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skyloftian-nutcase · 6 months

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Gerudo Town (Dad Squad)

All leads had indicated that the Yiga hideout was in the desert, as it had been in the past. Abel shouldn't have been surprised, honestly.

The issue was that he didn't know exactly where the base was. But a group of warriors did.

Trust was nonexistent these days, in the years after the Calamity. Gerudo Town had managed to escape much of the damage, but it also was cut off from the rest of Hyrule as a result. The oasis was abandoned, only utilized by weary and lost travelers, but no Gerudo roamed the sands around it.

"So let's visit this town, then," Rusl commented after taking another swig out of his newly refilled water flask.

"We can't," Abel sighed, leaning against a rock and basking in the coolness of the shade. "The Gerudo is a matriarchal society. They don't let men inside their walls."

Rusl blinked. Blinked again. Bemused, he remarked, "Matriarchal doesn't mean sexist. Surely they'll let us in."

Abel bit the inside of his cheek. He'd made this explanation plenty of times to his men in the years past. "I don't think the Gerudo are necessarily sexist. They don't distrust or hate men. It's just their tradition - whatever the reason, only girls are born to Gerudo mothers. So they just... don't interact with men in their hometown. It's tradition at this point."

"Strange," Rusl muttered. "The Gerudo are... rare where I'm from, but their distrust was shared equally to all, no matter their sex. They just didn't like anyone who wasn't Gerudo."

Rusl's words reminded Abel that they had yet to address a rather glaring matter. Ever since they had raided the abandoned Yiga camp, Abel had been pondering the fact that the Hero of Hyrule who the Fierce Deity had been protecting was a different Hero from his son. The Hero of Time was a children's story, a tale of folklore so old that barely anything was known of it except that the Soul of the Hero had traveled across time to save multiple lands.

So little was known of the goddess' destined Hero that Abel had often questioned the validity of any of the stories. He'd had no reason to disbelieve them, but... there was little reason to believe them either.

At least until his boy had come to him holding that sword.

So if the Hero of Time was one of Links being pursued by the Yiga... that just led to so many questions. Firstly, how the hell had they managed to do this??

Secondly... what was Rusl's boy? A potential Hero who could turn into a wolf? Abel had never heard of Ordon, so perhaps this Link was different - not of the Soul of the Hero but a savior to his own land nonetheless?

And now, this talk of different Gerudo cultures. Not only were these Heroes real, they and their guardians were plucked from Hyrule's history and thrown here.

I wonder their opinions on the state of things, Abel thought bitterly. How utterly we failed to maintain what they'd fought for.

It was a good thing his son was in a coma. He knew Link wouldn't be able to stand the judgment from the other heroes, whether it was good or bad.

"Either way," Rusl said, rising and interrupting Abel's musings. "I'll scout ahead to see if we can figure anything out without talking to them."

"The desert is treacherous," Abel warned. "It's foolish to go alone."

"I've gone to plenty a dangerous place alone," Rusl reassured him with a smile. "I won't engage in anything foolish, don't worry. I'll be back before sunset. This is just reconnaissance."

Abel supposed another issue to ponder was how little Rusl spoke of his past when he was clearly more than a blacksmith who knew some sword skills, but now didn't seem the time to argue it. He'd seen the man hold his own in battle well enough. Sighing, he waved a dismissive hand, watching the Ordonian walk away.

Glancing back at the oasis, he saw Rusl converse with the Fierce Deity briefly before continuing. The deity stared at the water curiously.

Abel wandered over to him. "Is something wrong?"

"This heat is mildly draining," Fierce remarked, dipping a finger into the water.

"You're more than welcome to swim in it if that's what you're wondering," Abel said. "But people do use it as a water source as well, so I advise cleaning yourself first."

"It does seem ill advised to drink from water that people can swim in," Fierce noted, raising an eyebrow. "My greater concern is hydration."

Abel blinked. If he was worried about hydrating, then why didn't he just drink?

"How much water does one need?" Fierce asked. "I have noticed you're both drinking much more since our arrival. Is it a matter of body heat regulation?"

"Have you never been to the desert...?" Abel questioned in disbelief.

"I don't recall," Fierce answered mildly, voice growing quiet. "I believe once, in battle, I was utilized, but not long enough for it to be a great concern."

Ah. Right. The things this deity did and didn't seem to know... it made Abel have so many questions. First and foremost, how the hell he was still alive.

But secondly... utilized?

"Drink more," Abel advised. "The body loses more water through sweating, and we all sweat more in the heat. Even you are."

"I noticed that much," Fierce replied with a chuckle, as if he were entertained at being taught something so simple. He dipped the flask given to him by Rusl into the oasis and began to drink.

Abel sighed, squinting against the sunlight. Link would certainly need more water if he was being held here. Or, well, had been held here. It seemed silly to go to the desert when their lead had been near Akkala, but... all Abel knew was that the Yiga stronghold was here, and they had all woken at the other side of Hyrule. They'd not had any luck finding any hints of their boys the entire journey here, so they had nothing else to go off.

After several hours of silence (Abel wasn't a particularly talkative man, and despite the deity's curiosity, he usually wouldn't speak unless prompted), Abel recognized Rusl's wavy silhouette in the distance.

The brightly colored handkerchief he was using to wipe his face was new.

"Did you have any success?" Fierce asked.

"Not really," Rusl answered. "However, I did figure out a way that we could get in to learn more."

"Is there a secret passage into the town?" Abel asked, curious. He had always wondered. He had always respected things that were forbidden, but that hadn't meant he wouldn't imagine ways of getting around it.

"Not from what I can tell," Rusl said. "But, with my plan, you could walk through the front door."

Abel found himself both curious and skeptical. He crossed his arms. "Really?"

Rusl held out the colorful handkerchief to him. Slowly taking it, Abel recognized that it was not, in fact, a handkerchief.

"The way the Gerudo dress lends itself to disguise," Rusl explained with a mischievous smile.

Abel held the veil at arm's length as if it would attack him. "You want. To do. What."

"Well if they only let women in, we have to obtain information somehow." Rusl shrugged. "You're smaller in build than me, and your hair's all grown out."

If looks could kill, Abel would have cut Rusl into pieces. "Absolutely not."

"What is it?" Fierce asked.

"He's suggesting I dress like a Gerudo woman to get into the town," Abel hissed. "The answer is no."

Rusl furrowed his brow, clearly frustrated. "Put your pride aside, Abel. This is important."

"Do you really think something like that would actually work?!" Abel motioned angrily towards the deity. "We might as well let him stroll into town in such attire for all the good it would do us!"

The Fierce Deity plucked the veil out of Abel's grip. "Will this allow one to look like a Gerudo woman?"

"Not necessarily," Rusl answered. "The point is that it will hide that he's a man."

"The veil will, but the rest is fairly apparent," Abel snapped. "I'm missing a few key components, Rusl."

"Nothing we can't tweak a little," Rusl replied easily.

This was insane.

"What other attire did you bring?"

Abel turned to argue with the deity about the stupidity of this entire half-witted plan when he saw the mythical man trying to figure out how to put the veil on.

He can't be serious.

"Well," Rusl said slowly as he pulled out more clothes. "I did grab varying sizes. The Gerudo are far taller and broader than I expected, so their clothes might actually fit you better."

"Very well," Fierce said casually, finally settling the veil in the right place. He started stripping his armor without a care, and Abel thought he was going insane. Was this actually happening right now?! A war god was going to cross dress in whatever insane attire the Gerudo chose to wear and--

And--

You know what, to hell with it. Better him than me.

When the Fierce Deity had finished switching clothes, the other two stared at him. Rusl crossed his arms, examining the disguise carefully while Abel just felt his sanity continue to slip away. He wasn't sure he cared at this point. Perhaps he could at least find some entertainment from this?

No, no he couldn't. It was too stupid.

Count your blessings, he reminded himself. At least they actually believe you about the threat the Yiga present now. They believe you enough to even try this fool's errand.

The Fierce Deity, usually a foreboding sight in his pale blue tunic and silver armor, striking attention with the royal blue scarf tied around his waist, was instead adorned in fiery red, which emphasized the paleness of his exposed, muscular abdomen and shoulders. He wore loose, baggy pants and flat footed shoes, silver hair and eyes glittering against a red and gold veil.

"This is not going to work," Abel immediately commented. "He's too big."

Too big, too broad, too muscular. The women of Gerudo were strong enough to probably lift an entire guardian off its feet, but their muscles were still distinctly patterned differently. Women's shoulders were not so broad, nor chest and waist so box-like. Whether the Gerudo assumed he was one of theirs or Hylian, he would still look too masculine to play this part.

"They'll find out immediately," he continued, feeling his stomach churn at the thought that came next. Maybe I should do it... it would be more reasonable, but... no. This entire thing is idiotic. It'll never work.

Rusl, who had been foraging for something else in his bag, suddenly pulled out two hydromelons. "Here, put these in your top."

Fierce took the fruit without argument, and Abel stared, eyes widening. Well, Rusl was certainly committed.

"Giving him breasts isn't going to fix the obvious issue that he is a man," he argued.

"Of course it'll help," Rusl replied. "He just has to... well..."

Rusl paused, staring at the deity as he fumbled to stuff the fruit in his top without them falling out and splattering on the ground.

"Play the part," Abel finished for him flatly.

XXX

Well... it wasn't an immediate disaster.

Abel and Rusl hid behind a dune as they watched Fierce approach the guards, who exchanged... baffled looks from what Abel could tell.

"Hello, fellow women," the deity greeted.

Rusl choked back a cough.

"This is not going to work," Abel hissed, his own voice strained in a competition between secondhand embarrassment, horror, and losing it.

"Hey, it would've been better if you did it!" Rusl whisper back.

Over my dead body.

Surprisingly, the guards shuffled aside to allow him passage after a few confused glances.

Abel stared.

"Ha!" Rusl huffed in triumph. "I told you it would work."

"You didn't know it was going to work!" Abel accused, turning to glare at him.

Rusl ignored him. "Let's see if we can get closer. We can peek over the far wall a little bit."

Abel sighed heavily, dragging his feet through the sand as the pair practically crawled around the edge of the town before climbing the wall opposite of the entrance. Abel half wondered why they couldn't just enter that way, but he supposed in such a small area they were bound to be noticed.

The pair peered over.

It was immediately apparent which one was Fierce. He was simultaneously blending in and sticking out like a sore thumb. His silver hair caught the sunlight, and his towering, imposing figure managed to outshine the Gerudo. Every woman who passed paused and gave him a strange side eye, but no one outright said anything. For his part, Fierce was standing still, surveying the area.

Abel groaned, pounding his forehead against the wall. "He doesn't even know what to do."

Rusl bit his lip, slowly climbing the wall and kneeling in the water that bordered the edge of the town. Abel hesitantly followed. Fierce immediately noticed of them with his superior eyesight. Rusl made little gestures, wiggling his fingers and mouthing words even Abel couldn't understand.

"What are you doing?" he hissed. "He'll never know what you're trying to tell him!"

Fierce nodded, walking slowly around the town.

"He's doing quite well for his first espionage mission," Rusl commented with a chuckle.

Abel groaned. "You're insane."

"Oh, Abel, you should lighten up. There are many ways to achieve a goal, it's not all about the sword."

"I'm aware of that."

The deity finally started to talk to women, disappearing in and out of the men's sight. Abel sighed, rubbing his face as he felt it steadily burning. Between the bright rays and the reflection from the water, he'd rival a Hylian tomato by the end of the day.

"Hopefully he can get some legitimate leads," Rusl muttered. "The sooner we can find the boys, the better."

Abel wanted to face plant into the water with the heat as bad as it was. Instead, he splashed a little on his face. "Yes, well, you're forgetting something very important."

"What?"

"Our esteemed deity is a war god with no idea how mortals function. He's probably going to ask them how they braid their hair."

"Come now, don't disrespect him like that. He's not an idiot."

"I didn't say he was an idiot. On the contrary, he's very curious. That's the problem."

"He'll focus."

Abel hummed, immediately thinking of his wife, Tilieth. Rusl clearly wasn't used to the mischief an inquisitive mind could stir up. Not to mention the deity wasn't exactly subtle. He was certain the deity's concern for his own Link would drive him forward, but he was likely to get distracted as well.

Assuming he could even keep the act up.

"A voe has been spotted! Up there!!"

Abel and Rusl both jolted, eyes wide as they looked down to see guards running their way with spears in hand.

"Time to go!" Rusl said quickly as the pair leapt over the wall back into the sand and scurried away.

Hours later as the sun cast long shadows and brought a chill to the air around the oasis, Abel paced anxiously until he and Rusl both caught sight of their companion's return.

"What did you learn?" Rusl immediately asked.

Fierce pulled the veil and shirt off, clearly having grown uncomfortable in it, and headed for his armor. "Mating customs are strange."

Abel immediately burst into laughter, vindicated. He honestly hadn't expected anything else. The day was wasted, but he supposed he could get what entertainment was available from it. Even he hadn't expected that to be the first thing out of the deity's mouth.

Rusl frowned. "What...?"

"Did Uli, your wife, assert her dominance to you, or is that a Gerudo custom?"

Abel's amusement multiplied tenfold, and he wheezed as he doubled over. Rusl stared at the deity in horror.

"I seem to recall you both spoke of varying mating customs in that village, after all."

Rusl immediately face palmed. "This... those are not the details you were supposed to be investigating."

"Fear not," Fierce continued, slipping on his trousers and under tunic. "I also learned the location of the Yiga hideout. One of the women reported having seen two boys and a wolf as well."

Abel and Rusl snapped to attention, earlier amusement forgotten.

"The Gerudo claim that the hideout was set on fire," Fierce explained. "They investigated it and discovered our heroes. My little hero apparently did not let them near him or his companions, but they were all alive as of one week ago."

One week. A million things could happen in that span of time. Link could have died in that time.

"Does anyone know where they went?" he asked breathlessly.

"The guards tracked them for a few days until they left the desert."

"They left the desert a week ago?" Rusl repeated. "That... so we must have--"

The Ordonian let out a strangled, frustrated groan, turning away as he shook his head. Abel felt similarly. They'd just missed them.

He wondered if the encampment near Akkala had been a more recent lead, after all. Then again, it had taken them a week to get here.

"We need to leave," he said. "The coolness of the night will be good to travel through in the desert."

The other two didn't argue. Rusl was growing frustrated and concerned at how long it had been. Abel was panicking at his son's condition. The three set out within minutes, determination set on stony faces.

Hylia... I... haven't prayed lately, I know, but... please...

Protect him. Protect... protect them all.

#the gerudo 100% figured out Fierce was a dude but they also 100% recognized he was NOT a normal being and did not want to pick fights #the chief thought it was funny and wondered if he was some kind of magical creature so she let him wander the town #the guards kept a close eye on him #he asked about food and proper nutrition for mortals #I will share silly dialogue on the matter later probably #he also got a massage and asked to learn the technique for his friends <3 #he'll probably break Rusl and Abel in half but it's the thought that counts #the links escaped the fortress once #got recaptured in the desert #escaped again and went out into hyrule #got recaptured once there #got pissed at being recapured and went back to gerudo desert for the sole purpose of blowing up the base #and that's the point they're at before the yiga start to bring out the big guns #writing #Dad Squad #abel #rusl #fierce deity #phew I finally wrote it!#probably not as silly as everyone was expecting but I definitely would've gotten bogged down if I got too detailed #now I wanna write the boys #fairy boy deserves to kick some yiga butt as a treat #brother wolf definitely wants to

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space-mango-company · 2 months

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Stranger | Chapter 3

Chapter Links: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5]

TW: none for this one, I think

Tags: Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen x Atreides!Reader, Arranged Marriage, Eventual Smut, POV Second Person, No use of y/n, Original Characters, Canon What Canon

Word Count: 1.4k

A/N: Unedited for now! Holy moly, sorry for taking so long on this one. I was kinda drowning in uni work the past week. The next chapter should come sooner, I hope. Also just wanted to say thank you so much to those who take the time to comment!! I really really appreciate the kind words. You guys are super sweet. Mwa mwa.

The inky black fireworks exploded in the distance as you were led back into the underground chambers of the arena. Your eyes are relieved to escape the infrared sun. Heavy doors open for you once more. The na-Baron stands, chest exposed, skin slick with sweat under the artificial light. His blown-out eyes hone in on you as you enter. He makes his way to you holding the blood-stained handkerchief.

"Did you enjoy the show, my lady?" His chest heaves and you feel his heavy breaths as he leans into your ear, voice even more raspy, "Aren't you something, little hawk."

He holds the cloth up as if giving it to you but when you reach for the handkerchief he snatches it away.

You sigh and lift your veil, a sweet smile plastered on your face, "A most impressive demonstration, na-Baron. You are as formidable as they say."

Feyd-Rautha takes a moment to scan your face. He doesn't know what your game is but he wants to play.

His breathing has settled. He raises a hand to reach for your cheek but you move past him. You walk towards a table displaying knives laid over a cloth. You pick one up to examine. The blades remain uncleaned, the blood from earlier in the day already beginning to dry. You sense they will be kept that way.

"You have good form. Clean, precise," you say, holding the dagger in a reverse grip, edge out. "You enjoy it, don't you?"

From behind, you feel Feyd-Rautha close the distance between you once again.

"Perhaps you enjoy it a little too much," you turn to him, "I'm sure you let him disarm you on purpose. For the show."

Feyd-Rautha tilts his head and allows himself a small smile. "You should return to the fortress, my lady. I have duties to attend to," he touches your armed hand and gently takes the knife from you, "and my uncle would like to see you."

Despite being shielded from the black sun, you elect to keep your veil for your lunch with the Baron. You excuse the chill running down your spine as the coldness of the high, stony walls of Fortress Harko as Iassa escorts you to the dining hall. Iassa kept her head bowed, you noticed, hands folded in front of her. She didn't need to look ahead to know the way.

When you arrive, large doors open to the sight of the Baron floating at the head of the table. There was only one other seat at the side of the table a few feet from him. Despite that, there was a full spread of food which his servants were already feeding him.

You had done your best to avoid the Baron in your short time here, but it seems this meeting was inevitable.

"Lady Atreides," his eyes turn toward you lazily. "Come. Eat."

"Good afternoon, Baron," you curtsy as you enter. Iassa bows to you and waits outside. You take your seat, "will it only be us, my lord? This seems a lavish spread for only two people."

"Are you calling me a glutton, girl?" he spats.

Your heart takes a beat as you try not to stare at his grotesquely large body.

"We are Harkonnen," his husky laugh rings through the room. "We may lavish as much as we please."

You exhale the breath you were holding and let out a small laugh. Of course. They were the richest house in the Landsraad. The Harkonnens must be accustomed to excess.

"Soon, child, you will be Harkonnen as well," he says in that gravelly voice that is so uncomfortably similar to Feyd-Rautha's. "Is that what you want?"

The question takes you aback. No one has ever asked you this question before. This betrothal has been decided for so long, you've never even thought to ask the question yourself. It was all you'd known. Your duty. You had never bothered to imagine what your life would have been if you weren't destined to marry the Harkonnen heir.

You regain your composure, "Baron, it is my honor to unite our Great-"

"Drop the act, child!" he barks. "Perhaps you fear me, but if you are to become 'family', I will not have the patience for charades. Speak plainly. Do you want to marry my nephew?"

This has been a most unusual exchange. At least compared to what you're used to. Always taught to be sweet and pleasant. You suppose you had nothing to lose, considering the Baron killing you would start an all-out war. You take a moment to think, and then a deep breath.

"I am a woman, dear Baron. There is not much for me in this life. Indeed, tales of your house's savagery are well-known throughout the systems, and in Caladan more than most. But had I not been betrothed to your nephew, I would only be married off to some other lord or count or whatever, gentler than Feyd-Rautha they may be," you swallow. "Perhaps, I could have been trained a Bene Gesserit sister. However, to become the wife of the heir to one of the most powerful houses in the known universe—there are worse fates."

The Baron stares, seemingly satisfied with your answer. He waves his servants away. "Eat, child. Waste not the food of one of the most powerful houses in the known universe."

He begins to glide towards the doors on his side of the hall and his servants scurry to lay down their forks and follow after him.

You look to the remaining servants in the dining hall, then to the mounds of food on the table. Your first dinner on Giedi Prime had felt suffocating with all the nobles around and Feyd-Rautha smugly breathing down your neck. You pile your plate high.

In your quarters, Iassa helps you out of your clothes and into a warm bath. You don't wait for her and begin scrubbing your skin with a rag yourself. Between the heat from the morning gladiator fights and your tense conversation with the Baron, you were happy to wash the sweat off your body.

"Is this alright, my lady?" Iassa is trying to wash your hair with the lightest touch, "Does it hurt you?"

"No, no. It's quite alright." You take over and she moves to begin scrubbing your legs.

You're grateful you brought bottles of your own hair soaps. You notice Iassa is intently observing how you washed your hair and you appreciate her wanting to learn. Although, you surmise she might not have a choice. Her black choker seems to stand out even more against her pale skin.

"How was your day, Iassa?" you say as you lather your hair.

She pauses in confusion. "It was quite alright, my lady," her voice is soft and polite.

"Do they treat you well?" you knew it was a futile question.

"I am property of House Harkonnen, my lady," she says as she pours more water into the grey stone bath, "I am treated appropriately."

"Yes, but do you mean appropriately as in well or appropriately as in—" your desperate attempt to make a friend seems to be slipping through your fingers. You let out an exasperated sigh, "I know it's only been a few days but, do I treat you well, Iassa?"

She takes a moment and smiles up at you, "My lady has been most gracious." You see in her eyes she means it.

"You were right about the na-Baron," you say, "he is formidable indeed."

"I'm pleased my lady was impressed," she wraps a robe around you as you rise from the bath.

"Well, I don't know about impressed," you say as you step out, "he is a decent fighter, certainly. Perhaps it is a difference in the fighting styles of our worlds."

After helping you dress, Iassa bows and leaves you to retire. Her grey robes flowing behind her.

Once alone, you find your father's dagger in your belongings. The Baron's earlier question comes back to you. Is that what you want? To marry Fayd-Rautha? That night, you sleep clutching the knife close to your heart.

When you awake the following morning, you are greeted by a servant girl bringing you breakfast.

"Where is Iassa?" you ask.

"She has been relieved, my lady," the girl looks even younger than Iassa, "I am Zora."

Your brow furrows, "What does that mean, 'relieved'?"

When Zora remains silent, you get up from the bed.

On the dark grey of your vanity, you notice a black strip of leather. A choker identical to your new servant's but it was unmistakable who it belonged to. Your mind ran through the whys and your blood began to boil.

Chapter Links: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5]

Taglist: @torchbearerkyle @austinswhitewolf @dreamlandcreations @emeraldsgirl @strawberryfieldsforevermore @bornslippys @vexis-world @aoi-targaryen @alexandrainlove

#feyd rautha x you #feyd rautha x reader #feyd rautha fic #feyd rautha #feyd rautha harkonnen #dune #dune part two #baron harkonnen #vladimir harkonnen #house harkonnen #house atreides #atreides reader #giedi prime #austin butler #space-mango-company #fic: stranger

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spirit-tracks · 1 year

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Okay SO. Theory Rush after finishing Tears of the Kingdom. Go.

The Zonai are said to have descended from the heavens to help found Hyrule. I can think of another race that descended from the heavens. Do you guys think the minish are native to the Zonai sky islands?

Does the Depths set look a little familiar to you? This along with Josha's theory that people once lived down there, I wonder if the interlopers were present in the Depths before being banished to the twilight realm.

The architecture and robot designs from Skyward Sword have a distinct Zonai look to them! So that leads me to believe the Zonai were the race that created the Lanayru Mining Facility.

It might even be that the Past from Skyward Sword is indeed the time period that Zelda was transported back to! Maybe the legacy of the kingdom of Hyrule goes back even further than the fight between Hylia and Demise: though I admit the early appearance of Demon King Ganondorf throws a wrench in this theory.

