#the window of time for them to have been disciples at the same time is small but IT COULD have happened
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hi. it's sqh/yqy again. you're going to need to read the preceding segment of this for it to make sense.
1 - Critical Failure!
The thing about Yue Qingyuan was that he was really fucking good at this whole cultivation thing. It wasn't for nothing that OP protagonist son Bing-ge had to catch Yue Qingyuan in a trap first to get a good chance at killing him! Even now, years before he'd really hit his prime, Yue Qingyuan was the perfect model cultivator, with a strong and expertly trained body, and, relevantly to this situation, actually pretty fast and possessed of a very good reaction time.
All this to say, Shang Qinghua got out the window.
He did not get much further than the window, because Yue Qingyuan also dove out the window (gracefully!) and (less gracefully!) proceeded to bodily tackle Shang Qinghua.
There was some rolling and shouting and flailing involved. Let it not be said that Shang Qinghua went down without a fight! Or at least without some screaming and crying!
Yue Qingyuan still managed to pin Shang Qinghua down, because of course he did.
"I'm not a chair, stop sitting on me!"
"Just a moment, I really do--" Yue Qingyuan paused to deal with Shang Qinghua's elbow to his face and also slam it down so Shang Qinghua couldn't elbow him again -- "appreciate -- your concern. But there's really no need to bother Shen-shidi with these things, so if you could just -- hold still--"
"Hahaha, no way bro!" Shang Qinghua said, and bit him.
Was this a smart decision? Not really, but it sure was satisfying!
Yue Qingyuan made a noise that could have been an aborted swear. "Shang-shidi, I don't think that was necessary."
"Necessary is a subjective term!" Shang Qinghua said. "It's necessary to turn in paperwork, but have you seen how many people I need to chase down for that?? Clearly the definition isn't universal!"
"That's not the same --"
"It's absolutely the same!"
"You don't bite them!"
"And what if I did? Maybe I should!! Maybe they'll learn to fill out the requisition forms correctly then!!!"
"That isn't--" Yue Qingyuan exhaled. "This isn't... are you... still going to tell Qingqiu?"
"I don't know, am I???"
"It's... private. Please don't tell him."
"If I don't, will you?"
Yue Qingyuan laughed. It was an empty and unpleasant sound. "He wouldn't want me reminding him how I failed." His head drooped down, closer to Shang Qinghua's chest. "I broke my promise, Shang-shidi. Who wants to hear about that again?"
...Was Yue Qingyuan about to cry on him?
.Wow! This situation was already uncomfortable! It was about to get even more uncomfortable!
"If I say I won't," Shang Qinghua wheedled, "then will you get off me."
Having the thighs of a strong and beautiful cultivator on either side of him was the stuff of the shitty romance novels he still liked reading. Every man's dream! Super sexy! Except the romance novels never accounted for when the cultivator was about to have a nervous breakdown! Opposite of sexy, actually!
"You still want to tell him, don't you?" Yue Qingyuan said. "I don't think it'll be better that way. Even if it's you and not me -- especially if it's you and not me -- won't it be worse? Wouldn't he just be angry that I couldn't tell him myself?"
"Isn't this conversation pointless if you're not planning on telling him yourself?" Shang Qinghua said.
Yue Qingyuan looked down at him with big, sad eyes. "Qinghua, please don't say anything."
Ah? Aaah?? Was Yue Qingyuan trying puppy-dog eyes? That wasn't going to work, Yue-shixiong! Too bad! People did that on An Ding everyday! Shang Qinghua was immune! He had no sympathy!
"Don't cry on me," Shang Qinghua said.
Yue Qingyuan laughed again.
Somebody choked.
It was... not Shang Qinghua. It was very much a sound Shang Qinghua would make, but...
Shang Qinghua tilted his head back, and there it was. A little Qiong Ding disciple coming through the brush, scroll in hand, probably playing messenger boy. He was staring at them, wide-eyed and white-faced.
Shang Qinghua suddenly became horribly aware of his position -- Yue Qingyuan on top of him, straddling his hips, pinning his hands over his head, both of them disheveled and breathing hard. He'd been bucking up to try to get Yue Qingyuan off, but at first glance, it looked like... well, that he was, ha, trying to get Yue Qingyuan off. You know, the other way.
"Ah," Yue Qingyuan said, in the tone of someone who was experiencing the same revelation as Shang Qinghua and was just beginning to conceptualize the impact of it on his honorable and righteous reputation.
This would be really funny if Shang Qinghua was not involved.
"I see Da-shixiong is busy with private matters!" squeaked the little Qiong Ding shidi. "Sorry to interrupt! I'll come back later!"
"That's not necessary," Yue Qingyuan began, hastily straightening up. Ah, but that was too little, too late. Shidi was already way out of earshot and disappearing into the distance, clearly intent on respecting the privacy of Da-shixiong.
"So," Shang Qinghua said conversationally, "what are the chances your shidi is going to tell everyone not to disturb you because you're busy?" He put as much suggestiveness in the last word as he possibly could, just so Yue Qingyuan got the point.
Yue Qingyuan winced. "Yan-shidi is... not subtle."
"So everyone's going to know this happened."
"... Likely, yes."
"And they're all going to think we were about to fuck nasty outside."
"Um," Yue Qingyuan said.
Yue Qingyuan was still sitting on him.
Shang Qinghua let the back of his head hit the ground with a thump. "Fuck."
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one of my favorite headcanons with little to no canon support is that xue yang and mo xuanyu were guidao jin disciples at the same time, and mxy mentioned a few times wanting to ressurect the yiling laozu to kill his mom's evil family, so when xy saw him (or rather his body) entering yi city AS the yllz, he was like "son of a bitch he actually did it"
#mdzs#the window of time for them to have been disciples at the same time is small but IT COULD have happened#and with mxy having had access to the sacrificial ritual (and his lack of progress on “proper” cultivation)#it's perfectly possible he was one of the jins' demonic students#also at yi city xue yang attacks wwx#who asks if he's trying to take advantage of that body's low spiritual energy.#BUT HOW DID HE KNOW BEFOREHAND THAT MXY'S BODY HAD LOW SPIRITUAL ENERGY HUH‼️⁉️‼️⁉️🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔#(please ignore the lack of sword-carrying)#i just want mxy and xy to have been buddies idk#it's very fun to me if xue yang recognizes wwx in his old classmate's body#modao#lace speaks
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heartbeat
“ my heart's on fire for your love. “
pairings: childe x gn!reader
cw: awkward / wholesome love confession confrontations, spoilers of liyue’s archon quest, reader is a medic, reader has hair long enough to put behind ear, reader resides in liyue, few mentions of light injuries and wariness of death, childe calls reader “doc’”
a/n: i had finished this and left it in the drafts from over a year ago! this is an alternative story i wrote for a prompt didi ( @monocaelia ) sent me for a drabble i wrote called to be in love, and i guess i totally went a different route for that one. hope you enjoy this one as well!!!
“i don’t get paid nearly enough for this.”
the harbinger has the audacity to chuckle under his breath, leaning further back into the examination table with one of his hands covering his eye. he keeps his voice light despite the apparent discomfort he’s in.
“don’t worry, doc’. i could offer a little donation to show my gratitude, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
you can’t help the exasperated, heaving sigh that escapes your mouth. you knew his pockets ran deep, but you weren’t being serious. had it been anyone else, you would have kept quiet to maintain your professionalism, but with childe, this all went out the window.
being a disciple of baizhu and gui at the renowned bubu pharmacy of liyue, you were prone to getting oddball patients every now and then. having to resuscitate a boy from nearly dying eating jueyun chili’s here, selling medicinal herbs to a woman that ate them raw on the spot there.
but truly, no one was as odd as childe.
as a medical professional, you couldn’t just turn away a patient if they needed your help. the first time he turned up to the pharmacy with cuts and bruises all over in search of painkillers, you had an inkling who he was aligned with based off of the colors of his outfit alone, never mind the fact that he was obviously a foreigner.
at that time, liyue harbor had only just survived osial’s attack, and word had gotten around that the fatui had much to do with it. while you remained as concise with your words as possible when handing him the bottle of painkillers, you could not repress the urge to make the passive-aggressive question that,
“it really is a shame that some renowned factions, despite their cunning in their quest for world domination, do not have professional resident medics on standby. don’t you think?”
you probably should have been killed on the spot for making such a crass comment. as his eyes rose to slowly meet your own, you found a deep sea torrent of both interest and fascination instead of anger. it had taken you aback, but you kept your chin held high.
needless to say, childe’s interest was piqued.
he had begun to make it a habit to visit at least once every two days. granted, he really was injured or needed medicine when he dropped by, and you were definitely not happy about it; not only because it was him, but because you didn’t necessarily like to have regulars in this type of job. seeing the same patients, even if it was childe, getting hurt over and over again didn’t do your heart any favors.
sometimes, you would seriously consider if he got himself injured on purpose just to see you.
he initiated small talk during your examinations, and while at first you were curt and to the point, he managed to weasel his way past your walls. little by little, you were falling prone to his undeniable charm.
his stupid grin and quirk of his brow when you made an offhand comment made your pulse quicken, his dumb jokes that you didn’t understand unless you were snezhnayan still made you crack a smile, and the fact that he was always honest with you– you were beginning to tolerate him. maybe, more than you had anticipated.
it wasn’t like you were dumb. you could feel the longing looks he gave while you tended to his shallow wounds, his methods of finding cheeky ways to retain your attention for longer, the way he openly talked about his family. fatui don’t reveal personal information like that to just anybody.
today, it seemed as if he had gotten hit in the face with a dirtbomb from treasure hoarders, judging by the dirtied spots on his clothes. some of it must have gotten in his eye.
“i’m not even specialized in optometry,” you mumble, but he shrugs his shoulders innocently, disregarding your comment entirely.
“so long as you can help me see again, it doesn’t matter to me,” he answers easily.
“let me, then,” you urge in a quiet hush, peeling his hand away from his eye.
he has it still scrunched up in discomfort, and you can see the defensive tears from that eye covering the expanse of his face. while you know he isn’t necessarily crying voluntarily, it still brings a pang to your chest.
with the knowledge that he’s a capable fighter with a pain tolerance that is unrivaled, yet even just a little dirt can incapacitate him– it shocks you. at the end of the day, he was human, just like you.
and if he wasn’t so lucky the next time, it could even get in both of his eyes. who knows what would transpire on the battlefield next. he could… lose.
you’re clearly shaken up by your thoughts, and childe waves his free hand over your face, amusement clear on his expression.
“i didn’t come to one of the best pharmacy’s in teyvat to get spaced out on,” his tone softens, sounding more serious, “i’m fine, trust me. nothing to worry about, see?”
he gives a charming half-smile, and you resist the urge to pinch his cheek in retaliation.
“i’m going to flush it out. don’t force yourself to open it, but if you feel the discomfort easing up, just do it slowly,” you instruct, taking a bowl of clean water to his side.
childe, usually one to make more joking complaints, is uncharacteristically compliant with your demands. the room is quiet as he lets you pour the cool water over his eye, and slowly but surely, he opens it up again.
it’s red-rimmed and has seen better days, but you let out a hushed sigh of relief knowing that it’s still functioning fine from what you can tell so far.
“does it still hurt?” you ask, taking a towel and gently wiping away the wetness of the water on his face. it feels… oddly domestic, somehow.
childe shakes his head no, but squints up at you. “not really, but it’s still a little blurry.”
you hum, sliding closer to his face to get a better look, assessing it for a final time just to make sure.
this close, you can feel his breath fanning across your face. it distracts you, but not nearly as much as the endless pools of blue that are staring right into your own. it should unnerve you, the way they don’t sparkle like anyone else’s would, but it doesn’t.
his eyes flicker all across your face, and you feel heat rising up your neck.
once you nod in affirmation and pull away, it’s only then do you realize the flustered state that you left him in. he’s fidgeting, hands clenched into loose fists and ears pinking. you give him a funny look, unable to suppress a smirk.
“it looks fine to me, childe. thankfully it does not look like there will be lasting damage, but you should really see a qualified optometrist, so–“
“i have to tell you something.” he interrupts, looking bashful. you’re immediately on high alert. childe is never bashful.
“childe, i’m still on the clock,” you remind, already having some idea of what he might have to say.
“then consider this a… a patient telling you about their life, or something,” he finishes lamely, chuckling nervously. you can only chew on your lip in anticipation, blood pounding in your ears.
“well, i...” he takes a breath, “i think... well. i’m in love with a nurse,” ajax admits, posture suddenly straightening, confident. “i have been in love with them for a while now, actually. so… if i were to confess, how do you think they would react?” he purses his lips in anticipation at your response.
despite his unwavering voice, his red ears indicate how he really feels in this moment. he’s cute, you think. you briefly hold eye contact, smirking when he is the one to break it. it brings you a sick sense of pride to see such a powerful man brought to his knees from something like this.
he looks definitively taken aback at the airy chuckle you give, responding, “ah, i see.”
now he is really confused. “i– what?” he sputters, eyes darting over your face to get a read on you.
the quirk in your brow, the knowing smile you have on your face. really, looking at how beautiful you look in this moment only confirms his feelings.
the cogs in his brain are turning every which way, until finally, it clicks. he brings up a hand to his forehead, letting out a low grumble of embarrassment. with zero shame, he pulls you toward him by your wrist and leans his head against your shoulder. allowing him this brief moment of reprieve, you bring up a hand to card through his hair.
“you knew?” he asks, clearly ashamed at his lack of finesse. you snort, pulling away slightly to meet his eyes.
“well, you haven’t exactly been discreet…”
he can only bury his head into your shoulder again, completely flushed.
“okay, well,” his breath tickles your skin as you give another chuckle, “i’ll ask again. how do you think this nurse would react?”
pulling completely away from him, you point up at the clock. he huffs, unhappy with your consistency to uphold professionalism.
“maybe you should ask this nurse in another hour after their shift is over.”
childe rolls his eyes. “alright, alright. then i hope this nurse will be happy to meet me at wanmin’s restaurant with their answer– i will only be expecting good things.”
he laughs the entire way you shoo him out, and only eases up to lean down and tuck a stray piece of hair behind your ear.
“i’ll see you soon, doc’.”
#omg i forgot i even wrote this#it’s not my favoriteeee thing i’ve ever wrote but i figured i needed to let it out lolol#genshin impact x reader#genshin x reader#genshin x you#childe x reader#tartaglia x reader#ajax x reader#childe fluff#genshin impact#reader insert#scenario#childe | primoredial-jade#didi * ੈ♡‧₊˚
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Hi hi! Can I request Wukong from monkey king reborn where he has a crush on reader?
Thanks so much for the request! Hope you enjoy it. <3 Decided to make this a part one. >///<
Here's Part 2.
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You'd been travelling with the monk and his demon disciples for a little over two weeks now, and… it was actually a lot more fun than you first thought. Other than Pigsy’s constant flirting, you genuinely enjoyed being with the monk and his three troublemakers. They quickly became like family to you and got overprotective over you as such, especially the Great Sage. Many of the villages you visited weren't very welcoming, but Wukong and the others made you feel safe.
Speaking of the Monkey King, Great Sage Equal to Heaven, in the time you have spent with them, you saw many sides of Wukong. He wasn't just the loud, impulsive, smug, and arrogant primate you first thought.
He had a much softer side that you didn't notice he only had with you. Like giving up the best sleeping spot to you, bringing you water, letting you have the ripest fruit, and many other things he’d usually reserved for his master. Most of the time, he would treat you much better than his master, a new side that the monk was pleased to see.
At certain moments, such as the present moment, late at night when everything and everyone was at rest or asleep, he questioned himself. Nonetheless, he has discovered that obtaining sleep can be a challenging task. He would always glance at your sleeping form in thought, but this time, you were staring right back at him. This made the blood rush to his face, and he quickly looked back out the window he was sitting on.
“Is something wrong?” you questioned him in amusement as you sat up.
“Nothing, go to sleep,” he tried to say aggressively but semi-failed.
“I'm not tired,” you said as you stood up and walked over Wujing to make your way over to him.
“Then get tired and go to sleep,” he folded his arms with a huff.
“Why aren't you asleep?” you glanced at him with a slightly tilted head. “Something on your mind?”
Just you… he thought to himself as he stole a glance your way, but quickly looked away.
“You could say that,” he grumbled, his eyes still outside as he positioned himself so you could lean against the window sill beside him.
“Wanna talk about it?” you looked up at him, trying to read his expression, but he was good at hiding his emotions… his blush was something, though.
“No,” he shook his head, his voice uncharacteristically gentle.
“Talking sometimes helps.”
“You talk too damn much,” he grumbled. “Go to sleep already.”
“I can't sleep, and I'm not tired,” you mused at his attempt to get rid of you. You'd never know this, but he didn't mean it when he tried to get rid of you. He wanted nothing more, especially on quiet nights like now, for you to stay awake with him and talk. He loved hearing your voice, and seeing you smile at him… he loved you… a lot.
“Just go,” he narrowed his eyes at your defiance.
“I don't want to,” you said simply, with a nonchalant shrug and an indifferent smile.
“Such a nuisance,” he rolled his eyes at your antics, but he didn't really mind.
“Oh, stop being such a grouch,” you called him out with a soft laugh.
“We’re leaving early in the morning, I don't want to hear you complaining about lack of sleep again,”
“There isn't enough hours in the day that I don't think I didn't have enough,” you mused. “Can I ask you something?”
“Are you going to sleep after?”
“Maybe I will,” you said stubbornly, he glanced at you, looking over your features carefully before he huffed and looked away.
“What?” he questioned you.
“What will you do after we get the scriptures?” you glanced at him curiously and felt your heart rate increase seeing one of those expressions on his face.
It seemed so out of his character, but at the same time, it made him look so… attractive. He seemed to be in thought and wherever his thoughts were taking him, it made him forget about his tough guy act.
“I'd go back home,”
“And where’s that?” you smiled a bit. He looked at you and just stared for a few seconds, admiring that subtle but captivating change in your expression.
“Flower Fruit Mountain,”
“Is it nice there?”
“It's the most beautiful thing you’ll ever see,” his voice was soft as he looked into your eyes. At that moment, it felt like he wasn't describing his home.
“I bet,” you couldn't help but smile a bit more, looking at the horizon to try hiding your flustered face.
“What about you?” he asked, tilting his head slightly to look at you.
“I'll probably go back to the Celestial Realm,” you sighed softly, looking at the night sky with a small frown, something that made Wukong’s subtle content turn to a deep frown.
“Not looking forward to it?”
“No, not really,” you looked at him with an awkward smile. “But, ya know, it’s home. Such is life,”
#x reader#request#monkey king#sun wukong#wukong#reborn sun wukong x reader#reborn sun wukong#reborn#monkey king reborn#reborn wukong
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SVSSS | Did Gongyi Xiao ever stand a chance against Luo Binghe?
My heart will never stop aching for our golden boi Gongyi Xiao and as much as I OTP Bingqiu, I often wonder if GYX stood a chance against LBH, and not for reasons that he has to die because he's too similar to the male lead or ZZL needed to remove a threat/take revenge. Like could GYX, being the incredibly obedient, handsome and upstanding golden boi that he is, even bearing such close resemblance to LBH, could he have won over SY!SQQ's heart? Because ok, the only thing that SQQ actually laments about GYX being lacking to LBH is the compatibility of their teamwork against a common enemy but that's because LBH has had the advantage of knowing SY!SQQ longer and cultivated directly under him as his disciple. Like if GYX were to cultivate under SY!SQQ and also got to know him for the same length of time, would they have worked out?
And then I came to realise that the answer is simply...no. GYX's most notable trait is his righteousness. He would betray orders and hierarchy if he believed that they were doing the wrong thing, but he's not the type to be completely shameless/selfish about it. He won't actively drag bystanders into the chaos if he can help it.
