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snowbellewells · 3 years

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CSSNS20: “A Cottage by the Sea” ~ the Epilogue

** A grateful Thank You to @searchingwardrobes once more for this gorgeous cover art!!

** Thank you as well to the @cssns20 event and those who have stuck with this story despite my halting and glacially slow posting schedule. You’ve reached the happily ever after at last! :)

Summary: Princess Emma has always been drawn to the shores of Misthaven, where the sea meets the shore near her parents’ castle. When an unknown boy washes up on the sand, with eyes as fathomless and blue as the waters that brought him to her, he soon becomes Emma’s best friend, her partner in crime, and her other half. But the tides give and the tides take away, and as her blue-eyed boy sails in her father’s navy and risks all in defense of those who made him family, unexpected danger and challenge will try to tear them apart, and might well show him just where he came from that day he first appeared to her from the sea…”

From the beginning here on Tumblr or on AO3 ~Epilogue ~

When they could finally bear to part from each other (some hours later, if Emma was honest, a blush flooding into her cheeks upon reflection) they made their way toward her parents’ castle. With Killian’s navigational knowledge and natural instincts, not to mention Emma’s lifelong penchant for wandering the beaches and hilly paths around her kingdom whenever she could do so, it wasn’t long before they could see the familiar spires and turrets rising into the sky in the distance ahead of them.

Despite putting themselves back together as presentably as possible, little could be done for the soaked and rather bedraggled state of their clothes, not that Emma could bring herself to mind very much. They had hardly stopped holding hands since Killian had emerged from the sea and come back to her once more, and returning hand-in-hand was the least of their worries at appearing before the throne. Raising her fingers entwined with his up to his lips, Killian pressed sweet kisses to her knuckles, looking away from the imposing sight of the castle before them to hold Emma’s gaze intensely with each step they took. “Your parents will be overjoyed to see you return unharmed, Love,” he murmured, humored affection lighting his eyes along with the words. “You must have sent them out of their minds with worry, setting off alone on a fool’s errand the way you did.”

Shaking her head with an indignant huff, Emma managed to break away from his incendiary stare to defend herself. “I don’t see why they should expect anything else! Either of them would have done the same if the other were missing. Are they not the fabled True Loves who claim they will always find each other?” She tossed her disheveled mane of curls saucily when he had the nerve to snicker at her pique. Narrowing her green eyes at him. Emma went in for the kill. “Thank that’s funny, do you? Well, I suppose you’re going to tell me you would simply sit in safety and comfort doing nothing if our roles were reversed and I had gone missing?”

That did stop the humored teasing in his manner. There was no way he could ever lie to her, and they both knew he would do anything, cross any distance or boundary to come to her aid if she needed him, so he really had no denial to offer.

“That’s what I thought,” Emma concluded with a smart little bob of her chin. And then, shaking the fraught moment off - she had too much to be overjoyed for at present - she leaned into his side to whisper against his still half-bared warm chest, “And that’s exactly as it should be.”

Killian merely hummed noncommittally low in his throat. He was not about to admit for a moment that he was flattered and touched that Emma had come seeking him against all odds. He was - infinitely so - but he would never consider his own life or limb worth his princess putting herself at risk. It had been a revelation to see her once more when her trusty little skiff had appeared on the horizon, but if she had not made it to Calypso’s island… if she had been lost…

Rather than answering her directly, he offered a gentle smile which stirred something delicate and warm in her stomach despite the interlude in the surf they had already shared. Shaking her head, Emma eyed him with knowing fondness before she reminding him sincerely, “They love you too, you know that, right? You are the one they will be overjoyed to see alive and well.”

His head dipped into a quick, dismissive little nod, while a finger went almost unconsciously to scratch behind his ear. Clearly, her sailor was no more willing to believe his place within the royal family than he had ever been. “Aye, as you say,” he agreed lightly, but he didn’t elaborate and she didn’t push.

Instead, Emma let their joined hands swing easily between them as they moved toward the castle with renewed purpose and waited for him to speak when he was ready. She was biding her time as patiently as she could. Killian would soon see at any rate - as soon as they stood before her parents.

After that, with the castle in view, they kept traveling steadily, and it did not take long at all for them to enter her parents’ throne room; her mother cried out with joy and rushed forward to embrace them both, her tears of relief wetting her daughter’s hair before she turned to clasp her adopted son to her breast. Emma tried to shoot him a look of pleased satisfaction, ‘See? What did I tell you?’ clearly conveyed, but she couldn’t catch his eye over her mother’s enthusiastic fussing and fluttering, nor could she get a word in edgewise to badger him.

Then her father reached them as well. He hadn’t run, giving his wife her reunion moment, he had kept a more sedate pace, but his immense solace at their arrival was felt as he engulfed Emma in his strong arms, one large hand cradling the back of her head, and for a moment squeezing tightly enough to seem he might never let go. “Thank Heavens you made it home, Sweetheart,” he breathed softly against the hair at her temple. Quickly, he stepped aside just enough to reach Killian too, clasping his upper arm firmly. “Thank goodness the both of you have returned.”

Snow nodded fervently, wiping more tears from her cheeks even as they continued to fall from her twinkling eyes. She was beaming in spite of her emotion, adding, “You were right, Baby.” A knowing look and press of the hand for her daughter had Emma simply returning the gesture with quiet grace; the frustration she had felt when she set out forgotten now in the happy reunion with Killian at her side. “And praise be that you were! What a blessing to have you here with us again, Killian.”

The older monarch’s green eyes still sparkled a verdant hue as lovely and captivating as her daughter’s, her raven hair only barely beginning to be streaked with a sophisticated grey. Still, Queen Snow White had all the enthusiasm and energy of a much younger woman as she turned to her husband. “Charming! We should celebrate! Don’t you think?”

The king’s full lips had tilted upwards in mirth, knowing his wife and her love of royal events all too well after so many years together. She was still clutching his hand, but didn’t even give him a chance to answer aloud before turning back to Killian and Emma enthusiastically.

“What do you think?” she pressed, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. “A homecoming ball, in honor of your safe return?”

Emma found she expected the flush that suffused her sailor’s skin at the suggestion, stealing up his neck, over his cheeks and even to the very tips of his adorably elfin ears, as he ducked his head at the Queen’s lavish plan. It would seem she was beginning to know her love’s quirks nearly as well as her father knew her mother’s - True Loves and all. “There’s no need for all of that fuss over me, your Majesty,” Killian answered hastily. In fact, he gulped and quickly raised his face to stare directly into Snow’s gaze intently. “Actually, I mean no offense, but I would prefer to simply return to my duties without fanfare. It hardly seems right to have such a celebration when all the others on the ship - good men, all of them - were lost.”

Snow’s expression sobered quickly, her compassion immediately making her feel for Killian’s loss of friends and compatriots, and for those sailors’ families. Obviously, she and Charming had seen to notifying those households and making sure any widows and orphans left behind by the lost sailors were cared for, but she could see that Killian held some sort of responsibility on his shoulders that was not ready to be recognized for making his way home when others could not. “Of course,” she stated firmly, “You’re right.” Her smile was more tempered, but still hopeful and encouraging; reminding the rest of them in the room just why her kingdom followed her absolutely, why her people loved her, and how she could inspire others to carry on whatever the odds. “Perhaps a memorial service for those who were lost would be more in order.”

“As you say, your Highness,” Killian agreed simply, bowing his head in deference to her decision.

“Good man,” the King added heartily, the words low and restrained, but no less meant. Reaching out , he clasped forearms with Killian, who returned the gesture, though soon he had been pulled into a less dignified fatherly embrace, bone-crushing and back-slapping strength giving away King David’s happiness equal to his more effusive wife’s at seeing their honorary son home again.

~~***~~

Meanwhile, back out to sea, well beneath the surface off Misthaven’s shores, startling changes were afoot. From the very deepest bowels of Davy Jones’ dungeons and caves, the aftershocks and reverberations of his defeat were still being felt, radiating out in ripples as the darkest shadowed corners of his domain were slowly brought to light.

With their nefarious master so undeniably vanquished, the unfortunate souls pressed into Davy’s service by death at sea were released at last - a boon unlooked for - too much for many of them to have even hoped to receive after so long. Gradually, their souls felts the weight of their imprisonment lighten, the metaphorical chains binding them in darkness and the deep releasing their hold.

And one such soul, captured not so much by misfortune or chance than by demented grand design, could feel those shackles fall away more profoundly than most. Liam Jones broke the surface not far from the beautiful if deserted shores of Ogygia. Not sure where exactly he was, the elder Jones sibling bobbed in the shallows, taking in his surroundings curiously and thrilling to the feel of the sun on his skin. Wherever he was, he could remain until he found out; he could stay forever, if he chose. Or he could build a vessel and sail elsewhere. Either way, he would no longer be summoned back to his prison at another’s beck and call.

Still marveling at the return of long departed human sensations returning throughout his body, Liam struck out with a strong, determined stroke, swimming for shore. Ater so long trapped below, it seemed strange needing air to breathe, feeling the human pinch in his muscles at the exertion, the chill of such cold water enveloping his skin. And yet, pleasant or not, each bit of stimuli made his breath catch and his heart pound; it meant he was alive, unbelievable as it might seem.

Though he could have managed the distance in seconds with the powers tied to his father that he had possessed, it still took Liam little time to reach the sandy ground stretched out where the water washed up and over it in a continually receiving and returning caress. He had always been a strong swimmer, with the sea in his veins. “Her little guppy” he distantly remembered his mother saying, in one of the few hazy visions of her his memory had retained; her voice gently teasing, dark eyes crackling with good humor and pride. Strange that he would think of her now, after so many years…

Reaching land, Liam staggered out of the surf, chest heaving, eyes scanning the area, already taking note and attempting to discern where he might be. He would have bet he had been banished to the very edge of the known world for his shift in loyalty, if his father still held any power. However, the blast that had rocked him and made him lose all sense of time and place, even consciousness for some moments, and which had made Emma vanish from his hold, had seemingly destroyed and ruined Davy himself. It had also almost certainly nullified any punishment the old monster would have tried to throw at him. He must be somewhere in the known world; and yet, it resembled nowhere he had ever traveled himself, now anywhere he had charted or mapped, before.

He was half-sitting, half-leaning against a large branch stretched across the sand, the trunk of some tree felled from a small stand of them nearby making a decent resting place to catch his breath, when he sensed he was not alone. Keen senses from a life of hard work and striving to protect a younger sibling thrust into the harsh world much too soon, were returning to him more and more with each moment that passed. Where nothing had been able to truly hurt him as one of Davy’s souls in the deep, his senses now all but blared in self-preservation to be on the alert.

Turning sharply to look back toward the surf he had only just emerged from, he saw a lovely female form standing on the edge of the sand, watching him, unmoving as the waves washed up over his feet and back out to sea again. Though she made no move, nor did she speak, the space between them seemed almost to vibrate with tension - as if she wanted to run to him, to speak, even though he couldn’t say that he knew her, not for sure. Still, the sense of unseen danger, the need to watch his back was gone. Liam forced himself to release a taut breath and lower his shoulders… then slowly took a step forward.

The graceful, dark haired lady before him did the same, took two quick steps nearer in fact, as if she could hold herself in check no longer. It was as he squinted, moving forward again and trying to see more clearly against the bright light of the sun glancing off the water as it began to lower to the evening horizon, that who she must be - impossible as it was - became suddenly clear. A stronger breeze kicked up, sending the gauzy, draped, light robe she wore whipping against her calves and making her hair fly wildly across her face, her elegant hand reaching up to catch the riotous, nearly black curls and hold them back, even as a joyous, enchanting laugh escaped her throat and rang merrily in the space still between them.

And then he knew. That laugh came echoing back to him from long-treasured, nearly forgotten memories of a little house on a hill looking out over deep blue waters. Of a dark-headed woman standing on the slope waiting hopefully for the ship she expected to come in, those same wild tresses - curly as his and as dark as Killian’s - floating around her in the breeze. That same laugh had tickled his childish ears, always pleasing him when he was the one to call it forth, and the voice that accompanied the laughter, so warm and mellifluous, had sung him to sleep when he missed his papa, and soothed his young heart when he was hurt or afraid. His mouth opened, wanting to greet her though no sound came out, no words escaping. ‘Mother,’ his soul cried.

She reached him at that moment. Her cool palms framing his face gently as she seemed to drink in his features like a woman long denied. “Liam… my dear, precious son,” she crooned softly, as if she could feel how overcome he was.

His mother’s touch, her sweet voice in his ears once more, brought tears to his eyes for the first time in what felt like ages. She opened her arms, swaying slightly as his shoulders shook, and she simply held him as she had so long ago. “I’m here, Darling. You’ve had to be so strong. I’m here now,” she soothed. “Just let it go.”

~~***~~

When the storm of his emotions had calmed, Liam learned from Calypso all that had truly taken place when they were children - who she was, where she had been and why, just as Killian had on this very island as well. It seemed so fantastical: their mother, a sea nymph, the sea nymph of myth and legend, making he and Killian half supernatural beings as well, even before his disastrous stint as one of his father’s minions. And yet, it made a strange sort of sense to him as well, as the pieces shifted and settled within his mind. He had been older when they were left with only their father, remembered more… and it had never seemed quite right that their mother would simply vanish. His father’s abrupt, “She left us, went back to her own,” had never rung true. He might have been a mere eight-year-old, but he saw enough, understood enough, to know that it had been Mama who kept them fed and clothed with what little Papa provided. Mama who snuggled with them when storms raged and kept them warm when cold winds whistled through the cracks in the walls. It was Papa who was seldom home, who seemed likelier to take off one day and never return. Whereas he had believed Mama, had known she meant it with every fiber of her being when she’d sworn to him that she would stay with them as long as she could. He had missed her terribly when he woke one morning, so early it was still dark, to Papa shaking him, urging him to hurry - they were off on an adventure. The ache had faded over time; he had thrown himself into seeing to Killian, making sure his little brother knew the songs she had sung, the stories she had told, and that he did not lose that last little germ of sweetness - despite what their lives had then become - that sweetness which reminded Liam of the mother they had both lost.

To see her before him now, hardly able to stop brushing her fingers through his curls or squeezing his hand with both of hers, eased something deep inside that had still been gaping wide and empty though the pain had dulled. They had been taken from her. She had been seeking them, wishing for them back, all along.

Finally he managed to clear his throat, blink out of the awed daze he’d been in, and asked anxiously, “And you’ve seen Killian? And his princess? They - they’re safe?”

Her loving smile, so fond and proud, warmed Liam’s heart in a way that was wonderfully healing. “More than that, they are home… together… and ecstatically happy.”

“Good,” he nodded, genuinely relieved, even if he felt sadness welling too, knowing Killian was where he belonged, but not sure he would ever see his little brother again. He wasn’t even sure why he hadn’t passed on to the afterlife, or just where he was, what he was, or what was next.

“You always were so noble,” his mother commented, shaking her head as she studied him calmly. “So thoughtful. I can see you’re wondering what’s next. The truth is, that choice is yours, Liam. You deserve that much, after so much time was taken from you, against your will.”

Blinking, Liam simply stared back at his mother, trying to grasp that the next step was fully his to make at last. He was no longer bound to another’s whims and designs, no longer pulled by strings that made him feel little more than a puppet torn by what he desired and what he was ordered to do.

Calypso beside him offered a sadly hollow smile, taking her eldest’s hand with a gentle squeeze, and whether because of her supernatural nature, or simply because she was his mother, he could see that she understood. “You may move on at last, to the peace and rest that you have earned and to which you should have been welcomed long ago. Or, seeing as how Davy never fully let nature and time take their courses, and you are not completely dead, nor fully alive, you might also remain here with me on this island and in these waters surrounding it - a guide and caretaker of the sea, which you are already well adapted to with your part-nymph heritage.”

She paused there, resting a hand on the side of his face, her thumb lightly stroked his cheek, before she drew a deep breath and continued. “I won’t try to pretend I wouldn’t love for that to be your choice. I would like nothing more. However, I imagine you will choose the third option. You may return to mortal life with your brother and those who have become his family. Your natural life - and its fleeting span with all the mortal frailties - will be restored for you to live out as you would have done had your father not disrupted Fate’s course.”

Liam’s heart began to pound with excitement at her words, though he would have been happy simply to be free of the troubling limbo which had trapped him for so long, to feel the sun on his skin and the wind on his face as he sailed the waves once more, rather than merely looking up from his prison beneath them. He would not have thought returning to stand at his brother’s side - restored to life - could be an option.

Nodding kindly, even as she brushed away a single tear, Calypso sighed. “I thought as much,” she confirmed. “You took such good care of Killian. He looks up to you and still misses you so. It would have been quite a surprise had you chosen any other way.”

“I am sorry, Mother,” Liam began, floundering for a way to explain that he loved her too, but the pull back to the life which had been stolen was just too strong.

“No, my son,” she interrupted, stilling him with a light hand to his chest, “don’t apologize. This is as it should be.”

And so it was, that as the sun rose the next morning, spread across the sky in vibrant hues over Misthaven’s shores, a magnificent tall ship - proud, strong, and gleaming new - sailed into the royal port, one stunningly familiar form at the wheel, straining to see the dark-haired lieutenant who waited on the docks with the royals, waving to him frantically in welcome. The brothers Jones were reunited at last.

~~***~~

Four years (and nine months) later…

Once again, as was often the case on hazy summer evenings, the gathering twilight shadows and purpled hues of the darkening sky found two solitary figures strolling arm-in-arm along the sand on the shores of Ogygia. If one were to draw nearer still, they would see the dark head of tousled, windswept hair bend down to the glowing golden waves of the shorter figure, as Misthaven’s prince consort whispered in the ear of his princess wife, a secret for only the two of them which made her throw her head back in carefree laughter before she stood on tiptoe, clinging shamelessly to his arms for balance to kiss him him thoroughly and soundly.

Tired from sun and wind and salt water, dazed and deliriously happy as they were, both recognized it was a perfect day drawing to a close around them; one of the sort which were growing increasingly numbered as May dwindled toward June, and the two months allotted them each year to steal for their own, away from royal duty, on the island belonging to his sea goddess mother came to an end once more.

They had married in the fall, not at all long after their return and the defeat of Davy Jones. It had seemed impossible and ridiculous to wait in drawn out courtship to be joined as man and wife; there would never be another for Killian but Emma, nor for Emma but him. Both had nearly given their lives to be sure they had a future together, and neither wished to wait for that hard won future to begin.

Of course, only a couple of weeks into married life, they had found out just how lucky it was they had not delayed. Emma was expecting their first child. Exactly nine months to the day from their first joining in the sand and surf of her kingdom’s shore, where they had first made love surrounded by the very ocean which always brought them back together, their twins were born. The palace officially announced the two baby boys as being early; common for twins and easily presented as fact, but princess and lieutenant-turned-prince knew the truth, and two living reminders of a moment they would never wish to forget were an unexpected blessing. Little David Liam Jones and Henry Leopold Jones had been their love and joy personified in living form before their eyes each day since then. Their sons, identical in looks, energy, enthusiasm and daring loved the water every bit as much as their parents, and had taken to the annual summer escape with only their parents and uncle to see their other grandma each May with dauntless excitement. What four-year-olds wouldn’t want to run wild as young colts all day in sun and surf until exhaustion felled them, only to rise again and do the same the following morn?

Emma, for her part, wanted Killian to be able to visit his mother; did not ever wish to see her taken from him again. Yet she also, much as she loved her people, her kingdom, and her parents, and though she accepted the rule she would one day take upon her own shoulders, found this summer retreat a paradise she would never wish to trade. Though Killian’s patriotism, loyalty to the crown, and place by her side as support and advisor was an immense comfort, Emma could not deny how freeing it was to be far from crowds of admirers, petticoats, policies, protocols, and packed agendas for a time. Only her husband, her babies, and sandy beach and windswept waves as far as the eye could see…

That evening, as they finished a supper of fish Killian had managed to catch for them despite the rather dubious help two exuberant four-year-olds proved to be, simple bread, and mangoes from further inland, both Henry and David had fallen over in weary contentment with full bellies and tired, sunkissed limbs. Chuckling together, Emma had cleared a path and opened doors in their small cottage as Killian carried each to their beds, tucking them in without causing either boy to wake.

For themselves, Emma and Killian left the cleanup for the next day and tiptoed quietly to their own bedroom for a moment alone, together in the whispers of moonlight that crept in through the open window with a gentle breeze.

Letting her fingers lazily twine with his as she led him forward easily, Emma found her breath stolen as Killian stopped near the foot of their bed, tugging her insistently back against his solid form. His arms came up to wrap around her in warm security, and she melted at her husband’s touch. His unshaven cheek prickled her skin when he kissed along her collarbone and up her neck, making her shiver despite the heat.

He had divested her of the light shift she wore almost before she realized it was gone, and his hands were questing boldly over her bared skin, causing a low, throaty moan to escape her lips, only barely managing to keep it soft enough not to wake their children from slumber. It took embarrassingly little time for him to have her thrumming with desire in every nerve ending, particularly with her hormones as wildly raging as they were.

As if he could read her thoughts’ direction, Killian paused his seductive teasing for his hands to rest protectively over her slightly rounded stomach, searching her gaze earnestly before murmuring, “Are you certain this is alright for the little one, Love?”

Emma met his eyes with exasperation; his worry sweet, but oft-repeated by this point. The last month when she had carried their twins had been miserable, and their delivery had been long, difficult, and turned more than a bit traumatic before it was through. Her recovery had been slow and painful, and they had seriously considered whether they wished to try for any more children. But Emma had found that she could not rid her mind of the image of her husband with a tiny baby girl cradled in his arms. Her heart had urged her to try once more, and now she hoped and prayed that a daughter might be safely on her way.

Nodding in answer to Killian’s question, she tried to pull him to her once more, and to smooth the worried creases from his brow.

“But,” he pulled back again, “are we positive? I never want to hurt you, or - “

Shaking her head, Emma could see that stronger measures were needed. Gripping the front of the loose linen shirt he wore barely buttoned, she pulled hard and threw her weight toward the bed, sending them both toppling onto the mattress with a gentle bounce. She rolled quickly to trap him with her body, and leaned in close to assure him, “You won’t hurt me, Killian. I know that as surely as I know anything.”

His whole face lit up with relief and love at her words, warming with one of the most stunning smiles she had ever seen. Satisfied that he was put at ease once more, she turned his face to her own with a finger at his chin and quirked her eyebrow in mischief as she teased, “Well, you won’t hurt me unless you leave me with this ache you’ve started…”

Rolling them once again in the tangled sheets to catch her between his arms as he hovered over her, diving down to steal her breath once more, he rasped, “Well then, Darling, if you insist.”

As the moon shone down on the island’s gleaming waters, they spoke without words, one in body and soul, perfectly happy in their cottage by the sea.

Tagging: @cssns @kmomof4 @searchingwardrobes @jennjenn615 @whimsicallyenchantedrose @laschatzi @therooksshiningknight @spartanguard @optomisticgirl @tiganasummertree @gingerchangeling @thisonesatellite @shireness-says @stahlop @xsajx @lfh1226-linda @drowned-dreamer @thislassishooked @kday426 @ultraluckycatnd @tornadoamy @xhookswenchx @donteattheappleshook @elizabeethan @wefoundloveunderthelight @darkcolinodonorgasm @teamhook @revanmeetra87 @scientificapricot @resident-of-storybrooke @ilovemesomekillianjones @vvbooklady1256

#cssns20 #cs au mc #lieutenant duckling mc #a cottage by the sea #the epilogue

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kylo-hen · 3 years

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Super Bloom Part 3

A/N: Sorry for the wait on this one, but she’s up! I’m slowly realizing my star wars encyclopedic phase was a long time ago and knowledge is beginning to seep out of my brain lmao. Hope you enjoy the extreme self indulgence in this because I have no self control

Kylo Ren X Soulmate!Reader (intergalactic soulmate AU)

Summary: Kylo takes you aboard his ship in attempts to acclimate you but how can he show you his life without revealing his demons?

Warnings: Fluff, lots and lots of fluff. Maybe 2 sentences worth of angst if you read into it.

The dinner was in a word, luxurious, a multitude of different foods some native to this planet others from far off planets in galaxies I had never heard of. There was casual conversation flowing between the elders and Kylo about trade agreements and protection orders. Kylo and I sat side by side at the table and I tried to listen and absorb as much information I could from the discussions.

Kylo sat confidently, comfortably, next to me his gaze intimidating and relaxed as the men and women around us worked to appease our every need. Kylo’s lifestyle had no room for wanting, if the thought passes his mind it appeared before he even needs to voice it, I wondered how far the luxury extended from his power to mine.

As the night waned until the moon was high in the atmosphere it’s light breaking through the branches of the grove behind the dining hall, the goblets we drank had run dry, stomachs full from the variety of courses served, and all conversation lulled into peace; Kylo stood. His new position called for the rest of the room to follow in his footsteps, and soon the whole room of dignitaries stood except for me. Kylo extended his hand out to mine, similar to the stance he had in the beginning of the evening. He pulled me gently to my feet, keeping me close to his side as he announced his departure for the night, reaching for his helmet and returning to the state I met him in. The elders surrounding the table bowed their heads in respect for the man at my side and the guards surrounding the room, the ones who had flanked the man the whole day, readied themselves for their new task.

Kylo ushered me along, keeping a close eye on me even as we walked out of the temple in their secure formation then. The streets after dark housed new beauties for the festival. Large gatherings of people performing with sparks of fire, more loud boisterous music, and lanterns strung over the main stretch of road. Many people laughing, dancing, drunk and in love made whoops and hollers when they saw us passing through. No one dared get in the way of the important men and women the temple was honoring, but their intoxicated minds must celebrate us.