About secret stones and the amber relics in Skyward Sword: I want to say there's a connection between them, though amber relics don't seem to be as rare and important as secret stones, (we find them in abundance in Skyward Sword and they don't do much). Of course, i haven't played SS in a while so if they have any more significance it's escaping me at the moment. For the time being I'd like to think ancient hylians might have carried them around as good luck charms to emulate secret stones of their own.

The Legend of the Great Sky Island mini quest in has the construct telling us that the island was supposed to be where a hero will one day awaken to defeat the Demon King. I know our Link wakes up on this island, but there's definitely something eating at my brain about the Great Sky Island being related to (or perhaps even IS) Skyloft, and that the awakening of the hero is referring to Skyward Sword Link. (This potentially supports the theory that the Past in TOTK predates the war between Hylia and Demise)

There's a pretty good chance that Rauru and Sonia's child could have been named Zelda, after the sweet time traveling girl they practically adopted :) the first princess of Hyrule named after the last princess of Hyrule.

There is a giant dragon skeleton in the Gerudo Desert Depths, big as or even bigger than Farosh, Dinraal and Naydra. It is my belief that this mystery dragon became a dragon ala Secret Stone alongside the three aboveland, but was killed at some point in the Depths. I don't know what four people decided to become dragons, but my strongest theory is that Dinraal, Farosh and Naydra are the draconified forms of the oracles of the Golden Goddesses, Din, Farore and Nayru. So who is this?

Seeing as the Lightroots underground are activated via Zonai hand terminal and each Lightroot lies directly beneath a shrine on the surface, I think the Lightroots are extensions of these shrines, having grown straight downward to light up the underground. This is probably obvious but I just barely figured this out 😅

Since Rauru, sage of light, and a new Temple of Time are in this game, I want to think that this person and location are more than just Easter Eggs to Ocarina of Time. I think that the sage from Ocarina of Time was named after King Rauru, though I'm not sure whether him being the sage of light would have been a coincidence or a direct inspiration.

What I do think is that he indeed did put the triforce in that very same Temple of Time and all the sky islands went to the Sacred Realm until Tears of the Kingdom, when they came back to earth and appeared in the sky. That's just a theory but why else would the sky islands be reappearing as if from nowhere?

Speaking of which, there were floating masses in the sky in Minish Cap, namely great big stone temples and fortresses. Minish Cap takes place during the early days of Hyrule, which would be pretty much right after the Zonai descended. Perhaps the Zonai are the Wind Tribe mentioned, and the people we see in game are their descendants, who look much more hylian than Zonai due to being crossed with full hylian genetics over the generations?

Anyway I need to retouch up on my Zelda lore to make sure I'm getting the details right, (that, and i haven't yet 100% the game so i may be missing some totk context), but I HAD to post my thoughts and get them out there! I'll add on later if I think of any more, in the meantime feel free to brainstorm!

#totk #tears of the kingdom #totk spoilers #tears of the kingdom spoilers #botw 2 #botw 2 spoilers #just covering all my bases #totk theory #totk thoughts #totk meta #loz #legend of zelda #the legend of zelda #loz totk #wicked.loz

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aquaquadrant · 5 months

Note

Was rereading the first chapter, and: "Predictable, repeatable patterns he’s unconsciously memorized- even now, he’s absentmindedly counting down the seconds until the next potion is dispensed."

Do you think, even after ten years, Tango can still time exactly two minutes in his head? Do you think sometimes he finds himself tapping his fingers absently, and realizes there's exactly a second between each tap, stopwatch-perfect, like his hands are still expecting to feel the wither-cold pain of the roses? Do you think someone notices, and they jokingly call him a human metronome, and he has to laugh and pretend it's not because of the months he spent in constant agony?

"After that, his reflection showed that the tips of his ears had darkened- along with his feet and fingertips- and his wither-black tears left permanent stains under his eyes, persisting even after respawn."

Do you think his friends think the black marks are a blaze hybrid thing, but then they meet another blaze hybrid (maybe in MCC) and start to wonder? Do you think they ask? Do you think he makes an excuse about individual variation, or evades the question, or mumbles vaguely about the wither effect and changes the subject?

"He’s spent so much time with the wither effect- grown accustomed to it, even- that he can’t tell right away when it’s starting to overcome him."

Do you think that later, once he's out, he's fighting wither skeletons or even a wither (secret life?) and he nearly dies from the wither effect, because he didn't notice until it was almost too late? Do you think someone, a hermit or a teammate or even a soulmate, scolds him for being reckless with his health, but in his head he's back in Hels again, withering and healing and withering and healing and withering and healing for eternity?

"The chains- well, they seemed to have snapped when he respawned away from them, leaving just a few links attached to his shackles."

Clothes respawn with players. Do you think that's why the cuffs came with him, even though they were attached to the wall? Do you think that after the "training" mentioned in the comic, he considers them a part of him, to the point where his own code does, too?

"Tango inhales deeply; he hadn’t realized he missed the smell of fire so much."

Do you think that even now, he associates fire with freedom and relief and finally, no more pain? Do you think that after flashbacks and nightmares and panic attacks, he sits by a fire and reminds himself that it's not real, it's been years, he's free? Do you think someone finds him, and sits with him, and he realizes that free doesn't have to mean alone?

And in the most recent drabble: "what if the only thing stopping him from reverting back to his old ways is the illusion of control maintained by these shackles?"

Do you think that when he's in the nether, when he sees a fortress, he thinks of the wither skeletons? Do you think that just for a moment, he almost considers withering himself on purpose, another illusory layer of control, to make sure he stays good?

ohhhkay, ok i’m normal about this, i promise. HM. YEAH. suffice to say, this is an amazing ask, but to avoid making it too long or giving too much away i’ll provide very brief answers (to each respective question) below.

yes, yes, and yes. a lot of things from his time at hels tek have stuck with him even after all these years.

yes, yes, and the first one (“that’s just my own unique personal flair!”). luckily this came up at a time when he’d gotten better at lying.

yes and yes, for the first few times he encountered wither skeletons and/or the wither after escaping to hermitcraft. impulse was very concerned.

yes and yes. surely this won’t be relevant in the future…

yes, yes, and sorta- he’s still working on that.

yes, the presence of wither skeletons is one of the main reasons he dislikes the nether (aside from it reminding him of hels). and actually no; before now, the cuffs have been enough for him and he hates the thought of being withered again.

#hels to pay au #HTP ask #seriously this made my day #detailed analysis my beloved #SO SO COOL to think other ppl could be dedicating so much thought to my silly little block man angst fic :]

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finelinevogue · 1 year

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the weather starting to get cold so they sleep in or making fortress in the living room watching movies drinking hot chocolate while cuddling under the covers 🥹 playing with their toes giggling forgetting about the movie playing BYE 😭

i am so fucking cold today that i thought it would be perfect to write this one :)

summary - winter is supposedly the saddest time of the year, but maybe not this year

warnings: swearing maybe? kardashians, it's just fluff like.. what else did you expect?, a little bit of heated kissing too

word count: 1.4k

"Fuck, fuck, fuck.."

A train of curses fell from your mouth as you ran from the bus stop down the road to your front door. As your ran, your coat hood fell down and you cursed even more.

"Not today please." You sighed, running up the steps to your front door and under the porch. Rummaging through your bag only took a minute to find your key and then you were finally inside your house.

Looking at the clock hanging in the hallway and seeing that it read 5:58 made you sigh and curse some more. You dropped your bag to the floor with a huff and tried to scramble out of your coat, but between an arm getting stuck and the zip getting caught it was not looking to be the quickest escape.

And then the doorbell went.

"Fuck." You said to yourself.

Quickly walking towards the mirror in the hallway you realised that there was no fixing the wet hair or the dripping mascara. You sighed once more and made it to the front door, unlatching it and opening it to see Harry as expected.

"Hey bab.. What happened to you?" He frowned, no doubt noticing how much of a mess you looked right now.

"I know. God, I'm sorry H. Like my boss kept me late and then I missed the stupid bus and caught in the silly rain and now I'm not prepared for you and—"

"Hey, hey." Harry shushed you, pushing you back into your house out of the cold and allowing himself to step inside too. His arms rested on yours and he made sure that you were looking at him when he was talking. "No need to stress, alright? Now, before I allow you to continue your daily rant I want you to go have a hot shower and—"

"But—"

"No. No buts. Listen to me, please. Go have a hot shower and change into something more comfortable." He said as he unzipped your coat for you and helped your trapped arm out. "I will put on the kettle and have a cuppa tea and an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashian waiting for you, okay?"

This time you sighed with relief.

"Yeah, okay. Thank you."

You leaned up on your toes and puckered your lips for a kiss. Harry most gladly accepted and kissed you back, reaching up a warm hand to cup your cheek and bring you closer to him. The warmth from his body was so comforting and familiar that you could have cried after the day you've had. His lips continued to softly press against yours, until he pulled away to give your cold nose a quick kiss instead.

"Now go, okay?" He tapped your bum lightly, encouraging you be quick so you could come back and kiss him some more. "And after you're done, we can talk about how you didn't call me to come pick you up and instead got the bus."

Instead of responding you smiled as you jogged up the stairs and towards your warm shower.

After a long, hot, shower, where the water scolded your skin and your body smelt like honey and roses, you bundled up in one of Harry’s jumpers he’d left here the other night and some joggers that were a tiny bit too big for you.

Harry was too busy trying to create a bundle of blankets on the sofa that he didn’t even notice that you’d finished upstairs and had entered the room.

You walked up behind him and linked your arms around his waist to give him the tightest hug you could.

It had only been 7 months since you and Harry started dating and, for you at least, it was still too early to say you loved him yet. You definitely knew someday soon you would be ready to say it, but there were a few more firsts that you wanted to experience with him first before letting your heart become half his. The hugs you gave him symbolised how much you adored him and were getting ready to love him, just without the words. He knew that too.

“Y’smell good.” He hummed in delight over your freshly showered hair.

“Thanks. I used that body wash I stole from you.”

Harry’s hands slid over yours on his stomach and turned his head around the best he could to see you behind him.

“You thief.”

“You told me I could.” You pouted.

“Steal anything from me when y’smell this good in my products and y’look this good in my hoodie.” He twisted himself around completely, breaking your hold on him.

“Hi.” You smiled up at him.

“Hi. You feeling better now?” He asked seriously.

“A little. Just wanted this evening to be perfect but—”

“It is. Any evening with you, lovie, is perfect.”

Harry then led you to the bundle of blankets, walking you backwards until your legs hit the back of the sofa and you fell backwards. You laughed as you fell backwards, trusting Harry that he wouldn’t let you hurt yourself on the way down. He fell down too, toppling over you with his arms still wrapped snug around you.

His face fell into your neck and he breathed deeply, inhaling the smell of you covered in his scent. He smiled to himself, happy in this moment with you. If he could, he would be want to be frozen in this moment in time. Holding you for a lifetime was what his dreams were curated of.

“Are we watching a movie tonight or do you just want to cuddle?” You asked him, stroking your hands softly through his hair.

“Both?” He popped his head up to smile at you, hoping you were thinking the same thing.

“That was silly of me to ask, wasn’t it?” You chuckled to yourself.

Harry rearranged his body on you, tilting himself just slightly off you so he didn’t crush you under his weight. His head rested high on your chest and took padding from your boobs - his favourite part about you too. One of his hands snuck up your hoodie and onto the skin of your stomach, already stroking small circles there. His other hand kept a hold around your waist.

Reaching for the remote, you flicked through some channels on the TV first. You quickly skipped over the news, since there was no good news as of recently. On ITV there was Naked Attraction, which you paused on briefly. It just so happened the point you paused at was a woman showing off her very perky breasts and you had to quickly put your hand in front of Harry’s eyes.

He laughed, knowing you were making a joke but he wanted to reassure you anyways.

“Weren’t as pretty as yours, baby.” He titled his head to kiss the valley between your boobs over your clothes.

“Or yours.” You said, referring to the ongoing joke that Harry was building bigger and better than yours - and only 50% of the worlds women population.

“Well mine are the prettiest, so...” He added to your joke, making you giggle before changing the channel.

“Shall I just put on the Kardashians, then?” You asked, always wanting to check in case he wasn’t in the mood to see an ex on screen that day.

“Sure. Whatever you wanna watch.”

“That’s not what I asked, H.” You stroked his hair again, coaxing a better answer out of him.

“Y/N, honey. Promise, y’can watch anything. I kind of enjoy watching the Kardashians and knowing that I’m not affiliated with that family anymore.”

You leaned down on kissed the top of his head and Harry snuggled deeper into your chest. Smiling as you put the newest season you, you got ready for an episode of overdramatic drama about salads and Hollywood.

“Wait...” Harry sat up quickly.

“What?” You paused the show.

He turned around and grabbed some more blankets, throwing one over you and tucking you in carefully like a little burrito. You laughed as he accidentally tickled you whilst he was making sure you were all bundled in. Then he laid back on top of you, throwing another blanket on top of him and regaining his original position on top of you.

“Better?”

“Couldn’t let m’girl go cold.” He answered.

“No. Now I’ll overcook like a burnt potato instead.” You pressed play on the TV, but you kind of wish you didn’t because you missed what Harry said afterwards due to the Kardashian show credits. It sounded like he was replying to you, but you never did catch what he said.

If you had heard him, it would’ve gone something like; “Well I’d still very much like you as a burnt potato.”

#harry styles #harry styles x reader #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x y/n #harry styles fanfic #ask finelinevogue #harry blurb #finelinevogue #harry styles concept #harry oneshot #harry styles blurbs #harry styles christmas #harry styles boyfriend blurb #boyfriend harry fluff #boyfriendrry #harry styles fic rec #fic rec finelinevogue #finelinevogue christmas fic #christmastrry

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bbcphile · 7 months

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We’ve talked a lot in Mysterious Lotus Casebook about the importance of the Eastern Sea beach, but I just realized that waterfalls also play a really important role in the show, especially as related to Di Feisheng! Di Feisheng’s interactions with waterfalls reflect his past memories of and feelings for Li Xiangyi and hopes for the future with Li Lianhua.

Immediately after his enthronement ceremony, Di Feisheng escapes to a private gorgeous waterfall to drink wine and reminisce about missing Li Xiangyi and how empty things feel without him. The waterfall is beautiful, secluded but with good sightlines, and sensorily soothing (smell and sound of moving water)—everything the Di Fortress wasn’t—so it is probably one of the few places he can actually decompress. He certainly seems more at home there than he does in the alliance headquarters or at his training grounds, given his occasional half-smile and more relaxed body language replaced the crossed arms, loose fists, rigid posture, and hypervigilance to his surroundings he often has. Given his usual discomfort in new places, his comfort at this waterfall suggests that he’s spent time here prior to entering seclusion, especially since Wuyan knew to meet him there. Once we learned about the extent of his trauma, I’d assumed that this private waterfall functioned as a safe space–for any of you lucky enough to have not needed PTSD therapy, it means a place you can visit or imagine to calm down and ground yourself in the present if you’re experiencing flashbacks or other symptoms, and moving bodies of water are common choices–and that it was comforting because of the space itself and not because of any associations between waterfalls and memories of Li Xiangyi.

But then Di Feisheng visited a waterfall in the back hill of the Sigu sect (!!!) three times in three episodes (!!!), which make waterfalls even more overtly associated with Li Xiangyi. For the first instance, he meets Wuyan at the Sigu waterfall after he failed to break into the prison there. Di Feisheng must have spent time there in the past in order to have suggested it as a meeting spot for Wuyan in the first place, and it must have been a secret that he knew about it for it to not have already been crawling with guards after he defeated the entire sect leadership. This is the first big suggestion that he and Li Xiangyi had spent significant amounts of time alone together at the waterfall before the East Sea battle 10 years ago, and that he still treasures those memories. The fact that Di Feisheng spends the scene staring with overt longing at the waterfall, even while Wuyan is talking to him, makes this reading seem even more likely. It might also explain why he loves his own private waterfall, if waterfalls and memories of happy times with Li Xiangyi are so inextricably linked.

Di Feisheng leaves the waterfall that reminds him of Li Lianhua just long enough to save the man himself by taking Qiao Wanmian “hostage” and proposing a prisoner exchange at the gazebo on the back hill of the Sigu sect. This gazebo is, of course, right next to the waterfall he couldn’t take his eyes off, so back to the waterfall he goes.

After having deposited Qiao Wanmian at the gazebo, Di Feisheng resumes staring at the waterfall, not taking his eyes off it during his entire conversation with Wuyan, which is, like the conversation at his own private waterfall, mostly about wanting Li Xiangyi in his life. It’s no surprise, then, that everything Di Feisheng does at the waterfall is to try to win back Li Xiangyi’s trust: first, he protects Li Lianhua’s identity by claiming his own Beifeng Baiyang cured a-Mian’s poison, and second, in freeing the subordinate who can prove to Li Lianhua that the Jinyuan Alliance was framed for Shan Gudao’s murder, he gives Li Lianhua proof that he didn’t betray his trust or break the peace treaty. With the prisoner exchange, then, the waterfall becomes more than just a reminder of his memories of Li Xiangyi: it becomes the site of two acts of service (Di Feisheng’s main love language) designed to restore Li Lianhua’s trust and their former intimacy to what it used to be.

The last time we see Di Feisheng and the Sigu sect waterfall is when he’s been poisoned with Wuxin Huai and is struggling to stay conscious and about to lose his memory: he carves “find Li Lianhua” on his palm with a rock, then stumbles past the very gazebo he’d placed the formerly poisoned Qiao Wanmian in and into the water, hoping it will carry him to where Li Lianhua can find him. The entire time he’s writing and then walking, the waterfall is behind him, but as he begins to lose consciousness, he twists before he hits the water, which means that he’s facing the waterfall as the current carries him away. This scene perfectly and heartbreakingly shows the connection between waterfalls and Di Feisheng’s memories of Li Xiangyi, which he knows he’s about to lose from the poison; you could even read the way he wants to float down the river while facing the waterfall, even though he’s unconscious and unable to see it, as his trying to hold onto his memories of Li Xiangyi for as long as he can, by facing the waterfall that represents him until it’s gone from view.

The Sigu Sect waterfall then becomes a literal safe space when he has nowhere else to go and when he’s being hunted by his own people (a nightmare that must have at least in part reminded him of his time at the Di Fortress). For him to trust it to carry him safely while unconscious, given his trauma history, he must be so familiar with it from his time with Li Xiangyi that he would know both where the waterfall would spit him out, and that the area is secluded enough that no Jinyuan alliance members would find and kill him. In other words, the Sigu Sect waterfall brings him the same sense of safety, familiarity, comfort, and protection that Li Xiangyi/Lianhua himself provides, and he entrusts his unconscious body to its waters just as carving his name into his palm entrusts his body to the man himself.

It’s no wonder, then, that Di Feisheng’s fainting into the Sigu Sect waters is a literal trust fall that he hopes will carry him from the waterfall that embodies past memories with Li Xiangyi to Li Lianhua himself; he knows Li Lianhua will help and protect him as the water did, and hopes that he will regain not only the memories of Li Xiangyi, but also the trust of Li Lianhua, and perhaps, an even closer intimacy than they once had by the Sigu Sect waterfall.

#mysterious lotus casebook #MLC meta #Di feisheng #Di Feisheng #Li Xiangyi #waterfalls #PTSD #Thanks to @kingsandbastardz for listening to me gush about DFS and waterfalls and for setting my brain on fire by saying trust fall

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trancylovecraft · 9 months

Text

(KNY) YANDERE PLATONIC! KOKUSHIBO x SISTER READER: You, Shibou. I, Kokoro (CHAPTER SIX)

Previous Chapter ☆♡☆ Masterlist ☆♡☆ Next Chapter

AO3 link

CHAPTER SIX: "Loathe the way they light candles in Rome But love the sweet air of the votives"

The response to fear or threats has several reactions, Often being called the Fight-Flight-Freeze-Fawn response.

Fight means to confront the threat. Flight means to run away from the threat Freeze means to shut down and block out the threat Fawn means to appease the threat.

Slow and cautious footsteps walked carefully down the hallway as if something was going to jump out at her any second. Shoulders tense, Her eyes travelled around the space in front of her.

It was the shrine hallway. Dimly lit. Hues of marine tinting the walls, ceilings and floorboards as she stalked along them, Okobo sandals clacking against the hardwood as she did.

[F/N]'s hand trailed along the wall beside her, Keeping close towards it.

She had woken up about half an hour ago, Tucked into the futon she had woken up from before with a throbbing migraine and aching legs.

[F/N] had lain there on the mattress, The memories of what happened some unknown time ago still fresh in her mind. She had tried to escape, She had gotten far too. Running for ages yet despite all her efforts it didn't matter in the end.

[F/N] had just wound up right back where she started. Her burning lungs, Beating heart and exhaustion. It was obsolete. She had just gone in a loop with all her effort gone to waste.

And him. Her captor and his insane ramblings, She didn't want to think about him.

She didn't get up for a while after that. Finding little to no motivation to do so coupled with her mind barely processing the information in her mind, Feeling as if she had been shackled to the frame. Like the bedding was trying to keep her down, To not let go. Feeding her false promises of ignorant bliss, Like it was just any other day back at the Kakushi base.

But [F/N] knew that was not the case.

She knew she had to get up eventually, It was an awful remembrance. Even worse when she eventually hauled her aching body off the futon, Swinging her tired legs over the frame and dragging herself out of the room.

[F/N] just wanted to go back to her bed, To crawl under the covers and never get out again. But to spite everything she so desired. [F/N] pulled herself out anyways, Not really knowing why.. Maybe to get a proper look at her birdcage, Perhaps.

The shrine was nigh identical to the one she had resided in before. From the hallway layouts, The group kitchens and to the library it was kept the almost the same to the one back in the real world. The keyword here being almost.

Everything was the same. Everything except a few key differences.

For one, The shrine didn't have any of the expansions the corps had built when they came. There wasn't any of the newer passages, There wasn't an aviary and the library was much smaller than it was.

Even then, [F/N] recognised this place. It was the older version of the shrine, The same once she had stumbled across when she was much younger. How it was here in this nightmare dimension was a mystery to her, It just added to the dogpile of questions she had spinning around in her head. One's she'd need to find the answer to later.

Two, While it was basically identical to the older version of the shrine, There was also a few changes of layout.

Some of it was small, Like a misplaced support beam or tapestries being of different patterns and shapes. On the other hand however, The differences were more.. Large.

For instance the wall she was trailing her fingers across wasn't like any the shrine had harboured. It was like wooden jacktop fencing, A criss-cross structure with diamond shapes as gaps letting spits of light through, An unknown source but one that wasn't aquamarine. A welcome change

Another was the shrine walls, The large stone fortress and the big mahogany gates separating the main building from the outside world were completely gone. Disappeared as if they were never there.

Lastly was the courtyard. Instead of compacted and smooth dirt as flooring it was replaced with a wide open port, Like something large ships would anchor down at but rather one that connected all the docks outside to it like the base of the tree and it's roots.

With both the courtyard and the walls gone it left just the shrine on its own, All by itself in this infinite sea.

But the one thing that ate away at her, The one thing that made the entire shrine feel so wrong in the first place. It was the emptiness.

There were no Kakushi or shrine maidens passing through the hallways, Their conversations and laughter ringing down the passage.

It was instead being replaced by cobwebs and their spiders, Scuttling quietly in the dark corners.

The libraries? Cold and dust-ridden. The kitchens were barren, Dirty and uncared for. Everything was old and seemed to fall apart. It was disgusting and [F/N] couldn't deny the pang it sent straight towards her heart.

[F/N] felt like her situation still hadn't registered in her mind, The entire thing scrambled in pieces. It was so overwhelming, This wasn't real. This can't be.

[F/N] stopped in the middle of the passage. Leaning up against the jacktop walls as her hand gripped the side of her jinbei, Hand over her heart as she tried to steady her breathing. Telling her everything would be alright.

Head leaned back as she calmed the rhythm of her lungs, She clenched her hands tight to feel the soft feeling of fibre in-between her palm.

Oh right.. That's why she got up.

Opening her hand she revealed a scrunched up note, One she had found beside her futon with a small serving of lukewarm soba. It was a note from him, The demon.

To [F/N].

When you receive this note, You should have already awoken from your slumber.

