shook in udder agony as his breathing became ragged and shallow.

Silver continued to sob as Gold grabbed ahold of his leg with his jaws again. At this point, the torn up wound didn’t hurt as much as his broken bones. So, he could only whimper and take slow, shallow breaths as he was dragged through the snow. Gold dragged him back to the cavern and slammed his back against the wall again, making Silver gasp for air. The mangy trainer growled in Silver’s face, telling him to stay quiet. Silver immediately shushed his whimpering and tried to even his breathing as much as he could.

Gold huffed and narrowed his eyes at Silver before turning away, staring out into the darkness. He seemed to be thinking about something, but what? Silver couldn’t tell. The injured trainer looked at the husk that was Gold as even more tears began to pour down his face. It was hopeless. Only his Kingdra and Honchkrow were still alive, but the Honchkrow was in critical condition. Even if he did send both of them out, they would just end up as food.

But still…something seemed off about this whole situation. Why did Gold not kill him right away? Why did he go through so much trouble just to keep him alive? Not to even mention what he said inside the cavern. Even though it was just scattered and repeated pieces of his journal, Gold still said Silver’s name. So, now that he’s exhausted all his physical options, Silver only had one thing left to try. Reason with Gold.

“Gold….” Silver choked through his tears. He tried to calm himself down so his speech could be heard clearly. “Gold…please.” The injured trainer looked at Gold, longing and care in his eyes. Snarls came from Gold as he continued to stare out into the distance. Then, he finally spoke. “Quit your whining.” Gold’s voice was incredibly hoarse and rough, sounding almost alien compared to his normal voice.

Gulping down some sharp air, Silver could feel his heart breaking as he realized what his rival had become. “Gold… please.” He pleaded, his voice growing soft and weak. “It’s me.” Gold snapped his head towards Silver, looking at him with a bewildered expression. “It’s you? I don’t even know you.” This statement made Silver’s heart shatter. “But how…? You said my name in your cave!” Gold raised an eyebrow as he crawled closer to Silver. “I did…? I don’t really remember….I just needed to find the scent of blood.” Drool dripped down from his jaws as he said the word “blood”, making Silver’s stomach churn.

“But you did.” Silver held himself back from raising his voice, controlling his emotions. All the mangy trainer did was huff and growl, clearly irritated by the insistence. Still, Silver wasn’t going to give up. He shakily reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the makeshift Totodile plush. Gold sniffed it and made a low grumble, looking at the raggedy stuffed animal. “That’s cute….Who made that for you?” He snickered with a grin.

“You did….” Silver said with a soft whimper. “You gave it to me, Gold.” The mangy trainer snorted and huffed, jerking his head up. “How could I? We only just met.” He looked away for a moment. “Why are you calling me Gold?” More tears dripped down Silver’s face, knowing how little Gold remembered his life. “That’s your name, Gold. We’ve known each other for years..” Gold gave Silver a side eye and growled.

Then, Silver squeezed the plushie’s belly. “I love you.” It said in Gold’s true voice. Gold’s pupil enlarged and stared at the plushie. Was it in awe? Disbelief? Or did his old voice reach him? Silver didn’t really know, but continued to try. “It was a birthday gift, or what you called it, a ‘birthmas’ gift.” He spoke softly as he looked at the still trainer.

“Hey, Silv!” Gold waved to Silver as he spotted the red haired boy walking on the sidewalk. Silver turned his head only to see the other boy running towards him. “Slow down, Gold!” He yelled, which did encourage Gold to slide to a stop right in front of him. “Heh, oh come on. I wasn’t going to run you over.” Silver playfully rolled his eyes as a small smile stretched across his face. “Right….”

Gold glared at him with a pouty expression before his bright smile appeared on his face. “Well…do you remember what’s coming up?” Silver raised an eyebrow and went along with his playful antics. “Uhh…Christmas?” He answered in a soft, lighthearted tone. Bouncing in his stance, Gold shook his head. “Yes, but it’s one day earlier.” Placing a hand on his chin, Silver grew more interested in Gold’s game. “Well, that would be Christmas Eve then.”

Raising an eyebrow, Gold sighed softly and shook his head. “You’re right…but I’m actually talking about your birthday, Silv.” Silver widened his eyes with a quiet “Huh?” Then, a soft chuckle emitted from the boy. “Right. I forgot.” With almost a saddened look, Gold sighed softly and pinched the bridge of his nose. “How do you forget your own birthday?” Silver rebuked the comment with a dumbfounded expression, which quickly reminded Gold as to why. “Right….Still, you should really care about yourself more. I understand why, with your dad and all he’s done, but that doesn’t mean you should just treat yourself like trash just because you’re related to him.”

Silver nodded, knowing that what Gold was saying was indeed true, but he didn’t want to continue that conversation anymore. “So…what about my birthday?” A bright smile returned to Gold’s face as he grabbed hold of his bag. Thankfully, he understood the message. “Glad you asked, Silv!” He then pulled out a small paper bag. “Ta-da! I got ya a little something!” Raising a curious eyebrow, Silver carefully took the bag from Gold’s grasp.

Silver placed a gloved hand inside the bag, rummaging through it to see whatever Gold got for him. The other trainer grew jittery and more excited as the seconds passed, wearing a wide smile on his face. Something soft and squishy soon came into his grasp. Intrigued, Silver pulled it out and saw that it was a Totodile plush. It seemed to be homemade due to some of the uneven stitching and loose button eyes. In spite of that, the plush was still of good quality.

A warm smile crept on Silver’s face as he held the plushie in his hands. “This…is adorable.” He spoke in a soft, vulnerable voice as he turned it over and examined it. Gold hopped over to him and pointed a finger to the plushie’s belly. “That’s not all! Squeeze it’s tummy!” Doing as the trainer said, Silver squeezed the Totodile’s soft belly, feeling something plastic inside it. Then, it spoke in Gold’s voice. “I love you.”

Silver widened his eyes in surprise, a warm light shone in his eyes. Did Gold really make this? He looked up at the other trainer with a warm, loving expression. Gold seemed to have read Silver’s mind and answered his question. “I was originally going to get it from Build-A-Teddiursa, but they didn’t have any Totodiles! So I bought a speaker and decided to make it myself. Though…my mom had to help me…a lot.” He chuckled with an embarrassed expression.

However, Silver couldn’t care less if his mom made it or if some company did. In a rare moment of affection, he wrapped his arms around Gold’s chest and hugged him close. “Thank you….It’s amazing.” Gold’s expression softened as he returned the hug. “No problem. I’ll make sure your birthday is extra special.”

Silver looked down at the now frost covered plush, then back at Gold’s mangy husk, who was still staring at the plushie. “Every year that passed…I just couldn’t sleep on my birthday. Granted, I hardly slept at all, but it was always worse on Christmas Eve.” He trembled as he continued to speak, his voice cracking and wobbling. “Every year…I would hold it close to me and listen to your voice and I would cry. I missed you too much to sleep. Please…Gold. You need to come home. Please….”

It was then that Gold finally looked up at Silver. His, now large, pupil stared at Silver with a strange, yet familiar look. Making soft breaths, Gold crawled closer to Silver, his nose touching the other’s. Did the injured trainer successfully reach him? Did Gold return? Silver wanted to lean into his touch and closed his eyes as he felt the familiar, warm breath hit him.

Then, a low growl came from Gold’s stomach and his pupil shrunk again. Silver snapped his eyes open and was greeted by a sharp pain in his neck. Looking over, he saw that Gold had sunk his teeth into his neck. Gold’s hunger had won. Pure terror filled Silver as his eyes widened, feeling his own blood drip down his shoulder.

With a sudden jerk, Gold flung his head back and tore off a large chunk of flesh. Blood immediately began to pour out of Silver’s wound, making him gasp and gurgle for air. A loud screech emitted from Gold as he held the ragged piece of flesh in his jaws. It was difficult to hear what he was saying, but he seemed to be screaming and cursing at himself for what he had done. Tears streamed from Gold’s eye as he looked up at the sky.

