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ficwriterwastakenalt · 2 years

Text

Haunted Halls

on my Corpse arc bc he’s the root of my e-’girl’ ‘phase’ (and Gender envy) He/Him Prns!

Yn pushed his hair out of his eyes and turned to look at the empty walls of the mansion he had just inherited. "Thanks for the house, I guess Granny," Yn murmured. Yn picked up a box off the dark wooden floors before climbing the massive stairs to where he sorta remembered the master bedroom was.

When Yn pushed the door open, a king-sized bed covered in a dark purple blanket (pic at the bottom for ref!) almost seemed like it was waiting for him. Yn placed the box on the floor and ran his hand over the purple sheets before sitting on it and causing a dip in the bed. As he let his back rest on the plush covers, he wondered why Granny had never slept in this room.

Yn played with the canopy, smiling at the silky black fabric that almost felt like it was trapping him, but in a good way. Yn laid his head on the pillows and yawned. As his eyes slowly fluttered, he glanced at the door. A man with black curly hair and all-black clothing stood there, staring directly at him. One of his eyes was covered in a white eye patch and the other was blood red. The man almost appeared to smile at him.

Yn returned the smile before drowsily closing his eyes, then he opened them again to find the man was gone. Yn frowned and allowed his body to go off to sleep. A When a hand brushed across his forehead and a deep voice whispered, "Welcome back baby," Yn finally gave in and fell fully asleep.

---

The sun's warmth was on Yn's face when he awoke. Yn pulled himself out of the comfortable bed and dragged himself sleepily to the connected bathroom. The same man from the day before was standing at the doorway behind Yn as he looked in the mirror. Yn spun around but frowned when the man wasn't there, asking, "Mister?" Yn croaked out, clearing his throat, and then made another attempt. "Sir?" Asked Yn.

As Yn exited the bathroom, he glanced about before focusing on the man sitting on the bed. "Who are you and why are you in my house?" Yn inquired, narrowing his eyes at him. "I'm Corpse and I'm a literal Corpse." Yn felt lightheaded. "So you're what a ghost." Corpse smiled up at Yn, "yep" popping the p.

Yn mumbled out, "oh my god," before his legs gave out and he fell to the ground, going unconscious after hitting his head on the hard wood floor. Yn awoke on the couch and heard a soft humming coming from the kitchen. Yn pushed himself off of the couch and went to the kitchen, where Corpse was cooking happily while humming a song.

--- 3 weeks later ---

While searching the hallways for his new ghost friends, Yn yelled "CORPSE" as he walked up and down them. "Crops?" Yn frowned and slid down a wall as tears welled up in his eyes. He had been searching for Corpse for days he called out again, "Corpsey," but had received no response. "Maybe he's asleep ghost need sleep right?" Yn asked to himself as he picked at his now-chipped black nails. Yn bit his lip in an effort to contain the tears that were attempting to pour.

Suddenly, Yn was startled by a loud knocking sound echoing throughout the mansion, which caused him to race to the front door. He took a deep breath and threw open the door before freezing there stood a man wearing black turtleneck and chain-adorned ripped pants. As his gaze wondered up to the face Yn was unable to speak "Corpse," He mumbled as tears once again welled up in his eyes. Corpse grinned at Yn and opened his arms Yn quickly jumped into his arms, giving him a hug.

Yn grabbed Corpse even harder, whispering, "I missed you, Corpsey." "Well, I'm Here now and I will be forever baby," Corpse said, bringing Yn impossibly closer.

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daddy-issues-99 · 7 months

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Otis Driftwood x reader SMUT

Afab reader, degration, p in v, hair pulling, mentions of stockholm syndrome, biting, slight bdsm

500 words

Your whole body was sore with a thin layer of sweat covering your skin. Your face was buried into the sheets of the bed, tears from a mix of pain and pleasure falling onto the soft fabric.

You gripped the sheets as your capture pounded into you at a brutal pace. "Otis-" you said quietly before a receiving a sharp slap to your ass. "I said be quiet." He said sternly, continuing to roughly thrust into you.

"Or are you to stupid to remember what I said? Hm?" He asked with a cruel smile. You just moaned and gripped the sheets. "Well? You stupid or somethin'?" He asked in an annoyed voice when you didn't answer.

He roughly slapped your ass and quickly gripped your hair, pulling your head up roughly. "I asked you a damn question! Are. You. Stupid?" He asked sternly, tightly gripping your hair.

"Y-yes"

You said quietly, barely being able to think as he roughly thrusted into at a brutal pace.

"That's what I thought" he said with a smirk and let go of your hair, letting your head fall back into the sheets.

He began thrusting faster, roughly gripping your hips hard enough to hurt. He pushed your face farther into the bed, bringing his head down to yours, his hair draping over your face. "You like this don't ya? Being fucked senseless, being nothing more than a fucktoy? Hm?" He said with a cruel smirk.

"But it's not like you had a choice anyway." He said, letting out a laugh. You hated how much you loved this. The man you wished so desperately to escape from soon became the thing you craved.

He moved his head to your neck placing sloppy kisses and love bites along your skin. He left numerous hickeys and marks along your skin before finally biting down at the base of your neck. You yelped at the sudden pain, confused before quickly realizing what happened.

He pulled away with a smirk, looking down at the bite. "You're mine now, mama." He said with a smirk.

His thrusts soon became sloppy as he approached his orgasm. You weren't far behind. He moved one of his hands to your clit, you moaned into the pillow, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

After a few thrusts he came undone, roughly thrusting into you, shooting his seed deep into you, muttering curses under his breath.

You were quick to follow as he continued his assault on tour clit, letting you ride out your orgasm.

After a few final thrusts he pulled out of you and fell into the bed, pulling you on top of him. He moved your hair to reveal the bite mark on your neck. "You're mine. No one else's. Am I clear?" He asked sternly.

"Yes" you said quietly.

"That's my good girl" he said with a smirk

#otis driftwood smut #smut #house of 1000 corpses #otis driftwood #otis driftwood x reader #otis driftwood x yn #otis driftwood x you #house of 1000 corpses x reader #slasher smut #slashers x y/n #slashers x reader #horror #horror x reader #horror x you #otis driftwood is hot #daddy issues

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paracosmparadise · 11 months

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ՏͲᎡᎬᎪᎷᎬᎡ ᎽΝ

°•Streamer yn on QMSP

Author's Note:ᴡᴇʟʟ, ғɪʀᴛ ᴏғ ᴀʟʟ, ɪᴍ sᴏ sᴏʀʀʏ ғᴏʀ ʙᴇɪɴɢ ɪɴᴀᴄᴛɪᴠᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ɴᴏᴛ ᴘᴏsᴛɪɴɢ ᴍᴜᴄʜ ᴏғ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀᴋs, ɪᴛs ᴊᴜsᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ sᴏᴍᴇᴛɪᴍᴇs ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇᴘᴛ ʙᴜᴛ ᴅᴏɴᴛ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ɪɴsᴘɪʀᴀᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟ ᴛᴏ ᴡʀɪᴛᴇ, sᴏ ɪ ᴇɴᴅ ɪᴛ ᴜᴘ ɴᴏᴛ ᴡʀɪᴛᴛɪɴɢ ᴀɴʏᴛʜɪɴɢ. ɪ ᴡɪʟʟ ᴛʀʏ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴀᴄᴛɪᴠᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜᴏᴜᴛ ᴘʀᴇssᴜʀɪɴʜ ᴍʏsᴇʟғ ᴀʟsᴏ. ᴀɴʏᴡᴀʏs, ʟɪᴋᴇs ᴀɴᴅ ʀᴇʙʟᴏɢs ᴀʀᴇ ᴀᴘᴘʀᴇᴄɪᴀᴛᴇᴅ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴏɴ ᴍʏ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴡᴏʀᴋs💓

°The announcement.

Y/n ᴡᴀs sᴛʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ ʀɪɢᴛʜ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀɴɴᴏᴜɴᴄᴇᴍᴇɴᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ sʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ᴘᴀʀᴛɪᴄɪᴘᴀᴛᴇ ᴏɴ ϙᴜᴀᴄᴋɪᴛʏ ᴍɪɴᴇᴄᴛᴀғᴛ sᴇʀᴠᴇʀ, ᴛʜᴇ ϙᴍsᴘ.

ᴡʜɪʟᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴛᴛɪɴɢ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴛ sᴇᴍᴇᴏɴᴇ ᴀsᴋs ʜᴇʀ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ʜᴏᴡ sʜᴇ ғᴇᴇʟ ᴀɴᴅ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴀʀᴇ ʜᴇʀ ᴇxᴘᴇᴄᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ sᴇʀᴠᴇʀ.

sʜᴇ sɪɢʜs,"ᴏʜ ᴍʏ ɢᴏᴅ, ɪ ᴅᴏɴᴛ ᴇᴠᴇɴ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ʜᴏᴡ ᴛᴏ ғᴇᴇʟ, ɪᴍ ᴊᴜsᴛ sᴏ ᴇxᴄɪᴛᴇᴅ, ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜsᴇ, ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ sᴏ ᴍᴀɴʏ ᴇxᴘᴇᴄᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ sɪɴᴄᴇ ɪ ᴅᴏɴᴛ ᴘʟᴀʏ ᴍɪɴᴇᴄʀᴀғᴛ ɪɴ ᴀ ᴍɪɴᴜᴛᴇ, ᴀɴᴅ ɪ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ᴅᴏ sᴏ ᴍᴀɴʏ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ, ɪ ᴅᴏɴᴛ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ɪғs ɪᴛs ɢᴏɴɴᴀ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ʜɪsᴛᴏʀʏ ʙᴇʜɪɴᴅ ɪᴛ, ᴏʀ ɪғ ɪᴛs ɢᴏɴɴᴀ ᴏɴʟʏ ʙᴇ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴏɴᴇ ᴘʟᴀʏɪɴɢ ᴛᴏɢᴇᴛʜᴇʀ" sʜᴇ sᴀʏs ᴡʜɪʟᴇ ɢᴇᴛᴛɪɴɢ ᴄʟᴏsᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍɪᴄ,"ʙᴜᴛ ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴘʟᴀɴs".

°ᴛʜᴇ ғɪʀᴛ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ sᴇʀᴠᴇʀ.

ʀɪɢᴛʜ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʀᴀᴢʏ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀᴘᴘᴇɴᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ғɪʀsᴛ ᴍɪɴᴜᴛᴇs ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴏɴ sᴇᴠᴇʀ, ʏɴ sᴛᴀʀᴛᴇᴅ ʙᴜɪʟᴅɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ sᴇᴀʀᴄʜɪɴɢ ғᴏʀ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴛʜᴇʏ ɢᴏɴɴᴀ ɴᴇᴇᴅ ғᴏʀ sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴀʟ, ᴀɴᴅ ɴᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴀᴛ sʜᴇ ʜᴀs ᴀ ᴛᴏ ᴛᴀᴋᴇ ᴄᴀʀᴇ ᴏғ ʜᴇʀ ᴏᴡɴ ᴇɢɢ sɪɴᴄᴇ sʜᴇ ɪs ᴀ sɪɴɢʟᴇ ᴘᴀʀᴇɴᴛ.

ᴡʜɪʟᴇ ʙᴜɪʟᴅɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴏᴜsᴇ ғᴏʀ ʜᴇʀ ᴀɴᴅ ʜᴇʀ ᴇɢɢ y/n ᴛᴀʟᴋs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴛ, ᴀɴᴅ ʜᴇʀ ᴇɢɢ ᴀʟsᴏ, ᴡʜᴏ ᴡᴀs ʜᴇʟᴘɪɴɢ ʜᴇʀ ʙᴜɪʟᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ᴄᴀᴄᴛʜ ɪᴛᴇᴍs.

"ɢᴜʏs, ɪᴍ ᴏғғɪᴄᴀʟʏ ɴᴏᴡ ᴀ sɪɴɢʟᴇ ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀ, ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs ᴅᴏɴᴛ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ʜᴏᴡ ᴅɪғғɪᴄᴜʟᴛ ɪs ᴛᴏ ʀᴀɪsᴇ ᴀ ᴄʜɪᴅʀᴇɴ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴇᴅᴜᴄᴀᴛᴇ ʜᴇʀ ᴏɴ ᴍʏ ᴏᴡɴ, ɪ'ʟʟ ᴛʀʏ ᴍʏ ʙᴇsᴛ, ɪ ʜᴏᴘᴇ ᴛᴏ ɢɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴀ sᴛᴀʙʟᴇ ʟɪғᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀ ʙʀɪɢᴛʜ ғᴜᴛᴜʀᴇ."

Cheerytree69: why you sound so dramatic lol.

riveryn:watch her kill her egg on the first day.

"ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs ᴀʀᴇ ᴄʀᴜᴇʟ,sᴀʏɪɴɢ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴜʀᴛ ᴍᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴍᴏsᴛ ᴏғ ᴀʟʟ ᴍʏ ғᴇᴇʟɪɴɢs, ɪᴍ ɴᴏᴛ ɢᴏɴɴᴀ ᴋɪʟʟ ᴍʏ ᴄʜɪʟᴅ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ғɪʀsᴛ ᴅᴀʏ, ᴛʜᴀᴛs sᴏ ᴍᴇᴀɴ, ᴀɴᴅ ɪᴍ ɴᴏᴛ ʙᴇɪɴɢ ᴅʀᴀᴍᴀᴛɪᴄ, ᴛʜᴀᴛs ᴀ ʀᴇᴀʟ sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟᴇ, ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴛᴀᴋᴇ ᴄᴀʀᴇ ᴏғ ᴀ ʟɪᴛᴛʟᴇ ᴇɢɢ ᴡʜᴏ ʜᴀs ғᴇᴇʟɪɴɢs ᴀɴᴅ ɴᴏᴛ ʟᴇᴛ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴅɪᴇ, ᴄᴀɴ ʏᴀʟʟ ɴᴏᴛ sᴇᴇ ʜᴏᴡ sᴇʀɪᴏᴜs ᴛʜɪs ɪs?"

Slaylishous: They dont have a name yet?.

"ᴛʀᴜᴇ ᴡᴇ ɢᴏᴛᴛᴀ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴏғ ᴀ ɴᴀᴍᴇ ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇʏ, ᴍᴀʏʙᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs ᴄᴀɴ ʟɪᴋᴇ, sᴜɢɢᴇsᴛ sᴏᴍᴇ ᴄᴜᴛᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴄᴏᴏʟ ᴏɴᴇs, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴄᴀɴ ᴄʜᴏᴏsᴇ ᴡɪᴄʜ ᴏɴᴇ ᴛʜᴇʏ ʟɪᴋᴇs ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇsᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ɴᴀᴍᴇ."

Finegirl:what are the plans you were talking about in the announcement stream?

"ᴡᴇʟʟ, ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs ᴘʀᴏᴍɪssᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴋᴇᴇᴘ ɪɴ sᴇᴄʀᴇᴛ?, ᴡᴇʟʟ ɪᴍ ᴘʟᴀɴɴɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ʙᴇɪɴɢ ᴏɴᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏsᴛ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀғᴜʟ ᴍᴇᴍʙᴇʀ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ϙᴍsᴘ, ʟɪᴋᴇ ʜᴀᴠɪɴɢ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴏɴᴇ ʙᴇ sᴜʙᴍɪssɪᴠᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴍʏ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ, ɴᴏᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴍᴀᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ғᴏʀ ᴍᴇ, ʙᴜᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ɪɴ ᴀ ʀᴇsᴘᴇᴄᴛғᴜʟ ᴡᴀʏ."

Flowerboy:How was interacting with the other member of the server?

"ᴡᴇʟʟ, ɪ sᴛɪʟʟ ᴅɪᴅɴ'ᴛ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴀɴᴄᴇ ᴛᴏ ʟɪᴋᴇ, ᴍᴇᴇᴛ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴘʀᴏᴘᴇʀʟʏ,ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜsᴇ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴇ ɪɴᴛᴇʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴏɴs ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴄʜᴀᴏᴛɪᴄ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜsᴇ ᴏғ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪs ʜᴀᴘᴘᴇɴɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ sᴇʀᴠᴇʀ, ʙᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴇʏ sᴇᴇᴍ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴘʀᴇᴛᴛʏ ᴄᴏᴏʟ ᴛᴏ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀʀᴏᴜɴᴅ, ᴀɴᴅ sᴏᴍᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ɪ ᴀʟʀᴇᴀᴅʏ ᴋɴᴏᴡ, ʟɪᴋᴇ sᴏᴍᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴀʀᴇ ᴀʟʀᴇᴅʏ ᴍʏ ғʀɪᴇɴᴅs, sᴏ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ɪs ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴘʀᴇᴛᴛʏ ɴɪᴄᴇ ғᴏʀ ɴᴏᴡ.

°•°•

ᴛʜᴀɴᴋs ғᴏʀ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ, ᴏɴᴄᴇ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ ʀᴇʙʟᴏɢs ᴀɴᴅ ʟɪᴋᴇs ᴀʀᴇ ᴀᴘᴘʀᴇᴄɪᴀᴛᴇᴅ, ᴀʟsᴏ ᴅᴏɴᴛ ʙᴇ ᴀғʀᴀɪᴅ ᴛᴏ sᴇɴᴅ ᴀsᴋs, ᴏʀ ɢɪᴠᴇ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴏᴘɴɪᴏɴs ᴏɴ ᴡʜᴀᴛ sʜᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ ʙᴇᴛᴛᴇʀ ᴏʀ ᴊᴜsᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ sᴇɴᴅ ᴀɴʏᴛʜɪɴɢ.

ᴀɴᴅ ʟᴇᴛ ᴍᴇ ɴᴏᴡ ɪғ ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛɪɴᴜᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ sᴛʀᴇᴀᴍᴇʀ ʏɴ ᴏɴ ϙᴍsᴘ.

#qmsp #quackity #streamers #streamer yn #fanfic #imagine #x reader #server #iroier #cellbit #felps #forever #foolish #willbur soot #corpse husband

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sweet-coffee-milk-tea · 5 months

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Cause it’s been bothering me to make something for Sun and Moon

I know I have other fics I said I will make but I will do all of them!

#moondrop #moon #sun #sundrop #fnaf #five nights at freddy's #fnaf security breach #fnaf: sb #security breach daycare attendant #sb: dca #x yn #yn #corpse bride #corpse bride au #my fic #fic writing #future fic #dca x reader

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louscartridge · 2 years

Text

a sleepover with tinakitten would include....

i do not give permission for my fics to be posted claiming to be yours, translated, or posted on another platform without credit.

cw- menton of being drunk, mention of watching a horror movie, the l word, cuddling, thats it tbh.

you guys play alot of games

like both board games and video games

she teaches you how to play league of legends

whoever dies first has to do their makeup drunk

you guys definitly paint each others nails

she puts some little rhinestones on yours

the two of you watch a horror movie together

but she defintily asks to binge watch all the despicable me movies after the horror movie with you prove me wrong

which you obviously said yes to

mocking the minions through out half of the movies

has music playing no matter what (the music she would be playing bc i made a whole ass playlist like 4 months ago)

after the playlist ends she lets you put music on and you just keep alternating

cookies!!!!

you definitly bake cookies together

she put little hello kitty sprinkles in the middle of the ones she rolled so you know whose is whose

she bought a bunch of glowsticks

she rapped the glowsticks around her bed and stuff

when you go to sleep the only light is coming from the glowsticks

you try to build a blanket fort but the blankets keep falling

so it ends up just being a bunch of blankets and stuffed animals stuffed in the corner of her room

it was still really cozy tho

she sometimes feels like no matter how long people know each other they dont really know anything about the person yk?

so everytime you have a sleepover with her you do ‘the monthly update’

its where you guys ask each other the same questions everey month so you guys always know each others answers to the question

ex- whats your favorite movie, color, game, the last party you went to, how you see each other, ect

i feel like she would want to have a drawing contest

so like you would say the first thing that comes to mind and you would both have to draw it in a certain amount of time

then after you both finish she says the first thing and you do the same thing

lots of cuddles!!

especially if you cant fall asleep

she will literally pin you down if you wont go to sleep

like lay on top of you

“go to sleep >:(”

she stays laying on top of you until you fall asleep no matter how long it takes

will seriously stay there for hours

once you fall asleep shell get off of you and cuddle into your side (if she didnt fall asleep herself)

if she feels herself falling asleep and your still awake shell tiredly say an ‘i love you’

if she didnt fall asleep shell whisper “i love you” when she gets off of you

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ponderingmoonlight · 4 months

Text

Choso realizing what love is when you almost sacrifice your life to save his

Pairing: Choso x reader

Word Count: 1,4k

Synopsis: It was always a mystery to Choso Kamo, the way human emotions seem to work. But when you yank yourself right into Uraume's attack in order to save him, he slowly but surely begins to understand.

Warnings: After most of you voted for fem! pronouns, I'm using she/her to adress Uraume in this fanfic (if this doesn't sit right with you, I kindly advice you to read something else), bad bitch energy between yn and Uraume, so much angst but fluff at the same time, Choso is just the cutest I can't, as usual language and injury lol, I'm sorry if this isn't well written but I desperately wanted to finally give a fanfic to you guys again

Thanks for the request anon 🤍

Your heart hammers against your ribcage, ears ringing so violently that you feel like throwing up any minute. But there is no time to rest. You can’t stop moving now, not when his life is in danger.

Choso Kamo.

It hit you like a wall. All the feelings you desperately tried to hold back, all the affection you hold for him, how much you long for his presence when he’s not around and his touch, no matter how minor. You were never brave enough to tell him how you feel. Would he even understand your words? Is he even able to hold affection for a person apart from his brothers? It always felt as if he’s looking out for you, as if he’s staring through your back when you walk in front of him.

But it doesn’t matter right now if Choso Kamo returns your feelings. All the rubble and ash around you, the corpses splattered all over the completely destroyed streets along with the stinging smell of burnt flesh that hangs in the air makes your guts turn.

He’s so strong. You know how damn powerful he is, that not a single one of those sorcerers except for Satoru Gojo himself is enough to defeat him, but that presence you felt earlier, that man Choso decided to work for…

It doesn’t sit right with you. Whatever fought here was definitely stronger than both of you, stronger than the sorcerer you are.

Your eyes dart around the area, searching for his white robe in the darkness of the night.

“Fuck”, you hiss through gritted teeth.

You are so fucking tired of it all. Tired of all the fighting, tired of working in this shady business, tired of hiding your feelings. As soon as you get out of here, you will quit being a bounty hunter and confess your feelings. Yes, you will tell Choso Kamo how you really feel, how his sight alone makes sparks fly and your heart drop to the ground. You will tell him that you can’t live without him anymore and that you want to start over. Maybe somewhere far away from here, somewhere far away from jujutsu and curses. Choso…

Choso.

The sight in front of you hits you like lighting. It’s him. You really found him.

But he’s fighting. Against Geto Suguru. And that white-haired woman…

You waste no time. With neck-breaking speed you dash forward, past the other sorcerers scattered around you, past what looks like Yuji Itadori. She stretches out her finger, ice darting through the air faster than his blood manipulation ever could. Just a millisecond more and she’ll reach his head, just milliseconds until she pierces through his brain with ease, just seconds until you lose the love of your life.

“Not today, bitch.”

Out of instinct, you yank in front of him. Immediately, blood starts to spill out of your shoulder. You don’t even have to look at yourself to be aware of the fact that the beam of ice pierced right through you, leaving a gaping hole and a stinging pain that almost swallows you whole.

All Choso is able to do is stare at your back, watching how your chest rises and falls rapidly.

“(y/n)”, he breathes out.

How did you get here? Didn’t he distract you enough to keep you out of danger, to handle Yuji Itadori and all of this alone? You shouldn’t even be here, at Shibuya.

“I won’t leave you there alone. Also, he’s paying me pretty decent. If I make it out alive-“

“You will make it out alive.”

His large frame lingered over you, his eyes fixed on your remarkable face. He didn’t understand what came over him, why he suddenly stood this close to you, his hands grabbing your shoulders roughly.

“I won’t let you die. Never.”

Your blood runs down your body in an instant, discolouring the floor in cruel crimson. His heart skips a beat. There’s a hole in your shoulder, just a few inches away from your chest. If you moved a little differently, if you didn’t make it in time…

His eyes widen. You could be dead by now. You would have died in order to save his very own life.

“Get out of the way, stupid human”, the white-haired creature hisses, her hands ready to strike again.

Everything hurts. Oh, how much you’d love to lay in bed right now with your mind lingering around him, how much you’d love to be able to admire is beautiful sight right now. But instead, your eyes stare at her blankly, the woman with a power you never felt before. Who is she? And why is she attacking him?

“You are the one who needs to leave this place. Get away from here before I’m losing it.”

His mind races, eyes darting from the street covered in your blood to your moonlit back. You just risked your life for him. You, the most remarkable creature he ever witnessed. You, the one and only who made him feel things he still fails to understand. You with those gorgeous eyes. You have to be the bravest creature walking on this earth with a body so strong that it outstood this merciless attack this well.

But why? Why are you saving someone like him even if it means you’ll get injured in the process? Why are you standing there with your face up high and your hands clenched into fists when you should leave immediately and take care of your wounds?

All of this…For him?

“What are you doing here, (y/n)? You shouldn’t even be here.”

Choso knows he shouldn’t bark at you the way he just did, he shouldn’t look at your back with his face scrunched up like that.

“I’m here to save you, can’t you see?”, you mumble in reply.

The white-haired sorcerer lifts her hand again. Out of instinct, Choso grabs your body and yanks you away, careful to not hurt you even more in the process.

“Why did you do that, idiot?”, he hisses through gritted teeth while sprinting away at neck-breaking speed.

You look awful with your face pale like snow and your lids hanging dangerously low in your tired-looking face. Why? Why did you do this to yourself? Why did you let yourself get hurt like that in order to save him from the ray of ice? Why did you even follow him in the first place? Thick anger makes his blood boil, makes him grab your body even firmer. But no, this feeling is something apart from anger, this feeling…

“Because I love you, Choso Kamo. I’d risk my life over and over to save yours.”

His glossy eyes dart towards you in disbelief, the whole world around him disappearing for a moment. Love, the strange word he always failed to understand, the feeling he never believed even existed. He never thought about it as anything apart from the affection he holds for his brothers. But looking down at your trembling figure in his arms…

All those lonely nights he thought about you, all the stolen glances when he thought you weren’t looking, the almost unbearable urge to feel your skin against his. Is this love? Is this what you feel as well.

“You love me?”, he repeats, feet stopping in their tracks.

“I love you”, you repeat weakly.

He doesn’t know what to say anymore. Instead, he presses your body against his like he always imagined, as if his very own life depends on it. You sure feel as good as you did in his dreams, your smell is intoxicating.

“I will never let you go again, (y/n). And I will make them pay for hurting you.”

“Yuji Itadori”, he shouts behind his shoulder, walking towards the boy with rapid but confident steps.

“Take good care of her, little brother. And you-“

His eyes dart towards the white-haired creature with so much hatred in them that you hold your breath.

“I will make you regret everything you did today.”

“I love you, (y/n). I will return soon.”

With one last glance that makes your heart skip a beat, he’s gone, leaving you completely messed up. Choso Kamo told you he loves you. Choso Kamo really returns your feelings. Choso Kamo…

“Hey, stay strong, okay? We’ll get you out of here”, the voice of the pink-haired boy lingering above you speaks out gently.

“How are you still alive?”, you mumble, memories of Choso’s unfiltered loathing towards him flooding your mind.

“Apparently, he thinks I’m his brother now.”

“You must be emitting pheromones or something”, Panda comments dryly.

Tags: @arehzhera @ploylulla @tzubaki @beatrexworld @kenstarsworld @dazaisdick @hellkaiserinphoenix @lauv4chuuya @shadowfoxey @starlightanyaaa @sindela @kayleegomez @sunshine7queen @magalimachete @mokoartpost @gatitam @idontknow1123 @creative1writings @sanicsmut @mynahx3 @sad-darksoul @chilichopsticks @hellkaiserinphoenix @chuyasthighs0 @ynackerman9499 @keepghostly @wxwieeee @lovelyluna1 @froufrousnowman @hidazinie @tomiokathedepresso @gojosrealwife @coffeeluvr96 @mahi-tamashi @weebotaku21 @chaoticwinnercupcake @lees-chaotic-brain @risuola @sugurulefttesticle @wordskeeper @baku2345 @polarbvnny @ruixrei @bam-bam-bam-bame-blog @lavenderdrxp @localhehecat @alicerhr @kayleegomez @belovedvamp I bet you like that @sanicsmut

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fandoms--fluff · 26 days

Note

Hello i know that i resquest so much but I love your work so can you do more of little Mikaelson baby sister with Hayley where yn is with her and baby hope Hayley treats yn like other daughters because she love her so much that she is sad when yn cry

If I Were Your Mother

Baby Mikaelson sister reader x Hayley Marshall (and everyone else)

Warnings: Mikael being an ass, death?

A/n: This is set during later season 2, we're gonna forget about Jackson and Hayley together. We're gonna pretend that everyone is happy and Klaus and Hayley don't fight about what's best for Hope or try to take her away from each other every other episode and are actually good together.

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

Mikael is back. Davina brought him back from the other side almost a year ago. You've seen Kol and Finn in their new bodies and were completely freaked out by Finn. He had tried to kill you. You wouldn't leave your brothers or Hayley's side no longer than five minutes for almost two weeks.

Mikael had boomed into the abattoir, white oak stake in his hand, ready to kill. He laid his eyes on you the moment you ran into the room where you heard a familiar man's voice yelling. You regretted it as soon as you saw your father. The same father who had been tracking you and your siblings down for the past millennia.

You had thought Nik had already killed him, he told you he had. Did he lie?

Mikael went straight to you. You loudly screamed and tried to vamp speed out of the way, but he was too fast for you. He had caught you in his arms and pressed the stake right at your tiny chest.

As soon as your loud scream pierced the walls of the old building, the room was immediately full of your older siblings; Bekah, Nik, and Lijah, as well as Marcel and Hayley, whom you'd grown really close with since she was pregnant in the early months.

"LET HER GO" Klaus bellowed, his eyes flash a striking amber. His anger is through the roof, no one touches his baby sister and lives, no one. He starts to stalk his way over, followed by Elijah.

"Don't come any closer, boys" Mikael spat at them. You whimpered loudly as tears ran down your reddened cheeks. All you want is your big brothers.

"No" You hit your father's shoulder and tried to pull away from him. All that does is make his grip on you tighten to a painful extent. Even with your vampire healing, it hurts tremendously.

Veins appear under Hayley's eyes, enraged at Mikael for even going near the poor little girl. She uses her hybrid strength and lunges at him. She knocks the white oak stake out of his hands and bites him on the shoulder opposite you. She takes you into her arms and quickly vamps you back over to Marcel before returning to Mikael, along with Elijah, Klaus, and Rebekah.

Your big sister grabbed the stake into her hand and vamped towards where Elijah and Klaus were pinning Mikael down each on one side and Hayley's arm was wrapped tightly around his neck. She shoved the stake right through Mikael's heart. Flames blaze across Mikael's body and clothing. His screams echoed through the whole compound.

They all backed away from the burning corpse of the vampire who hunts vampires, watching as he burned from the inside out.

Marcel had you tucked against his chest, hand on the back of your head so you didn't have to watch the fight going down. You sobbed into his shirt, scared out of your mind. You want, you want Hayley.

She was the one who took you from Mikael. You pull away once Marcel's grip slackens a bit after Mikael burns.

You outstretch your arms towards the hybrid. Hayley quickly comes over to you and brings you into her arms gently. She turns back around to the other three originals, Klaus has a hurt look on his face, clearly wishing you had wanted him.

Hayley feels guilty, mouthing 'I'm sorry' to him. Elijah nods in response to her before looking at his younger brother and Rebekah places a hand on his shoulder.

"She has no means to hurt you, Nik. Don't think about it too much. She loves all of us" Rebekah whispers to him. Klaus takes a deep breath before nodding in response to her. He knows he shouldn't hold it against you, you may be over 1000 years old, but you're 2 years old, with a mind and thoughts that come with it, even as a vampire. And he knows you love him, he shouldn't hold it against you.

He nods to Hayley, a smile twitching at his lips, before turning to the burnt to a crisp corpse.

"Well, we should tend to the trash, shall we, sister?" Klaus smirks towards Rebekah. "We shall" She smirks back to him.

Klaus walks over to your tiny, shaking body in Hayley's arms and places a hand on the back of your head before kissing your forehead. He then goes over to their father, putting his arms behind his back as he brainstorms what to do next.

Rebekah walks over to the two of you next and places a kiss on the crown of your head. "I love you, sweetie" She runs her hand through your soft hair before going over to where Nik and Elijah are.

Hayley walks towards the stairs, nodding at Marcel, to which he nods back before walking off to the room he was in before Mikael showed up.