Once you finish reading this note, I expect you to eat the bowl of soba I have provided to you on the vanity desk. Once you have consumed it, Make your way towards the main dining room. I know you know your way there.

Wait patiently. And do not keep me waiting.

-黒死牟

[F/N] crumpled the paper into a tiny ball within her palms. She tossed it aside and let out a breath of air she didn't know she was holding as she mellowed out against the wall.

He wanted to see her. She wasn't completely sure of the reason but [F/N] had a creeping suspicion crawling up her spine. It was the same reason she dragged herself out of bed, Why she was going in the first place.

She wanted answers.

[F/N] placed her hands either side of her on the wall, Pushing herself up she dusted off her jinbei.

She had already spent what little time she had mapping out the fake-shrine. Don't keep him waiting, He said. Being on time wasn't exactly her strong suit but the vision of those amber eyes stalking her, Appearing in her peripherals yet disappeared when she looked that way.

It felt like cold water was being poured down her back. [F/N] felt helpless, More so than usual. She had no mask nor sword, What Kokushibo had done with them she didn't know. But [F/N] felt naked without them, Without it [F/N] was just herself..

And that didn't sit right with her at all.

☆♡☆

The tiny flame was brought up to the tip of the incense stick, The tiny fire starting to catch onto the wood, The flicker of an ember sparking up at the end.

Mitsuri set the incense down onto the platter. The aroma of cherry lotus started the dance in the air as it burned, A scent she breathed in deeply.

The smoke was sweet, It smelt like crushed cherries and freshwater rivers. A cool breeze on a summer day, A sacchariferous taste lacing it as the wind danced across the valley. It was calming, It was nostalgic. Anemoia, Yet Mitsuri knew it all too well.

She turned around towards the bath, Steam rising up from the water within. Mitsuri rested her hands on the cedarwood sides and slowly got in. Watching as the water parted for her as she sunk inside, Rising up until it was at her neck.

Mitsuri stared up at the ceiling above her, She felt.. fine.

She didn't feel good, Not by any stretch of the word but she didn't feel that bad, Not right now anyways. She just felt fine, For how long she didn't know. But right now was okay.

The smell of the incense kept the bad thoughts at bay, Keeping them away out of mind. Along with the bath that was hot against her skin, Most of the thoughts were burned away along with the sticks. Though, Only one still lingered in her mind.

Shinobu. Mitsuri knitted her eyebrows.

What she said to her the other day bubbled up in her mind like the foam rising up from the bottom of the bath. Mitsuri regretted it, She shouldn't of said something like that and it had been eating away at her for a good few days now.

"G-Get out.. Y-You did this, We both did.. But.. Y-You don't even care at all…"

Mitsuri sunk a little lower in the bath. It was wrong, She knew as soon as Shinobu closed the door that it was wrong. But everything felt just so wrong in that moment. Looking back on it, Mitsuri wanted someone to blame and Shinobu was just an easy target.

Mitsuri grabbed the oil from the side of the bath. Popping open the cap she poured some onto her hands as she started to massage it into her hair, Washing out all of the grease built up over weeks.

Mitsuri would need to apologise. It was nasty what she said, She'll need to see Shinobu later and apologise for their entire meeting.

Though that wasn't to say nothing good came out of it at all, This was the first time in weeks Mitsuri had bothered to leave her room. Not to go outside, Get food or bathe. She didn't want to leave either, The outside world feeling so foreign, So terrifying that she barely left the safety of her covers.

It felt like she was trapped under them at times. The weight of her heavy heart keeping her stuck down on the mattress. [F/N], Mitsuri never really knew how fast a loved ones face can melt away into an abstract masterpiece after they died.

But now as she watched [F/N]'s face appear inside her head, A faded blur of what it once was she understood perfectly now. The features on her face slipping away from her, Only the general splotches of colour and shape left now.

It was terrifying, But her meeting with Shinobu and Obanai seemed to make her shift. Pull her out from under the covers only slightly. The state of the room helped snap her out of her trance too. The rotten food, Piles of clothing and the gathering of dust.

It all helped, If only a little bit.

The promise Shinobu had given told her, The promise of revenge on the demon who did this. It was the one thing that got her moving, The last working cog. Vengeance, She desired it so bad her chest started to throb.

Mitsuri felt a small tear roll down her cheek, Letting it mix in with the bathwater. Even if she was able to get out of her bed, Pull herself and try to wash away the stains. How could she go on now, How could she get vengeance for her?

She could wash off the dirt all she wanted, Scrub and scrub until your skin is spotless but the filth she felt stayed on her like a cancer. How could she ever go on? [F/N], The person she grew up with, The person who stayed with her through thick and thin and the person who loved her despite all of her flaws.

It was hard enough when Rengoku died, Her master who she looked up to like a big brother and taught her everything he knew. When the crow delivered the news she was distraught, But then she at least had [F/N] there to hold her hand, Pull her into a hug and tell her everything would be fine.

But now [F/N] was gone there was no one to do that for her. Comfort her and tell her everything would be fine, Because the truth is it wasn't. Everyone around her that she loved and cared for were dying left and right and soon enough there would be no one left.

[F/N].. Mitsuri could lose everything in the world. She could lose her job, Her friends and her limbs. Even then she could smile and say it was okay, But [F/N].. She just couldn't lose her, Anyone but her.

Mitsuri can't go on, She just can't.

"I want you to know I did it I did on my on voilition. I chose this, You have nothing to feel bad over."

"How could I not feel bad over you, [F/N]?" Mitsuri whispered, Running her fingers through the strands. "You're my best friend.. My first friend. We were suppose to do this together yet I let you down.. I-I deserve this.."

"You deserved a better friend than me."

"That's not true.. You're the one who deserved a better friend.. I was stupid and did nothing at all to help you at all, I did this to you.. How could you say I deserved better..?" Mitsuri mumbled.

"The truth is its you. You were the only thing that made me feel like I had a family, Like I had my childhood, Like I was a normal person for once in my stupid little life. I adore you, Tsuri. I really do."

Mitsuri's tears started to pick up.

"I-It's funny.. You were always able to see the good in others, Even if they were horrible and mean-spirited you were able to find their worth. In everyone.. Everyone except yourself.." Mitsuri sniffled.

"I'm living a lie, Everyday I go to work as someone I'm not because of myself. It's pathetic. There isn't any meaning, I'm sorry for saying this but as these are my last words I feel like it's necessary."

"D-Don't ever say that about yourself.. Don't apologise.. Y-You have nothing to be sorry for. Just because you were someone else doesn't mean your true self has no value.. I-It's not pathetic.. Never say it is.." Mitsuri felt the oncoming tears flow out of her slowly.

The voices stayed silent for a moment. Mitsuri watched the ripples in the water as her vision blurred up.

"I love you, And I wish I said it sooner"

Mitsuri sunk just a little further into the water, She tilted her head up towards the ceiling. Staring far-off somewhere else. The cherry lotus incense still burned bright as ever, Smoke dancing in the air.

"Me too.."

☆♡☆

The ticking of a clock, An earworm that wouldn't stop ticking. Over and over, It repeated without any sign of stop.

There was no clock within the room however, The sound a hallucination to accompany the beads of sweat building up in the humidity of her palms. Ones that rested uncomfortably on her knees as [F/N] sat on the tatami mat.

The dining room, It had barely changed from the real one. Ignoring the dust and cobwebs scattered here and there things like cabinets filled with old china, Several talisman statues and empty incense platters were still lying about.

All of this of course was settled within the long layout of the room supported only by rickety wood support beams. [F/N] bit her tongue, The high ceilings and wide structure made her feel small within the confines.

She couldn't help but scan her eyes left from right, Trying to spot any sign of Kokushibo.

[F/N] had been sitting here for over fifteen minutes now just waiting for him to arrive. She had no idea how he would know she was here and waiting, How he predicted when she would be awake but figured he had some sort of way. However disturbing that way might be..

She rubbed the back of her neck, Trying to massage the ache out of it. [F/N] barely could recognise that same familiar sensation of eyes watching her, It only registering in her mind once she felt the cold breath hit her neck.

[F/N] froze, Body stilling like a lake.

"Good.. You are here." Kokushibo mumbled, Only a foot behind her as his eyes dug into her skin. His stare, It felt like it reached deep into her soul and was looking straight at her very being. Scrutinizing her, Judging her every inch.

[F/N] quickly exhaled, A shaky breath escaping her. She didn't dare to turn around, Gathering her bearings as she spoke.

"What do you want." [F/N] asked, Eyes dead set on the wall opposite of her. She didn't even need to turn around to feel his frown etched deep onto his face.

"When you speak to me.. I expect you to show some respect in your tone.." Kokushibo said. His voice was stoic and unwavering yet held such weight to it that [F/N] couldn't help but swallow down her nerves.

When she didn't make the move to speak, Kokushibo took the chance for her.

He placed down something in front of her with a clank, One that was so quiet yet sounded like sirens within the silence of the dining room.

It snapped [F/N] out of her nervous stupor and brought her eyes down to the object in front of her, Revealing it to be a cooked and cut unagi and rice. Grilled river eel that seemed to be sprinkled with chopped leek and black pepper.

[F/N] stared down at it, Seemingly surprised at what it turned out to be as Kokushibo sat down at the other end of the table.

She looked up at him. Even though he was sitting down on his knees, Hands on his shins he still stood towering over her. The darkness of the room cast a deep shadow over his face, One that was staring right back at her, Not saying a word.

They stayed like that for a few moments. [F/N] couldn't help but feel the growing sense of awkwardness under all the tension as she looked over at him. It was quiet, Unsettlingly so.

Compared to how he acted earlier, This was more.. Hands off than before.

When she had first awoken in her caricature of a bedroom he had been there, Watching her from within the murkiness. Once she raised herself from the bed he hadn't taken any time on approaching her, Grabbing her by the cheek and trying to display some kind of faux affection.

It sent shivers down her spine just thinking about it. He had gotten so close like it was a regular occurrence. He didn't want to let go either, Keeping her in place backed up into the corner in fear. He had absolutely no qualms about invading her space.

Though it must of changed once she had gotten out of there, Ran away down the shrine hallways and came face to face with the void outside. Maybe it was what she said to him or the fact that she had tried running away.

"Tire yourself out all you want.. Run as long and as far as you like but you will never be able to leave me.. Not again. When you come back.. Do not expect to be treated with such affection that I have offered you thus far.. Not until you stop with this stupid rebellious phase of yours.."

[F/N] supposed he had kept to his word. He wouldn't be treating her with any kind of 'warmth' or 'affection' as he so put it, Not until she stopped her 'stupid little rebellious phase.'

Her lip quirked. The way he phrased it sounded so wrong. So infantilizing like she was just a rowdy teenager with a lack of basic manners when in truth she was a wounded hostage, Desperately aching for escape, Salvation.

[F/N] hated him, The way he looked and the deepness of his voice. She hated it all. She feared him too, Right now she was helpless. Without the mask or her sword she was useless, Completely at his mercy.

The dressing around her mid-section was the reminder of that, He could kill her anytime he wanted and the fact that he didn't pissed her off.

Somehow, someway. [F/N] needed to find a way out of here, Away from this nightmare, Away from her captor.

"[F/N].. Eat.. I took time in preparing you that meal.. And I expect you to accept and consume it gratefully.." Kokushibo rumbled. His voice sharp and cold like the edge of his sword, Like he was pointing it right at her, Ordering her to do as he says.

[F/N]'s lip thinned before nodding slowly.

"Use your words.." Kokushibo interrupted, Not accepting her non-verbal communication. [F/N] itched, The words seemingly lost at the edges of thought before she spoke.

"Yes.. Thank you.." [F/N] muttered, Eyes locked onto his middle pair as she waited for his response on baited breath.

Kokushibo stared back at her, A blank unfeeling gaze seeming to weigh her words on a scale. He didn't speak, Just hummed lightly.

"Acceptable.." Was all he said.

He continued looking upon her as [F/N] shakily picked up her pair of chopsticks. The thin wood hovering over the unagi, Trying to determine whether the meat was laced or not.

[F/N] gulped. Was she willing to take the risk?

"What..? It's perfectly good eel, I should know.. I caught it myself." Kokushibo asked lightly. His head cocked to the side, Eyes unblinking as he stared her down. "..Why aren't you eating..?"

[F/N] bit her lip, Thoughts scrambling to find a good reason to present to him.

"I-It's just.. The bowl of soba earlier was enough.. It.. It kind of made me lose my appetite is all.." [F/N] said. It was a lie, The bowl of soba that came along with the note wasn't even touched. She didn't feel hungry, She hadn't for a while now.

Kokushibo's eyes narrowed.

"Impossible.. You have been asleep for weeks, One single bowl of soba is not enough.. You must eat.." Kokushibo argued, An accusatory tone lacing him like a prosecutor as he examined her form.

[F/N] gulped. Weeks. Right, Apparently she had been asleep for weeks? It didn't quite register inside her mind, Her sense of time seemed muddled. Minutes and hours mixed together and became one, Measurement wasn't reliable.

[F/N] exhaled.

"R-Right.." She mumbled. The pair of chopsticks still shaking in her hands she slowly lowered them down towards the unagi. Kokushibo watched as she picked up a piece of eel in-between the sticks before raising it towards her mouth.

Nerves irrationally racing under his gaze, [F/N] parted her lips and placed the eel in her mouth as she stared back at him.

She chewed, A sudden sweet taste started to flood onto her tongue as she did. It was soft, Similar to squid in its texture and was unlike her expectation of a bitter, salty and greasy taste.

"..How is it?" Kokushibo asked.

[F/N] swallowed the chunk in her mouth.

"Good.." She answered and this time it wasn't a lie. It did taste good, It was perfectly cooked and seasoned, Made with care and wasn't laced, At least she thinks so anyways. It was good, But it didn't take away the way it felt strange in her mouth. Not from the taste or personal preference but instead in the way you'd try to eat more on a full stomach.

Kokushibo nodded.

"Continue then.." He said, And [F/N] complied under his command. She continued to eat the unagi however awkwardly it felt, Trying her best to focus on the bowl instead of his face. It was quiet, Neither [F/N] or Kokushibo spoke.

"..How was your sleep?" Kokushibo questioned, Breaking the silence between them.

[F/N] looked up at him, The grasp on her chopsticks grew slightly tighter at his attempt to start a conversation. For whatever reason he wasn't going directly in with the questions, It unsettled her stomach and quite frankly annoyed her.

"Fine.. Could of been better.." [F/N] grumbled, Alluding to the bloody dressing and the room walls surrounding her. She said it with a sarcastic tone and a bead of cold sweat running down her brow as she took another bite of the eel.

Kokushibo paused.

[F/N] kept her eyes down, Hoping she didn't go too far.

"You are still opposed to your new living arrangements.. I suppose.. It's understandable. This is a big change for you.." Kokushibo drawled. [F/N] felt another spike in her annoyance, It was that same infantilizing tone.

[F/N] decided to push her limits.

"Why am I here? Like.. H-How is this place even here.. I want you to give me the truth.." She asked, Raising her head up to meet his and lowering down her chopsticks. Her brows were furrowed.

Even though he had "explained" some of it earlier [F/N] had rejected it entirely. She wanted a truthful answer not hidden behind delusion or manipulation.

Kokushibo was quiet for a moment.

"I have told you over and over.. What I say isn't false nor do I intend to trick you.. What do I need to do to convince you of that?" Kokushibo's voice stated to grow colder, It started to sound irritated at her denial. It seemed like [F/N] was near the limits she could push with him.

"You are my younger sister.. I am your older brother. You are here because I want you to be.. This place is your new home now.. You will not be leaving anytime soon so I suggest you start to accept that.." Kokushibo said in a near deriding tone, Making sure to annunciate every word as clear as day to her.

[F/N] shook her head, She opened her mouth ready to speak but was cut off by Kokushibo's own speech.

"I suppose you already know why you're here.. Except for trying to spend some time with my little sister.. Which you ungratefully don't want to do.. It is also because I have questions of my own.. So.. Here is how this is going to go.." Kokushibo started.

"I will ask a question.. And you must answer truthfully. After you have answered.. You may also ask a question of your own.. And I will answer honestly in return.. We will take turns asking until we are both satisfied." Kokushibo suggested.

[F/N] bit her lip. The proposition he had offered to her was appealing to say the least. She would be able to get her answers while he would be able to get his, What kind of questions he had she had no idea.

It didn't matter though. [F/N] wanted to give in to the temptation, Whatever he could ask her couldn't hurt. She'd get her answers and have some kind of basis on this place.

[F/N] nodded.

"Alright."

☆♡☆

The strong smell of chemicals singed at the tip of her nose, It was the only thing she could sense with her entire sight being a dark nothing. She couldn't hear anything either, Nothing except from a high-pitched ringing that is.

The girl groaned, She writhed around tossing back and forth. It felt like every inch of her was in pain, All of her nerves flared up like bottle rockets and exploding in agony. It was barely bearable.

Where was she?

She had no idea. All of her senses were muddled by the pain in her body, It was hard to tell. A metallic bitterness in her mouth, It was really the only thing that she could taste and the only little thing she could sense.

What even happened, Why was she in so much pain? Everything was in pieces, Parts of her mind scrambled into thousands. It felt like something was just out of her grasp, A lost memory, Something she felt was.. Important.

She stretched out a hand, Reaching out into the abyss. Her fingers tried to grab down on something, Anything that she could touch within the shadows.

As her arm extended forward she could feel a sort of.. Light.

It was hard to explain to her, It wasn't visible nor was she sure it was really there. It was strange like a ghostly apparition reaching back out to her, Their spectral hand grazing the tips of her fingers with a cold touch, Sending shivers down the girls spine.

The girl reached out further, A sudden determination to fight through the agony as she tried to grasp the phantom hand.

Tears prickled at her eyes, The pain was excruciating but she fought through it anyways. The palms of her hands starting to graze the hands of the apparition.

The girl grappled onto them, The freezing touch of their grasp embraced hers like a mother holding their child's hand. It was comforting, Even though it chilled her to the bone it was nice, One that felt familiar.

The hand moved, Bringing the girl forward. The pain had completely dissipated now as she was guided upwards, Gently brought forth into the void.

Though as she felt herself rising upwards the darkness enveloping her started to shift too, The shadow parting for her as she went. A new light started to become visible, One independent from the hand as it started to shine.

The girls lips parted, She felt air rushing into her lungs and escaping out through her mouth. Was she not breathing before? The rhythm of her heart started to beat as the light started to grow larger and larger.

It was so blinding that she had to close her eyes. A sudden resonance echoed from within her mind, Lost memories starting to rise.

The girls obsidian eyes opened wide, The light fading out into the clarity of a room. A sharp gasp came from her, Hands gripping the bedsheets she lay on.

She remembered now.

☆♡☆

[F/N]'s brows knitted together, Her lip bit as she waited on baited breath for his question. The tension built up seemed near visible in the air, Almost suffocating so within the darkness of the room.

Kokushibo sighed, Stoic in face, Completely blank making it near impossible to tell what he was thinking. It was uncomfortable to say the least, [F/N] squirmed around under his gaze.

Though she quickly stilled, Keeping her composure. This was her time to get answers. She couldn't falter here, Not now. She needed to stand her ground, Raise her shoulders and look him straight in the eyes, No matter how herculean of a task staring at them was.

"So.. For my first question.. I'll start easy.. " Kokushibo started, Silence broken as his voice echoed lightly in the room.

"..What is your full name?"

[F/N]'s mouth turned into a frown. A rather anti-climactic question from what she was expecting, Though to be fair she didn't know what she was expecting. [F/N]'s shoulders drop only slightly.

"[F/N] Fujimori." She answered quickly.

Kokushibo stayed silent once more. A bead of sweat rolled down [F/N]'s brow, Though she tried not to show it from her hardened expression. What was he thinking..?

"Alright then.. As per our rules you may now ask me a question.. And I will answer honestly." Kokushibo said, Nodding slightly to urge her on.

A question. It was her time to ask.. But what? Where should she start, Which one out of a thousand should she ask? She could only ask one but that was nowhere near enough.

Another bead of sweat dripped down her side.

[F/N] bit her lip. Start easy. Take a deep breath, You'll be fine.

"Okay.. Where am I.. What is this place?" The first question that came to mind. [F/N] steadied her breathing, Good. It was probably one of the better questions she could of asked. She should get a basis of where she is first, Use it as the foundation to base her next few questions off of.

Kokushibo hummed lowly.

"You are in a replica of your shrine.. I ordered this place to be built a few centuries ago after your.. Accident.." Kokushibo paused. "Though it is not exact.. You may have noticed a few modifications.. They are rather recent and have been made for your comfort here.."

Comfort? Like hell this place could be of any comfort to her. It was a mockery of her home, Her sanctuary. Whatever modifications he could have made would never be able to provide any kind of solace to her.

But it was another part of his sentence that drew her attention.

"Accident?" [F/N] queried, Curiosity building on her tongue.

"It is my turn to ask questions.." Kokushibo cut in, Sharp tone cutting through her with a drop in temperature fastly following it.

[F/N] froze, But nodded along quickly not wanting to push her limits any further.

"Second question.." He started "When I found you once more.. You were injured by me in the rubble of your shrine. You appeared as a man, A Hashira.. Not just any but the one who killed a thousand of my kind.. So my question is to you, Why are you a slayer.. How did you do it..?"

Kokushibo's voice was calm yet [F/N] could sense a new undercurrent of bafflement mixed with.. Disdain. It was confusement, One of the only feelings he had shown throughout their conversation.

And if [F/N] was being honest, She shared the sentiment.

"Well.. I.." [F/N] stuttered. Answer honestly, Those were the rules of the game. But [F/N] barely knew what the truth was.

"..I became a slayer because I.. Because.. My friend was going to become a slayer and I just came along for the ride.. How I killed a thousand, I didn't really intend on doing so.. It just kind of happened.. " It was the truth, [F/N] didn't lie when she answered. But it wasn't exactly the full truth either.

Kokushibo's eyes narrowed.

"You became a slayer because.. You followed a friend?" Kokushibo asked. The disdain in his voice more prominent now as he stared her down. [F/N] swallowed.

"My turn." She answered, Expression turning to stone.

Kokushibo's nose twitched.

"Touché.." Was all he said.

"About the accident you mentioned.. What are you referring to?" [F/N] asked. Accident, The way he said it earlier was like the word was stuck on his tongue. [F/N] could tell it was hard subject, Both from the way he said it and how his face seemed to fall once she asked it.

Kokushibo took a moment before responding.

"Your accident.. Yes. It was around five hundred years ago now in the Sengoku era.. It.. It's still fresh in my mind." Kokushibo's voice started to go down, Only in a single pitch as he spoke. Eyes wandering off somewhere else.

"A few months before it happened you had fallen ill.. A hereditary sickness passed down from our mother.. I had been searching months for a cure to no luck. I had came back to your shrine with.. A kind of cure per se but when I had arrived.. It was too late."

[F/N] listened on intently. This was manipulation, This just a lie. But.. Did he really need to create such a narrative? He had explained her falling ill, Going so far as to describe it as an illness from 'their' mother. Was he really going this far..?

"It wasn't the illness that killed you.. Instead it was a pair of slayers. When I had arrived it was in the middle of winter.. A blizzard had picked up and you had ran out into the snow to escape.. You were fatally wounded and by the time I found you.. You were dead, Curled up in the snow, Your body was already frozen over.." Kokushibo trailed off, His voice growing lower until it wasn't heard anymore.

Kokushibo looked up towards [F/N], Eyes looking upon her form. She was still, Unnaturally so.

Not a single muscle moved, Neither from [F/N] or the demon across the table from her. Her lips were parted, Eyes stuck dead open as she stared down at the table.

"I.. You.." She stuttered. Her voice was so quiet, Her jaw started to shake.

[F/N] looked up to him, Glazed over eyes staring at him with a horrified yet disbelieving expression. She stared as if he had three heads, Her head shook.

"A blizzard.. You said.. You said it was a blizzard?" [F/N] stammered. It sounded like she hadn't spoken in days, Like all water had been deprived from her throat. A blizzard, He said she died in a blizzard.

