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kiwanopie · 1 year

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I was super surprised when people were asking for a part two but I have delivert! Not completely sure if I’m acknowledging this plot as canon

Resolution

crime lord!Kiyoomi x reader

cw: mention of a toxic power dynamic, more lore about the reader (kind of), insinuating past thoughts of suicide,

wc: 3.5k

He’s bridging an inhale when he walks in, the smell of tea tree and coconut oil immediately turns his eyes glassy.

It smells like you. Overwhelmingly so, does it smell just as he remembered. To such a degree that it reopens those kindred wounds left by grief and desperation, and bleeds until his mind is all but soaked in thoughts of you again - until it’s all you again. Like where you’ve been. What’s this life you’ve cooked up without him? Why did you leave and take his heart with you? Kiyoomi doesn’t know whether to be furious or confused, so he splits the difference and settles for overwhelmed.

The apartment looks like something you’d like. Quaint little thing, but you’re all over it; and just that could make a shack feel like a bel air mansion. Little paintings and mounted instruments, framed posters that point him down the hall. Discarded house shoes sit haphazardly near the dinner table that are reminiscent of old habits. Like putting the honey where you can see it, leaving dishes in the drying rack, or leaving the bedroom door cracked whenever you’re not home.

The barrage of familiarity hits him like a freight train when he enters your bedroom.

It immediately turns him pink. Hot under the eyes carnation that stings as much as the reassurance soothes. If the front of the home were trace remnants of you then this is you all but laid out for him. To the wall paint to the decorative pieces, fairy lights that twinkle in your absence. It’s a reminder, all at once. That’s you’re alive, that you’re living, and that you’re still you; that you’re still his.

Kiyoomi takes a seat on the plush mattress and grabs one of your pillows. Suit jacket crinkling as he lifts it up to his nose and takes a big whiff - he ignores the fresh wet stains as he pulls it back for another look.

He’s holding the flowery little ball of cotton up to his chest when he hears the front door click open.

Those quiet footsteps make him furrow until there’s a voice accompanying it.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just came straight home after the conference. I’m gonna make a protein shake and then barricade myself in my room.”

He’s immediately holding back a sob.

It’s you. God, it’s you. It’s you. “I’m fine! I’m-… I was just really frazzled yesterday and I spoke without thinking. I’m not a danger to myself.”

He hears the telltale sound of house keys clicking against glass tabling as you move for the kitchen. “Well, why did you even bother asking?”

You sigh and Kiyoomi can almost see the pout on your face. This has all gotten so surreal that he’s frozen in place. Staring at the door like a locked up cat and trying his best to maintain his composure. “Well, text me when you’re on your way. So I’ll know it’s you who’s at the door.”

“A’right,” You clink a few pieces of silverware. “Okay, see you then, Tooru-kun.”

Tooru-kun.

He shouldn’t feel so nauseated hearing another man’s name come out your mouth.

Your footsteps interchange as you pad through the apartment, amplify and lessen as you move from room to room. Your bare feet make dull thumps against the solid wood following the hallway - a door opens. You mumble something under your breath as you toe into a further room, and then exhale as you exit.

You’re walking toward your bedroom.

Kiyoomi’s breaths are shallow as you come nearer. He doesn’t dare to move a muscle.

You open the door.

You stare at each other.

You don't know when your room suddenly became so airless. You don't know when your apartment building lifted off its hedges and floated off into space, when the walls started moving, or when you stopped producing spit in your mouth. - You just know that everything is going too fast and then not at all. Your little sundress feels like string, your skin feels thin and papery, just seeing him in here has you throbbing like an open wound. Stinging. Your heart is beating into your chest so hard you can hear it in your ears. Your fingers twitch. You feel like you should be making a run for it but you’re welded into the ground. The pillow in his hands feels completely removed from the black hole that is him and that is turning your little safe haven into fragmented pieces. He’s looking at you and it's overbearing - already you feel like a pinched nerve. There’s nothing you can do to escape and just the thought of that makes you feel like your ribs are breaking.

He’s been crying.

He’s been crying so much that his skin looks pale, much in comparison to the deep raw spots that turn the bottoms of his eyes boysenberry. He’s lost a few noticeable pounds. There’s scabbing left on some of his knuckles but that’s not what’s new, it’s that he’s been clearly picking with them, out of some new nervous habit or just to feel the sting; but he’s clearly been disturbed in their time apart. Grieving and falling apart. He looks like a victim. You could say there’s some irony in that.

Kiyoomi’s eyebrows twitch. They furrow and then they’re neutral again. He’s in such an internal struggle to find an appropriate reaction that his face can barely keep up. But residentially he’s dumbstruck. Slowly stepping into motion as your strings pull taut and every bit by bit gets faster.

And more desperate.

He’s pulling you in his arms before he knows what to do with himself.

Your body goes limp as his arms cage around you. He’s hugging you like it’s the only thing that’ll keep you solid, and real, - and alive. Even when your heart jackrabbits he can only be thankful that it’s around to hear. He digs his nose in your hair and breathes it in till his lungs ache. Your stray hairs catch softly on his lips as he cranes his head to scatter desperate kisses on anything they can land on. You’re here. In his arms again and warm with blood and beating arteries. He can feel your chest expand every time you inhale, hear your breaths when you blow them out of your nose. You’re real. You’re real. And you’re all his again. In his arms where you belong and he’s gonna do everything in his power to keep that true.

Kiyoomi’s voice is cushioned by the top of your scalp as he speaks, it smooths out the little warble in his words. “Oh god… Where have you been…”

“How could you do something like this to me? What…” He shutters. His tears are wetting your hair. “…I thought you were dead… I thought you were gone…”

You meekly push against his stomach when his hold starts to make it hard to breathe. “I love you so much… I love you so much… I love you. I love you. Please, god… Please… I couldn’t take it. I couldn’t-… I can’t go through that again. You can’t do this again, it’ll kill me. It’ll-“

Kiyoomi’s body heaves forward as he tries not to openly sob. He expands and then tightens all over again. He’s cradling you so desperately that it muses your hair out of place. He’s groveling.

“…I’ll do anything. Anything. Whatever it is… I just… Not this,” He sniffles. “Anything but this. - Anything but this. I’m not… I won’t make it a second time,”

Kiyoomi avows and your blood runs cold. “I won’t. I won’t. This won’t happen a second time. I’ll burn this whole fucking nation to the ground if I have to, do you hear me? I won’t lose you again.”

“K-… Kiyoomi…”

The sound of his name on your lips turns him spongy.

Kiyoomi hiccups into your hair. “Fuck…Fuck..!”

————

You haven’t slept like this in a while.

If there’s one good thing about his poisons it’s that the residual effects don’t linger. You’ve kept your tolerance to the nausea thankfully enough. Vertigo that the sedative induces only happens in split second intervals, it’s only a few blinks till it’s gone. And all that’s left to deal with is the muscular lethargy, temporary at least, but it feels like you’re being weighed down by bell bars. You’ve always hated waking up like this.

You raise on your elbow to push the stray hairs out of your face, he’s already sitting you a cup of coffee on the bedside table.

You lay again on your back with a long sigh. Everything’s still the same. Same light vanilla smell, cologne on the blankets, same plush fabric - so preserved it feels new. You’d almost say he was the same Kiyoomi, if not for the new bags under his eyes.

You count his tousled curls in the ceiling mirror as he sits on the bed beside you. His palms are hot to the touch as he rests one on your naked leg.

His thumb draw’s circles. “Explain.”

You blow out a quiet sigh. You haven’t had to tell this old story in a few years. You hope you still remember the fine details.

“…Gesethame scouts used an emp to disengage my tracker while I was walking around the venue. I didn’t even notice until I heard the car blow up.”

Kiyoomi nods. “Why didn’t you come back to me when the smoke cleared?”

Not like any of this was entirely willing. “They were already waiting for me when I caught my bearings. My director was already there.”

“She…” You swallow. “She never knew that the two of us were… together. And when she found out she immediately disapproved. She said that I had wasted the freedom she gave me. Threw back in her face… So, she gave me two choices,”

Kiyoomi stares into his coffee cup. “Resume my position as a scout and renew my elite status. I'd be working the same contracts under my old alias, she’d still be my director, we’d pretend to like none of this happened,”

“Or, I gamble. I make myself useful and try for power, maybe become an asset. She’ll let me have that freedom if it’s on a leash.”

“But- And this is a big but,” You breathe. “If she ever thinks that I’m living my life and using my borrowed freedom in a way that she deems is insufficient, she takes it back and I have no choices. I work for her, I don’t complain, I don’t so much as wipe my ass without her saying so.”

“So you chose politics?” Kiyoomi furrows.

“I stumbled upon it. Before you and I met I was friends with this guy whose father was a big part of national access. When I popped up in the same neighborhood again he sought me out. He said that the local government was looking for new perspectives, that his dad could get me in. That my “worldliness” qualified as experience,”

“It wasn’t hard to get in. Even if I wasn’t seasoned.” You close your eyes. “His dad guards the prime minister.”

You can almost hear Kiyoomi start to clench his teeth.

“I was graded in the upper house, so I’m probably in their system. I suppose that’s how you found my address.”

“Your director’s blackmailing those people, you know. Those same people used to work for me.”

That ties a little knot in your throat. “Huh.”

Kiyoomi takes in a wide breath through his nose and blows it out slowly. His broad back makes shadows in the morning light from where you’re laying, thin cotton turning eggshell in the sun rays. He slept in his clothes from yesterday, you notice. Kiyoomi doesn’t usually touch the furniture before jumping into a hot shower, you know he gets itchy if he’s in the same thing for too long. - But telling by his dark eyes and pale cheeks, slow movements that stutter as they rise; you can tell he’s tired. That he’s been tired, and that these last few years have been torture for him.

You hate how much seeing him like this makes your heart ache. You hate that in the time that you’ve been gone you’ve missed him dearly.

He shakes his head. “I could’ve saved you. You could’ve come to me, I wouldn’t have let her touch you.”

“You don’t know my director.” You whisper. “You don’t know what she’d do just to get the things she’s owed. I wouldn’t have wanted you to get hurt in the process.”

And even though you’re buttering him up you mean it to a large extent. Long gone are the days you wanted him bleeding, dead, or worse. Long is the time you’ve spent reflecting on your time with him, on your feelings for him, on your feelings for the whole situation in general. You wanted a choice. It’s what you’ve always wanted. And you can’t be blamed for getting out of one inescapable situation into another, and then resenting that. But Kiyoomi at the very least had your best interests at heart. Loved you and meant it when he said he did. Never hurt you, never intentionally put you in harm’s way. Sure, he took away your autonomy. But it’s better to be owned and cared for than to be used up until you’re no more.

He promised that he couldn’t live without you. Gave you his heart and trusted that you’ll keep it within reach. In the time you’ve been gone you can see that he’s neither lived nor loved. There's reassurance in that.

The bed mumbles as you lift yourself off your back, the mattress gives under your knees. You watch him goosebump as you crawl toward him, and melt completely when your arms wrap around his waist.

“I’m sorry.” You murmur against his back. “You don’t deserve what grief has done to you.”

Kiyoomi feels hot behind the eyes.

“I missed you so much I wanted to die.” He holds his hand over yours. “I considered it a lot. Just leaving and being with you.”

You coax his fingers into yours.

“I never got rid of your name.” You whisper. “It was a bitch to get it expunged from my records but it’s still on my license. I still called myself a Sakusa.”

You press a warm kiss to his shoulder. “I’m still your wife.”

He feels like he’s dreaming.

———

Tooru furrows at his phone.

Cutie pie: btw i just got It Takes Two on digital! im gonna set everything up for when u get here so we can play!

Tooru: How fun!! Can’t wait to be bad at it!

Tooru: hi:) open up! i will literally scream if this dinner gets cold

Tooru: Yellow? I’m here!!!

Tooru: Cutie?

He spams the doorbell a fifth time. Where the hell are you?

Tooru takes a long thoughtful moment to stare at your front door before he’s placing the bag of Onigiri and his feet. And for a split second he debates if his concern is worth coming off like a pervert. But he decides to squint in your peephole anyway. Lowering his neck as he cups his hands over the little glass, he sees nothing but the beginnings of your living room and the faint glow of your hallway light. He pulls away with a grimace. He knows your roommate won’t be home for the next six or so hours, and that the last time you two spoke you were settling yourself at home after that procedure conference. He ducks for the bag again. Maybe you have your headphones on?

Tooru pulls the backup key out of a bush of thistle on his way up.

The apartment is silent when he opens the door, soundless as he slides his shoes off. Not even the hum of a running heating unit can be heard as he walks further in, which is odd, because despite the way you carry yourself - You always make sure to keep the apartment toasty in these early winter months. You wore a sundress today. Complained that you were cold and then rolled your eyes when Tooru called you stupid for dressing like it’s May. But he gave you his jacket anyway. He glances at the coat rack. It’s not there.

Did you leave? “Sunshine?”

No response.

He furrows.

It’s not like you to just ditch him without saying anything. Maybe you assumed he’d come in anyway? You still wouldn’t leave without saying anything. Your house shoes are still half flipped over under the dining table, hallway lights set dim in the hallway. He knows you were here recently but, wouldn’t he have passed by you at some point?

Tooru gets to your door and twists the handle, it opens with a neat click.

“Pretty? Are you in the bathroom?” He sets the bag on your bed. The bathroom door is slightly open but he doesn’t see any shadows moving. Something about this doesn’t feel right.

He takes a deep breath in through his nose. You wouldn’t do anything stupid to yourself, would you? No. No, that shouldn’t be his first thought. He knows you’ve been all wound up since this whole thing with your old boss and the Sakusa corporation. That you’ve been jumpy and nervous and saying things out of fear, but he doesn’t think you’ll hurt yourself. He trusts you when you say you were only speaking without thinking.

But even still he pushes the bathroom door open without so much as knocking. “_____?”

Not in here.

He peers at your box of hair care products and finds that none of them have even been touched yet. The floor is still dry, the tub hasn’t been touched, the lotion is still where you keep it. Not even a hair tie has been left out of place. He knows you’ve been here? He heard you walk through the door. What, did you walk in and walk right back out?

Tooru trots through your bedroom down to your roommates. He knows that he should at least knock before barging into someone else’s room but he’s currently trying to talk himself out of a crisis. I mean, there’s no reason to panic. You probably forgot something and went out to get it again. Probably thought you’d be back before he got here. Come to think of it, he didn’t even check to see if your shoes were in the genkan.

He exhales. Not in here either.

His eyes catch something before he backs out of the room.

“She didn’t…?” There’s a PlayStation unplugged and sitting on the counter.

He jogs to your bedroom to gather his phone, already pushing your contact and pressing the phone to his head before it can even ring.

The dial tone bristles for a complete minute.

“03-3715-4893 is not available to take your call. Please leave a message after the tone.”

Tooru kisses his teeth and tries again.

“03-3715-4893 is not available to take your call. Please leave a message after the tone.”

Again.

“03-3715-4893 is not available to take your call. Please leave a message after the tone.”

And again.

“03-3715-4893 is not available to take your call. Please leave a message after the tone.”

“What the fuck?”

His fingers messily fumble against his phone as the dial tone rings over the speaker. All but swallowed by the silence of the apartment, the empty air, and your pastel walls. He doesn’t know what’s gotten louder at this point, his breaths or his heart. He just hopes to god that this cold sweat is for nothing, and that he’s panicking over something small.

You probably left to go to the store.

You’re probably in the parking lot.

You’re probably already making your way up the stairs.

Tooru: Where are you? I’m seriously getting worried

Tooru: Did you go to the store or something? Wherethe hell are you?

The texts are sent with a silent vibration. He’s speaking into the room as it delivers.

“_____, sweetheart, it’s Tooru. Where are you?” He paces around the room. “I texted you almost… an hour ago and said I was here. Did you go out again? I see that you didn’t plug up the PlayStation like you said and I’m worried something might’ve happened. Is your phone dead or something? If you’re not here by seven I’m gonna start looking for you.”

Tooru sighs a little exasperatedly. “Just text me and tell me you’re okay if nothing else. I won’t be mad if you-“

Tooru’s eyes catch something on the bed.

He pauses as he inches towards it, bristles and stiffens like a frightened cat. His eyes scour it like it’s something else, like it should be something else. Traces the zipper, the writing on the sleeve. Pale whites and water blues that are still haughty in the falling sun, still unshrouded by dusk but the more he looks over it the more he feels crowded in a casted shadow.

It has to be something else.

He moves the bag of Onigiri aside and blanches.

It’s his jacket.

He nearly jumps when his phone vibrates in his hand.

Cutie pie: I went to the market! Can we hang out another time maybe?

Tooru: Who the hell is this?

The texting bubble shakes.

And then it stops.

“You can no longer direct message this contact.”

Tooru feels his heart sink.

#crime lord!sakusa kiyoomi #crime au #crime au!kiyioomi #sakusa kiyoomi #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu!!#hq sakusa #sakusa kiyoomi x reader #hq x reader #haikyuu scenarios #sakusa fanfiction

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ambrossart · 1 year

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DANCING WITH MYSELF

— PART TEN (FINALE)

summary: eddie crashes senior prom hoping to steal a dance with his dream girl, chrissy cunningham. instead, he spends the night stuck in the women’s restroom with you—her snarky, insecure best friend.

❖ pairing: eddie munson x fem!reader ❖ word count: 11,785 ❖ genre: fluff with some angst ❖ series status: complete ❖ warnings: no season 4 spoilers, some coarse language, body image issues, allusions to eating disorders, typical teenage insecurities, angst, jealousy, anxiety, secret crushes, childhood memories, happy ending, lots of 80s music

Stepping back into that dance hall was a lot like being jolted awake from a sweet sleep.

For a moment you were stuck, caught somewhere on the threshold between the real world and the dream world with one foot on either side: half awake, half asleep, barely there… if you were even there at all. While you were sleeping, reality had continued playing like a movie you had forgotten to turn off. It hadn’t stopped for you, hadn’t paused, and now you were struggling to comprehend the plot, fighting to find your place in a world that had left you behind. You stood outside of it, looking in, but you couldn’t muster the strength to take that final step, to wake up fully and abandon the dream forever.

Because it was such a lovely dream, wasn’t it?

And now it was over—dead and soon to be forgotten, like so many dreams before it. Already, you could feel the memories fading further and further away. Sitting next to Eddie. Hearing his laughter. Seeing his smile. Feeling the warm press of his lips against yours. (You touched your finger to your lips. They felt so cold now.) These images drifted through your mind like a slowed-down piece of film; then they were just… gone. They abandoned you cruelly, slipped through your fingers like tiny grains of sand. You couldn’t get them back now even if you tried. They were floating away: back down that long hallway, back to that closed door that seemed so far from reach. You knew there was no going back, not anymore. Even if you laid your head down, even if you forced your eyes closed, you would never be able to return to that same dream. The door was shut, locked, sealed away forever.

So now here you stood on this threshold, unwilling to go but unable to stay. What choice did you have but to get up and face reality?

You walked into the hall on unsteady legs, feeling a step out of sync with everyone else. In the background, “Love My Way” by The Psychedelic Furs chimed hypnotically and made the room feel sleepy and surreal, as if the whole world was moving in slow motion and you alone were unaffected. People brushed past your elbow and seemed not to feel you. Eyes met yours and looked straight through you. Could they not see the red streaks in your eyes? The blotchiness of your makeup? Could they not tell that you were one “Are you okay?” away from a total breakdown? Did anyone even care?

Here you were, experiencing the greatest tragedy of your teenage life and—nothing, not even a ripple in the water!

You could feel your heart shattering into a million pieces, feel the shards of it tearing you up inside, but no one else could see your suffering. It was like that old philosophical thought experiment: If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?

If no one else could sense your heartache, was it even real?

You placed your foot on the step below and felt your heel slip out from underneath you:

down,

down!

A gasp escaped you. Your broken heart leaped into your throat. You caught yourself on the railing, looked down, and saw that your shoe had come loose. It was lying on its side, the faux leather strap barely clinging to your ankle. You must have missed a notch when you re-buckled it, after you…

Here ya go, Cinderella.

Eddie’s voice made you jump. It came to your mind so clearly, as if he was standing right next to you. You sat down and buckled your shoe, then looked over your shoulder and wondered, Is it too late for me to turn back? Is he still there, waiting for me?

(No, probably not.)

Yeah, probably not… I wouldn’t wait for me, either.

You pushed the thought away and walked on. Down the stairs. Along the edge of the dance floor. To the table—your table—where Chrissy Cunningham was sitting alone with her back to you. She was slouching in her chair. Such a terrible habit.

You dropped down beside your best friend, molded your lips into something of a smile. “Oh my god, Chris, you would not believe the line in the ladies’ room…”

Chrissy turned at once, startled, her eyes red and glassy, bottom lip trembling. “I thought you left,” she said, her brows drawn together in a mixture of confusion and disbelief. “I thought… I thought…”

“What?” you said, and gently swept one of her loose hairs back into place. “You thought I’d miss your coronation? Come on, Chris, I’m not that self-absorbed.”

Chrissy shook her head as fresh tears filled her eyes. “I don’t care about the stupid coronation! It’s a cheap, plastic crown that I’ll just throw away in the morning.” She bent her head and sniffed, then wiped her runny nose on the back of her hand. “I didn’t come here to be named prom queen. I came here to have fun with my friends, with my best friend, and I’ve completely ruined everything! This night has been a total disaster, and it’s all my fault. All that stuff with Chance… and with Eddie…”

Your whole body stiffened with dread. No, please, no… I don’t wanna do this right now, not when I’m finally starting to…

Chrissy seized both of your hands in a desperate grip. “I’m so, so sorry! I swear I had no idea he came here for me. If I’d known, I never would’ve encouraged you like I did. Oh my god, I feel so stupid! Here I am, telling you to go for it and put your heart out there, while he…” She squeezed her mouth shut, choking back emotion. “I didn’t know he liked me. I swear I didn’t. I don’t even know why he likes me. I mean… I mean… I think I said good luck to him once at some talent show back in middle school, but that didn’t mean anything! I was saying good luck to everybody that night—everybody, even that kid with the creepy puppet, and he almost threw up all over me. Do you remember that?”

“Yeah,” you said, and managed a laugh. “It was hilarious.”

Chrissy laughed too, despite her tears. “No, it wasn’t. It was disgusting.”

“You’re disgusting,” you said in a teasing voice. “Look at you, Cunningham, you’re a total mess. Come here.” You grabbed a napkin and started blotting her eyes dry. “Your nose is running. Your mascara’s all over the place. If you go on stage looking like this, everyone’s gonna think you’re a lunatic.”

Another tear slipped down Chrissy’s cheek, painting a black line down her face. You wiped that away, too.

“I just don’t want you to hate me,” she said.

“What? Hate you?” Those two words didn’t even belong in the same sentence. “Chris, I could never hate you. You could go on a massive killing spree tomorrow, and I still wouldn’t hate you. In fact, I’d be right there with you. Be the Bonnie to your Clyde. And then I’d take the rap for you because you’re way too soft for prison.”

Chrissy breathed out a laugh, but the misery never left her face. “I feel like I’m always taking things from you,” she said. “And you like him so much and—”

“Chris, if it wasn’t you, it was just gonna be someone else. And I’d rather it be you. I really mean that.” It hurt you deeply, but it was the truth. “Besides, I can’t say I blame him. I mean, look at you. You’re sweet and smart, and gorgeous. And yeah, your jokes are corny as shit, but hey, no one’s perfect, right?”

No, Chrissy Cunningham wasn’t perfect, but she was probably about as close as anyone was ever going to get.

