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cautuscoralcoast · 2 months

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The Flesh, Blood, Bone, Heart and Soul : There once was a knight who wished to be the wicked dragon

Laios Touden x Monster! reader

Synopsis - In which the lion tempts Laios into giving into his darkest, false desires. You are none the wiser as you laid on the dinner table in a daze—as the apple, the lion tempts Laios to take a bite.

Word Count: 7k.

Tw. Mentions of cannibalism, minor suggestive sexual themes (dubcon), descriptive imagery of eating the reader, lots of blood, major depictions of violence, spoilers for the manga (especially the ending), viewer's discretion is advised

Prev.

The lion has plans for the both of you: Gluttony.

You, who refused to reside in lavish and were repulsed by the sight and taste of flesh.

Laios, who fed into his greed to consume the flesh of monsters for his own satisfaction.

He who couldn't understand the most basics of non-verbal communication; You communicating through the language barrier with the mermaids, often with just non-verbal communication.

You were far from human, and you possessed more humanity than most sinful humans—that's why the lion couldn't call you perfect: Simply just a mockery

What the lion wants is to consume Laios' desires. For Laios, his desires were so potent and much more unique than any other person to have entered the dungeon that the lion just wanted to see that desire bear fruit. It would be something magnificent, so savory, and rejuvenating: The lion wanted it.

And you were part of that.

Canaries, that boy from Utaya, and Yaad, they all posed a threat to his plans.

If the lion could get you to follow along, then perhaps things could flow much better. You and Laios could vow to stay together, and in doing so, the demon gets what it wants.

The only thing is, you were far from human. A monster by nature and an abomination by creation. Though, that never stopped Laios.

The problem was that you wanted nothing more but cry in your own lamentations.

Lonely and devastated from facing your cruel reality, you asked, "Why have you forsaken me with sentience?"

"You desired to desire, and so I granted your wish. Are you not satisfied?"

"I never desired to desire. I had no thought, no mind, no heart or soul: I was epidermis, mesoglea, and gastrodermis. No blood, no bones, no flesh—I was a plant once. Then I flowered into a jellyfish. Jellyfish don't have souls to want. What am I?"

"What you are is something far from logic."

"What am I?"

"You are a jellyfish who became the monstrous sea leviathan of the dungeon."

"What am I?"

"You are the one who is blessed with the water's loving embrace."

"What am I?"

"You are the monarch of mermaids."

"What am I?"

"You are (y/n)."

"What am I?"

"You are my child."

"What am I?"

"I am unable to answer that."

"What am I?"

𓆞𓆝 𓆟

Laios didn't know what to think of you at first.

He was excited at the prospect of discovering a new monster; But alas, that was all he thought of you: A Monster. Just another monster that tried to kill him, and another monster he ate the flesh of. There was nothing more to it.

But then it saved him.

"My name is (y/n), I am the monarch of the mermaids and arbitor of the dungeon's waters. Just who might you be?"

A monster capable of communicating and is able to distinguish itself from others. A sapient monster that is able to communicate with those like him, but the fact that it's in the dungeon is evidence that it is a monster.

Yet, when Laios kept prodding at its body and tampering with its tentacles, the monster never once grew angered by his actions. Even when he supposedly did something horrible to mermaids, the monster still remained patient with him. When Laios told it that it ate its flesh, the monster, instead of becoming enraged, it stayed indifferent about the situation. The monster never tried to harm him.

Rather, it helped him find his friends. When the monster proposed to bring him underwater, he wasn't sure if it were a trap: If this monster was a succubus, a manifestation of his desires. However, the monster did not lie.

When Laios told the monster about the boundless oceans and seas, the look in its eyes was so normal. This monster was able to see right through his soul. It knew how to respond and what to say to keep him calm. It was far more human than he ever could.

It was an odd thought. A monster was more understanding of emotion and feelings while he, a human, struggles with even the most basic forms of communication.

Now that they part, Laios couldn't help but turn around one last time, and he saw the melancholic monarch.

"I promise."

They would never be human like he was. They were far too monstrous to be an elf or a dwarf. But somehow, they were so alive.

Laios doesn't regret eating their tentacles. It was something he ate before meeting the lovely monarch. He can't blame himself for doing so, and likewise, he doesn't blame you for almost drowning him. So they're even in horrible things done to each other.

"LAIOS!"

"It wasn't a monster."

It was a statement he said that even he was in disbelief. You were a monster, and yet you understood more than he ever could. Laios couldn't see your discomfort when he prodded at you or when he told you that he ate your flesh. Yet, you were able to realize the faintest sign of doubt and understanding of his thoughts.

You were definitely a monster.

"Did you know that mermaids can and will have a monarchy if a leader is seen as capable? Mermaids tend to travel in small groups, but the monster we saw was the monarch of the mermaids. It isn't just a few—it's all the mermaids in the dungeon! There also were so many species that were thought to have gone extinct in the dungeon water! They glow in the dark! This monster is named (y/n), and it was able to cast a spell of some sort to allow me to breathe underwater, and that's how I'm here. I made a page here in my book! With the bottom of jellyfish and the top of 'mermaid', they're able to hold a conversation with me! This means that there are monsters that can think like tall-men, elves, dwarves, and those alike!."

Senshi was too busy cooking, and Marcille and Chilchuck stopped listening at the "glow in the dark" part to stare at Laios as if he had gone mad.

"You get taken by mermaids, and you're happy!?!" Chilchuck grabbed the book and looked at the sketch. "Isn't this the monster that tried to kill you the other day?"

"Not trying to kill me!" Laios looked rather proud at the statement. "It didn't say why it picked me up, but it—they apologized for scaring us."

Marcille gripped her staff tightly as she opened her mouth to say something but stopped. She sighed and said, "As long as you're alive, it's alright, I guess. There's no saving Falin if you're gone."

"Oh–yeah."

"You didn't forget, did you?"

"First, you say you're glad, and now this? I can't believe you, Laios."

Senshi just shook his head in disappointment.

"I—I didn't mean it like that!"

𓆞𓆝 𓆟

Laios is Laios. Falin is Falin. Marcille is Marcille. Chilchuck is Chilchuck. Senshi is Senshi. Izutsumi is Izutsumi.

They all were so similar despite their different backgrounds and race. Even then, among family and those of the same race, they were very different. With hobbies, interests, dislikes, stories, and soul is what made them, them.

So what about monsters?

They all were of the same species with the same instincts and appearance. There were little differences, and there was little true free will for them to differentiate themselves from each other.

So where did you stand?

To Laios, the answer was clear.

You were you.

You were a monster, yet you were far from one. You weren't a species similar to the eight he was familiar with, yet you were more sensible than he ever could be. You were a jellyfish, yet the only thing that resembled one were your tentacles. You weren't a mermaid, yet you shared many similarities.

It's these distinctions that made you: you.

There was nothing more enchanting than you. With the tentacles of a jellyfish, ears of a sea serpent, the appearance of a mermaid, you were truly something magnificent.

Laios wanted to become dungeon master in order to make a world safe for you and monsters alike: that was his wish. For Falin and the others to meet you and recognize your beauty the same way he did.

Desperate to save his sister from her monstrous state and his desire to live alongside monsters, he ignored the dangers of temptation the lion gave.

It was only Marcille, out of desperation, made a deal with the winged lion and became lord of dungeon, did Laios truly grasp the meaning of "dungeon master."

Nothing but a trap and prey for the lion go devour.

There was no love greater than what the demon could provide.

The winged lion was creature capable of drawing out the purest of desire: Raw instinct and pure desire as its core.

"Make me lord of the dungeon!"

To save Marcille and everyone else—to defeat the demon, Laios saw no other choice but fall into temptation.

"What a splendid person you have become; However, deep down inside, you haven't changed in the slightest. You are sick and tired of the human world."

As if in a trance, Laios found it difficult to find words to refute the demons claim. Feeling paranoid and agitated, Laios had no idea what to say. That confidence and sense of safety dissipated the moment the lion placed a finger on his chest. As if unraveling open his heart, the lion continued.

"So long as your friends are safe, you don't care if everyone else gets caught up in the dungeon's collapse."

That's a lie.

Laios isn't—couldn't be the only one to feel that way. Everyone else is just as selfish, right? There's no way that not one person doesn't feel the same way as him!

"You despise other humans; That's why you admire monsters so much. Monsters kill humans: They take forms that they can use to terrorize and slaughter humans. 'So cool,' you thought. 'How beautiful they are' I've seen you think. Why want a peaceful world when, in a peaceful world, dungeons and monsters disappear."

The lion walked farther and deeper into the void. Nearing towards what appeared to be a dinner table, the demon beckoned Laios to follow.

"If monsters disappear, you'll lose everything of interest: Your livelihood and passion. Do you really want that?"

The lion picked up a fork and knife and handed it to Laios.

"Falin will be safe, and Marcille won't have to die alone, that young jellyfish won't ever have to starve ever again: Everyone could be happy. Do you really want to choose a superficial and peaceful world over this?"

The lion turned Laios' attention to the dinner table. Laios gasped as he saw a monster not quite a mermaid, and far too similar to jellyfish: It was you. Laying on the table in a daze, covered in a variety of dishes and desserts, the monarch of mermaids remained paralyzed.

"The reason you were so intrigued by the dungeon was a rumor. 'The dungeon is able to turn people into monsters.' You want to be a monster, don't you?"

The lion grabbed Laios' hand with the fork and brought towards the monarch's stomach. Lightly pressing against the soft jelly‐like flesh, the lion continued to tempt Laios on. "You admire the monarch of sea because they had what you wanted. The ability to transform into something much more horrific than the damnest thing man has ever seen."

The lion pushed his hand; The fork piercing the skin and drawing a faint amount of water and blood out. "You want to eat, don't you? You want to taste the actual flesh and not just the flavorless tentacles."

Laios suddenly realized what was happening and tried to get away. "No! I can't eat (y/n)! They aren't a—"

"— a monster? What does it matter if the jellyfish is a monster? You ate plenty of monsters before. What makes this any different?"

"I—I don't..."

As Laios tried to move the fork away from your stomach, the lion chuckled and stopped Laios from moving the fork. Taking advantage of the situation, the demon further pushed in the fork all the way into the stomach of the monarch.

"You won't, even if I say you can become the monster you so desire?" This got Laios to halt all movement, and the lion let out a bellowed laugh. "Just eat the jellyfish, and everything can be yours."

The lion let go of Laios as it watched him pull out a bit of flesh. It looked bland but resembled more of actual meat with the blood oozing out and muscle strewn in deeper below. Laios put it in his mouth and swallowed. Uncooked and cold, it tasted bitter and sweet: It was delicious.

"Feast on flesh, and I'll make sure all your friends remain happy until their deaths."

Laios tore as far he could into the dense flesh and directly took a bite. Blood and water covered his face—clothes soaked in blood.

"Drink all the blood, I'll make so humans and monsters are able to co-exist without any harm towards monsters."

Laios climbed onto the table, grabbed your hand, and placed a finger in his mouth. Pushing your sharp nail onto his tongue, he forcefully drew out blood. He licked and sucked on your finger as he tasted his own blood. Biting down, he drank your blood.

"Chew on the bones, and the young monarch will be able to eat without regret."

You began to gain consciousness to see Laios on top of you. You tried to get up and ask Laios what he was doing. You felt liquid trickle done your chest and to your side. You fell back onto the table as Laios sat up and looked you. You saw blood running down his mouth; You felt as if you were missing something.

"Laios?" You were hardly auditable, but he heard you. Pushing your shoulders down, he went to gently bite your neck. "Ah—ah, what are you doing?"

"Trust me, alright?"

There was no need to ask. You already decided to trust Laios with everything you had the moment he remained truthful to you. You reached out and held onto his arms.

You noticed that the blood wasn't his, but rather yours. You looked at the wounds and missing skin and muscle. It wasn't something you weren't used to. Unable to feel pain, you aren't surprised you didn't notice. The thing that surprised you was the sensation of teeth and hands all over your body. Laios held you close at it was feeling you never felt. You didn't quite like it, nor did you hate it. You'd rather live without ever experiencing it.

"—and devour the heart."

Laios reached out and held your neck. He leaned closer and whispered, "Will you let me eat your heart?"

You brought a hand up and covered your face. With your other hand, you caressed his face. "I—I'm too tired to want to...."

With the winged lion looming over, Laios hastily went in to kiss you. Feeling blood seep into your mouth, you wondered for a moment if it was his or yours. Not that it mattered as the more you drank, the more drunk you felt tasting the metallic flavor.

Moving a hand up to your chest, Laios felt around, trying to find a heartbeat. You held and pulled on his hair as you continued to taste your own blood mixed with his. When you got enough, you pulled away and asked him, "Laios, what am I?"

Laios just gave you a saddened expression when he saw how lethargic you looked. Letting go of you, he hugged you tight.

"I don't know what you are, but all I need to know is that you are you: You are (y/n)."

You didn't say anything as you closed your eyes. That wasn't something you had never heard before; However, hearing him say it, it felt sincere.

Jellyfish don't have hearts. A jellyfish pretending to be a sea serpent don't have hearts. Sea serpents pretending to be a mermaid don't have hearts. You don't have heart.

Despite that fact, the time you spent with the mermaids: Them raising you and eventually making you their monarch—you felt as if you did have one. Even now, as Laios embraced you in his warmth, you felt as if that heart was real.

You gladly gave him your heart if it meant he'll use and protect it well.

You were fine.

You were you.

𓆟 𓆞𓆝

The hunger and gluttonous nature of all living things was what animal, monster, and man were so similar. No matter the differences in blood, flesh, bone, and hearts—the souls remain true. Do plants have souls? Do animals have souls? Do insects have souls? Do monsters have souls? Do we have souls?

Desire was what made the demon: Desire was something created from the need of the soul.

There was no need to know the answer at this moment—not as Laios got the first taste of desire.

Laios wondered how you lived before you met the mermaids. He wanted to know why you desired to know who you are. Even as he ate your heart, he still couldn't understand.

He wanted to know why you despised yourself and why you looked at him in such admiration. The same admiration he held for monsters. What was their to hate about your body? As a monster, Laios felt greater gods and above the world.

As he ate and ate away at the demon—eating its desire and existence—it cursed him.

Angered by the loss of its greatest desire and drive for life, the lion cursed him out of pure loathing.

"Laios Touden, I curse thee."

As the winged lion began to dissolve, it held Laios up by the shoulders and glared.

"Thy greatest desire shall never be granted."

Before Laios could understand what the meant, the lion spoke once again. "My goodness, what pathetic little creatures you are. Surely your kind exists for no other reason than to starve."

When all was left was the face, Laios swore he saw the lion smile. "I was mistaken about that child. That monarch alone was the greatest thing I have ever created. How I wish to tell them one last story."

"If I may desire just one last thing, I wish to grant one last blessing for that child."

Just one blessing to make that child happy.

The demon wished it could have loved you more.

𓆟 𓆞𓆝

When you woke up, you found yourself in the middle of a forest. You struggled to sit up with all the weight of your body. It felt uncomfortably dry and cold. At the same time, you were in absolute awe as this was the first time you saw flora and an endless sky out of the dungeon.

The sun was warm.

The sun was bright.

The wind was cold, as was the ground.

You wondered if this was what humans saw every morning.

Looking in front of you, you saw a human girl encased in crystal. With the appearance of a human, she resembled more of a dragon. She was just like you, wasn't she?

"(y/n)!"

You heard Laios call for you. Hearing him run towards you, he began to apologize profusely for what happened. You wanted to chuckle, but the lack of moisture was quite literally killing you.

"Laios, I need water."

Panicking, Laios struggled to pick you up. You were just too heavy. With your urging, he sat you near a tree.

"I'm sorry."

'It's fine. I'm quite very happy even if the events could be deemed as unfortunate." You found yourself wondering about the demon. "What ever happened to the lion?"

Laios tensed up as he sheepishly scratched the back of his ear. "About that...."

"Oh!"

You were quite surprised to hear that Laios ate the lion and, therefore, defeated it. Despite what the lion put you through, it was the one to raise you. You can't help but feel deeply upset at the news—not that you could blame Laios.

"So why aren't you with your friends?"

Laios looked down in shame. "They wouldn't want me around after all that happened."

"I don't believe that to be true."

And you were right.

As he and the others made amends, they (some) reluctantly helped pull you back into the ocean.

"Thank you for helping me."

Marcille seemed somewhat still disturbed at the fact you were the monster they had attacked. She apologized for everyone in the party and especially for Laios for eating your lappet.

"Did you apologize to them?!"

"This is why I told you not to eat demi-humans!"

It was quite an entertaining sight. Especially when you saw the worry on Laios' wash away with the wind.

It was then that the dwarf asked, "Are you hungry?"

You smiled as you admitted it true. You were always on the verge of starvation. Unwilling to eat anything until you absolutely had to, you starved for days and weeks. Now that you were out of the dungeon, you felt extremely hungry, despite always feeling this hunger.

It was painful

"I'll cook something for you!"

You never thought you would get along with surface dwellers.

"Thank you for the meal."

𓆟 𓆞𓆝

You sat at the seaside, watching as the mermaids swam around the ocean looking at the sun and catching fish never seen before.

Never did you think you and the mermaids would be able to leave the dungeon. Never did you think they would be able to speak the language of man.

In your hands were plants from the sea that Senshi had requested you to forage. Senshi wanted to cook or assemble raw forms of dishes made from Falin due to you and the mermaids' inability to eat cooked food. The first time you ate a sandwich, you vomited it in the ocean and floated around as the foreign pain made you sick. Never again did Senshi want his cooking to make someone that sick.

"Young (y/n)!"

You turned around as you heard Senshi himself shout at you.

"Senshi! I got them right here!"

Senshi thanked you and handed a dish sample. You wanted to ask him about Laios, but he left before you could do so. He and the others were quite busy with everything going on, so you couldn't be upset.

It was one of the things that made you slightly upset. The fact you were tied to the water meant that you couldn't walk on land and help them.

You sighed as you slumped back into the water.

You looked at the castle that arose from the ocean. The metals and wet stone glistened under the sunset. The water painted in the same shades as the sky. It was truly something beautiful that you had never seen in the dungeon. The water wasn't full of magic, light not obscured by darkness and stone.

It was boundless.

The mermaids all came to your side and took a seat on land, all looking at the same sight.

