#i *love* these sorts of historical aus so much & i will be thinking about the ideas it presented even if i didnt like how they finished the | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hannie-dul-set · 23 days

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STAR STUDDED BAGGAGE [3].

SYNOPSIS. the saying “never meet your idols” exists for a reason. you just didn’t expect the reason to be because said idols would end up declaring that you’re their alleged lover from a past life (past lives, rather). now you have three big celebrities vying for your attention, and it’s not as dreamlike as you imagined it to be.

PAIRINGS. choi yeonjun, choi soobin, choi beomgyu x female! reader. GENRES. reincarnation! au, celebrity! au (soloist! yeonjun, actor! soobin, rock band member! beomgyu), slight college! au, slight historical! au, rom-com, angst, reverse harem woohoo. WARNINGS. swearing, talks about stalking, talks about death, data privacy violations, so much emotional whiplash yummy, a very long conversation, google dependent historical information. WORD COUNT. 6.3k.

NOTE. this chapter finally made its way out hell 😭😭😭 per usual, please let me know your thoughts on the chapter! a single comment on ao3 inspired me to finish this, so ur feedback really means a lot! enjoy<3

MASTERLIST | NEXT >

CHAPTER 3 — can we go back to being parasocial?

IF SOMEONE HEARS YOUR SUMMARY OF THE EVENTS THAT UNFOLDED WITHIN THE PAST FEW DAYS, they may accuse you of lying. Delusional, even. You’d think the same had you not been the center of it all— yet the proof is in your pockets. Your phone. In the album Choi Yeonjun failed to sign, stuffed inside your bag at the last minute before you left your apartment earlier.

The summary. Right. Yes.

“Can they stop sharing that video of Yeonjun excessively flirting with a fan?! I’m going to kill myself if I see it one more time.”

You were lucky enough to nab a fansign slot. But instead of getting Choi Yeonjun’s signature, you ended up getting a kiss of a hand instead, along with a scrawl of numbers on your album that you’re far too terrified to try to dial.

“Hey, send me our photo with Soobin the other day,” nudges Huening from beside you. “I’m gonna print it out and put it in a locket and use it as a family heirloom.”

You bumped into one of your favorite actors, Choi Soobin, in the middle of a late night convenience store run with your friends to fuel your group all nighter, stained his shirt with your ice cream, and got a photo with him in the process.

“By the way, have you called the business card yet? What are you gonna do with your broken phone screen?”

And Choi Beomgyu may or may not have professed his undying love for you, asked for your hand in marriage, and started crying in front of you in less than ten fucking minutes.

“She’s zoned out.”

The problem is, you can’t even bask in the delightful absurdity of it all because one common thread from all those three separate instances has been keeping you up for nights. It’s clawing at your brain, lingering in the back of your mind like an incessant stalker— which, mind you, is not a pleasant feeling when the very causes of such disturbance were once the bringers of joy and all things good in your otherwise meaningless life as a cog in the capitalist machinery that is society.

“Hello? Are you awake?”

Said problem being the fact that you’re pretty sure they all called you by your name at one point.

How the fuck do they know your name?

“I deleted Twitter. I Airdropped it to you. No, I have not called it yet. Now please let me think in peace.”

Crazy. This is all too crazy. In the first place, what are the odds that you bump into three celebrities within one week’s time? Is this some sort of prank, or something? Are those three filming a hidden camera show together? No, no. That couldn’t be because there’s no fucking way a company is sane enough to stage a risky hidden camera prank during a fansign knowing full well how obsessive and insane fans can get. You’re lucky your face wasn’t caught in any of the videos circulating online— video of you and Choi Yeonjun, mostly him, acting out a fucking sageuk. You’re lucky you haven’t been doxxed yet.

“Finish your sandwich,” Taehyun clicks his tongue, nudging your food closer to you, and you sigh heavily. Maybe you’re just wrong, you think, taking a bite from the bread. Maybe this is just a misunderstanding. Maybe you’re just overthinking.

You eat your lunch and steal some wet wipes from Gaeul in between. Right. It’s not like you’re ever gonna bump into them again. You live in, as cliche as it sounds, two different worlds after all. You’re just gonna watch their dramas, listen to their music, enjoy their performances, and that’s it that’s it that’s it.

“Prof Jang sent a message. Class is canceled.”

But still—

“Woohoo! Let’s go to the new dessert shop that opened downtown.”

Choi Beomgyu’s voice saying I love you, Choi Soobin’s cologne wafting in the air you were breathing in, and Choi Yeonjun’s lips pressed against your skin.

How can a sane person just forget about all of that?!

“Why do you look like you’re fantasizing about perverted shit?” Woohyun slaps you in the face with a reality check. This is fucking stupid.

“I’m not fantasizing,” you grunt, because they were events that actually fucking happened— they weren’t birthed from your brain’s insanity. “Anyway, dessert? Where is it?” You ignore your burning face, hoping that your friends decide to ignore it too, but Gaeul has her eyes narrowed at you. Crap. She didn’t recognize that it’s you in the videos right? Holy fucking hell, you’d rather die.

“Aren’t you gonna answer that?”

Oh. Well. That’s— that’s something. A good something because she hasn’t suspected you yet, moitioning instead to your cracked phone that has been buzzing under your notice because you’ve been thinking way too fucking much.

You check the caller ID, but it’s an unknown number, and it doesn’t match the business card you got from your run in with the alleged Choi Beomgyu. “Hello?” you answer, and a voice you don’t recognize says your name and asks if it’s you. “Yes, this is her. Who’s this?”

Another item added to the weird as fuck things that happened to your this week. You excuse yourself from your friends, and with knitted brows, you listen to the stranger at the other end of the line. “You met Choi Soobin the other day at a 7-Eleven in Gangnam, right?” The fuck? Did someone see you that day? Is this a stalker? “This is his manager. Lee Byeongho. I would like to speak with you regarding a certain matter.”

Now, hold the fucking phone.

“Is everything alright?”

You respond to Huening’s concern with a stiff smile before turning away from them. “Did I do something wrong?” you fuss into the call. “I didn’t post any of the photos from that day. I never talked about it online either, and I’m pretty sure my friends haven’t either. Wait. Wait a minute. How did you get my number?”

“Yes, it was difficult to obtain knowing only your first name and university.” That doesn’t answer your question. That just gave you more questions. “But, no. You aren’t in trouble. Actually...I called because you’re the only one who can help us— help Soobin— get out of trouble.”

Your face scrunches up.

“I’m at your campus right now. Parking lot. Do you mind meeting me for a moment?”

Just what did you get yourself into?

“You haven’t finished your food. Where are you going?”

“Somewhere,” you reply, quickly snatching your half-eaten sandwich from the table as your friends follow your swift movements with matching looks of confusion. “I’ll be right back. It’s nothing, don’t worry.” However, you are quite worried. You’re pretty sure Lee Manager, or whatever, is committing some data privacy crimes against you, but the one thing you want at the moment is answers. Your brain is about to explode from all the fucking questions and confusion. There’s a sliver of hope that meeting up with this sketchy guy can answer a few of them. You’d take that chance to air out your head.

There’s a black van in the parking lot. It’s the first thing you noticed because one of its doors are open, and there’s a familiar looking guy waiting just in front of the exposed seats.

He notices you approaching. “It’s nice to finally meet you,” he says. What’s with men you’re meeting for the first time treating you with familiarity? You’re going to rip your hair out and throw yourself into moving traffic.

“Sure, but can you get to the point?” you stiffly say. “I’m a little busy. I still have classes in a bit.”

“Of course, I’m sorry. This whole situation must’ve come off as a shock to you.” Great, now you’re feeling bad. Soobin’s manager (allegedly) looks like he’s been through a whole lot as well. “Anyway. You are a fan of Choi Soobin, correct?”

“Well,” you blink. “Yes.”

“How about the dramas Kang Jaehee has written and directed?” he follows up. “Are you a fan of those as well?”

Your brows furrow. “I guess?” Peach Tree. That Summer. Mogi. Those are the titles that come right at the top of your head. “What does that have to do anything with me?” Manager Lee spares you a look of pity. You feel like this meet-up is just set out to making you even more fucking confused.

“I sincerely apologize. I didn’t want to drag you into this either, but I’m afraid you’re the only option I have,” says Manager Lee despondently. “Since...since you are a fan of Soobin, and I assume that means you also care about his career, so—”

He pauses. Like he’s practicing the next set of words he’s about to say inside his head.

“—do you mind meeting up with him to convince him to take the lead role for Kang Jaehee’s upcoming drama?”

But nothing could’ve prepared you for that.

What.

What the fuck?

“Mr Manager. Sir,” you start, appalled beyond comprehension. “I’d appreciate it if you start making a bit more sense.”

“Trust me, I can’t believe I’m doing this either.”

You’re speechless. Your mouth is hanging open with no words coming out because, again, what the fuck? Manager Lee looks just as defeated as you, as if he weren’t the one who had just presented that ridiculous proposal. You are, quite frankly, at a discernible loss.

Manager Lee lets out a sigh and digs a hand into his pocket. “I’m afraid this is all the time I have today. But please contact me once you’ve made a decision.” Another business card acquired. This is just dandy. “I am really hoping for your cooperation, miss. I’m sure you’re aware of Soobin’s inactivity lately, and my intention of approaching you today is simply in order to help my star’s career. Please consider the favor positively, and we will compensate you as much as my authority can allow.”

With that, you’re left with another laminated piece of paper in your hands. Gosh. This is a headache. When you get back to your friends, they notice the distress you’re in, further justifying a visit to the new dessert store, and seeing how your soul has completely left your body, you’re dragged along with them with ease.

“Hey, pick one. My treat,” says Woohyun. You let out a grunt and point at a random pastry on display. Next thing you know, you’re seated in between Huening and Gaeul at the store you don’t even know the name of.

Huening is force feeding you an eclair. “Eat.” Your scowl disappears when you allow the eclair entry into your mouth. “Seriously, what’s going on with you? Who did you meet earlier?”

Seeing as you show absolutely no intentions of telling them, they refuse to question you about it further. Good on them, because there’s no way in hell you’re spilling your predicament. Not until you find out exactly what kind of situation you’re in, at the very least. The two business cards feel like they’re weighing your pockets down, a constant reminder of their existence along with the scrawl Yeonjun left behind.

“I know exactly how to make you feel better.”

The declaration comes from Gaeul, who slides her phone over to you, and when you look down to see what exactly her miracle medicine is to make you feel less manic, you hack out a cough upon seeing Choi Yeonjun’s face on her phone screen. “The hell is wrong with you?” asks Taehyun from across, giving you some water to push down the eclair lodged in your throat. “I know you like him, but even that is an overreaction.”

Jesus, you’re close to losing it. When you’ve avoided choking to death, Gaeul puts an airpod into your ear, and you hear Yeonjun reading out some comments. “Choi Yeonjun, you look really happy lately, did something good happen? someone asked,” he says while having snacks of his own. “First of all, why are you calling me Choi Yeonjun? It’s like you’re putting a wall between us. I don’t like it.”

Gaeul makes a noise of some sort and had you not been subjected to this week’s insanities, you might have reacted the same way too. Instead, you simply listen to his live in caution, feigning disinterest as you watch him nibble on some pretzels and churros through the screen, continuing to answer the slew of questions in the comments.

“Anyway, you’re right! Something good did happen.” Yeonjun hums while picking out a pretzel from the paper bag, rustling noise and a lively tune filling the audio for a moment— a short moment, right before he continues speaking. “That’s because I finally met the love of my life.”

Taehyun has to give you his water again.

“Oh? Oho, what’s with the exclamation points?” he laughs. “Did I meet them the other day? Hmm...that’s a secret. You’re curious? You think it might be you? Well, let’s see. Should I describe her?”

“God, he’s so fucking messy,” says Gaeul from beside you. “This is why I like him. How many calls is he getting for his manager and company this time?”

“What’s going on? Why is she so startled?”

“Yeonjun’s talking about his apparent soulmate, I don’t know. Wanna listen?”

“Didn’t he get in trouble for doing the same thing last time too?”

Now, you’re not one to give a shit about his love life, and you like to stay out of that side of celebrity gossip as much as you can, but Choi Yeonjun himself is droning on about the love of his life right now. You can’t not hear about it even if you want to. However, as much as you want to let things come into one ear and out through the other, you can’t. Because— wait. Wait. His description is eerily familiar. His description is making you double take and second guess what you’re fucking hearing.

“Sounds a lot like you,” Taehyun remarks without much thought, right after Choi Yeonjun says that the girl he likes has a bit of an attitude, but he likes that about her.

Huening lets out a snort. “Yeah, that’s definitely you. Why don’t you go in a wedding dress the next time you attend a fansign? Who knows, you might have a shot.”

You snap them a dirty look. Fuck. This is making your head spin. For the second time, Choi Yeonjun’s tendency of putting himself into headlines and the trending searches for doing something insane is giving you nothing but stress.

“I did give her my number, but she hasn’t messaged me yet, so I’m quite hurt.”

Number. Hold on a fucking second.

“The comments are going crazy.”

You grab your bag from underneath you, dropping it down to your lap.

“Hey, if you’re watching this, pl—eeeeease contact me. Kim Noona thinks I have a phone addiction now because I’ve been dying waiting for your call.”

You quickly get up from your seat.

“Yo, where are you going this time?”

“I need a minute,” you announce, eyes scanning the store for a quiet place alone while hugging your bag to your chest. There’s nowhere. Looks like you have to get out.

“Damn, we were just joking. As if you have a chance with a celebrity like him.”

Huening’s joke is ignored and you quickly leave outside the doors, making a sharp turn around the corner, slipping through the passersby downtown until you find an empty alley. Your heart is racing. Your heart is racing like crazy and you may be reaching right now. You may be acting crazy, but what Choi Beomgyu said during the interview with Yeong-Il the other day is echoing in your mind, and— in conjunction with everything else that had happened— you’re starting to think that maybe he wasn’t joking.

Your cracked phone screen greets you when you take it out of your pocket. On your other hand is the first business card you got this week.

“Who’s this?”

“Hello. Good day.” You tell them your name, the events that led up to you receiving this number, with the hope that maybe you’re finally on to something. “I’d like to talk about the compensation for my broken phone.”

Whatever that something is, you’re gonna get to the bottom of it.

It’s already beyond closing time at Kwiyeomdongmoim Cafe (a mouthful, you know), yet your pink apron is still neatly tied around your waist as you pace back and forth, to and fro, in circles inside the breakroom. The time is half-past nine in the evening. You should’ve clocked out thirty minutes ago, but you’re still waiting.

The knock on the door signified the end of your wait. You turn to see your boss’s head popping in through the half-open crack.

“Three guys are waiting for you,” informs Seokmin. “They all seem handsome. Are they your suitors?”

When you ditched your friends at the still unnamed dessert store the other day, you did it to make a few calls. Three, to be exact. Today is the culmination of those calls, which is why you’ve been erratically nervous the entire freaking day. Choi Soobin, Choi Beomyu, and Choi Yeonjun’s managers all answered respectively when you called all the sketchy numbers you got and made some negotiations (apparently, the mess on your album is Yeonjun’s number, but he got his phone confiscated after that livestream).

“As if,” you say, walking up to the door leading back into the cafe. Suitors, more like stalkers. Fans stalking their idols is common, but the other way around is a pretty fresh idea. “Anyway, thanks, Kyeom. Thank you for letting me use the store for a while.” Because this is the only private place you can think of outside of your own home— and there’s no way in hell you’re letting them in there when you don’t even know how they managed to get hold of your personal information.

“We’re closed anyway.” Seokmin smiles and makes way for you to pass by. “Go ahead and do your thing. Do you want me to stay inside or keep watch?”

“You can stay inside, it’s alright.”

He nods. “Call me when you’re done. Scream if you need backup. I can handle all of them.”

You laugh and thank him once more, a pat on his arm before you decide to peek out the door first as a precautionary measure. From your spot, you can see three thoroughly covered men in windbreakers, caps, and masks sitting on three separate tables in the store. The blinds have already been rolled down, so you can’t see anything outside, but there doesn’t appear to be any cameras around, so you take it as a safe sign to finally leave your hiding spot.

The moment you do, the break room door creaks, and all three pairs of eyes immediately fall on you.

They stand up. They call out your name in unison.

Holy shit.

And when they do, they all look at each other with a sudden flash of hostility in the air.

Um. Well. How are you supposed to do this? “H—hello,” you manage to squeak out, prompting their attention once more. Soobin takes off his cap and removes his mask, the other two following suit, and oh my god. Oh my god. You suck in a deep breath. Today, you are not a fan. You are an interrogator. This is not a fansign. This is an interrogation.

“I— uh, I asked your managers if I can meet you all to—today for a specific reason.” Wow. Good job. Your hands are shaking and you can’t look up from the floor or else you’d start losing your mind. “But—but, before that— would...would you like some drinks…?”

Interrogation paused. You need to get your shit together first.

“Please enjoy.”

With the help of your boss (because your hands wouldn’t stop shaking and you dropped the first one you made), you managed to whip up four iced teas and settle all three of them into one table at the very back of the store. You send a stiff smile at Seokmin after he placed all the drinks on the table.

God, you owe him so much— especially when he’s being unreasonably glared at by the three men sitting with you right now. Choi Beomgyu to your left, Choi Soobin to your right, Choi Yeonjun directly across from you and holy fuck, you have yet to look at them properly yet for your own safety. They haven’t been talking to each other either, simply sitting and waiting for you to speak. You’re pretty sure they know each other though, at least by name, being in the same industry and all.

To say that the tension in the air is suffocation would be an understatement. How...how do you start this? The fuck should you say first?

“You know, I was really happy when Kim Noona told me you called.”

Apparently you don’t have to start it. Choi Yeonjun does it for you.

“But why are these two crashing our date?”

And that’s when things also start to get messy.

“Date?” Choi Soobin interjects. He sounds offended. Why does he sound offended. “What are you talking about?”

Choi Yeonjun doesn’t get a chance to make his case. Because Choi Beomgyu from your left suddenly snatches one of your hands from the table, prompting you to look at one of them for the first time tonight, and your eyes fly wide open. “I’d...like to apologize for the other day. I was just overtaken by my emotions. I hope you weren’t too freaked out.”

You are quite freaked out because holy shit, this is too much maybe. Not maybe. Yes. This is too much. Too. Much.“Hey, why are you holding her hand?!” you hear Choi Soobin exclaim from your other side. Choi Beomgyu’s soft expression suddenly disappears into a glare and a sneer the moment he shifts his gaze.

“You’re holding her hand too!”

“Why can’t I?!”