“Everyone likes you, Chris, and I love you to death, so… it just makes sense, doesn’t it?” A lump formed in your throat as you said this. You tried to force it down, but…

Chrissy’s face tightened with concern. “Hey, are you okay?”

Finally. There it was, the question you’d been craving and dreading all at the same time. You felt so wonderfully vindicated—vindicated and a little relieved, and now you didn’t know whether to pump your fist in victory or fall into Chrissy’s arms, sobbing like a child.

“See, this is why you’re my best friend, Chris. You’re the only one who can see through all my bullshit. You’re like Superman with that X-ray vision.”

“What happened?” Chrissy asked. Her hands were still holding yours—a looser grip, but somehow no less strong.

You cast your eyes away, started chewing on your bottom lip. “I just… You know, tonight’s been very eye-opening for me. I’ve learned a lot about myself. Swallowed some hard truths. They certainly didn’t go down easy, but… I think I’m finally starting to get it.”

It had all snapped perfectly into place, like a bullet into a chamber.

“You know, this whole time I thought my weight was the issue. I thought that was the one thing holding me back in life, and if I could just fix that one thing, then I’d be happy like everyone else. I thought I would blossom overnight, like in all those dumb movies.” Your expression darkened, wilted. “Well, that didn’t happen, did it? I lost the weight and nothing changed. I didn’t get any happier. I didn’t get any more confident. I’m exactly the same. So now what’s my excuse, huh? If it’s not my weight, then what is it? What’s wrong with me? I couldn’t figure it out before, but I see it now. In fact, it’s become pretty fucking obvious. I think I’m just a really unlikable person.”

Chrissy winced at those words. “No, you’re not…”

“Yes, I am! I’m a really, really nasty person. I know I act like I’m just joking around, but I’m not. I’m a massive bitch to everyone, especially myself. You were right, Chris. I’m the one getting in the way of my own happiness. Life gives me lemons, and I just eat them raw, like an idiot. And you know, I bet whoever’s giving me those lemons is standing there thinking, Bitch, what are you doing? Are you trying to make yourself suffer? Yeah, that’s exactly it! I think I’m determined to stay miserable. That’s why I keep eating those lemons instead of, you know, making lemonade or lemon tarts or whatever the hell else you make with lemons. I dunno, I’ve never really understood that expression. I mean, some people actually prefer sour things. And I hate lemonade. It makes my throat all scratchy whenever I drink it.”

Chrissy’s hands tightened around yours and pulled, drawing you close, forcing you to meet her determined gaze.

“What happened?” she asked once more.

Once more was all it took.

Suddenly, you felt the dam break, blurring your vision and making your dry eyes sting. “I fucked up again, Chris,” you said in a high, squeaky voice. “I tried really hard, but I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t make that paper fortune come true.”

Chrissy raised her eyebrows quizzically. Right, she had probably forgotten about that.

“It’s that voice, man,” you went on, dragging your forearm across your tear-drenched cheek. “I know you tell me not to listen to it, but it’s so hard! It just whispers and whispers and whispers, telling you all these little half-truths. And after a while, you start to believe them because they make just enough sense, you know?”

Six years ago, that’s exactly how it got you. Yeah, Scott Sloman wasn’t the only demon trying to tempt you that day. There was a second demon—a dangerous, deceitful one—and unlike Scottie, it never broke character.

It whispered to you sweetly, sounding almost like a friend, like a good ole pal just trying to look out for your best interest (because that’s what friends are for, right?). It reminded you, so considerately, that summer was ending soon. In a few weeks, the campaign would be over. Eddie would be going off to high school and you would be left alone with nothing but this stupid journal that you clung to so tightly. A lovely little souvenir of your time together, that’s what these three months had given you. Congratulations, kiddo. Now you get to spend the next two years flipping through it while he moves on and forgets all about you. And Eddie would forget about you. That was all but guaranteed. Sure, maybe he would wait for someone else—someone prettier, someone like Chrissy, but certainly not for you. No, he would probably forget about you within a week’s time. Y/N, who? Sorry, that name’s not ringin’ a bell…

And then you began to think this was all a huge mistake. You’d waded too far into the deep end of the pool and your feet could no longer touch the bottom. Now you were left with two choices: stay in the deep end and risk drowning or reach for the life preserver that Scott Sloman had just cast into the water.

Deep down, you knew the right choice, but your survival instincts were way too strong. You accepted the demon’s bargain. Signed your name in blood.

After that, there was no going back.

Scottie’s eyes widened when he unfolded the paper and saw your answer.

“The deal is done,” he announced, and then discreetly tucked the paper behind his screen. “The demon’s offer has been accepted.”

The room went so quiet after that. All you could hear was the sound of a single pencil scratching against notebook paper. Eddie had no idea what was going on. Everyone at the table was staring at him, and he was just scribbling away like everything was fine, like you hadn’t just sharpened your dagger and plunged it straight into his back. His foot kept brushing against yours. Every once in a while, he would throw you a little smile. Meanwhile, you sank deeper and deeper into your chair, hoping the seat would collapse and suck you in like a vacuum, send you spinning through time and space and trap you in an alternate dimension. Your left arm hugged your stomach. Your right hand found its way to your mouth and hovered over it.

“Shit,” you whispered into your palm, and that’s when Eddie finally put down his pencil and looked up.

“What?” he said to everyone. “Is it my turn already?”

“Dude,” said Gareth, his face long and grim, “did you not see what just happened?”

“No,” Eddie answered slowly, with a touch of unease. “What? Did I miss something big?”

Gareth’s head bobbed. “Yeah, I’ll say… You’re dead, man. She killed you.”

Eddie’s back straightened in surprise. Then his eyes fell on you, heavy yet hopeful, like he was waiting for you to bust out laughing and tell him it was all a friendly little joke.

“What’s going on?”

The innocence in his voice made your stomach churn with regret. You kept your hand over your mouth, muffling your words with your knuckles. “I sacrificed… the ultimate power.”

Eddie leaned closer, squinting. “What?”

You lowered your hand and cleared your throat. “I sacrificed you to a demon for the ultimate power,” you said, and saw Eddie recoil from you, his eyes widening into an expression of startled hurt. It was the same stunned look he gave you tonight, right before you walked out of the restroom.

I’m really sorry, you said with your eyes, but that apology was soon drowned out by the sound of laughter. Your laughter. It came out of nowhere and spread through you like wildfire. You laughed while Eddie yelled at Scottie and demanded he intervene. You laughed while he huffed and puffed, muttered something about you being dead to him.

(Oh, shit, there it is, you thought now with a sudden spark of clarity. Yep, now I remember that.)

You told him to quit being such a baby. “Come on, it’s just a game, Munson!”

Then he tore up the stairs with his backpack half-zipped and flopping behind him. It’s better this way, that little voice told you. I know it hurts now, kid, but just think of how bad it could’ve been. Think of the pain you would’ve suffered once summer ended. Just think of it and you’ll understand. This wasn’t an act of betrayal. No, this was an act of mercy. You just did yourself a huge favor.

You wanted to believe that, you did, but then you noticed the piece of paper lying on the floor. It was Eddie’s character sheet, the one you had made for him. It must have slipped out of his binder while he was hurrying to leave.

(Or maybe he left it behind on purpose.)

Then you remembered how hard you had worked on it, how nervous you were to show it to him. You almost chickened out and went home with it in your backpack, but you were so glad you didn’t because the smile he gave you made everything worth it. It felt like your first major breakthrough, like you were finally on the right path with him.

And now…

You snatched the paper and ran after him. Nearly tripped on the steps, you were going so fast.

Eddie must have assumed you would come after him because he was waiting for you at the top of the stairs. This made your heart flutter with such hope… until you noticed the anger smoldering in his eyes.

“Why’d you do it?” he asked in a sharp, demanding voice. The strength of it almost knocked you off balance.

“What do you mean, why did I do it?” you said. “My character’s chaotic, Munson. She’s a wild card! God, you’re acting like this is the first time I’ve ever betrayed you.”

Eddie rolled his eyes and took off again. Blew through the Slomans’ kitchen like a fierce winter storm. You went too, and turned quickly to avoid hitting the counter’s sharp corner. Meanwhile, Mrs. Sloman was at the stove, stirring a pot of tomato sauce for dinner. She looked up as you two passed, then sighed and went back to stirring.

To Eddie’s back, you said, “Oh come on, Munson, I betray you on a weekly basis. It’s part of what makes our dynamic so special. I betray you, get us both into a lotta trouble, and then you save the day and we laugh it off and forget it ever happened. Wash, rinse, repeat.”

“Yeah, well, this is different,” Eddie said. “Yeah, this is the worst thing you’ve ever done.”

“Seriously? It’s worse than the time I abandoned you in that sand trap? Worse than the time I stole all your money and gambled it away? Worse than the time I tripped you when we were being chased by goblins in the never-ending caves? Come on, don’t be so overdramatic.”

“I’m not being overdramatic,” he said, and cut through the living room. Mr. Sloman was napping on the couch while Sunday afternoon football played on the television. Eddie saw him and lowered his voice into a harsh whisper. “I mean, do you even realize what you just did? My character’s dead now. I can’t play as him anymore.”

“So create a new character!”

“Create a new character? Are you fucking kidding?”

You cringed at the abrupt shift in Eddie’s tone. Mr. Sloman snorted in his sleep and rolled over.

“Okay, so don’t create a new character,” you replied in a waning voice. “How ‘bout we make a brand new adventure out of it? We can call it ‘Journey into the Underworld: The Quest for Munson’s Soul.’ It’ll be kinda like the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice, but don’t worry, I promise I won’t look back.”

“I don’t know what that means!” Eddie yelled, frustration straining his throat. “God, you keep making all these weird, obscure references that nobody else understands… Besides, my soul isn’t even in the underworld. I dunno where my soul is. You sold it to a demon for some stupid, made-up power!”

“SO THEN WE’LL GO GET IT BACK!” you screamed, making Eddie stop and whip around. You staggered backward, shrinking away from him in shame. His brown eyes were hard and cold, colder than you had ever seen.

That’s when it finally hit you: This isn’t like all those other times, is it? This isn’t something we’re gonna laugh about later.

Then Eddie saw the character sheet and—“Hey, gimme that!”—ripped it right out of your hand. You flinched as the paper sliced across your skin, and flinched again as Eddie’s fist closed around it, crushing the little rectangle beyond repair.

“I was gonna give that back,” you started to say, but then you realized it didn’t matter. The paper disappeared into Eddie’s backpack, and you never saw it again. You figured he probably threw it away.

This is it, isn’t it? Somehow, you could just feel it. This is the end of everything.

All these heavy thoughts crept into your heart like water seeping into a cracked ship hull. Now you were sinking in these ice-cold feelings, and there was nothing you could do but try to buy yourself some time. Try to stay afloat long enough to safely reach the shore. And that’s when you felt a familiar instinct take over. Limb by limb, your body started to seal itself off, shut all the watertight doors. It began at your feet and slowly worked its way up until your whole body felt perfectly numb to everything. That little paper cut on your finger, it didn’t sting anymore. You watched it bleed with a hazy fascination and thought of the demon’s contract, of the red pen you had used to sign it.

“Why are you here?” Eddie asked, but his voice sounded so muted, so far away. It was like he was talking to you underwater.

You turned and stared at him with a queer gaze, as if perplexed. “You already asked me that.”

“Yeah, well… you never really answered.”

Because it doesn’t matter, you thought. None of it matters. I’ve already accepted that, Eddie. Why can’t you?

Your silence made him sigh. “I don’t get it,” he said under his breath. “Why can’t you answer one simple question? There’s a reason you joined, isn’t there? You didn’t just wake up one morning and decide you love roleplaying games. So what is it? Huh? Why’d you wanna join our campaign so bad?”

It was painful to think back on this moment now, knowing what you knew. Part of you wished that you had been born two years earlier. Maybe if you were a little older, a little wiser, you would have handled things differently.

But you weren’t older. You were twelve, and in way over your head. You weren’t prepared to handle situations like this. You were too young, too immature, too caught up in your own fears and feelings that you couldn’t see what now seemed so glaringly obvious.

It never occurred to you—not once, not even for a second—that maybe the reason Eddie so desperately needed your answer was the same reason you were so terrified to give it.

Maybe if you knew that, you wouldn’t have said what you said:

“My best friend’s at cheer camp. I needed something to do.”

Eddie cast his eyes up and away, as far away from you as he could. “So you were just bored, then?”

Your shoulders moved on their own, up and down. “Pretty much.”

Eddie took your answer and swallowed it down with a hard gulp. “Gotcha,” he said. “Well, that’s just… great. Yeah, that actually makes perfect sense.”

He hung his head and chuckled at that for a minute; then he started dragging his feet backward, toward the front door. His departing smile was sad and defeated.

“Well, I’m glad I was able to entertain you.” He pushed open the screen door and went out. “See ya around.”

“And do you know what the funny thing is?” you said to Chrissy now, as the memory faded away. “You know what really cracks me up? That should’ve been the end for me. Yeah, that should’ve been game over, insert a coin and try again, but for some bizarre reason, it wasn’t. Yeah, for some reason, he let me keep playing right where I left off. And I got really close this time, Chris. You would’ve been so proud of me. Victory was in sight. The grand prize was right there. All I had to do was reach out and take it.” You made a snatching motion with your hand, then curled your fingers into a fist. “And do you know what I did? I took it and threw it straight into the trash! Isn’t that hilarious? I mean, isn’t that just like me?”

You laughed out loud—a weak, strangled sound. “Fuck me, man!” you said, and wiped your hands across the dampened apples of your cheeks. “God, I need a shrink… Hey, maybe I should have your mom get me the number for hers ‘cause, lemme tell ya, that guy is doing wonders for her. Yeah, that woman’s just full of confidence now, isn’t she?” You gnashed your teeth and cursed. “God, I wanna fight your mom.”

Chrissy cracked a small smile but said nothing. Instead, she stepped forward and gently wrapped her arms around you, pulling you in for one of those perfect, put-you-back-together hugs. Except this one wasn’t so perfect. This one was Scotch Tape when you really needed Super Glue. It wouldn’t hold for long, but it was strong enough to get you through the night in one piece.

Chrissy rested her head against yours. “Look,” she whispered, “I don’t know what happened and I don’t know what you did, but I’m sure it’s not too late to fix it.”

A tear escaped your eye when you heard that. “Yeah, but I think it is,” you said. “I chose to walk out that door, Chris, and now I think it’s closed for good.”

Chrissy released a compassionate sigh. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe this is the end. But you know what? Even if it is, I promise everything’s gonna be fine. Okay? No matter what happens, you’re gonna be fine. I’ll make sure of it.”

You took a deep breath through your nose, exhaled through your mouth, and broke away. While drying your eyes, you said, “How am I supposed to survive college without you? I could barely make it through a single summer on my own, so I dunno how I’m gonna last four years.”

“You and me both,” Chrissy replied with a bittersweet smile. “We’ll figure it out.”

She wiped a tiny flake of mascara off your left cheek. Blushing, you quickly cleaned up the rest.

That’s when you noticed Jason Carver standing far off to the side, patiently waiting for the appropriate time to come over. Once you locked eyes, he took a tentative step toward you and said, “Is everything… okay?”

“Yeah,” Chrissy told him. “Everything’s fine now.”

“Good,” Jason said. Then he turned toward you. “Look, I’m really sorry for—”

You put up your hand. “Jason, it’s fine. I don’t like what you did, but I get why you did it, so… we’re good. Let’s just move on and try to enjoy the rest of the night, okay?”

Jason’s eyes softened with gratitude. “Sure. Thanks.”

He turned away and—

“But,” you rang out, drawing him back, “since you did kinda humiliate me in front of the entire class, I think I’m entitled to some compensation. Wouldn’t you agree? That’s why you’ll be buying me lunch every day for the rest of the year... and that includes all à la carte items, too. I do love those fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies.”

Jason pursed his lips together. “The rest of the year, huh?”

“You can afford it,” you said, and his eyes narrowed with displeasure.

Jason opened his mouth to further protest… only to close it again when he heard Chrissy giggling quietly into her hand. He drank in her laughter with a crooked little smile and said to you, “All right, fine, you’ve got a deal. But you better not take advantage of it, okay?”

“Oh, I plan to. Wholeheartedly.” You put your hands behind your back and beamed at him.

Shortly after, Ms. Kelley came over and said it was time for all the nominees to gather on stage for the announcement of prom king and queen. Chrissy gave you a guilty look and seemed hesitant to go. You nudged her along with your elbow.

“Go,” you told her. “I’m fine, really. Go get your crown, superstar.”

“I don’t care about the crown.”

“I know you don’t, but I do… because I live vicariously through you, remember? I’m like a crazy stage mom and you’re my pageant queen daughter.”

Chrissy rolled her eyes amiably. “You’re such a goof.”

“I know,” you said, and laughed. “Now, don’t forget to act surprised when you win, okay? You wanna appear gracious and humble, but not too humble. Otherwise, you’ll be like Sally Field at the Oscars and everyone will think you’re a total whack job.”

You beckoned her closer and lowered your voice. “Oh, and please don’t let Jason hog the mic for too long, okay? You know how he gets when he has a captive audience. He just goes on and on and on… I mean, we’ll be stuck here all night.”

“I heard that,” said Jason, making you smirk.

“Hey, I’m just saying… keep it under a minute, Carver, or else I’ll have the DJ play you off the stage.”

For that, Jason shot you a playful glare. “Yeah, you’re definitely feeling better. Come on, Chris, let’s go.”

He led her away by her elbow. All the while, Chrissy looked back at you with a worried frown.

You made a shooing motion with your hand. “Go! Go! I’m fine now, I promise. Watch, I’m gonna go grab a cup of punch and then take my place among the rest of the commoners. Seriously, don’t worry about me, Chris. I’m fine. I’m fine.”

Maybe if you said it enough, it would become true.

And maybe you would stop looking over your shoulder, hoping Eddie would be there.

It was nine fifty-eight. Only one more hour to go.

With your cup of punch in hand, you wandered over to Jeff’s table and found him and Grant conversing quietly while Megan Mulrooney lay snoring upon a bed of clumsily arranged chairs.

“Wow, Grant, looks like your date danced herself into a coma.”

Grant put his finger to his lips, then gestured toward his sleeping prom date. “If she wakes up, she’s gonna wanna dance again, and my feet can’t handle that, so…” He swept his hand across his mouth, pretending to seal it shut.

“Got it,” you said, and zipped your lips, too. You sat down next to Jeff. “So, your date still AWOL?”

“Mhm,” said Jeff with an unbothered nod. “You know who I saw her dancing with earlier?”

“Who?”

“Patrick McKinney.”

You put your hand over your mouth, feigning surprise. “How scandalous! Well, I guess we know who she’s going home with.”

“Ha ha. Very funny.” Jeff smiled at you, his eyes glowing with sympathy. “We saw what happened earlier. Man, that was tough to watch… How you holding up?”

“Eh, I’m okay,” you said. “Honestly, I don’t really care about that anymore. I mean, what the hell was I thinking, anyway? Chance Gallagher? The guy’s a dumbass. It’s a miracle he’s even graduating.”

Chuckling, you raised the plastic cup to your mouth and

This is kinda my last shot, y’know? If I don’t get that diploma this year, I’m gonna have to get my GED like every other Munson before me, and I really don’t wanna be another cliché…

felt your lips curl against the rim. This tender smile, unbidden and unexpected, remained on your face while you sipped your drink and cradled the cup against your chest.

To Jeff, you said, “You know, I never really thanked you.”

“For what?”

“For putting up with me all these years. And for sticking your neck out for me.”

“Sticking my neck out? What, you mean back in middle school?”

You nodded, blushing.

Jeff and Grant exchanged bewildered looks. Then Jeff turned back to you with a huge grin. “What’s this?” he said. “You finally getting hit with some of that senior year nostalgia?”

You laughed. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Well, you don’t have to thank me. We’re friends, right? I’d stick my neck out for you any day.” Jeff’s smile faded. When it returned, it was tinged with regret. “You know, I always felt kinda bad about how things ended that summer, and… well, I dunno… I guess I just wish I could’ve done more for you.”

You shook your head doubtfully. “You already did everything you could. I mean, you gave me a shot, right? It’s not your fault I missed.”

You frowned. All this talk was making your heart throb again; with every painful pulse, you could feel the Scotch Tape losing its grip and peeling away. You quickly finished the rest of your punch and slammed your empty cup on the table.

“Wow!” you said. “Look at me making sports analogies… I think I’ve been hanging out with Jason way too much.”

And now the DJ’s filler music was fading into silence. Principal Higgins had taken the stage and was struggling to adjust the height of the mic stand. Some of the students snickered. Principal Higgins gave them a twitchy little smile. Then he straightened his tie, cleared his throat into the mic, and jerked away from the sudden feedback whine.

“Umm, excuse me? Can I have everyone’s attention, please?”

Finally, you thought with a relieved sigh. You rose to your feet and pushed in your chair. “Well, looks like it’s time for me to head over. Enjoy the rest of your night, gentlemen. I’ll see you two on Monday.”

You waved goodbye, took a few steps and

“Hey, Y/N?”

turned back to look at Grant. “Yeah?”

“Look, this probably won’t help much, but I think it’s something you need to hear.” Grant rubbed his neck pensively for a minute. He glanced at Jeff and received an encouraging nod. “Umm, that day, I know Eddie said he was quitting the campaign and everything, but you gotta know he didn’t really mean it. He was just mad and needed to go home and blow off some steam. He came back for the next session.”

You sucked in a breath. “He did?”

“Yeah, he did,” said Grant, while Jeff looked at you with a pitying frown. “And, umm, obviously I can’t really say for sure, but… I think he was hoping you’d be there.”

“Really?” you said, and let Grant’s words sink in for a minute. “So, basically, you’re saying if I’d just sucked it up and gone to the next session, I might’ve—” You clenched your jaw tightly, fighting back the tears that threatened to rip you apart. “Wow… You’re right, Grant, that didn’t help at all.”

You spun around and shouldered your way onto the dance floor, desperate to lose yourself among the gathering crowd. On stage, Principal Higgins was rambling about the future, talking about how far you’d all come, how you were about to move on to bigger and better things…

But I’m not ready to move on, you thought. Not yet. Not without—

You looked over your shoulder, squeezed your eyes shut, and turned back around.

God dammit! Why did I have to join that stupid campaign? If I hadn’t, maybe this would’ve been just another meaningless crush. Maybe I would’ve actually moved on during those two years. Maybe I would’ve noticed someone else. Been noticed by someone else. Shit, maybe I would’ve felt something when Teddy Brubacher kissed me at Katie McDillon’s New Year’s Eve party. Maybe he would’ve been my prom date tonight and—

You whipped around and hissed: “What? What, Teddy?”

Teddy Brubacher flinched away from you, startled. “Well, you were looking at me like you wanted me to come over.”

“What? No, I wasn’t!”

“Yes, you were. I saw you. You were beckoning me with your eyes.”

Teddy’s gaze shifted as he spoke, traveling lower and lower. Disgust churned in your stomach. Anger burned through you like fire. You squirmed away and crossed your arms over your chest.

“Oh my god, I was not beckoning you with my eyes, Teddy. I was just glancing in your general direction, okay? Now, can you please go bother someone else? I’m really not in the mood to talk to you right now.”

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“You sure? ‘Cause you look like you’re about to cry.”

“Teddy, go!”

“All right, fine…” Teddy stuffed his hands in his pockets and sauntered away. “You know, maybe you should stop sending me so many mixed signals. Ever think of that?”

