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alatusxiaoo · 2 years

Text

i like him, not you!

synopsis: in which you’ve finally mustered up the courage to express a bashful confession to your best friend and six-year crush…only to accidentally dispatch your heartfelt message to the wrong person.

character/s: albedo, ayato, childe, kazuha, xiao, scaramouche, thoma

a/n: @sohyuki ilysm have a wonderful day queen <3

the first thing you do is run away.

in a way, you have always been good at that. scampering from those undivulged words and imminent encounters that instilled fear in you. it spoke to you almost like a natural instinct, left you with a bitter taste on your tongue, tormented you with a sick sensation twisting your stomach.

because of this, you ran from a lot of things. from your parents whenever they frowned upon a low grade on your report card, from a pompous asshole you later mustered the tiniest courage to shove down during fourth grade, from the unwitting attention of sunbeam-amber eyes meeting yours, and from your best friend whom you’ve practically loved for the longest time.

and you decide the last one is something you’ll finally want to quit running away from.

eight little letters and three simple words, yet for six long years they have meant more than the world to you. he has always meant more than the world to you.

so you attempt to construct it all within proper sentences — desperately trying not to jumble up your phrases while trying to provide the impression that you sure as hell hadn’t been shaking tremendously as you wrote it.

but it’s so difficult to even spare a meek glance at it. so annoying that it pesters thrumming vibrations in the depths of your stupid heart. so fucking frustrating that you don’t actually bother looking at it anymore when your fingers hover over the word ‘send’.

you’ve shut your phone off after that singular moment, and stashed it away in a nearby drawer for safekeeping. and for the entire weekend, you convince yourself that you didn’t really care anymore. six years didn’t matter because you weren’t expecting an answer. just an outlet for these emotions and a burden lifted off your weighted shoulders.

and for the first time in a long while, you acknowledge how liberating it feels to not want to run.

Y/N’S CONTACTS.

him <3 (kaedehara kazuha)

✉ 4:47 am, april 4th (mon).

[ 1 new message! ] : psst. arcade after class today? :)

ah, but who would be an idiot not to fall for him?

you’ve guessed he’s received so many incessant compliments and heartfelt confessions, that despite how frustratingly courteous he was — could never actually bother wasting his time sorting through each and every one of them.

so you figure that you’re in the clear, and he won’t have to burden himself with formulating a sharp answer.

or at least, that’s what you reassure yourself when monday comes around and he greets you with an ever-familiar and warm smile.

and is also perhaps why he pretends like nothing has actually happened…

because if that happened to be the case, he was rather good at acting pretty normal. you knew that if you’d ever received such a confession from somebody, you would have been freaking out a lot more — and depending on whether you reciprocated their emotions, either avoiding or confronting them.

but this…was a little too cold of a reaction.

and yet, at the same time, you were thankful he still kept approaching and talking to you as usual. above all, kazuha was your best friend before he was the person you wanted to be romantically involved with. you could never really bear the thought of losing him as a close confidante.

but it hurt like hell because he was always too kind, always too impossible not to love. always with the 1 am calls and his soft voice when you couldn’t fall asleep. always with the weekend home visits to his place so you could share a meal together. always with the sleepovers or out catching a midnight film. always a shoulder to lean on when the tears were too much. always, always there.

you know he’ll never love you the way you knew just exactly how to love him. and that’s okay.

but if looks and words could have honestly fooled, it almost seemed like he was ridiculously unaware that you had even confessed to him in the first place.

everything stayed the same.

and you can’t help but feel sick at the reality, because a part of you wanted to believe that kazuha was in love with you, at least once in his life and perhaps never again. in sleepless turned drowsy midnight calls, in fleeting glances inside the deserted cinema, in homemade meals and warm smiles, in drowning tears and comforting hugs. in the briefest of seconds when he realized you were always there.

but the thing about love is that it’s blinded you enough to not think about the probability that he might just like you. that he may or may not have been avoiding all other confessions because he only hoped for yours. that he may be hesitating every time you two get closer because he thinks you won’t want him back. that at 1 am while you’re whispering softly through the phone about your day, kazuha’s thinking about all the pragmatic reasons not to blurt out mid-conversation that he’s always been madly in love with you.

you know one thing for sure when you dazedly stare at your phone later that day. love has blinded you enough to not think twice about why kazuha might not be acting any differently than you had initially expected. why he’s so infuriatingly unfazed. why he should have been having a more violent reaction instead of making the same silly jokes with you.

and boy, you’re bewildered when you find two chat notifications waiting in your message box. one from kazuha, inviting you to the nearby arcade after class…except for some absurd reason, there’s no record of an embarrassingly heartfelt confession registered in your shared chat history.

the second from a boy you barely knew but always subconsciously noticed in class, sitting rather ominously in your DMs with the strangest of messages. and it’s only when you begrudgingly open your shared chat, that you clearly feel how your heart stops in one horrifying instant.

because sitting there in the most unexpected of places, lies the culmination of six long years building up to a terribly emotional confession.

but…it’s not for the boy you had hoped would receive it.

that guy in class (xiao)

✉ 11:54 pm, april 2nd (sat).

[ 1 new message! ] : who are you?

xiao wishes there was a guidebook for how to handle all probable awkward situations, in the unfortunate circumstance that he’d ever find himself impossibly lodged in the middle of one.

but there’s none that exist to date. and he thinks not even the internet can help him figure out what to respond to a sudden and random heartfelt confession sitting peacefully in his message inbox.

he hasn’t exactly done anything to be loved or wanted by anyone. and at first, your contact name barely registers anyone he recognizes in his head. so he sends the first question he thinks of as a response, and shuts his phone to close his eyes and rest.

but then sunday morning comes and it clicks. he remembers. he knows who you are. because of that, xiao finds it all absurd.

it wasn’t like he intended to stare at you. he was always prone to dozing off mid-classes, eyes instinctively sweeping across every inch of the classroom, outside the window to greet the blinding light of the morning sun, and then reluctantly retreating back inside…

only to see you. and for you to see him.

so the odd pattern repeats. everyday.

you’d think he have broken out of such a quirky habit of looking. he’d think you’d have stopped meeting his eyes every single time. but you always manage to see each other — and past that, neither of you dare make the effort to talk to one another.

it was some sort of unspoken understanding between you two, momentary peace that isn’t built on a real connection. just that he finds comfort in your eyes, while you’re left breathless at his.

but for you to confess, and oh so suddenly without any particular reason to make you like him.

so he realizes the message presently occupying his DMs (and unconsciously plaguing his thoughts) isn’t truly meant for him.

monday eagerly arrives, and he stares. more often than usual, more often than he’d want to. he wonders if you’ve noticed how you fucked up, because he’s almost certain he knows who your vulnerable confession is intended for.

and it’s late in the afternoon when you shyly pull him aside to talk about it. how embarrassed you were by your clumsy mistake, how deeply you felt apologetic for sending it to him, but most importantly of all —

“i’m really sorry, but i like someone else and not you!”

strange how your first conversation turns out like this. he’s always imagined it would begin very differently. perhaps with you pointing out the fact that he always gazes at you, him asking you in return why you always look back.

and almost on impeccable cue, you suddenly smile and tell him about all the times you recognized him because of how often your eyes met, even though you’ve never talked to each other. you’re sorry for not talking with him sooner.

but xiao thinks nothing is going to change just because you’ve verbally acknowledged each other.

he was sort of wrong. the next time you met glances, you smiled. several more times after you’ve started doing it, he starts to reciprocate with the smallest of smiles too — the kind that makes you feel like its your shared little secret.

and you’ve both changed in certain ways. you talked with each other more often, occupying vacated classrooms during breaks and making a bit more room for each other within your drastically different lives. he even starts to join you during lunch whenever kazuha was too occupied with homework, and lets you drag him along to amusement parks or anime events you presumed kazuha wasn’t too interested in.

but the craziest part about it all was that you admitted to never actually confessing to kazuha after all that’s happened.

perhaps you were left traumatized by your previous opportunity to confess to your best friend. perhaps because of a certain “someone’s” consistent jokes, you were too horrified to ever want to confess to somebody ever again. perhaps you were simply confused about the new boy weaving his way into your life.

one thing’s for sure, xiao feels strangely relieved that you decided not to send the actual message to your crush.

and maybe even a little dirty part of him hopes you’ll eventually forget about confessing to kazuha at the end of it all.

saturday boyfriend (childe)

✉ 9:06 am, april 5th (tues).

[ 1 new message! ] : so you’re the girl who likes xiao?

the thing is, childe could have never actually perceived the day when he’d get a phone call late in the evening from xiao, inquiring about what to say in response to an abrupt confession from a stranger.

his brusque and characteristically quiet best friend — had suddenly gotten some crazy chick to fall for him? with that shitty personality?

oh, the unexpected news gave childe the laughter of a lifetime. and yet, he couldn’t help but feel curious about the idea of it. what kind of interesting person would ever be attracted to someone like that guy? (respectfully, of course.)

fortunately to satiate the whirlwind of questions that night, xiao later sends him a text of your name with a message not to bother you.

and childe’s eyes go wide when he eventually puts a face to the name. you, the weird chick always absently staring over at xiao in classes?

perhaps he should’ve seen it coming. he did think it was weird how he sometimes found you glancing quietly towards his friend. but he sort of assumed you’d have liked kazuha instead — you know, your actual best friend — over some guy you’ve never even talked to in your life.

so with the right determination, he makes it his personal mission the following monday to devote his own precious time for a stakeout. because who’s to say you weren’t secretly some disgusting pervert targeting your uninhibited emotions to an innocent classmate?

childe observes you from afar the whole day. from the moment you found your seat in class that morning, watching you lock eyes with xiao mid-science discussion, routinely tagging along with kazuha for lunch, and even as you’re concentrating on a note-taking phase during the afternoon break.

you haven’t made any explicit moves towards xiao…yet. it’s a rather normal and innocuous day for you.

until afternoon comes — and near the school gates, he watches as you awkwardly tug xiao aside to talk to him briefly. childe pauses in his steps, staring at your huddled silhouettes while attempting to decipher the distinct mood of the conversation. he sees you smile at one point, and how you courteously greet each other goodbye when it’s over.

did xiao accept your feelings then?

that night, he gets your number from a mutual friend, and sends you a harmless text message the next morning. if xiao reciprocated your interest in him that day, perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad to eventually get to know each other during the long run.

but when he arrives in school, he’s greeted by the sight of you staring at him in surprise and asking if you could spare him a minute of his time to talk. and it’s right then that you explain and attempt to clear up the misunderstanding that transpired between you and his best friend.

it still makes childe laugh at the absurdity of it whenever he thinks about the mistaken confession, and how throughly embarrassed you must have been for unhesitatingly sending it to a complete stranger.

from that fateful day on, you two started to become close friends. and to mark that unforgettably momentous occasion for you — childe would routinely find a way to weave his presence into your saturdays, bringing flowers, chocolates, typical department-store love letters, or text you a long ass cheap excuse of a profession — to remind you of your “beautifully executed confession”. even though really, it’s just a dumb excuse to poke infuriating jokes at you.

those continuous, and admittedly humorous endeavors of his, became some part of the reason why you could never bring yourself to confess to kazuha again…or anyone else for that matter.

and you know, maybe celibacy was the way your life was always destined to be. maybe you weren’t supposed to give out your heart to other guys, because you were solely meant to receive any form of romantic gesture every saturday from a certain ginger-haired bastard. and well, maybe it wasn’t the worst thing to have in the world.

or maybe he’s accidentally caught feelings when he suddenly put more thought than he should have, into picking out a gift on a random saturday.

maybe one average saturday, he’ll unconsciously fall for your smile and the sarcastic words of gratitude you’ll throw back at him.

and maybe, just maybe…on some imminent saturday, he won’t know what more to give other than his real and heartfelt confession to you.

homework hotline (albedo)

✉ 6:15 am, april 7th (thurs).