“Hey, this isn’t fair! One of you switch with me—”

Dizzy. You’re feeling dizzy. Your head is spinning and you’re suffocating from the heat emanating from your very face. Whatever they’re arguing about isn’t even reaching your ears anymore. You’re getting lightheaded and your sweaty hands start slipping out from the two’s weirdly tender hold on your hands because your body is physically breaking down.

“Shut up! Oh my god, my head—”

Your vision actually starts spinning for a second so you quickly bring the bottom of your palms to your temples, elbows on the table to balance yourself, only to be wobbled and shaken because the three suddenly jolted off their seats in panic.

“Are you okay?!”

“I’m fine, just please—for the love of god— sit down and shut up.”

They sit down and shut up. You massage your temples in silence. You remove your hands from your face and, after sucking in a deep breath and releasing it thereafter, feel your heartbeat settling into a normal rate. As normal as it can get in this situation.

“Whew. Okay. I think I’m ready. Let’s get down to business.” Finally, you’re the one steering the conversation. You give each of them a once over as quickly as possible because now you know that prolonged eye contact will only hurt you. You settle with looking at the gaps between each of them. That’s fine. You’re fine. “Choi Soobin, Choi Yeonjun, Choi Beomgyu.”

It’s like three bulbs just lit up in succession. Your brain is starting to hurt.

“A—as I was saying, you three are some of South Korea’s biggest celebrities and although I am, in fact, a big fan of all three of you—” Why is Choi Soobin growing pink. Why the fuck is he blushing. “—that— that does not make me fail to recognize the amount of weird shit that’s been happening lately, and I think I need answers.”

They are still sitting down and shutting up. They listen to instructions well, at the very least.

“First, how the fuck did all three of you know my name without any prior introduction. Second—”

The words get clamped in your throat. It’s lodged in there very tightly because you make the mistake of looking one of them in the eye, only to notice that all three of them are looking at you with the same expression. An expression you can only describe as longing.

And your face starts burning.

“Se— second, why…why do you all keep looking at me like I’m an ex you want to get back together with…?”

Maybe you asked the wrong question.

Because for some reason they all look sad now. Really sad. Really fucking sad and it’s making your stomach clench and nerves all numb and funky because making three big celebrities all sad simultaneously is a bragging right at one end of the spectrum, and a national crime at the other.

It’s Choi Soobin who cracks the silence. “I…I had a feeling when I saw you again for the first time at the store.” Again? “Do you not remember me?”

Your face furrows. “No…? Did we ever meet before you became an actor?”

Hurt. The look of sadness has now spiraled into hurt and one might think you just stabbed and twisted a knife into his fucking gut. “How—how about me?” Your attention turns to Choi Yeonjun who isn’t looking any better. It’s like his entire world view was just proven to be wrong and why does it feel like you’re the one to blame.

What else can you do but shake your head in denial? Now he looks like he’d just been told he’s adopted!

“You’re…you’re joking,” he tries to laugh it off, but it only comes off as strained and shaky, then, in one fell swoop— desperate. “R—right…?”

“Great!”

Before you start feeling even shittier, Choi Beomgyu finally decides to join in.

“And here I thought her forgetting about me was the worst case scenario.” His tone is bitter. There’s a snap in his words. “I didn’t think there’d be other bastards in the same situation as me. God fucking damn it.”

There’s a moment of silence. You watch as realization hits the other while you’re still left in the dark. Choi Yeonjun juts his seat closer. Choi Soobin tries to reach a hesitant arm to your direction, but you’re tugged to the other side by Choi Beomgyu, who’s suddenly a little too, too close.

“Hey.”

Your hands are clamped together.

“I meant it when I said I love you. I do. I have loved you four hundred years ago and I still love you now, and if whatever god or deity decides to make you meet you for the third time, I’ll still love you then.”

Beomgyu’s holding both of them in between his in a firm grip.

“Second life is about you. Blue Spring is about you. You’re the person I’ve been waiting for from the beginning of this life until the last.”

Now, if this situation wasn’t crazy, your heart would be skipping a beat right now.

But it is crazy. This is fucking insane. And you look around to see that there’s a weird look of sympathy and understanding in the other Choi’s eyes, clearly not recognizing the visceral insanity of this situation, which fills you with a swallowing lump of existential dread. You pry your hands out of Beomgyu’s grasp (you swear you can hear glass breaking), and slowly turn to Choi Yeonjun and say, with a very hesitant, very cautious, “Y...you too…?”

The look on his face says it all. And then you swivel over to Choi Soobin.

“And you?”

“I’ve lo—”

“No!” you snap. “Don’t finish that sentence. Please. Oh my god.”

You see Seokmin popping his head out from the corner, mouthing an are you okay? and you shakily bring up a weak thumbs up. “Well, isn’t this interesting,” you hear Choi Yeonjun say, which feels like a slap in the face because what exactly is interesting about this. “Here I thought I was special.”

“Get off your high horse,” retorts Choi Soobin, a sneer in his voice. You double take. Choi Soobin is supposed to be sweet and gentle and kind. Who is this man? “Whatever kind of past you had with her doesn’t mean anything. I met her first. I met her at the end of King Danjong’s rule.”

“Ha!” Choi Yeonjun starts. “We got married under King Taejong. I’ve loved her before any of you did.”

Now, what the fuck?

Choi Soobin’s face pales and he chokes over his words. “M—married?”

There’s a smug grin on Choi Yeonjun’s face. He leans back against the chair with his arms crossed in victory. “You heard that correctly. Married. Pack up your bags. Unless you want me to tell you everything we did on our we—”

“Shut up, shut up, I don’t want to hear it!”

Marriage. King Danjong. King Taejong. Second life. The gears are churning inside your head. You don’t like the direction where the gears are pointing.

“What about you?”

Choi Yeonjun raises the question and the attention is now on Choi Beomgyu. He’s been quiet. The other two wait for him to say his piece— a feigned air of disdain and arrogance but there’s an unconcealable undertone of nervousness underneath it all. Your iced teas have been left untouched. Choi Beomgyu simply scoffs and presses his crossed arms against his chest.

“I have no reason to tell you any of that. This is between me and her.”

And at your mention, you receive the undivided attention of three pairs of eyes once more. Your heart rattles. God fucking damn it. Listen, you’re an avid consumer of the entertainment industry. You’ve watched a good amount of dramas and have read a good amount of manhwas to surmise a conclusion with the bits and pieces of stray information being tossed back and forth between the three. And it’s all ridiculous. But you have nothing else to work with unless they come spilling their guts themselves.

“So,” you clear your throat. “Are you three, like…a couple…hundred years old…?”

They all look offended.

“No!”

Well, maybe you’re wrong about that part. But after a very long, convoluted discussion, the “facts” (if you can even call it that), are finally laid down on your feet.

They say you’ve all met before. Separately, in three separate lifetimes, with this one allegedly being your fourth unless there were lives in between that they can’t remember. One thing for certain is that the three of them remember the life they had while loving you— and they loved you very much apparently because those feelings and memories got carried over even after they got reborn into the present day.

The problem is, you don’t have the same symptoms. You don’t remember anything about your past lives. Hell, you can’t even remember anything in this life before you hit two years old.

You slump in your seat. The table rattles. They get up from their chairs and come circling around you in concern.

“Are— are you okay, do you need to lie down? You could rest in my van for a while and—”

You swat Choi Yeonjun’s hand away before it could land on your shoulder. You’ve now got your hands on your face in stress, and peeking through you see Choi Soobin on your right, crouching down and looking up at you with furrowed brows and big, sad eyes. On your left is Choi Beomgyu, half-seated on the chair. You let out a very long, very anguished and muffled groan. This is too much. “If— if what you guys are saying is true,” you say. “What does it matter?”

There’s a tense pause in the air.

“What do you mean…?”

You spring up from your seat and turn around, Choi Yeonjun in front of you.

“I mean what does it all matter? King Sejeong, Joseon era, or whatever— I don’t care about all of that. We’re in the twenty-first century right now. I’m neither your lover nor your wife. I’m just a fan of your dramas and music and performances and that's it.”

You squeeze your eyes shut. You don’t really want to see their faces right now. You let a huff of air slip past your lips, turning back around to collect the untouched glasses of drinks on the table.

“Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to meet me and explain. I hope it’s all settled. Thanks for clearing everything up today. You can now all leave.”

It’s Choi Yeonjun who races after you when you make your firm and quick strides to the counter. He cuts off your path. “I—I don’t understand,” he chokes out. You make the mistake of meeting his gaze and see the threat of tears glazing his eyes. “What—what do you mean?”

Admittedly, that hurled a giant pang against your ribcage, knocking the air out of your chest, but you move forward. You brush past him, setting the glasses back on the counter, and— after a moment’s pause— you turn around, a heavy weight on your shoulders. It’s like gravity is trying to suck you deep into the mantle. “What I’m trying to say is we should all just get over what happened all those hundreds of years ago and live our lives in the present. I mean, I don’t know any of you. Don’t you think it’s unhealthy to keep clinging onto the past, especially when you guys are nothing but strangers to me in this life?”

Dead silence. You don’t dare look at any of them in the face. You try and retreat to the break room as quickly as you can, hands fumbling to untie your apron along the way, but you stumble over your steps, screeching to a halt the moment you hear someone say—

“Do you think it’s that easy?”

You could hear your heart in your eardrums.

It takes all the strength in your body for you to look back, to see the pained expression on Choi Beomgyu’s face standing the farthest away from you out of the three. “Do you think I put my name out there so that it’d be easier for you to find me, wrote all those songs about you in the hopes that I could see you again if you’re someone I can just easily forget?”

Your throat tightens. It’s like you’re swallowing a boulder.

“If you wanted me to forget about you, you shouldn’t have died right in front of me then. You shouldn’t have told me you loved me right before you went cold in my arms if you wanted me to fucking forget.”

Oh.

Oh, god.

Choi Yeonjun and Choi Soobin don’t look any better. It hits you that you might have been more than a little bit unfair.

“I’m sorry.”

You don’t know your history. You don’t know what the fuck happened between you and them throughout those years that made them feel so strongly about you. But it must be harder for those who remember than for those who forgot.

It’s not like they chose to live in the present with half of their souls stuck in the past, either. You’ve been acting awfully unfair.

“I was being insensitive. I’m so sorry,” you exhale. Your knees feel like they’re about to buckle. Your head is spinning in circles. “But to be honest, this is all still very overwhelming, and I’m having a hard time comprehending and making sense of everything. It doesn’t feel real.” You try to take a step closer, but your legs give in. Choi Yeonjun quickly rushes to balance you back on your feet.

“Don’t push yourself,” he says, softly. You can’t look at him. God, these guys really know how to bring your guilt all the way home.

“Thanks, um, anyway—” You breathe in. Shit, you can’t believe you’re considering this. “Again, I really can’t and won’t be able to understand the magnitude of your— well, uh— feelings, since I really don’t remember anything. But how about…I spend some time with each of you individually, and maybe…maybe it can help in jogging back my memories?”

The atmosphere shifts. Ah. This feels like a fucking trap.

“You— you mean it?”

To be honest, you’d much rather just not deal with any of this, just stay at home and continue living your life with these three men as persons you only know behind the screen. But those looks in their eyes— hopeful and melancholic— make you feel your organs are being rearranged every five seconds, and you’d feel bad leaving them with the pain of this conversation especially after they poured out their hearts to you.

You can’t deny the joy and escape they’ve given you for the past couple of years you’ve spent as their fan. Maybe entertaining this unreality is the least you can do.

“I mean, well,” you start, clearing your throat. “Choi Beomgyu, you still need to pay for my phone. Choi Soobin, your manager wanted me to talk to you about something, and Choi Yeonjun—”

You look at the guy who still has one arm pressed against your back, two hands in a firm grip on your shoulders. He’s looking at you and batting his eyes expectantly. You let out a sigh and set yourself loose.

“I need to discuss something with you soon, too.” As in, please stop vaguely mentioning me in your live streams because I fear I might find an angry mob in front of my house. “I think I have all your contact information anyway.”

There aren’t any more reactions coming from them. This seems like the best possible solution for all of you. You sigh again. This has been an emotionally draining evening. You can’t wait to get some fucking rest.

“I’ll be in touch with you or your managers soon. For now, let’s call it a day.”

STAR STUDDED BAGGAGE. © hannie-dul-set, 2024.

#tomorrow x together x reader #txt x reader #choi yeonjun x reader #choi soobin x reader #choi beomgyu x reader #txt scenarios #tomorrow x together scenarios #txt x you #tomorror x together x you #soobin x reader #yeonjun x reader #beomgyu x reader #txt fanfic #choi soobin x you #choi beomgyu x you #choi yeonjun x you

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echooefrost · 5 months

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TGS MEDIEVAL AU :0

Is this Historically accurate? no. Does that matter? no.

Alright, This is gonna be a lot, so thou shalt be warned

In the Au, Robert is a prince and Lanyon Sr. is the King, they rule over a small kindom somewhere in England - name TBA (so not like real monarchies which rule over entire countries etc.) The premise is basically; The Lanyon's personal/private doctor recently passed away so they call in a new doctor/chemist from Scotland - did you guess? yep, It's Jekyll. Hyde exists before Henry/Edward meets Robert (I haven't worked out the exact logistics about it yet, but I will) Jekyll/Hyde are more Chemists/Alchemists than Doctors but they are both still very good doctors regardless (so they don't really wear the 'plague mask' thing) I aged only Jekyll, Hyde and Lanyon down to about their early 20's so it matches around the original timing of when J&H met Robert in TGS. There are other smaller reasons but they aren't to important, all you need to know is that it doesn't really change anything

Lanyon is betrothed to Everly from a neighbouring kingdom -this is where it differs slightly from TGS, it's a political marriage not a lavender marriage. Neither Robert nor Everly are happy about this however, they are both only children in royalty so they don't really have an option.

Hyde is essentially the local gremlin that has in-built eyebags and a sense to sell you things not very discreetly that he probably shouldn't be selling. His Cape is comedically large and has a very extensive collection of illegal powders, drugs, and other nefarious items. Almost everybody knows Hyde becasue at some point they have all needed some rare item from him. - this is where the blackfog comes in (yes it exists!) the Blackfog is basically the same but Hyde really wants to go so he can buy/sell lots of items for his little side-business he has going on, however Lanyon Sr. is opposed to it and it's existence because well... illegal.

*Hyde also goes by: The Spirit of [insert Kingdom's name] at night (soooooo original, ik)

Jekyll stays pretty much the same, He really cares about his reputation so he can move up on the social ladder and create his own Science business at some point, and I mean he doesn't want to make a fool of himself in front of the King of all people, that wouldn't be a very good look, would it?

In this universe, The lodgers are all citizens of the small kingdom and they all sort of have different occupations/roles in the town. They can't all be scientists, but do not fear because they still as equally crazy and chaotic as before. Rachel is the Lanyon's personal chef but she also helps run the bakery in town with Mr. Doddle. Jasper looks after most of the animals and creatures in the kingdom, he used to be a farmer but moved to get away from home. I am yet to work out how Jekyll and Jaspers relationship dynamic stays the same in this universe but I will figure something out.

There is A LOT of Jekyon and Lanyde going on here, so I've got something for everyone, (there may or may not be a masquerade at some point...) and it's not just centred around romance, there is lots of other plot stuff happening so do not fear my ace/aro friends (or just people who aren't a fan of romance)!

That's most of it for now... I'll draw some more stuff at some point and give some extra details, If you have any questions please ask (my asks are open) I'd love to hear from you all!!! Don't be afraid to offer any suggestions or other criticisms. Maybe I'll write a fanfic one day who knows, we will see.

Thanks for listening to my rant (*^▽^*)

*Footnote - I don't think you guys realise how hard it was to make hyde not look like either A.) a fucking elf or B.) Link. Did I succeed? not sure.

#the glass scientists #tgs #The glass Scientists au #tgs au #tgs medieval au #Echo's au's

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ofoceansandtombsanew · 2 months

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👉🏽👈🏽 spare any jjk faerie au headcanons you have cooked up for a desperate lass?

of course because man do i have some thoughts as a lover of faeries. i could probably go on about this for hours

gojou satoru | elf

a prince hailing from a seelie court

his very birth shook faerieland as foretold by the stars red, blue and purple stars that soared through the sky the night of his birth and his eyes are ones that can see mana and the shape of the soul among other things

presents himself as a revel-loving fool he simply enjoys games, but he is a lot more observant and calculating than he lets on

in his youth he often toted on and on about the stupidity of love, likening it to more of a curse and an ailment that turned the sane into fools so outside of the obligation of having heirs, he doesn't desire love in the slightest

until he meets falls in love at first sight with you, a banshee who saved his life when you coincidentally happened to be passing by after he found himself in a bloody situation

causes the entire court to go into an uproar when he immediately announces his intentions to make you his queen never mind the fact you haven't even accepted his proposal yet

his mother doesn't like you in the slightest. she gave birth to one whose very birth has shaken the earth and if her son is going to marry anyone it is going to be someone more fitting of that position

satoru ignores all that in favor of doing his best to woo you now that you're stuck living in his palace until a revel thrown in your honor passes

yes he knows this very much so makes him a hypocrite but he doesn't want anyone else

asks you all sorts of question about being a banshee. how your cries work, if there are different wails for different situations, how long you've been heralding death

at least you know the man is nothing if not passionate. it's hard resisting his charms as he asks you gently each time to marry him. you think you just might say yes when you feel the ghost of his lips against yours

getou suguru | phouka

if he isn't being an advisor to seelie prince satoru, suguru is a human-hating phouka who is, unfortunately, stuck living with one

unlike humans, the folk are creatures who keep their word so when you are able to best him in something for a favor he's inclined to keep his promise

and yes, he promises that he won't harm you or your loved ones after your deal has come to a close. yes, this includes things you personally consider harmful ranging from murder to physical attacks

for a human, you're quite clever in looking out for any loopholes. you apparently weren't lying when you said you were a faerie enthusiast

but that's the extent of suguru's praise when he learns why you were so adamant to find a faerie to help with your problems ー

apparently you took a botany elective thinking it would be an easy A only to now be just barely passing the class

yes, that's right. you want a member of the folk, a phouka, to be a glorified tutor until the end of the semester just to make sure you don't get a failing grade. apparently, suguru gave you far too much credit

still, you end up growing on him overtime with your sense of humor and you're way of looking at things. he hates to put it so simply but he supposes you aren't like other humans he has come across

(suguru later nearly destroys your textbook because he himself grows frustrated with your class. the human sciences are just as confusing to him as it is you. but your grade has technically improved since he began helping you so it's not entirely a loss is it?)

