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aquanova99 · 1 year

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Haunted (Cato x Reader)

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Part 6

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A/N: I know I know and I’m sorry! Thank you for being so patient and not giving up on me🤍

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Y/Ns POV

My eyes shot open. Your body did not follow. Your muscles were stiff and ached from the slightest movement. Where was I? How did you end up here? You were almost completely covered in what you hoped was the morning dew of the forest. The walls surrounding you seemed to have been made from old tree trunks fallen over a group of rocks. A perfect little makeshift cave of sorts. Too perfect. You were almost sure this was made as a possible hiding place for the tributes, courtesy of the gamemakers. This seemed like a place you would pick to hide in, but from what you recall you didn’t make it very far after collecting Glimmers arrows. The arrows! You needed to get out of here, get your bearings. You needed to push against your protesting muscles. You decided on moving one singular muscle group at a time. You turned your head noticing your packs were still next to you. Your arms were next. Slowly, ever so slowly you patted your body down searching for your knives. Nothing. Not too surprising I guess. Whoever put you here would be an idiot to leave you armed. It took another five minutes just to sit up. You shuffled next to your pack going through every pocket. You small first aid kit seemed rummaged through but other than that nothing seemed out of place. The smaller pack had been mostly cleaned out, probably nothing of real use anyway. You left the other bag you stole from Glimmer. You decided to make your way out of the tiny hole you found yourself in, a much bigger effort now that you were carrying your bag. You needed water. And food, but water was once again, your first priority. Climbing was out of the question. You looked at your canteen… full. Could you trust no one had poisoned it? You shrugged away your worries, if they wanted you dead they could have found a hundred ways to do so by now.

The sun was blinding. You’re only hope was that the careers are hopefully doing much worse off than you. Your brain struggled to get itself together. You were walking target. You allowed yourself a few deep breaths to force yourself together. You recognized the area. Your body moved instinctually until you were at the small body of water that had already once offered you sanctuary when the fire started. How many days ago was that? You finished the water in the canteen before filling it up and setting the iodine drops in. You decided to clean yourself of all of the blood, mud, and sweat you had built up since you were thrown into these games. Even in the worst parts of twelve, you would have never seen anyone look as disheveled as you were right now. The heat levels made you feel secure enough that your clothes would dry out quick enough if you washed them, you hesitated knowing you were still being watched, but after all the blood and gore you doubted they’d care about someone trying to maintain themselves. Honestly if anything, it might give you some brownie points from the capitol. Whatever. You stripped down to your undergarments as you washed what you could out of your clothes. You look at your hands, traces of some makeshift bandages beginning to peel off. You questioned why they wouldn’t just use the first aid kit…You continued to stare before the realization that the location of the tracker jacker stings were almost untraceable. These were not bandages. Great, another debt you may not be able to repay.

You could hear Haymitch scolding you for being so reckless. Here you were trying to…what? Feel clean? Look nice? Meanwhile You were without a weapon and completely out in the open. Stupid. You threw your head back with a sigh, and decided to put on your damp clothes and start regathering yourself. You dig through your pack cursing silently when you realize any rope you have left was burned up in your attempt to flee the fire. You have no choice. You have to head back in the direction you came from. Someone kept you alive. And someone had your weapons. Your mind spins with the jerk of your head towards the sound of a twig snapping. Your eyes begin scanning every inch of the spread of trees before you. You saw nothing. Heard no one. You stay frozen in place, only darting your eyes until they land on the smallest tip of what appears to be a child’s boot.

“Rue??” Her eyes peek from behind the tree, ands it all you cand do from sprinting over to her. Your voice comes out in a harsh whisper, barely managing to contain your excitement “oh my god. Are you okay?”

“You’re worried about me?”

“Why wouldn’t I be? Did—did you help me?”

She shook her head, “Not just me…uhm are we still allies?”

Relief washed over your body, “of course.”

“I’m sorry I took your knives. Thresh wanted to make sure.” You ask get a rundown of the two nights you were unconscious. There’s only ten of you left. Rue chews on her cheeks, “Y/n…Thresh is injured pretty bad.”

“What?”

“Well…I went find him first and we were running towards the edge of all that smoke from the fire, he wanted to see if could get Arioch while he was more out of it. But the closer we got we heard them find you. We didn’t want them to find us so he climbed a tree to sleep and I went to find you. The tracker jackers freaked the careers out and Thresh went to investigate because I hadn’t made it back to him. They were running back toward the lake by the cornucopia. Clove and Marvel were first and didn’t even see him. Arioch was starting to see things and we don’t know what he saw but he pushed him down and kept running, but well. You know Arioch he pushed really hard and thresh fell back pretty hard. His shoulder looks like bad.”

“He dislocated it?”

“I think so. I found him first because I heard him scream, I think he popped it back into place but he wont tell me. But if he wasn’t hurt he would have gone after the careers. Now they have medicine.”

You knew he had to have been the one who moved you. That probably didn’t help much. No wonder he took your weapons. “Well, lets find him. Once I get that bow we can hopefully get some food.”

“Enjoy your rest?” Thresh asked as the two of you joined him

“Cheerful as always, aren’t we?....How are you doing?”

He shrugged, his first mistake. The pain on his face was evident. Rue asked him about your weapons. Thresh was more than reluctant to give everything back. You couldn’t blame him. With only ten people left the alliance wouldn’t last forever. You saw him wince as he lifted his arm to hand you the knives. You thought about the gift from your sponsor. The fire had hit your leg, but you were quick to swat the fire on your thigh. Your calf was not so lucky. If the medicine from the capitol went deep enough through the layers of skin to heal the burn, you wondered what effects it would have on Thresh’s bruised, and likely strained muscles.

“I don’t know if this will work but, it may help some of the pain.” You rummaged through your bag to pull out the gift from your sponsor. It had done its purpose. Your burn no longer caused any pain, it wasn’t pretty to look at but you could manage that.

He scoffed, “Nice sponsors.”

“Do you want to work with me or not? Take off your shirt so we can try this out.”

He sighed but gave in to your request. If the cream Haymitch sent you had brought a cooling relief when you had first put it on, then at the very least it would relieve some of the stress in Thresh’s shoulder. You grabbed a bandage out of the first aid kit. Thresh’s body reflexively jerked from the touch of your hands on his skin. Though the bruises on his skin were barely visible, it was clear that the slightest contact still brough sharp pain through his body. In a way that was a good thing, it meant that he just needed to rest. On the other hand, he need to rest. And rest was something they couldn’t afford in these games. “How does it feel?”

“Cold. But good. I guess”

You nodded and began wrapping, you started on the top half of his arm. Thresh’s was again, but fortunately and unfortunately, very muscular. He could hold his own in the game, and would hopefully heal quickly. But you would probably use the whole roll of wrapping you had acquired. You prayed none of you needed any more. After starting with the upper half of his bicep you went across his chest to stabilize his shoulder. It would limit his range of motion, but the more he let it rest the longer he would last. You and Rue helped him put his shirt and jacket back on before he spoke again.

“Thanks.”

“Why didn’t you take it?”

“How was I supposed to know what it did?”

“Okay. Fair I guess.” Something told you something didn’t want to betray any trust, probably Rue, “Okay we need to get food. You guys have anything for snares?”

“Nothing. But we have lots of berries and roots. See?” Rue said excitedly, her eagerness brought a smile to your face.

“I guess its my turn to bring something to the table. I’ll be back.” You looked at Thresh’s hesitant face, “Here. You can keep the knives and bags if it makes you feel better about me ditching. Be right back.”

You took a few practice shots before going to far. The bow was easy enough to carry, or it would have been if your body didn’t feel as if it was run over by one of the peacekeeper vehicles. You tried to remember all those times Katniss and Gale would tread carefully near one of your hiding places. You felt ridiculous. You wish you would have taken up Gales offer on going hunting with him and Katniss right about now. Your aim was still off, definitely improved, you would be able to get food. But if it comes down to an arrow your precision could be what loses you the game. You came into a smaller clearing with a flock of birds grazing. If you ever got your hands on more rope, you would remember to set the snares in this area. You shot at the slowest moving bird, you tried to hit the general area of his chest. Your breath steadying as you released the notched arrow. Feathers flew as the birds flapped to make as much distance between you as possible. You got lucky and clipped through one of the wings. Not exactly where you were aiming but it would do for now. You tried not to make a face as you broke the bird’s neck to finish him off. Maybe this is why you never asked to be taught how to shoot. This always made you swallow back any possibility of vomiting. The cracking of bone, the squirming of the animal’s body. Maybe this is why you preferred the spear, though wooden and perhaps not as quick as the metal one from the capitol, they almost always finished off the animal in question.

You tried not to get in your head as you headed back to your new alliance. You had to be honest with yourself. You had picked up the knives quickly. They were lightweight and deadly. Your arms were too shaky with arrow and it affected your aim. You were good with snares but that wasn’t exactly helping take out any tributes. You were, at the end of the day, average or below average in everything. Your best shot was hiding and hoping to pull off another sneak attack like you managed to do with the tracker jackers. And even then, you wouldn’t have even noticed them without Rue. You’d never won in hand to hand combat in the training center, you had little chance of making out of a physical fight alive, that had always been Peetas strength.

Peeta…Where was he right now? Not with the careers according to Rue. Was he okay? Should you even care at this point?

“Nice catch 12.” Thresh grunted as you stepped back into view

“Thanks. I don’t suppose you’d mind plucking this thing?”

He chuckled, “Yeah, sure. And its groosling.”

“A groosling?”

Rue jumped down from a smaller tree, “Yeah we have them all over 11, when they come into the field we get a decent lunch.”

“Not much food there either?”

“No, you get in a lot of trouble if you take anything you harvest. They’ll whip you in front of everyone. Thresh act—”

*ahem Thresh coughed. You didn’t need to hear more. Your heart sank. You would have never thought you’d be grateful to have been from 12. “We better be quick about cooking up this bird. We don’t want to risk lighting anything once it gets dark.”

They both nodded and as Thresh worked you asked more about the Careers camp Rue had spied on. She had made good work of flying through the trees. They had replaced Peeta with the boy from 3, Elias. Why would he be working with the careers, he wasn’t a fighter, and he couldn’t bring food to them. The thought made you uneasy. Rue was explaining how they had set up all of their supplies in one big pile. The seemed risky, could the tracker jackers have messed with their mind that badly? As Rue is finishing telling you about seeing Peeta head towards a river in the opposite direction of the careers Thresh plops down next to her. “Now, what?”

You make quick work of starting a fire, and begin cooking. You have to entrust Thresh and Rue to make sure the bird cooked through while you stand in case the smoke gets too visible and draws in wanted attention. Much to Thresh’s chagrin.

“Y/n. Its all done.” Rue says quietly, you proceed to quickly douse the fire and stomp out any remaining embers. You hand a knife to Thresh and tell to cut off however much he wants to eat, you cut off thigh and leg, and hand it to Rue. “I’ve never had a whole leg to myself before.”

“Well, you need to keep your strength up.” You smile at each other. You slice off some of the bird’s breast and begin eating. For a moment all the three of you can do is pick apart the food and eat. It was a good a meal as any back home. You felt your body relax a bit more. You should probably save more of the bird, but not much you could do with it. Might as well have the energy to get through the next day.

“How long do we do this?” Thresh asked the question youd been avoiding

“The careers need to go. Then we split.” The steadiness in your voice surprised you. Thresh nodded, Rue changed the subject on dividing any food leftover in case they get split up. You noticed neither of them had had the luxury of finding a sleeping bag. “Thresh you and Rue can share the bag. I’ll keep watch first. We can switch out when its your turn.”

They both looked at you shocked that you had offered something so valuable. Thresh regained his composure first, “Thanks. So how do we take care of the careers?”

“I don’t know. But if all of their food is in one pile, it sounds tempting to find a way to destroy it.”

“That could get us killed.”

“Do you have any other ideas?”

“You two fight a lot.” Rue chimed in, giggling

You sighed, “You’re right. I want to destroy their food. It gives us the best chance at winning.”

Thresh echoed his own sigh, “Alright. Lets figure out what we’re doing tomorrow.”

You perch yourself up against a tree and hope the venom lingering in your body doesn’t drag you into slumber. You think about the best way to draw the careers from the cornucopia, but unless their up to hunting the rest of us down there’s little you can do to avoid being seen. You draw in the dirt in front of you with your knife until a voice draws your attention.

“I think it was all fake you know?”

“What?”

“The whole love act you and the other guy from 12 put up.”

“It was an act, you didn’t hear about him working for the careers?”

“Yeah and I’ve also heard you trying to figure out if he actually saved you. I also know he isn’t working with careers anymore.”

“He was probably just trying to make people think he’s in love with me. It doesn’t matter anymore anyway.” You go back to playing with your knife. You knew it was an act because you knew who Peeta was actually in love with. Still, why did he try and get you to leave? And did he actually fight Arioch?

“Those glasses in your bag…you should use them at night if you want to actually see anyone coming.”

“They’re night glasses??”

“Yeah.”

You put them on immediately. Almost letting out a laugh from your surroundings, it would definitely help you see if anyone was coming. Thresh said nothing else, and you let him rest until your eyes could no longer stay awake. Rue cuddled into you, reminding you of how lonely these games feel when you work by yourself. You missed people, you missed your family, and the few friends you had. The warmth of Rues body pressed against you lulls you into a deep slumber. The boom of the cannon scares you awake, and it takes everything to not scream as you bolt upright. The careers were hunting again. Which meant you had to destroy their supplies, today.

You missed dusk, so cooking anything was out of the question. You had some of the groosling left over for each of you but you would need to wait to for anything of sustenance. Rue had found eggs for all of you in a marsh, while the texture would usually make you want to puke, you have to eat. You learned about Rue, the oldest sibling, fiercely protective of them, even risking foraging knowing about the peacekeepers harsh punishments. She tells you about her love of music, you smile at the light in her eyes.

“Do you get a chance to enjoy music at home?” you ask

“We sing at home. At work, too. That’s why I love your pin,” she says, pointing to the mockingjay that I had all but forgotten. You cant help but agree. Your brothers, they didn’t mind working in silence. But when you had first had to find food you would wake up dangerously early and you hated it but there was something about listening the birds singing as if to welcome you into their world. Rue talks about making friends with the mockingjays, how she uses them to signal everyone that its time to go home. You begin unclasping your pin but Rue stops you, and says that it let her know she could trust you. Rue starts to talk about Thresh, but she barely manages to get out that he has no siblings before he interrupts.

“So, whats the plan 12?”

“Are you ever going to use my name?”

“Not likely.”

You rolled your eyes, he took stubborn to a different level. In a way you understood. The less you knew, the more you could separate the games. Only one person made it out, you had to keep telling yourself that. You all decided on your plan by lunch. We would meet back at the same site, close to the stream. You leave them the sleeping bag in case they need it. You could probably find the other bag you had hidden away in the beginning of the games. But decide to omit that information.

“What about you? Won’t you be cold?”

“Hey, don’t worry about me. Stealing isn’t illegal here. Ill find something before I get rid of the careers.”

Rue teaches me her mockingjay song. A signal that we are okay but can’t come right away. Before you leave Rue wraps you in a hug, which you return. There may not be much time left, and you needed her to know how much these last couple days meant to you.