Silver gasped and choked on his own blood. He could feel his head begin to fog and his vision began to blur. Slowly, Silver began to lose feeling in his body. Joyful memories began to fill his mind as he was dying. Memories of his Pokémon. Memories of his friends. Memories or Gold. He looked at Gold one last time, seeing just how distraught he was. For the last time, Silver spoke in his soft, quiet voice. “I’m sorry…Gold.”

“Hello? Jacob? Silver?” Kris called out as she walked through the snowy night. She had been waiting at the meet up spot for what felt like hours. Eventually, she just got tired of waiting and went to go look for them. “Guys? Where the hell are you?” Kris shook from the cold and eeriness as she traversed through the snow.

Many large mounds of discolored snow passed her as she explored. Of course, she ignored them so she wouldn’t get distracted. However, something did catch her eye. An icy cavern lay dormant off in the distance. “Maybe they took shelter there.” Kris said to herself as she changed her course and walked up towards the cavern.

Everything was quiet, too quiet. Everything about this sent a shiver down her spine, but she didn’t deter. Kris only continued her journey up to the cave. Once she stepped foot into the icy cavern, Kris turned her flashlight on and looked around. “Silver? Jacob?” She spoke in a softer voice this time as her flashlight scanned the area. When she moved her flashlight to the left, she had finally found Silver.

Unfortunately, little remained of the trainer. Half of his face was torn to shreds while the other side had it’s eye dangling out of it’s socket. Blood soaked Silver clothes and it looked like his ribs had been crushed in. Next to him was his Kingdra and Honchkrow, who had both been split in half and gutted.

Kris gasped, putting a hand over her mouth, as she took a step back. Her eyes went wide as she took in the horrific sight in front of her. Hot tears began to well up in her eyes, hardly believing what she was seeing. “Silver….” Her voice choked on her sobs as she backed away more. “Wh-Who did this…?” It was then that she felt warm saliva drip on her shoulder and a soft growl echo in her ear.

(Thank you to everyone who supported me while I wrote this. I really hope this doesn’t flop since both me and my friend put so much hard work into this. For some context, this is based off the manga versions of these characters. It was inspired by Snow on Mount Silver, more specifically Chills. I am aware that there is a story called Silver Hunger, but I didn’t discover that until I was done with this. Still, I hoped you enjoyed it!)

[anxious-witch]

actually you know what, a drunk jan crying over how beautiful and sweet nace is would be a delight to read. writer's choice who he's talking to

Sorry this took so long, but here it is! Hope you like it!

TW for alcohol consumption

"But Jure, Jure listen to me. Are you listening?"

Jan tried to get Jure's attention by grabbing his sleeve and lightly tugging. Jure finally looked away from his empty glass and back to him. He looked tired, but Jan was too deep into the bottle of whiskey to stop.

"Yes, Janči, I am listening."

"Nace is just...so wonderful. He remembers all the little things. When I get to the practice, he just knows when I want coffee. And he knows my coffee order too!"

Jure bit his lip, as if stopping himself from saying anything. And okay, yes they all had the same order, exceot for Kris. But still. It counted. Jan took his coffee with very little sugar, while Jure put two spoonfuls in his. The difference mattered.

"Very thoughtful of him."

Jan sighed. They were at the studio, wjere they usually practiced. Just upstairs, taking up the little table. There was enough space, as long as neither of them tried to stand up.

Jan flopped down on the bench, staring at the ceiling.

"He is generally so wonderful and thoughtful but-"

Jure groaned and leaned his head against the table. When he didn't say anything, Jan continued.

"I really can't believe he shaved. He looked like-like-"

"Like he is straight?" Jure asked, sarcasm dripping from every word.

Well, yes. That was a gist of it. Not that Jan meant to imply being straight was bad. Obviously not.

"Like he is straight and goes to church."

Jure chuckled.

"Wait, doesn't he?"

Jan blinked, turning his gaze from the ceiling to Jure.

"Doesn't he what? Straight?"

Jure slapped his hand over his forehead.

"How does that even make sense? No, I mean, doesn't he go to church?"

Jan shrugged. Not really. He believed in God, as far as Jan gathered, but it's not like he had the time to go to a church every Sunday. It was a topic Jan tiptoed about, knowing their views would differ. Maybe he should ask.

"I don't think so?"

"Aren't you dating him?"

Jan sat back up again, just so he could glare at Jure.

"Yes. But asking him if he goes on his knees for the lord the same way he does for me wasn't my first priority."

Jure's nose scrunched up in disgust. He grabbed the bottle of whiskey on the table, and chugged what little alcohol was left in it.

"I didn't need that mental image."

Jan shrugged. That wasn't his problem.

"He does look very pretty when he-"

"No! No, no, no! No. I love you both and I will suffer through you rambling about how much you love him, but I draw the line at hearing about your sex life."

He supposed that was fair. He wouldn't want to hear about Jure's sex life either. Or god forbid, Bojan's. They heard too much of that during Nordic tour as it was.

"I do really think Nace is wonderful. Even when he gets a stupid idea to shave. And he is so attractive. Like, his arms? And tattoos? I don't think I will ever get over that."

Jure snored.

"Right. Naturally."

"Have you seen his tattoos?"

Jure looked ready to snap back when they heard the door downstairs open. Jure was closer to the fence, so he peeked down.

"Oh, thank God. Hey, Nace!"

Jan stuck out his tongue at Jure. He was that eager to get rid of him, huh?

"Hey Jure. Is Jan with you?"

"Unfortunately. Please take him with you."

Jan kicked him under the table and Jure hissed, throwing him a dirty look. Traitor.

"Bad cat."

Jure looked ready to pounce him like an actual cat, but was stopped by Nace climbing up the stairs. Jan turned to look at him and immediately glared.

"Who are you?"

Nace rolled his eyes.

"Your boyfriend."

"My boyfriend has a beard."

Jure slapped his hand iver his mouth, but Jan could still hear him giggling. Nace sighed.

"Well, your boyfriend shaved. It'll grow back. Can we go home now?"

"I can't, I have a boyfriend."

Jure stopped pretending to hide his laughter and instead doubled over on his bench, laughing. Nace pursed his lips.

"How much of that whiskey did he drink?"

"Bot m-"

"I had two shots. He drank the rest."

Jan looked at Jure in surprise. Did he? He didn't think he drank that much. Then again, he supposed with how easily and unguardedly words came to him, it was possible.

Nace sat on the bench next to him and cupped his cheek. Jan raised his eyes to look at him and did his best not to immediately melt into the touch. Beard or no beard, when Nace looked at him with such soft gaze, Jan find him hard to resist.

"Anddd that's my cue to leave. Don't forget to lock the studio."

Jure grabbed his stuff and got up. Nace briefly broke their staring contest to wave at Jure.

"Say hi to Kris," Nace said.

Jure tripped before rushing down the stairs. Jan frowned. Kris? Why-

Nace turned back towards him and kissed his forehead.

"If you get down the stairs, I will carry you to the car."

"Who said I can't get to the car on my own?!"

Nace smirked.

"Can you?"

Oh, that asshole. Jan could do more than that. He grabbed Nace by the shoulder and pushed him down, so he laid on the bench. Nace didn't look particularly surprised, not even when Jan got on top, pinning him down.

"Yes."

Then he kissed him. Hard. Nace tangled his hand in his hair and pulled him closer. Jan quickly got lost in the kiss, forgetting where they were, up until he pulled back to catch hia breath.

Nace's pupils were dark and wide.

"Perhaos we shoukd take this home."

Jan pressed another hard but quick kiss to his lips. Then he chuckled.

"What?"

"I just have one question before we go," he said, pulling back to sit on his heels.

Nace raised an eyebrow.

"Which would be?"

"Did you shave so you could go to church?"

The look on Nace's face was worth the shove he got in response. He laughed all the way to the car.

He supposed that as much as he hated the shaved look, it did make plenty of opportunity for jokes.

[forcedcoma]

- Why are so high up? "Questions?" Are you one from these weirdos from my fan site?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A child, once born against the laws of nature and the Gods themselves, and since then cursed to live forever, but never to be truly alive.