She bounces you in her arms, trying to soothe and calm you down. "Oh, It's okay, Baby. He's gone. He's gone now" She holds you close. you lean into her warmth and grip your pudgy hands on her shirt.

"No need to cry no more," She says, starting to tear up herself. She walks into her room and opens the door to the nursery. She goes over to the crib where a baby Hope lays, eyes open, looking up at the mobile. And now her eyes land on her Mama and you.

You hear the tiny mewling sounds from Hope, and look up from Hayley's chest to the baby. you let go of her shirt with one hand and reach to Hope.

Hope sits up from where she was lying down, looking up at you. She has loved you from the start, even though she can't talk yet, but knows that love is returned back from you

"You want some time with Hope?" Hayley asks you. You've been obsessed with the baby girl since before she was born, you love her just as much as Hayley and Klaus. You immediately nod your head, "Hopey" you say and let out a grin even with the tear tracks on your face.

Hayley lowers you into the crib with her daughter and watches how you immediately get into a silent conversation with her. You both giggle and play together with the small toys scattered in the crib.

She watches as you both play, a smile on her face. If she could adopt you as her own daughter as well, she would have no second thoughts and do it in one fell swoop. But she knows that your family loves you a great deal.

If she were to be your mother, she would love you so much. She would give you the childhood and life you deserve. She would care for you as a mother like she has been for over a year. There's no way she can express just how much she loves you.

"I love you both so much," She tells you both, watching as you cuddle with each other into the soft blanket. Hope has two pacifiers in her hands. She hands one over to you the best she can and you take it in your tiny from her just as tiny hand.

Hope puts the other in her mouth, just as you put the one she handed you into yours. You both suck on the pacifiers, tiny suckling noises filling the room.

Hayley tries not to physically aww at the action. Both of her babies sucking on soothers. She knows you're older than a normal age of a 'baby', but you're just as a baby as Hope is in her eyes. And the same goes for the eyes of your big siblings.

Klaus walks into the bedroom not long after you and Hope doze off, curled into one another. He looks around the room, "Where's my baby sister?" He asks, worried about you after the event of earlier in the day.

"Shh" she holds a finger up to her lips before nodding down at the dark wooden crib.

He follows her instructions and looks down at the crib, his face softening right away. He watches as his two baby girls sleep, sucking on the pacifiers.

Hayley pulls him into the other room, closing the door so she doesn't wake you two up.

"Is Mikael dealt with? Gone for good?" She asks him. "Yes, he shall not return, never again. the look on her face, I- I froze, he was going to kill her. And it was my fault" His voice wavers.

"Hey, it's not your fault, and nothing happened. That asshole deserves what he got and everything that's coming his way in hell. You're her big brother, Y/n loves you so much" Hayley pulls the elder into a hug.

Klaus stiffens at first before melting into her arms, breathing in her scent. After ten more seconds, he backs away, looking into her eyes, vulnerability shining through them. He covers it back up before his eyebrows scrunch together and a glint in his eyes.

"Was Y/n using a pacifier?" a smile plays on his lips. "Yeah, our daughter thought she would want one and gave one to her.,. Obviously, she was right. I have a feeling they're not going to allow us to separate them for a while" Hayley chuckles lightly.

"I assume that's the same for you with her as well" He crosses his arms, eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Fair enough" Hayley smirks back to him.

You don't leave Hayley and Hope's side for a little while. You love it when you're all having a cuddle session with Hayley or Klaus, or both of them. The pacifier also is starting to seem like a constant. The only one to have a bad word against it is Elijah, saying that you don't need to develop a bad habit of always wanting one. But that's quickly stopped when Rebekah dragged him out of the room and nicely explained how their baby sister using a soother is at the bottom of the list of their concerns.

You love Hayley, Hope, and your siblings to the moon and back.

#hayley marshall #hope mikaelson #klaus mikaelson #elijah mikaelson #rebekah mikaelson #marcel gerard #mikael #klaus mikaelosn x reader #hayley marshall x reader #hope mikaelson x reader #elijah mikaelon x reader #rebekah mikaelson x reader #marcel gerard x reader #hayley marshall x baby reader #hayley marshall x baby mikaelson sister reader #hayley marshall x little mikaelson reader #hayley marshall x baby mikaelson reader #baby hope x reader #baby hope mikaeelosn #baby hope mikaelson x baby mikaelson reader #hope mikaelson x little mikaelson reader #hope mikaelson x baby mikaelson reader #klaus mikaelson x little sister reader #klaus mikaelson x baby sister reader #elijah mikaelson x little sister reader #elijah mikaelson x baby sister reader #rebekah mikaelson x little sister reader #rebekah mikaelson x baby sister reader #marcel gerard x baby reader #marcel gerard x little mikaelson reader

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kumezyzo · 7 months

Text

corpse x faceless streamer cause it has more plot...

anyway, enjoy! or dont :) m.list

as cliche and over-used as it is, you met bf!corpse in an among us lobby. but you two had heard of eachother before, seeing as youre in the same faceless community.

your followings seemed to have a lot of crossover, so when you met, it was a dream come true for your communites. and for you two, it was nice having someone understand what it was like to be faceless.

overtime, you two grew closer, hanging out outside of streams. and at some point, you got comfortable enough eachothers faces.

when your chat found out, it became the only thing they could talk about for a good two days on twitter.

"guys, corpse looks really cool," you said to your chat. you and corpse were streaming on your channel, just talking and catching up. his scoff made you giggle quietly. "im not joking, he's kinda... attractive."

"and yn looks nothing like how she described herself," he said, laughing at how much prettier he thought you were.

"and his hair is actually curly," you say.

then, you both went on anthony padilla's channel as a part of his 'I spent a day with...' series. and you revealed that you were doing the interview on the same day.

"i mean, corpse is the only other youtuber that knows what i look like," you state simply. "if im honest, the main reason im here is because this is the first time im meeting up with him in person."

thankfully, no one was suprised when they heard that in the video. but thats just because corpse posted a video of you two playing rock-paper-scissors.

it started off silent, you two doing the motions silently. corpse played scissors, you played rock. he sighed. another up and down motion. he played scissors, you played paper. you took a deep breath. another up and down. he played rock, you played rock. you scoffed and cracked your knuckles. one more time. he played paper, you played scissors.

"fuck!" he yelled loudly as you laughed manaically in the background.

during this meet up, you stayed at his apartment. and it just so happened you got to spend more time with him. slowly, you both started developing further feelings for eachother.

it showed itself in you two being cuddly, touchy with eachother. both of you tiptoeing round the topic of the weird dynamic. neither of you actually choosing to say anything or admit your feelings.

it really set in when he started unironically calling you "baby". it gave you butterflies and he felt his face heat up as the words left his mouth.

and when you had to leave, it was far more intense than you had expected.

"thank you for letting me stay here," you told him greatfully. he smiled softly at you, going in for a hug. you smiled and felt yourself melt into his arms.

you two pulled away briefly, looking into eachothers eyes. you dont know when it really happened, but the next moment, youre lips are on eachothers.

when you went back home, it was like you two know you were dating. but you never actually said it. it just felt right.

this is kinda like a prequel to this beautiful shit. i also know no one requested this (or at least i could find one when i went to check cause this was in my notes for way too long) -Nony

#corpse husband x you #corpse husband x reader #corpse x reader #corpse x streamer reader #bf!corpse #i wish i could tag anon or asks #but i cant #cause this came straight from moi #😁#even tho its the worst shit ive every written #*ever #im not rewriting that shit #anyway

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written-in-flowers · 17 days

Text

The Drifter: The Sea King's Curse (1.02)

Pairing: siren!hyunjin x fem!reader

Word Count: 25k

Genre: fantasy, smut, fluff, adventure

Summary: When the corpses of mutilated mermaids wash up on shore, the lawmen of Levanter Bay seek YN's help to find the cause. They end up discovering this goes much farther than expected.

Tags: Graphic violence (just fist fighting and monster slaying), kidnapping, animal death (hunting out of necessity), graphic descriptions of corpses, death, autopsies, thalassophobia, fear of deep water, megalophobia (fear of large objects), sea monsters, mind control, mind manipulation, mental illness, dark magic, mentions of war, slight ptsd. vaginal fingering, p in v sex, monster fucking, bigdick!hyunjin. underwater sex, public sex, outdoor sex, monster dick

A/N: this is only Part 1 of this "episode", so stick around for Part 2 and Part 3 <3

***

The sun always shone brightest near Peacock Lagoon. Hyunjin loved how the sunlight made the waters glimmer like diamonds. The colors interchanging dark greens and blues gave the lagoon its name. Secluded and enclosed, nobody could reach it except the merfolk from under the water. Large smooth rocks created perfect sunbathing spots for the merfolk to sit while they watched their young swim about in the water. Hyunjin took his usual spot on one of the higher rocks with his kin, his long blue and white tail laid out in a curved shape. The shimmery scales went up his body to his shoulders, curving around his soft underbelly and neck. Webbed hands, good for swimming in heavy waters, kept him propped up as he took in the ocean breeze. Summer was the best time of the year in his opinion.

“Hyunjin!”

A young mermaid came swimming up to him. Alina, round faced and bright, looked up at him from the bottom of the rock.

“Are you not going to swim?”

“Not right now,” Hyunjin sighed, watching the others play about in the water. “I think I might catch some sun before going home.”

“You'll dry out if you're here too long.”

“Then I'll dive into the water,” he shrugged simply.

“Alright, you know what to do if you change your mind.”

The young girl dove back into the water, and Hyunjin looked out at the mermaid lagoon. Old and young came to rest at the lagoon, socializing and taking in the sun. Hyunjin knew a lot of people here needed the closeness of community. Pirates have been seen drifting about the northern regions, and that always boded unwell for merfolk. While merfolk hunting and poaching is outlawed, there are still some who will take the risk for some gold. Hyunjin shuddered at the thought.

“Did you hear about Calista and Celeste?” He overheard a trio of merfolk sitting above him. “Their mother said they went missing last night.”

A soft gasp made him turn his head.

“How horrible! You don't think they were taken, do you?”

“What else could it be?”

“What did Tytos say about it?”

“Nothing! That's what upset her so much. Mizu and the other council leaders haven't said anything about the people going missing. He says they have hybrids on the borders, and the kraken, but they're happening anyways.”

Which Hyunjin found especially odd. Tytos, King of Hydrus, normally did not let things like this go. He always had a plan. But, from what his aunt told him, The King had fallen ill recently. Since then, Mizu, his head advisor, had taken over overseeing the kingdom. Perhaps his sickness is keeping him from thinking rationally. Hyunjin thought about the others as he stared off into the clear waters.

He recalled what his Aunt Yejin told him the other night. He’d been helping her grind up plants for her healing salves when she mentioned the omen. She told him she’d been on her way home from the mainland when she’d seen it. Through the few layers of ocean water, she said a streak of bright crimson red smeared across the night sky. Having witnessed it through dark waters, she believed, meant that fire and water would meet. Hyunjin had no idea how that could be possible. Then again, the older merfolks saw omens in everything. His grandmother says she saw his newest lover in a bucket of old rocks. Hyunjin had no lovers yet.

But the omen still worried him. With King Tytos so ill, and things turning sour so quickly, it felt foreboding. Hyunjin knew he should be focused on his navigator trials, since he’d be starting them tomorrow, but he couldn’t stop himself from being distracted.

Then they appeared. At least six rowboats of men materialized out of the blue right amongst the splashing merfolk. Hyunjin saw their sun beaten faces and tattoos and knew immediately who they were: Pirates. Everyone scrambled to escape, but the rowboats wedged into the group too closely. Black nets fell into the water, catching a mermaid or two easily. Hyunjin gasped when he saw one man standing in his boat, aiming his gun at the mermaids thrashing about in his net. The gunshot that rang out might as well have been aimed at him.

“Get ‘em in here! Get ‘em! Get ‘em before they get away!”

“Come ‘ere, pretty!”

Hyunjin cleared his throat, and let out a high-pitched, ear-splitting scream. The young siren hoped this might distract the pirates, but they hardly noticed him. How could that be? He gave another long scream, loud enough to rival a banshee, but the only one who saw him was the shooter. He smirked wickedly, and aimed his gun right at Hyunjin. He didn’t have a chance. Hyunjin threw himself into the crashing waves, fear striking him right in the chest, as he heard more gunfire through the water. Several other merfolk swam right past him to the tunnels underneath the lagoon’s waters. Pitch black to any normal human, the underwater folk navigate the dark waters with their night time eyes. The gills slitted into his ribcage flapped in every deep breath Hyunjin took.

“Hey, hey!” a merman wearing a golden breastplate and matching helmet, floated near the tunnel exit, golden trident at his side. “What’s going on? Hyunjin, what’s happening?!”

“Pirates, Mingyu! Pirates in the lagoon! Hurry!”

Mingyu whistled with his fingers, and other soldiers nearby went to him. Mermen and sirens came, as well as shark, squid and octopus hybrids. He needed to tell a council leader. Only one woman came to mind.

Bahng Yejin.

*****

“You go left, and I go right. Deal?

“Deal.”

The sun high in the sky, you took Mrs. Young’s advice about the best time to catch the boar. She told you and Chan the monstrous pig liked stomping into her yard around mid-afternoon, where it’d dig through her garden for roots, nuts, and fallen fruits. Chan tried explaining having a boar could be beneficial, since they also eat snakes and smaller rodents that might infest her garden. Mrs. Young thought differently. Treading carefully behind the garden fence, you stayed low behind the hedges on the left side. Chan, in his beige sheriff uniform and jeans, held his rifle at his side as he mirrored your movement from afar.

Mrs. Young’s bounty for wild boars implied a small group of them. While you and Chan did catch the smaller boars feasting on her berry bushes, it was the sow you both contended with now. At its height, the boar reached up to your hip with long horns that could lodge into your torso; length wise, it was almost as long as Chan’s height. You had no idea what the boar had been eating to get so big, but you both decided to take it on together. Something about the beast told you that simple fire spells won’t take it down easily enough. Mrs. Young claimed several hunters have already tried killing it to no success. It was simply too tough.

Chan and you met eyes from across the yard. The boar currently stood in the middle of the garden patch, black fur shining in the sun and low grunting exhaling from its snout. With the beast distracted, Chan lifted his hand to show you three fingers. On a count of three then.

‘One. Two. Three!’

You sprang out of the bushes first, putting out your palm to launch a ball of fire at its side. While it singed the fur, the enchanted flame only disgruntled the boar. It snorted, shaking its thick body and turned to face you. In a loud squeal, it charged. Hooves thumped the ground, its size doing nothing to slow it down. You only had mere seconds before a gunshot rang out. Your sword blocking its long, white horns, a splatter of blood went across its side. Keeping your blade locked between the horns, the boar had nowhere to go. It was certainly stronger than any animal you contended with before. Its loud squeals filled your ears, angry and eager to get at you. The two of you pushed into one another, sword lodged between two tusks that were inches from your torso and throat. With a few more shots, the struggling boar sagged in your arms. You managed to keep it halfway upright before Chan came out from the bushes.

“By the seas…This thing is so much bigger up close,” Chan marveled, poking the corpse with his foot.

“I wonder what it’d been eating. Does Mrs. Young grow like super berries or something?”

“Psh, maybe,” he sniffed.

Chan wiped sweat from his brow with the back of his arm, and looked towards the house not too far away. In the back doorway, you both spotted a short, withered old woman in a blue and white dress.

“Did you get it, Channie?!” her shrill voice from across the garden.

“Yes, we did, Mrs. Young,” he replied.

She left the back door and walked onto the yard. A smile spread on her wrinkled face when she saw the carcass laying in the dirt. “Oof, she’s a big one, huh?” she asked, hands on her hips. “Not a single fella I hired could handle this beast, but you two got it within a few shots.” She glanced up at you, “Perhaps having a demon in these parts really is handy. Here ya go, honey.”

She fished in her apron pocket for a coin purse. Weighing it in your hand, you felt satisfied with the amount. “What do you plan to do with it now?” you asked her out of curiosity.

“Cook it, I suppose,” she shrugged. “We do have Founder’s Day coming up. I can make a few boar pies and my boy can sell the pelt in town. It’d be a shame to waste a good pig.”

“A huge pig, at that,” Chan nodded in agreement. “Where do you want it?”

“The barn for right now. Seokwoo is on his way home, so he and Irene can help me skin and carve it.” She beamed at both of you as you each took a side and lifted it from the ground. The boar was much heavier dead than alive. “Thank you so much for your help,” she said, “The damn thing kept eating all the roots in the garden. We might’ve not had a chance at a good harvest this year if you hadn’t gotten off your butt and come over here.”

“We’ve been preoccupied with other things, Mrs. Young,” Chan grunted, face red and neck veins showing as you both brought the dead boar to the nearby barn. Throwing it onto a pile of hay, you both took deep breaths and rubbed your aching hands. “There’s only three of us, after all.”

“Well, if we’re lucky, YN will stick around longer and help everyone else. Now, come inside,” she turned back to her house, “I just took some cherry pies out of the oven. You two can take one back to the station before you go.”

Not one to turn down a free slice of pie, you walked ahead of Chan towards the house.

It had been two weeks since the incident with Maurice, the warlock spider hybrid who’d kidnapped several children. Chan told you the King’s decree that nobody is to sail out of Levanter Bay appeared to still be in effect. Though, you couldn’t help noticing the fishermen going out to sea every morning and coming back towards evening. Chan claimed that the king granted them special permission to conduct business as usual, but the ferry between cities is prohibited. You’d been amused by his explanation when you mentioned simply taking passage on one of the fishing boats.

‘Not a good idea. Those guys aren’t fond of passengers and there’d be no room for Summer.’

You found it odd at first, but after seeing the extensive bounty board, you assumed Chan needed the help. Levanter Bay’s sheriff’s station only had Chan, and his two deputies, Minho and Han. You’d made pretty decent money in the time since then, and Summer appeared to like being in one place.

“You stay out of trouble now, Channie,” Mrs. Young said as she finished packing up baked goods in a basket. “And say hi to your Ma and Pa for me.”

“I will, Mrs. Young. You take care.”

“Channie?” you teased once out of earshot.

Chan blushed, “Shut it. Mrs. Young used to be the school teacher before she retired. I’ve known her since I was a kid, and she can’t help seeing me that way still. It’s the downside to living in a small town your whole life: everyone’s known you since childhood, so it’s hard to remove that image from their heads.”

“I can actually relate to that, in a way,” you said, tying the basket to Summer’s saddle before hopping onto her. “The clan leaders still see me as an underling from time to time, but I guess I still am considering they’re thousands of years old.”

“I sometimes forget your people are immortal,” he kicked his horse’s sides and the ride began. “Are you?”

“It’s complicated, I’d say. We can live for thousands of years, but if we die on a mortal plane, we end up back home again like nothing happened. Demons who’d died on the battlefield didn’t fade into the mist or burst into thousands of pieces. They…They came back.”

“Could they come back here, if they wanted?”

“I don’t know,” you shrugged. “Not many of us decided to stay in the mortal realm when the war ended. I’m one of the few who gave up my horns for it. I’ve been told I can come and go from The Mar since I’m a big hero and all that, but I don’t know about the others.”

The Mar elders carried no ill will to demons who wanted to return to the mortal realm, but they might not have given them the special treatment you received.

“Would you want to go back?”

You thought about this pretty often. The Mar, a desolate wasteland void of life or greenery, was home to demons of all elements and clans. It might not be fresh and bright like the mortal world, yet you still found yourself missing the place. Everyone you’d known and grown up with still lived there. Your clan, the fire demons, resided in the smoky, volcanic mountain ranges bordering The Mar. On winter nights in the mortal realm, you longed for the comforting heat of home.

“Maybe when it starts to get cold,” you smirked. “Your winters are nearly fatal.”

“You’d be gone for six months?”

“More or less,” you then looked over at him. “Why? You’d miss me?”

“Our town would. You’ve only been here two weeks and the people have taken a shine to you.”

“It’ll be a shame to go when the ferry is up and running.”

“From what I’ve heard that won’t be for a while, anyways.”

You both shared a knowing glance. A part of you wanted to call him out on his charade, but you couldn’t help yourself. You’d grown to enjoy watching the young sheriff squirm for answers whenever you questioned him.

It was quite cute.

Arriving back in town, you saw people moving about more than usual. Crews of workmen went down the street stringing garlands of white and blue flowers between buildings or hanging gold and pale blue streamers on the trees. Above the door of the town meeting hall was a white banner with blue letters and several small handprints around it. ‘Happy Founder’s Day’ it read.

“This Founder’s Day thing is big around here, huh?” you asked Chan as you rode by two women hanging special boat shaped lanterns from a store awning.

“It’s huge,” he said. “It celebrates not just the town founders but the town itself. Levanter could’ve been wiped off the map several times over the centuries, but it never has. While the world changes and rearranges itself, Levanter Bay has remained more or less the same.”

“I will admit I’ve been around the world and seen loads of places,” you said, seeing men taking long planks of wood down the road to the stage construction. “Levanter Bay is nothing like them. It’s wholesome and quiet. It’s also very…diverse.”

“Are the big cities not?”

“They are, but perhaps it’s more potent here because Levanter is a small town. It’s a little melting pot.”

“It is,” he nodded proudly. “It’s something special.”

A lovely summer breeze blew a salty wind through the singular street, coming up from the bay right outside the main town square. Levanter Bay boasted being the ‘sunny side’, but hardly any sun shone through. However, this didn’t bother the people of Levanter Bay, who took it in stride.

“I’ve hunted for him high and low. I’ve looked him in the eye. I’ve dreamed about the perfect way to make this devil die!”

You could hear Changbin’s singing from outside the local inn, The White Pearl. The muscular woodland dwarf, taller than most variations of dwarves, swept the floors of his nearly empty tavern. Considering it’s still early morning, most of his patrons have gone to the docks or the lumber yard for work. You imagined you could get first dibs on a daily lunch special before anyone else.

“Is that Mrs. Young’s pie in there?!”

Han, the youngest deputy, stood outside the station doors with a grin on his face. The squirrel hybrid’s tail twitched at the decadent scent of baked cherries and flaky crust inside the wicker basket. He sniffed around Summer before finding the basket, which he untied and opened to inhale deeply.

“Yes!” he beamed, “And she made coffee cake,” he melted at the cinnamon cakes inside. “We should kill boars for her more often.”

“We?” you laughed softly. “I recall you whining about us killing them.”

“They are only doing what animals do,” he shot over his shoulder, “Eating. Maybe she should’ve taken my advice and planted her food elsewhere.”

“You know she’d never do that, Han,” Chan called at his back, dismounting his seasteed.

Han went back inside with the basket, and someone else came out. Dark purple eyes gleamed at you happily, matching the high wings fluttering in excitement.

“How was the boar hunt?” Minho asked you both, leaning against the stair railing while Chan tied up his horse. “Was it as big as everyone was saying?”

“Bigger,” Chan replied, walking up the steps of the station. “Much, much bigger.”

“Coming, YN?”

“Nah,” you shook your head, “I’m gonna grab a bite to eat before the lunch rush starts.”

“You just ate at Young’s!” Chan called after you, disbelief coming through his smile.

“Demons have big appetites! See you around!”

You took Summer to the inn nearby, hearing Changbin’s singing as you brought her into the stables in the back. A low groan caught your attention, and you saw Honey sitting in her own stall by the back door. You grinned at her.

“Morning, Honey,” you fed Summer and went to scratch behind the grizzly bear’s ear. “He’s been singing for a while, huh?”

She gave a whine, followed by a yawn. You gave her another pet, then walked into the inn from the back door. The White Pearl’s kitchen never ceased to smell of savory cooking. By the hearth stood a skinny young elf wearing an apron and oven mitts. He’d stirred a spoon inside a simmering pot when he heard the back door close.

“Morning, YN,” Wooyoung grinned, sampling his soup before adding more herbs to the pot. “Soup’s almost done.”

You inhaled deeply, smelling the savory onions in the air. “Cheesy onion soup?” you asked hopefully.

“With garlic crusted bread,” he nodded over to large loaves of bread on cooling racks. “Ah, ah, ah! Don’t think about it!” he immediately warned when you stepped over to the bread. “That’s for paying customers, YN.”

“I am a paying customer,” you argued playfully, giving one of them a whiff. “Food comes along with my room.”

“Then you wait on it like everybody else,” he corrected. “Besides, what’s the point of the bread if you don’t have the soup?”

“True.” You looked to the door leading into the common area, and could still hear Changbin’s muffled singing. “Has he been singing this whole time?”

“Not the whole time. It helps him work. Dwarves always sing while they work, so Changbin does it here. Just…don’t ask what the song’s about. You’ll never hear the end of it-Oh, damnit, the cakes!”

You left Wooyoung to fuss over lunch, and walked into the common area. Now, you definitely had to ask.

“Kunwoo, Kunwoo, Kunwoo! You’re ancient as the mountains and as unforgiving too! Kunwoo, Kunwoo, Kunwoo, Kunwoo, now the time has come for all of us to slaughter you…”

“Who or what is Kunwoo?”

Changbin flinched when you interrupted him, and turned to face you. Pushing black curls from his face, he chuckled, “Don’t go sneaking up on people like that. It’s a good way to get shot.”

“You’re not armed,” you took a seat at the bar. “Who’s Kunwoo?”

Changbin’s good-natured expression soured at the name. You saw his hand grip the broom handle tightly, twisting it slightly.

“He’s a great beast that lives in the Blue Mountains,” he finally answered, putting the broom aside. “I don’t mean a normal bear either. He’s monstrous. He fights with anyone he comes across, and his teeth and claws can rip through anything. He’s been stabbed, shot at, run through with swords and it doesn’t affect him. My people think he’s not even a bear, but some ancient deity.” He scoffed, going around the bar to pour himself a drink. “He’s not a deity. He’s just a massive bear. A lot of people have gone to his lair to try killing him, but nobody comes back alive. My father is the only one who’s gone up there and come back. Well, most of him came back.”

“Meaning?”

“Kunwoo slashed his leg, and it got infected on his way down. Our doctor had to amputate it.” Changbin glared into his ale mug as if it’d done him a personal wrong. “He’s vowed vengeance on the beast ever since.”

“And that need for vengeance passed on to you?”

“It did after he killed Honey’s cubs.”

You gasped, wide-eyed. “What?”

“He kills anyone, I told you. Honey and her cubs were in the mountains, and she came across him. He slaughtered her young, and nearly killed her. I managed to save her, but her babies…They didn’t stand a chance.”

“Poor Honey,” you looked to a window as if you could see her there, “That must’ve been so devastating.”

“It was.” He took a long gulp of his ale, then slammed it down. “But, one day, YN…One day, I’mma find that bastard bear for what it did to my Dad and Honey, and mount his head on that peg right there.” He pointed to an empty plaque hanging from the upstairs balcony. “I don’t care how long it takes. I don’t care where or how, but I am going to kill it.”

“Where does he live?”

“In a cave in the mountains. I go there once a year after hibernation season.” A thought then occurred to him, “You should come with me. A demon warlock could give me the edge I need.”

You’d opened your mouth to answer him, but voices cut you off right away. The familiar scent of fish and sea air flowed past you as dock workers and fishermen appeared for a hot lunch or a drink. Changbin and Wooyoung went to work, while you counted out your earnings for the day on the bar top. The money from the spider hybrid case still filled your purse, and the boars added more onto it. By the time Chan admitted there’d been no ferry-ban, you’d be well off. Your mind drifted to a possible pilgrimage back home.

“Felix Lee! You’re back!”

Changbin stood behind the bar smiling at the newcomer. You turned to see a young elf walk through the door. His golden laurel crown stuck out against his light blond hair, and matched his dangling gold leaf earrings. The golden sun on the breast of his waistcoat resembled the one carved into your tiger’s eye necklace. A Sunwind elf. Freckled cheeks puffed with the charming smile he gave Changbin.

“I didn’t know you’d be back so early,” Changbin said, handing two patrons their pints of ale. “I would’ve cleared a room for you.”

“My last show got canceled,” the elf said, putting his guitar case on the side, “And I had no reason to stick around so I came back. Good thing I’m in time for Founder’s Day.”

“Very good thing,” he leaned in close to him, “Mickey and Vicky broke up, so I have no headliners for that night.”

“The Light really graces us both, huh?” he smirked proudly. “I’ll take my usual for right now.”

“Coming up.”

You finished counting up your earnings, and ordered lunch for yourself when you felt someone take the seat beside you.

“Well, that’s a face I’ve never seen around here,” Felix Lee sneered, eyes glinting with flirtation, “And I’m not mad about it. I’m Felix.”

“YN,” you replied. Small brown freckles crossed over his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. You’re sure women everywhere fell for those freckles alone. “Sunwind?” you nodded to his waistcoat.

“No better place in the world,” he grinned. He noticed your horn stumps, but didn’t stay on them too long, “But I think Levanter Bay has it beat now.”

You giggled at his attempt, and said, “As wholesome as this place is, there are few places in the world as beautiful as Sunwind. Well, in my opinion, anyway.”

“I thought all demons liked the dark and damp places of the world?”

“Water demons, maybe,” you said, taking up the cup of berry juice Changbin gave you. “As a fire demon, I prefer places with sunlight and warmth.”

“Huh, how funny. So do I,” he leaned against the bar, “We should go there together. I can show you places there you’d never seen before.” He noticed the sun charm around your neck, and said, “Unless, someone else already has?”

“A few have, actually,” you replied cheekily. “You wouldn’t be my first sun elf, that’s for sure,” you took a sip from your cup while he chuckled.

“I bet you I’ll be the funnest, though.”

“That remains to be-”

“-YN! YN, YN, YN!”

Han rushed through the doors right over to you, watery eyed and panicked. His sudden appearance immediately put you on edge.

“Han?”

“YN, we need you to come back to the station,” he said, breathing heavily from his brief sprint. “Something…Something awful’s happened.”

“You the new lawman around here? I thought Chan was still the sheriff,” Felix lifted an eyebrow.

“Bounty hunter,” you answered quickly. “Han,” you took him by the shoulders to soothe his shaking nerves, “What’s happened?”

“They found a body at the docks,” he blurted out, “And-And Chan thinks it was pirates because it’s a mermaid and half her body is missing and it’s so horrible and she’s all flayed and pale and bloated. Minho says you might be able to ask her what happened, since, you know, you’re a demon and demons can speak to the dead sometimes-” he stopped himself short when he realized where he was, glancing at the people listening in, “Just…Please, come back to the station. We’ll pay for the time.”

A mermaid body? Half of it? Which half? You’ll admit it intrigued you. You told Changbin to give your meal to someone else, and you pulled on your jacket to follow Han.

“A mermaid? Where?”

“She washed up on the shore,” he said hurriedly. “Helga runs a fishing boat out of our port, and she says her crew found it near the dock. They only found her top half, and all her scales were flayed off. Minho says she must’ve died a few days ago, and just left to float in the water. It’s despicable, YN. They didn’t even have the decency to send her off in her peoples’ way.”

“Poachers,” you decided. “I heard of pirates who hunt down merfolk for their scales. Merfolk scales are a fortune a piece.”

“Not an excuse to kill a living being over it,” Han pouted, letting you walk ahead of him into the station. When you didn’t see Chan or Minho, Han said, “Minho’s in the morgue with her now.”

“And Chan?”

“He’s still at the dock with the people who found her. He thinks there are more bodies on the beaches, so he’s setting up search parties.” He shook his head, “I can’t believe this is happening now so close to Founder’s Day. We’re already gonna be swamped by the people coming into town for the celebration, and now we got this on top of that too.”

“It isn’t ideal.”

You both entered the morgue in the back of the station, a tiled room with the proper instruments and equipment needed to conduct examinations. Minho stood beside a white porcelain table where a corpse lay waiting to be examined. Han walked up to Minho, but you froze by the door.

The coral and seaweed in her long curls appeared dead and dried out, almost detached from her skull. Eyes devoid of color stared up at the ceiling blindly; her pallid skin looked waxy and stiff after decomposition. Death clung to your nose tightly, seeping into your lungs and making you sick. Your elders used to tell you that you’d become accustomed to dead bodies after a time, but you never could. Some of your kind relished in death and destruction. A display like this would excite them. It only saddened and sickened you.

“How old is she?” was your first question, coming out of your mouth as you came around the table.

“Twenty? Twenty-one, I suspect?” Minho suggested.

The most terrifying part twisted your stomach. At her waist, her killer chopped her in half with a hatchet or a butcher knife. Her insides spilled onto the table, a mass of gray and blue that smelled of decay and salt water. Stretches of flayed muscle showed where the poachers sliced off her scales: up her back, arms, torso and neck. You knew these places to be defensive areas, where the scales acted more as a layer of armor than flesh. You couldn't bring yourself to get any closer than a foot from the table. It felt intrusive. You felt as if you'd come upon something you shouldn't have.

“Do you know her name?”