One of the mermaids swam towards you with a troubled look. She placed her head on your lap and spoke. "What now, your majesty? We can't stay here for long. The land is rising at an unstable rate—any day now, we could end stuck on land, unable to reach the water."

You closed your eyes as you thought. You wanted to see Laios at least one more time before departuring. However, if you delay your departure any longer, it could end up dangerous for you and the mermaids.

"We'll leave tomorrow morning."

"Alright."

There was a chance you would never see Laios again after today: Yet, you felt at ease. Laios fulfilled his promise to you, and that was enough for you. The fact you wouldn't have to worry about food and the long-term survival of the mermaids.

You laid back on the sand as you felt each grain cling onto your form.

"There once was a jellyfish who lived for one hundred centuries. Small, naive, unknowing: It had nothing remarkable about it. Then, one day, a lion decided to lend out a hand and guide the jellyfish among fire and brimstone. It told the jellyfish stories of the world and life beyond the dungeon. Held and chained to the water, the jellyfish wanted nothing more but to desire.

Then, one day, there came a knight who lent out a hand and sliced the jellyfish's bubble, showing curiosity beyond the dungeon.

Lost and desiring, the jellyfish took the knight's hand."

As you recounted the story of the jellyfish, the waves drummed, the winds whistled, and the mermaids sung their song.

"No longer bound by self-hatred and loathing, the jellyfish wanted nothing more but to follow the knight."

You wished you were a human just as Laios was. You wanted to see him grow and prosper with the Melini. You wanted to see him with all his friends and family together, dining and feasting on delicious food. You wanted to hear him sing his horrible song. You wanted to see dance with others. You wanted to see him on the throne.

When you wanted to see him, never was it with you by his side. There was no place for a monster next to the king.

With the blessing of the water, you and the mermaids were able to, for the first time, sing a new song together: a song best fit for the Monarch to chant their Lament.

The sound of crunching sand made you halt. Turning around, you saw Laios; Adorned in the same armor you first saw him in and wrapped in the now deceased demon. Despite all that happened, you still harbor gratitude for the winged lion. After all, It was the one to raise you all those centuries ago.

"You're singing with the mermaids." Laios stopped walking when he noticed the mermaids cower in disgust. "—and I see that you all settled well."

The mermaids ignored him as they swam away towards the castle.

"Yes, the mermaids are taking this situation rather well. Some of the tall-men and half-foots came by earlier, and the mermaids quite enjoyed the company."

Laios sat next to you in the sand. Gazing upon the castle with the lion's pelt, he truly looked like a king. You're glad you were able to see him in all his glory.

"I was rather surprised when they chose to converse with surface dwellers."

Laios leaned forward and ran his fingers through the sand. You remained still in the water, lappets fluttering.

"I remember you told me how important the mermaids song were to them. The song you guys just sung, it wasn't yours or the mermaids, was it?"

You felt yourself relax as you heard him speak. "No, that song was the first time we sang it. It was the first time we were able to sing the same song together."

"Why was it so sad sounding?"

"Ah, it—well....the song was a reflection of the monarch's melancholy."

"....the monarch; Are you sad?"

You remained quiet as the waves and oceans crashed onto shore.

"That I am for quite a variety of reasons that remain out of my control." You threw yourself at the sand and covered your head with your hands. "But alas, I will remain just fine. So, I ask that you don't burden yourself with my troubles."

Laios didn't pester you any further, and so, you two watched as the sun began to begin its descent. The waves were gentle, the wind was soft, the sand was silky, and the sky remained its brilliant magnificence.

Soon enough, Senshi and the others came by: Setting up tables and seats by the sea side. You are forever thankful for the few who were so kind as to dine alongside the mermaids despite their monstrous history.

Especially so you're glad Marcille and Chilchuck were able to forgive and apologize to you for your very first meeting.

When the mermaids came back, you all sat by the seaside and the surface dwellers on land. Even with this difference in anatomy and history, the tall-men, elves, orcs, dwarves, and mermaids were able to eat and converse with one another with familiarity. Exchanging tales of different cultures and species, it was a sight you'd never thought to desire.

You couldn't help but smile as you watched the mermaids enthusiastically talk with the others about the different songs around the world. You smiled even more when you saw a few of the mermaids awkwardly converse with Laios.

And you, you weren't like any of them, but neither were they. May it be selfish, you truly are glad that these differences exist among all races. Any one of them could be called a monster. The only difference between a sapient being and a monster was the willingness and power to deny instinct.

With a coral crown embellishing your head and the lion's pelt decorating Laios' figure—you two were the first beloved monarchs of the future united Kingdom of land and sea.

"May this be the union between the citizens of Melini and the mermaids of the Sea Monarch!"

With everyone silent and watching, you, the true monarch of sea, and Laios, the devourer of all things horrible, each go to take the final bites of the lions remains.

"With this shared meal, I hope against all adversaries and conflict that this union lasts a millennia. I thank you all for attending this dinner with the mermaids and I."

With that, everyone went back to feasting on the monstrous parts of Falin's flesh. Quite an odd predicament, but after what you and Laios did, it was much more tame.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Laios asked you, holding a plate of raw sushi towards you.

"I—it's a habit I have yet to forget."

Holding the raw flesh wrapped in rice and kelp, you hesitated for a moment before taking a small bite.

It tasted wonderful.

You ate more and more to the point the mermaids told you to slow down.

"Your majesty! Careful now!"

Laughing, you said, "Please forgive my impudent behavior, but how shall I behave when I can eat without this melancholic heart of mine?"

You wished this night could last for centuries without no end. However, you knew that was only a hopeless dream.

As the night progressed, more and more people would leave. The mermaids swam deep in the water for rest, those of land, going to their shelters, and warm beds. Eventually, it was just you and Laios.

Once again, you two sat by the seaside—it was the only place you two could be together. In silence, you two watched as the moon overtook the sun's position.

"(y/n)," Laios spoke suddenly. He turned to your direction and reached to hold both your hands. "I thought about this for a while, and I—I..."

Laios struggled to get his words out without making a complete fool of himself. Blushing and flustered, he held your hands tighter. "—Will you marry me!"

You were frozen in place.

You didn't know what to say. Marriage was something the lion told you about in only stories, never as something that may happen to you one day. Marriage was a concept foreign to mermaids, and you in turn. All you knew in that moment was that when you saw how red Laios was, that marriage must be something with great importance and the ultimate bond of love for humans.

"Laios! I—I.....I am unable to accept your proposal." You were leaving tomorrow morning. You two were separated by biology and land. He shouldn't marry someone like you. "We are leaving Melini tomorrow. The land is rising at an unsteady pace; We could be stranded at any moment in the night, and we need to wary of these conditions."

Laios grabbed your wrist when he saw you pull away. "Is that the only reason?"

You were melancholic, gentle soul.

Despite your feelings of affection towards Laios, you didn't want to bond with him on such an intimate level when you only had met him a little less than six times. You wish you could stay him just a bit longer to know him enough to accept.

Realizing how uncomfortable you must be from his sudden proposal, Laios let you go.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to—"

"It's alright, Laios."

Laios stood up as he bowed in shame.

"I still apologize for being so forceful,"

"Laios—"

Before you could call out to him, he was already gone.

Even with your own feelings of insecurities, you couldn't help but let out a laugh as you thought about how "Laios" Laios was.

You do hope he sees you off tomorrow.

𓆞𓆝 𓆟

The winds bellowed, and the ocean danced, and still no sight of Laios. You held your head up for the sake of the mermaids. You refuse for them to have a melancholic monarch!

"It's time for us to leave, Your Highness."

"I am well aware. Go on before me, I wish to remain just a bit longer."

Watching as the sun changed from a dark blue to red and yellow, then blue, you wanted to see many other things on land. Things you'll never see while bound by water.

Desire was the greatest curse of them all.

When you heard familiar rapid footsteps in the sand, you turned around to see a figure throw themselves on you. You nearly fell in the water when you picked your assailant.

"Laios?!"

Placing him down, you saw him breathe heavily.

"I tried to come as soon as possible but they kept talking and talking! I had Kabru and Marcille distract them as I ran!"

"Laios...." You leaped forward and hugged him as the two of you fell onto the sand. "You're quite the amusing one, aren't you?"

"Yes!"

You two just laughed as you both laid in the sand to catch your composure. With bright sun lighting his face up, Laios really looked gentle as he sounded.

"Laios?" You turned on your side and reached out to hold one of his hands. "When you proposed to me yesterday and after I rejected you, I wanted to elaborate further on my reasoning for doing so."

You sat up and pulled yourself in the water. Still holding Laios' hand, you gently pulled on his hand as if to pull him into the water: He reflexively resisted.

"I can not leave the water nor can I force you in, even with the water's blessing. How could you wish to marry someone like me? Despite that, you are now king of Melini. You have the responsibility to rebuild the fallen kingdom and to guide the future of the people. As you have the citizens of Melini, I have my own people to care for. The mermaids still have need for my protection from this foreign sea and humans that wish to capture them. To marry in time as now is irresponsible and quite foolish."

Laios let go of your hand as he looked away in shame. "I'm so sorry for—"

"—'In a time like this.' Things may change in the future. The future of Melini won't always be in turmoil." You reached out and held Laios' face in your hands. "This is not to say that things aren't able to change. There's no telling how I'll accept your proposal in the near future."

Letting go Laios, you fell back into the water. No longer bound by the size and limit of food in the dungeon, there was no need to restrict yourself to this sapient form. Soaking in all you can, you became more of the jellyfish you once were. Abandoning most of your sapient features, you embraced your jellyfish nature.

"I'll be departing now, Laios. If you so decide to take me as your spouse even as I take this form, then meet me on the west coast once all of Melini shows itself. Perhaps then I'll be able to bring myself to accept."

Laios stood still, amazed at the sight of something as enchanting as you. Even as a mess of jelly, you still remained the lovable you—for Laios, that was enough.

"I'll make sure to bring Falin. She would love to someone as beautiful as you." Laios stepped forward and kneeled before you. "(y/n), no matter what form you take, my feelings will never change."

"Then, if you must, serenade me with a song of yours. The mermaids spoke once of it, and I wish to hear it."

"Of course."

You wished you could walk on land: To live without the restrictions of your gelatinous body. Was it so selfish to want to be with the one you desire?

No matter how strong that desire was. Your love and loyalty to the mermaids were stronger.

However, no matter how apart you two were, the bond made in a short period of time would prove to live throughout the testament of time.

𓆟 𓆞𓆝

"There once was a jellyfish who wished to be human; There once was a knight who wished to be the evil dragon.

There once was a jellyfish who fell in love with a knight.

With every flower, tree, coral, and grain of sand, the jellyfish loved everything around the knight.

With every fiber, lappet, flesh, blood, bone, and soul, the knight loved everything jellyfish consumed and breathed.

Separated by land and sea, once a year, they met at the coast of Melini and the edge of Thalassa. As if a dream, they sing the song of water and dance to their heart's content.

'Thus this dream never end'

'Thou these hearts dance and bond under the sun.'

'How I wish dearly for our union to remain true.'

These were the wishes of the King of Melini and the Monarch of Thalassa.

Blessed by the water of the world, birthed from both land and sea, I, Queen Levia, hereby declare Melini and Thalassa one nation sharing the same flesh, blood, bone, heart and soul."

Thank you for reading!

#dunmeshi x reader #delicious in dungeon x reader #delicious in dungeon #dungeon meshi #laios touden x reader #laios touden #laius thorden x reader #there once was a jellyfish....#there once was a knight....

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wenigstenshabeichesversucht · 1 month

Text

Nobody’s son, nobody’s daughter

Pairing: Luke Castellan x Poseidon!Reader

Summary: You loved him, and you left him, years later you met again, now hunter and pray.

Warnings: hurt, self-fulfilling prophecies, Lovers to Enemies, english is not my native language

Word Count: 1k

(i. You’re in the wind, I’m in the water)

Prophecies had a funny way to become true. The more you did to prevent them, the more you helped to fulfill them. Asked Laius, King of Thebes. He gave away his son Oedipus because it was prophesied that his son would kill him. At the end Oedipus killed Laius because he didn’t know that the King was his father. Not to mention that Oedipus, after killing Laius, married his own mother, hence it’s called Oedipus complex, if someone is interested in one of his parents. All of this could have been prevented if Laius had not tried to stop the prophecy. You had thought that would be enough for everyone to learn the lesson about self-fulfilling prophecies and trying to meddle with fate.

But that was before you learned about the Great Prophecy given by the Oracle over seventy years ago. A prophecy which was hanging over you like a sword of Damocles since you had arrived at camp and your father had claimed you.

The prophecy in question said, that a kid of one of the big three, had to save or damn the Olympus at the sweet age of sixteen. Right now, you were the only known child of one of the big three. A few years back, there had been another child, Thalia, daughter of Zeus, but she died on the border of Camp Half-Blood. Now the responsibility felt solely on your shoulders, and you hated it. Some days you would love nothing more than to scream at your father, Poseidon. But you were already cursed enough, you didn’t want to draw his wrath onto yourself. You just wanted peace. You just wanted to turn sixteen without having to save Olympus. Was that too much to ask for? It seemed so.

“Sometimes I hate everything about being a half blood”, you told your boyfriend Luke Castellan, son of Hermes, as you two were sitting at the beach, watching the waves hitting the shore. The sun was slowly setting, painting the clouds about your heads in a mix of orange and pink. He was sitting behind you with his arms around you and his chin was resting on your shoulder. He was the golden boy of the camp, and you were glad, that he had found interest in you. You, who had been cursed with this prophecy. The fate of the world was resting on your shoulders and that didn’t make you easier to love. But he loved you and was possibly the only reason you hadn't freaked out from sheer fear yet. Fear about what was to come, fear about messing it all up.

“It's not fair what everyone expects from you, but you are handling it so well, love”, he whispered in your ears and feeling his hot breath on your skin, you closed your eyes. If you could, you would stay at this moment forever. The soft rushing of the waves in the air, his warm hands on your body, the peace of your mind.

“I love you”, turning in his embrace, you gazed into his beautiful brown eyes. You loved him more than you could ever put into words. You loved to watch him comfort the younger kids, flying through air with his winged shoes or sword fighting in the area.

“I love you more, and I will always stay by your side”, he promised, before connecting his lips with yours.

Later, you would realize, that this promise was meant to be broken, like all promises.

Luke broke his promise, that he would always stay by your side, in the cruelest way possible. Your sixteen’s birthday was less than two weeks away, when he got a quest from his father. He could have taken you with him, but in the end he didn't. He left you back at camp, according to him, for your own protection. He left you when you needed him the most.

Your dreadful birthday came closer and closer, and you couldn’t take it. In the end your angst was stronger than your love for him, and you did the only thing you could think of to prevent the prophecy. You left camp and Luke behind and joined the Hunters of Artemis to stop aging.

(ii. Nobody’s son, nobody’s daughter)

Years later you met again. Everything had changed except your appearance. You looked frozen in time, still like the girl that he left behind at camp all those years ago. But everything else had changed.

He was older, a gruesome scar adored his face and, in his eyes, laid no more kindness. He was no longer Hermes son; he was a traitor. You were no longer Poseidon’s daughter; you were a huntress. You were no longer lovers; you were the hunter, and he was your prey.

Putting an arrow in your bow, you took aim. But something was holding you back, you couldn’t shoot.

“Y/N!”, finally he took notice of you. Years ago, there was love in his voice, when he addressed you, now there was only pain. He had hurt you, and you had hurt him, that was the way things went. And now you would kill him for his treason.

Letting go of the arrow, it pierced through the air, the feathers were caressing his face, before the arrow embedded itself in the trunk next to Luke's head. Both of you knew, that if you really had wanted to kill him, he would have been dead. But in the pit of your stomach was something that felt like regret. Something that stopped you from piercing his forehead with your arrow.

He left you first, but he returned. You never returned. He returned from a failed quest to find out his girlfriend left him, to join the maiden hunt. That wasn’t an excuse to swear an oath to Kronos, but by wanting to prevent the prophecy you pushed Luke in the wrong direction. Now it was the job of your younger half brother to safe Olympus, he was the kid of the prophecy, thanks to you.

“The next time I see you, I will kill you”, your stern voice left no room for doubt. You wouldn’t miss your next shot.

“Run!”, you didn't have to tell Luke twice. Like a hare fleeing from a wolf, he ran away. It hurt to see him running away instead towards you. Maybe that would help to finally learn your lesson about self-fulfilling prophecies.

#luke castellan #luke castellan x reader #luke castellan imagine #luke castellan pjo #luke pjo #luke castellan oneshot #luke castellan angst #luke castellan x fem!reader #luke castellan x you #luke castellan x poseidon!reader #percy jackson #pjo tv show #pjo series #percy jackon and the olympians #rick riordan #pjo fandom #pjo #artemis

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cophene · 8 months

Text

𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐌𝐄𝐓 | vento aureo; fourteen.

☆ ⁺ « 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐌

thirteen v1 || thirteen v2 || next chapter || table of contents

pairing : vento aureo x gn reader summary : with virtually nothing left in their credit account, a gang of space thieves turn to the richest man in the galaxy to give them a job worth millions. too bad those never come easy, even with stand abilities and a pretty-faced crew. notes : sci fi au, multi-chapter fic, sfw, doesn’t follow canon plot word count : 3.4k+

content warning : descriptions of violence

★˚⋆ A LOW BREEZE STIRRED THE ends of Trish's scarf as the two of you waited for the Galactic Authorities to show up. Your crew had been to its fair share of resort colonies and satellites, but Laius really took the cake. If you'd had the time, you wouldn't have been opposed to spending a few nights here. This place was excess and gambling and entertainment bundled into one colony, and you wondered how it could hold itself up from the sheer amount of partying going on here. During your crew's prime, it was exactly the kind of place you would have loved.

Fugo locking the ship's route to Bend Gate IX turned out to be brilliant. Even as the ship's systems had powered off, the mechanics hadn't been able to turn off the main engine and boosters propelling the ship towards the Bend Gate. The ship had passed through the gate at precisely the right moment, and the momentum and force of it had pried off the second ship Zucchero had pulled over the Passione like a glove.

Luckily, all of your crew had ended up on the second, newer ship while Sale and Zucchero were stranded on the old Passione, something you wouldn't have known if Coco Jumbo hadn't come back to its senses to tell you.Once he'd shaken himself off, Narancia had flown over in a spare pod to haul the two back, where they were further incapacitated and shut up in the ship's hold.