But that's also why he is not compatible with SY!SQQ because SY!SQQ is ultimately most attracted to LBH's shameless obsession with him. LBH is "everything related to Shizun" first and righteousness second. He won't hesitate to practise demonic cultivation, flirt publicly by offering to massage Shizun's sore waist, cause a huge ruckus in order to protect SY!SQQ and to fight over his corpse. LBH's strive for righteousness is driven by the assumption that an upstanding man is the only kind of man his Shizun accepts and that's what he has to become in order for SY!SQQ to stay with him but when shizun dies, righteousness kind of goes out the window. Anddddddd SY!SQQ says he likes them righteous and upstanding but he’s just as fucked up. The man can deny to the heavens but it's so obvious that he enables LBH's obsession by being a housewife, grieving widow then "sacrificing himself" in the name of "repayment", causing a huge-ass ruckus and ripple waves of longlasting pain for his sect family. Like damn, SQQ can be kind and upstanding but when it comes to LBH, isn't that also a shameless obsession? It just wouldn't have worked out with GYX because it would have been textbook master-disciple platonic, GYX would have pushed aside any of his own selfish/romantic desires and every action would have been carefully considered for the greater good of his sect and martial family. It's really like a goldilocks sort of situation, GYX is too righteous, ZZL is too fucked up (he makes sense though in demon logic), LBH babygirl is just the right amount of fucked up and 100% Shizun's sheep with a very pat-able head.
#like SY!SQQ says he hates LBH crying during Papapa but he actually gets off on it#SY!SQQ is kind yeah yeah but he really do be giving so much grief to#everyone else who cares about him when he decides to off himself#but that's what the Bingqiu dynamic is like#bingqiu love is selfless and selfish and so fucked up#to the point it 360s back to a healthy balance#selfish/shameless isn’t quite the right word but he sure makes his obsession with LBH quite inconvenient for everyone else#svsss#gongyi xiao#shen qingqiu#shen yuan#svsss meta#svsss analysis#luo binghe#ren zha fanpai zijiu xitong#mxtx svsss
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Hey Moshang nation!
It's that time again! The time where I can't sleep because these boys just filled me with feelings and I need to shout them out!
SO!
MBJ managed to banish his uncle after SQH stopped LGJ from killing his king. They are both battered, weak And tired. But SQH still has strength to give MBJ a piece of his mind and worst if all, leave.
"You dare?!" The king roars, helpless in anger and fear.
"Oh I dare!" SQH replies, his face twisted into an ugly mixture of relief, borderline sadistic delight and heartbreak. "you will never see me again, my king" He sniffs. "Not in a million years" but even as he says it, he can already feel his heart crumble. It's painful. He truly loves this spoiled brat. He wished he'd known that he could've changed the story. Maybe they could've had a happier one.
"SHANG QINGHUA !"
"Good bye, my king..." He says with a smile. He leaves only to collapse outside of ritual's site. He struggles with the urge to go back, to apologize, to grovel and plead for mercy.
But it's too late. There's nothing left for him. The story is over.
Luo Bīnghé has his shizun. Cucumber bro has his story the way he always wanted it. The humans and demons found peace. His king has come to his power and rid himself of his greatest foe. Happy endings for all! Well, almost all. All who deserve it.
It's time.
It's time for him to go back. To go home where he belongs. Back to what he deserves.
SQH open the System's window and presses the 'Return' option.
*************
Airplane wakes up to the smell of burning hair, days old sugar and filth. He's home. No one comes to greet him but the sounds of his neighbors squabbling to his right. He's home. There is no one here but him. He's home. Was it all a dream? He's home. No one sees him cry.
Eventually he does stop crying. He's home. He hates it. But after all the years he's lived so far, he can't help but do something about it.
He's just an old, lonely man in a 20-something's body. He can't live like this. He needs to make this life mean something.
Third time's the charm, right?
He gets his shit a little together.
He cleans, for one. Deep cleans both the apartment and himself, needing it to cleanse himself from that dream. But-- It's funny. Seeing his old face after almost.... Decades? Centuries? Have passed.
He's not that different, funnily enough. More marred, less polished. But the same unassuming face, perfect for blending in a crowd and making no impression on people. He misses his old new face.
After getting the basics out of the way, he starts thinking bigger.
What should he be now?
He's been a failure of a son, a hack writer, a pitiful cultivator, a traitorous peak lord, a mediocre spy. He wishes he could've been more. Better. He tries not to but thinks of MBJ.
His phone rings.
Apparently, his new role turned out to be an actual, legit published author.
He has an agent now that makes sure he gets the best deal from PIDW, merchandise and all that. It's weird to have someone actually doing stuff for him, going to bat for him, fighting to get him the best.
He has a lot more money than before. Too much. He doesn't know what to do with it all. He thinks about his disciples and buying them trinkets for their birthdays. He thinks of MQF and WQW and what all this money could provide for them. He thinks of MBJ and thinks silly things.
He thinks of being a sugar daddy. He thinks about taking his king on a date. He thinks of how the Demon King would react to the modern world and all the things Airplane could buy him now. He thinks so much he doesn't sleep. And when he does sleep, he dreams.
He dreams about his king and being equals to him. Of standing with himon the castle parapets, side by side, looking out onto the beautiful north.
"Shang Qinghua" his king would call.
"I'm here" he'd say, placing a hand over MBJ'S.
But MBJ would never hold it back.
Even his dreams knew better than to tell him such an egregious lie.
Still...
It was nice just stand by his side and pretend.
"I'm here, my king"
*************
His book is going to have a hardcover. Who would've thought? Peerless Cucumber would've had a conniption if he knew. Airplane wishes he could see his face, his actual face, when he told him. It'd be hilarious!
....
Peerless Cucumber wasn't much of a friend but...
Was it strange that he missed him so?
The man hated him and his story but he was the closest thing to a friend Airplane had ever had. He was so mean and demanding. And he could've been just a dream.
But he also had a strange way of caring about SQH. Of sharing jokes. Of being Like a safe harbor.
Airplane knew that there was no way Cucumber bro missed him. He was too busy with his happy ending, for sure. Even if it hadn't been a dream, who in their right mind would spare a thought for SQH?
Still... He wished he could talk to the man, at least one more time.
Cucumber bro had a family. A family that like, cared for him and such. Maybe there was a last wish he could fulfill for him. Or tell them something for him. SQQ might've never seen him as a friend but Airplane Did. And that had to count for something right?
He doesn't sleep. And when he does, he dreams about things he misses.
He dreams of An Ding in the lull of the afternoon. The hot summer breeze coming from the windows agitating the many papers on his desk. His king, a cool presence on his right. SQQ lazily fanning himself before Him. Bīnghé watchfully observing them from SQQ side Sweets and perfectly brewed tea that his talented son had made on the table between them.
This never happened. SQQ would never share the treats LBH made with him. LBH wouldn't share his shizun with anyone. MBJ wouldn't have tolerated the heat.
But this was so nice, so different and... Well, it was almost like they were... Friends? No. A family?
Not in the traditional sense, of course. But in that way when people choose others to be their family. Like-- like he could rely on them. Like they cared about him.
It was... Nice. It was a nice dream.
"Thank you for this" he told LBH, lifting his cup in thanks. "Never have I tasted such a splendid blend"
Red eyes pinned him down in a flash. Aiya, such an intense stare on one's father! No need to kill the mood!
"I'm not doing this for free, Shishu"
Such a cold voice too! He wished that his dreams would allow his son to be kinder to him... Tho, he really didn't deserve it, did he?
"No, you do not"
Ah, well--
Wait.
"What???"
"Where the hell are you, Shishu?"
"What... What the fuck?!"
SQQ, who up till now has been in his poised immortal stance, sprang to life. He shut his fan with a snap and almost lunged at SQH. "AIRPLANE!"
"BRO??"
"Where are you? What have you done?!"
Done? He hadn't done Anything!
"Oh yes the fuck you did!"
Shit, he had to stop thinking out loud!
"You're--" Cucumber bro really seemed like he was going to strangle him. "We're inside your head, idiot. In your dream!"
Oh.
He was going insane, then.
Cool.
SQQ buried his face in his hands and garbled a scream.
"Shishu" LBH called out, darkly. He looked so upset. Probably because SQQ was in distress. "Where are you?"
"I'm ha ha Home? I think?"
"Where in An Ding are you?" LBH demanded.
"I'm-- I'm not on An Ding"
"What?!"
"Airplane, for the last goddamn time, where the hell are you?"
Airplane shifted his gaze from LBH to SQQ, back and forth before he settled on his fellow transmigrator and said: "Home, bro. I'm home."
Ok, it was kinda funny to see Cucumber bro's jaw drop.
"How--when-- I-- Air-"
"The story was over, bro. Everybody got what they wanted. I had to go."
"Did the system force you to go?!" Wow. It almost sounded like SQQ was concerned about him.
"This is such a weird dream, I swear to god"
"Airplane. Focus!"
"Aw, ok. Well... No? Like, The story was over and all that jazz and it gave me the option of returning? So I did?"
"Why... Why would you do that?!"
"Because, man!" He gestured to everything around them. "None of this is mine. You know? This world, the story, it changed. It didn't.. need me. Nobody needed me anymore and... I was tired, bro. I was hurt and I was tired so... I left." He shrugged, even if it still stung a bit.
"Airplane--"
"Shang-shishu, you must come back"
Airplane frowned. "Why? I've trained a lot of disciples before you came around If you need an accountant or a spy, you can have your pick, son"
This time, LBH was the one that frowned, looking a little perplexed.
"Airplane, listen to me-- No, *shut up*, just listen. This is a dream but it's also real, ok? We're in your dreamscape. You were SQH!! You helped me when I first came to CQ. You helped MBJ and LBH and you-- you did a lot of stuff. Stuff I didn't even know about until you were gone. All of it was real."
"But--"
"I said shut up. Airplane, the world is falling apart. Bīnghé is it's energy source but But you-- fuck, I don't know, where it's RAM? Processing unit? Memory? Things are disappearing, people are going from normal to their PIDW setting, MBJ has gone insane--"
"My king?"
"Seriously? That's what you're gonna focus on?!"
"Look whose talki--"
"Fine! He's tearing the realms apart looking for you and the things he's tearing aren't healing. There's this great big... Nothing! Just growing every day! Airplane, you have to come back!"
"Bro, I--"
"Airplane!"
"Bro, I can't! I don't know how!"
"Airplane!"
"I don't know!"
"Airplane--"
"I don't know! I don't know! I don't know, man! Fuck! JUST---"
"Air--"
"Leave me alone!" He screams.
And wakes up on the floor.
The neighbors upstairs are pounding down at him to shut up. It's barely dawn. It's cold and grey and dead and Airplane can't catch his breath.
He needed to go back...?
His king... Was looking for him...?
The world wasn't right without him?
What a fucked up dream...
He really should go out more. He should make some real friends. Two lifetimes under his belt and he has still not had a real, honest to God friend.
Maybe if he at least had one true, good friend, he wouldn't... He wouldn't consider this-- this mad dream.
....
There was no way LBH could reach him here. Not Bingmei, at least. He couldn't. He's not that powerful.
And if he was that powerful, surely he wouldn't have wasted his power trying to contact him of all people. His role in that works had only been to survive.
If anyone was invaluable to that plot, it was Cucumber bro.
He was the one that remembered every monster and every power up. Every bride and every foe. Everyone fell in love with Cucumber bro... So surely, the System would've just replaced SQH for SQQ as it's back up, right?
Of course, right.
It was all just a stupid dream.
It was best to let it go and just not think about it.
***********
But the thought lingered with him, as the grey of dawn was smeared with purples and pinks and reds and blues. He carried it through his morning routine and as he sat down to work on editing PIDW. It paralyzed his fingers, as he stared blankly at the screen.
Only one person had ever needed him.
Not all the time, he would never be that indispensable. But for a couple of times, for brief moments in time... Mobei Jun had needed him. And he had not failed him.
He stared at the name on his screen.
Shang Qinghua.
This was so stupid. The dumbest thing he ever allowed himself to linger on. Angrily, he erased that stupid name from the paragraph and made up another. It felt good. It felt right and oh so very wrong.
He copied the name and used it to replace that cursed thing.
There was no more Shang Qinghua. This dumb story didn't need a Shang Qinghua. Nobody had ever cared about him. *No one would ever miss him.*
Slamming the final replacement keys, Airplane pulled back and decided to make use of all that money.
******
He didn't sleep. And when he did, it was with the careful aid of prescribed medication that his fancy new shrink gave him. He didn't dream about his king anymore, which made him sad. He didn't dream about Cucumber and Binghe, either which was a plus.
So what if he woke up tired or sore, like he had been running away the whole night? So what if he felt too cold or too hot at night but couldn't wake up to do anything about it? So what if there was always something that he couldn't shake off, a touch that branded him every night?
The editing of PIDW was doing great and soon the first hard copies would hit the book shelves. There was a lot of buzz online when people heard there would changes, new material that wasn't in the self published version. Pre copies had surpassed their initial goals.
Airplane Shooting towards the sky was about to become a very wealthy man.
His agent and his publisher took him out to celebrate. It was weird. It was new. Nobody had ever toasted to hai health before. The added respectful titles to his name and patted his back. It was weird. It was... Kinda nice?
He drank too much and lost track of himself.
He didn't take his pills.
He didn't remember leaving the restaurant or how he got home. He remembered hitting the bed and it was cold and he thought of his king and how he wished MBJ could see him now.
Would his king be proud? Would he finally actually smile? Airplane had done it!
He had made PIDW legit
He had made PIDW better.
He had made sure that Shang Qinghua never ever would hurt his king again.
And with that in his heart, he fell asleep.
He didn't dream of An Ding this time. It took him a while to actually identify where he was. Everything was so... White.
But then just like a camera lense coming into focus, he saw him. Mobei Jun. His king. He was waiting for him.
Shang Qinghua rushed to his side, still so happy but not being able to recall why.
Ah well!Any chance to see his king was a happy one, he decided as he bowed to the demon king.
"I'm so sorry for making you wait,my king!" He couldn't erase the smile from his face. "I'm here now"
MBJ stared at him in that unreadable way of his, in silence and furrowed concentration.
"My king?"
"Who are you?" The ice demon asked.
SQH paused, his smile slipping from his lips. "Wha-- My king? It's me. Your servant. Shang Qinghua.
The demon's eyes narrowed. "No."
"... No?" What did he mean no?! Had MBJ forgot about him? Was he being fired?
"You can't be him."
"My king?? It is me. Why would you say that?"
MBJ points to the side and in that white haze a mirror sprung. Airplane stares at himself in all his disgusting, disappointing glory.
Ah.
Yeah...
... That.
It was hard to see anything under such an ugly facade, huh?
"Who are you?" The ice demon asked again and Airplane wondered if this was how Alice felt, when that question was hers to answer.
"Not sure." He replied. "I was so certain, a while back.I was the unwanted, for a while. Then I was the author. But that kinda morphed into being the peak lord and the spy. Sometimes... I almost felt like I was something else. Something new." he shrugged. "Sometimes I was Shang Qinghua. Now, I think I'm no one."
The demon king stared at him, unreadable and unreachable.
"God, I wish I could've been more for you. You were always my favorite. Even when you were mean and spoiled. Even when I didn't like you that much. You were always my favorite. You're still my favorite"
The ice demon didn't move but still Airplane felt him closer.
"I wish I knew I could be something more..." but the words are choked and wrong. He laughed, shaking his head. "Maybe I'll write us a new story, eh my king? Would you like that?"
"It would be just you and me. The world would be dangerous but maybe... A little less cruel? You'd take care of me and I'd take care of you? We'd overcome challenges together. We'd suffer lows together. We'd trust no one more than one another. We'd-- I'd find a way to make you happy. And you..."
His king arched a brow as his gaze intensified.
"You would be on your best behavior and... And--- you'd love me" why did it sound like he was crying? Fuck he didn't want to cry! Stop crying! "You'd love me and love me well. You wouldn't-- And I wouldn't-- "
"Shang Qinghua."
"It would be such a lovely story, my king. It truly would be. If only I could find a way for someone like you to fall in love with someone like me."
"Shang Qinghua..."
"I--"
A cold finger pressed against his lips.
"Shang Qinghua..." His king is so close. He missed him being this close. His mere presence invokes fear but also safety. "Come back."
Airplane shook his head again. "I can't."
Large, cool hands come up to cradle his face. "Come back."
"I can't...!"
Mobei Jun pressed his forehead to his. "... Come back to me."
What...?
"Come back to me..." His king purrs, keeping him close. "Come back to me... Please..."
He's going insane.
This time there's no doubt.
"Then we are both mad" His king say, his thumbs running the trail of Airplane's tears. "Come back to me..."
"You can't..."
"What can't this king do?"
"You can't want me back." This was another fucked up dream, wasn't it? "You said--"
"I was wrong."
"You would never say that. Not to me."
"And who are you to say that?"
"Nobody in the world knows you better than I do, my king!" He had not only made MBJ but also had to live with him! There was no way-
"Why is that?"
"Because I am Shang Qinghua!" He almost yelled, trying and failing to pull back from the demon's hold.
"And where is Qinghua's Place?"
*With you, my king*
But a sound screams at his ear before he can say it. Airplane wakes up with a start and groans noisely. Fucked up dream! Fucked! Up! Dream!
And yet he turned, chasing its shards.
Come back to me...
"My king..."
He gets up and changes the name back.
Shang Qinghua's place was always with Mobei Jun.
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Spoiler Review of S4 Episode One
Ok so I gave a non spoiler review of episodes 1-3 buuuut it is now time for the spoilers I will be tagging these so no one who does not want to see them will. If somehow, you are reading this part, please please please be aware that from this sentence forward there are spoilers for season four episode 1 of The Chosen. Ok? Ok.
…
Episode One:
Ok so literally episode one John the Baptist is martyred. And it is breathtakingly beautiful. The dancer who played Salome was phenomenal, I don’t think she had a single line, her whole thing was practicing and performing the dance which I feel like really shows how this was all Herodias’ idea and she was really just a pawn. At the same time, we flashback to young Mother Mary visiting Elizabeth and Zechariah, which was funny and sweet and so heartwarming. It really is odd to see a woman clearly in her 70s or even 80s pregnant but knowing the story it just made me so happy. We also see Joanna going to tell the disciples and Jesus about John. It’s all intercut between Zechariah’s prophecy about John as a baby, the party, Joanna, and the actual death of John. The scene of the execution is somehow beautiful even as we know something horrible is happening. As John is being led away, he quotes what Jesus had his disciples tell him, “The lame walk, the blind see, the dead are raised,” and he says, “The way of the Lord is prepared.” Which just sent shivers down my spine. We see the silver platter John’s head will be served on and the soldier says that usually it’s used for a wedding banquet to which John says, “I’ve never been to a wedding banquet, but I’m going to one.” Which again, I’m just sobbing at this point. Right as John is about to die, he looks out a window and sees a spotless lamb feeding outside, like a final sign that his mission is fulfilled. Obviously we don’t see a severed head, but the swing of the axe is just as impactful. We cut to Jesus by himself, as if already preparing for the news. When he is told, we see him mourn. Rip his clothes, and cover himself in dirt. It’s heartbreaking to say the least. Also, it is important to note that Ramah returns and everyone is gathering together. Then, we see Joanna arrive and tell Andrew, and then everyone else. The last thing we see is Jesus approaching the group, torn clothes, dirt on his face, looking…disillusioned? It’s hard to describe it. Almost like he’s been too emotionally exhausted to have a readable expression.
Another thing to note, was that Zebeddee and sons have the olive oil ready and are giving it to the local synagogue for ritual purposes. Yousef says it is to benefit local enterprise, but Rabbi Akira is skeptical. Tamar goes with them but is not allowed in the synagogues being both a woman and a Gentile, obviously upsetting her. (Big James offers to stay with her instead of going in!!!!!!! The ship is real!!!!!)
Oh and I just remembered that Salome did have a line and it was just to say, “Anything?” When Herod says he’ll give her anything after the dance.
The interweaving of baby John and John’s execution was beautifully done. I was sobbing. The moment Zechariah can speak again, he begins prophesying and we hear it over John being led in by the soldiers. I like that John seemed nervous (as obviously anyone would be) but he wasn’t necessarily scared. It was that last moment of seeing the lamb that made him smile just as he died. Oh wow like I said I was crying.