“You be careful.” She says

“You guys too. I’ll see you at dinner. Take care of Thresh okay?” You joke as you poke her belly, she giggles and goes to join Thresh

“Good luck.” He says with a huff

You nod and go to make your way to the stream.You try to move as quickly and silently as you can. Your mind racing with thoughts concerning Rue, Peeta, your family. Was Peeta the death the canon was alerting you to? What would happen if it coms down to you and Rue or Thresh? Would you be able to make the first move? Take the first shot? And your family? You risked everything by coming down here, were they okay? Did the mayor decide to punish them for making a scene during the Reaping?

The closer you got to the career camp had you pause at any sound or movement in the woods. You had a knife out and ready, if more than one career showed up it would give you a better chance of making an accurate kill versus trying to restring your bow. Your shooting skills were alright but they were slow, you couldn’t renock your arrow quickly and to get an accurate shot you had to stand almost completely still. You weren’t going to risk dying with those odds. When you get to the hiding spot Rue told you about you allow yourself to sheath your knives and get your bow out. The careers are moving slowly, their body is covered in bumps from the tracker jacker stings. If they had gotten medicine it wasn’t working all that well. The supplies were in a pyramid, it so tempting but its clear that it had to be booby trapped. Most likely Elias’ doing, he was from three, the technology district. You couldn’t remember his score. He had shrunk away when you had tried to talk to him. But if he was anything like his other victors, you were sure he had a few tricks up his sleeves. You knew better than to count anyone out. For now, theres noting to do but wait, wait for them to reveal what the trap was, wait for them to go hunting, or wait for Rue and Thresh to get the fires going.

Arioch’s shouts let you know the alter is what was happening. You can hear an argument start. Marvel and Clove think they should leave Elias to guard the supplies.

“Hes coming. No ones touching the supplies anyway.”

“And lover boy?” Marvel asks. So, Peeta was alive for now. You don’t know whether to feel relief or frustration. You wondered if they were fighting to keep Elias away so they could take the chance to deal with Arioch before its too late.

“It’s a miracle he hasn’t bled out yet. He isn’t moving, and he definitely is not an issue. You don’t think I know where I hit him?” He grabs a spear and pushes it into Elias, “Come on. And if its her I get the kill, my way. Everyone understand?”

Probably doesn’t mean Rue if you had to guess. You sit for a while longer, not knowing what exactly would be the best option here. You’re about to get closer when you see the girl from five, Cora, run towards the pile. You have to stop yourself from shouting out. She was willing to talk to you about alliances, but you doubted with so little people she would trust you now. And Thresh certainly work with you with someone else on board. You see her dance to the supplies. It was so deliberate. She was smart enough that you knew she would be able to tell that it was booby trapped, and she had figured out exactly what the trick was. She overshot one of her jumps and fell forward, a squeal escapes her. It suddenly clicks. You look back at the plates you had all stood on as you waited for the timer to count down. The dirt dug around it, then uneven patches of land. Elias was even smarter than you had thought. Rerigging the mines. No one has ever done that. For a split second you smiled at the thought of something being pulled over the gamemakers before you realize that unless you wanted to sacrifice yourself there was going to be no way of getting to the supplies after all. Your memory was good but you had already forgetten Coras dance. And she was probably long gone for me to offer any kind of truce.

Damn it. You scan everything in the pyramid of food and crates. You had no chance of getting from here. Rue and Thresh’s second fire had begun. The careers were smart enough to figure out something was off. You needed to think of something, and you needed to think of something now. Your eyes land on the bag of apples. No way. Theres absolutely no way. You might waste every arrow. You take a deep breath, you had to do this. You could do this. You step out into the clearing. Just enough to give yourself a good enough shot. You start to open and close your hand steadying it to the best of its abilities. You aim near the middle of the bag to see exactly where your arrows would land, you could readjust after. Its high, but that works in your favor. If you aim there again you might be able to release the apples entirely. You shoot another arrow and another, the arrows getting close but not enough your arms begin to shake with the tension of the bow. You take one last deep breath. You see an apple precariously balancing as you release a fifth arrow and finally the bag rips.

You only have a chance to be upset about your wasted arrows before the explosion sends you flying into the air.

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Catos POV

Come on… come on. Get up. You have to keep moving. Y/n’s face wavers for only a second as she sees the blood come from her ear, she doesn’t try and stand. Just begins to crawl back to tiny Rues hiding spot. Y/n puts up her hood avoiding any possibility of a blood trail. The screen flashes back to your tributes rushing to get back to the camp site. The boy from three did a good job. Too good. If he was smart he would begin running in another direction. The camera is back to Y/n as a loose crate triggers another mine. Y/n struggles to get herself back to a crawl with every stray explosion.

Y/n settles into her hiding spot seconds before Arioch breaks through the clearing. His usual tantrums seemed minor to the rage he displayed for the entirety of Panem. His hair forcefully came out in clumps. He began kicking and throwing anything that wasn’t destroyed in the wreckage as Clove and Marvel pointed to the sky, trying to explain that whoever set off the mines was probably long gone, and simultaneously avoiding getting too close.

The boy realized he should leave too late. He had only begun to turn around before Arioch came up to him and snapped the kid’s neck. Quick and painless. Probably. But nothing like Y/n would deal with if she didn’t figure out how to get out of there. Until they decided to go hunting she was stuck. The night sky offered nothing for the careers, Arioch cussed some before putting on the night glasses and heading in the direction of the last fire. The camera panned to Thresh and Rue, they decide to hide out until morning. They have no way to see and would probably get them caught. They stay at the third campsite and you realize theres nothing else you can worry about for now.

Exhaustion covers you. You let your head the back of the couch your sitting at. Victors from every district begin walking out. The capitol starts to play out some highlights of the tributes that lost today. You decide to turn on the screen in your room to play the live footage. The next day was sure to bring some, hopefully pleasant, surprises.

It did not. You didn’t fall asleep until early in the morning and miss the first few events. Everyone was beginning to gather in the screening room. The tributes had all been impressive this year to say the least.

“So, what happened?”

He looked you up and down before answering, “Jesus kid, do you ever sleep? (Not really you thought) And so far nothing, Thresh left Rue to see if Y/n needed help. Y/n is trying to find Thresh and Rue and she keeps snapping her fingers near her ear, so I’m going to assume she cant hear right now.”

That couldn’t be good. Being able to know when someone is coming is crucial to the games. Its leaving her with a weakness. The victors with tributes left talk sponsors. The two from your own district are going to have a hard time paying off all the supplies the sponsors wanted to send down. For now, they were holding off. The day drug on. Y/n was now anxiously waiting for Rue and Thresh to meet back where they planned. Rue was waiting for her and Thresh. And Thresh was checking around your tributes’ camp. The room continued to get more and more full. Haymitch noticed your leg starting to tap first,

“Nothings happened yet, if you need to go catch up on that sleep you obviously lack in your life.”

You nodded and began to leave the room. Deciding to work in the training room for a while and then spent some time outside. You were gone longer than usual, Enobaria had slowly been easing up on her guard duties, but it was better not to risk it. The fresh air calmed your nerves. You wondered when you would be able to be around people again like a normal human being. Not that you knew what being “normal” looked like. You’ve spent your whole life in a training center, then you were able to go into the games, and now…what? You still didn’t know what to do. Your life’s purpose had been the games. You went home for a week and realizes your parents were strangers to you. Proud of the accomplishments you’d brought your districts but widely uninterested in anything else. You knew nothing but to kill and survive the games. It felt empty, the last time you’d felt a spark of anything was…with y/n. And that was only because she refused to be afraid of the reputation that preceded you. She saw you as a human being, made you feel like a human being… It had been eight days since you told her you hoped she would make it back, I mean it had been eight days since the tributes were sent to the arena…

You decided to go back to the screening room. Everyone was silent. Not the best sign. Enobaria waved for you to sit next to her, “Rue is close to setting off a trap.”

You looked at one of the victors from 11. The woman, Seeder was unable to look at the screen. Chaff, sat next to her couldn’t peel his eyes away. She sang her four-note song to the mockingjays, the song that signified she was safe. The birds quickly picked up the tune. The camera panned to Y/n. It took a minute but she heard the melody and quickened her pace toward the song. The camera panned to Marvel, him, Clove and Cato split up to try and cover more ground. And likely to be ready to hunt each other once they took care of Y/n and Thresh. The only real threat to their game. The camera shoots back and forth from Y/n who had finished singing her response, to Rue, and a split second later a net descends upon her.

You could hear a pin drop. The room was silent. The young girl struggles to free herself. If she stays quiet, Y/n will reach her in minutes. But you realize Rue is a child. And children scream when they’re scared.

Y/N is sprinting the second she hears Rue scream her name, she responds letting whoever was there know she was coming. She should wait to see if any other tributes were incoming, but there was no logic behind this move. Only emotion. Y/n breaks through the clearing, the camera is focused on the young girl reaching towards her ally. But anyone who has watched games could tell there is something afoot when the camera panned into a high shot. Marvel has made it to the clearing as Rue says Y/ns name reaching for her.

Y/n and Marvel stare at eachother. A second had passed before Marvel took a step. His arm has thrown the spear right into Rue's abdomen. Y/n seems to suddenly remember what’s happening around her as she throws her knife into the center of his chest. You realize Y/n hasnt seen where the spear has landed, shes focused on the career about to run at her. You wonder if the shock affects her aim because the knife lands on his left side. A lung. He was dead either way. He’d bleed out the second he removed it. Y/n seems to know this because she runs toward him as he staggers forward, falling to his knees. For a split second you see Gloss and another guy from District 1 leave the room, probably to go make some phone calls probably for the sponsors. It was customary to be allowed to be yelled at by the ones who lost their gamble.

Marvel falls again but to his side. Y/n stands over him and seems to hesitate before pulling the knive out and driving it into the guys heart, she pulls it out quickly and a canon booms overhead. She seems to have just registered that his spear was still missing. She quickly turns to Rue as she weakly says her name again and begins untangling her from the net.

'Oh my God.'

'No. No no no.'

‘I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.’ Y/n is visibly shaking as she holds Rue’s hand. Repeating an unnecessary apology. Anyone watching would know she tried everything to get to her in time, including Rue. She was clever, she would know... understand. Rue asks her about the food and Y/n assures her she took care of it.

‘One of you guys have to win.’

Y/n is nodding, tears unable to stop flowing from her face. ‘Its going to be okay now.’ She tells her.

‘Don’t go?’

Y/n pulls Rue into her, brushing her hair out of her facing and stroking her cheek, siping it free of any tears the girl had no control in releasing, ‘Of course not. I’m staying right here.’

As Y/n continues to rock her, Rue asks her to sing. Y/n nods and sings an odd tune you’ve never heard before. Not that music was something you often heard in the training camp in 2. Haymitch tells you its an old lullaby. Well, he mumbles it to the room. A single tear drops from Seeder’s eye as she pats Chaffs hand and walks out of the room. The mockingjays pick up the melody of the song as she finishes. Y/n lays the child down as if she were taking a nap. Thresh bursts in too late.

‘What happened?’ he growled

Y/n is silent for a moment. At first, I think shes trying to steady her breathing. Maybe worried he’s going to have an Arioch level meltdown, ‘I got here too late. I only managed to get one career before the other one killed her. They didn’t have a weapon after they shot her. So, they got away.’

‘You didn’t chase them???”

‘Dont yell at me. Rue asked me to stay! Where were you??’ You wondered how the lie would play out outside of the game. Because now you were sure, one of them would be the ones to come back. There was no doubt in your mind. It was a smart move, if Thresh is feeling vengeful he may take out one of the other two threats in the game.

He lets out a scream in frustration, he says nothing about where he was ‘That’s it. Its done.’

‘Wh-what do you mean? We haven’t taken out Arioch yet!”

“Its getting too personal. Lets split up what we have and go.’

Y/n hesitates for a while before she just nods, ‘Fine.’

⋆﹥━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━﹤⋆

Y/Ns POV

You finished separating everything quickly. You tried but fail to stop tears from falling. You were furious you hadn’t been fast enough, furious it wasn’t Arioch that ran through the clearing, furious that you felt sick to your stomach. Every camera was on you and you couldn’t hold your emotions together. But this was Rue, she deserved more than an act the capitol forced you to put on.

“Is that everything?” All you could do was nod. You were losing two allies in one day. It was too much to process right now. Thresh nodded and began walking away. You forced yourself to say something, anything.

“Hey Thresh!...Just-- Make sure you rest your shoulder.”

He paused for only a second, only when you called his name. He didn’t look back, “Thanks…. I hope I don’t see you again, 12.”

You let out a dry laugh, “Yeah, the feelings mutual.” And it was. You knew now that you wouldn’t be able to take that first move in the end. And you didn’t think he would either. Peetas words echoed in your head. You were so quick to dismiss what he said about being a piece in the games, but he was right. You were more than that. Rue was more than that. You couldn’t even be mad at Marvel. We were forced in here. Forced to kill each other.

Finish it, he had said. You were going to let him suffer for killing her. Training center be damned. His lips had barely croaked it out, Finish it. Finish it. Finish it. No one deserved to die alone. No matter what the cameras saw you knew they wouldn’t have made out his request. You held his arm while you sunk the knife into his flesh a second time. I would want that. To not be alone when it was my time to go. You couldn’t even really offer that to him not with Rue taking priority, but you hoped that somewhere he knew that his life wasn't meaningless. That you wished there was more you could do. But you were just one person.

You took a step into the woods and stopped. You collect any flower you could carry and bring them back over to where Rue and Marvel were resting. You started with Marvel first. You laid him down gently putting some flowers in his hand and placed sporadically around him. Rue took more time, she deserved more time. You placed flowers in her beautiful dark and curly hair, around her body, covering the fatal wound. By the time you finish it looks as if she fell asleep in a field of flowers, as if she had just stopped to take a quick nap. You press a quick kiss to her forehead, “Bye, Rue.”

A mockingjay warns you about the incoming hovercraft. You step to the edge of the clearing, unable to tear your eyes away. You hold in every profanity in your vocabulary bank and vulgar gestures as you see the flying vehicle come in to collect the bodies. As if it were routine. As if the two lifeless bodies meant nothing. Grief suddenly overtakes you and angry tears stream down your face as you fall to your knees. A young mockingjay lands on a branch next to you and sings Rues simple four-note song. The song that meant she was safe. Not here, but safe. You feel your lips tug in a smile and you pick your self up and continue walking. You aren’t sure where, back to the stream by the looks of it. You sit against the trunk of the tree you will be sleeping in today. You want to wait until sunset for no other reason than that your body felt suspended in time. You are about to try and stand when you see another parachute floating down in your direction. You almost drop the canister the second you open it. Peeta talked to you about the different kinds of bread in the districts, this wasn’t from 12. It could only be from Rues district. Suddenly you have more tears left to cry.

You stand up, “Thank you to the people in District 11.” Thank you for everything, you say to yourself. You begin climbing, all of the tears have exhausted you. And you are in no shape to kill anyone today. Anyone else, you remind yourself. The second you settle into a branch your body feels heavy, as if you couldn’t move if you wanted to. Sleep threatens to take you, which would be fine if you didn’t know the nightmares that would await you.

Then you realized you wanted them to come. You deserved them. A penance for living. For wanting to live after what happened and would happen to the tributes around…. Would happen? Hm. You were getting out of here. And you were going to win the Hunger Games.