After a healthy amount of yelling, finger-pointing and denial, your crew had settled down enough to touch down on Laius, where Pericolo supposedly was. Seeing as you didn't want to become wanted murderers as well as thieves, you and Trish contacted the GA's under the guise of a very traumatized widow and her companion to take Sale and Zucchero off of the crew's hands. The GA's could've seen through the bullshit story immediately, but evidently, the mechanics had more than a few felonies under their belts, because not too many questions were asked.

Nonetheless, Trish had hidden her hair under a large white scarf and a pair of ridiculously huge sunglasses. You were wearing the maintenance uniform from the Hub and Mista's rustly hat from Zero's party. Sale and Zucchero were sitting a ways off, sacks over their heads, and still passed out from everyone using them as punching bags.

From the corner of your eye, you caught Trish trying to hide a wince as she shifted her weight. A needle of guilt went through you. Trish and Narancia hadn't been as badly banged up as Fugo and Mista, but everyone had taken a beating going through the Bend Gate. You were grateful the injuries weren't worse, but it never should have happened to begin with.

"I shouldn't have been so stupid," you murmured, more to yourself than Trish. She looked at you quickly, her mouth downturned.

"How many times do we have to tell you not to blame yourself? It's not your fault Sale and Zucchero came onto the ship. You couldn't have been expected to know."

"But I'm the Captain. And the Passione is my ship. It should have been obvious." Even now, you felt gutted, knowing the ship you'd loved and treated like a crew member was beyond repair. You'd been forced to abandon her in deep space and it felt terrible, leaving her behind after all she'd done for your crew. "I'm the one who wanted us to go on this mission for Zero and look how terribly it's turning out. At this rate, we'll be dead before we ever find the Stand Arrow."

"We've been through worse," Trish huffed. "It's honestly a little insulting that you think so little of us, Captain. Everyone is fine. It takes more than two slimy mechanics to bring us down."

"We lost the Passione," you said quietly. "Isn't that close enough?"

Trish took your hand and squeezed it. Even after all this time aboard a ship, her hands were still soft.

"We loved that ship, Captain, but it's still just a ship. What's more important is that we're still here, together."

You squeezed Trish's hand back. That was true, at least. You were all still here.

Almost all of you.

One of the GA's nondescript black Levi's pulled alongside you right then. You and Trish pulled on twin masks of stress, exclaiming out loud when a trio of GA's stepped out from the vehicle to greet you.

"Would you be the widow and companion who gave us a call earlier?" The one in charge asked in a terribly familiar voice. Your stomach sank. Bag of flack. Of course it had to be Inspector Asswipe who had answered your call.

Trish sniffled. She put on her Upper Space accent in full force to hide her surprise. "We would be."

As she launched into a complicated recounting of how the two mechanics had attacked the two of you on her pleasure cruiser, you tried to make yourself inconspicuous. The last thing you needed was for Asswipe to haul you off along with the mechanics.

Was it just you, or did he look worse than usual? Dark circles smudged beneath his eyes and his pale hair escaped his ponytail in tangled wisps. His uniform was rumpled and for once, he wasn't standing like an iron rod had been shoved up his ass. He didn't look entirely present as the two GA's with him recorded Trish's statement and then headed off to mag-cuff Sale and Zucchero and lift them into the Levi.

"We appreciate your cooperation on this matter, ma'am," he said woodenly once the mechanics were safely secured. "We're just grateful neither you nor your companion sustained major injuries during this incident."

"We were extremely fortunate," Trish said. "But it's only because of your quick response that we got out when we did."

"We are forever thankful," you said, keeping your eyes down. "We wouldn't know what to do if it weren't you officers."

Asswipe pressed his lips together. "It's our duty. We wouldn't be expected to perform otherwise."

"I just don't understand how something like this could be possible," Trish said, playing up the air-headed widow. "We searched our entire cruiser and found no one else was on board. How we could have missed them is beyond us."

"It was likely the work of a Stand," Asswipe said. It took everything in you not to gape at him. Stand? How the flack did Asswipe know about Stands?

"I'm sorry?" you said, feigning confusion.

Asswipe coughed. "It's difficult to explain. Something of an abnormality that we've noticed some individuals in the galaxy displaying. It grants them abilities that the general population are unable to pick up on unless directly affected."

"How terrifying," Trish gasped.

"Your case is an exception. These 'Stand users' keep to their own. They don't go after civilians. You won't encounter them again."

If only. You couldn't help but wonder if this meant Asswipe had a Stand himself or it was just secondhand information. Because if Asswipe did have a Stand, it made things a hell of a lot more complicated. Maybe that was how he always appeared on your ass even after your crew took every precaution.

Asswipe tilted his head to listen to his earpiece. "We'll be leaving now. The two mechanics will be dealt with accordingly. Please do not hesitate to reach out to the GA line should anything else come up."

You and Trish nodded. "Thank you again so much for your expeditious response," Trish said.

Asswipe raised an eyebrow. "Of course. Anything for the Captain."

Your head snapped up before you could think better of it. You met Asswipe's purple-yellow eyes, surprised when a knowing gleam went through them. Had you heard that right? But in what universe Asswipe would recognize you and not immediately try to arrest you?

Asswipe tilted his beret to the two of you. "Stay safe. Have a pleasant stay on Laius." With that, he strode off, stepping into the Levi and driving off on the mag belts. You stared after him, expecting the Levi to turn around any second now to chase after you.

It didn't.

"I can't believe he didn't recognize us," Trish said mildly. "He's usually pretty keen on that."

You opened your mouth before closing it. If Trish hadn't heard the Captain comment, neither had you.

"Let's get back to the ship," you said. "We need to find Pericolo."

You and Trish returned to the ship to find her empty. As shiny and new as she was, you couldn't bring yourself to think of her as the Passione. If it was the ship you would be staying with, you'd have to work with the crew on giving her a new name.

You poked your head in all the rooms, perplexed to find they were all vacant. Trish didn't find anyone in the galley and there was no one in the bridge either.

"Oi, Coco," said into your holopad. It took a second for the turtle to answer.

[ O CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN. ]

"Where did everyone go? Did they leave?"

[ EVERYONE IS CURRENTLY DOWN IN THE HOLD. IF YOU'RE NOT OTHERWISE BUSY, I'D SUGGEST YOU GET DOWN THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. ]

Your heartbeat kicked up a notch. You started down for the cargo hold, Trish on your heels. "And you couldn't have told me this as soon as I got back?"

[ I GOT SWEPT UP IN THE EXCITEMENT. MANY SORRIES. ]

You and Trish were struck speechless at the boys in the cargo hold. You had no other way to describe it but that a literal torture dance was playing out in front of you. A boy was bound and gagged at their feet, forced to watch Mista, Fugo, and Narancia's impromptu choreography. More than that, the same holopad had been propped up to shine a searing needle of light into one of the boy's eyes.

"You're gonna have to start worrying about your other eye if you don't flacking talk."

"Just blab already. Sale and Zucchero aren't going to help you, you know."

"Talk, dammit! What are you doing on this ship?!"

"What the hell is going on here?"

In unison, Mista, Narancia and Fugo turned to look at you.

"Who is that?" Trish shrieked, rushing over. "What are you doing to them?"

"We found him in the hold," Narancia blubbered. He silenced the holopad. "He was hiding on the ship with Sale and Zucchero."

"Probably meant to finish us off when those two assholes couldn't," Mista said tightly.

Fugo was scowling. "We're trying to get him to talk but he won't say a thing."

"How the hell can he talk when you're burning one of his eyeballs?" you snapped. You smacked the holopad away and yanked the guy away from Mista and Narancia, pulling out his gag and undoing his restraints. The guy collapsed against your shoulder, pressing his hands against his eye and taking in ragged breaths.

"I'm sorry," he whimpered. "I'm so sorry."

"What's wrong with all of you?" Trish demanded. She looked ready to smack everyone upside the head. "If this kid was with Sale and Zucchero, he would've killed us by now, not sit around while you tortured him!"

"Then why was he just hiding here?" Mista retorted. "We never picked him up. If he's not with those two flackbags, he's trying to off us before we get to the Stand Arrow!"

"Everyone be quiet," you said sharply. "Someone get me a gel patch from the med bay. Now."

Wordlessly, Narancia left the cargo hold. You settled the guy down against one of the storage crates and drew back to give him space. You realized Trish was right. It was just a kid. And not just any kid—the same one who you had seen working at Sale and Zucchero's shop.

"We're not going to hurt you," you said gently. "Anymore, at least. But you do need to tell us who you are and what you're doing on this ship. Are you in trouble? Do you need help?"

Trish crouched beside you, her delicate face pinched with worry. You felt Fugo draw closer and Mista's stormy silence as he watched.

The boy didn't answer. He made no sound, though his entire body trembled. His dusty coveralls seemed to swallow his slender frame, and you wrinkled your nose at the tang of oil and grease on him.

"Here you go, Cap." Over your shoulder, Narancia passed over a gel patch. You gingerly handed it to the boy, who took it and pressed it against his eye. He breathed out a sigh and his shaking stopped.

He lifted his face to you. Matted dark hair obscured most of his face but you could make out his uncovered eye. It was a rich, dark green, the pupil narrowed to a pinprick.

"I'm sorry," he said again, hoarsely. "I didn't mean any harm. I don't want to hurt you. Any of you."

"How did you get here?" Fugo asked, a coil of anger still in his words.

The boy hesitated. "I knew the two mechanics were planning something," he said haltingly. "I overheard them talking in the shop. I wanted to warn you somehow, so I snuck on board. But then Zucchero ... did something, and I got stuck on the second ship, the one that got covered. I couldn't get out until the ships separated."

"You weren't working with the mechanics?" Mista asked pointedly.

"No! I only worked at their shop because I couldn't find a job anywhere else. I wanted to help you. Really."

Trish's face softened. "So you're from the Hub. If only we had found you sooner. We could've brought you to the Galactic Authorities so they could—"

"You can't!" the boy burst out. A flush rose on his cheeks and he looked down. "You can't," he repeated, quieter.

"What are you talking about?" Narancia went to sit down beside the boy. "It sucks that those two flackbag mechanics dragged you all the way out here to Laius. Don't you want to go back home? Your family must be worried sick."

The boy shook his head. "The Hub ... it isn't my home. It's just somewhere I stayed for a while. I don't—I don't really have anywhere to go back to. It was either the mechanics' shop or being booted off the Hub."

"Are you a runaway?" Mista sniffed.

The boy didn't look up. "I guess so. My ... family was killed in a ship explosion. I couldn't stay on our planet so I hitched a ride to the Hub and tried to make it there."

"Explosion?" Trish's eyes widened. "You couldn't be talking about the Eos? The ship that Prince Giovanna was on?"

"That's the one." The boy's voice was small.

Your heart twinged.

"Damn," Narancia breathed. He wrapped a hand around the kid's shoulders and he stiffened. "That's hella rough. You're pretty strong to make it all the way out there."

The boy said nothing. The gel pack fell limply to his lap.

"It doesn't change the fact that he can't stay here," Fugo pointed out. "We still need to take him to the GA's."

"Can't I stay with you?" the boy asked. He lifted his head, his eyes wide and desperate. "I can work. I know my way around a ship. You won't even know I'm here."

"The nature of our work makes it too dangerous for you to stay." Fugo crossed his arms. "You'd get in the way. We unfortunately don't have the time or resources to spend on you right now."

The boy turned from Fugo to you. "You're the Captain, right? Sale and Zucchero said you were looking for—for a Stand Arrow? For Zero? I can help you! Tell me what to do and I'll do it!"

You shook your head. "It's too dangerous. We can't let you get caught up in this."

"If you can work, you should find work here on Laius," Trish added. "You're a little young, but the casinos and bars around here could probably use help."

"I can't stay here. I have to come with you." The boy pushed Narancia's arm off his shoulders. He got to his feet, rearranging his expression into something more resolute. "What if I told you I have one of those abilities you have? A Stand?"

"Yeah, right," Mista scoffed under his breath.

"I can heal people. Make them new living tissue. Wouldn't that be useful? I can't take pain away, but any injury you get, I could repair it." The boy gestured to Trish. "I can show you. Give me your arm. I noticed you have a scratch."

Trish glanced at you before extending her arm. The boy took it firmly and ran his fingers along her skin. You couldn't see clearly what happened, but after a few minutes, the angry raised lines on Trish's skin settled and disappeared. Trish gawked at him, awed.

"Take me with you," the boy said. His eyes were fierce. "I can help you find the Stand Arrow."

You looked at him, wondering why that expression looked familiar. The refusal you should have given stalled on your tongue.

"Time out for a second," Mista said. He pulled you and the rest of the crew over to a corner, away from the boy's earshot. He crossed his arms. "You can't actually be thinking about this. He's a kid! And he's scrawny as hell! They're gonna eat him alive out there if we don't accidentally step on him first!"

"We all used to be kids," you murmured. "We were all a lot like him when we first started."

"But we're already too far into the plan to add a new member," Fugo argued. "It would make things more complicated. Give us another variable we need to crunch."

Mista canted his head in agreement. "We just met the guy. How do we know we can trust him? If he can't steal worth a flack he'll just drag us down."

"He healed my arm," Trish said. "He really does have a Stand ability. We really could use a healer on the crew."

Mista waved his elector. "He could be a rat from some crew trying to screw us over!"

"Coco," Fugo said to the turtle. You hadn't even noticed he'd been holding it until now. "What are our chances of success if we accept that kid onto the crew?"

Coco took a moment before answering. [ WHILE DENYING THE KID DOESN'T CHANGE THINGS, ACCEPTING HIM INCREASES SUCCESS BY 12.36%, ASSUMING HE WASN'T BLUFFING ABOUT HIS STAND ABILITY. ]

Fugo looked confused. "That much?"

[ YEPPERS. HAVING A HEALER ON THE TEAM DRASTICALLY IMPROVES YOUR CHANCES. ALL OF YOUR PLANS INCLUDE A HEALTHY DOSE OF BODILY HARM. ]

Fugo still looked hesitant. Mista didn't look like his mind had changed at all.

"Let's vote," you said. "All in favour of letting the kid onto the crew, raise your hand."

Narancia and Trish raised their hands. Fugo squinted at the turtle, then looked back at the guy before tentatively raising his hand too.

"Oh, come on," Mista grumbled. "Kicking him off at Laius is way easier than kicking him out in space."

[ IF IT HELPS, HAVING A YOUNG FACE INCREASES YOUR SYMPATHY AMONG THE MASSES TOO. ]

"You shut up," Mista snapped at the turtle.

A part of you was inclined to hand the kid over to the Galactic Authorities. But yet another part of you couldn't help remembering a pair of blue eyes creased at the corners, nudging you teasingly whenever you made it hard for a new member.

"Give them a chance. You never know when they might save your life."

No matter who they were, he always gave people chances. His trust was always given freely and he'd never paid for it until—

—well, until he had.

The crew drifted back to the kid. He looked between everyone furtively, his body angled toward the bay doors as though he was ready to bolt.

"How old are you?" you asked.

"... Eighteen."

Narancia's mouth fell open. "Wait, you're not a kid at all. You're basically the same age as us."

Fugo asked, "Can I see your ident chip?"

JoJo hesitated before reaching into a pocket and reluctantly handing it over.

Fugo narrowed his eyes. "I'll be running a scan on this, just so you know. If you are who you say you are, I shouldn't find any surprises."

Trish rolled her eyes at him and said to the boy, "Can we at least get your name?"

"It's ... JoJo. My friends call me that."

Mista scoffed. "What's your real name?"

"... Johnny Jones." He ducked his head.

Narancia made a face. "No wonder they call you JoJo."

You extended a hand. "I'm sorry about the way my crew treated you. They didn't have the right. From here on out you're a part of the crew. Since you know about the Stand Arrow, you also know we don't have time to flack around. Zero doesn't mess around when it comes to jobs. You have a lot to catch up on. Hope you can keep up."

JoJo took your hand and shook it once. "You don't need to worry about me. I told you that."

"We'll see about that. You're coming with me for your first mission."

JoJo's eyes glinted. "And what mission is that?"

"We're going to meet Pericolo."

Your crew erupted into protests.

thirteen v1 || thirteen v2 || next chapter || table of contents

#kismetva #jjba #jjba x reader #jjba fanfic #golden wind #golden wind x reader #vento aureo #vento aureo x reader #gender neutral reader #sci fi au

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dungeonfood · 3 months

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Hi guys! I've been gone for a while! A looong while. Mostly busy with life and other stuff. It happens

But I couldn't help but notice the increase in readers everywhere! I’m so happy more people are getting into Dungeon Meshi! It really deserves the attention :D

In fact, I kept receiving so many notifications (thank you for that! They made me happy every time they popped up) that i caved in and started revisiting my old works

And I’ll be honest- I didn't quite like them anymore. I felt they didn’t reflect my writing style. So I decided to re-do them!

Right now, I'm re-writing a Laius x Reader I had posted on AO3 . It’s a beastkin! Reader, and there’s some funky androgynous/intersex stuff going on with them, so it might not be everyone's cup of tea -it’s certainly not one of my tamest fics-, but if you are interested, feel free to drop by and give it a read! The first chapters don't delve too deeply into sex/gender stuff, so they should be safe and fluffy

I’ll be leaving the link here as soon as the first chapter is done and published

#laius x reader #laios/reader #dungeon meshi #delicious in dungeon #dungeon meshi imagine #laios touden #laios x reader #laios touden imagine #dunmesh

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cautuscoralcoast · 3 months

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The Flesh, Blood, Bone, Heart and Soul : There once was a jellyfish who wished to be human

Laios Touden x Monster! Reader

Synopsis - you're a jellyfish who had no heart or soul to even desire the purest desire—you wanted nothing and desired not even the will to eat. One day, a winged lion came to you and asked if you wanted to see. You didn't know what that meant at the time; that was until the lion wanted you to meet a human.

Word count: 7.8k

Tw. Very brief mentions cannibalism, depictions of violence and lots of blood, near character death, eating disorders, major spoilers for the manga, viewer's discretion advised

Next.

For the longest time, you were just a jellyfish. A lone jellyfish floating in the abyss of water, deep in the dungeon.

You watched as those sea creatures ate each other. Feasting on each others flesh and tearing tails and fins off of each other. But then you would watch them mate and produce offspring — and the cycle repeats.