It’s also incredibly hard to watch Jesus cry. I expected it to be, but obviously being a Christian and a follower of Jesus makes it so much harder. Especially after the love and laughter we’ve seen him experience as well. They do not shy away from humanity and that is such a welcomed thing.
Episode One was expected, but still managed to be utterly brilliant in writing and storytelling. We all knew John’s death was coming and it was made into a realistically sorrowful but beautiful reality. I cannot wait until I have it at my fingertips to watch again and again.
So that was episode one. Episode two coming soon!
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YilingWei Sect AU
Click here ⬆️ for the original post.
___________
"Holy Shit!" Xiao Qing gasps, jumping up from the divan she'd lain on.
"Language, Shimei!" Deyao scolds her but is left ignored as the disciple scrambles to get her shoes and reaches for the door.
"Fuck my language-- I need to warn Wei-shushu!"
Worried by the behavior, the senior followed behind Xiao Qing as she made a mad dash through the corridors. "-Wait! Warn Wei-zhongzhu about what?!"
Blank pupils meet his for a spare second before they focus on the path forward.
"Cultivators! Gold, green, purple, blue-- many of them!"
The senior disciple makes a shocked gasp as he halts, Xiao Qing couldn't care less to look back at him. The Reverberant Hall was not a close distance from her junior quarters much to her dismay, and she couldn't waste her time!
They're walking through the streets of Yiling. A few of them booked buildings. Some golds are surrounding the forests around the Burial Mounds-
They were getting too close!
A strong pressure of wind shot past the junior disciple as her eyes caught sight of a crow in flight, heading towards the same destination.
The disciples stationed at the magistrate must have noticed them as well. It gets there only a few seconds before she does, only because she has the decency to knock first and announce her arrival before throwing her formalities out the window to kick the doors of the Hall open.
Her uncle sits in the middle of the hall, crow perched on his finger as it reports its findings to him.
"Wei-zhongzhu cultivators at bay, possibly seventy at arms. Further observations cannot be made, going into hiding." The crow squawks in its mocking tone, repeating what it's been told to say.
Wei Wuxian's expression is grave as he watches Xiao Qing enter panting with exhaustion.
"More than seventy, shushu.' she shakes her head, blank pupils shaking in anger.
"A hundred men at arms, Jins are scouting the graveyard forests. They're trying to find the entrance to the Burial Mounds."
He closed his eyes, feeling a headache forming at the edge of his skull. Rubbing the bridge between his eyes he hesitantly asks his niece,
"...which sects?"
Xiao Qing swallows fir air as she chases to calm herself, before she answered slowly. "...Qinghe Nie, Lanling Jin, Laoling Qin, Baling Ouyang, Yunmeng Jiang, Gusu Lan... and many more. Shushu." She visibly hesitated stating the last two.
His eyelids closed itself harder, burying his face deeper into his face as if it would hide him from the world.
He had expected this day to come, but he didn't think it would be so soon. They're not investigating that's for sure, Jins are scoping their domain, they have an army of cultivators in the town he protected. It's clear to anyone what their intentions were.
Of course they would get suspicious, Yiling Laozu and his criminal refuges have hidden away from the eyes of people, no news about them but a simple rumor that they've closed themselves off from the rest of the world.
Wei Wuxian sighs, stuck on a fork road of decisions. "What do you think, Wen Qing?"
The woman in red and white, who stood next to his dais was in deep thought.
"They're definitely not here to negotiate, with an army like that." She scoffs. "Neither are they willing to leave peacefully."
"Oh please, when do they ever." He snides.
The doctor sighs, "Either way. We don't want the innocent citizens outside getting involved in this. We should evacuate them."
Wei Wuxian nods, "Gather the chiefs and seniors." He ordered her, who immediately works.
"A-Qing, I need you to stay here. Your eyes will be needed"
His niece salutes, "Of course, shushu."
><
As soon as orders were given, everyone immediately set to work.
The senior disciples, those with more experience, were to descend the mountain stealthily and help the Yiling citizens evacuate in order to secure their safety.
Burial Mound residents were relocated to the Bamboo Dwellings deeper into the mountain and were not to leave the area until Wen Ning said otherwise.
Wen Qing and her students were in charge of stocking emergency rations, water, clothes, non-perishable items to hide away in case their supplies were cut off.
Junior disciples prepared emergency exits, secured hidden passage ways, and were tasked to guard the residents.
Heavy tension hung in the air as everyone moved with purpose, Xiao Qing could feel everything from the enclosed Red Room.
In a smaller room meant for more important meetings, stood the remaining chiefs and Wei-shushu.
They were discussing... something. Xiao Qing wasn't really focused on it, she was too busy keeping an eye on those Jin cultivators, making sure they didn't get too close to the gate of the mountains.
"They're scattered into five groups, shushu." She hisses.
"Any of them get close yet?" She shakes her head. "But I think it won't be long till they come across it.
The man clicks his tongue in irritance. Hearing this, Xiao Xingchen stands up from his seat, "Xue Yang, with me."
"I'll stall them for a few more hours, you need to be focused on this discussion A-Xian."
Wei-Shushu sighs, "Thank you Tang-ge."
"What are their true intentions?" Luo Qingyang mutters, placing tokens on the map to indicate which cultivators were where.
It's been 20 minutes since Xiao Xingchen and Xue Yang had descended to stall time, during that period, some Yaos have entered the fray to help the Jins search.
Wei Wuxian sighs, "We'll have to let them in."
"And what?" Wen Qing growls, "Let them burn our home down?"
"It won't be long until they find the gate. And even if we don't let them in-- they'll resolve to cutting off our water supply. Hell they might rampage the town!" The man groans, rubbing his temple gently.
Wen Qing opens her mouth to argue back, but before she can do that his niece gasps.
"They've... they've found the gate... Shushu."
Heavens fuck all.
><
Wei Wuxian walks pass the empty houses slowly, unwilling to pace it up towards the entrance of his home.
It woulld be no lie if he said he didn't want to meet any of the sects. Sometimes he wishes he hadn't the patience nor the consideration for these men, he sometimes dreams of kicking their asses so hard they fly back into their homes.
He sighs wilfully, Wei Yuan by his side notices his mood and smiles pitifully.
"We can always do this another day, ba." His son says. Ahhh what a loving child.
"Unfortunately, I don't think the sects would like that." Mo Xuanyu muses, his arms are folded and his posture is rightened, making him seem upright and intimidating.
Xue Yang cackles, "But then again, when have we ever cared for their feelings? They never gave shitwad about us!"
His son sighs, taking in his fellowmen's words in consideration. Although Wei Yuan has never experienced the world of the cultivation soceity; being holed up in a mountain and by extension its only town, it's safe to say he doesn't like them either-- in light of his childhood.
"We're only here to listen to their intentions. Anything else I will not permit." He tells them.
By then, they've walked enough that they can see the silhouettes behind the barrier of the mounds.
"But," Wei Wuxian hums, "If they attack first, I wouldn't be so keen."
It was basically permission, even though he just said the opposite. And it formed smiles on his wards' faces, ones that weren't as sweet and joyful.
Once they've reached the gates Wen Ning bows his head at him. The cultivators have long noticed his presence and have resolved to shout louder at him.
Wei Wuxian inhales deeply, closing his eyes to savir his last moments of peace.
The sect leader smiles, the corner of his lips visibly twitching.
"Welcome to the Burial Mounds, dear cultivators." He greets them.
The silence that comes after is refreshing.
But not as aggravating as the curses and yells that come after.
#mdzs#mdzs au#wwx#wei wuxian#a qing#xiao xingchen#luo qingyang#wen qing#wen ning#mo xuanyu#xue yang#wei yuan#yilingwei sect au#yilingweisect au#yilingwei sect#yilingwei sect ideas
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PAWN IN THEIR GAMES
The British Royal Family want to find a man who is worthy enough to rule with the Crown Princess Victoria Windsor, and the perfect match is no one but Prince Aemond Targaryen of France. Their union was made to give more support to Aemond's claim to the France throne. Until the union was stopped due to Aemond making a mistake to aggravate the status of the British. She supports Rhaenyra's claim as person who is meant for the throne. (Remember that none of this is historically accurate)
TW- Slut-shaming
Multiple characters x OC
"Lady Annabelle of House Smith." The announcer spoke as Lady Annabelle walked in and sat with the Crown Princess who was wait eagerly for her arrival at her chambers
"Hello, Victoria, how have you been?" Lady Annabelle asked as she rested her back on the chair, happier than usual as she just got an estate of land from the King, who was Victoria’s father
"Hello, Lady Annabelle. No, I've not been good as Lady Viserra asked for my father's hand, I could not believe that woman only used me as a pawn in her game," Victoria replied, sipping on the Japanese Black Tea customized for herself. She never felt comfortable with talking to people who call her Victoria, but Lady Annabelle was an elder and like a mother to her and her miserable self, so she allowed her to use only Victoria. Which was a privilege to most people
"Victoria, it's the time men dominate the world. We just try to build a window in our cage and deal with every thing. Lady Viserra was not as bad as Lady Maria Danbury, remember that," Lady Annabelle stated, she was right. That woman lied that Victoria tried to burn her alive with her child, who was a bastard from Lord Treddors
"You are going to be betrothed to the Crown Prince of France, I heard." Victoria groaned, she hated the talk of a big alliance to someone, especially a man who is about to rule a country which named them "toilettes"
"I hate it, Lady Annabelle! It's so infuriating that all they ask now is "do you have a child yet?" or "Is England going have an heir or are you just going to end the monarchy with Queen Victoria?". I cannot deal with those ugly people who think they know us." Lady Annabelle laughed, the princess was a disciple of hers and a very ambitious woman, whoever gets betrothed to her was lucky
“Tis it true then? You’re betrothed to the Crown Prince of France?”
Reynolds, Victoria sworn shield who was a blue coat, arrived. He huffed "Madam, the King has requested a ball for your betrothal with Crown Prince Aemond Targaryen," this statement made Lady Annabelle get her answer
"I will be there," Victoria said to Reynolds, initialing for him to leave her alone, which he did after a few minutes of silence
"Wear a good dress!" Lady Annabelle said as she left her and strolled out of her room to go to her estate, looking like she just got married to the richest man in England
"Her Royal Highness, Victoria, the Princess of Wales. Daughter of King Henry the IX of Great Britain," The announcer did his job as Victoria strutted in the ball room, greeting the lords and the ladies of the realm
"I have invited you all here for my daughter's betrothal, there are many people from France here. Now, you may all dance with anyone!" the King, her father, announced as he fell back on the throne
They all danced around like a usual ball, until Victoria came face to face with another man. He had a very sharp jaw and only one purple eye
"You look like you want to escape this."
"You too"
"You want to sneak out of here and get out of this castle?" Victoria asked, guiding him out of the main dance, which included switching partners and she didn’t want to
He raised his eyebrows “How do you predict exactly, Lady-?”
“If I introduce myself to you right now. You would not want to run away from here,” she said, a statement to which he laughed
“My dear, let me say that it’s the same for you,” he laughed, making her roll her eyes at him
“Well, in the holdfast that Henry VIII had makes a very good escape from here,” she grabbed a chalice of wine gulping it, his face turned into a questioning look
“How do you know?” He asked, looking down at her face
“None of your business, my prince,” she replied, moving a little closer to the guy whose eye widened in shock
“How did you know that?” He asked. “Your closet proves the fact that you’re not a noble man or some rich lord, so I assumed. Where are you from, if you say here, I know you’re lying,”
“Fine, I’m Prince Aemond Tar-“
Victoria choked on the wine due to that statement about himself. “You’re Prince Aemond?” “See, I told you that you’d be shocked,”
“It’s an honor to speak to the man who’s going to be our next king,” Victoria mentally scoffed at her own words. They were both disloyal to their betrothed
“You are from here?” He asked her, as he itched his hair
“Yes, I am a friend of the royal family,” she said, smiling falsely at him
“I have no intention to make any statements about the situation regarding my betrothal,” Aemond told, according to Victoria, he shouldn’t be confessing that to a woman who has never even told her name to him
“Why say it to me?” Victoria asked, sounding ‘pleased’ at his words
“I have no intention to make any statements about the situation regarding our betrothal, right Victoria?” Aemond smirked, which caused her eyes to widen
“How did you know? I thought I hid it so well,” Victoria yelled, making Aemond laugh as he predicted it was her from the start of their little act
“You were not quite stealthy in hiding your anger when I mentioned our betrothal, madam,” he leaned on the wall, smirking at her.
“Tis not my fault but it’s my father’s, he told me that I had to marry you and then proceed to produce heirs so that France and Britain could have a chance of being together again. Our monarchy wouldn’t ‘fall’” she unintentionally dragged her hand from her fact to her neck
“Wait, what about our first born? We are crown princess and prince, we will ascend as Queen and King of England and France. Our first born will-“
She coughed “The King or Queen of England and France,”
“Which means our empires will unite,” he ended
“We will be a start of an empire bigger than the world itself,” Victoria smiled, as she hugged him. Aemond hugged back after staying still for a few seconds
“So, now what? We wanted to run away and now we’re talking to each other,” he said, placing his hands on her waist
She felt shivers as she felt his hands. “My father is going to be so proud of he knows about this,” she said, finger pointing to him and then her
“Now, tell me about yourself, Victoria Windsor,” Aemond said, smiling to himself
“Well, my mother died in childbirth and my father was so upset about her death that he almost forgot about my existence until a maid told him that I was crying and needed milk,” she began, her eyes closing due to the fear of tears
“I was crowned Princess of Wales and I was the first Regnant Princess of Wales in my own right. My whole life I never even had a nice talk with my father and Lady Annabelle was the one to help me through all the pain and challenges I had in life that my relationship with my father was easily broken down. My betrothal with you was my last straw because I thought you were some fat prince who would tell me to lie there and take it,” she finished, the ending making him laugh loudly
“Listen Vicky, I would never tell you to lie there and take it, okay? My name is now in your heart and I hope you see me as a friend or more than someone you are destined to marry,” he comforted her by putting a hand on her shoulder
“Fine, now tell me about you, Aemond Targaryen.”
“I was crowned Dauphin Of France when I was a twelve year old, skipping my half-sister who was Dauphine Of France before but was a woman who wasn’t present to the public. So, my family decided to skip my brother and sister, who were born before me. My sister is a dreamer and my brother is too much of a drunkard for ruling a country. My mother was the only one who cared about me and my grandfather was greedy and wanted me to make him hand off the king. I’m pretty sure my sister and her husband will start a war once my father rots and dies and I become King of France” he ended just like her, making her hug him for all he’s been through
“Your country will be associated with the greatest nation of the world! You would have the Queen of England as wife and you’ll have more people supporting you rather than an usurper,” she encouraged, making him want to take her right then and there
Victoria noticed his eyes darkening. “I like how your eyes darken for no reason,” she said, making him mentally scoff as he knew exactly why his eyes were darkening
“Well, we should go and join the ball before my father announces our names,” Aemond nodded at her and then they walked to the ballroom
“Crown Prince Aemond Targaryen of France and Crown Princess Victoria Windsor,”
“Victoria! Ah, I see you’ve already met your betrothed!” Her father exclaimed happily, the joy of seeing his daughter with a man of his choice made him happier than ever
“Yes, Your Majesty. We have met each other and we like each other very much and we want to ask you to marry,” Aemond said, Victoria happily smiling at him as he spoke
“If you both are willing, Prince Aemond, you shall stay and be wed in the morning,” the King smiled as he led a woman to dance with him
“Well, we shall be husband and wife in a day? Oh gods, I remember not wanting to even see you today and to run away with some poor lord and now I’m marrying you happily,” Victoria laughed as she and Aemond danced together
“Oh, go to your poor lord!” Aemond threw her away from him, her taking that jokingly launched herself at him
“Now, you cannot let me go, my prince,” she said as she was sitting on him, her legs around his waist
He licked his lips as he smiled. “I never thought I could find someone who understood me and my feelings. Now, I think I have found them,”
“Do you truly mean that?” She asked. “So humans don’t fly?” He said in fake astonishment, twirling her around
“You look like you’re straight from a little girls fairytale book,” she complimented him with grace, making him laugh
“You look like the protagonist of a little girl’s fairytale book, my princess,”
"No, I do not look like a-
"You are and you do," Aemond smirked, as she soon realized she was a 'princess'
"Well, I now am calling it a night," the King plumped back on his throne as Aemond and Victoria separated from themselves
Everybody bowed to him as they left the ballroom, while the King told Aemond and Victoria to wait
"I am so delighted that both of you are satisfied with each other and all. Your marriage will be scheduled to the day after your birthday, Victoria. Your father is going to arrive here, yes?" Aemond nodded. "I will plan the decors and everything else with your father and your mother
"Then, we shall return to each other's chambers them, right father?" the King nodded and Aemond immediately dropped her hand, leaving to his chambers. Victoria didn't quite think that much about it as she left to her chambers
"Her Royal Highness, Crown Princess Victoria Windsor."
"Hello, Victoria. Did you sleep well?" Lady Annabelle asked but soon hugged her as she noticed the dry tears
"I thought- I thought he was a really nice person," she cried in Lady Annabelle's arms as she lost her balance
"What happened, sit down," Lady Annabelle got her servant to place a chair very easily in Victoria's reach as Lady Annabelle made her sit down in the chair and brushing her lamp as she sat down in her own chair. "Now, dear, tell me."
"I thought the Crown Prince was a really nice person because I talked with him yesterday and he was really nice and kind. I was walking to meet with his parents today as he was talking to some men calling me a 'easy whore'
"Did your father do anything about him then?" Lady Annabelle asked, distressed seeing her non-biological daughter crying in her arms
“No, just told him to leave with his family after I told him about what he did. God, I hope his half-sister usurps him, she deserves the throne more than a cunt like him. I would even help her and she would be supported by the whole of Great Britain,” Lady Annabelle laughed as she hugged her tightly
“Do not worry, dear. France will destroy themselves with the civil war which will arise,” Lady Annabelle comforted her. “You can pick a side and you can choose his half-sister’s. He lied to you about that. His maternal side, the Hightowers planned to make his drunken cunt of a brother to usurp the throne, but he was more responsible than his brother so they forged a ‘confirmation’ from his sick father,”
“How do you know so much about that?” Lady Annabelle smiled as she said “I love the history of France and especially the Targaryens,”
“Well, that’s good then,” Victoria stopped crying as Lady Annabelle spoke “The Targaryens had so much usurpers, council members making the sons King and not the daughters Queen, shaming warrior queens or women. Our royal family problems and usurping is nothing compared to theirs,”
“Well, that is very good for them. As most of them are probably cunts,” Victoria laughed as Lady Annabelle hit her lightly. “Who taught you to speak like that? That is no way a Lady or a Crown Princess would speak in that manner!”
“I apologize, Lady Annabelle,”
"I shall accept this nice apology of yours, dear Victoria" Lady Annabelle said as she bowed in a royal manner of her own
"Then we are friends again, I suppose?" Victoria laughed as she got of their little role-playing
Lady Annabelle smiled "I must admit, I like the woman you have grown to become, dear Victoria,"
"Thank you, Lady Annabelle"
"You shall be a good Queen"
#aemond x oc#jacaerys x oc#rhaenyra x oc#daemon x oc#house of the dragon#hotd fanfic#hotd#rhaenyra targaryen#otto hightower#criston cole#alicent hightower#hotd x reader#royal family#royal AU#royal family AU#17th century AU#aemond targaryen#aemond one eye#aemond fanfiction#hotd aemond#aemond x you#house of the dragon aemond#aemond the kinslayer
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Cultural Annotations on New Gods: Yang Jian -Part 2-
Part 1
Shen Gongbao was an original character from IOTG not rooted in mythology. In it, he defected from the Chan Sect to assist the tyrannical King Zhou of Shang against the forces of justice. There are several adaptations misrepresenting Shen Gongbao as a leopard spirit, or that he rode a leopard however none of these were in the original text. His white tiger in New Gods is accurate.
