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rwbyrg · 2 months

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What Inspired the Fairytale: Warrior in the Woods as a Rosegarden Allusion

I've broken down Ruby as Little Red Riding Hood, and Oscar as the Little Prince, now I want to analyze the two of them within a canon fable. The very first story within RWBY: Fairytales of Remnant: The Warrior in the Woods.

For those who are unfamiliar with it, I will summarize, or you can read it in the official free preview of the book here. One disclaimer before I get started: I'm not speaking about the animated adaptation here. Something Oz mentions in his fore/afterward of the book is that fairytales often shift and change depending on who it is that's telling the story. The book itself seems to aim to tell the most objective version as possible, whereas in the episode of FToR, it's very clear Tai's experiences and biases greatly influences the way he tells the story. With that out of the way...

The story is about a boy who lives in a village surrounded by a forest that is said to protect its residents from Grimm. One day, the boy ventures into the wood further than anyone would think to look for him. There he is attacked by a monster, the first he has ever seen... Only to be saved at the last minute by a cloaked warrior carrying a curved weapon. He thanks her and asks for her name, but she tells him to leave and not return. He doesn't listen. Every year since the day of their first meeting, he ventures further into the wood hoping he will meet his saviour again. And every time, he is proven right when she shows up and saves him at the last minute. Each year, the boy grows older and wiser, training himself how to fight, bringing the woman gifts as thanks for protecting the village alone and without appreciation all these years. Until one day, the village is attacked by Grimm for the first time in ages. On their next planned meeting, the boy - now a man - fights his entire way through the forest to the hut where she lives, and finds it torn apart and empty. He returns home and tells the villagers her story having taken up the mantle of protecting his people in her place. When asked if he kept going back to see her just because she saved him, he replies (paraphrased): "For that reason, and many more. But I believe she knew the deepest reason of all. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her silver eyes."

Even the summary alone paints a picture very reminiscent of Ruby and Oscar's paired arc throughout the show thus far, but I want to break it down even further. First things first:

The Warrior

She is described as "a fair woman in a flowing (threadbare and tattered) black cape" with a "curved blade" she can spin so quickly it "blurs". Her hair is "almost as dark as the Grimm's, white (ones) standing out as brightly as bone", and in the boy's eyes the first time he sees her, remarks that she is "beautiful and fierce". We know by the end of the story, as well as one of the Grimm fights, that she has silver eyes as well and she tells the boy at one point that she fights alone because she is alone, since all the people like her were killed by other humans. This lines up well with how Silver Eyed Warriors have been hunted by Salem and her forces for generations.

When we compare this to Ruby when Oscar first meets her, it hits all the same marks. He is captivated by her silver eyes the moment he first meets her:

She is fair skinned with black hair (if you include the books illustrations, with a reddish tint), has silver eyes, and a torn and tattered cloak.

There is a point at which the woman also ties a red ribbon around her weapon's handle to hold it in place, which immediately acts as a tie in to Ruby's colour scheme.

Lastly, the boy meets the warrior for the first time in a "moonlit clearing". And we all know how much moon imagery Ruby has associated with her by now, that I really don't have to go over it again.

The Village Boy

There are no photos or descriptions of him within the text, just that he is a boy when we first meet him and is a man by the end of the story after visiting the woman annually 4-5 times. So he is roughly 14, aka the same age as Oscar, for both their first appearances.

What we do know about the boy, is shown in the objects he carries for himself and the gifts he imparts onto the woman in the woods.

The first is a parcel of clothing. It includes some blouses, leggings, a black skirt, some boots... and a new hooded green cloak. Ruby's cloak is red, but as we know both in show with ships like Bumbleby, and thanks to Eddy's bit of trivia in that Reddit AMA a while ago, that wearing the colours of people you care for is a common sign of affection within Remnant. Within this story, the woman dons a cloak in a green colour (something heavily associated with Oscar Pine), whereas within RWBY in V6, it is Oscar who dons Ruby's colour on his shoulders in his outfit upgrade.

The second is the sword the boy forges for himself before their third meeting. It is described as long and thin which immediately calls to mind The Long Memory.

From there, the next gift: a bag full of food.

"She opened the bag and pulled out parcel after parcel. There was honey cake, a strawberry tart, and sweet biscuits. When she unwrapped a stack of fresh-baked cookies, her expression lightened, and her happiness made him happy."

The first bolded example: strawberries are cited by Monty as Ruby's favourite food, and as we know by Ruby's first meeting with Ozpin (which is important given his connection to Oscar), she's a big fan of cookies too.

Now that all the aesthetics and symbolism are out of the way, I want to compare the structure of the two stories.

Separation and Reunions

The Warrior in the Woods, as well as Ruby and Oscar's arc throughout the show (as well as The Little Prince) are stories of absences.

The boy starts his tale without the woman in his live for many years before he meets her. When they do meet, it is for only a moment within a day until they must wait another full year before seeing each other again. When they do meet, at least the first 3 times, the warrior saves him from Grimm attacks. Then, at the 4th time, he runs into no obstacles and is able to sit and talk with her without incident, only for her to disappear shortly before their 5th visit, leaving him to take up her job of protecting the village.

Ruby spends the first 4 volumes of the show not knowing Oscar, but when they meet he, just like the village boy, is in awe of her silver eyes. From there, she saves him from Grimm twice (I imagine we are holding out on the third where she saves him with her silver eyes for a volume we haven't received yet)...

...and they are faced with constant separations and reunions thereafter.

Oscar goes missing in V6E8 only to be reunited with everyone in V6E9...

2. They are separated for much of V7 due to disagreements and other external circumstance, only to reunite and make up in V7E9...

3. They are then immediately split up again, one going down to Mantle and the other staying in Atlas, only to reunited at the beginning of V8E1 (suspiciously after Oscar stares into a fire much like the boy at the end of the story).

4. It is short lived before they split up on different teams AGAIN, which leads to another reunion in V8E10...

5. Only to - you guess it - be separated one more time when Ruby falls into a void, leaving Oscar to think that she died and take charge as the new leader carrying her responsibilities in her place.

Which follows the structure of the original fairytale - at least in numbers - down to the letter.

Beyond that structure, there is also the matter of what both relationships are built upon: the act of taking care of one another.

In the book, the woman explains that she protects the villagers "because she can, because no one else will, and because some people are good, like the village boy, and that gives her hope".

This heavy responsibility the warrior carries is very reminiscent of Ruby's character arc. A leader who feels she can't be a failure, who can't rely on her friends and teammates to share how much this all weighs on her, someone that lost all her silver eyed family and fears for her own fate because of a trait she had no control over. Even going so far as to try and push people away for fear they will end up hurt because of her. Someone that "remembers all the people she saved, and all the ones she didn't".

This is juxtaposed by a boy who was sheltered and safe, far from the dangers of the world, but set out and joined hers anyway. And when he did, he brought her new clothes, a new weapon, some food, and an ear she could tell her stories to. When he explains his motives, he says:

"You've spent all these years looking after us. I thought maybe it would be nice if someone looked after you for a change. Because that's what I can do. Because no one else will."

Which ties into Oscar's character exactly as well. After his conversation with Ruby in V5 about how scary all of this is, his first thought after saying she's amazing, is to acknowledge how hard this must be on her. And from then on out we see him looking after her to the best of his ability, despite his inexperience, time and time again. Protecting her when she's hurt, standing up for her when their friends fight, and baking her a casserole after she's had a tough day.

All of these things tie into what Ozpin cites as the main message of the fairytale in his notes at the end of its chapter:

It is often used as a cautionary tale, intended to discourage children from wandering too far from home on their own, or from relying too much on others to save them. But the most enduring, and I think the most inspiring, aspect of this story is one which many have taken to heart: If you can help others, it is your responsibility to do so. Whether that means fighting evil singlehandedly, or baking cookies (for kindness can be as rare as silver eyes) is up to the reader to decide for themselves. From each according to their own abilities.

Ruby and Oscar are two characters driven by their responsibilities to do something about all the bad in the world, in whatever ways they are able, before they run out of time. While Ruby's main allusion is Little Red and Oscar's is the Little Prince, I think it's really inspiring to see a canon fairytale within RWBY's own universe that relates to their story so well as this one.

#rwby #ruby rose #oscar pine #rosegarden #rwby rosegarden #rosepine #meta #analysis #rwby meta #rwby analysis #warrior in the woods #fairytales of remnant

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eleanor-bradstreet · 1 year

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Young at Heart: Performance (Benedict Bridgerton x Reader)

Benedict Bridgerton x fem!Reader Rated: G, the fluffiest fluff that ever fluffed Word count: 2.6k

Masterpost

Summary: A puppet show for the children puts you and Benedict in close proximity.

Author's Note: Steamy puppet show? This could only come from the mind of @chaoticcalzoneranchsports 😜 Adding a wee bit of heat to this fluffy fluff fic. Hope you enjoy! 💙

You were jittery as you made your way to the nursery at the appointed time, torn squarely between chastising yourself for agreeing to this vaguely inappropriate private meeting with Benedict, but also undeniably excited to see more of him. You were developing an infatuation like a silly young girl, that much was clear. You shouldn’t have entertained it, but he was so warm and welcoming, his humor so infectious, you were happier in his presence. You already considered your life at Aubrey Hall to be joyful, but the addition of Benedict made it border on magical. Despite knowing better, you would allow yourself this little indulgence. What could be the harm in chatting and sparring as you both looked after the children? He was brother to a Viscount and you were the hired help. Playful banter is all that could ever exist between you.

When you entered the nursery you found him rummaging through the chest next to the theater box. He looked up with his trademark smile as you approached.

“Miss y/l/n! Ready for your stage debut?”

You rolled your eyes but couldn’t hide a grin. “I suppose my hands are, yes.”

“That’s a start.” He beckoned you to kneel beside him at the chest. It was filled to the brim with puppets and marionettes in a rainbow of colorful clothing. It seemed almost an excessive amount of toys for one household, but when you remembered that the prior generation of Bridgertons was comprised of eight children, it began to seem justified. Benedict dug into the pile, pulling out figure after figure, inspecting clowns and horses and devils.

“Now, we have to come up with a story. What do you think will hold their interest?”

“They love the classic fairytales.”

“Alright, so we shall need a princess.” He sifted and found an elegant puppet of a woman in a green dress. “And a handsome prince, of course.” He produced a figure in a smart jacket with gilt epaulets. “Who can…” He dug deeper, then pulled out an amorphous lump of grey fabric with hastily sewn button eyes, clearly a child’s creation. “...save her from a monster. So, why would the monster be after the princess?”

You bit your lip as you pawed through the chest yourself, looking for something that would spark inspiration. You found it in the form of a miniature basket, just the right size to accompany the princess.

“She has something he wants. Biscuits?”

If the childrens’ faces lit up half as bright as Benedict’s did in that moment, you would consider the show a success. “Oh, no doubt the boys will understand that motivation. Very clever. We have our story!” Cheerily, he closed the chest and began arranging the puppets on the lid.

You marveled at his confidence, speaking aloud when you perhaps should have held your tongue. “Do you simply have boundless talent when it comes to creative endeavors?”

His brows raised, confused.

Now you felt bashful, but needed to explain yourself. Heat began to creep up your neck. “I’ve seen your paintings, in the room you keep as a studio.”

“You noticed?” His voice was so soft, his eyes so hopeful, it melted something inside you. Some layer of nerves fell away and you felt as if you were speaking to a friend.

“They are very good.” You nodded. “You have a flair for sparking the imagination, Mr. Bridgerton, whether with your oils or your words.”

“That is kind of you to say.” Now you were both blushing. “And you seem to have unlimited patience and energy to chase after all my nephews. I don’t know how you do it all day.”

You chuckled. “They are sweet boys. I believe I have their loving family to thank for their good temperaments. And it has been easier with so much help extended to me.” You looked at him pointedly, hoping to convey your sincere gratitude for how much happiness he brought to the children and by extension, to you.

He took your meaning, then the telltale smirk spread across his face. “Even when that help teaches them cheeky pranks?”

You couldn’t help but return his smile. “Yes, even then.”

Then a stillness arose between you, much as it had the night before when he had looked up at you from one knee, his fingers warm around your ankle, his eyes twinkling with something you couldn’t interpret. They looked the same now as you held each other’s gaze. The silence together was comfortable. More comfortable than it should have been, given your position.

You remembered yourself and stood. “So how should we…?”

“Right,” Benedict seemed to shake himself back into the room as well, gathering the puppets and standing to face you. “You can voice the princess, and carry your basket like so.” Gently, he maneuvered the green skirt of the princess onto your right hand and the tiny basket into your left, guiding your hands together so that she appeared to be carrying it. He held the other two figures aloft, grinning. “And I will be the monster, and the dashing prince.” He held the little man up next to his face with a cocky twist of his head for you to compare. You huffed a laugh.

Then he stepped closer, voice lowered and head bent toward you. “We find ourselves in these roles yet again, and so soon after our last performance.”

The warmth that had been gathering in your cheeks went rushing down your back and through your limbs, your whole body feeling somehow exhilarated and petrified simultaneously. This was not just friendly banter, this was blatant flirtation. Twice now he had positioned himself as the prince to your princess, and it seemed he wanted your opinion of it. You certainly had one, but it was the stuff of fairytales, and entirely inappropriate for you to humor or hope for.

You had to step out of his radius before you grew lightheaded, so brushed past him and ducked into the theater box.

“So I crouch down here?” You asked, trying to sound innocent but you suspected you only sounded flustered.

He followed behind, shifting so that he was tucked against the wall and you near the exit.

“Yes, here, kneel down.” He dropped to his knees on one of the cushions that lined the floor of the box and bid you to follow suit. You did so, anxiously fiddling with the toys in your hands.

Benedict smiled, reached over and gently held your wrist. You sucked in your breath, unable to focus on anything but his fingers, elegant and impossibly long, pressing softly into your skin. “Take the puppet, and hold it up.” He guided your arm above your head so that it peeked over the crest of the stage. You were frozen, letting him orchestrate you as your heart started to pound. You feared he may feel your pulse racing in his grasp.

“No need to be nervous,” he chuckled, “this isn’t the Globe. Just a touch lower,” He pulled your hand down a fraction, never loosening his grip, and then fluidly reached around your back to grasp your other hand holding the basket and bring it up to the stage as well. “There.”

He was surrounding you now, both of his hands on your wrists, his arms lying parallel across the top of yours, his torso just an inch from your back, close enough to feel the heat of him. You were enveloped, fighting the urge in every muscle to simply melt backward and let him hold you. The air between you grew heavy with everything you could not say, but wanted each other to understand nonetheless.

His voice dropped to a rumble, his words spoken so closely, you could feel his breath across your cheek. “How does that feel?”

You were growing dizzy, overwhelmed with the feeling of him everywhere, with how clear his intentions had become and how very much you welcomed them. “Good,” you sighed shakily. “I feel…”

A peal of laughter echoed down the hall and caused you both to leap apart and stand. A stampede of tiny footsteps and approaching squeals soon led to the three nephews barrelling into the room, followed closely by a beleaguered looking Colin, carrying Caroline on his arm. The boys immediately fell to playing with toys, babbling amongst themselves.

“Hello, everyone!” You greeted them, smoothing your hair and skirts as if it would somehow calm your racing heart.

“Hello, hello, here we are.” Colin shepherded the children into the seats arranged before the theater and sat, bouncing his niece in his lap.

“How was the lake?” you asked.

“Not enough to deprive them of their energy, I’m afraid.” He rolled his eyes. “We are ready for this performance Uncle Benny has promised us.”

“It is sure to delight.” Benedict announced behind you, then sank to his knees within the theater again.

Timidly, you followed suit, crouching out of sight. You were nestled together again, shoulders brushing in the confined space. You held the princess and basket above your head as he had instructed but were so flustered, you had entirely forgotten the story you agreed upon.

Starting to panic, your eyes darted to Benedict. He grinned, gentle and encouraging, mouthing silently to you, “Once upon a time.”

Oh yes. The plot came flooding back and you called out to the audience beyond, dancing your hands across the window of the stage as you spoke. “Once upon a time there was a princess, but she had no kingdom and so lived in a cottage in the forest. She loved to bake biscuits and hers were the most delicious biscuits in the land. Every day she would walk through the wood to the nearby village to sell her wares.”

Benedict slipped the prince puppet onto his hand and popped it into view as well, picking up the story. “In the castle at the center of the village lived a prince who loved to eat biscuits, but also loved hunting. He could slay beasts of any size with his trusty sword. One day, when he was hunting in the woods, he could smell the most captivating aroma of biscuits coming from the cottage. But the biscuits were also drawing the attention of a terrifying creature who lived in the deepest, darkest part of the wood.” He slowly raised his hand with the grey lump of a puppet, staging his threatening entrance and beginning to speak with an ominous growl. “The dreaded monster named…”

You watched as he frowned, questing for a name. Then he peeked his eyes over the stage. “Colin.”

The resulting groan and chorus of giggles made you look over the edge too. Colin was scowling but completely helpless to defend himself as his nephews poked at his knees and Caroline burbled in his lap.

Holding back your own laughter, you returned to the story. “As the princess was walking on the path to the village, suddenly the monster jumped in front of her.”

Benedict skirted the monster over to the princess, revealing another frightfully entertaining character voice. “‘Give me biscuits!’ He roared. The prince heard the roar and began to head toward the noise.” Both of his hands shifted closer to yours, his shoulder beginning to press against you. You turned and found him looking at you intently. "The princess was frightened, but she was also courageous, and clever.”

His arched brow spurred you to action. “She shouted, ‘Get away from me you beast!’ And then threw her basket of biscuits into the wood.” You acted the part, letting your hand with the basket soar to the far end of the stage, crossing an arm over Benedict’s.

He took your cue effortlessly. “The monster, who wanted to eat biscuits just a little bit more than he wanted to eat people, ran after the basket, which had landed at the feet of the prince!” Both of his hands framed yours. You held still, incapable of thinking about anything but your proximity.

“When the prince saw the monster approach, he took out his trusty sword and struck him through, killing the foul creature for good and all.” Pitting a conflict between his two puppets, Benedict felled the monster in dramatic fashion, followed by cheers from the onlookers. You both giggled within the theater box, and you assumed the tale had concluded. But then Benedict took his now monster-less hand and wrapped it once more around your wrist holding the basket, moving it in tandem with the prince. “Then the prince picked up the basket and brought it back to the princess.” Now your hands were gathered at the center of the stage, prince and princess tucked close to one another, and he never relinquished his hold on your wrist.

Your mind whirred, distracted by the softness of his skin, by the press of him against your side. In a quavering voice, you kept narrating, unsure of how to conclude. “To thank him, she shared the biscuits with him.”

You had entirely stopped looking at the puppets or attempting to move them. With Benedict so close you could only turn and fall into his eyes, holding yours in that impossible, glittering way again, only inches away. He smiled, his voice loud enough for the audience but you knew it was directly primarily at you. “And they were so delicious and the princess was so beautiful, that the prince instantly fell in love with her and kissed her.”

