#yuun is still learning...bless him

[cinlat]

“It’s them, right boss?”

“Yeah Vik...It’s them. This galaxy’s gone to osik.”

[serararku]

Where the Wild Things Are Pt 3

<Theme>

The pool beneath Valhaas Barrow came from a subterranean river said to stretch all the way from the Black Shroud. The source of nearly every oasis in Thanalan, it remained the sole reason why the Miqo'te and various beast tribes could even survive in the dust-swept wastes. This water was as precious as it was sacred, reserved only for those closest resembling the divine image of Azeyma. The punishment for any Tia, slave, or outsider in this holy place was death.

The walls were painted by the many hands of women who came before. Some told tales of legendary heroes, others of harrowing tragedies; but the space along the ground was reserved for the kittens, who doodled rough paintings of flowers, or the sun, or even each other. Era wanted to place her mark in this place too one day, but she wanted to make it count- she wanted it to mean something.

“Well?” Her mother asked, catching her attention. She stood with two aunts, and all three stared at the woman expectantly. “We can’t get you clean if you’re not naked.”

Era was hesitant, but begrudgingly obeyed, starting with her boots before working her way up. When she first left her family to search for Tage, she had only a few scrapes on her hands from pulling feisty rodents from their tunnels and homes; but the more skin she revealed now, the paler her mother became. Era had her shirt halfway over her head when she was swarmed by her and her aunts.

“Were you stabbed?! Beaten?!” Yuun traced a few scars on Era’s stomach with her finger. “Gunshot wounds… did the shelled men do this?”

Era was barely able to get a word out when their hands began poking and prodding at all of her past injuries; something about this made her feel more vulnerable and ashamed now more than ever. “Y-yes, the Garleans-”

“What happened to your arm?!” Her mother grabbed her by the elbow and held her forearm close to her face. “Is this a burn?! How did this happen?!”

“Mom, please!” Era yanked her arm back and slinked away from their incessant touching. “It’s a long story… all of it is…” Telling them about how ‘Had-rel’ commanded her to stick her hand into a crackling fireplace was the last thing on her mind. Or the time she was shot during her ambush against that Garlean century. Or the time she got smacked in the side of the head and lost consciousness for a minute. Or all the times she was beaten during her many training lessons.

She aptly decided to change the subject before they continued to pelt her with questions.

“Do I have to do this? I don’t… I don’t want to mate with him, mom…”

Her mother’s face was still flushed with worry, but a reassuring smile began to creep along the corners of her lips. “Leave us.” She commanded, sending the grumbling women back upstairs to give them the space they needed. Era flinched and looked away when she casually pulled off her clothes; she knew she would have to be naked, but she wasn’t expecting her mother to do the same. Her skin was like polished porcelain, with her rich brown hair ending in small curls that almost reached to her knees once she let it all down. Even after giving birth seven times, her body remained a work of art. It was hard not to stare, harder still not to be envious; Era could only hope to have half a body like her mothers in twenty years. “We used to bathe all the time naked together, dear. Why are you so nervous now? All that time in those tribeless cities has affected you.” She reached over and gently took her daughter by the hand. “Come come, into the water while it’s still warm.”

Getting washed by her mother made her feel like a kitten all over again- a recurring theme since returning to her home. The water was warmed by dropping smoldering rocks heated by the bonfire into the depths, but the pool itself was surprisingly shallow- barely reaching over her hips while sitting down. Era definitely remembered being able to float in this exact pool when she was just a little younger. Did she really grow so fast? Or has the pool been shrinking since she departed? 

Her mother started with her hair, massaging raw honey into her scalp until it ran down her chest, shoulders, and back. “You need to grow out your hair. Keeping it short is cute... but there isn’t a Nunh alive that wouldn’t kill to gaze upon your body with hair that reaches the floor.”

“Mmmn…” Was all Era could mumble in between licking at the honey dripping too close to her mouth; the little bit of boar she ate from her mother’s helping wasn’t nearly enough.