His character design is a nod to poet Liu Ling, one of the “Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove”, who was an alcoholic. The poem he recites outside the lighthouse was “Ode to the Virtue of Wine” by Liu Ling.
The concentric circle design of the portal resembles Ancient Chinese jade pendants from the Western Han Dynasty. The recent winter olympic medals are also inspired by the same pendants. It rotates like an armillary.
The stamp on the crate of cosmic gas is that of the White Tiger, one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations, guardian of the cardinal direction of west. The same stamp was on the crates at the gas station, and the teller was servicing at "Yin window" (寅字口). Yin is the third of the twelve Earthly Branches, which correlates with the year of the tiger, hence the tiger symbol.
Yingzhou is based on the Yueyaquan sand dunes in Dunhuang, a cradle of Buddhism in China, located in Northwestern Gansu.
The nearby Mogao Caves famously depict murals of the Flying Apsaras, represented by Wanluo’s dance in the Yingzhou Music Hall. The song the “Ballad of the Luo River Goddess”, was written by Cao Zhi, whose poetry was greatly revered during the Southern and Northern Dynasties where the movie takes place, so the timeline checks out.
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Pigsy, is that you?
Mo Lishou mentioned that Yang Jian also used underhanded methods to capture them. This is a reference to the incident in IOTG when Yang Jian deliberately let himself be eaten by his mink, killing it from within and transforming himself into the mink to infiltrate the brothers’ hideout in order to steal Mo Lihong’s havoc umbrella.
Surprisingly, Yang Jian’s title on his arrest form is still “True Monarch of the Pure Source”. His full title is the True Monarch of the Pure Source, Great Heavenly Deity of Justice (Qingyuan Miaodao Zhenjun, 清源妙道真君司法大天神), a status bestowed to him by his uncle the Jade Emperor. Ironic that the god of justice gets thrown into jail.
Prison gates were traditionally guarded by Bi’an (狴犴), the seventh son of the dragon king, a dragon-tiger hybrid. The one behind the pillar should be Bi’an.
The cute bronze dragon at the bell tower is Pulao (蒲牢), fourth son of the dragon king. He is a small four-legged dragon-toad hybrid who likes to scream, and is usually represented on the tops of bells, used as handles.
He is nested on top of the Azure Dragon (青龍 Qīnglóng), another one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations, representing the cardinal direction of east.
The giant beast inside the prison is Kaiming (开明兽), a mythical creature with nine heads from the abyss in Kunlun, described in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
The Sword of Cutting Immortals belongs to Yuding.
Shen Gongbao refers to Yuding as sect brother. Strictly speaking, they are indeed sect brothers as they were both Yuanshi Tianzun’s disciples from the same generation, and Yang Jian’s seniors.
Shen Gongbao quotes a line from the poem “善哉行” by Cao Pi.
The first time we see Chenxiang’s primordial spirit manifest, it glowed green and was shrouded in smoke due to the influence of Shen Gongbao, holding a dagger and wearing a bamboo hat.
Later when he’s been around Wanluo for a time, it turned pale gold while he gained tendril-like chains, similar to Wanluo’s threads, with daggers on the ends of them.
By the time he was ready to cleave the mountain after having followed his uncle around and learned Nine Turns Mystical Arts, we see the final evolution in the form of a vibrant gold figure that has lost the bamboo hat and now fully embodies a little general.
Jian drops into Chang’an, the Imperial City in the mortal realm in the midst of a civil war during the Jin dynasty. The Eastern Jin dynasty was in near-constant conflict with the northern states for most of its existence.
Chang’an, located in present-day Xi’an, has a lot historic significance as the capital of several major dynasties in Ancient China, and is a treasure trove of cultural relics.
Mount Li is a scenic location about an hour’s drive from the Fortifications of Xi’an. A complex of hot springs are located in the area known as Huaqing Pool, likely serving as the basis for Duyue Pool.
This scene is gorgeous.
Wanluo tells the story of King You of the Zhou Dynasty at the Beacon Tower of Mount Li, who was slain in 771 BC. The tower still stands today as part of the Huaqing Palace complex.
Further west is Mount Hua, the sacred mountain known as the "Western Mountain" of the Five Great Mountains of China. Lotus Peak is located on the western side of the mountain.
The paths leading up the mountain involve steep staircases, vertical ascents, and narrow plank trails bolted onto the cliff face, often labelled as some of the most dangerous hikes in the world.
The Nine Turns Mystical Arts (九转玄功) is the unique ability of Yang Jian. It grants him vast, physical durability of undefined limits and nigh-invulnerability to conventional weapons and various magic spells.
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This was such a bittersweet moment when he stopped the wind chimes.
The scene where Chengxiang paused at Shen Gongbao’s monument was heartbreaking.
365 gods were canonized at the Investiture Altar of Mount Qi. Shen Gongbao was the last one on the list.
Yuding borrowed the Deity-Binding Chains from his master Yuanshi Tianzun, which were confiscated from Tu Xingsun. Tu Xingsun once used them to bind Nezha, Huang Tianhua, Jiang Ziya etc.
The Yin Yang Scroll belongs to Taishang Laojun, who along with Yuanshi Tianzun and Lingbao Tianzun make up the Three Pure Ones - three highest gods in the Daoist pantheon. In IOTG, Yuanshi Tianzun’s disciple Chi Jingzi also borrowed it to subdue Yin Hong.
The text on it comes from “Taishang Laojun’s sutra of everlasting tranquility” (太上老君说常清静经).
Part 1｜Part 3｜Part 4
#new gods#new gods: yang jian#yang jian#新神榜#杨戬#新神榜：杨戬#xin shen bang#jttw#investiture of the gods#lotus lantern#Youtube
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The Prodigal Girl's Return
The minute I turned into the parking lot, a debilitating wave of nostalgia hit me. It made my heart hurt, and I parked quickly, stepping out of my car and looking up at the building in front of me in a dazed reverie.
The church was smaller than I remembered it, though I guess the last time I was here, I was much smaller. A thousand memories danced around me, and I was only standing in the parking lot.
Irrational fear gripped my heart as I slowly walked towards the front door, as if the moment I stepped inside, I would erupt into flames. As if I would be struck down the second I crossed the threshold.
How dare I return to the Lord’s house, after all these years?
And yet, as I opened the doors and stepped inside, there was no fire. There was no grand disaster to end me, to send me down to Hell where I surely belonged. There was only the sound of the door closing behind me, and my heavy breathing to cut through the silence.
The church was empty, like I hoped it would be. I didn’t want anyone to be here right now. They didn’t need to see me like this, cowering in the chapel doorway as if some invisible monster was around the corner.
Slowly, tentatively, I took my hand off the doorknob.
I began to walk, with fearful trepidation.
My mind shut down, letting muscle memory guide me into the chapel.
To say that it looked exactly the same as I remembered it would be overstating my memory; it wasn’t exact. But it was similar enough to make me choke back a wave of nausea.
I found myself wandering down the aisle, feeling like a ghost stuck between two worlds. There was an ocean between me and the girl I was last time I was here, and I could hardly even begin to process the crushing onslaught of memories that came rushing back to me.
The whole room glowed with an otherworldly familiarity; comforting, but tainted with something else, something darker. The high chapel ceilings were painted white, accenting the intricate stained-glass windows that lined the walls. The carpets were the same shade of weird gray-green that I remembered, matching the cushions on the pews so perfectly it was almost hard to separate them. And the pews; I found myself unconsciously running a hand along the sides, tracing them as I made my way towards the front of the room.
I was already blinking back tears, and I hadn’t even gotten to the altar. My feet stopped me before I could, and I slipped into one of the pews, welcoming the familiar embrace of the hard wood and scratchy upholstery. And for a moment, everything was still.
That’s when I began to cry.
The air around me felt thick, and my tears fell with the weight of every sin I had committed. Just because I felt no remorse for my actions didn’t mean that the fear of Hell hadn’t been drilled into me, hadn’t burrowed itself into the very fiber of my being, as if to ensure that I would never be free from the cross I was shackled to at birth.
Yet, as I cried, I felt the building welcome me. Despite every disdainful remark, every venom-soaked platitude I had spit at the church, it still somehow felt like coming home.
And in that moment, I had lived and died a thousand times in that room.
I am not sorry. I refuse to apologize for who I am.
I shouted inside my mind, and the building listened. An air of comfort seeped into my skin, relaxing the muscles that had been tense since I arrived. I might’ve been praying, but at that point I wasn’t sure. If I was, I don’t think it was to God. I think it was to every iteration of myself that walked within these walls. Every bright-eyed kid who was given more pressure than they ever deserved, every child who knelt at that altar in a casual state of anxiety.
If God was watching me, he knew. He saw the mix of anger and sorrow and fear in my mind. He didn’t need me to tell him how his disciples wronged me. He’d seen it all, and that would have to be enough.
The sound of my sobs echoed around the room, and I almost worried that somebody passing by was going to hear me. That they were going to come inside to find an adult woman, weeping in an empty church.
Stained-glass filtered light settled like a blanket over me, and slowly my tears dried up. By the end, I was crying more in emotional release than in sorrow.
I understood that the cocktail of emotions in my mind would never fully be gone. Just as the fear of Hell had burrowed into my bones, so too had the melancholy that tainted my memories. Blissful ignorance was something I’d long since grown out of, and I couldn’t ignore the actions of the institutional church any longer. What once brought me so much joy now delivered only feelings of confusion.
And yet.
Sitting in the church I’d grown up in, the confusion was quieter, as though the ache in my chest was momentarily subdued. I felt something running through my bloodstream, and it took me a moment to even recognize the feeling. But eventually, I figured it out.
Peace.
It had been so long.
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I wrote this imagery piece for a writing contest like two years ago and I posted it on one of my older blogs, but I hadn't gotten any pictures to go with it until recently so I hope y'all enjoyed!! :)
Also fun fact, the Google Doc for this was called "Vivid Traumatic Memories" which I thought was funny lmao
#religious trauma#exvangelical#religious deconstruction#religious art#original writing#christian religion#ethel cain#poetry#photography#original photography#photographer#writer#imagery#religious imagery#hozier#florence and the machine
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finished stone ocean and im not okay. here’s a lengthy one shot, full of spoilers by the way. and it’s an angst! also used my stand oc in this, might make series based on the stand with a diff user.
sorry in advance
End Of Time | Jotaro x AFAB! Reader
words: 1.4k
She stared out the plane’s window, her mind on the conversation she had with him a weeks ago and the conversation she had with speed wagon foundation; a day ago. ‘Daughter? You have a daughter?’ She asked, blinking back a couple of tears. Why was she just learning about this? He said nothing, but just nodded at her remark.
The two have known each other since highschool, being in an on again and off again relationship with each other. They attended the same college and had similar interests in science. With him being a marine biologist and her being a chemist. She also possessed a stand; which allowed her to accompany Jotaro on his journey to defeat Dio and save his mother from his tyranny.
‘Her name’s Jolyne and I have to protect her; a disciple of Dio is roaming the prison she’s in and im sure he’ll be after quite soon’ Her emotions quickly changed once she heard that vampire’s name. The man that once tormented the Joestar lineage is at it once again; even from the grave.
‘Let me come with. You know—‘
‘No. I need you to stay here. I don’t know how strong this guy is. I can’t have you getting hurt as well’ She wanted to fight him on that but he had that look in his eyes, and she knew not to pester him any more. That was the last conversation she had with him, and the last time she saw him. As the two days went by, she began to worry more and then the call she got from the speedwagon foundation didn’t make her feel better. So, here she was on the next flight to Florida to save the person she loved dearly and his daughter.
She still couldn’t believe he had one and when did this happen? Was it the year they had broken up? Although she was initially upset, she couldn’t blame him for hiding her identity from the world, he wasn’t the only one hiding secrets…
Meanwhile, Jotaro had finally made it to Florida and just in the nick of time to save his daughter from bullets that was just about to hit her. Pucci was shocked to see he had arrived, but this only intensified the fight. The priest had gained a new power up and the group of stand users couldn’t find him, and to top it all of something was wrong with the time; everything was moving faster than normal, including Pucci himself.
They were now trapped on a rooftop, trying to search for him. Using star platinum’s the world, Jotaro tried his best to find him and plan his next move during the time stop. However, his ace in the hole didn’t work for long and now they couldn’t find him.
‘Where the hell is he?!’ Jolyne called out, trying to sense him. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted him, but there was something off about him.
‘What the hell is he doing? Emporia do you have binoculars?’ The little boy in baseball attire nodded and reached into his stomach to pull out a pair of jet black binoculars, handing it Jolyne. Her green eyes peered into it, looking at the enemy stand user, where she was able to see the priest. A gasped escaped her green lips, ‘What the hell? It looks like he’s about to cough up a lung?’ She began to pass around the binoculars so everyone can see, and when they got back to emporio; his eyes widened.
‘I’ve seen this before….I’ve read about it in some book!’ The green haired woman took a look at him, urging the boy to continue. Pulling out the book he flipped a couple of pages before looking at the priest again. ‘From how his body’s reacting, he looks like he has ozone poisoning! But, how?!’ Jotaro’s eyes widened to a degree before he sensed a familiar presence. ‘I know how. You can stop hiding yourself. I know you’re here’
On queue, the woman had appeared; a smoke screen had been shielding her. Everyone, but Jotaro, stood guard. Not trusting the woman, until Jotaro reassured them she’s an ally. ‘Don’t worry guys, she’s not an enemy. She knows about everything including Dio’ He looked at her, she was wearing a goofy grin; ignoring his anger. ‘I told you not to come!’
‘When do I ever listen to you, Kujo?’
‘Old man, who is this woman..?’ Jolyne asked, looking at her father and the woman who were having a stare off. Before he could answer the woman turned to Jolyne, a smile on her face. ‘You must Jolyne! You must get your looks from your mother’ She joked, earning a chuckle from the nineteen year old. The two began to make jokes about Jotaro, which caused a vein to pop on his forehead.
‘I don’t mean to cut the reunion short, but we have bigger fish to fry here’ Anasui spoke, pointing at the priest; who was over coming the toxic gas. They all got serious, looking at the man who was just on the verge of death. ‘Whatever you did, you have to do it again, he’s aiming to kill me, but when that happens Mr. Jotaro; you have to take that moment and kill his ass!’ Anasui continued; speaking to both Y/N and Jotaro.
Her stand, Thriller, controls matter. Be it solid, liquid or gas; she can control and create it. But, in order to create them; she has to know the contents of it. That’s why she spent so many years in college. ‘It’s no use! We have to move, that jack ass is heading towards us!’
Thanks to Emporio, they were only able to escape from him momentarily; as they launched themselves to the marshes not too far away. ‘You okay?’ Jotaro asked her, after she landed on a small piece of rock, that hit her stomach. She croaked out a small yeah, but she wasn’t sure. Holding her stomach, she had hoped the tiny human growing inside of her was okay. She took his hand and got up. Anasui was impaled and Jotaro immediately stopped time, ‘Knives? Just like Dio. Dammit’
He quickly moved Jolyne out the way, but just as his five seconds was up, he noticed the blood that was seeping out of Y/N’s stomach. With a wound like that, she wouldn’t make it. ‘The time is nigh! The joestar blood line ends here’ Pucci spoke, sending some attacks to the opposing stand users, but he quickly stopped, feeling like he was being stabbed from the inside. The priest fell to the waters underneath him, which hardened; causing his knees to be stuck in ice.
‘What the—‘ She slowly approached him, still holding her stomach. ‘Doesn’t it feel like 1000 knives stabbing you from the inside? I bet you can hardly breathe, the loss of blood flow leaves you immobile, which makes it easier to kill you! Do it now Jotaro!’ She screamed, which allowed the time stop stand user to pummel the priest. She had hardened his blood from the inside, thanks to the open wounds he received. However, the priest had another trick up his sleeve, he accelerated time once more and flashed away; injuring Jotaro in the process
It was clear they weren’t going to win this fight, with a gravely injured Ermes, Anasui and Jotaro on the brink of death; this fight only had one ending. And this time the enemy stand user was winning. Using her stand power, the woman hardened the blood that was leaking from her open stomach, before limping her way to Jotaro who was collapsed in the ocean.
Kneeling down next to him, she turned him over and let out a gasp once she seen the huge wound he received. He had a huge split in his face; and the way she was weak right now; she wasn’t able to use her stand power to temporarily heal him while she was healing herself. Tears poured out her eyes as she began to panic, the person she loved was now dying right before her and she didn’t know what to do.
‘Please, don’t leave me. Don’t leave me here; don’t die. I love you, I love you…!’ She cried out, she was scared. She didn’t want him to die, she didn’t want to die either. She grabbed his hand that was turning colder by the second and placed it on her stomach, ‘that’s us right there. That’s our baby! I used my stand and solidified the fluid around them, but that’s ours! Don’t die! Save Jolyne, save us! Please don’t leave me….’
Being that she was too weak and lost a lot of blood, her heart was no longer receiving blood, causing her to collapse on top of her dead lover. Everyone had died that day; but in another universe all of them had lived all thanks to Emporio.
#jotaro part 6#jotaro kujo#6taro#jotaro and jolyne#jolyne cujoh#jjba pucci#enrico pucci#ermes costello#anasui jojo#anastasia#foo fighters#jojo angst#stone ocean#jjba stone ocean#jotaro angst#jojo kimyou na bouken#jojo’s bizzare adventure
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All's Fair in Love and Science
Chapter 9: When It's Time To Go
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After being introduced to a kindly chef by Andi and April, the boys find themselves entangled with both the local street gang and Shredder's henchmen - which forces Leo to rethink an act of mercy he committed.
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Here we are again! Fair warning, unlike the last two chapters, Andi will not have as big a presence this time. But never fear, she will be present nonetheless!
Okay, now that that's out of the way...y'all, thank you so much for the support! All's Fair has only been here for seven months, and I've seen so much positivity and support come from writing this! Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart, and here's to even more antics with Andi, April, Splinter and the boys! 🩷
P.S. I am so sorry for the delay on this chapter. College interfered so much and just drained my motivation, but now we're back and better than ever! 🩷
~
The city was displaying a beautiful twilight haze as Shredder overlooked it from his window. But unfortunately, the curt tone in his voice told Bradford and Xever that he wasn't happy - especially with their first run-in with the turtles.
"Hamato Yoshi's disciples are turtles?" He asked as Bradford disclosed what happened to them. "And yet they managed to defeat you?"
But Bradford quickly defended the stance - as ridiculous as it sounded. "Not just turtles. Man-sized turtles. Trained in ninjutsu. And I almost had them..."
He was interrupted by Xever quickly throwing him under the bus - all while he kneeled down next to Bradford. "'Til you led us into their trap. If I had gotten them where I'd wanted-"
But Bradford saw fault with that too - their feud was still as potent as ever. "Then we'd never find Hamato."
"Silence!"
Just like last time, Shredder was not about to listen to the two of them argue and fight with each other - especially when they had both failed in finding the turtles and Splinter. But there was more anger to Bradford - he had been mentoring Bradford for the longest time, and to see him fail like his...it borderline sickened him.
"You were such a promising student." He told Bradford as he left his spot overlooking the window and unsheathed his claws - before menacingly placing them at his neck. "I expected much more from you."
"Sensei, give me another chance. I-I will not fail you again!" Bradford pleaded with him, doing his best to avoid the claws. He had seen Shredder murder with those things...he did not want to become another statistic. Plus, now they knew what the turtles looked like and had seen their fighting style! Surely they would do better this time!
And Shredder seemed to agree as he put away the claws. "No, you won't." He merely replied, before turning his attention to his other henchman. "Xever, you are in charge."
The aforementioned man gave Bradford a cocky (and at the same time, sly) smirk, which immediately rubbed the latter the wrong way. The thought of taking orders from the man he despised so much? Laughable. "I won't take orders from this gutter trash!"
But once again, Shredder wasn't about to fuel or mediate in their feud. "Is that so?" He replied, the claws coming out again.
Immediately, Bradford backed down and kneeled his head in respect. "Unless...you want me to, master."