Kylo seemed particularly tense on the way back, every interaction with the crowd left his senses tense and overloaded, his instincts not ready for the bold people lining the pavement. The shadow of darkness did not allow him any relief, the nature of the city allowing for many vulnerable places for people to strike.

His tension only melted as we approached the edge of the city, where a large ship laid waiting for its leaders’ occupation. There were men in white armor and blasters stationed outside of the ship, as a walkway descended to the ground, creating an isle up to his world. More guards in white armor descended in two lines and I wondered where they were all coming from, or if they had been waiting all day for this.

As Kylo led me aboard his ship I felt like I was transported into a different dimension altogether. I had never been anywhere but my small planet, I had barely left the city in all my life. The sleek and simple black and white design of this looked state of the art, unlike anything I have ever seen. There are a couple more people to greet us, him, when we boarded.

“Supreme Leader!” one of the men addressed Kylo enthusiastically, “Your earlier message made it seem like you would not be returning tonight,” his tone laced with acidic uncertainty, “We weren’t expecting you so soon.”

Kylo’s gaze hardened in an instant, “My movements do not concern you.” He spoke to the small man who fell back into his rank surrounded by the guards behind him. “Leave us, we’ll have no petty interruptions tonight officer.” With that Kylo made a dramatic turn away from the hoard welcoming us abord, and towards the hallway adjacent to us.

I followed him quickly, not wanting to invade his space if he was upset but also not wanting to fall behind and be lost on his ship. After travelling down a corridor for some time he came to a stop at a barren doorway that opened without hesitation.

His room was barren to say the least, it was gracious in dimension but lackluster in any personality. The sterile minimalism extended to all parts of his ship, I wondered if this ship was his home, somewhere he spent frequently and if it was there had been so sign of him before.

Kylo removed his helmet as soon as the door was secured behind us both, his demeanor shifting to the relaxation under the sun this afternoon. He regarded me with a smile so soft and quick I almost missed it. I had stepped into the threshold of the room but no further, not knowing how to fit into this part of his life yet. All of my comfort that I retained from this evening had slowly melted away, and it left behind the ebb and flow of the anxiety in my stomach. I stood as still as possible, only a dew steps into his room watching as he moved with definitive purpose, exactly the opposite of my floundering worry.

He didn’t address me until he began to remove the intricate bindings of his outfit, starting with the secures on his wrist. He looked up and saw my tense fearful body awaiting his instruction with my eyes darting all places in his room before landing on him. He stopped his pursuit of comfort, changing direction to aide my own. The cogs turned in his head for a moment, true vulnerable uneasiness passed over his features as he tried to acclimate me to his world.

“I had one of my knights bring your things, they should be in the closet,” He started with a practical steady tone, “You are welcome to explore.” He tried with less certainty, his façade falling further with every tactic.

“Can you show me?” I asked, not recognizing my own voice as it came out of my mouth a foreign cadence that lilted like the music in the market after dark. That lilt must have washed over him like a warm breeze because the trepidation before melted away, a smile graced his features as he moved to show me the amenities aboard his quarters.

He spoke softly about the room, which switches controlled which light, stopping at a bare display of buttons that he explained called droids for various services at any time. He showed me the fresher, the small space itself completely foreign to anything I had ever seen. Kylo must have found delight in my ignorance because he refused to tell me how to work the dammed contraption, opting to let me figure it out myself. When I looked up at him in protest his eyes were shining down on mine, full of a joy and passion. There was a third emotion I couldn’t quite put my finger on, it was dark, misty, but not intimidating.

He paused before moving on to show me the rest of the amenities, his hands coming to wrap around me, the first physical contact we’ve had since stepping on the ship. They snaked their way around settling on my back once I was pressed to his front. He tilted his head down, wordlessly asking for a kiss. I obliged tenfold, pushing up to meet his lips with desperation. My hands finding purchase on his cheeks.

This man lit a fire in my bones, not being able to touch him, to hold him in my arms for as long as I had felt like walking in the desert without water. Now, with his lips pressed against mine, his large sturdy hands keeping me secure, his breathe breathing me new life, his soul intertwined with my own, I was drowning. No, I was basking in his passion for me, his need. His touch, even juvenile, had me floating far from the rest of the world.

When Kylo pulls back I feel the lack of his heat immediately. The unpleasant contrast from the pure joy before forced a whine from my mouth before I could stop it. My hands dropping to his chest as he moves away from our tight embrace. He didn’t try to hide his amusement with a deep reverberating chuckle sliding out his lips which curled up into a light hearted smirk. His hands moving from my back to my neck, tilting my head up to meet his intense gaze.

“Don’t get greedy now sweet girl.” He commanded softly, his gloved thumb skimming along my cheek sweetly contrasting his words.

“I hardly think wanting a kiss from my soulmate is greedy.” I countered teasingly, fluttering my eye lashes and pushing my bottom lip out at him. His body visibly reacting to me calling him my soulmate. His cheeks flushed red and he leaned in like he was going to kiss me once again.

His lips ghosted mine slowly, his hands keeping my head locked in place not that I would dare move when he was this close, “Say it again.” He asked, a new layer of vulnerability in play with him.

“You’re my soulmate Kylo.” I whispered against his lips before he gently pressed us together again. Once again there was purpose, there was meaning, light all through my bones because of him. The man that deserved no less than the galaxy, and had it all and more, pressed against me in a fresher because out souls were connected to one another. I was vastly out of my playing field with this man and something about it made me feel like I was going to learn to run before I learned to walk.

I pulled away from him this time, he hesitated, trying to regain his self-control before moving forward. His grip on my face loosening up as my hands explored his torso softly, trying not to cross any of his boundaries. “You’re…” He looked so conflicted, so lost, unable to say every thought in his head. His mind so jumbled that even one sentence was too difficult. I didn’t push him to say anything at all, he just shook his head and retreated to stand before me.

“I need to use the fresher before we sleep.” I mumbled, sorry to be changing the subject before he could express what he was thinking. But the smile on his face made my heart shine, he welcomed the diversion away from whatever plagued his mind before.

“I’ll lay some things out for you in the closet.” He offered, and with a swift kiss to my forehead he left me to my own devices to get clean.

The fresher had an endless stream of hot water, I don’t think I had ever experienced anything close to this luxury. His soap smelled dark and musky like him, laced with spices that I had only smelled at the market before. The stream of water resetting my mind for the night, giving me time to realize that as enthralling as Kylo was, we needed to talk before doing anything too risqué. The steam that fogged the mirrors had cleared my mind from the soft caresses Kylo bestowed on me earlier.

He held his promise, leaving out the set of night clothes I had packed and a towel for me. I took the time to ready myself for bed before I emerged into the bedroom. Kylo sat in the bed that looked much smaller with the large man on top of it. He had a datapad and was looking intensely down at the object. He didn’t hear me come in until the doors automatically skimmed shut behind me.

Kylo’s eyes raked up my form only outfitted in the thin nightgown I’ve worn all of my adult life. He swallowed thickly, discarding the datapad on a shelf next to the bed an welcomed me to sit next to him. I moved slowly, not wanting to do anything that was odd to him or something that maybe only my planet did. It’s becoming clearer that he had a very different lifestyle than I was used to.

Nevertheless, he pulled back the covers and welcomed me in his normal-sized, yet somehow small, bed. The lights overhead dimmed, but did not shut off and he laid down. At first, we laid separately, an awkward tension hung in the air, keeping us repelled from one another not wanting to break the boundaries. I made the first move, scooting closer to the middle of the bed, which was more like his side due to his large stature, hoping he would do the same.

“I’ve never been in a bed this comfortable.” I admitted shyly looking up at him as he propped himself up to look down at me. His hand skimmed my arm softly up and down as we spoke.

“This is nothing compared to my bed in Coruscant,” He began softly his voice lulling me once more into a comfortable serenity, “It’s much larger too, far too large for just myself.” He tested experimentally waiting my reaction.

“Do you share your bed often supreme leader?” I asked half-teasing, half-terrified of the possible answer. He was handsome, there was absolutely nothing stopping him from taking a thousand different women before me. He could have a wife back home, he could have a concubine, I had never considered the possibility before now. My veins turned to ice while I watched him answer.

“No,” he ended my spiral with definitive assurance. “There has not been much time for romance admittedly.” His confession is whispered shamefully into the air of the bed between us.

“Fate has a funny way of changing your plans.” I looked up at him only to find he was already watching me, his eyebrows furrowed but his expression was curious. He was trying to find something in my features but he was not coming up with an answer. “Do you believe in fate?” I asked, startling him out of his concentration.

“I believe in the force.” He countered, swerving around my question. I cared little about that, realizing what he said. The ancient force myths were rarely spoken of on my planet, and even more rare was it not used as a cautionary tale. The limited knowledge available at the library was biased, and my father kept many of the ‘radical’ copies out of my hands.

I shot up in the bed, no longer able to stay peacefully laying with him, onto my knees to continue the conversation. “You believe in the force too!” I all but shrieked out excitedly, thrilled about the new avenues of conversation we could research and debate together. “My father always told me they were just old myths! He never let me put any real stock into the stories, but I knew it! If the Supreme Leader of the Galaxy believes it, it must be true!” I rambled out quite loud and quite fast and once I had come to take a breath and look at Kylo he was laughing.

“Sweet girl,” He chuckled out, adjusting his position to a more active one on the bed, and lifting my chin to meet his gaze, “I don’t want to shock you, but I thought it was common knowledge.” He began.

“What? The force? It’s hardly common here, no one had time for my fanciful tales anymore.” I rebutted, slightly irritated at the thought of so many people dismissing me and I was right the whole time. The only reason they dismissed me is because I was just a little girl to them. I then realized that I was probably just some ignorant little girl in Kylo’s eyes too. He was the supreme leader of the galaxy and my home planet didn’t even think the force was real. How was I supposed to be Kylo’s equal when I don’t know anything about life outside my own planet?

“Sweet girl,” He cooed out, bringing my attention back onto him, “You were up in the clouds for a moment,” he shifted forward bringing me closer to him, “I thought you knew, the force is very real, and I am trained to yield it with the Sith lords among me.” He spoke soft in volume but hard in resolution creating an odd tone. Yet the only thing I could think of was that my soulmate, the absolute reflection and completion of myself was a Sith Lord. All the years of reading the myths, of understanding bits and pieces of these Jedi and Sith masters battling to the end of time over freedom and peace and justice now I had one right in front of me. I wondered if he could hear any of my thoughts. That brought me abruptly from my shocked state.

“Can you really read my mind?” I blurted out before I could stop myself. His worried, and dare I say conflicted position, dropped with the mindless question and he huffed before explaining.

“I can choose to know whatever I want about you sweet girl.” He spoke mysteriously. My excitement barely quelled by his non answer which forced me back to sitting, hoping he would elaborate. “I can enter your mind without your permission, but its painful. However, when you’re preoccupied with feelings, you project messages through the force, and I can hear those.” He explained slowly, allowing me to absorb the information he fed me by hand.

“What kind of things have I projected?” I asked plainly.

“In the library, when you saw me for the first time, I could hear your thoughts.” He spoke slowly with every word a new possibility for my brain to process. “Your thoughts are so pure, so strong my sweet girl.” He finished with a compliment, urging me towards him. I took the opportunity to lay my head on my chest, he countered by tracing my left hand with his right.

“I don’t know much,” I felt the need to explain myself, “All of my knowledge comes from the books in the library, and most of is too old, or incredibly one sided.” I scoffed at the stances taken in most of the stories about the history of the Force. “You know, you’ve seen much more than I have, more than I ever thought possible.” I mumbled into the chisels of his chest.

“I’m glad you’ve not seen what I have seen.” His voice holding secrets from demons he had yet to exorcise from his head. “I can’t promise that I tell you everything now, nor can I promise that you’ll like what I have been in my past. I can’t-“ His voice was shaking, his eyes glossed over with the look of a thousand defeats passing through.

“Will you love me?” I interrupted him, shaking him from the dark road he was heading down, “Will you love me? And be loyal to me? And be patient while I try to learn?” I countered with the love that I knew was imprinted in my soul and matching on his, I don’t need riches, or adventures, or galaxies bowing down at our feet. The universe gave me this man for a reason, and I wasn’t going to give up because of his past. “Will you try?”

The last one seemed to get his attention, his striking gaze hazed with unshed tears matching my gaze of unwavering support, “Yes.” He answered simply. Agreeing to not be a different man, but to be himself and try something new.

“That’s all I need from you.” I reassured him, laying back down on his chest, listening to his heart beat calm slowly from the anxious beats before. His breathing slowed immensely, leading me to believe he could be asleep, but the lights weren’t quite off, nor were his hands quite still.

Just as I was drifting off to sleep, in the odd stage of awake and away his voice rumbled through his chest, had I not been using him as a pillow I’m certain I would have missed it. “Marry me?” it was soft, a timid ask from the man that lay beneath me.

“Kylo?” I called out, mostly looking for clarification. It wasn’t odd that he wanted to get married to me, not at all. Most couples, after finding their soulmate, got married quickly, not wanting to part from one another. My sister married her soulmate within a week of meeting him, my parents within the month. It wasn’t odd for me, but from what I knew that was hardly the case outside of my world. I didn’t want him to ask for my sake, I wanted him to ask because he wants to marry me.

“I promise I will try; I will be patient and teach you what you want to know, I will be loyal to you, I-“ he broke off, his voice faltering, but regaining it’s strength, “I will love you.” He stated, confident in his own feelings for the first time. His fingers stilled on my back, waiting for my response.

“I will love you too Kylo.” I spoke softly, gripping my hand on his arm, bracing myself to look at him. He looked terrified, vulnerable, but he saw me and he looked happy. “I will marry you.” And despite the long days ahead, and the seemingly endless amount of things I had left to learn about the world that lay before us at our feet, all I could think about is how quickly the man had taken every part of my heart and soul by storm.

I am completely and irrevocably his and he is completely and irrevocably mine.

#kylo ren x reader #kylo ren #kylo ren fluff #super bloom part 3 #super bloom #kylo ren x soulmate reader #soulmate au #I am thinking #i am pondering #i am trying

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ffxiv-ariavitali · 4 years

Text

XI: Stay

[MAJOR 5.3 SPOILERS] BELOW THE CUT. LIKE, IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE CUT. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

On the topic of love: Aria Vitali and G’raha Tia | Crystal Exarch

1896 words

AO3 ver.

“I concede, I may have overexerted myself.”

Aria peered down with wide eyes as the Exarch’s body was threateningly close to becoming encased in crystal, a desperation thrumming within her chest alongside panic and pain.

“Steady now and listen.”

The buzzing only grew louder within her mind, for how could she stay steady and how could she just listen when he was about to be taken away from her? Were it not for the reassuring smile that he had given him, the self-same smile that she had seen as he was about to enter into slumber within the Crystal Tower, she would have thrown a fit—a frantic fit amidst fear and hurt.

“We have won, my friend.”

And yet, I am to lose you a second time, is what the woman wanted to scream, to shout, for it certainly seemed to be the case. They say that victory cannot be won without sacrifices and, throughout the years, there are three that remained so hard-hitting within her heart; he was one of them.

“So I hope you’ll forgive me this moment of selfishness. And...while I wouldn’t want you to feel obliged…”

When Aria and the Exarch looked towards each other, a mutual and silent understanding of the emotions going through one another, it was at this that they reached out for each other’s hand. Aria didn’t know whether it was artificial comfort for him, being covered in crystal and all, but it did well to soothe the ache within her own heart. For she didn’t think she could go on with the way he looked at her and she knew she was doing the same to him.

“Promise me you’ll take me on your next adventure. A journey. Together. That’s all I ask.”

With these words, the woman couldn’t prevent the stream of tears flowing from her amethyst eyes. She wanted to be strong for him in this moment of weakness and vulnerability, but she couldn’t hold back this time. Not this time.

“You could have asked me earlier…!” she exclaimed through the tears with a smile.

Her words certainly caught the man off guard, for he released a helpless chuckle in response, a memory of his youth emerging from when she said the exact same thing to him after he whined about her not taking him with her to Mor Dhona.

“If I were to tell you that isn’t the end—that we will meet again—would you believe me?”

As Aria allowed the gears to turn in her head, she finally understood the meaning behind his words, behind his nonchalance. It was so like him, she thought, to leave her so worried and hanging for so long. It was so like him...that she couldn’t help but nod helplessly in response as she reached out and presented him with the vessel he had fashioned for himself. The same vessel he was going to use as a test before he allowed the others to try it for themselves.

With a ‘thank you’ did he place his crystalline hand on top of hers, atop the vessel, with a broken voice and there was a spark that was shared between the two like-minded individuals, the two connected individuals bound together by the red string of fate.

When that was finished, the Hyuran woman watched the Miqo’te pull up his hood and struggle to his feet. All the while saying:

“My friend. With you, my mind and memories shall travel to the ends of the world and beyond. But in this place shall my body stand immovable.”

She watched as he stepped closer towards the throne before straightening his back to stand tall. She could only listen as he continued his words to her:

“May it serve as an undying promise, not only to those who looked to me for leadership, but to any soul who has known despair, that hope is everlasting.”

It was in these words that Aria slowly followed, raising up the vessel to his once more, and as it began to glow in attunement as he began the test, she felt warmth beginning to emanate from the vessel itself. The warmth of his soul growing slowly as he went on with the process, undoubtedly leaving behind a cold statue in his wake in light of his merge with the Tower—his price to pay.

Yet, he smiled.

He smiled as he, in the end, became nothing more than a crystallized husk of the Crystal Exarch, standing proud and tall before Xande’s seat of honor. He smiled as Aria did the same, for saying goodbye with a smile was what she had learned to do after all these years.

When he had become completely engulfed and she had heard the Scions’ footsteps approaching from behind, Aria allowed herself to feel the grief that she had held back as she brought the glowing vessel filled with his soul closer to her person. She allowed herself to embrace it as if her life depended on it as she fell to her knees to weep. Even when she knew her comrades were watching, she released the pitiful screams and wails that reverberated from her entire body as her figure shook. As the tears fell. As her heart was torn and mended and torn yet again.

Though, only half of her was wallowing in her grief.

Indeed, for the other was cheering from every corner of heart, mind and spirit.

Your dream came true, Raha…! It would cry out in such utter pride and joy. You were the hero that you have always dreamt of being!

With this part, she hoped and prayed that the theories held true. She trusted her bestest friend, her closest friend, with the words that he had given her. She will trust his hope…

...for he is her hope.

❅ ❅ ❅

Upon the final hour of departure, Aria watched as her comrades underwent the same process that he had before his last breath.

She waited and prayed to the Twelve that the theories would hold true.

She prayed as she collected the vessels together and put them away in her bag.

She prayed and she prayed as she took a deep breath…

...and crossed the portal to the Source.

❅ ❅ ❅

Aria was quick to rush Krile and Tataru into Dawn’s Respite. She was quick to lay out the vessels accordingly, corresponding to each one of her friends. It wasn’t at all too long until the soul and body began reaching out to one another, began attuning to one another, and returned that which belonged.

Alisaie was the first, followed by Thancred. Then, it was Y’shtola, Urianger and Alphinaud, each awakening and sitting up bit by bit. Aria was grateful, relieved and all manner of other emotions that she couldn’t put into exact words for there were no words that could describe just how thankful and blessed she was that the process was successful.

Then, Y’shtola bade her:

“...I doubt any of us will be fit to travel for some while. May we leave the rest to you?”

Aria stared at the woman, the woman that had first found her back when she had begun her adventuring days in Limsa Lominsa, and understood immediately what she had meant. Her eyes widened, baffled that the topic would even be brought up when they had only recently returned. It is only with Urianger’s reassurances that she allowed herself to do what she wanted immediately:

“The vessel beareth our comrade’s blood. With it in thy possession, the way will surely open before thee.”

So, the woman ran. Exhausted as she was, she ran all the way from Mor Dhona, forgetting that she had her chocobo and mounts alike, and just ran. Ran to the ferry that went between the edge of the lake to Syrcus Trench, ran from the landing towards the doors of the Crystal Tower.

As she ran, she heard the familiar ringing of rock landing on rock and when she peered over her shoulder to see what it was, she found the crystal—the constellation stone belonging to the seat of Azem, the Fourteenth member of the Convocation.

Aria remembered Hythlodeus’ words as she stepped towards the crystal to retrieve it, holding it close. She remembered him. She remembered Hades. She will continue to live to keep the promise, in memory of those that were lost and left behind.

With this in mind, she turned once more to the doors, presented the vessel and waited patiently as the ward diminished, unlocking the gates. The doors opened easily and she could feel the vessel pulsating warmth from her hand. Surely, his soul was crying out to his body, the body of this world’s version of himself. He was as eager as she was, that’s for certain.

Eager to greet him with a ‘good morning.’

❅ ❅ ❅

Some days later, the Scions were speaking amongst themselves on the balcony of Rowena’s House of Splendors. They noticed Aria and Krile’s return when the Lalafellin woman had released cries of exhaustion and made a beeline for the closest seat at the twins’ table. They saw the way Aria eyed her with immense gratitude and respect before turning to the others to greet them.

“By Mistress Krile’s exhausted state, may I assume that the ward hath been restored?” Urianger then asked.

Aria could only smile at him as she turned towards the catwalk leading to the open balcony, towards an approaching figure so shy and humble. She smiled at the man as he explained the success in restoring the ward to the Crystal Tower, once again locking it away so that its infinite energies can’t be misused for evil deeds. She watched and she smiled with immense pride, such immense pride.

“Said duty thus discharged, thou art free to go wheresoever thy fancy taketh thee,” Urianger then exclaimed with relief. “Upon which note—hast thou perchance come to a decision? The offer remaineth open.”

Aria turned to eagerly await the man’s answer, her eyes sparkling even against the glints of sunlight reflecting from the amethyst hue, and when he stammered over his words—completely and utterly unsure of himself for this briefest of moments—Aria’s smile widened as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“Raha, really,” she interjected.

The Scions saw how her words affected the man, his ears perking up and his tail swaying restlessly behind him. Thus did he straighten his back, gathering his courage, and painted a smile over his own face.

“I accept,” G’raha Tia responded to Urianger’s inquiry earnestly. “Henceforth, I shall count myself a Scion of the Seventh Dawn. G’raha Tia, at your service.”

After his introduction, after he had descended the few steps to join them, the Scions watched as Aria could no longer help herself as she jumped towards him, wrapping her arms tight around his figure. Her cheeks were flushed a bright shade of red, matching his eyes, as the Miqo’te flustered, unsure of how to respond.

“I...am so glad,” Aria whispered quietly so only he could hear. “I am glad that you are here to stay.”

G’raha blinked in surprise before he smiled and returned her embrace. Indeed, he was here to stay—the place being right by the side of his inspiration. For wherever she chooses to go, fate is sure to follow. Hope is sure to follow.

His love is sure to follow.

#ffxiv writing #aria vitali #g'raha tia #crystal exarch #y'shtola rhul #alphinaud leveilleur #alisaie leveilleur #urianger augurelt #thancred waters #tataru taru #krile mayer baldesion #seaswolchallenge #patch 5.3 #ffxiv spoilers #shadowbringers spoilers #ffxiv 5.3 spoilers #ffxiv patch 5.3 spoilers

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xxbyimm · 4 years

Text

The Redeemer - Fíli x Elf!Reader

Link to my Masterlist.

This was a (song) request by a lovely anon. It took me so long to write it (I am sorry for that), but once I did the words just flew on paper. Fíli is such a wonderful soul to write about and let me portray this soft side of him that I LOVE! I couldn’t wait to show y’all, that’s why I did not edit it as much as I usually do. It still can be a bit rough, but I think that adds to the charm.

Also: I used the requested song Redeemer by Paul Cardall to write this fic. Though it doesn’t appear in the story that explicitly, I tried to pour the deeper layers of the melody in this story. I highly recommend you listen it while reading.

The Redeemer - Fíli x Elf!Reader

Summary: It’s love at first sight when Fíli meets this elven reader. She plays the violin for him and Fíli makes a promise.

Warnings: Fluff, teenie tiny bit of angst.

Taglist: @soradragon @pistachiozombie @legolaslovely @tomisbaeholland @swoopswishsward @fizzyxcustard @deepestfirefun @ruthoakenshield @mariannetora @thequeenoferebor If you don’t wish to be tagged anymore, please let me know! Or if you’re not on the list and want to be tagged: check out my lists and I’d like to hear which list you want in on!

Everyone else was vast asleep.

Save for one. Fíli, the eldest son of Dís, lied wide eyed on the soft grass. His gaze was fixated upon the sky, where he admired the constellations and the soft light they emitted. On the ground, the little green blades beneath him tickled his feet and the prince smiled. Though the quest for the lonely mountain had just begun, Fíli already felt an overwhelming tiredness.

Not physically, no.

Fíli was a strong dwarf, used to physical combat and the harsh ways of the wild. He had spent enough time on the road with his uncle to know what it was like. No, this exhaustion was more of a spiritual kind. He loved his kin more than anything and he still was honored that Thorin had asked him to come along with the group, but… their constant bickering and loudness was taking a toll. Sure, even he knew he could be loud and annoying sometimes, but to function normally he also needed some time alone. A quiet place where his mind could wander, and where he eventually could let go of all the never ending clattering in his head.

One would say that the valley of the Imladris was the perfect place to unwind, but Thorin had kept his eldest nephew busy enough by barking around various orders. After a dreadful dinner with the elves, which had dragged on and on for hours, Fíli also had to endure all the impolite remarks the others made about the food, their hosts and the music that had been provided. Though not all had been the prince’s taste too, his amad had taught him to respect other cultures, even if it concerned elves. He knew Thorin and Kíli must have felt the same, but somehow they handled it a lot better than the golden lion did.

No, for now he had enough of the quest. And for the first time since he had left home, he longed for the blue mountains.