“What? I’m not sending you mixed signals. I’m not sending you any signals! I don’t like you, Teddy. I’ve never liked you. You’re a perverted little cretin that refuses to leave me alone. There. You happy now? Is that a clear enough signal for you?”

Teddy sneered at you. “God, you’re such a bitch.”

“Yeah, well…”

Your throat closed. For a moment, you thought you might break down and start sobbing right in the middle of the dance floor. You didn’t, but your eyes were wet and glistening like mirrors. You hid your face so no one would see and moved closer to the stage.

Keep it together, keep it together… You’re so close. Don’t fall apart now.

It was a quarter past ten, and you were unraveling.

But you put on a brave face for your best friend. Chrissy was standing off to the side with the other prom queen candidates: Sarah Twinley, Jennifer Warner, and Kara Scott. Chrissy didn’t know what to do with herself on stage. She kept shifting her weight around. Crossing her ankles. Folding and unfolding her arms. But all that fidgeting came to a stop when she spotted you in the crowd. Chrissy smiled and gave you a cute little wave. It was such a precious gesture, like a child waving at her parents during a school play. At that moment, all your problems seemed so insignificant.

Meanwhile, the rest of the students were growing restless. A boy cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted from the back row: “Come on, save the sappy shit for graduation. We wanna party!”

The crowd cheered and hollered. Principal Higgins motioned for silence.

“Quiet! Quiet, please. You can all return to your party in just a minute, but first let’s have a round of applause for this year’s prom court!” The audience applauded half-heartedly. Principal Higgins stepped away and began clapping himself. Then he drew a card from his breast pocket and returned to the mic. “All right, seniors, and now the moment you’ve all been waiting for… The votes are in. We counted them twice. Your 1986 Prom King and Queen are… drum roll, please… Jason CARVER and Chrissy CUNNINGHAM.”

Applause broke out and filled the hall, honest and proud. You were clapping from the third row, a placid smile tugging at your lips. Congratulations, Chris. No one deserves it more than you.

Jason and Chrissy stepped forward with gracious smiles. Sashes were draped over them. Crowns were brought out and placed on their heads. Chrissy’s landed a little crooked. She gently nudged it into place with her hand, then blinked as a bouquet of red roses was suddenly thrust upon her.

Principal Higgins boomed into the mic: “LET’S HEAR IT FOR YOUR KING AND QUEEN!”

Applause swelled and the crowd surged. All the basketball players were going wild. The cheerleaders were whooping and whistling with their fingers. You were still clapping, but no longer smiling. All the commotion was giving you a bit of a headache. Then an old, scratchy recording of the school fight song blared over the speakers, and you really started to get a headache.

Back on stage, Chrissy and Jason were posing for yearbook photos: flash after flash after flash. Chrissy’s smile kept slipping between shots. Her eyes darted around helplessly. She wanted to leave. She needed to leave. The lights were too bright. The music was too loud. And this stupid crown refused to stay put! It kept tipping and sliding down her head like it was trying to run away from her, like it knew she was a fraud—a false queen, who was undeserving of its majesty. Chrissy may have been able to fool her classmates, but she couldn’t fool the crown. It had weighed her, judged her, and declared her unworthy.

But still the applause came. It never stopped. The sound poured into Chrissy’s ears and made her feel dizzy, made her feel sick, made her want to pull away and…

And then she felt Jason’s gentle touch on her head, effortlessly gliding the stubborn crown back into place.

“There,” he said with a satisfied nod. “Much better… Man, that must’ve been driving you crazy, huh?”

Chrissy stared up at him, speechless.

“Thank you, by the way, for suffering through this with me. There’s no one else I’d rather be standing next to right now.”

Jason��s smile was confident and his eyes unwavering. Chrissy’s heart soared. She reached up and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“What was that for?” Jason asked, bemused.

“Nothing,” Chrissy said, “I just feel the same way. Come on.”

She took his hand and led him across the stage, down the stairs, to the middle of the dance floor. The audience parted around them naturally, moving in great waves that rippled outward in every direction. You stood still, grounded like a stone. Then the applause died and the lights dimmed, covering the hall in a veil of shadow that made everything feel so painfully romantic. You sighed as it fell over you, and sighed again when the DJ played Cyndi Lauper’s famous bittersweet ballad, “Time After Time.”

It was ten twenty-three, and you were ready to leave.

You stole one last glimpse of your best friend’s smiling face and felt your chest clench with guilt. Sorry to bail on you early, Chris, but I toughed it out for as long as I could.

Now it was time to go home and put this night behind you. Take that long walk up your driveway. Drag your feet up those creaky porch steps. Swipe your hand along the top of the doorframe and hope with all your heart that your parents hadn’t moved the spare key like they always said they were going to, because you didn’t want to knock on the door and face your parents head-on. Have your dad look into your tear-filled eyes and say with panic in his voice, Oh my god, sweetie, what happened? Did someone hurt you? Yeah, because for him that was the worst possible thing that could have happened to you. That was his greatest fear. And then you would feel so embarrassed to admit the truth: No, Dad, nobody hurt me. Nobody wanted anything to do with me! And then you would run upstairs and spend the rest of the night crying into your pillow, just like you did back in middle school.

You weren’t going to do that tonight. You weren’t going to cry in front of your father. You weren’t going to sit through another one of your mother’s useless pep talks, listen to her blather on and on about how beautiful you were, inside and out, and how one day some lucky guy was going to see it. And when that happens, you’re gonna feel really silly for crying over some dumb school dance. Then you would smirk and say something witty and self-deprecating like, So you’re saying I’m gonna fall in love with a blind guy? And your mother would pretend to laugh and say, Yes, honey, and he’ll even think your jokes are funny.

No, you weren’t going to do any of that tonight because you weren’t that pathetic thirteen-year-old girl anymore. You were an adult and fully capable of accepting the consequences of your actions. You fucked up. You made a mistake. It happened. It’s over. Now all you wanted to do was suffer alone in silence.

So, with any luck, that spare key was going to be exactly where it was supposed to be. That way, you could unlock the door and slip inside like everything was fine.

Your mother would hear the door open and tell your father to turn down the volume on the TV. Then she would catch a glimpse of your shadow in the entryway and say, You’re home early. What happened? I thought you were going to the after-party with Chris.

Yeah, I was, but I’m just really tired. Too much dancing, I guess.

Oh… Well, did you have fun?

Yeah, I did.

Then your mother would smile, perhaps even get a little bit smug. See? I told you you’d have a good time, and that would break your heart all over again.

Yeah, you were right, Mom, you would say. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it was gonna be.

And you would think, It was so, so much worse.

Then you would tell your parents good night and go upstairs. Wash all the product out of your hair; clean the makeup off your face. Put on your comfiest pajamas, turn out the lights, crawl into bed, and listen to one of your Journey albums because, one way or another, you were going to have your Journey moment tonight. You just wished it was under better circumstances.

And while you lay in bed listening to Steve Perry sing “Only the Young,” while your tears dried on your cheeks and your wet hair drenched your pillow, your thoughts would eventually start to wander; then your eyes would start to wander… over to the tiny crack in your closet door, and suddenly a strange impulse would come over you. You would get up and start rummaging through your closet. Find your old D&D journal inside a cardboard box of long-forgotten keepsakes. Dust it off, flip through a couple of pages, and think,

I could’ve gone back.

No matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t shake that thought from your head. You could’ve gone back. You could’ve gone back. The door wasn’t locked that day. It wasn’t. You could’ve opened it and walked through it, but you didn’t. Instead, you ran away and avoided the problem like you always did; told Scottie you were done with the campaign and spent the rest of the summer wasting away in your bedroom, alone, waiting for Chrissy to come home and put you back together again, because you thought the door was closed, locked, sealed away forever.

You

could’ve gone back

were wrong.

And that’s when you felt a hot burst of adrenaline shoot through your veins, making your whole body buzz with nervous, excited energy.

Well, shit! If you were wrong then, maybe you were wrong now. And now that you knew this, how could you possibly move forward?

I could’ve gone back.

This single intrusive thought was going to haunt you for the rest of your life: while you returned to class on Monday and begged your teacher to let you change seats; while you studied for finals; while you stood on stage and received your diploma, had the principal move the little tassel on your graduation cap; while you packed for college; while you unpacked for college; while you wandered around campus for the first time and discovered a D&D club flyer pinned to the student activity board; while you snuck a peek into one of their meetings, got caught, and said with a furious blush, Sorry, I think I’m in the wrong room.

Then, eventually, maybe in a month, maybe in a year, maybe in (God forbid) ten years, you were going to meet someone and—yep, sure enough, that thought was still going to be in the back of your mind. Even on your wedding day, it was going to be there. You could see it now so clearly: you standing at the alter in a white gown, staring at some sorry sonofabitch in a black tux; and right before you said, I do, you would pause for half a second and think,

I could’ve gone back.

I should’ve gone back.

I should’ve

I should

I…

Boom! Another blast of adrenaline. This one knocked you backwards and sent you crashing into another student.

“Oh, shit! I’m—”

You spun around and came face to face with Brittany Wirth’s snooty little smirk.

“Jeez,” she said, “walk much?”

“No,” you replied with a wide, open-mouthed grin. “Actually, this is my very first time. Don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll get the hang of it eventually.”

You walked away, giggling madly as you did. Oh my god, I can’t believe I’m doing this. Wait, am I really doing this? Because this could end very badly for me. Yeah, I could be heading into a real shit storm right now…

And then you felt your legs get heavy, so heavy, and your steps gradually slowed to a stop. It was back again, just like that. With one thought, the anxiety had snuck back into your heart and seized it with a cold, crushing grip. You couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe.

What if you’re wrong? that little voice said. What if Eddie wants nothing to do with you now? What if he tells you to get lost and slams the door in your face?

God, that would suck, you thought. Yeah, I’m not sure I could handle that.

But then Chrissy’s words came back to you, quieting all your fears. No matter what happens, you’re gonna be fine, and you knew she was right.

Regardless of how this night ended, you were going to be just fine.

So you took a deep breath, picked up your feet, and kept walking. Pushed through the crowd. Flew past your empty table. Raced up the stairs and saw the door. The closed door.

Closed, but not locked.

You could still open it.

You would open it.

You surged forward… and suddenly Chance Gallagher was standing in front of you, blocking your path, smiling at you with those perfectly straight, blindly white teeth.

“Hey, I—”

“Yeah, you can fuck right off,” you said to Chance, and went around him. Then, over your shoulder: “Oh, and by the way, you owe me forty-five bucks, asshole!”

Laughter exploded from your chest, full and free. You surrendered to it willingly, eagerly, let it consume you, let it fill you, let it roll off your tongue, off your lips, and float into the air as you kept walking. Nervous as you were, you kept walking towards that door. And once you finally reached it, once you felt the cool metal handle beneath your fingertips, you

stopped.

It had stopped.

Cyndi Lauper.

Music.

The music, it had stopped.

Why had it stopped?

The entire hall was dead silent for a moment; then, suddenly, it was alive with the sound of hushed voices, sighs, and stifled laughter. You looked over your shoulder and felt your breath catch in your throat.

It was ten twenty-six, and Eddie Munson was on stage with the mic in his hand.

It took Principal Higgins all of five seconds to realize what was happening. He put down his punch, slid the silver flask back into his jacket, stormed the stage, and went straight for the microphone.

“Nope. Nope, we’re not doing this tonight. Come on, hand over the mic. Yeah, give it here, son. How about showing some respect for your fellow classmates, huh?”

Principal Higgins reached for the mic. Eddie yanked it away.

“Actually, I have tons of respect for my classmates,” Eddie told him. “That’s why I waited so patiently for you guys to finish. And you… yes, you, sir… you talked for a really, really long time, and now… yeah, now it’s my turn, so…”

Eddie raised the mic to his lips and turned back to the crowd, his eyes clear and focused.

Searching…

… and not finding.

“Well, shit,” Eddie said under his breath. The mic caught it anyway and drew contemptuous laughter from the audience. Eddie covered the mic with his hand, then flashed a sheepish smile in the principal’s direction. “Sorry,” he said. “Forgot the mic was on.”

Principal Higgins sighed, put his head in his hand, and started counting the days until graduation.

Meanwhile, Edith Layne was watching anxiously from the fourth row. She sank into herself like a frightened turtle and wondered if she was partly to blame for this disaster. Then she looked over at her prom co-chair and knew she was definitely going to get blamed for this. I’m just way too nice.

On the other side of the room, Brittany Wirth was clawing at her face in terror. Her prom… oh no, her picture-perfect prom! All those months she spent planning, obsessing over every little detail: picking the venue, planning the menu, buying all the decorations, folding all those little white place cards that everyone kept throwing on the floor!

This wasn’t supposed to be happening right now. She was supposed to be humming along with Cyndi Lauper and, instead, she was watching Eddie Munson light the torch and burn all her efforts to the ground!

No, this can’t be happening. This can’t be happening!

Brittany threw down her hands and growled. “Ugh, I knew it… I fucking knew it! I knew that freak was gonna pull a stunt like this.” She turned and took off like a charging bull, knocking everyone out of her path. “Outta my way. Outta my way! Move. Move!”

Brittany blew past you on the staircase and almost knocked you over.

“Jeez,” you said to her, “walk much?”

Brittany stopped and sucked in a startled gasp, eyes wide, mouth hanging open in a silent scream. “You’re part of the problem,” she whispered hotly, and then went scrambling up the stairs and out the door.

You watched Brittany go with a befuddled frown. “What did I do?”

Shrugging, you proceed down the stairs and started pushing your way toward the stage.

“Well, this is embarrassing,” Eddie said, staring at a wall of unamused and irritated faces, none so furious as Jason Carver in his gold sash and red velvet crown. Chrissy Cunningham was beside him, grimacing with second-hand embarrassment.

Sweat trickled down the back of Eddie’s neck. “Uhh… let’s have one more round of applause for the king and queen!” He lowered the mic and started beating his hand against his wrist, prompting half the audience to applaud in a stiff, awkward manner. “You two look great, by the way, with the sashes and the crowns. Yeah, they make you both look very… uhh… regal.”

Eddie let the mic fall to his side. It went thump, thump, thump against his thigh.

Down on the dance floor, Jason Carver had heard enough. “Man, this guy just can’t help himself, can he?” He lunged forward… only to be drawn back by Chrissy’s gentle but firm hand.

“Don’t,” she said. “Please?”

Jason gave her a confused look, but did as she asked. Then Chrissy stepped forward herself and started searching for you in the crowd. When she couldn’t find you, her heart sank with despair. Oh, no… please, no… tell me you didn’t really leave. You’ll hate yourself forever if you did.

And now Principal Higgins was trying to grab the mic again.

“All right, son, you’ve had your fun—”

Eddie thrust out his hand defensively and jumped back. “No, just wait, okay? Gimme a second, just one second. Look, I had a plan, and I know it’s kinda blowing up in my face right now, but I’m not getting off this stage until I say what I need to say, and I can’t say what I need to say until she gets here. Okay? So, with all due respect, right now I need you to back off and have a little patience, man, ‘cause she’s gonna be here soon. I know she’s gonna be here… or uhh, at least I hope she will.” Eddie pushed his hand through his hair and frowned. “Actually, she’s probably doing this on purpose ‘cause, between you and me, she’s kinda vindictive like that. Yeah, she just loves embarrassing me and, y’know, making me look like an asshole in front of everyone…”

And then you wedged yourself between two students and forced your way into the front row. Eddie found you instantly. His chest rose and fell in a deep, shaky breath. You crossed your arms in front of you and raised your hand in a timid, apologetic wave.

“Hi,” you mouthed.

“Hi,” Eddie said back.

Maybe it was due to the lights, maybe it was due to the intense rush of relief he felt when he finally saw you, but at that moment you never looked more beautiful.

Eddie’s mouth opened and closed wordlessly. He cracked a tiny smile. “It’s funny,” he said into the mic. “I had this whole speech prepared, but now… yeah, now I can’t seem to remember any of it.” He breathed out a quiet laugh, then started tracing his bottom lip with his tongue. All the while, his eyes never left yours.

In the silence, someone shouted, “Get off the stage, freak!” and pockets of laughter broke out among the audience. You winced at the sound, turned, and saw Andy Hauffman give Clay Howard a high five.

Eddie acknowledged the boy’s comment with a bitter, resigned smirk. Then he immediately turned back to you.

“Y’know that word used to bother me a lot when I was younger, and I guess it still stings a little, but…” He slipped into a brooding silence for a moment, his expression reflecting years of loneliness and shame. “All my life, I’ve had people telling me to tone it down, telling me to stop, to ‘try to act more normal’… except you… yeah, for you, I wasn’t weird enough.” His face broke into a bright, misty-eyed smile. “And I wish I could put into words what that meant to me back then, what it still means to me now, ‘cause I think if you knew how I really felt, you’d understand why none of this makes any sense to me. You really thought I’d forget you? Man, I wish I could forget you. Yeah, I wish I could move on and, y’know, kill you off in my head, but no matter what I do, you refuse to die. I dunno, you’re like a zombie or something.”

You scrunched up your nose. Did this man seriously just compare you to an undead, flesh-eating monster?

Eddie saw your face and panicked. “Wait, hold on, that… I didn’t mean to say that. Yeah, I dunno why I…”

He closed his eyes and took a deep, deep breath. “Look, you were right. I came here tonight for someone else… but I stayed for you. I was gonna leave. Yeah, I was getting ready to go home and forget this night ever happened, but then you came running out those doors and you blew right past me, just bawling your eyes out. And I didn’t know why you were crying or why it bothered me so much, but I just knew I couldn’t leave you alone.”

Eddie’s words wrapped around your heart and squeezed so tightly, it made you want to cry. You thought back to the moment he came stumbling into the restroom. The way his eyes bulged when they met yours. You thought he was shocked to see you, but…

“Yeah… I lied,” he said. “See, I’m pretty good at thinking on my feet, too. Not nearly as good as you, of course, but I can hold my own.” Eddie chuckled a little to himself, his lips curling into that cheeky little grin that always made your brain short-circuit. “Security was never after me. I just made all that up. Actually, now that I think about it, I don’t even think security knows I’m here… well, now they probably do, which means I’ve got about thirty seconds before they come and give me the hook, so I better make this quick.”

Eddie glanced at the door, saw it swing open, then raced right back to you. The corner of his mouth lifted into a tranquil, tender-heartened smile.

“You said you robbed me of my one great memory, but you didn’t… you couldn’t… because you are my great memory. You’re my greatest memory.”

Your heart swelled, overflowing with more emotions than you could process: joy, gratitude, love… most of all, love. You stared up at Eddie with tears in your eyes, wanting nothing more than for him to jump down from the stage, take you in his arms, and kiss you right in front of everyone. If this was a movie like Pretty in Pink, that might have happened, and then you would have danced the night away in a kick-ass closing credit scene.

Unfortunately, this was reality, and in reality, perfect little moments like this always got ruined by big-haired, bumptious bitches like Brittany Wirth.

She marched into the hall with two security guards in tow, pointed at the stage, and said, “There. There he is. Now can you please get that jackass out of here?”

Eddie saw them coming and his shoulders sank in defeat. “Ah, shit, here we go…” His time had officially run out. He’d sung his last song and now they were about to drop the curtain on Eddie Munson’s one-man show.

But first… first, he had one last request to fulfill.

Eddie lifted the mic once more and smiled at you. “I know you really wanted to hear me play my guitar tonight, but uhh, given the circumstances, I hope this is the next best thing.”

He lowered the mic and let it drop to the floor, useless and mute. Over the speakers, a piano began softly, playing a simple but beautiful chord progression that made you clasp your hands over your mouth in surprise. It was “Open Arms.” You were finally getting your Journey moment. It took all your strength to keep from squealing like an idiot. You wanted to laugh. You wanted to cry. You wanted to smack the person next to you and say, See? The perfect prom song. Those bitches should’ve listened to me.

But you didn’t have time to do any of that because Eddie had climbed down from the stage and was about to be taken away by security.

A burly man in a blue suit said to him, “Come on, kid, it’s late. I’m really not in the mood to get physical with you. So how ‘bout you just leave quietly on your own and make my life a little easier, okay? There’s no need to cause a big scene.”

“I think it’s a little late for that,” said Brittany Wirth with an uppity little smirk.

The other guard turned to her. “Miss, please, let us handle this.”

Brittany’s face flushed a deep, rosy pink. She huffed and walked away.

“God, she’s such a bitch,” Eddie mumbled under his breath. Then to the guards, he said, “Look, I’m not here to argue with you guys, okay? I know I’m not supposed to be here, and I know it’s your job to keep guys like me out. It’s cool, I get it. We’re all on the same page. All I’m asking for is a little time to say goodbye to someone. That’s it. Just a quick goodbye and you guys can drag me on outta here. You can even cuff me, if you want.”

“Do we need to cuff you?”

“Well, no, I’m just…” Eddie dragged his eyes away, saw you, and grew restless, desperate to get to you. He clenched his jaw, clenched his fists, and let out a frustrated groan. “Look, you see that really pretty girl over there? She and I were having a very romantic moment, and you guys, uhh… yeah, you kinda ruined it, so the least you can do is let me go say bye to her.”

The guard heaved an exasperated sigh. “Kid, come on…”

“Hey, man, I’ve already been here for like three hours. What’s another three minutes, right?”

“You can’t stay here. You don’t have a ticket.”

That’s when your hand flew to your chest, and you gasped. “Yes, he does,” you said. “He has a ticket. I… I have his ticket.”

You dove into the bodice of your dress, causing the guards to avert their eyes.

“Uhh, miss…”

“Oh, what?” you said to them. “You think I’m gonna flash you or something? Relax, okay? I just didn’t feel like carrying around a purse all night.” You pulled out the ticket, walked over, and handed it to the blue suit. “There. See?”

The guard casually examined the ticket, front and back, then looked at you. “He’s your date?”

“Yep,” you said. “He’s my date.”

Eddie gestured toward you and said with a boastful grin, “I’m her date.”

The guard rolled his eyes and grumbled in response. He flipped the ticket back and forth one more time, glanced at his co-worker, and they both shrugged. “Whatever,” he said, “I don’t really care,” and they both left.

Eddie turned to you with grateful eyes. “Thank you for coming to my rescue.”

“Well, I figured it’s the least I could do…” You smiled up at him, nerves fluttering in your stomach. “That was quite the performance you gave back there. Highly entertaining.”

“Yeah, I thought might enjoy it…”

“Oh, I did,” you said. “Yeah, it’s definitely in my top three.”

“Your top three, huh?” Eddie fought back a smile. “And what, dare I ask, is number one?”

Your smile grew into a mischievous grin. “The speech you always give right before finals—you know, the one where you talk about flipping off the principal at graduation?” You bit your lip to keep from laughing, but ended up giggling anyway. “I swear, that speech gets funnier and funnier every year you don’t graduate. Turns out ‘84 wasn’t your year, Munson. Neither was ‘85.”

“Yeah, I guess they weren’t,” Eddie said while staring at you. “I’ve got a good feeling about this year, though.”

His soft, dreamy gaze made you blush.

Then he pointed toward the overhead speaker. “See, I got you Journey,” he said. “Wait, this is Journey, right?”

You laughed. “Yes, this is Journey.”

“Okay, good, ‘cause the DJ gave me a really weird look, probably ‘cause I don’t look like the kinda guy who would ever request Journey, which is fair… Anyway, since we’re on the topic of, uhh, Journey, I think you might be a little too obsessed with Steve Perry, which is cool and all, but uhh… yeah, we’re definitely gonna have to set some ground rules, y’know, once we actually start dating.”