Kokushibo's frown deepened, A grimace starting to play on his face. He didn't even care that she asked another question, The terrified visage she wore distracting him from that fact.

"..Why? Does that mean something to you..?" Kokushibo queried.

It did. It meant everything to her, Her dreams. The original visions that have been haunting her like spectres for months, The blizzard she had trudged through night after night only to collapse time and time again.

He told her it was the way his sister died. She was killed off by a couple of slayers, One's that fatally wounded. It matched up to the unbearable pain in her chest whenever she was there, The way she felt so frantic in escape. It matched but.. How?

These dreams she barely told to anyone, While she had admitted she suffered from night terrors what happened in them wasn't explained to anyone. No one he would have in contact with should know about her nightmares.

But somehow he knew, It was exactly like how he described.

"Answer me.. And consider it my next question." Kokushibo broke her chain of thought, Yet she could barely hear his annoyed voice from the cold sweat building up on her palm.

"DON'T LET HIM CATCH US, [F/N]. DON'T LET HIM FIND US!"

A voice she hadn't heard in a good long while cried out inside her mind. It was her.. Her double. The start of deviation in her visions, She had came to her with a warning. One she couldn't decipher.

Neurons connected. The end of her dreams, When she had fallen into the snow and curled up into a ball she looked up. And every time she'd see a man rush towards her, Clothed in a lavender nagagi kimono and hakama trousers..

[F/N]'s bottom lip shook, She tried to verbalize her thoughts. Put them into words yet it seemed so difficult from under the weight of her raging mind.

This.. This couldn't be what she thought it meant. It couldn't. It can't..

Kokushibo's expression was unreadable, It wasn't like the annoyance before but instead it was like ice. He was stone, Whatever he was thinking didn't show. And it scared her even more.

"Explain. Now." He said just like his expression, Levelled and untraceable.

[F/N] tried to steady her breathing. A little voice in her head spoke out. Don't falter, Ask further.

"I.. I.." [F/N] stuttered, Setting her hands down onto the table and trying to organise her words. She swallowed back a lump in her throat, Making way for her explanation.

"I.. F-For a few months I've been having.. Nightmares." [F/N] started, Slowly pronouncing her words as if to test them on her tongue.

"Nightmares..?" Kokushibo mulled. He didn't make a change in his expression, Nor did his glare stray from her for a second.

[F/N] nodded.

"Y-Yes.. I've been having night terrors for a while now and in these nightmares.. I wake up in a blizzard." She confirmed.

Kokushibo's stare was blank, His eyes near draining the life out of her as his lips parted slightly.

"What occurs while you are having them?" He asks, But [F/N] only shook her head.

"..Isn't it my turn to ask a que-"

"Forget the questions." Kokushibo interrupted. "Tell me what happens.."

[F/N] froze. His sudden aura of authority was something she could feel in her bones. She was never one to obey any kind of Jurisdiction or higher human power, It wasn't in her nature or her nurture to do so.

But a natural instinct burst up inside her from the new atmosphere surrounding him, One that made her want to answer in fear of the consequences.

"I.. E-Every time I fall asleep I wake up in a blizzard.. I'm in the middle of a forest.. There's this pain in my back.. I.. I'm trying to get out of there but every time I get far I collapse into the snow.." [F/N] explained, Repeated almost exactly what he described back to him.

She decided against telling him the last part after seeing his expression.

Kokushibo at this point had a hand resting on his chin, A nail dug onto the pale moonlight shade of his flesh while another pulled gingerly at his lip. He wasn't readable before, But now [F/N] could feel a sense of.. Elation.

She noticed his face start to turn only slightly. The corners of his mouth starting to tug up subconsciously into a small smile.

It was disturbing, It looked so unnatural on his face like it was a cheap replica of an honest smile. But [F/N] could tell this was genuine enough, All from the way his arachnid eyes gleamed. Though despite the light in his eyes he radiated a darker aura. Something she recognised from the time he had sliced her abdomen.

[F/N] shuddered. He was happy.

"I see.. So you do remember something.." Kokushibo muttered. His eyes were off in thought, His grin was so small yet contained such a feeling of obsessive glee. It sickened her, It made her want to puke.

[F/N] tried to shuffle away slightly on the tatami mat she was sitting on, The bowl of unagi went abandoned as she felt her instincts kick up again.

This was impossible, This entire situation felt so wrong. When at any point in her life did she think she would be here? Staring down the unhinged monster opposite from her while he tried to convince her of blood relation. Through her dreams, No less.

"I-It's only a vision. It.. It means nothing." [F/N] blurted out. A thought that ran through her mind and one that she didn't mean to articulate out loud. Also one that she regretted immediately.

Kokushibo didn't seem wavered at all, His claw just continued pulling at his lip.

"No, No. Even if it is just subconciously.. There is still a part of you that remembers.. This.. This is great." He said just a little louder this time, Exasperated and maybe even a tiny bit excited.

If [F/N] thought his visage couldn't get any more hideous then she was proven very wrong. The way his smile stretched wider to reveal his canines, The way his cheeks made way for it and the way all six of his eyes sparkled under the pale light.

It was horrifying.

She barely registered him getting up from his knees, Standing at his full height within the shadow-infested room. He stalked over, One foot in front of the other barely made any sound as slowly made his way towards her.

[F/N] was only snapped out of her trance one he was now looming over her crouched form. She gasped, Shocked at the sudden closing of distance between them. She tried to move her body away, Try to gain some space but she felt fixed to the floorboards, Body unable to move.

Kokushibo went down onto a single knee, He hunched over with his middle eyes meeting her own in a locked stare down.

He seemed to examine her just for a moment, That smile smaller yet still stretched upon his face as he looked at her.

"..The chances of your dream matching up to my own tale is.. Improbable to say the least. You must agree that it's uncanny.. Do you agree, Little one?" He asked. It was almost as if he was taunting her as she tried desperately to think of an exit, Instincts on overdrive.

[F/N]'s jaw trembled. She was unable to pry her eyes away from his, Keeping her steady in place. She felt words grow on the tip of her tongue, Ready to spill.

"E-Even if what you're implying is right.. If your story has any truth to it.. Even if I am your sister.. Why did you kidnap me and take me here?" She squeaked, Shrill and high-pitched under the intense gaze of the Uppermoon.

It didn't make sense to her at all. It was one of the question she had been wanting to ask for a while now, His story didn't add up. Between both the ruthless nature of demons and their lack of sentimental attachment it just didn't make sense.

If she was his sister then that wouldn't constitute kidnapping her, It wouldn't change the fact that he should of killed her. Why he was so insistent on keeping her here, Why he had such an insane demeanour to him eluded her.

Kokushibo let out a breath of air, A shine in his eyes that could of been mistaken for fondness gleamed bright.

And his teeth glowed even lighter under the pale luminescence.

"Because.. Kidnapping you was a necessary evil.. The outside world is dangerous for someone like you.. If I let you out the chance of you getting injured or killed grows too high for my liking.. You need to stay here where it's safe, You need to stay here with me.." Kokushibo started.

[F/N] had no idea what to say, There was nothing to say. What words could she ever use to explain the overwhelming feelings rushing around inside her. Fear.. Anger.. Confusion and Hopelessness.

None of those words portray how she really felt. How much it felt like her heart was going to explode or how badly she wanted to run away.

"I'm your big brother, It's my job to protect you.. That's why you're here with me. I can't let you go back to those pathetic little slayers.. They are the reason I lost you for so long in the first place.."

He continued his rambling, Spoke about her colleagues and comrades with such acidity. The expression on his face was growing even more deluded and unhinged by every syllable spoken. [F/N] couldn't understand a single word, All mixing into a hazy mess.

"Besides.. If you just accept your new living situation then I'm sure you'll grow accustomed well enough.. If you would just stop with your little tantrum then you'll be much happier.. I can assure you of tha-"

Kokushibo paused mid-sentence

[F/N] watched in confusion as his smile fell and his face reverted back into his usual cold and serious expression in an instance.

He got up from the ground and tilted his head up towards the roof of the room, Seemingly engrossed in something [F/N] couldn't make out.

"Muzan-sama.." Kokushibo spoke lowly, His voice was filled with cordiality and stoicism similar to how a knight would speak to a king.

[F/N]'s eyebrows raised, Her lips pressed tightly together careful not to make a sound. Was he.. Was he speaking to Kibutsuji? The demon king, The progenitor of all demons and the bastard who had ordered her to be killed?

That's.. Not good.

[F/N] didn't speak a word though, It looked like they had some sort of telepathic link. Her sweat dropped more than it already doing, One after the other things got more and more insane. How much more can she handle?

The silence was louder than any sound, It felt suffocating yet she didn't dare to break it for a second. She didn't think she'd be intimidated by the progenitor, The passage of his name back at the corps meant nothing to her but now?

[F/N] was alarmed, On edge. Her fate was juggled in the hands of demons and death would be the better option in this scenario. She needed to wait on baited breath and see what the verdict was.

Kokushibo stood there, Nodding once or twice without ever saying a word. However whatever conversation they were having seemed important, She could tell by the sharpening of his eyes and the way his shoulders stiffened.

Was he going to tell him about her? What were they talking about? It was impossible to tell.

"Yes.. I will head over now." Kokushibo said at last. It was the final thing he said, A small nod before all movements went still.

They stood there, It was dead quiet.

Kokushibo looked down at her, That same cold expression on his face as he looked back at her.

"..I have been ordered to leave.. While I am gone I expect you to behave.. Do not try and run lest you wish to waste your energy.. Think over what we discussed here today and then maybe you'll start to see reason.."

That was all that he said to her. Kokushibo didn't wait for her answer before vanishing into thin air, Gone in an instant.

[F/N] exhaled, A breath she didn't know she was holding was released into the now empty room. It was colder now, The silence returned once again to invade every corner of the walls confines.

She came in for answers yet came out with more questions than she expected or wanted, The entire ordeal rewinding in her mind like a cassette.

This couldn't be real, She just wouldn't accept it.

☆♡☆

[F/N]'s feet dragged behind her out of the room, She didn't bother sliding the door shut. Too enraptured with the thoughts of her own mind to care.

She trudged down the hallways, Her head felt like a hurricane right now. Swirling and rushing around at high speeds, Thoughts coming in and out even faster. [F/N] felt like a weight was dropped in her chest, Doing the best of her ability to breathe in and out and not collapse onto the wall.

What were the chances that her dreams and his story matched up? It was impossible, He had described the exact sequence of events that occurred and had linked it to his sister's death.

[F/N] couldn't be related to him, She couldn't be related to Uppermoon one, A centuries old demon who has most definetly killed thousands at this point. But.. The coincidence was too big to be considered one.

She was conflicted to say the least, It felt like her brain and her heart were at war with each other. Her brain was telling her that there was no way that this could be possible, There was no feasible way.

Her heart on the other hand said otherwise, It told her that he was telling the truth. That there was some semblance of honesty to what he was saying yet it also told her that she should run. It resonated in her like nothing else.

It's words reminded her of that dream, Her double's warnings screaming into her ear like an air-raid siren. Crying and wailing out into the storm.

"WE CAN'T LET HIM CATCH US, HE'S NOT THE SAME. WE NEED TO RUN OR ELSE WE'LL NEVER GET AWAY, PLEASE [F/N] LISTEN TO US!"

Her double spoke as if they were one, Which they technically were but it felt different. It felt as if they were really the same person, Not split into two but just one single person.

[F/N] thought it was a prophetic dream from Inari, A warning about the shrine's future attack and to be prepared. At the time it felt like the most rational meaning. But now she didn't think that was the case anymore, It wasn't about the shrine at all.

It was about Kokushibo.

Her double spoke as she knew him all too well, She was scared of him. She told her he wasn't the same, Could that be referring to him being a demon? Maybe, [F/N] wasn't sure.

Or could it be referring to his behaviour. Back when he was towering over her, Leaning down to her level she could see the primal feeling behind his eyes, Like a feral animal. Not unlike a rabid wolf, It was a look she hadn't seen in anyone.

He was so sure that she was his little sister, And at this point? [F/N] had no idea what to think.

Everything was so complicated, It was all happening in such a short period of time that she just couldn't wrap her head around it. [F/N] didn't even want to think about it anymore, It made her head throb and even though she had only been up for an hour or two she just wanted to go to bed again.

[F/N] kept walking through the hallways, She had decided that it was exactly what she was going to do. She needed to sleep on it, Come back tomorrow and figure things out on a clean slate.

CREAK!

[F/N] raised her head from the ground. The old floorboards made a loud noise up ahead from behind the corner. [F/N] could tell it was from the lowering of a foot, Heavy and firm.

She groaned. Kokushibo was back already? That was quick. She didn't want to put up with him again, She just wanted sleep. One that actually made her feel like she was refreshed and rested once she woke.

Sighing, She called out to him.

"..I don't want to continue talking, I'm tired and-"

[F/N]'s speech was cut off, Her pace freezing like water in a single instant as she stared the man down.

That.. That isn't Kokushibo.

The man that turned the corner didn't look like him at all. Instead it was a young man of average height. He had a salmon shaded short-cut for hair and his skin was so pale that it was near sheet white, The only breaks from the artic colour were the thick navy blue streaks wrapping around his entire body.

His eyes widened at the sight of her, They were golden with his sclera like broken glass. It seemed he didn't expect her either.

[F/N] inhaled sharply. The kanji in his eyes catching her off guard. This is a demon, Not just any.. But Uppermoon three.

He opened his mouth to speak, Vampiric fangs glistening in the turquoise light.

"You.. What are you doing here?"

☆♡☆

The evening sun was lowering down on the horizon, The sky painted with hues of red, orange and purple made it look like a masterfully painted watercolour canvas. It was beautiful, Along with the cool breeze brushing into the valley it made a perfect landscape.

The butterfly mansion sat as tall as ever. Several Kakushi and slayers walked in and out about the building, They were sparse in numbers.

Most of the injured from a few weeks ago were already healed back to full health and were sent on their way. The ones that remained still lain on their hospital bed, Being treated by the residents here.

Shinobu wiped her brow, Beads of sweat brushing off onto the side of her wrist as she knelt down in front of the garden patch. Cabbage and turnip halfway grown within the fertile soil. She was currently picking weeds out from the stone lining around the vegetable patch, Gloves clad on her hands as she plucked another out.

Shinobu felt the cold breeze brush against her skin and flow through her hair. She inhaled, Taking it all in. It truly was a beautiful evening, It felt serene. Tranquil in the warm rays of the setting sun.

She listened to the birds chirp and the grasshoppers sing from the bushes. An amaranthine setting. So peaceful that she could pick up the soft footsteps approaching her from behind.

They were slow and Shinobu could hear them stop a metre or two away from her, She didn't need to look up from her work to know who it was.

Shinobu smiled quietly as she pulled out another weed.

"Mitsuri-chan.. It's nice to see you outside." Was all she said to her, Focused on her work.

Mitsuri stood a fair bit away from Shinobu. She was dressed in a white kimono decorated with vivid burst of colour, Blues and pinks morphing into a floral pattern. Both it and her dripping watermelon hair gently wove back and forth in the wind.

Mitsuri didn't smile, Only looked down at her sandals.

"Shinobu-chan.. I.. Are you busy? I can come back later if you are.." Mitsuri asked, Her voice was as quiet as the breeze around them as she fiddled with her fingers.

Shinobu shook her head and stood up from her crouching position.

"No, No! Just doing a bit of gardening is all.." She said, Turning around to meet Mitsuri with that same smile she always did.

Mitsuri looked better than she was last time Shinobu saw her. Her hair wasn't plagued by grease and her kimono looked fresh and recently washed. Though Shinobu could pick out a few outliers like the bags under her eyes and the way her braids weren't as carefully done as they usually were.

But overall, It was a good change.

"If you came here to apologise, It's fine." Shinobu spoke. Though her smile was taught her tone was genuine. Mitsuri shook her head.

"No.. No it's not. I said some really nasty things that I shouldn't of said. I'm really sorry Shinobu-chan, I-I hope you're doing fine.." Mitsuri sighed. She couldn't bring her eyes to meet Shinobu's, Too ashamed to see her face.

"Really, It's quite alright. You weren't thinking straight, I understand that.. And if it's any consolation I didn't take anything to heart." Shinobu assured, Taking a few steps towards the other girl.

Mitsuri didn't answer, Neither did she look up from the ground in shame.

Shinobu took a few more steps forward until they were only three feet apart, Approaching slowly her smile started to slightly decrease.

"Mitsuri-chan. [F/N] wouldn't of wanted you to be like this, I know this because it was in her last words.. I know it's hard but you need to stop blaming yourself." Shinobu assured, Her voice grew to a gentle whisper as she approached the other girl.

Mitsuri's expression didn't change.

"I-It was my fault though. And entirely mine.. I'm sorry about that by the way.. But the thing is if I had just tried a little harder or recognised the signs sooner I could of prevented this.. I could of done something.." Mitsuri lamented, A dull sorrow in her voice as she looked up at Shinobu.

"No, You couldn't of. Things like these are hard to recognise.. Some people can appear so happy and carefree but we never know what's going on down below. You couldn't of known.. I promise." Shinobu reassured her, Her hand reached out and grabbed Mitsuri's shoulder in a comforting manner.

Mitsuri's frown started to shake.

"N-No.. Shinobu. I could of, I did. I knew it was there yet I did nothing.. And now I need to live with what I've done.. What I could of done to stop her." Mitsuri whispered, Tears starting to prickle at her eyes.

Shinobu looked back into her shamrock eyes, Her glazed over violet a comfort to the girl.

"She really meant that much to you, Didn't she?" Shinobu asked lowly.

Mitsuri sniffled.

"She's half of my soul, As the poets may say." She replied.

Shinobu smiled.

"That's a quote from a book, Isn't it?" She asked, A lighter tone playing on her words.

Mitsuri's frown tried it's best to turn back into a smile.

"You've read that one too..?" She asked her.

"Of course, It's a romantic tragedy. One of my favourite genres.. I'm guessing it's one of yours too then." Shinobu questioned in turn. Mitsuri nodded.

"Yeah.. I was always into those kinds of romance books when I was younger and I don't know why but.. That quote kind of stayed with me, You know..? I always thought when I grew up that I'd find the person who I could say that about" Mitsuri's smile lowered.

"..I guess I just didn't realise I had her until she was gone.." She mumbled.

Shinobu rubbed Mitsuri's shoulder, A comforting action to try and soothe her nerves.

"I know.. I.. I'll miss [F/N] too. She really was one of a kind.. One day we'll avenge her though, We'll find the demon alright? We'll make sure her death meant something.." Shinobu admitted lowly, The smile on her face now gone as she looked down downwards her shoes.

Mitsuri thought over her words, Considering every vowel and consonant. All before bringing Shinobu into an awkward hug.

It was one that made Shinobu flinch on touch, But her figure relaxed before returning the gesture, Arms wrapping around Mitsuri's back.

"Alright.. We'll find them. We'll get revenge.." Mitsuri confirmed.

Shinobu was unable to see her face but she could feel the patter of tears fall onto her haori. Shinobu nodded, Staying silent.

They stayed like that for a good few seconds, Before a voice called out to them both.

"Lady Kanroji, Lady Kocho!" The voice yelled out.

They instantly retreated back into their previous positions away from each other. Shinobu recognised the voice as Aoi, One of the staff working at the estate.

She stood wide within the doorframe of the main entrance, Her face was alarmed as she looked at the both of them.

Shinobu and Mitsuri shared a look before running over to Aoi, Stumbling to a halt in front of her.

"Kanzaki-san, Is everything alright?" Shinobu asked, Her personality switched back into it's usual exercised type. A serious expression lain on her face as she looked at her staff.

A bead of sweat rolled down Aoi's forehead. She took a deep breath in, Unable to find the words.

"I shouldn't explain it, I think it's better if you hear it yourself.. Lady Kanroji, You especially." Aoi said. She took no time in turning around and speed walking down the hallway, Head motioning the two to follow her down the passage.

The two followed along with her down the butterfly mansions hallways, Their footsteps echoing out as it hit against the polished wood. Pristine white walls and mahogany doors passed them by as they went, But they were focused on following the girl in front of them.

Shinobu wondered what could've gotten into Aoi for her to act like this, All while Mitsuri was confused on why her especially needed to be there.

It wasn't long until they reached a certain door at the end of a hallway, It was cracked open only slightly letting the light from inside the room flood into the passage.

Aoi didn't hesitate to push the door open and step inside. Mitsuri and Shinobu following after as the room came into view.

It was a single bedroom, One usually used to care for patients in critical condition. It was decorated with a single bed in the middle, Two nightstands at the side and a closet. The source of light being a tall window to the side of the bedding, Letting a single warm ray shine down onto the patient on the bed.

Laying down under the covers was a small girl. She was wrapped in bandages and her unruly blonde hair was a mess, She looked tired when her dark eyes peered up to meet the three who just entered the room.

"H.. Hey.." She stuttered out, Her throat hoarse.

A neuron connected in Shinobu's mind. She remembered who this was. Her name was Maika Heihachiro, She was one of the shrine-maidens at the Kakushi base. A few weeks ago she was found passed out under a bunch of rubble, Right next to where [F/N]'s pool of blood was.

She wasn't able to be questioned on what happened however. Maika had suffered several injuries including severe blood loss, A deep cut on her back and bad frostbite. She had to be put into a medically induced coma to let her body heal.

Though she had awoken now, Conscious and sound of mind by the looks of it.

Shinobu quickly brushed past Aoi and Mitsuri, Speed walking over to the girls smile. Façade brought back on.

"Hello there! Are you doing alright? You've been asleep for quite some time!" Shinobu exclaimed, Looking down at her with a sugar sweet smile.

"I.. I'm fine.." Maika coughed. Shinobu quickly reached over to the wooden nightstand beside her and grabbed the pitcher of water.

She handed to the girl who gratefully accepted the refreshment. Mitsuri moved over to the other side of the bed to look down at the girl. Her expression still hurt by her mourning but curiosity danced along her features anyways as she looked at her.

"Mitsuri-chan.. This is Heihachiro-chan! She was one of the shrine-maidens back at the Kakushi base" Shinobu started.

"I.. I see." Mitsuri responded solemnly.

"That's not all, But you were also there when Fujimori was killed and eaten, Yes?" Shinobu asked, Turning back around to face Maika with an expectant look on her face.

Mitsuri's eyes widened in shock, Surprise coursing through her bloodstream as she looked down at Maika with wide eyes. A sudden hope rising inside her, Circling in her chest.

Maika paused, Then shook her head.

"N-No.."

Mitsuri's face fell, Her thou-

"T-That's not what happened..!" Maika exclaimed however instantly broke out into another coughing fit, Body spasming and her hand covering her mouth.

Mitsuri's brows knitted together, The words coming out of Maika didn't make sense. Not what happened.. What.. What does that mean.

Mitsuri came closer, Her hand reaching out going to grip Maika's free one with a reassuring hold. Mitsuri's fingers entwined with hers as she looked down on her.

"What do you mean..?" Mitsuri whispered. Eyes not taken off Maika for a second.

Maika's coughing fit died down, Her body laid peacefully on the bed.

"[F/N]-sama.. Fujimori-san.. T-They're the same person!" She explained.

Shinobu shook her head.

"Yes.. We're aware. But, Do you mind telling us what you mean by 'that's not what it happened'?" She asked softly.

Maika paused for a second, The sunlight from the window rested down on her face. Pale skin glowing in the luminescence as she spoke.

"[F/N]-sama.. She.. It's hard to remember, It's all fuzzy in my mind but.. She.. She wasn't eaten.." Maika explained, Eyes clenching shut. A headache forming in her frontal lobe as she spoke.

Both Mitsuri and Shinobu looked at each other. A shared stare that meant disbelief, Confusion and sheer bafflement. Maika didn't stop explaining as she squeezed Mitsuri's hand, Bringing her back into the conversation.

"What.. What do you mean [F/N] wasn't eaten?" Mitsuri asked, Levelling herself closer to Maika. Eyes wide as she looked at her, Confusion played all over her face.