At the same time, Xever's head was swimming with ideas as far as their approach. Unlike Bradford, he had grown up on the streets - and he had a multitude of underground connections that could help them. "I've already put the word out to keep watch for the turtles." He added as a subtle brag to Shredder. "And when I find them, I'll peel them out of their shells and drop them at your feet."
Very morbid and graphic, but that didn't seem to bother Shredder. Seemingly satisfied with Xever's confidence, he turned back around, his cape billowing in the wind, and returned back to the throne.
Giving one final smirk to Bradford (who looked nothing short of livid,) Xever walked out of the throne room with the same type of confidence that a seasoned assassin walked with. Bradford, meanwhile, grit his teeth at the situation (playing second fiddle to Xever was a major blow to his pride, admittedly,) and trudged out of the throne room behind him.
Well, if there was any silver lining, Xever would experience the same humiliation and self-loathing if this mission went south.
Only one way to find out.
~
Meanwhile, April was putting on her black boots when her phone started to ring. And when she saw who was calling her, she smiled - it was Donnie.
"Hey, Donnie, what's up?"
She could feel the gigantic smile he had on his face as he talked. "Hey, April! Are you leaving now?"
"Well, I'm leaving the apartment, then I've got to pick up Andi, so give or take 10 minutes." She explained, and when she got a 'no problem' from him, she smirked mischievously as she grabbed her apartment key and wallet. "Speaking of Andi, how was your date last Saturday?"
April could practically feel his blush through the phone. "U-Uh, it wasn't a date, per se, just, um...two people hanging out and talking and stuff..." He nervously giggled as he tried to defend it, but knew he wasn't winning - so he decided to just answer the question. "But...it was awesome." He conceded, a smile now forming on his face. "She's so cool and witty and funny and just-" A dreamy sigh escaped his lips, re-imagining everything that happened...
But then he remembered he was still on the phone with April. "Uh, moral of the story...just, thank you so much for helping me with that last week. I owe you so much."
She couldn't help but to chuckle at that. "You know how you can make it up to me? Make a move on her already. Seriously, dude, a blind and deaf person could tell you like her."
When Donnie only stammered out vague phrases in response (she could picture his face turning maroon at that,) she snickered again and shook her head. "All right, fine, don't. At least, not yet. When you're ready." She assured him, then turned the key in the lock and opened her door. "On that note, I'm leavin' right now. We'll be en route in about 10 minutes. Meet us on Delancey and we'll walk you guys there."
Still blushing (though his stammer was now under control,) Donnie agreed and bid her goodbye, making April smile and shake her head at her friend's absurdity as she locked the door.
~
Now with Andi in tow, the two girls had made their way down the street - eventually making it on Delancey. It felt oddly familiar, likely because they had just combed these streets looking for Rockwell...but now that kind of felt like a distant memory.
Like all the other things that had happened in the past few weeks.
They knew the boys were walking alongside them - but because they were both turtles and ninjas, they wanted to use the shadows instead of just use a convincing costume or something like that. Or just lie and say they had really horrible skin conditions. It was New York City; as long as you didn't have a weapon, you could typically get away looking as absurd and weird as possible.
And it would've been funny, if they weren't being so agonizingly slow.
Finally, in front of the Olympia Theater, Andi decided to call them out. "You guys think it's at all possible that we can get you where we wanna go before 7 am?"
She slightly jumped at Donnie, who appeared behind the ticket counter of the theater with an unamused look - but there was a hint of ruefulness in his eyes. "Andi, are you implying the stereotype of turtles being slow?"
Andi smirked a bit at him, deciding to be a little bit mean. "If you guys are the turtles in question, then yes." She snarkily replied, getting on one knee to tie her shoe.
Before Donnie could engage her in a playful argument, Leo decided to clarify the whole situation for her. "Trust us, Andi, we find it better that no one knows we exist. And if that means we stay in the shadows and go slow, then so be it."
She put her hands up in surrender as she stood back up, brushing the gravel from her knees. "All right, you win. But we're gonna lose the one night you guys can actually enjoy yourselves with April and me because you guys just feel like enforcing your own stereotype."
Ignoring the last half of her statement, Raph raised a nonexistent eyebrow at her. "What are you talkin' about? We go out all the time."
Continuing the trend of clarification, April gave him a lopsided smirk. "Yeah, but tonight you're gonna be doing something besides hitting people."
When Raph let out a prolonged groan, both girls laughed to themselves as Andi shook her head. "I know, such a travesty for you, Raphie. But it's gonna be fun. You're gonna love this restaurant we found."
"And you're sure we'll be welcome?" Donnie asked her with a nervous look, lightly tapping his fingers against the counter.
"Would we be taking you there if we weren't absolutely sure?" Andi replied with a reassuring smile, making Donnie give her the same look and a little "touché." April smiled at the two of them as she nodded. "Mr. Murakami doesn't care what you look like. In fact, he won't even know what you look like. He's blind." She explained.
"Awesome!" Mikey cheered (at the prospect, not at the idea of Mr. Murakami being a blind man,) but then he realized that the latter was what Raph thought he meant when he received a smack on the head from his older brother. "I-I mean, for us, obviously."
~
When they got there, though, it didn't look peaceful and quiet. Chairs were being thrown around, glass was being shattered, punches were being thrown...the poor guy was getting ransacked in his own restaurant by three goons.
"Oh no!" April cried as Andi gasped, grabbing her gun from her garter belt as all six of them ran closer to get a better look at the damage.
"Who are those creeps?" Donnie asked, instinctively going to stand beside Andi. He couldn't help it; after they had just hung out, his protectiveness over her was on high alert. Even if these guys didn't look that intimidating, he wasn't about to take any chances.
"The Purple Dragons." April told them grimly as they watched as a pot was kicked to the floor and a chair was thrown aside and smashed to bits. Meanwhile, a white lucky cat was tossed around like a ball, before being met with the same fate as the chair.
Andi scowled at the trio - and at how blatantly disrespectful they were being. "They think they're tougher than they actually are. The only thing they actually have going for them is that they're the local gang and they know how to evade the police." She was completely oblivious to Mikey scowling at them just like she was, Donnie being less intimidated and more annoyed, and Leo and Raph sharing a look, silently asking how they were going to take these guys down.
Meanwhile, the gang still hadn't had enough of tormenting the poor man. The leader, Fong, decided to try and exploit his blindness by tapping him on the shoulder and assaulting him again. But holding a wooden cutting board, Murakami got the better of him and hit him right in the neck, sending him flying into the back table and gasping for breath.
His buddies laughed, thinking it was pretty pathetic for the leader of the Dragons to be so affected by something as simple as a cutting board. Taking that personally, Fong growled at him and when the man had let his guard back down (thinking Fong had backed off,) said leader backhanded him across the face, making a stunned Murakami fall to his knees. He then grabbed the blind man by the scruff of his neck and threw him into the wall.
Okay, now they needed to interfere.
As they all waited against the wall for the perfect opportunity, Leo remarked, "So much for not hitting people tonight." And Raph agreed with a cocky smirk, "Oh well."
"Let me know if you need help." Andi muttered to them as she powered up her gun, setting it to the new 'human' feature instead of the default 'kill' feature. It was a new setting she added after encountering Rockwell. She knew she didn't have the heart to murder someone (human or mutant) in cold blood, so she added another setting to stun her target (and possibly cause some broken bones with its force,) but nothing lethal.
As long as she didn't aim for the head.
The boys nodded (with Donnie giving her an appreciative look,) before charging in, Mikey exclaiming a "Booyakasha!" to get the trio's attention.
And admittedly, he succeeded. The trio stared in stunned silence at the four of them - more in disbelief that there were actual turtles in their city instead of panic that they were caught.
However, the boys felt the exact opposite - with Leo voicing all of their inner thoughts. "All right, let him go. You don't want any trouble." He threatened them, his voice as cool as ice.
Unsurprisingly, Raph felt basically the opposite. "We, on the other hand, do."
"Whoa, those guys were serious!" Fong exclaimed, glancing at his buddies with more surprise than panic or anger. "There really are giant turtles!" And considering the staredown the boys had started to receive from the other two, they figured that whoever tipped off the Dragons about them were natural enemies of them.
Not good.
But Mikey only focused on the absolute surface of the situation. "You've...heard of us?" He asked, temporarily lowering his fists as a smile formed on his face. "Dudes, we're famous!" He cheered. This was what he wanted after they ended up on the news all those weeks ago! They had done it! Major league, baby!
But Donnie was quick to shut his hopes and dreams down. "That's bad!"
And then Mikey remembered why that was the case and went back to being imposing, coupled with an 'oh, right.'
However, instead of leaping into taking them down, Fong decided to taunt them a bit. "Whatever you are, this neighborhood is ours. So why don't you slither back to the ocean you came from?"
Once again, instead of leaping into the action, Donnie decided it would be a good idea for some clarification - as well as an evolution theory. "Actually, we're freshwater turtles." He then put his hand to his chin, immediately going into deep thought. "I suspect we're derived from the diamondback terrapin, but it's possible we're a common box-"
All while Leo and Raph were staring at him like 'seriously?' and Mikey glanced at his brother with confusion.
Oh, if only Andi were here...she'd probably join in the discussion.
Thankfully, Fong broke up the ridiculousness with a "get 'em!"
And his buddies listened, using the tools they were using to destroy the restaurant, like a sledgehammer. However, since they were just common thugs, they weren't the brightest when it came to combat, so when it came to actually attacking, Leo skillfully dodged a swing from the sledgehammer once, then twice, then let Mikey use his shell as a springboard to jump off it, then hit the sledgehammer-wielding thug with a double spinning kick, sending him spiraling into the wall.
But he wasn't done. Raising his sledgehammer again, he went to attack Mikey - but this time, was met with Raph, who dodged the slow swings effortlessly and, when the opportunity struck him, hit the thug directly in the face, making him stumble back and crash into the wall.
Meanwhile, Donnie and Mikey were ganging up on the other goon, with the oafish man trying to punch Donnie. But since his attack was too slow, Donnie easily avoided it and performed a sweep-kick, sending the man to the floor.
Thinking that Donnie had it covered, Mikey turned around and noticed a bowl of ramen resting comfortably against the counter. Maybe it was an order Murakami had forgot to put away?
Well, why not take a quick snack break and see why the girls liked this place so much?
But that was before he and Donnie took turns mindlessly punching and kicking the thug back and forth until he finally had enough and fell to the ground in pain.
Noticing the boys had been making good work of them, Andi and April found themselves crawling on the floor to find Murakami - all while avoiding the broken glass and flurry of punches and kicks being thrown every which way. And when they finally found the blind man laying on the floor, April gasped and reached him first, gently shaking his shoulder to try and get his attention.
"Mr. Murakami?" Andi whispered to him, now more concerned than angered. "Are you okay? It's us, April and Andromeda. We're gonna get you out of here, sir."
When he started to stir, Andi sighed in relief as she glanced at April. "Keep helping him, Ape. I'll make sure nothing happens to you." She promised, and when April gave her a steely nod, the caramel-haired girl peeked over the counter - and her eyes immediately widened at the sight as she frantically got her gun out again.
While Mikey was distracted by the bowl of ramen, the sledgehammer-holding goon had gotten off the floor and had raised the hammer, ready to strike.
Growling to herself, Andi aimed at the thug's chest and shot at him, making him wince in pain as he fell to the floor.
Mikey glanced at the now stunned man, confused as to what happened. But when he saw Andi putting her gun away, he grinned at her and gave her a thumbs up. "Thanks, Andi! Sick gun!"
Andi gave him a little smile and an acknowledging nod. "Anytime. And thanks." She then glanced at April and Murakami, with her friend having propped the blind man onto her shoulder. "Let's get you out of here, Mr. Murakami." She told him, putting his left arm over her shoulder to help April and helping them out of the restaurant.
It was only when a plate started flying towards them did they get scared again. "Duck!" April screamed, making all three of them wince as they quickly ducked their heads.
Thankfully, that was the only hazard as the girls got Murakami out of there and rested him on the restaurant's exterior wall to help him get his bearings back.
Meanwhile, Donnie had been elegantly dodging attacks by one of the other thugs. His attacks were easy to predict. He would swing to the left, so Donnie would dodge right. He would try swinging right, and Donnie would swing left. As he predicted before while fighting alongside Mikey, these guys were not the brightest thugs in the world.
Actually, that was giving him too much credit. They may have been the most pathetic criminals he had ever seen - either in person or on TV. At least Stockman was a genius and could build new weapons and technology.
These guys, though? The dictionary definition of pathetic.
And Donnie knew that as one strong kick to the chest would send him flying into the farthest wall.
And all that was left was Fong, and Leo had stepped up to challenge him. The leader of the Dragons was holding a cleaver and was clearly not afraid to use it, but the blue-masked leader was daring him to try, a cold and steely look in his matching blue eyes.
But Fong decided to try his luck. He swung the cleaver at Leo, but he was no match - Leo sent the weapon flying and hit him twice in the chest to catch him off guard. And then kicked the leader in the face, sending him skidding across the counter and making him slam into the wall.
And once again, Leo was faster, sliding onto the counter himself. Just like Fong did to Murakami, Leo grabbed the man by his black vest and raised his fist, seemingly about to finish him off.
Though something changed. When Fong winced in pain, bracing the inevitable, Leo's cold demeanor faded as he lowered his fist and let go of Fong's vest. They weren't the biggest threat they had ever faced, admittedly. Sure, they were scum for beating up a defenseless blind man in his own restaurant, but they weren't necessarily evil like the Shredder.
However, Leo made it clear that they weren't to be messed with. "Get out of here." He said in a harsh growl, his eyes glaring daggers at him.
Rather than be scared and thank him for showing such mercy, Fong pushed past him with a cocky smirk on his face and hopped off the counter with an odd amount of swagger. They may have lost, but he was still alive and walking. And the best part was, they could confirm to the higher-ups that the turtles did exist.
Win-win.
"C'mon, let's go!" Fong called to his buddles, trying to shake them awake. Once they did and started to get up (though the sledgehammer-wielding one had more trouble than the oafish one,) their leader decided to end the fight with a taunt: "This ain't over, greeny!"
He then followed such a brilliant taunt as he ran into the street after his men.
"Greeny? Really?" Donnie asked, more insulted with the insult than their fighting skills. Somehow, their vocabulary was worse - by a mile. "I wonder how many brain cells he took to come up with that."
Meanwhile, Raph was the opposite - less focused on the insult and more focused on how Leo decided to end the fight. "You just let him go? What the heck was that?" He yelled to his blue-masked brother once the latter had hopped off the counter.
However, Leo was more calm than Raph was. "They weren't exactly a threat. They'd had enough." He reasoned.
But Raph still took issue with that line of thinking. "Dude! They were beating up a blind guy! There is no enough! Now they'll think we're wimps and we didn't have the guts to finish the job!"
Leo looked down at the floor, now processing what Raph had said. It was hard to really believe that what he was saying was objective fact (Raph could be a bit of a raging bull after all,) but at the same time...the way Fong brushed past him like nothing was wrong...maybe his brother did have a point.
His thought process was broken though as the girls came back inside with a now-conscious Murakami as he held his head. "Wow, that was great, you guys!" April cheered as she helped Murakami sit down on one of the stools.
Andi agreed, a bright smile on her face. "I knew you would mop the floor with those guys!" She added, making Donnie turn bashful as he smiled back at her.
"Thanks, girls. Uh, Andi, did you see when I caught that one guy and flipped him onto the counter? Did it look cool?" He asked (complete with motions and everything,) giggling to himself as the prospect of impressing her. "I bet it looked cool." He added to himself, glancing at her with hope.
Rather than being impressed, though, Andi smirked knowingly at him. "You forget, I saved Mikey from getting a sledgehammer to the cranium, then I helped April in getting Mr. Murakami out of the restaurant. So how could I see it?" She then realized something else - and decided to ruin his hope further. "And considering you just described what you did in detail and even pantomimed what happened, it doesn't take a genius to assume that didn't even really happen."
When Donnie didn't respond, only pouted at her with a mock glare, she laughed and patted the top of his head. "Aw, don't worry, Don. You'll have more chances to impress me."
She ignored the warm blush growing on his face as Murakami addressed the six of them. "My friends, I am indebted to you. Please, allow me to make you a meal. Free of charge."
At that prospect, all six of them became curious - though the girls looked at the boys with excitement at trying Murakami's excellent cooking. "I think we can allow that." Raph replied, admittedly surprised at Murakami's kind demeanor. Even if he was blind, he didn't act like they were freaks or mutants. He treated them with respect and even called them 'friends,' even after they just met.
He had to admit, he liked this guy.
"What is your favorite dish?" Murakami asked, expecting them to say something like gyoza, ramen, or onigiri. Something traditionally Japanese that was a staple of his menu.
What he was not expecting was the unanimous response of:
"PIZZA!"
~
Rather than suggest they order something else, though, Murakami took this as a challenge.
He was completely in his element in the kitchen; checking woks, stir-frying vegetables with ease, adding seasoning, making sure everything was at the right temperature...it was like he didn't even need his sight to cook. He had all the measurements, times, and ingredients in his head down to the exact second and perfectly prepared. And it all culminated in perfectly slicing the gyoza he had made.
No wonder the girls liked this place so much.
"Murakami-san, that was awesome!" Donnie cheered, with Mikey adding, "You're like a ninja but with food!"
Touched by the compliment, Murakami presented the four of them with four square wooden plates, all having what looked like regular gyoza. But then Murakami announced it to them, "Pizza gyoza."
"Pizza gyoza?" Andi and April asked at the same time as they sat next to the boys, confused at the concept. Gyoza was just fried dumplings, so did that mean Murakami put pizza toppings inside the dumpling like a calzone?
Rather than answer, though, the boys started eating their gyoza (at the same time,) and almost immediately, their eyes looked like they were about to pop out of their heads. A delighted reaction came from all of them as they continued eating. It was just like when they had pizza for the first time - where had this been their entire lives?
"It's like I got a one-way ticket to Flavorville!" Donnie exclaimed, before picking up another gyoza with his chopsticks and holding it out to Andi. "Andi, try it! You'll absolutely love it!"
Immediately, Andi backed away from it, admittedly a bit nervous. "Uh, actually, I'm kinda-" She was then cut off by Donnie fluttering his nonexistent eyelashes at her and asking, "Please? For me?"
Darn him and that cute look of his.
Finally, she relented and sighed, closing her eyes. "All right, fine." She then opened her mouth, completely oblivious to the little smile and slight blush Donnie had again as he fed her. And similar to the boys, her eyes lit up as a huge smile appeared on her face. "Mm!" She exclaimed as she swallowed, then grinned at the purple-masked turtle. "You're right!" She then eyed his plate, and her smile turned from bright to bashful. "Um...could I just have one more?"
His smile could've lit up the entire city as he nodded and fed her one more.
All the while, April and Mikey were giggling over how obviously flirty they were being, while Raph and Leo were smirking knowingly at each other. 'They'd better get together soon,' they told each other.
But then the conversation shifted from watching Andi and Donnie to wanting to know about the Dragons - specifically from Leo. "Uh, Murakami-san, do the Purple Dragons come around a lot?"
Murakami sighed at the question. "Yes. They demand protection money, but I refuse to pay. They will surely return." By the solemn tone in his voice, it was obvious this was a common occurrence for him.
"Well, they wouldn't if somebody hadn't wimped out." Raph commented, looking directly at Leo. This made the blue-masked turtle look down, now starting to reconsider even more. Maybe Raph was right; if he hadn't spared Fong, Murakami wouldn't have to bear the stress of being harassed and possibly attacked again by those goons.
As if to add a bit of insult to injury, while Leo was distracted, Mikey swooped in and grabbed the last three gyoza on his older brother's plate as fast as light. But Leo noticed, and when he saw Mikey innocently eating the stolen food, he glared at his youngest brother - all while Mikey gave him a mischievous smile.
Okay, he already felt guilty about letting Fong go, he didn't need his food stolen on top of it.