Your heart jumped. “Dating?”

“Wait, I didn’t tell you? Shit, sorry, I’m getting a little ahead of myself.” Eddie folded his arms over his chest and gave a thoughtful nod. “Yeah, way I see it, I’ve gotta squeeze about four years of dating into like four months, so… yeah, I’ve definitely got my work cut out for me.”

“Four years, huh?” Inside, you were screaming. “You really think we would’ve been dating for that long?”

“Oh, you don’t think so? Well, I think so… Yeah, I definitely would’ve swooped in during your freshman year. No doubt in my mind. I mean, I would’ve given you a couple weeks to settle in. Then, when you least expected it…”

You made a motion with your hand. “Swoop.”

“Mhm,” Eddie said, and you both laughed. “So, I dunno what your plans are for the summer, but sorry, they’re all going out the window ‘cause I intend to monopolize all of your time.”

A giddy feeling rose within you. You had to sneak in a quick breath to calm yourself down. “Well, I’ve been warned.”

And that made him smirk. “I love how you’re trying really hard to act like you’re not happy right now, but I can easily tell you are, so…”

Eddie went quiet for a second, his eyes shifting back and forth in thought. Then, out of nowhere, he leaned toward you and said in a low voice, “Hey, you wanna get outta here?”

His deep brown eyes pulled you in like a magnet. “Yes,” you said, “definitely.”

“Good, ‘cause… honestly, I’ve been wanting to leave since I got here.”

“Yeah, me too,” you said breathlessly, unable to break his gaze. “I just, umm, I need to say goodbye to someone first.”

“Sure,” he replied with a nod. “Take your time. I’ll just be, uhh, waiting for you by the door.”

Eddie backed away from you slowly, giving you a lingering look that made you feel dizzy and light-headed. Once he was gone, you pressed your hands against your burning cheeks and thought, Oh my god! Oh my god!

You spun around and spotted Chrissy across the dance floor, watching you with the biggest, brightest smile. You rushed up to her and grabbed both her hands, squeezing them tightly with excitement.

“Hey, I’m…”

“Leaving, I’m assuming?”

“Yeah,” you said. “Yeah, I am…”

Chrissy’s eyes sparkled with unrestrained joy. She pulled you in for a tight hug and said to you, “See? I told you you’re the lottery.”

You pulled away and pecked her cheek. “You’re a goddess.”

“Oh, I like that…” Chrissy touched her face and grinned. “Yeah, let’s keep that one.”

You both giggled, hugged one last time, and broke away.

“I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

“Yeah, you better!” Chrissy yelled, and then watched you leave with a warm, tender feeling in her heart.

Once you were out of earshot, Jason Carver leaned over and said to her, “You’re not seriously letting her leave with that guy, are you?”

And Chrissy said, “Yes... Yes, I am.” She smiled at him. “This was a good night.”

“You had fun?”

“Yeah… I did.”

Jason nodded, looked away, and smiled a little to himself. “Good.”

_________________________

PREV // CURRENT // EPILOGUE

*cries happy tears* It’s finally over!

Okay, I realize some of you may be disappointed that there was no big kiss at the end, but I left it out for two reasons: 1) they already had their kiss 2) it’s incredibly cliched, and I didn’t want to go that route. Don’t worry, though, because there will be plenty of kissing (and then some) in the epilogue “Post Prom,” which will be the first of many, many side stories I have planned for this fic.

Thank you so much for reading! ❤︎

#eddie munson #stranger things #fanfic #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x female reader #eddie munson imagine #chrissy cunningham #jason carver #chrissy x jason #stranger things 4 #st4 #dancing with myself #dwm #finale #ambrossart #it’s finally over!#I’m happy but also sad

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dsgirl2024 · 3 months

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The World You See | Prologue | Seokjin | BTS OT7 x Reader Fanfiction

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CONTENT WARNING

This story has explicit descriptions of death, drug use, alcohol use, addiction, sex, language, mental illness, suicide, and other possibly triggering content.

If this will effect your well being in ANY WAY, PLEASE DO NOT READ!

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ABOUT

Genre ☆ Fantasy / Romance (Fanfiction)

Rating ☆ Mature (18+ Minors DNI)

Pairing ☆ BTS OT7 x Reader

Story Type ☆ Angel BTS (AU)

SUMMARY

You've always seen the world a bit differently than others. It was like your magic power. And maybe that was why only you could see the lights that night. The big, astronomical explosion of lights that rained down to earth in colors you had never known to have existed until now. Little did you know about a divine destiny beyond your wildest dreams, and seven angelic beings brought down from heaven to guide you.

Apparently, the world is ending, and they're convinced that you're the one to save it. All you have to do, is figure out how.

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11:55 p.m.

It was a surreal feeling, watching a house fall to ash around him.

If it weren't for the excruciating heat and the carbonyl fumes, Kim Seokjin might have found the whole experience... pretty. Poetic even, like a dance. A dance between creation and carnage, an inseparable pair, who waltzed among the earth in a chaotic symbiosis.

One nursed life whereas the other bred death--polar opposites yet, they could never exist outside of each other. Without life, there'd be no death. Without death, life would have no purpose. An extraordinary affair that lay tale to an unbreakable bond.

Marvelous.

Bewitching.

Uncanny.

A terrific performance, and Seokjin had an unparalleled point of view.

Caged in by fire from every side, his body was splayed on the hardwood floor, brown eyes captivated by the sultry, orange glow above. Plush pink lips parted in awe as a single tear rolled down his cheek, stunned by the sheer magnificence of it all. The flames ruthlessly sought to consume, snapping and crackling as their heat devoured whatever they could find. Eventually, the man knew he'd be found too.

He wasn't afraid, though.

As he laid there to bare witness, Seokjin realized it wasn't as bad as he imagined it to be. Dying this way. The pain was irrefutable and his existence begged for release, lungs aching for clean air as they filled with more debris. Slow, painfully slow, he could feel the flesh start to drip off his bones, first degree burns tattooing his skin.

An unrelenting agony, yet his opinion spoke of worse ways to go.

Or perhaps he thought as such being that the feeling offered a... familiarity of sorts. Meat cooking around bone was a sensation he'd grown unnaturally used to. Fire's were his job, after all. Vanquishing them to be precise, nearly a decades worth. And if he learned anything in those ten years, a gluttonous blaze served only one purpose, to destroy.

Carnage.

Which is why Seokjin felt the fire to be completely immaculate. It was merely fulfilling its role in the universe, dancing the part. Nothing personal. As a matter of fact, the man only had himself to blame. He shouldn't have returned to disturb its process. How stupid of him, letting his ego cloud better judgement. Not as if he hadn't been warned, the man was just--

Too

Damn

Stubborn.

"YA! KIM SEOKJIN, YOU IDIOT, COME BACK!" He could still hear the voice of his senior, screaming after him, begging him stop. But Seokjin hadn't stopped. Hadn't gone back.

He never listened.

11:58 p.m.

Coughing weakly, Seokjin turned his head to relieve some pressure weighing on his chest. Every inhale spent his declining energy, as the smoke and monoxide exhausted his lungs. Fatigue ghosted the crests of his lids and he felt an obscure fogginess sink inside his brain, vision blurring like a camera out of focus.

There wasn't much time now.

"That is just like you Jinny. Always acting first, never thinking things through. You be careful my boy, that'll getcha dead one'a these days." His mom had cautioned. She had been joking of course, though he now felt a cruel sense of irony in her warning.

Nevertheless, Seokjin held no regrets. There was nothing to regret.

Life had been generous to him, Seokjin had no complaints where that was concerned. A loving family, good friends, and a job that rewarded both his pockets and his soul. Even if it meant dying right here, the man would do it over again in a heart beat.

Obviously, he wished for more time to enjoy it. Meet a nice girl, get married and have a few kids. Continue to help more people along the way. Eventually retire and settle down, live out the rest of his days in peace. Hell, maybe grow some vegetables in his backyard and take those cooking classes he'd kept putting off.

Maybe in the next life.

11:59 p.m.

Moments later, a loud, blasting noise ascended from the foyer below. Distant voices grew closer, approaching the front of the house. Seokjin's ears perked, catching the sounds with a gracious smile. He recognized one of them, his senior.

Feeling thankful for his colleague's loyalty, Seokjin tried to get as comfortable as possible. They'd find him in about fifteen minutes. Soon enough that he'd still be a handsome corpse, but the man was realistic. His life was beyond salvation, though at least his mother will be spared a charred carcass to identify.

Seokjin sighed contently, the rise and fall of his chest pulling him further into the floor. The heat sweltering his flesh dried him up from the inside out, fair skin turned red and raw. Gradually, it had become miserable simply to remain alive.

Even so.

Despite enduring all that pain, at the same time it felt as if he were in no pain at all.

The next thing he knew, Seokjin began to drift away. As his eyes fluttered shut, the last thing he saw was a brilliant, hot flash of light. Whether a trick of his mind or an figment of reality, the color was something he'd never seen before. An impossible color, and that elated him, swelling his heart with joy. Because for some reason, that was the last bit of assurance he needed to completely let go.

So he let go.

0:00 a.m.

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xxnghtclls · 8 months

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Permission

Chapter 40

(Chapter 39; Chapter 41)

True Form Sukuna x Reader

Rating: Explicit

Warning: Graphic Depiction Of Violence

Please see Chapter 1 for tags!

Ready For War

A twitching finger next to your hand wakes you up. Birds already chirp in the blue hour of the day. The fire in the oven is still crackling gently, its light bathing the room in a dim orange. You slowly open your eyes, only to see your Love lying right in front of you, both of you naked. Laying on his stomach to your left, his eyes closed, his expression a little tense. A twitch of his eyelid, another twitch of his finger. His breaths calm but heavy, his eyebrow moving gently.

He’s dreaming.

And you watch him. It feels surreal, to see Sukuna like that, since you never saw him really sleep. Because he doesn’t need to, he said, but now you figure, that that doesn’t mean he can’t. Gently and very carefully, you hook your pinky finger inside his.

Don’t wake him.

His arm flinches, his lip and chin moves, almost unnoticeably.

And you keep watching him, can’t help to think he’s the most adorable being you ever laid eyes on. This heavy, strong and sadistic asshole, being so vulnerable right next to you. You never thought, you would see him like this, so relaxed and safe next to you.

His pinky twitches against yours.

So gentle. So quiet.

And god how bad you want to kiss him, feel him. Want to tell him again that you’re his for now and forever.

No.

Don’t wake him.

The sun is slowly rising, brightening the room and you keep watching.

And you wonder if he ever watched you like this. Watched you dream and walk through other dimensions. Watched you and wanted to touch you, to feel and fuck you in order to wake you. But decided not to, to not disturb you in your dreams. To cherish the moment of having you feel safe and vulnerable right next to him.

Twitch.

A sigh.

And you wonder, if he’s really capable of that. He’s not prone to human feelings, he said, but you ask yourself, if you proved him wrong. If your mere existence was what sparked his ancient, monstrous heart to feel more human again and to love the human being that you are.

Watching him, it feels like an eternity and one second at the same time. You keep yourself from thinking of those three words, to not give him the headache that might wake him up.

Asshole.

Twitch.

You smile and your heart flies.

Cute.

Minutes pass, before his eyes start to move beneath his eyelids, until his lashes gently start to flutter open. Sukuna’s pupils focus on you and relax as soon as he recognises you. Your heart skips a beat, looking into his gentle, tired crimson orbs. He breathes calmly, as you tighten the grip of your pinky that’s still wrapped around his. His gaze falls down to your lips, before they keep lingering on them. After a moment, he slides his finger out of your grip, only to grab your jaw with the very same hand and slides closer to you. With a heavy beating heart, you watch him close the gap between you, watch him come closer, only to kiss you, to eat and devour you like a lover does.

And you tremble at him doing it. So weak. So devout for him. He can do anything he wants to you and you would gladly accept.

Because it’s him.

Because you love him, his taste and soul.

Love how he needs you, wants you and kisses you.

Love how he makes your heart feel and your cunt.

His bottom right hand grabs around your waist and pulls you closer, while he deepens the kiss. Your hands reach for his face, while he pushes you even closer against him. Heart beating so fast, you’re afraid it’s gonna jump out of your ribcage at any moment.

And you wouldn’t mind.

His bottom arm wraps around the small of your back, before he presses you flush against him, while he keeps drowning in the taste of your lips and your mouth. You’re so small in this monsters hold, vulnerable and breakable, but it’s the safest you feel in forever.

His motions slow down and your lips part.

“Good morning to you, too” you breathe against his mouth.

His nose brushes against yours, making you feel his warm breath hit your skin, before he shifts and sits up. You look at his back in confusion, before he wordlessly stands up and walks into the other room.

“My Love?” you call him, only to see him coming back with a fresh set of his white blue kimono.

“Help me dress.” he says in a voice that sounds so soothing in your ears, making you unable to deny his request.

You watch him slip into the pants he wears beneath his kimono, while you stand up and walk to the edge of the bed. Taking his robe and holding it up, ready to let him slip his arms through, you wait until he positions himself.

“What’s the occasion?” you ask in a gentle voice, while he turns his back to you and slips his arms through the fabric. “Another girl that’s gonna make me run away?” you say playfully.

He chuckles softly, turning his head slightly to you.

“Business.” is his answer and you raise your brows in surprise, while patting the fabric nice and smooth.

Right.

He didn’t need to do any royal business since the war.

“What kind of business?” you ask, before tapping on his shoulder and motioning him to turn around.

He steps around, his face right in front of yours.

“What kind of business?” he repeats softly, while watching how you’re focused on crossing the robe in front of his chest.

“Mhmh.” you hum, before finally looking up to him.

A sly smirk crawls onto his lips, as he squints his eyes at you, almost unnoticeable. You frown, while a light blush starts to decorate your face. Before you can say something, he mutes you with a mind weakening kiss. So soft.

“Tie it.” he whispers against your lips, showing his teeth.

“Wha- oh.” you mumble, while you spot his bottom left hand holding raising his obi into your vision.

Asshole.

You would love to strangle him for his mysterious fuss, if his voice wasn’t as smooth as butter and his lips as tasty as sweets right now. Sukuna holds his kimono in place, as you take the obi out of his hand and step down to the floor, to tie it at his back.

“Such a mysterious King. Mh Mh.” you complain playfully.

Knock.

The sound of the door sliding open interrupts you, as Uraume steps in and bows their head.

“I’m early. My apologies, Master Sukuna.”

“It’s fine.” he responds and turns around, after you finish the bow at the small of his back just in time. Sukuna blinks at you and nudges his head slightly and you realise, that you’re still naked.

Your heart drops in shock, but you remember his words.

Act like a Queen.

Don’t panic.

You raise your head and straighten your shoulders, before you walk past Uraume, to get your kimono, that you left on the armchair next to the garden door.

“Excuse me.” you say over your shoulder, before you make your way through the small corridor to the other room to get dressed.

Squeeze.

His footsteps suddenly follow you, before you feel him grabbing your shoulder and his nails dig into your skin.

“You’re excused.” he hisses into your ear, almost like a threat or rather a goodbye.

You turn around and see his intense stare against your face. Sukuna’s lip twitches, as he leans in, but stops himself from kissing you, instead just licks against your upper lip, before he straightens his back again.

“See you soon.” you whisper and your heart aches, as he looks at you with a hint of longing, before he turns around to walk back to Uraume.

I’m gonna miss you, too, you think, looking after him, while you dress yourself.

You hear Uraume’s footsteps joining Sukuna’s and how they walk out of the room.

The sound of a door sliding shut.

You’re alone.

Walking back into the bedroom, you listen to the silence for a moment, think about the recent events. The Bitch, Akiko…

The kois!

Your heart flutters as you remember and you hurry to the garden door, eager to see them in daylight. Feet hit the grass, as you run outside, straight to the pond and falling to your knees right in front of it.

“Whoaaa.” you gasp, as you see the huge carps. Six kois you see. A golden one, two white ones with orange markings, two white ones with orange and black markings and a white one with black markings.

Pretty.

The sunlight reflects on the surface of the water, shining into your eyes.

“My Lady!” Akiko’s voice rings in your ears and you look to your right. She’s running towards you, grinning widely.

“Akiko! Have you seen them? They’re so pretty!” you tell her with big eyes, before you look back down to the water. “I was laying in Uraume’s ears a few times to get some. And now they’re here!”

“Yes! I’ve helped Uraume to put them into the water yesterday!” she smiles at you, crouching down next to you. You bite your cheek, still feeling a bit guilty of not helping her on her first day of duty.

“Uraume told me, it was Master Sukuna’s order to get them. They were complaining about the expensive price.” she chuckles. It warms your heart.

“Master Sukuna’s order…” you repeat in a whisper, while you put your fingers into the water, hoping to touch one of the kois. Akiko gently pokes into your shoulder, making you look at her.

“They’re a gift.” she assures you, making you smile, while tears shoot into your eyes.

Sniff.

You look back to the water.

“Now it makes sense.” you chuckle with glistening eyes. “He said they suit me… he got them for me.”

“My Lady, do you know what my grandma used to say?” she says eagerly.

“What?” you snort, before you sniff.

“She said…” she lowers her voice. “…they’re a symbol of love and friendship, of strength and perseverance.”

You listen to her words and take them in for a moment, only staring at their beautiful movements in the water.

“Asshole.” you whisper quietly with a smile.

“My Lady?” she asks confused.

“It’s fine.” you chuckle. “Which one do you like the most?”

Akiko blinks, before she looks down into the water, mustering every koi very closely.

“I think…” she mumbles. “…I think the golden one.”

“Good choice.” you say proudly. “That one looks the most expensive.”

“And rare!” Akiko adds, pointing her finger up.

Both of you chuckle, before you hear footsteps and voices from the halls.

“…all the preparations are underway.” Uraume’s voice.

“Very well.” Sukuna answers, before they arrive at the garden door. You can feel his eyes boring into you, before you turn and look to them, only to see Sukuna smirking at you. Smiling back at him, he walks into the garden, straight into your direction. Uraume follows.

“Soon it was.” you say playfully, while you notice Akiko lowering her gaze and standing up to walk a few steps back, making room for Sukuna.

“Soon it was.” he grins, while arriving right next to you. Your eyes linger on each other for a moment, before you look back to the water.

“They’re so pretty.” you say in thought. “Thank you, Uraume!” you add, turning back around, seeing Sukuna sneer at you and crossing his upper pair of arms in front of his chest.

You wink at him, before smiling at Uraume.

“Thank you, I only followed orders.” they bow in gratitude. “May this incredibly expensive decoration enjoy the minds of everyone who walks by.” they add sarcastically, making you snort.

You stand up and pat your kimono clean, before tugging at Sukuna’s sleeve. He looks at you with a sly smirk, before bending down.

“They suit you, too, my Love.” you whisper in his ear.

“Is that so?” he whispers back with this arrogant tone, that makes your knees go weak.

While Sukuna still lingers at your ear, you suddenly spot the Bitch. She sneaks into the garden, carrying a bucket and walking straight to the well, eyeing suspiciously what’s going on at the pond. Sukuna notices where you’re looking at and shifts slightly to take a look with his bottom pair of eyes as well.

“Look who’s here.” he coos in your ear. “Do you think she will-?”

“No. She won’t.” you say confidently, knowing that she’s the one who’s alone right now.

Sukuna chuckles in your ear, before straighten his back again. You keep watching the Bitch, while she’s pulling up water from the well. Sukuna steps another step closer to the pond, giving you a better sight of her. She throws you an angry glare. Seeing you and your King being close like this, having others standing by in peace, you must look like royalty.

Averting your gaze from hers, you step closer to Sukuna and place your hand on the small of his back.

“I could look at them all day.” you say gently, making him hum.

“Do what you like.” he responds, while he turns around and briefly places his fingers under your chin, before walking past you.

Uraume follows him back inside and you look back to the Bitch. She lowers her head, before she starts walking a few steps after them, also going inside. You ponder for a moment.

Something feels weird.

Seeing her being tame like this is unusual.

Not even a comment or another glance after Sukuna and Uraume are gone.

You decide to head into the halls aswell, want to see if she‘s up to anything else.

“Come.” you motion to Akiko and she follows you. “Let’s go after our duties.”

“Yes, my Lady.” she nods.

“Us. The cleaning squad.” you smile at her, while stepping into the halls and she smiles back. You turn back forward, but then you slip, tripping over something firm, your feet get tangled in the fabric of your kimono.

Bam!

You fall to the ground, luckily being able to catch yourself with your hands.

I fucking knew it.

“My Lady!” Akiko shouts and you hear her hurrying after you.

A familiar giggle echoes through your ear.

Kick!

Before Akiko can reach you, you feel a foot kicking against the back of your head, sending your left temple downwards, hitting the cold stone floor.

Numb.

A beep in your ear.

You almost black out from the impact. Sight and hearing affected.

Fuck.

It hurts.

“How dare you?!” Akiko’s faint voice screams in the background.

Muffled sounds of her grabbing the Bitch, trying to fight her, echo in your ear. The water filled bucket falls down to the ground. Water crawls everywhere. You feel the cold wetness coating your kimono.

Slap!

You manage to pull yourself up, seeing how the Bitch slaps Akiko hard in the face, making her fall to the ground as well.

Enough.

You snap. Anger prickles like needles in your blood, muscles trembling and heart racing. Adrenaline makes you pull yourself up on your feet and rush to the Bitch.

One, two, three steps until you reach her, slamming her against the next wall with a loud growl of anger and pain.

Bam!

”Agh!”The Bitch hisses in pain and you slam her against the wall a second time. Harder.

“WHAT?” you shout into her face.

Slam!

“WHAT do you want?” you lower your voice, hissing threatening into her face. “You disgusting insect of a woman!”

Spit!

Your sticky saliva lands right below her right eye, as you feel something warm crawling down the left side of your face.

She growls in disgust, before wiggling in your grip.

“I want you gone!” she hisses. “You and your existence.”

Slap!

Your hand meets her face, harshly, before you tightly grab the fabric around her neck. With a clenching jaw you lean in. Adrenaline sparks malice to burn in your veins.

“And I want you dead.” you whisper aggressively in her ear. “Want your heart on my plate and your tongue burning in fire.”

You lean back, your raging eyes staring into her brown ones.

“Just keep doing what you’re doing.” you hiss, showing your teeth. She looks stunned by your words, a hint of horror in her eyes. She knows you meant those words. Every single one of it.

“Same goes for you.” the Bitch then whispers.

Both of you glare at each other for a moment, until the situation calms down.

“My Lady!” Akiko suddenly speaks. “You’re bleeding!”

A pause.

You keep staring into those brown eyes, before you speak.

“I know.” you say in a calm voice, before loosening your hold. “Get lost.” you growl at the Bitch.

She yanks herself out of your grip, then spits onto your feet.

“Whore.” she mumbles, before heading to the door leading into the other halls.

As soon as she opens the door, you turn around and see the now empty bucket.

“Oy!” you shout, before grabbing it and throwing it against the door as hard as you can. Right next to her head.

Loud clatter of wood against wood echoes through the whole hall, before it falls onto the stone floor again.

Silence.

She throws you a hostile glare, before she grabs the bucket and slips through the door.

“My Lady, please let me-“ Akiko touches your shoulder, wants to help you, but you interrupt her.

“No. Leave it.”

The opposite door creaks open, the one leading to the throne room. You turn around, seeing Uraume poking her head out. Glaring at them, you clench your jaw.

“Sorry, Akiko.” you say, before heading back to Sukuna’s chambers, leaving her standing there.