⋆﹥━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━﹤⋆

Taglist: @adaydreamaway08 @artaxerxesthegreat @aunt-pipie @imtoanonymousforyou @lacychick @xcastawayherosx @chloe-skywalker @ietss @inky-sun

#hunger games imagine #cato hunger games #hunger games cato #hunger games peeta #peeta hunger games #hunger games #catching fire #mockingjay #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #tbosas #thg #hunger games fic #cato x reader #cato imagine

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lunamaraproject · 4 months

Text

LUNAMARA: Fragments [4]

🐴

“Touch it.”

“Absolutely not.”

“You’re being a baby. Just touch it!”

“I’m going to lose my fingers! Its head is bigger than my whole arm!”

“It’s not going to want to eat you, it’s vegetarian! You heard the teacher!”

“I don’t know what that means, Cas!”

Before Cas can answer Felix, the creature next to him snorts another hot burst of air into his hair, ruffling it and startling a laugh out of him, and a shriek from Felix. Cas doesn’t see what the problem is. The teacher said that as long as you didn’t stand directly behind the creature and spook it, nothing bad would happen.

“Humans ride on these things!” he reassures him. “Look, it’s friendly, you overgrown mote, it just breathed on you. Vegetarian means it only eats plants. You know what a plant is, don’t you?”

The sour look that Felix gives him, half hidden behind a hay bale, could easily wither the oldest oak tree. “I’m not stupid Cas.”

“Coulda fooled me,” Cas teases, grinning as he watches the glow rise in Felix’s ears.

“I’m going to bite you, if you keep talking like that,” Felix threatens, still very much glued to the hay and not threatening in the slightest, especially since Cas grew half a head taller than him 2 years ago.

“You’ll chip your little soft teeth.”

“I’m not soft!!”

“Then come and touch the horse!”

Cas watches Felix fight an internal war with himself. Admit that he’s soft and would chip if a branch hit him, or pull himself together and come touch the earth creature. It’s not like Cas means to be mean - rather, he thinks Felix’s fear is based entirely on not trying, and Cas hates to roll over and give up on anything. Seeing other people do it, honestly, pisses him off.

His mother would give him a glowing hide for swearing, even in his head. But she’s up on Lunamara, and he’s on the coolest field trip, and Felix is still acting like he’s 45 not 90, so he has other priorities.

Finally, movement. Felix edges out from behind the hay bale, practically hugging the side of it still, his pin-straight amber hair falling forward as he ducks his head. Cas has always swallowed his jealousy at how pretty it is, especially compared to his own, dark and fairly thin locks. Maybe the horse will think it’s like those karots it eats. That would definitely set back Felix’s progress, but also, it’d be really funny, and therefore worth every additional hour he’d have to spend hyping him up again.

Once his friend is within range, Felix clings to Cas’ arm and stares up at the horse. The enormous creature stares back down its long snout, its dark eyes and long lashes blinking slowly at them both. There are no horses on Lunamara, of course. The air is thinner up there, and they wouldn’t survive - really, only certain kinds of birds can manage it, and not for long.

A shame. He’d have loved to prank Felix by putting one in his room.

He almost misses the moment when it happens, but in a sudden burst of bravery, Felix holds out a shaking hand towards the horse’s long snout. After a beat of curiosity, the horse gently nudges into his fingers, making Felix jump and nearly stand on Cas’ toe. He lets him off for it, because this time, he’s won.

“See?” he says lowly. “And you didn’t lose any fingers.”

“Yet,” Felix mutters, but there’s a growing light in his eyes, a fascination forming with the softness of the creature’s skin, the place where hair transitions in, the restrained power in how it moves. “Cas.”

“Mmhmm?”

“Thanks,” and he’s smiling, that infuriating smile where Cas knows that later, he’ll look up every scrap of information about horses, declare them one of his new favourite things, and become absolutely insufferable about them for the following half a decade.

Still. Worth it.

“Any time, softie.”

“Hey!”

🌗

More from LUNAMARA:

Fragments [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]<-- More every Thursday!

Comic [Prologue]

Art by Luka (http://nousanti.tumblr.com/) Story by Pidge (http://pidgestories.tumblr.com/)

#lunamara #felix cygnus #cassius corvus #nousanti #pidgestories #lunamara project #artists on tumblr

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ninapi · 1 year

Text

New to this (Osamu version)

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Premise: Osamu fights for his very own chance at happiness when he is reunited with his first love, the mother of his brother's son.

Word Count: 2989

Chapter 2: The favorite Twin

You’ve been working with Osamu for the last couple of weeks now, at first you thought it would be tough as you were used to work from home, but having to go out every day and be active has been doing wonders to your mood. You feel energized when you wake up, ready to tackle the next day.

Your son is already used to his school scheduled as well and loves the fact that he goes straight to the shop instead of going home. Not only does he get to eat his uncle’s delicious food everyday but also his house is a lot more spacious and he has it all for himself when you guys are working.

Osamu’s shop is actually bigger than you would think for a shop that only sells onigiri, requiring much more work than just greeting customers and taking orders. The shop opens at 10AM but Seiji goes in at 7AM, since the shop is far from your house you go straight to it after leaving Seiji at school, startling Osamu the first time you did it, but it has now become your daily routine. You even have your own set of keys for both the shop and his house.

It takes you about thirty minutes to walk from the school to the shop but you’ve actually been enjoying it. The weather has been nothing but great lately, specially in the mornings, giving you the loveliest of strolls everyday. The old man from the electronics store waves at you now and his wife even gave you a couple of oranges the other day to share with your family. Since every time you got to the shop Osamu was still sleeping, you officially took on the breakfast duty. You would stop by the very nice small bakery next door every morning, it always had different assortments of bread and pastries, enticing you to change up the breakfast menu constantly. You would have not only that, but also coffee and scrambled eggs ready before Samu even stirred. And it quickly became your priority when you get there, have breakfast ready for him.

Once breakfast was ready you would go downstairs and start cleaning the shop; doing it after closing takes much of a bigger toll on your body so you prefer to do it early, thoroughly, leaving the floors and tables looking like mirrors. Then you would move to the windows and the display menu, making the changes for the daily offerings, all in time before Osamu even decided to go down the stairs to check on you.

His life has improved quite a bit too since you’re there. Not only does he have less things to take care of now, but he also has a lot more time to explore his creativity and make new dishes, causing the business to thrive even more in just a couple of weeks.

But in general, he feels so much better. He sleeps better, he stopped skipping breakfast out of laziness, he laughs so much more and he just feels like a side of him that he thought had died long ago has gone back, making him feel sort of complete again.

──•~❉᯽❉~•──

The lunch hour rush was very intense today leaving you completely out of stock of every single flavor Osamu had prepared that morning.

You were cleaning one of the tables when you noticed someone left a flyer there teasing at the next big game for the MSBY, they would play in Tokyo this time, you hated when that happened, it made you nervous, was the only reason you watched the sports news, you wanted to be cautious about going out near wherever they would be playing at, but you find yourself in a big predicament now, what if you can’t avoid him any longer? You really don’t wanna think about it right now, but you have a bad feeling.

“Samu, does Atsumu come here often?” Osamu who’s currently preparing for the dinner rush turns to face you, he didn’t think about that. “Well, not really. He does have a house here in Tokyo, but he prefers to be in his Osaka one, they have practice in both places, so he is constantly in the move. He does come to the shop with the rest of his team sometimes though, specially after a game.” he nods, stabbing a carrot at the sudden thought of having to deal with him sooner than later.

“Yeah, about that….” you show him the flyer you found on the table, crouching down to the floor and sighing loudly.

Osamu washed his hands and crouched besides you, rubbing your back, “You really don’t wanna see him, do you?” shaking your head, you look up at him but he can see in your distant eyes that your mind is someplace else. He doesn't like it when you think about Atsumu, he never did.

“(Y/N) I’ve been wanting to ask you something, but didn’t know how. Sorry if it isn’t the best timing but why did you become his girlfriend? It’s been in my mind for years, can’t really understand the thought process that took you to say yes.” he holds onto your hand, lifting you from the ground and bringing you to one of the tables, grabbing a teapot and some snacks with him on the way. It was time for a break anyways.

“Well, to be very honest, I don’t know. I remember I was very excited because you and I were going to this mysterious adventure after school in our third year and I thought it was a date, but you were so adamant that it wasn’t one, that we were just hanging out like best friends did, it made me feel weird. I was just so angry. And then Tsumu came to us and threw me on his shoulder and just ran away from you. He literally ran around the school with me flailing over his shoulder and I could swear at that point everyone had seen my panties by then. But he was just laughing so hard and his laugh was contagious. We were laughing like idiots for the longest time until he finally put me down when he reached the rooftop and told me he loved me and wanted to be my boyfriend. He…told me what I wanted to hear I guess…so I kindda said yes? Something like that…” you nod lost in your own memories, not even realizing the impact of what you just said.

“So you became his girlfriend just because I didn’t ask you first?” he knows that’s what happened, but always wanted to hear it coming from you.

“Well, yes and no. You were always my favorite, everyone knew that, probably the entire school did. But I was so angry at you and Tsumu made me forget how angry I was, he always knew how to make me laugh and forget my problems. And I don’t know he was so mean to all the other girls, but always so sweet towards me, and the way he looked at me when he told me he loved me…I just wanted to give him a chance, give us a chance and somehow it worked, for a while at least.”

“So I just took too long.” you nod at this, trying to open a bag of cookies, this seemingly being a horribly difficult task at the moment.

“I was going to ask you out that day. That’s why it wasn’t a date.” your eyes are on his, wanting to confirm what you just heard, “How could it be a date if I hadn’t asked you out first? That doesn’t make sense.” he pours some tea into two little paper cups, handing you one of them, “So you wanted to hang out, with me, alone, to ask me on a date?” all you could do was blink, not following his train of thought, “Not exactly. I wanted to be alone with you so I could ask you to be my girl, then I was going to take you on a proper date.” sipping on your tea you analyze the entire day in your head, trying to find clues that you failed to notice back then. You do recall seeing him sweat more than usual and he just wouldn’t look at you in the eyes. An awful thought comes to mind and your stomach falls, “Samu, did you tell Atsumu you were going to do that?” he did it on purpose, didn’t he? “Hm no, I didn’t. But he probably felt I was going to, it was long overdue. Never thought he would literally steal you away though.” your head is spinning.

“Do you think he did all that just to win over you?” you get up from your seat, trembling. Is that all you were? Another trophy for his shelf? But Osamu reached over and held your hand, rubbing soft circles on the back of it, “Nah, he probably loved you just as much as me. He’s just better at expressing himself, so he won.”

You can’t do this right now, letting go of his hand you ran up the stairs, locking yourself in his bathroom. You needed a moment.

Did Tsumu ask you to be his girlfriend because he wanted to be seen as the best twin? Did he just want to prove himself better than his brother like usual? Did he even love you?

And what about you?

Did you say yes to him just because you were upset? No, that’s not it. After that, he became your life. You dedicated all your time to him and you loved him dearly. So why is it so hard to answer that question? Any other day you would have said no to him and you know it, that’s whats eating you inside out right now. Could it be possible that you just used him to get over his brother? No, no, no, you loved Atsumu, even gave him a son. You are just overreacting.

You hear a faint knock on the door, pulling you back to the real world, you were nearly hyperventilating at that point and didn’t notice.

“(Y/N), can you please not lock yourself in my bathroom? I have to pee.” such a lame excuse, you thought, “Then use the one downstairs.” he could hear it in your voice, you were crying. “Just so you know, I have a key for this door, so there’s nothing that would stop me if I wanted to go in.” you let a soft sigh out, trying to control your breathing and reached out for the doorknob, unlocking it.

You were currently sitting inside the tub, hugging your knees to your chest. Face red and puffy. He closes the door behind him and sits next to you, squeezing you onto the side of the tub. He really is massive.

You won’t look back at him, still trying to get a hold of yourself, but you feel his arm sneak around you, laying his head on top of yours. This makes your balance fail and you slump to one side, now pressed tightly against him. You expected him to say something, but he didn’t. He just let you digest the situation while enjoying the warmth your body shares with his.

You are not sure how long after that was that you finally reacted, but you guess its been at least half an hour, “Samu, why are you here? What about the shop?” you nuzzled his chin with your nose, trying to see if he was actually awake, “Well, I wasn't just going to leave you alone crying in the bathroom. I hang the ‘BRB” sign on the door, it’s all good. Don’t worry.” he is using such a soft tone with you, as if he was scared of breaking you if he spoke too loud.

You just wanted to stay there with him, in a tub, for the entire day. But you knew you couldn’t, so you are the first to get up. “Let’s go, you still need to finish before rush hour.” your tears are dry, but your heart keeps screaming, you might or might not have used the father of your son to get over a crush you thought had no future, just to hear it could have one. You’re sad, angry even, at yourself. You know you probably didn’t hurt Atsumu, even if your initial intentions were dubious, you gave him your all and stopped trailing after Osamu the very same day. Even if he indeed got together with you just to win over Osamu, he gave you your pride and joy. There’s nothing to regret, you’d do it all over again. But why do you feel so empty?

──•~❉᯽❉~•──

That night Fukurodani’s current volleyball team came to the shop, they stayed late and ordered so much food, to the point you had to go to their table and tell them there were no ingredients left, they laughed it off and left a bit after that once everyone had finished.

Seeing the teens laughing and pranking each other brought you both lots of good memories. High school was your happiest time, even when they were always practicing you made wonderful memories with both. It was also the last of what you had with Osamu. Once you got serious with Tsumu he would just not let you two alone, never. He totally knew it was in his best interest not to do so. That always bothered you, but you knew it was probably for the best. Being around Samu always gave you second thoughts.

The shop was a mess, what were they, chickens? There’s rice all over the floor and its just disgusting. Not to mention the fact that they ate the entire kitchen. “I think we should close tomorrow. You can take the day off.” he was trying to give you space, but you didn’t really want that.

“A day off? No, it’s ok. Someone has to clean this mess. I can stay and clean while you go shopping. Unless you need my help, then we can just do both together.” he nods, untying his apron and heading upstairs to check on his nephew. He loved the fact that ‘we’ is once again you and him, not you and Atsumu.

Seiji was sleeping on his bed, under the comforter and all, hugging one of his pillows. He checks the time and realizes its already past 11PM, when did it get so late? You follow after him, seeing your son as comfortable as one can be, drooling all over Osamu’s pillow. “Getting him up right now will be a nightmare.” you sigh in defeat. Your tired muscles aching and a headache making its way out as well. “Stay for the night. You can take my bed and I’ll just take the sofa.” he grabs one of his pillows quietly, making sure not wake Seiji up and headed back to his living room, you following after him once more. “You sure? You should be as tired as I am.” but he shook his head, “Just stay, I’ll take him to school in the morning. I know you are very tired more mentally than anything. Sleep in, I know where his stuff is and he can get ready on his own.” you were so grateful right now, it was a tough day for you and you forgot what it felt to have someone backing you up in your bad days. He always did though, always there for you.

You walked over to where he was getting his makeshift bed ready, wrapping your arms around his waist and placing a soft peck in between his shoulder blades, “Thank you, you’re the best.” giving him a little squeeze you let go of him and walk back into his room. You wished you could shower, but you were so tired, couldn’t even keep your eyes open any longer. You noticed that thankfully Osamu had done laundry that morning and some of it was still on his chair, so you stepped out of your grimy uniform and changed into one of his tees, they fitted like a dress on you anyways; then shifted the toddler slightly to remove the drenched pillow and occupy its place.

And just like that you had the best sleep you’ve had in ages.

