#I should probably finish it only because it's batshit crazy
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Brother Jack
Delta knew right away that he couldn’t afford to stick to the forest behind the house. Eleanor would always find him. She could just appear at his side. He didn’t dare look at her mind straight-on, but he could feel her fury radiating out of the house. It was directed at the others now. She wasn’t thinking about him.
He had to take a chance.
He didn’t run for the woods, but for the road. He kept to a deer path in the trees until he got to the road—he didn’t want to chance the girls seeing him go, only to alert Eleanor—then turned toward town and ran for it.
He could run like hell. The sun beat down on him. He hadn’t gotten very far when he hit another small group of Sisters. These were Tenenbaum’s youngest. They shouted altogether when they saw him, but he didn’t stop. He just plunged past them at a full sprint.
He’d been engineered to carry a suit that weighed a full ton. He’d been given ungodly endurance. Every breath utilized oxygen more efficiently than a normal human being; every ounce of food he ate, more energy. He was a freight train given flesh and he flew.
He could tell that Eleanor was too far to suss him out by about the sixth mile. He only slowed down by the tenth, and by that time, he’d hit town.
He immediately felt like he’d made a mistake. Cars kept stopping in the street to gawk at him. Pedestrians crossed the road when they saw him, sometimes at a jog. He looked in a window at himself and shuddered. He was filthy from working in the yard all day, and he was wearing his old shoes with the holes in the sides. He was so tall, and he didn’t look right. There was a way to look and he didn’t have it anymore.
A black-and-white car marked with a seal drifted to a stop across the street, then pulled a U-turn and rolled up beside him. Delta hunched his shoulders, kept his eyes forward.
“Hey,” a man said. “You. Big guy.”
Delta looked over his shoulder. A man in a dark uniform and sunglasses was stepping out of the car. Another man in dark glasses sat at the steering wheel, holding a radio.
“Yeah, you,” the policeman said. “Come here.”
Delta shook his head.
“You keep walking, and I can arrest you for resistance,” said the cop. His hand rested on his weapon.
Delta hesitated. He wasn’t afraid of the policeman or his gun. For the first time in a long time, he thought about what it would mean to kill somebody. He could cross that gap between them in a second, and he could twist the cop’s head off in the next.
His hands twitched. He turned to face him, drawing upright. At his full height, he stood eight and a half feet tall. To the cop’s credit, he didn’t flinch, but he did unbutton his holster.
“You better not cause trouble,” said the cop. “I put in a call to the state hospital. They’ll pick you up in 30 minutes.”
“There you are,” a man said in a colorless voice. “Hey, thanks officer. I’ve been looking for this guy.”
Delta scanned the street. A big white guy in a Panama hat, long-sleeved shirt, and slacks was strolling up the sidewalk toward him. He wore aviator glasses. And hell, he was a lot bigger than most people. Delta’s eyes locked on him, wondering.
“This guy’s yours?” asked the cop. “I don’t recognize you. Are you from out of town?”
“Yep,” said the stranger.
Delta brought his hands up and started signing, hoping against hope. He didn’t dare make sounds. Making sounds would make it worse.
“Who are you?” he asked.
To his shock, the big guy signed back.
“A friend,” he said. “Hold still. Don’t scare the guy.”
“Okay.”
The cop relaxed and buttoned his gun. “Oh, I see. Deaf mute?”
“Just mute.” The guy’s voice was rough and grumbly like from cigarettes. “Don’t worry, his bark is worse than his bite.” He turned to Delta. A white man, probably. Looked old, perhaps in his sixties. “Come here, will you, buddy? You’re scaring the people out here.”
He also signed at him: “Don’t worry. We have to get you off the street.”
“What do you want?” Delta asked.
“I’ll tell you once I deal with the fuzz.”
“What’s he saying?” the cop said.
“That he got lost,” said the stranger. “He wondered where I’d gotten to.”
“Okay, okay. Just get that guy off the street,” the cop said, sliding back into the car. “He’s scaring people.”
With that, the stranger walked up to him—Delta had backed up under the awning of a sub shop—and held out his hand. There was a gap between cuff and arm. It was an old, wrinkled arm, liver spots on the hands. But once this close, Delta could see the faint traces of Plasmid scarring across the knuckles, down the arm, across the palms, like jags of lightning.
Delta rolled his arm and looked down. He had the same scarring, faint and shining in the sun. Suddenly he felt cold.
Delta shook his head “no.”
“Please go away,” he signed. “I don’t need help.”
“You’re going to get shot without me. Trust me.” The stranger set a hand on his wrist. His palm was rough.
“You’re from there,” Delta signed.
“Same as you,” the stranger signed back. “Come on. I’ve got a place for you to stay.”
“I already have a place,” Delta said.
“So why did you leave it?” asked the stranger, taking him by the elbow. He wasn’t signing anymore, but speaking aloud.
Delta found himself following. What else could he do? The idea of going back to the farmhouse closed his throat. He didn’t want to see Eleanor. He didn’t want to see anyone. He wanted to disappear.
It was astonishing for him to realize that he hadn’t suffered from an intrusive memory once since fleeing the house. He held himself a little straighter. He had a clearer head than he could remember since… well, the beginning. Thoughts seemed to be coming to him faster. That was a good sign, right?
“So where were you going?” asked the stranger. He directed him down a quiet side street. Delta followed.
“I don’t know.”
“A guy like you stands out. You aren’t safe here. Maybe you’d be safe in a big city. Maybe.” The stranger looked up at him, unsmiling. “There are people looking for you and your girls, you know. Powerful people.”
Delta stared down, eyes wide.
“Who?” he asked. “Why?”
“Can you imagine a whole military filled with people like you?” asked the man. “Big, powerful, always following orders?”
Delta shuddered. “But that would hurt them.”
“They don’t care.” The man smiled grimly. “Look, I need something from Dr. Tenenbaum.”
With that, the man whistled. From a side street, two skinny guys in bib overalls came running, both holding paper bags filled with groceries. They wore faded ballcaps and shoes that were just a little too big. Delta’s first thought was that they were mechanics.
They pattered up on either side, staring up unabashedly into Delta’s face, and the smell of them hit him like a brick. He stared back in shock. These weren’t guys—these were Sisters. There was the unnatural height, the unnatural slenderness, the strange eyes. Both were dark-skinned—one probably had parents from India; the other’s might have been from Mexico. They were cured Sisters, too. No fingers picked at his thoughts.
“Tell me,” said the stranger. “How close is too close for your Sister?”
“Six, maybe seven miles,” Delta said. “I need to get out of town.”
He couldn’t believe how easily it came out of his hands. The idea of leaving Eleanor filled him with an overwhelming relief.
“You want to leave your Sister?” asked one of the girls. Her eyes were huge.
“Yes.” Delta glanced aside into a storefront. “She…”
He couldn’t think of what to say. She told his secret to everybody? She wouldn’t listen to him when he said no? She didn’t care about his feelings? It all sounded so silly when he thought about it.
“Don’t know much about Alpha series,” said the stranger. “I never met one. But I heard they each only had one Sister. I’m guessing your Sister is the, ah… possessive type?”
It felt horrible to think it. Possessive—Eleanor, possessive. Admitting to it felt like name-calling, so Delta said nothing. He looked away.
“We have to assume she’s headed this way,” said the stranger. “So we do one of two things: we jump on a train or we get on a bus. What do you feel like doing, Mr. B?”
Delta rubbed his arms. “What’s fastest?”
“John Barton, there you are,” a familiar voice drawled out. “Now I know you aren’t heading off somewhere with strangers.”
Delta whirled. So did the stranger and the Sisters. Sinclair leaned out the window of his car, rolling a cigarette in his mouth.
“Augustus Sinclair,” said the stranger in a wondering voice. “I knew you were around here.”
“Who’s he?” asked one of the girls, signing.
“Oh, I’m just the friend of this big lug here,” said Sinclair, jerking his chin up at Delta. “Come on, big hoss. You’re coming back with me.”
Delta shook his head, backing into the wall.
Sinclair laughed.
“Some things never change,” he said. “Chief, what on Earth could possess you to come all the way out here? Those girls back home called me cryin’ up a storm.”
Sinclair was talking like they hadn’t kissed at all! Delta burned. Could no one hear him? Would no one take him seriously at all? Was he cursed to be shunted from one person to another for the rest of eternity?
“Looks like the big guy’s made up his mind,” said the stranger. “Gotta say I understand the sentiment.”
“I must admit, I’m at a bit of a loss,” said Sinclair, swinging his door open. “You know who I am, but I haven’t got a clue about you.” He pushed himself upright, balanced on the car. “Do give me the pleasure of your introduction.”
“Oh, we’ve never met.” The man took off his glasses and his hat and shook his hair out. He was gray-headed, had a short, scruffy beard. When he raised his head, he smiled. His irises glowed faintly gold. “The name is Jack Wynand. You knew my father.”
Sinclair’s smile never broke. He laughed and leaned back against his car.
“Well, well, well,” he said. “Must say, never thought I’d see you in the flesh. Tell me, what use do you have for an old Alpha model, anyway?”
Delta bristled. Sinclair wasn’t looking at him. Sinclair’s eyes were locked on Jack’s.
Jack bent his head. “It’s less about him and more about Tenenbaum,” he said. “If she can revert Big Daddies…”
“Now how’d you figure that out?” Sinclair asked.
“…then she can revert me.” Jack bent his head. “I want ADAM stripped from me. I don’t care what it does.”
The Sisters shrank at his sides, faces full of misgiving.
“With your luck, it’d shrink you to a fetus,” said Sinclair.
“Then that’s what I want,” Jack said.
“Well, son, you’re too late,” Sinclair said. “No ADAM left. Not a drop. Takes gallons for something like that, from what I understand.”
“And you?” asked Jack.
“Me?” Sinclair asked.
A car stopped behind Sinclair’s, honked, and then slowly pulled around them. Sinclair waved at them, gave them an apologetic grimace, turned back to Jack.
Jack spoke again. “So they saved you, and they saved Dr. Porter, but they didn’t save this man here.” Jack jerked his thumb over his shoulder.
Delta glanced down at the thumb, then at Sinclair. Sinclair didn’t skip a beat. His brows rose and he gave Jack a brilliant smile.
“I see you’ve done your homework!” he said.
“Answer me,” said Jack. “Why did they save one of the biggest sharks of Rapture before one of his victims?”
Sinclair’s smile was finally cooling. “Well, son, if you don’t know, then I don’t think you ought to.”
Delta felt the flicker at the edge of his mind a second too late.
The air shuddered. There was a tearing, popping sound. Suddenly Eleanor was directly behind him, pressed up against his back. Delta closed his eyes, shoulders sinking. The two Sisters whirled to face her, mouths agape. Jack turned slowly, fingers flexing. He dropped his cigarette. It fell from his fingers like he’d forgotten it.
“Oh, Eleanor,” said Sinclair. “You’re a sight for sore eyes. Your boy’s made a hell of a friend today.”
Big Sisters slowly stepped out of the alleys on either side of them, eyes locked on Jack. They were wearing slacks and jeans and what Tenenbaum called their “garden shoes.” Their fingers were curled into claws. There was a heaviness in the air that could not be explained by the weather.
“I think you better get moving, son,” said Sinclair, leaning back against the car.
“I’m going with him,” Delta signed.
Finally, a reaction. One of the Sisters gasped. Eleanor’s hand tightened on his wrist. Sinclair went white.
“Honey, you don’t want to do that,” he said.
“Nobody cares what I want,” Delta said.
“That’s not true!” Eleanor said. The words poured out of her so fast that at first they weren’t comprehensible.
“There are only two people here who know what it’s like to be us,” Jack said softly. His fingers were twitching, twitching, twitching. “Don’t you agree, Subject Delta?”
“I don’t want to fight,” Delta said quickly. “I just want to leave. I’ll go anywhere.”
“Daddy!” Eleanor said. “Don’t!”
Her voice was panicky. Delta savored it—until she pushed into his mind. She was simply there, effortlessly, and she could see everything, and she was crying, but he couldn’t push her out, he wasn’t equipped to push her out, they’d never made him as anything other than a gun she summoned at a whim.
He roared and twisted out of her grip. The Sisters all jumped, Sinclair twitched, and even Jack sprang back. Delta thrilled to it. Yes, jump! Good old Subject Delta! Good old chief! He’ll do anything you ask for a smile and a pat on the back!
“You all think I’m a child!” Delta said. “You all think I’m an idiot!”
“I don’t think that at all!” Eleanor said.
“Stop telling me what to do!” Delta said. “I’m tired!”
“Eleanor,” Sinclair said. “Maybe I should take over.”
She whirled on him, her mouth opening and shutting. Sinclair was white, and he was no longer smiling. His eyes locked on Delta’s.
“You know what you need, honey?” he asked. He held up a hand. “You need out of this sun.” He extended a finger. “You need a sit.” A second finger rose. “You need a cold drink.” A third finger. “And more than that, you need to get out of this little town before the sheriff shows up. Come on. I’ll take you to my place.”
Eleanor shook her head over and over, but the Sisters were moving in. One grabbed her arm. The others kept a healthy distance from Jack and his Sisters, both of whom had set their bags of groceries against the wall and shoved their hands into their pockets.
Jack hadn’t moved at all. He had watched. He had listened. His eyes were unnaturally bright.
“Delta,” he said, “if you come with me, I promise I’ll treat you like a person deserves.”
Eleanor sputtered, frozen between taking complete control of his body—forcing him back to the house—and letting go. Jack waited, only watching, only listening. Who knew what he wanted? But Delta was staring at Sinclair, swaying in place like one hypnotized.
Suddenly all of his memories seemed so foolish. How long ago had they been, anyway? Sinclair probably had a new boyfriend already. He probably got over Delta back when he died the first time. He’d locked him up in a room. What kind of guy locked people up in rooms?
“Are you going to lock me up?” Delta asked.
Now it was Sinclair’s turn to flinch. His eyes were wet.
“Oh, John,” he said.
He said it in such a defeated, quiet way.
Delta sighed. He sank down.
“I’m going with Sinclair,” he said. “Thanks, Jack.”
The Sisters relaxed. Eleanor’s mind grudgingly lifted from his. She rubbed her arm across her face.
Jack glanced up at him. “You’re making a mistake,” he said.
“I know,” Delta said, and stepped into the street.
UPRISING: BLACK SCRAPBOOK HUB
#bioshock#bioshock 2#subject delta#topclair#augustus sinclair#jack wynand#eleanor lamb#fanfiction#writing#uprising#long brown evening#vvatchword#this particular part of the fanfic is not exactly no one dies everyone lives but it's also entirely that somehow#I think it'll end up very very different if l ever end up writing an epilogue#I just got hit with the brainworm and so this exists now#enjoy#or don't#there's more and it involves the feds and a GI being thrown against a courthouse wall and culminates in the assassination of Ronald Reagan#I should probably finish it only because it's batshit crazy
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My predictions, because I have some batshit crazy ideas:
Beneath a cut, because. Well. You know how much I ramble.
Zero Hour
Yuta vs. Hook - Hook wins, but Yuta beats the shit out of him at the end of it. Danhausen comes out to make the save, but Yuta beats him up. And then Danhausen challenges for the Pure Rules title.
Willow vs. Kris - ONLY IN WRESTLING CAN AN OTP FIGHT EACH OTHER. Stokeley is gonna corrupt Kris against Willow, but not until the women's tag belts are announced will he make his final move. Stokeley, secretly working in the background for the Renegade Twins, will unleash his final blow right before the finals of the women's tag titles tournament, causing Staturday Nightingale to lose, and triggering a full on battle between the two of them, likely culminating in match for the women's world title (RoH, probably.)
20 Man Battle Royal - Okay. I got 3 ideas: Sara's dream book, the best story, and what likely will happen.
Sara's Dream Book: Bucks and Hanger come back. Bucks sabotage everybody else to get Hanger to almost win, then Hanger steps back and lets someone else win but leisurely jumping over the top rope when it's him vs. the other person. "I'm above this championship," he says, taking the mic during the other person's celebration. Offical Superdick Party debut, official heel turn, official idiots.
The Best Story: Only 19 people are in or around the ring. Toward the end, a guy in a hoodie, with his face slightly obscured, shows up. It's Jack Perry. He wins, and cashes in the "any time" clause during the Christian vs. Copeland match.
What Likely Will Happen: Midcardapalooza. A very fun, non champion level person like Komander, AR Fox, Kip Sabian, or Andretti win to create a fun flippy match with the winner of Copeland vs. Christian that they will ultimately lose.
Main Card
Eight Man tag (Jericho/Sammy/Darby/Sting vs. Ricky/Bill/Takeshita/Hobbes) - I really. Look. Lot's of stuff about this match is convoluted. It's mean to take the place of the tag belts, which I understand, but they should have bitten the bullet, dropped the Jericho/Golden Jets story completely, and provided a title chance to an actual tag team.
Eight man tag (Bryan/Claudio/Mark/Danny vs. Lethal/White/Rush/Brody) - I think the BCC and friends win, but I think this may lead to Danny being inducted into the BCC. Otherwise this match is kind of weird. However, it means that everyone in the C2 got a match on the pay-per-view, and I like that.
Andrade vs. Miro - Look I KNOW it's all about Miro's redemption or whatever, but he's pissing me off lately and I want Andrade to win to show that CJ's management is effective. But I also think it could be cool for Andrade to lose, to show that a lack of CJ's management causes him weakness. It could develop a more introspective story of talent vs influence that could be approached by both Miro and Andrade in different directions. But it's wrestling, so I doubt the nuance necessary for the storyline would be possible.
Swerve vs. Dustin - Yeah sorry Dustin. Swerve is gonna KILL you. Super sad to hear about Keith's injury. This match was going to absolutely BANG and him being unable to finish this storyline is a heartache.
Julia vs. Abadon - SPOOKY SHENANIGANS! I hope Skye gets out there and she and Julia do some MK Ultra tag level nonsense. Give me shenanigans. Give me lesbians. I love it.
Copeland vs. Christian - You already saw my idea for Perry, but here I think Copeland wins by pulling unexpected allies out of his back pocket.
Eddie vs. Mox - EDDIE BETTER FUCKING WIN THIS. He deserves to be a three belt holder, to hold up RoH, to continue his work. Mox may be my first AEW love, but Eddie. Eddie deserves it.
Toni vs. Riho - Mariah May shenanigans result in a Toni win, but perhaps Riho has an original in the wings waiting to save her. Crossing my fingers for a Jamie return PLEASE.
MJF vs. Samoa Joe - Joe wins. MJF is injured, shit goes down, the Devil and his goons interfere, and Joe is our new World Champion. We also, we gotta, reveal the Devil.
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if i may: ✦ and ♡ [any fic you’d like]?
✦ what was your easiest fic to write & your hardest?
I'm going to go with the ao3 era because I'm definitely not looking through LJ. Although I will say I was certainly more prolific re: volume in those halcyon days, particularly for Gossip Girl and House (of all things!...as if I was not obsessed with that show for at least the first two seasons) - God, that perfect storm of excellence that the S2 finale with House getting shot leading to Cuddy and Wilson putting House in a Ketamine coma without his consent and then S3 beginning with him running??? CHEF'S KISS. Even though that show went batshit crazy later on, the mileage from some of those storylines was highway level. This show was at its best when everyone around House was doing ethically dubious things in an attempt to get him to stop doing ethically questionable things.
But to answer the actual question: I almost never think any fic is easy while I'm writing it and questioning my decision to write anything at all, but some involve less hair pulling than others. There was a period after The Batman where I got into a nice little groove (after not writing any fic for a good five years, apparently) of feeling like the floodgates opened and I wanted to write tomes, which probably has more to do with loving Matt Reeves' distinctive Selina voice. (The effortless baby to this hot mess of a socially awkward dude she met four seconds ago works only because Zoe Kravitz has confidence for miles.) I think living in a rhythm where the minute's working overtime was relatively easy to write (and shorter after the two previous 10k+ fics I'd written) - it felt easy, breezy while I was writing it and I had a good time.
I'm always inclined to say that the hardest fic is whatever I'm currently working on because it's not over, but in this case, I'm going with against the grain of dystopic claims. As a person who almost never posts WIPs, I'm not sure why I decided a Top Gun Maverick apocalypse AU was the perfect time to start, but I probably would've relegated it to languishing half-finished in my google docs if I hadn't posted it as a WIP so maybe past me knew the only way to get it done was to have external accountability? It was hard to write because I vaguely knew where I was going with it when I started writing it and then had to actually follow through with PLOT that made sense and couldn't go back and change things that I had previously set up. It did force me to make an outline for the current WIP just to avoid that JJ Abrams life, you know?
♡ pick a fic and I’ll pick a comment that made me really happy
Any time a person comments on fic, it makes me happy. There's nothing like that rush when you get one of those [AO3] comment e-mails because it makes you feel like you're not screaming into the void! Of course I agree with the adage that you should write for yourself, but you're also to an extent writing for others (or else you'd never post it, right?) so it's nice when you hear something back. Then it becomes a game of catch instead of throwing a baseball into a tornado and hoping that it'll return someday. I love when people leave lengthy comments with pull quotes and how things made them feel or why certain bits worked for them, but it's also really nice when you get a comment years later with people telling you they still love something you wrote. (Those comments where people are talking about re-reading your stuff? LOVELY.) All of this is a long-winded way to say that if you've ever commented on anything I've written, know that it has probably made me really happy even if it was a sentence.
[ask me about fic!]
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Limited CS clears. I opted to try to beat each stage with a type matching their ace. I uh. I somehow managed to neglect that there were two Ice types in this, and that is...that's not happening. So the Red fight is Flying instead. It matches the secondary type, I'm counting it.
Vs. Koga
Poison Man vs. Toxic Ladies. I went with this fight first because I'm a moron. They didn't need higher status chance because Oleana is guaranteed, nor high Toxic damage because Emma is going to massacre them. Which is exactly what happened, by the way. 10k+ per shot off-type. Just no threat to her at all.
Vs. Glacia
And now the exact opposite, the hardest fight I had. Ice on Ice violence could probably work on any who isn't Glacia. She also abuses Hail like crazy, and with Ice Zone, Blizzard is a guaranteed KO on any partner Irida could have. After much trial and tribulation, we settled on a solution. Ghetsis' Cold Snap. It's a bit risky, but if he lands it, it's a separate effect from the move, so he can re-queue and we can keep up pressure. So long as Icy Wind doesn't hit us, gauges are...well, still bad, but can be managed. And manage we did, after many attempts, as Irida threw down sync, and still didn't KO, but Ghetsis did get a clutch freeze against Hail and we were able to finish the job. This...was not our best work.
Vs. Molayne
When I looked at my Steel-type options, I realized that Steel support is a rough time. They do not have many good options, so for High Score purposes, that's what DeNA should aim to release. My decision was between Registeel and Rose, or SC Jasmine and Summer Tate. There has never been an easier decision. Fun fact! Did you know that Tate's Flash Cannon into Doom Desire combo can one-shot sides after SC Jasmine's sync? Not even with Zone! And with like -2 attack, his sync was still like 30k. Summer twins were stupid good. That said, SC Jasmine is a bit of a weakness in the structure, due to Molayne being physical. Jasmine does not take Hammer Arm well, so Marnie needs to be on top of her flinch game. Marnie was not on top of her flinch game. This was the second highest number of resets to success due to her missing flinches early on and Jasmine getting dead. Pretty embarrassing!
Vs. Grimsley
Idiot decided to be Dark type. Get SC Zinnia'd, moron. SC is so good it's disgusting. Legitimately think she's better than NC Marnie, that's not even a joke. Higher disruptive effects, no gauge considerations in 3v3, absolutely batshit sync with respectable DPS, complements Calem so well that in one turn they've capped the entire team's Atk/crit, etc etc etc. I love that it's Thievul who gets to do this. Justice.
Vs. NC Red
I want to preface this with "I did make an honest attempt at Ice." I tried out Ghetsis/SS N, but it was not working. If I had SS N to 3/5 and EX, maybe it would, but I'm not about to invest that strongly into nonsense. Instead, we had to pivot to Flying, because Ice is just...it's bad out here, man. Once Irida's gone, when you're like me and refusing to pull Red, it's bad.
Thankfully, Articuno is also part-Flying and we're calling that. I did attempt Ghost against Glacia but my team uses NY Dawn as a tank and guess who's weak to Ice. This had to be the non-Ice clear. And despite the Hostile Environment 9 thing, I never saw Red even try to queue an Ice move. He always went for Brave Bird against Falkner, despite Falkner being weak to Ice. So I'm calling this legitimate. He's clearly maining Flying here. And...yeah, two tries. I got Anni Skyla to 3/5 on the paid select, and good lord what I have been missing all my life. 50% AoE flinch rate and Disarm is disgusting. On the lost fight, I need it to be understood that I only got Red to -2 special attack, and Liza still almost survived it, and would've won with another attack. Disarm, if I had gotten confuse earlier (or more flinches), would've salvaged that run. It's really strong as a supportive effect. Meanwhile Liza over here has absurd sync potential and DPS. She missed every sync crit on this clear and still just powered through with raw Giga Impact energy. Summer Twins, friends. Hilariously over-looked threats.