~
Now they were back at the lair, with the girls home safe and sound. Mikey and Donnie were reading comics, and the only sounds that could be heard were the pinging and general racket of the pinball machine and Leo grunting as he trained, kicking and punching the training dummy. Admittedly, he was channeling at least a little bit of his regret over letting the Dragons go and putting Murakami at risk again - but it also helped that he just wanted to feel like he was on his A-game next time the four of them got into a fight.
However, Raph wasn't about to let Leo forget his decision anytime soon. "Whoa, whoa, Leo!" He called out sarcastically, interrupting his brother's training session as the blue-masked turtle looked on, unamused. "I think he's had enough, you better let him go." Raph added, patting the training dummy's chest to add emphasis.
"I get it, you're making fun of me for not mercilessly pummeling a helpless man." Leo told him, the look on his face more exasperated than unamused now.
"Yes, I am." Raph agreed, his eyes staring directly at Leo. "You showed weakness." He added, jabbing a finger into Leo's plastron, making the eldest now less exasperated and more genuinely bothered. "Those guys only understand one language."
Before Leo could answer, though, Mikey did with a surprising amount of enthusiasm. "Chinese?"
Raph rolled his eyes before leaping over to Mikey. "No, fists!" He countered, raising his fist up to further his point.
To make the situation a bit less tense (and to avoid getting hit,) Mikey decided to bring up another point. "What about feet?" He asked, almost rhetorically, as he lifted his leg, wiggling his toes to prove his point, much like Raph did.
This only made the red-masked turtle feel just as exasperated as his brother minutes before. "They understand feet." He conceded with a begrudging tone.
Noticing the glaring flaw in Raph's argument now, Donnie decided to jump in. "That would make them trilingual, since they also speak English too, in case you forgot." He added matter-of-factly.
Raph groaned, now more frustrated that his brothers seemingly weren't understanding what he was trying to say. "The point is, we can't go soft on 'em!"
This time, though, Splinter interjected, having overheard the conversation. "To show mercy is not soft. It is a sign of true strength."
But Raph was still insistent - though because it was Splinter he was talking to, he made a note to be less aggravated and more moderately bothered. "But sensei, they're criminals! This is war!" He reasoned, appearing increasingly bothered as he recalled how...casually cruel those jerks had been to Murakami. And he was such a nice guy too, he didn't deserve any of that!
Splinter remained his calm self. "A daimyo of the sixteenth century once said: 'In times of peace, never forget the possibility of war. In times of war, never forget compassion.'"
Slightly confused at the proverb, Raph could only respond with, "I'm guessing that guy lost a lot of wars."
Narrowing his eyes a bit, Splinter was quick to swing his staff towards Raph's head, looking like he was about to hit him. However, he stopped when the staff was quite literally three inches away from colliding with the red-masked turtle - all to prove a point. "You see? Mercy."
But because it was Splinter, he still swung the staff at Raph and hit him in the arm, making him yelp in pain. "Okay, look. Compassion is great, but the Purple Dragons are not gonna leave Murakami alone."
To make up for his decision, Leo started to devise a plan. "So we'll track down the Dragons and make sure they got the message. And if they didn't, we'll send them one-" He then hit his fist against his open palm, implying what he had in mind as far as revenge went. "-special delivery."
While Raph could understand where Leo was coming from, he had to point out the obvious flaw in the wording. "Was that meant to sound tough, or stupid?"
But Donnie had a legitimate question. "How are we gonna track someone down if we can't talk to anybody?"
Leo and Raph exchanged looks with each other, until a little smile emerged on the blue-masked turtle's face as a plan came to him.
All he had to do was send a message to the girls.
~
As soon as they got the message, the girls met up near a local fish shop and planned out how they would obtain the information. And then, once the plan was agreed upon (as well as the names they would use,) they set off.
The shopkeeper was innocently sweeping outside when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Confused, he turned around and was met with April's warm smile and Andi's stoic demeanor. "Excuse me, sir? We're looking for the Purple Dragons." The latter requested.
Immediately the man appeared nervous and looked down at his broom. "I don't know what you're talking about." He hastily replied. Okay, so he did know about them.
Deciding to take the reins, April leaned forward, appearing friendly and approachable. "Don't worry, we can protect you. We're undercover cops doing an investigation on them. I'm Detective Emma Hudson and she's my partner, Detective Jen Rutherford." She "explained," gesturing to Andi when she mentioned her partner.
However, the shopkeeper didn't look convinced - at all. "You both look like you're 16."
Instead of letting it phase her, though, April took the suspicion and decided to appear a little bit awkward, all in hopes that this guy would let his guard down around them. "Guess we're just really good at our jobs then."
Andi broke character to smile and roll her eyes (though she was definitely impressed that April could come up with a deflection like that so quickly,) before reverting back to her stoic appearance. "Look, sir, if you tell us where they are, you'll be placed in witness protection. You'll be safe. If you don't, not only are you hindering a criminal investigation, which is possible grounds for arrest, you're putting yourself at risk with them as well."
The thought process of the man was written on his face. At first, he tried to argue with them, but he quickly crumbled and put his head down, clutching his broom. "All right, I'll tell you what I know."
The girls shared a smirk with each other in victory.
Now to get the information and rally it back.
~
After they sent the information to Leo, the boys found themselves on the roof of a tattoo parlor, waiting for any sign of the Dragons.
"The girls said this was the place." Leo told the others. Though Mikey was actually more focused on where they were staking out. "Cool! Can we get tattoos? I wanna get of my face on my face! It'll be like I'm wearing a mask and the mask is me!" He cheered, reveling in such an idea and how meta it was.
When his older brothers looked at him with confusion (and even in awe at how Mikey's mind worked,) he emerged from his triumphant pose and smiled smugly at his brothers. "I just blew your minds, right?"
But Donnie decided to tell him the truth - and not just that they were all too young to legally get tattoos. "You know they use needles for that?"
Before the genius could go off on a tangent on how someone received a tattoo (and the consequences of getting a face tattoo specifically,) Raph shut down the conversation at hearing the parlor's door open. "Can it, dorks! There he is!"
Fong was walking out of the parlor, completely unaware of the four faces watching him from above. Though he did glance around to ensure that no one on the ground was following him, before turning to the left and walking to the basement of the fortune cookie factory that he agreed to meeting at.
He was still completely unaware of the boys following him on the rooftops and eventually stopping at one, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.
Inside the warehouse, Fong saw his buddies gambling at the table while Xever and Bradford awaited his report, the pair standing stoic and in no mood for games. "We saw that gang of turtles you were looking for. And we'll tell you where, for a price." He negotiated with them. They came from Shredder himself, and probably had money to burn. Meanwhile, Fong and the other Dragons relied on petty crime for money - muggings, robberies, the works.
It was a no-brainer that money should be the main reason why they gave away such information.
However, before a deal could be made, the boys broke in through the window, glass shattering everywhere as they got into fighting stances, ready to get their revenge. Leo even yelled, "Freeze, dirtbags!" for good measure.
Then they caught sight of Bradford and Xever, and all of their confidence was out the window. Stated best with Leo's "uh oh."
"I think we can find them ourselves." Xever remarked, referring to Fong's earlier attempt at negotiation.
"Aw, man, this is awkward. It's Chris Bradford, my ex-friend." Mikey recalled, glaring daggers specifically at Bradford and gritting his teeth at 'ex-friend.' He was still, understandably though, crushed and furious at the latter's betrayal all those weeks ago.
But then his attention shifted to Xever. "And...that other guy!" He added, with less anger in his tone and more confusion over who Xever was.
So the man decided to spell it out for them. "The name is Xever." He introduced himself. "So you don't forget, I'll write it on your shells." He then revealed two butterfly knives and held them to his face, a devious smile forming on his face. "With these."
Not good squared.
~
Almost immediately, the boys went to work in clearing out the Dragons, seeing them as way less of a threat than Bradford and Xever were. The oafish one was first; with one kick, he was sent flying into a crane hook and across the warehouse, before colliding with the gigantic statue in the warehouse and falling unconscious.
However, Fong wasn't about to take it lying down. While Leo was distracted, a reprise of their first battle began - holding a cleaver, he went to attack the blue-masked turtle, but Leo dodged and sent the leader flying into the brick wall.
When he turned around, ready to go back and attack, Leo held a katana near his throat to keep him at bay. "You're making me sorry I let you go." He remarked, already going to weigh his options again. Show mercy again or listen to Raph?
Before he could come to a decision, though, Xever was quick to jump in, immediately swinging at Leo with the knives and sending him falling down the stairs and landing in a pile of crates. He wasn't done, though, immediately pouncing on the blue-masked turtle and going to strike again.
But Leo was quick this time, rolling away to dodge the second attack and sliding under a rolling conveyor belt.
Xever was clever, though. He did a one-hand handstand on the conveyor belt, repeatedly kicking Leo in the head to daze him. Right before he could jump to his feet, though, Raph dove in from the side to get away - but immediately was pushed away by Xever.
He would've landed in the wall like Fong did, though, if it wasn't for him channeling his inner spider and clinging to the wall in a crouch. He then jumped back onto the conveyor belt and unveiled his sais, ready to take Xever on again.
And with Leo now standing behind the Afro-Latino man and holding his katanas, Xever was essentially cornered.
Or so they thought.
Meanwhile, Mikey was focusing on one of the other Dragons - the one who had tried to club him with a sledgehammer. His movements were quick, constantly backflipping and getting to the top of the statue to avoid any more risk. He then caught sight of Donnie, fighting Bradford one on one.
The fight between them seemed even for the most part. Donnie would strike, Bradford would dodge. Bradford would strike, Donnie would dodge. It wasn't until Bradford used his superior aerial abilities to kick Donnie once, twice, three times and send him onto the floor.
Mikey wasn't about to stand for it - especially from such a dirtbag like Bradford.
Right when the man picked Donnie up and was seemingly about to throw him onto the floor below, Mikey swung his kusarigama chain and sent it flying up. He could picture it perfectly; Bradford would get caught and fall, releasing Donnie and allowing Mikey to save him.
But Bradford saw the chain coming - and right when it was about to hit him, he grabbed it.
He gave a sneer to Mikey (who by now looked horrified) and used the chain to pull the youngest turtle into his grasp, then jumped, sending the pair into more crates next to the conveyor belt.
And that wasn't all, as more Foot soldiers busted out of the walls and surrounded the four.
It would practically be a death wish to fight all of them, and Leo knew that. Which is why, for the first time, he yelled, "Turtles, fall back!"
Raph was clearly not happy with the decision. "We're giving up? Again? Are you kidding me?!"
As they avoided ninja stars, Leo explained his reasoning as he sheathed his katanas and started to jump to higher ground. "Yes, it's all part of my hilarious 'let's all live' routine."
Begrudgingly, Raph followed him - they swung through the rafters and avoided Foot soldiers trying to attack them, and by the time they made it to the window, Mikey and Donnie had joined them, and all four had left the building.
"Hey!"
But Xever wasn't about to accept such a decision. With a look of unfiltered hatred in his eye (and with Bradford at his side,) he threw a final taunt at them into the wind. "Stay and fight, you cold-blooded cowards!"
Well, if he wasn't going to get the chance to fight them, he would create a plan. As far as what that plan was remained up for interpretation.
All he knew was, next time these turtles wouldn't be given the chance to run away.
~
As they nursed their wounds and moped about the room, the boys felt truly deflated after the fight - especially Raph, who was also entirely frustrated. "Man, could that fight have been any more embarrassing?" He grumbled, punching the punching bag in the living room when he said 'embarrassing.'
Trying to lighten the mood, Mikey came up with a response - even if the question was purely rhetorical. "Sure. We could've been hit in the face with pies."
Raph growled at him, now even more aggravated, but Leo diffused the situation by explaining himself again as he walked off the couch and onto the floor to be at eye level. "It's called fighting smart, Raph. The Purple Dragons have Bradford and Xever on their side now. Last time, we barely beat those guys!"
"Yeah, because they're willing to fight to the finish!" Raph argued, walking closer to Leo. "The only way to beat them is to be just as ruthless as they are!"
But before he could continue his strategy, Splinter interrupted him again. "Raphael, this Xever can cross lines that you won't. This may make him dangerous, but it does not make him strong." It was true; Xever was quick and had strategy on his side - even if his tactics were pretty depraved and merciless. However, that was what made him strong. As far as actual strength went...that was where he suffered.
"But Xever wins fights! Isn't that what matters?" The red-masked turtle reasoned. "And he never shows anyone mercy." The way he said the word was like it left a bitter taste in his mouth - and made Leo look at the floor in thought.
If that was the case...what was his next move?
~
Apparently, it was to throw Fong against the Chinese statue in the warehouse and listen as he begged and reasoned not to be hurt any further. "Please! Please! I helped you find the turtles, didn't I?"
But Xever wasn't about to listen to such weak reasoning, grabbing the leader of the Dragons by his vest. "Idiota. You led them to our hideout." He hissed, smashing Fong's head into the statue. He was still clearly furious about letting them get away from his grasp. If he wanted to impress Shredder and one-up Bradford, this wasn't doing him any favors.
And Bradford knew it, subtly reminding Xever that this wasn't helping their cause. "So much for your street connections. You really think these common hoodlums can tell us anything useful?" He commented, leaning against the conveyor belt.
"They'd better." Xever only remarked, grabbing Fong again and making him face him. "Where'd you see those turtles?" He demanded, his tone telling Fong that if he didn't give them anything useful right now, he would likely be on the receiving end of a knife attack from Xever.
And Fong knew that, as he spilled immediately. "The east village! Some old man's noodle shop! Uh, Murakami's! We were roughin' him up and they jumped in to protect him!"
Xever smirked in victory. Bingo. "Oh, did they?"
He promptly let Fong fall to the floor and crawl away in fear, then smirked at Bradford - who looked less than impressed. "Big deal. How are you going to make sure the turtles don't get away again?" He asked, his tone becoming more condescending near the end of the question.
But Xever didn't let the insulting tone bother him - at least, it wasn't visible on his face. "Easy. I'll give them a reason to stay." He smirked at his associate, an idea already forming in his mind. It didn't matter who Murakami was to them - what mattered was that he was so important to them that they would protect him.
And that was all the reasoning he needed.
~
Now, the girls were outside of Murakami's restaurant, waiting for the boys. April was pacing back and forth nervously while Andi was leaning against a wall and biting at a nail, her other arm wrapped around her stomach.
But they were startled out of their fear when the boys jumped down from the rooftop. "Girls? What's wrong?" Leo asked, as all four of them looked concerned at their panicked states.
"Murakami." They both said, Andi pushing herself off the wall and gesturing for them to follow her inside as she explained what happened. "We went back to check on him. You know, see how he was doing after he got mugged a few days ago...but, when we walked in, it looked like this."
When she gestured to the interior, it was a ghost town. There was some clutter on the counter, but that was natural for the restaurant. The chairs were upright, nothing had been stolen...
But Murakami was missing.
"Someone must've taken him, because they left this." Andi told the boys, walking over to a note with scribbled handwriting - and a knife keeping it against the wall.
A ransom letter of some kind.
However, Mikey was more focused on the other object on display. "Sweet! Free knife!" He cheered, making both Andi and Donnie roll their eyes. "The note, dummy." The latter pointed out, then ripped the note off the wall and read it aloud. It was a bit hard to decipher (apparently Murakami's kidnapper had abysmal handwriting,) but it was nothing that Donnie couldn't read.
"No more running. If you want the old man, meet us on the roof of the fortune cookie factory." His voice heightened with realization as he realized who it was that had kidnapped Murakami. Not just for the start of the note, but also because that factory was the Dragons' hideout.
It had to have been Xever.
Raph, however, was more focused on the bottom line. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's bust in there and save Murakami!"
But Leo, always the sensible one, objected to such a bold plan. "Not so fast. Think, Raphael."
Deciding to take a page from Mikey's book and inject some humor into the situation, Donnie leaned over to tell Andi, "There's two words that don't usually go together." And as he predicted, she cracked a smile and even started to snicker a bit.
Leo, though, was still focused on the seriousness of the matter. "This is obviously a trap."
Once again, he met opposition from Raph. "Well, what choice do we have?"
Now, a little smile formed on Leo's face - he had an idea. "Maybe we do need to think more like Xever." He suggested - i.e., sink to some lower levels in order to get their friend back.
"But Master Splinter said-" Donnie was about to interject, but Leo interrupted him with a succinct "I know." And then he decided to continue his reasoning. "But Xever crossed the line dragging Murakami into this." That earned a nod of agreement from Andi. "He's got to learn that we can cross the line too." He then crossed his arms, a satisfied smile forming on his face. "No more Mr. Nice Turtle."
"Yes!" Raph cheered to himself, cracking his knuckles in anticipation. "I never liked Mr. Nice Turtle!"
Someone in space could've figured that out, but to each their own.
~
They had left the girls in the safety of Murakami's restaurant, and were now standing on a rooftop overlooking Bradford's martial arts studio. They had a plan on how to even the odds a little bit; Xever kidnapped one of their friends, so why not get some kind of revenge?
"Okay, he's strong, so speed and stealth are essential." Leo reminded the team, then first turned to Raph and Donnie. "Everybody know the plan?" He got confirming nods from the red and purple-masked turtles, but Mikey...Mikey he wasn't too sure about. Which is why he turned to the youngest brother with a "Mikey?"
Mikey only smiled at him, giving him a 'yes.'
But Leo still wasn't convinced. "Are you sure?"
Mikey only gave him a finger gun with another 'yes,' this one much more relaxed than the first one.
Suspecting that he was only saying yes to end the conversation, Leo requested, "Tell me what it is."
When asked, Mikey immediately started to think of anything that could be related to the plan. TV, no...playground? Nope. Skateboarding, pizza, video games, stunt tricks, more pizza, comics, random garbage...
Okay, now he was just thinking about nothing.
He looked sheepishly at his brothers as he asked, "Uh...maybe we should go over it one more time?"
~
After a reminder to their brother, they had their opportunity.
Bradford had just locked up the studio for the night and was about to start heading home, but when he heard the 'whoosh' of Raph jumping down, he immediately retaliated, thinking it was just an ambush that could be easily taken care of.
What he didn't notice was Leo jumping down from the roof and the pair tackling him to the ground, while Mikey and Donnie intercepted with rope and some duct tape to seal the deal.
Now he was securely tied up and had duct tape over his mouth so he couldn't yell and attract attention, so Mikey pushed him onto a garbage can lid and Raph brought said garbage can on top of him, trapping him.
All that was left was to string layers of chains over the can so Bradford couldn't escape, then add a padlock for good measure.
Once that was done, Leo spoke everyone's thoughts as they looked over their work. "Gentlemen, welcome to the other side of the line."
As always, Mikey decided to inject some humor into the situation. "Now I'm definitely gonna need a tat." He couldn't help it, they never did anything like this, anything...even remotely villainous. Obviously, they never would to an innocent civilian, but in this case...it was totally worth it. And in a way, he wanted to commemorate it.
Raph, however, found the idea incredibly trivial as he punched Mikey in the arm.
Regardless, the pair went on to lift the garbage can into the air - with some issue. "Dang, this sucker's heavy." Raph commented, and to prove his point further, Mikey accidentally (or really, intentionally, considering who was inside,) lost his grip on the garbage can and sent it crashing into the wall, making the muffled Bradford inside groan in pain.
"Sorry!" Mikey called out (even if it was Bradford, the compassionate side of him always won out,) but Raph looked at him incredulously. "Don't apologize to him."
So the youngest turtle backtracked on his apology. "I-I mean, sorry I didn't drop you harder!"
"There you go." Raph agreed with a little smile towards his youngest brother. It wasn't the most biting insult or anything like that, but it was Mikey.
He had to start somewhere.
Now to get to the fortune cookie factory as Xever requested.
Rather than pick the garbage can up again, Raph and Mikey opted to roll it down the sidewalk, not only to make it easier on themselves but also to make it more painful for Bradford.
As if to rub it in, Leo called out to him, "Cozy in there?" When they were greeted with more muffled yells mixed in with groans, Raph smirked down at the garbage can. "Good."
An eye for an eye, after all.