[ 1 new message! ] : hey, coming over to yours later for that project due next week.

you’ve had close friends come over to your apartment often, but none have ever made you feel as utterly relieved compared to when albedo visits.

it’s always been challenging for you to keep track of homework loads, or stay motivated while reviewing for an upcoming test due the end of the week. and albedo’s presence magically helps you to be productive with exactly all of that.

perhaps you feel more motivated, or somewhat pressured to accomplish tasks in the company of a person who’s actually mastered diligence. whatever it is, for the past few years it’s given you higher grades than you’ve ever expected to receive pitted against your previous academic years.

and ever since then, you’ve made it a point to always partner up together during projects, which he easily obliges to. plus, you’ve succeeded as a team in plenty of tasks for so long, that albedo naturally feels more inclined to work with you.

he also can’t deny that the company is indeed familiar and comfortable, therefore making it the most preferable alternative.

besides, he’s made himself at home in your apartment for a handful of years now, that it’s almost as if he practically lives together with you. an extra toothbrush left in your bathroom cupboard, a similar set of pillows and blankets stashed inside your closet, albedo’s hoodies and clothes folded in a neat pile within a separate drawer — his presence in your home was always just there.

which is why later that evening, as you and albedo are busy preparing dinner before you cram an overnight agenda of finishing several projects in advance, he casually suggests the idea of moving in together instead.

and it’s frankly not that terrible of an idea. the rent would be split between you both so you’d save much more, there would be no more trouble commuting to each other’s places to finish school-related tasks, house chores would be divided amongst the two of you, and albedo could occupy the apartment while you were out on weekly visits or sleepovers in kazuha’s.

so the deed is done. by the following week, you’ve already prepared other necessary accommodations, and albedo comes over with a small duffel bag (since most of his stuff was already left at your place) and a brand new key for your shared abode.

neither of you can really feel like something has changed. if anything, it seems more natural to have him permanently living with you because it makes things more convenient.

and ever since then, you’ve been constantly seen together a lot more frequently inside the university premises (causing some familiar faces grow envious at the sight of it), but the both of you preferred to keep your current home status as a personal secret so as not to fuel too many strange rumors.

you do homework with each other a lot more often. you’re also left in awe by the occasional detailed doodles scrawled across the corner pages of his lecture notebook. one late evening, you were wondering if it was the sleep taking over you, or he actually drew a little portrait of you on one of the tightly folded pages.

everyday, you’d take turns doing certain things during your well-deserved breaks. albedo, on one hand, teaches you how to draw and paint. you’re not exactly the best at artistic endeavors, but he was always patient and supportive, going as far as to provide specific remarks on the things you needed improvement with.

on other days, you’d convince him to sit down with you to binge food while watching your favorite films. he’d initially oblige to appease your kindness and hadn’t realized it at first — but at some later point, he ended up loving all the same movies as you did.

it’s slow but anticipated, the way he falls in love with you. perhaps a part of him has always seen this ending coming — recognized the dangerous path he was treading, and yet took it without any complaint.

even though he saw through your heart and how you wanted someone else. even as he witnessed the romantic gifts you carried back home with a giddy smile. even while he listens to you upsettingly vent about the most impertinent guy who keeps making his way back into your life.

because maybe deep down, he’s always hoped to love someone like this. the sound of your laughter filling his ears while making dinner. films on television illuminating your face in the darkness. yawns you stifle when it’s midnight and you’re almost finished with homework. fluttering eyes in the morning. enchanting smiles quirking across your lips. napping soundly on the study desk even though you kindly insisted on waiting up for him before you both slept. how it feels to talk about everything and nothing at the same time.

it’s natural and innate. foreign yet so familiar. a breath of fresh air. and yet, the feeling of home lingers across his fingertips.

a written, unchangeable, and hopeless destiny for albedo to always fall without constraint. and the saddest truth is — he wouldn’t have wanted this love for any other way.

BLOCKED — 4th grader asshole (scaramouche)

✉ 2:35 pm, april 9th (sat).

[ 1 new message! ] : you’re paying for the next meal dumbass.

scaramouche to you was a lot of things. perhaps the first and most notable one of them all was that he was an impressively pompous asshole.

and you suppose he’s always been like that. the same bitchy bully you’ve regretfully crossed paths with during the fourth grade.

the strangest part is, you’ve never actually done anything to piss the boy off. or at least, none you could still vividly remember. but you were certain that you weren’t too shitty as a kid, and your first interaction with scaramouche wasn’t even close to offensive.

it happened on the elementary playground, when you first caught sight of the little boy eagerly chasing after his friends, before suddenly tripping over a rock and diving straight into the ground. you remember the degrading echoes of his friends’ laughter, how you worriedly walked over to him and asked if he was okay. how you stretched your hand out to the kid on the ground, and how he stared at you with an unreadable gaze. and before you even knew it, past that singular moment, every single day of 4th grade became absolute war.

could anyone blame you for simply being courteous? he had terribly shitty friends and you only wanted to help…which yes, unexpectedly backfired with irreparable consequences. how were you to know in that second that something horrible would happen?

maybe you should never have approached scaramouche that day. or maybe you also would’ve regretted never helping him out.

either way, the thought has always plagued the back of your mind, and you wonder if your life would have changed so drastically had you made a different choice in that playground.

even until today, he still somehow manages to wander into your life oh so effortlessly. in the hallways, ramming into your shoulder without sparing a mere glance or an apology. in the middle of class, absently toying with your free locks of hair while you grumble several coherent insults towards the boy. during gratitude day, him stealing your white blouse scribbled in your friends’ messages and writing some of his own unwanted words on it. in the art room, cornering you with that devilish smirk and a finger against his lips as he warns you not to make a single sound, while the hall monitor angrily screeches his name around the deserted corridors…most likely intending to throw him in detention.

even at the comfort of your own home — he’s the neighbor who (unfortunately) moved around the same time as you did, except he lives in the spacious flat two floors below.

and it infuriates you to the ends of the earth. how he’s always been there. how he somehow still is.

when you aced a major test, he was there with an irritated scoff, reminding you not to get too full of yourself. when he saw how you started to fall for kazuha in the early years, he was there to poke fun of you for wanting a “nice” guy, because nice was just an equivalent for boring. when he saw you standing outside your house beneath the rain — soaked, shivering, and frustrated after a big argument with your parents — he shoved an umbrella in your face and told you how you looked absolutely horrendous.

he’s seen too much of you, both in your happiest and at your worst. not even others like kazuha or close family friends have witnessed or known such dark parts of you. why did it have to be him? this boy who has been constantly tormenting you for several years of your life?

even as you surround yourself with better people, you still think about the insolent asshole roaming around the hallways. still overly conscious about his presence whenever you’re in the same room (more than you would have wanted). still thinking about his umbrella in the rain.

and perhaps that was the most perplexing thing which unknowingly drew you to scaramouche. that you never really knew which side of him you were going to get everyday.

one moment he’s explicitly arguing with you in the middle of plain daylight (which unfortunately, later lands you both in detention) — then all of a sudden, you’re riding a bus at midnight to your apartment alone, and he’s the person coincidentally seated next to you, flinching at your snot as he hurriedly juts a handkerchief towards your teary face.

he’s always headed towards the apartment at the same time you exit the bus coming from the university. and although you two constantly bicker and fight along the way back to the building, he was there to accompany you on the lonely walk home.

he pokes fun about your painfully obvious crush on your best friend, but tones it down on the sunday he sees you with puffy red eyes after confessing and attempting to convince yourself you didn’t care if he didn’t want you back.

even more so when you’re unwillingly forced to share a table with him inside a popular and crowded restaurant during lunch — him insulting you for the way you scarf down your food like a pig, and yet his hand subconsciously reaches out to wipe the sauce smudge on the corner of your lips before casually licking it off his thumb.

you’re staring at him in confusion, grateful yet weirded out at the…generous gesture. but all he does is scoff disapprovingly at your face, because there’s no masking the strange red flush that creeps up your cheeks from the uncharacteristic tension and his sudden physical contact.

and for the first time in the years you’ve known him, you’ve only made yourself presently aware of the reddish tint that sets the tips of his ears aglow.

what you’ll never actually realize is how much effort he’s been constantly making to conceal that singularly instinctive (and frankly, repulsive) action that reminds him of how vulnerable you’ve always made him feel — ever since you gave him your hand back in fourth grade.

it would’ve helped him a lot more if he had never noticed you prior to that. how nice you were to the other kids and teachers. how adorable you looked in those neat pigtails. how you had unknowingly charmed every single person into the palm of your hand, and how you were still so infuriatingly enchanting and oblivious at the effect you had on others…even until today.

he hated feeling vulnerable more than anything else in the world, knowing that he was also one of those idiots helplessly wrapped around your finger. just that unlike the rest of them, he’d never actually stoop down so low with his pride to say it out loud.

and he hated that everyday, you were always making it all the more easier for him to admit it to himself. to scream out to the world that scaramouche hated how much he has somehow, foolishly, and quite impossibly, always been in love with you.

organization hottie (ayato)

✉ 5:23 pm, april 9th (sat).

[ 1 new message! ] : see you on monday.

you tried not to squeal too loudly when you suddenly received the text message. but albedo could see the way you tightly pressed your lips together to stifle back a wide whooping grin.

and why wouldn’t you be thrilled? you had just gotten accepted into your university’s official charity organization! it was certainly the perfect opportunity to expose yourself to more learning experiences and activities past the fields of academics.

obviously, it wasn’t like a super attractive person was currently heading the committee and had just sent you a text saying you got accepted a couple minutes ago…

or…okay.

so maybe there’s a bit of an influence. i mean, was it that bad to find a guy who devotes his time for others insanely charming?

of course, it wasn’t anything serious like the way you felt for kazuha. it was more of a happy crush, if you would call it — someone you have a slight romantic admiration for, but don’t exactly harbor any deep feelings towards them.

admittedly, you had naturally considered the prospect of finding yourself with nothing to do over the course of summer, and you figured applying in the organization wouldn’t do much harm for you anyway…even though you had some reservations about the final decision to sign up for it.

and then, you heard about how ayato was recently elected to oversee the committee activities for the following year. thus, the rest was simply history.

the next week, you’re swamped with exchanging introductions among several new members and almost immediately busying yourself with the upcoming project meeting.

oddly enough, you’ve been assigned in the same team as ayato for your first project. and although you began on a rather rough and awkward start together, he guides you through the transitioning process until you’ve learned at least enough things to handle some separate tasks independently.

you’ve always assumed ayato was an overly formal and aloof person to approach compared to the others — however on the contrary, you were pleasantly surprised to discover that he also beheld a mischievous side conflicting his own outer demeanor.

there were days when even he would occasionally reach out to talk about things past organization-related matters. simple questions such as asking about some input on a certain movie, if you had completed this previously given assignment, or merely checking how your day was going.

and maybe it was just strange for you to suddenly realize how human ayato feels.

sure, he was often distant and burdened under plenty of responsibilities. you’ve heard your fair share of rumors and how he was always seemingly placed on a pedestal above all — perhaps you’d almost forgotten that at the end of the day, he was still just trying to get his own shit together, like everybody else.

he was precisely nothing short of a normal guy. the kind who pokes good fun around and plays chess on breaks. the kind who still asks if you want to accompany him to springtime festivals. the kind who smiles at you when he sees you standing across the hallway. the kind who elbows you subtly when you’ve dozed out in the middle of somebody’s monologue. the kind who feels like you‘re somehow beginning to know him better than you know yourself.

and ayato thinks you’re the kind he wondered what would happen had he met you all those years ago instead. if he had an opportunity to know you better before, than he did today. if he would have liked you any sooner, or always just a little later.

maybe it’s true that ayato could work hard to be a lot of things. after all, he couldn’t have become half the man he was today if he hadn’t convinced himself to put in more effort than anybody else.

but maybe there were also some things ayato could just never bring himself to have, no matter how hard he tried. maybe there were always meant to be some moments and people he wasn’t possibly cut out for.

and maybe he could try all he wanted, but he could never really work hard enough to ever make you notice his own lonesome heart — always patiently waiting.

BONUS CONTACT ! — a short side story.

radio boy (thoma)

✉ 3:07 pm, april 5th (tues).

[ 1 new message! ] : hey y/n! do you mind stopping by the broadcasting room for a bit?

although thoma has always been well-favored among people of all ages, he feels that there’s nobody else he’d rather spend his company with than you.

it’s not that he’s wanted you for ill intentions or in a romantic perspective. just that you were his favorite person who was so invariably easy to talk to.

you first met thoma inside the broadcasting room, randomly paying a visit out of curiosity to ask the title of a particular song played during the morning break. and then the following day, you came back to ask on behalf of your friend about another song.

before either of you knew it, you were making regular yet brief appearances to the little recording area — not just to ask about songs, but also to initiate small talk about how the other’s day was going. it was later on you discovered that thoma was a student from another class in the same university who volunteered to work for the campus radio station.

on most days, you’d bring him pastries or coffee to satiate his empty stomach, since thoma preferred to spend most of his free time in the broadcasting room. sometimes, he’d also be generous enough to let you borrow some of his cd’s or flash-drives of music playlists that he thinks would suit your taste.

during periods when you were too busy to pay a visit, you’d send him a quick text apologizing in advance. but not even five minutes later, a familiar song would suddenly blast through the classroom speakers in response, and you couldn’t do anything to hide the contented smile from quirking across your face.

when thoma begins to fall in love with you, he finds himself secretly dedicating certain songs to you on the campus radio — either playing tracks he knows you love, or music that he thinks reminds him of you.

of course, you’re not really sure when the boy behind the radio started liking somebody. just that all of a sudden on an average weekday, you belatedly noticed how his choice of tunes changed, and never became the same as before.

and every time you’ll teasingly question thoma about his arbitrary selection of songs in hopes of prying him for a name drop, all he does is shrug with a quiet smile — saying that you, out of all people, should know her all too well.