As the prince puppet leaned in to peck the princess, Benedict leaned toward you, his eyes falling to your lips.

“And they lived happily ever after.” You exhaled, the words tumbling out as a reflex.

You were lost, deaf to anything but the sounds of how you shared the air between you. This couldn’t be happening…Could he actually be… Giving in to the irresistible, you felt yourself swaying forward too. Fireworks began to burst in your mind as your noses touched.

Then a chorus of squeals and applause erupted from the other side of the wall hiding you, and you pulled back. You may have been out of sight but you were not alone, and by all rights you should not have been doing this at all.

Entirely out of sorts with your heart pounding again, you leapt to your feet to see the children gleefully praising the show. Benedict quickly stood beside you and you both bowed, doing your best to plaster on a smile despite how your mind was reeling. Colin was applauding along with the boys, but quirked a brow at you both.

“Remarkable,” he mused.

You scurried out of the theater box, unable to meet the eyes of either brother, and gathered Caroline in your arms.

Benedict’s voice was tight behind you. “Thank you, Miss y/l/n. I’m afraid I have some things to attend to.” Then he strode briskly out of the room.

Colin looked back at you, his tone friendly but curious. “Yes, I do as well. Excellent performance, Miss y/l/n.” You nodded in thanks but continued to avert your eyes, convinced your blush was revealing all. “Be good for Miss y/l/n you lot, I’ll see you soon.” Patting the little heads as he went, Colin gave a final bow then left too.

You bounced Caroline anxiously, reliving every sensation in your mind. The repeated grasp of Benedict’s fingers, the invitation in his eyes, the heat of him crowding around you, your brush with an impossible kiss… Now he seemed cross with you. Cross or embarrassed, or perhaps just as confused as you were. What on earth were you supposed to do now? As Barney shrieked and overturned a jar of coloring pencils, you found your answer. All you could do was your job and keep your focus on the children.

Tagging: @angels17324 @bridgertontess @broooookiecrisp @desert-fern @fiction-is-life @kpopstanthot

#bridgerton #bridgerton fanfiction #benedict bridgerton #benedict bridgerton fanfiction #benedict bridgerton x reader #benedict bridgerton x you #benedict bridgerton x y/n #benedict bridgerton imagine #bridgerton x reader #bridgerton x you #bridgerton x y/n #bridgerton imagine #female reader #fluff #regency era #regency romance

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lu-is-not-ok · 9 months

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loving the analyses! could we get ebony stem/ya śūnyatā tad rūpam, if your inbox isn't too full? keep up the good work!

Well, I can fulfill one half of this request, considering I already talked about the other Outis E.G.O for... Way longer than was probably necessary.

That being said, let's dive under the cut for this.

So, let's start off with Ebony Queen's Apple. Or, rather, Snow White's Apple, the Abnormality Ebony Queen's Apple is an Abberation of.

The story of Snow White's Apple is a very interesting twist on the fairytale, focusing on the experience and feelings of the apple that poisoned Snow White.

This apple, created by the witch's rage and curse, was left abandoned after it fulfilled its purpose. Lonely and festering hatred towards the princess, the same feeling the witch was experiencing, it waited to rot away and disapper... But it couldn't. No matter how much time passed, how much the apple was crushed or eaten by bugs and birds, it would continue to exist.

Surrounded by the bodies of the birds and bugs its poison killed, the apple began to ponder its existence, until one day it sprouted enough of a stem and leaves to move from its spot. Thinking of the princess who was woken up from her poisoned slumber by a prince, the apple decided that it was a princess in its own right, but didn't need a prince to be woken.

The main theme of this abnormality is loneliness and jealousy mixing together to form an intense, "toxic" hatred. There's also this interesting idea of immortality and its negative connotations, being that the apple wished to effectively die, but would never rot, instead stewing in its own loneliness and the harm it inflicted just by existing. There's also this interesting idea of a role reversal, of the apple that inherited the witch's will and feelings becoming a princess in its own twisted way.

Now, that's all nice and good, but what about Ebony Queen's Apple.

Here, I would like to briefly rant about the fact that the wiki for Limbus Company contains all the MD Events, all the Abno Logs (though not always with proper assignments who said what), all the detailed Battle Info... but. For SOME FUCKING REASON. It does not include the text for mid-battle events. IT SAYS THE EVENTS ARE THERE!!! BUT DOES NOT PROVIDE THE FUCKING TEXT!!!!

Thank you, shitty fandom wiki, this is useless! You're making my job Harder!

In fact, I'm going to bring up those events as the First Thing, because they actually have the most thematically relevant details out of all of the information we have.

Ebony Queen's Apple has two mid-fight events. One that always activates on Turn 3 of the fight, and one that activates when its Head part is broken once and brought down to half health.

Let's start with the first one, perhaps the most interesting one.

It begins by describing Ebony Queen's Apple as "a heart torn into thousands of pieces", and how it burrows and tangles itself underground to hide itself from all eyes. Already, we have this repeat of the idea that the Apple is inheriting feelings from someone else, being that person's heart rather than just an apple cursed by that person.

This is followed by another interesting line, giving the reason for someone to pull up these roots as "there is no wound that can remain unearthed". The wording of this is kind of odd here. The word 'unearth' means to find something by digging something up from the ground, so for something to remain 'unearthed', it has have already been found and dug up.

Which... doesn't make sense when you first think about it, because it's giving a reason for digging something up by telling you that... something can't remain dug up? Unless, you connect it to the previous line. A wounded heart should not be seen by all eyes. No wound can remain unearthed. Ebony Queen's Apple is very much trying to hide its pain, and that's why the Sinners have to pull on these roots. Reveal the Apple's own pain. Because it by itself never would.

When the Sinners proceed to give each other looks, another interesting sentence follows. "Being coiled in piercing, sharp pain was something to avoid even in one's dreams." While, on the literal level, this is obviously meant to refer to the Sinner being bound by Ebony Queen's Apple's roots, I do wonder... Is it also referring to the pain the Apple itself is experiencing and trying to hide?

The skill check is a Wrath Advantage, with the additional flavor text saying "The dry earth must be upturned. Which Sinner was up to the task?". It's interesting how Wrath, the Sin of defiance, is the one that does better at upturning reality, if you will. But, that's not directly related to the Abno, so I won't dwell on it for too long.

What follows a successful skill check is the Sinner digging up the roots with their bare hands and coming to some... interesting realizations. To quote the text directly:

"In their hands were the doubts of others. The Sinner realized... That while the injury may heal, distrust might take deep root in their heart."

This, I think, is the reveal of what the source of Ebony Queen's Apple's pain is. The Apple has been hurt before, and while no physical injury or pain remains, there is still that pain of distrust, that pain of fear over being hurt again. The coiling, sharp pain that took root in the heart that the Apple represents. And that same pain that the Apple tries so desperately to hide.

Now, let's talk about the second event, which I have to rant about again. There is. Very little online info about this event, as usually one can very easily skip it because of how easy Ebony Queen's Apple is to defeat. The only footage I've found of it is in a Solo video, with the person pressing the Skip button, so if I miss any text in that event, this is why.

And no, I couldn't check what the event was on my own, because by the time I'm writing this Ebony Queen's Apple is no longer available in thread luxcavations, and I'm not going to be doing a whole MD for the chance of finding the boss or waiting a whole week just to be able to confirm the event text. I may be insane, but I'm not that insane.

So, in this event, when the Sinners look up at the Apple's face, they gaze upon "the weathered memories within". Again, there's this idea of the original harm that was done to the Apple took place such a long time ago that its memories have become weathered. It could also refer to the pain and distrust being what made those memories weathered by them, everything the Apple can remember now tainted by these feelings.

Another interesting line in this event is the following: "When the apple browns, cracks, shrivels, and attracts lowly creatures... That is when it has met golden bliss." There's that same idea of the Apple seeking death just like Snow White's Apple. How rotting away and becoming one with the earth, finally letting go of this pain, is the one thing this Apple considers as true bliss.

Upon succeeding the skill check (Pride advantage for taking advantage of the Apple being lost in bliss, btw), an interesting line is said. "The fruit was emptied of its lifeblood long ago; only futility remained."

It's a very evocative sentence to me. It gives the image of Ebony Queen's Apple being a sort of walking corpse, something that should have already died, but something within it was keeping it clinging to life in futility. Was the moment the Apple got hurt enough to begin its distrust the moment it lost its lifeblood? Was that pain and distrust the thing that kept it going in futility?

Now, let's take a look at the actual battle info. Don't worry, this one won't be as long as the MFE one, since Ebony Queen's Apple doesn't have as much to ramble about regarding its Skills and Passives.

Ebony Queen's Apple uses two different Sin Affinities - Gluttony for attacks done with its Stems, and Pride for attacks done with its Roots. All of the Apple's body parts have two attacks each, with the exception of the Head, which only uses a single Affinity-less defense skill.

Starting with the Stem attacks:

Pale Stem - The appearance of Snow White's Apple's stems actually plays a notable role, as they are constantly described as looking like they are dying and withering, yet they're still alive and growing. Likewise, I think it is worth pointing out what Ebony Queen's Apple's stems look like as well. The descriptor of 'Pale' combined with the almost skeletal appearance in its design proper gives the image of a plant that has been dead for so long its color and structure is unrecognisable. And yet... it's still alive, despite all odds.

Distrust - In case we didn't pick up on the idea of distrust from the mid-battle event, this attack would absolutely clue us all in. Incredibly straight-forward, not much more to say here.

Now onto the Roots attacks:

Root Spike - This one is so straightforward that I don't think there's much to read into here. You could probably read way into it with the idea of distrust and how it connects to the idea of taking root, but... Nah. I think this one is just a simple physical description of the attack. They can't all be deep.

Shared Pain - An interesting fact about this specific attack is that it only starts getting used After the mid-battle event (wiki says it only enters the pool after both events but I'm Sure I've had this attack happen after only the first one, so *shrug*), which has some interesting implications.

Recall that the first event involves a Sinner digging up Ebony Queen's Apple's roots, effectively exposing the pain and distrust it feels to everyone around it. And this action is what lets the Apple use the Shared Pain skill... If you can't hide it, make a show out of it, I suppose.

Now, onto the last one, the Head's defense:

Vain Fruit - Now, I think this is a very interesting skill name, as it could have a double meaning. Vain could mean someone with a lot of pride, an excessively high opinion of oneself. However, vain could also mean something useless, futile. In a way, I think both of these apply.

On one hand, Ebony Queen's Apple absolutely fits the Limbus definition of Pride. Hiding and trying to ignore its own pain for the sake of keeping up appearances, doing something for its benefits while ignoring the negative consequences. On the other, we are directly told that the Apple's continued survival is futile, there is no life left in it, only pain and distrust. Its continued existence is in vain.

So, I think the description "Vain Fruit" fits it quite perfectly actually.

Now, I'll take a brief look at the Passives as well.

An Apple's Twilight is an interesting one. When used figuratively, twilight can describe a state of gradual decline, or a state that is obscure and hard to define. In a way, I think that's exactly the state Ebony Queen's Apple is in. Not quite alive, but not yet dead either. In the twilight of its life, you could say.

Entangling Roots is clearly connected to the first mid-battle event, where the Apple is described as tangling itself to hide its pain. These roots are what entangles the Apple, and by pulling them out, this Passive is turned off premautrely.

One Sole Root is an interesting one, because I think it comes back to the idea of Pride/Vanity. That everything is about keeping up Ebony Queen's Apple's image, keeping up that one single root that matters. Note how the Roots are the part of the Apple that is covered up by its dress, and how "breaking" the Roots doesn't necessarily break the roots themselves, but exposes them by breaking the dress covering them.

So, let's finally mention the Abno Logs, shall we?

Something very interesting about Ebony Queen's Apple is that it's noted to not be immediately hostile to the Sinners, rather trying to communicate with them telepathically. It's in stark contrast to Snow White's Apple, whose hatred and poison would actively harm anything within its vicinity.

Even more interestingly, Ebony Queen's Apple asks the Sinners to "Bring Snow White", which leads Faust to realize this Abnormality has some connection to Snow White's Apple. However, something about this is interesting - it's very clearly talking about Snow White, the princess, not the other Apple. Do both of the Apples have some sort of connection to that princess?

The next Log mentions something interesting - Faust speculated that Ebony Queen's Apple could potentially 'believe itself to be a "noble".' Consider how Snow White's Apple began to believe itself to be a princess after spending a long time thinking about her. Likewise, Ebony Queen's Apple seems to have done something similar, instead beginning to believe itself to be the evil queen, potentially also after thinking about her for a long time.

...So I have a theory here. A Lore theory, if you will.

The Snow White's Apple is an Apple who took on the heart of the witch (which, if you somehow don't know the story, is the Evil Queen in disguise), but decided to become like a princess after being hurt by her.

What is the chance that Ebony Queen's Apple is the opposite of that? An Apple who took on the heart of the princess, but decided to become like the Evil Queen after being hurt by her.

It would explain a lot, in fact. The reason why Ebony Queen's Apple isn't initially hostile towards the Sinners? Because at her heart, Snow White isn't a violent or malicious person, it's the persona of the Evil Queen that the Apple took on that is violent. What character in the fairytale would be the most likely to develop high levels of distrust? Snow White, who's being constantly hunted down by the Evil Queen through a variety of deceitful tricks. Why would the Apple look like it's been dead for a long time? Because Snow White was put into a coma, seemingly dying due to the Evil Queen's actions, before she was brought back to life.

So... decoding Ebony Queen's Apple is nice and all, but where does that leave us themes-wise?

Well, distrust is the most obvious theme here. Specifically, the pain one experiences and feels the need to hide because of the fear of being hurt again. There's also this similar idea of immortality, but in this case it's specifically the futile attempt of living after one's death, literal or figurative. A walking corpse, if you will. Finally, the role reversal theme rears its head up again, though in this case it's about a kind, soft-hearted person becoming malicious and selfish, so as to never be hurt again.

And now, we get to the big question. What does all of this mean for Ebony Stem Outis?

Well, let's look at the Awakening attack. In this attack, Outis uses Ebony Queen's Apple's Root Spike attack, which by itself doesn't tell us much. What is interesting is how she invokes this attack. The motion she makes puts to mind the leader of an army, directing their troops forward with the decisive raise of a weapon.

However, the more interesting part here I think is her dialogue line. "If this is to seize victory…" So, those who were here for my Ya Śūnyatā Tad Rūpam analysis might have an idea of where this is going.

This, I think, is Outis expressing her own justification for putting on the persona of the 'Evil Queen', of a brave, selfish commander. It's to seize victory, whether it's about the Smoke War, whatever ulterior motives she has in her current position, or perhaps even something far more personal. Because, if you win, you can't lose and be hurt further, right?

After all...

Outis has proven herself to be quite familiar with this idea, hasn't she?

Now, onto the Corrosion.

Here, the idea of Ebony Queen's Apple representing something that is already dead is further cemented, as Outis's face turns completely skeletal upon becoming Corroded. Interestingly enough, the animation she uses here is the Apple's Shared Pain attack. Perhaps Corroding under the influence of this Abnormality shows enough of her vulnerabilities for her to decide to unmask just enough to use that attack?

The dialogue line here is also very fascinating. "Just a little more…", said in a notably pained manner. Just how desperate is Outis? Just how much pain is she pushing herself through to continue on? How many 'just a little more's has she been clinging to this whole time?

Just like how Ebony Queen's Apple's attempts to keep living after death are futile, Outis's attempts to continue on despite what happened in her past are also futile. No amount of pushing through and inching forward will lead her to where she wants to be. No amount of telling herself that the Oddyssey had a purpose will actually give it one.

Finally, we're at the point where we can do some Sin Analysis.

Ebony Stem is a Gluttony-affinity E.G.O, and it's a very clear yet very interesting case of one. The hunger is very much there, but it's not what one would usually associate with Gluttony on first glance.

The hunger for survival is there, but it's not literal. In this case, it's the striving towards surviving without being hurt, surviving despite the pain distrust causes. Likewise, the hunger for progress is also there, in this case it's for trying to move forward despite what happened in the past, to keep inching 'just a little more', even though it's clearly futile, with no end in sight.

This futility, I think, is what truly makes this a Gluttony E.G.O.

Now, as for the necessary Sin Resources, they are as follows (ordered from needed most of to least of): Pride, Gluttony, Lust, Gloom.

Pride is quite important to Outis's character, and especially to this E.G.O, as she requires a whole four of it to use it. While the whole idea of her ignoring the harm she inflicts on others to get what she wants still applies here, I think there's another layer to this - ignoring the harm she experiences in doing so.

One of the main themes of Ebony Queen's Apple is how one tries to hide and ignore the pain and distrust one feels for the sake of the appearance one puts on, an incredibly Pride-coded action. Likewise, Outis has to hide her pain and insecurities to be able to put on the persona of the strong-willed, merciless commander, a highly Prideful act by Limbus's standards.

Gluttony follows after, with Outis requiring three of it to use Ebony Stem. Due to it being the Sin Affinity of the E.G.O, most of the points I made while talking about that still remain. Outis needs to wish to survive without pain and keep moving forward despite it being futile to use Ebony Stem, simple enough.

Then, a surprise guest.

Lust. Outis requires two of that Sin to use Ebony Stem. While Lust often represents indulgence, I believe this case is very similar to the case of Lust in Ya Śūnyatā Tad Rūpam. It represents Outis's dedication to her personal goals, how she has to be willing to do anything to fulfill them to gain access to this E.G.O. Plus, there is that additional layer of her wishing to not be hurt, though that can count as several different Sins depending on the context, and it's something I would put under Gluttony for this E.G.O specifically.

Finally, there's Gloom. Outis requires only one of it to use Ebony Stem. It's a small, but nonetheless important part of this E.G.O. I believe Gloom here represents the pain and trauma that led to Outis developing this behavior in the first place. The harm that was inflicted on her in the past, and the distrust that clings to her afterwards. It's a small part due to Outis's highly goal-oriented nature, causing her to focus on other aspects of Ebony Stem, suchs as reaching the goal of victory... But that hurt is still there. That piercing, sharp pain coiling around her heart, that she's always aware of at the back of her mind, no matter how much she wishes to hide it.

Of course, her Passive here being named Stem of Distrust only drives the point home even further.

Something interesting about Ebony Stem Outis's Sin Resistances is that, while very close to Ebony Queen's Apple's, they're not exactly the same. Both the Apple and Outis are Fatal to Wrath and Pride, as it's what can easily tear down their masks - the will to defy their commanding presence and tear it down, knowing that exposing their pain will hurt them in the process. However, what they differ in is the Sins that are Ineffective (x0.5) against them, and the ones they Endure (x0.75).

For Ebony Queen's Apple, its Ineffective Resistance is Gloom, and it's Endured Resistance is Envy. Meanwhile, for Ebony Stem Outis, the Ineffective Resistance is Gluttony, while Gloom is Endured.