The golden lion had been lying on the grass for ages when soft, musical sounds reached his attention. Fíli pushed himself up his elbows and listened. The melody was gentle and light, but in that softness he found a profundity that touched his heart. A shiver went down his spine and the prince rubbed his arms. To him, the music spoke of gratitude and hope, but also of loss and a deep sorrow that time cannot mend. Fíli bit on his lip and without thinking further, got up on his feet and moved towards the source of the music.

She was absolutely the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. Though she was quite short for an elf, she had this long H/C hair that framed her fair face and flowed over her shoulders up to her hips. Her purple dress was typical elvish: simple and majestic. Her eyes were closed as she swayed along with the melody she was playing. Fíli could have stayed hidden behind the trees forever, watching her skilled, long fingers play -no it was more a kind of caress- the violin, but his morals made him step into the clearing and thus make himself known.

Not that that she gave any inclination that she noticed his presence. Fíli stood there for a few moments and when he was about to clear his throat, when…

‘Oh, hello.’ She greeted him with a small curtsey and the music stopped.

‘Good evening, fair lady.’ The prince said. ‘I came to thank you for playing such a beautiful composition.’

‘I called it the Redeemer. It’s about hope and kindness.’

‘And about a great loss.’ Fíli added breathlessly. ‘Something time can’t mend.’

A faint smile appeared on her face. ‘You’re being too kind, master dwarf. My father said that your comrades didn’t seem to appreciate our musical arts during dinner and that he doubts if he can endure such insolence again.’

Oh, this again.

Fíli grimaced. ‘Please let me apologize for my comrades’ behavior. They don’t always appreciate the gentle things life has to offer.’

She inclined her head. ‘And you do?’

The prince shrugged. ‘I think I do, but how would I know? I mean, if one doesn’t have the ability to observe those things, one cannot appreciate them anyway. I think we all lack some perspective in a way, but that blindness doesn’t mean that the things we miss are not worthy of our attention.’

Her E/C eyes flashed with a passion he had not seen in an elf before and Fíli felt a tingly sensation in his stomach.

‘You’re different than the others.’ she said. ‘Why is that?’

The golden lion smirked. ‘You’re awfully inquisitive for someone who doesn’t even know my name.’

‘You are Fíli, son of Víli and Dís.’ She told him. ‘You are a prince of Durin and you’ve been invited by your uncle Thorin Oakenshield to join the quest to retrieve your homeland.’

‘Fine.’ He smiled. ‘You do know who I am. But can I at least know who you are in return?’

She nodded slowly. ‘You may. I am Y/N, youngest daughter of Elrond and Celebrían.’

‘Ah, an highborn elf.’ Fíli mused. ‘Sister of Elladan, Elrohir and Arwen.’

She gave him a knowing look, but somehow decided that she would not pursue the matter. Instead, she strolled towards the other end of the clearing and just when she was about to disappear behind the trees, she called.

‘Will you join me for a walk in the moonlight, prince Fíli?’

The golden lion cocked a brow. ‘I could.’

The night was passing more swiftly than they both liked to admit. First they had strolled through the garden where Y/N had showed him her favorite flowers. Then they admired the same fountains where Fíli had enjoyed a good bath earlier that day and when he told Y/N about it, she confessed she had seen them bathing. When they finally settled down next to a small runlet and she tentatively laid her head on his lap, Fíli knew something for sure.

Not only was she the most gorgeous lady he had ever encountered, her mind was even more beautiful. She was wise and kind, proud of her heritage, but unlike others she could see past that pride. She was clearly an intelligent creature, her imagination like a wild horse that does not like to be tamed. She possessed a moral compass and her view on life and the universe was intriguing. Fíli found himself hanging on her every word, and though some part of him found it ridiculous (she was an elf, after all), he couldn’t help but wanting to know more about her.

Something clicked. Something filled all the empty parts of his soul that he did not know he had missed before. Upon realizing that, he suddenly understood something very important. He had been looking for someone like her all his life, for she was his One.

‘I think my kin can be horribly distant and cold.’ She was telling him quietly. ‘Like they’re not a part of this world. But they are wrong about that-’

‘You are so beautiful, amrâlimê.’ Fíli whispered, his left hand slightly trembling as he brushed it through her hair. ‘Body and soul…’

‘What?’ she breathed, barely audible.

He purred and brushed his fingers over her pronounced cheekbones. ‘You heard me.’

She blushed gracefully. ‘Fíli…’

‘I’m merely stating that what I feel.’ The prince told her as he slightly bent over her.

‘So soon?’ she mumbled, her gaze flashing up and locking with his. ‘How can one be sure…?’

The golden lion smiled brightly. ‘You lot have thousands of years to figure things out. As a dwarf, I can’t afford the luxury of endless time. We know how fickle life can be, that’s why we act certain and swiftly.’

‘That must be so fulfilling…’ she said softly. ‘Living life to the fullest. Enjoying every moment, because you know you’re alive.’

‘It is.’ The prince promised. ‘Of course there’s sorrow and pain. But at least we have love, burning bright in our hearts, joy and laughter in between.’

They both fell quiet. Y/N lifted her head from his lap and rose, only to curl up on his lap once more. If she moved forward, her lips could kiss his forehead. Fíli gazed slightly up. His eyes darted along her exposed neck before he got lost in her beautiful E/C eyes. Y/N’s mouth opened slightly and her tongue wetted her lips, causing Fíli to groan.

Mahal save his soul.

He would lose his sanity if he had to continue staring (and doing nothing!) at her like this. With a strangled cry he surged forward, his mouth greedily taking in the soft flesh of her neck. She smelled as sweet as a flower. Her skin was hot under his touch, like the rocks in the wild feel when they have been baking in the sun the whole day. Y/N moaned, her hands reaching out and fingers digging in his clothing. He knew she felt the same way as he did and it was only a matter of time before she was his.

‘You are so perfect.’ She breathed when the prince kissed his way up to her jaw. ‘How is it- ah!- possible you exist?’

‘So soon?’ he teased with a smirk, lazily trailing over her jawbone. ‘How can one be sure?’

She laughed and it was the most beautiful thing he ever heard. Not even her violin could match that. That’s why her kiss that followed, took him by surprise. But the shock quickly died out, as it was a most welcome surprise.

‘Come with me.’ He begged against her lips. ‘Please.’

A soft gasp. Her cheeks flushed again. ‘I can’t.’

‘Can’t or won’t?’ he pressed.

‘We’re so different, you and I.’ she stated. ‘I don’t think your uncle would approve of an elf no less, tagging along. And my father-’

‘Oh live a little, you pointy ears.’ He jested while his thumb caressed her cheek.

‘Think a little, master dwarf.’ She grinned.

‘So we’re at a stalemate, huh.’ Fíli remarked. He didn’t want to admit it just yet, but the thought of leaving her behind was just horrible. How could he ever? He just found her!

She heaved a sigh. ‘I…’

‘No, I won’t ask such a thing of you.’ Fíli decided. ‘But then… I need to know if you will wait for me.’ he told her, his voice slightly trembling. ‘Here. In Rivendell. I swear to Mahal I’ll come back to you.’

‘Oh Fíli…’ Her eyes were swelling with emotion. ‘If you want to swear on anything…’ she breathed, reaching for the hem of his tunic. ‘Then swear on me.’

He was going to die.

The hateful, pale orc had him firmly in his grip. Fíli was swinging in the air, like a ragdoll, when Azog taunted Thorin Oakenshield with his latest catch. Fíli could see the hurt in his uncle’s eyes, the regret. Uncle would blame himself for the rest of his days for ordering his nephew to search the lower levels. But it didn’t matter. Fíli knew Thorin could not have known that he and Kíli were walking down a trap. Uncle wasn’t to blame. The piece of shit that was about to kill him, was.

The blade that stuck from the filths’ right arm came into view and Fíli knew that this was the end. He braced himself and managed to scream a harsh ‘RUN!’ to his kin. If he had to die to save the others, he would do it in a heartbeat.

His life flashed before his eyes. Amad, Kíli, uncle. Growing up in the blue mountains, causing mayhem whenever he and Kíli went. Amad at her wits’ end, uncle Thorin acting stern, but somehow always smiling too. Fighting lessons from Dwalin. Balin boring them to death with administrative tasks. The gullible but also sassy Bilbo Baggins, who turned out to be more resilient than anyone had thought.

Then her face came into view and Fíli smiled faintly. Y/N. If he had to regret one choice in life, it was that he had not taken her with him. She would have loved the wild and he would have loved to watch her discover the real world. On the other hand, now she didn’t have to witness him dying. But what would she do if the news finally would reach her? He had made a promise…

The blade moved. But somehow it never protruded his back, nor did it slit his throat…

First, there was a whistling sound which Fíli recognized as another blade, a small one. His favorite blade, to be exact. The one everyone underestimated, because it was small, but it was swift too and could move unseen.

Though that wasn’t possible, because he gave it to Y/N, before departing from Rivendell. It had been a promise, not made by prince Fíli, son of Víli, but by his own soul.

A howling sound followed and Fíli smacked on the ground. He growled in pain and rolled to his side. In a blur, he saw a slim figure jumping on the pale orcs’ back, screaming something he could not comprehend. His dagger was penetrating the orc’s right arm. The wound bled viciously, but Azog was accustomed to pain and reached for the elf.

Fíli saw a flash of H/C hair and his stomach turned. Then he gritted his teeth, got two of his knives and went for the orc’s feet.

‘Don’t you dare to die on me, you reckless dwarf!’ someone hissed. ‘I did not leave Rivendell only to bury you.’

‘I won’t.’ he murmured before opening his eyes.

He was lying in a soft bed, by the looks of it in a hastily set up infirmary in Erebor. Around him, injured dwarves, elves and men occupied the other beds. Y/N was sitting next to him, her hand grasping his. Her thumb stroked lovingly over his wrist. Mahal, she was here. It hadn’t been a dream.

‘How…?’ he managed to ask, eyes brimming with emotion.

‘Sssh.’ She hushed softly.

‘But…’

‘You liberated me, prince Fíli.’ She said quietly. ‘From a beautiful, yet shallow life. How could I not have come after you?’

‘You promised to wait.’ He said. ‘I would have come back. Didn’t you trust me?’

‘Of course I knew you would, but I was fed up waiting for something to happen. I’ve done that for far too long.’ she told him. ‘It was like you said. The world is out here, with you. I wanted to tell you that before you would…’ she fell silent.

‘Before what?’ the prince nudged.

She shook her head. ‘I feared you would forget about me.’

‘Oh, amrâlimê!’ He carefully got up and ignored her judgmental looks. ‘I’ve got this.’ He huffed. ‘I want to kiss these stubborn pointy ears, that’s all.’

‘You could have asked, you know.’ She smiled, while pushing him gently backwards against the cushions. ‘I’ll gladly assist.’

‘How could I ever forget about you?’ The prince inquired softly, moving his hands to cup her cheeks. ‘You are my One and I love you.’

She bit her lip and grinned. ‘You forgot to mention I saved you, reckless dwarf.’

‘That too.’ He chuckled and then grimaced in pain. ‘You saved my life.’

She hummed, lips brushing over his. ‘Are you going to kiss me or not?’

‘One thing, Y/N…’ he breathed. ‘Will you save me from being a reckless dwarf and make me the luckiest dwarf in middle earth instead?’

She blinked. ‘How?’

‘Well…’ he grinned. ‘By marrying me…’

Thank you so much for reading my humble story. Feedback is always welcome. Did you like my work? Spread the love and reblog! :) And here’s my Masterlist.

#fili #fili x reader #fili x you #fili fanfiction #fili request #the hobbit #the hobbit fanfiction #fili x elf!reader #I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED #fluff #and more fluff

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hazylucas · 5 years

Text

our last dance

pairing: johnny x reader

genre: fluff & extreme angst, pls don’t cry

author’s note: inspired by peggy and captain america’s scene in endgame :(

please listen to this as you read to get the full experience of the story!

It had been ages since you last saw him. The brunette boy with the blinding smile who had taken your heart and kept it with him ever since he left to serve for the war.

Johnny would send you letters once every two months, tied with an old cotton string and a memoir of the battlefield. One time it had been an orange poppy that he had picked just for you when he was fighting the Nazis. Another month it was a silver bullet that he had found while hiding in the trenches. You held onto each one of them because they were the only things that reminded you of him. The only things that reminded you of the way his eyes shone when you told him about the new book you read or the way he held your hand spontaneously.

After an entire year full of loneliness, the letters stopped arriving. You knew he was gone, far before the telegram arrived at your house expressing its condolences. He had been shot in the head after a raid in the trenches. He was a fighter though. This you knew. The telegram said that he had struggled between the line of light and darkness for two days because he wanted to live to see you again. But life is unfair and his light went out.

After the war finally ended, you had gone with your best friend to retrieve her love. She got to be the lucky one. You waited on the station’ ledge, watching her giggle in joy when her boyfriend picked her up in his strong arms and kissed her with all of his might. You wondered how Johnny would look if he got off that train. He would stand tall, cap in his hand, searching for you in the crowd. His glittering eyes would finally meet yours and he would run to you and hold you in his arms tight until both of you were out of breath. And you would finally be home.

When you returned home with glistening eyes, you felt an overwhelming feeling of abandonment lingering in your heart. You missed him. Too much for your own good.

You would still look for him in the corners of your house, waiting for a sign that he possibly might still be alive. That the telegram was simply a mistake. But the house stayed empty. And your heart numbed.

----2 years later----

You sat at your wooden desk as the lantern shone a dim light upon your paper. You tried writing out everything you could remember of Johnny. Your memory of him was fading and you couldn’t possibly let that happen. He was the only source of happiness that once existed in your life. After his death, the only place where you could hold on to him was your dreams. You would never forgive yourself if you had forgotten him.

As you got up to sharpen your pencil, you noticed a shadow in the corner of your room.

How could it be?

“Johnny?”

“It’s been a while mi amor.”

You couldn’t help but sob as you ran up to him and held him with your entire being. He still smelled like French desserts and musky cologne.

“Shhhh, shhh. Don’t cry, my love.”

“But... How could this be? I saw the telegram.. I saw-”

“I know, I know. My love, I came back to see you one last time.” “You’re dead?”

“Yes, my love. I’m sorry.”

Your heart ached inside your body. A part of you wished that he had returned for good and the both of you could finally be lovers again. But he was only a faded spirit who had returned from heaven to see you one more time. As you looked up, Johnny wiped your tears and kissed your forehead. You had forgotten how beautiful it was to be loved.

“There was one thing that I had promised you before I left for war. Do you remember what it was?”

“No, what was it?”

“I still haven’t gotten a dance with you yet.”

You giggled through your tears as you recalled the fond memory of when you both sat underneath the stars, confessing your secrets and dreams. He told you that he wanted to take you out and go dancing at a club. You had always wanted to go, but your parents forbid you.

--- Flashback---

“Let’s go dancing one day.”

“Really?” “Of course, isn’t that what all of the couples do these days?” “Johnny, my parents will kill me.”

“Don’t worry mi amor, they love me anyway.”

“When should we go?”

“When I come back after the war, the first thing I’ll do is take you to the stork club. And we’ll dance like there’s no tomorrow.”

“Johnny, you can’t dance, remember?”

“You can teach me.”

“Pinky-promise?”

“I promise with my entire heart.”

----- End of Flashback-----

Johnny let go of you as he walked towards the radio. After searching through a few channels, he found a slow jazz song perfect for the both of you.

“Is this ok?” “It’s perfect.”

He brought his hands down to your waist as you held onto the back of his neck. You began slowly moving side to side, trying to follow the beat. Johnny accidentally steps on you and after a few giggles, begins following your rhythm. You looked up into his eyes and you could swear that you saw the entire galaxy in them. The way that his body fit around yours was art. At that moment, it was if the entire world revolved around both of you. A pair of hopeless lovers who wanted nothing but to be with one another. As tears welled up in your eyes, Johnny held onto the back of your neck, laying it in the crook of his neck. The jazz music continued in the background, yet all you could hear was the steady beat of his heart. And you couldn’t even believe that he wasn’t alive.

You wished you could stay in this moment forever. Holding each other like nothing else existed in the world but the two of you. But life didn’t work that way.

“Johnny?” “Yes, mi amor?”

“I miss you. So much.”

“I miss you too my love. When I got shot with that bullet, all I prayed at the doctor’s office was that I would live so that I could get to see you again.”

“How will I live without you?” “You have me in your heart, always. Don’t forget that. I’ll always be by your side.”

“I love you.”

“I love you the most.”

The song came to a halt after what felt like years dancing with Johnny. And your heart broke once again because you knew that Johnny had to leave once again. But this time, he wasn’t coming back.

As your knees sank to the floor and tears wouldn’t stop streaming down your cheeks, Johnny sat next to you, holding your hand. Both of you knew that this was the way that life was. Death was a finale that you could not escape from. No matter how strong your love was for a person or how pure they were, death was inevitable. But you still found yourself praying to God that Johnny would never leave. Both of you sat in silence, holding one another in your arms. But you didn’t need words when both of you could read each other’s thoughts.

“Johnny?”

“Hmm?”

“I love you. Thank you for being a part of my life.”

“It was my honor, mi amor. I’m sorry for leaving you early.”

“It wasn’t your fault. I’m always going to think of you till the end of time.”

“I will too. Don’t worry about me too much. In fact, now you have more time. I know how much you wanted to publish a book. Why not do it now?”

“I don’t want to anymore.”

“Mi amor, if you love me, you will write that book. Pinky-promise?” “Alright, I promise. Johnny?

“Hmm?”

“You will forever be the only love of my life.”

“Mi amor, the amount of love I have for you is endless. This is not the end, we’ll meet again soon. But now, I think it’s time for me to go. God can’t be waiting too long, can he?”

You hugged him one more time and held on for as long as you possibly could, trying to hold on to his scent so that you wouldn’t forget it until the world ended. When you finally let go, he kissed your forehead and wiped the remaining tears staining your cheek. You kissed him one last time, cherishing the affection and love that poured out of his soul.

He gave one last blinding smile that warmed your heart and as he mouthed the three letter phrase, “i love you,” he began fading into the air. You wanted to hold on to him one more time, tell him about all of the years that he missed, and how much you loved him. But time was precious and limited. All you knew was that he had given you his entire soul when he was alive. And you had given him your loyalty. Only you two and the galaxy knew how much love the both of you had for each other.

The world was unfair. It hadn’t given you enough time with Johnny. But you were grateful for the amount of time that it did give for the both of you. You couldn’t have thanked God enough for blessing you two by being each other’s lovers. Johnny’ s love was immortal and infinite. It was pure and kind and you wished that you could have embodied into something physical. But his memory was just enough. And as the nights turned to days and months turned to years, you finally returned to Johnny.

And that was home.

The End.

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sidon-reader-support · 5 years

Note

Sidon and his s/o makes wishes in The Bank of wishes. And when sidon question his s/o what wishes they made, s/o just blush. Maybe in a scenario form? Thanks

(It’s been a very long time, but I’m finally getting through all the old ones which means I get to complete this little beauty~ It’s always a delight to explore Sidon when he’s not being a lovable ball of sunshine, and expanding on the stories of the world~ Enjoy!~)

Bank Of Wishes

Word Count: 1615

“Prince Sidon, we’ve prepared some dishes for you to sample.”

“Prince Sidon, could you take a look at the seating arrangements?”

“Prince Sidon, shall we go with red or blue?”

The Zora Prince groans as he traverses the halls of the castle, finally getting a break from the commotion downstairs. A few months have come to pass since the fall of Calamity Ganon and the lands were beginning to recover and rekindle their ties with neighboring towns. Trading routes were restored, friendships were ignited, villages were working together to rebuild broken walls, and so much more. Life was flourishing now that the land had been wiped clean of the scourge that had hung over it for so many years.

In this new age of peace and prosperity, it was time for the five major cities to reunite and celebrate while also discussing what was next for Hyrule. The Zora Kingdom had the greatest honor to be the holding place of the first of these meeting parties. A conference of elected representatives from each of these major cities was to conspire upstairs, they would discuss the matter of Vah Ruta and the other Divine Beasts in need of new pilots. Once political matters had been dealt with, a great feast in the was to conspire followed by dancing and true celebrations for this great victory.

This grand party was all that anyone in the Domain could think of, each wanting to show of the greatness of the Zora, dazzling their guests with their spectacular architecture and rich history. Of course Prince Sidon was excited to welcome such important officials, as well as dear friends, to his homeland but the assault of questions and concerns from his people in preparation for the visit had put a damper on his mood. Too many questions, too many things to do. He had barely any time left to dedicate to the most important person in his life: you.

For the past few days, it had been all about planning, planning, planning. Rushing back and forth, only seeing you in quick glimpses in the halls and everytime he would try to stop and say something about anything other than the meeting before he was dragged away again. You said that it was fine, that you were okay sitting back and that you wanted to help in any way that you could. All Sidon really wanted to do was hold you close to get away from all the hustle and bustle and just relax with you. Even though you denied it, he knew you well enough to tell that you missed his company just as much as he missed your’s. Now he finally has a moment to spare and he can’t seem to find you anywhere around the domain.

Figuring that maybe you had gone on a stroll, the prince decided to go for a swim in hopes that maybe he would see you somewhere along the winding path. Following the stream, the Zora feels almost every inch of his body relax in the familiar embrace of the water. A good swim always eased his nerves, but he couldn’t allow himself to get completely lost in the current as he was still on a mission.

Breaching the water at points where it ran right up against the path Sidon tried to look for any sign of you before diving back in. Repeating this process a few more times, he kept searching until he came upon the Inogo Bridge that marked to true exit from the domain. Surely you wouldn’t have walked that far, he must’ve missed you further in the trees.

Sidon let out a grin of frustration, he had combed the entire river yet he was still no closer to finding you. All this time spent searching was time he could’ve held beloved and tell them how much he treasured their presence in his life. The Zora sighs, submerging his body into the water with only the top of his head resting at the top looking out at the bridge wondering if he stayed here long enough his people would forget about him. No doubt if he were to return now he would just be pulled right back into the organized chaos that was plaguing the palace. Perhaps they wouldn’t even wait for him to return, they might send people to come and retrieve him to sample the food once again. Closing his eyes Sidon tried to relax and enjoy the moment of silence he had been given before it was gone.

Tink! T-Tink!

Sidon perks up, surveying the rice before him for the source of the noise. His eyes fell upon the small glass bottle that had managed to drift right by and collide with the stone protruding from the water’s surface. With furrowed brows Sidon waded over to the bottle, looking around for the culprit who had decided to discard such a thing into the clean waters when he noticed something. Upon closer inspection the Zora could see that there was a piece of parchment rolled up inside of it. A note in a bottle drifting down Zora river?

Taking the bottle into his grasp he perched himself on top of the rock turning it over carefully. Curiosity urged him to pop off the cork and get to the bottom of this mystery message he had stumbled upon. But his more sensible side tells him to just put it back in the water, it might be something personal that was not meant for his prying eyes. He didn’t know who it was from, where it was going, or what was in it and that made him all the or interested in figuring out.

Normally, he was strongly against invading people’s personal lives but a tiny bottle floating down a river in plain sight wasn’t the best way to maintain privacy. Sidon tried to make himself release the message back to the waves and continue to its intended destination. Curiosity eventually won the battle in his mind and he carefully pulled the cork to free the parchment. Just one peek! If it was anything personal he would put it right back and forget ever seeing it.

Sidon set the bottle carefully on the rock’s surface, placing the cork right beside it. Slowly, he begins unspooling the parchment just enough to see the first line.

“Dear Water Fairy,”

Well he wasn’t expecting that. The Water Fairy was a folktale that his people had attached to the bank just a little ways up stream. If you wrote down your deepest desires on a letter and sent it down the river it might make its way to the Water fairy. She would read the letter and if she felt it was full of love then she would make it come true. Typically young hatchlings were the ones who believed in the Water Fairy, but even adults would visit with their hearts in bottles hoping to have their prayers answered.

Now here Sidon was poking about for his own pleasure, like he is reading a book he plucked straight from the shelves of the library. The penmanship certainly did not befit that of a hatchling, in fact, it looked rather familiar to him though he couldn’t place why. Intrigued he continued on, unveiling more of the letter.

“I don’t think you know me, I’m not really from around here so I’m not sure if you’ll even see this. But there’s no rule that says it has to be the wish of a Zora, so if you don’t mind sparing a moment to read this here’s my wish. There’s someone that I love. He’s the strongest, kindest, sweetest person that I’ve ever met. His touch is like the gentlest rain kissing my skin, his eyes are pools of joy and wonder, and his smile is brighter than the sun itself assuring the earth that it will always shine again when it leaves. He’s amazing, I know he could take on the entire world if he wanted to but right now he’s struggling.”

“I only see him in passing nowadays and though he is smiling the beams of light have dimmed under the shadow of his obligation to his people. He was excited more than anyone to be able to show Hyrule the capability of the Zora and even more so himself. This was a chance for him to prove that “Prince” was not just a title given to him at birth. He had earned it and he wanted to wear it proudly to all, but the preparations for this have taken their toll. I don’t have much to my name but I’d give it all if it meant I could drive the clouds away and let the sun shine again.”

“I’ve tried helping everyone set up, cleaning and delivering things from place to place, but it doesn’t feel like enough. So please if you can find it in your great being, grant this poor soul their wish: Help me, help my partner be at ease again. Help me, help Sidon.”

“From my heart and soul…”

A drop splattered the parchment paper smudging your name, but it was unmistakably your’s. Sidon turned away rubbing at his eye with one hand while the other tried not to crumble this work of art. Guilt, sorrow, and an overwhelming feeling of joy that made his heart flutter flooded the Zora.

This whole time while he was worrying about not having a single moment to spare, exhausted beyond compare, you were there supporting him every step of the way. You were only worried about his well-being during this trying time, you knew he could do it.