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iguessthisisanewobsession · 1 year

Text

It Takes a Mob pt.6

First

“I still don’t get why Bill gets the kid. He didn’t even want him if the first place!”

Bill sighed he absentmindedly put a hand across the giggling mound on his front.

“Yeah yeah, you forget you’re a crackhead without an’ addiction. Can’t hide shit on you.”

Locking the door behind them, Bill checked that Danny could still breathe under the jacket Marv shoved over them.

Bill, quite frankly, felt like a child messing around in his father’s closet again.

The jacket was big on Marv, so Bill looked was drowning in the thing.

“You act like you aren’t happy that I’m the one doing the heavy lifting.”

Marv let out a guffaw from behind him,

“Heavy lifting? Bill, he’s a baby, weighs less than a handful of grapes.”

“Yeah, well how about we switch, and you say that after afterwards? I have a newfound respect for women.”

Danny poked his head out and seemed very entertained by the commute.

Happily babbling away an swiveling to and fro'.

‘Good instincts,’

Bill mused,

‘Keep them up kid. Watchful eyes, saves your guys and all that.’

The three thugs were walking together in a rough diagonal line with Bill in the center. It was casual enough not to draw attention but if needed they could have the kid covered. Maybe they were being a bit paranoid, but that pays in crime ally. The rest of the walk for what it was worth, was thankfully quiet.

Well, as quiet as Gotham could be. A couple of meagering drunks and some of the nosy ladies of the night withstanding.

A couple light jokes with the ladies and a look from the others got to the guys and they got were they needed to be without any fanfare.

No, problems only arose when they got to work.

It started at the door.

Danny was gently tucked away as they walked to the door.

“Hey fellas, I know we have no official dress code ‘round here but you’re pushing it with that dress.”

“Stan, if I wanted your opinion on my clothes I’d’ve asked ahead of time. Just check us in.”

Stan leaned against the door before dramatically lifting his clipboard.

“Alright, your names?”

“What?”

“What? Need a name to sign you in. Would hate to have all those hours to go unaccounted for.”

Oh, Bill hates Stan, pompous because got a job through daddy dearest. He would blame his upbringing, but Bill knew the Brat’s father. Gabe did his best with that one, just unfortunate that his kid took after his Ex-wife more often than not.

Any normal given night, this would be the moment that someone would have to descale the situation. Bill felt the urge to grab his knife in the back of his mind.

But this was no ordinary night. He was carrying something a lot squishier and more precious than his bruised ego at the moment.

“Bill.”

Was spat through gritted teeth. Stan clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“Don’t see a Bill here.”

“Man, just let Bill in, you know him! He’s been working here for two years!”

“Well, I’m just doing my job Marv, you don’t have to be so feisty.”

Bill released out a deep breath be for uttering,

“William. Overbeck. Junior.”

“Ahh! Yup! There you are Junior! Making’ your old man proud, right?”

“Listen here you tweaky little fuck- “

“Stanley? you better not be messing with Bill out there! If you need to learn a thing or two from a senior than I can gladly-“

“No madam! Right this way.”

Bill always had a soft spot for Ken’s Me-mah. He made sure to step aside as Ken ran too her voice.

“Me-maw!!”

“Hi sugar, you’ve been keeping’ out of trouble now?”

Ken was grinning like a mad man as held the elderly lady.

“Only the stuff I’m not given permission to do!”

“That’s my boy.”

“What are you doing in our neck of the woods this evening?”

Marv asked as she walked over to the others.

“Oh, you know how it is in the kitchen, all the hard things to carry I just thought I was best I didn’t bother trying. We got enough flour and rice to feed all of crime alley that needs to be unloaded. Bill, Marv, do you mind helping a weak old woman?”

“Hardly weak, Me-mah. Everybody knows you have just as much sway as a general around here.”

“And don’t you forget it sonny! Now you two, come! We got work to do for tomorrow and the night is young.”