You’re pissed.

And that’s an understatement.

What fucking reasons?

You stumble into his chambers, as the adrenaline recedes, making you feel dizzy and tired in your head.

My head.

You touch your left temple, the source of the warm blood, that’s sticking to your face. Looking at your deep red painted fingers, you also notice that it also dripped onto your kimono. Bloodstains decorating the fabric on your chest. You huff, before you let yourself slump into his armchair.

“Fuck.” you mumble to yourself.

It hurts.

You wait. For him to find you like this.

Minutes.

But he doesn’t show up.

They heard us.

Five minutes pass. Then ten.

And you have enough.

With a throbbing temple, you get up and walk out, walk into your own chambers, that you didn’t visit in a while.

Bow, arrow and dagger are still where you left them, right next to your futon. With an exhausted sigh, you sit down in front of your old companions, your back facing the door. You breathe. Minutes pass. Again and Again.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

The throbbing annoys you, the blood still oozes out slow and steady.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

One day, you won’t be able to hold back anymore.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Suddenly, the sound of your door sliding open.

The sound of his lips puffing on his kiseru behind your back.

Your door slides

shut.

Silence.

He exhales, making you smell the scent of his tobacco. It almost stings against the wound on your face. You stay as you are, not turning around to him.

Sigh.

“You’re angry at me.” he mumbles, before taking another puff.

You don’t feel it’s necessary to answer.

Exhale.

He walks towards you, making you feel the smoke creep even harsher in your nose now.

“Heh!” he chuckles with the pipe in his mouth, seeing your weaponry laying in front of you. “Ready for war I see.”

In the corner of your eyes you see Sukuna crouch down next to you and with a clenching jaw, you still fight not to look at him.

He exhales a cloud of smoke against your wound, making it sting more harshly.

Asshole.

It hurts and Sukuna keeps staring, annoying the hell out of you.

And right now, you hate that you love him so much. Because all that anger you have in you wants to come out as tears. Because with him, you can let go, can be yourself.

No.

Stand proud!

“Ouch.” you say quietly in a serious tone, still looking forward. A smirk grows in the corner of your vision.

You turn around to look at him, glare at him, with wet eyes and rage in your heart, hoping he would know how serious this incident was to you. A blood drop drips from your chin onto your chest, Sukuna’s bottom pair of eyes follow its motions.

His smirk fades, before he raises his chin, looking down at you.

“The girl told me what happened.” he mumbles, before taking another puff.

“Which girl?” you watch his lips wrap around the mouthpiece of his pipe.

“Dinner.”

You huff at his nickname for her, shaking your head.

“She told me what you said to that brat.” he exhales in a dark voice, cocking his brow at you and you avert your gaze from his, seeking a spot on the wall before you. You pout in anger, tears tingling in your eyelids, but ready to argue if he’s pissed.

A pause in which he just watches you, before his thumb aims for your temple. You flinch, shying away from his touch. Seeing him sneer in the corner of your eyes, before suddenly his bottom right hand grabs your jaw harshly, holding you in place. Sukuna reaches out a second time, swipes over your temple and then presses on the wound.

“Agh!” you hiss, as a sudden rush of pain, stinging and burning, shoots through your skull, before its all gone.

Healed.

Letting go, he growls grumpily, before sitting down to your left.

“She will receive her punishment tomorrow.” Sukuna says calmly after a moment and you look back to him, seeing how he licks your blood off his thumb.

“Tomorrow.” you repeat. “That’s a late ass punishment if you ask me.”

His hand shoots back to your chin and yanks you towards him. You almost lose balance, have to grab his thigh to support yourself.

“Princess.” he whispers in a serious tone. “Punishment is punishment.”

Your eyes keep lingering on each others.

“Do you mean it?” you whisper.

“You will see.” he coos, before he lets go of you again. Smacking his lips, he offers you his kiseru.

Your heart jumps at his words and you accept the pipe, taking a puff.

But it’s not enough.

You want revenge. Want to be a bitch.

Just like he said. Ready for war.

#permission #permission chapters #true form sukuna #sukuna #jjk #jujutsu kaisen #sukuna smut #jjk smut #jujutsu kaisen smut #true form sukuna smut #sukuna x you #sukuna x reader #true form sukuna x you #true form sukuna x reader #fanfiction #slowburn #romance

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yan-lorkai · 1 year

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*･゜ﾟ Request: May I request Malleus kidnapping his darling and their reaction?

Warning: Kidnapping, usage of magic??? I do not take any responsibility for you reading this no matter which age group you are from!

The first thing you saw when your eyes opened was a dark, cold place. Your whole body ached as if you had run a marathon before going to sleep - which was not surprising since you were constantly running around doing Crowley's work, trying to survive in a strange world with a precarious roof over your head because you needed the money.

But what caught your attention was the sound of water running somewhere far away, despite thin walls and blocked windows muffling the sound almost completely. The silence was also absolute, or it would have been if you hadn't noticed the chains on your wrists and your heart wasn't pounding so violently against your ears. Your head was spinning with anxiety and several ideas, each worse than the last.

Your eyes tried to look around the darkness looking for an exit or something to remove these chains, but you weren't able to identify much. Very little light came through the windows and it wasn't enough to see everything, just your hands, the gleam of chain and a door. And in a panic you pulled the chains once, twice, three times against the bracket that held them, not caring how loud it made or whether it alerted your alleged kidnapper. No, nothing crossed your mind except that you needed to get away, that you needed to get out of this sweltering darkness and get back to the NRC.

Suddenly a wooden door opening was what made you stop, easily identifying the figure standing over the beams of light. His black horns, his piercing gaze and the crooked smile were all you needed to see to know that one of your best friends had managed to find you. Malleus was there to save you. And tears of relief streamed down your face.

Relief that was short-lived. As soon as he turned on the light you noticed the shirt soaked in a red liquid and the ferrous smell that floated in the air already told you exactly what it all meant. Little pieces assembled in your head as he approached. Malleus had always been a dear friend, but he, too, liked to have your attention on him, to be the object of your affections, and he pouted if you talked about other people too long in his presence.

You should have guessed, you should have thought that something like this would happen in Twisted Wonderland. He loved to tell you how one day he would take you away from NRC to show you the world and the most beautiful landscapes, to show you his Kingdom and how the two of you would be together forever. But what you didn't imagine was that all this happened without your consent, chained to a soft and warm bed, with blood on the marble floor of the room and with your so sweet and dear friend holding Crowley's dead head, your principal.

“Child of man, I have brought you a present.” He said. A cheerful glint in his eyes as he approached with slow, calculated steps, if he noticed the fear with which you shrank further away from him with each step then he decided not to say anything about it. And a part of you wanted to scream at him to let you go, to get away, but the other part was frozen in fear and didn't know how to react. “He did not care for you as you deserved, child of man. But I can and will take care of you the way you should be taken care of, with love and care because I love you.”

Malleus laid Crowley's severed head across your thighs, looking at you the way a cat looks at its owner after bringing them a dead mouse. As if waiting for your approval.

Your breath started to hitch as you noticed the blood dripping over the base of your thighs to your ankles and finally onto the sheets. Scrambled sentences left your mouth as you threw Crowley’s head away from you, feeling hot tears run down your eyes. It was surreal the way you couldn't stop staring, everything around you seemed surreal, but it wasn't until Malleus pulled you into his chest that you snapped back to reality.

Words died inside your throat before you had a chance to say them, the heat of his arms as suffocating as being in the eye of a fire.

“Shh, I understand.” he whispered. Almost tenderly like a lover he proceeded to massage your scalp, lulling you back into the sleep you shouldn't have woken from. The same song he hummed to you every time you sat under the old willow tree in Ramshackle's backyard now seemed to herald the end of your freedom and all you had. “It's all a little too overwhelming for you right now, isn't it, child of man? But its alright."

You denied, looking into those green eyes you loved so much. “You… You can't do this. Malleus, by the seven of you, you just killed... a person.”

Ignoring your shaky voice, the prince smiled as he wiped away each of your tears. “Ah, child of a man, but he would die sooner or later. What's the difference? And besides, he was always forcing you to do his work, to survive in a place that could collapse at any second, and I remember hearing you say you didn't like him. So I killed him and I'm gifting you his head."

He was delusional, completely insane. His gleaming green eyes held a manic promise behind them and it made you tremble with fear in Malleus's arms, trying to escape them, trying to breathe right. But he remained firm, pulling you closer and closer as if he needed to feel your skin on his and smell the soft scent that emanated from you.

At other times you would have been happy to cuddle with him, but now desperation swelled within you. If all he said was serious then your life would be over from this day on, for he was the fifth strongest mage in all of Twisted Wonderland and you knew that nothing you did, no matter how much you begged, no one would help you. For that would be like signing a death warrant.

“Mhm, don't look at me like that. I do this for your own good.” he said in a whisper. Gently he cupped your face between his hands and ran his thumbs over your cheeks, placing a warm kiss on you forehead. "I know that in the morning you will be more receptive to conversation, but for now sleep, child of man."

Immediately your limbs got tired and he snuggled you to his chest as if you were the most precious treasure of his life. And maybe approaching him was your only mistake, people fear dragons for a reason.

"Sleep well, my beloved child of man."

And a single tear fell from your eye as unconsciousness welcomed you again. And you could only hope that it was all a strange dream.

#twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #twst #disney twst #malleus draconia #yandere malleus #yandere malleus draconia #malleus x reader #malleus x yuu

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yungchaeng · 1 year

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Popstar (Twice series: Nayeon)

III: Missing you

genre: fluff - word count: 3186

Life has always had its way of reminding you that nothing came easy. Even in your relationship with Nayeon, although loving her was effortless…the problem had always been keeping her.

The napkin with her phone number had been sitting on your kitchen counter for days, reminding you of your dilemma every morning since she walked into your café.

Seeing her again was surreal. For years, it was easy to distance yourself from the idea of her. The face you saw on billboards, TV, and all over social media was just Nayeon ‘the popstar’. The more you saw Nayeon as the star she now was, the harder you tried to forget who she once was to you.

When you saw her adorable smile you tried not to think of all the nights you both spent laughing at the dumbest things together. When you heard her songs, you worked hard to push the memories away of her singing you all the songs she wrote you.

And somehow, with time, all that pushing away started to work.

Slowly, but surely, even the sleepless nights you spent missing her became less frequent. The tears you cried over her had dried up, and that heartache you felt when you woke and her side of the bed was empty became…familiar.

Yes, you loved her. You never stopped loving her. However, seeing that she truly achieved every single one of the goals she had once set out for herself…you knew it all had to have been for the best. So you convinced yourself that that made it okay. The hurt had to have been worth it in the long run, right?

Missing Nayeon was hard, but it was slowly becoming your new normal. You somehow managed to keep it all together…until she walked into your café. You laid your eyes on her and it felt like time stood still at that moment.

Nayeon told you that she loved you and that since you loved her the same, that was all that mattered. According to her, things would be different if she got just one more chance. The love of your life stood across from you that day and said all the things you had disregarded as wishful thinking for years. And since then, you had been hopeful that she was right…and you scolded yourself for that.

It could be easy going on as you were: pretending you didn’t miss Nayeon as much as you did. Though you couldn’t lie to yourself anymore. Deep down you know your decision was made the second you laid eyes on her again. The exact moment she smiled at you and asked you for a coffee in that voice that was just as sweet as the first time you met, you knew.

You did not want to spend a second apart anymore.

Although you had your doubts, it all seemed to fade away the second you heard Nayeon’s laugh again when you finally called her up.

“I choose you.” Nayeon told you. “It will always be you from now on. I promise.”

And you chose Nayeon too – all of her.

Giving it another try was going to be easier said than done, but for Nayeon you were willing to put your heart at risk to see if it was true.

The day after was nerve-wracking for you. Nayeon would come over for dinner, and your mind was plagued with all kinds of worries. What to wear? What to cook? Would her favourite food still be a good option, or should you make something completely different? Would it be awkward? What would you even talk about?

What if either of you didn’t love the person the other had become anymore?

It turned out that worrying about what to talk about was not worth it. Nayeon came over and there were years of catching up to do, so there was barely any time for awkward silence either. You both laughed and reminisced together, and you watched her with a sheepish smile on your face as she told you about her adventures of being a full-blown celebrity.

A deep breath of relief escaped you. Your heavy heart seemed to feel light again after so long. You finally had Nayeon back, and you adored her more now than you ever did before.

Nayeon sat on your couch, legs crossed and arms flailing as she told you about one of the many times she almost missed her flight on tour. You chuckled along with her story and your heart fluttered every time she smiled. You could listen to her talk for hours, forever even.

The end of the evening seemed to be nowhere in sight, but Nayeon’s ringing phone interrupted your conversation. She picked it up with a frown, followed by a slew of apologies. “I’m sorry.” she sighed. “I’ll be right down.”

“Is everything okay?” you asked.

“Security.” Nayeon stood up with a pout on her lip and shrugged lightly. “It’s getting dark. So they figured it’s time I get home.”

“Oh…”

While the two of you sat there, isolated from the world and wrapped up in each other’s presence, the day had gone and night had fallen. Suddenly, it was dark outside and hours had passed – hours that felt like minutes to you, yet still didn’t feel like enough.

This moment with her couldn’t last forever, but you didn’t want it to end here either.

“…you could..stay here?” your voice was soft when you suggested it. Nayeon grinned, but her silence was too loud for you. So you panicked. “uhm, you know, I still have some dessert I could offer you?”

“Oh.” Nayeon cocked her head and smirked playfully. “That’s not what I came here for, but I wouldn’t oppose—”

“Nayeon!” you gasped. “not that kind, you perv…I was thinking more like ice cream.”

She chuckled as she nodded. “Oh, that’s good too.”

Nayeon called the security off and you both had a few more hours of talking before you went to bed. As she shuffled into your bed next to you for the first time in what felt like forever, you couldn’t help but wonder if things were moving a bit too fast.

The rules on dating an ex were muddy, but the one thing you did know for sure was that you missed having Nayeon so close to you... and by the way she was subtly shifting closer to you, so did she.

Maybe it didn’t matter that it felt fast? Her presence so near felt perfect to you.

Yes, the first few minutes in bed were…awkward. The both of you silently stared at the ceiling until you heard Nayeon’s adorable giggle. When she finally wrapped her arms around you, she told you she had waited too long to be with you to not be as close as possible.

Nayeon always knew exactly what she wanted, and of course you gave in to her. Some things never change.

Her content sigh and tight embrace were already enough to melt you, and you held her closer, tracing figures on the small of her back. You stayed awake long after she planted her soft lips on your cheek and whispered that she loved you.

As her breathing deepened and you laid there, as still as you could in order not to wake her, you knew for sure: you were whole again.

When you woke the next morning and the spot next you was empty, for a second you figured it all must have been one of your silly dreams. You groggily made your way to the kitchen where you were met with a sight you had missed: Nayeon swaying her hips along to softly playing music, as she tried to figure out how to work your coffee machine.

Your lips curled into a smile. She was dawned in your oversized sweater, bare faced with her specs balanced on her nose along with her hair tied messily into a quick bun…it all felt like nothing had changed. Nayeon seemed so comfortable as if she was never gone, and for maybe the 100th time since yesterday you thanked the stars that you got her back: not just Nayeon the popstar, but the Nayeon that stole your heart the moment you first saw her.

“Aren’t you going to be late?” your voice was soft, tentative, as you tried not to startle her.

“I am.” She turned to look at you, eyes sparkling and a slight smile on her face as she handed you your coffee. “but I don’t want to go yet.”

Her hand found yours and your fingers intertwined. You felt butterflies in your stomach, simply at her touch, but you chuckled nervously as you tried to pretend that your heartbeat didn’t just pick up instantly.

“Although I’d like you to stay too…you have a dance practice in like an hour. I don’t want to be the reason you’re late.”

A sour expression graced your face when you took a sip of the beverage she made you. Nayeon was never the best at making a good coffee, and yes, some things never change. Although, as you always used to do, you took another sip and fought hard to hide your displeasure.

Nayeon laughed and slightly shook her head. “One day I’ll get it right.”

“I sure do hope so…” you chuckled along.

“Hmm, I was hoping maybe…” Nayeon trailed off and played with your fingers. It used to be a tell that she was a bit nervous, but the mischievous smirk on her lips suggested otherwise. “…maybe you could come with me today? To work?”

There was a beat of silence.

“I’m sorry, I don’t want to pressure—”

“It’s not that.” You interrupted. “I would love to, you know that…it’s just…maybe we shouldn’t rush into this?”

“Baby…” Nayeon sighed and held on tighter to your hand with a faint smile dawned on her face. “I could ask you your favourite colour, or how you like your eggs in the morning…but we know all of this about each other already. I’ve been waiting years for this, to share myself with you – all of me.”

“Nayeon…are you sure about this?”

“Yes. I’ve never been more sure about anything.” She smiled brightly, showing off her adorable teeth. “Plus, I think the girls wouldn’t forgive me if I didn’t bring you along to see them. They’ve missed you too.”

You hummed, grinning. “Bringing the members into this. Smart move.”

“Is it working?” she asked through a smirk.

“Yeah, it kind of is.” An excited squeal and repeated kisses on your cheek followed and you made yourself a mental note to give Nayeon her way more often.

You both got ready and Nayeon took the opportunity to raid your closet for a sweater she wanted to ‘borrow’, and you let her. You used to try and protest, as you knew you usually never got them back, but you have missed the image of her in your clothes for too long and weren’t going to stand in the way of it now.

“Are we really doing this?” Nayeon asked you with a smile as you left your apartment, and you nodded. “then…will you be my girlfriend again?” she softly asked you.

“Gladly.” You were nervous as hell for everything that was to come, but as long as you had Nayeon by your side it should be okay, right?

A squeal of excitement left her and you chuckled, understanding exactly how she felt. Nayeon pulled you in by the shirt with a grin on her face and she stroked the side of your cheek softly. Her smile was as gracious as ever and her voice lowered to a whisper as she said, “I’ve been waiting for this for a long time…”

Your heartbeat instantly picked up as you instinctively leaned in closer to her.

“Can I kiss you?” she asked cautiously, and not wasting a second more, you close the gap between your lips.

Her soft lips moved along with yours and your head started to spin almost instantly. You missed this. You missed her so much. The feeling of her lips on yours, her arms over your shoulders, and her body pressed up against you…all of it. Your kiss was long, and both of you savoured every second of it.

With a squeeze to her hip, a bite down her lip, and a sigh of pleasure, you tried to express all the things that words could never do justice. In an ideal world, the kiss would never end, but when you heard her sharp inhale and soft moan, you pulled away. Nayeon playfully grinned, but you were still dazed, trying your hardest not to lean back in again.

You were conflicted between not wanting to move everything along too fast, and pulling her back into the house to give her that ‘dessert’ she joked about the previous day.

“hmm,” Nayeon hummed, eyes still closed. “you really missed me, huh?”

“Shut up.” You laughed. “we’re gonna be late.”

Nayeon led you out of the apartment building by your intertwined hands, but the closer you got to getting outside, the more your nerves seemed to build up. This was one of the many little moments that would break your heart in the past. Around this time, she’d kiss you on the cheek, whisper a small “I love you.” and let go of your hand. You can still hear all of her excuses replay in your head.

“you never know who might see us…”

“it’s best to be cautious.”

“you know I love you, right?”

Maybe it was self-preservation, an act in order to not let her break your heart like that again, but you let go of her hand instead and shoved yours firmly in your pockets with a trembling breath.

Nayeon frowned. “Is something wrong?”

“Ah, no…” you spoke softly, trying to avert her gaze on you. “it’s just…it’s best to be cautious.”

Your girlfriend paused, and you wished you could read her mind right then. She softly sighed, took your hands out of your pocket, and held them to her chest.

“I’m so sorry.” Her lip quivered as she spoke, and you kept looking at the ground so she couldn’t see how vulnerable you felt. “I can’t apologise enough for the way I used to treat you.”

“We don’t have to get into it. It’s okay—”

“No, it’s really not.” With a finger hooked under your chin, she made you look at her. “I can’t take back the things I said, or did, but I can try my hardest to make them right…and I will.” Nayeon reached over and took your hand into hers again.

“Are you sure—”

“ssh,” the other girl playfully interjected. “No time to chat. We’re going to be late, remember?” You smiled.

Being out and about with her hand in yours felt so foreign. Especially since you felt like everybody’s eyes were on the both of you – which, to be fair, they probably were because of Nayeon’s celebrity status.

However, under everyone’s gaze you couldn’t help but feel a bit…insecure.

Some people tried not to linger. They would look for a second and then look away as soon as you made eye contact. Others were not so polite. They would stare, gawk even. Their mouths were agape at the sight of your girlfriend and their face turned into near scowls as soon as they registered your presence next to her…

You felt exposed. Too vulnerable.

Nayeon caught on quick, as she would give your hand a reassuring squeeze every time she noticed a stare. “Are you okay?” she’d ask you as she gave everyone that looked at you an intense glare.

You lied and said you were fine, but of course, she knew you long enough to know that wasn’t the case. As she pulled you closer to her, Nayeon muttered an apology along with the fact that you’d get used to the stares eventually.

It seemed that since your break-up, Nayeon and Twice had become even more famous somehow. Whereas there used to be at least some places where Nayeon wouldn’t be recognised before, she now got multiple stares in every street you passed. It was a lot…

You were about to ask her how she dealt with the constant attention when two young girls approached. They giggled amongst themselves and Nayeon smiled at them – which made them giggle harder. Their hands were shaky when they introduced themselves as fans of hers and they looked at each other with wide eyes when Nayeon gave either of them a hug.

It was all very endearing. The fact that not only you, but the world, loved your girlfriend very dearly made you smile. You always loved her fan interactions and how she’d glow afterward. It made your heart swell and even in the time you were apart, you were comforted by the idea that Nayeon wouldn’t have to go a day without knowing how loved she was.

As one of them spoke to Nayeon and fawned over Twice’s latest performances, you noticed the other one giving you a questioning look. She cocked her head to the side and the frown on her face slowly made you more self-conscious.

It made you uncomfortable, but you also didn’t know what to say so you just awkwardly cleared your throat. “Uhm…would you like a picture together?” you managed to utter.

“Sure…” the girl that was basically staring you down muttered.

“Yes, omg, please?” The other girl gasped as she shakily gave you her phone. “Thank you so much.”

With trembling hands, you took a few photos of Nayeon with the girls. Your girlfriend thanked you dearly and out of the corner of your eye you saw the girls chatting amongst themselves. Then suddenly it was both of them shooting you piercing glares. You swallowed away the uneasy feeling you felt coming up as you handed them back the phone.

Nayeon said her goodbyes to them and after one more glance your way, they went on their way. Barely a second passed before your girlfriend captured your hand in hers again. Your mind was already running overtime thinking about all the things those girls could be thinking of you, but Nayeon’s reassuring smile relieved you from your worries for just a second.

“Was that okay?” she softly asked with a nudge to your shoulder. “Are you okay?”

You paused for a second. Maybe it was because being so close out in public was all so new to you, but it all felt so unknown. This felt uneasy. “…yeah, I’m good.”

Although you knew that was not the truth, you also knew that at the end of the day, you felt more so grateful than anything. Sure, everything was different… and sure, people would stare and glare…but who cared what others thought if you had Nayeon by your side, right?

Things would be different this time – you chose to believe that. However, right then, you realised a bit too late that in your excitement for having the love of your life back, you never really prepared for how “different” things could really get.