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lmk season 4 predictions
ok. so. I just finished Lego Monkie Kid and WOW I am impressed by literally everything. If you haven’t seen the show yet, go do it! Mostly since what I’m going to talk about is my predictions for season 4. Everything under the cut because season 3 spoilers wooo
So season 3 ended off with the promise of a whopping four different plotlines:
Mei and Red Son training to control the Samadhi fire
Tang, Pigsy, and Sandy going to find Mei and bring her back
Wukong going off alone to fight Lady Bone Demon
MK and Nezha going after Wukong
There’s no way that the writers will have time to show all of these plotlines equally, so I imagine that the two main plots will be Mei & Red Son’s training and MK & Nezha going after Wukong. Wukong fighting LBD will probably be similar to his “vacation” in season 2, where its short and happens mostly offscreen, or something that only happens in the finale. He could even lose which opens a whole other can of worms. Honestly, we might not even get a final battle against LBD this season, but I’ll elaborate on that later. Unfortunately, I doubt that Tang, Pigsy, and Sandy will be all that important in season 4. Maybe they’ll have one episode or some highlights, but other than that they won’t be too important in the grand scheme of things.
I don’t think Macaque will have a lot of screentime/presence compared to season 3 unless LBD drags him kicking and screaming back into the plot (looking at you, EvilMacaqueA which implies that a B version exists unless its when he’s all half ice in the finale). He’s a character that works best as a chaotic third party who appears to shake things up and then leave without elaborating. I’m not saying his season 3 appearance was bad in any way, in fact I quite enjoyed it, however he should definitely step back in season 4 to give room to LBD. At the very least, he’s probably going to show up in 1 episode and hopefully provide some backstory to what happened between him, Wukong, and LBD.
The reason that I think that there’s a chance we won’t get a final battle against LBD is because we simply don’t have enough context about her yet, and considering the aforementioned four plotlines, that leaves little room for any at all. The only way I see it happening is if the writers dedicated an episode to Wukong and Macaque’s fight, with a scene showing what happened in the aftermath with LBD and Macaque. I think that LBD will definitely have more screentime in season 4 as a whole, now that Macaque left her a slot as the main antagonist of the season.
As for LBD’s plan of erasing the memory of Wukong from the world, I’m pretty excited to see how they do that. We know that Wukong is basically a celebrity in LMK (he has his own cereal brand! and an animated series!) so seeing all of that suddenly wiped away (or replaced with Macaque, if JTTW is considered) is such a chilling concept. I do hope she temporarily succeeds in that front, because it’s an interesting direction for the show to go. Also, it all but confirms that she did in fact tamper with Macaque and possibly Wukong’s memories of their battle and subsequent falling out. Maybe season 4 will end with LBD’s plan succeeding, leading to a season 5 with the world no longer remembering Wukong.
Other misc. predictions/hopes I have for season 4:
LBD’s host breaks free (at least temporarily)
Lots of Mei character development! And her finishing off LBD in the end
Rumble and Savage appear or are mentioned at all
Tang, Pigsy, and Sandy are confirmed to be reincarnations of their JTTW counterparts
MK gets the Golden Staff back
Something batshit crazy happens in the finale (and a cliffhanger)
More Wukong backstory
DBK and PIF appearance
#lego monkie kid#monkie kid#lmk#lego monkie kid season 3 spoilers#lmk season 3 spoilers#lmk spoilers#lmk predictions#lmk theory#lmk season 4#lego monkie kid spoilers#lego monkie kid season 3#lmk season 3#lmk lbd#lady bone demon#macaque#sun wukong#since i talked about them a lot
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DON’T SAY THE S WORD!!
https://images.app.goo.gl/JKKNVtwZNGAVVwzB9
In which Corpse has a secret girlfriend and his insomnia is driving them both up the wall, putting precious Sykkuno in danger because he said the word “Sleep”.
Hi! This is just a once in a blue moon, feel good, fluff fic cause I have commitment issues on my writing lol.
Yes, my writing style is long winded, I’m really sorry, but I hope you enjoy it!
credits to u/balderdash_lee on reddit
Corpse had not slept for close to 50 hours by the time that they had started their latest month prior pre-planned plasmophobia session with Rae, Sykkunno and Toast, but it was like he was hyped up on sugar for the last hour or so and Y/n was really beginning to get worried.
This was a tattletale sign of the huge crash her boyfriend was about to go through, and yet the stubborn man just would not step away from his computer.
She had tried everything, from luring him with pizza (to which he had snatched a few slices and had just retreated to his gaming room once more) to telling him that there was a fire in the kitchen (to which he replied was virtually impossible given how meticulous Y/n was in the kitchen) to faking an injury (which corpse called bullshit on without even looking at her).
It was getting really frustrating and she knew for a fact that the longer her boyfriend was going to wait this out, the worse he was going to feel.
And the worse he was going to act.
He would never hurt anyone, ever. The man was the definition of a soft boi beyond his brain meltingly amazing voice. But when he was beyond bone dead tired like he was right now, he had the tendency to act mean, and the only person who had the capability of calming him down in the middle of the pandemic was Y/n, and she would have to hijack his stream.
The stream that was filled with hundreds of thousands of people who didn’t even know that their precious Corpse was in a relationship with anyone.
Would she have the chance to mute him before he went on his tired, angry, borderline crazy monologue? She would try, but probably not.
Y/n had to bring out the big guns.
Rae and Toast were pretty easy people to conspire with and were almost always down to do pranks and other shit that Y/n came up with, and always, always down to do whatever it took to get Corpse to take care of himself.
Sykkuno though, bless him, the cutest, most clueless person Y/n had ever met.
He was always very concerned for Corpse’s health but was the worst at going incognito. So Rae and Toast were the ones who used their code word (lights out) and had always been the ones who had the role of making sure Sykkuno knew what to do.
“Aaaaaaaaaaanddd, lights out baby!” Rae screamed as she made her way past Sykkuno at the entrance of the house they were in at the moment, but Sykkuno, the precious little boy that he is, just watched Rae with a bewildered face, getting even more confused when Toast made his way past him as well, whispering “Lights out.” and moving back to the truck in the game.
From inside, Corpse’s character was busy laughing at a joke he made about a picture in the wall and had not noticed the other two missing. He did notice though, when Sykkuno appeared near him to ask him what was up before convulsing and dropping to the floor.
Corpse’s laugh was noticeably more manic now, getting a lot more high pitched and erratic. For a second, Sykkuno laughed with him, then when Corpse’s went on for too long, suddenly looked confused on his stream, turning to face the general vicinity he Corpse’s character was.
So he spoke through their always open discord chat. “Uhh, Corpse? You okay there buddy?”
The stubborn man just kept laughing, Y/n increasingly getting concerned as she watched all 4 player’s streams on different devices one room over. Rae and Toast were chatting about the pills in the truck, so as to not alarm Corpse of the lowkey distraction they were doing to finish the game easy (aka getting at least 3 of them killed), and then giving excuses to stop streaming and giving Y/n a chance to haul his ass to bed.
Sykkuno on the other hand, was now (against all plans spoken about prior) continuing to talk to Corpse.
“Corpse?” the timid man spoke once more, finally reaching the ever more manic Corpse.
All of a sudden, an eerie silence fell around the two of them, settling for a few seconds before getting filled by a flat “Yea?” from Corpse.
Y/n could almost hear the sentence that Sy would reply to that, and at that moment, she knew, they were fucked.
With a quick “Fuckin shite” to both Rae and Toast’s chat, Y/n bounded over to Corpse’s office, hearing tail end of the question that was about to make Corpse’s brain go kaboom.
“You sound tired man, maybe you should sleep for a bit?”
She knew he only meant good. Sykkuno was just one of those guys that would never want to hurt anyone. She knew it, Corpse knew it, everyone knew it.
But her secret boyfriend was sleep deprived and going batshit crazy because of it, and currently, his trigger word was the word Sleep.
Y/n would give poor Sy a viking funeral if she can’t stop this.
“I am not tire-” Corpse was pretty intimidating when he wanted to be, and I knew that that low voice of his would scare every single hitman in a 1000 mile radius when used in a booming, angry way. And the way his voice was escalating was sure to end in said booming, angry way.
Y/n sprinted into his recording room, only partially wincing at the horridly loud bang the door made when she wrenched it open to fling herself at her boyfriend. The world seemed to slow as she soared through the air, uncaring if she knocked things out of the way.
Gotta make sure their baby Sy would never be at that end of Corpse’s fury.
She partially landed on his lap, torso hanging off the side. It hurt as her ribs made contact on the armrest of his computer chair, but it stopped his tirade with a surprised “Ooof!” and knocked him away from his PC.
“Honey!! Don’t yell at Sy!”
“Y/n???”
Oh shit.
Of course Sykkuno had to yell out her name during a stream. She had bet Toast 200 dollars that Sy would be the one to drop her name, and it was high time she cashed in.
Y/n fixed herself on Corpse’s lap, shoving his headphones off of him and forcing him into a hug. Of course he protested, but eventually relaxed in her grip, muttering about how his eyes and wrists hurt now but he promised to play with the OTV peeps and his insomnia hit him too hard these past few days.
“Baby,” he whispered hoarsely, his grip tightening on her as well. It only took a moment for Y/n to realize that her boyfriend was shaking, trying not to fall apart. “It hurts.”
She ran her fingers through his hair, putting a kiss on the top of his head as he relaxed even more. They had to move to a more comfortable space soon or else Corpse would fall asleep here and she would have to move him (which at 5 feet, is not very easy.) but he was relaxing and Y/n couldn’t make herself distract him from that.
“I know babe, it’s okay. We’ll breathe through it. You can do it, I know you can.” Corpse would never fess up to crying, but the growing patch of tears on her sweater was evidence of the amount of pain that he was experiencing.
His dedication was amazing, but a lot of the time he sacrificed his health for it. So as much as she didn’t want to hold him back, sometimes she really just had to step in and meddle to save him from himself.
They stayed like that for a while, Y/n occasionally having to coach him through his breathing, but overall, they were doing fine.
Y/n smiled into his hair when he finally stopped shaking. “That’s it babe, you’re doing amazing.” she whispered, moving to get off his lap. She wasn’t the lightest person despite her shortness, her curves never letting her be skinny, so she was sure that her sitting on his lap was making his legs go numb. Corpse, on the other hand, only held on tighter, basically turning into a koala at this point.
“Corpse, Honey, your legs are gonna go numb, babe.” she giggled. She tried to put him at arm’s length, but her apparently octopus boyfriend had planned to never let her go.
“No.” he mumbled, pressing his face ever tighter into her sweater, making her giggle, in turn, making him smile.
Eventually, he detached his face from her sweater and peeked up at his girlfriend, the visual of his tousled hair, pout, one sparkling eye and the other now only partially covered by his falling eyepatch, but both with smudged eyeliner and mirth, made her melt. “Don’t go, please?” Y/n giggled at him. “I’m not gonna leave babe, I just gotta get off your lap before I make your legs undergo hypoxia.”
“I’d let them cut off my legs if it meant having you here forever.” if she hadn’t already fallen in love with this man, she would say that this was the moment that she fell in love with him. But falling in love with him over and over again was probably something that she would never stop doing, even if Corpse ever decided to not love her back one day.
They were jolted out of their happy little bubble when they heard a loud screech coming from his headphones making a sound more akin to blasting speakers than headphones, which had apparently fallen just beside them on the table instead of the floor like Y/n anticipated. “STOP YOUR LOVING AND GO TO SLEEP CORPSE!” Rae screeched, making the both of them laugh out loud, but one look at his screen stopped them at their tracks.
Corpse was miraculously still alive in game, Rae’s character moving back and forth in front of his.
Rae… was streaming, right?
Oh shit numero dos.
One look at the chat showed that they had just outed themselves. The sappy couple making everyone watching go absolutely bonkers at the chat.
“WHO IS THAT?” -ijustlovemakingsounds
“HONEY???? BABE?????” - corpseybae
“WHAT IS HAPPENING??” -randomuser
“IS CORPSE OKAY?” -ShinigamiEyes
“CORPSE??” -corpsekkuno28
“BABY?????” -honestlywtf
“HE’S SO SWEET OMGOMGOMGOMG!!!!!!!” -cutiepiecorpsey
“WAIT WAIT WAIT IS HE OKAY????” -omgilovehim
“WHO THE HECK??” -wifeyyyycorpse
Both parties were staring wide eyed at the screens. Even with slow mode on, the chat was going a hundred miles per hour and all they were seeing were screaming chats in all caps zooming up.
For a second Y/n just kept staring quietly, and then the first giggle escaped her and soon, both of them were a giggling pile of sweaters and limbs on Corpse’s computer chair, not even trying to stop their antics. Rae screamed another “YOU’RE BOTH CUTE AND WE ALL KNOW IT STOP AND SLEEP!!”
The laughter seemed endless.
It was the sound of Y/n’s phone ringing from the other room that finally got her up from the warm confines of Corpse’s lap. But before she left, she was going to make sure that Corpse was not just going to continue streaming in her absence.
“Sooo….” Y/n turned them over so that she was facing the screen and not him, talking directly into the mic as she scrambled for the headphones she had shoved off of his head. “Yes Corpse Husband has a Corpse wife and she’s now taking him back to their coffins because the hubby is a stubborn piece of shit and has not slept in more than 50 hours.”
The casual information drop made the chat go even crazier, people now freaking out about her, trying to find out who she was, what she did, when and where they met, stuff like that. “I’ll see what I can do to answer your questions, you simps. But I gotta knock him out for now, and I promise you won’t be left hanging.”
She felt him wrap his arms around her waist once more, feeling him press his face tightly against her back. “Baby,” he started to say, but Y/n cut him off with a few pats to wherever she could reach behind her.
“Sorry, but the jackass is now cut off from the mic and shall be cut off until he sleeps, so I shall be the one to say, good day to you sirs and madams, he shall see you on the next one! Bye!!!!”
Then a pause, and a quietly frustrated “Hun, how do you turn it off??”
The chat was flooded with variations of “She’s so cute!!” and as tempted as he was to keep it going for a bit, he knew that it would upset and worry his adorable girlfriend to do so.
So from his vantage point, he just mumbled a quick “Bye!” before cutting off stream. Normally, he would stay and read superchats and see how many new members he had gained, but this time, his tiny, but determined girlfriend was dead set on getting him to chill his ass out.
And he let you.
He watched as you dragged him off to bed, tucking him in all the fluffy blankets you’d gotten for his comfort, smiled as you eagerly burrowed yourself under the fluff with him, sighed contentedly as your warmth surrounded him as you cuddled into him.
He basked in your presence as he held you back just as tight, feeling you plant a kiss in his hair and smile as he relaxed ever more. From across the room, the mirror reflected the image of the two of you, touching the deepest recesses of the soul he would never claim to have.
And as he drifted off, he watched as you glowed in the streaks of the fading afternoon sun, peeking through their heavy curtains, he thought:
What more was there to ask for?
#corpse x reader#corpse husband#fluff#drabble#sleeping#corpse's insomnia#insomnia#fanfic#simp#SLEEP#Don't say the S word#corpse_husband#Y/N#amigops#plasmophobia#corpse needs sleep#corpse x y/n#secret girlfriend#streaming#corpse stream#tw cursing#Sykkuno in danger#code words#feel good#don't say sleep#corpse husband imagine#fanfiction#adorable#soft boi
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Wishing For You
Sailor Gally x Mermaid reader
Summary: A sailor named Gally stumbles across an injured mermaid. She then agrees to grant him a wish for his help.
Y/N was an absolute idiot. How she managed to get herself caught in that net she doesn’t know, okay she does, but it’s too embarrassing to even think about fully. The fact that she got distracted by an actual dolphin is such a childish mistake she never wants to think about it again. Knowing dolphins it probably led her into the net on purpose. So Y/N has been caught in nets before, she’s got out of them many times, that’s not her problem. Her problem is instead of the fishermen waiting to catch more fish in their net by leaving it in the ocean for a little while longer like most do, they started to pull the net to the surface as soon as they felt her stuck in it. That threw her off a bit, caused her to take a little longer to get free, she didn’t break surface of course but she got close enough to where they made her figure out and shot at her once they noticed she got free of the net. The harpoon sailed effortlessly through the water and caught her side. The long spear stuck but she used her claws to cut the shaft, the arrow however was jammed beneath the skin of her stomach and she’d be stupid to try to get it out here where there’s a chance she could get caught. Ignoring the pain she swims straight down, deeper into the ocean, far away from the boat trying to capture her. She ignores the pain as she examines her surroundings. She needs to figure out a plan and fast. She was bleeding so it won’t be long until she attracts predators. Although she could normally handle her own pretty well she was injured and she knew in her weakened state she wouldn’t survive a fight. She had a fleeting thought about racing home, but if something followed her there she could put the colony at risk. She knew they could win a fight but if she gave away their location they would be upset they had to move again. She couldn’t risk it. In a true act of desperation she heads straight to shore. She knew nothing big enough to take her down would be in that shallow of water. Her only worry was hiding from humans. She just needed time to think and take out the arrow so she could heal properly.
She swam as fast as she could to where she knew shore to be. She could feel herself growing tired the closer she got. Her version started to get spotty and she could feel her body getting weaker. Just a little bit more. She encouraged herself and pushes onward. She doesn’t give herself time to rest or even look around. She can’t take that chance. Finally she notices the bottom of the ocean getting closer, signifying she was near shore. She uses the last of her stretch to swim that much faster. Finally she breaks the surface and see the sky is dark, it’s night meaning she is least likely to run into humans at this time, she rushes to the sand. Until she using the top half of her body to crawl, unable to use her tail this close. Finally she stops and one hand goes to her wound and feels the arrow sticking out of her abdomen. Before she can gather the strength to pull it out she decides to take an actual rest for a moment, just a moment. The rest of her vision goes black and she doesn’t even try to fight the sleep that overcomes her.
Gally walked along the shore to clear his head. The guys were getting on his last nerves and he just needed some space. He walks for about 30 minutes one way, far from the dock and people. He sits on the beach and just looks out into the dark waters he can see the reflection of the moon in the ocean. He scans the area and freezes when he sees a lump on the beach. He can only make out a dark mass, the light of the moon not bright enough to help him see the shadow. He slowly makes his way closer thinking a manatee washed onto shore or something. Once he gets close enough to see a little better he can see it’s actually a girl, he can only see the top half of her body, the bottom half is submerged in the sea. Gally rushes closer and collapses onto the sand beside her. His hand goes to her neck and he sigh in relief when he feels a pulse. He notices her breathing is shaky like she’s having trouble but other than that she doesn’t move. He examines her and sees the problem, the tip of a harpoon is sticking out of her side.
“Jesus, who the hell throws a harpoon at a woman?” He whispers to himself. Thinking quickly he wonders if he should carry her to the town or if it would be faster to run to get help himself and rush back with a doctor. The thought pops into his head that this probably wasn’t an accident and if he leaves her here there is a real chance whoever did this to her might find her and finish what they started. That decides it and he gets to his feet and hooks his arms under her armpits to drag her out of the water fully. He doesn’t get far though because what he finds shocks the hell out of him. He falls flat onto his ass and uses his feet to push himself far away from the thing as fast as possible. The moment wakes her and she slowly starts to stir. What Gally thought was a young woman was actually anything but, her waist cuts off into a tail, an actual fishtail. The scales shimmer in the moonlight and reflect a glittery purple and the end fin was a lilac. Gally wondered for a moment if he was asleep, dead, or had gone batshit crazy. There was no way he was seeing an actual mermaid on the beach. Just then the girl opens her eyes and he can’t help but scream. Just then the creature face transforms; her cheekbones become sharper, her eyes go completely white making her pupils disappear, and she opens her mouth to reveal sharps fanglike teeth and it hisses loudly. Gally freezes and he gets the weirdest flashback to when he was a child and he was playing outside. When he was 7 he found a cat stuck under a fence, when he got close she hissed menacingly and swapped her claws at him. She scratched him pretty good and he bled out but he just waited until she calmed down enough for him to aid her. When he freed her she ran away. This creature reminded him of that cat, she was terrifying and could probably rip his head off with her teeth alone, but she was injured and scared, that’s where the hostility comes from.
Gally holds his hands palms up facing her to show he wasn’t trying to do anything funny. She has her sight trained on him.
“It’s okay, I’m just trying to help.” He doesn’t even know if she even understands him but he keeps his voice low and steady like an adult would talk to a skittish child. “It’s okay, your injured, I think I can help, I’m not gonna hurt you, it’s okay. I know you’re scared, I know you’re hurt, I know you want to get back in the water, so let me help you.” In the middle of his speech he slowly sits up and gets to his knees. By the end he slowly scoots towards her.
Her tail was still planted on the sand but her top half had twisted back towards him and her hands were planted on the sand. He knew with her injury it had to be painful but she couldn’t take her eyes off of him. He understood but notices she doesn’t move as he gets closer. Her face stays the same, never going back to the calm regular face it was when she was sleeping except her eyes squint. He slides to the side of her so she can turn her body back forward and be in less pain. Once he has her facing back towards the sea and her body isn’t twisted painfully he stops again. A quick glance shows he’s right beside her tail but doesn’t move her hands from their upturned unthreatening position. He glances at the arrow again and tries to figure out how to get it out.
“I just want to help,” he reassures and she watches him, her mouth now shut but still just as intimidating. “Can you understand me?” He asks softly and waits. She continues to study him for a moment before nodding once and he fights back a gasp of surprise.
“Okay, we got to get that out of you,” he nods towards the weapon lodged in her side. “if you know any specific way I can help you I would like to know them now because my only plan is to pull it out, press down, and pray you don’t bleed out.” She stares at him for a moment and he still doesn’t move waiting for some kind of sign from the siren.
“Seaweed,” she says softly, her voice is small and smooth and it takes everything in him not to fall in his ass in shock that an actual mermaid can speak and said something to him.
“Seaweed?”
“I need a long piece of seaweed to wrap around me… it’ll help me heal.” It takes her a while to get the sentence out like it takes too much energy to talk. Gally nods and looks around the beach to try to find what she needs. A few feet into the water he notices a stack of rocks and knows there is a fair share of seaweed stuck on them. He stands and notices her tense beside him.
“Shit,” Gally says softly to himself. “Okay, this is probably going to hurt but please don’t bite my head off, okay?” She studies him in silence for a moment before nodding once. He slowly grabs the end of the arrowhead that is above her skin. She teases at the moment and he stays still for a moment. “Okay, now take a deep breath and I’ll pull on 3, okay?” She nods once. He takes a breath with her and starts to count. He only says 1 before pulling the arrow straight out as fast as he can. He hears a loud screech near his ear and he scurries out of the way from the sound.
“I’ll be right back,” he informs her before rushing towards the boulders. Before he hits the water he kicks off his shoes and slides his shirt over his head he decides to keep his pants on. He quickly gets in and it doesn’t take long for the water to hit the middle of his chest. He reaches the nearest rock and hauls himself up before scanning the area. It takes him a minute but he finds a few long pieces of seaweed wedged between rocks. He doesn’t know how much he needs but figures better safe than sorry. After he grabs threes long pieces he jumps back into the water and as fast as he can gets to shore. With his other hand he grabs his shirt and shoes and runs back towards her. He slows down as to not startle her again and drops to his knees quickly. He notices that her face went back to normal like how she looked while she was asleep. He tosses his shirt and shoes to the side not bothering to put either back on before holding his hand towards her and waits for her instructions. She takes the seaweed while managing not to touch him. She stares down at the wound and studies it for a moment. “Unless you have powers I don’t know about our only option is to pull it out.” She meets his eyes for a moment and y/e/c burns into his soul before she jerkily nods.
He nods back and slowly scoots closer to her. Once he was right beside her he can see the arrow is serrated making it harder and more painful to get out.
“You lied!” She screeches and he sees her face back to the terrifying face it was earlier.
“I know I’m sorry, I was trying to catch you off guard so you didn’t tense up.” He explains quickly and he looks down at the bloody arrow before dropping it and going to her side again. She calms down again and her face goes back while she grabs the seaweed. He holds it against her wound and she wraps it around her waist and ties the end. After she lays flat on the beach and takes a few deep breaths to calm down and Gally sits silently next to her waiting for his heartrate to go back to normal. Her eyes are closed now and he’s terrified to break the silence. After what feels like an eternity she opens her eyes again and turns to look at him.
“Can you… help me get into the water… not too deep just to feel the water… it’ll help me heal.” She speaks slowly and takes deep breaths between pauses. Gally nods before standing and trying to figure out how to move her to the water with the least amount of pain. He decides dragging her again is not a good idea.
“I’m going to pick you up,” he explains and she nods and he slowly carries her bridal style to the ocean.
“Stop here,” she orders and he slowly lowers her to the water. It’s not too deep but enough to keep her wet and his feet to be submerged. She stays seated and they fall back into silence again. He waits a few minutes just watching her staring down at her seaweed wrapped stomach.
“How- so how did this happen?” Gally finally asks and she whips her head up to glare at him, it scares him a little bit but not too much since her face doesn’t change again.
“Humans,” she spits the word like an insult. “I got caught in a net and when I freed myself they shot the harpoon at me.”
“Did they see you… like what you are?” He clarifies.
“I don’t know, I don’t think so, you humans confuse us a lot with others…” he nods remembering how not too long ago before he walked up to her he thought she was a manatee.