Bill shifted awkwardly on his feet,

“Well, you see- “

“Don’t you start with me William! I still know your daddy’s number! Now get!”

~~~~~~~~

Bill and Marv stepped into the old kitchen single file. The smell of spices and heat of the oven filled the air.

Bringing out a large cutting board Me-mah gestured to Bill with a knife.

“So, before we begin, do you boys want to tell me what you dragged into my kitchen?”

‘Shit,’

The men shared a glance, and Bill raised a hand to try to come up with something plausible.

“Don’t you think about lying or running, we all know I’ll eventually find out. The only question is am I finding out by you or by word of mouth. Now off with the coat Bill, unless you’re finally eating right.”

Bill put down his finger.

Danny let out a sneeze.

Letting out a sigh Bill reached for the zipper on his front and gingerly pulled it down before handing it to Marv.

“Oh.”

Me-mah gasped,

“That’s not a puppy.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hoodlums: @reinluna,@confused-moose-child,@mimilikey,@emeraudesfateandfandoms, @dolfay, @boredomfarie @aconitewolfsbane , @withoutcontxt , @onyxlightdragon , @satanicrutialspecialist , @phoenixdemonqueen , @vixen-uchiha , @skulld3mort-1fan , @bytheoldwillowtree , @illusionwolfwriter24r8 , @thewondersoflebanon , @vipower001 , @autumnwulf , @alice-hazelwood , @fisticuffsatapplebees , @f4nd0m-fun , @markus209, @dolfay, @basilf1res , @jotaroslooseeyebrowhair , @skirter01 , @bun-fish , @ascetic-orange , @thegatorsgoose , @sunflowershine03 , @ladythugs , @firegirl108 , @glitchedchaos , @rangerhorsetug , @mimilikey, @booberrylizard ,, @lehana37 , @dragongoblet , @flamey-comet , @mandyne-1001 , @starscreamlover , @moonfirearc , @bae-graphomaniac , @mewzaque , @wolfeyedwitch , @demon-cat-goes-woof , @undead-essence , @jaguarthecat , @scythegal ,, @boo-ghosties ,

#writing prompt #dp x dc #it takes a mob #danny fenton #danny phantom #dc x dp

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drakaripykiros130ac · 7 months

Text

Greenie logic found in the Team Black tag:

“As to who makes a better Queen, this is another long argument as per the books. At the same time, hotd Alicent has displayed a natural inkling toward ruling the kingdom, she’s interested in the smallfolk’s peace and wellbeing whereas Rhaenyra (and Daemon) like to be ostracized and feared “for what they are capable of.” That tells a lot, in my opinion about where their interests and ambitions lie.”

Wow!

1. Alicent having a natural inkling towards ruling the kingdom? Wow…based on what? Her sass? Her deviousness? Her hypocrisy? Her cruelty? Her “great” ideas at the Council meetings (which Rhaenyra perfectly dismissed as being what they are - stupid). She wants power she wasn’t supposed to have in the first place so she can do things her way. That hardly makes her an appropriate queen, especially considering how she got that position (by secretly sneaking into the king’s rooms and seducing him after his wife died). All I’ve seen her do around Court as “Queen” is stalk Rhaenyra, gossip, wear green dresses (which is treason), sexually please a sadistic psycho to commit crimes for her, and tattletale like a child. She completely lacks the kindness, grace, honor and decency Queen Aemma had.

2. She’s interested in the smallfolk peace and wellbeing? Don’t make me laugh. Episode 9 confirmed that while she and Otto took advantage of Viserys’ illness to rule in his stead, they didn’t do anything to help the smallfolk. She doesn’t care about anything other than advancing her family’s position, and making sure the women her son rapes keep quiet.

Peace? Well-being? She took part in a coup which ended up terrorizing, imprisoning and killing people.

Rhaenyra, on the other hand, held off on war FOR THE PEOPLE.

3. Rhaenyra and Daemon like to be ostracized and feared? Where exactly is the proof of that? Not wanting to become a weak ruler like Viserys makes Rhaenyra unfit? Fear is necessary. It ensures order and stability. Otherwise, people will be allowed to walk all over you. This is a monarchy. There is a difference between imposing fear to keep people in line and untrustworthy opportunists (like Otto Hightower) at bay, and being cruel.

When Daemon was in charge of the City Watch, he ensured the smallfolk safety through fear, by keeping thieves, murderers and rapists at bay. There is a reason the smallfolk love him and proclaimed him “Prince of the City”.

What have the Hightowers done for the people those 7 years they ruled in Viserys’ stead?

Absolutely nothing. They ignored every single problem the smallfolk had. Alicent was even looking bored at the Council meeting in episode 8. Unlike those pompous nobles who dictate from the safety of the Red Keep (Otto and Alicent), Daemon was practically part of the people and took a clear interest in making the streets safe for everyone (as he explained in episode 1).

Otto and Alicent have proven to be nothing but a bunch of social climbers who practically forgot where they came from (and the positions they received at Court was not due to their talents but rather taken through deception, murder and seduction).

So, greenies can create only assumptions on Rhaenyra’s part at this point (and use the book argument whenever it suits them - even though the Alicent in the book is a colossal manipulative b*tch who knew exactly what she was doing and wasn’t playing the constant “victim”). With Alicent, we have already seen the “best” she can do. And it’s not very attractive.

4. Ambitions? Let’s not get into the topic of which side is more ambitious. The Hightowers staged a coup and usurped the rightful Heir through closed doors, forceful bowing of subjects, forcing the hands of the Lords present, keeping people prisoners and killing Lords who wanted to warn the rightful Queen of these treasonous acts.

I already made a very long list of the crimes the greens are responsible for (you can find it on my page) in one season alone (spoiler alert: more will follow, including a whole village of innocent smallfolk at the hands of Aemond the one-eyed freak and Daeron the dumb kid).

And they have the nerve to question Queen Rhaenyra and make these types of presumptions?

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paulmcf4rtney · 1 year

Note

Hiii! I was wondering if I could ask for the Beatles little head cannons/Blurbs where the reader is an author???

-Also I really like your works <3

Of course my love!! (I very much apologize for how short it is ☹️☹️)

Anon asks for Beatles hcs where reader is an author!

And THANK U SO MUCH!! that really means a lot to me <333

———

John

-Definitely likes children books, or at least books from his childhood.

-Alice in Wonderland is his favorite.

-The biggest reader of the 4.

-If he found out you’re an author he’d 100% would beg you to write a book about him.

-Probably finds it very attractive that you’re an author.

-John cannot take anything seriously for the life of himself and you.

-Would read your drafts with a joking pompous tone.

-“Mmm, this one just isn’t right! Where is the extra details!?”

-Makes silly faces to really contribute to the act.

-You giggle at his comments “critiquing” what you write, John constantly tries to lift your mood with his playful words of encouragement, and you love it.

Paul

-Appreciates novels and history.

-Just like John he’s a bookworm.

-He would definitely buy you a fancy type writer for your birthday, knowing you’re an author and all.

-You love the gift and you were excited about it.. But you were confused on *how* to even use it.

-You’ve of course used a typewriter before but not something this fancy.

-“I appreciate the typewriter Paul, but.. All of the buttons are confusing.”

-He’d stand behind you while you’re in your chair and guide you to each button, explaining what it does.

-Literally right in your ear. His voice could make you fall asleep you won’t lie.

-Your face would be red as a fucking beet. You thank him for the help and give him a kiss on the lips before digging right into writing.

George

-Into autobiographies or anything similar.

-George was excited and curious when he realized you were writing an autobiography and he’s in it.

-This sweetie pie would be bringing you cups of tea in the morning during your work hours or when things get particularly stressful.

-You thought your life and what’s going on would be easy to write down. But unfortunately you still get writers block.

-Especially when you fear that your life is boring and that no one will actually read what you’ve wrote.

-George would try to soothe your worries by reassuring you that your life story is plenty interesting.

-“But ay don’t rush it, this is about your life ye know.”

-You nod in agreement. His thick accent and toothy grin makes your heart melt as you continue with your book.

Ringo

-Likes fantasy books!

-He was always in his room sick a lot as a child and used fantasy to escape.

-He’s literally your #1 fan of your published books.

-Even if it’s not a genre he likes he will still read it and even buy multiple copies.

-You know, just to show how much he loves you. :)

-Ringo is such a malewife sorry not sorry.

-You also started to write positive articles about the boys, especially knowing what people and the press have been saying about Ringos appearance.

-You’d write a billion articles combatting the negative ones if you could.

-“Is my nose really that big?” Your heart broke, it just wasn’t true!

-“No Rich, your nose is perfect, and so is everything else about you, don’t read any of those snobby articles!”

-You could tell your comments made a difference in his confidence and the articles you were writing. It made you happy.

#the beatles #the beatles x reader #author!reader #john lennon x reader #paul mccartney x reader #george harrison x reader #ringo starr x reader

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tonystoy · 1 year

Text

Peter didn’t expect it

Tony and Peter had been going through that phase where they argue all the time, about small things and about big things. But they’d get over it pretty quickly

But this was a heated argument between the two. They were both in the lab and they had been throwing things, Tony shouted, “God you’re insufferable! You act like such a fucking child sometimes!”, Peter was quick to say, “I’ve been this way since we’ve met! You’re the one decided to be with someone who acts like a child! But you also act like a pompous idiotic jerk-”

Tony had slapped him, he had actually slapped him.

And it wasn’t a light slap, no. Peter was thrown into the ground with Tony’s force. Peter just looked up at him, raising his hand to his cheek where it was beginning to sting. He looked up at Tony with big red teary eyes.

Tony reached down, trying to help him up, but Peter scuffles away. “Don’t touch me!”, Peter said. “Peter please”, Tony reached out to him as he watched Peter leave.

He soon caught up to him where he was in their room, a suitcase on the bed and Peter in their closet, grabbing his clothes. “Peter!”, Tony said, but Peter pushed him away. “Don’t think for even a second that I’m going to stay with a man who hits me! I know what I deserve and it isn’t this!”

“Peter it was an accident. I swear!”, Peter just scoffed as he shoved his things into his suitcase. “And in month when you do it again? A year? Five years?”, Peter walked past him, with his suitcase.

“I’m leaving Tony”, and with that, Peter left Tony alone in now his room.

#starker #tony stark x peter parker #peter parker x tony stark

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kimbap-r0ll · 2 years

Note

hello congrats on 550+ followers!! i adore your writing! may i request "If I do marry, I want it to be for love" with leona please? i apologize if this is the wrong format! thank you, i hope you have a great day!

Hello, thank you for the request! I actually really, really like this one, hopefully you will too! I’m adding Malleus into this story because why not? I feel like I rushed this one because I really wanted to write it, but hopefully it sounds good ;-;

550+ follower event: “If I do marry, I want it to be for love” Leona x reader

You were only to follow the rules of the royal family. The first born of the kingdom would be born with power, but sadly, your kingdom was only so powerful and your parents were looking for suitors that would not fit right with you, but with the kingdom’s political standing. It didn’t matter if the suitor was a male or a female, as long as they held power that was what mattered. You didn’t have any siblings, so this would be your parents’ one shot at boosting the kingdom’s strength and importance in the world.

If only you were happy with it.

You were angry at the decision your parents had made. How could they not think of asking you first about your opinions before throwing random suitors at you? Finally fed up with this, you had signed yourself up for a school to be away from the castle walls. Your parents thought that this was an act of disgrace at first, but they soon realized perhaps this school might help you find a suitor as well. If rumors were true, the crown prince of Briar Valley would be attending as well, which means you could potentially go with him!

Three years of your time at Night Raven College went by quickly, and you soon realized that your place in Savanaclaw was a bit…strange. You weren’t surrounded by the usual pompous men and women that would flock your courts and rather you were surrounded by hot-headed, energetic teenagers. It was a lot of fun for you though, since it meant you could let yourself loose a bit. You joined multiple clubs as well as friend groups while you were there, and just as your parents had hoped, you became close friends with the fae prince, Malleus Draconia.

Everyone in the school knew that at some point the two of you would get married, it just seemed right. He was crown prince and you were the first born in your kingdom’s monarchy, and the two of you were close! He was also the kind of person your mother and father would love, since Briar Valley was one of the strongest kingdoms and best allies to your nation. When you told your parents that you were friends with him, they were ecstatic and were already making plans on your wedding.

If only they knew that you were actually in love with someone else.

You were close with the head of Savanaclaw, though most people didn’t know it due to how opposite you guys seemed.The dorm leader, Leona Kingscholar, had somehow wound up as your best friend after you had joined the Spelldrive club and his dorm. Though he acted like he was annoyed with you all the time, he deeply cared about you. He let you nap with him sometimes in the garden, respected you, etc. But perhaps the best thing that he did for you was see you more than your title as the first child of your kingdom’s royal family. He was royalty himself, but he regarded you as a classmate, a herbivore on most occasions, but above all he saw you for who you are. Perhaps it was this (along with his good looks) you slowly started to fall for him.

Then a message arrived.

It was your parents, sending a letter that said something about arranging a marriage for two kingdoms: yours and Briar Valley.

“Malleus is a friend, father,” you spoke on the phone, but your mother didn’t seem to hear you.

“It will be so joyous for both sides you see, we’ve been looking forward to this for many years and it seems that Briar Valley’s Queen is willing to allow the marriage to proceed,” your mother replied, her voice bright.

“But I don’t want to marry him,” you stood your ground, furrowing your eyebrows. Yes Malleus was a close friend of yours too, but he was in no way someone you had imagined to spend the rest of your life with. He was talented, and he had good looks, but he was great as he already was: a friend.

“I won’t be tolerating anymore childish behavior, y/n,” your mother’s tone shifted into a cold one, and she quickly called off.

Panicked, you weren’t sure if you should ask Malleus about this or if you should keep it to yourself. Then, Leona popped into your mind. Would he know what you should do? No, he was enemies with the fae prince, bringing him in would just cause more trouble for you probably. You stayed up that night, not being able to sleep and wandering around in your room.

The next morning was just as bad as last night. The hallways were full of people whispering about you and pointing fingers, but you weren’t sure what all of the commotion was about. Malleus also approached you, asking what was going on, and you shrugged.

“Maybe I got in trouble,” you sighed, he shook his head and smiled softly.

“I don’t think you’re the type of person to make trouble,” he replied. “But I do hear my name float around too, I wonder if it’s the two of us.”

You only got your confirmation when Leona approached you after school in the botanical garden. “Apparently, you’re engaged to Malleus,” he said, his eyes gazing at you with an uninterested look. You weren’t sure, but you thought that maybe his eyes were a little sad.

“Ah, is that so?” you responded, sheepishly looking at the ground. No way your mother and father agreed on this right after the call!