#twice #twice x reader #nayeon #nayeon x reader #twice x fem reader #nayeon x fem reader #thank you all so much for reading !!!#i cant wait to share the next (and last) chapter with you #enjoy your little fluffy interlude in this angst series ;)

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ramspatula · 3 months

Text

Zinnias | Lloyd Garmadon x reader | Part 5

Why are big statues coming to life?

It was oddly domestic how we worked. Lloyd would often have to leave at odd times for work and would come back very late or early in the evening. I felt like a housewife. I had no lessons due to it being the holiday but I had way too much work to do as it was. I hated being in this shit hole but it was better than back ‘home’, here I had friends and Lloyd. The tapping on my window made me frown. Lloyd was at work. I peeked out to see green and I grinned, pulling back the blinds and opening the window.

“Hey, homeboy, where have you been?” I asked and his eyes turned from wide, happy to see me to a dull, unamused, stern gaze.

“I regret coming here already.” He said and I smiled, climbing out the window.

“C’mon, don’t be like that. Where have you been?!” I asked and he shrugged.

“I’ve been busy- you’ve been busy.” Green added and I flushed.

“You know about that?” I asked and he nodded, he looked almost smug? From what I could tell from his eyes.

“Personal stalker, remember?” He asked and I nodded.

“Right, forgot about your obsession.” I said and he rolled his eyes. “What are you doing here then?” It’s mid-day? Just because my dorm building only has 3 rooms occupied at the moment doesn’t mean no one can see you. There’s probably some 13 year old losing her mind right now.” I said and he rolled his eyes.

“I’m on my way to the museum- I’ve just took care of our dragon and I was on strict orders to not come until all its shit was picked up so I’m sorry if I still smell. I feel like I can’t wash it off.” Green explained and I frowned.

“You have a dragon?” I asked and he nodded.

“Yeah- the one with four heads- they’re actually right above us if you want to see.” He casually added and I looked up to see the beast staring down at me. I jumped in shock as it bent down and the two centre heads gently nudged me and one blew really cold air on me. I even shivered and that caused the other one to breathe really hot air on me and now I felt over heated.

“That is really cool but I also feel like I’m in shellshock right now.” I said and he laughed.

“Okay, back off, she’ll pet you guys another time.” The dragon- moped? And got down to allow Lloyd on- Green- why do I think of Lloyd every time I see him?! I watched as the green, oddly familiar, green eyes winked at me and I smiled in response. “I’ll see you soon, bro.” He said and I laughed.

“You admit it- I’m a homeboy!” I yelled but he flew off. What a surreal experience.

“Was that a ninja?!” Fuck.

🪺. *. ⋆

The ninjas were smashing so many of these little figures that had come to life, Lloyd’s arrival almost made no difference.

“How many of these things are there?!” Lloyd asked only to be met with another one jumping at him. He thought with his father’s sudden disappearance he would get a moment of peace.

“Look who decided to turn up! We’ve been at this for an hour!” Jay screeched.

“Yeah, I hear you, I got caught up.” Lloyd excused and Cole scoffed.

“Ever since this guy got laid, he’s been a flake!” Cole said and Kai stopped one from hitting Cole in the back of the head.

“Yet he’s doing better than us in training!” Kai added and Cole shook his head.

“Who’s giving you that good of a fuck, it’s excelling your training?!” Cole asked and Lloyd smashed the figure in front of him, sending a mini earthquake through the room, the vibrations causing the figures on the floor to shatter.

“Okay, we get it, you still have your powers.” Kai said and Nya sent a burst of water into a figure about to attack Kai. “You too.” Some stone warrior figures poured marbles below him and Cole’s feet and that seemed to push Kai over the edge. “Alright, play times over!” He yelled before doing spinjitsu. The other 3 following as Lloyd, Nya and Sensei Wu watched, un-approving of their actions as the whole room was now destroyed. However, all the figures with the exception of one were destroyed. Only Wu seemed to notice this, sprinting out the chase the figure when the other ninjas clocked on a followed.

He managed to chase the little figure down and smash it with his foot. Wu didn’t have time to be proud of himself when he heard a familiar heartbeat. His super-hearing had made him memorise heartbeats in the same way his nephew and brother did. But this one he had spent hours upon hours listening to. When the door behind him creaked open, and the heart he knew so well almost rang in his ears, he turned. The first and only woman, Wu had ever loved stood before him.

“Misako?” The name slipping so effortlessly from his mouth.

“Wu.” She said, her voice still as smooth and charming as it had been some time ago.

“I- uh…” He fumbled over his words.

“It’s been a long time..” She added and he nodded.

Her braid still hadn’t changed although it was now covered in grey rather than the rich brown he was accustomed to. Thought of so passionately in his mind. The last time he had even seen her, she was only just starting to grey and had a newborn in her arms. A newborn with red eyes like his father. A newborn who was now an adult and his nephew. Because she had chosen his brother. Married him. And had a child with him. A child she abandoned. Wu was now over aware of who had a hand placed on his shoulder.

“So are you going to introduce us?” Jay asked, trying carefully not to break the moment. Lloyd showed no emotion to the woman and actually chose to eye her with suspicion but she hadn’t focussed on him yet. How would she know it’s him? Lloyd didn’t know her. And Lloyd certainly didn’t look how he was meant to after their 12 year separation. Wu cleared his throat and held the boy’s arm, Lloyd frowned at his Uncle but said no more. His Uncle had a content, almost excited smile on him. It was unusual for any of them to see.

“This is Misako, Lloyd’s mother.” And just like that, Lloyd’s world came tumbling down.

“My mother?!” Lloyd spoke, frozen in his shock.

“Lloyd?” She said, stepping forward. Her smile and tone felt so ironic for a woman who abandoned her 2 year old at a boarding school. “My little boy. You’re so much bigger than I thought you’d be-“ Lloyd smacked his Uncle’s hand away and took a step back. The anger seeped into his veins and did so quickly.

“Yeah, well, it’s been a long time.” He said, moving his arm away from his mother’s attempt at holding his hand.

“I didn’t want us to meet like this. I have a reason why I’ve been away-“ Misako tried to get to her son but he shook his head.

“And I don’t want to hear it.” Lloyd said before storming out. The others were shocked at such a reaction from Lloyd. Most his expected the boy to welcome his mother with open arms with how highly Wu always spoke of her. Garmadon had not spoke so highly, not after learning Lloyd had spent his life in a boarding school. Turns out the over-lord wasn’t pleased to learn his son that he was oblivious to his existence had spent a good 8 years in a boarding school being relentlessly bullied and then homeless at 10. It just wasn’t fair. Lloyd’s whole life wasn’t fair. And now his mother turns up in his life again after 12 years?

He couldn’t take it. He found his way into some room, with a giant pit. And a part of him felt like stepping into it. His mother wouldn’t care but Y/n would. His mind was spiralling. All these memories of mothers days that he had spent alone. How could his evil, tyrannical father care more about him than his mother? Garmadon didn’t know where he was or about him and within the first day of learning about his existence, he had sought his way out the underworld and had moved in with his enemies to kill snakes and reclaim his taken son. The first time they had met after he’d been rescued, his father had broken down. Holding him and spewing so many apologies for being absent when he hadn’t even known he existed. Lloyd held him back because for the first time, he had felt actual love. Like someone cared about him. Now he had grown up, he understood love. What it does to you. How deeply it can affect you when the person you love does something. Which is why Lloyd had always listened closely when Garmadon spoke of Misako. And it wasn’t nicely. It’s funny how a man corrupted by pure evil couldnt understand abandoning his son and only kept Lloyd with Wu because he was destined to be the Green ninja and because he believed that Lloyd would stay at the monastery until he grew up. Garmadon believed Lloyd would be safe. He was not.

“Hey, baby, you alright?” He basked in her voice.

“Is there any way you can make it to the museum right now?” Lloyd asked and he could hear the girl’s confusion on the other line.

“Museum- Lloyd the ninjas are there-! What are you-?!” He loves how concerned she is over him.

“I just met my mother.” He cut her off and she paused.

“I’ll be right there, it’s like a 10 minute walk. Are you okay?” He smiled. Not that she could see it.

“Just, come as quick as you can…” He said and heard her agree before she hung up and he sighed.

🪺. *. ⋆

This museum was a fucking maze. I didn’t even know what room he was in and there was barely anyone here. Lloyd wasn’t responding and I was considering giving up, until I turned around and saw a massive live statue of a stone warrior. It would’ve been cool if it hadn’t started raising its sword at me. I screamed. I’m not afraid to admit it. Before I sprinted. The thing didn’t hit me with the sword but it did make the ground shake which almost made me fall.

“What the fuck?!” I yelled as it was now chasing me?! What the hell?! What did I do?! “No,no,no-“ I screamed again as it almost got me.

“Peach!” Someone called but I didn’t see who. That was before 5 ninjas had jumped down before me. I saw no green in this rainbow and continued running. I heard someone talking, aggressively talking. The doors were closed though but I recognised that voice. I recognised it anywhere. I banged on the door, hearing and feeling as the footsteps got closer again.

“Open up! This massive asshole of a statue is chasing me!” I yelled and the doors swung open and I practically fell into Green’s arms- could’ve sworn that was Lloyd.

“Peach! Are you okay- I never should’ve of told you to come here--!” He looked up at someone cleaning their throat. I saw an older woman with grey hair and a braid, she didn’t look too old though.

“Lloyd-“ I said and his eyes widened.

“What?” Green asked. His hands cupping my cheeks.

“Where’s Lloyd-?!” I asked- almost begged, frightened tears threatened to spill from my eyes.

“He’s okay. You aren’t though.” Green told me and I shook my head.

“No-! I need to find him! It’s serious.” I said, my breathing becoming erratic.

“Lloyd will understand, you’ll see him soon but for now I gotta get you to safety and others because that thing is massive-!” He suddenly yelled at the appearance of the statue and I nodded.

“That was chasing me-!” I yelled and he took my hand, making me sprint with him to another room. The woman followed but I didn’t pay her much attention, I was holding onto Green like a lifeline as we ran away from this thing. We ended up in a large room and I noticed that everyone was here but I couldn’t breathe- I was suffocating. This felt like a panic attack. Green frantically turned to me and held me as I crumbled to the floor. I tried to breathe but I couldn’t.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” He repeated, smoothing my hair as I gripped onto him like a lifeline. I suddenly pushed him off and looked around.

“Lloyd-“ I said again but he turned me back around.

“He’s fine, he’s okay, he’s safe. You’re not. We’ve got to focus on you, Peach.” Green told me and he sounded so much like him, felt like him. His hand moved my cheek and I held the side of his neck to support myself.

“Lloyd.” I said, more stern as I looked into his eyes. Those were Lloyd’s eyes, I swore those were his. His eyes widened more and I swore I saw some red in his iris. “Lloyd.” I whispered more harshly, my eyes widening. He shook his head. The red ninja placed a hand on his shoulder but he shrug it off. All the ninja were here? How embarrassing.

“No…” he said, weakly. He seemed so vulnerable right now. I felt a hand on my shoulder and I flinched.

“Maybe now is not the time for this-“ Wu said. Fucking Wu. I grabbed the man before I could think.

“Peach-!” I heard Green say but I stared into the old man’s eyes.

“Where is he?! I know you know.” I watched as his stern eyes drift up to Green who reached out for me again. I looked back to him. “Don’t say-“ I turned around to look at Green again, he looked guilty. “-what the fuck?!” i looked back at Wu who nodded. I let go of the old man away and stalked away from them all.

“It’s best to let her cool off-“ I heard a woman’s voice as I walked away.

“Don’t touch me.” That was Lloyd’s voice. He was Lloyd. Green was Lloyd. Lloyd was the Green ninja. With that thought in mind I felt like collapsing. The world around me slowed and I knew what came next.

But it didn’t matter because soon arms were around me, shielding me as a green force field encased us, the green turned mixed of peaches and purples before I watched as the statues sword glitched and burst after the colours turned back to green. It now had no weapon. Green held onto me- Lloyd held onto me -tighter as the big statue tried to attack the green bubble with his hand. It didn’t break but I could feel as it exhausted Lloyd. His eyes were closed tightly, in focus. I held him back and his eyes seemed to close even tighter before suddenly the statue was running away, chasing something else. Lloyd let the bubble burst and took a moment to catch his breath again. I just sunk to the floor. Staring blankly at where it had left. Lloyd quickly looked from me to the doorway before holding my head in his hands, making me look at him.

“I know you’re confused and that’s okay, I’ll be back soon, stay here, okay?” Was all he said before running off. I didn’t move, I don’t think I could.

Fuck that I could.

I moved to the doorway and watched as they tried to lead him to the big gaping hole in the middle of the floor of one room but it suddenly turned around a charged at some civilian who came running this way. I heard the ninjas protests and sounds of disappointment at their little trap not working. I watched as it now charged at me again. The blast of green energy on its back didn’t even make it falter as it stared me down and stopped, raising its hand. Ready to pummel me into the earth. I only glared up as I heard the yells, watching as the first came back down.

When the world slowed, everything felt so dramatic. I felt so untroubled. Like nothing really mattered. I felt like I could see the ins and outs of the earth and more, something no one else could. But now I just felt hurt, lied to. Somehow, I had really thought I’d bet on a winner only to realise I’m still by the loser’s side. Losing every time with them. At least I feel like I win when I lose. So I let myself feel the loser’s guilt as the fist came down on me. If only I could escape my problems so easy. It would’ve been easy to let that thing kill me. I started, tears in my eyes as the thing was now lodged into the floor. It glitched and got stuck. It would stay like that unless dug out. Only side of its face and some parts of the body could be seen. I climbed over the piece of forearm sticking out and saw the rest of the ninja. I didn’t let my tears fall but I suddenly had a feeling I knew who these ninjas were and specifically who the red one was. I shook my head at him.

“Peach! Peaches!” I heard his voice but I ignored him as I walked away. I was too tired and I had been deceived. I really believe they were separate people even with their uncanny similarities. “Y/n! Please!” I paused at that. The vase on display next to me, glitched. I let him run in front of me. “Thank you… I can tell you everything-“ I shook my head.

“I don’t want to know.”

“Just- come back to the monastery please. I can explain everything- show you!” Lloyd said and I shook my head.

“No.” I said and he sighed.

“Then I’ll come to yours just please don’t walk away.” He said and I let the tears flow, I quickly tired to wipe them. His hand reached up and grabbed my face again, I let him. Trying not to cry more as his thumbs gently wiped away a few tear tracks.

“Green, we need to go-!” Someone yelled but he growled- actually growled.

“No!” He said immediately. “Please, Y/n.” He whispered and I nodded.

“I’ll go with you.” I said and he rested his forehead on mine.

“Thank you, thank you!” He said quickly, desperately, and I let him lead me out the museum. I stayed silent, letting him decide everything for me. I felt numb. Like I had been overwhelmed to the point of exhaustion. And in a way, I had. He quickly pulled a cloth from the gift shop and wrapped it around the lower half of my face, covering my mouth and nose, before pulling my hood up. “To keep your identity secret.” He explained but I just looked up, blankly.

The dragon bowed and lowered its body to me. It gestured with one of its heads towards its back and I realised it wanted me to get on. I looked to Lloyd who lifted me effortlessly onto the shoulder of the dragon’s front leg and I had to grab onto onto the straps of the saddle to climb onto the saddle itself. If it wasn’t for my static state I might of been freaking out about the fact I was on a dragon, actually I was starting to feel a little freaked, that was until I felt Lloyd behind me. After adjusting himself accordingly, he held me closer to his body and grabbed onto the reigns. This thing was about to take off. I grabbed onto Lloyd’s arm around me, tightly. My eyes widened as it spread its wings and took off, it was a large and terrifying beast and it took its time ascending into the air. I pressed myself back into Lloyd who didn’t say anything, just rested his head against my shoulder. I hadn’t looked up from the saddle.

“It’s really pretty up here.” I heard Lloyd said but I ignored him. “I’ve always liked flying more than driving… feels more peaceful. Especially when it’s not really windy.” He said and I relaxed a little, looking up. I couldn’t tell if that was a bad or good thing. It was pretty but we were so high up. I was more interested in the dragon than the scenery. I placed a hand on the exposed white scale and felt as a rumble went through its body. I quickly retracted my hand. “They’re purring, they like you.” Lloyd added and I just nodded. The dragon head with brown outlines let out a long croon and I froze. “They want you to continue.”

“I’ve always loved dragons…” I said and scratched the scales area. The dragon shook almost shifting us too far off, I did not scream. Lloyd didn’t laugh at the fact I screamed. Because I didn’t scream.

“I’ve got you… if I knew you liked dragons, I would’ve got you to meet them sooner.” He said and it came back, the deceit. I could almost get it but it still hurt. I thought I had two new people and it almost feels like I lost a friend. I slumped again, removing my hand.

“You lied…” I said and he fumbled to try and get his words together.

“I didn’t want to… but I had to! I can’t go around saying I’m the green ninja.” He said and I nodded.

“I get that, I do but- but why would you get so close to me?! I thought I had a friend, Lloyd.” I said, hurt evident in my voice and I felt as he held on a little tighter.

“I wasn’t meant to! But I can’t leave you alone, you’re all I think about- I wasn’t meant to get too involved but then the thought of seeing you and not talking to you got to me- and then I found out about your powers-!” He reminded me and I shook my head.

“You were going to try and teach me as another person?!” I yelled and he cringed.

“Yes…” he admitted and I scoffed.

“And I felt guilty about the fact I didn’t tell you about my powers.” I said and he sighed, digging his face into my shoulder.

“I would’ve told you. I wouldn’t have let you find out like this if things were different.” Lloyd said and I paused.

“You called me…” I started and he pressed his head further into the corner of my neck. “You sounded so… so broken. I’d never been so scared, Lloyd.” I said and he nodded.

“I saw my mother and everyone acted like it was this happy thing. Like the woman hadn’t abandoned me and never came back to visit.” He said and I held onto his hand around my waist. We were started to descend now. Lloyd looked up to be able to our surroundings as we went down. “Wu looked at her like she was amazing. Some sort of spectacle. In reality, even my father used to say she was even more of a monster than him for abandoning a baby and not telling the father anything about him.” Lloyd revealed and my eyes widened. The landing was rougher than I thought and he was jumping off as soon as and encouraged me to slide down before he caught me and placed me firmly on the floor. I held onto for a moment as the sensation in my legs came back. We began walking after a moment, taking his hand in mine as he ripped off his mask and I pulled my hood off and makeshift mask too. “She tried talking to me. To explain everything- I didn’t want to know. I don’t want to know.” He added and I just followed him as he led me to a room that was covered in poster and green ornaments and nerdy things. Like Star Wars Lego sets and funko pops. He closed his door after I stepped in and opened his wardrobe. This was his room, I realised. I looked to his bedside to see a picture of a younger version of Lloyd in a smaller green Gi sat next to his uncle with the others in their Gi surrounding the two. They were all unmasked and poor Lloyd has a bowl cut.

“Your barber did you dirty.” I said and he looked at the frame I was looking at and let out a surprised laugh.

“The boys in my old dorm put a bowl over my hair, it was like a mullet- really long, anyway, one day they put a bow around my head when I was asleep and cut my hair. The teachers tidied it up the best they could but because it was boarding school for bad boys, they were rewarded and I just began hating my hair. Luckily, after the tea, my hair had changed drastically and Kai cleaned it up after.” Lloyd told me and I looked back at him, he was now just in his boxers. Pair of trousers in his hands ready to put on.

“I love your hair.” I said and he looked up before smiling, putting on his trousers as he spoke to me.

“With how much you tug it, I was thinking you were trying to rip it out-“

“Okay, Okay! I get it.” I said and pushed him away as he got seriously close. I laughed as he grabbed me and started kissing all over my face and neck. “Okay! I’m sorry, but I do love you hair. It’s softer than mine.”

“It’s not!” He immediately argued but backed off to go put his shirt on. He kicked the Gi towards a pile of dirty laundry, before turning and picking me up, easily. My legs wrapped around him and I let out a surprised laugh. “Being the green ninja means I get a few extra perks, like Cole’s super strength, meaning you don’t weigh anything to me.” He said and my eyes widened.

“That’s how you left my thighs bruised black.” Lloyd cringed at the reminder.

“I’ve not done that since, have I?” He asked and shook my head, kissing him.

“No, I don’t mind, however you do bite.” I said and tilted my neck to expose the bite a little.

“I don’t know where that came from. I think I tried to give you a hickey?” He questioned himself and I laughed.

“With teeth?!” I questioned and he threw me on his bed. He had a double bed. I starfished immediately. “Oh we’re staying round yours from now on.” I said and heard him laugh.

“We’d get zero privacy.” He said and I sighed in relief.

“I don’t care. This bed has made me forget how upset I am right now… that and I want to hear about your mommy issues.” I said and felt the bed dip, he grabbed my ankle and dragged me down the bed. I laughed as I settled in the new position. Putting my legs in his lap. He rested on arm on them, massaging my leg with his thumb.

“Peach… I don’t want to make this about me.” Lloyd said and I frowned.

“Maybe not, but I want to. So speak green boy. Tell me about your life before I leave.” I said and he grinned, amused.

“I realise how much you’re taking in right now, so I’ll give you the summary and we’ll delve into the specifics later.” He said and I nodded. “When I was 10, I left my boarding school and started some trouble here and there, the others had just started their training and were overly cocky and fed up of being called out to deal with ‘Garmadon’ and it being me.” He started and I frowned.

“You started trouble?” I asked, perplexed and he nodded.

“I was a wild kid, wanted to be just like my Dad. Except I was homeless and had no actual power to my name.” Lloyd said and my eyes widened.

“You were homeless?!” I asked and he nodded.

“For like a year before I was forcefully taken in by my Uncle.” He explained and my eyes saddened. “And that was only because my deviance had excelled to releasing the serpentine.” Lloyd told me and my jaw dropped.

“That was you?!” I questioned and he nodded.

“I thought it would somehow make my father proud enough to take me in. But he didn’t even know I was alive. And I was kicked out by each tribe until I met Pythor who I thought was my friend but he just wanted my serpentine tombs map and he deceived me and then tried to push me off the top of my boarding school but he had to run away before he could actually get me far enough to the edge. That’s when my uncle took me in and taught me to never trust a snake.” Lloyd told me and I smiled.

“Hey, I learnt that lesson too! Except it was on my own and with a bitch called Alabama.” I said and he chuckled. “I still don’t forgive that snake.” I said and he rubbed my leg.

“I don’t forgive Pythor either. I was just a kid. A bad one but nonetheless.” He said and I absentmindedly started playing with the hem of his t-shirt. “Then I got kidnapped by him, and my uncle had to go to the underworld to find my Dad to get his help in getting me back. My Dad tried to rip my Uncle’s throat out for knowing about my existence, and the fact I was alone and how he left me there. My Dad still says that my uncle either should’ve brought me to the underworld when my mother left me or took him in himself. Anyway, he saved me and I met him for the first time. It was weirdly emotional, for him at least, I felt nothing which still surprises me. It just wasn’t what I expected.” He told me and I nodded.

“It sounds like your father loves you a lot. Dare I say unconditionally?” I added and he smiled.

“He loves power more.” Lloyd added and my smile fell. “It’s okay, I know what to expect from my father. He came for me, that’s all that matters. A little while later, we go to find a fangblade and it’s in a volcano. Short story short, it starts erupting and Kai achieves his true potential saving me because somehow he realised that it was to protect me and therefore the green ninja. And I know you don’t know the prophecy of the green ninja, but it is the one destined to defeat darkness and bring back light. That darkness being my father. I have to fight and defeat my father in what’s called ‘the final battle’.” My eyes widened, and I sat up.