“So wha- what do I call you?” He wasn’t sure what exactly her species was referred as. He wasn’t sure if mermaid or siren were interchangeable. His only knowledge was horror stories exchanged among sailors on ships to scare the newbies. Even though he’s been working on the sea for 5 years he never had stories of his own. Hell he wasn’t even sure he believed in mermaids until this moment right now.
“We greet each other differently,” she says and he waits for her to explain but she never does. Instead she reaches for the seaweed and pulls it off. Gally is surprised to see her wound gone, only a light pink scratch remains but Gally can tell it will be gone in no time. She bends her tail to pull herself deeper into the oceans and Gally watches her unsure what to do. She gets to waist deep water for him but she’s laying down so only her head bops above the water.
“Y/N, that’s what you can call me,” she answers and he can feel his cheeks warm embarrassed.
“Y/N,” Gally tries the name and smiles kindly. “Well I’m Gally ma’am,” he introduces himself before holding out his hand; she looks at his hand in confusion. “Uh, you’re supposed to grab it and shake it up and down,” he explains while reaching for her hand. She watches him and once her grasps it he moves it slowly up and down. Her hand feels smooth but at first but when he moves a bit he can feel it snag like his hand is stuck. “It’s how humans greet each other,” he explains and she whispers his name softly to test it out and Gally ignores the shiver going down his spine.
“Thank you for your aid sailor Gally,” she says and he furrows his eyebrows in confusion. “I’m a siren, we can smell sailors from miles away,” she explains and her eyes flash all white for a moment before going back. “For helping me, I will grant you one wish, anything you desire is yours.” She explains and Gally sits there stunned for a moment trying to figure out what his wish would be. His mind was drawing a blank, the only thing he could think at the moment is he wanted to know more about Y/N, not just her species but her specifically.
“I don’t know…” he admits, “Can I take a day to think about it?” He asks and she studies him for a moment. She’s trying to figure out if it’s a trap or not.
“Fine, meet me here tomorrow night,” she says and he nods.
“What time?” He asks and she studies him before a moment before flashing her sharp teeth in a horrifying smile and turning her body and diving into the sea depths and disappearing. Gally sits stunned for a moment wondering what time he should come back tomorrow or if she was ever coming back, did he just lose out on a wish?
“You know you can’t return,” a fellow mermaid named Brenda warned.
____
Y/N explained to the colony what had happened to her and meeting the sailor.
“I offered him a wish in exchange for his help,” she explained.
“He could set up a trap for you when you return,” another explains.
“Don’t you think he would’ve attacked while I was injured if he wanted to do me harm? I can handle a human now that I am fully healed.”
“You give humans too much faith,” Brenda argues.
“I owe him a wish, that’s it.”
Y/N waits to the moon is high above the ocean before going to meet sailor Gally. It doesn’t take her long to swim to the same area but she takes a while to swim around the area before breaking the surface just to make sure he didn’t try to set up a trap. She spots the piles of rocks that Gally found the seaweed the night before and swims to it to use it as a shield to scope out the area before exposing herself. Her head lifts above and scans the area. She sees Gally laying on the beach staring at the stars and she takes a moment to just watch him, making sure no one else is with him.
_____
Gally decides his best bet is to go to the beach the same time he went yesterday and wait. He figures it would be empty by that time anyway like it was yesterday. He leaves the house and claims he’s going for walk. He leaves with only his jacket and a small blanket to rest on while he waits, he doesn’t know how long he’ll be there. Once he gets to the same spot he met Y/N he unfolds his blanket and sits as close as the water as he could get without hitting the tide. He slips his shoes and socks off again and scans the ocean waiting.
After she deems it safe she swims near shore and reveals herself. Gally doesn’t notice as his attention is still on the night sky.
“You’re back,” Gally greets.
“Sailor Gally,” she calls out and he quickly sits up to see her swimming.
He stands and walks closer and she gets closer as well.
“You sound surprised,” Gally chuckles and shrugs before pulling off his shoes and rolling up his pant legs before sitting down.
“You helped me, I owe you a debt, don’t you remember?”
Y/N pulls herself onto shore and lays on her stomach but remains in the water.
“I… I wasn’t sure you were going to come back,” he admits
“Of course I do…” Y/N lays her head on her folded arms and looks up at the sailor, studying him.
“Well, did you think of your wish?”
“No, I’m still trying to figure out what I want,” Gally looks down and his cheeks tint red.
“You don’t know what you want? That’s rare for a human,” she explains.
“Well what would you recommend I wish for?”
“I don’t know, humans usually wish for money, power, love, trivial things like that.”
“Love is a trivial thing?” Gally raises one eyebrow high as he questions Y/N.
“It’s freeing… the thought that I’m constantly in motion and not tied down to any one piece of land is comforting. I didn’t really start because I WANTED to be a sailor or work with water, I was 18 with no family and needed a job. Then I fell in love with it. It’s easy to get lost in the ocean, on land people can focus on you too much…” Y/N stares at him in thought for a moment.
“I wouldn’t know,” Y/N admits as her tail waves back and forth with the movement of the ocean. “Why do you work with water?” She starts with.
Gally looks out into the ocean for a bit and thinks of how to word his thoughts.
“How about your own boat and crew?” She reasons. “A lot of sailors would kill for that…” Gally shakes his head as soon as she suggests it.
“No, I have no desire to be in charge of a crew. If you asked me a couple years back maybe but now I know it’s not for me.”
“What’s it like living on land?” She questions instead of trying to dissect what he said. Gally shrugs and sighs.
“I’m not here much but I share a house with the crew and all they want to do is drink and talk about the local women. It’s… suffocating. It’s like you’re in competition with everyone around you. On the ship we all have a job and place but on land it’s like you have to outdo the person next to you.”
“When do you go out again?”
“We set sail again in another 2 months,” he answers.
“I can make someone fall in love with you,” she offers and stares ahead at the sand.
“Nah, if I get into a relationship I want it to be authentic and real, not magic.” He explains.
“You’re a difficult man Sailor Gally,” Y/N smirks showing a bit of fangs and Gally chuckles in response.
“Now you sound like my captain… How does this all work? Like your magic, where does it come from?”
“Everyone is born Sailor Gally,” Y/N smiles.
“Magic has always been there, there’s no explanation I have, it’s like your voice, it’s a part of you that you’re born with and just use. It’s just something my body is born with, same as my tail and hands.”
“Were you… born?”
“No… I mean…” Gally takes a deep breath and tries a different approach. “I’ve heard stories that some mermaids are women who fell overboard and drowned but were saved by a kiss and changed into mermaids themselves… Is that true?” Gally looks into Y/N eyes and waits for her answer.
“It is possible to be changed that way… they rarely FALL though,” she spits the word and a little bit of a hiss comes out. “Usually they are thrown overboard by other humans. Do humans really believe women aren’t allowed on ships because it’ll wreck?” Gally takes a deep breath and slowly exhales it.
“There are some sailors who believe women don’t belong on the ocean and that having one as a crew member is bad luck… yes. I don’t know if I fully believe it but my crew has never thrown ANYONE overboard since I’ve worked it.”
“Do you work with women on your crew?”
“…no…” he admits and she studies him a moment.
“So it means at least your captain believes it…”
“How did you become a mermaid?” Gally dares to ask.
“Do you need more time think of a wish?” She counters instead of answering.
“Yes…”
“Then I’ll leave you for now, tomorrow I’ll be back. Hopefully you have a better idea of what you want. Farewell Sailor Gally,” She flashes her sharp teeth again and shoves her body deeper into the water before disappearing again.
Gally stared at the still waters for a moment before standing and gathering his things again. He had been here for about 3 hours. Tomorrow he at least had a better idea of what time to come.
“You’re going to see that sailor again aren’t you?” She accuses.
____
Y/N prepares to meet Gally when she’s stopped again by Brenda.
“He still has a wish to make,” Y/N swims around her.
“He’s keeping you coming back to give himself time to set a trap.”
“I can take care of myself.”
“This can only end badly.” She warns before Y/N swims far enough away to not hear her anymore.
Just like before Y/N scans the area before revealing herself to Gally.
“Y/N,” he greets before walking barefoot to the edge of the water like the night before.
“Sailor Gally, hello,” she answer backs.
He sits down and she rolls onto her front and stares up at him.
“You don’t know what you want do you?” She asks and Gally stares at her in silence for a moment before shaking his head. “Eventually you’re going to have to give me an answer, I can’t come back forever…”
“Why not?” He challenges and his eyes shine.
“I’m not supposed to hang around humans too much,” the mermaid stares ahead and the statement hangs in the air.
“I wou- I have no reason to hurt you…”
“Humans tend to find reasons to hurt us.” Y/N made unwavering eye contact with him; Gally breaks it first and looks down.
“How old are you?” He asks.
“I can’t remember, over 200,” she answers and Gally’s eyes widen.
“Years old?!”
“Yes, we age differently than you…”
“Yeah I can tell…” he chuckles surprised.
“How old are you?”
“I’m 23,” he admits.
“You’re young,” he chuckles.
“So what do you do in the ocean?” He asks.
“You’re a curious young human aren’t you?” he gives a hearty laugh.
“What do you do on land?”
“Mostly wish I was back on the water… I read a lot. I like to be by myself, it’s hard to get some alone time on a ship with a bunch of other guys. So on land I take advantage of that.”
“Read?” Y/N’s lips move oddly around the word.
“Do you know what a book is?” Gally tries not to sound judgmental in his question, he genuinely wants to know more about the being. Y/N shakes her head no and Gally takes a moment to try and think of how to explain it. “Books are stories that you can hold, reading them is how you find out what they are saying…” Y/N nods and processes what he says.
“We gather and one of the mermaid’s tells a story and we all listen, usually it’s the oldest.” Gally nods.
“Books are like telling stories to yourself that someone else has created. The act is called reading.”
“Can you show me these books?”
“Yes… do you want me to read to you?”
“Yes, please, I want to know what human stories are like.”
“Okay, I’ll bring one tomorrow,” Neither of them pointed out that they never agreed for her to come back or that he still hadn’t decided on his wish yet.
The next night Gally grabs a copy of Alice and Wonderland and a lantern so he could see.
"Heading out again?" his crew mate Tim asks.
“Yeah… you know me, can’t stay trapped with you all too long…” Tim doesn’t say anything else so Gally gives him a nod before leaving.
It doesn’t take long for Gally to get to their spot, he doesn’t question when he started to think of it as their spot but he tries not to think too hard about it. He rolls his pants up and brings the blanket as close to the water as he could get before sitting the lantern down and lighting it with a match.
“What’s that?” Y/N startles Gally but he catches himself quickly.
“It’s a lantern, it helps me see in the dark,” he explains while getting himself situated.
“Your eyes don’t do that?” Y/N tilts her head in confusion.
“No, human’s need light to see, sometimes moonlight is enough, sometimes it’s not.” Gally chuckles and Y/N pulls herself as high up the beach as she can go to be closer to the sailor.
“Why are you so far?” only the tip of her tail is touching the tide by the time she’s close enough to him.
“The lantern and book can’t get wet,” he explains and she reaches for the lantern but he catches her wrist before she gets too close and closes the glass door to block the air from the flame. “You can’t touch fire, it hurts.”
“Fire,” she tests the word. “Why do you use it if it hurts you?”
“Your teeth can hurt you but you must use them,” he points out and she ponders his statement for a bit. “It helps us see, and cook, it also gives us warmth.”
“Cook? What is cook?”
“It’s what humans must do to our food to eat it.”
“You call it cook? We call it clean.” Gally gives a small smile at her mix up.
“We clean our food too, that’s not what it means though… It’s hard to explain. We burn the food so it’s not raw… It makes it warmer and tastes better to us,” she makes a face, “also if we eat an animal or fish after it’s just been killed we could possibly get sick and might die.”
“So you get hurt from fire and sick from food, I’m starting to question all the stories I’ve heard about the terrifying predators called humans…” Gally throws his head back and lets out a bark of a laugh at that. When he calms down he finds Y/N smiling, not enough to show teeth though.
“Are you going to show me this… book of yours now?”
Gally picks up the Alice in Wonderland and hands it to the siren. She turns it around and feels the cover before he reaches over and opens it so she can peek inside. She pulls it away a bit and stares at the letters trying to make sense of the symbols before closing it again and staring at the picture on the front and handing it back.
“Tell me the story,” she orders and Gally gets more comfortable.
“It’s long; I can’t tell it all in one night.” He explains and she nods once before he starts into it.
The next night Gally once again grabs his book and lantern, they got through a good chunk of Alice but didn’t finish. Gally had to cut the meeting short after 4 hours. Y/N protested but Gally explained he needs sleep. She let him go with a promise to return. The time to set sail was getting closer and Gally actually had to work during the day preparing for their next voyage.
“Off again?” Tim stops Gally before he leaves his room.
“Yep, just a stroll and a read before bed,” Gally explains as Tim narrows his eyes.
“Well don’t stay out too late, and stay safe.” He calls as Gally is already walking away.
Gally closed the book but kept his finger as a marker, looking up to show the mermaid she had his full attention.
___
"I have a question,"
"What's a rabbit?" Gally blinked realizing they made it a good chunk into the book without her knowing what a rabbit was.
"It's... an animal on land, it's fluffy and has big feet so it hops a lot. Anymore questions well we're talking?"
"What else do you have questions about?"
"Yes what's 'hops' mean?"
Gally laughs before getting up and hopping to show her what exactly it meant.
"What is a hat?"
"Still don't know your wish Sailor Gally?" Y/N smirks knowing the answer.
They spent hours talking about land versus water. Gally learned about more about fish than he ever learned as a sailor.
It was near sunrise when they finally parted.
"Not yet sorry..." Gally smiles back and she pushes herself back into the ocean fully before diving down and disappearing for the night.
Off to the side, out of sight of both Gally and Y/N, Tim sat having followed Gally and watched his interaction with a mermaid all night. The first hour he was convinced he was dreaming but now he knew for sure that his fellow sailor was interacting with a siren. Once he seen them start to part Tim got up and rushed to beat Gally back to the house to not raise suspicion.
Once back at the house Tim racked his brain trying to figure out his next move. Gally was literally flirting with danger. The fact that sirens were real was still shocking to him, this was life changing. People would travel days to see a real life mermaid. Tim thought back to the freak's tent at the circus. He wasn't an idiot. He knew that trapping the siren would be no easy feat, he would need the help of the whole crew for this. How would he convince him of the truth though?___
"Do you have a mate?" Gally chocked on the strawberry he was eating. Instead of reading like normal they decided to have a picnic. Y/N was curious about human food so Gally brought her different fruits.
"By mate you mean?"
"A perfect match... a partner for always... Do humans not have them? I know you can fall in love..."
"Yes we have them I just... was surprised by your question."
"Ok... well do you have one?"
"Uh no... it's hard being with someone when most your time is spent on a ship. Human women usually like guys who are around or who are of a higher class or someone they could relate to..."
"Do you usually have a hard time relating to other humans?" Y/N grabs a grape while she waits for his answer and chews it slowly making a sour face at the sweetness that Gally smiles at.
"Yeah, I just, I've always been alone so you kind of get used to it..."
"I understand... sometimes I leave to go alone for long periods of time. It's not smart for a mermaid though, we can die or get caught alone. It's best we stay in groups."
"Were you alone when you got stabbed with the spear?"
"Yes, I was just taking a swim alone, I shouldn't have been so close to the surface but I wanted a closer look at the moon." Gally looks up at the night sky and nods.
"It is beautiful," Gally agrees.
Once again out of sight of the mythical creature and sailor, Tim and another crew mate Mark sat in astonishment at the interaction.
"I don't believe it," Mark says in shock.
"You see it with your own two eyes. that's why I brought you here. As proof for everyone else.
"Do you think Gally is going to trap it?"
"No... look at them? Eating fruit on the beach? it's almost... romantic."
"He's not just going to let us take it..." Mark points out.
"He doesn't have to let us do anything! Once we convince the Captain to trap it, it's him against us. He's out-maned. I just needed you as my witness. Do you know how much money we could make? How famous we could be?"
"Come on, lets go back to the house and talk to Cap before Gally is finished with his date."____When Gally returns right before sunup he's surprised to see his captain an older man by the name of Janson sitting at the dining room table waiting for him.
"Captain?"
"Sailor Gally, I was waiting up to tell you the news..." Janson looks intently into the younger man's eyes for a moment before finishing his sentence. "We're setting sail tomorrow morning, you have a day to get yourself in order... say your goodbyes and such." "I have no one to say goodbye to Cap," Gally reminds him but the Captain just smiles.
"Of course... Most of us don't..."
"May I ask why we are leaving so soon? I thought we had at least another couple weeks?"
“Do you want to know how I became a mermaid?” Gally was shocked by Y/N’s question.
"Job came up, real money making opportunity, I'd be stupid to pass it up..." He smiles and Gally gets an uneasy feeling before nodding and walking to his room.
_____
The air is tense, both the human and mermaid were upset by the fact that this would be there last meeting for who knows how long. Gally would be shipping out tomorrow before the sun was even up.
“Yes,” he said quickly.
“A long time ago, before you were born, even before your parent’s parents were born I lived in a town far from here. The townspeople were scared because of things these little girls were doing. To keep themselves out of trouble they tried to blame others. It didn’t take long for things to get out of hand,” she pauses to take a deep breath and it comes out shaky before she continues her story. “The townspeople accused me of being,” her nose scrunches up a bit a she looks a little lost. “a witch… They ran this… trial… they threw me far into the ocean with a rope tied to my stomach.” She chuckles a bit but Gally doesn’t find anything funny about it. “I didn’t know how to swim then… They were supposed to pull me back but they weren’t quick enough. Before everything went black a mermaid swam towards me. Her name’s Brenda but I didn’t know it then. Do you know what a mermaid’s kiss is?”
“I think so…”
“When a mermaid kisses a human, they can turn into a mermaid. We don’t do it as much anymore, humans can’t be trusted as much as they used to. It’s only used on human’s that are drowning. I don’t really remember my first life… just my death, in bits and pieces, Brenda filled in the rest.”
By the end of her story Gally felt tears in his eyes. He mourned Y/N's past life and their death. He can't imagine how scared Y/N must have been in their final moments but he was glad they were at least still with him.
They spent the rest of their night in silence, a comforting one where they watched the stars and moon and listened to the ocean crash against the sand. Gally was done ignoring the romance of it all but knowing he loved Y/N doesn't change anything. The sun starts to show itself but they didn't rush to part like always, instead they watched it rise until the danger of Y/N being spotted was too much. As she starts to push herself into the ocean she asks again "Do you know what you want to wish for yet?"
"We're not really asking kid," Captain Janson explains kneeling in front of Gally.
"Yes..." Gally didn't finish the sentence however and Y/N didn't pry just smiles and fully submerges herself into the water. They had an unspoken understanding it seems. Gally walks back to the house and wonders if he'll see her while on the ship but given how little privacy he has aboard and the fact that Y/N isn't that reckless he knows that probably won't happen. He'll just have to wait until they dock again. The energy in the house is weird when he returns but not too different from the normal sail off days so he ignores it. No one blinks twice at Gally coming in when most of them were waking up. It's pretty normal for seamen to spend all night out the day before they leave again. They'll just assume he was at the pub or spent the night with his best gal, they don't need to know his best gal wasn't human. He packs what little clothes he has and walks beside his crew to the dock where their ship sat. Gally felt unease being around his crew but chalks it up to the fact that for the first time in his life he had something worth sticking around for, he wonders briefly if this is what others meant when they said they wished to go home. Gally wasn't the smartest man but he knew that him and Y/N would never fully work. They were from two different worlds, literally. However he wants her as long as he can have her, if that means secret meetings under the moonlight where they spend hours talking that was fine by him.
_____
"I'm not doing it." Gally was exhausted, he should have known something was wrong when everyone was acting so strange around him, plus the shipping out early but he had no idea they knew about Y/N.
"Sorry Captain," he stares at the floor and remains quiet again.
"Come on Gally, there's other fish in the sea," The other crew mates laugh at the joke. "Just let us catch her and you can find yourself a nice octopus to settle down with..."
"Shut up Tim."
"That creature can hurt you, they rip the flesh off of sailor's bones for a snack, they lure good men to their death for breakfast-"
"If she's so dangerous why do you think catching her is a good idea?" Gally spits blood out of his mouth directly onto the Captain's boot in a weak attempt at defiance and gets a backhanded slap for his actions.
"That thing could get us a lot of money. You may never have to work hard again. Come on, orphan like you, no family, no ties, you could set up roots, clean up, get some female attention that actually has two legs." The crew chuckles again.
"There's no amount of money in this world that will make me help you catch her." Captain Janson looks down in frustration and stands up before punching Gally straight in his jaw, once, twice, a third time before Tim stops him and pulls him back. Gally lets his head hang in defeat.
Away from the crowd Tim whispers his idea to the Captain.
"He's not gonna give it up... but maybe, their bond is a two way street..."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean he won't say where the siren is and maybe the siren feels the same way... Maybe it won't let him die..."
The Captain thinks the statement over for a second before looking back at Gally. He was stubborn as a mule. They beat him bloody and he still hadn't given them any information. Clearly going to get the creature wasn't an option but maybe, just maybe they could get the creature to come to them.
“I wish Y/N was here,” he thinks as the water gets darker around him further from the light he sinks. His lungs start to burn screaming for air. They don’t understand what’s going on, they think he’s holding his breath for the fun of it. Things start to get hazy when he sees a back mass heading full speed to him.
______
“Oh great a shark,” he’d laugh if he could.
He fights to keep his eyes open, he’s getting light headed. The creature comes closer into view and he finally sees it’s not a shark but Y/N. Gally immediately believes it to be a hallucination conjured by his brain to comfort him in his final moments. She grabs his face with both hands.
“Gally,” he can hear her voice so clearly in his head, like she is really speaking to him, just like it would sound on the beach. “Please hold on, I’m here now,” she reaches behind him and suddenly his arms are free, she must of slashed them with her claws. She grabs one of his hands and shoots upward swimming as fast as she can. The water sloshing around them makes it harder for Gally to see and without air he’s already fighting not to pass out anyway. Gally has enough sense to remember the crew awaiting to trap his friend and he uses his last little bit of energy to thrash around and tug on her hold on him until they stop. When Y/N stops swimming and comes face-to-face with him again he notices the water is lighter again, like they are closer to the surface.
"I hope they don't see us." He could feel Y/N confusion but she doesn't try and pull him to the surface again.
He wishes he could tell her it’s okay, that he’s sorry, that he’ll miss her, but he can’t speak. He closes his eyes when she grabs his cheeks again and can feel himself falling into unconsciousness. Right before he slips completely under he feels a softness touch his lips
“I love you Y/N” he thinks before everything goes black.
His eyes open and he feels different… weightless. Gally is confused, “is this heaven?” he thinks, before a movement catches his eyes. Y/N is in front of him and touching his cheeks again.
“Gally,” her voice is soft. He knows now it is heaven. “This isn’t heaven…” she explains and he blinks, his eyes feel different. He looks around. He still looks like he’s in the water. That’s impossible, he’s dead, he has to be. Is heaven in the ocean? Or is his heaven with Y/N and because she’s a mermaid he’s in the ocean. “Gally!” He looks up at her.
“How are you speaking without opening your mouth?”
“I need to explain somethings. Gally you aren’t dead… I- do you remember the story of how I became a mermaid?” Gally thinks back to the conversation they had on the beach before and nods. “You’re a mermaid… I kissed you.” Her eyebrows furrow and her lips are downward. “I’m sorry…”
Before she could overthink too much he grabs her face and smashes his lips to hers. Their first kiss he didn’t get to enjoy it because he was on the cusp of death. Her body pulls closer and molds against his and she wraps her arms around his waist as she kisses back. It’s when her arms touch his hips he realizes a change. He pulls back and looks down. His tail is a yellow with a gold shimmer and the fins are black.
“I have a tail!” He hears a giggle as he swishes it through the water. “Wait how do we talk… can you read all my thoughts?” He looks back up at Y/N and she shakes her head fondly.
“Above the water we can talk like you did before. Down hear I can’t hear your thoughts… It’ll take you some time but you’ll learn the difference between communicating and thinking. Basically if you look at another mermaid and talk to them in your mind they’ll hear it. Don’t direct thoughts at another mermaid don’t look at them or picture yourself talking to them or they’ll hear it. For a while you should only look at me if you’re trying to talk to me until you get used to it.”
“I’ll probably offend other mermaids for a bit…”
“No, you won’t meet others for a while. I have to keep you from the others until you learn how to be a mermaid…”
“Are… are they upset about me?” Gally’s voice comes through worried.
“No… it’s just the rules whenever a human is changed. I’ll explain more later.”
"Wait, where are we? Are we still where you found me?" Gally becomes frantic and Y/N has to grab his cheeks to stop him from literally swimming in circles.
"Calm down, we are far away from the surface and away from the ship, what happened?"
"My crew turned on me, they found out about you somehow. I think one of them followed me to the beach one night. They wanted to trap you but I refused, that's why they threw me over. I think they were hoping you'd save me."
"I did save you," she corrects.
"I know but I think I sunk too deep if you broke the surface they would've caught you," Y/N gets this soft look on her face, almost fond.
"That's why you fought me when I tried pulling you to air," it wasn't a question but Gally nodded anyway.