I think the reason they're protected from the influences of those Sins is, well... They're the reasons why both the Apple and Outis put on those personas in the first place. They're both protected from Gloom because the whole reason they act like 'Evil Queens' is to avoid getting further hurt, with it being much more important to the Apple.

The Apple endures Envy because its pain likely comes from the influence of a single person - the real Ebony Queen. As such, by mimicking her, the Apple is effectively ensuring that it won't be as hurt and influences by her as it was in the past. Likewise, Gluttony is Ineffective against Ebony Stem Outis as that's the main reason she puts on this mask, to continue moving forward, to keep on living after what happened, regardless of its futility.

There is... certainly something going on with Outis that we don't fully know about yet. Something about her two Gluttony Affinity E.G.Os having themes of distrusting other people, and all of her E.G.Os having some form of idea of putting on a front that's far more aggressive or selfish or commanding than the real self might be...

Girl, what is with you.

#tearychildren #ask #lu speaketh #limbus company #outis #outis lcb #ebony stem outis #lcb analysis #i will say #this new format i've been doing with e.g.o analyses #where i go far more in depth than i used to #is extremely fun to write #maybe once i'm out of requests i might revisit some of my old analyses #the roseate desire one especially feels somewhat dated #as i've written that one before my opinion on what each of the sins means was solidified #but who knows #anyway enjoy another essay length analysis

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return-of-a-space-cowboy · 1 year

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Fairytale prompt 7 please with Prosciutto. A Cinderella tale where darling just wants to spend the night away from their family and unknowingly bumps into prince Prosciutto

Finally I finished it... nearly 7000 words 💀

This was actually quite enjoyable to write.

The hazelnut tree

(Yandere Prosciutto X Female Reader)

Like every day before you scrubbed the stone floors, Subjected to a maid's duty. Unfortunately, you had no choice, when your father died the estate was left to your cruel stepmother who left you with only two options: serve as a maid or leave with nothing. So for the past decade, you had spent cooking and cleaning. Slowly trying to salvage valuables and small sums of money to lead to an eventual escape.

You flinched as you heard a knock on the door. You quickly got up and ran to the door. Opening it revealed a finely dressed delivery man.

"Hello, what brings you here today?" You asked.

"I have come with invitations from the Royal family, all the ladies of the kingdom are requested to attend a three-night soiree so that the prince may find a bride" he explained as he searched through a velvet satchel.

"Residents?" He asked you.

"(L/n)" you replied. It took the man a while but he eventually pulled out three envelopes before he bid you farewell. You closed the door and placed them on the nearby table before returning to your work.

Time passed with the only sound being that of the brush you were scrubbing with. After you had finished you emptied the remaining water in the garden before going back inside and sitting on the lounge to rest your aching body but of course, luck was not on your side as the door opened and your stepmother and sisters entered.

"Slacking off as usual?" Your stepmother asked in an accusatory tone.

"I just finished scrubbing the floors…" you sighed before pointing to the table. You would have gotten up but you were far too sore to do anything, even though you knew that not doing so would result in no dinner.

"A delivery man arrived with invitations to a royal ball today" you explained and your step sisters' eyes lit up with excitement as they rushed to the table and picked the letters up and tore the envelope straight off. They could barely contain their excitement as they read through it.

"Mother, the prince will be choosing a bride at the ball!" One of them squealed.

"Prince Prosciutto… to marry him would be a blessing" the other swooned. You had heard them talk about the prince before. They would sometimes see him in the town and would return talking to each other for what seemed like hours. His light blonde hair that was always finely styled, and his fair, porcelain skin was. His eyes that were an icy blue. They fancied him a fair bit.

They put down the letters before noticing the third.

"What? (Y/N) got an invitation?!" One of them scoffed which caught your stepmother's attention. You leaned forward a bit. Shocked to hear that you had received an invitation.

"Now why would a lowly maid like her be invited?" She asked.

"The delivery man told me all women of the kingdom are invited" you replied. She shot daggers at you with her piercing glare.

"What a waste of the Prince's time, why would he want to associate with peasants? Surely there are enough noble women for at least one to catch his attention. So why throw those filthy, lowly creatures into the mix" she sneered before grabbing the letter and ripping it.

You tried to remain unfazed but deep down it hurt. To be considered less than human, to have your right to three nights to experience something you had dreamt about since you were a child to be torn to pieces.

That night you hadn't expected to cry into the sack you called a pillow but you did. Despite everything they already put you through this felt like the worst. You wanted to leave now but you knew you were not yet prepared. You had to wait it out for at least another year if you wanted to get anywhere.

As the days went on all your step sisters could that about was the upcoming ball. The month was spent by them going out in search of the perfect attire. From their jewelry to their shoes they spared no expense in hopes the prince would choose them. Every now and then you asked your stepmother if she would let you attend in hopes she'd say yes but she refused every time until the night before the ball.

"Yes," she replied.

"Really?" You asked her.

"Of course sweet, dear (Y/n), but only if you are able to complete this list of tasks" she lulled in a sickeningly sweet tone before thrusting the list into your hands nearly causing you to fall. You read the list most were the regular chores while others were different. Like sorting lentils out of soot, counting every stone in the floor, and other seemingly impossible tasks. Yet you managed to work throughout the night and into the day, completing every task on that list.

You showed her all the work you had done. She seemed impressed and that gave you hope.

"That's great but you must be so tired from all that work and it seems you don't have a dress ready. I'm afraid I can't let you come" she feigned worry and her daughters laughed in response. It felt like a knife had been driven straight into your heart. You shouldn’t have had hope, of course, she'd never let anything good happen in your life.

You watched as they left before going to the backyard, sitting under the large hazelnut tree that had been planted atop your mother's grave. You hugged the tree as if she was there as you cried.

"All I wanted to do was attend the ball… I just wanted to know what it was like" you sobbed. You continued to cry for a while but when you finally got up you noticed something odd. A pair of heels made of glass had seemingly grown on the tree you pulled them off. Then you saw the most beautiful silver dress. You carefully removed the dress and brought the dress and shoes inside to try on and to your surprise, they fit you perfectly, as if they had been made for you. The glass heels were unusually comfortable, allowing you to step gracefully with ease as if you were barefoot.

Still, you wondered how you would make it to the ball. You stepped outside and your eyes widened in shock as you saw a stunning white carriage parked outside. You walked to the front where the carriage rider sat.

"Umm, sir could you tell me what's going on?" You asked. He turned to you and smiled.

"You're heading to the ball of course ma'am" he replied sweetly.

"There must be some mix up-" you tried to explain but he cut you off.

"No there is no mix-up, you wished to attend the ball so you shall. Now you should quickly hop in so you're not late" he said. You were confused, left with more questions than answers but you entered the carriage anyway.

'Wish?' You thought to yourself. Yes, it was your wish but how? Such things only happened in fairytales. you looked out the window to see the glow of the castle draw closer and your heart fluttered.

🏰🏰🏰

The carriage slowed and you could see the castle right in front. A velvet carpet was rolled out to invite all the guests. The carriage then stopped and the door was opened. You got out and looked in awe at everything, this didn't feel real. You took slow steps as you made your way to the doorway. This all must have been a dream, this was too good to be true.

Heads turned as you walked into the enormous ballroom. Whispers you couldn't make out reached your ears. It wasn't long before men lined up to ask you to dance with them and you accepted each one. Blissfully dancing the night away. Between breaks, the women complimented you including your step sisters who seemed clueless as to who you were.

Throughout all this The prince watched from afar, curious as to who the woman was now talking about. He tried to approach however you hurried out of the ball before he'd gotten a chance to speak to you, but he did not threaten as he knew you'd return tomorrow night.

You had hurried off to the carriage after seeing the time, knowing your step-relatives would be leaving soon you had to make it home, or else they would know.

When you arrived home. you returned the dress and shoes to the hazelnut tree and went straight to bed. Shortly you could hear the door open and the mutter of your step-relatives. Your step sisters talking about how beautiful the mysterious woman was and how they would need better outfits if they were to impress the prince while their mother tried to discredit the woman.

In the mornings your step sisters boasted about the ball and told you about the mystery woman but when trying to describe her they couldn't. They remember her but her features were hazy. Even your stepmother was perplexed by how she forgot the appearance of such a distinct person.

After that they left early to find another, better dress to wear and returned after noon to start getting ready while you continue with your chores. Once they left you made your way to the hazel tree to find the same glass heels and a golden dress that was even more beautiful than last night's dress. You put them on and got into the carriage once more.

Once again you conversed and danced but you couldn't help but be lured to one of the balconies by the cold breeze that flowed from them. You looked out to the garden, they were already so beautiful. You could only imagine how much more beautiful it looked during the day before a voice interrupted your thoughts.

"You look so beautiful in that dress, from which kingdom do you come from?" A soothing voice asked. You turned to see a fair-skinned man with icy blue eyes and well-kept blonde hair wearing a fine royal blue suit.

"Thank you, sir, I have lived in this kingdom my whole life" you replied which earned a slight chuckle from him.

"Well I have not seen such craftsmanship from here… and I would have assumed that someone from this kingdom would undoubtedly know the face of their Prince" he spoke.

You felt your heart stop for a second, you were embarrassed that you had spoken so lowly to him.

"I'm so sorry your majesty! It was rude of me to speak like that to you. I've not been outside of my family's property in many years" you apologized and explained as you bowed before him.

"I'll consider accepting your apology, but only if you'll accompany me tonight," he said with a smirk. You were flustered, why would the prince want you around him?

"I am so sorry your majesty but I am not worthy of such a privilege" you replied. Another chuckle passed his lips and he got closer.

"No, it would be a great privilege for me to be around you. Last night I had heard so many people speak so highly of you, I had tried to get my chance to dance with you last night but you had left before I had the opportunity to ask" he retorted.

You were shocked that the prince wanted to dance with you, as wonderful as it sounded you really didn't want that kind of attention. You wanted to refuse his proposal but you were afraid of what the consequences might be so you accepted.

You waltzed with him a lot longer than you had with any of the dance partners you had before. During the dance, he asked you question after question. You kept vague with your responses.

"You never told me your name" He stated.

For a few seconds, you remained silently debating on whether you should tell him or lie. You thought back to the morning and remembered how your step-relatives couldn't remember you last night. Perhaps the same would apply with your name.

"My name is (Y/n)" you told him.

"(Y/n) is such a lovely name… it suits you very well" he complimented you.

"Thank you" you replied before looking at the clock and seeing the time it was nearly twelve. You had to leave.

"Your majesty-" you tried to speak but he cut you off.

"You do not have to be so formal with me, just call me Prosciutto," he told you.

"Prosciutto It's getting late, I have to leave" you explained as you tried to pull away.

"But the ball isn't even close to finishing tonight, if you're worried about your family then I'll explain, just point out to them" he explained.

"No, I have to leave now!" You explained in a dire tone.

Prosciutto noticed your apparent stress and pulled you into an embrace.

"Whatever it is that's forcing you not to stay isn't important, if you have a problem just tell me… I'll make sure to solve it" he spoke in a sickly sweet tone with the slightest bit of poison as if he held contempt towards something, making a shiver go down your spine.

You could feel many eyes on you. You managed to escape his grip and make your way to the carriage and leave. You were shaken by what had just happened. Your heart was pounding rapidly.

When you finally arrived home you once again returned the clothes and got into bed just before your step relatives arrived home. They talked more about the lady at the ball. One of the stepsisters even mentioned that she overheard some of the conversations the prince had with her. Tell the other two that the lady's name was (Y/n) but never correlated it to you.

After the ball had ended the prince did not rest until he had a plan set to capture the woman who kept eluding him. He ordered tar and a spare carpet and informed the servants of the plan before finally resting in the late morning.

That morning you served breakfast to your step-relatives. They only talked about the woman again.

"What was her name again? You told us last night but I cannot remember" your stepmother asked one of her daughters.

"Her name was…" she tried to reply but paused for a few seconds.

"Well I actually can't remember either" she continued. From a distance, you sighed in relief.

🏰🏰🏰

In the evening you watched your step relatives leave again before sitting down. Tonight you intended to stay home after last night's ordeal. You didn't need any of that attention. Minutes passed before there was a knocking at the door. You opened it to see the carriage driver that had driven you to the ball the last two nights holding the glass heels and a dark blue dress with diamonds sewn into it, making it look like a starry night sky.

"You'll be late to the ball if you don't get ready now," he told you.

"I'm sorry but I don't want to go tonight" you replied.

"But it was your wish to attend," he retorted.

"Yes I know it was my wish to go and I did but I've had enough" you explained before closing the door. You took a step away from the door before hearing the familiar sound of the glass heels. You looked down to see you were in the dress.

"What?!" You exclaimed before opening the door again where the man still stood.

"I don't want to go, please" you begged the man.

"I'm sorry but I can't change anything, it's your wish and I must grant it" explained.

"Well now I wish to not go," you told him.

"That isn't how it works I'm afraid, the wish must be fulfilled," he told you as he gently took hold of your hand. Even though he used very little force, your body complied with his movements against your will. You stepped into the carriage and the door closed before it began to move. You sat thinking but couldn't wrap your head around this wish thing.

Once you had arrived you had reluctantly left the carriage and were instantly greeted by the prince.

"And I was starting to think you weren't going to show up," he said. You tried to speak but you couldn't.

"It was such a shame that you had left so soon last night, should we continue where we left off?" He asked. As he took your hand.

"No…" you muttered and the look in his eyes changed, you couldn't figure out what it meant but it put you on edge.

"Well we don't have to dance, perhaps we could just wander the garden away from all the guests" he suggested.

"That's a lovely offer but what if people get the wrong idea?" You replied.

"And what do you mean by the wrong idea?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"People will start thinking that there's something between us" you replied, earning a chuckle from the blonde.

"So let them, I don't care what they think," he said as pulled you to the garden.

Once again he asked you questions about your life and again you answered vaguely. Every once and a while he'd point out a plant or ornament that he was particularly fond of before you reached the back of the castle which was a small atrium area.

"I want to show you some friends of mine," he told you as he opened the door for you. You cautiously entered the atrium and you were greeted by the caws of a pair of crowd.

"Hubert, Francine calm down," he told the crows as he closed the door behind him. They quickly flew to a nearby branch less than a meter away from you.

"This is the closest I've been to a bird in my life," you said.

"Crows are very intelligent birds, once you feed them a few times they become very loyal creatures," he explained.

"I've trained them for quite some time, recently the duke of a nearby kingdom kept harassing me to marry his daughter for months on end and do you know how I got him to stop?" He continued.

"How?" You asked expecting him to tell you he had gotten them to harmlessly terrorize the Duke but what he did tell you made you feel sick to your stomach.

"I got them to peck his eyes out, he screamed like an absolute imbecile" he confessed.

"What?!" You exclaimed against your will. Why would the prince do something so horrible, he was supposed to be the future king.

"What, Are you afraid they'll hurt you? If so I can assure you they won't" he tried to reassure you.

"No… why would you subject someone to that in the first place?" you asked, absolutely mortified by how casual he was about it.

"Because he was wasting so much of my time, surely you must have some idea of what it's like?" he reasoned. At that moment you knew you had to leave.

"I should be heading home…" you said but he grabbed your wrist with a brutal force. At that moment he forgot his plan. He had to make his intentions known.

"And again like last night and the night before you want to leave early. Whatever it is you keep leaving for is not as important as right now" he hissed in almost a scolding manner.

"Once you're mine you won't need to worry at all. Everyone and thing will bend on your wim" he proclaimed.

"No!" You screamed as you tried to escape his grasp.

"No?" He asked you as he tightened his grip on your wrist, making you whimper.

"No, you're a horrible person!" you replied. You felt a painful pop in your wrist that caused you to fall to your knees.

"No, let go! You're going to break my hand!" You pleaded as tears escaped your eyes.

"You decide, either you comply or I will," he told you sternly. Without realizing it you had headbutt him right sternum causing him to let go of your wrist. You quickly took the advantage to run but he was quick to chase after you. You nearly ripped every door off offs hinges as you tried to escape.

You finally found the ballroom and with little care, you pushed past others.

"(Y/n!)" you heard Prosciutto's voice call out softly in comparison to how he was just a moment ago.

Once you had left the building you had tried running down the steps only to find tar had been slathered on the carpet, causing one of the glass heels to get stuck you turned around to see Prosciutto and his guards approaching so you got it off your foot and hurried down the rest of the stairs and into the carriage, only just managing to escape. Your heart was beating so fast it felt like it was going to give out. When you arrived home you hurried to get rid of the heel and dress before going inside and lying in bed, your heart still pounding.

Your step-relatives arrived shortly after like the nights before. Theorizing about what possibly happened but never once did they believe the prince was at fault.

It terrified you. Was what you saw a side of him that most never saw? How could people who for a self-centered prince who would take the enjoyment out of people's pain and suffering?

If he found you, who knows what he'd do?

🏰🏰🏰

The news spread quickly. Within only a few days the whole kingdom knew about the search for the woman at the ball. The prince was going from residence to residence in search of the woman who would fit the glass heel. It was only a matter of time before he would arrive.

In the night you pulled out the valuables you had hidden. You had to escape now. You packed for the journey out of the kingdom before you felt a breath on your neck.

"I knew you were up to something" your stepmother hissed.

"I've… decided to leave," you said, attempting to sound headstrong but failing.

"With all of this that was stolen from me?" she asked.

"No, this is my father's wealth! Not a cent of it is yours!" You retorted only to be met with a harsh slap in the face.

"Don't you dare speak to me like that!" She snarled as she delivered blow after blow to you, leaving you disoriented.

"You horrible girl, I should have just thrown you into the snowy streets when he died! You grew up to be nothing but rotten!" she yelled. You felt yourself slowly slipping into unconsciousness as she continued her tirade.

You woke later to find you had been tied to one of the support pillars in the basement.

"Oh God, what does she intend to do to me?" you muttered to yourself.

🏰🏰🏰

Prosciutto looked at the long list of the names of the various households of the kingdom as the carriage rocked on the uneven path. So far his attempts to find his lady had been futile.

He'd have made a bounty for her but he could not remember her name nor how she looked, which was very odd considering that usually he could remember people with ease. Whenever he tried to remember her it was always obscured, like a thick haze in his mind.

"(L/n)" he read the name of the residence he was attending next. The original owner had died and left the home to his second wife and they had three daughters from previous marriages.

The carriage came to a halt. He looked out the window to see the house and put down the list. He then grabbed the velvet box he had stored the heel in before exiting the carriage.

He followed his guards and servants to the door before one of them knocked. It only took a few seconds before two young ladies opened with enthusiasm.

"Welcome your majesty!" They greeted him in union. He knew instantly that neither of them was the woman he sought.

"Thank you and good morning to you both" he replied before he entered. He looked around the entrance. Taking particular note of a painting of a man and what he assumed was his daughter. Something about the young girl in that painting intrigued him.