“Not a clue. A Jane Doe.” Minho started by observing the folds of skin that remained. “They likely used a machete or a hatchet to cut her.” Finding breakages, he grimaced, “It took them several times to sever off the tail.”

“It’s harder to slice someone in half than behead them,” you said. “What do you hope to find examining her now? Most of the evidence would’ve washed off in the ocean.”

“It’ll be difficult to pull anything from the body in this state, yes,” Minho told you. “She’d been floating out at sea too long. I’d say about three or four days judging by decomposition, but you never know.” He looked at her face where fluids began leaking from her eyes and mouth. When he checked the flayed skin on her neck, he said, “Could you talk to her?”

“You can talk to dead people?” Han asked in surprise.

“No,” you shook your head. “Necromancy was never my strong suit, and even if I could, I can’t guarantee I’d be successful. Water and air demonkin are usually trained in that sort of thing.”

“Hm, what a shame,” he mused out loud, managing to open her mouth where more liquid came out. Han gagged at the smell, but Minho seemed unaffected. “I was hoping you might. It’d help us learn who’d done this to her.”

“Pirates, clearly,” you said pointedly.

“Yes, but which ones? Han,” he looked over at the youngest deputy, “Start searching the wanted list. Look for anyone charged with piracy or merfolk poaching.”

“Got it.”

He left the room and silence fell over you both. You wished you could find a way to talk to her. Your sense of scent only picked up the water and stench left behind. “Can’t you use your special handprint dust you have?”

“I can, but she’d have to dry out first,” he said.

He then looked at her arms, and frowned. Several black and purple bruises splotched her wrists and forearms, their shapes indicating fingerprints. Tears stung your eyes realizing what they'd done.

“They held her down,” you sniffed, “And chopped her while she was living.”

“Or hoisted her up by the arms,” Minho said stone-faced. “She's…She's so young, YN. She didn't deserve this. Nobody does.”

“All for gold. I might be a bounty hunter, but even I wouldn't do this.”

“You hunt animals all the time.”

“But not for sport. I'm either paid or it's to eat. I'd never do it like this.”

So callous. So cruel. You saw the young mermaid thrashing and screeching as faceless figures restrained and mutilated her. A surge of anger started in your chest and flowed towards your palms. They did not even have the decency to give her a proper send off; they dumped her into the ocean as if she were unwanted trash. That might be customary for their vile breed, but not merfolk. They are buried beneath coral and rocks to become one with the ocean floor as they decay.

“She should be given back to her people,” you said quietly.

“When we're done examining her, Chan plans to do that.”

That sounded like something he'd do. Minho finished gathering what he could find, which proved to be nearly nothing at all, then put her in a tub of ice. Coming back into the main room, you saw Han looking through papers.

“Find anything?” Minho asked him.

“Not yet,” he answered. “I didn't realize how many people are wanted for piracy until now. It's at least a hundred long.”

“Most of them are probably crew members or associates,” you said. “If you're on a pirate ship, you're a pirate to the law.” Hands in your pockets, you said, “What is the next step?”

“See if Chan finds any more bodies, and work from there,” he shrugged. “He'll likely propose a bounty to you when we figure out who is behind all this.”

“Should I keep my schedule open then?” Felix’s handsome face came to mind, and you smirked, “I did have some opportunities pop up.”

Han snorted but Minho said, “Trust me. Mayor Wallace will pay anything to make pirate trouble go away. It'll be worth the time.”

“I'll see,” you grinned, backing out of the room.

Right as you did, Mayor Wallace stormed into the station. His eyes immediately landed on you, “YN! Thank goodness that you're still here.”

“Morning, Mayor.” You and Minho exchanged a knowing glance, “What can I do for you?”

“I'm sure Minho already brought you up to speed, but this is worse than we thought,” he said gravely. “Four more bodies washed up on shore, not that far from where the last one was. A wisp came in from a boat out at sea and they say they found skinned mermaid tails too. Those monsters,” he gruffed, “First, they attack innocent towns and now are hunting down merfolk. YN, we need your help on this. The people of Levanter Bay don't shy away from fights, but these pirates…There are too many and they're dangerous.”

“And you want someone who's more dangerous than them?” You cocked your head to one side. “It'll cost, you know that.”

“Of course,” he said, “Of course. We can go over the details in my office.” He took a deep breath, “This is bad, y'all. Really bad. The last time we had pirates in these parts, they nearly destroyed our port. Everyone was out of work for weeks. If these pirates are hunting down merfolk…Well, I hope Chan with all his Hydrus connections can pull us out of this mess before Founder’s Day. Damn Founder’s Day! I gotta go speak with the council. We gotta put a lid on this before it causes a fuss in town. We will discuss details later on tonight,” he told you again before rushing back out the door.

“He really just flies in and out, huh?” You joked.

“Like a bird.”

“I guess I'll be helping after all,” you sighed. “Where do you need me?”

“Help us sift through these,” he gave you a stack of documents, “And see what we find.”

Taking a seat at an empty desk, you suddenly realize how many people are on the king's wanted list.

Too many, for sure.

*****

This was not a coincidence. Five dead mermaids washed up in the same place?

Chan stared out into the water from the dock, seeing the calm waters lightly moving with the currents. He thought of merfolk spots the bodies might’ve originated from, and only one came to mind: Peacock Lagoon. Chan imagined it now: all the young merfolk enjoying the water and sunshine in the large circular lagoon, peaceful and happy. But, only merfolk can go to and from the lagoon through the underwater tunnels. How could pirates possibly capture them there?

“This is the last one, Chan.” A tall woman came up to him with two other men, carrying another torso of a merman. Helga, in her tartan shirt, overalls and boots, stood taller than most men he knew. “What do you want to do with them?”

“Take them back to the merfolk,” he said, hands on hips. “That’s where they belong.”

“I’ll make sure it gets done,” she nodded at him. “Come on, boys.”

Chan looked down at the bodies they’d uncovered. Three females and two male. His mind drifted back to you, as it often did as of late. He wondered what you’d make of this whole thing. Chan confessed your quick thinking and eye for details impressed him. Your boldness added a flair that was unusual in these parts. He only saw something like that in Minho. He still grinned recalling you bravely walking into a spider’s nest to give him the distraction he needed. While you shook in your boots, you still stood up to the warlock because you cared more about the children than your own fears. He admired that sort of thing.

He didn’t know what exactly to think about you yet, but he knew one thing. Chan knew he enjoyed your company, and how you continued to amaze him each time you met.

He’d been examining one of the females when a familiar voice spoke from behind him.

“Channie! Psst! Chan!”

He turned around for the source of the noise, but he didn’t see anyone right away.

“Bahng Chan! Down here!”

He realized it came from under his feet. Bending down, he peeked between the dock boards to see someone floating in the water. When he got a better look, he saw the cat-like eyes of his cousin, Hyunjin.

“Hyunjin?” he blinked several times to see him properly. There was no mistaking the mole underneath his right eye or the seashell earring. “Is that you?”

“Be quiet!” he hissed. “Meet me by your dad’s boat tonight. I have stuff to tell you.”

“Why can’t you tell me now?”

“It’s not safe. Your dad’s boat tonight right after the sun goes down.”

“Hyunjin, does this have to do with the poachers? Can you help us? Do you know who’s behind this?”

“We. Will. Talk. Later.”

With that, Hyunjin dove back into the water and disappeared. Just like Hyunjin. He leaves more questions than he does answers. Glancing around the dock, he didn’t see anyone suspicious lurking about. Hyunjin never asked to meet in secret before. Chan worried what this might mean for his investigation. Standing up straight again, he watched as Helga and her crew loaded the merfolk onto their boat. He gave her coordinates on where to leave them, and he then walked to the edge of the dock.

Hyunjin was one of the few Hydrus relatives he spoke to regularly. Being of the “newer generation” he did not hold the same ancient grudges against humans that his elders did. Ethereal and delicate, Chan witnessed the young siren sing from sun up to sun down without ever cracking or straining his voice. He enchanted the pants off any living creature within hearing distance, and could even center it on a singular person if he wanted. However, despite his beauty and charm, Hyunjin carried a quiet melancholy about him that added mystery. His mother used to joke that Hyunjin always appeared to be in thought. He suspected that Hyunjin’s thinking is what prompted the meeting.

Pulling off his boots and socks, Chan removed his shirt as he hummed a tune in his throat. It loves his singing. He’d inherited his parents’ talent for song, except in his case, it attracted marine life instead of other humans. He learned how to use this very quickly. His shirt on the floor, Chan took a few light stretches before breathing in deeply. In a perfect form, Chan dove into the dark, cold water below. While most humans struggled to hold their breath, Chan tolerated the slight stinging around his rib cage. He’d forgotten how long it’d been since he swam underwater. On his defined torso, six slits appeared underneath his skin to act as his gills.

With a single kick, Chan flowed through the water quickly. All around him, he saw the ocean life going on underneath the surface. Schools of fish broke apart as he moved through them; he caught brief glances of color from the shelves of coral growing on the floor. He could hear the whitenoise hum of the underwater world, which comforted him more than unnerved him. The freezing temperature took a bit getting used to as always, but he warmed up to it as he swam further from shore. Once halfway into the bay, he started singing softly. It’d be gurgled to non-merfolk ears, but to him and any other creature it’s clear as a bell.

He likes jaunty tunes.

“Come all you young sailor men, listen to me! I’ll sing you a song of the fish in the sea! And it’s windy weather, boys! Stormy weather, boys! When the wind blows, we’re all together, boys!”

Chan waited. He kept his eyes peeled for any sign of movement in the half-light. Nephrem rarely came up this close to the surface and this close to the dock, but he’d give it a shot. Chan continued singing, aimlessly swimming as he kept watch over the open space. While he’d told you the local sea serpent wreaked havoc further up north, hence why there’s no ferry rides, the creature enjoyed wandering into the bay from time to time.

He’d gotten close to the edge of the bay when a current brushed cold water over his legs. Chan chuckled when he stared down in the abyss. It appeared at first glance to be empty, but those with keen eyes saw the glint of green and blue pass underneath him. When he lowered himself down, he still felt the smooth scales brushing the bottom of his toes.

“Hello Nephrem,” he said.

He rolled over to see the thick, strong body of the serpent circle him as the beast turned his head. Wide amber eyes blinked at him, a low rumble coming from its underbelly when it rounded him. Years ago, Chan would be terrified. Any sane person would be in the presence of a centuries old sea snake. But, not Chan. Not anymore.

“Hey there, boy,” he said gently, reaching forward when the snake brushed its body close to him. The hard body passing under his fingers, he let Nephrem enjoy his gentle scratches for a moment, “You’ve been eating well. You’ve gotten bigger since I last saw you.”

He hissed softly.

“Some mermaids washed up on our shore this morning,” he told the snake. “My friends want to bring them back to their kin. Can you pass the message to Mama? You can reach her faster than me.” When it grumbled, he said, “Now, come on. Don’t be that way. They’re not pirates; they’re friends of mine. They won’t even be looking for you. Come on, do it for me?” Lacking a response, he said, “How about a shark?” No response. “Two sharks?” Still no response. It’d have to be a big trade to get a sea serpent near a merfolk residence. “Fine, three sharks! Big, meaty ones!”

Nephrem’s body rippled as he shook and Chan grinned. “Good boy. Come back and I’ll have them for you.”

Three sharks will be hard to catch, but not impossible.

****

“Park Jinyoung, human, aged 52,” Han read from the document in his hand, “Captain of the Black Harpy. Wanted for poaching in conservation waters, to which the sentence is two to five years of hard labor or four to six years in imprisonment. Bounty reward set at two-thousand as of February 15th.”

“Sounds like he could be our man,” Minho said, nodding to himself. “What else does it say about him?”

Han picked up the second page, “Huh, this guy has a pretty long list. Poaching is just the newest thing he’s being charged with.”

He handed the page to Minho, who read it before handing it to you. The three of you spent a good chunk of the day reading wanted listings and bounty advertisements. You all found a list of candidates who could be your pirate crew, but as time went on, the list dwindled to three people.

“The next one is Kim Jennie, human mage, aged 28 years,” Han continued, “Wanted for selling illegal goods, theft and poaching. According to this docket, the goods she’d been trying to sell were hybrid skins,” you saw his jaw clench slightly, “She’s charged as Park’s accomplice here.”

“Eric Nam, goblin, aged 35 years,” you picked up the third stack left on Han’s desk. “Wanted for questioning?”

“Questioning?”

“Wanted for questioning by The King’s Inquisitor in regards to crimes committed on the 10th of June of the 18th Age,” The date sounding familiar, you turned back to Kim’s page and found the connection, “Kim is reported to have been there too. It says it here: ‘Charged with the murder of Sheriff John of Buckville and others; the theft of several crates of fine sugar, spices, and cloth from ships weighed anchor and the destruction of Port Buck.’”

“Park has the same thing in his report too,” said Minho, rereading the pages over. “The three of them must be working together.”

“Buckville is on the other side of the country,” Han noted, pulling up all three wanted posters. “It’s likely they’re sailing the opposite side to avoid the navy and pirate hunters.”

“Any pirate hotspots around here?” you asked them.

“There’s a few further down south near the beach towns, but the closest one to us,” Minho consulted a map hanging on a nearby wall. He scanned Levanter Bay’s section of the map before finding one spot, “Cortuga is a pirate town on an island outside of The King’s jurisdiction. Several pirate lords of the time founded the land, and have since made it a refuge for pirates on the run or looking for a good stopping place. From what I’ve heard, the place is a lawless, forsaken city. All manner of crime is committed there, and the only person in charge is a pirate who is as ruthless as he is crazy.”

“It’s also out of The Crown’s jurisdiction,” Han added to it. "Since it’d gone unclaimed by any real government, people on the run can live there without worrying about being arrested.” Han stared at the map with Minho, eyes scanning over the painted canvas and fingers tracing a red line curving along with the coast. You watched him follow it south, then stop at a specific spot. “Peacock Lagoon.”

“What about it?”

“It’s a merfolk hang out,” he said. “They could have found a way inside and captured the mermaids. As they sailed away from the lagoon,” he went up to Cortuga, “They would’ve dumped the bodies somewhere in between and the water currents brought them over to us.”

“Then they’re likely still in Cortuga,” Minho said defeatedly, “And as long as they’re there, we won’t be able to arrest them.”

“Unless they somehow made their way back onto land…”

Park Jinyoung wouldn’t be the first pirate you’ve come across. During your travels, you met plenty of pirates and pirate lords. Most of them claimed to be dangerous people who are not meant to be crossed. That is, until they met you. Picking up his file again, you reread Park’s history sheet. He’d been charged with piracy at the age of fourteen, working on a pirate ship. Then, he’d gone throughout the world murdering, raping, and thieving. He disgusted you. You briefly wondered what sort of punishment he’d face in The Mar. No doubt, it will fit the magnitude of his crimes. It is part of the oath every demon recites when they pass their trials. ‘I shall protect the innocent and punish the damned’.

“YN,” Han came over to you, “I know you’re probably a big scary demon, but Cortuga isn’t a safe place. You could seriously be hurt there. The people who go there won’t be afraid of you.”

You snorted, “They haven’t met me yet.”

“You’re not seriously thinking of going?” Minho said in disbelief. “YN, we have no definitive proof this gang is even there. You might be walking towards a dead end and get yourself killed in the process.”

“Death doesn’t scare me,” you told them. When you saw their unconvinced faces, you said, “I’m not saying this to come off as tough or brave. Demons don’t fear death the way a mortal might. To us, it’s not the end. It’s only the beginning. The people who have something to fear are the mortals who end up dead.”

“Also helps that you already know what’s on the other side,” Minho said.

“Where’s Chan?” You noticed the darkening sky outside. “Shouldn’t he be back by now?”

“He’s likely still searching,” said Han, “Or went to go see his mother in Hydrus.”

“Worried about him?” Teased Minho, who went back to studying the map.

“He’s been gone a while, and I think he’d like to know what we’ve learned so far.”

You wouldn’t admit the idea of Chan in pirate infested waters did upset you. He might be part merfolk, but he’s only one man. Pirate ships can have crews of up to thirty men. Walking up to the window, you noticed groups of people returning to town. While lamps started being lit, the forest and beaches must be too dark to search through properly. There’d be no point in him searching late into the night.

You hoped to find Chan among them, worn out from a long day of scouring empty beaches and sparse woods for more evidence. He won’t like the idea of you leaving town to go to Cortuga. You suspect he’ll offer to go with you, and you couldn’t have that. As much as you admired his courage, Chan also had honor. His morals and natural need to defend others could get him killed in a place like Cortuga. Still, he’ll insist that someone accompany you. Han, while a deputy and good with a rifle, is too soft for a hard pirate town. But Minho, the dark fairy from Incheon, carried a bit more fire than his colleagues.

“He’s here…”

Chan walked through town from the docks, the road passing right by the station. You couldn’t help noticing his weary eyes and dragging feet. Yet, you also saw the state of his clothes. He held his boots in one hand, and his shirt in the other. Black pants rolled up to his knees, they appeared damp in the lamp light. Warmth crept up your cheeks when you realized he walked around shirtless. Nobody else appeared bothered by his dressed down appearance, so you guessed it’s a regular sight for locals. You stopped yourself from scanning his lean torso, tracing his muscles with your eyes and wondering how often he worked out to maintain the physique. Chan’s fitness was no secret to you, but it was a fact you normally ignored. Over the course of your stay in Levanter Bay, you’d grown fond of the sheriff. You supposed that platonic fondness naturally led to other types of “fondness”.

No, that’s dumb. You hardly know him.

“Evening, boys,” Chan greeted as he walked in the door. Hanging up his shirt and putting his boots by the door, Chan didn’t notice you at first.

“Evening,” Minho and Han both replied. “Did you find anything?”

“Four more,” he answered, walking into his office. “That makes five bodies in total,” he said from inside. “They’re all skinned too and missing their tails. Our pirates are clearly after authentic mermaid scales. I’m meeting my cousin Hyunjin at my dad’s place. I think he’s got information that can really blow this case wide open for us.” Walking back into the main room, you saw he’d changed into dry pants and busied himself with towel drying his black curls. You focused on his face rather than his muscled shoulders and arms.

Minho cleared his throat and nodded his head over at you. A blush immediately filled Chan’s ears when he finally spotted you. “YN! oh, um, wow,” he stammered, “I didn’t know you were…here.”

“Mayor Wallace offered me the bounty,” you explained awkwardly. "I’ve been helping Han and Minho look for more clues. We, um, found some possible suspects and we-were thinking of a way to capture them.”

“Oh, is that right?” he turned to Minho, avoiding the shirtless elephant in the room. Why is he not scrambling for a shirt or at least using the towel to cover himself? “Who?”

“Park Jinyoung,” Minho responded, picking up the page to hand to Chan.

“Yes, Jinyoung could be good for this,” he nodded, reading the page. “My dad used to mention him from time to time. He’s a rotten bastard, for sure…And Jennie Kim, that wouldn’t be a surprise. She’s attached to the man by the hip.” He handed him back the page, “Any idea where they may be?”

“Cortuga,” he answered. “YN thinks she should go there and bring one of them back here for questioning.”

“No,” Chan said abruptly. He turned to you, “No, you’re not going there.”

“And why not?”

“Because…Because it’s dangerous there,” he struggled to say. “You could get seriously hurt or captured. There’d be no way for us to come get you.”

“Who do you suppose should go instead?” you challenged, “You?”

“Yes, me,” he said. “I’ve dealt with more pirates than you know. I don’t get scared very easily.”

“Neither do I,” you replied stiffly. You saw the determination in his eyes, and knew you’d need to convince him more. “Chan, I’m not saying I believe you’re incapable or scared of them. I know you’re not. You’re a tough guy, but you’re also a tough guy with a moral code and an honorable inclination to defend and protect others. It’s why you’re a sheriff.” This evaluation of him seemed to stun Chan into silence. “The people on Cortuga are neither honorable nor honest. They don’t play fair. They’ll likely capture you for ransom or worse, and…” you hated the picture that crossed your mind, “It’s just better if I go.”

“No, it’s not,” he argued, walking to meet you by the window. “You’re tough, yes. You’re a demon and your demon form will likely scare the shit out of even the baddest pirate. But, you’re also a woman-”

“-Okay, wow-”

“-I don’t mean it like that,” he cut you off. “I mean that they’re not going to take you seriously.”

“I’ll make them.”

“And they might figure out a way to trap or subdue you, and then you’ll be stuck there with nobody to help you.”

“You won’t have anyone to help you either.”

“They’ll put a sheriff up for ransom, but a demon bounty hunter? They’ll have no problem just killing you.”

“They can try.”

“YN, please,” you heard the plea in his voice, “It’s dangerous, and I don’t…I mean, we wouldn’t want anything to happen to you-”

“-I’m not a baby, Chan. I’ve handled myself fine before-”

“-And I’m not arguing that-”

“-Then why are you so against my going there?-”

“-Because it’s unsafe-”

“-It’d be unsafe for you too-”

“-But it’d be worse for you-”

“-Hey!” Minho interrupted you both, walking across the room to stand between you both. “I’ll go,” he declared, “And you two can stay here.”

“Minho, come on-” Chan began, but Minho put up a hand.

“I’m the best with magic out of the four of us-Oh, don’t make that face, you know it’s true-” he said to you when you scoffed. “I’m a shadow fairy. We’re made of pure black magic. Even the toughest warlock or mage has trouble going up against me. Besides, I’m not as rough as you,” he turned to you, “Or as noble as you,” he said to Chan. “You said Hyunjin wants to meet you? Take YN and go speak to him.”

“And what about me?” pouted Han from his desk.

“You’re coming with me, love,” Minho told him. “You’re handy with a pistol and you can sniff them out better than me.”

“Minho, no,” said Chan.

“Chan, shut up and let me do my damn job,” Minho hissed. You noticed his wings give a quick flutter. “Hannie, we’ll leave in the morning. Let's get some sleep.”

“You got it, sir…” said Han, getting up from his desk and grabbing his jacket.

“I can also travel there faster than either of you,” Minho said next. “Meet up with Hyunjin, and we can talk about it when Han and I come back tomorrow.”

Chan stared at Minho indignantly, but Minho stared back. Deciding he won't win, Chan conceded, “Alright. You go to Cortuga, and YN and I will go talk to Hyunjin.”

“Good. Glad this got squared away. If you two don't mind,” he lifted himself off the floor with his wings, “I have a big day tomorrow.”

He flew out of the station through an open window, leaving dust trailing in his wake. Silence fell over both you and Chan.

“I wasn't saying I think you're not strong enough,” he began but you stopped him.

“No offense taken,” you assured him. “Honestly.”

He nodded, and said, “Do you want to come with me? It's alright if you'd rather relax at the inn. I heard Felix is in town, so he's likely going to do a set-”

“-And miss out on meeting a mermaid?” you scoffed, “Please. Do you know how rare seeing a mermaid is? Talking to one is even rarer.”

He chuckled, “Hyunjin's a siren.”

“Even rarer. You think he'd sing for me?”

“If you want to drown, sure,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “Come on then. My dad's boat isn't far from here.”

It was then you noticed the smell.

“Did you go fishing?”

“Huh? No,” he answered strangely. “I was out near the fishing boats, so that's why I probably stink a bit.”

“Is that also why you came on here soaked and shirtless?”

“I fell in.”

“But your boots and shirt are dry.”

“You should consider a career change,” he snapped, “You'd make a great sheriff.”

“I'll pass. I've carried enough responsibility to last a lifetime.”

You walked past him with a playful grin and he followed you.

Still shirtless.

Chan's father lived on a houseboat docked in the residential part of the marina. A small furry dog laid down on a bed next to the door, head on their paws under a wall light. The moment you and Chan approached, the charles spaniel lifted its head, floppy ears dangling.

“Hey Berry!” Chan beamed brightly, bending down and extending his arms as Berry ran to him, barking with excitement. “Hey there, girl. Aw, you missed me?” He laughed when she licked at his face, “I missed you too!”

Berry noticed you, and your body froze. Animals always gave you different reactions. You did your best to appear harmless, hoping the dog took to you as she cautiously approached you. Wet nose sniffing around your feet, when she did not immediately growl or snap her jaws, you thought you might be in the clear.

“You willingly pet and feed a grizzly bear,” Chan snorted, “Don’t tell me dogs scare you.”

“They don’t,” you answered, bending to gingerly pet Berry’s head, which she allowed. “I’ll admit I get skittish around new animals. I never know how they’ll react to me because, you know,” you lifted your eyes to your forehead, “The stumps?”

“Berry’s not like that. She likes everyone.”

Berry’s rough tongue licked at your palm, and you smiled as you scratched behind her ears. A shift of light ahead of you made you snap to the door where a man stood watching the three of you. He wore a loose flannel shirt and worn out denim and boots. You noticed he held something in his hand, but you couldn’t tell what from the distance and light. You knew he must be Chan’s father.

“Bahng Chan!” the man said, affronted. “What are you doing?!” He left the doorstep, shock on his face, and came towards you. His approach sent your body into a defensive mode. “Put a shirt on young man! There’s a lady present!”

The item he held happened to be a shirt, which Chan took sheepishly. “Evening, Dad,” he said, pulling on the tank top. “Jacob and Donny went home?”

“A few minutes ago. We’d been looking up these parts for more merfolk, but didn’t find anyone,” he replied. “Aren’t you going to introduce your lady friend, Chan?”

“Dad, this is YN,” Chan obliged. “She’s been helping with some bounties around town, and took up this case. YN, this is my dad, Jack.”

“Pleasure to meet you, sir,” you outstretched your hand.

“A demon with manners,” Jack said, amused. “The last demon I saw wanted to slice my head off rather than shake my hand.” The both of you shook hands, “I never thought I’d meet The Multak in person.”

The response took you back for a moment. “You served, sir?”

“In His Majesty’s navy,” he nodded, turning to walk back into the house. You both took this as a sign to follow him inside, Berry trailing behind at the rear. “I was there at the Battle of Busan when the demon forces took to the water on stolen ships.”

“Dad was a naval captain,” Chan said with a proud smile, “Before he retired.”

“You were in Busan?”

“On the front lines,” he nodded.

Jack’s home was modest and homey, the back end going out past the shore and into the water. Nautical trinkets hung from fishing lines like wind chimes, and you saw a row of medals and trophies along a window sill beside the back door. You also noticed a photo of Jack with a woman and a baby Chan. Yes, you knew she was Chan’s mother. They looked too alike to be anything else.

For a brief moment, you wondered what having a mother felt like. Demons aren’t born the same as mortals. You’d been created from fire and rock; a child born in the lava of the Burning Range around The Mar. You supposed the Keepers charged with caring for demonkin underlings could be your mothers and fathers. Your mentors in the training yards could be parental figures in their own way. One person in particular came to mind: Zunar, overseer of Keepers.

A demon of immense strength, he shaped underlings into full-fledged warriors for centuries. Muscular with the runic tattoos of your people on his body, he was one of the few fire demons with wings. You always asked him when you’d get yours, and he’d tell you that wings came at birth. All underlings, demonkin children, were under his charge from infancy to eighteen. While he did care and mentor all underlings, he took a special shine to you. He said you carried an aura far different than any underling he’d ever met. He prophesied that you’d grow up to do great things when your egg cracked in the lava river. He said it should have killed you, but you survived. You supposed his premonition came true.

“Upon one summer’s morning, I carefully did stray down by the walls of whopping, where I met a sailor gay…”

The singing voice broke you from your memories. You heard it coming from the stern of the boat.

“Conversing with a young lass, who seemed to be in pain. Saying ‘William when you go I fear you’ll never return again…”

While Chan and Jack talked, you stared transfixed at the source of the singing. The back of the ship led out to a low platform that acted as a porch. While the sides had railings, the very end remained open. Sitting on the edge of the boat was a young man. Black hair hanging down to his shoulders, you saw his back covered in blue scales that started dark blue at his tail and gradually became white towards his shoulders and arms. You didn’t see anything else but him. He drew you to him like a moth to a flame, and you knew you’d get burned.

“My heart is pierced by cupid. I disdain all glittering gold. There is nothing can console me, but my jolly sailor bold…”

The creak of a deck board interrupted his singing. When it stopped, your brain felt fuzzy and muddled. The siren turned around, and you couldn’t stop looking at him. His round face ended with a square jaw and pointed chin. Cat-like eyes, the color of dark topaz, blinked at you once before clouding with suspicion. Thick, pouty lips turned into a scowl when he looked up to see your stumps. You felt him surveying you, deciding whether you may be a threat or not.

“Who are you?” he asked, defensively. “Where’s Chan?”

“I’m YN,” you said breathlessly. “Chan’s inside with Jack. You…You must be Hyunjin, right?”

“He didn’t tell me he’d bring a stranger. I was expecting Minho or Han.”

“They’re busy with another lead.”

“And why are you here?”

“To help.”

“Why?”

“Because what happened to those merpeople is evil and needs to be punished, which is something I vowed to do,” you said.

“And because Chan offered you money. Yes,” he nodded at your stunned expression, “I know a bounty hunter when I see one.” He eyed the Sunwind charm and claws around your neck, “Where’d you get that?”

“An elf gave it to me after I saved her son from a spider hybrid.”

Hyunjin clearly appeared to be weighing this response. “They don’t give those freely,” he said.

“No, they don’t.”

“And those claws?”

“Werewolf and werecat.”

He stayed silent again, “What do you know of merfolk, YN?”

He turned fully to face you, and you saw the scales spanned from his back to his abdomen and chest. The only flesh available was the very middle of his belly and the sternum of his chest; only the contours of his face glimmered pale blue and nearly white. Light blue and white fringes went along the sides of his thick blue tail, the scales glittered like gems in the lamplight hanging from the ceiling. Seeing him up close, you saw the crown of tiny starfish and pearls attached to his head. It reminded you of the young mermaid you saw today, who had coral pieces in her hair. A beautiful, young siren like the ones in the fairytales and paintings.

“That they believe in water spirits,” you stared, “And find omens in the skies and currents of the seas. I know mermaids can call upon the magic of the ocean to aid them in battle, and that a siren’s song can lead a man to his death. I know they’re also stealthy people who can hide in plain sight.” You gave a small smile, “A naval commander I sailed with said the difference in mermaids and sirens is that with mermaids you can’t see a mermaid, but it can see you; with sirens, you can hear them, but you don’t see them until it’s too late.”

The corner of his mouth twitched at this saying. He turned back to the waters ahead, and you took this as a sign to join him.

“That’s all true,” he said. “But, what do you know of our king?”

“Not much, to be honest. I only know his name is Tytos and he was the one who stopped the mighty water snake, Cierian, from destroying Hydrus.”

“Those things are true, yes,” he replied, “But King Tytos is so much more than his deeds. Ever since I was a baby, King Tytos has ruled the seven seas from the capital city, Hydrus. He is an understanding, compassionate, honorable merman who does what is best for his people. He has built alliances with creatures we never thought to befriend before, and has opened communications between our people and the mainlanders. He listens to everyone’s opinions and concerns. He seeks counsel even from the smallest, most common of merfolk. Tytos is the king that Hydrus needed during those dark days.” You saw his eyes twinkled with tears, “He saved my father during a battle between our people and the bloodbane merfolk. He is a good, noble man, YN. He is respected and admired by anyone who meets him.”

“What’s happened to him?”

“We don’t know,” his voice became thick with tears as he looked at you. “He’s sick, but not a normal sickness that can be cured with tonics or herbs. It’s a sickness of the mind. He isn’t himself. My aunt, Chan’s mother Yejin, says he’s bed ridden most days, and that he gives all his commands through his chief advisor, a merman named Mizu.”

“Mizu? What’s he got to do with all of this?”

Chan came up from behind you with a beer bottle in his hand, concern on his face.

“Your mother thinks he’s poisoning the king,” Hyunjin revealed, “Or using some form of magic to control him and keep him sick.”

“How is this connected to our merfolk?”

He took a seat on Hyunjin’s other side, and the siren continued. “Your mother says that ever since he became ill, Mizu has been in charge. Mizu claims that Tytos ordered soldiers to withdraw from the smaller villages and return to Hydrus. This leaves those people defenseless. These new pirate attacks are the first in a long line of threats to come. She said one commander reported seeing a leviathan roaming the borders of the Caspian Seas. Another said that the fish populations are migrating further north as the predators grow in vast numbers. Hunters do what they can to keep them at a minimum, but they’re becoming a major threat to the plains. She and the other advisors have tried speaking out against him, demanding to speak to Tytos himself but Mizu forbids it.” His voice dropped to a whisper as he said, “He confined the queen to her tower, and banished Murrow.”

Chan’s mouth fell open, “He banished Murrow?!”

“Who’s Murrow?” you asked.

“He’s the commander of Tytos’s personal guard,” Hyunjin said. “Rumor has it he tried garnering support to overthrow Mizu from his position and ended up being arrested allegedly on The King’s orders.”

“And where is Ormand in all of this?” asked Chan. “He’s Tytos’s son and should be in charge after him.”

“Ormand is dead.”

“What? You’re kidding!”