"Gally you spent your last human moments protecting me?" She squeezes his cheeks which she was still cradling while he explained what happened and smashes her lips to his for a third time.
The merman melts into it and moves similar to how he would move his legs he manages to wrap his tail around hers and she giggles against his lips before pulling apart, Gally chases her lips and she allows a few a few more pecks before placing a clawed finger on them to stop him.
"I love you Sailor Gally," she smiles softly and if he still could he would be blushing.
"I wished for you, you know?" He says instead knowing she already heard his confession earlier.
"I know..."
#tmr gally#gally#the maze runner#sailor gally#mermaid#sirens#reader insert#non specific reader#female reader#mermaid reader#will poulter#bandersnatch#we're the millers#midsommar#detroit#narnia#seamen#sail#ocean#mythical creatures#salemmassachusetts#salem witch trials#mentioned#8000 words
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Star Wars Visions - Review
So I finally finished watching all of Visions, the ambitious anime project set in a Star Wars loose if at all canon, and I truly had a good time with it, as a fan of anime and Star Wars I was curious how they would deliver.
Spoilers for Visions, watch it then come back here to read what I thought about it. Reminder: This is my own personal opinion
So as I said, really enjoyed this experiment Disney decided to take, the 9 episodes weren't all flawless but they weren't awful either, so I'm gonna go through what I liked and disliked about it.
We'll start with the negatives, since they're few, picky and it gets it out of the way.
What Wasn't Great
Runtime
A veiled negative has to be many episode's runtimes being too short, some only lasting 10-15 minutes. Before watching I was expecting all to be at least 30 minutes, so it was a shame that none lasted that long.
Episode 2: Glorified Music Video
I think Episode 2 was perhaps the weakest episode of the nine for me, because it was all building up to a song. I think it probably leaned a bit too much on existing characters like Jabba and Boba, as well as Tatooine, to carry interest, so it was a bit of a low point.
Episode 3: Studio Trigger keep their balls away from the wall
Episode 3's The Twins wasn't bad, it just lingered a bit too much on the less fun things. Studio Trigger had made a name for themselves for striking visuals and absolutely batshit crazy fight scenes that ignore all manner of physics with the likes of Promare, Kill La Kill and Darling of the Franxx (and kinda Gurren Lagann, the company was made as a result of that so it's like a Studio Ghibli thing with Nausicaa) but The Twins didn't have enough of the major fight scene for my liking, given how most of what we saw was in the trailer. Maybe it's the fault of the trailer, but it did feel like you could just watch the trailer rather than the episode, which is a bad thing.
Episode 7 too, but it also lacks bravery
The Elder was also a good episode, but it too lacked in the final fight, the ending being very abrupt. The Elder also had a problem in that they wasted their good characters, but also failed in stakes. Had the padawan been killed instead of simply being wounded by a lightsaber slash to the belly it probably would've worked more, since we were shown that the Elder is precise in his cutting and it would've served to increase the urgency of the master fighting him too. The fight was short and out of the characters we lost it was the most important character that bit the dust.
The Episode Order could've been Better
My final criticism has to be that the order of the episodes felt like it could've been better. Starting with The Duel was right but following it up with Tatooine Rhapsody brought the mood down, likewise putting The Elder after T0-B1 was perhaps too jarring a theme switch. The bigger sin was probably ending with Akakiri. Akakiri was good, but it was a downer and you don't really finish a Season 1 on a downer because you want people to feel excited for more rather than feeling bleak about it; with the options of Lop & Ocho, The Elder, The Village Bride and The Ninth Jedi (which would've been my pick for episode 9) it was an odd choice to pace the episodes in such a way - even when knowing that people would binge in this order.
FYI if you wanted to know how I would've ordered the episodes it would've been
The Duel -> The Elder -> The Twins -> Lop & Ocho -> Tatooine Rhapsody -> T0-B1 -> The Village Bride -> Akakiri -> The Ninth Jedi
This way we start strong with Sith-heavy episodes that grip with combat, we have the Duel to set us off, we show off the Elder to sell the Dark Side's strength, which blends into the Twins and that sibling relationship blends into Lop & Ocho, we use Tatooine Rhapsody as an intermission of sorts but then carry the lighter theme with T0-B1, whose artistic elements and worldbuilding leans into the Village Bride. We make Akakiri the penultimate since we show the Jedi succumb to the Dark for love in contrast to the Elder where the Jedi succeeds by steeling emotions, before finishing strong with Ninth Jedi.
What Was Great
Anime is perfect for Star Wars
Star Wars has of course delved into animation before; Clone Wars (both), Rebels, Resistance and Bad Batch, but never like Anime. So Visions was allowed to shine by showing off everything anime can offer which more realistic CGI and live action could not. Bright colour grading, physics-defying movement, as well as unique character and lightsaber shapes.
(Mostly) Not Wasting Time
While I have criticized some episodes for not making the most of things, and not having enough time, but many episodes would last 12-15 minutes and still feel like they had a coherent storylines with no gaps in getting to know the brand new characters or a lack of important information and investment. It is a testament to the good writing of the episodes that episodes got so much from such little time.
We're Left Wanting More
In spite many episodes' brevity, the good writing also provided us stories with great potential to be fleshed out. Who wouldn't want to learn more about these new characters? See most of their adventures? The franchise potential from certain stories' one episode makes the experiment an unequivocal success.
The different styles add to the story
Using a different anime studio for each story allowed each episode to stand out in their own way, and lean on different areas of importance. The Duel for instance applied a Kurosawa aesthetic which made the audience anticipate samurai themes. As much as the animation will get props for its visuals, environments and character design we should also give a hat-tip to the amazing music, especially in The Village Bride, and the voice acting from both JP and EN.
We had some recognizable faces on both sides with EN having Joseph Gordon-Levitt, David Harbour, George Takei, Neil Patrick Harris, Allison Brie, Simu Liu, Karen Fukuhara, Lucy Liu and Taemura Morrison reprising as Boba, while on the JP side we had names familiar with One Piece (Zoro - why you gotta be a sith Zoro!, Brook, Tama, Kiku), DBZ (Goku), Naruto (Hidan, Tayuya and if you count Boruto; Chocho and Kawaki), Jujitsu Kaisen (Itadori, Megumi, Nobara) and more.
The different styles also allowed a greater freedom to lore between studios, I know the lightsaber colour thing was done in High Republic but I did like how in the Ninth Jedi Kara's lightsaber started out translucent (I actually preferred it that way), while not diverting too far away from the canon.
The Samurai style episodes were the strongest
While some episodes leaned on other elements of Star Wars, the best of the bunch kept true with the correlation force users had with samurai. The Duel, Village Bride and Ninth Jedi - alongside Akakiri, Elder and kinda T0-B1 - had strong showings by maintaining their force user characters as samurai or samura-esque, which only added to the themes of the episodes too.
Its success will hopefully entice more Studios and Directors
A positive for the future is the fact that there is a future. Visions has plenty of mileage as both a series of one-off stories or stories that can be expanded upon, and its success will mean that more will be on the cards. Imagine now what other studios may want to try their hand at their own story in this universe? And what it does not only for the franchise but also the animation studios themselves, because this in itself becomes a bridge for fans on either side to be introduced to the other; new anime fans, new star wars fans, everybody wins.
Conclusion
Visions provides an alternative in Star Wars media outside of live action but also away from the CGI tv shows, but it has started off strongly almost as well as The Mandalorian and in my opinion better than the Bad Batch did. My favourite episode was probably the Ninth Jedi, but Village Bride and the Duel are close runners up, soon followed by Lop & Ocho, I hope very much that the stories these ones started especially can be fleshed out and maybe even greenlit for their own series, while also curious about what more Star Wars can deliver.
All in all, good job for everyone, they took a risk and it paid off.
#star wars#star wars visions#sw visions#sw visions spoilers#the duel#tatooine rhapsody#the twins#the village bride#t0 b1#lop and ocho#akakiri#the elder#the ninth jedi
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Temptation
AN: I... I don’t even know what to say except for I’m so sorry? We had some tech issues at work today and I had this idea while I waited and it didn’t fit with Slides so here’s some plot with porn at the end with Mat? I wrote this in first person narrative but there’s no name or description in it. Also this is my first time writing anything like this and I didn’t spend much time proof-reading so please don’t judge too harshly
AN 2: I wrote a sequel called No Control and you can find it here so please check it out!!
Word count: 7.4k (things escalated what can I say..)
Warnings: cursing and smut, like really explicit content
He was only wearing a towel. Again. Seeing him walking around in nothing but shorts was already bad enough but this was on a whole other level.
When Mat had first invited me to come with him to his lake house by Vancouver to wait this mess out I had been thrilled. Fancy lake house overlooking the water with my best friend definitely sounded better than stuffy Brooklyn apartment in a city crammed with thousands of people infected.
Thankfully my online classes made the journey across the country possible and I only had to fly back for a short while to take my final exams. This wasn’t really how I envisioned my summer after graduating college but it could be worse I guess.
As I took a look at him all glistening wet from his shower on his way over to me by the kitchen island, I felt like I was trapped in an episode of temptation island or something like that.
Neither of us had expected this lockdown to last this long and almost two months of being holed up together was starting to take its toll. I’d known for a fact that I’d go batshit crazy if I were to stay with my own family or my crazy roommate though so his offer had truly been godsend. With the fancy club I usually waitressed at closed there was no way I’d be able to pay for my rent either, so I’d given my landlord my notice, put everything that I wouldn’t take with me in storage and followed Mat across the country.
His family was supposed to be up here with us and that way I’d have his sister as a distraction, but they’d decided to stay in the city, meaning it was only Mat and I. And my sexual frustration.
It didn’t help that my quarantine buddy looked like a fucking Greek god either. Any nun would probably go for him as well, frustrated or not. And I was definitely not a nun.
“Do you want to go paddle boarding after breakfast? The water shouldn’t be too cold today with the sun out.”
I looked out through the large floor to ceiling windows at Mat’s question, I’d been so distracted by him running around practically naked that I hadn’t even noticed that for the first time in three days there were almost no clouds visible. With May well underway British Columbia was apparently finally getting ready for summer.
“Yeah let’s do it. I still have to respond to a couple of emails before we leave tho.”
He took a look over my shoulder at my laptop, water droplets from his hair falling down my neck making me squirm.
“You’re getting me all wet”, I huffed before giving him a shove. Not thinking about the way his muscular shoulders felt underneath my fingers at all. Definitely not thinking about that. Nope.
“You’re the first girl I’ve ever heard complain about that you know?” He winked at me before throwing his head back in laughter as I flipped him off. The flirty banter that had been going on between us ever since we met almost two years ago wasn’t really helping my case either.
I was convinced the only reason why we hadn’t hooked up yet was terrible timing. We’d met at a time when both of us were seeing others and by the time we both were single again the previous months of platonic friendship had set our relationship in stone, never allowing for anything more than playful flirting and teasing. I’d thought about it for a couple of times, because honestly who wouldn’t with the way he looked?
Mat filled a cup with coffee and grabbed some of the breakfast I’d prepared before pulling out the chair next to me, looking at me expectantly. I was still munching on the remainder of my overnight oats so it took me a couple of seconds to swallow before I could ask what the hell he was waiting for.
“For you to finish whatever it is that you need to do. I have nothing else to do”
“I can’t concentrate with you hovering over me like this. Go work out or something.”
Mat had a really nice gym set up in one of the rooms and let me tell you if I had to pick one place to plank for the rest of the life, it would definitely be in there so I could at least watch the calming water while I died such a slow painful death.
“I already worked out, that’s why I just got out of the shower.”
“Well then put some fucking clothes on, you’re not some cave man who can get away with only wearing a loincloth”, I exclaimed, slowly getting flustered with him in such close proximity while knowing that one tuck could expose him completely. He cackled but got up nevertheless, making his way back towards his bedroom.
“Me being naked is yet another thing no one has ever complained about either, you wound me.”
“I’m sure Tito would disagree!”, I yelled, desperate to have the last word so I could at least keep some semblance of control in this situation. I could hear him laugh all the way from the other end of the house and quickly shook my head so I could finally get some things sorted out before he got back.
With the way the sun was shining right now I could probably get away with wearing only a t shirt over my swimsuit, which was a lot better than the full-on wetsuit we’d donned whenever we’d spent our time doing any water activities over the past few weeks. Although Mat in a wetsuit was truly a sight to see, with the way the fabric clung to him so tight that you could see every ridge of his muscles underneath.
I hustled through my emails, ready to relax for the day. Perhaps I could even start on my summer tan already, being out on the water always sped things up. Thankfully I’d bothered to bring lots of clothes and a bit of online shopping had closed any gaps that I had in my wardrobe, this bikini being one of the new acquirements as well. It was super cute and my butt looked really good in it and it would look even better once I finally got my tan going.
Mat was already lounging on the couch in the living room, scrolling through his phone and looking annoyingly perfect as ever. I knew for a fact that he hadn’t done anything with his hair and it looked so soft that I just wanted to push my hands through it. And pull it until he groaned.
“That one’s new”, he immediately said once he lifted his gaze to look at me, pulling me out of my fantasies. I hadn’t put my shirt on yet so he was getting the full view of me in the bikini, which might have been on purpose. I knew that quarantine must be getting to him as well and he wasn’t the only one that could be a tease.
I nodded, biting my lip before twirling around so he could get all angles. “You like?”
This bikini was a little bit skimpier than the ones he’d seen me in before and I could tell by the look in his eyes that he wasn’t as relaxed at the sight as he pretended to be. Finally.
We grabbed our paddles and boards and slowly made our way out on the water. It still took me a couple of minutes to find my balance, no matter how many times I’d done this before but eventually I managed, Mat now slightly ahead of me. If I had my phone with me I would definitely take pictures of him right now, they’d be outdoor magazine worthy.
“Come on slow poke, what’s keeping you?”, he yelled over his shoulder and I was tempted to splash him but I already knew that that would end up in a fight I couldn’t possibly win so I only stuck my tongue out before working to catch up.
At first we kept close to the shore but eventually we slowly made our way out farther onto the lake, laying down on our boards to enjoy the gentle up and down of the water. The sun was hotter than anticipated so both Mat and I ended up taking off our shirts and using them as pillows instead. I closed my eyes to keep me from staring at him, instead relishing in the way the sun warmed my face.
“This is what life should always be like”, Mat sighed contently, breaking the comfortable silence.
“You’d miss hockey eventually. You belong on the ice.”
“Probably. But right now I’m not missing a thing ‘cause I got everything I need right here.”
I didn’t want to look at him out of fear of what I might see on his face, only giving him an affirmative hum instead.
-
“You’re seriously the best”, Mat sighed after emptying his drink yet again. I had decided that tonight would be taco night and made some margaritas to accompany them, both of us a couple of glasses in by now. It honestly could be a Tuesday but who even knows anymore. I was convinced that at least part of the reason why Mat had asked me to come with him was because he liked my food so much, especially when I cooked Mexican.
The sun was setting over the lake and we were sitting outside on the porch so we could watch the sun set above the water, music playing quietly in the background. He reached for the pitcher and I grabbed the golf club leaning against the sofa we were currently sharing, even though there was lots of space to lounge elsewhere.
Now I didn’t really like golfing, in fact I thought it was among the most boring sports to watch and not much better to play, but I did like to swing at the ball as hard as I could. I’d found some golf balls that would dissolve into food for the fish so for the last couple of hours Mat and I had taken turns in trying to get the ball as far as possible, both of us with a subpar form that only got worse after every margarita.
“No you need to rotate your hips along with the swing”, Mat commented and I threw him a look over my shoulder.
“You’re not much better you know.”
“Yeah but I’m also stronger than you so I can hit harder.”
“I’m not sure if that’s how it works Matty.”
For my next swing I made sure to exaggeratedly turn my hips with the movement, causing me to lose balance of course. In a split second Mat was there, his big hands resting on either side of my hips so I wouldn’t fall.
“Good reflexes”, I giggled, letting my head drop back onto his shoulder so I could look up at him, our eyes locking in an intense stare. He was standing so close to me that I could feel his breath fan across my neck it was very tempting to take the little step that was needed for me to be pressed against him completely. I knew I shouldn’t be thinking about him like this, but the alcohol wasn’t exactly helping.
I could see him swallow hard, closing his eyes for a second before reluctantly letting go of me. “It’s what they pay me millions for you know.”
“Cocky little shit.” And just like that we fell back into our old rhythm again. I pushed any and all dirty thoughts out of my mind and instead focused back on my golf swing.
With every sip I felt myself relax more, the amount of alcohol in the second pitcher definitely stronger than in the first. I knew that Mat felt the effect of the alcohol as well by now, the way his gaze would turn unfocused from time to time giving him away.
I gave him a curious glance when he got up, knowing for a fact that him with a golf club would be a dangerous combination if he tried anything right now. To my surprise he walked over to the box where all the blankets were stashed, pulling out the fluffy grey one that I liked most before spreading it across both of our legs. He surprised me even further when he wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close to his side so I could rest my head on his chest. While behavior like this wasn’t completely unusual for the two of us, it had been a while since we last cuddled. It was as if Mat had been careful to not get too close up until this point, his resolve now gone.
“You know, I really like knowing things and learning how stuff works, but sometimes I just wanna be a kid again who doesn’t have a clue. I remember how I used to think that every star was a little fairy like the ones in Tinkerbell or something, I don’t know. The world used to be so full of wonders and now it’s all science this psychology that, you get me?” I listened to him ramble, the alcohol making him stumble on his words a couple of times as he tried to figure out how to properly articulate himself. I’d listened to his drunk thoughts for years now, still amazed at his ability to get all philosophical out of apparently nowhere.
“Kinda yea, but I also think there’s still lots of wonders left, some of them having to do with science. Why do comatose patients wake up? What must it feel like as a surgeon to be able to give someone a new heart, a new life? How can we know so much and yet still be wrong so many times? So the way I see it there’s still wonders, you just got to know where to look”, I finished my rant, looking up only to see Mat intently staring down at me. This wasn’t our first drunk real talk, but the way I was wrapped in his arms somehow made it feel more personal.
“By the way, I think I got lucky because I wasn’t even looking and yet I still somehow ran into you”, I continued, needing him to understand his importance to me all of the sudden. He’d truly been my rock over the past few months, keeping me from going insane as I approached the final stretch of my senior year. He’d reminded me to take care of myself and practically forced me to whenever I didn’t.
I couldn’t even count the amount of times I’d crashed at his place because my roommate was having some kind of crazy rager in our apartment, effectively making it impossible to study. He’d even offered up his spare bedroom once he moved into his new apartment but I declined because I wouldn’t be able to afford the rent at this place and I wasn’t about to leech off of him when I had other options.
“You are my wonder too, you know. I couldn’t have wished for a more supportive friend.” I smiled up at him, drunk happiness mixed with genuine love for the guy that had slowly turned into the most important person in my life. We’d come quite far.
It didn’t take long until the both of us were yawning so frequently that it was impossible to keep up a conversation, quickly gathering everything so we could go back inside. I hadn’t even realized how cold it had gotten until Mat’s arm dropped from my shoulder and my legs were exposed again from underneath the blanket.
“You wanna have a sleepover?”, Mat asked grinning at me cheekily while walking across the living room. Never one to say no to cuddling with Mat, even before all this quarantine horniness, I nodded before dashing off to my room to get ready.
Mat was already snuggled under the covers and he lifted up one side as soon as he saw me getting closer. He liked to be the big spoon and because that was one of the best feelings in the world I basically let him do whatever until he deemed our sleeping position comfortable. He’d definitely pulled me a little tighter than he usually did, our bodies now practically touching from head to toe.
He’d tangled up one of his legs with mine and my back was flush to his chest, his face nuzzled into the back of my neck. He had wrapped one arm around my waist so even if I wanted to leave or move, I wouldn’t be able to. It was like a big perfect Mat cocoon.
As I laid there listening to his breathing slowing down I thought back to what Mat had said on the paddle board a couple of days ago, about how he had everything he needed right here with him. I knew that that wasn’t exactly true because he missed his family and even if he denied it I knew he missed hockey as well, but he’d also admitted to needing me with him and I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel the same.
-
A few rays of sunshine had lit up Mat’s bedroom the next morning, but that wasn’t what had woken me up. Mat was calling for me from the ensuite bathroom and I could faintly make out the sound of water running.
“I need you to bring me your shampoo, I’m all out”, he yelled and I groaned before slowly rolling out of bed. In daylight I could make out the mess his room had become, clothes littering the floor and every other surface and I almost stumbled over a set of weights on my way out of the door.
I grabbed my shampoo out of my shower and even reached for the conditioner for good measure. His hair had gotten so long by now that it would surely appreciate the extra attention.
Making my way into the bathroom I was faced with a problem that I hadn’t thought of up until this point. The lake house was pretty new, meaning the interior design was cozy yet still modern. Meaning all bathrooms were equipped with big glass showers. Meaning that there was currently no shower curtain preventing me from seeing Mat fully naked in the shower.
I could close my eyes but I would 100% trip over his clothes that he’d strewn all across the bathroom floor so my only option was to try and keep my eyes up high. Keyword being ‘try’. At least he had his back turned to me but I was still mesmerized by the water running down his body and the way his back muscles rippled as he reached up to push his hair out of his face. And that ass..
I slowly approached the shower, praying that he wouldn’t turn around to face me but also kind of hoping he would. I opened the door a little bit so I could set the bottles down inside and thankfully he stayed put.
“Don’t put the conditioner on your roots or your hair will look greasy”, I said on my way out and even I could hear how breathless I sounded, the view having my thoughts run a mile a second.
As soon as I had the bathroom door closed I squeezed my eyes shut to try and regain my composure. The image of him in that shower was one I wouldn’t be able to get rid of for a long time. I couldn’t even take a cold shower to cool down because Mat had my stuff and he’d know something was up if I were to simply rinse myself off and I couldn’t exactly tell him that the sight of him naked had gotten me all hot and bothered.
So instead I decided to use all of my pent up energy to go on a run, hoping for the runner’s high to clear my thoughts. By the time I got back Mat was laying in the corner of the couch, an episode of The Office on the big flatscreen.
“We need to go to the store later”, I reminded him, knowing that I couldn’t walk in on him naked again without losing the little control I had left in my body. He nodded and then looked me up and down and for a second I was embarrassed. Even with only wearing running shorts and a sports bra I was still drenched in sweat, probably looking disgusting.
At least he’d put my stuff back so I could finally shower in peace, my thoughts still wandering back to earlier this morning. I wouldn’t have turned him down before all of this shit started but now that I only had my own hands and trusted toy to take care of myself, I was borderline desperate. Two months without sex was the longest dry spell I’d had in years and I couldn’t imagine Mat feeling any different. I knew from firsthand experience that he brought lots of girls home as well. Perhaps he needed something to happen as much as I did.
It was hard to believe that his shampoo had just been empty all of a sudden without him noticing first and then there was the fact that for the past few days he’d been parading around the house in only his boxers or towels.
Two can play this game, I thought to myself, pulling on a comfy shirt and some tight booty shorts, foregoing a bra which he was bound to notice because of how it stretched over my chest.
I pretended not to notice how Mat almost choked on the sip of water he’d just taken as I made my way into the living room, walking over to the kitchen to grab my own bottle. Even if I couldn’t see it to confirm, I was pretty sure that he was staring at my ass as soon as I turned away from him. For good measure I even made sure to lie down with my head in his lap, murmuring something about how he’d taken up the best spot so he really left me no other choice.
The first few minutes he didn’t move an inch, resembling a statue. I knew that he could feel my boobs pressed against his thigh and I made sure to shift a couple of times to make sure before placing one of my hands on his thigh. Eventually he relaxed and even went as far as to rest one of his hands on top of my hand, slowly moving his fingers through the tangles in my still wet hair. When he accidently pulled at a few strands I let out a content sigh while simultaneously digging my nails into his thigh out of habit. I pretended to not hear him groan lightly and instead gave him the most insincere apology of my life, thoughts now definitely elsewhere.
I was royally screwed. Or actually I wasn’t, and that was becoming a big problem.
-
I’d made it my personal mission to get a reaction out of him as much as I could. Mat was the same, I hadn’t seen him wearing a shirt in days. It was like this competition to see who could make the other one snap first. Currently I was making breakfast in nothing but a shirt and my panties. Granted, the shirt went to my mid-thighs because I’d stolen it from Mat a couple of months ago but still.
One of my upbeat playlists was playing over the speaker system and I was dancing around in front of the stove, careful to not let the our breakfast burn.
“What a sight to wake up to”, I heard Mat’s voice behind me and his hoarse morning voice did things to me I would never admit out loud. I gave him a cheeky grin over my shoulder and wiggled my butt for good measure as my favorite part of the song came on.
“Can you set the table? Breakfast is almost ready”, I asked and he nodded before moving to grab everything. We’d gotten our morning routine down to a t by now and I couldn’t help the warmth that spread in my chest at seeing him do something so domestic. Our friendship had certainly evolved since practically moving in here together. It would actually be weird to not have him around constantly once all of this was over.
The day continued like most of the days before, us lounging on the couch after working out together for a while. It was something we’d made a habit a while ago. His trainer knew that I was with him so he’d give Mat tandem exercises from time to time or he’d ask me to take videos so he could make sure that Mat’s form was okay. I certainly didn’t mind the view.