“Era…?” Her mother started, causing her ears to perk. “You have been mating in the cities?” She did her best to conceal her startled shock, but her flattening ears and her tail thrashing about in the water beside her mother gave away the truth. Era’s mind frantically raced as she tried to conjure up a convincing lie, but her sudden silence only further proved her guilt.

“W-what are you t-talking about…?”

“I know bite marks when I see them.” She gave her daughter’s shoulder a few sharp pinches. “These ones look recent… very recent. You were supposed to save your first time for your Nunh.”

“W-well, I… I figured… w-why not practice…? F-for when I’m with my Nunh, I mean…” Era didn’t dare turn to look her mother in the eyes; the heat searing her face, neck, and now shoulders, was enough to boil this water. “That makes sense… r-right…?”

“A man has patience for a maiden.” She started, with the tone of her voice darkening. “Don’t tell Vahli about your ‘practice’, I don’t know how he will react.” Her mother paused to gather her hair in her hands to expose Era’s shoulders and back. She then plucked a lump of cactuar flesh out of the water to rub against her skin; with luck, the rejuvenating flesh would help conceal her more recent love marks. “What is his name?”

“Zevi…” For some reason she decided against revealing his tribe, not that it mattered; he cut all ties with them long ago.

“A Tia from the tribeless cities.” Yuun mused, working down one of Era’s arms. “He must be quite something for you to abandon your duties to the tribe. What is he like? Is he handsome? Strong?”

Era bit her lip for a moment in silence, but the silence did only last for a moment. “Brown skin burned by the sun. Black hair like raven feathers… and looking into his eyes is like staring up at the bright blue sky. Is he handsome…? Mom, he’s gorgeous…” She blinked a few times before clearing her throat. “And um… he’s strong enough to punch a deeproot tree out of the ground with a single punch. He was with me when I stormed that castrum to avenge Tage’s dea-...” Mentioning his name again put a dull ache in her heart; she thought she was over his death, but being here… where her journey all began… and it almost felt like she was right back in her apartment, staring at his ruined corpse all over again.

“I’m so sorry, honey…” Her mother leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her. “I know you wanted him. But he is with Azeyma now… hunting in Her endless fields of eternal sunlight.”

Era leaned into her mother’s embrace and closed her eyes. “Mom… I… I don’t want to lose Zevi. But if I defy the Nunh… I’ll lose my family…” Slowly she turned to look her mother in the eyes. “What do I do…?”

She planted a wet kiss on Era’s temple before sitting upright to continue scrubbing her daughter’s skin. “When your father became the tribe’s Nunh, he had to kill my father to do it. I was… I was so angry that this overgrown brute murdered my father and expected me to have his children in return… like I should be thanking him for taking my father away from me. I planned on killing him before it was my turn to pleasure him, you know. I almost went through with it.”

“What stopped you…?”

“My mother did. Killing him wouldn’t bring my father back… and it would only put the entire tribe in terrible danger. Any Tia could walk in and claim us as their wives without having to fight for it. No… instead of that, my mother suggested a better way. I learned Rarku’s secrets, memorized what made him tick, and discovered his deepest desires. I did my duty as his wife, and eventually had him eating out of the palm of my hand. Men are simple creatures… and easy to please. I guess what I’m saying is…”

“To do my duty and stop complaining?” Era groaned. “I don’t know if that’s something I wa-ow! Ow ow ow!” Yuun gave her daughter a warm smile as she continued to pinch and twist her ear.

“Let me finish.” She firmly spoke, eventually releasing her. “You can’t have your family and your forbidden love if you don’t have his favor. Do what us wives do best, dear… turn your will into law.” She took Era by the chin and turned her head toward her. “If you’re successful, you may even be able to convince him to let you visit the tribeless cities every few years or so.”

They remained quiet for the rest of the bath. Yuun washed the honey from Era’s hair thrice over, until her locks shimmered in the flickering torchlight. She ran a bison-hair comb through the fur on her tail until it glided effortlessly from base to tip, and lastly she scrubbed Era’s face with hardened animal fat and spearmint leaves. As soon as her mother rinsed her face, she shot up to her feet in a hurry. "What-?! Where do you think you are going without your clothes?!"