“He and his men were ambushed by a group of bloodbane merfolk,” he said, “But a lot of the advisors think Mizu orchestrated it. The only royals left are the princes and princesses: Ronan, Arielle, Arista and Kenn. None of them are old enough to rule on their own; besides, they’ve been locked up with their mother this entire time. It’s awful, Chan. Everyone in the palace is terrified, and the people in Hydrus are starting to lose hope and faith that their king will pull through and come to his senses. We need your help.”

“How can I help?” he asked, “I don’t have magic.”

“But your friend, Minho, does. You’ve always said he’s the best magic wielder you know. Your mother suspects this runs so much deeper than what’s on the surface. She can’t confront Mizu directly, since then she’s likely to be taken out next. She can’t speak to the king because she’ll end up in prison like so many others. We both thought Minho might have a solution, or know of a way to break Mizu’s curse.”

“Minho is good with magic,” Chan said, “But he’s going to Cortuga tomorrow to talk to some pirates we think are responsible for what happened today.”

“You mean Park Jinyoung and his crew?”

“Yes,” he perked up, “Was it them?”

“It might be,” he replied. “I know his first mate is a mage. She’s likely the reason pirates were able to invade Peacock Lagoon in the first place.”

“Minho mentioned Peacock Lagoon,” you chimed in. “He said it’s impenetrable from above water.”

“It is,” Hyunjin confirmed, “I was there when it happened. There we all were enjoying the sun when they appeared out of thin air. Some of us sirens tried screeching to get them to leave, but it didn’t seem to work. They were immune to our powers.”

“Candle wax,” Chan suggested before sipping his beer. “They stuff it in their ears before going into merfolk waters to avoid falling into trances.”

“This lagoon of yours,” you began, “What are its defenses?”

“The reefs and rocks surrounding it mostly,” he answered. “An aerial attack would be possible, but the lagoon isn’t a town or a castle. It’s more like a meeting place. It’s one of our safe havens from humans. Whoever brought them there knew the precise location.”

“And you think this is connected to the other threats?”

“It must be. It’s not a coincidence all these things are happening right now. If people believe Tytos is too weak to fulfill his duties, he will be deposed and someone else will be put in his place,” Hyunjin then glowered, “Mizu has his eyes on the throne. I know he does. Why else would he be doing this?”

“Power does strange things to people,” you mused out loud.

“Can you help us?” Hyunjin’s question sounded cautious and uncertain. “Well, you are a demon,” he continued, “And if there is any being versed in dark magic, it’s demons. Dark magic is at play here, and we need someone who can defeat it.”

“And if anyone is good at defeating dark magic,” Jack said from behind the three of you, “It’s you.”

“I got lucky,” you told them. “I had help.”

“You’d have help this time.”

“I don’t even know what’s wrong with your king,” you told Hyunjin. “Have you seen him?”

“No, but Chan’s mother has. She can describe to you what she’s seen and what goes on inside the palace,” he said.

“My wife is good friends with the king and queen,” Jack said, drinking from his beer and petting Berry’s head. “If anyone can get close to them, it’s her. Yejin will help you the best way she can.”

“My kind don’t do well underwater,” you said. “It’s too cold for us fire demons.”

“You’d be fine,” insisted Chan. “We’ll go to Hydrus tomorrow and talk to Ma.”

“Chan, I don’t think I’d-”

“-You will?” Hyunjin asked with hope in his eyes. “Really?”

“We need to stop these pirate attacks somehow. Minho might learn what’s really going on when he questions Jinyoung’s crew,” he said, “And we can assess Tytos’s condition for ourselves.”

It was the least you could do. Hyunjin said he’d meet you both back at the house tomorrow, and you’d all go together. However, there was one detail neither of them failed to bring up.

“Um, you both might be able to breathe underwater, but this gal doesn’t,” you jerked a thumb at yourself.

“Don’t worry about that,” Hyunjin comforted you with a pat on the knee. “See you two tomorrow.”

A fresh sense of hope spread across Hyunjin’s face, and he glowed with pride. He pecked Chan’s cheek, then dove back into the water. You sat there on the edge of the porch with Chan, who quietly sipped his beer for a while. The faint sounds of the ocean came to you from afar, and a cold breeze made you shudder.

You hated the cold.

****

The next morning, you stood on Jack’s boat at the edge of the bay area. Minho and Han went ahead of you and Chan to Cortuga, where you prayed they’d be successful. Mostly because you didn’t know how successful your endeavor would be today. You stayed by the stern of the ship, looking down at the blue waters lapping at the bottom of the hull nervously. You didn’t mind sailing on the ocean. You didn’t mind lakes or rivers or ponds, but that was because you’re above the surface. The cold can’t reach you on the boat. Simply seeing the vast depths below gave you shivers.

“Don’t be such a scaredy cat,” Chan laughed from behind you.

He came out of the cabin without a shirt again. The sight of his naked torso distracted you from the deadly waters for a moment.

“I’m not scared,” you retorted. “I’m just confused on how I’m going to breathe underwater.”

“Well, you’d get kissed obviously.”

“Kissed?” you gulped, “By who?”

“Hyunjin,” he said simply, fixing his shorts over his hips properly. “A siren’s kiss grants you the ability to breathe underwater.”

“Um, well…I guess…”

“Besides, it’s not that you need to worry about,” he started stretching his arms and legs. You supposed you should do the same. Swimming was never your strong suit. “It’s the beasts.”

“You mean that supposed sea snake that has been keeping the ferry docked?” you asked, eyebrows raised in suspicion.

“Him, and others like sharks, squids, and all the rest. There are also the bloodbane tribes. Think of them like evil mermaids.”

“Hm, makes sense.” You bent your body sideways with your arm, “I don’t know how useful I’m going to be to Hyunjin. I don’t think my powers will work underwater.”

“You never know until you try, and besides, you won’t be going anywhere near the palace. We’re meeting Ma and Hannah in her shop. She’ll tell us what we need to know to get a feel for this from afar.”

“Do you really think the pirates are related to this?”

“I do,” he nodded. “It’s odd to see pirates and merfolk working together, but it might be that Mizu promised them something. That or the person they’re both working for has offered them something they each want.”

“There’s someone else involved now?”

“There has to be. Mizu didn’t wake up one day and decide he’s going to take over the aquatic kingdoms,” he said, twisting his body left and right. “This is bigger than just poaching. I can feel it. I know you can too.”

He crossed your mind as he always did. Nor’goth. The monster who seduced good, honorable men and made them his slaves. He promised them power in exchange for their servitude. You’d spent a majority of the war fighting against those who worked for Nor’goth: lords who sought out wealth and power; criminals who wanted excuses to hurt others; the foolish and the weak seeking his protection. No. No, Nor’goth is in The Abyss where he belongs, powerless and slowly dying.

A splash from nearby caught your attention. You stopped stretching and looked over the stern to see Hyunjin floating in the water. He grinned up at you, making your heart flutter. Sirens truly are things of beauty.

“Morning YN,” he said, “Ready?”

“As ready as I could ever be, I suppose.”

“You'll be fine,” he assured you. “Come down here.”

You climbed down the back steps of the boat and sat on the bottom landing. Your bare feet slipped into the water, which you then immediately yanked back.

“It's cold!” You exclaimed, hugging your knees. “I'd rather fight pirates. I'm gonna go and fight pirates.”

“Stop being a baby, and get in there!”

A hard shove from behind made you tumble into the water. The temperature might be a bit chilly for a mortal body, but for you, it pinched your insides until they turned to ice. You swore the water completely doused your fiery insides. The brief moment underwater, your feet not touching anything solid, sent you scrambling to the surface. You scowled at Hyunjin and Chan’s laughter and vowed revenge somehow. Chan made a perfect dive into the water and through the crystal surface you saw him transform. While his legs remained separated, you saw webbing grow between his fingers and fins elongate out of his toes. Six clear slits cut into his ribcage, opening and closing with each breath. His fair skin even seems to shimmer in places, iridescent in the morning sunshine. Chan turned from a small town sheriff into a halfling merman.

“Wow…” you let out in a breath, seeing him dive further beneath your feet.

“Your turn.”

“Huh?”

Hyunjin gently grabbed both sides of your jaw so you faced him. You never noticed the small mole underneath his left eye. Up close, you found yourself falling into a hazy trance.

“Don't worry,” he said, leaning closer, “It only hurts for a second.”

“What hurts?”

Then he kissed you. His lips and hands were the only sources of warmth your body found, and it clung to them fiercely. However, the comfort did not last long as he pulled away.

“Now I can tell all my friends I kissed a demon,” he smirked, and then took hold of your hand.

And brought you under the surface. Holding your breath out of instinct, you let out small air bubbles as the sharpness hit your abdomen. You kept each breath in, but it became difficult as the sharp burning pain extended to your back and your mouth opened up. Gulps of water filled your mouth and throat, your vision blurry and stinging underwater, and you tried reaching the surface. But suddenly, the pain faded away. The sensation of your breath coming through the gills made in your skin felt surreal. The blurriness from before went away in a few blinks, and you saw everything as clear as day. Both Hyunjin and Chan remained stationary, giving encouraging smiles as the realization hit you.

“Wow!” You let out a giggle, glancing around the vast space around you. “Wait. I can talk? Can you guys hear me?!”

“Yes,” Hyunjin laughed, his voice clear even through water, “We can hear you just fine.”

You kicked yourself forward a few feet, your body used to struggling under the weight of your clothes. Yet, you found yourself gliding smoothly past both men. You made twirls, spins, and dove up and down. The water made you feel weightless. You saw coral reefs, vibrant and rocky, on the ocean floor. Going closer, you saw the tiny sea critters living in their own ecosystem. Life bloomed even underwater. You took in the colors, the species and fish you'd never seen before. The sand on the floor felt soft like powder, floating out of your hand in each current. Now you understand why water demons stuck to their rivers and lakes back home. The world was different under the sea.

“Come on, little explorer,” Hyunjin led you away from an octopus you'd been observing, “You can see more later on.”

Hyunjin led both you and Chan further out to sea. The dark blue ahead of you shrouded any dangers ahead with its cloudiness. You forced yourself to focus on the bits of fish and seaweed you could see as you swam by. It was halfway through that you heard high pitched sounds coming from nearby, mingled with deep tones responding back. Hyunjin grinned at the whale calls from beyond.

“Looks like we found ourselves a ride,” he grinned at you and Chan.

“Huh?”

Hyunjin guided you towards the sounds, and out of the cloudiness you saw them. Several large blue whales swam by you in a herd, communicating with one another. At first, you thought they were only fish but then you realized the smaller beings swimming with them were merfolk. Merpeople, sirens and aquatic hybrids clung to the whales’ sides and fins. It appeared to act like a transport system.

“When I say go,” Hyunjin said to you, “You go.”

Chan, already accustomed to this, hopped ahead of you as a whale passed by you.

“Go!”

With a slight shove, you crashed right into the bumpy side of the whale. Briefly, you wondered if you'd hurt it. Catching hold of a larger bump, you kept yourself steady as the whale kept swimming.

“Don't worry,” Hyunjin said, holding onto the space next to you, “They don't feel it!”

“Is this how you get around?”

“Mostly, when going from city to city.”

“There are other cities?”

“Tons! Hydrus is the capital, but there are plenty more across the seas.”

You took in the scenery as the whales went down their path. The rushing waters turned the passing scenes into dashes of color mixed with seafoam. You gave an elated giggle. The whale's deep breaths pulsed against your hands, the bumps pushing gently into your hands. The other merfolk chattered and laughed together, as if riding a tram car or an airship. Some of them sat atop the whales, eating clams and other shellfish. You watched them talk to one another, seeing their faces and taking them all in. He wanted to ruin this. He wanted to make the merfolk his slaves, stripping them of their freedom and turning them into amusement attractions. You envisioned them all rounded up in cages, forced to sing and perform until they died. It stung your eyes.

“Don't be scared,” Hyunjin said, misreading your emotions. “Just hold on tight and don't let go.”

“He wanted to destroy all of this,” you said, gulping back a lump. “He would've if we hadn't stopped him.”

“Who? Nor’goth?”

“Yes. He said merfolk were pointless, and that he'd give them a purpose,” you saw two children racing one another alongside one of the whales, giggling with delight. “He wanted to enslave your people. He would've torn everything down.” It hurt you imagining those children without homes or families.

“I heard he was awful, and so were the people who followed him.” He then asked, “Were you one of them?”

“No,” you shook your head. “Never.”

“YN was the one who killed him,” said Chan.

“You were?” Hyunjin asked, surprised by the news.

“Yes.”

Hyunjin saw your dejected face. “Did you know him well?”

“Too well.”

“Was he family?”

“In a way. He was Lord of The Range, where my clan lived.”

You sometimes thought of him late at night. Nor’goth, Lord of the Burning Range, Commander of The Fire Clan and Guardian of Damned Souls. Nor’goth, who sat upon a throne of molten lava and handed out punishments. Nobody believed you when you said he hadn't always been that way. He might've had his warped views about mortals and believed in demon supremacy, but he held true to his oath once. When you finally met in Incheon, a land of rivers and lakes and trees, the Nor'goth you'd respected turned into a different being altogether. You saw how his own darkness consumed him; the way his arrogance and bigotry blinded him to the old ways, and that he must be stopped.

“That must've been hard,” Hyunjin’s voice broke you from your thoughts. “It's not easy fighting against those you know.”

“It wasn't, but he'd become so deranged by then that I didn't see him as the lord I'd known. I saw him as another monster who needed to be put down.” You looked back to the two children, who'd stopped their race to eat. “He would've killed them. He would've killed all of them.”

‘We must take this world and make it ours!’

‘This world is not ours, Nor'goth. It is theirs. We have no place amongst them!’

‘No! THEY have no place amongst US!’

Zunar had been there that day. He'd led the distraction off to the west to draw Nor’goth's minions away from him. As the whale carried on, you remembered his solemn face when you volunteered to distract Nor’goth. He knew it must be you, but he wished it were otherwise. You swallowed thickly. His blood felt like fire on your palms, his choked gasps blocking out the battle raging around you. He'd died fighting, as every demon warrior hopes for. Back then, you didn't know he’d return home to heal. You only knew the one person you looked up to had died in your arms, and it'd been Nor’goth’s fault.

“Hydrus, next! Hydrus is the next spot! Please gather your belongings and wait until the transport comes to a full stop!” A male siren sitting on the whale's head shouted down the line.

You saw what resembled an airship stop up ahead. More merfolk stayed floating on a platform as the whale pulled into the station. When it came to a complete stop, some people let go of the whale, while others stayed “aboard”. Someone took your hand, and you thought it was Hyunjin. Yet, when you looked, Chan swam beside you. His fingers delicately wrapped around your wrist, you felt his thumb pressed to your vital point. Your pulse quickened at his touch. He never gripped too hard or tugged you behind him. He always kept the same pace. You liked it.

“Welcome to Hydrus, YN.”

Swimming out of an old ruin doubling as a “transport station”, you saw the city up ahead. A city of lights and stone buildings stood a mile or so away from the station, where more merfolk lived in peace.

“It's beautiful,” you marveled, seeing the marble towers even further off, “And that's the palace?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “Come on. It's even better up close.”

The three of you went into the city together. By the stone buildings and cobbled streets, Hydrus had once been a city that went underwater. Coral, seaweed, and other small creatures made the cracks in buildings their home; luminous fish lived inside the lanterns going down the streets. You passed people doing their morning shopping, and children on their way to school. It resembled any other city, only for merpeople.

“This is the trade district,” Hyunjin said as he took you down an adjacent street and into another lane. “Tailors, jewelers, blacksmiths, butchers, and anything else that can be made is sold here. Chan's mother owns an apothecary down here.” He brought you to a small shop wedged between two taller ones with a silver shooting star sign hanging over the door.

“Silverstar Apothecary,” you read the sign.

Through a display window of books, bottles and vials, you saw a young mermaid behind the counter. Her black hair tied back in a long plait, you noticed the gold bands braided into her hair. Bands that matched the yellow coral encrusted around her temples and eyes. Chan's smile widened at the sight of the young woman, and he swam ahead of you inside.

“Hey, fishead,” he smirked, leaning against the door.

The woman looked up from her work on the counter and sneered back. “Hey, blobfish.”

The two siblings laughed and rushed to embrace one another. Hannah clearly took on her mother's genes with her mermaid tail and coral head pieces.

“I'm so glad you're here!” Hannah cheered, spinning him around. “Ma’s gonna be so happy when she sees you!” She released him to turn to a beaded doorway. “Mama! Mama, Chan's here!”

A woman came through the beaded curtain, her eyes landing right on Chan when she entered. The young woman in the photo now had laugh lines and crow's feet; black hair streaked with thin gray hairs contrasted with the amethyst gems and geodes in the crown of her head. She has Chan's downturned eyes and cupid's bow lips. Her tail was white with lavender stripes, fringes of pale purple flowing off the sides. She was beautiful. You understood immediately why Chan's father became so enamored with her.

“Channie!” She cried out, hugging her child tightly. Her face buried in his black curls, she savored the brief seconds she held him. “Oh, my baby's home!”

“Ma!” Chan chuckled, “Mama! I wasn't gone that long!”

“Anytime you leave it feels like an eternity,” she said, releasing him. She then hugged Hyunjin, kissing his cheek. “And you too. Your father came in here looking for you. He said something about your spear throwing.”

Hyunjin gasped, “The test! I'll see you all later!”

He dashed away, leaving air bubbles in his wake. Then Chan's mother noticed you, and paused. You didn't sense fear in her at all, but instead clarity.

“Eternal fire,” she said, mesmerized by you, “Always burning, never doused or snuffed. What's your name, demonkin?”

“YN, ma'am.”

“No, your true name. What is it?”

“Multak,” you didn't see why this mattered.

“Shield of fire,” she said, a smile growing on her face.

“Mama?” Chan called to her, but she seemed to be entranced. “Are you okay?”

“I've seen you before, demonkin,” she said, ignoring him. “I saw you in the stars.”

“Oh, Ma,” Chan dismissed her. “Come on, there's nothing written in the stars except old stories.”

“You've come to help us, haven't you?” She asked you.

“Yes, ma’am. Your nephew said it might be related to some bodies that washed up on shore.” The way she stared unnerved you. She stared as if her salvation had just arrived.

“I'm Yejin,” she said, giving a bow. “Welcome to Hydrus, YN.”

“Thank you, ma'am.”

She breathed a sigh of relief, and you said, “Hyunjin mentioned the king has been ill lately?”

“Very,” she nodded. “Come. I think I know what's happening to him.”

She led you all behind the curtain into a work room. A room full of plants, equipment and books remained lit up from the three glowing fish in the lantern above. She took you over to a table next to the bookshelves, where she kept a leather bound book propped up against the window. On the page, you saw a drawing of a man with drowsy pale eyes, sagging skin and thin hair. He appeared to be in a daze, thin purple and red lines coming from his eye sockets and onto his skin. The book was written in a series of runes going from top to bottom. You kept the runes straight as you read them.

“Fogginess of the Mind?” You read the text out loud.

“Also known as brain fog,” Yejin said. “It's quite self explanatory. The afflicted experiences immense memory loss, loss of time and place, and is in a state of sedation. Mind control, brainwashing and manipulation is a lot easier with Brain Fog.”

“And you think Mizu is using this on your king?”

“Yes. He must be. People in the palace say he looked more or less like this,” she pointed at the drawing. “The vacant expression, the pale eyes, and most importantly, the veins.”

“And nobody else has realized this except you?” you asked, a bit suspicious. “Only you’ve seen the king?”

“YN, really?” Chan asked, affronted. “My mother would nev-”

“-I haven’t seen him, but the queen, Calypso, has,” she answered unfazed.

“And she told you everything she saw?”

“She did. Calypso wouldn’t lie to me about her husband’s condition. I was the first person she reached out to when he started to fade,” she said. “She told me whenever she tried talking to him, he slurred and didn’t seem to know where he was. When he saw their youngest son, Kenn, Tytos thought he was Ormand. Kenn is six. I’ll let you realize how odd that is.”

You looked back at the book. The runic text on the side was faded, likely written by a mage or warlock hundreds of years ago.

“I would have told the other advisors, but to do that would raise Mizu’s suspicions,” she continued. “I knew I needed to keep quiet until I had definitive proof to accuse him, and a way to heal Tytos. I’m sure you know illnesses of the mind are harder to treat than physical ones.”

The text explained that the afflicted would eventually lose all sense of self, and slowly begin a descent into insanity. You examined the drawing again. Tytos most likely lost all proper sense at the beginning, and now cannot tell one of his children from another. Your stomach churned recalling a similar incident during the war.

“I’ve seen something similar to this before,” you said, rereading the symptoms. “During the war, I was sent to Bouyard on the east side of the country. It’s one of the larger towns, and is in a very comfortable position on a hill. It’s near impenetrable from its vantage point. It was a perfect spot for any army wanting a few days of rest. One of Nor’goth’s lieutenants, an air demon named Darnesh, came to Bouyard and demanded to be given entry. When the lord there refused, she cursed him.”

“And the curse was similar to this one?”

“Yes. He was delirious, nearly blind, muttering incoherently, and half-naked when we found him wandering in the forest. Darnesh entered his mind and manipulated him into letting her forces stay in his city. Of course, her army slaughtered everyone inside and took his family hostage, but she did much damage to our side by keeping him so subdued. When she had no use for him, she left him to battle with his own madness.”

“How terrible,” breathed Hannah. “Did the man get any better?”

“An alchemist I knew managed to save him,” you said, “But I heard it took months for him to be himself again.” You pictured Tytos in a similar state, “I don’t know if this is the same thing, but it’s close to it. I’d need to see the king in order to be certain.”

Your throat closed up, and when you took deep breaths they came through your newly formed gills. It can’t be them. Darnesh was killed in battle. You didn’t see it yourself, but those who’d left the waters of Busan alive saw her be slain by a dragon-hybrid.

Because if anything can truly kill a demon, it is dragon fire.

“I need to see him,” you said again. “How can I do that?”

“Not easily,” she replied. “I'd normally suggest asking for an audience with one of the advisors, but that is impossible these days. You could’ve snuck into the palace, but Mizu has tripled the amount of guards around the place. All passages known and unknown are sealed and guarded tightly. The palace has become a fortress; nobody can leave except by Mizu’s written permission.”

“Well, people have to get in somehow,” Chan said, coming to the book. “They need food and supplies if they want all those guards to stay alive.”

“Under heavily guarded supervision,” she answered. “The only way in is through special permission or a summons.”

“And we obviously can’t wait around for Mizu to summon you,” he said. “He might end up doing that when the king is already dead.”

“I can ask for an appointment with the king,” she suggested. “I’m sure with a bit of persuasion and a secret weapon, Mizu will be more than willing to allow a brief audience.”

“Special tonic?”

“Invisibility potion,” she nodded to a cabinet of vials and bottles behind her. “I can whip one up quickly, you can drink it right before we enter the palace, and be there in secret.”

“Can’t you turn invisible?” asked Chan.

“Briefly,” you said. “A potion will be fine. I mean, they taste awful, but if it helps us get into the palace, then it can work.”

“I’ll send a request right away,” Yejin said, already moving to a table nearby. “I’m not sure when a reply will come,” she grabbed a fishbone quill and began writing on a small slip of paper, “But Sungwoo is a night owl. He’ll answer at any time.”

“Good to know,” you nodded. You looked at her books on the shelves. Perhaps the answer to the king’s illness is in one of these. “Do you have any ideas on how to cure Brain Fog?”

“Usually a clarity potion or some sort of herbal tonic can clear his mind,” she answered, folding the slip and placing it in a small pouch, “But I can’t find anything strong enough to relieve him.”

“Do you remember the spell the mage used?” asked Hannah.

You did your best to picture the event in your mind. The young lord laid on the ground, half-crazed and muttering, while the elderly mage held a cystal above him. “He’d used a black and white stone, and mumbled this enchantment that sapped into the stone instead.”

“A black and white stone?” Yejin said thoughtfully, “Black Tourmaline?”

“Black what?”

“Tourmaline.” She went over to the bookshelf, and scanned the shelves. “It’s meant to protect and banish negative energies. It sounds like your mage used the stone,” she pulled a book off the shelf and quickly flipped through it, “As a harvesting tool.”

“Yes!” you nodded, remembering a bit more of the ritual. “Yes, that’s exactly what he did.”

“Here!”

Yejin showed you a drawing of a jagged black stone labeled ‘black tourmaline’. You assumed this must be the same stone, “Black tourmaline. ‘Considered the king of protective crystals, black tourmaline is believed to associated with grounding and protection…’” she turned the page, “Many magic users suggest black tourmaline in curse warding or sapping rituals. The proper incantation paired with black tourmaline will ensure your afflicted is absolved of their negative energy and relieved of their curse.’”

“Do you know where we can find it?” Chan asked his mother eagerly. “Do they sell it down here?”

“No, I’m afraid not,” she frowned, closing the book. “It’s not native to our lands.”

“But it will be to Minho,” said Hannah. “Fairies use crystals all the time. He might have one or know where to get it.”

“I can ask him when we get back home,” Chan told her. “He might know something we don't know about all of this.”

“Great!” Yejin smiled, relieved to have a solution. “I’ll give this request to the postman, and then we’ll see how our plan unfolds.”

“How soon will Sungwoo respond?”

“Soon enough. You kids enjoy yourselves in the meantime. I’ll send for you when he answers me back!”

Yejin then swam out of the room, and left the three of you alone. You picked off a book from the shelf, reading the title and wondering if it’d be of any use when Hannah caught your attention.

“You won’t find the solution in Ma’s books,” she told you. “If she hadn’t found it by now, then it’s not in here.”

“You never know. It could be easily-”

“-Drop the book,” she insisted, taking the book from you, “And come let us show you around, YN!” Hannah beamed at you, swimming ahead out of the store. “There's loads to see here!”

Always up for an adventure, you eagerly followed her. The promise of new sights and experiences excited you, but the situation at hand hung in the back of your mind. Sources told you Darnesh died after a dragon-hybrid cut her with its flame forged sword. Those who’d been there say her body turned into wisps of smoke that clouded the air with noxious gas. When they told you what he killed her with, you understood at once. Only substances like dragon fire can truly kill a demon. Even you, a child made from flames like a dragon, was no match for their magic.

When you needed to reforge your sword, you used dragon flame to embed your runes. Your kinfolk didn’t understand, but Zunar did.

‘For the day he returns?’

He won’t return. Nor’goth cannot come back from where he is now. Even if he is imprisoned, The Abyss slowly but surely will drain him of life. He must be dead or dying by now. Yet, all the possibilities rushed you all at once. While Darnesh or Nor’goth cannot hurt anyone, those they taught their ways can and will. You’ve come across them in your time in the mortal realm: hyped up, arrogant humans who’d been given dark gifts and brainwashed into finishing “The Dark Lord’s work”. You finished them easily enough.

‘You may have chained me, but you cannot chain a belief!’

“Hey,” Chan swam up beside you, “You’re not admiring the scenery. Something up?”

“Yes, Chan,” you said irritably. “Someone down here is using demon magic, and I don’t know who they are or how they got it.”

“Come on, it can’t be demon magic. It’s most likely extreme dark magic. If it was demonic, it would’ve spread, wouldn’t it? My dad said he’d seen whole regiments be cursed with pestilence.”

“Pestilence is different from this,” you shook your head. “If the king has what I think he has, it’s not contagious.”

“Well, don’t start counting chickens before they’ve hatched.”

“You’re being annoyingly calm about all of this,” you griped at him. “These are your people too!”

“It does bother me,” he stopped mid-float, “But right now we need to have some patience. I’d like to practice that patience with a drink or two and you…and, okay, Hannah too because she’s already here…” He saw your unconvinced expression and brought you closer. His fingers wrapped around your wrist until they slipped over your palm and between yours. Why did he do that? Why did you let him? “Let’s loosen up for a little bit. You do it plenty at home, and how many times in your life will you get to see the magnificent city of Hydrus?” he raised his eyebrows and smiled to convince you.

“It is…” you hesitated, “It is beautiful here.”

“See? Now, come on,” he kept your hand in his and guided you down the street, “Hannah will probably want to show you all the jewelry and enchantment places around here. They really are incredible.”

Hannah and Chan spent a good amount of the day showing you around Hydrus. The city truly was magnificent. It offered so many things you'd never seen before: mermaid charms and jewelry carved from gemstones and coral, small fish domesticated to be pets, books about merfolk culture and artifacts, items embedded with aquatic runes and the range of weapons sold around the city. You held a spear made entirely from leviathan bone, one of the strongest materials known to man. A woman offered you a necklace of aquamarine inlaid in silver, and another showed off a sculpture made of kelp and coral.

“A star searcher,” Hannah told you when she saw you eyeing a square piece of glass in an astronomy store. “It can help you find any star constellation you might need. You usually use it with a guide, so you know what each star means or represents. It's not very handy in fights, but a lot of whale navigators and seers use them. Ma has one at home.” She swam closer to you, grinning teasingly, “So, what do you think of my brother?”

“What?” The twinkled star searcher kept your attention from her.

“My brother,” she whispered. “What do you think about him?”

“He's…”

What did you think about Chan? You did think he was good looking, and you enjoyed working with him. His easy going nature. His care for others. His insistent need to protect and defend people. You found those to be admirable qualities. Yet, you didn't know how you really felt about him. You saw him through the window looking at the street. He spoke with two men, laughing and catching up with them. His smile, wide and straight, gave the tiniest inkling of warmth in your cold body. You nearly smiled before you caught yourself.

“He's a good man,” you finally answered, picking up an advertised star guide.

“That's all?” She asked in disbelief.

“I haven't known him very long,” you admitted. “I know he has a good heart, always thinks of everyone else before himself, and has a lot of leadership qualities. He'd make a great Divinity soldier.”

“Okay, yes, my brother is a good guy,” she waved off, “But I meant how you feel in terms of, well, attraction?”

“Why are you asking this?” You said, adding a soft laugh to ease the sharpness.

“Because my brother never lets go of your hand, and smiles when he looks at you,” she pointed out.

“He’s only looking out for me. I’ve never been here before, so he doesn’t want me to get lost or eaten by a shark or something.”

She giggled, “Ah, YN…My Ma will probably say your stars will line up eventually.”

“I passed my test! Hannah!” Hyunjin appeared in the doorway, grinning widely and giddy with excitement. He scooped her up into a hug, “I passed my test! I get to go to the next trial!”

“That's amazing!” She giggled, yelping when he spun her around.

“What test?” You asked him, putting the star searcher back on its shelf.

“To be a whale navigator!” he let go of Hannah, “You have to go through a bunch of tests to become one, and I passed the first one!”

“Congratulations,” you said kindly.

“Thanks,” he beamed, breathless. “We're going to celebrate! Come with us!”

“Oh I wouldn't want to-”

You didn't have a choice in the matter. Hyunjin took you ahead of both Hannah and Chan, guiding you down the crowded streets until you reached a tavern. Inside, you saw merfolk filling up tables, talking over plates of food. Hyunjin, Hannah and Chan appeared to know many of the people there; one or two stopped Chan for a brief catch-up before moving onwards. Hyunjin brought you over to a table in the middle of the room, where the people seemed to be the loudest. A young mermaid came to the table, asking for food orders, and you let your companions order for you.

“How could they possibly cook underwater?” you asked curiously when she left.

“Like that.”

Chan pointed to a kitchen area behind you. An older merman stood by what appeared to be a stone grill built on top of a heating vent. Seeing the churning lava inside it, you guessed it was a heating vent from a nearby volcano or other source underneath the floor.

“Also, magic, duh?” Hannah pointed to two women by a boiling pot: one held it with her hands, effectively heating the contents inside, while the other stirred.

“Interesting,” you nodded. “I imagine it’s pretty salty still.”

“It’s not Wooyoung’s cooking,” Chan said, “But it’s just as good.”

“What I want to know is why are we at Rock Lobster when we can be at Scuttle’s eating fresh crab?” asked Hannah, a bit annoyed. “YN should be seeing the best Hydrus has to offer. Scuttle’s is peak-”

“-I brought us here because Scuttle’s is too quiet and fancy and a lot of elite people go there,” Hyunjin cut her off. “Nobody will overhear us here,” he glanced around the rowdy room of merfolk. He was right. “The people who saw us will say we were here, but they’ll think we’re just three relatives showing around our demon friend.”

“And why do you not want people to overhear us?” Chan asked, smirking softly as he spoke.

“Because Mizu was at my exam.”

“What?” This caught everyone’s attention.

“Yes, he was there.”

“What for?” Asked Hannah.

“He told us he came to see the potential navigators,” Hyunjin said. “He mentioned something about His Majesty needing personal navigators, or whatever but that's not what struck me as weird. It's not really him, but what I saw him doing afterwards.”

You leaned in closer, “Start from the beginning.”