"Who are those two in that painting there?" He asked.

"That was my late husband" an older lady replied as she made her way down the stairs.

"And the child?" He asked her.

"Nothing of importance, I've actually been meaning to have that painting removed for a while now but is up too high for anyone to reach" she explained, still not giving him a clue as to who the girl was.

"Well, I'm sure you know why I am here?" He said.

"Yes, I'm well aware as to why, may I have a minute with daughters before they try on the shoe?" She asked.

"Of course" he replied and as soon as he said that she and the two girls walked into one of the nearby rooms and closed the door. He followed shortly after to listen.

"Sacrifices must be made to ensure that you prosper," the lady told her daughters.

"No, I can't do that! I'd never be able to walk again if I did that!" One of the daughters exclaimed in horror.

"I agree. You can't expect us to mutilate ourselves to fit the shoe?" The other daughter said.

"You'll not need to walk when you are queen, it is a small price to pay to become " the mother spoke harshly. Now the prince knew for certain that they were not the one.

He returned to the entrance where he waited for them to return. After a couple of minutes, they exited the room. One of the girls was visibly in pain. His eyes moved to the ground where he could see a trail of blood. He was actually quite amused that she'd actually gone through with that sacrifice her mother had spoken of.

The other girl sat on the nearby chair first and let the servants attempt to put the heel on but her toes could not fit. She sighed in defeat before she let her sister take her place. The servants tried again and it fit. She squealed in joy as she looked at the prince who nodded in disapproval.

"Don't celebrate yet, I want to see you walk that bloody trail there and back, and tell me what that so-called sacrifice has done for you?" he demanded in a snarky tone. Her skin paled in horror.

"Now where is (y/n)? Is she, not a resident here too?" He asked the mother.

"She is not a resident, she is merely a servant my late husband left us" she explained.

"So where is she?" He asked again.

"She's in the basement, I found out she was stealing from us and I have her there as her punishment, there is no need to even concern yourself with that rat since she hadn't attended the ball," she said with bitterness in her tone.

"Are you sure she didn't? the lady at the ball always seemed to rush home early, almost like she was worried something would happen if she didn't leave early" he retorted as he began to put all the pieces together.

"I'm sure of it, there was no way she could have. She had no transportation, not even a dress she could wear" she replied adamantly.

"Well surely there would be no harm in having her try it on, I'm just trying to be thorough in my search," he said as he took the now bloody heel from his servant.

"Alright your majesty" she sighed in defeat before guiding the prince to the basement. She opened the door. The light framing you, head hung low in defeat.

"What… What are you going to do to me?" You asked weakly before you lifted up your head to look towards the door. Your eyes widened in shock as you saw the prince holding the heel.

"No" you muttered. The prince smiled as he looked down at you.

"(Y/n) isn't it?" He asked.

"Yes," you weakly replied as you watched him make his way down the stairs with the heel in his hand.

"I'm just here to get you to try this on" he explained softly. As if you were a small animal that could flee at any point.

"But I never attended the ball, it's a waste of time" you tried to reason. He kneeled before you and tried to grab your leg but you used what little strength you had to kick.

"I'm just being as thorough in my search," he told you before leaning closer.

"And… just as a secret between you and me. I know that the lady at the ball doesn't want to be found" he whispered, his hot breath grazing your neck making your body seize up. He took your ankle quickly and tried to get the heel on but you managed to kick it off before he had the chance to fit it.

The glass heel flew in the air before hitting the ground and smashing into millions of tiny pieces. You turned back to see the prince smile.

"I guess that was useless in the end… but that display of yours was quite telling" he snickered to himself before grabbing something out of his pocket.

"Guards I want these women arrested" he commanded in a cold tone before returning his attention to you. Now you could see the small knife in his hand.

"Look at all those bruises… I can't have you looking like that at our wedding, I'll have to push back the date" he muttered as he sawed at the thick rope that bound you to the pillar.

"However if Wench hadn't caught you stealing then you probably would have fled to some other kingdom, am I right?" He accused you but you couldn't respond. You held your head low. Terrified of what your future would hold.

"Was I right?" He asked as he grabbed your chin and forced you to look at him. You nodded up and down slightly. He was satisfied with your response and returned to cutting the rope.

Once the rope snapped he put his knife away before picking you up and holding you in bridal style. Some would swoon at the idea of being rescued by a handsome prince and being carried back to a castle but this was a nightmare for you, uncertain of what he had planned, and as much as you wanted to run you knew you couldn't, even trying to move your hand was impossible.

He carried you out to his carriage while ordering his guards to stay until he had a wagon come back to collect the prisoners.

A servant opened the carriage door and the prince laid you down with your head on his lap. Soon the carriage began to move.

He combed his fingers in your hair as he stared down at you.

"That beautiful face, I remember it clear as day now" he spoke to himself as he admired you.

"I love you, even if you're too stubborn to reciprocate my feelings, " he said.

"I'll never love you!" You snarled as you turned your head away from his gaze.

"You don't really have a choice, what are you going to do, try to run away again? Because if that is the case I've already planned for that thoroughly. You're never going to succeed much less be even able to attempt an escape" he explained.

"So is locking me up your plan?" You asked.

"You think I'm going to do the same thing that woman did to you? I promise you I'm not going to do something so degrading. After all, you are my dear princess" he tried to reassure you.

"I have absolutely no trust towards you! You threatened to break my hand that night" you retorted.

🏰🏰🏰

The carriage halted and the door opened. Prosciutto didn't spare a second to hold you in his arms again. As he brought you inside the castle he ordered his servants.

"Have a wagon brought to the (L/n) residence to capture the three women there" he ordered one of the guards before walking to one of the maids

"I want you and the others to start immediately on what I'm requesting. She needs a bath run, fresh clothing, lunch prepared, and a notice sent to all those on the list I wrote for the wedding plans" he listed off to the poor maid who looked at you with pity.

He walked you up the stairs and through the halls til he reached a door. He lowered your legs gently til your feet just touched the cold marble floor. He opened the door to reveal a large bedroom.

The walls were a soft green, the fabrics were white with golden details, the furniture was made of maple wood, and a balcony behind a pair of doors. He walked you in and laid you on the large, soft bed.

"This will be the room you'll stay in until we marry. The maids should arrive soon to take you to the bath" he explained before leaving. He closed the door behind him and the loud click of the lock followed.

You tried to stand on your feet but fell to the cold floor after several attempts before you finally succeeded. You checked the door and indeed it was locked. You then looked to the balcony. You made your way there and checked the doors but they had also been locked.

For what seemed like forever you spent searching for an escape, even pushing furniture in hopes there may be a secret passage but it seemed like Prosciutto was true to his words. He really had made any attempt of escape impossible.

🏰🏰🏰

For two weeks you had been trapped in that room. Only allowed out to bathe and eat. Every day Prosciutto would come, sometimes with wedding planners and seamstresses as the days drew closer to the wedding.

Today was the day. Your heart ached as you looked in the full body mirror to see the beautiful white gown and veil on you, it hurt knowing you were going to marry a man you felt nothing but contempt for. A knock at the door got your attention.

"Your majesty, are you ready?" One of the servants asked. You made a deep sigh, resigning your fate.

"Yes…" you replied as you made your way to the door. It opened and you stepped out. One of the maids handed you a bouquet of pink gladiolus, white Rhododendrons, and purple Hyssop. You silently took them before being guided to the carriage. In there you cried, terrified of the future.

Once you arrived at the church you wiped your tears and contemplated on one last attempt to escape, to run into the woods and not look back but you knew Prosciutto would have prepared for that well in advance.

You got out of the carriage and walked in and the organ began to play. Everyone looked at you in awe, some perhaps were envious. It made you wish you could just switch places with one of those unsuspecting women but unfortunately, that was outside the realm of possibility.

You made your way to the podium where he waited with a smile on his lips, his victory would soon be sealed.

"You look radiant today my love" he complimented you but you refused to respond. The bishop began the ceremony. As he spoke you felt your blood boil as you desperately tried to not scream. You remember the many warnings Prosciutto told you when practicing your vows.

'If you so much as stutter at the wedding I'll make sure you regret it. Our wedding will be perfect, you hear me?' He had threatened.

"You are everything that I ever dreamt of and the only one I will ever need. Our love for each other is heaven-sent. From today and onward I vow to be here with you and for you, forever and always" Prosciutto declared, Something you had heard a thousand times from hours of practice.

"Now (Y/n), your vows" the bishop instructed. you swallowed all the words that threatened to erupt and took a deep breath before speaking.

"Today I say, I do but to me, that means, I will. I will take your hand and stand by your side in every moment, both the good and the bad. From this day onward I dedicate myself to your happiness, your success, and your smile. I will love you forever" you recited as you placed down your bouquet and took the other ring from the table. In that moment tears rolled down your cheeks. Prosciutto wiped the tears from your face but only to portray himself as someone who genuinely cared about you. If this had been behind closed doors he would have taken amusement at how pathetic you were.

"(Y/n) (L/n) do you take his Majesty, Prince Prosciutto to be husband for now and forever?" The bishop asked. Your heart was pounding in your chest, wanted to scream no and run as fast as you could but you were afraid of what Prosciutto would do if you did.

"I do" you replied, finally sealing your horrid fate. The prince took your hand with no hesitation and slipped on the lavish golden ring.

"And Your Majesty, do you take (Y/n) (L/n) To be your wife for now and forever," the bishop asked him.

"I do" Prosciutto replied before smiling at you. You took his hand as he had yours before and put the ring on his finger.

"With the power vested in me I now pronounce you husband and wife" the bishop announced. The applause of the crowd echoed through the church as Prosciutto laced his hands into yours and pulled you into a long, passionate kiss. It seemed like forever before he ended the kiss, you only got a second or so to leave before he swept you off your feet and walked you down the aisle and toward the carriage.

"I planned for us a wonderful honeymoon, it'll just be you and I but first I have a surprise for you" he cooed as he sat you down.

For the journey, he told you about the royal holiday home he was taking you to. It was up on the top of a seaside cliff, completely isolated from any town.

After a few hours, the carriage stopped at an abandoned building that had particularly collapsed.

"Why did we stop?" You asked.

"Because we're here," he told you as he exited the carriage and offered his hand to you.

"No, I don't trust you," you told him.

"That's a shame, I put a lot of effort into the wedding gift I was going to show you" he sighed.

"I'm not leaving" You stood your ground knowing that his gift would certainly be grim. At that moment he practically tore you out of the carriage and dragged you inside despite your protest.

Inside you were confronted with the horrible sight of your step-relatives. Bruised, starved, and bound to support pillars much the same as your stepmother had done to you.

You knew it was some sick, twisted form of vengeance that the prince had devised, maybe you should have taken joy in seeing those who had ruined your life in such pain but you could only feel horrible as they screamed out desperate apologies to you.

"They've suffered enough, please let them go" you pleaded to Prosciutto who only nodded in opposition.

"My love, you don't understand? These three have caused you nothing but suffering. Surely there must be some side of you that is happy to see them getting their just desserts?" He asked you.

"No not one inch of me enjoys watching another suffer" you responded before your attention was caught by a pair of crows. The prince's crows.

"Oh God no!" You screamed as you ran in front of your step-relatives.

"(Y/n) my dear, you shouldn't do that" he warned you.

"No, I'm not going to let you do that to them!" You retorted.

"Hubert, Francine" he called before pointing. They cawed in response before flying above and behind, quick to attack them.

"No stop!" You shouted as you tried to fend off the birds before Prosciutto grabbed you and pulled you back. Their hollers and screams grew louder and louder as the crows pecked and scratched at their eyes. You were crying and screaming as you helplessly watched them suffer.

#yandere jjba #yandere jojo's bizarre adventure #yandere x reader #fairytale au #yandere Prosciutto

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rans-baby · 2 years

Text

somewhere only we know

pairing: poly!izanaxreaderxkakucho

a/n: I'M BACK AND MY TUMBLR IS NOW FULLY FUNCTIONAL BABYYYY SHADOWBAN WHO? anyways I've been diligently writing while I was briefly gone ♡ I'm making a playlist series so if you have any song ideas w characters pls request (^-^*)/ I LOVE YALL SM.

tw // racism, bullying, major character death, canon divergent, fluff to angst to fluff(ish)??

It had been years since you talked to Izana and Kakucho. Maybe it was you, maybe it was them but that didn’t matter right now. All that mattered was that you were going to have to face your childhood best friends and ex-boyfriends for the first time in three years.

“The Unholy Trinity”. That’s what the other kids in that dingy little orphanage had called you, Izana, and Kakucho. You had met Izana first, being together for a few months before Kakucho joined. Wreaking havoc was a part of your daily lives but it was always for good reason. For example, when that girl pulled on your pigtails, or when the boys made fun of Kakucho’s scar or Izana’s skin color, there was always a good reason. Sharing beds when the heater broke, giving you clothing that got too small for them, light forehead kisses, linking pinkies, that was what your relationship was built on. You would do anything for each other.

Izana was soft to you, initially claiming, “you just remind me of my little sister, Emma you would have loved her”. You noticed whenever he talked about her he’d get a faraway look in his eyes and he’d always end up finding solace in your lap. Kakucho was always there to comfort you when you got lonely and would always help you take your mind off things, mostly by teaching you how to cook and bake. It was like watching a fairytale, you found your princes and everything was perfect. Until it wasn’t.

Izana had a possessive streak that stretched a mile and while you understood his overprotectiveness, things changed when you became adults and you went to college. He rarely let you go out to social events, always worried about what other men would do to you. Even group projects with male partners weren’t permissible as evidenced by all of the male classmates that dropped out of your courses and soon enough, dark rumors spread about you. While Kakucho knew that Izana had a tendency to take things a bit too far, he was always torn between the two of you, never supporting either of you in your actions. While you loved them to death and would do anything for them, it eventually became too much.

You remembered every word of your final argument, how could you forget? “You never let me have other friends, it’s suffocating!” Izana retorted with, “You don’t need other friends, you have us!” You turned to Kakucho, “Kaku whose side are you on?” It was unfair of you to ask that, you knew it the second that you said it. His eyes flashed with something akin to annoyance, a look that you had never been on the receiving end of, “How dare you try and make me choose between my two favorite people in the world?” Tears welled up in your eyes. Izana looked at you, pleading, “Aren’t we enough baby? It’s always been us against the world, right?” You remembered the hurt in his eyes when he asked, but the rage overtook you and before you could stop yourself, you whispered, “Well maybe you guys aren’t enough anymore”. The look in Kakucho’s eyes said it all, “well then you’re free to go, to find other people but know that no one will love you like we do,” the bitterness of the words stinging his tongue.

Those were the last words you exchanged with them. You convinced yourself you moved on. You found a nice, stable boyfriend and a nice, stable job in a nice, stable neighborhood with nice, stable friends. Things were looking up for you, at least they should have been but there was always something missing and you knew exactly what it was. That’s why when an unknown number called you yesterday, you immediately picked up because you knew, you knew it had to be one of your boys.

You were right. It was Kakucho who picked up the phone and you could hear a faint beeping in the background that sounded eerily similar to a heart monitor but you were too distracted by his voice, it had gotten deeper, more tired. He had asked you to meet him at the orphanage in two days before hanging up, not giving you a moment to get a word in.

Light snow was falling when you approached the orphanage for the first time in what felt like a lifetime. You could see the figures of your childhood selves making snow angels, declaring that you were all going to conquer the world together, funny how things worked out. You spotted Kakucho’s lone figure in the distance, wondering where Izana was but being too shocked by seeing him for the first time in so long to actually ask.

“Do you remember?” Those were the first words out of his mouth. You couldn’t possibly begin to guess what he was referring to. Your promise to be together always and forever? Late nights where Kakucho would bake you guys cookies while Izana laid his head in your lap? The last words you had spoken to each other? All you could muster out was a “yes” because you remembered it all. “So where is he?” you asked, afraid of the answer because you knew something was wrong, Kakucho would never go anywhere without Izana. “Dead.” You didn’t want to ask how because no matter what the answer was, it wouldn’t change the fact that he was gone and he left thinking that you hated them, like you could breathe without them.

Deep down, you had known. You always had a sixth sense when it came to your boys and the heartache you felt when you picked up that fucking phone call let you know that the worst was coming, but nothing could have prepared you for the word to come out of his mouth. You let out gut wrenching sobs as you fell to your knees. Your head was spinning and you could vaguely hear Kakucho calling for you but your heart wouldn’t stop pounding and your throat was closing you. You felt his arms surround you and you eventually calmed down.

“You know, he was never mad at you. He was mad at himself, but he didn’t want to interrupt what you had going on. The future you wanted for yourself was coming together and we couldn’t just walk in like we had any right after what we said that night.” You couldn’t stop yourself from whispering, “But you should’ve. I couldn’t breathe without you guys. You should’ve come after me.” You were being unfair blaming them, and both of you knew it but didn’t have the heart to call you out on it because at the end of the day, you would leave this orphanage together again.

You both spread his ashes, praying that he found peace in the place that you all knew so well together, when things were simpler. You reached out to grab Kakucho’s hand first, and he had gripped it with a ferocity that left your hands red. As you walked away, Kakucho couldn’t help but think about Izana. Now that Izana was somewhere only you all knew, he knew that he would be able to find peace because Izana was nothing if not a sentimental sap for the both of you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kakucho would never tell you how he died because he knew that you would never forgive yourself and he couldn’t afford to lose you too. Izana had died falling for a trap. They told him that you were kidnapped and being held hostage, and he knew it was a trap but he couldn’t stop himself from entertaining the possibility that they did have you and he wasn’t willing to take the chance. He didn’t tell Kakucho where he was going just in case, so when Kakucho was finally able to track him down, it was too late. He couldn’t stop himself from asking, “Why? Why would you do this?” tears streaming down his face. All Izana had to say was, “I would do anything for you guys.”

#tokyo revengers x reader #tenjiku x reader #izana x reader #kakucho x reader #kakucho hitto #izana kurokawa #izana x reader x kakucho #izana x you #kakucho x you

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prince-rowan-of-the-forest · 1 year

Text

Perfectly Okay

----

Roman knows it's bad when his only escape is a cat cafe a town away and a barista he barely feels like he knows, but when his soulmate kicks him out of their shared apartment, Roman finds he has no one else to turn to but that same barista.

But maybe everything will be ok, right?

----

| Ao3 |

Warnings: Abusive relationship, emotional maniupulation, panic attacks (please lmk if I've missed any

Pairings: platonic prinxiety, roman/orange

Word count: 5522

Notes:

Hi! I will warn this one, while not as heavy as other things I've read, is definitely heavier than my own usual writing, so proceed with caution if you prefer my normal level of angst!

----

Roman knew his soulmate.

He’d known his soulmate since he was seventeen. They’d met in what felt like a fairytale, at a Ren Faire, he had been dressed like a faerie prince and his soulmate had been dressed in Tolkien-esque elven armour. Roman had thought it had been perfect, a dream come true. The mark on his hand had bloomed bright orange when the stranger had taken his hand and kissed his knuckles all whilst smiling up at him. It had been perfect.