Kris does not have a permanent body and mind. Often changes faces and thoughts, taking away pieces of soul and appearance from friends, enemies and passers-by. He collects himself from other people, striving to become something more than just an empty vessel.

He is not afraid of any wounds: give him time, and he will recover from a drop of his own poisonous blood. His ability to continue a mission even after losing most of his body often puts him in an advantageous position over other creatures on dangerous tasks.

Not much is known about his childhood, and Kris himself says that he does not remember much. However, he knows that from an early age he was interested in science and technology, while his brothers were engaged in combat training.

When Kris was a young man, he dared to challenge the universe itself by trying to create a time machine. However, as you know, time is beyond the control of any forces, and his experiment failed. Only a few scars remain in memory of this event, which haunt him, no matter what form he takes.

In his quest to find himself and fill the inner emptiness, he embarked on a space adventure. Due to his unique abilities, he quickly became an elite and highly paid mercenary, taking on missions that others would consider suicide.

Kris tried everything he could and couldn't afford. By changing faces and absorbing other people's memories, he lived many lives, some of which lasted for decades. He is used to being someone else, but he has never been himself.

Despite many crimes and a 52-figure bounty on his head, Kris has become one of the most valuable sources of information about closed societies, inhospitable planets and dangerous animals. From the very beginning of his journey, he keeps records of everything he encounters.

Currently, he continues to travel and do what he enjoys. For some reason, he became interested in computer technology and the development of artificial intelligence and body.

[saucyjothoughts]

Did someone say... Bomiha?

Nsfw below.

😈😈😈

He shouldn't. He really, really really shouldn't.

But it feels so good.

This has been a long time coming, years and years spent trapped in a game of cat and mouse, and now it's hard to even remember why it took this long. Skin against skin, heat and sweat and teeth nipping and pleasure like–

Pleasure like it's something illicit, every moment stolen, every gasp and moan silenced. Who knows how much time they really have and what if what if what if

It's that thought that finally drives him over the edge, makes fingers dig into flesh and muscles tense as he begs and pleads, another wave taking him when he's joined in his pleasure, that pretty voice sounding sweeter than ever as he empties himself.

They don't kiss. It's not that kind of exchange. They get dressed, Bojan a little showier than is entirely called for and Miha tried to give him a stern look.

"Brat," he mumbles, buttoning up his jeans.

"I enjoy feeling it," Bojan quips back, his eyes falling to Miha's crotch while cum is surely staining his briefs already.

Son of a–

Key in the door.

"I'm home! Bojan's coming over once his lectures done, he's—"

Miha doesn't know what to do with his hands, where to look.

"Already here, slowpoke," Bojan finishes smoothly when Kris appears. "We finisjed up early. Your dad let me in."

"Don't tell me you two have been nerding out about guitar playing again," Kris sighs, shaking his head and dropping his bag.

"Guilty as charged." Bojan shrugs, shoots Miha a glance and adds with a wicked smile, "Your dad showed me just how it's done..."

So naughty! They were only just in time... Surely they promise to be more careful next time? ("What makes you think there'll be a next time?" Because they always promise they'll stop and never do) What happens is Kris walks in on them while they're still going at it? I need to know!

They don't kiss. It's not that kind of exchange. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 35 (Parental Guidance)

A few nights after Malcolm's visit, Heather took Ash to see his grandparents at her childhood home in Henford. On arrival, she was greeted with the joyous news that Cassandra was expecting her and River’s first child!

She let her predicament take a backseat as the family sat down to dinner, and she didn't want to tell her parents she was seriously overthinking an old tale about a curse. But as she gathered the empty plates at the end of the meal, her mother could see something was bothering her. At Daisy's urging, Heather confessed what she'd done.

"I hacked into Landgraab Systems to crash the app they stole from me, and I thought I was going to be arrested."

"Arrested?! Buttercup, what the hell were you thinking?" Her dad, Neal, tried not to sound as disappointed as he felt.

Her brother, on the other hand, offered her a fistbump. "Right on! Screw the Landgraabs."

Cassandra shook her head, but couldn't wipe the smile from her face around her husband. "River, she could have gone to prison!"

"I know it was stupid," Heather insisted. "I told the detective the truth but the Landgraabs ended up not pressing charges. Not yet, anyway."

"What do you mean 'not yet?'"

"I mean Malcolm came by the other day and offered me a deal. He'll give me 40,000 simoleons for our son if I change his last name to Landgraab and file a custody agreement. They're also willing to let me buy out the clinic if I can come up with another 175,000. But they won't sell if I don't make Ash a Landgraab."

"That's a steep price," said Daisy cautiously.

"It's a steal from the Landgraabs," her father muttered, frowning. "We don't have that kind of money."

"You helped me with the down payment for the clinic in the first place. I don't know what to do but I won't ask you that."

Her parents exchanged careful glances. "You may not want to hear this, but you cost yourself a lot of leverage and the offer may be too good to turn down," said her mother. Her father nodded reluctantly in agreement, embracing his daughter with a comforting hug.

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that."

"You want independence from the Landgraabs financially, and this is a fair way to do it," reasoned her brother. "Besides, if Malcolm's finally ready to embrace his role as a father I think, deep down, you want that for your son, despite your own feelings about him. And why wouldn't you? We had a great dad; everyone should be so lucky! Ash, too."

Heather looked at her younger brother with a smile. "When did you get so wise?"

"You only think I'm wise because you're a butthead, Butts."

With her family’s support, she sent Malcolm the paperwork confirming their son was a Landgraab in name, and he transferred the lump sum payment as promised. ->

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NOTE: I'm really sorry to those who didn't want Heather to change his last name, but I really wanted there to be a big consequence for the hack. I wasn't feeling a prison storyline and this is the next worst-case scenario. In my head she didn't have room to negotiate after the hack (the proof exists even if Conrad chose not to reveal it, but he's too honest a cop to delete the evidence) and it was an all-or-nothing deal.

NOTE 2: I know I'm loading this story with characters but Heather is so close with her family I can't leave them behind in Gen 1, even if I wanted to. Neal gave them their nicknames when each of them were born, like a tradition, picking various plants, mostly yellow, due to yellow being one of Daisy's favourite colours. But a quick rundown on Heather and her siblings-

Heather "Buttercup" Nesbitt b. 2025 - Ash (Nesbitt) Landgraab b. 2050 (son of Malcolm) Holly "Daffodil" (Nesbitt) Bell b. 2027 m. Kristopher "Kris" Bell (son of premades Michael Bell & Cecilia Kang) River "Huckleberry" Nesbitt b. 2029 m. Cassandra Goth Hazel "Dandelion" Nesbitt b. 2033 currently dating Nicola Moody-McMillan, the daughter of premade Kim Goldbloom and a random townie. Nicola's grandfathers were Kim's adoptive dads (via MCCC), Ian Moody & Derek McMillan but they died in a riverboat cruise disaster (off-screen because the game culled them unexpectedly).

Since I put dates in to show the age differences in the siblings, for those who care it's about 2051 in game right now. Heather is 26 and Ash is not yet 2. The year won't really mean anything, it's not a historical or futuristic challenge, but I like to keep track.

Also yes I'm going for sometimes-obnoxious sibset theming with names in this save. The theme in Gen 1 was flowers and plants (Daisy was a botanist but Neal achieved Outdoor Enthusiast so he's big into nature, herbalism and sustainability as an eco-civil designer). River got his slightly off-theme name because I wanted to use it, and the River Bagley IS a prominent feature in Henford, after all! But I'm sorry about all the H names, it's a lot!

Kris & Holly and Nicola & Hazel (who looks like Heather with blue eyes and w/o glasses), since River & Cass are above:

[vichanma]

Yandere Miguel O'hara Saviour Part 2: More then a coffee date.

TW: Stalking, Obsessive, toxic ex, memory loss, trauma

__________

You had spoken to Miguel over the past few days, Kris was happy to see you enjoying your time with someone but also couldn't shake off a bad feeling. She however wasn't going to pop a bubble, she did feel guilty for the escalation with your ex.