nanami kento | elf-kobold hybrid

an elf-kobold hybrid with horns that gently curve atop his head akin to an imperial demon

a record keeper often has work writing down events as they take place as well as organizing historical texts as he sees fit. it's a tiring and thankless job but it is something his family has been doing for generations and he sees no reason to break tradition now

the one saving grace he has are naps he enjoys taking between late afternoon and dusk, religiously, by a lake close to the palace

you're a swan maiden who calls the lake home and his quiet company. it's winter in the human realm and rather than fly south with your flock, you decided to spend the season in faerie and decided that particular lake would be home

you're a playful, impish thing who enjoys presenting nanami with riddles as he grows tired and you watch over him to keep him safe while he sleeps. a deal you've both made in favor of him bringing you delicious sweets from the palace

it's quite the favorable deal for you both

of course, inevitably you two get to talking and find yourselves having more and more in-depth conversations as the week goes by

what would nanami do if he decided to break family tradition?

where have you traveled in the human realm?

as a swan maiden, you seldom ever take off your cloak of feathers. there's no reason to ask, nanami knows the rules that swan maiden and selkies follow. should your cloak or coat be taken, you're forced to follow their will

as such, nanami never refers to your coat in the slightest. he never even asks about it

it's a great sign of trust among your kind to ever be vulnerable with your cloak. something nanami learns first hand when he wakes up one particular evening and finds that you have covered him with your cloak to make sure he stays warm

fushiguro toji | boggart

a lord in an unseelie court of faerie, who works in service to the high king as his sword

had a mortal wife who died centuries ago and together they had a half-human son

his son lives among humans presently and while they don't readily talk to one another, toji often has his men sent to the human realm to watch over his son and give him reports on his wellbeing

doesn't imagine himself ever loving someone he did his wife again until running across you a human who stumbled into the wrong mound

allows you to stay in his fief until it is otherwise safe for you to return home

you say you're a dancer so you dance for him and keep him entertained as a sort of thanks for not promptly killing you when you trespassed on his territory

the tension between you both is palpable to many. his staff who are forced to wait on your hand and foot as his guest and to the gentry you see at unseelie revels

the ones that gossip about how it isn't strange for toji to take human lovers

and yet despite that, no matter how close you get, toji keeps a distance between you both that. he fell in love with a human once, still remembers the sting of watching his beloved wife grow old and wither away in front of his very eyes

it's a pain he doesn't want to revisit ever again

okkotsu yuuta | human

unlike most stories of selkies and their evil human spouses, you're marriage with yuuta is quite the happy one in the seaside town you call home

yours was an accidental love story where he accidentally caught you in his net, only to release you

the next day, you brought piles of fresh fish and crabs and shrimp by his beachside home as thanks, much to his confusion as to where the catch came from

you usually followed his boat when he goes to fish and he learns how to recognize you, often laughing sheepishly when he saw you, warning you not to get too close so you don't end up in the net again

it isn't until a stormy night when yuuta fell overboard that you did anything drastic such as save his life, taking him to the shore and giving him cpr

you stayed with him all night until the storm passed keeping him warm

when yuuta woke up to seeing a beautiful, naked person by his side, he was understandably surprised. even more so when you transformed into a seal right in front of him. that was his introduction to the folk, to magic

now he's surrounded by you and your ocean-filled magic everyday in your little cottage by the sea

you come and go as you please, sometimes for weeks sometimes even for months at a time depending on the time of year

but you always come back and yuuta is happy to see you every time

#look she's answering #anon #jjk faerie au #headcanons #jjk x reader #jujutsu kaisen x reader #gojou x reader #gojo x reader #getou x reader #geto x reader #nanami x reader #toji x reader #yuuta x reader

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gavalaa · 8 months

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Sketches of all my redone designs for my Phantom Thieves from my AU, Icarus! Lots of info down below on the cut, so if you want to know more about the details and inspiration, feel free to keep reading!

This includes Akechi’s design for his Princely/Robin Hood attire, BEFORE his Icarus attire you might have seen from my other posts! Check out the Icarus AU tag for more info! Icarus has a main focus on Akechi and his relationship to the thieves, but the AU is actually an entire rewrite with new designs, 3rd semester and epilogue/strikers/tactica stories, hence Zenkichi and Sophia’s inclusion.

Read below for individual info:

I decided to include more motifs towards their persona’s and general vibes; and also just my own personal touches haha.

AKIRA - Not much has changed, I really like his design overall. I raised his boots to be like Arsene’s and changed his neck area.

MORGANA - I hate the OG pill shaped head, his new design is based heavily on the shape of Palico’s from Monster Hunter. Added a little more nod to Zorro/His persona motifs and also just made him cuter! Little hamburger headed cat.

RYUJI - I made him a little bulkier and gave some more weight to his outfit overall. I gave him heavier boots and a slightly buffer build to relate back more to his sporty style.

ANN - honestly was never too big on her latex outfit, I wanted to call back to a personal favorite female lead; Christine Daae, and used one of the versions of her Don Juan costume as inspiration. I remember seeing Phantom live and in many stage versions of her character, the Don Juan scene was a pure moment of female control, and she was truly working the Phantom and controlling every movement on the stage. Her presence is commanding, and I thought it was a very fitting tribute to Ann’s character as feminine strength. (I’m absolutely not referring to the movie iteration of Daae btw.)

YUSUKE - I referred to some historical art and legend of Goemon to add more elements of design to his outfit. When I color them, I want to add some really strong pops of color to his clothing to really drive the aesthetics and artistry home.

MAKOTO - Another totally redid outfit, I opted to give her a design which relates back to Popess Joan, and also Anat. I gave her a clawed hand on her right side and an uncovered hand on her left as both a nod to Anat’s hand raised in iconography of her from art history, but also to show the duality of Anat’s title as both a goddess of war, and of love. It also relates to the mythology of Joan and her nature as both a leader and a martyr. I changed her mask to a Venetian Commedia mask as well.

FUTABA - ok. I’ll be honest. I never liked her skin-tight outfit, it just doesn’t match her personality at all. Also, the high tech Egyptian feel never really sold me. I totally understand the tomb thing, but I truthfully think a dungeon/palace which was more like… tech/nerd themed would have been much more “futaba” the inspiration for this new outfit relates back to her persona, the Necromomicon, as well as her nerdy personality, and her affiliation as Alibaba (Ali Baba.) I wanted to go more lovecraftian, long sleeves and patterning designed to look more like lovecraftian tendrils, and big baggy pants and her classic shoes to match. The patterning on her undershirt will resemble a rib cage, both as a reference to her deathly “tomb” iconography, but also to Lovecraftian and Necronomicon lore. I think she matches the description of a nerdy, techie DND dungeon master more than the initial outfit, so that’s the route I took personally.

HARU - relating back to some fashions from 17th c France, where Milady’s story (the three musketeers) takes place, I kept her design relatively similar. I just gave her a little more iconography relating to the three musketeers and that general timeframe.

AKECHI - in his pre-Icarus outfit, I’ve given him a princely sort of outfit befitting of his two faced nature, and edited it to relate to Robin Hood a little more. I tried to keep it sleek and just generally very concealing and layered.

SUMIRE - i gave her some iconography relating back to one of her personas, who is an inference to Freya. I also included some more nods to classic Cinderella, with fantasy gown elements. Overall, relatively similar.

ZENKICHI - again, relatively similar, I really like his outfit. I just opened up the face some to show more personality and spiced up the outfit generally to keep it matching. honestly, les mis/Valjean was a hard one, but I also think his character could be heavily related back to Edmond Dante (Monte Cristo.) so I gave some nods to that as well.

SOPHIA - I turned her into a FINGIE!!!! I made her whole dress as a nod to her persona/to pandora’s tiles around her/the pillars. I wanted to make her small and almost unnatural since she’s an AI, and I thought having a little guy on the team would add some more variation.

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dinitride-art · 10 months

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Au fics that i think are neat and that i want to compile into a list because im trying to figure out how to comment on a chapter of a fic but i need time to sort out my thoughts (usually for fic recs i try to rec fics with less kudos/engagement because reasons but im just gonna throw everything in this list. probably multiple fics by the same author in the same universe because thats the one im trying to sort out my thoughts on.)

the strawberries are dying by eggowlss - historical fiction and very interesting character relationships and also character exploration within the time period. I really like this one because the pacing and tone are very gentle. There’s a srt of ebb and flow to the story that makes both the time period and the characters really fit into it. idk how to describe it i just like it a lot.

in the quiet of the night (acswy ao3 series) - they’re putting those characters in situations. It’s a very good time. 10/10 do recommend. If you haven't heard of this one though, it’s basically a modern au where everyone works at a summer camp and Mike and Will cause problems for themselves, each other, and usually everyone else around them.

si vis amari, ama by perexcri - demons and angels and heaven and hell and its honestly just one hell of a story. like ive got vivid images in my head of scenes i imagined when reading this.

you start to kiss (and the record skips) by eclipseadventure - this is a band au with a side of a secret relationship and im a sucker for secret relationships. a bit of drama/high stakes in here too which is always pretty fun.

End Racism on the OTW! - you and me and the horrible teenaged ghost who keeps eviscerating himself in our apartment makes three by TheWrongKindOfPC - i am also a sucker for buzzfeed unsolved aus. buzzfeed unsolved, hauntings, ghosts, yknow the fun stuff.

into the daylight by andiwriteordie - THIS IS NOT THE FIRST ONE, it’s just the first one that came up in my bookmarks. anyways, this is the second fic in a fantasy au series. The worldbuilding is really cool and there’s magic and history and politics and i like it a lot. the most recent chapter is spinning around in my mind.

the heartbreak prince by andiwriteordie - THIS IS THE FIRST ONE.

beneath these boughs, my devotion blooms by perexcri - this is the fic that nearly killed me. i literally cant summarize it because im still recovering from what happened to me when i read it. Did i read it in april? Maybe. Listen, it had me asking questions about things i had never considered before. its 11k but im pretty sure it took me a good few hours to read because it made me think about it so much. again, ive got a bunch of visuals running through my head. its just... so much.

sweetheart, you're so cruel by perexcri - Mike’s in a band, Will’s a music snob, they’re both contemplating their life choices. very fun, very interesting, also made me think about some things.

keep it hush by wiseatom - theres an amusement park and the horrors of customer service. and some other stuff but basically its pretty bright (the visuals of the fic in my head are bright- like sun glinting off metal- and idk how else to describe it)

the start of an age by delusionaltogether (Whyyyyy) - this ones funny and serious at times and its got Max in it. fantasy au with prince will and knight mike and a secret relationship and a small scheme between three parties that involves a fake (ish) marriage.

superhero therapy by silverluminoqity - spiderman au with a side of trauma and healing? it’s complicated theres stuff happening, i had a good time reading it.

you've got this spell on me by andiwriteordie - this one was really fun. basically its a fantasy au theres magic and mike gets himself hit with a spell that makes him fall in love with will and will freaks out about it for a while.

Daydream by disaster_energy��- i really really liked this fic. its a fantasy au and its got gods and stuff and will gets chosen by the moon goddess because hes Will and everyone is like... woah.

takes one to know one by andiwriteordie - i also liked this one a lot, its a superhero au and its got ironic (like... dramatic irony- i think is what im talking about? maybe? but like fun irony) secret identities.

Love goes 'round by evil_ontheinside - conversations in a laundry mat. mikes flopping (as in, flopping around like a fish) around a bit and this was pretty cute.

my promise could be your fiend (could be the smallest of signs) by s0ld_it - spider man au, theres a bookstore involved and a lot of stuff. ive read this fic twice and greatly enjoyed it both times.

Tip-toeing on Lily-pads by cherryisgone - very very fun, fantasy au and... mike gets cursed to be a frog. can only be un-cursed with a kiss.

filling in the blanks as we go by delusionaltogether (Whyyyyy) - bookstore meetcute

there’s more but i spent all day painting my room and i am tired. Ive also got way too many bookmarks to go through and i have decided to stop here. still haven't figured out how to write that comment (but i am working on it because i love the fi(s) and ive been thinking about one specific thing that came up in a new chapter for so long). anyways, i hope someone enjoys this list of au fics from my bookmarks.

#byler #fic rec

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mangokabuto · 26 days

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Proof of Usopp and Nami being Luffy’s vice/co captains? I would (genuinely!) love to see your thoughts and evidence, bc big agree

(Context:)

Hello anonymous tumblr-using friend!

As someone with a lot of knowledge of & a great passion for real-life historical piracy, I have VERY STRONG OPINIONS about how the Strawhat crew would fit into an actual golden age crew structure. When I said "I have proof" I was jokingly referring to my knowledge of historical piracy and how the characters slot into those trends, not any sort of "in-anime/manga proof" of Usopp and Nami being ""co-captains"" with Luffy, so if that's what you're here for then sorry lol.

BUT if you want to learn a little about golden age western-world piracy, (and my "au" of sorts for how each crewmate would be recognized in that context,) stick around! :)

(extremely long explanation under cut LMFAO)

First off, as i said in my heated/j tags, "captain" did not usually mean what Oda makes it mean in OP's world. I am ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN Oda is just as passionate about & did plenty of research about historical piracy, and is clearly pulling a little from wakō history, but mostly from golden-age western piracy (specifically mostly the post-spanish succession period, to my estimation).

That being said. Why he puts so much emphases on Captains and First Mates is BEYOND me, because irl they were not as important.

The captain WAS important, don't get me wrong, but they weren't the sole reigning commander of a ship. They were more like a figurehead, most of the time. This is a sortof flimsy metaphor, but think of Captains like the modern-day king or queen of England; They're hyped up as the #1 leader, they're an important charismatic face for the group, and they technically have last-say on important matters, but they are beholden to two other groups (like the cabinet and the prime minister).

During the golden age of piracy, most crews were commanded by a group of three people. These three people were usually the Captain, the Quartermaster, and the Bosun. Each filled a different role on the ship, and all three were democratically elected by the crew. In all important matters, the three would discuss together how to proceed/solve the current problem, and though the Captain COULD overrule the other two at any time, that typically got him handily shoved overboard via mutiny. By technicality there was a heirarchy of power between the three stations, (with Captain usually being the top dog, then the Quartermaster, then the Bosun just above the rest of the crew,) but in practice they held equal sway in decisions that would effect the entire crew.

HOWEVER, outside of "big crew-wide decision-making moments" where you needed to assemble the three leaders, they didn't always have to coordinate. Depending on what situation the crew was currently in, one of them would be de-facto in charge of the crew, and the other two would step back unless the one currently in charge did something that needed to be challenged, like they made a bad decision or (in a more extreme case) broke the articles.

The Captain was in charge during times of battle. The captain's primary role was as a fighter, performer, and military commander! If the crew was attacked or about to attack someone else, the Captain would immediately take charge. (Now, real pirates weren't actually violent in practice as frequently as pop culture would have you believe, but that's a whole other topic. The reason "performer" is listed in the Captain's "jobs" is that part of their responsibility as a captain worth their salt was to scare enemies into surrendering without a fight through theatrics and reputation.)

The Bosun was in charge when the Boat was damaged or needed upkeep. The Bosun was not always the greatest carpenter or shipwright in their own right (in fact, in larger crews, they usually weren't either of those things), but they would be the one to get together with the shipwright and worksmen and assess damage, organize repair teams, and keep the boat running as well as possible. The crew followed their lead during repairs, and they were the go-to authority on any matters concerning the physical boat.

The Quartermaster was in charge the rest of the time. The way the Bosun is in charge of the physical boat, the Quartermaster was in charge of the crew. They were responsible for enforcing the articles, dealing out discipline, and the crew's general well-being outside of battle. In that same way that a bosun didn't have to be a shipwright, a quartermaster wasn't usually a doctor or cook, but they worked closely with them. Being in charge outside times of battle meant that the Quartermaster was also in charge of headings and navigation, and more often than not they were the ship's navigator, or head navigation/deck officer if their crew was large enough to have more than one nav. They also usually handled the crew's finances/pay and cargo. Is this starting to sound familiar yet.

So. After establishing the roles. I don't think I have to persuade you that while Luffy is most definitely the Strawhat Captain, Nami is our Quartermaster and Usopp is our Bosun. At the VERY LEAST this is true on the Merry Go.

You could possibly persuade me that Franky takes Usopp's place as Bosun once they get the Thousand Sunny, but I would be hard to convince. (I could be persuaded that Usopp loses his position as bosun on the Sunny, but Franky does not behave like a bosun as much as a head carpenter, and Usopp functions like his carpenter's mate. It's almost like, post-timeskip, they don't have a bosun anymore, and Zoro fills the newly empty position on the leadership trio?)

Now, these roles are not concrete, and they didn't always make up the "management trio" on a pirate ship. Some very small crews just didn't have enough people that they needed to single out their three favorite guys; they could just all vote on important decisions together. Sometimes the management trio included the surgeon or the first mate instead of the bosun. There were many crews where the Quartermaster was considered the top-dog highest authority instead of the Captain at all times. Even during the golden age pirate crews varied greatly, but the Captain/Quartermaster/Bosun trio was most common.

As for the ship hierarchy, there was a trend you could rely on no matter who the "three leaders" were. Everyone was generally considered of equal importance on a crew, (hence the elected offices and avenue for mutiny,) but there was a chain of command of sorts? Or at least people who would be shown greater respect and responsibility based on what they provided for the crew:

Captain and/or Quartermaster

Bosun and/or Surgeon/Doctor, and sometimes the First Mate

Everybody else, including captain's other mates.

Speaking of Captain's Mates... On larger crews, every important role on the ship had a "mate," or an apprentice chosen by the person in question to replace them if they should die, or otherwise be out-of-commission. Quartermaster's Mate. Bosun's Mate. Doctor/Surgeon's Mate. Carpenter's Mate. Etc. However, the Captain had MULTIPLE MATES, because his job was front-line combat focused. Ergo, he could easily die and need a replacement. Quickly. And his replacement could need a sudden replacement! So, depending on the size of the crew, the captain could have anywhere from two to eight mates, who were ranked by number. That's why the captain's highest-ranking mate is called the First Mate. Because there was usually a Second Mate. And then some more of em.

The First Mate's job is to be a good ass fighter, and back the Captain up on whatever they're currently doing. They hype the Captain up and enforce the Captain's decisions, no matter what that decision is. This is why they were usually not put in the management trio on most crews, cause you could imagine. The conflict of interest. (There's supposed to be three of them so that no one member has too much sway. Which could be sabotaged if two of the three are captain and captain's favorite soldier LMFAO)

I have no idea why, in the world of One Piece, all of the emphasis seems to be on Captains as the end-all-be-all leaders of their ship and the First Mate as the second in command. Especially when Oda clearly KNOWS about the other roles, since he's written characters that fall into them like perfect puzzle pieces!