‘Had’ was the key word. It had been perfect for almost a year, but after that…

Roman didn’t realise at first, still too caught up in joy at meeting his soulmate, still too overjoyed at their shared love for LARPing and fantasy cosplay to realise that things were slipping. He didn’t notice when calm talks turned into arguing which turned into screaming matches, he couldn’t pinpoint when he started being worried about telling him that he was going out with friends or meeting up with his brother. He could remember clearly when he had set fire to one of Roman’s oldest costumes during a spat about dressing up as a feminine character of all things, he cried for weeks over the torn and charred fabric. He remembered the day he’d come home from work to find his soulmate had thrown out more than half of his YA fantasy books, claiming that he shouldn’t be reading ‘that bullshit’ anymore. Roman has spent hours afterwards looking like a lunatic digging through their apartment’s dumpster trying to find them all. He’d moved all of his costumes and books into his brother’s storage unit after that, worried that they weren’t safe in his apartment.

He’d considered calling the police a few times, all of them recently, all of them after a fight that had left Roman in tears. Each time he’d decided he couldn’t possibly handle any more of this, because by now - four years after he’d met his soulmate - he knew it was bad. He knew he was unhappy and he knew his soulmate didn’t love him like a soulmate should. He wanted out of all of this. But in the end he never called, because he knew the police wouldn’t help him, he was his soulmate, after all, and this kind of thing never happened between soulmates. Soulmates were wonderful and amazing, nothing ever went wrong between soulmates in the public's eye.

Instead Roman lied, pretended to have shifts at work when he didn’t, and went to the only place he felt safe these days.

There was a small coffee shop, tucked away and hidden behind all the corporate and placelessness, he’d found it nearly five years ago whilst he was still in highschool. It was a cute, quiet little place that served cheap coffee and also housed fifteen cats, which was amazing when Roman really needed a way to relax.

He’d met one of the baristas working there the first time he’d come to escape, four or five months ago now. And Roman thought he might owe them his life by now.

“Hey Princey,” Virgil said, sliding into the bench across from him and placing a latte glass in front of him - the top filled with cream just like Roman always ordered, “What’re you working on today?”

“Oh!” Roman jumped, startled at their sudden appearance, “Virgil, I can’t-”

“It’s on me,” Virgil interrupted, shaking his head, “I noticed you finished your last one a while ago and my shift is almost over, so…”

“Oh really? Why thank you!” Roman said, flashing Virgil a blinding smile that didn’t feel completely fake, at least, “What time is it?”

“Almost three.” Virgil said, Roman sighed in relief, he’d told him he’d be at work until seven, he still had time, “Why, you gotta head out?”

“No,” Roman shook his head, “I just… lose track sometimes.”

“Mood,” Virgil said, leaning on the table, “So what’s in that notebook of yours?”

Roman felt his face heat up as he looked down at the notebook he had been doodling in, it was silly, he had been drawing dresses and hats and weaponry he’d love to make. He couldn’t, not anymore and especially not in his own home, he was terrified they’d be destroyed if his soulmate found them at all, nowadays. But… he could still dream. Could he show Virgil? Would they like the drawings and designs? Roman shook his head with a sigh.

“Just some doodles, nothing important,” Roman said, closing the notebook. Virgil frowned as they intercepted one of the cats attempting to jump up onto their table and placed her into their lap instead.

“But you’ve been working on it the whole time you’ve been here?” Virgil said, tilting their head and raising an eyebrow.

“I uh- it’s really nothing important, just some designs, I guess,” Roman said, he could feel his face getting more red, “I used to uh- I used to make fantasy costumes?”

“Oh really?” Virgil asked, “That’s neat, I’ve been to a few cons, but I’ve never been able to sew for the life of me, can I see?”

“You won’t laugh at me?” Roman asked, narrowing his eyes a little at them.

“'Course not, why would I?” Virgil said.

Roman shrugged, a little helpless, as he offered the notebook over to Virgil, “Most people I know would.”

“Oh,” Virgil said, before flipping the notebook to a random page and taking a second to look through the drawings before smiling up at Roman, “Dude these are epic! Could you really make this? And wear it?”

Roman ducked his head, cheeks flaming in embarrassment when Virgil turned the page around to show one of his drawings of ceremonial high elf armour. It was very detailed and would probably take him months to make - if he still even had the skills - and it was pretty feminine too, so he definitely couldn’t wear it.

“Uh - yeah probably, it would take a while though,” Roman said with a small smile as Virgil turned the book back around to keep looking, leaving Roman antsy in his chair.

“These dresses look nice,” Virgil said with a small smile as he ran a finger over the page, “They look… Mexican?”

“Yeah,” Roman said, “I’m hispanic, so… I sorta based them off that…”

“Neat,” Virgil said with a smile, “They’re pretty.”

“Yeah,” Roman nodded, they were, he really liked them. He wished he could show them off without fear.

“Dude are you ok?” Virgil asked, putting down the book with a startled expression on his face and Roman realised only then that he was crying, of all things, over some drawings of dresses, “If you really didn’t want me to see these I wouldn’t have-”

“No- no it’s not- not that!” Roman interrupted, trying to wipe the tears away, “I’m sorry I didn’t- mean-”

“Hey, hey it’s ok, you don’t gotta apologise,” Virgil said, putting the notebook gently down on the table, “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t even know it’s just- I haven’t been able to show anyone these in- in forever and- you’re being so nice.”

Virgil stared at him for a moment before picking up the cat in their lap and placing it in Romans. She barely made a fuss before curling back up in her new seat, “Here, have a cat.”

“Thanks,” Roman choked out a laugh, as he ran his fingers through her soft fur.

“But really, I’m doing like- the bare minimum here - you really don’t have anyone you show this stuff to?” Virgil asked, before gesturing to Roman’s bright orange hand, “Not even your soulmate?”

Roman tried to hide the way he flinched, by the way Virgil’s expression changed he assumed he didn’t do that well, before he could say anything about it, though, ploughed forward to answer his first question.

“I used to share this stuff with my brother, but I haven’t seen him in months,” Roman said sadly, “The rest of my family don’t like my hobbies, and my soulmate… well.”

“That bad, huh?” Virgil asked.

“He used to be really into all this same stuff, when we met,” Roman explained sadly, “We actually met at a ren faire, but, I dunno, I guess things change, he tried to throw out a bunch of my stuff a few months ago so uh, I asked my brother to take it and uh, yeah…”

“How long have you known him?” Virgil asked quietly.

“Four years,” Roman said glumly, “I don’t want to talk about this.”

“Okay,” Virgil said, sympathetic, “Um… okay, different topic: what kind of music do you like?”

From there it continued for almost two hours, back and forth, trading questions and answers. Roman had met Virgil a good few times before now, but all of them he had been working and even though the cafe was usually quiet there were still enough customers to make a long and invested conversation between the two difficult. Roman left the cafe that day feeling lighter than he had in weeks.

—-

He kept going back to the cafe, the same as before, though now he tried to time it for when Virgil was just getting off of shifts (or at least when the cafe was quietest). Talking to Virgil was nice, even with their dyed hair, emo makeup and spooky piercings that made him a little nervous at first, he felt safe when he was in the cafe. Virgil liked looking at his drawings, they listened to Roman ramble about the most recent book he’d wanted to read (he borrowed them from the library sometimes and read them at the cafe before bringing them back the same day, he couldn’t trust his soulmate not to damage them like he had Roman’s own books).

Virgil encouraged his ideas for stories he probably wouldn’t ever write, they got a cat to come and comfort him when he was upset over something trivial like Virgil asking how his day had been. Roman knew he was taking risks by coming so often, but the cafe was almost addictive, having somewhere safe and someone who was really interested in hearing about his passions felt a little like a drug in itself.

He knew it couldn’t last, though.

—-

“Where have you been?” His soulmate asked one night, almost a month later, when Roman came home a little later than he intended. He had been at the coffee shop again talking to Virgil after his shift and he’d lost track of time. He’d only stayed fifteen minutes longer than he had intended, but that made all the difference when it came to the train times.

“At work, I told you,” Roman answered, lies rolling off his tongue as easy as truths used to, “I got held up by a coworker, I’m sorry.”

“Really?” he said, raising his eyebrow, “Can you explain why your paycheck doesn’t match up with the amount of hours you’ve apparently been doing too?”

Roman panicked internally, trying very hard to mimic a confused expression, “No idea, they must’ve messed it up somehow, I’ll uh- I’ll bring it up with my manager tomorrow.”

“And the train tickets you’ve been buying every other day?” he said, folding his arms, Roman tried not to flinch, “Have you been seeing someone else?”

“Of course not!” Roman cried, “I’ve just been going to work!”

“In another city?" The said harshly, "I'm not that fucking stupid, Roman, I know where you work."

"They moved me to a different venue, ok?" Roman said, trying to take a deep breath to keep from either yelling or crying, "There's nothing going on - I swear."

"Then what’s in here?” He asked, not wasting a second before snatching Roman’s bag from his shoulder and rifling through it. He paled, most of the things in there were ordinary or work related - his uniform, some stationary, a water bottle - but his design notebook was also in there. He’d stuffed it hap-hazardly into the bag when he’d left in a hurry when usually he’d take better care to hide it in case of this very scenario.

“The fucks’ this?” He asked, pulling out that very notebook. Roman tried to hold back tears as he flicked through the pages, expression growing more angry by the second, “Roman! I thought I told you to stop with this shit!”

Roman flinched when he grabbed a handful of the pages and tore them, “This is childish bullshit, Ro, no-one wants it, I thought you’d have grown up by now! I have.”

“But-” Roman started, “I thought- you loved this stuff?”

“Yeah, when I was sixteen, Roman, we’re fucking adults now!” He yelled, throwing Roman’s ruined book onto the floor, “Adults don’t play stupid dress-up games, for fucks sake get ahold of yourself! Look at you, you’re pathetic.”

Roman winced, trying to blink back tears as he glanced at the scattered, torn pages of his notebook. Adults don't throw temper tantrums over their partner's interests, Roman thought bitterly. He didn't dare say it aloud, though.

“Nothing to say?” he said, Roman couldn’t help the way he flinched back at the approach, he shook his head, “Pathetic! You’re just- I can’t believe the fucking universe would lump me with such a pathetic, childish, piece of shit soulmate like you.”

“Well-” Roman said in a burst of confidence that surprised even himself, “I can’t believe I got stuck with such a jerkish asshole who can’t even respect other people’s hobbies!”

He was silent for a long moment and in that moment Roman grew even more worried that he might actually attack him, instead he only pointed to the door, face scarily calm, and said, “Out.”

“What?” Roman yelped.

“Get out of my house,” He yelled, “Now.”

“Can I get-”

“Get. the fuck. out,” He told him through gritted teeth, “Don’t make me tell you again, Roman Prince.”

And in a pathetic show of defiance, Roman stopped to grab the torn up notebook and pages, shoving them into his bag before grabbing that too and storming out the door. He slammed it behind him and promptly burst into tears so ferocious he had to lean against the corridor wall to stop himself from sinking straight to the ground.

—-

It was raining outside when he finally got himself out of the apartment building and onto the street. Distantly he regretted not grabbing his coat from the back of the door, but at least he still had a jacket on from earlier. It was late, well past dark by now, he’d left the cafe just after seven and had gotten the train at seven thirty, making it just gone eight now. He wished it was summer right now, but as the weather clearly showed it was rapidly descending from autumn into winter. Roman shook his head to get his already rain soaked hair out of his eyes before crossing the busy road to the other side and hurrying along the pavement. He wished he had an umbrella.

Ducking into the first store he came across - a random little 24/7 general goods store - Roman darted around the aisles to the back before pulling his phone from his jacket pocket and opened it up. He’d call Remus, surely he’d let Roman crash on his couch until he worked out something more permanent. This would be fine.

Remus didn’t pick up, the call going to voicemail three times over before Roman gave up and left a message saying that he needed to talk and it was urgent. Before running both hands through his hair, just slightly more panicked now. Roman knew without even checking that he didn’t have nearly enough money on him for a hotel. His soulmate had always controlled their bank accounts, so Roman didn’t have access to that now either as much as he would have loved to spend all of his money in petty revenge. Most of it was Roman’s money anyway.

He tried to take deep breaths as he leant against the freezers at the back of the store. He didn’t have anywhere to live right now, which was fine, he’d figure it out. He still had a job at a restaurant nearby, it wasn’t the best paying but it was better than minimum wage and besides, they always complained about not having enough staff, Roman could definitely pick up more hours. He had time to get himself a new bank account and change his details before his next payday, presuming he found somewhere to live. This would be ok. He took a deep breath, looking at his phone contacts, so long as he could find somewhere to live temporarily.

The biggest flaw in this plan, though, was the fact that the only contacts he had were his soulmate, Remus and his parents. Alongside one or two friends he hadn’t talked to in at least a year. Remus already hadn’t picked up and his parents would ask pressing questions he really didn’t want to answer, especially with such a low chance they’d even take him back in and his friends…

It wouldn’t be fair on them for Roman to ghost them for two years and then call out of nowhere asking for a place to stay. He couldn’t do that, not to them or himself.

Maybe he could ask strangers if they would take him, or if they knew anyone. But that was a surefire way to get himself killed, so…

Roman rummaged through his bag, well, if he couldn’t call anyone for help he could at least take inventory of what he had with him. His work uniform, which was at least better than nothing in terms of a change of clothes. His water bottle, a pencil case, he had a pack of painkillers in there, not helpful right now but could come in useful if he got a headache from the stress. A packet of tissues… one of those plastic forks that came with lunch pasta pots, some origami thing he must’ve done at some point when he was bored made from a napkin, a broken pen, a couple of hairbands… and a few quarters he collected up.

And most importantly his design notebook and all the crumpled ripped out pages. Roman sighed, taking one out and attempting to smooth it over against the glass of the freezer. This really wasn’t the place to be doing this, but… oh well. He’d have to sort through which ones were salvageable later anyway.

Something caught his eye on the one he had tried to smooth out, though. It was one he had been working on only a few hours ago. Virgil had been helping him, they had asked if Roman could design them as a fantasy character, a prompt Roman had taken to immediately. Virgil had occasionally pulled the notebook towards them and added little notes around the drawing. In the corner of the page a number was scrawled in messy handwriting.

He almost burst into tears of joy at the sight, Virgil had written his name above it and drawn a little smiley face with the number written underneath. Roman took a deep breath, fanning his face to get rid of the tears that had welled up in his eyes with one hand as he pulled up his contacts and shakily typed in the numbers written on the page.

Taking a deep breath Roman pressed the call button and held the phone up to his ear, crossing his fingers as it rang. It got to the fifth ring and Roman was starting to lose hope when Virgil finally picked up.

“Hello?” Virgil said on the other end of the phone, sounding tired, Roman let out a sigh of relief.

“Oh thank god, Virgil! It’s uh- it’s Roman? From the coffee shop?” Roman said, trying not to cry again in the back of a stupid grocery store.

“Roman?” Virgil said, “You’re uh, calling me?”

“Yeah is that uh- okay? I’m sorry I didn’t-”

“It’s okay yeah, just, unexpected, you’re all good,” Virgil said, taking a deep breath, “Uh, whats up?”

“Okay so I know this is the first time calling you and I know we’re like- barely friends but um, I have a really really massive favour I need to ask you,” Roman said before shoving his fist in his mouth in an attempt to stop himself from audibly sobbing.

“I’d say we’re more than barely friends, Princey,” Virgil said, “What do you need?”

“Would it be possible for me to maybe crash on your couch for a night or two?” Roman said quickly, before Virgil could say anything he continued in a ramble, "It's just that my soulmate’s kicked me out and my brother's not picking up and my parents will question me to hell and back and I don't really have any other friends and- and I don't have enough money on me for a hotel and I don't know what to do-"

"Woah woah," Virgil said through the phone, "Okay, first of all, deep breaths Princey, okay?"

Roman nodded even though Virgil couldn't see him and tried to take a deep breath, barely able to get through it with the tears. He was really glad no-one else was in the shop right now.

"Okay and uh, once you're ready I'm gonna need you to tell me what's going on," Virgil said, "Because I only caught like every third word of that ramble."

"R-right," Roman said, trying to even out his breathing as he brushed the tears away from his eyes, "Um, so my soulmate kicked me out of our house because - because he found my drawing book, and, uhm, found out I wasn't working when I said I was-"

Roman swallowed thickly, looking up at the ceiling in hopes to get rid of the tears, "And- and I have nowhere else to go, my brother isn't answering my calls and my parents are barely an alternative to my soulmate, so I was- was really hoping you'd be able to help me."

Virgil was silent for a long second before he let out a sigh loud enough to be heard over the phone, "Okay, where are you right now?"

"Um," Roman said, "Crying at the back of a general store?"

Despite everything, Virgil snorted, "Okay, good to know, but I meant like, the address? I'm gonna come get you."

Roman almost dropped the phone in relief. Instead he just started crying again and let out a stream of barely coherent thank yous and sorries until Virgil interrupted him again.

"Sorry, um, I'll- I’ll text it to you," Roman said, rocking back and forth a little as he opened the messaging screen and shakily typed in the street he was on and the town and sent it, "I don't- don't know what this shop's called but it's just- a- a little 24/7 general store."

"Okay, I got it," Virgil said, "You want me to stay on the phone?"

"Is that okay?” Roman asked, weakly.

“‘Course it is,” Virgil told him, before Roman heard some bustling on the other end of the phone, he tried to keep taking deep breaths until Virgil came back to the phone, “Okay, Roman, is it good with you if my roommate drives? I’ll be able to keep talking to you better.”

“Are- um-” Roman said, trying to figure out what to say, his hands were shaking, “Are they good?”

“Yeah, Patton’s the softest little puffball I know,” Virgil answered, “I’ll still be there the whole time and you don’t even have to talk to him if you don’t want to.”

Roman took a deep breath, before carefully placing his things back into his bag, “Yeah - uh - okay, that’s okay.”

“Okay great, just hang tight for me a second, Princey,” Virgil said, a little quietly as though he was holding the phone away from his ear. Roman heard the sound of a door closing from the other end of the line.

After about five minutes of not talking from Virgil, Roman had managed to get his stuff back up together. He’d tried to wipe away the worst of his tears with the origami napkin and taken a few more deep breaths as he waited by the freezer. Virgil was coming to get him, he would be ok.

“You still there, Roman?” Virgil said after a little while, he could hear the sounds of a car engine in the background of the call now.

“Yeah I’m still here,” Roman answered.

“Right, we’re gonna be about half an hour, ‘kay?” Virgil said, “Um, whilst you wait, do you have any money at all?”

Roman looked at the cents and quarters he had collected from the bottom of his bag, he had five dollars tucked into the back of his phone too, “Uh- yeah, about six or seven dollars, I think?”