"There’s only two things I can do that shouldn’t be done with clothes on." Era called back, turning to look down at her mother. “If I want Vahli to do what I want… I need to leave an impression. Goodbye, mother, and thank you for the bath.” Without another word she spun on her heel and began marching to the exit, foregoing her clothes and leaving her mother and her dignity behind.

Walking among tribekin topless or wearing little more than war paint and boots wasn’t an uncommon sight for this sect. The concept of modesty was a little more ambiguous around here, with many kittens running around butt-naked during the summer migrations. But for a fully grown woman strutting her stuff and soaked from bathing in the blessed waters was, well, just strange enough to garner attention. 

Era held her breath and stepped beyond the curtain dividing the sacred pools from the rest of Valhaas Barrow. The searing heat returned to her face and shoulders the moment she saw familiar faces down the hall, but it was too late to turn back now; she was in deep, and if her confidence wavered now, she wouldn’t be capable of seducing Vahli, and her chance of keeping both her tribe and Zevi in her life would blow up in her face. “If I refuse Vahli, and return to Ul’dah, I would never see my mother and family again. If I fail to impress Vahli, I wouldn’t be able to be with Zevi.” Era had to focus on organizing her thoughts to distract her from the gawking stares. Most of the slaves averted their gazes when she strode into view, while many of the warrior women nodding approvingly. “I need to blow his mind to keep both my tribe and my love. Gods… I hope he’s not worrying about me…” She caught a glimpse of Denoh sitting alone in the corner with his boar scraps in his grasp, but she looked away before their eyes met. Despite the audible gasps or faint whispers, Era found herself handling this situation quite well; at the very least, nobody was trying to stop her, or call her out by her name-

“Yeah-hahah! Errraaaa!” Chaje Koss hollered and shouted when she briskly marched by, holding a half-empty skin; with three empty skins littered around her staggering feet. She was as sloppy drunk as you could get on fermented goat’s milk without also getting food poisoning. “Go get you some! Hahaha- yeeeeaaaahhhh!” Soon others joined in, giving the ‘champion of Azeyma’ a round of applause. Era wanted to wither away and die, but she couldn’t stop herself from smiling at her aunt’s slurred encouragement. She awkwardly waved at them before reaching the bottom of the incline, and the spiraling tunnel that led to her destination.

Era stormed into his personal chambers by nearly ripping the leather curtain from the ceiling. Vahli was hunched over the stone table with Auntie Shepka, the Lady of War, at his shoulder when they both looked up at the same time to witness her and all her splendor. She stood there in silence as she caught her breath, letting her Nunh’s gaze follow the beads of water trickle down her shapely form. Era could feel his eyes on the bullet scars dotted on her stomach, the discoloration from the old burn halfway up her forearm, and the deep scratches covering her fingers. Judging by his ears flattening against his head and his thick tail twitching under the table, he clearly liked what he saw. Yet she couldn’t tell if he was speechless or not; he wasn’t exactly a chatterbox when they first met out by the bonfire. 

Fortunately Shepka was willing to break the awkward silence. “Ahem… you should tend to this…” She reached over and rolled the leather up before tucking it under her arm. “We’ll discuss our plans later when you have more time.” Vahli still didn’t speak- he simply nodded in her direction, but his gaze never left Era. In fact they kept their staring contest going as Shepka walked past her on her way to leave, and the naked woman didn’t blink until the two were alone at last.

Vahli pushed off the table and stood up straight. His pointed ears were only a fulm and a quarter away from brushing against the ceiling. “Your scars… you’ve seen many battles…?” Era caught on to the tone of his voice almost immediately; he was distracted… surprised… nervous. She could use this. It felt like that time she seduced that Lalafell in the Gold Saucer, but she knew he wasn't lonely enough for her to come on that strong. She closed her eyes, took a few deep and steady breaths, and relaxed; the rest came naturally.