Agreeing to meet at a different coffee shop, you are walking happily. You were wrong about him. He seemed scary but was such a sweetheart. He wanted to know more about you, but also seemed to just know so much about you already. He could read you like an open book. At first, unnerving now, sweet.

The two of you arrive at the same time, "you go sit down. I'll get us something."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, anything for you." He smiled at you which made you feel nervous. He was truly goregous. You sit down at a two seat table next to the window, it was cloudy today and you had hoped it wouldn't rain.

Shortly after Miguel comes back with two drinks and a snack, your favourite snack. "Aw you got me a cinnamon roll, how did you remember that I enjoyed this?"

He smiles at you gently and almost whispers back to you, "how can I possibly forget something you enjoy, Y/n." It caught you off guard. This man, he knew what and how to say it.

You never experienced something like this.

___

The two of you engaged in conversation. His cup is empty, but his eyes are unmoving as he watches you, all eyes and ears. It was all so new to you, "wait so why did you leave the company?"

He sighed at that, which made him turn away from you and look down at his empty cup, "some of the tests are anything but ethical, it puts so many people at risk. Also the way they treat their employees... you really should leave."

Looking at him you nod your head, "I heard some divisions have had issues lately. Trying to cover something up but not explaining what..."

Placing a hand on your own he looks at you gently, "there are still great places to work, you can do the world good without having to dirty your hands."

"Thank you, Miguel. I'll give it some thought." This wasn't the first time someone has suggested this. The company was suspicious, especially some of the other divisions, but you wanted to make the world a better place.

After finishing your drink the two of you walk out, Miguel extending his arm for you to hold, "may I?"

His arm was warm, and you followed his lead, he walked with you to a food truck and grabbed your savory favourite snack. He didn't take anything for himself but watched you eating it. Offering him a bite but he shakes his head and mentions how you deserve it. Not sure as to why but you didn't question it.

A girl bumps into you and is ready to argue but quickly runs off as you turn to face her, "what was that about?" You turn to Miguel who touches your upper lip slightly, bringing his thumb to his lips and licking the salty snack.

"Must have been in a hurry, she didn't hurt you did she?"

"She didn't do anything so of course I'm fine! You really are caring." Miguel only averts his eyes from you and enjoys the silence. You eating your second favourite snack, holding his hand. He will have to take you to dinner next.

You look down to your phone to notice you had received a text from Kris, saying something is urgent and there are police officers there. "I'm sorry something came up. Can we meet up again?"

He smiled up at you, "Of course, text me when you get home." You feel awkward doing it, but you give him a quick hug, to which Miguel freezes. You smile at him and nod your head; quickly making your way home. Your friend didn't explain the situation, but something had to be up. Why else would someone be there unless Kris got into trouble... hopefully not.

As you walk away you feel that paranoia again. It's not as strong but the feeling of eyes haunts you. Feeling uncomfortable you step onto the road and feel an arm pulling you back as you missed a car hitting you.

"Mierda que estuvo cerca." You hear someone mumble, "Are you okay?" You look behind you and see Miguel, who looked scared. Mumbling a Im fine he doesn't let you go, "no, no, you seemed stressed when you left. What happened?"

"I'm not sure yet I just got a sudden text-"

"I'll come with you." You looked at him confused but nodded your head, at least when you are with him that paranoia weared off. It will be safer this way too.

The two of you walk in silence, however his hand still held your own. You wanted to ask about it but held it down, worrying Miguel might see you as a weirdo who is scared of physical contact. You get to the house and open the door, Kris was there with two policemen.

You had given her a spare key to come visit your cat whenever she wanted, you trusted her after all. Miguel's charming face fell slightly and he became more intimidating one again.

"Hello Ms/r L/n, we have a couple of questions about Patrick Williams."

__________

[prettyboysun]

a love that always feels like summer

choi yeonjun x f!reader | the rest of txt are in here too lol | set in the mid 2000′s | fluff, angst, non-detailed smut | wrote this to satisfy my yearning of a teenage summer romance in the 20th century lol synopsis: saved by yeonjun at a party once, the universe somehow manages to keep you two gravitating towards one another. eventually sneaked glances and secret rendezvous turn into something much more. will the two of you be able to break each other’s difficult pretenses of love? or will everything just turn out to be a summer fling?  warnings/tw: underage drinking & smoking, mentions of alcohol, implied sex, character death, cursing word count: 12k

the four of you sat in jisoo’s brand new car gifted to her by her dad after graduation. it was a convertible and of course the roof was down on a pretty summer afternoon. you gazed out at the city passing by, the warm wind beating against your skin. “Y/n babe- this ones for you.” You turned to jisoo in the drivers seat, giving her a questioning look. You heard the beginning of since you’ve been gone by Kelly Clarkson playing and the four of you laughed in unison, shaking your head teasingly and looking back out the window. you had just broken up with your ‘boyfriend’ of almost two years. Kris asked you out halfway through junior year at your schools annual winter dance. It was pretty smooth sailing for a while, well at least you thought it was. A few weeks after your started dating you found out he only asked you out at the winter formal as a dare. When you confronted him about it, he defended himself saying he truly fell for you. it was ironic to say he fell for you after a few weeks of barely knowing each other, especially because you were truly convinced he never romantically liked you at all.  he would only kiss you when he coincidentally saw you on campus to show off to his guy friends. when he was around girls, he wouldn’t even spare you a greeting. you planned dates with him at least once a month in hopes of saving your relationship, to which he would sometimes ‘forget.’ When he would show up to your dates, he was like the perfect boyfriend. Maybe having those days where it was just the two of you made you feel loved and cancelled out all the other shitty things he did. Needless to say, it was an empty, fake, high school relationship. He used you for a title and you were too foolish to notice, too foolish to listen to your friends when they advised you to break up with him. “We’re just very independent” you would tell them in defense, but eventually even you had to start convincing yourself the relationship was real. Three weeks before graduation, you had finally broken up with him. You were shocked to find him surprised about the breakup.

“Did I do something wrong? We were perfectly fine together. Are you cheating on me-“ he feigned innocence of all his wrongdoings and if someone were to witness your breakup they would think he actually loved you. He held onto your wrist looking for an explanation. you scoffed and rolled your eyes in annoyance, throwing his hand off of your wrist. ”don’t act like you ever cared about me. I’m breaking up with you, so don’t contact me and don’t act like you want me back.” You kept your explanation short, not wanting to call out all the ways in which he mistreated you—although it was tempting. He already wasted so much of your time that you didn’t even want to spend another second looking at him. “but-“ you quickly left the scene, knowing he would just make excuses if you stayed any longer to listen to him. “y/n, wait!” he didn’t even try to contact you once after the breakup, which made you despise him even more. you smiled at the memory, proud of yourself to have broken things off with that douchebag who you wasted your teenage years foolishly pining on. you wish you could take back all the firsts he stole from you.