...Well, okay, I have some idea. This is a shonen series for teens and being the captain/king/etc is wish fulfillment, and wouldn't be as cool for the projecting readers if you were part of a leading council with two other mooks. But. I can still be salty about it LMFAO <3

#These roles put Usopp's objection over scrapping the Merry in a slightly new light huh? :) /j #i love pirate lore #thank you whoever's here for reading my long ass pirate history rant #i love you for indulging my hyperfixation muah <3

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buggyjuggie · 5 months

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I know this might be a weird request but I saw on one of your old post and it was mentioning a swap AU with kenshi and Johnny, I wanted to do something kinda similar and it be instead swap, be opposite personality (ex johnny instead of being confident and cocky hes timid and insecure) I'm new to MK so im not sure how opposite kenshi would be but I hope you understand, if you have any questions feel free to ask me again!

──★ ˙ ̟Johnny and Kenshi Swap personalities AU

( There’s little hints of johnshi here but can be read as just platonically)

「 ✦ Kenshi ✦ 」

* So because this is swapped personality but not positions Kenshi i imagine is in a higher rank in the yakuza than normal.

* Because of his cocky attitude he takes more jobs and is more confident about his missions.

* He still doesn’t like doing them but he hides his guilt using his personality.

* I feel 50/50 about the idea of him being a show off for example in MK1 Johnny tends to show off his wealth, fame, movies, everything but i feel like even in this AU if Kenshi did it would make him look insane on one hand he’d do it because of the amount of time he’s spent in this bussines has at least semi desensitised to it but im not sure at the same time cuz i dont feel like it’ll fit his character so idk let me know what you think.

* When Kenshi broke into Johnny’s mansion i want you to imagine the scene where johnshi + Kung lao are walking to Baraka’s village and basically take the dialogue and put it here Kenshi just straight up shit talking Johnny to his face

* After losing to Johnny, Kenshi is absolutely pissed because he’s never failed a mission.

* Johnny and Kenshi’s relationship initially starts off very hostile they bicker argue and insult each other but trough training at the academy they slowly start to put that behind them and it evolves to a sort of rivalry less hating each other and more competitive if that makes sense.

* Kenshi was surprised when Johnny gave him Sento while yes he’s cocky and acts childish Kenshi still feels guilty for all the lives that he has taken while being a part of the yakuza, Kenshi doesn’t feel like he deserves this until Johnny explains his reasonings and slowly starts to put the past behind him and starts hope for a brighter future.

「 ✦ Johnny ✦ 」

* Because his personality is different in this AU instead of being knows for action movies Johnny is most known for horror and historical films.

* His social media presence is small but he’s still got big fanbase that likes him for his mysterious aura.

* Because of his now more silent personality when Johnny drops movie quotes in conversations it tends to sound more ominous and makes people scared of him.

* Johnny and Cris break up still for the same reason as normal : Johnny’s spending habits and perhaps some looked over alcohol problems.

* Did not understand at all what was going on when Kenshi broke in. Whas this a movie ? A prank ? Or is it real ? Dont look at him because he doesn’t know either.

* Johnny keeps sento to himself not because of it’s monitory gain instead for it’s history and doesn’t give it to Kenshi because he think that he’s untrustworthy.

* Eventually after being in the Wu Shi academy for long enough he starts to slowly open up to the people around him.

* Kenshi tends to rile him up so after a while when he gets annoyed he’ll talk shit back to Kenshi and they’ll be off just bickering (like love birds WHO SAID THAT)

* As for the dreaded Mileena poking Kenshi’s eyes out™ i imagine it goes pretty much the same Johnny realises that Kenshi saved him. Even trough all the bickering and rivalries that they had Kenshi still choose to sacrifice his sight for him.

* After the incident Johnny gives Sento to Kenshi as a token of his appreciation of the man and the sacrifice that he committed.

「 ✦ Random hc, these can be read as platonic or romantic ✦ 」

* Because Kenshi was part of the yakuza since he was young he didn’t have many chances to see any type of movies so when Johnny suggest to watch something Kenshi is on board,he’s really excited and keeps talking and making comments while watching.

* Kenshi’s favourite movies tend to be action and thrillers.

* Yes Johnny did show Kenshi the movies he played in but only because he was forced to after loosing a bet. Kenshi just talked about how hot Johnny was.

* Because Johnny doesn’t flaunt his fame like in MK1 his mansion is diffrent. It’s smaller, has simple designs, the awards that he’s won in his carrier are stored on a shelf in another room, all the items he bought are expensive but in the modern art type of way aka simple shapes, basic colours, some of them are small and don’t take up too much space.

* Johnny and Kenshi have different aesthetics when it comes to clothing Johnny tends to wear more basic and neutral colours while Kenshi if he’s not on some sort of mission wears more vibrant clothing.

* Ok i know this one is basic and practically canon to the fandom but still i gotta do it. Johnny buys Kenshi blindfolds, they tend to differ in colour so Kenshi can match them to the outfit that he’s currently wearing some of them have embroidery on the front(?) to make them fancy.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Happy new years !!! I wanted to get this out before new years in my time zone so I’m a bit late lol. This one was a bit hard to write and get idea and I’m REALLY hoping that i didn’t make the character OOC if i did please let me know so i can improve but yeah hope you like this :3

#johnny cage #johnshi #mk1 #kenshi takahashi #mortal kombat #AU #johnny cage x kenshi takahashi #headcanon #request #i love them

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silviakundera · 1 month

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Kinnporsche Fanfic Recs

In celebration of the 2 year anniversary, here is an avalanche of Kinn/Porsche fics that I've enjoyed. Painfully incomplete & posted in no particular order. My shipping interests are 100% focused on the K/P couple and that will be reflected in my list, sorry 😘.

Deep Like a Coastal Shelf by Lilla_Torg

(79,000 words) Green Arrow inspired AU. "After five years abroad, Kinn Theerapanyakul returns to find his city under siege by a vigilante known as the Phoenix."

Stain of Sun by Lilla_Torg

(78,000 words) Omega brothers Porsche (hacker) and Chay (grifter) team up to take down the Theerapanyakul crime family. Things do not go as planned. // This marries A/B/O with mutant powers. As long as you're not wholly opposed to Omegaverse, give it a chance. Every one of this author's long KPtS fics is a banger.

Pouring Down Crimson Fire by Lilla_Torg

(119,000 words) Sort of a mutant AU but honestly that underplays how fucking cool this fic is. “I think you know something about keeping secrets,” said Kinn. He flashed Porsche a pocket-ace smirk. “You’re mine. Say it.”

The boy he’d been fourteen years ago would have told him where to shove it. But Porsche had been around long enough to know that the mafia always won. Still, he looked around, searching for a way out, before giving up and turning back to Kinn, those black eyes awaiting his surrender.

“I’m yours,” he said.

a perpetual unscattering by concernedlily

(31,000 words) Canon-divergence AU. “Pissing in bottles behind a cocktail bar,” Kinn said. “But Pa gave him to me, so I’m stuck with him.” To a visibly furious Porsche he said, “You don’t know the minor family? Never come across any of them before?”

“How would I know the fucking minor family?” Porsche snapped.

what a tangled web we weave by fortunehasgivenup

(80,000 words) 1000 Nights inspired alternate universe, fantasy-historical Thailand. // After the betrayal of his first husband, King Anakinn Theerapanyakul vows to never love again. Once a week, he takes a new husband, a young man who will not live to see another dawn.

When a nobleman comes to find a young man to adopt and marry off to the king in place of his own son, Thee chooses Chay.

Faced with an outcome that he refuses to contemplate, Porsche steps in and takes Chay's place. He only has one request for the king - to be allowed to tell his brother one last bedtime story.

Burn Your Name Into My Skin by Everyforkedroad

(72,000 words) In which Kinn visits a high-end sex club and he & Porsche meet under the guise of anonymity for what should be a 1 night encounter. Except not only are they intensely drawn together... things are not what they seem.

Salt by ronandhermy

(49,000 words) Sweat stings because the salt is purifying. Porsche may be in high school but he is still a National Champion in Taekwondo and he catches the eye of the national team's newest sponsor: The Theerapanyakun Family. Alternate first meeting. Leans into the darkness of canon, read the tags and proceed w caution.

how do you like it, daddy by Baby_Droll

(28,000 words) "and ain't shit 'bout me cheap and ain't shit 'bout me free" - our lord and savior, florence millicent. kinn & porsche, and all the other pieces on their fucked up chess board. a sugar baby/daddy au with an omegaverse twist. // This is a dark reimagining alternate universe. Iconic toxic K/P fic.

two shots by Martynax

(81,000 words) AU, different first meeting. Porsche joined the armed forces & became a hired gun. // “So I’m supposed to end a mafia dispute?”

“Something like that,” he mutters, wondering if he’s making a mistake, revealing it to Porsche so soon. Nothing is set in stone, after all. But he has a gut feeling that the man appreciates honesty and simplicity much more than intrigue and schemes.

be the best you ever tasted by Martynax

(90,000 words) an AU where Porsche's life is shit so he shakes his perky little bum for strangers at a strip club and Kinn books him for a private show. Porsche doesn't fuck customers and shouldn't get associated with whatever grey business his boss is trying to run out of the club. But... you know how this is gonna go.

between the sheets by DasWarSchonKaputt

(70,000 words) “And who’s that?”

“Oh. That’s Porsche. He’s Khun Kinn’s live-in boytoy. He’s harmless, mostly. Just a pretty face.”

A boyfriend can go so many places a bodyguard can’t. As the threat of a potential leak in their security forces looms large, Khun Korn hatches a plot to place an added layer of protection around his heir presumptive. Enter Porsche, former bartender, current bodyguard, and reluctant fake boyfriend of Kinn Theerapanyakul.

Stumbling to the Edge by FireRisingOverTheHills

(51,000 words) Of the genre of KP fics where Kinn and Porsche meet-cute in a random bar encounter, instead of a meet-ugly, this one is my fav. I just really enjoy the Kinn PoV with his what?! is?! happening??? vibes as he finds himself irresistibly drawn to someone who doesn't fit neatly into defined roles.

"He makes this all seem like it’s perfectly normal and Kinn is helpless to do anything but go along with it."

Whatever Else that Touches You by technicallyverycowboy

(9,330 words) Tender established relationship and bisexual self discovery, post canon. // "No, it's fine." Porsche shifts to be a little less plastered against Kinn's side, straightens his shoulders and smooths out his jacket with great dignity. "The answer to your question is yes, I have really never been with any other men." Porsche answers questions, asks some of his own, tries new things, and fills in the knowledge gaps of his own sexuality.

An Elegant Mechanism by Laughsalot3412

(87,000 words) A/B/O AU, Kim centric with some background K/P and dysfunctional brothers & cousin bonding. The only fic on this list that isn't K/P primary. // "Kim was only an omega when he was luring people closer to his gun. No one had to give Kim a weapon. He was one. (Kim's mission is to get close to Porchay Kittisawat. Chay is not a typical alpha. Kim is not a typical omega. Kim isn't having feelings and Chay is going to be so normal about all of this.)"

Love and Violence by thewayside

(9,500 words) Beautifully written, post ep 14. // "Love and violence have always been bedfellows for Kinn. Down to how his first proper relationship ended in a pool of blood. Porsche’s beauty might have drawn him in, but he knows in his gut that he met someone in kind that first night, blood coursing through their veins as the fight ended and Porsche led him onto a bike to a road he barely knew."

Burnished night, blood-soaked stars by The_Old_Astronomer

(13,000 words) Missing scene set between the end of episode 6 and the side story (pre-ep 7). Porsche fights to keep Kinn alive after the attack, and gradually realises how much the other man means to him.

Night Call by vesna (mrsronweasley)

(34,500 words) "On Kinn's birthday, Kinn is dragged by Tae and Time to a strip club, where he gets a private dance from a man who calls himself Jom. Kinn is smitten. Things spin out from there." Canon AU, where Porsche became a stripper because bartending wasn't paying enough.

NFWMB by vesna (mrsronweasley)

(18,700 words) There's a rushing in Kinn's ears, a noise he can't shake. It almost makes him miss the next thing Arm tells him. "He was supposed to check in, as per protocol, but—" "But what," Kinn snaps. A headache is building behind one of his eyes. Arm's eyes are wide right before he lowers them and says, "He hasn't been heard from in two and a half hours." Or, post-canon Porsche is kidnapped. Kinn goes through it.

Caught Off Guard by Altered_Ego

(23,000 words) The one where Porsche is one of his escort's bodyguard. Alternate first meeting; Porsche took another path to support his brother.

the less i know the better by mslunita

(45,000 words) Bored Kinn joins Tinder in hopes of getting his rocks off with a different kind of guy, instead of the standard escorts. Porsche challenges him in just the right way. // Alternate first meeting. Basically their canon selves, but this is after Porsche has already had his bi awakening.

XXX curious STRAIGHT boy BEGS for COCK for the FIRST TIME XXX by mirrorofprinces

(35,000 words ) Porn industry AU. “Porsche is extremely close to signing. In fact, he has a final meeting with the execs on Monday morning. The only condition is that he wants to request his first partner, and it’s you.” Kinn takes a long drink of his whiskey, sets the glass down, and runs his tongue over his teeth. “So you had to meet with me, urgently, to tell me that a beautiful boy wants me to fuck him, thinking I’d say no.” He drums his fingers on the bartop. “Which means there’s a catch.”

paint my kiss across your chest (your touch is like a happy pill) by darkknight

(16,000 words) Episode 8 era. "Porsche discovers different new ways of how good sex can feel, ways that would never even have crossed his mind before meeting Kinn."

quis custodiet ipsos custode by concernedlily

(8,600 words) Porsche being on dangerous missions and Kinn discovering he has Feelings About That. Missing scenes and Post Ep 14.

Wing of a Butterfly by Kalere

(320,000 words) Some years before the canon storyline, two young men have a random encounter at a bar. Their friendship changes everything. // The epic Porsche & Vegas friendship fic.

#kinnporsche #kpts #fic rec #there are tons more great KP fics #i am certain I left off at least a dozen #this fandom is blessed with its authors #please be inspired by this to publish your own recs

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snek-panini · 1 month

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The last of my Binderary books, #10 and #11, are here! This is The Mathematical Improbability of Reaching the Stars by cassieoh and D20Owlbear and it is another very long fic that I had to split into two volumes. It's a wonderful Good Omens human!AU with believable relationship development and very likeable OCs. I like to go into summaries at this point in my binding posts but I have trouble pinpointing the reason I like this one so much. It's just compelling and I like spending time with these characters. It reads like an original story and yet it's undeniably a GO fic. I don't know how else to phrase it.

I had a major disappointment with the bind, though. As you can no doubt see in the photos above, there was major glue leakage when I did the htv and it ruined my book cloth. That's a homemade paper-backed cloth and it's this wonderful textured green fabric (I think it's polyester but it's shiny and lightweight) but it did not like that silver foil htv At All. Really sad that it turned out like that. The silver leaves were also an absolute nightmare to weed. So many teeny tiny pieces, and I had to do four of them. I stand by the design, it's very pretty and I still think it fits the book, but I have got to find another option for putting titles on homemade cloth. I've done five of them now and I have this issue every time.

More photos under the cut! It is still a very pretty set, even with the cover issues.

You can see the fabric texture really well on the backs, and there's no glue issue there either. Part of me wishes I'd left the front covers blank like the backs. I love how the spines turned out; that's black faux leather and it always takes htv like a champ. I like how I did the titles here too. I really wanted them on the spines but it's such a long title that I'd have had to scrunch it down really small to make it fit. Weeding tiny text is always a pain and it limits the fonts you can use and still be legible, but splitting it up like this? Love it. Looks so good on my shelf.

Silver foiled edges! I had trouble getting the foil to stick, like always, but I ended up sort of layering it over the unstuck parts and got this kind of patchy look that I love. Handmade double core endbands, and this is one of the most complex patterns I've done in endbands so far. I love them and think they came out really beautiful.

The endpapers are this beautiful chiyogami leaf pattern. I bought these for this fic before I'd even started typesetting it because I knew they'd be perfect. Chiyogami is my favorite thing to use for endpapers lately, I love it so much.

I went really simple on the typeset here. It's a contemporary story, as opposed to a lot of the historical and fantastical ones I tend to bind, and I thought the sleek typeset suited it. I'm not as in love with the title page as I could be but I do like it. It's about the text, not the flourishes, once you get into the meat of the story.

One fun typesetting thing I was able to do with this one happened in the headers and footers. Usually I do page numbers at the bottom, author's name on the top left and title on the top right, but the combination of two authors and a really long title meant the headers got really unwieldy. They were too long and bled into the body text. So I split them up like this, and I love it! Looks so sleek. I've been looking for an excuse to do it like this again on other typesets but it hasn't fit anything yet.

And that's that! I asked for author permission for these but never heard back, so I hope they're both ok with what I did. I'm overall pleased with the results (and in love with parts of it) and I know what I still need to work on.

This is the last of my Binderary books! 11 is too many! I'm never doing that many books in a month again! Now I've got everything posted I feel like I can move on to new projects, though it may be a bit before I have any new books to post. I've got a format experiment in mind.

#bookbinding #fanbinding #snek makes books #good omens #fic rec #at last all the binderary books are posted #it took longer to post them than it did to make them #i will not have any more new books for at least a couple of months #honestly these have flaws but I don't love them any less for it #they're beautiful and i think i did a good job #and the fabric has such a nice texture #good for holding

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minniepetals · 2 years

Text

a thousand springs

— summary: when poison threatens to take your life away from them, they only wish they had more time with you

— pairing: bts x reader

— genre: angst, fluff, poly!au, historical!au, royalty!au

— word count: 11.4k

— warnings: poison consumption, talks of death, reader gains illness from poison that has the potential to take her life, injuries, hurt and comfort (happy ending)

— rec music: listened to jimin & ha sung woon - with you while writing this

You stare at the budding flowers in the garden, feeling a sense of serene as the gentle breeze allows you to get a better wisp of the smell, melting your tense shoulders almost instantly.

“They’re almost ready to be picked,” you say into the comfortable silence as you crouch down to gently reach out to one of them as if giving attention to a child. You’re so soft, so gentle with them, and when you turn over to look up at the man behind you, the tender smile on your face softens his hardened features. “Don’t you think so, Jungkook?”

“Seems that way,” he says, and although you both know he has no clue about the flowers at hand, the way you giggle in response to his short answer makes him smile discreetly.