~
Now they were nearing the fortune cookie factory, and when they peeked around the corner in search of Xever, Donnie's expression turned worried as he noticed something major. "Uh oh, you guys. Look."
He pointed to the roof, where Murakami was dangling from a wooden beam, tied to it by a rope, all while Xever was standing over him with an evil smirk and his knife in his hand, ready to start cutting the rope if he didn't see them soon.
Not good cubed.
And Mikey spoke what everyone was thinking (granted, it was more PG when compared to Raph's thoughts) when he only commented, "Dude, Xever's a jerk."
~
Xever must've sensed that they were on the roof, because when they were hauling Bradford (still in the trash can), he was waiting for them - along with about a dozen Foot soldiers and the Purple Dragons.
"We're here, Xever!" Leo called out to them, trying to remain as stoic and composed as possible. "Now let the noodle man go." If Xever explicitly knew how much he meant to the girls (and admittedly, to them,) he would likely do a lot more than have him dangling off a wooden beam.
Xever, meanwhile, wasn't about to comply - though that was to be expected. "Sorry, there's been a change of plans." He then revealed the soldiers, basically saying that the boys would have to get through them if they wanted to get to him.
Leo, though, didn't seem to be too phased by it. "Actually, there's been another change of plans." They then took off the garbage can, and Donnie pulled Bradford's head up, showing he still had the tape over his mouth and was still tied up with the rope.
Feeling like they had the upper hand, Donnie commented with a little smile, "I love it when a change of plans comes together."
Leo was still stoic as he laid out the conditions: "You let our friend go and we'll let your friend go."
Instead of feeling threatened, though, Xever chortled. "He's not my friend." They actually expected him to concede - when they had his greatest rival tied up and basically gagged? How was that a problem? If anything, he should've been thanking them for doing such a service.
Taken aback by the realization, the boys looked at each other with concern. That was...definitely going to throw a monkey wrench into the plan.
Especially when Xever walked up to the wooden beam and started to saw at the rope, threatening to let Murakami fall to the ground.
Okay, now they had to act fast.
As Raph laid Bradford on the edge of the roof, Leo came up with a threat - though by the forced tone and the slight stutter he had, it didn't feel authentic at all. "Uh, w-we're not kidding! Okay? S-Stop or we'll toss him!"
Once again, Xever was completely unphased. "Go ahead. It'll save me the trouble." He replied, going back to cutting the rope.
Okay, now they had to act fast.
With Bradford yelling at him (probably profanities galore), Leo hesitantly called out Raph's name, implying that he "go through" with the plan.
But Raph knew that they couldn't actually throw the guy off the roof - so he just muttered an "aw, crud" and tossed Bradford onto the roof floor.
Xever smirked to himself; he knew it. Too weak-willed to actually go through with something like that. "That's what I thought." He remarked, and with a cocky smile, he yelled to the Foot soldiers, "Attack!"
~
Immediately, the boys were ambushed by soldiers - but like always, they jumped into action, essentially leaving Bradford alone and unaccounted for.
Mikey was the closest to the roof, and in order to separate himself from his brothers, he ran along the side of the roof, then flipped down to an adjacent building and swung his chain around the soldier, sending it onto the fire escape. Unfortunately, this caught the eye of another soldier, and on the fire escape, Mikey wrapped one of his nunchucks around the soldier's spear and propelled it against his chest, then sent him off the fire escape with a spinning kick. In the process, he cleared out a few more soldiers that ambushed him with complete ease.
Easy peasy.
Meanwhile, Raph was in the same position. Using the wall as a springboard, he took out a soldier of his own and then sent another one flying off the roof, then joined Leo at the graffiti-laden billboard above them to fight two more.
All while Xever was watching the pair with a self-satisfied smirk on his face - and ended up tossing a set of kunais at them, which they dodged but watched as they got stuck in the billboard.
Now Mikey was back on the roof and fighting off more soldiers, when Donnie joined him and helped him take out the rest of them. And when they got a moment to breathe, they exchanged a quick fist bump and smiled at each other.
But their excitement was short-lived as more soldiers stormed toward them, but this time, Leo started to take them down this time. Dodging, spinning back kicks, the works...this felt easier than when he was fighting Fong back at Murakami's restaurant. Was easier to be less compassionate when he was fighting robots, and robots that were part of Shredder's army.
He scattered away to create a diversion (much like Mikey had before,) leaving Raph on the billboard and making quick work of the soldiers that ambushed him as well. Once he kicked the last soldier off the billboard, he used his sais to deflect more of the kunais that Xever was throwing, then watched as more soldiers flooded the catwalk, forcing him to step back and keep doing his best to ward them off.
He hadn't noticed Bradford eyeing one of the kunais that had fallen off the billboard.
Now Leo was back on the rooftop, still having no issues about taking down the Foot one by one - a far cry from how they were weeks earlier. What was different about this time was that Fong was standing off to the side, watching everything unfold before his very eyes. And when he registered that it was the same turtle that he had fought back at Murakami's restaurant, he stared at the cleaver in his hand, silently asking himself if he should go for it.
After a brief deliberation, he charged forward while Leo was distracted by a group of soldiers.
What he didn't account for was Leo anticipating him to move, and with one swing of the katana, he was on the ground.
The leader merely pointed the katana at him, his eyes stony and cold - as if they were saying 'I let you go once, don't make me regret it.'
He then swung the katana as an intimidation tactic, but was interrupted by another horde of soldiers charging at him; climbing the sides of the building, jumping onto the edges of the roof...it was like there was an endless supply of Foot soldiers, and they wouldn't stop coming until one of two things happened:
Either the boys surrendered or Xever used their shells as a tribute to Shredder. Or as trophies.
Unfortunately, they had gotten so wrapped up in fighting the Foot that they didn't notice the rope that was keeping Murakami dangling in the air was starting to break.
Just a little bit more and the man would be history.
Back to Raph, who had finished the soldiers on the billboard and was now fighting Xever one-on-one. Or he would be if he hadn't ducked, avoiding a sneak attack from two more Foot soldiers.
Seeing his opportunity, Xever grinned wickedly and raised his knife, about to catch the red-masked turtle off guard, when a hand grabbed his wrist and stopped him.
"How could you be so sure they were bluffing?" It was Bradford; he had used the kunai from before and cut the ropes to free his hands and legs. And once that was done, he ripped the tape off his mouth so he could talk.
Xever only smirked at the question. "I wasn't." He had the sneaking suspicion that the boys weren't actually going to hurt his associate - but once again, either way was no skin off his back. And besides, Bradford needed to learn two things:
That Xever only worked with him for Shredder's sake, and that you had to remain in control and intimidating. That was how to throw your enemy off guard - especially when they thought they had the upper hand.
And with that said, he ran off to fight the turtles, leaving Bradford frustrated and begrudgingly joining him.
Meanwhile, Mikey had jumped onto the edge of the roof, still dealing with two Foot soldiers - but like his older brothers, he had made quick work of them and smiled in satisfaction. But then he saw them coming back and immediately booked it, joining his brothers as even more soldiers appeared, essentially surrounding them.
With that bit of information, Xever and Bradford jumped into the fray - with the latter even growling out, "All right. Let's settle the score, pond scum."
Always needing to get at least a bit of sarcasm against an enemy, Donnie had at least one rebuttal to such a claim. "We're the ones who didn't want to throw you off the roof!"
But that apparently didn't matter to Bradford, as he raised his fist and charged forward, making Mikey leap up, Donnie dodge, and cause Raph to join his purple-masked brother in taking Bradford down.
However, Donnie was the one Bradford focused on, and while his attention was on taking down more Foot soldiers, Bradford landed a solid punch, sending the genius into the support beam holding up the billboard.
This caught Mikey's eye, and like before, his nunchucks swung wildly as he charged Bradford, doing a front flip to ignore the punch coming his way. Once Bradford spun on his heels to catch him, Mikey leaped up and flipped again, then landed on Bradford's back as he raised one of his nunchucks, ready to let out all of his (very warranted) anger on Bradford - especially for hurting Donnie.
But before he could get that attack, Bradford grabbed the blunt end of the nunchucks and sent Mikey flying; with one kick, the youngest turtle landed on Donnie, still lying against the wall in pain.
Two down, two to go.
And once again, they were completely unaware of the rope cracking even more - and this time, Murakami heard it, making him let out a noise of panic.
Still giving it his absolute all, Raph continued to fight off the never-ending onslaught of Foot soldiers, until he was met with a high kick from Xever right to the head. And when Raph saw who it was, he growled and raised his sai, about to get even, but Xever avoided it with ease - and after watching Raph fight more soldiers, Xever kicked him again (this time on his shell) and sent him flying onto the ground as well.
Three down, one to go.
"Raph!" Leo screamed, before immediately being met with a swift kick to the face from Bradford. Before the latter could attack him further, Leo rolled away and got back on his feet. The two started fighting this time, though it was mostly Bradford in attacking (including the signature Death Dragon,) while Leo was desperately trying to dodge and get some attacks in.
What didn't help were the soldiers bombarding them (again,) but Leo took them out as fast as he could and tried to keep the heat on Bradford.
But he didn't account for Xever rushing in and kicking him into the air, then Bradford jumping in to give him an uppercut, then both of them sending him to the ground with a second punch and making him join his brothers as his katana went flying into the distance.
Four down, none to go.
As Leo struggled to stand, Xever watched the helpless scene with an evil snicker. "See, Bradford? That is how you catch turtles. And next-" He added as he pulled out one of his butterfly knives. "I'll show you how to filet them."
Not willing to let his pride be damaged, though, Bradford objected to Xever's gloating. "You never would've caught them without me and you know it."
However, Xever could only laugh at the patheticness of his colleague's argument. "Oh, yes. What would we have done without your brave leadership from inside the trash can?"
While the two were bickering, Fong was overlooking them from the adjacent building's rooftop, but something caught his eye. Off to the side...that was the turtle's sword, wasn't it?
He started to second-guess himself almost immediately, though. They were enemies, and besides, those turtles beat him and the others up at that old man's restaurant! So why should he help them?
But then he remembered...Leo had mercy on him specifically. And twice. He clearly didn't want to fight if they didn't need to...
He was probably going to lose a ton of street cred for this, but whatever happens...will happen.
He grabbed the katana and, standing in front of Leo, he stuck it into the ground in front of him.
And while he looked indignant, Leo smiled in victory at him.
Perfect timing, as Xever wrapped up the argument he was having with Bradford. "Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time to cut these turtles into little pieces." Before he could use his knife, though, he was met with Leo's katana and four words:
"I don't think so."
The leader then leaped into the air towards the water tower on the building, and with one slash, broke the tower open, sending gallons upon gallons of water onto Xever, Bradford and the remaining soldiers and whisking them off.
However, the amount of pressure the water had was the tipping point for the rope. Murakami let out a strained yell as he felt himself fall, but immediately stopped when he felt someone's arm around his abdomen. And when he heard Mikey cheer, "I got him!" as the pair dangled from his kusarigama chain, he sighed in relief.
"Nice save, Mikey!" Leo complimented as Donnie and Raph gave their brother a proud smile, before all three began pulling up the chain to get them onto the roof.
Meanwhile, Mikey was trying to calm Murakami's nerves (if he had any) about being pulled up. "Don't look down, Murakami-san!" But then he realized how wrong that was and corrected himself. "Or, um...listen down!"
And before the pair were back onto the roof, Leo caught a glimpse of Fong running across the roof and smiled to himself. Sure, his opinion on him and the other Dragons hadn't really changed, but he had to give credit where credit was due.
Besides, it told him one thing: Karma was real.
~
The boys had now returned Murakami to the restaurant and after getting hugs and relief that he was okay from the girls, the kindly chef decided to thank his saviors the best way he knew how. "Accept this token of my gratitude. Pizza gyoza!" He exclaimed, holding a tray of gyoza with plastic wrap to cover it.
"Awesome! Thanks, Murakami-san!" Donnie cheered as he took the tray, as all four of them practically began salivating over the takeout.
"You're welcome, turtle-san." Murakami replied, the cheerful smile on his face matching the jovial tone that he spoke in.
As they bowed in respect, Donnie noticed something odd. How did Murakami know what they were? "Wait, how did you-"
Sensing what he was about to ask, Murakami only smiled knowingly at him. "I do have other senses. Touch, smell?"
Leo, Raph and Donnie all diverted their attention to Mikey at the enunciated 'smell,' and when Mikey realized what Murakami was referring to (his underarms, specifically,) he cringed at himself. Kind of a bad impression - even if Murakami had already met them.
But then there was something else to ask. "You don't think we're weird and scary?" Leo asked, bracing for the inevitable. There was no way any other humans could actually...like them, right?
But Murakami answered that question rather succinctly. "You saved my life! Who am I to complain?"
A stark contrast to how Bradford was with him weeks ago, and Mikey knew that. Touched by his sincerity, the youngest turtle grabbed the man and hugged him without a word.
And as they watched the wholesome scene, Andi smiled over at them and said one sentence to them:
"Told you he was awesome."
~
Back at the lair, Donnie and Andi had embarked on a new mission; getting April to try the gyoza. "Come on, April, please?" Donnie asked in response to her recoiling. "Sometimes things that seem like they shouldn't work together end up being great. Like you and Andi here; you're the optimistic and outgoing one and she's the analytical, slightly pessimistic one who's incredibly cute in the process."
"Wait, what?" Andi shifted her attention to Donnie at the end, making him immediately turn bright pink and shake his head. "Nothing, absolutely nothing!"
She then shook her head to focus back on April. "Try just one, Ape. You know how I am with trying new stuff out, so if I think it's good, chances are you're gonna love it too." She reasoned, and when April looked over and saw the little smile on Andi's face, she relented.
"Fine." She let Donnie feed her one of the gyoza and after a moment of consideration (and swallowing,) her face lit up. "Mm, these are amazing!" She squealed, then without warning, grabbed the plate Andi had made for herself and started eating another, making the genius scoff playfully and snatch the plate back. "Excuse you, O'Neil." She remarked. "We'll share it then." She added, popping a gyoza into her mouth as well.
"Bad idea, you know how I get with food." April told her as she took another gyoza, making Andi roll her eyes and chuckle. "All too well." She said, her mouth muffled, as she completely ignored Donnie watching the two of them with a little smile.
Meanwhile, Splinter was congratulating the boys on their success in taking down the Foot. "You boys showed your strength today."
"Yeah, but we almost got beaten." Raph reminded him, holding up his chopsticks with a gyoza resting in between.
But Splinter had a counterargument. "Your strength was mercy. That is why the Purple Dragon helped you." He explained, going to sip at his tea.
As Raph thought about that reasoning, Leo took the opportunity to gloat a little bit. "Well? Say it." He only requested - the one phrase that was harder to get from Raph than nearly any other.
Which the red-masked turtle did, following a begrudging 'okay, okay.' "You were right."
"Ah, see?" Leo began, putting a hand on his brother's shoulder. "That wasn't so-"
But because it was Raph, he had to follow up with some light ribbing. He couldn't just let Leo bask in the pride of a 'you were right,' that wasn't how brothers worked! "Your wimpiness might now be totally useless."
Knowing that it was just harmless joking, Leo decided to add onto the humor. "Oh ho, I'll show you who's wimpy. No mercy!" He exclaimed, pouncing on Raph to wrestle him, the gyoza being long-forgotten.
All in a day's work, they supposed.
~
However, the mood in Shredder's lair was anything but familial and warm. In fact, it was the exact opposite - cold, desolate and uncomfortable.
Amplified by Shredder's fury once he learned that his henchmen had failed - again. "This is unacceptable!"
Completely aware of the shame, Bradford bowed his head in apology. "Humble apologies, Master Shredder." As he kneeled next to him, Xever ignored the apologies and focused on how they would improve during their next mission. "I swear, next time we will-"
"ENOUGH!"
Shredder hushed them immediately as he ascended from his throne, preparing to leave the throne room entirely. The turtles weren't about to fall to his henchmen? Fine. But one way or the other, they were going to be destroyed.
Even if-
"I shall deal with Hamato Yoshi's disciples myself."
-even if it meant he fought them himself.
~
Want to be tagged for future chapters, updates, or when I'm just feeling silly? Just let me know 🩷
@tinkabelle19 @android-cap-007 @happymoonangel @kikithedreamerwriter @eveandtheturtles @thelaundrybitch @raphsmuneca @jasminarts01
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Holier Than Thou
Previous | Masterlist | Next
Trigger Warnings for unreality/dream logic, feelings of being trapped, references to past physical/religious abuse, symbolism connected to internalized homophobia, themes of death, and religious (Catholic) elements.
For a fair amount of time, there was just darkness. No Heaven or Hell awaited Max, only that space devoid of sight, devoid of feeling, and devoid of sound, even that of his own breathing.
This dragged on so long that a part of Max could only hope for Hell, for a greater suffering over being forced to face the sensory deprivation that was revealed to be his home now for all eternity. That wish was never answered and, instead, Max saw a flicker of light and felt the flutter of his eyelids in response to it.
When Max could finally feel again, his back was met by a cushy and velvety surface. Opening his eyes, he was temporarily blinded by the splashes of color shining onto him, with only some of the beams resembling the orange glow of the setting sun that had framed the previous garden.
When he was able to see after some effort, squinting through the unnatural glow to decipher its source, he realized he was looking up at a set of stained glass windows. Looking lower and around himself, he was trapped on all sides by a set of short, wooden walls in a very specific shape, with its top door opened and the other kept shut. He was in a casket, dressed to the nines with flowers clutched in his hands. They were white carnations.
One voice rang out amongst the rest, tall and speaking to a set of wholly empty pews upon his pulpit. There was the sound of that familiar organ, and it clicked for Max when he spotted that destroyed wedding cake on the side table.
"Here lies Judas Maxine Benedict. He was a son, never a father, though, if he had been given the opportunity, perhaps he would have been,” his voice boomed, Max peering over at the priest with half opened eyes who did not do the same in turn, “He was as wonderful as his mother. Kind, caring, and a truly dedicated disciple of God.”
The man was practically decaying himself, with wrinkles as far as the eye could see, wobbling with his impassioned speech, and weak eyes, constantly darting to look at nothing in particular. Within moments, Max’s attention was snatched back to the casket, feeling a comforting weight on the compartment where his legs were contained.
A gray figure sat there with his feet resting on the table and his arms on his knees. Though he took on the color of the stained glass, the light shone in vain against the darkness ever present around his eyes.
“We’ve always hated funerals, have we not,” the man asked, Max noticing he was holding his breath when he began to take a few.
Though the priest’s ramblings continued, it was overtaken by the sound of that record static, becoming background noise to its tense airwaves.
“He’s making this all up and we both know it. He barely knew her, or you. He says this at every funeral, but the repeat offenders refuse to call him out on it. Isn’t that just fascinating?” the man said, grinning down at Max.
Max swallowed, keeping his expression tempered and managing to open his eyes wide enough for the narrowing of them to be effective. The man pouted.
“Now, don’t look at me like that. You’re the one that decided on this fate, were you not? You’re the one that insists you want, no, deserve such things,” the man said, coming closer.
He hovered over the topside of the casket, his shadow becoming darker as it covered Max’s entire form.
"Although, is this really how you want things to end," the man asked, tilting his head with a light smile.
He put a finger on his chin, then Max’s, giving it a few, gentle taps. The chill of his skin was refreshing compared to the balminess from inside the casket.
"No, that doesn't sound right."
Max stared at the wood of his casket, taking in every detail of its waves and the minor dents in its furnish. His forehead had become scrunched.
“I-”
Before Max could respond, a child’s laughter filled the air. With it there was silence, and, looking up, the church had gone completely dark and the pulpit had been left bare like the rest of it.
“Hello?” Max said, shivering as his voice reverberated off the walls.
He waited, becoming still as he possibly could with his shivering and yet, no matter how long he waited, there was only silence. Max could feel himself begin to sweat, the spark of panic only making his body warmer within the confines of his mini prison.
The Man had vanished, nowhere to be seen no matter how many times Max squinted into the void. It gave him the opportunity to kick open the bottom of the casket, stretching out and wearing a faint smile as his legs were finally able to breathe. Next, he pried his fingers from the well wrapped flower stems, dropping the carnations onto the floor where they soon became shriveled and died.