Mat was always hot of course but there was something to be said about the way he looked after a workout, all flushed and just downright delicious. It was definitely a great motivation to join him in the gym.
This time I had managed to snatch the corner seat and I was sprawled out on the couch, Mat’s head resting on my stomach. While I’d managed to put on some shorts he was of course still shirtless and I’d given in to temptation long ago, my fingers now slowly running across his back. He had one of his arms thrown across my stomach, hand resting on my hip and drawing slow circles on the little patch of skin that had been exposed when my shirt had ridden up. While cuddling wasn’t unusual between the two of us, this was certainly new territory, the show we’d been watching kind of forgotten by now.
“Use your nails”, Mat pleaded and his voice was so raw that I would’ve done anything he asked of me at this point. He let out a groan when I softly raked my nails across his back and I was glad that he couldn’t see my face right now. There was a spot on the left side of his back that would cause him to shudder slightly, goosebumps spreading quickly. I found myself watching him in awe, fascinated by the reaction I could get out of him by such a simple act.
I couldn’t stop myself from wondering what kind of damage I could do if I really worked for it.
-
It finally happened a couple of nights later after yet another day filled with sexual tension so thick that you could probably cut it with a knife.
Mat helped me clean up after dinner, music playing to help speed things up. I was in charge of taking care of the leftovers while he cleaned up everything else. Obviously I was done before him and since he refused to let me help him I hopped on top of the kitchen counter, making casual conversation while watching him put stuff in the dishwasher.
“This is my jam!”, he exclaimed, quickly wiping his hands clean before motioning for me to come dance with him. I shook my head while laughing, which only led to him grabbing me and lifting me off the counter so I would join him.
His moves were ridiculous, arms kind of just flapping around. I knew that he could dance if he wanted to, we’d been to our fair share of clubs together but right now he definitely wasn’t trying. He held his hand out for me and with a laugh I accepted, letting him spin me around as he wished. The third time while he was spinning me back towards him he pulled a little to hard though and whether it was on accident or not I ended up almost smacking into him, only stopping myself by placing my other hand on his chest.
Both of us were a little out of breath by now and any laughter died down as he wrapped both of his arms around me, pulling me even closer. I looked up at him, gripping onto his shoulder with the other hand. Mat looked down at me with an unreadable expression. We both stared at each other for a couple of seconds, trying to figure out what the other one was thinking at the moment. How had things gone from him twerking to Lizzo to this?
He gulped heavily before bringing one of his hands up to cup my face, ripping me out of my trance. His gaze was flickering between my lips and my eyes and he leaned in a little closer, yet still waiting for me to take the final step. Deciding to throw all caution to the wind I moved my hand to his neck, finally pulling him down to where I wanted him.
When our lips met it was as if everything was falling into place. The kiss started out slow, both of us still kind of figuring out what the hell was going on without scaring the other off. As soon as he realized that I wasn’t going to push him off of me he kissed me back with the determination that he showed in every other aspect of his life. His hands started wandering, first sliding down lower on my back before he moved them to my side, tightly gipping my hips.
I let out a light moan and he used the chance to deepen the kiss, slipping his tongue inside my mouth. He tasted like home and I willingly let him walk me backwards until I could feel the kitchen counter behind me, grateful for the leverage it would give me. He surprised me by lifting me back up on it and then pushing himself between my legs, gripping my thighs.
Eventually I did have to come up for air but Mat apparently didn’t concur to the basic laws of biology because he moved straight to my neck, sucking and biting gently until I was sure that goosebumps covered every square inch of my body. I knew I should stop and think about what was going on right now but I really didn’t want to, so instead I just dove right back into another toe curling kiss. Kissing him had quickly become one of my favorite things and I wanted, no I needed more.
“Mat, wait…”, I murmured against his mouth and he immediately took a step back, looking up at me with an expectant look. I could tell that he thought he’d done something wrong, when in reality it was the exact opposite.
“I want you but I don’t know if the kitchen counter is the right place for that.”
As soon as my words registered with him he groaned, burying his face in my neck.
“Then let’s get you somewhere comfortable… for now”, he teased and the wink he gave me told me that we’d definitely continue this in here another time. I let him lift me down, following behind him as he pulled me towards his bedroom with an urgency that I had only seen in games so far. He was pretty laid-back usually but I could tell that I’d riled him up over the past few days or weeks really.
It seemed like Mat couldn’t hold out until he got me onto his bed though, instead pushing me against the door and leaning down to kiss me again, pushing one of his thighs in between my legs. He fumbled around for a while before finally hitting the right light switch, making the room glow in soft yellow lighting.
His lips were addicting and even when he moved back I didn’t let him, chasing after him for another kiss. Using one of his hands to brace himself the other was slowly pushing up the fabric of my shirt. That wasn’t enough for me so I quickly moved to pull it off. I wasn’t wearing a bra and he cursed as soon as he saw my exposed chest, taking his time to look me up and down.
“So beautiful”, he murmured in awe before moving in again, one of his hands cupping my breast. I let out a moan when he started playing with my nipple which only seemed to spur him on further. I was so turned on already and he hadn’t even done much yet.
Determined to change up the power dynamics I pushed at his chest and he took a step back with a confused look, probably wondering if he’d done something wrong. Confusion turned into amazement as he watched me kiss down his chest before finally sinking down to my knees in front of him.
I took my time kissing his abs and mouthing along the ‘V’ that disappeared into his pants. I could see him straining against his shorts, impressed by what I could make out through the fabric. When I licked along his waistline he let out a beautiful groan and I decided I’d had teased him enough, finally hooking my fingers into his shorts and pulling them down along with his boxers. Him being shirtless already certainly made it easier to get him naked.
I watched his dick spring free, bouncing against his abs and looking absolutely delicious. He was impressively long but it was the girth that truly wowed me, finally making me understand all of the girls that came back time after time.
I gripped his thigh with one hand and reached for his dick with the other, making him curse. When I gave the head a little kitten lick he threaded his hands into my hair, practically pushing me down on him so I’d give him more. I didn’t object, wrapping my mouth around him and taking as much of him as I could, my hand taking care of the rest. The filthy sounds he was letting out above me only making me more enthusiastic and I was pretty sure that he’d have little crescent marks on his thighs for the next few days from how I was digging my nails into his thigh. He didn’t seem to mind though, only moaning my name.
“Fuck, you look so good like that”, Mat murmured and I looked up to him watching me intently. I kept my gaze locked on his as I moved back to let him go, my hand continuing to stroke him but my mouth dropping down to suck at his balls. The moan he let out would have made any porn star jealous.
It didn’t take long for him to pull me off of him in a way that told me that he didn’t actually want to, both of us panting as if we’d just ran a marathon.
“You need to stop or I’m going to cum”, he let out, his hoarse voice turning me on so much that I was pretty sure I’d be dripping down my legs if it weren’t for the fact that I was still wearing some clothes.
“Would that be such a bad thing?”, I teased, grinning up at him, not being able to resist licking up the entire length of his shaft once more. He practically pulled me up to my feet after that, moving in for another searing kiss.
“I’ve wanted you for so long and there’s no way I’m gonna finish before we even started.” He started to push me back towards his bed, changing his mind halfway there as he bent down to pick me up, wrapping my legs around his waist. For the first time I was able to feel him press against me, the thin fabric of my shorts not really doing much and holy shit did he feel good. He sat down on the edge of his bed, me now straddling his lap and I couldn’t help but roll my hips against him, desperate for any friction at this point.
The both of us let out a simultaneous moan at that and Mat buried his face in my neck, slowly sucking along my collarbone. He gripped my waist, his big hands nearly encircling it entirely.
“You’re wearing too many clothes still”, he said with his lips moving against my skin, making me shudder yet again. I’d long lost count a long time ago.
“Then do something about it”, I responded, not really willing to move at this point. He quickly stood up with me still perched on top of him before turning the both of us around, dropping me down onto the middle of the mattress. Him throwing me around like I weighed nothing really did something to me and I looked up at him through hooded eyes, waiting for him to make the next move.
He didn’t disappoint, leaning down to trail kisses from my neck, mouthing along my boobs before finally moving to pull my shorts and panties off. He took his time, making sure to appreciate every new inch of skin that he’d just exposed on the way back up and the closer he got to my core the more I was squirming underneath him. I had been waiting for this for so long that I wasn’t sure if I could make it through another minute without him inside me.
“Mat please, I really need you”, I whined and I could see him smirk up at me from where he’d situated himself between my legs.
“Don’t worry I’ll make you feel so good baby.” Hearing him call me ‘baby’ only made things worse but he finally put me out of my misery when he ran one of his large beautiful fingers through my folds.
“Holy shit you’re so wet for me already”, he cursed and I was about to respond when he literally took my breath away by licking up my slit. I couldn’t help but arch off the bed, already so keyed up and he quickly threw one arm across me stomach, forcing me to stay still. He started out slow and I knew that he was only trying to egg me on further but his resolve didn’t last long and he soon dove in with a determination that had sounds coming out of my mouth that I’d never made before in my entire life.
He moved my legs to rest on his shoulders so he could have better access and because I really needed something to hold on to for dear life, I gripped his hair. He’d said a couple of times that it had gotten too long during this quarantine but I certainly wasn’t complaining now, using it as leverage. I could see him grind against the comforter, desperate for any kind of friction himself and it was the hottest thing I’d ever seen in my life.
He moved back a little and I was about to complain when he slowly pushed a finger inside of me, any words dying in my throat at the feeling. He lowered his mouth again, sucking hard on my clit and I moaned so loud that I was glad that we were alone in the house.
“More, Mat please”, I whispered and I almost couldn’t believe that he already had me begging. He groaned and the vibrations in combination of him pushing a second finger inside of me were almost too much. I was close and I knew that he could tell from the way my thighs were starting to shake, curling his fingers inside me until he finally found the spot that made me cum so hard with a scream that I could see stars. He brought me through it, still pushing in and out slowly when I finally returned back to earth, grinning up at me proudly after wiping his mouth on the inside of my thigh.
“That was so fucking hot”, he said and I laughed, throwing my arm over my eyes in embarrassment. I’d had my fair share of hookups as well but nobody had managed to make me feel this good. I could feel him move up my body, reaching for my arm so he could look me in the eyes again before leaning down for a kiss. I could taste myself on his lips and while kissing him was still amazing, it wasn’t enough anymore. Mat seemed to catch my drift because he rolled off of me, only to reach for his nightstand, feeling around for a bit before triumphantly holding up a foil packet.
Taking advantage of him on his back I moved to straddle his thighs, taking his cock in my hands once again. He bucked his hips involuntarily and I could tell that he needed this as much as I did at this point. I took the foil package from him, ripping it open with my teeth before rolling the condom down his shaft. He gripped my hips, helping me scoot up until I was positioned above him, holding him so I could slip the tip inside.
Both of us let out simultaneous groans when I finally sunk down on him, the stretch painful in the most delicious way. He gave me a couple of seconds to adjust but I wasn’t really willing to wait any longer, rolling my hips against him.
“Your pussy feels so good around me”, he panted as he helped guide me along with his hands while looking me deep in the eyes. His pupils were so blown at this point, his cheeks were flushed and he’d never looked better. I was a moaning mess above him and I wanted to remember the way his cock was dragging against my walls for the rest of my life. One of his hands still rested on my hip while his other grabbed my boob, twisting the nipple and making me moan even louder.
At one point he moved to sit up, our chests now pressed together. The new angle had my clit rub against his pelvic bone and I knew that I’d come again like this with no extra help needed. Mat moved to kiss my neck, sucking and biting so harshly that I was sure that there’d be marks there the next day, not that anybody besides us would be able to see them.
His groans had become more erratic as well and I knew that he probably wasn’t far behind me, my name constantly on his lips. One last drag against him had me arch into him with yet another earth-shattering orgasm, Mat doing his best to fuck me through it before turning us around so he was on top of me, using his hands to hold himself above me so he wouldn’t crush me.
He grabbed one of my legs and pushed it up to rest on his hip, thrusting into me with a force that had the headboard slam into the wall repeatedly. He felt so good that with every thrust I let out a little moan, still sensitive from my orgasm, which only seemed to spur Mat on even more. I was digging my nails into his back to the point where I was sure that there would be red streaks after but he didn’t seem to care at all, too lost in the moment. It didn’t take long before he threw his head back and I could feel him pulse inside me as he came, the most beautiful groan coming from his lips as he finally stilled inside me.
He crashed down on top of me, burying his face in my neck, both of us out of breath by now and covered in sweat. He was silent for a while until he caught me off guard when he started laughing.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m just thinking.. we could’ve been doing that for weeks, I certainly wanted to.”
“I did too but I guess we’re both stupid.”
Now we were both laughing and Mat moved off of me so he could pull out, gripping the condom so it wouldn’t slip off. He threw it in the trash can in the corner before coming back, his hand outstretched for me to take.
“I guess we have some catching up to do then, starting right now with me and you in the shower”, he said with a wink and I couldn’t think of a time where I’d gotten out of bed faster.
#Mat Barzal#smut#nhl smut#hockey smut#Mat Barzal smut#mat barzal x reader#new york islanders#hockey writing#ice hockey#nhl#nhl imagine
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I find it poetic that in some ways Iroh's greatest defeat is ultimately his greatest triumph.
Like I'm not talking directly obviously. We know he was considered to be a great general and after his defeat he was ridiculed and broken because of the death of his son, he had no real place in his own nation due to his failure and outside of his nation he is a war criminal which he is undeniably aware of and he regrets because he knows he wasn't the good guy and his son died in vain. He may act like a buffoon at times but we know and the people in the avatar kingdoms know he is extremely capable and an expert stratergiest (a testament to this fact is people are wary of him and he STILL manages the convince them he's harmless even when the KNOW he's a dangerous man.)
Now to get to my point about why it becomes a triumph. Simple. It's his big turning point or his first big turning point. This failure and subsequent ridicule breaks him away from the expectation of being a great general. Breaks him away from being a model of what a fire nation soldier should be. Iroh is shown to always be a caring father and I truly believe he knew he was doing wrong but that he also loved his nation and the firelord (his brother) and wanted to bring glory/honour not just for himself but for his son. Failing at Ba Sing Se was a blow sure but if he'd succeeded a) more people than had already died would have and being enslaved by the fire nation. b) he'd have never become the man who became one of the cities protectors c) he'd possibly not have been the one to be with Zuko during exile and d) certainly wouldn't have been someone helping protect the Avatar.
Now I say this is one of his turning points because it's also extremely obvious his relationship with Zuko is his other important factor as to WHY Iroh is such a nuanced and well fleshed out character. There's no way Iroh WOULDN'T love Zuko, but his failure and death of his son drives Iroh not only to adopt Zuko as his own but also to understand that Zuko's mission is wrong and is the road to ruin.
Iroh has first hand knowledge what being on the wrong side gets you. He's also one of the only people around Zuko that acknowledges he is literally a 13 year old child (when exiled, 16 during the show) the gaang also make acknowledgement of this but considering they themselves are like 12-15 approximately this acknowledgement doesn't have the same impact as GROWN ASS ADULTS thinking it's okay for the firelord (a powerful force) to fight agni kai against a 13 year old and then exile him for having....an opinion? Like honestly do these people actually know what the agni kai was about and just accept that or are they told Zuko did something terrible...which like even so pretty poor form here y'all (anyway I digress clearly from my point but I have FEELINGS and probably there are other people with in the fire nation that have enough empathy and critical thinking to know that what happened to Zuko was wrong but my point remains) Uncle Iroh is one of if not the only ADULT character that seems to actually be shown as thinking Zuko is a child with feelings instead of that he's dishonoured his family or that he's evil.
(Side note, I know he calls Azula crazy but I also don't think he thinks she's actually evil either but he has no way to help her and even if he tried there's no way in her current mind set she'd ever listen. She wants to be strong and powerful and whilst she's incredibly smart she can't tell she's being manipulated because she's only ever gotten by on manipulation herself and being rewarded for that so it's difficult for her to see her father doing it to her. It's really enforced into her that her brother is weak and worthless because he doesn't have it in him to be like her. In her mind Iroh isn't just a failure as a soldier, he's a failure because he stood by Zuko. Why would she listen to someone so weak and stupid.)
So in conclusion after several tangents. Iroh's failure to take Ba Sing Se ultimately leads to his role in it's liberation and the defeat of the fire nation under firelord Ozai. His defeat helps put him on the side of the people and the avatar and gives him chances to make amends for his true failures (besieging the city in the first place leading to deaths including his own son and the failure to bring a stop to his younger brother's ambition and cruelty)
Another tangent fuck sorry, it's being a little while since I've watched and I'm thinking of things as I type and I am totally aware I might be missing stuff or misremembering things or that maybe I just have a different interpretation of certain events or characterisations. ANYWAY Iroh as the older brother was the one in line for the throne and Ozai tried to convince Azulon that Iroh was weak using Ba Sing Se as the reason (Azulon's reaction to this is entirely unfair, and it's hard to feel empathy for his fate at the time of his death even if, like other people of fire nation royalty, he has potential not to be a FUCKING COLOSSAL WANKER.) [Also a pause here to say there's a solid 11 to 12 hours between my thoughts here cause my friend called for me to pick her up from somewhere cause she finished waaaaay earlier than we were expecting so coherency who knows her lol]
I think the point I was making essentially comes down to Iroh's defeat leads Ozai to confront/try to reason with Azulon that Ozai would make a better firelord than Iroh (whether Ozai was wrong or right is a matter of perception ultimately) Azulon didn't like this and demanded Ozai kill Zuko, which I actually don't remember clearly but I looked at the wiki to jog my memory and it says that's what happened. Which was my point earlier about being a wanker, and sure maybe it was actually going to be some kind of test a la abraham and isaac etc but of course he got murked and also like firelords tend to have this follow through of becoming batshit at some point. Or at least the last few the precede our boy Zuko certainly have questionable levels of empathy for anyone outside of their immediate family and even then ... anyway who remembers Zuko's scar? Anyone, anyone at all. Yeah....
So Iroh defeat = Ozai trying to usurp the throne = Azulon's piece of shit death to Zuko demand = Azulon gets murdered, sorry assassinated = Ozai usurping the throne anyway (although I'm not sure Iroh really fought him on that at all? Someone please clarify) = Ozai being firelord when Zuko spoke up = the whole agni kai business = Zuko having his face burnt by his own father and told he's weak and is given a frankly impossible task = Iroh watching on and feeling shame, disgust, guilt, and honestly I ultimately think he felt fear for Zuko and fear of having to acknowledge more than ever before that his younger brother and even the nation he loves are on the wrong path and that power isn't worth the amount of pain and suffering caused, like I'm sure previous to this he knew, he had to have known because we know how incredibly intelligent Iroh is, and we also know he is part of white lotus (which again someone might have to tell me a timeline on that because the white lotus thing seems to have being going on a while so was he white lotus during the ba sing se seige? The first one I mean? OH THOUGHTS BUT I'LL COME BACK = Iroh and Zuko's pirate adventures uh, I mean Zuko tries to capture the avatar and Iroh drinks tea = Iroh having to watch Zuko struggle at an impossible task to regain honour he never actually lost = Iroh being a scheming old man to achieve the goal of giving Zuko a loving father = Iroh going on the journey with Zuko to befriend the gaang = Iroh participating with other white lotus members to liberate ba sing se = leading to help the downfall of an oppressive regime = Zuko taking the throne in a state of empathy and acceptance.
Like let's be real. Even though Iroh probably would have made a formidable firelord he possibly wouldn't have become the Iroh we know even though that man would have been in there and whilst he'd have remained a role model to Zuko it may not have had the same impact as the journey they DO share.
Okay I know I had more thoughts regarding white lotus things but this is so long and it's midnight and exactly 0 people will read this
Anyway I love Iroh thanks for coming to my Ted Talk
(Any mistakes are because my brain just dumped a bunch of thoughts and proofread absolutely nothing)
#uncle iroh#prince iroh#atla#avatar the last airbender#zuko#fire nation#fire lord#fire lord azulon#fire lord ozai#agni kai#white lotus#ba sing se
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Brothers Conflict || 02.
Thrust into an already established family, you struggle to find your footing while dodging the advances of seven, incredibly good looking stepbrothers.
Your father marrying, and you suddenly having to live under the same roof with seven step brothers was a royal mess or so you had thought, Because them falling in love with you was so much worse. Or was it?
◈ Genre: Romance, Fluff, Humour, Smut and maybe a little angst. (PG-18) (step brother AU) (They are all adopted, I do NOT support incest, this work is inspired by the popular anime/manga Brothers Conflict)
◈ Pairings: OT7 x Reader (reverse harem)
◈ CHAPTER TWO
WC: 3124
Warnings: Curse Words (sfw)
Masterlist
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There needs to be a limit, you think. A threshold level to how bad a day can go before it ends, or maybe you faint and are left craning into nothingness. Just something to tell you that this is as bad as it can possibly get for you.
You hear Seokjins' concerned voice get drowned by the much louder voice of your best friend, but you don't respond. You realise that you should get up, reassure everyone that you are okay, but you are starting to wonder if you can even salvage the day anymore.
The limit to how embarrassed I can be has hit a new high today.
Groaning and cursing every single god up there, you finally raise your face from the floor, bringing your hand up to scratch your cheeks and rub your eyes, as you purposefully avoid all the gazes that you can feel trained on you.
Wincing you scratch at the burn you feel on your chin from where your face had hit the carpet. The fall could have been a lot worse, but the rug had saved you from the worst of the burnt.
Saved, everything but your dignity that is.
"I am fine," You reassure everybody without looking at anybody; before you turn to Sunmi and squeeze her hand in silent reassurance. Her concerned eyes stay trained on your hunched figure, but at your small smile, she nods, sending a small worried smile back.
Sunmi has been your best friend since middle school. Your friendship blossomed the day she punched another girl in the school washroom for you, the girl; a bully was making fun of you for being a late bloomer, when Sunmi, your schools' resident queen-bee, swooped in like a raging goddess in all her angry glory and gave the girl a black eye.
You still think back to that day with fondness and a slight sense of wariness. Your petite, barbie doll of a best friend could pack quite the punch. It was a reassuring yet scary skill of hers.
Snapped out of your thoughts at the feel of a hand on your shoulder, you look up to see Seokjins’ concerned eyes peering into yours, and exhale out a heavy breath.
Okay, now it can't get any worse.
Maybe you shouldn't feel as reassured as you do with that thought, but you do. The realisation that you have already hit rock bottom when it comes to first impressions is, funnily enough, liberating to you.
At least now, I don't have to worry about if the pitch of my 'hello' is right or not.
Evidently, such frivolous solicitude was no longer a concern of yours. You have risen to higher grounds, where your first impression bar now ranges from psycho to batshit crazy.
Yep, that sounds about right.
A cough snaps you out of your thoughts, and you quickly rise to your feet, with a little help from Sunmi. In your peripheral vision, you see Seokjin’s hands hover uselessly in the air as he stops himself from reaching out to you. Clearly, your earlier responses to his touch had left an impression on him, one that was probably not all that great, you realise.
Wincing at both your embarrassment and the slight sting you feel, you finally swivel your gaze away from the floor and to the six men ahead of you, Seokjin still hovering worriedly by your side, like a concerned mother hen.
If you had any dignity left, you'd have laughed, but as it is—you are probably bordering on crazy, and you don't want to push it.
Not today.
"Umm," You start as your eyes lock with that of one of the brothers who is looking at you with concerned filled eyes and you quickly break your gaze away. Focusing at a point on the floor somewhere by his feet, you bow low and mumble out an "Annyeonghaseyo!"
The words feel foreign on your tongue, even though your best friend is Korean. While you don't live in Korea and aren't Korean, your new extended family is. You know that they know English and originally you had no plans of speaking Korean. But nerves shot, and performance pressure high, the slightly accented greeting tumbled out before you even fully realised what you were saying.
An awkward silence stretches on for a second too long, before the man whose feet you are drilling holes into with your gaze, is bowing and introducing himself.
"Ah, Annyeonghaseyo! I am Kim Namjoon, the fourth oldest brother or well the middle one," Here he flashes you a quick close-lipped smile, and your eyes automatically stray to his dimples.
‘Pretty’
While your eyes are still locked onto his dimples, utterly fascinated by their definition, he continues, "We have been waiting for you, it's a pleasure, to finally meet you Y/N-ssi!" His smile widens as he finishes his greeting, and you want to reply, but your eyes are, again, focused onto his dimples.
'So pretty.'
It's when Sunmi pinches your side subtly that you clear your thoughts, moving your gaze away as you smile back—a soft, genuine curl of your lips.
"Um, sorry I'm late, there was some traffic," Here you wave your hand in the air aimlessly before you realise what you are doing and force it down, biting your lip. "This is my best friend Sunmi, and um it's really nice, to finally be able to meet you all too!" You finish lamely. Your introduction, a mess of stutters and random flailing limbs, leaves your face feeling hotter by the second.
"Finally! We have been waiting to meet our cute little yeodongsaengie all day! I am Jung Hoseok, the third oldest and welcome to the family Y/n-ah!" Greets Hoseok, a bright megawatt smile overtaking his face, as he swoops in and gathers you in a hug. This time though you are ready and without a seconds delay, your hands wrap around Hoseok's back, as you awkwardly pat, unsure of his boundaries.