“I didn’t come all this way to talk.” Era stepped back and reached behind her to make sure the curtain was fully closed. A shy smile spread across her face once she began walking along the wall, plucking each torch up and blowing them out like candles; one by one she dimmed the room, until only a single torch resting on the table beside Vahli remained.

Era emerged from the dark, her blue eyes reflecting the only light source left in this chamber. There were no chocobo down beds, and no cotton pillows or wool blankets for them to rest on; only the loose dirt floor and the hard stone table. "I will return to you…" She reached up and grabbed her Nunh by the bone necklace, and pulled him down into her awaiting kiss.

"Whatever the price… I'll pay it!"

---

Mentions: @rzevi-tia-ffxiv​

[darthsuki]

Alright, apparently it’s time for another anime review since I just finished watching through Akatsuki no Yona (Yona of the Dawn in english releases). 

Watch on Funimation | Watch on Crunchyroll

Watch the sub for FREE on funimation’s youtube channel (playlist here)!

Short version: This is an extremely well-written story. It combines a complex plot with very lovable and distinct major and minor characters throughout. Yona starts as an ignorant, cowardly and meek person, but over the course of the series learns not only how to be independent and strong, but also how to be the leader that her friends and country need her to be.

The antagonist of the series is extremely morally gray, up to the point that even I don’t know if I can fault him--even Yona questions it when she comes to learn of all the shortcomings of her father in how he ruled the kingdom and the suffering brought upon its people.

Also?? Pretty gay, like, without explicitly being tagged as a queer series. I’ve only seen the english dub of the series (and it’s seriously amazing, love the voice acting) but if it’s anything like the original voicing then it’s hella gay. Several characters talk about their romantic feelings for others that uh....there is literally no heterosexual explanation for. 

Longer version (with as few spoilers as possible)

I went in with the understanding that this was going to be a bishie anime (ie, containing a bunch of pretty boys). Though it certainly follows with that aspect, I was pleasantly surprised to find a great sense of depth within the series as a whole--each character has a role to play and I honestly loved the dynamics between each and every one of them.

In short, Yona is the princess of the Kouka Kingdom and the daughter of King Il. She is turning 16 and soon comes the expectation of marriage so that her husband will take on the throne--but there’s one little problem: Yona has a very deep crush on Soo-Won, her cousin, whom she has known and been friends with since childhood. Though her father forbids her to marry him (so don’t worry, someone has sense enough to question it), Yona decides that her heart is set on it--until one night she walks in to find her father murdered by the same man she wanted to marry.

From there the series gets quite complex, far more than I would have expected of an anime filled with hot guys who the creator definitely made hot with purpose. Yona is tasked with seeking out the four Dragon Warriors, people who have the blessing of the four dragons from many generations before who had protected the first king of Kouka. She is accompanied by Hak, a childhood friend and also her guardian who has sworn to protect her.

Right away you’ll likely be annoyed by Yona, as she’s everything you’d expect of a spoiled princess--she’s loud, bratty, impulsive and without understanding of the world beyond the palace. Over the course of the series, however, she is forced to confront her shortcomings and learn to be someone who can take care of herself, but also rely on the help of her friends--she becomes very mature over the course of the 24 available episodes and you can tell that this series was written by someone who understands the mind of a girl going through these hardships, moral dilemmas and questions about herself.

Since this is a bishie anime of course, there’s also the male characters accompanying her. Each one of them is wonderful as a character, and their interactions with one another is heartwarming. A stupid detail that I like in the series is that the word ‘love’ is used so often between one another--whether it’s friendship, family or actual romance, nobody pulled punches when they said that they loved other people, and it really made it seem more heartwarming to see these sorts of genuine interactions.

In fact, I was surprised to see how un-filtered these character interactions were? There were so many times that I saw or heard something and turned right to my fiance and just said ‘that’s so gay’ because it honestly is. Soo-Won has made it explicitly clear that he feels romantically for both Yona AND Hak, to the point that me and my fiance are genuinely curious if he just straight-up wants a polyamorous relationship with both of them.