“It has a strong sense of calm to them,” you say as you return your focus back to the blooming flowers. “I think it’d help Namjoon a lot. Ah and speaking of, Jimin and Taehyung should be back soon, shouldn't they? I assume Taehyung will probably go on a ramble about how annoying his missions are so I should prepare some calming tea for him, and Jimin will probably knock out the second he returns. By the way, Jungkook,” he falls at your every attention the second you call for him, holding a hand out to help you up without a word. “Seokjin mentioned he was running out of ink the other day, do you think you could accompany me to town later?”

He nods at your request while you continue rambling.

“Maybe I should get him a new brush as well. The man really loves his writings so he’s probably quite particular about what sort of brush he uses. Maybe I should ask him about it. But then again I sort of want it to be a surprise. He’d like that wouldn’t he?” Jungkook nods again. “Then, do you think you can help me?”

He nods once more, already preparing to leave when you stop him by the tug of his sleeve.

He turns around, wondering why you had suddenly stopped him when you reached up to pick something from his hair.

“Looks like Spring is faring well,” you say with a sweet giggle as you reveal the pink petal plucked from his hair. “When the castle calms, we should go on an outing to enjoy the cherry blossoms.”

“If it’s what you want, I’ll mention it to Namjoon.”

“Hey now, you’re making it sound like I’m the only one who wants this. It’s high time you relax as well, Jungkook, enjoy yourself a little more.” When he shakes his head, you sigh with a small pout. “You boys are always running all over the place, never taking a moment to calm down. One day you’re going to regret taking up my offer. Can’t you do it? For me?”

“My missions..”

You frown when he says so, an upset expression forming upon your features. “Argh, you’re always so busy, aren’t you? If it wasn't for the fact that you have to remain as my bodyguard, I know you would have definitely gone with Jimin and Taehyung. It kind of breaks my heart thinking about it.”

“I…”

Seeing the conflicted gaze in his eyes, you laugh aloud. “Just kidding. Of course, I know your missions take priority so don't worry too much about what I just said. I’m sure when the time comes, you’ll—”

“M-My lady! Master Jungkook!”

The two of you turn at the retainer whose feet carry loud and heavy.

“Come now, Wen, why’re you in such a h—”

“Master Taehyung is heavily injured!”

The second he announces those words, you can physically feel your heart dropping and Jungkook, who had been silent all this time, quickly hurries to carry you so that when he takes off, it only takes a few moments before you arrive at the main hall where a heavily injured Taehyung is carried with support from Jimin.

Your breath hitches at the sight of their bloody bodies, both hands coming up to cover your lips as you stand there, trembling.

“Tae—”

“I’m fine,” he dismisses your concern with a cold remark as Yoongi and Hoseok rush to the scene in order to help the two ninjas.

You walk over, brows arching with distress. “Clearly not.”

“I’m talking fine, aren’t I?”

God, why does he always have to be stubborn when it comes to his injuries? Still, you know you can’t do much except give the man his space as he gets carried off to his chambers with the doctor following right behind.

At times like this, you know you’ll just have to wait it out until the fatigue hits him and he doesn’t have any more energy to get upset about the mission. It doesn’t hide the fact that it hurts seeing him in such a state, however.

“Y/N, will you help Jimin?” Hoseok asks with a hand on your shoulder when you stood there, looking after Taehyung’s disappearing body.

You turn around at the older man, brows pressing together as you take a look at Jimin. He’s injured as well, not as bad as Taehyung but injured still.

Once Jimin is settled in his private chambers, you get to tending through his wounds without a moment of rest, knowing that you’d rather keep yourself busy than fret over other things. Whatever happened during their mission, they’ll have to eventually report to Namjoon but for now, all is quiet as you sit before Jimin, the sun already down as you watch over his cuts and bruises.

“Hey,” he breaks the silence after a while and you feel a hand holding you under the ear in order to tilt your head up to look up at him. “Taehyung will be alright,” Jimin assures, a gentle yet transient smile resting on his face.

Your expression breaks slightly. “Why does he always have to be stubborn?”

“You know how Taehyung is.”

“I just wish he’d let me care for him during times like this.”

“He just doesn’t like you seeing him in his weakened state.” You frown when he says that, eyes looking down once more to return your focus back on wrapping Jimin’s arm.

“That stubborn brat,” you mumble under your breath, causing him to chuckle lightly when the doors slide open and Hoseok walks in. “How is he?” You’re quick to ask.

“He’s just fine. It took some time but his stubborn ass finally decided to rest,” Hoseok reports with a sigh as he finds a space on the floor beside the two of you. “Jungkook’s watching over him.”

“Does this mean the mission was a fail?” You turn to Jimin, concern filling your features.

He sends you an apprehensive look. “It’s too early to say. Namjoon will probably have me and Jungkook return to the scene to pick up after my and Taehyung’s work.”

“But you just returned injured and look at what happened to Taehyung.”

“This is to help the Clan, Y/N,” he reminds you solemnly and you sit there, not wanting to hear the truth. Seeing as the bandages are all wrapped securely on his arm, Jimin reaches up to gently stroke your hair. “Come on now, don’t give me that look. We’ll be fine.”

“But..”

“I know what to do now,” he assures. “We just foolishly fell into the enemy’s trap but I won’t make the same mistake again.”

“How can you be so sure…” You mutter, still refusing to accept this despite knowing it isn’t your place to voice out such an opinion. You may be the Lady of the Clan but even then, any details that have to do with the ninjas’ missions will always go deaf to your ears.

“Because we have you waiting for us back at home.” He states it so surely you almost fall for the smile Jimin sends you but you know better than that. After all, despite the many years you’ve spent with them, it still worries you to no end when they run off to do some dangerous task.

Your heart will never be settled as long as you are the wife of highly skilled warriors.

Hoseok takes your hand in your silence and gives you a gentle squeeze. “They’ll be fine,” he says gently and you know you can’t do much to refute that.

Days later, Jimin and Jungkook disappear without a trace, most likely off to the said mission.

You can feel it when Jungkook’s eyes are no longer on yours. After all, he always watches over you whether in person or somewhere hidden in the air, so when you can no longer feel a watchful gaze, that’s when you know he’s gone off to do a mission.

The castle has gotten busy ever since that night.

“Are you coming to bed soon?”

Namjoon keeps busy at his desk with his brush rushing through the stack of papers before him even as he answers you. “Head to bed first, alright? I’ll join you soon.”

You know that’s a lie because one time you woke up in the middle of the night and there he was still at his desk, busying away.

Upon your silence and unmoving body, Namjoon looks up with a rueful smile once he spots your frown. “If you’ve gotten that lonely sleeping on your own, why don’t you join Taehyung?”

“Do you think I haven’t tried? He kicked me out as always,” you say with a huff as you stand from the bed and crawl on over and sit yourself by his side, eyes scanning over the complicated papers he has to read and write. “Want some help?” You ask as you look up at your husband, the Lord of the Clan.

He chuckles lightly at your offer of assistance and brings his hand to ruffle your head. “You haven’t the slightest clue what’s written on these pages, do you?”

“If you teach me, I can play my part.”

“I’d love to do that,” he says, pausing, “on another day.” You frown. “Go on now, stop being stubborn and catch up on your rest.”

“You should listen to your own advice,” you say as you crawl away but only to show up behind him, arms wrapping around his waist with your chin plopped onto his shoulder.

“What’re you doing?”

“I miss you,” you confess, nuzzling further into the cloth of his hanbok.

Namjoon says nothing to that and simply returns to his work, but from the corner of your eyes, you can see a small smile curled along his lips. He probably misses you too but has to unfortunately put his work before you.

That’s just what the head of the Clan has to do. Above all, throw his desires away to make sure things are okay in the Clan again. After all, Jimin and Jungkook are off busying themselves on a mission. He can’t slack off.

You take ahold of the brush at hand, brows furrowed in concentration as you stroke a finger upon the hair in order to get a feel of what Seokjin likes.

Hm.

How does one tell what’s a good brush and what isn’t? Jungkook was supposed to get the intel for you but now that he’s away on a mission, you have to take matters into your own hands. It’s hard though, you have to admit, because no matter how many times you brush your fingers over the hairs, you still have no idea what you’re looking for.

Perhaps the shop owner will have a better say in the field. You can just ask him instead. And besides, Seokjin’s probably a frequent visitor so they’d be likely to easily point out which brush it is that he likes best.

Yeah, you should do that.

“Y/N, what’re you doing here?”

You quickly put the brush back in its place before the doors slide open and Seokjin walks in, frowning slightly at the sight of you in his private chambers.

“I thought you enjoyed unexpected visitors,” you say as you stand to walk over to his side and help him carry a few scrolls in.

“You’re not exactly unexpected though.”

You sigh when he says that. “Ah, by the way, I was planning on heading to town to pick up a few things so—”

“No.”

You blink at his quick reply. “Huh?”

“You’re not allowed out or go anywhere by yourself now that no one’s here to watch over you,” he states as he takes a seat before his desk. You place the scrolls down with a slight frown.

Duties, duties.

You’re basically stuck here now.

Ah, what good is being the Lady of a Clan when you can’t even go anywhere without an escort?

With your knees pressed up to your chest, you wrap your arms around them, cheek laying against your knees as you look out the open window upon the pretty cherry blossoms that stand just outside the doors. You know sitting like this isn’t very ladylike but for now, you don’t care as your eyes yearn for the outing you mentioned to Jungkook that one day.

Seems it won’t be happening this year either.

Soon enough the cherry blossoms will have all fallen and you’d be stuck watching them from the castle once more, unable to have the viewing and picnic you so yearned for ever since you were wed into the Clan.

“Don’t look like that.”

You turn back to Seokjin with a forced smile. “Like what?” The least you can do is pretend to not sulk over small things like this when they’re over here busy with castle work, just trying to maintain a good system.

You can’t be selfish.

Seokjin sighs knowingly and pauses in his readings in order to hold a hand out for you. “Come here.”

You don’t hesitate to walk on over and take a seat beside him, eyes eagerly looking up at the attention he’s finally giving you. He reaches a hand out to stroke your head, a gentle expression on his face. “Soon, things will calm down. Just wait a little longer, alright?”

Soon there will be no cherry blossoms to look at.

“I can wait as long as you’d like, don’t worry about me.” Still, you speak those words from the bottom of your heart, knowing that your selfish desires will only burden them.

Seokjin understands your heart and frowns slightly because he knows he can’t fulfill them. “I’ll be alright,” you say, and he leans in to press a gentle kiss on your lips.

You take what you can get, smiling into the kiss.

A soft melody resounding into the silence of the night, Yoongi’s ears perk up at the sound, knowing just who is playing such a beautiful melody.

His feet carry him towards the sound and there he finds you sitting on the veranda, playing the flute as you would whenever you can. Most nights you’ll play it for them when things are less busy, on other nights you’ll play it in the loneliness of the night, the sound of the flute keeping you company.

He watches you for some time, just standing there as the moonlight brightens your beauty, closed eyes, fingers lightly pressing on the holes of the flute ever so often, your lips blowing air into the wooden thing.

How long has it been since he’s sat in your presence and simply listened to you speak?

You must be so lonely now that everyone else has gotten so busy.

So he silently takes a few steps forward and takes a seat right beside you. The music falters a little when you feel his presence but quickly picks back up when you realize that it’s him. Yoongi lays his head on your lap and rests his eyes, feeling the fatigue finally get to him now that he’s taken the time to settle down after such a busy day.

When the music dies down and you put the flute down beside you, he feels your fingers run through his hair in a gentle manner.

“Finally taking up my offer to rest, huh?”

Yoongi holds a hand out, flexing his fingers until you give him your hand. “There’s still so much to do but at least Jimin and Jungkook are returning soon.”

You gasp at the news. “Really?”

Yoongi nods. “We got a letter this afternoon.”

“That’s great news! I can finally go into town now.”

“Ah, is that what you’re excited about?”

You giggle at his lazy response. “I previously asked Jungkook to accompany me to town in order to grab a present for Seokjin and now that I think about it, maybe I should pick some things up for Taehyung as well. He’s still as stubborn as ever, refusing to allow me into his private chambers. Isn’t it rather unfortunate? Why does he choose to remain cooped up in his bed when he could be roaming outside, looking at the pretty cherry blossoms? Soon enough, the petals will all have fallen and we’ll have to wait a whole other year to see them again.”

When you look down at the man on your lap, you frown slightly at his closed eyes, breath slowing down. “Hey, are you even listening?”

“Mmn,” he hums. “Keep talking, I like listening to your voice.”

“Oh.” Well, you hadn’t expected that response.

“It’s soft and gentle, like a spring breeze. Though in honesty, nothing compares to having you here like this, not even your voice.” He looks up at you with a gentle squeeze to your hand, smiling softly.

“I…” You can feel your cheeks slightly heating up. “I like your voice too…” You say, gently, and Yoongi chuckles lightly as he sits up.

He puts a hand beside you, resting his body against it as he crowds you in, and before long, you feel his soft lips on yours.

Yoongi’s kisses are sweet and gentle, unlike his more serious and stern side whenever he’s on the battlefield or speaking during war council. This is the hidden and soft side only you and the guys get to witness, no one else.

You feel so lucky.

“Okay, this time, maybe he won’t kick me out.” You steady yourself with a tray of tea prepared in your hands, prepping yourself up because you know it takes effort to try and get Taehyung to open up. How many days has it been since he returned with his injuries? It’s been some time now so maybe he’s feeling a bit friendly today?

One can only hope.

Taehyung’s a stubborn man who doesn’t like to show you his weaknesses, getting rather upset and angry if you were to push his buttons because he’d rather be upfront and strong when he’s around you.

It’s dumb when you think about it but what can you do? He’s too stubborn to listen to your reassuring words otherwise.

As you round down the hall, a glimpse of a familiar structure catches your sight and your eyes are quick to brighten.

“Taehyung!”

He’s strolling down the hall, his formal wear a bit exposing his chest due to the bandages that wraps all around his right arm. He rests them inside his clothes, letting them prop up against where the belt of his formal wear resides, and when he looks up at your call, Taehyung’s hard expression doesn’t change.

“Taehyung, I have tea for—”

He turns to slide open his door and walks right in, slamming it closed without a word spoken to you.

Your heart falls at his refusal, tray almost tipping over if you hadn’t been quick to keep a steady grip on it before it can do so.

Another day, another rejection.

Maybe if you talk to Namjoon, he can get the man to open up, but Namjoon’s a pretty busy man as well. Hoseok, perhaps? No, everyone’s busy.

As you turn around to make your way back to the kitchen, you feel dejected at the events of things.

Guess I’ll just have to wait until Jimin and Jungkook returns. Which shouldn’t be long.

Your lips press together into a tight smile as you give yourself a nod, confident things will work out again soon. Taehyung will be bound to show his presence once Jimin and Jungkook returns, he’d have no other choice.

You can bombard him then.

You giggle thinking about it when someone calls your name.

“Lady Y/N!”

You turn at the call to find a familiar retainer walking up to you.

“Good afternoon, Chan. How can I help you?” You greet with a smile.

“Well actually, I’m here to give you this,” he says, presenting a small jar of something green and herbal.

“What is it?” You ask as you take the jar, eyes scanning over the dried leaves. “Tea?”

“Yes, they have quite the strong calming effect.”

“Really?” Your eyes brighten a bit at his words.

“Yes. They’re quite rare to attain right now, my lady, but I know you love to seep tea ever so often so I’m sure it’d do you well to keep them rather than them staying with me.”

“No way, they’re that rare?” You gasp before looking back at him. “Thanks so much, Chan! I’ll be sure to make good use of them.”

“Of course, my lady.”

With that, you’re off to the kitchen in the annex that gives you personal space.

You set the tray you had in hand down onto a table before examining the jar you were just given.

Tea that has such a strong calming effect is hard to come by these days so you’re thankful to be given some and quickly get to work to begin seeping the tea leaves. While keeping your hands busy, a soft smile falls on your face as you think of your boys.

It’ll help them during this time and the other two ninjas will return soon so that’ll be even better.

You take a look outside at the gardens to find a cherry blossom tree just a few yards away, hoping and praying that maybe you will have time this year.

Just maybe.

“Surely this year will be the year,” you mumble to yourself as the tea is ready and take a small sniff of the content.

It smells like the forest, calm and crisp.

You take a sip of the drink and your eyes brighten at the taste.

“Great! Now to send it over to Namjoon and the rest.” You take a stand when all of a sudden, your head falls heavy and your vision begins to blur.

Huh?

“...mrmh.”

You try to speak but your throat constricts, each breath harder than the last as it begins to burn and the tray falls from your grasp.

Why can’t you speak?

Unable to get a grasp on what has been done to you, you rush to the inner kitchen where the maids and cooks should be, panic settling in your chest as your heart beats rapidly in ways you’ve never felt before. Something strange is happening to you, something painful, but you know you can’t just collapse right now, not before it’s too late.

Someone…help.

As soon as you hear the voices of the maids and cooks, the world pitches over one last time and your vision goes black. Needles of pain lance your arm, then your cheeks, and it is not until you feel the cold on them that you know you must have fallen.

Desperately, you try to move your arm, to drag yourself across the ground despite the fearsome cold that is overtaking you.

Namjoon!

But no matter how you scream for him in your mind, no words come out, and soon enough, you lose your consciousness completely.

“Hm?” Namjoon’s head jerks to the side. For a moment, it almost seemed as if someone was calling for him but the only ones in his chambers are Jungkook and Jimin who just returned from their mission, bowing forward formally with their lips sealed.

“Namjoon?” Jimin looks up, confused upon his Lord’s silence.

“Nothing, I just…I thought I heard something,” he says, brows furrowed in confusion.

Must’ve been the wind.

However, just as he is about to address the two ninjas once more, frantic footsteps race closer and closer to his door. Jungkook stands up to slide open the door, a frown on his face.

“Milord..! It’s Lady Y/N! She..she’s collapsed!!”

“What?!”

In an instant, the three of them are out the door like a shot, reports and business all thrown out the door as the only thing that falls on their minds are of you.

“I have done what I can for her, but now all we can do is wait and see what happens.”

“What the hell do you mean by that?!” Taehyung stands with rage as he takes the collar of the doctor with the one hand that seems to still be working well. “Do something, dammit!”

The doctor trembles in fear. “I-I’m sorry, milord, but she is in a very precarious position. There is nothing I can do.”

“Taehyung, calm down, getting angry isn’t going to help anyone.”

“Dammit!” He curses under his breath at Seokjin’s words, throwing the doctor off balance with a forceful push before falling to the floor as he stares at your stilled body resting on the bed.