It appeared the sound of the petals touching the ground alerted whoever Max was stuck in the room with, able to hear the pitter patter of small feet rushing away from him. The laugh echoed in Max’s ears once again, causing him to sit up.
“Come and find me, Jude!” they called, before there was the clicking of a door, shutting behind the figure after they’d slipped out it.
Max carefully stepped out of the casket, dress shoes squeaking along the wooden floors of the chapel as he narrowly managed it without tripping.
The sound vibrated from the back of the pews, Max walking past them in order to follow it. He kept his hands in front of him, groping for a wall that would eventually be within his grasps.
“You’re almost there!” the child called to him, shaking feet being encouraged onwards.
Yet, after stepping foot near the middle pew, there was a sudden light, causing Max to wince at the sudden illumination stinging his eyes. Max squinted, covering his eyes partially as he attempted to find where it was coming from.
The window from behind that big, large cross on the center of the front wall had lit up. It was round, positioned near the top of the cross and, thus, causing a smaller cross to shine onto Max’s face.
“Jude!” a voice called, causing Max to turn around.
Now with a light so bright it pierced through most of the darkness with dimmer circles, Jude could see that familiar, strawberry haired child standing at the back of the church. They gave him a wide grin, before waving him out into the main hall, returning back there himself.
“Wait!” Max said, rushing after them.
The light followed him, keeping up despite how quickly he ran. The pews felt as if they went on for miles, Max mentally counting and always finding the same amount of rows were left no matter how many he passed. He checked his feet, certain he saw them passing several floorboards and yet, at this point, he may as well have been jogging in place.
As he attempted different methods to push himself forward and out of his loop, there was a shifting of the light, obscuring the once cross with something else.
“Judas,” a voice called, feminine in sound and causing Max to freeze.
He turned, seeing that shadow within the window. It clung onto the cross, just peering down at him.
“What have you done? It’s okay, we can confess together, you just have to tell me,” she said, the shadow folding her hands together in prayer.
Max found his hands mimicking hers, able to feel the gentle touch of lips against his own. Despite all his prayers and dreaming, that kiss had been as close to Heaven as Max had ever gotten.
“It’s just, I…”
Max stared at her for a good moment, panting from his endless stumble and perspiring more at the sight in front of him. The act of brushing the sweat from his forehead gave him pause, pulling his hand away to look at the wetness now prevalent on his finger tips. His eyes widened, and something fired off in his brain like a lit stove.
“I didn’t do anything wrong. I never did anything wrong. You were just…”
“Just what?” the figure asked, leaning forward in order to look Max up and down with her soulless eyes, “Judas, you know I don’t like it when you trail off like that. It makes me worried. You wouldn’t want to make me worry, would you?”
Max’s body felt as if it were set ablaze, using his glasses to shine the light right back at her, those hands pulling back at the sudden flash of brightness.
“Why the fuck do you care?”
“Judas, mind your langu-” Magdalene began, but was interrupted, Max gritting his teeth.
“No, no I don’t think I will. You’re gone now, you’re dead,” Max swallowed, tears filling his eyes as the word dead repeated several times down the pews, “I always told myself I could live a happy life once you were gone. But, even though you’re gone, everything you said and did keeps haunting me. I wasted so much of my life living by your rules. I don’t want to do that anymore.”
Max felt a heat around his face, and watched as the contorted skin was beginning to melt from it. It was set on fire, Max panicking for a brief moment until it came off his actual face painlessly. Beneath the skin was smooth, and his eyes were unblinking.
“You’d give up everything I and our lord gave you just for one boy? Honey, believe me when I tell you it is not worth it. Believe me, believe me please. Don’t make mom mad, she doesn’t want to have to hurt you.”
Max’s eyes narrowed, all the emotion, the sympathy, the worry, the fear draining from his face, becoming a flesh colored puddle on the floor.
“Goodbye, mother. I hope it was worth it.”
He turned on his heel, the shadow wavering atop his form.
“Judas! Judas, baby, please! Come back here,” Magdalene screeched and Max spit on the ground.
“Go to Hell.”
Max gave one final glare before heading to the exit. Only, this time, he actually reached it. The church had become silent behind him, the shadows diminishing, leaving him with just pure light. The last thing Max saw before leaving were those carnations on the floor, springing back to life within the sunlight.
The moment Max charged through those doors, he was met by Sam in the reception area, carpeted and with a wooden front desk, but not much else. Except, Sam was older again, crossing his arms with a huge grin.
“You told her off, didn’t you?” he said and, when Max fell silent, just catching his breath, “I was waiting for you to. For so long I just wanted you to call her the bitch she is.”
“Sam!”
Max laughed in shock, Sam coming closer and laughing along.
“It’s true, she is…was,” Sam said, flinging his arms open in offering.
Max walked closer, allowing himself to fall into Sam’s warm embrace, clinging to him as if his life depended on it. He smelled of pumpkin and his arms were soft.
“Sam, I can’t begin to apologize to you. I am so sorry I couldn’t tell her off before. We should have stayed in touch. Then after we moved out…I don’t know, something could have happened, maybe.”
“It’s okay”, Sam said, Max able to hear both of their tears.
Their shoulders rested on the other’s, Sam rubbing Max’s back and Max giving him a good squeeze in turn. Both their black, funeral shirts had their color washed out by the onslaught of tears.
“It’s not your fault you were hurt. It’s not your fault your mother always had to be so terrible to you,” Sam said, pulling away so he could look into Max’s eyes, “But, now you can do whatever it is you want, Max. You can live.”
Those words brought more tears to Max’s eyes, Sam reaching up to brush at Max’s soaked cheeks lightly.
“Y-yeah, yeah,” Max said, unable to say more and Sam pulled him back into the hug.
The dream faded with those two remaining in their embrace from a third person perspective, long able to be felt by Max, even as the visuals began to fade to black. The chapel disappeared into obscurity.
Taglist: @caxycreations, @perasperaadastrawriting
#original writing#horror writing#dream whump#whump#nightmare whump#dream logic#writeblr#ourwriting#essie🐈#desmond💘#meyer🔨#tw blood
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Want to share one of last year's Inktober prompt, because hey why not since I got like… two laying around and left the 3rd unfinished and never continued the rest after. Woopsies.
Not Cheers main or side cast used for the prompt (I have 300+ characters, I gotta use the rest that doesn't involved making another IF somehow), but I hope you'll like this trio of siblings all the same.
Short prompts. Won't take long to read, so I'll just ctrl+c/ctrl+v them in a single post.
TW: Horror aspects, mild religious themes, gore, blood
Inktober 1 - Lantern
There is always a saying in the Blight family that’s been passed down the many generations.
Don’t follow a gray lantern, for Death will come to retrieve it and you.
Legends say that one of the three aspects of Death carries the lantern as a sign of your impending death. A reminder of your last few days to come to terms, or to tell the news to your family so they can prepare your funeral. A merciful and depressing way to know that your time is up, worse than hearing it from a doctor in their office.
No one has really seen this so-called “gray lantern”, and most just chalk it up as the madness side effect of the family necromancy magic from an ancestor in the past. The minority fear for the day when they’ll actually see the gray lantern, and have formed a superstition around it, which is to avoid looking at them.
Cynthia is one of those non-believers in the family.
She never was a believer of the lantern or the many death superstitions in her family, despite being a person who dips her toes in the river of Death every waking day. Bullshit, she often calls it. Disbelief in the lantern is one of the many few things her and her older brothers can agree on.
It’s one of those late night jobs again. Another exorcism needed for some spirit that haunts a local cathedral in a nearby small city. The cathedral itself is decades old, with paint peeling off and some pews that require to be varnished again. The altar at the middle front is made of marble, covered in cracks that were fixed in the past,and the huge, wooden, holy symbol behind it needs to be replaced with how rotten the wood has become (holes—so many of them). Cynthia adjusts the glasses on her face as she looks around, examining more of the innards of the church, frowning when she sees a cracked glass stained window. The window itself depicts the god of order Malkiel with arms out and rays of shining light behind him, worshippers kneeling by his feet and praying to him in reverence.
Malkiel, always the one for loyalty in his disciples and nothing else.
Cynthia looks away before she decides to make the crack on the window even bigger.
Walking even deeper inside, the silence continues to deafen her ears.
Nothing.
There’s nothing.
No sign of an unrestful soul roaming the halls or lingering in rooms.
“By the gods…” Cynthia mutters and pinches the bridge of her nose in clear frustration. Did she just get herself into some hoax? She can already hear her Familiar scolding her for even taking this job without asking for extra details first.
And like a thundercrack, the atmosphere shifts in an instant.
Colder. Suffocating. Overwhelming.
There's someone else.
She has to turn around. She has to know. She needs to see.
Her body refuses, instincts yelling at her to freeze and stay still.
There is a danger here.
An audible breath can be heard, closer than to Cynthia's liking.
Her eyes stay casted down as a shadow slowly looms over her, engulfing her into its darkness. A lump in her throat now, hands forced to stay still from their trembling.
It stops. Its presence edging too closely to Cynthia's personal space.
Move.
She needs to move.
She needs to run.
Run, Cynthia.
Run!
One step, then another. Her feet break free from its spell and Cynthia makes a mad dash to the nearest door. She can't look back. She refuses to now, despite morbid curiosity telling her that she needs to. Whatever that thing was, she rather not know.
It dashes after her in shrieks and skittering, thrashing wildly with its steps. It yells and cries with such conviction in a chorus of many but remain as one—"A SINNER FOR OUR SINS. A SINNER'S SACRIFICE TO APPEASE OUR LORD."
A hard left, nearly slipping on her feet from the old carpet that lay in the middle of the winding hallways. It lets out a shriek when it slammed into the wall, and scrambles to get back up and anew its chase. Why didn't she just run to the front door? Cynthia curses at herself for her own stupidity, but instincts tell her to run and stay away from whatever thing is possessing this cathedral. Logic be damned, she needs to get away, and that turns out to be dragging herself to her own—.
Light.
There is light up ahead, peeking through a crack from a barely opened door of an office.
Someone else must be here. One of the priests or nuns of this damned cathedral perhaps can help her.
Malkiel must be watching. How merciful of him, despite her disdain earlier.
Etiquette and manners discarded for urgency, Cynthia bursts into the room. Hope vanished in an instant, blood running cold under her skin.
Empty.
The office is empty.
She has mistaken the light of someone living, to an oil lantern that hangs in the middle of the room.
The shrieks and cries grow louder from behind her.
"Malkiel, you cruel man." Cynthia huffs out a laugh of disbelief.
The lantern only grows brighter.
Detective Anatole steps out of his car, staring up at the old cathedral with a grim look on his face. The station has received a missing person's report from Merripen, Cynthia's Familiar. He said that Cynthia should've been home at around 2 am from a job as discussed, and it was unlike her to not follow through.
Of course, the detective knows of this.
Cynthia is his younger sister after all.
Letting out a breath through his nose, he shuts the door, and walks over to the police officers guarding the perimeter. He flashes his badge without a word, and is let through.
He passes by the other forensic officers who are taking nearby evidence from what remains—mud trails, muddy shoe marks, disheveled carpet, fallen display tables—of a chase from the night before. Gray eyes scan around the area, searching for a lost restless soul that belongs to his sister.
There was none, and he grows more anxious at the thought the farther he walks into the cathedral. Yellow tape is what comes next, a fellow colleague standing before it with a grim look on her face.
"Detective Delarosa," Anatole greets as he walks up to her side.
Luciella looks up at him upon hearing his voice, her grim look vanishing to one of professionalism. "Detective Blight." She greets back with a curt nod.
They both look back at the crime scene before them. The office is surprisingly neat despite the clear body that lays covered in a white sheet in the center of the room. A shaky inhale comes from the burgundy haired detective, before he forces himself to look away. He knows very well whose body lays there.
"You don't have to do this, Ant." Luciella tells him, voice low in sympathy.
A forced laugh comes from his lips, as he looks back at the scene. "I have to. It's my job, and my sister deserves justice."
Luciella says no more, only following Anatole inside the office with a small sigh.
The two search the room, looking for anything suspicious or anything that can lead to who the murderer is. Anatole could only silently plead for his sister's soul to come out of hiding as they continue to search.
Nothing. There was nothing.
The white sheet was lifted from the cadaver's body, and Anatole can hear his own breath hitch at its state.
It is mangled, covered in slash marks with caked blood, and gray eyes that are frozen wide. Some joints are dislocated, and a few limbs are torn in places. The abdomen is sliced open, a few organs spilling out onto the carpet below it, staining it in deep red.
"Gods above…" Luciella mutters in horror.
"Indeed." Anatole agrees, letting out another shaky breath and looks up at the ceiling to regain his composure.
There hangs a lantern, glass shattered and flickering out a light of gray.
A movement in the corner of his eye had Anatole turning his head almost immediately, earning him a noise of concern from Luciella.
There stands a figure, clad in light, black armor and a metal helm with a hood over it covering their head. A black cloak is draped over their shoulders, flowing down into a cape, and a scythe hanging from their back.
That damned warning of his long dead parents comes into his mind almost immediately, his eyes widening in realization.
Don't follow a gray lantern
The figure lifts a finger, putting it where their mouth supposedly is under their helmet as they reach behind to grab their scythe.
For Death will come to retrieve it and you.
~•~•~
Inktober 2 - Shatter
What does it take for one to shatter their sense of self?
Melpomene has seen it happen, watched it even.
The Blights were never the luckiest of Magi, blessed with the death goddess’s gifts and power. A hellish one that is. It acts more of a curse than anything good. Who would want to be tormented by the restless every waking day? Wake up and see a wallowing soul in your corner trying to get your attention. You can hear them, feel them, listen to them wail on for hours, and hours with no end. Now, imagine that in an infested city full of them. There are those who are angry, yelling and shouting about the injustice they received in their past life while holding a form so mangled and disfigured. Twisted heads. Bones poking out from skin. Spilling organs. Torn limbs that hang from only a few muscle strings, exposing the innards underneath.
It won’t be long until they snap underneath it all.
Casimir is one of those many unlucky fews in the family.
Paranoia and a panic disorder terrorizes him in his every waking day, leaving him a trembling and panicked mess.
He’s the eldest of the Blight’s main branch children, next would be his younger brother Anatole, then the youngest Cynthia. She too would be stricken with a panic disorder, though not as bad as Casimir’s. Anatole is the only sane one amongst his siblings, if you want to call it that.
Casimir wasn’t like this before.
Many assume it was the family madness finally catching up to him.
Melpomene knows it’s just more than that.
She didn’t come into Casimir’s room one night to see him huddled in a corner, trembling in fear, and crying his eyes out until blood came out just to call it madness.
There is more.
There has to be more.
It’s morning again.
Out in the garden of the Blight estate.
Melpomene stands beside Casimir, his long, spindly fingers fiddling with the ends of the shawl wrapped around his hunched form. Casimir was never the one for good posture, always preferring to appear smaller than his height grants him to. His burgundy hair is unruly now, no more is it tied back into a neat half ponytail. Gray eyes, wide and alert, darting around in a diligent, anxious manner. The wiry glasses on his face are bent in an odd angle, one of the lenses cracked in the middle.
He refuses to get new ones.
Keeps the spirits away, he told her when she asked.
“Mel,” the Familiar looks up at her Magus, who now focuses on a bed of spider lilies, “do you still believe what I’ve told you on that night?”
How could she forget that night?
Him on his knees, blood tears running down his cool beige face, hands tightly gripping at the skirt of her dress.
Then there’s the mutterings.
Something incoherent. Something understandable. Something beyond mortal comprehension.
“Nothing but pawns of blood and flesh in their sick game.” Casimir utters to her on that fateful night. “We were made just for a game no one can win. Not you. Not me. Not any other being on this damned planet. We will rot here for all eternity while we rest our fate on a damned child, forced to relive every hell brought upon us, over, and over, and over, and over—”
Melpomene lets in a breath, looking now at the current Casimir beside her in the garden.
“Of course.” Was all she said to him, hand reaching over to gently hold his own.
Has her sense of self shattered as well for indulging in whatever horrors her Magus has fallen to?
Perhaps. She’s not sure, and she rather not know.
If he’s going to the abyss of his own making, then she too will follow.
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Happy Birthday Wei Ying!
For his birthday, I want all the Wwxs to meet.
Child wei ying, first disciple wei wuxian, the yiling partriarch, the ressurected.
It’ll be confusing first, don’t you think?
15 y/o wwx would be sooo confused: why are you so skinny? And why is the future us shorter than you?
Mxy!wwx: is the height the only thing you noticed?
Baby wei yimg would be just there, silently watching his counterparts speak over each other with a cute little absent expression.
And yllz!wwx would be drinking the hell out of those wine jars mxy!wwx has in the jingshi
Yllz!wwx: we’re we always this scraggly?
15 y/o wwx: you’re one to talk! You look like a skeleton!
It’s all so chaotic and fun at the same time. Sure, if any sane person saw this scene it would sound insane. To enjoy the company of yourself? Insanity.
Both yllz!wwx and mxy!wwx envy the joy their younger self still has, the light in his eyes that they can never recover again. They indulge in this little temporary space they’ve made for themselves in this world, knowing that it won’t last forever.
They care for baby wei yimg like they do with a-yuan, they make him smile, break him out of his wary instinct.
15 y/o wwx tells him tales of his new home, the rivers and lakes, lotuses, the kind people. While the older two listen in with pained smiles, one more than the other.
“You’ll meet the most beautiful and kindest shijie ever.” Their teenage self would say.
Baby wei yimg would smile, comforted by the fact that someday, he would have a home, would have someone to love him and care for him.
Both young wwxs wouldn’t notice how yllz!wwx’s face curls in longing, and how mxy!wwx would flinch.
It’s painful, it’s the truth, it’s something they both ran away from.
“I miss her.” Yllz!wwx would admit, “It’s been a few months since I saw her. Heard she had a kid.”
While mxy!wwx would say nothing.
“Her kid’s name is Jin Ling.” He would whisper, “He’s just like his uncle.”
15 y/o wwx would joke that, jc would be a sour looking uncle. “So she really married the peacock?”
“Speaking of children. How’s a-yuan?” Yllz!wwx asks.
Then, mxy!wwx would go on and on about how good he’s been, how much he has grown, what his courtesy was, all with a fond smile.
“Aiya, he really acts so much like Lan Zhan.”
And then they all promptly discover that mxy!wwx is actually married to lan wangji.
“Eh?! That fuddy-duddy?!” 15 y/o wwx sputters, face red.
“We-we went back to gusu with him?” Yllz!wwx mutters, a bit hopeful.
“He’s patient with me, he understands and he wait. You have no idea how much Lan Zhan loves us.”
Mxy!wwx says. “I can’t imagine living a life where he isn’t a part of it.”
“That’s why.” He points accusingly towards both of them. “You both better suck it up, and treat him better for god’s sake!”
“Hah?!” “Stop shamelessly disrespecting him you young fool! And you!” He points to yllz!wwx.
“Hear him out.” he says softly, “Gusu isn’t meant to be a prison, he wants to protect you.”
And when it’s all settled down, and they’re back to chattering chaotically once more. A small, shy yet bright giggle blooms from between them.
Baby wei yimg looks at all of them with a satisfied smile, so young and childish, so innocent and free.
“I’m really happy we have a home!” He says with a smile.
A fond huff from all of them, and soft smiles.
A home, was Lotus Pier,
And even if it was on borrowed time. A home, was with refuges who only had each other, till the end of their lives.
And now. A home was with the clouds.
“Yeah.” Wei Wuxian says to himself.
“I’m glad we had a home.”
And he wakes up, birds chirping and sun light seeping through the windows.
“Happy Birthday, Wei Ying.” His husband greets him fondly.
This is home.
#mdzs#mdzs au#wei wuxian#wei ying#yllz wei wuxian#head disciple wei wuxian#wei wuxian day#birthday special#this isn’t my normal type of thing#but it’s a special case#happyy birthday to wei ying
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