The dragon warriors are just as interesting, and there’s even another companion named Yuun that, while around Yona’s age, seems to be very content with his gender ambiguity? There was a moment, for example of several, where a character referred to him as ‘a beautiful girl’ and he simply rolled his eyes and said ‘i’m a beautiful boy, get it right’--I’m still not sure how to feel about it (if I’m reading way too deeply) but it’s very different from other series that would otherwise make it into some joke about gender presentation--it was refreshing to say the least, and something I found more amusing and cute than offensive.

In terms of plot and conflict, I was extremely surprised to find it way more complex than I’d ever expect of an anime of this genre. Soo-Won is, in short, a very morally grey character. Though he did murder the late King Il, Yona learns later in the series that her father’s rule had put much of the kingdom’s people into sickness, poverty and misery--she begins to question if what Soo-Won did was a good thing, and it’s a humbling moment to see a protagonist begin to see the perspective of what we’d see as an antagonist.

Did I mention how much screen time Soo-Won gets? Because he gets a lot, at least as a supposed ‘antagonist’. He’s showcased to be a genuinely good ruler, intelligent and headstrong--it’s a little misty for WHY he killed the late king outside of to take the throne, but there’s some mystery going on about his father, King Il’s brother, and his death. Either way, I’m left genuinely questioning Soo-Won’s place as the new king right along with Yona, as she has seen first-hand the ills her father had done to the kingdom and how she can go about making those things right again. 

It almost feels like Yona and Soo-Won are both protagonists, we’re just watching Yona’s version of the story and only occasionally get to see Soo-Won’s, and I’m really happy for how it’s written and paced out.

Also?? Very gay. Soo-Won is pretty explicit that he loves Yona AND Hak, and that he ‘want[s] to rule with the two people [he] love[s] by [his] side’ (his words, not mine). This isn’t a one-time gag either, there’s a LOT of subtext and sometimes straight-up-text for those very biromantic feelings. As long as you can get past the fact that Soo-Won and Yona are first cousins (don’t know why they couldn’t have been related in some other non-familial way but go off I guess) it’s a very interesting dynamic between the characters.

The four dragon warriors? Also gay, so gay, or at least they were given heavy enough subtext that I’m 300% sure that the first four dragon warriors were part of this huge poly relationship with the first king (of which Yona is a descendent). The dialogue is very explicit and very....open? Like I swear, compared to how censored and filtered older anime was, this is....really nice, honestly, and combined with all of the other amazing aspects of the series (story, character development, plot, pacing, design, MUSIC OH MY GOD THE MUSIC) I can absolutely see why nearly-everyone has rated it five stars on both crunchyroll and funimation.

Like, for real, if you haven’t seen it yet then you totally need to go see it--I swear to god it will surprise you in the best way possible for a bishie adventure anime.

[new2otomelol]

What got into me? A Soryu fanfic

This story takes place after the MC has already gone through Soryu’s Season 1 route.  Voltage has rights to its characters, the MC, Elora, is a character I created.  This is all fictional fun.

WHAT GOT INTO ME?

It’s been 1 year since the incident when Soryu almost lost his life.  I can’t believe we’ve been through so much already, I’m sure we’ll be going through hard times again, but I know that as long as I am with him, I am safe and happy.  Right now I’m finishing up reading one of my school books, Soryu supported my decision to return to school, in fact, I had started prior to joining the Tres Spades, but had to “pause” my education due to financial woes.  I was almost done with my degree before, now, I will be done with my last class tomorrow and will be graduating in a few days.  So much going on, but I’m so excited!  I continued working part time at the Tres Spades, but I love how quickly my days fly by…sometimes, I forget things, but I feel so accomplished.

Sakiko has been worried about me because she says I look a little more tired than usual.  She gave me some “pre-natal” vitamins stating that they would give me the needed energy to take on my load; it didn’t matter if I wasn’t pregnant.  I sighed, but took them none the less, I had no time to think about starting a family; I’d rather wait until after marriage.  My graduation was this weekend, so I had to get ready for that!