“ugh! I can’t believe I used to like that dude.” Your head fell back against the seat and you rubbed your temples, frustrated at your past self. “girl, we tried telling you countless times.” jisoo reminded. “I know and I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you guys.” You pouted, sending them apologetic looks. “boooo, you whore.” Ellie quoted mean girls, which she has been doing nonstop since it was released last year. you and your friends are convinced she watches it every night before she goes to sleep. “its okay y/n, I never listen to ya’ll either.” Karina said, which you all agreed in unison to. She was the human depiction of ‘asking friends for advice but never following it.’ “okay damn, you weren’t supposed to agree to that.” Karina folded her arms and sent each of you glares. 𓆩♡𓆪 the four of you arrived at a random house where one of many graduation parties occurred during the summer. It was a fairly large estate and a local band was supposed to be playing for the night. You stuck by karina’s side, not wanting to be left alone especially as you didn’t really know a lot of people. “Oh Sophia, hey! How are you doing?” Karina came across Sophia, your class’s valedictorian. you turned around at the name, happy to see someone you talked to during school. “Y/n, Karina, what’s up? I’m doing great, how bout you guys?” “im doing good.” “Same here.” You added on. “so ms. valedictorian, any plans this summer?” Karina asked. Unlike your stereotypical nerdy valedictorian, Sophia had a lot of friends and was very easy going. “haha please, we already graduated.” She gave Karina  a playful push on the shoulder. “just trying to enjoy my last summer here before I move to reed university for the semester.” “Awwww, so you’ll be going out of state?” You were truly sad to see one of your friends leave, but also proud of her. “yep, my mom and dad want me to, so-“ she just shrugged her shoulders and gave a tight lipped smile. “oh damn, as long as you’re happy though.” Your friend Karina shrugged too. Not wanting to say much on the matter to dictate sophia’s life. You gave a sad smile to her. “thanks guys. I’ll see you around?” She gave a thankful smile in return. “yeah, we’ll see you around.” You replied to her.  The both of you waving goodbye as she trailed off to god knows where in the crowded house. you and Karina make your way to the drinks section, your eyes landing on a familiar face handling the drinks. “what the hell, Beomgyu?!” You excitedly call his attention to you. Also greeting Taehyun who was by his side. Karina wandered off to catch up with another group of people. “y/n!” Beomgyu offers a big smile to you and gives a side hug. “we’re the mixers for tonight.” Beomgyu motions to the drinks and supplies in front of them. “I can see that.” You hesitantly nod, suspicious about their abilities to mix drinks that don’t taste like poison. “we’ve been asking people to vote on the better mixer and as you’d expect, of course I’m winning.” Taehyun said cockily, earning a glare from Beomgyu. “Yeah right, flirting with the girls doesn’t count in getting you votes.” You laughed at their usual banter. “Mmm I believe it. If Beomgyu can’t mix substances in chemistry he sure can’t mix drinks.” Beomgyu’s jaw dropped at your words, sporting a shocked expression. You recall the time the three of you had chemistry class together, in which you grew close to Beomgyu who was assigned to sit next to you. Taehyun had always joined the two of you for group projects and labs. “Hah! Nice one!” Taehyun laughed and held his hand up for you to hi-five. “Don’t bother finding anything to say back, you wouldn’t have passed chemistry if it wasn’t for y/n.” Taehyun just added fuel to the fire. “I’m not doing this anymore.” Beomgyu pushed the red cups back and stepped away from the counter with the most deadpan expression on his face. “Beomgyu no!! We need your amazingggg mixing skills.” You said sarcastically, reaching out your hand to him so he wouldn’t leave. As if on cue, a group of friends pulled up to the counter, tasking Taehyun and Beomgyu with making them drinks. Of course, they had to ask the innocent group of friends about who made the better drinks. “Y/n, the band playing tonight is gonna start performing in likeeeee-“ he looked over at the digital clock behind him. “-10 minutes! They’ll be in the back.” “You guys aren’t coming?” You asked him. Not wanting to be alone outside. “In a few, after we’re finished here.” “Alright then.” You gave a small smile and waved to them as you left to the backyard. 𓆩♡𓆪 you savored the cool night breeze the backyard had to offer, although it was still victim to the loud music blasting from inside the house. the backyard was significantly less crowded and consisted of different friend groups hanging out in their own worlds, couples flirting or making out and the band setting up their equipment for the night. You joined Karina and jisoo who were talking with a group of familiar faces. Laughing and catching up with them was although short-lived as you witnessed hoards of people making their way into the backyard. The music in the house stopped moments prior, someone probably announcing that the bands performance was about to start. you had now stood up to join the crowd forming around the band. screeeeeeeeech the feedback from the mic had made everyone cringe and stop their conversations. Some people complaining and letting out curses from the horrible sound. “oh shit- sorry about that yall.” a guitarist from the band had spoken into the microphone. “but anyways!…..” the band had introduced themselves and the songs they were going to perform. Soon enough everyone in the crowd were jumping and dancing to the upbeat pop-rock song they were playing. You had eventually even came across beomgyu and Taehyun in the crowd with their friends. In which you opted to dancing and jumping around with them too. You bended over clenching your stomach in laughter having front row seats to witness beomgyu and some random dude having an impromptu dance battle. now a slow ballad song was playing and some people in the crowd danced with their friends, some grabbed the closest person nearby and others took the opportunity to be close to their crushes of the night. you were currently slow dancing with Karina who was conveniently nearby. You had giggled at a drunk Ellie who was dramatically swaying to the music with her boyfriend. He looked panicked as he tried to stop her from losing balance and toppling over. You looked in another direction to see beomgyu and his friend sensually dancing together. “Rina, look at them.” you pointed in the direction of beomgyu and his friend, the two of you laughed together after seeing beomgyu grope his friends bottom, witnessing the horrid expression on his friends face as it turned into a sneaky smile before he did the same to beomgyu--earning a quick slap on the hand from him. you enjoyed the relaxing melody of the song and the joyous atmosphere of it all, even the fairy lights strung from the roof looked especially pretty tonight. you peered over karinas’s shoulder and saw one of  beomgyus close friends embracing a popular cheerleader from your school as they slowly swayed to the music. He slowly leaned down towards her face. Before you could see what happened another couple moved in front of your line of sight, blocking the view. You looked away but nonetheless were curious. “hey, is luna hooking up with anybody?” You asked Karina as she was also on the cheer team. “hm?” Karina gave you a confused expression, surprised at the sudden question. “not that I know of. I don’t think she’s dating anyone either. Why?” “nothing, just wondering.” You returned to dancing.                    𓆩♡𓆪    the band wrapped up their last song and everyone went their separate ways. some people made their way home hauling their drunk friends with them or went inside the house for more drinks. “hey y/n!” You turned around at the sound of Taehyun calling your name. You dismissed yourself from your group of friends and made your way over to Taehyun and beomgyu with their friends. “Y/n, this is kai and soobin who go to bear creek.” Bear creek was the high school on the other side of town.

“I’m y/n, nice to meet you.” You offered a small wave and smile to the two tall boys in which they did the same. You recognized kai as the friend beomgyu groped earlier.