“Jeez man,” Roman heard Virgil murmur a little distantly, and then much closer, “Okay, I want you to have a look around the store and find something sweet you like - I guess you haven’t eaten?”

“No,” Roman mumbled, great, a reminder that he was hungry, too, “I haven’t.”

“Okay,” Virgil said, “We haven’t eaten yet either so we can grab something on the way home, for now uh, can you do what I said? Find a pack of sweets or chocolate or something,”

“What for?” Roman asked, frowning even as he made his way to the confectionary aisle and looked through the admittedly small selection there. He was tired and honestly? Didn’t see the point in spending his last five dollars on a packet of skittles.

“Panicking sucks for your blood sugar,” Virgil said, “You’ve been crying and panicking for however long now, so you’re probably gonna get real tired pretty soon because of the adrenaline wearing off, so you want a boost to keep you going.”

“Right,” Roman said, taking a deep breath in and blowing it slowly out of his mouth. Virgil was definitely right, he was tired now, exhausted even, his eyes ached from crying and he was actually starting to get a headache. Maybe those painkillers would come in handy after all. He ended up picking a packet of mini red velvet brownie bites. They were a little more expensive than some of the other stuff that was there, but Roman was pretty sure he deserved it at this point.

He also took a detour and found the cheapest bottle of water in the store and grabbed that too. The water in his own water bottle, Roman was pretty sure, was at least a day old.

“Okay,” Roman said into the phone when he was done, “I’ve got brownies and water, I’m gonna go buy them now.”

Once Virgil had hummed an affirmative, Roman headed to the counter and placed down his items. Virgil would be here soon, he had chocolate now, everything would be ok.

—-

The rain was even heavier now as Roman stepped out of the store, attempting to stay under the awning outside to avoid the worst of it. Virgil tried to keep up a steady stream of chatter as he waited and Roman couldn’t help appreciate it even more coming from Virgil - who he knew didn’t like to talk so much. Roman would gladly admit how much it helped, just the simple little reassurance that he was still there as he slowly made his way through the pot of brownies. Virgil was right, they really were helping too.

“Hey Ro,” Virgil said through the phone, “We’re almost here now, like, we’re literally turning onto the street right now, I’m gonna - oh I see you - I’m gonna hang up and yell at you out the window, ‘kay?”

Roman nodded, before realising Virgil probably couldn’t see that and agreed verbally just before the call clicked off. Roman took a deep breath in the few seconds of silence only broken by the pouring rain until he heard a shout of his name from nearby - just a little further down the road, just as Virigl had promised.

He’d rushed over to the car that had pulled into the layby, Virgil’s face met him in the window and Roman damn near burst into tears again.

“Get in then, doofus,” Virgil said playfully, reaching over and opening the door. Roman climbed into the back seat and closed the door behind him, the hot air from the car’s heating making him shiver as he realised how soggy he was from the rain. Virgil seemed to notice too.

“Jeez Princey, you’re soaked….” Virgil said, shrugging off their own thick black hoodie jacket, “Here, take off your jacket and put this on.”

The jacket dwarfed him, the sleeves covering his hands and the rest of it wrapping around him like a blanket. He pulled the hood up and sank into it, thankful for the warmth. It was such a lovely material too, so soft under his cold fingers. Virgil flung his waterlogged jacket into the front passenger seat.

“Hey kiddo,” The person in the driver’s seat turned to look at him, he had a smile on his face and bouncy golden curls for hair, this must be Patton, Roman thought, he looked friendly, “I’m Patton, nice to meet ya.”

“Hello,” Roman said, twisting the hoodie between his fingers, he didn’t really feel like talking to someone he didn’t know right now, but also, Patton felt safe and bubbly and warm and he really didn't want to upset the guy who was driving them and potentially letting Roman stay in his house, “Um, I’m Roman.”

“Awesome! I’ll leave you two alone to talk in a second, but first, how d’you feel about pizza for dinner?” Patton asked, resting a hand on the steering wheel.

“Pizza sounds nice,” Roman said, before cringing, “But uh- I can’t- I can’t pay…”

“It’s on me,” Patton said with a blinding smile, “for both of you, I’ll pull into a Domino’s on the way back.”

“Thanks, Pat,” Virgil said, before turning back to Roman and talking in a quieter voice, “How’re you feeling?”

“Awful,” Roman admitted with a pathetic little laugh, “But it’s… okay, um, I’m really grateful to you, for this.”

“You’re welcome,” Virgil huffed, “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“I’m really glad you left your number,” Roman mumbled, trying to wipe away the tears that were forming again before they fell.

“I’m really glad I worked up the courage to leave it,” Virgil countered with a small smile.

Roman was silent for a second, before taking a deep breath, “I’m really sorry I’m dumping my problems on you, I know we- it’s not like we’re close friends or anything.”

“Roman-” Virgil said, turning in their seat to face him properly, a frown on his face, “I’m glad you called me, okay?”

“You- really?” Roman asked, voice smaller than he meant it to be.

“Yeah Ro,” Virgil said, shaking their head, “You- y’know what, would you like a hug?”

Roman couldn’t help but stare, a hug? Yeah, he’d really like a hug. He said as much with a wobbly voice and teary eyes and Virgil smiled, pulling him into a tight hug. Roman buried his face in their shoulder and tried to stop crying for what felt like the millionth time tonight.

“I’m s-sorry,” Roman stammered, “I’m getting your shirt soggy,”

“It’s fine,” Virgil said, squeezing him a little tighter, “I don’t mind, you’re safe here.”

—-

“Do you guys have any uh… bandages? Or something like that?” Roman asked as Virgil unlocked their door. Patton was behind him carrying the two pizza boxes they’d gotten on the way. Virgil kicked the door open before turning to him, worried frown on their face.

“Why? Are you injured?” Virgil asked, “And why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“No- no I’m not injured,” Roman quickly reassured, lifting his hand and pulling back the sleeve of Virgil’s hoodie to reveal the bright orange mark on his hand. Usually he could deal with the sight of it, mostly ignoring the way it made his chest hurt, but right now it just made him want to throw up, “I want to cover it.”

“Of course,” Virgil said, nodding, “Gotcha, there should be some in the bathroom- the cupboard to the right of the one under the sink.”

“Bathroom is the first door to the left when you go up the stairs,” Patton directed with a smile as he walked past them into the open plan kitchen diner that Roman could see down the hall.

“Okay, thank you,” Roman said, bowing his head, “I’ll be right back.”

Virgil shot him a thumbs up and followed Patton down the hall whilst Roman made his way up the stairs. He splashed water in his face in hopes that it would make the puffy redness of his eyes a little less visible before wrapping his hand in bandages to hide the mark. He took a few deep breaths as he looked at himself in the mirror and gave himself a silent pep-talk. Virgil had rescued him, he was - for now at least - away from his soulmate, he had somewhere to sleep and he had pizza to go downstairs to. Somehow, he thought that maybe this would actually be okay.

----

Tags: @full-of-roman-angst-trash@reptilianrapscallion420@your-local-random-dino@cutebisexualmess@glacierruler @roseianxiety (if anyone wants to be added generally or for this specific fic, let me know!)

#sanders sides #sanders sides fanfiction #roman sanders #virgil sanders #fanfic #rowans writings

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acourtofthought · 8 months

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About Elain trying to choose who she stays with and being stubborn about not getting involved with Lucien.

I think Elain is at the stage where she thinks being with Lucien is like it's not her choice.

And we all know that if she decides that she's going to meet Him then it's a choice that can lead to acceptance of the bond.

Because Lucien is passionate... Just kidding... But I think she's afraid that in the end she'll really fall in love with Lucien and doesn't want to maybe get involved from head to toe.

Elain showing interest in another man can also be rational.

I once read a book that reminded me of Elain that the little girl she wanted to marry someone she thought was calm, safe and reliable etc...

And sometimes Elain looks rationally for someone who reinforces the idea of I, I chose and in a way it is a rational feeling that he is safe, my sisters like him and he will never have a chance to break my heart because he will never get so intimate .

Because in a way the Bond must frighten, bring an intimacy that don't want at the moment.

And in the end she will realize that She can and did have the power of Choice to like another and at no time did the Bond force her to choose and she ends up realizing that if she Knows him and doesn't like him she can still refuse or if she likes she can Accept by Choice.

it makes sense? I don't know

It does make sense! She was in love with Graysen but suddenly she finds herself with this bond that makes her feel irrational and wild and pulled to a stranger and how can that not be too much for to deal with when she was in love with someone else? Suddenly the love she had for Graysen was challenged but she refuses to give into it, proving that she would remain loyal to him (I'm guessing that would have only lasted so long even if Graysen had taken her back, I don't think she could have ever truly been happy with him in the long run). And then, after fighting against anything the bond makes her feel, she was rejected. Every girlish fantasy she had of a fairytale prince who would love her through anything came crashing to the ground when Graysen did not choose her. So she's going to ignore her bond because to her, maybe it's something to blame as the cause for everything that she's lost. She could be unfairly placing the blame on Lucien and the bond but that's kind of what people do when they're struggling to handle trauma, they find themselves a scapegoat. So she's torn between what she's trying to convince herself of and her draw to Lucien and the easiest option for her is to deny, deny, deny and ignore him. She wants to keep proving to herself that she can fight against her pull to him so she convinces herself she's happy in the NC, she starts paying attention to Az because she doesn't have a connection to him and doesn't cause her to feel any wild and out of control emotions, it's something SHE can control. After having no control over her bond, after having no control over losing her fiance, after having no control over being turned fae and losing her father, she's going to play it safe and take the route that doesn't come with a lot of baggage and intensity. It's understandable because she does probably need time to recover and discover herself after everything but it doesn't mean it's what is right for her long-term. It's just what has been right for her, right now. Just like Feyre needed someone like Tamlin to help her find peace after so many years of struggling. Just like Nesta needed to distance herself from Feyre and Cassian after the war and deal with things in her own way. They might not have been the healthiest situations for the sisters to be in but it's what they needed at that point in their lives. It's no different for Elain. She's doing the best she can at this point in her life but it doesn't mean it's where she's going to end up or where she'll be happiest. It's just a stepping stone on her journey and it really is ok that she's playing it a bit safe, she's finding her footing. But no fantasy heroine is happiest when "playing it safe" and when we get to Elain's book, I think we'll see she's finally ready to face the difficult stuff.

#elucien #pro elucien #pro elain archeron

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annicaax · 10 months

Text

Vince route is so good. I'm crying tears of joy. **(note: contains spoilers for his route)** If you haven't played his route or the game, please do.

he's my fav after Luca... no doubt. I've thought as much from the preview episodes on love 365 and it's proven right. Farris, sorry, I'm not gonna read your story. I'm more interested in Zell and Falko now, both seem like nice guys (they did from the beginning) and Jospeh is my bff/bro and yes noin is mysterious but he's not my type, nope...

seriously both vince and luca's stories are so well written. One is a fairytale prince (also childhood friend with attitude plus a cute side) the other is star crossed romance with a man below the princess' station, someone who's led a rough life on the streets and then becomes her tutor.

My heart was torn when Vince left the palace. "Stop, Your Highness, 'this' hurts when I'm with you... I can't, any longer."

(he points to his chest.)

Later on he reads her letter, from back where he belonged. She says. My 'this' hurts too, Vincent.

He folds her letter and murmurs mine too, your highness.

(and that scene when she cries while he's escorted out in his carriage. Ah, those are the most gut wrenching scenes I've ever read in recent months. I've shed tears even) * more spoilers below*

And basically Vince and the MC are sort of hiding their relationship from the king and the court in the end and... wow he's such a tease. I kind of knew it. And romantic too... u w u

Ah, cant wait to see what's in store for these two. Will Vince become king? As the rest of the cast predicted tho? I imagine they'd get their conclusion in book 2.

One doubt I had was how could he teach Farris? How young was he then? Also do they teach princesses and princes when they get older too, advanced classes and stuff (Idk, I'm not into princely stories so Idk...) lol anyway vince route was so good

#otome #vincent casper #mirpri #princesss in the mirror #the princess in the mirror #annika's otome rants

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schleierkauz · 2 years

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Resa and Cockerell?

Resa: When did you first read Inkheart?

I got the book for my 10th birthday and I think I started properly reading it a few months later? Maybe a year? I remember that it spent a long while just sitting next to my bed and I'd just reread the first few pages. My cat really liked to sit on it. :D Eventually I sat down to really focus on it and immediately became obsessed.

Cockerell: What are your hopes for the 4th Inkworld book?

Oh Man. Okay.

Generelly speaking, I hope it opens the Inkworld up a little more without feeling like Reckless Light™. I know Cornelia is really excited about drawing connections between the books and that's fair, but, to me at least, the two stories still feel very distinct. And I hope TCoR fits in with the other three Inkworld books instead of trying to be a hybrid. For example, if some plot point is resolved with the help of Magical Fairytale Item #72, I'm gonna be less than happy.

I also hope it doesn't introduce too many entirely new characters. There should be some, obviously, but the comments Cornelia made about how new people keep showing up in the story made me a little nervous... We already know and love so many players in this world, I want the focus to be on them. That said, I really love the whole witch thing and Jehan's friend sounds adorable, I DO want to know more about her! Just, give me a few chapters about Dustfinger and the Prince and their whole history. With everyone else fridged for the time being, those two should get some quality time together. :')

Speaking of Dustfinger, I am. torn.

Part of me wants him to murder Orpheus. Just straight up kill him.

On the other hand, though... It would feel weird. For all these years, he's been such a pacifist at heart, I wouldn't want him to deal with the emotional aftermath of what he's done. Because despite everything, I don't think he could just walk away from that. Remember when he killed Basta that second time? That scene, short as it is, doesn't feel violent at all. More like doing an old enemy a favor. And I love that moment but something like that wouldn't make sense with Orpheus... Maybe they end up in a situation where killing him would be the kind thing to do, and Dustfinger doesn't? I don't know... Either way, I'm looking forward to the inevitable confronation of these two.

Basically: Dustfinger can kill if he wants to. I'll support him no matter what. <3

Wow I need to shut up. Some more hopes of mine, lightning round:

Brianna content, specifically Brianna-finally-bonding-with-her-father-content (yes I'm still emotional about that wristband she made him)

We meet the Black Prince's younger sisters

The Barn Owl shows up or is at least mentioned

Some kind of throwback to Capricorn and his men, idc what exactly I just want them mentioned

Witch lore. I wanna know all about them.

At least one of the new characters is another Bird Person

Proper love interest for Violante (not the Black Prince, I don't think they'd work out in the long run (although they do make a pretty intense power couple.) (Also Brianna is literally right there-)

Gwin bites the shit out of someone and is also immortal

The Prince's bear bites the shit out of someone and is also immortal

"Orpheus' evil plan fails because Balbulus is racist" plot point stays, that shit is so funny to me

Cornelia really leans into the whole 'Illustration as magic' theme, esp in contrast to 'Writing/reading as magic' as we had it in the previous books

Mo does not fully go back to his Bluejay persona and people who were there for the events of Inkdeath but don't really know him are super confused about why he won't just kill his enemies

Resa however...

Thank you for the questions! :)

#ask game #tcor spoilers #i mean. not really since we know the chapters have changed a lot but. yknow.#feel free to share ur opinions on my opinions btw this is a book club #we are sitting in a circle and i'm handing you the sprechstein whenever you want it

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moved-to-void-kissed · 1 year

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☁️, ☄, 💚, 🔥, 🎀, 🔫, 🍁 for Aria

Ah! Thank you very much for all of these, Evi! I'm a little surprised you want me to answer these for a self-insert considering they're asks from a game about OCs instead, but I get that that's how most people see my self-inserts, so it's okay. It means a lot that you sent these in, so thank you.

(question source: "OC EMOJI ASKS!" by charmymemes)

☁️ CLOUD - a soft headcanon - Aria may not seem like the type, but she will give pet names to those around her! She doesn't have to be particularly close to them to do this, but the name tends to reflect an aspect of that person's character rather than being derived from their actual name. For example.. Clio is "clover" or "flower", while some of the pet names she's given as a Fatebreaker (an RP I'm doing with some friends) include "little starflower", "little moonflower", "knight", "little godling", "little fish prince", "shade", "scholar", "silver sparrow", "starling", "rose", "coder", "little lantern", "little changeling", and "dreamling".

☄️ COMET - what do people assume about her? are they right? - Many people, especially during the age of fairytales, are naturally sceptical of Aria because it’s clear she is someone who wields darkness, and many users of light are distrustful of the darkness, seeing it only as something evil and dangerous. They’d technically be right to assume that she can be dangerous - she’s a powerful opponent in combat, after all - but they would be wrong to dismiss her or treat her as an enemy simply because of her elemental nature.

💚 GREEN HEART - what things make your self-insert feel comforted? hugs, kisses, food? - Aria gains comfort from being around people who trust her, which admittedly is not many people (and fewer still who know what she is and trust her despite that). She doesn’t deal too well with excessive or unexpected physical contact, but she is always very grateful (even if she doesn’t always admit it) that people would actually care about her and want to be around her, rather than just seeing her as a monster (since.. she is one. but she is trying so hard not to be.)

..Let’s go under the readmore for the rest, since otherwise this post is going to be very long!

🔥 FIRE - does she have any self-destructive tendencies? what habits does she have that hinders her from becoming her best self? - You mean, aside from the whole "has been possessing another being for the past 15 years of her life, leaving that girl stuck dormant in her own body while she uses it as her vessel" part? I think that part probably counts as a habit hindering her from becoming her best self. She also very much dislikes being in situations where she is vulnerable - for example, being trapped when there are other Keyblade wielders around, since Keyblades are the one thing that can permanently destroy her - and will tend to become either overly defensive or dismissive because of that.

🎀 RIBBON - how would she fit into other worlds / AUs? what AUs would you like to try out? what fictional worlds would she fit / not fit into? - Aria's natural appearance would generally make her stand out quite strongly in most worlds she was placed into, so it can be difficult to find a place for her to fit. However, I think her appearance would work okay for a dark-element Blade in the world of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, possibly moreso if I gave her more Darkling features. I'm still a bit torn between whether she would be a vampire or a ghost possessing her own corpse in some kind of AU where she had to be that kind of pre-existing supernatural entity. Maybe the first post-KH3 and the second for KHUX-era?

🔫 PISTOL - does she trust people easily? how easily will she turn her back to someone? has she been backstabbed before? will she betray someone if given an ultimatum? - Aria is very much not naturally trusting, which mostly stems from the fact that few people naturally trust her first. She has to keep her guard up, especially around other Keyblade wielders, because they wield the one thing she fears most. If I had written this ask out as soon as you sent it in then I could say she hadn't been backstabbed, but now she has been once, at least as far as the Fatebreakers are concerned (thanks, Nyx). Regarding that final question.. she would never actually betray the people she cared about, but she’d be rather quick to appear to betray them (ideally with them being aware of her intention to do this) for the sake of lowering the enemy’s guard and gaining information from them before revealing she had never gone over to their side.