"S-She wasn't eaten.. No.. S-She.. She was taken.. I.. The demon that tried to kill her just.. He just stopped.. Picked her up and.. and walked away.." Maika said. "It's all so fuzzy.. I.. I'm having a hard time remembering..

Mitsuri and Maika's eyes locked. Mitsuri looked at her, A sudden shine sparking up inside her like a lighter grew bright in her eyes. It was one she hadn't had in weeks, It was the glimmer of hope.

"I-It's fine.. But what.. What are you saying?" Mitsuri asked, Her voice was so small yet her face held such light to it.

"I-If I am right.. If I am remembering correctly.." Maika's eyes shared that same spark, That same light swirling around in her eyes.

"[F/N]-sama is alive."

Next Chapter

107 notes · View notes

5eraphim · 6 months

Note

"we can start with a kiss" for scout? 👀

Link to the Dubcon Prompts

Title: Red Sky at Night (alternative title "Just Like Playing Pretend")

Character: The Scout 🐇 (Team Fortress 2)

Rating: X (MINORS DNI, GO PLAY OUTSIDE)

Content Warnings: Dubcon, taping/armature, corrosion, delusional yandere (slightly reciprocated obsession), forced intimacy, panty huffing, biting/marking, fingering, very brief passing incest joke, i guess? (just like one line, a part of scout being annoying and a creepy), soft-mindbreak, degradation, TOXIC RELATIONSHIP, lap riding

Word Count:

MASTERLIST

TIP JAR

"What feels like work to you, is playing to others." Lenfantvivant

"Hey, I'm home."

Entering the house, you instantly noticed no lights were on. As well as the lack of noise you'd never expect when Scout was home alone. It couldn't be much later than 6, but well into the fall season, the sky was black when you pulled in. Once inside, you noticed the sole lights on in the house were those in the bedroom. Though rather than the typical warm-white light you were used to, a bright red escaped the crack between the door and its frame making you equally curious and uneasy.

It wasn't just the silence that made you uncomfortable or the odd darkness. Still, the combination of those things specifically had your nerves on edge—today marked the six-month anniversary of your relationship with Scout. Given his careless, self-obsessed nature, one would think he'd be the type to forget about this kind of thing, but he never did. You half-hoped to luck out today while unable to shake the suspicion Scout had something planned for later.

You crept closer but couldn't hear anything but a bit of movement from the other side. When you were at the doorway, you took a deep breath, stealing your inner resolve before using your fingertips to push the door open to peep inside gently.

It took a moment for your eyes to adjust to the odd lightning inside. To your surprise, there weren't actually any red lights on, but rather some red towels hanging over the bedside table lamps, turning the light from the white bulbs deep red as well as dimming them slightly, emphasizing the long dark shadows in the room, making the entire place feel seedy. Even the window had a red sheet drawn across the curtain rod, rendering the whole night sky invisible to you, save for the light of the half-moon and a few bright stars.

Scout must've missed the sound of you coming home as you caught him fiddling with something on the dresser with his back to you as you entered. But now, in the same room with him, you instantly caught his attention, making him abandon whatever he was doing to greet you with a crushing hug. "Hey, you're back!"

He kissed your cheek as you limply returned the hug, going through the motions of letting him kiss you and forcing a loving smile as he wrapped his arms around your waist. As you let your arms slip away from his shoulders, stepping back to break the hug, you couldn't ignore how odd the room looked, bathed in bright red. "Scout, what is all this?"

He didn't answer your question, just beamed at you with a big smile, "Ya like it?"

You raised an eyebrow, "It looks fine, but why?"

Scout inched a little closer, slinging one arm around your shoulder and pulling you to his chest, "C'mon, don'tcha know what day it is?"

You nodded, "I do…"

"Well, six months is a long time, ain't it? Thought it's 'bout time we did somethin' a lil extra special to celebrate!" He didn't really answer your question, feeling content enough to have his arm around your shoulders, holding you nice and close to his chest while he admired his handiwork, turning the unwanted-ly shared bedroom into something even sleazier.

But you knew better than to tell him you thought the room looked tacky or pornographic. Your brows creased as you tried to follow wherever he was going with this, "Celebrating with red lights?"

"Red lights aaand-" Using his free hand, he gestured with his thumb to where he was standing before you entered.

You followed his thumb with your eyes, realizing it wasn't something on the dresser he was messing with before you showed up. It was a camera on a tripod, about the same level as the dresser, pointed at the bed. "A camera?"

He didn't respond, but he didn't need to. That dumb look on his face, as well as the red light on the camera indicating a recording in progress, the shabby lighting, covering the windows and giving no indications he had anything in mind, waiting until you were home and exactly where he wanted you before showing you all this, were all the clues you needed to piece together what he had in mind for tonight.

"Scout, you cannot be serious!" You sidestepped away from him snappily, making the arm previously around your shoulders slide right off. Scout looked genuinely surprised to see you acting so resistant. You never wanted this relationship, you hated Scout, but he knew how to keep you compliant. Before you agreed to the relationship, he was constantly bugging you, blowing up your phone with calls and texts, which was annoying but not difficult to brush off. For the longest time, you saw him as just another creep and nothing more, more persistent than most you knew, but hardly anything special. You had yet to learn how far he would take things.

Even when he pestered you and acted immature, you never truly thought of Scout as a bad guy. You wanted to believe deep down he was sweet, just a bit misled. But when loved ones began turning up in the hospital, almost died from blunt force trauma, or when personal belongings turned up smashed to pieces, you knew who was behind it all, but even worse, you knew what you had to do to make it stop.

And it was under threat of violence to yourself or the ones you love that kept you quiet and obedient for the longest time. It wasn't a good situation to be in, but it sure as hell was better than the alternative. The past 6 months were essentially a blur when it came to your personal life; you would go home, and there he was. That was all there was to it. Scout wasn't a complete monster, and occasionally, you'd even catch glimpses of that "good boy" you thought he always was deep down.

This must've been the first time you tried to resist him in ages. "If it took this long for me to stick up for myself, is it bad I can hardly remember what the hell I was agreeing to before now?" You wondered to yourself.

Scout rolled his eyes, grabbing your shoulder with one hand to keep you from slipping away any further, "I don't get why you're acting like it's a big deal- it's just this one time, c'mon!" You'd admire his audacity if it weren't so infuriating. You weren't sure how many more" just this once-s" you had left in you. It was hard to stomach the disgust and guilt for playing along and letting him get what he wanted, but trying to refuse him was even more challenging, and you already knew no matter what you had to say, he'd get his way by the end of the night.

Eyeing up the camera, you crossed your arms over your chest. Scout's grip on you was too tight for you to escape entirely, "You're not gonna make this… weird, are you?"

He chuckled, "How weird are we talking'?"

You frowned, "Like gross weird. Like, you're not going to make me pretend to be your sister or something creepy, right?" Maybe giving him ideas like this was wrong, but you were already so uncomfortable you didn't know how much worse things could get.

You recoiled as he laughed, clearly not bothering to take your concerns seriously. "I wasn't gonna! But I mean, hey- if ya wanted, I don't mind playin' big brother-"

You grit your teeth, fighting back a chill of disgust. "Don't you dare finish that sentence!"

Scout gave your shoulder a reassuring squeeze, perhaps not entirely oblivious to your discomfort, "Relax, relax, I'm just messin' with ya! Just wanna help loosen up a lil before I start rearranging your guts and all."

You blinked, not entirely sure how to respond to that. "Alright then… So what do you want me to do?"

Scout leaned over to kiss the top of your head, "All ya gotta do is get on the bed and look real pretty. Leave all the rest to me."

You nodded, prepared to get all this over with as soon as possible, about to step past him and make yourself comfortable on the bed when you felt his hand on your shoulder, "Hang on, I wanna make this count. Can we start with a kiss?"

You turned to respond, but before you could say anything, you felt his palm against your cheek, guiding your face to connect with his. If you were unsure if Scout wanted to go through with all this, you weren't questioning it anymore. Keeping one hand resting against the side of your face, his other hand blindly ushered the rest of your body to draw even closer, finding the small of your back to pull you in nice and close. He wasn't the best kisser and almost always lost himself in the spur-of-the-moment excitement to the detriment of his technique and general lack of experience. But clearly, he was at least trying to hold himself back a bit, trying not to overwhelm you. For only a moment, you pondered his change in demeanor, only to feel a chill running down your spine as you realized you forgot to ask earlier if the camera was already recording or not, or even worse, just how many other cameras he might have set up you'd yet to discover.

Scout's fingers toyed with the bottom of your shirt's hem for a few seconds before his hand slipped under your top, stroking your lower back with his fingers slowly, wanting to savor the moment, trying so hard to fight off his own impulsive desire to slam you against the bed and make you moan his name like a porn star. You broke the kiss with your eyes remaining focused on his lips, feeling a confusing affectionate stir in your chest from the lopsided toothy grin staring back at you.

Scout wanted you to play pretend with him and go along with his "directing" for tonight. It made your head spin, trying to remember if you were supposed to act as his adoring lover or a sexy actor for his adult film in a cynical, morbid way. Though you knew you could sell the character easily enough, you already had so much experience pretending to go along with his possessive, often violent whims in and outside the bedroom; how could this be all that different? How could (hopefully) one camera make all that kind of difference?

Trying to put on a soft and needy voice, you whispered, "I don't wanna wait more- can't we get into bed already? We can keep kissing there, can't we?" It never took more than some doe-eyes and a breathy "please" to get Scout to do what you wanted. When it came to the bedroom, he was almost always all talk.

Scout smiled, letting you pull him into bed, but stopped you when you started to undress yourself.

"Lemme do it," he nodded at the camera, "Gotta make sure you're doin' it nice and slow."

It was hard not to roll your eyes, but somehow you managed. Settling down into bed with your head at the pillows and your side to the camera while Scout crawled on top, peeling off his own shirt in the process.

Honestly, it was a bit more awkward and stiff to lay back and let Scout undress you than actually discomforting. You consciously avoided looking at the camera while he worked, as though it would do anything to salvage your dignity. It saddened you that no matter how much you hated him, there was always that frustrating little part of you that still felt arousal for Scout. That little part of you that would always want him, no matter how you hated him or how he humiliated you, it was never enough to make you stop wanting him.

With your compliance, Scout could slip off your shirt overhead, followed by your bra, intentionally dropping them to the floor in front of the camera for dramatic effect. But when he popped the button on your pants, his excitement picked up slightly, tugging the fabric down your legs. Lowering his head to your navel, bracing himself on hands and knees around you, Scout gripped the top of your underwear between his teeth, straining the fabric against your body before tugging down.

It wasn't hard to help move your legs as he worked them down your legs with his mouth, but you weren't expecting to see Scout still holding the little bunch of fabric between his teeth as he looked back into place overhead, sitting back on his haunches, almost straddling your hips to keep both his hands free. He waited until he had your attention until your eyes focused on his mouth before pulling them free and keeping his eyes on your face as he pressed the fabric directly under his nose and huffed.

The subsequent moan of satisfaction made you cringe, keeping your eyes screwed shut and looking to the side as you made a sound of disgust. You hated how you could still hear his heavy breathing and cruel laugh, how he could prolong your discomfort without laying a hand on you, without being seen.

"Wassamatter? You wanna turn?" He pulled the cotton away from his face just enough to taunt you by dangling the garment over your head, tickling your cheek slightly.

"I'll pass."

Scout pouted, "It's your loss, ya know." He balled them up slightly with his fingers before squishing your cheek with his finger like he was teasing a baby.

"You sicko…" Eventually, with a sigh of disappointment, he tossed them to the side, lowering back down on all fours, his face much closer to yours. You were shocked to see an almost gentle, loving look on his face, his hands falling over yours at your sides on the bed. Before speaking, he gave them a soft squeeze before guiding your dominant hand into place over your sex, the other resting against the top of your hip, fingers brushing the very tip of your thigh.

"I'm only teasing' ya. C'mon ya know I love ya, an' you drive me freakin' crazy, lemme make ya feel real good. Tonight, we can start slow."

You flushed at the unexpected sweetness. Nodding once, you felt your breath hitch when Scout started to pulse his fingers over yours. Closing your eyes, you allowed yourself to pick up on the buzzy feeling deep inside, feeling extra sensual under the moody, red light.

True to his word, Scout followed your pace and mirrored your gentle touches. "Don't worry about going all out. Let's just getcha warmed up first, alright baby?" He said, kissing your forehead, grazing his lips against your forehead with every word with such a gentleness you managed to let yourself believe Scout could be trusted, imagining the gross scenario into something romantic. Like the two of you were innocent sweethearts fooling around behind closed doors, this wasn't anything grave, just a bit of naughty fun now that he had you all to himself. Or you were back home safe, and your loved ones were waiting for you just beyond the bedroom door.

But as the pleasant fantasy unfolded, it began to take a dark turn as though your own brain were acting out, trying to punish you for taking pleasure in such an undignified situation at the hands of such an awful person. A primal, unforeseen, and unmanageable fear flooded your mind, making you too scared to open your eyes, heightening all physical sensations. In your mind, you imagined the scene playing out. Your naked, weak body spread wide for all to see, the warm red lighting turning into hellfire, the man in bed with you into a demon. You weren't in your bedroom. You were in hell! Humiliated and treated like a whore by a demon, leered at by perverse faces who watched hidden from the shadows.

Abruptly, you locked up, your hands flying from between your legs, and you sat up, backing up against the wall to avoid knocking heads with Scout, feeling suddenly cold all over, like someone just poured an icy bucket of water all over you.

Scout looked at you confused, "Hey, chill out will ya! You're alright- What's wrong?"

Looking around the room self-consciously, you cleared your throat. The primal feeling of "something is wrong" had lifted, making you blank on exactly why you did what you just did. The feeling is much like suddenly snapping yourself out of a nightmare. You weren't in hell; there was no demon in the room with you and no shadowy figures watching you from the corners. You were right back in your unpleasant but expected reality. "Sorry, I uh- Just forgot about the camera for a second…"

He nodded, surprised to hear such a mild reason for the dramatic reaction. "Oh. You want me to cover it with a towel or something?"

You slackened, raising an eyebrow. "Will you cover the lens too?"

"Nope!"

Nodding, you sighed, "Never mind, I'm fine, I can keep going."

"Atta girl!" He congratulated you for going on with a pat on the shoulder as he sat up, crawling over to the lip of the bed where he could spread his legs and let them dangle down the side of the bed. Scout looked over his shoulder and gestured with his head, beckoning you to crawl closer as he patted the bed beside him. You realized a beat too late. Scout positioned himself, spread his legs wide, right where the camera lens was pointed, and waited for you to hurry up and get into place to do the same.

Softly, you padded closer on all fours as he spread his legs a little wider the closer you crawled. You were about to straddle his lap, facing him as Scout so often begged of you, when he put a hand on your shoulder, forcing you to pause.

"Nah, not like that- get on facing the camera. I wanna get a good view when I watch this back!" He didn't even really sound perverse as much as he sounded genuinely excited, but the hard-on between his legs was all the reminder you needed of his true intentions here, not to mention how overheated his body felt so close to yours. Awkwardly, you tried to situate yourself on his lap in this new position. It was too embarrassing to look at the camera and do this, so you kept your eyes down as you crawled out from behind him, letting Scout use his arms to help you stay balanced and guide you into place.

You must've looked as nervous as you felt. Scout leaned his face right next to your ear as he whispered, "Don't be shy, I've gotcha, I'm not gonna letcha fall. You're gonna look so sexy on tape, babe." His fingers drummed over and smoothed against your sensitive skin as he spoke, making it prickle.

With your weight balanced well enough on his lap, Scout's hands slithering up from your sides to cup your chest, groping against your tits with a teasing kind of playfulness. Even if he's wiry, he's so warm it makes you melt. Prompting you to mindlessly press yourself even harder down on his lap, feeling his stiff throb against your ass. His breath ghosts against your neck between kisses, you try to sync your breath to his, feeling the way it quickened every time you squeezed and palmed up his thighs.

The feeling of harsh teeth and a humid, wet tongue on your neck make you wince, mindlessly rolling your heat against Scout's lap, the instant reaction spurring him on all the more, as he took a hard nick to the side of your neck. You can feel Scout's trademark wonky teeth, coated with enough saliva to ooze out of his mouth, leaking all over you, forming thin trails connecting his lips to the wet spot he created, even as he pulled away. You were painfully pinned into place between Scout's mouth and his crushing grip on both your tits, making you groan in frustration as you felt trapped but unable to get any proper relief from either direction. But just as you were about to try and wriggle away, to get just a bit of space away from the man to catch your breath, Scout returned for another bite.

Intentionally, Scout aimed to target the already irritated skin. The pain intensified, and you felt yourself yelp as you began wriggling even harder to try and stop the pain. But Scout clung to you like a feeding leech, refusing to budge an inch.

The pain in such a sensitive area turned you on, but when you felt him drawing blood, your fear overtook your arousal. You didn't like how bold he was getting in front of the camera."F-fucking hell! Scout!"

To your disappointment, your attempts at stopping his abuse had the complete inverse effect. He let out a shallow moan, huffing as the breath got caught in his throat, grinding against the slick-with-sweat flesh of your backside, almost laughing with delight, "Beg again, just like that!"

"Sco-out! God! Please, more!"

"Beg harder- I wanna-God, I wanna hear you whine-"

You responded instantly, your brain well-past cock hungry and unaware of how pathetic you sounded, "Scout, Sc-scout! C'mon, please!" Fortunately, your muscles didn't have to strain much longer in that position, as Scout responded to your plea by thrusting fully inside, an action which would've been painful if not for your lustiness.

Feeling that maddening yearning between your legs finally satisfied, you couldn't help but let out a breathy sigh of relief, allowing your body to go limp, bouncing slightly as he continued to pound against your motionless body.

"Start touchin' yourself again, just like before- Go on and show off how freakin' hot you look when you come." Scout didn't need to tell you twice. One hand latched over one of his hands still covering your tit as you gripped the mound of skin through his hand while your dominant hand found your clit. Rolling the nerves between your fingertips, you felt the pleasure pick up in waves as your body relaxed into Scout, allowing him to keep your body nice and propped up for the camera while you chased your orgasm.

From the inside, Scout could feel how close you were just as well as you could. The end was so near for you, but you wanted it now, wanted to feel Scout fuck you even harder, treat you like an animal, and go as hard as he could. To encourage him, you begged again, "Hard as you can, Scout! Feels- ah! You feel so fucking good!"

In truth, you didn't even know if you gave him enough time to react before you were gripping down on his prick and riding out your high for all it was worth. Scout was so focused on not bursting before you all night that the sight of you at last climaxing over his lap practically made Scout come on the spot. But after watching you come to settle down from your orgasm, Scout was able to regain his thoughts well enough to complete a few more deep thrusts between your thighs before everything went white. All his muscles tensed as he came before slackening, forcing him to wrap both arms around your shoulders to keep from flopping backward. Scout's head felt all light and dizzy. He needed to take a second before he was ready to move. Keeping his eyes closed, he mindlessly buried his head back into the crook of your neck to continue panting heavily, offering a few more sloppy, gentle kisses as he caught his breath.

It was easy to stay like this. Scout wasn't acting pushy or demanding your submission; all you had to do was sit and support him. Usually, Scout could manage a near-instant recovery, but tonight, he sounded more spent than ever. And eventually, you lost track of time the longer you sat there.

After all that, your mind eventually began to wander. While you were responsive, aware of the space around you and what was going on, and even communicative in a small sense, broadly speaking, your mind had checked out. Despite all the invasion of privacy, lack of dignity, and bodily coercion, at some point, that little voice in your head that continued to remind you this was wrong, the self-blame and feeling responsible for letting him do this to you, apathy began to roll in like a stormcloud and block out your distress.

You were so tired, and on a primal level, you found the presence of another warm body in bed with you soothing enough to relax you, lulling you into an almost tranquil state. Your exhausted mind was no longer worried about Scout's hungry eyes against your naked body or the harsh red LED from the camera locked in on your location. The red towel covering the lamps and the red light illuminating the room stopped looking garish. It wasn't natural, but it felt oddly cozy and warm. You stopped paying attention to Scout altogether and became lost, staring out the window covered by the red blanket. Even behind the heavy fabric, you could make out the outline of the half-moon and a few bright stars in the clear sky.

By the time Scout finally pulled himself off the bed to clean himself up, you realized you had no idea how long your mind went blank staring at the wall. He offered you a hand out of bed, which you accepted, feeling pins and needles in your stiff joints as you followed him to the bathroom, trying not to look at yourself in the mirror while scrubbing yourself clean. Scout continued to chatter as he returned to bed, trying his hardest to get you nice and comfortable before he settled down.

Wrapped in a soft blanket, curled up at his side, you were at peace. A boundary was crossed tonight, and you knew you'd likely regret all this come morning, but at least it was over, and sleep wasn't far away. You weren't uncomfortable or in pain, but something in your gut didn't feel quite right. This wasn't how relationships were supposed to go, and boundaries like this weren't ever supposed to be broken, but then again, could you even remember the last time Scout had treated you like a boyfriend "should"?

He held you in his arms, told you he loved you, and called you beautiful, but it wasn't good enough. Nothing about tonight, about the relationship, and to be honest, almost nothing about Scout himself was quite right.

Nestled like a little chick in its nest, you allowed Scout to cradle your compliant body, feeling thankful for the soft fabric separating your body from his. You couldn't try to fight him back at all like this or defend yourself, but after all you'd just been through, what was the point? At least like this, it was all the easier to do what he wanted of you: lay back, keep quiet, and pretend you were hopelessly in love.

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artistsfuneral · 11 months

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The Road to Kaer Morhen - p.2 (there's an ao3 link now!)

Ultimately Jaskier decided on buying a long coil of rope and use the leftover coin to invest in a little Good Luck charm – not that he necessarily believed in the gods, but he liked the tradition. Given the fact that he had no idea what would await him on the path it really seemed like the best choice, but in the end only time could tell how much that was the case. Purchasing the rope went without any complications. The vendor clearly eyed the puffy sleeves of his favorite red and teal doublet, but decided not to comment on it further than a raised eyebrow.

The second stall though was tended to by a young woman, who had been staring at Jaskier for quite some time now. Like most sisters of the temple of Melitele, she wore a carmine dress and white shawl to resemble the goddess. Their eyes met and the bard immediately broke into the wide smile of a professional charmer. “A wonderful morning, isn't it, sweet lass?” She giggled, holding up her hand to hide how her cheeks reddened from Jaskier's gaze. “You're not from around here, are you?” she asked, busying her brown eyes by looking anywhere but Jaskier's face, who had yet to figure out if she was indeed as shy as she acted or simply a performer like himself. “Oh you are correct indeed, I am a humble traveler on my way south,” Jaskier lied with a flourish bow. “I certainly would have remembered the name of such a bewitching young lady as yourself, had we met before.” A delighted little sound escaped her mouth and she smiled down at her fidgeting hands. “My name is Josi. I was named after a cat.”

Each and every day Jaskier was reminded why he chose a life traveling the country over sitting in an estate all day and ruling over one. While he could very vividly picture Geralt's confused face in his mind, unexpected conversations like this brought him nothing but pure joy. Meeting new people, getting to know the most random facts through a conversation and being able to connect with them one way or another made the bard happy. “That is a wonderful name, Josi. I am Dandelion the Poet, I was named after a flower.” She giggled once more, “I like dandelions. They're yellow and puffy.”

“I like them too,” he agreed, imagining for a moment how he might look in a yellow doublet with puffed shoulders and a matching hat. It had been a while since he last tailored his own stage clothing but if he was spending an unforeseeable time in a fortress in the mountains it'd indubitably give him something to do during the awfully long summer days.

“Would you like to buy something?” Josi asked sweetly, pulling him away from his thoughts and back into the town, where he was standing at a market stall. “I'd love that,” Jaskier said, smiling when the young woman nodded her head in excitement. “Say, I've been eying that blue charm ever since I saw it, would you sell it to me?” Mimicking his smile she carefully held up a beautifully crafted sachet for the bard to inspect closer. Jaskier, who was drawn in by everything bright and colorful, gently took hold of the bag and openly marveled at it. It was a saturated, bright blue and had little golden flowers and a green vine stitched into it. The embroidery was of excellent quality and the little bag carried the soft smell of lavender and lemon grass. “You can pay less for it,” Josi offered, meeting Jaskier's eyes for a short moment as if to make sure he knew that she was being honest with him. Normally he'd accepted her goodwill in a heartbeat but Jaskier would have no use for coins if he was hiding away in the wilderness. “It is quite alright, dear, I can see that this was put together with a lot of care. It's only fair I pay you the full price.”