“So I saw you two getting it on on the dance floor earlier.” You motioned to beomgyu and kai with a playful tone. The group of boys all made different sounds of acknowledgment. You saw soobin hiding his face behind his hands and shaking his head groaning in embarrassment over the two’s shenanigans. “yeah sorry we got a little carried away.” Beomgyu fluttered his long eyelashes and tucked his imaginary hair behind his ear. Kai’s loud laugh in return caught your attention and made you laugh too. “y/n, try this.” Taehyun handed you a cup with unknown substances in it mixed into a light pink color. “you still need to decide who the better mixer is.” “haha!” Beomgyu let out a loud laugh. “Oh cmon Taehyun don’t embarrass yourself like this.” you took a small sip of the drink Taehyun handed to you. You slowly nodded your head at the taste. “Not bad…” slightly grimacing at the bitter aftertaste. “ok now try mines.” You gave the cup back to Taehyun and took the blue drink beomgyu had in his hands. “wait, palette cleanser first.” You took a quick gulp of the bottle of coke you had in your hands. the 4 boys watched in amusement as you took a sip of beomgyus drink. Taking the cup away from your lips with wide eyes that made the boys laugh, you took another sip. You were surprised with how good beomgyu’s drink was. It tasted nothing like alcohol and instead resembled the blue raspberry airheads if they were in liquid form. “Taehyun, it’s not good to flirt with people for votes.” You said with the utmost feigned concern in your voice and expression, making the boys jest at Taehyun. You laughed at taehyuns helpless expression. “I’ll be back guys, need to use the restroom.” You pointed to the house behind you over your shoulder. “m’kay see you later.” Beomgyu and the boys bidded goodbye. Before you could open the sliding door into the house you felt a hand grab at your wrist. “Y/n. Let’s talk.” You turned around to be met with kris. Immediately smelling the alcohol ooze off of his body and especially in his breath as he spoke. ‘Oh great, what a way for my night to be ruined.’ You rolled your eyes and sighed. “kris. We broke up. there’s nothing to talk about.” “y/n please it’ll be real quick. You can’t just break up with me like that.” You gave him a look of disbelief at his whiny tone. “oh my god, grow up will you?” You shook off his hands from your wrist. “y/n stop being stubborn just talk to me.” he gave you a pleading look on that annoying face of his. he had stopped you at the back entrance into the house so people who passed by surely were able to hear what the two of you were talking about. Not wanting to cause a scene you agreed to talk to him. ❁ཻུ۪۪♡ he brought you to the side of the house, which happened to be empty at the moment. “Okay, what do you want.” You stood in front of him, impatiently crossing your arms and anxiously chewing at your lips. “did I do something wrong? we dated for so long y/n and now you want to break up with no explanation?” “no explanation?! Your actions alone were enough of an explanation. You can’t just date me and act like I don’t exist!” Maybe it was whatever Taehyun and beomgyu put in those drinks that made you raise your voice but you truly wanted to be calm talking to xxxxx. It just seemed impossible now that he was actually in front of you, asking you what went wrong in the relationship. well the very problem in your relationship was standing right in front of you. “You know I hate clingy people y/n, we went through this so many times already.” You let out an exasperated scoff in disbelief at his words. “acknowledging my existence isn’t called being clingy. did you ever once ask me out on a date? Remember our anniversaries? Shit-“ you arms flew up in disbelief remembering certain moments. “-you never even said hi to me when you were busy sucking up to other girls. Couldn’t you at least spare your own girlfriend a glance?” “babe, be serious here. yeah I sometimes forget those things but you’re still my girlfriend, I still like you.” Before you could say anything back he stepped closer to you, one hand on your waist and the other caressing your cheek. Oh how you used to love when he touched you—or even showed you any affection at all. “don’t babe me, what the fuck kris we broke up already, it’s over.” You stepped away in disgust at his touch, removing his hands from your body. “y/n, baby, I know you’re not serious. you already know I’m sorry” He stepped closer to you once again with a grin on his face. How dare he find this situation amusing? this time he restrained both of your hands by holding them, stopping you from pushing him away. his face went closer to yours, trying to kiss you. “Ugh-get the fuck off me! You’re drunk! Let go!” You struggled against his strong hold, moving your face around and squirming to avoid his disgusting lips on your body. you weren’t going to let this be like the countless times you’d call him out for being a lousy boyfriend, which always ended up with him manipulating you and getting you into bed ‘as an apology.’ “Hey dude-” The two of you look in the direction of the unfamiliar voice. You see beomgyu’s friend from earlier taking a puff of a cigarette. Exhaling the smoke then tossing it onto the ground, killing it’s flames with the bottom of his shoe. Has he been standing there the whole time? “-she said it’s over already. What’s so hard to understand about that.” He calmly states in his low voice. You took the chance to free yourself from kris’s hold and distance yourself from him, rubbing your wrists in pain from his tight hold.  Kris scoffs and looks to the side. Closing his eyes for 2 seconds in frustration, his tongue poking his cheek from the inside. He returns his gaze to beomgyus friend, pissed at his audacity to interfere in his business. “it’s none of your fucking business. Fuck off already Choi Yeonjun.” you remember tagging along with kris to a party when you first began dating. You had witnessed kris try to joke around about something out of line, which yeonjun didn’t stand for. So when yeonjun called him out in front of everyone at the party, he got heated and tried to start shit with him. After that encounter kris became pissed at you whenever he saw you hanging around Beomgyu and Taehyun at school. “how can I when I came here with her?” He steps close to your body, putting an arm over your shoulder and leaning into your side. your heart speeds up from the close proximity. Taking note of how warm he feels and how he smells like cigarettes, yet also sweet, probably from his cologne. “you and y/n?” Kris lets out a mocking snicker and shit eating grin. Crossing his arms in amusement and disbelief at the sight. “I don’t believe it.” you clenched your fists at your sides and narrow your eyes out of anger. You were tired of always being belittled by him. Before you can speak up to defend yourself yeonjun softly brushes the hair away from your left shoulder, planting a warm lingering kiss onto the exposed juncture between your neck and shoulder. he leave his lips there for a second before opening his eyes to look directly into kris’s. you bite your lip in order to hold back the butterflies you feel in your stomach and the blood rushing to your cheeks. “well hopefully you’ll believe it now.” You can see the right corner of his lip curl up into a smirk. kris stands there frozen. His gaze travels back and forth between you and yeonjun before looking at you. “first Taehyun and beomgyu, and now yeonjun?” He laughed a little too hard. “Always knew you were a slut.” He says directly while looking into your eyes. You feel yeonjun’s body tense up against yours. Your heart beats faster out of anger and your eye brows furrow, flinching at the slur he called you. He leaves, shoulder bumping into yeonjuns on the way out. you and yeonjun stand there side by side, with his arm still hanging around your shoulder. you take a slow breath to cool down and calm your nerves. Looking up at yeonjun, he has an unreadable expression while staring straight ahead. He stays like that for a few moments before taking his arm off your shoulder and placing it into the back pockets of his jeans. his body now facing yours. You couldn’t help but notice how stupidly good his arms looked in his wife beater flexed in that position. the light from the sconces mounted on the wall making them seem like they were perfectly sculpted by some ancient artists. Why the hell were you focusing on yeonjuns arms right- “should I have beat his ass up?” He asks in a too casual tone and serious expression, breaking you out of your thoughts. you burst into a smile and giggle at the absurdity of it all. “he’s not even worth the trouble, trust me.” You convincingly tilt your head at him, you were pretty sure he knew where you were coming from after being there to witness the whole ordeal. “i’ll have to agree with you on that one.” you smiled at his comment before realizing the situation you were in. You slowly crossed your arms while avoiding looking in yeonjun’s direction. “but was all of that really necessary?” you asked. it was your first time meeting him but he just witnessed you arguing with your shitty ex. you were now suspicious of him, especially after witnessing him (maybe) kiss someone earlier. Or maybe he was just too attractive for you to let your guard down around. Yeonjun let out an amused smile at your now defensive stance and disposition. he found your little pout and flustered expression cute. “I don’t think he would’ve gone away if I hadn’t done that.” yeonjun looked at you, watching you nod slowly and kick at random pebbles on the ground. “I only witnessed everything up to the part where he forced himself on you.” He assured. You looked up at yeonjun with obvious relief shown on your face. ‘cute’ yeonjun thought to himself. Smiling at your adorable antics. “oh, okay then, that’s good. thanks for saving me.” you looked up to offer him a small smile of gratitude. he didn’t say anything but instead just softly looked at you — staring at you, almost. You stood there awkwardly under his gaze, silence suddenly taking over the atmosphere. Yeonjun in all honesty was enamored with you. He liked the way you avoided eye contact with him but at the same time weren’t shy to look directly into his eyes. He liked the way you seemed small and fragile but also knew how to stand your ground. He liked the way your features were shadowed and highlighted by the light nearby. he wanted to know more about you. “next time you go to these parties, call me? i’ll be your personal bodyguard.” You were caught off guard by his strange request. “hm?” You let out a confused noise that shocked even you. You didn’t mean for your confusion to slip out like that. yeonjun laughed heartily at your reaction. The sound making you ease up. “so? you don’t like the idea of a completely free personal bodyguard?” He tilted his head at you and smirked. You’d be lying if you said his annoyingly pretty face alone didn’t convince you to entertain his strange request. you were interrupted before you could speak up to accept his offer. “y/n! Is that you?” You looked away from yeonjun to see jisoo calling out your name, aggressively squinting to see if it was truly you she was seeing. you saw Karina and ellie’s boyfriend Jacob occupied with dragging a drunk Ellie to the direction of the car. you’ve never felt more grateful about jisoo basically being blind than in this moment. Part of you didn’t want to have to explain to your crazy friends about why you were seen alone with yeonjun at a secluded part of the house—the famous yeonjun whom everyone knew and pined over. You thanked jisoo in your head for saving you from the awkward situation with yeonjun. “yeah, its me! I’ll be there soon!” You shouted in her direction, hoping her horrible vision wouldn’t allow her to notice yeonjun with you. you turned your attention back to the boy in front of you, leaving him hanging about his request to be your ‘personal bodyguard.’ “Tell the guys I said bye?” you felt bad about telling them you’d be back, only to disappear for the night. “yeah, I’ll let them know.” you started to jog to catch up with your friends. ‘did I just get rejected?’ yeonjun thinks to himself after failing to get your number and also having you walk away from him like nothing happened. He starts to follow your now distant figure. “bye y/n!” you looked back to see yeonjun who moved from his previous spot and was now waving at you beneath the moonlit summer night. a pretty smile shown on his face. In all honestly it felt weird hearing your name come from his mouth. “bye yeonjun!” You waved back to him and returned his smile. ❁ཻུ۪۪♡ yeonjun caught up with the four boys in the backyard. “Where have you been?” Soobin eyes yeonjun up suspiciously. “Probably making out with some random girl.” Kai squealed the last part out in a childish tone, earning a punch to the shoulder from yeonjun. “y/n wanted to say bye to you guys but she left with her friends already.” Yeonjun took a sip from the red cup he snatched from Taehyun. “ew the hell is this? this is horrible.” He grimaced at the bitter taste and swirled around the liquid in the cup. He was confused from the silence amongst the usually noisy boys. he looked up to be met with judging expressions from not only beomgyu and Taehyun but also soobin and kai who had only just met you that night. “what?” Yeonjun asked, not knowing why they were looking at him like that. “y/n?? As in my friend y/n??” Beomgyu questioned, pointing to himself with that judging look still on his face. “cmon man, not y/n.” soobin added on. He had only met you that same night but already liked your presence. “oh my goddddd.” Yeonjun sighed and rolled his eyes. “I didn’t make out with her and I didn’t sleep with her.” He swept his onyx hair back. “yeah, we know, y/n would never stoop that low.” Taehyun said earning him an astonished expression from yeonjun and laughs from soobin and kai. eventually the topic of conversation switched after yeonjun put taehyun in a head lock. beomgyu who was the closest to you was still shocked at hearing yeonjun mention your name so casually. ✧ ˚ 　· 　　 . you woke up to the bright sun piercing though your window. ‘I thought I closed them last night.’ You groggily think to yourself. Maybe the sound of your door opening and your moms voice wasn’t apart of your dream after all. You tried, really tried to ignore the bright sun and go back to sleep but with the snores of Ellie passed out dead next to you and her legs strewed over yours, it was impossible to succumb to your precious sleep. You sighed and admitted defeat for the day, sitting up to see the digital clock on your nightstand read 9:32 in the morning. You had honestly forgotten you lost the game of Rock Paper Scissors to your friends, which explained Ellie sleeping with you in your bed. Despite her intoxicated mind last night, she was able to let you guys know that her parents would kill her if she came home drunk at night. you were all very shocked to hear Ellie sound perfectly sober while explaining to her parents she would spend the night at your house. As expected from a drama kid. you managed to move your leg that was asleep—under the weight of Ellies leg—off the bed and carried the rest of your body towards the bathroom to freshen up. You mindlessly brushed your teeth, going over random thoughts in your head. your encounter with yeonjun last night managed to make itself known in your head. You took the toothbrush out of your mouth, sighing loudly and placing both of your palms on the counter, using it to support your weight while you closed your eyes.  ‘Choi Yeonjun…?’ You shook your head in disbelief at the moment the two of you shared last night. ‘Personal bodyguard??’ You chewed at your lip and shook your head some more. “yeah I liked that movie too.” You yelped and jumped back in surprise, seeing Ellie standing beside you, currently yawning and having her hands in your shorts (that you struggled to put on her last night) scratching at her butt. You couldn’t believe you were thinking out loud and couldn’t believe you didn’t hear Ellie enter the bathroom. Hopefully she only heard the second part of your inner thoughts. “god, make some noise will you, scared the crap outta me.” you eye her up offendedly, your words being a bit muffled from the toothpaste in your mouth. “sorry ‘bout that biatch.” She takes her toothbrush that’s been at your house from the countless sleepovers with your friends. The two of you eventually stare at the mirror busy brushing away. you lean down towards the faucet to rinse your mouth with water before Ellie lets out 3 astonishing syllables. “CHWE FMKIN UNJOON?!” (Actually 5 syllables) you manage to decipher her muffled words as ‘choi fucking yeonjun.’ Before you can retaliate you’re busy trying to catch your breath from choking on the minty sink water. You look up to see Ellie staring at you with saucer eyes, looking comical as the blue foam escapes past her lips and her arm remains holding in the toothbrush in her mouth. When you return eye contact she hurriedly spits out the toothpaste in her mouth. After at least 5 minutes of back and forths in the bathroom you finally give in and tell her all about what happened the night before. “the peng yeonjun? Yeonjun who only actually speaks to girls if he’s gonna screw them that night? And fuck kris! m proud of you for standing up to him.” Ellie says all at once as you sit facing each other on your bed. “yes! that yeonjun, starts with a y and ends with an n. The only person in this town named yeonjun. And yeah screw kris, that jackass—wait, what do you mean yeonjun who sleeps with girls?” You asked dumbfounded. “y/n literally everyone knows this already, even emo Gregory.” (Emo Gregory being the dark emo kid at your school who talks to literally no one.) okay you knew she was lying about emo Gregory because there’s no way he would know anything about yeonjun who went to a different high school. “Every single girl says they wish they were Luna just so they could get yeonjun’s attention.” Suddenly the information Ellie told you and the scene you witnessed on the dance floor last night started to make sense. “are they… fuck buddies…?” you hesitantly ask, almost asking if they were dating but with the context clues of the information you just received, you redacted it to friends with benefits. Ellie slings both her arms backwards and falls on her back onto your pillows. “ugh idk, they don’t seem like that though, more likeeeeee…besties…?” She tilts her head at the thought and grimaces. “they’re just…weird, that’s all I know.” you sit there in silence trying to process it all. “-and I also know I have a banging ass headache.” ✧ ˚ 　· 　　 . later that evening you walked to a nearby Chinese restaurant to pick up dinner for your family. You had your mini disc player in hand and headphones playing your favorite band from the 70’s, bee gees. Having your parents be friends with the owners meant simply placing an order over the landline. you walk into the cozy restaurant, hearing the chime of the door go off. ‘Oh Y/n! Your food will be out in a few.’ Your family friend told you as you waited by the counter. through the music in your headphones you could hear a familiar sound. You looked up to see a familiar group of boys gathered at a table, kai’s laugh in particular catching your attention. You stayed at your spot for a bit, not wanting to intrude. Until you met eyes with beomgyu who was facing your direction, in which you gave him a disgusted look while raking his body up and down with your eyes. something the two of you usually did whenever you met eye contact across the room. He did the same to you, making kai and soobin turn their heads in your direction. They waved at you and called your name to which you reciprocated with a smile: which is how you found yourself seated at a table in a Chinese restaurant waiting for your food with three particular boys engaging in casual conversation. “y/n, help yourself.” Soobin motioned to the food laid out in front of them, half eaten and all. “no it’s okay.” You waved your hands in front of you to deny his offer. “My foods coming out in a bit anyways.” “soobin, we already ate the food.” Hueningkai breaks out into an awkward fit of laughter, apologizing to you on the behalf of soobins offer. Beomgyu pushes soobins head (which he was in fact looking at his lap in shame) with his knuckles, clicking his tongue at him. “Boy are you embarrassing.” soobin threatens to do the same with beomgyu, which makes him flinch in his seat. You laugh at the scene. “Leave the poor boy alone.” You say to kai and beomgyu. “At least y/n has my back.” He sneers at the two boys and crosses his arms in defense. “taehyun isn’t here with you guys?” You ask, used to seeing he and beomgyu together. before you could receive a reply from kai, beomgyu cuts him off. Propping his elbow on the table and putting his fist against his cheek to hold his head up. Hearing about one of his close friends reminded him of another. “soooooo you meant yeonjun huh?” You’re caught off guard by the question but try not to show it. “yeahhhhh, last night at the party actually.” You stretch out the first part just as beomgyu did with his question. not receiving any words back you slowly sit back into your seat and cross your arms in suspicion. “Why?” “mm nothing, just didn’t know you two had met.” Beomgyu says dismissively, pursing his lips at the thought. Soobin and kai sat there awkwardly, switching their sights between the two of you and observing the strange atmosphere. you were saved from beomgyu’s weird behavior by the owner calling your name out for your finished order. “bye kai, bye soobin. i’ll see you guys around.” you waved goodbye to them as you quickly got up from your seat next to beomgyu. You were a bit pissed at beomgyu for suddenly making the atmosphere awkward with his friends around, perplexed at his actions. the boy in question was as bit as perplexed as you were. He didn’t want to admit he was being possessive of you as his friend. If it were with soobin and kai he wouldn’t mind, but with yeonjun? Yeonjun who mentioned your name so casually that night, as if he’d known you for as long beomgyu knew you? Yeonjun, his dear friend that he loved and cared for... maybe he was possessive over both of his friends, actually. ------------ GODDAMn I wrote this like a few months ago and wanted to post it as a full story but I got writers block lol... depending on how well this does I might find the inspiration to write more chapters for it idk :/ also might change the title of this :0