🍁 MAPLE LEAF - what is her favourite season? why? - Aria's favourite season is spring, which might be slightly predictable when you remember that her true form is essentially a giant ball of cherry blossom flowers. The sight of flowers blooming has always brought her a surprising amount of solace as a result of what she is, so spring is an enjoyable time for her for that reason.

And that’s all those finally answered! I hope that all of these answers were alright - thank you very much again for sending so many questions in!!

#a call from the void #selfship #selfshipping #heart of the void #self‑insert: darkness' champion (aria)#and I guess a bit of #selfship: of flowers unchained (clio/aria)#some of the nicknames are also for some of the KHUX dandelions but it’s probably too little to warrant their tags #out of the inbox #evi tag!#I finished this off on my phone so I hope the formatting is okay #and the general contents are also okay #maybe I should send this to the others #this post is okay to reblog!

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piglet26 · 5 months

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens Rewatch Part 3

Harrison Ford looks like he's genuinely having fun running around with Chewie and shooting things.

While it's hilarious that Finn's first instinct is to run, it's great that once it's understood that Rey is in trouble he actually goes not only into battle to directly into the First Order HQ. It's a great friendship especially with those iconic Rey's! Sad that's it's kind of mocked for being simpish.

Reylo - heart eyes - him appearing out the forest like a dark prince and freezing her. The bridal carry at the torn down castle. It's just a hint at what's to come but it's enough that you understand something is different about them. Fairytale vibes for real.

Finn "He took her did you see that. He took her, she's gone."

Han "Yeah, yeah, I know."

Finn stares after him stunned. haha

Finn he's a little preoccupied right now. He just saw his son with a girl, he's about his meet his wifey again after how long. Rey is like 5th on this list right now, while she's your #1

Han and Leia finally back together 1 hour 20 minutes in. Someone was mad.

Poe/Finn is a great bromance.

See Finn, Han did mention Rey to Leia as soon as he got other stuff out the way.

I love Leia as a leader. Side note: the sexism, yes sexism, Carrie faced for aging and gaining weight while Harrison ford is grey and Mark looks like a drunk is bull crap.

R2D2, 3PO Iconic.

Leia and Han scene about their son going bad is a great scene and you see the history and the love between them.

It might sound odd that with an interrogation scene Reylos said we're never letting this go - but yes, that's how it is. So many things are fascinating about this scene. How long has he sat there and observed her? He's kneeling as opposed to standing over her. He refers to her as his guest. He doesn't like her friends, but tells her he doesn't know where they are.

Kylo Ren "You still want to kill me"

Ren "That's what happens when you're being hunted by a creature in a mask."

Kylo Ren reveals a handsome dark prince look literally made for vaginas

Rey: Girl, same

It's also canon in this scene that their force bond is made her and they both feel it. Read the books. Honestly, the chemistry here really is great between them and the dialogue. Daisy Ridley is a great actress having to act while strapped to a table. She just doesn't get the credit.

Poe Dameron is the kind of fighter you want. Brace, fearless and rowdy.

Han "Ok, how do we blow it up. There's always a way to do that." Love Han! You need people like this around in the midst of crisis.

I wasn't an OG fan and I didn't grow up with Star Wars so I don't have the attachment to the OG3 but this was a touching scene.

Han "What was your job when you were based her?"

Finn " Sanitation"

Han " Sanitation?! Then how do you know how to disable the shields?"

Fin " I don't. I'm just here to get Rey

"Han "People are counting on us. The galaxy is counting on us."

This exchange, them kidnapping Phasma, the whole it's great.

Yes Rey, put those scavenger skills to use and climb.

Rey: "Finn, what are you doing here?"

Finn "We came back for you"

Chewie: Roaring

Finn " What he say?"

Rey "He says it was your idea."

Suffocating hug. Honestly, you want people like Finn, Han and Chewie to have your back. Yes people! Please come and save me and don't leave me like a Martyr.

Oh it's hurts to know that Han and company had escaped and only went back in to help the resistance.

Aww Finn gave Rey his jacket and....... then got the jacket back in the next scene?

The infamous scene

Adam Driver and Harrison Ford had a lot of ground to cover in this scene since this was literally their only scene. You had to not only believe in their history but care about it.

Whatever good will this movie built up it just squandered it for the OG fans. Not only killing Han but not putting Luke, Leia and Han in a scene together. Yeah, it's down hill from here for these fans.

*Reylo criticism* he pushed her into a tree! To defend himself cause she was about to shoot him.

Yes, it's stupid that Rey beat Kylo Ren. If she fought more streetwise which is something she was used to then that would have made more sense. I don't care that he was wounded, spiritually fucked up and already fought Finn. Scratch him? Yes. Outright beat him? No.

*Reylo criticism* They fought. He mostly played with her honestly until she got the jump on him.

!Reylo Moment! You need a teacher! He's got a soft spot for her.

!Finnrey Moment! Rey watching over Finn. "We'll see each other again. I believe that. Thank you, my friend"

Special shout out to Leia final princess outfit.

And we're off to find Luke thanks to R2D2 waking up.

This planet is called Ack-Tu? I think. Anyways it's beautiful. Rey don't go back to Jakku I love a desert as much as a scorpion but there's greenery, water and fresh air here.

Disney plus has special features?! Wow.

Overall, a pretty solid film for a new fan.

#star wars #rey star wars #star wars fanart #star wars rey #rey skywalker #kylo ren #general hux #george lucas #finnrey #reylo

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sukirichi · 3 years

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dutifully yours. [01]

Attached to the could’ve been’s of a promised happily ever after with the Crown Prince disguised under a scheme for power and greed, you are torn between choosing your happiness — or abandoning it to fulfill your duty as the future Queen.

→ unedited bcos i’m brave lazy. implied patriarchy. angst in future chapters. pure romance and fluff for now. royalty au. eventual smut. prince naoya !! i love him sm i could cry. this fic will break me, okay. naoya is close to canon but with my twist if that makes sense. drama in future chapters. oh and listen to this while reading <3

→ massive shoutout to my besties for always hyping me and helping me uwu, i present this token of prince naoya being an ideal husband okay cry cry i love him sm im crying. anyways pls enjoy bcos i poured my heart out to this and bcos i want more people in the naoya fucker club :>

one | next (to be posted)

Ever since the day your mother taught you how to read, you’ve had your nose buried in a book. Losing yourself in different worlds, swooning over fictional princes, and fantasizing for a love story ripped out of fairytale itself with such burning, passionate romance – you’d been through it all, dreamt of it all. And yet, you struggled to stop yourself from tugging at your dress.

The tight corset hadn’t even been the main focus of your worries, and neither was the heavy rivière resting on your collarbones.

“Would you stop fidgeting?” Beside you, your mother pursed her lips, fingers decorated with jewels stopping in their movements of fanning herself. The temperature hadn’t been particularly high inside the limousine that evening. You supposed it was the mere sight of you tugging and gulping audibly every now and then, gloved hands running over the hems of your collar.

You ducked your head down. “Sorry, Mother. I can’t help it.”

“Dear, your anxiety is written all over your face,” she sighed, turning your face to her as she cupped your cheeks. Smiling tenderly like a mother always did, your heart felt soothed even by the slightest bit. You wished she could keep holding you like this – like you were a fragile flower she was afraid of breaking; a fragile flower that needed more care handled than most. Tonight, however, you felt a hundred years older. Like you’d accidentally clicked on fast forward and got launched to the future. A future that seemed so unclear yet so...perfect. So right.

“How would the Prince fancy you if you’re sweating bullets like that? It’s not a good look for a marquess’ daughter.”

At the mention of the Crown Prince, your heart sank again. “My apologies, Mother. I’m just rather nervous. It’s the Crown Prince we’re talking about here.”

“He is quite the looker, isn’t he?” she giggled behind her fan, “Strong and handsome, as well.”

“My ladies. You are not fantasizing over the Crown Prince in my presence, are you?”

Crossing her leg over the other, your mother leaned forwards, elbows on her knees as she winked at your father. The marquess had his torso half twisted from the passenger seat, glaring playfully at your mother’s unabashed features. “It is of no seriousness, My Lord. I’m simply easing your daughter’s nerves.”

Your father sighed in worry. “What’s got you so worked up, child? You are beautiful. The Prince would be blind to not notice you.”

Each fibre in your body screamed in desperation for your father to be right. Tonight was not just any other night – the entire Kingdom, including noblewomen, foreign royals, and unwed daughters from honourable families had been invited to the Zen’in Castle for one purpose only: to find his Crown Prince a suitable wife, one that would be fit to be the next Queen as well. As the daughter of the marquess, you’d naturally received the invitation. It felt just like yesterday when the mail arrived and you’d cheered so much in joy the chickens went flying out of their coops, your horses galloping and whinnying at surprise, and now you here – minutes away from the palace where you were soon to be deemed worthy or unworthy to be beside His Highness.

With a shaky smile, you dug your nails into your thighs. “Well, we’ve only met once, Father. I doubt the Prince would remember me.”

“Just smile, darling. You will do great.”

To no one’s surprise, the Zen’in Castle brimmed with people and esteemed guests. Men and women danced with one another as muted chatters and chuckles blended in with the grand royal orchestra, everyone dressed to the nines and making you feel completely out of place.

The moment you’d been welcomed by the knights and led to the palace doors, your dress began to feel tighter than usual, your ribs clenching uncomfortably from the pressure. Your hands had not stopped trembling either, not even when you hid it behind your back and nodded at the people passing by. There were governor-generals, dukes, earls, professors and royal advisors and even families of the royal family’s inner circle of knights. Everyone looked like they belonged here. Chatting amongst one another over the finest of wines or discussing conspiracies on where the Kingdom of Zen’in would be in the next sixty years of the future King’s reign, no one here seemed to be out of place.

Everyone except you.

A warm hand was suddenly placed on the small of your back, making you gasp. Your mother’s smile was nothing short of warm as she held you close to her one last time, leaving a kiss on your forehead. You didn’t even realize how much you shook until she clasped her hands with yours. “Calm down, dear,” she reminded, “You’ll be on your own now. This is where we leave you since we’re not supposed to mingle with potential princesses.”

“Mother!” Your eyes widened in embarrassment. Looking around frantically, you bit your lip in fear someone must’ve heard.

Of course, while it would be no surprise most guests – if not all – hoped that their daughter would be the Crown Prince’s chosen fiancée, it still felt wrong to boldly assume such when you could barely keep up with the events of tonight.

However, your mother merely laughed. “I am proud of you, dear. Never forget that. It doesn’t matter whether you are chosen or not. We’re only here for formality and respect to the King and Queen’s demands.”

“You say that as if the Crown Prince really would not bother with me.”

“We didn’t mean that,” your father cut in, a flute of champagne already nested between his calloused fingers. Ever since you arrived, he’d been snatched away by fellow earls and barons, disappearing into the crowd for a ‘hearty conversation over one’s lands.’ You knew better than that, though. That statement always translated to which leader got to have more chances to wine and dine with the King, to which your family was ridiculously reminded of that you’d been stationed to the most faraway land where even hearing news from the royal papers was but a privilege.

“Just be yourself, alright? And enjoy the party. It’s about time you met with girls your own age and made some friends.”

“I – Father, wait!”

A slender young woman slithered to your side out of nowhere, her golden brown eyes following the silhouettes of your parents. It wasn’t long before they completely disappeared. Left alone with the stunning woman that was – for some reason – dressed in a plain black curve hugging dress too modest for tonight’s appropriateness, you took three steps away in caution. “You must be from way up North,” she noted, her head to the tipped to the side. “I don’t think I’ve seen you here before.”

God, was she beautiful. Long, thick eyelashes and short hair chopped in messy yet elegant curves, you struggled to hold her gaze. “Oh, yes, I come from the Terratian Borders. My family is stationed there under His Majesty’s orders.”

She hummed to herself. “The Terratian Borders are mostly forests and fields, no? The last time my family and I visited there, I came across the loveliest dandelions I’ve ever laid eyes on. Shame they died on the way back,” offering her hand – again, bare and empty with decorations yet still littered with faint scars and cuts – she beamed at you. “I’m Mai, by the way. Mai Zen’in.”

Zen’in?

Hands cupping your mouth, you bowed deep until your back ached. “Lady Mai!” you shut your eyes closed, unable to live with the shame. Mai Zen’in; one of the iconic twin pair from the extended Zen’in royal family, both a fashion icon and a legend for being a rumoured female knight. To have her in your presence was an honour. “My apologies for not recognizing you any sooner, Lady Mai!”

“Stand up, I’m not a royal,” she sniggered, “We’re just relatives of the actual monarch, but don’t let the family name fool you. The Crown Prince barely even acknowledges us being of the same blood.”

Albeit hesitant, you followed her gestures of making you stand up. You straightened your back and cleared your throat, fighting the urge to go haywire the moment his name was brought into the conversation. Not only would you be seeing Prince Naoya again in real life for the first time in years, but you’d also made acquaintances with his distant niece. However, his name was spoken with malice.

Frowning, you faced Lady Mai in all seriousness. “Prince Naoya? Why so?” Lady Mai looked at you like you’d grown two heads.

“He’s an ass, that’s why.”

“I-I don’t think he is,” you defended, “The Prince has been nothing but kind to me.”

“I didn’t know he was capable of kindness,” she muttered more so under her breath, low enough you were unsure whether you were supposed to hear it in the first place. Lady Mai then shook her head to herself before stealing a flute from a waiter passing by. Chucking it your way, her face turned dark and grim. “Take it as free advice: stay as far away from his as possible. The Crown Prince is nothing but good news.”

“Is it because he has lots of lovers?” you inquired with a small voice, “Uhm – well – It was an assumption. With a title and handsomeness like that, it would make sense everyone would want to be the Crown Prince’s lover.”

Lady Mai’s lip curled upwards. “Prince Naoya won’t bother with lovers. He is too occupied for that.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“Heard from whom?”

“The Royal Declaration from His Majesty himself,” you said, “Was it not the purpose of this ball? To find worthy candidates to be the Crown Prince’s betrothed? His coronation is coming soon.”

“Right. I forgot today was technically a bridal market,” she scratched the edge of her brow, falling silent for a moment. Her eyes scanned the lively crowd for a brief moment – watching with you as everyone laughed and danced to their heart’s content – the grand final event of the routine personal dance with the Crown Prince himself slowly approaching to reality. “You are joining in the festivities, are you not? Later, when he arrives, he shall meet you.”

“I am obligated to as a noble bachelorette, though I doubt His Highness would even look my way. There are far richer noblewomen here and even daughters of duke that would be perfect as his wife. ”

“You may have a point for that,” she hummed to herself, unaware that her agreement to the Crown Prince not paying attention to you left a sting both in your ego and heart. Not that it lasted long, for Lady Mai was already tugged on the arm by another equally fiercely beautiful woman – her older twin, Maki Zen’in. Soon to be governon-general of the Kingdom.

Lady Mai smiled in apology. “I need to go now since I’m not a part of this event. But hey, if ever I come around to visit the Borders again, perhaps you could entertain me?”

“I would be honoured to, Lady Mai.”

“You are sweet and innocent,” it was her sister who spoke this time, glasses perched high on her nose that concealed the wariness of her gaze. “I hope the Crown Prince never gets to your routine.”

“I’m sorry?”

“It’s nothing; she was talking to herself. Maki does that a lot,” Lady Mai’s forced chuckles were barely heard from the music. “You enjoy the party now. Don’t drink too much lest you want to embarrass yourself in everyone’s eyes and be talk of the Kingdom. Prince Naoya would hate it if you took the attention away from him.”

“Oh, uhm...”

“It’s a joke, Lady Y/N. Relax.”

You bowed once more. “My apologies.”

“The dance is about to begin,” Maki tapped on your shoulder, making you look up right where her eyes zeroed in. And exactly in the middle of the grandiose hall, under the sparkling golden chandeliers where he made all the gold in the world look incomparable next to him, the Crown Prince stood in his fully glory. Blond hair with the ends stained of midnight gelled back to reveal his forehead, the Crown Prince’s beauty never failed to shine. Whether it be in the papers, in the tabloids, in the billboards that you passed on the way to the city, or from way back when you met him for the first time as a naive, innocent teen – Crown Prince Naoya came straight out of a magazine cover.

In the back of your head, you could hear either of the twins murmuring good luck. Maybe both of them had said it – you had no idea. All of your attention, all the sensibility and coherence of your state had been switched the next instant, as if your heart and soul was born for the sole purpose of being bewitched by your Crown Prince.

And as if feeling someone’s gaze on him, the Crown Prince’s eyes trailed over the crowd. Almost boredly, his sharp eyes bounced from one giggling woman to another, the ends of his lips smirking upwards for just the tiniest bit. It must’ve stroked his ego. Until his eyes connected with yours. The Crown Prince’s eyebrows knitted together. You had no idea how you looked in that moment, and quite frankly, you didn’t care. Because the Crown Prince was looking at you, and you were looking at him with hearts in your eyes along with your heart pulsing at the tip of your tongue.

“Let us begin,” his lips moved from the distance, “Play the music. I shall dance with my bride.”

The air shifted in a split second. Murmurs were thrown over the room, women and men alike turning pale. Even the orchestra was stunned from the Crown Prince’s entrance – and it hadn’t even been dramatic to his standards – yet the whole castle fell mum from just a few of his words. A few seconds later, the crowd recomposed itself, and the strings began to dance along with its bows.

You are pushed into the crowd. Nearly colliding into the arms of another, you quietly thank the masked man who was to be your first partner of the night.

All the men joining the dance floor dressed with the intention of making the Crown Prince shine. Prince Naoya stood out from the throng of white as per the colour code, his blood red uniform as both Prince with the golden crest of the military leader pinned to his right breast. The other men meant to be filler partners until all the potential brides got to their designated three minutes with the Prince were all dressed in black, faces covered behind a plain black mask. None were allowed to talk. None were allowed to utter even a word, and so your partner pursed his lips in displeasure at your apology.

Whatever. You just had to wait a few more rounds before the song finished and transitioned into a new one; the song where you’d been informed would be your time alone with the Prince.

You’d been so lost in your head you barely breathed the entire dance. From partner to partner, you blanked. Your heart drummed so wildly in its cage it begged to come out, and strings of apologies were let out each time your masked partners grimaced for a brief second when their hands came in contact with your sweaty ones. Around you, all the lovely women smiled and danced graciously, mouths moving in unreadable conversations shared with the Crown Prince. Not once did you look at the six partners you’ve danced with. Not once did you worry about tripping on your own feet. Not once did you care that some of the masked men held you a little too roughly for your comfort. Your entire reason for existing in that moment was to witness the Crown Prince himself, mirroring his frown that got deeper and deeper with each woman retreating to the sea of people he’d rejected.