“Okay, so I take the test, right? I get the spear through each dummy head, and pass with flying colors. When I finished, the overseer asked all those who finished to wait outside the range yard so we don't distract anyone. I finish my test and go outside like they asked. Once I'm outside, I notice Mizu’s seahorse carriage is still there, but he'd left right after his little motivational speech. I went to the carriage-”

“-Hyunjin,” Chan cut him off, “You went to his carriage? Do you know how stupid that is? Did he see you?”

“No. He was too busy talking to someone to see me at the window. His driver was flirting with some girl, so he didn't see me either. Anyways,” he continued, “I overheard him talking to someone!”

You almost did not want to hear any more.

“Who? Did you see them?”

“No. He was alone in the carriage, but…” Hyunjin scrunched his brow, “It was weird. He had his eyes closed and he was gripping his knees really tightly.”

“Telepathy,” you said. The waitress brought back food, but you couldn't stomach anything. “He was likely speaking to whoever he is working for. Did you hear any of the conversation?”

“Only the end bits,” he said, grabbing a blue drink. He then whispered, “He mentioned something about his plan taking longer than expected, and that with the pirates and sea snakes distracting the crown and mainlanders, the throne will be in their grasp.”

“Then he is after the crown,” Chan concluded.

“Or the person he is answering to is,” you said, gripping the sides of your cup tightly. “You said his eyes were closed, right?”

“Yes, they were.”

“I have to ask: Was Mizu always power hungry or shady? Did he ever disagree with the other advisors or the king on certain discussions?”

“Ma said he might've not been the nicest guy at times,” Hannah answered, “But he deeply loved and respected Tytos. He wouldn't have hurt him on purpose.”

“That means this mysterious puppeteer got their hooks into someone who already showed signs of dissent,” Chan said. “Did Ma ever tell you when this started?”

“No,” she shook her head, “She never mentioned a specific time. I only remember her coming back one day and saying the king was sick, and that she wasn't allowed to see him. She only got her audience with him because she'd gone to treat the queen for stress and nerves.”

“The person controlling Tytos is likely controlling Mizu as well to an extent,” you said. “They likely promised him the throne in exchange for his help.”

“Mizu used to be a decent guy,” Chan mused. “I wonder what made him turn back on the people.”

“Ambition, power, greed, a sense of validation and attention,” you listed as you faced a terrible scenario. “The basic reasons, pretty much. Did he ever say a name or title?”

Hyunjin thought for a moment, then said, “He called them Creator.”

You nearly choked. Coughing, you felt Chan patting your back as you swallowed before anything came out onto the table. “Creator, you say?”

“Yes, why? Do you know who that is?”

“Darnesh used to consider herself a creator, because she crafted new people out of the ones she cursed,” you said, throat stinging from the cough. “But, it can't be her.”

“Then someone who followed her?”

“Possibly. A lot of demons were exiled or burned at the stake for their war crimes,” you said. “It could be any number of them who managed to keep their powers or use human vessels to contain it. If Mizu is following their orders, it makes sense that they're a former demon.”

“You can stop being a demon?” Hannah asked, unsure about your information.

“In a way. Varaleth is the Queen of the Mar, and Shadowland lords are capable of removing a demon's powers. They do this to avoid the demon using it to escape their prison cells or hurt other people,” you explained. “Exiled demons don't have their natural gifts anymore. This demon is likely using a subsidiary version of what Darnesh used.”

Your chest began tightening. If there is a demon going around trying to take over other mortal lands, they may be attempting to bring back their masters. First his lieutenants, and then finally Nor’goth himself. When the waitress brought out lobster tails, clam stew, crab legs and shrimp, you barely touched the delicacies. You did not want to bring up any more theories until you saw the king yourself. That was the only way you'd know what to do from there.

A band started playing music, and Hannah and Chan took to the small dance floor by the stage. You and Hyunjin sat at the table, watching the siblings have their own dance off with you two clapping for the winners.

“It scares you a little, doesn’t it?” Hyunjin asked, picking at one of the shrimp in the bowl.

“What does?”

“The thought that a demon might be trying to stir up trouble again,” he said. “You grew very quiet when I mentioned a possible third person involved.”

“It…” you rolled a crab leg between your fingers as you said, “It does. I spent years of the war trying to bring down Nor’goth and his circle of bigoted zealots. I nearly lost my life a few times trying to do it. If any of them ever returned or their work was picked up by another, all the fighting and loss we went through will have been in vain.”

“So, you really did fight in the war,” he said. “Aunt Yejin said she saw an eternal flame flying down into the water from the sky. She told me the flame burned down fields of infected, sickly coral and kelp and up from the ashes they came back strong.” He grinned at you, thin eyes glinting playfully, “She thinks you’re that flame because you’re a fire demon and because of your name.”

You snorted amusedly, “She reminds me of my mentor.”

“Your mentor?”

You nodded, “Back home. His name was Zunar. He was one of the overseers in the range. His job was to form little underlings into strong warriors of The Mar, and he was good at it. He used to have premonitions and read things in his flames.” You chuckled recalling his most recent one, “He once told me that my fires would burn away all the wickedness in the world; that one day my fire will burn bright and I’d vanquish the one who couldn’t be killed.”

“Nor’goth,” Hyunjin said, “He predicted you’d kill the demon lord and bring back light into the world.”

“Lucky guess,” you murmured, watching Chan spin Hannah around.

“Or that he truly had a gift and saw your destiny.”

“Then in that case I already fulfilled my destiny,” you replied. “What does one do after they’ve completed the objective fate gave them?”

Hyunjin scooted closer to you, “Enjoy the life left to you.”

He slipped his hand into yours and guided you to the dance floor. Music flowed easily through Hyunjin, whose body immediately swayed and twirled to the steel drums and maracas playing. You took in the sight for a brief moment. Scales spanning over his slim torso and arms, they shined this way and that whenever he moved. The scales on his cheek bones, jaw, and forehead stood out against his skin and sharpened his features. He was beautiful. Hyunjin did not need music or singing to make himself the most enchanting creature in the room. Sirens are a rare sight, often living in the deepest parts of the ocean. You’d gladly take in Hyunjin as long as possible.

“Stop staring and enjoy life, demonkin,” Hyunjin teased, pulling you towards him. “Or is that hard for a demon to do?”

“Not for me,” you brushed into him, “Not when I have the chance to see a real siren without losing my life.”

He snickered, “I’ve known a human or two who had the pleasure and not lived to tell the tale. But you?” He drew you closer, voice dropping so only you heard him, “I think I could make an exception.”

You laughed through your nose, unable to take your eyes off him, “Have the pleasure and not meet a painful end? Sign me up.”

Hyunjin may have been of the sea, cold-blooded and built for freezing temperatures, but when he kissed you, it warmed every muscle in your body. Full lips massaged against yours until they opened, and locked right onto them. Chills slipped up your spine with his hand, traveling over your back to the nape of your neck where he held you as you kissed. Your own hands slid over smooth scales and into his flowing black hair. Mortals never understood how precious love and romance can be; they take it for granted in so many ways. In The Mar, there’s so little room for it. The first person you ever kissed happened to be a water fairy with bright eyes and pink cheeks. Ever since then, you savored every kiss you earned, received or stolen in private moments.

“It’s a shame you came for the king,” Hyunjin said against your lips, eyes closed, “Because you should be coming for me.”

“Why can’t I have both?” you replied, licking his lower lip before kissing him one more time.

“Greedy,” he chuckled in between kisses.

“I am a demon, darling.”

The two of you danced and kissed longer. You found yourself drawn in by his natural charms, his kisses like honey on your tongue and words lulling you into his trap. You might’ve stayed there all night if someone hadn’t touched your shoulder. Turning, dazed from Hyunjin, you saw Chan. Your mind instantly sobered at his eyes, delighted by the atmosphere around him. Seeing him in the glowing lights, you couldn’t stop yourself from remembering the shirtless Chan from yesterday. The family merfolk genes proved to be a curse upon you and a blessing for them.

“We, um, should go now,” Chan said, not meeting your eyes. “My Ma’s probably waiting on us to get back.”

You saw the lights of Hydrus begin burning brighter as night came over the ocean. All the warmth Hyunjin created left you in seconds. An empty feeling filled your stomach as you kissed the siren goodbye and left with Chan.

“What was that all about?” Chan asked, neither upset or disgusted. He sounded more curious than anything.

“Psh, like you never kissed a stranger before,” you chuckled, rolling your eyes.

“I actually haven’t,” he admitted to you. “All the girls I kissed were girls I knew.”

“And I bet you kissed loads,” you said, “A handsome halfling like you must’ve attracted all the girls at school.”

He laughed, pink tingling his ears, “So, you think I’m handsome?”

“Even a blind woman would think you were handsome, Chan,” you said, thanking the gods that he couldn’t see your soft smile. “You've got brains, brawn and beauty, and small town girls like the sort of guy. They’re like the heroes in fairy tales.”

“You do too,” he told you.

“I do what?”

“Have brains, brawn and beauty,” he answered. “If you knew the effect you had on certain people, you wouldn’t need magic to defend yourself.”

“Pfft, sure. I doubt Mizu will find me so beautiful he lets me come in and ruin his plans.”

“I didn’t say everyone, just…certain people.”

You reached the apothecary, and you tried not thinking about Chan and how his hand feels in yours. Hannah’s question about how you felt about her brother came back when you saw Chan talking to his mother. He’ll likely suggest coming with you. He always wanted to be your back up.

“I received the acceptance quite quickly,” Yejin told you. “He says he can get us an audience with the king while the queen distracts Mizu. He is…very fond of her.”

“I bet his boss said he could have her if they succeed in their plan,” you snorted. “Hyunjin told us he overheard Mizu talking to someone called The Creator. Does this mean anything to you?”

Yejin considered this as she rifled through bottles on her shelves. “No, nothing immediate,” she said. “But, it could always be a reference to his master.”

“I believe his master may be an exiled demon,” you told her. “A lot of my kin were exiled after the war; this may be someone who followed Dranesh. I will need to see the king for myself to be certain, but if we have a demon here, there will be only one way to defeat them.”

“And how would we do that? There are no dragons underwater, YN.”

“You said I am an eternal flame, right?”

“I saw it in my visions, yes.”

“Well, my magic is not the only weapon I have,” you smirked.

Pulling your sword from your back, you held it with both hands. The fire magic runes etched along the sides glowed orange and yellow upon being unsheathed. You swung it around a few times, but since it was underwater it only steamed and glowed.

“When the war ended,” you explained, “My blade had broken after stabbing it into Nor’goth’s chest. When I went to reforge it, I used dragon fire instead of our usual magical elements.”

“How did you get close enough to a dragon to do that?” she asked, curiously.

“Our blacksmith had recently acquired a baby dragon, and he used it to forge new armor for the warriors,” you sheath your sword. “I forged mine in dragon fire for the next time I fought a demon.”

“What made you think you’d ever fight a demon again?” Chan asked.

‘You may banish me to The Abyss, you may take my power and my heart, but my children will continue my work! You will never be rid of me!’

“Well, there are demons still in the world, and I did it in case I ran into them,” you shrugged.

Chan sensed your hesitancy, but didn’t say anything about it. “Sungwoo replied to your request, Ma?”

“He did,” she nodded. She picked off a bottle from the shelf, “He said he can get me a few minutes with the king. We won’t have long before Mizu interrupts us, but you’ll at least be able to make a proper diagnosis.”

“Works for me,” you said. “When do they expect us?”

“Now, actually. Here,” she gave you the bottle, “Drink this when we reach the palace. It will make you completely invisible.”

“Sounds easy enough,” you replied, studying the bottle.

“But, make sure you stay away from the sharks.”

“Sharks?”

“Mizu recently tamed a few sharks to act as watch dogs,” she said. “If they sense you, they will kill you.”

The idea of getting horrendously bitten by a shark crossed your mind. But, it’d be worth it to see the king. Yejin suggested you’d leave sooner than later. She told you she’d be meeting Sungwoo first, and then she’d be taken to the king. Calypso promised to keep Mizu occupied so he had no reason to check on his victim. As you made to get into a seahorse-driven carriage, Chan reached for your wrist.

“Be careful,” he said.

“I always am,” you replied playfully, “See you later, handsome.”

Inside the carriage, you hoped the silence between you and Yejin stayed as such, but she had other ideas.

“You fear his return, don’t you?”

Her question stunned you for a moment. You thought to lie to her. She wouldn’t understand if you explained yourself. She wouldn’t understand the nightmares or fears that creep over your neck whenever it comes up. Every nerve in your body bundled in your stomach thinking about him.

“He’s banished to The Abyss,” you said, clearing your throat. “He can’t hurt anyone anymore.”

“But people who followed him still roam this realm,” she said. “If they tried hard enough, they could restore him to his full power and we’d be thrown into war once again. More death. More devastation. More-”

“-He won’t come back because I’ll put my sword in him before that happens,” you snapped. Your heart thumped hard in your chest, going up to your throat where you struggled to breathe. “He was…It was…” you gripped the carriage door handle. Your skin stretched tight over your knuckles and you couldn’t uncurl them.

“A hero’s burden,” she said, touching your free hand. Her hand was cold from the blood in her body, it still comforted you. “I did not witness the final stand, but I can still imagine it left its mark on you.”

You remembered Nor’goth’s orange eyes, mocking you from afar and eager to take on your challenge. Sweat stuck your shirt to your body, and you still felt the weight of your armor on your shoulders. The stench of the dead and decaying filled your nose, smoke and fire lingering in the air as you threw fireball after fireball at him. He’d laughed at your weak attempts, but that was your whole plan. Distract him long enough for the Orc and Elf forces to attack. Except, the large crossbows the Orcs crafted jammed, and were destroyed by Nor’goth’s forces; the Elves managed to shield and heal you when Nor’goth’s claws slashed through your chest, but became overrun by goblin loyalists. You touched your chest, rubbing out the phantom pain there. It eventually became just you and him. Bleeding, bruised and drained of magic, you stood on the highest point of Incheon's ancient tree, The Great Oak, and faced Nor’goth head on. Dodging bolts of shadow magic, you used an old branch to reach him from above.

“I wasn’t the only one there,” you excused, not looking at her.

“But you were the one to vanquish him. Friends of mine told me they saw you standing on the topmost level of The Great Oak with your flaming sword burning brightly.”

You squeezed your eyes shut. The swirling winds meant to douse your flames only fanned them hotter. They almost carried you to him, blade in both hands as you stabbed it right into his heart.

“Oh no, I’m so sorry, YN,” Yejin immediately said, sensing your tension. “I didn't mean to-”

“-He taunted me the entire time,” you said, voice unsteady as you spoke. “He told me that I’d regret not joining him. He said I was strong, but not strong enough. I almost believed him, but then…”

“But then?”

“I thought of my mentor Zunar and all my loved ones back home. I thought of the friends I’d made in the mortal world, and saw the beauty it held. Nor’goth wanted to corrupt it. His plans would not be contained to just mortals. He’d eventually try enslaving the other realms as well. If I didn’t kill him, he would’ve destroyed everything good.”

“Your love for humanity outweighed your fear,” she sounded proud of it. “I think that’s quite admirable. You remind me of my son.”

“Chan?”

She shook her head, “No, Lucas.”

“Chan never mentioned a younger brother,” you said.

“He doesn't talk about him often, but,” she let out a sigh, “He was my youngest. The sweetest boy you ever saw.”

You thought back to the baby photo and the medals in Jack's house. “Did he fight too?”

She nodded. “He died in Busan, fighting alongside his brothers in arms,” she played with a ring around on her finger. “He said he felt it was his duty to serve his country and that he wanted to help others. He was a field physician on the front lines. They told us he'd been killed pulling people out of a burning wagon; it exploded when a goblin threw dynamite into it, and my son was trying to save those left alive. Chan…He doesn't talk about it. He and Lucas were very close.”

“It couldn't have been easy to deal with. I'm sorry that happened.”

She grinned appreciatively. She peered out the window once again, and saw the stone palace ahead. “Ah, we’re almost there,” she said to you. “Once again, Multak, you are running straight into the beast’s jaws.”

“That’s what the blade is for.”

The two of you shared a smile. It was in her smile that you saw Chan. Wide, bright and full of mirth each time it flashed at you. You waited until carriage came to a full stop to pop open the bottle and drink. Within seconds, a warm tingling sensation started at your fingers and toes and gradually made its way over both skin and clothes. You looked at your hands to see nothing but the carriage seat and floor.

“This is magnificent, Yejin,” you beamed at her, though she couldn’t see you. “I could never have achieved this on my own.”

“Remember what I said,” she said quickly as guards came to her door, “Stay away from the sharks and remain as quiet as possible.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The palace guard opened her door, and a slight, withered merman floated on the bottom steps. He wore a deep red vest with gold buttons down the front; a seashell pin made of pure gold shone on his breast. An advisor, you assumed.

“Yejin,” he said in a high voice, “So good to see you, my lady.”

“And you, Sungwoo,” she replied, getting out of the carriage. “Forgive me for calling upon you so late.”

“There is nothing to forgive,” he said, offering his arm which she took. “Considering the current political climate, I believe there is always time to discuss any possible solutions.”

You waited until the guard shut the door to swim through the opposite side. When the guards returned to their posts, you quickly lunged towards Yejin and Sungwoo before they could close the doors.

Like other buildings in the city, the palace was a reconstructed and repurposed mansion. Tall stone walls inlaid with gold seams were occasionally broken and fixed with patches of coral. The different coral reefs and shelves brought splashes of color to the eroded walls, and covered up large cracks in walls or windows. Inside, you saw more glowing fish swimming around giant bowls meant to act as light fixtures, bringing warm light into the palace. You imagined under Tytos’s rule the palace might’ve been lively and full of people.

“The palace has truly changed,” you heard Yejin say a few feet ahead of you. “Remember when the children used to swim all over the palace, and drove their nurses insane?”

Sungwoo laughed, “Ah, yes I do. This place was once a place of life and laughter. Tytos never believed in closing himself off from his people; they were once free to come and go. It’s a shame the place has become so…quiet.”

You found this conversation strange. Surely, they both already know all of this, so why say it out loud?

“How is Calypso?” Yejin asked him as you followed them up the stairs.

“More or less the same. The other advisors and I have tried assuring her that His Majesty will eventually make it through this terrible illness,” he said. “Ever since the death of Ormand-”

“-May the waves be kind-”

“-May the waves be kind,” he repeated. “Ever since he passed, she has spiraled into a deeper depression. She doesn’t leave her chambers, and hardly eats. The children are confined to their rooms, and rarely see her anymore. Mizu-”

“-Tries his best to comfort her, I assume,” Yejin said right as she passed a guard. “His top concern has always been the royal family.”

“Calypso in particular,” Sungwoo sighed. “I hope we see the end of this struggle, and get back to what truly matters: Hydrus.”

“As do I.”

They brought you to a chamber at the end of a hallway. It appeared to be a sitting room with the usual amenities available. While you supposed there’d usually be someone in here, now it remained untouched and unoccupied. Yejin sighed sadly.

“Where is she?” she asked Sungwoo, concerned but dreading the answer.

“Exactly as I’d told you in my letter: she is entertaining Mizu at the moment,” he said. “But I cannot guarantee he will stay there for long. You know he has eyes and ears everywhere in this palace.”

“Then we must be quick about this,” she nodded. “Take me to him.”

You waited until Sungwoo opened the double doors and Yejin went through them to shoot yourself forward. It was Yejin’s horrified gasp that brought you further into the bed chamber.

“As you can see, my lady,” Sungwoo began, “His condition is worsening.”

The man Hyunjin described to you did not match the one sitting before you. On a stone bed near the balcony windows was a frail, thin man with long white hair. The silvery hair must’ve been lustrous at one point, but now thinned immensely and left red sores on his scalp. Sun-kissed skin lost most of its pigment, and lean muscles turned into flat bones and sagging skin. Yet, it was his eyes you noticed the most. You never knew the color of the king’s eyes, but you knew they weren’t pale with blindness. A breath caught in your throat when you saw the deep purple veins extending from them like rivers on a map. Cracked, dry lips parted in each rattling breath, a rambling stream of words barely reached your ears. Yes, this was worse than simple Brain Fog.

“Oh by the gods,” Yejin cried, hands over her mouth. “It is worse than I thought.”

“He has no appetite for food or drink,” Sungwoo said. “He can hardly see anything beyond his own delusions. The affliction is progressing, Yejin. He can hardly tell one person from another, which I suspect makes him easier to influence and control. He doesn’t even know his eldest son is dead, and he can’t distinguish his wife from other women.”

You went around the other side of the bed, and hovered over the king. A foul stench seemed to come from his very pores; his yellow teeth and dark gums showed signs of his body giving into his illness. This is not brain fog. Brain fog only affects the mind and the body. The young lord you remembered resembled a skeleton when they found him. Tytos is well on his way to a similar situation. Tears blurred your vision as you touched his bare chest. Feeling bone right against your fingers, you sensed his heart beat slower than the average man. His lungs struggled to breathe; he would need assistance with it soon.

Mizu and his “Creator” are slowly killing Tytos.

“Please,” Sungwoo pleaded, “Please tell me there is something you can do, Stranger.”

You perked your head up, stunned and frozen in place.

“I cannot see you clearly, but Yejin mentioned she’d bring an ally,” he whispered, leaning over the king to speak. “She mentioned that you might know of a cure for this wretched curse.”

Yejin nodded her encouragement, then you said, “It is exactly what I feared it’d be, Advisor. This is not simple brain fog; it is something much deeper. If we do not act quickly, the king may die.”

“Do you know how to stop it?”

“Yejin and I have our theories,” you said, “And I think it may work with a bit more research. I have a friend on the mainland who is much more knowledgeable in dark magic than myself.”

You could tell Sungwoo expected a more solid answer, but he still nodded his understanding. “It’s better than grasping in the dark,” he said, standing up straight again.

“But, I promise you, Advisor, that we will cure the king.”

The king groaned at the sound of your voice. “Arielle?” he croaked, "Is that you?”

You hesitated, body frozen beside the bed. Looking at Yejin and Sungwoo, they looked at one another in confusion. Then, you said, “Yes, Papa. It’s me.”

“Oh, sweet angelfish,” he wheezed, “How good to hear your…your voice. I…I brought you a seashell from Oceania.”

“It’s beautiful, Papa,” you replied. “Thank you.”

“Where is-Where is Ormand, darling?”

“Ormand is gone, Papa,” you heard Sungwoo gasp, but you continued. “He died, remember?”

Tytos furrowed his brow, then you saw tears fall from the corners into his temples, “Ormand…Not Ormand!” he sobbed, “My sweet boy! My son! Where is he?!”

“He’s with the waves, Papa,” you touched his hand, feeling the skin smooth like stones. “He’s at peace.”

“Ormand!” he cried, “Where is Ormand? Take me to him!”

His bones cracked as he sat up from his bed. “Your Majesty, please,” Sungwoo kept him from rising, “You must rest. You will see Ormand later.”

While Yejin calmed him with a tonic she’d brought with her, you grasped the king’s hand. “Papa,” you called him, “Papa, what was Ormand’s favorite color?”

“Huh?” he stared in your direction, confused and unfocused. “His what?”

“Favorite color,” you repeated. “Mama wants his shroud to be his favorite color, but none of us remember.” You shared a glance with Yejin, who is as sharp as her son. “Do you?”

Tytos sunk deep into his thoughts, brow furrowed and lips trembling. You saw him struggle for the answer. “Orange,” he croaked, “The color of the sunset. He loved going up to the surface at that time to watch the sunset. He used to tell me it was…was the most beautiful color imaginable.” You saw tears brim his drooping eyes, “Oh, my sweet boy…My children…Where are they? Where is Calypso?”

Yejin came forward, touching his other hand, “They are well, my king. They think only of your health.”

The sound of doors slamming open came from the next room, and quickly Sungwoo rested the king back into his bed. You stepped away towards the shadows where the guards walking in did not see you. Behind them, a merman came into the room. Crimson spikes and fringes went along his back, sticking up and jutting outwards. They matched his red and purple tail, and the scales spread along his arms, neck and stomach. He didn’t wear a crown, but the thick necklace made of golden doubloons played as a symbol of high status. Crystal eyes narrowed at the sight of Yejin beside the king.

“Lady Yejin,” his raspy voice gave you chills, “I was not expecting to see you here so late.”

You then saw the guards following him guided sharks in by leather harnesses. Small and gray, their sharp teeth still kept you up against the wall.

“I came to visit His Majesty,” she said, head up high and hands clasped together, “Calypso has been very worried about him.”

“As she told me herself.”

With a snap of his fingers, the two guards with the sharks began moving about the room. You realized then Mizu must have been tipped off about Yejin’s visit. Keeping yourself flat against the wall, you heard your heart beating in your chest.

“As you can see, Lady Yejin,” he continued, “His Majesty’s illness has progressed far beyond your expertise. The most we can do is ease his pain and suffering until the waves take him from us.”

“Nothing would please you more,” Yejin seethed.

“Oh, my dear lady, how can you say such things? My heart hangs the lowest out of us all for the king.”

One of the sharks came within a few feet of you, and it turned its head in your direction. You slowly took side steps, hoping to get out of its range before anyone else noticed.

“His Majesty needs his rest, as Advisor Sungwoo knows,” Mizu said. “If you’d kindly follow me, then we can discuss arrangements for…for his passing.”

“The king can still be saved yet, Mizu,” Sungwoo said. “We must not give up hope.”

“I hate to say that I believe all hope is lost. The king is not in his right-”

“-Arielle,” Tytos cried, “Arielle, my angelfish, where have you gone?”

“You see? The Princess is not even with us, and he cries for her.”

Tytos looked in your direction, reaching out to you. “Arielle, tell your mother…tell her he loves sunsets.”

Mizu paused, watching the king closely and comprehension came over his pale, pointed face. “Let us leave His Majesty to rest. He has had a long day of treatments.”

“What treatments?” Yejin asked, affronted as a guard started leading her and Sungwoo away.

“The usual ones…”

Mizu began listing various medical treatments that he likely hadn’t administered. The shark who’d sensed you pulled on its leash to reach you. Panic struck your stomach and went up your chest as you went along the walls.

“What is it, girl?” the guard asked his companion. “Do you smell something?”

You found a potted seaweed plant, and hoped it might mask your scent as you stepped behind it. The shark kept its black eyes on the pots.

“Probably just a fish, Poseidon,” his comrade said to him. “You know these sharks. They sense a little blowfish and they lose their senses. Come on, before Mizu gets upset.”

The two guards left, the latter having to tug on the shark’s leash to make it move. Once the doors shut, you moved out of the plants. On the bed, the king muttered incoherent words and continued falling into a daze.

“Make sure Lady Yejin and Lord Sungwoo are escorted back home,” you heard Mizu in the next room. “Then post guards at these doors. We do not need anymore people disturbing the king’s rest.”

The moment you heard the doors open again, you swam away from the bed. Mizu entered the room alone this time. He sucked his teeth when he saw the king mumbling and groaning.

“Ah look what they did,” he hissed. “All that hard work…”

Standing by the plants, you watched Mizu lean over the king. He rubbed his hand over the king’s forehead, his thumb pressing to the center. In small circles, you heard muffled words being said as he rubbed the spot in circles. The bits of clarity the king might have faded away as Mizu strengthened the curse again. He went back to remaining nearly silent.

“The Creator will have you soon, Your Majesty,” Mizu said disdainfully. “She will have you soon.”

You watched him leave the room, and heard the soft click of a latch on the other side. Locked in the bedroom with Tytos, you returned to his bedside and examined where Mizu touched him. Black ash contrasted against his pale skin, starting from the center and reaching the bridge of his nose. You didn’t dare touch it in case the powder was contagious. But yes, this was Dranesh’s curse. You knew if it progressed further, the king would surely die. You couldn’t let that happen.

“I will find a way to cure you, Your Majesty,” you whispered to him, pushing strands of hair from his face. “I promise.”

This time the king didn’t respond to you. Not able to leave through the door, you went for the balcony left open. You’d circle around and meet Yejin back at the shop.

You had work to do.

****

You and Chan decided you had enough of Hydrus for one day, and with night fast approaching, you returned home. Hyunjin and Hannah insisted on going back with you.

“Do you really think Minho can help?” Hyunjin asked you as the transport whale took you away from the city. “Chan says he’s the best with magic.”

“He is,” you said. “I’m sure we’ll find the crystal and figure out how to cure the king. Now that we know what’s going on, we should be able to do it.”

You looked out into the water. The sunset skies above broke through the first few feet before your surroundings gradually darkened. You did your best not to imagine what predators might be swimming about near your ship. Kim Jennie had been enchanting them to attack people they come across. Another part of your theory appeared correct: the pirates are creating distractions and threats to lessen Tytos’s approval amongst the people. Soon, they’ll turn on the king they think left them defenseless. A warm hand then touched yours on the whale bump.

“There’s nothing out there,” he comforted you.

“How do you know?”

“Because what you think is out there doesn’t come up this close to the surface,” he nodded upwards. “We keep our routes higher up to avoid them and also for the whales to breathe.”

“I see.”

You felt him watching you. His eyes, still twinkling like stars, examined you in the half-light of the moon. When you looked at him, his black hair blew back from his face, billowing in the waves flowing through them; the starfish and pearls on his head gleamed like the scales on his face. You thought about your kiss in the tavern, how it warmed your insides.

“It’s a shame, you know,” you began, “That we met like this.”

“Like how?” he drew closer to you, Chan was too busy talking to Hannah to notice.

“In an investigation into the merfolk crown and the possibility of war,” you said. “Though, I’m sure if we met another way, I’d be a skeleton at the bottom of the ocean.”

Hyunjin laughed, “Oh, I wouldn’t eat someone as lovely as you. At least,” he smirked, “Not in a way you wouldn’t like. It’s not every day a siren meets a demon, especially a fire demon at that. One of my friends met a fire demon once,” his fingers brushed over your knuckles, and his eyes glanced down to your lips, “She said it was an interesting experience.”

“I can imagine sirens are more so than us.” You couldn’t help noticing his pouty lips, full with a prominent cupid’s bow. “Maybe next time I’m in town, you can show me around? I’d love to see all of what Hydrus has to offer.”

“Perhaps if you hadn’t been busy saving the king, I could have shown you the absolute best.”

“It was for the case, pretty,” you pouted. “I am being paid for this gig, you know.”

“Well,” he leaned in until he was centimeters from kissing you, “Next time I see you, I’ll make you forget about your cases completely.”

Your body tingles with anticipation from the closeness. You understood then why sailors fall for sirens and their deadly songs. He brushed his plush lips to yours, then locked you in for a kiss.

“I hope that’s a promise.”

“A promise, and I never make empty ones either.”

***

A/N: thank you so much for reading! Things are only just starting for this gang, and it's a rollercoaster lol please like and reblog, thanks <3

Episode 1 < > Episode 2.A

#stray kids #stray kids fanfiction #bangchan #hwang hyunjin #hyunjin x reader #hyunjin x you #chan stray kids #hyunjin stray kids #stray kids fanfic

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deprivedreality · 10 months

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𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗢 𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗧𝗬 ; 𝗡𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗬𝗔𝗠 𝗦𝗨𝗟𝗟𝗬. oneshot

word count: 1.5k request by: @aichiomei

summary: neteyam with his childhood sweetheart and mate who died before him. alternative ver for childhood sweetheart.

content/s & pairings: neteyam x omaticaya! reader. angst. mention of death and blood. heavy visualization of trauma/losing a loved one. reader is called Yaw'ne which is yn, basically beloved in navi.

ᓚᘏᗢ | masterlist | feel free to make a request too!

"𝗠𝗔 𝗬𝗔𝗪'𝗡𝗘. . . ?" His voice, pained and hoarse. Neteyam looked at his mate dying in his arms. The disappearance of the light in her eyes turned off all sense of consciousness in his body.

"Yaw'ne! Do not— no! You can't do this to me! Yaw'ne! Not now, not ever! My love— Look at me, please!" He cried, trembling as his chest heaved from the panic and anxiety he was feeling.

"Yaw'ne, look at me!" In an attempt to make a corpse look into him, he grasped her hand and placed it on his cheek, all while his other hand pushed through her chest, where blood spilled all over. Neteyam couldn't recognize himself anymore, all he could do was feel the warmth he couldn't embrace would be the last he'd ever feel from her as she went cold and pale.

In that moment, all he could think of was the future he envisioned with her, lost in a matter of moments. The love he swore to protect, the woman he promised to cherish, and soul he offered his life to. Gone. He couldn't grasp reality completely and amidst the war cry that echoes across the depressing field, he wouldn't take his eyes off her as tears swelled from his eyes, emotions daring to spill out.

He thought that if she stayed back, such thing would never happen. How did it come to this? How could one bullet determine the faith of someone? The faith of his mate, his love? Just Why?

He couldn't take off his eyes off of Yawne, the pain evident in his eyes as he looked at hers, lifeless and dim. All colors sucked off, replaced with the impeccable reminder that she no longer was with him. And will no longer be apart of a life she was supposed to be filling with colors.