Seokjin turns to the doctor, sighing as he helps the man up. “Thank you for your help, you may leave now.”

“Y-Yes milord.” He doesn’t hesitate to rush out the door, almost bumping into the three who had just walked in.

Namjoon’s brows furrow at the sight of the doctor rushing away, knowing what he had just heard, and almost freezes at the sight of you lying in your bedding.

Your breath is shallow, or perhaps already gone, he cannot tell, with eyes sealed tight. You aren’t struggling nor do you look like you’re in pain, you’re just…lying there as still as a corpse, barely clinging onto life at best.

“What…happened..?”

“The maids found her unconscious near the entrance to your private annex,” Yoongi reports, a furrow in his brows. “She was brewing up some tea, probably meant to send it to one of us.”

“Tea?” Jimin asks, confused.

“It appears the culprit slipped poison of some sort, masquerading as a rare herb of sorts,” Hoseok states as he hands Namjoon the jar of the dried leaves.

Jungkook settles himself at your bedside, his eyes wavering as his hands tremble at the sight of you.

“What did the doctor mean by Y/N being in a precarious position?” Namjoon asks as he watches you from where he stands.

“Whether she lives or dies…is entirely up to Y/N herself.”

Silence fills the room as they can do nothing but stare at your still body.

Letting out a shuddering breath, Jungkook lays his hand against your cheek. He timidly strokes it, his strength gone at the feel of your skin, clammy and cold as if the blood has already frozen your veins. In spite of it all, the maknae breathes warmth onto his palms and presses them to your face, desperate to keep you warm.

Ah, so cold.

Why is it so cold?

You shudder at the feeling, teeth chattering uncontrollably as you hug yourself to seek some sort of warmth. Usually, your hanboks are enough to keep you warm but why aren’t they doing their job right now? Seokjin always made sure your hanboks are warm and filled when the weather gets a little too cold, always overprotective and looking out for your well-being.

Even during his busy times, he won’t ever forget to look after you.

But why is it so cold today? And so dark?

Something flies past you, a breeze, a warm breeze against your cheek, so you lean towards it, gasping lightly at the warmth.

It leaves for a moment then returns warmer than before, then slowly turns cold once more before the process repeats again and again.

No, you want it to stay. To keep you warm.

You take a step forward, reaching out, but nothing changes, so you run towards the warmth, desperate in your steps, until finally, something bright and white shines through the darkness of your consciousness.

“Y/N.” Someone calls you.

Huh..?

“Y/N.” It calls again.

The voice comes closer and closer as you run towards it, towards the light, until finally, you recognize its uncanny gentleness.

Jungkook..!

You open your mouth to answer him but for some reason, your voice refuses to leave your throat. All you can feel is the warmth against your cheeks, which you desperately cling to with little else you can do.

Why does he sound so sad? You can’t have that, you need to get back to him.

In an instant, your consciousness floods back, as if that warmth has yanked your body forcefully from the freezing water.

“..Y/N…”

When your eyes flutter open, right in front of them is Jungkook, his face close, terror and concern marking his features.

Jungkook? What’s wrong?

Your heart aches so keenly at the sight and as you open your mouth to call for him, nothing comes out, nothing but its shallow breaths opening and closing.

You can’t speak.

Terror fills you as you reach out to place your hand over Jungkook’s warm ones, and in an instant, his once lost and distant eyes come back to life as they greet you.

“Y/N!” He pounces forward in a gasp, the loudest he’s ever been with you, alerting the rest of the men in the room.

“Someone call the doctor,” you hear Namjoon command and feel a shudder through your veins.

Cold, you want to say, but nothing comes out.

Yet they seem to hear you as you feel Seokjin tuck the blankets up to your neck, a gentle hand coming to graze your cheek.

“You’re alright now, you’ll be alright,” he whispers as if casting a spell.

Someone takes your hands, breathing warm air into them, while someone else brings warmth with a touch on your forehead.

Ah, so warm.

It was the poison that took your voice away and unfortunately it won’t end there. According to the doctor, soon enough through the passing days, you’ll lose strength in your arms and legs as well, forcing you to remain at your bedside until eventually, the poison will take your heart if the antidote doesn’t run through the veins in due time.

You have a chance to meet death and you’ll do it in a slow, painful manner.

“Here, ah.”

Right beside you, Hoseok sits with a bowl of porridge in his hand, a spoon ready to feed you. You let him do the job, opening your mouth to take the food in before turning to your paper and brush to begin writing something down.

“I haven’t lost the strength in my arms yet. I can feed my own self.”

“Don’t be stubborn and let me take care of you.” You pout slightly and he laughs. “Seeing you like this almost reminds me of Taehyung. If only you could speak,” he says with a rueful smile as he reaches up to stroke your hair.

Not hearing your voice must be really hard on them as well.

Your brush dances over the paper again.

“Don’t you have a Clan to help run? You don’t have to stay here to help me, I’m fine on my own.”

“Y/N.”

“And if you’re that worried, my maids can help aid me so—”

“I’m not leaving your side,” he states, taking your brush away before you can write any further. When you’re forced to look up at him, Hoseok’s eyes are filled with concern and worry. “We’ll find the antidote,” he promises. “We’ll find it and things will return to normal again so please…please don’t push me away.”

You realize that he’s scared. Scared to lose you.

Chan had already taken his own life before anyone could get to him so your report on the matter didn’t matter so much. Currently, the castle is looking into his background, trying to find any link to anything, and although you’re not really sure what’s going on, something tells you they’re coming up empty.

Which is why every day, someone new stays at your side, taking care of you. They can afford one less person in the castle if it means staying by your side.

You’re doing okay for now but soon enough, they know you’ll lose the strength from the rest of your body if they can’t find the antidote.

They have to work fast.

A few soft knocks and in just a few seconds, the door slides open to reveal Taehyung in his usual attire.

He looks down at you with an emotionless expression. “What’re you doing walking around?” He frowns your way and when you beckon to the tea at hand, Taehyung lets out a sigh and walks back into his room.

This time he doesn’t close the door behind him. This time he doesn’t push you away.

A bit sad it has to resort to this but you take what you can get and follow him into the room, foot sliding the door closed before you walk on over to settle by his bedside. You set the tray down, seeping the tea in silence, before handing him a cup.

Taehyung takes it without a word, his stare piercing as he stares at you even while bringing the cup up to his lips.

“I didn’t poison it.” You bring a paper up as if it had already been prepared beforehand and he scoffs.

“I don’t take you as one brave enough to do that to me,” he mutters and you frown in response as if asking ‘what is that supposed to mean.’ He laughs inwardly to himself as he leans back into his bedding, body pressed up to the wall so that he’s still sitting as he drinks his tea.

You crawl forward to his side and he watches from the corner of his eyes as your eyes wander at the bandages on his arm.

A hand reaches forward, not before you look up to ask for permission. When he says nothing in response, you take that as permission and press a gentle hand on his injured arm. There is a furrow in your brows as you examine his arm, lips pouting slightly before you take something from your hanbok and show him another prepared paper at hand.

“Does it hurt?”

He shrugs. “It’s useless now.” Your eyes bulge out when he calmly sets the cup back down without saying anything further until you tug at his sleeve, begging him to speak more. Taehyung sighs. “I’ve permanently broken it so I can’t use it anymore. It still hurts a bit but the pain’s subsiding as if it’s no longer part of the body anymore.”

You sit there remaining in silence — it’s the only thing you can do — but when he observes your expression, it twists with pain and he sighs as he sits up straight once more, hand reaching out to wipe away the tears that have fallen.

“This is why I didn’t want you around. I knew you’d cry seeing me in pain.” You cry more and he frowns. “I know, I know, but I was going to eventually let you in once my body decided to no longer associate this arm as a part of them.”

“Stupid,” he sees your lips form out those words and chuckles ruefully.

“I get it, I get it. Now stop your crying.” Taehyung wraps his one arm around your figure and pulls you in close so that you can let your tears soak his bare chest. He gently strokes your hair as you cry silently into his chest until you can no longer cry and the tears have worn you out.

You lay there in his arms, body rested up against him, eyes falling a bit sleepy. Even then you keep your eyes open because you don’t want to sleep just yet. With your brush and paper off to the side, you use your hand to write invisible letters upon his chest.

“Stupid.”

He laughs. “I know, you’ve already told me that.”

“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.”

“If that’s all you’re gonna write, I’ll kick you out.”

You look up at him with a disbelief stare, mouth gaped open before you huff and turn to leave his arms. If he doesn’t want you here then you’ll give him just that.

“Wait– oh come on, I was kidding,” the ninja says as he pulls you back in with his overpowering strength. You can’t compete with that, how can you ever? “I promise I won’t kick you out so just stay a little longer, alright? It was getting a bit lonely here.”

You look back up at him with a narrowed gaze before opening your mouth. “Stupid.”

Taehyung sighs and you press a hand to your mouth as your shoulders tremble.

He watches the smile on your face, missing the way it was so easy to hear your giggles resounding into the air. But right now he can hear nothing. Nothing at all. All that is are your pleasant smile, a hand over your mouth, and trembling shoulders.

No sound of music to his ears.

He misses your voice but he doesn’t say it, knowing you have it tougher than he does.

In the silence of the night, Yoongi lays on your lap, eyes closed as nothing is heard except for the cicadas. You sit on the veranda, his warm overcoat draped over your shoulders as you play a soft tune on the flute.

Your voice may have been taken away from you but that doesn’t mean you can’t blow wind into the flute. So you play it softly for Yoongi, knowing just how much it relaxes him.

“Y/N.” When you hear him call for you, you stop playing in order to look down at him, a questioning tilt to your head. Yoongi opens his eyes, staring at nothing before him as you run your hand through his hair. “Are you afraid?” He asks and you pause in your ministrations for a moment.

Admittedly, you give him a nod before returning to play with his hair.

“Right, of course you are.” When he says that, his field of vision suddenly turns dark as you lean forward to press a kiss on his forehead, as if telling him that it’s alright because you trust them. You’re afraid because it’s a natural thing to feel during grave times like this, but you trust them nonetheless.

“I love you,” he whispers into the night and you smile gently, mouthing the words back to him.

Jungkook watches you steadily from the back as you stroll through your garden, a soft smile on your face with a spring in your steps. You haven’t lost strength there just yet but he still worries as he keeps his eyes on you, ready to catch you if you were to fall at any moment.

When you turn around to catch his attention, he’s at your side in a split second. It’s gotten so quiet between the two of you now that you can’t talk. Jungkook’s a quiet man, after all, and you always filled up the silence but even though your voice doesn’t work as it normally would, the things you do as if you can still speak makes up for the silence.

You point down at a bush of flowers, mouthing out “ready” for him so he hunches over at the flowers, taking out the pruning shears that you weren’t allowed to hold because they didn’t want you to accidentally get hurt.

You crouch down beside him as you point to one of the flowers and he gets ready to cut the flowers but not before you tug at him to grab his attention.

When Jungkook looks over, you have a paper with instructions written on how to properly cut a flower off its stem. He reads them thoroughly, turning to the flowers to put them into practice with you guiding him along the way.

One after another, he cuts and cuts until you have seven flowers in your hands.

When he sees that bright smile on your face as you hand him one of the flowers, Jungkook knows he’s done a good job.

“For you,” you mouth out the words and he takes it in his hand.

It’s beautiful, pretty, though not as pretty as the smile you give him. So these flowers were grown for them. You took care of them so diligently that he always wondered why. When he brings the flower up to his nose and looks at you with a soft expression, he wishes he could hear your laughter resonating through the gardens.

As you and Jungkook walk through the halls of the castle with you holding onto the six remaining flowers, you hear loud voices coming from somewhere down the hall.

Familiar voices.

“What the hell do you mean you’re going to march there yourself? You’re still healing, Taehyung.”

Brows furrowed, you look up at Jungkook who meets your eyes, his expression hard to read but you both know the voice belongs to Namjoon.

“I’m doing this for Y/N!”

“You’re doing this for yourself! Stop being selfish and stand down. If you march there now, you’re bound to fall into the enemies’ trap once more. Think logically, Taehyung.”

“Do you think we have time to think? We’re running out of time.”

“I know but if you just barge right in there, we’re not only going to be losing one of us but the rest of the Clan as well. I can’t risk that.”

Suddenly the doors slide open and Taehyung, who had opened the door abruptly, freezes at the sight of you who’s standing right in the doorway and silence fill the room.

Face still marked with anger, Taehyung lets out a noise of frustration before walking out the doors and down the hall, not caring to calm down even as you stand there, watching after him.

You look up at Jungkook who gives you a nod and heads down the hall to catch up to the older man.

“Y/N.” You look back into the room as Namjoon calls your name, his face filled with fatigue and exhaustion but even still, he flashes you a pressed smile. “I’m sorry you had to hear that.”

You walk into the room, sliding the doors closed as Namjoon settles himself back behind his desk, eyes concentrating on the tasks at hand and as you watch him, you can feel your heart aching at the sight of his weariness.

He looks so tired yet he’s still doing all that he can to find your antidote.

When he feels your presence beside him, he puts the paper down to turn your way. “What is it?” He asks and when he finds the flowers you have in hand, Namjoon gives you a small smile. “Are those for us?”

You nod.

“How pretty,” he says when you hand him one. “They’re the flowers you grew in the garden, aren’t they?” You nod. “I hope Jungkook helped you cut them and you didn’t do it yourself.” Another nod and he puts a hand on your head, ruffling it gently. “That’s my good girl.”

You wish you can help him in other ways but this is the only thing you can do for him as your heart aches, him not being able to keep the conversation up while you sit there frowning, hating the fact that you can’t do anything more.

War is coming soon.

They’ve found the story behind who Chan was associated with and it links right back to the mission the three maknaes had been dealing with for some time now. The same people who took Taehyung’s arm away poisoned you.

As you sit there in your room, you stare at your hands which seem to hurt a bit whenever you would flex them. Soon enough you won’t be able to hold a brush and write to them. Soon enough you won’t be able to walk.

But for now, you can still do things moderately.

“Is something wrong?” Namjoon gazes down at you with concern as he takes the hand you had been flexing. “Does it hurt?”

You shake your head in response, putting on a smile for them.

“You can tell us if something’s wrong, Y/N,” Jimin says as he pulls up from your other side, his eyes kind and gentle.

You’re scared.

You’re scared because they have to leave soon, off to the battlefield in hopes of taking that antidote from the enemy, but who’s to say how much time you have left?

War doesn’t take a day or two. It takes weeks, months, but do you have the time?

When you take the brush into your hand, ready to write down your every worry, your every concern, you suddenly find yourself stopping.

You can’t.

If you tell them, they’ll worry and it’ll cause them more grief than relief.

“Y/N?”

“What’s wrong?”

The more you worry, the more concerned Namjoon and Jimin look, even reaching up to stroke your hair.

I’m scared, you want to say but don’t have the heart to. You hate the fact that you can’t speak but take their hands and meet their gazes.

“What is it?” Namjoon prompts.

They look so exhausted.

You take up your brush again, intending to tell them that you’re alright, that they don’t have to worry too much, but that in itself is a lie and even though you don’t want to tell them the truth about your feelings, you also know that you can’t lie.

They don’t deserve that.

But you also don’t wish to tell them all it is that is in your heart. You’re scared, terrified, and time only seems to be speeding up. Even your own hands are slowly beginning to lose their strength and soon enough you’ll be forced to remain lying in bed.

Your body feels so weak.

The brush refuses to move, leaving a dark blot of ink in the center of the paper.

“If you have something to say to us, it’s alright, just tell us,” Namjoon whispers against your hair, pressing his hands against your shoulders. Even that gesture alone threatens to tear you apart so you set your brush down, and look at him again. “Mmn. What is it?”

His voice sounds so gentle that whatever it is that’s happening seems like the stuff of nightmares, fading into obscure nothingness.

You wish you could fix all of this, that time would reverse back and you hadn’t been foolish enough to take the dried tea leaves Chan had given you. You wish him and Taehyung weren’t fighting, you wish you could make it all better.

It’s your duty as their lover to make sure the relationship is alright again once a fight breaks out between any of them. But, even when you open your mouth to speak, the words refuse to come.

You’re only growing weaker and weaker by the day and you’re scared to lose any of them. What if they don’t get the antidote in time and it strains their relationship? You don’t wish any of that to happen.

“Namjoon.” You want to call out his name, to make it all better, but there is nothing but silence. “Namjoon…”

Gently, his hand moves to rest against your cheek as Jimin takes your brush to set it down, then Namjoon lightly kisses you.

“I know,” he whispers. “I know what you want to tell me, Y/N.”

You feel Jimin’s hand on your other cheek and nuzzle into his warmth. They embrace you so tightly it almost hurts but if it means being in their arms is the last place you’ll be when your eyes close forever, you’d rather it hurt forever.

War council ends today with a tense atmosphere as the retainers all leave the main hall with grim expressions on their faces.

What remains of the room are your seven boys and just as Taehyung is about to get up and leave, you walk right in to steal their attention.

“Y/N? What is it? Do you need something?” Seokjin asks when they all look your way.

You present them a piece of paper, flashing it in front of you with a smile.

“I want to see the cherry blossoms,” it states. They notice the change in the font, lines a little more squiggly than usual, some of the letters faint, some more bold, and when they find your features marked with such a serene and calm expression, how can they say no to that?

“Careful, you might trip.” You look up at Taehyung with a slight pout and he rolls his eyes. “If you run off and fall on your knees, I’m not picking your ass up.”

“It’s not like you can with your one—”

“Oh, you wanna bet?”

You quickly shake your head with a silent laugh and instead take his hand despite his words, running off further towards the cherry blossoms which stand in a straight line, creating a beautiful path of pink petals right in between. The brightness in your face shines as you let the wind flow through your hair, loving the feel of the cherry blossoms against you.

When you shudder slightly at the cold, Namjoon has an overcoat draped over your shoulders, his hand gentle as he strokes your head.

“Don’t be too reckless now.”

You nod happily at his orders and quickly rush off elsewhere, leaving the two of them alone in silence.

“Seems someone’s finally found her smile. Do you really love the cherry blossoms that much?” Hoseok asks as he takes a petal from your hair while you look down, writing something despite struggling a bit.

“I love you spending time with you all more than anything.”

“Ah, so that’s what this was about?”

“The cherry blossoms are pretty though.”

“Of course. Though not as pretty as you.”

Your face flushes with red as you glare up at him. “Hoseok…” You word out and he laughs.

A harsh breeze passes by, causing a flutter to the pages of your paper so you hurry to press a hand on them, making sure they don’t fly away, but in doing so forget the overcoat over your shoulders as it flies off into the wind.