Not once did you even think about being one of them – the girls who’ve ducked their heads down as their parents comforted them over not being the chosen one, of bringing ‘dishonour’ to their families that the mighty Crown Prince had deemed them unworthy. Tears streamed down their faces until black ink followed afterwards, lips trembling from silent sobs.

Despite their broken prides – although there was that minority who simply sighed in relief after returning to their own families – no one would dare interrupt the Crown Prince’s dances.

All of these thoughts crossed your mind too late and at the exact time your masked partner pulled away from you, body half bent in a bow with his arm outstretched to the side. Following where he was gesturing at, your eyes met the Crown Prince’s tall and lean stature, a few blond fringes now fallen from his movements.

Even though a thin layer of sweat shone from his face, Prince Naoya remained ethereal.

And like a snake charmed by the musician’s seductive tone, your feet moved on its own. Fingers stretching until it met with the Crown Prince’s large and warm ones, you were now in front of him. With him. Holding him, touching him, meeting him eye for eye and realizing – gold. His eyes burned a deep shade of gold, elegantly rich and heartbreakingly stunning your heart ached.

Before you knew it, your hands began to tremble, feeling as if your body had been corded into a corset three sizes smaller. You could not breathe, and the Crown Prince took notice.

“You are stiff. Do I make you uncomfortable?” Good Saint. If only possible, you would’ve closed your eyes and basked in the deep warmth of his voice. It reverberated from deep within, breathed out with an air of natural authority and profound confidence it made your knees weak. As if sensing his effect on you (though for the wrong reasons, it seemed), Prince Naoya hummed to himself. “This routine shall last for a few minutes before I can let you go, I’m afraid.”

You instantly realized the implications of your silence. “N-not at all, Your Highness! I am honoured to be dancing with you.”

“There is no honour in a choreographed dance. Everyone will dance with me. It’s nothing special.”

Your heart fell. Prince Naoya not only sounded dejected, but detached as well. As if he found no pleasure or specialty in this event, at a time where he had every opportunity to meet his lover, and that this ball was merely a task to be checked off in his already long list of responsibilities. It wasn’t disappointment, per se, but rather melancholy that left a bitter taste in your mouth. Not because Prince Naoya held little to no regards for something you treasured, but because he sounded terribly alone. Like he was simply waiting for it to end out of discomfort.

“It’s special to me, Your Highness,” you blurted out faster than you could stop yourself. For a moment, you feared you may have offended him, but the Crown Prince only laughs.

And when he did – saint, when he laughed – his eyes crinkled into half moons, pearly whites flashing against the bright lights and his whole chest shook with amusement.

You’d never seen him smile this way before.

Prince Naoya’s laughter didn’t cease. Around you, your gut instincts told that people were now beginning to look; the Crown Prince’s deep rumbles of laughter sounded exquisitely like music as well, after all. “ Is it special to you because you are now dancing and within the Crown Prince’s proximity? As much as I presume how exhilarating it might be for those who mostly see me in the papers and in the tabloids, I assure you, dancing with your Prince is not an honour. Especially when you are all sent the invitations based on your status and not your worthy traits.”

“It’s special to me,” you mumbled, growing shy all of a sudden when the Crown Prince nodded at you to continue. “Because...because it reminds me of the first time we met.”

The Crown Prince hummed in amusement.

“We have met before?”

“Yes, Your Highness. I’m from the Terratian Borders – my father is a loyal servant of His Majesty. You visited the borders when you were eighteen and I was sixteen. Do you remember it, Your Highness? You stormed in my private library.”

Indeed, the young barely-out-of-his-teens Crown Prince barged into your home’s library years ago. You were not previously informed he and his parents would be visiting since they arrived wordlessly, so you were stuck in your chambers as usual, killing time if not for sleeping and tending to the animals. Perched on a ladder, you attempted to reach for a book on the upper shelf when your foot slipped beneath you. At the age of sixteen, you were dramatic enough to say your life flashed before your eyes. You would’ve screamed then had strong arms not appeared out of nowhere, the Crown Prince staring at you with wide, golden eyes as they were now, his breathy rasped as he asked, are you okay, my lady?

The mere recollection of that fateful memory had your cheeks warming in delight. “You were so charming and heroic back then. Even when I had no idea you were a royal, I would have still believed you to be princely,” you said rather absentmindedly, blinking once then twice at your words. “Of course, it’s understandable if you do not remember, Your Highness!”

“My apologies. I do not remember, though Terratia is a wonderful place. Such a shame I was not informed beforehand they had a lovely daughter.”

“Thank you, Your Highness,” you cheered back, cheeks and jaw beginning to ache from how wide you were smiling. But could anyone blame you? You felt absolutely silly that you were a breath away from passing out minutes ago, and now here you were, dancing with the Crown Prince and sharing memories with him like it was a daily occurrence. The words it’s true love when you feel at peace with them suddenly rang back at your head from that latest romance novel you read, and you turned away, hoping the Crown Prince would not read your thoughts to your face. However, Prince Naoya’s lips pursed into a thin line, all traces of humour now disappeared. “I’m sorry – should I not have laughed?”

“No, I don’t mind,” he mused with his jaw locked tight, “I just haven’t seen anyone react that way before.”

“Like what?”

“Like my words meant the entire universe to them. I may dare even say you look terribly in love, though I cannot blame you on that one, can I?”

Prince Naoya shook his head the minute the words left his mouth. Forcing himself to believe it couldn’t be real, perhaps, you truly did not know anymore. Your only plan for tonight was to see the Crown Prince and get to live out your dream of seeing him once more even for just a brief moment before you travelled back home while he married another, and yet – “Your Highness, I’m in love with you. I have always been since the day we met.”

You could no longer stop the words. The voice at the back of your head begged you to shut up and not cause a scene, that your time had passed up and people were staring, yet you remained in his arms no matter how much you wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow you whole.

“Please do not misunderstand me, Your Highness. I did not come here to attempt to steal your heart and be your wife, though I will admit I have dreamt of meeting you again for so many moons. I...I only want to tell you this. That I love you and even though it was a brief moment, I think the love I’ve always read about felt real and possible for the first time in my life,” chuckling nervously, you gather to courage to face him, adoration shining for the Crown Prince stood shock still before you, however stunned he may be. “I love you, Your Highness. I love you. And to whoever lucky woman you choose to be your betrothed, I hope she takes care of you and showers you with all the affection you are deserving of. You would make a great King. So God help his Crown Prince, and may you lead us all into a better world.”

Prince Naoya did not budge a muscle. His eyes remained hard on yours, breath warm as his nostrils fumed. With each passing second that he did not speak, you grew restless and tugged your arm away from his hold with a disgraceful smile.

You’d truly crossed your line. The repercussions to be faced for this impoliteness would destroy your family’s honour. You had to leave. “Your Highness? The song has changed. It’s time to let go—”

The Crown Prince inched close enough until his hair tickled your cheeks, his deep voice sending shivers down your spine as he pulled you close, close enough that your lower bodies touched. Skin ablaze with heat, you dared not move an inch. “Do you mean it?” he demanded lowly, his fingers ghosting over your wrist to hold you in place. “Do you truly love me? Not for what I have, not for who I was born to be, but me as a person itself?”

Closing your eyes to shudder in a deep breath, you exhaled. “Of course, Your Highness. Even if you were not born as a Prince, I’m sure I would’ve still loved you in a different universe.”

“But I do not know you.”

“We don’t have to know each other, Your Highness, and we never will. Once you let me go, I’ll return to the shadows where I belong, and I will continue supporting you until the day of your coronation.”

“And if I refuse to let you go?” he clicked his tongue, “What will you do then?”

The Crown Prince’s spicy perfume must be an aphrodisiac or hypnotizer of sorts. Everything he did messed with your mind that it was too late – the music had stopped and people were no longer drinking or chatting. Everyone’s eyes were on you and the Crown Prince. You could only imagine how controversial this position must be; with his lips trailing dangerously close to that sensitive spot in your neck where you nearly moaned. You really needed to leave.

“P-people are looking, Your Highness. You do not want this affair with someone you won’t choose—”

“Who said I won’t choose you?” Finally, he pulled away. But Prince Naoya never once tore his gaze away from yours, nor did he allow you to look at anyone but him as he caresses your jaw so light and feathery you wondered if he was truly there.“Who said I haven’t laid my eyes on you the moment you walked in here? This ball is for naught because of you, Lady Y/N. I’ve already made my choice, and you helped me confirm it as soon as you danced with me.”

“Your Highness...”

“Look at me,” he ordered, your eyes flitting from his pinkish lips to his sharp nose and then to his fox-like gaze. Only this time, Prince Naoya was no longer harsh. “Don’t be scared.”

“But they’re looking.”

“You are with me, of course they’ll look,” he teased, “They wish to be you right now. But ignore them and dance one more time with me.”

It wasn’t like you had a choice, but did it matter? One nod from him was all it took before the orchestra fumbled back to their spots and a new song played, Ode of Moonlight Lovers, and the Crown Prince was guiding you back to where he had originally danced with you.

From the corners of your eyes, you caught a glimpse of your parents with their mouths gaped open; your father looking like he was on the verge of passing out. However, you felt nothing but joy, nothing but the adrenaline pumping through your veins as he danced and twirled you in his arms. When the music stopped and you were both panting for air with silly smiles on your face, it dawned on you that you were with the Prince. No, rather, it was only you and the Prince alone. Even in the sea of people whose faces began to blur, he prevailed crystal clear.

You could recognize him anywhere, find him everywhere.

Prince Naoya stepped impossibly closer until your chests touched, hearts beating as one. Cupping your jaw, he was near enough that he swallowed all your shaky breaths with a small, teasing smile like you both shared a secret the entire world could not know.

“Do I still make you nervous?”

Laughing, you nodded. “Yes, Your Highness. I feel like I’m going to explode.”

“It’s beloved now,” he corrected, face inching closer and closer to a point you could count the number of his lower lashes. “And what do lovers do to seal their union?”

“M-Marriage?”

“Close, but this is much better.”

If anyone were to tell you that you would have a love story ripped out straight from a fairytale, you would’ve laughed at their faces. You were no Cinderella, nor were you a goddess of beauty that could’ve possibly caught the Crown Prince’s eye. Yet, his soft lips were on yours, kissing you with as much passion you could only dream of that you cried.

Strong hands guiding the back of your waist, Prince Naoya dipped you lower to the ground – the grand of finish of his dance. He had chosen his bride.

The crowd cheered and rejoiced all around you, making you smile into the kiss. Fisting his collar to bring him closer to yours, your mouth burst into metaphorical fireworks as soon as his tongue mingled with yours for an experimental taste. He was bitter yet sweet; expensive wine resting on his tongue, yet a delicate vanilla sat heavily on his soft lips that molded with yours. It was a taste you could spend forever being addicted on. And you were crying, crying so much your chest ached and the Prince’s cheeks grew damp from yours. You’d dreamt of this for so long, too long now.

Prince Naoya slowly pulled you away, his thumb wiping the tears away from the pads of your cheeks with tenderness in his touch. However, the Prince was not satisfied. The crowd whooped as he leant down to kiss your forehead. “You are mine now, my princess.”

Looping his hands with yours, the Crown Prince led you out of the castle. The crowd parted naturally to make way for the new couple, and you were left staring at his broad back and the tuft of blond hair where you’d soon find out how soft it would be. Sending one last glance to your crying parents, you waved goodbye. You had no idea where the Crown Prince would take you but you were already bunching your dress up, heart completely filled with trust you did not question it. What mattered tonight and for the rest of your life was that it felt right. That it was him – your beloved Prince Naoya Zen’in and soon to be husband – that you’d follow through the moon and back.

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countrymusiclover · 2 years

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5 - Henry's Theories

Part 6

The Charming Sister masterlist

Entering the diner I slide in a booth beside Henry laying down a note he left outside the police station. Emma had become sheriff after Graham had died. "I got your note. What is up?" He opened his storybook to that same page again looking at me. "What do you know about the tale of Rumplestiltskin?" Biting my lip I simply replied. I know that he isn't an actual fairytale but clearly he is in his boom because that is the second time he's mentioned his name. Granny slides me a hot chocolate and some coco for him. "Granny, hold up." I called as she started to leave seeing me reach into my coat, handing her the money I owed for last time and now. Graham had given me a raise before he died but still nothing close to how much money Gold has in his pockets. "Where did you get that clip?" Henry suddenly spoke after I watched the old woman give a weak smile walking off to take more orders. "From Mr. Gold why?" Focusing back on the kid resting my arms on the table. He turned a page tapping on a picture of a girl that looked like me wearing a dress that was cut above the knee.

Standing beside a guy that looks very similar to the guy who buys coffee here in the morning and goes by the name David. "This is you and he's your brother, Prince Charming. My mother's father and the husband of Snow White." I accidentally chuckled at hearing the names he spoke and he looked at me disappointed so I decided to make him happy again. "So who do you think they are. Who in Storybrooke are these people?" He told me about Mary Margaret being Snow, David being Charming and Mr. Gold being Rumple. Reaching up I turned one of the pages seeing a clip that matched mine. "What is this, Henry?" He glanced back up at the clip I'm wearing saying. "That clip was your mother's. You traded it so Rumplestiltskin wouldn't make you feel anything again." Resting my chin in the palm of my hand I still don't quite understand. "So I wouldn't feel anything I don't understand." He puts his hand over my heart voicing. "He took out your heart so you couldn't truly feel anything ever again."

The diner doors bell rings looking over my shoulder I see David walk in grabbing some lunch. Twisting my hair between my fingers it does look similar to his. He picked up his food turning his head to see me and Henry who he waves at. Emma, Henry and Mary Margaret found him wandering in the woods after waking up from a coma. I bite my lip holding in a gasp seeing we have the exact same color eyes. He exited the diner and Henry broke me from my trance. "You see the resembalence don't you?" Shacking my head I can feel my head spinning like crazy. Nobody looks so similar like that unless they are related somehow. But then if Henry is right then why don't we act like we're siblings, like we are in fact family. "Henry, what else can you tell me about - uh Charming and I...like what happened to us?" He goes back to his book turning some pages then turning the book around so I can see me and the prince riding horses towards a castle.

"Rumplestiltskin!" I hollered knocking on the doors of a castle that was in the middle of the woods. The wind blows my torn dress that has become my thing now. The door opened for me to see him standing at the bottom of the stairs and he released his high pitched giggle. "Princess Charming, what an unexpected surprise." Rolling my eyes at the nickname I rounded his table actually looking him in the eye. "I'm here to ask for my mother's clip back." He clicked his tongue walking up to me. "Remember lass deals are what I do." Stepping away from him I hold up my hand thinking of the perfect way. Word around the kingdoms is that the bandit Snow White took a potion from him and now wants to kill the Evil Queen. "You're deals are something you can't resist making. So tell me who you're dealing with next." Rumple stepped up waving his hand for the clip to appear in red smoke. He brushes hair behind my ear resting it back into my hair as I reach into my bag pulling out my crown. "If you're so interested in objects have this."

He takes it from my hands waving his other hand and a rose appears making me question. "What's this for?" He hands it to me replying. "A trade off my dear. The rose suits the golden beauty of you." I blushed at his words feeling my stomach get butterflies even with my heart gone which makes me wonder. "Can I ask you something, Rumple?" He spun on his feet raising his eyebrows at me simply nodding. "Why did you tell me the only way I can feel better is if you took out my heart?" The two of us entered the main room of his castle seeing the windows open to see light but the mirrors are covered up. He sits down in a throne chair at the end of a long table. "Love is the most powerful thing of all. It makes us do crazy things. But when you feel so strongly about someone and they break your heart, it's like half of yourself is destroyed along with who you used to be." Sitting ontop of the table I spin the rose in between my fingers remembering how my brother spoke about Snow when he realized he needed to find and tell her he loves her no matter. "I don't see love that way, now granted I've never been in love but...I have to believe that love is magical for a reason." Rumple taps his fingers together slightly curious at what I have to say about love. "That the good and the bad have to go together for the magic to exist." Rumple didn't admit it himself until later but hearing you describe love like that made him fall in love with you, it was like you were talking about him and his darkness.

Running my hands down my dress I grabbed my jacket throwing it on over my orange dress trying to calm my nerves about tonight with Gold. I'd called my friends Ashley and Mary Margaret who helped me by saying he'll be as nervous as I am. As I stand outside Granny's diner the door opened for me to see Emma and Henry walk out. He runs up hugging me and I hug him back where he looked up at me wondering. "Ella, forgot to tell you something about you and Rumple." Bending down I asked the ten year old. "What's that kid?" He heads for his mom's yellow bug telling me. "You two love each other." Once he said that I heard footsteps and a cane coming up behind me so I turned around feeling my cheeks blushing at seeing him in a nicely pressed suit, granted he wears them all the time but I finally realized he actually looked Rumplestiltskin. "Wow, you look good Gold." He lifts my right hand up to his lips kissing it before leading me inside Granny's and at the booth near the middle of the room.

"Two burgers please Granny." I ordered sitting on the opposite side of him seeing him tap his fingers on the table. "Are you nervous just like I am Gold?" I nervously chuckled seeing him stop the tapping. "Oh uh - hmmm." He nodded watching the elderly woman sit the burgers down whispering to him. "I charge extra for pickals." He bites his tongue seeing her walk away before I pick up my burger about to take a bite until he reaches over grabbing the ketchup. "I'd try it with this. It makes it even more delicious." Taking the bottle from his hands I smiled before we both started eating the burgers. But as I stared into those brown eyes I can't stop hearing Henry's theory in my head 'You two love each other'. Sitting my burger down I twirl some of my hair between my fingers when I'm lost in thought. "What's on your mind lass?" Gold questions sitting his burger down. "Oh its just something silly Henry told me earlier." He reached over resting his hand on my freehand whispering.

"Nothing you could ever tell me is silly." Leaning forward I whispered not wanting to say in a room full of people. "Is there somewhere private we can talk?" He pays for dinner and we went into his shop where he flips the open sign to closed so we're not disturbed. Entering the backroom I see more shelves of stuff and a cot that I sit down on having him lean up against the table resting his cane with his left hand. "So Henry believes that everyone in this town are actually fairytale characters from this storybook Mary Margaret gave him. You are Rumplestiltskin and I am Princess Y/n. Can you believe that?" He comes to sit beside me staring into my blue eyes and me at his brown ones. His right hand slowly reached forward moving hair from my face so he can rest his hand to my cheek. He slowly leans in as I suck in a breath feeling him whisper. "Not as crazy as what I'm about to do Y/n." He ends up kissing me and at first I'm unsure until he starts to pull away so I kissed back thinking in the back of my mind. Who is Y/n.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

#ouat #once upon a time #ouat x reader #ouat rumplestilskin #ouat rumplestilskin x reader #rumple x reader #rumplestilskin x reader #ouat mr. gold #ouat gold x reader #robert carlyle #henry mills #david nolan x sister reader #david nolan #ouat prince charming #ouat prince charming x sister reader #josh dallas #wattpad fanfiction #comments really appreciated

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