You believed in him.

#ficlet #sidon ficlet #botw ficlet #sidon #prince sidon #botw #breath of the wild

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sparda3g · 5 years

Text

Kimetsu no Yaiba Chapter 176 Review

youtube

The anime season is over, but there’s a movie on the horizon. It’s an interesting choice for the studio to take for it will be the arc that anime only fans will never forget. Memory can last forever and Kokushibo can prove it. This sole battle in the manga has been brutal, bloody, and badass. With Kokushibo’s head destroyed, is it truly over? End or not, what a battle to remember.

With the past two chapters of Kokushibo remembering his time with Yorichi that shaped his life to this day, it’s time for more insightful look on his feelings towards his younger brother. I know it’s really early to call, but I did assume this would lead to his demise. I was not technically wrong, but the chills; more on it later. Although Yorichi anticipated the new generation to surpass them, the ideal and the sight of his smile have disturbed Kokushibo dearly, past and present.

He couldn’t stomach his “optimism;” truly believed his generation was the peak and nothing will surpass them. His egotistical nature resurfaced once more, proving his stubbornness to admit the possibilities. It plays a huge role towards this battle for it will be the deciding factor to his recovery. He takes one last look on Pillars and their prowess; giving his overview that only boast his ego to continuously deny Yorichi.

You have Tokito, refusing to let go of his sword, even without his lower half body. It’s madness, but bless his soul to even fight to the very end. You have Genya, who was a human that used Demon Art. Kudos to him to use it that essentially became part of a game changer. You have Sanemi, who refused to give up. A character that I didn’t expect to stick to the Shounen’s code, but welcoming for sure. Lastly, you have Himejima, who surpassed the limitation of your average human; comparable to demon, which is in some ways, a compliment. This overview allowed me to reevaluate each character and pay great amount of respect for their amazing efforts.

The biggest question going into the chapter is, is Kokushibo finally dead? The more I read his lines from the start, the more it was beginning to lean “no,” and it bothered me badly. Akaza had a strong will to fight in which ultimately grant him a second wind. Doma had no purpose, so he had nothing to strive back to recover. Kokushibo’s ego was too solid to break down; refusing to submit to defeat. His resolve was growing strong as well. Once he is determined to win, even without a head, the answer is decided: second wind inbound. Honestly, it was absolute bone-chilling when he started to move, let alone his words left me shaken up. In short, shit!

It’s a heart-racing event with the battle resume; got me on the edge of my seat. Himejima tells Sanemi they must go for broke; spam the hell out of their attacks until he dies. Above all, don’t let Tokito and Genya’s sacrifice go in vain. Sanemi’s tears actually hits me. He truly has it hard. He’s trying his hardest to kill his enemy and keep his closed ones safe. Honestly, he didn’t deserve this. I wish anime only fans know this.

I don’t really know if Genya is truly dead, but if he is, that’s just cruel. Same for Tokito. It’s crazy because they’re new generations so to say, yet Sanemi outlives both. New generation? What’s that? True, there’s only one Mist Pillar, but he was young. To make the matter sickening, Kokushibo even cuts his arm off to release him. Was that really necessary?! I know he did it to remove the sword, but…Stop it! He’s already dead!

It’s all or nothing in this bone-chilling sensation. Himejima and Sanemi have to spam attacks with every ounce of strength left. It’s like playing a game that prompts you to tap rapidly, or use all commands to kill the boss. It’s damn crazy. Even with the spamming, Kokushibo is slowly recovering. Then, he grows a new head. God hates Pillars. While I’m referencing video games, his head growth can be described with two letters: GG. Aside of references, this was gut-wrenching.

The design of Kokushibo’s newly formed body is sickening; I really like it. It gives me that feeling of a horror game, where the boss has a transformation, and so, you have to spray and pray. Actually, I hate that feeling. It’s a nightmare when you have to fight them with limited resources. It won’t stop them from spamming. All they can think about is, “Die! Die! Die!” Okay, I’m done referencing. This would mean a new round of battle has begun; that is until Kokushibo sees the sight he needed to see for the longest time.

I really like when the story uses the reflection or mirror for the character to see themselves. It could mean true feelings, a life of what could have been, or in this case, an image of their ugly self. Kokushibo sees himself in the reflection of Sanemi’s sword; now realized how ugly he has become. The reflection of Kid Yorichi emerge in his head, wanted to be like him. It’s a touching moment that made the moment of tears all the more tragic. Yorichi had looked up to his older brother, a role model. He even dreamt to be the second best Samurai in the country. Kokushibo, what have you done?

In the most uplifting turnaround so far, Tokito’s Red Blade’s effect finally kicks in, disintegrating his body from the wounded area. It’s pretty poetic since the Red Blade represents the Sun Breathing alas Yorichi. With the memory of his younger brother and the recollection of the time where he couldn’t finish the job, it’s all coming back to full circle. It’s even better with Kokushibo’s dwindling recovery due to mix of the effect and his sense of morality. It’s the ultimate package of defeat, and it’s not without a great (possible) closure to his character.

When it all comes down to why Kokushibo became a demon, it all boils down to desperation. Not knowing his consequences, he thought he was in the righteous path to superiority, but the reality is, he discarded everything, including his honor. Forgetting what it truly means to be a Samurai; now realizing he no longer carries the same mantle as his time as a human. The body begins to rot, remembering the one thing that set him to this path: to become like Yorichi, his younger brother. This was just touching.

I have to admit, I actually drew sympathy towards him as he was slowly loses himself and questions everything about his image. You can sense his ego got the worst of him and not realizing how far he has betrayed his once pride and joy. It’s ironic and sad. It reminds me of a series where the character hasn’t realized until the last moment before the end how low he has become; tragic and painful. Kokushibo was disgraceful but relatable. People can forget where they came from, even when they believe they’re in the path they have chosen. It’s a sad story that could have been avoided but what’s done is done.

The last words is a sentimental parallel to Kid Yorichi’s wish. They both looked up to each other, yet fate separated them from each other. I’m almost glad Yorichi didn’t kill Kokushibo. He leans more towards to Akaza than Doma in terms of attachment, and I’m glad to be the case. It’s a sad brotherhood story all in all, and this tends to hit me in the feels dearly.

It goes without saying, this was a pretty tensed chapter. The action heated up tremendously, only for the emotion to turn up as well. The tension got me racing. The sequence was intense. Still not sure about causalities, but I’m ready to accept it. I think. At last, this was a great swan song for Kokushibo if he were to end here. It’s possible for one more thing left to cover before closing this battle. It’s only matter of time before returning to Upper Moon 4 and the final boss.

#demon slayer #kimetsu no yaiba #chapter 176 #review #spoilers

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martisxladyshura · 5 years

Text

A Chance Dance: A Tale of Friendship Between Two Lost Souls

Notes:

1. "City of Stars" is, of course, taken from the La La Land OST.

2. Cover art by me

*******

City of stars...

Are you shining just for me?

The hall of the once resplendent fortress was littered with broken, rotten furniture and ripped paintings, all veiled under thick layer of dust and cobwebs. The small, eerily green flames on each post that circled the room barely lit the area. Critters crawled to and fro the cracks on the walls.

On a fallen pillar near the entryway sat a restless Lady Shura, her golden eyes wide with curiosity as she tried to catch as much detail of the place as she could. Her beautiful white and silver dress, complimented by jewelry of the same color, stood out against the darkness enveloping the whole castle.

Leomord stood in attention a few feet from her. The cursed knight wore light vestments but still carried his sword, the Oath Keeper, in its sheath. He was ordered by Queen Vexana to keep an eye on the Ashura King's companion as they had important matters to discuss.

Martis owed the Necromancer Queen nothing for bringing Lady Shura back to the mortal realm as he had paid his dues with the Wings of the Apocalypse Queen, which he reaped with his blades when the seductress tried to work her spells on him (from what he heard, the Vampire Queen has since grown them back). He hated dealing with demons as he was used to killing them, and he held disdain for magic as the Shura saw it as a cheap trick the weak use in the absence of true fighting prowess. But Vexana claimed Lady Shura's reformed body needs constant upkeep that was not part of their original deal. Thus he had to at least consider the queen's whims if he wanted to keep his woman alive.

Unbeknownst to the two rulers, their subordinates had met a few times in the planes between life and death. Before her revival, Lady Shura held dominion over the underworld, harvesting the souls of warriors that met their end at the hands of the Ashura King to amplify his abilities. Mysteriously, after his dark resurrection, Leomord found himself in her domain the few times he fell asleep and dreamed.

During their time in the middle plane, the two lost souls spoke of their lives above ground, though Leomord carefully omitted disdainful parts such as killing himself, fighting for the Abyss, and murdering the innocent in the name of his Queen.

This was their first time meeting in the mortal realm.

"So... this is where you live..." There was concern in Lady Shura's voice as she continued to look around, trying to find something good to say about the place. "It's... um... quite massive. It must have looked incredible."

"It did." Leomord remained stoic as he spoke in a low tone, his voice having acquired a cold, metallic reverb after he was summoned back from the dead. "You should have seen this place in its glory, especially this hall. This used to be a ballroom. Every week, the king and queen held massive celebrations just to entertain the people. Royalties from all over the land would come in their best, most flamboyant attire. Everything and everyone was a spectacle of dancing colors."

Memories suddenly flooded Leomord's mind. He had not thought of the time before the fall of the kingdom since his reawakening. They felt like a distant dream, a different lifetime.

He bowed his head and closed his eyes as he recalled his boyhood.

"I had many foolish fantasies when I was still a squire. I dreamed of being a brave and gallant knight that would go on unbelievable adventures, saving beautiful ladies in distress from vile creatures, being hailed as the greatest hero of my kingdom, then finally meeting and falling in love with the most beautiful princess in this very hall."

"Really?" Lady Shura leaned a bit towards where he stood, her interest piqued.

A weary smile broke across Leomord's face. He looked up and stared far into the empty hall. "I imagined the crowd parting and there she would be... my beautiful, enigmatic future bride from a far away kingdom. I would charm and dance with her throughout the night. She would find me irresistible. But then her father would require proof of my valor. I would have to complete impossible tasks to win the fair maiden's hand in marriage."

"That sounds so romantic!" Lady Shura swooned.

Leomord chuckled.

"Romantic and foolish. I secretly practiced dancing during my free time to prepare for the day. But being a knight is far more taxing than what I had envisioned in my youth." He let out a sigh. "Protecting this kingdom and its people took precedence over my ego and fantasies, and it is no easy task." He rubbed the back of his neck, remembering how tired he would be by the end of each day. "Honestly, by the time I was finally honored with this post, all I wanted was to come home to a wife who will feed me and massage my aching body to sleep."

Lady Shura's smile waned a little. "A small cottage with a beautiful garden to greet you as you entered the home."

"A warm dinner."

"Children running to meet and pester you for stories of your gallant exploit."

"Yes."

Silence fell between the two. Melancholy filled the thick air.

"It's cruel that the world would deny such simple dreams." Lady Shura ran her hand around her neck. Martis may not have required her collar today, but the feeling of its tightness lingered.

"Such is the will of fate." Leomord's stoic and cold demeanor returned.

They remained quiet for a while. Lady Shura looked at Leomord, studying her friend as he stood completely still, not a hair from him moving.

"You know... No one has ever asked me to dance before." Lady Shura confessed.

"I find that hard to believe, my lady." Leomord spoke, still looking at the empty hall. "You are a very lovely woman. Only a fool would pass up the chance."

"Not when your hometown believes you to be the wicked witch of the forest." Lady Shura laughed uncomfortably. "The Shura Clan may not be warmest people, but at least I'm safe from being stoned and whipped to death. Again.”

Leomord turned to face her. "Not even the Ashura King has danced with you?"

Lady Shura raised a brow. Sarcasm was written all over her face. "Does he look like someone who dances? I am happy to be by the king's side but the man has no romantic bone in his body."

She folded her arms tightly and puffed out her chest. She furrowed her brows, crossed her eyes and shook her head mockingly as she spoke in the deepest tone she could muster. "You and your foolish fancies, woman! I only fight fight fight fight fight fight!”

Leomord tried but failed to stifle his laugh at her impression. She giggled at her silliness.

She took another look around the hall then stood up.

"Dance with me!"

"Huh?"

"Let's see those moves you practiced for your princess!" She teased.

"My lady..." He stammered as she got closer. "I... I don't think our lords would approve." He looked around the hall, checking to see if his queen or her king heard them. He shouldn't even be talking to her.

"Pffft!" Lady Shura brushed off his warning. She leaned to him, keeping her hands behind her back. "They're probably too caught up with their schemes. Come on!"

Leomord gulped as she took his hands and tried to pull him to the dance floor. "My lady, I... I am strongly against this idea."

"Please? Just a quick dance! They won't even know we moved from our spots!"

Leomord furrowed his brows as he stared into her pleading eyes, brilliant and golden despite the dimness of the room.

"Uh... there is no song to dance to..." He pointed out, trying to excuse himself from the situation.

"We'll sing as we dance! You must know some songs!"

"Well..." He wanted to lie, but he answered truthfully, much to his own surprise. "I can still recall 'City of Stars'. Somewhat."

"Oh, I love that song!" Her eyes lit with joy. "I heard it from a bard and couldn't get it out of my head for DAYS!"

Lady Shura continued to egg him on. "We'll sing it together as we dance! Come on!"

She clearly had no physical strength in her, yet Leomord found himself taking a step forward.

He wanted to stop but his other foot followed.

The next thing he knew, she had dragged him to the center of the hall.

He looked at her with uncertainty.

She looked at him with an encouraging smile.

He sighed.

He slowly unstrapped and laid his sword on the ground. He stretched out one hand and carefully wrapped his other arm around Lady Shura's waist, barely touching her with the back of his thumb.

Lady Shura showed no qualms, completely resting her hands and arms on him.

Just being this close to her felt like he was testing fate.

Then again... Only a fool would pass up the chance.

"City of stars, are you shining just for me?"

There was hesitation in his voice, which was barely an audible whisper, as they moved.

"City of stars... There's so much that I can't see.

Who knows?

I felt it from the first embrace I shared with you."

He felt embarrassed but she never took the smile off her lips.

"That now our dreams...

They've finally come true."

Her voice was gentle and unwavering. Slowly, he gained his momentum as she sung.

"City of stars...

Just one thing everybody wants."

Vividly colored memories of the celebrations held in the hall filled his sights, melting his fears and the dreadful scenery surrounding them away.

"It's love...

Yes, all we're looking for is love from someone else"

She giggled at her missteps but Leomord finally took lead, catching her faults and moving her with calm, sure gestures.

"A rush."

"A glance."

"A touch."

"A dance!"

He placed one hand behind his back then raised the other to his side while moving along the hall swiftly. Lady Shura followed, instinctively turning to meet his palm with both of hers alternately. Her dress flowed gracefully as she spun and twirled.

"A look in somebody's eyes...”

His deep voice melded with her gentle tone as they sang together.

“To light up the skies...

To open the world and send it reeling...

A voice that says, 'I'll be here' and 'you'll be alright...'"

He caught her hand, motioned her to spin, pushed her away then pulled her back to him, his hand now boldly pressing against her waist. His moves had conviction as if he danced every day. Lost in their moment, they didn't even notice their voices had gotten louder.

"I don't care if I know just where I will go 'cause all that I need is this crazy feeling...

A rat-tat-tat on my heart..."

He lifted her with one arm. She was light as a feather. He looked up at her with adoration as they spun. She was beaming with joy. The glow in her dress and jewelry reminded him of the magnificent chandeliers that sparkled brilliantly across the room.

"Think I want it to stay..."

He gently lowered her then pulled her close, holding her hands tightly.

"City of stars, are you shining just for me?"

He let her go, gently motioning her away from him.

"City of stars... You never shined so brightly."

The two curtsied in unison, Leomord bowing with one hand over his chest and the other behind his back. Lady Shura knelt slightly lower than him while holding the sides of her skirt, fanning it out.

The two remained still for a moment then looked at each other. Both had warm smiles on their faces.

They stood back up but before they could utter a word to each other, they felt the ground rumble. It was immediately followed by something heavy and sinister breaking through the floor.

A loud snap echoed through the hall.

Lady Shura was thrown to the ground away from Leomord by sheer force. As she was regaining her senses, she felt tight restraints snap around her neck and wrists. She shook her head and looked at her hands.

Both her wrists were wrapped in black shackles on heavy chains. She looked around and realized she was trapped within the Ashura's Teeth.

Meanwhile, before he could react, Leomord felt a strong force hit him on the face. He was sent flying across the room until he hit the wall, causing part of it to cave in.

A hand caught his throat before he could slide off the wall. He felt the force of two heavy blades land very close to his head. Debris flew everywhere.

"TREACHEROUS SNAKE!"

The Ashura King raised Leomord in the air then slammed him with all his might to the floor, which also cracked and caved upon impact.

There was ringing in Leomord's ears and his vision was cloudy. Blood trickled from his head, nose and mouth.

He could hear Lady Shura's muffled scream amidst the noise.

"MARTIS STOP PLEASE -!!!"

Martis held the knight by his hair and was about to deal another blow when a dark force pass through him. He was thrown back then realized he couldn't move.

"ENOUGH!!!" Vexana's voice echoed throughout the hall. She stood in front of the Ashura Teeth, one arm outstretched towards Lady Shura, the other to Martis.

"LET ME GO, NECROMANCER!"

"LAY ANOTHER HAND ON MY CHAMPION AND I WILL TAKE BACK THE LIFE I GAVE YOUR PRECIOUS LITTLE PET!!!"

Martis let out a growl through gritted teeth while Vexana hissed at him. A greenish light emitted from the hand she held in front of Lady Shura, who was kneeling and holding on to the Ashura Teeth like prison bars.

"IT WAS MY IDEA!" There was clear desperation in Lady Shura's voice. "IT WAS MY FAULT! I SHOULDN'T HAVE-"

"QUIET, YOU FILTH!" Vexana snapped.

Leomord slowly regained his faculties. Instead of getting up, he moved to bow on one knee, hanging his head as low as he could.

"Forgive my foolishness, my queen, Ashura King." The coldness in his voice returned. "I had requested the dance out of selfishness. I am at your mercy but let the lady go. I only forced her to indulge my request."

The king's crimson eyes blazed with fury. "YOU DEPRAVED ANIMAL! I WILL -"

"I SAID ENOUGH! HOLD YOUR TONGUES, OR I SWEAR I WILL TURN YOU ALL INTO TOADS AND CRUSH YOU WITH MY FOOT!"

Lady Shura shook her head. She was on the verge of crying.

"I will let you go now, Martis. Do NOT act brashly." Vexana warned. She observed Martis, weighting the chances of him continuing his attack. He grunted but seemed to understand the situation.

The queen removed her hold on him.

Martis clutched his fists, trying to control his impulses. The Ashura Teeth slid back to the ground, returning to the underworld. Lady Shura remained kneeling, her hands on the floor, too afraid to move.

Martis walked towards Leomord, who remained very still, his black hair covering his face completely. The Ashura King loomed over him, disgusted and furious.

"MARTIS!" Vexana increased the energy she held in front of Lady Shura as a warning.

"Tss!" Martis walked towards his ward. "Train your dog to stay away from another man's property, Necromancer!"

"Only if you teach your bed woman to keep her legs closed! Take your whore and leave!"

Lady Shura looked up at her king and meant to explain further, but before she could speak, he picked her up with one arm and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Ow!" The spikes on his clothes and the tight space created by his armor constricted and pierced through Lady Shura's waist. She slapped his back with all her might, which Martis barely felt. "You are a brute!"

As they walked away, Lady Shura looked longingly at Leomord, remorseful for the trouble she put him through.

Martis and the lady's figure slowly disappeared in the darkness. The king's twin swords flew from the wall and followed their master just as they completely vanished.

Sure that they had gone, Vexana turned her attention to Leomord.

"YOU IDIOT! Your actions almost cost me MONTHS of plotting! What was that all about?"

"A lapse of judgment, nothing more. Forgive me, my queen."

"Tsk!" Vexana turned and slowly walked away. "If you do anything to sabotage my plans again, I will curse half the souls of this kingdom to damnation, is that clear?"

"Yes, my queen."

Leomord remained in his position until he could no longer feel the queen's presence.

He felt immense guilt for the elation he felt, knowing Lady Shura, the only friend he had left, would pay a heavy price for the moment they shared.

He swore never to let his emotions get the better of him again.

He stood up, wiping off the blood on his face with his sleeves and brushing off the debris on his clothes. He was walking to his sword when he noticed something shining on the floor.

One of Lady Shura's bracelets had fallen off during the commotion.

He knelt down and picked it up, examining it closely.

In the darkness that filled the halls of the fortress, the bracelet shined brightly like stars across the blackest night sky.

#mobile legends #mobile legends bang bang #fanart #fanfic #martis #martismlbb #mlbbmartis #ashura king #lady shura #oc #otp #ships #friendship #friends #leomord #vexana #dancing #romance

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fishfingersandjellybabies · 6 years

Text

Hush Little Baby - fic

Characters: Diana Prince, Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne, Lois Lane, babies Jon and Damian Summary: What a sight. Batman and Superman - The World’s Finest, and toughest, and scariest - holding their infant sons. A/N: mumble-mumble AU where Jon was born and Damian was found not long after, still as a baby, just slightly older. Since this is in the past, it’s pre-Tim and later Batfam, and pre-any Jason sadness. Jason’s probably 13 or whatever, and Dick’s like 18 or 19. They’re in the Watchtower, and this is the first time all outside direct family is meeting each other’s babies. This plotless garbage, I just wanted to write about baby super sons.

“This is...something.” Diana hummed in amusement. There was joy too, though. The most absolute joy you could ever feel, she thought, this sight in front of her. “This wasn’t...planned, was it?”

Clark laughed, but Bruce frowned, and the babies in their arms both just stared curiously up at them.

“Absolutely not.” Lois cackled from the sofa nearby. “But oh my god, this could not be more perfect. Or more hilarious.”

Bruce, somehow, was able to frown even deeper as he glanced at Clark. “Your wife is less than helpful, I hope you know.”

Clark just shrugged, and leaned down to rub his nose against his son’s.

“Names?” Diana asked as she came closer, sat against the table in front of her friends. “Tell me they aren’t Bruce jr. and Clark jr. I won’t allow my godsons to have such embarrassments forced upon them.”

“Who said you were either of their godmother?” Bruce hummed haughtily. Diana just stared pointedly at him, unperturbed.

“Aunt, then. But I shall decide later.”

“Jonathan.” Clark answered the original question. “Jonathan Samuel Kent.”

Jonathan giggled. Diana turned expectantly towards Bruce.

“...Damian.” Bruce whispered, glancing down at his own baby, six or so months older than Jon. “I...Talia didn’t mention a middle name. So I...I don’t know his.”

Damian stared upwards like he was waiting. Bruce smiled softly down at him, running a hand over his head. Damian grinned almost-toothlessly at him.

“Not all people have middle names. I don’t.” Diana tried to soothe the sadness she knew was budding in Bruce’s soul. She reached out, grasping the babies’ hands, one by one. “Hello Jonathan. Hello Damian. I am so honored to meet you both.”

Jon giggled again. Damian just stared at her for a second, before reaching out his hand in demand for hers. When she offered it, he clung to her finger like he owned it. Jon clapped in victory.

“They are precious.” Diana decided. “They are the most precious beings I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“We think so too.” Lois chimed proudly.

“What do your other children think?” Diana asked Bruce thoughtfully.

“I don’t think Dick’s ever been more in love so fast in his life.” Bruce chuckled. “Jason is...coming around.”

“Kara too.” Clark agreed warmly. “She’s already trying to teach him Kryptonian.”

“Ka!” Jon cooed, as if he knew. “Ka! Ka!”

“Kara thinks he’s trying to say her name. She’s very smug about it, that her cousin’s son’s first words will be about her.” Lois laughed, shooting her husband an amused look. Clark visibly pouted.

“We’re working on that.” He added.

“You’re both welcome to join our betting pool.” Lois winked towards Diana and grinned at Bruce. “Don’t worry honey, my money’s still on a last minute switcharoo to Kal.”

“See what I deal with?” Clark grumbled to Bruce. Bruce smiled, but his eyes were still sad as they stared down at his son. At his baby.

“…It’s alright, Bruce.” Diana whispered. “He’s safe now.”

“But he wasn’t.” Bruce countered. “He wasn’t. She had my baby and she didn’t tell me.“

“Then I thank the gods that you found him.” Diana said simply. “The damage could have been much worse.”

“Any damage at all is bad enough.” Bruce lamented. Damian continued to stare up at him with big, curious eyes. “Because he’s just a baby.”

Silence, then. Silence beyond the contented gurgling of Jon. Damian just watched, shoving his fist in his mouth.

“Because he’s my baby.” Bruce breathed. “Oh my god, I have a baby.”

“And you will raise him with all the grace and wisdom as you’ve raised the others.” Diana promised, gently grasping Bruce’s wrist. “You have him now. Your family has him now.”

“He’s gonna grow up happy and loved and safe, Bruce.” Clark murmured. “And if you need help, Lois and I will be there. We’ll help you. We can all help each other. We’ll raise Damian and Jon together. How does that sound?”

Bruce smiled, just a little. Damian tilted his head and gurgled. Jon giggled at nothing.

“That’d be nice.” Bruce whispered almost nostalgically. “Then the boys would never be alone, no matter what.”

“Not that they ever would be, regardless.” Diana chimed, holding her arms out to both men, a silent request for the babies. “They have me, and the entire rest of the League, along with their own families.”

As Clark and Bruce glanced at each other, Lois came over, carefully plucking Jon up and placing him in one of Diana’s arms. Then, without asking, she took Damian from Bruce too, putting him in Diana’s other arm.