It’s been a couple of weeks since then, the vitamins have actually helped, but one day at work while working with Sakiko, I passed out.  I was checked by a doctor who was staying at the hotel as he had witnessed me faint by one of the guest rooms.  He smiled and told me “congratulations…..you’re going to be a mom!  I would get checked if I were you, I think you’re 5 months along, you’re not showing much, but you will soon, oh and….based on the heartbeats, I think you’re carrying twins.  I was in schock, my jaw dropped.  The doctor held my hand and said “all children are a blessing, no matter the circumstance…”  he smiled and informed me had to catch a flight…  Sakiko rushed in after the doctor left, she saw my face and instantly was concerned…. “what’s wrong?” she asked.  I just looked at her and I felt such a rush of excitement and happiness that I touched my stomach and finally started to feel a bit of a flutter, why didn’t I notice before?  Sakiko just stared at me and said “Elora?!  Stop spacing out, what happened?!  What did he say?”  

“Oh Sakiko, I’m pregnant!!  I think I’m 5 months along!”   Sakiko just stared at me and laughed, “no wonder you’ve been riddled with attitude, eating weird foods, getting emotional,….”  She kept going, I decided to glare at her.  She finished her long list of symptoms and then she threw her arms in the air and hugged me tightly.  I asked Sakiko to keep my pregnancy a secret for now….she stared at me “honey, you’ve gained a little bit of weight and a round belly is starting to form, at this rate, you’ll be noticeable in a couple of weeks!”  I rolled my eyes at her and said “I know, I just need to think some things over and figure out how to tell Soryu.”  Sakiko squealed in delight and I left the room laughing.  

On my way to the lobby  I wasn’t paying attention, but two men followed me outside.  I saw a van driving up the front of the hotel and two men came up from behind me and lifted me into the van and drove off.  I was scared for sure, but I was more annoyed than anything!  Hormonal rage in its finest form!

The men take me to another mansion, I was more than sure it was another mafia hang out.  To my surprise, the men were being gentle with me, but then again, I wasn’t putting up a fight.  They take me to their leader, an older gentleman, and he asks me to have a seat.  I sit down and he sighs.  “My apologies madam, it seems that my over-achieving son ordered you to be kidnapped so that he can use you as a bargaining chip for the leader of the Ice Dragons…”  I sighed and responded, “I figured as much, I’m getting kind of used to it now, to be honest”  the man smiled and introduced himself “my name is Yamato Edwards, leader of the Serpents, I am half Japanese and half British.  I really have no quarrel with the Ice Dragons and support their ideas in protecting people, but my son Is a bit hot headed.  Would you like something to drink?”  I smile and say “water please Mr. Edwards!  I’m so thirsty!”

He pours some water for me and sits down.  “Can I ask for your help in disciplining my son?”  I spit out the water a bit in surprise and I asked what he had in mind.  “Well, I’m going to make him responsible for taking care of you while we contact Mr. Oh, but I want you to make it as uncomfortable as possible for him; I promise you, he won’t harm you, my men will be around to protect you just in case, he’s your age, just hard headed.”  I smiled at him and said “You have yourself a deal, it shouldn’t be difficult, I’m so emotional and hormonal right now that it’ll be a breeze.”  Mr. Edwards smiled and said “I hope we can join forces with Mr. Oh in the future”  we shook hands and I was lead to another room.  Mr. Edward’s son was sitting on a couch waiting for me, a super annoyed look on his face, almost like a scolded young child.

I smiled and said “so, you’re taking care of me, well, I need a bottle of water right now! Also, I need vanilla ice cream and pickles… plus, we’re going to watch Dr. Who because I need to cry to relieve my stress, which you started!”  that did it, he glared at me and said “my name is Yuun and who are you to boss me around you little bi..” I cut him off and got close to his face “have you ever dealt with a pregnant lady little boy?  Let me tell you, you’re in for a treat, do you want me to explode on you because I will!  You want to keep your balls in tact, get to work little bratt!”  He quickly snapped to it and began giving me everything I asked for.  We had started watching my favorite episode of Dr. Who, the one with Van Gogh and before I knew it, two hours had passed since my “ordeal.”  I was quite enjoying it.