“You have to fight him?!” I almost yelled and he nodded, soothing me by patting my leg.

“That didn’t really settle well with my father and he left, the whole thing has sent him into a spiral really. Pythor managed to resurrect the great devourer, the one thing my Dad hates more than himself, and Wu. The ninjas gave up their golden weapons to my Dad so he could kill the devourer. He then took off with them after, creating that mega weapon which the ninjas somehow destroyed, that day is a blur really. Before that however, he used it resurrect the grundle. Which led to aging me to adulthood. The tea is supposed to somehow bring someone to the age that fate needs them to be. The grundle wasn’t needed and me, I’m supposed to be fate’s soldier. And children aren’t very successful in fights.” Lloyd said and I just looked up at him for a moment before jumping up and hugging him. He returned the hug, shifting me to actually be sat in his lap.

“I’m sorry.” I apologised and he shook his head.

“Don’t be. You have nothing to be sorry for.” Lloyd told me and I shook my head.

“Maybe not, but everyone else does. You’ve had the shittiest life I’ve ever heard of, and you haven’t even heard what Pearl’s been through.” I joked and he chuckled, kissing my cheek before holding me again. I held the back of his head and played with his hair and he rested the side of his head on mine.

“It’s not so bad. I have you now.” He said and that made me break, sobbing into his arms.

“That’s so sad.” I said and he laughed.

“Not to me.” Lloyd argued and I shook my head. “Hey, don’t cry over me, that’s a waste. Cry over your own shitty backstory not mine.” He told me and I giggled through my sobs.

“It’s not that shitty though! I was just neglected with a heavy handed sprinkle of bullying, you were actually homeless!” I argued and he shook his head.

“No, yours is so much worse. My mother actually tried speaking to me.” Lloyd said and I smiled.

“You sure that’s better than mine not?” I asked and he contemplated it for a moment.

“Yeah, I win. My life is worse than yours.” He said and chucked me onto the bed, off his lap. I laughed as he stood up.

“Okay, I can accept that loss.” I said and heard him laugh before suddenly he was next to me, laying down and star fishing, half over my body. I groaned at the sudden weight. “You’re so big, you need a whole bigass bed just to fit-.” I said and I saw the smirk come across his face and before I could take it back-

“That’s what you said-“

“Shut up- shut up-“ I covered his mouth and he laughed against my hand before licking it. I brought my hand back.

“Ew, Lloyd!” I said and his eyes snapped open.

“Wait licking your hand is gross but now-“

“Shut up! Someone could hear you-“ I said and he shrugged.

“My family has super hearing, my uncle definitely heard us fucking before he knocked on the door. He probably waited until we were out the shower to knock-“

“Oh my god! Are you serious?!” I asked and he nodded but shrugged a moment later.

“My uncle and Dad are really old. They were around during the times people used to fuck publicly like it was nothing.” Lloyd said and my jaw dropped. He started laughing and I shoved him.

“Not funny!” I scolded but he didn’t care.

“Okay! Okay! I’m sorry. But they are really old. I think my Dad is around 1300 years old.” Lloyd said and I froze.

“How old?!” I asked again and he nodded.

“Well my grandfather is the first spinjitsu master so it makes sense.” I stared at him momentarily.

“I think I’m going to be sick.” I said and he laughed.

🪺. *. ⋆

Peach fell asleep as soon as they spent 5 minutes in silence. Lloyd had listened as her heartbeat slowed and her breathing evened out. They had thrown his covers over them both and spent some time just resting in each other’s arms. It was getting late and he hadn’t spoke to his team since the museum. And he was hungry. He had the appetite of a dragon and he can’t remember the last time he ever felt full. So carefully, he got out the bed. Freezing as Y/n turned whined and then turned over, displeased. He breathed a sigh of relief when she settled back and quietly left his room. His footsteps didn’t make any sound anyway.

The halls of the monastery were simple, but elegant. The monks had spent the past millennia carving prophecies and teachings into the walls, making a beautiful architecture as the heads went on. When Lloyd made it to the kitchen, everyone was there. They all paused to look at him and he stopped for a moment before walking over to a cabinet. He hadn’t noticed his mother sat at the table, initially.

“Are you going to explain to us who that girl is or?” Cole asked, breaking the silence and Lloyd looked up, debating whether to say anything.

“That’s my girlfriend, her name is Peach.” He said and the table shot up in uproar.

“Girlfriend?! When?!” Kai immediately whined.

“How long have you even been seeing her?!” Nya asked, outraged she wasn’t the first to know.

“Before me??” Cole’s grating voice.

“It wasn’t just a hook up?!” Jay asked, perplexed.

“That’s where you’ve been?!” Cole’s voice again.

“I have no records of someone named Peach in the residents of ninjago records.” Zane was the last straw.

“Yes! I have a girlfriend! And her actual name isn’t Peach but she’s got powers too, they’re not elemental and really unpredictable. We call it glitching. As you’ve seen. We think they’re triggered by certain emotional triggers. Her name is apparently one of them.” Lloyd told them and it did not satisfy them at all.

“She lodged that thing in the ground! It’s still there!” Jay yelled and Lloyd nodded.

“We haven’t spoke about that yet so don’t bring it up please.” Lloyd said and they all froze. He was different.

“Congratulations, nephew.” Wu said and Lloyd looked up at him. “I’m sure you 5 have probably connected that this girl is the reason for Lloyd’s sudden excelling in training and skills. Love sharpens the mind, and makes the body more defensive.” Wu said and Lloyd’s eyes widened.

“Woah- not there yet!” He said and moved to take his snacks away from his eager Uncle.

“We may live for long, but we fall in love quick. Your mother would be able to attend to this.” Wu said and Lloyd’s eyes sharpened.

“So would Dad, y’know, until he found out he had a son he didn’t know about.” Lloyd said Misako’s face fell.

“Your father spoke of me?” She asked and Lloyd smiled.

“Oh yeah lots!” He said and she smiled back at him. “Lots of unforgiving, hateful things.” Her face fell again. “I haven’t heard him mention you with a positive tone since he asked me where my mother was!” Lloyd said and the atmosphere soured, dangerously.

“Lloyd.” Wu warned.

“Don’t pretend to care about me.” Lloyd said instead of acknowledging his Uncle. “I don’t need you.” He added and walked out the kitchen.

“He’s really upset.” He heard Nya say.

“Can you blame him? Kid was abandoned multiple times.” Cole.

“Lloyd! Wait up!” He didn’t, but Kai caught up anyway. “Talk to me, dude.” He said but Lloyd only looked at him. “C’mon, we used to talk about everything! I even used to read you to sleep when you first moved in.” Kai reminded and Lloyd smiled a little. “I mean- you got a girlfriend?!” Kai said, with a smile. It made Lloyd willingly open his door wider to reveal the lump under his covers. Hair just visible.

“I did.” He said, Kai smiled looking in as Lloyd rested on the door frame.

“I can’t believe you scored Peach.” He said and Lloyd laughed before nodding.

“I was there when you came over the over day.” Lloyd revealed and Kai paled a little. “She said you are a massive dick.” Lloyd added and Kai laughed.

“Are or have one- because she has walked in on me and Pearl-“ Lloyd shoved him and he laughed.

“Are. And she’s right.” Lloyd added and Kai smiled. “Come in, I don’t want those weirdos listening in on us.” Lloyd said and a faint ‘hey’ from Jay was heard. Kai nodded, at Lloyd’s point being proved. It was soon followed by ‘blabber mouth’ from Cole.

With the door closed, Lloyd sat on the end of his bed as Kai took residence on the floor.

“She won’t mind?” Kai asked and Lloyd shook his head.

“The only thing she’ll mind at the moment is an alarm.” Lloyd said and Kai chuckled. “You awake, Peaches?” Lloyd asked and shook the lump who groaned and aggressively pulled the covers around herself more. “See?” Lloyd said and Kai’s eyes widened. “Do you mind if Kai stays in here?!” Lloyd practically yelled and the lump only whined, shoved him away from her and turned on her side to avoid him. “Not a care in the world.” Lloyd concluded and Kai nodded.

“Oh my god.” Kai said, perplexed and Lloyd smirked. They talked for a solid hour before the lump suddenly shot up and collapsed into Lloyd.

“I can’t sleep without cuddling something.” I said and I heard two voices chuckle. How did it take me this long to realise someone else was in the room? I looked up to see Kai and I turned to Lloyd.

“I told you, no privacy.” He said and I shrugged, settling down.

“Shame, I was going to give you the head of your life.” I shut my eyes, as my head rested comfortably on his thigh, facing away from Kai and towards his stomach.

“Get out.” I heard Lloyd say, most serious I’ve ever heard him. I laughed and so did Kai.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“Late. You slept most the afternoon away, Peaches.” Lloyd told me and I nodded slightly.

“Is Kai still here?” I asked and Lloyd nodded.

“I asked him to leave.” Lloyd said and I sighed.

“You didn’t ask, you ordered.” Kai argued.

“I told him to leave.” Lloyd said, instead and I laughed. Brothers, definitely.

“No head then.” I said and watched as Lloyd glared at Kai.

“Can you even move, Peach?” Kai asked and I didn’t move.

“I’m gonna pass out again.” I said instead and soon surrendered to sleep again.

“You just cock-blocked me so hard!” Lloyd said and Kai shrugged.

“You’ve cock-blocked me so many time, I don’t care.” It was true. The other ninjas used to send him to knock on Kai’s door whenever they knew Kai was having phone sex or make him tell Kai he was meant to babysit him when he was about to go hook up with someone and then his hookup would start talking about how cute his younger brother was.

“Not my fault.” Lloyd defended.

“You did it for a price.” Kai counter-argued and Lloyd shrugged.

🪺. *. ⋆

I woke up to no Lloyd. I was in his bed but no him. I sighed and sat up. How did I feel so tired? And hungry. What do I do until Lloyd comes back? Stay here? I stood up and looked around the room. He had his own bathroom. Good. I stretched in the middle of his room. The t-shirt he had put on me before I fell asleep rose slightly above my ass, exposing the skin and the fact I had nothing on my lower half. I shoved my trousers from yesterday on, keeping his shirt though. I pulled my bra on, clipping the back before listening with my ear against the door to try and hear if anyone was outside. I noticed my phone was on charge and his was next to it. Good, that meant he hadn’t left. I checked it. No messages. The usual. 8:07am. What the hell? I thought it was like 1pm with how I felt and how everything looked. Where the hell did Lloyd have to go at 8pm?

I slowly opened Lloyd’s door and peeked out it, taking one look down the long hallway. I took a deep breath. It’s a long hallway. How big is this place? I didn’t really get a good look at it. It was already bigger than any home I’d been in before. That’s when I made myself pause. This wasn’t a house. It was a monastery. That meant other people lived here, specifically monks. It was also owned and used by Lloyd’s uncle whose father is the first spinjitsu master. That meant that this wasn’t a normal monastery and in fact it was dedicated to ninjitsu and the first spinjitsu master’s techniques and teachings. It was also evident in the engravings and painting in the walls and supporting poles of the building. I didn’t even realise how far I’d walked when looking at the decor until I was staring into a kitchen. Empty. Thank god. I was really hungry. I can’t just take their food though. That would be extremely rude. Unless I just took Lloyd’s food. I bet they all share though. I’ll wait. I’m starving though. My throat is dry. Having some water isn’t rude, is it? Where the hell are the cups? It’s rude to snoop. Why is etiquette so hard? I’ll suffer. I’d rather suffer than be asked the condensing question of ‘what are you doing?’ Before I could leave, a voice made me jump.

“Not hungry?” An older woman’s voice. I frowned as I turned to see her. Her hair was in a singular grey braid. This is the woman I saw with Lloyd before. In the room with the hole. This is his mother. The woman who abandoned him.

“No.” I lied. My stomach stayed quiet. “Just trying to make my way around.” I said and she smiled.

“In Misako, Lloyd’s mother.” She introduced herself and I nodded.

“Peach, Lloyd’s girlfriend.” I said and Misako’s smile didn’t falter.

“Do you mind giving me your real name?” She asked and I nodded.

“I do mind.” I said, finally smiling back. “If I wanted you to know it, I would’ve said it.” I turned on my heel and went to walk out.

“I understand you’ve only heard about me through Lloyd and he is very upset.” Misako started and I rolled my eyes, turning around again.

“Rightfully so.” I said and she just nodded.

“But it was to try and find a way around the final battle- see, I knew from his birth that he would be the green ninja. So I left him at that school to do everything I could to try and stop it.” She said and I narrowed my eyes.

“I’m not following.” I said and Misako sighed.

“I had to try to put a stop to all this.” Misako said and I nodded.

“No, I got that- I just don’t get why you’re telling me and not Lloyd why you left him.” I said and she came a little closer.

“I tried, he didn’t want to hear it.” Misako said and I ‘oh’d’.

“And you want me to try and talk to him?” I asked and she smiled.

“You are in his prophecies, helping him in any way.” That freaked me out. “You have to start playing your part.” She told me and now I was annoyed. Lloyd did not inherit a thing from this woman.

“Where is he, by the way?” I asked and Misako seemed to ease up, thank god. Except she was still sort of close to me.

“You think about him a lot, don’t you?” This felt creepy now. She reached out a hand to put on my shoulder and my arm glitched causing her hand to go through my body. When she retracted her hand and nodded to herself, I remained neutral. “He’s with the others and Wu in the dojo, training.” Misako said and I nodded.

“Okay. Thank you.” I said and sped out. I had no clue what was up with that woman but I was starting to think it was best Lloyd wasn’t raised by her. This whole place was weird and all the authoritative figures were eery and thoroughly made my skin crawl. Back down the long hallway I went, trying to ignore the fact Lloyd’s mother was apparently following me. She split into another room not long after and I thanked any spiritual being listening. I heard voices at one point and stopped at the open door. Actually none of these dojo rooms had doors. There I saw the 5 ninjas surrounding Lloyd who blindfolded.

“Don’t rely on your eyes, use your ears.” Earth said and they all suddenly drew their weapons and charged at Lloyd. I watched in silence as they fought. Lloyd expertly dodging and even disarming them at some points. It wasn’t until the blue one flew past me, into the hallway and onto the floor was I noticed.

“Oh, hey… I’m Jay by the way.” He said and raised his hand from where he was laying on the floor, I shook it and smiled. He was ginger and had a mass of freckles populating his skin that wasn’t as pale as expected from a ginger.

“Peach.” I said and he smiled.

“Nice to meet you!” Jay stood and nodded before jumping back in the fight. I watched as Lloyd wore them down and worked on not exhausting himself before lighting up his green elemental fire which apparently signalled that he had won or the fight was over? I don’t know. However, I tried not to jump when he suddenly turned to me. Sythe in hand and smirked.

“Hey Peaches.” Lloyd said and I tried not to give too physical a reaction. And he have to sound so smug.

“Good morning.” I said and he chuckled.

“Feels like mid afternoon with how early we got up.” Kai said, from where he was sitting on the floor.

“I hate to tell you, Peach, but I don’t think training is over yet so I can’t see you until Cole tells me I can take this off.” Lloyd said and I laughed.

“Shame, I woke up hotter than I was yesterday.” I told him and he whipped around to the others.

“Bro I could not care less-! Just use your stamina on something other than us at the moment! Got I hate not having my powers!” ‘Cole’ vented and I nodded. Lloyd bent his head down and I untied the blind fold. He let his eyes adjust before looking me over.

“Wow, you did.” He said and I shoved him.

“Lloyd has game. Who would’ve thought? Not me.” Kai said and before anyone could retaliate. The ground shook violently and Kai shot up. “I’m sorry, I won’t diss your grandson again!” Kai pleaded and I looked to Lloyd confused.

“That’s not my Grandad, he likes thunder. That’s an actual earthquake.” Lloyd said and I frowned.

“What the-?” I went to question but was shut up by another shake, more violent. Lloyd held on to me, instinctively and I held grabbed onto his arm.

“Okay, that’s not good.” Jay said and Cole smacked him.

“Thanks for stating the obvious!” He said, annoyed. How did Jay annoy him so easily? Lloyd rolled his eyes and turned on a TV I hadn’t even noticed was in here. That seemed dangerous. He sat on the floor and I joined him, following his lead as most the ninja were already on the floor due to exhaustion. The two elders came in not long after and started watching the news too.

“So it’s just earthquakes?” I asked after Gale went on about how the aftershocks were getting stronger.

“It’s never just earthquakes, there’s always something wanting to destroy ninjago behind it. Last time there were earthquakes, it was because the great devourer had become ninjago city’s new train service except the only way on was through the mouth and into its stomach.” Jay said and I nodded, quickly looking up at Lloyd who shook his head.

“What could it be then?” I asked and Lloyd shrugged.

“Anything from my father to a big evil dog a this rate.” He said and I smiled.

“Would’ve be surprised if it was Garmadon, we haven’t seen him for a while.” Kai said.

“He would never.” Misako said and I couldn’t hold back the frown. “Lloyd‘s father is evil, but he would never do anything to put his son in harm’s way.” She added and I looked up to Lloyd who took a deep breath, restraining himself.

“Misako’s right. He only tried to thwart his training. This is something else.” Wu said and Lloyd stood up, offering me a hand which I took as he lifted me up.

“But what is it?” Jay asked and it went quiet before Ice whistled and a bird came out of nowhere. I jumped at the sudden animal appearing.

“My friend. Be my eyes and ears in the streets from above.” He let the bird fly out the window and I stared up at Lloyd, confusion evident.

“Zane is a nindroid. That falcon is a robot.” He explained and I nodded.

“That’s really bad, we’ve gotta get out there and start helping people.” Cole said and I looked to Lloyd.

“Right.” Lloyd said and turned to me, I nodded.

“I think I need a time out anyway.” I said and Lloyd kissed me before pulling up the mask on his gi. “Do you want to go home?” He asked and I nodded. “Come on.”

🪺. *. ⋆

My dorm building was gone. I just watched it crumble to the ground. There was dust everywhere. My eyes burned from the haze of it. The whole building just collapsed after a particular harsh quake. I was on the other side of the road. It came down like it was made out of sticks. What if someone was still in there? I felt sick. I was glad it was the holidays. My ears were ringing too. I only just recognised the crying and screaming from someone next to me. A girl, not even 13.

“My friend-! She was- I don’t know if she got out!” She said when I turned to her and I held her. “When did you speak to her?” I asked and she shook her head.

“Not even 10 minutes ago-!”

“What floor?” I asked and she took a deep breath.

“5th.” Shit.

“Maybe… come on. We’ll go look for her.” I told her and soldiered in to the haze of dust and fresh debris. “What’s her name?” I asked and the girl was still shaking.

“Kaliyah.” She said and I nodded, before yelling the name. I waited for a moment before nothing. I yelled again and the little girl followed.

“Wait- what’s your name?” I asked and she looked up at me.

“Fiona.” She said and I smiled.

“Peach, we’re gonna find your friend.” I said and Fiona smiled gratefully.

🪺. *. ⋆

The ninja had just successfully pulled a woman out essentially a growing sinkhole. All Cole could say was how annoying her dog was as he panted on the floor. In the haste. Everyone had forgotten he no longer had his super strength and was using his raw natural strength and muscle to haul the 5 of them and a woman to safety. Safe to say, his arms felt like they were just ripped off him. The woman had run off and now they were just stood, looking around at the damage as the quakes continued.

“These things keep coming with no warning!” Kai said, trying to remain on two stable feet.

“That’s it! A warning!” Misako said, pulling out a scroll from her satchel. “The scrolls said the earthquakes would be a warning. A warning for something far worse to come.” She finished and Jay immediately spoke up.

“Far worse? What could be far worse?” He asked.

“Misako? The indestructible stone warrior we fought yesterday, where did you find him?” Cole asked and Lloyd’s eyes widened.

“The one Peach put in the ground?!” He asked and Misako responded.

“He was buried under the city.” She told him.

“You don’t think there’s more do you?” Jay asked, worriedly.

“Be on guard ninja. We must be ready for whatever comes our way.” Wu said.

“Uh- Lloyd…” Kai said, and Lloyd turned to see what he was staring at. He followed Kai’s gaze to the TV screen in a shop broadcasting the news, and on it was a crumbled building. It was expected with the quakes. What wasn’t, was the sign of a particular school and the disturbing title under it.

‘Emmer’s boarding school dormitories first building to fall in unexpected earthquakes, deaths and injuries unknown.’

“Shit- I gotta go-!” Lloyd said and started running.

“Go where?!” Jay yelled after him but Kai stopped him.

“Peach’s home has just been destroyed.” Kai filled in and Jay’s eyes widened from behind the mask.

🪺. *. ⋆

I had nothing. Literally nothing. It was all gone now. What the fuck? What do I do? The only thing I could do right now was look for this little girl.

“Kaliyah! Kali-“ I paused at the sound of a sob. It sounded breathless and strained. “Kaliyah?!” I asked again and I heard it, more urgent. I looked around in the direction I heard it and saw a little leg peeling out under some rumble. I gasped and immediately started lifting the bit of rubble on top of her. “Fiona-! I found her-!” I said and heard the girl yell and head my way. I used all my strength to get the first piece of rubble off and the desperate, immediate breath that the girl took broke my heart. She was bloodied and it took all my strength to not cry at the sight. Instead I worked and dislodging the debris that had trapped her arm.

“Kaliyah! Kal-!” Fiona yelled and held the other girl’s hand.

“Help me lift her up.” I said and Fiona helped me position her better in my arms as I was forced to carry her bridal style. “Call an ambulance, now!” I said and Fiona immediately pulled her phone out. “She’s barely breathing- it must’ve crushed her lungs..” I murmured to myself and set the girl down on the flat ground near the road. Another quake came rattling through the ground and I watched as the school itself came crashing down this time. “Cover your eyes!” I yelled and Fiona, even with being on the phone dropped to ground and covered herself. I used my own body to shield Kaliyah’s and thanks to Ninjago city’s top tier healthcare, we had no idea when this ambulance would turn up. Especially with the emergency currently happening. I felt as the cloud of dust and debris came rushing over us, fiercely. I fully covered the little girl and prayed she lived to not remember this and have a happy life. I opened my eyes to check on Fiona when an ember flew in my eyes and I cried out. It stung and I couldn’t open my eye as it burned through the socket. It probably didn’t but it felt like it. I heard sirens and silently thanked the gods above.

I felt numb as they took the girl away, I told Fiona to go with them. She was unsure but I nodded. It didn’t matter about me being alone and having nowhere to go because Lloyd appeared and rushed over to me. Immediately checking me over. I was probably covered in dust and debris and the odd cut.

“What the hell happened?!” He asked and I shrugged.

“My school and dorm collapsed and I just dug out a 12yr old from some rubble and had to dislodge part of a radiator from her arm so her lungs wouldn’t be considerably crushed. Oh by the way! I have nothing and am currently homeless.” I said and he shook his head.

“No you’re not… come live with me.” He said and I nodded.

“Can’t believe we’re already moving in together… can’t believe I almost died.” I said and he held me tighter.

“You’re safe now, okay?” He said and I just leant on him. “Peach? Y/n?” He asked when I didn’t respond and I just smiled.

“I think I’m gonna pass out…” I said and he shook his head and bent his head down to look at me.

“No, you’re not… not atleast until we’re out of here. Buildings keep falling around here.” Lloyd said and I smiled.

“Tell me about it.” I joked and he shook his head.

“C’mon… the stone warriors are going to be attacking soon- well they already are but more.” He told me and I frowned.