"..." Neteyam spoke no more, but the silence has never been more loud. It was a mystery, really. How a broken heart can drive a man insane.

It was hard and brutal in each passing second. As smoke filled the air, so did the grief of the people all around him amidst the time of war. The cries of agony of a man who lost his mate was what filled the silence after the immediate aftermath of a battle between the RDA and the Omaticaya people.

Those who survived knew that if the Skypeople were foolish enough to have not surrendered earlier, then Toruk Makto's son— no, a man having been bereaved of his mate would've annihilated them with no hesitation and with bloodlust.

Neteyam's screams and shouts to bring her back were painful to hear to all those who were fortunate enough to be alive. As they echoed across the silenced field stocked with the corpse of Na'vis and Humans, taunting the ears of the many Omaticayan warriors that beared and witnessed the rage of the Omaticayan Prince's grief and agony upon losing his lover.

Neteyam never felt so conflicted in all his life. His father was Toruk Makto, yes. However, he never thought once in his life that it would be the sole reason for his forced departure from the home he's ever known. And setting all of it aside, the biggest part of not wanting to go was because his love rested with his people. And the thought of having no exact time of going back home scared him to the depth of his soul.

"I have to leave you, my love." A tear traced down his cheek and to his chin. Neteyam smiled even if he was in pain, the sides of his lips trembling as he stood in front of a boulder decorated with striking bioluminescent flowers and herbs. This was where his mate was buried, a place he almost spent his time on after he lost her.

"I'm sorry..." Neteyam whispered, butb then his knees started weakening that he had fallen down and broke into tears. He held his shoulders, as if hugging himself as he sobbed. "Please know that I don't want to do this. I want to stay with you... But I can't."

Even if he couldn't bear the pain of learning that he might as well never be able to see the memories of the life he once had, in the end, he found himself embarking on a harsh journey with his family. And although Neytiri and Jake knew about their son's dying desire to just be in the hands of the great mother just to be with Yawne, they would do everything to protect their son.

A sad soul waiting to just disappear was the person Neteyam had become. He never laughed whole heartedly nor expressed the same happiness he once had before tragedy of a broken heart befall on him. He never acted the same, focusing only on keeping his siblings align because it was the only thing Neteyam was left to do.

If he disappeared, Yawne would be disappointed of him. That is what he thinks, that deep inside, his mate would be upset if he would just off himself and leave his responsibilities as a son and a brother just to be with her.

From the very arrival of the Sully's in the Awa'atlu clan, he's always been perceived as the saddest amongst the forest children, unresponsive in daylight and sullen in the night. The village people pinpointed it. The tsahik of the Metkayina clan expressed her pity for him, to the point that he could not bear it anymore.

His brother and sister were in pain watching him cry every night, whispering the name of his deceased mate. All while he wished to be with just himself and his aching heart, in nights where he cradled himself to sleep. And kissed the necklace that only he had taken to leave with him as a part of his mate. The necklace that he weaved for his childhood sweetheart, dating back from when he had just learnt how to bead traditional jewelry at the ripe age of five just to impress his mate.

The memories that brought him back were the only thing that kept him together. He spent his life with his mate even before bonding with her as lovers. Neteyam had so much memories that the idea of it running out just made his day damp.

"Yaw'ne... It won't be long, I promise." One evening before tragedy happened, the boy had whisper as he looked at the beautiful sunset that reminded him only of one person, Yaw'ne.

The dazling gold color of the reef that blinded his eyes. The dewy-colored sky and it's undoubtedly gorgeous sight. And the atmosphere that flowed with warmth, that even if it wasn't as close to be similar to the warmth and comfort he felt by embracing her, it reminded him greatly of his mate.

Thinking about it made him smile genuinely, laughing to himself. "If things aren't the way it is, you would be sitting next to me, Yawne. You would've love the ocean."

The smile Neteyam showed, unknowingly, would be the last.

"Dad, I wanna go home─" Even as he lay dying in the same way his late lover had died, it was the only words that came out of his mouth when he looked at his father. He thought that for once in his life, he could be a bit selfish. Neteyam struggled to breathe as he looked at his parents and at Lo'ak. Blood seeped down his mouth but he spoke once more, this time with great desperation.

"I just want to see her again... I miss her─" Neteyam cried, eyes swelling with tears. Even through Lo'ak's pleads for him to stop, Neytiri's panic and to Jake's realization, all of them could see the desperation in his eyes.

"I miss her so much..." Neteyam longed for a moment of silence and he got it. His parents grieved for him as he lay dead on the cold ocean, eyes wide open as though they stared at the sky like any other day he spent at sea.

His eyes were dim when she died. But now, his amber eyes were at its dimmest. Neteyam died that day, with a bullet ending the pain he never thought would be the one to kill him in its stead.

It was the pain that killed him, and the acceptance that made him rest alas. It would be a mistake to underestimate the influence of love, thus, accepting it would lead into eternity.

ᓚᘏᗢ @deprivedreality 2023 | do not copy my works!

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ficwriterwastakenalt · 2 years

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SCP and SCP P1

SCP AU BC I LOVE THEM AND I THINK IT LOWKEY FITS CORPSE (not in a bad way scps are rlly fucking cool) tw: needles, blood SCP-096 aka Corpse Euclid Will chase down and devour any victim who views its face.

SCP-939 aka Yn Keter A red quadrupedal predator who can mimic the voices of its victims.

Yn was strapped to a stretcher; her body hurt; her head hurt; everything hurt. She peered around and turned to face the doctors, who assured her that she was well and asked her to calm down. When a pink-haired girl remarked that Yn could fully trust her based on her aura, Yn took a deep breath and said, "Where am I?" " You're at the scp lab," the pink-haired female answered. Yn whimpered while tugging on the straps.

"sh sh you're ok Yn I'll take care of you, I promise, and I'm going to unbuckle you right now, but you have to be very calm with me, okay," Niki said. Slowly nodding, Yn glanced at the two other doctors: one was a tall, with brown hair who wore spectacles, and the other was a mean-looking, shorter bald man. "Hey Yn calm down that Jack and Wilbur they won't hurt you," Yn snarled as the bald one -Jack moved toward the pink-haired woman.

Yn's arm was grabbed by Jack as he rolled his eyes. When the straps were removed, Yn jumped up and growled as her skin started to turn red, her one pair of legs had changed into four long, red ones, spikes had sprouted from her back, and she had a long tail. Her head had also changed to resemble a dog, and she was now 7.2 feet tall (pic at the bottom). Yn didn't like being touched at all.

Yn turned and ran along the hallways, twisting and turning till she came to a stop in front of dark cage. She then carefully stepped towards the enormous cage and slowly sniffed at it as she calmed herself her 7'2 frame shrunk back to (ur height) If Yn had been in her Scp form, she could have sworn her tail would be wagging as she kept peeping into the glasses and watching as a man hurried past and into the back corner, one red eye stared back at her.

A different voice yelled, "Yn come on sweetie you can't be back here," causing Yn jump and turn around. Niki was standing next to a purple-haired girl with two black horns protruding from her head, and Yn whimpered and spun around to peer inside the cage. Niki approached her and said avoiding looking in, "That's SCP-096 or Corpse as he calls himself." Yn observed as Niki pressed a red button and asked, "Hey Corpse, how are you today?" "Who's that," a deep voice responded. Niki smiled while continuing to avoid looking at the SCP. "This is SCP-939 or Yn," Niki sprang back as she heard a thud on the glass.

Yn couldn't help but fixate on the man. Niki said, "Yn, come on, let's leave Corpse alone." Yn whined and glanced at Niki "If you behave for testing, I'll allow you visit, if that's okay with him." "I'm down," Corpse muttered as he examined the new SCP, a gorgeous SCP with e/c eyes and h/l h/c hair she was interesting. Yn twisted her head back to the Scp. He had curly black hair that fell into his face. A mask sat over the lower part and half of his face. The mask looked like a purple bunny.

Niki nodded and grinned, saying, "Come on, let's get this over with Yn." Yn instantly followed Niki, calling out, "Niki," while gazing at the girl. "Can you please tell me more about Corpse." Niki chuckled, "Corpse is a very special SCP," and flipped to the correct page in her notes. "Corpse will become upset, cover his face, and cry if anyone ever dares to look at his face. Soon after, he will begin hunting the victim with the intention of killing them. Regardless of whether they are locked or not, doors and elevators cannot stop Corpse because it will rip them open in order to catch up to the individual."

"How do you stop him?" Yn questioned. Niki frowned, "you can't. Corpse would stop at nothing to kill anyone looks at his face." Yn frowned, "don't worry Yn. I don't think he'll hurt you.... I think he likes you," Niki said with a smile to the girl. Yn blushed because of Niki's teasing, "he doesn't."

----

The testing was simple enough—just a few needles, then Yn was made to enter her SCP form so they could test that—but as soon as anyone touched Yn, a huge bang would rock the lab, stopping everyone except Niki from working. Niki inquired, looking around, "you want to go visit Corpse now?" Yn wagging her tail as Niki petted her head. Yn nodded before standing up on her four legs.

Yn was almost like a shadow standing over Niki, if the person were 5'5 and the shadow was 7'2. Niki moved swiftly along the corridors. After entering Corpse's room while closely following him, Yn practically raced up to the glass, "Hey, pretty puppy." Corpse cooed, Niki carefully observed the two before pressing the button "Okay, here's what's happening Corpse, I'm going to leave you two, but you must behave and don't open the door," she said.

When Niki departed, Yn's form shrank back to normal and she was a girl again. She raced up to the control panel, picked up a mug to set on the intercom button, and then sat down in front of the glass. "Hey baby, how you doing, how was the testing? They didn't hurt you, did they?" he asked. "No, the lab would shake every time they touched me." Corpse smirked as Yn replied that, while he hadn't possessed that power, he had a friend who owed him a favour.

Yn grinned and said, "You're really pretty Corpse," "So are you, Yn," he said.

----

Yn dozed off against the glass but awoke as the doors were flung open and a furious Jack came in, followed by Niki. "Jack, just leave them," Yn growled. "NO WHAT DO YOU WANT SCP-096 TO BREAK OUT SO THEY CAN GET IT ON AND HAVE MORE MONSTERS," Jack said. Niki cried, "YN NO CALM DOWN," as Yn got up, her blood boiling with rage. " You get back to your ca"-, Jack glared at Yn as he turned around. When Jack's gaze first landed on SCP-096's exposed face, everything stopped and the sound of wailing filled the room. When Yn glanced back, she saw the corpse sitting with his face covered and his shoulders shaking.

In an instant, Yn dashed to Niki, altered into her SCP form, and stood over her. The cage's glass broke as Corpse stepped through it, eyes fixed on Jack. Jack stumbled back and collided with Yn's legs who shoved him to Corpse. She then turned and sat in front of Niki. As Jack screamed, the sounds of Corpse's cries faded, and everything fell silent. Then, Yn felt a hand touch her back Yn instantly pulled away forcing herself back into her human form and hugged Corpse, cuddling up to him. Corpse joked, "we're definitely going to get in trouble for that."

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lunarmoonanons · 1 year

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Yandere Husbands prt 2

🌕 🌖 🌗 🌘 🌑 🌒 🌓 🌔 🌕

Second and final part. Now I don’t know anything about most of these characters since I’m not a book reader, so I won’t be doing Doran, Arthur, or Gerald.

🌕 🌖 🌗 🌘 🌑 🌒 🌓 🌔 🌕

Aeys 2

x sister reader

YN was the twin of Rhaella Targaryen, but unlike her twin she and Aerys had gotten along quite well. She’d read to him as he practiced his sword stances, he’d talk on and on about his aspirations to be knighted, and they’d dream about their futures. YN did also get along with her twin Rhaella, the two having nothing but good things to say about the other. Rhaella was the one to tell her first about her love for Ser Bonifer Hasty, YN was certain that if they asked their grandfather he’d allow her to marry her love. But it wasn’t to last, as their father believed that the prince who was promised would come from Aerys and Rhaella’s line. Aerys protested, demanding that he instead marry YN and they at least liked each other. YN held her twin in her arms as Rhaella sobbed, her own heart slightly breaking. But she complied, they all did. Stefan and Tywin offered sympathies but insisted they must all do their duty. The wedding was a somber affair.

After the disaster at Summerhall and the birth of her nephew Rhaegar, Aerys approached YN. Saying that he still loved her and wanted to be with her, but YN pushed him away. He was married to her twin and she would not cause undue humiliation to her sister by indulging in his desires, and besides she was betrothed to a dornish prince. Finishing off her rejection with “You have an heir now, let me go to have children.” But he would not. One day, Rhaella was found dead in her chambers, her baby crying out for its mother. YN suspected poison but had no proof. When the question of marriage came up, Aerys demanded his father marry his sister to him. It wasn’t until 262ac, when their father died did Aerys get his wish. Despite the protests from Tywin, Nobles, and YN.

As king no one would deny him. YN was afraid of her brother now, doing her best to watch over her nephew, now stepson, for her sister Rhaella. The law by Queen Alysanne years ago made it so that the heirs from the first marriage would not be disinherited by the second marriage. For the first years of his reign Aerys had the sense to listen to his hand. YN was grateful for Tywin, being able to be the realist to Aerys grand plans and ambitions. Yet as the years went on, Aerys started to grow irritated at the sight of his wife being friendly with his hand. When YN was finally deemed pregnant, Aerys' paranoia grew. He wanted a healthy child. So he isolated YN from everyone, never letting her see the mistresses he took. One tried to slap away the moon tea offered, and Aerys strangled the woman to death. Eventually, Aerys' paranoia became very apparent. He was cocky and began to disregard advice from everyone, even YN. After her pregnancy, YN had given birth to a pale little boy Viserys lll, and he found himself in her bedroom not caring if she wanted it or not. YN’s nephew Rhaegar tried to defend her, but Aerys would slap the boy away. By the time Duskendale was stirring trouble, YN was forced to birth 5 children. Three of which were miscarried due to Aerys rough behavior with her. Tywin tried to step in once but backed away. YN was always grateful for him, but in the end there was nothing that could stop Aerys from having her. One morning after Aerys had been on top of her all night, he mentioned he was going to duskendale YN tried to say that it was a bad idea, but had unknowingly mentioned Tywin. She was met with a slap, he held her hair tight and kissed her hard.

“You are my sweet sister. If you mention his name again, I’ll have his burnt corpse presented to our children as a warning not to get between us.” YN hoped he would die in Duskendale.

Cregan Stark

(velaryon reader, just imagine maybe Laenor was able to do it once, so YN is the fraternal twin of Jaec)

Usually First Men descendants did not marry non first men, but Cregan wanted no one but the daughter of the princess. YN was the twin sister to Jaecerys Velaryon, unlike her brother she had darker skin and white hair. Cregan was enamored with the girl, but her beauty was only one layer. She also had a mouth on her, and could beat him at his own drinking games. After a month of bonding the boys swore an oath of brotherhood. Cregan and YN met under the weirwood tree, swearing love vows to each other. When it came to the issue of allegiance to The Queen, Rhaenyra, Cregan swore to her on condition that YN stay with him and one day marry him. Jaecerys and YN seemed to agree, as long as YN could do her part for her mother in the war. Her dragon Alaxys was eager to fly in the air.

During the Dance, YN flew point with her brother, and always returned back to the north. She seemed to like the cold more than the warm south. Her betrothed Cregan was always happy to have her back in her arms. He denied her almost nothing, except when she wanted to fight in the Battle of the Gullet and fly to Kings landing for her mother. Cregan had said no, practically holding her down when she ran for her dragon. He could not lose her. When she fought him, vowing that if he stopped her she’d hate him forever. At that he locked her in the warmest room, sitting outside the room hearing her sob and scream in agony. When the news of her brother's death came, YN screamed at Cregan calling him a traitor and a monster. But the death of her mother broke her, she became cold and angry. Stating to Cregan that she wanted to honor her oath, he was already planning to honor the north’s promise and took his betrothed south.

The hour of the wolf began with Alaxys landing in Kings landing with YN and Cregan on her back. The north remembered and the dragon burned with fury. Cregan spared no traitors, for the oath he held and for the love he had for his betrothed. YN was by her little brother’s side as Cregan delivered her vengeance. Alaxys burned the ones YN deemed deserving, Cregan took rest’s heads. When the hour of the wolf ended, YN was hesitant to leave her brother. Cregan reminded her of her vow to him, that they were fire and ice destined to be. She tried to reason that her brother needed her counsel as he was still a child, but his fingers dug deep into her arms. Vowing that he held no mercy for those who broke their oath. With much resistance, Cregan took her back to the north. Alaxys had spent so much time in the cold that she did not feel comfortable in the warmth of the south. They were married as soon as they returned north. It was a tumultuous marriage, full of love and fights. Sometimes YN would blame him for the death of her family, stating that he prevented her from saving them. He would lock her away in their rooms during those times. Eventually Cregan would not let others see her. They even had to fly together, as YN was not allowed to be in the air alone. Cregan enveloped her whole life, but the north remembered their vow of love, and he would not let her break it. She was bound to ice.

Rickard Stark

(Now I don’t know much about him other than the wiki stuff so please be kind)

YN did not notice the possession Rickard had for her. They were happily married for a long time, she gave him several children. During the time of Aerys ii reign, YN grew more fearful of the south. Not trusting that the Targaryens would keep away from the north. Her fears were proven to be true when the prince had stolen their daughter Lyanna. She begged her son Brandon not to venture south to retrieve her, but he was a Stark and he was loyal. The news of her son's imprisonment caused a great fury in her. The King in response, asked for her to come to the south.

Rickard wouldn’t let her go alone, so he placed the maester in charge as they both traveled down south. Once at the red keep, Rickard kept to the shadows as YN pleaded for the release of her children. The king put on the image of listening, but instead just stared at her body. He requested to meet her later in his office chambers, against her better judgment she did. Her husband hid in the shadows the whole time.

As soon as Aerys inevitably moved to assault her, Rickard emerged from the shadows and cut him down. The shocked shouts of his wife were drowned by his fury as he repeatedly brought the sword down onto his body. Damn his honor, his wife needed defending. YN tried to pull him off, but he pushed her away. When the king was unrecognizable, Rickard turned his blood soaked face to YN. She stepped back as he stepped forward, eventually she hit the bed shaking as he towered over her. He took on that bed, his own mad eyes shone with lusty glee. Adrenaline drowning out YN’s cries. He would be her king forever.

Eddard Stark

YN was Ned’s Second wife. Catelyn had passed giving birth to Sansa. YN was Ned’s first love, even if she did not view him that way. Her place was in Starfall, in the warmth of the south. But when Ned asked for her hand and YN refused, he locked them both in her room. He never laid a hand to her, but he went on and on about how she was abandoning him. That his children already had to grow without a birth mother, was she that cruel to deny them a second chance. He would have none but her, and if she would not have him then he would die. Did she want that? For his children to be fatherless as well? For him to die?

YN was broken down to eventually agree. So she was taken from her home to the cold north. She wanted to meet the children first but Ned spirited her away to their shared room. Not wasting any time to bed his lady. Once he was certain she was to carry his seed, he allowed her to leave the room. The children seemed uneasy around her at first, but her calming nature was like a balm to their grief. Unlike Catelyn before her, YN also included Jon in all her activities with the children. Of all the children Jon grew the closest. He looked so much like Ned, that Ned would seem overjoyed that the two were bonded.

Eventually YN got pregnant, the baby draining so much energy from her. But little Arya was so worth the wait. YN thought that since the baby girl drained her so she could rest a bit before another. But Ned wouldn’t have that. He wanted her pregnant almost always. After Rickon, YN begged to be given rest but he called her heartless to deny her children siblings. That she was preventing new life from being born. YN’s life mostly consisted of being pregnant and barefoot. When the King arrived to call for Ned, YN hoped he would take a position as Hand but he denied him. The queen pitied YN, and mused to herself that maybe her marriage was not as bad. Pregnancy after Pregnancy, YN Dayne was exhausted out of life.

Stannis Baratheon

(I’m not a fan of this guy so don’t expect much)

YN was married to a much older man. Stannis had already had a child, so YN believed she was in the clear for having children. But his red priestess told the would be king that their child would be a champion of light. One night YN was met with the image of her towering husband. SHe tried to ask him to leave, but Stannis grabbed her and forced her on the bed. Telling her it would be alright, that their child would be a champion, all the while ignoring her cried to stop. When it was over he rubbed her stomach and promised that their baby would be stronger than him.

Oberyn Martell

YN did not believe that a her, a Lannister, would be betrothed to Oberyn Martell. A staunch lannister hater, and a sexual fiend if you asked her mother. But her uncle was Tywin, and he had final say in the family. So she was sent south.

Oberyn promised that he would be a gentle husband. That he did not blame her for the actions of her uncle, but the stares of the others could not calm her fears. It was like they either pitied her for her situation, or only glared at her blonde hair. Oberyn's children all flocked to her, sweet and kind little things. YN decided to make her situation as best as she could. Her husband had copious lovers, maybe she could find one. She tried to tell Oberyn.

“If you wish to be false to me, I will kill any man or woman who looks your way.” He whispered to her, holding her shaking body. “You are mine now. If you want me to get rid of my infidelity, fine. But I will not let another Lannister bring pain to me. Even If I loved them.”

Tag list:

@gulnarsultan

#house targaryen #house stark #house baratheon #house martell #aerys 2 #yandere aerys ii #yandere cregan #yandere ned #yandere stannis #yandere oberyn #game of thrones #game of thrones x reader #yandere game of thrones #asoiaf #yandere

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crazystargirl · 6 months

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Hiii, i'm so glad that you are feeling better!

Idk if you write for him or not, but if you do, can you do an ethan x reader fic? Where yn finds out the ethan is ghostface and confronts him and he gets ashamed and apologizes but when she tries to comfort him quinn andofficer bailey show up. quinn stabs yn as officer bailey explains that she was a liability as ethan sobs on the floor. oh and i want yn to die lol

you can add more if you'd like, i'm requesting this at three in the morning and my hand is beginning to cramp so that is all i will be asking for.

i love your writing so much! i'm sorry about the toxic relationships, i'm glad you're doing better now!

too bad

pairing ! - ethan landry x fem!reader

word count ! - 0.6k

a/n ! - OMFG MY EYES LEGIT POPPED OUT WHILE READING THE REQUEST HELP 😭 ive only written angst once before so this might be the shittiest thing ever

your whole world was current crashing down

it started on wednesday night, you went to your boyfriend's house after a long day of classes only to find him fucking dead

literally he was on the bed, throat slashed and bleeding out all over the comforter

you stared at the scene in horror and then noticed something on the ground

it was a small pocket knife and it was the exact same one your best friend ethan had always showed you

so after a few days, once the whole news that your boyfriend was murdered, you went over to ethan's house

you were now here in ethan's bedroom and ethan sure as hell knew something was up

"y/n/n what's wrong?" ethan said, confused but continued stroking your hair as you laid on his bed, throwing a pillow up and catching it over and over again

you sit up looking him straight in the eye but when you spoke your voice was somewhat shaky

"ethan…i found your pocket knife at my boyfriend's house…the same night he was murdered" you say, holding out his pocket knife

"shit that's nothing" ethan says trying to grab it from you but you put it back in your pocket

ethan sighed and sat back down and took your hands in his

"look y/n i didnt want you to find out like this but im one of the ghostfaces" ethan says, unable to look you in the eye

you're shocked but probably not as much as you should've been, this has all happened to you before when you found out amber was ghostface

unknown to you and ethan, quinn had snuck into the room, positioned behind you before stabbing you right in neck, then under the rib, then in the feet so you were unable to run, not like you'd be able to anyway

you screamed out in pain at every stab as ethan desperately tried to get you away from quinn and clutching you, quietly sobbing as he saw the light that he had once adored leave your eyes

"what the fuck did you do that for?!" ethan yells at quinn, still clutching your limp body

"i didn't much care for her to be honest, she seemed like she was just there since you looked so pathetic" quinn said, flipping the knife

"for fucks sake ethan you were desperately pinning for her while she had a boyfriend so i took care of her for you!" quinn says gleefully

ethan turned to the door as his father came in taking one look at ethan clutching you and just scoffed

"she was a liability ethan, she was bound to end up dead at some point. not only that but she distracted every damn time" wayne said as he walked over to quinn

"plus don't get mad at quinn, i asked her to kill y/n since i knew you wouldn't have the strength to and if we plotted her death with you around you would've flipped out"

ethan sat there, still holding you and even holding his hands over your ears as if he could stop you from hearing anything his dad was saying

"get out…get the fuck out of room both of you!" ethan yelled at his sister and dad

quinn scoffed and wayne came over to ethan's bed to take y/n's corpse but ethan gave him such a cold stare that he left the room with quinn

"what the actual fuck is wrong with them" ethan muttered into your head, stroking your hair as if that mightve brought you back but in the end he knew he'd have to bury you at some point

too bad wayne and quinn didn't know ethan was going to anything to make sure they paid for killing his y/n

taglist ! - @xyzstar, @gwenlore, @dizscreams, @kaesworldxx, @urmomcomsiimiamour, @nonniesworld, @chemtr4ilz, @abodyhasbeenfound, @phsychobanana

lmk if you want to be added/removed !

©crazystargirl || do NOT copy or repost without my permission

#ethan landry #ethan landry x reader #ethan landry x fem!reader #ethan landry x you #ethan landry fluff #ethan landry angst #jack champion #jack champion x reader #jack champion x you #jack champion fluff #jack champion x y/n #jack champion angst

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toxxicwrites · 1 month

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Routine Mission- JJK- Gojo x yn platonic Angst/ Major Character Death

It was a routine mission. A grade level three curse. Well within the strengths of a grade 1 sorcerer such as herself. At least it was supposed to be. Upon arriving at the abandoned warehouse Yn sensed something was off. The air held the rustic tang of fresh blood, but most worrying was the silence. Low- level curses were never this quiet. She opened the rusty iron door, its hinges squeaking loudly before being consumed by silence once again. She took a deep breath before entering, steadying her nerves. It was just a routine mission she reminded herself. She could do it by herself as she had done hundreds just like it before. Still, she felt herself longing the presence of a friend in the unsteadying atmosphere, hell she would have even tolerated Gojo- her ridiculously overpowered friend who would have filled the silence with rambling of his accomplishments and other random thoughts he deemed important enough to say out loud (Yn just thought he liked the sound of his own voice). After another hour of searching the premises Yn finally found her target. It’s spiked back was turned toward her, as a multitude of protruding pincers grabbed and ripped at something, the warehouse now echoing with the sickening sounds of gurgling and crunching as Yn peeked her head over and saw the remains of a human body the curse now feasted on. The putrid scene almost caused her to throw up breakfast but she held her wits. It was just a level three curse. But its enormous size left her unsettled. She reached to her back and unsheathed two swords, letting the sound of metal ring out, gathering the curses attention as it slowly turned around with a chattering, clicking noise.

“What-ke ke- do we have -ke- here?” The curses voice rasped holding a mocking tone. Multiple pairs of eyes blinked as the curse stared at her, blood dripping from its mouth or rather the gaping hole that resided in its stomach, expanding and shrinking as it took a breath.

“A-Another jujutsu sorcerer? Kekeke” The curse laughed with a horrible shriek and Yn looked down at the body, shock in her eyes as she registered the jujutsu emblem on the disfigured corpse's chest. Her heart beat faster as she met the creature's eyes again. A rage filled her as it stabbed the body with a pincer, throwing it across the room like a ragdoll.

“I could -ke- go for another snack”

Y/n yelled out as she charged, swords poised for attack. She jumped high bringing the sword down to the curses chest, but in an instant a cursed energy shield blasted out deflecting her attack. Her brow furrowed as the sword bounced off and in her moment of confusion the curse took its change, swinging its arm and sending Yn crashing into a stack of metal crates. Black clouded her vision as she made contact with the metal, denting it in the shape of her body with a loud clang. She blinked the darkness away, groaning as she got up. The creature laughed again. She narrowed her eyes. It was toying with her she could tell. And it was much stronger than a level 3 curse. That was for sure. The fight continued with Yn landing a few blows. But every stab she made grazed the skin, never cutting through the thick cursed energy field despite her own power behind each swing. It left her exhausted and slow. As she was launched across the room for the hundredth time she saw her opportunity. She grabbed a metal barrel, launching it toward the curse. As it swatted it away it didn’t notice Yn running from behind, cutting off five of its pincers. The curse cried out as they fell to the ground, dripping black, oil-like blood. She grinned as she stood on the other side of the creature, wiping a drip of sweat from her brow. The curse howled in pain yelling curses at her in an unknown language.

“Not so funny now are we?” She mused. The curse shrieked, making a mad sprint toward her. She smirked, now the fight was within her playing field. Toying with the curses rage she led it in a mad dash, letting its swings get wilder and wilder until finally she saw an opening to its underbelly, unprotected by the metal like skin of the rest of its body, a weakness. She had an opening then-

Out of the corner of her eye she saw a white haired student. Gojo. She almost cried out in relief- she didn’t know how much longer she could last… Unluckily for her, the moment's distraction provided enough for the curse to make its move. She was falling toward the curse, to its soft underbelly, and then she wasn’t.

“Y/N!” Gojo’s voice yelled out, filled with panic. Y/n felt no pain at first, but her breath was taken away. She remained suspended and she looked down. Eyes meeting the sharp pincer that stabbed through her stomach, the sharp pain now erupting like a volcano.

“Oh” she said with a small voice. The curse threw her across the room like a ragdoll. A soft gasp left her lips as she slammed against the wall. Her vision blurred and she saw the flash of white hair and a blue uniform. She didn’t know how long she sat there, her shaky breaths slowing as blood gushed out of her stomach like a waterfall. Vaguely she recognized the curse getting decapitated by Gojo and him running to her. A small white haired figure and then he was right in front of her. The scent of cotton candy and blood filled her senses.

“No no no,” Gojo mumbled, his hands desperately reaching for hers where they sat, holding what she assumed was her organs in her stomach. His blue eyes were wide, panicking.

“Gojo..” Y/n whispered, it was all she could manage at this point as spots filled her vision and her body felt so so tired.

“Is it-” She took a wheezing breath, “Is it bad?”

No no no no. This couldn't be happening. This wasn’t supposed to be happening. He had come too late. It was supposed to be a routine mission and he was just checking up on Yn when he saw the curse stab through it, a bloodied pincer poking through her blue uniform. The curse was anything but a grade level 3, having swallowed two of sukuna’s fingers. And now, he kneeled in front of her, watching as dark red blood gushed out and her breaths became shallow.

“Is it- is it bad? Y/n asked her brows furrowed in pain as a cold sweat arose on her skin. No no no no. It was going to be okay.

“It’s gonna be fine Yn- it's gonna be fine,” He stammered looking into her pleading eyes, “I’m gonna get you to Shoko and you're gonna be fine.”

He began reaching to pick her up but a hand on his chest stopped him.

“Gojo, look at me.”

He looked at her, his expression one of desperation.

“You-” She let out a pained, wheezy laugh, “You are a terrible liar.”

“Please Yn” He pleaded, “We have to go.”

She shook her head, expression pained.

“No-” she mumbled, her head bobbing as she struggled to stay awake, “No just- just please stay here with me- just for a minute.”

He swallowed hard and nodded, meeting her eyes and fighting back the tears in his.

“When we get back can we get sushi?”

“Of course,” Gojo nodded, “Spicy tuna?”

Y/n weakly smiled, her face ghostly pale, “You know it.”

“Just-” She began, eyes closing, “Let me catch my breath for a minute…”

She slumped into his arms and he held her. She smiled against the warmth of his chest. Everything was so cold now, but at least she could feel warmth one last time. She died with a smile in Gojo’s arms. And his heart hardened. Another friend that he, the strongest sorcerer in the world, couldn't save.

#jjk #jjk x reader #jjk gojo #jujutsu kaisen #gojo satoru #jujutsu gojo #satoru gojo #gojo x reader #geto suguru #jjk shoko #jjk angst #jjk oneshot #jjk imagines #gojo imagine #gojo oneshot #angst oneshot #angst #anime #gojo x y/n

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blushedarmybunny · 1 year

Text

Butterfly Effect || Jeon Jungkook x fem Reader

♡ Pairing: Jeon Jungkook x fem reader

♡ Word count: 10.2k

♡ Genre: Angst (m), different timelines travel, fluff.

♡ summary:

There is Yn who thought that she had her shit together until there’s a dead body in her boyfriend’s basement.

Everything crumbled in a second, but wait…ummm Why she is back when she met Jungkook a year before this happened? Is time travel a real thing?

Oh so we are changing strategies now: let’s be a total b.i.t.c.h, that way Jungkook the serial killer would be as far as possible from yn, right?

Or maybe is this her chance to save the victim before Jungkook can commit that terrible crime?

Yn did not expect to drag herself into the infinite possible timelines that the fabric of the universe has, in between her adventure she might change more lives than her own.