Oh!

You gasp inaudibly and turn on your heels to reach out and grab for it before it can get even further when suddenly you feel pain in your legs.

“Y/N?”

In the next moment, you fall on your knees, papers and brush falling into the wind, too weak in the legs to remain standing and in a split second, they’re right at your side.

“Y/N-”

You hunch over in pain as tears prick the corners of your eyes, a sharp needling pain stabbing at your legs. Terror crawls over them at the sight of your silent tears crying inaudibly.

Seokjin picks you up without effort and as they begin to head back with you in his arms, in spite of the pain jabbing into your legs, when you lay against the strength of your oldest lover, you can feel his body trembling in fear.

Namjoon sits behind his desk, elbows propped over as his hands intertwined right in between, his leg jerking with anxiety.

They have yet to hear news of your wakening. You’re still breathing, still alive, but for how much longer? There are only two days left before they have to march to the front and it’s a relief, it’s a relief because soon he’ll have the antidote in hand but even then, he knows it will take some time before he finds it.

War doesn’t last for a few days after all, so once he leaves, will he even be able to see your eyes again before he returns? And what if it’s too late by the time he returns? What happens then?

He’ll be marching off to battle without having to see your precious eyes again.

Maybe he could hold it out for a few days, wait for you to open your eyes again.

No. He can’t.

He can’t delay it any further because he has to get the antidote.

The antidote.

“I’ll stay.”

Namjoon looks up at the unexpected voice, his eyes widening a bit as he stares at Taehyung who had just spoken those words. “..What?”

“My arm will hold us back anyway, so I might as well take over the duty of protecting the castle,” he states, eyes falling off to the side. “I haven’t trained hard enough with one arm to walk into the battlefield ready so just let me stay. It’ll be better than leaving Y/N alone.”

Namjoon hesitates for a moment. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” the younger one nods. In his eyes, there are regrets of not getting himself out there to train harder but even then, he falls determined to remain defending the castle and staying by your side while the rest of them marches off to the battlefield, fighting upfront to obtain the antidote to cure you.

Seeing that determination in his gaze, Namjoon nods. “Alright.”

When you wake up again, there is no one but Taehyung in the room, his back leaning against the wall as his head turns to the side, eyes mindlessly looking out the window. It’s a gentle breeze but still, you shudder and he’s quick to look back with widening eyes.

“You’re finally awake,” he breathes as if he had been holding his breath for some time now. When Taehyung walks over to your side with worry marking his features as he tugs the blanket more up your neck, you wonder how long you’ve been unconscious to make him look like that. “How do you feel? Are you alright? Do your legs hurt?”

You shake your head lightly but frown when you realize you can’t feel them nor can you feel your hands.

You can’t move them.

“What is it?” He asks when you look as if you’re about to burst into tears at any second.

“Hands,” you mouth, and with a solemn expression, Taehyung takes your hand from underneath the blanket to give it a gentle squeeze.

You sense the touch it just the tiniest bit.

Where are the others? You want to ask as you look around, frowning at the lack of presence in the room. Are they busy preparing for the war? But then why is Taehyung here in his usual wear without looking the slightest bit busy?

“They’ve already marched to battle,” he answers your unspoken question, causing your head to quickly jerk back with a flash of alarm in your eyes. “You’ve been unconscious for a week, Y/N. They wanted to stay until you opened your eyes but…your antidote takes priority.”

No.

They’ve gone.

They left without saying goodbye.

You didn’t get to say goodbye nor did you send them off as you usually would. What if something happens to you? What if they’re too late? You’ll never get to see them again and the last time you ever saw them was during the cherry blossom viewing where you had collapsed and Seokjin carried you back home.

“Hey, Y/N, don’t look like that.” You feel Taehyung’s gentle hand against your cheek. “It’ll be okay, you’ll see them again,” he says, a promise made to the wind. In spite of how afraid he is, he still smiles for you, a gentle smile so soft and sweet you can hardly tell it’s Taehyung for a moment.

Why do you look like you’re about to cry?

You want to reach out, to hold his face, to comfort him, but your arms won’t move a muscle and as you struggle against your inner thoughts, Taehyung wipes an unknowing tear that had fallen from your eyes.

“Don’t cry,” he whispers. “Everything will be okay.”

Terror wants to take control of you but Taehyung doesn’t let it. It’s as if he knows, as if he understands your frustration to want to help him, so he pries open the blankets and crawls in. It takes some effort because of his lost arm but eventually, he wraps his arm around you, a gentle kiss pressing to your forehead.

“You don’t have to cry anymore, alright? I’m right here.”

You look up at him as he wipes away the tears that are blurring your vision. You press a kiss to his collarbones then lean up, wanting to kiss him.

Taehyung chuckles lightly because you can’t reach up so he leans in to give you the honors.

It’s a gentle and sweet kiss, one you wish you shared with the rest of them before they left.

“Why am I getting a report that you aren’t taking your meals?” When Taehyung walks in through the doors, his expression is hard and grave. You can sense the anger in them but turn from his glare to look off to the side.

He takes a moment, breathing in slowly before letting it out in order to calm his nerves.

“Y/N,” he sighs, and takes the porridge from the maid’s hand. She excuses herself without a word, closing the door behind her as she leaves, while Taehyung sits himself on your bedside, a frown in his expression. “Do you not have an appetite? Is that why?”

When you don’t answer him, he puts the bowl down to take your hand. “Look at me, please. Please, Y/N.”

With the desperation in his voice, you turn to look at him, pouting slightly while he looks at you with fear in his eyes. “Tell me what I can do for you,” he says, voice barely audible as he squeezes your hand, his head lowered. “How can I help, Y/N? What can I do? If you won’t take your meals, I…how is your body going to heal?”

It won’t heal, you want to say, not without the antidote.

“Please Y/N…please eat. Please? For me? The boys are out there fighting to get your antidote. Don’t you want to welcome them back with a smile?” He sounds so desperate, filled with so much pain as he watches you from where he sits, hating himself for not being able to do anything for you.

Your heart aches as you look at him, knowing just how much he’s blaming himself, and it’s during times like this when you wish you had a voice the most. You want to reach out and tell him that none of this is his fault, that he has no control over this, but you can’t.

You can’t.

So you let him help you up, let him press your body up to lean against his chest. He’s careful when he holds you, letting you use his body for support, as he reaches out to grab the bowl of porridge.

It’s hard because he has only one useful arm but he makes it work. He rests the bowl on his dead arm, steadying it carefully so that it doesn’t fall, while using his other one to hold the spoon.

“Eat for me, yeah?”

You open your mouth to let the spoon in, tears falling from your eyes, your heart aching, and despite how much it hurts to see him do this all for you, you open your mouth for all the spoons he feeds you until there is nothing left in the bowl.

When you finally finish, the bowl clatters to the floor and he lets out a sigh, letting his arm press against the floor behind him so that he can lean his weight onto it.

You rest there in his arms as he lets you listen to the beat of his heart. In the silence of the room, Taehyung presses a kiss to your head before resting his cheek right there. It is only until you fall asleep again does he let his own tears fall.

He doesn’t remember doing this for quite some time now. When was the last time he cried? Probably years ago, before he even met you. It’s been so easy to let his walls build up, sealing his heart from others, shutting you out even when you thought you were already in.

He wishes he hadn’t pushed you away so easily. He wishes he showed you more care, more love.

Why is it during the most crucial moments when people realize their mistakes all too late?

He wishes he had more time.

You struggle in your sleep once more, a retainer rushing to the private of his chambers where he sat behind his desk, looking over some documents. The second his attention is called in concern about you, Taehyung forgets the papers and rushes to your side.

You awake the castle once more in your wake of suffering and as you whimper and cry in your silence, he can do nothing but watch as the doctor tends to you, doing all that he can to at least postpone some of your sufferings.

When are the others going to be back?

“Feeling a little better now?” Once the room clears out and it’s no one but the two of you, Taehyung sits by your bedside once more, stroking your hair gently as he looks down at you with dark bags under his eyes.

You nod tiredly from where you lay and open your mouth to speak. He reads your lips so easily now.

“Is there any letter?” You ask and he reaches into his pocket to take out a piece of folded paper.

“We haven’t gotten any personal letters from anyone but the messenger stated that things seem to be going well for the time being. Maybe we’ll hear from them soon.”

“I want to see the cherry blossoms.”

He gives you a rueful smile. “Sorry darling, but they’re gone now. Summer’s in just a few weeks.”

Summer? Already? It feels just like yesterday the eight of you were walking under the cherry blossoms.

“Next year?”

He puts the letter back into his pocket to take your hand. “Yeah,” he squeezes, his voice soft and tender, “let’s go see them next year and the year after that, and the year after that. Until you tire of the cherry blossoms.”

“I won’t tire of them.” You shake your head and he chuckles.

“Then, we’ll keep seeing the cherry blossoms until a thousand more Springs to come.”

You nod in response, a sleepy smile resting on your face.

“Go to sleep, you deserve it after tonight.” You feel his hand stroking your cheek when your consciousness slips away.

“Y/N. A letter’s come.”

Your eyes light up. “Letter?”

“That’s right. So eat well, alright? And then we can read it together.”

You never get to read that letter, because halfway through your meal, you’re throwing up the contents, body trembling hard as your face scrunches up in the same, familiar pain he’s seen on your face during so many nights.

We’re coming home.

Taehyung reads the same words over and over again and the more he reads it, the more his vision blurs to keep him from reading any further.

You’ve lost consciousness once more, having yet to wake even after three days. He had wanted to wait to read the letter with you but being as you have yet to open your eyes, he decided to go on to read it by himself.

The words Namjoon displays should have relieved him, to release the tensions that have been weighing heavily on his shoulders ever since the moment you had first lost consciousness, ever since they left him alone to care for you. Working around the castle all on his own while taking care of you is a hard task but he doesn't regret ever offering himself to Namjoon when they knew they needed someone to stay at the castle for you.

They’re coming back, finally, meaning they've gotten ahold of the antidote. He sits there in your room, the windows closed because you’ve gotten much too sensitive to the cold. It’s Summer but even then, your body temperature doesn't get any better. Your breath is shallow, barely there as you lay in your bedding, body as still as a corpse, almost like the first time they saw you when you had initially taken in the poison.

But unlike that time, it almost feels as if you really won’t open your eyes again, as if he’s losing you, as if he’s already lost you.

“Milord! They’re back!”

With a glance your way, Taehyung takes a moment before rushing out the doors, his feet taking him faster than he’s ever run before.

Once he’s right at the entrance of the castle gate, he can see the horses from afar, running straight for him with Namjoon leading the herd.

Ah. They’re back.

They’re actually, finally back.

“Taehyung!”

“Taehyung! How’s Y—”

At the sight of the ninja’s tears, they freeze up in an instant, breath held against their throats, hearts as frozen as ice.

“Go,” he whispers. “Go before it’s too late.”

They rush to your room where you lie, eyes closed, body frozen in place with a moving beat. At the sight of you, they can instantly tell why Taehyung was so frightened he had cried before them, something he’s never done unless the situation was actually grave.

But you’re still breathing.

Still breathing.

Namjoon takes the antidote out and carefully spills the blue liquid in between your lips. Your face is as cold as ice when he touches you, trying his best to not let the antidote pour out.

“You’re going to be okay now, my love. You’re going to be okay,” he speaks in prayers, a wish made unto the heavens.

They hope they aren't too late.

“Y/N?”

You feel a gentle hand grazing your cheek, one that you haven’t felt in a while. It’s warm and tender, filled with strokes of love as you feel your eyes slowly opening. Once your vision comes into view, you find Namjoon right above you, his brows arched with relief and anguish all the same.

Why are you crying? You want to ask.

“Hey, little darling, finally awake now, are you?” Jimin plays with your hair, his fingers gentle upon your head.

They’re back, you realize, but they don’t seem to be in their armors so maybe it took some time for your body to gain consciousness once more? The last thing you remember was throwing up the meal the maids had prepared for you, happily eating for some time because you wanted to read the letter that came for you and Taehyung.

You never got to read the letter.

How many days has it been since you lost consciousness?

It doesn’t really matter now does it? Because you’re awake now and feel a bit lighter on your body.

“How do you feel?” The doctor asks you moments later once they give the two of you space so that he can examine you.

You open your mouth to try and speak but still, nothing comes out.

“Seems it will take some time for you to regain your strength, my lady. Can you feel your legs?” You shake your head. “How about your hands?” You shake your head again.

“Has the antidote not worked?” Yoongi asks, his voice filled with worry.

“It’s working well, my lord. Her face is already regaining color as you can see, but you will have to give it some time before the lady can move again.”

“And her voice?”

“It may return with time. For now, make sure she takes her medicine and rests well. She will have to do some physical training on her body once it regains its strength but make sure she doesn’t push herself too much. Unfortunately, her body will remain weaker than before as a lasting side effect of the poison but that shouldn’t hinder her from doing her usual activities. Just make sure she doesn’t ask too much of herself.”

“Thank you, doctor.”

“Hear that?” Seokjin turns to you when the doctor leaves, his smile soft. “You’re okay now, love.”

You’re okay now.

You’re okay.

“Were you scared? You must’ve been so scared. But everything’s alright now so there’s no need to worry about anything else.”

“Welcome home,” you mouth and their expressions soften.

“Mmn. We’re home.”

1K notes · View notes

yourlocaldisneyvillain · 1 year

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✼ 𝕗𝕒𝕟𝕗𝕚𝕔 𝕞𝕒𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕝𝕚𝕤𝕥 ✼

♥ Larissa Weems ♥ (Wednesday, TV 2022)

on wednesdays we wear black (ongoing) -> a Morticia Addams/Larissa Weems Mean Girls!AU story that is currently on hiatus. needs to be reworked

little miss perfect -> a teenage Larissa Weems/Morticia Addams one-shot. dealing with internalised homophobia. angst with a happy ending.

push me gently (into love) (nsfw) -> two chapter Larissa x reader story in which the reader is a goth art teacher at Nevermore. fluffy, cozy, and sweet, featuring easily skippable smut. rom-com vibes. written for a lovely human being and i hope it continues to bring her joy.

particular (nsfw) -> Larissa Weems x (adult) Wednesday Addams, aka the fic that got me cancelled. rom-com with dark humour and some more mature themes, but still relatively light. sort of a coming-of-age story. author is considering making people take a reading comprehension test before being allowed to comment.

making do -> one-shot. angst, hurt/no comfort. past Larissa Weems/Morticia Addams. a character study of Larissa Weems. mentions sexual assault, deals with processing trauma.

pathetic (nsfw) -> part of kink!week. a short piece describing a toxic relationship. Larissa x reader, but nothing abut the reader is specified -- almost like their identity doesn't matter and they're just a plaything meant to pleasure their boss. featuring foot fetish. it's hotter than you think :)

inevitable (dead dove: do not eat) -> a very dark piece of fiction dealing with sexual assault and trauma. features horror elements. please, take the tags seriously, this isn't a light read.

♥ Lucifer Morningstar ♥ (The Sandman, TV 2022)

violet soul (nsfw) -> two chapters. one of my most popular Lucifer fics. Lucifer x reader. deals with the topic of selling one's soul to the devil. dark. features very filthy smut.

my ruin tastes so sweet (almost as sweet as your lips) -> a choose-your-own-adventure story with three possible endings, that explores what it means for an angel to fall. Lucifer x angel!reader.

our little dance (nsfw) -> Lucifer/Mazikeen. character/unconventional relationship study. explores neurodivergency. very sensual smut in the 2nd chapter.

kiss my sorrow away -> tooth-rottingly fluffy Lucifer/Mazikeen one-shot. Lucifer is being the most extra of drama queens, and Mazikeen cheers them up.

call the devil's name (nsfw) -> Lucifer/Mazikeen one-shot. very romantic. hot and tender smut. depicts love as devotion/religious experience.

belong (nsfw) -> dark Lucifer x reader one-shot. non-explicit non-con. explores the concept of free will after one sells their soul to the devil.

the secret (nsfw) -> last part of kink!week with a surprising twist at the end. Lucifer x Mazikeen... and a curious voyeur?

♥ Jane Murdstone ♥ (The Personal History of David Copperfield, 2019)

when the last restraint is gone (ongoing) (nsfw) -> an intense victorian romance between Jane Murdstone and her lady's maid, Laura. sort of in the style of Sarah Waters's historical romance novels. heavily influenced by Vita and Virginia's love letters. featuring a lot of sensually read victorian poetry and dirty, delicious smut. currently being edited/rewritten.

one and a half sugars (ongoing) -> modern!AU. Jane is an insipid accountant with very specific opinions about coffee, and reader is the only person who knows how to make it for her. fluffy rom-com vibes. will feature smut in later chapters.

don't look away (as i bare my soul to you) (nsfw) -> part of kink!week. dominatrix!Jane x reader. how healing is it for someone to see the worst parts of you and never avert their eyes? the kink in question is watersports and it's much tamer and more sensual than it sounds.

♥ Captain Phasma ♥ (Star Wars, sequel trilogy)

danger level - one (nsfw) -> filthy smut featuring the good ol' sex pollen trope. Phasma x fem!stormtrooper!reader. hot and a bit silly. straightforward and simple porn lol.

chrome and lipstick (nsfw) -> technically a Wednesday fandom crossover, but honestly you can read it without knowing anything about Wednesday except the fact that Larissa Weems is a person that exists. filthy smut (sensing a theme for fics featuring our beloved captain here? lol). non-con/dub-con, so read at your own risk!

easy prey (nsfw) -> part of kink!week. tentacle erotica, non-con. features glittery pink tentacles and a very pretty alien oc, if that spark(le)s your fancy.

♥ Jan Stevens ♥ (Flux Gourmet, 2022)

hazy (nsfw) -> Jan x reader smut, featuring the infamous egg aka oviposition kink. give it a go, it's not as weird as you think it is :)

beautiful (nsfw) -> a gift for a lovely tumblr mutual. Jan x reader fic exploring love, devotion, and body image. very smutty. featuring eggs because it's Jan and it has to :)

fill me (with your love) (nsfw) -> part of kink!week. Jan x fem!reader. a very sensual piece with disturbing erotic imagery. featuring alvinolagnia, food play and bloating fetish.

♥ Brienne of Tarth ♥ (Game of Thrones, TV 2011-2019)

so very chivalrous (and so completely oblivious) -> Brienne x princess!reader. very fluffy. Brienne is very good with a sword, but a bit oblivious in the matters of love. featuring good ol' lesbian yearning.

sweet dreams (nsfw) -> part of kink!week. brienne is injured in a heroic pursuit, and a lovely lady takes care of her while her injuries heal. kink of choice is erotic lactation. very fluffy and sweet.