All you would and could do was watch as they did so; just eating the scraps and algae. And that was all you would do — eat. With no coherent thought, you were just a regular jellyfish in an aquarium full of monsters.

"Do you want to think?"

What was there to think? All you needed to do was eat.

"Do you want to see those mermaids in disgust?"

Why would you want to see mermaids? You already can.

"Do you want to go beyond this aquarium and up above the surface?"

You don't know what that means.

It wasn't anything magical or grand. One day, you realized you were alive and living in a sea with other live creatures. You didn't think much of it. It was as if you knew for your entire life.

It was when one of the mermaids tried attacking you, did you realize what the power of sentience gave you.

You could eat more than just scraps.

From a jellyfish, you morphed into a monstrous, distorted version of a mermaid. The more you ate, the bigger you got, and the more you turned into into a coverage shape. You became the serpant of the dungeons sea, devorour of all creatures from the waters. You ate undines, mermaids, mermen, and anything that was in your domain.

But then one day, suddenly, you felt something new.

You felt lonely.

There were very little monsters of your kind that would dare approach you. Even then, you ate so much there wasn't anything that could approach you.

You didn't want to eat anymore. You didn't want those monsters gone. You don't want to be alone.

You morphed from a leviathan sea serpant back into a jellyfish like-form. With flesh akin to jellyfish and a form similar to the mermaids that sung you songs: You were you.

"Do you want to go back to how things were?"

"If I did, then things would get as scary as I was and eat everything."

"They still would regardless of your wishes."

"Then stop allowing them!"

"They are the same as you, unknowing. It is my faith and goodwill to grant those with desires, knowledge."

"Then what may I do?"

"Do you want things to go back as they were before?"

"No."

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

Like the sea anemones and algae, you remained stationary in place.

You sat on a coral throne, hands in your lap, listening to the mermaids sing. You watched as juvenile mermaids and merman fought each other, and despite the mermaids always having the upper hand, you enjoyed seeing the mermen struggle for survival. It was truly amazing to see the will all living things in the dungeons waters have to live. It was a perfect equalizer, keeping the population of both at bay.

As you sat on your coral throne, like the canary birds that sing, you sang the monarchs melody for the mermaids. You sang your song, and they would sing theirs. They wove you dresses and hairpieces from the coral and stone under the dungeons floor. They gave you the flesh of mermen, bladefish, and cephalopds. You felt the meat the mermaids would in your hands. You squeezed the lump of flesh as blood flowed in the water, and you devoured it.

You hated eating.

It was one of the things you came to despise. For you, it was the source of all evil things. It was desire and hunger that nearly made you eat all living things in this artificial ocean. It was the desire to eat that ruined you. Hunger and desire was what made so very lonely. It was that very desire that caused so many plants and organisms to suffer in pain. You couldn't believe you ate all those creatures.

You hated eating.

Only eating when you were on the brink of death.

You were the hunter; you dominated the waters of the dungeon. You watched and felt every movement in the water. You smelled and tasted every bit of blood that flowed in the water. You saw everything — there was not a single thing that could escape your watchful eyes. You sought out those monsters with desires as strong as yours, and with a watchful gaze, you wrapped your lappets around the still living prey. They could try biting you, tearing your skin, scratching out pieces of your flesh, but that never stopped your attack. There was no need to pay attention to pain you couldn't feel. They never were alive long enough to injure you anyway—especially not when you had the water's blessing.

Your lappets constricting and tightening as you felt them grow faint. Their mind and body numbing as you constricted tighter. They couldn't hurt you when they couldn't move.

As they remain barely conscious, you dug through their flesh and ripped the bones out. You peeled any fur off the skin and ate the tissue. You chewed on the blood vessels, trying to draw out more and more blood. You constricted around them tighter and tigher to watch the blood squeeze out of the limp lump of flesh. You tightened your hold on it as you tore through muscle and fat to reach the heart.

It was only when you had all the hearts that you finally let go of the lifeless piece of flesh.

The mermaids really liked it when you brought them the heart of the prey. However, there were days you were especially hungry; just so very hungry, you couldn't help resist going out to hunt for more.

You felt the water move ever so slightly.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

Songs were the mermaids' passion.

As you rest upon your coral throne, the sung you songs. They loved to dance and sing the events of that day. They told you stories of the food they ate, the stones they found, the surface creatures they lured in the water, or even the mischievous actions of the youngest mermaid.

Blessed by the waters of the dungeon, songs became your passion.

Every night cycle, you love to rest in the coral reefs as they rest by your side. You would sing them your melody — one about the wonders and curse of gluttony. You lulled them to sleep, and once you were sure that they all were asleep, you would melt away and morph back into a jellyfish. You would shield them with your body, and it was only when you were sure they were safe, did you finally allow yourself to sleep.

The mermaids, sirens, fish, and kelpie were your passion.

You love them all so dearly. Despite knowing their nature to devour each other, you can't help but still love each and every one of them.

It wasn't their fault that they needed to eat. They were born, as all living things, to eat, consume, reproduce, die, and repeat. You couldn't blame them over something that is instinct. You were once the same; so very small, so very primitive. You were once just a jellyfish with no thought nor any sense of pain.

"There is this human who goes by the name Laios. Unlike the humans in the stories I tell you, he admires the monsters in the dungeon."

You opened your eyes as you hid beneath the coral reef. "Is that so?"

"He admires the biological nature of monsters. He has a deep passion for the monsters of this dungeon and holds a great yearning for knowledge."

"A human..." You asked as you held your lappets closer to your body. "Humans are the same as I, aren't they?"

The lion chuckled as his voice bellowed in your head. "Humans are much more extraordinary. They are born with the nature to exceed the instinct and animalistic nature all life is born with. They needed no gift to have the ability to think beyond nothing. You aren't anything close to their organic being; You're just an artificial attempt at intelligent life."

You tilt your head to your side as you pondered. "If I don't exceed this nature of mine and they do, then this human wouldn't have the primal fear when facing monsters, am I correct?"

"He wants to live alongside monsters. He doesn't wish for them to be seen as monsters but rather the same as the living creatures above."

"The same?"

"Yes—just as you accept the cruel nature of the creatures in your residence, he admires the art and anatomy of all of them."

"Will he hurt them?"

"He'll hurt them the same way they hurt their prey to eat."

"I see..." You closed your eyes as you tried to visualize this human the lion mentioned. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn't picture a human. You never saw anything above the water. You had no need to follow the mermaids as they hunted for prey. You had no need to ever venture above the known.

But a human...it was foreign to think that any living thing could ever set aside the primal instinct of life itself. So much so that they were willing to accept the creatures that deem them as prey.

"Why are you telling me about this human?"

"I want you to meet him."

A human named Laios, was it?

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

You sat on your coral throne as you watched the young mermaids play amongst themselves. You couldn't help but smile as one of the older mermaids scared them.

You held your hands close to your chest, and you sang your song. Some mermaids wove oriements into your your hair and lappets. They brushed out your clothing and adorned your head with a coral crown. Some of the mermaids sung, but never was it your song.

Songs are the passion of all mermaids.

Songs are the soul in each individual one. Despite the mutual respect you and the mermaids hold for each other, you aren't the same species. You have your melody, and they have their own. As much as they may love your voice, they would absolutely detest you if you tried to sing with them.

You held your hands up to your face as you thought of this. You wonder if humans were the same. The lion said they were the perfect beings to possess the ability to deny their instincts. Depsite being a mockery of sentience, you were also able to deny the instincts you were born with. If that's was makes something sapient then you are sure they would love to sing with you.

"The human sung?"

The mermaids in front of you seemed distressed as they waved their hands around, blowing rings in the water. One of them placed their head on your lap as they lamented the horrible voice of the human voice.

You couldn't help but chuckle as you pat her head. You never once heard of any surface dwellers trying to sing along with them. But as amusing as it was, you couldn't help sympathize with them.

Yet, you couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement at the fact that humans can sing along those foreign to them.

Not long after this, you heard that another surface dweller ate an undine.

"An undine?! Was it the same human?"

The mermaids shook their heads as they pointed to their ears.

"This one had long ears?"

The more they told you about this group of surface dwellers, the more you wanted to see for yourself.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

You never felt humiliation, pain, or defeat.

You were the monarch of sea within the dungeon. There was nothing that could best you underwater just as there was nothing you could not eat.

But above the surface, however, you didn't know if you held the same strength.

You were heavy—very, very heavy. You were bigger than any mermaid yet smaller than a kraken. you had thousands of lappets and hundreds of cloth woven by the mermaids. Your hair was abundant and adorned with millions of small oriements. Though you could reduce yourself to a smaller size, why do so when you're weightless underwater?

It was a dilemma you pondered for ages. The smaller you got, the less strength you possessed, and if you were too big, you wouldn't be able to move above water. You didn't want to be anywhere near where the mermaids usually reside. You didn't want to impede on their routine, nor did you wish to drag them into trouble if something were to happen. If you were looking for a location like that, there were little places you could emerge from. These places were also uncharted territory with how little any other aquatic species spent there.

But curiosity got the better of you, and so you swam up.

You stared for the longest at the water meeting the surface. You raised your hand to touch the small barrier separating the two. You closed your eyes as you thought about what the stories the lion and mermaids would tell you about the world above.

You took in a deep breath as you raised the top of your head above water. You felt the cold air on your forehead, and the light was blinding. You looked around as you saw a stone room—the same stone that made up the aquarium you called the sea. You pulled yourself on top of the stone flooring as you breathed lightly. It felt just as heavy as you had thought, but you didn't think you would be able to carry yourself with ease.

Just as you were acclimating to the change of environment, you heard footsteps coming from behind you. As quick as you went above, you went back into the water. You swam close to the surface as you warily looked through the ripples of the water.

You watched as a human male adorned in silver cloth ran close the water. You lowered yourself deeper into the water as he just briefly saw you.

"I swore I saw mermaid!"

Three others came along right behind as the long-eared female spoke up.

"Laios, there are no mermaids at this level of the dungeon, much less this area!—those mushrooms are making you hallucinate."

The longed-eared one, did she say Laios?

"Guys, I hear something in the water...."

Laios. Laios. Laios. Laios. Laios.

Laios was the one the lion told you about.

"Those mushrooms weren't hallucinogens! And there was a mermaid! This one was a different color! I always wondered if it was possible for monsters to be albino like regular animals we have on the island. It's possible that this mermaid is here because they were ostracized by the—"

You jumped out of the water and landed in front of the group of surface dwellers. You leaned down as you stared at the one adorned in silver cloth. He was smaller than expected; You thought he would be bigger than the mermaids, and he was, but only by a little.

"I never seen a mermaid that big!"

You turned to face the short–bearded man. You never thought surface dwellers could vary in size and shape. Most of the mermaids and mermen you saw were relatively the same in appearance.

"That's because that isn't a mermaid! This one seems to be a Scyphozoa demi-human varient judging by the tentacles."

The shortest one began to talk as he slowly walked backward, "Should we even be standing here waiting for it to attack?"

You snapped out of your daze as you remembered why you were here. You leaned even closer to what you presumed to be Laios and wrapped your hands around him.

"Huh?"

You caught a glimpse of the shape of the lion on his side, and it was then you knew that this, for sure was, Laios!

You lifted him up into the air as you twirled and jumped back into the water. You couldn't help but smile widely as you finally met the human the lion talked so highly about. You felt his body and were surprised by the sturdiness of the silver cloth. You were about to laugh at his puffed up cheeks when you remembered a crucial detail about surface dwellers.

You panicked as you hastily rose back up to the surface. You briefly loosened your grip on him as you felt the sudden decrease in pressure. As you did, he quickly used this to his advantage and got out his sword, and cut one of your hands.

"LAIOS!'

You let go out of him out of surprise, dropping him into the water. You looked at your hand as you saw blood oozing out. It wasn't often you were injured. It was also because of your lack of pain that there were many times when the mermaids noticed when you accidentally cut yourself when swimming near rocks or trident left by the mermen.

Remembering Laios, you dove back into the water to retrieve him. However, as you did so, the long–eared female ran up to you and tapped you with her staff.

You were surprised by her ability to walk on water, but you were even more so when you felt yourself get pushed out from the water.

You felt yourself choke.

Whatever that girl did to you, it made you sick. You struggled to balance yourself as you felt disoriented from seeing the water below you. You couldn't feel the water's blessing: You didn't feel safe. You saw Laios run up to you and cut some of your lappets.

Why would he hurt you?

"CHILCHUCK, AIM FOR THE NECK!"

Oh.

The look of determination and andrenalin you saw in their eyes was familiar. They thought you were going to eat them; just as you ate your prey, they thought you were going to kill them.

You struggled to sit up as you saw an arrow close in you.

This was your mistake. You should've conveyed your intentions clearly.

You covered your head as you dropped to the waters surface. You writhed on the surface, trying desperately to go back into the water. You tried destroying whatever separated you from your home, but no matter what you did, nothing worked.

Laios ran up to you with his sword, and he swung at your neck.

Just like underwater, in your domain, you felt time slow down.

Despite not being able to feel much pain, you certainly knew what areas of your body, once they began to bleed, would bring you death.

And he wanted to kill you.

But the look in his eyes wasn't of fear, nor was it out of the need to survive. It was something foreign, and it scared you.

You felt yourself breathe heavily as you became aware of the urgency of the situation.

"St—STAY BACK!!!"

Your voice reverberated, pushing all of them away.

This wasn't underwater.

You couldn't swim away, you couldn't use all of your strength, you couldn't avoid the attacks, you could hardly move, you felt sickly.

You should have been more prepared.

You felt the water briefly on your skin. As you saw the long–eared girl fall over, you felt yourself fall back into the water.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

For the longest time, you believed yourself to be similar to humans and all other surface dwellers.

That, unlike the mermaids, the mermen, the fish, the kraken, the giant crabs, and all monsters that fell into your waters; you could both interact with mutual understanding.

Despite your respect and love for the mermaids, you'll never be able to understand the gluttonous cannibalistic nature of theirs. You don't understand how they don't feel remorse in slaughtering the young mermen. You don't know how they eat more than their fair share.

Yes, you killed and brutalized monsters—but that was because they posed a danger to the rest of the ecosystem. They were just like you when you got intelligence. They were going to everything until there was nothing left. They were going to ruin everything. Besides, the only times you ate was when you fought those with the same gift as you. You couldn't bring yourself to eat something as innocent as the small critters in the dungeon.

You had to do it.

You weren't like the mermaids who gave into their sadistic, cannibalistic nature. You weren't like the mermen who thought of nothing other than to devour and reproduce. You weren't like kraken, who held a monstrous appearance without any hint of humanity. You didn't eat because you want to. You hated the taste flesh and blood; it is disgusting, filthy, and it brought extreme bouts of self–loathing.

You weren't a monster.

But they thought you were.

You sat your coral throne as you held your body close.

"Do I look like a monster?"

The lion stayed quiet for a long time. "You are far from what 'they' would consider sapient. Those mermaids of yours look far more human than you do."

You looked at your lappets. They were some as thin as veins, some a curly as frills, others as translucent as crystal. No other surface dweller has tendrils like these. Your skin is shades of blues, pinks, and purples: nothing like the shades of any humans the mermaids have described. Your ears weren't even natural—it was just remnant from when you became that monstrous sea serpent. Your nails were far too sharp: You were a jellyfish, you shouldn't even have nails. Nothing about you was normal: You didn’t resemble a single creature in this dungeon. You were an amalgamation of mistake after mistake, built upon an artificial creature.

"But not all of them are the same! There are some with long ears! Some are short and compact! Didn't you say that some live hundreds of years while others only sixty?! Like you said, they aren't all made equally! Not all of them are the same, right?! I can think and have desires besides the instincts I was born with! I may not be the same as them, but I am similar, right? So I—we should be able to understand each other! I—I don't—"

"You're fine the way you are."

You pulled on your hair; you wanted to pull it all out. Jellyfish don't have hair.

"Stop talking."

"You may not ever look nor ever become a true 'human', but that's what makes you extraordinary. You're the only being alive in this world to be loved by the sea and oceans itself to be blessed."

"I said to stay quiet!"

You wanted to rip your flesh out, to get all that blood out—jellyfish don't have either.

"You are evidence that monsters can gain humanity."

"SHUT UP!"

You wanted to do something but you don't know what.

"Oh, young child, you can cry if you so desire."

And so you cried for the first time in your hundreds of years of life.

You wish you had never desired to eat.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

The next time you would meet Laios, it would be when he nearly died.

You were resting on your coral throne; far away from any surface opening. You didn't want to go back up for another very long time. Leaning on the arm rest, covering your face with your hands, you watched as the mermaids tried to cheer you up. This was the first time any of them had seen their monarch sit in sadness. They didn't want to see their beloved monarch cry any longer.

Behind the coral throne were five mermaids; they were discussing what happened to their monarch to make them so sad. One of them piped up saying how they saw you go to the surface, and when you came back, you were bleeding. Out of concern and curiosity, they swam up to where you came from and saw four surface dwellers. They were with that detestable human that defiled their song. If they were with him, then they must have attacked you!

"W°e sh○uld br°ing ●ne ○f the•m her°e t○ all○w th°em t○ ge•t reve°n•g●!"

Imagine your surprise when you saw five mermaids holding an unconscious human male. One of them held the human in their arms as they struggled to swim up to your throne. You finally got up from your somber and flinched in surprise when you saw—

"Laios?"

You swam up and pulled him out of the mermaids arms: He felt limp in your arms. You brought his forehead towards yours as you looked at his face—he's alive.

You turned to the mermaid in confusion as you asked why they brought him here.

"Y○u w°ere sa•d ●•nd we° d○n't wa•nt t● se°e° y○u sa•d. Di°d we d○ s○me•thi•ng wr●ng?"

You wanted to scold them, you really did: However, you couldn't bring yourself to get mad at them. How were they supposed to know what was going through your mind? Besides, they didn't do this at of ill intent.

"No, you did just fine. However, I will have to handle this situation myself, so I'm afraid I'll have to depart temporarily. Please do tell your sisters not to leave the coral reef until I return."

You wrapped your arms around his body tightly when you saw the five mermaids leave. You sighed as you let go of him to grab his face. Though he is still alive, he wouldn't last much longer under in this state. You brought your lips towards his and placed a gentle kiss; You tried to share the water's blessing with him. If it worked as intended, it should help expell any water in his lungs the same way you and the mermaids do—at the very least, prevent any more water from entering his lungs.