♡ a/n: I’m working hard on part 2 to deliver as soon as possible, the plot is set I just have to write them down, I really hope you enjoy this 2 part story as much I did, for 2023 I have so many projects I can’t wait for you to read them! ilysm💗 also I don’t recommend minors to read this story since it contains adult themes.

read part 2 here

A dead corpse of a young woman laid on the cold floor, the whole room was freezing in fact, so much that Yn hair was blowing around thanks to the strong AC in front of her.

And she froze in the spot, all her blood went to her feet, she felt her heart skipping a few beats while a second after her heartbeats went painfully fast.

All her weight suddenly was too much for her legs that started shaking.

The woman looked young enough to be her age, her throat sliced open the blood pool besides her was no longer bright red, it looked dark enough to be almost brown.

The blueish and purple marks in her arms indicated struggle.

But it was her eyes more than the open wound what would give Yn nightmares for the rest of her life.

Her eyes had this dead stare that made the gore scene even more grim, whoever this woman was she was murdered looking straight to her killer’s eyes while he sliced her throat.

Yn felt like she was going to throw up suddenly, she wasn’t supposed to be here, she just fond this secret door and the curiosity got the best of her.

She was now in front of a crime scene.

Yn’s senses came all at once, her survival instinct screaming at her to get out as soon as possible. So she fought with her nausea and shaking body and made her way out.

She started to think all sorts of things, the questions flood her head like a hurricane.

How long she stood there? Does she look too shock? Could she pretend good enough that she did not find a corpse?

She made her way back blinking and trying to act like she saw nothing, her life depended on it, because as long as she stayed there, she was in as much in danger as the dead woman in the secret room.

“Sweetheart? What is taking you so long?” the voice of her boyfriend Jungkook on the living room made an echo through her entire body.

She had to answer, otherwise it would be too suspicious.

She took a breath and prepare herself hoping her mouth can make a sound

“Coming!” she said with a shaky voice. She did not mean to come out shaky but she couldn’t help it.

Will he notice? Will he come after her too?

The risk was too high, her instinct palpitating in her chest telling her that she must find an escape route.

The kitchen door is fairly near, she could try and sneak herself to the kitchen and scape.

So, she did, soon at the kitchen door she heard him said:

“Yn, baby?” Jungkook’s voice was too near, she needed to go out now.

Yn was running as fast as she could through the streets, people staring at the crazy foreigner. She knew there was a police station nearby, it was the only way!

When she enters the police station she is gasping for air, everyone turned to her concerned.

Everything hits her at that moment so she crumbles, sobbing uncontrollably as the words struggle to come out. She tries to explains herself the better that the tears and sobbing let her, but sentences don’t make quite sense, only the words are the things that can be understood.

Girl. Murder. Basement. Blood. Help.

And in the middle of the tragedy, the door slams open and an equally out of air Jungkook arrives to the scene. He ran the same distance as you but he recovered quite fast without a drop of sweat.

“I’m so sorry, it’s my fault, sir” Jungkook said bowing to the cop, the police man looked at him and then at the exalted foreigner and directed himself to Jungkook.

“What happened?” the police officer asked. Yn felt the need to calm herself down so she can be taken seriously.

“It’s him, officer, he is the killer!” you exclaimed, making both look at you, Jungkook’s eyes were like never before, it was like he had a demon inside very contrasting as the usual sweet and considerate boyfriend that he was.

“I’m deeply sorry, she is sick” Jungkook said to the officer “She didn’t take her medicine in the morning, sir” and then out of his pocket he took out some pills, your eyes widen while you connected the dots. “She has to take 2 of these, otherwise she will start getting violent, sir” he severed putting a concerned façade.

“Liar, you are a liar!” you screamed at him, a few tears running down your face.

“Call an ambulance now” the officer instructed to the secretary. You shook your head.

“Please arrest him, he is a killer!” you exclaimed but by the way he looked at you, you knew that he did not believe you, that you were crazy.

“She needs her pills, sir” Jungkook insisted to the officer.

“Don’t go fucking near me, do you hear me?! Don’t you dare to come closer, sick fuck” you spitted at him, the officer put himself between you two.

“Back off boy, let the doctors take care of this” the officer insisted, you notice the irritated expression in Jungkook’s face.

“Then I’ll wait right here, sir, I can’t leave her by herself” he seated nearby.

Soon the ambulance arrived and the paramedics were all over you, you repeated over and over that you were not sick that you refuse to go anywhere, but they took your arm and forcefully sedated you, the last thing you saw was Jungkook’s getting inside the ambulance.

You woke up feeling groggy and disoriented, a voice calling your name, a voice that you did not recognize.

“Yn-ssi, can you hear me?” as you opened your eyes you looked at your surroundings, it was a hospital, and the man calling your name was the doctor.

“Can you hear me, Yn-ssi?” He asked again, you could only nod with your head. ”Good, I’m Dr. Choi Hyunsuk, you must feel drowsy and soon you will have a strong head ache, but don’t worry we gave you some medic-“ he stopped himself when heard an alarm going off.

“Code 331, Code 331, overdose in emergency room, calling all doctors”

Someone was dying somewhere, so the doctor quickly went to attend the emergency.

you could sense that Jungkook was near and you did not want to stay a second longer but your head ache was making everything worse.

You felt even more drowsy and slow and questioned when the supposed medicine would take effect on you, then suddenly Jungkook made his way to your side, in horror but unable to move or speak you watch closely how Jungkook’s hand put away the hair off your face, his hand soft but cold, his expression look like usual Jungkook, your sweet boy, but now that image was shattered, the scene turned into a horror movie. You started to sweat you mind was everywhere and you simply could not do anything about it.

He put your shoes on, as he made you stand, you were like a zombie following his instructions, and then he took you out of the hospital without anybody’s suspicion.

He called a taxi and put you inside. When the vehicle started moving you started to feel ten times worse, your chest starting to ache, your consciousness starting to slip.

Jungkook turn to you with a confuse look in his eyes, and then everything felt like it was in slow motion.

You blinked a few times, feeling in great peace, while you felt less and less pain and could only feel like you were safe, completely unaware of your surroundings. The hysterical sobs of Jungkook while he pulls you close to his chest, the neurotic screams of the taxi driver doing a risky turn to hospital at great speed, no, you were no aware of all of that, you can only feel good and safe, and soon the irresistible urge of closing your eyes, in a blink of a moment you blissfully disappeared from reality.

…..

And then you woke up.

You woke up in an empty classroom.

The noon hot sunrays showered your face with some warm, a few drops of sweat running down from your temples. You slowly got up and scanned the whole room with your eyes. It was just your collage, and this was the classroom that is always empty so you sneak yourself in sometimes and took naps.

But what you were doing there? The last moments of your memory were blurry but you did vividly remember those whole traumatic events. The corpse, the police station, the hospital…Jungkook.

yn could feel herself dying, that sole memory made her gasp.

If she is not dead how the hell she ended up in this classroom?

Yn got up and walk out of the room going straight to the bathroom to refresh her sweaty face.

Then yn saw herself in the mirror and felt confused immediately.

Why her hair was light brown? She did not bleach her hair in a year. For what is worth, she looked exactly like a year ago, the clothes, the hair style, everything.

She had to sit on the floor since her legs no longer support her when she finally realized what was going on.

Maybe she has gone back in time!

She almost torn her cellphone to pieces taking it out of the purse and looking for the date.

Oh.my.god.

It can certainly sound impossible, it can actually be impossible and she is just hallucinating all of this, but then why everything feels so real?

Is the universe giving her another chance to live? To make better decisions? A year ago she did not met Jungkook yet, is that a signal?

She felt her mind running a thousand miles per hour trying to find logical explanation of what happened to her actually. But eventually she stopped and just accepted the fact that she is just a lucky bitch and an error or a 1 in the millionth possibility happened to her.

Lesson learned! Watch out for killers! Live your live to the fullest! all that jazz.

Yn got up and started doing a happy dance.

Life is amazing, isn’t it?

She felt going for an ice cream as soon as possible, with double, no, triple sprinkles and a goddamn cheesecake on the side!

Yn walked through the halls like nobody could stopped her, she was smiling like an idiot and feeling the excitement bubbling up in her system.

She made her way out of the classroom building and walked through the campus, the summer days made everything better, the weather was amazing. Soon she found herself in the dining hall and bought her well-deserved ice cream.

While she ate her ice cream, she stopped herself in the middle of the campus, she saw a squirrel.

Was she so distracted and busy that she did not notice before the cute squirrels in the trees? Yn felt the need to appreciate the little things in life, so she closed her eyes for a second to hear the birds sing. Oh what a beautiful melody!

But then someone passing by hit her shoulder making her open her eyes immediately and drop her ice cream. Her ice cream was on the ground rapidly melting in the hot summer day she looked at the guilty pair of shoes and as soon as she looked at his face, she felt taken aback.

The worried lost puppy eyes of Jeon Jungkook started at her.

“I’m so sorry” he said fast and bowed, there he was right before you, who would have thought what he was capable off? He looked helpless now but life has given you another chance and you would not fall for it again!

So have to stay as far as you could from Jeon Jungkook if you want a happy and long life.

If that means you have to be a bitch so, be it.

“Better watch where you fucking walk” you told him in a cold tone composing yourself and starting to walk, for a millisecond you saw that expression that he made when he was hurt, but now you could not care any less.

“I..i can buy another ice cream, please let me!” he said walking slightly behind you, why he was following you?

You turned slightly to watch his helpless act once again, you rolled your eyes and said: “Why don’t you piss off already!” you turned and walk away this time he did not followed you. Thank god.

yn was never like this but her survival instinct was far stronger than her politeness.

yn had lived a year in advance, isn’t that wonderful?

She can ace her exams, avoid stupid mistakes, say yes to meeting her mom’s new boyfriend that turns out to be rich!

The possibilities are incredible! The only thing she has to do now is sit and watch, so that’s what is going to do.

……….

A couple days later as walks to her class, in the distance she can’t fail to notice Jungkook walking besides someone, when yn finally recognize the person beside him she has to cover her mouth at the shock.

Jungkook was talking with the girl from the basement.

Her heart dropped knowing what will be the destiny of the girl.

She looked so lively and bubbly, in yn’s mind she contrasted that with her dead corpse, and she almost wanted to throw up.

As soon as they came too close, yn hide behind a nearby building, the guilt started to build up in her chest, she had a second chance but the other girl doesn’t? one thing is for sure, if she doesn’t stop her from associating with Jungkook the girl will be dead.

She has to warn her too!

Maybe the universe sent her here with a mission, she has to save the girl’s life.

Though still terrified yn promised herself to be brave and make the best choice with her second chance in life.

First, she has found out who she is.

That same night after hours of looking around in social media she found her: Min Hajoon.

She did not have too much photos or anything that could help yn to figure out how she was going to approach and make Hajoon trust her.

Yn look at the only photo of Jungkook and Hajoon had together, they were with other people in a restaurant smiling at the camera. That doesn’t give Yn too much clues on how close they actually are.

Suddenly her phone showed her a KakaoTalk notification, the number was not registered but she remembered that it was Jungkook’s.

Xx: Hello, I’m sorry to bother you, I’m Jeon Jungkook. I don’t know if you remember me but I accidentally made you drop your ice cream on the campus.

You scrunched your features and wondered if you should just ignore his texts, but maybe you can take this opportunity to really make him understand that he has to leave you alone once and for all.

You: Oh yes, I do remember you unfortunately, wasn’t I clear when I told you to fuck off?

You: are you retarded or something? lol

Jungkook: I just wanted to clarify that it was just an accident, that’s all.

Jungkook: Wow where is all this aggressivity coming from?

Jungkook: I’m sorry? Like I can buy another ice cream if you are so upset

You: gosh you are so annoying

You: understand this: leave me the fuck alone

Jungkook: is this a foreigner thing?

Yn raised an eyebrow

You: the fuck do you mean by that?

Jungkook: I just don’t understand why are you being so rude with me over an ice cream, doesn’t make any sense

You: because it’s not the fucking ice cream, it’s you, you annoy the hell out of me.

You: and since you clearly don’t understand, I will just simply block you so I don’t have to talk to you ever again

Yn pressed a few buttons and block Jungkook’s number, she had to be extra shitty so he could be put off by her attitude, that’s the only way he can stay away from her.

But the universe really is ironic and seems to like playing with yn in their own way, when the next day Yn enters 20 minutes early to the classroom as it was her routine with this particular class and minutes later a well-dressed and good smelling Jungkook walk towards her, making her flinch instantly, he was holding two iced coffees, when he got to you he put one on your side, and before you could open your mouth to protest he bowed at you.

You almost gasped.

“I’m sorry, Yn-ssi, if I ever offend you, it was not my intention, I hope we can get along well from now on” Jungkook said after bowing and with a firm tone, his big dark eyes staring at yours.

Panic filled your veins, you did not expect or imagined this to happen. How he wasn’t put off by your words? Your attitude? And the most important question: how to react to this confrontation? Like you would look like a crazy bitch if you still hold a grudge, the ice cream was a too weak of a excuse to keep treating him badly, maybe you should go after another strategy, maybe politely rejecting him would work best.

“How do you know my name?” you questioned neutral, which was a real concern for you. You did not recall any circumstance where your name was mention. He lowered his gaze and then said:

“I found your social media, so i…”

“That’s incredibly creepy” you interrupted him, you said it as if you didn’t do the same to find Hajoon, he seemed a little affected by that statement, his eyes started looking other places.

“I didn’t mean to be creepy, I just…”

“And by the way I don’t drink coffee” you interrupted again putting away the coffee from you, he was startled and seemed nervous at your coldness, what else can go wrong? He thought, everything he did you took it the wrong way.

“I did not know that, I’m sorry, maybe I can buy you something else that you might like?” he said again trying to get to yn, but the girl had the same indecipherable expression.

“What about this, Jungkook: we just stop addressing each other existence and that’s it” you said with a monotonous voice his eyes expanded “I can’t be more clear than that” you ended.

He seemed conflicted as he looked at you.

“I just don’t understand, what I did to you that hate me so much!?” he exclaimed frustrated, in that moment some students entered the classroom and looked your way, Jungkook took the coffees and left without saying a word or looking back, you relaxed in your seat, it was hard to be tough with the boy you used to call your boyfriend because he showed you how sweet and considered he can be, it was hard to hurt him but it was the only way you can save yourself.

After class Yn needed to pee, so she quickly went to the washroom, when she came out of the toilet there wasn’t anyone there, except one person: Min Hajoon. The door was locked too, yn felt strange, what was happening?

Hajoon got closer to Yn, but as soon as Yn tries to speak she is silenced by the dry sound of Hajoon palm sweeping her cheek with a quick movement, the burning sensation that came immediately after made Yn put her hand on the reddened area.

“Pay attention to me, whore, stay away from my boyfriend, I’m not afraid to smack your ugly face if you keep getting involved in my relationship with Jungkook, you got it?” Hajoon said with a restless face, she was actually scary, a very different image from the pitiful murder victim that Yn remembered, the memory actually brought tears to her eyes.

“Are you crying?, how pathetic” Hajoon remarked cruelly, you looked at her and spoke sincerely. Her opportunity to warn Hajoon was right there.

“Please you don’t know who you are involved with” you said to her trying to control your tears.

“What did you say, bitch?” she spitted grabbing your hair you squealed out of pain.

“Jungkook is dangerous, Hajoon, he can hurt you, please believe me” you said fighting with the tears and the pain. “He is faking, trying to get close with you, he is capable of very horrible things!” you threw yourself to the ground, trying to beg her to listen “ please you have to believe me, Hajoon, promise me that you would get away from him!”

Hajoon was too overwhelmed to speak properly, why this girl was saying all this to her? Who is that girl? Why seems that the girl knows something that she doesn’t?

“You are truly crazy” Hajoon mumbled before storming out of the washroom. Yn stayed there a few minutes more trying to calm down and hoping Hajoon is spook enough to stay away from Jungkook.

…..

Things only got worse when the next day she was cited at the student administration office. She never had to go there ever before as she was an excellent student and never got in trouble with a professor. So, she was very confused when president of the student administration and counseling Park Chanyeol explained to Yn with a rehearsed polite smile:

“We normally never have situations like these, especially with foreigner students, like ever” Chanyeol said “So I assumed that it must be a misunderstanding of some sort, we try our best to keep things positive around here” he remarked looking at your still confused face, he handed you a document “Like I’m sure it must be extra hard for you studying here in Korea, I have cousins studying abroad and they always tell me it’s not easy” he kept talking in fast speed, you still trying to catch up what he was saying and nodding every few seconds. “Maybe you did offend someone? But like, I’m sure it was totally unintentional, like a complete mistake, you seem like a really nice girl” he kept saying without giving you any chance to reply “do you have a boyfriend by the way?” he asked but before you could reply he started talking again “Don’t think I’m flirting with you, like I’m just asking casually you know?” Chanyeol added giving you a look “I actually have a girlfriend myself, her name it’s Minjun, I was asking if you had a partner so maybe you could go out with us, you know, like a couple date or something?” he laughed shortly before he finally shut up.

“Um… excuse me, what am I here for?” you asked him lost at his ocean of words he just said earlier, he blinked a few times before smiling again and pointing the document at your hands that you completely forgot about in the middle of his speech.

“A student came earlier and put a complain on you, but you know as I mention it’s more likely that it was misunder…” Chanyeol started to say before he was interrupted by you.

“Who was it?” you asked him reading quickly the document “This is not a simple complain this is for bullying and harassment!” you exclaimed shocked.

“Jeon Jungkook, I’m afraid” Chanyeol said, you wanted to rip the document apart as soon as you heard his name “But as I said, I don’t actually belief that we have a case here”

“A case?” you asked raising an eyebrow.

“Well the protocol says…” Chanyeol starts saying “We must review the case in our next assembly and discuss the course of actions dictated in our regulation issued by the University”

“Don’t beat around the bush, what are you going to do with me if you find me guilty?” you said to him firm, he looked the other way trying to avoid confrontation.

“Guilty? Hey c’mon now! This is no criminal trial” he laughed nervously “Look why don’t you talk to Jungkook-ssi ? the misunderstanding can be clear up and it will be like we didn’t have this conversation at all!” Chanyeol insisted still avoiding to look at you.

“What could happen?” you asked again, this time Chanyeol look at you serious, no fake smile on sight, then he sighted.

“The school could expel you” he finally said but he quickly came back to his charismatic persona “Hey, don’t have that look on your face, that’s like the worst of the worst, okay? I’m just obligated to tell you the “penalty” “he said marking with his fingers “like by the book, yeah expulsion, but I’m super duper sure that that would not be your case, okay? Don’t be sad!” he exclaimed fixing his glasses “just talk to Jung…”

“Jungkook, okay, so my best option is to ask him to retire the complaint?” you ask annoyed already.

“Well I’m sure that would resolve this way more quickly, don’t you agree?” Chanyeol suggested, a few seconds later his phone ringed “Alrighty, I really need to take this call, so you can come over anytime if you need anything else, my number is on the back of document, okay?” he didn’t let you answer when he already picked up the call and left the room.

You closed your eyes and screamed internally trying to not lose it in public. How he dared? You were beyond mad at this point, it seemed like the more you tried to push Jungkook away, the circumstances pulled you together once again, it was so frustrating!

You pull your phone out of your purse and look for Jungkook’s number on the list of contacts and unblocked him , but before you could press his name you stopped yourself from calling him, no, this is exactly what he wanted you to do, plus you haven’t really bully him, he was the one harassing you! How he fucking dare?!

You stormed out of the office and started walking towards the dinning hall you needed a strong coffee to calm your nerves.

You sipped the black steaming liquid closing your eyes but a voice interrupted your calm.

“You said you didn’t like coffee” Jungkook’s voice made Yn open her eyes in alarm, once she saw him as handsome as ever, she rolled her eyes when she recognized her own thoughts, though Jungkook perceived that as another micro aggression.

“Whatever, what do you want?” you asked him annoyed, a head ache starting to appear.

“I though that maybe you wanted to talk to me” he suggested sitting right in front of you, both knowing what he was referring to.

“Yeah, you thought wrong” you said to him ruthless, Jungkook raised an eyebrow.

“You keep being stubborn I see” he said with this playful expression “You are risking being expel just to piss me off, that’s dedication” he smiled, that bunny smile that melt your heart so many times before.

“And what was that for? Bullying? Fucking harassment? Boy you have the nerve to accuse me of harassment, simply absurd, c’mon!” you spitted sipping your coffee that was sadly gotten cold, another thing that ruined your day.

“You are always swearing whenever we talk, you are so pretty to do that, you always catch me by surprise, you know?” Jungkook said still with the playful expression on his face, he wanted to tease you.

“Retire the complaint” you demanded; he left out a chuckle.

“No”

“Why?”

“You could ask that more nicely” He looked at you entertained, you wanted to scream at his face that he can fuck off but that would not be so helpful at your situation.

“Can you please, Jungkookie oppa, retire the complaint, that would make me so happy, pretty please?” you scoffed with a whiny tone and putting your hands together, he let out a nervous laugh, you made him nervous, that’s when you remembered that he secretly likes being call oppa and you also used to call him Jungkookie, which he melt in an instant when you did, though unintentional you ignited something in him, he tried to dissimulate the pink tone of his cheeks but you did notice.

“I hate to say no when you ask me like this, but I have to say no” he said after a few seconds.

“Then go away, you keep pestering me” you said annoyed “Whatever you want to blackmail me with, please save your time, I will simply say no”

“I don’t not want to see you expelled, Yn, I really don’t” he said “So I have a proposition for you, let’s know each other better and have a decent conversation, I’ll take you out to eat, we’ll talk, we’ll drink and know more about one another, you will know my true nature and see that even after our rough first encounter we are actually not that different, if after that you don’t want to talk to me again that’s fine” he ended looking directly at your eyes, you sighted.

“And you retire the complaint either way?” you asked him raising an eyebrow

“And I will retire the complaint, you have my word”

“I’ll think about it” you responded he wanted to protest but before he could speak you said “I’ll text you, okay?” you stood up from the table and left him there, Jungkook blinked a few times watching you leave the dining hall as fast as your feet let you.

……………….

You: Are you available? It’s Yn from earlier.

You texted Chanyeol the student administration president, he texted back in seconds

Chanyeol: not right now, maybe for dinner time?

Chanyeol: so much woooork, right?

You: works for me

Chanyeol: so I pick you up then?

Chanyeol: u like jajangmyeon?

You: you mean off campus?

You: yeah sure.

Chanyeol: yeah I go all the time

Chanyeol: great, pass me your direction and I see ya later ��

While you both ate, at the restaurant he truly did not know when to stop talking, when Chanyeol was not slurping his noodles, he was serving you and him more soju or he was talking, he wasn’t worried about you replaying he was more than fine with the fact that you were there to listen all his crap.

“Okay, listen” you said interrupting him if you didn’t say what you came to say you would end up drunk and too sleepy to remember the purpose of this dinner “I wanted to talk with you because of the whole bullying accusation bullshit” Chanyeol nodded while filling his and your glass with more alcohol.

“To be honest I don’t even really know the guy, I had maybe two real interactions that lasted less than 5 minutes, that doesn’t disprove his accusations towards me?” you asked drinking the glass that Chanyeol served you, the alcohol already making effect on your body.

“Well it’s not that simple, you know, we have to follow the protocols” Chanyeol added drinking his.

“Fuck the protocols, doesn’t this type of shit make the school look bad? The less bullying accusations the better?” you replied trying to convince him, he shook his head smiling.

“That’s not how it works, honey” he said to you, you wanted to call him out for calling you honey, but you needed him on your side.

“You said that I was a good girl” good girl? why did you said that? Maybe you drank too much and started speaking nonsense, Chanyeol smiled at you.

“You are a good girl, honey, I know you are but I can’t just ignore a complaint, I’ll vouch for you in the assembly, okay?” Chanyeol said almost pouting, you wanted to roll your eyes, that won’t do.

“Why can’t you say to that idiot that the assembly already did all that and that I’m innocent? Will somebody really notice?” you suggested almost whining, how much it would take to convince this dude.

“That means making some documents up, I could get in trouble” Chanyeol pressured

“Oh c’mon, what else I can do, can you just do me a favor? I can’t reason with Jeon Jungkook he is totally psycho” you told him whining some more.

“What can you do to convince me? Maybe you could worth the trouble if you are persuasive enough” Chanyeol said suggestively and you suddenly encounter yourself into a corner.

Help.help.help

Hell you were able to do a lot of things to get yourself out of trouble, but you didn’t think sleeping with Chanyeol the president of the student administration, worth it.

Then as if the guardian angels existed, your phone ringed, unfortunately it was Jungkook.

“Look Chanyeol oppa, he is the one harassing me!” you whined to him trying to desperately convince him.

You accepted the call.

“Why are you calling me?” you tried to control yourself but your voice sounded drunk.

“Where are you? Are you drunk?” Jungkook asked on the other side, if you weren’t drunk enough you could say he was even worried.

“You know, you call me on a damn good time, I’m trying to fix this mess you brought me into” you say to him in a demanding way.

“What does that even mean? Listen Yn I will pick you up wherever you are, pass me your location” Jungkook said to you serious.

“It means I’m here with Chanyeol oppa, say hi oppa” you instructed Chanyeol that was laughing besides you drunk as well, he took the phone and said:

“You are so messed up dude, Yn is a very good girl, right?”

“Yeah” you said in the background

“How can you lie about her, dude? She is so pretty, aren’t you?” Chanyeol was chuckling between words and pass you the phone again.

“You heard him, he believes me so your damn blackmail did not work on me” you said to Jungkook in a defiant way you could hear him sighting loudly.

“You are so stupid, just let me pick you up, you are clearly intoxicated” Jungkook sounded disappointed.

“No, fuck off I can take care of myself” you said on the other line.

“At least let me call you a taxi, please” he begged but you hung up your phone.

When you ended the call, you saw the sleeping figure of Chanyeol reclined in the restaurant chair, you thank the heavens and called a taxi for the both of you, after leaving him, you went to bed at your own apartment trying to think of a new way to get out of the situation but it really seemed like there was no other way than accepting Jungkook’s deal.

…..

The next day defeated you had no option but to text Jungkook, he sent you lost of messages last night but you ignore them off course, with an uninterested charm you started typing:

You: let’s go out tonight, you know what I mean

He typed a response seconds after

Jungkook: Gosh I was considering visit you at your class, why you didn’t text me back?

You: I don’t really have to

Jungkook: I can’t believe you hang up the call

Jungkook: You shouldn’t drink if don’t know how to control yourself

You: I will let pass your last comment because I want to be nice today

You: so, are you free tonight or not?

Jungkook: alright

Jungkook: be ready at 8

You really did not want to make an effort, but after all you knew who Jungkook was and if you did not take it as serious as him, he will find a loophole to keep contact with you and did not want that.

You did not actually know what you want.

Since the crazy all over again situation happened to you, you haven’t really stopped for a second to really think what is going on, what is really happening.

Did the universe actually give you a second chance to make things right? It actually felt like your old life was a complete hallucination. You doubted every day if doing all this actually serves a purpose.

But if you had to summarize all your questions and doubts into one it would be: why?

Why Jungkook killed Hajoon in the first place?

Why didn’t you notice in your old life that he was capable of killing?

Why the Jungkook in this new life seems so uncapable of killing or doing harm?

Why you have to live all of this again?

It was a lot of questions that pile up in the back of your mind and didn’t leave you alone, you had avoided making any friends, you had avoided going out at all.

You felt alone.

That made you actually wonder if it was really a bad thing that the school expel you, that would be a valid reason to pack your things and go home and start all over again, but at least you would have your mom and friends.

If you remembered correctly Jungkook lost his mom when he was a kid, maybe that is one of the signals you did not pick up about him, he never talked about his father either which you did no press him any further assuming that they might had fought. He wasn’t close with his family but he did seem normal. He approached you like a gentleman, ask for your number and started dating you, he had friends, well one actually, but they looked like they appreciate each other a lot, then it doesn’t make any sense why he would become so violent. Maybe he is just capable of such violence.

You received his text which took you out of your thoughts.

Whoever Jungkook really was, you need to cut ties and if this was truly the last chance you had to close this chapter of your life then you would not fuck it up.

Soon enough you two where dining at this restaurant, he made sure to look good tonight. Jungkook was wearing all black but the tight pants with the loose button shirt made him look dressed up but casual at the same time, you did recognize the outfit though. He was wearing it on your first date when you two were together in your past life.

Mixed feeling made a knot on your chest, you maybe had to calm down a bit with anesthesia in form of a bottle.

You served yourself some soju but before you could ingest it Jungkook stopped you.

“Calm down a bit, they haven’t brought us the food yet”

“That is exactly what I’m trying to do” you said trying once again to drink the liquor but Jungkook soft hand did not let you, you sighted.

“Please, it’s not about getting drunk” he insisted.

“You are so boring” you said letting off the glass in the table. Jungkook look down for a second, you had hurt his feelings, in another life you would have apologized and kiss his pouty lips, but you have to be tough in this one.

“I still haven’t figuring you out yet” Jungkook said to you “You hating me for no reason, I don’t believe it for a second” he pointed out analyzing your features “Something inside me fights for still convince you, still not sure of what, but I can’t give up, isn’t that crazy?”

You look at him for the first time without an annoyed look on your face.

“You look so pretty tonight” he said serious “So pretty” he remarked.

“Hey only Chanyeol can call me that” you bring out that idiot to dissipate the atmosphere, he knew what he was doing after all it has worked in the past, and if keep doing that it might work again.

Jungkook annoyance was too obvious.

“How could you go out with him? He has a reputation, you know? Did he try something stupid with you?” Jungkook demanded, he looked mad, but no the normal mad that you were accustomed to, the shine of evil that you saw that day reflected in his dark pupils for a second before disappearing, that made you swallow some saliva.

“I was joking, he as drunk as I was, I left him home, he needed help to even walk, if someone was getting advantage, I could have been the one” you said remembering Chanyeol state, Jungkook opened his eyes at your statement.

“Yn…”

“But of course, I did not, besides Chanyeol it’s not my type at all” you teased.

“And what is your type?” Jungkook asked, his lips parted with a daring gaze.

“I will not tell you, but you aren’t either” and you were not lying Jungkook wasn’t your usual type but he had something about him, that drives you completely crazy.

“Besides you have a fucking girlfriend, don’t you?” you accuse him, his expression turned confused, before he could refute you the waitress came with your food, she left soon enough. “Mmm smells so good” you said looking at the tasty dishes before you.

“Where did you get the idea that I have a girlfriend?” Jungkook asked ignoring your attempt to change the subject “It’s that why you are so cold with me?”

“So you have the balls to hide your girlfriend from me? Men! They never change!” you exclaimed with a sarcastic tone and already digging in some meat. Jungkook on the other hand hasn’t even pick up his chopsticks, he shook his head laughing with irony and served himself some soju, after he drank the shot he scrunched up his features at the burning sensation in his throat.

“What did Hajoon say to you?” Jungkook asked finally eating some food, you served two shoots of soju Jungkook took one glass and both of you drank.

“Who is Hajoon?” you asked lying blatantly “I was testing you, but it turns out that you actually have a girlfriend, ha!” you remarked, Jungkook big dark eyes opened.

“I.. umm” Jungkook started to say.

“Shut up, I don’t want to hear it” you interrupted him “like I’m not even surprised”

“I want to be honest with you, Hajoon does want something with me, okay? But we were never nothing. She was never my girlfriend” Jungkook confessed eating another piece of meat.

You raised an eyebrow. Then why did you kill her? You wanted to ask but of course you didn’t say anything.

“This is a lame conversation” you said to him.

“It is” he agreed surprising you “And I don’t care about your efforts I will not give up my chance tonight I will make you like me”

“You have too much high expectations” you added stuffing your face with noodles.

“Don’t eat too much we have another stop after dinner” he said to you making you look at him surprised, he smiled at you and said “And just to let you know, if I had the privilege to date you, I would be exclusive of course”

You pretended not pay attention to the last sentence, in your mind wondering about where he wanted to take you.

The taxi left the two of you in a children park, people were having a pleasant time, there were almost not kids around, only couples or loners that were looking at the moon and the stars that evening. Then a weird sensation in your body made you almost flinch but Jungkook took it as if you were cold.

“Oh I’m sorry, Yn I don’t have my coat here” Jungkook said “Let me hold you closer” Jungkook pull you to his arms, you were having so much mixed feelings that you did not protest or resist his touch.

“Why did you brought me here, Jungkook?” you questioned, you could not see his face you could only hear his voice.

“This a kinda personal place for me, if we become close one day I’ll tell you the full story okay?” he said with an incredibly smooth voice, you did not responded and without saying a word you walked in silence admiring the flowers and the moonshine.

Then a statue caught your attention, a butterfly statue.

You remembered once when you were little, a park had a butterfly statue just like this one, but that was a weird day, a little boy lost his mom and he was scared, he did not let go of your hand.

……………………………….

The past.