──•~❉᯽❉~•──

The next morning Osamu took Seiji to school like he promised. Getting him ready for school was a painless process, he did mostly everything by himself and all he had to do was give him some breakfast and drive him there. Seiji was very well behaved and always listens to him. He asked him to please not wake you up, you had a difficult day and needed rest and he complied moving around the house like a ghost. They’re now at this point where words aren’t needed, they just look at each other and that’s it, an entire conversation with one look. It reminded him of the twin telepathy he has with Atsumu, but it was very different. Seiji actually listened to him.

He helped him out of the car and took his little hand in his before crouching down to hang the tiny backpack on his back, “Have a good day at school, Seiji. We’ll be waiting for you back at the shop.” Seiji nods, giving him a short hug and walked pass the gates. He was about to leave when a teacher stopped him, “Oh! Seiji’s dad! Is the first time we see you here, is always his mom. It’s a pleasure to meet you! Did your wife tell you about the play the kids will have at the end of next month? Seiji is very excited about it, make sure you both make some time if you can!” she didn’t even let him open his mouth, just blabbering things out and gone as fast as she came. It doesn’t surprise him to be confused as his dad, they do have the same face, but having heard someone call you ‘his wife’ was short circuiting his brain. He could feel heat creeping all the way from his neck to the tips of his ears and it lasts until he arrives back home. He peeks into his room, seeing you sleep with a peaceful looking smile plastered on your beautiful face. He notices you are wearing one of his shirts and he just can’t control his body, he takes his hoodie off, hangs it on the back of the chair and gets in bed with you, your immediate reaction being scooting closer to the warmth and laying your head on his chest, snuggling him to his death.

His wife, huh-

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Previous Chapter Masterlist Next Chapter

#haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #haikyuu fanfiction #haikyuu fluff #miya osamu #miya osamu x reader #miya atsumu #fluff #angst #family fluff #Part 2 of a series #single parenting #slow burn #inarizaki #miya twins

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danthropologie · 2 years

Note

I wasn't around but why are people saying its a bad idea for daniel to go back to rbr? They're saying its bc he left bc he didn't want to be a 2nd driver?

this whole fucking narrative is straight up stupid if you ask me, so disclaimer: everything that follows will be coming from that perspective.

brief daniel at rbr synopsis: he was pulled up from toro rosso to join red bull in 2014. he was teammates with seb, who had just come off winning 4 world championships back to back (to back to back), and not only was competitive but BEAT seb in the wdc that year, 3rd to seb's 5th.

fast forward to 2016, they pull up max from toro rosso 5 races into the season. max is literally a child, 18 years old. that very first race max is with the team, daniel out-qualifies him (3rd to max's 4th), but ends up being put on the worse strategy, which leaves daniel in 4th place while max wins. it's obviously massive news because max is the youngest winner ever, it's his first race with the team, and is basically used to prove he's the second coming of christ on wheels. from there, there's just kind of a general feeling and consensus that max is the future of the team.

obviously daniel wants priority, feels like he's earned it, as any driver would, especially when he continues to beat and be neck-and-neck competitive with max over the next few seasons. so when rumors started happening about daniel leaving red bull, the overriding narrative—and the narrative that has lived on since—is that he was running from a fight. he wanted to be number one driver, he didn't want to be number two to max, and red bull wasn't willing to give him that, so he walked.

now what's NOT talked about is the fact that red bull was planning to move to honda engines the next year, and honda's previous foray into f1 had been an abysmal failure with mclaren (2015-2017, so literally had JUST happened too). there was also the fact that simon rennie, his engineer for years upon years, and a few other key people on his team were stepping back or moving to jobs at the factory. it's portrayed as if his move from red bull was because of this One Specific Thing, and yes, maybe that WAS the biggest factor idk, but it wasn't the only factor.

so looking at these rumors now, it seems like there's a tendency for people to boil it down to a very simple "he left because he didn't want to be 2nd driver, now he's coming back to be 3rd driver lmao" or act like because he left over priority disputes, he would nEVER (or should never) ~lower himself going back without guarantee of priority, basically ignoring everything that's happened since and how the situations are COMPLETELY different.

sure, on some level there's a bit of pride swallowing that would need to be done in order to go back to a team that he originally left in hopes of finding bigger and better things, but at the same time, these past few years have been rough. he was brilliant at renault, he had some of his best drives with them and showed he has what it takes to be a champion, but the team and the car were never going to surpass the glass ceiling of the midfield. and despite his win last year and the occasional flashes of brilliance, mclaren overall has been a shitshow, tho obviously not all from his own doing. red bull has really been the only place where the machinery and support they were giving him as a team came close to matching the level of talent and skill he was bringing to the track each week, and if he has a shot at having that back, who wouldn't take it after how awful the past few years have been for him.

and on top of that, there's also personal connections there too. he drove christian to his wedding for god's sake! he spent summer break in 2020 with max! they aren't just coworkers, they're people that genuinely care about him and want to see him succeed. at the end of the day, it's obviously still a sport and a business and depends entirely on the results he'd be able to bring them, but as it stands now, they seem to still see him for what he could (and probably should!) have been as a competitor, rather than just what he can bring them in terms of monetary value

#in general people have a looooot of shit to say about red bull and love to cast them in a specific villain-esque sort of light #but consider this: maybe they're not actually bad 🥰#genuinely truly seriously i don't think they ever would have gotten rid of him if he hadn't been the one to leave first :(#anyways sorry this is so long but rip #i got shit to say!#dan #silly season22 #answered #anonymous #daniel ** **** ** *** **** challenge :/

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sinkingnotsoslowly · 1 year

Text

What goes on in the Royal Minds...

Chapter 1

Pairing: Lee Know x (f) Reader x I.N. Warnings: angst

Synopsis: It is never pleasurable to get involved in royal matters, even if the matters are the two princes themselves.

Do not steal my work. Reblogs are appreciated.

Series masterlist

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Autumn's sighs- little soft thoughts about our favourite boys

The crown would be heavy, both on his head and shoulders. But Minho had been trained to bear it since he was born. The moment he saw light, huge expectations and responsibilities were forcefully placed on the little being. They were bigger than his little body could bear, but he grew into them through the years, until he was in a chokehold. Minho accepted it all with a tight-lipped smile, always being under keen eyes of judgement, feeling like being in a prison while in his own home. It was not as if he had a choice anyway, but even if he decided to ‘shame the throne’ by stepping down, he couldn’t put his brother into that position. Jeongin was not trained as a crown prince would be. He was unaware of the hellish side of being royalty. He was still just a boy living out his youth, the way Minho never got to live. Minho could never be the reason his brother stopped smiling. He always tried to shield him away from any reason that would dampen his mood and he did not intend to stop.

“I can only trust you to look into this personally Minho. There are reasons to believe that the spies are not wrong about the dealings”, the king finished as he got up from his seat signalling the end of the meeting. The royal informants had reported alarming dealings in a nearby province. The dealers were already on high alert and anybody from the inner circle of the council could be involved. It was such a high-priority mission that the crown prince himself was being sent there undercover instead of remaining at the castle to attend the royal gathering of the socialites. Jeongin would have to do all the small talk in his stead. Well, everyone preferred him anyway, he had a way of enthralling people with his boyish charms. Nobody liked a sharp-tongued, cold prince.

He set out early the next morning. He would reside at an inn under the guise of a trader, and from there he would continue his investigations. If all went according to plan he would be able to go back in about two weeks. He reached the inn when the sun was directly overhead. The heat was making him sick and he was starving. His horse too was showing signs of exhaustion.

After getting a room at the inn, he took his horse to the inn’s stable and moved to his room to rest. The inn provided food along with lodging so Minho did not have to fret about that. What he did have to fret about was the daughter of the innkeeper. She was the one who brought his food to his room. The moment he opened the door to insistent knocking he froze, mouth agape. What purpose did a beauty like her have in a place such as that? Before Minho could stop, he blurted out, “Who are you?” A very dumb question on his part when he could see that she was holding a covered tray of food, she obviously worked at the inn. The girl was surprised at the sudden question before she giggled and said, “I’m (yn), I work here. I’m also the daughter of the innkeeper”. “Oh”, never in his life had he replied so dumbly to anyone. He was the crown prince, he was trained in such a way that he always had a well-constructed reply ready whether it was to counter-argue with a council member or woe a lady. “Here’s your food”, he could see the amused smile that she tried to hide. He took the tray from her hands, shock running down his spine at the subtle contact with her hand. “Keep the tray outside when you are done. I will come to take it”, and she was off.

For the next three days, Minho had only a few encounters with the girl when she helped around at the inn. She was young, about the age of his brother. She went around with a bounce in her step, smiling at whomever she talked to. Young, innocent and not a care in the world even when she had responsibilities. She seemed to like working at the inn even. Minho couldn’t imagine what it would be like to live her life, to be free without the worries of the world, waking up every day to do something that he actually liked for a change. “How are you so lively while working?” Minho asked her one day while at the community dining room for breakfast. (Yn) was going around bringing in food and clearing the tables. She stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at him, “What do you mean?”

“I mean to say that you look like you enjoy doing this, serving other people, being at their beck and call when you can be doing better off-”

“That’s because I do. I love working here at the inn. I cannot leave all this to my father to go and be ‘better off’ as you say. This is better for me. I’m never leaving my father alone to handle the business”. Minho could never imagine.

She was about to go into the kitchen when she stopped and turned around, “Oh! You never told me your name, mister”

“You can call me Lee Know”

“Lee Know”, sounded nice when she said it. He could get used to it.

Minho’s investigation has been going well. He had managed to get his hands on a few pieces of evidence. But it was a slow-going process, he couldn’t rush or the dealers would get suspicious. This kept him busy for the next few days. One such day he came upon (yn) in a hole-in-the-wall coffeehouse. She was sitting alone at a table, deep in thought with a frown on her face. Minho walked up to her, still unnoticed, “Is this seat taken?” That brought her back from the reverie. She looked up to see Minho gently smiling at her. “N-no, no, you go ahead”, she said looking away from him. “Are you alright?” Minho couldn’t help but ask. What could possibly dampen the mood of someone so lively?

“H-huh? Why do you ask?”

“Well you were sulking not minutes ago”, that seemed to catch her off guard. She didn’t realise that anyone noticed. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. But I’ve heard talking helps”, Minho didn’t mean to pry but he really wanted to know more about her. He wanted to be able to solve whatever was troubling her. “Well I guess it doesn’t hurt. You will be leaving soon anyway. It is certainly easier to talk your heart out to someone whom you are never going to see again”. Minho disagreed. If he were to talk to someone about his life and troubles, he would like to form a deep bond with them. The only people he had such a connection to were Jeongin and his personal guard Changbin, who had got down on his knees and begged Minho to bring him along to the mission. Then he proceeded to pout like a child when he disagreed. But Minho was sure he came along, he was there somewhere, lurking in the shadows, prepared to jump out at the first signs of danger.

“You probably won’t even remember me”, she let out a laugh as she fiddled with her fingers. Again, Minho disagreed.

“The other day Father was talking about how there was a line of people asking for my hand in marriage. He wants me to get married. I know it’s only because he thinks I’m not happy here. He wants me to get married in a rich household. But I am perfectly fine doing what I’m doing now, the inn has so many memories in it and I love to help around. I’d always wanted to work here as a child like my father does”, Minho listened quietly, hanging onto each of her words. “And it’s not just about working at the inn. What if he falls sick? I’m the only one here to look after him. And I know in my absence he certainly wouldn’t”, she heaved a sigh.

Minho wanted to take away all her troubles. If he could he would give her the life she deserved but he knew that she wouldn’t want it. For a wild moment, he thought of giving up everything he had now to work at the inn by her side. But he could never do that to his brother, could he?

“Don’t you ever want to see the world?” Minho asked her.

(Yn) looked at him, confusion on her face before answering, “Not really”

“Why?”

She looked out the window with a far-off gaze, “I listen to the stories that the travellers say at the inn, about the places they have been to. The stories make me imagine all sorts of things. I fear that once I go to the place I’ve imagined so much about there won’t be any point to my imagination”, seeing the visible confusion on Minho’s face she tried explaining. “Look at it like this. If you are reading a book about some wonderland, you are in the power to imagine it the way you like. But if Wonderland were to exist and you’d seen it in real life then you won’t be able to imagine it as you like anymore. In your head, it will always be the scene that you saw. Ignorance can open all sorts of possibilities sometimes”. Minho was fascinated with her. Her perspective of life was so different from his. He wished he could abandon his duties and sit there listening to all her stories.

(Yn) went back to the inn soon after and Minho went out to patrol. It was late by the time he was done so he ate outside to not trouble (Yn) so late. He strolled back to the inn, no thoughts of his investigation burdening him but thoughts of what could be if he were not the crown prince. He was almost at the entrance of the inn when he saw a figure standing near it, hidden in the shadows. Panic flashed across his face. Was it one of the dealers? Did they find out? Minho reached for the knife in his coat. The figure stepped out from the shadows to stand in front of him. It was a very familiar pair of fox-like eyes that greeted him instead, “Long time no see brother”.

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twinclownsoflotuspiers · 3 days

Text

Priorities and Other Questions

gen (with brief Diluc and Kaeya interactions), Diluc centric, canon compliant (and divergent), Four Years of Fatui Killing Suicide Self-Exile, a cat adopting a human

He hadn't planned on getting a cat.

Rather there hadn't been space for even the thought of pet adoption. Diluc's goals had been set on finding answers, the truth, leaving a wake of fire where the Fatui stood. Running far far away from the past and his hand in destroying it.

But then, he'd dismantled yet another camp on the borders of Snezhnaya and while the bodies burnt in a pile, a raggedy bundle of fur had waddled towards the flames - meowing pathetically, searching for warmth.

Diluc had snatched her away in the nick of time. For some reason, his heart had leapt to his throat when he'd done so.

There was no food on his person and he'd found himself raiding that desolate base for longer than ideal, pilfering scraps of meat and frozen fish. He'd left the little cat attacking the food ravenously and walked rapidly away from the camp. But then, the feline had left half the food and chosen to follow him.

"I can't look after you," Diluc told her, idly waving a blade of dried grass above her head and watching her swat fervently. "It's dangerous and I have no time."

When he got up to move (it was never wise to camp in a place for longer than necessary. Snezhnaya's ice bit harsher than Dragonspine's), the cat jumped onto his trousers and climbed him like a tree. It sat on his shoulder by the crook of his neck, under the cover of his unruly hair and hood. Diluc could only sigh.

Two and a half years away from Mondstadt, the comfort and safety of home feeling strangely foreign. He hadn't thought of going back for a long time - was there a place for him there anymore? An absurd line of thought and yet not quite. There was only a name and a legacy - a burden of guilt. It was out of the guilt and sense of duty that he felt he couldn't return. If he could pursue the truth of the matter before that, if he could avenge his father and break the Fatui's influence over Mondstadt, he would be serving his homeland and family well.

If he could punish and absolve himself in the process, for being his father's killer, for shattering his remaining family. But that couldn't be too easy, could it?

The cat was an unexpected change to his plans - an unwelcome variable. She stopped Diluc's flames on its journey of destruction and put on him a different bifurcation he had to deal with first. Could she be considered a friend? Hardly. She was nothing more than a stray.

"You'll get lost in the snow," Diluc tied a simple red ribbon around her neck, foregoing a bell. If she followed while he tackled more enemies, a bell would become their demise. "Stick around or I can't find another home for you."