“Congrats, you get to be with a really cool guy, I’m sure you’re really happy-”

“I’m not.”

He stopped. Leona’s ears perked up and he raised an eyebrow. “Why not? He’s the Malleus Draconia.”

“Yeah, but I don’t see us being couples, more or less we’re comfortable being friends. A-and I like someone else,” you hadn’t thought about adding that last part in but it seemed to run out of your mouth.

“Oh?” Leona turned away from you, leaning his weight onto one leg. The air was hot due to the weather inside the glass dome, but also because of the awkward pressure.

You cleared your throat, were you about to confess right now? Sure, you had been interested in Leona for a long time, but no way did you prepare for this!

“If I do marry, I want it to be for love,” you say, looking up at the tall trees in the garden. He nodded and motioned you to go on.

“I don’t agree with my parents, they’re just thinking about rankings and prestige, but I want to marry someone for who they are, no matter their background or social standing. Because of that,” you turned to him, stepping a bit closer to the dorm leader. “If I were to marry anyone, or let alone date, it would be you.”

His eyes widened, maybe he flinched a bit? He looked shocked, almost like he saw a ghost. Then his cheeks were dusted pink, and his tail moved from side to side. His gaze was on the ground. You thought he would laugh at you, telling you that the praises were good but he looked dumbfounded, and he was! He had no idea how to actually approach this, especially with you.

He would be lying if he said he never thought about being in a relationship with you. You had everything: good looks, a brilliant mind, care for others, strength, and you treated him more than a second-born prince. But there was no way, no way he ever dreamed of being with you after learning that you were the first born child in royalty. There just seemed to be a large gap, and he sometimes doubted you were even friends with him, maybe you were just hanging out with him for your own enjoyment? But those thoughts seemed to vanish whenever you were around because of how warmly you smiled at him. He could only dream being close to you as a partner, and suddenly the dream was seeming to come true.

“You really think that being with the second-born son is worth it? I was even held back a year you know,” he responded. “There’s so many better people out there you could be confessing to.”

“I don’t think so,” you shook your head. “I always saw you being special in your own ways. People might say you’re lazy or intimidating, but out of everyone that I’ve ever met you’ve been the most hardworking, intelligent, and kind person. You treated me with respect but also as an equal, something I didn’t have when I grew up. I think…I think that I really want to go out with you,” you fumbled on your words a bit.

There was a long pause, and you even thought about turning around and running from the scene, too afraid to see or hear his reaction. But then he sighed, a hand coming up and patting your shoulder.

“Herbivore, I’m glad you think so highly of me,” he laughed, “I was really thinking of asking you too, just didn’t think it would happen so soon.”

You nodded, smiling at the ground. “I guess we’ll have to let my parents know about this now.”

“Yeah, and that Diasomnia bastard too,” Leona remarked.

“Oh, don’t worry, he wanted to be friends too, if anything my parents are the issue,” you patted his back. “Let’s head back, it’s getting late and I’m sure dinner’s being served right now.”

For now, you would have to figure out how to explain to your parents about your relationship. But, maybe you can push that aside, just for this moment, and just enjoy the time you have with Leona in the present.

#twst #twisted wonderland #twst imagines #twst scenarios #twst x reader #anon ask #twisted wonderland x reader #ask box #twst leona #twst leona kingscholar #twst leona x reader #leona x y/n #twst savanaclaw #savanaclaw x reader #500 followers #follower event

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randomwriteronline · 2 years

Text

Lian? Jealous? Psh.

Of course he was jealous.

Jealous of that darn Diamond Clan warden twat.

Of that Melli.

Who did he think he was, going around like that, handing out Aguav Berries like it was no big deal...

He could almost hear him -- oh, hello, how are you, how is your booklet thing going? Here, I battled some of those huge crowds of Pokémon and got you some extremely rare Berries. What? It must have been a hassle? Oh, you don’t have to worry, it really wasn’t any problem at all for me, (and he’d flip his stupid long shiny hair) I’m so good at Pokémon battles after all...

The young warden dug even more furiously into the ground.

He was gonna show him.

“Mistress Calaba, I need your elucidation.”

“That’s warden to you.”

“Warden Calaba, I need your elucidation.”

“On what, pray tell?”

Melli pointed a little further down, towards the muddy lands. Specifically, he pointed her to the pale pink dot which had brown eyes staring right into him with an incomprehensible wrath.

Calaba narrowed her eyes to look better: “That’s young Lian,” she said.

“Yes - what is his problem?” Melli asked.

She just cocked her eyebrow at him, about to demand further explanations, when a louder voice interrupted her.

“Melli! Have you seriously picked a fight with a child Sabi’s age this time?” Adaman shouted at the warden most known for his not particularly stellar manners as he stomped his way to the two wardens at the edge of the settlement as he was wont to do.

At the accusation, the taller man rose his hand in self-defense: “I have done nothing this time!” he rebuked, “I was not even aware of that kid’s existence until he walked over and started glaring daggers at me!”

“And I’m supposed to believe that?”

“Adaman!!”

Calaba ignored them completely, focusing back on the young warden still trudging through the hip-high muddy waters as if looking for something, eyes fixed with impossible fury on the tallest bickering adult.

Hm.

The Clan leader would have had her hands full with this.

“It’s ‘cause he’s a dirty thief!”

Huh!

Alright!

“That is... A really heavy accusation,” Irida said very slowly after a long and concerned inhale. “What has he stolen, exactly?”

The shade of Lian’s wide hat sharpened his already vitriol-full eyes as they narrowed into positively wrathful slits: “He knows what he’s doing,” he only hissed through gritted teeth.

“Yes, he most definitely does - but I also need to know what exactly he has stolen, or have some proof shown of that, because in the case we accused him and there turned out to be... Problems...” and she trailed off, not wanting to imply that this single act could have fucked up the whole peace treaty they had going - because it very likely would not have, but this was Melli, and from what she had heard he was quick to form an everlasting grudge at the drop of a hat.

Whatever the warden understood from her lack of words, it worked into getting him to consider opening up.

He crossed his arms tight, looking and kicking at the ground as his mouth twisted into an unsure grimace, muttering something barely intelligible to himself in a sort of grumbling whine, debating with himself if he should have talked.

“You’re not gonna tell anybody?” he finally mumbled.

Irida reassured him with a solemn nod.

She watched as Lian inched a little closer, asking her wordlessly to lean down a little -- was that... Was that blush? On his cheeks?

“He’s trying to steal my ...”

“What?” the Clan leader asked, because that last word was whispered so quietly she had legitimately no heard it.

“He’s stealing my crush!”

His what.

“What?”

“You know ‘em! You saw him trying!”

“I - Lian, you’re saying he’s trying to--”

“He gave ‘em all those Aguav Berries!” the boy insisted, nearly in tears. “Just to impress ‘em!”

Ah.

Ok.

So Lian (10-years-old, in the midst of as intense an infatuation as a child could be having) was under the impression that Melli (28-years-old, desperately trying to make up for his horrid behaviour whilst keeping his pompous facade at all costs if Mai could be trusted - and she could) was actively pursuing the survey corps kid (15-years-old, very likely blissfully unaware of the supposed love tug-of-war they were right at the center of), possibly for the sole reason of spiting the young warden.

Irida (17-years-old, very awake but feeling as if suddenly the energy had been sapped out of her) inhaled deeply and exhaled just as slowly, trying not to slam her bracelets directly into her forehead in the hopes of knocking herself out.

A formal apology was written out to Melli, not explaining anything.

Nothing was written out to the survey corps kid, because Lian ate the letter after staring at it for five minutes and got a horrible stomach ache from the rather toxic ink for a couple days.

Said kid showed up in the Alabaster Icelands with a bottle of medicine for him and wished him a speedy recovery.

Despite the nausea, Lian seemed a lot happier.

And a lot more flustered.

#pokémon #warden lian #warden melli #warden calaba #pokemon adaman #pokemon irida #pokemon legends arceus #random writing #kids having puppy crushes is a weakness of mine it seems #anyways may i offer you an absolutely wrathful kiddo in these trying times

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msweebyness · 1 year

Text

CLASS OF HEROES AU: SIDEKICKS

Here’s a bonus post for today, I guess! I finished this two days ago and completely forgot to post it! I added the new characters and decided to post it today! Enjoy, and as always, credit to @imsparky2002 and @artzychic27!

Marinette:

Plagg-Mushu: A snarky feline ‘guardian spirit’ who accompanied Marinette to the school in order to ‘guide’ her in becoming a worthy warrior. His real goal may be to regain his standing as a guardian, but he cares about the kid a lot.

Tikki-Cri Kee: Marinette’s ‘lucky cricket’, gifted to her by her Grandmother before going to the school. She may not be able to talk, but she still manages to keep Plagg in line and help guide Marinette.

Kaalki-Khan: Marinette’s loyal horse. Fiercely protective of the girl, but a bit pompous and gets annoyed easily, as evidenced by her tendency to trample Plagg over the head.

Adrien:

Sass-Pascal: Adrien’s beloved pet snake, who got into the tower when he was a child. Sass can change his scale color as he needs, so Gabriel never found him. He comes with Adrien to the school and often hangs about on his shoulders.

Max:

Markov-Baymax: Max’s constant companion, a large, blue pillow-like robot with artificial intelligence, he was designed by Max’s late cousin who he saw as a brother, though Max was the one who built him. He is kind and gentle, his primary purpose being to tend to the sick and wounded, but don’t underestimate him. He also has some impressive fight programming.

Kim:

Xuppu-Pegasus: Kim’s winged horse, gifted to him as a baby, that has a tendency to act more like a monkey at times. He’s much more mischievous than Pegasus and has a tendency to mess with his nitwit of a demigod. He’s fiercely loyal to Kim, though, and would do anything to protect him. He loves Ondine and often competes with Kim for her attention.

Alix:

Jalil-Abu: (Yes, I made him a monkey, what of it?): Alix’s dimwitted primate companion, named after her brother, who died when she was young. Fanatical and impulsive, he’s gotten Alix into quite a bit of trouble when he can’t contain his curiosity.

Ivan:

Stompp-Hugo: A gargoyle that resembles an ox, Stompp is hot-tempered and encourages Ivan to stand up and strike back against his bullies. He can be a bit much, but he cares a lot about Ivan.

Pollen-Victor: An insect-like gargoyle with a love of drama and romance. Encourages Ivan in romancing Mylene, gushing over the two at any possible opportunity.

Wayzz-Laverne: A turtle-esque gargoyle, and the oldest and wisest of the three. Ivan goes to him for advice or just someone to vent to. Kind and caring, he supports the boy in every way he can.

Zoe:

Mullo-Jaq: Zoe’s most frequent mouse companion, and the leader of the bunch. The one who organizes all the other mice with plans to help their ‘ZoZo’. Sassy and spirited, he loves messing with Chloé as retribution for how she treats his friend.

Fluff-Gus: A pygmy rabbit, she serves as Mullo’s right hand in helping Zoe. As absentminded and spacey as she may be, she loves Zoe as much as the other mice and does all she can to help her.

Sabrina:

Nooroo-Jiminy Cricket: A small anthropomorphic butterfly spirit, assigned by Aurore to serve as Sabrina’s conscience. Unlike Jiminy, he has experience, and is kind and patient with the girl, but firm when he needs to be to help her be the best person she can be.

Ondine:

Duusu-Scuttle: A seagull with bright splotches of color in his feathers, Ondine gets most of her (incorrect) information about the surface world from him. He may not know as much as he thinks he does, but he cares about her deeply and does his best to keep her safe.

Kagami:

Longg-Angus: Kagami’s massive shire horse, and her primary means of transport. While fiercely loyal to and protective of Kagami, he is generally quite calm and serves as a comforting presence for the girl.

Mireille:

Alec-Timon: A wisecracking meerkat who initially sees the young Mireille as a ticket to safety from predators. He grows to genuinely care for the girl and is by her side when she goes to take back the Pride Lands.

Theo- Puumba: A slow-witted but kindhearted warthog who suggests to Alec that they look after Mireille after she flees the Pride Lands. He encourages her to go to the school when she receives an invitation, thinking it could be good for her to meet new people.

Austin T.:

Roaar-Rajah(Obviously): Austin’s pet tiger, who was given to him as a child, she is fiercely protective of the boy, serving as both his transport and a cuddling buddy. It takes her a while to warm up to Jean.

Note: Jagged, Penny and Anarka are Lumiere, Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts respectively, they’ll be detailed in my upcoming post about family!

#miraculous ladybug #disney au #ml au #class of heroes #akuma class #mlb ocs #sidekick

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georgiapeach30513 · 2 years

Text

Andy Barber Masterlist

Wipe Mine Clean

Raptophilia

Zelophilia

Agrexophilia

A Little at a Time - Small town gossip is rarely just that. But when your cousin and best friend catches the culprit in the act, you can no longer ignore it. Small towns rarely let you move on, so instead you move away, and to Boston where you can either wallow in your self pity, or get out…and that’s where you meet Andy Barber.

A Losing Hand - Mafia AU, nothing is what is seems. Trust no one, and listen to everything. Alliances will form, and they will fail, but who is playing who?

Desperate Affairs - Engaged to Andy Barber, and deeming him too safe, and only wanting to be intimate to get you pregnant, you start a sex only relationship with Ransom Drysdale. Nothing is ever easy, and you get yourself into a web of lies. Are you the only one lying? ⭐COMPLETE⭐

In the Dark of the Night - Hellforsure, Kentucky really lived up to its name. Nothing for miles and miles, except for The Children of the Night. Vampire bars were supposed to be illegal. But a speakeasy vampire bar goes unnoticed. Sin and filth around every corner, and you’re willing to give up your body, soul, and blood for one night of pleasure. At least they’re the best looking men you’d ever seen.

Just Like the Caged Bird - You are a widow who moves back to her husband’s hometown after selling your in Georgia home. Moving in above your brother in law’s garage. Sharing the space with his friend Bucky Barnes, but your other brother-in-law Andy causes problems, along with your overprotective brothers.

Kindly Unspoken - When Andy is convinced his ex had his baby and gave it up for adoption before her untimely death, he’s not going to stop until he finds out the truth, even if it’s eight years later. Being a new social worker, you go out of your way to help him figure out if there is a child, and if the child is even his. *Part of the Keys in Your Ignition AU*

The Legends of Collingswood Glade - Deep into the woods, and past the veil is a beautiful place. Beautiful but dangerous. Faeries are not to be trusted, and in their world rules often change. Each court is different, but one rules them all...

Pretty Little Secrets - Growing up in a home with other women, you are trained to become the perfect housewife, and you’ve caught the eyes of the possible future Vice President Scott Huffman. While he’s extremely interested, your little crush on Nick Gant, may get you in trouble...

Red Riding Hood COMING SOON - Stay out of the woods. It was a simple task. You failed, but it was your brother’s fault. Don’t eat the apples. Failed again. And now you’re being chased by the most feared thing, or man, in the woods. You should have listened...

Rumplestiltskin - Ransom was nothing that you had envisioned. Pompous, obnoxious, cocky, and downright mean. When he captured you, you weren't ready to meet an faerie. But was he really a demon? And now you're indebt to him. Tasked with marrying a man you didn't love. One that deep down was really a beast.