“You're very kind, Dandelion,” Josi spoke quietly, making Jaskier's stomach swoop.

“I try to be.”

After paying with the last of his coin, Jaskier bade Josi farewell with a gentle wave of his hand and the promise to think of her the next time he saw a colorful cat.

The way back to the inn wasn't extraordinarily long, but the streets had filled with the town's people and Jaskier had to carefully navigate his way through the crowd without bumping into anyone more than necessary. Meeting the eyes of the baker he winked at the man through his shop window, before opening the wide door to the inn and slipping inside. The air in the entrance was already warm and stuffy, promising an even warmer afternoon. Much like he did with everyone else, Jaskier greeted the innkeeper with a warm smile and a wave of his hand, before making his way up the stairs and to his room.

Upon entering the bard was met with a loud yawn and the view of his companion, sitting up in bed and arms stretched towards the ceiling. He chuckled, “Finally awake, sleepy head?”

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hanayori89 · 1 year

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No Woman Beyond (Honeymoon Edition)

A/N: If you don't like sex content- this is not your chapter! You have been forewarned.

It was easy to see how one could get lost here.

You had your arms fastened securely around Link's waist, as he directed Epona through the Gerudo Desert. A thin piece of wood acted as a plank connecting you to the main bridge that led to the fortress. Epona maneuvered in a poised fashion over the plank. She began to pick up speed once you crossed over it. Within a few seconds, Link directed her to a halt as you approached the fortress. Upon your arrival you were taken aback by the fortresses' deserted state.

"Link, aren't there supposed to be guards? Or prisoners?" You couldn't help but feel a chill run through you at the vision of the desolate fortress. It also wasn't helping that the sun was setting. The desert can be quite chilly when nighttime approaches. Why would Link choose this as the first stop on your honeymoon tour of Hyrule?

Link dismounted Epona and held his hand up to you. As you took his hand and began to swing your legs around to jump off, Link took you in his arms, catching you instead. His body was the perfect shield against the dropping temperature. He held you for a moment without saying anything, until he unwillingly pulled away. "Thank you... for saying yes. I know that you may see that as silly. All I can think about is all the things that could have scared you away. Now you're here with me and-" a hint of red began to poke through his cheeks, "I want to show you my gratitude."

You couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. The fiery Link from the contest inconspicuously buried beneath awkward Link, who stood before you unsure. You wrapped your arms around his neck in a reassuring gesture. You saw his insecurities poking through much like your own had. You wanted to do anything you could to quell them. They didn't deserve a place in the bed you'd be sharing from now on. "Link, we were friends before we were lovers. There isn't a single thought in that reserved head of yours that could ever have scare me away from you. Although... " You began to dart your eyes around frantically. "Just reassure me there are no prisoners waiting inside to get me."

"There will be only one prisoner inside." His ambiguous statement was marked by a lusty drop of his voice. This was the hero you were waiting for. The one that practically ravaged your neck in front of all of Hyrule without a second thought.

"What did you do?"

He grabbed your hand, ushering you along inside the fortress. "Let's just say that Nabooru felt indebted to me because of my help with the Spirit Temple. While there wasn't a single thing I wanted in return, I did run this idea by her. She was more than accommodating. All of the prisoners and guards have been evacuated. They will be staying at the Spirit Temple until tomorrow."

You entered the western part of the fortress, where Link and you entered a tower. You knew this tower from his story of when he was captured by the Gerudo guards. Of course, you never understood why they wouldn't have barred the windows. Or stripped him of his stuff. Nevertheless, Link escaped and actually earned appraisal from the Gerudos for his remarkable craft.

You could make out the faint outline of the setting sun beyond the window. The marble interior of the fortress amplified the chill in the desert air. Link noticed, wrapping you into his arms. "I brought blankets. Although, I have a few activities that will keep us both warm." He whispered into your neck. His voice cut off by the sound of his panting breath. You felt the warmth that radiated from his body leave your side, his breathy whispers becoming further away.

"Y/N."

You turned around only to see Link swiftly draw his sword from his back. Your breath hitched as the cool blade rested on your clavicle. In one hurried motion, he cut the straps of your dress.

"Link!"

The animalistic gaze from when you spoon fed him in the contest returned. Warmth and excitement surged through you, erasing how frigid you felt moments ago. You stood astounded at how quick Link could flip his character. A thrill shot through you then. Even though he was Link, your best friend; he was also the freaking Hero of Time. You watched with surreptitious longing as he returned from each temple, more masculine than the last. The journey he undertook truly had evolved him into a man. There was a dirty little secret you held close to your chest. You hadn't actually wanted Link to teach you how to shoot. You simply wanted to feel his body next to yours. You wanted to feel the body you dreamt of lying next to each night. The body that made you squirm in your sheets with desire. Now you were about to bare yourself in the rawest way possible for him to devour.

"Undress." Link's voice was sharper than the blade he held at you.

The impish side of you came out. You ignored the throbbing that began in between your legs. "And if I don't?"

"Who's holding the sword here?"

You glanced downward, letting your eyes settle on the now clearly visible erection beneath his tunic. Then it all became clear. You knew exactly what Link's angle was and goddesses did you enjoy it. You continued to let your eyes linger upon his powerful hard on. Despite his confident demeanor, Link couldn't fool you as his cheeks began to redden. You decided to play along.

"I suppose you do."

You took the bunched fabric you held up over your breasts, gracefully letting it slide down. The fabric lay loosely, a divine halo emphasizing your hips. Link sucked his breath in, not completely sure you weren't a mirage. "So much better in person." Link whispered.

The response caught you off guard. "What is that supposed to mean?"

The error of Link's words caught up to him. "I-I what I meant to say was-" Link knew he would have to tell the truth. He scratched the back of his neck in a nervous tick you recognized from his youth. "Remember when I showed you the lens of truth?" His voice seemed to dip at the word 'truth.'

"Yes..." You arched your eyebrow upward not liking where this was going.

"I may have inadvertently... seen underneath your clothing with it."

You stomped your foot in response. "Inadvertently? You've already seen me naked?" Link fluttered his baby blues at you, a waggish grin forming beneath them. "I needed something to think about when I was alone. You know-"

"That's why you were awkward with me!" You realized you couldn't even blame him. You'd have done the same if the lens of truth was in your possession. "Well, it seems we'll have to get even then. Won't we Mr. Hero?"

You let your hands fall to your breasts. You massaged their voluptuous tissue before you stopped at your nipples, letting your thumbs graze across them. They hardened in front of Link. You didn't fight against the moan that slid from your throat. You moved your hands downward to the dress that lay on your hips. "Drop your sword and I'll drop the rest of my gown."

Link did as he was told, the stoic hero now officially buried. His eyes shamelessly roamed every curve of your body. You slid your gown down, standing in your f/c panties. The scraps of setting sun in the dungeon flirted with the now nude image of your body. You weren't sure if it was the desert air or the fact you now belonged to Link, but you felt intoxicated.

"You look like a goddess." Link whispered as his eyes met your face in disbelief. "I've waited so long. I must have you." He took a few steps toward you only to be greeted by your hand blocking his way. You grabbed both his hands, meshing your body against his. You kissed him with unbridled vigor. Licking, sucking and teasing him until you felt his back hit the marble wall. You had him where you wanted him. You pulled away, only to yank his head back, running a trail of your saliva down his throat. His hat fell, revealing his tousled ponytail underneath.

"Enough playing around!" He hissed in a throaty tone. Before he could overpower you and pull you back into him; you picked up the sword he dropped.

"Now who's holding the sword?"

Link couldn't help but give you an amused smile. "Clever. I'd expect nothing less from my wife."

"I bet you wouldn't expect this either." You decided to take delight in torturing him. You both waited years, what would a few more minutes matter. You took the tip of the sword's hilt, caressing it with a flick of your tongue.

"Wh-what are you-" Link fell to his knees. You kept ravaging the hilt with your tongue. Little strings of saliva dribbled down it, glimmering beneath the desert dusk. You peered at Link, meeting his gaze before you took the hilt fully into your mouth. You began to bob your head up and down slowly, refusing to break eye contact. Link began to writhe his body in discomfort. He adjusted his erection, letting out a small whimper as he attempted to fix it.

You continued your erotic fellatio session only to become distracted by Link's increased fidgeting. "Y/N, I'm hurting. Please." You pulled your mouth off the hilt giving it a small, wet kiss on the tip. You dropped the sword and stood above Link. You took your hand, cupping his chin and forcing his face upward. "Did I just hear the hero surrender?"

Link buried his face into your stomach, kissing and biting the flesh on your lower abdomen. He mumbled into your skin," You just heard the hero trick you." He grabbed both of your wrists as you fought against his grip. He leapt up, grabbing your lips between his thin, hardened ones. You became lost to the rhythm of his tongue working itself in and out of your mouth. Suddenly, an itchy band cuffed your wrists. He had tricked you, indeed. Your wrists were now bound together by a rope that he single-handedly tied about them.

"When I'm through with you, you'll be the one begging." He warned into your ear. "Get on your knees." The brash demands resumed where they had left off. You did as you were told. You felt wetness accumulate in your panties. You needed some type of friction. Some type of relief.

Link grabbed a blanket, setting it beneath you. He rolled it up into a pillow. "Lie down." He helped adjust your body to the blanket, resting your head on the pillow he created. He laid on top of you, besides his hat, he was still fully clothed. His lips swallowed yours in a few sweet maneuvers. Then he kissed your forehead, looking into your eyes. You could feel his cock through his pants as the weight of his body pinned you down. You gently rocked your hips against him, grateful for the liberation of pleasure. Until Link pulled his body off you. "Ah, ah, ah. Not yet, greedy girl."

He submerged you with kisses from your lips, down your neck until he hit your breasts. The fabric of the chafed gauntlet still on his hands as he rubbed your breasts until they felt swollen. Goddesses, how you wanted to fill the fortress with your moans. As if by telepathy, Link got into your ear, "I purposely had this place evacuated. There isn't a soul here but us. There's no reason for you to hold back." Then with a gentle nibble of your earlobe, he resumed kneading your breasts. Your nipples stood pert; Link's lips continued to roam any bare piece of your flesh he could discover. Until finally he swooped in, allowing himself a deliberate suckle of your nipple.

"Oh!" You couldn't help but flounder beneath him in ecstasy. His eyes met yours and he released his grip on your nipple. "I've discovered a weakness." He gave you a slick grin before he continued pillaging your nipples with his lips.

"Link! I-" You helplessly pressed your legs together. Anything to relieve the aching in between them. He was flagrant with the loud suckling noises that he made. He took momentary lulls where he would just moan into your skin and stare at you adoringly. Between the pressure you created by rubbing your legs together, the barrage of nibbling on your breasts; you felt a wave of immense pleasure seize you.

"LINK!" He ignored your cries. He mashed your breasts together while gazing at you beneath his lashes. "Mmmm," he took turns doting on each nipple with his tongue. That was the move that really sent you over the edge.

"OH! GODESSES!" You began to lurch forward from the orgasm that rocked throughout your body.

Link stopped his erotic task, leveling himself eye to eye with you. "Did you just come?

Your head hung over the rolled-up blanket. Your hair surrounded you in a pool of h/c. Your eyes were closed as you continued to regain composure. Your chest continued to balloon in and out from the immense panting you were doing.

"Did I give you permission to come?" Link pulled himself up to your shoulder, clasping some of your flesh between his teeth. The sudden impact of his teeth made you gasp with delight.

"First, you make me wait at my own competition. Then, you decide you'll just come without me. Is that anyway to treat your husband who saved Hyrule?"

The mock pity party made you giggle. You realized he was waiting for you to taunt him some more. You secretly loved the fact that even during sex you both had such a strong bond you could joke around. It helped ease your apprehension.

"The type of hero I need is one who will alleviate all my arousals."

"Ah, I see." Link knotted your hair in between his fingers as he massaged your scalp. He gave your hair a slight tug, pulling your head back. The delicate skin of your neck on display as he circled his nose into the crook of it and began to murmur. "So, the type of hero your body needs... would he do something like this?"

You felt his fingers rub the outside of your panties. Even though you just came, you couldn't resist the whines that escaped. "Link... mmm" You gyrated your hips to meet the pace of his fingers. He lowered his face in between your legs, letting ragged little breaths tickle your clit. You knew what was coming next. You knew you had no chance of winning this round either.

Link took his teeth, pulling at your panties and smoothly tugged them down. Once he had them around your knees, he grew impatient. He snatched them off with his hands, leaving your legs open and on display.

"Goddesses, I've imagined this for the longest time." He began to strum your clit like he was playing an instrument. The noises you made eluded you. He pumped his fingers in and out of you, the sound of your wetness filled the uninhabited fortress.

You ruffled his hair in between your fingers. You tried to gently direct his tongue to soak up some of your juice, but he just continued to watch you writhe beneath his fingers. "Do you want to come again?" Link asked as he continued to diligently play with you.

You didn't respond. You simply moaned, raising your hips up into the air to meet his fingers and go deeper inside of you. "If you guess the song I play, then I will reward you. Heavily."

You lied still, utterly confused by what he meant. Was he really going to just stop fingering you and play his ocarina? Then the warmth of his tongue slid itself up and down your pussy. You howled at the contact you so patiently were waiting for. You noticed he seemed to flick his tongue in directions. It dawned on you then, he was etching musical notes inside of you with his tongue. His tongue pressed into you, then it stroked your clit downwards, then upwards.

He continued this torturous stride. Meanwhile, all you could think about was sweet release.

In, down, up. In, down, up.

"The song of storms." You murmured as you pulled another tuft of his hair with your hand.

He pulled away, an appreciative glare in his eyes. He gave you a slight nod of affirmation. "So, you have been paying attention. Do you know why I chose that song?" You had a feeling this was going to be corny.

He got up, finally removing his tunic. He took each gauntlet off, letting them hit the floor. He continued to take off the remaining articles of clothing. You watched him, transfixed on the scars scattered around his body. You forgot he had asked you a question.

"I'm not sure I want to know." He stood in his boxers, before he gently slid them off. There were no longer any secrets between you. The image of his cock ruptured every single fantasy you've ever had about it. You felt your lower abdomen cramp in response to it. Then you decided you shouldn't be surprised. He was Hylia's chosen hero. And chosen he so apparently was. He held his hand out to you, lifting you off of the cold, dungeon floor.

Your wrists still tied together; he guided you to one of the walls. Retaining his chivalry, he moved your hair away from your neck. He gently pushed your body against the wall. Your nipples hardened as they felt the frigid marble against them. You could feel him rub your ass with his hands. He leaned in close, his hot breath warm against your ear. "I chose that song because I'm so proud I can harness the power to make you that wet." You knew he was going to say something corny.

He gave your ass a swift smack, taking your breath away. "OH! What was that for?"

"I'm still pissed you made me wait so long in the competition." You felt him caress the spot he spanked with his cock. You could feel warm, pre-cum ooze on your skin.

"Y/N." He sweetly kissed the side of your neck. "It's my turn to come." He thrusted himself into you from behind, catching you off guard. There was no build up. Each thrust was forceful and calculated. Whereas you were demure with your moans, Link had no indignity. He fluctuated from expletives one minute to loving mantras the next.

"I want to penetrate you!" He blurted out. You thought of Zelda and the comment about producing an heir. You were certain with the speed and voracity in which he was fucking you, an heir was imminent.

The sound of your flesh continued clapping together over the silent sand dunes that surrounded you. You couldn't hold out for much longer. He slowed his pace, only to release a hard smack on your ass again. Your skin slightly raw from the abrasion.

"I'm not Epona. Although, I'd say you ride her a lot better than me."

You knew the challenge was enough to send him over the edge. He gruffly grabbed your hair and pulled your head back, fucking you savagely. You didn't know another Hylian could possess such wicked strength. He licked the side of your throat, murmuring inaudible phrases into your flesh as he bit it.

You arched your back slightly more so that his cock would slide and hit your pussy. Both of you exploded in a moan as the orgasm began to peak through both of your bodies like a flicker of sunlight in the dark cell.

"OH, Link. I'm, I-" With a hollow grunt you felt semen began to seep inside of you. He continued to thrust until every little drop was expelled from him. Your knees began to buckle from orgasm, and you felt yourself begin to drop down. Link grabbed you, pulling you up into his arms and cradling your head into his chest. He rained kisses on the top of your head as he rocked you in his arms.

"There isn't a woman in Hyrule or beyond that could satiate me like you do." He whispered above you. "So, now you've seen who the Hero of Time really is. I don't know what came over me. Just ever since I saw you at the competition I-"

"Link. It's okay. We both felt the same thing. For a long time, I might add." You traced one of his scars with your finger. The thought creeping back in that you just had sex, in the Gerudo fortress, with the Hero of Time. "You're definitely the hero my body needs."

You looked up at him and he smiled warmly down at you. "Let's get you warm." He whispered into your lips as he dove in for one more kiss.

You both settled into each other's arms. Sleep began to force your eyes closed. That is until Link interrupted," I can't wait until you see what I have planned in Lake Hylia."

Your eyes shot open as you looked at Link. "What do you have planned?" The only answer he gave you was the sound of him snoring.

You guessed you wouldn't find out what delicious torture lie ahead until you got to Lake Hylia.

Wattpad with other fanfics listed below 👇🏻

#legend of zelda #link #loz #link x reader #ocarina of time #romance #fanfiction #smutty #smutwarning #wattpad #zelda ocarina of time #loz oot #oot link #zelda oot

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izunias-meme-hole · 7 months

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One Villainous Scene - “I Coveted That Wind I Suppose”

“Oh boy. Izunia is making a second OVS about Ganondorf.” Yes, I am… however I am going to be looking at the man, the myth, the One Shot Wonder himself, Wind Waker Ganondorf. Now this guy is considered one of the top 5 incarnations of the King of Evil for a few reasons; the design, Takashi Nagasako returning to voice him, the boss fight, but the main reason was a little unexpected addition to his character.

To explain, Wind Waker is set in a world where Hyrule got flooded under the ocean because Ganondorf was TOO close to winning, and there was no hero to stop him, in other words divine intervention happened. So, throughout the course of the game, Ganondorf searches for the other 2 pieces of the Triforce once again, starting with a 100 year wait for Princess Zelda to reincarnate, and after 100 years have passed he kidnaps literally any blonde girl with pointy ears, checking to see if they have the Triforce of Wisdom. And one of these girls was Link's sister, Aryll, meaning that this man just put this incarnation of The Hero, one who originally wasn't mean't to be in this destined bullshit, hot on his trial.

Throughout the course of the game Link has only seen a snip of him at the beginning, the damage he caused to Greatfish Isle, Phantom Ganons, and finally he sees the man himself at the Foresaken Fortress and gets saved by Tetra, Valoo, and King Daphnes. Then Link discovers that Tetra is in fact Princess Zelda, and a good long hours later Ganondorf gets ahold of her, and now our hero has to face this monster, only for the player and Link to see another end of him.

Ganondorf explains a part of his background, talking about the cruel and harsh desert that he grew up in and how he envied the grasslands of Hyrule, but never intended on having it all be buried underwater. If anyone has played Ocarina of Time, they know that he's half-lying out of his ass because yes, he did come from a brutal and harsh desert, but he was also an infamous king there, one who had great ambitions and sat in a tower built in Central Hyrule while everyone else suffered. In other words, this man is lying out of his ass, but it isn't in an attempt to manipulate Link... it's an attempt to convince himself that all of the destruction he's caused, all of the evil he's wrought, wasn't for nothing. Even someone who's never played OoT can tell that this is a selfish old relic who's committed a lot of horrors in the past and has convinced himself that they're all just. And even then, you can tell that he never actually desired destruction for the hell of it and carries regrets.

He then knocks Link out and unifies the Triforce, chuckling out of glee at the fact that he FINALLY is going to succeed, that his efforts won't be in vain, but then it's literally robbed from him when Daphnes touches it and wishes for Hyrule to drown for the future of Link, Zelda, and everyone else. This causes Ganondorf to have a full on breakdown, cackling hysterically as he realizes that everything he has ever done has been for nothing. His efforts to acquire the Triforce, his battle against the previous hero, and his current efforts to bring back Hyrule were all for nothing. He's a destructive being who's doomed to fail and he realizes it now, but he isn't going to lie down and be forgotten by this world, so he tries to kill Link and Tetra, only to be stabbed in the skull. At this point, he can't escape the inevitable and he knows it, so there's no cursing Link and Tetra, no swearing that he'll come back. He just dies.

In short, Ganondorf here is still a bastard, but he is a walking tragedy in this game due to his pathos. He's a man who wants to convince himself that everything he's done was worth it, a man who doesn't want to be forgotten by the tides of time, a man who wants to bring back a dead land and stop being the lord of a dead empire. Yet in the end, he realizes that all of his efforts were indeed for nothing, and he ends up dying inside of a drowned Hyrule, destined to be forgotten. You can’t help but pity him this time.

#ganondorf #ganon #the legend of zelda #legend of zelda #wind waker #one villainous scene #analysis

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popculturebuffet · 1 month

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Transformers More than Meets the Eye Retrospective: Dark Cybertron Part Deux (Patreon Review for Brotoman.EXE)

Hello all you happy people and welcome back to my more than meets the eye retrospective! It's the end of an era as we finish dark cybertron and bring an end to season one of IDW's transformers books. It's been a long road but we're finally done with an epic finale full of giant robot fights, douchebags getting suplexed and bisected dictators. IT's a good time.

To recap the last part:

Or for the long version, look at this link

When we last left off: Optimus was left at the mercy of a genocidal tyrant who wouldn't shut up, half the lost light was fighting for thier lives , the other half might of exploded , Starscream had concrete proof Primus hates him, and Bumblebee mostly stood around not doing much, which for once was actually the right call. Under the cut we finish that as three autobots debut, an autobot dies and another takes his place, and Shockwave tries to rewrite history without solving a mystery first, the blasphemy.

We open part 7 back on the Lost Light for the first time in a while as Hound is in command

Hound.. is a vetran soldier. I don't know much else and frankly I forgot he was on the ship, and had to look up if he leaves it after this season.. and he doesen't. How he's somehow in the chain of command is beyond me. I mean Blaster is still on board. How does Blaster rank bellow Hound? Blaster has casettes baby. He can do sound stuff.

Anyways the Amonites retreat, giving swerve a chance to realize he missed a call.. and everyone else to realise Magnus now has a LOT of problems as their all headed into Metroplex's eye. Impressive, not healthy you get it.

Inside the rodpod did explode but everyone was outside, so their safe though a legend was truly lost that day.

The Rodpod I

2013-2014 "An Embarrassment to Everyone but Rodimus himself"

- The TF Wiki

Skids does figure something out though: Turns out the reason the arrows looped them back around is that metroplex keeps shifting inside. They also notice Whirl's missing which can't be good. Speaking of can't be good Swirl calls.. and he's DEAD SERIOUS. How reality didn't fold in on itself is beyond me.

Yeah turns out the stuff they found in the water of Planet Danzig creates a "death plauge" And they need to get out now... then they need to get out now FASTER as the amonites are coming.

Back with Nova who continues to prattle about how he controls this unvierse, they can't beat him, his cybertronic turds smell like lilacs. Importantly it turns out I was wrong. the brand new space bridge isn't bumblebee, who escaped but Kup. Hazards of doing this in two parts without reading the second half first. Yes good ole Kup was apparnetly sucked into the dead universe during the infestation event, thank you editor box things, which wasn't on comixlogy unlimited at any point so I never read it. IT did feature the ghostbusters though so there's that.

Point is Kup's in danger. Our heroes , who have been taken from their prison cube to Nova's fortress, can't just up and run with him as his robot bones are brittle and he'll just snap if they move him. He then has nightbeat take thema way.. he dosen't say take them away but he damn well was thinking it.