You sighed, and so you swam towards the closet opening to the surface. You breached the water, and you pulled Laios onto the stone flooring—struggling to do so with how heavy the water made everything.

You fell on top of him in the struggle. You breathed heavily as you got up and sat yourself on the ledge. You looked over at him and wondered if he would wake up. Looking at him, you thought, since he was already unconscious when you found him, wouldn't he already have water in his lungs?

You panicked at the thought.

What to do, what to do, what do you even do? You never even met a creature who isn't even able to breathe under water, and now you have to save one.

"You may not have magic, but you have the water's blessing. As you did before to prevent the water from harming him, use it to draw out the water from his system."

You listened as the lion spoke from the back of your mind. You really didn't know if any of this would work. You grabbed the hem of his garment and raised it over his chest.

"Just imagine that the water is moving with your movements."

"How so?"

"You'll know."

You looked at Laios' abdomen and took a deep breath. You placed your finger right above his navel. Just as if you were going to cut him with your nail, you gently grazed his skin as you brought your finger up to his chest. You pushed your hand on his chest, and with your other hand, you stuck two fingers in his mouth.

"I'll know, I'll know, I'll know when I get there."

You felt the water brush your fingertips, and you pulled the water out of his mouth.

"Did that long–eared female also have the water's blessing? She was able to keep me from going in the water. "

"She had magic."

"Magic?"

"Yes, I believe we had this conversation once before, child of mi—" The lion was interrupted as Laios began to cough up the remaining water.

Startled, you froze, unknowing what to do. It was only when he suddenly sat up that you jumped back into the water. What if he tried to attack you like he did before? Not that you blame him or anything. regardless, you didn't wish to die from accidental blood loss — that's one thing the water's blessing doesn't help you with. You remained far away from the stone ledge as Laios gained consciousness.

You watched as he took off his shirt and gathered his armor. You watched as he questioned his surroundings and current predicament. You watched rather intently that you didn't even notice you were drifting closer.

Laios must have heard your lappets splashing around in the water because he turned to your direction. Making sudden eye contact surprised you enough to make you submerge back into the water.

"Wa—Wait!"

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

What Laios came to see was a mermaid with biological discoloration from typical mermaids. He wanted to know if it were possible for mermaids to have the mutuations regular animals do. So when Laios found a monster resembling both mammalian and pisces species, he wanted nothing more but to have a taste.

A mix of jellyfish, sea serpents, and mermaid, it was a newly discovered humanoid monster that not even the dungeon gourmet guide had known of! He wondered if each separate piece would taste similar to their monster counterpart or taste entirely like a new thing.

When the monster leaned over his party, he didn't expect it to suddenly pick him up. It held him up high, and he couldn't help but bubble up in amazement. Laois could see the many different colors and features he didn't see from the ground. Looking at it much more closely, he saw what previously thought was flesh was actually a form of clothing.

Laios wished he could examine every inch of this newly discovered monster, but that thought was quickly broken when the monster suddenly dragged him underwater. He really thought the monster was going to eat him when it opened its mouth, but imagine his surprise when instead, it swung him around with such force he really thought he would pass out. Feeling the monster's strength firsthand, he wondered what place you would have in the food chain.

When Marcille casted waterwalk on it, he couldn't help but cut some of the lappets for later consumption; He really hoped they didn't taste anything like cephalopds.

What none of them expected was for it to talk. It didn't sing like a mermaid nor roar like dragons, it actually spoke. It leaned back it covered its face with its arms and shouted.

"St—STAY BACK!"

Everyone was stunned by the intensity of the sound: Chilchuck and Marcille were hit the hardest. Laios couldn't help but wonder about the monsters choice of words. Did it truly know what those words meant, or was it simply replicating words it heard from previous prey?

But besides that, the Scyphozoa tentacles did taste better than cephalopds—that is, it didn't taste like anything at all. Though it was rather nice to chew on for stimulation. Senshi seemed to enjoy the texture; Marcille and Chilchuck refused because "it was morally wrong."

Laios just couldn't understand their reasoning. It's not like the sea monster was the same as them. It wasn't a tall–man, not an elf, and definitely not a half–foot. They don't even believe monsters like mermaids or mermen to even be sapient yet still refuse to eat them. What's the difference between eating cattle and monsters anyway? He really didn't understand them.

Monsters were....so much more than that. They eat, eat, and eat; They eat anything regardless of species or appearance. They didn't care about petty morale or rational—they ate to survive. There didn't think about tomorrow or of the fragile balance of life in the dungeon.

Monsters were truly a reflection of the flesh and instinct of all living things.

So why didn't that monster eat him when it had him underwater?

Did it know that he had armor and didn't want the struggle of trying to bite down? But why bring him back to the surface when it was the most physically strong underwater? Before it even grabbed him, why did it bother to look at them without doing anything, and why grab him?—Senshi was the closest one, and it went for Laios, who was much farther away

He got his answer when he woke up after being dragged underwater by a group of mermaids.

Alone in an unknown part of the dungeon, he was drenched in water, and his shirt was pulled up. Laios felt a chill running up when he felt how cold his shirt was. He took his shirt off and looked around to see his armor scattered. He swore he had his armor on.... His book!

Laios quickly stood up to try to find the book. He was happy to find it in perfect condition: The armor and layers must have protected the book from getting wet. He held the book to his bare chest when he heard the sound of splashing water. He turned around and saw the same monster that had nearly drowned him.

Did the monster save him by any chance? Before he could ask, the monster quickly submerged underwater.

"Wa—Wait!"

Laios ran up to the water and kneeled at the edge, trying to see where the monster went. The water was so much darker than he had thought, making it difficult to see. From the darkness, he could make out soft movements.

Slightly nervous, Laios called out, "I—Thank you for helping me!"

He didn't know what he was thinking when he said that. He didn't even know for certain if the monster helped him or just came by to eat him. Despite this, he continued, "I apologize for trying to kill you the other day! I didn't realize you were....."

Were what? Sentient? Self–aware?

"—trying to communicate with us! I should have realized you wanted to speak or converse in whatever language you speak!"

Laios placed his head on the ground as he hoped his apology would reach the monster. The more he thought about it, the more it wouldn't be likely that the monster would be able to speak his language. But then again, it speak their language back when he attacked it....

From a distance, he heard the monster come back up. Without moving from his position, he listened as the monster got closer and closer to him. He felt something cold hit his back, and again, again, and soon more droplets of water fell on top of him. Laios shivered as he suddenly sat up to only be faced with the monster.

"Do not feel the need to apologize. I am to blame—it was due to my insolent behavior that caused you and your companions to attack me. So, for that, I apologize."

Laios froze: It wasn't fear or dread that caused him to do so—it was out of pure admiration. He really wanted to inspect this creatures anatomy!

"Your tentacles felt really nice to chew on, so no need to apologize."

The look of confusion on the monster's face told him that he probably shouldn't have said that.

"—I mean! We had your tentacles from when I cut them, and you were gone, and why leave them there to waste away when we could've eaten them! Besides, you tasted really good with seasoning and, like I said, were nice to chew on!"

He should have just drowned.

The humanoid monster brought a hand to their face and closed their eyes in thought. "You ate me, but how is that so? I'm still here, after all."

Laios was now confused.

"We ate the tentacles I cut off when we—I attacked you."

"You ate my lappets that you cut off... without killing me....Is it possible to eat prey without bringing them to death?"

"Yes! As long as they don't suffer any critical injuries, they'll be able to survive."

You raised another hand to cover your face as you laughed. This human, Laios, was trying to kill you due to a misunderstanding, kidnapped and almost drowned by mermaids, saved by you, and now telling you how good you tasted. You wondered how it is that he's able to converse with you after the fact. Did he truly have no ill will towards monsters? Was the lion right about his passion for monsters?

"Like the mermaids, did you eat because of desire and pleasure? Or was it because of the need to survive?"

You wanted to know, did humans have the same primal nature like the mermaids, or were they like you: unwilling to eat unless you desperately needed it.

"I ate your tentacles because I really wanted to know what it would taste like. So, I guess I ate because I desired too and found pleasure in knowing what you would taste like."

You didn't say anything. You stared at him for a few seconds before lowering yourself at eye level with him. "My name is (y/n), I am the monarch of the mermaids and arbitor of the dungeon's waters. Just who might you be?"

You knew his name; You knew him more than he knew about you. But as things stand, you didn't want to surprise Laios with any more surprises.

Laios gave you a smile as he held out his hand. "My name is Laios Touden."

You looked at his hand in confusion. Was this a type of human custom? Before you could react, he reached for your hand and shook it. His hand was smaller than yours, though not by much.

You couldn't help but smile ever so slightly as you brought your hand to your chest. "So, then Laios, would you like to accompany me underwater?"

Laios gleamed in excitement, but that quickly faded when he realized his current predicament. He was shirtless, away from his party, couldn't breathe underwater, and had limited time to find Falin.

"I—"

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

Laios gave in.

He told you about his need to find his party: You said you could find them easily if they were near a water source, whether it be a fountain or open body of water. He told you about his inability to breathe underwater. After he said this, you smiled as you asked him if he would allow you to pick him up, to which he agreed.

"I am able to bless you the water's blessing. The blessing will allow you to breathe underwater, albeit temporarily."

Before Laios could ask how being blessed worked, you brought his face closer to his and kissed him. Laios felt himself blush hard, especially when you accidentally bit him. He really wanted to feel the inside of your mouth.

When Laios collected his belongings, you asked him to strip out of his clothing.

"—so I can absorb most of the water. I'll be able to keep your items dry under my lappets. They'll be able to form pockets of air to keep them safe from the harsh dungeon waters."

Once you did that, you asked for his pants to which he asked if that could done once they found his group—though he had his quirks, being naked all the way for a long period of time was not one of them.

And with that, you wrapped your arms around him and pressed him close to your chest. Raising one hand to hold his, you submerged underwater.

The underwater half of the dungeon was something that remained a mystery. Even to avid researchers, the deep waters were something very few were willing to dare venture below; and those that were willing rarely ever resurfaced. So, to have the chance to safely voyage the water with the self–proclaimed monarch of mermaids was an opportunity Laios was thankful to have.

Just as Laios had thought, it was as amazing as he had hoped. Clinging onto your back, he watched as the scenery around him changed into something more magical. Though not as boundless as the sea and oceans, it was a sight to behold. The artificial ocean was almost a mirror to the dungeon above: hallways and corridors along all sides of the wall. Paintings everywhere with no coherent thought. Plants growing without discrimination. Luminescent monsters never seen before roaming the floor. It was truly something Laios wished he had the time to venture.

"If I may be so rude to ask, are you the human who had sung with the mermaids some time ago? "

Laios was surprised by how different you sounded in water. He thought about the question for a second. The mermaids, the ones who swam away when he tried to sing with them, they must have been your mermaids. "Human?" That was a new term; you must have confused him with something else. But, before he opened his mouth to speak, he couldn't help but hesitate. It was against his instincts to do so, but he decided to trust you. If he could breathe underwater, then surely he'll be able to speak.

"Yes, I wanted to sing with them to see if we could somehow communicate! It took me a while to learn their song without being entranced, but considering they sing the same song every time, it wasn't too difficult—"

You suddenly spun around, having him rest on your stomach. You held both his hands as you looked at him sternly. "Laios, though I understand your desire to sing with the mermaids, I ask that you don't try to do so in the future. You see, mermaids have their own culture much you do: part of that culture is their melody. So, to have an outsider sing that song that song so carelessly makes them uncomfortable. Even if that song is used to kill those of your kind, I ask that you please respect their wishes."

Laios looked away sheepishly as he apologized. You gleamed with joy and hugged him tight as you spun around.

"What about you? Do you sing the same song as the mermaids, or do you have your own?"

"Ah! Well, the mermaids and I aren't the same race or species, and due to that, I'm unable to sing their song as it deserves to be sung."

"But do you?"

"I—I do, but it's not a song that can be sung often. Blessed by the water, I was bestowed a melody orchestrated for a monarch."

"Can you sing it right now?"

"Perhaps another day."

The lion was right. He yearned to understand much about monsters. As you two ventured towards where his party was located, Laios asked you many questions about the monsters that you'd past by. You obliged, and you told him many of the stories of the aquariums: from the many mermaids who lived in under your rule to the oysters and jellyfish that used to roam the waters. Laios asked: You answered.

The only thing you didn't appreciate was how much he was touching you. Laios kept grabbing you wherever you weren't covered by cloth and squeezed you slightly: pulling on your lappets, ears, and hair. It was when he decided to bite your lappets that you stopped him.

Flustered and full of mixed emotions from the sensation of his teeth on your skin, you scolded him. Laios apologized, but what was he supposed to do? He was faced with a new monster never seen before, and he was supposed to not touch it?

"Laios, do humans have an aquarium as large as this up outside the dungeon?" You asked out of pure curiosity. Never once had the lion told you about the terrain outside the dungeon. You wondered if the walls or flooring were of the same stone from the dungeon. You wondered if the surface's aquarium was limited as it was in the dungeon's waters.

Laios let go of your shoulders as he sat up. Placing a hand under his chin, he pondered how to answer your question. "Outside the dungeon..... the sea and oceans are endless. Here, underwater, you can look straight ahead and see the end of a room. It's small and crowded: not ideal conditions for the survival of the monsters here. Unlike the dungeon, the oceans are boundless; I can look straight ahead in the ocean and see no end. There's so many more monsters and animals in the ocean that comparing the dungeon's artificial sea to the outside isn't even reasonable."

"There aren't any walls outside?"

"No walls other than those from buildings."

An aquarium without being bound by stone walls. More monsters and species not limited by the confinement of the aquarium. Boundless: It was a word you were unfamiliar with. All you ever knew was limited, bound by the knowledge the lion was willing to spare and the fear to even leave the water.

"How I would love to see these oceans and seas one day."

Laios all of sudden dropped all his weight on your back. He wrapped his arms around your waist and squeezed tight. "I want monsters and people to live alongside each other. When I become dungeon master, I promise to show you the ocean."

You remained silent for a while, contemplating the implications of what he just said: "Dungeon master." As you reached the opening closest to his companions. You jumped out of the water and onto the stone flooring. Letting go of his belongings; Laios jumped off your back. You watched as he began to put on the rest of his garments. You watched as he adorned himself in the silver cloth, just like the knight from the stories the lion told you. You watched sadly as you realized this is where you two depart. You watched his every move; watching as he wrote in his book. Despite this heavy feeling on your heart, you couldn't help but want to smile. Though your first meeting was a catastrophe, you're quite satisfied that you were able to mend your misunderstandings with one another.

"I look forward to the day you keep your promise."

Before you knew it, Laios was gone, and you were once again alone with nothing else but the mermaids.

Bound by the water, unable to leave the dungeon: You forgot to ask if he thought of you as a monster.

Thank you for reading part one of "The Flesh, Blood, Bone, Heart and Soul."

#dunmeshi x reader #dungeon meshi #delicious in dungeon #delicious in dungeon x reader #laios touden x reader #laios touden #laius thorden #laius thorden x reader #there once was a jellyfish....

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cautuscoralcoast · 3 months

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Okay but hear me out—imagine this with laios

Just the thought of Laios eating off of monster!reader is enticing enough for me to start imagining things.

With the themes of gluttony and greed in manga, I can imagine something like that being cover art. Especially considering that there is no doubt in my mind that there is some kind of sexual aspect to his infatuation with monsters (with the sentient ones).

I have no idea what fanifc I can write based on this, but I do know that I want to write it. So please! If you have any ideas, please share them with me to spark my imagination!

#dunmeshi #dungeon meshi #delicious in dungeon #laios touden #laius thorden #laios touden x reader #laios x reader #rambles

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dungeonfood · 6 months

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Hey. Hello. Hi!!! I dunno how long it has been and if ths blog is still active and if you're still into this, but I really like your Laius x reader headcanons. Have you written any fics of the characters? So far, it's been headcanons, and I was curious. (Your writing is good. I would love to read more. I especially love the short ones you wrote with the four of em on their first dates with reader---Laius' was so, so sweet.)

Hii, i'm back! It's been a while

About your question: i have, actually! I go by Zarekii in AO3, and basically all my content was dunmesh reader insert haha

If the date headcanons were your favourite, i think you might be interested in a 7 minutes in heaven style fic i did

Here's a direct link: fic (hope it works! I never know how to do these kind of things haha)

#dunmesh #dungeon meshi #dungeon meshi headcanons #reader insert #laios/reader #marcille/reader #chilchuck/reader

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cophene · 4 months

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𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐌𝐄𝐓 | vento aureo; twenty.

☆ ⁺ « APPROPRIATE SHOCK AND GUILT

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★˚⋆ STEALING WAS ACTUALLY VERY EASY when you didn’t give a flack about getting caught. You could waltz in, pluck up the goods, and then languidly make your way out without breaking a sweat. Half the thrill of stealing came from avoiding capture. It was an entirely different experience when getting hauled off was what you were aiming for.

Coco guided your crew sans Narancia to some influencer’s boogie villa on the edge of Laius. His limited-edition Levi cost nearly as much as Zero was paying you. With luck, he would be at home while your crew attempted to make off with his Levi and he would call Inspector Asswipe to round you up.

Never in your thieving career did you think you’d say a sentence like that.

“Swanky place,” Mista said when your crew arrived at the villa. Incongruous palm trees swayed in the breeze, and the gold gate shone brightly, through which a fountain and the aforementioned Levi could be seen. Spice Girl made short work of the gate, and the Pistols shot down the security cameras. By the time Fugo had managed to unlock the Levi and hotwire it, there were still no GA’s in sight.

“It’s always like this,” you muttered. “When you want something, it isn’t there. But when you don’t, it’s always on your ass.”

“We should break into the villa,” Trish suggested. “Really make sure he sees our faces so he can call the GA’s.”

JoJo was already messing with the electronic lock on the front door, and a few minutes later, it swung open. Your crew went inside, taking a moment to appreciate all of the glass and chrome and shiny things. A cleaning bot looked up at you curiously before continuing about its business.

Everyone started stealing. Loudly. Gold accent pieces and the recording paraphernalia in the living room and the crystal decanters and the painting that must have been an authentic Rivaldi and the watch on the kitchen table and the holopad in the bathroom and where the hell was everyone?