Hoseok though has no such concern, as his strong, warm hands wrap affectionately around your shoulders, pulling you closer and giving you a proper bear hug. Somehow it doesn't come as a surprise to you that Hoseok would be affectionate, something about his bright smile and sunny disposition had you feeling more comforted and reassured than awkward.
Surrounded by your now brother's warmth, you melt in his arms and for once enjoy the feeling of belonging in someone else's hold except Sunmis’.
"Did you have any problems coming here? I knew one of us should have come to pick you up instead." Hoseok continues, his eyes soft and concerned as they rake over you, keeping you at arm's length, as he checks you for any injuries, and a laugh almost slips out of you at his over the top concern.
"I am fine Hoseok ss—" You pause, hesitant to continue as you think of what you should address him as before you try again, "Hoseok-oppa?"
Your voice comes out soft, questioning and a little hesitant as you look up at Hoseok to see his reaction, but he's grinning. His smile somehow even brighter than it had been before, and then he's pulling you into another hug.
His arms wrapping around your shoulders and softly rocking you from side to side as he coos, "Aish, call me Hobi-oppa, Y/n-ah! That's what all the dongsaengies call me!"
You giggle as your limited Korean knowledge kicks in and you realise he's talking about his younger brothers. A groan echoed from behind him and in response a laugh booms out of Hoseok, as he finally loosens his hold.
Wrapping his arm around your shoulders, he turns to Sunmi, and again introduces himself, Sunmi doing the same.
You watch the interaction with an unfamiliar almost, warm, feeling in your chest. Usually, it would be you introducing yourself to Sunmis' family at Christmas or family vacations for which you'd tag along; and your father was never really home enough to ever meet Sunmi.
So, to finally have someone call you family in front of your best friend, was a simple but strangely comforting thing, and you grin, feeling rapidly more at ease in your brothers embrace.
"Aish Hob-ah! Stop hogging our little yeodongsaeng, will you?" Jin jokingly reprimands, and you chuckle, your grip around Hoseok tightening as you lean into his side.
"Well, it's only fitting; I am going to be her favourite oppa, after all!" He jokes as his head tilts to look at you and he winks. His soft black hair slips low over his forehead, as his shimmery dark eyes sparkle from in between the gaps of his strands. And you smile softly, shaking your head fondly at his antics before you extract yourself from his embrace and move to introduce yourself to the rest of your stepbrothers.
"Min Yoongi, second oldest, Welcome to the family Y/n." You smile and nod, a small 'Thank you oppa,' slipping out as you shake Yoongi's hand. His palm is soft, and a little cold against yours, and your smile widens at the small grin he gives you, blonde locks messy and rumpled as he runs his hand through them.
Turning to look at the other three men in the room, you smile and bow as you greet them too. Your eyes rise when one of them steps forward, bowing to you, his cotton candy pink hair catching the light of the room and shining bright. But what gets your attention is his smile. Full lips curled into quite possibly the sweetest smile you have ever seen in your life, as his eyes turn into two crescent moons.
"Nice to finally meet you, little sister, I am Park Jimin the hyung of the maknaes'" He winks before continuing, "and the fifth oldest one. We have been waiting to meet you for a while now. Glad to have you be a part of our not so little family! It might be a bit overwhelming at times, but know that we are all delighted to have you here." He grins, and you let out a chuckle yourself, comforted and appreciative of his efforts at trying to make you feel more at ease.
"Thank you for welcoming me!I..uh am not the best at first impressions, but I promise I am not always such a clutz." You quip back and watch surprised, as Jimin throws his head back, eyes crinkling into those crescent moons again, as a laugh tumbles out of him. His hands rest on his chest, as he hunches over laughing and you smile, your gaze travelling to his palms and a snort slipping out when you realise his hands much like the rest of him are exceptionally pretty and delicate.
You aren't usually very self-conscious, but surrounded by so many ridiculously attractive people, the insecurity was starting to creep in.
Blessed men.
Shifting your gaze to the last two brothers, you smile, bowing a little as you greet them, but when only silence greets you back, your raise your head, eyes furrowed as you look up to see the last two of your seven step brothers looking at you with disinterest and maybe the slightest bit disdain?
A little more hesitant now, you smile at them again, but receive back even more silence.
An awkward silence stretches on for a while, as you take in their appearance. You already know the names of the youngest two, had painstakingly learned then a week ago when your father had informed you that you'd have to move in with your extended family.
Kim Taehyung, the one with crystal-like cerulean eyes and platinum blonde hair, that was almost silver. Long, messy strands that reached low and covered almost his entire eyes. His face so perfectly chiselled, it was like the gods personally took their time sculpting it, not a single flaw or blemish on his pale, smooth skin.
In any other situation, you'd have gaped and taken your time appreciating the fineness that was his face, but since those crystal blue eyes of his were glaring angry holes into your forehead, you decide not to.
Next time.
Snapping your eyes away from Taehyung; your gaze falls onto the last brother, Jeon Jungkook, the youngest in the family, at least before you came along.
For someone who was only a year older than you, his build was impressively large. Even from under the oversized loose tee he was wearing; you could see his broad shoulders. The t-shirt hugged his pectoral muscles before it loosened over the abbs. Jungkooks, from what you could only assume, abdomen was coiled and defined under the loose shirt he was wearing.
After a few more seconds of awkward silence during which you see Jimin hiss and glare at the duo from the side, you snap back to your senses. Clearing your throat, you twist onto your heels as you look back at Jimin, who stops mid hiss when your eyes catch his before he pushes his signature bright smile your way.
The smile you give him is a little shaky, your awkwardness from before coming back in full force, in response to the two youngest giving you the cold shoulder.
You aren't surprised though; you were expecting some sort of resistance. When your father had pretty much ordered you to move into your new 'mothers' house, you were pretty pissed too. You had then thrown a tantrum, screaming and crying about how unfair he was being. That even as your father, he had no right to uproot your life like that, but no matter what you said he didn't budge.
His decision was final, and so cursing and screaming, a week later here you are, trying your best to be the ideal sister your father expects you to be, as you attempt to accept these seven strangers as your family.
'Life just doesn't give me a break, does it?' You think wryly, letting out a soft sigh when you feel the glares against the sides of your face darken.
Okay then, act like a bunch of pouty little brats, see if I care.
Rolling your eyes at the immaturity, your two older brothers were currently showcasing, you move back to Sunmi who was now talking to Namjoon.
"Your boxes were delivered a few hours ago, we've moved them all up to your room, but we haven't unpacked any. Would you like help with the unpacking? I have to leave for court now, but a few of us are free today, and we'd be more than happy to help." Namjoon offers, his dimpled smile again on full display, and if you were any more juvenile, you'd have called it a personal attack.
Pretty 2x.
Feeling the glares at your back not letting up, you just shake your head. You have a feeling Namjoon is talking about the two overgrown babies who are currently wishing death upon you, but you'd rather have the boxes fall and slowly suffocate you to your demise than have them help.
"It's fine; I can do it. Thank you for sending the boxes up to my room though!" You reply, and Namjoon just ruffles your hair in response. Squealing you try to move away from his reach and groan, fixing your now rats nest of hair.
Chuckling at your apparently hilarious antics Namjoon nods and calls Jimin over, asking him to escort you and Sunmi to your room. You figure since it's still early on in the day, most of them have their jobs to attend to, and will probably take their time to socialise with you later.
You don't mind, the more time you have to get your shit together, the better.
Waving goodbye to Namjoon and everybody else, You, Sunmi and Jimin make your way to the stairs. Why you can't just use the elevator like before, you don't know, but considering it has been less than an hour since you have joined your new family, you don't bother complaining.
Too soon.
Much like downstairs, the interior of the floor above was simplistic. Metallic, with lots of glassed walls and plenty of potted plants.
'Someone in this family is obsessed with plants.' You think amused as your gaze travels to all the different types of plants around you. Some of them, you think, look too green and fancy to be real.
The marble staircase is wide and curved, and once you reach the end, you turn back to look down and raise a brow, impressed, at how high the floor was.
Fancy indeed.
"This floor is where most of the rooms are, only Namjoon-hyung and Yoongi-hyung live on the floor below," Jimin explains, as he leads you to where you assume your room is.
Passing by different doors on your way, you wonder whose room is which. You'll figure it out later you know, but you just hope none of the younger brothers are near you.
'Except Jimin, he's nice.' You decide as you follow his lean figure.
Pink, a colour you think would look absurd or emo on anyone else, looks bright somehow fitting, on your brother's head, and you watch entranced as his soft silky strands bounce with every step he takes.
'What is with these people and their genetics?'
It's that thought that leads you to an epiphany. You almost stop in your tracks but stumble forward when Sunmi nudges you from behind.
Earlier you were too nervous and wired, terrified of somehow messing up and offending your entire new family and so you hadn't given it much thought. But thinking back, you realise there was something weird about how they all introduced themselves.
Min, Jung, Jeon.
Their last names were different. You don't understand how you hadn't noticed it before when you had learned all their names, but you blame your anger and stupidity for the oversight.
'Kim Young-Soon', your step-mother, and the woman you currently hated with all of your being.
However, what you hadn't realised before but now do was how only Seokjin, Namjoon, and Taehyung, had the same last name, 'Kim' as their mother.
'What the heck is up with this family?'
More confused than anything else by your realisation, you continue to follow Jimin blindly. His voice fading into the background, as your eyes track his movements, the way his full lips curl when he smiled, and your suspicion only grows.
There was something your new family wasn’t telling you, and you were going to find out just what it was.
At least now I have something to do besides stressing out over suddenly having seven brothers, two of whom would set me on fire if given a chance.
Nodding, you decide you are going to have to do some interrogation tonight.
A/N: If you like my work, leave me your feedback, even if its just a single word, it leaves me feeling immensely happy.
I updated in less than a week! Heh, clearly my stir craziness is achieving new heights. Oh well, more content for y’all so yeeehawww 🥴
#networkbangtan#btsghostie#ficswithluv#btsgoldnet#goldenclosetnet#btsbookclub#bangtanhq#thebtswritersclub#vantaenet#bangtanidx#thehouseofbangtan#bts fanfiction#bts fanfics#bts fanfic#bts fluff#bts x reader#bts fic#bts x y/n#bts x you#bts smut#jungkook fanfic#taehyung fluff#park jimin fanfic#kim namjoon fanfic#kim seokjin fanfic#jung hoseok#bts x ot7#ditttiii writes
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Necessary Evil
Pairing: Bucky x Reader (Cheek to Cheek)
Word Count: 1,816
Warnings: nothing crazy, typical canon violence type stuff, special character appearance👀
A/N: so sorry for not posting this like two days ago when i said i was going to🥴 ive had a ton going on and ive been a busy bee but hopefully ill get myself organized for next week :) question for yall! should i keep the friday posting schedule or do thursdays instead bc of fatws on fridays? lmk!
MAIN MASTERLIST | CHEEK TO CHEEK MASTERLIST
It’s been a confusing couple of weeks. You’ve been placed on a temporary leave while you finish your recovery after the last mission.
You’ve been trying to learn as much about your new powers as you can, not really understanding what they are or how they work considering that most of the time they’ve shown themselves it’s been accidental.
Making Bucky drop food, slamming doors shut, sending stuff flying across the room. At this point you’ll tape your hands at your sides if it means you’ll stop making such a mess everywhere.
Everything has been put on halt. You don’t cook, in fear of starting a fire or making a mess in your kitchen, you don’t spar with anyone or workout unless it’s in a closed off and sealed training room used for when the Hulk was at the tower, in fear of hurting people around you, and unfortunately, you haven’t let Bucky be around you much in fear of hurting him.
He tells you that you’re not going to hurt him and that even if you did he wouldn’t take it personally, but you just can’t bring yourself to do it. The two of you got into a heated argument a few days ago when he offered to let you use him as a practice dummy for your new powers.
“How dare you suggest something like that to me?!”
“Well, I just meant that -”
“Meant what? How would you feel if I asked you to slap me around like a ragdoll with your metal arm? Make you go Winter Soldier on me?”
���That’s not the same thing, and you know it.”
“Isn’t it though?”
It wasn’t pretty.
It also didn’t help that Bucky was sent on a solo mission recently. He couldn’t tell you much about it, and you didn’t push it, knowing the two of you were still a bit rocky with each other, and knowing that it would only put more stress on you constantly thinking about his mission.
Boy, did you miss him though. You’re glad you put aside your pride to hug and kiss him goodbye, taking in his warmth, his love, his smell, savoring his arms around you and his lips on yours before he left. With the way he held and kissed you, you think he felt the same.
That was two days ago. Alpine has been the one to keep you the most company. She’s gotten big, and it’s a lot more fun to play around with her now. You trail a feather attached to the end of a string around the ground while she tries to pounce after it. A knock at the door doesn’t even pull her attention away from the toy as you let her win and catch it, standing up from your sitting position on the floor.
You open it to reveal Sam in more casual clothes than his regular tactical pants and shirt, and you return the smile he gives you.
“You busy?” He asks.
You look over your shoulder to see Alpine still pawing at the feather on the ground.
“No, I’m not busy, what’s up?”
“Just wanted to hang out, we both got the day off, figured I’d show you the best danishes in New York.”
You’re not sure if Bucky put him up to this or if this is a way to keep you from going batshit being stuck in your room not being able to do anything, but you accept the offer anyway. It’ll be nice to get some air.
“Do you, uhm,” You begin, feeling a bit embarrassed.
“What’s up?” Sam asks, the guy from the VA coming out, encouraging you to tell him.
“Do you know if Bucky’s okay? I haven’t heard from him, is all.” You ask, slipping on some shoes and heading back out into the hallway with Sam.
“I mean, I’m sure he’s fine, why wouldn’t he be?”
“Just that I know these solo missions can be anywhere and he could be doing anything, but I still worry. I didn’t know if you knew where he was or anything.”
He doesn’t. He doesn’t know, because Bucky told him Steve asked him for a few favors and he needed some off time for a couple of days. He thought Bucky was in rural New York. There’s no mission. But he supposes he’s not supposed to tell you that.
“Yeah, I don’t know much about it. Fury’s probably the one behind it.” Fury’s in Florida for his niece’s sixth birthday. He doesn’t tell you that either.
Luckily you accept it and enter the elevator to leave the private floor and go to the common area, able to leave out the backway of the tower.
“Avenger in the building, Captain.”
Sam doesn’t understand. Avenger? Who’s even around anymore?
“Uh, huh? Bucky?”
“No, Captain.”
“Clint?”
“No.”
“Who’s here?”
“Underoos.”
Underoos? Where has he heard that? Isn’t that -
The elevator doors open to the common room, a teenage boy stands with his back towards the two of you. His head whips around in typical teenage fashion and your eyebrows shoot up, unaware that the Avengers recruited teenagers.
“Is that a fucking kid?”
“Peter?” Sam asks, clearly surprised at the boy being in front of him. He hasn’t seen him in years. He wasn’t even sure where he was all this time, assuming he was in school, with his Aunt, but now he’s here.
“Sam! And his lady... friend. How are you?!”
“The lady friend has a name.” You chirp.
“What are you doing here?”
You and Sam speak at the same time. Peter addresses you first, “And your name is…?”
“Uh, Agent 51.” You didn’t think that through.
“Weird name, but alright.”
“Peter.” Sam brings his attention back to his question.
“Who is this guy?” You ask, clearly lost on who this person is and how he’s an Avenger.
“This is Spider-Man.” Sam tells you nonchalantly.
“Uh- Sam?!” Peter exclaims.
“What, she works with us, now. She doesn’t have anyone to tell anyway.”
“Sam?!” You elbow him.
“Why are you here, Peter.” Sam asks again.
“Well, you know, I was in school, doing some stuff here and there for Hill and Fury, and I figured I’d stop by.” He smiles.
You and Sam stare in silent confusion.
“Okay, look. I feel… lost. Like I feel like I’ve come to terms with Tony dying and stuff, but, I don’t know...” Peter finally cuts to the point.
You know very little about Spider-Man. You definitely didn’t know he was a kid, but you also didn’t know that he had some sort of a close relationship with Tony Stark. You’re becoming more and more like Bucky everyday; not knowing who any of these people are, not remembering seemingly important events, hell, not even knowing have these things happened because you were under Hydra.
“Peter, we don’t -”
“I’m not asking for help. More so asking if you have anything for me to do, or something.” His smile falls. You’re definitely confused, but you feel for the guy. You remember feeling lost as a teenager, losing the people you looked up to. And that lost feeling landed you in the Marines and the Marines landed you with a terrorist organization. We should help him, you immediately think.
“I’m sorry, man.” Sam offers. He wants to help Peter, as annoying as he finds him. Being a teenager is hard, and being Spider-Man is harder. But, Sam can’t forget that he’s still a kid in school with only his aunt and a few friends around him. He doesn’t want to put a person like that in the immense danger they throw themselves into, even if he knows he can handle it.
“No worries, I’ll be on my way, then.” Peter nervously scratches at his eyebrow.
“Sure you don’t want to stick around here for a bit? I know the Avengers aren’t much of a thing anymore, but, you always got a room here; a place to stay.” Sam tells him, assuming Peter’s on the verge of having a sort of coming-of-age moment.
“No, no, I need to be with May. I’ll see if I can, uh, maybe stop by more often. Maybe. If that’s alright. Nice to meet you, uh, Miss 51!” He bids farewell before walking away awkwardly, leaving Sam with a sort of sullen look on his face and you still very confused.
“What was that whole thing about?” You finally break the silence as you two make your way towards the private garage elevators.
“I’ll tell you over danishes.”
Bucky plants his fist into the HYDRA soldier’s face for the sixth time, the sound of metal hitting flesh making a slushy sound with little clanks, signifying teeth hitting the floor.
“This is the last time I ask you before I kill you. Where is Bychkov, Morozov, and that fuck with metal arms?” He pants beneath the black mask and goggles, an outfit he hadn’t dawned in so long.
Your list is heavy in his pocket, he thinks about the names he’s already crossed off and few he has left. He’s not going to stop until he finds the handlers that captured you and the supposed soldier with metal arms that shot you, details you only mentioned to him once after a nightmare that he refused to ever forget.
“They… went back… to base… in Kiev. Just… north of it.” He struggles out.
One step closer. Bucky stands taller, letting the man slump on the ground, and he reaches for the knife at his thigh.
“Wait! I - I told you… where they went!”
“I was going to kill you whether you told me or not, you Nazi fuck.” Is all he says before he slashes the knife, ending the bastard’s life.
Leaving the man’s home, he rounds a corner into the night and replaces his knife, taking out a pen in one of his many pockets as well as your list.
He crosses off Antonov, looking down at the four remaining names, two of which were the men that did this to you.
He takes a breath, the layers of leather and kevlar straining over his muscles as he sighs. He never thought he’d be hunting people down like this, Nazi or not. He never thought he’d have this black mask and these goggles over his eyes. But he also never thought HYDRA would touch the love of his life the way they did; never thought they’d put you in that chair.
So, now, he’s only getting revenge. It’s the least he can do after this organization has stolen his life, kept him from seeing his family forever, took his arm, gave him PTSD, gave his girlfriend PTSD and injected her with who knows what only to put her in that goddamn chair.
While he never thought he’d be in this position, they asked for it, and he’s not sorry.
On to the next name.
#bucky barnes#bucky barnes x reader#bucky barnes fanfictions#marvel#bucky barnes series#idk if yall know this but i love spiderman#my fav marvel character#love him more than bucky i just don't read or write for him for some reason idk i just never got into that#and the new spiderman is coming out in december !#i slowly want to incorporate characters into c2c#like i added wanda and plan to write a oneshot or two delving into her and reader meeting and getting to know each other#and then the loki series comes out in june so maybe ill play w that#im just not sure if ill adapt c2c to fatws#depends where it goes and how it ends#we'll see#anyway#yall know u can always send ideas or requests for me to play around with#thanks for reading if you made it this far
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fanfic tropes! identity porn, friends to enemies to lovers, hurt/comfort, coffeeshop au (don't have to answer them all, pick what you like). hope work went by quickly :)
Ahhh! Thank you, anon!
Identity Porn
How likely am I to write it: Identity porn isn’t really a narrative kink for me, so I wouldn’t go out of my way to put it into anything, if it didn't come up naturally. Or if it would be funny.
What characters/ships/fandoms would I write it for: I don’t really have a lot of fandom I could do identity porn for, too, so that's the next problem I have. RoL doesn't go for it much, and neither do TMA or Witcher or SGA. In the MCU/marvel comics I'm kind of only invested in Characters that just superhero under their legal name, zero fucks given in all canons I'm aware of, so oops there. Hannibal, maybe? Hannibal might work. Altho I prefere season 2 era, with everyone vague degrees of aware of each other's bs and scheming like petty murder divas.
Friends to enemies to lovers
How likely am I to write it: Very unlikely. I think the only thing with this dynamic I like is Hannibal, as in, both Hannigram and Clannibal and Clannigram, but I don't think I'd really seek it out in fic or write it. I don't even know why, I should be into The Drama Of It All, but I'm just not.
What characters/ships/fandoms would I write it for: Like I said, Hannigram/Clannibal/Clannigram, if it's something that retells an arc. I don't really do Ironstrange, but enemies to lovers or friends to enemies to lovers might be the only way I would, probably. They just don't get along in canon, and I DO NOT UNDERSTAND why people ship it so much. Also why is their Doc always ooc. Enough moaning, I'll stop, I'll stop. Have fun ya'll, but stop the goddamn cross/mass-tagging. There shouldn't be that much Ironstrange in the gen tag, ya hear me?
hurt/comfort
How likely am I to write it: VERY LIKELY. Hmmmmmm give me that good hurt/comfort.
What characters/ships/fandoms would I write it for: Basically everything, lol. All my faves are idiots who need to be shipped with therapy and tortured with hugs. The Bev & Thomas fic is very hurt comfort-y, as is the Nonromantic-Soulmates WIP. Yes I know I never finish anything, shhhh. There's also an unfinished Strangewong fic in my drafts that's technically sick!fic (I MEAN ... what else lmao) and involves cuddling and soup and being sad about Endgame, so. Which, btw, is THE ONLY reason I will ever acknowledge that dumbassery masquerading as plot. To mine it for FRIDGE HORROR *evil laughter*. And then hand out soup.
coffeeshop au
How likely am I to write it: Relatively unlikely? I don't really do fluff without plot (and I'm down with emotions as plot or snapshots that reveal something halway and sideways), and incidentally the only version of this trope I ever started would need a Graphic Violence tag lol. (If it wasn't LANGUISHING IN MY DRAFTS.) So I think I might be doing this trope wrong. Also doesn't help that I have experience manning a beer-counter / drink station, so I fall hard in the camp of 'that's an awful place for cute/fluffy shenanigans, have ya'll ever worked customer service lol'-camp. I see the appeal, but I also ... don't.
What characters/ships/fandoms would I write it for: Like I said, the only one I ever started was low-key a joke, because I don't do the trope and the fandom didn't have (and still doesn't have) one, and also because, you know. Graphic violence.
Have the first four or so paragraphs of the very unfinished RoL Demi-Monde Coffeeshop ... pre-canon canon divergence. Is there even a tag for that kinda thing? Anyways. I think the best part about this is getting to write a snotty totally-an-adult!!!-Peter who has zero respect for anything and thinks Thomas is the most ridiculous person he ever met. No graphic violence yet, only canon-typical ableist language.
There’s a lot of reasons people hate working in customer service; The bad pay, the atrocious hours, the customers, the service.
I did about two year of it, first on-and-off positions in some retail shops around where I grew up, punctuated by getting dragged along to my mother’s cleaning gigs, and then later, about a year in a not-actually-fancy Coffee House near Russell Square. And I figured afterwards my stint in customer service and retail had, at the very least, taught my younger self some much needed humility and compassion.
I’m kidding, of course. It just confirmed the suspicions I held towards my fellow humans. Especially the kind that start magic duels in public.
Now, I worked in a Coffee House, not a coffeshop, which meant Management got to price everything even more ridiculous then the rest of the world, we played wannabe-jazz elevator music instead of pop and our clientele wasn’t weird and crazy but more slightly bizarre and very deranged.
Like that one vaguely East-European guy who thought combining windowpane and paisley was a grand idea and who we – that’s the staff – did certainly not call Dracula, or the posh black lady who came to pick up her coffee before heading into the City every morning, except for that one time when, I swear on my dad’s record collection, she was wearing a diving suit under her costume, and of course Mister Stranger-Danger, who was the reason younger cousins didn’t get to do their homework behind the counter any more.
Of course we got your everyday stroll-by white girls and hipsters, but our regulars where, as far as I could tell, decidedly posh, but mostly not yet fully upper class, and also completely batshit looney, is what I’m saying. No offence to actual crazy people, because they certainly don’t dress that badly.
That’s why I didn’t even bat an eyelash when one day someone walked into the shop who was either a time-travelling noir-spy or a runaway extra from Downton Abbey.
He was a white guy, in that inexplicable past-40 age range where I can’t tell their age for the life of me, with a side sweep that must have been held in place with actual pomade, and dressed in one of those sleek looking, old suits with the broad, deep lapels and incredible narrow waists. To round off the impression that he’d come over, lean homoerotically close and tell me the name of the Kraut’s informant any moment now, he’d draped a Burberry over his arm and lugged an actual, honest to god walking cane around the city. It seemed impractical to me, but who am I to judge people’s fashion choices; I’m only the barista.