The cat meowed and slapped the ends of his jacket, clinging and dangling as he walked. Diluc let her do whatever she liked.

He knocked on several doors in the next township and asked if they wanted to adopt a cat. Snezhaya was cold but most locals were hearty and welcome people. They ushered him in but when he refused, offered packets of bread and pots filled with soup. Some wanted to pet the cat but she shrunk deep into his cloak. He found a lovely chubby lady who finally didn't alarm the feline as much and she promised to be good to her.

He'd booked an inn just there, a rare decision when it was such a risk. Diluc reasoned to himself that he needed to gather his findings and plan his next action while being secure. A bed after months of sleeping out felt too soft, the room too wide. Never mind the fact that his old bedroom back home was twice as bigger.

In the middle of the night, the cat bonked her head his window and called to him, nearly yeowling. The red ribbon glimmered dully under the moon's light.

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

Diluc had never had a cat before. As a child he'd liked picking up helpless birdlings that fell off their nests and lift them back to safety. He'd nursed the few that he couldn't find nests of. He'd looked after orphaned turtles and raised them before watching them crawl back into the water, and kept one as a pet that the cryo slimes insisted on attacking for some reason (they'd later found out that the turtle had accidentally come into contact with a Mist Flower and had a permanent little aura of elemental energy imbued on its shell).

The fact was Diluc had never tried to keep cats because cats ate birds and helpless creatures and as a child, he'd been determined to dislike them for that reason.

"You're strange," Diluc told the affectionate black bundle of terror who currently clung onto his trouser leg and sunk her needle-sharp teeth onto its folds. He shook his leg lightly and she swung back and forth, her grip vice-like. "Why me?"

The cat finally lost the match and tumbled to the ground. She rolled on the ground and immediately sprang back, swatting at his legs again. Diluc bent down to scratch on the back of her ears and she nipped on his finger lightly once before meowing as if in apology. A few more pets, and she was butting her head against him, purring like the engine of a pneumousia powered Fontaineau boat.

"I'm here because I'm killing people," Diluc murmured, watching the way the creature melted before him. "There's nothing safe about me."

The cat merely meowed again and blinked at him slowly.

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

"Are you upset?"

He immediately wiped at his eyes and turned with a shaky smile. Kaeya's look was blank, a little curious. It was always so hard to understand what kind of look he wore.

"Papa says death is natural and we should be strong in the face of it," Diluc tried saying and rubbed away the dirt from his hands. "I was just giving Mr. Rock Candy a burial. But I'm fine! I'm a big boy now!"

Kaeya looked at the little mound he had made and the clumsy 'gravestone' made out of a stick and one flat rock. He still held no expression. "You're not very good at lying."

That stung and Diluc felt the childish temper rise in him. "I said I'm big now! I'm fine!"

Kaeya looked at him.

"I'm fine!" his eyes were burning. Fat tears slid down his face. "i'm...fine."

Mr. Rock Candy had passed away quite suddenly. It hadn't been long after Kaeya, this strange quiet boy who Diluc still felt awkward around, had joined their family. This strange quiet boy who laid a hand on his shoulder while he sobbed.

"I thought...I thought turtles were supposed to live for a hundred years."

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

He woke up when he felt the incessant vibration right against his throat. Diluc turned slowly to realise the cat was curled in the space between his neck and the bed - purring as she slept. Idly, he raised a hand and rubbed off the crusted tears from the corner of his eyes, trying not to jostle the creature.

Two and a half years of him running away from Mondstadt. He hadn't changed much from the young boy that had cried for his pet turtle - unable to stomach loss, misplacing too much faith on absolute truths that didn't exist.

The cat gave out a rumbling little grunt and stretched against his face. Diluc rubbed a finger on her head and then felt the little itchy bump on his cheek. He sighed.

"I'll have to do something about your fleas."

He hung around extra in the market, buying food for the cat while waiting for his intel to reach him. It was a risk, a constant exposure and the cat was blissfully unaware, washing her paws while perched on his shoulder. He hadn't been able to raid more camps either, merely making a list of them without taking any action. There had to be other slower ways to deal with them than simply laying waste or infiltrating.

He ran a hand through his hair and watched the smudged black stain on the red fabric of his winter gloves. He needed a redye too.

"Mister!" he tensed at the voice, aghast at himself for not being more aware of his surroundings. It was a little girl, wide-eyed and awed. She was looking at the cat. "Is that a kitty on your shoulder?"

"Mm," Diluc got hold of the cat and held her towards the child. "Do you want her?"

The girl reached but then the little terror of a feline hissed and swiped a paw. The little girl began crying, the sound twisting in Diluc's chest.

"Lizzie!" her mother exclaimed and ushered her away, fixing a glare on Diluc as she went.

The cat wriggled in his hands, meowing. He let her go and the little terror rubbed onto his legs, meowing innocently. He sighed. "At this rate, you're going to end up utterly alone with no one liking you."

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

It took him a whole half year to orchestrate. Diluc hated long-winded methods - he'd rather deal directly and gather answers. But then that cat clung to him and could throw his more direct interventions into jeopardy by giving him away.

He didn't think of the days of contemplation about just leaving her behind, let her back as a stray. It shouldn't have mattered to him - she was an unprecedented variable, she stood in his way. Abandonment would be safer. But Diluc had already abandoned so many people, such close companions. He was tired, guilty. He couldn't look the feline straight in her eyes.

It was challenging but not impossible to turn two Fatui factions against each other. They fell into chaos and destroyed their forces themselves. When the last ones began realising the foul play, Diluc quietly stepped in and let the chains do their work.

Plundering the bases for information after that was safer, if at least within a limited time frame. Still not enough, so much about Delusions and yet none about his father getting hold of the one he used. No vindication, no explanations - his father's mystery felt further away the deeper he dug in Snezhnaya. Diluc's frustration grew.

Was it that he'd tried to run from the past or was he clinging too hard to it?

He was still left without the answers he desired, still with the lump that filled his throat and the hollow rattling in his chest. The fire was both searing and burning not bright enough. Diluc was helpless and tired.

He walked back and found no sign of the cat.

Aimless. A gradual feeling of fear and loss rising. He walked in circles, lost and trying to find a sign. Where was she?

"My son...I'm sorry. I failed you"

"'Luc, I'm sorry...I lied."

"Where are you?" Diluc murmured to himself, looking around town. A few cats ran and yet there was no sight of that red ribbon. "Where did you go?"

"Turtles are supposed to live for hundred years..."

Cats are fickle creatures. Diluc closed his eyes, the lump making it hard to breathe. Had he been a fool again?

She meowed then, after what felt like an age

It was hard to tell time when all was just the haze of grief and numbness. Snezhnaya's cold was unforgiving, Diluc knew that. He knew if he waited for long enough it could take him. He didn't know yet if he wanted it to or not? But then again, perhaps such a decision had never been his to make.

She meowed then and bumped her soft head against his cheek. A sole touch of warmth and Diluc realised on then that he was so frozen that he could no longer feel. He'd forgotten that Delusions couldn't warm him up the way his Vision could. When he cracked his eyes open with effort, the cat blinked at him and meowed insistently thrice.

Where were you? he tried to tell her but the only sound he could make was a labored wheeze.

She meowed, thrice, before jumping off him and bounding away. In reflex, Diluc tried to rise after her. He couldn't move. Too weak. The lump in his throat was frozen solid.

Please...don't go...

He shut his eyes and lost track of time again.

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

And when he awoke, it was to toasty blankets and a soft bed. His heart seized despite the slow trickle of consciousness.

"You're lucky to have a cat that is smart and cares for you," a voice said next to him and Diluc could only turn to look at him with immense effort. A doctor, by the looks of the garb he had on. There was a pyro vision clasped to his breast pocket. "Gave us a scare, that little thing, knocking so hard on the window. A wonder it chose our house too! I'm a doctor by profession."

"Where...she--" he croaked out and the doctor tutted.

"My wife's giving it a bath. Quite the flea problem it has! Take better care of your pets!" he said. Then he tutted again when Diluc tried to move. "Nuh uh, young man, stay put. You nearly died to hypothermia, you did! Thank the Archons that I have a Vision!"

And Diluc fell back on the bed. The lump was still there in his throat.

The doctor was a stern man and he made sure Diluc rested in the midst of all his restlessness.

It was strange to be in a safe house and be surrounded by the scent of rubbing alcohol instead of blood and smoke. It was strange to receive meals by the bed and have bandages changed every day. The doctor didn't question him about all his plethora of scars and wounds but did give him an earful for also ignoring the early signs of a few infections.

"Think of your cat!" he said. "Would you leave her alone to knock on every door in town for you?" And Diluc's eyes stung at those words.

He decided, all of a sudden, to return home.

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

On the day he decided to leave, he did so quietly and in the dark of the night. He bundled up the cat in his jacket pocket and left the last bag of mora he'd managed to save behind for the doctor and his family.

He wasn't fully better yet, wheezing still and wracked with intermittent coughing. But it was dangerous to stay in one house for too long - for him and for the hosts.

The cat stayed nestled by his neck, and Diluc looked for means of transport that would take him away from the nation of eternal winter.

He received a letter while getting hold of space in a travelling merchant's caravan. The letter merely contained a singular feather of a dove with a red gauze tied around its stem. A warning. A Harbinger's symbol. He scoffed. They were lucky he was heading back already.

The coughing worsened over the journey. And by the time, he crossed Fontaine and into Sumeru, Diluc felt a fever burning beneath his skin. He was determined to reach home before it could take him. It would be unfair to the cat if he collapsed so close to the end of the journey.

Stupidly bullheaded was what Kaeya had often called him back when he'd still been a child. A trainee Knight. He'd always trained ten times harder than anyone else and always tried to hide injuries because having a Vision meant they usually healed faster than others.

When you're suffering you're supposed to rest.

But the truth was, when he suffered, Diluc didn't know how to feel anything apart from guilt for being weak. Perhaps he was broken, strange.

"You've stuck with me for so long," he told the cat hoarsely as they crossed the rainforest. The way through Avidya Forest opened to the path that led to Port Ormos. And he could get to Mondstadt from a ferry from there. "I still don't know why."

The cat, as always, merely meowed at him and blinked slowly.

The humidity worsened his fever however and no amount of swallowing down pills he'd received from the good doctor in Snezhnaya could keep it down. He swayed and collapsed, clung hard to the cat. Only a little further, he could rest in Gandharva Ville. And then go home. To Mondstadt.

It was the second time waking up in an unknown room, panic seizing him by the throat and a weakness that left him terrified and restlessness.

"I need to go home," he was vaguely aware he kept saying, still woozy and disoriented, unable to process the strange fox ears that wobbled in his vision. "To...Mondstadt. I need to go-- where's the cat? I can't leave her behind."

"Don't worry, we will send you home," the man? fox? reassured him. "But we need to treat you first. You're dangerously ill--"

"Please, where is she?" and he couldn't process the fact that he was sobbing. "She's...she's the only one who hasn't left me. Where is she? Has she left me?"

Diluc could only relax when the cat was placed on the bed beside him, her lovely Fontaineau boat purrs rumbling against his ribs. He fell unconscious then, and didn't know how long he stayed so.

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

"Diluc," his father was speaking, smile gentle and hand heavy on his shoulder. "I'm so proud of you, my son. I have hopes that you'll soar high and reach those heights I've always wanted to see."

Diluc clutched his new Vision and nodded eagerly. A first duty put on him, he wanted to do well and make his father even prouder. "Papa, I have a Vision now! I'll do everything you want me to!"

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

"...suspect....pneumonia-- also signs of hypothermia...light gangrene on his fingertips--"

A sigh. Diluc stirred at the voices and cracked his eyes open. Two blurry figures talking - fox ears, one clad in blue.

"I didn't realise it was him, such an important figure," the voices were clearer now. "I wonder what he was doing, roaming around in the Avidya forest. If I hadn't been out on patrol..."

"Hm, yes, he'd been missing for over two years now," the other voice, the blue figure, was saying. Diluc realised he knew that voice. "I'm sorry I can't disclose details."

"Oh no, it's fine. I figured it would be a sensitive matter--" the fox eared man who'd been animatedly shaking his head, happened to turn and saw him awake. His face immediately brightened with a smile. "Oh! Master Diluc, you're awake finally!"

Diluc blinked wearily, saw the other person pause whatever he was doing and turn to him. One eye under an eyepatch, one eye wide with emotions flitting through them. They smoothened and relaxed with merely a blink. "Hey there."

"Kaeya..." Diluc managed to croak out. "Where--"

The fox eared man then waved a hand and began walking out of the hut. "I need to go prepare the medicines. I'll leave you both to catch up."

"You're in Gandharva Ville, the Head Forest Ranger Tighnari's house," Kaeya said. His hand moved in continued motions and it was then that Diluc realised that the cat, that little black terror, was seated on his lap looking extremely content and Kaeya was stroking her. "He found you collapsed in the forest three days back and sent a message to Mondstadt. I got here today."

The cat was a picky flightly little fellow and hardly let anyone else apart from Diluc himself get close. He stared some more at the cat and then at Kaeya still gently petting her. His throat felt too scratchy but he still... "She...let you."

"Hm?" Kaeya titled his head and looked down. "Oh yeah, she cuddled up to me immediately when I sat down. New pet of yours? Quite the friendly one."

Diluc weakly shook his head. Then he immediately felt exhausted by that action. "She...isn't really."

Kaeya chuckled in answer. "Then I guess my charms are really that irresistible."

It was hard to tell his thoughts - like back when Kaeya had still been that quiet strange boy who'd first joined their family. But Diluc looked at the strange cat and the strange man, sitting quietly just there and he wondered if there was anything there to read at all. He closed his eyes, overwhelmed and tired.

"Kaeya," it was hard to pretend there was no lump in his throat. "Why...are you...here?"

Kaeya looked at him with slight surprise and then a small rueful smile. "I thought it was quiet obvious?" he said. "I'm here to take you back home."

The cat stretched in his lap then and meowed.