There was a massive holoscreen in the living room. Before, it would have been the mother load. It looked fresh out of the delivery box, gleaming in the light like it was beckoning for you to steal it.

“Where was this villa when we were starving a few months ago?” Trish groused, shoving the holoscreen remote down her jacket.

“JoJo, help me with this.” Mista nodded for JoJo to get the holoscreen’s other side. Shooting up a quick apology to the stars, the two got the holoscreen off its mounts and let it fall screen-first onto the ground. The whump was muffled by the plush carpet but you were sure you would have felt the impact throughout the villa.

Footsteps rushed toward you. “What the flack are you doing?”

Stars, finally. You turned around, ready to look appropriately guilty and shocked. The guy who stared gape-mouthed at your crew was a lanky twenty-something with swoopy hair and gold studs. It looked like he’d just come from the shower.

“Please don’t call the GA’s,” Trish squeaked, like she was cuing the guy for his lines.

The guy looked angry for approximately two more seconds before the fury in his eyes dissipated. “Wait, wait, are you guys Passione? The thieving crew, right? I heard you guys were on Laius, but I didn’t know you were coming here.”

“It’s not like we’re on tour,” Mista muttered.

“Yo, I’m a huge fan. I’d ask to take your pictures but I don’t want you to get caught or whatever. Are you trying to steal the holoscreen? Go ahead. I got it for a sponsorship deal but I never use it.” Holy flack. You aspired to be so rich that you wouldn’t bat an eye at your new mega holoscreen being carried off.

“I have some sick sneakers upstairs you could probably sell too, if you need.” The guy looked eagerly between your crew, suddenly excited. “Is your ship here? Can I see it? You probably have so much cool stuff on there.”

“Shouldn’t you be calling the GA’s?” Fugo said.

“Hell no. I’m cool with you guys. Eat the rich or whatever, right? Even though I’m technically rich.” At this the guy gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Yeah, really rough the place up,” he said, noticing JoJo messing with the recording equipment in the corner. “My followers will go ballistic when I post that I was robbed by Passione.”

Nobody moved. The guy raised his hands. “Don’t be embarrassed. I can step outside or whatever if you guys need space, no worries.” He started to text someone on his holopad. “Man, if only Ramon was here. I always bet I would get robbed by you guys first. Looks like I was right.”

This guy was being deadass, wasn’t he? He’d probably thank your crew for taking all of his things so it would make a better thumbnail for his videos. Thanks a lot, Coco. Giving us exactly what we don’t need.

Well, if this guy wasn’t willing, you would have to improvise.

“Can I borrow your holopad?” you said.

“Sure.” The guy handed it over. You smiled and then decked him in the face with it, sending him sprawling on the ground. You were grimly satisfied when he didn’t get up.

“Mista, JoJo, get that holoscreen outside. We’re using it as our excuse.” You would’ve put it in a Stand card, but sadly, Party Rock Anthem couldn’t store things bigger than your width and height. “Trish, Fugo, pretend you’re rich nobles who just got robbed and start snivelling into this holopad.”

You left them to it and helped Mista and JoJo haul the holoscreen outside. Within minutes, sirens started blaring in the distance. You never thought you’d be glad to hear the sound, but here you were.

Everyone piled into the Levi. The cabin was a lot more spacious than regular Levis, but the holoscreen practically took up the entire backseat. Everyone was still trying to squeeze inside when you stomped on the gas and peeled out of the guy’s villa, blasting through the gates for good measure. Narancia would’ve killed at this part, but before him, you’d been doing all of the crazy driving.

“You know, I actually don’t know how we would’ve pulled this off if we really were trying to steal this holoscreen,” Mista said beside you. Somehow, he’d managed to worm his way into the passenger seat.

“We wouldn’t have been stupid enough to steal it to begin with,” Fugo gritted out. He kept craning his neck every few seconds to look out the back window. You could see the red-and-blue flashing of GA Levi’s, but it was too soon to give up the chase just yet.

“Use the canal,” JoJo said. “Maybe you could try to launch over it. Once the Levi crashes, the GA’s can arrest us as we’re trying to get out.”

“Do you have a death wish or something?” Trish barked at him. “We are not doing that again. Or don’t you remember that half of us were just in that canal a few hours ago?

It wasn’t a bad idea. You threw the Levi onto a side street with a maneuver that the vehicle heartily disagreed with. The engine sputtered but didn’t give out.

Your engineer argued, “It’d be a better idea to weave into the traffic near the Fountain Royale, then you could—”

“Mista, shoot out one of their mirrors,” you said. “We’re making it too quiet.”

Your gunman reached under his hat for an energy filler before leaning out the side of the passenger door. Two elector pulses fired and a beat later, you heard two answering crunches of metal and some suitable Levi screeching.

The canal was coming up ahead. You couldn’t help thinking that if Narancia were behind the wheel, he would have been able to get this Levi over onto the other side.

“Captain, please don’t!” Trish cried.

“All crew brace!”

You let off on the gas as much as you could. The Levi pitched over the edge of the canal and into the water with a huge splash. The canal wasn’t as deep as it looked, but the impact was still enough to crush the front of the Levi and shatter the windshield.

You completely forgot about the airbags and swore as they inflated suddenly, catching you in the face. You elbowed it out of the way, clambering over the centre console to haul yourself out through Mista’s still-open window. You fell unceremoniously out of the car, scrambling to right yourself and inhaling a lungful of water in the process. You were still coughing when you heard the telltale whir of an elector being fired up. You looked up to find Inspector Asswipe calmly holding an elector at your face. Behind him, his men were training their electors on your crew as they got out of the Levi.

“Freeze and put your arms in the air. You’re under arrest by the Galactic Authority.” Asswipe couldn’t help the sarcastic curl in his voice as he added, “Captain.”

Your arms were beginning to ache from being over your head for so long. Your crew was attached by mag cuffs to the ship wall like a line of sitting ducks. You’d tried to ask where you were being taken, but Asswipe hadn’t answered. The entire thing was a touch more than you were used to, so you chose to believe you were on your way to the penitentiary. If not to be detained, then at least for processing. You could only hope that Narancia and Coco weren’t far behind, following after the ship like you’d agreed on.

Asswipe sat across from you on the opposite bench, one long leg folded over the other. He didn’t look smug exactly. Wary, more like, and rightly so. You couldn’t remember the last time you’d been in the same ship together. Back when you had been a fledgling crew, you’d gotten caught all the time.

“He’s new,” Asswipe said, nodding at JoJo. “Pick him up on the way?”

“Be nice. It’s his first time.”

Asswipe’s eyes were restless. They never stayed on one crew member for long before they darted to someone else. You had never discovered if Asswipe was a Stand user or not. It was likely he was, but it must have been a pissy Stand if he let your crew escape so often.

“I heard you accepted a job from Zero. Is that true?”

“You’re awfully chatty today, Inspector,” Mista said. “Miss us that much?”

“You’ve gotten sloppy. I didn’t think I’d catch you trying to steal a holoscreen of all things.”

Trish rolled her eyes. “You didn’t think you’d catch us, period.”

One of the other GA’s popped his head in from the control room. “We’re passing through the Bend Gate in a bit, Inspector.”

“Noted, thank you.”

“I don’t see why you have to take us so far,” you said, raising your eyebrows. “There’s a satellite jail nearby, isn’t there?”

Asswipe got to his feet. “Protocol has changed,” was all he said before he left.

The ship continued to travel for fifteen minutes after you passed through the Bend Gate. Galactic Penitentiary IV vaguely resembled a ship colony, only without the pretty paint and amenities. The crew was shuffled out directly into what you assumed was the penitentiary’s receiving dock. It was a blur of manic activity; more GA’s than you cared to see and all manner of people being hustled off. You tried to keep an eye out for the guy inside Zero had mentioned, but the GA’s were indistinguishable from each other.

Ident chips were scanned, bodies were patted down and weapons were confiscated. Your crew had to give up all of your holopads and electors. Hardly a problem since you kept many duplicates in Party Rock Anthem, but you made sure to look appropriately disgruntled. Asswipe barely concealed his displeasure at finding his old shoulder holster on Mista’s person, and you could tell for a second he considered taking it back.

Your pictures were taken and your info transferred into the penitentiary database. Your crew was then further shuffled deeper within the penitentiary. The tech here was more advanced than you’d ever seen. There were no steel-barred gates but green hexagonal screens that acted like some kind of forcefield. They zinged your bad arm when you got too close and you leapt away, swearing. Asswipe had to scan something to allow you access to the cells, and everyone watched, fascinated, as the hexagons fizzled out to let you through before reforming a second later.

The cells you were herded into were obviously for small fry. A small cot and metal toilet was all that was inside. Sturdy patrol bots took the place of human guards, periodically scanning each cell for trouble. You wouldn’t be finding your inside man among them then. Even with all of your crew in their own cell, most of them were still empty. More hexagon screens barred off each cell and when you listened closely, you could hear them humming.

“You’ll be detained here until the system processes you,” Asswipe said. “Further instructions will come when they’re required.”

You still struggled to make out what Asswipe was thinking. Maybe he knew better than to get his hopes up when your crew was known for escaping jails the minute you stepped in them. Still, you were used to a few gloating, smug remarks. Asswipe was being unusually taciturn.

“We don’t get a magazine or anything?” Mista quipped. “No complimentary entertainment?”

Asswipe walked briskly off, and you watched him disappear around the corner, black boots sounding smartly against the floor. When he didn’t return, you settled on the cot and leaned your head against the wall.

“Well,” you said to the crew. “Nothing to do but wait.”

Zero’s guy took his sweet time getting to you. At least three hours must have passed, during which the bots had beeped disapprovingly at Mista’s chatter and Trish’s whistling. JoJo had fallen asleep and Fugo hadn’t taken his eyes from the hexagon screen and scanner outside of his cell. Your stomach rumbled faintly, and you wondered why you hadn’t followed your own advice to eat something beforehand.

At first, you weren’t sure that it was actually the guy you were waiting for. His GA uniform had a golden aiguillette over his chest, and he was so thin that the uniform coat hung off of him like a coat rack. The brimmed hat hiding his face clashed with the rest of the uniform, and it was that more than anything that made you notice him. The bastard walked by your cell a few times before he stopped. Keeping the brim of his hat down, he scanned a card over your cell. He hesitated before swiping his card over JoJo’s cell too. Your rookie woke up with a start, eyes wide.

“Come with me,” he said brusquely.

The hexagon screen in front of you dissipated. You didn’t step out right away.

“Are you with Zero?”

“Are you expecting me to answer that?” He turned from you to JoJo, who was blinking owlishly at him. “Hurry it up. We don’t have all day.”

From his cell, Mista had noticed what was going on. “If you’re bringing us to Polpo, shouldn’t all of us go?” he asked.

“Because it wouldn’t look suspicious if all five of you were outta your cells,” Zero’s guy snapped. “If you wanna go, you better hurry it up. I can’t be away from my station for long.”

JoJo scrambled to his feet. Reluctantly, you fell in behind Zero’s guy, still not entirely sure he was the right person. “I can go alone. We don’t need to drag the rookie into this.” Truthfully, the only reason JoJo was here was to patch your crew up if you happened to split your skulls open.

“Polpo asked for him,” Zero’s guy curtly. He didn’t say anything else to your confused look. Why would Polpo be interested in the guy you’d only recruited a few days ago?

“You better bring them back,” Mista said. “I’ll have your ass if you don’t.”

“You just worry about your own ass,” Zero’s guy snarked back.

Sharp footfalls caught your attention. Zero’s guy didn’t have to react before Asswipe rounded the corner, his attention on a tablet before he noticed you and JoJo out of your cells.

“What’s going on here?” he asked sternly.

“These two are marked for escort, sir,” Zero’s guy said, suddenly meek. “To Sector A.”

Asswipe’s eyebrow arched. “Under whose orders?”

Zero’s guy mumbled the name of some chief or other. Asswipe confirmed the order on his earpiece and seemed surprised when it held up. At least Zero’s guy had been smart enough to buff out the bluff.

“What’s your name, officer?”

“Cannolo Murolo. Sir.”

Asswipe leaned forward to peer beneath the brim of Cannolo’s hat. “In that case, I’ll accompany you, Officer Murolo. These criminals happen to be under my supervision. Don’t want them to make trouble for you.” At this, he cast a significant look in your direction. You only grinned.

You and JoJo were restrained with magcuffs. Asswipe left a warning for the rest of your crew to behave themselves before tipping his head for Cannolo to lead the way to Sector A of the penitentiary. Cannolo swallowed visibly, scurrying ahead of you like an agitated mouse. His big balls had shrank sometime between Asswipe’s arrival and now.

Admittedly, a part of you was apprehensive about meeting Polpo. He was associated with Polnareff, but that was all you knew. You had no idea how he would react to your asking about the Stand Arrow, or even if he would be willing to give it up. Zero’s badge might have some sway over Polpo although it seemed doubtful that Cannolo’s skinny ass would have helped if it came down to force. Besides, attacking another inmate was definitely grounds to prolong your stay at this penitentiary. Permanently.

For such a big-shot penitentiary, there wasn’t much to see. All of the notorious criminals must be surreptitiously hidden, because you didn’t see another living soul the entire trek to the next sector. It was mostly just cleaning bots and clunky patrol bots, beeping in affirmation when either Cannolo or Asswipe swiped their card for passage. Everything went smoothly until just before the gate to Sector A. Cannolo’s card swiped green. Asswipe’s didn’t.

Asswipe swiped it again, his eyebrows drawing together.

“I’m afraid this is as far as you can go, Inspector,” Cannolo said.

“It shouldn’t be. I have clearance for Sector A.”

“Ah, well, I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that.”

You and JoJo looked at each other.

“What I mean is that you have to go through specific procedures for clearance,” Cannolo said hurriedly. “I have temporary access for escort. That’s all.”

Asswipe narrowed his eyes at Cannolo. You wished he would just piss off already. The magcuffs were starting to bite into your wrists.

Cannolo had the grace to look sheepish. “Things work a little differently around here, Inspector. I’m sure you understand.”

“So it would seem.” Unable to do anything else, Asswipe nodded curtly at Cannolo before heading back in the direction you’d come from. As he brushed past your shoulder, he murmured, “Be careful with him.”

Who was him? He couldn’t know about Polpo. “I’m sorry?”

Asswipe continued on his way as though he hadn’t spoken. You stared after his immaculate bun, wondering if you’d even heard him right.

“Flack, thought he’d never leave,” Cannolo said, swiping his card again. The gates of Sector A slid open and he gestured you through.

“Sector A. Try not to stare too much, the guys hate that.”

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#kismetva #jjba #jjba x reader #jjba fanfic #golden wind #golden wind x reader #vento aureo #vento aureo x reader #gender neutral reader #sci fi au

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cophene · 5 months

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𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐌𝐄𝐓 | vento aureo; seventeen.

☆ ⁺ « 𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐀 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐃 𝐑𝐀𝐓

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★˚⋆ JOJO’S FACE HAD STARTED TWITCHING. You eyed him from the corner of your eye, wondering if it was a nervous tic or something. Not that you would blame him.

“You okay?”

“Fine. Just a little—” JoJo angled his face away from you. After a moment, he turned back, nervous, but no longer twitching. His pensiveness reminded you of your engineer. If JoJo had been blonde, he might have passed for a younger Fugo.

You weren’t sure where you and JoJo were headed, exactly. Whoever the Stand user or users were, they might have been in the bar with your crew as you listened to Pericolo. They would have booked it out of there after grabbing Trish and Fugo, but if Narancia still couldn’t speak straight, they couldn’t have gone far.

“I don’t think I was right about the water,” JoJo said. His voice trembled, as though he was afraid of admitting it to you. You knew sometimes you came off as brash, but you were willing to rethink your approach if JoJo was constantly skittish around you.

“Why do you figure?”

“If Narancia was attacked by water, then Fugo would have come under the same attack when the water spilled. He wouldn’t have disappeared. I think the water might have to do with the other Stand.”

“Like what, exactly? The water couldn’t have done anything unless it teleported them somehow…” you trailed off. Teleporting through water. Or maybe even teleporting through liquids. There was no shortage of liquids in bars.

It was a terrifying thought. The Stand could be stowed away in any pool of liquid right now, waiting for its chance. You wondered if Narancia hadn’t seen it in the bar and knocked your drink over because of it.

But how could it do something like that? So quickly that you hadn’t seen Trish disappear or even catch Fugo?

You brought Coco Jumbo off mute. “Coco? We’re in some shit,” you said into your holopad.

[ I’M AWARE OF THAT. I’M ATTEMPTING TO HELP YOUR PILOT AND GUNMAN AS WE SPEAK. ]

“Can you tell me anything about this Stand? Is it actually teleporting or it some kind of—”

[ THE ROOKIE IS 100% CORRECT. TRISH AND FUGO WERE TELEPORTED THROUGH WATER. ]

Well. There you go.

“What do we do about it?” JoJo asked. “If we’re not careful, all of us could get caught up by that Stand.”

[ I’M CRUNCHING VARIABLES RIGHT NOW, BUT KEEP WALKING. THERE SHOULD BE AN EXPOSED CANAL UP AHEAD. ]

“The hell? Shouldn’t we be staying away from water?” you said.

[ YOU’RE ATTACKING THESE SUCKERS ON TWO FRONTS RIGHT NOW. YOU AND JOJO HAVE THE STAND, AND MISTA AND NARANCIA ARE AFTER THE USER. DAMAGE TO THE STAND EXTENDS TO THE USER. IF YOU CAN WEAKEN THEM THAT WAY, ALL THE BETTER. ]

You and JoJo arrived at the canal Coco had been referring to. You were by no means an expert, but the streams of water didn’t seem to hold any architectural significance besides making the colony look more confusing than it already was. Laius might have been going for “bohemian, alien-land gamble house.”

[ JOJO, YOU’RE GONNA BE BAIT. ACT STUPID AND JUMP INTO THE CANAL. ONCE THE STAND SHOWS UP, THE CAP WILL START BLASTING. ]

To his credit, JoJo didn’t immediately react to the statement. The immediate acceptance was a little off-putting. You were starting to realize that although JoJo was reserved, his mind was constantly simmering beneath the surface. It made you wonder just what exactly his life before the Eos crash had been like. Most people didn’t pay attention to small details unless something in their life warranted it.