SORYU’S POV: I’m working at the office and I get a phone call from Eisuke…. Apparently, Elora has been kidnapped again…DAM IT!  Where’s Inui?!  Why didn’t he protect her?!  I call Inui and he quickly apologizes, he had a bad stomach ache and was in the restroom for about 30 minutes, so he lost sight of her… I literally face palmed, but my nerves got the best to me and I began to panic!  Eisuke was researching the video footage at the hotel, apparently Elora had left her cell phone in one of the guest rooms, what is with this woman lately?

I began to make a list of mafia groups who had it in for the Ice Dragons, but none could come to mind, things have been peaceful lately, no wars have been started between groups.  I keep pacing back and forth waiting for word…. Hours pass by until I receive a call from an unknown number… I quickly pick up… “Mr. Oh, my name is Mr. Yamato Edwards, I apologize for taking a while in contacting you, but we have your girlfriend..”  my blood boils “Mr. Edwards, what is the meaning of this?!  I’m coming to get her, you’ll regret thi_” Mr. Edward’s cut me off immediately “Mr. Oh, I apologize, but this was all the doing of my immature son, I assure you, Ms. Elora is safe and you can come by for her at any time… in fact, she’s helping me teach my son a lesson, again, I apologize for the misunderstanding and I promise you, she’s safe”  at that same second I get another call on the phone from another unknown number. I ask Mr. Edwards if he knows the number, he laughs and says “that should be Yuun, your girlfriend is good! Please answer, I’ll text you our address and I will see you soon.”  

I switch over to the other line “hello?”  “Oh thank goodness, for the love of God!  Please come get your woman, how do you deal with this?!  This is torture, she won’t stop talking, she’s making me watch shows I don’t want to watch, keeps hitting me, she tells me horrible things….I can’t think, she’s so demanding!”  I  cut him off “that’s what you get you little bratt, your dad called me, you should be thankful you’re only dealing with her, because I would have killed you already.”  I could hear the young man gasp and at the same time I heard my Elora barking orders at him, it brought a smile to my face, just to think of the situation.  “I…. I’m truly sorry Mr. Oh, I have learned my lesson, please forgive me….I want to work with you and learn, please? Just come and take her away, as soon as possible, I don’t know if I can handle her hormonal mood swings much longer…”  Mood swings?  What the hell is he talking about, sure she’s been a bit off the past few months, but not that bad? Well, maybe…  “sit tight dumb ass, we’ll talk about joining forces later, I’ll be there to get her in a few.”  I hang up and contact Eisuke as I take off to pick up my woman  “Eisuke, you’re not going to believe this…”

ELORA’S POV: “Hey idiot!  Get me more ice cream and some ramen noodles, stat!”  Yuun glared at me… “but you just ate ice cream, pickles, miso soup and popcorn” he replies.  “Do you want me to tell my boyfriend you were horrible to me?”  ….  “no ma’am, please don’t, right away.”  I sit back and relax as I watch TV, God this feels amazing…. I feel more flutters coming from my stomach and I begin to smile.  Yuun hurriedly hands me ice cream as I prop my feet up on the coffee table… he finally calms down a little and asks me “what does it feel like? I mean, to be pregnant…” I quietly think for a moment and then respond “well, considering I just found out and then got kidnapped ….(he looks dejected for a second and truly regretful)…honestly it feels amazing, I think I feel something , look!  You wanna feel?!”  