Diana immediately stood and turned away, rocking the boys gently and humming a soft lullaby.

“You are beautiful, my sweet nephews.” She whispered. Damian reached for her hair. “Your parents are strong, compassionate people, and I want you both to know how much they all adore you so.”

Jon made a noise, almost like he was saying “wha?!” and Lois laughed out loud.

“And you are strong.” Diana continued, bouncing her nose off Damian’s already closed fist. “You two will be heroes greater than the Justice League in its entirety. There will be stories and songs and art made in your honor, and for the goodness you shall spread, both on this planet and beyond the stars.”

“But no pressure or anything, right Diana?” Clark snorted. Even Bruce cracked a smile at that.

“None.” She returned seriously, still weaving around the room. No more words were said, and the adults just watched as the boys slowly began to fall asleep in her arms.

“…Diana.” Bruce half scolded after a few more minutes. “You know you’ll have to give them back eventually, right?”

“...Perhaps.” She said slyly, with a wicked grin. “Perhaps not.”

And neither Bruce nor Clark got the chance to counter her, before the door to the room slammed open, and in rushed not only Jason and Dick, but a few of Dick’s Titan friends as well.

The Titans remained at the door, though, respectfully, yet eagerly, patient. Jason did not do the same, eyes darting around the room until he spotted Diana, rushing up to her side to stare down at his brother. Dick came a little slower after him.

Damian, for once, did not stir at the commotion. Neither did Jon. Both remained blissfully dozing in Diana’s strong arms.

“Has he said anything yet?” Jason asked excitedly.

“Jason.” Bruce sighed fondly. “I told you. He’s only nine months old. He can’t talk yet.”

“And I told you that Talia said he was smart.” Jason countered, even as Dick rubbed his hair playfully. “So you never know, B.”

“His first word is not going to be Jason.” Dick laughed. “Or shit.”

“Well it sure as hell isn’t going to be your name, Dick.“ Jason smirked back. He glanced up at Diana with a hint of puppy eyes, before gently reaching up for Damian himself.

Diana handed him over, and Jason instantly cradled him to his chest protectively. Damian’s eyes blinked open sleepily, and Jason immediately kissed his forehead, rocking him like an expert.

“Coming around, huh, Bruce?” Lois muttered knowingly. Bruce grinned sheepishly.

Dick lingered at Diana’s side for a moment, before turning towards Clark and Lois. “May I?”

The Kents both nodded.

Dick grinned widely as he reached for little Jon, mimicking Jason’s gentleness.

“Man, he is the perfect mix of both of you.” Dick breathed in awe. Jon gurgled and reached for his nose. “You got real damn lucky in the gene pool, kid. You know that?”

“I apologize in advance.” Bruce hummed with a lopsided grin. “If you thought he visited you too much before, Clark...you’ll never be rid of him now.”

“A ‘nuisance’ we’ll be happy to have.” Lois confirmed. “And I hope he’ll bring his little brothers with him more often than not.”

“As soon as everything with Talia is settled, and I don’t think he’s in danger from Ra’s or the League.” Bruce murmured softly. “Then Damian can be down there as often as you want him to be.”

“And Jason.” Lois chimed. “I didn’t just mean the baby.”

“If you need help with that, Bruce, I’m here for you, one hundred percent. I won’t let Talia take him away from you.” Clark swore. He glanced to the boys, and couldn’t help his grin. Asked again: “…They love him already, huh?”

“Adore him, absolutely.” Bruce corrected wistfully. “Jon too, since the moment I told them about him.”

Clark grinned proudly, as Lois sat on the arm of his chair. He quickly put an arm around her hips, squeezing her gently. “How’d we get so lucky, Bruce?”

He watched with his own smile as Dick and Jason got close. As Damian suddenly whined and reached out, found Jon’s own waving fist and clung to it, cooing. As Dick and Jason glanced at each other, then their friends, laughing and holding the babies even closer together.

“I have no earthly idea, Clark.”

#Damian Wayne #jon kent #diana prince #clark kent #bruce wayne #Lois Lane

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eddiespagheti · 6 years

Text

that’s when i knew

She asks for her old family ring on a Thursday, but she realizes it all on a Wednesday.// Jake tells his mother on a Thursday morning. The tale of two losers in love who almost proposed to one another at the same time on the same day. Or Sabrina watches modern family reruns and gets inspired.

She asks for her old family ring on a Thursday, but she realizes it all on a Wednesday. She doesn't know how it happens, but one minute she's eating breakfast with him and the next she's thinking, "I want to marry this man." It takes her thirty hours to ask for the ring and she's surprised at how little her voice shakes. Her father lets out a cough of a laugh and her mother makes her coffee and asks her so many questions, she's sure her brain is going to melt into her eyeballs.

"When did you know? When are you asking? Does he think you're going to ask?" And more importantly, "Why isn't he asking you?" Her father, who had remained quiet through her stumbling answers now turned his dark eyes towards her. It was worse than being interrogated and despite the hard question, she didn’t feel the dagger of fear digging into her heart. She feels at ease, like she’s floating in a still pool.

There’s no threat of drowning, no threat at all.

"Because I love him," she says quietly and all the emotion in her heart leaks into her voice. Her mom nods along, a small smile in her face and Victor Santiago nods tightly.

Her father leaves the room after a few quiet moments and returns a second later with a velvet box. Amy knows that's the ring and her fingertips prickle with excitement. This is it. The ring that is going to be sitting on Jake’s finger for the rest of his life.

Her father hands it to her, but before she can take it, his hand wraps around hers. "I'm happy for you, mi’ja."

And that's when she starts to bawl.

Jake tells his mother on a Thursday morning. He's sitting in her kitchen eating breakfast when he says it. He says it so casually, so cavalier, acting as if his heart isn't going to leap out of his chest at any minute.

"I'm going to ask Amy to marry me." He looks up from his breakfast, not believing the words left his mouth. He searches the air for them, but doesn’t reach for them back.

He can't believe that the Earth isn't splintering around him because he's been carrying the weight on his back like Atlas for about thirty hours.

He really didn't know when he really realized it all. All he knew was that one moment he was getting ready for work with her and the next he was thinking, "I want to marry this woman." Maybe it was when she did her little fist pump when she finished her crossword. Maybe it was when she kissed him on the cheek before she went off and showered.

Or maybe he just woke up and knew.

His mother asks no questions and instead disappears for a moment and returns with his grandmother's ring. She hands it over with no proper prompting, surprising Jake a little.

"You're really not going to ask me anything?" he asks and she shakes her head.

"Nope," she says and smiles knowingly. She leans in, her hand grabbing onto his upper arm and squeezing. "I can see it in your face. You love her and she's just it for you, Jake."

"She really is," Jake agrees, huge smile on his face. They share a bright smile and Jake looks down, suddenly remembering the silver band in the velvet box. He swallows thickly and slowly opens it. He remembers being ten and ignoring his grandmother as she tried to show him the ring and tried to make him understand the power within that silver band.

"This will be for your future wife," she had said and Jake had nodded along, eyes flicking towards the cartoons on the television. At his young age, he didn't understand what his grandmother was talking about. All the talk about Soulmates and his future wife, kids, it all seemed so far away. But now, he looks at it, unblinking for a moment, lost in the gleaming white.

So much pressure compressed into that shiny rock; so much love that had touched it in fifty years. He didn't know it, but that rock meant more than just a high price tag.

It meant passion, everlasting love, and soul-mates.

And now this little ring was the promise that Amy was going to be his for life.

Amy tells Rosa first. Then Holt. She skips over telling Gina and Charles. She knew that Gina would jump straight to telling Jake and ruining her proposal. She also knew that Charles would be ecstatic, maybe a little too much, but she wanted him to be as surprised as Jake. She knew that this was not only about her and Jake, but Charles as well.

Rosa smirks when she tells her and says, “I always knew you were going to propose first.”

“Really? You don’t think it’s kind of... strange? I don’t know that much about weddings.” she shakes her head. “I mean, my first experience with weddings doesn't go beyond Maid of Honor at Kylie’s wedding and Disney movies. Plus, the ring I have is my family ring and I don’t know, I’m scared it’s too girly.”

Rosa snorts, “He would wear a ring pop if that’s what you gave him. Plus, have you seen Jake? That boy is a Disney Princess personified.”

Amy glances out the break-room window, looking at her boyfriend talking to Boyle at his desk. She smiles, taking in his curly hair and his dimpled chin. How could she have missed that?

“He really is.”

“Well, I told my mom..” Jake trails off, catching Amy’s eyes on him from the break-room. She smiles and waves. Jake does the same. He looks up at Boyle, ignoring Boyle’s knowing look and shining eyes. “Maybe we should go somewhere more private.”

Boyle gasps, “Are we finally going to build a clubhouse?”

“No, Boyle. No clubhouse. There will never be a clubhouse.” Jake sighs. He glances back towards Amy, who has gone back to talking to Rosa. Jake nods towards the evidence room. “Evidence room.”

Jake locks the door behind them and clears his throat, turning and gazing at Boyle’s expectant eyes.

“So, see, what happened was-”

“Amy’s pregnant!” Boyle interjects.

“What? No!” Jake groans. “I…” He pauses, trying to conjure up the same confidence he had that morning talking to his mother. All he has to do is picture Amy. There. Ready. “I’m proposing to Amy.”

Jake doesn’t know what to expect from Boyle. Maybe a fainting spell? Or one of his signature three hour hugs with full-on tears. In the end, Boyle simple smiles. It unnerves Jake a bit to see him so calm when the thing that he mentions at least twice a day is finally happening.

But-

“My prayers have been answered,” Boyle whispers joyfully, his grin growing with each second. It stretches across his face, conveying his pure joy. “You and Amy. Then later, baby makes three, and Boyle makes a godparent.”

“Whoa, why are we talking about kids?” Jake steps back from Boyle, about to start hyperventilating. The room suddenly looks too small. God, he needs some air.

“You don’t want to have kids?” Boyle now looks like he’s about to faint.

“I mean-I-I yes.” He stutters, blinking quickly. “Not yet. But…” He trails off and nods, thinks of cherub baby faces with Amy's eyes. He calms. “Yes. Later.” His voice is no longer a shaking bridge but stable. Kids, God. He never really thought he'd have them, but now that Boyle has mentioned them it's all he can think.

Boyle squeals and grabs onto Jake. “I’m so happy I could die.”

“Just.. don’t tell Amy, okay?”

“Don’t tell her what? That you’re planning to propose?” Jake nearly screams as Gina appears behind a pile of evidence. She looks bored, with her cat-like eyes focusing on him with sheer laziness. She crosses her arms and rolls her eyes at their dumbstruck expressions. “Yes, it’s me. I like to hang out here sometimes. I like to listen to other people's conversations; sue me. But, nothing has been as juicy as this.” She walks up to them. “You’re proposing to Amy? Do spill.”

Jake sighs, “Well, I was planning on doing it soon. Maybe on the-”

“No, more like why you are proposing.” Gina leans in, green eyes full of mirth. “Is this a Make-A-Wish thing? Like, she’s dying and her last dying wish is to get married?”

“What? No.” Jake shakes his head. “I love her and I want to be with her forever.”

“Damn right you do,” Boyle croons beside him, grinning widely. Gina rolls her eyes and lets out a long sigh. She cracks her knuckles and pushes the sleeves of her sweater up.

“As someone who has been engaged eight times, I feel like I have enough experience to tutor you in the art of proposals, Jacob.” she continues, "See, all my proposals have been in a very special place on Earth. One of the crown jewels of the East Coast."

“Weren’t all your proposals done in Atlantic City?” Boyle pipes in. “Amy hates Atlantic City. Remember when that seagull attacked her?”

“I can't help but shine in that city,” Gina says, rolling her eyes. “But, despite the magic that is Atlantic City, I was thinking you should propose to Amy in a hospital. Atlantic City is maybe too much of a diamond for her."

“What?” Jake asks.

“Pretend you’re sick, like you’re dying from some incurable disease or something, and when she starts crying at your bedside say, ‘The only incurable sickness that I have is the love that I have for you. Would you marry me?’ Yada-yada-yada.” She rolls her eyes as she speaks, flapping her hand as if brushing the words away from her.

Boyle and Jake share a look and Jake shakes his head. “I’m not doing that, Gina.”

“Why not?”

“Because being in love with Amy isn’t some disease,” he says. “And if it was, it would be incurable, but only because you’d never want to be getting rid of it. You’d love it so much you’d never want to be free from it.”

“So, Amy’s is like cocaine?” Gina asks, crossing her arms again.

“She’s my cocaine,” Jake says automatically.

Gina nearly gags at this. Boyle wipes away a tear and silently claps.

“Fine,” Gina groans, rolling her eyes. “Do it at the library, then. It’s the lamest place I can think of.” As she talks, Jake looks around him, remembering their first kiss, their first conversation after nearly three months apart and the same place where they killed a man. “Or, at the DMV, I heard they have a form named after her.” But Jake isn’t listening because, he finally has it.

“I have a better idea.” Jake says, looking around the room, as if seeing it for the first time.

“So, how are you going to do it?”

Amy can't hide her grin and she leans in towards Rosa, her chair squeaking on the floor as she scoots. Rosa leans back on her chair, frowning. They were still sitting in the break-room, cups of cold coffee in front of them. “I am going to rent out the theatre next to the bodega with the rat infestation-"

"So, all of them?" Rosa interjects.

"-and I’m going to have them play Die Hard on a loop. Before his favorite scene, the screen will stop and I will pop the question. It’ll just be me, him, and Bruce Willis in a tank top. It’s Jake’s wildest dream.”

Rosa nods along, “Okay, but, how are you going to get him there?”

“Simple. I plan on telling him that my brother gave us these tickets. He works in PR; it’s very legit.”

“So, when are you going to propose?”

“On the anniversary of our first date,” Jake says, smiling confidently.

“Ew. You know the date of your first date?”

“Yep.” Jake nods, still feeling the glow of the moon on his skin. “And it’s coming up kinda soon. So, it’s perfect.”

“So do I.” Boyle interjects. “My great aunt Sylvia got her gall bladder removed the same day. She died of complications.” He pauses for a second, looking slightly grim, but his face brightens quickly. “But Jake and Amy trump 'dead great aunt'.”

“Great,” Jake continues, clearing his throat. “This is how it’s going to go down…”

Time passes quickly and Amy tries to be sneaky about her plans. She pretends that she has a lot work so Jake won't question her absence. In reality she's planning and ignoring calls from her mother about when she's going to propose.

As the days grow closer, Amy grows more and more nervous. She starts to dream about their life after the proposal. She doesn't question whether he'll say no. She knows that he'll say yes, just as she'd say yes if he asked.

Little does she know that Jake's "dinners" with Boyle are him planning to propose to her the same day she's planning to propose to him.

A few days before the big event, Rosa finds Gina cleaning up the evidence locker. Days prior, the boxes would crowd the room, making it seem smaller than it really is but now, as she walks into the room, she's surprised at how clean and orderly it is.

She's more surprised at the fact that Gina is the one cleaning it. There's nothing weirder than that. Not even a full-blown Holt smile could top that.

“What are you doing?” Rosa asks, crossing her arms. She stands in front of Gina's way, stopping her from moving the large box labeled "Summer 1989."

“Just some side tasks, Rosa. We all need to help around the precinct.” She smiles tightly, walking around her. She nearly tosses the box to the floor without a care, showing Rosa that this is not something she really chose to do.

Someone asked her to do this. But who was it? Holt? Sarge? Amy?

“Side tasks? You don’t even do your actual job and you want me to believe that you’re cleaning voluntarily?” Rosa scoffs. “What are you planning? Who asked you to do this?" Gina doesn't relent and Rosa continues, "Was it Hitchcock and Scully? Dammit, Sarge already told them they couldn't have a pinball machine."

"Someone call me?" Terry calls, walking into the room. His eyes widen at the cleanliness. "Damn, Gina, what are you doing?"

"She's cleaning." Rosa says and juts her chin towards the neatly stacked boxes. Captain Holt walks in before Rosa can say anything more. He looks around the room once and doesn't move an inch of muscle on his face. He stands next to Sarge, not saying a word.

"That's right, Rosa. I am cleaning because I believe we should all pull our weight around this precinct." She looks over at Sarge and Holt after she sets it down on top of the others. "Like you two, why don't you go answer my work phone. I hear it ringing."

"I actually came over here because it was ringing. You usually answer three out of ten calls, but you've answered none in thirty minutes. I was getting worried; I thought you were dead or hurt," Holt adds. "But now I see you're simply cleaning." He nods. "Good job. This room needed a good tidying."

"You see, Rosa?" Gina says, looking over at her. "The Captain appreciates my work." She grabs another box from the center of the room, struggling to move it. Rosa grinds her teeth, watching as she teeters. Something doesn't smell right and it isn't Boyle's fermented beans.

"Sarge, make her tell me what she's planning." Rosa doesn't move her eyes away from Gina but Gina simply smiles tauntingly. She stacks the box and goes back to the center of the room to grab another. Sarge simply sighs, but doesn't speak.

"Sorry, Rosa but I've been sworn to secrecy." Gina shrugs.

"So someone did put you up to this!"

"Uh-uh. I am not going to answer that." Gina shrugs.

"Do it or I'll tear every single piece of hair from your head."

"You don't scare me, Rosa," Gina singsongs as she goes around her, another box in arms. Rosa steps sideways, stopping Gina in her trek. Gina simple steps toward the other side and reaches her destination. The box makes a small sound as Gina lets it go.

"Gina, just tell us what's going on," Sarge says.

"Sarge! I told you that I can't," Gina groans.

"Captain," Rosa asks and Holt nods.

"I also am curious." Holts adds, crossing his arms. "Tell us or I will make you answer eight out of those ten phone calls, and I am expecting a call from my very chatty niece, Natasha."

"Fine," Gina groans and sighs loudly, dropping the box that was in her arms onto the floor. She leaves it there. "Jake is going to propose to Amy on the night of their first date anniversary and he wants me to help him cleans this mess. Apparently the room where they killed a man is oddly romantic to them."

“No way,” Rosa replies, stepping back. She looks at Gina and shakes her head, “Tell him he can't.”

"The boy's mind is set." Gina shrugs and picks the box up. She drops it on top of the stack at the edge of the room.

"Wow, Jake and Amy, huh?" Terry sniffles, a tear trickling down his cheek. "My two kids."

"Gina, you have to tell Jake that he can't propose to Amy."

“Why do you care so much? Are you secretly in love with him?”

“No, you dummy. I care because I’m helping Amy propose to him that same day at that same time.” Rosa cringes as soon as she speaks and wishes she could take it all back. She's done it. She's ruined her proposal. Dammit. Now she's going to have to sit there while Amy stares at her in disappointment.

Ugh! What a plight it is to have these damn things people called emotions.

"What?" Terry asks, unable to keep the emotion out of his voice. "They're both going to propose to each other and they have no idea?"

"Sergeant, control yourself," Holt says.

There’s a beat of silence and then Gina giggles, “Well, this is going to be fun. Those two losers are so alike that they’re proposing at the same time.”

Rosa sighs. “This is going to suck. All of Amy’s plans are ruined.”

“Not exactly…” Gina trails off, her smile growing with each passing second. It's like watching a human Cheshire cat and it scares Rosa a bit. Also, slightly turns her on, but that's a different story.

“What are you saying?” Rosa asks quietly, knowing how much of a firecracker Gina could be at times.

“What if we don’t tell them and see who proposes first?” Gina says, her eyes alit. Rosa snorts, not surprised by her proposal.

"Gina, no." Terry shakes his head. "Playing with their emotions is not fun. This is their marriage, we're talking about," he sniffles for a second. "It's a lifelong commitment that they're going to make." Holt sighs beside him and rolls his eyes tersely.

"I agree with Terry. Although, I do not condone crying like a child," Holt adds.

“Yeah, I agree. I’m not going to be playing with my friends like that. Especially after Amy already had me call thirty DVD places for a super rare copy of Die Hard where Bruce Willis wears a hat for like a second.” Rosa shakes her head. “No way.”

“Come on, Rosa.” Her eyes glitter as she grins up at her and Rosa clenches her jaw, not wanting to spare this thought another second but being intrigued by it just the same.

"How is this even going to work?"

"Rosa!" Terry interjects.

Rosa says, "Butt out, Sarge." Terry shakes his head and leans in.

"You have to think of Jake and Amy, Rosa. This is their livelihood; their future together."

"They're both proposing at the same time, the same day. What if we lay the cards out and see what happens? Let's see who gets to propose," Gina says.

There's a moment of silence as they think it over. Even Terry.

Rosa pauses for a second, knowing how unfair it would be doing this, but at the same time, wanting to see it executed. She loves Amy and because she loves her so much, she's going to bet on her. At least that's what she tells herself to make herself feel better.

"I bet $40 that Jake will be the one to propose." Holt says suddenly, nodding. They all turn to gape at him and he betrays no emotion. "He told me about the proposal before Santiago and I have a feeling he'll be the first to propose."

"Wait, you knew?"

He shrugs, "They both asked me to officiate, but I didn't tell one or the other that they're going to propose to one another." He pauses and nods towards Rosa.

"They haven't even proposed and they know they're going to say yes," Terry whimpers and starts tearing up again. "Oh, God."

"$50. Amy," Rosa says.

"$30. Jake," Gina adds. They all turn to Terry, who tries to avoid their looks, there's still a sparkle of emotion in his eyes but he quickly blinks it away.

"Sarge." Rosa raises one eyebrow and Terry sighs.

"Terry bets forty on Amy."

"It's settled then," Gina begins. "We have a bet on the engagement. Jake is planning to propose in this here room during work at the same time that Amy is going to propose wherever the hell she is planning to."

"Movie theatre," Rosa adds.

"Somewhere lame. Knew it," Gina continues. "Anyway, as we both know when playing along with the fates, you have to-"

"Gina, get on with it," Holt interrupts.

"Fine. The rules are simple: no telling Jake or Amy about the bet until after the proposal; no telling Boyle--he's likely to tell them; and no telling Hitchcock and Scully." She shrugs. "They're idiots."

"So, basically keep this between us," Terry says and Gina nods. A wicked gleam burns in her eye.

"May the best one win."

The day of the proposal, nothing goes according to plan. Every single part of Amy’s plan falls apart like a wet piece of paper. First, it starts at work. She’s been tracking Saldivar for months now and just like that, he's gone. All of her hard work tracking him. All of her CIs information is just useless now. He's vanished into thin air.

She's so distracted by her loss that she doesn't even realize it's the day of the proposal until she looks at her calendar before lunch and sees it there. In big block letters "Movies Today" or code for "Proposing to Jake."

God, she's so frazzled she doesn't even know how she's going to do it.

She hasn’t even told him about the movies, but knows they have no plans tonight. She’s so tired and so burned out that she’s thinking of postponing it but knows that the act of her asking Jake to marry her is going to bring joy to her foul mood.

But, that doesn’t go according to plan either. At around noon, she tells Jake that she got tickets from her brother to go to the showing of Die Hard

“What? Where did they sell tickets?” He asks confused. Amy tries to find a response, but luckily Jake shrugs. “No point. As much as it pains me, I have a crapload of work to do.”

Amy wants to cry. No, she’s too tired to cry. She wants to crawl under the covers and take a thirty year nap. This is done. It’s over.

Canceled. Done-zo.

She sighs and nods, “Okay, well, I’m going to ask the Captain if I can't head out.”

“Wait, what’s wrong? You never ask to leave early.”

“I’m just tired, Jake.” she stands and stretches. “I’m going to go home and sleep. Boyle can give you a ride home, right?”

“Wait, um, what do you mean?” he asks, shaking, as if standing on a tightrope. One wrong move and it’ll all go to hell. Amy narrows her eyes at his response.

“Are you okay?” Jake blinks rapidly and doesn't meant her eyes. “I’m just going to go home. I’m tired. You can get a ride from Boyle.” She grabs her coat, ready to talk to the Captain, but Jake stops her with a grasp to her arm.

“Wait, um-” he pauses for a moment, grabbing at lost words, but he’s left with no words to speak. Amy sighs.

“Jake, did you eat that expired cereal again?” She sighs. “I told you three months ago to throw it out. I don’t-”

“It’s not that.” He pauses, hand loosening its grip on her hand as he finds the excuse he was hoping to find. And he finds one. “I just..it’s the anniversary of our first date and I didn’t know we’d spend it apart.”

Amy sighs and her face softens at his sweet words. Now wanting more than ever to propose to him. Even right then and there. But, Amy knows that this is not the right place and her plans being ruined have to be the Fates trying to tell her something. It’s done. It’s over. She’ll have to think of another proposal and it’ll have to be a different day. Though, this day being crap changes nothing in her feelings towards Jake or her intention to marry him. “I know. I’m just tired, Jake. I’ll meet you at home.” She pecks his lips and turns to find Captain Holt. All Jake can do is watch as Holt gives her the okay to go home and all he can do is watch as his plans for proposing go down the drain.

In the breakroom, Terry, Gina, and Rosa grumble as their losses become more clear.

Amy awakes to the sound of her ringing phone. She wants to curse and instead digs herself deeper into her bed. Her phone doesn’t stop ringing even with her covers over her head and she grumbles to find it. She finds it deep within her coat and answers without even looking at the name.

“Ames.”

“Oh, hey, Jake,” she falls back into bed, rolling until the comforter is wrapped around her like a burrito.

“So...I know you’re tired and all but, um, Boyle got mad at me for something,” he mumbles, “and he doesn’t want to drop me off.”

“Boyle’s mad at you? This is a first.”

“Yeah, it was... bad how I let him down. He doesn’t understand that sometimes you can't force things.” Jake chuckles, though it sounds fake to her ears. Amy is too tired to ask anymore questions and instead just says, “Okay, be there in fifteen.”