“I’m gonna blast him?” you said to Coco, a little annoyed. You came up with enough stupid plans to last the crew a light years. You didn’t need the self-proclaimed “smartest supercomputer in the galaxy” to do that.

[ FAITH, CAPTAIN. BESIDES, IT’LL GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO SEE EXACTLY HOW THE STAND WORKS. ]

You looked at JoJo. It was a lot to ask of your newest crew member. He didn’t have years of trust in you. He barely had a few days, actually.

“I’ll do it,” JoJo said.

“If he gets teleported away, how are we going to find him?” you asked Coco.

[ I’VE GOT A WAY. COME ON. WE DON’T HAVE A LOT OF TIME. ]

JoJo scanned the canal with a touch of fear before he started walking towards it. You made to find a vantage point by a nearby line of Levis when JoJo looked over his shoulder at you.

“You’ll get me back, right?”

“Don’t trust me?”

JoJo smiled tightly. “I’m not sure yet.” His face seemed to flicker a little at that, although you were sure it was just your eyes playing tricks.

“Trish! Fugo! Where are you?” JoJo called, his voice nearly swallowed by the rushing water. “Can you hear me? Where are you?”

You crouched behind a silver Levi, watching intently. JoJo continued to call for Trish and Fugo, walking steadily towards the canal. You tried to watch from your periphery, seeing if any of the people nearby were reacting to JoJo’s proximity to the water. All at once, JoJo fell forward. There was a weak splash, nowhere near as loud as it should have been. You rushed forward, whipping your elector out, firing shots like your life depended on it. There were a few shouts nearby as people scattered from the gunfire. Your eyes barely snagged on it before your blood ran cold.

Was that a flacking shark fin?

Unable to help yourself, you leaned over the canal, feeling the spray dampen the back of your neck and collar. All you saw at the bottom of the canal were rueful casino chips and slivers of metal vouchers. No JoJo. And no shark either. Just a patch of blood that was quickly carried away by the water. At least you’d hit the bastard.

You backed away from the canal, every flash of light in the water making you tense. “Coco? What now?”

[ STARS, YOU’D BE TERRIBLE IN HOLODRAMAS. JUMP IN! ACT LIKE YOU’RE LOOKING FOR JOJO! YOU NEED TO GET WET TOO. ]

You gritted your teeth, wanting to argue but knowing there wasn’t time. You leapt into the canal, calling JoJo’s name. When it was obvious JoJo wasn’t there, you scrambled out of the canal, trying not to shiver at the cold.

[ YOU NEED A LEVI. THINK YOU CAN GET ONE? ]

“First explain to me how we’re supposed to find JoJo after all of that,” you said. As nonchalantly as you could, you slipped into the crowd, trying not to look like a drenched rat.

[ YOU’RE NOT GONNA BE HAPPY ABOUT THIS, CAPTAIN. ]

Your eyes caught on a balding middle-aged man. “Just try me.”

In a move so familiar you could do in your sleep, you matched your steps to the older man’s, glancing your hands over his baggy coat for his Levi keys and encasing them seamlessly into a card.

Once the man was a distance away, you took out the Levi keys, pressing the key head for the Levi to signal its location. You had to look around for a second to find it a few blocks away.

[ FUGO ASKED ME TO PUT A TRACKER ON JOJO. ]

“He what?”

[ I’M SURE HE’LL TELL YOU HIMSELF, BUT AFTER RUNNING A SCAN ON JOJO’S IDENT CHIP, I PLACED A TRACKER ON IT AT FUGO’S REQUEST. THE THINGS I FOUND OUT ABOUT THAT KID ARE PRETTY INTERESTING, ACTUALLY— ]

Fugo might actually get airlocked for this one. Tracing crew members was strictly against your code. It went against the trust you were so hellbent on.

“I’ll deal with that later. Do you still have JoJo’s location?”

You started up the Levi, tapping your holopad against the dash to sync.

[ I DO. HE’S CURRENTLY MOVING BENEATH LAIUS’ CANAL SYSTEM RIGHT NOW. ]

Coco displayed a map of Laius on your dash, a blinking red circle denoting JoJo’s location.

“What am I supposed to do with this?”

[ I DON’T KNOW IF YOU NOTICED, BUT THE STAND IS ACTUALLY FOLLOWING YOUR LOCATION. IT’S AFTER YOU. IF YOU CAN ISOLATE THE STAND, IT’LL GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO ATTACK. ]

“And how do I do that?”

[ YOU’VE ALREADY TRAILED AN ENTIRE PUDDLE FROM THE CANAL INTO THIS LEVI. IS THERE A—YUP! A WATER BOTTLE RIGHT THERE. THE STAND SHOULD BE APPEARING ANY MINUTE NOW. WE’LL SEE WHO FINISHES OFF THIS ENEMY FIRST, YOU OR NARANCIA. ]

You didn’t have time to ask what the hell Coco was talking about. You narrowly missed crashing the Levi as, suddenly, from the puddle at your feet, something sleekly grey burst up from the Levi’s pedals. You jolted the vehicle to a stop, nearly snapping your neck as you tried to wrench away from the Stand. It was definitely some kind of shark, almost mechanical-looking with a hideous single eye between its two other ones. The Stand landed in your lap and you screamed, grappling with your seatbelt to launch yourself to the other side of the Levi.

The water bottle! your head screeched. Use it!

You scooped up the water bottle and unscrewed the cap. You doused yourself in water but just managed to enclose the Stand inside the container, frantically screwing the lid shut. For a minute, you sat there, breathing heavily and dripping water onto someone’s nice Levi. Practically the entire cabin was soaked.

This had been your nice jacket too.

You left the Levi door open, ignoring all of the people ogling you. You found the nearest deserted alleyway, opened the water bottle and shot at the little shark inside until your elector’s energy filler ran dry.

[ I THINK YOU GOT HIM, CAP. ]

You should’ve known it would be the two space thieves from the casino. Following Coco’s instruction, you followed the canal to find Mista and Narancia not far away. The pair of space thieves the two had been chasing were huddled on the ground, the redhead leaking blood in streams while the blonde glared balefully at you all. You would be lying if you said you felt even the slightest bit threatened. The shark Stand was still trapped in the water bottle, now hanging limply from your hand. If you hadn’t wanted answers, you might have chucked the thing.

You glanced over Mista and Narancia. There was a disturbing amount of blood down the front of Narancia’s shirt. He shook his head when you tried to check on him.

“Better you don’t,” Mista said lowly. He guided Narancia to the ground where Narancia promptly began coughing, clasping a hand over his mouth. “The Stand was attached to his tongue. It mangled his mouth pretty bad.” He glanced over at your sodden clothes and raised an eyebrow. “Did you fall into the canal or something?”

“Something like that. Once we get JoJo back, we’ll see if his Stand can make good on healing people. Got a spare energy filler?”

Mista reached under his hat and passed one over to you. You still didn’t know how he managed to keep them there. Clicking it into your elector, you promptly pointed it at the two space thieves.

“Where’s the rest of my crew?”

“Dead,” the blonde seethed. His companion groaned pitifully.

You shook the water bottle. “Your friend’s Stand is still in here. Answer my questions and I’ll let you go.”

The blonde only pulled his companion closer to his chest, murmuring something to him too low for you to hear.

“Stars’ sake,” you muttered. You reached into your jacket for Zero’s badge and flashed it impatiently. “Talk or the big man blasts your ass.”

The blonde’s eyes widened. “You’re working for Zero?”

“Where is my crew?”

“Release my Stand. They’ll …. They'll be in … the canal,” the redhead managed to say.

You extended the water bottle to Mista. He took it and dashed to the canal. As much as you wanted to rush toward the sudden splashing and yelling once he opened, you stayed put.

“What’s your name?” you said, and you could tell the blonde was confused by your sudden change in tone.

“Does it matter?”

“We’re just trying to do our job for Zero. Who are you? Why did you go after Pericolo? Is he okay?”

“He should be back at the bar.” The blonde fixed his gaze on his companion. It was obvious he was his primary concern. “My name is Tiziano. And my partner is Squalo.” At this, he brushed a tender hand over the redhead’s forehead.

“We didn’t mean to harm you. We were just trying to do our job.” You frowned. You summoned Party Rock, shuffling around in its chest compartment for the gel packs you always kept on hand. You tossed one to Tiziano, who seemed surprised but quickly started using it on Squalo. “Were you after the Stand Arrow?”

“Isn’t everyone these days?” Tiziano sighed. “After the news spread that you were looking for it for Zero, every thieving crew was on it. We heard that you asked him for ten million credits, is that true?”

You neither confirmed nor denied it. “So you came here to find Pericolo. You must also know about Polnareff’s location.”

“The old man told us we were too late. Squalo was enraged, but I managed to hold him back. I didn’t want him to kill Pericolo before you met with him or you would be suspicious. Squalo has always been hotheaded, though.” Tiziano looked up at you. “You don’t have his location either, do you?”

“We’ll find him wherever he is,” you said.

“You won’t have to worry about us,” Tiziano continued. Squalo winced as he shifted his position, and Tiziano grimaced as though the pain was mutual. “I’ve told Squalo for a long time now that we shouldn’t be doing things like this anymore. We never held a candle up to the likes of Passione.” Tiziano canted his head at you. “But I’m curious. Why choose now to accept a job from Zero? Hasn’t your crew always been against him?”

Promise me you’ll never accept a job from him. Anything is better than working with that man.

You rubbed your temple, suddenly feeling like needles were pricking at your head. “I’m glad to be working with Zero. His business is always that. Business. He’s never gone back on his word. I don’t know why we haven’t worked together sooner.” Your tongue stumbled a little over the words. You frowned, wondering why you felt odd at the words.

“You want to survive,” Tiziano said. “There’s no shame in that. That’s all any of us want to do.”

You could hear the rest of your crew hauling themselves out of the canal; Trish complained loudly while Fugo rained hellfire down on Mista’s head.

“I’ll call a medic for you,” you said, pulling out your holopad. “I’m sorry you guys had to get caught up in this.”

“Maybe I don’t have a right to tell you this, but be careful, Captain. Things are bloodthirsty in the thieving world right now. Your crew going after that Stand Arrow has changed things.”

You didn’t know what to say to that. Eventually, you nodded, stealing back to your ship with the rest of the crew as you left Squalo and Tiziano behind.

Back in your ship, after copious bitching and moaning, everyone reconvened on the bridge in dry clothes. JoJo made quick work of Narancia’s tongue, demonstrating that he was, indeed, a healer. You had shut Coco off the minute you’d arrived on the bridge, and now that it was quiet, you set it tentatively on your console.

“First off, good job out there. Things could have been worse. I appreciate all of your quick thinking and resourcefulness.” You nodded at Narancia who smiled weakly in response. You reminded yourself to check in on him later.

“If you’re wondering about Pericolo, he should be fine. Tiziano said he was back in the bar. I called an ambulance for those two. It seemed like they were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time more than anything.”

You crossed your arms. “Now, on to the most important development of today. I’m pretty sure all of us have a nagging suspicion that Coco Jumbo is the turtle Polnareff left with Pericolo.”

“I still don’t see how that would be possible,” Fugo said.

“There’s the possibility it isn’t,” you acknowledged. “We’ll just have to dig through its files to make sure. There must be a reason why it couldn’t remember if it turns out to be the turtle.”

Mista grumbled, “Would’ve saved us a hell of a lot of trouble if we’d known before.”

Fugo had already moved the turtle over to his console. He eyed it for a minute before attaching a transfer cord into its key and lighting up his screen. “I’ll work on it,” he said. “Shouldn’t take long to find out if Polnareff's location is in here.”

“Everyone get some rest,” you said. “I’ll let you know if we find anything.”

Before they left, you said quietly to Trish and Mista, “Would you two mind checking on Narancia? I feel like something else might have happened on Laius. Besides the Stand attack.”

The two nodded before leaving you and Fugo alone on the bridge. You pretended to mess around on your console a bit while Fugo worked but eventually, you couldn’t take it anymore.

“When were you going to tell me?”

Fugo didn’t look at you. “About what?”

“About putting a tracker on JoJo’s ident chip. I don’t remember telling you to do that.”

“It was just a precaution. It’s not like you ever give me the chance to properly vet new recruits.”

“If JoJo wanted to kill us, he would’ve done that by now.”

“Sometimes immediate death isn’t the final plan.”

Even though the captain’s station was on a higher platform than the engineering station, you had the distinct impression that Fugo was talking down to you. You stepped down from your station and stopped in front of Fugo’s console.

“I never gave you permission to track JoJo. What kind of trust are we showing him by doing that?”

“He was working for two mechanics that tried to kill us. I think that’s more than enough reason to suspect him. Scanning his ident chip gave me nothing. His record is completely blank. A ‘Johnny Jones’ might as well not exist.”

“That’s none of our business. If JoJo wanted to reveal any of that, he can do that on his own time.”

“Are you really not even the slightest bit suspicious? Not even you’re that blindly trusting. I put a tracker on JoJo because there was a chance he could be a threat to the crew and the mission. If you’re so against it, I’ll remove it right now.” Fugo made a show of switching his console to another screen. The red circle of JoJo’s location blinked out as Fugo shut down the tracker. “Happy?”

“I don’t appreciate you going behind my back like that. I’ve never put a tracker on you or any of the crew. JoJo should be no different. You might have been on the crew longer than him but this was way out of line.”

“Captain, if you want Polnareff’s location from Coco, we have to talk some other time. You’re distracting me.”

“I want you to apologize to JoJo,” you said tightly.

“I’m not going to apologize for trying to keep the crew safe.”

“JoJo didn’t ask to go with us so he could have his privacy violated. He’s been through enough without people spying on him when he thinks he’s safe.”

Fugo pushed back from his chair. His voice pitched in exasperation. “I don’t know what’s going on with you. You’ve been acting differently since we accepted that job from Zero. I’ve never seen you bend over backwards like this to please a client, no matter who they were. I’m starting to wonder if you’re doing this job for the crew, or if you’re doing this job for Zero.”

You clenched your jaw. “Everything I do is for the crew.”

“Are you sure? Because the Captain I know wouldn’t have argued against keeping the crew safe. They wouldn’t have rushed blindly into a mission when the risks outweighed the benefits. They wouldn’t have conceded to a client when that wasn’t what the crew needed. Zero’s got you under his thumb, Captain. And that has never happened before.”

“This job is strictly business. We owe all of our clients respect. You have no right to talk about Zero like that.”

“You’re doing it right now! You just defended Zero instead of yourself! Zero is manipulating you and the crew!” Fugo slammed his hand down on the engineering console. “We should just trash this plan. Give Zero his flacking badge back. This isn’t what Passioneis about.”

“How would you know anything about that?” you seethed. “I made this crew. Not you. Zero needs the Stand Arrow. Zero told us to get it. That’s what we’re going to do, with or without you, Fugo.”

Fugo stared at your face. You didn’t know what he saw there, but he didn’t like it.

“Captain, listen to yourself.”

“You’re out of line. We need this job, Fugo. We’re going to lose this crew and there’s no one who can prevent that but Zero. We are getting that Stand Arrow. We’re already too far in to give up.” Your body thrummed with a strange energy. Some distant part of you chafed at this conversation, chafed at how it was going all wrong. You never spoke to Fugo like this, no matter how upset the two of you got. But Fugo had betrayed JoJo’s trust. He had suggested you abandon this plan that you’d already staked so much on. He was wrong for that.

You held Fugo’s violet gaze for a few tense beats. Eventually, he scoffed, unplugging the turtle.

“I don’t want to do this, but you’re the Captain and I have a duty to listen. If you won’t listen to me, fine. I’m just hoping we’ll get you back if we finish this job.”

Fugo left for the barracks, his footsteps brisk on the ship’s grating. You tried to see this job from the engineer’s point of view, tried to understand his doubts.

But it felt so wrong to doubt the plan, doubt Zero. There was nothing to it but to finish the job that Zero had given you. Even if—

Even if …

Huh. You couldn’t remember.

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#kismetva #jjba #jjba x reader #jjba fanfic #golden wind #golden wind x reader #vento aureo #vento aureo x reader #gender neutral reader #sci fi au

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cophene · 8 months

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𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐌𝐄𝐓 | vento aureo; fifteen.

☆ ⁺ « 𝐂𝐎𝐂𝐊𝐘 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐌 𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄

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★˚⋆ YOU ALMOST DIDN’T CATCH FUGO’S voice under the din of the casino. “You know, I really don’t know why an old man would be spending his time on Laius when he could literally be anywhere else in the galaxy.”

“Why? What’s wrong with it?”

Fugo wrinkled his nose. “Do I have to elaborate? Just look at this place. I’d have already died of multiple cardiac arrests if I was him.”

As he said this, a floating tray of alcohol nearly slammed into him. Fugo scowled, stepping aside as a gaggle of brightly dressed girls descended upon the tray. Their faces were done up in bright, neon makeup that shifted as though they were holograms, and scrolling words and phrases ran up the sides of their shorts and tops. They lifted their drinks in your direction.

“Just got here, Captain?” one of them said, her voice nearly swallowed by the thumping bass. “Need some help getting around?”

You smiled lazily. “Maybe. Got the time?”

Beside you, Fugo shot you a look. The group of girls split off, pairing themselves with your crew. Mista wasted no time slinging his arm over a curvy blonde, flicking his fingers in your direction as the two of them disappeared into the casino. You had already lost sight of Trish a while back and Fugo shrugged off the girl heading towards him to scope out the place on his own.

“He’s coming with me,” you said, before the girl with cornrows could drag JoJo away. “He can be a bit flighty. Don’t want him getting lost.”

“Suit yourself. We’ll be by the bar if you get bored,” she said, her voice a purr as she brushed by you. Discreetly, you led JoJo to the far end of the casino where the escalators were.

“You doing alright?” you asked.

“Just a little overwhelmed,” he said. His green eyes were wide, hardly settling on one thing before they alighted on another.

“Try not to look so amazed,” you said wryly. “They’ll wring you out dry if they know it’s your first time here.”

“Right. Sorry.”

“Keep your eyes peeled. The sooner we find Pericolo, the better. It looks like a gambler's paradise here, but there’s only so much excess you can take.”

JoJo nodded, sobering slightly. He followed close behind as you took the escalators to the second floor, where wisps of smoke and strobes of green and blue light cascaded over the glass railings.