Unfaithful - Married to Mike Weiss, but once a week you have lunch with Andy Barber, until it’s not enough ⭐COMPLETE⭐

#andy barber #andy barber x reader

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wiltingwoes · 4 months

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dove rambles about her campaign again

how the hell did the campaign go from us being funny goofy cracking jokes and dealing w trauma together to NPCs straight up telling us that the setting is just like in castlevania where women are still seen as people who cannot stand up to power and are made to simmer in silent fucking rage over men who claim high titles in the ravenloft hierachy. taken straight from that scene where Carmilla was PISSED over how Dracula’s court had been acting as the 3 other women had no place to speak up so she took all the power away from them and stuck to her council of sisters.

and that’s how the our strahd acts. because the council fucked her over that badly and people don’t even remember her as a woman of power, rather a man. she’s Carmilla coded.

I’m going to RIOT.

Kudos to Jade for introducing heavy controversial topics honestly respect but also I AM GOING TO MURDER THE COUNCIL AYO??? I ALWAYS LIKED CARMILLA TOO BITCH HAD GREAT POINTS AND SHE WAS SO HEAVILY DAMAGED BY THE SHEER DISRESPECT FROM MEN W HIGHER TITLES. NOT BETH ALREADY HATING AUTHORITY FOR THIS VERY REASON TOO EVEN BEFORE KNOWING ALL THIS.

the second some pompous ass shit vampire man even ATTEMPTS to bitch at beth or cassandra (literally isn’t even known by her real name anymore) beth is going to fucking lose her collective shit. these two are so painfully alike between the hatred for men w huge titles overshadowing women to thinking their entire life is a curse and their loved ones are destined to suffer because of them.

the fact she used to have beth’s mentality before something tragically unknown happened that caused her to stop trying to save people all together.

the fact beth will end up just like her if she loses her optimism and determination to remain a knight for the people who need her. the fact beth is no longer the morally grey villain in the story, but cassandra is, making her the flawed hero. the fact beth was given the graces of having a supportive team where cass was born as a bastard child and became corrupted by the council and curse with no positive influence. the fact they were both innocent vistani women who lost everything to vampirism, one unwillingly turned into a hybrid stride and the other reluctantly giving her away her mortality just to save her people (and losing herself completely in the process). the fact these two are two sides of the same coin.

I’m. SO. UPSET.

#out of the keep 🐀

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elenavampire21 · 5 months

Text

Warning: lots of smut so under 🔞

Summary: you and Ethan are on a mission and have to pretend not to know each other or act like a married couple.

@worldofheroes @love2write2626 @helloitstsyu @elenavampire21

Unexpected mission with Ethan Hunt

You and Ethan were sat round a table whilst benji and Luther was going through mission instructions.

You and Ethan had secretly gotten married and you teasingly rubbed your foot up his thigh and smirking when Ethan gives you a dangerous glare. You innocently flick your hair and have a good girl expression.

Luther hands you and Ethan a paper report whilst Benji has put up a projector of the hotel floor plan.

Ethan gets up and begins giving his explanation and tasks. Luther looked at benji then to Ethan “woo tiny problem here’s where y/n comes into the plan we kinda need someone to flirt and distract a co-working into getting the key to the router system so we can steal the information to decrypt the security code so it doesn’t work.”

Ethan shakes his head “No i don’t want y/n to get hurt”. *he desperately wants to scream no my wife’s going nowhere*

Y/n think about it and smile “that’s perfectly fine with me Luther I’d happily play the part of flirting would be fun to add a tiny bit of spice to this mission.”

Ethan turns and glares at y/n. Both Luther and benji are giggling.

Later on before heading to the hotel where the mission was taking place.

Ethan and you were back home as you were getting changed into a velvet purple dress one Ethan brought as an anniversary present. Ethan was potentially keeping quite putting on his cuff links and watch he turned round and glances as you’re putting on your favourite necklace.

You turn around to look at Ethan as he diverts his gaze away from you.

It’s upsetting and feeling hurt that your husband is acting like a child.

“Ethan baby please talk to me do you honestly think I’d actually wanna flirt with another man. You walk over and try to cuddle Ethan from behind when he brushes you off.

“Ethan Matthew Hunt Will you stop acting like a five year old child I’m your wife could you possibly show me a little bit of decency that you do you know actually love me.” Ethan halted at the bedroom door then turned around and sighed.

“I’m sorry darling i don’t mean to be silent just hate the idea of another man anywhere near you.” He wraps his arms round you and kisses you.

“Ethan I hate arguing with you about missions but listen there is a way that I could make the mission more exciting.”

You smirk at Ethan and gently lean in “why don’t after the mission is complete and Luther and benji head back to the safe house you meet me at the hotel bar 6:00pm no waiting oh and Mr Hunt your never married and don’t have a wife at all.”

Ethan smirked and pulled your waist into him.

“Mmmh Mrs Hunt are you saying we have our own secret mission, well I look forward to meeting this beautiful mysterious woman at the bar at 6.00pm.

They both walked out of the house to the van where Benji and Luther was waiting as they’re the only two who know’s about yours and Ethan’s marriage.

As Ethan, you, benji and Luther arrived at the fancy hotel.

benji stays in the van as the back up driver Luther and Ethan are the once who’ll be staking out the room and your task was to flirt and charm this pompous unattractive coworker into stealing you the key to the router system key and your all wearing ear coms.

When you and Ethan were holding hands you could sense how worried Ethan was and glanced at Luther showing look after him eyes.

You took a deep breath in and hitched your dress down give a quick glance to Ethan and Luther and holds a finger up to your ear “I love you Ethan.”

He smiles and nods when him and Luther walks off.

You seductively leans against the reception counter as the coworker in question is busy on the phone and smirks when he glances up at you he quickly hangs up the phone.

“Well hello gorgeous are you lost because you’re too beautiful to be alone.”

You could literally hear Ethan and Luther laughing in your ear.

“Oh please stop I did a really really stupid little mistake I’ve dropped and earring over by the seating area and I can’t find it would be a darling and look for it.”

The coworker walked around the desk and stood next to you waiting to follow.

Ethan had walked downstairs and feels angry at the coworker but surprisingly turned on by how easy you can switch on your sedative charm.

You casually slipped your arm round him and gently pulled the key pass out and starts walking and accidentally bumps into Ethan and slips the key pass into his pocket then whispers “bar 6:00 don’t you dare be late.”

As you and the coworker is looking for this earring Ethan turns round “oh mam think this is yours” he chucks you the earring he stole before even walking into the hotel.

You seductively run you tongue across your teeth.

“My thank you kind sir for finding my earring whatever can I do to say thanks.”

Ethan walks up and shakes your hand “mmmh how about a drink later to show thanks.”

He heads back out to the van as Luther had sneaked out the back door.

As the coworker heads back to the reception you casually walk up and check in then goes to sit at a quiet part of the bar orders a wine and watch’s until the clock hits 6:00pm and as your taking a second sip of wine.

Peeking up and notices Ethan walking into the hotel , black suite with a couple buttons down you thought *bastard he did that deliberate*.

He’d pulled out a bar seat and ordered a beer and graciously gazes round the bar area and notices a stunningly beautiful gorgeous woman sitting on her own.

By then they’d all removed their ear coms. Ethan was casually eyeing up and down your body you seductively turned round and raised your brow.

“Ehm excuse me sir is there a problem that you keep staring at me.”

Ethan casually walks over and acts cocky “no but I was just wondering if you’ve seen a stunningly beautiful gorgeous woman around as we promised to meet here for a drink and thee only gorgeous woman I can find is you.”

You’re trying so hard not to burst out laughing you simply shake your head and roll your eyes.

Ethan graciously pull the chair out on the other side “mind if I join you”

You politely motions that he can sit down.

He’s eyeing you up and smirks whilst sipping his beer and whispers “this is fucking weird i don’t know how to pretend flirt anymore.”

You instantly spat out your wine that you’d just taken a sip from and coughed.

Ethan first reaction was shit I’ve just killed my wife with a coaching fit.

“Ooh wow sorry did I just literally hear thee one and only Ethan Hunt say he doesn’t know how to pretend flirt anymore.”

Ethan pretends his not pissed off at his wife.

He like a gentleman holds out his hand.

“And what’s a gorgeous woman like you be called something hunt maybe.”

You smile and shakes his hand “oh my name is y/n , oi stop acting like a cocky dick you’re supposed to not know me thought you were good at taking orders hunt.”

Shaking your head and tightly squeezing your thighs as you’re getting really wet and turned on.

“Well sir I’m guessing you’re called Ethan hunt, tell me are you married, single.”

As you’re saying this you kick your foot out of your high heel and rub it up against his leg and grazes over his crotch.

Now it was Ethan’s turn to spit his beer out and he jerks forward and give you a huge death stare the look that told you once your back in the hotel room you’re in deep shit.

“I’m not married but I’m very very interested in getting to know a certain gorgeous woman shall we take this back to your room miss.”

Both of you downed the rest of your drinks and hops off the seats Ethan grabs both your high heels and heads towards the lift.

Once you and Ethan are secretly safe in the lift alone Ethan gently backs and pins your body against the wall and passionately and aggressively kisses your lips, jaw and neck.

Your breathing becomes hitched.

“aah ohh fuck Ethan you don’t know how hard it was to not jump on you as soon as you walked in bastard leave a couple buttons opened.”

Ethan smirked and moved to kiss your chest that showed your cleavage “excuse me but I wasn’t the one who rubbed a foot over my crotch and literally almost flashed her tits to another stranger.”

You’re burst out laughing “oh my god Ethan hunt you’re still jealous of the tinny weeny little task I had to do.”

The lift doors open and you pull Ethan out and gently pin him to the door and passionately kisses him with tongues as you manage to put the key to open the door.

Both of you nearly fall onto the floor but pulls away and walks in as you go to lock the hotel door Ethan’s body is pressed up against your back and you can literally feel how hard his cock is. “Oh hello mr hunt someone’s happy”.

Ethan lightly places your hand behind your back and whispers “I want you to get out of that velvet dress then sit on the bed only in your underwear and you do not remove those high heels understand Mrs hunt.”

You’re breathing heavily and seriously turned on “ugh yes Mr Hunt I understand my instruction and I promise to be a very very good girl.”

Ethan let go of your hand and kissed you “sorry did I hurt you just seeing you in that dress makes me feral.”

You cup Ethan’s face “darling you didn’t hurt me at all kinda like the feral direct version of my husband now I’m gonna go slip out of the velvet dress sit on the bed in my underwear and high heels and wait for daddy to come and fuck his naughty baby girl.”

You intentionally sway your hips annoying Ethan and slowly unzip the velvet dress revealing a rather see through bra and panties and jumps onto the bed waiting for Ethan.

“Oh Ethan hunny baby’s ready for daddy now.” Ethan followed you after removing his cuff links and watch.

He’d kicked off his shoes and suit jacket and headed to the massive hotels bedroom.

“Oh what a fucking beautiful sight Mrs Hunt good girl waiting for daddy you will definitely be rewarded a treat.” He strides off and gently lays on top of you and teasingly kissing along you jaw, neck.

You instantly wrap your legs round Ethan waist holding his tightly close to your aching body.

“Ugh ahh fuck Ethan fuck me now please haven’t i been good enough now to wait”

you rip at Ethan’s shirt and undo his belt unzip his trousers and boxers down and wraps her hand round his cock and pumps it a few times. “Ugh baby wants daddy’s cock deep inside her now.”

Ethan removes your hand from his cock and he rubs it against your aching clit and slips into you “ugh fuck babe always so wet for me just how daddy likes it.” He’s roughly rutting his hips whilst your whole body is matching the rhythm to Ethan fucking you.

Your round perky tits and jiggling and your husband smiles.

“Ugh ugh ahh ahh shit you like that don’t you having the power and ordering your wife around, ugh this brings back memories of our honeymoon you fucking me but if I remember right Mr Hunt it was on our private balcony.”

You’re both hard and roughly pounding and making the bed bang against the wall so much that the rooms on your floor all know who Ethan/daddy is.

You instantly feel the tingling and usual tight feeling in the pit of your stomach.

“Ugh ugh ugh aah yes yes Ethan I’m gonna cum i can’t hold on” your legs are still tightly wrapped round Tom’s ass as you’re both fucking and thrusting. You softly grip Ethan’s shoulders.

Ethan quickens the pace of rambing his cock in and out of you he move both his hands to now cup your face and he gently with his thumb wipes a tiny little tear. “Ohh ohh baby me to you’ve been such a good girl and I love you Mrs Y/n Hunt ready we’ll come together.”

Ethan is roughly and passionately fucking you whilst Your quickly rubbing at your clit feeling yourself getting closer and closer to your orgasm. “Ethan…Ethan…aah aah f..fuck.” You both scream out each other’s names and you automatically feel Ethan’s warm liquid cum deeply coat the inside of your pussy and Ethan enjoys the feeling of yours cum coating and softly running down his cock.

He easily pulls out of you making you do a little whine “ohh Ethan did you have to pull out now wanted to keep you warm for a little bit, baby don’t bother about cleaning up I wanna just lay in your arms for now we can clean and wash up later in the shower ,right now all I want is my husband.”

Ethan pulls you really in close and brushes strands of hair he kisses your head.

“Yeah we can shower later same all I want right now is to cuddle and spend time with my gorgeous wife, mmmh love you Mrs Hunt.”

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floralseokjin · 2 years

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“Your father’s (wrong) opinion didn’t matter, and you couldn’t wait to prove him wrong”

I’m sorry but that irked me so much... a fathers concern and worry for his daughter having a child outside wedlock, and that being with a total stranger during a ONS is wrong opinion?

I get that is fiction but that’s just a slap to every loving father... parent out there.

Idk what your culture is... but women from good families do care about their parents opinions. It’s not a jungle.

This is about her father’s wrong opinion on Seokjin, their relationship and the pregnancy, because it is wrong. Is Seokjin pompous? Is he someone who would up and leave after the baby is born? Was Oc blinded by his money? Etc etc. He blindly and angrily made assumptions and caused a scene. He even practically blamed his daughter for getting pregnant. Even if he didn’t mean to, and even regretted his actions later, he still did those things. Is Oc just supposed to accept and understand all that simply because he’s her father and he loves her? That seems highly unfair to me.

I have also for the past two weeks talked about how her father’s concerns were completely valid. You’re right, any loving parent would be worried about finding this out. (However personally, I don’t agree with the out of wedlock part. Neither does the father. Trust me on that one.) It’s how he went about voicing his worries that’s the problem. No loving parent should act like that.