End

#long post #it's.....LOOOONG TOO LONG #tumblr fic #my writing #diluc #kaeya #kaeluc #but can be seen platonic too i'm not picky #tw: sickness #minor violence #wordcount ran away with me even in a tumblr fic goddayum

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shotorozu · 2 years

Text

you like their lips

PART ONE (containing momo, kyouka, mina, and toga)

character(s): ochako uraraka, tsuyu asui

legend: [Y/N = YOUR NAME] female! reader because it’s pride month, quirk’s not mentioned

headcanon type: fluff, spicy if you squint (X READER)

note(s): happy pride month!! im late but its better late than never and sorry for disappearing 💀 i swear i was going to post part two sooner, but i was watching the owl house, and then i got hooked onto amphibia. now that i’m done with that, i can finally post this (almost a year later after part one was posted but we don’t talk about that) also i was gonna add miruko but i was like ahh fuck it i don’t wanna fuck up her characterization, she’ll be in the part three if there’s any 😭

»»————-　♡　————-««

uraraka ochako

i had a hard time when it came to deciding the exact visuals but one thing’s for sure— her lips are plump ™️

she’s second in the unofficial “most plumpest and juiciest lips” tier, and the only reason why she’s second place is because mina’s first 💀

her lips are naturally flush, but when i was thinking about her lips’ natural color, the first thing that came into my mind was princess peach— so they’re kind of naturally pink. it’s a mystery to the 1-A girls as to how and why

her cupid’s bow doesn’t have much definition to ochako’s dismay but her lips are plump (top lip’s slightly bigger), proportionate to her face, and still beautiful regardless 🤩 as for teeth i imagine her having a little bit of crookedness. nothing too noticeable, until you place her next to someone with the straightest set of teeth out there bakugou

her teeth were something she kind of wanted to fix with braces at some point in junior high, though i imagine her eventually getting braces during her time in ua but never got to because the alignment of her teeth aren’t exactly her top priority. plus her concern with the alignment of her teeth slowly faded away, the more the school year progressed. and anyway she’s still cute, there’s nothing to “fix” about her

her lips aren’t chapped 24/7, and it’s because she usually wears lip balm with a spf in it— but when they are chapped, she has a mini discussion in her head about whether or not she should apply some lip balm 💀

ochako’s lip balm collection is a good three in numbers. one has spf, one is a little more heavy duty for the days where her lips are particularly chapped, and the last one has a bit of a mild tint— the perfect collection for someone like ochako.

as for lip glosses and tints, it’s also a three in quantity. (one clear gloss, one water tint, and one lipbalm-lipstick product that’s in a shade that’s similar to her natural lip color.) she wishes she had more but 🧍‍♀️☹️ luckily, her collection grows by a bit and she gets the amount she wants because you, mina, and momo gift her some 🤩👍

moving aside, ochako’s observant— like the way she noticed how her old crushes were basically flocked with people of interest, and how she notices when there’s definitely something off with her friends. she just can’t put her finger on it. and it’s exactly like that when it came to your interest in her lips.

observant she is, but when she notices you staring at her lips— it flies over her head, at least until it happens for a second time, and then when the third time happens, then.. that’s when she questioning why. ochako comes to a conclusion pretty quickly, she just needs real confirmation, and is determined to get it. she’s just mortified at the idea of being really far from the truth

scenario

it was easy to miss it the first time. the second time? she did notice, but didn’t think much of it. however, when the third time happened, that’s when she started searching for possible answers— gathering a conclusion, and that’s when she made an assumption. an accurate one.

all she needs now is confirmation.

but how can she get that in the least imposing way possible? ochako thinks she isn’t one to really hesitate when it comes to asking questions, especially when it came to you, but in this case— it’d feel awfully awkward on her part if she was wrong. which is why she finds it hard for once.

and it feels especially hard to ask, with the way your gaze keeps fleeting to her lips ever so often. way too often, ochako doesn’t know how she hadn’t noticed before. (her eyes are mostly on you, after all.)

though, two things manage to push her into asking you about it. those things being a conversation with a trusted friend (tsuyu) and well.. your continuous eyeing of her lips.

“you have an idea that Y/N-chan likes something of yours.”

“yes!”

“so.. why the hesitation, ribbit? can’t you just ask her honestly?”

“well, i do! i keep trying on asking Y/N, but whenever i’m about to ask her about it, she keeps doing that.. thing again!”

“what thing?” you suddenly join the conversation, faster than ochako’s own realization.

“Y/N!” despite the suddenness of your appearance, ochako’s lips form into a smile— a twinge of nervousness runs through her, when your eyes follow the movement of her mouth. ochako realizes what’s about to happen.

her green haired friend luckily reads the room and before ochako could send a signal, she’s already walking off to go talk to the other 1-A girls in the vicinity.

ochako then turns to you, the question hanging on the tip of her tongue. (she’s distracted for a second— seeing how focused you look whenever you take a look at her lips.)

“so! Y/N,” she manages to get your focus up on the entirety of her face again, and not just her lips. “i have a question, and please answer honestly, okay? it’s about something that’s been on my mind lately!”

you blink, unsure of where the direction is going. “oh, sure. i can— i can do that.”

ochako’s smile seems to get brighter at that. she grabs at your hands, and gives it a squeeze. “alright, thank you! okay so just..”

she inhales, just eager to get it out, once and for all. “doyouhaveathingformylips?becauseican’thelpbutnoticeyoukeeptakingglances—”

“ocha—”

“unlessthere’slikeapieceofmochifromthelasttimeitookabiteoutofitthenpleasetellmebecauseiwannaknow—”

“ochako,”

“ifyou’reintomylipssoicanentertainitmoreoftensinceyou’remygirlfriend—”

“ochako!” you raise your voice, an airy laugh accompanying your tone.

“right! sorry.” ochako sheepishly apologizes. “long story short, i want to know if you have a thing for my lips because of how much you keep staring at them, which isn’t bad of course, but i’m just curious!”

your cheeks heat up at that, and you can the clamminess of your hands start to form. you hope she doesn’t take extreme notice. “…yes. your lips are quite pretty. i like everything about it. they’re so.. you. they also kinda remind me of princess peach and they’re so soft. wait, is that weird to say?”

she’s silent for a second. though that all changes in the next following moments— as she practically beams in delight at the confirmation.

“no! of course not!” her cheeks become rosier, and she squeezes your hand in joy. it’s a miracle that she somehow managed to not use her quirk on you by accident. “thank you for your honesty.”

“it’s really nothing.” you reply, just happy to be honest— after keeping a thing like that from her ever since the beginning of the relationship.

she’ll start wishing she had a bigger lip balm/lip care collection to satisfy your interest in her lips (even though you keep telling her that you like her lips regardless of what product she puts of them 💀)

either way, her collection does increase by a certain number ever since that revelation.

ochako did this anyway— regardless if you had an affixation on her lips or not, but she’ll tend to pepper your face and hands (your finger tips specifically) with pillowy kisses. they feel like heaven on earth 🤩

a little spicy, but she’ll use her knowledge in martial arts to her advantage to get a gentle hold of your wrists— only so she could plant a deep and meaningful kiss onto your lips. but she’ll then run away all embarrassed because she realized what she just did 😭 but its okay because you like it

in short— she was eager to get answers, but also thoughtful at the idea of being wrong, which is why she didn’t ask any sooner. but after finding out? she’ll gladly entertain your interest with enthusiasm because how could she not? you’re her girlfriend 🤩‼️ i love her lol

tsuyu asui

finding and deciding on visuals was a pain in my ass 😭 but it was all worth it because i finally found something fitting 💀

i debated on this (internally) for a bit— went back and forth between opposing ideas. but i came to the conclusion that tsuyu’s lips aren’t exactly “big” they have a bit of volume, yes— but they’re usually fixed into a thin, straight line that’s usually accompanied with her neutral default expression, a slight but genuine smile, or an “m” which is basically a tsuyu frown if that makes sense 😨

so big isn’t exactly the first adjective that comes into mind when it comes to describing tsuyu’s lips— but y’know what, that’s perfectly fine! and honestly? tsuyu doesn’t really know why she should care about it, so she’s content with her lips regardless of the size. (as she should tbh 😼)

her lip color is kind of on the paler side (which again, she’s fine with it) and her top lip is just slightly smaller than her bottom one. i imagine a few mean girls in her middle school commenting about it once, and tsuyu just being like 🧍‍♀️😐🤷‍♀️❓

her lips are pretty harmonious with her other features and nicely shaped so,,, 🤩 as she should, not giving a fuck

as for teeth— they’re not perfectly aligned but they’re not noticeably crooked, so tsuyu would say she’s content with them. she never really thought about getting braces before (unless she really needed them, which is different. she also has no qualms with getting braces or anything similar.)

her lips get chapped a lot during the colder seasons, so she has about one heavy duty lip balm 💀 it has spf— so to her, that’s pretty much it. no need to buy anything more apparently 😃👍‼️ outside of the colder seasons, she doesn’t use lipbalm because i can kinda imagine her just drinking water whenever she feels like her lips are chapped 😨😭

as for glosses or lip tints, she.. doesn’t have much of a collection 😭 i see her having two at most (pre Y/N’s lips affixation discovery) one from middle school because she got one as a gift, and one from all of the 1-A girls because they saw the “collection” and all collectively decided to give her one 💀

anyways— she pretty much had an idea since the very beginning. she definitely didn’t go through the suspicion and speculation stage, nope. tsuyu just.. knows 😟 it’s one of the many perks of being reserved.

she genuinely questions if you have any idea on how obvious you are with your staring 💀 because you are being super obvious, and of course— she’s going to be the one to tell you. she constantly does ever so gently. never tells you why she thinks you’re staring though, because regarding your affixation on her lips, she’s just waiting for you to admit it tbh. though she won’t exactly probe you for an answer

scenario

“you’re staring again.” your girlfriend’s bluntness suddenly reminds you of where you’ve been keeping your gaze at.

you gulp, realizing you were caught red handed— again, and you immediately bring your attention to the library’s ceiling. “so sorry!” you whisper shout, “i didn’t mean to, tsuyu—”

“tsu.”

“—tsu.” you quickly correct. your odd nervousness snapped you back into an old habit— yet your girlfriend didn’t seem to mind too much.

instead of commenting on it more, she gave you a long look, with softness at the edges. usually— you’d be pretty good at reading your girlfriend’s expressions, and you’d pat yourself on the back for being able to do so accurately, and quickly. quicker than anyone.

but now? she’s totally unreadable and you don’t know— you don’t know if you should worry or if you should say something— or heck, if you’re just overthinking, and tsuyu’s just pointing out your constant looks because of how naturally reserved and observant she is, she couldn’t just not point it out. that has to be the case, right?

wrong, actually.

tsuyu wets her lips as she flips a page in the book she’s reading, and all of a sudden— your eyes are attracted to her lips all over again. just like how bees are attracted to honey, and how ants are attracted to the smallest crumb of food or sugar.

“you’re staring, again.” she comments, quietly— and it’s an reminder of how she caught you again, and how awfully entranced you are with her lips.

your eyes go from her lips, to her eyes— and you’re almost startled at the fact that she’s already staring right back at you, like.. she was observing you this time.

“oh, i—”

“don’t worry, it’s cute.”

she probably knows, she definitely knows. your cheeks flush red at her words— even though there’s that slight idea of tsuyu teasing you.

or even worse, tsuyu’s actually silently judging you for your staring, for your interest— and she’s not saying anything because you’re dating her and she doesn’t want to hurt your feelings—

it’s insanity! you think to yourself. you make a mental note that you probably should practice some restraint. it’s rude to stare after all.

you’re about to apologize— and this time, try your very hardest in not staring and being seemingly distracted, maybe even hypnotized by your girlfriend’s lips, when tsuyu interrupts you with the closing of her book.

it’s loud enough to catch your attention, make you jump a little— but not loud enough to earn a scolding from any of the librarians.

and then, she’s scooting closer to you. there’s still a good allowance of space, but she’s close— and placing a hand on yours. the warmth of her hand on yours practically makes your hand tingle. (you hope it actually isn’t, and it’s just your imagination.) “Y/N-chan.”

“yes?”

“i think you should be honest with yourself.” tsuyu comments, quietly. her words are enough to cause whiplash— you think.

“what?”

“i know you have a thing for,” she gets her other hand, her unoccupied one, and points it at her lips. “these.”

so you’ve been caught, it was really only a matter of time. but still, the idea being said out loud is.. daunting, but it’s the truth— so there’s really no point in denying it.

“is that true?”

you nod, being momentarily speechless— from a bit of shock, you’ll assume. “yes.” you manage to voice out. “i.. like them, even if you don’t really focus on them a ton, they’re a part of you so.. of course i like them. a lot, though.”

“but i’ll try to not stare— wait no, i really won’t stare after this—”

yet all tsuyu does is shake her head, and she caresses the back of your hand with her thumb. it’s comforting— and a reminder that she’s physically that close to you.

“i meant what i said earlier. Y/N-chan, you’re so cute y’know?”

“you can stare and do anything you’d like with them, honestly.”

you sputter, at a lost for words.

but after processing things properly— you just find yourself being glad that it all turned out well.

afterwards, she starts researching on lip care more— heck, she’ll even ask one of the 1-A girls to help her look for a lip tint or two (this is a shocker to the other 1-A girls, so they all end up coming with her, instead of the one or two girls she was expecting 💀)

okay so i mentioned earlier that some mean, insensitive girls in middle school commented on her lips before and probably said something not so nice ☹️ i mentioned how tsuyu doesn’t gaf (🤩) but that doesn’t mean tsuyu isn’t kind of confused when she silently realizes you like her lips.

like you.. the love of her life, liking HER lips 🤔 the same lips that had people saying mean stuff about 😨❓

which brings up the topic of— showering her lips with compliments and praises, it practically erases any doubt 🤩😃👍

personally i don’t really see tsuyu to be someone that gives kisses a lot— but after this revelation, she starts giving you more kisses 😯 this kind of made you wonder if she was just doing that bc you liked her and her lips, and not because she wanted to— but she reassured you that she was doing it because she likes it

a little spicy, but she’s also the type to give you a really long, meaningful kiss— and then just walk away like nothing happened 😭❓ it has you flustered, but you wonder how she does it 💀

in short— she finds your interest cute, and she won’t really admit this part out loud, but your interest got her to appreciate the aesthetic of her lips a little bit more. so.. 🤩 it’s a win for you both.

#bnha imagines #bnha x reader #mha x reader #mha imagines #bnha fluff #bnha x y/n #mha x y/n #mha fluff #bnha headcanons #mha headcanons #uraraka x reader #uraraka ochako x reader #uraraka x you #uraraka x y/n #uraraka headcanons #tsuyu headcanons #tsuyu x reader #tsuyu x y/n #its still pride month idc

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poupeesdecirque · 2 months

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Travel Blog: Leipzig Bookfair Sunday

or: Merch, improvising and Good Byes

4th and last day of the fair. I have to say the last two days went by so fast it's kind of sad how fast. The 4th day was premiering the Ch 249 outfit but as i forgot half of it at home I had to improvise... like doll bag, breakfast jar for Tim, different pants. At least my Road Plushy was with me.

The day started with sadly one of my friends still being sick, we had to left her behind for the day :C I'm still sad about this.

Other than that... if you saw an Allen Walker loading their car that was me lol.

At least it was not raining that day and we were able to get inside pretty quick.

Schu told me he had seen a booth with a box of D.Ggray-man Merch and I checked it out as soon as the vendor hall opened and ...

Con prices are horrible but I needed them. I later swapped the Lavi though as I looked up photos and noticed I already had this variant, I now have a different one (con haul pic at the end of the entry).

The whole day was running around trying to find my DGM Mutuals as they wanted to see the blue coat, it took us a while but we found them. I managed to ... not take any photos with them. :') just one super quick one with Alice but they were very busy with filming stuff, that's alright, it's so nice to see people loving cosplay and having fun.

We took a ton of photos that day, the light was awful on some locations, but there are some very pretty shots! Also featuring the shirt I made as I love the poofy sleeves.

The day ended around 4 this time as my friends went back to their place to pick up the sick friend and leave on time and I had to travel back home as well.

No DGM Cosplayers I found that day but I was told several times that it's great to see DGM Cosplayer around and I was complimented for the amount of details I put into my costumes and props ;w;

But I have to say I somehow did not manage to see the whole fair this time?! Like I didn't get to visit the children's book department, I didn't check for new books there, the fantasy one was a very brief visit, we didn't came to the vintage book museum, the cook book isle was just mere 20 minutes and wow q_q how can 4 days pass so darn fast?! I already miss it.

Here is my Convention haul, mostly DGM, I am surprised! Also the sadness my new bowls are... I am aiming to fix the bigger one later on with a gold repair kit.

The new figurines moved into the cabinet the day after.