Back with Shockwave he also mutters about how his plan is far from endgame but is less smug about it so I give him a pass. He's not happy Galvatron tore their space bridge in half but even without the ore he can fix this and has Galvatron carry off a bisected megatron, not trusting waspinator becuase "those damn kids always getting on my metallic lawn and such"

Back in prison turns out Nova has a reson to keep our heroes alive besides the sound of his own voice just not sounding as sweet if he's not berating someone else. He wants their sparks. Turns out Kup isn't a STABLE portal and thus if he wants to escape, he needs fresh sparks to keep the old man alight.

Things seem bleak.. when Rodimus gets an idea. He tells Nightbeat to look at his hand. While cyclonus wonders what the hell he's on about, which on a normal day would be entirely resonable with rodimus, turns out Rodimus has figured out how to free their old pal: The only time he's seemed like himself.. was when he was figuring out cyclonus, deducting the shit out of him. As he puts it it's shadowplay 101 to take away the part of a person that's most .. them. To supress it. So by giving Nightbeat a mystery to solve it fights it. Optimus is doubtful.. but is inttantly proven wrong: nightbeat HAS been trying to fight the brainwashing this whole time but Nova's so strong... but Rodimus presses on..

The answer of course is 190. It's a brilliant play and a brilliant scene: Rodimus rescues his friend.. simply by knowing him better. Rodimus may have a bunch of issues and the truth of this tally is a lot of them rolled up into one... but his strength is in people. He knows how to play them.. but he also knows how to comfort them, and forgetting that is what lead to most of his issues in season 1, ignoring what THEY needed or who THEY were. It's telling that after all he did and went through his two big moments int his crossover both come from empathy instead of his ego.

Nightbeat frees them while Rodimus prepares to come clean about what's been going on on the lost light.

Back on Cybertron Bee ambushes Galvatron and Waspinator, going full badass and telling Galvatron what he wants what he really really wants and he's sick of not getting what he wants what he really really wants. His blaster dosen't do much, immediate failure is Bee's brand after all, but it does distract him long enough for Bisected Megatron to shoot Galvatron and give us the greatest line ever

Bumblbee isn't happy with Megs chipper attiude, figuring the desolation of Cybertron is making him smile. That isn't, despite all his MANY flaws, Megatron loves this planet... he is however more than a little happy Starscream is in so much pain right now. Scoops calls Starscream out for using his position as Chosen One for his own personal gain while Starscream seethes.

Back with Team Magnus, turns out Whirl was being useful for once in a way that wasn't "shooting someone in the face" or "being hilarious" He was torturing an ammonite for informatoin, which isn't necessarily good but at least got us the info we need; Turns out the ammonites were still miffed and turns out I was wrong again: Whilr didn't END their war, just caused it to kick up with his murder, and they wanted payback.. and naturally Shockwave is behind this, having beefed them up in exchange for their help. Just as naturally the amonite explodes ove rit. Our heroes don't have time to process though as they get some fairly weak threats from above as two new players enter the game

Yup turns out Cybertron isn't the only planet with life as we meet Nautica and Chromia. Chromia won't play much of a roll HERE but is vital to another book whose lead we'll meet soon, but Nautica is a major part of the rest of More than Meets The Eye/Lost Light and i'm so happy to finally have her here. So ends part 7

Part 8 begins and ...

hey hey it's time to come over and have some fun with Megzy Taxi!

I will never get enough of this image. Megatron holdling his own legs, riding Bumblbee like a prom limo. I'm honestly disapointed Megs eventually gets put back together, I love this nonsense.

Back with Team Fuckup, prowl takes the lead.. and for once LISTENS to what someone else actually said deciding to be logical, reluctantly teaming up with soundave and telling Starscream to get his shit together. As for Rattrap he brought them here, as he really dosen't want god emperorship of a burning city.

Back with Team Magnus, Getaway disarms the standoff by revealing Nautica's autobrand. The Amonites break in and the team splits off: Ratchet and Magnus go with the new kids while Whirl and the others stay behind to keep the amonites off their backs. Ratchet breifly questions Chromia about her prounounds before deciding to drop it because the apocalypse is more important than finding out there's female robots.

The duo lead him to Metroplex's brain which is in his right shoulder

And we meet the final member of this trio, and while I love Nautica, she's easily the biggest introduction here for both the IDW comics (If not MTMTE) and transformers as a whole

We'll learn a little more about her as we go but windblade was a hyped intro... though apparently a contriversal one as she was part of a vote for a new transformer design.. and wasn't the one that won it. Protip DON'T do a fanvote if your not going to honor. Her Kabuki design didn't help, though I personallyt hink it's great; it gives her some unique flair.

Windblade's become important, being ported into both the Robots in Disguise cartoon and Transformers Cyberverse along with the movies. It's likely because the autobots didn't exactly have a tone of female characters, and Windblade's unique deisgn makes her stand out. Either way she's a welcome addition to the G1 pile.

Back with Team Rodimus, Rodimus finally explains the number: after a short recap of what happened with overlord and how he let Drift take the fall, he explains he told Magnus then the crew then invoked the crisis act: he let them decide if stayed as captain or not. He won.. but he carved the tally as a reminder of who he has to win back.

Optimus is.. less than sympathetic

It's unflinching harsh ... but i've come to accept it on this re-read as what Rodimus needed. We all need someone to tell us we're not as bad as we think we are, especially if your me or rodimus and have a lot of self hatred. But in this instance... Optimus is right. He's not here to tell Rodimus "You did all you could do". He fucked up horribly and SHOULD have just straight up resigned. He got two bots killed, lied to all of them, and then lied again and let drift take the blame. Rodimus is a good bot.. but he wasn't a good leader and Pipes and Rewind paid the price for it. Rodimus.. simply didn't want to give up: he wanted to still be the captain and redeem himself. And he COULD redeem himself without being in charge.. but hta'ts just not who he is. Everyone has to see him doing it. Has to see him. The attention has to be on him.. and Optimus knows this.

I will grant Rodimus stepping down wouldn't of been the best call either: Magnus is holding in there but just went through it, drift is gone, and as we saw today apparently hound's next in chain of command somehow. The only one who could POSSIBLY take over the roll and be okay coming out the other side at the moment is Ratchet and it's a roll he dosen't want. Rodimus shouldn't really be in charge.. but who else is there? And when we answer that question, will Rodimus, or ANYONE like this answer?

For now though those questions remained unanswered, as Kup is back up.. only to get a cyclonus chucked at him. Nova Prime is back, he's pissed and he challenges Optimus to a fucking challenge. One shall stand, one shall fall.

Back with Team Magnus, we get more of Windblade's deal: while the term dosen't come up yet, she's a Cityspeaker. She can communicate with titans like metroplex: while he can't TALK she can read his brain patterns. As for how this trio ended up here they were on Thunderclash's ship when they picked up Alpha Trion, who is usually with metroplex. He told them about Metroplex's crash and couldn't help him because he was so very close to something else and since the Vis Vitalis can't travel too fast due to Thunderclash's condition, Team Windblade volunteered for it and have done what they can.. but it's not enough.

Thankfully Magnus flashes on WHY they were brought here: to give Metroplex a jump using the quantum engines the same way they saved thunderclash. Magnus asks him tow ake up one last time.. and they hope: for a jump that will both revivie the titan and take the lost light and everyone in the titan home. "Burn bright metroplex, one last time".

Speaking of cybertron things aren't going well for Team Fuckup

Their attempts to attack the Necrotitan are failling, it's stomping i'ts way towards the triage center they have set up... Prowl flat out admits they need a miracle.. and sure enough a certain someone has been called many things..

I applaud the artists for all this glorious physical comedy with bisected megatron. While part of it's in the dialouge, props to Roberts and Barber, the visuals with this have been amazing

Prowl pulls a prowl and decides to just..try and shoot megatron. Despite megs both apparently having more of a plan than they do and being half a person and probably being able to easily survivie a shot to the head.

Turns out though Bee's faith.. was misplaced. Megatron hasn't changed and his plan is the truly awful "Evacuate like hell, let me call the DJD and we'll retake cybertron" Bee promptly drops him and calls him out, getting to the heart of things; Megatron was a freedom fighter.. but he isn't anymore. It's a cause he forgot for a campaign of terror, a talking point he ONLY brings up when he needs it. It's a good speech from Bee too. I don't have enough space for the panels sadly but you should still heart it in some form

"When I was in charge I stared into the darkness so long I let it consume me. I looked at our endless war, the friends we lost, the world we destroyed. But what I should have seen is our perseverance: we don't give up. And i'm not letting cybertron fall to anyone, not again. We make a stand for everything that's worth standing for. Our sacrifices won't be for nothing, We'll face shockwave and this monster together... and this time the good guys win.

And as he says the last part... hope arrives

Part 2 picks up right where this left off, as we're now down to just two main plot threads

Still some jumping around, jumping around get up get up and get down to be had, but it's now more contained. The Lost Light is back as Swerve proudly announces, and our heroes , fittingly crash into the planet. Bumblebee stumbles back into idiot mode a bit being genuinely shocked their somehow alive... in a comic where he's already seen Megatron and Metalhawk both come back from certain death. As Megs himself put it "Since when does anyone stay dead?". It's not a good sign of your ablility to lead when the previous leaders of both factions both didn't buy the explosion as a sign of death.

Remember: if there's no corpse and you didn't see their body turn ot ash or dust in front of your very eyes like poor hardhead, then there at least POSSIBLY alive. Say what you will about Rodimus as a leader, I have, Optimus has, Getaway has and will again, he knows damn well if there's no corpse or flaming bits of autbot in the atmosphere, their probably okay.

This plot point has always bugged me: NO ONE bothered to investigate and everyone just.. assumed they were dead. I get if they didn't have the resources but it dosen't sound like anyone tried. A loud explosion with again NOTHING left happened.. and they just assume the Lost Light's gone. I get the lost light couldn't contact them to prove they weren't dead.. but this is also a giant army that's had tons of bots go missing for less. Part of the Lost Light's mission is picking up various stragglers scattered throughout the universe who may not know the war is over. You see why maybe I didn't give everyone the benefit of a doubt going up the ass of a guy who can't bother to do the basic things to check if someone's actually dead!

So.. back to the good part. Inside Metroplex , Windblade understandably asks if he Mags knew he was throwing Metro at another titan. He wasn't, but figures Metro knew he was needed to fight another giant robot. Giant Robots can just.. sense these things.

The crew of the lost light reunites with Hound filling them in on why their here, and why they didn't call sooner: they did.. but STARSCREAM answered, something Hound and Blaster are pissed about. Also when Hound mentions the thumb, Prowl just.. can't reissit making a pissy comment about how "I thought you were looking for the knights of cybertron"

Megatron has a plan.. and this time it's not "Let me take over again that worked out so well the first time". He just needs a hand getting his half a body over to Metroplex's thumb.

Back with Team Rodimus Optimus and Nova have been punching each other, but turns out Nova has a secret weapon: adaptive armor. He can turn into any previous prime and thus uses this to gain the upper hand.. then turns into Optimus because he hasn't reminded anyone what a dick he is in the last 10 minutes. He starts to hit a wall as Nova continues to punch him, with Optimus finlaly breaking and reiterating why he's so intent on not being called Optimus Prime anymore: If he carries on the legacy of such horrible men.. he's endorsing it.. and them. All they did.

Back with Team.. .Something, things aren't looking good. Whirl is getting tired of killing people, which he admits is a bad sign, and Megatron prepares his hail mary: use the ore inside him and his space bridge self to bring the thumb back to metroplex. Bee dosen't know if he can trust him and Megs smiles as he peaces out.

Back with Optimus, Rodimus does what he does best: give a hell of a speech, this time explaning WHY he's always wanted to be a prime so bad

"You're wrong I never wanted to be Rodimus Prime, not deep down. Deep down I always wanted to be you. The real you not Orion Pax. When you became Optimus Prime, when you assumed the title the world didn't know the truth about Nova, Nominus and the rest. Back then being a prime meant demonstrating, no embodying certain standards. It meant decency, integrity and morality, all the things chancers like me pretend are unfashonable because deep down they scare us. And they scare us because we try to live by them but can't. Well guess what: you can. You can and you do every day. Thanks to you the word prime still means decency, morality and integrity. Listen the world will always need a prime.. but only if that prime is you. "

With this Optimus FINALLY snaps out of his self loathing and easily overpowers Nova. Turns out the real reason Nova dominated wasn't that he "controlled the universe". it was confidence. He used Optimus' own self loathing against him and once that was gone... and he made the additoinal mistake of hurting Rodimus... it was over.. was was the life of Orion Pax

With that Optimus is truly back.. I mean I never stopped calling him that but neither did half the cast. Our heroes are kinda stuck for the moment so we go back to Cybertron.

Team Fuckup is back to it's faviorite pastime: arguing. In this case Prowl is pissed at bumblbee's plan and our buddy once again has had enough of Prowl's shit over the course of the last season and chokes him breifly. If it were ANYONE ELSE this would be horrifying but it's prowl so

Scoops reveals the prohecy to starscream.. and the important part is the endgame as we finally get a sense of waht Shockwave's REAL plan is: to remake time and space as a constant present: no past, no future, just one NOW, one point in time. Forever. A stagnant nightmare that never questions or wants more.

For now though it LOOKS like our heroes have won as Megatron does what he promised and with his body back in full, Metroplex heals. now at full strength he easily finishes the Necrotitan and his intenral systems finish all the amonites.

Back with Shockwave though.. all of this was to plan.. or at least not so off plan he can't easily adjust: he has all the ores lined up, he has everything he needs, now he just needs to close up loose ends, having Metalhawk take Waspinator away.. and preparing to turn Galvatron into a battery. Good news is Metahawk seems to be recovering.. and thus only hides Waspinator. Good poor dude has been through enough and was entirley played. Unsuprisingly everyone else involved was a disposable pawn, with only Jhiaxus being in on it.

This sudden but inevetible betryal is also a good time to talk about the villians of this piece.. and how most of them are... meh. Shockwave himself is good, but spends most of the event in the shadows, despite us knowing i'ts him. The rest though are kinda one note, either fairly generic minons or in the case of Galvatron and Nova Prime, archetypes i've seen better. Owl House and Amphibia both did a better job of "villian who wants to return things to a worse time they think was a golden age", with more reasons why than "I'm an evil asshat." They fit their narrative pieces as "Sizeable threat who will be back later", and "The living embodiment of everything Optimus hates about being a prime".. but there's not much beyond that. Nova is just an expansonist colonalist asshole who won't shut the fuck up. That's all he is and neither book really built up how awful he is enough to make his return this big gasp. He's a big threat, he's evil and his murder of hardhead is legitly sad.. but he's ultimately just a gloating dickhead who goes down the minute Optimus looses his self loathin, excuses himself and lets hope in.

The story spends 3/4 of it's story.. on anatagonists who just aren't that intresting, and it's one of Dark Cybertron's biggest weaknesses. If your going to have a big bads minons take center stage they need to be charasmatic. These two dipshits weren't. I will give credit where i'ts due: the necrotitan was decent. I wish it had a less generic design.. but th eidea of this unstoppable giant monster of a transformer that simply by MOVING FORWARD decimates all in his path and whose one action decimates the one city cybertron has left, is terrifying and mostly well done.. but his generic design and taking up so much of the story makes it get tiresome fast.

So with issue 10 we're at a break in the story: the Necrotitan is FINALLY down.. though it's far from over. We also FINALLY get shockwave's plan and how all the pieces connect. In short all the various ores he seeded throughout his minons, such as putting death and ressurection in the necrotitan and change and life from metroplex. So all this, all these interactoins and plans.. was to get all the energy in place fo rhim to unmake the universe.

The idea of this .. isn't bad: that this complex as hell plan was all a masterstroke and he's almost won. The problem is it dosen't work narratively: the ores come up only in the setup for robots in disguise and overlords backstory in more than meets the eye. They aren't really that important.

Not helping is that Shockwave having this big plan in the background.. was something ANYONE reading this would guess> he's on the cover of the first issue, nova and galvatron both come off more as patsies than the actual plan and their plan of a new "golden age of cybertron" dosen't really fit Shockwave. Shockwave is a being of pure logic, why would he be nostalgic for an age of cybertron that failed horribly and lead to everything falling apart. He sees all the angles.. and thus sees WHY Nova and galvatron's day was done.

Instead we just spend most of the plot wondering how all this connects and it's just "oh the thing tha'ts associated with him was it, cool'> the actual PLAN is good, Shockwave wants to rewrite history to be one singular repeating moment, taking the complications and troubles of time away even if it takes the good with it. It's a truly horrifying concept, a world that can never change or grow and will jus stagnate in stasis for all time. The buildup to it just dosen't work. It makes all this epic battle.. come off like a distraction rather than some masterstroke. There were easier ways to pull this off in and out of universe.

Back with Team Fuckup who are slowly not livnig up to that name, Bee apologizes for choking Prowl for his insolence but Prowl's cool with it he deserved it. He's less cool with the fact their taking a break as Shockwave is still out there, but Bee insists they'll deal with it.. but deserve at least a second ot bask in having the lost light back. Unfortunately he also asks if Prowl has anyone he wants to see.. and we cut to Chromedome, with Bee blisfully unaware of HOW bad Prowl fucked over the lost light. At least for Domey's sake he's decided not to dig into metroplex's memory when asked: he's done enough of that shit and is finally saying enough is enough. No more.

Onto Megatron whose getting patched up and admits it probably isn't easy for Ratchet.. though weirdly, and in a sign of things to come despite Ratchet assuming Megatron's talk is intimdation.. Megs GENUINELy seems to be trying to make conversation and is complementing ratchet. It seems Bumblebee really got to him.

Back in the dead universe our heroes are stuck playing a game of "who wants to sacrifice themselves" before Rodimus tells them for the love of god stop it. No one's doing the big heroic sacrifice, they can find another way.. and sure enough.. Cyclonus hears singing.

We cut to swerves where sadly we don't get a ton of charcter interaction. The dinobots sing a bar song, some guy talks to brainstorm, and we DO get Swerve meeting his hero in blur.. only for Blur to find him annoying. Story of the poor guys life. It's not BAD character interaction what we get but it feels like Roberts and Barber were more intrested in plot progression than actually crossing over these casts, having them trade stories and really interact. There's a good moment or two like Hound pointing out how weird it is that after centureis of shooting their all having drinks, but in a 12 issue maxi series it's telling it took THIS long for any of the main casts of both books to interact and we're only putting aside one issue to do it that much. Part of the point of a crossover is to have interactions you normally CAN'T have. None of the lost lighters really get a chance ot talk to bumblebee or the others outside of a line or too.

We do get a good moment with Megatron at least: He calls bee in.. and asks him a question.. when does he think Megs came closest to victory? Bee of course is just a tensy bit horrified by the question.. but it has a point

It's a setence that gets to the heart of Megatron's arc here and beyond: that he really did have a point, really stood for something once: he was fighting simply so his people could be free... and the second he started a war, he lost sight of that and became a dictator.. and now he sees what he's become and dosen't much care for it. It's the start of one of the best arcs in all of More than Meets the Eye and one of the larger reasons why do this crossover: Without it we miss the start of one of it's best characters. We saw megatron in RiD and before this.. but it's here that Roberts fully takes the wheel after hinting what he could do in Chaos Theory and it is glorious.

So speaking of Glorious, Prowl tracks down Chromedome, who understandably has been avoiding his ass and wants to confront him for the whole memory erasure thing.. despite the fact doing so also cost Chromedome a lot, and was done ENITRELY because Prowl is an egotistical jackass who can't let go of control over his ex and who smuggled a dangerous criminal on board a ship because he can't let the war fucking go for five minutes. It shows Prowl is TRYING to change.. but still can't accept WHY he needs to, that he's got control issues. I mean it took bee fucking choking him for Prowl to actually start listening to him. Prowl wants to change.. but can't as long as he can't accept the consequence sof his own actions. On the bright side, Chromedome is REALLY not in the mood to take his shit and that leads to the greatest panel in all of comics history

Keep in mind Chromedome WARNED him. He fucking warmed him to get the fuck away. And he didn't so Domey POWERBOMBED HIM OFF A CLIFF. his expression of pure terror is just.. gold. Even after the poor guy DIED a heroes death he still can't accept rewind.. and boy did he pay for it.

So we get a brief intermission from this fight as Magnus asks Chromia if he can talk to metroplex, but the poor guy's mostly inert. He wants to ask about the knights... people had BEFORE but he figures with the raised stakes etc he might. no luck though.. Chromia already tried.. but he said no one deserves to know. Keep that in mind.

Magnus has to go break up a fist fight though, and Prowl is somehow getting lower than mocking someone's widow telling Chromedome everyone's too focused on the day to day and "HE NEEDS TO GET SOME PERSPECTIVE" and NO reaction image can represent the level of facepalm I gave over that.

Magnus breaks it up. Prowl is ONCE AGAIN a prick who ONCE AGAIN can't read a room telling Magnus "manhandling a senior officer is hardly behavior of the duly appointed.."

First off. You aren't you old crone. Autobot chain of command right now has you as Bumblbee's first officer. Rodimus is on Bee's level.. and Magnus is HIS first officer. Ergo, your on the same fucking rank.

Magnus corrects him.. he's not the duly appointed enforcer of the tyrest accord, but he STILL can make a citzen's arrest and lays out just why prowl sucks. And hearing this from someone as logical, as defferent to authority as magnus.. fucking slaps.

See this scene.. is why I fucking hate Prowl. He's confronted with the blood on his hands.. and refuses to accep tit wasn't worth it. The ends didn't justify the means. People DIED due to him.. and he still thinks it's okay. Magnus said it better than I could've dreamed but what the hell; Where does it fucking end? And how far is prowl REALLY from the people he's trying to stop? The events of the last two arcs are almost ENTIRELY on prowl not giving a shit who got hurt if things went wrong. A huge chunk of the unvierse nearly died.. and Prowl can't accept it wasn't worth it.

And here's the kicker: It really wasn't. There wasn't some greater good acheived. Putting Overlord on board caused Red Alert to self harm, killed Pipes and Rewind, and did more damage to Chromedonme's psyche, not to mention sent Drift off the ship. His black ops against tyrest, while well aimed... only caused the fucker to esclaate and had the lost light, the very people he clearly resents most in the world, not been there, genocide would've happened. Prowl is an arrogant, egotistical piece of shit who can never accept that while the FIGHT isn't nover, the war is, and he can no longer justify dooing horrible shit with it. And even if he could.. it's no excuse. Prowl just wants to do what Prowl wants to do without any consequences, and dosen't understand that's not what the Autobots stand for. Even at his weakest.. Bumblbee at least got THAT. He got that the way he was starting to think was wrong. He came out of loosing Iacon better.. Prowl came out the same. And all of cybertron ins going to pay for it. Thankfully for my blood pressure and for our heroes.. the lost light no longer has to foot the bill.

Magnus parts after the constructicons want to throw hands, not helping Prowl's case, and points out he's glad he has friends because "you'r the lonelist person i've ever met. "

So we end part 1 with Scoops revealing where he got all this.. Senator Shockwave. Yup.. and to confirm things are about to go sideways again, Metalhawk returns iwth his team and shoot starscream. Not fatally bu tonly because he's delivering a warning... just in time for Shockwave to send every last amonite there way, millions descending on the planet.

Part 11 and the cover, which is still shown in the trade loudly proclaims THE DEATH OF AN AUTOBOT. Sadly it's not prowl.

With the amonite's swarming Bumblbee has a plan RUN THE FUCK AWAY. Though it's for godo reason: with this size of event evacuation is SEEMINGLY the only option.. only for Perciptor to burst his bubble: This is happening EVERYWHERE. Ther'es no running.

Back with Shockwave he slowly becomes everything, everywhere, all at once, living all his timelines at once as they converge. Jhiaxus couldn't be a prouder mad scientest papa: turns out he's so into this.. because the student has become the master, easily succeeding him and both have the same goal.