This part of the story is about a daughter’s strained relationship with her father/family. They are beginning to change that and they are happy doing so. To be honest, I’m not really sure if you’ve actually read this series because if you had, this opinion of yours right now doesn’t make any sense at all. Either that, or you have zero reading comprehension.

Also, your “it’s not a jungle” really irked me.

#i am all for discussing the events in my stories but this just seems overly provoking #you don’t have to agree with Oc’s thoughts and feelings #but this is my story and i’m writing it the way i want to #thank you #fic:9mtfil #message #anon

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mirror-to-the-past · 1 year

Text

"No Better Instrument"

Multi-Chapter

5k total words so far

Kingdom Hearts fanfiction

KH but an AU where the first three games (KH1, CoM, and KH2) are told in a mish-mash of the plot of The Neverending Story (published 1979 and/or the 1984 film).

Sora leaned in close to the book, investigating the cover, since it seemed to have Riku’s attention oh-so-entranced. The words “Kingdom Hearts” were engraved on the front, written in silver lettering and a gothic font. Adorned atop the title was a curved, swirling heart that appeared to be wearing a crown.

"I found an old bookstore off of thirteenth street. The owner, Ansem... he didn’t seem to like me, much. When I first walked in there to hide from Seifer and Rai, he actually told me to leave.” Riku put on a pompous accent. “‘Get out! I don’t like children.’” Riku laughed at himself. “When I told him fifteen was hardly a child, he told me that only a child would act like fifteen was ‘a man grown.’ But, I thought I’d stick around anyway, since he seemed nose-deep in whatever book he was looking at. Said he was busy with research. I couldn’t help but be curious about the book he was reading. He said a bunch of crazy-sounding things about it.

"...He said the book had darkness within it. Powerful, but terrible things.”

#as soon as the idea set in this AU had such a grip on me I couldn't not write it #so here's this potentially niche thing I want to share with the world #kingdom hearts #kingdom hearts 1 #kingdom hearts 2 #kingdom hearts chain of memories #kh1 #kh2 #kh com #kh fanfiction

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adelindschade · 2 years

Text

A Thousand Oaths (A Thousand Cuts, Part 21)

Extra long chapter to spoil you.

Link: Feysand hits a hurdle. Nessian stands their ground. Truth bombs.

Warning: Anti-Elain. Strong critique of Feyre.

“We wouldn’t have come if it wasn’t urgent,” Rhys insisted. “She literally won’t talk to anyone until she talked to you. Time is of the essence. We can’t afford to lose any more.”

Nesta stared blanking at the two, doing her best to quell the simmering response that she knew would raise a flame in her hand. The anger she could sense boiling was palpable. She kept her fingers locked and her eyes trained on Rhys, discovering Cassian’s words to be true: he avoided them like the plague. He look at just about everything else but Nesta herself, resorting to fiddling with his fingers like a bored child rather than pay her any proper respect.

It wasn’t that the request was disrespectful. Nesta would eventually work up the courage to confront either sister, finding Feyre was easier due to the fact Nesta had seen Feyre become who she was. As a mortal, she could not be told anything as an indignant and rebellious younger sister, but as Rhys’ ornament, Feyre had gotten prideful in her new title and overstepped too many times. Emboldened and yet, still terribly naïve. Her betrayal did not hold a flame to Elain’s backstabbing, who discarded her like a dog who was thrown a bigger bone.

Nesta found it was easier to forgive Feyre than the latter – something she had already come to terms with. Feyre was still young, and unruly. Discipline wasn’t instilled in her like it had been to the eldest. A wild child with a wilder streak, her whims dictated by the wind. It only came with Feyre’s nature to speak without consequence, trust too wholeheartedly, and act with reckless abandon. Only Rhys had adorned her with a crown, which didn’t pair well with her unbridled nature. Time would inevitably mature her, that is, if it were given.

Nesta did not take gratification that Feyre was feeling the same slight Nesta had endured. She could not derive pleasure from it. It wasn’t right when it happened to her, and it wasn’t justified when Feyre felt the brunt blow of it, too. Neither circumstance was condoned. Yet, Nesta had her own gripe to bear with Feyre, and until that was remedied, she refused to grant the pompous inner court that had wished her ill any favors.

They would not use her to mend the bridges they broke when she hadn’t been given a fair chance to repair the damage done from childhood woes. They denied her that with their constant meddling. It was only fair she comply to the earlier wishes to exclude her, even if it was outwardly malicious. Nesta decided she no longer would be exploited for their gain or stretch herself to the breaking point to cover for their pitiful foresight.

Cassian cleared his throat and Rhys jumped a little in his skin. They were engaged in their own private conversation, something Nesta was not privy to. In fact, she hadn’t said a word at all. When Mor called her out on it earlier, she replied with a mild bark: I was told to bite my forked tongue.

The humbled the blonde a bit, finding Nesta’ s cold stare wasn’t something she prepared for.

“I see,” Nesta murmured lowly.

“That is your sister. You haven’t seen her in months,” Mor interjected. “I don’t understand why you would forsake her! This is a terrible time for her. It’s like you’re punishing her!”

“I can’t understand why the people she would trust the most, who swore to protect her, would be the one to stake the knife in her back,” Nesta retorted. Mor bristled but said nothing.

“Here I thought I felt betrayed when my own sister cast me off to the House of Wind against my wishes,” Nesta recollected. “That pales in comparison to what you’ve inflicted upon her. Months of deceit because her husband – her mate – her supposed equal thought he knew better than her, and then conspired with her closest friends to ensure she was isolated from the truth. You have undermined the very institution of which you founded your court and put your bonds into question where trust will always be doubted from this point forward. That is a fracture I cannot repair for you. If you knew Feyre as well as you claim you do, this is not a surprise as to why she’d shut you out after discovering what her family is capable of. I may have been cruel with my words, and burdened her in our youth, but never this cruel,” she distinguished, reprimanding them in a callous, composed voice to contradict Rhys’ temper.

“You have centuries of experience to rival my mere twenty-and-some,” she continued. “You have elected yourself as the best candidate to handle all matters regarding my sister and I will hold you to it. This is a rift you need to atone yourself, and my sister is owed many apologies and more to assuage the hurt you’ve dealt her. I am in no position to do so for you.”

“I understand you are hurt,” Rhys bit back, controlling his temper with moderate results.

“None to rival the kind Feyre is currently inflicted it,” Nesta sharply interrupted, meaning every word. She had felt the blow not long ago and the pain still resided. She bore scars of all sorts to remind her. They wouldn’t be forgotten. “Perhaps you should condemn yourself to the House of Wind until you can see reason. Feyre should have never endured such betrayal from the people she trusted the most – who swore to put her above all else – and protect her,” she rose to a shout. Rhys winced and Mor stiffened, as if anticipating to be struck. She realized her hand was alight and Rhys fixated on it, eyes wide with fright and jaw tense.

“Yet, these same people have done nothing to own up to their words,” Nesta continued to berate without pause. She stood with a vengeance, feeling herself tremble slightly as her anger roused, and her veins rushed with a surge of heat that had her nearly sweating. “She is the one suffering. You may feel pity for yourselves, but don’t you dare claim victimhood when we both know Feyre is the only one who is justified to feel the way she does, and act accordingly so!”

A large hand coiled around her wrist, and she felt a squeeze. Cassian offered a reassuring smile, though it didn’t extend very far as she noted he was just as culpable as the other two for withholding Feyre’s condition from her sister. He’d beat himself up for it but this was not his moment.

“Some introspection and solitude might help clear yours mind and maybe you can finally recognize your own faults in this situation,” Nesta spat out bitterly, “rather than try to gloss over them in some misguided mindset that no good deed goes unpunished, or whatever mantra you chose to stand by in some shameful attempt to console yourselves. No one will acquit of your guilt. Pray that Feyre has mercy on you, for I certainly won’t,” she condemned.

“Now you’re being vindictive,” Mor lashed out, but her eyes lined with tears. Nesta had struck a chord, suspecting she might have even wounded the blonde’s amor.

“Now is not the time to address the past when there are more pressing matters at hand,” Rhys insisted, determined to stay on track.

Hypocrite! She heard herself scream in her head. She wondered if he heard her, if he tried to permeate her mind, enough to hear the ungodly shout. His eyes were still teetering to her hand, glowing the brightest of blues, and so hot it felt piercing cold on her skin.

Rhys had dismissed her completely, refusing to accept blame where it applied most. His lack of acknowledged infuriated Nesta to no end. For all the instances he condemned her for hurting Feyre with jagged words, he had inflicted a wound far deeper than anything she could have committed and was bold enough to deny it to both their face.

“Ah, yes, the rebellion,” she coldly redirected, fisting her hand. “You’ve been quite present in those mediations.”

Rhys bowed and pinched his nose, aggravated by her lack of cooperation.

She called it quits, unable to stomach the conversation much longer. She was feeling her blood pressure rise by the second. A moment longer, she would pop, and she was afraid her powers would overcome her. She need to get a hold on her emotions, and to do that, she needed to remove herself altogether.

“With friends like you, why would Feyre ever need enemies?” she bid with a snarl. She gathered her cake, and then Mor’s, and briskly exited the cramped room. Cassian did not attempt to stop her. He was too focused on Rhys, eyes too dark for anyone to believe Rhys was untouchable. Mor ducked her head, buried in heavy silence to held the room hostage after Nesta’s hasty departure.

A door slammed so hard the entire building shuddered from the force of it. Nesta nearly jumped out of her skin, wondering how the books didn’t topple from the shelves. She desperately wanted to retreat to their room – her oasis – and hide under the comfort of layers. It would be of no use and now, with the eerie silence lingering, she couldn’t help but let curiosity get the better of her.

She crept back out into the hallway, affirming the cabin was empty except for herself. There was a murmur outside the door, obviously anger, and it took a second for her to recognize the hum belonging to Cassian.

It would be wrong of her to ease drop but Nesta hated not knowing. It ate away at her, reminding her of the time prior she had been left out of the conversation where it concerned her most. Old insecurities awoke with an insurgence, impossible to shake off. She was already pressing her ear to the door before she had time to consider the consequences.

“The last time she was in Velaris, Feyre had called her an embarrassment and banished her to train – a punishment you thought fitting, Rhys, as you instructed me to be rigorous with her regiment! Amren called her a waste of space, confirming what she already thought about herself – a disappointment! An unwanted burden! Mor – I remember hearing something about how she’d do well in Hewn City! Do you remember what happened to you there? You really think she deserves to endure that kind of abuse?”

If anyone tried to speak, he’d shout over him. Cassian was livid and the entirety of the cabin was an echo chamber to carry his voice beyond. She felt his anger before she heard it.

“All of this was said to her face and then some! I said things to her that I regret with every fiber of my being, stupid things said in the heat of the moment that cut her deep! No wonder she did what she did at the House of Wind when she heard what she heard, and no one refuted it! If she’s told she’s worthless, and better off dead, of course she’s going to believe it when no one steps up to say otherwise!”

“Cassian,” Rhys intervened. He adopted a different tone. Nesta was alarm to hear him frightened.

“Shut up!” He silenced with a voice to rival thunder itself. “I am doing everything in my power to undo every little bit of damage I cause, and then more to disprove what you have all drilled into her. I’m proven wrong each day she opens up, realizing how I judged her too quick and too harshly! To get to where I want us to be takes serious time and trust! I’m committed to earning back her trust, and eventually, her heart, after everything I put her though – what we put her through! That’s not something that can heal overnight, Rhys! I nearly lost her, and I still am haunted with the image of her lying a pool of blood and remembering how close I push her to that point because I wasn’t listening, or patient enough, and I will not make that mistake twice! Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes,” she could barely hear Mor reply.

“If I go back in there and she doesn’t have an appetite, or she shuts down and can’t bring herself to talk, I will blame you for her regression! I have waited this long and put in the work to gain her trust, so that she would want to be around me! I can finally enjoy those conversations and seeing her smile – and it is fucking breathtaking! And when she laughs? You will not compromise that!” he shouted. Nesta jolted back and she could only image how Rhys and Mor responded to such volume.

“You made a mess, and you will clean it up! Nesta has nothing to do with the lie you kept from her sister! Feyre has plenty to answer for herself! She has said damning things and kept the rest to herself, never shedding a light to a different side of Nesta we wouldn’t have imagined! Things that I didn’t know about Nesta that, had I learned prior, would have dramatically changed how I thought about her! I wouldn’t have said half of what I said if I discovered what I know now earlier!”

He was referring to the mercenary she followed into the woods in a vain effort to recover Feyre, or the way she was excluded from her sisters to be the prized mare – the daughter to ensure her family’s accession to society. He was talking about Tomas and the way she nearly subjected herself to a miserable marriage to a true brute of a man, simply to spare Feyre one less burden. The one who decided he was done waiting and tried to take what was not yet his. And that was after her mother snubbed the duke thrice her age because she thought Nesta was better suited for a Prince.

The second to last admission brought a red tint to his face that she had not seen before, and when he demanded the wood cutter’s name, Nesta genuinely feared for Tomas’ life. Even when she tried to placate his temper by assuring him that she had enacted revenge on Tomas herself, marring his features with a vicious bite that took an ear, Cassian’s wrath still simmered, and she prayed he wouldn’t hunt him down to avenge her honor.

“Nesta isn’t the only one who has said hurtful things that require an apology! And she shouldn’t have to explain herself to the likes of you who were so quick to judge – and that’s coming from me. I’m no saint either, and I know when to admit my shortcoming when I already assumed her character from what Feyre told me, and that swift judgement was very poor of me! A lot of us need some serious maturing and learn to bite ours tongues from time to time!”

She had an idea he aimed that particular jest at Mor, and she suppressed a smile. It was petty and she knew better than to relish in the possibility of her eating the words she callously thrown at her back in the tent.

“I know from experience what we say in the moment isn’t always forgiven! The damage is done – and it needs to be acknowledged! More so, we all need to heed that lesson, so it doesn’t happen again!” he spat, growing even louder which she thought impossible. How he hadn’t strained his voice or lost it was bewildering.

They had nothing to reply. Nesta assumed they nodded just to mollify him. Nesta was so engrossed in the conversation, she began to lean on the door to get more clarity. She knew Cassian had promised to re-prioritize, to put them first, but it was a different revelation altogether to hear him deliver the same testament to his friends – something he hadn’t done before.