The children’s squeals and the cracking sounds of the swings of the kid’s park filled the ambiance while the summer breeze blew Yn’s hair. the little girl was barely grasping her mother’s hand, everything was unnatural to her, even thought it was a children’s park and she was a little girl the fact that she was in this foreign country made the most simple things incredibly new and even scary.

Yn’s mom promise her that they would have so much fun in Korea while they were on holiday, just like their vacation in Thailand and Japan though she doesn’t remember much of those. Her mom made sure she could understand some of the language which she spoke fluently, but still it was too different from home that she did not dare to leave her mom side for too long.

So there she was, not being able to play with the other kids because it was scary, but she wanted to make her mom happy so for the first time in days she let go of her hand and went her way.

Walking through the park she stopped her tracks, she heard someone behind a bush, not a dangerous stranger rather it sounded like a kid was crying.

She went closer and found a little boy just like her, his big doe watery eyes stared at her immediately, a few tears running down his still red face.

“Don’t cry!” yn said in his language, she remembered she asked her mom what did it meant what the old ladies said to her when she was crying in the restaurant.

He looked at her again not sobbing anymore but unable to stop the tears, yn felt pity for him and wondered why he was in the park alone without his mom. Yn felt the need to help him, maybe her mom can call his or something.

“Come!” she ordered him with gesture of her hands, the boy still not said a word but he stood up without moving, without more vocabulary to instruct him, yn simply took his hand and pull him so he followed her.

The boy did grab her hand tightly and followed her, when they arrived to her mom, she looked at them with a smile that dropped as soon as she saw the red bloated eyes of the little boy.

“What’s wrong with your friend, sweetie?” she asked yn.

“I don’t know, I think he lost her mom but I don’t know how to ask him” yn said worried, her mom started to ask the little boy questions that she did not understand quite well, the boy did not let go of her hand.

“His name is Jungkook” her mother suddenly said to her “He doesn’t remember her mother’s phone number, why don’t you introduce yourself like I taught you” she suggested, the nerves attacked yn again but she had to be a big girl today.

“My name is yn” she said remembering how to introduce herself in Korean.

“I am Jeon Jungkook” he responded not crying anymore.

“Honey I am going to ask around to see if his mother is near, ok?” her mom said to her “Meanwhile why don’t you go play and buy ice cream, huh? that could make Jungkook less scared don’t you think?” her mom handed her some cash and put away some hairs of her face, yn nodded.

Her mom said something to Jungkook and then walked away, Jungkook pulled her hand and she followed him, then she playfully pushed him and then ran away, Jungkook got the hint and ran her way until he got to her and push her playfully making her laugh, now he ran as fast as he could but she got to him. They stopped when the saw an old lady with a cart, all the children were forming a line so yn assumed that she must be selling delicious ice cream.

Yn looked at Jungkook, he gave her a little smile. They both were sitting on the bench drinking yogurt, it turned out that the old lady was not selling ice cream, but the yogurt was tasty. The bench was just in front of this particular statue, the sculpture was of a butterfly spreading its wings, yn found it beautiful.

Yn put the change in her pockets put her keychain fell out, Jungkook grabbed it and extended to her, yn felt the need to gift her keychain to Jungkook, the poor boy lost his mom so he must be really sad.

She shook her head and made a gesture to him to keep it, Jungkook looked at her with a smile and hug her, she hugged him back then she took his hand and made their way back to her mom that was calling for them.

While they were walking towards her mom yn notice someone.

It was a woman, a weeping woman hidden behind a tree nearby. The way that she looked at them made the unaware little girl sense that something was up, but she said nothing to Jungkook or her mom, a minute past and she did not realize until a man suddenly grabbed Jungkook’s arm.

The man did not have a good aspect, he had this serious expression in his face, a 3 day beard, messy hair and he smelled like tobacco.

Jungkook smiled went away immediately, yn turned around looking for the woman hiding behind the tree but she was gone.

Her mom looked serious while talking to the man, he had a deep raspy voice, they seemed to say goodbye and the next second the man was pulling Jungkook away from yn, Jungkook held her hand tight for a few seconds until this man pull him away, then they walk out Jungkook looking at her at every chance he had.

“Is him his dad?” Yn asked her mom confused.

“Yes, he is Jungkook’s father” She also followed them with her sight until she could not see them anymore ”Are you hungry, sweetie? Let’s go grab lunch” her mother said to her taking her hand and leaving the park.

……………………………………………………………..

“This is crazy, but I think I’d been here before” you mentioned, Jungkook stopped walking as you said that. “I came here when I was a child”

“What?” Jungkook mumbled almost to himself.

“Yes, that’s the statue” you turned to take a better look of it but Jungkook’s arm did not let you go so you both turned. “Whoah so crazy like a deja vu” you exclaimed.

“I think a boy lost his mom that day, I did not know a word of Korean back then, but I tried my best to comfort him, I remember that it was in this very same park!” you were excited at the coincidence that you did no notice Jungkook’s watery eyes and how wiped away a few tears from his face, so you were surprised when he hugged you all of the sudden, you were kinda stiff at the beginning but soon enough you hugged him back.

“What if I tell you that I’m that boy, the boy that was so scared that hid behind the bush? That felt safe while holding that little girl hand?” Jungkook said while hugging you even tighter, you came to realization of him being the little boy that lost his mom that day.

“oh my god” you could only say, all this time seemed like destiny crossed your paths on purpose since you two were little till now. Your lives changed so much, you wondered sometimes what could have been of that lost boy, and now realizing that it was Jungkook all this time made you a little emotional.

You broke the hug to look at his eyes, they were shiny and, his lips curved into a smile.

“It is you” he said still smiling.

“Jungkook this is actually crazy” you manage to say “I don’t know what to say”

“We don’t have to say much” Jungkook replied putting his hands on your face and caressing your cheeks with his fingers.

“I wondered so many times about you” you confessed to him feeling the urge to close the distance.

“So did I” Jungkook said softly “I still have the keychain, but I’m always afraid to lose it so I keep it in my room”

“Really?” you asked almost in a whisper; he bitted his lips.

“Yn, I’m going to kiss you right now, I can’t hold back no more” he said before taking your lips into his, there was nothing aggressive about it, it was just neediness and passion, you hold his face between your hands deepening the kiss.

Jungkook hasn’t committed any crime yet.

You can guide him to be a better person and to get help for him if he needs it.

Maybe the universe message it’s that love wins at the end.

“Yn, I’m yours” Jungkook said between kisses. You melted at his words.

“I was such a bitch to you, I’m sorry” you said to Jungkook feeling the tears stinging your eyes.

“I forgive you” Jungkook murmuring giving you some pecks “I will always forgive you”

“Why don’t we celebrate?” you suggested to Jungkook “Is there a bar near here? I want to catch up with your life!”

“oh I don’t want to ruin the night, love” Jungkook said giving you one more kiss “my past is not something pleasant to talk about”

“it can’t be all bad, besides I want to know! Please” you pleaded with your eyes “And if you don’t want to tell me everything tonight then let just enjoy ourselves”

Jungkook smiled fondly

“Alright, I know a place”

You drank all night, kissing in-between, Jungkook did not say much about his past but he let you know that his mother passed away, but you already knew that. You told him about your life back home, how your mom was doing nowadays, that you felt a little lonely in Korea.

“You will never feel alone again, love” Jungkook mentioned kissing you again.

“What about you? You don’t seem to be close with the family you have left” you asked him, trying to get a little more information about his past.

He was taken back at your question, his whole demeanor turned anxious.

“Well it’s really not a nice story…” Jungkook said serious, you came closer to him and put your arm around his waist.

“It’s okay, I shouldn’t have asked” you replied trying to be tactful, Jungkook turned around to look at your eyes.

“…But I trust you enough” he sentenced “You remember that day when we were kids and I got lost? You know my father found me and I returned home with him” Jungkook told you holding his breath, you knew it was difficult topic and wondered why you even brought that up, maybe it was too soon to talk about it either way Jungkook continued “I actually ran away with my mom that day” he confessed and heavily exhaled “but he found me”

“That sounds like he wasn’t very good to you” you added passing your hands back and forth through his back in a soft motion.

“He was not” Jungkook simply said without giving much details “He was actually a monster”

“Oh my god” you exclaimed now feeling guilty, the woman behind the tree that day must has been Jungkook’s mom! And she arrived first but no one saw her except you. What could have been of Jungkook’s life? It was your fault, you felt the burning in eyes, tears wanting to come out but you hold them in to not worry Jungkook.

“And that day when he found me after running away he…” Jungkook had to stop himself for a moment “…took it on me” you closed your eyes recognizing how much Jungkook has suffered.

“But later when my mom came back home…He…” Jungkook made a disgusted gesture, he felt repulsed at the memories.

“Jungkook, we don’t have to talk about this if you are not comfortable” you reminded him with a gentle tone, he shook his head.

“Someone needs to know, I need some one to know” he exclaimed fully determined.

“To know what?” you asked him

“My mother did not just pass away, Yn” Jungkook confessed “That bastard kill her” you gasped loudly covering your mouth with your hand.

His father was a killer, so was Jungkook.

It was the cycle of violence bond to repeat itself.

Again in the hole without being able to escape.

Everything in Yn’s mind turned black and white. An animal survival instinct started again palpitating in her chest, fear infected her blood.

“Oh Jungkook” you could only whisper before pulling him for a hug trying to dissimulate your body shaking.

“He is not part of my life anymore, he doesn’t exist” he also said in a whisper “But I feel disgusted every time I have to pretend my mother just died and that he had nothing to do with it” the subtle rage in his tone chilled your bones

“It’s over, Jungkook, it’s over” you comforted him a few more seconds before pulling away from the hug.

Now you were stuck again, just when felt that you could give a second chance the change of events has led you right in the biggening.

Jungkook was doomed, you couldn’t explained but you just know it. And you would be doomed too if you stayed around too long.

Now it was time to make a new plan, no to gig yourself deeper in a highly codependent relationship.

You let another hour go by drowning yourself in more alcohol until you felt tipsy, then you turned to Jungkook with a tired expression:

“umm Jungkook I’m feeling a little sleepy right now” you told him yawning.

“it’s okay, let’s go to my house” Jungkook said, you could not mention this to him, but going to his house again was too soon, you needed to erase the memories of blood first.

You needed to decline but also be lowkey about it.

“isn’t a motel nearer?” you asked him

“A motel?” he asked you again.

It wasn’t ideal but you still could not let Jungkook suggest to take you home, so a motel it is.

“Yeah” you murmured “I just really want to sleep” emphasizing the last word, he nodded and took your hand guiding you.

You both left the bar, and maybe was the alcohol in your system but as soon as you realized you two were alone in a room.

The typical motel setting, nothing fancy, you were not able to catch much details the only thing that really caught your attention was the humid smell.

You did not think twice and went straight to the bed, Jungkook watching your every step, his expectations did not go to far as he saw you close your eyes and fell asleep not much later.

He shook his head smiling, and took off your heels. He did the same with his shoes and laid besides you closing his eyes and embracing Morpheus.

After a while Yn woke up, the moonshine reflecting in Jungkook features, he was so peaceful when he was asleep. In that moment Yn wished to erase the wicked memory of that look in his eyes when they were at the police station.

That was a completely different person, that was not this angelic being resting besides her.

Yn felt a painful sharp pain in her chest, feeling like she was saying a proper goodbye to the boy that she loved.

She needed to leave before the sun comes out and Jungkook starts being so lovely and more difficult to reject.

So yn looked out for her heels scattered across the room, and put them on without losing sight of Jungkook sleeping figure.

But as soon as Yn left the room, she encountered herself in the middle of a storm.

A man was holding a gun on the head of a weeping woman.

His eyes dark and shiny with no sense of any human qualities, very animalistic.

The woman with barely clothes on her body, face turned into a torrid mishmash of makeup, tears and blood.

Your own pulse started to accelerate.

there was no warning when the man just shot his gun.

The woman screamed in horror when she saw you lying on the ground in a puddle of blood.

You felt no pain.

The consciousness again slipping away from you.

The cold and the nothing carried you for a few instants until you did not remember your name anymore.

End of part 1

#jungkook x reader #jungkook fanfic #jk fanfic #jk x reader #jk x you #jk x y/n #jk angst #jk bts #jungkook #jungkook bts #jeon jungkook #jungkook fluff #yandere jungkook #yandere bts #bts one shot #bts fic #jungkook one shot #jk smutt

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jayfortheday · 2 years

Note

Ik your inbox is prob flooding with the Black Phone requests but I love how you write Vance sm I rly wanted to make a request with an idea I’ve had for awhile😩 Can you write something based on the movie Corpse Bride where YN is taken by the Grabber. They’re so paranoid that they’re gonna die so they start saying their passionate “I love yous” for their boyfriend out loud (using ‘you’ instead of ‘him’ when referring to their bf). Ghost!Vance mistakes their love declaration as meant for him (maybe he had a crush on them when he was alive) and shows himself to YN and is just like “omg we’re a couple now coz you said you loved me” all very delusional. Since Vance keeps them alive/protects them from the Grabber YN plays along with their “relationship” to stay alive. But then after awhile Vance realizes he’s actually dead and is preventing YN from escaping so he finally lets them go since he doesn’t want them to end up with his fate,, with something like “I love you, but you’re not mine” & “My chance of escape was taken from me, and now I’ve stolen that chance from someone else”

Sorry if that’s rly long😭 But take all the time you need if you decide to do this!!

Not Really Mine (Vance Hopper)

Pairing: Ghost!Vance Hopper x GN!Reader (romantic)

Word count: 4178

Description: After being captured by the Grabber, Y/N, believing they're going to die, confesses their love for their boyfriend for the last time, unintentionally summoning the ghost of Vance Hopper. Vance, believing the declaration was for him, sticks around Y/N and helps them navigate the situation they're in. Y/N accepts the advice and, in turn, does their best to help Vance.

Tags: angst, hurt/comfort, kidnapping, blood, language, alternate universe, canon compliant, mixed emotion ending

Quick Note: If I'm right, then the order of victims in the movie is Bruce, Billy, Griffin, Vance, and Robin. Using this, I'm placing Y/N's abduction after Vance but before Robin.

~~~~~~~~~

Your breath felt ragged as you lay against the mattress, your eyes burning with tears. You’re going to die here, that man upstairs is going to kill you, this is where it ends. You huddled your knees close to your chest, and imagined you were back home. You imagined you were snuggled under a blanket, that the TV was on, that you were laying with your boyfriend, just enjoying the time together. You were never going to see him again. Your chest hurt with all the emotion you were feeling, it felt like you were going to explode.

What would you say to him? If he were here, what would be your final words to him?

“I love you, I really do. I miss you so much right now and I would give anything to touch you again. I’m sorry for all the times I got angry or the times I acted distant. It all seems so small now, I just wish I was with you again,” your words echoed in the empty space. You imagined he was there in front of you, that he heard your words, that he understood your feeling. You took a shuddery breath and exhaled slowly. You slowly blinked open your eyes, adjusting to the sunlight.

However, only a small amount of sunlight reached your eyes. In front of you stood a figure blocking the light coming from the window. Oh god, he’s here, it must be time.

“I’m not ready to die,” you whimpered quietly, covering your eyes again, to pretend it wasn’t real.

“You’re not going to die,” the figure said, but it wasn’t the voice you had expected. It wasn’t the scratchy voice of your capture, but instead the smooth voice of a young boy. You blinked your eyes open to reexamine the figure. The person kneeled close to you, their eyes on level with yours. You sat up slightly to get a better look at them. A head of bloody, blonde curls framed the injured face of the teenage boy in front of you. You recongized him, the papers showed his picture for weeks after he went missing. Nobody ever said it but you all assumed the worst.

“Oh god, I really am losing it,” you muttered, rubbing your eyes with your palms before opening them again. There he still sat before you, Vance Hopper.

“Did you really mean it?” Vance asked, leaning closer to you. You looked at him confused. “When you said you loved me?” Oh. Vance thought your words were for him. You weren’t quite sure you had the heart to tell him they weren’t, not just because you didn’t want to make him sad but you were a little scared of him. You nodded hesitantly. Vance smiled widely, his eyes lighting up with joy.

“How are you here, I mean you’re-,” you hesitated, trying to figure out how to word it.

“I’m what?” Vance asked, furrowing his brow slightly. Did he not know? Couldn’t he remember? You figured dying might be hard to forget.

“You’re supposed to be back home,” you said hurriedly, trying to fill in the gap.

“Oh, I’m not sure, I guess I’m just here,” Vance said, his tone light.

Something about Vance confused you. You had barely known him in life, you had only glanced at each other maybe a couple of times, and now here he was, gladly accepting a love confession that wasn’t even meant for him. Vance stared up into your face, his eyes concerned.

“You’re still crying,” he said sadly, standing up and wiping a tear from your cheek. You hadn’t even realized it, but he was right. You were crying. “Why are you so sad?” He asked, sitting down next to you. Did Vance really not realize the gravity of the situation?

“I don’t want to die here,” you said quietly.

“You’re not gonna die,” Vance said hurriedly. He leaned forward and cupped your face with his hands, you shuddered at the odd feeling. It felt like a pair of cold hands were barely grazing over your cheek.

When night arrived, you heard the door to the basement open. You stiffened in your place and Vance leaned against the wall in the corner, his face going dark. Pushing open the door was the man you has seen before. His face was obscured by a mask with a large smile, it was extremely unsettling.

“I thought you might want something to eat,” the man said, setting down a tray next to the door. You looked nervously between him and the food. “Eat it if you like.” With that, he went back to the stairs and closed the door behind him. You listened for the foreboding sound of the door locking, but it didn’t come. You furrowed your brow as you looked at Vance.

“Did he,” you started. “He didn’t lock the door.”

“You should eat,” Vance said, interrupting your thought. “I don’t know if you’ll get food again.” Your thoughts of the unlocked door were replaced by thoughts of food. Your horror at your situation had obscured your feelings of hunger which had now become apparent.

You cautiously got up and approached the tray on the ground by the door. You sat down on the floor by it and examined the plate. It was eggs and they sat next to an open bottle of soda. You picked up a piece of the food and nervously smelled it. It smelled fine, just like normal eggs. You placed the piece into your mouth, chewed quickly, and swallowed. You breathed deeply and began to eat the eggs in front of you, trying to satiate your hunger. When you were halfway finished, you looked up and saw Vance leaning against the wall, staring at you. You picked up a piece of held it out to him, an attempt to be kind. He shook his head and pointed at you. With Vance’s declining, you continued to eat the food.

When you had finished, you grabbed the bottle of soda on the tray and sipped at it. You stood up and walked back to the mattress on the other side of the room. You sat on the edge, sipping at the soda and thinking. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Vance wander over and sit next to you. When you finished the soda bottle, you set it down on the floor and looked at Vance.

“He didn’t lock the door,” you said again. “This is my chance, he fucked up, and now I have a chance.” You laughed in disbelief. Vance stiffened beside you.

“No, no, you don’t,” he said with a mildly upset tone. “It’s not real.”

“What do you mean, of course it’s real,” you said, gesturing to the door. “He did forget to lock it so I could just go.”

You walked forward and grabbed the door handle. You saw Vance grab your wrist more than you felt it.

“Please, Y/N,” he said softly. This was the first time he had said your name. “I don’t want what’s waiting up there to happen to you.” You looked at Vance with confusion.

“What does that mean,” you said, your tone a bit shorter than you intended. “What’s up there?” At this point, you had pulled the door open and were staring up at the stairs. Vance looked towards the landing and then at you.

“Him,” he said straight forwardly. “He’s gonna hurt you, bad enough you’ll wish you’d just pass out so it could be over. You never pass out soon enough.” He sounded upset as he walked over to the mattress and sat down on it, looking at the wall.

You looked up the stairs.

“Promise you’re not lying to me?” You asked Vance, hesitation in your voice as you looked at him. He nodded at you sadly. You sighed deeply and closed the door. You wandered over and layed down next to Vance.

“I know,” he said, his voice understanding. “I’m sorry it’s not real.”

“It’s not your fault,” you said, your chin trembling slightly. Vance layed down next to you, thinking.

“Ask me anything you want,” he said, you looked slightly confused at his sudden offer. “I wanna try to cheer you up.” You smiled slightly.

“Alright then, did you really like pinball as much as people said? I mean they called you Pinball Vance,” you laughed slightly as you asked. Vance smiled at your laughter.

“It was my absolute favorite,” he responded, rolling onto his back to reminisce. “I would spend hours at the Grab N Go tryin’ to reach my high score. It never got old no matter how many times I played it.” When you were laying next to him like this, you thought his smile looked oddly beautiful. “Anything else?”

“Is your hair like this naturally or did you curl it,” you asked, one of your hands going to try to play with Vance’s curls. Again, it felt like they were almost there.

“Nah, it’s curled. My mom’s been getting me perms since like 6th grade. It doesn’t really look that bad so I just roll with it,” he responded, turning his head slightly to look at you twirling your finger in his hair. “Why, you like it?” He smiled jokingly.

“Totally, absolutely obsessed,” you joked back.

“Anything else?” There was a question on your mind, but you felt it was too intense, so you only half asked.

“Do these still hurt?” You asked, gesturing to the injuries on Vance’s face. Vance’s bloody face had really put you off at first, but you had gotten used to it. Vance brought a hand up to his face and grazed his fingers over the cut on his nose.

“Not really,” he responded. “They used to, but I don’t really notice them anymore.”

“That’s good, I suppose,” you said, your eyes looking at all the blood covering Vance.

“Does it make me look super badass?” He smiled, flexing his arms as he lay next to you. This elicited a laugh from you.

“Super badass,” you replied.

“I know it feels weird, but you should sleep,” Vance said, propping himself up on his elbows to look down at you.

“You’re right,” you responded. “It does feel weird.”

“I’ll be here the whole time, so you don’t have to worry about that guy coming in here while you’re asleep,” Vance said, trying his best to comfort you.

“Don’t you need to sleep?” You asked, looking up at him.

“I don’t really feel tired, so staying up shouldn’t be too hard, just a little boring,” he laughed. You look at him with a nervous look in your eyes. “Come here,” Vance said, holding out his arms to you.

You scooched closer to him and he wrapped his arms around you, holding you as you lay on the mattress. Even though you could only half feel his cold skin, the mere idea of having someone else there with you was comforting. Your face was nestled in the crook of his neck, there was the slight smell of blood and a sandalwood-scented cologne. You closed your eyes as you leaned into the ghostly touch.

“I love you,” Vance said quietly into your ear. Oh…yeah. You had forgotten about that part in all of the stress of today.

“I love you too,” you whispered back. It felt so wrong lying about this sort of thing. Not only did it feel like you were cheating, it felt like you were hurting Vance like you were using him, which when you thought about it, you were. You huddled closer into Vance, trying to forget what you were feeling.

When you awoke the next moring, Vance was no longer laying with you. You looked to the edge of the bed and saw him sitting.

“Vance?” You asked with a sleepy voice. He turned to you. “Whatcha doin’?”

“Watching,” he responded, looking at the door. You sat up and moved to sit next to him. By the door, you saw the shattered glass of the green soda bottle you had been given the day before.

“What happened?” You asked. Vance looked to you and followed your gaze to the broken bottle. Vance’s gaze darkened as he looked at it.

“He tried to come in here last night,” he responded with a slightly angry tone. Vance saw you stiffen next to him, fear on your face. “But don’t worry, I got rid of him easily enough.” You relaxed slightly.

“I hope he’s not too mad,” you said quietly. “He’s scary enough when he’s not.”

“I’ll be here the whole time,” Vance assured you again. “I got a bit more fight in me than that.”

You leaned your head on Vance’s shoulder and looked at the door nervously. He wrapped his arm around you, resting his elbow on your shoulder and his hand in your hair.

“I wonder if I’ll ever get out of here,” you said quietly, the thought escaping your lips before you could filter it. You could see Vance turn his head down to look at you. You angled your head to meet his eyes. A thoughtful look crossed his face.

“Would it be so bad if you didn’t?” He asked. “You could stay here with me.” You pulled away from Vance and looked at him with a furrowed brow.

“Why would you say that?” You asked, looking at him with wide eyes.

“Just think about it, we could be here together, just us. Would that really be so bad?” Vance smiled at you with pleading eyes. Did he realize what he was implying?

The rest of the day was spent with a palpable tension between the two of you. You could tell Vance was upset, and you were too, but for very different reasons. Vance thought you were abandoning him, that you disliked him and wished to leave him. You were upset because, even though it was unknowingly, Vance was asking you to give up your life. You didn’t see the man again that day, not to bring you food or even just to stand in the doorway, which you were semi grateful for. You sat on the mattress and watched Vance stand in the middle of the room, looking out the small window.

“Can I ask you more questions?” You asked him, hoping to lighten the atmosphere. Vance looked at you with calm eyes.

“Sure,” he replied, walking over to you and sitting next to you on the mattress.

“So,” you said, thinking of a good question. “What’s you favorite animal?” You knew it was a rather tame question, but tame is what the two of you needed right now.

“Probably a tiger or something, I like their colors,” he replied, a small smile on his face. “What about you?” You thought for a second before replying.

“Probably a panda, I think. I like the black and white, and I would love to just lounge around all day,” you laughed at the thought. Vance sat and waited for your next question.

“What did your bedroom look like? Mine had grey walls and some music posters, and I always had two fans pointed at me cause my room got really hot,” you said, answering your own question to provide context.

“Oh, lemme think. It was white, I had a couple of movie posters, but other than that, the walls were empty. It was always super messy though, I really don’t like cleaning,” he said, smiling at the memories.

“Do you wanna ask me anything?” You offered. Vance thought for a moment.

“Not really,” he said. “I like answering your questions more than asking them.” There was another question you wanted to ask Vance, but that would wait until later. You and Vance did your best to come up with other ways to fill the time, ways for this to feel normal. You played 20 questions, talked about your favorite movies and music, and just sat in silence. Vance was starting to grow on you. He made you smile in a place where happiness seemed impossible. You were thankful for that.

As the sun began to set outside the small window, you could see a reminiscent look in Vance’s eyes.

“Whatcha thinkin’ about,” you asked, interrupting his thoughts.

“I like watching the sunset,” he replied. “It always calms me down when I feel mad or something.” You couldn’t see the sunset very well from here, so you could tell Vance was remembering more than seeing. “You tired?” He turned around to examine your face.

“Kinda, but not super,” you replied. The thought of sleeping brought a yawn up to your throat, which you unsuccessfully repressed. Vance smiled at the contradiction.

“Yeah you are, come on,” he sighed happily, laying down on the mattress and patting the spot next to him. You crawled up the mattress and lay your body down next to him.

You lay on your side, facing him. Vance felt your eyes and turned to face you.

“What’s up,” he asked quietly, searching your eyes.

“Can I ask you one last question?” You asked, it was time. Vance nodded.

“How did you get here?” Vance opened his mouth but didn’t respond. His brow furrowed as he thought. “Take your time, it’s ok.” Vance rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling, deep in thought. “Good night, Vance.” You snuggled into his cold side and closed your eyes.

The sunlight shining through the window awoke you from your dreams. You blinked your eyes open, adjusting to the light. Once again, Vance wasn’t lying next to you, but instead, sat at the foot of the bed. You sat up, yawned, and shuffled down the mattress to sit next to him. You looked up at his face. His red eyes and raw cheekbones showed he had been crying.

“Vance?” You said quietly, trying not to disturb him too much. He glanced at you, you could see tears forming in his eyes again.

“Y/N,” he said in a raw voice. “I think I know the answer to your question.” You looked at him sadly. You reached out and took his hand in yours, he squeezed it.

“It wasn’t for me, was it?” he asked, the tears in his eyes falling down his cheek.

“What do you mean?” You asked.

“You weren’t saying you loved me, or that you missed me, you probably didn’t even know me, did you?” He said, his voice starting to break. Your eyes grew sad as you had to admit it.

“No, it wasn’t, I’m sorry Vance,” you apologized. “That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy your company, or that I don’t appreciate that you’re here. I don’t think I could have done this alone.”

“Why didn’t you tell me, about what I am, Y/N?” He asked, glancing at you before looking back at the ground.

“I don’t know, really. When I saw you didn’t know, it felt impossible to be the one to break that news. If I had more courage, I probably would have told you,” you responded, leaning towards him and resting your head on his shoulder. “I’m sorry this happened to you, Vance. You didn’t deserve this.” You could feel Vance shake as he cried.

“I’m sorry for what I said yesterday. I didn’t realize what I was asking you,” he choked out. “Just because I did, doesn't mean you have to die here. I love you, but you don’t belong here with me, not now.” You felt your own tears forming as Vance spoke.

“I wish I had known you more, maybe I could have loved you like you deserve,” you said, turning your head to press a kiss to his shoulder.

“I’m gonna get you out of here, I swear on whatever life I have left in me,” Vance cried, turning his body to hold you.

“I doubt that’s possible at this point,” you sighed, holding onto the front of Vance’s shirt.

“Well, you’re not dying, I’m damn sure of that. I’ll think of something,” Vance sniffled, laying his cheek in your hair.

The first half of this day was spent in silence. Vance sat on the wall, thinking silently. You sat on the bed, doing your best to entertain yourself. You looked over occasionally, trying to see a change in Vance’s expression. When the sun had assumed its noon position in the sky, Vance stood up.

“I think I know what to do,” he said as he walked over to sit by you. “When he leaves the door unlocked tonight, I’ll go up first and I’ll distract him. While he’s gone, you’ll go. I’m already dead, there’s not much he can do if he catches me.” Vance’s plan was simple, yet seemed like it would work.

“It’s not that simple,” you heard a high-pitched voice behind you say. You whipped your head around quickly to see the small form of a boy with a bloody, slit throat. You quietly screamed.

“Oh my goodness, you scared me,” you said, a little out of breath.

“There’s a lock on the door upstairs, you can’t just leave,” the boy said, his eyes wide but emotionless.

“A key lock?” You asked. You glanced over at Vance, who seemed transfixed by the other boy.

“A combination,” the boy responded. “It used to be my bike lock.”

“If it was yours, you should know the combination, right?” You asked with a hopeful voice.

“I don’t remember it,” he said with a level voice. Defeat crushed the hope in your face. “But when I did know it, I wrote it down.” He slowly pointed to the wall opposite you, to a spot in the middle. You looked at the boy before getting up to examine the wall. Indeed, scratched into the wall, were five numbers. “I don’t remember the sequence.”

“That’s ok, this is all I need,” you said, with a thankful voice. You turned to the boy and gave him a grateful smile. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

When you looked back to Vance, you saw he still had a look of shock on his face.

“How were you so calm about that?” He said quieter than normal.

“I’ve been livin’ with you for the past couple days, got used to it,” you laughed, trying to cheer him up. Vance smiled with an exhale from his nose. “It sounds like we got a plan.”

With this plan in mind, you and Vance waited until the sun set to begin. You recited the code ‘23317’ until it was engrained in your brain.

“I don’t know how much time I can buy you, so you’ll have to be as quick as you can. I’ll try to meet you by the door to see you out,” Vance said, leaning close to you. You nodded. You stood up and grabbed the handle of the door. You pulled and it opened. You nodded to Vance again. He stood and walked over to you. He reached his hand up and brushed a stray piece of hair behind your ear.

“Hope to see you soon,” he said softly with a smile. With that, he walked past you and up the stairs. “You’ll know your cue when you hear it.”

After a few seconds, you heard a loud crashing. You heard quick footsteps overhead rushing away. You took this as your cue. You ran up the stairs as quickly as you could. You paused before the corner and looked around it carefully. Sure enough, the chair at the top of the stairs was empty. You ran up the remaining stairs and past the chair. You looked to the left down the hallway at the end of the kitchen and saw the front door. You took a deep breath and ran towards it. You pulled open the door and saw the combination lock.

‘23317’ played in your head as you tried the possible combinations. ‘2-33-17’, nope. ‘23-3-17’, no. By process of elimination, the last one had to be it. Adrenaline coursed through your veins as you tried to not waste the precious time Vance gave you. With a shuddering breath, you turned the lock. ‘23-31-7’. The lock clicked open with a quiet snap. You hurriedly took the lock off and threw it to the ground, you would revel in your victory later. With the lock off, you opened the screen door into the night. You turned around, hoping to see Vance behind you.

As he promised, there he stood. With so much to say and so little time, you decided to express your feelings in a gesture. You grabbed the sides of Vance’s face and pulled him down to you. You took a breath and pressed your lips to his. You pulled away slightly.

“I love you, Vance. I wish I had time to love you more,” you said with a shaking voice as tears began to run down your face.

“Until the next life,” he sighed with a sad smile. With that, you stepped back, and Vance pushed the door closed.

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

A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Jesus, I think this might be the longest fic I've ever written, but damn it was so fun. It was awesome to get to stretch my writing muscles, this prompt gave me so much to work with that it was so easy to just keep writing

#vance hopper #vance hopper x reader #the black phone #fanfic #fanfiction

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