♥ Miranda Hilmarson ♥ (Top of the Lake, TV 2013-2017)

...but we could be (nsfw) -> part of kink!week. Miranda Hilmarson x Robin Griffin. Miranda starred in a lesbian gangbang porn video and she is very proud of it. Robin thinks Miranda that's absolutely nuts and she definitely doesn't want to see it, thank you very much... except somehow she finds herself in Miranda's apartment, watching it. why is Miranda's shirt see-through? and why is she so nice to Robin while Robin is actively trying to push everyone away?

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♥ kink!week ♥ masterlist

♥ sapphtober prompts ♥ (in progress)

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✼ you can buy me a coffee if you want to support me! ✼

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writing requests are currently closed!

#fanfiction #masterlist #gwendoline christie #larissa weems #jane murdstone #lucifer morningstar #captain phasma #jan stevens #brienne of tarth

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just1gnome · 1 year

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shout out to the person who ate my last rock au post like a snake i made four more

aheemheem lore under the cut

ranboo as a snowflake obsidian is obvious, we never had a choice fr. i like to imagine that snowflake obsidians are very rare(having incredible terrakinesis abilities in a society of rock people is not something that should come in large numbers) so when he just randomly appeared on the rebel planet it was quite a shock. he literally came out of nowhere and doesnt even remember his own origins and not even the most historically inclined of them can figure out what those red and green insignias are.

for some reason i was REARING to add sam as SOON as possible so hes a mossy agate. he was assigned to a newer colony close to the lmanburg planet(name still pending) and was in charge of overseeing the construction of important structures; he grew very fond of the building and aided his workers a little more than he was probably allowed but nobody really stopped him. he worked alongside bad(black opal), antfrost(tigers eye), and ponk(clinohumite) and we will get to them. eventually. because of his proximity to the rebels, he'd grown pretty attached to that silly little rutile and offered him protection if ever he needed it. he never fully removes himself from homeworld, he doesnt really have a reason to, but he does offer help from behind the scenes on occasion. he still builds for them, particularly the prison which is sort of like the human zoo in canon in that it is a station floating around up there as opposed to being on a planet. also sam nook is his pearl that he asks to go check on tommy and hang out with him when he cant be there in person

i am going to be so incredibly honest i dont think ive written down any quackity lore i just really wanted to draw him. i think he was just pretty chill doing stuff for homeworld but then he heard about these rebels and was like. uhm bye i wanna know whats going on over there. i feel like his lore is so well understood and hes an established canon gem type so i dont have to do a lot of work for him hes already the perfect boy

as stated before, tubbo is a nephrite who had a lot of time to hang out with tommy before they all ran off to lmanplanet. he worked one station above tommy, but he wasnt a captain. i dont have much written for tubbo either, but it is safe to say that snowchester is on the moon and the fur is completely cosmetic.

These little character bits are mostly backstory unfortunately Tubbo and Quackity's lore happens on screen so I don't have much for them

I would love to explore their arcs in this au tho but y'all gotta wait

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quixoticall · 7 months

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This Could Get Ugly 1. Before the Beginning

Summary: It's 1983 and The Downsides need another lead singer and you just happen to need a band--it's a perfect match. The only issue? You have to pretend to be in a relationship with your bandmate, Steve Harrington, but you can't help but be drawn to the band's broody guitar player.

pairing: s.h. x fem!reader, e.m. x fem!reader, j.b. x n.w., r.b x n.w.

warnings: It's the Daisy Jones and the Six!AU, Enemies to friends to lovers, Love triangles, sex, drugs, rock and roll, etc., fake relationships, bad parents all around.

MASTERLIST🎸

Prologue 🎤

WC: 3.4K

A/N: long time reader, first time poster. Please share your thoughts and any tips you may have. ❤️❤️

***

STEVE: Right, so I just start talking into this microphone thing?

INTERVIEWER: Yes, but you need to introduce yourself first.

STEVE: You know who I am, we’ve known each other for—ah, okay, okay sorry. I’m Steve. Harrington, obviously. Former lead singer and guitarist of The Downsides. So, uh, where do I start?

INTERVIEWER: The beginning—tell me about how you first got involved with music.

STEVE: Right, okay, I can do that. I grew up kinda lonely. My dad was this big real estate investor but we lived in Indiana of all places, so he was always traveling. I don’t think I remember him ever being home for more than a month straight growing up… and my mom was there but she wasn’t there, ya know? She drank a lot and spent a lot of time in bed, that sort of thing.

***

1962-1972, Los Angeles California

Your childhood is a lonely one but it’s also a boring and predictable one.

Born in sun-soaked LA to a movie director father and his much younger model wife, two people who didn’t know each other well enough to either love or hate the other. They maintained a similar distance in their marriage as the one they tried to uphold in their individual relationships with you, their child.

So, your infancy was spent in a rotation of different nanny’s arms with your parents’ presence only dotting the periphery of your life. Who could blame them, after all? Infants are so contrived and boring compared to the big, wide, world of art that was Los Angeles in the 1960s. Your parents were far too busy trying to cement their legacy in the art they created and inspired to spend too much time looking after you.

(Much later in life, you would find yourself wondering if your parents ever saw the irony in the fact that your art ended up eclipsing their entire existence in the end and their only legacy was that of being your parents.)

As a child, however, you spent little time thinking of legacy and instead spent your time trying to feel less lonely.

***

STEVE: When I was a kid I would wonder why my parents even had me. Sorry, that’s like a total bummer thing to say during an interview. But it’s true. And you said to tell the truth. I never felt wanted by them. Until I got famous, and even then… but that’s not new, a lot of kids grow up feeling lonely, right?

***

The employees who raised you were nice enough, but they saw you for what you were: a means to an end. A paycheck with big, sad, beautiful eyes that may beget sympathy, but they couldn’t get too close to. The children you came to meet at your elite California private school seemed palatable enough at first, but the more you interacted with them, the more you found yourself at a loss. It was like they spoke a secret language you did not know—a language of price tags, and ever-changing hierarchies and thinly-veiled insults. One that your mother spoke perfectly, but never bothered to pass down to you.

You end up turning to books instead. The home library your father kept up for appearances’ sakes became your favorite room in the house and your teenage growth spurts were fed by any and all novels you could get your hands on from historical biographies to soapy romances, you read them all. You loved them all, but you loved poetry the most— emotive and raw in ways you were unfamiliar with. You liked the way the syllables rolled gracefully into one another and how each word served a purpose—compact with meaning and so unlike the people around you who were so careless with their words.

As you began to age, and the meaningless mess of childhood shifted into the sharpness of adolescence, you began to write yourself. One day, somehow you had the idea of putting your poetry to music. If you could write songs good enough to be played on the radio then maybe you could earn people's adoration through your art like your parents had, you reasoned. Maybe you could even earn their adoration. You beg your parents for piano lessons, and they scoff at the thought. “But what’s the point of having one if no one can play it?” You ask, referencing the piano in the grand foyer.

“That piano is not meant to be played,” your mother explains, slowly, “it’s meant to be admired by our guests.”

She walks away from the conversation before you can even protest.

Instead of giving up, though, you went to the library and borrowed all the books you could on music and piano playing and slowly began to teach yourself. You were not very good, at first, and both your parents made a habit of reminding you whenever they were around to hear you practicing. Luckily, they were rarely around.

***

STEVE: My parents signed me up for every single activity and extra-curricular you can think of: karate, basketball, pottery. The one that really stuck though, was guitar lessons. Soon, that was the only thing I wanted to do it was something I was actually good at. Not something I had potential in, not something I was passable at. It was something I was good at. My dad did not like the idea of me going into music at first—he wanted me to take on a “manlier” hobby—but even he couldn’t deny that I was talented, and he sent me to this specialized music school in Indianapolis. That’s where I met Robin. That’s when I stopped feeling so alone.

ROBIN: Robin Buckley, brass, bass, and synth for The Downsides.

I met Steve when we were thirteen, I think, at this fancy music school in Indianapolis. I was there on scholarship. I’m not going to lie, he was obnoxious, but most thirteen-year-old boys are. Even then, though, there was something about him that made everyone want to be his friend. He was also really talented. He never had to work very hard to be good at something, but he worked hard anyway. I hated him at first, but he wore me down and we eventually became best friends.

***

1978

Your music became a good outlet for all your loneliness and anger and disappointment, but it was not a cure for any of those things. You craved friendship and commonality and to be liked beyond the surface.

One day, when you were towards the end of seventeen, you decided to go exploring. You had heard Emily Cooke whispering salaciously in the girls’ bathroom at school about sneaking into the Whiskey A Go-Go to see The Six playing and an idea began to blossom.

Your home was only a walking distance from the Strip, the aptly named piece of street that was lined with clubs and musical venues, so that day, after hearing Emily’s plan you decided to try your luck at the Whiskey. You loved music, after all, and you wanted to be good at it, like the musicians that played there. Plus, there were others that shared those interests and the was a chance that some of them would be more tolerable than Emily Cooke.

You waited in line, by yourself, donning an outfit that you hoped made you look older than you were in an organic, cool way. When you made it to the doorman, you smiled trying to look more confident than pleading. His eyes raked over your body once, then twice and you resist the urge to flinch away. You had known then that you were beautiful—mostly because it was the only thing your mother valued in you— but what you hadn’t known was how far just being beautiful could get you. The doorman had let you in the club, not even questioning when your voice wavered while you had told him you were older than you actually were.

***

ROBIN: Don’t tell anyone I told you this, but Steve was my first kiss.

INTERVIEWER: Uh, Robin?

ROBIN: Oh, right…. Well, whatever, Steve Harrington was my first kiss. He was also the first person I told that I liked girls. I knew from a really early age that I didn’t find men attractive but when Steve kissed me at our high school dance I had this immediate realization and I sorta burst out, “Steve, I like girls.” It was a really great moment of self-awareness for me—growing up as a girl, they always try to put you in this box of like feminity and being whatever men wanted you to be, including an object to be looked at or pawned over. I didn’t know how being gay fit into all that, until that moment.

I don’t think it was that great of a moment for Steve, though.

STEVE: She told you about that? Well, for the record, it wasn't that I wasn't happy for her, it's just when you're a teenage boy and if your first crush admits she's a lesbian moments after you kiss her for the first time, well, it does not do your ego any favors, does it?

***

The moment you walked through that door, your life became severed in two: the before and the after. You watched, from the fringe of the crowd, as Billy Dunne crooned soulfully, and the audience sang his own words back to him.

You briefly imagine yourself on the stage, being someone that people would actually want to come see, someone that people would listen to. Someone people would love.

***

STEVE: I always knew I wanted to be in music. It was the only thing that ever made sense. Wait, no, that’s not right… It’s the only thing that ever made life make sense. So, I started working at it, like seriously working it at, when I was 16. I bought as many records as I could, figured out what I liked, what I could do, and I practiced all the time. Like all the time. Robin did, too. I would play the guitar and sing, and she was insane on the trumpet and bass. I don’t think we ever sat down and had a conversation about whether we wanted to form a band or even what we wanted for ourselves in the future. We just always knew it was going to be the two of us, and we were going to be making music. Of course, you can’t have a band with only a guitar and a trumpet, so we had to start looking for more members.

***

1980

From that point on, your life had purpose.

You began to study everything about music—obsessively. You collected records, you played the piano until your fingers became cramped and sore or until your mother yelled at you to stop.

You filled notebook after notebook with lyrics, some good, many bad.

But you also kept your eyes on the tabloids and the gossip rags and the fashion magazines. To be a successful musician, you had to be good of course, but you also had to be well-liked. Growing up in the environment you did had given you a very unique perspective on this. Since infancy, you had seen hopeful artists-to-be approach your father for a chance, or ask your mother for advice. The most successful of them were not always the ones who had the best things to say, but those who said what they had to say in the best way.

You practiced giving fake interviews in front of your mirror and in the shower. You stayed on top of trends and bought the best-fitting clothes. And most importantly, you tried to associate yourself with all the right people.

By the time you turned 18, you were well-known, even beyond the Strip. Photos of you standing next to the bass player/drummer/guitarist/lead singer of whatever band might have been riding a momentary wave of popularity at the time began to appear in tabloid magazines.

Most of them were men. Most of them wanted something out of you. You became a master in the art of giving just enough for them to think they had a chance with you if it meant that you could learn from them or convince them to listen to one of your songs. But every time you would even mention the idea that you wrote music, you would come hit a wall of patronizing, feigned interest followed by a grab at your chest.

Then came Jason Carver. Lead singer of the Letterman’s, Jason Carver. You dated him for a few weeks, right after you had turned 18. He was 25 and just charming enough for you to overlook his frequent condescension. Plus, he had promised that he would teach you a few chords on the guitar.

One day, you had come over to his apartment and he was getting all worked up because the band’s label was on his ass about writing a song and he couldn’t quite get it right. He needed to write a love song, something introspective and sweet but Jason could only churn out party anthems and songs meant to be played in dive bars.

Eventually, after hearing him gripe for what seemed like an eternity, you sent him off to take a shower and in the meanwhile compiled all of his shreds of half-lines and began to work filling in the gaps. Forty minutes later, you had a solid chorus and first verse to present to him for a song you thought should have been called “All At Once”. You thought that this would’ve made him happy, after all, you had gotten him one step closer to a possible song. (And maybe, you had secretly hoped, in all of his gratitude he could be swayed to give you a writing credit on the song). Instead, he laughed at you like you were a child pretending to do an adult task and asked you to leave with a hasty promise that he would call you later that week. He never called. The hurt you felt was only a pin-prick. Six months later, you heard The Letterman’s on the radio: a new song by them called, “All At Once”. You tried to convince yourself for a moment that there would be no way that Jason could blatantly steal your song after having mocked you for even trying to write. But, boy, were you wrong. Those were, in fact, your lyrics, on the radio. Yes, the band had added another verse but, ultimately, your lyrics were all there. The same lyrics Jason had so easily dismissed six months prior.

That was when you realized if you were going to get ahead in the industry, you were going to have to play dirty, like Jason Carver.

***

ROBIN: We met Argyle in Chicago. Once we graduated high school Steve and I started working as subs for small bands in the Midwestern circuit. Yes, it was as grim as it sounds, but it paid the bills and helped us meet people. Argyle was the drummer of some Reggae band that needed a bass player for a few weeks when their bassist got arrested on possession charges. I subbed in and was immediately super impressed by his skills. People always underestimated Argyle, to this day, because of the whole vibe he gives off, you know? But he’s smart and adaptable. Anyway, when his bassist lost his case, the band broke up indefinitely and I tried my best to convince Argyle to join Steve and me. There were two of us, we’d never played an official gig, and we didn’t even have a name, but Argyle said yes. Next was Nancy. We held open auditions for a keyboardist once Argyle was onboard. After five passable auditions, Nancy Fucking Wheeler walks in in this long skirt and bows in her hair. She had a book of Debussy sheet music for God’s sake. I almost burst out laughing when I saw her because I thought she must have been lost but then, in true Nancy Wheeler fashion she blew us all away. Ugh, was that woman talented. And gorgeous. Steve’s jaw had to be crane-lifted off the floor, it was love at first sight.

STEVE: It was not. She’s exaggerating.

1980

Ironically, you met Murray Bauman at one of your parents’ parties.

You knew he was a music producer for Starcourt Records because he kept loudly boasting to his date about it. The same Starcourt Records that the Letterman’s were signed on to.

You waited until he was two gin martinis in and standing alone admiring your father’s latest art purchase before you approached.

“Hello,” you said, brandishing a dazzling smile, your whole body angled and ready to perform this familiar dance.

“Aren’t you the producer for the Letterman’s?”

He shot you a grin that borders on swarmy and said, “why yes, I am and you look like you’re out past your bedtime.”

You didn’t react to his statement and instead marched onwards, “I loved their latest song, ‘All At Once’ right? It’s so romantic.”

“Between you and me, I’m not sure how Carver popped that one out, he’s a bit of a meathead if you catch my drift.”

He didn’t wait to see your reaction before laughing at his own joke.

“Yeah, actually, I’m not surprised to hear that considering I dated him,” your eyes flashed in a way that you hoped came off as dangerous, “and that I wrote that song.”

He regarded you for a moment before breaking out in a laugh. When he saw your expression remained unchanged, he stepped back in assessment.

“Oh shit, you’re being serious.”

You only nodded grimly.

“Okay, well that’s a new one. Usually, girls come up claiming that one of those idiots impregnated them, not this.”

He regarded you again, searching for a trace of a lie. He sighed, “So let’s say that you did write the song, which, knowing what I know about those Neanderthals, I am willing to entertain the possibility of this being at least partially true, then what does that mean? You’re going to blackmail Starcourt? Do you want money?”

You gestured vaguely behind you, sure that he must have known who your parents were. “I don’t need money.”

“Then, what is it?”

“I write music. Obviously. I want to write for your label.”

A grin broke out across his face, “Oh, boy.” He started to laugh: a deep chuckle that floated up from his belly.

“You and every other Joe Schmoe in Hollywood, sweetie.”

“But not every other Joe Schmoe wrote a song for one of your most popular bands.”

Murray regarded you again, he gave you a look you’re all too familiar with. One that says he did not expect such a fight in such an unassuming package.

“Here’s the deal,” you start, taking his brief lapse to pounce, “all I want is for you to take my demo tape and listen to it, like actually listen to it. Do that and we never have to mention this again.”

“And if I say no to your little proposition?”

You smile at his question before offering a small piece of paper, “Then here’s the business card to my lawyer he’ll be reaching out.”

This, puzzlingly, makes the man burst out laughing once again.

“Let me get this straight, you just want me to listen to your tape? That’s the grand blackmailing scheme? No record deal, no music video?”

You shake your head in response, “No, I think my music speaks for itself. I just need to get it in front of the right person.”

Murray’s still chuckling to himself as he extends his hand out signaling for you to drop the tape you are now holding in his hands.

“Fine, but you are one shitty blackmailer.”

You were signed to Startcourt Records a month later.

***

STEVE: Once Nancy joined, we were a band, and so we needed a name. I suggested the Steve Harrington experience but the girls shot me down like, right away. We ended up fighting about names for like an hour. It was actually Argyle who ended up coming up with our name. The Downsides, he had said, since we were all so negative about everything. He had said this after Robin had said I was 'all hair and no brain'. Not the best of origin stories, I guess. But we liked it and that’s how we became The Downsides.

NEXT CHAPTER 🎹

#steve harrington x reader #eddie munson x reader #stranger things x reader #robin buckley #nancy wheeler #Daisy Jones & the Six AU

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