It’s not like she doubted him – it hurt too much to even consider he’d back track, or that she had suspicions that’d undermine their progress. To hear the validation of him sticking to his principles and standing up for her when she was absent from the conversation brought an enormous smile to her face.

A consuming feeling mellowed her– and a strangely new one, too. This wasn’t like when Emerie defended her from taunts and jeers, or when Gwyn built up her confidence and kept her company when it seemed the world turned its back on her. This was Cassian holding his ground to the people he valued and drawing boundaries to protect her. Not even her father had been so bold to do that with her mother.

It was comforting to be heard, and understood, and another wave of comfort to feel loved like she did in that moment. She didn’t have to scream and yell; she didn’t need to endlessly plea her case; she didn’t need to push herself beyond her comforts to prove her value in some herculean tasks; she didn’t have to bear the brand of the villain and silenced because she had been scapegoated.

“No one is innocent here! We’ve all said things we need to atone for and when that time comes, she and Nesta will have a conversation without anyone else butting in! That’s for Nesta to decide! Feyre made the first move when she decided to overrule Nesta and now it’s Nesta’s turn to respond however she chooses! No one gets to rush that! It will not be forced, coerced, or botched! In the meantime, figure out how to apologize yourselves because you have so much to explain! I wouldn’t even know where to begin if I were in your shoes! Don’t expect Nesta to do it for you!”

“Then let us apologize,” Rhys inserted himself. The audacity of this man had Nesta reeling back. As if he hadn’t already had a chance!

“That wasn’t your first instinct when you barged in here?” Cassian promptly called him out, and Nesta wondered if he was reading her mind. Cassian wasn’t dumb – he was acutely aware of his surroundings. That’s what made him a General. His intuition was not to be overlooked. “This is her home, too! She will always be welcomed here!”

“And we’re not?” Mor balked.

“Nes is my mate! We’re going to plan future together when are ready to discuss it! If the Gods allow it, we might even be able to bring a child into this world, and I’d be delighted to have another, but at the current moment, my main concern is making her feel safe, and protected, and have a refuge she can rely on! This isn’t just my haven – it’s Nesta’s, too – and she will not endure being a prisoner in her own home when you come and go and bark orders and disrespect both of us!” Cassian thundered.

“I wasn’t being disrespectful,” Rhys supplemented.

“Yes, you were! You know what I explicitly told you from the day we discovered her nearly dead and then you go over my head, pop up uninvited, and make her uncomfortable because you fucked up again, and you think she’s your ticket out of the doghouse! You will not use her for your benefit! You dug yourself in a hole so you can crawl out of it!”

“We get it,” Mor exasperated, having the gall to express her exasperation with the conversation.

“Do you?” Something in Cassian snapped. He’d grown tired of her indifference, too, it seemed. “Then let’s talk about how both disrespect me, Mor. Let’s talk about Azriel.”

Howling wind and nothing else replied.

“I thought so,” he rapidly bit. “And you – you use Feyre as your mate to justify every cruel thing you’ve done – including what you’ve said and done to Nesta, without any regard to how that might reflect upon me! Am I supposed to stand aside and let you kick her around some more, mischaracterize and slander her name, when none of us could fathom ever committing an offense of that nature to Feyre?”

“It’s Nesta,” Mor barked back impulsively.

“And what the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Cassian snapped back.

“She’s not Feyre. She’s purposely difficult…”

Something compelled Mor to pause and Nesta shuddered to think what it was. Cassian’s quiet was unnerving. It wasn’t the insult that rattled Nesta, as she had become accustomed to Mor’s cruel indifference, but the fact that they maintained the mindset she was excluded from any kind of kindness for whatever reason. The wound dug deep.

What reputation Feyre garnered long before Nesta had a chance to defend herself against the defamation; whatever speculation they made about her cold exterior and justified it as fact; all of it contributing to this belief they stood behind that she didn’t deserve a chance…

That’s what prompted her to deflate, pulling away from the door. She was slow to retreat, suddenly feeling heaviest at her feet.

It’s not like she actively went out to spite them. Nesta didn’t reject them first – they made the first volley to ostracize her as some cruel sister who abandoned Feyre – and when she tried to give each party their respectful distance to prevent unnecessary conflict because their minds were made, and she did not care to argue her case to those who demeaned her, they construed it to be another offense she dealt against them – as if she were better than them! They’d always perpetrate themselves to be the victims in that scenario while happily playing the aggressors, concocting whatever justification they could to absolve themselves.

Nesta felt like she was a prisoner condemned to a lifelong sentence, already knowing her trial was a sham one. Not a single witness in her corner to contradict the damning accusations piled atop her.

“That’s my equal that fate has blessed me with, my other half, and the center of my world,” Cassian clipped. His tone rivaled the chill of the storm. “If something happens to her, I honestly don’t know if I could go on with this life. We’re a package deal now and nothing will change that fact. That’s how this works. If you disrespect her, you disrespect me, and she may not ask for it, but what kind of mate would I be if I don’t champion for her? If Rhys defends his mate as ardently as he does, I have every right to be more than upset over what transpired these past few months!”

Nesta could only hear muffles by the time she closed the door – quietly as possible – and slinked into bed, pulling the blanket high enough to cover her face. Cassian would argue with them for what seemed like hours. She could hear the harsh hum of voices bickering, but she paid no heed to them, already drained of energy. She did not have her to decipher what could be the next topic of contention. Eventually, her eyelids closed as the lull of sleep took hold, and she happily beckoned it.

She awoke in the middle of the night but realized it might as well be early morning. Winter had that effect. She came across that conclusion when she found the bed was empty, and the cabin quiet. Her curiosity compelled her to escape from the cozy confines of the bed to search for Cassian’s whereabouts.

The cabin didn’t shake or groan, and it was still outside from what she could spy from the passing windows. The storm died down a couple hours back while she had been asleep. A fire had been lit but otherwise neglected, leaving nothing but a trace of embers that glowed against the darkness.

Water was boiled and a cannister of tea leaves pulled, implying Cassian was awake – but for how long? Did he not sleep a wink last night? Was he too angry to get even a partial night’s rest? She crept to the door and pried it open, shivering with a blast of cold air struck her uncovered skin above the shoulders.

“Cass?” she called put.

“Hi Nes,” a groggy voice replied.

He was nestled outside, leaning on the cabin’s walls, with a hot mug. He sported a smile, however small, but genuine. She noted his disheveled hair and dark bags under his eyes. He seemed older and worn from a long night.

“It’s cold. What are you doing out here?” she asked, joining him. She supplied a flame to keep them both warm, thwarting the worst of the cold, while it flickered with each small gust.

“Did you have a good sleep?” he asked, cloaking her with his wing.

“Did you?” she returned, shuffling closer until they were pressed together. “I couldn’t tell.”

“A little but, you know me,” he said with some humor, “I’m an early riser. Did you get some tea? It’s still hot. I made it not long ago. I suppose you’re going back to work this morning with the weather permitting, so you could use to pick-me-up before we brave this.”

The still white scene was far more pleasant than the howling mass of grey that swarmed their cabin hours ago, threatening to either bury it or sweep it off its foundation. She gave him a tender smile, appreciating his effort to keep the atmosphere light when both of them were still tense.

“I’d like to be able to,” she replied contently. “I miss Em, and Corinne. I feel kind of drained, so we’ll see how far the winnowing gets me.”

“We can walk,” Cassian offered. “I don’t get to spend enough time with you.”

“It’s a long way,” she tried to joke.

“We’ve been slacking on training. We could make up the cardio before someone else calls us out on it,” Cassian bit back happily.

He succeeded in mustering a short laugh from her belly. He smiled in victory.

“I’m sorry you had a fight with your brother and Mor. I know how tightly knit you are,” she apologized. “I don’t want to cause discord. Just because my relationship with my siblings is dysfunctional doesn’t mean yours should, too.”

“And how exactly do you propose we amend that?” he asked rhetorically. Her mouth went dry, unable to find a reply. “You can’t because this isn’t your fault. This is on them, and they have a responsibility to repair it. They cast the first stone. You don’t need to worry about it. I’d rather you not,” he consoled.

“I don’t think they’ll ever like me,” she admitted with crestfallen eyes. She hated the turmoil she caused. It was the same insecurity that had her believing she didn’t belong in the dinners Feyre adored. Even if they spared her a seat at the table, it’s not like she’d be a welcomed addition. Feyre may have invited her, but it was obvious she was more captivated with other friends than she was with Nesta. The wall décor with Nesta’s absence may that painfully apparent. Territory was claimed and Nesta was the outsider they all preferred to cast out. “They’ll always fault me for something.”

“It’s about time to turn the mirror,” he surprised her with his answer. She looked up and cause cold, bristling air in her mouth as her jaw opened slightly. “They don’t have to like you, but they will respect you enough to keep those opinions to themselves. They could at least extend me that respect, and Feyre, too, if not out of courtesy for you. If Feyre can’t lead that example, I will.”

It was hard to fathom Cassian would ever find fault in her sister and yet, he was beginning to say things that implied he had a few criticisms of his own, and that was still very foreign for her to digest. In the months prior, any critique she had of either Feyre or Rhys was met with vigorous reprimand, and glowing praise for the two she supposedly slighted. Now, the tides were changing, and she wondered if Cassian’s self-impose estrangement from the court might have played a factor to that.

His eyes had that thousand-yard-stare that put his mind far away. She doubted she could rouse it back to reality.

“Eventually, they will see I have no intention to putting you second again. You were ready to die with me on that battlefield and I haven’t paid that in spades – but I will now.” His eyes were intense and solely fixed on her. “Don’t fret over what transpires between Rhys and I, or even Mor,” he waved off.

She wondered if there was more to the story. Cassian’s snip about Azriel plagued her. What was he implying that she wasn’t privy to? It was one thing for Cassian to bear it all – and he was trying to cover centuries of secrets and mysteries she had yet to know – but anything regarding Azriel was much like Azriel himself – a secret. She only understood a handful of things while Gwyn had direct access to the treasure trove of unknowns that was her mate.

Unlike the rest of them, Nesta would speculate given what she did know, but she wouldn’t let her mind wander off too far. It wasn’t her business, and she wouldn’t trouble them with prying.

“We have five hundred years of history,” Cassian asserted confidently, though his voice made it known he had been deprived of valuable rest. “We’ll overcome it like we do every other spat. But you?” he once again addressed her with soulful eyes. “I have five hundred years to make up for the time nearly stolen from us. I will not take that granted again. Defying death once is a feat, a second is daring, and third is tempting fate one too many times.”

“What do you mean by that – when you said my sister has things to answer to?” Nesta probed, unable to deny the temptation. It busied her mind before she fell to aimless slumber and returned with vengeance when she woke. It was so out of character for him to speak in that manner. “You were… loud last night. I didn’t want to interrupt,” she admitted humbly, ashamed she resorted to prying when it wasn’t her place.

“What I meant by that is Feyre is the only one I can think of who can stand up to Rhys and put him in his place,” Cassian elaborated. “She hasn’t and that’s a discredit to herself, and to you. He’s gotten away with a lot because we don’t call him out on it, but he respects her the most of out all of us.”

Does he respect her, Nesta wonder, or possess her? That afterthought had been a buzzing pest, something she tried to swat, but too evasive to rid herself of. It was the same reflection of doubt that had spurred her to deny what stemmed between herself and Cassian. She did not want to be regulated as a mere belonging – something to showcase – and then silence when she employed herself as a sentient entity worthy of her own opinion.

“She’s his mate and it’s about damn time he listens to her rather than feed her words or spin his when it suits him. I love Rhys as a brother, and honor him as my High Lord, but I ‘m not blind to when he has fucked up and done her a great disservice. She’s my friend and High Lady, too. If he disrespects her, I have a right to point it out as I cherish them equally. His failure to be the mate he promised to be is too reminiscent of how I failed you, too.”

Cassian shook his head and took her hand lovingly.

“I met you with a preconceived notion that was far from the truth, and I judged you harshly for it.” He mended. “I only knew the partial truth, given what Feyre had told us, and maybe she didn’t intend it maliciously, but her selective disclosure give us all skewed perceptions, and that lead us to believe something that is by all account fiction. I fault her some for but not as much as I hold Rhys responsible for the rift he caused. Rhys took what was said and ran wild with it for reasons I can understand, but not condone. Not anymore, not in retrospect. This whole debacle could have and should have been avoided if things were left alone, and abandoned in the past as they ought to, and we recognized each other as is, and in the present. If that had been the case, you would not be the outcasted sister, but rather, one recognized for her part in the war alongside the rest of us, and it’s a shame that has been overlooked.”

“Do not think I don’t see the injustice that you were held to higher fault than Elain,” he validated. The letters she discarded from her other sister did not go unnoticed. He had been observant, or she was too obvious. “I do. I believe Rhys favors her because of her gentler temperament but I do not,” he denied with a stern shake.

“I remember how you doted on her when she was unresponsive to the world, and how little she reciprocated when you suffered similar straits. I know it’s hypocritical of me to say so when I was just as negligent, but she is your sister – and she did nothing.”

No, not nothing, but something worse. She discarded Nesta when her presence became a burden, Nesta thought sourly. They were both frightened and traumatized but there was no allegiance when she chose which side to align with. No loyalty. No sympathy. Elain wiped her hands of the unwanted sister when Nesta had sacrificed everything for her. No gratitude was given, or acknowledgement to redeem her character. Nesta was disposable to Elain and that’s the knife that cut the sharpest, and deepest, and no doubt, would scar her forever.

Nesta’s eyes burned with tears and her lips wobbled as the wound began to bleed through, never quite healed, and always throbbing time to time as she reminisced on how Elain was the favorite of the three – and how much she benefited from their catering – and how terribly little she returned it.

“Elain is sheltered, and coddled, and I can recognize now how much leniency she was extended when you were not. I cannot turn my cheek anymore. The more insidious fact is that she denies it while enjoy the fruits of Rhys protection without fighting on your behalf with the same ferocity you fought for hers. It’s unfair, Nes, and I will not make excuses for it from this point forward.”

#anti ic #anti Elain archeron #you've been warned #nessian #nessian fic #nessian fanfic #nessian fanfiction #same name and author on a03 #l

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