AND I HANGED THE PANTS TO THE COAT. Same for the bag. And put the jar of Tim into my make up bag as I don't want to forget the half of a costume again OTL

I really enjoyed the convention, I missed attending them. I'm glad the break is over now and I will hopefully see my friends more often again.

The next event I will attend will be a concert though. Then the Burgfest will follow, another concert and mid May a new Convention is on the list. A smaller one.

There is overall 1500 photos (incl photo snaps) I have to get through, i sorted out a bunch while I looked up photos to feature in the blog entries as this was my priority. I hope to narrow them down, edit and put them into the queue later this week. And then to put them into a photobook before I jump at working on the next project.

#travel blog #leipziger buchmesse #lbm 2024 #dgm #d.gray-man

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moonstruckme · 19 days

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Oh babe I read your post about graduation and life after. I FEEL YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!! I’m graduating Friday and I pursued a film degree in a city with little to no opportunities for that industry. Don’t know why I did that. Sorry to my parents who sacrificed a lot to put me through school. Moving to a bigger city is not an option bc I can’t afford it. Might be moving back in with my parents might not be. Everyone is asking whats next for me. Girl idk. I’m stressed I’m anxious. I hate it here. The real world sucks and I just want to skip over all this character building stuff and get to the part of my life where I’m happy with a career and can actually afford groceries. Sometimes I wish my dreams weren’t as big.

Hi gorgeous! First of all, I'm so sorry you feel that way. I promise your degree has value whether you feel like you can get a job out of it right away or not, and I won't pretend to know how your parents feel but I doubt they would have sacrified anything if they didn't feel your education was worthwhile. Graduating from college is a big deal nonetheless ! We both know I'm struggling with this too but I have some pieces of advice that have been given to me and I've found helpful if you want them <3

Obviously, "almost no one works in something related to their degree" is a really disheartening thing to hear, and I bet you've been hearing it (like I have) a lot lately. But what I think the people who say that are trying to convey is that there is no shame in just doing a job that makes some money (and preferably also makes you happy), and sometimes that financial security can help you pursue your dreams with a bit more surety since you're no longer trying to find a way to eat at the same time.

A few months ago, I talked to my mom about how guilty I feel about potentially not being able to get a job relevant to my degree after she helped put me through college, and while I know not all parents feel the same way about this, I think she made some great points. She said that college is about learning how to think, and your education and the experiences you've had in college will always be valuable no matter what job you end up with. And did you have a good time? Did you like learning all those things you did about film? Did you meet some cool friends, or get to talk about your interests with people who get it? If so, none of it was wasted.

It's so, so easy to feel pressure from others when you're trying to figure out your life post-grad, but in my experience most of that pressure is really internal. People ask what's next for you because they're interested, not becuase they have any one specific path in mind, and the vast majority of the time if you seem happy, they're happy. If you're not happy, fuck it! Then your priority should probably be getting to a place where you are happy, and those conversations really don't matter when you've got bigger fish to fry.

Last thing, but as someone also struggling to re-orient herself in her life plan, I've been taking a lot of time to figure out my priorities. I kind of got stuck in this idea of what my life was going to be, and once that seemed less certain I started questioning what I wanted if I didn't have to do that. I'm making a pinterest board (always my first course of action haha), and it's helped me figure out that whatever I do, I want to be around nature and books, and to live in a mid-size city. Figuring out what I need to be happy has really put things into perspective for me, and I'm sorry I don't mean to assume we're in the exact same mental state but I just want to give you all the stuff that's been working for me in case any of it fits into your situation too.

You can still use your passion in film while working another job, or use that job to save to move to a larger city, or maybe even reflect and find that you're content keeping the film thing as a hobby and there's something else you enjoy doing for a career (I know how heartbreaking that can sound when you love something, but that's how writing has turned out for me so I just wanted to put it out there--feel free to reject it of course). For me, trying to open my mind to all the possibilities and re-evaluate what I want from the next few years has been super scary but also kind of exciting, and I hope that whatever happens for you you're able to find happiness in the big and little things. Wishing you all the best my love!

#mae's asks

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jessy-the-martian-girl · 10 months

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Okay, I´ve finally finished it. And I've started on June, 2nd. This story was intended to be something short and fluffy, but it turned out bigger and with some sad themes (loss of a close relative in particular, and attempts at coping with it).

~5.7k words. Luis x OC.

Sorry for any mistakes and typos. Some things might seem weird - as I'm not completely sure if real people do talk like that.

Idea: Beach day with Luis.

Summary: Sea and cats are the best cure for the soul.

By the Sea at the Edge of Forever

“The sea is everything. It covers seven tenths of the terrestrial globe. Its breath is pure and healthy. It is an immense desert, where man is never lonely, for he feels life stirring on all sides. The sea is only the embodiment of a supernatural and wonderful existence. It is nothing but love and emotion; it is the Living Infinite. ”

― Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

- So, this is your hometown, eh? - Luis could not resist asking this question in the late evening, when the priority tasks were finished.

Other relatives and friends of Jessy's brother were notified of time and date of the funeral. The newfound cats were fed, the minimum cleaning in the apartment was done too. Even soothing tea was brewed and handed to a young dark-haired woman, who looked pretty upset by this sad event.

- Almost, - the girl who settled in Serra's arms smiled mirthlessly and, after taking a sip of tea, continued even without more questions. - My parents moved here when I was a little less than a year old. For the climate, they said. Sea air, and all that, you know...

- Speaking of sea air... Maybe we can go to any beach? - the Spaniard felt that he was treading on uneasy territory, but he also felt the urge to cheer up his girlfriend. - I once heard that cure for everything is salt water: tears, sweat and the sea...

Silence fell over the room. For a while, Jessica just sat there, clutching a mug of tea with both hands, as if trying to warm up her fingers. But when Serra was starting to worry that he might've crossed a line with this proposal, beyond which she would simply stop talking to him (just after asking him to leave), the girl emerged from her trance and finally answered.

- You know, I dig this idea of yours, - she turned a little in the ring of hands to see the face of her Spaniard. - I've had enough tears for now. There is one small beach here, quite secluded. I like it. But it's not easy to get to it, and your back...

- It's fine, mi luz, - Luis smiled at her reassuringly. - I'm in pretty good shape already, such a walk won't hurt me.

- Well, okay then, - still, Jessy decided to play it safe. - However, we can always change the route and stop at any other place on the coast. It's not the high season, so it's not like there will be no free space on the beach.

- ¡Bien! - the Spaniard beamed and hugged his girlfriend a little closer, mindful about the mug of hot tea in her hands. - Then we'll leave tomorrow morning.

The next morning came quickly. And while Luis was cooking breakfast, despite the cats' attempts to sabotage all the preparations (or, at least, to get these new people to take their feline friends with them wherever they were going), Jessy went on with packing stuff they would need. Surprisingly, this apartment still had some of her belongings, although she has not been living here for almost a year: working, traveling, getting stuck in that mess in Spain and staying by Serra's side at the hospital and even after that...

Two small backpacks readily accepted beach towels and a compact beach mat, sunscreen lotion, water and a light snack (sandwiches with butter and cheese, dates and a few oranges)... Besides, she managed to rearrange the contents of the backpacks so that Luis got a lighter one. The same stab wound on his back that almost ended his life was healed, of course, but doctor's orders were to avoid any serious strain until the end of the rehabilitation period. And there were at least a few more weeks before it, so the girl did not want to worsen the condition of the person so dear to her. Also she was used to go hiking with a backpack three times heavier and it was not a big deal for her.

Among her clothes left in this apartment brunette unexpectedly found men's swim shorts, which she once bought for herself as a part of beach outfit. But they remained brand new as Jessy never dared to wear this piece in public because of unusual design with pictures of turtles in various poses from the Kama Sutra. Luis, on the other hand, didn't have any problems with that, he just grinned at the offering and tried the shorts on to make sure it suited his size.

After having breakfast and, at Jessy's insistence, applying sunscreen on their faces and hands, the couple set off. At first they went by public transport almost to the outskirts of this small coastal town, and then by foot, along forest trails. They tried to keep slightly away from the wider road: though its condition was terrifying, there still were some reckless souls who seemingly enjoyed bumpy and dusty car rides.

On their way Serra chatted almost incessantly about all and everything at once. He even told a story how he learned to read animal tracks as a child. Then he asked something about the surrounding area, and, after listening to the answer, gave out a new bunch of questions. But as they came to the seashore, he stopped mid-sentence and stared in fascination at the expanse of water spreading before his eyes. Jessica sighed happily by his side - she had always harbored deep love for the sea, and now she was glad to share this love with someone significant.

- Well, hello, here we are, - the girl said softly, wiping away the welled up tears and not being afraid to seem ridiculous because of this and because of her words addressed to the majestic water element.

For some reason, she was absolutely sure that Luis *would understand* that. And he did, silently squeezing her cold fingers in his warm hands.

- Perhaps, we will have to walk in the water somewhere, and, please, be careful with stones, even large ones, - brunette gave out the warning on the rights of someone who had scouted all the surroundings in her childhood. - I was about six years old, and that stone seemed very reliable... As a result, twisted leg, slightly cut arms... And my dad and my brother took turns carrying me back to town.

At the mention of her relatives, Jessy´s voice quivered, but she managed to regain control of her emotions.

- Point taken, - the Spaniard nodded seriously, adjusted the straps of his backpack and, wincing from the short jolt of pain in his left arm, added with his usual charming smile. - Vamos, I can't wait to see that beach you were talking about with such a dreamy expression on your face.

And they headed to the border of the first beach, where the sand was almost hidden beneath rather large stones. Jessy was leading the way, maneuvering between those stones with ease, but never forgetting to cast a side glance at her companion to make sure that he was all right and that she wasn't too fast for him. Well, another reason for those glances was to take some sweet time to admire Serra's grace.

It turned out soon, that their's timing for such trip was not very great. The high tide period quickly had them taking off their shoes and rolling up their pant legs. However, the first water obstacle also had an unexpected effect: Jessica barely took a couple of steps only knee-deep in water and froze, feeling sudden dizziness and nausea. The water was so clear and shimmering that it was hard to understand what real depth lied ahead. Some underwater stones and common unevenness of the bottom only added to said effect of uncertainty. The brunette almost offered to turn back, unable to overcome this weakness combined with irrational fear of suddenly going under water, but then Luis was the first to step forward and, turning around, held out his hand to her.

- Hold tight and look at me, not at the water, - understanding and care were reflecting in his gray eyes, and confidence that nothing bad would happen.

Jessy nodded and, clutching to the offered hand, also took a step. She almost went off balance immediately, but Luis never allowed her to fall, simply pressing her to his chest and letting to wait out this dizzy spell. Her next step was much more confident, but she never let go of her Spaniard's hand. Fortunately, there wasn't much distance left to go, and just a little bit longer before their intended destination.

The entrance to that small beach was partially covered by a pile of stones — and without knowing that there was a passage there, it could be easily missed. Jessica confidently dived into this very passage, waving to Serra to keep up. To a casual observer it would seem as if they had vanished into the barrier. And there they were met by light sea breeze, gentle sun and salty spray. The couple could also hear the even roar of the surf, accompanied by the rustle of stones carried away by the waves. And absolutely black sand was quite striking addition to the view.

- Vaya, - the Spaniard breathed out in pure fascination. - How beautiful...

- It is, - the girl responded quietly, leaning into her man's shoulder. - I've missed this place so much...

They dropped the backpacks and set up the place for their base camp, spreading the beach mat and pinning it down with suitable cobbles so that it wouldn't be blown away.

- There is a natural pool of a kind here, that area surrounded by rocks, about waist-deep for me... The water usually warms up faster in there, - and Jessica fell silent, realizing that yesterday she was so desperate for any kind of distraction that she did not even ask what exactly they plan to do on the beach. - By the way... You *can* swim, right?

- Only in fresh water, - Luis, who has already managed to pull off his shirt and jeans and even settle on the mat, saw the mentioned "pool" and smiled in anticipation. - There was a swimming pool at the uni, and we didn't always have our lake contaminated with that... thing. But I haven't got a chance to swim in the sea yet.

- It's said it's easier to swim in salty water, it pushes you to the surface, - the girl relaxed a bit and reached for a bottle of sunscreen. - Do you want me to help with your back? The forecast said that sun can be quite active today.

- And why only my back is worthy of your attention? - the Spaniard pretended to be indignant, nevertheless obediently turning over on his stomach. - What about the rest parts of my body?

- Well, if you insist... - Jessy readily played along, squeezing the lotion onto the man's back and applying it with confident movements on his shoulders and neck, trying not to disturb that new scar under his left shoulder blade. Skin at that place was still too sensitive.

She even touched top of his ears with the lotion out of an old habit, explaining to Serra, who jerked in surprise, that people rarely think that such body parts need protection too, and sunburned ears are really unpleasant experience.

- The only thing worse is getting the scalp sunburned in the parting, - the girl giggled, recalling that *unforgettable* experience of hers. - Moreover, no one believes you when you get sunburns in such weird places. So, roll over and let's continue.

A new portion of the sunscreen was squeezed on a broad chest with the older scar, and soft hands got back to work — gently rubbing the lotion onto chest, arms, stomach... Throughout the process gray eyes were never turning away from brunette's slightly smiling face. However, when those hands slipped on his sides, Serra tried to squirm out from under the light touches.

- Don't, Jess, - the man pleaded through involuntary laughter. - Por favor...

- Sorry, sunshine, - the girl quickly removed her hands and gently touched the tip of her beloved's nose with her finger, leaving a little bit of lotion there. - I guess, you'd better finish this on your own.

While Serra was finishing with his face and legs, his companion got rid of her T—shirt and hiking pants, fished out from her backpack another bottle with a sunscreen of higher SPF, and began to apply the protective coating. With her rather pale skin using a more powerful remedy was quite a logical choice.

- And now it's your turn, - the Spaniard almost purred, not even trying to hide a playful glint in his eyes. - Get down and hand me your lotion.

Jessica stretched out on the beach mat with a smile, exposing her back to the man who knelt next to her, ready to return the favor. Suddenly it dawned on Jessy that she really trusted Luis. Not forcing herself to trust him - it was simply there. During their "Spanish adventure" she had absolutely no time to stop and muse about such things, but now the realization has finally caught up with her.

She only instinctively tensed for a second when deft fingers unhooked the top of her swimsuit. It was a public place, after all, and she was not quite ready for being that explicit. It felt just like a quick test for developed trust, so Jessy relaxed. Luis still noticed her reaction and stopped to explain his intentions.

- This is just to cover all of your skin, - his words did not diverge from the deed, with strong hands smoothly sliding along the curves of the female body, carefully wrapping it with an even layer of sunscreen. - The straps and belt are too thin, if they shift, you won't like the outcome.

- Been there, done that, - the brunette admitted with a stifled chuckle, patiently waiting until the Spaniard hooked everything back, in order to roll over on her back and put her chest and stomach under his caring hands.

Of course, she could have managed on her own from that point, but it felt so nice to be taken care of, that the girl just mentally shushed her inner voice and allowed herself to revel in such an uncommon feeling.

They chatted a bit more, while waiting for the sunscreen to "cure" on their skin. Jessy shared a couple of funny sea-related stories from her past. Though shocked expression on Spaniard's face openly hinted her that the particular story about her almost drowning at the age of five was not that funny as it seemed to her.

- Hey, it was okay, - she tried to lighten the mood. - My dad was close by. He plucked me out of water in no time. It was not enough time for me even to get scared.