He also had that stiff demeanour about him, which I’d taken as a sign of something shifty going on anywhere else. Here, in seven out of ten cases, and even more with posh dudes, it meant that he longed to order something utterly ridiculous, with a long name, six ingredient and maybe some speculoos dust uptop, but didn’t have the courage too. Honestly, the way grown men start acting once there’s pumpkin spice on the menu is hilarious – you’d think we’re selling sex toys under the table.
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My very belated thoughts on Game of Thrones and season 8 in particular
I feel like I have a somewhat unique perspective on GoT. The show has been such a pop culture phenomenon that I feel that fans have been invested in it for years, either having been book fans who watched the show, or those having watched the show for the better part of a decade. For me, I was never a part of the fandom because I never watched the show until it was in season 7. The books sound great but because I can’t stand reading incomplete series, I have never read them, and at this point, it just feels unlikely that GRRM will end up finishing the series. That sucks because its just the sort of fiction that I would love. I started watching GoT in season 7, and then in season 8. Obviously, I had very little clue what was going on other than the broad strokes and I was watching purely because the spectacle and scale was something I had never seen before on tv. On that front alone it was entertaining. Given the incredibly divisive reaction, I didn’t feel like spending the amount of hours required to watch the show from scratch, but because covid ended up impacting so many ongoing tv shows and movies, I ended up deciding to give it a go. I started a couple of months ago and just finished season 8 a couple of days ago. Its been quite an experience, belated as it may be.
I still feel that I view the show differently than a lot of people. Obviously, its a very different emotional commitment for me, having watched the show in 2 months whereas other have watched the show for about 10 years. Having not read the books, I don’t have the issue of comparing the quality of the books to the show. And given I saw season 8, I watched the show with the ending in mind, so I could understand if the ending made sense to me or not.
On the whole, the show is worth a lot of applause. The production, acting, music, writing, visuals etc... is something I have never seen on tv. Juggling such a huge cast of characters with so many ongoing storylines is an incredible achievement. Say what you will about season 8′s writing, but from a production, scale, and performance standpoint, the show remained stellar all the way through. And for that, I do think D&D deserve credit. I know that is an unpopular thing to say but they still have created something that is truly one of a kind. The show is definitely not perfect, even before season 8. There are storylines that drag, storylines that aren’t given the time they deserve, character developments that don’t completely work etc... but I feel that is part and parcel of every long running show. There are very few that are perfect, and for the sheer complexity of the narrative, its amazing that the show isn’t more convoluted. I do agree that the final 2 seasons are the weakest seasons of the lot. I still think season 7 is very good, and the first half of season 8 I also like a lot, but seasons 1-6 are superb. Its difficult for me the select my favorite season. I suppose season 4 is probably at the top. Its kind of the end of the era season, with the death of Joffrey, Tyrion’s trial, then him leaving Westoros. Arya and Sandor’s time together coming to an end with her traveling to Braavos, death of Tywin, and Jon rising in the ranks of the Nights Watch and becoming a more prominent character in the show. I love seasons 5-6 because of the rise of Jon. Season 2 arc of Tyrion as hand of the King was also excellent. My favorite episodes all come from these seasons. I love the battle episodes, with Blackwater, Hardhome, and Battle of the Bastards being 3 of my favorite eps. The Laws of Gods and Men is another episode I love just for the climax where Peter Dinklage just tears into the scene with his full might. I also loved Pedro Pascal as Oberyn in season 4. He added a unique quality and I was sad to see him not last past season 4. There were a few storylines that I wasn’t completely fond of. The early years of Daenerys weren’t the most compelling, Arya in Braavos was just too slow for my taste, the Littlefinger and Sansa storyline in season 4 also felt like they were treading water and then they backtrack on Sansa’s development in season 5. Also, Staanis was someone who went a little too batshit crazy in his lust for power. Felt a little out of character.
Now, when it comes to season 8, There are a lot of complaints about a lot of things. I will say that the main issue with season 8 is that it crams what should be 2 seasons of storylines and crams it into a single 6 episode season. I think virtually every complaint can be traced back to that. I actually really like episodes 1 and 2. Especially episode 2. Brienne’s knighting is actually very touching. Its great to see characters reuniting and characters meeting for the first time. I know lots of people complained about episode 3 and while its not as good as the other 3 battle episodes that I mentioned before, I still think its excellent. I did not have the lighting problem that others had. I watched it on my laptop and I could see everything. The episode is titled ‘The Long Night’ so I expected things to be dark, but it isn’t as if I had trouble seeing what happened. The episode is incredibly intense and while its a bit difficult o figure out how so many survived and there are some questionable tactics for sure, its still quite a spectacular spectacle. My only issue with the episode is really all Jon related, which I will get back to in a bit.
I know that Daenerys turning into the mad queen is a huge point of contention for the season. While I absolutely agree that that character arc went from 0 to a 100 way too fast, I don’t think it was completely out of the blue. Knowing the ending, I kept an eye on Daenerys, and I think there are a lot of instances where her first instinct to fixing problems has been to unleash her dragons. She has had characters around her like Selmy, Jorah, later Tyrion, even Daario, who have tempered that instinct somewhat. But that is still a natural instinct for her. Not to mention, in Essos, she was dealing with a fairly black and white issue when it comes to slavery. And she mistakenly thought, her experiences in Essos would translate to Westoros. She came with the idea that the common people would support her without fully processing the idea that she was bringing foreign armies into their land and three dragons, which had not been seen by people for generations. So they had legitimate reasons for fear. So it wasn’t completely out of the blue that she unraveled when confronted with the revelations that she was feared more than she was loved and that she did not have the sort of universal support she thought she would have. Obviously, that was compounded by the losses that she tacked up one after another. Definitely, one more season was required to make that a satisfactory arc, but I don’t think it was completely random. And honestly, once she did what she did in episode 5, she was never going to survive the show. I will say this, Emilia Clarke was outstanding in season 8. She was never the cast member who stood out in seasons past, but season 8 was really her season. While the character development was rushed, she sold every scene and earned her lead actress emmy nomination.
There are some endings which people hated which I understood. Like Jaime’s ending, which people were pretty pissed about, is an ending I quite get. As much as we love the story of redemption, the Cersei and Jaime bond was just too deep and toxic for him to so easily extricate himself. I get why he would be drawn back to her when he knew she was in danger. I think Lena and Nikolaj really sold their final scenes together. I felt for Lena as an actress. As a result of the short season, she really didn’t get much to do all season. Her death scene is really the only time she gets material to chew on. So that was a pity. I think Brienne and Sandor Clegane were two characters for whom their endings were perfect. Brienne becoming a knight of the six kingdoms and Clegane finally getting revenge on his brother was extremely satisfying. Theon’s ending was pretty much perfect. Sansa becoming queen in the North makes sense. The show seemed to be building towards it. Sophie Tuner gets some good material in the final season where you can see that there is a lot happening in her head and not all of it is altruistic. She does have a power hungry side to her, even if she’s not self destructively so. Maisie Williams was strong again. I wasn’t a huge fan of her getting to kill the Night King over Jon but there lots of good moments she has with Jon, Sandor, Gendry, Sansa etc... Bran becoming King of the six Kingdoms is definitely not the greatest ending. I don’t know whose decision it was to turn Bran into a robot and have him do nothing other than sit and stare, but it definitely wasn’t the greatest. I can’t imagine it was a particularly satisfying experience as an actor for Isaac. I did enjoy a couple of moments with him and Jaime, harking back to season 1.
The two other major characters are Tyrion and Jon. Certainly the finale is very heavily centered on those two. I do agree with the notion that they really dumbed down on Tyrion’s intelligence as he makes a lot of wrong moves in the last couple of seasons. But Peter Dinklage the actor has never disappointed. His performance in the finale ranks as one of his finest on the show. There has never been a time when he has not given his all. Him ending up as the hand is pretty effective ending. He is a humbled man, admitting that he’s not as smart as he thought he was. So maybe he would be a better hand as a result of that experience. Jon’s ending is another controversial one. I am in the audience who really wasn’t a fan of how Jon was treated in season 8. Kit Harington was quite poorly served in season 8, which was a bit of a whiplash since Jon was arguably at his most badass in season 5-7 and became a huge a fan favorite. Certainly he took over from Dinklage as the de facto male lead of the show. The character only comes back to life at the very end of episode 5. Part of that is probably the point. That Jon became too bent to Daenerys’ will, as Varys said.to Tyrion. It took Daenerys burning down King’s Landing to wake him up. I get that from a narrative standpoint, buts its dissatisfying from a character perspective when its the final season. Certainly I found it very strange how little role he played in The Long Night, given the White Walker storyline was Jon’s primary storyline on the show. Put aside killing the Night King, a showdown which was promised on the show, he didn’t even do much else in the episode. At the very least he should have gotten to destroy the undead Viserion. The memes about his dialogue in the season aren’t unfounded. But, I will say that Kit Harington is fantastic in the series finale. He arguable has the centerpoint scenes of the finale, the two scenes with Tyrion, and then the scene with Danaerys where he is literally begging her to give him a reason not to kill her and she keeps saying the wrong thing. Certainly Peter and Kit end the season on a high note. Him ending up with the Wildlings seems appropriate because Jon never seemed cut out to be King, nor did he ever want that responsibility. He probably would have been better than Bran, but its a decent enough ending for him. In the end, the way the show ends I was mostly ok with, but the path to getting there should have come with one extra season at least.
In the end, the production and the acting will always be something I will remember. I didn’t even mention great performances from Sean Bean, Charles Dance, Alfie Allen, Stephen Dillane, Conleth Hill, Aiden Gillen, Diana Rigg, Jerome Flynn, Liam Cunningham among many others over the years. So even though I do have issues with the final season, I feel that the good far outweighs the bad when it comes to the show. Its not a show I foresee rewatching any time soon since its one of those shows that requires some digestion and a lot of hours, but I certainly don’t regret the time I gave to it.
#game of thrones#a song of ice and fire#jon snow#daenerys targaryen#sansa stark#arya stark#jaime lannister#cersei lannister#tyrion lannister#bran stark#ned stark
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My rewatch is up to 5x07. Yes I will be finishing this before the end of the season. I have no idea what episode is even out for 11.
-Sammi is batshit!!! I forgot how crazy she gets cause frank couldn’t care less about her. Her shooting Frank is crazy as fuck and I don’t understand why Lip atleast didn’t tell Fiona so they could get her out of there before the shit with Carl and Ian happens. Frank should’ve listened to Sheila. But also why is fiona letting her move into the house and take care of the kids? It’s like they all just accept it even though Sammi adds nothing but drama and then the way she tries to push Fiona out is annoying.
-Frank was a better character when he bounced off of Sheila. I liked their chemistry and storylines. Sheila made everything better.
-I really could care less about Fiona’s boy drama. It takes away from her quality as a character. But also I hate how she just kinda drops her duties of taking care of everyone just cause some guy is in her life.
- I’m not sure if I should feel sympathetic or not for V and the babies and Kevin. The whole storyline confuses me. Adding svetlana to the mix is just eh...
-also Fiona subtly moving out is super shitty.
-I think I skipped 90% of her scenes with Gus. I just could care less.
-Sammi claiming she’s trying to keep the house together is laughable. It’s like debbie six seasons later. It also shows how Fiona is legit the only person who runs the house and can keep it together.
-the end of season 4 are the best two episodes of the entire show.
-Ian! Mickey! Omg! Mickey hugging Ian’s jacket is the sweetest thing. Mickey and Ian at the psych ward. Also basically Mickey and Ian from 4x06 to now is just amazing. I love them so much. There’s so much that goes on with them in this part. The way Mickey handles Ian in the psych ward and getting our and disappearing once he does get out it’s just very emotional. It makes me love Mickey even more.
-my favorite moment between then will forever be sorry I’m late. It just speaks volumes from when Ian is trying to get out to go back to Mickey and then his constant calling to see where he is and Mickey obviously has been fighting and drinking. It’s just a really great culmination.
- they both have their own sides of the bed.
-my favorite Ian and Mickey storyline is 4x11 to now. I love how worried Mickey is. I love Mickey facing his dad. I know there’s a lot of feelings about it but when everything is said and done it just shows his strength at facing something he’s struggled with for years. I know it’s not the ideal way for everything to fall out but Mickey puts everything on the line for Ian and Ian fights beside him. And then he steps up to take care of Ian like this is the only option. It just speaks to him as a character.
-svetlana blackmailing and mocking Mickey for being gay and nearly being killed because of his dad’s hatred of homosexuality it’s really telling of her character. I know everyone likes her but I do not...
-I hate Ian cheating but I love how he can barely look at himself in the mirror. It says so much about where his head is now. Ian cheating always brings up so many confused feelings for me. I don’t condone it but they never talk about what they are to each other etc. so when Ian says he doesn’t realize how much it meant to Mickey after the porno you realize how even though they’re so connected they suck at communication. Logically you’d understand that if they’re living together etc. you shouldn’t cheat. But Ian is dealing with all of this stuff. You can tell when the porno is brought up how he doesn’t realize he did anything wrong. On some level I wonder if Ian didn’t think his happiness with Mickey would last.
-Ian’s silent tears at the psych ward hits you. Hard. So does the kiss on mickeys forehead after the bar fight.
-Mickey getting dressed up to see Ian hits you. Hard. So does the jacket hugging.
-there’s such a problem with rape in this show. No one addresses rape at all. I don’t like Matty but what happened to him was shitty and the way lip kinda laughs about it the same way he does Mickey in season 3 is just a lot to take in. And don’t even get me started on the Mandy stuff from season 2. Or the fact Ian was probably also raped when working at the club after going home with random men when he was so drugged up. I know this has been touched on before but seeing lip kinda joke about matty and Mickey at such different times is a lot.
-fionas comment about not thinking Mickey would show is valid. She saw how freaked out he was at the psych ward. I honestly don’t blame him for wanting distance and not showing up. It’s a lot to take in. She has an idea in her mind that family only takes care of family (she’s so protective over her siblings) and I think she recognizes that Mickey wants to be there for Ian and wants to make sure he’s okay (4x12 she recognizes this I think) but like she said knowing it and getting the cold hard truth by hearing it are two different things. Also all the Gallagher’s have an idea about what they’re going to have to deal with in terms of Ian so she assumes that it’s going to be like Monica but like the doctor says Ian has his own diagnosis and it’s not really fair to compare them. But from right off the bat they all do whereas Mickey is just trying to wrap his head around the fact that the man he loves is sick and he can’t do anything about it. I think if they had touched on this a bit more other than the scene in 5x08 we would’ve seen Fiona singing a different tune and recognizing how hard Mickey is willing to work to make sure that Ian is okay. And I have to wonder if maybe that was the direction they were going to go in.
-debbies raw confusion at raping Mattty and Ian’s bewilderment at doing a porno has the same energy. Except Ian’s dealing with some real shit and Debbie just doesn’t understand consent.
-I surprisingly don’t mind Amanda. I like her dad.
#gallavich#shameless#mickey milkovich#ian gallagher#ian x mickey#rewatching shameless#unpopular opinions#I don’t like svetlana#I just love gallavich so much#I can’t believe I’m almost into the Mickey missing years#idk how I’ll get through it
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Since You’ve Been Gone - Mystic Messsenger Alternate V Ending Jumin x MC
I feel like I’ve been writing this for years! It’s probably been just one year, but I finally finished it!
The concept is this fic will have two (maybe three) endings. Both are set firstly during V’s two years away then moving into the party where he reappears. The first, this fic, has MC and Jumin beginning a relationship, while the second has Jumin crushing on MC but her heart belongs to V. Both a little angsty, though mostly that’s left to your imagination, with fluffy undertones too. I think that about explains it! I might even get around to a third ending which is the poly ending! We’ll see how I go!
Since You’ve Been Gone - Mystic Messsenger Alternate V Ending Jumin x MC
Relationships: Jumin x MC
Warnings: None, really.
Two years. That’s how long it had been since you came to Korea on the promise of a position as a video games tester. It had turned out not to be what you thought. At all. Firstly, you thought testing would be more technical, matching your fledgling skills more, but it turned out it was more onsite beta testing on a prerelease. Until it wasn’t. Until it turned out that the AI’s you had been talking to were real people. Until it turned out you were staying at the headquarters of a cult. Until you had run from the place with a red haired hacker and an aqua eyed photographer. Until you had played nursemaid to the latter while he sweat the poison the cult had given him out of his system. Until you started to have feelings for him.
Throughout it all the one thing you were always sure of was the way you felt towards V, Jihyun. You had liked him immediately, the way he trusted your word when the rest of RFA didn’t, he vouched for you, he saved you. And then he was gone.
You understood, you really did. Besides the fact his fiancee had been batshit crazy and started the cult in the first place, besides the fact she had not only almost blinded him but had stabbed him. Besides all of that, you understood his need to find himself, to take time to rediscover who he was and what he wanted. He still kept in contact, though sporadically, and it was enough for you to know he was safe and happy. He had asked Jumin Han, his most trusted and oldest friend, to watch over both you and RFA, especially when you made it clear you had no desire to return to your home country, that you planned to stay on as RFA’s guest coordinator, if they would have you. The answer was an emphatic yes and, after not very long, Jumin had offered you an apartment in a modest complex he owned at a reasonable rent.
You began working in a local office, turning down Jumin’s offer to work for C&R as you felt he had done enough for you. However, that didn’t stop him calling you every day at least once, texting when he had time, and whenever you logged into the messenger he always seemed to be there. Then he began calling into your office during your lunch break, saying he was in the area and would you like to join him for lunch, or he would call you to say he was passing and would you like a ride home. He asked you to attend parties with him, business dinners, as you had proved to be confident in conversation with strangers without being overfamiliar. It was a quality he admired and found many of his associates warmed to you quickly, allowing many deals to go through much smoother than he expected.
Then, finally, only a month ago, Jumin invited you to dinner at his penthouse. You had come straight from work, wearing a navy slim leg pants suit and matching blouse decorated with lilac flowers, your shoes were sensible two inch heel pumps. You had your bag slung over your shoulder and a raincoat over your arm. The weather had promised showers. They had blown over early but you were always prepared, if nothing else. Driver Kim had dropped you outside the building where the head of security had been waiting to escort you to the penthouse without delay. You were familiar with all of Jumin’s staff now, knowing them by name and able to make polite conversation with each one, even though it confused Jumin as to why you would want to know how a security official’s son’s last soccer match had gone. You accepted that Jumin had been raised in a particularly elitist way and that he meant nothing by it, he didn’t mean to be rude he just didn’t know any different. The fact he was so cordial and considerate of you, a mere office worker, meant it was less a status thing and more an employee/employer thing. You thought. You might be wrong. Jumin was something of a puzzle in himself. Often you would find yourself at dinner while he had his phone pressed to his ear, sipping your wine and regarding him curiously as he spoke. You understood why Zen referred to him as a robot from the way he spoke and carried himself, so formal as to almost be painful, but you knew that inside that harsh exterior lay a man with so much passion for that which he deemed worthy. You found him fascinating. He could change subjects at a moments notice, something coming to his attention he simply had to tell you or address, and once he got something in his head there was no dislodging it until he had seen it through. You were unsure what this dinner was in aid of, you could only guess the upcoming party. You had had meetings with the entire RFA and with both Jaehee and Jumin, but this was the first time you had been invited to his penthouse alone. You hoped everything was okay and that you hadn’t made some sort of error with the guest list. This party was going to be the biggest yet, extremely extravagant and elegant, and you were worried that you may just screw up such an enormous event somehow. Time to find out.
The chief of security knocked on the door and you respectfully stayed a few paces behind him. Jumin never kept you waiting long and, sure enough, he opened the door just moments later, wearing one of his trademark three piece suits with matching tie and a striped shirt. You had always considered this sort of outfit stuffy and formal but on Jumin it worked, it accentuated his figure without being loud or flashy, and you had to admit it was quite a nice figure.
You were close, you admitted that, perhaps closer to him than any other RFA member, but a large part of you denied what you actually felt. He was V’s friend, and although the photographer had never confirmed that he considered you as anything other than a that himself, your mind still thought back to when he told you that if he was ever ready to love again he would consider you. Consider you. It felt like your emotions had been put on hold when he left, as though you weren’t permitted to think of anyone else until you knew for sure, but recently you had found yourself thinking more and more of Jumin and less and less of V. Your heart seemed to know what this meant, however, your common sense had not yet caught up.
‘Ah, MC.’ He greeted you as he always did before turning to his head of security. ‘That will be all.’
The security chief left as Jumin stepped back to allow you entry and took your coat from you without hesitation.
‘Are you well?’ He asked politely as you put your bag on the dresser by the door as always.
‘I’m fine, thank you, Jumin. How was your day?’
‘Far too long.’ He admitted before stepping ahead of you. ‘Allow me to get you some wine.’
‘Thank you.’ You replied as he disappeared into what you knew was his expansive kitchen. You had never seen a kitchen so big and even that was only once. Jumin liked to keep you out, as though going where the food was prepared burst the mysterious bubble behind its creation. Instead you went to the large picture window that filled one entire wall of the suite, overlooking the city below, and you toyed with the locket the members of RFA had chosen for you as a gift on your last birthday. You suspected, from the name of the jewellers it had come from, that Jumin had put in a good deal of the money towards it, although the thought was most likely Jaehee’s.
‘Here you are.’ Jumin said as he approached, his footsteps muffled by the thick carpet below his feet, and you turned to accept your glass, but instead found him a bouquet of blue roses.
‘Jumin?’ You asked curiously as you took the bouquet when he offered it, tied with a matching ribbon and wrapped in delicate paper and plastic. ‘What are these for?’
‘They are for you.’ He stated the obvious. ‘Please, can we take a seat?’
‘They’re very beautiful, thank you.’ You said as you took in their scent and moved with him to the couch, finally realising he held two glasses of wine in his other hand. You accepted one as you placed the flowers in your lap. ‘But really, what did I do to deserve flowers?’
‘Do? I don’t understand.’
‘You’ve never given me flowers before.’ You pointed out. ‘There must be a reason, because you never do anything without one.’
You thought you saw him blush as he took a large sip of his wine before putting it on the table behind him. ‘MC, I wished to talk with you, and I thought blue roses would be a good icebreaker for the conversation to come.’ He said formally and it made you frown slightly.
‘Okay, should I look up what blue roses mean so I know what’s going on?’
‘I shall explain, if you permit it?’
‘Of course. It’ll take longer otherwise.’ You said encouragingly.
‘Very well.’ He adjusted his cuff before taking the flowers and wine from your hands again and placing them with his own. He turned back to face you and seemed to compose himself before he began. ‘MC.’
‘Jumin.’ You replied overly seriously, hoping to put him at ease.
‘I am trying to be serious.’ He huffed out a breath.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this nervous.’ You rested your hand on his knee. ‘Are you sure everything is alright?’
‘I am uncertain right is the wrong word, however I must clear the air between us before I can decide.’
‘Did something happen to V?’ You asked, thinking this may be the only thing that he would want to sit you down and talk about.
‘No, not at all. He checked in just a few days ago, as you know. He was in Alaska of all places.’
‘Then what is it?’
Jumin looked down at your hand on his knee then took it in both of his, holding it between you as though it were something more precious. ‘MC, I feel it would be unfair on each of us if we were to carry on as we are without me expressing to you the changes I have felt.’
‘Things have changed?’ You asked in concern, assuming you had done something wrong to make him think so. ‘Please, tell me what it is, and I’ll change it back, if I can.’
‘I do not need you to change anything, to my eyes you are perfect.’ He said sincerely and you felt a blush tint your cheeks. ‘Which is what I wish to tell you, and I would appreciate you hearing me out before you ask any questions.’ When you nodded, concern now written on your face, he continued. ‘I first of all wish you to know that this will change nothing between us, unless you want it to. I am, if nothing else, honourable, I just feel that to not tell you would be tantamount to lying, which I will not participate in. When V was injured by Rika I promised that I would take care of you, watch over you, and I have taken my duty very seriously, but now I find it less of a duty and more a necessity, a pleasure. I enjoy spending time with you.’
‘I enjoy spending time with you too.’ You assured him, ideas still filling your head as to what he might be leading to.
‘I’m glad, and I do not want what I am about to say to stop you feeling that way, however I must confess. I cannot deny my feelings for you any longer. MC, I care for you very deeply, very much more than I do about anyone else in RFA.’
‘I care deeply for you too.’ You smiled, glad that it was only something he wanted to get off his chest. You knew that Jumin didn’t like errant emotions. They ruined his concentration.
‘I’m sorry, I am not explaining myself very well. Perhaps I should use the roses.’
‘Alright.’ You were unsure what he meant but that but you tended to allow Jumin his eccentricities.
‘The blue rose is very rare, therefore it remains for many mysterious and unattainable. I thought them the best way to express to you that although I want you, I know I shouldn’t, yet I cannot stop thinking about you, despite how inappropriate it is.’
He continued to talk but your brain switched off. Something about being loyal to V, words of emotions, his heart speeding up whenever he saw you. Jumin…liked you? Had feelings for you? This was…new. Your stomach did a nervous flip-flop at the thought of staunch, austere Jumin Han confessing his feelings for you. Suddenly it all became clear. The many visits and calls, the fact you spent your day thinking about him, wondering if he had eaten and what. He wasn’t alone in his feelings.