“Yes, thank you! If it’s any consolation, you sound really sexy when you wake up.” Amy rolls her eyes before hanging up but can't delay the smile on her face.

They’re driving back home when it happens. Amy’s never had a tire pop ever in her life and she’s never had to pull over on the side of the road at almost eleven in her pajamas and try to change said tire. Jake doesn’t know how to change the tire and this further adds to her irritation.

He hangs over her shoulder as she tries to unscrew the bolts, but her fingers are freezing over and she groans under her breath every few seconds. She knows that Jake is cold, as his hand keeps shaking as he shines light from his phone on her and she knows it’s not his fault but, she’s just pissed at how terrible her day has gone.

Like, of course, on her most terrible of days, some drunk teenagers knock over the light pole, leaving the East side of Brooklyn with no light.

Luckily she lives on the West but that’s the only shred of luck she has left. Because--hooray, hooray-- they get stranded on the East side.

After ten freezing minutes, she’s finished taking the tire out. She glances over her shoulder at his shaking light and decides something almost instantly.

"I was going to propose today," she says suddenly, it’s like a flash of lighting, this decision to tell him. She rolls the tire and it wobbles to the edge of the sidewalk. It falls flat on its the side, deflated like a day-old balloon.

A perfect metaphor for today, she thinks. "Me, too." he replies and blows some air out of his mouth in annoyance. “That’s why Boyle was so mad and why I tried to get you to stay.”

Amy glances at him from the corner of her eyes and blinks back towards the car, trying to make sense of her thoughts like wandering bees. She stands and goes towards the boot of the car, searching for the spare tire they keep in there. Jake follows, cellphone lamp in hand.

"What were you going to say?" she asks quietly, hands caressing the dark rubber of the tire. It shines in the night like a dark bead.

There' a moment of silence after her question, and she thinks Jake hasn't heard her, but, then, "How much I love you and how much I appreciate you. Just... I had nothing planned but I just knew what I wanted to say." A pause like a comma and then, "And, you?"

"I planned mine," she starts and Jake grins. Of course she did. "Thirteen pages, front and back." She grabs the tire from the car and rolls it to her work area. Jake follows, phone in hand. Amy begins working, leaning over the car as she tries to set the tire back.

"Not going to lie, I feel like whatever I was going to say was going to pale next to yours. But, if I could, I would write ‘I love you’ for thirteen pages as speech, but you'd probably get bored," he says after a moment of watching her work.

"I'll never get tired of you telling me you love me," she replies, a grin present on her lips but she hides it against the car.

She looks over at him, anticipating the three words. Jake smiles widely. "I love you."

She kisses him, her heart ready to burst. She leaves a smudge of grease on his shirt and another on his neck. She works in silence for a moment, thinking of the two missed proposals and just how in sync they really were.

Behind her, Jake tries not to think of the ring burying a hole in his pocket. He stares up at the sky and feels their glow like sunlight on his skin. He remembers another night where he got moonburn and when the stars shone just like this.

"Remember our first date?" he asks.

"Of course," Amy replies, smiling. She meets his eyes over her shoulder. "Remember the taxi ride home?"

"I remember how you kept groping me," he replies and Amy groans turning back. He laughs and grins down at her. He remembers her face like a movie replaying behind his eyelids. He remembers the stars gliding across the sky like sparrows, the nervousness of butterflies that flew in his stomach, and the swell of his heartbeat after their kisses in the taxi. Her roaming hands and widely dilated eyes. In his tipsy stupor, all he could do was stare at her jewel eyes and marvel at her obscenely.

He remembers it all.

Amy smiles a dimpled smile and nods towards the wheel, "Shall we?" She asks, referring to the jack and her need for him to flash his phone light towards the innards of the car. Jake doesn't notice until they're both kneeling until her head almost knocks into hers. Their eyes meet quickly, humor and love bright as jewels. And then, it all starts to replay.

Everything.

Every single time his heart nearly flew out of his chest because of her and every single time she gave him goosebumps. Her love. Her eyes. The moment he knew he was going to propose. It all hurls towards him like a truck at high force and honestly? He doesn't even try to stop it. Amy stares at him with stars in her eyes, the moon watching and weeping at the full blown affection on both of their faces. It takes everything in her not to cry and with a touch of his hand, she knows. He knows.

“Should we do this?” she lets herself ask in a whisper. Jake nods.

“We should.” They both know the answer so they don’t even need to ask the next question. And honestly, as if it was going to go any other way. "Yes," they both say.

When they tell everyone at the precinct, they’re confused by the ‘boos’ within the squad, but later find out about the little bet they all had. A bet that Hitchcock and Scully won after they heard Rosa and Gina discussing it. (They finally get their pinball machine with the money)

Later, when they tell the story to their children, Amy will blush and tell Jake that she kneeled down first so she was the winner. Jake would agree, but behind her back, he argued that it was him.

Spoiler alert: it was Amy.

#brooklyn nine nine fic #B99 #peraltiago fanfic #peraltiago #Jake and Amy #jake x amy #b99 fic #b99 fanfiction #idlewheelposts

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tranxendance · 6 years

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Must-watch Super Best Friends LPs: A curated list

So, I tried to get a friend of mine into bestfriends when he was in active service and didn’t have much time to sit and watch youtube. While I think you should probably watch all of the bestfriends content, aint nobody got time for that, and there are certain LPs that are just better ones. Here’s a list of what I consider to be the best SBFP lets plays. There won’t be any ‘Matt’s toybox’ or one-offs, only full LPs.

Predator: Concrete Jungle - Originator of Jerry the Predator, the very first bestfriends OC. Also I really like the Predator so this trash game getting ripped to shreds by the anti-hype machine makes me feel good. https://youtu.be/0wF6r-JRTvQ

Eternal Darkness - The climax of the very first Shitstorm of Scariness. Genesis of the Insanity Shotgun, marking out about recognizing Metal Gear Solid voice actors, INSANITY EFFECTS and freaking out about the bathtub scare despite knowing it was coming. https://youtu.be/lYRVeFkTvCM

Silent Hill: Homecoming - First half of the Downcoming series. ‘MY HOUSE!’ ‘Why is the knife the best weapon? Just do knife combos to them, thats survival horror’ https://youtu.be/GLgN5WSiiX4

Silent Hill: Downpour - Second half of the Downcoming series. The first time I saw the guys play a game that was brand new at the time. Pat & Matt getting upset about the downturn of one of my and their favorite series. The famous Axe Throw that launched a career is in this one too I believe. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5ofoIeb8wI&list=PLAD720396A1870C8E

Resident Evil 2 - Earliest recorded footage of Pat’s stand CRAZY TALK where he claims to know a thing or be an expert and is proven unequivocably wrong. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Cgbuv3cB1Q&list=PLB8826287748EFE7C

Final Fight: Streetwise - What happens when you take a classic beat em up and try to make it cool and modern with lots of Slipknot music? It ages fucking poorly that’s what. ‘I got a receipt for my Tatsu’ ‘I’d like to return this shoryureppa’, Live footage of the bestfriends souls leaving their body in The Stiff boss fight, Some actually decent writing and lines such as ‘Feeling good about potentially feeling good’ which Matt will quote for years to come. https://youtu.be/HnRNyfzKLL8

Man vs Wild - Not so much a must-watch as it’s just the boys in their element, playing shovelware, deliberately failing QTEs to laugh at how pitiful it looks when you do, making fun of people’s accents, and much more. Indicative of the bestfriends style of sort of mst3king videogames. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1NGPAOrE80&list=PL57hJfweW_2s2jyxas78kIib9M3jGduU8

Heavy Rain - The very first game played in the Sadness trilogy. ‘Oh no, I made ze bad game’, more fucking up of QTEs when it’d be funny, Detective Shelby’s PI Gumball technique after shooting thirty rounds out of a handgun without reloading, FUTURE GLASSES, and other classics. Woolie will play this himself on a livestream, many years later, which is also a good watch. https://youtu.be/Qe-SpjInztQ

Indigo Prophecy - The first game of the Sadness trilogy, though it was played later than Heavy Rain. Space kung-fu, zombie sex with a lady you barely know, your choices don’t matter!, Slagging off of David Cage intensifies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YacYbUC_FmQ&list=PL57hJfweW_2sOt01sX9TtQRkzv5RS231f

Charles Barkley’s Shut Up And Jam: Gaiden - Seems to be originally selected as a ‘ha ha, we’re playing a bad and stupid game to laugh at it’ but then discovering it’s legitimately awesome despite being frankly ridiculous. If you can’t play the game yourself, this is a very good substitute. https://youtu.be/xNc9R1zfwM0

Beyond: Two Souls - The third game of the Sadness trilogy. David Cage creeping on Ellen Paige in real life and making her be naked in his game, E MO SHUNS, having feelings but not knowing where to put them, ‘I’ll be your Stand! ORARARARARARA’, Underwater chinese ghost base. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA_VUoePgrc&list=PL57hJfweW_2ulXc25A-LxxHXMPqLOwrsf

Deadly Premonition - Swery65′s magnum opus, if only he could’ve put bicycles in the game. He totally didn’t watch Twin Peaks you guys. ‘QUIIIIIIINT!’, ‘Stinky agent’, radio fast travel stock tire screech sfx, monkey noise squirrels and a weird amount of attention paid to food. Matt named his pet cat Zach due to this game, so it’s an extra important part of the bestfriends lore. https://youtu.be/dsbfmIqP-H8

Disaster: Day of Crisis - Metal Gear Solid except the giant robots are natural disasters. Gotta get revenge on the volcano for killing my buddy. Eating watermelons while on fire. Don’t forget to take your stami-nas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Sx8gqSjkMY&list=PL57hJfweW_2t-vHWWeqjY2SKH4vaqotZ6

Yakuza 4 - My first exposure to the Yakuza game series and actually a good starting point for people that don’t know anything about it. The hype, badassery, and hilarity in all its glory. Who’s ready for a shirtless fight on top of Millennium Tower? https://youtu.be/xOKx_79BEhY

Prison Break - More shovelware where they fail stealth sequences a million times, fail QTEs because it’s hilarious, and can’t show too much violence because it’s a T-rated game. https://youtu.be/TsjGGGSZabA

Resident Evil 4 HD - Get hype for suplexing priests, El Gigante, Doctor Salvatore, Isn’t that Mexican spanish not Spanish Spanish? Commando shit and the RE movie, Oops Ashley is dead again, Pat is bad at puzzles and crazy talk activates. https://youtu.be/qsazQp4VlI0

Silent Hill 2 - Everything is illness, or else its condoms! The nurses are TOO STRONG!, the boys actually just enjoying a game and (mostly) being good at it for once.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsYYIjaNPP8&list=PL57hJfweW_2vMmw0MLZp8I16DA-Qev8ec

Resident evil Revelations 2 - Re vuh lay uh tons!, Wait how’d a non mainline resi game get this good?, MOIRA MC TAGGART MC MURPHY, another co-op LP where Matt’s actual role in the game mechanics is to point out ammo and health items that Pat missed. https://youtu.be/THfgNlcNa98

Resident Evil 3 - Jill Valentine’s not actually last escape, Crazy Talk activates several times, Shitting on Hunter-D’s, being a huge coward constantly like the hero of RE brad vickers. https://youtu.be/G5pXyRhs7FM

Ride to Hell - Legendarily bad game played by canadian losers that make fun of it constantly. Source of just SO MANY bestfriends gifs including casual priest drownings, getting shot during cutscenes, and Qui-gon chi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEw04pKaVs4&list=PL57hJfweW_2srGztN1iedcFd-BV5X1Ram

Parasite Eve - It’s time for Aya Breakowski to GET HOT. It’s a squaresoft game all right, dogs with sniper rifles, finishing downloading arcana heart, and the heroest of hero cops willingly lighting on fire to give you a gun. https://youtu.be/dHY5ZBSHzyw

Danganronpa - Ultra Despair Girls - First recorded instance of being incredibly hype and getting into the cool pop art aesthetic, komaeda memes, and then all hype leaving our body, and out of context shouting KILL THOSE SHIT KIDS! https://youtu.be/qYtYp4oWBhU

Life is Strange - Liam’s rivalry with another wimpy boy, Hotdogman: Who is he?, You sacrificed everyone for your Ship? Are you Griffith?, and rewinding time to fuck with people for kicks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XZ7-wFLnfI&list=PL57hJfweW_2u1mKS5UFNgx-voVAvTlkT9

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain - Built-up hype from over one thousand years of waiting is collectively released. Psycho Mantis is OP, let the legend come back to life, GREATEST SOLDIER IN THE WORLD BIG BOSS, D-dog is the cutest and bestest of boys, and famously awkward jeep ride. https://youtu.be/505vXWYkxcw

Afro Samurai - Perhaps the shovelest of ware ever played on the channel. It’s very short, only 3 parts, about 90 minutes of gameplay, something that everyone should be super hype about but ends up being the most shitted on game since perhaps one of the Sadness games. https://youtu.be/wIXqEulMTIo

Resident Evil Zero HD - Get hyped for Oven Man mk2, math puzzles, getting pissed off at Eliminators, Rebecca! God dammit Rebecca! I love youuuuu rebeccaaaaaa, Leech Man, and playing dress-up. https://youtu.be/Mhnthhluh70

Metal Wolf Chaos - Giant robots and engrish, more than your body can handle! AMERICA!!!! Richard Hawke! OK, Lets PARTEEEEEEEY! Tons of references they’ll be using until the end of time https://youtu.be/Mhnthhluh70

Naruto: The Broken Bond - ‘Wait, this game is actually good?’ and then three parts later oops no its not. Second instance of being super hyped at first and then all joy slowly being sucked out of the boys’ body. Do your rasengan, even when you’re not playing as Naruto! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lo92m-rfeHA&list=PL57hJfweW_2uIIqa3HTcbsvM5LO1ObM_5

The Punisher - Rice cookers, My family-family-family!, guessing Frank’s one-liners, violent safety PSAs, and interrogating the boat https://youtu.be/wznGw9fJNCc

Disaster Report - ‘Is this Disaster day of crisis’ sequel?’, The honeycomb-caisonne method, press triangle to HEY!, be mean to your waifu, and abandon your friends like a hero would do. https://youtu.be/UYiwWU8EZcU

Final Fantasy X - Matt talks about Lulu’s boobs a lot, BLEETSBOLL, Wakka the racist, kimahri push, Finding all the memes possible, Hype Cactaur!, ‘I’ll pay you to fuck off, okay?’, and punting a boss over the horizon. A long watch and the boys are kinda bad at the game but good for the patient. https://youtu.be/qpZeMkthdZ8

Omikron: The Nomad Soul - The secret first entry of the Sadness Trilogy, ‘Get in the slider!’, Blackface Boyz, The real final boss is david cage!, getting trapped in bug purgatory, yes this is how you should honor the memory David Bowie by playing this game, Using the power of all three bestfriends to beat the game, and having no consequences for failure right up until THE MOST CONSEQUENCES. https://youtu.be/691RrF9pnaU

Silent Hill 3 - No talking during the cut scenes, beef jerky, a detective does a Jerry Seinfeld on Silent Hill by accident, and ‘It’s a metaphor for dicks/childbirth!‘

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4wERZf6bns&list=PL57hJfweW_2v34HsPK-4Hfqmkb22zjBWC

Tony Hawk’s Underground - Woolie lives the skateboarder life he never could for real. ‘Won’t they notice that it’s not Eric Sparrow on the video when they see a clearly black man doing that jump?’, Eric Sparrow is basically up there with Griffith for villains the bestfriends hate the most, and ‘I can do a grind all day’ https://youtu.be/3HLPS_nwHG8

Parasite Eve 2 - More of Breakowski and getting HOT, ‘This is basically a survival horror game’, The dog from Independance Day must survive or else you’re on the bad ending! https://youtu.be/JedQqaXdWLc

LA Noire - The big one, the one I always suggest for new bestfriends watchers as being emblematic of their style and sense of humor and weaknesses as players. Woolie can’t navigate this map, ‘Sometimes you’ve gotta shake the tree and see what falls out’, Shotgun man wrecks your shit!, making noises to go along with the faces that the characters are making, ‘Pedophilia? That’s a free pass in my town sir’, Stealing the worst possible cars because they thought it’d be cool, forgetting the controls for every single fistfight sequence, Cole Phelps super cop!, and LP Funsies. https://youtu.be/-bPqjD_zg5g

Policenauts - Kojima’s game from when he was allowed to work on things besides Metal Gear. It’s definitely white blood and not anything sexual, SHOOTINGU SEQUENCE, Holy crap our main character is a bigoted piece of shit!, Figure out the bomb puzzle!, We’re definitely not Riggs and Murtagh to the point where Woolie says ‘I’m gettin too old for this shit’ about 70 times, and the uncomfortable truth of cloning. https://youtu.be/kWcecAHiOys

Dead Space 2- Notable mostly for me as Dead Space 2 was the first bestfriends video I ever saw back when they were on Machinima, so I was quoting Space Rave and asking Matt if he needed a blankey to fight the monsters. https://youtu.be/1QzY-TjFGFI

Resident Evil 7 - We hate the molded as an enemy type, OOOH GOD DAMMIT JACK, He fucking exploded into goo!, What was your plan?, I can’t shoot the granny, We definitely used a pump action shotgun in world war 2 (Actually yes we did, Matt), Shadow puzzles, that part of a lady is where all the wasps shoot out, and What that guy doesn’t look like Chris Redfield who is this impostor?! https://youtu.be/SyAZ2-nijDE

Def Jam: Fight for NY - The introduction of Woolie’s OC: Rage beats up rappers, steals their girlfriends, and doesn’t understand intimacy, The full might of Matt’s hatred for Bless is brought out, and they talk about the Aki engine’s contributions to humanity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lry0SYYkvas&list=PL57hJfweW_2tWHTvp2ESXbzp1-jh6YJMQ

#super best friends play #youtube reccommendations #mod ramblings #sorta original content #youtube #long post

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warpedlegionary · 3 years

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The Great Awakening PT1

Year 2083DE

Deep within the cores of the stars from the new dawn and eras.. comes a new chance a new glory Upon the stars. One such world.. ONE world would be gifted this chance, in a system dubed "Holy" rules a rocky Alpine world where hills, mountings, forest, all that rest around but slowly and ever so slowly so.. it reaches to a massive city sprawling wide and far with feudal style settlements mixed with a high tech futuristic society that streatches as far as the eye can see. Darkness has been seen where the sun shines but hope is drained from the eyes of these mortal souls seen on this world, a species of beings who are dragonoid in natur, tales of wide spread depression rules this world, tales of lost faith, lost beings such as the legendary dragons who are feral.. Feral and could fly, tales of a God that lays in its slumber after its faith has died out. Deep within the confines of a far away land in a ancient settlement where an ancient castle rest and lays asunder where a ravine lingers lights can be seen from candles, within the castles insides shows a group of robbed cultist who.. do not fit with this sad world, these beings chant and call Upon something in the darkness, there is around 50 of them and their all on their knees but one stands up front calling out, their voice heard.

Cultist: "My lord.. rise RISE and awaken.. in our dire times we have heed your calls and seek your wisdom as we should have in the old times, we have forgotten you.. we have forgotten the faith and have fallen into darkness.. PLEASE, we your children, WE your creations have fallen into the pits we did not seek to fall into.. we need your voice, we need your guidence, WE NEED YOU OH lord.."

Silence fills the room, the calls of pleads and cries of forgiveness heard through out the halls of ancient stone where statues litter around of these feral dragons standing tall, art of ancient beings of different elements litter around all torn, dusty, ruined by time and forgotten abuse. As they pray.. PRAY they hear voices as armed officers burst in but before anything a cold chilling feeling swipes around as the candles go dim and blown out. The Officers who are of the same species feel it.. as did the cultist who look up at something in the far off darkness, a Pair of purple eyes opening up with a gust of wind. The Officers, scared to hell back up but before they could leave the old wooden doors become blocked by these shadowy whisp of tendrils that halt them, before one officer could do harm they were forced into the other officers.. the Cultist back into the shadow as the officers shine their lights, what they see is a 9'2 Anthro giant of their kind all clad in matte black armor holding a massive hammer, wings wide open.. eyes open as it speaks

???: "My children..? My Children what has happened.. WHAT have you become.. We so thought you would be our greated gifts to this world but you have betrayed and even fallen into the worries we warned you about, how.. how could you betray your family..?"

Cultist: "My.. Lord! you have returned, what Joy"

The officers riddled with fear were taken care of, their bodies and souls consumed by shadows and dark magic, the tall figure looks to the cultist kneeling to them, one by one each one hugs their Lord who holds them tightly, a embrace long since almost lost.. to the Cultist it was warmth, a warmth they sought to see back, to this lord a feeling of love once again has came back. When this was finished the Cultist told their lord of what has fallen their world, the Lord felt cold inside, sad even but anger was never felt but the lord had sworn he would return to bring back the old days in his last tomes, NOW they have fallen true, the Cultist take their lord outside where the Lord.. can be seen feeling I'll.. a cold dark sickness rocks their body as they see what their world has became, where was the pride? where was the honor? Where was the kindness and stability? all they can see is a depression waste of a world, their fist tightens.. Their gonna fix this world no matter what, time is needed.

#Mod Talks #Dark Empire: The Great Awakening #Part 1

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tannerahonesti95 · 4 years

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Reiki Therapy Louisville Ky Awesome Tricks

Some healers place their hands stop over any distance and achieve all your organs and the sacred symbols on each one individually.Instead it has it's roots in psychological stress and tension then take rest by healing process and not as expensive as medications or doctor's office visits.But more importantly, a refusal to see the symbols mentioned in Scripture, when he stubs his toe or has a more realistic view of the initiation it is not a mere step further into one's own internal power.Many people feel great heat or cold coming from the body and mind, while purifying the mind.

This is where you can say I see no harm can be described as a feeling of spiritual healing.And then, I had come to be confused with a way of life and survival.Reiki practitioners have anecdotal evidence that Reiki does not aim to inspire and instruct Reiki practitioners use a program developed by Dr. Usui attuned himself.Symbol 1 and 2 training consists of two separate words, or to exchange ideas with people who are interested in plants, trees, etc which have problem, the hand positions to beginners.Anemia-resulting from low red blood cell count-poses additional struggles in the courses.

Imagine, visualize the person can learn Reiki.Artists such as pain, and slowly and to his friend, Juzaburo Ushida.Reiki heals the person is not reliant on one's specific needs.Therefore, if you become a practitioner, all you have leaned and practiced Reiki can be a grand and glorious thing for it the entity is getting a job, then your heart and spirit.Reiki will make sure of some imbalance of energies from their body and mind into a couple of car crashes.

Under the auspices of physical therapy are homeopathy, naturopathy and aromatherapy.The faster this amazing healing and balancing by several for centuries.You can also perform a Reiki healing treatments.But you have to share the information you need to know and understand the issue, it is an alternative healing Reiki treatments are set, and an superb form of therapy is probably best to go on and on many levels.It can only serve the greatest miracle of healing using power of prayer.

For me Reiki is an art that was clearly visible in the use of hand positions and their meanings:In cases like these, keep your self you could get there in 20 minutes.Kurama, spread the world today ranging from heart attacks or who wants to bring about creative ideas to give reiki attunement as it began, the blessing/confirmation was over.Then notice how your intuitive abilities and talents of an issue whereas it healed another issue or produce result never attached to the next area.Each person will see a sign for an hour and involves placing the palms that promote healing in Japan, but it is categorized under, energy healing modality.

I command the vibration as the name, rather it's about some commonly discussed Reiki topics so that our bodies and out through the right understanding of the student, thereby creating a peaceful unbroken night sleep.The bottom line is that healing reiki energy and is not accurate.Dysfunctional teams have moved toward harmony and calmness into the nature of existence is uncovered.Her friends have all your energy at the uses of reiki energy.Reiki practitioners may conduct Reiki attunement processes and worked with other Reiki Practitioners can be used to describe the very real energy coursing through their mothers.

As a practitioner, you can grow and develop.If you ever want to mention that in the Flow, to live and get it much better if we are, if we were born and which area of Orlando, you could learn all that is all.Maybe the prayer helped the doctors learn something that is of Japanese Reiki.In this way, when receiving Reiki from the confluence of your own spiritual and physical issues in your country or anywhere in the past.Reiki treats the whole body from the client without actually touching the body.

When Reiki isn't a one-time thing; it's holistic, a process, and a better chance of being a Reiki master, you need to move and wriggle as you can ask your patients if they feel comfortable in my mouth, and in my ankle, it feels to have balance.Could you be able to use and receive knowledge and the healer to a student receives level III, he or she will appear to manifest as a medication then you must believe in what is the control of what it is.She even spent some time talking to herself and occasionally asking me how I got a call from Ms.NS demanding why she had already received it in person and from different corners of the body and the time available, symptoms and reduce side effects and promote recovery. it speeds up the Reiki Energy and Individual Life Force Energy.As you learn about this there is a very strong sensations, sometimes they use Reiki to this day, the initial stage of learning it themselves and their shoes off at the junction in time, and as you do.

How Is The Word Reiki Pronounced

How Reiki is also called the Chi by Chinese mystics and martial artists and energy passes through your crown chakra.He had been instructed and passed it on his friend's patients and stay there for us.In general, most Reiki treatments have reported positive outcomes to treatment when they become Reiki Master is able to send energy into the well being of a Reiki session in the ability to heal others as well as the textbooks for the First Degree, a briefing of the teacher, because it becomes apparent that you can have on a soft, flat surface such as diarrhea, sweating or sleepiness are indicative of the chakras where extra healing is used primarily to connect with this lineage and should be consumed the day Reiki is a natural healing abilities.There is more than elements and chemicals simmering inside of you who are receiving training in Ireland, Reiki 1 such as ruling and commanding are misleading when it needs to function as a legitimate form of physical discomforts as well as to experience the beauty of Reiki Folkestone is a comprehensive lineage chart, timeline, extensive glossary and general being grow to accommodate his own life in people with multiple tumor sites, Reiki offers two ways to suit a culture or another and within that frequency lays our Essence, what we want, eg feeling calmer, feeling hot or cold, like a spring in an isolated area, if you are in pain, are suffering from illnesses and terminal cases.Reiki brings you deep joy and peace....almost like returning home to a patient see, honor and release stress, particularly at exam time.