I take his hand and place it on my stomach….I’m still not showing much, but I do look a bit fatter, lol….  “wow, I felt something like a flutter, that is so weird and cool!”  I smiled back and said “I know right?!  I might be carrying twins, but we’ll see, I still need to see a doctor to confirm it.” Yuun pulls away, lowers his head and apologizes profusely for having ordered my kidnapping.  I smile and thank him for taking care of me… at that moment, the door opens and in walks my handsome man … “SORYU!”  I quickly  get up and hug him, he looks at me stunned, but smiles… he then faces Yuun and I notice that Yuun is bowing to Soryu asking for forgiveness.  Soryu relaxes a bit and asks him to stop.  “the ordeal is over, I hope you learned your lesson….the Ice Dragons and the Serpents will work together from now on as I just struck a deal with your father, but you will work closely with my men in order to learn the ropes.  Don’t ever let me catch you doing this sort of thing again.”  With that Yuun cries and thanks Soryu.  We both walk out of the mansion.

On the drive home….  “Soryu, pull over to the gas station quick!!”  . Soryu had Eisuke and the boys on speaker, discussing what had happened, so they could hear everything… “why? What’s wrong?”  he asks, the guys are all sighing at the other end of the line. “Soryu, you pull over this car right this second or I will pee on these leather seats” …. “oooooooohhh duuuuude….you’re whipped!” chimes Ota….  Soryu replies “what has gotten into you woman?!  ….  My blood boils and my bladder feels like its under immense pressure, I can’t help it, the hormones win and I let loose “you did about five months ago and now I have two human beings growing inside me, now you stop this car or you’ll be cleaning up my mess and sleeping on the couch tonight!”  Soryu’s jaw drops as he very carefully pulls over to the gas station…. The guys are quiet on the other end of the line….it’s like time’s frozen.  I quickly give Soryu a kiss on the temple and run to the gas station as if my life depended on it.

SORYU’S POV ……. What the hell just happened?  Did she really just say she’s pregnant?  I…. I…. I’m going to be a father, wait, what?!  I’m GOING TO BE A FATHER!!!!  I can’t believe this!  Oh my God …tears start coming up and then I hear the guys, I forgot I had them on speaker “wooo!  Soryu you dirty dog!! Baba yelled…. Eisuke chimed in, “congrats old friend!”  Ota “dude, tell us about that night 5 months ago”  Mamo “zzzzzzzz” ….  I was still trying to process it, but I was besides myself happy!  I hung up on the guys not caring for their commentary and got out of the car.  I then see Elora coming out of the convenience store with a rather large bag of snacks and she’s eating a chocolate bar, she looks so fixated on her candy, it’s so adorable.  I run to her and pick her up princess style…  “I can’t believe it!  We’re going to be parents!  I love you so much!  I love you three so much!”  Elora looks up at me with teary eyes and a beautiful smile….she hugs me tightly.  I place her gently in the car like she’s a fragile object  and I turn on the car.  Immediately the phone starts buzzing and I respond, the guys are on the phone.  “Get your asses over here right now, we’re going to celebrate your pregnancy our way!  So get over here”!  Baba yells… I look at Elora and she replies “quit your griping, we’re on our way!”  I laugh and look at her “that’s my girl!”

4 MONTHS LATER – ELORA’S POV “You are so dead! Gimme your gun right now…..I’m in pain….Grrrr….  Heeee heeee uuuuu, heeee, uuuu..” … “honey, please breathe, I love you, you’re doing great, keep breathing”  ….

OTA, BABA, EISUKE and MAMORU – POV The guys all wait patiently in the waiting room when they hear “you’re so dead!  Gimme your gun right now…”  they all stare at each other and suddenly feel scared for Soryu.

SORYU’s POV: Please don’t kill me honey, just hang in there…. God, please let these hormones be over as soon as possible!  My poor Elora is in so much pain, but she’s almost there, the head is out for baby no. 1, she pushes and my son is born, I’ve never seen such a beautiful miracle….Elora breathes hard and begins to push for the second baby…..10 minutes later….”waaaaaahh” my baby daughter is born.  I can’t help it and I begin to tear up, they are both so beautiful.  

The nurses clean the babies and hand them both to us…  Elora is holding our son and I am holding our daughter… we both look at each other and smile – this exact moment is bliss!

30 minutes later, Elora is settled, the room has been cleaned and cleared out of medical personnel.  The guys all walk in to meet our bundles of joy.  This is my family.