‘Say something, MC. You’re being awfully quiet for you.’ He prompted and you did the only thing you could think of. You leant in and kissed him.
Jumin couldn’t move with your lips pressed against his, and so he remained, unmoving and unresponsive, until you sat back, your cheeks flushed and eyes on your lap.
‘Jumin, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…’
You never finished as his hand slipped into your hair and he closed the gap between you, his lips stealing your words more effectively than anything he could have said. His kiss was languid and slow, as though every motion brought a new flavour to him and he wanted to try them all. His hand that still held you pulled you closer until you rested your free hand on his chest more for support than anything else, but you could suddenly feel his heart beating hard and fast against your palm, like a caged animal trying to escape. You finally broke for air but Jumin held you in place with his hand on the nape of your neck, his eyes closed as he pressed his forehead to yours.
‘Do I take it you feel the same?’ He asked breathily, his already deep voice throaty and rough.
‘I do, I just…I never thought that you…’
‘How could I not?’ He brushed your nose with his own. ‘You are the most incredible woman I have ever had the pleasure to know. I feared, however, that my feelings may not be reciprocated and that I was somehow hurting V by acting on them.’
‘I’m not V’s. I’m not anyone’s.’ You shook your head just enough to rock both you and Jumin from side to side. ‘V only said that maybe one day he could love again, that maybe it could be me. He never asked me to wait for him, he never asked me not to fall in…’ You stopped yourself before you confessed what your heart felt. ‘I’m not V’s.’ You repeated finally.
‘Then would you, perhaps…consider being mine?’
‘I thought you’d never ask.’
Jumin wanted to make things official. Jumin wanted everyone to know you were his. It took a lot of convincing but you finally had him agree to keeping this between the two of you, just for now. You had spent a lot of time together and even the press had ceased querying who you were, once they knew you were a member of the RFA. Only the occasional tabloid still ran photos of you both and you were so used to that by now that it wasn’t an issue. You were sure things would change if and when you did make it official, but for now, even from the RFA, it was your little secret. The next RFA party was only weeks away so it only made sense that your meetings were increasing. Between you, you had decided to tell the RFA first, before the party to be precise. Things between you were going well and you saw no reason to keep things behind closed doors.
Jumin had tried to sway your choice of outfit that evening, wanting you to wear something from a famous designer, but you had chosen your dress months ago, beautiful but not expensive, not by the standards he was suggesting at least. One thing you did allow him was to send a car for you as he was doing so for the rest of the RFA too.
The doorbell rang as you were applying the topcoat to your lipstick and you hurriedly put the lid on, not wanting to keep the driver waiting. You had a small purse which was already slung across your body for convenience and you slipped the lipstick inside as you picked up the key to your apartment and opened the door. You hadn’t been expecting Jumin himself to come and collect you, although really you should have guessed as much. He looked dashing in a silver frock coat suit and cream cravat, a diamond pin glinting against it. He smiled softly as his eyes took in your outfit and you knew now why he wanted to know the colour of your dress. His silver and cream ensemble contrasted well with your own black and silver. The dress was long sleeved, wraparound and ankle length with a split to your hip. Across your breast and from your hip to your knee was black and silver sequinned, making it look like you wore a short dress underneath. You had fastened the top of your hair back with a black and silver clip, the stones in which you doubted were even glass let alone actual gems, and your lobes sparkled with simple silver drop earrings.
‘You look exquisite.’ He greeted you, bowing his head to kiss your cheek.
‘Thank you. I love your suit, very…you.’ You settled on. ‘I wasn’t expecting you.’
‘I would not allow anyone else to accompany my lady to an event of such calibre, let alone unaccompanied.’ He reached for your hand, or so you thought, but instead you found a slender velvet box pressed into your waiting palm, and you glanced down at it in surprise.
‘What’s this?’
‘A gift.’ He said simply.
You stepped back and let him inside, closing the door before opening the box, your breath catching at the diamond bracelet within. ‘Jumin, it’s lovely.’ You breathed as he took the box from you and fastened the item on your opposite wrist to your watch.
‘Not as lovely as you.’ He raised your hand and pressed a soft kiss to your wrist.
‘Not that I don’t appreciate it, but what’s the occasion?’ You asked as his storm grey eyes looked into yours.
‘Do I need an occasion to treat you like a princess?’
‘Considering this probably cost more than a years salary for me, I think so.’
‘Then consider it a token of my affection. Every diamond, like every star in the sky, cannot compete with the beauty before me.’
‘You’re too sweet.’ You went up on tiptoes and kissed his cheek, cupping his jaw with your palm. ‘Thank you so much.’
‘Shall we?’
You left your apartment together, Jumin with his palm pressed to the centre of your back. You had found it was a way of maintaining physical contact in public that didn’t draw suspicion, rather it drew attention to Jumin Han being the well raised gentleman everyone expected him to be. It was more personal than anyone in RFA was used to him being and your friendship had not gone unnoticed, although no one realised quite how far it went.
You hadn’t been expecting a limo, although in truth you should have. Jumin liked the finer things and as you were going somewhere the press would be awaiting your arrival then it stood to reason. He let you in first then offered wine as soon as the driver closed the door. You made smalltalk, Jumin sitting in a very deliberate position so his knee touched yours, his fingers brushing yours on the seat between you.
There was already a considerable crowd of press and gawkers when you arrived, despite knowing you were there long before any guests were due to enable you to go through final checks of equipment, place settings and, of course, the all important guest list. Jaehee had been here for several hours already so you were certain everything would be perfect, but this was now your routine, where the parties were concerned. Though none of you would admit it, it gave you a chance to each have a drink and chat before the evening kicked off, a brief catch up as you were all so busy you rarely saw one another in person.
Jumin alighted from the limo first, holding his hand to help you out as the press yelled his name and questions at the two of you, but while he was quick to release your hand he ushered you inside just as fast, not sparing a moment for the press. You could see Jaehee across the room with her tablet in her hand, no doubt checking off last minute items with the staff who would shortly be milling with canapés and drinks. Yoosung’s blond hair could be seen out on the terrace where he was no doubt talking to Zen, who would be having a last minute cigarette. He had cut down recently but still it continued. There was no sign of Saeyoung but he could simply be running late or working on the PA system behind the scenes. A professional company always provided it but that didn’t stop him from tinkering whenever he got the chance.
Jaehee saw you and waved before finishing what she was doing, heading straight towards you both with a confident stride. ‘Mr Han, MC.’ She greeted you both with a small nod of her head. ‘Everything here is just about ready.’
‘Very good, Assistant Kang.’ Jumin replied. ‘Is everyone from RFA here?’
‘All present and accounted for. There was a small mix up with the wine you requested, however by way of an apology the company have provided us with a better vintage at no extra cost.’
‘Excellent. Are we about ready to have our final meeting before the doors open?’
‘As soon as Saeyoung finishes what he is doing.’
‘Perfect. Have wine poured for us all, I wish to propose a toast before we begin.’
‘Yes, sir.’ She walked away as quickly as she had arrived while you looked up at Jumin curiously.
‘We don’t normally get a drink until all the guests are here.’ You reminded him.
‘Tonight I wish to make an exception.’
‘For any particular reason?’ You teased, suspecting you now knew why.
‘I wish for our friends to be able to help us celebrate our happiness.’
‘For someone who’s reputation is that of a stern businessman, you really are quite the romantic.’
He leant towards you, and when he spoke it was quietly as the staff were now milling around in preparation, carrying trays of drinks for the guests. ‘It just took the right woman to bring it out in me.’
‘Look who finally showed up,’ Zen greeted as he came back through the doors with Yoosung in tow, ‘now all the work is done.’
‘Was there anything for you to actually do when you arrived?’ Jumin quirked him an irritated eyebrow which changed to a scowl when Zen kissed your cheek.
‘That’s not the point.’ Zen graced you with his most dazzling smile. ‘I hope this jerk didn’t bore you too much on the way in, jagiya?’
‘He was the perfect gentleman.’ You assured him as Yoosung gave Zen a playful nudge.
‘Don’t hog MC’s attention like that, Zen.’ The younger man groaned before you stepped forward and hugged him.
‘How are you, Yoosung?’ ��You asked.
‘A little tired.’ He blushed as you parted. ‘I stayed up late on a raid.’
‘You knew we had a lot to do.’ You admonished him playfully. ‘And a late night tonight.’
‘I know, but my guild were depending on me!’
‘We are depending you not to yawn all through the party.’ Jumin adjusted his cuff, a sure sign he was feeling nervous.
‘I won’t, don’t worry.’ Yoosung waved to someone and you turned to see Saeyoung emerge from one of the side doors. ‘Looks like we’re nearly ready.’
‘Good. Come.’ Jumin touched your elbow and you headed towards where the bar staff were pouring the wine he had requested. Just moments later you all stood together, glasses in hand, everyone slightly confused by Jumin’s request for a toast before the party begun. As soon as the area was clear of staff he cleared his throat before speaking. ‘I think I should first apologise for lying to you all for so long.’
‘I knew it.’ Zen rolled his eyes.
‘This is it!’ Saeyoung laughed gleefully. ‘He’s going to confirm the rumours!’
Jumin and Jaehee glared at Saeyoung while you rubbed at the bridge of your nose in a modified facepalm that also hid your faint smile. ‘I am not going to even dignify that with a response.’ Jumin said disdainfully. ‘I…we…merely wanted you all, as our friends, to be the first to know.’
‘We?’ Yoosung asked. ‘We who?’
‘We us. MC and I are…are…’ He looked at you for help as he struggled with the exact definition. ‘No longer friends.’
‘Jumin, that’s not the best way to tell them!’ You laughed, lacing your fingers with his. ‘We’re together.’
‘This…is a joke, right?’ Zen raised a hopeful eyebrow.
‘No joke.’ You said as Jumin replied; ‘I would not joke about such a thing.’
Everyone just stared at you for several moments, and finally it was Saeyoung who broke the silence. ‘Congratulations!’ He thrust his glass forward, the golden liquid within sloshing at the edges. ‘I, for one, am pleased for you both.’
Everyone else joined in with the congratulations then, even Zen, although he did give you a concerned look before mouthing; ‘Are you sure?’ To which you nodded with an emphatic grin.
‘Goodness!’ Jaehee put down her glass rapidly. ‘Look at the time, I have to check in the guests!’
‘We should all take our places to welcome them.’ Jumin beckoned over a waiter to clear your glasses.
You began to walk away, planning to join Jaehee as you had invited the guests, but Jumin didn’t release your hand, pulling you back until you faced him.
‘That was not too terrifying, I hope?’
You shook your head. ‘Not at all. I’m glad they know.’
‘As am I.’ He cupped your cheek with his gloved palm before kissing you softly, being careful not to smudge your lipstick. ‘Do not stray too far during the party, my love, I would like to be able to steal you away whenever I choose.’
‘You’re ridiculously romantic.’ You chuckled, running your hand down his cravat. ‘You’re also ridiculously territorial.’
‘I think I was remarkably behaved.’
‘You were.’ You pushed up on your toes and gave him another quick kiss. ‘Come on, we have to be ready to welcome the guests.’
‘With that as my encouragement how could I refuse?’ He gave you a rare yet warm smile, letting you go as he did so.
The party was in full swing, the last of the invited guests were now checked off and you had all gathered once more, Jumin coordinating who should speak with which guests in the few moments he was not being sought after himself by business associates. Jaehee walked by where you stood alone, between conversations, and said; ‘Mr Han wants us to coordinate another brief meeting with the RFA, to see how things are going. Five minutes, where we met before.’
‘Alright, Jaehee, thanks.’ You replied as she hurried over to Zen. You headed to the bar, tucking a hair behind your ear as you went. You were happy just to spend a few more minutes with Jumin, regardless of the reason.
‘Good, we’re all here.’ Jumin nodded. ‘Saeyoung, could you speak with the representatives from the LFG Corp regarding their technical questions. Yoosung, the youth organisation representative should be your next stop, give them the point of view of today’s college students. Zen,’ Jumin gave him a raised eyebrow, ‘just continue to flirt with anything in a dress but don’t go too far.’
‘Hey!’ Zen snapped, but Jumin continued regardless.
‘MC, ensure you have spoken to everyone so they know who you are for future parties.’
‘Okay.’ You nodded.
‘And, Jaehee.’
You felt her back straighten beside you. ‘Yes, Mr Han?’
‘Try and look a little more relaxed.’
You hid a snort of laughter as Jumin waved his hand and conversation broke out among the group.
‘I can’t believe it’s been two years since V was discharged.’ Yoosung shook his head. ‘It’s also been two years since Rika…’
Saeyoung interrupted him, not wanting him to dwell. ‘The last time we tracked him, he was in Alaska. About three months ago.’
‘Why would he go there?’ Zen wrinkled his nose in a way you knew the fans went wild for. ‘Hey, CEO-In-Line! No recent calls from V?’
Jumin turned his full attention back to the group with a sigh. ‘None whatsoever. He’s apparently not planning on showing himself at this party either.’
‘Well, whether he is here or not, congratulations on a successful opening of the RFA party.’ Jaehee smiled warmly.
‘Nice work, everybody.’ Saeyoung agreed.
Jaehee adjusted her glasses. ‘I didn’t think we’d be able to hold a party again to a success.’
Jumin entwined his fingers with yours. ‘This party was also held in order to remind ourselves that now we have defeated the event that befell two years ago.’
‘Yes, and you performed a major role in forming this party, Mr Han.’ Jumin waved a dismissive hand but Jaehee continued. ‘Of course, we wouldn’t have made it if it weren’t for Zen, Luciel, Yoosung…all of you.’
‘And we can’t leave MC out of this.’ Yoosung added excitedly.
‘I’ve only done what I’m supposed to.’ You shook your head.
‘Being humble isn’t bad, but I think you can take more pride for a day like this.’ Jaehee was definitely one of your biggest supporters and you didn’t like to argue with her.
Zen waved a slender finger at you ‘That’s right. You’ve worked so hard to organise the list for the party guests.’
‘Why don’t we have a glass to celebrate?’ Jumin indicated to the approaching server. ‘You can look forward to this champagne.’
‘Hey, let’s be honest, Jumin.’ Zen began as he took a glass. ‘You’re an alcoholic, aren’t you? And you keep uploading alcohol pictures on the messenger. You also uploaded some strange wine image yesterday.’
Saeyoung laughed. ‘I think all of the wines he uploaded could match the price for one of my babes waiting in the garage.’
Jumin just rolled his eyes before clinking his glass to yours and taking a good slug, but Zen wasn’t ready to let it go.
‘Hey…just how much are you going to chug? You’re the CEO-In-Line! You think it’s okay for you to drink every day? MC, tell him!’
‘My friend and father happen to be stressing me out on a daily basis. I’m merely de-stressing on my own terms. But don’t you ever get tired of uploading your own face? It’s not like there’s a major change in your looks. I don’t understand why you would upload the same image over and over again.’ Jumin acted casually but his words held bite, and you squeezed his hand in an effort to get him to tone it down.
‘Hey, I didn’t do it for you.’ Zen spluttered. ‘It was for the entirety of mankind! And they’re all different, in little ways.’
‘They’re all completely different from each other.’ Jaehee argued in his defence.
‘That’s right. Ugh…I shouldn’t lose my temper on a good day like this.’ Zen flicked his hair towards Jumin in a dismissive gesture.
Yoosung leant towards Saeyoung. ‘I’m so glad Zen and Jumin meet only during parties.’
‘Same here.’ The hacker laughed into his glass.
Yoosung grinned, he was so happy lately it was great to see, but his smile suddenly turned to a small pout as his eyebrows shot up. ‘Oh right! I forgot to decorate table twenty-eight! Seven! Could you give me a hand?’
‘Aw, come on, this champagne’s a delicacy! Mind if I give you a hand after I finish my glass?’
‘You can have it later, Seven! Come and take a look at the ornament I chose!’ Yoosung pulled on his arm and Saeyoung put his glass into Jaehee’s waiting hand.
‘Hmm…I’m actually wondering which ornament you bought. You didn’t log into the LOLOL for two days because you had to choose an ornament so it had better be good. I’ll be the judge for you.’
‘Judge? You? Yeah right…anyway, follow me.’
‘I’ll catch you later. Make sure to leave my portion of the drink.’ Saeyoung threw you all a grin.
‘I prepared several spare bottles. So no need to worry.’ Jumin called after him.
‘Seriously? So you really are determined to drink, CEO-In-Line?’
‘Zen, leave it.’ You asked sweetly, knowing he couldn’t resist when you did so.
‘Yoosung is very eager.’ Jaehee smiled after your youngest member left.
‘He is. And Seven’s also enjoying himself.’ Zen finally seemed happy with a change of subject. You were all happy with the way the RFA was heading, everything was so positive, a far cry from the state of things two years ago.
As though reading your thoughts, Jumin spoke. ‘I hope we all can show the potential of the RFA in the future, starting with this party Today cannot be any happier.’
‘And this is the day that I, Zen, make a grand comeback to the society!’ Zen laughed in such an attention grabbing way several heads turned.
‘Zen, there are a lot of women over there almost glaring love at you.’ Jaehee remarked, pointing subtly with her glass.
‘And I can also see a pack of hyenas, I mean reporters, clustering right nearby.’ Jumin all but groaned.
‘Talk about this popularity of mine…but no showing off. Let me run now, but I’ll come back!’ Zen took a overdramatic bow before heading out into the crowd once more.
‘We should give him some bodyguards.’ Jaehee watched him go with a hint of worry in her eyes.
‘Let him be. He seems to be enjoying himself. He looks good.’ Jumin shrugged.
‘Are you serious?’ Jaehee’s eyes went wide at Jumin’s words.
‘Which reminds me, Jaehee, I got a call that my father’s arrived.’
‘He did?’ You asked as Jumin raised your hand to his lips for a soft kiss before releasing it.
‘You mean the chairman? I haven’t received such a call…let me double check.’
‘He called me himself before I called us all together. I believe I should go and greet him. I beg your pardon, MC, Could you stay here and enjoy the party for a bit? I’ll be right back.’
‘Of course.’ You nodded, smiling warmly at the adoration in Jumin’s eyes before he left.
Jaehee rapidly put down both glasses she held on a table and pulled her tablet back from under her arm. ‘Mr Han! You know there’s something we must relay to him. Allow me to accompany you. I’ll see you in a while, MC.’
You laughed as she ran off after him, taking another sip of the champagne as the crowd filled in the gaps around you. As such, you then weren’t expecting the voice that came from behind you.
‘I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time.’
You thought your heart had stopped, that your memory was playing tricks on you, and all you could reply as you turned was; ‘Pardon?’
There before you stood the very man you had all been talking about minutes before. V. He had had his hair cut since you last saw him, not that that was a surprise, but he looked so grown up, the shorter cut suiting him well. His white shirt was unbuttoned showing an enticing expanse of pale skin, with several necklaces contrasting. His khakis and dress shoes were the only thing out of place in such a relaxed outfit, as though he would be more at home relaxing on a beach somewhere. You knew your eyes were wide and your mouth open but you just couldn’t think of anything to say.
V took another step towards you, his smile more genuine than you had ever seen it. ‘Congratulations, MC.’
‘V?!’ You spat, the only thing you could finally vocalise being his name.
He chuckled softly. ‘It’s Jihyun Kim now. Long time no see. You look surprised, puzzled. I actually missed that look. Did I keep you waiting too long?’
‘Uh, we missed you.’ You stammered.
‘You couldn’t have missed me more than I missed you. There’s not a single day I spent without missing you, MC. I missed you so much. So fathomlessly. You can’t imagine.’
You swallowed hard, worrying where this was going, but still he continued.
‘I’ve booked and cancelled tons of tickets to see you. Now I even have a scrapbook of tickets I cancelled. MC, but you know what? I think it’s worth the wait.’
‘I, uh…’ You seemed to have lost the ability to string more than a few words together, but V was happy to continue.
‘Have I ever told you that my hobby happens to be putting together white blank puzzles? I’ve been putting together blank puzzles for the past two years. And I’ve been drawing and painting them. I deliberated what I should draw, what I should use. It took hours for me just to think. Though it took so long I can guarantee that those puzzles now hold my sincerity. Do you want to know what became of my blank puzzles?’
‘Yes, I do.’ You managed. In all the time you spent together he had never opened up to you this willingly.
He took another step towards you and took your hand, holding it between both of his. ‘Then why not go see them together? I’ve been lost for years, but I’ve filled them up with a variety of fun colours. Now I finally discovered an array of colours to paint my blank puzzles. And if you like the puzzles I coloured there’s something I’d like to offer you.’
He stepped closer still until your toes almost touched, your heart rate had sped up as you pondered where this was going. Sure, being away he probably had a lot to share, but this seemed more personal than a travel journal.
When he spoke again his voice was low and just for you. ‘Do you still remember…what I said in the past? I said that I want to love again, though I wasn’t sure if I could. That I’d like to love again once a chance arises. I’d like to love now, so…I’d like to draw paintings more beautiful than the pictures of the sun…with you. I want you. I want to choose you.’
Oh shit! You thought.
‘The paintings we draw will flourish with the colours of our own. I’ll give you my word every time we hold the brush that we’ll draw together what you truly want, MC. I give you my word that I’ll paint only the real you. I, too, will fill our artworks with a man called Jihyun Kim. We might run into a fight even at the outline part. We’ll discover something in each other we weren’t aware of. Regardless, I’d like to make my choice. I’d like to choose a future not alone. A future we paint together. Please be yourself with me, not my canvas. Please keep your darkness, light, everything with you. I want to love you. I will love you. I love you, MC, just as I love myself.’
‘V?’ Jumin arrived behind you just as V’s hand was coming up towards your cheek, and he draped his arm around your waist as he stopped beside you. ‘We weren’t expecting you. What are you doing here?’
‘He’s, uh, back.’ You said as V lowered his hands away from you, his eyes flickering to Jumin’s hand on your shoulder.
‘I decided it was time.’ V’s words were less confident than they had been a moment before, his smile faltering a fraction. ‘It’s good to see you, my friend.’
‘And you, we must celebrate.’ Jumin gave a small smile. ‘Darling, would you excuse me while I arrange some more champagne?’
‘Of course.’ You forced a smile as Jumin kissed your cheek before leaving the two of you alone again.
‘So…’
‘You and Jumin are…’
You both spoke at the same time but V waved his hand to allow you to continue.
‘I’m so sorry, V. Jihyun.’ You swallowed hard, your heart in your mouth as tears pricked the corners of your eyes. ‘We didn’t now how to reach you, or when you’d be back, and…’
‘MC, it’s fine.’ He stopped you. ‘I didn’t ask you to wait for me and it’s not fair of me to expect you to have done so. It was selfish of me to think you wouldn’t have…but Jumin? I’m happy for you both.’
You shifted your feet nervously. ‘Yeah. It’s still pretty new, for both of us.’ Your lip quivered as you looked into his aqua eyes. ‘I really am sorry. I didn’t mean.’
‘Shh, it’s okay. I’m glad you have someone who makes you happy, and to think Jumin has someone as wonderful as you to love him. But, speaking of Jumin, could you ask him to hold the champagne for another time. I had a long flight and I really need to go get some sleep to help fight jetlag.’
‘Oh, of course.’ You said hesitantly. ‘But don’t go on our account.’
‘It’s not you, I promise. But you’ll come see my puzzles soon, yes? With Jumin?’
‘I promise.’
‘Then please pass my apologies to everyone for such a brief visit, we’ll catch up soon.’
He was already backing away and you were sure you could see his heart breaking. ‘V…’
‘Goodbye, MC.’ He smiled warmly and turned his back on you. All you could do was watch him go.
‘Where’s V?’ Jumin returned to your side with three glasses linked through his fingers and a bottle of champagne in the other.
‘He, uh, had to go.’ You murmured, forcing down your tears once and for all. ‘He was tired.’
‘Understandable. We will have him come to the penthouse for dinner to catch us up on his adventures.’
‘Yeah, sure.’ You let Jumin’s arm on the small of your back pull you towards him, allowing him to press a kiss to the top of your head.
‘Are you quite alright, MC?’
‘I’m fine.’ You smiled up at him. ‘I think the reality of V being back was a bit of a shock.’
‘I certainly wasn’t expecting to see him, but him not being here shouldn’t stop us having a celebratory drink.’
‘Right, no, it shouldn’t.’ You spared one more glance at the door, V having already disappeared from view, and you allowed Jumin to distract you from your thoughts.
V stepped outside the venue, allowing the night air to cool his skin. Of course she was with someone else, she was amazing. Who wouldn’t want her? And that it was Jumin? You couldn’t even begrudge him that. Of all the people she could have ended up with, Jumin he would gladly concede defeat to. His friend needed love perhaps more than he did, in his opinion, and MC was just the kind of woman who would do him the world of good. So why did it feel like his heart was breaking? Why did tears flow unbidden as he slipped his hand into his pockets, planning to walk home and clear his head. But, in truth, even after all his work, he wasn’t sure his head, or heart, would ever be the same again.
#Jumin han#jihyun kim#V route#mysme#mystic messenger#dedicated to the discord group#v is not wearing a KILT
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