Bumblbee regroups but to do so he has a big ask, one Magnus relays to metroplex; keep the amonites busy. He gladly agrees, though Windblade's a bit thrown off by magnus opening a conversation with "the world is ending". She.. she's new here.

Bumblbee assembles his own team to take down shockwave: Himself, Magnus (raw power), Getaway and Skids (Secret Agent Men), Brainstorm (Dead Universe Expert) and Megatron.. and whie Bee tries to sugacoat it, he knows what he is. It's made tricky by the fact they stil lhave an army to go through.. but Skywarp shows up with Team Metalhawk, including Starscream whose back to his normal level of ego and overconfidence. Missed that. Skywarp can take them directly in, while Soundwave plans to hold the line for megatron.. though ti's very clear Megs has changed... and has plans for when he gets back.

While they do that Prowl.. does something useful after his jackass parade last issue and forms devistator with the constructicons.. he dosen't want to and bee isn't happy to see it but metroplex needed backup.

So the team splits up with most of them taknig on mooks and screamer going for Jhiaxus, who turns out to have reactive armor. Starscream's got to prepare for one of his greatest weaknesses: a fair fight.

Meanwhile with Bee and Megatron, the duo find Galvatron whose injured. Megatron plans to just finish the bit but Bee gives one last speech to his new best buddy: He encourages him that this ten eyes for an eye attitude of his has caused nothing but an endless cycle of vengance and death with no defendants and points out anyone can be allies.. that goo dor bad.. they can make a new future and that Galvatron could be part of that. is it a tad naive? perhaps.. but it's a still a long ways from the bot who rejected metalhawk and the nails because they didn't fight in the war. Bumblebee's finally realized that to make ANY future.. they have to try something diffrent.. sadly.. he dosen't get to live long enough to do anything about it.

Bumblebee.. is dead. He finally turned the corner and he's gone. And it's telling how much of a turnaround he had during this crossover as i'm geninely heartbroken by it: bee really HAD turned around as a leader, realized how he failed, put his heart and soul into making things right, even turned the staunchest decepticon to his side with words instead of his fist.. and he dies suddenly, tragically and not even all that importantly to shockwave. He died.. because he was there and he could stop his plan maybe.

Megatron is livid as he prepares to fight shockwave who brags, but unlike Nova Prime actually pulls it off.

Back with the others, Magnus is about dead... when Brainstorm starts to feel a little woozy man.. then opens a portal: Optimus and Co have escaped.

Final issue. Whirl and Arcee hang out, sadly the only time they do though she wishes they had more. I forgot to mention she got a new paintjob, a new beginning.

Back with Team Optimus, it's explained HOW they did it: they heard the singing, realized they could make a gate and used Nova's corpse for their end, brainstorm for the other since he experimented so much with the dead universe. Problem is Cyclonus, Nightbeat and Kup all start to drop: they can't surivvie outside the dead universe and SOMEONE need sto carry them back.

So Rodimus and Brainstorm take the wounded back, with Brainstorm finding out he probably needs some of his magic juice himself. While he cooks that up a lot of fighting happens: the metroplex trio join in the fight though neither windblad nor nautica is that experinced, and Starscrema beats Jhaixus as Jhiaxus used some fancy shoulder blades.. and thus told screamer he had them.

At the end of all things Megatron denies he and bumlbee were friends.. but ti's clear they were. He's also horrified by Shockwave taking his idea that all bots are equal as meaning they all mean nothing. Optimus and Magnus arrive for backup.. but can't too much.

So both decide to take a crack at "I know your in there somewhere fight it". Optimus tries appealing to his old friend, the kindly senator he was before the senate turned him into the monster he is. This get shim shot and Megatron decides to try something else.

The impossible has happened: After realizing just how far he's fallen, what he's lost... Megatron.. has become an Autobot. For his people. For his future. For himself. And for his friend. It's honestly a brilliant idea if a risky one: take the greatest transformers villian.. and see what happpens when he truly tries to change. It reminds me of the many times my boy Magneto has reformed. And while it's a gamble, many fans apparently were not happy with this face turn... it's one that pays off as the series goes in my eyes. Megatron is trying to be better.. but it's both a process.. and something that won't go down well with those on the other side of that gun.

It's also something that's amazing it worked so well: before this in a lot of works Megatron was a bastard and you'd be forgiven for thinking this was an idea Hasbro kinda shoved in there.. because it was. Roberts confirmed at one of the cons that this was a mandate by them and he got the job. It's why this reformation takes place over 6 issues.

It's a testiamte to roberts and barber though.. that despite having to do a full 180, crazy.. it FEELS entirely organic to the story: Roberts had done enough background setup with megatron and had a full time travel story planned, so the framework to include him and have it mean something was THERE. He had to speed run his redemption but the fact he accomplished that in a few scenes and made it convincing.. is amazing. It's why i'm glad earthspark went with a reformed megatron as this arc is incredible from the jump depsite all this... and I can't wait to get fully started later this year. It's one of Roberts best acomplishments and i'm excited we're finally to it.

For now though .. it manages to reawaken the senator and in a truly heartbreaking scene they want to just let him go: after all, it's not SENATOR Shockwave's fault, it's what he became.. but The Senator CAN'T stop it: the time tive's part of of him.. and Optimus swears to remember him as he was before , with his new friend's help, putting him down.

So with that we have a few teases for the future: Starscream of course is back to normal, though the autobots, and cyclonus, make it clear he won't be able to slip back in THAT easily. Meanwhile poor soundwave breaks down a bit as he realizes what Megatron has done, and can't fahtom the betryal.. and galvatron steps in to be his new dad, setting up RiD season 2. Which thankfully is now out of my hands.l What matters is Optimus and Megatron. optimus makes sure this wasn't just a clever trick.. and it wasn't. That makes this complicated.. but the two step out of the ship, ready for what's next.

So Dark cybertron.. is mediocre. It has some really good scenes in it: Team Windblade are all great new additions for thir short time screen, the stuff with rodimus and optimus is truly special, Megatron's face turn is well done and Prowl gets powerbombed off a cliff.

Overall though.. it feels padded. It has good ideas, the necrotitan makes for cool imagery, but it tries to stitch so much together to make this big epic with enough space for everyone and everything, that instead feels bloated. While some GOOD shit like the antics of bisected megatron probably woudl've been cut down if this were 6 or 8 issues, the story would've been a lot tighter. We get a LOT of ground repeated: Prowl is pissy with bumblbee, Scoops yells at starscream. Nova Prime won't shut the fuck up. For all the great scenes ther'es a good chunk that's just the same shit happening again and again with only slight progress.

And as i've said it dosen't really "cross over" all that mucH: the casts of each book are largely seqestered from each other, so we never really get any conversation about how the lost light feels now they've had the journey and seen the consequences of leaving (i.e. starscream), or how those who stayed pooped the bed. We don't even get reactions to Bee's death.. the story just.. ends before anyone else finds out.

Dark Cybertron is really like a lot of event comics: it's longer than it needs to be, interrupts the flow of a good book to happen, and the consequences of it are better than the story of as a whole. It was slightly better on re-read and overall is better than robots in disguise, having more character development and less arguing.. but it dosen't save a bloated, messy story that wastes i'ts potetial trying to wring the maximum issues out of the story instead of doing it at it's best.

Next Time: We break from the lost light. Again. First up next month for SUPER MAY we ask the question "What's so funny about truth, justice and the american way?" Then it's Mighty Morphin Summer Baby! As I mentioned last time, we'll be ping ponging between BOOM!'s power rangers comics. I do have a special treat or two planned for the Franchise's 40th anniversary, a review of the movie, covering the first windblade mini series, but both are tbd at this point. I HOPE to cover them by the end of hte year, but it largely depends on my schedule. If all goes well you should get aan extra slice of transformers in August and MTMTE should be back by september.

When we return Season 2 begins! Megatron is the captain now, Rodimus is salty about that, and we see how everyone else adjusted to their new decepticon overlord. Thanks for reading.

#transformers #transformers more than meets the eye #rodimus prime #optimus prime #megatron #ratchet #swerve #ultra magnus #shockwave #starscream #bumblebee #prowl #prowl sucks

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ms-erin-kallus · 8 months

Text

Though My Eyes Could See, I Still Was a Blind Man

chapter 11

Ao3 link ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/44541196/chapters/126015475

Agent Kallus could barely stifle a laugh as he ran his long, gloved finger along one of the numerous blackened burn spots that littered the durasteel walls of the Imperial prison he had been sent to; a supposed fortress built deep into a canyon wall on the planet Naraka.

It’s design was meant to make escape from it impossible.

However, the day prior, a Jedi, Mandalorian, Lasat, and infamously homicidal C1-10P droid had somehow evaded Imperial defenses and successfully rescued two prisoners held in custody there.

The Ghost Crew.

As always.

It would have been comical to him had one of the prisoners not been killed.

The other escapee, Hondo Ohnaka, Kallus found unbearable to deal with by way of his annoying yet innate ability to talk himself out of almost any situation successfully, but usually by hanging someone else out to dry. The sheer cowardice of his tactics, or at least as Kallus considered them, drove him insane; however, the pirate had proven his skills once again by somehow making contact from inside of the prison.

The weequay may have been a nuisance, but he was impressive.

It was something that the Empire lacked but the rebellion and its sympathizers excelled at, overcoming chaos with their ability to adapt to almost any situation as it changed.

The rebellion was unorganized, undisciplined, and everything that Kallus feared. Yet the Spectres seemed to always pull the unthinkable out of undoable regardless of it.

Alexsandr Kallus, in contrast, was a creature of habit and any wrinkle in routine or deviation from what was planned was adamantly avoided. Quick adaptability was one of his stronger abilities, but he rather not need use it unless every other avenue had been exhausted. Too many variables could easily become too hard to control all at once, which would ultimately lead to deeply dreaded chaos.

A lambda shuttle sat on the landing pad where his report would mention an AT-ST that turned on and took out its own stormtroopers for unknown reasons. No one could explain why and there was no one to interview about it because they were all dead. Kallus took one last look around before he boarded the small shuttle, sat on one of its hard seats, and pulled up the schematics of the supposed stronghold.

Nothing notable pulled up immediately so he turned over to the standard practices and protocols in the facility’s safety manual to see exactly how things were supposed to be run. After skimming it over and piecing what he found together with the numerous interviews he had done with the staff on duty, Kallus decided that it was a miracle the place was still standing.

There had been numerous rules and regulations blatantly ignored or simply disregarded with reckless abandon; those protocols were in place for a reason. The deviations were common in places such as the prison. There was usually minimal supervision or outside interference so far away from the inner rims, so if no one was there to make sure things ran the way they were supposed to, then they would not. It was a nuisance that was part of a bigger problem often overlooked.

Stability within the Empire and the way it was run was almost comforting to Kallus, at least when done correctly. It may not have always been effective, but it was typically reliable and when it wasn’t, that was why fail-safes such as he were put into place,

to maintain order in disarray.

Grand Moff Tarkin dismissed his aide just as Governor Pryce sauntered into his private office on his flagship as if she owned the place. Her new station may have been an accomplishment that earned her strong political power, but nowhere near what his did; nonetheless, she knew how to walk the fine line between confidence and suicide and with surgical precision.

“Governor Pryce, how are things proceeding on Lothal?” he asked as she strode up to the far side of the large, round briefing table he sat at. A large replica of the star destroyer overlooked the two grandiosely from where it sat inlayed into the wall behind him.

“Lothal is secure, Moff Tarkin,” she informed him nonchalantly as she placed her hands behind her back and stood tall under the singular light above them. Pryce continued, “but I am here about the recent attack at the prison on Marace which I believe is only the beginning of a larger rebel threat.” She ascertained that he already agreed given the current situation they found themselves in and she used it knowingly to her advantage.

“I am inclined to agree, although Lord Vader has dealt with the insurgencies' Jedi leadership,” he began as he placed his chin on his fisted hand pensively, “these rebels have proven particularly stubborn,” he admitted. “How do you intend to solve this problem?”

There was no hesitation, “I want the seventh fleet,” she stated more than asked.

“I see and what of Admiral Konstantine and his fleet?” he asked genuinely curious of why she would go over his head with such ease and disregard for protocol.

“Admiral Konstantine is more politician than soldier,” she told him as she leaned over his desk to convey the seriousness of her request. “I need someone who can see a bigger picture.”

“Very well,” he conceded without argument. “You shall have the seventh fleet.”

“Thank you Moff Tarkin,” she replied simply, as if she already knew that her request would be granted before she even asked.

“Agent Kallus,” a thick, heavily forced, Coruscanti accent came from behind him.

It immediately piqued his curiosity and he turned quickly to see Governor Pryce slowly stride up to him, the neglect of her actual duties had obviously come to a brief and assumed 'temporary' end. It may have been her home world, but it was more than obvious that it was not her priority.

Governor,” he nodded, “I hope that your prolonged absence on Coruscant proved…beneficial?” The stories he heard were more than simply ‘scandalous’, if she would do what she did to her supposed friends then he was terrified of what she would do to her enemies, or really just anyone that got in her way. He genuinely hoped he never ended up on the receiving end of it.

“Quite beneficial,” she answered, as she not so subtly indicated to the new insignia plaque on her chest. “I was quite disappointed that I was called back to Lothal to handle matters left in the hands of the ISB and one of its most distinguished agents. A singular priority couldn’t possibly be such a problem for a man of your…talents?” she asked condescendingly. “But when the Empire expects results then I will deliver them myself if need be.”

Kallus held back a biting retort.

“This is no ordinary band of rebels,governor,” he said down his nose to her. Government officials always loved to interject into places they didn’t belong because, for some reason, they always seemed to think they were better tacticians than actual and trained military personnel. “They always seemed to pull a victory from certain defeat.”

“Perhaps you just haven’t employed the right tools? I didn’t and now I have to go clean up her mess,” Pryce scoffed easily at her prime minister’s death.

For some reason her blasé reaction took him aback, even though he had something to do with it. “Well, this particular band is led by a Jedi and his-“

“Ah, yes, I heard about the Jedi with what could only be assumed as minimal training and his even lesser trained padawan. Hardly a handful I would-“” Kallus cut her off before she could anger him further than he could withhold.

“Lord Vader himself was outwitted by these two meager Jedi,” he warned her with a slight emphasis on the word meager.

Pryce cleared her throat, “yes, but he is well known for doing things his way. Perhaps it is time to bring in someone that can see things from an angle besides their own. Tactically, so to say.”

“That being,” Kallus hesitated unintentionally at what he could only assume was the insinuation of herself.

“I’ve recruited someone with a talent rarely seen in others. Even those with years of the highest levels of specific trainings,” she more than hinted her insult.

Disappointment crossed her face at his lack of reaction, “training aside, there are things of a different nature that I am well capable of. Specialized and highly effective, of course,” he warned her.

The point was immediately taken and the subject changed, “yes, well, training and tactics aside, Moff Tarkin expects results, and soon.”

Kallus stood curiously across from Grand Moff Tarkin at a small, logistics table on the bridge of a star destroyer as he listened to Konstantine plea his case in regards to how capturing the elusive rebel cell he had been chasing for almost a year shouldn’t have been a priority given the importance of the war as a whole.

It was no secret that Pryce had gone to Tarkin without consulting him first and obviously his pride wasn’t about to take such a hit without a fight.

“I’m certain Governor Pryce is overestimating how organized the resistance is,” the man argued vehemently. “While it is true there are pockets of rebellion, there has never been any evidence of a larger scale galaxy wide operation.”

Pryce, with her ‘right tool’ in tow, emerged unexpectedly from the shadows behind Kallus like the villains from some cheesy holovid and he quickly sidestepped to allow them room.

“And I would like to keep it that way, Admiral Konstantine.” Thrawn said in foreboding agreeance as he made his place at the console, Pryce still at his side, and Kallus immediately annoyed by what he knew would be her continued presence.

“Grand Admiral Thrawn,” Tarkin greeted him, slowly articulating each word of his newly earned title for successfully added effect.

Konstintine gawked at the accolade, “Grand Admiral?”

Thrawn looked down his nose at the man, “the emperor recently promoted me after my victory at Batonn,” he said with a cool confidence that didn’t come off as arrogant but still deserving of respect and completely dismissive of the results of said ‘battle’.

The nonchalance of the reasoning for his latest promotion made Kallus’ stomach turn. “Civilian casualties outnumbered the insurgents…at the time,” he reminded the group of their skewed results. A sudden feeling of dread that he didn’t expect surprised him and he was barely able to hold back how he really felt about it all. Such an outcome never bothered him in the past, but for some reason this one did.

A lot.

“Acceptable margins, Agent Kallus, ” Pryce scoffed with an apathetic pride that would lead a person to believe it was actually her victory. “For there are no longer rebels in that sector,” she derided him; a death toll was obviously just another numbers sheet to her.

“Well Thrawn what do you think of Governor Pryce’s theory about the rebels in the Lothal sector?” Moff Tarkin asked completely unfazed by any of it. So much so that Kallus feared the man planned to explicitly make one of his infamous ‘examples’ out of any of them he managed to capture.

The holoscreen projected a profile and rap sheet in front of them with the press of Thrawn’s finger. “This is a pirate our rebels rescued from Naraka prison, Hondo Ohnaka, within the last hour,” he started as he placed his fingers under his chin pensively before he continued, “the Phoenix Squadron destroyed the mining guild ships using the Sereeda hyperspace waypoint.”

The image of Ohnaka was quickly replaced with a map. Thrawn seemed almost intrigued as he continued his study of the system in front of them. “Taken separately they may seem unrelated but Ohnaka’s cellmate was a laborer at our star fighter reclamation plant in the Yarma system,” he said as he pointed to the illuminated position on the map in front of them. “One jump point away from the Sereeda attack,” he finished.

“Grand Admiral Thrawn believes the rebels intend to raid the plant and steal fighters for their fleet,” Pryce included darkly.

“Every ship they add to their arsenal increases the threat to our own armada and the Emperor’s plans,” he informed them unemotionally, tactics already formed in his mind.

Moff Tarkin asked curiously, “I trust you have a solution?”

“I will start my operations here and pull the rebels apart piece by piece,” he told them slowly as he stared at the map, his brain continuously contemplating any and every scenario.

“They will be the architects of their own destruction.”

A few short hours later, Kallus stood with Pryce and Konstantine on the bridge of his star destroyer and looked down on the site where Recklam Station floated within the thick, yellow haze that was the atmosphere of the planet Yarma.

“Get me whoever is in charge down there!” Pryce snapped at a comms tech that quickly jumped to secure a connection. The screen flickered on and the once admiral, Brom Titus, appeared looking a little too confident for someone that was dealing with intruders that had already infiltrated his station and were actively stealing from it.

“I assure you, governor, we will capture these rebels momentarily,” he informed her with an uptick of annoyance in his voice as he spoke.

Kallus almost audibly chuckled, Brom, prepare yourself for another demotion.

“I hope so, Titus,” Pryce told him with a small, almost reprimanding shake of her head, “but know I will be there soon to reinforce you.” It was more than obvious that her ‘reinforcement’ was actually just her aim to take complete control and accolade for what she saw as a simple situation and to spin it for her own gain.

The transmission cut suddenly and Pryce let out an exacerbated sigh and mumbled something inaudible before she walked up to the large viewing deck that overlooked what everyone knew was a situation out of control. “Begin preparations for departure. I want to get down there as soon-“ she started before bright busts of blue light suddenly cut through the thick clouds of the planet below.

That was fast, Kallus thought to himself as he heard Pryce bark orders at someone to raise comms.

The transmission failed and he knew it was because Titus had fucked up, again.

“Y wings coming from the atmosphere,” Konstantine said as he pointed out to the obvious, “scramble TIE fighters at once!”

“Yes, sir,” someone said from below them just as a mobile docking station along with a handful of rebel reinforcements dropped from hyperspace right in front of them. One of said reinforcements was the Ghost, but no one else noticed, outwardly at least.

“Hold the TIE’s,” Pryce barked, “I want to-“

Konstantine was visibly furious that someone most of the military considered ‘fancy civilians’ had the audacity to try to commandeer his ship so blatantly, “do not listen to her! This is my ship,” he yelled every word with clear annunciation to get his point across to someone that did not care.

The two of them would help lead to Thrawn’s downfall; Kallus just knew it.

But at that moment, all he could do was stand and watch and judge them as Pryce and Konstantine fought for control of the situation, much to the chagrin of the confused crew around them that just shrugged to each other unsure of what to do regardless of the fact that their admiral, the man in charge of them, was one of the arguing parties.

It said a lot about their perception of him, and after his apathetic response toward Kallus’ return from Bahryn, he would happily help them mutiny if they chose to do so.

“Activate the tractor beam at once. Pilots, drive them into it,” Pryce ordered as she looked out into the chaos unfolding around them deviously. “I’ll have them soon enough. Thrawn will be most pleased with our progress,” she told herself more than anyone else as the crew followed order.

“Governor Pryce!” Konstantine shouted at her.

“Admiral Konstantine,” she countered quickly before he could begin his admonishment “I am about to destroy the rebel fleet!”

No you’re not, Kallus scoffed. That’s not a fleet.

Much to Kallus’, and Pryce’s, surprise, Konstantine backed down.

The three of them watched as a detachment of TIEs dropped from a hangar below the ship and engaged with the heavily outnumbered rebel offensive.

Pryce sauntered up the observation deck and relished in her small, and prematurely assumed, victory as Kallus followed, “they fight so hard to gain so little.”

Kallus watched the dogfight that was going on around them. Their efforts may have been pathetic to her, but it was admirable to him. It might have been seen as a small skirmish in her eyes, but Kallus knew what Thrawn knew. They had, and were slowly gaining, a larger force and not just by way of building a physical arsenal either.

Pryce turned to Kallus behind her, “contact Grand Admiral Thrawn immediately,” she instructed him, still presumptuous of her victory.

He simply nodded as he turned to a comms tech and gave the command before he looked back out into the battle that raged in front of them. A small number of TIEs had been taken out, yet somehow all of the old Y wings were still accounted for and safely docked. It should’ve been seen as far more impressive than it was by the two distracted children that were fighting each other more than their enemy.

It was one of those instances where Kallus should’ve interjected and righted the disorder overtaking the bridge, but he didn’t.

No sooner had Pryce prematurely congratulated herself, a massive explosion burst through the atmosphere of the planet below almost as if on cue.

“We have the admiral,” Kallus told Pryce lowly in anticipation of the beratement of a grand admiral for the inane failure at Pryce’s hand. Be it just a few older ships in the grand scheme of things, she had just allowed the Rebel Alliance to add to the armada.

Pryce seemed completely unfazed by her blunder as she turned to face him, “put him through.”

A life size hologram of Thrawn lit up in front of her, “update me on your progress, governor?” he asked expectantly.

“The situation is proceeding much as you anticipated,” she informed him proudly. “The rebel fleet, composed of three star cruisers, have come to the rescue.”

Because they never leave their own behind. No matter what, Kallus thought respectfully.

A look crossed Thrawn’s face before he enlightened her, “that is not the rebel fleet.” Much to everyone’s surprise he suddenly conceded the battle, “break off your attack and allow them to escape with their meager reward.”

There was a shared a momentary confusion between Kallus and Konstantine at the revelation of the next step of his plan. It was how Thrawn calculated his attacks, always in front of his enemy, never behind.

He’s letting them think they won, Kallus quickly realized. They’re smart enough to see through it. Especially with Syndulla at the helm.

Regardless, Grand Admiral Thrawn was going to be a serious problem for the rebels on Lothal.

“Very good, grand admiral,” Pryce said just before Thrawn nodded, but not before he gave the room one final look of the arrogant superiority of someone that assumes they are in complete control of their situation.

Pryce’s silhouette vanished from in front of the crew when the blue light of the transmission disappeared and the room darkened.

Konstantine stuttered as soon as he knew he couldn’t be heard by the grand admiral, “we’re letting them get away? I don’t understand.”

“I know you don’t,” Pryce said as if she had formed the plan herself, “but rest assured Thrawn has a much larger objective in mind than the capture of a single rebel cell.”

Kallus couldn’t help but scoff, you just proved you literally have no idea what his plans really are.

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