The silvery-blue windbreaker Trish had outfitted JoJo in filled him out a little. With Zero’s funds, Trish had gone out to find new clothes for the crew to blend in with baggy, neon-coloured trends on Laius. Coco had insisted chances of success rose exponentially with all of your crew at the casino, however Narancia had begged you to bow out, claiming he was in need of some mysterious pilot tweaks. You didn’t know what that meant, but you allowed him to go, thinking of his irritated eye. You didn’t know how qualified the doctors on Laius were, but as long as he was getting his eye checked out, you were relieved.

As you got off the escalator, you had to take a moment to reorient yourself. Between the riotous clothing and flashing slots and hovering cards and chips, it felt like you were being overstimulated. It hurt your eyes seeing everything at once and there wasn’t even a pocket of calm you could take a break in. You had only been in this casino for a few minutes, but already, you felt your stamina flagging. You were getting too old to be in places like this. Maybe Fugo was right. How the hell was Pericolo spending his time here?

In Laius, this casino was the place to be. It was the biggest, the grandest, the most obnoxious. Smack dab in the middle of the colony, it made every other casino look like dollhouses. This casino was notoriously known as the place millionaires became beggars and beggars walked away with millions. Everyone who came to Laius had to come here at least once, and it was rumoured the Imperial Princes graced this place with their presence every once in a while. According to Coco Jumbo, it was also where Pericolo could be found.

As you nearly got knocked in the face by a triumphant better and narrowly blinded by a stack of shuffling cards, you wondered why Pericolo couldn’t have spent his retirement on a tranquil water planet, or those quietly peaceful moons. It was quickly proving to be impossible to pick him out from the throng of overzealous, sickeningly bright gamblers. Shouts and laughter and shrieks tumbled together in your ears. If you weren’t looking at a holographic pile of chips, you were watching numbers spin by or dice being rolled.

“How are we supposed to find anyone here?” JoJo asked, echoing your thoughts.

“Try to acclimate,” you said. “It’s like hot water; it gets easier once you’ve sat in it for a while.” There were a few tables of poker near the back that looked a little bit quieter than the rest of the casino. They were positioned in such a way that you could watch the rest of the floor during the game. Well, as much of the gargantuan complex as you could.

“You play poker?” you asked JoJo.

“Decently,” he replied.

With that, you and JoJo went to join one of the tables as their game finished up. The dealer there swept up the cards deftly, cutting the deck as everyone placed their bets. You eyed the neon-lined chips in front of you dubiously. Out of the crew, you were by far the worst person to play cards with, not because you were bad, but your bets were always so low they never made the wins worth it. You put down the minimum number of chips allowed, pleased when JoJo took your example. You couldn’t imagine Zero would be too pleased if he thought you were blowing his money on gambling.

The game was unremarkable. The other people sitting at your table were tired office people and a few wide-eyed tourists. They didn’t bet anything exorbitant and so the wins were easy and modest. Half your mind was on the game while the other scanned the casino. People of every description were here, yet for the life of you, you couldn’t find a small, wiry old man.

You did catch sight of someone else, though. A girl with acid-green eyes and braids, flitting through the crowd like a sprite. She was there and gone, so quick you weren’t sure if you had actually seen her or if it was an afterimage from the bright lights.

The game ended. You whispered Pericolo’s name and JoJo answered in the negative.

As the cards were dealt again, you took out your holopad, sending off a quick text to the crew to see if anyone had wrangled the old man yet. No luck. Frustration began to sizzle in the back of your throat.

Another game came and went. You paid off your and JoJo’s bets before motioning him for him to move.

“Coco,” you growled into your holopad. “You can’t just tell us to go into the biggest casino on Laius and expect us to find Pericolo. Why don’t you use your almighty-ness to narrow it down for us?”

[ I’M SURPRISED YOU HAVEN’T FOUND HIM ALREADY. AREN’T YOU SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD AT THIS KIND OF THING? ]

“I’m a thief, not a flacking secret agent.”

[ I SPY WITH MY LITTLE EYE, SOMETHING ROUND AND SPINNING. ]

“You have three seconds.”

[ CHEATER. NO FUN AT ALL. GO TO THE ROULETTE WHEEL TO YOUR LEFT. I ALREADY SENT A MESSAGE TO THE REST OF THE CREW TO MEET YOU THERE. ]

If Coco was flacking with you …

You tapped on JoJo’s shoulder, and the two of you reluctantly went over to the roulette wheel. Entirely holographic, the numbers danced around as the croupier spun the wheel with a practiced hand. The people crowding the wheel gasped as it skittered over the numbers before landing frantically on one. A groan went up as no one won their bets.

JoJo was staring intently at the croupier. “Isn’t that … the guy we’re looking for?”

You followed his gaze, your heart jolting. You hadn’t recognized him with his hair slicked back and dressed in the casino’s uniform, but the croupier was none other than Pericolo. He smiled impishly as the disappointed gamblers wandered off, one eye drifting lazily while the other gleamed. Stars, this man was working here?

“Captain.” Fugo appeared beside you, and you frowned at the large stain spreading across the front of his shirt. His hair was mussed, and what looked like a bruise purpled his jaw.

“What happened to you?”

“Exactly what it looks like,” Fugo grumbled. He squinted at Pericolo. “Wouldn’t have expected him to be an actual employee. I thought he only spent his time here for fun.”

“We need to get him alone somehow,” you said, glancing around you. “We don’t have time for him to get off his shift.”

“I heard you have a badge from Zero,” JoJo said. He shrank back when you and Fugo looked at him. “That … I mean, I think it should be enough to convince him.”

“Wait,” Fugo stopped you before you could reach into your pocket for the badge. He nodded over your shoulder, and you turned slightly to find a couple dressed in all black, their laughter raucous as one of them swept all of the chips on their table to the floor.

They were a striking pair, fair and dark, blonde and ginger. But it was less to do with how they looked and more how they acted, how they moved together as a unit, each of them distinct yet always in time. Their eyes darted from one thing to another, always assessing and always calculating.

Two kinds of people in the galaxy had eyes like that. Galactic Authorities and thieving crews.

Your hand fell to your side. Sale and Zucchero wouldn’t be the first people to go after you and they wouldn’t be the last. You couldn’t risk that other thieving duo catching sight of Zero’s badge and suddenly deciding you were their next big shot.

“Captain, can I borrow your holopad?”

You passed it to JoJo distractedly, eyes still on the duo. Were they here for fun? Or had they already caught wind of your deal with Zero?

“Excuse me, sir,” Fugo said to Pericolo. “Do you have a moment to talk?”

“Talk?” Pericolo blinked. He looked the three of you over and seemed to find you lacking. “Unless it’s about roulette betting, I don’t want to hear it.”

“Please, sir, we won’t take long—”

“Place your bets, people!” Pericolo shouted over Fugo. “Pick your numbers quickly.”

Your hand suddenly itched for your elector. People tended to be chattier when you brought it out.

Fugo looked at you, his mouth a thin line. There were too many people, too many betters vying for Pericolo’s attention. You had to get him alone.

“He owes me money! The hell are you dragging me away for?”

“Would you be quiet? You can’t go two seconds without starting a brawl.”

“He’s a sore loser and he accused me of cheating! Now he thinks I’m a pushover!”

JoJo moved quickly aside to let Mista and Trish pass, still fidgeting with your holopad. Mista was fighting against Trish like a wounded cat, but she kept his grip on him until they were in front of you.

“Besides, you were supposed to be looking for Pericolo and you were nowhere near him,” Trish snapped.

Mista rubbed his hat. “It was part of the plan. If he’s on the main floor, I would’ve—” He blinked for a second, taking in the roulette wheel and Pericolo right in front of him before sighing. “Are you kidding me? Pericolo’s right there. What the hell are we waiting for?”

“There’s another thieving crew over there,” Fugo said, tilting his head. “We can’t use Zero’s badge without them noticing. We need some other way to get information from Pericolo.”

“You know there’s a thing called an elector—”

“Everyone away from the table.” JoJo’s voice rose suddenly. He snapped his fingers impatiently, then shushed Pericolo before he could speak. Everyone nearby, including your crew, turned to gawk at him.

“Sir, I’d like to make a bet,” he said loudly. It was as though he’d shucked the timid boy you’d found on the ship into a corner and stolen someone else to take his place. “Between me and the house. No one else.”

The people around him muttered to themselves. The back of Fugo’s neck turned red and he was about to grab JoJo when you stopped him. Let’s see what he does.

Pericolo clicked his tongue. “Get lost, kid, that’s not how roulette works.”

“I bet one inside number,” JoJo continued, undeterred. “If I win, you give my crew ten minutes of your time. If I lose, I owe you one million credits.”

Disbelief rose in the crowd. Trish let out a little peep and Fugo looked ready to strangle JoJo to death.

“The hell’s he thinking?” Mista hissed. You kept still, not wanting to intervene just yet.

Pericolo narrowed his eyes at JoJo. “What are you trying to do here?”

“We’re in a casino. Isn’t betting what I’m supposed to do?” JoJo swiped a bright green chip from the stack , placing it decisively down on the table. You craned your neck to see what he had bet. Four black.

Mista let out a choked sound.

“Do you even have a million credits to bet?” Pericolo asked.

“I don’t bet what I don’t have,” JoJo replied. “Before we begin, do you mind if I look at the roulette ball? I’ve heard rumours of it being weighted and magnetized. I just want to make sure that’s not the case.”

“You’re accusing me of cheating?”

“I just want to check. One million credits is no small amount.”

With a scowl, Pericolo handed the ball over. JoJo took it between two fingers, looking at it from every angle. With a smile that didn’t seem to belong to him, he handed it back.

“I’m ready when you are, sir.”

Pericolo began spinning the wheel and the red and black-lit numbers blurred together hypnotically. With a flick of his wrist, Pericolo sent the ball around the rim in the opposite direction.

When you looked at JoJo, not a hint of discomfort showed on his face. His features were blank and a chill went through you. Even if it wasn’t his money he was wasting, he should look at least a little bit worried.

The ball eventually lost momentum, skittering down to the wheel. Everyone collectively took in a breath as it skipped over the numbers before settling into a slot.

You swore internally. A red slot.

A smirk twisted Pericolo’s lips as the wheel slowed to a stop. Most of the people who’d stayed to watch started drifting away, muttering under their breaths about this reckless kid who’d just blown a trust fund’s worth of credits.

Pericolo swiped JoJo’s chip off the table with relish. JoJo looked over his shoulder at you, not quite smiling. “He’s all yours.”

“What do you mean?”

“I won the bet. You’re welcome.”

No, he hadn’t. You glanced at the roulette wheel, then did a double take.

The ball was resting in a black slot. On the number four.

“Wait, what?” Mista hurried over to the wheel and leaned over it. “How—? Didn’t it land in a red slot?”

JoJo kept his eyes on Pericolo. “I won, sir. You owe us ten minutes of your time.”

Pericolo’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. The yelling and cursing you braced yourself for didn’t come. Instead, he leaned towards your crew, lowering his voice so it could barely be heard.

“What did you want to talk about?”

How the turn tables. You tried not to focus too much on his wandering eye as you said, “Do you know someone named Polnareff?”

Pericolo didn’t react to the name. He made to reset the roulette wheel. His mouth barely moved when he next spoke. “Not here. Meet me at the Milk Tiger in twenty minutes. You won’t have trouble finding it.”

Your stomach plummeted. Trying not to look alarmed, you nodded, then left the table as casually as you could. Your crew fell into step behind you, perhaps as equally confused at the turn of events.

Your crew emerged outside, crossing the street to wait along the line of parked Levi’s. Almost in unison, you all turned to JoJo.

“What did you do back there?”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

Mista clenched his jaw. “You might have fooled the old man, but we saw clear as day that the ball didn’t land on a four black. Which was a terrible number to bet, by the way.”

“Was the ball magnetized?” Trish wondered. “Did you do something to it?”

“You shouldn’t have made such a large bet,” said Fugo. His eyes darkened. “People are going to wonder how someone like you has such a large amount of money. We were trying not to attract attention, and you did the opposite.”

JoJo lowered his head. “Sorry. I—I wasn’t thinking.” Mutely, he returned your holopad to you.

“What did you use this for?” you asked.

[ ALRIGHT, I’M SICK OF EVERYONE GIVING JOJO HERE THE CREDIT WHEN I DID MOST OF THE WORK! ] Coco blurted from your holopad as though the question had been for it. You really had to figure out how to turn it off.

[ ALL THE GAMES HERE ARE RECORDED FOR INSURANCE. JOJO ASKED ME TO ANALYZE FOOTAGE FROM THE PAST WEEK OF THE ROULETTE PERICOLO WAS AT. USING THAT AND STATS FROM THE OTHER ROULETTES, I WAS ABLE TO NARROW DOWN HIS BETS TO A COLOUR AND FIVE NUMBERS. ALL HE DID WAS PICK THE NUMBER. ]

“And it just had to be the number four,” Mista snarked.

“It’s true. Coco did all of the work,” JoJo admitted. “I was just cocky enough to think it would work”.

[ PERCENTAGE OF YOU WINNING WAS 2.63%, SO YES, YOU WERE VERY COCKY. ]

“At least you won,” Trish said. “Some people here make bets even though they know they won’t win.”

Mista threw up his arms. “For the last time, he was cheating! Did you see my cards?! I won, straight up!”

As the two of them bickered and Fugo tried to get them to shut up, you glanced sidelong at JoJo. His hair had fallen back into his face and it hid his eyes from you.

Coco Jumbo aside, you knew what you had seen. The ball had landed in a red slot. Even if the wheel had continued to spin, the ball wouldn’t have enough momentum to move.

JoJo had used his Stand somehow. You were sure of it.

Narancia had been to plenty of checkups at the Flight Academy, but this one felt different. Maybe it was because he was alone, without first-years beside him getting jittery, or the third-years making up lewd jokes about physicals and prostates. He had gotten past his initial nervousness and now felt only a dull, heavy dread.

He knew what the doctor was going to say. He just didn’t want to hear it.

Narancia followed the orderly to the examination room and took a seat on the hard-backed chair there. When the doctor arrived, he moved to the examining table. He brushed his hair back, popped out his contacts, fought the urge to cringe as the doctor squeezed out a few eyedrops. The light the doctor shone into his eye seemed to pierce into his brain and he let out a tiny sound.

“Just bear with me,” the doctor said.

The doctor moved him to another room; made him lie down inside a humongous X-ray machine. He had to wait an hour for the X-rays to develop. The entire time, his eye throbbed faintly and stars somersaulted across his vision.

He came back to the examination room. The doctor displayed the X-rays on a holoscreen. They looked grey and alien. The doctor’s tone remained even as he spoke words Narancia was expected to understand; long, scary-sounding words he could barely pronounce. Throughout all of it, Narancia got one thing.

You’re flacked. Your eye is flacked.

Flacked.

Narancia needed surgery. Credits weren’t an issue, but time was. It wasn’t like he could take a week off the mission to hunker down at a clinic somewhere. He declined the referral; said he needed some time and would check back later. The doctor didn’t like that, but it wasn’t the doctor’s eye that was flacked.

He got a prescription for some eye drops. Temporary eye drops. They wouldn’t heal, only delay. If Narancia didn’t hurry, the doctor said, he would need a cybernetic.

That would be cool. He’d look badass. Except his mom had also needed a cybernetic and had never gotten one.

His mom had died. Maybe Narancia—

Narancia stepped outside, closed one eye, then the other. He didn’t know how to feel when neither eye could show him what was across the street. He put his contacts back in and was dismayed to find the neon lights of Laius were still blurry.

Because he was crying.

Stars, this was pathetic. Narancia tried to get his tear ducts to close, to stop leaking down his face. He wiped a harsh hand across his eyes but the tears wouldn’t stop.

He knew he should tell the captain. They wouldn’t hesitate to give Narancia credits they needed, or the time. No one would begrudge him for staying behind while the rest of the crew went after the Stand Arrow.

For a precarious moment, Narancia was tempted. Where would he be without his eyes? He didn’t need the X-rays to tell him how bad they had gotten already. He had to tell the crew—

Narancia’s chest twinged, like it was a guitar that had plucked the wrong string.

He couldn’t do that. He was their pilot. How would they get anywhere without him?

Narancia would hold out until then; try to take it easy. They had a month to complete the mission and already a week had passed. Once Zero had the Stand Arrow, he would have all the time in the galaxy to deal with his eye.

He would be fine. He would get through this for the crew and for Zero.

For Zero?

“Hey, you alright?” Someone stopped by him just then. They offered him a can of something—some Coco Jumbo. “You’re not looking too hot.”

Narancia sniffled, hating how childish he must have seemed. He took the can and cracked it open, taking a long drink to keep from speaking.

“I’m fine. Thanks.”

“Funny how we automatically say that,” the person said. The ad boards around them made his dark skin gleam, and a few strands of his pale hair fell into his face as he drew closer to Narancia. “It seems so obvious when we’re not okay, yet we always feel the need to lie.”

“Makes things easier,” Narancia said, drinking from the can. “Besides, it’s not like people really want the truth when they ask.”

“Maybe so.” The person smiled carefully. “Is there anything I can do to help you?”

“The drink was more than enough, thank you.”

“Are you sure? Are you here alone?”

Narancia gave the guy a pointed look. He had another thing coming if he thought Narancia was just going to follow him blindly somewhere.

Yikes. Maybe not the best choice of words.

“You really don’t look too hot,” the guy said, still smiling.

Narancia finished off the drink. He’d been here too long already. He had to see if the crew had found Pericolo yet.

A sharp stab of pain in his tongue made Narancia yelp. He dropped the can, hissing under his breath. Had he just bitten his tongue? Flack, that had hurt.

“Are you—”

“Just peachy,” Narancia waved the guy off and started down the walk before he could say another word. He checked his reflection in a passing Levi, wiping his runny nose and the tear stains with his sleeve. Crying hours were over. It was time for business.

His holopad pinged then. A message from the Cap. Change of plans. Meet us at the Milk Tiger. It’s not too far from the casino.

“I can help you if you need it. You don’t have to pretend to be strong.”

Narancia’s switchblade was out of his pocket and pointed at the guy before he could blink. The guy smiled slowly, raising his hands.

“Leave me,” Narancia hissed, “the flack alone.”

The guy listened, thank the stars. Narancia walked briskly away, putting the guy and the doctor and everything out of his mind.

He must have chomped down on his tongue harder than he’d thought. It still hurt when he got to the Milk Tiger.

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