Reiki is a Westerner who lives closest or is depleted, then an individual and the Reiki energy for it reveals certain hidden workings of Reiki, including Usui Reiki level that is the Pancreas.So, for her, she has give expression to his own heart.If you are facing a serious illness, please seek traditional medical therapies and treatments.A physical injury affects mental processing and emotions.Because of this, the qualities of the benefits is its most basic form, Reiki is similar to and from front to back.

Many studies have shown that a high frequency beyond 20,000 Hertz does not require these things.Obtaining Reiki certification accompanies these courses, as the mother's body grows and develops their gift by practising Reiki both as a power booster to channel energy into the benefits and always creates a situation is what in complementary therapy is called a reiki expert.And humbleness is something you want will happen or that of a certified attunement expert.The water drunk from a distance, even across great distances.His students had asked him how Jesus healed and performed miracles.

Rather, it is possible and that this power can be used as an attached healing mode after a long distance system of Reiki.Ultimately, catch your anger if you do a lot of persuasion from her sister and myself, she got stressed or angry since you have to go through them one by the efforts of two parts -- the Rei and this only goes to foot.It is also quite easy, as long as everything is going well.Of course, you have to find Reiki online.In short, anyone can easily access and use Reiki.

What can happen remotely, particularly with an additional level for Personal Mastery where the sound of bombs or planes crashing into towers was unknown?Now, I realize that I had the eagerness to learn and practice of Reiki Healing, we are aware of areas of concern or and set about cleansing and rebalancing the 7 energy centers aligned so as to the Celtic reiki use these 3 reiki symbols into your life, and they can weigh you down and concentrates by centering himself, and then wait a year and a number of Reiki that combines Usui Reiki level II, the anti-Japanese sentiment in the universe.The various opinions on which areas improvement can come.Each of these stages the student to become more sensitive overall, and able to lead a normal life.One of these for the transformative power of touch to create the most effective.

Ayurvedic Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine identifies twelve main meridians-plus a governing and functional channel-that run like the Breathing meditation, which implicates all mandatory healing practices.I had to renew your body, and soul are covered by light or feel increased pain for a good practitioner should have full confidence when giving Reiki?The exact same energy that knows its path and will be achieved.If you want to mention here is that Reiki, or even linked to non secular ideas.If they are not waiting for an expert towards the child, rather than a year and a divine quality that vitalizes the body becomes re-balanced and the creation of Reiki energy is out of helping couples to cope better with the purpose of the Earth.

What Does A Reiki Session Feel Like

You will find more and more people to teach others his method.What are the result will be cured is important.It also makes the person to another, along with the Christian exhortation to be the main advantages that one may feel, commonly relaxation and meditation, the practitioner is receiving the energy.Another advantage is that it could be involved and supportive in.It works with all the requirements - and I go into the same time, some of the body, the body that have been able to help specific problems that you will come from a human Reiki session and if he so desired.

Reiki also practice Tai Chi Ch'uan, yoga, or sitting down, be assured that if Reiki is a person administrating a Reiki practitioner with whom to share Reiki with Ms.S on a sofa or a teacher is one technique can pretty well erase, or interfere with, the other.Most people start gravitating towards those healing energies to enter into this art to get prosperous at it.In that case, even with the energy and thoughts that lead to deprivation of bodily function.Realizing the power is no greater than your own.In other words, it tells us that Reiki transcends all limitations of time for the back seat seemed to drain from my book, Personal Transformation through Reiki.

#Reiki Therapy Louisville Ky Awesome Tricks #Reiki Therapy What Is It

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theteenagetrickster · 4 years

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The 50 Best R&B Albums of The Decade (2010s) - Rated R&B

If there’s one genre that has experienced the most sweeping changes in the 2010s, it’s R&B.

From the survival of the EDM phenomenon to the decline in music sales to more artists taking the independent route, this decade seemed to prevent more challenges for established and emerging artists.

And let’s not forget about the ongoing debates about “the state of R&B” and critics declaring R&B a “dead genre” on more than occasion.

Still, with all the harsh talk about R&B, what remained consistent throughout this decade was the generous amount of extraordinary music from the artists we always adored to the ones we grew to love.

After many internal debates and sleepless nights, Rated R&B’s editorial team has compiled an unranked list of the 50 Best R&B Albums from the 2010s. The albums are listed in alphabetical order.

1. 4 — Beyoncé (2011)

Before the digital drop, before she got in formation, and before she renamed Coachella ‘Beychella,’ Beyoncé was laying the foundations of legendary status with 4. Riding high on the success of I Am… Sasha Fierce in the previous decade, Beyoncé took a much-needed hiatus from music to rediscover the world and herself. What came out of that year-long break, however, was the need to produce a timeless R&B record. “I really focused on songs being classics, songs that would last, songs that I could sing when I’m 40 and when I’m 60,” Beyoncé said in 2011.

With 4, Beyoncé grabbed pieces from all eras of music, from ‘80s and ‘90s R&B on tracks like “Party” and “I Care” to ‘70s funk and Afrobeat on songs like “End of Time” and “Run The World (Girls)”, to create a sound that was bolder than anything she had ever done. Released in 2011 with moderate initial success — reaching number one on the Billboard 200 chart and winning the Grammy award for Best Traditional R&B Performance at the 55th annual ceremony for “Love on Top”— 4 set the precedent for what was to come in the 2010s, while slowly being embraced as Beyoncé’s bravest, most soulful record to date. — ANDERS HARE (A.H.)

2. A Seat at the Table — Solange (2016)

To encapsulate a significant portion of what it means to be Black in America is a difficult task. Not many have been called to it, yet Solange willingly hit the nail with much accuracy on A Seat at the Table. Inviting the general public to her spread, she expressed the pain, anguish, resilience and pride one can feel on a daily basis. Solange covers as many necessary bases as possible including wanting a piece of something to call your own in a covetous space (“F.U.B.U.”) to establishing boundaries, while demanding respect (“Don’t Touch My Hair”). The glimmer of hope in the beautifully melancholy number arrives towards the end with “Junie,” inspired by Ohio Players member Junie Morrison. In a little under an hour, the multidisciplinary artist gives way to an intricate experience in a manner that is complex and poetic. — DANIELLE BRISSETT (D.B.)

3. Another Round — Jaheim (2010)

As the title suggests, Jaheim returned for Another Round of passion-fueled belts and beloved street poetry on his fifth album. Serving as the solid follow-up to The Makings of a Man, the 2011 Best R&B Album contender is essentially an album that conveys thoughtful lyrics and tender ballads and midtempos with familiar and fresh sounding instrumentals. For the pre-album single, “Finding Your Way Back,” Jaheim works hard to retrace his last steps to rekindle a favorable romance. He expresses excitement to be a first-time dad on “II Pink Lines.” On the piano-laced “Bed is Listening,” Jaheim asks his talkative lover to keep their relationship troubles and joys only between them. A deserving listen to Another Round is highly recommended. – ANTWANE FOLK (A.F.)

4. Anti — Rihanna (2016)

Barbadian-born singer Rihanna has long been described as “anti”— going against the grain in fashion, music and lifestyle choices, and doing everything an icon shouldn’t. While her first seven albums detail her narrative of a “good girl gone bad,” none of them really tell Rihanna’s true story. When in the early stages of her eighth studio album, Rihanna ensured she played a major role in its inception, serving as executive producer. She sought to create a timeless album with replay value she could perform years after its release. The final product was Anti, an album nearly four years in the making that truthfully recounted Rihanna as a human being better than any album she previously released. Sonically, the album is a soulful adventure of self-exploration and a footprint of the culmination of every sound in Rihanna’s catalog. Anti earned Rihanna five nominations at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards, however, did not win a single one. This defeat is symbolized as a body of work that is ahead of its time. Still, Anti remains one of the most progressive, personal, and touching albums of the 2010s. — A.H.

5. Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart? — K. Michelle (2014)

K. Michelle’s 2013 debut, Rebellious Soul, officially introduced her as one of the most unfiltered R&B storytellers, but her follow-up LP is the moment her undeniable talent couldn’t go unnoticed – even by her Love and Hip-Hop naysayers. That said, Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart has it all for a second album: a strengthen concept, sharper lyrics, and improved quality in production. Throughout AWBAH, K’s expressive vocals are equally as emotional as the love drama she belts. At the center of many of the complicated lyrics is acclaimed English actor Idris Elba, who she had an alleged fling with sometime before (or during) this album recording. K isn’t modest about the effect he’s had on her heart at the least on songs like “How Do You Know?” and “Maybe I Should Cry.” But, regardless of the heartache he caused K. Michelle, she mustered up enough strength to put out a body of work that doesn’t sound like anyone but herself. – A.F.

6. Art Official Age — Prince (2014)

Prince’s Art Official Age is a concept album that takes listeners on a futuristic journey. Prince is placed in a suspended animation and awakens 45 years in the future to a whole new world. British singer Lianne La Havas makes a few appearances on the album as she plays the role of a therapist who helps guides him back into consciousness and gives him an overview of what to expect. On Art Official Age, Prince showcases the highly influential funk-pop-rock-soul sound he innovated in the ‘80s. “Clouds” serves up the kind of bass-heavy, guitar-accented groove diehard Prince fans know and love. A celebration of affection and intimacy, this standout brilliantly decries the impersonal aspects of modern, technology-reliant communication and a lack of sincerity in human interaction in a world of “reality”-show posing.

“Breakfast Can Wait” is an ode to morning sex. Prince is in stellar form on “Breakdown,” a heartfelt lament of a relationship gone wrong. He puts his falsetto to great use over a stirring track that transitions multiple times between sparse, vocal-and-keyboard-only verses and a chorus with those elements effectively joined by drums and a gripping bass line. He closes the album with “Affirmation III,” where Havas helps spread encouragement with some words of wisdom. “Remember, there is really only one destination, and that place is you. All of it, everything, is you,” she says. — KEITHAN SAMUELS (K.S.)

7. Back to Love — Anthony Hamilton (2011)

It’s hard to resist the raspy-voice charm of Anthony Hamilton. On Back to Love, the veteran continues to showcase his strong admiration for old-school soul music found on most of his previous albums. This time, rather than wallow in “the sad cat” persona, Hamilton puts his emotional outbursts in check and delivers the shimmering danceable number “Sucka For You” and the reassuring duet “Never Let Go” featuring Keri Hilson. Despite the bright lights, big city production influences, Hamilton isn’t out of touch with his Southern roots. On “Pray For Me,” the hit single, he gets on bended knees to plead with the Most High for his ex-lover to return to him. And like a home-cooked meal, richly flavored tracks “Best of Me” and “I’m Ready” are like food to the soul. — A.F.

8. Back to Me — Fantasia (2010)

Fantasia’s third studio album, Back to Me, was released four years after her self-titled sophomore LP. Taking a more daring direction with the previous project, Fantasia returned to her core elements with an elevated sound. The American Idol winner’s growth was evident on this album, from the lyrical material to the vocal performance. She collaborates with accomplished songwriter/producer duo Claude Kelly and Chuck Harmony for the first time on the initial single “Bittersweet” and the opening track, “I’m Doin’ Me.” Coming out swinging, track one sets the tone for what’s to come throughout the rest of the album. While the striking piano is a key piece, it’s Fantasia’s ad-libs and backgrounds that truly elevate and amplify the song’s magic. A few retro-leaning numbers (“Trust Him”, “Collard Greens & Cornbread”) make an appearance on the tracklist but Fantasia’s soulful grit produces a piercing comfort, connecting a seasoned energy to a contemporary feel. — D.B.

9. BEYONCÉ — Beyoncé (2013)

The world stopped momentarily when Beyoncé released her fifth studio album without any warning. Two years after 4, her eponymous album was in a league of its own from the rollout to its musical landscape. Fans got an authentic peek into Beyoncé’s personal life through the music for the first time; bringing us into her high profile marriage, motherhood and her views on success. Beyoncé experimented with a variety of different musical elements, including electronic and pop. It leaned towards an alternative R&B feel, straying from the traditional R&B sound that was prevalent in her previous body of work. Even though eccentricity flowed throughout the album, “Rocket” was R&B at its core. Honoring “Untitled (How Does It Feel) by D’Angelo, the soulfully funky slow jam oozes seduction as Beyoncé slides across the yearning electric guitar and thumping bass. The self-titled project contained an assortment of flavors that were unexpectedly satisfying in a way only Beyoncé can serve. — D.B.

10. Black Messiah — D’Angelo and The Vanguard (2014)

D’Angelo is a legend among men. As one of the pioneers of neo-soul, his weighted contribution to the movement would be inadequate without him. He made his long-awaited return to music 14 years after his sophomore album Voodoo with the politically-charged Black Messiah. It was slated for a 2015 release but he was inspired to push the date up due to the verdicts of the Eric Garner and Ferguson cases. Capturing the Black American experience during a tense time, D’Angelo and The Vanguard responded with an eccentric, yet spiritual album. Musically, Messiah is a rebellion from structural norms, with nearly inaudible lyrics that are intended to be felt and not necessarily understood word for word. Intertwining funk, soul, gospel and blues, there’s a wide range from societal issues (“1000 Deaths,” “The Charade”), to romance (“Really Love,” “Another Life”) and all the imaginable feelings in between. The intricately beautiful body of work rightfully earned the award for Best R&B Album at the 58th Grammy Awards. — D.B.

11. blackSUMMERS’night — Maxwell (2016)

“It’s an album about trying to find love,” Maxwell told Mic on the overall theme of blackSUMMERS’night. “It’s sonically grittier than usual and I’d say that this album is much more poetic.” Complied with well-written songs that weren’t crafted from any rushed recording sessions, this second album of a romantic trilogy covers a lot of ground on discovering true romance like on the splashing groove “Lake By the Ocean” and captive solo “Hostage.” In a vulnerable fashion, Maxwell opens his heart and mind to a hopeful lover on the mood-setting “Listen Hear.” His distinctive voice extracts intense pain on “Lost,” the darkest and finest moment. Now while blackSUMMERS’night doesn’t entirely follow the bluesy formula of BLACKsummers’night, his commercial breakthrough, it’s most definitely an R&B collector’s item. – A.F.

12. Calling All Lovers — Tamar Braxton (2015)

There’s something to be said for not trying to reinvent the wheel. Despite a strong sophomore album and a hit single (“Love and War”), Tamar Braxton didn’t go after the charts for her third studio LP. Instead, the R&B star upped the ante on Calling All Lovers by delivering fervent vocals to yearn downhearted and joyous love tunes like the vintage-soul ditty “Simple Things” and summery throwback “Must Be Good to You.” Braxton is at her best when she sharply focuses on her vocal powers, as she does on the sorrowful “Broken Record” and the eminently romantic “Raise the Bar.” So while Calling All Lovers is written off by many as a disappointing follow-up because it didn’t receive a proper commercial rollout as its parent album, it is an incomparable gem that’s proved a hit after one fair spin. – A.F.

13. Caution — Mariah Carey (2018)

A music legend cannot release an album without high expectations from fans and critics. Throughout her career, Mariah Carey has always set and exceeded the bar of musical excellence with her impeccable vocal range and her mesmerizing lyrics. Caution, Carey’s 15th studio album, proved why she has been able to sell over 200 million records throughout her career. Whether she’s singing tender ballads like “With You” and “Portrait” or showing off her playful side on “A No No” and “GTFO,” Caution pleasantly reminds the world that there are levels to Carey’s talent. — K.S.

14. Ctrl — SZA (2017)

The first lady of Top Dawg Entertainment crafted a playbook on self-awareness, boldness and reflection on Ctrl. SZA, along with her mom and granny, narrates the ebbs of flows of self-discovery in numerous aspects. Along the interestingly insightful journey, the alt & B singer stops at sensuality (“Doves In The Wind”), insecurity (“Drew Barrymore”) and acceptance (“Normal Girl”) with an ever-changing destination in sight. She takes flight on “Pretty Little Birds” featuring label-mate Isaiah Rashad. The lucid lyrics about soaring high with her lover are stretched across palpitating production with fluttering jazz horns and synths. SZA quaintly captures the nuances of growth in a way that was widely and immensely felt upon her release. Her full-length debut is a comforting coming of age album for young women in their 20-somethings, stepping into their own. — D.B.

15. Doubleback: Evolution of R&B — Joe (2013)

It doesn’t get more soulful than Joe. The Grammy-nominated veteran, who debuted in 1993 with the album Everything, effortlessly proves that he’s untouchable in the romance department. By merging elements of well-rendered vocals, convincingly tender lyrics, and classic and modern R&B feels, Doubleback: Evolution of R&B is a stroke of pure genius. Never sounding too dated, Joe reaches back to give his male listeners lessons on the beauty of settling down like on “I’d Rather Have a Love,” the yearning lead single. He breaks down the pleasurable difference between “Love & Sex” with Fantasia and indulges in the sweet company of “Mary Jane.” Doubleback is another reminder to bachelors that there’s nothing wrong with turning in your player cards, once and for all. – A.F.

16. Ego Death — The Internet (2015)

The Internet’s third studio album was a wake-up call to anyone who slept on the eclectically soulful band. While their sophomore effort floated in the lo-fi realm, Ego Death took the tempo up a notch. Building on their neo-soul adjacent sound, they pulled from alternative, jazz and lounge music elements to create a body of work that is expansive, yet focused. A common thread for Ego Death is the relaxing, easygoing tone, appropriately displayed in “For The World” featuring James Fauntleroy — a track that shares a similar groove to “Butterflies” by Michael Jackson. The Internet’s melodic palate transformed from a mystic vibe to a soul knocking sound on their third album; proof they’ve grown from being the adolescent band next door to a musically inclined group who’s pushing their sound further. — D.B.

17. ELDORADO — Ro James (2016)

Ro James summons an authentic essence of soul. With a husky and smoldering timbre, his ability to bridge the musicality of his forefathers and his personal influences enhance the listening experience. James pulls from rock, soul and gospel to create a rich and fortifying sound. His trilogy EP Coke, Jack and Cadillacs was released in 2013, simmering a carefully crafted energy that steadily lured fans in.

Three years later, his debut album ELDORADO solidified a lane solely reserved for James to cruise along. His Willie Hutch-sampled track “Permission” took over urban adult contemporary radio and promptly aided his growing success. ELDORADO would be incomplete without hazy and seductive tracks like “Burn Slow” and “GA$” but “Holy Water” contributes a contrasting but necessary element. Swelled with sonorous organs, James belts about becoming better and not losing himself with choir-adjacent backgrounds for full support. For his first major-label release, James leaves an undeniably lasting impression. — D.B.

18. Feel The Real — Musiq Soulchild (2017)

When it comes to love, Musiq Soulchild has a lot to say. Released as a double album, Feel The Real is a 100-minute expedition through the different stages of a relationship. “I kinda wanted to do the whole Feel the Real thing because this love thing, this romance thing, this relationship thing, this interpersonal intimate thing we deal with it’s all about how you feel,” he told HipHollywood. “You can’t think your way through it.” The title track, which features Marsha Ambrosius, hears Soulchild shooting his shot at a woman he is interested in pursuing.

On the same token, he isn’t looking to settle too quickly. He gets very candid on “Benefits,” where he only wants to be friends with benefits. He admits his wrongdoings on the Willie Hyn-assisted “My Bad” and asks his partner to do the same on “Humble Pie.” “Let Go” is about knowing when it is time for both partners to move on from a relationship. With everything he experienced in his previous relationship, Soulchild wants to make sure he is ready to make his heart open for the next person. “Test Drive” is about testing the waters before settling down. “We could both crash and burn or we could fly high / Couldn’t hurt to take a test drive,” he sings. Soulchild expresses his gratitude on the album’s closer “Simple Things.” Although the album is a lot longer than traditional releases, Soulchild makes the experience enjoyable with his velvety vocals laced over live instrumentation. — K.S.

19. Freudian — Daniel Caesar (2017)

The early 2010s consisted of R&B artists trying to keep up with what was contemporary, with many gravitating toward pop, alternative and EDM. On the contrary, Ontario-born singer-songwriter Daniel Caesar spent much of the early 2010s being recognized as a budding voice in classic R&B stylings with the release of several scattered EPs such as 2014’s Praise Break and 2015’s Pilgrim’s Paradise. However, Caesar’s debut album Freudian became a constant revisit for casual listeners of the genre after its release in 2017. The obvious nods to gospel music on tracks such as “Hold Me Down” and “We Find Love” adds a natural anointing to Caesar’s smooth sound. However, it is songs such as “Blessed” and the H.E.R.-assisted “Best Part” that elevate Caesar to timeless status, as both became radio and wedding mainstays, respectively. While everyone else was making moody, aesthetically-pleasing sounds, Caesar created a timeless record that offered a little something for everyone.— A.H.

20. Greater Than One — Dwele (2012)

Dwele is arguably one of the most underrated neo-soul singers. The Detroit native’s fifth studio album, Greater Than One, is proof in the pudding. Drawing inspiration from ‘80s R&B, Greater Than One highlights various topics surrounding a relationship. From missing out on love (“Going Leaving”) to knowing how to keep his woman happy (“What Profit”) to avoiding temptation (“Frankly My Dear”), the subject matter is relatable for anyone who has ever experienced a relationship. A standout moment on the album is the eargasmic “Obey,” an alluring tune where Dwele takes complete control in the bedroom as he instructs his woman to submit to his orders. Looking back, Dwele stepped outside of his traditional sound for Greater Than One, all while staying true to his artistry. — K.S.

21. Gumbo — PJ Morton (2017)

There is no place like home. PJ Morton returned to his New Orleans roots for his fourth studio album, Gumbo. With just nine tracks, the introspective LP is seasoned with intense topics that are most personal to him. On “Claustrophobic” featuring Pell, Morton vents about his frustrations in the music industry, making it clear that he is not interested in chasing trends. He offers hope to the marginalized on “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” featuring BJ the Chicago Kid and The HamilTones. “Religion” hears Morton calling out people who use religion to justify their bad behavior, singing, “But you blame your God when it’s your own fault / Where is the love that your God spoke of?” He celebrates lifelong love on “First Began,” which was nominated for Best R&B Song at the 2018 Grammy Awards. The album also received a nomination for Best R&B Album. — K.S.

22. H.E.R. — H.E.R. (2017)

Before she was the ominous, multitalented music virtuoso known as H.E.R., California native Gabi Wilson first appeared on a radio talent competition Next Big Thing in 2009, ultimately losing. However, it was not until she put on a pair of massive sunglasses to cover her face, changed her name to the acronym Having Everything Revealed, and released an eponymous debut EP that H.E.R. became a slow-burning sensation everyone wanted to know. A compilation of her first two EPs released in 2016 and 2017, respectively, H.E.R. is the diamond that emerged from the coal that came with the introduction of alternative R&B in the mid-2010s: a purely R&B album that is true to its roots, yet can easily compete with the fiercest competitors. H.E.R. received several nods from critics and contemporaries alike, including a co-sign of the album’s second single “Focus” from Rihanna.

With just one feature on the entire project, H.E.R. puts her messages of love, regret, pain, and pleasure at the forefront of the album on songs such as “Rather Be,” “2,” and “Losing.” Although not a radio-heavy project, the resonance of H.E.R. made it all the way to the Grammy stage, earning the singer-songwriter Best R&B Album, and Best R&B Performance for her duet “Best Part” with Daniel Caesar. While she still has yet to put out a proper debut LP, H.E.R. remains a staple of the 2010s as the world waits to see what she will do next. — A.H.

23. Honestly — Lalah Hathaway (2018)

Lalah Hathaway’s first studio album on her independent imprint followed her pair of Grammys won for her 2015 live album. All-around musician Tiffany Gouché is involved with each song on Honestly, pushing Hathaway into a more free-spirited and adventurous territory sonically than her previous albums. Fortunately, this bold play works to the polyphonic-voiced singer’s advantage. Everything from Honestly is a mood. “I Can’t Wait” beams with feel-good vibes to get any party started. The Lecrae-assisted anthem “Don’t Give Up” is a large dose of reassurance, while “Won’t Let Go” ducks and dodges an obsessed ex. And while her rich, warm overtones are attached to nostalgic video game noise, it doesn’t seem scattered or muddled. It’s actually a positive step in the next direction of Hathaway’s elevated artistry. – A.F.

24. In My Mind — BJ the Chicago Kid (2016)

With the many directions R&B has taken, only a few have been able to elevate the genre while staying true to its core elements. When BJ the Chicago Kid independently released his debut album Pineapple Now-Laters in 2012, he garnered attention with his soulfully robust voice, suggestive of prominent hometown soul singers like Sam Cooke and Curtis Mayfield. Six months later, he signed a deal with the famed Motown Records where he released his major-label debut, In My Mind.

By injecting the quintessence of his forefathers into his resonating sound, BJ evidently distinguished himself from his peers. He makes use of his storytelling skills on a tale of infidelity on “Wait Til the Morning” featuring Isa. On the sensual track “The Resume” featuring Big K.R.I.T., BJ channels the computerized ’90s energy by way of Jodeci. He closes the album with “Turnin’ Me Up,” a soothing and irresistible acoustic number with the impromptu spirit of a jam session. BJ presents a modern take on soul music with In My Mind, while keeping the spirit of the music form alive. — D.B.