“The who?” I asked and Lloyd grabbed my hand, leading me back to ninjago city.

“Y’know that big live statue from yesterday?” He told me and my face dropped.

“And you’re taking me to it?!” I almost screeched.

“No! Everyone is being evacuated to the top of the news tower and then we’re going to use the bounty to evacuate as many as we can.” He added and I frowned.

“The bounty?! Lloyd- what’s going on?!” I asked and he didn’t stop running but briefly looked at me.

“We think the final battle is starting. The earthquakes are meant to be a warning according to my mother.” Lloyd said and I looked up at him.

“What the fuck…?” I questioned.

“My thoughts exactly.”

#lloyd garmadon x reader #ninjago lloyd #cole brookstone #green ninja #earth ninja #jay walker #kai smith #lloyd garmadon #ninjago #ninjago cole #nya smith #ninjago zane #ninjago nya #ninjago kai #ninjago jay #the first spinjitzu master #fire ninja #ninjago misako #ninjago garmadon

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pandoa · 1 year

Text

forever lasts longer than the stars

where the only thing jack is sure of is being together with you ; moonlight date !!

~jack howl x gender neutral reader~ word count: 1.4k

requested by @italoniponic

Jack wished he knew precisely how old the stars in the night sky had been. Maybe then he could see exactly how long the world had to wait to be gifted by your company.

You were fun to be around. Each moment spent with you was like another dream he would have in his childhood, carefree and lively, but would still hold a sense of realness to your presence whenever you helped him clean up whatever mess Ace and Deuce had managed to stir up at Night Raven. Jack used to pay no mind to the tiny specs of light hanging in the atmosphere’s skyline. Although, since he had met you, there were many things in his life that he had begun to notice. Things he found he would want to keep with him for however time would let him. Like the sudden multitude of stars that seemed to sprout out into the sky that night, for example. Were they always there before? Had they always been so shimmering in the atmosphere? Surely it couldn’t be simply because you were there, beside him, that made the smallest things in his life seem more special than they initially were. The beastman swore he had never seen such numbers of constellations with his time living in Twisted Wonderland.

So what was up with today?

Blissfully walking up the greenery of an open hill, you and Jack had made your way to the highest point of the grassy field—hand in one another’s like a red string of fate had been keeping you two together as it always did. The tall first year had treaded a few steps in front of you—checking for any possible dangers that could be lurking within the grass’s small shadows—allowing for his beastman habits to peek through as he made sure that everything was safe and clear for you both. Once confirming that the area was, indeed, clear, the young boy then proceeded to guide you to a point on the hill that surprised you as you stepped closer to the view, gawking at what your eyes had been seeing.

Surrounded by beds and beds of flowers was a quaint spot adorned with blankets, little snacks you found very cute in both size and appearance, numerous pillows, and a few lanterns that illuminated a golden light onto the comfortable blankets you had first noticed. Jack watched as your elated figure briskly let go of his hand, practically skipping towards the setup he had meticulously prepared for you with a light blush beginning to form on your cheeks out of happiness.

“Jack, did you do this?” you asked giddily as you carefully walked up to the neatly-placed blanket spread across the green ground.

“Uh… Yeah. I did,” an embarrassed hand of the first year then rose up to scratch the back of his head, reluctantly replying, “Do you like it?”

You hurriedly turned your gaze back at your partner, excitement gracing your tone as it sang back to the ears of your boyfriend, “Is that even a question? Of course I do!”

Jack didn’t know what happened next. Well, he did know, but the moment was all too surreal that each minute had felt as if it were moving too fast, too slow, and not even passing a second all at the same time. Your head laid peacefully on the boy’s lap—hands twiddling with the cuffs of Jack’s blazer which had been draped over your body—while you continued to glance up at the skyline, mesmerized. Moonlight smiled upon you as Jack saw as its rays seemed to kiss the tip of your nose in an adorable glow of your skin. Stars burned and glistened above, but the boy next to you looked nowhere near the sight of the sky. The constellations reflected perfectly within the irises of your eyes, so why would he need to?

“Hey…” a familiar mutter of your voice then shook Jack out of his trance. He noticed the wariness of your tone and how your demeanor shifted from your once relaxed state to one that was a little more curious—concerned, even.

“Do you think we’ll always get to stay like this? Like you, me, the first years…” you trailed your sentence off as you pointed your gaze towards two stars floating above you, not isolated from the other clusters of stars, but apart enough to have caught your attention. “A lot can happen in the span of a few years… not many things in life are indefinite. And I should know, I’m literally from a different world, but—” a small break in your ramble interrupted and cut through your thoughts, “What will the future be like for us?”

Jack wondered carefully what he would say to you next. Of course he knew that you and the other first years couldn’t possibly stay at Night Raven; you all have to graduate sooner or later, so that was a clear no. But then there was also the thought of where would you, the Ramshackle prefect, go once you all had left the college? Would you and Grim find a place of your own to live in? Temporarily move in with one of the first years? Or maybe… begin to live with him, wherever the future would take him…?

“I’m not exactly sure either…” the beastman began to reply, “Like you said, anything can happen and we won’t just stay here at NRC for our whole lives… But all I know is that I want to stay with you for as long as I can. If you’ll—uh—let me, that is…” Jack then hesitantly looked away, seemingly flustered by what he had just said. A regrettably awkward silence then pierced through the hillside as he awaited your answer.

Maybe that was a little too… straight forward? Jack thought.

“You know what? N-never mind, that was stupid,” the wolf-like boy then brushed off his own comment at your lack of reaction as embarrassment flood to the apples of his darker cheeks, “Forget I said anything—”

“N-no! I-I mean, yeah,” you hastily tried to salvage the previously sweet moment as you felt your heart thumping in your chest at your boyfriend’s precious honesty, “I want to stay with you too… As long as you’re okay with it.”

“Yeah, I’m… okay with it,” Jack said, a scarlet tint now overtaking the darker tan of his skin, “Are you?”

“Yeah, I am,” you then turned your head from your position in his lap and jumped up in slight surprise when you found that he had been gaping at your form for, what seemed like, quite a while as both of your faces were now beet red at the flustering realization.

Jack, feeling a nervous lump form in his chest, then cleared his throat.

“So, uh… we’re gonna stay together… right?” the boy asked with caution, averting his eyes to look anywhere but your own.

“That’s the plan, yes.”

“Ah, right.”

“Right.”

Another flood of silence, this time much more comfortable, then played among you both as the only thing your ears had heard were the hooting of the nearby owls and chattering of the crickets. The moon still hung high in the sky as constellations surrounded it in a celestial veil that matched the twinkle in your own vision each time you tilted your head to peer at the young boy you called your boyfriend.

Jack, not knowing what else to say and nervous under your gaze, attempted to break the quietness, however. “The, uh, stars are really shiny tonight…” he uttered quite clumsily, tiny beads of sweat beginning to form within his palms, “Aren’t they?”

A harmonious laugh then sang from your giddy body as you fawned over the first year’s adorable awkwardness. Not that you couldn’t do the same for yourself, though. You both could be equally as awkward when it came to each other. Perhaps that was why it was so endearing whenever you were around one another; the effect you both had was the exact same.

Jack, now confused, grew irked but curious at your reaction, “What? Why are you laughing?”

“Nothing,” you said as your laugh then calmed down to a light chuckle, “I just love you a little too much.”

a/n: I TRIED GETTING THOSE SWEET BUT AWKWARD COUPLE VIBES IN THIS BC ALTHOUGH HE MAY NOT AGREE JACK IN A RELATIONSHIP WOULD BE ADORABLE LET ME HEADPAT THE YOUNG BOY

#twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #disney twst #twst #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #twst imagines #gender neutral reader #jack howl #jack howl x reader #jack x reader #jack twst #twst jack #jack twisted wonderland #savanaclaw #♢the scribe♢

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water-to-drink · 1 year

Text

It’s Called Modern Art

(Summary): Genshin characters see your art and it’s new to them

(Characters): Albedo, Al haitham, and Scaramouche

(A/n): As someone who appreciates art in all of its forms I wonder how modern art be perceived in Tevyat, which seems to have only classical art

———————————— ♡ ————————————

Albedo- Cubism

He’s definitely taken aback by your art style when he first saw it

It wasn’t until he took a closer look at it was when he saw the image in its entirety

As someone who partakes in the arts, mainly landscape and portraits he’s fascinated by your work

His preconception of art before he met you was that a piece has to emphasize harmony and proportions

It amazes him seeing you make an image with a series of cubes and harsh lines with little to no curved lines at all

This isn’t like his crude 3 stroke drawings he would make of Kaeya

He would try to replicate the style to his best ability but can’t capture the essence your works have

Often he would wonder how much can you stylize an object such as a landscape and make it still recognizable

This is an answer that will take him a while to figure out, but in the meantime he’s content to watch your hand move gracefully across the canvas

———————————— ♡ ————————————

Al haitham- Surrealism

Tries to make sense of your work to the best of his ability but can’t

Al haitham prides himself on being a man who can find reason and logic is almost about anything, but your work spits in the face of that

At first would not like because he can’t make sense of no matter how hard he tries

In his words he would rather spend time with his wretched roommate than try to comprehend your art

Tries to watch you while you paint and question you on the themes and motifs to get some idea of the reasoning behind your work

It is until you have to explain to him that the confusion he gets is the point of your work doesn’t have a set interpretation, it’s up the the viewer to make one themselves

Still wouldn’t understand but after dwelling on it he has somewhat turned around in appreciating your art

Probably after a while of viewing your work he will respect your work fully

———————————— ♡ ————————————

Scaramouche- Expressionism

Much like Al haitham, he wouldn’t like when first laid eyes on your art. Though he would be a lot more vocal and critical

You would have to explain to him that your style expresses the painter’s emotions

After getting tired of his bitching and moaning you offered him to paint with you and refused immediately, but begrudgingly accepted after a lot of pestering on your part

At first was super nervous and a bit embarrassed while the both of you paint, his canvas looked like something from an apocalyptic wasteland, showing emotions such as animosity, wrath, fear, sadness, and self loathing. While yours looked peaceful

Once the two of you were done he was reluctant to show you his piece, but eventually relented

You have to reassure him that his art can be for his eyes only and all that matters is that he enjoys the process

Now the two of you paint together

He won’t admit it, but finds it really relaxing to paint what he feels a lot more relax. He still insults people like before but not as harshly

Others have noticed it but decide not to bring it up, a less aggressive scaramouche is a somewhat good scaramouche in their eyes

#genshin x reader #genshin headcanons #genshin fluff #al haitam x reader #albedo x reader #scaramouche x reader #genshin impact x reader

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dovahkook · 1 year

Text

Divine Blessings (II)

Morax (Zhongli) x Reader

PART I > here

tags for this: not really anything but there’s some talk of grief and loss and reader is going through it. xiao is a cutie and my comfort boy how did you know? morax just exists and his dick big. I just know it.

tags in general: concepts of war, morax being a menace, idk what else just be warned the piece is kind of dark and it involves death, maybe some gore, religious themes, kinda blasphemous and the reader is a heathen

A/N: look at me actually doing updates but yeah this is long overdue my bad broskis but yeah this isn’t even proof-read bc guess what! we die like yakshas here. too soon? okay anyway so like I said the smut is in chapter 4 my bad to the degenerate people. I’ll try and get you some dragon zhongli soon ;( im sorry (no im not) I like plot with porn. yes, i did publish this on ao3 too.

There was a sense of serenity. Nothing but the gentle bellows of wind could be heard as you sat upright within an unknown field surround by sand-bearer trees and a crystal clear lagoon cutting the horizon as far as you could see. At your feet were blooming blue flowers that responded to the gentle hum within the wind - a melody that brought your soul a sense of peace - and the sky was painted as an ethereal sunrise. Pink and orange hues accompanied by golden streaks of light. If all was not surreal enough, in the far distance were the figures of mighty beasts: cranes and deers that were far too large to be considered the normal local fauna. The creatures were almost bowing their heads as the - almost haunting - melody in the wind chimed louder and a large shadow from the orange clouds emerged, revealing the silhouette of a mighty dragon. You were mesmerised by the glorious presence of the beast descending upon the earth and drawing closer towards you. Its mighty figure big enough to crush over an entire street of houses.

Yet, there was no alarm in your soul.

No fear.

As you stood before the brown scaled beast, your gaze fixed upon the shimmering gold dusted within the amber that swam in its eyes while it peered back at you, you reached your hand out to place your hand against its snout. The hand of a mortal utterly tiny in comparison but the dragon did not resist. When the dragon closed its eyes, a voice, gentle as a the flow of a river, rang through your ears.

'Welcome home.’

Waking in a place completely unknown to you was not a first but was something you were hoping not to get used to. Your eyelids were still heavy from the drowsy state of unconsciousness you rose from and your sense of smell was immediately attacked by the smoke of incense and herbs. Qingxin and mint to be exact.

When you tried lifting yourself to sit upright it was not without great difficulty. There was a dull pain throbbing in your right shoulder and many bruises decorating your body. Your head was spinning trying to recollect your memories.

Examining your nearby surroundings, there was a small window near the bed you were on and underneath the windowsill was a side-table consisting of a vase of wilting qingxin flowers and a teacup filled with water. From the window blew a gentle breeze that would caress your skin and leave goosebumps to blossom in turn, having you cling to the sheet draped over you in order to seek more warmth.

The room was barely decorated apart from a bookshelf near the doorway, an empty writing desk, and some scroll paintings depicting mystical beasts. However, what really caught your attention was the bed on the adjacent side of the room that was occupied by another person. The tufts of midnight and teal hair that were visible giving away his identity without a doubt in mind. “Alatus!”

Your body moved before your brain could register the pain, needing to see him - needing to know if he was alive. Wobbly legs sauntering towards his bedside where he laid, the wounds that were visible had been dressed and his face had been wiped from any grime and blood that would have stained his porcelain skin during the battle. You let out a relieved sigh, reaching your hand towards his forehead that was radiating heat. His breath lightly kissing at the palm of your hand as you had done so.

“Ah, you are awake!” The voice belonging to a woman spoke from the doorway, breaking the tranquility that enveloped both you and Alatus. The sudden need to be on guard was back as you tried hunching over Alatus’s form to obscure their line of sight on the adeptus. “No need to be alarmed, dear, I’m not here to cause harm on either of you. Just here to change the flowers.”

The woman carefully stepped into the room, ensuring to maintain a distance between the two of you. You said nothing as your eyes analysed her features.

She was a mature woman, likely in her late thirties. Her braided hair being that of a faded blue hue with hints of grey streaks peaking through and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes as she smiled brought out the warmth in her sincerity. She wore the traditional garments worn by most pious woman you had met from Liyue who would visit the shrine and she was carrying a bundle of freshly picked blue flowers.

“May I know what this place is? Is he here to recover before you use him as your pawn in battle, too?” You spoke, trying to hold back the venom within your tone. You did not need to anger somebody in their own territory.

“Pawn in battle? All Rex had done was bring the young adeptus home. Rex Lapis brought you and Xiao to this abode two weeks ago to ensure a speedy recovery. Where you are currently is within a realm of Adeptal creation, curated according to my liking since it is my home.”

Two weeks… And Rex Lapis being the name given to Morax by his devotees.

“Why do you call Alatus by that name?”

“It was given to him by Rex Lapis.”

You wanted to scoff. “And I am not an adeptus, so why was I brought here?”

“That is something I cannot answer. I was simply instructed to care for both of you in this abode where no harm could come to either of you.”

Your brow furrowed at this. She spoke again.

“You may call me Ping, by the way. There is no formalities needed nor is this place a prison to either of you. Xiao had regained consciousness much faster than you and has already made peace with the wishes of Rex Lapis; that he recovers well and without difficulty. He’s simply resting now.” She assured, glancing towards his sleeping figure. “You rarely ask about your own well-being so let me assure you that the god you had once served will not return to harm either of you.”

And at that, your heart felt at ease knowing that for once he would be able to rest peacefully. That even if he were to suffer from the lingering effects of nightmares, he would still be safe. That both of you would be from the terrors of the god of dreams. Your eyes closed momentarily as you placed your forehead against the edge of his bed. It was nice to feel peace. To breathe and not feel suffocated in an environment that was never meant for you.

“Would you not like to join him in getting some rest?” The woman asked as she replaced the white flowers within the vase with newer, vibrant blue ones you had not seen before.

You shook your head. “No, thank you. I would like to just stay up and make sure he’s okay. “

“He’ll be perfectly well and safe here. Nobody without my authority may enter this realm.”

“So not even Morax may enter?”

She gave a warily smile. “He may, but not because he aided in the creations of such realms.” She didn’t speak further on the subject, rather focusing her attention to the closed flowers within her hands. You did not wish to pry further.

Instead, you turned your attention back to Alatus- No- Xiao’s sleeping form. A crease of a frown made its way to your forehead as you noticed him starting to shiver while beads of sweat began to form at his temples. His lips twisting in a way that informed you that his dreams were no longer pleasant.

You gently placed your hand over his gloved one and held onto him. Your eyes closing once more as you decided to hum the tune you heard in your dream. The haunting melody that chimed within your mind like an alarm bell.

Soon enough, his trembling stopped again and he once again laid peacefully. Your head resting on his forearm as you tried to fight off the sleep enveloping you.

When you drifted off, you failed to notice that the closed flower buds Ping replaced in the vase glowed a bright azure as it opened up to the tune of the unspoken oath.

* * *

Days had gone by and it had been almost routinely. Ping would wake both you and Xiao periodically to drink medicinal teas and would invite you to have meals with her, which you tried to refuse but gave into her hospitality. You had not met any other new faces other than that of a butler-type bird who would come to change the sheets and towels in the room so it became easier to let your guard down, focusing on Xiao as you both learnt about Liyue through your hostess. Cooking, clothing, and simple etiquette. It was surely an adjustment but she insisted that you two will fit right in.

Ping would also allow you two to take walks outside and talk beneath the birchwood trees in her garden where you would come to learn that Xiao had always been a man of few words but was gentle to all life forms around him. His favourite being the pet birds nesting in the trees above the spot where you and him would have afternoon tea.

When it dawned upon you how much time had passed and what occurred that day in battle - being the loss of your homeland and family, it was difficult. You tried not to cry for them but it was futile. Regardless of differences, there was a sense of care towards the people of the God of Dreams, and both Ping and Xiao did their best to help you through the grief and anger. It was all a process but eventually you would come to feel no ill feelings towards the war as it was a part of life when Gods ruled over land with no regard towards their devotees. This disappointment would only feed at your fear of loss whenever Ping brought up Rex Lapis and what he had done for the people of Liyue. You could not bring yourself to believe Gods actually cared for the common folk but dared not to speak ill of Morax.

One day, as you and Xiao were learning to decoct silk flowers in the garden, a custom Ping was adamant on teaching you, the foreign feeling of fear was felt yet again when you heard Ping welcome another into the abode.

“Rex! Surprised to see you so soon, dear friend.”

You and Xiao immediately raised from your knelt positions on the ground to stand upright and face the Lord of Geo. The lump of anxiety in your throat being difficult to swallow, but Xiao gazed towards you briefly to give you a firm nod. To trust him. Xiao had apparently spoken to Morax before and claimed he was not as arrogant as that of the God of Dreams. You were reluctant to believe him.

“May I see our guests?” You heard him ask. His voice alone held so much authority but what else was expected from a God known for slaughtering other Gods.

Their footsteps approached the pair and both you and Xiao bowed deeply as taught by Ping. Your heart pounding so loudly it was difficult to hear, almost. You dared not to look at him, only seeing the distance between where you both stood. His robes that reached the ground was imbedded with pure gold but what else would you expect from a God who created wealth.

“I trust you both are adjusting well to the customs of Liyue, and have made a speedy recovery.”

When you two stood upright again, only Xiao spoke. “Yes, thank you for the hospitality.”

“No need to thank me, that credit goes to Madam Ping alone.”

You said nothing. Thoughts flowing with the wind and desperately trying to regain your steady breathing. It did not help when you could feel his piercing gaze study your panic-stricken expression. You dare not meet it.

“I’m here to ask if you had met the other Yakshas yet, and if you had thought about our discussion.”

From what you recall, Xiao had told you about Morax’s mercy and how the adeptus wanted to offer his strength in order to aid the God in whatever task was needed to be carried out. You tried to talk him out of the idea of owing the god a debt that could cost him his life again but he was firm, claiming it was minuscule in comparison to what Rex Lapis had done for him. As much as you two were weary of Gods, Xiao did not doubt Morax.

“I have met only one of them, Boacius, sir.”

“Ah, Marshal Vritras. And did he aid in the decision?”

“He has and I have made my decision.”

Morax placed his hands behind his back, waiting for the adeptus to speak.

“I will serve you, Rex Lapis. I am indebted to you for all you have done for me and will do all that I can to serve you and the nation of Liyue.”

Your eyes widened at this sudden proclamation. You wanted to refuse it. Tell him not to give himself over but it was too late.

“Then, general Alatus, you will formally be a part of the Yakshas, to protect Liyue from all evil. This is your duty and contract to the nation of Liyue.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“And so another contract is set in stone. Thank you for your time, I will inform Madam Ping when the others plan to meet you.”

You wanted to scream. You felt powerless against everything that was happening and tried to hold back your tears. Frustrated yet again.

“As for you,” Morax turned his full attention towards you, stepping closer to address you. You finally stared up at him, fighting back the fear as he towered over you. “I hope you find Liyue to be the home you desired.”

You were left speechless. All sense of anger and malicious intent dissipating into thin air as he simply turned and made his way back towards the household. You felt Xiao lightly tap on your hand while your gaze never left the figure of the god.

You tried to make sense of the encounter but all you could remember was the words of the first dream you ever had.

‘Welcome Home’

But could you really find a home within a land owned by the god that took your former life?

Why would he spare you?

“Morax.” You called, balling your hands into tight fists as you stalked towards him. Him simply staying in place as he waited for you to stand before him.

“Why did you save me? Why give me your blessing to live in your land when I once served your foes?” You asked, finally deciding to face the God yourself. Had he decided to kill you where you stood, you would have no regrets. “I am no adeptus. I cannot offer you my service nor would I ever devote myself to a God so what do you plan to gain from having me here?”

You expected the God to punish you for demanding answers. For him to possibly order Xiao to kill you to test the adeptus’s loyalty to him. But, instead, god simply smiled. His canines giving away his draconic features had the horns curling out the top of his head of silken, auburn locks, not given it away sooner.

You were struck by his beauty - of course you would be. He was a god. Divine beauty will compel anybody to worship them.

“Do you truly wish to know why you’re here?”

You hesitated. Did Gods play mind games? Would this lead to a trap?

“Yes, Morax.”

There was a soft huff of a laugh that escaped him momentarily. His eyes, hypnotic and swimming with liquid gold, finally held your gaze as he spoke in a gentle tone.

“You are here simply upon the young yaksha’s request that you be saved. I have no intention of gaining anything from you, be it your devotion or even respect. All that you could desire is made available to you with no expectations from me. That is why you are here. To live your life free from the shackles of what you once called your false god.”

You stood motionless.

“Did that satiate your curiosity?”

You nodded, bowing your head and allowing the deity to take his leave.

Xiao carefully approached you, checking in with your well-being considering your lack of words. More so ability to form them. “You okay?”

You looked back towards Xiao and eventually nodded, walking back towards the garden to decoct more perfume. The words of the God never leaving your mind.

‘To live your life’

You let out a shaky breath, submerging the petals of the flowers into the boiling water.

“Thank you, Morax…” You whispered into the wind.

But whispers do not fall deaf upon the ears of a God.

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