[acertainmoshke]

Ok so this came out way longer than I meant it to, but I needed a break from the slog towards plot connections, so here is a random scene set around book 4 that I wrote just for fun:

Alone, alone, alone. I was so alone I couldn’t think or breathe, my brain so empty. For the first time in a literal lifetime, I couldn’t feel his mind pressed against mine. Seeing him lying still on the bed didn’t help. One step forward. Another. It took both steps for him to finish one slow breath. I took another, needing to press closer, to prick my skin on his, to prove that my brother still existed. Except I couldn’t get close enough. Beth and Doug were there, hovering, flitting, pressing cloths to his head and throwing around words that my brain couldn’t hear. People who knew what was wrong, knew what they were doing. Saying things that meant nothing to me. I tried to step up to the bed, got close enough to feel the brush of painfully damp sheets, but Beth darted in front of me, pushing past, snapping something urgent. The hall was even lonelier. There was no air. My brain was empty, itching for his warmth. Drowning in darkness. When had I gone outside? At least it was cold. There was air to suck into my lungs. But my head was still spinning. I bit my lip, ice burning just under my skin ready to explode, demanding blood and rubble. Tonight would be the night I destroyed my latest home.

Alone, alone, alone, alone, alo— “Hey.” When had I closed my eyes? I opened them again to find Lynn next to me. I hadn’t heard her walk up. I always heard everything. Echoing in the back of my head: alone, alone, alone… It was so cold and dark in my head. I didn’t even try to say hi back, but she had a way of knowing when I wasn’t going to answer and just kept going. “I get it. Really.” No, you don’t. But she couldn’t hear me. No one but Kris could hear my silence. I opened my mouth and nothing came out. I could see her squinting at me out of the corner of my eye. Her human eyes couldn’t see me clearly in the dark, but she must have gotten enough. “I really do.” With an effort, I got my voice back. “You can’t. It was always just us. I mean—not just us. There was Maggie, and then later Rob and Sally and…and we had friends. But it was mostly us. We needed each other. He’s always been there for me, forever. And now…” “And now they’re in the way.” We had both sat down on the soft garden dirt at some point, and I had been watching the plants sway in the breeze, but she startled me so much my head snapped up to look at her. She was looking over my shoulder like usual. Her braids tied back with a scarf, moonlight gleaming on her dark skin. On any other night I might have stopped to be shocked at her beauty (again). But everyone else always assumed he should be closer to his boyfriend and girlfriend anyway. “I told you. I get it. I was a foster kid. When the Kanins took me in I was so scared of adults I didn’t talk at all for weeks.” So you do speak, he’d said in surprise the first time I yelled at a wildling to leave us be. Lynn kept going. “And when I did, it was to Tatiana. I didn’t know how to be a kid. At first, I had no friends at all, only a sister. I wasn’t normal. But the thing is, she was. She fit in. She was smart and charming, but she made the others include me too and if they didn’t she left. In high school I didn’t have friends, only hookups and a sister. In college I had hookups, online acquaintances, and a sister. “But then she had a career, and sometimes boyfriends, and later girlfriends too. They were just as bad. And we started battling, and whenever I was in the hospital she was there. But when it was her whoever thought they were in love with her showed up like they cared more.” The ghost of a smile twitched at her lips. When had I chosen to avoid her eyes by looking at her lips instead of in the opposite direction? “I got kicked out more than once for hitting them.” “Is this the part where you tell me how you got over it?” “Oh, no. I didn’t have to. After she had Liliana, there were fewer partners around and she quit fighting as much anyway. And then the house filled up, and…I guess I have friends now. But she was there for me first, and it’s different, and…” for the first time she hesitated. “I think you get it?” I did. The world was still spinning. But the dirt under my feet wasn’t crisp with frost. I no longer had to fight down the magic. I could just let myself fade into mental fog and trail behind wherever Lynn was going when she got up to go inside.

tag list: @stesierra @amielbjacobs

[themanwhomadeamonster]

5 Character Associations ft. Carwyn, Seresa, Siel because I'm greedy LOL

it said save draft but it didn't!!! RAGHHH but oh well it's all complete now. (tagged by @arisenreborn THANK U MWAH MWAH)

EMOTIONS/FEELINGS:

The endlessly following bitterness of regret

Resentment, if not for the exhaustion of it

Scales as hard and cold as stone

A jolt of life from the sting of pain

Heartache in realising you're loved

COLOURS:

SCENTS:

Rotting plants

Sawdust

Walnuts

Bay leaves

The wind by the beach

OBJECTS:

His kris dagger

A very disorganised diary

An Adept's Hat too large for him, which he took from a fallen Arisen in the Isle

Wooden figure of a rabbit

Cured meat

BODY LANGUAGE:

Fists constantly closed, shoulders always tense

Furrowed brows and an intentionally unfriendly glare

Arms crossed, his body never facing towards you

A brash attitude to hide the insecurity of his appearance

Occasional attempts at hiding soft smiles

AESTHETICS:

SONGS:

Apocalyptica - Poseidon's Rage

The Cure - The Same Deep Water as You

Emilie Autumn - Dead is the New Alive

Selofan - I'm Addicted

Kate Bush - Waking the Witch

EMOTIONS/FEELINGS:

The sun hitting your skin on a winter afternoon

Realisation of longing when you see someone again

Kilig

The euphoria in belting a high note

Drinking ice-cold juice on a hot day

COLOURS:

SCENTS:

Cherries!

Fresh bed sheets

Homemade sweets

A bouquet made from your garden

Cats

OBJECTS:

Pamaypay

Her pocket mirror

A long piece of red ribbon

Ice cream

An empty wallet

BODY LANGUAGE:

Eyes darting around in curiosity like a child in a toy store

Animated hand gestures that instantly catch your attention

Always on her tip toes trying to reach things

Adjusting her glasses - they don't sit well on sloped noses

Humming to herself

AESTHETICS:

SONGS:

Cueshé - Ulan

Hands Like Houses - Through Glass

The Cranberries - Dreams

Tears For Fears - Head Over Heels

Ingrid Michaelson - The Chain

EMOTIONS/FEELINGS:

A wet and cool surface of otherwise warm flesh

Denial as those thoughts creep closer

Blood flushing through your cheeks

Gentle hands cupping your own

Satisfaction on another's behalf

COLOURS:

SCENTS:

Metal on your hands from handling a doorknob

Ethanol in a hospital

Sweat after a long day of work

Noodle soup

Honey with the faintest bitter aftertaste

OBJECTS:

A teacup

His green knitted jumper

Bar of soap with an incredibly strong fragrance

Their collar

Candles

BODY LANGUAGE:

Eyes that avoid your own

Stretching their back every once in a while

Fidgeting with their hands

Always smiling with his mouth closed, otherwise hiding a grin with his hand

Arms that don't know whether to reach for a hug or not

AESTHETICS:

SONGS:

Fear Cult - If You're Watching

London After Midnight - Kiss

INKUBUS SUKKUBUS - Vampyre Erotica

Yann Tiersen - The Waltz of the Monsters

Depeche Mode - Master and Servant

tagging @beastren @edgier-than-a-diamond @wainwrightjakobshammerlock i wanna munch on your funky blorbos!!