- I just can't imagine that I could've never met you, if it wasn't for your dad... - Serra whispered, slightly shaking his head and reaching with his hand to touch the shoulder of his vis-à-vis as if to make sure she was still real.

- But I made it to this day nonetheless, - brunette shrugged and smiled warmly.

After a few more minutes of silence Luis easily got to his feet and stretched out his hand to Jessica, helping her to get up. Then he pulled her towards the "natural pool", not letting go of girl's hand. The water, however, was not yet fully warmed up, but it already felt quite pleasant. And it was much, much warmer than in the mountain creeks in the wilderness of Valdelobos, as the Spaniard mentally noted.

As soon as Jessy was knee-deep in the water, she stopped for a while and took a deep breath, taking some time to adjust to the temperature. And then, gently freeing her hand from Serra's hold, she pushed off from the sandy bottom and slid into the water with a soft exclamation. The first dive after a long break was always a little uncomfortable for her and required some efforts. After taking a couple of strokes, the girl swiftly turned over on her back, exposing her face to the sun and letting the water catch her. Fortunately, there were no big waves this time.

Luis followed suit right away, relaxing on his back close by and just occasionally touching his girlfriend's hand or shoulder with his own. His pose was an expression of a tacit agreement for "no active long-distance swims yet".

After floating in the water like this for a little, they slowly swam together to the stone borderline that separated this small lagoon from the open sea. The couple settled there, enjoying beautiful views of the sea or their secluded beach.

Jessica, in gentle reverie, admired how small waves rolled over hardly visible rocks in the water and crashed on the shore. And Luis, amazed by the transparency of the water, tried to look at the bottom of their improvised pool — his gaze was captivated by nimble fish, colorful starfish, colonies of shellfish and corals. Suddenly, an unusually shaped shell lying a little further away caught his eye, and Serra decided to dive for it to get a better look. It took him a few tries, and it also got Jessy's attention. Finally resurfacing with the loot, Luis turned the find over in his hands, then handed it to his girl. She put the shell on the palm of her hand, but suddenly, with an ouch, shook off the object of study into the water.

- What's wrong? - Serra asked, with concern evident in his voice.

- Something pinched me, - the brunette was obviously embarrassed by her own reaction. - Not that it hurts much, more like I just didn't expect it...

The Spaniard examined Jessy's palm for possible damage, then looked for this shell again. When he spotted it, he carefully knelt down, plunging into the water almost up to his shoulders, and took the shell out, turning its aperture to the light. Something with pincers was clearly stirring inside.

- Oh, so it's one of the Paguroidea species, - Luis smiled involuntarily. - I didn't think they can be found here too. - A hermit crab? - Jessica instantly forgot about her palm and, literally hanging on the Spaniard's shoulders, stared curiously at the shell resident, who was clearly dissatisfied with such intense attention. - This is the first time I've ever seen one, not on TV, not in the aquarium and not in the encyclopedia. Awesome!

- They are usually not aggressive to bigger opponents, - Serra nodded, watching how a representative of marine fauna menacingly moved its claw. - We seem to have just scared this one. - Let's put it back to its natural habitat then, - Jessica expressed their shared thought, adding with a chuckle. - As long as it doesn't come back to bite our heels for this.

- It'll rather be glad that it was released and will not risk another encounter, - Luis laughed heartily, arranging the shell in the water closer to the stone barrier.

The girl also laughed at this joke and hugged her man as he swam closer to her again.

- You know, it's warmer around you, - the Spaniard suddenly remarked in a soft voice, returning the hug. - You're like a little sun with an aura of warmth. To hide her embarrassment at such a compliment, Jessy splashed this eloquent subject and, with a laugh, twisted out of his hands, trying to swim away. This unexpected childishness resulted in a small water duel, which ended in a draw. Or, as the girl proclaimed: "friendship always wins!" - after which, with her arms outstretched, she fell backwards into a small wave, raising a cloud of salty spray... only to be almost immediately back in the firm embrace. Luis was glad that his crazy idea worked and his querida is still able to enjoy simple things. Even after such great loss. Only the shadow of guilt lurking in her hazel eyes kept him a bit worried. He himself had only one night *then*. Afterwards there was no time: his studies and the need to provide his living completely absorbed even hints of free time for several years. He managed, and developed the mask of “a good-for-nothing guy, who happens to be quite a ladies' man”. And under that mask there was an acute, painful sense of guilt: he was not there, he could not help, he did not prevent... Now his own experience seemed to be quite useful. Luis could roughly imagine the direction of his girl's thoughts, and see where it would be possible to intervene and lend her a shoulder. After all, even the strongest and most hardy at some point may break down.

- Let's go back to the shore and get some sun? - the brunette, who went quiet in his arms, offered hesitantly.

Her fingers were absentmindedly tracing some patterns on his chest, and it was... rather pleasant.

- I like the idea, mi vida, - Serra planted soft kiss on his girlfriend's temple and pushed her in the right direction. - A snack would be nice too.

The sea did not quite share their intentions, trying to knock the pair down, like a too playful puppy would, and then drag them back into its depth. Thankfully, it was much easier to get out together.

After drying off with beach towels, the couple paid the closest attention to their food supplies. Sandwiches with cheese and dates were delicious, although the sea air usually made everything tastier anyway. And Luis was very surprised, when Jessica took out a thermos with green tea - the most unexpected and uncommon option for a picnic on the beach. However, it turned out that she forgot to take mugs, and they only had the lid of the said thermos at their disposal.

- One for two is a great option, - Serra stated with a playful grin, deliberately taking a sip so that his lips touched this "mug" in the same place as his companion's.

- I'm glad that we share this opinion, - the girl returned both the gesture and the smile. - An orange for a dainty?

- Sure! - the Spaniard grabbed their improvised mug with his left hand so that Jessica could peel the citrus, but then his shoulder was pierced by a sharp pain and his fingers went numb and weak, forcing the man to hiss through clenched teeth. - Mierda...

The girl with a soft cry threw another small towel over the spilled tea and scurried behind Luis's back. He was clutching his hurting limb to his chest and it was such a vivid and unexpected reminder of the past injury.

- Guess, I've overestimated my condition... - the Spaniard's voice sounded strained.

- The doctor warned me that you might still have twinges like this from time to time, - Jessy's hands confidently glided over his aching muscles, starting from the upper back, stroking, pressing harder, kneading carefully. - He was talking about build-up of scar tissue as a possible cause. Now, it should get better... And the pain really subsided, yielding slowly to firm but gentle touches. When Serra's back finally relaxed under her fingers, brunette sighed with relief and pressed a small kiss upon that creepy scar. She remembered how they had to cauterize the wound with the same plaga removal laser, wrecking all the settings and restoring them again to get rid of those parasites. All because there was nothing left to sew up the wound with.

Shaking off those memories, girl wrapped her arms around Luis, pulling him a bit closer. He, in response, covered the palms that settled on his chest with his own and slightly leaned back, sinking into that warm embrace. - Gracias, querida mía, - his fingertips slid over her forearms in a tender caress. - I hope I didn't scare you too much... - I was more scared when you passed out on the operating table in your own lab, under my hands, - the girl admitted with a nervous laugh, carefully moving to her former place next to Luis and snuggling against his side. - As of today... Thank goodness, that the tea was not boiling hot. We'll do just fine without any burns.

After calming down a little, she finally peeled an orange, handed it to the Spaniard and reached for the second one, this time for herself. She noticed the fact that Serra was willing to share only when a slice of orange was already touching her lips. Jessica did not turn down the treat, followed by the man's fingers weightlessly brushing over her lips, his warm palm resting comfortably on her cheek. She smiled and leaned slightly into Serra's touch, turning her face to him for a kiss with an orange-salty taste.

The kiss was short though and when their lips parted, the couple just finished their snacks and went to lie down on the beach mat, snuggling side by side. Pebbles rustled softly, carried by the waves along the bottom, gulls cried in the sky, sunlight caressed the skin... Luis and Jessy were having fun cloud-gazing, sunglasses in place. Strings of fantastic images floated through the sky above them, driven by the wind: a large turtle, a dancing couple, a kitten playing with a ball of yarn, "Enterprise NCC-1701", that space station "Babylon 5", a sailboat, a dragon, an archer...

Soon the wind changed and brought in black clouds. Noticing this, Jessica reluctantly offered to call it a day and, as soon as their swimsuits were completely dry, slowly move towards their temporary home. Even if it wasn't supposed to rain, weather forecasts did not always pass the reality check.

To pass the wait a little, the girl sat up and reached for a small pointed pebble. She drew several lines on a larger flat stone with it. To Luis's surprise, these lines stood out on the black surface in a gray-brownish color, though the pebble was black too. The first clumsy lines were gradually turning into a simple silhouette of a lighthouse above the sea.

- Hey, you're good, - the Spaniard smiled upon seeing the final picture.

- Nah, I can't draw, - the girl dismissed his comment with ease, throwing her pebble "pencil" into the wave that ran ashore. - That's just my itchy fingers, nothing more.

- I dare to disagree on this statement, - Serra squinted slyly, taking the flat stone with a drawing from the brunette's hand before she sent it into the water too. - A little more practice, and it will no longer be "good", but "excelente".

In response, Jessica vaguely shrugged and, picking up another handful of dark pebbles, consistently sent them into the water, immersing in her thoughts. However, she was not allowed to stay like that for a long time and was soon distracted. Drying off after sea bathe, her hair fluffed up a little, curling and framing Jessy's face with a light-brown halo, trying to get into her eyes and mouth. Second distraction was Luis, who plucked a long blade of grass, and took part in the fun mini-game "tickle-a-friend". The Spaniard was quickly caught doing this, but at a reproachful stare, he just smiled broadly and stretched out his hand to smooth his companion's disheveled hair, which only resulted in another hug.

With all this childishness in action, time to go back home came swiftly. Their swimsuits finally dried out, the wind grew stronger, the sea became stormy... Luis and Jessy had to hurry up with packing, yet the first drops of rain caught them almost at the forest edge. Luckily, it gave them a chance to hide from such weather under the green dome of branches, at least for a while.

They still had to run from the forest to the bus stop to avoid getting soaked to the skin. However, it didn't help much. But when Luis and Jessy got back to the neighborhood where they lived at the moment, it looked like there was no rain there at all. After exchanging puzzled glances and quickly assessing their appearance a la "we went swimming in our clothes", they both burst out laughing. That attracted the attention of a passerby who turned out to be one of Jessy's distant relatives. And that man didn't hesitate to express his disapproval for such behavior of the girl in mourning for someone as significant as her own brother. Jessica visibly stiffened from being scolded, her guilt rearing its ugly head again. Serra noticed this change in his girlfriend's mood, and realized that he neither can nor should tolerate it. He stepped forward, as if trying to shield his girl from unpleasant conversation with his body. It was hard to contain his anger, but Luis mustered the calmest tone he was capable of at the moment. He was not aiming for a fight after all.

- I don't know about you lot, but I personally prefer that miss Jonzz here stayed among living, - he added more menacing undertone to his voice, pinning the other man with a slightly disgusted glare. - And not cried herself into heart attack or cardiac arrest just to maintain someone's else believes of how it's appropriate to grieve.

This rebuke somehow silenced an uninvited do-gooder and forced him to beat a hasty retreat. As soon as this person disappeared from sight, Serra turned to face brunette and gently pushed her chin up with one hand just to meet her unsure hazel eyes with his steel gray ones.

- It's not your fault, Jess, - Spaniard's tone was all about firm, but gentle care mixed with a tint of worry. - You are absolutely allowed to take care of yourself under any circumstances. Remember that, por favor.

- I know, - Jessy tried to smile, almost successfully, and to shook off the dreadful feeling of guilt's filthy paws reaching to claim her soul. - I... I'm okay. Let's go, Luis?

- Sure thing, cariño, - with a wide smile Serra swung his hand over girl's shoulders and pulled her into the right direction. - Our new cats must be waiting us already!

The cats were really waiting, and their patience was finally rewarded. Chirrups, squeaky little trills and cute meows filled the space of the murky apartment, making both Luis and Jessy smile and giggle at such enthusiasm. In fact, little calico cat and his gray brother acted like they knew that right now their humans needed all the positive attention they could provide. Gray one even tried to climb up Serra's leg, but was quickly and gently picked up and placed over Spaniard's shoulder. Meanwhile calico cat sniffed and licked at Jessica's ankles, as soon as she took off her shoes, of course.

- Hey, fur baby, it tickles, - brunette laughed and knelt down to pet this welcoming committee. - I know, I know: you and your little brother missed us.

Smiling to another almost shy meow, Jessica stood up and, after asking Luis if he didn't mind, headed to the shower, to wash off sea salt and sand still stuck on her skin. Serra wished he could join, but this bathroom was too small for two, so he stayed behind to occupy cats' attention instead.

He scooped up the second cat and sank into the nearest (and only) armchair. Those cats, although young, were very skilled at common cats' things, and they've purred their new man into light sleep in no time. When Jessy was done, she came right to a snooze-town. The sight was heartwarming and peaceful, but to shower was a must, so the girl had to wake Luis up.

Brunette watched her loved one go, yawning and carefully pulling off his shirt on the way. Cats yawned in sync and jumped down from the armchair. The movement caught Jessy's eye and she noticed a book with colorful cover lying on the floor. She changed from her bathrobe into T-shirt and funny shorts with TMNT print, then reached to pick that book up and smiled fondly at it's name: “50 best baking recipes from around the world”. It was her gift for her brother's last birthday. This memory made Jessy's heart sank again, and she quickly flipped through a few pages to detach herself from this sorrow for just a bit longer. The girl checked out some recipes and stopped at one, baked churros. It seemed pretty easy to cook, and all ingredients were present in the fridge.

- Oh, temptations... - Jessica sighed softly after considering some other options from this book.

- Are you talking about me, mi amor?

Her train of thought was interrupted by Luis, refreshed and relaxed... and wearing only a towel around his hips. His hair still slightly wet from the shower and his smile as charming as usual - a real eye candy.

- And about you, too, - Jessy couldn't help, but smile in response.- But, actually, I've been thinking about trying this recipe... What do you think?

- Sounds great, - Serra pushed the damp hair out of his face and headed to change into something more suitable, than a towel. - Wait for me.

He was rather fond of this idea for even more quality time together, and it worked out pretty well.

As the late day gradually turned into early evening, sorrow, that was almost perceptible the day before, finally shrunk and hid in the darkest corner of the apartment. Combined efforts of Luis and two impish kitties left no chances for it to overtake again.

The rest of the evening went pleasantly and peacefully, with tea and home-baked churros, and heartwarming talks on the sofa. Cats tried their best too, singing cats' songs, kneading and even clawing lightly at their humans' limbs. And after a while tiredness, mixed with loud purring lulled Jessy to sleep.

Tight embrace of her beloved Spaniard, his steady heartbeat, and her feeling secured helped the matter too.

Luis smiled gently at the girl lying in his arms, and closed his eyes too, drifting off to sleep. Both cats immediately seized the opportunity to pin their humans to the sofa for more feline comfort, and the apartment went silent.

This spontaneous beach day turned out to be the much needed breather for Jessy. A little something to make future look brighter and less hopeless for her, even with all those unwanted changes. It was easier to believe now, that she won't be struggling with everything on her own. And it became plainly obvious that she was not alone anymore. They were not alone.

#Luis Serra x OC #Luis Serra

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