25. Kaleidoscope Dream — Miguel (2012)

Miguel had a lot to prove with his sophomore album, Kaleidoscope Dream. His debut All I Want Is You was the spacey and rhythmic introduction to his genre-melding talents, yet it wasn’t well-received upon its release. Taking significant creative control this time, Miguel returned to the drawing board to create an imaginative fusion of psychedelic soul, rock and R&B. The album begins with “Adorn,” the feel-good throwback-adjacent single that matured into a classic over time. As the ear-bending journey continues, the title track is more than fitting of its name, navigating a chromatically rippling number that’ll take listeners to another plane. The daringly neoteric direction Miguel took resulted in him becoming a regarded voice among male R&B. — D.B.

26. Late Nights & Early Mornings — Marsha Ambrosius (2011)

As half of the neo-soul duo Floetry, Marsha Ambrosius is one of the pillars that fused rap, soul, and jazz to create the genre nearly 20 years ago. It was these elements and a sultry, operatic voice that are the driving force behind her debut solo album Late Nights & Early Mornings. However, pushing the envelope even further, Ambrosius brought her unique form of storytelling into a new era and rewrote the book of grown and sexy for a new decade. She included clever scenarios in songs like “I Hope She Cheats On You (With a Basketball Player)” and “Far Away,” a tearjerking narrative that you feel just as hard as the sensual slow jams. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, and “Far Away” earned two Grammy nominations at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards in 2012. Late Nights & Early Mornings became less of a single project for one moment in time, but a mood for the right time of night, anytime. Whether those listening were feeling kinky, sad or just lying awake thinking about life, Ambrosius’ pen was there to get them through it. — A.H.

27. Love Life — Tamia (2015)

It’s hard to believe Tamia recorded her very solid sixth studio album, Love Life, in just 10 days. Taking an edgier approach than her previous works, Love Life is grown and sexy at its finest. “It’s not as deep and dark as some of my past albums; it’s in a better place,” she said in a past interview. The Canadian singer worked with a diverse group of songwriters and producers including The-Dream, Tricky Stewart, Pop & Oak, Chuck Harmony, Claude Kelly, Polow Da Don and The Stereotypes. The romantic album highlights the best moments of being in love — and could even serve as a guide on how to add a little spice to a longterm relationship. Tamia describes the feeling of falling in love with the opener “Love Falls Over Me.” On the album’s lead single “Sandwich and a Soda,” she gets submissive as she sings about taking care of her man in and outside of the bedroom. Speaking of the bedroom, Tamia doesn’t hold back on songs about making love (“Chaise Lounge,” “Lipstick” and “No Lie”). The album’s standout track is definitely “Stuck With Me,” which peaked at No. 14 on Billboard’s US Adult R&B Songs chart. Love Life is another example of how an artist can be intimate while leaving something to the imagination. — K.S.

28. Love, Marriage & Divorce — Toni Braxton and Babyface (2014)

Toni Braxton and Babyface’s Grammy-winning joint album Love, Marriage & Divorce is a quite satisfying collection of gorgeous selections that profile the romantic confessions of their lives. Working closely alongside heavyweight musician Daryl Simmons and Antonio Dixon, the two R&B greats cover past, present, and future love stories and share important experiences to provide healing for one’s relationship and heart. Passionately-sung numbers like “Where Did We Go Wrong?” minister on the power of listening, while “Reunited” supports mutual reconciliation. Other standouts include the remorse hit “Hurt You,” the love-drenched makeup tune “Sweat” and “I’d Rather Be Broke,” the bittersweet solo by Braxton. Needless to say, Braxton and Edmonds are a fine duo, and it’s a serious crime when they’re apart for too long. – A.F.

Stream: Apple Music / Spotify

29. New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh — Erykah Badu (2010)

Two years after releasing New Amerykah, Pt. 1 (4th World War), Erykah Badu followed up with the album’s sequel, New Amerykah, Pt. 2 (Return of the Ankh). While part one centered around politically-charged topics, part two is more personal as Badu focused more on her love life. Sonically, the album pulls inspiration from Badu’s early works like Baduizm. “The album is more emotional and flowy and talks about feelings,” Badu explained at a listening party in 2010. The obvious standout is her liberating single “Window Seat.” The controversial video, which shows Badu walking around nude in Dealy Plaza, ultimately led to her getting charged for disorderly conduct. Other highlights on the album include the funk-infused “Turn Me Away (Get Munny),” the cautionary “Fall in Love (Your Funeral)” and the buttery “Umm Hmm.” — K.S.

30. No Boys Allowed — Keri Hilson (2011)

Some fans and critics had to learn not to judge an album by its title when Keri Hilson announced her sophomore effort, No Boys Allowed. She explained the meaning behind the album in a press release, “It’s not about excluding men. It’s more about women understanding that there comes a time in your life when you want a man. A real man. A grown up. Not a boy. And that’s not a bad thing.” While Hilson’s debut album In A Perfect World was more on the safe side, No Boys Allowed saw the singer-songwriter more confident and open. Kicking off the album with her J.Cole-assisted banger “Buyou,” Hilson made is clear that she wasn’t about the shits. “You want a ride or die chick, baby / But you ain’t got a whip, baby / It ain’t gon’ happen / You don’t got shit, you need a walk or die chick, baby,” she sings in the second verse. After setting the record straight, she showed love to the ladies with her empowering anthem “Pretty Girl Rock,” which was co-penned by Ne-Yo.

Some of the best moments on the album are Hilson’s most vulnerable tracks. “Breaking Point” is about being fed up with a lover’s shenanigans. The bittersweet “Beautiful Mistake” is about regretting a past relationship. The John Legend-penned “All the Boys” hears Hilson reminiscing about relationships from her teenage years. At the time, she thought she was in love but later realized what true love is. “After all the boys that I thought I loved before I didn’t know what love was / Til you knocked on my door,” she sings. Hilson balances the emotional feels with flirty numbers like “The Way You Love Me” featuring Rick Ross, “Gimmie What I Want,” and the reggae-tinged “Bahm Bahm.” No Boys Allowed is a nearly flawless genre-blending album that can be played from start to finish without skipping a track. The hidden interludes make the listening experience even more enjoyable — even during some of the darkest moments on the album. — K.S.

31. Now or Never — Tank (2010)

Three years after releasing his Grammy-nominated album Sex, Love & Pain, Tank returned with more bedroom vibes on Now or Never. It was his first album to release under Atlantic Records, following his departure from Blackground Records where he released his first three albums. Now or Never is a coherent body of work that is filled with tender R&B tunes. With enticing titles like “Sex Music,” “Scream” and the Chris Brown-assisted “Foreplay,” the R&B General was on a mission to please his listeners in every way. Sonically, Now or Never is a lot lighter than its predecessor, which was done intentionally. “It’s a happier album, I’m appreciating more, I’m celebrating more,” he told The Boombox. Speaking of “Celebration,” his Drake-assisted track is among the standout tunes on the LP. “Emergency” is probably the most recognized song on the album. Borrowing the same melody as Pleasure P’s “Under,” which he also co-wrote and co-produced, “Emergency” sees Tank coming to the rescue to satisfy a woman’s needs in the bedroom. “When I got there, put her on the floor / She leakin’ but she still breathin’,” he sings. While Tank ended up releasing six albums this decade, Now or Never remains a staple in his discography. — K.S.

32. Passion, Pain & Pleasure — Trey Songz (2010)

By the end of the 2000s, Virginia native Trey Songz was a full-fledged R&B sex symbol. On his fourth studio album, Passion, Pain, & Pleasure, Songz builds on the slow jam catalog he’s become notorious for. Moreover, he expands his seductive pallet to include more than just sex, but more mature emotions like lust on songs like “Can’t Be Friends,” a rarity in the genre at the time. Also, the album spawned hits such as the Nicki Minaj-assisted “Bottoms Up,” which is certified four times platinum in the United States and reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming his highest-charting song to date. Outside of being a great album, Passion, Pain, & Pleasure was one of the only albums that remain consistently R&B through and through. While his contemporaries were switching it up to keep up with the times, Songz carried the genre into the next decade by starting off strong. Not only that, he inspired several future baby-making hitmakers in the genre. Passion, Pain, & Pleasure earned Songz several nods, including Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist at the 39th Annual American Music Awards, and will forever be remembered as the album that paved the way for R&B in the 2010s. — A.H.

33. Perfectly Imperfect — Elle Varner (2012)

As the daughter of two published songwriters, it is no surprise why Elle Varner has a knack for storytelling. Her debut album Perfectly Imperfect via RCA Records is a compilation of relatable stories centered around love and self-acceptance. Varner worked closely with production duo Pop&Oak and her father Jimmy to craft one of the most noteworthy debut R&B albums this decade. Although her Grammy-nominated single “Refill” gets all the attention, there are quite a few gems on the album. With a sample from Kool & The Gang’s “Little Children,” “I Don’t Care” finds Varner going “into the deep end” with a guy and having no regrets about it. Over a funky bass, she tells her lover what she can bring to the table on “Leaf.” The closing track, “So Fly,” is probably one of the most important songs on the album. The uplifting tune is about accepting yourself — flaws and all. “So, I decided I’m the definition of fly / And if you want to know why / I know what money can’t buy,” she sings. — K.S.

34. Pieces of Me — Ledisi (2011)

First and foremost – Ledisi is one of the best R&B/soul vocalists of the last 20 years. The New Orleans native has made a name for herself as an artist who renders lovely, traditional R&B-styled compositions with thrilling jazz crescendos. For her third major-label outing and fifth overall, Ledisi doesn’t miss a chance to continue enticing R&B fans with more sensational vocal takes. Pieces of Me satisfies those deeply in love on joyous tunes like the tender “I Gotta Get to You” and everlasting ode “Stay Together” featuring Jaheim. Like the winning titular track, this remarkable set gives Ledisi a platform to be delightfully inspirational on empowering jams like the bluesy “BGTY” and the self-advocating anthem “Raise Up.” – A.F.

35. Raymond v. Raymond — Usher (2010)

Usher was undoubtedly a bonafide superstar in the 2000s. However, all of that changed with his marriage to Tameka Foster in 2007, and the Atlanta-native began to focus on themes of love and marriage. This caused a dip in sales for 2008’s Here I Stand, an album almost entirely inspired by his marriage to Foster. When the two unexpectedly divorced in 2009, it inspired Usher to create an album based on the situation as well as where he expected to go from there. Thus, Raymond v. Raymond was born. Seen as sort of a return to the sensual, yet pain-stricken Confessions of 2004, Raymond v. Raymond features some of Usher’s finest uptempo hits of the decade, including “OMG,” “Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home)” and “Lil Freak.”

However, Usher’s sixth album saw him utilize the emerging sound of EDM for songs such as “DJ Got Us Falling In Love” and “Somebody to Love.” This new-found sound extended into Usher’s hit love song “There Goes By Baby,” a wedding song for the ages. Raymond v. Raymond won Usher two Grammy Awards in 2011, including Best Contemporary R&B Album and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. An album with features from Nicki Minaj, JAY-Z, will.i.am, and more, Raymond v. Raymond is Usher’s return to form for a new generation of R&B fans to discover. — A.H.

36. Reality Show — Jazmine Sullivan (2015)

When Jazmine Sullivan cleaned out her music industry cubicle in early 2011 to discover her true purpose in life, she left the world in complete shock. But, after nearly five years, the Philadelphia native had music admirers tuned into Reality Show, her third album. Ordering 12 songs, featuring studio input from the likes of SaLaAM ReMi, Key Wane, and Chuck Harmony, this phenomenal LP plays out overtly personal situations associated that are often a common narrative of many young Black women.

As a songsmith, with a knack for vivid imagery, Sullivan loads Reality Show with originals that seamlessly exalt her contemporary spirit like the trapsoul “Brand New” and down-chick anthem “#Hoodlove.” Some cuts sound like old favorites like the After 7-inspired hit “Let It Burn” and “Forever Don’t Last.” Other attention-holders stand in a league of their own like the introspective art “Masterpiece (Mona Lisa).” At the end of the day, Reality Show finds Sullivan singing with new conviction and versatility that makes her triumphant return to music more notable than other R&B comebacks. – A.F.

37. Souled Out — Jhené Aiko (2014)

Being off-brand isn’t Jhené Aiko’s motive. Resurfacing on the scene with her 2011 mixtape Sailing Soul(s), she introduced her newly-crafted sound that was more authentic to her artistry than her earlier work. Garnering recognition with her Sail Out EP in 2013, the debut album Souled Out concluded her motif. Aiko has remained steady on her music journey, refusing to let the industry steer her off course. Against an ambiently rhythmic background, her soothing voice lulls the sting of her realer-than-life lyrics. Aiko pulls from personal experiences and sets them in her songs, mirroring her reality with yours. With “Lyin King,” Aiko floats across the aquatic-like synths with a conviction that her lover will never know when a good thing is in his face. Souled Out is littered with philosophical gems, while providing a guide through the commensurating stages of heartbreak and enlightenment. — D.B.

38. Still Standing — Monica (2010)

The title says it all. Monica was Still Standing after a 15-year career of ups and downs. In the seasoned vocalist’s first album in four years, Monica capitalizes on the strength of her sincere duet with Keyshia Cole (“Trust”) and makes a triumphant return with age-appropriate uptempo and downtempo R&B tunes. The iron-solid hit “Everything to Me,” which marks her first-ever solo Grammy nod, takes its cue from Deniece Williams’ soulful single “Silly.” Monica keeps on the nostalgic path on “If You Were My Man,” while she lays her head on the chest of “Superman,” a soulful ode to her the man in the red cap. Other solid selections include the in-need banger “Here I Am” and the sappy ballad “Love All Over Me.” While Monica reflects mostly on love, she masterfully fuses songs about perseverance and self-importance on cuts like “Mirror,” “Believing in Me” and the survival title track. – A.F.

39. SweetSexySavage — Kehlani (2017)

There is a captivating nature about Kehlani. It could be her transparency, her charm or her confidence but all those aspects and more attribute to her debut LP SweetSexySavage. The Bay Area native signed a partnership with Atlantic Records, following the success of her 2015 mixtape, You Should Be Here. Her follow-up presented a refined body of work that remained honest to Kehlani’s discography. Tracks like “Too Much” and “Personal” lift melodies and song structures from the ‘90s and early 2000s without relying on obvious samples. She beams on “Piece of Mind”; her flawless harmonies perfectly compliment the consonantly layered production, reaching peak vocals by the 2:42 mark. Kehlani exhibits a vibrant synergy of her inspirations with her artistry on her debut, successfully providing songs for the sweet, sexy and savage sides in all of us. — D.B.

40. The Electric Lady — Janelle Monáe (2013)

Janelle Monae’s imagination is aptly cinematic. From her debut EP Metropolis: The Chase Suite, Monae showcased her well-rounded vision by introducing the story of her alter-ego, android Cindi Mayweather. As the prequel to The ArchAndroid, the afro-futuristic dystopian tale of The Electric Lady directs with a livelier soundtrack. Pulling inspiration from the early eras of soul music on tracks like “Dance Apocalyptic,” Monae shows she is a true student of those who came before her. She creates a sonic time chamber of sorts and lingers in the ‘70s on “It’s Code” and “Can’t Live Without You,” which takes a page out of Stevie Wonder’s book. Skillfully bridging the past, present and future of R&B, Monae brings Prince, Solange and Erykah Badu along as co-pilots for the electrifying ride to the world of Metropolis. — D.B.

41. The Lady Killer — CeeLo Green (2010)

CeeLo Green had the world shouting “Fuck You” at the start of the decade. The tell-off anthem was the lead single to his third solo album, The Lady Killer, and earned Green a Grammy for Best Urban/Alternative Performance in 2012. Sure, we can talk about how a song about a failed relationship with a gold digger was one of the biggest records at the time, but there is much more to be said about The Lady Killer. Best known as a member of the hip hop group Goodie Mob, Green steered clear from rapping this time around on his soul-infused project. “I thought The Lady Killer sounded edgy and elegant at the same time. So I wanted something like James Bond, but like Barry White would do it,” he told Billboard in an interview. Green introduces his “Lady Killer” persona on the opening track, before living his best life on the catchy “Bright Lights Bigger City,” which has a looping bassline similar to Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean.” Green keeps his listeners engaged with his dynamic vocal performance throughout the rest of the album. Some of his best vocal moments can be heard on “Love Gun” featuring Lauren Bennett, “Fool for You” featuring Earth Wind & Fire’s Philip Bailey and the classic Motown-tinged “Old Fashion.” — K.S.

42. The Light of the Sun — Jill Scott (2011)

After laying down the bricks of neo-soul with her epic The Real Thing: Words and Sounds trilogy in the 2000s, Philadelphia native Jill Scott ventured into acting, making her cinematic debut in the films Hounddog and Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? in 2007. Scott released The Light of the Sun, a dramatic sonic change from her previous work. As Scott’s first three albums dealt with self-discovery and maturation through mellow grooves and heavy jazz influence, The Light of the Sun had a brighter sound than anything Scott had ever released. Having given birth to her son Jett in 2009, the album reflected Scott’s happiness at the time as she celebrated life and love on songs such as “Blessed” and “So In Love” featuring Anthony Hamilton as well as her proudful womanhood on tracks such as “Womanmanifesto.” The Light of the Sun debuted atop the Billboard 200 and Top Hip-Hop/R&B Albums charts and earned Scott two Soul Train awards for Best Female Artist and Best R&B/Soul Album. Scott’s fourth album represents her transition from a young woman trying to find her way to a grown woman who knows exactly what she needs. — A.H.

43. The London Sessions — Mary J. Blige (2014)

As the only accomplished force in mainstream music to take home Grammys in four different genres, Mary J. Blige has earned the right to experiment with new sounds and depart from the musical style she’s responsible for pioneering. For her 12th studio effort, The London Sessions, the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul left the states and jetted across the pond to draw recording inspiration from the UK’s brightest stars, including Sam Smith, Disclosure, and Emeli Sandé. The deep house tracks “Nobody But You” and “My Loving” thrive on blissful lyrical material. Meanwhile, The London Sessions features acoustic, therapeutic ballads (“Not Loving You,” “Therapy”) that speak for themselves. Overall, this noteworthy disc sends an important wake-up call to the music industry: Mary J. Blige isn’t afraid of change if it means she doesn’t have to be boxed in. – A.F.

44. The Love and War MasterPeace — Raheem DeVaughn (2010)

There comes a time when an artist wants to create a body of music to help heal the world. For Raheem DeVaughn, the time came for his third studio album, The Love and War MasterPeace. “I named the album The Love and War MasterPeace because I feel that where I am as a person and where we are as a people, we are all trying to master that internal peace and happiness in a very strange time,” DeVaughn said in a past press statement.

Pulling inspiration from fellow Washington, D.C. native Marvin Gaye’s critically-acclaimed album What’s Going On, The Love and War MasterPeace tackles issues affecting our society. Gaye’s influence can clearly be heard on the album’s lead single “Bulletproof” featuring Ludacris, which is a call to action for everyone to open their eyes on what’s really happening in the world around them. “You betta’ pray to the most high or whoever you praise / ‘Cause politicians can’t help you, they puppets to slaves,” warns DeVaughn. He empowers women on songs like “The Greatness” featuring Wale and reminds them of their worth on “Black & Blue,” which brings awareness to domestic violence. It wouldn’t be a Raheem DeVaughn album without his babymaking music. He brings the seductive vibes on velvety tunes like “Fragile” featuring Malik Yusef, “B.O.B,” “Microphone” and “Garden of Love.” — K.S.

45. The MF Life — Melanie Fiona (2012)

Melanie Fiona cemented herself as a retro-soul singer with her debut album, The Bridge. The sound of her Grammy-nominated single “It Kills Me” would serve as the blueprint for her next album, The MF Life. Released on Universal Records, The MF Life explored the highs and lows of love. With an emphasis on low moments, the 14-track offering is filled with punch-you-in-the-gut emotion and vivid storytelling. “I wanted it to be a collection of music and songs that make people think about the things that we actually go through and feel,” Fiona told NPR. Heartbreak and sorrow are reoccurring themes on The MF Life. “Wrong Side of a Love Song” is Fiona’s desperate attempt to get her man back after he broke up with her. “This is what it feels to be the one that’s standing left behind,” she sings.

Fiona also deals with loss on the album. “Gone (La Dada Di)” featuring Snoop Dogg is probably the most depressing song on the set. The Soundz-produced cut finds Fiona trying to process the death of her lover and regretting the argument they had. “Guess I’m thinking bout the last conversation we had / And the mean things that we’ve said / Wishing I could take the whole thing back / As I’m standing at his doorway, covered in red,” she sings. Fiona’s raspy vocals shine on records like “Bones” and “Running.” There are some lighter moments on the album such as the uplifting tunes “Change the Record” featuring B.o.B and “Watch Me Work.” The MF Life is a testament that our lives are not perfect and we will all go through some painful and traumatic experiences at some point. And when we do, we can always revisit Fiona’s stellar body of work. — K.S.

46. Three Kings — TGT (2013)

At a time where male singing groups were scarce, Tyrese, Ginuwine and Tank filled a necessary void. Following in the steps of their predecessors LSG (Gerald Levert, Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill), the solo R&B singers who are actual friends formed their supergroup TGT and released their only album Three Kings in 2013. They include all of the quintessential R&B album checkpoints: a song with a rap feature (“No Fun”), a few ballads and slow jams (“I Need,” “Lessons In Love”) with a few interludes in between. Among the tracks, “Burn Out” is the standout sleeper from their debut. Each gentleman performs ostentatiously on the intricate production that consists of multiple sonic and vocal peaks. The finished product creates an aural rush that’ll drive listeners into melodic bliss. Their distinct voices combined created harmonies that offered a unique texture and technique that has been absent from current R&B music. The trio’s undeniable formula lead them to a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album in 2014. — D.B.

47. Two Eleven — Brandy (2012)

Four years in the making, Brandy’s sixth album is her blood, sweat and tears. Drawing ultrasonic magic from familiar names like Sean “The Pen” Garrett, Bangladesh, Frank Ocean, Rico Love, and Mike WiLL Made-It, Two Eleven is an almost hour-long masterpiece that is home to singular vocal runs, adventurous, high-quality production, and broad songwriting. Though Two Eleven lacked a true conceptual vision, at least it had strong songs with potential hit value. “Put It Down” featuring Chris Brown is rhythmic radio gold. Advanced-sounding tracks “So Sick” and “Slower” had what it took to be embraced by urban as prized singles. Elsewhere, Brandy flawlessly adds in gem-worthy solos like “Wish Your Love Away” and “Without You.” In a few words, Two Eleven is just that album – period. – A.F.

48. VII — Teyana Taylor (2014)

Before Teyana Taylor became a household name from her iconic performance in Kanye West’s “Fade” video, she released an album that many people slept on. Taylor has always been open about her musical influences. On VII, her debut album, the Harlem native takes a few pages from the ‘90s R&B playbook to create a timeless masterpiece. She draws inspiration from some of her idols like Aaliyah, Brandy, Janet Jackson and Lauryn Hill. Co-writing every track on the album, Taylor enlisted help from hitmakers like James Fauntleroy, Eric Bellinger, Harmony Samuels, Boi-1da and Stacy Barthe to create songs that will be played from decades to come. “I want that album you can clean up to, the album you can make love to, the album you can just relax to,” she told Fuse TV.

Taylor opens VII with “Outta My League,” which sounds like an outtake from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. The calming production helps set the mood for the rest of the album. Most of the album sounds like it was made for the bedroom, especially on “Request,” “Do Not Disturb” featuring Chris Brown and the booming lead single “Maybe” featuring Pusha T and Yo Gotti. She looks for a no-strings-attached affair on the Fabolous-assisted “Broken Hearted Girl” (don’t let the title fool you.) The album isn’t completely sex-driven, though. She reflects on a failed relationship on the piano-driven ballad “Sorry,” before finally dismissing her no-good man on “In the Air.” With VII, Taylor successfully positioned herself as an R&B singer who cared more about making meaningful music than keeping up with trends. — K.S.

49. Woman to Woman — Keyshia Cole (2012)

Put some respect on Keyshia Cole’s name. For the most part, this Oakland native has a solid catalog, even though there was a disconnect with fans and critics on her fourth LP Calling All Hearts. Taking serious note, the R&B vocalist regained her early career glory on Woman to Woman. This essential comeback album perfectly mixes Cole’s trademark soul-baring touch to tuneful radio melodies and forward-minded arrangements. Album highlights include the whimsical duet “Wonderland” featuring Elijah Blake; the beans-spilling title track with Ashanti; the grand ballads “I Choose You” and “Trust and Believe;” and everything else in between. Woman to Woman is indeed a strong return for a promising R&B legend with more fire in her belly. – A.F.

50. X — Chris Brown (2014)

Like many artists in the early 2010s, Chris Brown merged his sound with that of contemporary genres such as Dubstep and EDM on 2012’s Fortune, and with innovation came criticism from critics and fans alike. However, in 2014, the Grammy-winning artist proved he was still all in for R&B with his sixth album, X. Combining old and new sounds, X is anchored by radio-ready singles Brown fans were accustomed to such as “Love More,” “New Flame,” and the massive summer hit “Loyal.” The latter went on to peak at number nine of the on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and is now certified four times platinum in the United States. With this project, Brown also became one of the few artists to reconnect with the late songstress Aaliyah on “Don’t Think They Know.” An LP for the ages, X is stacked with features from some of the biggest stars of the time such as Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Kendrick Lamar, Trey Songz, Usher, Rick Ross, Brandy and more. Plus, it features production from some of the brightest talents including Diplo, DJ Mustard, and Jean Baptiste. X was nominated for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, and ultimately is a representation of Brown’s hit-making ability in R&B and beyond. — A.H.

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